3drenderings/iStock/Thinkstock(KANSAS CITY, Mo.) -- A man is facing murder charges in connection to the deaths of two women over the past decade.



The suspect, Kylr Yust, allegedly told acquaintances he "just snapped" when killing 17-year-old Kara Kopetsky, his ex-girlfriend, in 2007, according to documents filed Thursday. Days before Kopetsky vanished in Kansas City in May of that year, she filed a protective order against Yust, according to police reports. In her protective order, Kopetsky wrote Yust had kidnapped, restrained and choked her. She wrote she was unsure of what [Yust] will do next because the abuse has gotten worse over time. But for years, her remains went unfound and an arrest eluded police.



Then, this April, Kopetsky's remains -- and those of another woman -- were found in a rural area south of Kansas City. The second remains belonged to Jessica Runions, 21, another local young woman, who disappeared last year.



Runions was reported missing by her mother and boyfriend on the night of Sept. 9, 2016. Early in the morning on Sept. 10, Runions' car was found burned in a desolate, wooded area, police said. But Runions was nowhere to be found.



Runions' family says friends told them Runions was last seen giving Yust -- her boyfriends longtime friend -- a ride home from a party.



After police found the vehicle, Yust was arrested, accused of setting Runions' car on fire. He was charged with knowingly burning a vehicle and pleaded not guilty.



Since Runions' disappearance, her family and Kopetsky's grew close, leaning on each other for support as they searched for their missing daughters, drawn together by their girls' connection to Yust.



But Yust was not accused of killing either victim -- until this week.



Yust is now charged with two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of abandonment of a corpse, according to documents filed in Cass County court on Thursday, which include a probable cause statement.



Here is what we know about his alleged involvement in the girls' deaths, according to the probable cause statement:



Kopetsky



In April 2007, Kopetsky told police she had recently ended her relationship with Yust, and as she was leaving her job, he allegedly kidnapped her, forcing her into his car; Kopetsky said he drove around and eventually let her out.



After Kopetsky went missing that May, Yust allegedly told police he didn't have any contact with her the day she went missing. But Kopetsky's phone records reveal Yust wasn't truthful about the last time he had contact with her: It's alleged Yust called her May 4 at 9:20 a.m., one minute after she left her high school; she was last seen alive on surveillance footage at 9:19 a.m.



In 2010, a man who had been roommates with Yust the year Kopetsky vanished told police that in 2009, Yust told him that he was angry with Kopetsky because he didn't want her to love someone else. Yust allegedly told the roommate he "just snapped, and that something bad happened to the victim."



In 2011, someone identified in the statement as "KF" told law enforcement that Yust confessed to choking Kopetsky to death, watching her breathe her last breath and falling back against a chair, staring at her body for a short time before packing her up and depositing her in the woods.



In 2016, a roommate of Yust's told police that several years earlier, Yust had said he choked someone to death and no one would find the body unless he told them where it was.



In 2016, a cellmate of Yust's -- while Yust was jailed on federal drug charges -- told authorities that Yust allegedly admitted to killing "the victim by strangulation" and disposing of her body.



Runions



Witnesses said the night Runions disappeared, Yust was possessive toward Runions and the two were arguing.



Someone identified as "JC" told police in 2016 that "Yust told him that he strangled and killed" Runions and dragged her body into a wooded area. JC claimed Yust wanted help with burning her car and that he was with Yust when Yust set her car on fire.



Yust's attorney, Molly Hastings, did not immediately respond to ABC News' request for comment.



The charge of "knowingly burning" a vehicle in Jackson County has been dismissed and Yust was expected to be transferred to Cass County this afternoon; Cass County court said Yust's court date will not be set until he arrives in Cass County.



Jessica Runions' mother, Jamie Runions, told ABC News: "I just want honorable justice for my daughter and for her to be respected." Kopetsky's mother did not immediately respond to ABC News' request for comment.





Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
Opinion / Columnist

It became clear to some of us a long time ago that Mrs Grace Mugabe would become the next President of Zimbabwe while her husband Robert Mugabe shall retain the Presidency of Zanu-PF indefinitely. It is unfortunate that many failed to see the picture in time as they were blinded by Morgan Tsvangirai euphoria to defeat President Robert Mugabe in farce elections and later Joice Mujuru misconstrued elevation and subsequent expulsion from the Vice-Presidency and the not so distant "regretable appointment of Emmerson Mnangagwa to the Vice Presidency". The Zimbabwean media is busy churning out many misleading and confusing stories tipping several individuals to succeed Robert Mugabe without explaining how such individuals would make it to the top.The following illustrations will show that those tipped or suggested using rational and academic deductions have never been successful before.It is not unknown that Anderson Mazoka in Zambia was tipped to take over from President Frederick Chiluba and was even declared a winner at midday by the European Union electoral observers and broadcast as breaking news in BBC, CNN, SKY News and et al before the last results from the 3 constituencies were received and verified by the Zambia Electoral Commission.When the the last results were received and verified by Zambia s Electoral Commission, Anderson Mazoka lost the elections by 1% to President Levy Mwanawasa but managed to beat Lt General Christon Tembo by 1%.In neighbouring Malawi, Gwanda Chakuamba and Chifuka Chihana were both tipped on different occasions to succeed the dictator President Wamuyaya, the Ngwazi, Kamuzu Banda and were always in the news on BBC Focus on Africa and almost everyone believed that one of them would succeed to take power from President Banda following the tip, only to be shocked when the unknown Bakili Muluzu emerged as the successor. Even John Tembo who was very close to President Banda failed to take power despite using massive state resources which Bakili Muluzu had no access to.In Zaire, Ettienne Tshisekedi was also tipped to take over and there was no news about the future of Zaire without mention his name in the international media.All the people who matter and influenced events in the world consulted him and was viewed as the naturally successor to Mobuto Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu Wa Za Banga. When the change finally came, people were shocked to learn that the little known Desire Kabila who was running some brothels in Uganda had overthrown President Mobuto to become the President of Zaire. Ettienee Tshisekedi would soon be forgotten after Desire Kabila was assassinated and replaced by the young 29year old Joseph Kabila who is in power even to date.In Angola, Dr Jonas Savimbi was the real man who at one time controlled 80% of the country and was considered the de-facto leader of Angola. He could meet the American President Ronald Reagan who would describe him as" very close friend of America " and later President George H.W. Bush who would describe him as '" our most trusted friend in Africa " to secure support to make the final push to take Luanda. The children of Jonas Savimbi are being taken care of by the powerful Bush family in America. Dr Jonas Savimbi never managed to take power from Jose dos Santos despite massive financial and military support from the Americans.The American Point ManThe then American point men, the euphemism for puppets in Southern Africa, Mobuto Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu Wa Za Banga of Zaire and Cde Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe would play a surreptitious but leading role to support Dr Jonas Savimbi to militarily overthrow the Angola government of Jose Dos Santos and facilitate the movement of logistics from the west to Unita in Angola.Besides, Cde Robert Mugabe had another agreement with apartheid South African government to refuse Anc uMkhonto we Sizwe military bases in Zimbabwe. He would only pay lip service.Yes ! Cde Robert Mugabe was a puppet of the west. He did not even win Zimbabwe s elections in 1980 but given power in a silver platter by the British government. Little wonder the Americans paid little attention to Matebele genocide perpetrated by their puppet President Cde Robert Mugabe between 1981 and 1987.Has anyone wondered why Cde Robert Mugabe known for traveling to attend trivial meetings and seeking attention around the world has never visited Angola or paid a State visit to Angola let alone to attend the inauguration of the third President of Angola Joao Lourencos recently in Luanda.? Is it not curious ? Yes ! Cde Robert Mugabe has never visited Angola after taking power in Zimbabwe and is the only country in the SADC where he has never set his foot since he came to power in 1980. Angola has never forgiven him for being a puppet of the west and supporting Jonas Savimbi s Unita to overthrow the MPLA government in Luanda.The Three Major Future EventsDuring 2002 Presidential elections where I was a candidate, I became friends with Morgan Richard Tsvangirai. In one of our tete a tet meetings I questioned him if he was aware of three major future events that would happen in the country to which he replied in the negative.I told him that he would not become the President of Zimbabwe never mind the people backing him and the amount of money thrown around besides making it public knowledge during my many speeches in the campaign trail and many MDC supporters were very, very angry with me. He did not not believe me by then.Secondly, I told him that President Robert Mugabe s departure from office shall be marked by unanticipated country wide violence , eliminations and disappearance of influential and prominent politicians and military officers, massive detentions of politicians both from Zanupf and opposition including some from the military with some fleeing into exile.There would be mass murders in urban areas and that Robert Mugabe will not be buried at National Heroes Acre in Harare. Many Zanupf functionaries would also be very , very angry with me as well but who cares, as their anger would not change anything. I know they would not believe me now, only time would tell.Thirdly, I told him that the fate of Zimbabwe was between M.L.O and Zanupf and I made this public knowledge many times before I was pushed into exile. Those in doubt should check my previous press statements.I would not give further details to this apart from confirming that President Robert Mugabe has been served with " The Notice For The Restoration of Matebeleland State " and he acknowledged it and so are the Heads of State and Government in the SADC countries.The Birth Of The Republic of MatabelelandAfter visiting Mozambique and later Tanzania in late 1979, Robert Mugabe announced to the world that he was going to win the Zimbabwe's first farce elections in 1980 and his Zanupf party would be allocated 56 seats in the National Assembly.This shocked and surprised many but no one believed and took him serious and yet Robert Mugabe knew from the arrangement with the British that his party was going to be allocated 56 seats based on the population of Shona people and Joshua Nkomos Zapu party would be allocated 20 seats based on Matebele population and so was the irrational 20 seats given to the Rhodesian Front party representing 600 000 whites from a population of 5million in 1980.The British were embarrassed by Robert Mugabe early announcement of results before the elections and thus ended up changing the seats allocated to Zanupf to 57 and the others remaining unchanged. So , shock and surprises always happen and give ginger to life otherwise it would be dull.Remember politics is played by many but understood and known by a very minute number.Surprises are along the curve. Watch this space.The truth is that Zimbabwe is headed towards a split in the middle and give birth to The Republic of Matabeleland by 2018.No one can stop it. Interestingly, many don't even foresee the cleavage that has opened up for the birth of The Republic of Matabeleland, little wonder we pronounced the birth to be around 2018 way back in 2013.Perhaps it's nice to live to get surprises from time to time and this time cannot be an exception.So be prepared !Izenzo kungemazwi !Siyaphambili !Siyanqoba !Amandla !Paul SiwelaPresidentMatebeleland Liberation Organisation
As you told us, "Precipitation" was a print a lot of people wanted. We're extremely pleased with the success of the sale. A huge thank you to everyone who purchased a print as well as to those who helped spread the word.

Orders will begin shipping by the middle of next week, on a first-in, first-out basis. Delivery time from then will depend on distance from Philadelphia and what day you placed your order. We anticipate that all U.S. orders will be delivered by October 30th, some sooner than that, with international orders taking up to 14 days longer. Again, many will not take that long.

REMEMBER, we will replace prints that go missing or are damaged in shipping. You are covered, so not to worry. We have run many sales and we're aware that sometimes "things happen," and we know about how often they do. So Gordon Lewis will be having a number of "emergency extra" prints made to cover such "foreseen unforseeables." If a print goes missing in the mail or is damaged on arrival, we will replace it.

You can contact Gordon Lewis or you can contact me if there are any problems.

As we always do, we will announce here on TOP when the prints begin shipping, as well as when they have all been shipped.

Thanks again to you! I hope you love your print and enjoy it for many years.

Mike

UPDATE from Gordon: I would like to express sincere thanks and gratitude to all who ordered a print of Precipitation. I know all too well that there are countless things in this world of ours competing for your time and money. The fact that you would be so interested in this particular one is not something I take for granted and for which I am truly humbled. I will begin shipping the print as soon as they are ready and guarantee that if you liked it as a JPEG, you will love it as a print.

P.S. I would love to have one more print sale before Christmas but I have nothing in the pipeline. I'll keep thinking on it.

P.P.S. B&H Photo is closed for Succos right now, but yesterday when I mentioned the Sony A6500 I should have thanked B&H for the loaner. Re the Curse of the Loaner Cameras, it's rainy with leaden dull gray skies again here today...gulp!



Original contents copyright 2017 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site.

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(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)

Featured Comments from:

Brian Reitenauer: "I was traveling all week and got home Friday night. I ordered the print and for fun, checked the time stamp on the PayPal email...9:59:57!!! Now that's close! Big fan of your writing and thanks for the print sales."
[UPDATE: Sale ended 10/6/17 at 10 p.m. Thanks to everyone who participated, and anyone who helped! Ed.]

Today is the last day of Gordon's print sale, and I was wondering if you might volunteer to help spread the wordmention it on a forum you visit, another website, Facebook, your Twitter feed, or anywhere else you go to "virtually congregate" with other people who might like to know. No need to go to great lengths, just one mention somewhere would be enough. If enough people do it it should really help.

Here's a short URL:

https://tinyurl.com/ycsv689h

And feel free to grab the JPEG image from the post if you want to.

'Twould be a mighty favor, and greatly appreciated.

Sweet success

I'm happy to report that "Precipitation" is making it rain (ha!). With maybe six hours to go it's already one of our most popular sales of recent years. It has greatly outstripped the number sold the first time around, back in 2009.

Orders close at 10 p.m. Eastern Time tonight! Last hours. I'll leave it open a few minutes after that for stragglers, but, honest, we don't take orders after the close. Once the doors shut, they're locked. Remember there's no extra charge for International shipping.

Thanks!

Mike

P.S. Oh, and look what's sitting on my charging platform halfway down the basement stairs, sipping power that it may come alivethat thing that looks sorta like camera albeit sorta not.

Of course, the tradition is that as soon as a loaner camera gets here, the weather gets cruddy and remorselessly stays that way for the duration of the loan period. And sure enough, today was also the first gray day we've had in two weeksthe weather had been just otherworldly, really lovely. But I've got the camera for 30 days, and it can't stay gray for 30 days.

So we'll be having some fun next week.

It can't stay gray for 30 days, can it? I have to confess, I'm a little worried.

Original contents copyright 2017 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site.

(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)

Featured Comments from:

No featured comments yetplease check back soon!
CARBONDALE  In about two weeks in India, there will be huge and elaborate fireworks displays, as Hindus and others celebrate Diwali, a holiday known as a "festival of lights."

Thousands of miles away here in Southern Illinois, there will also be celebrations, albeit much more modest, at the Hindu Temple and Cultural Society of Southern Illinois in Carbondale.

Diwali is a holiday that celebrates the triumph of good over evil, according to one local adherent. It's a lesser-known holiday among those in American society, that believer said.

In India, its a holiday. Out here, its not, said Pradeep Reddy, a Board of Trustee member for the temple. "So out here, people probably outside of the Hindu community have very little information on it.

Reddy and fellow Hindu believers are inviting the community to learn more about this holiday at a special Diwali Cultural Celebration at 6 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 14, at the Carbondale Civic Center. The event is free and open to the public.

The event will kick off local Diwali celebrations, which include prayers at the temple in Carbondale from about 5 to 8 p.m. Oct. 14 to 21, with one of its two priests.

Diwali is Thursday, Oct. 19.

The Hindu community plans to celebrate Diwali on Wednesday, the day before the acknowledged celebratory day, at the temple in Carbondale. Participants will have handheld fireworks, in lieu of any large scale fireworks displays. The community plans another Diwali celebration on Saturday, Oct. 21, at the temple, 1209 E. Walnut St. in Carbondale.

Small community to celebrate big day

Diwali, which is also known as Deepavali, is known as the "festival of lights," according to the DiwaliFestival.org website. It stems from more than one story, one, from northern India, celebrating the return of Lord Rama from an exile of 12 years. In another story, this one from southern India, celebrates Goddess Gurga's triumph over the evil demon Narakasura, according to the website.

This win, according to the website, ushered in the "light of knowledge and truth to mankind."

Celebrants observe the festival by lighting special lamps, known as diyas, decorating the house and setting off firecrackers and celebrating with loved ones in a special meal, according to the site.

Diwali is also celebrated by Sikhs and Jains, two other religious groups with roots in India, Reddy said.

The celebration locally

In the Carbondale area, there are about 100 people who identify themselves as Hindu, Reddy said.

Reddy expects about 200 Hindus from throughout the region will attend a special Diwali celebration at the temple on Wednesday, as it is during the week, and expects about 400 for the Saturday, Oct. 21, celebration.

While Hindus in Carbondale might have wanted to have fireworks celebrations, the cost was too prohibitive and the other planning "a logistical nightmare," with securing permits and paying for extra fire and police protection, Reddy said.

But, he noted, the event is open to the public.

"There is no requirement (to be Hindu to participate)," he said. "Anyone can participate in that."
Hurricane Nate made US landfall Saturday night as a Category 1 storm near the mouth of the Mississippi River in southeast Louisiana, the National Hurricane Center said in its latest advisory on the storm.

A second landfall is likely on the Mississippi coast in a few hours after the eye of the storm passes over the Chandeleur Sound.

The hurricane center said Nate has maximum sustained winds of 85 mph.

Rains had already soaked coastal Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi much of Saturday. As the storm approached the Gulf Coast, officials in Louisiana and other states implored residents to finish their storm preparations and get inside.

New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu told residents Saturday evening to wrap up what they were doing and move to a safe place.

"We're in the fight now. The storm is on us," Landrieu told his city of some 400,000 people -- 440,000 when you count the tourists this weekend.

The mayor told them to keep an eye on the latest developments, but to remember that a Category 1 or 2 hurricane is still very powerful.

"It's gonna to hit you hard, it's gonna to hit you fast," Landrieu said.

Landrieu said he visited the city's drainage pumps facilities and was pleased with the conditions.

He was not pleased that some in the low-lying city were having hurricane parties.

"That troubles me," he said.

Mississippi braces

Jackson County in coastal Mississippi has enacted a curfew that begins at 7 p.m. CT (8 p.m. ET), several hours before the powerful northeastern side of the core is expected.

Gov. Phil Bryant urged county residents to head north away from the Gulf but there was no mandatory evacuation.

Bryant declared a state of emergency for six counties and any others that might be affected by Nate, the state's emergency management agency said.

In Biloxi, Mayor Andrew Gilich was especially concerned about storm surge.

"The storm surge is a big thing that really traps everyone," he told CNN.

Gilich said he hopes Nate's direction and predicted speed "ease the blow."

The National Weather Service said: "Wind and rain impacts will be confined to southeast Mississippi with the greatest impacts along the Interstate 59 corridor and coastal areas."

Nate races toward land

New Orleans will be on the west side of the storm, forecasters said, but the worst conditions there will last until early Sunday.

Nate once was almost as fast as an Olympic sprinter, but began to lose speed as it made contact with the Gulf Coast.

Hurricane warnings were in effect from Grand Isle, Louisiana, east to the Alabama-Florida border. Storm surge warnings included the coast from Grand Isle to the Okaloosa/Walton county line in Florida and the northern and western shores of Lake Pontchartrain.

Evacuation orders were in place outside levees in New Orleans and Plaquemines Parish, and along the Mississippi, Alabama and Florida coasts. President Trump on Friday declared an emergency in Louisiana ahead of Nate and ordered federal assistance.

In Mississippi, a dozen casinos, including the Beau Rivage and the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Biloxi, took the rare step of closing early as the storm moved in.

Strong winds expected

The storm's reach will be wide, CNN meteorologist Chad Myers said, with strong winds affecting population centers from New Orleans to Panama City, Florida. Biloxi could experience gusts of 100 mph.

Nate was expected to knock down power lines and trees from Lake Charles, Louisiana, to the Florida Panhandle and possibly leave at least 1 million people without electricity.

"Preparations to protect life and property should be rushed to completion in these areas, as tropical storm conditions will first arrive in the warning area this afternoon," the hurricane center warned Saturday morning.

Nate could drop 3 to 6 inches of rain, with 10 inches possible in some areas, from the central Gulf Coast north across the Deep South, the eastern Tennessee Valley and the southern Appalachians through Monday, the hurricane center said. Flash flooding is a danger.

"Once it hits land, it looks like it's going to be very quick to move out of the area and then weaken," CNN meteorologist Jennifer Varian said.

New Orleans braces for impact

Nate would be the third hurricane to hit the US mainland in six weeks, after Hurricanes Harvey and Irma killed dozens of people and destroyed thousands of properties.

The storm has already carved a path of devastation in Central America. At least 28 people were killed Thursday in Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Honduras. Hundreds were rescued from floodwaters and mudslides. Many lost power and running water.

Landrieu already had ordered a mandatory evacuation of the Venetian Isles, Lake Catherine and Irish Bayou areas, which are low-lying or outside the federal hurricane-protection system that underwent a $14 billion overhaul after Katrina. He also had declared a state of emergency.

Anticipating the storm and overnight flooding, Landrieu on Saturday reiterated a mandatory curfew due to start that night at 8 ET and to end when the storm passes. At least 1,800 workers were on standby to reconnect power, if needed, he said.

First responders, sewer workers and residents also prepared for flooding, mindful of summer rains that exposed deficiencies in the city's unique drainage pumping system.

Of the city's 120 main drainage pumps, three major and eight smaller ones were offline Friday night, city records show. Also, all 24 major pump stations had backup generators, records show, as only three of five turbines that help power the city's oldest, most powerful pumps were available for service, a city water utility spokeswoman told CNN.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency for all of Louisiana on Thursday and mobilized 1,300 National Guard troops, including some to help monitor New Orleans' drainage equipment, he said.

Storm surge feared along Gulf Coast

In Alabama, the Port of Mobile closed Saturday, meaning the Carnival Fantasy cruise ship would not be "making its scheduled call" there Sunday, the Mobile Alabama Cruise Terminal said.

The Bankhead Tunnel, a major downtown thoroughfare that passes under the Mobile River, was closed because of the hurricane, emergency officials and a reporter with CNN affiliate WPMI tweeted.

In Mobile, city workers checked storm drains for debris, took measures to avert power outages and deployed critical equipment.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott, who had declared a state of emergency in 29 counties, said Saturday that evacuation orders were in effect Escambia and Santa Rosa counties, with shelters open for those seeking higher ground.

"This is not the time to be complacent -- do not risk your life or the life of your loved ones," he said in a statement. "Even if your home is not in the direct path of this hurricane, everyone in the Panhandle should be ready to follow your emergency plan and stay vigilant to weather alerts and updates from local officials."

CNN's Carma Hassan, Nicole Chavez, Joe Sutton, Judson Jones, Sheena Jones, Siomara Germain, Natalie Gallon, Samantha Lugo and Brandon Miller contributed to this report.
Opinion / Columnist

"Kwawabva kanda huyo, kwaunoenda kanda huyo!" (Before you leave, make friends where you are and where you are going!) So, goes the Shona adage. President Mugabe, in his arrogance, was very dismissive of SADC and now he is the one running to the regional grouping for protection!"We are being threatened night and day that if a particular person does not become president we will be killed," said Grace Mugabe."We will not bow to that pressure. They say there will be a coup, but no-one will recognise you. The African Union will not recognise you, the SADC [Southern African Development Community] will not."This is laughable because in June 2013 SADC asked Zimbabwe to postpone its elections until the democratic reforms, to ensure free, fair and credible elections, are implemented. Of course, Mugabe did not want any reforms implemented because he would never win free and fair elections. He was adamant the elections must go ahead with no reforms even if that meant taking Zimbabwe out of SADC; just as he had taken the country out of the Commonwealth over the issue."In 2013 the Maputo Summit, in June 2013, before the elections, the Maputo Summit was all about having the elections postponed  the SADC summit. I went there," Dr Ibbo Mandaza explained to Violet Gonda in one of her Hot Seat interviews."I was there at the Summit and Mugabe pretended to agree to a postponement of the elections. If you recall, the postponement was based on the need to reform at least electoral laws."And after that Summit, Morgan Tsvangirai, Tendai Biti, Welshman Ncube, all of them were called to a separate meeting by the Heads of State of SADC in the absence of Mugabe, that same evening. And they were told; I was sitting there outside the room with Mac Maharaj; they were told if you go into elections next month, you are going to lose; the elections are done'."And we came back on a Sunday and that Monday we had a SAPES Policy Dialogue to discuss the Summit and lo and behold, whilst we were discussing it, the court papers arrived calling the MDC to court to show reason why the elections should be postponed. Mugabe had done a volte-face against the decision of the Summit."Mugabe went on TV and threatened to leave SADC  who is SADC, we can leave SADC anyway'. And so, under some pretext of a court application by Jealousy Mawarire, which others claim was really a ZANU PF ploy, the elections were held."The full interview with Mandaza is available at www.violetgonda.com.President Mugabe is pedantic to the point of being a paranoid about rules, procedures, institutions, etc. but only when they save his selfish purpose. He has disowned them with contempt the minute they get in his way.The July 2013 elections went ahead in total disregard of the SADC leaders' recommendations and yet Mugabe wanted the same leaders to endorse the results as free and fair even though he had blatantly rigged the vote. Botswana refused to do so and demanded that the process must be audited. President Mugabe has grudgingly ignored Botswana's concerns and pretended SADC gave the process a resounding endorsement. And has ever since claimed he has the democratic mandate of the people of Zimbabwe. Of course, those in Zanu PF who helped him rig the elections know this is a lie!Zimbabwe has fresh elections coming up next year and President Mugabe is now caught between the rock and the deep blue sea; should he defy SADC leaders again and hold elections with no reforms, there is no doubt that there will be more countries joining Botswana is demanding the process be audited. Or should he implement the reforms and face certain electoral humiliation?It is too late now to accept implementing the reforms and yet going ahead and have another rigged elections puts him in the double jeopardy of SADC leaders refusing to accept the result and/or his cronies in the party using the rigged elections as the excuse to stage their coup. SADC leaders do not want another rigged elections but they will not consider a coup the solution either. If anything, the threat of a coup should set alarm bells ringing because this will make a bad situation even worse.Now that there are threats of military coup against his continued tyrannical rule, Mugabe is calling on SADC to act as if he has always held the regional grouping in the highest regard and his own record in holding free and fair democratic elections is impeccable. No one is fooled, much less SADC leaders.Zimbabwe's never ending political crisis is the root cause of the country's economic meltdown which has forced unemployment to soar to dizzying heights of 90% and left 72.3% of the population living on US$ 1.00 or less a day. Zimbabwe is on a knife edge and another rigged election next year could send the country tumbling down into the political abyss.There has been an exodus of economic and political refugees out of Zimbabwe in the last decade. A military coup will turn the exodus into a flood!Zimbabwe crisis has left the country sitting on a knife edge and another rigged election next year could be the final push that send the country tumbling down into the economic and political abyss. SADC leaders have the opportunity to act decisively now and remind President Mugabe and his regime that they must implement the democratic reforms necessary for free, fair and credible election BEFORE holding next year's elections.Zimbabwe cannot afford another rigged election; there the risk of worsening economic meltdown, political instability and now a military coup, there is just too much at stake to allow another foolish gamble!
DENMARK -- Voorhees College is welcoming a new director of admissions, a director of library services and a director of sponsored programs to the Tiger Family.

Herman Skip Mason Jr., the new director of library services, is responsible for supporting students academic study needs, updating electronic databases, building and digitizing archives and designing the Voorhees College Historical Museum. In addition, he will be creating a modern look to the facility, where students can engage in the library experience.

Mason said the library has been dubbed The Beehive, a place where intellectual minds can gather.

Soon the library will become a common area for students to study, form book clubs, create literary cafes, participate in spoken word and meet renowned authors. We have work to do, and I am here to help create a positive change, he said.

Mason earned a bachelors degree in mass communication from Morris Brown College. He earned a masters degree in library and information science from Atlanta University (present-day Clark Atlanta University) and in divinity from the Interdenominational Theological Center. He is a member of the African-American Family History Association Inc., American Library Association, Black Caucus of Library Association and Metro Atlanta affiliate of the National Black Child.

Wilhelmenia Lee, the new director of sponsored programs, will be responsible for growing the institutions funding portfolio through grants, contracts and other services. In addition, Lee will assist senior administrators and principal investigators with issues related to externally-sponsored research activities and affiliated contractual requirements.

Prior to serving as the director of sponsored programs, she served as the director of food services for the cafeteria at Voorhees.

I have been employed at the institution for three years now, and I am eager to address some of the funding challenges that exist. Re-imagining Voorhees College as a different school of thought takes commitment and hard work, which I am ready, Lee said.

She earned a bachelors degree in organizational management and a masters degree in business administration from Claflin University. Lee is a seasoned sponsored programs and research development specialist with more than 10 years of experience.

She is a member of the American Public Health Association, Health Law Special Interest Group, National Council of University Research Administrators and CBPHC Presentations and Publications Workgroup.

LaSandra Robinson, the new director of admissions, is charged with strengthening recruitment initiatives, networking with alumni for external opportunities and increasing brand awareness to potential students. In addition, she will be working closely with the admissions team to participate at more career fairs and education events.

Voorhees College has a rich legacy as an HBCU founded by an African-American woman. Voorhees prepares stellar students to go out into the world after graduation with the tools, resources and knowledge to compete in this global society," Robinson said. "I want to be a part of the culture of recruiting those stellar students."

She earned a bachelors degree in psychology and a masters degree in school counseling from South Carolina State University.

For more information, contact Megan Freeman, director of communications, at 803-780-1191 or at mfreeman@voorhees.edu.
United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. ENRIQUE VINALES, Defendant-Appellant. No. 16-17660 Decided: October 05, 2017

Before TJOFLAT, WILLAM PRYOR, and ANDERSON, Circuit Judges.

Enrique Vinales appeals his 150-month total sentence, imposed at the high-end of the applicable guidelines range, at resentencing. On appeal, Vinales argues that his sentence was substantively unreasonable because, by not considering his post-sentencing rehabilitation, the district court failed to adequately consider the 18 U.S.C.  3553(a) factors under the totality of the circumstances, and sentenced him as he stood before the court on the day of sentencing rather than resentencing.

We review a district court's final sentence for reasonableness. United States v. Winingear, 422 F.3d 1241, 124445 (11th Cir. 2005). Reasonableness review is similar to a deferential abuse of discretion standard. Gall v. United States, 552 U.S. 38, 41 (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)(2), including the need to reflect the seriousness of the offense, promote respect for the law, provide just punishment for the offense, deter criminal conduct, and protect the public from the defendant's future criminal conduct. 18 U.S.C.  3553(a)(2). In imposing a particular sentence, the court must also consider the nature and circumstances of the offense, the history and characteristics of the defendant, the kinds of sentences available, the need to avoid unwarranted sentencing disparities, and the need to provide restitution to victims. 18 U.S.C.  3553(a)(1), (3)(7). The Supreme Court has held that a defendant's rehabilitation following his prior sentencing is relevant to the district court's inquiry; however, the Court emphasized that the district court is not required to reduce a defendant's sentence based upon a showing of post-sentencing rehabilitation. Pepper v. United States, 562 U.S. 476, 490, 505 n.17 (2011).

In reviewing the reasonableness of a sentence, we follow a two-step process. First, we ensure that the sentence was procedurally reasonable. Gall, 552 U.S. at 51. Second, we examine whether the sentence was substantively reasonable in light of the totality of the circumstances. Id. A sentence is substantively reasonable if, under a totality of the circumstances, it achieves the purposes of  3553(a). United States v. Pugh, 515 F.3d 1179, 1191 (11th Cir. 2008). The party challenging the sentence bears the burden to show it is unreasonable in light of the record and the  3553(a) factors. United States v. Tome, 611 F.3d 1371, 1378 (11th Cir. 2010). We ordinarily expect that a sentence within the guidelines range is reasonable. United States v. Hunt, 526 F.3d 739, 746 (11th Cir. 2008). A sentence well below the statutory maximum is also indicative of reasonableness. United States v. Dougherty, 754 F.3d 1353, 1362 (11th Cir. 2014). We reverse only if left with the 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. United States v. Irey, 612 F.3d 1160, 1190 (11th Cir. 2010) (en banc) (quotation omitted).

The record illustrates that the district court imposed a substantively reasonable sentence after explicitly considering Vinales's post-sentencing rehabilitation and diminished intellectual capacity, and properly weighed those factors against the other  3553(a) factors, including Vinales's extensive criminal history involving drug trafficking and his high-level role in the underlying offense. 18 U.S.C.  3553(a); Pepper, 131 S. Ct. at 1241; Pugh, 515 F.3d at 1191. Thus, we are not left with a firm conviction that the district court committed a clear error of judgment in arriving at Vinales's 150-month sentence. Irey, 612 F.3d at 1190. Accordingly, we affirm.

AFFIRMED.

PER CURIAM:
By Azernews





By Kamila Aliyeva

Islamic Republic's automotive sector, which accounts for 10 percent of the country's GDP and 4 percent of the workforce, is the second most active industry in Iran, after its energy sector.

Irans second largest car producer - Saipa - manufactured over 285,000 vehicles during the first half of the current fiscal year (started March 20).

The figure indicates a rise by 19.8 percent compared to the same period of the preceding year, according to the company on October 4.

Saipas production plan is materialized by 95 percent, the report said.

Meanwhile, Saipa sold 273,106 cars between March 20 and September 22 bringing in 77,844 billion rials (about $2.3 billion) in revenues, according to a letter the company sent to the Supervision Office of Irans Securities and Exchange Organization, Trend reported.

Saipas output amounted to 44,000 during the sixth Iranian calendar month (March 20-Sept. 22). The company sold 51,560 vehicles, worth 15,071 billion rials in the period, according to the letter.

The Iranian manufacturers currently produce different types of vehicle, including passenger cars, 4WD, trucks, buses, minibuses, and pickup trucks.

Irans passenger car (including sedans and SUVs) output registered a rise by 20 percent during the first five months of the current fiscal year (March 20-August 21) to stand at 496,833 units.

Iran's car output reached 1.165 million units in 2016, according to the OICA. The figure indicated an 18.6-percent rise versus 2015, which is the highest output growth rate among car manufacturers in the world.

The Islamic Republic was the world's 18th biggest car manufacturer in 2016. Irans car industry is the second biggest sector in country after the energy sector, which makes more than 10 percent of GDP.

Following the JCPOA, Iranian car manufacturers reestablished cooperation with European companies, including Peugeot, Citroen and Renault. This resulted in a strong growth of nearly 151 percent for automotive sector, which ended 2016 as the top performing sector on the Tehran Stock Exchange.

Traditional export markets for Iranian automobiles include Algeria, Azerbaijan, Cameroon, Ghana, Egypt, Iraq, Pakistan, Senegal, Syria, Sudan and Venezuela.

Under Iran's major economic development plan, the country has set a goal to boost car output to three million per year by 2025, reducing unnecessary car imports. Central geographic location of the country provides significant growth potential as an export hub.
Abanos, a leading holistic interior fit-out and joinery company based in the UAE, said it has been awarded a major contract for the upcoming Art of Living Mall (Art Centre) project located on Umm Sequim road in Dubai.



The project, which boasts a 510,000-sq-ft built-up area and features hand-selected premium materials including flooring imported from Spain, is being developed by MMS Global.



Airolink, a leading UAE-based design-and-build construction conglomerate, is the main contractor of the project, while consultancy is being provided by Lacasa, an international architectural and engineering firm with office in Dubai and Qatar.



The Art of Living Mall project is scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2018, said a statement from Abanos.



The Art of Living Mall is a landmark project for Abanos, which will use state-of-the-art joinery and fit-out techniques to create stand-out features, including a contemporary organic ceiling and custom-made aluminium Mashrabiya., it stated.



On the contract win, Kamal Farah, the company director, said: "Everyone at Abanos is thrilled to win this contract  the Art of Living Mall is a milestone in our companys journey and is the result of very hard work from every single member of the team."



"Abanos has developed a name for successfully completing a large number modern projects, specialising in tailor-made solutions utilising state-of-the-art production facilities. I believe the Art of Living Mall is a great example of our reputation, capabilities and track-record in this region," she added.-TradeArabia News Service
The American University of Ras Al Khaimah (Aurak) said it has signed an agreement with Incheon National University, a key institution based in Incheon, South Korea, to promote educational and scientific co-operation.



Incheon is Auraks fourth Asian partner, alongside Konkuk University in Seoul, as well as universities in Hong Kong and Malaysia.



The MoU would be facilitated through the exchange of students and faculty, as well as collaboration in research.

Lauding the initiative, Prof Dong-Sung Cho, the president of Incheon National University, said: I look forward to a successful partnership with AURAK, especially in terms of what we can achieve through collaborative research in the future.



The newly-signed agreement also provides a basis for cultural exchange between the UAE and South Korea, as well as the possibility for even closer academic ties between the two institutions, through dual degree programs, he stated.



Aurak's president Prof Hassan Hamdan Al Alkim said: In Incheon National University we have yet another world-class academic partner, which provides our faculty and students with even more opportunities. It represents a wonderful chance to widen our cultural horizons, and we also hope to welcome our first Korean exchange students to Ras Al Khaimah."



The RAK institution already has significant ties with South Korea; in February 2016, Konkuk University, whose main campus is based in Seoul, became the universitys first Korean partner, he added.-TradeArabia News Service


King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST), represented by Badir Program for Technology Incubators and Accelerators, has launched four new technology companies, incubated by Badir, as a result of these companies' success in launching their products, attracting customers and achieving future growth requirements.

These companies were unveiled at a special ceremony held recently at Badir headquarters in Jeddah in the presence of officials of some government and private bodies and a number of Saudi experts and entrepreneurs.

The launch was possible because of the logistic and advisory support they received from Badir Program and the necessary guidance for their growth and business development in the local market.

The four companies are "Elag", which specialises in online medical technology and aims to facilitate booking of appointments in health facilities and access to medical services the soonest and at the lowest cost; "Ineed", a specialist in car rentals and connecting customers to service providers in a technical way; "Ajeer", which seeks innovative solutions in the field of home maintenance by connecting customers to the best maintenance service providers and "Tamweel", a specialist in designing and developing an electronic platform combining financing and installments applicants in the fields of cars, personal finance or mortgage finance.

Nawwaf Al Sahhaf, the chief executive of Badir Program, lauded the entrepreneurs whose projects were launched after the success they achieved in transforming their ideas into distinctive commercial technology projects.

"The launch of these companies comes within the framework of the huge efforts exerted by King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology, represented by Badir Program to present various aspects of support and care for Saudi innovators and entrepreneurs and provide an environment that motivates them to develop their ideas and turn them into technical projects," noted Al Sahhaf.

"We are very proud of the entrepreneurs' achievements in the four new companies and are extremely pleased that the founders of these companies can prove themselves as successful startups, thanks to the hard work that they have done in developing their business over the past period and reaching this important stage of developing their projects," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
Al Nahdi Medical, a Saudi retail pharmacy chain, has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Saudi Center for Patient Safety on improving and developing health care services and spread awareness on chronic diseases.



As per the memorandum, Al Nahdi will provide patient safety services through 50 educational clinics within its pharmacies, support medical convoys and purposeful campaigns while also providing space for accredited pharmacists to offer as many services as possible.



The memorandum of understanding was signed by Dr Abdullah Bin Mohammed Al Hosawi, director General of the Saudi Center for Patient Safety and Yasser Joharji, CEO of Al Nahdi Medical Company.



Joharji said: "Al Nahdi is guided by the Kingdoms Vision 2030, which includes expanding the health sector for the betterment of the community. While within our own strategy we have come a long way in achieving the goal of being an institution concerned with the safety of patients. The signing of this memorandum highlights our commitment to promote preventive medicine and medical education for all sectors of the community, including hospitals and pharmacies. It is important that all these sectors work in a tandem to prevent infectious diseases.



Dr Al-Hosawi said: "The 2030 Vision aims at improving the quality of healthcare services in the Kingdom complementing the international health standards. We will work towards reaching out to everyone in Saudi Arabia to provide extended superior care in the best possible way, not only in terms of diagnosing the disease, but also in terms of early detection, prevention and healthy practices.



With Al Nahdi we agreed to cooperate and support each other to extend better healthcare services, spread awareness about the correct use of antibiotics and improve the process of dispensing antibiotics in pharmacies.



Al Nahdi has made progress through its awareness campaigns in the pharmacies. The two parties also agreed to promote the Drug Management and Consultation Program, initiate and promote programs to review medicines for diabetes, and promote the drug education program throughout the year.



As per the memorandum, the Center will make necessary declarations and ensure the provision of agreed services within and outside the pharmacies. Al Nahdi will conduct programs for drugs management, pharmaceutical consultations; provide certificate training, in addition to provision of approvals for emergency supplies during medical trainings.  TradeArabia News Service
NetApp, the data authority in a hybrid cloud world, will be introducing its latest range of cloud and next-generation data center solutions at the 37th edition of Gitex Technology Week in Dubai.

The company is set to throw spotlight on solutions like cloud, hyper-converged infrastructure, flash, software-defined storage, and data analytics.

NetApp's presence at Gitex 2017 will serve as a key platform to present its latest innovations in data management; to network and connect with new prospects; to increase brand awareness even more and help educate partners and customers on what they require in their constant efforts to protect one of their most precious assets  their data.

It will have a stand-alone booth which will also showcase solutions with partners like Bosch, Splunk, NEC and Amazon Web Services (AWS), said the statement from the company.

Fadi Kanafani, the regional director (Middle East & Africa) said: "Our clear expectation is that this years cloud services market in the Middle East and North Africa will grow at double-digits as compared to 2016. This is in line with industry and analyst consensus for the region."

"Drivers for this growth include the constant shift to the cloud to bring in more agility to the IT infrastructure; efforts to remain competitive and focused on business growth; but also data sovereignty laws in the UAE, which stipulate where the data can be stored and that it is required to remain within the country," he noted.

"We are looking to address these issues in their entirety by positioning our portfolio of latest Data Fabric solutions that enable users unify data across the widest range of cloud and on-premises environments. After all, in a world where digital transformation tops the strategic agenda in most organizations, NetApp is the data authority for the hybrid cloud," stated Kanafani.

During the expo, the company will be highlighting the new FlexPod SF solution, which offers an ideal infrastructure for the data-intensive scale-out workloads that are critical to digital transformation.

This new solution can support enterprise and emerging architectures with precise storage capacity and performance tailored to the needs of individual tenants in multitenant environments, said Kanafani.

NetApp will also be showcasing the EF570 all-flash system, which is a 4th generation all-flash array that has been specifically designed for performance-intensive workloads.

Lastly, the NetApp E5700 series hybrid-flash system will be shown, which supports 100Gb NVMe over InfiniBand and helps accelerate performance while also increasing density with a hybrid-flash system that is perfectly suited for modern enterprise applications, he stated.

Visitors to the NetApp booth will get the chance to take a 4D rollercoaster ride. "They put on 3D glasses, and take a seat in the hydraulic chair, even augmenting the 3D experience. Every participant will receive a video of his/her ride that can be shared via social media," explained Kanafani.

Gitex, he stated, remains a key platform to deliver its overall strategy as it enables the company to increase more awareness of solutions across various audiences, which in turn, can help in growing the market share.

"The exciting five-day event will give us the key opportunity to reinforce our thought leadership in cloud and flash for the Mena region while also allowing us to interact with customers, distributors and of course the media," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
MY Communications, a UAE-based digital marketing company covering key areas of public relations, new media and advertising, has opened its new headquarters in Dubai, UAE.

The company seeks to expand its network across the GCC and North Africa, it stated.

"Our aim is to open communication channels with both government entities and private sector companies, remarked CEO Mohammed Khamis Ali Al Yammahi.

We use a strategic mix of media to promote developments and events throughout the region. Much of our focus is on digital media  particularly with the burgeoning use of different social media channels, he noted.

The companys focus is on building a communication bridge between its clients and their stakeholders, said Al Yammahi.

We are active in creating new strategies and delivering key business messages in line with the fast-paced developments of new media platforms, he noted.

According to him, there are a number of factors that set us apart.

"First is our understanding of true Emirati culture. Second is how to build and then maintain the most positive image of our clients towards the stakeholders they want to engage. Third is our specialist expertise within the government sector," he added.

MY Communications said its regional strategy was to initially build the brand in Dubai and UAE, and then spread geographically from there. There are also plans to form a dedicated public relations division.

"We are already cooperating with a number of GCC companies including Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Our next step is expansion into other Arab countries including Egypt and Jordan," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
Dubai Chamber and Expo 2020 Dubai will align during the forum being held at the emirates Madinat Jumeirah on November 1 to 2, to facilitate new channels of communication and co-operation between African and UAE business.



GBF Africa will be held under the theme Next Generation Africa and provide an ideal platform for Expo 2020 Dubai to highlight its mission, key initiatives and projects, in addition to growth opportunities that the World Expo can offer to African companies.



The forum will bring together over 1,000 top-level government and corporate decision-makers, including African heads of state, ministers and dignitaries, prominent CEOs operating globally, prominent entrepreneurs, UAE government and business leaders, and other high-level delegates.



During the Forum, Expo 2020 Dubai will showcase its Expo Learning Lab, which will be a platform to highlight the wide range of opportunities which Expo will offer to all participants from around the world.



Attendees will also have the opportunity to meet grantees from the Expo Live programme, whose projects are either based in Africa or offer creative solutions to issues that impact peoples lives across the continent.



Expo Lives flagship Impact Innovation Grant Programme has USD 100 million to back a range of projects, with 45 grantees from 30 countries winning support to date.



Hamad Buamim, the president and CEO of Dubai Chamber, described collaboration with Expo 2020 Dubai as an important development that will help pique the interest of African businesses in Dubai and Expo and demonstrate the attractive advantages that the World Expo can offer them.



Dubai Chamber has played an active role in promoting Expo 2020 Dubai during its trade missions and foreign visits, Buamim pointed out, adding that it had mobilised considerable support for the mega event among its members and the wider business community in the emirate.



The Expo 2020 Learning Lab will complement the Global Business Forum on Africa by offering delegates valuable insights into the inner-workings and objectives of the World Expo. I am looking forward to working with Expo 2020 Dubai at the event and hope that it will lead to fruitful cooperation between Africa and Dubai in the future, noted Buamim.



Manal AlBayat, the senior VP of Business Development and Integration, Expo 2020 Dubai, said: "We are excited to work with Dubai Chamber at Global Business Forum Africa to promote the wide ranging opportunities available to participants at Expo 2020 Dubai."



Expo 2020 will be a platform to encourage collaboration and engagement, and we look forward to working with African countries and their business communities to develop partnerships and success stories throughout the Expo journey, he added.



The Global Business Forum series, launched by Dubai Chamber in 2012, focuses on Africa, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and Latin America. To date, the series has hosted 10 heads of state, 74 ministers and dignitaries, and 5,400 executives, as well as a host of influential decision makers from 65 countries around the world.-TradeArabia News Service
Emirates Airline, the Airbus Foundation and the NGO Welthungerhilfe have joined forces to bring emergency shelter items from Hamburg, Germany, to the United Nations Humanitarian Response Depot (UNHRD) in Dubai, UAE.



The aircraft, which is the 98th A380 to join the airlines fleet, carried 1,020 tarpaulins and ropes required for the immediate first needs alleviation after a humanitarian crisis. The goods are among the ten most needed items in immediate humanitarian aid and will support 500 families. The tarpaulins and ropes can be used for replacing destroyed roofs, as temporary shelter in destroyed areas or even as water tanks.



Tim Clark, president, Emirates Airline said: Emirates longstanding partnership with Airbus to support humanitarian organisations in transporting goods and aid to disaster stricken areas highlights the essential role that aviation plays in addressing humanitarian emergencies and supporting relief operations. We are proud to work with the Airbus Foundation and Welthungerhilfe to ferry these important relief supplies on our 98th A380 bound for Dubai, which will reach the regions and people who need it the most.



Till Wahnbaeck, chief executive director of Welthungerhilfe emphasized: Our successful response to emergency situations relies on strong and reliable partners and professional preparation. This flight is an example how different partners can make a difference to save lives in emergency assistance.



Tom Enders, CEO of Airbus and Chairman of the Airbus Foundation said: We are very proud of our long-term partnership with Emirates supporting the humanitarian community. I would like to thank Emirates and Welthungerhilfe for making this flight possible. Continuously transporting relief goods to the UNHRD in Dubai using delivery flights is a great example of how aviation can be a real force for good.



The goodwill flight is part of the cooperation between Emirates Airline and the Airbus Foundation which was created in 2013 to utilize future A380 Emirates deliveries for transporting humanitarian aid to the UNHRD. Since the start of the cooperation 125 tonnes of goods have been transported.



The IHC is an independent, humanitarian free-zone Authority hosting a community of members comprised of UN agencies, Non Profit Organisations, Intergovernmental Organisations and Commercial Companies. Strategically located near Dubai Al Makoum International Airport, the IHC is a large-scale logistical hub for humanitarian aid response to crisis-stricken areas. It was created in 2003 and made available by the Government of the UAE.  TradeArabia News Service
Bahrain Airport Services (BAS) held a key meeting with officials of Swissport International, the world's leading provider of ground and air cargo services, to discuss the operational support being given to the kingdom for the past 12 months.

Mark Skinner and Matthias Pape, both senior VPs at Swissport International along with Christian Ruthner, senior project manager ttok part in the meeting.

BAS, which has formed a working relationship with Swissport Middle East, deployed over 100 of its professional local staff to support the Swissport operations in Saudi Arabia in assistance for the national carrier Gulf Airs operation during the Hajj season and for the Air Arabias and flydubais startup operation in Muscat.

During the meeting, Skinner thanked the BAS Chairman Salman Al Mahmeed and also the board members for their continuous support and the dedication of the BAS staff.

Al Mahmeed lauded Swissport delegation for its contribution to the project and giving the Bahraini group an opportunity to work alongside the worlds leading ground and cargo handling service provider in the aviation industry.

He offered all support to Swissport for its other future projects.-TradeArabia News Service
United States Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit. MARK WHITE, Plaintiff - Appellant, v. METROPOLITAN WASHINGTON AIRPORTS AUTHORITY, Defendant - Appellee. No. 17-1563 Decided: October 05, 2017

Before NIEMEYER and FLOYD, Circuit Judges, and HAMILTON, Senior Circuit Judge. Mark White, Appellant Pro Se. Morris Kletzkin, I, Joseph Walter Santini, FRIEDLANDER MISLER, PLLC, Washington, D.C., for Appellee.

Mark White appeals the district court's order granting Defendant's summary judgment motion on his claims, brought pursuant to the Family and Medical Leave Act, 29 U.S.C.A.  2601 to 2654 (West 2009 & Supp. 2017); the Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C.  12101 to 12213 (2012); Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C.A.  2000e to 2000e-17 (West 2012 & Supp. 2017); and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, 29 U.S.C.A.  701 to 7961 (West 2008 & Supp. 2017). We have reviewed the record and discern no reversible error. Accordingly, we affirm for the reasons stated by the district court. See White v. Metro. Wash. Airports Auth., No. 1:16-cv-00670-LMB-IDD (E.D. Va. Apr. 14, 2017 & May 5, 2017). 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

PER CURIAM:
Sharjah-based Air Arabia, a leading low-cost carrier in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region, has further strengthened its operations in Dubai with the opening of a new sales office and city terminal check-in services in the city.

The new office is located at Emaar Towers in Deira and will be open from Saturday to Thursday, 9am to 10pm.

Inaugurating the new office, Group CEO Adel Al Ali said: "We are pleased to further strengthen our services in Dubai and the UAE through the new sales office. This step underpins our commitment to continuously invest in providing our customers with value and convenience across all the countries we operate in."

The sales and city check-in office will be able to assist customers with booking flights and accessing the latest deals across Air Arabias global network., said a statement from Air Arabia.

Passengers can also use the facility to simply drop-off their bags and collect their boarding pass 24 hours prior to departure. A shuttle bus to the Sharjah International Airport airport is also available for added passenger convenience, it added.

Air Arabia currently operates flights to 130 routes across the globe from five hubs located in the Mena region.-TradeArabia News Service
Sunday night, I went to bed before the carnage began. If I had been asked  before I fell asleep  what my favorite getaway trip in the world was, I would have quickly answered, Mesquite, Las Vegas, Havasu.

For us, those three are connected.

Long before I had kids, the parents discovered southern Utah and Mesquite on their move from Boston to Orange County. They were so excited for us to discover it.

Be sure you get there before dark, because there is this river gorge with red rocks that is just spectacular, they said.

Because we were obedient newlyweds, we stopped for the night in St. George that first time, and then discovered the Virgin River gorge and Mesquite with almost nothing there in the daylight.

Now with a different travel companion, the trifecta of Mesquite, Vegas and Havasu is still my most favorite destination.

Even after last Sunday.

I awoke to the horrifying news, and immediately found out that the husband of my best friends niece had been shot. He laid on top of his wife as the shooting took place. While the party was separated and without phones for a time, all but him were uninjured.

He is a firefighter in Havasu and he will physically recover from his wounds.

Nineteen years ago on a crisp October evening, I put my children, 14 and 8, to bed in peaceful, out-of-the-spotlight Wyoming.

By the next morning, all of that had changed.

Matthew Shepard, a college kid from Casper, was lured by the promise of a ride out of a Laramie bar. His fate is sad, sad history.

I can honestly say that I was not aware of a gay population in Wyoming prior to that. Shame on me.

While the national media descended on Laramie and branded it as a place where hate happens, here at the newspaper we were in overdrive. Colleagues did the best work theyve done in my 40 years as a journalist.

Before smartphones and Twitter, we were the link to the world, sharing facts and not hysteria.

As the families of the 58 victims in Las Vegas have learned, hell is now a part of their lives. Its the same hell that Judy and Dennis Shepard have lived with every day for 19 years.

In the midst of the week, there was a personal milestone which, really, if you know me, is no small feat. The friend and I marked 16 years to the day since he picked up the phone at 3:15 on a random Tuesday, talked to me as if we had spoken daily for the 21 years that had elapsed and asked me on a date.

In the single most remarkable act of brilliance in my life, I accepted.

We will not forget what happened in Las Vegas, nor will we stay away.

We will not forget what happened to Matthew Shepard, nor will we stop seeking justice for all.

And I certainly will not forget that phone call that has added so much joy to my life for 16 years and four days.
A judge will consider whether to allow jurors to hear allegations that a former Casper doctor raped a 12-year-old boy decades ago as part of the physicians trial on sexual assault charges.

Paul Harnetty was never charged with a crime in relation to the new allegation. His attorneys argued that the allegations should not have appeared Friday in open court.

Harnetty appeared in Natrona County District Court for a hearing in which his attorneys argued additional allegations should not be allowed in the sex assault trial, saying it would prejudice potential jurors.

The prosecution argued that the laundry list of allegations it would like to use in the trial will show intent and motive on Harnettys part.

Harnetty, who is free on bond, is facing eight counts of second-degree sexual assault and two counts of third-degree sexual assault in the case. He is also facing one count of attempted possession of a controlled substance in a separate case.

Six female patients have told investigators that Harnetty, a gynecologist, touched them during physical examinations in ways that were unusual and made them feel uncomfortable. The women, who did not know each other previously, said that Harnettys exams were different from those they had experienced by other doctors. Some women said he touched their genitals without gloves while others said he rubbed them in ways that didnt seem to be part of a medical exam, according to court documents.

Unusual start

Fridays hearing began with District Court judge Thomas Sullins considering a motion by the defense to close the proceeding.

An attorney representing the Casper Star-Tribune petitioned to keep the hearing open.

John Miner, who represented Harnetty in the hearing, argued that if the hearing were allowed to be open, potential jurors would be prejudiced in the case.

Prosecutor Kevin Taheri, meanwhile, argued that the hearing should be open.

If we close this one, we really gotta close them all, Taheri said.

Sullins cited the First and Sixth Amendments to the United States Constitution in making his decision to leave the hearing open.

Defense brings evidence of motive and intent

Taheri ran down a number of allegations that were not charged in the case, saying they would show Harnetty had motive and intent in using his position of authority for sexual gratification.

Evidence of those allegations ranged from the accused rape, to allegations of improper sexual behavior toward nurses who he worked with in Georgia, to marking patients charts with smiley faces to indicate that they were attractive.

Taheri also attempted to introduce uncharged conduct alleged by the same women in Natrona County, which included Harnetty seeing a patient with alcohol on his breath and not using gloves during an exam.

Miner did not oppose the uncharged allegations from Natrona County, saying that the alleged victims should be able to tell the entirety of their stories.

The defense attorney did oppose the other allegations, most vehemently the allegation of rape.

This is not going to be a likeable person, to a jury if the rape allegation were introduced at trial, Miner said. Theyre gonna believe hes a pedophile, judge.

Sullins did not make a decision Friday on what allegations he would allow the prosecution to bring at trial, saying he would make a decision in two weeks.

Miner rose one more time to ask that Sullins issue a gag order to media present.

Sullins declined his request.

How they publish, Sullins said, is I think up to them.
Michelle Pederson was already sobbing when she reached the microphone, a short walk from where she was sitting in the back of Mills Town Council chambers.

The Casper resident and Mountain View Elementary grandparent wanted to talk about the school, wanted to tell the Council about why her daughter chose it. But she had trouble getting the words out. She apologized and told herself not to cry. She started and stopped again.

Mills Mayor Seth Coleman told her to take her time.

This just angers me, she finally said. My daughter lives across from Oregon Trail. They didnt want to go to Oregon Trail. They decided to go to Mountain View.

She started to choke up again and spoke in sentences that started and stopped.

Close-knit family. Everybody knows everybody, Pederson said. She paused, inhaled and start crying again. Ill be damned if Ill have them take our Mountain View.

Friday afternoon, a week after the Natrona County School District announced that its board was considering closing Mountain View and three Casper schools, the Mills Town Council approved a resolution opposing the shuttering of the communitys last school.

The Town of Mills wants to be clear that we have had no input or communication with the Natrona County School District on this matter, and we adamantly disagree with the recommendation to close Mountain View Elementary School, Coleman said, reading a statement from the Council.

We believe residents of our community deserve to attend neighborhood schools, he continued.

After the Council approved the motion opposing the recommendation, a handful of the dozen attendees took to the lectern to oppose the districts proposal. They asked what made a town a town, what Mills was doing to keep Mountain View open, whether Mills could form its own, independent school district.

That would be very, very difficult, the town attorney advised.

Mostly, the speakers said they had questions for the district, questions that Council members said they had themselves. No official from the school district spoke at the meeting, though spokeswoman Tanya Southerland attended.

Parent Megan Fleetwood said she didnt want to drive her kids outside of Mills, nor did she want to put them on a bus. She asked the Council if they would attend the next school board meeting on Oct. 9 to fight for Mountain View.

The board will formally vote to approve the recommendation at its meeting on Oct. 23.

I want to make sure you guys really are behind us, Fleetwood told the Council.

We are, Coleman replied.

Were fighting the same battles you are, Councilwoman Darla Ives said later.

After the meeting adjourned, Coleman said the Council had been considering their resolution for the past two days. Theyd received emails and phone calls from angry community members.

Its an asset you cant put a value on to have a school, he said.

Coleman said it wouldve been helpful if the district had been in contact with Mills. In June, Mills Elementary closed. Coleman said the Council had no inkling that was happening, either, until officials announced it last year.
GREELEY, Colo.  A former Colorado nurse accused of fondling patients while administering morphine and other pain killers has pleaded guilty.

Prosecutors with the Weld County District Attorney's Office say 45-year-old Thomas Moore pleaded guilty Friday to two counts of attempted sexual assault. A plea deal calls for 12 years in prison when he's sentenced Dec. 15.

Prosecutors say Moore touched the breasts of five female patients at a UCHealth emergency room between March 2014 and April 2015. He was arrested in Fort Collins in December 2015 for allegedly groping three patients there as well.

Moore is accused of inappropriately touching at least 10 patients across Colorado and Nebraska.

He was fired from three hospitals before his arrest, highlighting how easy it can be for nurses accused of misconduct to find work elsewhere.
BILLINGS  Montana utility regulators have approved more favorable contract terms for a proposed solar farm west of Billings, but developers still aren't sure the numbers work out.

The Public Service Commission on Thursday approved a 15-year contract for MTSUN's proposed $110 million, three-quarter square mile solar farm. Rates would be $28 or $37 per megawatt hour, depending on demand.

MTSUN appealed in July after the PSC approved a 10-year contract with rates at $20 per Mwh. States must set price and contract lengths for renewable energy projects under a federal law that encourages such projects. MTSUN wants to sell the electricity to NorthWestern Energy.

Developer Mark Klein told The Billings Gazette he's not sure the numbers pencil out, but says the company still plans to build that project.
CHEYENNE  The most surprising trend in public transportation is the renewed enthusiasm about the city bus.

There are several reasons for the resurgence, including the preferences of the millennials, the largest and most diverse generation ever.

Members of this generation, born between 1982 and 2003, are not having a love affair with the automobile as older generations have done.

They prefer walking and biking and busing to driving.

They also are not marrying young.

Because of their numbers and diversity (40 percent of millennials are mixed race) and their history of living in a time of economic uncertainty and technological advances, they are driving changes in society.

According to an American Transportation Association survey of 1,000 people in six large U.S cities, millennials like public transportation because it allows them to work as they travel and to save money. They also like it because it helps indirectly to protect the environment and lessens their individual carbon footprint, the survey found.

Most millennials favored bicycles and buses as their top choice, followed by streetcars, light rail or trollies. Driving a car came in last.

More than half said they would like to see more reliable systems in the next ten years. Those systems should be more user-friendly and should include amenities like WiFi.

The public transit people are paying attention and are redesigning their systems to accommodate an increase in the new generations of bus riders and to stem the sharp decline in ridership.

Many of their bus routes are the ones used by the streetcars the buses replaced years ago. The cities are reconfiguring their routes to provide more service to the dense-populated areas.

Because it is a small, rural state, Wyoming offers public transit service primarily in the larger cities.

Many towns, however, offer senior bus service.

The operating money comes from federal highway money, local matches, state appropriations and rider fees.

Those fees are not enough to support the transit systems, and all of them could use more money, said Rick Kaysen, executive director of the Wyoming Association of Municipalities and former mayor of Cheyenne, in an interview.

Cheyennes public transit system serves Laramie County Community College and also receives financial help from Laramie County.

Caspers system serves the city and the towns of Mills and Evansville.

Laramies transit system works in cooperation with the University of Wyoming. Wind River Transportation of Riverton offers fixed routes during weekdays for jobs, schools and Central Wyoming College for a fee of $1 per trip.

Cheyenne and Casper also offer senior citizens curb-to-curb bus service.

In Cheyenne, more young people in the 20-35 age group are riding the public buses, said Renae Jording, Cheyenne transit administrator, in an email.

The ridership overall dropped after the city raised the fee from $1 to $1.50 one way in July 2016 but is slowly increasing to average. The fee for students is $1.25; seniors pay 75 percent or get free rides.

The capital city system provides 250,000 rides per year on six routes with 143 stops, including 55 at the green sheltered bus stops.

The most popular stop is Wal Mart on Del Range Boulevard.

Many federal public transit programs require a local match, which is difficult for city and county governments with current revenues from minerals diminished.

As a result, the locals cannot request as much money as they did in the past or as much as they need.

The Legislature kicked in $1.5 million to help the locals keep their services, chiefly senior citizens buses, said Talbot Hauffe, transit program coordinator for the Wyoming Department of Transportation.

Because Wyoming is a rural state, nearly everyone has a car and drives. The people who use the transit systems are those who dont have cars or who cannot drive for some reason.

But anyone and everyone can ride the buses.

Hauffe said he thinks the general trend statewide is for increased ridership on the states public transit systems.
One of my favorite Friends episodes was titled, The One Where Joey Speaks French, which appeared 2004, in the series 10th season. It doesnt matter that more than a decade has passed  it remains a favorite.

For those who may not be familiar with the sitcom, Matt LeBlanc played Joey Tribbiani, a struggling actor. Lisa Kudrow played Phoebe Buffay.

In the episode, Phoebe helps Joey prepare for an audition by teaching him to speak French. In the scene, which never fails to make me laugh to the point of almost not breathing, Phoebe has the script and begins with the opening line.

All right, she said. It seems pretty simple. Your first line is, My name is Claude, so just repeat after me: Je mappelle Claude.

Joey responds with, Je de coup Clow.

The surprise on Phoebes face was priceless. Well, just lets try it again. Je mappelle Claude.

Joey responds, Je depli mblue.

Phoebe tilts her head. Uh. Its not... quite what Im saying.

Shocked, Joey said, Really? It sounds exactly the same to me.

This continues with Phoebe speaking French beautifully and Joey speaking gibberish but thinking hes doing a great job.

For the last three years, my daughter, Ciara, has attempted to teach me French. However, I sound more like Joey, with the exception that I know Im not doing a great job. If I have an Achilles heel with languages, its French.

So, when my daughter and I attended an information night at her high school about a France Study Tour in June 2018, it felt like my audition as the parent of an upper-level French student. And I failed miserably.

Its not difficult to introduce yourself in French if you can remember the words. But I sounded like Joey when a classmate of Ciaras spoke to me in French. I knew she was introducing herself, but in the moment, I felt the heat rush up my neck and into my cheeks and Im sure my version of Je mappelle Mary sounded like Joeys Je te me pooh pooh.

I even referenced the episode when I asked Ciaras teacher a question.

I see that parents are welcome to come on the trip at their own expense. I wondered if a parent was required to speak French because I sound like Joey from Friends.

Ciaras teacher politely nodded, as if she hadnt seen the episode or perhaps couldnt fathom how someone couldnt even introduce themselves correctly in French.

Chaperones need to speak French, but, she said, perhaps we could find a host family that wants to improve their English.

That suits me fine, I said to my daughter who translated it into French.

Ca me va tres bien.

All I understood was tres bien, which I know is very well as in Je ne parle pas tres bien Francais. (I do not speak French very well.) Its the only French I do speak tres bien.

However, Ciara speaks French well and has worked hard for the last three years with this France Study Tour as an end goal. The purpose of the trip is for upper-level students to have an immersion experience. Students spend 12 days in a home-stay experience in the town of Mende, one of Frances most rural regions. Following that, the students will have a week to visit historic sites in central France, with the trip concluding in Paris.

Ciara has always wanted to go to with me to France, and while my French-speaking skills are abysmal, unlike Phoebe, who quits teaching Joey and explains at his audition that he is mentally disabled so the director will take pity on him, my daughter thankfully hasnt resorted to that tactic.

Instead, she suggested the use of note cards during our drive home.

Like flash cards, I said.

Yeah, I have a set on a binder ring, so you wont lose them because I dont think youre hearing what Im saying.

I plan on wearing this ring of notecards on our trip with every intention to speak French tres bien. And if that fails, my hope is that The One Where Joey Speaks French is as popular a Friends episode in France as it was in America.
Come March, the Benedictine monastery at 800 N. Country Club Road will no longer house the sisters who have lived there since 1940.

But the property is likely to become home for others.

The Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration announced the sale of the monastery to local developer Ross Rulney at a Friday news conference.

On Friday, the sisters and Rulney signed a contract for the sale and purchase of the property, to be finalized around March 1, said Sister Joan Ridley, the monasterys superior and a member of the Order of Saint Benedict. March will also be when the remaining sisters will depart from the monastery for a larger congregation in Clyde, Missouri, Ridley said.

I envision additional development on the property consisting of a housing component that will complement the adaptive reuse of the existing building, Rulney said in an email interview.

The monastery is a historic treasure, and I will work to preserve the exterior of the building, while taking great care with interior improvements.

Rulney said he could provide no additional details at this time.

Currently, 12 sisters call the monastery home, but three are already Missouri-bound come the end of October.

Its been a difficult decision, and we dont really want to close the monastery and leave Tucson, Ridley said.

But the sisters arent young enough to maintain this large monastery, and there is another large monastery in Missouri, and we have to work together.

As of Friday, the congregation had about 60 members, including the sisters in Tucson. Three sisters in Missouri have died in the last week, Ridley said.

The Tucson sisters announced the closure in September 2016 and spent months searching for a buyer  ideally another religious community.

But most communities have the same problems as the Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration  there arent enough members, and those they do have are getting older.

The sisters settled on Rulney because He has experience with adaptive use downtown, Ridley said, adding that they hope future development will respect the monasterys historic character.

Because some of Rulneys prior projects have focused on high quality housing, the sisters anticipate a similar future for the monastery, Ridley added.

Neither the sisters nor Rulney would disclose the sale price of the property.

Rulneys other development projects include the 100-year-old Julian Drew Block downtown with apartments, Charro Steak and Even Stevens Sandwiches, Star archives show.

The Benedictine sisters moved into the monastery, designed by Tucson architect Roy Place, in 1940. Several years before, the sisters had received an invitation from Bishop Daniel Gercke of the Diocese of Tucson.

Over the years, the 172 sisters who have lived at the monastery have sustained their ministry by making and selling altar breads, soaps and lotions, vestments, and, briefly, popcorn.

Ridley estimates maintenance of the property costs roughly $150,000 annually. Always, they have offered a contemplative space and prayers for the city  and occasionally bus passes and egg salad sandwiches for those in need, Ridley said, recalling a few of the sisters past projects.
United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff-Appellee v. DAMON HALL, Defendant-Appellant No. 16-11418 Decided: October 04, 2017

Before DAVIS, CLEMENT, and COSTA, Circuit Judges.

Damon Hall appeals the 175-month prison sentence that he received for his guilty plea conviction of possessing with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin. He argues, as he did in the district court, that his prior Texas convictions for possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance do not support the career offender guideline enhancement. The Government correctly concedes that the district court erred in light of United States v. Tanksley, 848 F.3d 347 (5th Cir.), supplemented by 854 F.3d 284 (5th Cir. 2017), but the Government contends that the error was harmless.

The Government points to part of the sentencing transcript in which Hall identified the correct range and in which the district court explained that it would give the same sentence regardless of whether the career offender enhancement applied. See United States v. Guzman-Rendon, 864 F.3d 409, 411 (5th Cir. 2017). Moreover, the Government convincingly demonstrates (1) that the district court would have imposed the same sentence had it not made the error, and (2) that it would have done so for the same reasons it gave at the prior sentencing. See id. When the district court explained that it would have imposed the same sentence either way, it pointed to the serious nature of the offense, including the danger posed by Hall dealing drugs (in this case and previously) in an apartment area; the under-representation of Hall's criminal history; and, as mitigating factors, Hall's contrition and his family support.

AFFIRMED.

PER CURIAM:*
We've collected a few front pages from newspapers.com to give you a look at some Oct. 7 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.
Pima County Sheriff's officials have identified the suspect who was shot during a confrontation with deputies after taking a hostage during a carjacking Wednesday.

Elijah Jamal Lawrence, 24, remains at Banner University Medical Center in critical condition, said Deputy Ryan Inglett, a Pima County Sheriff's Department spokesman.

Sgt. Kevin Kubitskey, an 18-year veteran of PCSD, fired at Lawrence during the confrontation, but it was still under investigation Friday if Lawrence shot himself or was wounded by Kubitskey, Inglett said.

Kubitskey was placed on administrative leave following the incident, which is customary in these situations, Inglett said.

The incident began with a carjacking report at about 1:30 p.m. Wednesday in the 5000 block of East Valencia Road at a Chevron gas station, which turned into a chase involving DPS troopers on Interstate 10.

A man pulled out a handgun and carjacked a victim at the Chevron who was pumping gas, said Sgt. Pete Dugan, a Tucson Police Department spokesman. He said the armed man took off in the car and he dumped it on the highway and ran away.

Gress gave the following account:

About 15 minutes later, there was a report of another carjacking at a house in the 4100 block of East Dover Stravanue, which is in the county outside city limits. Failing to get a car there, the man went to another home on the street, held a man at gunpoint and stole his car while taking him hostage.

At some point, deputies caught up to the vehicle at South Catalina Avenue and East Drexel Road and a chase began.

There were two men inside the car, the gunman and the hostage. The gunman was driving and pointing a gun at the other man and also pointing the gun at law-enforcement officers.

The vehicle stopped on East Aviation Parkway near East 34th Street when the gunmans car veered into a concrete median. The gunman pointed a gun at the hostage again, at which point shots were fired. A deputy fired one round, Gress said. No law-enforcement officers were injured.

The suspect, later identified as Lawrence, was taken by ambulance in an unknown condition to Banner-University Medical Center Tucson. He was undergoing surgery Wednesday night, said Gress.

The hostage was also taken to a hospital to be checked out by doctors as a precaution.

Sheriffs investigators, who were the lead in the case, remained at the scene late Wednesday.
Lately I have been re-reading Thomas Sowells book, Basic Economics. The other day a campaign email from David Garcia appeared in my inbox. It was a fundraiser for his gubernatorial campaign, the pitch being that he will work to make Arizona colleges free of tuition for Arizona students. Synchronicity!

According to the United States Government Accountability Office, student tuition and fees account for about 25 percent of state schools budgets. State governments contribute 23 percent, local governments 7 percent and the federal government 18 percent. The other 27 percent comes from other sources. The University of Arizona mirrors these percentages.

Since Garcia is running for governor, we may assume that his source for the lost in-state tuition and fees will come from an increased expenditure by the state.

In his campaign email, he writes, We need to break down barriers to allow more Arizona students like me to succeed. Apparently, he sees tuition and fees as a barrier to Arizonans who wish to attend an Arizona state school, but is that truly the case? In-state tuition is a bargain at around $11,000, and with 86 percent of students receiving financial-aid grants averaging around $8,000, its hard to imagine that anyone who really wants to attend is prevented from doing so due to the costs. Isnt Garcia trying to solve a problem that does not exist?

The larger issue, of course, is not how do we get to zero tuition and fees, but what are the unintended consequences of eliminating the effects of price? In Basic Economics, Sowell provides a laundry list of programs designed to help people or industries that have resulted not only in failure, but in actually hurting those they were intended to help. Often these programs involved some sort of price fixing like urban rent controls, minimum wages, maximum oil prices and minimum produce prices.

Education is fundamentally no different than most other industries. If the schools revenue came from the customer, known in this industry as the student, then resources (money) would flow to the schools that provide the best product at the lowest price. The successful models would expand and the unsuccessful would close, automatically redirecting resources to a better use. The market is much more capable of adjusting to changes in the industry than the Board of Regents or the Arizona Legislature.

In the ossified collegiate environment of today, colleges make no attempt to attract students by changing education for the better. The status quo earns the government money, so schools add window dressing, like the University of Arizonas gigantic student health club, to attract new students.

The Pima Community College Governing Board came under attack after restricting federal grants to incoming students who tested to a seventh-grade education level or higher.

It developed this plan after examining the unintended consequences of financing students who were incapable of succeeding at the college level. It found that the unprepared students would attend PCC, have trouble passing classes, get behind, and when the grants ran out, they would drop out with no degree, no certificate, no job and in debt. For this modification, the board was pilloried by much of the administration and outside advocacy groups  another example of politically popular policies that hurt those they intend to help. To quote Sowell, Economic policies need to be analyzed in terms of the incentives they create, rather than the hopes that inspire them.

If Garcia wishes to make college more accessible, he should advocate for the vibrancy of markets rather than the stagnation of socialism.
After roughly 1 years of work, a functional  if not quite finished  Ajo Way-Interstate 19 interchange is all but ready.

On Monday, the new northbound on-ramp is scheduled to open and, barring the unforeseen, the southbound off-ramp is scheduled to open sometime between Friday, Oct. 13, and Monday, Oct. 16, well before the morning rush, Arizona Department of Transportation spokesman Tom Herrmann told the Road Runner.

The four ramps will meet on the new, wider bridge at something called a single-point urban exchange, or SPUI. If you dont know what that means, just like the Road Runner before looking it up, imagine the Valencia Road-I-10 interchange. A single set of traffic lights will manage traffic, instead of lights at several locations.

The first phase of the $54.2 million interchange project, which also includes noise walls, a widened southbound exit at the Irvington Road interchange, several road reconstructions and other improvements, is expected to be completed this coming spring.

The second phase, which will cost an estimated $29 million, will widen southbound I-19, add an auxiliary lane on northbound I-19 from Irvington to Ajo, replace the Ajo bridge over the Santa Cruz River, among other changes. Herrmann said theres no timeline for construction and no bids have gone out. ADOTs five-year transportation facilities plan includes $10 million for the project in the current fiscal year and $20 million for fiscal year 2019.

Ina-Interstate 10

A few miles to the north at another major interchange project, crews are eight months into the 25-month, $148 million Ina Road project and on schedule, Herrmann said.

Work on the bridge that will eventually carry Ina over Interstate 10 and railroad tracks is underway, and work on the new, wider Ina bridge over the Santa Cruz is nearing completion. In about three months, interstate traffic will be shifted to what will be the new eastbound lanes.

Interstate 10 dust

Work to get dust under control along a uniquely dangerous stretch of I-10 is now complete. On Sept. 26, contractor EarthCare Consultants finished applying a soil stabilizer to roughly 55 acres of denuded land that has been tied to a number of serious and sometimes deadly crashes along a half-mile stretch just northwest of Picacho Peak. The contract was for a little over $100,000, well under an estimate previously provided by Len Drago, the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality deputy air-quality director.

Drago said the owner of most the treated land, Houston real estate broker Louis Tsakiris, was cooperative. Drago said he was pleased that the work was done in time for heavy fall winds, which in the past have kicked up small but blinding dust storms in the area.

Sentinel Peak reopening

Sentinel Peak Road will reopen to all users starting Monday at 8 a.m. The roadway had been closed to motorists for several weeks to accommodate repairs to damage caused by heavy August rains. It had also been closed to bikers and walkers on the weekends. Drainage improvements, new retaining walls, erosion repair and parking area resurfacing were all a part of the A Mountain project.

DOWN THE ROAD

Through travel on Stone Avenue at its intersection with Grant will not be allowed from Friday at 7 p.m. through Monday morning at 4 a.m.

Southbound Stone will be closed at Glenn Street, and detours will take drivers east or west of there. Northbound drivers will have to turn either west or east at Grant, and will not be able to proceed through the intersection. The designated detour will be east or west at Drachman Street.

The closures will accommodate Markham Contractings efforts to install a new drain system, water lines and manholes.

There will also be lane restrictions on I-10 at its Craycroft Road crossing, starting Tuesday at 8 p.m., and lasting through 5 a.m. That will be repeated through Friday.
After a three-year break, schools around the state are preparing to once again don their badges of honor, or scarlet letters, as the state Department of Education issues new A-through-F accountability grades.

Although the A-through-F rankings are often criticized as an overly simplistic representation of a schools performance, the grades can have a big impact on a schools reputation, educational priorities and state funding.

And for many public schools in Pima County, their grades are slipping.

Comparing the states old scores and new scores is like comparing apples and oranges, school districts say. But they also acknowledge that parents are used to apples, and when they see the new oranges, they may be a little shocked.

Vail School District Superintendent Calvin Baker emailed his districts parents last week to warn them the grades might not be as good as theyve come to expect.

Under the previous system almost all schools in Vail typically received an A grade. That may change under the new system, he wrote, adding, in a bold font, that, The new system is significantly more difficult.

Baker would know: In his role as a member of the Arizona State Board of Education, he helped develop the model used to determine letter grades.

Vails overall grade-point average on the state ranking system dropped from a 3.9 to a 3.7  still the highest GPA in Pima County by far.

Other school districts saw much sharper declines under the new A-through-F formula.

Tanque Verde Unified School Districts overall GPA dropped a full grade, from a 3.75 to a 2.75.

Amphitheater Public Schools dropped from a 3.1 GPA to a 2.3. Sahuarita Unified School District dropped from a 3.0 GPA to a 2.3. And Tucson Unified School District dropped from a 2.5 GPA to just below 2.0, the worst overall score of any district in Pima County.

The new accountability model is designed to take into account a more diverse set of success metrics than the previous ranking system. But it is still based in large part on a single standardized test, the AzMERIT test, which is a more rigorous test than the old AIMS test, upon which the previous rankings were based.

The new grading system gives a lighter weight to the AzMERIT test and takes into account other factors like high school graduation rates, college and career readiness indicators and English-language-learners scores.

The results, which school districts received last week, are still preliminary. Schools have the opportunity to appeal their grades, and the state Board of Education is considering further tweaks to the grading formula.

But of the 175 public district schools that received letter grades from Pima Countys nine major public school districts in both 2014 and 2017, 80 schools dropped at least one letter grade under the new formula.

A quarter of those dropped at least two letter grades. Four of those schools plummeted three letter grades, and one school, Tucson Unified School Districts Drachman Elementary, fell all the way from an A to an F.

An additional 68 schools held their ground, retaining the same letter grade they earned in 2014, the last time the state issued school grades. And there were a few bright spots: 27 schools improved their letter grades. Tucson Unified School Districts Robison Elementary and Sunnyside Unified School Districts Summit View Elementary both climbed from Ds to Bs.

One of the Board of Educations goals was to ensure the new formula, at least in theory, would allow every school the opportunity to earn an A grade.

In reality, more of Pima Countys public schools earned Ds and Fs than As.

School administrators say that because the State Board of Education just finished drafting the formula last month, they were caught unaware of the criteria impacting their grades, much of which was applied retroactively from last school year.

TUSD Superintendent Gabriel Trujillo said he knew AzMERIT would be a big part of the grade, but he didnt know what else would go into the grades, which made it hard to capture every point possible.

Theres a whole lot of other criteria that was applied to schools before the schools knew that was the criteria that they would be graded on, he said.

For example, the test heavily emphasizes students growth year over year.

That growth formula aims to ensure that schools with students who come in underperforming and improve are rewarded, and that schools that have performing students arent allowed to coast and continue to get As, even if students dont improve, according to Baker.

In other words, the growth formula tries to level the playing field between rich and poor schools.

But poverty is still one of the strongest indicators of student performance on the AzMERIT test, and the A-through-F grades.

The correlation is stark. Only two schools where less than half the student population receives free or reduced-price lunch received Ds, and none received Fs.

Conversely, only three schools where more than half the student receive free and reduced-price lunch received As.

There are some exceptions. TUSDs Van Buskirk Elementary received an A grade, although 95 percent of its students qualify for free and reduced-price lunch. Sunnyside Unified School Districts Elvira Elementary received an A, with 90 percent of its population receiving free or reduced-price lunch. And Flowing Wells Unified School Districts Walter Douglas Elementary received a B grade, though 91 percent of its students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.

But the grades arent just for parents to evaluate schools. Starting next year, theyll also be used as the basis to determine if schools should receive additional performance funding from the state.

And Steve Holmes, Sunnysides superintendent, says he worries that the same growth formula that is supposed to ensure lower-income districts like Sunnyside can compete with those that are more affluent is actually going to come back to bite some of his schools.

This year, two Sunnyside schools qualified for an extra $400 per student in performance funding because the schools were among the high-poverty schools that scored the best on the AzMERIT test in the state.

He said because the two schools  Gallego Intermediate and Primary schools  didnt show year-over-year growth, they didnt earn As. And starting next year, only schools that receive As, rather than schools with high AzMERIT scores, will be eligible for performance funding.

I still think its the right thinking, the idea of growth, but its also an eye-opener for school districts to keep an eye on all kids. We do focus on kids that arent performing a lot, we focus on that subgroup. But if the kid is meeting or exceeding expectations, quite honestly, a lot of times we just expect them to continue performing. Now if they flatline, thats when were in trouble, he said.

David Baker, Superintendent of the Flowing Wells Unified School District, said that while the grades are helpful for parents to quickly evaluate a schools performance, its an overly simplistic representation that doesnt capture a lot of what goes on in a school or classroom.

I think were trying to make a complicated process of evaluating the effect of a school on a childs educational development into a very narrow A-through-F label. And thats very hard to do, he said.
When Dr. Gary Vercruysse came to Tucson from Atlanta in 2012, there was no local inpatient burn program here, and patients routinely went to Phoenix for treatment.

Under Vercruysses direction, the number of Southern Arizonans getting burn treatment in Phoenix dropped from about 200 people per year to fewer than 10, said Dr. Terence OKeeffe, interim trauma director at Banner-University Medical Center Tucson, which has Southern Arizonas sole Level One trauma center for the most serious, life-threatening cases.

Now, five years after he got here, Vercruysse is leaving. He has accepted a job as head of emergency general surgery at the University of Michigan and will transition into the job of director of the burn center at its medical center.

It was a good opportunity for me to grow as a researcher and to continue to grow as a clinician and to head up a well-endowed, well-staffed burn center with a long history of providing excellent care, Vercruysse said.

OKeeffe says Southern Arizonans should not worry about losing local burn care, including for severe cases. The UA, in partnership with Banner Health, is recruiting to hire a burn surgeon to replace Vercruysse, though that process could take several months, OKeeffe said.

Banner-University Medical Center Tucson will also continue with Vercruysses plans to establish a burn center thats verified by the American Burn Association and the American College of Surgeons, OKeeffe said.

Currently, 66 verified burn centers exist in the U.S., including the Arizona Burn Center at Maricopa Medical Center, which is the only verified center in the state.

Recruited by Rhee

The Tucson burn program has grown every year for the past five years. The program now regularly admits 250 inpatients per year as well as about 200 patients in the emergency department, and handles more than 1,000 outpatient clinic visits annually  both adults and children  for burns and complex wound care.

The burns they see range from people injured in kitchen accidents and car crashes to firefighters and people with chemical burns. The care includes skin grafting and plastic surgery for scar repair.

Initially, the fledgling program under Vercruysse accepted patients with burns covering 40 percent of their body surface or less, but gradually increased its ability to handle the most severe burns.

Its very rare now that we would send someone to Phoenix, Vercruysse said.

Vercruysses burn program added a second surgeon in November 2016  Dr. Arpana Jain, who came to Tucson following a burn surgery fellowship at University of California-Davis and the Shriners Hospital for Children in Sacramento. She specializes in reconstruction surgery for burn scars and pediatric burn care.

We cannot be all that we want to be with just one burn surgeon, OKeeffe said.

Until a second burn surgeon is hired, there may be occasions when people with severe injuries go to Phoenix, though OKeeffe anticipates few such cases.

Vercruysse came to Tucson from Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, where he was co-director of a regional burn center. He was recruited by former top trauma surgeon Dr. Peter Rhee, who came to Tucson in 2007 and revived a flailing trauma program at the local academic medical center.

Rhee left Tucson last year for a job as medical director at Grady Memorial Hospitals trauma center.

Under Rhee and Vercruysse, the then-UA Medical Center became the first inpatient burn program in Southern Arizona since Carondelet St. Marys closed its unit in 2008. The St. Marys program operated for 40 years as both an outpatient and inpatient program.

He has put in a Herculean effort to build a program here, OKeeffe said of Vercruysse. He has set us well on the path of becoming a verified burn center. We could not have done it without him. He came in on nights, weekends. Hed come in when he wasnt on call. He has put his heart and soul into this.

New burn center

OKeeffe said Banner-University will have 12 beds dedicated to burn patients in a new hospital tower that is under construction next to the existing facility and set to open in 2019.

A dedicated burn unit in the new hospital will allow patients to stay in the same location from admission to discharge, which will provide better continuity of care than they have in the current facility, he said.

At that point, officials will consider becoming a verified burn center, though OKeeffe anticipates the process will require philanthropic support in order to become reality.

While Banner is providing the physical space, psychosocial support for burn programs often requires a foundation or other charitable support.

The next logical step is to become a verified burn center, Vercruysse concurred. We need not only the physical infrastructure, but ancillary support services.

Those ancillary services include psychologists and psychiatrists available to the burn center on an as-needed basis, social-service consultation and child-life services for pediatric burn patients.
Tucson could be one of the first communities in the country to ban the sale and possession of so-called rifle bump stocks after the Las Vegas rampage that killed 58 people and left hundreds seriously wounded at a country music festival.

Councilman Steve Kozachik has placed an item on the Oct. 24 City Council agenda to discuss outlawing the aftermarket hardware modification that replaces the stock of a rifle to allow it to fire nearly as fast as a machine gun.

On Friday, Kozachik said he was tired of waiting for federal or state officials to step in and outlaw the accessory, whose sole function is to allow a rifle to fire more bullets.

Weve waited on the state and Congress to act on any of this stuff since 20 little kids were killed in Newtown (Connecticut). We waited on them after Orlando, where 49 people were shot, dozens more in Aurora (Colorado) and our own on Jan. 8, 2011, he said. So my sense is again, lets show them what leadership looks like.

The request  sent to city staff on Friday  has not undergone legal review by the city attorney, although Kozachik said he is confident he has the political support to make bump stocks illegal in the city.

Mayor Jonathan Rothschild said he would support a ban on the device. If we can, we should. What a horrible invention, he said.

Kozachik was one of three Democrats on the City Council uncomfortable with reversing a decades-old policy of destroying firearms seized by police or turned in by citizens. A four-person council majority reversed the decision after the Arizona Supreme Court ruled the policy violated a state law that required seized guns to be auctioned off to federally licensed gun dealers.

A newer law, SB 1487, would have allowed the state to withhold state shared revenues from any city or town that refuses to follow state law.

City Attorney Mike Rankin did not return a call for comment about the legality of the proposed ordinance to ban bump stocks.

Mia Garcia, a spokeswoman for Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich, declined to discuss the issue, saying her office has neither an ordinance nor a request from a legislator to review the legality of such a law, since nothing has been approved by the city.

But Todd Rathner, a lobbyist for the Arizona State Rifle and Pistol Association, said the council should consider the last legal battle it lost with the state over guns before deciding on banning the devices.

The last time they tried to regulate firearms, the city of Tucson was handed a historically devastating and unanimous ruling by the Arizona Supreme Court, which cost taxpayers $100,000 in legal fees, he said.

The current adventure they are considering could cost taxpayers Tucsons portion of state-shared revenue. Its pathetic the City Council wants to risk taxpayer dollars over banning a firearm accessory that they know they have no authority to regulate.

Since the Arizona Supreme Court decision, state lawmakers have made two new SB 1487-related challenges. One is related to the city of Phoenixs general orders related to immigration, while another challenges Bisbees restrictions on plastic bags.

Kozachik said he would support a repeal of a city bump-stock ordinance in favor of a statewide ban if one is passed.

If the state Legislature wants to take us to task on this, then that will simply force their hand to take their own leadership role on it, he said.

Mariano Rodriguez, a Republican running against Kozachik for the Ward 6 seat in the Nov. 7 general election, said it is too early to politicize the shooting rampage in Las Vegas. Let the country mourn, he said.

Rodriguez said he is a strong supporter of the Second Amendment and would like to see common-sense discussions on how to keep the country safe.

I wish people like Nancy Pelosi and Steve K. would focus on the root of the problem rather than always blaming the Second Amendment, Rodriguez said, adding that lawmakers should focus on the people behind these crimes.

Kozachik, a Democrat running for his third term, has long led the council on gun-safety issues. He organized a gun buy-back program several years ago, and pushed to require background checks on private gun sales as well as banning the sale of high-capacity clips at the Tucson Convention Center.
When Rodolfo Peons mother found him climbing on his neighbors roof when he was a 9-year-old boy living in Hermosillo, Sonora, he remembered her frustration.

Im going to sign you up for Boy Scouts! she yelled up at him.

When his Scout troop went camping, Peon was required to pack water and salt and learned to live off the desert around Hermosillo. He quickly learned the value of easy access to food and water.

For another troop gathering, Peon spent a weekend collecting food and clothes for those who had none. He learned that he enjoyed the satisfaction of being part of the solution to a problem.

I was also away from my mom every weekend, to her relief, he said, laughing.

Peon is now in the last year of his Ph.D. studies in the Arid Lands Resource Science Graduate Interdisciplinary Program at the University of Arizona with a minor in optical sciences.

Peon credits these childhood experiences with motivating his adult interests, and the possible topic of his dissertation, in securing resources such as water, food and energy for underserved populations.

He recently volunteered to be part of a partnership between UA engineers and the consulting firm Apex Applied Technologies. The team built a desalination and water-purification system on a refurbished school bus and delivered it to the off-the-grid Star School, a charter elementary school located 25 miles east of Flagstaff near the southwest corner of the water-scarce Navajo Reservation.

Peon will speak about his desalination efforts as part of the UA Science Cafe series on Thursday, Oct. 12, at Borderlands Brewing Co., 119 E. Toole Ave.

CLEAN WATER IS SCARCE

On the reservation, Navajo families live on scattered plots, and many consider their land sacred. They dont want to leave the reservation and lose their traditions, Peon said.

But the region receives less than 12 inches of rain a year, so people rely on wells for water. Unfortunately, most of the groundwater on the reservation is salty and is sometimes contaminated with uranium and other toxins.

Theres little infrastructure to provide clean water and energy to large swaths of the population. The solution is usually to collect what little rainwater does fall, but many people drive a truck with a 250-gallon tank 50 miles round-trip, on average, to a well that is not contaminated, but still might be salty.

Even if they drive the 50-mile trip at least once a week, that will provide every family member with one bucket of water per day, Peon said. So they really make miracles with the water.

And because water is so scarce, tribal members cant grow many crops and instead resort to the more accessible, but heavily processed food ever-present at gas stations and convenience stores, with deep implications on their health.

FINDING A SOLUTION

Peon believes, with Boy Scout sincerity, that scientists should serve the community.

If youre working with renewable energy, then you really have to work on behalf of the planet, he said.

The collaborative group has already installed two stationary desalination and water-purification plants at the Star School and about 20 miles east at the North Leupp Family Farms to demonstrate water-treatment technology running entirely on solar power in the last year, Peon said. The bus is the third and last collaboration.

The purpose of the solar-powered desalination bus it twofold. Its mobile, so it can be used at many different wells. And its meant to serve as an educational tool.

Apex will continue to spend time on the reservation training people to build, operate and maintain the technology. The idea is that the Navajo people own the technology and can continue to use, build or sell more solar-powered desalination plants.

The purification process works by piping well water into the bus water tanks. The water then passes through membranes with pores of decreasing size, filtering out impurities along the way.

The nanofiltration helps us get at things that have more danger associated with them, said Mark Sorensen, the Star Schools co-founder. This not only filters the salts, but more dangerous chemicals like arsenic. To me, thats the best thing.

The movement of water through the membranes requires pressure, which has to be generated by some energy source. In this case, its provided by the solar power harvested on the roof of the bus.

The desalination group is led by Bob Arnold and Vicky Karanikola, both UA professors in the Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering.

Roger Angel, UA Regents professor of astronomy and optical sciences, led the solar team. Peon designed the electrical system for the bus and the solar panels.

He became interested in electrical engineering as a child. His dad was also an electrical engineer.

My dad always had stuff at home, Peon said. He was also into radios, and friends asked him to repair (their radios).

When he was a boy and his neighborhood transitioned from rotary phones to digital, Peon and his friends went around collecting the discarded microphones and speakers and hooked them all up to batteries.

We threw the (phone) wires on the wires that already existed so the neighborhood kids could communicate, Peon said. It gave us electric discharges when the weather was bad, but hey, it was free!

Peons self-proclaimed love of problem-solving was fostered as a Boy Scout. But his time in the Scouts de Mexico also taught him to work hard.

Peons work ethic is off the scale, Arnold said. He also stressed the fact that Peon participates in this work voluntarily.

Peter Zhou, CEO and president of Apex, was impressed by how thorough Peon is in his work.

During the installation of the second plant, both Zhou and Peon were on top of the structure, hooking up wires. After Zhou finished his part of the work, he climbed down to work on other tasks.

Im down there and a couple hours later he finally came down, Zhou said. Later on when I climbed up, I saw that he cut all the ties that I made and redid them. He made them really pretty, like a piece of art.

I was pleasantly surprised, he said.

WHATS NEXT

Peon also simply enjoys problem-solving to better other peoples situations.

I like doing it, and its like when youre building a puzzle, he said. You have the pieces there and you put it together to make it work.

For his dissertation, he intends to contribute to the work done so far by the UA Desalination Group and the Steward Observatory solar lab by designing a waste-free system that will facilitate the Navajo Nation achieving energy, water and food security.

Only about 15 percent of water from the solar-powered desalination plants is drinkable. The rest is high-salinity waste. It can, however, be used for crops.

Salty water is bad for soil, not for plants, Peon said, so he plans to work with Navajo farmers to create a hydroponics system to grow crops in greenhouses year-round.

Very simple solutions can dramatically change their quality of life, he said.

Back at the University of Sonora, he hopes to continue working with the Navajo Nation on implementing his ideas.

Peon earned a bachelors degree in electronics from the Hermosillo Institute of Technology and a masters degree in electrical engineering from the University of Calgary in Canada.

When Peon graduates from the UA, he will join the University of Sonora as a full-time professor and continue working with the Navajo Nation on sustainability projects.

Sorensen said hes definitely interested in working with Peon in the future because he has the skills and the passion.

Peon also hopes to take what hes learned as a student and a volunteer to implement a new graduate program at the University of Sonora that focuses on renewable energy, science communication and scientific leadership.
An 18-wheeler semitruck rolled on Tucson's northwest-side Friday evening, authorities said.

No one was injured in the Oct. 6 crash, said Capt. Brian Keeley, a Northwest Fire District spokesman.

The semi was transporting a large piece of construction equipment when it rolled at West River Road and North La Cholla Boulevard, said Keeley. The crash happened shortly before 6 p.m.

Motorists were asked to avoid the area.

No further information was immediately available.
United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit. SHAWN M. STATES, Petitioner - Appellant v. PELICIA HALL, COMMISSIONER, MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS, Respondent - Appellee No. 16-60084 Decided: October 04, 2017

Before DAVIS, CLEMENT, and PRADO, Circuit Judges.

Shawn M. States, who was convicted on two counts of capital murder and received life sentences, proceeds pro se and contests the denial of habeas relief under 28 U.S.C.  2254. When considering the denial of such relief, we review the issues of law de novo and findings of fact for clear error, applying the same deference to the state-court's decision as the district court under the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA). Ortiz v. Quarterman, 504 F.3d 492, 496 (5th Cir. 2007).

Pursuant to AEDPA, habeas relief may not be granted with respect to a claim that was adjudicated on the merits in state court, unless the state court decision was contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of, clearly established Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court of the United States, or was based on an unreasonable determination of the facts in light of the evidence presented in the State court proceeding. 28 U.S.C.  2254(d)(1), (d)(2). Deference under  2254(d) applies where the state court has adjudicated the claims on the merits pursuant to a summary ruling that lacks explicit reasons, as the Mississippi Supreme Court did here. See Harrington v. Richter, 562 U.S. 86, 98-99 (2011). Where a state court's decision is unaccompanied by an explanation, the habeas petitioner's burden still must be met by showing there was no reasonable basis for the state court to deny relief. Id. at 98.

As permitted by the certificate of appealability (COA) granted by the district court, States claims: (1) his state and federal speedy trial rights were violated; (2) his counsel was ineffective in failing both to raise the speedy trial issue and to move to suppress his post-arrest statement on the ground that it was coerced; and (3) the jury instruction on flight was in error. States also claims the admission of his post-arrest statement was in error; but, because neither this court, nor the district court, awarded him a COA on that claim, the court lacks jurisdiction to consider it. See Carty v. Thaler, 583 F.3d 244, 266 (5th Cir. 2009); see also 28 U.S.C.  2253(c).

Likewise, to the extent States contends, for the first time on appeal, that his conviction should be reversed on grounds of cumulative error, his claim falls outside the scope of the COA and cannot be considered. See Carty, 583 F.3d at 266. States also requests in his reply brief, for the first time, an expanded COA to include his substantive challenge to the admission of his post-arrest statement and contends that the district court erred in denying relief on the claim without first holding an evidentiary hearing. This court will not consider these untimely issues because they were not presented in States's opening brief. See Yohey v. Collins, 985 F.2d 222, 225 (5th Cir. 1993).

I.

The court now considers States's first issue on appeal: whether his right to a speedy trial was violated. To the extent States contends the delay between his arrest and trial violated his right to a speedy trial under Mississippi law, that claim is not cognizable. See Wilson v. Corcoran, 562 U.S. 1, 5 (2010) ( [F]ederal habeas corpus relief does not lie for errors of state law. It is not the province of a federal habeas court to reexamine state-court determinations on state-law questions.) (internal punctuation and citations omitted). States's federal speedy trial claim must be considered under Barker v. Wingo's four-factor test. 407 U.S. 514, 530-32 (1972). The 36-month delay between his 2007 arrest and 2010 trial is sufficient to trigger consideration of the claim under the first Barker factor. United States v. Serna-Villarreal, 352 F.3d 225, 230 (5th Cir. 2003) (recognizing that delays exceeding one year require further examination of the remaining Barker factors).

The second Barker factor, reason for delay, is equally attributable to both parties. See Goodrum v. Quarterman, 547 F.3d 249, 258-59 (5th Cir. 2008). There is no explanation for delays between November 2008 and April 2009, and again between August 2009 and January 2010. The record indicates that States agreed to multiple trial continuances, and States does not allege that the state intentionally delayed trying his case to gain an unfair advantage. Accordingly, this factor does not weigh heavily in State's favor.

Under the third Barker factor, assertion of the right to a speedy trial, the magistrate judge determined that States had not diligently asserted his right to a speedy trial. States contends that he sent a letter to the trial court to assert his hope to have a fair and speedy trial in September 2007. He claims he sent a second letter in March 2010 when he was informed that the first letter had been misplaced. States does not produce any evidence to substantiate this assertion. Even assuming that States mailed these letters to the trial court, this factor does not weigh in his favor because he fails to demonstrate that he vigorously complained about the delay over the course of the remaining 32 months before trial. Id. at 259; United States v. Parker, 505 F.3d 323, 329-30 (5th Cir. 2007).

Because the first three Barker factors do not weigh heavily in States's favor and because the delay was less than five years, see Goodrum, 547 F.3d at 260, States bears the burden under the fourth factor to demonstrate actual prejudice from the delay. United States v. Bishop, 629 F.3d 462, 465 (5th Cir. 2010). Prejudice should be assessed in light of speedy trial interests, including: (1) preventing oppressive pretrial incarceration; (2) minimizing anxiety and concern of the accused; and (3) limiting the possibility that the defense was impaired by the delay. Barker, 407 U.S. at 532. States claimed in his previous habeas petitions that he was prejudiced because he was forced to live in substandard conditions where he was under the threat of sexual assault and physical abuse. States also claimed he was prescribed anti-depressants and was placed on suicide watch. States further alleged that his defense was prejudiced because he was unable to locate three Spanish-speaking witnesses. States fails to carry his burden because he neglects to renew his allegations raised below. See Yohey, 985 F.2d at 224-25; see also Divers v. Cain, 698 F.3d 211, 219 (5th Cir. 2012). Accordingly, he has abandoned any argument that he suffered actual prejudice. See Yohey, 985 F.2d at 224-25 (stating that arguments not briefed on appeal are deemed abandoned); see also Divers, 698 F.3d at 219 (rejecting the defendant's speedy trial claim where he failed to brief any argument identifying actual prejudice).

II.

States next alleges ineffective assistance of counsel claims. Inasmuch as States maintains his trial counsel was ineffective for failing to raise a federal speedy trial claim, the claim necessarily fails. Counsel was not ineffective for refusing to raise a meritless issue. See United States v. Kimler, 167 F.3d 889, 893 (5th Cir. 1999).

Inasmuch as States brings an ineffective assistance of counsel claim for failing to raise a Mississippi statutory speedy trial violation, that claim also necessarily fails. The Mississippi Supreme Court denied States's claim that counsel was ineffective for failing to raise a Mississippi statutory speedy trial violation claim. States does not make the requisite showing that counsel's error fell below an objective standard of reasonableness and that but for counsel's poor performance, the result of the trial and proceedings below would have been different. See Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 694 (1984).

States's claim that trial counsel was ineffective for failing to file a motion to suppress his post-arrest statement on the ground that it was coerced is similarly unavailing. Threats to withhold access to a defendant's loved ones or to somehow burden them until or unless the defendant confesses can raise coercion issues. See Rogers v. Richmond, 365 U.S. 534, 540-45 (1961). However, these concerns are attenuated when the family member or loved one is plausibly tied to the crime. See Allen v. McCotter, 804 F.2d 1362, 1364 (5th Cir. 1986).

In Allen v. McCotter, the defendant-petitioner argued that his confession to attempted robbery was involuntary where, during the defendant's interrogation, the investigating detective threatened to file charges against the defendant's wife unless he confessed. See id. at 1363-64. This court found that because the defendant' wife drove him to the bar where the attempted robbery occurred, probable cause existed to arrest her as well; therefore, petitioner's confession resulted from a constitutionally-permissible warning regarding a possible good faith arrest. See id. at 1364.

States, here, finds himself positioned in much the same way as the defendant in Allen. See id. at 1363. States argues that the officers' promises to release his girlfriend, Ariana Torrenegra, if States told the truth, combined with a desire not to further jeopardize Torrenegra, motivated him to create a story based on lies. As with the defendant's wife in Allen, the police here also had substantial probable cause to arrest Torrenegra. See id. at 1364. Officers arrested Torrenegra in a stolen car belonging to one of the victims. She admitted to using one of the victim's credit cards. The officers' promise to let Torrenegra walk free was within the department's discretion. Any implicit threats to continue investigating Torrenegra were constitutionally permissible given her likely involvement in the crime. See id. Therefore, giving the state court deference that AEDPA requires, merely invoking Torrenegra's name in this way was not enough to render States's subsequent statements involuntary. See id.

III.

Finally, States contends that the trial court's jury instruction regarding flight violated his due process rights. Improper jury instructions in state criminal trials do not generally entitle  2254 petitioners to federal relief and will only do so when the error in the jury charge so infected the entire trial that the resulting conviction violates due process. Galvan v. Cockrell, 293 F.3d 760, 764-65 (5th Cir. 2002) (internal quotations omitted). An error is harmless unless it had substantial and injurious effect or influence in determining the jury's verdict. Brecht v. Abrahamson, 507 U.S. 619, 623 (1993) (internal quotations omitted). Harmless error does not warrant habeas relief. Galvan, 293 F.3d at 765.

The state supreme court determined that, although a jury instruction on flight was unwarranted, any error was harmless given the overwhelming evidence of his guilt. States v. State, 88 So. 3d 749, 758 (Miss. 2012). States contends that this assumption is unfair; but, he points to no evidence showing that the error was not harmless. States fails to demonstrate that the trial court's flight instruction amounted to a federal due process violation. See Yohey, 985 F.2d at 224-25; see also Henderson v. Kibbe, 431 U.S. 145, 154 (1977); Galvan, 293 F.3d at 764-65.

Accordingly, the district court's denial of States's  2254 petition is AFFIRMED.

PER CURIAM:*
Naked Gun: Police say nude, drunk Florida man fired weapons

KEY LARGO, Fla. (AP)  Authorities say a naked drunk Florida man wanted to know if his .45-caliber gun and shotgun worked, so he fired them into the air.

Neighbors heard the gunfire Tuesday and called the Monroe County Sheriff's Office.

Spokeswoman Becky Herrin said in a news release that arriving deputies found 66-year-old Roger Scheid inside the home.

Herrin said Scheid was "naked and appeared to be intoxicated."

Investigators found the weapons and two spent casings.

Scheid first told deputies he was cleaning the guns. Then, he said he was checking to see if they worked. He is charged with unlawful discharge of a weapon and firing a weapon while under the influence. An attorney is not listed on jail records.

Arrested drunk man claims he time traveled to warn of aliens

CASPER, Wyo. (AP)  Police say a central Wyoming man they arrested for public intoxication claimed he had traveled back in time to warn of an alien invasion.

Casper police say the man they encountered at 10:30 p.m. Monday claimed he was from the year 2048.

KTWO-AM in Casper reports that the man told police that he wanted to warn the people of Casper that aliens will arrive next year, and that they should leave as soon as possible. He asked to speak to the president of the town, about 170 miles (270 kilometers) northwest of Cheyenne.

The man told police he was only able to time travel because aliens filled his body with alcohol. He noted that he was supposed to be transported to the year 2018, not this year.

Massive wave of butterflies lights up Denver weather radar

DENVER (AP)  A lacy, cloud-like pattern drifting across a Denver-area radar screen turned out to be a 70-mile-wide (110-kilometer) wave of butterflies, forecasters say.

Paul Schlatter of the National Weather Service said he first thought flocks of birds were making the pattern he saw on the radar Tuesday, but the cloud was headed northwest with the wind, and migrating birds would be southbound in October.

He asked birdwatchers on social media what it might be, and by Wednesday had his answer: People reported seeing a loosely spaced net of painted lady butterflies drifting with the wind across the area.

Schlatter said the colors on the radar image are a result of the butterflies' shape and direction, not their own colors.

Midwestern radar stations occasionally pick up butterflies, but Schlatter believes it's a first for Denver.

Dog refuses to leave dead friend's side

NEWARK, N.J. (AP)  Police in New Jersey say they had to coax a German shepherd on a busy interstate to leave a dead pit bull that it was found lying next to.

New Jersey state police said that troopers responded Thursday morning to a report of two dogs on the shoulder of Interstate 280 in Newark.

The troopers say the pit bull was dead when they arrived. They say the German shepherd didnt want to leave its side, but they were able to coax it into a troopers car.

Authorities say neither dog was wearing a collar or any identification. The German shepherd was given to a dog rescue.

It wasnt clear how the dog died. The case remains under investigation.

FDA: 'Love' is not a real ingredient in bakery's granola

CONCORD, Mass. (AP)  A Massachusetts bakery's granola may be made with love, but federal officials say it shouldn't be listed as an ingredient on the package.

Nashoba Brook Bakery, in Concord, was taken to task by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for listing "love" as an ingredient on its Nashoba Granola label. In a letter posted this week on the FDA website, the agency said federal regulations require that ingredients "must be listed by their common or usual name."

"'Love' is not a common or usual name of an ingredient, and is considered to be intervening material because it is not part of the common or usual name of the ingredient," the FDA wrote.

The bakery's CEO, John Gates, told The Associated Press on Wednesday that the bakery will be "fully cooperative" with the FDA. But he also said the company has gotten a positive reaction from people since news of the letter began to circulate.

"It taps this feeling that a lot of Americans have that there are ways in which the government can overreach, and it seems kind of silly," Gates said. "Because it's about the word love, it's cathartic. ... It makes it something that people can smile at."

Bakery co-owner and chief baker Stuart Witt said the company has been open nearly 20 years, and has been selling granola nearly that long. "Love," has been listed on the label from the beginning, he said.

Burglar empties register, fills belly, makes clean getaway

HICKSVILLE, N.Y. (AP) - A burglar made a clean getaway from a Long Island restaurant after emptying the cash register, cooking a meal and washing the dishes.

Will Colon tells Newsday he found bent burglar bars when he arrived Tuesday at Nelly's Taqueria in Hicksville, New York.

Security video showed the intruder put on food-service gloves and started heating up a pot before hammering the register open. He pocketed the money and put a dollar in the tip jar.

Then, Colon says, the man started "cooking up a storm" in the dark - beans, chicken, shrimp.

Colon says "the dude had some skills."

After eating, he covered and refrigerated the food and wiped down surfaces.

Security video showed the same man was there the night before but didn't cook.

Pumpkin spice air freshener prompts evacuation of school

BALTIMORE (AP)  An unusual smell prompted an evacuation and a hazardous materials response at a Baltimore high school. But after five people were taken to the hospital complaining of upset stomachs, fire officials discovered the source of the smell: a pumpkin spice air freshener.

Cristo Rey Jesuit High School was evacuated Thursday afternoon after students and teachers detected a strong smell on the third floor. Several people reported difficulty breathing.

The fire department and a hazardous materials team were called. Fire spokesman Roman Clark said two students and three adults were taken to the hospital for stomach ailments.

Then, firefighters located a pumpkin spice air aerosol plugged into an outlet in a classroom.

Classes at the school resumed Friday.

South Dakota St. Bernard has record-longest tongue for a dog

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) - A St. Bernard in South Dakota has set a new, slobbery world record.

Mochi, also known as Mo, holds the Guinness World Records title for having the longest tongue on a dog.

According to Guinness World Records, Mochi's tongue measures in at 7.31 inches (18.58 cm).

Mochi's owner, Carla Rickert of Sioux Falls, says her dog is happy, but also has some breathing problems because of her long tongue and slobbers more than usual when she's nervous. Mochi also needs to be given treats in a certain way and has problems picking items up from the floor.

The 8-year-old Mochi broke the previous record held by a male Pekingese, whose tongue was 4.5 inches (11.43 cm).

Mochi is listed in the new Guinness World Records: Amazing Animals book.

New Mexico college: Pay some tickets with peanut butter

LAS CRUCES, N.M. (AP) - New Mexico State University is allowing motorists to take a bite out of certain parking tickets by paying with peanut butter.

The Las Cruces Sun-News reports the school recently announced motorists who have received a "no current permit" parking citation can pay it with at least 80 ounces of peanut butter from Oct. 23 to 27.

All peanut butter donations will be sent to the Aggie Cupboard.

The offer is limited to the first 100 customers.

Officials say appealing the citation forfeits the right to pay with peanut butter.

Police: Man drank beer, ate corn dog while shoplifting

SHEPHERDSVILLE, Ky. (AP)  Police say a man had drunk a beer and eaten a corn dog at a Walmart in Kentucky before being arrested for shoplifting.

Shepherdsville police said in a Facebook post on Friday that store employees saw 55-year-old David Pethel also load his cart with merchandise valued at nearly $250 before attempting to leave without paying.

Pethel is charged with one count of theft by unlawful taking. He had been held at the Bullitt County Jail, and it is unclear if he has a lawyer.

Police: Moving help unwitting accomplices in Montana theft

GREAT FALLS, Mont. (AP)  Police in Montana say a man told friends he needed help moving and got their unwitting help stealing $40,000 worth of items from another man's home.

One of the friends allegedly rented a U-Haul without knowing it would be used in a crime. The other told police he became suspicious and left after he saw military medals in the Great Falls home. He doubted 36-year-old Patrick Joseph Adams Jr. served in the military.

Investigators say the true homeowner came home later that night, found his home had been burglarized and called 911.

Prosecutors charged Adams on Thursday with burglary and criminal mischief, both felonies. The Great Falls Tribune reports Adams faces up to 30 years in prison and $100,000 in fines.

It wasn't clear if Adams had a lawyer.

Born in same hospital, on same day. Now they're married

TAUNTON, Mass. (AP)  A couple born on the same day at the same Massachusetts hospital have exchanged vows more than two decades later.

The Taunton Gazette reports that Jessica Gomes and Aaron Bairos got married Sept. 9. Each was born on April 28, 1990, at the same hospital in Taunton, about 40 miles south of Boston.

The two grew up in communities a few miles apart before meeting through mutual friends in high school.

Gomes says she and Bairos figured out they were born on the same day "pretty early on" when they took a drivers education class together and saw the proof on their learner's permits.

She says it was love at first sight.

Joint pain: Man charged with hiding weed in courthouse weeds

SANFORD, N.C. (AP)  A North Carolina man has been arrested and charged with trying to hide marijuana in the bushes at a courthouse before a hearing on a possible probation violation.

Local media outlets reported that Lee County Sheriff Tracy Carter said 21-year-old Teon Shamal La'Shane Douglas of Sanford was arrested Monday after deputies saw him putting marijuana and a cellphone and some other items in the bushes at the courthouse.

The sheriff said narcotics officers saw Douglas put about 15 grams of marijuana in the bushes at the courthouse in Sanford.

Carter said Douglas was arrested after the probation hearing and charged with felony possession with intent to sell and deliver marijuana and misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia.

It was not known if Douglas has an attorney on the latest charges.

Man faces fines after transporting exotic snakes to Vermont

MAIDSTONE, Vt. (AP) - A Connecticut man facing wildlife violations for bringing eastern hognose snakes to Vermont says he didn't realize the snakes were not native to the state.

The Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife said earlier this week that 42-year-old David Buyak was facing fines of up to $722 after a dozen non-native hognose snakes were found at his property in Maidstone, a rural town in northeastern Vermont.

The department says the eastern hognose snakes don't harm people, but have rear fangs and venom that can be lethal to amphibians.

Buyak told game wardens the snakes he had in Vermont were offspring of a pair he captured in Connecticut. The snakes were sent to a Massachusetts group that cares for reptiles.
Great Britain

Police: Car crash is accident, not terror

LONDON  A car crash that injured 11 people Saturday outside Londons popular Natural History Museum was a traffic accident, not a terrorist attack, London police said.

The accident had sparked fears of an attack because it involved a car hitting pedestrians at a crowded site favored by tourists.

A massive police presence descended on the museum district minutes after the accident at 2:20 p.m. as police tried to determine if there was a threat to public safety. It took nearly four hours before they decided it was not terror-related.

Police say one man at the scene, thought to be the driver, was detained. He had not been charged or identified.

spain

Protesters urge leaders to negotiate on crisis

BARCELONA  Thousands rallied in Madrid and Barcelona on Saturday in a last-ditch call for Spanish and Catalan leaders to stave off a national crisis amid Catalonias threat to secede.

The rallies in the Spanish capital and the Catalan city were held with the slogan Shall We Talk? in an effort to push lawmakers in both cities to end months of silence and start negotiating. Attendees respected the organizers call to not bring the Spanish or Catalan flags.

Catalonias regional president, Carles Puigdemont, has vowed to make good on the results of last Sundays disputed referendum on secession won by the Yes side. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy warned that the vote was illegal and has promised that Catalonia is going nowhere.

Denmark

Police find head in slain journalist case

COPENHAGEN  Danish divers found the decapitated head, as well as the legs and clothes, of a Swedish journalist who was killed after going on a trip with an inventor on his submarine, police said Saturday.

The body parts and clothing were found Friday in plastic bags with a knife and heavy metal pieces to make them sink near where 30-year-old Kim Walls naked, headless torso was found in August, Copenhagen police investigator Jens Moeller Jensen said.

Peter Madsen, the 46-year-old Danish inventor who is in pre-trial detention on preliminary manslaughter charges, has said Wall died after being accidentally hit by a 155-pound hatch on the UC3 Nautilus submarine, after which he buried her at sea.

Moeller Jensen said there were no fractures to Walls skull. Police have said 15 stab wounds were on the torso found off Copenhagen on Aug. 21. Her arms are still missing.

Pakistan

Death toll rises to 24 in shrine bombing

QUETTA  The death toll from a suicide bombing at a Shiite shrine in the countrys southwest increased to 24 after four victims died at a hospital overnight, police said Saturday.

A suicide bomber struck the shrine packed with worshipers in a remote village in Jhal Magsi district, about 240 miles east of Quetta in Baluchistan province on Thursday.

Zimbabwe

Mugabe might shuffle Cabinet next week

HARARE  Zimbabwes president says he may reshuffle his Cabinet next week as criticism intensifies around a deputy long viewed as his successor.

President Robert Mugabe spoke at a youth meeting Saturday. The worlds oldest head of state rarely changes his Cabinet. The focus is on one of Zimbabwes vice presidents, Emmerson Mnangagwa, accused of leading a faction angling for power.
It seems as though even the horrific mass murder in Las Vegas cannot escape the never let a disaster go to waste mentality of many politicians and activists. The New York Times, for example, has no fewer than eight op-ed pieces on the subject, including audio recordings from the Las Vegas attack and the Orlando attack comparing rates of fire.

A number of Democrat U.S. Congress members are calling for more of the same laws that did not prevent the disaster in the first place. A common call is for the extension of background check requirements beyond dealers to private sales because, you know, the perpetrator in the Las Vegas attack passed them all.

Hillary Clinton not only called for more of the same but used the opportunity to take a swipe at a bill now pending in Congress that would deregulate suppressors  what the anti-gun hysterics refer to as silencers even though they do not silence anything. Suppressors are the equivalent of mufflers on automobiles in both function and design. They are metal tubes with baffles that suppress the sound of the gun discharging.

This would be a good thing because people who shoot must wear hearing protection to avoid the risk of permanent hearing loss. Suppressors would help greatly in reducing that risk.

Hillary Clinton is not the only one who takes exception to the pending legislation.

Tucson Police Chief Chris Magnus wrote an opinion piece recently published in the Star, headlined Lawmakers must listen to law enforcement on dangerous gun bills.

Chief Magnus believes that suppressors will make it hard for law enforcement to locate active shooters, who will then silently rush away in their cars equipped with mufflers. He also refers to suppressors as silencers. Perhaps Chief Magnus and Hillary Clinton get their talking points from the same source.

Chief Magnus went on to criticize another bill pending in the U.S. Congress that would make any state concealed carry permit in force in all states. Now, I am not a big fan of the federal government interfering with state business, and Im sure that the legality of such a bill will end up being determined by a court, but we are talking about rights here, not policy, but rights that are enumerated in both the U.S. and Arizona Constitutions.

There are two other misconceptions upon which anti-gun people rest. They are that these mass murders involving guns are unique to America, and that restrictive European gun laws prevent such attacks. They are simply not true.

As a recent opinion piece by the Wall Street Journal Editorial Board, The Gun Control Mirage, pointed out, According to John Lotts Crime Prevention Research Center, most mass shootings with 15 or more casualties since 1970 took place outside the U.S., including France and Norway that strictly regulate guns.

Recall the horrific attacks in Norway in 2011 when a single attacker exploded a bomb outside a building in Oslo killing eight, then proceeded to an island where he murdered 69 children at a summer camp. He had purchased the rifle and pistol legally.

Allow me to state an obvious but often unspoken fact (Snowflakes, this is a good time to go to your safe spaces). It is virtually impossible to prevent unpredictable random acts of criminal violence.

I dont like it any more than you do, but reality cannot be wished away.
Quang Binh authorities have finally approved a plan to install a ladder inside the north-central provinces famous Son Doong Cave, allowing tourists to explore through out the worlds biggest natural cave instead of returning to exit after reaching its end.

The Quang Binh administration has green-lighted the ladder solution despite widely objections that it may destroy the stalactites that are millions of years old inside Son Doong.

Son Doong Cave, located in the heart of the Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park in Quang Binh, became internationally known after a group of cavers from the British Cave Research Association conducted a survey of the area in April 2009. The cave has since become known as the largest cave passage cross-section in the world, according to National Geographic.

At the end of the Son Doong passage stands the 90 meter tall Vietnamese Wall, made of millions-years-old stalactites. Behind the wall is a 600-meter passage leading to the rear entrance of the cave.

As part of the current cave exploration tour, offered by Quang Binh-based Oxalis, explorers must return to be able to exit the cave through its entrance after reaching the Vietnamese Wall.

The tour operator has thus proposed building a ladder to help tourists climb over the stalactite wall and leave the cave through the rear entrance.

The ladder at the 'Vietnamese Wall' inside Son Doong. Photo: Oxalis

Even though the proposed ladder has been met with public objection in that it may affect the natural stalactites believed to be formed over millions of years inside the cave, the proposal was eventually approved by the Quang Binh administration.

Oxalis has been allowed to take tourists through Son Doong from entrance to exit from 2018.

The administration, however, required that the tour operator ensure the ladder installation and usage will not leave any environmental impact or destroy the stalactites.

The decision came after the Quang Binh environment department submitted an assessment report, claiming that the ladder may affect the geological process inside the cave, but the impact is insignificant.

Shorter, more effective package

The new tour, allowing tourists to go through the cave, will take four days and three nights, one day-night period shorter than the current package, according to Oxalis.

The company has tested the new tour from May 21 to August 31, with nine different groups including a total of 188 tourists successfully going through Son Doong.

Son Doong Cave. Photo: Oxalis

Oxalis said the ladder solution was initially recommended by British Cave Research Association and its location had been carefully selected to leave the smallest possible impact on the cave environment and its stalactites.

Tourists will feel more relaxed with the new tour as the journey will be shorter.

The ladder will also help shorten the time to leave the cave in case of accident to two hours from the current six hours.

It will also be of great use in the event of flood, when tourists can climb over the ladder and leave the case immediately, instead of having to wait up to four days until the floodwater recedes, according to Oxalis.

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Admiral Scott H. Swift, commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, visited a renowned historical site where great Vietnamese heroes turned back invading armies three times, in the northern Vietnamese city of Hai Phong on Friday.

Admiral Swift, accompanied by U.S. Ambassador in Vietnam Ted Osius, toured the Bach Dang Giang (Bach Dang River) site, where iron-headed poles were placed under the waters during the great victories of Vietnam against invaders in three historic battles in the 10th and 13th centuries.

Bach Dang River has witnessed three great victories of Vietnam against northern invaders with the same tactic of using the underwater iron-headed poles to block the enemy ships when the tide withdrew. The triumphs were led by Ngo Quyen in 938, Le Dai Hanh in 981 and Tran Hung Dao in 1288.

At the areas where the iron-headed poles used in the battles centuries ago are restored, the U.S. Pacific Fleet commander expressed his impression on the tactics Vietnamese generals used to defeat invaders.

Admiral Swift hailed the Vietnamese heroes for overcoming the odds through resilience, determination, and ingenious tactics to maintain the independence and sovereignty of their nation.

As part of his visit, Admiral Swift also paid respect to the memorial sites of the three heroes of Bach Dang battles, King Le Dai Hanh, Supreme Commander Tran Hung Dao, King Ngo Quyen, as well as late President Ho Chi Minh.

At a press conference following the visit, Admiral Swift said as the commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, his visit to Bach Dang Giang indicates the stronger ties between the naval forces of Vietnam and the U.S.

He added that the U.S. carrier will visit Vietnam at a suitable time in the future.

Admiral Scott H. Swift, 60, took command of the U.S. Pacific Fleet in May 2015.

He touched down in Vietnam on the night of October 4 and had a meeting with Pham Ngoc Minh, Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People's Army, in Hanoi the following day.

At the meeting, Admiral Swift affirmed his commitments to boosting bilateral military collaboration towards effectiveness.

He was scheduled to have a meeting with Vietnams defense ministry following the Bach Dang Giang visit.

A Bach Dang pole preserved in liquid

A close-up view of a iron-clad pole used in a Bach Dang battle.

Most of the retrieved poles are verified to have been used in the battle of Bach Dang in 1288, led by Tran Hung Dao against the Yuan Dynasty invaders.

Admiral Scott H. Swift and Ambassador Ted Osius join a symbolic tree planting at the Bach Dang Giang relic site.

Admiral Scott H. Swift writes the memorial book at the Bach Dang Giang relic site.

Admiral Scott H. Swift pays tribute at the King Le Dai Hanh shrine.

Admiral Scott H. Swift pays tribute at the Tran Hung Dao shrine.

Admiral Scott H. Swift pays tribute at the Tran Hung Dao shrine.

Admiral Scott H. Swift looks at the replica of a bed of iron-clad roles used in the Bach Dang battles.

Hai Phong leaders hand over gifts to Admiral Scott H. Swift.

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Indonesian authorities have released 239 Vietnamese fishermen back home after detaining them for fishing illegally in its waters since July.

The released fishermen arrived in Vietnam on a Vietnamese vessel coded CSB 8001 on Friday, being received by the border protection force in the southern coastal province of Ba Ria  Vung Tau.

Of these, 112 are from Ba Ria  Vung Tau, while others come from various provinces including Tien Giang, Kien Giang, Binh Dinh and Khanh Hoa.

After returning back on Vietnamese soil, the fishermen will be transferred to authorities of their respective locations.

Regarding those from Ba Ria  Vung Tau, local authorities will conduct further interrogation to verify their offences.

In June, Indonesian authorities also released more than 600 Vietnamese fishermen who had illegally fished in its waters.

According to Colonel Pham Van Phong, head of the Ba Ria  Vung Tau border protection force, the majority of the captured fishermen were victims of their own ship captains, some of whom had served jail times between six months to three years in Indonesia for illegal fishing.

Vietnamese authorities will also revoke the licenses of the offended captains.

Competent agencies in Vietnam have asked the released fishermen to commit to not repeat their offense in the future.

The fishermen get off the boat.

The fishermen wait in Ba Ria  Vung Tau.

The fishermen line up on land, awaiting further procedures.

A border soldier carries out an attendance check of the fishermen before releasing them.

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Many are screaming take the semi-automatic and automatic weapons out of the hands of the citizens and keep them only in the hands of the government. According to the late RJ Rummel four times the number of persons were murdered by their governments than killed in warfare. Over 200,000,000 in the 20th century alone.

I dont trust government and the folks who want to disarm the citizens while keeping the weapons only in the hands of government when its apparent from history where the biggest danger and threat lies.

Just take a look a at Catalonia for a recent example. Below is excerpts directly from a recent article, "Catalonia Shows the Danger of Disarming Civilians."

In Spain, firearm ownership is not a protected individual right. Civilian firearms licenses are restricted to cases of extreme necessity if the government finds genuine reason. Background checks, medical exams, and license restrictions further restrict access. Licenses are granted individually by caliber and model, with automatic weapons strictly forbidden to civilians. Police can demand a citizen produce a firearm at any time for inspection or confiscation. Spain has enacted, it would seem, the kind of common sense restrictions American gun-control advocates crave.

Polling stations in Catalonia were attacked by heavily armed agents of the state with riot gear and pointed rifles. Spanish National Police fired rubber bullets and unleashed tear gas canisters on voters, broke down polling center doors, disrupted the vote, and destroyed enough ballots to throw results into serious doubt.

"If somebody tries to declare the independence of part of the territory  something that cannot be done  we will have to do everything possible to apply the law, Spains justice minister said in a public address.

I can see any government being capable of this.

Another good article that might be of interest to folks is: The Australia Model for Gun Control Is Useless

The case of gun control advocates for the U.S. to move to the Australia model for gun ownership is faulty at best, by Corey Iacono.

Mike Lynn

Cleveland

* * *

Lets see if I understand exactly what the gun control groups are saying. The left and many on the right believe Trump is the reincarnation of "Hitler", that Washington and most of America is controlled by fascist, those that supported Trump are his brown shirts and anyone that disagrees with them is a fascist. And their solution is to put weapons only in the hands of the fascist. Yeah, that makes perfect sense to me.

Mike Lynn

Cleveland

* * *

We had another major gun incident in this country. We all read about the gore, blood and speculation and the feared ones, never far away, appear with arguments against any meaningful gun legislation. These many that cling to the antiquated 2nd amendment use whatever words they can to convince those that are the most zealot to get their firearms oiled and ready for the invasion. The fear, so outrageous, that somehow the government, oh forgot, our government, the enemy, is moments away from an attack. The argument used so often becomes a fable of belief that the zealots with guns feel they are a victim. Instead of looking at these, now many, massacres in this country, as a symbol that something is awry, they lose all rational thinking and like Speaker Ryan, blame the guy with a gun. The guy with the gun had a cache of guns, ammo and explosives that could outfit a company of U.S. Marines.

Four out of ten people in this country have at least one gun in their home. I have done this experiment enough times to know something factually very interesting. An intruder is attempting to break into a home. I, ever vigilant, rush to my cabinet in my office where I keep my pistol. Not loaded I insert a clip and pull back to load one round. How long does that take? Maybe I have enough time to be at the ready for the intruder who has now nearly broken the door. But what if he is loaded and armed and surprises with gunshot before I can raise my weapon, or this one heard a lot: "I keep a 12 gauge next to my bed." The intruder is making a break-in on the first floor. The shotgun is on the second floor. Guns in the home do not make the homeowner safe. The stats, deadly, point out this little fact and the zealot gun owner ignores and often just buys another gun.

When I was in the military the bumbling recruit might drop his weapon and find for a few night a companion sleeping with him. His rifle. Maybe that is a way to understand those that fear sensible gun legislation. I am or was a hunter of deer, rabbit, squirrel and pheasant. I got my gun training from the NRA. The NRA of today is only a speck of integrity that was once was and now is a lobbying firm with big bucks exploiting the fears they encouraged. The zealot with a gun has been had by the NRA and guess who might be laughing silently?

Robert Brooks

* * *

Mr. Robert Brooks, you sir, sound like a broken record by the Left. Lets see, meaningful gun legislation? Please, specifically what is meaningful gun legislation? I hear that a lot from the likes of Diane Feinstein, Maxine Waters, Chuck Schumer, and the rest of the elitist left who have armed security. And, while you're at it, tell me which of the six or eight recent mass shootings that your meaningful gun legislation would have prevented?

Then begs the question when you legislate your meaningful gun control, who will obey it, and who wont? Take these awful assault weapons from the law abiding citizens and then the only owners are the government and the criminals, and I dont trust either.

Next comes the mantra from the Left, were not wanting to take your guns. You can keep your hunting rifles and shotguns. What they really mean, is until we get your AR and AK platform weapons. Then we will come after the rest. The cake is eaten one bite at a time.

You see, Robert, we patriots who believe that the 2nd Amendment is all about protecting the citizens from the tyranny of the government, we also know that meaningful gun control is not really about gun control, its just about control.

History is something everyone should study to prevent future disasters. Hitler and Stalin first confiscated weapons from their citizens before murdering millions. I know, were all crazy believing that could happen in America. Call me crazy.

C.L. Leigh

* * *



I truly don't know what the answer is on gun control. I believe some guns should be legal while others should be illegal. For example, we do not allow citizens to possess bazookas. I think weapons that are able to kill dozens of people in short bursts should probably be made illegal because their only purpose is to kill dozens of people. I don't have a problem with handguns or rifles. The point of this letter though, is to point out that many arguments that are brought up in favor of keeping the laws the way they are are dubious at best. You've seen a few of those above.

* "We need guns to protect us from the government in case we want to overthrow it." That will never happen. The government is far too organized and has far too much firepower. People who think they'll overthrow the government are delusional, even if they have an arsenal like the Las Vegas shooter.

* "The only defense against a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun". Caleb Keeter, a musician with the Josh Abbott Band, who played the concert in Las Vegas said that they indeed did have guns but they couldn't use them because they didn't know where the shooter was, and feared that the police would shoot them for fear they were the shooter. They didn't want to cause confusion and more work for the police. They had guns, and those guns were useless.

* "If we outlaw guns, only criminals will have them." That is not a good reason for keeping something legal. People have shown that they will drink and drive and will kill people in the process but you don't find us throwing our hands up in the air and making drunk driving legal. A reasonable individual does not say just because something is difficult it's not worth making an effort.

I truly do not know what the answer is, but it's depressing that when there is a mass murder there isn't at least some acknowledgement that it would have been infinitely more difficult for someone to kill 58 people and shoot nearly 600 people without a semi automatic machine gun with a device designed to make it approximate a fully automatic and that maybe those shouldn't be legal and available.

R.J. Mitchell

Chattanooga

* * *

This should not be a partisan discussion, this should not be the type of talk where some point their fingers at others and laugh and chide them for refusing to give up their arms. And I also firmly believe that it wouldn't take a whole lot to have the government suddenly decide "it knows best"; the writers of our Constitution knew first hand what happens when the government decides and not the people.

Over 10 years ago I had a sheriff tell me (and you know who you are) that each citizen should take safety classes and be armed for self protection because the police don't camp out on your doorstep. I was told that the five or 10 minutes it "could" take to get an officer to my home could literally mean my life or my death depending on the situation. I don't think there's an officer out there that would disagree with that.

Sue White
Check out the news you should not miss today, October 7

Politics

-- Vietnam's Party Central Committee elected two additional members to its Secretariat during the third working day of its sixth plenary meeting in Hanoi on Friday.

-- Vietnam always supports and creates all optimal conditions for foreign investors, including Samsung, to run business in Vietnam, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc underlined as he received Samsung Electronics President and CEO Shin Jong-kyun in Hanoi on Friday. Samsung is Vietnam's largest investor.

-- South Korea plans to open a Consulate Office in the central Vietnamese city of Da Nang to boost tourism and investment, the Vietnam news Agency reported on Friday, citing South Korean Ambassador to Vietnam Lee Hyuk.

Society

-- Adm. Scott H. Swift, commander of U.S. Pacific Fleet, led a delegation to visit the Bach Dang River historical site in the northern Vietnamese city of Hai Phong on Friday.

-- The border guard unit in the coastal province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau on Friday received 239 Vietnamese fishermen released from Indonesia, after being held there for violating Indonesian waters during their fishing journeys.

--The annual Terry Fox Run 2017, which aims to raise funds for cancer patients, will take place in Phu My Hung area on November 5, with all the proceeds used to finance Vietnams projects on cancer research, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Ho Chi Minh City said at the launching ceremony on Friday.

-- A fruit exporter in the Central Highlands of Dak Nong has been suspended from operation in four months after it was found dousing chemicals to artificially ripen 18 metric tons of durians late last month.

Business

-- Vietnam's government has formed a new board in charge of studying for the development of the private economic sector, with Truong Gia Binh, chairman of the leading tech firm FPT appointed its chair, the government office announced on Friday.

-- Vietnam Airlines posted a pretax profit of more than VND2.3 trillion ($101.64 million) in the first nine months this year, overshooting its full-year target by 40 percent, the national flag carrier said Friday.

-- A taxi driver was fined VND11.5 million ($507) and lost his license in two months after overcharging a foreign passenger VND2.1 million ($93) for a ride from the Hanoi Old Quarter to Noi Bai airport, police said on Friday.

Lifestyle

-- A photo exhibition, entitled Che-Constructor, featuring the life and career of Cuban revolutionary leader Che Guevarra kicked off in Hanoi on Friday to commemorate his 50th death anniversary.

-- A joint dance performance called Urban distortions," starring Vietnamese, French and Belgian artists will be on stage in Ho Chi Minh City on October 14, as part of the ongoing three-week Europe meets Asia in Contemporary Dance festival, the French Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City announced at a press conference on Friday.

-- The fifth Latin American Film Week will take place from October 9 to 14 at the National Cinema Centre in Hanoi, screening films from ten countries, namely Argentina, Brazil, Cuba, Chile, Haiti, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela, the organizers said at a press briefing on Friday.

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A man posing as a taxi driver has been fined for overcharging a French passenger in Hanoi, police said on Friday.

On September 21, a French national reported to local authorities that he had been charged a hefty sum for a ride from the Hanoi Old Quarter to Noi Bai International Airport.

The foreigner said he was asked to pay a total of VND2.12 million (US$93) for the trip, including VND1.8 million in fare and VND325,000 in extra fees.

The taxi carried the license plate 30E - 487.64 and had the logo of Nam Viet Taxi, according to the passengers account.

When the foreign customer asked for a receipt, the cab driver showed one from ABC taxi firm, and declared the Old Quarter-Noi Bai journey as Thanh Hoa-Hanoi.

After receiving the complaint, local authorities have dispatched officers to search for the taxi driver and his vehicle.

The driver was finally captured and identified as Phan Van Xuan, a resident of the northern Nam Dinh Province.

Further investigation also revealed that the vehicle used by the driver was not officially registered as a taxi.

The fake taxi with the Nam VIet Taxi logo.

The driver simply bought the logo of a taxi brand and attached it onto his rented car.

Officers also found out that the vehicle was installed with a meter that can be changed remotely to cheat the customers fare.

With all the offenses, the driver was fined VND11.5 million ($507) and had his driving license suspended for two months.

The offended driver has been asked to return the overcharged money back to his customer.

On September 14, a Vietnamese taxi driver dishonestly charged a group of Chinese tourists in Nha Trang $310 for a $3 ride.

On August 4, a South Korean tourist was charged US$31 for a taxi ride from Da Nang International Airport to her hotel in the city that should have cost $2.6.

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Help India!

By Siddhant Mohan, TwoCircles.net

Banaras Hindu University (BHU) has been a center of active politics for many years until it suspended the Student Union elections in the campus and applied every possible measure to crush its rejuvenation possibilities. Now, almost every major central university, excluding BHU, has started conducting student union election following Lyngdoh Commissions report and UGC guidelines.

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For BHU, the total blockade of Student Union election came in parts. Since 1956, the students union were suspended several times, but for the past twenty years, it has remained suspended after two students were killed in police firing during the run-up to 1997 elections.

But after the recent turmoil in the university and conduct of Union elections in almost every central university, a faint but potent discussion is rising in the University  Whether the BHU needs the Student Union again to solve the students matter?

Roshan Pandey, a student of the graduate course in geography, believes that if there was a union, things would have been easy. I am connected to AISA, but I must talk as a student that there is no forum with the support of which students can put their voice or demands before anybody, said Pandey.

Pandey said, People had high hopes from the Student Council which university introduced a while back, but that came as a puppet in the hands of the university.

In 2011, BHU introduced Student Council in the University. The Council, unlike Union, barred political parties or their students wings entering the campus. Following the Lyngdoh recommendations, Council elections were fought in a limited budget and without any posters, banners or pamphlets. Students chose the class representatives, and those class representatives, in turn, chose the Councils general secretary. Vikas Singh was chosen as the first and until now, the only General Secretary of the Council. After few clashes and protests, University administration suspended the Council election as well in a couple of years.

Vikas Singh talked with TwoCircles.net about the limitations and shortcomings of the Student Council in the University. He said, Council had the chairman who had to be a staff from the university and his appointment was done by VC. You can understand that there is no meaning of students electing someone when there is someone from the University to govern the elected body.

University first needs a democratic environment, the union can follow that after. Talking with authorities in the campus is almost impossible. There is practically no possibility of students front which may put issues of students before the administration, said Vikas.

After the recent protest o female students which ended when Police used violent measures, there was the dialogue between Varanasis district administration and University administration. Many students felt that there was no narrative in the whole picture which could be from the students side.

Mineshi Mishra, a student of Psychology graduation at the University, said, There were rules of closing the hostel gates around 7 in the evening. University can make rules, but the rules will only sound legitimate if they involve someone from our side  the students side  to make some rule. They make rules on an arbitrary basis, without any talks.

There is no such question if whether the BHU needs Union or not? It is a mandatory practice, which should be addressed on priority as per the UGC guidelines, said Mineshi. She said, Without the Union, sides and versions of the students are being taken on an arbitrary basis.

After Lalji Singh vacated the post of VC in 2014, Rajeev Sengal from IIT BHU took charge as acting VC until the appointment of Prof GC Tripathi on the post. During his additional chargeship of VC, Sengal heard students demanding union elections and promised to talk to find a way for conducting the elections, but he could not complete his promise as soon Tripathi was appointed.

Vikas Singh said, Many believe here that the Students Union will be the root of many problems in the university, but many do not know that it is the absence of Union which is causing the problems.

Students groups of various political fronts are present in the university, but they basically work to increase their influence in the state-owned colleges and Universities. NSUI, AISA, SYS, BCM (Bhagat Singh Chhatra Morcha) and ABVP are some of the key student groups that come out every now and then during protests at the University, but they demanded very little for the Union in the campus.

District president of NSUI Vikas Singh, who studies in Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapeeth, said, We believe that union should come in the university, but the Sanghi and fascist set up in the university does not want it to come.

Umar Khalid, Student leader, a member of Bhagat Singh Ambedkar Students Organization (BASO) and JNU student, told TwoCircles.net, What I feel that students politics in UP is based on two things. First, the rhetoric that fascism has come, or the oppression has started, and Second, that the students union elections often serve as the launchpad for the assembly election tickets. These two things have created a perception in the minds of students that such politics will enter into the campus.

These student groups first have to make it clear to the rest of the students that they do not mean that kind of typecast UP politics. If they want to establish the students voices towards the administrative bodies, they must tell the same to the students and adhere by what they say, added Khalid.

He also said, These groups should not lose the momentum of the students protests which happened recently. They should act now, and act fast.

In response to the Students Union elections, University PRO Rajesh Singh tells that University conducted a survey a while back, in which students agreed that Union elections will only disrupt the studies. After telling this, PRO Singh moved towards telling Malviya Values and Mahamana ki Dharti sort of things, an obvious administrative response from the University.

Central Minister Manoj Sinha, Uttar Pradesh BJP Chief Mahendra Nath Pandey, Samajwadi Party leader Shatrudra Prakash, Varanasis former MP Rajesh Mishra and various other key political people graduated from the BHUSU (BHU Student Union), but it is an irony that as a visual arts student Minakshi Yadav said, nobody tried to hold the elections on the campus regularly, even if they held the power in the center or the state.

With about a 20-year void in the Students Union, the university also lacks any sort of Teachers Association or Union. When the protest was happening in the University last month, many questioned the existence of teachers of the university, who claimed to be progressive and forward but did not come to show solidarity with the students.

However, the faint talks to establish a teachers union too has started in the campus, maybe a rumor, which no teacher dared to deny or accept when we reached to clarify.
Help India!

By Raqib Hameed Naik, TwoCirlces.net

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What does a Rohingya feel when he is told that he is an illegal immigrant, a security threat and unwanted in India? What was their life like before they had to run away to save themselves? What does it feel to be reduced to just a statistic? What do the Rohingyas feel when they hear the news that they will be deported back to the land where their lives are in danger? In a five-part series, Raqib Hameed Naik speaks to five refugees who had to give up all they owned to attempt a start a new life. Their stories, in the first person, are an attempt to go beyond majoritarian narratives and give them a platform to express their views and opinions. In the first part, we listen to Mohammad Ismail.

Mohammad Ismail, 27 comes from village Sansiprang in Buthidaung district of Rakhine State. He has three children and the eldest among them is 10-year old Noorgayas who studies in a local government school in Madanpur Khader, South Delhi and aims to become a teacher when he grows up. He fled his village in 2014. This is his story.

My name is Ismail and I am 27 years old. I was 24 when I ran away from my country (Myanmar). I had a beautiful house made up of wood and bricks in my village. My children used to play in front of the house. I had a big agricultural field where I used to grow rice and vegetables. I used to earn a decent income and almost every other day we used to cook fish.

The neighbouring homes belonged to my relatives. Every night I used to sit with my friends and eat Paan (betel nut).

Back home, there was no peace but at least we had peace at heart that we were living in our own homes and country. The local police and army were our oppressors. Everyone feared even mentioning their names.

In 2014, a few weeks before Ramadan, the army came to our village and as usual, I took my wife and two kids to a nearby jungle so as to save ourselves from the wrath of the security forces. But on that unfortunate day, my mother wasnt able to make it. When I went back to the village to find out about her, she was lying dead in a pool of her blood with many bullet marks.

There is a limit to bear everything. When oppression went beyond the limits you either give your life or decide to run. I choose to run. Everyone was running for their lives.

A week before Ramadan in 2014, I started my journey late in the night and it was raining very hard. I had two kids then. I tied my elder son with a cloth to my back, whereas my wife carried the younger one. I had no money. Even though I had a good stock of rice for sale, everyone was fleeing and no one would buy it.

For the next eight days, we walked through the mountains and plains and through rivers without food and sleep, daring bullets of the army, and crossed Bangladesh to reach West Bengal border in India.

In West Bengal, I had to beg on roads so that I could buy a train ticket to Delhi. People gave me Rs 5-10 contributions so that could buy a ticket. On reaching Delhi, I registered myself and my family at United Nations High commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

When I came to Delhi, I didnt know any work because my hands had only been accustomed to farming. I rented a hut made out of wood, tin and polythene sheets in Sharam vihar and pay a rent of Rs 500 every month.

Here, I couldnt find agricultural fields. Every inch of soil in Delhi was covered by buildings. I started working as a hawker. Every morning, I used to go out and spend the whole day looking in the trash if I could find plastic, newspaper, and steel that I could sell to a scrap dealer.

It used to fetch me Rs 80-100 a day. The earlier days were very hard. Someday my family had to sleep empty stomach. I used to cry because I can starve, but couldnt see my kids sleeping on an empty stomach.

I worked hard and now I have set up a small grocery shop in the slum. Besides giving me a decent earning of Rs 300 a day, it helps the other refugees, as they dont have to venture out of the slum and walk for a kilometre to buy the groceries.

Lately, I have been having sleepless nights after I heard that the Indian government planned to throw us out of India. I suggest instead of sending us back, the government should gather us in one place and shoot us down or douse us in fire by pouring the petrol. It will be a better option for us than going back to Myanmar, where Rohingyas are being killed and raped. Many of my relatives are still untraceable. I dont know either they are dead or alive.

I feel secure in India. Everything is good here. People are good. Police are good and even the government is good.At least here we have work and safety here, and we have a chance of survival. That makes a huge difference.
Help India!

By Shafeeq Hudawi, TwoCircles.net

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Thiruvananthapuram: The decision by Kerala Government to follow reservation norms in appointing priests from backward communities in temples under the Travancore Devaswom Board has been widely appreciated. The move, which is the first of its kind in Kerala, was termed as transformative and revolutionary when 36 candidates from Dalit and backward communities were shortlisted from 62 candidates. The move, however, exposed the intolerance of a sect of Brahmin community in the state when the shortlist was released on Thursday.

A press release, issued by the Namboodiri Yogakshema Sabha, which is functioning for the welfare of Brahmins in the state, the appointment of non-Brahmins as priests in these temples is against the tradition. It was released in Thiruvananthapuram soon after the shortlist was published. The release demanded the government to return the temple to Brahmin community. A majority of temples are with Devaswom boards or run by non-Brahmin organisations or trusts. If those in power are unable to maintain such tradition, they should return these temples to the Brahmin community, the press release demanded.

The organisation also warned agitation if temples are not handed over to the Brahmins. The press note also demanded Devaswom Board and State Government to apologise to the believers for not upkeeping traditions.

Noted Dalit activist Sunny M Kapikkad said the incident brought the intolerance of upper caste Hindus towards Dalits and backward class.

Public money is spent to pay the priests. And all of the candidates from backward classes were selected based on their merit and after clearing interview and tests. Still, the upper castes want to hold the monopoly of these duties, he said.

The demand to appoint backward classes has been persisting for last several decades and it was, according to Sunny, addressed after the state witnessed several protests. But, no changes are seen in the attitude of a sect of people. Even though people from backward classes are appointed, this sect will continue to practice the caste discrimination, he said.

Media reports quoted Travancore Devaswom Board chairman Rajagopalan Nair saying previous attempts to meet the demand had faced stiff resistance from certain quarters, even though candidates from backward communities found a place in the list through merit.

In July 2017, the appointment of a non-Brahmin priest was cancelled by the Travancore Devaswom Board. Sudhikumar, who belongs to the Ezhava community was appointed as a junior priest in June in Chettikulangara Devi Temple in Alappuzha district. The appointment was opposed by the Hindu Matha Convention citing it would anger the Goddess. He was reappointed to the post after he challenged the action at the Kerala State Human Rights Commission. To add to this, a non-Brahmin priest was allegedly thrown out from a temple in Kottayam district in August this year when he approached the temple authorities with his appointment order.

Travancore Devaswom Board president Prayar Gopalakrishnan termed recruitment of priests from Dalit and backward segments very significant step.

The total reservation for SC/ST and OBC categories stands at 32%. But 36 persons were selected while some of them made entry through merit. Selected candidates will be appointed in temples under the Travancore Devaswom Board after final steps are taken by the recruitment wing of the board.
theresa May's speech to the Conservative Party Conference could not have been worse. The problem was not the vague platitudes about the free market, or the hypocrisy over an energy price cap, or even the opt-out organ donor system. The problem was that these are the sort of things that former Labour leader Ed Miliband was proposing just two years ago in the 2015 General Election. Anyone who knows anything about politics, and can see that the old distinctions of left and right are meaningless today, knows why this is. The reason that "all politicians are the same" is because they come to us with the same Blairite policies, repackaged with a blue or red rosette.

The Heirs to Blair

David Cameron indulged himself by adopting the title of the "Heir to Blair", it is said that George Osborne, the MP-turned-editor who uses his position with gusto to attack Mrs. May, used to call Mr. Blair "the Master", and in times of strife they would both ask "what would the Master have done?". These rumours from Whitehall ring true when one considers what it was that they achieved in government, gay marriage, an unprecedented National Debt and not much else. They played to New Labour's tune, not reversing the damage done to the constitution by the Blair government, going on further adventures in the now failed state of Libya and supporting the "moderates" (by which, we have to assume that they are not Liberal Democrat-voting WI members) in Syria to bring bloodshed to that sorry country and signing up to the notion of a European Union over the nation state.

They played loose-and-fast with what conservative principles their party had to obtain power for, as far as I can see, its own sake.

Since 2015, fate, and a backfiring of the EU referendum of 2016, has determined that Mr. Cameron should no longer occupy 10 Downing Street, that the man he groomed to succeed him, Mr. Osborne, should not inherit the Tory throne and that, instead Mrs.

May will be in the unenviable state that we see her in.

The Shapps rebellion

Following the disastrous election campaign, a lacklustre start to the EU withdrawal negotiations, and it being made quite clear that Mrs. May has no chance of leading the Conservatives much further than 19th June 2019, we now see Grant Shapps, the former Tory chairman and MP for Welwyn Hatfield, leading something of a revolt against the Prime Minister, ostensibly to save the party from electoral oblivion.

Whether he will succeed remains to be seen, although it appears that he has been revealed by the party whips in order to foil his plan, but he is wrong to think that a replacement will make much difference. The electorate can see that this is a party that is trying to hitch itself to the Jeremy Corbyn bandwagon by adopting some of the things that were proposed by Labour just two years ago. It is no good now trying to play Mr. Corbyn as his own game, for he seems set to win such a contest, if only by looking sincere in what he proposes rather than as a means to win votes.

What next?

Who could replace Mrs. May? Boris Johnson, with the clown's make-up still plastered on his face? Jacob Rees-Mogg, with the conservative values that the media so despise?

Amber Rudd, with her wafer-thin majority? Or, maybe the grey man himself, Phillip Hammond? It really does not matter. None of them, if they are so inclined, will be able to stamp their authority on the party and enforce something like a set of guiding principles. None of them will be able to present a compelling case for conservatism to oppose Corbynism whilst carrying their party with them.

Mr. Rees-Mogg seems the most likely to be willing to do this, and perhaps he will, but I struggle with the notion that a party that has for twelve years bathed itself in Blairite dogma in order to win votes, can now readopt the clothes that it so shamelessly cast off as outdated and backwards. It is with good reason that the Conservative Party is the most successful electoral force in history, but to be so easy with alleged core principles is not something to be proud of.

Despite myself, I like Theresa May, maybe she would have been, as Alastair Campbell recently said of Gordon Brown, an able prime minister in the radio age, but now image is everything. Unfortunately, she needs to be able to engage in showmanship, as Mr. Corbyn is revelling in with the adoring crowds, but just as importantly she needs to be able to give voice to ideas that show the voters why conservatism is the best way forward for Britain. This is the thing she cannot do, no one around her can do it either, not Boris, not Damian Green, not Amber Rudd or any other of the host of po-faced Cabinet ministers.

The problem is that they do not believe in it, they may come up, as Mr. Cameron did, with some conservative-sounding lines about immigration or the budget deficit, but they have risen high under the idea that anything and everything is up for grabs if it is a vote winner.

They might have gotten away with it for a while under the flashy PR men, but they are gone now, and the age of authenticity demands that they have something resembling a principle. Not a line about the free market, for which most people see a deindustrialised north full of crime-riven council estates where the state casts those that it's dogma has deprived of work and dignity, but a vision for Britain. Not Thatcherism or Blairism, but serious conservatism that has a role for all.

The brand is tainted. Electoral oblivion awaits. Perhaps Rees-Mogg can bring conservatism back to the Conservative Party, or perhaps not. It is no longer enough to rely on tapping into a thirst for celebrity or to wing it with a catchy sound bite. Conservatives, you have been warned.
Historically Russia and Saudi Arabia have not been friends. This could be changing. It seems even past disagreements over Syria are being put to one side as The Saudi King pays a visit to Moscow this week.

Russia and Saudi produce almost 50% of the worlds crude oil

In the past, these two nations competed fiercely to ensure a fair slice of the crude oil market. According to a report by Mansur Mirovalev in Aljazeera News, the old adversaries are meeting in Moscow, putting differences aside, and talking "bi-lateral ties" according to Dmitri Peskov, a spokesman for the Kremlin.

Syria aside, the Kremlin and the Saudi's could be discussing the remarkable decline of the USA as a superpower under its current president. A particularly chilling comment was made by a Moscow defence analyst called Anatoly Tsiganok recently as he referred to Washington's power as being in a rapid decline in the last three years.When discussing the new cordiality between Russia and Saudi Arabia, he specifically stated to Aljazeera news that, "... the situation has changed cardinally, that is why now Middle Eastern nations pay attention to Russia."

The Saudi king heads to Russia to discuss oil, investment, and Syria https://t.co/4koaUQw245 pic.twitter.com/GmPy3k89FC  Business Insider (@businessinsider) October 3, 2017

Combined with recent reports that Russia is currently sanction-busting and supplying North Korea with oil, it could be said that Putin is rapidly becoming the new mover and shaker in world politics.

Perhaps we should all be bracing ourselves for a new round of tweets from president Trump, which appears to be the only diplomacy, for want of a better word, emanating from the USA these days. After all, to the rest of the world, it seems that Tillerson, Secretary of State for President Trump, appears to be continuously placed in embarrassing situations.

One seriously begins to doubt that President trump has any understanding of international relations and currently he is being trumped (pardon the pun) by Putin.

Will Putin and the Saudi King discuss DPRK?

When a respected Russian defence analyst categorically states that Washington's influence is in decline, should the little people around the world be concerned or happy?

Can Putin prevent nuclear war? He certainly doesn't want to overly upset Kim Jong Un, but, equally, Putin does not want a war that may end with him having a strong US military force on his North Korean border. Whilst there is no indication that the meetings between the Saudi Arabians and Russia will include talks about DPRK, it would seem to be an unavoidable subject between any clear thinking heads of state at this stage.

Saudi Arabia and Russia have not traditionally been friendly and at least one Russian Middle East expert is cynical about the current discussions changing much in their relationship, according to Aljazeera. Certainly, the Saudi King is as wary of the Russian form of socialism as Russia is of Muslim influences impacting on its own internal politics.

Perhaps they are simply discussing arms deals.

Meanwhile, back in Moscow, Saudi Arabia and Russia are agreeing to disagree on Syria and Yemen and focusing on the price of crude oil whilst undoubtedly keeping an eye on Twitter. Makes me think of that ancient curse "May you live in interesting times."
The title is based on the brilliant movie with Tilda Swinton and Ezra Miller "We Need to Talk About Kevin." The story is about a troubled teenager, Kevin Khatchadourian (Miller), who, one day, takes a gun and begins to shoot everyone at his school. When he finishes the massacre, the police arrest him and take him to prison. His mother, Eva (Swinton), looks back at her memories when Kevin was a child and trys to understand what went wrong and why her boy did something like that. Can you see the parallel story here?

Imagine Europe as the school, Europe which is Winston Churchill, Joseph Bech, Robert Schuman, and the other fellows imagined.

They wanted a Union based on respect for human dignity and human rights, freedom, democracy, equality and the rule of law. These used to be the European Unions fundamental values. Well, now imagine contemporary European leaders as Kevin. They have the gun and they start shooting democracy. The gun changes every time. There is the machine gun which kills people with austerity and cruel measures in favor of global corporations. There is the machete, which kills people with Police Violence every time they protest about something. Have you made the match or you need more help? Ok, lets examine certain examples.

Kevin took his gun

It does not matter if you are left or right winged; the only thing that matters is to live with dignity.

Politicians who controlled the last few years Europe, forced southern countries like Spain, Portugal, Italy, and Greece to take measures such as pension cuts, public spending cuts, and more recession for everyone. Also, they convince local politicians to sell pieces of lands, airports, public services, and everything which was profitable.

What is the result? If you check the Eurostats graphs you will realize that the result is suicides, poverty, and injustice. I forgot to mention that banks and big corporations are richer after these reforms. They called all these cruel measures reforms in order to make people believe that this is the only way. So, you already have Kevin with his gun.

Kevin in the school

It does not matter if you are in favor of Catalonia independency; the only thing that matters is to have your beliefs and be able to protest about them. Police enforcement to beat citizens is not a European image. Skirmishes between local people and the police are what everyone saw the last few days in Spain. There is a prime minister, who declined any conversation with these people, his government suffers from corruption, and he took cruel reforms. Now, you have Kevin in the school, killing his fellow students.

Students are dead

It does not matter if you are a Christian or a Muslim; the only thing that matters is to have a home, live in peace, and feel safe. Solidarity used to be a key term in Europe.

However, leaders from the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland decided not only to not help Italy with the refugee crisis, but they closed their borders. They left people to die outside these borders, and they said a big no to sharing the burden. Can you see students corpses around the school?

The point is that if European leaders continue these policies, one thing is sure; that there will be no Europe in the future. It is high time for these politicians to change the course of the boat. It is time to bring more democracy and more solidarity. Eva represents the future leaders. They wont be able to understand why nowadays European leaders allow this situation to destroy the Union. What do we prefer? A Miller with a gun, or a Miller doing his homework and eating dinner with his mother?
Delivering the keynote speech at the Tory Party conference in Manchester should have been Prime Minister Theresa May's opportunity to put things right amid the in-party turmoil that she is facing and the questions raised over her leadership. Instead, she delivered a speech that made headlines but for the wrong reasons.

The PM's delivery

There is no question that as a politician who stepped into David Cameron's shoes just over a year ago, Theresa May is probably not the candidate who the Tory party hardcore would choose as their leader. She lacks the icy determination of Margaret Thatcher and the marketing savvy of ex-Labour leader Tony Blair, but Mrs.

May knows she has a job to do and seems determined to give the leadership her best shot. She didn't look at ease delivering a speech to the attendant masses and must have been painfully aware of her supposed challenger for the party leadership, Boris Johnson, hanging on her every word.

This was a speech where the PM could galvanise the party and use it as a springboard to move forward. Instead, Mrs. May chose to apologise to the party faithful for leading them into a snap election at the beginning of summer. It was an election that at one point, she looked unlikely to win, but surely, the keynote speech should be seen as an opportunity to look forwards and not to dwell on the past. If she had apologies to make, then they should be made in private.

May receives her P45

During the speech, notorious prankster Simon Brodkin, alias stand-up comedian Lee Nelson, delivered a mocked up P45 to the Prime Minister shouting as he was led from the hall that Boris Johnson had put him up to it. Brodkin had previously showered ex-FIFA President Sepp Blatter with money in a similar stunt.

The PM made light of the prank claiming that she would prefer to be giving a P45 to Jeremy Corbyn.

That cough

Unfortunately, Mr. May has been suffering from a cold and during the speech was overtaken by a severe bout of coughing that at one point left her almost unable to speak. She was given a throat lozenge from the Chancellor Philip Hammond and joked that it would be the first time the chancellor has given something away for nothing.

This interaction showed Mrs. May's natural side and although it was an unfortunate turn of events, she handled it well.

Disappearing letters

To add to the PM's discomfort, during the speech, letters showing the Conservative Party slogan were seen to drop off as she spoke. Nevertheless, she carried on regardless.

The Speech

The key points of Mrs. May's speech were a pledge to cap energy prices and to invest in affordable housing but sadly her speech was overshadowed by a series of events that will leave those calling for her to resign a lot happier than her most loyal supporters.
11/14/2022

After the first week of the season, Chattanooga Mocs mens basketball graduate transfer Jake Stephens has been named the Southern Conference Player of the Week, the league office announced Monday ... more
In the eight months that Donald Trump has been President of the United States, he's caused many higher-ups in the party to question whether his style will be good for the GOP brand moving forward. In recent days, the president has made even more decisions that have left the Republican Party in a position where they have to explain themselves.

Wallace on Ryan

It all started when Donald Trump announced his plan to run for president back in the summer of 2015 on the floor of the famous Trump Tower in New York City. With his family behind him, the former host of "The Apprentice" quickly made headlines for referring to illegal immigrants as "rapists" and "murderers." Despite the negative attention that would surround him in the year that followed, Trump was able to weather the storm and become the GOP nominee.

Just a few short months later and Trump went on to defeat Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, giving the Republican Party control of the White House and all of Congress. However, even with GOP control, Trump has made moves that have not gone over well with his own party, including a recent deal with Democratic leaders on the debt ceiling and funding the government. In a move that took many by surprise, House Speaker Paul Ryan came out in support of Trump, which was met with ridicule by Nicolle Wallace during a September 7 broadcast on MSNBC.

During Thursday's edition of "Deadline: White House" on MSNBC, host Nicolle Wallace mocked Paul Ryan for constantly cowering to Donald Trump, even if it meant going against the positions he's held for years as a conservative Republican.

"If youre Paul Ryans adviser...what do you tell them to do today?" Wallace asked her panel guests.

Nicolle Wallace Destroys House Speaker For Cowering to Trump: Why Cant Paul Ryan Be a Man?! https://t.co/EBnOaEfHd1 (VIDEO) pic.twitter.com/PKpsIvPueL  Mediaite (@Mediaite) September 7, 2017

When a panel guest agreed with Paul Ryan for backing the president, Nicolle Wallace hit back.

"With his tail between his legs walk out and admit he was totally humiliated by the president that hes taken guff from for seven months?" she said. "Why can't Paul Ryan be a man and say, 'he's treated me like crap. He's cyber bullied me,'" Wallace continued to wonder.

Next up

While some in the mainstream media are questioning Republican leaders and how they have responded to the current administration, Donald Trump appears to be comfortable going rogue in how he has handled the normal political game.

Though Trump has created chaos on the political right, the left has continued to push back strongly, which is reflective in the latest round of polling that shows just a 35 percent approval rating for the commander in chief.
Hurricane Nate will bring high winds and rain to the Gulf Coast. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) confirmed that "an Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter aircraft penetrated the center of Nate and reported hurricane-force winds. The maximum winds are estimated to be 75 mph (120 km/h) with higher gusts expected."

Hurricane Nate is south of Mississippi River

The announcement was made on the nhc.noaa site at 1030 PM CDT by the NHC in Miami Florida. At the time of the announcement, the hurricane was lying about 95 miles west north-west of Cuba and tracking north north-west.

It was about 495 miles south of the mouth of the Mississippi River.

Scary. Hope and pray this is not another tragedy. #Hurrican Nate pic.twitter.com/BbP0neMF10  Jane Flowers (@zimkwacha) October 7, 2017

In an earlier NOAA notice, it was reported that Nate was "likely to become a hurricane overnight." Hurrican Nate storm warnings have already emerged, with storm surges and flooding predicted for the northern Gulf Coast. Residents from Morgan City, Louisiana, to the Okaloosa/Walton county line in Florida, have been urged to comply with any evacuation orders that may be issued.

Nate will bring heavy rain to lower Ohio Valley

It is anticipated that Hurricane Nate will arrive with heavy rainfall from the east of the Mississippi River and around the central Gulf Coast, reaching the Deep South, eastern Tennessee Valley, and the southern Appalachians through Monday.

Flashfloods could occur in the region. Sunday and Monday could see 6 inches of rain falling in the lower Ohio Valley and into the central Appalachians.

CNN reported that Hurricane Nate is likely to hit the New Orleans area which was devastated by Hurricane Katrina in 2012. Nate has already killed 24 people as it tracked across Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Honduras.

Governor Landrieu orders mandatory evacuations in New Orleans areas

Mayor Mitch Landrieu of New Orleans already declared a state of emergency and "ordered a mandatory evacuation of the Venetian Isles, Lake Catherine, and Irish Bayou areas of the city," CNN confirmed. Governor John Bel Edwards warned people who live "outside the city's levee protection system or in low-lying areas," to move to higher ground.

Landfall point of hurricane Nate hard to pinpoint at this time

weather.com has reported that "Heavy rain continues to fall across parts of western Cuba and Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula. Rain showers are occasionally passing through offshore Florida waters and the Florida Keys." They also pointed out that the area the hurricane is headed for has complex "geography," so pinpointing an exact landfall is difficult to predict at this time. Nevertheless, "the overall track will bring Nate through the northern Gulf Coast and into the Southeast this weekend."

Hurricane Nate will the third storm to slam into the USA in just six weeks.
Mohamed Jbali of "90 Day Fiance" just shared that he is moving, but he isn't moving back home. He is actually going to be staying in the United States. The Hollywood Gossip shared the details about his big move and what is going on. It turns out that Mohamed and Danielle didn't work out and got a divorce, but that didn't end up getting him sent out of the United States. She has tried to get him deported, but it has never worked.

Where is Mohamed moving?

Mohamed Jbali shared with his fans that he has big plans to move to Texas. He has been living in Florida but is now heading to Texas.

He didn't share exactly why he is moving, but things got really crazy when he started getting comments about Texas. One reason for Mohamed to move is that he will be getting far away from Danielle and that is probably a plus for him.

Another thing going on is that Mohamed Jbali is asking his fans to help him out. He is wanting someone to let him borrow a truck to help move. He shared that the cheapest one he has been able to find was $1,500 and he was shocked that it would be that much. He is hoping that he can find someone willing to help him out with the move. He is really hoping to find a way to move without renting a truck. This also shows that Mohamed must have not a lot of his reality television money left because $1,500 seems to sound like a fortune to him.

What drama went down in the comments?

Mohamed didn't love the comments that he was getting from everyone. He said, "Guys, why you saying 'Its the red state,' and 'racist people,' and 'They are against Muslims.' Its just a state." It sounds like some fans don't think he should move there, but he doesn't see the issue at all and is fine with doing it.

He went on to explain that people do live in Texas that are against Donald Trump and also that are Muslims. He doesn't seem to think that he will have any problems at all if he moves to Texas. He said he also is getting comments from people who are from Texas and love living there. He then went on to say that he is not going to continue to fight with these people and that instead, he is just going to keep living his life.

It sounds like that means moving to Texas.

Are you shocked to hear that Mohamed Jbali wants to make a big move to Texas? Are you shocked to see how crazy the comments got on his post? Sound off in the comments below on your thoughts, and don't miss the new episodes of "90 Day Fiance" on Sunday nights on TLC. It is time to watch a new group of people and see how they do.
Kailyn Lowry wants her fans and followers on Twitter to know that her life hasn't been easy. While rumors have swirled suggesting that Lowry and her "Teen Mom 2" co-stars, including Jenelle Evans, Leah Messer, and Chelsea Houska, make up to $300,000 for each season of the MTV reality show, Lowry claims her fans know nothing about her struggles.

"College is hard... S**t, life is hard," Lowry wrote in a recent tweet, much to her audience's dismay. "Girl please...MTV made it happen for your non-working a**," one person wrote in response, noting that most young mothers work and go to school to provide a nice life for their children.

"You had it easy," the woman added.

A second follower of Kailyn Lowry told the "Teen Mom 2" star that some people don't have help with their kids while the reality star "always" has someone to watch her children for her as she continues to do and go wherever she pleases. Still, Lowry insisted that she hasn't lived the charmed life that many fans believe she has and said that she wasn't making much money from the show when she first began college. She also said that she was forced to pay for her own childcare.

College is hard... shit, life is hard. But if you want it bad enough youre gona find a way to make it happen  Kail Lowry (@KailLowry) October 3, 2017

Kailyn Lowry has three children

After welcoming her first child, Isaac, with Jo Rivera during filming on the second season of "16 & Pregnant," Lowry married Javi Marroquin and welcomed her second son, Lincoln, during "Teen Mom 2." Since then, Lowry has welcomed her third child, son Lux Russell, with Chris Lopez.

As fans may know, Lowry dated her ex-boyfriend Lopez after splitting from Marroquin last year but unfortunately, just a short time after learning she was pregnant with their child, they parted ways. In the months that followed, Lowry and Lopez kept their distance but after the baby's arrival, they've been co-parenting.

Kailyn Lowry is often criticized for her many vacations

Despite her filming schedule with "Teen Mom 2," Lowry is known to travel often and frequently visits Los Angeles and New York City to tend to her many duties with MTV, including the filming on after shows and reunion specials. In addition, Lowry has been seen on numerous vacations to the tropics and earlier this year, ahead of the birth of her baby boy, she treated her two oldest sons to a vacation in St.

Thomas.

To see more of Kailyn Lowry, her family, and her co-stars, including Jenelle Evans, Leah Messer, and Chelsea Houska, tune into new episodes of the eighth season of "Teen Mom 2" on Monday nights at 9 p.m. on MTV.
Earlier this year, Naya Rivera filed for divorce from her estranged husband Ryan Dorsey after two years of marriage. "After much consideration, we have made the decision to end our marriage. Our priority is and always will be our beautiful son that we share together," she said in an interview with Us Magazine. The "Glee" star did not mention what led her to file for divorce and terminate her marriage with the "Blood Father" actor. Rivera and Dorsey first dated in 2010, when she was still on "Glee." Rivera was reported to be pregnant when they broke up but decided to get an abortion for the sake of her career.

In 2013, Rivera started dating Big Sean. After being engaged for almost a year, the rapper called off their wedding. Three months after their break up, Rivera reunited with Dorsey and decided to tie the knot in July 2014 in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.

Naya has called off the divorce for the sake of their son

Naya Rivera and husband Ryan Dorsey are reportedly no longer divorcing. According to The Blast, the actress filed a request for dismissal of the divorce paperwork last week. A source told the outlet that the couple wants to make their marriage work for the sake of their son.

Although the actress requested for the dismissal of their divorce, it does not mean that the two are back together. Last Wednesday, Rivera posted a picture of them as a complete family on Instagram, with a caption of #squadgoals.

Many are saying that the Instagram post is an indication that they are reunited. As of now, nothing is certain yet.

Naya said she was glad that she and Salling did not work out

Riveras co-star in "Glee," and ex-boyfriend Mark Salling, was reported recently of being charged with two counts of child pornography. According to IBT, Salling was arrested at his house in Los Angeles on suspicion of possessing more than 50,000 images and videos of child pornography.

An officer who saw the files described the images and the content as disturbing. After several postponements and failed negotiations with prosecutors, his trial began on September 12 in the US District Court in Los Angeles.

Naya Rivera had a turbulent three-year relationship with Salling while they are both starred in "Glee." For three years, they had kept their relationship in secret to protect Salling's image as a "heartthrob" on the show.

When Mark dumped me, I thought it was the worst thing ever, but can you imagine if that didnt happen? And I was laying there in bed when the battering ram came through the door, she said in her memoir.
One of the big stories to break this week came in the form of the sexual harassment allegations against Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein. In response, conservatives wasted no time celebrating, but former White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer was not happy with the lack of coverage the story got in one newspaper.

Spicer on Weinstein

In an exclusive piece from the New York Times this week, Harvey Weinstein, co-founder of Miramax, has been accused of a laundry list of sexual harassment dating back decades. Big names like Ashley Judd and Rose McGowan were just two of the stars mentioned in the article, which detailed Weinstein's alleged behavior that has quickly come under fire, and used as an anti-Hollywood liberal talking point for the right-wing media.

In response, Weinstein quickly obtained legal representation, including the curious services of Lisa Bloom, who is known to represent women who accuse men of sexual harassment. Bloom spoke out in defense of the film mogul, describing the allegations as "patently false," and referring to Weinstein as an "old dinosaur learning new ways." In response to the news, Sean Spicer was not pleased with the Washington Post for refusing to run the story on their Friday morning front page, as he vented his anger during an October 6 tweet.

Not a single mention of big Democrat donor #HarveyWeinstein in hard copy of @washingtonpost pic.twitter.com/qfktuhSfRF  Sean Spicer (@seanspicer) October 6, 2017

Taking to his Twitter account to lash out at the Washington Post for downplaying the Harvey Weinstein scandal, Sean Spicer made sure to note that the film producer was also a Democrat who donated big money to high-profiled candidates.

"Not a single mention of big Democrat donor #HarveyWeinstein in hard copy of @washingtonpost," Spicer tweeted.

Numerous women have accused Harvey Weinstein of sexual harassment. Hes paid at least 8 settlements. NYT exclusive: https://t.co/reQaPjyEv0  The New York Times (@nytimes) October 5, 2017

Twitter responds

Not long after Sean Spicer sent out his tweet about Harvey Weinstein and the Washington Post, critics of Donald Trump took time to hit back.

"Congrats, Sean, you have found today's Dumbest Take," MSNBC host Chris Hayes tweeted out.

Watching the family members and employees of ***Donald Trump*** go after Weinstein is something else.  Chris Hayes (@chrislhayes) October 6, 2017

You kissed the ass of Trump, an amoral con who is in the f'ing White House - grab 'em by the pussy. You need to stfu pic.twitter.com/AkRg9DKumZ  RiotWomenn (@riotwomennn) October 6, 2017

Sean did you get scratched hiding in the bushes? Guess lying is ok if you confess to a made up character  Scott Barker (@cheesyscot) October 6, 2017

"Because it was a NY Times scoop.

2. You covered for a serial sex offender," Mikel Jollett tweeted. "They broke a big sexual harassment story last year around this time. Do you remember it?" another tweet noted, in reference to the sexual harassment allegations against Donald Trump.

1. Because it was a NY Times scoop.



2. You covered for a serial sex offender.  Mikel Jollett (@Mikel_Jollett) October 6, 2017

They broke a big sexual harassment story last year around this time. Do you remember it? https://t.co/K6c3Xwxgvr  southpaw (@nycsouthpaw) October 6, 2017

You lied for @realDonaldTrump every single day you worked for him.



Glass houses and all that.



You helped elect an amoral know-nothing.  lawhawk (@lawhawk) October 6, 2017

"You kissed the ass of Trump, an amoral con who is in the f'ing White House - grab 'em by the pussy. You need to stfu," an additional tweet noted. The negative reaction to Sean Spicer continued as the memories of the president's own questionable history with women lingers over the administration.
St. Elmo Missionary Baptist Church will celebrate itsUsher's Day Ministry on Sunday, Oct. 15, during the 11 a.m. worship service.

The speaker will be Minister Ron Calloway, and the theme will be "We're Here to Serve." Psalm 84:10.



The community is invited to come and enjoy a blessed service in the Lord.






Marvel and Netflix announced that they will be delaying the highly awaited new web television series, The Punisher. The decision was announced shortly after the shooting tragedy on the Las Vegas Strip took place.

The Punisher, which is one of the most anticipated television series this year, has just been postponed. The show's official release date was planned to be revealed this month but after the recent tragic shooting in Las Vegas, Netflix and Marvel have opted to postpone the series to respect the victims and their families.

Marvel pulls out from NYCC

Aside from getting postponed, the panel set for The Punisher at the upcoming New York Comic Con has also been canceled. Actor Jon Bernthal, who will be portraying the role of the main character, Marvels Jeph Loeb, and other actors from the series were set to appear for the panel, which was initially scheduled to take place this Saturday.

Marvel and Netflix have released an official joint statement regarding their decision to pull out from the big event. They've expressed their sadness over the senseless violent act that recently happened in Las Vegas and decided after careful consideration to withdraw the new show's panel from the said Comic-Con because they didn't think it was proper for the show to participate during this time of mourning.

The show has also obscured the original release date on its promotional materials. The upcoming series is still set to be released within this year but Netflix has yet to announce the new premiere date.

New York Comic Con also released an official statement, revealing their support for Marvel and Netflixs decision. The event is currently trying to fill up the vacated panel and they have urged fans to regularly check their social channels for updates and further announcements.

The Punisher mirrors Las Vegas shooting

The new Marvel web television series revolves around a crime-fighting soldier-turned-vigilante named Frank Castle. The violent anti-hero takes justice into his own hands and he has no qualms in using lethal methods. In light of the recent shooting at the Las Vegas Strip, the people behind The Punisher deemed it inappropriate to air the new series about a gun-wielding man who goes on a path of vengeance after his family was murdered.

On October 1, 64-year old Stephen Paddock went on a shooting rampage from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Hotel, aiming at the crowd attending the Route 91 Harvest Country Music Festival. The event was being held right on the Las Vegas Strip.

Paddock killed 58 people and injured 489 others. Shortly after the massacre, Paddock was found dead with a gunshot wound. His motive remains unclear and the tragic incident has been marked as the deadliest shooting by one man in the history of the United States.
Last Sunday, Catalonia held their controversial independence referendum, which was banned by the Spanish government. It ended up being marred by chaos and violence from Spanish police. While over 90 percent of those who voted supported independence, the turnout was only 43 percent because those who favored being a part of Spain mostly boycotted the ballot. This information was confirmed in a report by Reuters.

Catalonia's leader to declare independence

President of Catalonia, Carles Puigdemont, said that he had favored mediation in order to try to end the crisis.

However, this has been rejected by Spain's government. Catalan lawmaker Mireia Boya said that a declaration of independence would follow a parliamentary session on Monday after going over the results of the referendum.

Puigdemont informed the BBC that he would request Catalonia's parliament to declare independence following the referendum. In a televised address last night he ominously said: Today we are closer than yesterday to our historical wish.

Spain's response to the situation

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has said that Catalonia must first return to the path of law before any negotiations can begin. Both the country's central government and the constitutional court have declared that the referendum is illegal.

On Tuesday, King Felipe VI chastised the irresponsible behavior of the leaders of Catalonia.

A government source told Reuters that Rajoy has said that Puigdemont had to end the idea of unilaterally declaring independence. Ruling party lawmakers say that Rajoy is also thinking about taking the unparalleled step of dissolving the Catalonia parliament and triggering regional elections.

However, he is having a hard time getting enough support to do so, which could further compound the country's political crisis.

How the European Union has reacted

Spain is the euro zone's fourth-largest economy and this continuing constitutional crisis has rattled the euro and hit the country's stocks. The deputy head of the European Commission, Frans Timmermans, spoke to the European Parliament about the issue yesterday.

He said in regards to all involved that Its time to talk and open up a dialogue to resolve the issue.

However, the European Union (EU) has also deemed that the results of Catalonia's referendum are unconstitutional and they refuse to acknowledge the result. According to Express.co.uk, a spokesman for the European People's Party, the largest party in the European Parliament, issued a warning. He said of Catalonia that, If you contest the law to abandon Spain you also need to know that you abandon the EU.
Around 8:30 am on Monday, one of the busiest train lines in London, England carrying passengers from Shepperton to Waterloo was paralyzed. Users panicked after a person inside the vehicle began reading Bible passages and reciting phrases such as "death is not the end." Although the reason for widespread despair remains unclear, the individuals forced the doors of the train to get out of there as soon as possible.

Passengers panicked fast

According to British newspaper The Guardian, after the people banged the doors, they crowded the rails. To prevent users from being electrocuted, the energy of the railway lines had to be suspended.

One of the witnesses, 42-year-old Ian O'Sullivan, described the circumstances of the event. "He [suspect] said, 'Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to speak to you regarding something, and that something is the message of the Lord, Jesus Christ, he is here to heal your sins'," O'Sullivan told The Guardian. "The Bible says that homosexuality is sin and sex before marriage is a sin. You need to repent."

On Twitter, Ian also said that the biblical reading generated a kind of "agitation" in people, especially the part about the 'Last Judgment.' He also said that the unknown man interrupted the 'preaching' and lowered his head after someone told him that the passengers were frightened by his conduct.

The Englishman, through several posts, reported every moment of the event. He pointed out that a guard appeared and advised the others that the suspect would be taken by "some men in suits," possibly to be questioned.

However, after "men of little faith" suspected him of being a terrorist, the police talked to the protagonist of the episode and treated him with respect when they saw that there was nothing wrong with him.

Ian photographed the scene. The 'prophet' can be seen with a backpack and dressed in dark clothing in the background.

'Bible Man' and the passengers

People were terrified of Bible passages read aloud. However, despite the problem being solved, the evacuation of the train and the paralysis of several other lines irritated the users of the London transport.

A spokesman for the British Transport Police (BTP) said they were alerted to the situation at 8:11 am "after reports of a disturbance on a train to Waterloo." The BTP said it continues to investigate the reason for the panic. There were no injuries or arrests. The subject's name was kept confidential.
Liberian Greenbul, the worlds rarest songbird, was last sighted in 1984 in Cavalla Forest in Liberia. Since that time, researchers have tried hard to find this elusive bird in the wilds of this African country, but all their efforts have failed so far. Now, new research carried out by researchers from the University of Aberdeen suggests that Liberian Greenbul (Phyllastrephus leucolepis) was not spotted in the past 32 years probably because this bird never existed as a separate species, and the specimen found in 1984 was just a variant of commonly seen Icterine Greenbul.

The Liberian Greenbul is a poorly known bird species

The Liberian Greenbul is one of the most poorly known bird species in the world. There were only nine reported sightings of this bird between 1981 and 1984 in south-eastern Liberia. Later, this bird was listed as a Critically Endangered species.

In 2010 and 2013, researchers made targeted attempts to search for the bird in two specific sites in Liberia but could not find any signs of the bird. The 2013 search expedition was financed by the African Bird Club and RSPB.

According to researchers, the specimen of the elusive bird that was found in 1984 had white marks on its feathers. Such marks are not found in Icterine Greenbuls feathers.

DNA analysis of different species of greenbul birds

In the new study, researchers carried out DNA analysis of the different species of greenbul birds. These DNA studies were performed independently by two teams of scientists in Dresden and Aberdeen to ensure that there were no errors in the final results.

The analysis revealed that there were no big genetic differences between Liberian and Icterine Greenbuls.

However, significant genetic differences were observed among other species of greenbuls. These results suggest that the Liberian and Icterine Greenbuls are most likely the same bird. The Liberian Greenbul specimen that was found in 1984 was probably an odd plumage variant of the Icterine Greenbul. This variant could have developed due to a nutritional deficiency in the bird while its feathers were still growing.

Enough evidence to suggest the possibility

Professor Martin Collinson, a researcher at the Institute of Medical Sciences at the University of Aberdeen, says they cant say definitely that Liberian and the Icterine Greenbul are same birds, but they have provided enough evidence to suggest the possibility.

The detailed findings of the study were published in the Journal of Ornithology.
King Salman Bin Abdulaziz, 81, of Saudi Arabia flew to Moscow on Wednesday to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin. On Friday he was also meeting with Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev to discuss joint infrastructure and trade projects.

While traveling on business is difficult for many of us, the Saudi king arrived in style with all the luxury of home, along with 1,500 staff members and a golden escalator to carry him down from the plane. The state visit almost got off to a rocky start, however, when the golden escalator ceased to function, forcing the monarch to walk down the rest of the steps to the tarmac.

Saudi party books out two entire luxury hotels

Bloomberg reports that the kings party had entirely booked out two luxury hotels in Moscow ahead of the discussions. One is the Four Seasons, where a premier room can knock you back anything from $3,800 or more per night, while the king himself is likely staying in the Pozharsky Royal suite, which is only available on request and no nightly tariff was mentioned.

Meanwhile, the royal party also took over the entire parking garage of the Ritz Carlton hotel up until October 8, which is around 1 km from the Kremlin.

Bloomberg estimates the cost of the two hotels at around $3 million, not including meals, services and spa treatments enjoyed by the visiting party.

RT News reports that the Saudi monarchs entourage even brought along plush carpets to enhance his quarters to ensure a comfortable stay along with staff to handle his food preparations.

That report said that the House of Saud is thought to be worth approximately $1.4 trillion, making it easy to have all the luxuries of home while traveling overseas. This extends to luxury planes, the customized golden escalator and even gold-plated protection barriers for when the king deplanes.

Escalator malfunctions and Saudi king has to walk

Unfortunately, in this case, the golden escalator malfunctioned, forcing the Saudi royal to walk down several steps. Once on the tarmac, journalists quickly photographed his arrival, separated from the king by the special gold and glass barriers, before he was whisked away by an entourage of luxury vehicles.

The visit this week to Moscow by the Saudi King is the first for a reigning Saudi monarch, marking a new level in relations between Saudi Arabia and Russia. Bloomberg reports that the two countries discussed methods to continue cooperation in stabilizing the oil market and also a weapons sales deal.

Twitter reacts to escalator malfunction

On hearing about the stuck golden escalator, naturally, Twitter came alive with various jibes, a few of which are included here.

The bloke in charge of the escalator will have his head chopped off when he gets back to Saudi..  Simon Cotto (@simon_cotto) October 6, 2017

And the poor guy had to walk?  Alex Max (@AlexMax4500) October 6, 2017
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ABCNews.com(WASHINGTON) -- President Donald Trump took to Twitter on Saturday to say "only one thing will work" with North Korea, two days after he suggested to reporters they were seeing "the calm before the storm."

The president tweeted that "presidents and their administrations have been talking to North Korea for 25 years" and it "hasn't worked."

"Agreements violated before the ink was dry, making fools of U.S. negotiators," he tweeted in part. "Sorry, but only one thing will work!"

Presidents and their administrations have been talking to North Korea for 25 years, agreements made and massive amounts of money paid......  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2017

...hasn't worked, agreements violated before the ink was dry, makings fools of U.S. negotiators. Sorry, but only one thing will work!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2017

Trump did not clarify what "one thing" he was talking about, but his tweets have suggested the prospect of military confrontation with North Korea.

The two tweets come after Trump delivered cryptic comments on Thursday while taking photos alongside top military leaders.

"You guys know what this represents? The calm before the storm." he said at the photo-op.

When asked by reporters what storm he was referring to, the president said, "You'll find out."

Last Sunday, Trump seemed to undercut Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and the U.S. State Department as both have said diplomatic options remain open with North Korea.

"I told Rex Tillerson, our wonderful Secretary of State, that he is wasting his time trying to negotiate with Little Rocket Man...," he tweeted.

"...Save your energy Rex, we'll do what has to be done!"

...Save your energy Rex, we'll do what has to be done!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 1, 2017

Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
One Chicago Spot Made The 'World's 50 Best Bars' List For 2017

By Stephen Gossett in Food on Oct 6, 2017 7:20PM

The tippling tastemakers have spoken, and one Chicago spot has landed on the annual World's 50 Best Bars list. And if only one bar is represented in all of the city, you can probably already guess which one that is. Yep, it's The Aviary.

Grant Achatz's perennially acclaimed dispenser of impossibly clever cocktails landed at No. 41 overall. Its the fourth consecutive year the bar has placed in the Top 50.

The list, which was announced last night in London, comes from the same people who bring us the World's 50 Best Restaurants. From that roster, Grant Achatz's Alinea was the lone Chicago restaurant to place earlier this year. (We think we're beginning to notice a trend.) Indeed both lists tend to prize upscale, already-lavishly-praised enterprises, so don't expect to find many charming dives, old-school lounges or tavern institutions among the ranks.

In all, 13 North American bars made the cut. New York had seven entries, second only to London's eight. The very best, you ask? The American Bar at the Savoy Hotel, in London.

Considering the fact that the scope spans the globe, we'll take the compliment rather than clap back too hard on behalf of the overlooked. Although here's hoping that the great Lost Lake, which came in at No. 65, can jump into the Top 50 next time around.

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Award-Winning Chicago Cocktail Bar The Aviary Soars Into NYC With Stunning Cocktails, Food & Views
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A tourist poses for photo at Yueyaquan (Crescent Spring) Scenic Spot in Dunhuang City, northwest China's Gansu Province. Oct. 6, 2017. People find various ways to spend their National Day holidays, from Oct. 1 to Oct. 8 this year. (Xinhua/Zhang Xiaoliang)

A total of 67 million Chinese tourists traveled around the country on the sixth day of the National Day holiday, the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) said on Friday.

The figure represents an increase of 12.3 percent year on year, the CNTA said.

Tourism revenue generated on Friday totaled 54.6 billion yuan (8.23 billion U.S. dollars), up 15.1 percent from the same period a year ago.

The number of tourists in major scenic spots remained high with that in Changbaishan Mountain in northeast China's Jilin Province rising by 78 percent to 22,500, according to CNTA statistics.

Zhejiang Province in east China hosted 9.77 million tourists who spent a total of 7.974 billion yuan on Friday.

CNTA said the tourist market over the latter half of the holiday running from Oct. 1 to 8 was mainly driven by road trips, periphery tours and leisure travel.

Folk customs, rural tourism, camping, theme parks and tourism complex were increasingly popular.

China's air, road and railway transport systems are to enter another peak as people have started to return.

On Oct. 1, the first day of the holiday, 15.03 million trips were made by train, an all-time high. This year's National Day holiday was extended by one more day due to the Mid-autumn Festival which falls on Oct. 4.

A separate report from the China Railway Corporation said trains were expected to carry 12.57 million travelers on Friday.X To cope with the high passenger flow, CRC scheduled 539 extra trains on Friday.

This was the second day that CRC expanded its train services during the holiday. On Thursday, 503 additional trains were arranged.

Tickets were almost sold out for trains traveling back to major sources of tourists in the next three days, CRC said.

Airports in China are also seeing a growing number of passengers returning home.
All telecom operators in the country have reported big profits in the first nine months of this year. Photo viettel.vn

HA NOI  All telecom operators in the country have reported big profits in the first nine months of this year.

Telecom service providers VNPT, Viettel, MobiFone, VTC and VietnamPost have posted high growth rates in revenue, profit and state budget contributions, online newspaper ictnews.vn.in reported yesterday.

It quoted Tran Manh Hung, chairman of the Viet Nam Posts and Telecommunications Group (VNPT), as saying at a meeting of the information and communications sector in Ha Noi this week that the groups Jan-Sept profit has met 75 per cent of the plan, reaching VN3,57 trillion (US$166.6 million).

VNPTs VinaPhone lost two million subscribers over the same period last year as it prevented unregistered SIM cards and pre-activated subscribers, the report said.

Hoang Son, deputy general director of the military-run telecom group Viettel, said groups revenue for September reached VN20.1 trillion (US$893.3 million). Viettel contributed around VN2.9 trillion to the State Budget in the first nine months of the year, he said.

The number of Viettels 3G subscribers upgrading to 4G reached nearly seven million, Son added.

Cao Duy Hai, MobiFone general director, said the corporation had signed nearly 700,000 new subscribers in September.

Its after tax profit in the third quarter is estimated at VN760 billion, fulfilling 75.6 per cent of the target assigned by the Ministry of Information and Communications.

Nguyen Hai Thanh, deputy general director of VietnamPost, said that VietnamPost had earned profits of VN168 billion in Jan-Sept, meeting 75 per cent of its yearly plan.

Reducing spam

Also at the meeting, VNPT reported that the company blocked 56,000 spam messages in September, or more than 1,800 a day.

It also blocked 713 subscribers last month, at about 25 each day, reported online newspaper baotintuc.vn.

Also in September, Viettel blocked more than 5,000 subscribers, and about five million spam messages.

Meanwhile, MobiFone had blocked 950,000 subscribers this year, as of September 15. The corporation reported that it blocked 47,850 subscribers in the third quarter.

The three largest operators, VinaPhone, Viettel and MobiFone, have all said they have invested significantly in spam filtering systems.

Minister of Information and Communications Truong Minh Tuan has directed the Viet Nam Telecommunications Authority to co-ordinate with related agencies to study feasible economic and technical plans to minimise spam and junk calls.

Viettel, VNPT, MobiFone, Vietnamobile and Gtel had signed a commitment to block spam on May 11 last year. The agreement took effect on July 1 this year.  VNS
Smart travel is being promoted to improve tourism throughout Viet Nam. Photo sgotravel.vn

HA NOI  Smart travel is being promoted to improve tourism throughout Viet Nam.

Pham ai Duong, Deputy Minister of Science and Technology and Director of the Hoa Lac Hi-Tech Park, said smart travel was the term related to use of information technology (IT) and hi-tech applications to make bookings for flights and accommodations and taking part in events from a distance.

With a smartphone, a tourist can book a hotel room and flight tickets and search for information about the place he is about to visit, Duong told a forum on Friday.

He said this enabled travellers to make bookings anywhere, anytime, making it more convenient for travel agents and local service suppliers to meet customers demands, he said.

In the old days, travellers depended on manual bookings for hotel rooms and flights - and were often unprepared on arrival."

The Ministry of Science and Technology will push research and use of hi-tech applications in all sectors and industries, including tourism, to improve socio-economic development, and assist "app" developers transfer their achievements to users, Duong said.

By using hi-tech applications, Viet Nams tourism sector could fulfill its targets for 2017, according to Nguyen Van Tuan, head of the Viet Nam Administration of Tourism.

In 2017, the Government hopes to generate VN500 trillion (US$22.2 billion) from welcoming 13 million foreign visitors and 66 million domestic travellers, an increase of 10 million over the 62 million in 2016.

In the past nine-months, the tourism sector has received 9.5 million foreign travellers and 58 million domestic visitors.

The smart travel segment has plenty of room for growth, according to the Vietnam Tourism Association (VNTA).

VNTA reported at the forum that online travel sales volume in Viet Nam would maintain a yearly growth rate of 12 per cent for the next three years, 50 million Vietnamese people or 53 per cent of the population, had Internet access and 78 per cent of them had regular access to the Internet.

All travel agents use the Internet to advertise their products and services, VNTA said.

Vu Tuan Phong, senior project manager at Pioneer Youth Solutions (PYS) Travel, a local company, told Viet Nam News that tourists should be smart consumers by using smart devices to make smart choices to receive the best-quality travel products and services.

By using smart devices, they could look for different information sources about the places they want to go and favour travel agents with good images and reputations, he said.

In return, local travel companies should improve their working systems, websites and administrations to meet hi-tech standards and provide customers with tips and experiences about potential destinations as well as protect clients in disputes with service providers, Phong added.

According to Phong, hi-tech applications will help consumers get access to new products and services more quickly and conveniently, costing them less time and money.

Phong said companies that had performed in a cloudy and unfair manner would be wiped from the market.  VNS
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) receives Shin Jong-kyun, President and CEO of the Republic of Korea (RoK)s Samsung Electronics in Ha Noi yesterday.  VNA/VNS Photo Thong Nhat

HA NOI  Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has vowed that Viet Nam always supports and creates optimal conditions for foreign investors, including Samsung, to run their businesses in Viet Nam.

At a reception in Ha Noi yesterday for Shin Jong-kyun, President and CEO of the Republic of Korea (RoK)s Samsung Electronics, the PM lauded the company for being the largest investor in Viet Nam.

He said that co-operation between Viet Nam and the RoK had grown fruitfully in all fields. This year, the two countries celebrated the 25th anniversary of diplomatic ties, he noted.

He expressed his hope that Samsung would continue expanding its business in Viet Nam, not only in electronics but other fields of the firms strength.

He suggested the firm continue assisting Viet Nam in human resources training and technology transfer, thus creating opportunities for local support industry businesses, especially small and medium-sized ones.

The Government leader asked Samsung to launch its Centre for Research and Development on schedule.

For his part, Shin Jong-kyun said that after its decade-long presence in Viet Nam, Samsungs investment had mounted to US$17 billion. He revealed that Samsung planned to export over $50 billion worth of products in 2017, accounting for 20 per cent of Viet Nams total export value. The two Viet Nam-based factories were the largest and most modern of the firm so far, he said.

He voiced his hope to continue receiving support from the Government and PM of Viet Nam in order to make more contributions to the countrys development.

Shin said that the company had paid great attention to the training of Vietnamese staff, while increasing the number of Vietnamese firms joining its supply chain to 29 by the end of this year. In the next three years, the figure is expected to reach 50, he said, adding that Samsung is interested in the telecommunication sector of Viet Nam.  VNS
Some tigers in Thailand enjoy meals of pork or chicken every day.

The big cats are being kept in a special centre after being taken from illegal animal traders.

They will not know how to survive if they are returned to the forests.

The tigers cost the centre a lot to feed.

by Pham Hoang Nam

A normal day for Kai, a young female staff member at the Wildlife Quarantine Centre in Nakorn Nayok, Thailand, just two hours from Bangkok, starts by preparing 144 chickens or pork for 12 rescued tigers.

At 2pm everyday, Kai brings chicken for tigers, serving first Wind, Fire, Water and Soil, the four oldest tigers who have lived at the centre for five years since they were two months old.

They are so gentle and they let me play or touch them like pets, but the problem is that under Thai law, centres are allowed to keep rescued animals for only five years.

We dont know what will happen to them because we arent allowed to feed them any more and cant release into the wild either because they dont know how to hunt to survive, said Bencharong Sangarak, head of the centre.

Each week, food for the 12 tigers costs around US$650.

We dont have enough money to build bigger cages for them and more are coming as more tigers are rescued, Kai said.

Besides tigers, the Wildlife Quarantine Centre  the first one in Thailand, along with 26 other rescue centres around the country  also takes care of many different species after they are illegally caught and transported by traders.

Two weeks ago, more than 100 pangolins were rescued and transported to us, the head said.

All 20 staff members of the centre had to focus on taking care of the pangolins because at that time they were very weak.

We have to feed them like babies because they are not familiar with having food in front of them, Kai said.

However, currently only 15 of them are alive.

Transnational crime

The situation is similar in Viet Nam, which is considered as the second biggest market in the world for wildlife consumption, especially for ivory, rhino horn, pangolin and tiger.

In a recent survey by National Geographic with 15 in-depth interviews and 1,000 people surveyed in Ha Noi, HCM City, a Nang and Can Tho, 14 per cent would like to buy ivory for home decor, gifts and jewelry.

Buyers believe African elephants were declining and some governments intentionally destroy poached ivory. So they rush to purchase ivory before it becomes unavailable, the report said.

About 88 per cent of those surveyed believed rhino horn provides medicinal benefits.

The rhino horn buyer is often a middle-aged or older woman, a wealthy business owner, or well-educated person with health problems. They also buy it for their parents, the report revealed.

Regarding pangolin, four per cent have bought it, 10 per cent have eaten it and 7 per cent are thinking to buy it. Many pangolins are showing up in rescue centres like those in Thailand.

People think pangolin is rare, wild meat, has medicinal value, is expensive and shows prestige, the report added.

Tiger bones are believed to cure pain and arthritic disease, improve general health and male sexual ability in Viet Nam, the report said.

To stop this situation, we need to understand what motivates people to use rhino horn, ivory, pangolin and tiger bone. Only when you understand why people want to buy rhino horns can you think of ways to change that, Dr David Lawson from the USAID Saving Species told Viet Nam News.

Wildlife trafficking is transnational organised crime because of its high value and low risk, said Sal Amato, a law enforcement specialist.

Inadequate financial and human resources, corruption, lack of adequate laws and political will, inadequate equipment/training, transnational crime groups, Internet trade, low judiciary awareness, law enforcement agencies showcasing seizures without follow-up investigations or arrests are reasons why enforcement has been ineffective against wildlife crimes.

Viet Nam has approved stiffer penalties for illegally possessing rhino horn and ivory. That rule will come into affect in early 2018, Vuong Tien Manh, deputy director of the Viet Nam Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Developments CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) Management Authority, said.

Under the new law, a wildlife trafficker might be fined up to US$60,000 and put in jail for seven years.

Strict fines are one of the solutions to slash wildlife trafficking and trade, Manh added. VNS



GLOSSARY

A normal day for Kai, a young female staff member at the Wildlife Quarantine Centre in Nakorn Nayok, Thailand, just two hours from Bangkok, starts by preparing 144 chickens or pork for 12 rescued tigers.

Quarantine is a process animals must go through when they move from one country to another. It involves their being kept in a special place so that ticks and bugs from their old country that are on them can die off before they enter their new country.

Pork is meat from pigs.

Besides tigers, the Wildlife Quarantine Centre  the first one in Thailand, along with 26 other rescue centres around the country  also takes care of many different species after they are illegally caught and transported by traders.

A species of animal is a type of animal.

Illegally means against the law.

All 20 staff members of the centre had to focus on taking care of the pangolins because at that time they were very weak.

To focus on something means to pay special attention to it.

However, currently only 15 of them are alive.

Currently means now.

The situation is similar in Viet Nam, which is considered as the second biggest market in the world for wildlife consumption, especially for ivory, rhino horn, pangolin and tiger.

Consumption means use.

In a recent survey by National Geographic with 15 in-depth interviews and 1,000 people surveyed in Ha Noi, HCM City, a Nang and Can Tho, 14 per cent would like to buy ivory for home decor, gifts and jewelry.

Decor is what is used to make a place look attractive.

Buyers believe African elephants were declining and some governments intentionally destroy poached ivory. So they rush to purchase ivory before it becomes unavailable, the report said.

Declining means becoming fewer.

About 88 per cent of those surveyed believed rhino horn provides medicinal benefits.

Surveyed means counted.

If something has medicinal benefits it works well as a medicine.

People think pangolin is rare, wild meat, has medicinal value, is expensive and shows prestige, the report added.

Prestige means importance.

Tiger bones are believed to cure pain and arthritic disease, improve general health and male sexual ability in Viet Nam, the report said.

Arthritic disease is arthritis, which is a disease that affects the joints.

To stop this situation, we need to understand what motivates people to use rhino horn, ivory, pangolin and tiger bone.

What motivates someone is whatever it is that makes them want to do things.

Wildlife trafficking is transnational organised crime because of its high value and low risk, said Sal Amato, a law enforcement specialist.

Trafficking means dealing in something that is against the law to deal in.

Inadequate financial and human resources, corruption, lack of adequate laws and political will, inadequate equipment/training, transnational crime groups, Internet trade, low judiciary awareness, law enforcement agencies showcasing seizures without follow-up investigations or arrests are reasons why enforcement has been ineffective against wildlife crimes.

Inadequate means not enough.

Judiciary means the system of the courts.

Viet Nam has approved stiffer penalties for illegally possessing rhino horn and ivory.

Possessing means having, or owning.

WORKSHEET

Find words that mean the following in the Word Search:

Something valuable that an elephants tusk is made from. The number of years a wildlife trafficker can expect to spend in jail. A continent where a declining number of elephants live. What tigers do to get their food in the wild. A city in Thailand.

c i m o b t a j s g s d h t b s b l f n g f e l e p h i v o r y h o v p s a t i k g i o t u e s s h a b o a c s d r n c u n i v e r a i t y e t b s w g b r i d g e b p g p a r t n e r k a c m b a n g k o k d k r f m u i w c a p i t a l d r

ANSWERS:

 Duncan Guy/Learn the News/ Viet Nam News 2017

1. Ivory; 2. Seven; 3. Africa; 4. Hunt; 5. Bangkok.
HA NOI  Nations should look beyond mere economic gains at questions of sovereignty and excessive dependence when considering participation in Chinas Belt and Road (BRI) initiative, experts said yesterday.

At an international conference held in Ha Noi to discuss the opportunities and challenges that BRI presents, they said that it was an attractive option against the backdrop of growing protectionism in the West.

However, the ambitious co-operation and connectivity project has implications that transcend economics, several added.

BRI was first unveiled to the world as a grand development vision by Chinese General Secretary Xi Jinping. It is a series of deeply connected economic corridors, the ultimate aim of which is to make Eurasia (dominated by China) an economic and trading area to rival the Transatlantic (dominated by America), wrote Prof. Toshiaki Tamaki of Japans Kyoto Sangyo University.

The issues with the initiative stem from Chinas motive, other experts said, adding that it was important to assess how much of the initiative was economic  opening up new markets for China, in which case, the connectivity would be a win-win scenario for all parties involved, as China has repeatedly said, and how much of it is political  exploiting the waning influence of the United States in the region to boost its own.

Prof. Trinh Van inh of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities under the Viet Nam National University in Ha Noi, called the Belt and Road initiative the equivalent of a snake shedding its skin to enable further growth and development.

He noted that mega-structures in the history of China all had to do with connectivity, whether it was the Great Wall connecting mountains, the Grand Canal, connecting rivers and channels, the Silk Road, connecting deserts, and currently, the dual-approach Eurasian Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-century Maritime Silk Road, which aims at connecting regions within China and the nation with the world at large.

inh also warned about the historical and ongoing wish of China wanting to turn its southern neighbour Viet Nam into a buffer zone. The difference is that, in the past, the northern giant aimed to achieve this goal through cultural assimilation or political binding ties; but in modern days, Chinas strategy of exerting influence is via a sizeable wallet  funding Viet Nams dire infrastructure development needs.

Professor Carlyle Thayer, from the UNSW Canberra at the Australian Defence Force Academy, said the initiative would certainly be lucrative, economically.

Australia is one of the countries taking part in the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. Its own project to develop the northern part of the country has complementarities with Chinas initiative, but several concerns remain, according to Thayer.

Enumerating some of the concerns, Thayer mentioned the undermining of Bretton Woods financial institutions (World Bank, IMF etc.), impacts on the environment, lack of two-way trade flow, and most importantly, Chinas use of BRI projects as economic leverage to influence Australias decision-making.

The Australian academic also felt Viet Nam should be mindful of long-term lease of key infrastructure to China.

Professors Pham Quang Minh and Le Hoang Giang of the University of Social Science and Humanities commented that the BRI poses a dilemma for China itself, for the existing global order, the Eurasian countries included in Chinas grand vision, and in particular, Viet Nam.

On the one hand, if Viet Nam chooses to join the maritime Silk Road  considered one of the largest maritime trading networks in world history  the economic gains would be tremendous. On the other hand, it could also mean Viet Nams sacrificing its rightful territorial claims in the East Sea (South China Sea) dispute.

The likelihood of Viet Nam becoming even more dependent on Chinas products, services, and capital when it joins the BRI should also be deliberated carefully, they said.

Scholars from the Diplomatic Academy of Viet Nam highlighted unresolved concerns surrounding thousands of BRI-related projects  both underway and planned, notably, insufficient protection of labour rights, notorious environmental record of Chinese firms, lack of transparency, and Chinas challenging of internationally recognised dispute settlement mechanisms.  VNS
BEN TRE  It is a risky, dangerous job with little protection and not much income, but many people in Ben Tre Province dive into rivers and search for scrap metal, sunk boats and other pieces of usable junk.

Some do it in groups, and others work independently.

Nguyen Thanh Dung, 52, leads a group of five divers in the southern province. He has been doing this for 32 years, he told the Thanh Nien (Young People) newspaper.

Dung said that when he was a child, often followed his father to dive in rivers in Can Tho City to earn a living. He learnt much from his father. He has followed in his fathers footsteps, earning a living in Ben Tre.

The equipment Dung and his team use is rudimentary: an oxygen air pump and a long plastic tube that they put into their mouth to breathe.

Dung said apart from swimming well, a person, who wants to dive deep had to be brave and in really good health to be able to stay for long on the river bed.

When I reach the river bed, all I see is black, and I grope in the dark to find something, he said.

If he does not find anything or feels too cold, he would come up soon.

In the rainy season, when the rivers has a lot of fish, he would dive to catch them, Dung said. At other times, he dived to grope for scrap or sunk boats.

After more than three decades of diving, he has been able to save enough to build a small house.

Another diver, 67-year-old Tran Van Mi, has almost 45 years of experience, having started in 1972.

At first, I was afraid, but I kept trying because I was poor and had no choice, he said.

The highest depth he could dive to was 67m, when he was in his 20s, Mi said.

He said his wife and he had sailed their boat to many rivers Tra Vinh, Ben Tre and Vinh Long provinces to dive and earn living.

Until a couple of decades ago, many boats were caught in trouble at the Ba Kem whirlpool on a section of the Tien River running through Ben Tre Province, particularly in November and December each year.

Mi said he does not remember how many times he has dived there to find boats.

But he has a strong memory of one boat, carrying about 250 tonnes of rice, that sank in the area. Many divers were dispatched from HCM City to tie a rope and salvage the boat but failed. The divers did not know the rivers flow or the river bed very well.

The rescue team then allowed him to try, and he took just 10 minutes to tie the rope.

"Because I know the river by heart," he said.

Crocs, etc.

Dung said that one of the dangers that divers could face, when they dived deep, was crocodiles.

Another danger was physical damage from the pressure. Mi said that diving many times, especially at depths of 60 metres, would result in pain in the ears.

Mi was forced to stop his job 15 years ago after an accident.

Tran Thi On, Mis wife, said she was on the boat then, and held the plastic tube for her husband to dive.

He did not emerge for a long time. I was very scared. Then, when he finally came up, he looked faint and had blanked out.

I had to use medicated oil to make his body warm and rush him to the hospital, she said.

After the incident, Mis legs swelled up and there were signs of hearing loss.

Mi misses his job a lot.

I had done it for long, nearly all my life. So I miss it, he said.

His children now continue his job.

But I tell them not to dive too deep, to protect their health. VNS
HA NOI  Many national historic relic sites in Ha Noi have been encroached upon for parking areas under the lax management of local authorities, Tien Phong (Vanguard) newspaper reported.

In front of Kim Lien Temple, one of four guardian god temples of the ancient city, rows of motorbikes are parked on the pavement along Xa an Street. A portion of the historic complex covering an area of hundreds of square metres has been encroached upon for parking.

Motorbikes are even parked by the Ngoc Well area inside the relic. Although the parking sign tells everyone that the parking space is only for visitors to the temple, the motorbike owners parking here are mostly employees of nearby offices.

There is no parking fee mentioned on the ticket by the temples security team, however, the fee has been set at VN5,000 (20 US cents) per motorbike, higher than the regulated fee of the city.

Deputy Chairman of Phuong Lien Wards Peoples Committee Tran Vu ai told Tien Phong that the parking lot of Kim Lien Temple is under the management of the temples relic management committee. The parking lot is open for visitors on festivals and full-moon days of lunar calendar.

The wards authorities would inspect the case and impose penalties, he said.

In the Old Quarters area, illegal encroachment for parking is more common, especially at ong Thanh Temple on Hang Vai Street, Phuc Kien Temple on Lan Ong Street and Quan e Temple on Hang Buom Street. Pavements in front of the relics are used for parking and fee is collected.

The front portion of Quan e Temple on Hang Buom Street is always full with parked motorbikes, although there are only a few visitors inside the temple. The parking fee is VN10,000 and no parking ticket is given to the riders.

According to ang inh Bang, head of the Ha Noi Old Quarters Management Board, Kim Ngan and Quan e temples and the Ha Noi Old Quarters Cultural Exchange Centre are encroached upon day and night for parking, not only affecting the relics scenery, but also causing difficulties for visitors.

The solution to make a fence is not feasible as it spoils the look and encroaches upon pedestrians space, he said.

Leaders of Hang Buom Ward confirmed with Tien Phong that illegal encroachment to make parking lots is happening due to the high demand for parking space, since there is a lack of legal parking areas, especially in the densely populated and narrow areas of the Old Quarters.

However, local authorities confessed that imposing fines in connection with illegal parking lots is difficult as there has been no action that can be taken against those who are reluctant to pay the fines .  VNS
 Flash

In their first Law Enforcement and Cybersecurity Dialogue earlier this week, China and the United States pledged to produce stronger and closer bilateral cooperation in counter-narcotics, cybersecurity, repatriation and other fields.

FOCUS ON COOPERATION

The one-day meeting was co-chaired on Wednesday by visiting Chinese State Councilor Guo Shengkun, and U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Acting Secretary for Homeland Security Elaine Duke.

At the meeting, the two sides agreed to commit to mutual respect, equity, frankness and pragmatism, make a full use of the dialogue mechanism and further strengthen bilateral communication and cooperation in law enforcement and cybersecurity.

Guo, also China's public security minister, called on the two sides to focus on cooperation and manage their differences so as to make bilateral cooperation in law enforcement and cybersecurity a new highlight in China-U.S. ties, and work relentlessly to promote global security governance and build a universal and secure community of shared destiny for mankind.

The meeting has proved to be very fruitful as demonstrated in an intergovernmental joint statement.

In the statement released on Friday outlining the fruitful outcomes of the meeting, the two sides expressed their intention to enhance cooperation on narcotics control and enforcement and gave a nod to continue their implementation of the consensus reached by the Chinese and U.S. presidents in 2015 on China-U.S. cybersecurity cooperation.

China and the United States also consented to develop a repeatable process to verify the identity of illegal immigrants in a timely manner.

The two sides also intended to make a full use of the established hotline mechanism for addressing urgent cyber-crime and network protection issues and to communicate timely at the leadership and working levels.

The two sides will continue to push forward pragmatic cooperation, guaranteeing mutual benefit and promote a peaceful, safe, open, cooperative and orderly cyberspace, Guo said.

The meeting is one of four high-level communication mechanisms established during the Mar-a-Lago meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump at Palm Beach in the southeastern U.S. state of Florida on April 6-7, 2017.

WELL-PREPARED DIALOGUE

The two sides attached high importance to the dialogue and already showed intention for cooperation in the preparatory stage leading up to the meeting, according to the Chinese officials who attended the event.

Since June, the U.S. law enforcement has handed over two criminal suspects to Chinese police, while the Chinese side has repatriated two wanted suspects listed on an Interpol red notice to the United States.

The two sides also conducted several rounds of talks on anti-terrorism, counter-narcotics, cybersecurity and immigration ahead of their gathering in Washington.

The Chinese officials described the bilateral cooperation on cases of mutual concern as "smooth, positive and pragmatic."

The U.S. side stressed the importance of bilateral cooperation in law enforcement and cybersecurity, saying that the two sides face common threats as well as interests in these areas.

The United States also agreed to work with China to use the dialogue mechanism to strengthen bilateral cooperation in related areas, promote specific cases through dialogue with the Chinese side and work to yield more outcomes to benefit both countries and their peoples.
HCM CITY  While loading goods for delivery to customers homes last Saturday, Tran Van Khuong, a delivery worker at Co.opmart Ca Mau, saw a womans handbag lying in a trolley. It had obviously been left behind by an absent-minded customer.

Khuong immediately reported the item to the security guard management board so that they could find the owner.

The board made an inventory of the handbags contents: there were more than 16 taels (37.5gm) of gold, more than VN30 million in cash and several important documents.

Khuong said: I was preparing as usual to deliver goods. When I was loading them on my motorbike, I saw a trolley at the supermarkets main gate and wanted to put it in the right place. But I found a handbag in the trolley. Looking around, I saw no one ostensibly looking for something they had forgotten.

The board found out that the owner of the bag was Ngoc Yen of am Doi District in Ca Mau Province, informed her about the discovery and told her to collect it.

A supermarket official and Khuong handed over the handbag to her.

Yen, filled with appreciation and gratitude, said: "I was extremely anxious and thought it would be impossible to get back something so valuable. I am really very lucky and very thankful to Khuong and the supermarket.

The supermarkets board of directors praised Khuong for his honesty in the presence of all the staff and has decided to reward him besides recommending him for a reward from Saigon Co.op, which runs Co.opmart and some other supermarket chains.  VNS
HA NOI  Preferential microfinance loans have helped improve the lives of more than 140,000 poor and low income women and their families over the last 25 years.

The women from 12 northern and north-central provinces received preferential loans from the Tinh Thuong One Member Limited Liability Microfinance Institution (TYM) set up by the Viet Nam Womens Union.

The loans helped the women start businesses and increase incomes, improving their status within the family and society as large, TYM general director Duong Thi Ngoc Linh said on Friday.

Speaking at a function held to celebrate the institutions 25th anniversary, Linh said TYM originated from the Tinh Thuong Fund launched by the Viet Nam Womens Union in 1992 to join the Governments hunger elimination and poverty reduction programme while improving womens status within and outside their families.

To build on its positive impact, the project was continued and formalized into a professional credit institution, she said.

Over the last 25 years, TYM has given more than 1.3 million loans worth VN10.6 trillion (US$495 million). to more than 141,000 clients. It has outstanding loans of VN1 trillion ($48 million) at present.

TYMs clients are typically women from poor, near-poor and low-income households, and micro-enterprises. TYM also pays special attention to supporting ethnic minority women, and those who are living with disabilities or those affected by HIV/AIDS.

Le Thi Dan, of uc Hiep Commune in the northern province of Hung Yen said that she first borrowed VN1 million from TYM in 2003 to buy 100 ducks.

I earned VN3 million after raising and selling the ducks and I continued to borrow from TYM, Dan said, adding that she was borrowing VN50million now to breed poultry and grow orange, longan and grapefruit.

The farming helps generate about VN50-80 million yearly to my family, she said.

Le Anh of Cua Lo District in the central province of Nghe An said that it was very difficult for her to get loans, even from Viet Nam Bank for Social Policies, because her family had nothing to mortage.

In 2011, Le Anh got a loan of VN5 million from TYM to buy four pigs. She was able to invest the funds well and expand her farming. She now plans to open a food stall and seafood restaurant.

Anh said that TYM allowed them to borrow money and return part of the loan every week. Moreover, people could send small sums of money, even VN10,000, to their saving accounts at TYM any time, and this helped form the habit of saving, she said.

Dan and Le Anh also said that with improved family incomes, they were more positive and confident about expanding production and joining other social organisations like local Peoples Council, Womens Association or Red Cross.

Nguyen Thai Ha, chairman of the Mo Che Commune Peoples Committee in Thai Nguyen Province, said that once local women began getting TYMs loans, they did not have to leave their hometowns to seek jobs elsewhere, and had more time to take care of their families and join social activities.

Nguyen Thi Ha, chairwoman of the Nam inh Womens Association, said lending to women was an effective way to empower them and ensure social security in the local community.

In 2011, Duong Thi Tuyet, a TYM member from the northern province of Nam inh, was one of six micro-entrepreneurs honoured internationally with the Global Micro-Entrepreneur Award for her copper molding business.  VNS
HA NOI  Fifth grader inh Thi Phuong and her friends go swimming every day, but it is not a recreational activity.

They go swimming because they have no other way to get to school.

Many children in remote and poor areas of the Central Highlands have to go the extra mile to continue their studies, dealing with the heavy constraints of long distance, inadequate transport infrastructure and poverty.

An article in the Gia inh xa hoi (Family and Society) newspaper yesterday said many children still have to swim or take small and old boats to cross rivers and streams to reach their schools.

It quoted Phuong, a resident of Gia Lai Provinces An Trung Commune as saying: My friends and I swim in the the river to go to the school in the dry season. But in the rainy season, the water level is high, we have to go by boat although its very expensive.

The fifth-graders parents have to pay about VN20,000 (88 cents) a day for round-trip on the boat. Transportation costs of VN400,000 ($18) a month per child is a steep sum for families in poor areas. Since all parents cannot afford this, many children continue to swim across the river even during the rainy season.

If the water level gets too high and dangerous, the students stay at home

inh Van Hu, a seventh-grader in ak Lak Provinces Ea a Commune, said his parents farm in fields about 10km away, because the soil in fields near their house was too arid.

If Hu wants to attend school, he, his younger brother and sister have to take care of themselves, including cooking and washing. The other choice is to drop out and follow their parents to the farm.

The parents buy dried fish, vegetables and instant noodles for their children every week, but this is only enough for lunch and dinner.

Hu said, For us, breakfast before school is something very rare.

Teachers to the rescue

Teachers in the region also have to overcome a lot of difficulties to stay and teach their students with inadequate facilities.

There are only four classrooms in Cu Pui 2 Primary School in ak Lak Provinces Cu Pui Commune. All the seven teachers in the school from northern provinces.

Nguyen Thi Nhuan, one of the teachers, said she and other teachers lived next to the classrooms.

Their rooms are roofed with steel plates.

Its very hot during sunny days and leaks water when it rains, she said.

Another teacher, ang Thi Ly, said: I was very sad when I first came here. There was nothing except forests around the classrooms.

After she became familiar with locals, she felt better, Ly said.

In this area, there are many reasons for students to stay away from school, according to Trinh Thi Phuong, another teacher. It can rain badly, children might not be able to cover the long distance everyday, and their parents might be too poor.

Phuong said she and other teachers visited the students houses often to encourage them to resume their studies.

We also encourage our students by sharing our lunch with them. Many students only have rice and salt for their lunch, she added.

Cutting the distance

Many localities in the region are trying to deal with the problem students being forced to stay away from schools because of the distance by building classrooms in every village.

Across the Central Highlands, there are about 39,800 classrooms with 74,600 teachers.

Tran Phu Vinh, head of Education and Training Office of Lam ong Provinces am Rong District, said: Its a good decision, that would create many favourable conditions for students.

In ak Lak Province, the local administration has set up 12 boarding schools for 1,400 poor students.

A policy issued in 2016 to support poor students in remote areas to attend school by providing the families with 40 per cent of the basic wage has also helped.

The basic wage is VN1.3 million ($57) per month now, which means families are eligible to receive about VN520,000 ($23) each student per month.

Many organisations and individuals have also provided financial aid to build roads and bridges for local students, but much more assistance from all sectors is needed to remove all the difficulties that still stand in the way of many students going to school in the Central Highlands.  VNS
Mon Hanoi (My Hanoi), a documentary made by former French ambassador to Viet Nam Jean-Noel Poirier, presents a very different, soulful perspective of the capital city, Thuy Hang reports

To say that Jean-Noel Poirier is smitten by Ha Noi would be an understatement.

To call it puppy love would be hugely inaccurate.

The Frenchman first came to the city in 1989 for some diplomatic work, and the place left a deep impression on him.

When he returned to the capital city as Frances ambassador to Viet Nam in 2012, he was not just pleased, he soon found everyday of living and working here is a joyful day".

Amazingly, I realised that my desire to live here was growing day after day.

Throughout his tenure as ambassador, Poiriers adoration of the city saw him walk to nooks and corners that most visitors do not get to see. These walks only increased his feelings for Ha Noi, a place he has since come to regard as his second home.

During his tenure as the ambassador, Poirier gave vent to his fascination by making a documentary with the help of his brother, a film director.

Mon Ha Noi (My Ha Noi) premiered on Wednesday in the Vietnamese capital.

In one scene, Poirier, who is also the movies narrator, says in fluent Vietnamese that during his four-year stint as envoy, he has put his footprint on almost all Ha Noi streets.

Explaining his motivation for making the movie, he said: I wanted to try and catch the soul of the city. I wanted to make a movie about my own discovery of the people and the land of Ha Noi, which has become a part of my soul, he said tenderly.

Story teller: Former French ambassador Jean-Noel Poirier is the narrator in Mon Hanoi, a documentary he has made about the capital city.

For over a year, his elder brother Henri-Louis Poirier joined him in Ha Noi to shoot the movie.

To capture the diverse tempo of life in Ha Noi, the two brothers would leave the French Embassy, where the ambassador resides, at all times  at dawn, at noon on burning hot summer days, and at chill winter nights.

Their willingness to brave all weather conditions has resulted in amazingly beautiful and vivid scenes, whether it is citizens exercising early in the morning, a bustling street market, or chaotic traffic.

Poirier said the film was an invitation for the audience to join him on a journey to discover the capital city, to even places that most Hanoians, not to mention foreigners, have not set foot on.

By design: In Poiriers eyes, the interlacing cable network in the capital city is urban geometry.

Hidden corners

One of the hidden corners that the audience reaches, following Poiriers footsteps, is the humble Van Chuong working class living quarter that he found by accident.

Here, in this living quarter, he has found out a meaningful discovery about Ha Noi.

Located not far from Ha Nois Hang Co Railway Station, and therefore the French embassy, Poirier found the area is an ideal place for him to escape from his offices bustle.

The area has its own lifestyle and a unique atmosphere that is hard to find anywhere else in the city, he said.

Weather beaten by decades of rain and sunlight, the residential blocks form a city within a city with several shops, groceries, markets and schools.

Poiriers journey of discovery also took him to the Linh Nam area in the south of the city, which, 20 years ago, was an agricultural area. Today, it is the new Hoang Mai District with innumerable newly built buildings.

However, there are still some green areas left in the region which Poirier compared to a slice of paradise right in the city. Infatuated by this rare green and quiet area, Poirier said he "fervently hopes" that it would never be lost to urbanization and instead, would turn into a green park for Hanoians to walk and relax.

Interesting comparison

Poirier said his connection with Viet Nam went back a long way, with his childhood enriched with stories about the country, particularly Hai Phong and Sai Gon, narrated by his grandfather, who used to work for a marine high commissioner, travelling frequently between France and Asian countries.

So when I came back to Ha Noi in July 2012, I already had the feeling of returning home, he says in the movie.

The former French envoy makes several comparisons of Ha Noi with other places, some understandable and others surprising. He says some parts of Ha Noi remind him of his birthplace, the Bretagne port region, which given the capital citys colonial-era buildings, is not difficult to see.

Street life: A scene depicts a local market in the Mon Hanoi.

However, he concedes that a persons imagination has to be stretched to visualize his likening of the network of narrow and small alleys in the Van Chuong living quarters to Venice in Italy. He says, as in Venice, all the narrow alleys finally lead to a spacious area.

The comparisons both impressed and surprised some members of the audience. Nguyen Thanh Thuy said she was very surprised by the comparison.

I would never have imagined that the humble and poor Van Chuong area can be compared with Venice. However, Poirier has a very sophisticated, sensitive eye, she said.

No one has ever highlighted the beauty of Ha Noi in this fashion, with areas like Van Chuong. But Mon Hanoi pulls it off amazingly, she added.

Another moviegoer, Nguyen Quang Vinh, said he admired Poirier. He was a foreigner but he really has a Vietnamese soul thus he can observe Ha Noi with such loving eyes.

Despite the busy schedule of a diplomat, he has discovered the city with zeal and thoroughness of a culturist.

In Mon Hanoi, Poirier makes other interesting and poetic comparisons.

The former diplomat says he sees the old fading walls on the capital with its blurred advertisements as abstract paintings. The iconic overhead cables are, in his eyes, a beautiful piece of urban geometry.

He also finds similarities in ambience between some of Ha Nois eateries that serve lunch for office workers, and some Parisian bistros.

The former ambassador wants to offer Mon Hanoi as a gift to the residents of Ha Noi and all Vietnamese people.  VNS

Mon Hanoi will be screened on VTV channel on October 8, as part of celebrations of Ha Nois Liberation Day (October 10).
HA NOI  A photo exhibition featuring the life and career of Cuban revolutionary leader Che Guevarra will start tomorrow at the National for News located in Ly Thuong Kiet Street, Ha Noi.

The exhibition, entitled Che  Constructor, aims to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of Guevarras death by paying tribute to the guerilla hero and demonstrating the affection of the Vietnamese to the Cuban revolutionary leader. Guevarra wholeheartedly supported Viet Nam in the fight for its national unification.

The exhibition has been arrrnaged by Vietnam News Agency, Vietnam-Cuba Friendship Association and the Prensa Latina bureau in Viet Nam.

The exhibition displays 30 photos of Che from 1959 to 1965 captured by photographic jounalists from Prensa Latina, the Latin American News Agency. The photos are being put on show to the public for the first time.

The originals are preserved in archives of Presan Latina in La Habana, Cuba.

"To Vietnamese, Che was known as a courageous soldier fighting for national freedom, a talented politician who defended the justice and true values of internationalism and peoples freedom, said Nguyen uc Loi, director of Vietnam News Agency.

The photos will offer visitors an impressive collection of a pro-active, enthusiastic, modest, and creative person who was also a warrior," he added.

The exhibition will run until next Friday.

Che Guevara was born in Argentina in June 14, 1928. He joined the revolutionary movement initiated by Cuban leader Fidel Castro. Following the Cuban Revolution, he performed a number of key roles in Cubas new government. Guevara was killed on October 9, 1967, after being captured the day before by the Bolivian army.  VNS
WATERLOO  A Waterloo family escaped their smoke-filled home after an attached garage with all their belongings caught fire early Saturday.

And firefighters rescued their dog, said Battalion Chief Mike Moore with Waterloo Fire Rescue.

The dog, a shih tzu mix named Mr. Nemo, was unconscious when fire crews discovered him hiding under a bed inside 3603 Cadillac Drive shortly after midnight, but rescue workers were able to resuscitate him at the scene.

Pretty soon he was sitting up, and his tail was wagging, Moore said.

As the sun rose, Mr. Nemo was glancing around while owner Natalie Bell surveyed the damage that included charred toys and furniture.

We pretty much lost everything, Bell said. Its interesting how you can be so grateful in something so traumatic. Everybody is OK. Nobody was burned. None of the firefighters were hurt.

The family is in the process of purchasing a home and plans to move out of the rented Cadillac Drive duplex. Many of their possessions were stacked in the garage that sits under their bedroom.

Around 12:30 a.m. Saturday, Bell and her husband, Andre Tate, were in bed when Tate began to smell something and asked if she had left the oven on.

He said something doesnt seem right, she said. Moments later, a downstairs smoke alarm began to sound.

Bell checked the kitchen, and then her attention was drawn to the mud room that doubles as her childrens playroom.

I could kind of see flickering, and I opened that door, and the entire garage was engulfed in flames at that point, Bell said.

They got their 11-month-old son out of the house  two older daughters were at grandmothers for a sleepover  and alerted their neighbor.

Tate tried to retrieve keys to move their van to make room for the fire engines that would be arriving, and Bell went back in to find Mr. Nemo.

The smoke was so bad that I knew I couldnt get upstairs, Bell said, but she knew he liked to hide under the bed when hes scared, and she told firefighters, who carried him out.

He was unresponsive at first. I asked the one paramedic, Can you tell me is he going to make it or not?  They did CPR on him in the street, and the one paramedic came back and said hes breathing, Bell said. At that point, they were able to rile him up a little bit, and hes running around just fine.

Firefighters were able to contain the fire to the garage, but intense heat and smoke damaged the home. Fire crews were also able to keep all but a little light smoke from entering the adjacent unit at 3605 Cadillac, Moore said.

Bells family was able to stay the balance of the night with their neighbor and will receive emergency shelter from the American Red Cross. She said the cause of the fire appears to be electrical.

Saturdays fire was the second near miss for Mr. Nemo. The dog had earlier lost the use of his back legs, and breeder and a vet had recommended he be put down.

They told me he would never be able to walk normally, but we were going to keep him anyway, Bell said.

An acquaintance taught her techniques to rehabilitate the legs, and the techniques worked.

Now he runs and jumps, Bell said.
WEST DES MOINES  The amount Iowa cities pay for police officer and firefighter pensions will grow slightly for the first time in four years.

The Municipal Fire and Police Retirement System of Iowa announced Friday that starting July 1, municipalities will contribute an amount equal to 26.02 percent of their public safety officers salaries to the retirement fund.

That small increase from the current 25.68 percent rate marks the first time since 2014 employer contribution rates have increased. The percentage had steadily declined since peaking at 30.21 percent in 2014.

Police and firefighters will continue paying 9.4 percent of their earnable compensation into the pension and disability system.

While the MFPRSI board of trustees said the investment income for the pension system exceeded expectations, the increased city contribution rate was based on retirees projected to live longer.

This year, our return gains were offset by the boards decision to adopt an updated mortality improvement table, Terry Slattery, executive director of MFPRSI, said in a news release. Were taking a proactive approach to keep the system sound and secure for many years to come by adjusting for increased lifetime longevity of the systems retirees.

Marty Pottebaum, MFPRSI board chairman, said the change was made after careful consideration.

The board is mindful of our dual role in minimizing the impact rates have on our municipalities and the taxpayers we serve, while also providing a secure retirement for Iowas police officers and firefighters, Pottebaum said.

While a majority of public employees in Iowa are covered under the Iowa Public Employees Retirement System, or IPERS, municipal police and firefighters in larger communities pay into and receive retirement benefits through the separate 411 program, named after the code section governing it.

Cities have complained in the past about the state of Iowas decision in 2012 to stop contributing to the program. The state was paying nearly 4 percent of the costs when the MFPRSI was started in 1992.

Legislative forum focuses on pensions, property taxes CEDAR FALLS | Problems plaguing the state's property tax formula and pension system for muni

Unlike IPERS, which currently has a 5.95 percent employee and 8.93 percent employer contribution rate, most MFPRSI participants dont pay or receive Social Security benefits, relying entirely on the pension fund for retirement and disability income.

The city of Waterloos current budget includes $4.3 million in MFPRSI contributions. The new rate would add about $60,000 in new costs assuming the same police and fire payroll. But the cost to the city likely will be higher as those workers are expected to receive pay increases next year.
WATERLOO  Resident Bill Kammeyer is filing an ethics complaint against Waterloo City Councilman Tom Powers for his vote on the Sunnyside South housing project.

Kammeyer, a former school board member, said he believes it was unethical for Powers to vote on selling the city-owned property to an investment group that included Jim Walsh, chairman of the board of VGM Group, where Powers is employed.

He said he filed the complaint with the Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board by mail Friday.

The City Council voted 6-0 Sept. 11 to sell San Marnan Drive right-of-way for $1 to Sunnyside South Addition LLC for an upscale housing development. The investment group initially included Van Miller, John Deery, Jeff Stickfort and Jim Walsh.

Sunnyside South still in litigation WATERLOO  A group of residents is back in court to block the citys sale of the so-called S

To myself and many in the public it appears to be a major conflict of interest for Mr. Powers to cast a vote to sell city property to a man who is by most peoples definition his boss, Kammeyer said in a prepared statement.

It is my belief that Councilman Powers should have abstained from this vote given his clear relationship with the investor, he added. I would imagine that the majority of citizens would agree that the perception of this vote does not sit well.

Before voting, Powers consulted with City Attorney Dave Zellhoefer, who said he researched the situation and discussed it with the ethics board staff before determining Powers had no conflict of interest preventing him from voting on the development agreement.

Powers said VGM Group is employee owned, not owned by Sunnyside South or any of its investors. The company has no financial interest in the success of the housing project.

I have zero interest in the financial success of Sunnyside South, Powers said. Walsh is not my manager or supervisor and, as far as I can tell, has never been involved in my promotion or pay at VGM.

I support the growth and development of Waterloo and hope that more projects like this come to the City Council for review and possible approval, he added.

Waterloo mayor fined for violating campaign ethics rule DES MOINES | The Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board fined Waterloo Mayor Buck Clark $

This is not Kammeyers first complaint to the state ethics panel against a city official. His 2014 complaint led to then-Waterloo Mayor Buck Clark being fined $100 for using his city email for campaign purposes.
 Flash

The Clark County Coroner Thursday night released an official list of 59 decedents from Sunday's mass shooting on the Las Vegas strip.

"Coroner John Fudenberg extended condolences to all those affected by the incident and encouraged families to contact the Family Information Center in Las Vegas if they need any assistance related to the Coroner's Office processes." the Coroner's office said in a press released on its official website.

On the list, there are 37 female victims and 22 dead men including Stephen Paddock, the 64-year-old gambler and real estate investor, who rained down about 1,600 rounds of ammo from the 32th floor suite of Mandalay Bay hotel into a crowd of more than 22,000 people attending Route 91 Harvest Country Music Festival Sunday night.

The oldest victim is Patricia Mestas, born on July. 25 of 1950 and the youngest is 20-year-old lady Bailey Schweitzer, who was born on April 5 of 1997.

In order to identify the victims in time, the Clark County Coroner's office got help from cities that are no stranger to mass casualties, including New York City and San Bernardino of California, where 14 people died in a shooting in December 2015.

The Clark County Coroner office did not mark the victims' nationality, but there is no typical Chinese name on the official list. It could prove the preliminary conclusion of the Consulate General of China in San Francisco that no casualty of Chinese citizen in the deadliest mass shooting in American modern history..

"We have received no call or message for help from Chinese nationals," Zha Liyou, Deputy Consul General of the People's Republic of China in San Francisco told Xinhua early, "We haven't received any request for help from Chinese citizens via the Consular Protection 24-hour hotline, messaging platform or the hugely popular social-messaging platform WeChat."
As we all know, in 2009 the U.S. government did not want Manuel Zelaya to return to the presidency after he was overthrown, so effectively stalled until regularly scheduled presidential elections took place later in the year. Porfirio Lobo won those elections. His victory was spun as a boost both to democracy and to fighting corruption. We know the opposite to be true.



Now the New York Times has a long and disgustingly fascinating story about the U.S. government's efforts to combat narcotrafficking in Honduras, which boomed after the 2009 chaos the U.S. helped engender. A major drug lord is now helping and it reaches to the former president.





The evidence, a prosecutor said at a hearing on Sept. 5, showed nothing short of state-sponsored drug trafficking.

Investigators have also gathered evidence that Hondurass former president, Porfirio Lobo, took bribes to protect traffickers, and that drug money may have helped finance the rise of the countrys current president, Juan Orlando Hernandez.

Concerned about the possibility of extradition to the United States, Mr. Rivera said they paid more than $400,000 in bribes to President Porfirio Lobo, before and after his November 2009 election. At President Lobos home in early 2010, Mr. Rivera received the assurance he wanted.
By The Associated Press Oct. 06, 2017 | 05:15 AM | BENTON, IL

Four people from southern Illinois have been arrested on charges of theft and animal torture after they allegedly stole piglets and killed them.

The Southern Illinoisan in Carbondale reports Franklin County Sheriff Don Jones says two juveniles were arrested in addition to 18-year-old Trenton H. Bennett of West Frankfort and 20-year-old Brendan A. Shaputis of Ewing.

According to Jones, the four allegedly stole about 30 piglets, each about 5 to 7 days old, from the Logan Sow Center in Benton.

Authorities allege Bennett tortured several piglets. He allegedly kicked, beat and struck the animals until their deaths. One piglet was tossed off an overpass. Shaputis is also accused of killing piglets in the same manner as Bennett.

Authorities say the juveniles have been released to their families. Bennett and Shaputis are being held in lieu of $45,000 bond. It wasn't immediately known if they have lawyers.

___

Information from: Southern Illinoisan, http://www.southernillinoisan.com
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Russia, Saudi Arabia strengthen ties in nuclear energy

06 October 2017

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Rosatom and the King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (KA-CARE) signed a 'program of cooperation' in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy in Moscow yesterday as part of Saudi Arabian King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud's state visit to Russia. The program aims to develop the intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy the two countries signed in June 2015.

The latest document was signed by Khalid Al Falih, Saudi minister of energy, industry, and mineral resources, and Maher Al Odan, head of the nuclear energy division of KA-CARE, and Alexey Likhachov, director-general of Rosatom, and Evgeny Pakermanov, president of Rusatom Overseas.

Rosatom said they plan to cooperate in small- and medium-sized reactors, which can be used both for power generation and desalination of sea water; in the training of personnel for Saudi Arabia's national nuclear program; and in the development of the kingdom's nuclear energy infrastructure. Russia and Saudi Arabia will also "appreciate the prospects" of constructing a Russian-designed nuclear power plant in Saudi Arabia.

Although Saudi Arabia's nuclear program is in its infancy, it has plans to construct 16 nuclear power reactors over the next 20 years. A 2010 royal decree identified nuclear power as essential to help meet growing energy demand for both electricity generation and water desalination while reducing reliance on depleting hydrocarbon resources.

In January this year, Saudi Arabia signed a memorandum of understanding with China on the construction of high-temperature gas-cooled reactors (HTGRs) in the Middle Eastern country. They signed a cooperation agreement for a joint study in March and held their first meeting to discuss the feasibility of constructing HTGRs in May.

Researched and written

by World Nuclear News

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Oct 7, 2017 | By David

One of the most eagerly anticipated events at this years IN(3D)USTRY expo in Barcelona was the awards ceremony for the Reshape 2017 contest. Following on from Reshape 2014: Digital Craft and Reshape 2016: Wearable Technology, the theme this year was Programmable Skins. Entrants were tasked with the design of next-generation wearable technology, focusing on new materialities and interactive relations.

Online platform Reshape was created with the aim of promoting research into cutting-edge design and advanced digital manufacturing techniques, with 3D printing technology being one of its key areas of interest. The international network of creativity and new ideas that Reshape has established is pointing the way forward for a huge range of industries, and it represents all that the IN(3D)USTRY conference hopes to be.

Before the winners were announced, Reshape director Aldo Sollazzo hosted a roundtable discussion on wearable technology, with a number of luminaries from the worlds of retail and consumer goods. Paul Sohi of Autodesk, Peter Hanappe of Sony Computer Science Labs, and Adidas Director of Design Operations, Simone Cesano, were all present, amongst others. They also served as the jury for the Reshape contest.

A key theme that emerged from the panels discussion was that of sustainability. Considering the difficulties that come with the disposal of electronics and the significant carbon footprint of most existing manufacturing processes, the wearables of the future will have to contribute something new to the retail landscape in a way that offsets all these potentially damaging aspects. In opposition to something like the Apple Watch, which merely offers a novel take on an established functionality, new ways to use materials and new types of relations between the consumer and their environment were the most valuable things that a wearable could offer, and this proved to be the case with the majority of the nominees for the Programmable Skins contest.

This years runners-up were the team behind the Be (in the) water project, Barcelona-based Nuria Diago Camps and Maria Carrion Amettler. Their entry was a nose clip for swimmers, based on the Voronoi structure. It was produced entirely using 3D printing technology, made using polyamide materials and the SLS technique. This digital-based manufacturing process allowed for complete personalization, and the clip is adapted to the skin surface of the wearers nose. This makes it a form of second skin, as it regulates the relation between the swimmer and their environment, processing data from both sources.

The Be (in the) water clip was designed with the synchronized swimming world in mind. While nose clips are traditionally designed to be hidden away and barely visible, this clips unique, personalized shape and harmonic balance with the wearer give it a particular aesthetic appeal. This enables a re-conceptualization of this product as a jewel, something that can add value to the sector by contributing to the visual appeal of a strongly aesthetics-focused sport.

The overall winners of Reshape 2017 were Snezhana Paderlina, Nikita Replyanski, Christopher Diaz, and Maria Replyanski, from St Petersburg, Russia. Their project was entitled the Graduated Spinal Support System, or GS3. This corset-like wearable device is designed to provide dynamic back support. It is equally suitable for someone who is undergoing physiotherapy and rehabilitation from back problems and for otherwise healthy people who carry out a lot of strenuous physical tasks.The device consists of mostly 3D printed components and as such can be personalized according to the patients spinal structure to enable optimum comfort. A selection of high-performance, flexible fabrics were used to assemble the GS3.

Not only this, but the 3D printed parts were also designed to integrate a neural network into the device. This network is a lightweight cable mechanism that is capable of learning what task or movement the wearer is attempting to pull off, and adapting the structure of the device accordingly. Data about the wearers rigidity and support level at various points is processed in order to enhance the existing musculature and provide improved spinal support. In this way the GS3 is a unique hybrid device, combining fashion and functionality as both garment and exoskeleton.

In their acceptance speech, the GS3 team explained how much they liked the idea of turning what might be thought of as a weakness into a strength. Weve seen something similar recently with many 3D printed prosthetics, particularly ones for children or athletes, but something like the GS3 has the potential for even more widespread application. Based on the general concept of adding value instead of just solving a problem, we could the fashion ecosystem and the medical device sector becoming increasingly intertwined in future.

Posted in 3D Printing Events

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Michael Dirda at the Washington Post:

Today, Giorgio Vasari (1511-1574) is usually remembered only as the author of The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects, one of the foundational works of art history and a book nearly as entertaining as its models, Plutarchs Lives of the Noble Grecians and Romans and Suetoniuss Lives of the Caesars. In its fullest edition, Vasari presents gossipy biographical portraits of seemingly all of Renaissance Italys major (and minor) artists, including Cimabue, Leonardo, Botticelli, Raphael, Titian and Michelangelo.

As Ingrid Rowland and Noah Charney remind us in The Collector of Lives, scholars still turn to Vasari as a primary source, albeit with caution: He is hardly what one would call impartial or disinterested. Vasari badmouths his enemies (such as Cellini), while his novella-length account of Michelangelo approaches hagiography. Moreover, rather than verify his facts, he tends to print the legend. Did the young Giotto really draw a perfect O when asked to supply an example of his work? Did Piero di Cosimo really live almost entirely on hard-boiled eggs? Maybe, maybe not. Some stories are too good to check. Rowland lives in Rome and is the author of a fine biography of the philosopher Giordano Bruno and of a guide to Pompeii ; Charney, who resides in Slovenia, founded the Association for Research Into Crimes Against Art.

more here.
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Rain early...then remaining cloudy with showers in the afternoon. High 59F. Winds E at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 100%. Rainfall near a quarter of an inch..

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Showers in the evening, then cloudy overnight. Low 44F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%.
Kirkuk a Ticking Time Bomb for Iraq

Iraq's territories which are disputed by both Baghdad and Erbil have long been a primary source of contention between Kurds and federal government. Among these territories Kirkuk is most important one and both Baghdad and Erbil have locked horn over it. The oil-rich Kirkuk province lies outside of the official borders of the Kurd's semi-autonomous territory and is home to Kurds, Arabs, Turkmen and Christians. The province has one of the biggest oil fields of Iraq that is Baba Gurgur. Different ethnic groups like Kurds, Arab, Turkmen and Assyrians have conflicting claims on this city and all have their historical accounts and memories to strengthen their claims. Like Turkmen of Iraq consider Kirkuk as their cultural capital as it was ruled by Seljuk Turks for many years and Assyrians looks Kirkuk as their ancient capital of Arrapha. Kurds, on the other hand, refer to Kirkuk city as their "Jerusalem", the city they lost and aspire to get it back. Moreover, historically Kirkuk was also a point of intersection for Ottoman, Persian, and independent Kurdish tribal interests and influences. Kirkuk has always been a multi ethnic vibrant city but now it has turned into most significant unresolved issue in the country. The Kirkuk province always showcased the model of Iraqi diversity. Now, however, it has become a ticking time bomb which can anytime explode and can result in bloody sectarian civil war. Even now as well violent clashes between Turkmen and Kurds in Kirkuk city have started taking place. Kurds are also very much determined to include Kirkuk in the Kurdistan. Tamr Hussein a Kurdish journalist based in Erbil said Kurds will never give up Kirkuk and they are ready to defend the city against any attack. Moreover, Mr Hussein added if Baghdad wishes to mobilize forces to retake Kirkuk by force then Peshmerga will respond appropriately. Kirkuk in the past used to be a primarily a Kurdish city but due to "Arabization" policy of Ba'athist regime the demography of the city changed drastically. The process of Arabization included uprooting native Kurds and the settlement of a large number of Arab families from other parts of Iraq in their place, by providing large financial and economic incentives. But since 2003 after the fall of Ba'ath regime Kurds have returned in good numbers, and in recent years they have consolidated control over Kirkuk. Not only Turkmen and Arab are disputing the Kurdish claim over the city a prominent challenge for Kurdish security forces has emerged from the Shia militias like- Hashd al-Shaabi or Popular Mobilization Units and Badr Brigade. These militias have a strong presence in Shiite areas in the south of Kirkuk and in the Tuz Khormato area in neighboring Salahuddin province. The growing threat of armed conflict and communal violence between different ethnic groups of Kirkuk suggests that this the high time for a mediated solution. First of all, Kurdistan Regional Government which controls the city needs to build confidence between Kirkuk's minority communities. This can be achieved by providing assurance that all ethnic communities will be treated fairly and will get fixed number of parliamentary seats and their cultural and educational rights will be protected. Every stakeholder should understand that the Kirkuk issue must be resolved amicably, through a political process and not through use of force and coercion. And for any political solution to be successful a strong political will is needed and compromises and concessions will have to be made by all the parties. Even the special status for Kirkuk within Kurdistan, like what Quebec has in Canada can be considered. In the meantime, until there is a permanent settlement between Erbil and Baghdad over future of Kirkuk. An interconnected approach to resources can be adopted similar to the Jordan-Israel water pipeline which will be mutually beneficial. Moreover, Kurdish and Iraqi authorities should realize that without resolving the issue of the disputed territories most notably Kirkuk it will be near to impossible for Erbil and Baghdad to have a stable relationship going forward. For Kurds also, Kirkuk is not only a priced possession which can make them economically sound through its huge hydro carbon deposit but it is also a huge crust of explosive containing a variety of diverse factors and conflicting interests, that could explode and can cause destruction of Kurdish aspirations for independence, if the Kurdish top brass does not handle the delicate issue cautiously, patiently, and wisely.
The Chippewa Falls School District may not have managed to pass two multi-million-dollar referendums in 2016, but its emphasis on helping students plan future careers won praise from Wisconsins top education official on Wednesday evening.

Tony Evers, Wisconsin Superintendent of Public Instruction, spoke to a crowd of Chippewa County teachers and retired educators at the Heyde Center for the Arts.

The American Association of University Women (AAUW), that invited Evers to speak in Chippewa Falls, invited the superintendent before he announced his run for Wisconsin governor as a Democrat in 2018. This is not a campaign stop, AAUW member Arlene Wright said Wednesday.

Evers began the evening with a call for bipartisan support for public schools  and praised Wisconsins recent record of passing school district referendums.

If you look at the last three elections in the state, over a million people voted to increase taxes on themselves to support their public schools, Evers said. Of those million people, I guarantee almost half were Republicans and half were Democrats. Its close. What that tells me is, public education in the state has managed to thread the needle.

Chippewa Falls was not one of the Wisconsin districts that successfully passed recent referendums. In November 2016, the community voted down two referendums that would have replaced Stillson Elementary and Chippewa Falls Senior High School. The Chippewa Falls School Board is currently conducting a survey to gauge community support for potential future referendums.

Hard to find

Peggy Nehring, a former McDonell Central Catholic High School teacher, asked Evers how to promote the teaching profession. Evers agreed that teachers are becoming harder to find, especially for rural districts. There was a time when it was a revered profession, but its been a while, he said.

He concluded that communities need to speak to their representatives to emphasize the importance of teachers  but also that a big part of the problem begins at college.

Funding is a huge issue, he said. In many cases, higher education leaders think education courses are a good golden calf. They have a low cost, compared to, say, engineering. I think we need to work at the higher education level to make people understand how important (teaching) is to a citys economy.

Evers admitted fighting the educator shortage is a slow battle. Its going to be tough. Its going to take some time.

Career planning a hit

Evers also praised the Academic and Career Planning initiative (ACP), which helps students experiment with potential careers.

On the local level, Chippewa Falls has taken the program seriously. School District Superintendent Heidi Eliopoulos explained on September 19: All nine of our schools have some level of academic career planning students start at late elementary, 4th and 5th grade, where they start to explore what types of careers are out there. In middle school theystart to do research on a career field that peaks their interest.

In high school, students start to think about the workplace, Eliopoulos said. Chippewa Falls Senior High School offers deeper electives, multi-tiered classes in subjects such as engineering and the opportunity for students to earn college credits in advanced high school classes.
Assyrians and Yazidis See a Bleak Future in a Proposed Independent Kurdish State

BASHIQA, Iraq -- Shortly after the Islamic State was pushed out of his home town last year, Ivan Abdulla bought a new house in the traditionally Yazidi enclave. It was an investment in the place where generations of his family were raised, he said. But the father of three already regrets his decision. The hilltop town of mostly Yazidis and Christians -- two of Iraq's most vulnerable minorities -- has become the focus of a tug of war between the Iraqi government and the Kurdish region since a Kurdish vote for independence last week. Bashiqa is legally part of Iraq but controlled by Kurdish security forces, and Kurdish officials see it as part of a future state. Once again, the town's future has suddenly been thrown into doubt.

"You can't think long term in this country," Abdulla said. "Whatever plans you set, something happens. Things get ruined." Bashiqa is one of a handful of towns and cities that could test the Kurdish regional government's fitness for self-rule and the Iraqi government's determination to stop the breakup of the country. How that conflict plays out will deeply affect the fate of Iraq's ethnic and religious minorities, who have been scattered, massacred and besieged by decades of war -- and more recently, a policy of extermination by the Islamic State. Most of Iraq's minorities live in the swath of northern Iraq that is part of a proposed autonomous Kurdish state. Christians and Yazidis have left the country in droves in recent years, especially since the Islamic State swept through parts of Iraq in 2014. Yazidis in particular say they were abandoned by Kurdish forces to be massacred and sexually enslaved by the militants. Both groups believe they would be the biggest losers in a conflict between Baghdad and the Kurdish region. "Our future is a mystery," said Akram Mansour, 67, a security guard at the historic Mar Korkeis church in Bashiqa. "We're between the hammer of the Kurdish government and the hammer of the federal government." About a dozen miles northeast of Mosul, Bashiqa was once a quiet place where Yazidis, Christians and a smaller population of Sunni Muslims lived prosperously. Churches and mosques were often built just across the street from one another. The town, which had a population of about 50,000 before the Islamic State stormed in, provided an outsized contribution to Iraq's economy and culture. The farms nearby produced olives coveted throughout the country, soap and sesame oil. It was also known affectionately as Iraq's Liquor Store because of the factories there that made Arak, an anise-flavored liquor. After the U.S. invasion, Kurdish peshmerga forces secured the town -- giving Kurdish political parties their first foothold in the Nineveh plains, a cluster of towns and villages with a disproportionately high number of minorities, including Christians and Yazidis. Bashiqa was one of the few places in Iraq where Yazidis didn't live in cloistered communities. Their isolation in other areas left them particularly vulnerable to the Islamic State, and their plight drew the U.S. military back into Iraq. The peshmerga withdrew from the town of Sinjar one night in summer 2014, leading to a massacre of Yazidis and the enslavement of thousands of women by the Islamic State. Days later, the peshmerga left Bashiqa, and Yazidi and Christian families were forced to flee on their own. Peshmerga forces backed by U.S. airstrikes defeated the Islamic State in Bashiqa in November last year. Today, the Iraqi government is responsible for public services in Bashiqa. Electricity is unreliable and tap water flows intermittently. There is one garbage truck, and trash piles up. A single crew of three men with a wheelbarrow and shovels fills roads cratered by airstrikes during the fight against the Islamic State. Older retirees receive their pension from the Iraqi government. Many of their adult children are employed by the Kurdish government, these days mostly in the police forces and military that patrol the streets. Distrust of both sides is high. But the town's abandonment by the peshmerga has left the deepest wound. "It was such a miserable moment," Abdulla said. "We left loved ones not knowing if we'll ever see them again." As part of their campaign for independence, Kurdish officials have said their record of protecting Iraqi minorities is far superior to Iraqi government efforts. But in recent months, Yazidis and Kurdish forces have clashed, and few basic services have been restored in disputed towns controlled by the Kurds. Bashiqa bears the scars of the war against the Islamic State. Many houses remain caved in by explosions and some buildings are still marked with graffiti exalting the extremist group's leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. The town is still half-empty, its residents scattered as refugees in Europe or living in camps throughout Iraq. But some have returned, preferring a nearly vacant town still creaking back to life to living among strangers elsewhere. "This is my home," said Bassam Mahmoud, a 50-year-old Yazidi shopkeeper. "This is the home of my grandfathers and their grandfathers. We are Iraqis, but we belong only here." That sense of belonging has been challenged by a surge in attention by Kurdish officials, who did more talking than listening when they came to town, residents said. Ahead of the Kurdish referendum, the top spiritual leader of the Yazidis, Baba Sheikh Khurto Hajji Ismail, said he maintained "a policy of neutrality," saying the issue is "for Kurds only to decide." Weeks before the referendum on Sept. 25, Kurdish authorities decorated the streets with Kurdish flags, and massive posters bearing the face of the Kurdish regional president, Masoud Barzani, were draped over buildings. Residents said the message was clear: that nothing less than a "yes" vote for Kurdish independence was expected. "It doesn't matter whether you vote yes or no. No one knows where these ballot boxes are going," Mahmoud said. He voted "yes" anyway, he said. "Don't forget, there are people watching," he said. "All the people here are peshmerga." Zuhair, a 33-year-old Yazidi peshmerga fighter, said he and other peshmerga soldiers were bused to a polling station outside of Bashiqa, where they voted under the watchful eye of senior commanders. "It hurt," said Zuhair, who declined to give his full name out of fear of retribution. "I am a member of the peshmerga, who left my people without even weapons to defend themselves in Sinjar. But how can I leave them? How would I live? I need the salary." Kurdish election authorities did not release results from the referendum showing how people in disputed areas voted. Bashiqa's residents say they are bracing for a fresh round of armed conflict. The town not only would sit on the border between two hostile neighbors, but also is a site of oil exploration. Even if the Kurdish bid for independence ultimately succeeds through negotiations, the residents of Bashiqa say they have little faith they would be fully embraced by a Kurdish state. "In every scenario, we are the ones who will be suffering. People built entire lives here over generations and overnight lost everything," Mahmoud said. "It's back to zero and we expect this will happen again." Abdulla, the new homeowner, said that "there's an inner peace missing." "The most I can hope for now is that no one knocks on my door telling us we must leave," he said. "That's it."

Mustafa Salim contributed to this report.
October 4, 2017

For its 20th anniversary and 17th edition, the Beirut International Film Festival will screen movies, short films and documentaries about terrorism, religious extremism, refugees and marginalized groups rights  all the hot issues on the global agenda.

The major film festival, which runs from Oct. 4 to 12, offers to the Beirut audience local, regional and international independent movies that are unlikely to be seen on television or in local cinemas. A jury of four chooses the best ones in each category.

The festival includes on its program several award-winning films, some of which will be shown for the first time in Lebanon. It also provides vital exposure for Middle Eastern movies focusing on political and social issues in the region. It opened with a screening of La Cordillera by Argentine director Santiago Mitre, and will close with Loving Vincent by British director Hugh Welchman and Polish director Dorota Kobiela, about the last days of painter Vincent Van Gogh's life, prior to his suicide.

For founder Colette Naufal, the idea behind the festival was to bring art house cinema to Beirut, as these movies are never released because they are not commercially viable, unlike blockbusters.

Naufal told Al-Monitor, With time, we developed another purpose, which is to give a platform for filmmakers in the region to express themselves and tackle subjects that are taboo in their countries. Given that Lebanon is the country with the least censorship in the region, we are able to offer this platform. We do not choose a certain type of film  we do not have this in our criteria  but as time goes on, you see what is happening to the world and the movies reflect just that. In the last two years, movies started talking more and more of the global problems: poverty, migration, ethnic cleansing, global warming, NGO corruption, corruption in the ruling class, sex slavery, human trafficking and on and on and on.

Among the activist and progressive movies that will be screened during the festival, 120 Battements Par Minutes, by French director Robin Campillo, depicts the struggle of activists who fought against the general indifference to the suffering of AIDS patients during the early 1990s. I Am Not Your Negro by Haitian director Raoul Peck is based on an unfinished manuscript by African-American author James Baldwin on the civil rights movement and racism in America from the 1960s on. Yom Lel Settat ("A Day for Women") by Egyptian director Kamla Abou portrays the social, psychological and emotional lives of women living in one of Egypts most impoverished neighborhoods.

Five Lebanese directors will introduce short films, and two will present documentaries. Among the shorts, Cargo is the story of a young boy who tries to protect his sick grandfather on a journey from Syria to the Bekaa Valley, then begs in Beirut for money to buy his medicine after an accident. The film's 25-year-old Lebanese director, Karim Rahbani, won the Beirut International Film Festival's short films competition three years ago with With Thy Spirit. The movie is about sacrifices made in the name of family ties in times of war and migration, topics that are dear to Rahbani.

Everyone talks about Syrian refugees, he told Al-Monitor. But I wanted to focus on the idea of lost childhood, of care and love. The idea for "Cargo" came when Rahbani, casting for With Thy Spirit, encountered a Syrian child, Abed al-Hadi Assaf, begging in the streets. After contacting the child's family, he convinced Abed to perform a supporting role in his first film and then play the main character in Cargo.

Now he wants to do like me when he grows up, said Rahbani. Destiny can change anyones life," even the life of a child living on the streets, he added. Abed will see it for the first time with the festival audience on Oct. 10 as he wasn't able to travel to attend international film competitions.

Lebanese journalist Diana Moukalled will also present her documentary The History of Lebanese Cinema, prepared for Al Jazeera's documentary series and screened for the first time. For me it is about an identity that is not found yet, Moukalled told Al-Monitor. I worked a lot on current affairs, women's issues, minorities rights, politics, etc., and with time I realized cinema is a real mirror of society. You can see it in Lebanese cinema. It has gone through several stages, all of them echoing the local and regional situation. For example, after independence, cinema was about migration. In the '50s and '60s the productions were a mix of Lebanese, Syrian and Egyptian without any proper identity. In the late '60s cinema became more political, mostly about resisting Israel and Palestinian fighters. It is basically a film trip through time and history."
October 6, 2017

Up until the last day before the Sept. 25 Kurdish independence referendum, Iran was still dealing with the event with a sense of disbelief and with the misconception that it would be called off at the last moment. The assumption was that the de facto head of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), Massoud Barzani, was only maneuvering to negotiate a better deal with the central government in Baghdad with respect to the regions autonomy  on both the political and the economic side. Iran thought that Barzani was looking for Iranian-Turkish support for future talks, while already having an American green light to escalate to the edge of the abyss, and that things would then be better.

This was the case when Iranian Chief of General Staff Mohammad Bagheri visited Ankara and met with high-level Turkish officials and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in August. And even when Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani visited Iraqi Kurdistan to convince the Kurdish leadership to delay the vote, Tehran was still dealing with the whole story from a perspective that could easily be described as one of denial. This policy continued until the moment the Kurds announced that the referendum returned a big "yes," with almost 93% of votes in favor of independence.

Barzani had killer timing: The whole region is apprehensive of taking any step toward a new escalation, with crises already igniting in Iraq, Syria, Yemen and the Gulf. Therefore, it was clear to the Kurdish leader that its either now or never. Now that the referendum has been held, what are the dynamics that are to follow this historical change? And how is Iran as a nation  and its powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)  going to deal with it?

Despite the ideological crust that covers Irans politics, it could be said that Iranian diplomacy enjoys an amount of pragmatism that allows it to cope with changes. This was the case when the United States invaded both Afghanistan and Iraq in 2001 and 2003, respectively, and the series of events that have taken place in the region since then. Even when it comes to existential battles such as the one in Syria, Iran made the decision to fight until the end while preserving a line of dialogue with other players, directly or through mediators. This was what Barzani believed would occur in the aftermath of the referendum. Therefore, he felt confident that neither Turkey nor Iran would be able to take any dramatic action. Still, this doesnt mean the two powers arent going to take action at all, especially since both countries regard the Kurdish move as a threat to their national security.

To Iran, the referendum will have dire consequences on the future of neighboring Iraq. Having a Kurdish state could prompt the Sunnis to call for a referendum of their own, thus Iraq would cease to exist and would be replaced with three shaky sectarian or ethnic states. Kurdistan is a step toward Shiitestan and Sunnistan in Iraq. The border is a main concern for Tehran, especially because some Iranian Kurdish separatist groups function in border regions and have resumed their fight against the IRGC. Since 2016, several attacks have been launched by groups whose headquarters are located in Iraqi Kurdistan. Now that the Kurdish region is planning to continue moving toward independence, Iran is going to be very concerned that these groups activities might have an impact on the internal Iranian front.

The struggle of the Kurdish nation in the different parts of Kurdistan is interlinked, said Loghman Ahmadi, the spokesman of the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran (KDPI), in an interview with Al-Monitor, adding, A positive development in one part of Kurdistan is positive for all other parts of Kurdistan.

Ahmadi explained that the KDPI enjoys what he called tactical and strategic patience, yet he stressed that, with an enemy like Iran, you need to take advantage of every opportunity to weaken the regime.

The cautiousness in dealing with the Kurds in Iran has been a challenge for the Iranian state for the past 100 years. This is not an issue related solely to the Islamic Republic or the Pahlavi dynasty, but rather a grander question. The Simko Shikak revolution in 1918-1922, the Kurdish Republic of Mahabad in 1946 and the insurgency that ignited after the Islamic Revolution in 1979, all together tell the story of the Kurdish dream not only in Iran, but in Iraq, Syria and Turkey. A dream thats regarded by the aforementioned states as a nightmare that no one wants to think of because it means the formation of a new entity, or new entities, while transforming the affected countries from strong, multiethnic states into weak and threatened ones.

When it comes to countering the results of the Kurdish referendum, neither Iran nor Turkey will act on their own; rather, both will move together. On Oct. 4, Erdogan visited Iran to discuss issues of mutual interests  and the Kurdish issue was very high on the list. Both Erdogan and his host, President Hassan Rouhani, expressed dismay toward the Iraqi Kurdish state. While Rouhani said at a joint news conference, We will not accept changing borders in the region, Erdogan warned, A development of this sort will isolate the Kurdish regional government. He added, From this moment onward, more decisive steps will be taken.

A source close to the IRGC told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity that the Kurdish referendum dilemma could be the challenge that will induce Turkey, Iran, Iraq and some other allies to actually cooperate on the ground. For years, these parties were facing each other in Syria, directly or indirectly. The challenge of the Kurdish referendum is being transformed into a serious opportunity. Information acquired by Al-Monitor indicates that the first step could start from Kirkuk, given its status with respect to Iraq, and the fact that the KRGs occupation of the area was seen as illegitimate by the Iraqi authorities and the international community.
October 6, 2017

Meeting in the Gaza Strip, Fatah and Hamas engaged in reconciliation talks this week, announcing that the movements have agreed on national unity. But from there to a detailed and feasible agreement for a unity government, there is still a long way to go. At the heart of the dispute preventing the reconciliation is the question of who will control the security forces in Gaza. According to Israeli assessments, the Hamas military consists of some 20,000 armed members who joined Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades since Hamas staged its coup in Gaza in 2007.

In an interview that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas granted to Egyptian television on Oct. 3, the day of the celebratory meeting in Gaza, he said that he would not agree to accept the "Hezbollah model" in the Gaza Strip. In other words, he rejects the notion of having a civilian government headed by the Palestinian Authority (PA) and at the same time for a political movement to keep its own armed force. "We, in the West Bank, operate according to a single law and a single authority. I order to arrest anyone who holds weapons that is not under the auspices of the law, even if they are Fatah members, and that is what is meant to be," he explained.

Abbas speaks from experience. During the Hamas coup, PA forces were forced out of Gaza at gunpoint. He is, therefore, unwilling to compromise on this. But Hamas is not willing to compromise either. The group considers the armed forces it established to be a "weapon of resistance," with senior Hamas official Mousa Abu Marzouk saying, "We are talking about weapons intended to defend the Palestinian people. As long as the Palestinian people continue to live under occupation, these weapons will continue to be prepared and ready for any scenario."

As Al-Monitor previously reported, the dispute between Fatah and Hamas is not limited to security control over the Gaza Strip or whether all Palestinian military forces should be forced to submit to Abbas as commander of the security forces in the PA. It also involves how the objectives of the security forces are determined. The PA regards its security forces as an enforcement agency, charged with maintaining order and security in the Palestinian territories and protecting its officials and institutions. In contrast, Hamas considers the military force it created to be a weapon of deterrence in its struggle with Israel.

Given that the differences between Hamas and Fatah were made very clear just before the government meeting in Gaza convened and the reconciliation talks commenced, it seems as if there is nothing more to talk about. The differences are too vast to overcome. Nevertheless, the meeting took place. Everybody smiled at everyone else. Photos described as "historic," disseminated by the Palestinian media, showed the head of Palestinian Intelligence Services Majid Faraj smiling as he hugged the head of Hamas in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar. Next week, Cairo will host working meetings by committees responsible for a number of different issues.

Abbas has clearly declared that he is not willing to forgo the principle of "a single law and a single authority." Nevertheless, neither he, nor anyone else on either side, has given up on the chances of reaching internal Palestinian reconciliation.

Al-Monitor has learned from sources in Gaza close to former Fatah senior Mohammed Dahlan's people that the reason for the cautious optimism exhibited by both sides is the fact that Egypt has proposed a compromise. If accepted, it should resolve the dispute, at least in the short term, until Hamas joins the PLO's official institutions and commits itself to accepting the overriding principles shared by all the other Palestinian factions.

The Egyptian proposal, which was apparently initiated by Khaled Fawzy, the director of the Egyptian General Intelligence Directorate, revolves around the creation of a joint security council for the Gaza Strip. Its members would consist of the heads of security in the PA and their counterparts in Hamas, with all security decisions made jointly by them. Fatah and Hamas would have an equal number of members on the council, and Egypt would also be represented on it. According to one Palestinian source in Gaza, senior Hamas officials have accepted the Egyptian proposal. It has also been presented to Abbas, but he has yet to respond.

Discussions about the Egyptian proposal and an examination of whom it benefits lead to the conclusion that Hamas considers the proposal reasonable. They assess that even if the joint security council is created, recruits who joined the Hamas army before reconciliation will show greater loyalty to Hamas.

It is in Egypt's best interests that its representatives will be members of the proposed security council and oversee it  if it is, in fact, created. True, the Egyptian representatives will only have the status of observers, mediators and intermediaries, without any decision-making authority, but that is enough for Egyptian intelligence to ensure that their country's security interests are not marginalized. This will allow Egypt a toehold in Palestinian territory, when it is clear to anyone in the know that Egypt will be the deciding voice on major issues in which the dispute between Hamas and Fatah seems irresoluble.

Egypt has considerable interest in reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas, since this ensures further security coordination with Gaza and the prevention of smuggling  of weapons, mainly  into Sinai Peninsula. Then there is the fact that Egypt is concerned that the humanitarian situation in Gaza might deteriorate further, placing Egypt at risk. What remains to be seen now is whether the Egyptian proposal will be accepted by all the parties.

One big question is what will happen to Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, which currently maintain their independence as a military force. Will the head of the movement's military wing, Mohammed al-Deif, be willing to relinquish his status and role and dismantle al-Qassam Brigades? These issues have not yet been discussed, but they will certainly raise many questions when the Joint Military Committee convenes in Cairo to discuss the Egyptian compromise proposal.

Another open question is whether Abbas is willing to relinquish his role as supreme commander of the Palestinian Security Forces, a position reserved for the head of the PA. The very existence of a joint security council with representatives of a foreign state, no matter how friendly, calls his ability to make decisions into question.

Al-Monitor has learned that Egypt has already informed Abbas that Hamas  more specifically, its al-Qassam Brigades  will not give up its arms as long as the occupation continues.

Even if a compromise is eventually found to enable the creation of the joint security council, such as Egyptian guarantees to Abbas that Hamas weapons will not be turned against him, the question of the armed forces' ultimate purpose remains. Will it focus on becoming a national security force, or will it be destined to serve as the "weapon of the resistance"? The response to this question will determine the future of Palestinian reconciliation.
October 6, 2017

The Saudi kings visit to Russia this week was an event Moscow has been anticipating for many years. Amid recent years' flurry of visits by Middle Eastern leaders, the Saudi monarch arguably had been the only one missing. So when he eventually came on Oct. 4, the king received a czar-level reception, wrote Andrey Kolesnikov, a Russian journalist of the Kommersant newspaper who's been covering Vladimir Putin's presidency for many years.

In Kolesnikov's view, not only was the trip historic in that it was the first state visit to Russia by a sitting Saudi monarch, but it was also unprecedented in that the big Kremlin Palace where [the meeting] took place on Oct. 5 needed a light reconstruction to meet the demand of the Saudi party to make possible the kings movement in a special electric car around the palace.

It wasnt difficult [on the engineering side] but was done as a sign of respect to the king," Kolesnikov observed.

The visit, however, didn't get off to an easy start. In the Vnukovo Airport, the king was met by Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin  a representative not of the level one would expect for a visit of this caliber. What detail-picky journalists found even more remarkable was that under his coat, Rogozin was wearing a blazer  a weird outfit to welcome royalty  and walked by the king on his way to the limousine, which is also an extraordinary protocol oversight. Given Rogozins duties of coordinating operations of the Russian military-industrial complex, his presence as the welcoming official could be seen as a reminder to the Saudis of Russia's growing military presence in Syria and of the multibillion-dollar contracts Russia was about to sign to sell the Saudis Russian weaponry. These two themes played loudly all during the visit.

Days before the visit, Moscow was plastered with billboards celebrating Russian and Saudi culture. The route from the airport to downtown Moscow, where the king and his delegation would reside, was decorated with posters picturing the king and welcome messages in Arabic and Russian. During the few days of the visit, the kings motorcade moving through the city drew lots of attention and gave birth to a Russian joke that the king had as many vehicles there as there were letters in his full name: Salman bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud.

Putin did his best to impress the Saudi monarch with Russias own might by hosting the Saudis for talks in one of the most beautiful chambers in the Kremlin. The Russian president also felt obliged to thank the king for his hospitality during Putins visit to the kingdom in 2007  when Salman was governor of Riyadh  by personally escorting the king on a Kremlin tour.

Following the bilateral talks, both leaders sat down to sign and exchange a range of agreements, then headed to lunch without making any statements to the press. Later in the day, the king met with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu with an agenda of the bilateral military cooperation and the broader security situation in the Middle East."

Remarkably, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov was also present at the talks. Heads of other traditional Muslim regions of Russia  Ingushetia, Tatarstan and Bashkortostan  who also have business and other connections with the kingdom were present at the welcoming ceremony for the king. Yet, as an insider to the Russia-Saudi talks told Al-Monitor, Kadyrov has gotten the upper hand in an internal struggle over who gets to represent Russian Muslims in dealings with the [kingdom].

The nature of ties between Moscow and Riyadh wasn't fundamentally different after the king's visit, but both parties saw it as an opportunity to develop a better personal chemistry and turn relations into a relationship, thus all the pomp. What mattered, though, was how to fill this relationship with something substantial. A retired Russian diplomat remarked in a private conversation, The issue is pretty clear: The Saudis have the money, which the Russians need. But the Saudis need the Russians to stop what they see as a strengthening Iran, and Russians just cant deliver it  at least not to the extent the Saudis would want it.

"The Saudis have the money, which the Russians need. But the Saudis need the Russians to stop what they see as a strengthening Iran, and Russians just cant deliver it."

Indeed, the slew of deals the parties signed is important to Russia, given its alienation by the West. With these deals, the parties agreed to do the following: set up a $1 billion joint investment fund; invest some $100 million in transport projects in Russia through the Russian sovereign wealth fund and Saudi Arabias Public Investment Fund; cooperate on potential projects between Saudi Arabia and Russian petrochemicals firm Sibur; and possibly prolong the OPEC agreement and other energy deals. Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak has been a key figure throughout the oil talks.

The overall framework of the relationship, however, has barely changed. Grigory Kosach, Russias leading academic expert on Saudi Arabia, told Al-Monitor that Russia and Saudi Arabia don't actually know what they want from each other.

"There are always meetings assembled, talks held and agreements negotiated, but nothing gets done. In overall Russian foreign trade, the trade with the [kingdom] is about 0.1%, which is like that between Russia and Palestine. Even with this visit, there was a lot of hype around it. But the results are rather modest just yet," Kosach said.

For outside observers, arguably the main outcome of the Salman visit was the signed memorandum of understanding between Moscow and Riyadh on the latter's $3 billion purchase of Russian S-400 surface-to-air missile systems. The memorandum between state-owned Saudi Arabian Military Industries and Russia's state arms-export agency Rosoboronexport came in the context of contracts signed to also procure Russia's Kornet-EM anti-tank guided missile systems, TOS-1A heavy flamethrowers, AGS-30 automatic grenade launchers and Kalashnikov AK-103 assault rifles.

The blueprint behind the agreements is that Moscow decided to help Riyadh develop its own military industries by agreeing to transfer the technology and localize the manufacturing and sustainment of these armament systems." Yet the Russian party insists that the localization component should be minimal, while major components should be produced exclusively by the Russian state-owned Almaz Antey arms producer. Concrete details on each agreement, however, are to be discussed at an intergovernmental Russian-Saudi session on military-technical cooperation in late October. If the deal goes through, the kingdom may be the third foreign country to own S-400s after China and, possibly, Turkey. So far, even the current agreements are seen as a success in Moscow, given that Russia has been trying to access the Saudi market for more than a decade.

Kosach argues that the military cooperation between Russia and Saudi Arabia isn't likely to really happen, since the Saudi military is on full life support from Americans and to a lesser extent the British and French."

For the Russia-[Saudi] relations to truly work, Moscow would need to amend its relationship with Tehran to the extent it is not an irritant for Riyadh. Until then, its going to be beating around the bushes," added Kosach.

In a reminder of their differences, as Putin and Salman dined in the Kremlin, news broke that the Islamic State (IS) had killed two Russian captives allegedly serving a private military company fighting on the side of the Russians for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, whom the Saudis stridently oppose.

And even as Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Saudi Foreign Affairs Minister Adel al-Jubeir were discussing the need for all parties in Syria to communicate with each other, Russia was shelling IS and Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, while battles were escalating between the Syrian army and other opposition forces, including the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces. The situation increasingly looks like the worst crisis in Syria since Aleppo.

So even though the king's visit was fruitful, the key issues that have stalled Russian-Saudi bilateral progress remain in place.
October 6, 2017

The US military is being stretched thin by the American-led air war against the Islamic State (IS), US Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson said Thursday.

The US-led coalition fighting IS in Iraq and Syria dropped more than 5,000 bombs on the militant group in August, setting a record for the three-year campaign. But the Air Force has just 55 active fighter squadrons, an almost 60% drop from the first Gulf War in 1991, as it faces arbitrary budget cuts and a shortage of planes and pilots.

The Iraqi people are taking back their own country from this vicious group and ideology with the assistance of United States airpower and intelligence, Wilson said at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank. The problem for us is that the Air Force is still heavily committed, even if we reduce the number of ground forces worldwide.

While the Air Forces ability to gather intelligence has improved, allowing it to strike 54,000 IS targets since 2014, the mission is wearing our people out, said Wilson. Each coalition fighter jet is refueled four or five times on every mission, requiring as many as 65 tanker missions every day in the Arabian Gulf, she added.

On the whole, 13 nations participate in joint airstrikes against IS, but the United States conducts the vast majority of strikes in Iraq and Syria, according to coalition figures released in June. These include B-52 bomber runs from Qatars Al-Udeid air base that surged over the summer despite a Saudi-led blockade against the tiny emirate, which houses some 10,000 US troops.

But the Air Force also faces the strain of continued wars in the Middle East that date back to the US liberation of Kuwait in 1991 as well as more recent budgetary pressure. This week, the US Defense Department entered its ninth consecutive fiscal year operating under a congressional budgetary compromise that caps military funding at previous years levels, Pentagon spokeswoman Dana White told reporters on Thursday.

Experts say the Donald Trump administrations $183 billion budget for the Air Force would potentially alleviate some of the stress the service faces in Iraq and Syria, helping it bring on 4,100 active-duty airmen and boost money for training.

It could also help the service recapitalize its fighter aircraft that have been in service for an average of 27 years each. The Air Force is also short 1,500 fighter pilots, even as it rolled out the first fully operational F-35 fighter squadron at Hill Air Force Base in northern Utah, and continues development of next-generation bombers and tankers.

The US Air Force has been in continuous combat operations for 27 years, and the strain is showing, said Wilson, a former Air Force officer who previously served in the George H.W. Bush administration and as a Republican member of Congress from New Mexico. We are stretched to be able to win any fight at any time.
Bob Carlton | bcarlton@al.com

Top business headlines: Oct. 6, 2017

Here are AL.com's top business headlines for Friday, Oct. 6, 2017. For more Alabama business news anytime, visit AL.com/business.

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Stephen DeVries

Milo's announces opening date for first Jasper location

Walker County's long awaited Milo's Hamburgers will open to the public on Wednesday, Oct. 18.

The Jasper Milo's will open in front of Scott Crump Toyota at the cross streets of Highway 78 and Industrial Parkway and about 25 people will work there.

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Krispy Kreme offering pumpkin spice doughnuts beginning tonight

Krispy Kreme's latest special offer gives a shot of fall to Friday nights.

On the first three Fridays of this month after 6 p.m., the chain is offering pumpkin spice original glazed doughnuts.

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William Thornton / wthornton@al.com

Alabama helps form Southern Automotive Manufacturers Alliance

Gov. Kay Ivey announced today the formation of the Southern Automotive Manufacturers Alliance during an address to the Southern Automotive Conference in Birmingham.

SAMA is being formed by the state automotive manufacturing organizations of Alabama, Tennessee and Mississippi. Georgia, which will host next year's Southern Automotive Conference, will be an apprentice member. It also includes the Southern Automotive Women's Forum, the South Carolina Automotive Council and the Kentucky Automotive Industry Association.

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Alabama Launchpad

EDPA announces 12 startups for Alabama Launchpad

Judging has begun in the revamped Alabama Launchpad Startup Competition. The 12 startups will compete in the competition finale Nov. 15.

For this version, companies compete on two tracks: concept stage for entrepreneurs launching businesses, and seed stage businesses looking to accelerate growth.

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Courtesy Metro Diner

Metro Diner announces opening date

Metro Diner has announced the opening date for its latest location in Alabama. The Vestavia Hills location will open Tuesday, Oct. 17.

The restaurant, which was featured on the Food Network show Diners, Drive-ins and Dives, will open at The Villages Shopping Center at 1088 Montgomery Highway, occupying 4,800 square feet. The location is continuing to hire before the opening; click here to apply.

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Lee Roop | lroop@al.com

Harvey, Irma keep country from job gains

Hurricanes Harvey and Irma caused the U.S. jobs numbers to dip into negative territory for the first time in seven years, NBC reports. There were 33,000 jobs lost in September, but experts say without these disasters it would have been a strong jobs month.

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Lucy Berry | lberry@al.com

Costco delivery

Costco Wholesale Corp. is now offering same-day grocery delivery through Instacart, the Los Angeles Times reports. Shipt began testing Costco delivery in Florida earlier this year.

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Lee Roop | lroop@al.com

Could Amazon sell prescription drugs?

Analysts say that Amazon.com will certainly sell prescription drugs by 2019, Bloomberg reports. If so, brick-and-mortar pharmacies like CVS and Walgreens could be seriously hurt.

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AP Photo/Andrew Harnik

SEC vulnerabilities

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has found a vulnerability in its EDGAR database, where corporations file financial reports, Reuters reports. The discovering could lead the system to collapse, a memo said.

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Haley Laurence | hlaurence@al.com

Chicken Tenders are back

McDonald's is selling chicken tenders again and The Washington Post reports that they are very tasty. The tenders are back after a two-year hiatus.
Two men are behind bars in separate investigations that Birmingham police say took significant criminals off of the city's streets this week.

In the first case, a 40-year-old Birmingham man with at least 29 previous arrests now faces more than a dozen new felony charges. Marteze Dejuan Wright is charged with 15 counts of unlawful breaking and entering a vehicle in addition to one count of theft of a firearm.

The thefts happened in recent weeks and he's charged not only by Birmingham police, but also by Tarrant police. Court records show Wright pleaded guilty in 2008 to receiving stolen property, and was sentenced to nearly 10 years in prison. He was convicted in 2005 of attempted burglary and sentenced to two years in prison.

In additional to the new charges against him, Wright also is still awaiting trial on property crime charges lodged against him last year. He is being held in the Jefferson County Jail on bonds totaling $203,000.

"He's been labeled by the Auto Theft Unit as a one-man crime wave,'' said Birmingham police Lt. Sean Edwards. "We needed this guy off the street."

In an unrelated probe, Birmingham police this week arrested 40-year-old convicted felon Albert Young. The department's Neighborhood Enforcement Team, along with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, were called to a Birmingham home to assist on a parole check with the Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Parole.

During that check on Thursday, police said, law enforcement officers found three rifles, two handguns, and assorted weapons magazines and ammunition.

Authorities determined there was a violation of his terms of parole and he was taken into custody. He also faces the possibility of being charged with felon in possession of a firearm. He has previous convictions for both gun and drug crimes, an arrests for crimes of violence.

Birmingham Police Chief A.C. Roper said police officials on multiple occasions over the past year reached out to Young in an effort to help save his life and transition from a dangerous lifestyle. He was offered the support and resources necessary to change, the chief said, but continued with behavior that has contributed to violence in the city.

Young is now being held without bond in the Jefferson County Jail.

"Young was one of our long-term perpetrators driving violence in our city, but through our intelligence-led policing efforts, we were able to get him off the street,'' Roper said. "I am extremely pleased with our enhanced partnerships with the Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Parole, ATF and other federal and local partners."

"As we collaborate and share information like never before, we're starting to see incremental progress,'' he said. "The bottom line is no one can measure the number of violent crimes you prevent."
A 30-year-teacher at Pinson Valley High School faces charges of having sexual contact with a female student.

Joseph Allan Farmer was booked into the Jefferson County Jail early Friday afternoon on charges of a school employee engaging in a sex act or deviant sexual intercourse with a student under the age of 19 years, first degree sex abuse (contact compulsion), and first degree sodomy.

Farmer is being held without bond on the charges.

According to the sheriff's office, the victim reported to the school's principal on Friday that she had been having sexual contact with the teacher. A youth services detective was called to the school to investigate and question the teacher. The teacher was transported to Jefferson County Jail to await formal charges, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office.

The victim reported that the contact started at the beginning of the school year and was ongoing.

According to the sheriff's office, the teacher admitted to having sexual contact with the student.

Jefferson County Schools declined to comment on the arrest.
Birmingham police are asking for help identifying a man who discharged his weapon during two business robberies.

The robberies were captured on surveillance video. The first robbery occurred at 6:39 p.m. on Sept. 28 at Metro PCS, 2017 Avenue F. The second occurred at 1:50 p.m. on Sept. 30 at Matt Market, 1416 Spaulding-Ishkooda Road.

Investigators believe the same man committed both robberies. Anyone with information on the suspect is asked to call robbery Det. Butler at 205-306-1376 or 254-7777.
Dr. Andrew Siemion is director of the Berkeley SETI Research Institute at the University of California in Berkeley and a leader in the new Breakthrough Listen initiative. SETI is the "Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence" and Breakthrough Listen searches by scanning the skies for evidence of alien technology.

Siemion was in Huntsville this week to speak to the Tennessee Valley Interstellar Workshop and give a "Pass The Torch" lecture at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center. What follows is a condensed transcript of the audience Q&A at the space center.

The conversation begins with a question about the "Drake Equation" - a calculation of how many intelligent civilizations might exist in our Milky Way galaxy. That number is defined in the equation as "N."

Q: Will you tell us your personal estimate of 'N'?

A: That's the hardest question we ever get asked. N's actually not a completely accurate way of thinking about this because, remember, it depends on how many civilizations exist right now. I think that number is, maybe, a few 10's.

But I'm an optimist. We really have no idea. That's why we do the experiment. The answer might be zero, it might be a thousand, it might be a million. We know that there's lots of opportunity for life to arise, but we also know the probability for life to emerge is small. We don't see any life on any other bodies in our own solar system. We don't see ancient forests on Mars, any kind of microbial life anywhere. So life is relatively rare.

Q: Here on Earth, when a more advanced civilization discovers another civilization, it's usually followed by conquest, sometimes complete destruction. Would we be better off if we did not try to attract other life from other planets?

A: That's a great question. This is a very controversial topic. There's actually an entire field that's related to SETI called METI, or Messaging to Extraterrrestrial Intelligence. There are people on both sides of that debate. Some people think that we should try to contact other civilizations, some think we should not.

It's probably important I should point out, again, in case it was not completely clear, that what we do in our group is simply listen. We don't speak.

I'm not ready to say it's a good idea for someone to unilaterally (reach out to make contact). But it's also true that we're already leaking quite a lot of radiation off from this planet, and a civilization maybe only a few thousand years advanced from ours, if they go the way we did in terms of our tech progression, could very easily detect those signals.

So, in some sense, if you wanted to talk to a distant civilization, you just have to pick up your Ham radio or call in to your local AM radio show and say what you want to say, and eventually they'll get it - at the speed of light.

Q: Where do you get your funding? Do you feel pretty set to finish what you're trying to accomplish?

A: SETI has been around since about 1960. Up until about 1993, it received increasing government support from NASA. NASA had a SETI program that was growing to about $10M a year. In 1993 the funding was terminated by an act of Congress. Since then, it's received quite a lot of support from the private sector.

Q: What can a regular person do to help the search for SETI?

A: There are many things. One of the things we're trying to do is open up the search to anyone, go to our website, social media, asking us a question, engaging in the work.

Q: (Assume) advanced societies would create some form of computational system that is going to replace them, then those technological entities are going to enjoy much longer longevity than biological life forms and will also require probably a lot of energy. Are you aiming at high-energy objects, specifically, like the center of a galaxy or quasars, where a lot of energy might be found?

Q: That's actually my personal favorite idea about what to look for. The searches we do are agnostic to the form of life we're looking at. So, we could detect biological life that produced technology or some kind of silicon-based, artificially intelligent life just the same, as long as they're using some kind of communication technology that we would be sensitive to.

Q: Suppose in your search you find what you're looking for, unmistakable signs of a technological civilization on the nearest possible candidate star. What happens now in society and your organization?

A: Well, I've been promised unlimited funding (laughter). That would be the first thing. Usually, my answer to this question is our most important responsibility is to confirm the signal. Assuming that it has been confirmed, I think we would look for more. The only thing stranger than there being just one example of intelligent life in the universe would be that there would be only two. (We would) build larger telescopes to learn more about the signal.

As far as what happens with society, that's hard to say. Seth Shostak is another very well-known person in this field, and he's fond of saying, and I'm fond of repeating, that something like 50 percent of people already believe that intelligent aliens are visiting the Earth, so maybe it wouldn't be that much of a surprise to a lot of people. In any event, it will take some time for that to completely sink in.

Q: Do you have a protocol in place, if you get an unambiguous, say, binary representation of pi repeated from out in space, for the release of that information?

A: There is such a program, and there's actually a group tasked with post-detection. It hasn't had a lot of activity in the last decade or so, and I sometimes joke that I don't have their number. And I don't. Our most important responsibility as scientists doing the search is to confirm the signal and make sure that it's bonafide, that we're not being fooled. And that whole process would take some time. We're committed to transparency. We would release as much information as we have at the time.

(Siemion said his organization would immediately contact large telescopes in the hemisphere where the signal was received and ask them to scan for more signals. Information could leak, he said).

Q: What do you think discovery of any type of life in our solar system would do to the search for intelligent life? Help or hurt?

A: I think it would absolutely would help. I'm a huge fan of all searches for life. The search for life has been characterized as a three-way horse rate between the (on site) investigations, the exoplanet atmospheres, and what we do in SETI. I think if I were to place my bets on one of those horses, it would be on searches within our own solar system. I think Europa and Enceladus are both incredibly exciting places to look for life, And I think it would be a huge scientific discovery. Maybe not as big as intelligent life? But it would be certainly the biggest discovery that had ever been made in the history of science. I would love to see that in my lifetime.
An Alabama soldier was injured and two others killed in a deadly accident Friday at Fort Jackson, South Carolina.

Pvt. Emmett Foreman of Daleville was injured in what officials are describing as a "tragic accident involving a military vehicle and a troop formation." Two Army personnel, later identified as Pvt. Ethan Shrader of Prospect, Tennessee, and Pvt. Timothy Ashcraft of Cincinnati, Ohio, were killed.

Foreman, Pvt. Hannah New of Cartersville, Georgia; Pvt. Benjamin Key of Livingston, Tennessee; Pvt. Alan Kryszak of Clarksville, Tennessee; Pvt. Cardre Jackson Jr. of Laurel, Maryland; and Pvt. James Foster of Macon, Georgia were injured.

Two of the service members are in critical condition but Fort Jackson public affairs did not identify the conditions of individual service members. The type of vehicle or the exact nature of the accident has not been released.

"Our hearts and prayers go out to the families of the soldiers we lost today and to the families of the injured, they represent the best of our Nation and we will endeavor to support all those affected through this difficult time," U.S. Army Training Center and Fort Jackson Commander Maj. Gen. Pete Johnson said in a statement.

The incident occurred around 4 p.m. Friday at Fort Jackson, the Army's site for Basic Combat Training. The base provides basic training for some 36,000 soldiers per year with advanced training for an additional 8,000.

Approximately 3,500 active-duty soldiers are assigned to Fort Jackson full-time, according to the base.
A student was arrested at Florence High School today in connection with a sexual assault that was reported several months ago, police said.

Maxwell Thompson (Lauderdale County Detention Center)

Maxwell Marquez Thompson, an 18-year-old high school senior from Florence, was taken into custody this afternoon on grand jury indictment warrants that charge him with first-degree rape and first-degree sexual abuse, records show.

Thompson is accused of raping a female in west Florence in July, said police Sgt. Greg Cobb in a news release.

"Mr. Thompson forced himself onto the victim after she told him no multiple time," Cobb said. "Once the incident was over, the victim went to (Eliza Coffee Memorial) Hospital for treatment and contacted Florence Police Department."

Detective Kevin Jackson told AL.com the sexual assault happened in a vehicle.

The victim is a juvenile acquaintance of Thompson. She is not a student at Florence High, according to police.

A grand jury issued the indictments when it determined prosecutors have enough evidence to charge Thompson and send the case to trial.

Thompson was taken to the Lauderdale County Detention Center, where he is held with bail set at $75,000. If convicted of rape, Thompson faces up to life in prison and would be required to register as a sex offender.
Afghans say Trumps new strategy does not address issues such as unemployment, corruption and safety of civilians.

In August, US President Donald Trump announced a plan to boost US troops presence in Afghanistan, raising the number of soldiers from 8,400 to 11,000.

As part of the new strategy under the Trump administration, the US military will also train and advise Afghan security forces in the fight against the growing influence of Taliban armed group.

But not all Afghans are impressed with Trumps focus on winning the war against the Taliban militarily, as it fails to address problems like unemployment, corruption and lack of education and health.

Afghans are worried at the rising civilian casualties in recent years. Armed groups such as Taliban, which control large parts of the country, and Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) have exacted a heavy toll on civilian lives. On the other hand, hundreds have become a collateral damage to the US drones/air raids.

According to a July UN report, the number of civilians killed and wounded in Afghanistan reached a record high in the first six months of 2017.

Al Jazeera speaks to Afghans about their fear and hope amid a resurgent Taliban and more American boots on the ground.

Ramiz Rayan , Doctor at Sardar Mohammad Dawood Khan Military Hospital, Kabul

If we look at the new US strategy, we see that both sides, the Taliban and the US, are talking about winning.

It is sad to see that no one is talking about the people living in the midst of this battle.

When I see so many dead and injured rushed to our hospital, it makes me wonder what is the point of this war?

I am not sure what will happen in the future and what do we have to do to survive, but I know one thing that ultimately, this war has affected us tremendously, mentally and physically.

You will find many people going through permanent post-traumatic stress disorder, which in most cases are not even identified, let alone being treated.

Weve lost hope, but as a young Afghan, I will still continue to work for this country and help as a doctor.

Ahmad Etemadi, 27, Graduate in Public Policy

What I have seen throughout my life that the presence of foreign troops have brought some jobs in the country.

When the US combat role ended in 2014, many people lost their jobs as translators and interpreters, and poverty and unemployment increased.

I am particularly worried about jobs because I am jobless and cannot find anything in this country for myself.

I do want US troops to stay so that we can have more opportunities to work and have better education and social services.

We have to look forward to the positive things while the war is ongoing or else we will not be able to survive its consequences.

Shahab Amiri , 25, Freelance J ournalist

Do we want a better Afghanistan? This is the question every Afghan should ask themselves.

It is a difficult question, because if we look at it, the increase in the US troops will bring more conflict and violence as the Taliban has vowed to fight them back.

But with this new strategy, we are hoping that it will bring us more NGOs, medical help, education and jobs.

What is also good that Afghan forces are receiving training from the US troops which will help them in protecting our country in a much better way.

Women will be able to work, study and be independent. Like they are right now.

However, all of this will come at a cost. Afghan civilians will continue to die either by the armed groups or US air raids. I ask myself everyday, will I be alive tomorrow? So do we need a better Afghanistan or do we want to be just alive?

Evaz Ali Saadat , University Lecturer

This time around it looks like the US is more than determined to train Afghan security forces to be able to fight the insurgency.

And indeed, it is the time to focus on that now. We need to have our security forces properly trained to fight the militants in the country.

This will overcome a lot of security challenges, and Afghan forces will be able to protect civilians.

All these suicide attacks that are taking place across the country might decrease if the security and intelligence situation gets better.

I think this time around, Trumps strategy to focus on just training the military will help in bringing some good changes.

Seraajul-al-Din Alimi , P sychologist

It does not make any difference whether we accept the presence of the US troops in Afghanistan or not.

It is happening and we, as Afghans, cannot stop it.

If you look at their (US troops) method of fighting the war, it seems like they are not looking at the overall picture of the country while taking decisions.

They are not looking at providing a safe future. Instead, they are focusing on winning a war.

So this war is basically to claim victory but at the cost of Afghan lives.

Many innocent people have died and will continue to die, with or without the US. The war has taken a toll on us. Many people have been born and brought up in this war and have a war-driven mentality. This is not normal.

No child deserves to grow up in a war-torn country.

So at this point, we as Afghans, would want the US troops to leave and let us decide the fate of our country ourselves.

As no matter what they did in the past, they failed in pushing the Taliban back and decreasing the number of attacks.

With reporting by Sakina Amani in Kabul
Court ruling offers shred of hope to Palestinians who have had their Jerusalem residency revoked by Israel.

Ramallah  For exiled Palestinian parliamentarian Khaled Abu Arafeh, it felt like a small step towards reuniting with his family in Jerusalem.

Israels Supreme Court last month accepted a petition on behalf of Abu Arafeh and three other Palestinian parliamentarians who were expelled from the city, cancelling the revocation of their Jerusalem residency.

I know that our cause is a just one, Abu Arafeh told Al Jazeera. Jerusalem cannot be replaced by any other city, and I am eagerly waiting for the day I can return to Jerusalem.

According to a recent Human Rights Watch report, Israel revoked the residency status of almost 15,000 Palestinians between 1967 and 2016. The majority of those cases involved a failure to prove that an individuals centre of life was in the city, but there have also been cases of punitive revocations and collective punishment against family members of Palestinians who were accused of attacking Israelis, as well as a number of individuals accused of breach of loyalty.

READ MORE: Jerusalem simmering over Judaisation plan

Abu Arafehs case took 11 years to reach Israels highest court. In 2006, he, along with Mohammed Totah, Ahmed Attoun and Mohammed Abu Teir, was elected to the Palestinian Legislative Council on the list of the Change and Reform Movement. Abu Arafeh was also appointed Palestinian minister of Jerusalem affairs.

Israels interior minister, Roni Bar-On, subsequently revoked their residency status, citing a breach of loyalty to Israel. The accusation was related to their election to a foreign parliament and alleged membership in Hamas. All four men appealed against the decision and were deported to the occupied West Bank in 2010.

But in its September ruling, the Supreme Court decided that the interior minister lacked the authority to revoke the mens residency according to existing Israeli law, and reversed Bar-Ons decision.

Adalah, the legal centre for Arab minority rights in Israel, joined the appeal in 2007, and in a brief submitted to the court, the group stated that Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem had never entered or immigrated to Israel, and their residency was never made conditional to any terms. The group also argued that the decision violated the mens rights to live in their homeland without fear of expulsion and rights to liberty, dignity and property.

It is unfortunate that this ruling was made only after more than a decade, during which time the petitioners rights were brutally violated, Adalah said in a statement.

While the judges ruled that the residency revocation was illegal, they also delayed the implementation of its cancellation for six months. During that time, the Israeli parliament is allowed to produce new legislation to permit the revocation of residency for breach of loyalty, and this could subsequently be applied to the four petitioners.

We have mixed feelings; our happiness is incomplete, Abu Arafeh said. I was expecting to hear strange and illogical things at the Supreme Court and this is what happened. But if the court has decided that the interior minister was wrong, is it right to only cancel his decision in six months?

Fadi Qawasme, the lawyer who represented the four petitioners, told Al Jazeera that the ruling could be seen as a result of political pressure on the court.

When you legislate a new law, you cant apply it retroactively, so why do this at all? he asked, suggesting that the court was under attack because its accused of being liberal and its accused of being leftist. Nowadays, you know what kind of government we have in Israel, so they are always attacking it, especially in the last year.

OPINION: Revoking citizenship  Israels new repressive tool

Despite the creation of a half-year window for the Israeli parliament to write a new law, Qawasme says that such an outcome is unlikely, due to the complexity of drafting legislation that would have to legally define the loyalty that Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem must show to Israel.

More than 300,000 Palestinians are permanent residents of Jerusalem, a status that allows them to reside in the city and travel and work within Israel but falls short of full citizenship.

The vast majority live in the eastern half of the city, which Israel occupied in 1967 and later annexed, in a move that has not been recognised by the international community. Palestinians want the eastern half of the city to be their capital of a future Palestinian state.

This situation is very troubled. It is not just about these four, Qawasme said. It is about the residents of East Jerusalem  To say in a law that the residents of East Jerusalem owe loyalty to Israel, it will not be easy.
The stance of the Indian government regarding the Rohingya crisis is a source of consternation, to put it mildly. The central government has decided that ethnic Rohingya who are already in India  around 40,000  should be deported and others should not be allowed to enter. The government stand is unconstitutional and violative of customary international law. It is biased, discriminatory and conservative. This unlike-India stand is a departure from previous practice and represents an abdication of Indias moral and political responsibility as a member of the international community.

On August 8, the central government issued an order to all state governments to identify and deport illegal immigrants, including Rohingya. Despite the escalation of the crisis after 25 August in Burma when counterinsurgency operations in the Rakhine State have led to large-scale killings, human rights violations, and an exodus of more than a half-million people to Bangladesh, the response of the government has remained obdurate. It has authorised border security forces to use rude and crude methods to block infiltrators. A Border Security Force officer recently admitted to media that they had started using chilli sprays and stun grenades. In some states, forcible removal of Rohingya refugees has begun.

OPINION: Is India contributing to the Rohingya catastrophe?

How legitimate are such actions on the ground when the matter is under judicial consideration in the Supreme Court of India? The preliminary arguments on a writ petition filed by two Rohingya Muslims on 29 August against their proposed deportation was heard on October 3. The petitioners are among the around 16,500 Rohingya refugees who are registered with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and given identity cards. They have been in India since 2011-12 when they came mostly on foot to escape the violence and persecution by the Burmese military and Buddhist majority vigilante groups.

It is one thing to be concerned about national security and quite another to criminalise an entire community. by

The writ petition, issued under Article 32 of the Constitution of India, that allows all persons  citizens and foreigners  to move the Supreme Court in case of violation of their fundamental rights, argues for protection. It affirms that two fundamental rights and one principle of international law would be violated if the Rohingya refugees were deported back to Burma. The fundamental rights in question are Article 14 (equality before law and equal protection of laws) of the fundamental right to equality and Article 21(life and personal liberty) of the fundamental right to freedom. The fundamental principle of international law that is at risk is non-refoulement that prohibits any country from returning refugees or asylum seekers to another country where there was a likelihood of persecution based on race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion. The petition also draws upon case law highlighting previous examples where Indian courts have upheld the rights of refugees.

The governments counter-affidavit, however, maintains that the subject matter was not justiciable since the court had jurisdiction only regarding fundamental rights of Indian citizens. It was a matter for the executive, and government policy could vary from case to case in larger national interest. Moreover, India was not a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention or its 1967 Protocol, therefore, it was not bound to the principle of non-refoulement. Further, that the Rohingya were illegal immigrants and Indian security agencies had information that some of them had links with terrorist organisations in Pakistan and other countries, were involved in illegal and anti-national activities, and figured in the sinister designs of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) and other extremist groups. India was primarily responsible to its own citizens and national resources were scarce. Admitting the Rohingya could also change the demography and social structure of the Indian society.

READ MORE: The Rohingya crisis through the eyes of a refugee

The right-wing BJP governments decision is in contrast to that of previous governments vis-a-vis other people in similar predicament. As of end-2014, there were nearly 300,000 refugees from 28 countries in India. Those who sought refuge had faced persecution or were genuinely at risk in their home states and were forced to flee.





Indias record as far as the principle of non-refoulement is concerned has been fairly good so far. Contrary to what has been stated in the government affidavit, as a principle of customary international law, it applies also to states that are not parties to the 1951 Refugee Convention or its 1967 Protocol. Moreover, India is a signatory to several International Conventions which include, inter alia, the principle of non-refoulement; India is also signatory to the recent New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants (dated October 3, 2016) that recognised the rights of refugees to asylum and also affirmed the principle of non-refoulement.

The government largesse to minority communities of Pakistan and Bangladesh is of note. By notification in gazette on September 7, 2015, the government made amendments to the Passport (entry into India) Rules, 1950, and the Foreigners Order, 1948, exempting a  certain class of foreigners  persons belonging to minority communities in Bangladesh and Pakistan, namely, Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians who were compelled to seek shelter in India due to religious persecution or fear of religious persecution and had entered into India on or before the 31 December 2014 without valid documents  or when the validity of any such document has expired; this class of foreigners were eligible for long-term visas.

The governments response to the Rohingya refugees is striking in contrast. Why? Are they not a minority or have they not faced religious persecution? On the contrary, the Rohingya are acknowledged as the most persecuted minority in the world. It so happens, that a large majority of them are Muslims. Burma refuses to recognise their distinct ethnic identity or history and insists that they are illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. It has denied them citizenship making them the largest stateless population in the world; they are impoverished and have almost no rights within Burma (the Hindu Rohingya who have accepted the second-class green citizenship cards, which Muslim Rohingya have not, have some rights).

READ MORE: Jammu  Right-wing groups try to evict Rohingya refugees

They have been targets of the majority Buddhist community who along with the Burmese police and military (all Buddhists) enjoy impunity. The Rohingya have suffered wave upon wave of mass violence that has led to massive displacement within Burma as well as forced them to cross international borders. It is this state of unresolved political conflict in the face of continuous persecution that no doubt is behind the birth of Rohingya insurgency. The world has been witness to the Rohingya reality. The United Nations and other international organisations have found their claims to be credible and advised the Burmese government to end their persecution and grant them citizenship. Is the Indian government not aware of all this?

Increasingly, within India as in some other parts of the world, there is an easy equation being drawn between Islam and terrorism. The accusation of cross-border terrorism and fear for national security are often invoked by the right-wing BJP government and their ideologues vis-a-vis Muslim citizens of India, and now, by extension, to Rohingya Muslims.

The allegations of terror links, as mentioned in the government affidavit, do not hold water. Of the six states in India in which Rohingya have taken refuge, Jammu has the largest number of Rohingya, who have been living there for last five years. Demand for deportation of Rohingya surfaced early this year when some BJP leaders of Jammu initiated a campaign to remove them and threatened dire action if their demand was not met. A public interest litigation (PIL) seeking their identification and deportation was also filed in J&K High Court by a BJP-linked advocate.

OPINION: Locating the Rohingya in time and space

The NDTV recently conducted a detailed survey and found the allegations to be baseless. According to its report, in reply to a question raised in the budget session of the State Assembly in January, the Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti, said that no Rohingya in Jammu and Kashmir has been found involved in militancy-related incidents. No instance of radicalising [of] these foreigners has been reported so far. Seventeen First Information Reports (FIR) have been registered against Rohingya for various offences, including those relating to illegal border crossing.

NDTVs survey found that only 14 FIRs implicated Rohingya. We tracked down every single one of the 14 FIRs or first information reports to find the following: eight cases for lack of visa, two cases of rape, one case of cow slaughter, one case for causing injury, one case for selling goods in the black market and one for stealing railway property. The Inspector General of Police in Jammu has also confirmed that offences that they are found guilty of are petty, similar to those committed by other groups of that social-economic situation. Senior advocate, Colin Gonsalves, who is representing the Jammu Rohingya in the Supreme Court has also maintained that there was not a single terror case.





In any case, as Senior Advocate Fali Nariman, who appeared for the Rohingya petitioners on October 3, pointed out:  If the government had any specific information about any Rohingya persons being terrorists, those persons could be excluded from the applicability of the Refugee convention and dealt with separately by the agencies concerned.

One need not be a Muslim to feel that the present stand of the government is biased and discriminatory. It is one thing to be concerned about national security and quite another to criminalise an entire community. The modus operandi to ensure national security cannot be to ostracise all the Rohingya who have already taken refuge in India or others who may be at our borders and need our help. This anti-Muslim and anti-Rohingya attitude is causing insecurity within this community and polarisation in society.

The Indian government has been reticent on the Rohingya crisis. Prime Minister Modi in his visit to Burma in early September was quick to condemn extremist violence but remained silent on the exodus. It was only after international criticism mounted that he expressed concern and subsequently Operation Insaniyat, that includes aiding Bangladesh with food and relief material, was initiated.

One has also heard another argument that is popular in some quarters  that Rohingya were an internal problem of Burma. However, due respect to sovereignty of a nation cannot extend to turning a blind eye to human rights excesses within its boundaries. Moreover, the Directive Principles of State Policy of the Constitution of India require the State to promote international peace and security (Article 51a) and foster respect for international law and treaty obligations  (Article 51c). Ignoring this would represent an abdication of moral and political responsibility towards the persecution of an ethnic minority the scale of which had been deemed as ethnic cleansing and genocidal by UN observers.

The Rohingyas is a long history of unresolved political conflict for recognition of ethnic identity and citizenship in the wake of colonialisms retreat from Southeast Asia. India, as a member of the international community, must do its bit to ensure that the roots of the conflict are addressed and the rights of the Rohingya safeguarded. Only a peaceful neighbourhood can ensure Indias national security.

Bela Bhatia is an Indian academic and human rights worker. She holds a PhD in social and political sciences from the University of Cambridge and a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) from the Gujarat University. She works on an independent basis and lives in Bastar, south Chhattisgarh.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy.
Iraqi Kurdistan is not a second Israel, and it never will be.

So far, Israel has been the only state to support the Kurdish secession from Iraq, even celebrating the outcome of the September 25 referendum, in which an overwhelming majority of Iraqi Kurds voted for breaking away from Baghdad.

Israeli enthusiasm for Kurdish independence has little to do with compassion for the Kurds, whether in Iraq or elsewhere, and more to do with geopolitical interests. In fact, it is beyond ironic for Israel, a state founded and sustained on brutal military occupation and apartheid, to champion freedom for the Kurds or any group of people in the world.





Israel not only denies self-determination for the Palestinian people, but it also has a record of actively supporting criminal juntas in Central and South America and the former Apartheid regime in South Africa. Also, Israel has never supported any other national liberation movement in its history.

Israels support for an independent Kurdish state is solely motivated by geopolitical reasons. Israel wants to secure the flow of oil supplies from the Kurdish Autonomous Region, but more importantly, it wants to build a pro-Israeli entity that cuts through the Arab World.

Israel already imports 77 percent of its oil supplies from Iraqs Kurdish region. These imports are extremely important for the Zionist state, as it does not have access to the natural resources of oil-rich Gulf states. Also, Israel believes that an independent Kurdish state can serve as a potential foothold for the Israeli military and intelligence, giving the country leverage against Iran, Syria and Iraq. The creation of an independent Kurdish state in the Middle East fits perfectly into Oded Yions 1982 plan for the Middle East, which advocated the split up of the Arab World along ethnic and sectarian lines to strengthen Israel and expand its hegemony.

The Israeli backing of the Kurdish secession from Iraq is further igniting Arabs suspicions that such a move would be a concrete step towards the disintegration of the Arab World, something that could trigger clashes and even wars.

READ MORE: Iraqi Kurds overwhelmingly back split from Baghdad

Israel perceives a future Kurdish state as a potential non-Arab ally in the region  an ally that is not directly affected by the Palestinian cause. Since its inception, Israel has followed the alliance of the peripheries strategy, conceived by its first Prime Minister David Ben Gurion, to strengthen Israels ties with non-Arab Muslim states or groups in the region, in order to break the isolation of the Zionist state.

As part of this doctrine, Israel reached out to Kurdish leader Mustafa Barzani, the father of current Kurdish President Masoud Barzani, several times throughout his time in office. As a result of these efforts, Mustafa Barzani visited Israel twice, once in 1968 and once in 1973. Yet, these efforts did not amount to much. Kurds did not show any strong support for Israel or animosity towards the Palestinians.

There is no doubt that the tyranny of the Arab states and their failure to adequately deal with Kurdish rights pushed new generations of Kurds away from the Arab World and into the lap of Israel. by

Thus the scene of Israeli flags flying in Kurdish towns during the referendum along with reported slogans such as We are the second Israel suggest an alteration of the Kurdish political culture and an apparent break from the past when Kurdish fighters trained and fought alongside members of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) in Beirut in the late sixties, seventies and early eighties.

Since then Israel has succeeded, with the help of Kurdish leaders like President Masoud Barzani, to infiltrate Kurdish society and end a once strong Kurdish association with the Palestinian cause.

There is no doubt that the tyranny of the Arab states and their failure to adequately deal with Kurdish rights pushed new generations of Kurds away from the Arab World and into the lap of Israel. As Iraq plummeted into sectarian violence and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) group started its campaign of terror, rape and grisly atrocities, a new fault line between the Kurds and the rest of the Arab world has emerged.

But the two main turning points in Kurdish-Arab relations were the 1991 Western-imposed no-fly zone that went beyond protecting the Kurdish population into tearing the Kurdish region from Iraq and the 2003 US-led invasion and occupation of Iraq. The catastrophic invasion triggered internal strife that further alienated the Kurds from the rest of the country and allowed for increased Israeli presence in the area.

In its declared and enthusiastic support for Kurdish independence, Israel has openly tried to draw similarities between its history and the Kurdish struggle for statehood. By doing so, Israel has been trying to erase the parallels between the Kurdish and Palestinian struggles against colonialism and oppression.

READ MORE: Erdogan, Rouhani united in opposition to Kurdish state

The new revisionist story, in the words of former Likud Minister Gideon Saar, is that the Kurds and the Jews are two minority groups in the Middle East, but that the Jews have achieved statehood while the Kurds have not.

The Kurds have been and will continue to be reliable and long-term allies of Israel since they are, like us, a minority group in the region, he said.

Such interpretation of history is not only self-serving, but false. Kurds have been an integral and authentic part of the region and of the Arab World  they are not colonisers, and they did not use military power to expropriate lands or dispossess people.

While there has always been a Jewish minority in historical Palestine and the Arab World, Zionism was not part of an indigenous movement, but was born in Europe to address what was called the Jewish question triggered by institutionalised persecution of and pogroms committed against Jews across Europe in the first half of the 20th century.





Zionism did not provide a vision for ending discrimination against European Jews but embarked on a colonialist movement to establish a Jewish homeland in Palestine through the forced usurpation of its lands and dispossession of its people.

The Israeli attempt to draw parallels between Zionism and the plight of the Kurdish people, whether in Iran, Turkey, Syria or Iraq is blatant propaganda to vindicate its colonial project, its occupation of Palestine and continued crimes against the Palestinians.

The provocative photos and footage of Israeli flags in Erbil and Kirkuk, as painful as they are to us, should not lead to the isolation or demonisation of the Kurds. We have to acknowledge the responsibility of Arab states, as well as Iran and Turkey in the historical injustice that was inflicted on the Kurds.

Arguments that Kurds are a pawn to Israel and the West ignore the fact that any persecuted minority, regardless of its ethnicity or religion, can fall prey to foreign influence and interference, and we cannot deny their right to self-determination.

Arabs are now faced with a very difficult dilemma between supporting the Kurdish right to self-determination, an inalienable right for all people, and resisting Israeli attempts to become dominant in Iraqi Kurdistan.

There are no easy answers, but it is important to send a message to the Kurdish people that we support their right to self-determination by increasing ties between Kurdish and Arab political parties, civil societies and intellectuals.

We cant afford a break with Kurdistan, neither morally nor strategically. It is time to reach out and be there for the Kurds. We should make sure the Iraqi central government, which has done a dismal job so far, does not attempt to oppress and control the Kurdish people, but rather that it negotiate with Kurdish leaders on the basis of respect and equality.

Regardless of what we think of Masoud Barzani and his corruption, we should remember that it is the Kurdish people who we should reach out to. After all, many Arab leaders are no different from Barzani, and his failings do not erase the Kurdish peoples importance in the region  Kurds are a people whose culture and contributions have enriched the Arab World for centuries.

It is not too late to prevent a break between Kurds and Arabs. It is important to counter Israels destructive plans for the region, but turning Kurds into an enemy of the Arab world, just because they are seeking self-determination, is wrong and self-defeating.

Its time for us to stop repeating the phrase Kurdistan is a second Israel, even though some Kurds have been using it. Kurdistan is not a new Israel, and it will never be.

Lamis Andoni is an analyst and commentator on Middle Eastern and Palestinian affairs.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy.
Frightened residents flee site as huge blasts near busy intersection in northeast Accra cause casualties, official says.

At least seven people were killed and scores injured, mostly suffering burns, after two explosions at a natural gas depot in Ghanas capital, fire service spokesman Billy Anaglate said on Sunday.

The blasts on Saturday evening sent a giant fireball into the sky above the eastern part of Accra, causing frightened residents to flee their homes in large numbers.

Police said the blasts happened in the Atomic Junction roundabout area of Legon, in northeast Accra, at about 7:30pm (19:30 GMT).

A statement from the Ministry of Information read out on local radio on Sunday said that seven people had been killed and 132 were injured. About half of them had already been treated and discharged, it said

Video: Atomic Total filling station explosion in shot. Please avoid that stretch of the road if possible. Thank you.#MylesAlerts! pic.twitter.com/MdbQ2yztU8  Kweku Myles (@MylesRepGH) October 7, 2017

The explosion began at a state-owned GOIL liquefied natural gas station and spread to a Total petrol station across the street, sending a giant fireball high into the night sky and forcing frightened residents to flee.

At least six fire trucks and more than 200 police personnel were deployed to help to cordon off the area of the blasts. Ambulances also arrived and those with various injuries were sent to the hospital.

Al Jazeeras Ama Boateng, reporting from Accra, said that many people are feared dead as the blasts happened at an extremely busy part of the capital.

This is a busy interchange and one of the main routes out of the city, she said. There are lots of buildings and a lot of people in the area, including many street sellers.

Another explosion. Same place. Atomic Junction. PLEASE STAY AWAY. I felt the heat from 3 Kilometers away. It's crazy!!!! pic.twitter.com/8ZueUKGFb4  Matahachiro (@ronnieamofa) October 7, 2017

https://twitter.com/manifestive/status/916753958890242048?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

The filling station is also near a transport terminal and close to some hostels for the University of Ghana.

The Accra city authorities warned people to avoid the area.

Kobby Boateng, a computer programmer, said he had returned to the university campus with his girlfriend when the blast happened.

All of a sudden, we heard a boom and the flash of an explosion, which made the building just shake and the lights went out, he told AFP.

People were rushing out of their rooms. Some of them were naked and the heat that was coming from that blast, my God, it was unbearable.

Don't pass through atomic Junction, Legon Ghana. There's a gas explosion happening right now. Tell a friend.  Kwamina "Munyaneza" Dare (@chrisdare_) October 7, 2017

https://twitter.com/D41XY/status/916763609870618625?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

In June 2015, a blast at a petrol station near a busy downtown Accra intersection killed at least 90 people who were sheltering there from heavy rain and flooding.

A small unit on a tower building at Ghanas parliament also caught fire in July, although the blaze did not cause major damage.
Foreign minister tells Al Jazeera that Iran could withdraw from nuclear deal in the event of US breaches.

Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif has condemned US President Donald Trump over his threats to walk away from a landmark nuclear deal between Tehran and Western powers signed in 2015.

The lead negotiator for the Iranian side told Al Jazeera that the US leaders remarks would not help peace and security in the region and would harm the long-term interests of the United States.

Trump has repeatedly described the nuclear agreement, which was negotiated by the Obama administration and enshrined under United Nations Security Council Resolution 2231, as the worst deal ever.

I think it is an ill-informed statement, because certainly, any deal would not be a perfect deal for all sides; it has to be less than perfect so all sides can live with it, Zarif said, warning that the international community could never trust the US again if it violated the deal.

READ MORE: Donald Trump denounces Iran over nuclear deal

Zarif said any breaches of the deal by the US would result in Irans partial or complete withdrawal from the agreement, noting that Tehran would be undeterred by threats of sanctions.

The nuclear deal is the result of 10 years of posturing and two years of negotiations. Unfortunately, this administration is going back to posturing, he said. They [US leaders] have immunised us to US sanctions. From a global perspective, it would seem the United States is addicted to sanctions.

Dialogue with Saudi Arabia

Zarif also condemned Irans regional rivals, Israel and Saudi Arabia, for their role in urging the US to renege on the agreement.

The deal was a source of contention between the Obama administration on one side, and Riyadh and Tel Aviv on the other.

However, since Trumps election, leaders from both states have welcomed the hardline approach adopted by the US.

Addressing his countrys strained relationship with Saudi Arabia, Zarif said there was a willingness in Tehran to initiate a rapprochement.

READ MORE: Is the time right for Saudi-Iran rapprochement?

We are willing to talk to Saudi Arabia about our difference  We do not believe that Iran and Saudi Arabia should have the type of relationship they have right now, he said.

That openness did not stop him from condemning Saudi Arabia over its purported support of rebel groups in Syria and Yemen, as well as its treatment of Qatar.

We believe the posture in the Persian Gulf by Saudi Arabia is not a positive one, [like] the policies they pursue against Qatar, Zarif said, adding that Saudi Arabia was using claims of Iranian expansionism to justify its own attempts to exert influence in the region.

The concepts they are using to muddy the waters, policies that have brought unfortunate disastrous consequences for our region, cannot be justified by these smokescreens of exporting revolutions.
Iraqs Kurdish region voted in favour of secession.

Iraqs Kurdish region voted in favour of secession.

The tribal leaders turned to Kurdish President Masoud Barzani for help and now they fully back the referendum for secession.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has rejected the referendum and is threatening to retake control.

But increasing numbers of Sunnis are calling for further separation.

Al Jazeeras Hoda Abdel-Hamid reports from Rabia, in northern Iraq.
Two security guards at Al-Salam Palace killed as gunman opens fire at them before being shot dead, Saudi officials say.

A gunman on Saturday drove up to a gate of the kings palace in the Saudi city of Jeddah and opened fire, killing at least two security guards and wounding three others before being shot dead, according to officials.

The attacker, identified by the interior ministry as Mansour al-Amri, a 28-year-old Saudi national, was armed with a Kalashnikov rifle and three Molotov cocktails.

Amri disembarked from his vehicle at a checkpoint outside the western gate to the Al-Salam Palace and started shooting, according to the Saudi Press Agency.

Royal guards shot him dead on the spot.

The palace, where the royal family conducts official business during the summer months, is located next to the King Abdulaziz Road and Andalus Road on the waterfront of the Red Sea coastal city.

Saudi King Salman is currently outside the kingdom on a state visit to Russia.

Embassy warning

Amri did not have a criminal record or any known connection to armed groups, said Interior Ministry spokesman Mansour al-Turki, speaking by phone to al-Arabiya television.

An investigation was under way to determine his motive for the attack, added Turki.

Earlier on Saturday, the United States Embassy in Saudi Arabia had warned US citizens to exercise caution in the area around the palace after reports on social media of an attack there.

Due to the possibility of ongoing police activity, American citizens are advised to exercise caution when travelling through the area, the embassy had warned.

US Mission KSA Security Message  Security Incident at Al Salam Palace in Jeddah 7 Oct https://t.co/EWNU57nFrV  ACS Saudi Arabia (@KSA_ACS) October 7, 2017

Groups such as al-Qaeda and more recently Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) have carried out a number of attacks in Saudi Arabia.

Attackers have targeted Shia mosques in the countrys eastern provinces where much of its Shia minority is based, as well as security forces.

This week, Saudi police raided hideouts of a terror cell linked to ISIL, killing two people and arresting five, according to the national security agency.

The State Security Agency said police raided three hideouts in the capital, Riyadh, and exchanged gunfire in one of them, the SPA news agency reported on Thursday.es in the countrys eastern provinces where much of its Shia minority is based, as well as security forces.

In July this year, Saudi authorities said they foiled an attack on the Grand Mosque in the Muslim holy city of Mecca, which they blamed on ISIL.

Hundreds of Saudi citizens have travelled to Syria to join the group.
Iranian president defends 2015 pact as US leader faces October 15 deadline for certifying if Tehran complies with terms.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has defended a landmark nuclear deal with Western powers and said that US President Donald Trump could not undermine it.

Under the 2015 agreement, Tehran agreed to limit its disputed nuclear programme in return for the easing of economic sanctions.





Trump has repeatedly criticised the accord, which was negotiated by the Obama administration and enshrined under United Nations Security Council Resolution 2231, as the worst deal ever and an embarrassment.

He has to review it by October 15 and decide if Iran is keeping to its end of the bargain, and whether it serves US interests.

On Thursday, he said Iran had not lived up to the spirit of the deal, and reports have suggested he may decertify it  a step that potentially could cause the agreement to unravel.

READ MORE: Donald Trump denounces Iran over nuclear deal

Speaking on Saturday at a ceremony at Tehran University marking the start of the university academic year, Rouhani said the deals issues and benefits arenot reversible.

No one can turn that back, not Mr Trump or anyone else, he said, according to state media.

Even if 10 other Trumps are created in the world, these are not reversible.

Why did you trust America?

The prospect of Washington reneging on the deal has worried some of the US allies that helped negotiate it, especially as the world grapples with another nuclear crisis  North Koreas nuclear and ballistic missile development.

If Trump does not certify that Iran is in compliance, the US Congress will have 60 days to decide whether to reimpose sanctions waived under the deal. United Nations inspectors have verified Iranian compliance with the terms.

Rouhani said on Saturday that if the US violated the deal then it would hurt its own reputation in the international community.

If America carries out any violations today, the whole world will condemn America. They will not condemn Iran, Rouhani said, according to state media. Then they will say, Why did you trust America and sign an agreement with them?'

READ MORE: Irans Zarif slams US addiction to sanctions

In separate comments to Al Jazeera, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif also condemned Trump over his threats to walk away from the deal, saying that the US leaders remarks would not help peace and security in the region and would harm the long-term interests of the United States.

I think it is an ill-informed statement, because certainly, any deal would not be a perfect deal for all sides; it has to be less than perfect so all sides can live with it, said Zarif, warning that the international community could never trust the US again if it violated the deal.

Zarif said any breaches of the deal by the US would result in Irans partial or complete withdrawal from the agreement, noting that Tehran would be undeterred by threats of sanctions.

The nuclear deal is the result of 10 years of posturing and two years of negotiations. Unfortunately, this administration is going back to posturing, he said. They [US leaders] have immunised us to US sanctions. From a global perspective, it would seem the United States is addicted to sanctions.
Large number of fighters, including foreign mercenaries, killed in air raids in Deir Az Zor, Russian officials say.

Russian forces have killed about 120 ISIL fighters and more than 60 foreign mercenaries in a series of attacks in Syrias east over the past 24 hours, the defence ministry said.

About 80 Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) fighters died in a raid on a command post in the al-Mayadeen area of Deir Az Zor province, the ministry said, adding that 40 fighters were killed near the border town of Al Bukamal, also in Deir Az Zor.

The ministry also said that large numbers of foreign mercenaries coming into Al Bukamal from neighbouring Iraq were killed in a Russian air raid.

Many of them came from the former Soviet Union, Tunisia, and Egypt, according to the ministry.

Al-Mayadeen is one of ISILs last bastions in Syria.

READ MORE: Syrias civil war explained from the beginning

The advances against ISIL (also known as ISIS) in Deir Az Zor have cost a heavy civilian death toll from Russian and coalition air raids.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Russian aerial bombardment on Thursday night killed 14 people, including three children, fleeing across the Euphrates on rafts near al-Mayadeen.

Russia has not acknowledged any civilian deaths from its attacks since it intervened in Syria in 2015, and dismisses the Observatorys reporting as biased.

Moscow has been carrying out air raids in support of its ally Damascus targeting both ISIL in Deir Az Zor province and rival groups led by al-Qaedas former Syria affiliate in Idlib province in the northwest.
Moscow, Russia  Thousands of people have flocked to rallies across Russia in support of opposition leader Alexei Navalny, in an event that coincided with the birthday of President Vladimir Putin.

In the Russian capital, Moscow, two protesters were briefly held by police but were later released. Across the country, police detained at least 139 people in 25 cities, according to OVD-info, a group monitoring political repression.

In Moscow, thousands gathered at Pushkinskaya Square under a heavy police presence, chanting: Putin will leave! We will not! and Happy birthday! The crowd attempted to march towards Manezhnaya Square near the Kremlin but was prevented by police.

I wanted to come out on Putins birthday to protest. He has done already a lot of harm. Im against him and for free elections, Inna Kavatsun, a 55-year-old retired real estate agent, told Al Jazeera.

Ivan, an 18-year-old university student who did not provide his last name, noted that protesters wanted to express our disagreement with what is going on in this country.

WATCH: In search of Putins Russia  Reclaiming the Empire (48:25)

Alexei Navalny, after he announced he wants to run for president, started getting constantly arrested and harassed. We have come out to express our rejection of that, he said.

I support Navalny because he offers some alternative. Throughout my life, there havent been any fair elections. It has always been Putin. We never saw him join debates or present his platform. How can we support him?  If people dont walk out, nothing [will] change.

Navalny had called on his supporters to come out on Saturday to support his campaign and demand that he be allowed to run in the 2018 presidential election, after he was arrested on September 29.

A local court accused him of violating the law on organising a number of other demonstrations, and ordered his detention for 20 days. Protests were subsequently arranged in 80 cities across the country; some were not sanctioned by local authorities, including in Moscow and St Petersburg, Putins city of birth.

According to Russian law, organisers of demonstrations and rallies have to obtain permission from local authorities. Coordinators for Navalnys campaign in Krasnodar, Tver and Smolensk have been arrested for organising unsanctioned events, while police have also searched Navalnys campaign headquarters in Moscow, St Petersburg and Kaliningrad.

On Friday, opposition party Yabloko announced that it did not support the protests. In a statement published on the partys website, vice-chair Nikolay Rybakov said: Such events are clear provocations, aiming at suspect PR promotion of certain personalities. The main point is that youth disturbances dont have a political meaning and dont change anything.

In March and June, tens of thousands of people across Russia responded to Navalnys call for protest against government corruption; more than 1,500 people were detained each time.

INSIDE STORY: What do Trump and Putin want from each other? (24:16)

Navalny announced his presidential campaign last December, but in June, the head of the Central Electoral Commission said he could not run because of a previous criminal conviction for fraud  charges that he says were fabricated for political reasons.

In 2016, the European Court for Human Rights ruled in his favour, and a higher court in Russia sent back his case for retrial. Last February, he was given a five-year suspended sentence.

Vitaly Serukanov from Navalnys Moscow campaign team told Al Jazeera that they still consider him to be a viable candidate, and he will continue campaigning.

In mid-September, Navalny started a tour around the country to rally supporters, visiting six cities before his arrest.
The Spanish governments official representative in Catalonia has apologised for the violent response by police during the banned secession referendum on Sunday.

The Spanish governments official representative in Catalonia has apologised for the violent response by police during the banned secession referendum on Sunday.

Around 900 people were injured when the police tried to prevent voting.

This comes after Catalan law enforcement chiefs appeared in court in Madrid.

Al Jazeeras Karl Penhaul reports from Barcelona, Spain.
Mass rallies held with slogan Shall We Talk? in a bid to push politicians on either side to start discussion.

Thousands of people, many dressed in white, have rallied in Madrid and Barcelona, calling for talks to defuse Spains worst political crisis for decades amid Catalonias threat to secede.

The rallies in the Spanish capital and the Catalan city were held with the slogan Shall We Talk? in an effort to push politicians in both cities to end months of silence and start negotiating.

The wealthy northeastern region of Catalonia, with its own language and culture, has long claimed to be distinct from the rest of the country and on Sunday held a referendum on breaking away Spain, a vote the Constitutional Court had banned.





The Catalan authorities say that a majority of those who voted supported a split from Spain. Madrid says secession is illegal under the countrys 1978 constitution.

Spanish authorities mobilised thousands of national police to stop Sundays vote, leading to clashes with would-be voters as they tried to close polling stations in schools and remove ballot boxes. Nine hundred people were injured on polling day.

Sort it out peacefully

Sporting white shirts, protesters packed Barcelonas Sant Jaume Square where the Catalan government has its presidential palace, shouting We want to talk! and holding signs saying More Negotiation, Less Testosterone! and Talk or Resign!

There has been an incredible amount of tension which has been building up since Sundays referendum and people here are feeling that dialogue is sorely missed from all of this, said Al Jazeeras Sonia Gallego, reporting from the rally in Barcelona.

We are here because we want the politicians to talk between them, we look for a solution, said a female protester. Let them sort it out peacefully, and let each side demonstrate respect for another, added another one.

READ MORE: How would a Catalan secession affect FC Barcelona?

Gallego said similar rallies were taking place in other cities in Catalonia and across Spain, as well as in European capitals such as Berlin in Germany and London in the UK.

There is a very real sense here with people who are attending this that politicians on either side of this issue are really turning down the concerns of the ordinary citizens, she said.

Even though 2.2 million Catalan voted  with 90 percent backing independence  the disputed referendum polled less than half of the electorate in a region that is home to 7.5 million people.

Catalonias President Carles Puigdemont has vowed to make good on the results of the vote. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy warned that the vote was illegal and has promised that Catalonia is going nowhere.

We have to find a new way forward, said Miquel Iceta, the leader of Spains Socialist party in Catalonia. Its the moment to listen to the people who are asking for the problem to be solved through an agreement, and without precipitated and unilateral decisions.

In a separate rally in Madrids Colon Square, thousands clamoured for the unity of Spain and against any attempt by the northeastern region to break away. The crowd bristled with Spanish flags.

The calls for dialogue and unity come after a traumatic week, with riot police storming several polling stations in an unsuccessful attempt to impede the referendum. Instead, hundreds of voters were left in need of medical attention.

N ew opportunity for dialogue

The bloodied vote was followed by a strike on Tuesday across Catalonia to protest the police violence. Spains King Felipe VI weighed in, sharply criticising the Catalan government and parliament and accusing them of breaking the law.

The police violence drew widespread condemnation and forced the government to issue an apology on Friday, although tensions continued to rise after reports of plans for the Catalan parliament to vote on a unilateral declaration of independence on Tuesday.

READ MORE: Spains top court blocks Catalan parliaments meeting

Puigdemont and his separatist supporters were struck a blow when Catalonias top two banks, CaixaBank and Banco Sabadell, as well as the energy giant, Gas Natural, announced they were relocating their headquarters from Catalonia to other parts of Spain.





Other companies are considering such a move to ensure that the regions possible secession would not knock them out of the European Union and its lucrative common market.

Spains Minister of Public Works Inigo de la Serna said on Saturday that the companies will keep leaving and its exclusively the fault of the members of the regional government.

The warnings by the business sector have coincided with the first calls from within Puigdemonts government to hold off on a declaration of independence.

Santi Vila, Catalonias regional chief for business, told Cadena SER Radio late on Friday that hes pushing for a new opportunity for dialogue with Spanish authorities.

We have to give it one more chance, maybe the last chance, and perhaps the only way that can happen is to start with a ceasefire, Vila said.

Vila said he would like to see Spanish authorities return powers to the region which they have assumed in recent weeks, including control of a large part of its finances.

It is unclear how widespread Vilas moderate position is inside the Catalan government, which is being pressured by separatist grassroots groups and the far-left party CUP to declare independence soon.
Firms such as Lockheed Martin, Boeing and BAE systems make tens of billions of dollars from weapons sales.

The United States has approved a $15bn deal to supply Saudi Arabia with the THAAD missile defence system, one of the most capable systems of its kind in the world.

If Congress does not raise an objection within 30 days, the deal will result in a massive windfall for Lockheed Martin, the worlds biggest arms producer.

The company and others like it internationally draw tens of billions of dollars in weapons sales to their own governments and foreign states. As well as making profits from war and military expenditures, arms manufacturers employ hundreds of thousands of people worldwide and form an important part of local economies.

According to the Campaign Against Arms Trade, a UK-based advocacy group: The arms business has a devastating impact on human rights and security and damages economic development. Large-scale military procurement and arms exports only reinforce a militaristic approach to international problems.

The following is a list of some of the worlds largest weapons manufacturers, sourced from data collated by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute and published in 2016.

1. Lockheed Martin (US)

Based in the US state of Maryland, the company manufactures aircraft, radar systems, drones and even components for spacecraft for the US military and foreign states.

Its most famous products include the F-16 fighter plane and the Hercules transport plane.

Lockheed Martin sold $36bn of arms in 2015, turning a profit of $3.6bn that year, and as of October 2017 had a total market value of $91bn on the New York Stock Exchange.

2. Boeing (US)

Known mostly for its line of passenger aircraft, Boeing made $28bn of arms sales in 2015, resulting in a profit of $5.2bn.

Arms sales make up 29 percent of its total business and include aircraft such as the F-15, F-18 and F-22.

3. BAE Systems (UK)

The UKs largest weapons manufacturer had arms sales of $26bn in 2015, which formed 93 percent of its total sales.

BAE employs more than 82,000 people who help produce military equipment such as the Tornado warplane, Challenger tank, and drones for the British army and other states.

4. Raytheon (US)

The companys primary focus is producing missile and weapons systems for aircraft and naval vessels.

In 2015, Raytheon turned over almost $22bn in arms sales and made just over $2bn in profit.

5. Northrop Grumman (US)

Based in the US state of Virginia, Northrop Grumman produces drones, warplanes, aircraft components and radar systems.

It made just over $20bn in 2015 and turned a profit of more than $2bn.

6. General Dynamics (US)

Another Virginia-based company, General Dynamics produces the M1A Abrams tank, the main battle tank used by the US military.

It turned over $19bn in arms sales in 2015.

7. Airbus Group (EU-wide)

Like Boeing, Airbus is popularly known for its line of passenger aircraft that are in service among airlines across the globe.

Arms sales make up 18 percent of its business or $12.9bn in sales.

8. United Technologies (US)

The company based in the state of Connecticut draws 16 percent of its sales from arms, which amounts to $9.6bn.

Its most famous product is the Black Hawk helicopter used by the US military and others.

9. Leonardo/Finmeccanica (Italy)

Formerly known as Finmeccanica, Leonardo produces aircraft components, weapons systems, helicopters and armoured vehicles.

In 2015, its arms sales totalled $9.3bn, which resulted in $584m of profit.

10. L-3 Technologies (US)

Headquartered in New York, L-3 produces surveillance, communications and weapons control systems for military and civilian purposes.

It had arms sales of $8.8bn in 2015 and made $282m in profit.
Riyadh and Moscow have been rivals, but the Saudi kings historic visit suggests a new relationship.

A shift in global power structures.

Two world leaders who back rival sides in Syrias war are cementing a new friendship. Together, they could also determine the worlds oil prices.

Saudi Arabias King Salman has been meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow  the first Saudi monarch to visit Russia.

Investment deals worth billions of dollars have been signed.

Some argue the visit reflects the growing Russian influence in the Middle East.

But can they trust each other? And what does this visit mean for the Middle East?

Presenter: Hazem Sika

Guests:

Ibrahim Fraihat  associate professor at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies

Nikolay Surkov  foreign policy analyst at the Russian International Affairs Council

Lawrence Korb  former US assistant secretary of defence
Is the Spanish media coverage serving the people or its political masters? Plus, the persecution of Vietnams bloggers.

On The Listening Post this week: With different accounts of the violence in Catalonia, we ask if public TV is serving the people or its political masters. Plus: Vietnams bloggers under siege.

Catalan Referendum: Media, politics and independence

For the second week in a row, were taking a look at the media coverage in the aftermath of the independence referendum in Catalonia, where hundreds of would-be voters were injured by police trying to stop an electoral process that the Spanish government deemed unconstitutional.

But with the national and regional broadcasters, Spains TVE and its Catalan version TV3, serving their political masters in Madrid and Barcelona, a private TV channel, La Sexta, has found itself filling the information gap and drawing criticism from all sides in the process.

Contributors:

Alejandro Caballero, president of the Journalists Committee, TVE

Raquel Sans, presenter, TV3

Ferran Monegal, TV critic, El Periodico

Ana Isabel Fernandez Viso, Universidad Autonoma de Barcelona

On our radar:

In India, at least half a dozen journalists say they may be at risk after being subjected to death threats delivered on the messaging platform, WhatsApp.

Google and Facebook have come under criticism over their handling of false news in the aftermath of Las Vegas shooting.

Prosecutors in Turkey want to use Interpols red notice to extradite a prominent Turkish journalist now living in exile in Germany.

Vietnams imperilled bloggers

Since unification in 1975, Vietnam has been governed by a communist party that maintains tight control over the airwaves. However, bloggers pose a challenge to state-sanctioned narratives for one of the largest online audiences in Southeast Asia.

Mainstream outlets are often forced to follow up on stories where bloggers have led the way, sometimes on issues usually declared off-limits by government media managers.

The Listening Posts Meenakshi Ravi reports on the supine state of Vietnams mainstream media and the governments attempts to silence the countrys bloggers.

Contributors:

Tran Le Thuy, director, Centre for Media Education and Consultancy

Shawn Crispin, senior Southeast Asia representative, Committee to Protect Journalists

Nguyen Van Hai, exiled Vietnamese blogger
Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif says Iran could withdraw from the nuclear deal in the event of US breaches.

In an heated speech at the United Nations General Assembly last month, US President Donald Trump described the landmark nuclear deal between Tehran and Western powers as one of the worst and most one-sided transactions in the history of the US.

Frankly, that deal is an embarrassment to the United States and I dont think you have heard the last of it, he said.

Responding to Trump, Irans Foreign Minister Javad Zarif told Al Jazeeras Abderrahim Foukara the nuclear deal was a result of years of negotiations.

I think it is an ill-informed statement because, certainly, any deal would not be a perfect deal for all sides; it has to be less than perfect so all sides can live with it, Zarif said, warning that the international community could never trust the US again if it violated the deal.

On threats by the US Republican party to slap more sanctions on his country, Zarif said: The United States has had a policy of imposing sanctions on Iran for the past 40 years. Basically, they have immunised us to US sanctions. But from a global perspective, it seems that the United States is addicted to sanctions  they have an obsession. They believe that sanctions do work. In fact, I think they shouldve learned by now that sanctions dont work. You cannot impose pressure on countries to abandon their sovereignty, to abandon their dignity for a few restrictions that the United States has imposed on them.

I think the sooner the United States realises that this type of behaviour, this type of policies bound to backfire and its bound to create resistance and strengthen the resolve of the people to pursue their own policies and their own interests. The sooner the United States achieves this important recognition of reality, the sooner it can adjust its policies in a way that would even serve the interests of the United States better.

Zarif also addressed his countrys strained relationship with Saudi Arabia, saying there was a willingness in Tehran to initiate a rapprochement. We are willing to talk to Saudi Arabia about our difference  We do not believe that Iran and Saudi Arabia should have the type of relationship they have right now, he said.

Zarif also discussed geopolitical changes going in the Middle East, including efforts by Kurds to create an independent state in Iraq, the siege of Qatar and the rivalry between Iran and Saudi Arabia.
Dr Marc Lamont Hill is an award-winning journalist and author and is the Steve Charles Professor of Media, Cities, and Solutions at Temple University. Hill is known for his work addressing the intersections of race, justice, politics and culture. His latest best-selling book is We Still Here: Pandemics, Policing, Protest and Possibility which follows on the success of Nobody: Casualties of Americas War on the Vulnerable from Flint to Ferguson. Hill has received numerous prestigious awards from the US National Association of Black Journalists, GLAAD, and the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences.
UK Minister for the Armed Forces Mark Lancaster visited Nigeria this week, marking the strong Defence relationship between the two nations. During the visit, Minister for the Armed Forces saw first-hand the support the UK is providing to the Nigerian Armed Forces leading the fight against Boko Haram in North East Nigeria. As well as []http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Appa-sourceTheAfric...
His friends say Gregg R. Irwin has many positive attributes.

The 49-year-old Boyd man comes from a good family, works hard and is generous with his time when someone needs his help, his friends said.

But on Sept. 28, 2015, Irwin made the decision to drive after having a few drinks. While crossing Highway 29, his 2009 Dodge truck crashed with a 2000 Saturn DL driven by Erica M. Strandt, 20. Strandt, a mother of a young child, died of her injuries.

Back in June, Irwin pleaded guilty to a felony, homicide by negligent operation of a vehicle, and no contest to driving while intoxicated-first offense.

On Friday, over two years since Strandts death, Chippewa County Judge Steven Cray sentenced Irwin to serve 18 months prison and five years on extended supervision.

Cray said on the day Erica Strandt died, Irwin was confident enough to drive despite having an alcohol level nearly twice the state standard for first time drunken driving. Assistant District Attorney Roy LaBarton Gay said Irwin had a blood alcohol content of 0.156.

As a result of your recklessness, not bad luck, your recklessness, another human being died, Cray said.

Cray said Irwin tried to blame Strandt and said her car hit his truck in a bid to aid his defense, and entered a guilty plea only after that line of defense was denied by Cray.

Makes apology

Irwin apologized to Strandts family and his own family. He said he realizes his decision to drive that night has taken Strandt from her family.

Its a terrible feeling that doesnt go away that I have to live with all of my life.

Im sorry, he said.

Five people spoke in support of Irwin, and five people spoke in support of the Strandt family.

A friend of Irwin, Ken Peterson, said Irwin has been remorseful of Strandts death. He urged Cray not to give Irwin a prison sentence.

I have a hard time understanding what is going to be gained by taking a productive member out of society, Peterson said.

Attorney Les Liptak, a former Chippewa County district attorney, asked that Irwin be given probation and jail time, along with community service.

He is a good person and he is remorseful, Liptak said.

Carol Whaley, who spoke in support of Strandts family, said she couldnt understand if Irwin was given a sentence of less than five years in prison.

Our hearts are broken and no amount of time will fix that, she said.

Strandts mother, Jennifer Grau (Whaley), said Strandts daughter, now age 4, wonders why someone would kill her mother and asks if someone will kill her, too.

My granddaughter wakes up (with) night terrors. She sees a therapist, Grau said.

She said a three year prison sentence for Irwin would be a joke, that someone dealing drugs would get a longer sentence than someone whose actions resulted in a death.

She said her daughter was her best friend.

I loved her very much and I miss her. And I will never have her back, she said.

Sentence suggestions

LaBarton Gay said he has practiced law for 35 years, and Strandts death is one of the saddest cases hes encountered.

Gay said Irwin entered an intersection at 35 mph, according to a crash reconstruction. He was pretty much gunning it, trying to get across the road, he said of Irwin.

Gay recommended a three year prison sentence for Irwing and five years of extended supervision.

We all wish we werent here as it was a terrible tragedy, defense attorney Harry Hertel said.

He asked that Cray impose and then stay a prison term. He recommended Irwin instead receive jail time and probation, noting Irwin has no past criminal activity.

In sentencing Irwin, Cray prohibited the defendant from entering bars and that any vehicles Irwin drives must have ignition interlock devices. He also ordered Irwin pay $518 in court costs.

For the intoxicated driving first offense charge, Cray ordered Irwin to pay a forfeiture of $987.50 plus $35 for a blood draw. Irwins drivers license is revoked for eight months. Unlike every other state in the nation, Wisconsin treats first time drunken driving as non-criminal offense.

Cray said he would invite Strands family to apply for restitution for Strands daughter.

I believe you have caused that child the need to reach out and get help, Cray told Irwin.
Anything men can do women can do as well, maybe better was the declaration of the British writer Mary Wollstonecraft, whose "Vindication of the Rights of Women" was published in 1792. She denied the prevailing attitude that women are naturally inferior to men and insisted that women and men should be equally educated and that equality of men and women should exist in political, social, and economic life. It wasn't until the middle of the 19th century that the effort to establish the struggle for the emancipation of women emerged in the United States and Britain.

Since what is called the First Wave of Feminism in the U.S., the feminist movement has articulated a variety of arguments concerning the nature of female emancipation, equal rights for women, gender discrimination, the identity of women, equal pay, the social construction of gender roles, and the political and cultural role of women throughout the societies in which they live.

Like all other social and political movements, the feminist movement has been divided , full of factions and strong personalities presenting a different and changing focus on the issues of women. Among American feminists, Betty Friedan, Germaine Greer, Letty Cottin Pogrebin, Kate Millett, Barbara Seaman, Gloria Steinem, and others played prominent competing, sometimes rival roles concerning those issues.

Some issues such as whether gender roles are due to social conditioning remain relevant and controversial. Others, once thought central to feminist theory and the subject of heated debate such as the question of "essentialism," whether biology determines women's capacities, and what this entails, have been largely dismissed.

Among the most courageous of modern America feminists is Phyllis Chesler, whose voluminous writings are infused with her singular and colorful personal life. Her story is unusual in that , starting as an unsophisticated young Jewish girl in New York, she ran away from home and religion to marry a Western-educated Afghani and went with him to Kabul, where she discovered he was not a knight in shining armor. She suffered abuse as his Muslim family enforced the cruel traditional gender rules of Afghanistan and the Islamic faith. She was a virtual prisoner in the family home. She was fortunate to escape from Afghanistan, from where she returned to the United States and eventually became a well known professor of psychology, a psychologist, and a public intellectual.

Chesler's dominant quality is courage  the willingness to speak the truth to fellow feminists, even if it opposes conventional feminist principles, as well as to the world in general. She is no shrinking violet; she does not express herself in a still, small voice. She holds definite opinions but is not an imperious dogmatist. There is no mistaking her point of view, expressed in a loud, commanding, direct way, about political and social affairs. If her views are striking and controversial, she is eager to debate them. But she is forthright about the way that women may hurt each other and even more about what she sees as the wrong direction of contemporary feminists, especially those she sees as "left-wing post-colonial" writers whose main target is white Western men.

Her new book, Islamic Gender Apartheid: Exposing the Veiled War against Women, is made up of articles written over a 14-year period, from 2003 to 2016. Some of them are the outcome of speeches at conferences and government hearings. Many are related to specific issues. During her career, Chesler has dealt with most of the problems familiar to other feminists: sexual objectification of women, economic parity, abortion rights, pornography, prostitution, and violence such as rape and sexual harassment.

Here, her main thrust, as the title indicates, is Islamic gender apartheid, which she regards as a violation of women's and human rights, including child marriage, polygamy, girls being forced to marry against their will, girls being forced to wear the veil, female genital mutilations, honor violence, and murder by their own families.

Chesler, in sorrow and in anger, points out that these are subjects many other feminist scholars have ignored or refused to discuss until recently. These feminists ground their refusal in multicultural relativism and perhaps redress of past racism. As a result of the tragic silence and lack of concern of feminists on this issue, as one concerned with the subordination and humiliation of Muslim women in their own countries and those who have escaped to the U.S., as well as for her support of the State of Israel, Chesler has experienced censorship; been marginalized; and been sent, as she puts it, to the American Gulag. Chesler is in the same league as other courageous writers, among them Ayaan Hirsi Ali, who herself survived female genital mutilation in Somalia; Nonie Darwish; and Asra Nomani, all concerned with promoting women's rights in Islamic countries.

Chesler alerts her fellow feminists: American women must oppose the gender apartheid of Muslim women, or they will lose their freedom, too. American women must stand up for the rights of all women, including Muslim, tribal, and immigrant women.

Chesler believes in a universal standard of human rights and values, such as separation of religion and state and the right to dissent, and she is critical of Islamic behavior that contradicts these values. Again and again, she censures aspects of that behavior. The Islamic veil or burqa cannot be praised; it is what she calls a sensory deprivation chamber, violating a woman's dignity and restricting her mobility.

Chesler defines herself not only as a feminist , American patriot, and internationalist, but also as a religious Jew. As such, she makes another important point: she is unhappy with feminists, influenced by post-colonialism and postmodernism, who concentrate on a purportedly anti-colonial feminism, which is primarily an attack on the State of Israel, and a call for the "decolonization of Palestine."

Such feminists see Israel as a country practicing apartheid, ignoring two fundamental factors: Israel has active feminist and gay rights movements, and the reality is that Islam is the largest practitioner of both gender and religious apartheid. These feminists say nothing about the atrocities perpetrated by Muslims, slavery, anti-black racism, conversion by the sword, persecution of non-Muslim religious minorities, and the most barbaric abuse of women. They are more concerned with the so-called occupation of Palestine than with the occupation of women's bodies.

Chesler's message is important for U.S. policymakers as well as for fellow feminists. It is disgraceful that what she calls "faux feminism" is more interested in alleged Israeli "occupation" than the Muslim honor killings in the same region.
In the fevered imagination of the academic left, these are dark days at San Francisco State University (SFSU). Speakers at a two-day conference, "Rights and Wrongs: A Constitution and Citizenship Day Conference at San Francisco State University," described a campus where a "corporatist" administration is at war with its faculty; Arab-American professors are afraid to walk alone on campus; ethnic student organizations are consigned to the dank student center basement; "Zionists" lie in wait to pounce on innocent, beleaguered proponents of "Palestine"; and "white supremacy" rules. All at one of the most radical universities in the nation.

Leading these lamentations was the director of SFSU's Arab and Muslim Ethnicities and Diasporas Initiative (AMED), Rabab Abdulhadi, whose anti-Israel activism is coming back to haunt her. In addition to being named in a Lawfare Project (L.P.) lawsuit against SFSU alleging "anti-Semitism and overt discrimination against Jewish students," she is at the heart of a Middle East Forum and Campus Watch campaign to end the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) she brokered between SFSU and An-Najah University, a hotbed of anti-Semitism and radicalism in the West Bank.

The conference was held on the top floor of the bustling Cesar Chavez Student Center  adorned with murals of Malcolm X and Edward Said  in spacious, light-filled Jack Adams Hall. A bulletin board near the entrance displayed a flyer calling for the removal of San Francisco's Pioneer Monument, which it dubbed a "monument to white supremacy!" Conference programs featured a graphic of President Donald Trump's silhouette balanced with a white fist on a scale of justice.

The audience of mostly students and small clusters of faculty ranged from a sparse fifty to sixty for the panel "Academic Freedom for Whom? Islamophobia, Palestine, and Campus Politics" to around 250  many sitting on the floor after the seats quickly filled up  for "Muslims, Mexicans, and the Politics of Exclusion."

Abdulhadi chaired both panels, while Hatem Bazian, director of U.C. Berkeley's Islamophobia Research & Documentation Project, participated in the second. Both, she noted, hail from Nablus in the West Bank. The co-panelists were graduate student instructors (one nicknamed "Che"), local leftist activists, and "veterans" of SFSU's 1968 Third World Liberation Front strike.

Abdulhadi  who assured the audience she is a woman, lest anyone fear that a man heads AMED  was persistently on the defensive. Harried and angry, her rapid-fire speech rendered many words unintelligible. She complained about Campus Watch tweets "attacking her" and marveled at the "four articles" (two pieces, in fact) about the MOU-facilitated "Prisoner, Labor, and Academic Delegation," which sent Americans who served prison time for Weather Underground-affiliated domestic terrorism to meet fellow self-described "political prisoners" at Najah.

She blamed these concerns  and the well documented history of terrorism and anti-Semitism at Najah  on her opponents' "muddying the waters" with spurious claims of anti-Semitism and falsely conflating Arabs and Muslims with terrorism. In Abdulhadi's world, evidently, Palestinian terrorism and the cultural indoctrination underpinning it simply do not exist.

The bulk of her ire was directed at SFSU's administration and her onetime ally, President Leslie Wong, with whom she had collaborated to create the MOU. She noted repeatedly that she had left a superior position as director of the Center for Arab American Studies at the University of Michigan, Dearborn at SFSU's invitation, only to find herself relegated to a "token," subjected to "new McCarthyism," with AMED starved of funds and slated for termination.

Abdulhadi blamed Wong's supposed abandonment of her on "Zionist pressure," while accusing the administration of "Islamophobia"; "anti-Palestinian racism"; and the bigotry du jour, "white supremacy." She and her supporters fault Wong for not reacting quickly or stridently enough to the ongoing David Horowitz Freedom Center poster campaign at SFSU, U.C. Berkeley, and elsewhere, despite evidence to the contrary. As with the grievances she reportedly filed earlier this year against the university "for the hostile and unsafe work and study environment for Palestinians, Muslims and Arabs on campus," there is little proof to back up her assertions.

Paranoia may better explain her worries, for she then declared, "I do not walk by myself on campus anymore. I am actually very afraid for my life." Because, you see, "the very people who are intimidating and harassing us, including people who have served in the Israeli military  and I grew up under Israeli occupation  are walking around on campus." Who knew that IDF soldiers are menacing SFSU's faculty?!

Abdulhadi's co-panelists, in turn, praised her not only as a "Palestinian scholar" and a founding member of the U.S. Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel, but as a pillar of the community. Diana Block, a participant in the Prisoner, Labor, and Academic Delegation, solicited funds on Abdulhadi's behalf and encouraged audience members to attend a hearing in San Francisco on November 8 for motions to dismiss and strike the L.P. lawsuit filed by both Abdulhadi and the California State University system (CSU), of which SFSU is a part. This proves that the university is indeed defending her, including deploying her tactic (in CSU's motion to strike) of accusing her opponents of racism against "brown, black, and Muslim people."

Yet Abdulhadi is her own worst enemy. After spewing anti-Semitism in a rant written in response to the suit, she again exhibited the very bigotry she denies exists: she railed against the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) for condemning the General Union of Palestinian Students' (for which she serves as faculty adviser) disruption of Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barakat's 2016 SFSU talk. Then, despite the university's conclusion that Jewish student group Hillel was "improperly excluded" from a February campus civil rights information fair, she thundered, "People who are ... oppressors have no place in spaces where people need to be protected. So the Know Your Rights Fair was right to not have a table for Hillel!"

Bazian piled on by repeating his contention that "[m]any of those who are engaged in the Islamophobia industry have been engaged in it to protect Israel's interests in the U.S." They believe, he maintained, that "stoking anti-Muslim sentiment and Islamophobia is the way to protect Israel."

Conspiracy-mongering co-panelist Sara Kershnar of the International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network (IJAN) claimed that an IJAN report to which Abdulhadi and AMED had contributed exposed several "Zionist backlash" organizations, including the Middle East Forum, whose president, Daniel Pipes, she dubbed "one of the fathers of the Islamophobia industry" and an "intermediary" for "millions and millions of dollars" that he doles out to his minions. Pipes, Horowitz, L.P., the AMCHA Initiative, the Zionist Organization of America, and JCRC are, she warned, "at the center of the attack on SFSU."

Abdulhadi and her anti-Israel cohorts may feel besieged, but they're hardly victims. What they label a nefarious plot is simply a justified lawful reaction to their dominance at SFSU and universities across teh nation. The MOU with terror-promoting An-Najah is among the most blatant examples of this overreach, and the Middle East Forum remains committed to its demise. No longer will activists posing as academics in order to push an illiberal agenda go unopposed.

Cinnamon Stillwell, a graduate of San Francisco State University, is the West Coast representative for Campus Watch, a project of the Middle East Forum. She can be reached at stillwell@meforum.org.
A chef whos cooked for the late U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) might not use the phrase opportunity of a lifetime lightly.

Thats how Chef Jonathan Fike described his job at Chippewa Valley Technical Colleges new culinary program.

Fike, who moved to the Chippewa Valley from a chef educator position in Salt Lake City, and Chef Kevin Brown, who once cooked for former President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Clinton, are spearheading the new program, which will welcome its first class in the fall 2018 semester.

In addition to the Chippewa Valleys up-and-coming food scene  Brown compared it to a young Portlands vibrant culinary culture  both chefs said the opportunity to completely design a culinary program, complete with kitchen and equipment, was too tempting to pass up.

Jonathan and I have had free autonomy to build the program as we see fit, Brown said. To create a very diverse population of students out of that.

The program could orient students with a variety of skills, Brown said, from baker or line cook to food photographer or food truck operator.

Filling the workforce gap

The four-semester, two-year Culinary Management program is answering a call that Brown says Eau Claire has been putting out for years.

About 10% of the economy in Eau Claire is based on restaurant hospitality and food service, he said. The employers in the area have been begging for a resource like ours to supply them with graduates. You can never guarantee employment, but I have to tell you, Ive always had more requests from restaurants and kitchens than I had students.

The two chefs are putting their own spin on a traditional culinary degree. Instead of two years of wholly food-related classes, first-year students will take math, psychology and internship prep classes. Sophomores dive into advanced culinary programs, but still will take classes on writing and critical thinking.

One of the misconceptions students have about learning a trade is, why do I have to take English? Math? We want you to be well-rounded so you can construct a document free of errors, so you can analyze financial documents, Brown said.

Graduates of the program may be able to transfer their degree to the University of Wisconsin-Stouts School of Hospitality. They should be able to transfer in as a junior with our Associates degree, Fike said.

Designing an institute

Students filtered into a CVTC classroom on a Tuesday in October, where Fike and Brown  dressed in their chefs white coats  pitched the program.

A list of required classes looks intimidating on first glance. Garde Manager, Cost Control for Culinary Arts and Food Theory arent typical college student fare. But students perk up when Brown shows off a set of chefs knives  These will go everywhere with you, he says  and points to a design of the soon-to-come Demonstration Kitchen.

As of now, CVTCs culinary kitchen only exists on paper, but Fike and Brown will be updating the 20 students already enrolled in the program via their Facebook page. A sprawling production kitchen with twelve-burner gas ranges and a bakery area is bordered by the Demonstration Kitchen, a glass-walled space where students can catch a glimpse their peers stirring, chopping, frying and kneading as they walk to class.

An Asian cookery station, tandoori oven and, Fike points out, a mixology area complete the setup. Offering a pastry and baking certificate may be next on the chefs agenda  though they have their metaphorical plates full until next fall.

We want to get this up and running first, and then look at our next steps: baking and pastry, and food trucks, Fike said.

Fike and Brown were hired a year before the programs official start date to design the curriculum and the equipment, but they hope for a full 30 students  the programs capacity  filling the seats in August 2018.

The nice thing about this program is theres always going to be jobs. Even in a recession, people are still going to go out to eat, Fike said.

For more information on the CVTC Culinary Management program, visit www.cvtc.edu/academics/programs/culinary-management. For construction updates on the new facility, visit www.facebook.com/CVTCCulinary.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions has issued a 25-page memo giving all federal agencies guidelines to an executive order President Donald Trump signed in May, promoting efforts to promote religious liberty.

The legal guidelines dramatically broaden the scope of what the government will define as "religious freedom" to include health care, civil rights, and even disaster relief.

Politico:

The new Justice Department guidance takes a muscular view of religious freedom rights, but officials said that the document is a neutral description of existing law and not an effort to weigh in on particular policy issues. "Religious liberty is not merely a right to personal religious beliefs or even to worship in a sacred place," Sessions wrote. "Except in the narrowest of circumstances, no one should be forced to choose between living out his or her faith and complying with the law. Therefore, to the greatest extent practicable and permitted by law, religious observance should be reasonably accommodated in all government activity, including employment, contracting and programming." The legal analysis was unveiled as the Trump administration is considering or pursuing a series of moves that could broaden the rights of the religious, including allowing churches more latitude to enter political campaigns without jeopardizing their tax exemptions and permitting religious institutions to receive more types of disaster relief funds. The administration also announced Friday that businesses of all sizes with religious or moral objections to providing contraception coverage or other preventative services under Obamacare will be allowed to opt out of that requirement. Officials have also debated whether to revoke or alter a policy banning federal contractors from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation. Trump opted against such a move in May, but LGBT rights advocates remain on guard against such a step. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders defended the administration's announcements Friday as clearly in line with Supreme Court precedent. "The president believes that the freedom to practice one's faith is a fundamental right in this country  and I think all of us do  and that's all that today was about. Our federal government should always protect that right, and as long as Donald Trump is president he will," Sanders said. "The Supreme Court's already made clear what their position is, and it supports what this administration has done."

It should be noted that most of these exemptions involve only a small number of people and organizations. But the numbers don't matter  something the Obama administration never understood.

On the contraceptive exemption, for example, the Obama administration tried twice to draw up guidelines that it believed would give religious organizations a "work-around" for their consciences by allowing them to have insurance companies pay for contraception coverage  as if someone can "work around" his most cherished religious beliefs.

The DoJ guidelines stop that nonsense and do what should have been done at the outset of Obamacare: allow a religious exemption for the contraception mandate.

The religious exemption for those individuals and companies that don't want to have anything to do with the redefinition of marriage is more complicated.

A Justice Department official who briefed reporters on the new legal guidance insisted that it does not amount to a license to discriminate. "It doesn't legalize discrimination at all," said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. However, the legal memo suggests that the government's legal authority to forbid racial discrimination may not be as strong as its authority to target other forms of discrimination, such as bias against women or LGBT individuals. "The government may be able to meet that [legal] standard with respect to race discrimination ... but may not be able to with respect to other forms of discrimination," Sessions' memo says. Critics said the guidance could result in LGBT individuals, women or others facing discrimination in federal programs.

As an example, a baker may not be able to discriminate against gays who patronize his establishment, but he could invoke a religious exemption if he is asked to bake a cake for a gay wedding. Much remains to be worked out, but any expansion of the concept of religious liberty after decades of this precious right being under attack is welcome.
Radical anarchists are planning a nationwide campaign on Monday to deface and vandalize statues of Christopher Columbus.

Antifa is planning a coordinated campaign to attack symbols of "white supremacy" and have targeted Columbus statues as a prime example.

PJ Media:

The NYC-based antifa group Revolutionary Abolitionist Movement (RAM) made the announcement on Thursday, September 21, calling on antifa groups nationwide to "decorate" their neighborhoods. According to Far Left Watch, RAM is "an extremely militant group that advocates for the violent redistribution of property" and for "the abolition of gender." The militant group recently hosted an "Our Enemies in Blue" anti-police workshop at its branch in Brooklyn, NY. RAM posted a video called "Against Columbus Day" on the antifa website It's Going Down, showcasing destroyed monuments across the country and black-clad thugs strutting around menacingly to psycho synth music. "The battles lines have been drawn and white supremacists are on notice," the anarchists wrote in a statement on the website. "White nationalist statues are crumbling all over the US as our collective revolutionary power is growing." A recent poll showed that the vast majority of Americans support a holiday honoring Christopher Columbus, but RAM called Columbus Day, October 9, "one of the most vile 'holidays' of the year." The group called on supporters "to take action against this day and in support of indigenous people in the US and abroad who have been victims of colonialism and genocide." We are calling for groups to "decorate" their neighborhoods as they see fit: put up murals, wheatpaste posters, drop a banner, etc. On October 9th put a picture of your action on social media and use the hashtags below. With these actions multiplied around the country, we will make it unequivocally clear that revolutionaries will always stand with the indigenous! The anarchists encouraged fellow law-breakers to record and broadcast their crimes by using the hashtags #F---ColumbusDay and #DestroyColonialism. As antifa has already announced its illegal intentions well ahead of time, elected officials and police departments across the country should not be blindsided by the rash of vandalism that is sure to come in the next few days. Call to Action! Deface Columbus Day

Hashtags: #FuckColumbusDay #DestryColonialism

10/9/17https://t.co/JYYZRSvCQ9 pic.twitter.com/5Yy98gIci4  RevAbolitionMov (@RevAbolitionist) September 21, 2017

While I'm sure the thugs are serious, I question whether Antifa has the organizational chops to pull something like this off on a nationwide basis. The group has no recognizable hierarchy or formal lines of communication. Many groups who call themselves "Antifa" do not share the same ideology or agree on tactics.

Still, it wouldn't surprise me if other independent, self-identified Antifa groups came up with the same idea on their own, which would lead to a spate of attempts to deface the statues.

I hope those communities that have erected statues in honor of Columbus would take this threat seriously. Even if there is no Antifa group in the area, other far-left troublemakers may target the statues for similar reasons. The sad fact is, our heritage and culture are under attack as never before, and those who seek to erase that history because of a simple-minded understanding of our past must be stopped.
What? A tax may actually be repealed in a prominent stronghold of the Democrats? It appears that politics after Trump's victory may have changed at more levels than the federal government.

The ruling class cherishes its power to dictate to the lower orders how they live their lives, especially when the opportunity to impose new taxes arises. Thus, when someone thought up the idea of taxing soda pop to discourage people from consuming it, serious effort went into building such taxes into a national trend. A test market was selected: Berkeley, California, where voters will approve anything that sounds as if it has good intentions behind it, especially if a villain can be identified.

The campaign went off flawlessly, if not completely ethically, and the initiative, Measure D, passed. Once the precedent was in place, with the perfect excuse ("we care about your health!"), taxes started to be imposed all over the country, especially where Democrats are in control. The believability of that excuse was not enhanced by the failure of such measures to tax equally caloric natural fruit juices, or sweetened coffee drinks, such as those sold by Starbucks. In fact, this exemption revealed the class basis of the tax, because only drinks favored by lower-income and lower-education consumers were being taxed.

In Cook County, Illinois, the tax became a major issue, one we have covered multiple times. The primary force behind the tax finally admitted that the tax was really about the money it brings in, not health, as the county board faces a vote to repeal the tax next week.

Now it appears that the tax will be repealed. Dan Mihanopoulos of the Chicago Sun-Times reports:

John Daley on Thursday became the first Cook County commissioner to publicly switch sides on the contentious issue of the county's tax on sweetened beverages, telling the Chicago Sun-Times he now thinks the penny-per-ounce tax should be repealed.

Daley had been one of eight commissioners who voted for the tax when the county board approved it last year. The commissioners deadlocked on the issue, but board President Toni Preckwinkle cast the tie-breaking vote in favor of the tax.

Daley, a South Side Democrat, said public opinion swayed his vote.

"I heard from my district, and I think we're elected to represent our district," he said. "I heard overwhelming opposition."

After Daley's flip-flop on the matter, the board could be poised to repeal the measure. Assuming the other eight opponents of the tax vote the same way again, the tax could be overturned as soon as next week. (snip)

Daley said he had never seen such voter opposition to a tax as the criticism that the pop tax has generated.

But Preckwinkle, who has threatened layoffs if the tax is repealed, could still veto the repeal, which means that another vote must be swung to make the repeal stick.



Cook County Board president Toni Preckwinkle, left, and Commissioner John P. Daley during a board meeting on July 15, 2015. | Saiyna Bashir/Sun-Times

All of a sudden, a populist tax revolt is springing up in the heart of the Democrat urban base, one fueled by class resentment against the party elites and by onerous taxes that penalize people because of lifestyle choices of which the elites disapprove.

This is a fight the Democrats ought to fear. When politicians appear in the pose of snatching food and drink from the mouths of voters, resentment is the natural response. The soda tax is but one comparatively small, but highly visible at the checkout counter, example of the elitism of the progressives. Michelle Obama's "healthy" changes to school lunches flopped as expensive food lined the garbage bins. People do not like being told what to eat or drink by people who they rightly suspect have contempt for them.

The long con of the Democrats, the notion that they are taking our money to make us better people and not line their own pockets, is wearing thin.
Could the story behind the "Trump dossier" be the Rosetta Stone of Russian manipulation of our electoral process in 2016? There is a strong and justifiable suspicion that the dossier was the critical bit of evidence that persuaded the FISA Court to reverse itself and permit monitoring of American associates of Donald Trump. The dossier was originally begun as an opposition research project for Republican rivals of Trump, then funded by Democrats, and allegedly finally funded by the FBI. We already know that some of the wild accusations in it were demonstrably false.

The House Intelligence Committee long has been looking into allegations of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, and so far, it has come up with nothing. As in zero specific evidence. This was admitted by no less than Rep. Jackie Spier, a veteran Democrat member of the House of Representatives.

It is obviously worth investigating, then, how that dossier came to be created in the first place, and how it was used by various organs of the United States government, if there is interest in getting to the truth behind Russia's attempts to affect our elections. Yet the FBI is refusing to hand over documents that have been subpoenaed by the House. Kimberly Strassel explains in the Wall Street Journal:

Witness how hard the Federal Bureau of Investigation is fighting to avoid divulging any information about the dossier. More than a month ago the House Intelligence Committee issued subpoenas to the FBI and the Justice Department, asking for dossier-related documents. Lawmakers were told to go swivel. A little more than a week ago, the committee's frustrated chairman, Rep. Devin Nunes, took the case all the way to Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who finally offered to make an FBI official available for a briefing. But the bureau is still withholding all documents. To date, Sen. Chuck Grassley's Judiciary Committee has not received any paper from the FBI on Russia matters, despite numerous requests, some countersigned by the Democratic ranking member, Dianne Feinstein.

As my friend Mike Nadler emailed:

It's hard to believe with a Republican president, House and Senate, that the FBI (with a Director appointed by Trump) is still able to stonewall Congressional investigating committees on information on the dossier. Why won't the new FBI Director just order his subordinates to cough up the documents? Or the Attorney General order him to do it. No one could claim that ordering release of this would be interfering in any investigation[.]

Indeed, Strassel avers, "[Senator] Grassley recently announced that Mr. Mueller's separate inquiry would no longer be considered a legitimate reason for the FBI to withhold information from Congress."

Ms. Strassel guides our attention toward an intriguing figure:

Increasingly, one name is popping up: Gregory Brower, who leads the FBI's Office of Congressional Affairs. Mr. Brower is an odd man for the job. These gigs tend to go to more-junior people, since they involve the drudgery of answering calls from grumpy congressional staffers. Yet Mr. Brower is a former U.S. attorney  a job that requires Senate confirmation  and a former Nevada state senator. Before his latest role, he was the deputy general counsel of the FBI. In that post he was described as a confidant of former FBI Director James Comey. It was Mr. Comey who installed Mr. Brower in the congressional affairs job, just a few days before President Trump fired the director. Mr. Brower has been shutting down congressional requests and stonewalling ever since. He has even tried appealing directly to House Speaker Paul Ryan's office to squelch committee demands for documents.

And it looks very much as if a tag-team cover-up may be underway, with Special Counsel Robert Mueller taking the key role in keeping inquiring eyes away from the FBI's role in the Trump dossier's utility on smearing the man who was to become POTUS:

Reuters reported Wednesday that Mr. Mueller "has taken over FBI inquiries into a former British spy's dossier" against Mr. Trump. How very convenient. The Mueller team has leaked all manner of details from its probe, even as it had avoided the dossier. But just as Congress is ratcheting up pressure on the FBI, anonymous sources say that it's out of the bureau's hands. Some Republicans might be tempted to cheer news that the special counsel is looking into the dossier. They shouldn't. A Mueller takeover will make it even harder for Congress to conduct an independent investigation  which may well have been the reason for the move. Mr. Mueller has had months to look into the document, and his lack of curiosity so far speaks volumes. As a friend of Mr. Comey and a former FBI director himself, Mr. Mueller cannot be counted on to examine impartially whether the FBI was duped.

Indeed, there may be evidence of Russian collusion  not with President Trump's campaign, but with those who seek to discredit him:

Sen. Richard Burr, who leads his chamber's Intelligence Committee, noted on Wednesday that his dossier investigation has "hit a wall." Mr. Steele has gone underground. Mr. Simpson won't hand over relevant documents or say who paid him. The FBI is stiff-arming lawmakers. No one wants to talk about a dossier that Paul Roderick Gregory, a Russia expert at the Hoover Institution, found to read like something "compiled by a Russian, whose command of English is far from perfect and who follows the KGB (now FSB) practice of writing intelligence reports." No one wants to discuss an array of Russian lawyers, lobbyists and Kremlin officials who may have been involved in its creation.

Mike Nadler's question remains: why not use the power of the executive to require the FBI to comply with congressional subpoenas? In fact, why not start playing hardball, and calculate the cost to date of the Mueller inquiry that has produced no hard evidence? The legal team he has assembled is of a standing where $500 an hour is a fair guess of their cost. Multiply that times at least eight hours a day, times more than twenty attorneys, and we get a meter ticking at the rate of at least eighty thousand dollars a day, probably substantially more if we count non-attorney staff costs.

And remember that as POTUS, Trump can declassify anything he wants.

I hope the reason Congress and the president are allowing themselves to be stonewalled is a matter of strategy and timing, not a matter of being intimidated.
Based on media coverage, government email security seemed to be the No. 1 issue preoccupying the American public last year.

In fact, you could be forgiven for thinking the entire 2016 election was a referendum on whether its OK for public servants to use private email, stored on a private server, to conduct official government business.

The answer was clear: No, its not OK. Yet somehow, here we are again.

Thanks to enterprising reporters, we now know that President Trumps son-in-law and daughter, Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump, used not one, not two, but three private email accounts to conduct official White House business.

They appear to have kept the existence of these accounts secret from Senate and House investigators. After news of these emails broke last week, USA Today reported, the couple even rerouted their accounts to private servers maintained by the Trump Organization. If theres a non-fishy explanation for this, Id love to hear it.

This is no isolated act of hypocrisy.

During the campaign, Team Trump cast itself as the antidote to nearly every scandal and shortcoming (real or imagined) of the Obama administration. Now, 10 months in, the Trump administration has instead taken those sins to imaginative new heights.

Consider the complaint that deep-pocketed lobbyists and donors were using their excessive influence in Washington to strong-arm policymakers.

This accusation was heard incessantly during the 2016 campaign. Then-candidate Donald Trump charged that the Obama administration  especially alumna Hillary Clinton  was too cozy with donors, lobbyists and corporate elites, too willing to let Goldman Sachs and other companies buy influence.

So what was Trumps solution to donors, lobbyists and corporate elites having too much influence?

Why, it was to put donors, lobbyists and corporate elites directly into his Cabinet, and into lots of other executive branch jobs, too.

To be fair, cutting out the middleman does offer efficiencies. Policymakers no longer have to do the bidding of Goldman Sachs if Goldman Sachs is empowered to do its bidding itself.

Or consider our foreign policy failures, as portrayed by then-candidate Trump.

Trump often rebuked Obama as a weakling. He was disrespected, manipulated and laughed at by foreign leaders, or so Trump said. Unlike earlier administrations, the Trump administration promised to stand up to our adversaries and extract maximum concessions.

Yet every foreign leader who meets with Trump seems to get the whole cookie jar.

Saudi Arabia has repeatedly played Trump, using bread and circuses to get him on board with a sweetheart arms deal, and the Saudi side in a Persian Gulf power struggle. China, the target of endless tough talk during the campaign, has managed to escape threats of trade sanctions. Chinese leadership has even somehow convinced Trump that hes bossing them around, rather than the reverse. Chinese state-run media openly ridicules him.

And of course the Russian government, despite its work to undermine U.S. democracy, has enjoyed audiences with the president, his family and other confederates.

Trump also spent much of the campaign railing against Democratic fiscal profligacy. He pilloried Clinton for proposing fiscally irresponsible policies. He even promised to pay down the debt within eight years (an impossible task).

Now in office, hes pushing an unfunded, multi-trillion-dollar tax cut and dismissing concerns about mounting U.S. debt.

Trump and fellow Republicans also faulted the Obama administration for tyrannical executive branch overreach. On that, too, hes found ways to innovate. On Thursday he even called for a Senate investigation of media coverage he doesnt like.

Theres a sort of conventional wisdom among pundits that voters overcorrect for the perceived flaws of incumbent politicians when choosing the next crop. But voters are in for a lot of disappointment if they chose Trump because they thought his administration would drain the swamp, put America first, honor the Constitution, tighten the governments belt, respect states rights or otherwise avenge the many evils Trump attributed to his predecessor.

Trumps cures are not just worse than the diseases he diagnosed during the campaign; theyre deadlier strains of the exact same diseases.

The question, then, is why Americans bought into his quackery in the first place.

Maybe voters are just gullible and genuinely believed hed fix all the systemic problems they cared about. Maybe the Trump camp thought it could do better than earlier presidents, and only belatedly determined it needed to go native to succeed in the swamp.

Or maybe it was all posturing, and no one ever cared about those deficits or donors or even  gasp!  emails after all.
Censorship means Alabama shoppers buy sex toys blind

If you buy an online sex toy online in Alabama, youll have to do so blind. You get to see a fair deal of the marital aid, but the gaps have been plugged.

Alabama law prohibits selling products that are primarily for the stimulation of human genital organs. This is down to the states interest in preserving and promoting public morality provides a rational basis for the challenged statute.

So there.

Spotter: JWZ

Anorak

Posted: 7th, October 2017 | In: Strange But True, The Consumer Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
Children compete to create Nazi Party mascot

To Georgia, where middle schoolers have been set a test: dream up a mascot for the Nazi party. WSB-TV Atlanta looks on as sixth graders from Shiloh Middle School in Snellville get to work. Directions: The year is 1935 and you have been tasked with creating a mascot to represent the Nazi party at its political rallies, the task reads. Think about all the information that you have learned about Hitler and the Nazi party. You will create a COLORFUL illustration of the mascot. Give the mascot a NAME. You will also write an explanation as to why the mascot was chosen to represent the Nazi party.

Pass the crayons:

Gwinnett County Schools said learning about Nazism, the use of propaganda and the events that resulted in the Holocaust is part of the sixth grade social studies curriculum. However, a school district spokesperson said in a statement, This assignment is not a part of the approved materials provided by our Social Studies department and is not appropriate and the school is addressing the use of this assignment with the teacher.

Given what you know about Nazis, industrialised murder, the Holocaust and more, get colouring, kids!*

Bonus marks will be awarded for any child stealing another childs work with extreme prejudice and blaming it on the Jews.

Spotter: DrRandomFactor

Anorak

Posted: 7th, October 2017 | In: Key Posts, News, Strange But True Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
(ANSA) - Catanzaro, October 6 - The mayor of the Calabrian town of Riace, Domenico Lucano, is under investigation for alleged abuse of office, corruption and aggravated fraud, the local press reported on Friday. Lucano is well known for his executive's welcoming stance towards migrants. The probe is linked to management of public money for the migrant-reception system, sources said. Fernando Antonio Capone, president of the "Citta Futura-don Pino Puglisi" association, is also under investigation. On Thursday finance police seized documents from the town hall and notified Lucano of the investigation, the sources said.

Earlier this year Lucano was awarded the prestigious Dresden Peace Prize for his work to receive and integrate hundreds of refugees into his small municipality.

Riace, which has been dubbed the 'Village of Welcome', is a unique project of togetherness between Italians and refugees, a press release said.

For 18 years, large numbers of migrants have been taken in and integrated by means of accommodation, employment and language courses.

Some 550 of the current 1,800 people living in the town arrived there as refugees.


WASHINGTON  Not long ago, Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn.,  the chair of the Foreign Relations Committee and a man physically incapable of hyperventilation  questioned Donald Trumps stability and competence. Now he has said that chief of staff John Kelly, Secretary of Defense James Mattis and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson are the people that help separate our country from chaos.

In this case, chaos has a name. Corker has essentially described the commander in chief as a danger in need of management. The doctrine of containment, evidently, must begin at home.

Elected Republicans will eventually be judged, not so much for what they have believed, but for what many have tolerated. They have tolerated Trumps irritable narcissism and rule by ridicule. They have tolerated nepotism, incompetence and malice on a grand scale. They have tolerated Trumps unique brand of disaster management  divisive, self-serving, conspiratorial (in attributing Puerto Ricos desperate pleas for help to a Democratic plot) and more concerned with discrediting critics than demonstrating competence. And they have tolerated a string of presidential reactions  including to the Charlottesville protests and murder and to the sincere sideline activism led by African-American athletes  that amount to a racially charged pattern.

I know his hearts in the right place, vouches House Speaker Paul Ryan, at the low point (so far) of Republican self-abasement. This indicates a GOP establishment so shaken, so uncertain of its place, that it is willing to swallow broken glass on presidential demand. A Republican establishment surrendering the last remaining redoubts of its integrity. A Republican establishment that justifies all the contempt that Trump heaps upon it.

Giving up on an occasional economic principle, or making a compromise on social policy, is an uncomfortable but unavoidable part of a public life. Accommodating racial demagoguery is a failure of courage and morality that wont be forgotten. Many elected Republicans are earning Prufrocks judgment: In short, they were afraid.

Many, but not all. If the party cant be fixed, said Ohio Gov. John Kasich, then Im not going to be able to support the party, period. Leaving the party entirely might be the natural instinct of a serious and centered politician. But it also plays into the Breitbart/Steve Bannon strategy of ideological conquest. They hope to return the Republican Party to the nativism, protectionism and isolationism of the 1930s. And if their movement also reflects some of the prevailing racial attitudes of that time, so be it. Wink. Nudge.

This vision may be rancid, but it is clear and powerful  rooted in the fear of rapid economic and social change and propelled by reliable resentments. The 1980s ideology of tax-rate cuts  embodied in the current Republican tax bill  looks pale and weak in comparison. If the GOP struggle comes down to ethno-nationalism vs. supply-side economics, there is little doubt about the outcome. Human beings are wired for tribal loyalties, not for the appreciation of economic principles. Powerful movements, good and bad  from prairie populism, to the original America First, to civil rights  have embodied a conception of the nation and its true identify.

What would a compelling alternative to the Bannon appeal look like? It would be an improvement for mainstream Republicans to even ask the question. Kasich is. So are Sens. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., and Ben Sasse, R-Neb., at great political risk. Republican reconstruction will involve a new policy agenda, focused particularly on mitigating the painful adjustments brought on by globalization and technological change. But Trumpism has succeeded as a political movement in the total absence of serious policy, and its unlikely to be defeated by avenging wonks.

At the least, the Republican renovation project will need to show some moral outrage that American politics has been hijacked by blind partisans and those who make a living through inciting division. It will require a healthy nationalism free from nativism; a populism that recognizes the failures of the political class but responds with reform rather than recrimination; the elevation of empiricism and competence as political ideals; an appeal to the healing and bridging role of faith; a touch of Lincolns belief in the shared responsibility for failure and the shared calling of forgiveness.

Most of all, this project will require a leader (and, eventually, leaders) who actually believes in something, totally and convincingly. The simple force of contagious principle is often underestimated. Look at interviews with Margaret Thatcher during her political rise. She radiates confidence. She is certain that her ideas will persuade. This charisma of conviction is the single greatest need of the GOP today. And its most glaring absence.


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A group of ministers will examine if the tax liability can be reduced and an alternate structure can be put in place.

Mumbai: Apart from reducing the tax burden on small and medium businesses and altering rates on several items, the GST Council on Friday addressed the tax structure of restaurants, citing complaints that they were not passing on GST benefit to consumers.

Members wanted to revisit tax structure of restaurants with more than Rs 1 crore turnover, said Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, adding that the panel will review the 18 per cent GST currently levied on eating out at AC restaurants.

Under the current GST regime, eating out at restaurant can attract two tax rates  12 per cent for non AC restaurants and 18 per cent at AC restaurants. Additionally, restaurants that are partially or fully AC or those that serve alcohol attract 18 per cent GST.

There is an impression that large restaurants with 18 per cent tax have not reduced the prices despite the benefit of input tax credit being available, said Jaitley.

A group of state ministers, is due to its report in two weeks. They will examine if the tax liability can be reduced an alternate structure should be put in place.
In August 2017, finance ministry had brought the sector under PMLA.

This meant that the jewellers had to keep detail record including PAN and Aadhaar number of all high cost transactions above Rs 50,000.

New Delhi: With the Gujarat elections coming, finance ministry on Friday took out gems and jewellery sector from the preview of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.

In August 2017, finance ministry had brought the sector under PMLA. This meant that the jewellers had to keep detail record including PAN and Aadhaar number of all high cost transactions above Rs 50,000.

The sector was brought under stringent PMLA as it was found that many jewellers had helped in converting black money into white after demonetisation was announced in November 2016.

Finance ministry said that the government had received representations from various associations in the gems and jewellery sector with respect to certain incongruities in notification wherein dealers in precious metals, precious stones and other high value goods were notified as person carrying on designated business and professions under PMLA.

After considering various aspects of the issue, the government has decided to rescind the said notification. A separate notification after due consideration of points raised and wider stakeholder consultation in this regard, shall be issued separately, it said.

Under PMLA, any entity that deals in precious metals, precious stones, or other high-value goods and has a turnover of Rs 2 crore or more in a financial year will be covered under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002. The limit of Rs 2 crore was to be calculated on the basis of the previous years turnover, said the notification.

I had met with BJP president Amit Shah at his home in Delhi and he told me that yesterday in a meeting with Prime Minister they had decided to take out gems and jewellery sector from the preview of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, Gem and Jewellery Federation (GJF) chairman Nitin Khandelwal told this newspaper.
The four arrested were pursuing courses from different seminaries in Deoband.

All four had taken refuge in Saharanpur and were staying in Deoband, the Islamic seminary in western UP. (Photo: Representational/AFP)

Lucknow: Twenty Bangladeshi youngsters, believed to be in touch with Islamic terror organisation recruiters have gone missing from western UP over the years.

The revelation has been made in a report prepared by Anti-Terrorist Squad of the UP police, which arrested four illegal Bangladeshi immigrants linked to Bangladesh-based terror modules in the past 10 weeks.

All four had taken refuge in Saharanpur and were staying in Deoband, the Islamic seminary in western UP.

According to ATS sources, an alert has been sounded for absconder Faizan, who acted as a key recruiter and indoctrinated youth into jihad.

IG UP ATS Asim Arun said, Faizan went missing from Saharanpur in the first week of August. We had recovered IS literature from his room and he had even scribbled a few things on a piece of paper used for making lethal bombs.

Linked to Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen, Ansarullah Bangla and other Islamic terror outfits, Mr Faizan, was apparently trying to wage war against the country and had visited Kashmir valley.

Through cash deposit receipts found in his room, the ATS found that Faizan had received money from different sources, regularly. Most of the payments the group of illegal immigrants received were valued below `50,000 but we were surprised to see up to `9.80 lakh deposited in one go in accounts operated by them at Saharanpur, the IG said. Other security agencies in the country have been alerted to look out for Mr Faizan.

Mr Faizan moved to UP in 2011 and stayed at Deoband. UP ATS started hunting for him from July 30 after a Bangladeshi nat-ional identified as Noman was arrested from Pulwa-ma district in Jammu and Kashmir.

Mr Noman had also stayed at Deoband briefly before shifting to Kashmir to wage a war against the country with IS-backed jihadis.

Mr Faizan, along with his close aides Fazar Ali and Abdullah, used to prepare forged government IDs for illegal immigrants.

Uttar Pradesh ATS arrested Mr Abdullah, while three other Bangladeshi nationals have also been arrested since August 6.

The four arrested were pursuing courses from different seminaries in Deoband.

Mr Faizan and Mr Fazar, however, are absconding and a reward of Rs 25,000 had been announced on both.
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is on a day-long visit to Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim.

Sikkim government officials said the defence minister also made a survey of the new Pakyong Airport in East Sikkim and neighbouring areas on Saturday afternoon. (Photo: PTI/File)

Gangtok: Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday made an aerial survey of the Doklam-Nathula area on the Sino-India border, a day after the government said the status quo at the site has not changed since the disengagement on August 28.

Sikkim government officials said the defence minister also made a survey of the new Pakyong Airport in East Sikkim and neighbouring areas this afternoon.

Sitharaman is on a day-long visit to Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim.

The survey follows the external affairs ministry statement on Friday that there were no new developments at the India-China military face-off site in Doklam and its vicinity since the August 28 disengagement.

The statement had come amidst reports that China has maintained a sizeable presence of its troops near the Doklam standoff site and even started widening an existing road

around 12 km from the area of face-off.

"We have seen recent press reports on Doklam...The status quo prevails in this area. Any suggestion to the contrary is incorrect," the external affairs ministry had said in the

statement.

Sitharaman is scheduled to meet Sikkim Governor Sriniwas Patil and Chief Minister Pawan Chamling at the Raj Bhavan and they are likely to discuss several issues related to defence in the border areas with China, the officials on Saturday said.

Improving strategic infrastructure like border roads in Sikkim, the new airport which is to be inaugurated in November, and development in areas along the Sino-India border

in Sikkim are likely to be discussed, they added.
Cong spokesperson Kapil Sibal asked PM to explain his policy to deal with the issue and if he intended to invite Chinese Prez to Sabarmati.

Rahul Gandhi took a swipe at the prime minister, demanding an explanation about the new road construction being undertaken by China instead of continuing with his 'chest thumping'. (Photo: PTI/Representational)

New Delhi: The Congress has asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to "explain" to the nation what was happening at Doklam and state his government's policy on the issue. Rahul Gandhi took a swipe at the prime minister, demanding an explanation about the new road construction being undertaken by China instead of continuing with his "chest thumping".

Congress spokesperson Kapil Sibal asked PM Modi to explain his policy to deal with the issue and whether he intended to invite Chinese President Xi Jinping to Sabarmati again.

The comments came a day after sources confirmed that China maintained a sizeable presence of troops near the site of the Doklam standoff with India and had now started widening a road, around 12 km from the area of conflict.

"Modiji, once you're done thumping your chest, could you please explain this?" Mr Gandhi tweeted, tagging an NDTV news report headlined, "With 500 Soldiers On Guard, China Expands Road In Doklam".

Modiji, once you're done thumping your chest, could you please explain this?https://t.co/oSuC7bZ82x  Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) October 6, 2017

At the AICC briefing, Mr Sibal said, "Your (PM Modi's) meeting was good, but what was the result of it and what is happening about it. Please tell the country as to what is happening at the border, especially along the Dokalam plateau."

"What is going to be your policy in this regard and whether you will again invite President Xi to Sabarmati for a swing with him," the former minister asked.

Mr Sibal asked what was happening in Doklam today and said it is "very disappointing" that Prime Minister Modi met Chinese President Xi at the BRICS Summit and there was a lot of talk about the meeting that would help ease the border tension with China as Chinese troops had withdrawn and so had India, removed their equipment and this matter will not be escalated further. "But what we are hearing now is that in the Doklam plateau near the trijunction and 10 km from the chicken neck, a new road is being constructed and the same equipment is being used there. Reports also say that some 500 to 1,000 Chinese soldiers are also deployed there," he said.

The Congress leader also referrd to the statement of Army Chief Gen Bipin Rawat who said that the Chinese will be doing excursions and "we should be ready for that".

Troops of India and China were locked in a 73-day standoff in Dokalam that began from June 16 over road construction activity at the India-Bhutan-China trijunction.

The tension eased after talks between top officials of both the countries.

The Congress, in an article put out on its website, also said that the fresh Doklam development underscores that deft diplomacy was not practiced and requires an explanation from the government.

The article said that the news that China has stationed over 1,500 troops in close proximity to the standoff zone makes warnings given out by Congress leaders earlier sound prophetic.

"In the absence of the NDA government not clarifying particulars as to the de-escalation, this fresh development looks alarming and underscores that deft diplomacy was not practiced," the article stated.

It said that Indian surveillance has reportedly detected new bunkers, and some road re-laying has also been done in the vicinity. China is reportedly using the road construction materials it brought to Doklam, to strengthen infrastructure in the environs of the standoff zone.

The Congress said it is widely evident that a build-up of roads and bunkers is a step towards China's stated goal to "exercise its sovereign rights" in the region.

It said Army Chief Rawat has termed these as 'salami slicing tactics' and warned that continued tensions may snowball into a larger conflict.

In military parlance, 'salami slicing' is a series of many minor actions, often performed by covert means, that as an accumulated whole produce a much larger result that would otherwise be difficult to execute all at once.

The Congress article said in September, China also opened a strategic highway to Nepal via Tibet and China's state-run Global Times alarmingly stated that this highway is just a "forerunner" to a railway link.

It said as per a recent report, China is reinforcing its claim on the Doklam territory by upgrading the road around 10-km north and east of the earlier face-off site.

"One cannot be sure whether these events had been discussed on the table during the standoff. If it is so, then a legitimate question arises, what all concessions have the government made to the Chinese to solve the crisis?

"Is this just the tip of the iceberg? If instead, the government is getting cold feet, then China's salami tactics are working," the article said.
Modi who is on a two-day visit to his home state Gujarat, will lay foundation stones and inaugurate a number of projects.

Making India digitally advanced is one of the many visions of Prime Minister Narendra Modi after he came to power in 2014. (Photo: ANI)

Gandhinagar: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday stressed upon the benefits of going digital and said that work was underway to spread digital literacy to every part of India.

Modi said, "Work is underway to spread digital literacy to every part of India, among all age groups and sections of society."

The PM said in the present time India cannot afford to have a digital divide.

Modi further said, "A digital India guarantees transparency, effective service delivery and good governance."

He said, "Digital technology, digital literacy, and digital India should be the focus of a good government."

Making India digitally advanced is one of the many visions of Prime Minister Narendra Modi after he came to power in 2014.

Addressing a gathering at the Indian Institute of Technology, Gandhinagar, the Prime Minister said, "You are IIT-ians, I was a Tea-ian when I was young (I sold tea). On this day, a few years ago, I took oath as Chief Minister for the first time. Till then, I had never even been an Member of Legislative Assembly. I had decided that whatever I will do, I will do to the best of my abilities."

Modi said, "If I had decided to built an IIT here (Gandhinagar) earlier, some people would have criticised me the way they criticised the bullet trains and would have said that the focus needs to be on something else in Gujarat. But today, I am happy that this campus is at an equivalent height in comparison to the other IITs in the country."

Read: Diwali has come early due to decisions made in GST Council: Narendra Modi

He said 70 per cent of the faculty of IIT, Gandinagar have been trained at premier institutions abroad.

The Prime Minister said he hopes that IIT-ians would work towards making various innovations possible.

He said, "Today we are working on solar energy, renewable energy, climate change, and we are trying to compete with the world on these. Why shouldn't we innovate more on these lines by which we save energy and utilise them at minimal cost."

Taking pride of his home state, Modi said Gujarat is the only place to have forensic science university in the world.

Modi further said, "Ten private universities and ten government universities would be put on a challenge route. We will invest 1,000 crores on each of them. We will relax the rules and give them the liberty and independence to make their own decisions. We will do whatever it takes to turn them into the 20 top universities."

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on a two-day visit to Gujarat. The PM will lay foundation stones and inaugurate a slew of projects.

Earlier on Saturday, Modi visited the Dwarkadheesh Temple following which he laid the foundation stone of a sea-link bridge between coastal town of Okha and Bet Dwarka Island.
The petitioner challenged the method of execution of death sentence in India i.e. hanging by the neck till death.

New Delhi: Observing that a condemned prisoner should die with dignity; in peace and not in pain, the Supreme Court on Friday asked the Centre to consider enacting a legislation on other forms of executing a death row convict rather than hanging.

A three-judge bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra, Justices A.M. Kanwilkar and D.Y. Chandrachud passed this brief order while issuing notice on a PIL filed by advocate Rishi Malhotra seeking to stop death by hanging as it is a cruel form of death, inflicting pain and injury and violated ones right to die with dignity.

The petitioner challenged the method of execution of death sentence in India i.e. hanging by the neck till death. He said the Execution as contemplated u/s 354(5) CrPC is not only barbaric, inhuman and cruel, but also against the resolutions adopted by the United Nations Economic and Social Council, which had categorically resolved by way of safeguard, viz where capital punishment occurs it shall be carried out so as to inflict minimum possible suffering.

He said the execution should be as quick and as simple as possible and free from anything that unnecessarily sharpens the poignancy of the prisoners apprehension. It should produce immediate unconsciousness passing quickly into death. It should be decent and should not involve mutilation of the body. He suggested execution by lethal injection or by gunshots.

Justice Chandrachud told the petitioner that there was lot of criticism in the US on use of lethal injection as it tak-es more than 45 minutes for the convict to die after a lot of suffering.

The bench asked the attorney-general K.K. Venugopal to render assistance and posted the matter for further hearing after three weeks.
India and EU inked three pacts, including one on international solar alliance.

(From left) President of the European council, Donald Tusk, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Jean-Claude Juncker, president of European Commission, during the 14th EU-India Summit in New Delhi. (Photo: G.N Jha)

New Delhi: India and the European Union (EU) held their 14th annual summit in the Capital on Friday. During the summit, Indian and the EU adopted a Joint Statement on Cooperation in Combating Terrorismand took note of the ongoing efforts by both sides to re-engage actively towards timely relaunching negotiations for a comprehensive and mutually beneficial India-EU Broad Based Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA).

There was no major headway towards the much-delayed BTIA or free trade pact between the two sides.

Launched in June 2007, negotiations for the proposed BTIA have witnessed many hurdles due to major differences on crucial issues like intellectual property rights, and duty cut in automobile and spirits.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi headed the Indian side during the Summit, while the EU delegation was headed by president of the European Council Donald Tusk and president of the European Commission Jean Claude Juncker.

The two sides also inked three pacts, including one on an international solar alliance, after the summit.

The Leaders expressed their shared commitment to strengthening the Economic Partnership between India and the EU and noted the ongoing efforts of both sides to re-engage actively towards timely relaunching negotiations for a comprehensive and mutually beneficial India-EU Broad Based Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA). Both parties recognised the importance of trade in agricultural products in general, and rice in particular, and agreed to work together to resolve issues that have the potential of disrupting trade, the Indo-EU Joint Statement said.

Mr. Juncker said, It is the time for a Free Trade Agreement between India and the European Union. Once the conditions are right, and only when the conditions are right we resume (talks). Todays summit is an important step in the right direction.

On terror, the two sides said, The leaders strongly condemned the recent terrorist attacks in many parts of the world, underlining their common concern about the global threat posed by terrorism and extremism.

They adopted a Joint Statement on Cooperation in Combating Terrorism with a view to deepening their strategic and security cooperation, and expressed their strong commitment to combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, based on a comprehensive approach. The leaders resolved to step up cooperation through regular bilateral consultations and in international fora. In this context, they welcomed the India-EU Dialogue on Counter-Terrorism on 30 August 2017 in New Delhi, and the joint commitment to explore opportunities to, inter alia, share information, best practices, including regarding countering the on-line threat of radicalisation, and to engage in capacity building activities, such as training and workshops. They also emphasised the need to deepen cooperation within the UN and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

Mr. Tusk was quoted as saying, We have adopted a joint declaration on counter terrorism in which we agreed to counter violent extremism and radicalisation, particularly online, and to deal effectively with the threat by foreign terrorist fighters, terrorist financing and arms supply.

In his remarks, PM Modi said, India values her multi-faceted partnership with the EU, and we attach high importance to our strategic partnership. ... The European Union has been our largest trade partner for a long time. It is also one of our largest sources of Foreign Direct Investment. As the worlds largest democracies, we are natural partners. Our close relations are founded on the shared values of democracy, rule of law, respect for fundamental freedoms and multiculturalism. We also share the vision of a multi-polar, rules-based international order. Since the 13th Summit in Brussels last year, our relationship has steadily gained momentum.

On Clean Energy and Climate Change, we are both committed to the 2015 Paris Agreement. Addressing climate change and promoting secure, affordable and sustainable supplies of energy are our shared priorities. We also reaffirmed our commitment to undertake mutual cooperation for reducing the cost of deployment of renewable energy. We will strengthen our cooperation with European Union in developing Smart Cities and upgrading urban infrastructure, PM Modi also said, adding, I am pleased that the India-EU Horizontal Civil Aviation Agreement has now been operationalised. I am confident that this will enhance air connectivity between us and help to foster people-to-people contact.

At the summit, the two sides also held extensive deliberations on bilateral, regional and international issues, including the Rohingya crisis in Myanmar, Iranian nuclear programme, North Korea, Syria and Afghanistan.
Vijayans govt said the investigation conducted by the State Police had not revealed any offences needed an NIA probe.

In an affidavit filed in the Supreme Court, the Kerala government said that the investigation conducted by the State Police said that there was no offence conducted which requires an NIA probe. (Photo: Shafin Jahan | Facebook)

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala): The Kerala government led by Pinarayi Vijayan, on Saturday, refuted claims made by the the Centre's National Investigation Agency (NIA) in the Supreme Court that the Hadiya case, which involves the alleged conversion of a Hindu woman to Islam and her marriage to a Muslim man, is part of a "pattern" of conversions based on religion and radicalisation in the southern state.

The CPI (M) government praised the Kerala Police and said that they were doing an"efficient" job with the investigation, until the Supreme Court interfered and believed the NIA's claims, transferring the case to the central agency, The Hindu reported.

In an affidavit filed in the Supreme Court, the Kerala government said that the investigation conducted by the state police said that there was no offence committed which requires an NIA probe.

"The investigation conducted so far by the Kerala Police has not revealed any incident relating to the commission of any scheduled offences to make a report to the Central Government under Section 6 of the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008," the affidavit filed by Subrata Biswas, the State's Additional Chief Secretary, Home Department, said.

The state questioned as to why the Supreme Court had transferred the case to the NIA, when the police chief had already handed over the investigation to the Additional Director General of Police (Crimes) and assigned a Special Investigation Team, the report added.

The Supreme Court had ordered a comprehensive probe into the various aspects of the case including the conversion of the woman to Islam, religious institutions and people involved, and the ones she was in contact with. It also asked for the family background, any criminal background of Shafin Jahan and if at all, the case had any links to trafficking Hadiya outside the country.

"The Kerala Police had conducted a thorough investigation in an efficient manner. The Kerala Police is competent to conduct the investigation in such crimes and would have reported to the Central government if any scheduled offences were found to have been committed as per the provisions under the NIA Act," the affidavit said.

The case was transferred to the NIA on August 16. The then Chief Justice of India JS Khehar had made a blunt remark to the Kerala government counsel that "we think you (Kerala Police) may take sides. So we asked the NIA for their inputs.

After the court had asked the NIA to give inputs after going through the files of the Hadiya case, Additional Solicitor General Maninder Singh, for NIA, had said that the case was ""not an isolated case and we have come across another case with a similar pattern and involving the same people who are acting as instigators", the report said.

However, the Supreme Court Bench on October 3, headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra, had questioned the August 16 order asking why an NIA probe was needed in the case.

The bench also observed that the Kerala High Court had no authority to annul the inter-religious marriage between Jahan and Hadiya.

The order for NIA investigation strikes at the very foundation of multi-religious society... Two senior BJP functionaries have married members of minority communities, senior advocate Dushyant Dave and advocate Haris Beeran, for Jahan, had argued.

The top court had further questioned the legality of girl's father keeping her in custody for several months.

We will hear logical and legal arguments on two issues  can the HC nullify a marriage exercising jurisdiction under Article 226 and was an NIA probe necessary, Chief Justice Misra had observed, posting the case for hearing on October 9.
The petitioner said the investigation into the murder of Gandhi represents the biggest cover up in the history of India.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday appointed senior advocate Amarendra Saran to assist the court to decide a petition seeking further probe into the assassination of the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi, on January 30, 1948.

A bench of Justices S.A. Bobde and L. Nageswara Rao, without deciding the petition filed by Pankaj Kumarchandra Phadnis on merits, asked Mr Saran to examine whether the materials furnished in the petition warranted interference by the apex court.

The petitioner said the investigation into the murder of Gandhi represents the biggest cover up in the history of India. The blame on Marathi people in general and Veer Savarkar in particular for being the cause of the death of Gandhi has no basis in law and facts. On the other hand, there is a compelling need to uncover the larger conspiracy behind the murder of Mahatma Gandhi by constituting a new commission of inquiry.

The petitioner, who argued himself, brought to the notice of the court that further probe was necessary by constitution of a new commission of inquiry to investigate the larger conspiracy behind the murder of Gandhi. The petitioner also sought to ascertain the veracity of the finding of the trial court and Punjab high court that three bullets were fired by Godse from the gun at Gandhi when the material facts on record show that four bullets were fired.

He also disputed the correctness of several observations made by the Kapur Commission, which was set up in 1966, saying they were again contrary to the evidence available on record. Some of the observations and findings of the Kapur Commission Report were factually incorrect, contrary to principles of natural justice and barred by res judicata. Further, the petitioner believes that the Kapur Commission did not deal with evidence presented before it by credible witnesses in respect of the larger conspiracy behind the murder of the Mahatma Gandhi.

Dr Phadnis told the court that New York Times reported that one Thomas Reiner, vice-counsel of the US embassy was the one who apprehended Godse.

However, the prosecution made no mention of Thomas Reiner in the Gandhi murder trial. He said he had asked for a document from the national archives in the US to drive home his assertion that further probe was necessary.

Justice Bobde reminded the petitioner that there was question of limitation even in criminal cases and they cant be re-opened.

When Dr Phadnis said there were more than two persons other than Godse and his accomplice and it could be an organisation called British Secret Service Force 136, Justice Bode said, We cant punish an organisation. There must be a human being who is alive for prosecution.

When he said that the truth should be unearthed, as it would improve the bilateral relations between India and Pakistan, Justice Bode said, We appreciate your great passion for a cause. Your motive and desire to have peaceful relations with Pakistan may be noble, but we cant go into the political aspect. We cant re-open the investigation on that basis when the matter has attained finality.

Dr Phadnis said after the sessions courts conviction was upheld by the Bombay high court, the matter went to the Privy Council, which remitted the case back to India to be decided by the Supreme Court, which came into existence on January 26, 1950. However, the two convicts were hanged to death on November 15, 1949 and hence the Supreme Court did not have an occasion to decide the case on merits.

In his appeal against the Bombay high court order refusing to interfere, the petitioner said the difference between three and four shots is material. The pistol with which Godse shot Gandhi had a seven-bullet chamber. Three shots were fired and the police recovered the remaining four unspent bullets. There was no way the fourth shot could have been fired from the said pistol. It had to be from the gun of a second assassin, no trace of whom survives in any record.

He contended that there was also no post-mortem report conducted on the body of the Gandhi. The petitioner said he came across evidence of a sinister British secret service, Force 136, that had authorisation to murder Subhash Chandra Bose. The Force 136 had a policy of destroying records of its agents. The bench posted the matter for further hearing on October 30.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed the steps announced on Friday and said the GST has become even simpler after GST Councils recommendations.

Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley addressing media after the 22nd meeting of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council, in New Delhi. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: Amid concerns that the three-month-old indirect tax is hitting businesses and derailing economic growth, the GST Council on Friday took steps to ease the cash crunch being faced by exporters and reduce compliance burden on small and medium enterprises.

The council also reduced tax rates on over two dozen items, including khakra and plain chapatti, unbranded namkeens and unbranded ayurvedic, unani and homeopathy medicines (from 12 to 5 per cent in all these items).

Eating out at AC restaurants may get cheaper as a Group of Ministers has been set up to discuss if GST can be brought down from 18 to 12 per cent and submit a report in two weeks.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed the steps announced on Friday and said the GST has become even simpler after GST Councils recommendations.

The 22nd meeting of GST Council was held at a time when the government is worried that confusion among traders and businesses over GST could have an impact on Lok Sabha elections in 2019.

During the meeting it was decided that small businesses with annual turn over of up to Rs 1.5 crore will have to now file returns and pay returns quarterly, instead of monthly, to reduce compliance burden on them. These businesses cover around 90 per cent of the tax base but pay around 5-6 per cent of the total GST.

Large businesses with over Rs 1.5 crore turnover, will still have to file monthly returns. The council also decided to raise the threshold to avail the composition scheme to turnover of Rs 1 crore against the present Rs 75 lakh. Under the composition scheme the compliance burden on traders is less and they have to pay a nominal tax on overall income. Traders availing the composition scheme have to pay 1 per cent tax on their income, manufacturers have to pay 2 per cent and restaurants 5 per cent tax. This threshold of turnover for special category states, except J&K and Uttarakhand, will be increased to Rs 75 lakh from Rs 50 lakh. The turnover threshold for J&K and Uttarakhand shall be Rs 1 crore.

Compliance burden of medium and small taxpayers in GST is being reduced, finance minister Arun Jaitley said after the GST Council meeting.

Mr Jaitley said that exporters will get refund for taxes paid in July from October 10 and refund for August backlog would get cleared from October 18 through cheques. Exporters had been complaining that their cash flow had been hit as they were not getting refund on taxes paid under GST. In the previous regime, exporters were exempted from paying excise duty or VAT.

The system to electronically pay back refund to exporters is still not working. As a long-term solution for refunds, the GST Council decided to implement e-wallet from April 1, 2018.

An e-wallet will be credited with a notional amount as if it is an advance refund. This credit will be used to pay Integrated Goods and Service Tax (IGST) and GST among others. Exporters will now have to pay nominal GST of 0.1 per cent for procuring goods from domestic suppliers for export.

The Prime Minister, BJP president Amit Shah and finance minister Arun Jaitley had on Thursday discussed how to address the concerns raised by various segments, especially small-scale enterprises.

The GoM, set up to look into reducing the tax burden on restaurants, will also consider allowing interstate trading to those registered under composition scheme.

The GST Council decided to suspend reverse charge till March 31, 2018, which will benefit small businesses and substantially reduce compliance costs. Reverse charge is a mechanism where the recipient of the goods and/or services is liable to pay GST instead of the supplier.

The e-way bill system for smooth movement of trucks across state borders will be introduced in a staggered manner with from January 1, 2018, and will be rolled out nation-wide on April 1, 2018. Under the system, transporters will need to carry an electronic waybill or e-way bill when moving goods from one place to another.

The GST Council also cut tax on man-made yarn (from 18 to 12 per cent), modelling paste for children amusement (from 28 to 18 per cent), paper waste (from 12 to 5 per cent), e-waste (from 28 to 5 per cent).

Services job works like zari, food items and printing items would attract 5 per cent tax instead of 12 per cent. Government contracts involving high amount of labour will be levied 5 per cent GST instead of 12 per cent in order to contain cost of those programmes. Also, salwar suit in a three-piece set has been classified as fabric and 5 per cent GST would be levied on it.

The Prime Minister said the new steps announced by the council are in line with the governments constant endeavour to safeguard citizens interests and ensure Indias economy grows.

In a tweet, he congratulated Mr Jaitley that and his team for engaging with various stakeholders for extensive feedback which led to todays recommendations.

Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) director general Chandrajit Banerjee said that the SME sectors compliance will greatly improve as limit for composition scheme has been increased to Rs 1 crore. Now for SMEs with annual turnover of Rs 1.5 crore will be allowed to file quarterly returns, this will be a big relief to small-scale players, he said.
The bail for Pintos come with conditions that stops them from leaving the country and to join the investigation when needed.

Class 2 student Pradyuman Thakur was found with his throat slit in the washroom of Ryan International School on September 8. (Photo: File)

New Delhi: The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Saturday granted anticipatory bail to Pinto family till December 5.

The court has granted interim bail to Ryan International Group's CEO, Ryan Pinto, and his parents, founding chairman Augustine Pinto and managing director Grace Pinto, with certain conditions.

The Pintos cannot leave the country and will have to join the investigation when needed, victims lawyer S Tekriwal said.

The lawyer said the two other accused arrested have also been granted bail.

Pradyuman Thakur familys lawyer Tekriwal said that they are considering moving the Supreme Court against the high courts order.

Ryan Pinto, and his parents had moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court in connection with the killing of class 2 student Pradyuman Thakur, who was found with his throat slit in the washroom of a school run by their group on September 8.

Read: Throat slit, 7-yr-old Gurgaon boy found dead at Ryan International School

School bus conductor Ashok Kumar was arrested in connection with the crime the same day.

On September 25, the Punjab and Haryana HC had impleaded CBI as a respondent in the petition seeking bail for the three Ryan group trustees.

The Haryana government had recommended a CBI probe in the matter following massive outrage. The premier agency took over the probe on September 22.

Read: Ryan student murder: Punjab and Haryana HC stays arrest of 3 trustees

The Pintos, who are based in Mumbai, had earlier approached the Bombay High Court as they apprehended arrest in the case after the school was accused of negligence in the death of the seven-year-old.

The Bombay High Court rejected the transit anticipatory bail applications of the three trustees but granted them interim protection from arrest for a day to enable them to file appeal.
Eastern Command calls off Air Force Day celebrations on October 8.

The crash took place when it was flying at an altitude of 17,000 feet and the crew members were preparing to drop kerosene supply to one of the forward posts in the area. (Photo: ANI)

New Delhi/Guwahati: Seven military personnel were killed after Indian Air Force Mi-17 V5 IAF chopper they were travelling in crashed near Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh on Friday. The entire crew died in the crash.

The IAFs Eastern Command has called off the Air Force Day celebrations on October 8.

Their bodies were found at the crash site at Yangchi, 130 km from Tawang town and close to the border with China.

A source familiar with the development told the newspaper that the Barrackepore-based helicopter was loaded with kerosene jerrycanes meant as supplies for a forward post.

A court of inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of crash. The death of seven military personnel  five from the Indian Air Force and two from the Army  in the crash came ahead of IAF Day celebrations on Sunday.

The crew comprised a wing commander, a squadron leader, a wireless officer and two sergeants and two sepoys of the Indian Army, who were on a routine kerosene supply mission to a forward base in the snowy heights near Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh.

The IAF and the Indian Army  which operates the largest number of military helicopters  are already reeling under a shortage of about 1,000 helicopters. About 150 MI 17 helicopters are in service and 48 more have been requisitioned. Operating in the high altitude zone of Tawang has always posed challenges to pilots, with unpredictable winds making it more difficult.

On Sunday, besides rapid changes in the wind pattern and a strong updraft, a parachute also malfunctioned, leading to the fifth IAF chopper crash in the past three-and-a-half years.

The jerrycans are mounted on skids each of a certain weight and packed with one or more parachutes. Once in a while, a parachute gets entangled with the tail rotor because of freak winds and unforeseen circumstances. On Sunday morning, as the jerrycanes were being air dropped, one of the parachutes did not open properly and got entangled in the chopper's tail rotor leading to a fire which spread fast.

"Possibly one of the crew members jumped out from the aircraft but did not survive the fall. The rest of the bodies were charred almost beyond recognition," the source added.
According to police, the killings can be suspected as a result of some property dispute.

Police officials are suspecting that someone known to the victims might have killed them, since, till now, there is no evidence of forced entry into the house. (Photo: File/Representational)

New Delhi: An octogenarian woman and her three daughters were found stabbed to death along with their security guard in their house in Mansarovar Park area of Shahdara on Saturday morning, the police said.

Police officials are suspecting that someone known to the victims might have killed them, since, till now, there is no evidence of forced entry into the house.

It is suspected that the killings could be a fall-out of a property dispute, they said.

The deceased have been identified as Urmila Jindal (82), her daughters Sangeeta Gupta (56), Nupur Jindal (48) and Anjali Jindal (38) and their security guard Rakesh (42), the police said.

Further details are awaited.
While studies have shown children from broken families more prone to getting divorced, new study claims it is not true for adopted kids.

According to the study, genetic factors are one of the basic explanations for divorce trends. (Photo: Pixabay)

There have been quite a few studies that have shown that children of divorced parents are more likely to get divorced themselves as compared to those who grew up with parents who remained married.

However, a new study suggests that the pattern may not hold true for adopted children.

According to the study, genetic factors are one of the basic explanations for divorce trends and the new findings could have far reaching implications for advice provided by marriage counsellors or therapists.

The yet to be published study, which can soon be seen in the upcoming issue Journal Psychological Science, was conducted by researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University and Lund University in Sweden.

The researchers concluded that people who were adopted resemble their biological - but not adoptive - parents and siblings in their histories of divorce.

Co-author of the study, Dr Jessica Salvatore, assistant professor in the College of Humanities and Sciences at VCU said that they found consistent evidence that genetic factors primarily explained the intergenerational transmission of divorce.

Researchers say that the studys findings are significant because it goes against the norm which suggests that offspring of divorced parents are more likely to get divorced themselves because they see their parents lacking in commitment or struggling to manage conflict.
Fares will go up by a maximum of Rs 10 after the latest hike comes into effect.

The Centre, however, said a fresh committee to fix fares could be considered if the Delhi government agrees to provide over Rs 3,000 crore every year to DMRC, said the source, qouting a letter sent on Friday by Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. (Photo: PTI/Representational)

New Delhi: The Centre has informed the Delhi government that the Metro Act does not allow it to put on hold the hike in Delhi Metro fares which will be effective from October 10, a source said on Saturday.

The Centre, however, said a fresh committee to fix fares could be considered if the Delhi government agrees to provide over Rs 3,000 crore every year to DMRC, said the source, qouting a letter sent on Friday by Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

The source said Puri suggested such a provision since operational loss is the responsibility of the state government as per the metro guidelines.

Kejriwal had written to the Housing and Urban Affairs (HUA) Ministry to issue a direction to Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) to put on hold the proposed hike in fares, as recommended by 4th Fare Fixation Committee (FCC).

In response, the source said, Puri in a letter to the chief minister yesterday said, "Your suggestion that this ministry direct that the fare increase be kept on hold overlooks the fact the central government does not have any such authority. Tampering with the recommendations of FFC is legally untenable."

The source said Puri also annexed with his letter a written response from DMRC which said "The Committee's (FFC) recommendations are binding on the Metro Rail Administrations as per provisions of Section-37 of this Act (Metro Act).

"Neither the Central Government nor the State Government or even the Board of the Company has legal power to change the recommendations made by the FFC."

Noting that it would be "wrong to claim" that there were two increases in fares in a short period of five months, Puri said the 4th FFC itself recommended the fare hike, coming

after a gap of seven and a half years, to be implemented in two instalments -- one in May and another in October, the source added.

Regarding a cap on fare hike, Puri said it would be "incorrect to apply" the cap of seven per cent annual fare rise, as the latest increase in fare was done after seven and a half years, the source added. The last revision of fares were done in 2009.

Fares will go up by a maximum of Rs 10 after the latest hike comes into effect.

The existing fare structure is: up to 2 kms -- Rs 10, 2-5 kms -- Rs 15, 5-12 kms -- Rs 20, 12-21 kms -- Rs 30, 21-32 kms -- Rs 40 and for journeys beyond 32 kms -- Rs 50.

From October 10, for a distance of up to two kilometres, the fare will remain Rs 10, but for a distance between two and five kilometres, it will go up from Rs 15 to Rs 20.

For the subsequent slabs, it will go up by Rs 10 each, which means the maximum fare will be Rs 60.
Based on the victim's complaint, a case has been registered against the driver and conductor and the matter is being probed, police said.

In Thursdays incident, the woman's foot was badly injured and later had to be amputated, police said. (Photo: File/Representational)

New Delhi: A 60-year-old womans foot came under a moving bus after she fell from it allegedly due to the negligence of the driver and conductor in central Delhi's Daryaganj area, the police said on Friday.

In Thursdays incident, the woman's foot was badly injured and later had to be amputated, they said.

Based on her complaint, a case has been registered against the driver and conductor. The matter is being probed, the police said.

The victim, a resident of Seelampur, after meeting a relative admitted at the LNJP Hospital was waiting at the Delhi Gate stop for a bus to return home, they said.

The police said that apparently she was irked after repeatedly not finding a bus for Seelampur and boarded a low-floor bus.

However, the conductor allegedly told her the bus would not go to Seelampur, they said.

The woman in her complaint alleged that she was asked to get down from the moving bus and the conductor did not even ask the driver to stop the vehicle.

The police said that while getting down from the bus, she fell down and the rear wheel ran over her foot. She was rushed to a hospital by the bus driver where doctors amputated her foot, they said.
The Antyodaya Express is a flagship train of the railway started on dense routes especially for the common man; it is fully unreserved.

The Antyodaya Express is a flagship train of the railway started on dense routes especially for the common man.

Mumbai: The western railway (WR) will inaugurate the Antyodaya Express from Udhna near Surat on October 7 in the wake of the Gujarat elections. BJP leader and minister of state (railway) Rajen Gohain will do the honours of cutting the ribbon. WR Officials said that the programme had been sanctioned and pushed by BJP to garner brownie points ahead of the elections.

The Antyodaya Express is a flagship train of the railway started on dense routes especially for the common man; it is fully unreserved.

WR officials will leave for Surat for the opening ceremony on Saturday night itself.

WR is not only facing three different public interest litigations (PILs) but also in the process of planning a presentation for union minister Piyush Goyal after ten days. However, all of that will be put on the backburner for at least 24 hours during inauguration of the Antyodaya Express.

An official on condition of anonymity said, We have cancelled our official Diwali celebrations to honour victims of the stampede but we are now heading to Surat at a time when we should be showing sensitivity to the plan and speeding up work here in Mumbai.

Meanwhile, the flagging-off ceremony has drawn strong comments from commuters.

Hiral Mehta (27), a designer who travels by WR for work, said that politics was behind the crippled railway system of the city.

Until the stampede, I had never heard or read about a railway minister asking MMRDA or BMC what they were doing to help the railway and how their plans would decrease crowds in trains. But its difficult even to hear that instead of working, officials are now rushing to stand next to a minister as he cuts the ribbon, she said.

The Gujarat election campaign can do without the railways help. Railway officials should be allowed to do their work instead, Ms Mehta added.
Malik challenged the Maharashtra govt to prove him wrong and start mining the coal instead of waiting for a private company to come in.

Mumbai: Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) spokesperson, Mr Nawab Malik has once again labelled the power crisis in the state and the subsequent load shedding as a false crisis created for the Adani group of industries to give them coal bloc.

Mr Malik challenged the Maharashtra government to prove him wrong and start mining the coal instead of waiting for a private company to come in.

The NCP leader also called for an investigation into claims of excessive coal production by the central government and the coal crisis by state government. The earlier government had allotted one coal bloc in Odisha for Maharashtra and Gujarat combined. There is a company created for this join venture called MahaGuj.

This bloc was supposed to be mined by this joint company. But the state has not done that, he said. He alleged that the state government was trying to give this bloc to the Adani group for excavatio at very cheap price. The NCP leader challenged the state government to prove him wrong by starting excavation on its own.

The Prime Minister and Goyalji claim that India have excess production of coal. They even claimed that this production is higher than India has ever achieved in the last 70 years. But on the other hand, the state government is citing the coal crisis as the reason for less generation of electricity through its plants. So who do we believe, he asked. Mr Malik also demanded an investigation into the amount of coal produced as well as the amount of coal needed in the state.
Manju Shetye died after being allegedly beaten up by jail staffers.

Six staffers of the Byculla jail have been arrested.

Mumbai: The defence in the Byculla prison inmate Manjula Shetyes death case on Friday requested the court to direct prosecution to provide them a copy of the CCTV footage of that day in the prison because they said the chargesheet filed by the police is against the accused.

The court has directed the prosecution to file reply on this application.

All the six accused arrested in connection with death of Shetye had filed bail pleas in the sessions court in July.

The Crime Branch has arrested Manisha Pokharkar, Wasima Shaikh, Shital Shegokar, Surekha Gulve, Aarti Shingne and Bindu Naikade, all jail authorities and police constables.

When their bail plea came up for hearing before sessions judge Dattatray Satawalekar, defence lawyer Vaibhav Bagade made an application before the court seeking direction for the Crime Branch Mumbai, which is investigating the matter, to produce CCTV footage, of the day of the incident, of Byculla jail before the court.

According to defence the investigating agency has filed the chargesheet in connection with this case but it speaks only one side of story, which is against the accused, but if CCTV footage is brought before the court the truth will come out.

Following this, the judge asked special public prosecutor Vidya Kasle and investigating officer Prabha Raul to file reply on this application and deferred hearing till October 12.

It may be recalled that the Byculla jail in Central Mumbai on June 23, witnessed rioting by prisoners after Shetye died due to alleged torture at the hands of prison authorities.

While on the one hand, inmates have claimed that Shetye died due to the brutal beating she received from jail officials, on the other hand prison authorities have claimed that she fell unconscious and died due to the fall.
Fadnavis is set to reshuffle his Cabinet before Diwali.

Mumbai: Former Congress leader Narayan Rane on Friday announced that his newly launched party, Maharashtra Swabhimaan Paksh, would support the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). Mr Ranes decision comes in the wake of a meeting with chief minister Devendra Fadnavis two days ago. Now, it remains to be seen if the state government inducts the veteran politician into the Maharashtra Cabinet, as an expansion is on the cards.

Mr Fadnavis is set to reshuffle his Cabinet before Diwali. According to the buzz in the corridors of power, the rejig is likely to take place on October 10.

While addressing a press conference in Sindhudurg, his home district, Mr Rane said that he had accepted the chief ministers offer to be a part of the NDA. To solve the issue of the Konkan and the state, I have decided to accept Mr Fadnavis offer. Also, I have decided to be involved in state politics till 2019, said the former Congress leader.

There is, however, another aspect to be considered: Shiv Sena. Originally a Shiv Sainik, Mr Rane quit the Sena to join the Congress in 2005. He has shared a bitter equation with Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray ever since. The leader also trained his guns on Mr Thackeray and his former party while announcing his partys formation last week. Therefore, Mr Ranes joining the state Cabinet would be embarrassing for the Sena, whose cadre is likely to force the NDA leadership to take decision on the matter.

Mr Ranes inclusion in the NDA would strengthen the Bharatiya Janata Party, particularly in the Konkan area where party had failed to get a single MLA elected in the Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg districts. The induction of Mr Rane, who could prove useful to the saffron party by tackling the Sena threat in the Konkan and Mumbai, can be seen as the start of BJPs preparations for the big battle of 2019.
Sitharaman has grown in stature after she was elevated to Cabinet rank and moved from the commerce ministry to the high-profile defence ministry.

Although a relative newcomer in politics, defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman made the cut as a minister in the Narendra Modi government primarily because of her successful stint as a Bharatiya Janata Party spokesperson in the run-up to the 2014 Lok Sabha election. Ms Sitharaman, along with Meenakshi Lekhi and Smriti Irani, was at her aggressive best while demolishing the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government. Predictably, she was constrained from donning the party spokespersons hat after she became a minister except when she was specially called to the BJP headquarters to speak on a specific subject. Ms Sitharaman has grown in stature after she was elevated to Cabinet rank and moved from the commerce ministry to the high-profile defence ministry.

It was, therefore, baffling to see Ms Sitharaman participate in a television debate last week on the ongoing battle between the RSS and the ruling Left Front in Kerala. Not only was the defence minister shouted down by the other panelists, what made it worse was that she was pitted against second-rung spokespersons from the Opposition. At one point, questions were even raised about the participation of a minister in the debate, to which a defensive Sitharaman maintained that she was there as a political worker of her party. Obviously, Ms Sitharaman is unable to decide which role she wants to play: minister or party spokesperson.

Even at the best of times, there is a scramble for rooms among the office bearers in the Congress headquarters on Akbar Road. The senior general secretaries are usually allotted a room in the front portion of the main building while the others have to do with space at the rear. However, the space crunch has got much worse after Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi decided that general secretaries were overburdened with the charge of too many states and that each office bearer should look after one state or department. The result is that there is no room for the growing tribe of office bearers, necessitating the sharing of office space. So one finds that veteran leader Kamal Nath had to accommodate new Rahul Gandhi-appointee Avinash Pande in his room while Ambika Soni and Karan Singh now have to make space for their senior colleagues Ashok Gehlot and Sushil Kumar Shinde. Returning to the party fold after a gap, senior leader Kishore Chandra Deo was horrified to find that he would have to share a room with a far junior functionary Asha Kumari. Similarly, party general secretary B.K. Hariprasad now has R.P.N. Singh, another Rahul Gandhi favourite, as his office mate.

With most offices converted into virtual common rooms, their occupants usually stay away from the party office, preferring instead to work from the privacy of their homes. This appears to be best as there have been occasions when the occupants have landed up at the same time. R.P.N. Singh, who likes holding forth in his new office, had to hurriedly vacate the place on several occasions when Mr Hariprasad arrived for some pre-scheduled meetings.

Its little over six months since he took charge but Uttarakhand chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat is already feeling the heat. There is all-round disenchantment with his performance as people in the hill state tend to compare him with the more high-profile Uttar Pradesh chief minister, Yogi Adityanath.

Although there is no move to replace Mr Rawat, his detractors and other chief ministerial hopefuls believe they stand a chance. Parliamentary affairs minister Prakash Pant, who was a strong contender for the top post, has become very active of late.

Mr Pant has been making innumerable trips to the capital on the pretext of an official meeting or a discussion on a pending project. The real purpose is to fraternise with BJP bosses.

Well aware of Mr Pants gameplan, Mr Rawat is taking no chances. Each time Mr Pant visits Delhi, the beleaguered chief minister follows a few days later. It is to be seen how long this cat and mouse game lasts.

It is well known that Makhan Lal Fotedar, a one-time confidante of former Prime Ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, who died recently, did not have the same equation with Congress president Sonia Gandhi. Although he was a permanent member of the Congress Working Committee till the last, he did not enjoy her confidence. And this goes back many years ago.

Congress old-timers recall how Fotedar had lobbied hard with senior party leader Digvijay Singh, when he was Madhya Pradesh chief minister in the late 90s, for a Rajya Sabha nomination from his home state. Mr Singh was, however, powerless to help his old friend as he had instructions from Sonia Gandhi that Fotedar should not be accommodated. Mr Singh expressed his helplessness to Fotedar but the latter immediately understood the real reason for the rejection. He is learnt to have sobbed like a baby in Mr Singhs presence at this humiliation even as he heaped blame on Sonia Gandhi for sidelining him.
Indias law against terror is called Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) and was legislated by the Vajpayee government in 2002.

A few days ago a man in the American city of Las Vegas killed 59 strangers who were in a concert. He shot his machine guns into the crowd for over an hour, and he wounded over 500 people. The American police said that this was not an act of terrorism because he acted alone. The killer was a Christian. Would the police have said the same thing if he was Muslim? I dont think so.

Not much is known about the man or his motives and so this conclusion that this was not terrorism needs to be examined, along with the wider issue of how we understand terrorism.

My dictionary defines terrorism as the unlawful use of violence and intimidation, specially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims. If we look at this definition, many acts of violence can be defined as terrorism. Communal violence fits this perfectly because it is unlawful, aimed to intimidate, aimed at civilians and has political aims.

However, most of us do not see communal violence as terrorism. The massacre of Sikhs in 1984 is called a riot. The Muzaffarnagar violence against Muslims was a riot. The Mumbai violence in which hundreds of Muslims were killed after the Babri Masjid was brought down were riots. The retaliatory bomb attacks that followed were called terrorism. The massacre of 97 Muslims in Ahmedabads Naroda Patiya in 2002 was a riot. The massacre of 30 Hindus in Ahmedabads Akshardham the same year was a terrorist attack.

The second problem is the line aimed at civilians. The majority of attacks in Jammu and Kashmir are against the armed forces and not civilians, but we consider them to be terrorist attacks. American law defines terrorism as the unlawful use of force and violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.

This definition aligns more or less with the dictionary one. As I said before, not much is known about the Vegas shooter or his motives. Absent that, it is unclear how the police was convinced this was not a terror attack because his political or social objectives were unknown.

Indias law against terror is called Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) and was legislated by the Vajpayee government in 2002. Like many laws in India, it is very poorly drafted and the language is all over the place. It defines terrorism as whoever (a) with intent to threaten the unity, integrity, security or sovereignty of India or to strike terror in the people or any section of the people does any act or thing by using bombs, dynamite or other explosive substances or inflammable substances or firearms or other lethal weapons or poisons or noxious gases or other chemicals or by any other substances (whether biological or otherwise) of a hazardous nature or by any other means whatsoever, in such a manner as to cause, or likely to cause, death of, or injuries to any person or persons or loss of, or damage to, or destruction of, property or disruption of any supplies or services essential to the life of the community or causes damage or destruction of any property or equipment used or intended to be used for the defence of India or in connection with any other purposes of the Government of India, any state government or any of their agencies, or detains any person and threatens to kill or injure such person in order to compel the government or any other person to do or abstain from doing any act.

This is not all, the law continues: (b) is or continues to be a member of an association declared unlawful under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (37 of 1967), or voluntarily does an act aiding or promoting in any manner the objects of such association and in either case is in possession of any unlicensed firearms, ammunition, explosive or other instrument or substance capable of causing mass destruction and commits any act resulting in loss of human life or grievous injury to any person or causes significant damage to any property, commits a terrorist act.

The crucial words are unity, integrity, security and sovereignty. Our fear of Indian disintegration, a wholly unfounded fear, is what primarily drives the definition. Why such strange words like dynamite (which is a mining explosive never used in terrorism) were specifically included but not RDX or C14 or another modern explosive is not known. Probably because the bureaucrat writing the law got his knowledge of explosives from watching Bollywood movies.

The POTA definition is at once wide and broad and very narrow, which is a good indication that not much thinking went into it. This does not surprise me because we have many laws that are poorly drafted and sweeping. All states have them. Without any crime being committed, Tamil Nadu can lock you up for a year without trial under the Prevention of dangerous activities of bootleggers, drug-offenders, forest-offenders, goondas, immoral traffic offenders, sand-offenders, sexual offenders, slum-grabbers and video pirates Act.

To repeat, no crime needs to be committed, the government can jail you for a year if they suspect you will or may commit a crime in future. How does the government know someone is going to be a sand-offender or video pirate? Perhaps it has employed soothsayers and astrologers to do bhavishyavani.

To return to the issue of defining terrorism, I think we all know the real logic. The linguist and writer Noam Chomsky, talking about American atrocities across the world, said: When we do it, its counter-terrorism. When they do it, its terrorism. Similarly, when we do it, its a riot or individuals acting alone. When Muslims do it, its terrorism.
The headset claims to deliver a premium virtual reality experience, with superior picture quality and the highest resolution display.

With dual 3.5-inch AMOLED displays, the Samsung HMD Odyssey claims to deliver vibrant colors, and deeper blacks, providing crisper, more lifelike images. The 110-degree field of view allows users to discover paramount virtual experiences around them.

Samsung Electronics, in partnership with Microsoft, has announced the Samsung HMD Odyssey  the most immersive Windows Mixed Reality (MR) headset in the market. The quick and easy to set up Samsung HMD Odyssey claims to deliver a premium virtual reality experience, with superior picture quality and the highest resolution display.

Lifelike Experiences

With dual 3.5-inch AMOLED displays, the Samsung HMD Odyssey claims to deliver vibrant colors, and deeper blacks, providing crisper, more lifelike images. The 110-degree field of view allows users to discover paramount virtual experiences around them.

When it comes to sound, the Samsung HMD Odyssey comes with 360-degree Spatial Sound, providing users with complete surround sound, through premium built-in AKG headphones.

Users can also talk with other gamers, without having to remove the headset, using the fitted array mic.

Incredibly Easy Start

The Windows Mixed Reality experience with the Samsung HMD Odyssey has been designed to give users the very best experience right out of the box. Unlike typical head-mounted displays, you do not need to install any extra motion sensors  simply connect to your PC and get started. With inside-out position tracking, users are not restricted to a limited space during their virtual reality experience.

For a more immersive experience, Samsung HMD Odyssey comes with a Six Degrees of Freedom1 (6 DOF) sensor allowing for intuitive and natural movements.

With an adjustable control wheel, the Samsung HMD Odyssey is designed to provide a comfortable and snug fit.

The Samsung HMD Odyssey comes with integrated AKG headphones and array mics for voice commands, as well as two motion controllers. The Samsung HMD Odyssey will be available later this year in the US, China, Korea, Brazil and Hong Kong, with pre-orders beginning in the US only on October 3rd.
The Portronics Car Power 4 can charge five devices at once.

Portronics claims that these ports deliver twice the charging speed of most other car chargers, even without support for Qualcomm Quick Charge.

Portronics has launched a new car charger that can charge up to five devices at once. Called the Car Power 4, Portronics sells the charger at Rs 1,099. The highlight of the Car Power 4 is the presence of five USB ports that can charge five devices simultaneously.

The Car Power 4 needs a total of 10.8A is to charge five very high current consuming devices at once. The front two priority USB ports deliver up to 2.0 - 2.4A each, and the rear three USB ports can deliver up to 2.0A simultaneously. Portronics claims that these ports deliver twice the charging speed of most other car chargers, even without support for Qualcomm Quick Charge.

The front hub with two ports and the rear hub with three ports are connected by a five feet cable, with each hub having a clip to be latched onto seats or door panels. It can be plugged in the 12/24V sockets or cigarette lighter socket of your vehicle. It works with all Android, iOS, Windows and devices with other operating systems along with fitness bands, power banks, digital cameras or any 5V digital devices.

(source)
McCain, the chairman of the powerful Senate Armed Services Committee, is known as a friend of Pakistan.

Washington: Pakistan foreign minister Khawaja Asif has slammed powerful Republican senator John McCain for comparing the war in Afghanistan with that of Vietnam.

Senator McCain was drawing parallel between Vietnam and the war in Afghanistan. Let me remind him through this forum, he has a poor sense of history, Mr Asif said here while speaking at the US Institute of Peace, a Congress supported think-tank.

Mr Asif's remarks surprised the audience mainly because Mr McCain has often come to the defence of Pakistan and has been opposed to taking any punitive measure against the country.

Mr McCain, the chairman of the powerful Senate Armed Services Committee, is known as a friend of Pakistan.

A former Republican presidential candidate, McCain is widely respected across the political spectrum and in the American military establishment.

The reason for Mr Asifs outburst against Mr McCain was not immediately clear.

Mr Asif said that when the Americans took over the Vietnam War, they had actually lost the war from day one.

Because in Indo-China the French were too clever for the Americans. They handed over a lost war, a losing war to the Americans. And the Americans were too happy to fight for one and half decade a war which had no end, he said.

And then they had to bomb Laos and Cambodia for having sanctuaries, he added. There were many many other causes. So let's not play to the galleries. Lets not play to your constituents. Lets face the verdict of history. The verdict of the history was that you perused a folly in Vietnam and you lost it, he said.

The verdict of history will be that if the way the Afghan problem is being pursued, the USs will lose Afghan War also, Mr Asif said as he expressed his opposition to the new South Asia Strategy of the Trump administration.
Reporters asked what he meant and Trump said: 'It could be, the calm, the calm before the storm'.

Donald Trump in the Oval Office with senior US military leaders prior to dinner hosted by the President and First Lady at White House. (Photo: Twitter)

Washington: President Donald Trump fuelled speculation Friday about his cryptic warning that this may be the "calm before the storm," further refusing to explain the comment.

After huddling with military leaders to discuss Iran, North Korea and the Islamic State group on Thursday evening, Trump used a photo with military brass and their partners to make an ominous pronouncement.

On Friday, he kept up the suspense, telling journalists wondering what he was talking about "You'll find out"

Trump's original remarks -- against a surreal backdrop of soft classical music -- sent diplomats across Washington rushing to find out if military action was afoot.

"You guys know what this represents?" Trump asked reporters in the State Dining Room.

Reporters asked what he meant and Trump said: "It could be, the calm, the calm before the storm."

The reporters pressed again, asking whether he was referring to Iran or the Islamic State group.

Trump replied: "We have the world's great military people in this room, I will tell you that. And uh, we're gonna have a great evening, thank you all for coming."

Once again, Trump was asked what he meant. He said: "You'll find out."
Experts said Bangladeshi Islamist extremist groups could exploit the situation and forge closer ties with Rohingya militants.

Up to 15,000 people joined the demonstrations in Bangladeshs second largest city, police said, organised by hardline Islamist group Hefazat-e-Islam to protest against the killings of the Rohingya. (Photo: AFP)

Chittagong: Thousands of Islamist hardliners marched in Bangladeshs port city of Chittagong Friday calling for the government to arm Rohingya Muslim refugees fleeing a crackdown in Myanmars troubled Rakhine state.

Up to 15,000 people joined the demonstrations in Bangladeshs second largest city, police said, organised by hardline Islamist group Hefazat-e-Islam to protest against the killings of the Rohingya. We demanded a halt to the genocide of the Rohingya, Hefazat spokesman Azizul Hoque Islamabad said. We have also asked the government to train and arm the Rohingya so that they can liberate their homeland, he said. Communities in Chittagong share close cultural, religious and linguistic ties with Rohingyas.

Islamist parties, including Hefazat, have staged several demonstrations over the issue in recent weeks and some firebrand leaders have called on the government to go to war with Myanmar to liberate Rohingyas.

Experts said Bangladeshi Islamist extremist groups could exploit the situation and forge closer ties with Rohingya militants.

The plight of the Rohingya, a Muslim minority who are reviled and denied citizenship in Myanmar, has roused anger across the Islamic world, with protests held in Pakistan, Malaysia and Indonesia.

The influx has also put Bangladesh under immense strain, with the South Asian country already hosting at least 300,000 Rohingya refugees in squalid camps along its border with Myanmar before the latest surge in arrivals.
Pakistan interior minister says those issuing jihad fatwas online will be punished.

Islamabad: Pakistan on Friday made it clear that the state can declare jihad (holy war) in an Islamic country. Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal said in the National Assembly that the state reserved the right to declare jihad, and no citizen can issue orders calling for the killing of an individual.

Pakistan on Thursday suffered a deadly terror strike on a sufi shrine in Balochistan province. The attack targted people of one particular sect. In Pakistan, targeting of people on religious and sectarian grounds and issuing of fatwas to the effect has been a widespread phenomenon in recent years. Mr Iqbal, in his speech, emphasised on curbing the menace of online fatwas and online jihad.

Speaking in the National Assembly, Ahsan Iqbal said that the jihad announcements against one another in cities and villages will make Pakistan a war zone.

Coming down hard on people spreading hatred via social media, he warned that the government will take strict action against such elements under the cybercrime laws. We need to curb these trends as they are a threat to our internal security, the minister said.

He added: The enemy wants Muslims to behead each other. If we continue treading this path of violence and unrest, we wouldnt even need an (external) enemy to destroy us.

He said that the people issuing such edicts on the internet could not claim ownership of faith. They will be dealt with sternly under the cyber crime law, he maintained.

Mr Iqbal said no individual had the right to question the faith of public office holders who had taken the oath and signed the declaration of Khatam-e-Nabuwwat (finality of the Prophethood).

Earlier on Monday, the government faced a storm of criticism over an amendment to the Elections Act 2017 which ended up affecting a clause regarding Khatam-e-Nabuwwat.

The clause was restored to its original form on Thursday after wave of protests by the opposition parties and various religious groups.

Speaking on the terrorist attack on a shrine in Jhal Masgi a day earlier, the minister said he had sought a report on the incident.

He added that he wanted to send a message to those sponsoring terrorism in Pakistan that such attacks would not help them achieve their nefarious designs. We need to unite to defeat terrorism. If we remain at each others throats, then we will achieve nothing but self-destruction, he said.

Meanwhile, the death toll from a Thursday blast at Dargah (shrine) Fatehpur in Jhal Magsi reached 22 people.
Self-taught engineer and inventor Peter Madsen, 46, has been accused of Wall's death.

Danish police have confirmed the remains found are that of the missing Swedish journalist Kim Wall. (Photo: Twitter)

Copenhagen: Danish police said Saturday divers had recovered the decapitated head and two legs of Swedish journalist Kim Wall, who vanished in August while interviewing a Danish inventor aboard his homemade submarine.

In a grisly case worthy of a Nordic noir thriller, Copenhagen police inspector Jens Moller Jensen told reporters divers had found bags containing her missing clothes, her head and legs in Koge Bay, south of the Danish capital.

"Last night our forensic dentist confirmed that it was Kim Wall's head," he said.

Her headless torso was found floating in waters off Copenhagen on August 21, 11 days after she went missing.

Self-taught engineer and inventor Peter Madsen, 46, has been accused of Wall's death, with prosecutors saying he dismembered her body before throwing it overboard.

Madsen, who is married and has been in custody since August 11, claims the 30-year-old Wall died when a 70-kilogramme (154-pound) hatch door fell on her head, and in a panic, he threw her body overboard.

He has insisted her body was intact at the time.

But Jensen said the decapitated head contradicted Madsen's version of events.

There is "no sign of fracture on the skull and there isn't any sign of other blunt violence to the skull," he said, citing an autopsy carried out overnight.

Locating Wall's head has been a priority for investigators, as the final autopsy on the torso was not able to establish the cause of death.

However, it did show multiple mutilation wounds to Wall's genitals.

- Fetish films -

Prosecutors believe Madsen killed Wall as part of a sexual fantasy, then dismembered and mutilated her body.

Earlier this week, Prosecutor Jakob Buch-Jepsen told a court custody hearing that a hard disk found in Madsen's workshop contained fetish films in which real women were tortured, decapitated and burned.

"This hard drive doesn't belong to me," Madsen insisted, saying numerous people had access to his workshop.

Madsen has insisted there was no sexual relationship between him and Wall, and their contacts had been purely professional.

Jensen said the divers on Friday found the body parts and clothes in bags weighed down with metal pieces. Her torso had also been weighed down when it was found, also in Koge Bay.

"Yesterday morning we found a bag within which we found Kim Wall's clothes, underwear, stockings, and shoes. In the same bag laid a knife, and there were some car pipes to weigh the bag down," he said.

"Around dinnertime we found one leg, and then another leg. And then we found a head that also laid in a bag, and was weighed down with multiple metal pieces."

Wall worked as a freelance journalist based in New York and China, and her articles were published in The Guardian, The New York Times and others.

At the time of her disappearance, Wall was believed to be working on a feature story about Madsen, an eccentric, well-known figure in Denmark.

Madsen has successfully launched rockets with the aim of developing private space travel.

His homemade submarine Nautilus, launched in 2008, was the biggest private sub ever made when he built it with help from a group of volunteers.

But the group became engaged in a long-running dispute over the Nautilus, before members of the board decided to transfer the vessel's ownership to Madsen, according to the sub's website.

In 2015, Madsen sent a text message to two members of the board claiming: "There is a curse on Nautilus".

"That curse is me. There will never be peace on Nautilus as long as I exist," Madsen wrote, according to the volunteers.
The publication includes a comic strip whose main character is a schoolgirl called Pyuri-tan. The goal is to explain religion in a fun way. For publisher, change and openness are needed to save Japans Christian communities.

Tokyo (AsiaNews/Kyodo)  Popular culture and Japanese comics known as manga are the new frontier to attract young people to the faith, a step taken by Kirisuto Shimbun, a Christian magazine led by Shinji Matsutani, 40. In addition to its weekly paper, the publication now offers its readers a tabloid version with more photos and illustrations as well as an online edition.

The 71-year-old paper, which was founded by the late Christian social reformer Toyohiko Kagawa, covers all Christian denominations. It also carries a serial comic strip whose main character is a schoolgirl named Pyuri-tan, Japanese wordplay for the term Puritans.

The manga features personifications of different Christian groups, including Catholics and Anglicans, allowing readers to learn about them whilst having fun. It has even been adapted to a smartphone game app.

Back in 2014, the publisher launched a card game with biblical figures. He has also sponsored comics and writing competitions with a Christian theme. The card game has been translated into Chinese for sale in Taiwan.

Since 2011, Matsutani has been sponsoring the Pray Festival, an annual event resembling a comic market held across Japan, where Christian-themed manga, books and goods are put on sale.

He is now planning to launch by years end a free smartphone map app called Jun + Rei (Pilgrimage) that will help users locate nearby churches to facilitate access to the places of worship.

For him, the purpose of this new approach is to bring young people closer to Christians, who are only 1 per cent of Japans population.

With the aging of members, churches will die out if they do business as usual. Wed like to counter that trend, said Matsutani. Raised in a Christian family, he became the companys president in May.

Some Christians have criticised the papers approach, saying using manga and other pop culture ploys could be considered blasphemy. The have also reacted negatively to collaborating with people from other religions. Conversely, for Matsutani, As a way of survival, churches should be open to others in (different) communities.

He even suggested religious institutions welcome players of the popular mobile game Pokemon Go, who might come across them in their search for imaginary creatures.
This is a world without compassion.

The contents of a home are strewn across a somewhat overgrown semicircle of waste ground. Sitting behind a desk in the back corner of the stage, Consolate Siperius confirms that her house in Burundi was surrounded and plundered by Tutsi militia. Somehow she escaped their murder spree, was adopted by European parents and is now living in Belgium and working as an actor. This sets the scene for the playthat opens this years Belfast International Arts Festival Into this mess steps a well coiffured and elegant woman played by Ursina Lardi. Her hour and a half monologue begins by questioning how we perceive conflict and migration in Europe. She stands behind a lectern amidst the contents of Consolates house which gives her utterances a sense of authority, or whitesplaining as one director/producer in the audience suggested.Her questions wobble across a tightrope spanning pertinence and impertinence. I started to inwardly judge fellow audience members who were, perhaps, nervously laughing at her more outlandish observations.Lardi then takes us back to when the fictional newly qualified young Swiss teacher was recruited to the Teachers in Conflict NGO and sent to do good work in the Central Africa region that includes Burundi, Rwanda and what is now called the Democratic Republic of Congo. An enormous can of worms is opened and over an hour they crawl across the stage as she unpicks the role of NGOs in situations of conflict and displacement.She undermines her own caring credentials: is it white privilege to be able to block out the sound of genocide on the other shore of the lake with classical music? In tribal conflicts, is it ethical to be pampering those who had committed atrocities and are now living in refugee camps?A recurring device used by Rau is to critique the theatre industry alongside the conflict industry. Directors are arseholes. Consolate is simply representing the latest in a long line of vulnerable minorities to be elevated to a prominent position based on the zeitgeist. (Later we discover the full extent of her acting career.)The plays crucial observation  and the reason for its title  is that at the end of each stage of a conflict, all that matters is who has the machine gun. NGOs cannot, or fail to, predict what will happen next. Are their best efforts based on the current situation really good enough? By unwitting ignorance or design are NGOs complicit in collaborating with evil actors in conflicts? Lardi shocks the audience with her own humiliating act of collaboration and self-preservation.Writer/director Milo Rau has crafted an appropriately bleak and multi-layered narrative that exerts incredible control as it nimbly walks across the moral ambiguity that litters the uneven stage along with the contents of Consolates home. Video close-ups of the actors are deftly used to augment the narrative and gently add complexity to the script.Ursina Lardis face will continue to look out from the screen long after she has left the stage. Her questions  whether worthy or warped  will haunt. It would have been interesting to hear a panel of NGOs react to the play and its questioning message after the performance.The UK and Irish premiere of Schaubuhnesdid not disappoint. The quality and depth of performance and production that was displayed whencame to Belfast Festival back in 2014 was repeated.The final performance ofwhich opens this years Belfast International Arts Festival is in the Lyric Theatre on Saturday 7 October. This new work is a confident and thought-provoking piece of theatre that is both contemporary in its design and its theme. Outside the festival, youll rarely see such a piece of international theatre on this island.
Photo courtesy of iStockphoto.com.

When a fleet vehicle heads to auction, its history and condition at the point of sale will largely determine its sale price. A brand and model that's in better shape than a more beat-up sibling can fetch a significantly higher resale price.

Seasoned fleet managers take control of this process shortly after purchasing the vehicle, by implementing an effective preventative maintenance and repair program that ensures a vehicle will reach auction in good shape.

Companies can better protect their depreciating investments by learning how to sell their fleet vehicles properly. And in the era of increasing digital sales where vehicles are purchased sight unseen, a solid condition report makes an even bigger difference.

Condition reports should give a buyer plenty of details about seven pockets of information about a vehicle, including wheels and tires, exterior, interior, engine, frame and undercarriage, vehicle usage information, and a list of features.

A condition report, which is usually conducted by a third party, is designed to assess the detailed condition of the vehicle being sold to determine its current market value.

"The condition report includes everything from a complete description of the vehicle's year, make, model, mileage, and trim level, to various accessory items," said Darrin Aiken, assistant vice president of remarketing at Wheels, Inc. "It is a complete accounting of the vehicle as it currently stands and also includes any and all relevant items related to condition, such as any mechanical and body damages, as well as conditions that are required to announce prior to the sale at the auction."

Wheels and tires

These reports are designed to build the confidence of the buyers and allow them to make the right decision for themselves, without needing to be in the same geographic region as the car, said Ron Shoemaker, founder of Flexco Fleet Services.

"Maybe the car is sitting in St. Louis, but the person that wants to buy it is in Columbus, Ohio, so they're buying it based on the condition report," Shoemaker said. "They're not kicking the tires, and they aren't physically there, so that condition report is paramount."

With all aspects of shopping shifting toward the internet, including automotive sales, condition reports are critical in today's remarketing environment. Whether it's a dealer, seller, or private buyer, a thorough condition report increases online sales with less risk, and decreases arbitrations.

There are various types of condition reports that target different purposes.

If a bank conducts a condition report at the end of a lease term, the report would be sent to the lessee to explain why they're paying extra fees based on the vehicle's condition. If a dealer purchases a vehicle from an auction, the condition report will cover the overall condition of the car, which allows them to see their profit in advance and bid accordingly.

"Units that are certified, come with guarantees, and are in exceptional conditions are those that are sought after the most in a competitive bidding environment," Aiken said.

Exterior

A condition report also gives fleet managers a clearer sense of the level of reconditioning needed for resale. An industry adage says that $1 spent on reconditioning returns $1.50 at the auction, but that often applies to items that wouldn't be considered major repairs.

"The less reconditioning the dealer or the buyer has to do to the vehicle, the more they're willing to pay for it," Shoemaker said.

Regardless of the level of comprehensiveness, all condition reports must cover seven elements to be considered complete reports. These reports are for the buyer, because like a good home inspection report they list items of needed repair.

Wheels and Tires

Tires should usually be replaced if they have less than 50% of their tread life. The buyer will likely need to spend between $200 and $600 for new tires. Wheels could be even more of a depreciative factor, as they cost much more. Some wheels can be lightly scratched up, while others could be completely ruined, and the buyer must consider that before bidding or completing the sale.

Exterior

If the exterior has some light scratches that can quickly be removed using a buffer, the buyer may consider spending more money than if the damage requires professional bodywork. The same goes for the seller. If their vehicle has light scratches, the condition report ensures they don't get penalized for it as if they were costly exterior damages.

Interior

Interior

Condition report writers inspect everything there is to check in the cabin of the vehicle. If the interior smells like smoke, the buyer will need to know this. If the upholstery has tears all around, then there is money to be spent before the vehicle can make a profit. If the air conditioner doesn't work, the value of the vehicle will be affected.

Engine

If the buyer is looking at a vehicle in another part of the country, it is critical they are aware of any leaks, engine warning lights, or any failed components that relates to the motor. Condition report experts are trained to give an accurate representation of the engine's condition. Numerous companies only offer a report on the engine's condition upon request with an extra charge, however, simply because it requires different expertise.

Engine

Frame and Undercarriage

One of the most important elements in a solid condition report is the inspection of the frame and undercarriage of the vehicle. Not all vehicles with frame damage state that in their history, especially if the vehicle was a trade-in and its previous history isn't clear. Frame damage or undercarriage rust can drastically affect the value of the car, and clear information of such damage is the difference between profit and loss.

Vehicle Information

Not all vehicles are valued the same, even when they are the same year, make, and model. The information of each specific vehicle can make thousands of dollars in difference, for the seller or the buyer, making this part of the condition report one of the most valued elements.

"The miles make a difference," Shoemaker said. "You will pay more for a 30,000-mile 2015 than you would for a 70,000-mile 2015."

Frame and undercarriage

List of Features

Within each condition report, buyers will find a list of features that the vehicle is equipped with. The same concept relating to mileage can apply with features. For instance, a navigation unit can add more value to the vehicle than if it didn't have one. So, it's important that the buyers can add all of the features to determine what they want to pay for the vehicle, which allows them to obtain it for a fair price, as well as calculate their profit margin in advance if they plan on selling it.

Fleet managers can take certain measurements throughout the lifecycle of their cars to ensure they maintain the highest value.

"They could give drivers incentives or bonuses when they take care of the cars, so when they bring it back, it's worth more money," Shoemaker said. "The more records, the more knowledge you have as a seller. You can see what has been done to the car."

Vehicle information

Companies should follow the OEM maintenance intervals and keep the maintenance and repair records for each vehicle.

"Proper maintenance as specified by the manufacturer is the greatest proactive step to mitigating the normal depreciation that all vehicles experience," Aiken said.

Standardization of Inspections

Condition reports are typically authored by third-party companies who specialize in them, including Alliance Inspection Management (AiM), FLD, Inc., AutoVIN, and others. The process has become more standardized in recent years, especially with the training of inspectors who produce them. The National Auto Auction Association (NAAA) has been at the forefront of that process.
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Habitat accepting house applications

COLUMBUS -- Habitat for Humanity of Columbus is beginning the annual application process for its next home to be constructed beginning next spring.

Applicants for this home ownership program must attend one of two orientation sessions scheduled for 4 p.m. Sunday and 7 p.m. Monday at Pinnacle Bank East, 210 E. 23rd St. Families must meet income guidelines, work alongside volunteers as the home is constructed, and have a need for improving their housing situation. If approved as a partner, a family will hold a mortgage for the home with Habitat at zero percent with affordable monthly payments.

For more information, call 402-554-4663 or email info@hfhcolumbusne.org.

Central offering student tours

COLUMBUS -- Prospective students who want to see Central Community College are invited to attend Campus Visit Day from 9 a.m.-noon Oct. 19 at its locations in Columbus, Grand Island, Hastings and Kearney.

Attendees will have a chance to tour the campus, meet faculty and learn about financial aid and scholarships.

For more information or to register for Campus Visit Day in Columbus, contact Erica Leffler at 402-562-1257; toll-free at 1-877-222-0780, ext. 1257; or email eleffler@cccneb.edu. To register online, visit www.cccneb.edu/CampusVisits. Individual and group tours also are available by appointment Monday through Friday.

Sertoma seeking award nominees

SCHUYLER -- Schuyler Sertoma Club is requesting nominations for the Service to Mankind Award, which recognizes people for their community service and volunteer work.

To submit a nomination, send a letter describing the person and their service to Schuyler Sertoma Club, P.O. Box 254, Schuyler, NE 68661 or email dmarps@hotmail.com before Oct. 31.

A recognition luncheon will be held at noon Nov. 14 at St. Augustines Parish Hall. The cost is $12 per person. Call Diane Arps at 402-352-3045 (evening) or at Agri-City Insurance during the day at 402-352-2483 before Nov. 8 to make a reservation.
First Presbyterian Church of Lakelands Pedal Power Bicycle Ministry celebrated its grand re-opening on Saturday, months after a theft forced the ministry to temporarily shut down.

PREVIOUS STORY: Lakeland bicycle ministry recovering after costly theft

Ministry now situated in larger space within church

Ministry currently has about 120 bikes ready to be handed out

The ministrys volunteers restore donated bikes and give them to kids and people who depend on bicycles for transportation free of charge.

The grand re-opening comes after thieves attempted to shut down the ministry.

The ministrys founder, Ted Hogan, said back in May of this year someone stole thousands of dollars worth of tools from the ministrys shed, located outside the church.

Hogan said the incident eventually turned out to be a blessing. It led to the ministry receiving a much larger space inside the church, as well as donations from people across the Tampa Bay area.

We have been so blessed," said Hogan. "Now, were inside the church under the churchs security system. Were working in air conditioning, with LED lights, and it is just a phenomenal day.

Hogan went on to say currently the ministry has about 120 bikes that are ready to handed out to someone in need. They also have 150 bikes that volunteers are working to restore.
New Food and Agri-Tours, New Food Fest for North Oregon Coast

Published 10/07/2017 at 2:47 PM PDT - Updated 10/08/2017 at 11:07 AM PDT

By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff





(Tillamook, Oregon)  Travel Oregon announced this week that Tillamook County's tourism entity Visit Tillamook Coast will receive a $20,000 grant from Oregon Wine Country Plates Matching Grants Program. In September, Visit Tillamook Coast was awarded another $10,000 for another project, bringing the total of recent grants to $30,000.

Out of this will come a variety of engaging projects on the north Oregon coast, including a food festival in Garibaldi and a culinary / agritourism program aimed at creating food tours of the county's towns, such as Manzanita, Pacific City, Tillamook and Netarts, among others. The tours  or trails as the group termed it - will include farms, fisheries, breweries, wineries, chefs/restaurants, tour guides, cooking schools, lodging specializing in local foods, and more.

In the fall of 2018, Visit Tillamook Coast and the Portland Garibaldi will be working together to host a food festival. Planning of the event starts this month, according to Tillamook County's tourism director, Nan Devlin, so little is known as yet. She said, however, the event is probably looking at 30 food vendors  all of which will be local.

The matching grants program helps advance wine and culinary tourism projects that improve local economies and communities by enhancing, expanding and promoting Oregons travel and tourism industry. The projects will help share the story and experiences of Oregons wine and culinary bounty with Oregonians and visitors.

These projects will further enhance Oregons reputation as a world-class culinary destination, said Todd Davidson, Travel Oregon CEO. When visitors get a taste of Oregons bounty they want more, leading them to seek out Oregon products when they return home. This results in prolonged economic impact that benefits makers and destinations beyond vacation time spent here.

September's grant of $10,000 will go to create what's called Food, Farm, Fish and Forage trail. That effort will include a printed map, website, visitor training and marketing. This grant followed the participation of a two-day agritourism workshop in February facilitated by the Destination Development division of Travel Oregon.

The workshop attracted more than 65 participants from throughout this part of the north Oregon coast, including commercial fisheries, produce and flower farmers, dairy farmers, chefs, restaurants, cheesemakers, brewers, lodging owners, OSU Extension, and non-profits involved in farm to table and boat to table provisions.

Agritourism is a proven way to develop local businesses and tourism, said Devlin. With support from the community, Travel Oregon and the transient lodging tax, we can build even more on the economy that this county has been known for across generations. Oregon Coast Lodgings for this - Where to eat - Maps - Virtual Tours More of Tillamook County below:

In Other Oregon Coast Travel News

Plenty of interesting and enticing specials are emerging around Tillamook County. Some in Pacific City are offering a third night free as well as some major restaurant perks if you book a certain amount of nights. See the Pacific City lodging link for specials bulletins. Others will be popping up soon in Rockaway Beach and Manzanita, as well as Tillamook / Garibaldi. More deals in other towns are aplenty as well: click on the lodging links below or at right to see the bulletins for each area.











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A man who dated a 14-year-old girl and impregnated her has been arrested on a sexual assault charge, according to an arrest affidavit filed by Laredo police.

Christian Burgos-Aponte, 24, was served with an arrest warrant Monday charging him with sexual assault. He remained held at the Webb County Jail as of Wednesday evening.

On June 28, police responded to a harassment report in the 3700 block of West San Francisco Avenue.

A woman told officers that her daughter had met Burgos-Aponte on Facebook after he had sent her a friend request.

READ MORE: Man found dead in west Laredo home containing guns, drugs, police say

They started communicating via Messenger, according to LPD. Then, they met at Canta Ranas Park. She thought he was "cute," according to the affidavit.

LPD said Burgos-Aponte had posed as a 16-year-old. The affidavit states the mother and her daughter believed him because "he did look very young."

Burgos-Aponte and the 14-year-old girl began a relationship and she later became pregnant with his child, police said. She gave birth to a girl in June 2016.

RELATED: Ninth person arrested in Laredo maquinita raids case, police say

However, problems arose between the couple. The mother and daughter stated to police that Burgos-Aponte was upset because they told him they would initiate a child support case against him, according to court documents.

He allegedly threatened to take the infant and flee to Mexico, police said. He also threatened the 14-year-old by telling her he would send his current girlfriend to assault her, according to the affidavit.
LINCOLN  About half of Nebraskas students tested proficient on a new statewide test in English language arts, a significantly lower number than on the old reading tests but a dip state officials said is to be expected because the new tests set the bar higher.

Proficiency levels for new English language arts tests, which test both reading and writing skills and follow more rigorous standards than previous tests, ranged from 47 percent proficient for sixth- and seventh-graders to 56 percent for Nebraska fourth-graders.

State Education Commissioner Matt Blomstedt said its impossible to compare last years reading test scores with this years English language arts because theyre new tests, and follow standards approved by the state board in 2014 to ensure students are better prepared for college or a career when they graduate.

This is a new baseline in Nebraska, Blomstedt said. Because we set an expectation that is higher, we have students not at that bar.

He said he expects scores to rise as schools align their classes to the new standards.

Schools will soon be sending results to parents with information about how their students fared on English language arts, math and science tests, as well as how those results compare to preliminary statewide results.

Students in third through eighth grades took the tests last spring. For the first time this year, juniors statewide took the ACT college entrance exam instead of state tests.

While preliminary statewide results are available, test scores for individual districts and schools arent yet available.

Math and science tests, which have yet to be changed to follow more rigorous standards, are comparable to past years tests  and yielded higher results than the ELA tests.

In math, proficiency levels ranged from 65 percent for eighth-graders to 76 percent for fourth- and fifth-graders. In science, 72 percent of fifth-graders tested proficient and 68 percent of eighth-graders were proficient. Those are the only two grades tested in science.

For 11th-graders who took the ACT, 54 percent were on track or at college benchmarks set by ACT in English language arts, 51 percent in math and 55 percent in science.
The future of Bombardier's Northern Ireland operations looked shakier last night after US authorities threatened a crippling 300% import duty on its exports of aircraft to the US amid an international trade dispute with rivals Boeing.

Bombardier employs more than 4,000 people in Belfast and is due to begin delivering a blockbuster order for up to 125 new jets to Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines next year.

East Belfast MP Gavin Robinson told the Belfast Telegraph he planned to raise the shock tariff blow in the House of Commons on Monday, pressing the UK Government to defend the jobs at stake in his constituency.

Alliance MLA Chris Lyttle also hit out at the US decision warning of a potential "massive impact" on Northern Ireland.

"Bombardier is the cornerstone of the manufacturing sector in Northern Ireland, both as the largest employer and enabler of a wider engineering supply chain," he said.

"Any permanent negative ruling against it would have a massive impact on many livelihoods and the wider economy."

Top economist John Simpson described the latest development as very worrying.

"This is pretty serious bad news. It makes it all the more difficult for politicians from Northern Ireland and London to influence President Trump in a bid to get him to soften the blow for Belfast," he said.

Mr Simpson was doubtful that the UK or Canadian Government would be prepared to take effective countermeasures against Boeing activities.

"I don't think in the present circumstances that the UK Government will take action to penalise Boeing. I think they will make as strong a political argument as they can make that Belfast not be penalised. But I can't see the British Government doing anything that could be seen as going knock for knock with Boeing."

Bombardier was already facing a planned 220% tariff on its aircraft as part of a separate investigation, the US Department of Commerce confirmed, and last night it was revealed that a second preliminary levy of 80% has been proposed on sales of the Canadian aerospace manufacturer's aircraft to USA airlines.

US commerce secretary Wilbur Ross said: "The United States is committed to free, fair and reciprocal trade with Canada, but this is not our idea of a properly functioning trading relationship.

"We will continue to verify the accuracy of this decision, while doing everything in our power to stand up for American companies and their workers."

A final ruling on the pricing policy is expected to be made in February 2018.

Ulster University senior economist Esmond Birnie said that the period to February is crucial.

"This is a window of opportunity for diplomacy between the three governments, in which sense may prevail," he said. "But if diplomacy fails, everybody ends up worse off."

Prime Minister Theresa May had lobbied President Trump over the dispute sparked by complaints from Boeing that Bombardier received unfair state subsidies from the UK and Canada, allowing the sale of airliners at below cost prices in the US.

Both trade unions and politicians have warned thousands of jobs could be in jeopardy - in the USA as well as in Belfast and Canada.

The US government preliminary decision affects imports of 100-150 aircraft from Canada.

The wings for the new aircraft, which are due to be delivered to the US next year, are made at Bombardier's plant in east Belfast.

The alleged unfair subsidy arose after Northern Ireland's power-sharing administration and the UK Government pledged to invest almost 135m in the establishment of the C-Series manufacturing site in Belfast.
Gerry outside the House of Commons after then Prime Minister Tony Blair apologised for the his wrongful conviction

Gerry and his mother Sarah at the premiere of the film In Name of The Father

Sentenced to 15 years as one of the Guildford Four for a crime he didnt commit, Belfast man Gerry Conlon fought his own considerable demons beyond the prison walls. In an extract from his new biography, In the Name of the Son, boyhood friend Richard ORawe recalls his restless, impulsive character and chaotic, if charming lifestyle.

By February 1995, Gerry Conlon was in chronic disarray. He had no direction in his life, no cause to fight, no one to lobby, no female friend to pamper and no reason to get out of bed other than to escape from his nightmares. Then he met Angie in a bar in Kilburn, London.

Perhaps it was because Angie was a crack addict, or it might be that he saw a part of himself in her, but he liked the convivial young lady who called everyone "Darlin'" and spoke in an earthy Devon accent. She was down-to-earth, easy to talk to and, impressively, a good listener.

What Gerry did not know was that Angie had the fire of Queen Boadicea in her belly - and a temper to match: no one, certainly not Gerry Conlon, would intimidate her.

Besides his flat in Belfast, Conlon also had a flat above a bookmaker's premises in Camden, and that was where the pair retired to after leaving the pub. Angie remembers: "Gerry talked non-stop to me. I think it was because I got a raw deal and he could relate to that."

During their all-night conversation, which inevitably entailed Conlon rehashing his experiences at the hands of the British Establishment, Angie told him that she could not look herself in the mirror. Conlon was aghast at this. In his worldly view - a view that would eventually stand him in good stead - the highest in society could fall by the wayside and often did, but that did not mean that person could not pick themselves up again.

Angie gulped hard as she recalled Conlon's words: "'What do you mean you can't look yourself in the mirror?' Then he took the mirror off the wall and held it in front of me. 'Look at yourself'. I couldn't. I turned my face away. See, I didn't like the person who'd be looking back at me. 'F****** look at yourself when you're told.'

"To shut him up, I glanced in the mirror. 'What do you see?' he said. I told him straight: 'A junkie. A worthless junkie'. 'What else?' 'Nothing else. There's nothing else there.'

"Gerry had this stare. He kinda looked right into your eyes when he'd something important to say: 'Hey, wee girl. You're better than most people. What the f*** is the matter with you?' Then he told me I wasn't a worthless junkie: I was a junkie, but not a worthless one. That seemed kinda funny. We laughed our heads off at that.

"He taught me a lot, he did. He took everyone at face value. It's a quality that not many people have. If he liked you, he liked you, and if he didn't, he told you to f*** off. But he built up my self-esteem."

And therein lay part of the conundrum that was Gerry Conlon: he had met a young woman whose life was in turmoil, who was floundering in self-pity, and he stepped in with chivalrous gallantry to rescue her, telling her that she had worth, that she had a future.

Yet, he undeniably wallowed in his own despair and self-chastisement over the arrest and death of his father.

This man was well read, his favourite book being The Ragged-Trousered Philanthropists by Robert Tressell.

(Dublin-born, Tressell's real name was Robert Noonan. His timeless classic is an expose of the social inequality that existed in the town of 'Mugsborough', the fictional setting for the novel. The 'Philanthropists' are the workers, on whose backs the capitalists generate personal wealth).

Moreover, Conlon had read the Bible several times in prison and could quote whole passages from it verbatim. Time and again, those who knew him spoke of Conlon's great sympathy for his fellow human beings.

For the likes of Angie, he was a physician and a healer. Yet, he chose to ignore the biblical proverb, "Physician, heal thyself". In the torture chamber of his mind, there was no room for self-healing, or self-absolution.

Impulsive, given to trying to run before he had learned to walk, Conlon took Angie to Belfast the next day, where she stayed in his sister's house for two weeks. During her time in Bridie's house, Angie met the rest of his family. Ann McKernan was impressed with Angie's hard-boiled attitude: "She went with Gerry for years. Every one of my girls, my mum, everybody loved Angie. She and him murdered one another, but Angie gave him as good as she got."

When Ann was speaking of Angie during an interview, there was a smile on her face; it seemed as if she was proud of Angie for standing up for herself.

Throughout these two weeks, Angie visited Gerry's Osborne Park flat where a few pipes of crack cocaine were smoked. It could have been worse.

Northern Ireland had always been spared the ravages of hard drugs because paramilitary groups, principally the IRA, saw the taking and supplying of drugs as deviant behaviour which must be eradicated - by execution if necessary.

Thus it was, when the IRA announced a cessation of military operations on August 31, 1994, that the organisation turned its attention to drug dealers, and from 1995 to 2001, nine drug dealers were shot dead by an IRA front organisation called Direct Action Against Drugs.

There would have been few people in Northern Ireland taking crack cocaine, but Gerry was among them. While that would have been frowned upon by the IRA leadership, it is doubtful if it would have resulted in Gerry's execution, given his large public profile and the negative implications his murder would have had for the fledgling peace process.

With crack cocaine almost impossible to buy in Northern Ireland, Angie took on the role of supplying Conlon, making frequent trips to Belfast from England. She also sent crack across in the post. She was a central figure in what was a bizarre and sometimes violent relationship.

"It was a crazy time. We were taking so much crack. Gerry was seeing other women; he didn't hide it. And I was cool with that at the time, as long as I got crack. In London, he used to give me money to stay away and he'd have been having a party round there, loads of girls, loads of sex.

"I used to phone him up and say down the phone, 'Running out of money, darlin', running out.' He'd say, 'Don't you come round here' and I'd say, 'I'm on my way. Get one of the girls to put the kettle on.' Then he'd say, 'Don't you f****** dare come round here.' I used to terrorise him. I was his nemesis.

"I used to terrorise that poor man. He met his match with me. And every now and then, when he really p***** me off, I used to go around and smash all his windows. It was a mental relationship, but it was just how it was. My mum tried to get me sectioned because I used to turn up at his house and wreck the place and rip all his clothes up."

The madness of Angie was more than matched by Gerry's anarchy. Angie recalled: "I came back one day and no one was in the flat. So, I found out from a dealer that he was in a mate's house and I went round there.

"There he was with this Chilean call girl called Beatrice. You must have heard of her: 'Who's next, Beatrice?' No? Everybody knows her. I didn't mind him being with Beatrice, but I did mind that he tried to hide it from me."

Conlon was a familiar figure for the call girls of London. "Sometimes you'd be sitting in the flat over the course of the day and it was like f****** Piccadilly Circus," Angie said.

"There were that many call girls coming and going. But he wasn't s******* them."

Surely that negated the whole point of sending for call girls in the first place? Angie replied: "Gerry didn't need to s*** call girls. He was a charmer; he could've s****** any girl he wanted. He'd bring them in, drive them mad with his stories, kick them out and bring in another.

"My Gerry loved to talk and we'd all heard his stories. I could've told you what he was going to say before he said it."

By 1995, Conlon had been awarded approximately 300,000 in compensation, most of which he had given away, or spent frivolously. On top of that, there had been the money from his book deal and the 120,000 he had received for the film In the Name of the Father.

Angie said of his spending: "He was doing ounces and ounces of crack a day, thousands of pounds.

"I remember one day he came home like the Pied Piper, with maybe 20 people behind him, and he said to me: 'I'm buying them trainers in the morning'. And I said: 'F****** what?' They were a load of waifs and strays, people that looked like they hadn't been fed in weeks.

"He said: 'I'm taking them all out shopping and buying them clothes and trainers in the morning and I'm bringing them into McDonald's. Look at them, the poor b*******'. But that was just him; that was him. He wanted to give everything to everyone.

"F****** hell, he was literally giving his money away. It was like he didn't really want it. He never passed a beggar in the street without dropping them a tenner - all the beggars knew him by his first name. It was like he didn't really want the money."

When asked how Conlon could have spent 10,000 a day, Angie replied: "It's not that hard, believe me.

"When you're awake 24 hours - and Gerry tried to stay awake every minute of every day - and you've 15 people in the house, and this one's saying she hasn't got enough money for her phone bill, and that one's saying he can't pay his rent and he's going to be evicted. People used to turn up with their tales of woe and their bills and he used to fall for the stories and hand out money as if he was Robin Hood.

"I used to go mad.

"When his money began to run out in London, before he got the final payment of his compensation, I said to him, 'Where are your friends now? We'll see who your friends are when you run out of money and you've got f*** all in your bank balance.'

"In the end, when all the money was gone, there was only me and him."
It was inevitable. The health police were going to get us in the end. Too much fat, excessive sugar and an abundance of red meat over the last 20 years or so have left us reeling in our gyms and gasping for breath in our Nike trainers.

Talk of beach bodies, a good night's sleep, regular bowel movements and slim-fit suits is for other, younger, sexier and more disciplined people. Not for us. We who have wallowed in the hedonistic joys of beer and wine, steaks and gratins, hard and soft cheeses, reductions, gravies, custards, fondants and tartes tatins, are now counting our days. Our number is up. Come out quietly with your hands on your head and there'll be no trouble.

And while we squealed against the encroaching nanny state as it stepped in and stole our freedoms one by one, the beautiful people are just getting on with it. For them, the joys of last-century eating are repugnant and replaced instead by a devotion to fresh, raw, crunchy vegetables, moderate intakes of chicken or fish and loads of kale smoothies. "Snack on fruit," they say when you're hungry. Snack on fruit. Have you ever heard the likes of it? You snack on Penguins, Snickers and Mars bars.

Anyway, healthy eating is in, it's here to stay and there's nothing we can do about it. Soon there will be underground private clubs where you can get a Carnbrooke fillet of Angus or Hannan prime rib of Glenarm short horn, and you will need deep pockets, passwords, codewords and IDs to access them.

In the meantime, we can laugh about it and sneer at the healthy folk and their nut cutlet sandals and lentil back packs as we ask for more bearnaise.

But here's a thing - and I am whispering it: Some of this new stuff is remarkably and unexpectedly good. I like what they do in Slim's, Umi Falafel and Freshii, but the Skinny Kitchen on the Boucher Road (I know!) is a culinary knock-out.

There are all sorts of apparently health-giving, skin-clearing, mind-enhancing salads and gluten-free 'power bites' including burnt lemon hummus with raw veg, hot lime chicken wings in a lo-cal sauce with jalapeno and avocado dip, Greek fries (sweet potato fries with oregano, tomato relish, feta, olives basil and grilled lemon) and even satay fries.

You can compose your own dish from a section of the menu called 'Building Size' (surely they mean 'Sides'), which features more than a dozen options including halloumi, mixed grain salad, broccoli, rump steak and chicken. Loads of mains are there, among which the coconut cod curry, which comes with kale, spinach and peas and a mound of quinoa with scallions, lime and coriander, is a belter.

Great nugget-sized chunks of cod have not suffered in the least from swimming in a thick and creamy curry sauce that is sweet but not cloying and hot but not stinging. It's beautifully balanced and the strength of that cod flavour works very well with the light curry.

A plate of chicken skewers with satay sauce is ordered along with some spicy rice and apple and maple slaw. Sneaking in under the skewers is some pickled cucumber and carrot, which crunches and mulches up very satisfyingly with the hot rich satay sauce.

The spicy rice is as good as I've had in some of the better Cajun bistros in Washington DC, and the slaw is addictively lush, wet and crunchy.

Every possible healthy food combination is here including falafel, all sorts of wraps, protein-first dishes, courgette noodles, chilli bean burgers and so on.

And then there are all those smoothies and super drinks. They even have black lemonade, which, counter-intuitively, the server says is great for whitening teeth. It's also excellent for hangovers.

Skinny Kitchen may sound like a chapel of doom for those who, like the adviser and me, enjoy the more sinful things in life. But, judging by the food, this new healthy-eating project looks a lot less terrifying close up. Tuck in. I think you'll like it.

The bill

Skewers................................................6

Spicy rice..............................................3

Sweet potato fries..........................3.50

Slaw.......................................................3

Cod curry........................................11.95

Black lemonade...................................4

Coors Light......................................3.80

Carrot cake......................................5.95

Espresso................................................2

Total................................................43.20
As you read this article it's most likely that I will be sitting in a church in Newry. It's not part of my normal Saturday routine, which normally involves a cappuccino from my favourite coffee brew bar, Finnegan & Son, tempted sometimes to sample his wife's calorific home-made donuts and then a quick dash to the bakery for the savoury and sweet treats I bring to my dad each Saturday - stopping off to pick up the most brightly coloured plants I can find for my aunt and then a gossipy catch-up with my sister who is always calculating her reward points before deciding whether to tuck into a slice of Battenberg cake.

It's a routine I have cultivated unless travel, weddings or funerals disrupt normal service. Today it's not quite a funeral. More of a farewell. No, it's actually more like closing the final pages of a book. Because today I am attending mass at St Catherine's Church, better known to the locals as 'the Dominican', to simply reflect on the passing of my mother.

It's not a requiem mass, nor is it a memorial service. No sermon will be given and there will be no funeral oration for the deceased. The church won't be filled with mourners. In fact, most people there will be strangers but mingled amongst them and the empty pews will be me, my wife, my siblings, their children and my aunt. There will also be my mother's siblings, some of her nephews and nieces, and a sprinkling of friends whose memories of a woman they once knew are fading.

We didn't get to say goodbye to our mother. We had been estranged since she walked out of our lives some 40 years ago. We didn't get a chance to say goodbye back in 1977 either, so in her final leaving she was at least consistent.

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The day she left wasn't that remarkable for anything, except the weather as it was unseasonably hot. My mother, known as Irene Hanna - back then, even if married, women were commonly referred to by their maiden names. To my childhood friends she was Mrs Kelly.

Having packaged us off for the day, my mother bagged her belongings and left without as much as a backwards glance.

Of what she left was a charm bracelet, which she obviously forgot because she wore it everywhere, a broken, cheap, gold-plated expandable bracelet watch and a pair of glass coloured rosary beads from Fatima bought by my pilgrimage-addicted grandmother.

It took a few days for it to sink in that my mother had actually left. She had left a few months before but then came back. The enormity of what had happened was not lost on me.

The sense of abandonment was acute. The world as I had known it was now changed forever. First, there was the physical change. The person who ensured you got dressed, made the dinner and who washed and ironed the clothes was not there anymore. I don't remember my mother as any kind of culinary genius.

In fact, the real memorable dinners from my childhood were those made at my granny Kelly's which were mostly made by my Aunt Rose. Still, being able to unwind the coil from the tinned chopped ham without bashing the contents to mush and turning on the grill were beyond me. We had a gas fire and oven, both of which hissed and spat flames at you when they were switched on.

A second physical change was moving house. They say that separation, moving house and death are amongst the most traumatic things one will ever experience and yet at the age of four, two-and-a-half and 13 years, my siblings and I had experienced two of these.

Our move was less traumatic than it could have been, as initially we moved in with my Aunt Rose and then to a separate house down the street. That house was also neatly positioned near my dad's other sister, aunt Margaret, so we had instant playmates in the form of our five cousins. We also had a seemingly endless series of birthday parties, all which took part in Rose's house when two large tables were put end to end and children and adults sat in order of age. Family engulfed us but, to me, Aunt Rose's was always home as it is today.

It sounds as if we had this seamless transition but it wasn't quite like that. The rule of thumb in 1977 was that a man couldn't really care for children and we were visited by a phalanx of social workers, monitoring the very beds we slept in. Even my Aunt Rose felt the pressure of their intense scrutiny. It was a very stressful time.

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My own behaviour didn't help, hurting from my mother's departure, bursting with teenager hormones, ladened with adolescent insecurities and confused feelings that I couldn't explain, I developed that sultry moody demeanour so perfected by James Dean - only with acne. I certainly tested the patience of my father but thankfully he persevered. And so did my school with some tough love.

Only recently has my aunt mentioned about her standing in the doorway of shops outside of my sister's school to shield my baby brother from the small town gossips who would point him out as that "wee mite abandoned by Irene Hanna". I guess he must have heard some of it as, for a long time, until he had his own children, I often felt he had a sadness in his eyes.

It was a struggle for my dad and Aunt Rose. Both made huge sacrifices. Rose her job. Even dad had to give up his smoking - not for health grounds - but because he simply couldn't afford it. That said, we never went without and we weren't poor in love. Three meals a day, a warm house and a supportive environment.

Meanwhile, my mother never made contact. Her next contact was to ask my father for a divorce, a full two years after she left and two years without ever enquiring about us. It wasn't until nearly 20 years later that I would discover that her divorce request was based on an unspeakable bargain.

She offered my father two choices: a quick divorce and she wouldn't contest the custody of her children or, if he made her wait five years, she would contest the custody of the children, pointing out that whilst she couldn't accommodate us then, she would insist we are put into care, residential or a foster home, until she could.

She said she knew he would never want that for his children. It wasn't Hobson's choice for my father as he always put his children first. I was shell-shocked that she actually put all of this in writing. To her dying day, I believe that Faustian bargain haunted my mother. It was irreversible.

To his credit my father visited my maternal grandmother each weekend for five years after my mother left, bringing my younger brother and sister to visit her. She was a wonderful woman who didn't understand my mother but who lavished as much attention on us as she could until she died. My mother didn't return for her funeral.

Weeks passed, then months, then years - even decades. Finally, I decided to track down my mother. It wasn't an easy decision. First of all I wanted to be honest with both my father and my aunt - after all, I owed everything to them, including being the first Kelly to attend university.

But I also wanted answers. Unfortunately, whilst my detective skills were successful, my overtures were spurned. A second attempt with the same result left me cold and rejected. I had, however, discovered that she was married and had no children. Then, out of the blue 10 years ago and 30 years after she left, my mother responded to pressure from a relative and visited Ireland to meet us.

It's not an experience I would repeat. For both parties it felt like a shotgun arrangement.

What was well intentioned turned into a calamitous and regrettable meeting. My mother arrived without any real answers to the questions that mattered most to us. We were not worried about why her marriage broke down.

Our main question was why there was no contact with us. No Christmas cards, no presents, no birthday wishes. She simply said we were better off with our father. She had missed my brother's first day at school, my sister's holy communion, my graduation, her mother's funeral, our weddings and her grandchildren's christenings. It was an unbridgeable gap without answers.

The meeting fell apart when she couldn't even remember the date of my brother's birthday.

When we left that meeting in the soulless bar of the Mourne Country Hotel, we were hollow. Our rejection was complete. We cried. But we realised that we had each other. So in one aspect, by default, she brought us closer. As for my mother, she wasn't as I had imagined or remembered. She was still glamorous though, anglicised with silvery white hair perfectly coiffured - but remote. Maybe she was always remote.

I honestly can't remember as time has dimmed my memory. The meeting should never have taken place without some degree of preparation.

Twenty-four hours notice to decide to meet or not meet framed a disastrous and doomed encounter. It can't have been easy for her, either. How do you look your children in the face and tell them that you still loved them after ignoring their lives?

That was 10 years ago. My mother made no effort to meet us again. She had again moved on. The most illuminating aspect of meeting her was to discover that she had in her mind been happily married for 29 years but never got around to telling her husband that she had three children. It's remarkable that she lived with a risk that any of us could have shown up on her doorstep at any time and shattered her alternative life. There's no explanation for her actions.

She did keep a form of ad hoc contact with me by email and text but the contents were at times bizarre including once when she contacted me to say she was holidaying in Malta for the winter and, as I was the Consul for Malta, she wanted to check I wouldn't be there! Stranger still was when she asked me last autumn to facilitate communications with her siblings but wanted no contact with her own children. She even visited Northern Ireland last year but again never countenanced meeting her children or grandchildren.

So when the call came through that she had died, I initially felt anger. And when I discovered that she knew for months that she was dying from inoperable brain tumours and yet never felt any need to meet or even to leave a letter, I felt rejected again. It was as if we never existed.

But there was sadness, too. Sadness for what she missed in our lives. Sadness that she never acknowledged, even at the end, her children. Sadness that she saw no celebration in parenthood.

Sadness that she lived a parallel life based on a lie even to those she loved, such as her second husband. He died never knowing she had children. Most of her friends in England never knew either.

Sometimes I wonder how my mother actually coped living two completely separate lives.

How she could cut off all contact with her children. Did she suffer undiagnosed postnatal depression or was she bi-polar? We will never really know the truth. She took that to her grave.

So today, in a church which played a big part in our lives as children, in a church were my mother once attended services, we are really letting go. Letting go of years of hurt, years of unrealised potential and unresolved questions.

It's not the way we would have wished. It's somewhat ironic that as children we often wanted to hide from inquisitive questioning but today we are standing in the light. Gemma Bell, aka Irene Kelly, nee Hanna, was born, lived and died. She was my birth mother. A woman whom I forgave many years ago. She was a sister and aunt, too. Today we all hope she has found the peace that eluded her in life. Ours is not to judge.

Today is about celebrating our lives as much as hers. We have much to be grateful for - not least a wonderful father and a beloved aunt who never walked away no matter how tough the going got.

Sometimes people say that dad and my Aunt Rose are extraordinary people but that's not true.

They are very ordinary people who have had to do the ordinary things that parents, step-parents, guardians do every day - the only difference is that they were extraordinarily good at doing them!
The BBC's Question Time will be held in Belfast next week.

The programme will be filmed at Titanic Belfast on Thursday, with the BBC seeking 100 people to be part of the audience.

The panel will include former Northern Ireland Secretary Theresa Villiers and Labour's Shadow Northern Ireland Secretary Owen Smith.

Show host David Dimbleby said: "I am very much looking forward to Question Time returning to Belfast.

"What really matters is that we have a lively audience who want to speak their mind.

"It's a chance for Belfast to get its voice heard, not just by politicians, but also right across the UK."

It will be the 18th time Question Time has visited Belfast - the last was in January 2016, when Ms Villiers, Peter Hain, Nigel Dodds and Declan Kearney were panellists.

People can apply to be in the audience by calling 03301239988 or visiting the show's website
Detectives have seized thousands of pounds worth of counterfeit goods from paramilitaries following a raid in Belfast

Detectives have seized thousands of pounds worth of counterfeit goods from paramilitaries following a raid in Belfast.

Officers from the PSNI's Paramilitary Crime Task Force conducted searches at two commercial premises in the Shankill Road area of west Belfast on Friday morning. No arrests were made.

Speaking after the raid, Detective Inspector White said: "The searches today are part of our ongoing operation to disrupt paramilitary activity.

"No arrests were made at this time but thousands of pounds worth of suspected counterfeit goods and fireworks were seized.

"Our enquiries are ongoing and we will continue to focus our attention on those involved in organised criminality and its links to paramilitaries.

"Anyone with any information on criminal activity can contact police on 101."
Arlene Foster is backing under-fire Prime Minister Theresa May to remain in the job and has expressed admiration for her "calmness and determination".

With rebel Tory MPs calling for Mrs May to resign following her disastrous performance at the party conference, the DUP leader last night voiced her support for the Prime Minister.

"I don't see any reason for the Prime Minister to stand down. Indeed, such a change could be destabilising at a time when we need stability to negotiate the best outcome as we leave the EU," she said.

The DUP has a confidence and supply agreement with the Tories which saw 1bn funding pledged for Northern Ireland in return for Mrs Foster's MPs backing the government in key votes.

While the DUP leader said it was "entirely a matter for each political party to select who its leader is", she made her support for Mrs May clear.

"Whilst many are discussing her conference speech, I was shocked and deeply alarmed by the clear lack of security around our nation's leader," she said.

"I could never imagine anyone getting so close to the US President and, if they did, I can't imagine then seeing such a delayed response. The Prime Minister could have been stabbed.

"I admire her calmness and determination to continue."

Mrs Foster said she "appreciated Theresa May's support on Bombardier and other issues impacting Northern Ireland" recently.

The DUP's deal with the Tories will remain even if the Prime Minister is toppled and replaced by another Cabinet colleague.

Mrs Foster said: "The confidence and supply agreement between the DUP and Conservative parliamentary parties was signed by the two chief whips to signify that it was an agreement between the two parties."

Mrs May yesterday brushed aside calls from rebel Tory MPs to stand aside, insisting she would carry on providing "calm leadership" at the head of government.

In her first public appearance since her conference speech in Manchester on Wednesday, the Prime Minister insisted she had the "full support" of her Cabinet.

MPs loyal to Mrs May predict that a backbench plot to oust her from Number 10 will "fizzle out". Former party chairman Grant Shapps was identified as the ringleader. Mr Shapps (below), who claims to have the backing of around 30 MPs, with some cabinet members privately offering support, said the demands for a challenge were growing.

He accused party whips of leaking his name to the media to "smoke out" the rebels. The plan had been for a group, including five ex-Cabinet members, to approach Mrs May privately with a list of names to avoid the "embarrassment" of a formal leadership challenge.

He told the BBC that support for a change of leader was growing among a "broad spread" of MPs including Remainers and Brexiteers.

"We realise the solution isn't to bury our heads in the sand and just hope things will get better," he said. "It never worked out for Brown or Major and I don't think it is going to work out here either." But Charles Walker, vice-chairman of the powerful Conservative backbench 1922 Committee, said the attempt to force a leadership contest lacked credibility and would fail.

Mrs May's supporters maintained the rebels lacked the 48 MPs needed to force a contest under party rules.

Arriving for a charity event in her Maidenhead constituency, the Prime Minister attempted to present a business as normal image.

"Now what the country needs is calm leadership, and that's what I am providing with the full support of my Cabinet," she said.

"Next week I am going to be updating MPs on my Florence speech, which has given real momentum to the Brexit talks, and I will also be introducing a draft Bill to cap energy prices, which will stop ordinary working families from being ripped off."

Senior ministers rallied round Mrs May, with Environment Secretary Michael Gove - who ran against her in last year's leadership contest - saying the "entirety" of the Cabinet wanted her to stay.

"She showed an amazing degree of resilience and courage this week, of a piece with the fantastic leadership she has shown through the time she has been Prime Minister," he said.

Mrs May is supported by Home Secretary Amber Rudd.

Former Northern Ireland Secretary of State Owen Paterson tweeted "Last thing country needs is a leadership contest", urging colleagues to support the Prime Minister "in delivering Brexit".
A former Northern Ireland-based Army intelligence officer whose computer was hacked has accepted substantial damages.

Ian Hurst brought proceedings at London's High Court against News Group Newspapers, publisher of the defunct News of the World, and News UK & Ireland Ltd (formerly News International Supply Company Ltd) for breach of confidence and misuse of private information.

Mr Hurst served in the Intelligence Corps and the Force Research Unit in Northern Ireland between 1980 and 1991. His main role was to recruit and run agents within republican terrorist groups to obtain intelligence.

Mr Hurst's counsel, Jeremy Reed, told Mr Justice Mann yesterday that NGN now accepted that Mr Hurst's privacy had been invaded.

He added that NGN recognised it would be impossible to determine the full extent of the wrongdoing directed at Mr Hurst and his family, but it acknowledged that, at the very least, his emails were intercepted routinely and intensively over a period of several months during 2006.

It had agreed to pay him substantial damages and his legal costs.

Anthony Hudson QC, for NGN, said it offered its "sincerest and unreserved" apologies.

"News Group Newspapers accepts that such activity happened, accepts that it should never have happened, and has undertaken to the court that it will never happen again.

"Indeed, News Group Newspapers took steps several years ago to ensure that nothing like this could happen again."

Mr Reed said the reason why Mr Hurst was initially targeted is likely to have been because a then, but now former, employee of News Group Newspapers Limited wished to locate the whereabouts of Freddie Scappaticci, the former head of the IRA Security Division.

Mr Hurst had named Mr Scappaticci in a book he co-authored as being an agent of the British government with the codename "Stakeknife".

He added that Mr Hurst regularly engaged in sensitive and confidential and in some cases, privileged, correspondence by email with a variety of people.

These included his solicitors at the time, members of the Irish republican movement, people within the security services, members of the PSNI, and former members of the Armed Forces who had infiltrated the IRA - including individuals in the police witness protection programme, resulting from their inclusion near the top of the Real IRA's hitlist.
His coffin will be taken from his home to St Patrick's Church tomorrow evening ahead of the funeral service which will be held at 10am on Monday

The family of a retired Co Tyrone vice principal who died while on holiday with his wife have paid tribute to "a man of great integrity".

Father-of-four Seamus Quinn (79), who taught at St Patrick's Academy for more than three decades, died after suffering a sudden heart attack in his hotel room on the Spanish island of Majorca last Saturday.

"He began to feel unwell after lunch and thought he would be fine after an afternoon nap, but it wasn't to be," his heartbroken daughter Eimear told the Belfast Telegraph.

The fit and active pensioner had spent the morning swimming in a quiet cove outside his hotel in the resort of Cala Sant Vicenc, a place he visited regularly with his wife Angela.

The retired midwife watched as paramedics tried to save her husband but they were unable to revive him.

"Dad was never ill and he had really been enjoying his holiday up until that point - he was always really positive. He was a very honest and trustworthy man who was known for his integrity - his pupils always said he was fair," Eimear explained.

Friends of the passionate bridge player gathered for a minute's silence at Armagh Bridge Club on Tuesday night in remembrance of the competitive player, who had won numerous trophies.

Eimear said her dad enjoyed spending most of his time entertaining his seven grandchildren when he wasn't swimming or walking.

Current principal of the Academy, Fintan Donnelly, said the tragic passing of the former teacher had upset everyone at the school.

Mr Quinn began his teaching career at St Patrick's College in Banbridge in 1960 before moving to the Boys' Academy, Dungannon in 1965.

He taught there as a history teacher and for much of his career he also taught A-level economics.

He was appointed vice principal in 1973, a position he held until he retired in 1997.

"Seamus was a superb administrator who introduced many far-sighted curricular reforms in his role as vice principal," said Mr Donnelly.

"He worked to the highest professional standards and he brought order and innovation to every task but most importantly, he is remembered as a committed and compassionate teacher who made a difference for generations of pupils and as a supportive colleague to the many staff who had the privilege of working with him."

Parish priest of St Patrick's Church, Fr Kevin Donaghy, described the regular church-goer as "extraordinarily generous with his talents" and said he will be missed by many in the local community.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has been providing consular assistance to the Quinn family and the remains are due to return to Northern Ireland this evening.

His coffin will be taken from his home to St Patrick's Church tomorrow evening ahead of the funeral service which will be held at 10am on Monday.
Twelve eateries across Northern Ireland have been ear-marked as "must-visits" in a blog on a leading travel website.

Ranging from beachside locations to breweries and markets, the restaurants have been hand-picked by a blogger on Expedia.

The north coast appears to have made the biggest impact, boasting no fewer than four of the recommended 12 venues.

They include Tartine at the Distillers Arms in Bushmills for its award-winning dishes and impressive wine list. It is set to take part in the Causeway Coast and Glens Restaurant Week from November 11 to 19, which will feature theme nights, food tours and the very best of local produce.

Portstewart gets two picks - Amici in the town centre, for its Italian offering including a delicious seafood linguine and a selection of fresh homemade wood-fired pizzas, as well as the picturesquely set Harry's Shack on Portstewart Strand, which boasts fresh fish caught by local fishermen on a daily basis.

In nearby Portrush, Neptune & Prawn in the Ramore restaurant complex also gets a shout-out for its views across the sea as well and its fantastic tapas.

Belfast is ably represented, with Holohan's at the Barge recommended for its home-grown produce and recipes including 'Boxty. St George's Market also gets a noteworthy mention for its stunning old exterior as well as the variety of food stalls that it offers.

In Londonderry, the Walled City Brewery was singled out as a "perfect place to lay low after a fun-filled day with its comfort food and vast array of beers".

South Down also caught the eye of the blog, with the Maghera Inn nestled among the Mourne Mountains described as an "ideal location to refuel after an autumn or winter walk", with the premises including a cosy pub and a restaurant with an a la carte menu.

In nearby Warrenpoint, Restaurant 23 was recommended for its views across Carlingford Lough and "eclectic food menu, which includes a slow-cooked (24 hour-long) Dry Age Beef from Dromara (with all the trimmings) and coastal seafood chowder".

And moving around the famous Co Down mountain range, Vanilla in Newcastle gets a mention for its new tapas bar upstairs.

Elsewhere, the recommendations included the "tasty and diverse menu" at the Moody Boar at Palace Stables in Armagh and, moving west, Catalina at the Lough Erne Resort, Co Fermanagh - Northern Ireland's first three AA Rosette hotel restaurant overlooking Castle Hume Lough - is also mentioned.

Visit blog.expedia.ie for more information on foodie locations to visit across Ireland
People with Huntington's disease in Northern Ireland face a postcode lottery when trying to access specialist care.

Some 118 people in the province live with the incurable hereditary condition.

However, only patients resident in two health trust areas - both of which cover greater Belfast - have access to Northern Ireland's only specialist nurse, according to The Detail website.

Sorcha McGuinness, chief executive of the Huntington's Disease Association Northern Ireland, said people in the advanced stages of the condition usually required 24-hour care.

Speaking to The Detail, Ms McGuinness added: "They won't be able to move or speak. Some people won't be able to swallow, so they'll be reliant on tube feeding. It's a very devastating disease."

Huntington's disease is an incurable brain condition. Patients have a life expectancy of 15 to 20 years after diagnosis.

The specialist nurse acts as a link for patients to use mental health and neurology services, GPs, social services, occupational therapy and speech and language, and also provides medical training to professionals involved in caring for people affected by the disease.

The nurse also reviews the medication a patient may have to take and advises GPs and pharmacists on their treatment.

According to The Detail, South Eastern Huntington's disease patients are referred to the Belfast Trust's specialist nurse, and the cost is covered by the Health and Social Care Board (HSCB).

However, patients living in the Western, Northern and Southern Health Trust areas have no access to a specialist nurse.

Father-of-two Mickey McNulty, from Gortin outside Omagh, inherited the disease from his late mother.

He said: "There is a nurse in the Belfast Trust and I don't think it's really fair that if you live west of the Bann you can't get the same facilities as everybody else.

"A nurse in the west would be of great benefit. It would give patients someone they could go to for medical advice who knows what they are going through."

Laura Clark (23), from Londonderry, is waiting to get tested for the disease, which her father has. She said: "I've got ready to hear 'You are all clear', but I'm not ready to hear 'You're not and you have Huntington's'."

Ms McGuinness insisted families were being "put at risk" because of inequalities in care.

"It's completely unacceptable that some patients haven't got access to treatment simply because of where they live," she said. "Everybody should have equal access to services.

"Even in the Belfast and South Eastern Trust, where services exist, there's a lot more that could be done."

The Northern, Southern and Western Trusts said they did not have a specialist nurse and had no plans to recruit one.

They added patients had access to local neurology services and could be referred to the Regional Genetics Centre in Belfast, which provides testing and counselling services.

The Northern Ireland Needs Assessment: Huntington's Disease, a report published in autumn of 2007, identified an urgent need for five co-ordinators in Northern Ireland.

The Department of Health and the HSCB said work was ongoing to improve care for patients with neurological conditions including Huntington's disease.

A spokesperson added: "The HSCB and the Public Health Agency have met recently with the Huntington's Disease Association Northern Ireland and will continue to engage with them over the coming months in relation to addressing these concerns through the modernisation of neurology services."
James Anthony Kennedy on his way to court

A man has denied breaking into a church and defecating on Bible pages.

James Anthony Kennedy was arrested on Wednesday on charges linked to the burglary of a Church of Ireland property in Londonderry last month.

Kennedy (22), a restaurant worker from Glenside Park in Derry, was reported to police by his mother after she identified him on CCTV images of two suspects made public by the PSNI, the city's magistrates court heard yesterday.

Mr Kennedy has no criminal record.

He is charged with "entering as a trespasser Christ Church at Infirmary Road and stealing a priceless crystal decanter, a reader's robe, an organist's surplice and communion wine".

He is also charged with causing criminal damage to a stained glass window, to a church organ and Bible and to the church boiler room.

The defendant denies committing the offences on September 12.

A detective constable told District Judge Barney McElholm that the total amount of damage caused to the church building and its contents was between 75,000 and 100,000 - but that amount excluded the damage caused to the church organ.

The officer said the burglary was reported to the police at 4.45pm on September 12 by the Archdeacon.

She said someone had defecated on the floor of the boiler room and entry to the church had been gained by smashing a stain glass window with a fire extinguisher.

Inside police found criminal damage caused to several church items which had been donated by the families of now deceased congregation members.

"In the church boiler room the police found pages which had been ripped from the church Bible. It contained fecal matter which had also been smeared on the organ and pipes. The bottle containing the communion wine had been shattered," she said.

The police witness said that CCTV footage from cameras in the nearby Brooke Park showed two men climbing over the church fence, leaving the building two and a half hours later and returning to the building one hour after they had left.

"We had no positive suspects until Wednesday of this week when stills of the CCTV were made public by the police," she added.

"We later received a phone call from the defendant's mother who said she had recognised her son on one of the images and she brought him to Strand Road Police Station."

The defendant denied being inside the church building but admitted being inside the church grounds.

The officer said when he was shown the CCTV images the defendant said: "It looks like me", but he later added: "I was not in the church."

She said when asked if the offences were motivated by sectarian or hate reasons, the defendant replied "no comment".

She said DNA seized from inside the church and boiler room had yet to be forensically analysed.

Applying for bail, defence solicitor Paddy McGurk said the defendant, who attended the police station voluntarily, denied absolutely any involvement in the offences.

"He has expressed his revulsion at the acts carried out," Mr McGurk said.

"He is absolutely horrified as is his family. There is nothing in his background of a sectarian nature.

"His mother is married to a man of a Protestant faith and he has many friends of the Protestant religion. He wants to express to the court his absolute horror at what happened."

Mr McGurk said it could take many months for the forensic investigations to be completed.

The District Judge said while there was evidence which placed the defendant in the immediate vicinity of the church, there was none to place him inside the church.

"It all depends on the forensic evidence as to whether or not he can be placed in the church," he said.

The defendant was released on his own bail of 500 together with a surety of 750 to appear in court again on November 2.

His bail conditions include not being within 200 metres of either Christ Church or Brooke Park.
A Northern Ireland-born Labour MP has demanded new legal protections for the Good Friday Agreement as the UK leaves the European Union.

Conor McGinn chairs the parliamentary group representing Irish people in Great Britain.

The MP for St Helens North said the legislation taking the UK out of the EU must be changed to safeguard the peace deal.

His amendment calls for an explicit commitment to freedom of trade and movement on the island of Ireland, upholding power-sharing and the principle of consent in relation to Northern Irelands future.

Other demands include protection of the status of the Irish language, as set out in the Good Friday Agreement, as well as maintaining the rights of Irish citizens living in Great Britain.

As the UK leaves the European Union, Parliament has a duty to uphold the Good Friday Agreement and the peace process in Northern Ireland, said Mr McGinn (left).

Thats why I am calling for the maintenance of the Good Friday Agreement  and all of its provisions and institutions  to be enshrined in law through my amendments to the EU (Withdrawal) Bill.

We must act to safeguard the progress made by protecting the Good Friday Agreement and enshrining it on the statute book as we leave the EU.
School pupils who returned the pet cat of a widow with dementia have been praised for their quick thinking.

Marley the grey tabby was a gift to Greta Taylor (83) six years ago, shortly after the death of her husband James.

Having been a great comfort for her health, Greta, from Londonderry, was soon hospitalised after Marley went missing on September 4.

Luckily, four eagle-eyed pupils - Sam Gibson (13), Jack Boyd (13), Amir Bounaja (12) and Jack Mulligan (12) - from Lisneal College spotted the starving pet two weeks later, returning him to the overjoyed Greta.

Now, the friends have been thanked by the family and treated to a free trip to McDonald's from their headmaster.

Speaking yesterday, Mrs Taylor's daughter Julie said she couldn't thank the boys enough.

"After losing my dad and the dementia diagnosis, Marley was really such a key figure to keep mum's brain active," she said.

"That was really the thing that kept her going, when Marley went missing there was a big change in her behaviour which left her chair bound. Telling her Marley was missing was very negative for her. That in turn affected the arthritis in her knee and she ended up in hospital."

Julie said the family offered the Lisneal students money and sweets as a reward but they turned it down.

"They were just chuffed they did something good," she added. "It just shows the good that posters for missing pets can do and we can't thank them enough."

Yesterday, Lisneal principal Michael Allen praised his "cat rescue heroes" for their kind act which had left Mrs Taylor feeling "over the moon."

Recalling the rescue, Sam said: "We were just coming back from the town when we spotted him.

"I think he got a bit scared of us and he ran away at first, but the lady was really happy to get him back."

"It's great," added Jack Boyd.

"When Sam saw the cat, Amir and the other Jack ran down and got the poster, I was the one with a phone who called her daughter. She was really happy and came down right away."

Mrs Taylor's other daughter Annette said the happy ending had restored the family's "faith in teenagers".

"My mum has met them and personally thanked them - she told them that they are her new heroes," she said.

The pensioner's health deteriorated rapidly after her "miracle lifeline" vanished last month.

But the unexpected homecoming is now giving the 83-year-old the motivation she needs to get back on her feet.

"He was like a gift from God - he kept her active and gave her a routine, which is important when you are on your own," Annette previously told the Belfast Telegraph.

Marley has proved himself to be an important figure in Mrs Taylor's life after he was rescued by the wife of the late broadcaster Gerry Anderson six years ago.

Christine Anderson handed the stricken kitty over to Mrs Taylor's family, who credit him with halting the progression of Greta's illness.

The relieved family have already noticed a remarkable turn-around in Greta since Marley was found.
The UK Government has been accused of impotence after the US upped a proposed import levy on products made by one of Northern Ireland's largest employers to 300%.

Unite union assistant general secretary Steve Turner accused the UK of "a betrayal of its responsibility" to workers during the dispute between American aerospace giant Boeing and Bombardier.

Canadian-owned multinational Bombardier, which employs more than 4,000 people in Belfast, has been hit by a proposed 80% levy on exports to its southern neighbour, the US Department of Commerce has confirmed.

This comes on top of a planned 220% tariff on its aircraft previously announced in a row over state aid.

Mr Turner said: "This latest threat of additional tariffs by the US government, raising to 300% the tariffs imposed so far, highlights an impotence on behalf of a UK Government whose ministers through their inaction appear happy to put Trump's 'America first' policy ahead of UK manufacturing jobs.

"Ministers sat in Westminster cannot shrug off the Bombardier crisis as a trade spat between Canada and the US. This directly affects tens of thousands of jobs across the UK."

Bombardier is due to begin delivering a blockbuster order for up to 125 new jets to Atlanta-based Delta Airlines next year.

The wings for the new aircraft are made at Bombardier's plant in the DUP stronghold of East Belfast.

Prime Minister Theresa May had lobbied President Donald Trump over the dispute sparked by complaints from rival Boeing that Bombardier received unfair state subsidies from the UK and Canada, allowing the sale of airliners at below cost prices in the US.

The subsidy row arose after Northern Ireland's powersharing administration and the UK Government pledged to invest almost 135 million in the establishment of the C-Series manufacturing site in Belfast.

The programme also received a billion US dollars from the Canadian provincial government in Quebec in 2015 when its fortunes appeared to be ailing.

Boeing's complaint said it was seeking a "level playing field" for global competitors.

Mr Turner accused Boeing of "a clear attempt to use its corporate power in a worryingly protectionist United States to put a legitimate competitor out of business".

He added: "Ministers have a duty to defend jobs and future manufacturing in Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK by demanding Boeing attends an urgent summit involving Prime Minister Theresa May and the Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau alongside the unions representing our workforce and withdraws its unwarranted claims.

"A failure to do so must lead to similar tariffs and sanctions on Boeing's current and future work on behalf of the UK Government and across the EU to protect our wider aviation sector from further protectionist assault in what could quickly become a trade war with an increasingly protectionist US regime."

Liberal Democrat leader and former business secretary Sir Vince Cable said the row was a "blow" to Mrs May's hopes of a good trade deal with the US after Brexit.

"It is a fantasy that the UK can promote free trade in partnership with a US government which believes in economic nationalism," Sir Vince said.

"The Government must now get out there and fight for the UK's manufacturing jobs."
Former Taoiseach Liam Cosgrave left Ireland a better place, one of his closest friends told his funeral.

Mr Cosgrave was leader of the Republic's Government during some of the most turbulent years of the Northern Ireland conflict and has been described as a courageous voice against terrorism.

In his public life, the late statesman was a figure of great integrity and a true patriot, Monsignor John Wilson told mourners.

He said: "Liam left our country a better place as a result of his life and his life's work."

Mr Cosgrave died on Wednesday aged 97.

His son Liam said: "Affection, kindness, love and loyalty dad gave to us in abundance."

Current premier Leo Varadkar and his predecessors Enda Kenny and Bertie Ahern were among those who attended the simple service at the Church of the Annunciation in Rathfarnham in south Dublin on Saturday.

Ten military policemen had carried his remains into the church in the middle-class surroundings near where he built his political power base as part of a dynasty stretching back to the state's foundation.

Born in 1920, the Dubliner had a 40-year political career and was part of the government which saw Ireland become a Republic in 1949.

He also oversaw Ireland joining the United Nations, addressed the US Congress in 1976 and signed the Sunningdale Agreement in Northern Ireland which led to a short-lived powersharing executive in Belfast in 1972.

Attendees represented the establishment worlds of politics, the judiciary and security forces, befitting of a man dubbed the law and order Taoiseach.

His son said: "I would like to acknowledge the great support given by members of An Garda Siochana down the years to the Cosgrave family and to dad in particular.

"He was a great supporter of theirs, and they returned it tenfold.

"My father had a great affinity for the Army and it is great to see them here with him to the very end."

Others present included former Irish premiers John Bruton and Brian Cowen, European agriculture commissioner Phil Hogan and chief justice Frank Clarke. President Michael D Higgins was represented.

It was a relatively low-key and private funeral, with few of the trappings associated with similar state occasions. The hearse carried no flowers, and there was little sign of public grief.

Mr Cosgrave said his father eschewed eulogies and he would not do anything to upset him.

He took great interest in the welfare of his grandchildren Barry and William.

His son added: "One of the last things to bring a smile to his lips was being told last Monday that William had passed his driving test at the first attempt, albeit by a short head."

Mr Cosgrave was a devout Catholic, and family friend of 50 years Monsignor Wilson presided over the service.

He said: "Liam Cosgrave loved his family, he loved his country, he loved his faith.

"He was a patriot in the very best sense of that term."

He said he had great humility.

"Integrity was the hallmark of his private life and his public life."

Mr Cosgrave was buried in Goldenbridge Cemetery, Inchicore, beside his father WT Cosgrave, a key figure in the foundation of the Irish Free State and an officer in the 1916 Rising.

His wife Vera died last year.

He was Taoiseach from 1973-77. He was at the head of government on the worst day of atrocities in the Troubles - the Dublin-Monaghan bombings on May 17 1974 when loyalists killed 33 people, including a pregnant woman at full term.
Young girls in Northern Ireland are 13 times more likely than boys to call ChildLine for concerns about their appearance and weight - with one 12-year-old telling the service "she didn't like herself".

Figures released by the NSPCC revealed that among the reasons cited by the young people struggling with self-esteem issues were "body-perfect" images on TV, magazines and social media.

In 2016/17 there was a total of 54 counselling sessions delivered to young people with body image issues across the region.

Of those cases, 40 were with girls, three were with boys and in 11 cases the child's gender wasn't known.

In total, 2,609 counselling sessions were delivered across the UK to young people with body image problems, with 980 of these given to 12 to 15-year-old girls.

A further 120 counselling sessions were delivered to girls aged 11 and under.

A number of young people in Northern Ireland who were counselled by ChildLine about how they look also revealed that they were struggling with depression and eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia.

These issues were heightened when the individual also suffered bullying at school and online -and in some cases victims were driven to try and change the way they looked.

One 12-year-old girl told ChildLine: "I'm feeling really sad and I don't like myself. I keep comparing myself to pictures of people in magazines and people on TV and I wish I looked like them. I don't want to talk to people about this because I don't want to worry them."

Another girl aged between 16 and 18 said: "I feel so embarrassed about the way I look. I hate my body. When I'm with my friends I always feel like the fat one. I can't dress like my friends because it makes me feel fat and ugly. I'm too embarrassed to tell anybody how I'm feeling and it's making me really lonely."

Mairead Monds, ChildLine manager for Northern Ireland, said: "Our ChildLine counsellors in Belfast and Foyle talk to dozens of young people from across the UK every week about anxieties surrounding their appearance. Last year ChildLine delivered 54 counselling sessions to young people from Northern Ireland on this issue.

"Young people - especially girls - are telling us that they feel extreme pressure to have the perfect body and looks that conform with people they see on social media, TV and magazines.

"Our counsellors find young people often struggle to find anything positive to say about their skills, achievements or appearance.

"ChildLine and the NSPCC are working hard to help children growing up today to overcome society's unhealthy obsession with appearance and feel happy, secure and confident."

ChildLine founder Dame Esther Rantzen added: "ChildLine will continue to provide vital support for young people to ensure those on a journey of self-acceptance never feel alone. "

Any adult concerned about the welfare of a child or young person can call the NSPCC helpline for free, 24/7, on 0808 800 5000.

Children can call ChildLine at any time on 0800 111, visit www.childline.org.uk or download the For Me app
A search has been launched for relatives of a soldier awarded the Victoria Cross for bravery during the Battle of Passchendaele in the First World War.

Officials hope to have family members present at a ceremony to honour Robert Shankland, which will take place in Ayr on October 26, 100 years after his heroic acts.

Mr Shankland was born on October 10, 1887 at 6 Gordon Terrace in the South Ayrshire town but emigrated to Canada in 1911.

At the outbreak of the First World War he returned to Europe with the 43rd Battalion (Cameron Highlanders of Canada) of the Canadian Expeditionary Force.

On October 26, 1917, in the Battle of Passchendaele, the 43rd Battalion attacked Bellevue Spur, where concrete strongpoints bristling with machine guns had repelled all previous assaults.

Lieutenant Shankland braved enemy lines to take new information back to command, before returning and helping to capture Bellevue Spur.

For his actions that day he was awarded the Victoria Cross, with the citation stating that his courage and example "undoubtedly saved a critical situation".

Commemorative paving stones are being laid across the UK to honour the 628 Victoria Crosses awarded during the conflict as part of a national programme to mark the centenary of the First World War.

South Ayrshire Provost Helen Moonie said that despite an extensive search, no surviving family members had been found.

She said: "We're preparing a permanent memorial to mark Robert's valour in the Battle of Passchendaele, and we'd dearly love to have family members present at the ceremony.

"Robert was born and raised in Ayr, while his wife Anna Stobo Haining came from Prestwick. Although he spent most of his life in Canada, Robert had a lifelong connection with his hometown and was awarded the Freedom of the Burgh of Ayr in 1917.

"I'd urge anyone with a personal connection to the Shankland family to get in touch to help add a family connection, as we remember a powerful story that will soon be set in stone in his home community for generations to come."

The stone will be laid at the First World War Rozelle Remembrance Woodland at Rozelle House and will be set in a tree trunk to help it blend in with other sculptures which are already there.

After the war Mr Shankland married Anna Stobo Haining, a daughter of the stationmaster at Prestwick Railway Station, and the couple emigrated to Canada.

His last visit to Ayr was in 1964 when local press coverage noted that in addition to two sons he now had a grandson.

Mr Shankland held managerial posts with several Winnipeg firms, and died at the age of 80 on January 20, 1968, in Vancouver.

Anyone who thinks they may have a family connection is asked to contact the Civic Office at South Ayrshire Council on 01292 612 474 or email provost@south-ayrshire.gov.uk
A woman has been arrested for trying to scale the front gates of Buckingham Palace (John Walton/EMPICS)

A woman has been arrested after attempting to scale the front gates of Buckingham Palace, Scotland Yard said.

The woman, believed to be in her 30s, was held by officers outside the Queens official London residence at around 5.40pm on Saturday.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said the incident was not being treated as terror-related.

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Video posted on social media showed a woman being physically restrained on the gilded fence outside the palace by two police officers in front of stunned tourists.

She was then led away, shouting, to a waiting police car.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: The woman, believed to be in in her 30s, was quickly detained by officers before she gained access to the palace grounds.

She was arrested on suspicion of trespass under Section 128 of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005, trespass on a designated site and is currently in custody at a central London police station.

The incident is not being treated as terrorist-related.
One text message referred to shooting people at a concert, as happened at the Balaclan in Paris

Police stopped an international terror plot to cause bloodshed at New York City concert venues, subway stations and Times Square, officers said.

One of the defendants, Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy, was arrested after travelling from Canada to New Jersey in May 2016 to stage the attacks, according to police.

The capture of the Canadian citizen came after an investigation using an undercover FBI officer posing as an Islamic extremist that also led to the arrests last year of US citizen Talha Haroon in Pakistan and Russell Salic in the Philippines, where he is a citizen.

According to court papers, El Bahnasawy, 19, sent the undercover officer an image of Times Square with a smartphone message saying, "We seriously need to car bomb times square. Look at these crowds of people!"

In another, he expressed a desire to "shoot up concerts cuz they kill a lot people. ... We just walk in with guns in our hands. That's how Paris guys did it," the papers said, in an apparent reference to the slaughter by men armed with weapons at the Bataclan concert hall in Paris in 2015.

The undercover officer and El Bahnasawy also were in communication with the 19-year-old Haroon, who wanted to join El Bahnasawy in New York City for the attacks, authorities said.

Haroon, who at one point met with an explosives expert in Pakistan for information on building bombs, told the undercover officer the subway was a "perfect" place to shoot passengers, and that "when we run out of bullets we let the vests go off," court papers said.

After Haroon talked about what was needed to build explosives, El Bahnasawy bought 40 pounds of hydrogen peroxide, batteries, Christmas lights, thermometers and other ingredients commonly used in homemade bombs.

He later shipped the material to the undercover officer in the United States, where he and Haroon planned to use a cabin in a rural area within driving distance of the city to build bombs and take target practice, authorities said.

Salic, 37, was accused of sending money to help fund the attacks, court papers said.

He told the undercover officer his ultimate goal was to join the Islamic State group in Syria but that "it would be a great pleasure if we can slaughter" people in New York, the papers said.

El Bahnasawy pleaded guilty in October 2016, but the case remained unreported while the investigation continued.

His lawyer, Sabrina Shroff, declined to comment on Friday, while Haroon and Salic were awaiting extradition.

All three men face possible life sentences on charges including conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction and conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said it assisted the FBI in the investigation.

"At no time was the safety or security of the public at risk," it said.

AP
The Anadolu news agency said a tourist bus had tipped over after hitting a palm tree on a traffic island

Three German tourists have been killed in a bus accident at a popular tourist destination, according to Turkey's official news agency.

The Anadolu news agency said a tourist bus had tipped over after hitting a palm tree on a traffic island in the southern Antalya province on Saturday.

Ten German passengers were injured, including a child, with one of the injured in a critical condition.

It also said the Turkish driver was detained.

Antalya is a Turkish beach holiday destination on the Mediterranean coast.

AP
Buddhists at the International Buddhist Monastery in Dhaka pray for Rohingya during Probarona Purnima, normally a festive event, Oct. 5, 2017.

Bangladeshs Buddhist minority this week cut back on colorful traditions that mark Probarona Purnima (Full Moon Night)  the communitys second-biggest religious festival  as a show of sympathy for hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslim refugees sheltering in their country.

The celebrations usually feature revelers lighting and unleashing countless balloon-like fanush (sky lanterns) into the air and launching a token ship of imagination, but Thursday nights Probarona festivities in majority-Muslim Bangladesh were more subdued.

Local Buddhists said they were mindful of the plight of one-half million Rohingya who fled to southeastern Bangladesh in the past five weeks while escaping from an explosion of violence in Rakhine, their home state in Buddhist-majority Myanmar, which does not recognize them as citizens.

Releasing sky lanterns on Probarona Purnima is a part of our religious rite. To protest the torture by Myanmar security forces on Rohingya Muslims, we have dropped all gorgeous festivities from this years celebration, Asim Ranjan Barua, president of Bangladesh Buddhist Federation, told BenarNews.

We have shortened this years celebration to express sympathy for the Rohingya, he said.

In southeastern Chittagong, Bangladeshs second largest city, Buddhist youths released a few sky lanterns on Thursday night.

Buddhists from across the country would also donate money for the Rohingya refugees, Barua said.

I, as a Buddhist, feel ashamed about the torture that the security forces and the vigilante Buddhists have been perpetrating on the Rohingya Muslims in the Rakhine state, he added. Buddhism is the religion of non-violence. The inferno that has taken place there (Rakhine) can never be acceptable.

He said Buddhists in Bangladesh maintained no ties with those in Myanmar.

Hundreds of thousands of people have been persecuted in our neighboring land. How can we celebrate with festivities? said Proggananda Bhikshu, an assistant director of Ramu Central Buddhist Monastery in Ramu, a sub-district of Coxs Bazar, the area that has borne the brunt of Rohingya refugee arrivals from neighboring Rakhine over the years.

We have finished this years Probarona Purnima with some simple religious rites. The local administration has assured us it would extend support to celebrate our festival, but we willingly refrained from celebrating, he told BenarNews.

The Myanmar military has oppressed the Rohingya for years, but this years violence in Rakhine was unprecedented, in Bhikshus view.

The refugee crisis began when the Myanmar security launched a crackdown in Rakhine following attacks on police outposts by Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) militants on Aug. 25. Since the violence broke out, widespread reports have emerged of the Myanmar military and Buddhist militia allegedly targeting Rohingya civilians in killings, rapes and the burning of Rohingya villages.

Myanmar authorities have denied the allegations and blamed the violence on ARSA, saying the militants have also carried out atrocities against members of Rakhines Hindu minority.

What has been happening in Rakhine is state-sponsored, Bhikshu said.

Buddhists launch fanush (sky lanterns) in Chittagong city to mark Probarona Purnima, Oct. 5, 2017. [Newsroom Photo]

Calls for arming the Rohingya

A Bangladeshi Islamic scholar welcomed the display of Buddhist compassion for the Rohingya.

This sacrifice of the Buddhist community proves that Bangladesh is a country of religious harmony, Mufti Enayetullah told BenarNews.

On Friday, however, thousands of members of a conservative Muslim group, Hefazat-e-Islam, held a protest rally in Chittagong. They denounced de facto Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi and called on their government to put diplomatic pressure on Myanmar to end violence against Rohingya, as well as arm the Rohingya so they could defend themselves.

Millions of people will stand with the government if they declare jihad against Myanmar, if the genocide continues, Hefazat Secretary General Junaid Babunagari told rally goers.

We have also asked the government to train and arm the Rohingya so that they can liberate their homeland, Hefazat spokesman Azizul Hoque Islamabad told Agence France-Presse.

Human rights reactions

Meanwhile, human rights and refugee advocacy groups kept the pressure on Myanmar.

Washington-based Refugees International issued a report, Bearing Witness to Crimes Against Humanity, which recommended that the U.N. demand an end to abuses against the Rohingya and impose an arms embargo and sanctions on Myanmar.

The current crisis that began just over a month ago is of an entirely new scale and level of inhumanity, the group said in a statement accompanying its report.

[M]any people from other ethnic groups, including Rakhine Buddhists and Hindus have been displaced and killed as well, reportedly in attacks by Rohingya insurgents, but the attacks on other groups has been nowhere on the scale of the attacks on the Rohingya, it added.

Elsewhere, Amnesty International issued a letter to members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN) calling on them to take urgent steps to resolve the human rights crisis.

ASEAN is failing to take a stand as one of its member states carries out a violent campaign of ethnic cleansing, said James Gomez, Amnesty Internationals director for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, in a news release.

Governments in the region must uphold the commitments to human rights enshrined in the ASEAN Charter, commitments which Myanmars military is showing clear contempt for as they perpetrate crimes against humanity against the Rohingya.

UN Fears Fresh Exodus

On Friday, the United Nations was bracing for a possible further exodus of Rohingya from Myanmar, a U.N. humanitarian aid official said. About 515,000 Rohingya have arrived in Bangladesh from Rakhine since the last week of August, in what the U.N. has called the worlds fastest-developing refugee emergency.

This flow out of Myanmar has not stopped yet, its into the hundreds of thousands of Rohingya (who are) still in Myanmar, we want to be ready in case there is a further exodus, Mark Lowcock, U.N. under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, told a news briefing in Geneva.

Half a million people do not pick up sticks and flee their country on a whim.

An estimated 2,000 Rohingya arrive in Bangladesh every day, Joel Millman of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) told a separate briefing.

Aid agencies have warned of a malnutrition crisis with about 281,000 people in Bangladesh in urgent need of food, including 145,000 children younger than 5 and more than 50,000 pregnant and breastfeeding women.
Malaysian wildlife authorities are considering tougher laws after villages found the skeletal remains of about 100 green turtles strewn on small islands near Bum Bum Island in Sabah.

Authorities in Malaysias Sabah state said Friday they would press for tougher wildlife laws to battle armed poachers after photos of carcasses of green turtles and Bornean Pygmy elephants were posted online and caught the attention of conservationists.

Sabah, on Borneo island, borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak and Indonesias Kalimantan province. It is also home to many endemic wildlife species, such as orangutan and rhinoceros.

Last month, villagers said they discovered the skeletal remains of about 100 green turtles scattered on the beaches on Bum-Bum Island near Semporna, a small town in Sabah. Residents also found two decomposed adult Bornean Pygmy elephants in different locations.

Masidi Manjun, Sabahs environment and tourism minister, said his department was considering amending the Wildlife Conservation Enactment 1997, a regional law that aims to protect endangered species in Sabah by imposing severe penalties on poachers.

The amendment would give wildlife laws more bite by changing the way cases play out in court and placing the burden of proof on the accused to present evidence proving ones innocence.

With the amendment, it means the accused will have to prove he didnt kill it [the endangered wildlife animal] because at this point of time, the prosecutors have to come up with evidence to prove a person is guilty and this is not easy, Masidi told reporters.

Sabahs Forestry Department said poaching in the state had reached pandemic proportions and armed poachers encountered at checkpoints were often masked and willing and able to inflict harm on forestry guards.

Although Forestry Department staff are armed, this is purely for self-protection and they are reluctant to use their licensed firearms against the poachers, the department said in a statement posted on the homepage of its website. Besides that, it is to avoid a firefight with the poachers which may result in an ugly scene.

The seriousness of this menace needs a concerted effort in unison, starting with the prosecution of the known and big-time perpetrators, the statement said.

Authorities have arrested and detained at least three people on suspicion of involvement in the multiple slaughter of protected turtles. Officials said poachers would often remove the turtle meat, eggs and soft under shell before leaving the bones and hard-top shell.

Two Indonesian men have also been detained to assist authorities in the killings of the two elephants, officials said.

Endangered and protected

Green turtles and Pygmy elephants are endangered and protected, according to WWF Malaysia, an environmental conservation organization.

The Pygmy elephants are about 2.5 meters (8.2 feet) tall with shorter trunks. They are mostly found in the northeast corner of Sabah.

A wildlife conservationist told BenarNews that during the last three years, 41 Bornean Pygmy elephants had died in Sabah.

Of these numbers, only nine deaths were due to natural causes, the source said. The others were illegally killed  either shot dead or poisoned.

The Pygmy elephants population has dwindled to an estimated 1,300 to 1,500, down from more than 2,000 five years ago, according to Nurzafarina Othman, a conservation officer with the research and training facility Danau Girang Field Center.

Rapid shrinkage of forest cover and large-scale encroachment on elephant corridors are the main factors behind this escalating problem, she told BenarNews.

Rising ivory prices could be the culprit, she said.

The black-market price of ivory has skyrocketed from $300 to $1,500 per kilogram in a span of five years, an expert on current prices, who declined to be named, told BenarNews.

Sabah, which has more than 3.5 million residents, has a land area of about 72,500 square km (28,000 square miles). Riddled with wildlife and environmental protection issues, state assembly members unanimously supported a bill allowing several amendments to the 1997 wildlife law.

The new amendments, which took effect in July 2016, have doubled fines from 50,000 ringgit to 100,000 ringgit (U.S. $12,000 to $24,000) and mandatory imprisonment of six months to five years for poaching.

Most abundant species

The endangered green turtle (Penyu Agar to the locals) is the most abundant species in Malaysia. The turtle is either a black-brown or greenish yellow, but is called as such because of the greenish color of its cartilage and fat deposits

In August, Malaysian Customs officers in Sabah seized two containers with ivory and pangolin scales bound for shipment to China. Officials found 1,148 pieces of elephant tusks, as well as five tons of pangolin scales hidden in sacks of ground nuts.

Wildlife officials said villagers found this badly decomposed pygmy elephant at the Kinabatangan River in Sabah, Sept. 29, 2017. [Courtesy of Sabah Wildlife Department]
Election Day has come and gone with little drama, locally. The area voted as expected, most local leaders kept their seats and will continue to serve. Read moreElection Day: No big surprises
Orlando Guadalupe Jose Ephron Villanueva de Macias, also known as Chris, pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter.

The scene took place in Pine Ridge.

According to the factual basis statement, De Macias said he got into a verbal argument with Colhoff and said they both were armed with weapons. De Macias said that he tried to walk away when Colhoff continued to follow him with a knife. He said that's when he shot her four times with a hand gun and fled the scene. Colhoff died as a result of her gunshot injuries. Voluntary Manslaughter carries a maximum sentence of fifteen years in prison and or a 250,000 fine.
Award-winning documentary filmmaker and fine-art photographer Miguel Gandert shows his work highlighting his mestizaje heritage, and the fusion and tension of the relationship between Spanish Colonial and Native Cultures of the Americas. Runs through 12/29.

Querer means to want, to desire, to be in a place, with its people. In folk terminology, querencia is such a place, the center space of desire, the root of belonging and yearning to belong, that vicinity where you first beheld the light. Querencia, in collective terms, is homeland. ~Enrique Lamadrid, Nuevo Mexico Profundo

Miguel Gandert tells stories. He tells stories of his homeland, New Mexico (and beyond), its people and the cultural practices that distinguish communities from each other while simultaneously revealing their kinship. You will have to form your own words, however. Ganderts stories are told through penetrating, black and white photos. A primary focus of his work is his own mestizaje heritage and the fusion and tension of the relationship between Spanish Colonial and Native Cultures of the Americas.

Miguel Gandert, a native of Espanola, NM, is an award-winning documentary and fine-art photographer and filmmaker. His photographs have been shown in galleries and museums throughout the world and are in numerous public collections including the Smithsonian Museum of American Art, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and the National Museum of American History and Art at the Smithsonian.

Querencia: Rituals of the Rio Arriba opens Friday, October 6 at the New Mexico Humanities Council, 4115 Silver Ave SE, Albuquerque. An artists reception will be 6:00 pm  8:00 pm with an artist's discussion at 7:00 pm. The exhibit closes December 29, 2017.
Canada NewsWire

OKOTOKS, AB, Oct. 6, 2017

OKOTOKS, AB, Oct. 6, 2017 /CNW/ - The family of Tara Roe would like to share the following statements:

"We are overwhelmed by the generosity and outpouring of love and support from both those near to us and from complete strangers from across North America.

I am so incredibly touched by everyone's support, which has included everything from financial donations, meals for my family, to the generosity of the Calgary Flames who are bringing my boys to a game and a practice so they can meet the team. You honestly have no idea how much this all means to me, to my boys, and most importantly, what it would have meant to Tara.

Our heartbreak is deep, and these incredible expressions of love and support are helping us get through this senseless tragedy.

My children and I thank everyone as we continue to struggle with the loss of Tara, a person who was the rock of our family, an amazing friend to so many people, a person dedicated to the community, and someone who  if she were here today  would be doing everything she could for people in a similar circumstance. I don't think she had any idea how important she was to so many people in our community and beyond.

My kids and I are forever in debt to Tara, for making us who we are today, and my promise to her is that I will lead our family by the example she set for us, and ensure her memory lives forever in our hearts."

- Zach Roe, husband of Tara Roe.

"Our hearts are broken as we struggle with how we go on from here without our Tara. We had Tara for 34 years and the many memories we have of her will be ours forever.

We remember her as an active, young girl who enjoyed dancing, swimming, and especially being at Clear Lakeher favourite summer spot. As a young woman, she was kind and caring, always looking for ways to help family and friends and others in our community.

Her career led her to work with children with autism, where her star really shone brightly. She remained loyal to many lifelong friends, was always a wonderful sister, auntie, cousin and granddaughter.

As in any tragedy, with something as evil as this, some goodness always somehow seems to come through. The outpouring of support from great family and friends, but also complete strangers, have helped this to be even bearable.

With so many acts of kindness, no matter how big or small, they mean so much. There are no words to express our heartfelt gratitude.

We would especially like to extend our sincere thanks to the wonderful people of WestJet, who have not once left our side and have treated us like family.

This tragedy will not be what defines us. We will move forward with the memory of Tara as our strength."

- Mark & Brenda Smith, and Tami Spiropoulos Parents and sister of Tara Roe, respectively.

SOURCE The Family of Tara Roe
Dear Editor:

Pennsylvania politics has given elevated status to Elbridge Gerry who, as Massachusetts governor in 1812, constructed a voting district so favorable to his party and so convoluted in shape that it resembled a salamander. Since then, we've called the practice of manipulating electoral maps for political purposes "gerrymandering", and both political parties are equal offenders.

This state of affairs has gotten much worse since Gerry's time, given todays sophisticated data mining and mapping technologyand thanks to the Supreme Courts 2010 Citizens United ruling, outside interests pour tons of money into local elections, generating intensely aggressive, negative campaigns.

In Cumberland County, gerrymandering has resulted in a hodge-podge of district boundaries, meaning that when an issue arises that impacts us, were forced to interact with three state senators and six state representatives.

Fair Districts PA, a non-partisan state-wide organization, is now pushing a reform agenda that is incorporated in PA House Bill 722 and PA Senate Bill 22, each of which have bi-partisan support. The thrust of this proposed legislation is creation of a non-partisan, independent commission to configure district boundaries based on census data generated every decade, allowing voters to choose their political representatives, not the other way around.

These bills must pass the legislature in two different sessions and then be passed by a state-wide referendum, satisfying requirements necessary for adoption as a constitutional amendment. Fair Districts Cumberland Valley is pressing state legislators in Harrisburg to get these bills out of committee, and urging local townships and municipalities to endorse a resolution of support already signed by County Commissioners DeFilippo, Hertzler and Eichelberger.

This is a unique opportunity for all PA residents to participate in restoring our democratic process, thus making our politics less polarized and those representing us in government more accountable and responsive. We should all embrace this effort.

William Schneider

Mechanicsburg
Aer Lingus has ruled out the introduction of transatlantic flights from Cork despite suggestions from the airlines CEO that they were on the horizon, writes Kevin ONeill.

Earlier this week, Aer Lingus chief operating officer Mike Rutter confirmed that Aer Lingus is set to buy eight Airbus A321 long-range craft to aid future expansion.

It came as part of the announcement of the airlines 2018 schedule, which will include increased frequency from Cork to Alicante, Barcelona and Malaga.

Mr Rutter added that the addition of the new aircraft could ultimately lead to the creation of a transatlantic service from Cork, with the aircraft reported to be as much as 30% more fuel efficient than some other long-range aircraft.

Speaking this week, Mr Rutter described Cork as a natural next fit for Aer Lingus ever-expanding transatlantic service, though it seems as though the flights may be a number of years away.

A spokesperson for Aer Lingus said that there are currently no plans to develop a transatlantic service from Cork.

The airline is, instead, focused on strengthening its current offering from Irish airports.

Aer Lingus operates a very extensive network from Cork Airport with 22 routes to destinations in Europe and the UK, making us the largest airline operating from the airport.

While we constantly review our network seeking new route opportunities and consider all options as part of that process, we have no current plans to operate transatlantic flights from Cork.

Aer Lingus is set to strengthen its transatlantic offering from Dublin in 2018, the spokesperson added, following several years of growth.

Hopes had grown that Cork would see the addition of more transatlantic flights after the success enjoyed by Norwegian since the launch of their low-cost offering this year.

The first flight from Cork to Providence, Rhode Island took off on July 1, with airline officials reporting that flights were over 90% full for the most part this summer.

A spokesperson confirmed that demand remains high on the winter routes, too.

This article first appeared in the Evening Echo
The UK Government has been accused of impotence after the US upped a proposed import levy on products made by one of Northern Ireland's largest employers to 300%.

Unite union assistant general secretary Steve Turner accused the UK of "a betrayal of its responsibility" to workers during the dispute between American aerospace giant Boeing and Bombardier.

Canadian-owned multinational Bombardier, which employs more than 4,000 people in Belfast, has been hit by a proposed 80% levy on exports to its southern neighbour, the US Department of Commerce has confirmed.

This comes on top of a planned 220% tariff on its aircraft previously announced in a row over state aid.

Mr Turner said: "This latest threat of additional tariffs by the US government, raising to 300% the tariffs imposed so far, highlights an impotence on behalf of a UK Government whose ministers through their inaction appear happy to put Trump's 'America first' policy ahead of UK manufacturing jobs.

"Ministers sat in Westminster cannot shrug off the Bombardier crisis as a trade spat between Canada and the US. This directly affects tens of thousands of jobs across the UK."

Bombardier is due to begin delivering a blockbuster order for up to 125 new jets to Atlanta-based Delta Airlines next year.

The wings for the new aircraft are made at Bombardier's plant in the DUP stronghold of East Belfast.

UK Prime Minister Theresa May had lobbied US President Donald Trump over the dispute sparked by complaints from rival Boeing that Bombardier received unfair state subsidies from the UK and Canada, allowing the sale of airliners at below cost prices in the US.

The subsidy row arose after Northern Ireland's powersharing administration and the UK Government pledged to invest almost 135 million (150 million) in the establishment of the C-Series manufacturing site in Belfast.

The programme also received a billion US dollars from the Canadian provincial government in Quebec in 2015 when its fortunes appeared to be ailing.

Boeing's complaint said it was seeking a "level playing field" for global competitors.

Mr Turner accused Boeing of "a clear attempt to use its corporate power in a worryingly protectionist United States to put a legitimate competitor out of business".

He added: "Ministers have a duty to defend jobs and future manufacturing in Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK by demanding Boeing attends an urgent summit involving Prime Minister Theresa May and the Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau alongside the unions representing our workforce and withdraws its unwarranted claims.

"A failure to do so must lead to similar tariffs and sanctions on Boeing's current and future work on behalf of the UK Government and across the EU to protect our wider aviation sector from further protectionist assault in what could quickly become a trade war with an increasingly protectionist US regime."

Liberal Democrat leader and former business secretary Sir Vince Cable said the row was a "blow" to Mrs May's hopes of a good trade deal with the US after Brexit.

"It is a fantasy that the UK can promote free trade in partnership with a US government which believes in economic nationalism," Sir Vince said.

"The Government must now get out there and fight for the UK's manufacturing jobs."
A Co Clare shop owner is celebrating this morning after getting a phone call to tell him he sold a winning 500,000 EuroMillions plus ticket in last night's draw.

Lance O'Neill, who had just started a family holiday in Spain when he learned one of his customers had a prize in the 190m draw, is the owner of Barrys Mace in Blackwater, Ardnacrusha.
Three hundred and fifty people will die needlessly in hospital emergency departments next year unless Health Minister Simon Harris definitively addresses the trolley count crisis in next weeks budget, writes Fiachra O Cionnaith, Elaine Loughlin and Juno McEnroe

The Irish Association of Emergency Medicine (IAEM) issued the dire warning last night as it urged the Government to prioritise health, despite promises of tax cuts and across-the-board welfare payment rises.

With the budget now just four days away, the Irish Examiner understands the Coalition is still planning a 5 pension increase, similar rises for lone parents and people on the dole, and a new welfare payment for children at risk of poverty.

In addition to these moves, which well-placed sources said would cost up to 300m, both Fine Gael and Fianna Fail are continuing to back income tax and USC cuts  drastically reducing the money available for other areas.

However, in a clear warning last night, doctors said vital life-saving service improvements cannot be ignored.

In a damning statement as it emerged that 516 people were on hospital trolleys on Wednesday  the highest figure ever for that date  and as official figures showed a shocking 678,800 people are now on waiting lists, the IAEM said that if the budget does not tackle the scandal, up to 350 people will die next year.

We know that crowding kills patients; 300-350 patients per year are likely to die as a direct result of emergency department overcrowding.

The past 15 years has been characterised by committees, taskforces and a variety of talking shops, bluster and claims of improvement in the absence of improvement.

How long more will it take and how many more patients will have to die before political responsibility is acknowledged and the problem definitively addressed? the IAEM said.

The comment came after Mr Harris  who will tell doctors they cannot shy away from the fact they must stop treating private patients in public hospitals at todays Irish Hospital Consultants Association AGM  spent yesterday negotiating with Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe.

While both ministers discussed a potential 50c prescription charge cut to 2, NTPF waiting list funding, disability services, and primary care, Mr Donohoe and Taoiseach Leo Varadkar have publicly stressed the health service must live within its 2017 levels due to competing demands.

Meanwhile, several sources said the Government is still considering across-the-board welfare rises of up to 5 for pensioners, lone parents, and people on the dole, in addition to a new welfare payment targeted at children at risk of poverty, the package costing 300m.

Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy also confirmed plans for new shared accommodation developments for young professionals, amid vocal opposition; the retention of the help to buy scheme; and the axing of apartment car park space requirements.

At the launch of its alternative budget yesterday, Fianna Fail public expenditure spokesperson Dara Calleary said welfare increases wont be miserly, but added tax cuts will be at a gentle pace and that USC may not be cut by the suggested 0.5% rate.

Ministers are continuing to hold talks with Mr Donohoe before Tuesdays budget announcements.

This story first appeared on IrishExaminer.com
The funeral takes place today of former Irish taoiseach Liam Cosgrave.

Born in 1920, Mr Cosgrave had a 40-year political career and was part of the government which saw Ireland become a Republic in 1949.

He also oversaw Ireland joining the United Nations, addressed the US Congress in 1976 and signed the Sunningdale Agreement in Northern Ireland which led to a short-lived powersharing executive in Belfast in 1972.

Mr Cosgrave died on Wednesday. He was 97.

The funeral mass takes place at midday in the Church of the Annunciation in Rathfarnham, Dublin.

Mr Cosgrave will be buried in Goldenbridge Cemetery, Inchicore, beside his father WT Cosgrave, a key figure in the foundation of the Irish Free State and an officer in the 1916 Rising.

Following tributes from across the political spectrum in Ireland, the Cosgrave family, his three children, Mary, Liam and Ciaran, were offered a state funeral.

At their request the funeral mass and burial will have some trappings of state but it is a private service.

Mr Cosgrave was Irish taoiseach from 1973-77, some of the most turbulent years of the Northern Ireland Troubles.

He has been described as a consistent and courageous voice against terrorism.

He was at the head of government on the worst day of atrocities in the Troubles - the Dublin-Monaghan bombings on May 17 1974 when loyalists killed 33 people, including a pregnant woman at full term.

Mr Cosgrave also covered the cost of his father's state funeral in 1965.
Ten military policemen carried the coffin of former Irish Taoiseach Liam Cosgrave as his funeral began in Dublin.

Born in 1920, Mr Cosgrave had a 40-year political career and was part of the government which saw Ireland become a Republic in 1949.

He also oversaw Ireland joining the United Nations, addressed the US Congress in 1976 and signed the Sunningdale Agreement in Northern Ireland which led to a short-lived powersharing executive in Belfast in 1972.

Mr Cosgrave died on Wednesday. He was 97.

Current leader Leo Varadkar and his predecessors Enda Kenny and Bertie Ahern were among those who attended funeral mass at the Church of the Annunciation in Rathfarnham.

Members of the judiciary, Army and police also paid their respects.

Mr Cosgrave will be buried in Goldenbridge Cemetery, Inchicore, beside his father WT Cosgrave, a key figure in the foundation of the Irish Free State and an officer in the 1916 Rising.

His wife Vera died last year.

Following tributes from across the political spectrum in Ireland, the Cosgrave family, his three children, Mary, Liam and Ciaran, were offered a state funeral.

At their request the funeral mass and burial will have some trappings of state but it is a private service.

Monsignor John Wilson gave the eulogy:

"Liam Cosgrave, loved his family, he loved his country, he loved his faith, he was a patriot in the very best sense of that term.

"Throughout his life, he devoted himself to what he saw as the common good.

"no one would ever doubt his integrity."

Mr Cosgrave was taoiseach from 1973-77, some of the most turbulent years of the Northern Ireland Troubles.

He has been described as a consistent and courageous voice against terrorism.

He was at the head of government on the worst day of atrocities in the Troubles - the Dublin-Monaghan bombings on May 17 1974 when loyalists killed 33 people, including a pregnant woman at full term.

Mr Cosgrave also covered the cost of his father's state funeral in 1965.
The Government is facing a pushback from councillors in Dublin on plans to build high-rise housing blocks.

Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy has suggested student accommodation-style buildings that could be affordable for young professionals living in the capital.
The Royal Hospital Kilmainham in Dublin has been transformed into a tech playground for the day.

Billed as 'the ultimate tech meetup' the 404 event brings together hundreds of tech professionals, leading tech companies, award winning game designers and technology experts.
Over 2,000 people turned out this morning for the Dublin Simon Community's Home Run.

Runners, walkers and joggers gathered in the Phoenix Park shortly before 10am this morning to take part in the organisation's 34th Home Run event.

Sam McGuinness from the Dublin Simon Community was delighted with today's turnout.

He said: "Its fantastic to see such a great turn out today, it highlights the level of concern that the public have for all the adults, children and families who are being traumatised by homelessness.

"This is a really important fundraiser for us and the funds raised by our supporters will enable us to provide accommodation, health care and supports to those who are relying on us each day. We cant thank people enough for helping us to rebuild the lives of those who have been so heavily impacted by this crisis.

Dublin Simon Community provides services to over 3,500 people in Dublin, Kildare, Wicklow and Meath who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.
Hurricane Nate is now expected to be a Category 2 hurricane when it makes landfall on the US central Gulf Coast in the coming hours.

The National Hurricane Centre in Miami said Nate's top sustained winds have recently risen to 90mph, and the core is now about 180 miles south-south-east of the mouth of the Mississippi River.

Nate is accelerating to 26mph and headed north-north-west on a course expected to take it onto the central Gulf Coast on Saturday night.

Forecasters said the hurricane-force winds extend out up to 35 miles, mainly to the east of the eye of the storm.

In addition to hurricane warnings and tropical storm warnings already in place along a wide stretch of Gulf Coast, a new tropical storm warning has been issued in the Florida Panhandle from east of the Okaloosa-Walton County line to Indian Pass, Florida.

Louisiana and Mississippi officials declared states of emergency, and Louisiana ordered some people to evacuate coastal areas and barrier islands ahead of Nate's expected landfall.

The National Hurricane Centre in Miami projected that Nate would brush by the south-east tip of Louisiana, near the mouth of the Mississippi River, around 7pm on Saturday (1am BST).

Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards said he spoke with President Donald Trump on Saturday morning.

"He assured me that LA would have all the assistance we need as we prepare for #Nate," the governor posted on Twitter.

I spoke w/ @POTUS @realDonaldTrump this morning. He assured me that LA would have all the assistance we need as we prepare for #Nate. #lagov  Gov. John Bel Edwards (@LouisianaGov) October 7, 2017

Mr Edwards thanked Mr Trump for approving Louisiana's pre-disaster emergency declaration for 17 south Louisiana parishes.

Nate has already killed at least 21 people in Central America.

A hurricane warning is in effect from Grand Isle, Louisiana, to the Alabama-Florida border and also for metropolitan New Orleans and nearby Lake Pontchartrain.

Tropical storm warnings extended west of Grand Isle to Morgan City, Louisiana, and around Lake Maurepas and east of the Alabama-Florida border to the Okaloosa-Walton County line in the Florida Panhandle.

In Louisiana, Mr Edwards mobilised 1,300 National Guard troops, some headed to New Orleans to monitor the fragile pumping system there.

With forecasts projecting landfall on the central Gulf Coast as a Category 1 hurricane, Mr Edwards urged residents to ready for rainfall, storm surge and severe winds - and to be where they intend to hunker down by the time it gets dark on Saturday.

Mr Edwards said forecasts for the fast-moving storm indicate the greatest threats are winds and storm surge.

The hurricane centre warned that Nate could raise sea levels by 4ft to 7ft from Morgan City, Louisiana, to the Alabama-Florida border. It had already had caused deadly flooding in much of Central America.

A White House statement said Mr Trump has authorised the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Homeland Security to co-ordinate all federal disaster relief efforts.

In New Orleans, the city's pumping system remains fragile but is working.

Two flash floods this summer led to revelations about personnel and equipment problems at the agency that runs the system that drains the city.

New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu said 109 of its 120 pumps are functioning, which is 92% capacity.

"We are ready for whatever Nate brings our way," Mr Landrieu said of forecasts that Nate could dump 3-6in of rain on the region - with isolated totals of up to 10in.

Officials ordered the evacuation of part of coastal St Bernard Parish east of New Orleans ahead of the storm.

Earlier, a voluntary evacuation was called in the barrier island town of Grand Isle south of New Orleans.

On Alabama's Dauphin Island - a barrier island south of Mobile, Alabama - owners hauled boats out of the water ahead of the storm's approach.

The major concern was the storm surge was projected to coincide with high tide. Shelters were being open for coastal residents.

In neighbouring Mississippi, Governor Phil Bryant declared a state of emergency in six southernmost counties.

State officials warned storm surge was the biggest danger in that state's low-lying coastal areas, as well as high winds that could damage mobile homes.

The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency also announced the opening of shelters on the coast.
Police stopped an international terror plot to cause bloodshed at New York City concert venues, subway stations and Times Square, officers said.

One of the defendants, Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy, was arrested after travelling from Canada to New Jersey in May 2016 to stage the attacks, according to police.

The capture of the Canadian citizen came after an investigation using an undercover FBI officer posing as an Islamic extremist that also led to the arrests last year of US citizen Talha Haroon in Pakistan and Russell Salic in the Philippines, where he is a citizen.

According to court papers, El Bahnasawy, 19, sent the undercover officer an image of Times Square with a smartphone message saying, "We seriously need to car bomb times square. Look at these crowds of people!"

In another, he expressed a desire to "shoot up concerts cuz they kill a lot people. ... We just walk in with guns in our hands. That's how Paris guys did it," the papers said, in an apparent reference to the slaughter by men armed with weapons at the Bataclan concert hall in Paris in 2015.

The undercover officer and El Bahnasawy also were in communication with the 19-year-old Haroon, who wanted to join El Bahnasawy in New York City for the attacks, authorities said.

Haroon, who at one point met with an explosives expert in Pakistan for information on building bombs, told the undercover officer the subway was a "perfect" place to shoot passengers, and that "when we run out of bullets we let the vests go off," court papers said.

After Haroon talked about what was needed to build explosives, El Bahnasawy bought 40 pounds of hydrogen peroxide, batteries, Christmas lights, thermometers and other ingredients commonly used in homemade bombs.

He later shipped the material to the undercover officer in the United States, where he and Haroon planned to use a cabin in a rural area within driving distance of the city to build bombs and take target practice, authorities said.

Salic, 37, was accused of sending money to help fund the attacks, court papers said.

He told the undercover officer his ultimate goal was to join the Islamic State group in Syria but that "it would be a great pleasure if we can slaughter" people in New York, the papers said.

El Bahnasawy pleaded guilty in October 2016, but the case remained unreported while the investigation continued.

His lawyer, Sabrina Shroff, declined to comment on Friday, while Haroon and Salic were awaiting extradition.

All three men face possible life sentences on charges including conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction and conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said it assisted the FBI in the investigation.

"At no time was the safety or security of the public at risk," it said.

AP
Three German tourists have been killed in a bus accident at a popular tourist destination, according to Turkey's official news agency.

The Anadolu news agency said a tourist bus had tipped over after hitting a palm tree on a traffic island in the southern Antalya province on Saturday.
Teaching on domestic violence and abuse (DVA) should be mandatory in medical education according to a new University of Bristol study that highlights current levels as inadequate.

DVA is a major violation of human rights that damages the health of women, men and their children. Thirty-five per cent of women worldwide have suffered abuse from their husband or partner.1 NICE guidelines recommend that teaching about DVA should be an integral part of medical education.

The study, published today [6 Oct] in The Clinical Teacher, analysed the results of an online survey completed by primary care teaching leads at 25 out of 34 medical schools to assess the extent and adequacy of DVA education provided in the UK.

Twenty-one medical schools reported delivering some form of DVA education, however 11 reported providing only 0 to two contact hours on the subject over a five-year degree. Most of the schools offering DVA education were found to offer this as part of a teaching session or lecture between years three to five delivered by a range of different methods and providers across different modules.

The authors recommend more consistency and structure in DVA curricular content and, in line with NICE guidance, that policy makers consider making DVA education mandatory.

Dr Lucy Potter, the studys lead author from Bristols Centre for Academic Primary Care (CAPC), said: Doctors are central to the identification, safety and referral of DVA survivors, who are more likely to disclose abuse to them than to any other professionals. These findings show there is considerable variation in how much DVA education is taught to UK medical students. When considering the profound impact on health and wellbeing it is imperative that the future generation of doctors are equipped with sufficient training to be able to recognise the signs of DVA in patients and manage or refer them through the appropriate channels.

Professor Gene Feder, study co-author, who leads research on DVA at the CAPC said: We need to move beyond tokenism with regard to DVA in medical training. This is long overdue and requires a national effort, not dependent on champions in individual medical schools.

The authors conclude that the marginal presence of DVA in the medical undergraduate curriculum is inadequate in light of the DVAs impact on health. They recommend increasing the content and integrating it into the curriculum at several points, from pre-clinical to clinical years.

The study was funded by the Scientific Foundation Board of the Royal College of General Practitioners.

Paper

Domestic violence teaching in UK medical schools: a cross-sectional study by Lucy C Potter and Gene Feder in The Clinical Teacher [open access]
How you can help Give A Christmas to Lower Bucks families in need
Families need help: Donate and Give a Christmas

During the holiday season, in partnership with NJ 211, we are pleased to offer the Give a Christmas program to Burlington County residents.
Billionaire Gautam Adani, whose group is vying to build Australia's largest coal mine, on Saturday, said his company had signed its first power purchase agreement for a solar farm near a central Queensland mining town.
A groundbreaking ceremony is scheduled for 1 p.m. on Tuesday for a new solar farm in Farmington.

Weve been about two years trying to get this all finalized and now were down to the wire, Farmington City Administrator Greg Beavers said following a recent Farmington City Council meeting. Its a 15-acre solar farm which will generate about a third of the energy in our industrial park on a high usage day, which is a great story to tell that weve got renewable (energy).

The solar farm will produce about 2.5 megawatts against a peak load of about 50 megawatts for the city.

Its a respectable piece of our energy supply, Beavers said.

Farmington is one of five cities selected from the Missouri Public Energy Pool (MoPEP) for the solar farm.

The MoPEP energy pool that we buy our energy from and the (Missouri Public Utility Alliance) actually buy the power, Beavers said. Its blended into our wholesale market. But, we realize the benefit of that solar right here in Farmington.

In August, the council approved two ordinances laying the groundwork for a solar energy farm.

Two separate public hearings and subsequent council action were held  one for a final record plat of a Farmington IDA Subdivision at Route H and Korber Road for the farm, the second for a final record plat for property located at 4529 Korber Rd. to serve as an access for the farm.

The council approved a contract with MC Power Company in February for an interconnection and operating agreement for a solar farm.

Mark Krawczyk with MC Power spoke to the council about the solar farm at that time, explaining the reason for the agreement with the city following the meeting.

Every solar farm needs an interconnection point, so the energy that is created has to be supplied to the utility grid at some point, Krawczyk explained. With (MC Power LLC) and our agreement we have with our financial investor, there is an interconnect agreement that the city has to sign into with us to allow us to interconnect and put that energy on the grid  because of that, we have to get an interconnection agreement.

At the time, Krawczyk estimated the solar farm will be 15 to 20 acres in size with 9,000 panels.
As the Indian government aims to promote domestic manufacturing of equipment, three leading players in the sector  Nokia, Ericsson and Huawei  have said they are already making in India.
Large protests were held across Australia on Saturday against Indian mining giant Adani Enterprises' proposed Carmichael coal mine, which would be the country's largest coal mine but has been delayed for years over environmental and financing issues.

Environment groups say the mine in Queensland state would contribute to global warming and damage the Great Barrier Reef.

The "Stop Adani" movement organised 45 protests.

On the sands of Sydney's Bondi Beach more than 1,000 people formed a human sign saying '#STOP ADANI', said organiser Blair Palese from activist group 350.

"I think there's a very real national concern that goes beyond Queensland about the idea of giving this mine a billion-dollar taxpayer-funded loan," she said.

The national rallies come as new polling shows more than half of Australians oppose the mine, reported local media.

Analysts have raised doubts about whether Adani can fund the mine, at an initial cost of $4 billion, given a global backlash to investment in fossil fuels.

Adani says the project would pay billions of dollars in royalties and taxes, create jobs and export coal to India help bring electricity to rural regions.

Adani has been counting on a A$900 million ($704 million) loan from the Northern Australian Infrastructure Facility (NAIF) for a rail link to the proposed mine.

The company's chief executive officer Jeyakumar Janakaraj, however, has said Adani may not have to borrow from NAIF. "If the commercial banks take off all the debt then we will not have any need for NAIF as there will be no gap."

The Australian Conservation Foundation president Geoff Cousins, one of the country's top businessmen, said it was unlikely Adani could proceed without the NAIF loan.

"They've tried hard to secure commercial funding, but no bank will touch them," he said.

"Stop Adani is an issues-based campaign, and the rest of the world sees the madness of building one of the world's largest coal mines particularly when Australia has signed the Paris Agreement (on climate change)."
is yet to take a call on the ultimate capacity of its greenfield steel project at Kalinganagar, about 100 km from Bhubaneswar.
Expressing concern over the rampant unauthorised sale of medicines online, the Bombay High Court has asked the Maharashtra government and the Centre to list the steps taken to regulate it.

A bench of Chief Justice Manjula Chellur and Justice N M Jamdar also directed the Centre to inform the court of the steps taken to stop the widespread online advertisements for sale of drugs without prescription.

The directions came while the bench was hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking that the government tackle illegal sale of 'Schedule H' or prescription medicines online.

The PIL had claimed that often college students bought such medicines, including sleeping pills and abortion pills, online without any prescription or by providing fake medical prescriptions.

As per the plea, the provisions of Drugs and Cosmetics Act 1940, and Drugs and Cosmetics Rules 1945, prohibit online sale of such medicines that mandatorily require a doctor's prescription.

Such drugs include anti-pregnancy pills, sleeping tablets and abortion pills.

The Centre told the court that in order to regulate the online sale of such medicines, it had already proposed to set up an e-portal where all manufacturers, distributors, and retailers who wish to sell medicines online, will have to mandatorily register themselves.

It said that action had been taken against several portals in this regard.

The bench noted that several drug manufacturers and sellers continued to advertise the sale of such drugs online.

It took note of a bunch of prints of such advertisements submitted by the petitioner.

"This is a serious issue. So many young students fall prey to serious and, in some cases, irreparable health hazards because of taking medicines without a doctor's prescription. What have you done to stop this?" the bench said.

Considering the seriousness of the issue, the bench also appointed advocate Zal Andhyarujina as the amicus curiae, or the lawyer to assist the court while hearing the matter, and to suggest remedial measures.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Terming it an 'early Diwali', Prime Minister looked to assuage dissent among small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in poll-bound Gujarat by lauding the governments move to revise the Goods and Services Tax (GST) measures in his public address at Dwarka on Saturday.
The government on Friday said reports of China increasing the number of its troops or constructing a road at Doklam were incorrect. The clarification came after reports emerged that China has maintained a sizeable troop presence near the site of the Sikkim border standoff with India and has even started building a road on the Doklam Plateau, just 10 km from the location of the last conflict.



(Read our report on China's continued activities near Doklam)
Women's rights activists have appealed to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to extend state protection to Hadiya -- the woman at the centre of a religious conversion row.

Hadiya, earlier known as Akhila, was a Hindu woman who converted into Islam and married Shafin Jahan. Her father approached the Kerala High Court which declared the marriage null and void calling it a case of "love jihad" and directed that Hadiya return to the protective custody of her Hindu parents.

The activists, comprising academicians, authors, women's collectives and women's right advocates, have urged the Kerala chief minister as well as the State Commission for Women to ensure that the woman is not forcibly confined in her parents' house.

"It is alarming to have an adult woman today to be ordered into protective custody of her parent's home under the orders of a court, denied mobility, communication and the company of her friends and well wishers," the activists said in their letters to the CM and the state commission.

In the letter, they also appealed to the commission to visit Hadiya, asses the nature of human rights violation she is facing, and make public a report on her condition.

The activists, including publisher Urvashi Butalia, DU professor Nandini Sundar, JNU professors Ayesha Kidwai and Nivedita Menon, and Suneeta Dhar among others, have sought that "Hadiya be brought under the protection of the state, perhaps in a shelter in consultation with her".

They also demanded that the state women commission and the LDF government ensure that Hadiya is able to meet friends and well wishers and allowed access to a phone.

In August, Hadiya's husband approached the Supreme Court challenging the high court order and seeking that Hadiya, who is in her fathers custody, be produced before the court. Hearing the case, the apex court directed the Investigation Agency to investigate the alleged forced conversion.

Earlier this month, Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra questioned the annulment of the marriage by the Kerala HC in May as well as the NIA probe ordered by a SC bench led by former CJI JS Khehar.
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Kisturi Devi, 62, lives with her two daughters-in-law and nine grandchildren in Ballana village of Alwar district in Rajasthan. All three women are widowed. Since 2013, Devi has been receiving an old-age pension of Rs 500 per month  half the amount that would qualify her as living below the poverty line of Rs 32 per day in rural India.
Pakistan has started the process to file its plea in response to India's memorial submitted in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against the death sentence of Indian .

Jadhav, a 46-year-old retired Indian Navy officer, was captured in Balochistan in March 2016 by Pakistani security forces and tried in a military court which sentenced him to death for "espionage and subversive activities".

The ICJ had asked Pakistan to submit its written response or memorial by December 13 before the court could start further proceedings.

According to Foreign Office sources, Attorney General Ashtar Ausaf Ali on Friday presided over a meeting of law experts and officials of the ministry of foreign affairs and other relevant departments to discuss the line of arguments in the ICJ.

"We will forcefully defend our position which is based on the fact that Jadhav is a serving Indian spy tasked to carry out subversive activities in Pakistan," the sources said.

Meanwhile, Ausaf told the Dawn that they had decided to hold weekly meetings in order to review the situation and "to finalise Islamabad's point of view and convert it into an appropriate rejoinder to India's allegations".

He said they were in touch with relevant stakeholders, including Khawar Qureshi who had pleaded Pakistan's case at the initial stage, to formalise a robust reply refuting all allegations levelled against Pakistan.

The daily reported that the attorney general's office is also busy documenting the case and collecting instances of the "atrocities and human rights violations committed by India" in Jammu and Kashmir.

On Thursday, the Pakistan Army said it is close to a decision on the mercy petition of Jadhav.

"Kulbhushan Jadhav's mercy petition has come to the army chief. There is a process, everything goes through a process but I can assure that it is near finalisation and we will give you news about this very soon," army spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor said.

Jadhav's death sentence was confirmed by Pakistan's army chief General Qamar Bajwa on April 10. He has filed an appeal with the army chief to seek clemency, which is still pending.

After India approached the ICJ, a 10-member bench on May 18 restrained Pakistan from executing Jadhav till adjudication of the case.

Jadhav's sentencing had evoked a sharp reaction in India.

India has warned Pakistan of consequences and damage to bilateral ties if the "premeditated murder" was carried out.

In its application, India had also informed the ICJ that it learnt about the death sentence against Jadhav from a press release.

India acknowledges that Jadhav had served with the Indian Navy but denies that he has any connection with the government. It also said that Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran.

India has also handed over to Pakistan an appeal by Jadhav's mother, initiating a process to get his conviction overturned.
In view of the increasing influx of illegal immigrants, especially Rohingyas, the BSF has identified 140 "vulnerable" locations on India-Bangladesh border and initiated a campaign to prevent their influx by curbing the activities of touts, the BSF chief said on Friday.

"We both (Border Security Force and Border Guards Bangladesh) are aware that the issue is very very serious as a large number of Rohingyas have entered Bangladesh and India. Both the forces discussed the issue and have taken steps to curb the menace," BSF Director General K K Sharma said here.

He was addressing media persons at the end of a four-day bi-annual Directors General-level talks, which began on October 2, between a 26-member Indian team and a 24-member Bangladesh delegation led by BGB chief Major General Abul Hossain.

The BSF officer said his counterpart had assured of major steps to deal with the movement of Rohingya Muslims, who have fled Rakhine state in Myanmar after security forces' action since August 25, by setting up roadblocks/checkpoints on various routes to ensure no one crossed into Indian territory illegally.

Sharma said BSF had identified "140 vulnerable border posts" along the 4,096.7-km India-Bangladesh border, from where some touts and organised groups help Rohingyas sneak into India.

"There are organised criminals on both sides who assist in their (Rohingyas) entry to India. So, we are mounting a campaign against these touts. We have deployed forces to strengthen security at these vulnerable posts. More manpower, technological inputs, and gadgets have been put in place."

Surveillance equipment, the BSF chief said, from other BSF posts have been diverted and deployed all along the eastern frontier.

"We are in touch with our sister agencies, intelligence agencies, to identify and take action against these touts. Because, these people (Rohingyas) cannot come on their own," Sharma said.

The BSF Director General said the border force has "sensitised" local populace to inform authorities about people entering Indian illegally.

He said the BSF is constantly in touch with the BGB on a daily basis. "Our commanders on the border can speak to each other quickly and share intelligence on any movement of Rohingyas."

BGB chief Hossain told the media that his country had already begun mandatory registration of all Rohingyas entering Bangladesh.

He said his country was planning to fence the country's border with Myanmar.

"Five lakh people (Rohingyas) have already come to Bangladesh. It is a problem for our country... they (Rohingyas) cannot spread all over the country. Our government has taken a decision and the refugees have been housed in Cox's Bazar district," the BGB chief said.

He said the BGB had identified exit and entry points (of Rohingyas), which are being guarded by the force, and have started registration of the refugees.

"Our citizens have been informed to share details on any such person to law enforcement agencies," Hossain said, adding Myanmar had told Bangladesh to set up a joint working committee to find out Rohingyas and send them back to their native place.

At the DG-level talks, the BGB raised issues like firing, killing, injuring, and beating of Bangladesh nationals by the BSF as well as arrest or detention of Bangladesh citizens.

Smuggling of firearms, ammunition, explosive, drugs, development works within 150 yards of the International Border, assistance for river bank protection works along the border, confidence-building measure, exchange of visit by BGB-BSF medical team, prevention against attacks on BSF personnel by Bangladeshi criminals, and prevention of trans-border crimes was discussed at the meet.

On Friday, a Joint Record of Discussions was signed by the Directors General of BSF and BGB. The next DG-level talk will be hosted by the BGB in Dhaka in February/March 2018.
A 19-year-old woman from Goa's Vasco has accused a Karnataka-based "self-styled godman" of raping her in a house near Mapusa town, following which the police have registered a case and sent a team to arrest him.

The woman, originally from Achra in Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra bordering Goa, is currently staying in Vasco, according to police.

A Vasco police official said Santosh Kumbhar, who hails from Nipani in Karnataka and who is known to her, yesterday gave her lift promising to drop her to Achra.

"She stated that Kumbhar offered her a soft drink on the way which she suspect was laced with some drugs and took her to an unknown house close to Mapusa.

"The woman claimed that the godman, who hails from Kundapur town in the neighbouring state, was present in the house along with another person who she identified as Nikhil Chavan," he said.

According to the woman, Kumbhar and Chavan left the house after which the godman raped her. She said he threatened her with dire consequences if she disclosed the matter to anyone.

The Vasco Police have booked the godman on the charges of rape, unnatural offences, causing hurt by means of poison, etc., with intent to commit an offence, and criminal intimidation.

When asked whether the woman was a follower of the godman, the officer replied in negative.

Responding to a question whether the crime was pre- planned and whether the presence of the godman was part of the conspiracy, he said things will get clear after the arrest of the accused.

A team of police officers has already left for Karnataka to arrest the accused, the police official said.
After growing by four times when compared to FY14 levels, foreign direct investment (FDI) to Gujarat continues to grow. While Japan has led the FDI growth in Gujarat in recent years, Asian countries like Taiwan, China, and South Korea are also lining up investments in the state.
Terming it an early Diwali, Prime Minister in his public address in Dwarka on Saturday looked to assuage dissent among small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in poll-bound Gujarat by lauding his governments move to revise the goods and services tax (GST) rates and rules.
Determined to show the material impact of demonetisation, the Centre is nudging the income tax (I-T) department to achieve the target of establishing the source of Rs 3 lakh crore unaccounted cash deposits with banks made during the note ban.
India and the European Union (EU) today emphasised that connectivity initiatives must be based on universally recognised international norms, transparency and equality, seen as an apparent reference to China's OBOR project.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi after a meeting with Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, and Jean Claude Juncker, the president of the European Commission also underlined the importance of freedom of navigation, overflight and peaceful resolution of disputes, in accordance with the universally recognised principles of international law.

This is also being seen as an oblique reference to China's assertiveness in the hydrocarbon rich South China Sea.

The leaders attached importance to the security, stability, connectivity and sustainable development of oceans and seas in the context of developing the "blue economy", said a joint statement during 14th .

"They underlined that connectivity initiatives must be based on universally recognised international norms, good governance, rule of law, openness, transparency and equality and must follow principles of financial responsibility, accountable debt financing practices, balanced ecological and environmental protection, preservation standards and social sustainability," it said.

India has flagged its opposition to the One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiative of China, stating that it crosses the disputed territory of Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK).

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Minister of State for Finance Shiv Pratap Shukla on Saturday hinted that the peak goods and services tax (GST) rate of 28 per cent will gradually be reduced.


The Narendra Modi government is starting to carry out course-correction measures aimed at plugging the adverse effects of its fight against black money and a hastily-implemented goods and services tax (GST) regime.
The First BIMSTEC Disaster Management Exercise- 2017 (BIMSTEC DMEx-2017) will be conducted by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) as the lead agency next week from October 10-13, 2017 in Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR). At the 17th BIMSTEC Senior Officials Meeting held in Kathmandu, Nepal on February 7, 2017, it was decided that India would organize the first annual Disaster Management Exercise for the region. .

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This Exercise will be a platform for sharing Best Practices on all aspects of Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), strengthening regional response and coordination for Disaster Management among the BIMSTEC member countries. The main focus of the BIMSTEC DMEx-2017 will be on testing the regions preparedness and resilience towards effective activation of inter-Governmental interaction/dialogue/agreements for immediate deployment of regional resources for disaster response. It will help create synergy and synchronize efforts to institutionalize regional cooperation among the member countries. The exercise will help strengthen the effective utilization of the Search & Rescue Teams for Disaster Relief & Emergency Response, including Emergency Rapid Assessment Teams and Management of mass casualties especially in situations involving breakdown of infrastructure and communication. .

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Delegates from all seven nations of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) grouping, - namely Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand, representatives from Embassies/High Commissions of BIMSTEC nations in Delhi, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), and Senior Officers from the Nodal Ministries will participate in the event. .

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At the end of the four-day Exercise, a publication will be brought out on the outcomes and recommendations of the Joint/Common Exercise and include Agreement among BIMSTEC Nations on regional cooperation for Disaster Management and Emergency Response. This would be presented to the BIMSTEC Leaders at the Summit to be hosted by Nepal in October/November, 2017. .

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The BIMSTEC DMEx-2017 is being conducted in two phases in Delhi and NCR. The main exercise will comprise of Table Top Exercise (TTX), Field Training Exercise (FTX) and After Action Review (AAR) which is scheduled for October 10-13, 2017. Earlier, the first phase comprising a Preparatory Meeting and field visit of site selected for FTX during the main exercise, was held in Delhi NCR on August 8-9, 2017. .

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India has been at the forefront of DRR efforts by hosting the South Asian Annual Disaster Management Exercise (SAADMEx) and the Asian Ministerial Conference for Disaster Risk Reduction (AMCDRR). India has also offered its expertise and capabilities in DRR such as the South Asia satellite, GSAT-9, and the Tsunami Early Warning Centre to other countries. Disaster Management was one of the important Agenda items the BIMSTEC leaders deliberated upon during the Goa BRICS Summit in October last year where BIMSTEC leaders were the Special Invitees. .

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The BIMSTEC region is home to around 1.5 billion people, constituting around 22% of the global population with a combined GDP of US $2.7 trillion economy. Majority of the BIMSTEC countries are situated in the South Asian Region (SAR), prone to natural disasters such as floods, cyclones, earthquakes, avalanches and drought. .

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DEAR HARRIETTE: My twin sons are in eighth grade. Their middle school ends at eighth, so we are shopping for schools now. It's driving me nuts. I went to public school in my hometown, and it was great. They are in private school, and we are looking at private, aka independent, high schools now, but it's expensive. I don't know how we are going to be able to afford to pay for high school and then college. My husband and I earn a modest living. We are applying for financial aid, but I worry about getting enough money from a scholarship. What do you recommend? -- Next High School, Brooklyn, New York

DEAR NEXT HIGH SCHOOL: The high school process can be harrowing, especially in New York. What you should do is fill out the paperwork for financial aid eligibility as soon as possible. When you speak to schools, tell them you will definitely need aid and ask what the ranges are for what they give to families. Typically, schools with large endowments have more flexibility when it comes to supporting students' education. Those are the schools you should target when you know you need financial support.

However, don't overlook public high schools. New York City is famous for excellent public high schools that are as competitive as many of the independent schools. While hard to get into, they provide an excellent education at no cost. Consider the gamut of what high school education has to offer. Do not go into debt trying to pay for a school you cannot afford.

DEAR HARRIETTE: I am a woman of a certain age, and I am discovering that I get hot flashes in the blink of an eye. I could be walking down the street or sitting in a meeting or talking to my kids. Then suddenly it's like it's raining on my face. Sweating is so embarrassing. I don't know what to do. Should I wipe my face? Excuse myself from the conversation? I want to keep my composure, but it's impossible sometimes. -- Stop the Rain, Cleveland

DEAR STOP THE RAIN: Menopause can be a difficult stage in life to manage. If you can accept it as a natural part of life, you will be able to live through it better. Practically speaking, wear lightweight clothing, preferably in natural fibers and in layers. Being able to peel off layers when you are hot can be a lifesaver. Avoid wearing clothing that is tight or that binds you. Keep a fan with you at all times. You can whip it out and fan yourself pretty much anywhere you are.

Do your best to stay calm. When you experience any type of extreme emotion, you will likely have a hot flash. Staying even-tempered helps to keep your body cooler. Finally, go to see your gynecologist and talk about natural hormone replacement options that may help you to go through this stage more easily.

DEAR HARRIETTE: I worked for a year on a project with a woman who had good intentions but who was often late and even more often was abrupt in the way she talked to me and to others on our team. I endured it during those 12 months, but I'm wondering if I want to work with her anymore. It was hard, and I'm kind of sensitive to lots of things, including timeliness and communication style. She is a team member and equal to me, but her behavior makes it hard to work as a team.

I was recently asked by the boss to stay on. I can use the money, but I worry that I will become angry if I have to keep making up for what this woman lacks. What can I do? -- Filling the Divide, Milwaukee

DEAR FILLING THE DIVIDE: Talk with your boss about the opportunity being offered to you. Thank him or her for believing in you and wanting to keep you on the team. Describe to the boss what you like about the job and ask if you can share what you consider the difficulties to be. Explain that you have experienced conflict with the woman in question. Admit you have considered not staying on at the company because of the specific interactions you have had with this woman. Ask if the boss can help make the work experience more comfortable.

Know that you risk losing your job by bringing this up. Since you were ready to walk anyway, you might as well tell your boss what your concerns are. He or she may not be aware of what's going on in the office and may be able to help.

DEAR HARRIETTE: The fall season is upon us, and it's busy for me. I am happy that I have lots to do at work and in my social life, but I can't figure out how to juggle everything. Just last week, I was invited to three events on one night and at least two on every other weeknight. I am young, and I understand this is my time to be out and about, but I can't do everything. It's making me too tired at work. How do I manage my schedule, bow out of some things gracefully and not make enemies? -- On the Go, Newark, New Jersey

DEAR ON THE GO: Keep a schedule of your week, including all key work duties as well as all invitations. Prioritize the invites that will further your career ambitions, expand your knowledge or fortify your friends and family. Your goal should be to strike a balance in your life between work and play. Agree to attend the key events and stay there only until the time that you know is your cutoff.

When you know you are overextended, RSVP that you cannot attend. You can write a brief note saying you are sure it will be a great event and you regret not being able to be there. Be honest with yourself and those who have invited you.

DEAR HARRIETTE: My neighbor, who has become a friend, was incarcerated a few years ago for a white-collar crime. She did her time and is now living her life. She is very kind to me and would do anything she can to support me. She can be a little rough around the edges in the way she communicates, but so what? She's loyal.

The problem is one of my business colleagues learned this woman and I are friends, thanks to social media, and she confronted me about it. She said it was bad for my reputation to be friendly with someone who has been in jail. How do I manage this situation? -- Dredging Up the Past, Denver

DEAR DREDGING UP THE PAST: Do your research to be clear about what crime your friend committed and how it was resolved. If you feel comfortable about where she is now and the substance of your relationship, maintain your friendship. You can say to anyone who challenges you that she has done her time and, as far as you are concerned, she is a good friend. For business purposes, whether her reputation can affect yours depends on what field you are in. It is possible.

Harriette Cole is a lifestylist and founder of DREAMLEAPERS, an initiative to help people access and activate their dreams. You can send questions to askharriette@harriettecole.com or c/o Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106
PM offers prayers at Dwarkadheesh Temple; addresses public meeting in Dwarka

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The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today began his two-day visit in Gujarat by offering prayers at the Dwarkadheesh Temple at Dwarka. .

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The Prime Minister unveiled plaques to mark the laying of foundation stones for a bridge between Okha and Beyt Dwarka; and other road development projects. .

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The Prime Minister said he saw a new energy and enthusiasm in Dwarka today. He said the bridge whose foundation stone has been laid, is a means to reconnect with our ancient heritage. It will boost tourism, which will generate employment, he added, noting that development will be the key to promoting tourism. .

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The Prime Minister recalled how lack of infrastructure, led to difficulties and challenges for the people of Beyt Dwarka, some years ago. .

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The Prime Minister said that the development of the tourism sector cannot happen in isolation. He said that if we want to draw more tourists to Gir, we should also inspire the tourists to visit other nearby places like Dwarka. .

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Building of infrastructure should enhance economic activities and add to the atmosphere of development, the Prime Minister said. We want development of ports and port-led development; the blue economy should help further the progress of India, he added. .

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The Prime Minister said that the Government of India is taking steps towards the empowerment of fishermen. He said Kandla Port is seeing unprecedented growth because resources were devoted to improve the port. He said a new lease of life has been given to Alang, and steps taken for the welfare of the labourers working there. .

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The Prime Minister said that the Government is modernising the marine security apparatus. An institute for this will be set up in this Devbhoomi of Dwarka, he added. .

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Speaking on the decisions taken by consensus in the GST Council meeting yesterday, the Prime Minister said that when there is trust in a government and when policies are made with best intentions, it is natural for people to support us for the best interests of the nation. .

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The Prime Minister asserted that the Government wants to help fulfil the aspirations of the people, and fight poverty. .

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The Prime Minister said that the world's attention is being drawn to India, and people are coming to invest here. "I see Gujarat contributing actively to the development of India and congratulate the Gujarat Government," the Prime Minister added. .

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Amazon.com is almost certain to enter the business of selling prescription drugs by 2019, said two analysts at Leerink Partners, posing a direct threat to the USs biggest brick-and-mortar drugstore chains.
Tesla Inc blamed production bottlenecks for having made only a fraction of the promised 1,500 Model 3s, the $35,000 sedan designed to propel the luxury electric-car maker into the mainstream.

Unknown to analysts, investors and the hundreds of thousands of customers who signed up to buy it, as recently as early September major portions of the Model 3 were still being banged out by hand, away from the automated production line, according to people familiar with the matter.

While the cars production began in early July, the advanced assembly line Tesla has boasted of building still wasnt fully ready as of a few weeks ago, the people said. Teslas factory workers had been piecing together parts of the cars in a special area while the company feverishly worked to finish the machinery designed to produce Model 3s at a rate of thousands a week, the people said.

Automotive experts say it is unusual to be building large parts of a car by hand during production. Thats not how mass production vehicles are made, said Dennis Virag, a manufacturing consultant who has worked in the automotive industry for 40 years. Thats horse-and-carriage type manufacturing. Thats not todays automotive world."

In a statement, a Tesla spokeswoman declined to answer questions for this article and said, For over a decade, the WSJ has relentlessly attacked Tesla with misleading articles that, with few exceptions, push or exceed the boundaries of journalistic integrity. While it is possible that this article could be an exception, that is extremely unlikely. The Journal disagrees with the companys categorization of its journalism.

Tesla introduced the Model 3 at an event outside the companys factory in July, when Chief Executive Elon Musk drove a shiny red Model 3 onstage as hundreds of his employees cheered the first sedans rolling off the production line.

From the Archives



Electric-car maker Tesla delivered a mixed earnings report Wednesday that was strong on the revenue front and gave analysts confidence that the production of its highly anticipated Model 3 sedan is on schedule. WSJ's Lee Hawkins explains. Photo: Reuters (Originally published May 4, 2017)

Within minutes of stepping out of the new vehicle, Teslas leader warned his engineers and designers the coming months would be challenging. Frankly, were going to be in production hell. Welcome, welcome! he said to laughter.

Behind the scenes, Tesla had fallen weeks behind in finishing the manufacturing systems to build the vehicle, the people said.

The extent of the problem came to light on Monday when Tesla said it made only 260 Model 3s during the third quarteraveraging three cars a day. The company cited production bottlenecks but didnt explain much further.

Although the vast majority of manufacturing subsystems at...our California car plant...are able to operate at high rate, a handful have taken longer to activate than expected, the company said at the time.

In Mr. Musks pursuit to rid the world of combustion engines, Tesla is trying to apply Silicon Valleys ethos of rapid change to the type of complex manufacturing process that traditional auto makers have spent decades perfecting. Unusual in the U.S. tech industry, where even companies that do make hardware generally outsource their manufacturing, Teslas challenge requires integrating an army of factory workers and some 10,000 parts from suppliers around the world.

Teslas rollout of the Model X sport-utility vehicle in 2015 also was plagued by quality and design issues that left suppliers scrambling and hourly workers having to rush to meet lofty goals. But the plans for the Model 3 are far larger, meaning the lack of a fully working assembling line so late in production could deal a bigger blow to the company.

Mr. Musk has said Tesla learned from the Model X mistakes. And he has proven doubters wrong before, creating a luxury brand that competes against BMW and Mercedes-Benz for buyers and has demonstrated that fully electric cars can find an enthusiastic following beyond a niche of environmentalists.

Calling his cars a computer on wheels, Mr. Musk caught conservative Detroit off guard with Teslas ability to quickly change features, such as a semiautonomous drive system, with software updates over the air. The companys stock has soared about 69% in the past 12 months, at times pushing its market value past General Motors Co.s .

But building 500,000 vehicles a yearas Mr. Musk had projected Tesla would start doing next yearis a sizable leap for a company that only made 84,000 Model S sedans and Model X SUVs last year. By comparison, General Motors Co., the largest U.S. auto maker by sales, delivered about 10 million vehicles globally last year, or more than 27,000 a day.

To approach what a typical factory in North America churns out, 14-year-old Tesla must build the muscles to roll out a car every minute of the workday and do it so well that the vehicles dont cause headaches for customers down the road.

Most auto makers celebrate the start of production of a new vehicle to sellso-called Job 1after six months or so of running the assembly line to build a few hundred vehicles to work out the bugs, said Doug Betts, senior vice president of global automotive operations at consultancy J.D. Power and a former manufacturing executive for Toyota Motor Corp. , Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV and Apple Inc.

Youre not really improving the final process if youre not running on it, Mr. Betts said. Problems can only be solved once they are found.

It isnt uncommon for much larger auto makers to handbuild pre-production versions of a car prior to the sales launch, but those are typically reserved for employees and others willing to test the cars and return them to the company. By the time a car goes on sale, the body shop is typically fully automated.

Inside the Fremont factory, workers said equipment for the so-called body-in-white line for the Model 3, where the car bodys sheet metal is welded together, wasnt installed until by around September. They guessed at least another month of work remained to calibrate the tools.

One worker who spent time in the Model 3 shopdubbed by some as Area 51 because of the limited access and secretive naturedescribed watching young workers in September struggling to move large pieces of steel to weld together instead of using robots as is traditionally the case.

In place of the robotsyouve got two associates lining up with a big, old spot welder hanging from the ceiling by a chain, and youve got one associate kind of like balancing it and trying to get the welder in position, and youve got another welder with his arm guiding it, this worker recalled seeing. Sparks go flying.

In August, Mr Musk told analysts that the Model 3s coming out of the factory were not engineering validation units.

Theyre fully certified, fully DOT-approved, EPA-approved production cars, Mr. Musk said, referring to the Department of Transportation and the Environmental Protection Agency. These are not prototypes in any way. Theyre not validation anything. They are full production cars.

But he also said early versions coming out of Fremont would have issues, which is why the first cars were going to employees and investors who paid for them.

Tesla has said it expects to begin delivering the first cars to nonemployees this quarter. It will have to seriously boost production to meet Mr. Musks 5,000-a-week projection.
Amid mounting US pressure on Pakistan to rein in terror groups, China today backed its all-weather ally and said Washington should "give full recognition" to Islamabad's "active efforts" to combat terrorism.

"Pakistan is at the forefront of the fight against terrorism," the Chinese Foreign Ministry said, reacting to Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen Joseph Dunford's remarks that Pakistan's spy agency ISI has connections with terrorist groups and Islamabad should change its behaviour.

Over the years, Pakistan has made active efforts to combat terrorism and made huge sacrifices to combat terrorism, the ministry said in a written response to a question from PTI about Gen Dunford's comments.

US Defence Secretary James Mattis told a House Armed Services Committee that the US has asked Pakistan to change its behaviour and Washington will "try one more time" to work with Islamabad to end its support for terrorists.

Latest reports said US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will visit Pakistan to convey President Donald Trump's tough message to change its policies of backing terrorist groups.

"We believe that the community should give full recognition to Pakistan's counter-terrorism efforts," the ministry said.

China supports the community to strengthen anti-terrorism cooperation and form a concerted effort, it said.

"We hope that the two countries will cooperate in the fight against terrorism on the basis of mutual respect and work together for the security and stability of the region and the world," the ministry added.
Lawmakers in British Prime Minister Theresa Mays Conservative Party who are trying to oust her as leader have been told to put up, shut up by the partys chief in Scotland.
There is no shortage of likely candidates for this years Nobel Prize in economics, which will be announced Monday in Stockholm, Sweden.
North Korea is preparing to test a long-range missile that it believes can reach the west coast of the United States, a Russian lawmaker just returned from a visit to Pyongyang was quoted as saying on Friday.
Some 120 Islamic State fighters and 60 foreign mercenaries were killed in a series of Russian air strikes in Syria over the past 24 hours, the defence ministry in Moscow said today.

Puzzlingly, the ministry also said three senior IS commanders including Omar al-Shishani had been confirmed dead as a result of an earlier Russian strike.

Moscow reported al-Shishani's death despite the fact that the Pentagon said in 2016 the notorious fighter had been killed by American troops in Iraq.

"A command post of the terrorists and up to 80 (IS) fighters including nine natives of the Northern Caucasus were destroyed in the area of Mayadeen," the ministry said, adding that another 40 IS fighters were killed around the town of Albu Kamal.

Mayadeen is one of the Islamic State group's last bastions in Syria.

In another air strike, more than 60 foreign mercenaries from the former Soviet Union, Tunisia, and Egypt were killed in the Euphrates Valley south of Deir Ezzor.

The ministry said "large numbers of foreign mercenaries" were coming into the Syrian border town of Albu Kamal from Iraq.

It also said Russian forces had killed senior IS commanders Omar al-Shishani, Alaa al-din al-Shishani and Salah al-Din al-Shishani, all natives of the Northern Caucasus.

Moscow reported their deaths after taking "several days" to confirm the results of an earlier strike on the northern outskirts of Albu Kamal which destroyed an IS command post with more than 30 fighters including the natives of the Northern Caucasus.

The Pentagon announced in March 2016 that American forces had killed Shishani, one of the most notorious faces of IS known for his thick red beard.

Shishani, whose nom de guerre means "Omar the Chechen," came from the former Soviet state of Georgia's Pankisi Gorge region, which is populated mainly by ethnic Chechens.

He fought as a Chechen rebel against Russian forces before joining the Georgian military in 2006, and fought Russian forces again in Georgia in 2008.

He later resurfaced in northern Syria as the commander of a group of foreign fighters and became a senior leader within IS.

The Russian defence ministry was not immediately available for further comment.

Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, disagreed with Moscow's report.

"Salah al-Din al-Shishani is still alive and is somewhere in the regions controlled by jihadist groups in the west of Aleppo province. He is a famous commander, and his jihadist group is allied with the jihadists of the Al-Nusra front but only in their fight against the regime," he said.

"He has no links with IS."



The advances against IS in Deir Ezzor have resulted in a heavy civilian death toll through Russian and coalition air raids.

The Observatory said Russian air strikes on Thursday night killed 14 people, including three children, fleeing across the Euphrates on rafts near Mayadeen.

Since it intervened in Syria in 2015, Russia has not acknowledged any civilian deaths from its strikes, and it dismisses the Observatory's reporting as biased.

Moscow has been staging air strikes in support of its ally Damascus targeting both IS in Deir Ezzor province and rival jihadists led by Al-Qaeda's former Syria affiliate in Idlib province in the northwest.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
President will dispatch his top diplomatic and military advisers to Pakistan in the coming weeks, turning up the heat on a nuclear-armed ally accused of harbouring terror groups.

Weeks after Trump angrily accused Islamabad of providing safe haven to "agents of chaos," Secretary of State Rex Tillerson plans to depart for Pakistan late this month.

He will be followed by Secretary of Defence Jim Mattis, according to US and Pakistani sources.

The one-two punch is designed to drill home Trump's message that Pakistani state support for jihadist groups has to end, according to officials briefed on the visits.

Washington has long been frustrated by Pakistan's willingness to offer cross-border safe havens to Taliban factions and armed Islamist groups fighting US troops and their Afghan allies.

The relationship reached the breaking point in 2011 when President Barack Obama sent commandos into Pakistan in 2011 to kill Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden, who was living in a military garrison town.

With little change since then, Trump came to office indicating that Washington's frustration had reached the point where something had to give.

"We have been paying Pakistan billions and billions of dollars at the same time they are housing the very terrorists that we are fighting," he said an August address.

But in the six weeks since Trump signalled that tougher tone, there have been precious few signs that the calculus in South Asia has changed.

Mattis told Congress this week that he will try "one more time" to "see if we can make this work."



"To this point, we have not seen any impact on military-to-military relations," said one Pentagon official, suggesting any change would not happen after Mattis' visit.

Visiting Washington, Pakistan's foreign minister Khawaja Asif appeared unwavering.

He lashed out at "hollow allegations" about Pakistan harbouring terrorists as "not acceptable."



"That is not the way you talk to 70-year-old friends," Asif said bitterly.

"Instead of accusations and threats we should cooperate with each other for the peace in the region," he said while confirming Tillerson's visit.

While professing anger in public, Pakistani officials in private complain about receiving no concrete requests to target the Haqqani network or other groups.

US officials have been reticent to share some intelligence for fear of tipping off targets with links inside Pakistan's government.

Earlier this month, a US drone killed three suspected militants in an attack on a compound in Pakistan's tribal region.

Pakistani officials also complain of receiving mixed messages from the Trump administration, which is still struggling to find its feet under a mercurial commander-in-chief.

A September meeting in New York between Vice-President Mike Pence and Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was said to be cordial, despite Trump's fire and brimstone rhetoric.

"It was a very good meeting with the vice president," said Asif.

After that, Pakistan officials said, they were surprised at a tougher tone outlined in public by Mattis and in private by Trump's National Security Adviser HR McMaster.
The Trump administration is again taking aim at the Dodd-Frank Act, releasing a Treasury Department report that recommended a vast reworking of Wall Street rules adopted in response to the financial crisis.
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A book named 'Moditva ke Maaiyne' (Meaning of Moditva), which rakes up the past of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, was released in Lucknow on Saturday.

Co-authored by Sanghmitra Maurya, daughter of Uttar Pradesh Minister Swami Prasad Maurya, who left BSP to join BJP ahead of the 2017 state elections, focuses on the rise of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

With this, the book also contains some controversial remarks on the incumbent Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. She has picked numerous quotes from his past speeches and mentioned in the book.

For example, it quotes Yogi saying, "Those opposing yoga should quit India", "Those opposing surya namaskar should be drowned in the sea" and more.

Author Sanghmitra Maurya has allegedly portrayed Yogi as a hard-line Hindutva Leader in her book and in the process has also cautioned him to shed his belligerence as he is the Chief Minister of the state now.

Sanghmitra, however, talking to ANI, said that she believes Yogi has transformed after holding the post of the Chief Minister.

"Yogi ji is now away from controversial remarks, which I have mentioned in the book. He is the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh and has undergone change of views," she said.

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London Police said that a car has been involved in a collision near the Natural History Museum, and one person has been arrested following the accident.

The Metropolitan Police, took to Twitter and said, "A number of people have been injured at Exhibition Road in South Kensington."

One person has been arrested following the incident in Exhibition Road in South Kensington, said the London Metropolitan Police.

The police also said that the officers are on scene, and the London Ambulance Service has been called.

"Enquiry to establish the circumstances and motive are underway," the police said.

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China has rebuffed the statement made by the Trump administration about the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), citing that its One Belt, One Road (OBOR) initiative, which dictates the CPEC, was not directed against third parties.

"We have repeatedly said that the CPEC is an economic cooperation initiative that is not directed against third parties and has nothing to do with territorial sovereignty disputes and does not affect China's principled stance on the Kashmir issue," The Express Tribune quoted the Chinese Foreign Ministry, as saying.

Earlier this week, U.S. Defence Secretary James Mattis said to the Senate Armed Services Committee, "The One Belt, One Road also goes through the disputed territory, and I think that it itself shows the vulnerability of trying to establish that sort of a dictate."

He had added that in a globalised world, there are many belts and many roads, and no one nation should put itself into a position of dictating the 'One belt, One Road'.

China came up with its One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiative in 2013.

The project seeks to enable a 21st century "Silk Route", comprising both overland and maritime access routes through installation of new, as well as upgradation of existing transport and communication infrastructure in countries hoping to reap the dividends.

In a May 2017 meeting in Beijing, the Chinese President had called the OBOR the "project of the century".

The OBOR is now being renamed as Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to overcome the limitations of the earlier nomenclature, "One Belt, One Road", because it is expected to involve many roads and many belts.

The human rights activists have, time and again, spoken about and highlighted the growing atrocities of Pakistan on the indigenous people of Balochistan and deteriorating human rights situation as a result of the CPEC.

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The Darul Uloom Deoband, an Islamic school, issued a fatwa (religious edict) on Saturday that banned women from plucking, trimming and shaping their eyebrows and also cutting their hair.

Darul Iftaa, which issues the Darul Uloom Deoband's edicts, has termed all such hair-grooming activities as 'un-Islamic'.

"Darul-Uloom Deoband has issued fatwa against Muslim women cutting their hair and shaping their eyebrows," Maulana Kazmi of Darul Uloom Deoband said.

According to reports, a Muslim man from Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur had sent a query to the seminary seeking to know if haircut and eyebrow doing were allowed in Islam.

In a response to the query, Darul Iftaa said such acts violate Islamic laws.

Women activist Mariya Alam questioned the fatwa issued and said, "Darul Uloom is also becoming the part of world's conspiracy against Muslims, where they are portrayed as extremists, terrorists and are believed to torture women."

She further said that it is misrepresentation of Islam and shows it of carrying anti-women values.

"Islam is not about putting restrictions on women but about empowering women," Alam said.

She further added that no one can decide for Muslim women, they themselves can take decisions.

Darool Uloom Deoband issued many fatwas in the past.

In January 2012, it issued a fatwa calling for the author Salman Rushdie to be barred from entering India to attend a literature festival because he had offended Muslim sentiments.

In May 2010, Darool Uloom Deoband issued a fatwa stating that men and women cannot work together in public offices unless the women are properly clothed.

In September 2013, it issued a fatwa banning photography as un-Islamic.

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The Pakistan government has appointed former chief justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani as ad-hoc judge to lead the team from Pakistan's side in the Kulbhushan Jadhav case that is being heard by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at The Hague.

Justice Jillani is a cousin of former foreign secretary Jalil Abbas Jilani.

On the other hand, Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) representative Raheel Kamran Sheikh has called upon the federal government to seek parliament's approval on the appointment of an ad-hoc judge.

A high-level meeting was held in the attorney general's office on Friday to discuss future strategy and responses to the 22- page report submitted by India before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which is hearing the case of Kulbhushan Jadhav, a retired Indian navy officer sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court for alleged espionage.

Apart from the Attorney General (AG) Ashtar Ausaf Ali, who presided over the meeting, representatives of the Foreign Office and the Ministry of Law and Justice as well as other stakeholders were present.

It has been decided that weekly meetings will be held in order to review the situation and "to finalise Islamabad's point of view and convert it into an appropriate rejoinder to India's allegations".

The ICJ, located at the Peace Palace in The Hague, has given Pakistan the deadline of December 13 to submit its counter-plea or counter-memorial, after which the final proceedings on the issue will commence. The hearing of the case is expected to be fixed at the start of next year or end of this year.

The ICJ is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations which was established in June 1945 by the Charter of the United Nations.

Ausaf said they were in touch with the relevant stakeholders, including Khawar Qureshi who had pleaded Pakistan's case at the initial stage, to formalise a robust reply refuting all allegations levelled against Pakistan, the Dawn has reported.

Soon after a meeting with ICJ President Ronny Abraham and delegations of Pakistan and India in the Netherlands on June 8, Ausaf informed the international court about Pakistan's intention to appoint an ad-hoc judge to sit on the ICJ bench for all proceedings, including substantive hearings in Jadhav's case.While Foreign Affairs Director General Dr Mohammad Faisal would continue to act as the co-agent.

Indian has accused Islamabad of violating the Vienna Convention by failing to provide him with consular access and for being in breach of international human rights law.

The ICJ on May 18 halted the execution of Jadhav. On April 10, Jadhav was given the death sentence by a military court in Pakistan for alleged "espionage and subversive activities".

New Delhi has appealed to the court to impose emergency measures for Jadhav's execution to be suspended until the legal battle in the Hague concludes.

Pakistan claims it arrested Jadhav in March last year from its restive Balochistan province, where the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor culminates.

India, however, maintains that Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran where he had business interests after retiring from the Indian Navy.

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The Centre has informed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal that Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) Act doesn't allow it to put on hold proposed hike in Metro fare.

The Centre also informed Kejriwal that setting up a fresh Fare Fixation Committee (FFC) could be considered if the Delhi Government agrees to give over Rs. 3,000 crore every year to the DMRC.

The DMRC plans to hike fare by a maximum of Rs. 10 from October 10.

The Delhi CM on September 29 had written a letter to Minister of Housing & Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri and termed the fare increase as 'unacceptable' and demanded that the decision be withheld and reviewed.

Kejriwal asked the central government to give direction to the DMRC to put on hold the proposed hike in fares to be effective from the tenth of this month, as recommended by the Fourth Fare Fixation Committee.

On Friday, Puri sent a detailed response to Kejriwal's letter.

Puri responded to the Delhi Chief Minister after detailed examination of the issues raised and suggestions made by him regarding the fare hike in consultations with the DMRC.

Puri informed Kejriwal that "your suggestion that this Ministry should direct that the fare increase be kept on hold overlooks the fact the central government does not have any such authority. Tampering with the recommendations of FFC is legally untenable".

The DMRC during the discussions and in their written response to the Ministry asserted that "The FFC's recommendations are binding on the Metro Rail Administrations as per provisions of Section-37 of this Act (Metro Act). Neither the Central Government nor the State Government or even the Board of the Company has legal power to change the recommendations made by the FFC."

Puri annexed DMRC's written response in the matter of fare hike to his letter to the Delhi Chief Minister.

The DMRC is run as per the provisions of the Metro Railways (Operations and Maintenance) Act, 2002.

Puri in his letter rebutted all the assertions made by Kejriwal which include that the Central Government can direct putting on hold the fare hike, the FFC recommended a year gap between the two fare hikes and an annual cap of 7% in metro fare hike.

Referring to the last metro fare hike in 2009, Puri clarified that the Fourth FFC itself recommended the fare hike, coming after an extended gap of seven and a half years, to be staggered into two installments of which the first one was to come into force immediately i.e May this year and the second increase from the tenth of this month (October).

"Hence, it would be wrong to claim that there were two increases in fares in a short period of five months," Puri stressed.

Regarding the cap on fare hike, Puri said, "FFC has recommended a cap of 7% for annual fare rise commencing from January, 2019" and it is incorrect to apply this yardstick for fare hike under consideration seven and a half years since last fare revision.

Referring to the suggestion of putting the fare hike on hold, Puri noted that the alternative is to provide to the DMRC grants-in-aid every year over the next five years starting from 2017-18 to the tune of Rs.3,040 cr, Rs.3,616 cr, Rs.3,318 cr, Rs.3,150 cr and Rs.2,980 cr for 2021-22 to meet loan repayment liabilities to JICA, depreciation for replacements and operational expenses with no savings to DMRC.

Pointing out that as per the Metro Guidelines, the operational loss is the responsibility of the State Government, Puri suggested to Kejriwal that "In case the State Government agrees to provide grants -in-aid of nearly Rs.3,000 cr per annum to DMRC, then another FFC may be constituted" which may also examine the financial viability of DMRC.

Puri referred to Delhi Government providing such aid of Rs.1,600 cr per year to DTC apart from meeting the gross cost model expenses for the cluster buses and the sub-optimal services being provided by the DTC.

Puri expressed concern over a 15 month delay in completion of Phase-III of Delhi Metro and the Phase-IV running behind the schedule by two and a half years on account of actions and decisions to have been taken by the Delhi Government.

He said the delay in respect of Phase-IV is depriving about 40 lakh people of Delhi of the benefits of metro services besides denting the much needed efforts to reduce congestion and pollution in the capital.

Stating that the people of Delhi are looking for quality, efficient, reliable and punctual metro services, Puri noted that DMRC may be allowed to function as an autonomous company in the best interest of the citizens of the capital so that it can continue to provide services which are comparable to the best in the world.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday stressed on the need to bridge the digital divide in the country and said India can't afford it.

Prime Minister Modi said, "The country cannot afford to have a digital divide in this day and age."

While addressing a public meeting at IIT, Gandhinagar; he said, "Work is underway to spread digital literacy to every part of India, among all age groups and sections of the society."

The Prime Minister further added, "An optical fibre network has helped us in enabling digital literacy and the more it develops, the more progress there would be. In the coming days, six crore people would be given digital literacy training which would lead to more employment generation."

In order to promote digital literacy, the Prime Minister stressed on the need to adopt user friendly technology.

He further said that digital literacy will guarantee "good governance and transparency and will also help to create a less-cash society".

Prime Minister Modi also stressed upon the need of global competency in the Indian educational institutions.

"Ten private universities and ten government universities would be put on a challenge route. We will invest 1000 crore on each of them. We will relax the rules and give them the liberty and independence to make their own decisions. We will do whatever it takes to turn them into the 20 top universities of the world," he said.

Praising the institutions in Gujarat, he said, "Gujarat has given global level institutions to the world. There is no place in the world with a premier university like the Forensic Science University. Gujarat is also the first state to get Indian Institute of Teacher Education (IITE) that trains people to be the best teachers."

Prime Minister Modi also advised the students not to get trapped in the exam-oriented knowledge system and urged them to adopt innovation methods.

He also emphasised on the need of practical knowledge than academic knowledge and importance of need-based innovation.

Speaking on the same lines, the Prime Minister concluded by saying, "Let us change the world by choosing the road of innovation."

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on a two-day visit to his poll-bound home state of Gujarat, where he dedicated the newly-constructed building of IIT, Gandhinagar, to the nation and launched the Gramin Digital Saksharta Scheme.

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The Sanatan Sanstha organisation on Saturday claimed that it was being defamed in connection with the murder of senior journalist Gauri Lankesh.

"There must be proof of the crime. Just because someone is missing does not mean he or she has committed the crime," Sanatan Sanstha spokesperson Chetan Rajhans told ANI.

Five members of the Sanatan Sanstha are suspected of murdering Lankesh, and of being involved in a bomb blast in Madgaon, Goa in 2009.

"The allegations are baseless, and false propaganda is being circulated by anti-Hindu elements. It seems like a preplanned conspiracy to defame the Hindu religion," Rajhans added.

Rajhans said there has been no official statement by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Karnataka, to suggest that the organisation is involved in the case.

Asked about the whereabouts of the five missing members, Rajhans informed that the organisation has not been in contact with them since 2009.

He assured that the organisation will assist in the investigations.

Karnataka Home Minister Ramalinga Reddy has said that the Special Investigation Team (SIT) has received 'some information and clues' about the Lankesh murder case.

Lankesh was murdered on September 5 outside her residence in Bengaluru's Rajarajeshwari Nagar.

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Former Sri Lankan navy chief Vice Admiral (Retd.) Jayantha Perera on Saturday expressed concern about incidents of piracy, but said there is no piracy taking place in the Indian Ocean.

Vice Admiral (Retd.)Perera also said it is good that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) had been neutralised, else there would have been piracy in the region by them.

"Piracy in the Gulf of Aden and the Malacca Straits has been curtailed. In the Indian Ocean also, the situation has improved. There is no such issue of piracy that we have to curtail anyway. We are lucky that the LTTE was eliminated, else there would've been piracy by them too in the region," he said.

"We are managing other activities in the Indian Ocean too, with the support of major players," he added.

On Friday, an Indian Navy patrol vessel, INS Trishul, thwarted a piracy attempt on Indian ship on a merchant vessel "Jag Amar" in the Gulf of Aden.

In the operation which lasted for five hours, the Indian Navy found one AK 47 assault rifle, grapnels, ropes, fuel drums and ladders.

This was the third piracy attempt foiled by the Indian Navy in the Gulf of Aden in the last six months.

The Gulf of Aden is a key shipping route located near the southern tip of the Red Sea between Somalia and Yemen.

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Deepa Jayakumar, late Jayalalithaa's neice, on Saturday accused the Tamil Nadu government led by Edappadi Palanisamy for being "hand in glove" in the entire operation of granting five-day parole to V.K. Sasikala.

Sasikala, expelled general secretary of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), has been lodged in the Parapana Agrahara central jail since February this year after the Supreme Court upheld her conviction by a special court in a disproportionate assets case.

Sasikala was granted a five-day parole by the Karnataka prison authorities on Friday, to attend to her ailing husband in Chennai.

Talking to ANI, Jayakumar said it is evident that Palanisamy's government is hand-in-glove with Sasikala in the parole episode.

She said that granting parole to Sasikala is a serious case of violation of the law from the government's side, as by law she should have at least completed half her term in prison before getting the relief.

She also expressed apprehensions about Sasikala influencing the probe in former Tamil Nadu chief minister Jayalalithaa's death case.

"Now when she is out, she can directly influence the inquiry commission set up in Jayalalithaa's death case," Jayakumar said.

The Tamil Nadu government last month announced the constitution of a Commission of Inquiry headed by Justice A. Arumughaswamy, retired judge of the Madras High Court, to investigate the death of Jayalalithaa.

Sasikala's role during the treatment and death of Jayalalithaa is under scanner.

On September 23, Tamil Nadu Forest Minister Dindigul Sreenivasan said that all ministers of the state had lied to the people about hospitalisation and death of Jayalalithaa, a.ka. Amma, at Chennai's Apollo Hospital last year.

He said that only once a closest confidant of Jayalalithaa, Sasikala and her family had access to see Amma.

Sasikala was removed from the AIADMK last month after the factions led by Chief Minister Palanisamy and now Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam, joined hands.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday arrived in Dwarka, Gujarat, to offer prayers and attend a special prayer at the Dwarikadheesh Temple.

Modi is on a two-day visit to the state.

At Dwarka, he will lay the foundation stone for a four-lane cable-stayed signature bridge between Okha and Bet Dwarka to be built at a cost of Rs. 962 crore.

Other projects for which foundation stone will be laid include four-laning of 116.24 kilometers of Porbandar-Dwarka section of NH-51 and four-laning of 93.56 km of Gadu-Porbandar section of NH-51.

The Prime Minister will also address a public meeting in Dwarka.

From Dwarka, the Prime Minister will go to Hirasar in Rajkot district where he will lay the foundation stone for a Greenfield airport.

Prime Minster Modi will also lay the foundation stone in Chotila for six-laning of 201-kilometer Ahmedabad-Rajkot section of NH-47 at a cost of Rs. 2,893 crore.

He will also dedicate a fully automatic milk processing and packaging plant and a drinking water distribution pipeline for Joravarnagar and Ratanpur area of Surendranagar. The Prime Minister will address a public meeting there as well.

The Prime Minister will then proceed to Gandhinagar, where, he will dedicate the newly-constructed building of IIT Gandhinagar to the nation and launch the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan (PMGDISHA). The Abhiyan is aimed at imparting digital literacy to citizens in rural areas, and provide access to information, knowledge, education and healthcare.

On Sunday, Prime Minister Modi will visit his birthplace Vadnagar in Mehsana district. He will inaugurate a medical college and a hospital having a total bed capacity of 650.

Prime Minister will also launch the Intensified Mission Indradhanush to accelerate progress towards the goal of full immunization coverage. The mission will provide greater focus on urban areas and other pockets of low immunization coverage.

The Prime Minister will also distribute e-tablets to health workers to mark the launch of ImTeCHO (Innovative mobile-phone Technology for Community Health Operations).

ImTeCHO is aimed at improving the performance of community health workers ASHAs (Accredited Social Health Activists) through better supervision, support and motivation for increasing coverage of proven maternal, newborn and child health interventions among resource-poor settings in India.

The same afternoon, the prime minister will reach Bharuch and lay the foundation stone for Bhadbhut Barrage, to be built over the Narmada River.

He will also flag off the Antyodaya Express between Udhna (Surat, Gujarat), and Jaynagar (Bihar). Mr Modi will also unveil plaques to mark the laying of foundation stone, and the inauguration of various plants of Gujarat Narmada Fertilizer Corporation. He will also address a public meeting there before returning to Delhi.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi will embark on his maiden visit to Vadnagar in Gujarat tomorrow after he assumed the office of Prime Minister.

Stating that his visit will bring back several memories from his childhood, Prime Minsiter Modi added that he look forward to visiting Vadnagar.

Prime Minister Modi took to Twitter and wrote, "I look forward to visiting Vadnagar, my hometown tomorrow morning. This visit will bring back several memories from my childhood."

In a series of tweets, he further apprised about his tomorrow's programme.

At a public meeting, the prime minister will launch the Intensified Mission Indradhanush to accelerate progress towards the goal of full immunization coverage. It will provide greater focus on urban areas and other pockets of low immunization coverage.

The prime minister will distribute e-tablets to health workers to mark the launch of ImTeCHO.

The ImTeCHO is an innovative mobile phone application to improve performance of Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA) workers through better supervision, support and motivation for increasing coverage of proven maternal, newborn and child health interventions among resource-poor settings in India.

The ImTeCHO stands for "Innovative mobile-phone Technology for Community Health Operations". "TeCHO" in Gujarati means "support"; therefore, "ImTeCHO" means "I am support."

The same afternoon, the prime minister will arrive at Bharuch. He will lay the foundation stone for Bhadbhut Barrage, to be built over the Narmada River. He will flag off the Antyodaya Express between Udhna (Surat, Gujarat), and Jaynagar (Bihar).

He will unveil plaques to mark the laying of foundation stone, and inauguration of various plants of Gujarat Narmada Fertiliser Corporation.

The prime minister will return to Delhi on the evening of October 8.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Russian defence ministry has confirmed that the country's air force targeted an ISIS command position in Mayadin city in eastern Syria and killed 80 terrorists.

Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said that in the last 24 hours, Russian Aerospace forces in Syria were focused on destroying Daesh reinforcements with a large number of foreign mercenaries arriving from Iraq to the region of Abu Kamal along the Syrian-Iraqi border.

Dozens of ISIS militants, among them warlords and foreign fighters, were killed in a series of Russian airstrikes in Syria, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

The ministry added that the nine terrorists killed were from the North Caucasus region.The strikes were carried after Russian military intelligence in Syria within a week revealed areas of their concentration and command posts near the city of Abu Kamal, as well as routes to the city of Al Mayadin and further to the southern outskirts of the left-bank part of the city of Deir ez-Zor.

"To the south of Deir ez-Zor in the valley of the Euphrates river a group of over 60 foreign mercenaries originating from CIS countries, Tunisia and the Arab Republic of Egypt were killed in an airstrike. A total of 12 trucks with heavy weapons were also destroyed,"Sputnik quoted Konashenkov, as saying.

The Russian Defense ministry also stressed that important Daesh commanders, hiding for a long time in Iraq were also killed during the strikes.

During the last day, a Russian Air Force task force in Syria targeted Islamic State IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL reinforcements of foreign fighters coming from Iraq to the vicinity of the town of Abu Kamal near the Iraq-Syria border," the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

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Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has urged the international community, including the UK, to intensify pressure on Myanmar to repatriate hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims who crossed into Bangladesh fleeing violence in Myanmar.

"International pressure on the Myanmar government should continue, so that Naypyidaw is forced to take back its forcibly displaced Rohingya nationals from Bangladesh," Hasina stated.

The Prime Minister made the request to the British government when UK Minister of State for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Tariq Mahmood Ahmad met her in London on Friday.

"The international pressure on the Myanmar government will have to be continued,"Dhaka Tribune quoted Prime Minister's Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim as saying.

She also conveyed her regards to the British prime minister through Lord Ahmad.

The UK state minister praised the people of Bangladesh and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for saving the lives of tens of thousands of Rohingya people by giving them shelter.

Terming the influx of Rohingya people into Bangladesh a humanitarian crisis, Lord Ahmad said the UK government will pledge 30 million pounds in support of the refugees.

Hasina said Bangladesh made makeshift arrangement for shifting Rohingya Muslims to an island called 'Bhasan Char' from Cox's Bazar, Media reports.

"We need international community's assistance including that of the UK for their relocation," she said.

Hasina also added that discussions with Myanmar over resolving the Rohingya crisis has made significant progress, following the recent visit of its Minister of the Office of State Counsellor Kyaw Tint Swe to Bangladesh.

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Vietnam's Ambassador to India, Ton Sinh Thanh, on Saturday said the South China Sea is important not only for countries in the region, but also for countries outside the region.

"South China Sea is very important not only to the countries in the region, but also outside the region," Ambassador Thanh told ANI on the sidelines of a United Nations Convention on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

He further admitted that there are still disputes, not only the dispute over the sovereignty of the islands, but also over the overlapping of special economic zones among some countries as well.

"This conference is very important and it is taking place at a very important venue, which is close to the South China Sea. Indo-Pacific is also very important for maritime security. However, the issue is how we should comply with United Nations Convention on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)," Ambassador Thanh added.

He mentioned that, "There has been the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCI) ruling, but the problem is how to enforce the rulings so that all countries here comply with the rules. This is the only way to maintain freedom of navigation and security in the region."

A thee-day conference on 'UNCLOS', has been organised by the India Foundation and is being held in Port Blair from October 5-7.

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Spain's third largest bank will move its headquarters from Catalonia due to increased tensions post voting on an independence referendum.

took the decision to move out after an order from the government in Madrid made it easier for companies to move their bases out of the area, the Independent reports.

Another bank, Sadabell, has already moved out of Catalonia and relocated to Alicante.

Caixa Bank, which approximately has 25 per cent of its global business based in Catalonia, has been a major sponsor of social and cultural programmes in the region.

On October 3, Catalans took to streets of Barcelona to condemn the violent crackdown by Spanish security forces during the referendum on independence, in which 893 people were injured.

The Catalan Government said it had earned the right to split from Spain, claiming 90 percent of those who voted in last week's poll were in favour of independence.

Catalan nationalists have always argued that the region is a separate nation with its own history, culture and language, and that it should have increased fiscal independence.

In 2006, the Spanish government backed Catalonia's calls for greater powers. But, four years later, that status was rescinded by the Constitutional Court, which ruled that while Catalan is a "nationality," Catalonia is not a nation in itself.
A government school in Gaya, Bihar, has been functioning without toilets, causing discomfort to both students and teaching staff.

Six hundred students -400 girls and 200 boys- of the Guru Nanak Middle School are often forced to go to to their homes or to the homes of their friends to ease themselves.

"Our homes are far, so we use toilets in our friends' homes, who live close to the school," Anjali Kumari, an 8th standard student, told ANI.

Students and teachers said they have informed the Municipal Corporation about the issue. The officials have assured the school that they will construct the toilets soon.

Punami Kumari, a teacher at the school since May 2014, said she has not seen a toilet in the school since she joined service.

"The school comes under the management of the Gaya Nagar Nigam. I have submitted an application and visited the office in person as well. They gave an assurance, but no work has begun as yet," Principal Brijmohan Thakur informed.

Thakur said the school also has no boundary wall or gate.

Gaya Mayor Virendra Kumar said he had no knowledge of the issue.

"I have received no application from the school regarding lack of toilets. It is the first time that I am getting to know of the problem through you," he told ANI, adding he will direct the Gaya Nagar Nigam to take immediate remedial action.

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Former Sri Lankan navy chief Vice Admiral (Retd.) Jayantha Perera on Saturday said relation between Sri Lanka and China are mainly economic, and added that Colombo would never compromise the national security of any other country.

Vice Admiral (Retd.)Perera made this remark in response to a question on the presence of China in Sri Lanka's Hambantota Port.

"The relation between Sri Lanka and China is mainly for the economy. We are actually recovering after 30 years of war, we are looking for investors and because of this, China is in Hambantota," he said.

"We are very good friends of India and will never ever have any country in our country to compromise somebody else's national security," he added.

Vice Admiral (Retd.)Perera added that China's presence in their country has nothing to do with military affairs.

In July this year, after 10 years of negotiations, China Merchants Port Holdings signed a 1.12 billion dollar agreement with the Sri Lanka Ports Authority to develop the Hambantota Port in southern Sri Lanka.

According to the deal, the Chinese side will hold a 70 percent stake in two joint ventures to be launched to take charge of the commercial and administrative management operations of the port respectively, the Xinhua news agency reported.

After 10 years, the Sri Lankan side will gradually purchase an additional 20 percent stake, resulting in the two sides owning an equal share of 50 percent each, according to the agreement, which is valid for 99 years.

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Two sharp-shooters of Gangster Ravi Pujari gang were arrested on Saturday for seeking Rs. 10 crore as extortion from a builder.

The two arrested by the Thane Police have been identified Nitin Rai and Dinesh Rai.

Two pistols and two live cartridges have been recovered from them.

According to the police , accused Dinesh Rai is the same guy who used to work for Fazal ur Rehman Gang.

Rai was arrested in 2004 for making an extortion call to the owner of Parag Sarees in Surat.

The call was allegedly made in connection to Shilpa Shetty's work in the advertisement of Parag Sarees.

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The United States has lifted a slew of long-standing economic sanctions against Sudan in recognition of its "sustained positive actions".

However, Sudan will stay on the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism - alongside Iran and Syria.

According to CNN, "The move follows 16 months of diplomatic negotiations, initiated under former US President Barack Obama and continued under President Donald Trump, who signed off on the sanctions relief."

Sudan will no longer be subject to a 20-year-old US trade embargo and will have access to previously frozen assets from October 12.

The Trump administration had an initial opportunity to remove these sanctions in July, but opted instead to extend the temporary relief which were initially lifted in January.

The aforementioned decision was endeavoured at enhancing pressure on the African nation to snap ties with North Korea and therefore isolate the country diplomatically.

Officials also said they asked for and got a commitment from Sudan not to purchase arms from Pyongyang.

The Trump administration last month removed Sudan from the list of countries whose citizens are subject to travel restrictions. Sudan was the only country that was removed.

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With effect from 07 October 2017

Punjab & Sind Bank announced the revision in Marginal Cost of Fund Based Lending Rate (MCLR) for different tenors and the same will be effective from 7 October, 2017 -

Overnight 8.00%

One month 8.05%

Three month 8.20%

Six month 8.20%

One Year 8.45%

Three Year 8.90%

The Base Rate has been kept unchanged at 9.70% and BPLR at 14%.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News

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From USFDA

Shilpa Medicare announced that the US FDA has issued an Establishment Inspection Report (EIR) for the Company's generic pharmaceutical manufacturing facility at Jadcherla in Telangana, India which was inspected between 24 and 28 July 2017. The inspection has now been closed by the US FDA. The Company had submitted a detailed corrective and preventive action (CAPA) plan to the regulator within the stipulated timelines in response to the form 483 issued at the end of inspection. The US FDA has reviewed the CAPA and has found them acceptable.

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To protest against the atrocities against and killings of RSS and BJP workers in Kerala, JP President Amit Shah will lead the Jan Raksha Yatra here on Sunday.

Delhi BJP President Manoj Tiwari, Vice President and incharge of Delhi Shyam Jaju, party's national office bearers, MPs, MLAs, MCD Leaders, and state office bearers will join the two km long Yatra from Connaught Place to the office of the Communist Party of India-Marxist, the major party of the southern state's ruling Left Democratic Front.

"The BJP workers will assemble in the Central Park of Connaught Place and will march to the central office of Communist Party of India-Marxist at Gole Market," said convener of the Yatra Rajesh Bhatia.

Shah, who on Tuesday launched the state-wide "March for People's Protection" from Payyannur in Kannur, has held Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan responsible for the political murders of BJP and RSS workers in the state.

He had also asked all the state units to hold yatras in their respective states to oppose the "Left party's of murder".

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday joined the state-wide "Jana Raksha Yatra" being undertaken by Kerala BJP President Kummanem Rajasekheran.

Shah, however,failed to turn up to lead the state-wide yatra on Thursday.

The march, a show of strength by the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is to highlight the political violence of the CPI-M against their cadres. The 15 day yatra will cover 11 districts before reaching Thiruvananthapuram on October 17.

--IANS

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Asia's oldest convent, St Patrick's Junior College in Agra, is celebrating 200 years of the foundation of the Congregation of Jesus and Mary (CJM) with four days of activities.

Mother Superior General Sister Monica Joseph along with heads of CJMs from 28 countries, including three Pakistani sisters and the cardinal of Lyons in France, are participating in the deliberations.

The CJM, established by St Claudine Thevenet in 1818 in France, has completed 200 "glorious years of service to mankind", a nun told IANS on Saturday.

The celebrations in Agra commemorate the foundation of the CJM, she added.

Sisters and delegates of CJM from across the globe were welcomed by the CJM families of India at St Joseph's Inter College.

They were escorted to Akbar's Church in a procession of dancers showcasing the unity and diversity of India.

At the church, they had a prayer service and also visited the St Patrick's cemetery to pay tribute to the first sisters who founded the institution in the Taj city, some 200 km south of Delhi.

Based on St Claudine's philosophy of love, the CJM sisters established various schools and colleges in India, Agra's St Patrick's Junior College being the first in 1842.

This was after a group of sisters headed by Claudine Thevenet arrived in Agra in a bullock cart all the way from Calcutta, at the invitation of the then Archbishop in Agra.

The convents run by the CJM are known to provide quality education.

"In India, parents are always keen to get their daughters admitted to CJM-run Convent schools. For some strange reasons, convent-educated girls are considered precious and a class apart," an ex-student, Mukta, told IANS.

--IANS

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Three persons, including a Bharatiya Janata Party leader, were murdered in Jharkhand, police said on Saturday.

BJP leader Manoj Nagesia was shot dead on Saturday at Lachragad village in Simdega district. The other two persons were killed in Gumla district on Friday.

Nagesia, who was a former Maoist commander, was shot while he was having breakfast.

He had joined the BJP in 2014 and had made an unsuccessful bid in the 2014 state Assembly poll from Kolebira. The police were yet to arrest anyone for Nagesia's murder.

In the other incident on Friday in Taisera village, 25-year-old Manohar Tirkey was shot dead by Vijay Sahu, who was immediately lynched by an angry mob.

Sahu shot Tirkey over a minor incident when the latter collided with Sahu while dancing at a tribal festival.

The villagers caught Sahu and thrashed him, smashing his head with stones. No one has been arrested for the killing.
Comedian Ralphie May has died after suffering a cardiac arrest here. He was 45.

May died on Friday, variety.com reported, quoting his manager and publicist.

"We are heartbroken to announce the untimely death of our friend, Ralphie May," publicist Stacey Pokluda said in a statement.

"Ralphie had been battling pneumonia and had cancelled a handful of dates over the last month in an effort to recover. Earlier this morning at a private residence in Las Vegas his body was discovered," Pokluda added.

May rose to fame after he finished in second place in the first season of "Last Comic Standing" in 2003. His career took off after that.

He was born in Tennessee and raised in Arkansas, and later made appearances on "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno" and "The Wayne Brady Show".

May had shows here scheduled for Saturday. He was set to hit tour stops in Tennessee, Alabama, and Ohio later this month.

--IANS

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Abu Dhabi, Oct 7 (IANS/WAM) UAE Minister of Education Hussain bin Ibrahim Al Hammadi on Saturday urged teachers to embrace technology as he highlighted the countrys achievements in developing the education sector to world-class standards in a special address on Day 1 of the Qudwa 2017 Global Teachers' Forum here.

The session underlined the United Arab Emirates's efforts in empowering students, teachers and establishing new paradigms in education.

Hammadi said: "Every country that is seeking to promote its knowledge economy has to focus on education. The role and tasks of the traditional education system are going to change, with technology becoming an intrinsic part of the education process.

"We need to leverage technology in the education system, similar to its use in other sectors of the economy... In classrooms, virtual labs can be provided inside tablets, providing knowledge through a network to help grow and promote children's abilities."

Hammadi said that students and teachers should use technology in all of its aspects - such as programming, software and virtual reality.

"We already have technologies out there that can be used on a sustainable basis in schools," he said.

--IANS/WAM

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Filmmaker Boney Kapoor on Saturday said the need is to create a single window clearance system across India to get shooting permissions, while Mukesh Bhatt who has filmed widely in international destinations, said shooting in Indian locations is cumbersome.

They spoke at the 'PHD Chamber Global Film Tourism Conclave: Promoting Destinations through Films', organised by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) here.

A report released jointly by the PHD Chamber and its knowledge partner BnB Nation also said the Indian film industry is in for a 11.5 per cent year-on-year growth and its revenue realisation is likely to touch $3.7 billion by 2020.

The industry is likely to reach the figure against its compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of over 10 per cent in the last couple of years, read a statement.

According to the report, the film industry faces multiple challenges on regulatory fronts such as about 70 approvals and licenses from as many as 30 authorities for shooting films in India. The report also indicates that the growth of the industry could be higher if its regulations are minimised.

Due to hurdles in obtaining licenses, India has lost at least 18 big budget movies to other locations in the last four years, the report said.

Union Minister of Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi was the chief guest at the event, which was also attended by Maharashtra's Tourism Minister Jayakumar Jitendrasinh Rawal, apart from film industry veterans like Kapoor and Bhatt.

While narrating their experience of film shootings in India, most producers demanded a curb on the lengthy process of approvals and permissions to shoot.

The effort of the conclave was to draw the attention of the filmmakers to promote film tourism.

Anil Khaitan, Senior Vice President, PHDCCI, said "films are a great source of showcasing any country's culture, heritage and vast economic potential".

Elaborating on regulations, the report indicates that central clearances for shooting of foreign feature films in India require the prior approval of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB), whereas in the case of a documentary, approval of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) is required.

The script of the film has to be approved by the MIB, which is a time-consuming process. The ministry may also depute a liaison officer to facilitate the shooting, and for location-specific permissions, filmmakers require approvals from authorities at specific locations prior to shooting.

The report recommends introduction of soft loans, providing filmmakers a short-term loan without charging interest to meet their short-term needs. This would encourage producers to shoot in that particular location, and would catalyse the growth of the industry.

Safety is also a major concern which needs to be addressed by the government, the report said, adding that inadequate infrastructure acts as the biggest hindrance to the Indian film tourism industry. Bad road conditions, poor connectivity, inadequate air and sea port capacities and lack of development of modes of transport like railways and alternates like inland water transport and domestic aviation have been causing delays in the film tourism industry operations.

Due to this, costs per film in the Indian film industry increase and ultimately disturb the planned budget. Therefore, there is an urgent need for investment in infrastructure linking roads, railways and airports, to curtail the losses, the report said.

--IANS

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Acknowledging the strategic importance of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the central government plans to invest Rs 15,000 crore for various developmental projects here, it was announced on Saturday.

Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari announced that out of this, projects worth Rs 10,000 crore have already commenced.

The announcement came after Gadkari and Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday laid the foundation stones for a series of projects in the islands, a statement from the Shipping Ministry said.

During the event, Rajnath Singh said the government was developing the islands while acknowledging their "strategic importance".

He added that India was emerging as a powerful nation in terms of economy and security, and that no nation could destabilize it "as the government was strengthening the security on all fronts".

The Home Minister added that out of the 1,382 islands in the country, 10 have been selected for infrastructure development, out of which five were located in the A&N Islands.

Singh added that an Island Development Agency (IDA) has been created for taking care of the development and security of these islands.

"A&N Islands may be far from New Delhi geographically, but are close to New Delhi emotionally," the statement quoted him as saying.

Gadkari added that tourism sector had good prospects in the islands and that better roads, round the clock power and good hotels were needed to boost tourism, which will also generate employment for the youth.

Among the projects for which the foundation stones were laid included rehabilitation and upgradation of NH-4 to two-lanes from Austin Creek to Kalara at Diglipur, and Beodnabad-Ferrargunj section of the NH-4 at Baratang.

The Ministers also laid the foundation stone of major bridges over Humphrey Strait Creek and Middle Strait Creek at Baratang, the statement added.

--IANS

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The famous image of Che Guevara, immortalized by the photographer Korda, is again seen in every corner of Cuba in honour of the man called a heroic guerrilla, a pop icon whose picture is sold as souvenirs in stores everywhere.

In the emblematic Plaza de la Revolucion in Havana, the most sought after, most photographed attraction is the image of Ernesto "Che" Guevara (1928-1967) on the Interior Ministry building: pictures taken by tourists, often by those wearing replicas of his legendary black beret with a star in front, are mostly of him.

That beret plus T-shirts, paintings and post cards bearing his picture are widely sold in the street markets of Old Havana, the city's historic centre, which attract thousands of tourists looking for souvenirs.

"His image is as popular as the vintage American cars or the famous Bodeguita del Medio restaurant," EFE was told by Freddy, an artisan who sells his works in the San Jose Warehouses of Old Havana.

"In Cuba, Che is a hero, a historic figure. But everywhere else in the world he is also a pop icon," he said.

"As a tribute to his legacy and not to make money," Neida, a veteran artisan with 20 years in the business, sells for a "reasonable price," about $15, posters with the hand-painted portrait of Che.

Beyond the commercial use of the snapshot taken in 1960 by the Cuban Alberto "Korda" Diaz, the image and legacy of Che - raised into a venerable "Saint of the Revolution" - serves as an example for the new generations.

--IANS

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In an attempt to break the wall of silence around the crimes and misconduct by UN staff and those on its assignments, India has demanded the secretariat disclose information about such cases and the immunity invoked against prosecutions.

Yedla Umasankar, the legal advisor in India's UN Mission, touched a raw nerve here by criticising the UN on Friday for not vigorously following up allegations of serious wrongdoing by its employees who enjoy the equivalent of diplomatic immunity, a prized possession of its staff.

"It appears that the UN system itself may be reluctant to waive immunity even for serious misconduct carried out by its personnel while serving on its missions, so that such cases can be prosecuted by the host governments," he told the General Assembly's committee on legal affairs.

"Even a few of such instances or allegations of crimes committed by UN personnel is highly damaging for the image and credibility of the United Nations system and its work around the world," he added.

His statement also touched on the practice of some countries that protect their wrongdoers at the UN.

Umasankar demanded that secretariat disclose how many cases of serious misconduct by UN personnel were registered and the number of cases where the UN refused to waive immunity to allow their prosecution.

He also wanted to know in how many cases the host country wanted the immunity waived so it can prosecute those accused; the number of times the UN asked the host country or the country that sent them to prosecute them; how many times it consulted countries before waiver of the immunity of their personnel and how many of them refused UN's request to waive their citizens' immunity.

The information he wanted does not cover the diplomats sent by member countries to represent them at UN bodies and enjoy diplomatic immunity with the nations hosting the UN facilities.

After scores of serious allegations of sexual misconduct by peacekeepers, especially exploitation of children, the UN vowed to uphold a policy of zero tolerance and began publishing data on such cases in peacekeeping operations including how they were dealt with.

Starting with the year 2015, it began identifying the nationalities of those accused.

However, it has not made public a roster detailing all the allegations and proven cases of serious misconduct across the entire UN.

While the focus has been on sexual exploitation and abuse reported on peacekeeping operations, Umasankar said that "at a broader level, the issue of accountability has remained elusive in some cases".

He attributed it to "the complexities of legal aspects relating to sovereignty and jurisdiction", the immunity or privileges that may be necessary for UN operations, and the capability or willingness of countries to investigate and prosecute the accused.

He noted that the UN itself cannot make criminal prosecutions.

While Indian laws has provisions for dealing with crimes committed abroad by its citizens, not all countries have them, he said.

Those countries should be encouraged and helped to implement such measures, he added.

(Arul Louis can be reached at arul.l@ians.in)

--IANS

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Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman on Friday "categorically" denied the reports that Tehran is ready to talk with powers over its ballistic missile programme.

Iran has repeatedly announced that "its defence programme will never be subject to negotiations," Xinhua cited IRNA news agency that quoted spokesman Bahram Qasemi as saying.

Developing "missile programme is Iran's inalienable right and will determinedly be continued in line with the country's strategic and conventional defence programme," said Qasemi.

On Friday, western media quoted an unnamed source as saying that Iran has suggested to six world powers that it may be open to talks about its ballistic missile arsenal, seeking to reduce tension over the disputed programme.

Iran and the US are at loggerheads over Iran's missile programme. Over the past months, Washington has imposed sanctions on some Iranian and entities linked with Tehran's missile tests.

Iranian military and governmental officials have unanimously vowed to bolster ballistic missile programme for deterrent purposes.

--IANS

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Reacting to a Bengaluru court verdict on Saturday exonerating him from all charges in the infamous "solar scam" case, former Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said the truth has triumphed.

The Bengaluru Additional City Civil and Sessions Court dropped all charges against Chandy made in the case filed by Bengaluru-based businessman M.K. Kuruvilla, who claimed he had lost Rs 1.35 crore in 2011-12 as he was promised licence and subsidy from both central and state governments for importing solar technology from South Korea.

Kuruvilla had alleged that Chandy had promised that "everything will be taken care of".

Last year, the court asked Chandy and four other accused in the cheating case to pay the amount claimed by Kuruvilla, but Chandy filed a fresh petition challenging the order on the grounds that his version was not heard before pronouncement of the judgment.

After this, Chandy got the opportunity to present his version in June, and on Saturday the court exonerated him, as Kuruvilla failed to substantiate his charges against the former Chief Minister.

Speaking to reporters in the midst of the Vengara assembly by-election campaign in Malappuram district, Chandy said he was confident his name would be cleared as he had done no wrong.

"I was confident that truth will triumph and it has happened. Let all those who pointed fingers at me understand that I have done no wrong at all," said Chandy.

The Rs 70-million "solar scam" had rocked the Chandy government (2011-16) after reports surfaced in June 2013 that three of the Chief Minister's Office staff had contacts with a "couple" who cheated many investors by taking money in the name of supplying solar panels to them.

--IANS

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Rabat, Oct 7 (IANS/MAP) Morocco and Denmark have signed a memorandum on cooperation in the fight against torture.

The agreement was signed here on Friday between Morocco's Justice Ministry and the Danish institute against torture, DIGNITY, within the framework of the Danish-Arab Partnership Programme (DAPP).

The agreement marked the start of the official cooperation between the two sides in justice administration, rehabilitation and prevention of torture.

It also aimed to exchange knowledge and best practices through the drawing-up of a set of guidelines on the role of criminal justice in the fight against torture.

Speaking on the occasion, Morocco's Justice Minister Mohamed Aujjar said that the country had made the fight against torture an irreversible choice.

For her part, DIGNITY Director General Karin Verland said there had been many positive commitments from the Ministries of Justice in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

She said that DIGNITY will continue its cooperation with Morocco through the conclusion of this agreement with a view to establish a fruitful cooperation in the fight against torture.

--IANS/MAP

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The UN has received reports of using children to fight in Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand and of terrorists burning at least 30 schools in Jammu and Kashmir last year, according to Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

In his annual report on Children in Armed Conflict, Guterres said: "Children continued to be affected by incidents of violence between armed groups and the government, in particular in Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand as well as tensions in Jammu and Kashmir.

"The UN continued to receive reports of the recruitment and use of children by armed groups, including the Naxalites, in particular in Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand," he said.

At least 30 schools were burned and partially destroyed by armed groups in Jammu and Kashmir according to government reports, he said.

"In addition, government reports confirmed the military use of four schools by security forces in that region for several weeks."

Guterres's report for 2016, however, shows that the prevalence of the use of children by and other armed groups had come down to only two Indian states compared to six in the previous year.

In the report for 2015 released last year, the then-Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon had said the were using children as young as six in Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Odisha and West Bengal.

Guterres's report covering conflicts during 2016 was sent to the Security Council on Thursday.

The report recorded far more violations against children by terrorists and other armed groups than by governments.

It said there were about 4,000 verified cases involving government forces and over 11,500 by non-state armed groups in the 20 nations covered in the report.

"I call upon the (Indian) government to develop appropriate mechanisms to protect children from recruitment as well as to separate and reintegrate recruited children," Guterres said.

"I also urge the government to ensure the protection of children from any form of violence in the context of civil unrest or law and order operations.

"Children continued to be killed and injured in the context of operations of security forces against Maoist armed groups," Guterres said but did not provide any numbers.

According to the Indian Home Ministry, 213 civilians were killed in gun battles, an increase from 171 in 2015, but the number of children were not provided, his report said.

"Armed groups reportedly resorted to abduction and threats against parents in order to recruit children, who subsequently underwent military training and served as messengers, informants or guards in child squads (bal dasta)," Guterres said in the latest report.

In what he described as a "troubling development," Maoists were allegedly providing combat training as part of the curriculum in several schools they were running in Chhattisgarh.

In one incident recounted in the report, police moved 23 children threatened with abduction by armed groups in Gumla district in Jharkhand in March 2016 and "supported their enrollment in schools".

However, he added, "unverified reports suggest that police may be using children formerly associated with armed groups as informants, potentially making them targets for retaliation".

Guterres also said that because of "access restrictions" to the conflict area, the UN was not able to verify the incidents.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A government-appointed panel for revising India's Haj policy has recommended abolishing subsidy for the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mekkah and Medina in Saudi Arabia besides allowing women devotees aged over 45 to travel in a group of at least four without a male relative.

The proposed Haj Policy 2018-22, submitted to Union Minister for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi here on Saturday, has been drafted in light of a 2012 Supreme Court direction to gradually reduce and completely remove the subsidy by 2022.

"It is advisable that the existing reduction plan (phasing out of subsidy) be followed," according to the recommendations.

Haj subsidy is given to those who go through the Haj Committee of India and not through private operators. The subsidy amount has in the recent years been between Rs 650-700 crore.

In a major reform, the draft policy proposes to partially quash an earlier rule that barred women Haj aspirants to travel without 'mehram', a close family member like husband, father or brother.

"Ladies above 45 years of age be allowed in a group of four or more to go for Haj without a mehram," the panel recommended.

Women below 45, however, will have to be accompanied by a male family member, according to the draft policy that proposes to increase the quota for mehrams from 200 to 500.

Among other recommendations, made by the panel headed by former secretary Afzal Amanullah, are bringing down the number of embarkation points from which pilgrims can take flights to Saudi Arabia from the present 21 to nine.

The embarkation points for Haj pilgrims from next year would be New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Lucknow, Kochi and Ahmedabad.

The distribution of quota between Haj Committee of India and private tour operators will be in the ratio of 70:30 -- almost a five percent hike for the private players.

This year, the Haj quota for India -- home to the world's third largest Muslim population -- was increased to 170,025, of which 125,025 was allocated to the Haj committee and 45,000 to the privater tour operators.

On the long-pending proposal to revive Haj pilgrimage by ship, Naqvi said the Saudi government would be consulted and then it would float an expression of interest to guage the market for such travel.

Independent tour operators say travel by ship would drastically reduce the cost per pilgrim to around Rs 60,000, making it affordable to a larger section of the population.

Regarding the distribution of Haj quota among states and union territories, the panel has recommended that it should be in the ratio of the Muslim population and in proportion to the number of applications received from each state or union territory.

Special quota for Haj pilgrims from Jammu and Kashmir will be increased from existing 1,500 to 2,000.

The reserved category of applicants in the 70-plus age group and fourth-timers has been abolished and they would go through the normal lottery.

--IANS

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Almost 16 years to the day since the US embarked upon its war on terrorism against the Afghan Taliban on October 7, 2001, as reprisal for the enormity of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, it appears that a White House administration is again issuing dire warnings to Rawalpindi (GHQ of the Pakistan Army) while still dangling the familiar "carrot".

At a congressional hearing of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee in Washington DC on Tuesday (October 4), General Joseph Dunford, Chairman, US Joints Chiefs of Staff, observed candidly: "I think it's clear to me that the ISI has connections with terrorist groups." This is not the first time that an incumbent in his chair has come to such a determination.

US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis had a similar assessment, adding that while Pakistan may have come down on terrorism, "the ISI appears to run its own foreign policy". This is an unusually unambiguous assertion by a senior US offical but General Mattis added the caveat too: "We need to try one more time to make this strategy work with them; by, with and through the Pakistanis. And if our best efforts fail, the President (Trump) is prepared to take whatever steps are necessary."

The war in Afghanistan, where Pakistan was accorded the status of a major non-NATO ally, has been expensive for the US both in terms of blood and treasure. A study by the Brown University estimates that, as of 2016, the US may have spent up to $2 trillion towards the Afghan campaign, which still remains inconclusive and messy.





As a benchmark, it may be relevant to note that India's GDP in 2016 was estimated to be $2.26 trillion. The total number of people killed since the US-led war against terror began in October 2001 has crossed 370,000 and the number displaced is upwards of 800,000. And the violence continues.

Will the latest warning by the Trump team have the desired effect on the Pakistani Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) and the "deep-state" in that country? It is difficult to be optimistic.

Three high-level political visits in end September frame the intractable nature of the Afghan war. They were dramatically illustrated by events in Kabul. Mattis arrived in Kabul from Delhi (September 26) and a few hours later the airport was subjected to rocket fire by the local Taliban. This attack on the Kabul airport led to a delay in the visit of Abdullah Abdullah, CEO of Afghanistan, to Delhi.





It is pertinent to note that in their public remarks in Kabul and Delhi, the two men reiterated the imperative of closing down safe havens and sanctuaries for terror groups and dismantling the infrastructure in the region that supports such bloodshed.

The not-so-subtle reference was to Pakistan and its deep-state that continues to support groups such as the Haqqani network, the Lashkar-e-Taiba and its affiliates.

This brings us to the third visit -- that of Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi in end September to the US, where he asserted that charges of Pakistan sheltering terrorists were "untrue", and that the only cross-border movement of terrorists was "from Afghanistan to Pakistan"!

Abbasi went further and categorically ruled out any role for India in the reconstruction of Afghanistan, adding, "Zero, we don't foresee any political or military role for India in Afghanistan."

This inflexible veto that Pakistan has accorded unto itself in relation to the internal affairs of Afghanistan and the brazen manner in which it continues to deny the role being played by Rawalpindi in supporting terror groups lies at the core of the political and military challenge for the US, India, and Afghanistan.





This was reiterated during the Mattis-Nirmala Sitharaman (India's Defence Minister) meeting in Delhi. A highly respected US marine corps general, Mattis has first-hand experience of the war in Afghanistan and is deeply aware of Pakistani duplicity, wherein the US taxpayers money is being spent to attack and kill US military personnel.

The (George W.) Bush and (Barack) Obama administrations were aware of this fundamental contradiction -- that in September 2001 -- before 9/11, Pakistan was one of just three nations in the world who recognised the Afghan Taliban and their regime in Kabul at that time.

Yet the White House chose to overlook this contradiction and allowed Pakistan to become a non-NATO ally in the global war on terror. Further ironies followed, for in October 2001, when the US and its allies were bombing Afghanistan, the wily General Pervez Musharraf was able to strike a deal with the Pentagon and safely withdraw Pakistan army personnel in Afghanistan who were assisting the Taliban.





The metaphor hunting with the (US) hounds and running with the (Taliban) hare could not be more apt.

But the more relevant question that many US citizens ask in anger is how the world's lone superpower could allow such perfidy to continue for years. This is the question that President Trump is seeking to answer and introduce a much needed corrective to the US South Asia policy.

India, which is also a stakeholder in the war against terror, is a major development partner in the reconstruction of Afghanistan and has provided aid in excess of $2 billion. During the Mattis visit Defence Minister Sitharaman confirmed that while Delhi would not send any troops to Afghanistan, it would enhance its training role for security and police personnel.

The critical military equipment that the Afghan military needs is a complex matter and India is constrained by its own military inventory gaps and the dependence on Russian-origin equipment that cannot be supplied without involving Moscow in the deliberations.

The sub-text of the three visits illuminates both the nature of the Afghan conundrum and the difficulties inherent in crafting policy options that will be more effective than what has been the cost-benefit analysis of the last 16 years. To add to the complexity, Beijing has also become an interlocutor.

Even as the Mattis-Abdullah visits were taking place, the second meeting of the China-Afghanistan-Pakistan (CAP) Practical Cooperation Dialogue was held in Kabul (September 26, 27).

Weaning Rawalpindi away from supporting terror groups will not be a swift binary choice and the White House has considerable experience in the matter. Whether President Trump will be able to cut the Gordian knot remains moot.

C Uday Bhaskar is Director, Society for Policy Studies, New Delhi. He can be contacted at cudayb@gmail.com. The article is in special arrangement with South Asia Monitor
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday accused the previous UPA government of having been indifferent towards Gujarat including over sanctioning of development projects.

Laying foundation stones for a four-lane signature bridge linking Okhla with Bet Dwarka and the widening of a national highway, Modi recalled the difficulties Gujarat faced when the Congress-led UPA ruled the country.

"Despite my best efforts, I could not make them (UPA government) to wake up from their slumber," Modi said.

The Prime Minister stressed that his government on the other hand had given priority to development. "For development one needs a vision and a dream."

Modi also spoke on his government's decision to relax the GST rates and allowing small entrepreneurs, businessmen, traders and the exporters to file their returns quarterly instead of every month.

Saying that government had tried to simplify further a "simpler tax", he described the decision on relaxing GST as "advancing of the Diwali festivities for business community by a fortnight".

Modi said the decision to relax the GST provisions for the small traders, businessmen and exporters was in keeping with the Centre's promise to review the working of the new tax regime from time-to-time.

Modi, who began his home state visit with a trip to the Dwarkadish temple, said that on its completion, the Okha-Bet Dwarka bridge would contribute to development of the area.

He said merely developing an area was not sufficient unless it had connectivity with other areas. He said it would go a long way in reducing the difficulties that people faced over the years.

--IANS

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Police in Ghaziabad have booked one of their officers on charges of raping a woman and forcing her to go for abortion.

The police said a woman resident of Lokpriya Vihar in Khoda lodged a complaint on October 6 that Sub-Inspector Shailendra Singh raped her several times.

When she conceived, he forced her to abort. This was done twice, alleged the woman.

"We have registered a complaint under Sections 376, 313 and 506 of IPC against the sub- inspector. Presently he is posted at Modi Nagar. Investigation has been initiated in the case. He is yet to be arrested," said Superintendent of Police Akash Tomar.

--IANS

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President Ram Nath Kovind will visit Kerala on Sunday and inaugurate the charity programmes as part of the 64th birthday celebrations of Mata Amritanandamayi at Kollam.

"The President will visit Amritapuri, Kollam on October 8 to attend the launch of welfare progammes organised by the Mata Amritanandamayi Math which include unveiling of Amrita clean water initiatives for rural India and distribution of certificates of official ODF status to 10 villages adopted by Mata Amritanandamayi Math," an official statement said on Saturday.

Earlier on the day, BJP's lone MLA in Kerala O. Rajagopal called on the President at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Kovind returned home on Friday after a two-nation state visit to Djibouti and Ethiopia, concluding his first foreign visit as President.

--IANS

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There's a 140-year-old bell mounted outside the new Albany Fire Station 11. It was originally used to alert  or, to use the modern term, "tone out"  firefighters so many years ago. Now it stands as a monument to tradition.

Lt. Pat Traeger and a crew of firefighters unveiled the bell before a crowd of more than 200 Albany residents who came out Friday afternoon to witness the official opening of the station at 611 Lyon St. SE.

The occasion marked the ninth time the Albany Fire Department has opened a new station, Chief John Bradner noted at the ceremony. He also handed out challenge coins  awards for excellence the department gives to citizens  to James Lutz and Jamie Scott, construction project superintendent and lead foreman, respectively, from T. Gerding Construction Co., the Corvallis firm that brought the building into reality.

Voters approved the two-story, $7.5-million station as part of a May 2015 bond measure. The 24,300-square-foot building was constructed on a nearly 2-acre site, which included property where the smaller, former Station 11, built in 1949, stood until earlier this year.

"What a privilege it has been to be the builder of this wonderful building," company owner Tom Gerding said at the ceremony. He also named the more than 15 subcontractors that contributed to the project.

Bradner also honored architects Lorraine Jack and Jeff Humphreys, who designed the station, and made sure to mention retired City Manager Wes Hare.

"His assistance and support was invaluable," said Bradner.

Rather than cutting a ribbon, a group of active and retired firefighters uncoupled a fire hose to signify the opening of the station, and then Bradner sounded the official tone, with a recorded announcement declaring the station officially online at 4:30 p.m.

Inside the new building, crowds milled through each room. Children ate cookies and drank lemonade, their hats topped with shiny plastic fire hats. While the day was festive, the firefighters remained on duty. In fact, a crew toned out for a traffic collision just 30 minutes after the ceremony. The call proved to be minor.

Meanwhile, Battalion Chief Ryan Bond and his crew of three were scheduled to spend the next 12 hours on duty at the station, but had in fact been there since Tuesday. This is because they beat their Thursday move-in goal by two days and moved in that night.

"We went down to Cidicci's that night and got pizzas," said Bond, explaining how they had only just moved in and had no groceries. Their first call that evening was a medical emergency. The second was an early Thursday morning fire that resulted in significant structural damage to a home on 41st Avenue Southeast. No one was injured in the incident.

"It was just another shift for us," said Bond.

At the opening ceremony, fire personnel also raised and then lowered to half-mast the U.S., Oregon, and POW-MIA remembrance flags, in honor of the Las Vegas shooting victims.
About 120 Islamic State (IS) militants and more than 60 foreign mercenaries in Syria were killed in airstrikes launched by Russia over the past 24 hours, the Russian Defence Ministry said on Saturday.

The Russian airstrikes destroyed an IS strongpoint in the town of Albu Kamal near the Syrian-Iraqi border, killing about 40 militants from Tajikistan and Iraq, said the ministry's spokesman Igor Konashenkov in a statement, Xinhua news agency reported.

Russian jets bombed an IS command post, eliminating about 80 militants in the town of Mayadeen in Deir al-Zour province, one of the terrorist group's last footholds in Syria.

In the Euphrates Valley south of Deir al-Zour, the Russian air force killed more than 60 foreign mercenaries from the Commonwealth of Independence States, Tunisia and Egypt.

In addition, Konashenkov confirmed the deaths of three IS field commanders in recent Russian air attacks in Syria, including senior leader Abu Omar al-Shishani.

--IANS

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Supporters of Russian anti-corruption opposition figurehead currently serving a 20-day jail sentence pushed ahead with nationwide protests on Saturday, coinciding with President Vladimir Putin's 65th birthday.

Alexei Navalny, a prominent critic of Putin, called for rallies in over 80 Russian cities, many of which had not been sanctioned by Moscow - a prerequisite for such political gatherings in the country, Efe news reported.

Opposition demonstrators, who were expected in large crowds in Putin's hometown St. Petersburg, were calling on state officials to allow Navalny to run in the 2018 presidential elections from which he had been ruled out due to embezzlement convictions.

He called the embezzlement charges "purely political".

Protesters also urged for an end to Putin's reign over Russia, a country he has led since 2000, alternating between the posts of President and Prime Minister.

Navalny was arrested on September 29 as he made his way to a unsanctioned rally but he briefly left police custody on Friday to appeal his detention, during which he claimed that state officials wanted to make sure he was imprisoned on Putin's birthday.

His appeal was rejected by the court. Previous rallies staged by Navalny met with brutal police clampdowns and mass arrests.

Navanly's outspoken criticism of Putin and Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev earned him enemies and in April he was attacked by assailants who threw toxic brilliant green solution at his face.

He required surgery on his eye to prevent him from going blind.

--IANS

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A delegation of the Samajwadi Party met Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik on Saturday to raise the issue of the veracity of killings of criminals in gunfights in the state.

Quoting allegations of the family of Sumit Gujjar, recently killed by police in a gun battle in Greater Noida, SP leaders said that Naik, as the constitutional head of the state, should direct the Yogi Adityanath government to ensure that there are no staged and fake gunfights.

There have been more than 450 gunfights between police and criminaks in the state since the Yogi Adityanath led government was sworn-in in March.

As many as 18 hardened criminals have been shot dead while 1,104 criminals have been arrested and 88 policemen injured. One sub-inspector died in a gun battle with dacoits in Chitrakoot. Police have however been denying allegations that these gunfights were staged.

The delegation which comprised of former ministers Rajendra Chowdhary, Ahmad Hasan and state SP President Naresh Uttam also raised concerns over the law and order in the state.

--IANS

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The Syrian army on Saturday captured new areas in the city of Mayadeen, the Islamic State (IS) capital in the eastern province of Deir al-Zour.

The army fought with IS in Mayadeen in the southeastern countryside of Deir al-Zour, Xinhua cited , state news agency SANA as saying, which added that the army captured the historic citadel of Rahbeh, the Madfaiyeh battalion, and Shibli farmlands, as well as the Hal Souk and grain silos in the city.

Several IS terrorists were killed during the battles and the army destroyed three explosive-laden vehicles.

The Syrian and Russian warplanes also destroyed IS vehicles and positions in the town of Ashara, between Mayadeen and the city of Bukamal -- another IS stronghold near the Iraqi border.

On the eastern bank of Euphrates River, the Syrian forces continued their attacks on the IS positions, capturing a water station and positions in the town of Hatlah.

The army also continued operations to secure the road between the administrative border of Deir al-Zour and the entrance of the capital city at the Panorama roundabout.

--IANS

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron discussed the current situation in Syria and Iraq via phone on Saturday.

Erdogan and Macron exchanged views on developments in Iraq and Syria, as well as bilateral relations and regional issues, Xinhua cited state-run Anadolu Agency as saying.

The two leaders stressed the importance of preserving Iraq and Syria's territorial integrity, the source said.

Earlier in the day, Erdogan announced to launch a "serious operation" in Syria's Idlib, while Turkey and Russia jointly plan to set up "de-escalation" zones in Syria.

On September 25, Iraqi Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) held a controversial independence referendum despite fierce opposition from Baghdad and neighbouring Iran and Turkey.

According to results announced by the KRG, almost 93 per cent of registered voters cast ballots in favour of independence.

Turkey warned that the "irresponsible" referendum would damage the territorial integrity of Iraq and harm regional stability.

--IANS

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The RSS has been the Home Ministry's main target but Left-aligned forces are targeting the Sanatan Sanstha because we are "soft targets", a spokesperson for the Goa-based Hindu rightwing organisation said on Saturday.

Speaking to reporters, Chetan Rajhans, the spokesperson for the Sanstha based in south Goa's Ramnathi village, said no official of the Karnataka Police's Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the Gauri Lankesh murder had questioned any Sanatan member nor visited its ashram here.

"Sanatan Sanstha's name is often raked up after the death of rationalists. It is because we are a soft target.

"After 2013, the Home Ministry has been working on a saffron-terror conspiracy. They had to target some Hindu organiztion. Their big targets were the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.

"But because they could not target them, we are being targeted instead. I believe that Left-aligned forces are continuing to follow the same trajectory," Rajhans said.

Dismissing media reports which claimed that the Karnataka SIT had zeroed down on "missing" Sanatan Sanstha members as the suspects in the Lankesh murder, Rajhans said: "Some anti-Hindu forces are behind this and there is a planned conspiracy to defame Hindu organisations."

He added that leaks to the media was "false propaganda" and no agency of the Karnataka government had officially issued a statement naming the "missing" Sanatan Sanstha members as suspects.

Earlier this week, some media reports quoting sources said that Sarang Akolkar alias Sarang Kulkarni, Jay Prakash alias Anna and Praveen Linkar were on the SIT's radar in the connection with the journalist's murder.

Rajhans also said that the Sanstha condemned Lankesh's murder and said that several angles had cropped up during the investigation, including theories involving Naxalites.

"We have only one demand. Don't put political pressure. Let the investigation agencies probe. If the agencies want co-operation from us, we are fully ready," Rajhans added.

--IANS

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I joined politics very late. I was working in Gujarat, there was an accident involving Machu Dam in Morvi, thousands of people were killed, the entire city was submerged in the water, so I was deployed for service, for cleaning the city. All the work related to cleaning the city was going on, it went on for nearly a month.


Prime Minister today laid the foundation stone of a four-lane cable-stayed bridge between Okha and Beyt Dwarka and said it was a link between old and new Dwarka.

The 2.32 km bridge, including 900 metres of central double span cable-stayed portion, will be constructed at a cost of Rs 962.43 crore.

"There were lots of possibilities of development in the tourism sector here, but earlier the UPA government had an indifferent attitude towards Gujarat because of the BJP government in the state... I clearly remember," Modi said at a public gathering, referring to his days as Gujarat chief minister.

Terming the bridge a link between the old and new Dwarka, he said it would benefit the people of Beyt (island) Dwarka and devotees.

The prime minister is on a two-day visit to the state, beginning today.

The four-lane 27.20 metre wide bridge will have 2.50 metre wide footpaths on each side. Solar panels installed on the roof of footpath will produce 1 MW power for street lights on the bridge, officials said.

At present, devotees visiting the Shri Dwarkadhishji temple at Beyt Dwarka can travel only during the day by ferry. Once the bridge is constructed, they can travel any time of the day.
Prime Minister on Saturday claimed that his government has been successful in bringing waters of the Narmada River to villages.

Addressing a rally in Rajkot, Prime Minister Modi said, "The definition of development is changing. Earlier, a hand pump would be put and a leader would use that for multiple elections. Things have changed now. We are bringing the waters of the Narmada here for the benefit of citizens."

He added that because of the Narmada waters, new employment opportunities will come up in Surendranagar and it will also become an important place for education.

He asserted that drip irrigation can be adopted in Surendranagar with the help of the Narmada.





"If Surendranagar adopts drip irrigation, one cannot imagine the scale of development, and thanks to the Narmada, that will happen," said the Prime Minister.

Describing Gujarat as a "water scarce state" that needs to be revolutionised, Prime Minister Modi said that, "By 2022, make a pledge to revolutionise agriculture by bringing micro-irrigation in agriculture."

On aviation for Rajkot, he said, "Our government has made policies of aviation and taken responsibility to connect the smallest of places by air."

He also said that his government has made aviation affordable and within the reach of the less privileged.





Speaking about Rajkot Airport, which he inaugurated on Saturday, Prime Minister Modi said that the government needed only four per cent of farmland for the airport.

"We need to take only four per cent of land from farmlands for this airport. Ninety-six per cent of barren land has been taken for this so far," he said.

He said the day is not far when Rajkot Airport will offer international services.

The foundation stone for the greenfield airport was laid at Hirasar in Rajkot district.

On Sunday, Prime Minister Modi will visit his birthplace Vadnagar in Mehsana district. He will inaugurate a medical college and a hospital having a total bed capacity of 650.





He will also launch the Intensified Mission Indradhanush to accelerate progress towards the goal of full immunisation coverage. The mission will provide greater focus on urban areas and other pockets of low immunisation coverage.

The Prime Minister will also distribute e-tablets to health workers to mark the launch of ImTeCHO (Innovative mobile-phone Technology for Community Health Operations).

ImTeCHO is aimed at improving the performance of community health workers, or ASHAs (Accredited Social Health Activists), through better supervision, support, and motivation for increasing coverage of proven maternal, newborn and child health interventions among resource-poor settings in India.

The same afternoon, the Prime Minister will reach Bharuch and lay the foundation stone for the Bhadbhut Barrage, which is to be built over the Narmada River.

He will also flag off the Antyodaya Express between Udhna (Surat, Gujarat) and Jaynagar (Bihar). Modi will also unveil plaques to mark the laying of the foundation stone and the inauguration of various plants of the Gujarat Narmada Fertilizer Corporation. He will also address a public meeting there before returning to Delhi.
Prime Minister on Saturday hailed the sweeping changes in the GST to give relief to small and medium businesses, saying his government does not want the country's business class to get caught in red-tape.
Choir director Brian Njuba of Uganda sat cross-legged on the floor of the gym Friday at Tangent Elementary School and asked his young audience to reflect on their lives.

How many of them, he asked, usually came to school on the bus? How many had parents who dropped them off? How many came by bike, or skateboard?

Hands waved all over the room as the guest artist asked a few more questions: How many had washing machines at home? Microwaves? Ovens?

Children in Uganda walk many miles to go to school, Njuba told his audience. "For us, we cook on a fire. We do our laundry with our hands and lay them in the sun to dry."

Today when it's time to go home, Njuba urged the children, run to parents and give them a big hug. "Tell them, 'Thank you very much for doing everything for me to be comfortable, so I can have a bright future.'"

Njuba's visit to Tangent on Friday was part of a special performance by the Imani Milele Choir of Uganda, which is spending a few days in the mid-valley through the sponsorship of First United Methodist Church.

The choir, made up of 18 Ugandan youths ages 9 to 19, is touring the west coast of the United States from April to November. It is scheduled to perform at four Albany elementary schools and give a free public concert at 4 p.m. Sunday at First United Methodist, 1115 28th Ave. S.W.

Imani Milele, which means "everlasting faith" or "always believe" in Swahili, is a series of children's education centers in Uganda with a U.S. office based in Florida. Developed as part of a ministerial outreach in 1984, the centers feed, educate and provide medical care for some 3,000 children, most of whom have little or no family support.

The Imani Milele choir is an educational and fundraising organization for those centers. It features a handpicked group of children who travel the United States each year sharing traditional songs and dances.

"I occasionally get email from different ensembles that are going to be passing through the area looking for a venue to stop and perform," said Eric McKirdy, director of music and principal organist at Albany First United Methodist Church. "We dont always say yes to these, but this one was very compelling and we thought we really had to do it."

The Rev. Kate Connolly has participated in multiple mission trips to nearby Kenya and said she was excited about sharing a similar experience with the congregation. Parishioners volunteered to house the choir members during their stay in Albany.

The Imani Milele choir shares information about Uganda and the centers, and does provide information about sponsoring children's education there, McKirdy said, but the point of the mid-valley concerts is more to educate its audiences.

"Were lucky to live in a city like Albany that is fairly insulated from a lot of bigger world problems," he said. The downside is were also insulated from being aware of those bigger problems, and theres people attached to them.

"We saw this as an opportunity to bring an international story, a very real story, to Albany to help make the world a little bit smaller.

McKirdy said the church reached out to four nearby schools to spread that message, and helped offset the assembly fees for those that needed it.

The choir performed Thursday at Sunrise Elementary School and Friday at Tangent. Performances are scheduled Monday at South Shore and Liberty.

At Tangent, students sat open-mouthed as drumbeats echoed through the gym and children only slightly older than themselves danced barefoot in headdresses and shaggy belts made of dried goatskin.

Performers sang in both English and dialects from their own country, and brought up classroom teachers and Principal Gretchen Rayburn to join in a final dance.

Through a video projected on the back wall, the audience became acquainted with Imali Milele member Sarah Nayebare and a typical day in the life of many Ugandan children. After walking three miles to school and five to collect water from a murky pond, Sarah and her four siblings would curl up to sleep on pallets in a mud-walled hut with a dirt floor.

Sarah's living situation, although much different now that she has an Imani Milele sponsorship  last year's choir toured with her, Njuba said  had a powerful effect on Tangent students. Rayburn left the group dance to comfort a few sobbing first-graders, who told her the video had made them sad.

"I want our students to understand the world outside Tangent, to have a vision of what's possible," Rayburn said. "I think it definitely broadened their horizons."

Njuba said he hears similar reactions from audiences wherever he goes. "That is the beginning of transformation," he said.

The youths who tour with the choir have a similarly eye-opening experience, he said. When they come back to Uganda, they throw themselves into their studies, saying they will work to transform their community.

"It encourages them to become better people," he said.
Two policemen have been killed in a string of attacks on police stations in a small town in northern Mozambique but 14 of the gunmen were slain, police said today.

"We recorded 14 deaths and several wounded among the bandits," police spokesman Inacio Dina told AFP of the attacks in Mocimboa de Praia.

Two policemen were also killed during what appeared to be coordinated attacks that occurred on Thursday and yesterday.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Fifteen low-intensity crude bombs were found today near a police outpost in the communally sensitive Dariyapur area here, prompting the police to launch a probe.

A person spotted 15 tobacco cans, wrapped with a brown adhesive tape, near a garbage dump close to the Dariyapur tent police outpost, an official of the city police control room said.

Top police officials along with the Bomb Disposal Squad and forensic experts rushed to the spot after getting the information.

A thorough examination of these cans revealed that someone had tried to make crude bombs using fire crackers and sharp objects such as glass pieces, the police said.

"We have found 15 tobacco cans wrapped with a brown tape. Upon examining the material packed inside these cans, forensic experts told us that these are low-intensity crude bombs," Additional Commissioner for Sector 2 Ashok Kumar Yadav said.

"We have launched a probe to nab the culprits behind this act," he said.

According to crime branch officials, these crude bombs would not have inflicted any injury on being exploded.

"We have found fire cracker bombs, used during Diwali, and some sharp objects, like glass pieces, inside each of these tobacco cans," said J K Bhatt, the Joint Commissioner of Police, Crime.

"These crude bombs are of very low quality. Experts told us that such shabbily-made crude bombs would inflict no injury if they explode," he said.

"It seems like a mischief during the festive season. There is no reason for the citizens to fear," he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The FBI and the New York police prevented multiple terrorist attacks in America's largest city in 2016, which were planned by three men with one of them living in Pakistan, US prosecutors said today.

While the three - Talha Haroon, 19, (a US citizen based in Pakistan), Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy, 19, (a Canadian citizen), and Russell Salic, 37, a Philippines national - were arrested last year, the charges against them were recently ordered to be unsealed by a federal court in New York.

According to the Department of Justice, El Bahnasawy purchased bomb-making materials for use in the attacks.

Haroon allegedly planned to carry out the attacks with El Bahnasawy. He is pending extradition to the US. Salic allegedly provided financing for the planned attacks. He too is pending US extradition.

Federal prosecutors said the plans included detonating bombs in Times Square and the New York City subway system and shooting civilians at specific concert venues.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New York Police Department (NYPD) successfully thwarted this terrorist plot, the Department of Justice said.

An undercover FBI agent, posing as an Islamic State (ISIS) supporter, convinced the accused that he was prepared to carry out the attacks with them.

El Bahnasawy, who has been in custody since he was arrested by the FBI in May, 2016, pleaded guilty to terrorism offenses and is awaiting sentencing.

Haroon and Salic have been arrested in other countries by foreign authorities in connection with these charges and the Justice Department expects that they will be extradited to the US to face justice in an American court.

According to court papers, El Bahnasawy told the undercover FBI agent that he was in contact with an ISIS affiliate about obtaining official sanction of the planned attacks by the Khorasan Province - a branch of ISIS active in Pakistan.

Haroon, who was based in Pakistan and was introduced to the agent by El Bahnasawy, informed him that he was in contact with ISIS associates within the Khorasan Province.

El Bahnasawy told the agent that "these Americans need an attack," that he aspired to "create the next 9/11," and that he planned to "come to New York around May 22" from Canada.

Haroon stated that he intended to fly from Pakistan to New York City to carry out the attacks with El Bahnasawy, and hoped to "cause great destruction to the filthy 'kuffars' (infidels) by our hands".

El Bahnasawy and Haroon identified multiple locations and events in and around New York City as targets of the planned attacks, including the New York City subway system, Times Square, and some concert venues.

On May 12, 2016, El Bahnasawy sent the agent an image of Times Square stating, "We seriously need a car bomb at Times Square. Look at these crowds of people!".

That same day, he also expressed his desire to "shoot up concerts cuz (sic) they kill a lot of people".

El Bahnasawy described the plan to attack concerts as "We just walk in with guns in our hands. That's how the Paris guys did it," referring to the 2015 attack on the Bataclan concert hall in Paris.

On May 5, 2016, Haroon told the agent that the subway was a "perfect" target, and that they should shoot as many passengers on the train as possible, including "women or kids" and that "when we run out of bullets we let the (suicide) vests go off".

That same day, Haroon discussed with the agent the necessary supplies for making explosive devices for use in the attacks.

On May 9, Haroon said "NY needs to fall. It's a must".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today said her government would continue to support nearly 1 million Rohingya Muslims who have fled neighbouring Myanmar to escape violence.

Hasina said the government was pursuing a plan to build temporary shelters for the Rohingya on an island with the help of international aid agencies whom she praised for their support.

She made the statement at Dhaka airport on her return from New York after attending the UN General Assembly session. The UN has described the violence in Myanmar as "ethnic cleansing."



Hasina accused Myanmar of creating tensions at the border, but said she has asked the country's security forces to deal with the crisis "very carefully."



"They pretended like they wanted a war," she said.

More than 500,000 Rohingya Muslims have crossed over to Bangladesh since late August, when Myanmar security forces responded to militant attacks with a broad crackdown that witnesses and rights groups say has included killing and arson. An equal number of Rohingya Muslims have previously fled Myanmar since 1978.

Myanmar doesn't recognise the Rohingya as an ethnic group, instead insisting they are Bengali migrants from Bangladesh living illegally in the country. Myanmar has come under international criticism for failing to stop the recent violence in its Rakhine state and in turn an exodus that has become the largest refugee crisis to hit Asia in decades.

The Myanmar government's information committee said in a statement late Thursday that it had stopped 17,000 Rohingya from fleeing in just four days last week. Still villagers say Rohingya are still attempting to leave and many are gathered on the beaches just across the water from Bangladesh waiting for a chance to leave the country.

Today, Hasina reiterated that the settlements for Rohingya Muslims would be temporary until they returned to their homes in Myanmar. Her government would continue to support them with food and shelter.

"If needed, we will eat a full meal once a day and share the rest with them," she said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Lt Governor Kiran Bedi today constituted an eight-member official level core group to prepare an action plan to combat dengue and also breeding of mosquitoes in the union territory.

She held discussions with officials of various departments at Raj Nivastoday after reviewing the steps taken so far to curb spread of dengue.

An action plan would be prepared in the next two days by the core group which comprises of District Collector, Directors of Local Administration, Health, Vector Control Research Centre, JIPMER, School Education and the Information and Publicity besides Chief Engineer of PWD, an official release said.

Bedi has been holding meetings with officials, visiting hospitals, holding rallies and launching anti-dengue programmes.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A global religious congregation of women, which runs various convents across the country, is celebrating its bicentenary with a four-day event here.

The celebrations of the Congregation of the Religious of Jesus and Mary, founded in October 1818 by Saint Claudine Thevenet in Lyon, France, is being hosted by St Patrick's Junior College -- Asia's oldest convent, which was also founded by the Saint in 1842.

Dignitaries from across the globe, including Sister Monica Joseph -- the superior-general of the congregation, the cardinal of Lyon, and three sisters from Pakistan, will attend the event.

The Lyon cardinal, Philippe Barbarin, is currently awaiting trial over allegations that he covered up for a paedophile priest in his diocese, according to reports.

The event began with a procession to Akbar's Church, led by dancing troupes from various RJM-run schools, showcasing the unity and diversity of India.

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Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar will attend the golden jubilee celebrations of the All India Mithila Sangha, an organisation of natives of Bihar's Mithila region, the Sangha today said.

The day-long celebration is slated to take place at Talkatora Stadium here on December 24.

President Ram Nath Kovind has already assured to grace the celebrations with his presence. He will also be joined by Puri Shankaracharya Nischalanand Saraswati and other dignitaries from several walks of lives, the Sangha said in a statement.

The celebrations aim at showcasing the rich cultural, heritage and history of the Mithila region - the northern part of Bihar bordering Nepal.

Earlier today, a delegation of the Sangha led by its President and Rajya Sabha member Prabhat Jha met the Bihar chief minister in person to extend the invitation to the programme.

"Accepting the invitation, Kumar extended his warm wishes and for the successful organisation of the event," the statement said.

"Mithila has a unique place in the history of India and it is our duty to showcase and promote its diverse culture, history and heritage to the world," Jha said.

The Sangha is also instrumental in providing opportunities to local artists at national and international levels and is recognised for creating awareness about its distinct culture and tradition, it said.

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British Prime Minister is to meet business chiefs on Monday in a bid to reassure them that the Brexit process is on track, following a bruising week for her leadership.

A plot to oust her by around 30 MPs in her Conservative Party went public yesterday, but cabinet colleagues refused to join the push.

The plot came after her showpiece speech to the centre- right party's annual conference on Wednesday -- intended to steady her leadership -- was plagued by mishaps.

A prankster managed to hand her an unemployment notice, a persistent cough left her almost unable to deliver her speech, while the set behind her started falling down.

Monday's business meeting at May's Downing Street office will come as British and European Union negotiators resume talks in Brussels in the hope of a breakthrough in the Brexit negotiations.

"Last month in Florence I set out my vision for a bold and unique new economic partnership with the EU," May said.

"We are working hard to achieve this and are optimistic about our future as a global, free-trading nation.

"The Business Advisory Council is an important part of our preparations for leaving the EU -- allowing us to seek the views of experienced business leaders and to share with them the government's vision for a successful Brexit."



May will be joined by finance minister Philip Hammond and Brexit secretary David Davis for the council meeting.

Representatives from firms including Aston Martin, HSBC, Morgan Stanley and Vodafone will be among those attending.

Balfour Beatty, WPP, GSK, Bridgewater, JCB, EY, Whitbread, Nestle and ABF are also due to take part.

Britain's pound sterling currency tumbled yesterday as the plot cast fresh doubt over May's future.

May's Florence speech offered concessions, but pressure remains on the negotiators to make progress and reduce the uncertainty for citizens and businesses in Britain and Europe.

EU leaders are set to decide at a summit on October 19 whether there has been "sufficient progress" on three issues: Britain's exit bill, the fate of Northern Ireland, and the rights of three million EU citizens living in Britain.

If they fail to agree then, the next chance will not be until a summit in December, with the clock ticking to reach a final deal before Britain formally leaves the bloc on March 29, 2019.

Britain voted to leave the EU in a shock referendum result in June 2016.
Efforts are still on to extinguish the fire that broke out at a fuel tank farm of the Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) located on the Butcher Island off the east coast of Mumbai last evening, a top fire brigade official said here today.

The firefighters had brought the blaze under control, but "excessive heat" led to reignition at the tank around 4.30 am today, the official said.

According to officials, the fire had broken out around 5 pm yesterday when Mumbai and the surrounding areas witnessed thundershowers. However, no causality was reported.

"Excessive heat caused reignition around 4.30 am today. Firefighting as well as the cooling operations are on. Foam and other extinguishing agents are being used for the purpose," Mumbai fire brigade chief P S Rahangdale said.

He said firefighters of MbPT as well as the fire brigade team are working in tandem to douse the blaze.

According to Rahangdale, fire brigade personnel involved in the firefighting operation through the night have been relieved and new staff staff have been deployed there.

"There has been a good coordination between Mumbai fire brigade personnel and the MbPT fire service team. The fire brigade team had reached around 10 feet near the blaze-hit tank, but reignition at dawn has posed a new challenge before us. However, the blaze is under control," he said.

"I am monitoring the operation. Because of the heat, the foam (used as an extinguisher) is not settling down, this is causing reignition. But overall, the situation is under control," Rahangdale said but did not specify how long the firefighting operation would continue.

"Our main challenge is to keep the other tanks near the affected one safe. So, on one hand our firemen are involved in cooling operations to keep other tanks safe, while on the other, they are also engaged in dousing the flames," he told PTI.

Butcher Island houses a marine oil terminal of MbPT.

Oil tankers discharge crude at the terminal, and it is transported to refineries at nearby Mahul through submerged pipelines, port officials said.

After the fire broke out, vessels in the vicinity of the island have been moved to a distance as a precautionary measure.

A BPCL spokesperson had said yesterday that a lightning strike amid thundershowers was the apparent cause behind the fire. "A diesel tank caught fire due to the lightning and thundershowers," he had said.

Manohar Rao, executive director and head of safety, BPCL, had said that prima facie, the cause of the fire was lightning, though further probe will be carried out on Saturday.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Former legislator Sucha Singh Chhotepur today decided not to support any candidate in the Gurdaspur Lok Sabha bypoll while appealing to people to vote according to their "voice of conscience".

Chhotepur had formed the Aapna Punjab Party (APP) after he was sacked from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on charges of corruption last year.

The leader claimed that representatives of all major political parties, including the Congress and the BJP, had met him to seek his support in the bypoll which is on October 11.

"I appeal to voters (of the Gurdaspur parliamentary seat) that your vote is precious as it decides the destiny of the society and you should vote as per your voice of conscience," Chhotepur said while addressing the media here.

He said the decision to not support candidates of any party was taken after deliberation with his party's workers. Chhotepur's APP is not contesting the bypoll.

"People from all parties met me as anybody can come to seek votes. But, whenever a representative from the Congress or the BJP met me, reports appeared in the media that I will be supporting this or that party. However, the fact is, there was no truth in such reports," said Chhotepur, who hails from Chhotepur village in Gurdaspur district.

The Gurdaspur Lok Sabha bypoll was necessitated following the death of BJP MP and actor Vinod Khanna in April this year.

The Congress has fielded senior leader Sunil Jakhar while the BJP's candidate is businessman Swarn Salaria for the bypoll.

The AAP has fielded a Major General (retd) Suresh Khajuria.

The APP leader was elected MLA from Gurdaspur district, once as a SAD candidate and the other time as an Independent.

He had also contested on an AAP ticket from the Gurdaspur Lok Sabha constituency in 2014 and polled 1.76 lakh votes. However, he got only 1,740 votes as an APP nominee from the Gurdaspur seat in the 2017 Punjab Assembly polls.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A CRPF officer was injured today in an attack by militants in the Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir, an official said.

Militants opened fire at a road opening party of the CRPF at Mir Bazaar in Kulgam district, a police official said. Sub-inspector Anwar Ali was injured in the incident, he added.

Security forces have cordoned off the area and launched a manhunt for the attackers, the official said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The CRPF has sent 21,000 rounds of newly-developed and "less lethal" plastic bullets to the Kashmir Valley to tackle street protests, says a top officer of the force.

The bullets, developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and manufactured by the Ordnance factory based in Pune, can be fitted in the AK series of assault rifles and will be an alternative to the much-criticised pellet shotguns.

"Tests have shown that these plastic bullets are less lethal. This will reduce our dependence on pellet guns and other non-lethal weapons used for crowd control," CRPF Director General (DG) R R Bhatnagar told PTI.

He said this will be newest less lethal ammunition the force has introduced to tackle crowds and counter stone pelters in the Valley.

"About 21,000 rounds have just been sent for distribution to all our units," the DG said.

The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), deployed in counter-insurgency and law and order operations in Jammu and Kashmir, had ordered for the plastic bullets so that troops can just replace lethal metal bullets and use the new plastic ones.

Bhatnagar said both 47 and 56, the AK series of rifles, are used by the CRPF units deployed in the Kashmir Valley. The bullets have been prepared in such a calibre that it fits the barrel, he added.

"As soon as a crowd or stone pelting incident is encountered, the troops just need to change the bullets and fire," the DG said.

Bhatnagar added that the force has not done away with other non-lethal weapons and is getting more pump action guns fitted with metal deflectors so that pellet injuries do not go above the waist.

"Even our specialised anti-riot unit RAF can use it at some point of time to render their duties. We will see how to go about it in the future," the DG said.

The usage of pellets in the Kashmir Valley had come under heavy criticism after locals suffered grevious injuries, including blindness in some cases, in the last few years.

The Union government had then ordered for the introduction of chilli-based PAVA shells to replace the pellet shotguns.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday made an aerial survey of the Doklam-Nathula area on the Sino-India border, a day after the government said the status quo at the site has not changed since the disengagement on August 28.

Sikkim government officials said the defence minister also made a survey of the new Pakyong Airport in East Sikkim and neighbouring areas this afternoon.

Sitharaman is on a day-long visit to Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim on Saturday.

The survey follows the external affairs ministry statement on Friday that there were no new developments at the India-China military face-off site in Doklam and its vicinity since the August 28 disengagement.

The statement had come amid reports that China has maintained a sizeable presence of its troops near the Doklam standoff site and even started widening an existing road around 12 km from the area of the face-off.

"We have seen recent press reports on Doklam...The status quo prevails in this area. Any suggestion to the contrary is incorrect," the external affairs ministry had said in the statement.

ALSO READ: New Delhi says no new developments at Doklam

Sitharaman is scheduled to meet Sikkim Governor Sriniwas Patil and Chief Minister Pawan Chamling at the Raj Bhavan and they are likely to discuss several issues related to defence in the border areas with China, the officials said.

Improving strategic infrastructure like border roads in Sikkim, the new airport that is to be inaugurated in November, and development in areas along the Sino-India border in Sikkim are likely to be discussed, they added.
The newly-elected members of the Delhi unit of Congress today unanimously adopted a resolution urging Rahul Gandhi to take over as the party's president.

Gandhi is currently the Congress vice president and there have been reports that he could soon take over its presidency.

Speaking to PTI this week, Rajasthan Congress chief Sachin Pilot said Gandhi may take over as Congress president after Diwali and the time was ripe for him to "lead from the front".

Today, a resolution seeking Gandhi's elevation to the president's position was unanimously passed by 280 delegates of the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC).

Former prime minister Manmohan Singh attended the meeting as a delegate from the New Delhi Assembly constituency.

The Congress is currently conducting organisational polls, including for the post of president. The Election Commission has set a December deadline for the Congress to conclude the exercise. The All India Congress Committee, however, plans to complete the process by the end of this month.

Another resolution passed in the meeting authorised the AICC president and the vice-president to nominate the president of the Delhi unit of the party.

Ajay Maken, the Delhi Congress president, said the election of former prime minister Singh as a PCC delegate was a matter of pride for the Delhi unit of the party.

Others who attended the meeting included AICC general secretary Janardhan Dwivedi, Delhi Congress in-charge P C Chacko, Delhi Pradesh returning officer (PRO) Ulhas Patil and APRO Manoj Chouhan.

Patil said the organisational elections in the Delhi unit of the party have been conducted in a tranparent manner.

A total of 280 delegates have been elected by block-level party workers across the 70 assembly segments in Delhi.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
An 82-year-old woman and her three daughters along with a security guard were found dead with their throats slit in their house in Mansarovar Park area of Shahdara in north-east Delhi this morning, police said.

The deceased have been identified as Urmila Jindal, her daughters Sangeeta Gupta (56), Nupur Jindal (48) and Anjali Jindal (38) and their security guard Rakesh (42), the police said.

The house is located in a compound where seven families comprising 40 members reside. One of the families comprised of Urmila and her three daughters. The other six families are from her husband's side.

Police officials suspect that someone known to the victims might have killed them, since, till now, there is no evidence of forced entry into the house.

Some people known to the family claimed in front of the police that the killings could be a fallout of a property dispute, a charge denied by the family which claimed that the killings were carried out by robbers.

Nupur Prasad, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Shahdara), said that Urmila was planning to sell off some of her properties.

The officer said that so far, they haven't found any evidence of a property dispute among the family members.

The Jindals have been living in the area since 1931 and are a business family.

A man, who comes to deliver flowers at the residence daily, arrived as usual but the security guard did not come to collect the flowers at around 6.30 am today.

Since the gate was open, he went inside and found the guard Rakesh lying in a pool of blood near a gate where motorcycles and cars are parked, said a family member.

He informed Urmila's nephew Rakesh Jindal, who was going for his morning walk. The guard's throat was slit, he said, adding that the police were informed.

The security guard was employed with the family for the last eight-nine years



After the police team arrived, the family's driver was sent upstairs to Urmila's house to get the keys of the car, so that it could be removed from near the guard's body, said a family member.

He found that the door was locked from outside and after opening it, he found the bodies of the four women in a pool of blood inside a bedroom, he said.

The body of Sangeeta Gupta was found lying on the bed while the bodies of her mother and sister were found lying on the floor with almirahs strewn open, the police said.

Police, however, suspect that the house had been ransacked to pass it off as a robbery.

"The jewellery on the bodies of the women was untouched. An expensive cell phone was found lying next to the bodies," said an official privy to the probe.

He said that it was also a matter of investigation as to how none of the other family members had any inkling that something was wrong till the bodies were found.

Police suspect that the killings were carried out by at least five persons after midnight.

The victims' necks had been slit. It is suspected that a butcher's knife was used to carry out the killings, said the official.

Urmila's husband Ram Kishan Jindal had died around seven-eight years back. She lived with her three daughters.

Sangeeta Gupta was a widow and had been staying at her mother's place for the last 20 years. The other two daughters were unmarried. Her daughter Abha lives with her husband and two children in Sarvodaya Enclave.

The family lived on the rent from more than 100 shops in the area near their house.

Urmila's husband was the youngest among five brothers. One of her husband's brothers, Amar Nath, is alive while the rest have passed away.

There were some people who hinted that the killings could be a fallout of a property dispute between the families. However, Rakesh Jindal denied the reports.

"There was whitewash work going on in the house for the last fortnight. Yesterday, the workers were scolded for negligence.

"They had not covered the car properly while they were painting the ceiling beneath which the car was parked," he claimed. He raised suspicion over the involvement of those workers in the killings.

Those who knew the family also said that they had never suspected a family dispute.

"They have been living in this area since 1931. They look like a happy family," said a family friend.

Rakesh Aggarwal, who had taken a shop owned by Urmila Jindal on rent, said, "I have their shop for the last 30 years. Till 1937, they had a business of extraction of mustard oil but later they closed it down and ventured into other areas."



Rakesh Jindal alleged that the police were not serious about the security in the area and hat there have been cases of burglaries.

"We have two police chowkis nearby for security purposes but there is hardly any police presence here," he alleged.

Immediately after the incident was reported, Joint Commissioner of Police, Eastern Range, Ravindra Yadav and Special Commissioner of Police, Law and Order(North) SBK Singh visited the spot.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Philippine officials say a Filipino doctor linked to planned terror attacks in the United States was arrested earlier this year for alleged involvement in kidnappings and beheadings blamed on pro-Islamic State group militants.

Chief State Counsel Ricardo Paras said Saturday that the US government has requested Russel Salic to be extradited to face terrorism financing charges. The request is pending in a Manila court.

Paras said the department of justice will decide whether to let Salic face criminal complaints first in the Philippines or be allowed to be flown to the US to answer terrorism allegations there.

US prosecutors said yesterday that Salic was part of a disrupted 2016 plot to carry out terror attacks in New York City.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Stating that India has all the facilities and resources to become a "film tourism hub", Union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi today said movies can play an important role in exposing and eliminating the menace of terrorism and radicalism.

The Minority Affairs Minister was addressing a 'Global Film Tourism Conclave' organised by PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry in suburban Mumbai.

Naqvi said that Indian film industry has been playing a key role in eliminating various social evils, creating an atmosphere against various social problems and also towards bringing social reforms.

"Indian films have succeeded in delivering effective messages social, cultural and reformist issues. Films can play an important role in eliminating the menace of terrorism and radicalism," he said.

He added that film makers from across the world have their own favourite places in India to shoot films.

"India is geographically, socially and culturally a rich and beautiful country. In India, from Kashmir to Kanyakumari and from Gujarat to northeast states, beautiful locations attract not only domestic, but also foreign film makers to shoot their movies at these places," he said.

He added that the Centre and various state governments encourage film makers from across the country and the world to make film in their regions.

"We should provide information to the entire world about these promotional programmes," he said.

He also said that India has all the "facilities, possibilities and resources" to become a "film tourism hub".

He added that organisations such as PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry can play an important role in encouraging these possibilities.

Naqvi said that India is one of the few countries in the world, where the film sector has an industry status.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Four suspected al-Qaeda terrorists were killed today in a shootout with security forces in this southwestern Pakistani city, police said.

The terrorists were shot dead after they opened fire on a raiding police party near the northern bypass area on the outskirts of the city, Senior Superintendent of Police Rao Anwar said.

"We had sent a raiding party acting on an intelligence tip-off but they retaliated with heavy firing and were killed in the return fire," he said.

Anwar said that those killed were involved in various terrorism-related incidents in Karachi.

"One of them has been identified as Ibrahim alias Afia who is wanted in many terror-related cases including attacks on police and rangers," the officer said.

On September 28, five terrorists belonging to the al- Qaeda in Indian Subcontinent and the Islamic State terror group were killed in Sachal area here.

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Communist Party of India General Secretary S Sudhakar Reddy today criticised the GST relief concessions, calling them "too little and too late".

Reddy accused the government of resorting to a gimmick and pointed out that 8 out of 27 items in which the relief has been given exist only in Gujarat.

"This is a gimmick with an eye on elections in Gujarat. Reducing excise duty by Rs 2 on petrol and diesel is also an election tactic. Concession to exporters is a help to rich donors of the ruling party," he said in a statement.

The CPI leader also ridiculed the government saying that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's comment that Diwali came early with GST concessions is like his promise of 'Achhe Din' which never came.

He said that the Finance minister should accept his mistake in rolling out the Goods and Services Tax in a hurry, without proper preparations and with unreasonable tax slabs.

The CPI leader also demanded that all taxes on petrol and diesel should be done away with and be brought under the GST within a reasonable slab.

Reddy also wanted the government to hold a thorough review of all GST slabs with proper discussions with representatives from political parties, people and small businessmen.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A survey to figure out issues being faced by dealers post GST rollout will be carried out in the state, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said today.

"A survey regarding GST will be conducted from October 9 to 13 in all districts of the state by the officers of the centre and state government. During survey, information will be gathered about GST related problems being faced by dealers and benefit to them," Khattar said at the state-level Haryana Swaran Jayanti in Bhiwani today.

An official release quoting Khattar said that next action will be taken on the basis of information gathered in the survey.

He expressed gratitude to the central government and GST Council for providing concessions in GST to dealers of the state and the country.

Meanwhile, Khattar also announced the decision of the state government to pay interest on the loans taken by womens self help groups under the National Rural Livelihood Mission.

The CM was addressing the state level function of womens self help groups in Bhiwani, today, said an official release. The chief minister said the government would pay interest till the annual income of each member of the groups grew to Rs one lakh.

He also announced awards for the first three such groups in every district on the basis of annual income. Groups securing the first position would get Rs one lakh each, second Rs 50,000, and third Rs 25,000.

The programme was organised to accelerate the socio-economic development to align with the resolution of 'Sankalp Se Siddhi' of the Prime MinisterNarendra Modi.

The chief minister urged women to resolve to build a new India by 2022 where sanitation would prevail and where the environment would be free from corruption, terrorism, communalism and casteism.

The Development and Panchayats Minister O P Dhankar, announced the launch of a new brand in the market for the products produced by womens self help groups.

Dhankar said state government will promote the products of groups by building a brand.

Efforts will be made to increase the annual turnover of such groups to Rs 5,000 crore from Rs 130 crore in the next five years.

"We are trying to connect six lakh families through the National Rural Livelihood Mission and hope we will succeed, he added.

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This post is my attempt to write an easy to understand introduction to the main ideas behind building a real-time collaborative text editor, which can be tricky as you want all clients to synchronize and see a sensible result even in the face of concurrent edits.

In some ways, this is already a solved problem by Operational Transform (OT) and open-source implementations like Firepad and ShareJS. So if you want a plug-in-play solution, use one of those and move along. I decided to use a CRDT (Conflict-Free Replicated Data Type), a newer technique (more specifically, I adapted Logoot). There are technical pros and cons versus OTs that Im not gonna bore you with, but for me the major advantage of the CRDT approach is that its simpler to understand and to convince yourself that it works (and thus, to maintain it).

I hope to demonstrate that in this post by splitting the problem of implementing a CRDT into multiple conceptual layers. Those layers should be fairly easy to understand one at a time. In contrast, OTs work by requiring you to handle every combination of operations arriving in different orders (i.e. all the weird shit users do) and proving that youve handled all of the edge cases. While the code itself may not be that complicated, if you make a mistake, youre screwed.

This was a fun side project to build while at Recurse Center, and also quite relevant now that applications are increasingly moving to the web and becoming collaborative. Good ol Google Docs showed that its quite useful for multiple people to be able to edit at the same time. Now, Dropbox Paper, Overleaf, Coderpad, etc all support collaborative writing.

The problem of synchronization

First, Ill briefly introduce what makes collaborative text editor hard. Lets say you have two students, Ping and Pong working together on the same essay, and theyre working on different parts of the document. Ping makes a change: insert the string , sadface at the end of the line. The naive way in which Pings editor could transmit the change to Pongs editor is just to send a message insert(", sadface", col=44) .

And this would work if changes could be transmitted and applied instantaneously ( possibly breaking causality along the way ).

In practice, Pings neighbor is torrenting The Emoji Movie (dont ask me why) and causing Pings messages to arrive really slowly to Pong. While Pings message was stuck in emoji traffic, Pong added the string , not at column 23.

Wops. By the time insert(", sadface", col=44) arrives, the end of the line is no longer column 44. We still insert though, and get this:

Now, were in an inconsistent state and The Matrix falls apart around Ping and Pong.

Commute + idempotent => synchronize

Lets look at the first insight thatll allow us to make a collaborative text editor.

In the previous example, two operations were generated concurrently on different clients. When we send them over to the other client, they end up applied in different orders and the clients end up in different states. They dont commute.

On the other hand, if every operation could commute with every other operation, the clients would converge to the same state regardless of which messages arrived where first. You still need to require that operations commute in a way that makes sense to the user of course. Lest you get a lazy programmer that makes every operation delete the whole file. Hey, the states were the same in the end! . But otherwise, if operations commute, synchronization is trivially easy. A basic example is an add-only set. It doesnt matter the order in which you add things to the set, the set is the same in the end.

While commutativity captures 90% of the idea, in practice we need another condition for synchronization, which is that operations need to be idempotent. That is, you can apply the operation twice and itll give you the same result as applying it once. This is useful not only if your messages get duplicated somehow (maybe youre using UDP instead of TCP? I dunno) but also if two clients decide to do the same operation at the same time. Then, receiving the other clients (now duplicate) operation should be a no-op (do nothing).

Im using the term commute loosely here. In practice you dont need your operations to commute in the sense that EVERY operation commutes with EVERY other operation. Its great if they do since commutativity is a sufficient condition for convergence, but its not a necessary condition. For instance, it doesnt make sense to reorder operations generated by one client because you might end up putting DELETE(X) before CREATE(X). What we really want is some sort of interleave-ability defined by the causal order between operations and have the merging obey some partial order. But the goal of this post is to provide an intuition, even if at the expense of correct technicality. Ill refer you to the CRDT papers for the big words.

Make everything (all kiwis ) unique

At a very abstract level, a CRDT is just a data structure and a set of operations on the data structure that commute with each other. Theres lots of different examples of CRDTs. Some quite simple that you can read about while having breakfast. Others, well, less so.

Before we get into text editing, which is one of the less simple CRDTs, lets create a simple CRDT to help us gain some intuition. Were going to build a bag, also known a multiset. Like the name implies, its a collection in which you can put and retrieve objects. Its like a Set, but it can contain multiple copies of the same element.

The two main operations on a Bag that were concerned with are:

Add(x)

Remove(x)

You probably also want to iterate over the Bag, count elements, etc, but those do not modify the Bag therefore dont need synchronization.

Add and remove are not commutative. Imagine that Ping, Pong and Pang all have an instance of a bag that contains a kiwi (i.e. ).

Simultaneously, Ping puts in another kiwi, Pong removes the kiwi and Pang removes a kiwi. What happens?

The fact that both Pong and Pang both decided to remove a Kiwi from the bag at once is not a problem (although jeez, Pong, Pang, why did you have to do that?). Remember, operations are idempotent and the end result should just be that the kiwi got removed from the bag. The problem is that Ping has two kiwis in his bag () when receiving the two DELETE() messages from Pong and Pang so Ping deletes both kiwis . In the meantime, Pong and Pang will end up with either one kiwi  or no kiwi  depending on whether ADD() or DELETE() arrived first.

Its The Kiwipocalypse .

We can fix this by changing the semantics of the operation a little. Now, not only are kiwis  a unique fruit different from other fruits , but well make every kiwi unique. Im calling this The Kiwi Manifesto . More specifically, well assign each individual fruit a unique ID when created.

The programmer will modify the Bag in the same way with ADD() and REMOVE() . But the operation that will get sent to other clients will be ADD(, <unique id>) and REMOVE(<unique id>) . When adding a fruit to the bag, a globally unique id that has never been used before (in any client, ever) gets created and assigned to the fruit. When removing a fruit from the bag, the remove operation will remove the fruit from the local bag, get the removed fruits unique id, and send a message to other clients to remove an item in the bag with that unique id. Not exposing the unique id to the user also makes sure that they cant ask to delete a kiwi that doesnt exist yet.

This should make intuitive sense. Now, the delete message isnt just about deleting a kiwi, its about deleting that kiwi. And you no longer run into ordering problems.

Finally, how do you generate new, globally unique ids? You need consensus between clients, so implement Paxos. Just kidding. Assuming that all clients have a unique identifier, make it part of the new objects unique id. This makes sure that objects created in different clients are distinguishable without needing them to communicate with each other. To make sure that objects created by the same client are distinguishable, create a counter on each client that increments the bag is modified and add it to the unique id. In summary each object is tagged with (client id, counter).

Text editing: order in the fruit kingdom

Alright, but you say, thats cool, but I didnt come here to build fruit baskets, I want to make a text editor. Fine, fine.

A text document is not that different from a Bag (a bag of Alpha-Bit cereals anybody?). Theres a bunch of characters that you can add and delete. Its just that the problem is a bit harder because each character has a position. Thats one way to look at it. Another way thatll be more helpful to us is to say that a text document is an ordered bag of characters. The position of the characters then simply follow from that order (even if theres newlines, those are just a 

 character).

So what is the order going to be? What were going to try to do in this section and the next section is to design a way of generating unique ID for characters such that the sort order of those ID will tell us the order of those character in the document.

To do this, lets first think about how we would insert characters in a line where all the existing characters have already been assigned unique IDs. Suppose our IDs were just integers, and we sorted characters by increasing ID. We might have something like this:

o c c u r e n c e 1 4 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Wait thats not how occurence occurrence is spelled. Spelling occurrence is hard ok? Anyway lets fix that by adding an r between (r, 8) and (e, 9). But theres no room! I guess were stuck with this spelling now.

Or not. A natural thing to do would just to create a fractional index between 8 and 9. If we insert the character (r, 8.5), then we get the expected result:

o c c u r r e n c e 1 4 6 7 8 8.5 9 10 11 12

Therefore, we could use floats instead of integers to store our character IDs. In practice, we would want to store a list of integer representing the digits after the fraction so we dont ever run out of precision. Theres also no need to have indices > 1 if were going to have fractional indices anyway, so well just store the fractional digits.

Fractional indices by themselves of course are not globally unique IDs. Our IDs will need to be a bit more clever than that to be unique like snowflakes .

No two characters are the same

To generate globally unique IDs which I will now call position identifiers (since they identify stuff and position stuff), theres two situations that we need to handle:

Two clients generating the same ID at the same time (e.g. insert a character at the same position concurrently)

One client generating an ID that was already generated (e.g. delete a character and reinsert it)

Heres the high level idea on how were going to solve this. Assume all clients have a unique site ID. Were still going to use fractional indices, but every time we insert a character and add or change a digit in a fraction, well tag the digit with the site ID at which it was inserted.

This is how it looks like. Say that whale  starts a document with my hero and water buffalo  enters that same document.

m [ (1, ) ] y [ (2, ) ] _ [ (3, ) ] h [ (4, ) ] e [ (5, ) ] r [ (6, ) ] o [ (7, ) ]

If water buffalo adds super, then the document might look like this:

m [ (1, ) ] y [ (2, ) ] _ [ (3, ) ] s [ (3, ) , (1, ) ] u [ (3, ) , (2, ) ] p [ (3, ) , (3, ) ] e [ (3, ) , (4, ) ] r [ (3, ) , (5, ) ] h [ (4, ) ] e [ (5, ) ] r [ (6, ) ] o [ (7, ) ]

If whale accidentally hits the keyboard and adds a bunch of us (whales have fat fingers, I read it on Wikipedia), then it could look like this.

m [ (1, ) ] y [ (2, ) ] _ [ (3, ) ] s [ (3, ) , (1, ) ] u [ (3, ) , (2, ) ] u [ (3, ) , (2, ) , (1, ) ] u [ (3, ) , (2, ) , (2, ) ] p [ (3, ) , (3, ) ] e [ (3, ) , (4, ) ] r [ (3, ) , (5, ) ] h [ (4, ) ] e [ (5, ) ] r [ (6, ) ] o [ (7, ) ]

And so it went on, and a friendship between whales and water buffalos was formed!!! By making sure that the last digit of any newly added characters position identifier is always tagged with the site ID, two clients can never conflict just by adding new characters.

You might think every position identifier could just contain a single site ID instead of a site ID for every digit, but you do need to tag every digit with a site ID. As well see later, the sort order depends on the site ID so some site IDs need to be preserved to make sure that were inserting at the right place.

Finally, to handle the case of a client deleting and reinserting the same character (I know its you, silly monkey ), every client gets a counter that always increments anytime an action happens. A simple integer counter suffices if you have a central server though the Logoot paper suggests using a Lamport Timestamp which is only two lines of arithmetic anyway.

Deleting characters is simply a DELETE(position identifier) operation, just like in the fruit bag example.

Now that we got:

Globally unique IDs with the CREATE operation

CREATE and DELETE commute

The sort order of the ID defines what the order of the character is to represent text

We got a collaborative, synchronized text editor! Well, mostly thats true. I guess I should talk about some implementations details.

Show me ze money (ze code)

Up to this point, Ive been handwaving over all the details to give you an intuition of how this CRDT works. But those details are kind of important to make sure weve covered all edge cases. I recommend also reading the Logoot paper for completeness. Its a pretty readable paper. Note that Ill be using similar, but slightly different terminology at places for ease of presentation. Lets start with a proper definition of a position identifier.

A position identifier generated at site \( s \) is a tuple (position, \( clock_s \)) where the \( clock(s) \) is the Lamport clock value at site \( s \)

generated at site \( s \) is a tuple (position, \( clock_s \)) where the \( clock(s) \) is the Lamport clock value at site \( s \) A position is a list of identifiers

is a list of identifiers An identifier is a tuple (digit, site id) where digit and site id are integers

The digits can be in any base you want. I personally use 256 and convert the number to a string for ease of debugging, but other reasonable choices include MAX_INT, Base64, Base85, etc. Note also that for simplicity, each position is between 0 and 1 insofar as the digits are concerned, so we can think of a position as \( p = 0.p_1p_2p_3 \) where \( p_i \) are identifiers and we dont need to store anything left of the decimal.

In code, the data structures look like this:

class Identifier { digit : number site : number } class Char { position : Identifier [] lamport : number value : string }

Next, we need to define the sort order between the position identifiers. Note that the clock value \( clock_s \) is not used for sorting since a client will never insert a character with the same position as another unless that character has already been deleted. So were really just defining the sort order between positions, which I implemented as such:

function comparePosition ( p1 : Identifier [], p2 : Identifier []): number { for ( let i = 0 ; i < Math . min ( p1 . length , p2 . length ); i ++ ) { const comp = Identifier . compare ( p1 [ i ], p2 [ i ]); if ( comp !== 0 ) { return comp ; } } if ( p1 . length < p2 . length ) { return - 1 ; } else if ( p1 . length > p2 . length ) { return 1 ; } else { return 0 ; } } function compareIdentifier ( i1 : Identifier , i2 : Identifier ) { if ( i1 . digit < i2 . digit ) { return - 1 ; } else if ( i1 . digit > i2 . digit ) { return 1 ; } else { if ( i1 . site < i2 . site ) { return - 1 ; } else if ( i1 . site > i2 . site ) { return 1 ; } else { return 0 ; } } }

This sort order is more or less what youd expect, sorting by the digits and using sites as tiebreakers. You may refer to the paper for the formal definition and to make sure I didnt make any mistakes. Its worth making sure you really understand the sort order, because it affects how we insert characters. In particular, having sites as tiebreakers means you can have a sorted list of positions that looks like this:

[(1, 0)] 0.1 [(1, 0), (4, 0)] 0.14 [(1, 0), (6, 0), (3, 1)] 0.163 [(1, 0), (7, 0)] 0.17 [(1, 1)] 0.1 [(1, 1), (1, 1)] 0.11

Generating new position identifiers on insertion is more complex. Ill describe what I came up with but be warned, while I made sure to write tests, this has not been tested in large production systems.

The algorithm described in Logoot is not suitable for our use case. In addition to missing what I think are key details on how to handle certain edge cases, the original paper was written for synchronizing individual lines, whereas a real-time collaborative editor needs to synchronize individual characters. Furthermore, when writing text documents, 99% of character insertions are going to happen on the right side of the last inserted character, with only occasional cursor jumps. We need to take this into account when creating position identifiers. Technically position identifiers are unbounded in size, but we can try to not make them grow too fast. If we were to naively, say, generate a position identifier halfway between two characters, the size of the position identifiers would grow very fast.

We cant just do arithmetic on positions as arbitrary precision numbers because when two digits are the same, the sites could still be different. In the example above, we saw how this can lead to positions not being sorted in the same way numbers would be sorted.

Furthermore, as the gap in position between two characters gets smaller, we need to create smaller increments in position.

Because this algorithm is intricate, Ill start with the code and explain how to think about it:

function generatePositionBetween ( position1 : Identifier . t [], position2 : Identifier . t [], site : number ): Identifier . t [] { // Get either the head of the position, or fallback to default value const head1 = head ( position1 ) || Identifier . create ( 0 , site ); const head2 = head ( position2 ) || Identifier . create ( Decimal . BASE , site ); if ( head1 . digit !== head2 . digit ) { // Case 1: Head digits are different const n1 = Decimal . fromIdentifierList ( position1 ); const n2 = Decimal . fromIdentifierList ( position2 ); const delta = Decimal . subtractGreaterThan ( n2 , n1 ); // Increment n1 by some amount less than delta const next = Decimal . increment ( n1 , delta ); return Decimal . toIdentifierList ( next , position1 , position2 , site ); } else { if ( head1 . site < head2 . site ) { // Case 2: Head digits are the same, sites are different return cons ( head1 , generatePositionBetween ( rest ( position1 ), [], site )); } else if ( head1 . site === head2 . site ) { // Case 3: Head digits and sites are the same return cons ( head1 , generatePositionBetween ( rest ( position1 ), rest ( position2 ), site )); } else { throw new Error ( " invalid site ordering " ); } } }

generatePositionBetween is a function that recursively examines the most significant digits of an identifier by handling three different cases.

Case 1: Head digits are different

beforePosition = [(1, x), ...] afterPosition = [(2, y), ...]

This is the base case. If the most significant digits of the before and after positions differ, than it is possible to generate a new position such that beforePosition < newPosition < afterPosition regardless of the values of the sites x and y , simply by incrementing the digits of beforePosition by a small amount less than (afterPosition - beforePosition). Therefore, in this case, we first convert the positions to a decimal representation by dropping the sites.

// In module 'decimal' export type t = number [] function fromIdentifierList ( identifiers : Identifier . t []): t { return identifiers . map ( ident => ident . digit ); }

The arithmetic operations add and subtractGreaterThan simply implement textbook addition and subtraction and you may refer to the source code for an implementation. The increment operation, on the other hand, is a bit more tricky.

function increment ( n1 : t , delta : t ): t { const firstNonzeroDigit = delta . findIndex ( x => x !== 0 ); const inc = delta . slice ( 0 , firstNonzeroDigit ). concat ([ 0 , 1 ]); const v1 = add ( n1 , inc ); const v2 = v1 [ v1 . length - 1 ] === 0 ? add ( v1 , inc ) : v1 ; return v2 ; }

All this does it increment a digit of n1 by 1 such that the increment is less than delta. Another tricky bit of increment is that we want to make sure that the result of increment does not have a 0 as the last digit. Why? Because then we would have to later make sure that were able to generate positions between two ambiguous representations of the same decimal (e.g. 0.201 and 0.2010). The simple trick used here is to increment again if that happens.

When were done generating a new decimal position, we convert it back into a position by assigning sites to it in such a way to maintain the sort order using toIdentifierList .

// In module 'decimal' function toIdentifierList ( n : t , before : Identifier . t [], after : Identifier . t [], creationSite : number ): Identifier . t [] { // Implements the constructPosition rules from the Logoot paper return n . map (( digit , index ) => { if ( index === n . length - 1 ) { return Identifier . create ( digit , creationSite ); } else if ( index < before . length && digit === before [ index ]. digit ) { return Identifier . create ( digit , before [ index ]. site ); } else if ( index < after . length && digit === after [ index ]. digit ) { return Identifier . create ( digit , after [ index ]. site ); } else { return Identifier . create ( digit , creationSite ); } }); }

Case 2: Head digits are the same, sites are different

beforePosition = [(1, 1), ...] afterPosition = [(1, 3), ...]

Here, observe that newPosition = [(1,1), ...anything] will always satisfy newPosition < afterPosition.

More generally, if the site is used as a tiebreaker, notice that the new position could be anything that starts with the same identifier as beforePosition and will still be sorted before afterPosition. Which is why in the recursion

return cons(head1, generatePositionBetween(rest(position1), [], site));

We just pass an empty list as the second parameter.

Case 3: Head digits and sites are the same

beforePosition = [(1, 1), ...] afterPosition = [(1, 1), ...]

If the two digits are the same, then we need to look at the subsequent digits to find an in-between position, so we just recurse on the rest.

return cons(head1, generatePositionBetween(rest(position1), rest(position2), site));

With these three cases covered, were able to generate new positions for inserted characters.

Staying all in sync

To synchronize between clients, add and remove events are sent as such.

namespace RemoteChange { type t = [ " add " | " remove " , Char . t ]; function add ( char : Char . t ): t { return [ " add " , char ]; } function remove ( char : Char . t ): t { return [ " remove " , char ]; } }

Here, Char.t is just an object containing a position identifier and a character. As in the case of fruit baskets, deleting a character just needs to delete by ID.

For simplicity, we always send remote changes as single character insertions or deletions. For efficiency, it would be better to batch them though thats a simple optimization.

From abstractionland to userland

Lets recap what weve created so far: a way of maintaining an ordered list of characters with unique identifiers and generate new identifiers in-between characters.

Using what weve seen previously, this is sufficient to represent a text document and synchronize it between clients. On the server-side, its actually sufficient to just store all the characters in an unordered hashtable, since the server only reads and relays ADD and DELETE operations.

Of course, on the client-side, users want more than a representation of a text document. Users want to be able to modify it with a simple interface. In my case, I am using CodeMirror as the underlying text editor, a popular open-source Javascript library.

CodeMirror has obviously no idea about CRDTs, and just stores the text content as lines of characters. This means I have to store two copies of the text: one in the text editor for client use, and one in the CRDT for synchronization use.

To interact with CodeMirror using the programming API, I can receive change events or send it patches using a EditorChange object that looks something like this:

interface EditorChange { from : { line : number column : number } to : { line : number column : number } added : string removed : string }

(The actual object is a bit different but I changed it for ease of presentation)

That means we need to keep the CodeMirror editor and the CRDT in sync when any of the following four events happen:

Remote change: insertion Get index of the preceding character in the CRDT Insert character in the CRDT Create a local change inserting a character at that index Remote change: deletion Get the index of a character with the same position identifier in the CRDT Delete that character in the CRDT Create a local change deleting a character at that index Local change: insertion at position n Find the nth and (n+1)th character in the CRDT Create a position identifier between character n and n + 1 and insert character in the CRDT Send out a remote insert change for that character Local change: deletion at position n Find the nth character in the CRDT Delete that character in the CRDT Send out a remote delete change for that character

I wont go into the details of how each of these events are handled. Its non-trivial and a lot of lines of code, but ultimately rather mechanical and I dont think theres a whole lot of insights to be had.

That being said, theres 3 ways in which you could implement this, from easiest (and least performant) to hardest (and most performant).

Array of <position identifier, character>

The simplest thing you can do is to store all your characters as a linear array. When you need to search for a position identifier, use binary search. Searching for newline characters may require linear search. This is only going to scale up to a few hundred characters, since you have worst-case quadratic complexity when making large changes. However, it is perfectly reasonable to start with this as a prototype.

Array of array of <position identifier, character>

You can also split the array of characters for the whole document and have one array for each line. This should allow you to support text documents up to a few hundred lines, assuming most text documents have at most a few hundred characters per line. If you only want to build a collaborative text editor as a side project, this approach is probably fine.

Binary search tree of <position identifier, character>

The most efficient approach is to store the characters in a binary search tree. Youll probably have to supply a custom comparator. Finding, inserting and deleting characters are all O(log(n)) operations as long as you choose an implementation thats balanced.

You will, however, also need to augment the binary tree with order statistics. That is, you also want to be able to query for the nth character in the tree, by storing the size of the tree at each node. You might also want to be able to query for the nth newline character.

The downside, in addition to requiring a custom data structure, is that the binary tree will require additional storage per character (at the very least a left and right pointer, integer for node size) which is big given how memory hungry this approach is already.

Trie of positions

You can reuse individual positions (digits) in a position identifier by storing the whole thing as a trie. Of course, this is a bit more challenging than a regular trie, since you will have to deal with the site tiebreakers and removal of characters. See also TreeDoc.

(Note that in any case, cant use a hashtable on the client since hashtables dont provide an ordering to the keys).

Conclusion

Im not going to pretend writing a real-time collaborative text editor is an easy project. It took me 3-4 days just to write the core of it, and an order magnitude more to write tests, make the UI nice, and add other features on top of it (e.g. seeing the other peoples cursors). It would take even more to make it resilient to failures, implement access control, etc. However, as I hope this article convinced you, there are approaches that can be fairly intuitive and the solution can be understood as a series of layers, and broken down into approachable tasks.

Thanks for reading, and let me know if you have any feedback!
Seeing a 10-month male child stop crying after being handed over by police to its maternal aunt, Madras High Court today dismissed a HCP by the grandmother, seeking it's custody and ordered that the toddler be handed over to the younger woman.

The Division bench, comprising Justices Rajiv Shakder and N Sathishkumar gave the direction after they saw the child stop crying on being handed over to the aunt by police.

The grandmother, Vijaya, had filed a Habeas Corpus Petition seeking production of the child after it's mother's death, saying police had failed to act on her complaint that the aunt and her relatives had forcibly taken away the toddler and was threatening her.

She submitted that her son got married in 2014 and had a child the next year. The couple had separated in 2016 due to differences of opinion and he had killed his wife later. Her husband was also involved in the murder.

Meanwhile the deceased woman's sister filed a missing person's complaint, following which police launched a probe and arrested the duo, who reportedly confessed to the crime.

The grandmother, in her HCP, said the woman and her relatives had threatened her and forcibly taken away the child and that police had not acted on her complaint.

When the HCP came up for hearing, police produced the child in court after taking it from its maternal aunt. The child started crying following which it was taken to the verandha of the court.

The two women then got into a heated argument, following which the bench adjourned the hearing for some time.

Just before the hearing again started, the two got into a verbal duel and police pacified them.

As soon as the hearing began, police handed over the child to the maternal aunt.

The woman told the bench of the murder of her sister and the 'harassment' meted out to her by her in-laws.

As the hearing was going on, the grandmother pulled the child away and it immediately started crying



Seeing this, the bench directed that the child be handed over to the aunt



The Bench directed both parties to ensure that the child continues to be in possession of the maternal aunt till the orders are passed by a competent court.

it also directed police to provide security to the aunt as well as the child.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Nobel Peace Prize winner Kailash Satyarthi today urged people to protect the rights of children and put an end to their exploitation.

Satyarthi is on a Bharat Yatra from Kanyakumari to New Delhi to raise awareness about crimes against children.

He was in Lakhimpur Kheri today.

Addressing a gathering here, the prominent social worker voiced concern over abuse of children and their exploitation.

Thanking chief ministers of Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh for their endeavour to safeguard children from exploitation, he said his fight to protect childhood would continue till every child in India feels safe.

Satyarthi's close associate and Rajya Sabha lawmaker Ravi Prakash Verma also urged people to vow to protect children.

Satyarthi was awarded the Nobel Prize in 2014 for his "struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education".

He shared the award with Pakistan's Malala Yousafzai.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Members of a Kannada outfit protesting against private schools for demanding donations today vandalised the official bungalow of the state Primary and Secondary Education Minister Tanveer Sait, following which all 22 of them were arrested.

Karnataka Rakshana Yuva Sene workers assembled from various parts of the city outsideSait's residence and raised slogans against him, police said, adding the minister was not at home at the time of the incident.

They suddenly barged into his house pushing aside the two police constables guarding the bungalow, destroyed flower pots and broke window panes, the police said.

"We have arrested all of them," a police official said.

The official said there was no prior intimation about anyprotest.

It happened all of a sudden due to which police could not reach there on time, he added.

The activists of the fringe outfit were protesting against the 'donation menace' in the mushrooming private schools in the state.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Libyan authorities have recovered the bodies of 21 Coptic Christian workers, mostly Egyptians, who in 2015 were beheaded on a beach in the coastal city of Sirte by Islamic State militants, according to a statement issued today by a government-linked anti-IS group.

The group, al-Bonyan al-Marsous, quoted an IS militant who witnessed the attack as saying all but one of the 21 showed no resistance to their impending decapitation.

The militant, arrested last year, said filming the beheadings was disrupted when one of the Christians resisted. He was beaten into submission.

A grisly video of the beheadings was posted online in February 2015, shocking Egyptians and prompting the Cairo government to stage punitive airstrikes against militant targets in Libya.

It showed the hostages in orange jumpsuits being led along a beach, each accompanied by a masked militant.

They were made to kneel before they were simultaneously beheaded. The video makers identified themselves then as IS' Tripoli Province.

One militant, dressed differently than the others, spoke to the camera in North American-accented English, promising more attacks on Christian Copts, who account for roughly 10 per cent of Egypt's 95 million people.

Egypt has since December seen a series of IS attacks that have killed nearly a 100 Christians.

The filming of the video, today's al-Bonyan al-Marsous statement said, was halted again for the speaker to receive instructions. The unnamed militant said he was in charge of ferrying the bodies in his truck to bury them south of Sirte.

He named several of the IS militants involved in the killings.

The bodies of the 21 Copts, with hands cuffed behind their backs, were recovered yesterday. Preparations were underway to hand over the bodies to their families, said the statement.

Libya's Chief Prosecutor Al-Sadiq al-Sour said last month that more than 800 arrest warrants have been issued to hunt down IS militants involved in an array of attacks across the country.

Sirte had been a stronghold of IS militants before they fled the city inland following their defeat last year by militias loyal to a UN-backed government in Tripoli, the capital.

Libya has descended into chaos since a popular 2011 uprising that toppled and later killed longtime ruler Moammar Gadhafi. The oil-rich North African nation has three rival administrations, but actual power on the ground is in the hands of a multitude of militias.

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A 43-year-old man was arrested for allegedly killing a woman after she refused to marry his brother-in-law despite being in a relationship with him, the police said today.

A partially burnt woman's body was recovered today from a street in Khijrabad in southeast Delhi's New Friends Colony, they said.

The police said CCTV camera footage from last night showed a man carrying a body wrapped in bed sheet, and after a few minutes running away from the spot.

The accused was later identified, Sarat Das, a resident of Murutia in West Bengal's Nadia district, the police said, adding that he had been living in Delhi with the family for the last 20 years.

He was arrested after he confessed to have killed the woman, who was later identified as Mithu Das (26), they said.

She was killed by Sarat since she refused to marry his brother-in-law Madan Das even though she was in relationship with him for many years, the police said.

Mithu was working as a domestic help in Delhi and came to meet Sarah's family yesterday, they said.

After she had dinner with his family, an heated argument broke out between Sarat and Mithu, and in a fit of rage, he strangulated her, the police said.

Later, with the intention of disposing the body, he wrapped it in a bed sheet and dumped it. He poured petrol and tried to burn the body, they said.

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A federal intelligence agent and his mother were killed when assailants opened fire on their car in northern Mexico, an attack that came hours after a mayor in western Michoacan state was gunned down outside his home, officials said.

While the killers in the shootings yesterday escaped, both regions are wracked by gun battles between drug gangs and Mexican police, and by turf wars between criminal cartels.

The federal agent -- identified as Julio Cesar Baez Guillen, 35 -- was traveling with his 65-year-old mother and his 31-year-old girlfriend when gunmen pulled alongside their car and opened fire, the Chihuahua state prosecutor's office said late yesterday.

Baez and his mother died, while the agent's girlfriend, also an intelligence agent, was wounded but survived.

Baez had been assigned to the Puente Grande maximum security federal penitentiary in Jalisco state, infamous for being the prison from which drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman escaped in 2001.

Guzman is currently jailed and awaiting trial in the United States on drug trafficking and money laundering charges.

Chihuahua, which borders on Texas and is a major transit point for drugs into the United States, forms the notorious "Golden Triangle" along with Durango and Sinaloa states. In the region, marijuana and the poppy flowers used to make heroin are grown and drug cartel violence is common.

Separately, Stalin Sanchez Gonzalez, the mayor of Paracho in the southern state of Michoacan, was murdered yesterday morning as he stepped outside his home.

Paracho is best known for its handcrafted guitars, but the region in the past years has been hit hard by drug cartel violence.

Michoacan Governor Silvano Aureoles announced the mayor's death as he expressed his condolences on Twitter.

Nearly 50 mayors across the country have been slain since 2003, according to Mexico's National Association of Mayors.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who arrived in Gujarat this morning on a two-day visit, offered prayers at the famous Dwarkadhish temple here.

After visiting the temple dedicated to Lord Krishna, the prime minister came out and waved at people waiting outside to greet him. He also shook hands with some of them.

Modi is on a two-day visit to poll-bound Gujarat. He will lay foundation stones and inaugurate a number of projects. He is also scheduled to visit his birthplace Vadnagar for the first time after becoming prime minister.

At Dwarka, Modi will lay the foundation stone for a four-lane cable stayed signature bridge between Okha and Beyt Dwarka to be built at a cost of Rs 962.42 crore.

Other projects for which foundation stones will be laid include the four-laning of 116.24 km of the Porbandar-Dwarka section of NH-51 and the four-laning of 93.56 km of the Gadu- Porbandar section of NH-51.

From Dwarka, Modi will go to Hirasar in Rajkot district where he will lay the foundation stone for a greenfield airport, 20 km from Rajkot city.

Last month, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi had started his Gujarat political campaign by visiting Dwarkadhish temple.

During his three-day campaign tour across Saurashtra region of the state, Gandhi had visited four other famous temples.

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Under attack over the Gujarat model of development, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today took a swipe at the Congress over economic progress under its governments, saying for them it meant installing a hand pump and asking for votes in return.

Modi, who is on a two-day visit to his poll-bound home state for launching and inaugurating a slew of projects, said there is no substitute for development.

"The definition of development has changed. Earlier, leaders used to install a hand pump and ask for vote in its name for three elections," Modi said without naming the Congress.

The prime minister was addressing a gathering after laying the foundation stone for a greenfield airport at Hirasar near temple town of Chotila in Surendranagar district.

"There is no substitute for development. Everybody, even a very poor person, wants development. If you ask any poor person if he wants a house, he would say yes. You cannot give houses to the poor without development," Modi said.

He was apparently alluding to the campaign mounted by the Congress and other opposition parties, especially on social media, rubbishing the Gujarat model of developmnent under the BJP rule.

Congress vice president



Rahul Gandhi had recently castigated the Modi government over the Gujarat model of development, saying "vikas (development) has gone mad", during his recent three-day campaign visit to the state.

"Did you ever think that Chotila would have an airport? Did people of Surendranagar ever think that an airport will be built here?" Modi asked the gathering.

"Should an airport be built here, will you people like it? Once airport is built, planes will fly from here. Is it not development?" Modi asked, and the crowd responded with a resounding "yes".

The state unit of the BJP has decided to take on the Congress' aggressive 'development has gone mad' campaign with its slogan of 'I am development'.

Apart from launching the airport project, Modi also laid the foundation stone for six-laning of 201 km Ahmedabad- Rajkot section of National Highway 47. The project will cost Rs 2,893 crore.

He also dedicated a fully automatic milk processing and packaging plant and a drinking water pipeline for Joravarnagar and Ratanpur area of Surendranagar.

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Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan will take part in BJP's ongoing Jan Raksha Yatra in Kerala on October 10, a party spokesman said today.

The yatra, which is currently underway, has been taken out by the BJP to highlight political murders and boost morale of workers in Kerala ahead of the 2019 general election.

Chouhan will join the yatra at Palakkad and travel upto Mannuthy in a vehicle where he will address a public meeting in Wadakkanchery, BJP spokesman, Rajnish Agrawal said.

The chief minister will embark on padyatra from Mannuthy to Thrissur on the same day and address a public meeting there.

Chouhan will return to Bhopal late in the night, he added.

The BJP had on October 3 launched a 15-day march in Kerala to target the state's Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) government accusing the Left party of being on a "killing spree" against its workers.

The march, which is part on foot and part in vehicles, is being seen as the saffron partys push to emerge as a potent force in the state ahead of the Lok Sabha poll in 2019.

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Suspended Trinamool Congress leader Mukul Roy is likely to float a new political outfit and target next year's panchayat polls in West Bengal to test the political waters in the state.

Roy has sparked rumours of joining the BJP after coming out with statements that seem to indicate a softening of stand towards the saffron party. However, BJP sources felt that Roy is likely to form his own political outfit to show off his political strength to it.

"I have candidates for every single seat for the first tier of panchyat polls. But I will chalk out my future course of action after I resign from Rajya Sabha," Roy told reporters here.

The suspended TMC leader is in the national capital to submit his resignation next week from his Rajya Sabha seat. He has already sought an appointment with the upper house Chairman to hand over his resignation in person.

Once the second-in-command in the TMC after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Roy was suspended for six years for "anti-party activities" after he said on September 25 that he would resign from the party after Durga Puja.

One of the founding members of the TMC, he said he will continue to play an active political role and is exploring various options, including floating his own party.

He remained tight-lipped on joining BJP but said he never thought it is a "communal party".

After his resignation from Rajya Sabha, he said, he is free to chalk out his own political path.

Roy was said to be the "mastermind" behind the Nationalist Trinamool Congress Party, a political outfit which registered itself with the Election Commission in 2015.

He claimed he is in touch with many "party workers and leaders of TMC" besides "many people who are dissatisfied" with the party.

After arriving in Delhi on Friday evening, he met Bengal Congress President Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and expelled CPI(M) leader Ritabrata Banerjee today.

Incidentally, both Chowdhury and Banerjee had been in the for their perceived closeness to BJP.

Roy has been maintaining distance from the party leadership for the last few months and was removed as the TMC vice-president after the party decided to revamp its structure.

He was earlier removed as the party's in-charge of Tripura where the TMC was steadily making inroads till its members switched over to the BJP earlier in 2017.

He earlier said, "I do not consider the BJP to be a communal force. It is a secular party. Had it been a communal party, it would not have been recognised by the Election Commission. When the TMC was formed, it had forged an alliance with the BJP. The alliance was there from 1998-2006, except for a few months during the (West Bengal) Assembly election in 2001."



Roy had also said the TMC would not have tasted success, had it not got the BJP's backing in its initial years.

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Hurricane Nate was bearing down on popular Mexican beach resorts and headed for the US Gulf coast early today after killing at least 28 people in Central America.

At 0330 GMT, the US National Hurricane Center said the storm had top winds of 121 kilometers per hour, making it just strong enough to reach Category One strength. It was located about 95 miles west-northwest of the western tip of Cuba.

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Sri Lanka's main Tamil opposition party TNA has sought the merger of the Northern and Eastern provinces as most of the Tamil speaking people live there.

During his meeting with UK Minister of State for Asia and the Pacific, Mark Field, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) leader R Sampanthan said that the Sinhala majority should not be afraid of the merger as there will be a constitutional protection, preventing any move towards separation.

He met Field yesterday here to apprise him on the current status of the reconciliation process with the Tamils, a TNA statement said.

The TNA leader stressed that since the majority of Tamils were living in the island's north and east, the two provinces must be merged.

He said that discussion had been going on over power- sharing with the Tamil minority since mid 1950s.

Sampanthan told Field that despite attempts being made to resolve the conflict by sharing power with the Tamils, "the only instance of a constitutional mechanism was the 1987 adopted thirteenth amendment (13A) influenced by India, which created the system of provincial councils".

The 13th amendment forced a temporary merger of the two provinces subject to a referendum there, but the Supreme Court, in 2006, ruled the merger as "unconstitutional" and the two province must be separated.

The TNA leader also told Field that the proposed new Constitution may be the last chance to achieve reconciliation through an acceptable sharing of power.

The process to make new Constitution, which began in 2016, has reached its drafting stage. A steering committee report was released last month which outlined the thinking of all political parties.

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Pakistan has decided to recommend the appointment of former chief justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani as an ad-hoc judge to the International Court of Justice to hear the case of Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav.

Officials said that names of Jillani and senior lawyer Makhdoom Ali Khan were sent to the office of the Prime Minister for final approval.

"The Prime Minister after due consultations decided to appoint Jillani as an ad-hoc judge," government sources said.

Jillani was appointed as chief justice in December, 2013 and remained at the post till his retirement on July 5, 2014.

He was among the judges who refused to take oath under of allegiance to former dictator Gen Pervez Musharraf after he imposed emergency on November 3, 2007. Jillani was kept in illegal confinement by Musharraf.

Musharraf is currently facing a criminal case for illegally confining the judges.

The decision to appoint Jillani as an ad-hoc judge came as Pakistan started the process to file its plea in response to Indian memorial submitted with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on September 13 against the conviction of Jadhav.

The ICJ had asked Pakistan to submit its response or memorial by December 13 before the court could start further proceedings.

According to the Foreign Office sources, Attorney General Ashtar Ausaf Ali yesterday presided over a meeting of law experts and officials of Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other departments concerned to discuss the line of arguments in the ICJ.

Meanwhile, Ausaf told the Dawn that they have decided to hold weekly meetings in order to review the situation and "to finalise Islamabad's point of view and convert it into an appropriate rejoinder to India's allegations".

He said they were in touch with relevant stakeholders, including Khawar Qureshi who had pleaded Pakistan's case at the initial stage, to formalise a robust reply refuting all allegations levelled against Pakistan.

On Thursday, the Pakistan Army said it is close to a decision on the mercy petition of Jadhav.

Pakistan, which announced the death sentence on Jadhav on April 10, claims its security forces arrested him from its restive Balochistan province on March 3 last year after he reportedly entered from Iran. However, India maintains that he was kidnapped from Iran where he had business interests after retiring from the Navy.

"Kulbhushan Jadhav's mercy petition has come to the army chief. There is a process, everything goes through a process but I can assure that it is near finalisation and we will give you about this very soon," army spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor said.

Jadhav has filed an appeal with the army chief to seek clemency, which is still pending.

After India approached the ICJ, a 10-member bench on May 18 restrained Pakistan from executing Jadhav till adjudication of the case.

Jadhav's sentencing had evoked a sharp reaction in India.

India has warned Pakistan of consequences and damage to bilateral ties if the "premeditated murder" was carried out.

In its application, India had also informed the ICJ that it learnt about the death sentence against Jadhav from a press release.

India acknowledges that Jadhav had served with the Indian Navy but denies that he has any connection with the government. It also said that Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran.

India has also handed over to Pakistan an appeal by Jadhav's mother, initiating a process to get his conviction overturned.

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Russian police today violently broke up an opposition rally in Saint Petersburg and detained more than 60 people protesting against President Vladimir Putin on his 65th birthday, a monitoring group told AFP.

Artyom Platov, spokesman for OVD-Info, a group that monitors politically motivated arrests, said at least 66 had been arrested in Russia's second city and Putin's hometown.

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The Goa education department has instructed all the schools to put up pictures of President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in their premises when the institutions resume after Diwali vacation.

The order by education department is part of the instructions issued by the Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar during the recently held meeting with the department heads.

"The education department has initiated the process to inform all the heads of the schools including aided and government run institutions to put up portrait of the President and Prime Minister in their premises," a senior department official said today.

He said the instructions are part of the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development's (HRD) rule which makes it mandatory for the schools to have portraits of Mahatma Gandhi, B R Ambedkar, the Prime Minister and the President for the students to know about them.

"There are some children who don't know the name of Prime Minister or President. That is part of their educational activity," he added.

The state has more than 2,000 schools including primary, middle, secondary and higher secondary institutions.

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The Congress today said Rahul Gandhi was the unquestioned choice of all its workers across the country to take over as the party president and hoped that their desires would be fulfilled once the intra-party poll was over.

The newly-elected members of the Delhi Congress today unanimously adopted a resolution, urging Rahul Gandhi to take over as the party president.

This came two days after the Tamil Nadu unit of the party passed a resolution, authorising Congress president Sonia Gandhi to announce the new body of the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) and names of the All India Congress Committee (AICC) delegates from the state.

"Congress workers and leaders from across the country have unanimously expressed their desire for Rahul Gandhi to take over as the president of the Indian National Congress.

"We respect their sentiments. Nobody has any difference of opinion in this regard. Rahul Gandhi is the unquestioned choice of all the Congress workers, who have toiled hard for the party, for taking over as its president," Congress communications in-charge Randeep Surjewala told reporters here.

Saying that the intra-party poll process was currently underway, he said, "We sincerely hope that the aspirations of the leaders and workers, who continue to express their desire, would fructify once the poll process is over."



The Congress organisational poll process is underway and the process of electing the AICC delegates and PCC bodies, which make the electoral college for the election to the post of Congress president, is to be completed soon.

The party has told the Election Commission (EC) that it would conclude the internal poll process by December-end as per the poll panel's directions. The EC had given a year's extension to the Congress in this regard.

Surjewala also took a dig at Railway Minister Piyush Goyal for his reported statement on job losses, saying "ignorance of the ignorant is bliss".

"If Piyush Goyal wants all the people of the country to become unemployed, so that they become entrepreneurs, I think they must start that charity from the BJP itself and let him first resign from his current employment and find an entrepreneurial job for himself," he said.

Goyal had reportedly said companies cutting down employments was a good sign as the youth of tomorrow wanted to be entrepreneurs.

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Former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan features in the list of probables for this year's Nobel Prize in Economics, The Wall Street Journal has reported.

He is one of the six economists on the list of probable winners complied by Clarivate Analytics, a company that does academic and scientific research and maintains a list of dozens of possible Nobel Prize winners based on research citations.

The entry to the list does not guarantee that Rajan is a front-runner but he is a probable who stands a chance to win.

Rajan, whose three year term as Reserve Bank Governor ended on September 4, 2016, is considered a candidate for his "contributions illuminating the dimensions of decisions in corporate finance", Clarivate said.

The Nobel Prize in Economics will be announced on Monday.

According to Clarivate Analytics, the list of possible Nobel Prize winners based on research citations include Colin Camerer of the California Institute of Technology and George Loewenstein of Carnegie Mellon University (for pioneering research in behavioural economics and in neuroeconomics); Robert Hall of Stanford University (for his analysis of worker productivity and studies of recessions and unemployment); and Michael Jensen of Harvard, Stewart Myers of MIT and Raghuram Rajan of the University of Chicago (for their contributions illuminating the dimensions of decisions in corporate finance).

Rajan, who at 40 was the first non-western and the youngest to become the chief economist at the International Monetary Fund, shot to big fame three years after he predicted a financial crisis at an annual gathering of economists and bankers in the US in 2005.

He was appointed RBI Governor by the previous UPA government in 2013 and although he wanted a second term he was not offered an extension, which most of his predecessors got, by the current NDA regime.

He is currently the Katherine Dusak Miller Distinguished Service Professor of Finance at the Booth School of Business, University of Chicago.

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Bihar BJP chief Nityanand Rai today claimed that Lalu Prasad's RJD would not get a single Lok Sabha seat in 2019 general elections.

"The elections in 2019 (Lok Sabha) will be such that Lalu Prasad and his party will not be able to win a single seat in the Lok Sabha elections," Rai said while briefing reporters here at the end of conclusion of two-day state level executive committee meeting here.

He said that the person who indulged in corruption, falsehood, back-stabbed the poor and amassed disproportionate assets both as union minister and chief minister was now tweeting "Satyamev Jayate".

"Yes, truth will prevail but Lalu Prasad will bite the dust in time to come," he said and added that the disappointed opposition was trying to create disturbance and tension on the occasion of Dussehra and Muharram in the state.

"They will not be successful in their efforts as people are aware of the ploy and they want peace and development in the society for which BJP is striving hard," he said and vowed to end the social ills of "casteism" from the society.

Rai, who is also a Lok Sabha member from Ujiarpur, alleged that the RJD and Congress had stalled the Rajya Sabha so that the passage of the Constitution Amendment Bill to grant Constitutional status to the National Commission for Socially and Educationally Backward Classes could be blocked.

"It was Narendra Modi government which got the Amendment Bill passed in the Lok Sabha, but it could not be passed in the Rajya Sabha due to the opposition of Congress and RJD... It could not be passed because of those who indulge in politics of pseudo social justice," Rai said while re-affirming the prime minister's commitment to get the Bill passed to protect the interest of the poor and downtrodden.

Rai said that the executive committee also passed political resolution that focused on the prime minister's New India vision and Direct Benefit Transfer scheme among others.

Speaking on the occasion, Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Modi said that GST was the biggest indirect tax reform post Independence.

There would be some teething problems in implementation of any major scheme, Modi said adding that the most important thing was that the union government was sensitive and pro-active in resolving the problems of traders and exporters.

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Sidelined AIADMK leader V K Sasikala, out of jail on a five-day parole, today visited her husband M Natarajan who is recovering at a hospital here after undergoing a liver and kidney transplant.

Sasikala, who was removed from the AIADMK last month after the factions led by Chief Minister K Palaniswami and now Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam united, met Natarajan and was with him for about two hours in the hospital, sources said.

Later, she returned to her niece Krishnapriya's residence in the city.

The beleaguered AIADMK leader's car briefly halted in front of a Ganesha temple in Kotturpuram and she prayed from inside the vehicle as used to be done by late AIADMK leader J Jayalalithaa.

Sasikala's low profile visit to hospital was in stark contrast to her public appearances prior to her incarceration in February.

During her days before being imprisoned, she used to be surrounded by party men and loyalists raising slogans praising her as "Chinnamma".

Sasikala has been lodged in the Parapana Agrahara central jail since February this year after the Supreme Court upheld her conviction by a special court in a disproportionate assets case. Her relatives Ilavarasi and V N Sudhakaran are also serving four-year jail terms in the case.

Facing tough parole conditions, she refrained from visiting party men or interacting with them during her hospital visit today.

The hospital, meanwhile, said in a statement that Natarajan (74) is recovering and he is "awake and oriented and is on ventilator support through tracheostomy, which was performed on October 6".

TTV Dhinakaran loyalist and senior leader Nanjil Sampath said he saw Sasikala in the hospital and told her to pray.

He said he asked Sasikala to recite 'Sundara Kandam' from the Ramayana "as it would bring her relief".

Sasikala arrived in the city yesterday from the Parapana Agrahara central jail in Bengaluru after being granted parole for five days.

Natarajan was admitted at the liver Intensive Care Unit of Gleneagles Global Health City under the care of a team of doctors led by Professor Mohamed Rela, the hospital said.

It said that at the time of admission, he had "worsening liver failure, kidney failure and lung congestion, and underwent liver and kidney transplantation on October four."



In a statement, Director, Institute of Liver Disease and Transplantation of the hospital, Dr K Ilankumaran said considering Natarajan's age and his associated co-morbidities, his condition was stable during the surgery and he is "recovering well in the liver intensive care unit".

"He (Natarajan) is awake and oriented and he is on ventilator support through tracheostomy, which has been performed on October six."



As in any other combined liver and kidney transplant surgeries, his condition would be critical for the next few days, Ilankumaran said, adding "he is under close observation and monitoring".

It may be recalled that Sasikala had sought parole for 15 days, but was granted only five days with tough conditions, including that she will not get involved in any political or other public activity or take part in party activities.

She is allowed only to visit the hospital where her husband is admitted and stay at the residence as mentioned in the application.

Sasikala has also been restricted from interacting with any media -- print or electronic.

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Saudi Arabia today rejected the UN's move to blacklist the coalition fighting in Yemen for the killing and maiming of children, calling the information cited in the international body's annual list "misleading."



"We reject the inaccurate and misleading information and figures contained in the report," the Saudi Ambassador to the UN Abdallah al-Mouallimi told a conference at the United Nations, insisting the Saudi-led coalition does everything possible to avoid hitting civilians.

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The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) will resume its second flight service from the city to New Delhi by the end of this month, an airline official said today.

Pakistan's flag carrier had yesterday announced to launch its second flight after it witnessed an increase in the number of passengers travelling between India and Pakistan.

"The second flight a week from Lahore to Delhi will operate from the last week of this month," PIA spokesman Mashood Tajwar said, adding that PIA would be operating the second weekly flight with an ATR plane.

The PIA in May last year had suspended Karachi to Mumbai weekly flight and also cut one Lahore to Delhi flight, citing low passenger volume.

The PIA also announced to discontinue its services to the United States from October 31 due to mounting losses.

The airline has been incurring losses of up to 1.25 billion rupees annually due to its flight operations to the US



a concern which prompted the management to discontinue the flights.

The PIA, which had been operating a total of five weekly flights to New York and three other cities of the US since 1961, will enter into a code-sharing agreement with an American airline to carry its passengers to that country.

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After leaving his party's march against the CPI(M) in Kerala midway, BJP chief Amit Shah will tomorrow lead one to the left party's office in the national capital to protest against the alleged killings of right-wing activists in the southern state.

Earlier this week, Shah had kicked off the Jan Raksha Yatra (people's protection march) from Payyannur in Kerala.

According to the party, he skipped the march in Pinarayi -- the home town of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan -- as he had to attend a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Shah will start tommorow's march from Connaught Place after paying homage to BJP and RSS workers "killed" in Kerala.

He will be accompanied by BJP's Delhi unit president Manoj Tiwari and other senior party leaders, the party said in a statement.

The party will take out the Jan Raksha Yatra every day from every state capital till October 16.

Shah is also scheduled to lead the march on the concluding day later this month in Thiruvananthapuram.

Kerala, especially the volatile Kannur district, has been witnessing a series of political killings and counter-killings of CPI(M) and RSS-BJP activists.

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Appreciating the rapid strides made by Andhra Pradesh in the energy sector, Union Minister of State for Power R K Singh today asked the state to prepare a comprehensive report that could be showcased to other states for replication of the best practises.

State Power Minister K Kala Venkat Rao and Principal Secretary (Energy) Ajay Jain made a presentation to Singh, who was on a days visit to Vijayawada, on the achievements of the energy sector, particularly in promotion of renewable energy.

A press release from the energy department later said the state planned to introduce electric vehicles, run on solar power, on a pilot basis in Visakhapatnam and Tirupati.

In a presentation to Singh, Jain said AP achieved 100 per cent household electrification three years ahead of the target.

From eight per cent power deficit in June 2014, the state has now registered zero deficit, with the installed capacity going up to 16,612 MW from 8,307 MW in 2014.

Transmission and distribution losses came down to 9. 82 per cent, the lowest in the country, he added.

"We have over-achieved the Renewable Power Purchase Obligation target of 14 per cent and have been generating 22 per cent renewable power," Jain said and sought Procurement-Based Incentives for power distribution companies for exceeding RPPO.

The Union Minister said he would soon sanction an additional 15,000 to 30,000 solar pump sets to the state.

MPs Kambhampati Hari Babu, Gokaraju Ganga Raju and others also attended the meeting.

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Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman today visited Nathu La area on the Sino-India border and interacted with Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police officials.

However, her scheduled aerial survey of Dokalam and forward posts in the border areas of Sikkim was cancelled due to inclement weather, a statement issued by the Department of Information and Public Relations, Government of Sikkim, said.

Earlier in the day, state government officials had said the defence minister made an aerial survey of the Doklam-Nathu La area.

Sitharaman, on a day's visit to Sikkim, travelled by road to Nathu La, 52 km from Gangtok, and interacted with Army and ITBP officials posted there.

"The Union Minister who was scheduled to make her aerial survey of Doklam and forward posts along the Indo-Sino border in Sikkim was cancelled due to inclement weather. However, she made her aerial survey of Gangtok and surrounding areas from the new Greenfield Pakyong Airport in east Sikkim after her return from the Nathu-la Border during the afternoon," the statement said.

Sitharaman was accorded a guard of honor on her arrival at Nathu La.

She was also briefed about the security preparedness along the China-India border in the Sikkim sector by the Chief of Eastern Command Lt Gen Abhay Krishna. Vice-Chief of Army Lt Gen Sarath Chandra was also present there.

The defence minister's visit to the border area comes more than a month since Indian and Chinese troops disengaged after nearly a 70-day standoff at Dokalam.

On her twitter handle, she said Chinese soldiers from across the border took pictures of hers when she reached Nathu La. "Acknowledged a row of Chinese soldiers from across the fence who were taking pictures on my reaching Nathu La," she tweeted.

She later met Sikkim Chief Minister Pawan Chamling at his official residence and sought the state government's intervention in sorting out issues, mostly concerning land, between the Army and the state's forest department.

Chamling assured all intervention from the government, the release said.

The chief minister apprised Sitharaman of the hardships being faced by Sikkim due to the ongoing agitation in the neighbouring Darjeeling hills of West Bengal.

He said that due to blockades on NH-10, the only national highway that connects the landlocked mountain state, Sikkim has incurred huge economic losses.

He reiterated his request to the Centre for speeding up the construction of an new highway to Sikkim.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Six robbers, wanted in several cases, have been arrested and three firearms seized from their possession from Jawli village road, police said today.

Acting on a tip-off, the Loni Police arrested Gaurav, Pawan, Kanaha, Chinoo, Rahul and Rinkoo, who were involved in several cases of robbery, on Thursday night, Senior Superintendent of Police H N Singh said.

Police also recovered Rs 8.48 lakh and three country-made pistols and live cartridges from the six accused, he said.

The accused were allegedly involved in the August 21 robbery in which several bike-borne persons allegedly robbed a cash collection agent of Rs 15 lakh after cornering him near the Vasundhara police post, the SSP said.

They have confessed to have committing two more robberies in Kavinagar and Loni border areas, Singh said.

They have been sent to jail, the SSP added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Congressional Democrats, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and potential 2020 presidential contender Sen Elizabeth Warren among them, are starting to give charities thousands of dollars in donations they had received from disgraced Hollywood titan Harvey Weinstein.

Weinstein and his family have given more than USD 1.4 million in political contributions since the 1992 election cycle, virtually all of it to Democratic lawmakers, candidates and their allies, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics.

The party's effort to separate itself from the 65-year- old film executive came after The New York Times reported that he settled sexual harassment lawsuits with at least eight women.

Weinstein's contributions are tiny compared to those who donate tens of millions of dollars during a two-year election cycle, easily leaving him out of the top 100 funders, the center's figures show. But he's been a fixture among Democratic supporters and close to party luminaries for decades, making the revelations especially embarrassing for a party that touts itself as pushing progressive policies for women.

The biggest beneficiary of funds from Weinstein and his family was the Democratic National Committee, which received about USD 800,000 in several of its accounts, according to the center, which analyzes political spending.

Democratic National Committee spokeswoman Xochitl Hinojosa said the party plans to give more than USD 30,000 to Emily's List, Emerge America and Higher Heights. All three groups work to elect women to office. Hinojosa said the amount was for the funds Weinstein himself donated to the party during the 2016 campaign.

Other major beneficiaries of the Weinstein family's largesse included almost USD 200,000 to the party's Senate campaign accounts, USD 23,200 to its House campaign arm senatorial and USD 46,350 to Hillary Clinton, the 2016 presidential candidate, and to HILLPAC, a committee Clinton used to support other Democrats while senator. The figures include contributions attributed to Weinstein, first wife Eve Chilton and current spouse Georgina Chapman.

Weinstein and Chapman also contributed USD 10,000 to President Barack Obama.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Several thousand supporters of jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny rallied across Russia on President Vladimir Putin's birthday today, as police arrested more than 100 people.

A thousand protesters turned up in rainy Moscow and 3,000 more people took to the streets in Putin's hometown of Saint Petersburg today, with protests also taking place in dozens of other cities.

The protests - called by Navalny after he was sent to jail for 20 days this week -- were markedly smaller than the rallies he mustered in March and June when tens of thousands took to the streets against corruption.

But police in Moscow also showed restraint, allowing the crowd of mostly young protesters to march along Tverskaya Avenue, the capital's main thoroughfare, in an apparent effort to avoid clashes on Putin's birthday.

Some 124 people were detained in the nationwide protests, some of them violently, said OVD-Info, a group that monitors politically motivated arrests.

That figure is much lower than the earlier rallies. Police arrested more than 1,000 people in Moscow alone during the March demonstration.

"This is unprecedented for Moscow," OVD-Info spokesman Artyom Platov told AFP.

In Moscow, the crowd chanted "Happy birthday" and "Russia without Putin" and many held copies of the constitution and flags amid honks of support from passing cars.

Hundreds of policemen, some in riot gear and with dogs, were out on the streets to prevent people from going to Red Square.

Navalny, a charismatic anti-corruption campaigner who aims to run in a presidential election next March, was arrested late last month as he was planning to travel to a rally in a provincial city.

A court on Monday sentenced him to 20 days in jail on charges of repeatedly violating a law on organising public meetings.

Officials say he is not eligible to run for president because he is serving a suspended sentence for fraud.

Igor Klimov, a 20-year-old protester in Saint Petersburg, said he was not happy with Putin.

"He has been in power for as long as I can remember myself and there's corruption everywhere," he told AFP.

Svetlana Kiseleva, a 20-year-old student in Moscow, said she did not support Navalny but had joined the rally to demand political competition.

"It's important to have a choice, to have an opposition," she told AFP. "I still think he would be better than Putin anyway."



Orest Cherchesov, a 43-year-old manager, also said he was not a Navalny fan but wanted to see competitive elections.

"There are people who think differently in Russia, just like there were in Nazi Germany," he said. "I believe he has the right to run in the elections."



Putin, who has ruled since 1999, turned 65 -- the retirement age for Russian officials -- and many protesters urged him to step down.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Turkey's president announced today the country has launched a "serious" operation in Syria's northwestern Idlib province with Turkey-backed Syrian opposition forces, following international efforts for de- escalation in the war-torn country.

The operation has been highly expected in the province, where al-Qaida-linked fighters enjoy wide influence, after last month's talks in the Kazakh capital of Astana during which Turkey, Iran and Russia agreed on setting up "a de- escalation zone" in the province.

Turkey is a strong backer of Syrian opposition fighters while Iran and Russia back President Bashar Assad. Moscow joined the war two years ago siding with Assad while Tehran has sent thousands of Iran-backed fighters tipping the balance of power in the president's favour.

In late September, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Turkey where he discussed the situation in Syria with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and earlier this week the Turkish leader went to Tehran.

Erdogan said the operation was a "new step" to establish security in Idlib, promising Turkey would not desert civilians there.

"Today, there is a serious operation in Idlib and it will continue," he said at his political party's conference in Afyonkarahisar province in western Turkey.

Responding to journalists' questions after the televised speech, Erdogan said: "The Free Syrian Army is leading an operation in Idlib right now," referring to moderate rebel groups in Syria. He added that the Turkish military was not yet in the province.

Turkey-backed Syrian forces are fighting the al-Qaida- linked Levant Liberation Committee, formerly known as Nusra Front. In the past weeks, the Turkish military has been dispatching tanks and armored vehicles to the border with Idlib.

A Syrian rebel commander speaking from Turkey said no military operations are ongoing at the moment but said preparations were underway for Turkish troops and FSA fighters to enter Idlib.

"The aim of the operation is to implement the Astana agreement by setting up Turkish observation posts similar to those of Russia," Lt. Col. Fares al-Bayoush said in an exchange of text messages.

"This cannot be achieved without confronting the Nusra Front," he said. "The aim is to finish Nusra Front."



Erdogan told journalists that Turkey would provide security inside Idlib and Russia on the periphery.

Last month, a negotiated "de-escalation zone" in the mostly rebel-held province of Idlib was announced during talks in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan. Iran, Turkey and Russia reached the deal for four de-escalation zones earlier this year as part of their efforts to negotiate an end to the Syrian civil war.

Turkey's official Anadolu agency reported that the Turkish "deployment" would be to reach de-escalation goals rather than engage in clashes with local militia or the Syrian army.

The Turkish president warned the country would not permit a "terror corridor" along its border, referring to extremists groups as well as U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish militants.

"The Idlib operation will allow us new initiatives on this issue," Erdogan said, referring to Turkey's aversion to Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units or YPG efforts to link up their semi-autonomous territories in northern Syria.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Two persons accused of looting a car at gun point were arrested near Karhera here today after an encounter in which a constable and one of the accused were injured, the police said.

Surendra Singh, a resident of Janakpuri in Sahibabad, called '100' after his car was looted by the bike-borne accused, Superintendent of Police (City) Akash Tomar said.

The message was flashed on wireless and checking was started by barricading the Loni road, he said.

The officer said when a police team during the checking signalled a car to stop, it sped away.

The police chased it and intercepted the car near a jungle at Sikanderpur village. Finding themselves surrounded they fire on the cops, he said.

In self defence, police personnel opened fire and one of the accused was injured. The other person was overpowered and caught, the SP said, adding that Constable Manoj Kumar was also hurt in the encounter.

Iqbal, who was injured, and Shahrukh have been arrested. Police have seized two country-made pistols, cartridges, mobile phone and a purse.

The accused are history-sheeters in Nand Nagari police station of north east Delhi and about 70 cases are pending against them, the officer said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
ELKO  All the worlds a stage, Shakespeare wrote more than 400 years ago. For the actors in Poe & Pints, the quote rings true.

Ghost Light Productions brings characters to life in Poe & Pints, dramatizations of Edgar Allan Poes classic poems and stories at Duncan LittleCreek Gallery.

Taking over the DLC for the fourth year in a row, the sold-out Poe & Pints combines the suspenseful work of Poe with samples of ales, beers and ciders from western craft breweries for audiences of adults 21 and older.

For about a week, the DLC becomes a makeshift theater for rehearsals and performances. The seating area is the stage; the basement is the wardrobe and changing area; the kitchen is the makeup room; and a cozy spot near the bar is the sound and light booth.

Performing in a nontraditional space is known as guerilla theater, and the actors wouldnt have it any other way, said Emily Anderson, actress, producer and costume designer.

Its a good  and challenging  experience for new actors to perform in an unconventional theater, Anderson said.

Its pretty tight quarters here, said actress Kate Rhoswen.

Rhoswen has acted in local productions since she was 13 and said she is happy to see how the theater community has grown to hosts works not normally seen in the area.

Anderson agrees that the production is different and fun, adding that the interpretations of Poes classics, such as The Cask of Amontillado, are changed each year to keep them fresh.

This year, Poes story of revenge is told by two men and one woman who acts as the narrator. Last time, it was performed by two women and one man, Anderson said.

Because of the limited seating and the popularity of the production, Poe & Pints sold out two weeks after it was announced this year, said director and Poe fan Frank L. Sawyer.

Created by Sawyer, this years event includes an original work, Good Spirits, by Joshua Webster, an English instructor at Great Basin College.

Sawyer explained he merged dramatizing Poe with his idea of a tasting event that focused on craft beer [from] small-production breweries that arent sold in town.

Thanks to the craft-beer explosion in the last four or five years, people can now purchase some of those beverages featured at earlier Poe & Pints, including the Reno-based midsized brewpub, Brasserie Saint James that was served at the first Poe event, Sawyer said.

You can find Brasserie beers all over town, Sawyer said, adding that Alibi Ale Works and Pigeon Head Brewery, featured at previous Poe & Pints, now are available locally.

This year, Alibi Ale, Garage Project Brewery, Grand Teton Brewing and Incline Cider Company were part of the tasting flights.

Poe & Pints last sold-out performance is Oct. 7 at the DLC. For information, visit www.poeandpints.org or call 934-3721.
Two shooters of the Ravi Pujari gang were arrested by the Anti Extortion Cell (AEC) from Thane, an official said today.

Nitin Gopal Rai (42) and Dinesh Narayan Rai (51) were apprehended last evening from Patlipada on Ghodbunder Road when they had come to threaten a real estate developer for an extortion amount of Rs 10 crore, he added.

The AEC officials received a tip-off yesterday that the shooters were to come to the office of the builder, said the official.

Accordingly, a vigil was maintained. Around 6 pm, the officials spotted two persons moving in a suspicious manner near the builder's office and apprehended them, he added.

Two pistols and four live cartridges were recovered from the possession of the duo, the official said.

Pujari had ordered the shooters to threaten the builder by opening fire at his office, he added.

The gangster had been demanding an amount of Rs 10 crore from the builder for the last few days.

The builder had lodged a complaint at the Kasar Wadavali police station in this regard. Accordingly, a case was registered against Pujari and his gang members, the official said.

Of the arrested accused, Dinesh Narayan Rai, who was earlier working with the Fazalur Rahman gang, was arrested by the Surat police in an extortion case in 2004, he added.

On Rai's advice, Rahman had called Shivnarayan Agarwal, the Surat-based owner of Parag Sarees, and threatened him to pay the amount due to actress Shilpa Shetty for appearing in the advertisements of Parag Sarees, the official said.

The duo had been booked under the Arms Act, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The American embassy in Saudi Arabia today cautioned its citizens after reports of an attack around the royal palace in the Red Sea city of Jeddah.

Saudi websites reported that security forces had foiled an attack around the Al-Salam palace that left the attacker and at least two Saudi guards killed.

There was no official confirmation of the incident.

"Due to the possibility of ongoing police activity, American citizens are advised to exercise caution when travelling through the area," the embassy said in a brief statement.

The warning comes after the Saudi police raided hideouts of a "terror" cell linked to the Islamic State group this week, killing two people and arresting five, according to the national security agency.

The State Security Agency said police raided three hideouts in the capital Riyadh and exchanged gunfire in one of them, the SPA agency reported on Thursday.

Since late 2014, IS has claimed a series of bombings and shootings against Shiites and security forces in the Sunni- majority kingdom.

Saudi Arabia is a member of the US-led international coalition that has been battling the Sunni extremist group in Syria and Iraq.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Grammy Award-winning rapper Nelly was arrested today after a woman accused him of raping her in his tour bus, police in the northwestern state of Washington said.

Just before 4 am local time a woman called the emergency 911 line "to report that she was sexually assaulted by a male, who is known as the rapper 'Nelly,'" police in Auburn, Washington said.

After police investigated the incident, "at 4:37 AM Nelly was taken into custody and booked" at the local jail, the police statement read.

The alleged assault reportedly took place on the tour bus hours after Nelly had performed at the White River Amphitheatre just east of Auburn.

A lawyer for Nelly vehemently denied the charges.

Nelly -- born Cornell Haynes Jr. -- "is the victim of a completely fabricated allegation," the unnamed lawyer told the TMZ celebrity site.

The allegation "is motivated by greed and vindictiveness," the lawyer said, adding that Nelly "is prepared to pursue all legal avenues to redress any damage caused."



According to TMZ, Nelly, whose schedule has him performing Saturday evening with country duo Florida Georgia Line in the city of Ridgefield, a two-hour drive to the south of Auburn, was booked on a charge of second-degree rape.

Throughout his career Nelly has received 12 Grammy nominations and won three Grammy awards, including for best rap solo performance in 2003.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The US Embassy in Mexico says it is grateful for the Mexican government's offer to help the victims of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.

The embassy said today in a statement that "our governments have expressed their continued solidarity in the face of natural disasters that have ravaged both our countries."



The Mexican government said Wednesday it was sending 30 tons of bottled water and mosquito repellent to Puerto Rico.

The administration of President Donald Trump had been criticised for what some saw as a tardy response to the hurricane, which killed about 34 people directly and indirectly.

Some media outlets had portrayed Mexico's aid offer as slap in the face to the Trump administration, with which Mexico has had a rocky relationship.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The US will continue to put maximum economic and diplomatic pressure on North Korea even as President Donald Trump remains consistent in his position of keeping "all the options on table", the has said.

Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said Trump had an incredible team around him and has achieved tremendous accomplishments on the stage by working with allies and confronting enemies.

"We're going to continue doing that, and we're going to continue doing that as a team with the president leading that effort," she said yesterday.

"We're continuing to put maximum economic and diplomatic pressure on countries like North Korea. We're going to continue to do that, but at the same time, the president is going to keep all of his options on the table. Our position has not changed. It's been very consistent," she said.

North Korea fired a missile over Japan last month and tested a hydrogen bomb, prompting Trump to insist that "all options were on the table" in an implied threat of pre-emptive military action.

In his maiden address to the UN General Assembly last month, Trump said that no nation on Earth had an interest in seeing "this band of criminals" arm itself with nuclear weapons and missiles.

The UN Security Council has unanimously passed a US-drafted resolution that imposes strongest sanctions ever on North Korea, with measures targeting its last remaining major exports and reducing about 30 per cent of oil provided to it.

Sanders said Trump was keeping the world from chaos, pushing back on the remarks made by a Republican Senator that some of his senior officials help separate country from chaos.

"I think that the President is the one that's keeping the world from chaos," Sanders told reporters at her daily news conference.

She was responding to a question on a statement made by Senator Bob Corker that some of the senior Trump administration officials were helping separate the country from chaos.

Early this week, Corker, who is Chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee had identified those officials as Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Chief of Staff John Kelly.

"I think Secretary Tillerson, Secretary Mattis and chief of staff Kelly are those people that help separate our country from chaos, and I support them very much," Corker told reporters on Capitol Hill this week.

Corker,who has announced that he will not seek re-election, said that these three officials"work very well together to make sure the policies we put forth around the world are sound and coherent".

"There are other people within the administration, in my belief, that don't," he said.

Sanders did not respond to questions on Trump's cryptic "calm before the storm" remark he made last evening after his meeting with military generals.

"As we've said many times before, I know the president has, as I have from this podium on quite a few occasions, we're never going to say in advance what the president's going to do. And as he said last night, in addition to those comments, you'll have to wait and see," she said.

Sanders said for Trump protecting American people was an extremely serious job.

He has been very clear that that is his number one priority, and if he feels that action is necessary, he will take it, she said.

The also did not respond to questions on Pakistan, in particular the meeting that visiting Pakistan Foreign Minister Khwaja Asif had with the National Security Advisor H R McMaster.

"Since the president indicated that you wanted Pakistan to move against the agents of chaos within Pakistani territory or areas under Pakistani control, the foreign minister was here in the White House this week to meet General McMaster. Have you guys seen any change in Pakistani behaviour in those six weeks?" she was asked.

"Nothing specific that I can weigh in to at this time. But we'll certainly keep you posted," Sanders said in response.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Courtesy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Funeral services for Elder Robert D. Hales, one of the top ranking leaders in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was held Friday afternoon in Salt Lake City. He died last Sunday after being hospitalized with pulmonary disease and other conditions.

Elder M. Russell Ballard spoke about knowing Elder Hales since they were in college at the University of Utah. He said the two of them have served together for over 40 years.

The past several years we have sat next to each other in the Quorum of the Twelve, said Elder Ballard. Elder Hales quick wit and sometimes very funny comments will be missed. His wise counsel and his depth insights regarding the issues we face in the church today will also be greatly missed by all of us.

Elder Hales was 85-years-old and had been a member of the Churchs Quorum of the Twelve Apostles for more than 23 years.

Quorum President, Russell M. Nelson also spoke about Elder Hales sense of humor and New York bred candor. He talked about his tireless efforts while serving in many different Church callings.

In his 42-and-a-half-years as a general authority, he has participated in nearly every council and committee at Church Headquarters, said President Nelson. His wisdom, insight and influence have had a profound effect on the rolling forth of the Kingdom of God across the globe. In addition, his personal ministry to individual saints in every corner of the earth is beyond measure. He has fully magnified his apostolic calling as a special witness of the Savior.

Elder Hales was called as a general authority of the Church in April 1975, serving as an assistant to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and later as a member of the Quorum of the Seventy. He was Presiding Bishop of the Church from April 1985 until his call to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles on April 2, 1994.

President Henry B. Eyring, First Councilor in the Churchs First Presidency, described how Elder Hales was a perfectly loyal friend. He also described the medical challenges Elder Hales had, especially later in his life.

Whatever the cost and how difficult the command, he was loyal to his family and friends, to the Lord and to the Lords Prophet, said President Eyring.

Hales was born in New York City on August 24, 1932. In addition to graduating from the University of Utah, he held a master of business administration degree from Harvard. He also served in the U.S. Air Force as a jet fighter pilot. He and his wife Mary Crandall had two sons.

<hr /><p style=text-align: center;>will@cvradio.com
Robert Johnson, a high school senior from Ely, looked out over Barrick Gold Corp.s Betze-Post open pit mine, straining his eyes more than a mile to see a portal that leads to the underground workings. Once he found it, he wanted to know:

Whats next?

Johnson and 32 participants  including juniors and seniors from Elko, Spring Creek and Ely  explored the Barrick site, careers in mining and education opportunities through Great Basin College on the fall 2017 Mining Rocks tour Oct. 3.

Were educating the next generation of miners, said Melinda Edmonds, senior human resource generalist for Kinross Gold Corp., who attended the tour. Things like this, you never know when youre going to inspire a young mind.

GBC offers the event through the Maintenance Training Cooperative, a program established in 1994 among Northern Nevada mines and the college to offer scholarships and internships to assist future engineers, human resource professionals, welders, electricians, technicians, diesel mechanics, millwrights and more. Sponsors include SSR Mining Inc., Kinross, Newmont Mining Corp. and Barrick, which offered its mine site  commonly called Goldstrike  north of Carlin for the fall 2017 destination.

To answer Johnsons question, Amy Conway, a Barrick open pit training technician, said the next stop was to get an up-close look at a haul truck.

I want to sit in the cab! Johnson said.

A few minutes later, his wish came true. Johnson ascended the stairs on a retired Komatsu haul truck and sat in the drivers seat  sporting a big grin.

College options

Earlier that day, a group rallied on the college campus, where Jonica Gonzalez, CTE college credit coordinator, described how getting higher educations can put students in the drivers seats of their own lives. She touted GBCs low tuition, academic programs and available scholarships. Then splitting into two sections, the students toured the college to visit classes and labs of science programs or trade professions.

In the electrical lab, electrical technology instructor Kevin Seipp explained what can be done with an associate degree in this field, including working for mines.

Its a vast array of what we do here to touch on all aspects of the industry, he said. You can work anywhere coming out of this program pertaining to electricity.

Millwright instructor Tom Bruns described the trade as a very diverse, varied field that can lead to jobs at mines, power plants, manufacturing operations and more.

Several hands went up when diesel technology professor Michael Whitehead asked how many were interested in mechanics. Encouraging them to pursue higher educations or certifications, he told the group of mostly seniors, We hope to see you here in about nine months.

The students also heard from welding instructors Steven Scilacci and Matthew Nichols, who assured them that the GBC curriculum includes plenty of shop time for the hands-on practice that is invaluable in the real-world.

Mining careers

To help portray real-world work in mining, the tour allows students to spend time on a mine site to see how procedures work and hear from employees.

This year on the Barrick property, the young adults  including Josh Parker, a Spring Creek High School senior, who wants to pursue mine rescue after graduation  took phone pictures of the haul trucks and water trucks rumbling by the charter bus on which they arrived. Whispers of Wow and Whoa could be heard from teachers, counselors and students alike, as many had never before seen an operating mine.

Mine operations is how NikKayla Simon got her start with Barrick years ago. The students, perched on bleacher-style seating, listened as she described how she worked her way up into a leadership position with the help of an education through GBC. She is now a senior safety and health coordinator.

Any of the big dreams you want to do can happen here, she said. I love it. I dont plan on going anywhere anytime soon.

The group also heard from other Barrick employees about what it is like to work in departments such as environmental, human resources, metallurgy, underground mining and blasting.

Sid Owen, Barrick blasting superintendent, passed around a model of an explosives cap and fuse, and showed a surface blasting video, recorded on high-speed film. The footage showed plumes of dirt flying 40 feet into the air in succession.

Its kind of fun blowing stuff up, but its also a lot of work, he said.

Owen explained how getting a federal explosives license requires an upright lifestyle to pass the background check and extensive training. He also recommended earning a degree in mining engineering or geology to be a valuable tool to any gold mine.

After a few speakers, a theme emerged on the importance of higher education  whether certifications or associate, bachelors or masters degrees.

I challenge you guys, said Nick Nelson, who works in human resources. The education is important.

He, too, started out driving haul trucks, going to school on his days off and claiming tuition reimbursement. Operator roles, such as driving a haul truck, he said, can be entry-level positions that open the door to other opportunities.

More questions

After the department presentations, Barricks Anthony Siri from training and development invited all to don hardhats, safety glasses and reflective vests before going out the door, saying, When youre out here, youre one of us.

Then Ron Hackler led the crew through the truck shop, tire repair shop and welding shop to explore some of the trades discussed back at GBC. Students marveled at the large size of oil-change pan, climbed a ladder to see inside a haul truck bed and touched the black rubber of a tire with treads larger than their hands. All the while, the young students asked questions.

Do women drive haul trucks? asked Kyra Campbell, a Spring Creek High School junior who wants to be a mining engineer or geologist. The answer is yes.

Do you need a masters degree for environmental work? asked Hayden Binger, a Spring Creek School senior. The answer is that it is not absolutely necessary.

If you take tuition reimbursement from a mine, are you contractually obligated to work for that mine? asked Anna Mendez, a Spring Creek High School senior. The answer is that it is highly encouraged but not always part of the contract.

Perhaps one of the most important questions of the day was the one asked by Johnson before seeing the haul truck. That same question can now be redirected at him and the other young adults who participated in the 2017 Mining Rocks event to learn about what a future in mining could hold:

Whats next?
The Chinese ministry asked the U.S. to hand over information on the alleged incidents so that it could help "identify the real source of such hacking." Photo: Visual China

The Ministry of Public Security said late Saturday that it investigated and found no evidence to support allegations that China was behind two reported cyber attacks in the U.S. allegedly related to fugitive businessman Guo Wengui.

The law enforcement agency, according to a statement it provided to Caixin, also asked the U.S. government to investigate documents Guo released at a news conference on Thursday in Washington, D.C. that it says were falsified.

The ministry said reports of alleged hacking of the computer systems of Guos lawyer and Washington-based Hudson Institute came from a non-traditional mainstream media outlet in the U.S. The publication is known as the Washington Free Beacon. The ministry characterized the media outlets reports about China as often totally irresponsible and groundless accusations.

The ministry asked the U.S. government to give it information on the alleged incidents so that it could help identify the real source of such hacking.

The Hudson Institute had planned to host a public event with Guo, a high-profile and controversial critic of the Chinese government this past Tuesday. But it suddenly canceled the event.

Guo, who is asking the U.S. for political asylum, ended up instead appearing at the National Press Club near the White House on Thursday, where he made allegations against the Chinese government, including accusing it of sending numerous agents secretly into the U.S. The ministry called the documents shown by Guo blatantly forged and full of obvious mistakes.

The ministry asked the U.S. government to investigate the authenticity of the documents shown by Guo, who has been accused by Chinese authorities of numerous alleged crimes, including bribery, embezzlement and rape. Guo, at Chinas request, was listed by Interpol in an arrest notice.

The ministry also said the U.S. news portal reported that the law firm that had been representing Guo for immigration was hit by a cyber attack, which led to the release of personal information about several FBI agents and their families.

But the ministry said in its statement that Guo had deliberately leaked the personal information of FBI agents onto an anonymous social media account to mislead public opinion, attract attention and undermine the relationship between the U.S. and China.

Guo has claimed numerous times in social media that he has enjoyed (a) close relationship and frequent contacts with the FBI and in return, the FBI offers him protection. There is reason to believe that Guo has the relevant information of FBI agents, whose names and information had been revealed, the statement said.

The ministry said there is evidence that Guo hired private investigators to conduct secret wiretapping and surveillance against U.S. politicians, businessmen as well as journalists, using methods including cyber attack.

Chinese authorities had already informed and provided evidence to the U.S. government of documents forged by Guo, the statement said, contending that Guo did so to try to help him win his political asylum case. The ministry called Guos documents sensational and outrageous.

In early September, Guo applied for political asylum in the U.S., which would give him the right to stay, Guos lawyer, Thomas Ragland, told Caixin last month.

Guo, the real-estate magnate behind the landmark dragon-shaped Pangu Plaza near Beijing's Olympic stadium, fled China to the U.S. in 2014, allegedly to avoid investigations into his associates, including Ma Jian, a former vice minister of state security. Ma has been removed from office for allegedly accepting a huge amount in bribes. He is still under investigation pending trial.

Full Statement by the Ministry of Public Security Provided to Caixin:

The law enforcement agency states that the cyber-attack related to Guo Wengui has nothing to do with China and requests the US to investigate Guos falsified documents.

Recently, an American website media reported that the law firm representing Guo Wengui for immigration was under cyber-attack from China, which has caused the leakage of the personal information of several FBI agents and their families. The Hudson Institute, where Guo had been publicized to give speech, was also hacked according to this report. Later on 6 of October, Guo held a closed door press conference displaying a falsified top-secret document from China National Security Commission, indicating that the Ministry of State Security of the PRC had secretly assigned 27 agents to the US this year.

An official of the Ministry of Public Security states that China paid close attention to such allegations and launched immediate investigation. But no evidence has been found that China and its government have been involved with these incidents. The Chinese government noticed that the relevant information came from a non-traditional mainstream media outlet in the US, where most of its reports related to China were totally irresponsible and groundless accusations. The Chinese government would like to suggest that the US law enforcement authorities to supply China of the detailed information, relevant clues and evidence, so that China could assist in the investigations to identify the real source of such hacking.

Guo has claimed numerous times in social media that he has enjoyed close relationship and frequent contacts with the FBI and in return, the FBI offers him protection. There is reason to believe that Guo has the relevant information of FBI agents, whose names and information had been revealed. Guo also claimed that FBI offered him with recording files of a Chinese official. Information from (the) internet indicates that Guo had deliberately leaked the personal information of FBI agents onto an anonymous social media account to mislead public opinion, attract public attention and to undermine the relationship between the US and China law enforcement. Besides, there are plenty of evidences that Guo hired T&M Protection Resources and other private investigation companies to conduct secret wiretapping and surveillance against US politicians, businessmen as well as journalists, using methods including cyber-attack. He has been conducting secret recordings of people in contact with him, and revealing these illegal recordings and other citizens' personal information through the Internet, which is also a serious violation of law in the United States.

Cyber-attack is now one of the most serious security threats faced by all countries. China is also a victim of cyber-attacks. China takes severe measures against attacks of cyber-crimes. The Chinese government will never engage or support such cyber-attack.

As for the top-secret documents displayed by Guo Wengui, an official of the MPS states that it has been utterly clumsily forged and full of obvious mistakes. A while ago, Chinese authorities had already informed and provided evidences to the US government with many documents blatantly forged by Guo, including the one he displayed on Oct.6th, in order to mislead in favor of his political asylum case. The falsified official documents and the false information he fabricated are sensational and outrageous. With the devious intention of deliberately damaging the relationship between the US and China with his continuing criminal acts. The Chinese government will officially request the kind cooperation from the US counterpart to launch an immediate investigation on the authenticity of such documents displayed by Guo and will offer its full cooperation on the investigation of the cyber-attack as well.

In recent years, them Ministry of Public Security of the PRC has cooperated with US law enforcement agencies including the FBI, the DHS and the ICE against cyber-crimes, fugitive and illegal immigrants issues, and are making positive results. On Oct.4, the First Round of US-China Law Enforcement and Cyber Security Talk was successfully held in Washington D.C. Both sides agreed to fully execute the important agreement reached by President Xi and President Trump at Mar-a-Lago meeting earlier this year to bring forth a mutually respected, equal basing on law, genuine and pragmatic partnership. Both sides further agree

to enhance the mutual dialogue to better service the security and economic interests of both nations. US government also expressed willingness to create more successful results to benefit the well-being of people of both countries through dialogues and solving individual cases.

Editors note: A Caixin report in 2015 revealed how Guo and Ma formed a close alliance, using national security power to meddle in business deals. In response to Guos subsequent attacks on Caixin, Caixin filed lawsuits against Guo and his companies, accusing him of fabricating and disseminating false information.

Contact reporter Han Wei (weihan@caixin.com)
SPRING CREEK  Great Basin Water Company filed for a rehearing of their case with the state utility commission on Friday, more than three weeks after they were ordered to calculate refunds to Spring Creek water customers following a meter-reading dispute.

GBWC filed a petition for rehearing and/or reconsideration with the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada Oct. 6, according to a statement released by the company.

We do take responsibility for this situation; however, we do have some questions about the order, said Wendy Barnett, president of GBWC.

In a special agenda meeting Sept. 19, the PUCN denied the GBWCs petition that stated they resolved meter reading problems with Spring Creek customers consistent with its tariff.

The PUCN ordered the water company to reprice residents water bills at $3.47 per 1,000 gallons from January to October 2016 within 60 days. They were also ordered to improve meter reading accuracy, technician training and customer service issues.

In the statement, GBWC explained the reason docket No. 16-12006 was filed in December was because they want to create a forum for all interested parties to participate in a fully vetted resolution of the meter reading issues at hand.

The company completely agrees with the Commission regarding the importance of consumers paying for water that they do use, especially in a desert environment, the statement continued.

With this petition, the company is asking the Commission to reconsider the preponderance of evidence presented in the initial proceedings on the matter.

GBWC certainly doesnt want to charge customers for water they didnt use or charge them at a higher rate than they should be, Barnett stated.

Again, we take this matter seriously, are not seeking to evade our responsibility, and want our customers treated fairly, Barnett said, adding that we feel that our investigation was thorough and was continued throughout the docket proceeding.

Great Basin Water Co. again apologizes for the meter reading issue which was the subject of this public docket before the PUCN, Barnett said.
Canberra courts would have to consider an accused person's Aboriginality when both deciding to release them on bail and how to sentence them, under changes to laws recommended by a specialist Indigenous legal service and submitted to a national inquiry.
It's been just over a year since international flights were launched on Singapore Airlines between the two little capitals, and this weekend, the New Zealand capital has sent over some of it's top food and art representatives for a collaboration with Canberra.
Serzh Sargsyan congratulates RF President Vladimir Putin on jubilee

Serzh Sargsyan had a telephone conversation with RF President Vladimir Putin, congratulating and sending him good wishes on birthday jubilee. The President of Armenia has also sent a congratulatory message to the President of the Russian Federation. Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich, Please accept my heartfelt congratulations on your jubilee! I sincerely wish you good health and every success in achieving the proposed objectives for the sake of Russias development, its citizens welfare and the strengthening of your countrys role in global politics. I wish to thank you for your personal contribution to the strengthening of strategic and allied relations between Armenia and Russia based on centuries-old traditions of friendship, brotherhood and mutual assistance of our peoples. Through consistent efforts, we have managed to complement the Armenian-Russian cooperation agenda with new joint initiatives and projects, which undoubtedly meet the fundamental interests of our peoples and promote stability and security in the South Caucasus. I am always sincerely happy to meet with you in an atmosphere of openness, mutual trust and partnership, which is due to the friendly relations established between us. I am confident that the active political dialogue will continue to bring about constructive cooperation between our countries both in the bilateral format and on the margins of the EAEU, CSTO, CIS and other international organizations. I cordially wish you, Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich, robust health, happiness, well-being and all the best, the President of the Republic of Armenia said in his congratulatory message.
THIS WEEK IN CAPE BRETON: Raising the peace flag, reviewing future plans for Centre 200 and more

SYDNEY  During a time of conflict around the world and with racial tensions on the rise in many parts, its clear there are those who want to find a bright, positive light wherever they can. Over the next several days, the YMCA of Cape Breton will ...
Ucoms mobile customers will benefit from the best internet roaming rate of 8 AMD/MB when travelling to Georgia, Egypt or the UAE

Ameriabank Launches Google Pay and Google Wallet Support for Card Users in Armenia

Karen Vardanyan donated 112 million drams for the medical equipment for National Center for Infectious Diseases.

UCOM HAS INTRODUCED FUTURE NETWORK WI-FI 6E ROUTERS

Google Ad

Statement by the Spokesperson on the conflict resolution and reconciliation efforts

Foreign Minister of Armenia to participate in the Fifth Paris Peace Forum

Armenia: EU and Armenia Hold annual Dialogue on Human Rights

Todays Shushi, Occupied and Cleared of Armenians, is a Real Example of Turkish-Azerbaijani Policy of Ethnic Cleansing of Artsakh

Ookla, the the global leader in internet testing and analysis has awarded Ucom

Sweden will hold the Presidency of the Council of the European Union

Ameriabank: At the Vanguard of Armenia's Banking Sector

STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARTSAKH

SUBSCRIBERS OF UCOMS ALL TIME BEST OFFER TO ENJOY ADDITIONAL BENEFITS

Armenia-Azerbaijan: EU sets up monitoring capacity along the international borders

PACE co-rapporteurs on Armenia concerned by reports of alleged war crimes or inhuman treatment perpetrated by Azerbaijans armed forces

There is still 35% gender pay gap: Sona Ghazaryan

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Global Finance Names Ameriabank the Safest Bank in Armenia

Mikayel and Karen Vardanyans provided 136 million AMD support for the overhaul of the Myasnikyan statue, which was in unsafe state of disrepair

Believe me, as a representative of a country which uses the Schengen system very often, it is quite important. Vardanyan

I really look forward to having answers from the Azerbaijani side for these alleged gross human rights violations: Secretary General

I call on Armenian and Azerbaijani parliamentarians to use this Assembly as an agora of opportunities President Tiny Kox

UCOMS SPECIAL OFFER OF THE UNLIMITED INTERNET IS NOW TERMLESS

There is no place for the death penalty in a State that respects human rights: PACE General Rapporteur

EU and CoE call on two Member States that have not yet acceded to this Protocol  Armenia and Azerbaijan  to do so without delay

An urgent debate requested on "The military hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan".

UCOM AND PES-PES CONTINUE COOPERATION WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF EDUCATIONAL PROJECT

The statement of the meeting between Prime Minister Pashinyan, President Aliyev, President Macron and President Michel of October 6, 2022

Largest Corporate Bond Program at the Securities Market of Armenia Completed Successfully

The statement of the Defender on the video of the execution of Armenian PoWs by the Azerbaijani armed forces
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.

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Ucoms mobile customers will benefit from the best internet roaming rate of 8 AMD/MB when travelling to Georgia, Egypt or the UAE

Ameriabank Launches Google Pay and Google Wallet Support for Card Users in Armenia

Karen Vardanyan donated 112 million drams for the medical equipment for National Center for Infectious Diseases.

UCOM HAS INTRODUCED FUTURE NETWORK WI-FI 6E ROUTERS

Statement by the Spokesperson on the conflict resolution and reconciliation efforts

Foreign Minister of Armenia to participate in the Fifth Paris Peace Forum

Armenia: EU and Armenia Hold annual Dialogue on Human Rights

Todays Shushi, Occupied and Cleared of Armenians, is a Real Example of Turkish-Azerbaijani Policy of Ethnic Cleansing of Artsakh

Ookla, the the global leader in internet testing and analysis has awarded Ucom

Sweden will hold the Presidency of the Council of the European Union

Ameriabank: At the Vanguard of Armenia's Banking Sector

STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARTSAKH

SUBSCRIBERS OF UCOMS ALL TIME BEST OFFER TO ENJOY ADDITIONAL BENEFITS

Armenia-Azerbaijan: EU sets up monitoring capacity along the international borders

PACE co-rapporteurs on Armenia concerned by reports of alleged war crimes or inhuman treatment perpetrated by Azerbaijans armed forces

There is still 35% gender pay gap: Sona Ghazaryan

Google Ad

Global Finance Names Ameriabank the Safest Bank in Armenia

Mikayel and Karen Vardanyans provided 136 million AMD support for the overhaul of the Myasnikyan statue, which was in unsafe state of disrepair

Believe me, as a representative of a country which uses the Schengen system very often, it is quite important. Vardanyan

I really look forward to having answers from the Azerbaijani side for these alleged gross human rights violations: Secretary General

I call on Armenian and Azerbaijani parliamentarians to use this Assembly as an agora of opportunities President Tiny Kox

UCOMS SPECIAL OFFER OF THE UNLIMITED INTERNET IS NOW TERMLESS

There is no place for the death penalty in a State that respects human rights: PACE General Rapporteur

EU and CoE call on two Member States that have not yet acceded to this Protocol  Armenia and Azerbaijan  to do so without delay

An urgent debate requested on "The military hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan".

UCOM AND PES-PES CONTINUE COOPERATION WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF EDUCATIONAL PROJECT

The statement of the meeting between Prime Minister Pashinyan, President Aliyev, President Macron and President Michel of October 6, 2022

Largest Corporate Bond Program at the Securities Market of Armenia Completed Successfully

The statement of the Defender on the video of the execution of Armenian PoWs by the Azerbaijani armed forces
After Red Bull won the Malaysian Grand Prix with Max Verstappen leading the field, it only served to put pressure on McLaren for next season according to Fernando Alonso.



The Spaniard is of course referring to his team switching to Renault power for 2018 and to the fact that McLaren have consistently argued that they have one of F1s top chassis.

We saw also in Monza, which is a power circuit, a very good performance from Red Bull. But Malaysia was another step forward, they beat Mercedes without rain, without any different strategy, without anything, said Alonso, quoted by Autosport.

We need to make sure that we do our job on the chassis side, because the engine can deliver wins, as Red Bull proves. We need to match that performance on the chassis, and that is a challenge for sure.

When asked if it was realistic to expect his current team to challenge Red Bull at the beginning of next season, Alonso stated Yeah, I think so, while arguing that McLaren, as a team, shouldnt be afraid of anyone.

McLaren signed its three-year engine supply deal with Renault last month, as former supplier Honda switched to Toro Rosso.

PHOTO GALLERY
Toyota wants to build the next generation Auris in its British factory on the assumption that the local government will agree on a transitional Brexit deal.



The Japanese car maker will take the final decision by the end of this year, Reuters reports.

If Toyota decides to build the next Auris in its UK plant, which is one of the countrys biggest car factories, it will secure thousands of jobs and boost the profile of the UK Prime Minister, Theresa May.

The current generation of the Toyota Auris hatchback is being built at the Burnaston plant, with the production run scheduled to end in around 2021, but car companies take their model decisions up to three years in advance for supply chain-related reasons.

Toyota UK management have a working assumption that the UK will retain the next generation Auris because it is too early to determine the nature of the trading relationship with the EU, one of the two sources said.

They believe that there will be a transitional period, according to the source who said that Toyota was highly likely to build the next-generation Auris in the UK.

The final decision will be announced by the end of this year or early 2018. Back in March, Toyota said that it would invest 240 million in their UK facilities in order to make them suitable for the new global TNGA platform, without telling which models are planned to be produced there.

This investment decision came after Toyota received a letter from the UK government reassuring them over the post-Brexit situation.

PHOTO GALLERY
You could have the missing piece of the puzzle that will help the RCMP put someone behind bars. Here are some recent crimes that Central Okanagan Crime Stoppers hope you can help solve by calling our anonymous tips line at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), visit our website at www.crimestoppers.net or text to CRIMES (274637), keyword Ktown.

CRIME: BREAK AND ENTER AT CEMETERY

DATE: October 2, 2017

RCMP FILE: 2017-59801

Sometime over the weekend between September 29th and October 2nd thieves cut a hole into the West Kelowna Cemetery located on Elliott Road. They gained access to a small equipment shed by prying open the metal bars of a small window. They exited through the same hole but cut another hole in the fence to access the road below as they left with a Torin Rollaway tool box with tool chest and a Stihl SH86C leaf blower with serial number 511370403 that had Cemetery written in black marker on the handle.

Photo: Crime Stoppers

If you know anything about this crime, or any other crime, call the Central Okanagan Crime Stoppers anonymous tips line at 1-800-222-TIPS or visit our website at www.crimestoppers.net. Your information will be kept confidential and could lead to a reward of up to $2000.00.

CRIME: INTERNET FRAUD ALERT

DATE: October 5, 2017

RCMP FILE: 2017-60377

Yet another possible internet scam has hit the Okanagan. A local man applied for a job on a reputable job search site. He was advised that he had the job and that the company would send him some money, offering him a commission if he transferred it back to the sender in bitcoin. They provided detailed instruction on the money transfers. The man became suspicious and contacted RCMP after accepting the money. The mans suspicions were sound as the transferred money had been obtained by hacking the bank account of an Eastern Canadian resident.

Photo: Crime Stoppers

You can help catch these suspects and qualify for a reward by calling Crime Stoppers anonymous tips line at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), visit our website at www.crimestoppers.net or text to CRIMES (274637), keyword Ktown.

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.
Anatoly Sidorov: CSTO Armed Forces will assist Armenia if necessary (video)

CSTO collective Armed Forces are ready to assist the CSTO member states, including the Republic of Armenia, if necessary, General-Colonel Anatoly Sidorov, Chief of the CSTO Joint Staff, stated at the October 7 meeting with journalists within the framework of the "Search-2017" military exercise, Razminoff reporter Nazenik Saroyan reports. "According to the CSTO charter and other documents, CSTO Armed Forces are intended to protect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the member states. This happens according to the application of the member state, and the decision is made by the CSTO Council. I will not tell you now about the red line, but I can say that if one of the member states needs real help, the collective Armed Forces in a much larger number than those participating in today's exercise will be ready to come and help," mentioned Anatoly Sidorov. To remind, on October 5 the second round of the "Search-2017" tactical and professional military exercise started in Armenia. The practical exercises of intelligence and special units of CSTO member states are held during the exercises. The "Search-2017" exercise is being held on October 3 in the framework of the CSTO "Brotherhood-2017" large-scale military exercise launched at the Rostov-on-Don Training Center in the Russian military region of the Russian Armed Forces, razm.info reports.
Photo: pixabay

Developers in Summerland appear to be chasing dollar signs, with single-family homes being built and resold at eye-watering prices, often at the expense of young families and renters.

A new 120-page study commissioned by Summerland into the district's housing market is hitting councils desk next week.

The average price of a single-family home has climbed nearly 68 per cent since 2014, and developers have taken notice.

Homes are built to maximum square-footage so developers can get more money per lot, rather than building more modest homes, the study says, citing a lack of housing diversity in the community.

Most multi-family options like duplex and triplexes are older stock and high demand for townhouses in neighbouring municipalities is not reflected in the current development in Summerland.

The average ($597,000) single-family home in Summerland will cost an estimated $35,000 per year in mortgage payments. This is nearly 70 per cent of Summerland's annual median income.

The study states that spending more than half a household's income on shelter puts the family in the extreme housing need category.

The report also says area newcomers and first-time homebuyers are being outbid by investors and home flippers, citing conversations with local realtors.

So what do people that cant afford to buy a home do? Typically, rent of course.

But in Summerland, focus on building large single-family homes has translated into an anemic rental stock, with just 138 registered rental units.

The study recommends the district cut red tape and fees around registering basement suites, or allow developers to build greater density if a certain portion of a development is rented.

However, residents might offer some pushback on plans like that.

During public consultation for the study, one-in-three Summerland residents opposed the construction of new apartment buildings or condos, saying they are not a fit for the community.

On the other side, carriage and laneway homes were the most sought after solution to the housing crisis. Eighty-one per cent of business owners want to see more built.

With 40 per cent of Summerland residents over the age of 60, the vast majority of subsidized housing units are targeted at those over 55.

This year, the study counted just 25 families on rental assistance, compared to 211 subsidized senior's units. The report calls on the District of Summerland to make land available for non-profit housing developers, and develop a housing task force made up of community stakeholders.

The Parkdale Place Housing Society formally voiced interest in the Wharton Street properties earlier this year, but was rebuffed by the district which stated low-income housing would not represent the highest and best use for the lots.
Photo: The Canadian Press

After five days of scouring the life of Las Vegas gunman Stephen Paddock and chasing 1,000 leads, investigators confessed Friday they still don't know what drove him to mass murder, and they announced plans to put up billboards appealing for the public's help.

Investigators have examined Paddock's politics, his finances, any possible radicalization and his social behaviour  typical investigative avenues that have helped uncover the motive in past shootings.

"We still do not have a clear motive or reason why," Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said. "We have looked at literally everything."

The FBI announced that billboards would go up around the city asking anyone with information to phone 800-CALL-FBI.

"If you know something, say something," said Aaron Rouse, agent in charge of the Las Vegas FBI office. "We will not stop until we have the truth."

Paddock, a reclusive 64-year-old high-stakes gambler, rained bullets on the crowd at a country music festival Sunday night from his 32nd-floor hotel suite, killing 58 and wounding hundreds before taking his own life.

McMahill said it was unusual to have so few clues five days after a mass shooting. He noted that in past mass killings or terrorist attacks, killers left notes, social media postings or information on a computer, or phoned police.

What officers have found is that Paddock planned his attack meticulously.

He requested an upper-floor room overlooking the festival, stockpiled 23 guns, a dozen of them modified to fire continuously like an automatic weapon, and set up cameras inside and outside his room to watch for approaching officers.

In a possible sign he was contemplating massacres at other sites, he also booked rooms overlooking the Lollapalooza festival in Chicago in August and the Life Is Beautiful show near the Vegas Strip in late September, according to authorities reconstructing his movements leading up to the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history.

His arsenal also included tracer rounds that can improve a shooter's firing accuracy in the dark, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. It wasn't clear whether Paddock fired any of the illuminated bullets during the high-rise massacre.

Paddock bought 1,000 rounds of the .308-calibre and .223-calibre tracer ammunition from a private buyer he met at a Phoenix gun show, a law enforcement official not authorized to comment on the investigation said on condition of anonymity.

Tracer rounds illuminate their path so a gunman can home in on targets at night. But they can also give away the shooter's position.

Video shot of the pandemonium that erupted when Paddock started strafing the country music festival showed a muzzle flash from his 32nd-floor room at the Mandalay Bay resort, but bullets weren't visible in the night sky.

A federal official said authorities are looking into the possibility Paddock planned additional attacks, including a car bombing. The official wasn't authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

Paddock had 1,600 rounds of ammunition in his car, along with fertilizer that can be used to make explosives and 50 pounds of Tannerite, a substance used in explosive rifle targets.
Photo: Contributed Generation Vineyard tasting room, which won the Thompson Okanagan Commercial Award for best renovation.

Several South Okanagan construction projects were recognized this week at the Thompson Okanagan Commercial Building Awards.

The new tower at the Penticton Lakeside Resort won the hospitality award of excellence.

The six-storey, 70-unit tower was built with local Structurlam cross-laminated timber, designed by the late Nick Bevanda of HDR|CEI Architecture Associates.

Pentictons Landform Architecture also won runner-up awards of merit for two projects.

The first was the Okanagan College child care centre in Penticton, the first passive house certified child care facility in Canada. The passive house certification is one of the most stringent energy-efficiency standards.

Landform Architecture says the daycare is the most energy efficient building in the Okanagan.

The architecture firm was also recognized for its renovation of the 8th Generation Vineyard tasting room in Summerland.

We took a 1940s farmhouse, and removed everything from the interior to expose the studs and plank sheathing, revealing the many generations of construction in the building, said Chris Allen, principal.

The Osoyoos Indian Band Building in Oliver won the wood construction award of excellence.
Photo: Contributed CTV Vancouver

A group out hunting for tuna off the coast of Vancouver Island found themselves just metres away from an intimidatingly large shark.

The group, which included former NHLer and Vancouver Canuck Willie Mitchell, was fishing off the coast of Tofino earlier this week.

"All of a sudden I just saw a big fin," Mitchell said.

"We lowered down to have a look and the first thing we said was 'Oh my god, it's a white, it's a big white.'"

A member of the group stuck a waterproof GoPro camera under the water to get a closer look and Mitchell, an experienced angler, realized it was an eight to nine-foot-long salmon shark.

"They look so much alike," he said. "That was a large, large salmon shark. You look at a salmon shark next to a white, and they're almost identical."

-with files from CTV Vancouver
Photo: CTV

A Vancouver Island mayor has received death threats following the closure of a marijuana dispensary in his community.

RCMP shut down Leaf Compassion in Courtenay on Wednesday, saying the dispensary did not have a business licence.

Since then, Mayor Larry Jangula has received angry voicemails including threats on his lfe.

"Prohibition with marijuana shouldn't have been started in the first place and a**holes like you that want to keep it going should be f**ing shot," one message said.

Jangula told CTV rumours city hall ordered the shut down are false.

He called the notion "ludicrous," and said: "I'm shocked, I'm amazed that something like a bylaw issue could cause an elected official to basically receive death threats."

Police are investigating the threat, he said.

 with files from CTV Vancouver Island
Photo: Contributed

RCMP say an 82-year-old woman was robbed at knifepoint by two masked thieves who broke into her Campbell River home.

The intruders broke into the home Thursday afternoon and fled with an undisclosed number of items.

The woman managed to pull one of the men's masks off before they escaped, but she was not seriously injured in the robbery.

The one suspect is described as Caucasian, in his early twenties, clean-shaven, and about six feet tall, with brown hair, blue eyes and a slim build.

Anyone with information is asked to call Campbell River RCMP or CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

 with files from CTV Vancouver Island
Photo: The Canadian Press

The family of an Alberta woman who was killed in the Las Vegas shootings say they are "overwhelmed" by the support they have received from across North America.

Tara Roe, 34, of Okotoks, Alta., had been at the country music festival with her husband, Zach, and another couple for a weekend getaway.

They became separated and she was missing for a couple of days before it was determined she had been among those killed by shooter Stephen Paddock.

Zach Roe released a statement Friday remarking on the "outpouring of love" he and his two sons have received both from those near to the family and from complete strangers.

Her parents and sister also released a statement saying there are no words to express their "heartfelt gratitude."

"I am so incredibly touched by everyone's support, which has included everything from financial donations, meals for my family, to the generosity of the Calgary Flames who are bringing my boys to a game and a practice so they can meet the team," said Zach Roe.

"You honestly have no idea how much this all means to me, to my boys, and most importantly, what it would have meant to Tara. Our heartbreak is deep, and these incredible expressions of love and support are helping us get through this senseless tragedy."

The statement from her parents, Mark and Brenda Smith, and her sister, Tami Spiropoulos, said their hearts are broken and they are struggling with how to go on.

"As in any tragedy, with something as evil as this, some goodness always somehow seems to come through," they said. "The outpouring of support from great family and friends, but also complete strangers, has helped this to be even bearable."
Photo: Twitter

The troubled inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls has named a new executive director.

Chief commissioner Marion Buller announced late Friday that former Assembly of First Nations adviser Debbie Reid has taken the job.

Reid is from the Skownan First Nation in Manitoba.

She was a special adviser to Assembly of First Nations National Chief Phil Fontaine when he held the job and has also worked for the federal government.

Buller says Reid has focused her entire career on working on behalf of Indigenous people.

The inquiry has run into troubled waters in recent months with criticism that victims' families weren't being adequately consulted about the shape of the inquiry.

One of the inquiry's commissioners and the previous executive director resigned in the wake of the criticism.

There were subsequent calls for a more profound shakeup with one prominent Manitoba First Nations chief even calling for Buller to leave.

The federal government gave the inquiry a budget of about $53.8 million and set a deadline for its work to be done by the end of next year.
Photo: Twitter

Hurricane Nate raced swiftly over the central Gulf of Mexico on Saturday, gaining added strength as forecasters said it would smash into the U.S. Gulf Coast in coming nighttime hours.

Louisiana's governor urged his state's residents to take Nate seriously even before New Orleans and much of his state's fragile coast was placed under a hurricane warning, saying the storm "has the potential to do a lot of damage."

"No one should take this storm lightly. It has already claimed the lives of at least 20 people," Gov. John Bel Edwards said Friday. "We do want people to be very, very cautious and to not take this storm for granted."

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said the core of the Category 1 hurricane was located at 7 a.m. about 245 miles (395 kilometres) south-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River. A hurricane hunter plane found the storm had gained new muscle in recent hours, with top sustained winds rising to at 85 mph (135 km/h) amid a threat of some additional strengthening.

A hurricane warning is in effect from Grand Isle, Louisiana, to the Alabama-Florida border and also for metropolitan New Orleans and nearby Lake Pontchartrain. A tropical storm warning extends west of Grand Isle to Morgan City, Louisiana, and around Lake Maurepas and east of the Alabama-Florida border to the Okaloosa-Walton County line in the Florida Panhandle.

States of emergency have been declared in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama as Nate  which has already killed at least 21 people in Central America  became the latest in a succession of destructive storms this hurricane season.

Edwards said forecasts for the fast-moving storm indicate the greatest threats are winds and storm surge. The U.S. National Hurricane Center warned that Nate could raise sea levels by four to seven feet.
Photo: Contributed

Surrey RCMP are investigating a stabbing in the Clayton Heights area.

About 8 p.m. Friday, police responded to the 18700 block of 64th Avenue. Officers found a man suffering from stab wounds.

The victim was taken to hospital by paramedics.

Officers canvassed the neighbourhood and are speaking with witnesses.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Surrey RCMP at 604-599-0502 or CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or www.solvecrime.ca.
Repayment of external debt by nature protection

Today, Artsvik Minasyan, Nature Protection Minister, met with Eco Media Network journalists, answering their questions in the Jrvezh Forest Park. The Minister spoke about the implemented and planned programs. In particular, she spoke about a project called "Nature-Foreign Debt", in which the Ministry of Finance has direct involvement. "We have already met with the WB. The essence is that Armenia has external debt to some countries which, in turn, have an international obligation of being engaged in environmental programs. Our suggestion is that instead of paying debts to those countries, we should invest the sum in our environmental improvement program. These countries should agree to the investment, thus considering the debt paid back. What is their interest? They have about a dozen international commitments as developed or large-scale countries, starting from the climate change, maintaining biodiversity, and so on. In other words, these countries need to make their payments to international funds, from which redistribution to the developing countries takes place. We propose to immediately work with these countries, excluding the entire circulation. Our proposal is beneficial to both sides." The Minister said that in order to persuade those countries to participate in this program, we must choose the right direction of the environment, which will be imports of tenenology, raw materials and services from these countries. "I will mention the Russian Federation, as a simple example. Today we have a problem of timber, as a result of which pressure is great on our forests. If we succeed in importing wood from Russia through this system at cost price or at a lower cost, means that we will reduce the pressure on the forests in Armenia. Also, as we have undertaken a commitment that by 2050 we should the country's increase forest areas with 20% , then we should implement new forest founding projects; this program could be a good prerequisite." Countries that we owe and are viewed within the framework of the project "Nature-Foreign Debt" are Japan, Germany, Russia, USA and France. Untill 2050, Armenia owes these countrys $570 million. "Until mid-October, the WB will launch its pre-program activities outside the country, and then we will start bilateral negotiations with the countries. This program is unprecedented. There is an experience in the world, but it has come from one direction when the country had an external debt, was on the edge of the default, only then turned to such a program. We do not have that problem today, from the point of view of the external debt, we are not considered to be such a country; that's why we are unprecedented. It contains some risk: international organizations can see a problem, so we say that our task is not to reduce external debt, but to improve the environment; external debt repayment will only be the consequence of the enviromental improvement."
Photo: Alanna Kelly Vehicles are at a standstill both north and south of a crash on the Coquihalla Highway.

UPDATE: 12:30 p.m.

Traffic in both directions is now moving following a "major" crash on the Coquihalla Highway Saturday morning.

The closure, which lasted about an hour, resulted in extensive lineups in both directions, as long weekend travellers were held up.

The condition of those involved in the crash is unknown at this time, but a helicopter, presumably a medevac helicopter, was seen leaving the scene.

UPDATE: 12:20 p.m.

Southbound traffic has begun moving, after a crash closed the Coquihalla Highway near Comstock Road.

The northbound lanes remain closed at this time.

UPDATE: 11:50 a.m.

A helicopter, presumably a medevac helicopter, was seen leaving the area of the crash.

There is still no word on when the highway might reopen, but DriveBC is calling the crash a "major incident."

ORIGINAL: 11:30 a.m.

The Coquihalla Highway is closed in both directions south of Merritt due to a crash.

The Saturday morning crash occurred near Comstock Road in the northbound lanes, but the highway is closed in both directions of travel.

The nature of the crash or condition of those involved is unknown at this time

The province had previously warned motorists of long weekend delays on the highway due to construction.

Additionally, the Okanagan Connector was closed in the eastbound direction Friday night due to a crash that left a man dead.
Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

Hakuoki: Kyoto Winds is a historical fantasy visual novel set in the Bakumatsu period in Japan and puts you in the shows of Chizuru-san, a young woman determined to find her father in Kyoto. As part one in a two-part series that is the retelling of the original Hakuoki released in 2008, you will romance a number of handsome samurai (some are new to help justify the cost of Kyoto Winds) in search of details surrounding your fathers whereabouts. Though it pushes over 80 hours of content with 30 unique endings, Hakuoki: Kyoto Winds feels more like a prolonged cash grab in a genre that is often taken advantage of.

I fully admit that Kyoto Winds was difficult for me to write about; in most cases I do well with visual novels, especial those that I am familiar with due to other mediums. In cases like Muv-Luv I am familiar with the Total Eclipse anime; the same goes for Steins;Gate and Amnesia, both having excellent anime adaptations of the source materials. Hakuoki is no different; a number of years ago I binge-watched Hakuoki, then the two follow-up seasons and really enjoyed them. With Kyoto Winds though I just could not connect with Chizuru-san. Sure I am a straight guy and putting myself in the shoes of a female protagonist as she tries to romance her way to discovering the whereabouts of her father, but I have played similar games (like Amnesia, which places you in the shoes of a female protagonist as she romances her way through to recovering her memory) with little trouble.

Something about Hakuoki: Kyoto Winds feels off, and it is not the excellent visuals or wonderful audio, but rather I think that as you play through the various play throughs you begin to get a sense that the entire game feels like filler. I passionately hate filler

When that Filler adds a bunch of nonsensical junk labeled as a remastered telling of the beloved 2008 series to justify a price tag that is the same price as its original  which also happened to have two times the content. With Kyoto Winds you get only a portion of the story, a bunch of new romance-able options that feel halfhearted and incomplete in the grand scheme of things. Claiming some 80 hours of gameplay, I was able to choke through about 14 before I finally got sick of the same tropes said with slightly new characters, which extra sucks because I really like the world of Hakuoki. I felt deceived.

The first five or six chapters are fairly linear and tropey, then it opens up where you can start romancing other options so the pacing is off on multiple playthroughs because you may go back to the start and have to play the first few hours. Again. And again. Please, if you pick it up, use save games excessively.
Honestly, did you think we were going to die? And then he looked at me and he said yes, but I didnt want to tell you that because I was try
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Chicago is bidding for Amazon's second corporate headquarters in North America, a project that could bring as many as 50,000 high-paying jobs. The Seattle company's Sunnyvale, Calif., offices are pictured here. (Lisa Werner / Moment Editorial/Getty Images)

When Amazon announced its search for a second corporate headquarters last month  launching competition so fierce a Georgia city offered to create a new town named after the company  Chicago officials realized they had a potential inside contact.

"Have you looked at the board of amazon. Jamie (Gorelick) is in there," Mayor Rahm Emanuel emailed Deputy Mayor Robert Rivkin hours after Seattle-based Amazon announced it was seeking requests for proposals for the $5 billion project, according to records obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request.

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The city had hired Gorelick and her law firm, WilmerHale, to represent the city in the Justice Department's investigation into the Chicago Police Department, and she is working pro bono to represent Chicago in a lawsuit asking the courts to block the Trump administration from withholding some police grant funding from sanctuary cities.

A few hours after contacting Rivkin, Emanuel emailed Gorelick to say Rivkin would be in touch. Gorelick responded a few days later, providing links to the project website and an introduction to Amazon's economic development head, "who is in charge of the process."

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City spokesman Grant Klinzman declined to comment on communication between Gorelick and city officials.

A Tribune review of Emanuel's emails mentioning Amazon in the weeks surrounding the company's announcement about its second headquarters also show Rivkin emailed Emanuel the day after Amazon's Sept. 7 announcement, saying the city and World Business Chicago had arranged to meet and develop a timeline and lists of potential allies and sites. City officials had already spoken with state and county officials, developers, civic groups, supportive companies and universities, according to Rivkin's email.

"Everyone focused and energized," Rivkin wrote.

A handful of Chicagoans also reached out to Emanuel, offering to pitch in. Zackery House, CEO of Environmental Systems Design, offered assistance with site assessments, cost and construction estimates. House, who thanked the mayor for including him in a recent Chicago delegation to Israel, said his firm had experience with corporate campus projects.

Dustin Lasky, co-founder of Fooda, a workplace food program that brings offices a rotating cast of restaurants serving as pop-up lunch vendors, also emailed, saying he thought Fooda's service "aligns very well with Amazon" and could be "a unique opportunity to differentiate our city from others in our efforts to court Amazon and other desirable headquarters."

Lasky proposed a meeting at the East Bank Club, saying he'd run into the mayor a handful of times in the gym's locker room. A follow-up email noted both had attended the same Wilmette elementary school.

House was named to the more than 600-person committee Emanuel and Gov. Bruce Rauner tapped to support an Amazon headquarters bid earlier this month. There's no record Lasky, who declined to comment, received a response.

Most emails Emanuel received were enthusiastic about a Chicago Amazon bid. But he received copies of two letters, addressed to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, urging the CEO not to pick Chicago.

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The messages, which appeared to be from Gene Spanos, a Park Ridge resident who has campaigned against jet noise in communities near O'Hare International Airport  cited everything from violent crime to Chicago's sanctuary city status to fees at O'Hare as reasons Amazon should look elsewhere. Efforts to reach Spanos were unsuccessful.

"No Mr. Bezos, you don't want to move here," he wrote.

lzumbach@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @laurenzumbach
Could shopping malls, battered by e-commerce sites like Amazon, end up serving as its much-anticipated HQ2? (Alicia Fabbre / Daily Southtown)

Seattle  Amazon will have plenty of options when it picks the site for its second headquarters, and in an ironic twist for a company that helped introduce the world to online retail, a few of those options may be defunct shopping malls.

Real-estate developers from Phoenix to Washington, D.C., are suggesting former temples of American commerce as prime locations for Amazon's next headquarters.

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The proposition makes some sense.

Shopping malls can be massive, big enough on their own to meet the space requirements Amazon laid out for its second home. They also tend to be located within reach of the highways, population centers and airports that Amazon mentioned in its wish list of characteristics for what it calls HQ2.

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Another advantage: easy availability. Increasingly, malls are vacant.

The last few years have been awful for brick-and-mortar retail. After overly ambitious store building and borrowing during the pre-recession boom years, and amid a generational shift to online purchases, retailers have been shuttering stores at a record clip. That's laid low many of the malls that house them.

Oliver Chen, who tracks retail for Cowen & Co., said he expects the closure of 20 percent of the roughly 1,200 U.S. shopping malls currently operating.

"We had a situation where so many malls were developed, and too many stores opened," Chen said. "Now there's this digital consumer shift, which is happening faster than people expected. It's survival of the best ones."

The decline of the shopping mall has become a media theme, the stuff of lengthy obituaries and more than one amateur documentarian who broadcasts tours of the ruins. ("These are the ruins of a dying culture," one CBS reporter intones over footage of a demolition).

After Amazon's September announcement that it was hunting for a second home in a North American city, seeking an initial 500,000 square feet by 2019, developers saw an opportunity to make use of former malls. Those sites have been popular conversation topics as cities and states cobble together bids before Amazon's Oct. 19 HQ2 deadline.

One plan being floated for the Dallas area would make the site of the nearly vacant Valley View Mall the cornerstone of an up to 400-acre development built around Amazon. A 20-acre "Amazon park" would sit in the middle. (At another corner: the still-operating Galleria Dallas mall).

Developers in suburban Phoenix and Detroit similarly hope that Amazon will make use of land now occupied by vacant stores.

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And in Pittsburgh, a few minutes' drive from downtown on Interstate 376, sits the site of the former Parkway Center Mall.

The mall opened in 1982, in the heart of a boom that saw 1,500 shopping centers built in the 50 years after the construction of the first modern, enclosed shopping mall in 1956.

Parkway Center had struggled before the rise of online commerce. Competition from other shopping districts drew away some stores.

A face-lift in the 1990s helped, but more tenants went under or departed in the 2000s. The former food-court space was leased to a dance studio and state driver's license facility. Another floor was shuttered entirely.

By the time Kmart left in 2013, the mall was left with one anchor tenant: a Giant Eagle supermarket.

The mall's owner, Kossman Development, last year opted to demolish everything except the supermarket.

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"The mall, for a variety of reasons, fell out of favor," said Curtis Kossman, president of the company. People want to shop in areas that include restaurants, living space, areas that give more of a sense of community than plain storefronts, he said.

Kossman, a third-generation developer, had his sights set on a mixed commercial and residential rebuild when Amazon announced last month that it was seeking a second headquarters.

He modified those plans to suit the retail giant, and last week submitted his pitch to the committee coordinating the Pittsburgh area's bid.

The old mall site and some adjacent land, about 35 acres, would be redeveloped into up to 5.4 million square feet of office space, atop an underground structure for 19,135 parking spaces. An adjacent, 65-acre parcel would be set aside for mixed-use development.

The whole campus would be ringed by green space and bicycle paths. And interspersed around the buildings: 680,000 square feet of retail space.

"Traditional bricks and mortar may not be (Amazon's) purpose," Kossman said. "But it still creates a great environment for their employees."
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick (center) kneels in protest with two teammates during the national anthem before a game in October 2016. (Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP )

Can you see  in the alleged home of the free  the blatant disrespect and exclusion of blacks in the American workforce and construction industry?

Billions of taxpayers' dollars representing all colors, classes and kinds are filtered into the annual construction season for infrastructure repairs, road and bridge construction, and commercial and educational renovation. Millions are allocated to Lake County for repairs and improvement of the same.

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For decades, millions have been and continue to be allocated for what has been deemed as construction-training funding to various programs in Lake County and throughout Illinois.

However, as we drive down Green Bay Road in Waukegan  the county seat of Lake County  and various regional roads and state highways or observe what initially begin as a $110 million expansion of the Lake County Courthouse, which is consistently packed back-to-back with predominantly black and brown inmates, one could easily argue, "Where are the hundreds of young black women and men of Lake County and beyond who are said to be pre-apprentice certified under such training programs?"

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Those youths now are young adults and presently not on various Lake County construction sites in comparison to the disproportionate millions of dollars that are allocated by legislators and representatives  and collected over the years by various training programs of Lake County.

Many youths trained with sheer determination, ambition and high hopes of never going to jail or returning, or as a legitimate alternative to the violence and life in the streets.

I once wrote that, "the trigger of the gun violence that is perpetuated within and throughout our communities is being pulled long before the violence erupts and manifests itself on our city blocks. That trigger is being pulled not only on the 9 mm Glock on the block but from the shotgun blast of politics to the sawed-off pump of the pulpit."

When legislators disburse millions of dollars in funding to train without enforcing legislation to hire or retain blacks, they are pulling the trigger.

When mayors and elected officials reduce and lower what is considered as minority and local hiring compliance codes or make concessions and compromises for certain construction contractors, they are pulling the trigger.

When local construction training programs have raked in millions over the years for training but cannot produce qualified local workers to fill construction trades as contracts are awarded, and yet do not train our youth to protest or fight for said positions by any righteous means necessary, they are pulling the trigger.

When clergymen refuse to take to the front line of protest and accountability or raise their voices against human and civil right issues, they're pulling the trigger.

Particularly when our youth are disproportionately suspended, expelled or violated, clergymen then have become No. 1 with a bullet at silently watching our youth displaced to the streets and in the direct line of fire with each other, but more importantly in direct line of fire with overzealous and brutal police.

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As a U.S. Army veteran  and as author of "The Scar Spangled Banner" book and protest message  I applauded Colin Kaepernick's protest against America's hypocrisies and police brutality, and I can only wish there are more people or preachers of his spirit and courage.

President Trump's administration has stated that ending the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals prograam (DACA) would mean more jobs for blacks, misleading many blacks with another tactic of divisiveness. Long before DACA, blacks were being shut out and replaced in the workforce by other American citizens not of color, including Polish, Germans and others, particularly in the construction industry.

Many times in the American workforce, Hispanic and Latino employees are misled by some whites to buy into the age-old stereotype that blacks are lazy. Resulting in many blacks being mistreated when Hispanics are placed in lead positions or supervisors over them, particularly under temp services, which are not held accountable by local governments and agencies.

Many Hispanics are despised and rejected by many blacks, who are misled to believe that Hispanics are coming over and taking all our jobs.

Lake County News Sun Twice-weekly News updates from Lake County delivered every Monday and Wednesday >

Often I find myself reminding many of us that no one can take from us what was never ours to begin with. When living behind enemy lines of brutality and racism in America, the only jobs that are really ours are the ones we make and create for ourselves through the spirit of entrepreneurship and economic development.

In other bases of employment, we have to fight to get it and fight like hell or even harder to keep it regardless of what ethnicity of people we are pitted against. And much too often, we find ourselves even pitted against one another as blacks.

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One of the worst forms of misuse and abuse imaginable is when we rise through the ranks of the workforce  whether through the corporate ranks of America, construction sites of our communities or the labor workforce of state and county employment  and forget from where we came. Feeling as though we have suddenly arrived, many will walk by our entry-level sisters or brothers on the job without so much as speaking or acknowledging their existence.

Equally, I find myself telling many Hispanics and Latinos that laziness is not a color thing  it's a people thing, found in all races and places. Such thoughts of ignorance among us all have no boundaries or preferences. And they as well should not forget from where they came as a people of struggle, as we struggle together under this presidential administration and nation of divisiveness and racism.

Every generation has an obligation to kneel or stand in protest against the chaos, ignorance or hate its nation produces or creates.

Hotep.

Chris "Brotha" Blanks is the founding chief president of the Black Abolition Movement for the Mind and is an author, poet, actor and performing artist.
Republican state Rep. Jeanne Ives, of Wheaton, speaks during a ceremony at the Pritzker Military Museum and Library on Sept. 27, 2017, in the Loop. (Alyssa Pointer / Chicago Tribune)

State Rep. Jeanne Ives of Wheaton, a conservative and a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, may soon challenge a weakened Gov. Bruce Rauner in the Republican primary.

"I'm seriously considering the option, with a serious game plan, we're meeting with people and we'll make a decision one way or another soon, and I mean very soon," Ives told me Friday.

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She's considering it because Rauner has lost his base. And what happens when an incumbent loses his or her base?

You can smell the toast a'burnin'.

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"Voters don't know what Rauner's core principles are because he doesn't have any. So we can't very well give him a pass," said Ives, a staunch social and fiscal conservative. "I'm not connected to the big money men who run the big races, but whoever would take Rauner on, it would cost less to defeat him than it would for him to redeem his reputation."

Rauner lost the conservative Republican base in Illinois by moving hard to the left, first by signing "sanctuary state" legislation and then by putting taxpayers on the hook to pay for abortion on demand. On Friday, he axed one of his few remaining conservative aides, chief of staff Kristina Rasmussen.

Rauner supporters think his moves help him in Cook County, particularly with pro-abortion-rights suburban women. But will Rauner's support of "sanctuary state" legislation win him Latino support in a general election? Will his decision to risk his career by supporting taxpayer-funded abortion win him love from Democrats?

I don't think so.

Yet such moves do satisfy the media, that which will sing his praises and call him courageous and so on, and vilify or at least marginalize any conservative challenger, whether that is Ives or someone else.

That's how things are wired in Illinois, but you knew that.

Ultimately, those singing his praises for his leftward drift will abandon Rauner in the general election in favor of the Democrats, either billionaire J.B. Pritzker, backed by Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan and Mayor Rahm Emanuel, or Christopher Kennedy.

That's also how things are wired. But you knew that, too.

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The problem for Rauner is that, as of now, conservatives make up a sizable percentage of the Republican vote. Without them, where is he?

But not so fast, says Pat Brady, a Rauner supporter, former Illinois GOP chairman and principal of the government affairs firm Next Generation Strategies.

"I understand Ives' anger. I know social conservatives are upset," Brady said. "But to their credit, social conservatives, they don't stay home on Election Day.

"Bruce Rauner is the first governor to stand up to Mike Madigan, and the people of Illinois know it," Brady said. "And 80 percent of the state has had enough with the Boss Democrats. So are conservatives going to throw their lot in with J.B. Pritzker and Madigan? I don't think that's going to happen."

That will be Rauner's hard sell, to convince conservatives that without him, Illinois will remain Madiganistan. It will be difficult if not impossible for him to win without an effective coalition.

But without conservatives, what is left of Rauner's coalition? Wealthy businessmen? That's not a coalition.

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In this, he's quite like Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who also has the money guys with him but not much else, and remains quite beatable.

Emanuel has been reaching out to Latinos in anticipation of more bad publicity and negative feelings coming his way when the murder trial of Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke, charged with the killing of black teenager Laquan McDonald, rolls around. Emanuel's administration sat on the video of the shooting until after the mayor won re-election against Cook County Board Commissioner Jesus "Chuy" Garcia. Chuy won't let him forget it. And neither will Chris Kennedy.

But Emanuel has time and other people's money.

Rauner doesn't have time, and he'll be spending his own cash.

On the Democratic side, at least Pritzker and Kennedy have a game plan. Pritzker with Boss Madigan and a massive TV ad budget. And Kennedy seeking minority votes with endorsements like that of Chuy Garcia's.

But what is Rauner's game plan? That Boss Madigan has helped ruin the state? Rauner needs more than that, but his plan is becoming increasingly difficult to see.

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He was a businessman, not a social justice warrior at the beginning, then he wasn't conservative, then he was a conservative for a few weeks, then he fired all the conservatives working for him and made sure he wasn't a conservative by supporting taxpayer-funded abortion.

It's all been so very confusing.

Conservatives will either find a challenger, or convince Rauner to do the math and hope he won't seek re-election and save the Illinois GOP from a fight. Or he can run, while conservatives concentrate on their own state House and Senate races and keep the governor at a distance.

"It's best for the state if he announces he's not running," Ives said. "It would allow the party to come together and coalesce around another individual who could take on the Democrats. Because Rauner's base has lost him. There's no doubt about it. Talk to people around the state. You hear the same thing. His base isn't with him."

Those who are quite close to the governor say he has no interest in caving, that he'll fight. It might be politically bloody, but he doesn't care.

Rauner isn't a weakling. He fought hard. He spent his money. He made terrible political mistakes that he didn't have to make, but he insisted on making them. Now, he's paying for them.

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Conservatives like Jeanne Ives will insist upon it.

Listen to "The Chicago Way" podcast with John Kass and Jeff Carlin  at wgnradio.com/category/wgn-plus/thechicagoway.

jskass@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @John_Kass

RELATED:

[ Rauner parts ways with chief of staff from conservative think tank  ]

[ Rauner's left turns on abortion, immigration put his political base in doubt  ]

[ Rauner dumps recently rebuilt press team following missteps, cartoon controversy  ]
I came of age in the 60's and 70's, when all the rules about behavior and workplaces were different.

I didn't write that sentence.

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I could have, though, which is one reason it struck me so hard when I read it Thursday. Those are the opening words of the quasi-apology issued by movie impresario Harvey Weinstein after The New York Times reported that he had sexually preyed on women for the past 30 years.

According to the Times, Weinstein, one of Hollywood's most powerful men, invited the actress Ashley Judd to a meeting in his hotel room then asked if she'd watch him shower. He promised another young woman that he'd help her career in exchange for sex. He asked a female assistant to give him a massage while he was naked. There were others.

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Weinstein has denounced the Times report and is threatening to sue, but he also issued a mea culpa for unspecified wrongs he has done and pain he has caused, with the suggestion that his problem is rooted in the world that shaped him.

"That was the culture then," he said in his statement.

Weinstein was born in 1952, the year before the recently departed Hugh Hefner invented Playboy magazine. He grew up in an era when men yukked it up over Playboy playmates, which corresponded to the moment that women, newly liberated by the birth control pill, were finding their way in record numbers into college, grad school and jobs once reserved for men.

Like other famous modern sexual harassers  Roger Ailes, Bill O'Reilly, Bill Clinton, Bill Cosby, Donald Trump he was a young man of the gender revolution, and though that's no excuse for harassing women, he's right that workplace culture was different then.

Women in authority were rare, and it was common for high-ranking men to wear their power like a giant codpiece. It was even harder than it is now for women to object to being pawed, propositioned and leered at.

When a man harassed you, who were you going to tell? Your bosses, who were all male?

For a lot of women in that era, learning to fend off male advances was a job skill, one that could cultivate a perverse pride: See how strong I am? I can keep the creeps at bay.

The term "sexual harassment" wasn't even in common use until the 1970s, when the problem had become so obvious that it needed a name.

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I had my first journalism job, an internship at a major newspaper, in 1980. I worked with some helpful, supportive, inspiring men. A male colleague, older and influential, invited me to lunch.

Golly, I thought, he thinks I have talent!

He looked at me over dessert and said, point-blank, that as a woman I'd have to sleep my way to success.

I remember feeling cold, the physical chill of dread. What did he mean? That having sex with him would help my job prospects? Or was he simply warning me of the steep, hazardous road for women who wanted to get to the top? Maybe he meant both? Was he right? He couldn't be, could he?

I wish I could remember a biting retort, but I think I didn't say much except to tell him I had to go. I avoided him after that.

I've never felt consciously thwarted or traumatized by that incident, or others like it, though as I recount it I remember viscerally how sick it made me feel.

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At the time, I shrugged it off as aggressive, stupid behavior that women just had to deal with. It took me a while to understand that women's "ability" to tolerate such behavior only abetted it.

How much mercy does Weinstein deserve because he came into power when men were less likely to be outed for using it in abusive, sexual ways?

His adviser in this scandal, the attorney Lisa Bloom, who ordinarily defends women in sexual harassment cases, has called him "an old dinosaur learning new ways."

He concluded his statement to The New York Times by noting that a year ago, he began organizing a $5 million foundation to give scholarships to women directors at the University of Southern California.

"While this might seem coincidental," he wrote, "it has been in the works for a year. It will be named after my mom and I won't disappoint her."

Even $5 million won't buy mercy from everyone, but an apology is always better when it's fortified by action.

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We're all products of our time. Weinstein came into adulthood in an age that made it easier for men to kid themselves that harassment was OK. But deep down, I'm guessing, he always knew it was wrong. Power often seduces people, regardless of gender, into doing whatever they can get away with.

Sexual harassment in the workplace still thrives, from the movie studio to the TV network (think Fox and no doubt others) to hot new startups (think Uber) to, well, probably everywhere.

But things are better, and one reason is that women, like the ones to talked to The New York Times, are more willing to speak out.

As it gets easier, if only a little, for women to speak out, it gets harder for harassers to kid themselves.

mschmich@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @MarySchmich

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[ Harvey Weinstein to be suspended from his company during harassment inquiry  ]

[ After accusations Hollywood asks: Is Harvey Weinstein done?  ]

[ Harvey Weinstein to take leave of absence after bombshell New York Times sexual harassment report  ]
Chicago park district worker Jose Troche finishes up removing red paint that was sprayed yesterday on the Christopher Columbus statue Monday October 9, 2017, in Arrigo Park at 801 S. Loomis St. in Chicago's Little Italy neighborhood. (Phil Velasquez / Chicago Tribune)

A 30-year-old man has been arrested after defacing a Christopher Columbus statue early Saturday in the Little Italy neighborhood on the Near West Side, Chicago police said.

Shortly after midnight, three males were spotted defacing the statue in Arrigo Park, 801 S. Loomis St., police said.

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When someone confronted them, they sped away on bicycles, but one tumbled off his bike and was held by the witness until Monroe District police officers got there and placed the 30-year-old under arrest, police said.

Criminal damage charges are pending.

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Columbus Day is Monday.






Tara Keough was last seen on Sept. 27, 2017 in the Logan Square area. (Provided by Chicago Police Department)

Police are seeking help from the public in finding a missing woman, authorities said Saturday.

Tara Keogh, 50, was last seen about 10 days ago, on Sept. 27 in the area of 1600 N. Francisco Ave. in Logan Square, according to a news release from Chicago police.

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Keogh is described as white with a light complexion and gray hair who is about 5-foot-8 and weighs about 140 pounds. She has a scar on one of her ankles, police said. They also said she's known to wear her gray hair long and in two ponytails.

Anyone with information should contact Area North detectives at 312-744-8266.
Chicago police are warning the public about a man who exposed himself and touched himself inappropriately in front of a girl on the Far North Side early Friday.

The girl was walking in the 1900 block of West Fargo Avenue in Rogers Park between 7:30 a.m. and 8:30 a.m. when a man standing behind the glass door off a building stared at her, pulled down his pants and exposed himself, police said.

The man also made eye contact with the victim, placed his hands in his pants and touched himself inappropriately, police said.
A group of the state's Democratic county chairmen voted Saturday to back J.B. Pritzker for governor, adding to a list of endorsements for the billionaire entrepreneur and investor.



Doug House, president of the Illinois Democratic Chairmen's Association, said Pritzker gained the backing of nearly 70 percent of the 102 party county leaders during its fall meeting in Springfield.



The Pritzker endorsement had been expected after House, who also is the Rock Island Democratic chairman, last month urged his fellow county chairs to support the businessmen over a host of rivals in the March primary election.



House said that to defeat Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner, "Democrats needed to be inspired by their vision for Illinois and their plan to win."



"I have been impressed with J.B. Pritzker and his strong, progressive message," House said in a statement. "J.B. is connecting with voters who share our core beliefs throughout Illinois and they believe that he can fix the mess that Bruce Rauner has created."



Pritzker previously received the backing of the state's largest county Democratic organization, the Cook County Democrats. He also has the backing of several unions, as well as the Illinois AFL-CIO, the umbrella organization for organized labor in the state.



As the county chairmen voted, another Democratic candidate for governor, state Sen. Daniel Biss of Evanston, criticized the state party apparatus headed by powerful House Speaker Michael Madigan, as well as Pritzker and another rival, businessman Chris Kennedy, an heir of the iconic Massachusetts political family.



"With a billionaire businessman in the White House, another in the governor's mansion and two more of the super rich running for governor, it's time for us to ask some serious questions about what kind of democracy we want to have. Do we want to have elections, or do we want auctions?" Biss asked.



"The wealthy and well-connected have built a system that keeps them in charge while the rest of us fall further and further behind. From the way we fund our campaigns to how the district maps get drawn to the basic way you get on the ballot, the system is designed to push us out," he said.



Biss proposed a plan called "rewriting the rules" that includes a grass-roots selection of the state party chairman, a system of public financing to match small political contributions, expanded ballot access for candidates, legislative districts drawn with minimal political influence and term limits for legislative leadership.



Madigan is the nation's longest-serving state House speaker, having served for 32 of the past 34 years.



Republicans are having their own political problems despite holding the governor's office. Sharp divisions among the GOP rank-and-file have developed following Rauner's signature of a bill that will expand taxpayer-subsidized abortion coverage to women through Medicaid and the state employee health insurance program.



As a candidate in April 2014, Rauner responded to the questionnaire of an abortion-rights political advocacy group that he agreed with the goals of what would become the legislation.



But in April of this year, seeking unity among Republican lawmakers against the legislature's Democratic majority during the state's budget impasse, Rauner vowed to veto the bill.



Several socially conservative Republicans have said they will not support Rauner for re-election or his legislative agenda and have been looking to unify around a candidate to challenge him in the primary.

rap30@aol.com

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Even as the much-reviled Cook County pop tax is likely to be repealed this week, Board President Toni Preckwinkle continues to try to make the case that losing all that money would gut vital services.

For Preckwinkle, it's an odd place to be. Once praised for cutting taxes and streamlining the county bureaucracy, these days she finds herself in a situation eerily similar to the one that helped her vanquish her predecessor at the polls seven years ago.

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Back in 2009, when then-Board President Todd Stroger was fighting to save his penny-on-the-dollar sales tax increase in the wake of a repeal vote, he said its elimination would hurt important public health and criminal justice programs.

"I will not allow commissioners to grandstand for political advantage at the expense of a growing number of county residents who desperately need these services," Stroger said.

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Last week, Preckwinkle told commissioners during her 2018 budget address that elimination of the penny-an-ounce tax on sugar- and artificially sweetened beverages would trigger an 11 percent cut to the public health and criminal justice system budgets. She told commissioners they faced "a moment of truth . . . because you know we need this revenue."

Without the tax, a balanced budget "could mean cutting programs and services we know are in the best interest of the people of Cook County," she added.

For Commissioner Timothy Schneider, a Bartlett Republican, it's like the replay of a golden oldie that didn't stand the test of time.

"It seems like it's Groundhog Day all over again," said Schneider, Gov. Bruce Rauner's choice to lead the state GOP. "We just resurrected the same situation that we had when Todd Stroger passed the 1 percent sales tax. At that time, it was going to solve all our problems, that we weren't going to have to go to the taxpayers again for the foreseeable future.

"Here we are, eight years later, and we've already reinstated the 1 percent sales tax, and now we're going to implement a soda tax of 1 cent per ounce, on top of an amusement tax, on top of hotel taxes, on top of additional cigarette taxes, on top of all kinds of other taxes that we've added. I think we've identified when enough is enough."

Schneider pointed out another similarity. Back in 2009, the Chicago Tribune editorial board was railing against the sales tax on a daily basis, featuring a countdown clock until the 2010 election. Now, the American Beverage Association is financing a multmillion-dollar campaign against the pop tax, while targeting supporters for electoral defeat next year, when the seats of Preckwinkle and all 17 commissioners are on the ballot.

"People became aware of it," Schneider said. "When people become aware of these things, they don't want them. They want county government to live within its means."

In 2009, the board voted to repeal the sales tax increase, but Stroger vetoed. At the time, it took 14 votes to override, so Stroger was able to make his veto stick. State lawmakers then changed the number of votes it took to override a veto by the Cook County board president to 11, and the board voted on a different plan to cut the sales tax increase in half and were able to muster the voters to override another Stroger veto.

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In 2009, then-Cook County Board President Todd Stroger, shown April 11, 2013, was fighting to save his penny-on-the-dollar sales tax increase in the wake of a repeal vote. He said then that its elimination would hurt important public health and criminal justice programs. (Michael Tercha / Chicago Tribune)

Stroger wore the jacket going into the 2010 election, and Preckwinkle easily defeated him as she pledged to eliminate what remained of the tax. It was a promise she kept, but after her 2014 re-election, she successfully backed another 1-percentage-point sales tax increase, with the bulk of the money going to increase contributions to the county's significantly underfunded county worker pension system.

Preckwinkle was able to justify that tax hike without significant pushback. But the pop tax that went into effect Aug. 2 has been a different story, in part because it shows up on every receipt and also because of the Can the Tax campaign funded by the beverage industry.

As of Friday, 12 commissioners had signed on to a pop tax repeal ordinance slated for a test vote on Tuesday, despite Preckwinkle's contention that loss of the $200 million a year she expects it to generate would harm vital county services. She hasn't said whether she would veto a repeal, but such a move became less likely because of the veto-proof majority.

"The Finance Committee vote is Tuesday, and final board action would not come until Wednesday," said Frank Shuftan, her spokesman. "We'll withhold any further comment until that time."

Despite the similarities between Stroger and Preckwinkle when it comes to efforts to preserve controversial taxes, there also are significant differences. Even commissioners who now back repeal are careful to express their respect for Preckwinkle and the changes she's made to county government.

During her seven years in office, she's cut the county workforce by nearly 10 percent, the overall debt by even more and  largely because of the Affordable Care Act  reduced the local taxpayer subsidy to the county Health and Hospitals System by hundreds of millions of dollars a year. She's also played a key role in cutting the jail population by more than 25 percent and the number of minors in the Juvenile Temporary Detention Center by nearly half.

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Stroger, by contrast, found himself tarnished by corruption scandals that eventually led to criminal convictions of a couple of his top appointed officials and patronage controversies that highlighted the bloat in his administration.

And Preckwinkle, at least so far, has no announced challengers in the March Democratic primary election, when she plans to run for a third and final term. Stroger had three opponents in the Democratic primary that Preckwinkle won.

But Preckwinkle faces the same public skepticism as Stroger when it comes to the need for so many employees in county government, even if she has reduced the workforce by nearly 10 percent. In September, the number of employees stood at less than 21,800, compared to more than 23,700 when Stroger left office, according to payroll records kept by the Tribune that reflect actual numbers of people working for the county as opposed to positions in the budget.

Preckwinkle would like to keep the focus on her accomplishments and not on the pop tax, but the Can the Tax group of sweetened beverage sellers isn't likely to let up anytime soon. The coalition continues to air TV and radio ads, as well as internet videos bashing pop tax-supporing commissioners.

And on Friday, the Illinois Manufacturers' Association announced it was sending out mailers to potential voters in the districts of seven commissioners who voted for the pop tax last November or have since expressed support for it. The mailers feature a picture of a taxpayer being held upside down by the feet in the grips of a giant, suited hand. Money falls from his pockets, and the ad notes the sales tax increase, the pop tax increase and increases in county worker employee salaries.

For her part, Preckwinkle has the help of former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a billionaire public health advocate who so far has spent more than $13 million on TV and radio ads backing the pop tax. Despite those ads and Preckwinkle's speech last week, the pro-pop tax side doesn't look like it will prevail, given the number of commissioners now lined up behind repeal.

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If the pop tax is repealed, then the work of reducing the spending plan outlined in Preckwinkle's budget will commence  work that is supposed to be completed before the end of November, when the county's fiscal year ends and the pop tax would expire.

That, too, could become reminiscent of the Stroger era, when commissioners worked long hours on revising and reducing spending plans, sometimes into the wee hours of the last day of November.

For Schneider, the hard work is not such a bad thing. Voters want strong county services, he said, "but they also want us to right-size county government, and I think that's what we're going to have to do nowt that we're absolutely confronted with a repeal, and I think we can do that."

hdardick@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @ReporterHal

RELATED:

[ Cook County pop tax likely to be repealed next week as 3 more commissioners switch sides  ]

[ Soda tax: How the board voted last time, where they stand now  ]

[ Commissioner John Daley flips on soda tax, boosting repeal effort  ]






A Texas father accused of killing his 2-year-old daughter in what police had called a "fit of rage" has been cleared of the crime after the toddler's 7-year-old brother admitted that he accidentally smothered her in 2015.

More than a year after Anthony Michael Sanders was charged with capital murder in the death of his daughter, Ellie, prosecutors discovered that the toddler's brother said he had rolled a "heavy" pillow onto her face while they were playing and then could not move it off her, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

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"He was unable to move the pillow. He said that the pillow was a rectangle and was heavy. It had something zipped inside which made the pillow heavy," according to court documents cited by the newspaper. The boy, who was 5 at the time, said that he told his mother about the incident a year or two ago, but that he never told anyone else because he was "afraid that he would get in trouble."

The mother, however, told the prosecutor that this was the first time her young son had told her the story.

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Sanders was watching the children one Saturday in December 2015 in their home in Watauga, Texas, near Fort Worth, while the children's mother was at an art show, police said.

When she got home about 8:30 p.m., Sanders and his son were in the living room. Ellie was in the bedroom.

Shortly after, police said, Ellie's brother went to check on her.

"He tried to wake her up, and she wouldn't wake up," Watauga Police Sgt. Jason Babcock told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram last year. "He went in there and told [his parents] that she was sleeping and wouldn't wake up."

Sanders went to the bedroom and started screaming for his wife to call 911, saying the toddler was not breathing, according to court documents. When police arrived, Sanders was attempting to perform CPR on the child.

Ellie was rushed to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Investigators had suspected at the time that Sanders had earlier pressed his hands over his daughter's nose and mouth until she died, speculating that the toddler may have disrupted him as he played computer games. "Just a fit of rage-type deal  anger," Watauga police Sgt. Jason Babcock told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram after Sanders was charged in 2016.

"He's very involved in computer gaming," Babcock added. "That's something he did constantly. She may have interrupted him somehow. His day may have been interrupted."

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Doctors told police that the girl had numerous recent injuries, including petechial hemorrhaging in and around her eyes  commonly caused by asphyxiation  as well as bruising around the eyes, according to court documents. The blood behind her ear, doctors told police, could have been caused by trauma.

The bite marks, they said, appeared to have been made by an adult.

The Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office had ruled the death a homicide caused by asphyxiation.

But that theory recently fell apart when the mother told prosecutors that her son was now telling a different story.

Sanders, who was arrested in April 2016 and set to go to trial last month, was released from jail Sept. 13.

His attorney, Tim Moore, could not immediately be reached for comment, but he told the Star-Telegram that Sanders had denied the charge against him from the beginning and was "elated" that it had been dismissed.

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Moore said he does not believe his client will face other charges.

"That's obviously up to the district attorney's office," Moore told the newspaper. "It's my understanding that it's over; there will be no more charges coming out of it."
"The next mayor of Chicago will be Latino," predicts John Hagedorn at the University of Illinois in Chicago. Latinos recently became the second-largest ethnic group in the city, accounting for 29.7 percent of the population, overtaking African-Americans (29.3 percent) and rivaling whites (32.6 percent).  The increasing power of Latinos has created tension with blacks, who have fled segregation, violence and unemployment in their old neighborhoods in recent years. In 1970 Chicago had the second-largest black population in the country, 1.3 million. It has 792,000 today. When Chicago's black and Latino voters unite, as they did in 1987 to re-elect the city's first black mayor, Harold Washington, they are a powerful force. When Chuy Garcia, a Cook County commissioner who was born in Mexico, forced Rahm Emanuel into a run-off at the last mayoral election, however, most blacks voted for Emanuel, who is white and Jewish. Another Latino aspirant for the city's top job might be more persuasive than Garcia.

The Economist

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Nearly 900 additional blacks were killed in 2016 compared with 2015, bringing the black homicide-victim total to 7,881. Those 7,881 (black victims) are 1,305 more than the number of white victims (which in this case includes most Hispanics) for the same period, though blacks are only 13 percent of the nation's population. The increase in black homicide deaths last year comes on top of a previous 900-victim increase between 2014 and 2015. ... Cops are backing off of proactive policing in high-crime minority neighborhoods, and criminals are becoming emboldened. Having been told incessantly by politicians, the media, and Black Lives Matter activists that they are bigoted for getting out of their cars and questioning someone loitering on a known drug corner at 2 a.m., many officers are instead just driving by.  The toll will be felt, as always, in the inner city, by the thousands of law-abiding people there who desperately want more police protection.

Heather Mac Donald, City Journal

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New disclosures are raising questions in the case of an Aurora priest charged with sex abuse whose trial has been repeatedly delayed while he faces deportation.

"I know the state wants to keep this trial on the calendar," Kane County Circuit Judge Linda Abrahamson said Friday. "But this recent disclosure is like an atomic bomb."

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Alfredo Pedraza-Arias, 51, has pleaded not guilty to multiple counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse, which allege that he sexually abused two girls at Aurora's Sacred Heart Church between 2012 and 2014, when both girls were younger than six. He appeared in custody in the courtroom Friday, along with his attorney, David Camic; Assistant State's Attorney Reagan Pittman; a representative from the Rockford Diocese; and a Spanish translator.

Abrahamson said the trial, slated for November, may be affected by whether lawyers have access to a man who investigated the case for the Kane County Child Advocacy Center.

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New material disclosed last week includes notes about interviews the investigator conducted that weren't turned in when they should have been, Camic said.

While lawyers would like to speak to the investigator, it was not clear if he remained with the Child Advocacy Center. The Kane County State's Attorney's office would not confirm the investigator's employment status, stating they don't comment on personnel matters.

Both Pittman and Camic said they also had concerns about 200 new pages of information from the Catholic diocese. The judge ordered the diocese to address her questions about parts of the material within 14 days.

Meanwhile, a deportation order signed in June by a federal immigration judge means Arias could still be sent back to Colombia, where he is from. If that happens, prosecutors could ask to have him tried in absentia, but they've said it's unclear whether that would work or if he could be extradited for proceedings.

At a June federal hearing, Arias asked a judge to remove him from the country, prompting a judge to issue a deportation order, the Beacon-News reported. He waived his right to appeal the deportation order, said Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman Leticia Zamarripa.

"(Arias) is trying to use his deportation to avoid trial in this case and is trying to flee the jurisdiction," prosecutors stated in court filings.

In attempts to keep Arias away from immigration officials, the Kane County judge granted prosecutors' motions to raise his bail and remand him to the custody of the county judicial center. The first time, someone came up with the additional $10,000 bond and he was released, only to be picked up again by immigration officials. Prosecutors made another request, Abrahamson raised bail by another $100,000, and Arias returned July 28 to the jail, where he remained Friday evening.

Though prosecutors in September sought to have Arias' bond revoked, Pittman on Friday said his pending deportation is no longer a pressing concern. She cited the length of time he has been back in jail as an indicator he would remain there. Camic said the parishioners who came up with earlier bonds had run out of money.

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Immigration officials previously said they would take Arias back into custody if he were released from the jail again and execute the deportation order once his criminal case goes through the court system.

hleone@tribpub.com

Twitter @hannahmleone
Kane County States Attorney Joe McMahon said hes seriously considering getting into the Republican primary for a shot at replacing Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, who announced last month she wont seek re-election. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune )

Kane County State's Attorney Joe McMahon said he's "seriously considering" getting into the Republican primary for a shot at replacing Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, who announced last month that she won't seek re-election.

Kane County's lead prosecutor since November 2010, McMahon said it's too early to answer questions about how he would approach the role filled by the same Democrat since 2003. As the state's chief legal officer, the attorney general should be nonpartisan, he said.

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"The people of this state deserve someone who will put their interests first," McMahon said. "Someone, importantly, who will remain independent of the bitter partisan factions in Springfield."

Republican Erika Harold, an attorney and former Miss America who previously ran for Congress downstate, already declared her intention to run for the seat.

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McMahon has opposed legalizing recreational marijuana, and sent a letter last month to 15 area lawmakers urging them to oppose any measures "that would legalize cannabis for anything other than medical use."

"I don't view that through a partisan lens," McMahon said. "I view that through a public safety lens and that's why I spoke up."

McMahon said he loves his job now, which he finds rewarding and satisfying. But he said he's potentially interested in getting into the race for the Republican nomination because he is "looking at this as a way to further serve my community."

McMahon's appointment as special prosecutor on the murder case against Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke, who shot Laquan McDonald 16 times, has put his name before more eyes than ever, bringing national attention to the county official. But McMahon said that's not influencing his decision.

"It's not a factor, and I will continue to handle personally and with my team that prosecution," said McMahon, who worked in the attorney general's office in the early 2000s.

In the weeks following Madigan's announcement, McMahon said he began giving more serious consideration to the realities of running a statewide campaign, he said.

"I wouldn't describe it as a lifelong goal," McMahon said. "But I've known for a very long time the significance of responsibility the attorney general has and it is now an open seat."

He's never run a contested campaign before, and said that excites him, as does going out and meeting people from across the state.

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McMahon said he plans to make a decision soon, possibly within the next week or two after considering it with his family.

According to his biography on the county's website, McMahon grew up in Kane County and has a bachelor's degree from the University of Iowa, a law degree from the John Marshall Law School, and a Master's in Business Administration from the University of Notre Dame.

In 1992, the year he graduated from law school, he started as an assistant state's attorney, prosecuting a variety of criminal cases in Kane County and eventually leading the criminal division for two years, according to the county. During his time as an assistant attorney general for the state of Illinois, McMahon prosecuted white collar crime, public corruption and health-care fraud, his bio states. He also worked in the private sector before his appointment as state's attorney in 2010. He's since been re-elected twice, both uncontested races.

hleone@tribpub.com

Twitter @hannahmleone
A straw sculpture of a ballerina was one of the creations on display Saturday at the 32nd annual St. Charles Scarecrow Festival, which ends Sunday. (Linda Girardi / Beacon-News )

Despite intermittent rain showers Saturday, a crowd still filled Lincoln Park to check the vast array of harvest figures that are the hallmark of the annual St. Charles Scarecrow Festival.

"Have umbrella, will travel," said Annette Vento, of West Dundee.

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This year's scarecrows ran the gamut from the traditional in burlap and denim overalls to the creepy, including one Halloween wedding couple dressed in white gown and formal tuxedo. One of the big attractions was a 10-foot motorized Godzilla, featuring a head that moved and foot tapped to a recording of band Blue Oyster Cult.

Vento was accompanied by her former mother-in-law, Kathleen Sosnowski, an 87-year-old native of Ireland who was visiting from Las Vegas.

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"I haven't been to the festival in years," Vento said. "It's a fun venue with lots of food. ... The scarecrows have kept our minds off the heavy weights of what's going on in the world," not the least of which was last week's mass shooting in Las Vegas, in which more than 50 people were killed and hundreds injured.

Salvatore and Katie Rigitano said they weren't going to let the inclement weather stop them from enjoying the outing with their children, Loretta, 9, Mary, 8, Joseph, 7 and 3-year-old twins Angelo and Anna.

"I took a day off from work to enjoy the Scarecrow Festival with our kids," Salvatore Rigitano said as the family visited the exhibit put up by St. Patrick's Catholic School, where his eldest children are students.

Ashley Murphy, of Rock Island, accompanied by her children Connor, 5, and Aidan, 3, said she grew up in Aurora and remembered participating in the festival as a fourth-grade Girl Scout.

"We made a '100 Dalmatians' movie scarecrow display and won a prize for it," Murphy said.

St. Charles Mayor Ray Rogina said the festival, in its 32nd year, is a crowd-pleaser.

"Last year we had more than 100,000 people in town," Rogina said. "It is by far our biggest festival of the year. There's a lot of longevity involved with this event."

This year, Country Living magazine listed the St. Charles Scarecrow Festival as one of the top 20 Best Harvest Festivals in the country.

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Organizers said they expect more than 5,000 visitors will cast ballots for their favorite scarecrow exhibit before event's end.

Event planner Julie Farris works with the Greater St. Charles Convention and Visitors Bureau, which produces the festival. They partner with community groups to come up new attractions, such as this year's tour of five farmsteads, to keep things fresh but the scarecrows remain the fest's star attractions, she said.

"Our key components are the incredibly designed scarecrows and the voting that goes along with them," Farris said.

Tom Cassell was putting the finishing touches on his three-dimensional rotating mechanical scarecrow creation set inside a 5-foot puppet stage. The St. Charles resident said it was his first entry in the Scarecrow Festival.

Cassell created diorama that tells a story of a scarecrow that chases away a crow trying to eat a bushel of corn and laughs when the scarecrow falls into a pile of pumpkins. The crow returns and has the last laugh.

Cassell, an instructional designer for corporate companies, does cartooning as a hobby, he said.

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"It's a quick little story that takes 15 seconds to watch. I wanted to do something that tells a story across a couple of panels. It was a simple way to break into the mechanical category. It just spins," he said. "The original idea took a couple of years to finalize the details, but it only took two weeks to build. The big push was in the last two days."

Sunday festival hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Linda Girardi is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
Everyone deserves to be understood. That belief is ingrained in Frankfort resident Elizabeth Colon. It led her to launch an interpreting and translation services company 10 years ago that has become a $2 million yearly operation.

In the past three years, the head of Metaphrasis Language & Cultural Solutions has racked up several honors, including 2014 Illinois Small Business Person of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration, 2015 Woman Business Owner of the Year by the National Association of Women Business Owners' Chicago chapter and among 50 2016 Women of Influence by the Chicago Business Journal.

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Her Chicago-based company, which includes a satellite office in her Frankfort home, employs five people and contracts with 250 interpreters and translators locally, among more than 600 nationally. They provide services in more than 200 languages. Colon, who has two deaf sisters, notes American Sign Language and Braille services are also provided.

As the child of Puerto Rican parents who spoke no English, she saw firsthand how her parents struggled to navigate a different culture without speaking the language, Colon shared. Today, the Chicago native who grew up on the South Side helps others facing similar challenges.

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Colon, who speaks English and Spanish, started out helping health care professionals communicate with non-English-speaking patients.

While working in health care, "I had noticed that there was a lot of breakdown in communication between health care providers and individuals who were not trained or qualified to do interpreting," she said. "The outcomes for the patients weren't what they were seeking or should have been.

"I basically got very curious about the industry and started looking for a job opportunity where I could do some interpreting. I came upon a position for a nonprofit organization as a director for their nonprofit interpreter program, and applied and got the position. I worked there for about seven years before I decided to open the company."

She also became trained as a medical interpreter and certified as a trainer, she said.

In 2007, while living in Alsip, she started the business out of her home. Colon, 50, opened offices in Chicago in 2010.

Among her company's clients are eight of the 10 biggest health care systems in the Chicago metropolitan area including, Advocate Health Care and Cook County Health and Hospitals System, she said.

While health care is a key market, Metaphrasis has diversified to include providing interpreter and website translation services to clients in such fields as government, education and manufacturing.

Metaphrasis  a synonym for translation  also contracts with artists who provide voice-over services for television, radio, audiobook and multimedia presentations.

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Colon is part of an industry that's fulfilling an important need for vulnerable individuals in the U.S. who don't speak or aren't proficient in English. It's also a lucrative field. Global industry revenues were estimated at $40 billion in 2016 and are expected to grow to $45 billion in sales by 2020, according to the Globalization and Localization Association, a nonprofit trade association that represents professionals in the translation and interpreting industry.

Daily Southtown Twice-weekly News updates from the south suburbs delivered every Monday and Wednesday >

"We are one of the fastest growing industries," Colon said. "The reason why is globalization. It's a hot market. There's a lot of opportunity with government, with businesses trying to do business in other countries, with immigrants and refugees. We have over 25 million limited English proficient individuals in the United States. So, there is a need for our services in social services and health care and legal, in education. It's an industry that's not going away anytime soon. We need to have the languages and people to continue to service" those in need.

In the face of opportunity, Colon said she has faced challenges. She said organizations are moving away from on-site interpreters and using video to connect interpreters through tablets and computers as a way to cut costs. But there are disadvantages to using the technology, she contends.

"If you don't have a really good internet service, the frames can be delayed," she said. "Also, you can lose connection to the interpreter that you're working with; if you call back, you're probably going to get someone else, and it's impersonal. You don't have that same level of comfort or trust as when there's a human person being there."

But since off-site video-accessed interpretation is among emerging industry trends, she said she is planning to add that service. She's also looking to expand to another state.

Colon has received technical assistance and business support services to help enhance her company from the Women's Business Development Center's Chicago and University Park offices and as a graduate of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program.

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Asked what she finds most rewarding about her business, she replied, "That we are able to be a voice for people who can't speak for themselves. That allows them to participate in the decision making about their care or about services that they are seeking, that we help organizations plan and realize that the service is something that everyone should be entitled to."

Fknowles.writer@gmail.com.
All votes in the CO-3 election won't be counted until the end of this week

Adam Frisch attending new member orientation in D.C., with the official outcome of the race between him and Boebert unclear
Zhang Leping (left) and Wang Longji who played Sanmao in the movie Winter of Three Hairs in 1949. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY

It was their hairstyles or headgear as much as anything that gave them instant recognition.

First, in 1928, the mouse with erect black ears and a semi-permanent grin made his grand entrance.

Then, the following year, came the youngster with the golden locks with a swished-back clump standing up in the middle of it all.

In 1934 the duck with a sailor's hat and shirt and a red bowtie said hello to the world.

Then, the following year, the lad with three solitary strands of hair on an otherwise bald head shuffled onto the stage, the hair and his two bare feet signaling that for him, unlike the other three characters, life was to be endured rather than enjoyed.

The wonder of all this is that more than 80 years after these characters  the Americans Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, the Belgian Tintin and the Chinese Sanmao  first appeared, they are still with us, ageing yet ageless, and the great amusement they gave us has left its mark on billions of people worldwide.

But beyond that fun, delivered through comic books, on the big screen and on television, these characters have at times had a serious underside. In fact in the book How to Read Donald Duck, first published in Spanish in 1971, and which became a bestseller in Latin America, Ariel Dorfman and Amand Mattelard depicted Disney comics as tools for spreading Western capitalism. As for the brave and adventurous Tintin, his first outing in the world was in a work titled Tintin in the Land of the Sovi-ets, which could not have been more political.

In Sanmao, a world away from the assertive, well-to-do, swaggering and happy-go lucky often present in Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, the seriousness lay in other directions.

His story is that of an orphan who moves to Shanghai to earn a living. He takes on numerous jobs such as selling newspapers, polishing shoes and performing kung fu. Despite his efforts, he cannot make ends meet, he sleeps on the streets and many treat him with distain.

Nevertheless, he is always keen to extend a helping hand to the less fortunate, to the point of giving whatever little food he has to beggars. He is also highly ethical, evidenced, in one case, by his refusal to join a gang of thieves who pledge that if he does he will be well fed and looked after forevermore.

Zhang Weijun hopes Sanmao can "walk out of the book" and promote charity efforts in the future. GAO ERQIANG / CHINA DAILY

Sanmao, which means three hairs, was created by the late Zhang Leping, one of China's most acclaimed comic artists, and this year marks the 70th anniversary of the most successful Sanmao comic book, Winter of Three Hairs, which had a print-run of more than 10 million copies. It is also listed as one of the 100 must-read books by China's Ministry of Education.

Zhang was born in Haiyan, Zhejiang province in 1910, and his early life was marked by the kind of hardships Sanmao would go through. The earnings of his father, who worked as a primary school teacher, were barely enough to support a family of six, and life became even harder for the family on the death of Zhangs mother, when he was 9.

After completing primary school he was forced to work to support the family. He first worked as an apprentice in a wood factory before finding a job in a printing plant in the suburbs of Shanghai in 1923, and about this time he took on several short-term jobs. He said that many of the bosses he worked for were demanding and cruel, often beating up employees. These men are depicted in Winter of Three Hairs.

In those days beating up apprentices was regarded as essential in producing the best artisans, and Zhang would later tell of how he despised it. Over several years he taught himself to draw and paint, and after having several drawings published in newspapers he began to gain a reputation as an accomplished comic artist.

When he created his first cartoon of Sanmao in 1935 it depicted a boy living in a typical lane house in Shanghai. During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1931-45), the story of Sanmao was based on Zhang's experience as a member of the resistance. After the People's Republic of China was founded in 1949, Sanmao's life would take a turn for the better as he went to school and studied science.

The newspaper Ta Kung Pao in Shanghai published its first comic strip from Winter of Three Hairs on June 15, 1947, comprising six pictures depicting Sanmao's sadness about not having parents. Over the course of the next two years the comic strip became well known throughout the country, and how much the public warmed to Sanmao was evident in the response his plight drew.

"Sanmao is living on the street," one furious reader wrote to the publisher. "Why can't you treat him better? I'm willing to put him up in my home."

In 1949, Soong Ching-ling, the wife of Sun Yat-sen, wrote: "Mr Zhang has done a great deed for homeless children, and we appreciate that. All Sanmaos in the country will never forget this."

The artist Dai Dunbang said the comic strips seemed to come alive because of the way Zhang drew the characters and how he introduced fine differences in various backgrounds.

A movie based on the comic book premiered in October 1949, the first public movie in the newly founded People's Republic of China, and it gained wide acclaim.

Zhang Weijun, 63, the youngest child of the artist, who died 25 years ago, says most of the comic series reflected his father's life.

Zhang Weijun promotes the comic, and countries in which he has helped organize exhibitions of Sanmao in recent years include Australia, Belgium, Mauritius and South Korea.

Zhang says his father came across three homeless children on a snowy night in Shanghai in 1947. The children, dressed in worn-out clothing, wrapped themselves in sacks to stay warm and gathered around a small iron can that held a fire, he said.

The next morning, he saw the frozen corpses of two of the children being loaded onto a vehicle.

"That incident shocked my father and led him to create Winter of Three Hairs."

From 1927 to 1949 China was in chaos because of civil conflict, the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and natural disasters, and this resulted in millions of refugees pouring into bigger cities such as Shanghai.

To find out more about how homeless people lived, Zhang Leping went to Chen Jia Mu Qiao in Shanghai, where such individuals gathered, but nobody would talk to him, Zhang Weijun said.

"One of these people treated my father with contempt, and that upset him. My father later realized the problem was his suit. For the poor, anyone who wore nice clothes was rich  the very people who often bullied and humiliated them."

The artist then began wearing threadbare clothes and giving out pies to the homeless, and gradually, the children started warming up to him.

The episode about a beggar urging Sanmao to become a thief was, like other episodes, based on a story these homeless children told him. In those days, homeless children would often resort to helping gangsters steal in exchange for food.

While Sanmao was someone many loved, the artist himself had one or two detractors.

"My father once received a letter accompanied by a bullet," Zhang says. "He thought it might have been a threat from local ruffians because the way he depicted gangsters in the comic strip, as nasty and greedy, showed how much Sanmao despised them."

Because they loved children so much, Zhang Leping and his wife Feng Chuyin, who had seven children, helped raise several children of friends and relatives who could not afford to.

Zhang Weijun says his mother always used the family's biggest pot to prepare rice every day for friends and relatives. The family would often house homeless orphans as well.

The late artist was also passionate about drawing for children. In his last years, when he had Parkinson's disease, he wrote: "My only pain is that my shaking hands can't paint for young readers anymore."

He also expressed his regret at the imperfect drawings he had done for a series titled Sanmao Eats Watermelon, made public before Children's Day in 1989. Nevertheless, the artist received many letters from his young readers praising him for his dedication and expressing hope that he would recover soon.

When he died in Shanghai in 1992 he was 82.

With the help of the Xuhui district government last year, the Zhang family vacated their residence and turned it into a memorial gallery. In the days after its opening, thousands of Sanmao fans lined in the streets, waiting to view the original scripts, drawings and videos related to the comic series it features.

The artist's study, kept in its original condition, can also be viewed.

"I am a little surprised to see that Sanmao can still win the hearts of readers of various ages today," Zhang Weijun says. "Young parents are still buying Sanmao books for their children as their parents used to do for them."

"Poor children like Sanmao hardly exist in Shanghai now, but people can still identify with his optimism and his willingness to help others."

"Once when I was visiting my father's grave, an official told me a man from northern China had spent a long time there. He said that once, in his most difficult time, my father had helped him."
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A total of 67 million Chinese tourists traveled around the country on the sixth day of the National Day holiday, the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) said on Friday.

People visit the scenic spot of Butterfly Valley in Yishui County, east China's Shandong Province, Oct. 6, 2017. [Photo/Xinhua]

The figure represents an increase of 12.3 percent year on year, the CNTA said.

Tourism revenue generated on Friday totaled 54.6 billion yuan (8.23 billion U.S. dollars), up 15.1 percent from the same period a year ago.

The number of tourists in major scenic spots remained high with that in Changbaishan Mountain in northeast China's Jilin Province rising by 78 percent to 22,500, according to CNTA statistics.

Zhejiang Province in east China hosted 9.77 million tourists who spent a total of 7.974 billion yuan on Friday.

CNTA said the tourist market over the latter half of the holiday running from Oct. 1 to 8 was mainly driven by road trips, periphery tours and leisure travel.

Folk customs, rural tourism, camping, theme parks and tourism complex were increasingly popular.

China's air, road and railway transport systems are to enter another peak as people have started to return.

On Oct. 1, the first day of the holiday, 15.03 million trips were made by train, an all-time high. This year's National Day holiday was extended by one more day due to the Mid-autumn Festival which falls on Oct. 4.

A separate report from the China Railway Corporation said trains were expected to carry 12.57 million travelers on Friday.X To cope with the high passenger flow, CRC scheduled 539 extra trains on Friday.

This was the second day that CRC expanded its train services during the holiday. On Thursday, 503 additional trains were arranged.

Tickets were almost sold out for trains traveling back to major sources of tourists in the next three days, CRC said.

Airports in China are also seeing a growing number of passengers returning home.
Radio Free Asia

2017-10-06

Freedoms of speech and religion, the rule of law, and individual rights and freedoms have worsened during the past year under the ruling Chinese Communist Party, an annual congressional-executive report has found, calling on the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump to do more to halt the decline in basic freedoms.

As President Trump heads to China next month, he must press China to uphold international human rights norms, respect the rule of law, and adhere to universal standards, Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) chairman Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) told journalists on Thursday as the report was published.

The report found that the Chinese Communist Party continues to use the law as an instrument of repression to expand control over Chinese society, and that the criminalization of Chinas human rights lawyers and advocates is ongoing, including credible reports of torture in detention.

US Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL)

(standing, center-R), chairman of the

Congressional-Executive Commission on

China, tells journalists that the commission

will nominate jailed Hong Kong activists

and the 2014 Umbrella Movement for the

Nobel Peace Prize, in Washington, Oct. 5,

2017. RFA

Meanwhile, in the former British colony of Hong Kong, the long-term viability of the one country, two systems model  is increasingly uncertain given central government interference, it said.

It also cited intensifying restrictions on religious freedom, particularly in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region and Tibet.

Rubio said he and co-chair Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.) plan to nominate jailed Hong Kong activists Joshua Wong, Nathan Law, Alex Chow and the 2014 Umbrella Movement for fully democratic elections for the Nobel Peace Prize for their peaceful efforts to bring political reform and protect the autonomy and freedoms guaranteed Hong Kong in the Sino-British Joint Declaration.

Under the terms of the 1997 handover, Hong Kong was promised a high degree of autonomy and the maintenance of judicial independence, progress towards universal suffrage and traditional freedoms of speech, publication and association.

But a series of high-profile interventions by Chinas parliament have cast doubts over Beijings growing political influence in the city, which extended to stripping pro-democracy lawmakers of their seats in the Legislative Council, after their oaths of allegiance were ruled invalid.

The oaths row was the first time the [National Peoples Congress] standing committee] had preemptively ruled on a case under consideration by a local court, raising further concerns about Hong Kongs autonomy, the report said.

In Hong Kong, Civic Party leader Alvin Yeung welcomed the report, saying the Hong Kong establishment and pro-Beijing politicians were unwilling to face up to this reality.

The report has seen through the emperors new clothes, and details a number of things that the pro-establishment camp doesnt want to admit, Yeung said. That includes stripping six lawmakers of their seats, and more than one interpretation [from the National Peoples Congress].

We have seen one challenge after another to the one country, two systems approach, he said.

Democratic Party leader Wu Chi-wai said the pledge of autonomy for the city has now largely been broken.

Whether on the part of the central government, the Hong Kong government or the pro-establishment politicians, this has been an exercise in gradual deception, Wu told RFA. But if the political risk factor keeps rising, as it has done, this will affect investment in Hong Kong.
ALGIERS - Chinese telecommunications manufacturing giant Huawei signed an agreement this week with Algerian telecommunications operator Algerie Telecom (AT) to develop very high-speed Internet service, Algeria's state news agency reported. According to Algeria Press Service, the partnership agreement is aimed at deploying optical cabling terminates at homes and companies.

The project will provide more effective communication between network users, including video conferencing, peer-to-peer, Internet Protocol (IP) telephony and online backup.

AT's CEO Adel Khemane told reporters that this "partnership project is set to deploy a very high-speed broadband network over a period of one year, in a bid to offer this service to more than one million customers."

Meanwhile, another Chinese telecom product manufacturer, ZTE, signed a partnership agreement with the Algerian Federation for Young Entrepreneurs (FNTE), as part of the deployment of an optical cabling network nationwide.

AT aims to strengthen its positioning in the telecommunications sector in Algeria amid competition from some prominent private operators.

China and Algeria, which established a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2014, have expanded cooperation in several fields, such as infrastructure, engineering construction and telecommunications.

Chinese telecom equipment makers are stepping up efforts to expand their overseas presence. Huawei's products are services, for example, that are available in more than 170 countries and regions.

Xiang Ligang, a telecom expert and CEO of telecom industry website Cctime, said Chinese telecom players used to only focus on the domestic market.

"But now as they leaped from followers to leaders by constantly experimenting with cutting-edge technologies, they are aggressively venturing out into overseas markets," Xiang said.

The trend also is in line with telecom carriers' eagerness to participate in global telecommunication projects.

China Mobile Communications Corp, the world's biggest telecom carrier by subscribers, said in May that it would step up efforts to build key cross-border optical fiber cable projects to link China with neighboring countries, including Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan and Kyrgyzstan.

It also plans to build eight internet data centers in countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative within three years, and build new submarine cables and international communication services' gateways to Asia, Europe and the United States.

China Telecommunications Corp, the smaller rival of China Mobile, also said earlier this year that it would invest more than $1 billion over the next three to five years to expand its presence in countries and regions related to the Belt and Road Initiative.

Xinhua contributes to the story
BEIJING -- Total assets of China Investment Corporation (CIC), the country's sovereign wealth fund (SWF), surpassed $900 billion as of August.



The figure is more than triple the original capital of $249 billion when the fund was founded a decade ago. It has grown quickly to become the world's second-largest SWF, only after the Government Pension Fund of Norway, whose assets reached one trillion dollars last month.



CIC has generated an annual return of 14.35 percent, with that from overseas investment at 5.51 percent.



"Compared with other financial institutions, our biggest advantage is that we are backed by the Chinese market," CIC's general manager Tu Guangshao said.



By the end of 2016, almost half of CIC's overseas investment was in public equities, followed by alternative assets, fixed incomes, cash and others. Around two-thirds of the investment was externally managed.



Tu said CIC's growth in the next 10 years will depend on its efforts to invest in China's economic transformation and push forward the global march.



"CIC will devote itself to serving as a bridge linking businesses and markets at home and abroad," Tu said.
Su Wenzhu says she never dreamed an ordinary librarian such as herself would be elected as a delegate to attend the most important Party conference in the country.

Su, 50, is one of the grassroots delegates that will attend the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China later this month.

She works at Hebei Library in North China's Hebei province and is in charge of the library's antiquarian books.

"I feel honored but can't see any relation between my job duties and the congress," Su says.

Although nobody has told her the reason she was elected to be a delegate, she thinks that "it might be related to my work".

She started to work at the library after graduating from university in 1987 with a major in history.

"Back then, new staff could choose what to do in the library, and not many chose what I did," Su says, adding that searching for books was the busiest and most tiring job.

Without a computer, Su had to find the names of books in ledgers that listed and classified all the books in the library, and then fetch the books for the readers.

When readers returned the books they had borrowed, she then had to return them to their assigned place.

"I knew the job was boring, but by doing this I got to know how the library runs, what books we have, and where they are," she says.

After doing this for 10 years, she was given the opportunity to choose a new position in 1996.

This time, she chose to work in the department of antiquarian Chinese books, as she thought the work would be easier and it was related to her studies at university.

"But what I learned about history in university was totally unrelated to the management of the old books in the library," Su says.

Her duties were to document the basic information about the books published before 1912 entering the library's collection, including their titles, authors, dates of publication and editions.

"It's complicated work. Just like the identification of other cultural relics. I need to read through many materials and consult experts," she says. "Sometimes identifying a book can take days of work."

After another decade of hard work, she was appointed to lead the library's antiquarian department in 2007, and was named as the head of Hebei Antiquarian Books Preservation Center the following year.

She had not been long in that post, when Hebei launched a program to carry out a comprehensive survey for all the antiquarian books across the province.

Su and her team, which had less than 10 members, visited all the places with antiquarian books in Hebei such as universities, libraries and museums, to identify the books and establish a database.

"During the past 10 years, we have catalogued nearly a million old books, and also trained many people so they can preserve them," Su says.

With the help of Su and her team, many institutions that used to care little about antiquarian books have learned the significance of them and upgraded their facilities for better preservation.

"I felt obligated to look after these old books, because they are our traditional culture which we Chinese should never lose and forget," Su says.

"I came to the library because I thought I would be able to read a lot. But it turned out I haven't had much time to read." she says. "But maybe it is because I have the 30 years of frontline experience in dealing with the nation's antiquarian heritage, which makes me one of the lucky grassroots representatives."
Xinjiang to offer 15-year universal education by 2020

Xinhua | Updated: 2017-10-07 15:43
Simona Halep took a step nearer to overtaking Garbine Muguruza as world No 1 when the Romanian raced into the semifinals of the China Open on Friday.

The second-ranked Halep eased past Russia's unseeded Daria Kasatkina 6-2, 6-1 in 69 minutes in Beijing and will face Latvia's Jelena Ostapenko in the last four. The French Open champion defeated Romania's Sorana Cirstea 6-4, 6-4.

The Spaniard Muguruza's short stay at the top is under severe threat after she bowed out in the first round in the Chinese capital with a virus.
Zhang Leping (left) and Wang Longji who played Sanmao in the movie Winter of Three Hairs in 1949. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY

He is not as well-known as Walt Disney's favorite characters, but in China the love for him has endured almost since Donald Duck hit the screen

It was their hairstyles or headgear as much as anything that gave them instant recognition.

First, in 1928, the mouse with erect black ears and a semi-permanent grin made his grand entrance.

Then, the following year, came the youngster with the golden locks with a swished-back clump standing up in the middle of it all.

In 1934 the duck with a sailor's hat and shirt and a red bowtie said hello to the world.

Then, the following year, the lad with three solitary strands of hair on an otherwise bald head shuffled onto the stage, the hair and his two bare feet signaling that for him, unlike the other three characters, life was to be endured rather than enjoyed.

The wonder of all this is that more than 80 years after these characters  the Americans Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, the Belgian Tintin and the Chinese Sanmao  first appeared, they are still with us, ageing yet ageless, and the great amusement they gave us has left its mark on billions of people worldwide.

But beyond that fun, delivered through comic books, on the big screen and on television, these characters have at times had a serious underside. In fact in the book How to Read Donald Duck, first published in Spanish in 1971, and which became a bestseller in Latin America, Ariel Dorfman and Amand Mattelard depicted Disney comics as tools for spreading Western capitalism. As for the brave and adventurous Tintin, his first outing in the world was in a work titled Tintin in the Land of the Sovi-ets, which could not have been more political.

In Sanmao, a world away from the assertive, well-to-do, swaggering and happy-go lucky often present in Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, the seriousness lay in other directions.

His story is that of an orphan who moves to Shanghai to earn a living. He takes on numerous jobs such as selling newspapers, polishing shoes and performing kung fu. Despite his efforts, he cannot make ends meet, he sleeps on the streets and many treat him with distain.

Nevertheless, he is always keen to extend a helping hand to the less fortunate, to the point of giving whatever little food he has to beggars. He is also highly ethical, evidenced, in one case, by his refusal to join a gang of thieves who pledge that if he does he will be well fed and looked after forevermore.

Zhang Weijun hopes Sanmao can "walk out of the book" and promote charity efforts in the future. GAO ERQIANG / CHINA DAILY

Sanmao, which means three hairs, was created by the late Zhang Leping, one of China's most acclaimed comic artists, and this year marks the 70th anniversary of the most successful Sanmao comic book, Winter of Three Hairs, which had a print-run of more than 10 million copies. It is also listed as one of the 100 must-read books by China's Ministry of Education.

Zhang was born in Haiyan, Zhejiang province in 1910, and his early life was marked by the kind of hardships Sanmao would go through. The earnings of his father, who worked as a primary school teacher, were barely enough to support a family of six, and life became even harder for the family on the death of Zhangs mother, when he was 9.

After completing primary school he was forced to work to support the family. He first worked as an apprentice in a wood factory before finding a job in a printing plant in the suburbs of Shanghai in 1923, and about this time he took on several short-term jobs. He said that many of the bosses he worked for were demanding and cruel, often beating up employees. These men are depicted in Winter of Three Hairs.

In those days beating up apprentices was regarded as essential in producing the best artisans, and Zhang would later tell of how he despised it. Over several years he taught himself to draw and paint, and after having several drawings published in newspapers he began to gain a reputation as an accomplished comic artist.

When he created his first cartoon of Sanmao in 1935 it depicted a boy living in a typical lane house in Shanghai. During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1931-45), the story of Sanmao was based on Zhang's experience as a member of the resistance. After the People's Republic of China was founded in 1949, Sanmao's life would take a turn for the better as he went to school and studied science.

The newspaper Ta Kung Pao in Shanghai published its first comic strip from Winter of Three Hairs on June 15, 1947, comprising six pictures depicting Sanmao's sadness about not having parents. Over the course of the next two years the comic strip became well known throughout the country, and how much the public warmed to Sanmao was evident in the response his plight drew.

"Sanmao is living on the street," one furious reader wrote to the publisher. "Why can't you treat him better? I'm willing to put him up in my home."

In 1949, Soong Ching-ling, the wife of Sun Yat-sen, wrote: "Mr Zhang has done a great deed for homeless children, and we appreciate that. All Sanmaos in the country will never forget this."

The artist Dai Dunbang said the comic strips seemed to come alive because of the way Zhang drew the characters and how he introduced fine differences in various backgrounds.

A movie based on the comic book premiered in October 1949, the first public movie in the newly founded People's Republic of China, and it gained wide acclaim.

Zhang Weijun, 63, the youngest child of the artist, who died 25 years ago, says most of the comic series reflected his father's life.

Zhang Weijun promotes the comic, and countries in which he has helped organize exhibitions of Sanmao in recent years include Australia, Belgium, Mauritius and South Korea.

Zhang says his father came across three homeless children on a snowy night in Shanghai in 1947. The children, dressed in worn-out clothing, wrapped themselves in sacks to stay warm and gathered around a small iron can that held a fire, he said.

The next morning, he saw the frozen corpses of two of the children being loaded onto a vehicle.

"That incident shocked my father and led him to create Winter of Three Hairs."

From 1927 to 1949 China was in chaos because of civil conflict, the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and natural disasters, and this resulted in millions of refugees pouring into bigger cities such as Shanghai.

To find out more about how homeless people lived, Zhang Leping went to Chen Jia Mu Qiao in Shanghai, where such individuals gathered, but nobody would talk to him, Zhang Weijun said.

"One of these people treated my father with contempt, and that upset him. My father later realized the problem was his suit. For the poor, anyone who wore nice clothes was rich  the very people who often bullied and humiliated them."

The artist then began wearing threadbare clothes and giving out pies to the homeless, and gradually, the children started warming up to him.

The episode about a beggar urging Sanmao to become a thief was, like other episodes, based on a story these homeless children told him. In those days, homeless children would often resort to helping gangsters steal in exchange for food.

While Sanmao was someone many loved, the artist himself had one or two detractors.

"My father once received a letter accompanied by a bullet," Zhang says. "He thought it might have been a threat from local ruffians because the way he depicted gangsters in the comic strip, as nasty and greedy, showed how much Sanmao despised them."

Because they loved children so much, Zhang Leping and his wife Feng Chuyin, who had seven children, helped raise several children of friends and relatives who could not afford to.

Zhang Weijun says his mother always used the family's biggest pot to prepare rice every day for friends and relatives. The family would often house homeless orphans as well.

The late artist was also passionate about drawing for children. In his last years, when he had Parkinson's disease, he wrote: "My only pain is that my shaking hands can't paint for young readers anymore."

He also expressed his regret at the imperfect drawings he had done for a series titled Sanmao Eats Watermelon, made public before Children's Day in 1989. Nevertheless, the artist received many letters from his young readers praising him for his dedication and expressing hope that he would recover soon.

When he died in Shanghai in 1992 he was 82.

With the help of the Xuhui district government last year, the Zhang family vacated their residence and turned it into a memorial gallery. In the days after its opening, thousands of Sanmao fans lined in the streets, waiting to view the original scripts, drawings and videos related to the comic series it features.

The artist's study, kept in its original condition, can also be viewed.

"I am a little surprised to see that Sanmao can still win the hearts of readers of various ages today," Zhang Weijun says. "Young parents are still buying Sanmao books for their children as their parents used to do for them."

"Poor children like Sanmao hardly exist in Shanghai now, but people can still identify with his optimism and his willingness to help others."

"Once when I was visiting my father's grave, an official told me a man from northern China had spent a long time there. He said that once, in his most difficult time, my father had helped him."

Contact the writer at xuxiaomin@chinadaily.com.cn
Zhou Yian, Liu Runging and Hu Meng from Donghua University play Chinese zither also known as guzheng, during Kenyan and Chinese youth artistic performance held at the Confucius institute of University of Nairobi. [Photo by Edith Mutethya/China Daily]

The student art troupe of Donghua University in Shanghai on Friday treated Kenyan university and secondary school students to thrilling performances of Chinese folk music at the Confucius Institute of the University of Nairobi.

The students performed percussion, wind, plucked string, bowed string and ensemble music.

Zhang Xiaodong, director of Donghua University's Art Education Center, said the group from China consisted of 16 students and 4 teachers.

Prior to the Friday's performance, Zhang said the troupe had performed at Moi, Egerton and Kenyatta universities.

"This is the first time that a Chinese university student art group has given a performance in Kenya," he said.

Speaking of the event, Liu Xianfa, the Chinese ambassador to Kenya, said a solid foundation of friendship and mutual understanding could occur through exchanges of language, culture and arts.

"With the growth of China-Kenya bilateral relations, people in both countries have become more eager than ever to know each other. As a Chinese saying goes, the key to sound relations between states lies in the amity between the people," he said.

Liu noted that friendship and goodwill between people provide a strong driving force for the long-term growth of bilateral relations.

"I really appreciate the Donghua University Art Troupe for bringing us traditional Chinese music and the valuable contributions made by University of Nairobi and the local Confucius institutes," he said.

Liu said more such events should be held to strengthen the long-standing China-Kenya friendship.

Donghua University students perform folk music ensemble during Kenyan and Chinese youth artistic performance held at the Confucius Institute of University of Nairobi. [Photo by Edith Mutethya/China Daily]

Peter Mbithi, vice-chancellor of the University of Nairobi, said cultural events are playing a key role in strengthening the relationship between Kenya and China. He said the performance by the student art troupe was the fourth one held at the Confucius Institute.

Lin Yi, one of the student artists, said she loved the passion that Kenyans have demonstrated. She said that she is willing to return to the country as a volunteer after she completes her education next year to train them on playing the Erhu, also known as the Chinese violin, and to teach them about Chinese culture.

Prior to coming to Kenya, Lin said, she had a perception that Africa was a grassland continent with animals roaming everywhere and that people wore animal skin as clothes. However, she will go back home with a different perception about the continent.

"Africans are quite open and outspoken and can clearly express their feelings. This is contrary to the Chinese who are a bit reserved. That is why some of my classmates here in the ensemble call this the 'liberation of the natural side'," she said.

Lin has been playing Erhu for the last 14 years  after joining the kindergarten.

Vincent Lembo, a student at the University of Nairobi said the performance was amazing and would love to attend another similar event.

"I also loved how the local Confucius Institute students presented Chinese songs and I'm motivated to enroll in the institute," he said.

edithmutethya@chinadaily.com.cn
Trump visit, cross-border cases, cybersecurity are topics of talks

With senior officials concluding the first round of the China-US Law Enforcement and Cybersecurity Dialogue on Wednesday, the two countries are bolstering global confidence in the fight against transnational and cyberspace crime, senior experts said.

Both Beijing and Washington have displayed strong wills by introducing more tangible outcomes through cooperation in these areas to prepare for US President Donald Trump's state visit to China next month and to make the overall China-US relationship healthier, analysts added.

Wednesday's dialogue in Washington was co-chaired by visiting State Councilor and Minister of Public Security Guo Shengkun and US Attorney General Jeff Sessions and acting secretary for Homeland Security Elaine Duke.

The two sides reached "a wide range" of consensus on counterterrorism, fighting narcotics, cybersecurity and immigration, according to an official release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The dialogue is one of four high-level dialogues agreed to during a meeting between President Xi Jinping and Trump in April.

The other three dialogues cover diplomatic and security issues; the economy; and social and cultural issues.

Fu Xingchao, director of the Ministry of Public Security's American and Oceania Affairs International Cooperation Department, said the latest dialogue marks "a key step" for realizing the consensus reached by Xi and Trump as both sides prepare for Trump's visit.

Attendance of the two senior US officials at the high-level dialogue amid the US nationwide grief over the mass shooting in Las Vegas "underlines the great importance attached by Washington to reinforced cooperation on transnational and cybercrimes with Beijing", Fu said.

China and the US are two major countries and it is their shared duty to navigate multilateral cooperation in these areas by coordinating their stances, as they have discussed during Wednesday's dialogue, Fu noted.

Jin Bo, professor and chief scientist with the Third Research Institute of the Ministry of Public Security, noted that cyberspace crimes have accounted for about one-third of all crimes in China, and it is difficult for law-enforcement from various countries to work on transnational and cybercrime cases.

China and the US each are major players in cyberspace, so the increasing number of cyberspace crimes poses a common threat, Jin said. Further, both countries share an interest in cracking down such cases, Jin added.

Trump will visit China in November, and senior US diplomats have spoken positively about the global influence of sound China-US ties.

In a statement last week, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said in a release: "Now more than ever, a strong, constructive relationship between the United States and China is important for the prosperity and stability of our two countries, as well as the world."

Fu said the latest dialogue helped set the stage for positive outcomes from the upcoming meeting in Beijing, and the two sides also worked on managing disagreements.

"Although the two countries have differing definitions or positions regarding some specific issues, it will be unaffordable to both countries and also to the world if their two-way disagreements lead to a major conflict," Fu said.
A man rides an ofo sharing-bike on a bike lane at a public park in Phuket, Thailand, Oct 6, 2017. China's dock-less bike-sharing company ofo provide more than 1,000 bikes in Phuket's key locations in late September and offered a 1-month free trial without deposit fee. Now the bike-sharing service has benefited local residents and tourists. Ofo's regular service fee will be charged at 5 Baht per 30 minutes usage, with a deposit fee of 99 Baht. [Photo/Xinhua]
A photo of Swedish journalist Kim Wall who was aboard a submarine "UC3 Nautilus" before it sank. [Photo/Agencies]

COPENHAGEN - Danish police said on Saturday divers had found the head and the legs of Swedish journalist Kim Wall, who died in mysterious circumstances on an inventor's homemade submarine.

Peter Madsen has been charged with killing the Swedish journalist who disappeared after she went on a trip with him in his submarine on Aug 10. He denies the charges.

Madsen, a Dane, was arrested after his submarine sank and he was rescued. His lawyer Betina Hald Engmark told Reuters that she had been informed of the development, but had not received any material or documentation and decline further comment.

Police identified a headless female torso that washed ashore in Copenhagen later in August as Wall's, but a cause of death has not been determined.

Madsen has said Wall died in an accident when she was hit by a heavy hatch cover on board his submarine.

On Saturday a police spokesman told reporters in Copenhagen that there were no fractures to Wall's skull.

The body parts, a knife and some of Wall's clothes in bags weighted down by bits of metal were found in Koge Bay on Friday by Danish navy divers who are assisting the police.

Police spokesman Jens Moller Jensen told reporters on Saturday that the body parts will be investigated further to try and determine a cause of death.

He said that the Madsen and his lawyers had not had time yet to react to the new evidence.

A police prosecutor said earlier this week that officers had found images "which we presume to be real" of women being strangled and decapitated on Peter Madsen's computer in a laboratory he ran.

Madsen said the computer searched by police was not his but was used by everyone in the laboratory.

Reuters
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan [Xinhua file photo]

ANKARA -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Saturday that Turkey was conducting an anti-terror operation in Syria's Idlib.

Speaking at the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP)'s meeting in Turkey's western province of Afyonkarahisar, Erdogan said "today a landmark operation is underway in Idlib, and it will continue."

"We won't allow a terror corridor along our Syrian border," he stressed, adding that the operation aims to provide Idlib's security.

Turkish President said that the operation in Idlib is the follow-up of the Euphrates Shield Operation in northern Syria, which was launched on Aug. 24, 2016, in a bid to clear Turkey's border from the Islamic State (IS) and other terrorists.

"The Free Syrian Army( FSA) is currently carrying out the operation and our soldiers haven't yet entered Idlib," Erdogan said, adding that the name of the operation will be announced.

The Turkish army is backing the FSA from within Turkey's borders, while Russian forces are providing air support to the operation, he said.

Erdogan said last month that Turkey would deploy troops in Syria's northwest Idlib province as part of a so-called de-escalation agreement brokered by Russia in August.
N. Korean Defector Describes Life as a Christian Under Kim Regime: We Met in a Hole to Worship Christian Post Contributor | 07 October, 2017 by Stoyan Zaimov

A North Korean defector opened up about the underground church he led and the secretive life he and other Christians had there. He also revealed that despite being offered freedom for renouncing their religion, believers in the notorious prison camps refuse to do so.

Choi Kwanghyuk, who now lives in L.A., told The Christian Post in an email interview through the help of a translator with International Christian Concern on Thursday that he first learned about Christianity when he went to China to search for food.

There, he was connected with a Christian missionary and began studying the Bible. Eventually, he started sharing the Gospel with nine of his friends, and continued making trips back and forth to China with the aid of the missionary.

Despite the severe oppression of religious belief in North Korea  Open Doors USA ranks the regime as the worst persecutor of Christians in the world  Choi started operating an underground church there.

"We started with the book of Matthew," Choi said about some of the first Bible meetings.

"Our meeting spot was literally underground. In North Korea, we dig holes on the ground to store Kimchee and potatoes over the winter. It's very cold in North Korea and if we don't bury it underground, then it will freeze up. We don't have heating system in North Korea," he explained.

"We meet in this rectangular hole and use [a] lantern to study the Bible. Since we cannot sing out loud, we praise by humming the hymn."

Choi pointed out that because of the strict control of information in North Korea, many of the people there do not even know that religion exists.

Read more about North Korea on The Christian Post.
Basquiats Red Skull (1982) leads in London

As crowds flock to the artists first UK retrospective, an electrifying work from 1982 takes top billing in the Post-War and Contemporary Art Evening Auction in London  one of four Basquiats to sell on the night

Among the artists finest paintings of the 1990s, Peter Doigs Camp Forestia (1996) realised 15,421,550 / $20,155,574. Studies for the work, which demonstrates Doigs extraordinary command of his medium, are held in the Tate, London, and the Museum of Modern Art, New York. Francis Bacons Head with Raised Arm (1955), which was last exhibited in 1962 and has remained hidden from public view since it was acquired by its previous owners a year later, belongs to a group of nine surviving paintings depicting the then-incumbent pope, Pius XII. It was bought for 11,483,750 / 15,009,261.

Open a larger version of this image Antony Gormley (b. 1950), A Case for an Angel I, executed in 1989. 77 x 337 x 18 in (197 x 858 x 46 cm). Sold for 5,296,250 on 6 October 2017 at Christies in London

The top lot in the Thinking Italian sale, which saw energetic bidding for the very best in post-war and contemporary Italian art, was Lucio Fontanas Concetto spaziale, In piazza San Marco di notte con Teresita, executed in 1961. A defining work from the artists much-celebrated cycle of Venezie paintings, the thickly painted canvas with coloured glass stones was bought for 10,021,250 / $13,097,774, the highest price paid for a work from this seminal series. Among the other highlights of the sale was Uomo che guarda un negativo (1967), a remarkable early example of Michelangelo Pistolettos iconic Mirror Paintings, which sold for 3,721,250 / 4,863,674, a new auction record for the artist. The sale total for Thinking Italian was 32,196,250 / $42,080,501.





Open a larger version of this image Lucio Fontana (1899-1968), Concetto spaziale, In piazza San Marco di notte con Teresita, executed in 1961. 59 x 59 in (150 x 150 cm). Sold for 10,021,250 in Thinking Italian on 6 October 2017 at Christies in London
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Police are searching for a 45-year-old man who disappeared last month from north Houston.

Jerald Reese was last seen on Sept. 19 in the Northline Drive and West Little York Road area, according to the Houston Police Department.

He was wearing a white designed T-shirt, black sweat pants and red and white Puma sneakers.

The man, whose nickname is "Tony" or "T-baby," is off his medication and police say he may be disoriented or stumble while walking away.

Police describe the man as "docile" and someone with a "loving spirit."

He is 5 feet and 10 inches tall, weighs 160 pounds, has brown eyes and is bald.

Anyone with information should contact Houston Police Department at 832-394-3800.
Texas Department of Safety

A 51-year-old former social studies teacher at Beechnut Academy was given a lengthy prison sentence Friday after being convicted of collecting child pornography for more than 18 years, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Texas.

Authorities learned of Jason Dion Johnson's participation in child pornography in December 2015 when the FBI sought to identify people who were using peer-to-peer software to traffic in child porn, a press release stated. The man has been sentenced to 27 years in prison.
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An engineering project proposed before the U.S. entered World War II could have reduced the effects from the massive flooding brought on by Hurricane Harvey that sent thousands of people fleeing for their lives, the head of the House Committee on Homeland Security said Friday during a press conference at Katy's city hall.

U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul, (R-Texas), said the Army Corps of Engineers in 1940 looked at constructing a levee system in the vicinity of Cypress Creek.

"Unfortunately, that was never done," McCaul said. "That's why we're here today - to talk about what happened during Harvey and what we need to do."

Now that the Houston area has entered into the post-Harvey rebuilding phase, McCaul said it's time to take another look at what Army engineers were planning. He said an overflowing Cypress Creek has been the cause of the most recent flooding in the Houston area - including Harvey.

A breach of the Barker or Addicks reservoirs would have sent "a tsunami of water" through Buffalo Bayou and into downtown Houston," McCaul said.

"We've had three floods in the last two years. It all emanates and stems out of Cypress Creek," McCaul said.

Last month, McCaul flew in an Army Blackhawk helicopter to inspect neighborhoods that were battered by the fast-rising floodwaters.

"It was tragic to see so many homes under water directly south of (Addicks and Barker) reservoirs. My heart goes out to them," he said.

While it was adequate for its time, a levee system in the original Army Corps of Engineers plan would no longer be sufficient to prevent flooding, officials said.

"It would simply push water downstream east along Cypress Creek," said Col. Lars Zetterstrom, commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Galveston District. "A reservoir would temporarily retain water and allow it to be released in a way that would be able to mitigate impact."

Displacing homes and businesses for a Cypress Creek reservoir wouldn't be an issue because the area where it would likely be located is still generally undeveloped. McCaul gave an early ballpark figure of $550 million to $600 million for the project.

"It will not be easy and it will not be cheap but it has to be done," McCaul said. "I can think of no higher priority in the greater Houston area than fixing the Cypress Creek issue."

He said it could take up to 10 years before a reservoir at Cypress Creek becomes a reality - if the project follows the normal construction schedule. State Rep. Mike Schofield, R-Katy, said his constituents can't wait that long.

"This is probably the highest priority in the state in terms of flood control for the number of people who would be affected and the number of people whose lives and whose homes we can save if we simply do what the government intended to do 70 years ago," Schofield said.

McCaul said his goal will be to cut through the bureaucratic red tape in Washington and expedite the process.

"The money's going to be there," McCaul said. "The question is how quickly we can get it done."
When Hurricane Harvey barreled across the Houston region, most residents worried about the immediate threats posed by flooding.

But some had another concern, one that becomes apparent only when the floodwaters recede: erosion along the Brazos River.
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The nation's top federal claims court judge  who ruled for property owners in a contentious lawsuit following Hurricane Katrina  pledged Friday to move swiftly in deciding how to proceed with the dozens of lawsuits already filed over flooding from the Addicks and Barker reservoirs west of Houston.

Urging victims to "trust their lawyers, trust the judicial system," Chief Judge Susan G. Braden of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims in Washington, D.C. said she would consider consolidating at least some of the 46 lawsuits brought so far by residents and business owners whose properties were flooded upstream by the backed-up reservoirs or downstream by controlled releases from the dams following Hurricane Harvey.

"This is a critically important case for Houston," Braden said during a packed court hearing Friday at the Houston federal courthouse.

Braden said proceeding expeditiously in an orderly manner is vital with an event of this magnitude.

One possibility raised by the judge would be to divide the lawsuits by whether property owners flooded upstream and downstream, and she indicated she might appoint a team of lead lawyers with the help of Houston's chief federal judge.

Historic rains in the Houston area from Hurricane Harvey overloaded the two reservoirs, threatening the earthen dams constructed in the 1940s by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

The lawsuits filed in the federal claims court accuse the government of knowing homes and business would if they let water out of the dams or failed to release it soon enough, for the upstream property owners.

The so-called "takings" claims are similar to eminent domain cases, with owners contending the government made a conscious choice to flood their property and should compensate them for damages.

During the hearing Friday, Braden mentioned her involvement in a case in St. Bernard Parish in Louisiana, in which she ruled in 2015 that flooding during Hurricane Katrina's storm surge amounted to a taking by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Now Playing: FOX 26 News Reporter Natasha Geigel Video: Fox 26 Houston

Rather than requiring dozens of lawyers to fly to Washington, D.C. for the hearing, the judge came to the Houston federal courthouse on Rusk Street, where five government lawyers faced at least 70 private attorneys crowded around counsel tables, into an overflowing jury box and into the first three rows of seats in the spacious courtroom.

The hearing focused on the logistics of proceeding with the 46 lawsuits the judge is aware of, as well as others she expected would follow in the coming months and years.

At one point during the two-hour hearing, attorney Adam Pulaski asked the judge if she had encouraging words for their clients, who are now contending with the devastation of flooding.

"We have one of the best justice systems in the world," Braden said. "Tell them to trust their lawyers, trust the judicial process."

Braden explained she wasn't going to make any decisions Friday but wanted to discuss general ideas about how the cases could proceed smoothly. Several lawyers needed to be sworn into the claims court bar in order to practice in her court.

Several lawyers familiar with the claims courts said after the hearing it will be essential for them to figure out how to consolidate the cases and proceed with discovery  the collection of documents and depositions of witnesses.

In addition to possibly splitting the cases between upstream and downstream, Braden discussed splitting them up by individual claims and class-action suits.

Finally, she said she would ask for some procedural help with the overflow of cases from Chief U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal, whose courtroom she was using for the day and whom she identified as a close family friend. She told the assembled crowd she planned to ask Rosenthal, who is much more familiar with Houston area lawyers, to help identify lawyers who could take on the role of lead counsel for the larger groups of cases.

Braden said she planned to speak with Rosenthal on Tuesday. She said the next big gathering for the lawyers would likely occur in Houston the week after the Thanksgiving holiday. Property owners have six years to file lawsuits over claims.

She invited David Harrington, one of three Justice Department lawyers from Washington who appeared with two attorneys from the Galveston office of the Army Corps of Engineers, to address how to organize dozens of complaints that have poured in since the flooding.

"Our primary concern in the longer term is to ensure there is a coordinated and consolidated discovery process," Harrington said.

The judge also opened the floor to any of the lawyers who filed claims, asking if they'd like to speak.

Attorney Luke Ellis, one of 11 lawyers who addressed the judge, said he supported splitting the cases into upstream and downstream groups.

Eric R. Nowak, attorney for an individual flooding case said he disliked the suggestion by others that the class-actions should move forward while the court postponed action on the individual cases.

A number of lawyers made procedural suggestions to the chief judge.

"I'd like to recommend some sort of overarching leadership for the plaintiffs," said Derrick Potts, one of the first lawyers to file a lawsuit on behalf of people flooded from the dam releases.

"This is my fifth hurricane that I've handled," said Rene M. Sigman, a regional litigation manager at Merlin Law Group in Houston, who dealt with Superstorm Sandy and Hurricane Ike cases. She suggested that the lawyers streamline the process and come up with a master discovery plan if they want results quickly for their clients.

Some of the lawyers expressed gratitude to the judge for coming to Houston so quickly. Braden said it is not unusual for judges on her court to travel to the areas where lawsuits are filed.

"I felt the sooner I'm here to show the courts are going to be here ... the better," she said.
A Cy-Fair ISD senior stayed home this week after being given an ultimatum by her principal: Stand for the Pledge of Allegiance or don't come to school.

India Landry, a student at Windfern High School, says her diploma may be in jeopardy as a result of complications following her suspension, according to KHOU.

To understand the legality of the school's actions, Chron.com spoke to Emily Berman, an assistant professor at the University of Houston Law Center. Berman said she was surprised incidents like this still occur.

"This is not legal," Berman said. "There are a lot of constitutional questions that raise difficult or ambiguous responses, but this is very clearly not legal."

Berman cited West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, a 1943 Supreme Court case where judges sided with Jehovah's Witnesses students who were expelled for refusing to salute the American flag or say the Pledge of Allegiance.

Writing for the majority's 6-3 opinion, Justice Robert H. Jackson argued that fundamental rights like free speech "may not be submitted to vote; they depend on the outcome of no elections."

When asked what she thinks Landry should do about the suspension, Berman advised the family to contact Cy-Fair ISD, but if they fail to get a satisfactory response from the district, call a lawyer.

If the incident did end up in court  which Berman believes is unlikely  she said the outcome would be pretty predictable.

"All you would have to do is talk with the court about this one decision," Berman said, referring to the 1943 Supreme Court case.

"I think that the state lawyers would be embarrassed to argue the contrary," she said. "The law here is so clear. Anytime this has happened in the past, the case has been won or the school district has settled with the student."
Sending a child to private school can make a sizable dent in anyone's wallet. Institutions that best prepare students for college can often cost as much or more than the universities.

That's why it makes sense to see which private schools offer the best value for their steep price tag.
Allen Breed/STF

Nine Republicans in the U.S. Senate, including Texas' John Cornyn, Friday wrote a letter urging the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to review the agency's decision that allows the sale of bump stocks, the accessory used to maximize gunfire in the Las Vegas massacre.

The bump stocks use the force of the guns natural recoil to allow the gun to bounce off the shooters trigger finger. The modification allows a semi-automatic weapon to fire rounds at a rate that resembles that of an automatic weapon. In 2010, the AFT allowed sales of the accessory because it did not change a weapon's mechanics.
Eric Gay/STF

AUSTIN -- A new commission designed to help overhaul and improve the state's complicated school finance system got its first members on Friday.

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick announced his four picks for the 13-member commission that has until Dec. 31, 2018 to put together a report that recommends changes to improve the public school finance system.
Although it's now legal to go aloft in a hot air balloon and shoot feral hogs running across the countryside below, Texans don't seem to have much of a hankerin' to hunt the animals from the skies.

Under a bill authored by state Rep. Mark Keough, R-The Woodlands, which became law on Sept. 1, it is now legal to shoot feral hogs and coyotes from hot air balloons. Although the measure -- House Bill 3535 -- easily passed both the House and the Senate before being signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott in June, privately some local leaders chortled at the idea.

And more than a month after the law went into effect, there are no balloon companies in Texas offering, or apparently planning to offer, such excursions.

"The department has not received any applications for this permit," Steve Lightfoot, spokesman for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, the agency that would grant permits for the hunts, wrote in an email.

The lack of interest isn't surprising to Texas balloonists, who, citing safety concerns, fought to have the bill killed as it made its way through the state Legislature.

"We're ignoring it," said Joe Reynolds, a member and spokesman for the Central Texas Ballooning Association, a nonprofit group that promotes hot air ballooning, and who had adamantly opposed the measure.

"It's just sitting there," he said of the new law.

In fighting against the bill, Reynolds and his group had argued that firing guns from balloons was simply unsafe. But now with the law in effect, Reynolds adds that even if a balloon company wants to offer aerial hog hunts, getting the necessary insurance would be nearly impossible.

"Whoever does it would have to self-insure," he said. "It's going to be somebody who's irresponsible."

With Texas and wide areas of the Southwest having an ongoing problem with the expanding hog population, hunting the animals from helicopters, derisively called "pork choppers" by some, has been legal in the state for several years. But as the balloon bill was being considered, Keough and backers of the measure who argued on its behalf pointed out that hunting from helicopters had its limitations because of the noise they make.

"Any way we can think to rid ourselves of those feral hogs," Keough said Friday in explaining his sponsoring of the bill. "I don't know what the future holds for it, to be honest. I never thought this would be a huge industry but anything we can do to help with the feral hog problem."

Indeed, officials with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department have estimated there are more than 1.5 million feral hogs in Texas. And, because there are few factors to curtail their expanding populations -- such as natural predators -- the hog population across the state is virtually running wild.

Keough, noting the limitations of the other methods of trying to eradicate feral hogs -- the helicopter hunts and poisoning of the animals -- says he does not regret sponsoring the bill. Keough is not seeking re-election to the Texas House seat he currently holds; instead he is running for Montgomery County judge.
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.
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CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Cleveland police closed several lanes in the city's Tremont neighborhood after someone shot at officers Friday afternoon, authorities said.

Sgt. Jennifer Ciaccia said none of the officers were hurt.

Traffic lanes on West 25th Street, Columbus Roads and Willey and Bridge Avenues were all closed as police investigated the shooting.

The suspect is believed to be on train tracks in the area, police said. He is not believed to be on city streets.

No arrests have been reported.

Officers posted video on Twitter that shows they deployed a drone to search for the suspect in the shooting. A police helicopter is also searching the area.

Drones now deployed by @CLEpolice to search for suspect. pic.twitter.com/EyiCpIguln  Cleveland Police (@CLEpolice) October 6, 2017

This story is developing and cleveland.com will provide an update as information becomes available.

To comment on this story, please visit Friday's crime and courts comments page.
EUCLID, Ohio -- Euclid city officials and community leaders have planned a "peace march" in the wake of several controversial incidents involving the city's police department.

The march, entitled "Peace, Love and Unity in Euclid," will begin Sunday at 4 p.m. at City Hall. The march will end with the installation of a peace pole at Triangle Park, according to a news release.

The city's police department came under fire recently for two high-profile incidents. Officer Michael Amiott was suspended without pay after he was caught on video punching Richard Hubbard III during an Aug. 12 traffic stop.

Weeks later, a Cuyahoga County grand jury decided not to bring criminal charges against Officer Matthew Rhodes, who fatally shot Luke O. Stewart during a March 13 struggle.

Demonstrators protested at Euclid City Council meetings in the wake of those incidents.

The flyer announcing Sunday's peace march does not make reference to those incidents or the police department.

Those interested in the march can contact Taneika Hill at thill@cityofeuclid.com or at (216) 609-4609.

To comment on this story, please visit Friday's crime and courts comments page.
STOW, Ohio -- A man is dead and three construction workers suffered injuries after an early Saturday morning crash, police say.

The crash happened just after 5:30 a.m. on Ohio 8 just north of Graham Road inside of a construction zone that closed two lanes, according to a news release.

A man was driving north when he hit an occupied construction vehicle, the release says. He was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

One of the construction workers was thrown from the back of the vehicle and taken to a local hospital. His condition was not immediately available.

The other two construction workers were treated at the scene and released.

The man will be publicly identified once his family is notified by the Summit County Medical Examiner's Officer.

The Summit Metro Crash Response Team responded to the scene and will assist with the investigation.

If you'd like to comment on this story, visit Saturday's crime and courts comments section.
Sam Bahour, originally from Youngstown, is chairman of Americans for a Vibrant Palestinian Economy.

AL-BIREH, West Bank -- On March 9, 2016, a 29-year-old American graduate student, Taylor Force, was tragically murdered in the Israeli city of Jaffa. Mr. Force was killed by a 22-year-old Palestinian named Bashar Masalha. There is no way for anyone to know what this crime's motivation was because Israeli security personnel shot dead the perpetrator on the scene.

In any other place on earth, the victim would be mourned, the perpetrator condemned, prayers would be sent to both families, and life would go on. But not in Israel, where in minutes Israeli leaders blamed the Palestinian leadership for the incident, which took place under total Israeli security, legal and national jurisdiction.

More than a year and a half later, new U.S. legislation is in Congress. The legislation aims to cut U.S. funding to the Palestinian Authority if it does not stop paying annual stipends to the families of those either killed by Israeli security forces or imprisoned in Israel.

With so much happening stateside, one would think that the U.S. Congress had its hands full this fall, and could, just for a moment, leave the Palestinians alone. We could only be so lucky. Rather, Congress is at it again, attempting to punish the people who have been struggling under Israeli military occupation for 50 years and counting.

The new piece of legislation, sadly named The Taylor Force Act, advanced through the Senate Foreign Relations Committee this summer. Additionally, it has just been included in the U.S. foreign operations budget measure slated for a vote in December. Embedding the measure into a broader legislative package is aimed at giving it a second path to passage.

By naming the bill The Taylor Force Act, the presumption is that Congress has bought--hook, line and sinker--the Israeli propaganda that the Palestinian Authority was somehow responsible for the death of Mr. Force, albeit the substance of the bill is about something totally different. Such a presumption is not only utterly false, but after being made so many times by Congress, it smells like the witch hunt against Palestinians that it is.

U.S. legislators will not hear both sides of this story. No mention will be made in the argument on the Hill about this murder taking place inside Israel, where Israel is 100 percent responsible for security. The Palestinian Authority has no jurisdiction, whatsoever, in Jaffa. Additionally, no hint will be made of Israel's 50-year military occupation of neighboring Palestinians.

Although the specific Act addresses a single Palestinian Authority financial line item whose amount is unclear in general, the magnitude of U.S. tax dollars being dumped into the conflicting parties is many times ignored.

Israel has been receiving U.S. financial assistance since its founding in 1948.

"Israel is the largest cumulative recipient of U.S. foreign assistance since World War II," according to a 2016 Congressional Research Service report. The total military and financial aid to Israel exceeds $3 billion annually, the largest recipient in the planned $25.4 billion U.S. foreign assistance budget for the 2018 fiscal year.

On the other hand, the Palestinian Authority came into existence in 1994. It, too, has received U.S. financial assistance since its inception, today receiving less than $400 million annually, excluding U.S. funds going to support the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), which is not part of the Palestinian Authority's jurisdiction.

Inside the Washington, D.C., beltway, Palestinians can't win no matter what they do. They simply don't have the funds, political clout, organizing ability, leadership and lobbying savvy to make a dent in the U.S. Congress.

As an American, born and raised in Youngstown, Ohio, I wish to ask the Palestinian leadership a simple question. Do you really need the U.S. funds? Of course, having more funds is always desirable, but in this case the funds are so small in the bigger picture, wouldn't it make more sense to kindly ask the U.S. Congress to keep its money, all of it?

Given the blind battering of the Palestinian Authority by both sides of the congressional aisle, and given the fact that U.S. funds to Palestinians come with so many strings attached, wouldn't it make sound political and public relations sense to relieve yourselves from all the negative publicity every few years?

The Taylor Force Act is based on smoke and mirrors. I would not lose any sleep if Congress totally stopped funding the Palestinian Authority. It would not make daily life easier under occupation, but maybe it would wake up enough American leaders to see the absurdity of their being dragged around like a flock of sheep by their Israeli herder.

Sadly, this legislation is carrying Mr. Taylor Force's name. Instead of him resting in peace, there are those who are taking joy in being able to drag his memory through this political debate. I don't.

Sam Bahour, a Youngstown native now living in the West Bank, is chairman of Americans for a Vibrant Palestinian Economy. He blogs at epalestine.com.

Follow Sam Bahour @SamBahour

**********

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CLEVELAND, Ohio - The most horrific thing about Amazon Prime's new anthology series is how frighteningly few episodes there are in its first season. If you like your terror TV served up with some dark and disturbing flourishes, "Lore" will leave you screaming for more.

The six-episode Amazon newcomer makes its debut on Friday, Oct. 13, and one of the show's executive producers, Glen Morgan, undoubtedly can tell you how appropriate that is. The longtime "X-Files" writer and producer is a huge fan of that short-lived but incredibly influential 1974-75 horror series "Kolchak: The Night Stalker," which, yes, premiered on Friday the 13th.

Although a very different show in tone and execution, "Lore" will appeal to the same type of viewer who cherished the wonderfully creepy and unnerving moments from the supernatural beat covered by reporter Carl Kolchak (Darren McGavin). So, hey, if Morgan is at all superstitious, he probably views Friday the 13th as a lucky day.

"Lore" is based on writer-producer-host Aaron Mahnke's hugely successful podcast that, in his words, "exposes the darker side of history" by exploring how horror legends and characters have their graveyard roots in true stories. Each episode examines an eerie tale from the past, explaining the origins of familiar fears and nightmares.

Think that scary dolls, from Talky Tina on "The Twilight Zone" to killer Chucky in "Child's Play," are a Hollywood invention? Unwrap the "Lore" episode "Unboxed," which follows what happened when a friendless young boy named Robert Gene Otto was given a doll in 1906. Dressed in a sailor suit and holding a dog, it became known as Robert the Doll.

And according to "Lore," it also became known as the most haunted doll in history. The contention here is that Robert was the real-life inspiration for death-dealing Chucky.

Former Clevelander Robert Patrick ("Scorpion") stars in "Passing Notes," an episode about a 19th-century minister devastated by the loss of his wife. "There exists a life after this one," he insists -- but what if, Mahnke asks, "in opening that door to communicate, something comes through?"

Other episodes present narratives about werewolves and changelings. To tell such tales, "Lore" blends re-enactments with everything from animation to doses of history.

It sounds like it would be a monster mishmash, maybe part "Mysteries at the Museum" and part "Supernatural." Yet "Lore" is very much its own stylish fright factory being run by a creative team that includes Morgan, Mahnke and executive producer Gale Anne Hurd (whose genre credits range from "The Terminator" to "The Walking Dead").

It all comes together spookily well, with "Lore" resembling nothing more than six late-night trips to the campfire for some splendidly spun creep-out stories. And each comes packaged with the assurance that (heh-heh), "It's all true, kiddies."

Convincing history? Not always. Fearsome fun? Oh, yeah.

Campbell Scott is featured in the re-enactment sequences for "They Made a Tonic," an episode about how superstitious views of consumption led to strange excesses in small New England towns of the 1800s. Holland Roden, Cathal Pendred and John Byner star in "Black Stocking." the episode about an Irish man who believes his wife has been replaced by a changeling. Colm Feore and Kristen Cloke bring the history to life in "Echoes," an episode about Walter Freeman, the inventor of the ice-pick lobotomy.

It's more than enough to demonstrate how well this concept has moved from podcast to series, so, yes, more "Lore," please.

REVIEW

Lore

What: An anthology horror series based on the popular podcast.

When: Friday, Oct. 13.

Where: Amazon Prime
BAINBRIDGE TOWNSHIP, Ohio - Animal Complaint, Snyder Road: Turkeys from a neighbor's property intimidated a woman and made a mess of her yard. She called police 9:26 p.m. Oct. 1. A responding officer visited the turkey owner who was unaware the foul were loose. The birds were apprehended and returned to their home.

Vandalism, Squires Road: Police are investigating a case of vandalism and graffiti spray-painted on the former Sea World property. The incident was reported 9 a.m. Sept. 30.

Theft, Market Place: While on a call for an adult and a youth detained for shoplifting 1 p.m. Sept. 30 at Kohl's, another person was caught stealing items. The subjects face court dates.

Theft, Taylor May Road: Someone took a woman's purse from her unlocked car parked overnight Sept. 28. Several items from the purse were found in a nearby ditch.

Assist, Walnut Trail: Police helped a woman open a locked door and free her two-year-old son 1:23 p.m. Sept. 27 from a room in her house.

Juvenile Complaint, Chagrin Road: A teen left a party Sept. 29 and called police, stating other kids there were drinking alcohol. An officer went to the scene and spoke with residents, who denied the claims. There was no sign of impairment.
October 6, 2017

 As a Canadian astronaut, Julie Payette had mission patches to represent her spaceflights and her personal journey. As Canada's Governor General, she now has a new symbol of her achievements  a coat of arms.



Appointed by Queen Elizabeth II and formally sworn in by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as Canada's 29th Governor General in Ottawa on Monday (Oct. 2), Payette serves as the Queen's representative, as well as the commander-in- chief of the Canadian Armed Forces.



"Many Canadians already know much of the story of Her Excellency's life," said Trudeau of Payette, in a statement for her inauguration. "As the second Canadian woman in space and only the fourth woman Governor General, Her Excellency has been and continues to be a trailblazer and an inspiration for all of us."





Selected as a Canadian Space Agency astronaut in 1992, Payette flew on two NASA space shuttle missions to the International Space Station, STS-96 in 1999 and STS-127 in 2009. She was the first Canadian to visit the station, and in total logged more than 25 days in space.



Before her first launch, Payette worked with Quebec artist Gerard Dansereau to design a patch that represented her personal journey.



"It has a rocket on it, a small rocket, and inside the rocket there is a star, a musical note, a crescent and a rose. And on top of the rocket, there was this little blue cat," Claire Boudreau of the Canadian Heraldic Authority described in a video accompanying the debut of Payette's coat of arms. "All of the elements have tons of meaning, so I thought that this was very interesting, that already in her past she had had the occasion to see herself in a design."



Like Payette's personal mission patch, her coat of arms is also steeped in symbolism.



The hand-drawn and painted design features two lynx cats flanking a shield decorated with a crown and a feathered wing.







Canadian Space Agency astronaut Julie Payette, seen in 1999 after her first spaceflight, wearing her personal mission patch. (NASA)

"When I was looking at photos of her, the way she looks at people, she has this frank and direct connection," stated Boudreau. "The animal that came into my mind, because I was looking for symbols, was the Canadian lynx."



"It has a way to look at its environment, but it's discreet at the same time, so I really liked it," she said.



Atop the shield are a musical stave (with the first notes of the second movement of composer Alessandro Marcello's "Oboe Concerto in D Minor") and an astronaut's helmet.



"What was clear to me was a desire, or acknowledgement, of the capacity of the human race  of humans  to go further, to transcend all boundaries," Boudreau explained.



The lynxes stand atop the Earth, shown without borders. A banner spanning the planet reads, "Per Aspera Ad Astra," or "Through hardship to the stars."







Governor General Julie Payette's coat of arms. Click on image for infographic explaining the design. (Governor General of Canada)

"I am an optimist but also a pragmatist," stated Payette in her first speech as Governor General. "It was clear, with the success of the International Space Station, that we can always do better together than on our own."



"Somehow, the International Space Station, but also big science brings us, forces us to think not in a microcosm of nationality only, but to think in terms of what we could do to advance matters and to push the boundaries of science as partners in a collective spirit, and with a peaceful intent. It's promising, isn't it?" said Payette.



Other imagery included on Payette's coat of arms include stars on the lynxes' collars, which are meant to symbolize "a spark of passion," and laurel leaves, as a subtle nod to Payette's 14-year-old son, Laurier Payette Flynn.



In addition to being used on formal documents, Payette's personal coat of arms will also be struck on the Governor General's Academic Medal, awarded in bronze, silver and gold to Canadian students who excel in their classes.
CORNWALL, Ontario  October 5, 2017  Habitat for Humanity Cornwall & The Counties recently celebrated their ReStore dedication at the new location, 1400 Vincent Massey Drive, Cornwall. The dedication took place on October 2nd, 2017, which is also recognized as World Habitat Day.

Board of Directors Chair, Hank Blasiak, welcomed community members, sponsors, volunteers and City officials. Mr Blasiak noted the ReStore is integral to building our homes. We recognized the demand in the area for more affordable housing, and this ReStore relocation allows us to do that.

Mayor Leslie OShaughnessy brought greetings from the City of Cornwall and Council and presented a certificate of recognition. We are sure your success will grow in this new location, Mayor OShaunnessy remarked while also thanking the many volunteers for their dedication to Habitat for Humanity.

On hand for cheque presentations were ReStore sponsors Cornwall Electric and Desjardins  Caisse Populaire Cornwall. Their contributions under the New Home for Habitat effort supported the ReStore relocation endeavor along with many other community supporters.

The relocation of ReStore operations from the previous Bonville store into the City of Cornwall has allowed Habitat to expand to 16,000 square feet. This new location is vital to increasing visibility, customer traffic, donations and sales, said Leigh Taggart, Executive Director. The new ReStore will also support more volunteer programming, co-op and student placements and help our Home Build program thrive.

In addition to the ReStore relocation, Habitat Cornwall & The Counties has also rebranded from the previous Habitat for Humanity Seaway Valley moniker. With this rebranding, they aim to properly reflect the communities they serve.
BRIDGEPORT  A male victim suffered several stab wounds in the city Saturday afternoon, police said.

Police responded to Bridgeport Hospital for a person who had been stabbed around 12 p.m. in the area of the 400 block of Hallett Street, police spokesman Av Harris said. He said the victim was breaking up a fight when he was stabbed.

No suspects were found in the area after the incident was reported to police and no one was apprehended. It was unclear if the victim was somehow involved in the fight or just a passerby.

An investigation into the incident is ongoing, Harris said. No further information on the victims condition was available Saturday night.
Employees of an energy company participated in volunteer efforts Saturday morning in two cities in Connecticut and across the country.

AVANGRID, Inc. is an energy and utility company based in Orange. The company operates in 27 states across the country. The company employees about 6,800 people and its mission is to provide clean energy and reliable delivery to its customers, according to its website.
Connecticut might be the last state to be without a budget, but plenty of areas around the country struggled with failed revenue projections, the lingering effects of the 2008 recession and changing political dynamics.

With the state now in its fourth month without a tax-and-spending package, theres no end in sight at the Capitol, where lawmakers meet nearly every day to look for bipartisan agreement, only to fall short of a compromise deal, yet again.

Without a new budget, Gov. Dannel P. Malloys executive order has excluded 85 of the states wealthiest towns from receiving their first-quarter school aid that went out to most school districts last week.

That underscores the growing division between the rich and poor in what is the fifth-wealthiest state in the country.

Malloy stresses that the halt of aid is temporary and payments will likely be restored when a final budget compromise is hammered out. But for now, the states bigger cities, including Bridgeport, New Haven, Hartford, Waterbury and Danbury, are benefiting at the expense of higher-income communities with accumulated savings, such as Greenwich, Westport, Fairfield, Milford, Ridgefield and Shelton.

10 late states

Kathleen Quinn, a research analyst with the National Conference of State Legislatures, said that 10 states had late budgets this year. Massachusetts, Illinois, Delaware and Pennsylvania faced growing deficits similar to Connecticut. Others, such as Rhode Island, Wisconsin, New Jersey and Maine, had small pieces of their budgets  political and procedural issues  rather than shortfalls that held them up.

More Information Top 10 states for median family incomes Maryland$75,847 Hawaii$73,486 Alaska$73,355 New Jersey$72,222 Connecticut$71,346 Massachusetts$70,628 New Hampshire$70,303 Virginia$66,262 California$64,500 Washington$64,179 "Zeroed out" Towns that got no school funding this month under the governor's executive order. Barkhamsted Bethany Berlin Bethel Branford Bridgewater Clinton Colebrook Cromwell Darien Easton Fairfield Greenwich Guilford Harwinton Litchfield Madison Milford Monroe Morris New Canaan New Fairfield Newtown Norfold North Haven Orange Oxford Plymouth Redding Ridgefield Shelton Stratford Trumbull Weston Westport Wilton Woodbridge See More Collapse

Connecticut has been dealing with some fiscal problems for multiple years, Quinn said.

Even a $1.5 billion concession agreement with state unions has left a projected deficit of more than $3.5 billion.

Plus, there is a close divide in the Legislature, she said.

There is an 18-18 tie in the Senate and a slight Democratic majority  79-72  in the House.

Peter Gioia, chief economist for the Connecticut Business & Industry Association, says that he saw a stalemate coming before the legislative election last November.

This time last year, when people asked me when I thought they might have a budget, I said it would take until at least October, and people were looking at me like I was crazy, Gioia said recently.

In an unusual move, last month three Democratic senators and five House Democrats sided with a Republican budget that squeaked through the Legislature, but was vetoed by Malloy. House Republicans then balked at a potential override vote last Tuesday, with hopes they might be able to eventually gather the 101 votes needed.

Bad blood brewing

Now what? Theyre trying to float some modification of the Democrats budget, which might happen, but theres really some bad blood brewing, Gioia said, stressing that while Democratic leaders are calling for a vote on another budget on Friday the 13th, it seems unlikely. At least $322 million in spending cuts or revenue increases seems to be paralyzing lawmakers, he said.

I think were going into November with the executive order, Gioia said. I dont see it coming together easily, and the votes may not be there for even a moderate-sized tax increase. We may end up in the next legislative session before this sucker gets done.

The chances of it going all the way to next February are about the same as coming to an agreement 13th, Gioia said. Both sides are going to have to give a lot from what their original ideology was, to come to an agreement.

Fred Carstensen, a professor of finance at the University of Connecticut and director of its Connecticut Center for Economic Analysis, agrees that politics is complicating an already-messy budgeting exercise.

I understand I think the dynamic that got us here, but both the governor and the Legislature dont seem to have the ability to chart a path to address the challenges, and I am not even confident they understand why we are in the mess we are in, he said.

Carstensen said that since 2008, no one seems to have paid close attention to what was happening in the economy and the state has neither recovered all the lost jobs nor regained the economic output.

We had a seven-year recession in real output from 2008 to 2015, Carstensen said. We are still probably $10 billion below our output level of 2008. This is consistent with the quality of jobs created, which has been much lower than those lost  and thus the income tax base has actually shrunk. And that means that the increase in rates has generated only moderate increases in income tax revenue.

The 100-day impasse, dysfunction

Carstensen said the 20-year deal with unionized public employees made by then-Gov. John G. Rowland in 1997 compounded the mistakes made by lawmakers who continually deferred investing into state pension funds, and that multiple early retirement proposals increased Connecticuts unfunded liabilities while stripping the government workforce of experienced workers.

Malloy, during his nearly seven years in office, has declined to offer early retirement incentives. He said last week that the now 100-day budget impasse is hindering the states ability to attract business.

We have been told by companies that they dont want to talk about that prospect until a budget is reached, Malloy told reporters. So that means theyre talking to other people about bringing those jobs to other states, while theyre unwilling to talk with us about that because we dont have a budget. Were talking about thousands and thousands of jobs.

The legislative deadlock, along with the dubious distinction of being the last state without a budget, is taking its toll, he said.

I think theres a concern about a dysfunction, that a reality that presents itself  and has for months and months and months  (and) people are finding a way to ignore it, Malloy said. I think thats the heart of the matter. I dont think its about that the state of Connecticut is going to close up shop.

Gioia, the CBIA economist, said that sooner or later, rank-and-file lawmakers are going to have to make some tough decisions and voter reaction might go against those from towns that dont get as much municipal aid as theyre used to.

I dont think you pull those votes together in a short amount of time, he said. We put ourselves in this position by years and years of ignoring serious long-term issues.

Gioia warned that $200 million to $300 million annual revenue shortfalls could become routine.

Weve taxed the rich, forgetting that the rich have feet, and a lot more will be moving for the next tax year, he said.

kdixon@ctpost.com Twitter @KenDixonCT
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HARTFORD  Statewide highway tolls could pump as much as $900 million a year into state coffers, and legalizing weed more than $100 million.

Building a new casino in Bridgeport could net $316 million year.

Thats over $1.3 billion annually  money that could plug deficits, fix roads and bridges and help school districts and municipalities.

But as lawmakers struggle to cobble together a new state budget, close billion dollar deficits and end Connecticuts cycle of boom to bust budgeting, none of those future money-generating options are on the table.

State Rep. Chris Rosario, D-Bridgeport, said colleagues who serve in legislatures in Massachusetts and Rhode Island are scratching their heads over Connecticuts choices.

They ask me why are you leaving that money on the table?  tolls, marijuana and casinos, Rosario said. They say thats crazy. Im in favor of all three.

The General Assemblys Democratic majoritys leaders acknowledged all three revenue options could provide stable sources of money over the long term  if the votes can be found for passage. But they also said the revenue would not begin flowing for several years so it cant help solve the immediate budget stalemate.

Im open minded on this stuff, said House Majority Leader Matt Ritter, D-Hartford, adding that at the moment we dont have the votes in the General Assembly.

Kelly Donnelly, a spokeswoman for Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, said the potential revenue sources will probably be on the table next year.

I think it would stand to reason that many of these deliberative discussions will be taken up again during the next regular session, Donnelly said. In addition, there is a set of larger policy challenges and questions unique to each of these three issues which would need to be worked out first.

Traditional economic development could provide revenue to help eliminate future deficits and offset stagnant tax revenue, but the state has been losing corporate anchors and is not luring replacements.

And when it comes to taxes, Kiplinger released a report Friday that ranked Connecticut as the 9th least tax-friendly state in the U.S. Based in Washington, D.C., the publishing company releases annual reports on income taxes, sales taxes, gas taxes and so-called sin taxes on alcohol and tobacco. It publishes business forecasts and personal finance advice.

With 169 towns and cities now clamoring for state dollars, pensions and rising employee costs draining state coffers and little regional cost sharing, Connecticut is at a crossroads.

And as the budget stalemate has shown, there are no easy answers.

High returns

Weed is now a big business across the country and Colorado and other states are raking in billions in annual revenue from taxes levied on legal recreational marijuana.

Massachusetts and Maine voters last year legalized pot, and sales are expected to begin next year. Rhode Island lawmakers recently voted to study legalizing weed. In all, eight states allow the sale of recreational pot and 21 allow medical marijuana.

Revenue estimates from taxing recreational pot in Connecticut run as high as $180 million a year. Other projections place the take at between $45.4 million and $104.6 million a year.

But numerous attempts to authorize recreational marijuana have failed in the General Assembly. Ritter said tolls currently have a better chance of passing than legal marijuana.

With weed, there is a lot of pushback, Ritter said.

Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff, D-Norwalk, said legal weed is not something that can be slammed into a budget at the last minute.

It has to be done carefully with a look at the pitfalls and proper protections for children, Duff said. Before you legalize it you need a plan in place that makes sense.

Rosario said the resistance to legal weed, despite polls that show a solid majority of residents are in favor, is rooted in fear of losing the next years election. If you do your job and maximize revenue, you will be fine next year, he said.

State Sen. Toni Boucher, R-Wilton, said legal marijuana is the last thing the state needs.

Massachusetts is pushing for job development, Boucher said. The rest is ancillary. We need to cut regulations and licensing costs and do something about collective bargaining. There are many things that can be done.

Highway tolls

Revenue projections for statewide electronic tolling in Connecticut vary, with estimates as high as $900 million a year. A study commissioned by the state ranged from $62 billion over 25 years to $5 billion if only $2 border tolls were established.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey brought in $1.9 billion in toll revenue last year; Pennsylvania $1 billion; New Jersey $1.5 billion; and Rhode Island $20 million, a recent report shows.

Tolls on Connecticuts highways have been discussed for years but legislation consistently stalled in the General Assembly. Tolls came the closest to a full vote last month when the Legislatures Democratic majority included a new Connecticut Transit Authority with authority to implement tolling in its proposed state budget.

But that budget went down in flames after eight Democrats in the House and Senate defected and voted for a Republican budget, which was later vetoed by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy.

State Sen. Scott Frantz, R-Greenwich, said he suspects Democrat will propose tolls, setting up another battle.

[Democrats] endorsed the transit authority, Frantz said. But Im against tolls.

Boucher added making Connecticut a gaming and drug state, I think thats a net negative.

High roller

MGM Grands proposal to build a $600 million waterfront casino in Bridgeport  and the over 7,000 permanent and construction jobs that come with it  represents another long term revenue source for the state.

The company is promising to pay the state $316 million annually, $8 million a year to Bridgeport and build a new employment training center in New Haven. A one-time $50 million gambling license fee would be paid to the state.

But the proposal comes with a serious problem: it would violate the existing gambling compact with the states two Indian tribes.

If a Bridgeport casino is authorized, the $260 million in annual payments from the Foxwoods and the Mohegan Sun casino resorts would end, tribal leaders warn. MGM claims the new Bridgeport casino would more than make up for the lost tribal money.

Im not opposed, its an option, Ritter said of a Bridgeport casino. But you have to figure out the compact. Is MGM subsidizing the entire compact? I have not seen that.

Duff said lawmakers must first pass a new two-year budget before considering complicated casino legislation with long term financial and legal implications.

Once you make a deal with MGM, you trade off the money with the tribes, Duff said, adding its unclear how much the company is offering to pay.

Frantz said he opposes expanding gambling regardless of where its placed.

Its a regressive tax, Frantz said. Id rather see an amusement park or something else there.
In July, Microsoft announced a reorganization of its sales teams into a commercial and consumer model. It was a move designed to hone in on new business, customer success and other growth opportunities, and a move in which commercial sales would now focus on two customer segments: 1) enterprise; and 2) its small, medium and corporate segments.

The shift signalled that traditional hierarchal organizational structures are, for the most part, ill-equipped to meet the challenges of today. And though 89 percent of corporations would tend to agree, according to a Deloitte Insights study, only a small number are doing anything about it.

By redesigning your own organization to a more team-centric structure, you can create an environment thats more adaptable, agile and responsive to the dynamic needs of not just consumers, but also the modern workforce. Here are some factors to consider:

Related: 3 Key Questions to Ask When Designing an Incentive-Compensation Plan

The compensation conundrum

With any sort of organizational restructuring, questions about compensation naturally arise. After all, a well-defined compensation structure is critical to the strength of any team: If it matches the needs of employees and reflects their efforts and successes, it can incentivize growth.

In terms of what kind of compensation works, a salary model is best suited for specialized employees, while the commission model is ideal for sales agents. Each comes with its own drawbacks: Salaried workers get a base pay no matter what but can become complacent, while commissioned teams have less reliable income streams but allow the company less control over the customer experience.

A hybrid model entails a salary mixed with a bonus, or a salary that transitions to commission. Again, this is ideal for sales teams and allows them to strike a balance between controlling the customer experience and inspiring growth in employees. Hybrid employees get paid regardless of whether a sale is closed, which can limit growth opportunities when compared with team members wholly reliant on commission.

Related: 7 New Trends Top Companies Use to Separate Performance From Compensation

Building something that lasts

No matter which compensation approach you choose, its essential to keep the following in mind:

1. Pay by commission whenever possible. Commission is the most straightforward way to encourage salespeople to sell because their growth parallels the companys growth. Whats more, your company gets the added benefit of financial flexibility. You dont pay unless money is coming through the door. For example, Fishbowl extended its commission structure to all its employees, and the result was 60 percent growth each year for six years.

From our niche in the real estate industry, which is no stranger to compensation structures, we operate in a sales-centric environment, forcing us to refine how we compensate brokers and agents. And, with many of these agents now forming their own teams -- an important real estate trend described in our company's 2017 Swanepoel Trends Report -- pay structures continue to evolve.

Use commission as a carrot you can dangle in front of team members. Set monthly, quarterly or yearly goals, and reward those who meet or exceed them. This gives workers the kick they need to be their best, which serves the company better in the long run.

2. Establish growth opportunities. Whether they are earning a salary, commission or some combination of the two, your employees should feel theres a path toward growth. Structure commission splits to scale as team members increase their transactions; and make sure your pay is commensurate with their effort and risk -- without caps and ratcheting quotas.

During its early years, HubSpot paid its sales team a base salary and $2 up front for every $1 of recurring monthly revenue, but with a caveat: a four-month clawback. If a customer left within the first four months, that salesperson would pay back the commission.

Good sales agents are good negotiators. So, dont make decisions about commission splits without understanding how theyll affect your bottom-line profits. Your side of the split should account for your expenses and protect your business in a down market.

3. Simplify compensation structures. Commissioned staff members should understand exactly how their actions lead to success. So, while your payment structure should be simple and well-defined, that doesnt mean your team members should feel that their pay wont cover their expenses.

A study by the Wharton School of Business suggested that paying more than minimum can increase productivity and longevity within an organization. And dont forget that bonuses can be more than monetary: Workers may respond well to free vacations, home services and durable goods. Spell out the kinds of compensation models available to them, and explain which ones make sense for them. This will give employees a guide to attaining the growth they want.

4. Create a healthy culture. When you encourage learning and transparency within the team, your employees will be more likely to work together to grow and deliver higher levels of customer support. This is a form of internal marketing -- a constant reminder of how the team contributes to individual success.

Take Canadian plane and train manufacturer Bombardier, for example. On the heels of having received more than $1 billion in government aid yet also having imposed two rounds of layoffs, the company chose to increase six executives' pay by up to 50 percent. No surprise that that resulted in quite the internal backlash.

The company's executive chairman, as a result, requested that his compensation be reset to its pre-raise level. So, the lesson here is that, if -- unlike Bombardier -- you design a good compensation structure and are up-front about its workings, you'll often see a positive impact on your internal culture and the public perception of your company.

Related: Wages or Commissions? This 3-Step System Helps You Decide

Overall, many methods exist for compensating your team, and one size never fits all. But, by understanding your options, you can strike a balance between team member satisfaction and your organizations overall health and growth.

Related:

How to Create a Pay Structure That Promotes Team and Company Growth

Determining Compensation: 4 Simple Tips to Follow

How to Incorporate This One Employee Perk to Improve Your Business



Copyright 2017 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved



This article originally appeared on entrepreneur.com


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 ...
During his visit from September 27th to 29th, Ambassador Vinh met with Hawaii Governor David Ige, who lauded cooperation potential between his state and Vietnamese localities, particularly in economics, trade, education, renewable energy, and climate change adaptation.



Ige said the Vietnamese community accounts for about 3 percent of Hawaiis population and has contributed significantly to the development of the local economy and to Vietnam  US relations.



Vinh, for his part, noted highlights of bilateral relations, including a visit to the US by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc last May, during which a joint statement on enhancement of the two countries comprehensive partnership was released.



Vietnam is working with APEC economies, including the US, to host the APEC Year 2017, the diplomat said.



He recommended his host boosting engagements between Hawaii and Vietnamese localities in trade and education and invited the governor to visit Vietnam.





Vietnamese Ambassador to the US Pham Quang Vinh (L) and Hawaii Governor David Ige (Photo: VNA)



Ige said he is looking forward to visiting Vietnam soon.While in Hawaii, Ambassador Vinh visited the United States Pacific Command (PACOM) and held separated meetings with US Pacific Commander Admiral Harry Harris, Commander of the US Pacific Fleet Admiral Scott Swift, and Commander of PACOM 25th Infantry Division Charles Flynn.At the meetings, the diplomat spoke highly of the development of bilateral defence-security collaboration, with expectation that both sides continue commitments in their memorandum of understanding on defence cooperation signed in 2011 and the 2015 joint vision on defence relations.Delegation exchanges, personnel training, dialogue consulting, as well as bilateral engagements in search and rescue missions, UN peacekeeping activities and overcoming of war consequences are among prioritised subjects, Vinh noted.Agreeing with his guest, Admiral Harris stated the US wants to boost cooperation with Asia-Pacific countries, particularly ASEAN member states, for peace, development as well as for ensuring safety and freedom of navigation and overflight and the peaceful settlement of disputes in line with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).The Vietnamese Ambassador also visited the military patrol vessel CSB 8020 operated by the Vietnamese coast guard, which was being docked in Hawaii. The US Coast Guard transferred the boat to the Vietnam Coast Guard last May in a bid to help increase the bodys capacity in performing maritime law enforcement and search and rescue operations./.
Jolyon Palmer will leave the Renault team after Sunday's Japanese Grand Prix, with Carlos Sainz racing for the French outfit in Austin.

The British driver announced the news himself on his Instagram social media account.

"Tomorrow's Japanese GP will be my last race for Renault," wrote the 26-year-old.

"With my grid penalty I'll be starting near the back but I will be giving it my all as always. Thanks everyone for the support during the last 2 years, it means a lot!"

Renault confirmed Palmer's departure and Sainz's immediate switch to the French outfit for the US Grand Prix.

I would like to thank Jolyon for his commitment to the team and his professionalism," said Renault boss Cyril Abiteboul in a statement.

"Since Renaults return to Formula 1, Jolyon has been highly dedicated in an evolving environment. He has shown great personal qualities and we wish him all the best in his future career.

Sainz's move would likely prompt Toro Rosso to bring back Dany Kvyat for the US Grand Prix to race alongside Pierr Gasly if the French driver decides to miss the Super Formula finale in Japan which clashes with the Austin race.

Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers

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It is apparent  even four years out  that the Conservatives face a real challenge in winning the next Election

I have watched the Conservative Party manoeuvrings of recent weeks with increasing dismay and have been saddened to see the news dominated by those who have been driven by their own personal agenda.

Their behaviour does nothing to repair the battered reputation of politics. It is not what our country wants or needs  nor does it serve it well. Politics is not a game. Government even less so. Their conduct has undermined their own party, their own Prime Minister, and their own Government. It is profoundly unbecoming and it must stop.

It is apparent  even four years out  that the Conservatives face a real challenge in winning the next Election.

I am among those who remember the far-Left influence on Labour governments in the 1960s and 1970s: the over-mighty unions; the strikes; the winter of discontent; the sky-high taxes.

Thus, for me, the concept of a Labour government led by two convinced neo-Marxists is the return of a nightmare.

And if Labour were elected, no voter could say that they were unaware of the likely priorities of a Jeremy Corbyn government, for Mr Corbyn and Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell have already spelled out the disaster they would inflict.

Mr McDonnell has been admirably frank. Born out of his distaste for the free market, his economic plans would be pure poison to any hope of prosperity. As for Mr Corbyn, his entire career has showcased his convictions: his admiration for revolutionary causes and unsavoury leaders are part of his political DNA. He holds to his views with honesty and sincerity, but they do not represent middle-of-the-road voters  nor any but a small handful of Britons.

I do not wish to see any sort of Labour government  although a tilt to the Left or Right is always in the nature of politics  but I recoil from the prospect of a Corbyn-led government.

For the Conservative Party to gain a fourth successive term, we need to win back hearts and minds that are  at present  lost to us. No one is attracted to a divided party, nor one that is in thrall to its most reactionary instincts. The party must widen its appeal and the Prime Ministers clarion call for social justice  delivered as she first entered No 10 and again at the party conference last week  clearly set out a programme that, if implemented, can and will change perceptions and re-engage the millions who have turned away from us.

We must embrace and build upon policies that help them. It would be fatal not to do so.

Such policies will not be easy to deliver. But to explore them and to implement them is the right thing to do. Right for our party, and  most of all  right for our country.

We must be ambitious. Deep-rooted problems need more than a piecemeal, timid, toe-in-the-water approach that might one day offer improvements. We need brave solutions. Our plans must engage government and private sector alike. We need to involve faster and better public investment. We need to widen and accelerate educational reform. And we must demonstrate a clear priority for the interests of the have-nots.

I hope such a programme will include a review of universal credit, which, although theoretically impeccable, is operationally messy, socially unfair and unforgiving. It is time for the Conservative Party to show its heart again, which is all too often concealed by its financial prudence. We are not living in normal times and must challenge innate Conservative caution.

Barring the unexpected, we are soon to leave the often frustrating  but now familiar and generally comfortable  embrace of the European Union and quite possibly, for the first time in our history, face the prospect of a neo-Marxist government.

I am therefore not simply advocating a change of tone by the Government, but swift and comprehensive action to correct problems that must not be left to fester.

Is such radical action necessary? Without a doubt.

Will it involve some risk? Yes.

Will it work? We must make it work.

People, people, people, must be our focus. Every individuals wellbeing must be at the forefront of our own conscience and policy.

We must persuade the Treasury that  while the cost of long-term borrowing is low  there is an opportunity to vastly accelerate public development of infrastructure and, in particular, housing. Useful initiatives have been announced but we need to go further. If this increases public debt we should  and could  accept that (as I believe the markets will) provided annual revenue expenditure is kept under control.

An essential ingredient is for the frustrating delays in planning law to be speeded up.

To house our nation better, we must unshackle the private sector. We must ensure that the windfall gains from planning approval are shared fairly between the vendor and the community.

Many education reforms are under way; that is excellent. But we must move faster and further to skill the next generation. All our talents will be needed for us to thrive in a competitive world.

And to help with re-skilling, Conservatives should actively encourage the same social cachet for blue-collar workers that has hitherto been given to white-collar professionals.

The lack of this is one of the worst legacies of a class-conscious Britain. It is out of date and must be cast aside. Government should make apprenticeships yet more attractive for employers and trainees alike.

And we should have no fear of breaking down any remaining taboos that inhibit the young or the old or minority groups from acquiring new skills. We must look for hope and opportunity for them all. It is a scandal that so much experienced talent is lying fallow.

Both radical and moderate Conservatives should all favour a programme whose primary focus is to help individuals and families the length and breadth of the UK.

We must not let ideology get in the way of common sense. Nor must we hesitate to engage the State in this cause.

I have set out only the bare bones of the action we need. The Government should invite the most original and creative minds to help flesh out the ideas and enact them.

The need for this political revolution is manifold: to end perceived unfairness; to accelerate decision-making; to improve productivity; and to allow hope to triumph over despair in the lives of too many who have fallen behind  and far more who wish to look with confidence towards their future.

We need not be caught up in a spiral of caution and fear when, by our own efforts, we can encourage opportunity and optimism. The Conservative Party has to regain the affection and support of young and old, North and South, East and West  and this can never be achieved while we restrict ourselves only to the drumbeat of Brexit, Brexit, Brexit.

The issue of Europe may obsess some but it has never been the principal concern of the public.

Every Conservative must recognise that Labours shortcomings alone will not deliver an Election victory to us. It is time for us to wake up and smell the coffee.

Our partys support is ageing. Our policies are not attracting enough of the young, millions of whom believe the decision to leave Europe has damaged their future, for which they blame us.

The reactionary element of our Right-wing repels more electors than it enthuses.

Many people in our country  especially those who have fallen behind  are disillusioned, angry, and fearful over what the future holds in an increasingly uncertain and volatile world. Speculation over who has which ministerial job  and when  is of absolutely no consequence to those whose money runs out before the end of each week.

The British people are sick and tired of the navel-gazing that has dominated the news headlines, all of which has been deeply unedifying to behold.

An uneasy nation is crying out for the Government to speak for them. To act for them. To be seen to understand what is most important to them. To create the circumstances in which they might feel more secure about the future of their families, their homes, their livelihoods. That must be the Governments task.

The Prime Minister herself made a valiant effort to get this message across last week but was drowned out by a series of events  none of which was of her own making.

But, as Parliament returns tomorrow, I would urge all Conservative MPs to reflect very carefully on what is at stake.

The country has had enough of the self-absorbed and, frankly, disloyal behaviour we have witnessed over recent weeks.

It is time for the individuals concerned  both in Parliament and in Government  to focus their minds instead on the needs of the British people, rather than on their own personal ambition.

Were they to do so, our party, our Government and  most important of all  our country, would all be the better for it.
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Ellie Bullen and Alex Watson travel the world for a living, posting envy-inducing snaps of their time on Santa Monica pier, having picnics under the Eiffel Tower and spa days in Bali.

So when 27-year-old Alex decided to propose to his stunning high school sweetheart Ellie, 24, he wanted the details to be as picture-perfect as all of their adventures had been in the past.

The couple, who are originally from far-north NSW but now call Bali home, had spoken about marriage in a whimsical sense, but there was never any push from Ellie to pop the question... or any guidance on what kind of ring she might like.

Ellie Bullen (pictured) said she was very impressed by Alex's choice of ring (seen above)

The couple got engaged against the backdrop of a vintage Airbnb in the Joshua Tree National Park, California (pictured)

'He had to get the ring designed and made in Australia and have his best mate bring it to him in Bali,' Ellie told Daily Mail Australia.

'When it finally arrived Alex ran up to the room to see it alone and later told me he freaked out and couldnt even look at it because he thought it was all wrong and I would hate it.

'He stewed on it for a few days, sneaking up to our room and peaking at it when I was distracted and each time realised he still didnt like it. It got sent back to Australia, remade, and brought back four months later with his sister.

'He said when he saw it the second time he knew it was perfect,' she added.

'He had to get the ring designed and made in Australia and have his best mate bring it to him in Bali,' Ellie (pictured) told Daily Mail Australia

Alex (pictured) saw the European adventure the pair went on in June as the prime time to propose and brought the ring along in a sock for the journey

With careful planning he decided to propose against the idyllic backdrop of Greece - but deciding and executing the plan where two different things

Alex saw the European adventure the pair went on in June as the prime time to propose and brought the ring along in a sock for the journey.

With careful planning he decided to propose against the idyllic backdrop of Greece - but deciding and executing the plan where two different things.

'Unfortunately the morning in Milos that he had planned to ask me we had some bad news from home and he had to run all the way down to the port and cancel our private sunset cruise he had booked for that evening,' Ellie confessed.

'He tried again a week later, booked a beautiful hotel in Mykonos, organised a spa treatment for me and a vegan degustation dinner but again no luck as the weather was so windy and he couldnt find a protected and private beach for a picnic.'

'Unfortunately the morning in Milos that he had planned to ask me we had some bad news from home and he had to run all the way down to the port and cancel our private sunset cruise he had booked for that evening,' Ellie (pictured with Alex) confessed

The couple, who have been together for seven years, met in high school and attended the same parties (pictured is the Airbnb Alex proposed in)

With ring in hand and two failed attempts in Europe, the pair headed back to Bali. But a recent trip to the United States saw Alex (pictured) seal the deal alongside a Californian sunset

With ring in hand and two failed attempts in Europe, the pair headed back to Bali. But a recent trip to the United States saw Alex seal the deal alongside a Californian sunset.

'We were out at Joshua Tree National Park in California. We were staying at this incredible Airbnb, its a vintage 1960s Airstream caravan that has been restored and decorated with all vintage pieces,' Ellie said, remembering October 4 fondly.

'Coming home from the national park we couldnt stop talking about how in love with this place we were. When we got back Alex set up a picnic on our front deck (hummus, carrots, berries and a pot of tea) and we sat and ate, played backgammon, took some photos (as we always would), listened to vinyls and watched the sun set and the full moon rise.

'Alex was acting a bit strange but I honestly did not expect it. I asked him "are you going to cry" because his voice was starting to tremble. Before I knew it he was down on one knee with a ring in his fingers asking me to marry him. I cant remember the exact words he said because it all happened so fast but I do know I yelled OMG and then tackled him to the ground yelling YES YES YES,' she continued.

'Coming home from the national park we couldnt stop talking about how in love with this place we were. When we got back Alex set up a picnic on our front deck (hummus, carrots, berries and a pot of tea) and we sat and ate, played backgammon, took some photos (as we always would), listened to vinyls and watched the sun set and the full moon rise,' Ellie explained

'But we started dating just a couple of months before I left for the army and the day I had to get on the bus to leave he said I love you for the first time. We didnt see each other for a couple of months and our only way of contact was by writing letters and a weekly phone call. We still have the box full of love letters,' Ellie said

The 24-year-old runs a successful Instagram account called Elsa's Wholesome Life which shares her travels and love of plant-based food

'Just us two, a caravan, picnic, and an incredible desert sunset.'

The couple, who have been together for seven years, met in high school and attended the same parties.

'But we started dating just a couple of months before I left for the army and the day I had to get on the bus to leave he said I love you for the first time. We didnt see each other for a couple of months and our only way of contact was by writing letters and a weekly phone call. We still have the box full of love letters,' Ellie said.

The 24-year-old runs a successful Instagram account called Elsa's Wholesome Life which shares her travels and love of plant-based food.

'Alex comes with me on all of our travels. We packed up our home in Australia in January and moved to Bali together and travel everywhere together. Hes kind of like my sidekick that helps me with all of my photos and jobs,' she said

In terms of planning the big day Ellie and Alex are hoping to start booking things soon, particularly as they hope to marry alongside family and friends in the Byron hinterland

'Myself, my sister and soon to be sister-in-law have all been non-stop messaging about wedding planning. For Alex and I we will also be looking to start a family in the not too distant future and marriage is definitely a step closer to that massive moment in our lives,' Ellie said

'Alex comes with me on all of our travels. We packed up our home in Australia in January and moved to Bali together and travel everywhere together. Hes kind of like my sidekick that helps me with all of my photos and jobs,' she said.

In terms of planning the big day Ellie and Alex are hoping to start booking things soon, particularly as they hope to marry alongside family and friends in the Byron hinterland.

'Myself, my sister and soon to be sister-in-law have all been non-stop messaging about wedding planning. For Alex and I we will also be looking to start a family in the not too distant future and marriage is definitely a step closer to that massive moment in our lives,' Ellie said.
Sophie Wessex made and ate some traditional Bruneian snacks on the third day of her state visit with Prince Edward.

The pair are visiting the south east Asian country to to celebrate the Sultan becoming the world's second longest reigning Monarch behind Queen Elizabeth II.

Sporting a dark green dress with her hair tied back, Sophie was shown how to cook some local delicacies over a wok.

The Countess then ate the scrumptious snacks in front of an eager crowd in the capital city Bandar Seri Begawan.

All smiles: Sophie looked resplendent as she made some traditional snacks in a wok

Lunch time: Sophie then ate the food she had made in front of an eager crowd

Dining: The Countess chatted to locals between mouthfuls

Sporting a dark green dress with her hair tied back, Sophie stuffed some pastries with rice

Masterchef: Sophie was shown how to cook some local delicacies over a wok

Having a good time: Sophie was all smiles as she posed for photos with the locals

Concentration: The Countess seemed focused on her work as she stuffed the parcels

Prince Edward and Sophie Countess of Wessex visit Kampong Ayer water village Bandar Seri Begawan

The Prince and Countess also learned how to make squares from leaves

Prince Edward and Sophie Countess of Wessex meet locals as they visit Kampong Ayer water village

Sophie smiled as she held up one of the snacks she tried in the capital city

The pair enjoyed a trip on a speedboat as they headed to a so-called water village

The royal pair walk over wooden bridges during their visit to Kampong Ayer

Sophie admires the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang car used in a recent production at Jerudong International School

The couple also watched some music practice at the day and boarding school

Mixing with royalty: Pupils showed off their sound mixing skills

Prince Edward unveiled a plaque while making his trip to the school

The prince struck a dramatic pose during the grand unveiling

The couple met Crown Prince Haji Al-Muhtadee and Sarah Crown Princess of Brunei at Qashr Al-Meezaan Palace

The two couples posed for pictures in the palace after exchanging pleasantries

Prince Edward and Crown Prince Haji Al-Muhtadee engaged in discussion in the palace

Yesterday it was back to basics for the Countess of Wessex and Prince Edward as they visited the British Garrison in Seria.

Sophie was dressed appropriately in a khaki shirt and trousers, along with a camoflauge hat, as she sampled a meal of rice and beans from a mess tin.

The mother-of-two later looked in very high spirits as she swapped her hat for a helmet during the trip to the jungle.

Sophie Wessex was seen sampling a meal of rice and beans from a mess tin during her visit to the British Garrison, Seria, on Friday

Sophie and her husband Edward, who was also kitted out in a camouflage jacket, were later seen trekking through the jungle.

They were also seen watching a demonstration of tracking techniques by Gurkha soldiers based at the garrison.

Earlier in the day, the royal couple visited Hornbill School which serves children of British service personnel.

The royal, 52, looked in very high spirits as she donned a protective helmet during the visit

Sophie and Prince Edward posed for photographs with Gurkha soldiers after watching them perform a demonstration of tracking techniques

The royal couple were both kitted out in khaki clothing during the visit to the military base

Earlier in the week, they attended an audience with the Sultan and his wife, Queen Saleha.

Other guests in attendance included Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi and Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte .

The festivities will continue on Friday when southeast Asian leaders and Middle Eastern royalty attend a banquet to mark the jubilee.

Sophie and Edward appeared to enjoy the visit, taking in their surroundings in the jungle

Sophie wore a belted khaki shirt with matching trousers, while Edward wore a camouflage jacket with white chinos

The pair looked very much at ease during the joint visit to the British Garrison, Seria

Sophie and Edward met with Gurkha soldiers during their trip to the jungle in Brunei

The couple were presented with huge garlands as they arrived at the military headquarters

Both Sophie and Edward proudly showed off their red, green and black garlands

Sophie, who was dressed in all-khaki ensemble, looked very thoughtful while trekking through the jungle

The Sultan ascended to the throne of the Muslim country, perched on the north of the tropical Borneo island in October 1967.

Queen Elizabeth became the world's longest serving monarch a year ago following the death of Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej, whose reign spanned seven

Brunei, with a population of about 400,000, is one of the world's wealthiest nations thanks to abundant oil and gas reserves.

A soldier was seen helping Sophie put on a belt to finish off her all-khaki ensemble

Sophie looked amused after the solder finished making the adjustments to her outfit

The Countess of Wessex was seen sharing a joke with husband Edward during the visit

The royal couple, who are in the country for the Sultan's Golden Jubilee, were seen watching on as soldiers performed a military demonstration

A soldier was seen showing off his military kit to Sophie and Edward as they toured the base

It was back to Sophie as she sampled a meal from a mess tin (left). She later swapped her camouflage hat for a helmet (right)

She and Edward looked more serious as they watched a military demonstration taking place

Sophie looked to be in deep conversation as she met with soldiers at the military camp

The Earl and Countess of Wessex later posed for a group photo with soldiers during the visit

Earlier in the day, the royal couple visited Hornbill School which serves children of British service personnel.

The pair are visiting Brunei to attend celebrations as the Sultan of Brunei for his Golden Jubilee celebrations

He becomes the world's second longest reigning Monarch behind Queen Elizabeth II

Sophie and Edward also went to a school, with pupils showing off their traditional dress

The Countess of Wessex was seen admiring the art work on display during the visit

Edward and Sophie were presented with yellow scarves as they visited Hornbill School, which serves children of British service personnel

A group of schoolgirls looked delighted as they showed off their traditional dress to the royals

The Countess was seen speaking to one of the pupils as she observed an art class
Even by the standards of Hollywood, it has been a spectacular fall from grace.

After nearly three decades of artistic and commercial triumph, the reputation of film producer Harvey Weinstein lies in ruins  mired in sleazy claims that at least eight women have been paid hush money to silence their accounts of his sexual harassment.

And today another of Weinsteins alleged victims, British producer Zelda Perkins  a former Weinstein employee who bravely confronted the mogul about his treatment of women  breaks a 20-year silence, alleging that Hollywood and the world of showbusiness perpetuate sexual abuse by allowing rich and powerful men to pay off their accusers.

This is a system which silences victims of all types of misconduct, protects the powerful and perpetuates abuse, she told The Mail on Sunday. That cannot be right.

There are growing calls for the many leading figures who have supported Harvey Weinstein in the past  including Hillary Clinton  to condemn his behaviour publicly. Some of Hollywoods most famous names owe their success, or part of it at least, to the patronage of Weinstein, including Gwyneth Paltrow (Shakespeare In Love) Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook; she is pictured with him) Minnie Driver (Good Will Hunting) and Jessica Alba (Sin City)

Perkins is seen as a potentially key witness and her intervention will increase the pressure on the multi-millionaire producer, who has admitted behaving inappropriately and claims to be seeking professional help.

Another of Weinsteins alleged victims, British producer Zelda Perkins (above)  a former Weinstein employee who bravely confronted the mogul about his treatment of women  breaks a 20-year silence

Last night, Weinstein was dumped by his legal adviser, high-profile feminist lawyer Lisa Bloom, who had been under mounting criticism for siding with the beleaguered studio chief. And three of the nine-man board of The Weinstein Company resigned.

There are growing calls, too, for the many leading figures who have supported Weinstein in the past  including Hillary Clinton  to condemn his behaviour publicly.

Some of Hollywoods most famous names owe their success, or part of it at least, to the patronage of Weinstein, including Gwyneth Paltrow (Shakespeare In Love) Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook) Minnie Driver (Good Will Hunting), Jessica Alba (Sin City), and Sienna Miller (Factory Girl).

Often seen as the most powerful man in the film industry, his world came crashing down last week, when The New York Times revealed that eight women have been paid hush money to silence claims that he sexually harassed them.

Two actresses, Ashley Judd and Rose McGowan have given excruciating testimony about how Weinstein pestered them for massages and sexual favours.

Last night, Weinstein was dumped by his legal adviser, high-profile feminist lawyer Lisa Bloom, who had been under mounting criticism for siding with the beleaguered studio chief. And three of the nine-man board of The Weinstein Company resigned. Bloom is pictured with Weinstein in New York City on October 5

Zelda Perkins, now 44, was named in the investigation. She had been a young production assistant at Weinsteins Miramax film company when she confronted the studio boss in the autumn of 1998.

It is understood that a Miramax lawyer was immediately dispatched to London to negotiate a settlement with a strict confidentiality clause  and since then she has kept her counsel.

Approached by this newspaper at her home in Wiltshire, however, she agreed finally to talk, attacking the culture of secrecy surrounding high-level sex abuse scandals.

Weinstein is a long-time friend of Bill and Hillary Clinton, to whose 2016 presidential campaign he was a major contributor. Above, with Hillary, and Gwyneth Paltrow, at a 1998 screening

Having read the New York Times article, I can only say that my interest is not in Harvey Weinstein. Nor the story of rich and powerful men abusing their positions, she said. This is a well-documented reality.

It seems to me that we should be looking at the system itself  the lawyers and law firms that profit from drawing up non-disclosure agreements and the top-level executives who turn a blind eye, thus enabling this behaviour.

According to the New York Times investigation, Perkins and several female colleagues were regularly subjected to inappropriate requests or comments in hotel rooms.

Weinsteins typical modus operandi, the newspaper said, was to summon young staff members to hotel rooms before making inappropriate suggestions and promises of career advancement.

Former colleagues revealed that Perkins was particularly concerned about the treatment of a woman colleague and told Weinstein that if he did not stop, she would start legal action or, even worse, go public.

Responding to the cluster of allegations, Weinstein issued a bizarre statement of mea culpa, saying he was seeking help for his demons. But he has also denied some of the allegations and later announced he was suing the New York Times for 40 million, accusing the paper of reckless reporting.

It is no surprise that there is a British dimension to the career-long sex scandal around Weinstein, who has taken indefinite leave from The Weinstein Company  the production house he founded with his brother Bob after leaving Miramax  pending an investigation into the allegations.

Weinstein, now 65, is an Anglophile who has traditionally regarded London as a fertile hunting ground for highbrow projects that add to his professional prestige. Indeed, he won an Oscar for producing Shakespeare In Love, which featured a galaxy of British stars, including Joseph Fiennes, Judi Dench, Colin Firth and Martin Clunes.

His Miramax company was launched on the success of the British film The Secret Policemens Other Ball and other hits have included The Crying Game, Iris, Scandal, The English Patient and Paddington. Weinstein was even awarded an honorary OBE for services to the British film industry in 2004.

Two actresses, Ashley Judd and Rose McGowan, have given excruciating testimony about how Weinstein pestered them for massages and sexual favours. Above, Judd (left, in 1997) and McGowan (right, in 2004)

Father-of-five Weinstein also has a British wife Georgina Chapman, founder of the Marchesa fashion label, whom he says is standing by him. His status as a high-profile champion of liberal causes  he is a major donor to Democratic politicians including Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton  is under notable threat as more women come forward to allege lewd and inappropriate behaviour.

For the Democrats, the link to Weinstein is particularly embarrassing. Mr. Weinstein has given more than $1.4 million to candidates, parties and political action committees since 1990.

Among his biggest beneficiaries is Barack Obama, whose daughter was an intern with Mr Weinsteins company this year. At a schoolchildrens career workshop at the White House, Michelle Obama called him a wonderful human being, a good friend and just a powerhouse.

Weinstein is a long-time friend of Bill and Hillary Clinton, to whose 2016 presidential campaign he was a major contributor, even holding a fundraiser in his home. Already some Democratic politicians have pledged either to give the money back or donate it to womens charities in an attempt to stave off what is already being seen as a PR disaster, highlighting the breathtaking hypocrisy of what Donald Trump has reviled as the liberal elite.

The unveiling of Weinsteins alleged sexual misdemeanours will also come as a huge embarrassment to the film world, where rumours about the allegation are said to have circulated for years.

Most studios and leading film industry figures have remained strictly silent about Weinstein  and indeed the casting couch culture that has bedevilled Tinseltown for decades.

But actress Rose McGowan, who appeared in the Weinstein Companys Scream films and reportedly settled a lawsuit with Weinstein several years ago, fired off a series of tweets about female empowerment. One read: Women fight on.

And to the men out there, stand up. We need you as allies. #bebrave.

The unveiling of Weinsteins alleged sexual misdemeanours will also come as a huge embarrassment to the film world, where rumours about the allegation are said to have circulated for years

Weinstein paid Miss McGowan a $100,000 settlement in 1997 after an episode in a hotel room during the Sundance Film Festival. The payment was not to be construed as an admission by Mr Weinstein, but intended to avoid litigation and buy peace, according to the settlement document.

The most high-profile star to accuse Weinstein of sexual harassment is actress Ashley Judd who told The New York Times that Weinstein made approaches to her during the filming of the 1997 thriller Kiss The Girls.

She said he had invited her to the Peninsula Beverly Hills hotel for what she expected to be a business breakfast meeting. Instead, he had her sent up to his room, where he appeared in a bathrobe and asked if he could give her a massage or she could watch him shower.

I said no, a lot of ways, a lot of times, and he always came back at me with some new ask, Ms. Judd said. It was all this bargaining, this coercive bargaining.

As recently as March 2015, Weinstein invited Ambra Battilana, an Italian model and aspiring actress, to his New York office to discuss her career. Within hours, she called the police, complaining Weinstein had grabbed her breasts after asking if they were real and put his hands up her skirt, the police report says.

The Manhattan district attorneys office later declined to bring charges and the incident was closed after a confidential payment was made to the alleged victim.

The scandal now raises huge questions about whether more of the stars Weinstein has worked with and helped make famous will come forward with allegations.

Probably the biggest star to have collaborated with Weinstein is Gwyneth Paltrow, who  like him won an Oscar for Shakespeare In Love. But in a 1990s New York magazine profile of Weinstein, she claimed he called in some uncomfortable favours, including asking her to pose in an S&M outfit for Talk magazine.

There were certain favours that he asked me to do that I felt were not exploitive but not necessarily as great for me as they were for him, Paltrow told the magazine. I brought this to his attention and he said: I will never do that again. And hes been true to his word.

Whatever settlement is reached by the lawyers, the damage to Weinsteins reputation, in an industry in which appearance is everything, seems incalculable.
Canadian co-eds may be thinking and talking more freely about threesomes than past generations, but few are actually doing the deed, a new study finds.

Even as portrayals and conversations about all kinds of sexuality have become more common and open, research shows that young people are decreasingly interested in having sex.

There are significant differences in how much - and how - straight male and female students want to experience threesomes.

The study's findings suggest that while college students open to the idea of others having threesomes, their interest may still be tempered by fears of being stigmatized for same-sex activity, for men, or for sexual experimentation, for women.

College-aged adults in a Canadian study expressed openness to having threesomes, but most weren't interested enough to actively seek them out. Men, however, were twice as interested in having threesomes with two women as women were in any combination of partners.

The University of New Brunswick study, conducted by psychologists Dr Ashley Thompson and Dr E Sandra Byers, surveyed 300 straight Canadian undergraduate students, asking if they had been in, or were interested in being in, a threesome.

'We have greater access to porn than ever before, so we see more sexual acts and behaviors, which increases interest. I speculate the same is true for threesomes and multiples,' Dr Thompson says.

This normalization was in part the inspiration for the study, Dr. Thompson said.

'I was motivated just from hearing friends and students talking colloquially about threesomes and about situations where they were more or less appealing, and with whom,' she says.

The survey also asked the students if they would prefer for to have a threesome with two people of their opposite sex, or one person each of their same and opposite sex.

Dr Thompson, now of University of Minnesota, Duluth, says that she was unsurprised that the male students were more interested in threesomes.

You see that in sex research in general, she says, men report more interest, regardless of the type of behavior; oral, anal, casual, committed.

But they werent interested in just any threesomes. Male students said, on average that they were twice as interested in threesomes involving two other women than they were in a threesome involving themselves, another man and another woman.

Its telling of the way our society views same sex behavior, says Dr Thompson.

Threesomes and group sex are more commonly portrayed in mainstream TV and films, like A Good Old Fashioned Orgy (cast pictured), starring Jason Sudekis

There are scripts or messages in media and society as a whole that its cool or hot for two women to hook up, but its not for two men. Its almost frowned upon.

Male students had the same average interest in threesomes involving another man as female students had in threesomes in general.

Both young men and women expressed a preference to experience threesomes with people they knew, though that preference was much stronger among women. Dr Thompson says that this is unsurprising, given that women generally face greater danger of sexual assault or coercion.

The study also found that men were even more interested in experiencing a threesome with a partner, while women were less inclined to add a third person to sexual experiences with their intimate partners.

Dr Thompson says that this gives some insight into what the potential categories of motives might be. When considering a threesome with a partner: Is it because Im not satisfied, and a threesome could be an avenue to promote a better sex life? Or is it just [ that I am or am with] someone who likes to experiment, she wonders.

She says that other motives for participating - or not - in a threesome include degree of insecurity, level of sex drive, and how open-minded a person is.

Id be very interested to see how motives vary for a third person, opposed to someone with a partner, going into a threesome, she says. She says their desires may well be categorized as interpersonal, for the couple, versus individualistic, for the third person.

There is little historical data on threesomes, and, even among the contemporary group that Dr Thompsons study surveyed, only 13 percent of the students had ever been involved in a threesome.

'We are seeing a rise of other behaviors, like rates of anal sex, oral sex, and people claim it's likely a result of how we're being socialized,' says Dr Thompson.

Dr Thompson says movies like A Good Old Fashioned Orgy make group sex seem more approachable, and less taboo.

But that doesn't mean that less conventional types of sexuality and sexual activity have entirely shed their stigmas.

Dr Thompson says that she's working on a follow-up study that will look at how men's and women's involvements in activities like threesomes are judged.

So far, 'there's slight evidence of a double standard,' she says.

'Women in particular may experience more negative repercussions than men. The impact may be related to stigma and turn into feelings of guilt and shame,' she posits.

However, she still thinks that many people have positive threesome experiences, and says that most people are interested in having threesomes 'with someone they're familiar with, especially a partner. Then those feelings of shame and guilt are perhaps more protected.'
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 18

You coming to the National Reality TV Awards tonight? asked Susanna Reid during a commercial break on Good Morning Britain.

Never heard of them, I replied. But they sound ghastly.

Were up for three awards, she continued. Best Talk Show, me for Best TV Presenter and both of us for Celebrity Personality of the Year.

The appalling mass shooting in Las Vegas almost defies belief for its scale and horror, writes Piers Morgan

These things are utterly meaningless, I sneered.

Agreed, she nodded. Unless you win one, obviously

At 10pm, my iPhone buzzed with a message from Susanna that contained a photo of her with the award for Best TV Presenter and ten smiley emoticons.

Ten minutes later, she sent another smirking picture of herself with the Celebrity Personality of the Year award and the caption: Won both!

Then a third arrived of her almost exploding with gloating joy as she clutched the Best Talk Show award. Hat-trick!

A fourth photo arrived an hour later, featuring brightly coloured condoms.

Whoa it seemed like my co-hosts ecstatic celebrations were getting quickly out of hand.

The goody bag! Susanna clarified.

I know how Hillary felt now, I replied. I won the popular vote.

We both know youd never win a popular vote, she retorted.

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 27

Over the past few weeks, Ive amused myself on GMB by doing impersonations of everyone from David Beckham and Katie Price to a monkey.

Not everyones been as amused as me.

Piers, dont take this the wrong way, emailed Lord Sugar as I prepared to address the nation today, but all this trying to imitate peoples voices and singing chants like Oh Jeremy Corbyn is not doing you any favours and starting to look like a slapdash comedy show. You have done well being controversial but this stupid voice stuff is OTT. I mean you no harm. Anyway there you are. Alan.

Does this mean I cant do my Alan Sugar impression today? I responded.

All the professional impersonators like Rory Bremner cant do it, he said, so you have no chance. But seriously, pack it in  it is very cringey.

Of course, I then spent much of the next two-and-a-half hours crudely impersonating him in a way that viewers thought sounded more like Grant Mitchell and Jack Sparrow than the old growler.

Sugar, whose new Apprentice series is about to abominate our airwaves, took it well. I am watching GMB, he tweeted, and your impressions are giving me morning sickness. Im not pregnant.

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 29

Playboy founder Hugh Hefner has died at the age of 91, leaving behind his widow Crystal, a 31-year-old ex-Playmate.

I feel partly responsible for their marriage.

In February 2011, the Hef appeared with Crystal on my old CNN show to announce their engagement.

Five months later Hefner reappeared alone to discuss why Crystal had jilted him days before the wedding  taking a 300,00 Bentley hed just bought her, and a 70,000 engagement ring. Do you think she took you for a ride? I asked.

I think an argument could be made for that, yes, he admitted. But I must say, it was a pretty nice ride! And shed have got a lot more if shed married me. I missed a bullet...

Crystal heard this, raced back to Hefners arms faster than a hyperactive greyhound and they wed the next year.

Today, it emerged that under the terms of their pre-nup marriage contract, Crystal will inherit 3 million in cash and a luxury 5 million home in the Hollywood Hills.

So Hefner did eventually catch that bullet.

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 3

The appalling mass shooting in Las Vegas almost defies belief for its scale and horror.

Ive campaigned for gun control in America since the Sandy Hook atrocity in 2012, when I was working for CNN. One of my most enlightened conversations about this explosive issue came with a famous US actress after another school shooting in 2015 during the US election race, when a student at Umpqua College in Oregon shot dead a professor and eight other students in a classroom.

What IS it with your nation and guns? I asked the actress.

Shameful, I know, she replied. Its so deeply controversial and brings up so many other issues: race relations, religious intolerances, etc  so since we cant solve each of those in one fell swoop, the logical solution would be to have much stricter gun laws. But there is resistance. Not sure how you sleep at night with that over your head unless you fall into the Trump school of thought that its not the guns but the mental illness. So then why give mentally ill people access to guns? Legally? Its staggering. I admired your stance at CNN on gun violence. Just wish more people in my country would make a stand about it.

If America regulated guns like it does cars, I replied, thousands of lives would be saved every year.

Yes, she agreed. I read an interesting thing on Instagram recently suggesting we treat every man who wants a gun like a young woman who wants an abortion. So hed have a mandatory 48-hour waiting period, parental permission and a note from his doctor proving he knows what hes doing. Then hed be shown a video about the effects of gun violence and when he tried to buy one, hed be made to walk through a bunch of people calling him a murderer because their loved ones had been shot dead.

Good idea from at least one American who understands something has to be done to stop the slaughter.

The actress was Meghan Markle.
Turner Prize 2017

Ferens Art Gallery, Hull, until Jan 7

The centrepiece to Hulls year as UK City Of Culture. Lubaina Himids painted crockery is displayed alongside Andrea Buttners large woodcuts, Hurvin Andersons paintings (Northern Range, right) and Rosalind Nashashibis startling film chronicling everyday life in Gaza.

Hurvin Andersons painting Northern Range, part of the Truner Prize show at the Ferens Art Gallery, Hull

Cezanne Portraits

National Portrait Gallery, London, Oct 26 until Feb 11

Dubbed the father of us all by Matisse and Picasso, Cezanne is undoubtedly one of the most influential artists of the 19th century. The National Portrait Gallerys blockbuster show cements the French masters position as the father of modern art by focusing on the Post-Impressionists portraits of friends and family (The Artists Father Reading LEvenement, below), many never seen in the UK before.

The Artists Father Reading LEvenement, by Cezanne. The National Portrait Gallerys blockbuster show cements the French masters position as the father of modern art

Reflections: Van Eyck And The Pre-Raphaelites

National Gallery, London, until Apr 2

Van Eycks Arnolfini Portrait was bought by the National Gallery in 1842 and this fascinating show focuses on the impact it had on Dante Gabriel Rossetti, William Holman Hunt and John Everett Millais, who went on to found the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.

Rembrandt: Lightening The Darkness

Norwich Castle Museum And Art Gallery, Oct 21 until Jan 7

Norwich Castles impressive collection of etchings and prints by the Dutch master are complemented by prestigious loans in an exhibition exploring Rembrandts use of light and shade.

Tove Jansson (1914-2001)

Dulwich Picture Gallery, London, Oct 25 until Jan 28

The south London gallery proves that there was more than Moomins to Jansson as it stages the first major UK retrospective of the great Finnish illustrator. Satirical images and caricatures (including some of Hitler from during the war) rub shoulders with more traditional paintings and some unseen Moomin images.

Impressionists In London

Tate Britain, London, Nov 2 until May 7

London through the eyes of some of Frances greatest artists  Monet, Tissot and Pissarro  who sought refuge in the capital during the Franco-Prussian war. A highlight is six of the 19 paintings of the Houses of Parliament by Monet.

John Piper

Tate Liverpool, Nov 17 until Mar 18

One of Britains leading modernists, Pipers legacy is reassessed in Tate Liverpools new exhibition, which places him alongside the likes of Picasso and Alexander Calder. Visitors should also check out the gallerys free exhibition of Pop Art giant Roy Lichtenstein (below, In The Car) running until Jun 17 and part of the Artist Rooms series.

In The Car, by Roy Lichtenstein. Tate Liverpool has a free exhibition of the Pop Art master's work

Modigliani

Tate Modern, London Nov 23 until Apr 2

When Modiglianis nudes were seen in 1917 they led police to censor the artists only solo exhibition. A century later, these images form the centrepiece of this new show (including a painting of muse Jeanne Hebuterne, below) dedicated to the tragic artist, who died aged 35.

When Modiglianis nudes were seen in 1917 they led police to censor the artists only solo exhibition

Paula Rego: The Boy Who Loved The Sea And Other Stories

Jerwood Gallery, Hastings Oct 21 until Jan 7

Return to a public gallery for the world-renowned artist with pictorial sea myths, nursery-rhyme prints and new self-portraits shown together. Also in the show is a series of pastel drawings called The Depression Series, never intended for exhibition and created as a type of therapy when Rego suffered severe depression.

Regos Our Lady Of Sorrows. Also in the show is a series of pastel drawings called The Depression Series, created as a type of therapy when Rego suffered severe depression

Rebecca Warren: All That Heaven Allows

Tate St Ives, Sat until Jan 7

The refurbishment of the Tates Cornish outpost is complete. Rebecca Warrens playful sculptures are the opening exhibition, the first major UK solo show of her work for eight years, and there is also a new display celebrating artistssuch as Barbara Hepworth and Ben Nicholson, who worked in the town.
Blade Runner 2049 Cert: 15 2hrs 43mins

Rating:

At the request of its director, Denis Villeneuve, I am supposed to tell you as little as possible about Blade Runner 2049, the long-awaited sequel to Ridley Scotts 1982 classic.

But, having given the matter some thought, there are at least three things I can tell you about a film set 30 years after the original  its still raining (at least when its not snowing), you wait a very long time for Harrison Ford to appear and what was the third thing? Oh, yes, its really, really disappointing, which, for any fans of the original, like me, is heartbreaking.

What goes wrong? Its tempting to say nearly everything, but that wouldnt be fair, particularly on Ryan Gosling, who does his handsome best in the central role of LAPD officer K who, just like Fords Deckard all those years ago, is a blade runner.

In its well-intentioned efforts to somehow match the impact of the original, this is a film that has become overblown, over-written and massively over-long

Retiring so-called replicants is an easier job than it used to be, apparently  these days the new models of bio-engineered humans produced by the inevitably sinister Wallace Corporation, successor to the Tyrell Corp of the original, know what they are and cannot lie about it.

Heck, even K knows hes a replicant, a level of self-awareness that might have saved a lot of time  and decades of internet speculation  had Deckard been similarly blessed. At least, I think it might have still not entirely sure.

Anyway, a blade runners job in 2049 is chasing down the earlier, more cunning and mendacious models, and its while K is busy doing just that that he makes a discovery. What he finds is buried deep underground and provides the first strong link between the first film and this one.

The scene in which we discover what it is should be a hairs-on-the-back-of-the-neck moment  I could almost hear Vangeliss wonderful mournful synthesiser refrain  but its symptomatic of a film that misses so many of its big moments that it isnt.

Harrison Ford as Deckard and Ryan Gosling as K. Ford, when he does finally appear, briefly lends gravitas and a sense of cinematic occasion but, eventually, even he feels wasted

Theres no Vangelis; instead the ubiquitous Hans Zimmer and Benjamin Wallfisch provide an at-times deafening sound-a-vaguely-alike score that I cant remember a note of.

The hairs on the back of my neck stayed firmly in place too, with any nostalgic emotional response dampened, to put it mildly, by the first of several plot twists so complicated that youre almost scratching your non-replicant head. What? I mean, what?

In its well-intentioned efforts to somehow match the impact of the original, this is a film that has become overblown, over-written and massively over-long.

Its two hours 43 minutes in its entirety, for goodness sake, and after the first hour there wasnt a single moment when I wasnt hoping that Villeneuve and his scriptwriting team were about to pull the Blade Runner equivalent of a rabbit out of a hat.

Jared Leto as Niander Wallace. Scotts original hardly bounced along but this makes it look positively pacey

But the movie magic never comes. Instead, their ponderously slow new picture just goes on and on and on. Scotts original hardly bounced along but this makes it look positively pacey.

Ford, when he does finally appear, briefly lends gravitas and a sense of cinematic occasion but, eventually, even he  surely the films unbeatable winning ace  feels wasted.

The visual effects are decent but only really reinforce how brilliantly Scotts team did all those years ago, while the production design is both duller and poorer, depicting a greyer, dirtier, less bustling Greater Los Angeles. Theres a level of detail  an overall vision  that just seems to be missing.

The casual sexism, however, that was almost the film-making norm in the early Eighties, is still very much in existence.

Sylvia Hoeks as Luv. I love the stylistic echoes of Sean Young and Daryl Hannah from the original, but some of the other similarities now border on cliche

Robin Wright is excellent as Ks boss but she inhabits a world where prostitution is rife, giant holographic nude female figures stalk the streets looking for men to pitch their services to, and even K is having an affair with a digital female hes bought online.

This sort of sex-bot subplot is so familiar (Her, Ex Machina etc) and milked so endlessly here that Villeneuve  the director of the excellent Arrival, of course  and screenwriters Hampton Fancher and Michael Green should be hanging their heads in collective shame.

I love the stylistic echoes of Sean Young and Daryl Hannah from the original, but some of the other similarities  the sinister, monolithic corporate headquarters, for instance  now border on cliche, while the plot is eventually uninvolving.

The original was full of iconic moments; I cant think of a single one here.

SECOND SCREEN

The Glass Castle (12A)

Rating:

The Mountain Between Us (12A)

Rating:

Woody Harrelson has garnered only two Oscar nominations in his 30-year career and while its too early in the warm-up to awards season to have any real idea of his chances of landing a third, The Glass Castle certainly provides a timely reminder that, on his day, he can be very good indeed.

Based (fairly loosely) on the best-selling memoir by the American journalist Jeanette Walls, the film sees Harrelson playing Rex Walls, a volatile free-spirit who doesnt want to be told what to do by anybody. His four young children dont go to school, he moves endlessly from job to job, and the familys regular moonlit flits always keep them one step ahead of the bailiffs.

Hes a charismatic force of chaos but, unfortunately for Jeanette and her long-suffering siblings, hes also a narcissist and a drunk. And their hippie-dippie, artistic mother, Rose (Naomi Watts), is no help  shed prefer to paint than cook and thinks her husband, with his romantic daydream of building a glass castle for them all, is a genius.

There are distinct echoes here of Captain Fantastic, another recent portrait of unconventional, off-the-grid family life, and of Esther Freuds Hideous Kinky too. But the execution is very impressive, despite the relative inexperience of director Destin Daniel Cretton. A deeply sentimental ending, however, does feel like a let-down.

The Mountain Between Us is hard to warm to, partly because much of the action is set in a freezing mountainous wilderness and partly because its regularly too contrived and clunky for its own good. And thats before we get to one of the most long-winded endings in film history.

Saving it from complete disaster are Kate Winslet and Idris Elba, the former playing an American journalist and the latter, rather less convincingly, a British neurosurgeon.

When they bump into each other at the airport, she absolutely has to get to New York to get married while hes due in Baltimore for an emergency operation. But theres a big storm a-comin and all flights are cancelled.

So why on earth would anyone think it was a good idea to charter a small plane flown by a Vietnam veteran whos got heart attack or stroke written all over his face?

Little really rings true here, once the inevitable has happened. Their survival feels too easy, their good looks never disappear, and Winslet and Elba both wear the expressions of actors who know they will make better films than this.
King Lear

Minerva Theatre, Chichester Until Oct 28 3hrs 20mins

Rating:

Its often said that by the time you are old enough to play Shakespeares King Lear, youre past it. Recently, Sir Antony Sher needed a cart to carry the body of his beloved daughter Cordelia. Not Sir Ian McKellen.

A decade ago he was magnificent in Sir Trevor Nunns gorgeously extravagant if over-embellished Royal Shakespeare Company production. Now aged 78, hes an older if no wiser Lear in Jonathan Munbys clear, thoughtful, terrifically well-paced revival. Hair thinner and greyer, hes plumper but still every inch the king, and then some.

His physical strength  essential in this role  seems undiminished as he hauls the body of Cordelia on his back. But what makes this production special is the intimate scale of the space, which allows McKellens Lear to be more conversational, nuanced, profoundly felt and utterly compelling.

Its often said that by the time you are old enough to play Shakespeares King Lear, youre past it. Not Sir Ian McKellen (above, left)

Moreover, with his clothes on  much was made of him dropping his trousers in Nunns storm scene  he movingly portrays the metaphorical stripping down of a man who had believed he was superhuman and now, oh so agonisingly, discovers his mortality and realises he is just a poor bare forked animal. In a very moving moment he puts his own coat around the shoulders of the trembling, naked wretch, Edgar.

The court is deftly conjured by a circular red carpet, on to which Lear marches in military dress, his medals flashing. His invitation to his daughters to bid for their portion of his kingdom when he announces his retirement is staged like a vulgar after-dinner game, with each on display behind a microphone as he chops up a map of Britain with scissors. One can see why his daughters are less than thrilled to host his household of hooray-Henry knights and squires, all singing drinking songs and leaving dirty footprints everywhere.

Kirsty Bushells Regan (above with Danny Webb) gets stuck on one note, though her whoop of sexual ecstasy at the brutal blinding of Gloucester suggests that she finds violence a turn-on

While the jauntiness of Phil Danielss banjo-playing Fool with Eric Morecambe specs stifles some of the pathos of the part, it highlights his bitter irony

Following the storm, the circle is a blanched white, the stage bare but for a lone tree, a Beckettian nod to the nihilism that has taken over. Indeed, most of Munbys ideas make perfect sense, such as the excellent Sinead Cusack playing Lears loyal Kent as a countess instead of a count (why not?). And while the jauntiness of Phil Danielss banjo-playing Fool with Eric Morecambe specs stifles some of the pathos of the part, it highlights his bitter irony.

Kirsty Bushells raunchy Regan gets stuck on one note, though her whoop of sexual ecstasy at the brutal blinding of Gloucester (in an abattoir, using a meat hook) horribly suggests that she finds violence a huge turn-on. Tamara Lawrances Cordelia struggles to look anything but tough in army camouflage kit. And if theres no obvious reason why Edmund decides to bump off the Fool, it underlines his casual cruelty.

Dervla Kirwans sometimes glowing, sometimes glacial, always grand Goneril makes her evil more interesting than her sister Regans, and the decency and personal integrity of Dominic Mafhams Duke of Albany shines with a revelatory light in this dark world.

Impressive.



Jane Eyre

Lyttelton, National Theatre, London Until Oct 21, 3hrs

Rating:

Sally Cooksons production of Jane Eyre first came to the National Theatre two years ago, and its second run in London proves it is still as inventive as ever  although it offers a fraction less fizz than the fiery first stint.

This is largely down to a cast change: Tim Delap doesnt explode in the role of Rochester quite like his predecessor, and Nadia Clifford is a more pensive, less passionate Jane. The latter isnt necessarily a bad thing, though, emphasizing as it does Janes cleverness, and her consequent barely suppressed frustration with the repetition of life as a governess.

Elsewhere, theres much still to love. Despite the cast playing many roles, they offer vivid portrayals of Charlotte Brontes characters. Hannah Bristow switches seamlessly from a sickly-but-serene Helen Burns to Rochesters boisterous francophone daughter Adele. Paul Mundell wins the hearts of the audience with his tail-thumping stint as Pilot the dog.

In the sparse set, simple props make a powerful impact. The candles lighting Thornfield Hall hint both at the flames that will eventually engulf the building, and at the warmth of human connection Jane will discover there with Rochester.

Bertha Mason, Rochester's first wife, haunts the stage from the off, echoing the interpretation that reads Brontes madwoman in the attic as Janes devilish double. When she sings Noel Cowards Mad About The Boy (a luscious rendition by Melanie Marshall) it is clear she is referring to Janes inner emotional turmoil as much as her own relationship with her husband.

An innovative and richly musical production that, despite flagging slightly on the energy front, will set your imagination ablaze.

Gwendolyn Smith

Labour Of Love

Noel Coward Theatre, London Until Dec 2 2hrs 50mins

Rating:

With James Grahams super-soaraway hit Ink, about the rise of The Sun, playing to full houses down the street from the theatre where his new play has just opened, this young playwrights star couldnt be higher.

But Labour Of Love, while capturing a world with great success, is not in the same satirical class as the indelible Ink.

Set in the tatty constituency office of Yorkshire-born, Oxford-educated David Lyons (Martin Freeman), Labour MP for a post-industrial Nottinghamshire seat, it charts the slow death of a Labour Party stronghold in the late Eighties, the ascent and fall of Blairism and the love affair between an MP and his prickly agent.

Set in the tatty constituency office of Yorkshire-born, Oxford-educated David Lyons (Martin Freeman), it charts the slow death of a Labour Party stronghold in the late Eighties

The superb Tamsin Greig snaps and crackles to perfection as Jean  his idealistic agent  who knows, as usual, more than he does

It opens on Election night 2017, with the result of a recount expected at any minute. The superb Tamsin Greig snaps and crackles to perfection as Jean  his idealistic agent  who knows, as usual, more than he does. From there the action goes back to 1990, when Lyons won a by-election, and every subsequent change of government is richly illustrated with video footage.

There are good jokes aplenty: Do you know why we chose a rose for Labour? Because it looks pretty but its full of pricks? But too many are, well, laborious, such as the ancient one about Peter Mandelsons tache: Whats he hiding? His top lip?

Greigs Jean is the only character with real depth and texture. A lightweight Freeman fails to suggest the gravitas of a man who once held a Cabinet post. Lyonss posh lawyer wife Elizabeth (Rachael Stirling), wearing jodhpurs and stilettos for a march against job losses, is as crassly implausible as the Chinese businessman interested in building a new factory.

Not at all a labour in vain  given a trim, it could become a much safer seat in the West End.

Dido, Queen Of Carthage

Swan Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon Until Oct 28, 2hrs 50mins

Rating:

Christopher Marlowes first play  rarely staged  tells of Aeneas, a refugee from burning Troy. He finds himself washed up on the shores of North Africa, where Dido, Queen of Carthage, falls for him, thanks to Cupid, a cheery little chap with a hypodermic.

Aeneas is torn by his destiny in Italy and his lust for Dido. Staged on black sand, this often comic play of gods and mortals is shot through with vistas of Marlowes genius. Sandy Griersons quivering Scots voice does full justice to Aeneass harrowing speech about the Trojan slaughter. Chipo Chung, as Dido, gives a right royal performance as the heartbroken queen who throws herself on a burning pyre.

Chipo Chung, as Dido, gives a right royal performance as the heartbroken queen who throws herself on a burning pyre

Shakespeare-lovers will marvel at how much of this play he pinched, with its tempests, disguises and love potions. And in Dido you find the sultry prototype for Cleopatra. With haunting music, this Elizabethan rarity is a real revelation.

Less successful from the Royal Shakespeare Company is the last play in its Rome season, Coriolanus (Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon, until Saturday) . Having single-handedly crushed the Volsci, the mighty warrior Coriolanus should be a hero. But his arrogant contempt for the voters gets him banished. So he swaps sides and turns on Rome.

Sope Dirisus fearsome Coriolanus is dripping in gore. But while hes terrific to look at, his verse-speaking is drab, a major setback in such a huge part. His scheming rival, Aufidius, is well played by James Corrigan. But the two tribunes  substantial parts  have been gender-reassigned as women, wrongly diluting the plays strident machismo.

This update has occasional flashes of emotion but does little to cast new light on this timely, austere masterpiece about power and the people.

Robert Gore-Langton

For Love Or Money

West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds On tour until December 2 2hrs

Rating:

This, sadly, is Barrie Rutters last touring show for Northern Broadsides, the Halifax-based company he founded 25 years ago. A satire about greed, lust and money, its based on a 300-year-old French satire called Turcaret, by Alain-Rene Lesage. Blake Morrison has devised a ribald script relocated to the Twenties and chock-full of lost Yorkshire-isms (tea is chatter-watter).

Rutter plays a corrupt provincial bank manager, Algy, whos courting a broke widow (Sarah-Jane Potts). She is milking him for jewels and cheques.

Theres a spivvy doctors son whos using her to get at the managers money, and a scheming servant whos out for himsen. Algys fake-French wife (Sarah Parks, glorious) arrives late in the day to queer the pitch further.

Its funny and also rather touching to watch Rutter, surrounded by his company, saying farewell in a really good comic part, delivered with his own brand of ever-audible gusto.

Robert Gore-Langton

northern-broadsides.co.uk
The Dering Arms

The Grove, Pluckley, Kent

Rating:

We dont make it to the Screaming Woods, or Fright Corner, despite their being in easy chain-rattling distance from lunch. Nor do we bump into the Red Lady, ghostly monk, phantom highwayman or miserable gypsy.

Nope, our trip to Pluckley, once named the most haunted village in England by the Guinness Book Of Records, is disappointingly spectre-free. The only spirit we tackle is a glass of calvados, and the only thing dying, that emaciated corpse of British summer.

But The Dering Arms, with its reassuringly solid flagstone floor, stuffed pheasants, mounted antlers, whirring clocks and sporting prints, is the sort of pub in which time doesnt so much fly as saunter and stroll.

The Dering Arms, with its reassuringly solid flagstone floor, stuffed pheasants, mounted antlers and whirring clocks, is the sort of pub in which time doesnt so much fly as saunter

A sturdy Victorian hunting lodge, its named after Sir Edward Dering, MP, supporter of Charles I, owner of the Dering Manuscript (Henry IV parts I and II, and the oldest known extant Shakespearean manuscript), and, apparently, my great grandfather, to the power of 11. Well, thats what Wikipedia says anyway.

Now before you accuse me of ancestral nepotism, I knew nothing of the connection. Honest guv. Not a bloody clue. Russell, fine restaurateur, friend and new Pluckley resident, said I should come down.

It was famous for being a great fish restaurant back in the Nineties, he told me. And its the sort of place where the owner, on hearing that there were no taxis to get me home, drove me himself in a lovely old Bentley.

I like those sort of places. Its a proper pub, with locals wandering in and out for a pint, a sandwich, a gossip and chat. Dried hops adorn the bar, and crown the doorways, while a foxs head (not exactly the pinnacle of the taxidermists art), snarls down from on high.

Specials, mainly fish, are scrawled on the blackboard beside the bar, while oysters, to take away, are available at 90p each. We order half a dozen, firm and sweet, and wallow in the civilised silence, punctuated only by the whisper of fellow guests, the soft tread of our waiters approach, the hum of the fridge and the tick-tock of the mantle clock.

The cooking here is old-fashioned hearty, and blessedly free from any modern affectation. Food arrives on white plates, dairy is deployed with reckless abandon and the only foam is found atop the local beer. Hurray. Chicken livers, cut small and still pert, are smothered in litres of cream, a nip of brandy and piled high on toast.

Its gloriously, unashamedly rich, but does cry out for a dribble of lemon and drop of Tabasco to cut through that heavy lactic embrace. Sussex smokies, or chunks of good smoked mackerel, are blanketed in still more cheesy, creamy mustard-spiked goo, bubbling and blistered brown by the grill. The bowl is polished clean by wads of good bread.

Fillet of sea bass with minted leeks and bacon, red wine sauce

Oranges in caramel and Grand Marnier marinade, fresh double cream

Fish is more hit and miss. Skate is as good as youll find anywhere, great luscious strands falling off those gelatinous bones. With a sharp, nutty, caper-studded brown butter sauce. Sardines are gleamingly fresh, but have spent a moment too long under the grill. So the flesh loses that ephemeral sweetness, and turns towards the dry. The same goes with a generous tranche of halibut meuniere, nothing ruinous but just edging towards the overdone. Fried oysters, though, are a welcome addition, as is a mound of butter-ravished spinach.

Scallops, sliced in half for some reason, are well cooked but woefully under-seasoned. And sit upon a glum, watery sludge of crushed peas and mint. It may be based upon the Rowley Leigh classic, but lacks essential sweetness. No such problems when it comes to pudding, sticky toffee in particular.

The batter is light, bouncy and studded with dates, the butterscotch sauce bold and bountiful. Then a lemon posset that just manages to stay on the right side of overwhelming. We reckon its made with clotted cream, a fine addition, but one that desperately requires the lemons tart bite.

The wine list is short, but well-chosen and priced too. Although the local Dering Arms Champagne is certainly an acquired taste. Service is lovely, and its the sort of pub where lunch could turn, all too easily, into dinner.

So yes, there are a couple of piscine mishaps. But somehow, it doesnt seem to matter. This is generous, well-priced country pub cooking with occasional flashes of inspiration. A final glass of calvados is not so much indulgence as essential medicine, a trou Normande to burn through all that heft.

We totter out into the weak September sunshine, and skip the few yards to the station. In the distance, something catches my eye, white, spectral and fluttering in a seemly supernatural fashion. I grab Russells arm, and point with shaking finger. He smiles and shakes his head. Its a Tesco bag, caught high up in a tree. Hey ho. No ghosts today. But the Dering Arms has spirit to spare.

Lunch for two: 50

What Tom ate this week

Saturday

Acquacotta soup, and a pint of Landlord at the ever reliable Anglesea Arms. Then toasted cheese sandwich, a packet of pickled onion Monster Munch and a Nobbly Bobbly ice cream.

Sunday

Lunch at The Oak W12. Just for a change. Diavola pizza, padron peppers, a couple of glasses of red. Then off to River Cafe for the late Ed Victors Memorial. Amazing speeches, wonderful food and wine.

Monday

A magnificent dinner at Claridges to celebrate the launch of its new cook book. Lobster risotto, chicken pie and chocolate souffle. For 90. Incredibly good fun, and deeply impressive too.

Tuesday

Back to the monotony of the 5/2. Prawns with chilli sauce, chicken soup and a couple of Ryvita. Yawn.
Doctor Foster

Tuesday, BBC1

Rating:

Goodbye then, Doctor Foster, and what a way to go! Im kidding. Bit of a whimper, the ending but, fair play, you have kept us gripped all these weeks, with your one bra  is there no M&S in Parminster?  and obsessional desire to destroy Simon, engineering sex with him just so you could say to Kate, Look. Hes doing to you what he did to me. With me!

Kate has since fled to France with their little daughter, Amelie. True, she must be ill acquainted with British child abduction laws, but she did pack a huge house into a smallish removal van overnight, so shes not entirely without talent.

You must give her that, surely. Last week, we left you just as you were about to run Simon over. Maybe. You were in your car as he was walking to the hotel to see Tom. He was hoping hed make it there first, which always seemed unlikely, but perhaps he is some kind of speed-walking champion and we were just never told?

Deborah Ross writes: The writer, Mike Bartlett, has said that its sexist to write you off as mad, as a man behaving in the same way would simply be deemed very angry

You revved the engine. You had that wolf-bitch look in your eye. But at the very last minute you swerved to avoid him. You breathed again. We could all breathe again. We knew that if you did kill him, your life would be ruined, over. We always somehow stayed on your side, even though, as Simon told you: We are the same.

My editor here refers to you as Dr Whack Job, as in: Are you doing Dr Whack Job this week? and I confess, I went along with it. Yes, Im going to be all over Dr Whack Job like you wouldnt believe. But this, we now know, is plain wrong.

The writer, Mike Bartlett, has said that its sexist to write you off as mad, as a man behaving in the same way would simply be deemed very angry. And he has a point. If a man, say, abducted his own son, then pretended the son was dead, stalked the sons friends, popped up from the undergrowth to spy on his ex, had sex with his ex so he could weaponise that, had sex with his friends spouse for the purposes of blackmail and so on and so on, I guess you would just shrug and say: Oh well, thats men for you. Nothing to see here. Move on.

So we get that now. We do. Sorry, Dr F. Our bad. Now, where were we? Oh, yes. You made it to the hotel first, perhaps unsurprisingly, and took Tom back to Parminster, where new people have moved in opposite so we must say bye, too, to looming Anna of the balloon wine glasses. Lucy lives there now, and she does not look like a balloon loomer, disappointingly.

You promised Tom a new kitchen, which is just what every 15-year-old boy needs after the horrific traumas he has experienced. Then Simon turned up, having speed-walked from the hotel, and you all had a set-to in the drive.

Youre using me against her, Tom told him, sobbingly. Then you had another set-to outside a Chinese restaurant. Then Tom left in the middle of the night and you found him on the bank of a dual carriageway, watching Simon down below, who was about to throw himself under a car. It was heart-stopping. Simon stepped out. Cars veered. You pulled him back. He grabbed you. Was he about to throw you under a car? I pulled my jumper right up over my face.

Mostly, all I could see, looking down, was my own bra, of which I have a good selection. Next thing I knew, youd talked Simon out of it  youd thought of a better way for him to kill himself!  and brought him to the hotel, where you forced a Premier Inn-style full English on him, as if he hadnt been through enough.

You laid out lethal drugs for him in the hotel room, and again, my jumper was over my head as he made to plunge the syringe into his arm, but you underwent a change of mind and came back to stop him.

Dont do this to Tom, you said. Not now he has a new kitchen to look forward to, you could have added, just to rub it in, but you were uncharacteristically reticent here. Then you returned to your car and Tom was gone, having left you a message saying he was leaving, and never coming back.

The narrative then slipped, somewhat lazily, into montage: the police; the Missing Person posters going up, you returning to work. Really? Given your uncontrollable persistence, wouldnt you now be on Searching Leave, just as previously you were on Stalking Leave? Quite hard to buy, that.

And lastly it was you, speaking to camera from your doorstep. In the end, all I can say is that Im here, Tom. Im your mum. Im sorry.

Bit late for that, Dr F, but we thank you for the past five weeks, and for being so very angry, and if theres not an M&S in Parminster, maybe theres one in the next nearest town?
The BJP-led Modi government has announced a slew of changes to its tax laws in a bid to ease the burden on small and medium businesses, which have suffered the most since the introduction of a new national tax earlier this year.

The good and services tax (GST), which came into effect on July 1, was designed to replace more than a dozen state and national levies and transform India's $2 trillion economy into a single market for the first time.

First proposed in 2006, it got the backing of most economists as being long overdue and was hailed as the biggest tax reform since independence.

Under proposed changes, companies with annual revenues of less than $15 million ($230,000) will need to file taxes once a quarter instead of every month

But despite the government's good intentions, many have slammed the authorities for creating a highly complex system that has added several layers of bureaucracy and hurt businesses.

Smaller enterprises - which provide a third of the country's GDP - have been particularly critical of the massive changes rippling through India's economy, fearing they will be unable to comply.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley admitted to reporters in Delhi Friday that the tax burden on smaller companies has been low but the compliance burden has been high.

'The medium and small companies should remain in the tax net but we will relax their compliance burden,' he said.

Under the changes, companies with annual revenues of less than $15 million ($230,000) will need to file taxes once a quarter instead of every month.

The government has also reduced tax rates on products such as unbranded savoury snacks, roti and unbranded ayurvedic and homeopathy medicines, to the lowest rate of five percent.

'Compliances are something that have really hit the small traders very, very hard,' Anita Rastogi, partner at consulting firm PwC told AFP.

'The changes they've done were needed. But they haven't done enough.'

India's economic growth slowed to a three-year low of 5.7 percent in the first quarter, putting pressure on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the run up to national elections.

Small shops and businesses make up a sizable chunk of the voter base.

India's economic growth slowed to a three-year low of 5.7 percent in the first quarter

Modi reacts to the pressure over GST criticism

Modi, in a rare acknowledgment that economic sentiment had turned negative, this week defended his handling of the economy, which in the June quarter grew at an annual 5.7 percent, its slowest rate in three years.

Small and medium-sized enterprises, crucial to Modi's plans to create millions of more jobs, have been hurt by a massive tax overhaul launched in July that added layers of extra bureaucracy for firms and hit exports.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will on Friday chair a meeting of the council for the Goods and Services Tax (GST), a landmark reform which turned India's 29 states into a single customs union for the first time.

President of India Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi

Officials with knowledge of the meeting and industry bodies said they expected the government to simplify the filing of tax returns under GST to ease the burden on smaller businesses.

Many companies also want the government to increase the size of turnover imposed before they must start filing returns.

'We are not in a denial mode that there is a problem in the SME (small and medium enterprises) sector,' said a senior lawmaker who has been working with Modi's office to combat the economic slowdown.

Under the changes, companies with annual revenues of less than $15 million ($230,000) will need to file taxes once a quarter instead of every month

Ajay Sahai, head of the Federation of Indian Export Organisation, said he expected the government to allow its 25,000 small and medium-sized members to file tax returns quarterly.

'The drill to file returns every month is exhausting,' he said.

While a mountain of bad loans has crimped bank lending to India's bigger companies, smaller firms have been hurt by a government move last November to stamp out 'black money' - untaxed cash that oils many industries - and by GST, whose complex structure has baffled companies down the supply chain.

'Informal sources of working capital (for smaller firms) has dried up,' said Anil Bhardwaj at the Federation of Indian Micro and Small and Medium Enterprises.

Satish Acharya on Modi's economy

He predicted that it would be another year before GST began to have a positive impact on smaller companies.

Jaitley has promised steps to boost economic growth back above 7 percent and towards the levels economists say India requires to generate employment for the one million entering the workforce every month.

Modi built a reputation as an economic reformer capable of delivering jobs and wealth for an increasingly aspirational population, but slowing growth will be near the top of voter concerns in upcoming state elections.

Investment remains low. The government has hiked spending on infrastructure, but private investment has remained muted.

'It is not easy because our banking system is in deep trouble and private investment is not picking up,' the lawmaker said. 'The government will have to recast all policies that will activate the public sector.'
An Indian military helicopter crashed on Friday morning near the China border in Arunachal Pradesh, killing all seven men on board.

The incident comes as a blow to morale for India's Airforce just hours before the 85th Air Force Day celebrations.

The Russian-made Mi-17 V- 5 chopper was being flown by two experienced pilots  Wing Commander V Upadhyay and Squadron Leader S Tewari, the co-pilot.

The Russian-made Mi-17 V- 5 chopper was being flown by two experienced pilots

ndian Air Force soldiers march past their C-17 Globemaster military transport aircraft during Indian Air Force Day parade

Indian Air Force paratroopers of the Akash Ganga team display their skill during Indian Air Force Day parade

The seven personnel on board included the five-man Indian Air Force crew and two Army soldiers. The helicopter was on a supply replenishment sortie and had taken off from a helipad north of Tawang to reach the forward posts at an altitude of 17,000 feet.

The chopper was carrying kerosene fuel in jerrycans for soldiers deployed along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and was part of the pre-winter stocking up operations.

'Unlike previous years, soldiers will remain deployed along the LAC this winter given the current situation along the India-China borders. This time, the IAF and Army have intensified their deployment.

'The helicopter had already carried out an initial sortie. This was the second sortie,' sources in the eastern command told Mail Today. The helicopter was flying low, close to the dropping zone.

'The first sortie was successful. The jerrycans were to be dropped using a safety net and just as the consignment was dropped, it appears that the net did not deploy effectively and got entangled with the tail rotor.

'The situation will be clear after an inquiry,' sources added.

The pilots had taken a calculated risk ferrying fuel to soldiers at the LAC. The IAF said it is still not clear whether this was a freak accident or something more serious, but a court of inquiry has been ordered.

The helicopter caught fire immediately. The pilots were experienced, the machine was airworthy and the weather clear, said sources.

'The chopper was ferrying supplies to a forward post of the Army in the hilly terrain.

'It crashed close to the dropping zone and caught fire immediately. The seven personnel on board including Master Warrant Officer A K Singh, Flight Gunners Sergeant Gautam Kumar and Sergeant Satish Kumar were killed along with two Army soldiers HN Deka and E Balaji,' an IAF spokesperson said.

The crash came a day after the IAF leadership called out peacetime losses of life and assets as a trouble spot.

Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa, Chief of Air Staff, said on Thursday, 'We are making efforts to minimise accidents and preserve our assets.'

VERY COLD: An Indian army solider guards the Srinagar-Leh highway in Zojila

Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa, Chief of Air Staff

Defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who got a chance to get up close with an Mi-17 V5 helicopter at the air force base in Jamnagar on Friday, is understood to have been briefed about the chopper's capabilities.

The minister will be on a scheduled visit to Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim on Saturday, where she is likely to receive an update on the accident.

The government told Parliament in July that 29 fighter aircraft crashed over the last five years due to technical defects and human error.

The chopper was ferrying supplies to freezing soldiers at am army post in the mountains

The Mi-17 V5 is the backbone of the IAF medium-lift transport helicopter fleet. Following the 1999 Kargil war, the Air Force signed a deal with Russia for procurement of more than 150 of these helicopters.

Apart from the IAF, the BSF also has eight Mi-17 V5 choppers in its aviation fleet.

Painted in the IAF's signature grey, the Mi-17 has become symbolic not just of active military operations, but also humanitarian relief and rescue missions  notably the Uttarakhand flash floods in 2013 and J&K floods the following year.

Deployed also on UN peacekeeping missions abroad and anti-Maoist operations in the red corridor, the IAF is actively looking at acquiring more helicopters of the kind.

New kidney may cost Army officer his job

Colonel Pankaj Bhargava

One Colonel Pankaj Bhargava, an army officer suffering from end-stage kidney failure has accused the defence medical authorities and archaic rules of denying him permission for a new kidney at a civil hospital, as a result of which he was forced to approach the courts to get discharge from the military hospitals.

The officer has adopted a unique way of voicing his grievances with the authorities: he has made an appeal to the general public on social media to find a donor for him and aired his grievances in the same message against the treatment meted out to him.

'As per an archaic Army rule, I was admitted in the Army Hospital at Pune in the month of June for an indefinite time period, without giving me a chance to get a kidney transplant done in a civil hospital, where it can be done in six months' time (sic),' colonel Pankaj Bhargava stated in his message.

The officer said he had to approach the Bombay High Court to get a discharge from the hospital and for permission to get a transplant done in a civil hospital at his own risk.

In his appeal, which has now gone viral on Whatsapp, the officer has alleged that despite the court order, 'Army medical authorities have given me only 6-8 weeks to register at civil hospitals and to get the transplant done, else they will discharge me from the army service permanently. This is an impossible deadline and they also know that.'

Army headquarters sources said the complaint has been brought to the notice of the top brass of the force and they are likely to push for a positive solution (file pic)

As per the officer's colleagues, the rules framed by the Director General Armed Forces Medical Services, a kidney failure patient has to be mandatorily admitted to the military hospital and be encouraged to find a donor for himself and if unable to do so, the patient is invalidated from service.

Army headquarters sources said the complaint has been brought to the notice of the top brass of the force and they are likely to push for a positive solution.

The officer was diagnosed with the kidney failure symptoms first in August 2016 and the final failure was confirmed in June this year.

During his hey days in the force, the officer was a national level shooter for the army and had won a gold medal at the national level and has served in field areas including Kashmir and North-East since his entry into the army in 1989.
Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi waves at crowd during a public meeting in Jamnagar, Gujarat

A day ahead of Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi's first public meeting in poll-bound Himachal Pradesh, the simmering tension within the state unit is palpable.

As incumbent chief minister Virbhadra Singh marked out his territory and tagged the event a celebration of the government's achievements in five years, his rival Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has taken it upon himself to bring in the crowds for Rahul's rally in Mandi on Saturday.

Virbhadra, who had refused to share the dais with Sukhvinder, though had been pacified following an audience with the party vice-president and AICC state in-charge Sushil Kumar Shinde last week and had called truce, party sources in the state unit insist the rift is far from settled.

Sukhu has Rahul's blessings and despite Virbhadra's strong disapproval of him, his removal was summarily dismissed by the Gandhi family scion, who has been casting his hand over party organisation in the run-up to taking his mother's top job.

As PM Narendra Modi and the BJP are stepping up attack on Virbhadra, focusing on the corruption charges against him, sources said Rahul is not very keen on going ahead with Virbhadra as the party's chief ministerial face yet again.

There is conflict between incumbent chief minister Virbhadra Singh (right) and his rival Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu (left) in in poll-bound Himachal Pradesh

However a final call is yet to be taken by the party high command. 'The anti-incumbency too works against him. Though he has emerged as a one-man-army in Himachal and has considerable clout, it is also time for change.

'The present CM is 83 years old. It is time for new talent to come up,' said a senior party leader. Members from Virbhadra's faction, however, brazen out the corruption allegations and maintain that the CM's 'good governance' will pay off for the party.

'The charges not proven yet  whatever be the allegations, governance has never suffered. People are very happy,' said a local leader.

Ridden with infighting and with no clear-cut plan for the upcoming polls, the Congress party walks on slippery ground in the state.

Rahul Gandhi is working to win again in poll-bound Himachal Pradesh

While Modi has held big three rallies in the poll-bound state, Rahul will address the electorate on Saturday for the first time this year.

Torn between Virbhadra's clout and Sukhu, who marks a shift in the politics of the state, Rahul postponed his tours of the state.

'Personal differences between leaders are always there but we have resolved our issues. Tomorrow's event is very important. It is a government event on the achievements of its five years and we are calling it 'Vikas Se Vikay Ki Oar'.

'I just finished three meetings today and the preparations are absolutely on track. The party organisation is backing the event and we will be mobilising masses. In hill states, it is difficult to draw big crowds.

'Particularly in Himachal, where the total population is 60 lakh with 11 lakh families to quote a number will be inaccurate but ours will be as good as Modi's rally,' Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee president, Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu told Mail Today.

Asked if Virbhadra, despite the corruption allegations, will be the party's face in the upcoming polls, Sukhu said, 'That is for the party high command to decide. As for the corruption charges, unless they are proved in a court of law he cannot be held guilty.

The matter is sub-judice. There might be anti-incumbency but our government's work is being lauded.'
Gurmeet Ram Rahim's closest aide Honeypreet Insan is still giving sleepless nights to the investigators who have failed to extract information from her under interrogation.

Police have now accused Honeypreet of noncooperation and also providing misleading answers.

They also could not establish her presence in Bathinda and other nearby towns. The house in which she allegedly stayed has been locked since last six years.

Honeypreet is the adopted daughter of Dera Sacha Sauda leader, Ram Rahim

Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh with adopted daughter Honeypreet at a film launch

'Honeypreet was not fully cooperating with police in investigation and was evasive in her replies.

'She is misleading the police,' Panchkula police commissioner, AS Chawla said.

Sources said Honeypreet used as much as 17 different SIM cards during the 38 days of her mysterious disappearance  of which three SIMs were international.

It is still not known whether the SIMs had ISD activation or were foreign. The police are now keen to get details about the SIM cards used by Honeypreet who is not ready to answer any question pertaining to her communication methods.

Police asked Honeypreet 40 questions over her role in the Panchkula violence

Honeypreet denied the allegations when she was asked about whom she had spoken to and the exact number of international SIM cards and mobile phones she had used.

She in fact, claimed that she lost her mobile phone. Sources added Honeypreet's accomplice Sukhdeep Kaur has given important leads about the latter.

Honeypreet Insan (left) is the adopted daughter and aide to Dera Sacha Sauda leader, Ram Rahim

When her mobile phone location was tracked, it indicated that she might have stayed in Tarn-Taran village for some time.

'Honeypreet had many SIM cards. She would also destroy some and throw away the rest. She also used few international numbers. She would ask me to get down as and when she had to speak to someone,' the accomplice told the cops.

Police now have started looking for Honeypreet's mobile phone and find out the IMEI number, so that the calls made are tracked.

Sukhdeep has also provided informations about fugitive Dr Aditya Insan and Pawan Insan who were in touch with Honeypreet. Police have now planned fresh raids in Rajasthan and Punjab to nab the top Dera functionaries. Honeypreet, reportedly used to manage Dera's cash reserves.

She managed all Dera finances and had also sanctioned Rs 5 crore to manage crowds and goons in Panchkula.

Arrested Panchkula Dera unit in-charge Chamkaur Singh has told the police that he was given Rs 1.25 crore to handle the situation in Panchkula.

This was part of the Rs 5 crore cash which was sent to Panchkula alone. Police had recovered Rs 25 lakh in cash from his possession. Meanwhile, in another development, IT experts hired by the Haryana Police have successfully retrieved data from one of the 65 hard drives that were recovered from Sirsa on September 14 when Dera's IT head Vineet Kumar was trying to put them inside a pit within the Dera complex.

Data recovery from a partially damaged drive has led to the discovery of transactions and investment details worth around Rs 700 crore, sources said, adding as per the directions of the court, the hard drive will be handed over to the Enforcement Directorate, which has been asked by the court to probe the allegations of money laundering against Gurmeet Ram Rahim.

Sukhdeep went on to add, 'Honeypreet had all the knowledge about what media said about her. She used to cover the glasses of her car with towel. I was with her in Delhicourt. We had travelled from Bathinda.'
The rising cost of university education is prompting more young people to venture abroad. Studying in many European Union countries is free and in some cases living costs may also be cheaper.

Popular European destinations for students heading overseas include France, Spain and Germany, but America is still the favourite.

A period of studying abroad is mandatory for many courses, including modern languages. But those taking other subjects  including medicine, business and history  can also seize the opportunity to broaden their horizons.

The rising cost of university education is prompting more young people to venture abroad

Some will spend a semester or year overseas  often during the third year of their course  while others will go to a foreign university for their full degree.

According to the Unesco Institute for Statistics, 31,000 UK students were enrolled in programmes at institutions outside the UK in the academic year spanning 2015 and 2016.

Separate figures from Universities UK show that some 7 per cent of UK full-time undergraduates spend time studying, working or volunteering abroad as part of their degree.

There are potential benefits to studying abroad, such as increased self-confidence, improved communication skills and greater employability.

Michael Peak, senior education adviser at the British Council, says: 'Studies show that graduates with international experience fare better in the job market and tend to achieve better degree results.'

Students also get to learn languages, immerse themselves in other cultures and make friends from all over the world.

IF thinking about studying abroad, you need to find out whether your university offers an exchange programme  or whether you can join an organised programme, such as Erasmus+.

You also need to check if you can apply for a scholarship or funding to support you financially through your studies.

The Erasmus+ programme, managed by the Erasmus+ National Agency, is a partnership between the British Council and Ecorys UK.

It sends 15,000 UK higher education students to study and work abroad for between three and 12 months each year.

I SPENT A YEAR IN FRANCE - AND EVEN GOT A JOB AS A NANNY Budget: Elizabeth Maitland enjoyed her second year in France Elizabeth Maitland spent a year in France as part of her three-year history degree at Cardiff University. This was made affordable by taking part in the Erasmus+ scheme. The 22-year-old, from Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, went to university in Nantes from September 2015 until June 2016. As this was her second year, she kept her degree to three years. She says: 'Under the Erasmus+ scheme, I had my tuition fees capped at 15 per cent (around 1,350), and the fees were covered by my tuition loan. In addition, I received a maintenance grant as well as an Erasmus grant of around 300 a month.' Elizabeth had to complete a lot of paperwork  including opening a French bank account. She says: 'I needed a local account so my housing benefit  known as CAF  could be paid in. 'This money really helped as rather than paying 270 a month for my halls of residence, I only had to pay 150.' Elizabeth took a number of steps to keep down her living costs, such as buying a monthly travel card for the trams and buses, shopping at the local supermarket for food, and only going out once a week. She says: 'I was sensible with my budgeting and made extra money by working as a nanny for a French family. Indeed, I was able to make savings during my year in France.' Elizabeth took out a medical insurance policy offered by Cardiff University, and also an EHIC  a free European Health Insurance Card. She bought contents insurance for her belongings, costing around 50 for the year. She adds: 'During my time abroad, I met people from different backgrounds, experienced student life in France  and became a good French speaker. My confidence has dramatically improved.' Elizabeth graduated in July this year and is currently based in Colombia, South America, doing a one-year language assistant programme run by the British Council.

This scheme provides non-means tested grants of around 300 (268) to 400 per month, depending on the destination.

Unlike a student loan, these grants do not have to be repaid.

You also do not have to pay tuition fees in your host country.

If away for a full year you may benefit from a significant discount from your UK university. Visit erasmusplus. org.uk.

In addition, you may be able to get a grant from the Government to cover some of your travel expenses. Visit gov.uk/travel-grants-students-england.

While there are concerns about Erasmus+ post-Brexit, for now at least, things remain as they are.

Peak says: 'As the UK continues to be a full European Union member, successful applicants this year will be awarded funding for the duration of their project, so organisations and participants should continue to prepare for the application deadlines in 2017 as usual.'

That said, the future remains uncertain as Brexit could potentially restrict the movement of British students.

Peak adds: 'We cannot speculate on future scenarios following the UK's exit from the European Union, but the Government has said that UK participation in some programmes may continue, subject to negotiation.'

If you want to study abroad, but not in a European Union country, British Council programmes include Generation UK China and Generation UK India, Study USA and Study China.

Some receive financial support from the Government.

It is also worth checking out what scholarships are available  such as Commonwealth Scholarships, the Fulbright Awards for students studying in the US, and the Generation UK-China academic scholarship.

There are plenty of opportunities to do a postgraduate degree, such as a masters or PhD, overseas. Some postgraduate degrees automatically incorporate a work placement abroad.

UK postgraduate students can get support for certain international study opportunities, such as the Joint Master Degree (part of the Erasmus+ programme), and the Japanese MEXT Scholarship Programme.

For more information visit britishcouncil.org, studyabroad.com and topuniversities.com.

Deadlines for the Erasmus+ scheme and other Study Abroad opportunities will depend on where and when you are going.

TIPS TO SAVE WHILE STUDYING OVERSEAS CURRENCY If you need to transfer money abroad, do not turn to your bank as this could prove costly due to poor exchange rates and hidden fees. Try a currency specialist instead such as FairFX, Caxton FX and TransferWise. Fair FX's Ian Strafford-Taylor says: 'Set up a currency tracker to alert you to the best time to buy currency. Parents sending money to their children overseas should do the same.' CARDS A good option when studying abroad is to buy a prepaid card which can be pre-loaded with currency. This allows you to lock in exchange rates in advance to get the best value for money. Top picks include FairFX, Caxton FX, WeSwap, Revolut and Monzo. Andrew Hagger, of financial website Moneycomms, says: 'If you are set on taking a credit card, Halifax Clarity remains the number one choice, with no fees for purchases or cash transactions.' BANK ACCOUNT If you are abroad for only a short stint, it may be simpler to go on using a UK bank account, but make sure you have online banking so you can manage your money wherever you are. If you are away for a year or more, you may want to open a foreign bank account. BUDGETING Trying to budget in a foreign country may be tricky  especially with currency fluctuations and different living costs from the ones you are used to. But it is still worth creating a monthly budget to help you stay on track. INSURANCE Some universities offer a travel insurance policy as part of a year abroad package, which may include medical cover. If you are organising your own travel cover, sort this in advance. Kevin Pratt, of comparison website MoneySupermarket, says: 'Insurance is vital for medical expenses cover. This will pay for the cost of repatriation in the event of severe illness, injury or death. In addition, you need to check any policy covers you for all the activities you want to take part in, such as winter sports.' Also make sure you have sufficient cover for your belongings. CHEAP FLIGHTS Shop around for a good deal on your flights home, using websites such as Skyscanner, Kayak and Momondo.

Universities each set their own internal deadlines, but most require applications to be submitted between this autumn and next spring.

ONE of the best ways to keep down costs when studying abroad is by choosing an affordable des- tination.

The good news is that a number of European (and other international) universities still offer free or low-cost courses.

New findings from currency specialist FairFX reveal that the most affordable European countries to study in include Italy, Germany, Finland, Austria and Sweden. Further research by FairFX shows two of the best-value European universities to study in are in Italy.

Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa and Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna, also in Pisa and in spectacular surroundings filled with statues and classical architecture. They not only provide free tuition but also cover living costs for the lucky few able to secure a place.

Experience: Sarah Cole will spend three years studying abroad

Ian Strafford-Taylor, of FairFX, says: 'Students considering completing a degree in a different country should think about living costs as well as tuition fees  and the impact of exchange rates on their expenses.'

Sarah Cole knows just how important financial planning is when studying abroad, having spent a year of her undergraduate degree in San Diego in the US.

The 22-year-old is now abroad again and has just started a two-year masters degree in Denmark.

Sarah, from King's Lynn, Norfolk, went to San Diego State University as part of the Study Abroad programme affiliated to the University of Hertfordshire.

This meant she did an extra year, extending her undergraduate degree in astrophysics from three to four years.

She says: 'I did not have to pay tuition fees, which made the year affordable. The experience boosted my CV as I got to meet new people, experience life and university in a different country and become more independent.'

Now that Sarah is studying for her masters in mathematical modelling and computation at the Technical University of Denmark, just north of Copenhagen, she gets no financial help or support from the UK.

She says: 'On the plus side there are no tuition fees for higher education for European students in Denmark.

'Student housing is also afford- able, and I live close to campus, so I do not have to spend much on transport.

'Nonetheless, supermarkets and other living costs are pretty expensive, so I am careful with spending as I need to make my savings last.'
Fund boss: Michael Clements is a manager at Swiss firm SYZ Asset Management

Patience is a virtue in most walks of life, including when running an investment portfolio.

Those who do best tend to resist the temptation to buy at the top of the market and sell when share prices are sliding.

It is a trait that Michael Clements applies fastidiously in his role as a fund manager at Swiss firm SYZ Asset Management  both when buying stocks and when holding them.

He explains: 'What I do is buy high quality businesses that are experiencing short-term problems.

'It might take six to seven weeks before I have done enough groundwork to convince myself that it is the right time to invest.

'But once I commit, I then usually hold the stock for at least three years, sometimes five, before my decision to invest bears fruit. Patience is my middle name.'

It is a contrarian approach requiring nerves of steel. But so far Clements has reaped attractive rewards for investors in the Oyster Continental European Selection Fund.

Since launch in late 2013, the fund has registered a return of 63 per cent, which is better than the performance of both the average European fund and the FTSE All-Share Index.

Over the past three years, only seven rival European funds out of more than 100 have done better.

So far this year, Clements has taken new positions in five firms, while taking profits in four. Among the new purchases is Italian financial services company Banca Sistema.

'Italian banks had a desperate 2016 as bad debts threatened to consume them,' he says.

'Banca Sistema got caught up in all the market froth, even though it is not a bank as such. Its focus is on factoring  buying invoices at a discount from companies waiting to be paid and generating a profit when the bills are eventually met.

'It is a low-risk business, given the debtors are usually state-owned companies, which always pay up but are notoriously tardy.

'We were able to use the negativity surrounding the Italian banking sector to buy the company's shares cheaply.'

A cut above: Lectra, which makes fabric cutting machines for the fashion industry, has been a winner for Clements

Another recent purchase could generate a handsome return faster than expected. Clements bought shares in Danish payments company Nets in April.

Last month, it was bid for by US private equity giant Hellman & Friedman, sending the shares to new highs.

'We could have bought late last year when Nets carried out an initial share offering.

'But we thought the shares were too expensive. We waited six months for them to fall before we bought in.

'It is a great business with a dominant market position in Scandinavia and has a stable cash flow, which no doubt explains Hellman's interest.'

Of the firms sold this year, Lectra, a French business that provides hardware and software for fabric cutting, has been particularly profitable.

He says: 'We bought shares in mid-2014 for 7.5 and sold in April this year for around 20.

'At the time we bought it was out of favour because its growth plans were seen by some as too ambitious. But the strategy proved successful.'

Though SYZ's head office is in Geneva, Clements runs the fund from London. He is head of a team of seven people  three are based in Edinburgh  who scour European markets for investment opportunities.

The fund comprises only 30 stocks and none are UK companies. But this is not because he finds them unattractive  it is simply a result of the fact that the fund invests only across the Continent.
Holidaymakers were plunged into chaos this week as airline Monarch announced it had gone into administration.

The closure of the business, which could affect up to 850,000 travellers, came hot on the heels of the debacle at Ryanair, which has seen up to 50 flights a day cancelled and 34 routes scrapped.

Amid all the turmoil it is, perhaps, understandable that budget carrier easyJet has seen its share price climb almost 10 per cent to 1263p over the past month, on the basis it is well placed to cash in on its rivals' woes.

Trading trends: EasyJet has seen its share price climb almost 10 per cent to 1263p over the past month, on the basis it is well placed to cash in on its rivals' woes

The orange-emblazoned airline has long had the reputation of being the friendlier counterpart to its Irish competitor and now, while Monarch looks for a buyer and Ryanair remains in thousands of travellers' bad books, easyJet is the obvious budget alternative for holidaymakers.

Any rival leaving the market reduces the number of available seats, which could help put a floor under falling prices.

EasyJet obviously feels fairly confident about the future. Last month, it put in a bid to acquire part of Air Berlin's short-haul business after that firm went into insolvency.

It could buy up to 30 aircraft from the business if its bid is accepted. Analysts say it could boost profits by as much as 10 per cent.

Adding some of Monarch's fleet to its numbers could provide a similar enhancement.

But a deal with either airline would also mean taking on more debt at a time when operating costs are already rising  though the pound has recovered some strength in recent weeks, the oil price is up about 25 per cent since June alone.

As well as that, new entrants into the budget flights market, such as Wizz Air and Norwegian, have increased capacity and therefore put downward pressure on prices.

Holiday choice: While Monarch looks for a buyer and Ryanair remains in thousands of travellers' bad books, easyJet is the obvious budget alternative

Many travellers are abandoning overseas holiday plans for myriad reasons, including a weaker pound and heightened terrorism fears.

In its first-half figures, easyJet revealed losses had climbed from 21million to 212 million, blaming weak sterling and the timing of Easter.

But the airline had better news for investors in its third-quarter figures. In the three months to June 30, revenue was 16 per cent ahead of the same period a year ago at 1.4billion, with revenue per seat rising 2.2 per cent to 57.78.

Latest figures show it carried 8.2million customers in August  an increase of 9.4 per cent from a year ago. It estimates pre-tax profits for the year in the range of 380million to 420million.

Yet questions remain as to whether easyJet is the right bet to make on how this particular story plays out.

The turmoil passengers have endured in recent weeks could cast a shadow on the entire budget end of the airline sector.

Some have predicted that consumers could turn away from cheap flights in their droves in favour of quality carriers, which might be perceived as a safer pair of hands. If that happens, then it is firms such as BA-owner International Consolidated Airlines Group (IAG) that will benefit.

This theory doesn't appear to have made it to the stock market yet, however. IAG's shares are up a little over 1 per cent over the past month to 615p.

Not that things aren't going well; in its half-year results the group reported operating profits of 797million for the six months to June 30, some 13.8 per cent more than previously.

Revenue edged up 0.9 per cent to 9.7billion and August passenger numbers were 0.7 per cent higher than a year ago at 10.6million.

Midas verdict: The real question is whether or not consumers have had enough of budget airlines. If they shift towards quality carriers, it could spell a sell for the shares.

But if price is passengers' main priority  and people do like a bargain  then easyJet is the obvious beneficiary of this latest upheaval. Buy.
Lloyds Bank is this weekend under fire for its handling of the HBOS Reading fraud after demanding that the whistleblower couple who exposed the scandal prove yet again that they were victims.

The pair have already handed over a mountain of evidence to the high street lender, which took over HBOS in 2008.

Lloyds stands accused of attempting to cover up the 245million fraud  one of the biggest in British banking history  and of trying to fob off the scores of owners of small firms who lost their livelihoods.

Lloyds Bank is this weekend under fire for its handling of the HBOS Reading fraud after demanding that the whistleblower couple who exposed the scandal prove yet again that they were victims

The bank has sparked new fury by writing to Paul and Nikki Turner, who first publicised the wrongdoing, calling for them to hand over more proof that they had suffered at the hands of the notorious Reading branch of HBOS.

However, the Turners have already supplied hundreds of documents to Lloyds over the course of more than a decade. Critics say the bank's demand typifies its obstructive attitude.

Banking sources say that although current boss Antonio Horta-Osorio was not at the helm at the time of the scandal, he is under increasing pressure due to his treatment of the victims.

A number of them  including TV star Noel Edmonds who is claiming 300 million from Lloyds over the collapse of his Unique Group of businesses  say Horta-Osorio has refused to meet them.

Many are furious at what they see as the bank's high-handed behaviour.

Insulted: Lloyds has sparked new fury by writing to Paul and Nikki Turner (pictured), who first publicised the wrongdoing, calling for them to hand over more proof that they had suffered at the hands of the notorious Reading branch of HBOS

One banking insider said: 'Antonio has taken a dismissive approach hoping they will go away, but it has backfired.'

Lloyds has come in for harsh criticism from Thames Valley police commissioner Anthony Stansfeld, who investigated the case.

He said: 'If it hadn't been for the unearthing of evidence by victims and whistleblowers within the bank much would not have come to light.

'The treatment of whistleblowers and the huge legal pressure they were then put under by the banks' lawyers has been disgraceful.'

Lloyds boss Antonio Horta-Osorio is under increasing pressure

Lloyds has set aside 100 million to compensate victims through a review led by Professor Russel Griggs.

But victims say the bank is dragging its feet on payouts and the process is not independent.

The Turners' music business, Zenith, was devastated by corrupt bankers more than a decade ago.

The couple said the treatment of them was at the heart of the criminal case where the rogue bankers were convicted, so Lloyds already has piles of definitive evidence.

In January, six bankers and consultants were jailed for defrauding businesses and spending the proceeds on sex, holidays, parties and superyachts.

Nikki Turner told The Mail on Sunday: 'We have sent first HBOS and then Lloyds numerous letters and documents and it took them until the beginning of this year to accept the truth. This is either severe incompetence or cynical prevarication by Lloyds.'

The bank says it accepts that the Turners were victims but that it needs them to detail how they were defrauded because the pair have not formally issued a legal claim against them.

Lloyds said: 'Where we are engaging with customers through an alternative dispute resolution process we need them to set out their personal experiences... in their own words in the greatest possible detail.

'The independent mediator will review this position statement and the group's response and consider the impact on the customer.'
Tony Hetherington is Financial Mail on Sunday's ace investigator, fighting readers corners, revealing the truth that lies behind closed doors and winning victories for those who have been left out-of-pocket. Find out how to contact him below.

Mrs S.W. writes: Phone company Talkmobile is closing down its pay as you go accounts and advising customers to transfer to Vodafone.

There must be lots of people like my husband who have unused credit on their phones and are losing money as a result.

Tony replies: Talkmobile announced the pay as you go closure several months ago and it took effect on August 31, just after you first contacted me.

But why anyone should lose money because of this remains hard to understand.

Lines crossed: Martin Freeman in the TV advertising campaign for Vodafone, which also owns Talkmobile

Talkmobile is owned by Vodafone, which runs a similar pay as you go service. You might think that since the two businesses are so closely related, it would be simple to switch every customer's unused credit from one to the other, but this is not what has happened.

When customers were warned of the closure, they were given three months' notice to make enough calls or send enough texts to use up all the money they had paid to Talkmobile in advance.

Anyone who had less than 20 in credit by the deadline saw this transferred into Vodafone's 'Big Value Bundle'  a mixture of data, call time and texts  that came with an expiry date, unlike the original Talkmobile scheme.

Customers with more than 20 in credit were supposed to be treated on a case by case basis, and allowed to transfer their unused credits to Vodafone if it was clear they rarely used their mobile phone and were unlikely to go on a binge of calls and texts before the end of August.

Your husband had 22 in unused credit on a phone he liked to have around but rarely used. After receiving warning texts from Talkmobile, he went through with the transfer to Vodafone.

So I asked Vodafone to have a look at his account, and also to explain why any customer should lose even a penny in credit. Your husband then received a call from Vodafone, insisting he had already been given a 10 credit.

When Talkmobile customers were warned of the closure, they were given three months' notice to make enough calls or send enough texts to use up all the money they had paid in advance

Not so. This was 10 he had paid up front when he opened the account, and Vodafone has now apologised and credited him with 25.

The phone company told me it had no idea of the identities of most of the Talkmobile pay as you go customers.

It explained: 'We would not be able automatically to issue new Vodafone SIM cards to all our customers as we would not have an address to send them to.

Nor could we make the assumption that they want to transfer to Vodafone rather than to another operator.'

The bottom line then, is that after the closure was announced, it was up to customers to contact Talkmobile and Vodafone and say what they wanted to happen, rather than the other way round.

So how much have customers who took no action lost in unused credits?

There was no estimate from Vodafone, though it did tell me: 'When the process is completed, any unused credit remaining will be given to charity.'

HSBC won't accept my power of attorney to transfer an Isa Mrs A.B. writes: In January I was diagnosed with breast cancer and in February I had a bad fall. I decided to cancel the Isa shareholdings that my husband and I have had for more than 20 years, and to put the money into our joint account. This was done for my Isa, but HSBC asked for a copy of the power of attorney allowing me to act for my husband, who has severe dementia. I supplied a copy, but after several weeks I was told the bank branch had been closed and nobody knew anything about the matter. I started the process again with another branch, but after weeks they said the power of attorney was not correct, even though my solicitor said it was fine. I wrote again, this time with a copy of my driving licence, but nothing happened. The money is needed for my husband's care. All this has upset me terribly. Tony replies: When things like this go wrong, it can be hard to find someone in any big business who will take control of the situation and put it right. That seems to be exactly what has happened here. HSBC has not offered any explanation of what went wrong. But after I contacted the bank's head office, staff moved quickly. You were telephoned with an apology, your husband's Isa savings were moved into your joint account and HSBC has added 500 to make up for the distress you suffered. The bank has also sent you flowers. HSBC told me: 'The issue has now been resolved. We apologise to Mrs B for the delay.'

If you believe you are the victim of financial wrongdoing, write to Tony Hetherington at Financial Mail, 2 Derry Street, London W8 5TS or email tony.hetherington@mailonsunday.co.uk. Because of the high volume of enquiries, personal replies cannot be given. Please send only copies of original documents, which we regret cannot be returned.
Fashion darling Ted Baker has stitched up another increase in profits as plans to create a global fashion business begin to pay off, the company is expected to say this week.

It has opened stores in dozens of countries from Australia to Azerbaijan and now makes a third of its revenue outside Europe.

Scott Ransley, an analyst at broker Stifel, said he expects the firm to say on Tuesday that profit in the six months to the end of July increased 13 per cent to 24.3million.

Fashion darling Ted Baker has stitched up another increase in profits as plans to create a global fashion business begin to pay off, the company is expected to say this week

Group sales rose 14 per cent to 296million, around 100million of which came from its own shops and concessions in other stores outside the UK and Europe, he forecasts.

The companys success has been driven by the eccentric chief executive Ray Kelvin, who is often described as the closest man to Ted.

Many familiar with the fashion firm say over the past 30 years the executive and the imaginary Ted Baker have become almost indistinguishable.

The company is worth 1.2billion after the shares fell by about a quarter in the past two years.

But Ransley said: Ted Baker has already proved its international growth credentials and is a unique premium brand that is less vulnerable to mainstream online competition.
The Dorchester Group recorded a 32m pre-tax loss for 2016

Its opulent hotel rooms are beloved of celebrities, but Dorchester Group is not immune to the effects of the Brexit vote, recording a 32million pre-tax loss for 2016.

The red ink was caused by the decline of sterling, as well as write-downs on the value of investment properties and some hotels.

The French hotels also suffered as a result of terrorist attacks there and profits were hit by the closure of the Hotel Eden in Rome for much of the year due to refurbishment.

Figures just filed for the year ending December 31, 2016 show turnover rose slightly from 336million to 340million, as the average room rate jumped from 510 to 568 a night.

But the previous year's 59.1million profit turned into a 32.3million pre-tax loss thanks to 13.3million in property write-downs and 34million in finance costs.

The owner of the group, named after its flagship Park Lane hotel, is unlikely to be feeling the pinch just yet, however.

He is the Sultan of Brunei, whose net worth is estimated at around 20billion.
Monarch Airlines' polo-playing chief executive Andrew Swaffield

When Monarch Airlines' polo-playing chief executive Andrew Swaffield signed up for his tour of duty less than three years ago he was expecting to make a fortune.

A successful revival of the business would have landed him tens of millions of pounds.

But last week  with the airline in ruins  the 568,000-a-year boss had already switched his focus.

He had rebooted his career and was making a fresh start by registering a business consultancy to run from home.

Friends admitted it was an error of judgment at a time when the ink was still drying on the documents appointing Monarch's insolvency practitioners.

Perhaps Swaffield could be forgiven for switching to auto pilot because  like his staff  he was made redundant on Monday.

One friend said: 'He didn't for a moment mean to upset the staff further. It's the last thing he'd want. But perhaps it was insensitive.'

Swaffield, who lives with his partner William in Sussex, admits to being 'consumed' by polo.

He has high overheads and is believed to invest as much as 60,000 of his own cash in his team, Alcedo, each season. One of his players commands fees of 3,000 per game.

The dramatic implosion of Britain's fifth biggest airline makes it the third European carrier to collapse in less than six months.

Two weeks ago, as the options for survival diminished rapidly, Monarch owner Greybull Capital sent a missive to the Department of Transport.

They pleaded for a few extra weeks to clear the busy half-term holiday schedule at the end of October and find a buyer.

Greybull, led by the mysterious brothers Marc and Nathaniel Meyohas, was even considering offering any buyer a dowry.

But Air Berlin and Alitalia had already collapsed earlier this year and were openly talking to buyers while restructuring at a leisurely pace under their domestic bankruptcy protection laws  something not available in the UK.

The three options presented to the DoT looked desperate. The first required a loan to carry on trading until Monarch received 45 new Boeing aircraft to boost its long-haul business to the US and Caribbean. That was highly unrealistic, sources say.

Swaffield, who lives with his partner William in Sussex, admits to being 'consumed' by polo

The other two alternatives required financial cover to extend Monarch's life 'either by two months  or just a few weeks'.

But a source said: 'Both of those also required a willing buyer to be waiting in the wings and they just weren't there.'

Monarch's rapid decline began almost as soon as Greybull pumped 165 million into the business a year ago.

The airline and many of its rivals had already begun diverting flights from terrorist-blighted areas such as Egypt, Tunisia and Turkey and instead flying to highly competitive destinations such as France and Spain.

But in January that began to accelerate. The result was overcapacity with flights on Monarch routes rising 30 per cent forcing average ticket prices on Mediterranean flights to nosedive from 110 to about 80.

Industry observers were 'shocked' by the admission of a 198 million write-down in the accounts for 'onerous' airline leases  a significant warning of its financial instability. Its ageing fleet needed 80 million spent on repairs every year.

Ironically for Monarch, flight search firm Skyscanner said this week that the collapse had helped October airline seat prices to spike by 23 per cent  reversing this year's trend.

Monarch's rapid decline began almost as soon as Greybull pumped 165 million into the business a year ago

But the story has another twist. Monarch's downfall could help Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary to ease the pilot shortage that has forced him to cancel 715,000 flights.

O'Leary last month took a swipe at Monarch, by then desperately searching for someone willing to pay 1 to buy the business.

The publicity hound said it was an 'open secret' that Monarch was 'in trouble'. Ryanair launched a massive sale just days before Monarch disintegrated.

O'Leary has also made disparaging remarks about the financial health of rival Norwegian  another Boeing operator  and suggested that pilots would be better off working for him.

Whether or not there is a Machiavellian motive behind O'Leary's comments, one senior airline industry figure said they would be 'deeply unhelpful' to anyone facing financial difficulty.

With prices rising again it is arguably the consumer that is losing out from Monarch's sudden departure.

One source said: 'There was a lot of affection for Monarch. The service was a cut above budget airlines, many older passengers knew that.

'The only problem was, with so many cheap airlines operating, they obviously weren't willing to pay more for it. That, as much as any other reason, is why Monarch is no longer here.'
A Catholic primary school has been accused of treating pupils like 'Oliver Twist' by refusing to serve them a proper meal because of their parents' debt to the canteen.

Struggling families at St Raphael's primary school in Northolt, north London, have been warned that children will be fed only 'bread and fruit' for lunch if they can't pay-up.

Parents are furious at staff for the 'disgusting' decision and have accused them of 'humiliating' their youngsters.

A letter sent to mothers and fathers said the move had been taken because 'budgets are tight' and that controlling 'parental debt' would be in the best interest of the school.

One furious parent posted a photo of the letter sent out to parents at St. Raphael's Catholic Primary School in Northolt, north London

Staff at St Raphael's were accuse of treating the children like the famous Charles Dickens character, Oliver Twist

St Raphael's canteen is run by caterers Harrisons, with parents pre-paying for children's meals via a top-up account system.

The school's menu offers a wide array of options for each day with children able to tuck into dishes from chicken curry and beef onion pie, to carrot and lentil lasagne.

But new rules state that if pupils in years three to six go over their balance by more than 2.30 they will be left without a full meal for lunch.

In the letter, parents were told: 'As part of the school's procedure to improve the efficient running of the school, at a time when budgets are tight, we are implementing a new procedure to control parental debt.

'We have opted for the 'one day debt rule' for all children from years 3 to 6. This means your debt for the day should not exceed 2.30.

'Any child with an outstanding debt will not receive a school meal and will be fed bread and fruit on the day.

St Raphael's canteen is run by caterers Harrisons, with parents pre-paying for children's meals via a top-up account system

'To avoid this embarrassment for your child, please ensure that full payment is made before 11.00am on the day or provide with a packed lunch.'

St Raphael's was judged as 'good' in its last Ofsted report and in her mission statement to parents, head teacher Evelyn Ward said the school aims to 'work in a spirit of partnership with you, our parents, developing our respective roles and responsibilities, to teach children.'

But families have slammed the new lunch-time rules and have accused staff of imposing conditions fit for a Charles Dickens novel.

Others claimed the canteen rule singles children out and leaves them vulnerable to bullying.

One father, who posted a photo of the school's letter on Facebook, fumed: 'I don't mind them saying you will only be allowed minimal debt.

The school's menu offers a wide array of options for each day with children able to tuck into dishes from chicken curry and beef onion pie, to Carrot and lentil lasagne

'But to use scare tactics that your child will be served bread and fruit and will be embarrassed!

'It might as well be bread and f****** water and put them on a pedestal so humiliation is complete.

'What about the families that are struggling to even put a meal on the table when the child gets home. Will they keep giving the child bread and fruit for days or weeks on end?

'These 3rd parties companies don't care about the welfare of the children they just want your 2.30 per day. I just hope the schools are watching out for the children and not passing the buck to the 3rd Parties.'

One parent mocked the school's canteen decision and posted a still from the popular 1968 film Oliver!

Another mother also compared the school's behaviour to the harsh conditions of Dickensian London and wrote: 'This can't be for real, surely not, this is from a Dickens [novel] surely?'

Parents reacted furiously to the canteen rule and slammed it as 'disgusting' and 'horrendous'

Another parent wrote: 'This is horrendous, not every family has two parents supporting their children and can struggle constantly, those poor kids!'

One angry mother said: 'If school is compulsory surely school dinners are also whether parents have money to pay or not?

'Humiliating children because they are of poor families is totally unacceptable, leads to being singled out and bullying!'

One mother ranted: 'That is awful. It's like blackmail - if you don't pay, your child will get scraps! It's disgusting.'

St Raphael's told MailOnline that all parents are notified in advance if their children's account has gone into debt so that they can 'rectify' the problem before it becomes 'unmanageable'.

A spokeswoman also said that no pupils have ever been denied a 'school meal'.

Headteacher Ms ward added: 'The well-being of our pupils is always our main priority and our school ensures that all children are provided with lunch, even if their school meal account is in debt.'
A refugee who allegedly threatened and chased his pregnant girlfriend despite her having an Apprehended Violence Order out against him has been given bail.

Shahram Niknam, who arrived in Australia illegally by boat in 2013, allegedly stalked and intimidated Acsa Zulman Chow Chow before being arrested last Sunday.

The 28-year-old allegedly waited outside the supermarket where his partner works after calling and messaging her 49 times, The Daily Telegraph reported.

A refugee (pictured) who allegedly threatened and chased his pregnant girlfriend despite her having an Apprehended Violence Order out against him has been given bail

Shahram Niknam (pictured), who arrived in Australia illegally by boat in 2013, allegedly stalked and intimidated Acsa Zulman Chow Chow before being arrested last Sunday

'I will do something bad to you and you will never see your baby again,' he allegedly told her earlier at their home in Penrith, in Sydney's west, a court was told.

'I will leave you as a vegetable and you won't be able to leave your house ever,' Parramatta Bail Court heard Niknam said to his partner before she started her shift.

Police claim Niknam, an unemployed painter, then tried to force his way into Ms Chow Chow's locked car, and then followed her in his own car.

Ms Chow Chow drove to St Marys Police Station but when she stopped at traffic lights Nikram allegedly got out of his car and yelled at her.

Police Prosecutor Senior Sergeant Craig Pullen opposed bail, noting Niknam (pictured) was fined $600 after being convicted of breaching a previous AVO on September 5

He was arrested at the scene and charged with stalking and intimidating Ms Chow Chow and contravening an AVO.

Registrar Ross Lawton granted Niknam bail, as the refugee had only two previous convictions, and was unlikely to be sentenced to full-time custody if convicted on the new charges.

Police Prosecutor Senior Sergeant Craig Pullen opposed bail, noting Niknam was fined $600 after being convicted of breaching a previous AVO on September 5.

Niknam (pictured) has been ordered not to come within 200 metres of Ms Chow Chow, her home or her workplace and his case has been adjourned until next week

Niknam's bridging visa has been cancelled by the federal government, and he is being held in Villawood Detention Centre.

'The Australian government takes seriously its responsibility to protect the Australian community from the risk of harm posed by non-citizens who engage in criminal conduct or behaviour of concern,' said an Immigration Department spokesman.

He has been ordered not to come within 200 metres of Ms Chow Chow, her home or her workplace and his case has been adjourned until next week.
Firefighters who rescued a cow from a sink hole said it had got itself into an 'inescapabull position'.

A specialist technical rescue team had to be mobilised after the animal got stuck in a field in the Norwood Green area, near Bradford, West Yorkshire.

West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue said on Facebook: 'Our Technical Rescue and Cleckheaton crew had to help re-moove a cow that had gotten itself in an inescapabull position stuck in a sink hole!

'Crews and the farmer managed to dig a hole around the trapped cow and once the hole was big enough they used used a lifting sling to cow-ordinate the animal out of the hole.

This cow had to be rescued from a sinkhole in West Yorkshire by firefighters and rescue workers

The cow (pictured) was unharmed after a specialist team hauled if from the hole in the ground

'The cow was rescued unharmed.'

Another social media user responded to the Facebook post saying: 'Good work everyone. Heroes without a cape. I can see why my son wants to be just like you one day.'

'Crews and the farmer managed to dig a hole around the trapped cow and once the hole was big enough they used used a lifting sling to cow-ordinate the animal out of the hole.

'The cow was rescued unharmed.'

Another social media user responded to the Facebook post saying: 'Good work everyone. Heroes without a cape. I can see why my son wants to be just like you one day.'

Specialist rescue workers from West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service are pictured digging the cow out of a sink hole
An infamous 12-year-old videotape of President Donald Trump was being shown on a continuous loop on the Mall in Washington, D.C. on Friday by a group protesting his attitudes toward women, local media reported.

The women's group Ultraviolet was playing the tape for 12 hours straight to mark one year since it was leaked during the 2016 presidential campaign, it said.

The tape of the then-candidate bragging about groping and having sex with women was recorded on an open microphone while Trump was about to tape a segment of a television show 'Access Hollywood.'

An infamous 12-year-old videotape of President Donald Trump was being shown on a continuous loop on the Mall in Washington

The women's group Ultraviolet was playing the tape for 12 hours straight to mark one year

The tape of the then-candidate bragging about groping and having sex with women was recorded on an open microphone

He can be heard saying: 'Grab them by the pussy. You can do anything.'

'Last October, we learned that the now president of the United States is a proud sexual predator,' Ultraviolet and other activist groups posted on Facebook on Friday.

'Trump does not get to brush this under the rug,' it wrote.

During the campaign, Trump was criticized for his comments about women, such as insults he made about a beauty queen contestant.

Since Trump took office, his administration has proposed or undertaken measures that many see as harmful to women's rights, particularly in the areas of abortion access, health insurance, child care and workplace policies.

In this 2005 frame from video, Donald Trump prepares for an appearance on 'Days of Our Lives' with actress Arianne Zucker (right) and Billy Bush

On Friday, his administration eviscerated requirements under the Obama-era Affordable Care Act law that employers provide insurance to cover women's birth control, keeping a campaign pledge that pleased his conservative Christian supporters.

Millions of women demonstrated around the world in January, the day after Trump was sworn into office, objecting to his views toward women's rights.

The tape was playing on a large screen set up near the Washington Monument, the Washington Post, Boston Globe and other major media reported.
Its the photograph that became a symbol of Catalonias defiant bid for independence in the face of the brutal crackdown by Spanish police.

Frail Catalan pensioners are seen playing dominoes under the noses of riot officers who stand in a menacing line at a polling station as they hunt for 'illegal' ballot boxes.

Now MailOnline can reveal the full story behind the picture which rapidly went viral this week. The elderly people were in fact distracting police while younger activists hid their ballot box in an open tomb at the local cemetery.

It reminded me of life under Franco, one nonagenarian board games player told MailOnline. I stood up to the police in 1940 and stopped them from arresting my sister. Now Im standing up for democracy again with my dominoes.

Frail Catalan pensioners are seen playing dominoes under their noses of riot officers who stand in a menacing line at a polling station as they hunt for 'illegal' ballot boxes. The photograph became a symbol of Catalonias defiant bid for independence in the face of the brutal crackdown by Spanish police

Ballot boxes being lowered by rope from a polling station in Gracia, Barcelona, on Sunday. Shortly before the dominoes photo was taken, about 100 riot police armed with shields and batons had mounted a brutal assault at the small town of Sant Iscle Vallalta, leaving many bruised and bloodied in scenes caught on camera

'While the old folks played, we sneaked it out the back entrance, Jordi Comas (left), 67, a retired carpenter, told MailOnline. 'We are just ordinary people, we were terrified. But we knew it was our duty'

Shortly before the photo was taken, about 100 riot police armed with shields and batons had mounted a brutal assault at the small town of Sant Iscle Vallalta, leaving many bruised and bloodied in scenes caught on camera.

They then forced their way into the polling station, the Casal De La Gent Gran daycare centre, and demanded the ballot boxes. But a pro-independence motorcycle spotter had warned the activists in advance.

While the old folks played, we sneaked it out the back entrance, Jordi Comas, 67, a retired carpenter, told MailOnline. 'We are just ordinary people, we were terrified. But we knew it was our duty.'

While police were distracted by the pensioners, the precious plastic box was being hidden in an open tomb behind the Sant Iscle i Santa Victoria church, a short walk from the polling station.

While police were distracted by the pensioners, the precious plastic box was being hidden in an open tomb behind the Sant Iscle i Santa Victoria church, a short walk from the polling station

My husband died of a heart attack a few years ago and he is buried in the cemetery, said 91-year-old Mrs Verdura, one of the elderly people involved. Even in death, he is helping provide cover for democracy.

The riot officers eventually gave up and moved on, leaving scores of injured locals in their wake. We brought the ballot box back and everything continued as normal, Mr Comas said.

The voting went on all day and we only closed the doors at nightfall. It was a victory for us.

Miriam, 38, a council administrator who helped hide the box, added: It was tense, tense, tense. I did not exhale that day until I finally got home that night. Luckily everything went according to plan, but we are worried about what repression may come now.'

Jordi Comas with a ballot box at the polling station for the Catalonian independence referendum in Sant Iscle de Vallalta

Ballot boxes, which had been made in China, were flown to France and taken by road to the village of Elne, 18 miles from the Spanish border. From there they were smuggled into Catalonia in lorries

Pro-independence officials face possible fines of up to 300,000, with senior figures even being threatened with imprisonment. The chief of the Catalan police, Josep Lluis Trapero, has been accused of sedition for enabling the referendum, which could land him up to 15 years behind bars.

Despite the risks, the extraordinary scenes of Sant Iscle Vallalta were echoed in many polling stations around Catalonia on Sunday.

MailOnline has also obtained exclusive pictures of activists at Escola Jujol polling station in Gracia, a downtown district of Barcelona, using ropes to lower ballot boxes from the roof of a polling station as riot police closed in.

It followed weeks of clandestine planning as activists made every effort to prevent the Spanish authorities from clamping down on their 'illegal' referendum.

A total of 1,246 votes were cast at the Sant Iscle Vallalta polling station. Those supporting independence numbered 1,194, while those against totalled just 32

Ballot boxes, which had been made in China, were flown to France and taken by road to the village of Elne, 18miles from the Spanish border. From there they were smuggled into Catalonia in lorries.

Activists communicated using Telegram, an encrypted messenger service, to evade electronic surveillance. In our town, there were five people organising the referendum and we didnt meet each other until two days before the referendum, Mr Comas said.

One was in charge of the box, the other was in charge of the polling papers, two more were in charge of the polling station and one was in charge of a plan to hide the materials.

There were people hanging around that nobody recognised, so we were very worried about spies. Every person only knew his piece of the puzzle.

The affair followed weeks of clandestine planning as activists made every effort to prevent the Spanish authorities from clamping down on their 'illegal' referendum

Hide in piece: A ballot box in a grave at Sant Iscle I Santa Victoria church

Activists communicated using Telegram, an encrypted messenger service, to evade electronic surveillance. In our town, there were five people organising the referendum and we didnt meet each other until two days before the referendum, Mr Comas said

A fellow activist added: We did not feel like we were breaking the law. We were obeying the Catalan parliament and expressing the will of the people.

This is a problem that we have had for 300 years. The Spanish government does not respect Catalonia or allow us our liberty. That is why we want independence.

Matilde Verdura, 91  who as a law student was one of only three woman at Barcelona University when Franco seized power in 1939  said: I will never forget seeing the police attack my neighbours. It was like watching the bulls in the stadium.

We have had 40 years of peaceful democracy, but now I feel that the spirit of Franco is not dead. I am afraid that it will not last much longer.

Matilde Verdura (pictured), 91  who as a law student was one of only three woman at Barcelona University when Franco seized power in 1939  said: I will never forget seeing the police attack my neighbours. It was like watching the bulls in the stadium'

Verdura added: We have had 40 years of peaceful democracy, but now I feel that the spirit of Franco is not dead. I am afraid that it will not last much longer. Pictured: Her ID card from 1950

A total of 1,246 votes were cast at the Sant Iscle Vallalta polling station. Those supporting independence numbered 1,194, while those against totalled just 32.

Yesterday, Madrid approved a ruling making it easier for companies to move their headquarters out of Catalonia. It was the latest in a string of punitive moves designed to pressure the Catalan leadership into abandoning their independence ambitions.

On Thursday, the Madrid government blocked a parliamentary debate scheduled for Monday that was to act as a catalyst for Catalonia making a unilateral declaration of independence.

Further unrest is expected over the weekend, with a major demonstration planned in Barcelona on Sunday.
One of Hollywoods most powerful moguls came crashing down from his pedestal yesterday after stunning revelations that he paid off at least eight women over sexual harassment claims.

Harvey Weinstein said he was taking leave of absence from his company to get therapy for his treatment of women. In a remarkable admission from one of the most tyrannical men in the movie business, the American sincerely apologised for the pain hed caused.

Weinstein, who was made a CBE by Tony Blairs government for services to the British film industry, said he particularly wanted to earn the forgiveness of the star actress Ashley Judd.

In an account of his bullying behaviour, which was echoed by a string of other women, Judd described how, in the late Nineties, Weinstein lured her to what she thought would be a breakfast meeting in his suite at the Peninsula Beverly Hills hotel in LA to discuss film roles.

Harvey Weinstein leaves his New York family home with security. He was surrounded by photographers as he made his way to his awaiting SUV, pictured

Instead, the burly producer appeared in a dressing gown and asked if he could give her a massage. When she declined, he requested that she watch him take a shower.

I said no, a lot of ways, a lot of times, and he always came back at me with some new ask, she told the widely respected New York Times, which broke the story this week. It was all this bargaining, this coercive bargaining.

The actress described how she joked to him that she wouldnt touch him until she had won an Oscar in one of his films. Judd, who says shes heard of other actresses who received exactly the same treatment, walked out of the suite  and never heard from Weinsteins studio again.

The newspaper said it had identified at least eight previously undisclosed instances in which Weinstein had paid money, sometimes as much as $150,000 (115,000), to settle complaints about his lewd behaviour covering nearly three decades.

Vince Vaughn, pictured back left, Harvey Weinstein, pictured right, and Ashley Judd at an Oscar party. Judd had heard of other actresses who received exactly the same treatment by Weinstein

Harvey Weinstein and Rose McGowan during the Grindhouse Los Angeles Premiere, pictured. McGowan had previously reached undisclosed settlement with Weinstein in 1997

They reportedly included the brunette actress Rose McGowan  who starred in the supernatural drama series Charmed  as well as a fashion model. The women were mostly in their 20s and alone with Weinstein when, they say he would appear either barely clothed or naked, coercing them to massage him or watch him in the shower.

According to the New York Times, McGowan reached a previously undisclosed settlement with Weinstein in 1997 over an incident in a hotel room during the Sundance Film Festival in Utah. She was 23 at the time.

In at least one other instance, he allegedly pressured a temporary assistant to have sex with him.

Providing compelling evidence that the notorious Hollywood casting couch is alive and well, the women said Weinstein offered to advance their careers if they succumbed to his advances.

Some of this ugly behaviour reportedly took place in London, where Weinstein would sexually harass female staff while staying at the Savoy hotel. The most recent allegation reported by the New York Times was in March 2015.

Women have been talking about Harvey among ourselves for a long time, and its simply beyond time to have the conversation publicly, said Ashley Judd.

Weinstein issued a statement saying: I appreciate the way Ive behaved with colleagues in the past has caused a lot of pain, and I sincerely apologise for it. Though Im trying to do better, I know I have a long way to go. That is my commitment.

My journey now will be to learn about myself and conquer my demons. Ive brought on therapists and I plan to take a leave of absence from my company, and to deal with this issue head on.

However, without providing examples, he accused the New York Times of reckless reporting. His lawyer said Weinstein denies many of the accusations as patently false, and would sue the newspaper.

The 65-year-old producer of Oscar-winning films including Shakespeare In Love, The English Patient and The Kings Speech has five children, including two by his second wife, the British fashion designer Georgina Chapman.

He said that glamorous, Marlborough-educated Ms Chapman, his wife since 2007, would be kicking my ass to be a better human being and to apologise to people for my bad behaviour.

The 41-year-old former model from Richmond-upon-Thames, whose business was helped immeasurably by the readiness of her husbands Hollywood friends to wear her designs at awards ceremonies, was reportedly livid after an Italian model accused Weinstein of groping her two years ago.

Weinstein rejected claims by model and aspiring actress Ambra Battilana that he grabbed her breasts and put his hands up her skirt. However, according to the New York Times, she was one of the women he paid off in a private settlement.

Yesterday, Georgina Chapman managed to smile for cameras as she emerged from the couples $15 million Manhattan home, refusing to comment on the scandal.

Harvey Weinstein's wife, Georgina Chapman is seen for the first time as she leaves their family home in New York amidst her husbands sexual allegations

Weinstein claims he has had really tough conversations with his family, but that they are standing by him. The tantalising question is whether Hollywood will stand by him, too.

Embarrassingly for an industry priding itself on its progressive stance on womens rights, many women confirmed yesterday that Weinsteins behaviour has long been an open secret in Tinseltown.

However, over the years, instead of criticising or refusing to work with him, scores of female stars  including Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Lawrence, Meryl Streep and Judi Dench  have showered praise on him for championing their careers.

Streep once called him God as she picked up a Golden Globe award, while Dame Judi has said she would never have had a film career without him.

While Hollywood allowed Weinstein to establish himself as a champion of liberal values, a staunch feminist and humanitarian, critics say that those who knew the truth about his private life were either blinded by ambition or silenced by the terror of crossing such a powerful and hot-tempered mogul.

The son of a diamond cutter from suburban New York, Weinstein and his brother Bob used the profits from a concert promotion business to set up their film distribution company, Miramax  named after their parents  in the Seventies.

Their first hit was The Secret Policemans Other Ball, a collection of live performances by British comedians and musicians in aid of Amnesty International. After the success of the British thriller The Crying Game in 1993, the brothers sold Miramax to Disney for $80 million, but stayed at its helm until 2005, when they struck out on their own, building a reputation for upmarket if often violent films.

Pictured, Weinstein and first wife Eve Chilton, who was a former assistant of his

Weinstein  who had three children with his first wife, his former assistant Eve Chilton  is notorious for interfering in his films, ruthlessly cutting those he regards as too long or slow with a ferocity that earned him the nickname Harvey Scissorhands.

His aggressive efforts to campaign for his films during the Oscar season  wildly out-spending other studios in his overtures to the judges  earned a ban on such tactics by the awards organisers.

He and his brother have notched up more than 300 Oscar nominations, while Weinstein has been thanked more times in Oscars acceptance speeches than anyone  including God.

Nonetheless, he has a reputation as a brutal bully, with a monstrous ego and volcanic temper. As Ashley Judd recalled, when confronted with the producers lewd behaviour in his hotel suite, she thought: How do I get out of the room as fast as possible without alienating Harvey Weinstein?

His influence stretched far beyond the film industry and into politics, too.

A staunch Democrat, Weinstein was a prominent supporter of Barack Obama and Hillary Clintons presidential campaigns. When Obamas daughter, Malia, recently finished school, she got an internship with Weinsteins company.

After the scandal broke yesterday, at least two Democratic senators gave away past donations they had received from Weinstein. Americas liberal elite is usually quick to jump on the bandwagon of condemning sexual harassment of women by powerful men. However, those who have worked with Weinstein were slow to comment.

One who did was the Tony-nominated British actress Jessica Hynes  star of BBC satire W1A  who said yesterday that she was once sacked from a film when, aged 19, she refused to do a screen test in a bikini for Weinstein. Im sure there are many more, she added.

Rose McGowan commented on Twitter: Anyone who does business with _ is complicit. And deep down you know you are even dirtier. Cleanse yourselves.

In a sign that colleagues may not wait for Weinstein to emerge from therapy a better man, the board of his business  the Weinstein Company  reportedly held an emergency meeting yesterday which he was expected to address. Rumours flew that Weinsteins more amiable brother, Bob, and chief operating officer, David Glasser, will stage a coup.

It remains unclear precisely what the producer is admitting and what he is denying. His lawyer, Lisa Bloom, admitted he was an old dinosaur learning new ways.

She said she had explained to him that, as a powerful studio boss dealing with far less influential women in the industry, whatever his motives, some of his words and behaviours can be perceived as inappropriate, even intimidating.Bloom also told U.S. breakfast TV yesterday that his behaviour had been gross and agreed that it was also illegal.

Weinstein has attempted to justify his behaviour as having been a product of another Hollywood era. I came of age in the Sixties and Seventies when all the rules about behaviour and workplaces were different. That was the culture then, he claimed.

He said yesterday that he wanted another chance, but I know Ive got work to do to earn it. Weinstein added: I also have the worst temper known to mankind . . . I cant talk specifics, but I put myself in positions that were stupid.

According to the New York Times, executives at Weinsteins company were warned about his behaviour in 2015 when a young female production executive, Lauren OConnor, wrote a memo describing disturbing incidents involving herself and colleagues.

There is a toxic environment for women at this company, she wrote. The balance of power is me: 0, Harvey Weinstein: 10. She recounted how, a year earlier, Weinstein had summoned a woman called Emily Nestor, who had worked for just one day at his company as a temp, to the Peninsula Beverly Hills, and offered to advance her career if she accepted his sexual advances.

The following year, according to Ms OConnor, a female assistant said Weinstein badgered her into giving him a massage while he was naked at the same hotel, leaving her crying and very distraught.

Weinstein has disputed some of Ms OConnors claims, and insists they parted on good terms.

The New York Times also reported the ugly behaviour spread across the Atlantic as he targeted female staff at his London office with inappropriate requests or comments in hotel rooms.

Laura Madden, a former employee there, said Weinstein pressured her for massages in hotels from 1991.

It was so manipulative. You constantly question yourself  am I the one who is the problem? she said. She confided to a colleague that she once locked herself sobbing in the bathroom of Weinsteins hotel room.

One of his London assistants, Zelda Perkins, then 25, was paid off by the companys lawyers when she confronted Weinstein in 1998 and threatened to go public, the newspaper reports. Ex-staff said women employees responded by never visiting Weinstein alone.

At least one Weinstein Company board member said he called for an independent investigation following Ms OConnors claims, but the matter was dropped after Weinstein settled with his accuser.

Hollywood insiders say its easy to see why his reported victims were cowed into silence. As one commented yesterday, Tinseltown had a very permissive culture for a long time, and Weinstein has been very powerful for a long time, which is why women are only now feeling emboldened to speak out.

The ebullient Weinstein has long been one of Hollywoods most colourful and controversial figures.

Throwing his weight around: Weinstein has also become a huge Democratic donor over the years (above with Hillary Clinton in 2012)

Alliance: The film mogul was one of Obama's top 40 'bundlers' during his 2012 re-election, bringing in $679,275 for the candidate

A friend of Paul McCartney, Bill Clinton and acquaintance of the disgraced paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein, he and brother Bob revolutionised the industry when Miramax, showed independent outfits could compete.

He was a master at getting small films noticed by the Oscar judges, championing actresses as varied as Nicole Kidman, Keira Knightley, Sienna Miller, Tara Fitzgerald and  most recently  the aristocratic model Cressida Bonas, former girlfriend of Prince Harry.

Gwyneth Paltrow, a Weinstein favourite whom he propelled to Oscars glory in Shakespeare In Love, repaid him by appearing in skimpy dominatrix gear in his society magazine, Talk.

There were certain favours that he asked me to do that I felt were not exploitive, but not necessarily as great for me as they were for him, she said later.

In the Nineties, Hollywood watchers wondered at the way pretty, young but not always very talented actresses would suddenly  and unaccountably  attract huge media buzz as Weinstein took them under his wing.

Long-time speculation over which of those Harvey Girls have succumbed to his sexual overtures has inevitably been given new life by the latest revelations.

When Ashley Judd wrote about her experience  without identifying Weinstein  in 2015, she said she had discovered that a bunch of other actresses had had the same ordeal  right down to the producer asking each of them to watch him in the shower.

Notoriously demanding of colleagues, and pugnaciously aggressive towards anyone who gets in his way, Weinstein is nicknamed The Punisher in Hollywood. Time will tell if he finally earns the new title of The Punished.
Andrea Leadsom could be sacked in an autumn reshuffle after branding Theresa Mays approach to Brexit disastrous.

Cabinet colleagues say they were stunned by Mrs Leadsoms outspoken criticism during a two-hour meeting to discuss the Prime Ministers Florence speech last month.

Two sources at the meeting claim the Commons Leader rounded on Mrs May over her soft approach to Brexit, even dropping the Cabinet protocol of referring to her as Prime Minister.

Andrea Leadsom stunned Cabinet colleagues when she told the prime minister her Brexit speech in Florence was disastrous

One said: Her interventions were extraordinary. She said: Parts of the speech are disastrous, Theresa, before laying into it. Everyone was stunned  you just dont talk like that in Cabinet.

Another added: Its fair to say her contribution was not appreciated by colleagues.

Mrs Leadsom, who could not be contacted for comment yesterday, was not the only pro-Brexit minister to raise concerns at the meeting, at which every member of the Cabinet was invited to speak.

But she was by far the most outspoken. Sources say she went much further than Boris Johnson, who had laid out his concerns in a 4,000-word essay the previous week.

Tory sources now suggest she could become a victim of a government reshuffle being considered for this autumn.

Mrs May is nervous about embarking on a wide-ranging reshuffle after being left weakened by her calamitous party conference speech. But many Tories are urging her to conduct a clearout of her top team to make room for some of the partys rising stars.

Theresa May is nervous about a wide-ranging reshuffle after her speech at party conference weakened her position

Party chairman Patrick McLoughlin is also tipped for the sack. Possible replacements include immigration minister Brandon Lewis and former soldier James Cleverly, a charismatic loyalist considered a star of the future.

Mrs Leadsom was Mrs Mays final leadership challenger last year in the contest that followed David Camerons resignation. She pulled out after controversy over a newspaper interview in which she suggested being a mother gave her a greater stake in society. Her comments were seen as an ill-judged swipe at Mrs May, who is childless.

Mrs Leadsom was rewarded for cutting the leadership contest short with a Cabinet job as Environment Secretary.

Tory sources say the PM had planned to sack her after the election. But, weakened by the election result, she instead moved her sideways to the post of Commons Leader to make way for the return of fellow Brexiteer Michael Gove.

But her behaviour in the role has irritated No 10 and led to speculation that she still sees herself as a future party leader. In June she made a high-profile media visit to Grenfell Tower, despite having no formal government role in dealing with the disaster.

Her visit was made as Mrs May faced intense criticism for not meeting families caught up in the disaster.

Tory sources say Theresa May moved Mrs Leadsom sideways to make way for the return of Michael Gove

The following month, friends of Mrs Leadsom briefed the media that she was being urged to launch another leadership bid by dozens of MPs.The South Northamptonshire MP has also raised eyebrows by referring to my government when talking about Mrs Mays administration.

Admirers believe she has real leadership qualities and point to her prominent role in the Vote Leave campaign during last years referendum.

Mrs Mays Florence speech committed the Government to pursuing a two-year transition away from the EU after 2019 during which membership regulations will continue, including a form of free movement and observance of rulings laid down by the European courts.

It also committed the UK to 20billion in further membership fees and opened the door to a larger final divorce bill.

Some pro-Brexit MPs believe the two-year transition is unnecessary and will delay the benefits of leaving the EU, such as striking trade deals.

But government sources say the constructive tone of the speech has gone down well in Europe and helped break the deadlock in Brexit talks.
The captivating TV drama Liar tackles one of the most contentious issues of our age - sexual consent.

When it started I thought ITV might break new ground by telling the story of a false rape claim and how it ruins a man's life.

Liar begins after loopy schoolteacher Laura (Joanne Froggatt) breaks up amicably with her long-term partner and goes on her first date with widowed heart surgeon Andrew (Ioan Gruffudd).

She flirts, he responds. She's needy, he's feeling needed. They end up back at her place kissing, both having drunk several large glasses of wine.

Cut to the next morning, Laura wakes alone and decides she has been raped. The police are called and Andrew's life falls apart as he protests his innocence.

But which one of them is the liar?

Ioan Gruffudd as Andrew Earlham and Joanne Froggatt as Laura Nielson in new ITV drama Liar

This week we found out. And the answer was, predictably, the man. It turned out the doctor had not only spiked Laura's drink with a drug before raping her, he had done the same to his wife's best friend, driving his wife to suicide.

And he isn't the only vile male creep in the drama. Laura's ex is such a cad he was sleeping with her sister while they were still a couple.

The message couldn't be clearer and is, of course, straight out of the feminist handbook  all men are rapists . . . no one can be trusted.

How much more interesting it would have been if Laura had been the liar. If she had falsely cried rape and put an innocent man in the dock.

At least that would have had the virtue of reflecting the growing problem facing British justice.

Last week, the Mail featured 14 separate cases of men who were accused of rape, had their names dragged through the mud and were then cleared.

Amanda Platell asks why it should be Liar character Andrew Earlham (pictured) that is the 'liar' and why TV drama producers hate men

In most of these cases, the men claimed the women had been willing partners, while the women insisted they were too inebriated to have given consent.

Top barrister Cathy McCulloch wrote in the Mail this week that more and more men's lives are being ruined by disputes over consent.

Her advice to any young man is not to sleep with a woman who's had even one drink.

'The law is simple,' she says. 'If a woman has had a drink, and says after sex she did not have the capacity to consent, the man can be accused of rape.'

Whatever the rights and wrongs of all this, hers is a sad comment on modern dating.

But one thing is certain: modern TV dramas don't paint men as victims.

From Little Big Lies to Broadchurch, Doctor Foster to Fearless, I can't think of a single successful recent drama where the man is not cast as a psycho, a killer, a sadist, an adulterer or a wife beater.

I am not in any way diminishing the horror and seriousness of rape, but how disappointing that a drama with such potential descended into yet another male-hating diatribe.

Men deserve better than that.

This week top barrister Cathy McCulloch (pictured) warned young men of having sexual relations with women who have drunk even just a drop of alcohol

Kristins luvvie tizz over Brexit

In her latest movie, The Party, the sublime Kristin Scott Thomas plays a Shadow Health Secretary. The film is described as a caustic comic satire on a broken England. Which is why the actress now feels emboldened to offer her wisdom on UK politics.

The EU referendum came in the middle of the shoot. It was awful. It was like someone had died, she said.

Brexit was a disaster, she added, and she didnt know who she was any more.

Shes a multi-millionaire actress flitting between the luvvie salons of Hollywood, London and Paris!

I know youre one for melodrama, darling, but youre not exactly threatened by Brexit  or is it just that youre worried cheap immigrant labour will not be available to pamper you in the nail salon?

Happy news that Charlotte Church has married her boyfriend Jonathan Powell in a private ceremony. Pictures they posted show a woman bursting with joy, a far cry from when she was the wan fiancee of serial cad Gavin Henson, endlessly paraded on his arm for the paparazzi. Then Charlotte looked like a weary WAG, now shes simply radiant. Good luck to her.

After the success of her first childrens book, The Racehorse Who Wouldnt Gallop, the increasingly grand Clare Balding  who recently insisted on copy approval when giving an interview  is promoting her second, The Racehorse Who Disappeared.

Any chance that her next book will be autobiographical  entitled The Diva Who Disappeared?

Sean was sharpest Blade Runner

Blade Runner is back 35 years on with our film critic Brian Viner saying hes looked into the future and predicts it will get a barrage of Academy Award nominations and might even be better than Ridley Scotts 1982 original.

Just a shame it doesnt feature the first films sensationally sexy femail cyborg Sean Young, who was then 22. Trouble is she is now 57, which is far too old to play a love interest for Harrison Ford  even though theyve wheeled him out again at 75.

Pasta la vista, lover boy . . .

Not a natural Camilla fan, I was amused to learn that when she found her then husband Andrew Parker Bowless car outside one of her girlfriends homes, she wrote a rude message on the windscreen in lipstick. I did that once, attempting to write b*****d in red lipstick on my boyfriends car when it was parked in his exs drive. He emerged before I had finished and I had to flee. He later called and asked me why Id written pasta on his windscreen.

If he were to do another series of Little Britain, Matt Lucas says he wouldnt make unkind jokes about transvestites or play black characters. We made a more cruel kind of comedy than Id do now, he says.

Perhaps hed also rule out the incontinent granny he used to parody. For the sake of the lovely elderly ladies out there, he should not be cruel to them again, either.

Despite her husband escorting another woman home and being done for drink-driving, Coleen Rooney has been nominated Celebrity Mum Of The Year. Doormat Of The Year would be more apt.

Prince Edward attended the Sultan of Bruneis golden jubilee wearing a ceremonial Royal Marine uniform bearing seven medals. Odd that, as His Royal Wimpness dropped out of the gruelling year-long commando course after just four months.

Westminster wars

One of Theresa Mays first acts as PM was to summarily sack Michael Gove, the Justice Secretary, telling him to go away and learn the meaning of loyalty. Valiantly defending her faltering premiership on Radio 4s Today programme yesterday, Gove eloquently demonstrated hes a fast learner.

What possessed Mrs May to wear a bracelet featuring the bisexual Commie feminist Frida Kahlo? After her death, the artist become an icon for the LGBTQ community, so was the PM sending a subliminal message that the Tories are no longer the nasty party but one of inclusion? It certainly looked very queer.

Without the guiding hand of her former adviser Fiona Hill, Mrs May brought frumpiness to a whole new level in ill-fitting frocks and dowdy or downright silly trousers this week. Or is she now taking fashion tips from Angela Merkel?

When the kids come home from school, Victoria Beckham gives them a special treat  seeds doused in a non-genetically modified liquid soybean seasoning. Grilled until crispy! she tweeted. Good for mummy, too! No wonder shes a birdbrain.
Private detectives have almost disappeared from the marriage break-up industry, divorce lawyers said yesterday.

Husband and wives who suspect their spouse is cheating are less and less likely to use investigation agencies to confirm their fears, figures show.

A legal ruling forbidding spouses from stealing or secretly copying each others financial documents means there is little point spending money on a professional to track down missing money, a family law firm said yesterday.

It is also easier to spy on your spouse online and through social media sites such as Facebook.

Private detectives have almost disappeared from the marriage break-up industry, as those suspecting their spouses of cheating are more likely to do their own spying through social media to confirm their fears

Lawyers from Hall Brown Family Law say that in 2006 almost half of all divorce cases involved evidence from a detective. But detectives are now called in to fewer than one in 100.

Lawyer Alice Couriel said: It wasnt so long ago that private detectives were considered essential to some divorce proceedings, in particular gathering evidence of a spouses infidelity or their financial worth.

However, they have become marginalised by the economy, technology and understandable concern about the manner in which material is collated.

Some couples affected by the withdrawal of Legal Aid and unable to afford a divorce lawyer now would appear to regard private investigators as a luxury.

The removal of penalties for fault in divorce settlements means that husbands and wives also feel less pressure to expose the others infidelity.

Tony Imossi, of the Association of British Investigators, said: We do not encourage our members to take work investigating infidelity.

By that stage a marriage has probably already reached the point of no return, and often people only find out what they feared. We can rarely bring good news.

However, things can go wrong during a divorce over money, and sometimes people will want to hire a private investigator to find out whether money and assets have been properly declared.

Investigators would never break the law or invade privacy.
No coasting schools have been forced to become academies despite a Tory manifesto pledge two years ago, new figures show.

In the run up to the 2015 election, the Conservatives promised to take over every school not considered to be pushing its pupils hard enough.

Hundreds of schools were thought have to been in this category  but new data released under the Freedom of Information Act suggests none have become academies as a result.

The Department for Education said that forced academisation was only ever intended for a small minority of cases.

Education secretary Nicky Morgan arriving for a cabinet meeting in London last year, pictured. The 2015 Conservative Party manifesto pledged to turn every failing and coasting secondary school into an academy

But experts said the data may indicate a watering down of the policy following fierce opposition from teaching unions and left-wing activists.

The 2015 Conservative Party manifesto pledged to turn every failing and coasting secondary school into an academy, and the new category of coasting school was given legal force by last years Education and Adoption Act.

It aimed to pick out schools that fail to help pupils to fulfil their potential, and in 2015 the DfE said: Those that cannot improve will be turned into academies under the leadership of our expert school sponsors.

It was thought that coasting schools may not get the worst results but might be complacent with a high-ability intake.

Of the 756 schools and academies that were branded as coasting and have not since closed, more than half  51 per cent  were told no further action was needed, and 49 per cent were told they needed some extra support

At the time, then National Union of Teachers leader Christine Blower called the pledge as irrational as it is impractical.

But yesterday, the data obtained by the Times Educational Supplement (TES) found none of the schools in question have been converted.

Of the 756 schools and academies that were branded as coasting and have not since closed, more than half  51 per cent  were told no further action was needed, and 49 per cent were told they needed some extra support.

In only one case did Regional Schools Commissioners (RSCs) use any of their other powers  a termination warning notice was issued to the Basildon Upper Academy.

The 2015 Conservative election manifesto resulted in David Cameron returning to 10 Downing Street with an unexpected majority  and Nicky Morgan was reappointed education secretary.

But since then the party has been rocked by the 2016 Brexit vote, the subsequent negotiations, and a loss of its majority in the Commons following this summers election.

Alan Smithers, professor of education at the University of Buckingham, said: Back in 2015 the government wanted to turn all schools into academies and was looking for any reason that it could to justify doing so.

Now it is rowing back  partly because it feels weak at the moment and doesnt feel like having the confrontation that would inevitably follow, not only from schools and teachers but also from parents.

Some of these schools have an above average intake and they are doing very well. They are popular with parents, who know their children are getting good results.

Statistics may suggest the results could be better, but the parents might think this is not a good enough reason to change the traditions of the school.

The government now appears to be less concerned with academies and recognises that with Brexit, at the present time, it has enough on its plate.

A Department for Education spokesperson said: Regional Schools Commissioners have been working closely with schools that met the coasting definition in January 2017 to ensure that, where challenges exist, support is available to secure improvements.

We have been very clear that the purpose of the coasting definition is to identify and work with schools that may need support, and that more formal intervention, such as becoming an academy, was likely to happen in only a small minority of cases.

The data reflects this, and demonstrates the hard work that Regional Schools Commissioners are already doing to support many of these schools.
A University of Nevada, Las Vegas professor was secretly filmed by one of her students during class telling them that President Donald Trump may be partly to blame for last Sunday nights horrific massacre that killed 58 people and wounded over 400.

Tessa Winkelmann, an assistant professor at UNLV, made the remarks Thursday to her History 407 class, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

She was recorded by an anonymous student saying that she thought people will die in the aftermath of Trumps election.

Right when he got elected, I told my classes, three semesters ago, that some of us wont be affected by this presidency, but others are going to die, Winkelmann says in the video obtained by the newspaper.

Other people will die because of this.

Tessa Winkelmann (above), an assistant professor at UNLV, told her History 407 class on Thursday that President Trump may be partly to blame for Sunday night's horrific massacre

She was recorded by an anonymous student saying that she thought people will die in the aftermath of Trumps election

Right when he got elected, I told my classes, three semesters ago, that some of us wont be affected by this presidency, but others are going to die, Winkelmann says in the video obtained by the newspaper. Other people will die because of this

She said Trumps threat to destroy North Korea was encouraging violence.

Hes threatened to declare violence against North Korea and other places, Winkelmann says in the video.

And words, especially if theyre coming from someone who is the president, have consequences.

I dont know that these events would have inevitably happened whether or not he got elected, but he has rhetorical powers every president has to encourage or to discourage (violence). So far all hes done is to encourage violence.

A student in class was dumbfounded by the appalling remarks, according to the Review-Journal.

She said Trumps threat to destroy North Korea was encouraging violence. Trump is seen in the Oval Office on Friday after signing a proclamation declaring National Manufacturing Day

The student said that the remarks triggered a fierce debate between others in class who were shouting at one another.

Some of us wanted to walk out of the class, the student said.

DailyMail.com reached out to Winkelmann for comment on Friday.

Winkelmann is a former Fulbright scholar whose area of expertise includes imperialism and ethnic studies, according to her official bio on the UNLV web site.

She teaches classes at UNLV on US foreign relations and women and gender history.

Meanwhile, investigators continue to look for more clues that would explain why Stephen Paddock of nearby Mesquite mowed down scores of innocent people from his hotel window at the Mandalay Bay.

It was revealed on Friday that Paddock had a cell phone charger that did not match any of his phones inside the hotel room where he carried out the massacre.

The discovery adds confusion to the chain of events which led up to the attack as, despite its discovery, police insist there was no one else in the room with Paddock on October 1 or in the days beforehand.

Meanwhile, investigators continue to look for more clues that would explain why Stephen Paddock of nearby Mesquite mowed down scores of innocent people from his hotel window at the Mandalay Bay

At a press conference on Friday, Las Vegas Metro Police Undersheriff Kevin C. McMahill said detectives were no closer to understanding what motivated Paddock's killing spree.

He did not address the discovery of the phone charger but made an impassioned plea to anyone who may have information which could help solve the mounting mystery.

'To date we have run down well more than 1,000 leads in this investigation. Some of it has helped create a better profile into the madness of this suspect but we do not still have a clear motive or reason why.

'In the past, terror attacks or mass murder cases, motive was made very clear by a note that was left by a social media post, by a telephone call that was made.

'Today, in our investigation, we don't have any of that uncovered. I wish we did.'
A Grenfell Tower survivor told a council boss Im coming for you during a vigil to mark 100 days since the inferno.

Reis Morris, 28, followed Kim Taylor-Smith, the deputy leader of Kensington and Chelsea Council, and repeatedly said, Look into my eyes, a court heard.

The unemployed father of one blocked Mr Taylor-Smith and used the front wheel of his bike to repeatedly bang into the councillors legs, warning him: You have got eight weeks to sort this out, then Im coming for you. I dont care if I spend the rest of my life in prison.

It is not known which floor of Grenfell Tower he lived on, but Morris, who lost a relative in the blaze in June, initially denied being at the vigil before pleading guilty at Westminster Magistrates Court to using threatening words or behaviour.

Reis Morris (left), 28, followed Kim Taylor-Smith (right), the deputy leader of Kensington and Chelsea Council, and repeatedly said, Look into my eyes, a court heard. The unemployed father of one blocked Mr Taylor-Smith and used the front wheel of his bike to repeatedly bang into the councillors legs, saying 'I'm coming for you'

He was spared jail by a judge yesterday who gave him a 12-month community order involving 110 hours of unpaid work.

The court heard the councillor attended the candlelit vigil in a social club last month to mark 100 days since the blaze ripped through the 24-storey tower block in Kensington, West London, killing about 80 people.

Prosecutor Kate Shilton said: Initially the atmosphere was calm, with people lighting candles and singing songs. Some started asking him to talk to the crowd.

He was very reluctant to do this, but felt extremely pressured by the crowd and took the microphone to say a few words. The crowd erupted into shouting and jeering, so he went back to where he had been standing.

The blaze ripped through the 24-storey tower block in Kensington, West London, in June - killing about 80 people

She added: Mr Morris was standing astride a bike. He began barging Mr Taylor-Smiths leg with the front wheel. It lasted for 60 seconds before Mr Taylor-Smith decided to leave the vigil.

He noticed Mr Morris on his left, he started walking next to him. Mr Morris kept saying Look into my eyes repeatedly. He was behaving very erratically and in an agitated state. He said, You have got eight weeks to sort this out, then Im coming for you, I dont care if I spend the rest of my life in prison. 

Mr Taylor-Smith later told police he found the statement chilling and that it had left him very frightened to go about his duties.

Miss Shilton said Mr Taylor-Smith recognised Morris because he had acted in an antagonising fashion at a previous meeting. Defence lawyer Robert Katz said Morris had lost a close family member. He added: He is harbouring a lot of unresolved feelings of grief that follow from the disaster.

Passing sentence, District Judge Sheena Bayne said: This is clearly an unpleasant incident.

Everybody has enormous sympathy for anyone involved in the Grenfell Tower tragedy  it was an appalling incident. It is understandable that feelings are high but taking it out in the way I have heard about is unacceptable.

Morris, who is now living with his mother in nearby Notting Hill, was ordered to pay 100 compensation to Mr Taylor-Smith and 85 court costs out of his benefits.

He was also ordered not to contact the councillor for a year.
Drinkers of one of the nations favourite tipples are toasting a price war that has driven down the price of prosecco.

The average price of a bottle has fallen by 23p to 6.76 this year. But beer prices are up on average by 20p, wine has risen by 5p, spirits are up 6p and cider has increased by 4p.

The fall in fizz prices is most likely due to increased competition in the prosecco market, said experts.

The average price of a bottle of prosecco has fallen by 23p to 6.76 this year

It will be good news for shoppers who want to stock up on sparkling wine ahead of Christmas.

Toby Magill, of market analysts IRI, said: Demand for prosecco is still growing and the price is being eroded.

'Alternative sparkling wines like Asdas Progrigio are coming in and because of the success of prosecco, its very difficult to sell at a higher price.

Britons thirst for sparkling wine shows no sign of being quenched.

Consumers have drunk an extra 12.8million litres of sparkling wine and spent an additional 63million so far this year, up 12 per cent on 2016.

But beer prices are up on average by 20p, wine has risen by 5p, spirits are up 6p and cider has increased by 4p

The UK sparkling wine market is now worth 782million a year, said retail analysts Kantar.

Spokesman Rupert Davies told The Grocer magazine: Prosecco was bought by 8.5million shoppers last year, up from 2.4million five years ago.

Popular brands included Canti with sales of 35million and Menestrello on 17million.

Discount chains such as Aldi and Lidl have contributed to increased sales and falling prices with special offers, forcing mainstream supermarkets to drop their own prices.
By all accounts, the workings of the Taylor House Tribunal Hearing Centre in North London  and one judge in particular  leave rather a lot to be desired.

This is the domain of Dr Amir Majid, 64, who has been an immigration judge for the past 20 years. It so happens that Judge Majid is blind  he lost his sight as a young man.

There have been two other blind judges in modern Britain, both highly effective and hugely respected.

A report condemned Dr Amir Majid as having made an error of law in every one of the 13 cases under appeal

Unfortunately, Judge Majid appears to have little in common with either  or, indeed the remarkable Sir John Fielding, their 18th-century predecessor on the bench who was known as the Blind Beak of Bow Street and who, apparently, could recognise more than 3,000 criminals by the sound of their voices.

Instead, Judge Majids arrival in court at Taylor House to hear asylum cases is often greeted with the rolling of eyes and an air of weary resignation. His idiosyncrasies, to put it politely, were known to few outside the building until this week, when it emerged he had been criticised in an unprecedented ruling for wholly failing to meet the standards that are demanded by the office of a judge.

An Upper Tribunal  chaired by three senior judges  considered appeals in respect of 13 of his recent cases.

Most involved Judge Majid granting appeals by migrants, from countries including Afghanistan, Syria and Bangladesh, against Home Office orders for them to leave Britain.

The findings were published in a 48-page document. Every one of [Judge Majids] decisions shows error of law, in most cases serious error, in most cases multiple serious errors is perhaps one of the most damning statements. These werent just errors of law, but also errors of fact, errors of judgment  errors, effectively, of almost everything it is possible to get wrong.

Judge Majids blindness was no excuse because, to quote the panel, it cannot reasonably be suggested that blindness prevents a person learning or applying law, or hearing both sides and reaching, and expressing, a properly reasoned conclusion.

The panel ruled Judge Majid's blindness was not an excuse because it could not be reasonable suggested it stops a person learning or applying law

Even so, those who saw him in action were left in little doubt that his lack of sight made it hard for him to check notes that would help him remember the intricacies of a case.

They recall the occasion he mistakenly believed a Bangladeshi man was applying for asylum from his homeland because he was a homosexual.

In fact, the individual in question had already arrived in Britain, wanted to remain here, and had personally given evidence before Judge Majid, but being gay was never part of his claim. But, thanks to his judgment on his case, the migrant in question might now potentially be at risk if he is eventually forced to return to Bangladesh if anyone believes he is, in fact, gay.

So-called unnatural offences are illegal in Muslim-majority Bangladesh, where members of the LGBT community have been hacked to death by Islamic extremists.

The Bangladeshis fate, along with most of the other migrants highlighted in the report, will be determined by a new judge  which, of course, means more expense for the taxpayer.

Another case involves a woman from China granted permission to stay in Britain after Judge Majid totally ignored evidence suggesting that she had obtained her English Language certificate  required for applications to succeed  by cheating.

Then there is the Nigerian bride allowed to join her husband in the UK after Judge Majid appeared to sacrifice his independence by assisting the husband and failing to address entirely the central issue of the genuineness of their relationship.

Or theres the Indian student given an additional three years of study leave by Judge Majid, despite the Home Offices firm belief that the details necessary for his visa application were false.

These are just a few of the examples contained in the report.

Dr Amir Majid gave an Indian student three years of additional study leave despite the Home Office believing details necessary for the application were false

Goodness knows the cost to taxpayers of the unnecessary court hearings generated by Judge Majids decisions, or whether there have been any security implications arising from his hit-and-miss approach to those who have come before him  many of whom have been given sanctuary under the auspices of the well-intentioned, but widely-abused, European Convention on Human Rights.

The rulings overturned by the Upper Tribunal panel were handed down by Judge Majid over the past two years.

But the Judicial Office was unable to shed any light on how many others have been successfully challenged since his elevation to the judiciary in 1997.

It is notoriously difficult to sack a judge for incompetence. Most disciplinary action stems from complaints about personal conduct (such as the judge who was removed from office this year for posting online abusive comments about anyone who questioned his verdicts).

But there is a view that Judge Majid survived, when at the very least he should have been encouraged to retire, because the Ministry of Justice feared he might claim discrimination: he has already done so once before.

Until 2009, Judge Majid was a law lecturer at London Metropolitan University, a role he combined with his judicial duties.

Back in the Nineties, he took the college, then London Guildhall University, to an employment tribunal and won 15,000 compensation and a two-year sabbatical after he was found to have been victimised over promotion and performance-related pay.

So, how did he become a lawyer in the first place? Its probably no surprise to discover that Pakistan-born Judge Majid had an unusual entry into the legal profession.

Initially, he studied at a university of agriculture in Faisalabad, Pakistan, and was in his second year when he went blind.

Three senior judges considered appeals relating to 13 cases and concluded that Dr Amir Majid had 'very little idea' of the law

He came to Britain in the Seventies and, according to his biographical details posted on Facebook, he obtained a law degree from the University of London, before being called to the Bar in 1980.

He began his career as a barrister with Cloisters Chambers, which has been established for more than 60 years and is based in the legal heartland of Inner Temple.

Not long after joining Cloisters, he married his wife Heather, a secretary, with whom he had a son, although they have now separated.

Some confusion surrounds aspects of his CV, which has been posted on his Facebook page and begins thus: Dr Amir Ali Majid (A Legend).

Underneath are listed dozens of academic bodies and institutions in Britain, the U.S., Germany and Pakistan with which he has been seemingly associated.

It is quite possible that their records are incomplete but, when contacted, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, where Judge Majid says he was once a visiting professor, said they had no knowledge of him.

There is no confusion about the position he is most proud of: Second blind person in the UK to be appointed to a judicial post.

His qualification as a barrister was sufficient (in 1997) to merit his appointment as a judge by the Lord Chancellor. To begin with, he split his time between Taylor House and London Guildhall University, where he was a lecturer.

Part-time immigration judges are paid 500 a day and have to sit a minimum of 15 days a year, but Judge Majid is believed to have considerably exceeded that threshold.

Usually, he would arrive in court with one of the clerks pushing his wheelchair and he had an assistant to read documents. Instead of taking notes, Judge Majid dictated details of the case into a dictaphone.

According to a senior immigration barrister, Judge Majid was always more interested in the spirit of the law than the letter of the law.

But changes in legislation since 2009, and new rules post-2012, have removed the potential for discretion in judgments. They were probably changes he found hard to grasp  or maybe he didnt like them, said the barrister.

This is evident from the mangled interpretations, pronouncements, and observations in Judge Majids now notorious rulings.

The burden of proof is upon the Appellant and the standard of proof is the balance of probabilities, Judge Majid once declared about a case. Only it isnt. The balance of probabilities is the standard in civil claims. In asylum claims, the standard is lower  a reasonable degree of likelihood.

On another occasion, he had this to say: I am conducting an appeal and not a Judicial Review and therefore cannot restrict myself in conducting the proper evaluation of the evidence on the matters of fact . . .

The tribunal panel scrutinising his rulings were left mystified by the passage which opens with that statement. We have read and re-read this. We do not know what it means, they said.

Neither, they added, did it look as though any attempt had been made to check the decisions for grammatical or linguistic error.

One phrase in particular was used frequently by Judge Majid  the evidential elements of the evidence  which the three judges (led by Judge Mark Ockelton, vice-president of the Upper Tribunal) said ought not to have survived being in one draft.

It was not the only phrase that cropped up again and again. Judge Majid made a habit of cutting and pasting identical paragraphs for multiple cases  even though they were wrong and irrelevant.

Even a lawyer who won his immigration appeal heard by the judge made an official complaint, saying: He became angry with both witnesses and legal representative as a result of the strained communication and frequent misunderstandings.

I would go so far as to suggest that the nature of the proceedings before Judge Majid were so shambolic as to bring the Tribunal into disrepute and undermine public confidence in an effective judicial system.

The case of Chinese migrant Xiaomei Wang perhaps epitomised this. Until a few weeks ago, she was living with her family in a flat above a takeaway in Southend.

Mrs Wang was granted permission to remain here with them because she produced an English Language certificate demonstrating she had an acceptable grasp of the language, and her Chinese partner was a British national.

But, in the process, Judge Majid ignored claims that Mrs Wang had obtained her certificate by sending someone in her place to undertake the test on her behalf.

He also accepted that her partner was a British citizen simply because the man recited aloud what he claimed was his passport number  without providing any documentary proof.

There is one minor point to add here. Judge Majid had referred to Mrs Wangs children as the appellants grandchildren.

However, the tribunal panel said, in the circumstances it was the least of the factual difficulties in the case.

Mother-of-two Sandra Bopolonga also had reason to be grateful to Judge Majid. She arrived in Britain from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in 2005 to join her husband and their two children.

Miss Bopolonga was given permission to stay for two years. More than a decade on, she is still here. The family lives in a three-bedroom housing association property in Plaistow, East London. The rent is subsidised by the council.

The father of her kids is 44-year-old Caster Mpangi. He says he has had various jobs in the past (taxi driver, bus driver), but is currently a student at London Metropolitan University.

Home Office officials never believed Miss Bopolongas story that she had been in a continuous relationship with Mr Mpangi for two years before coming to Britain. Nor was she able to produce her original Congolese wedding certificate, and it has been trying to remove her from Britain ever since.

Miss Bopolonga finally appeared before Judge Majid in 2015. We provided everything to the judge, insists Mr Mpangi.

Judge Majid ruled in Miss Bopolongas favour by wrongly claiming that the best interests of the children created a knockout element  a winning legal argument.

But this is actually one factor among others. Judge Majid also failed to grapple with the issue of why the whole family could not simply return to the Congo to live.

Judge Majid was not at Taylor House this week. He politely declined to comment when we called at his handsome double-fronted Victorian terrace near Epping Forest, East London.

The three judges who examined the 13 cases at the centre of the controversy said: Judge Majids decisions give the impression that the judge has very little idea of either his own (limited) powers or the content of the law that is in issue.

They are full of observations, many of which are of dubious correctness, some of which are of dubious relevance, and a few of which are wholly inappropriate.

There is only one question, really: why is he still a judge?
When officers approached him, Adams' shot himself in the head

Jasper County Sheriff deputies were able to track Adams' location to a secluded stretch of FM 1135 in Orange County on Monday

Family at first believed Adams was a 16-year-old boy and recent friend

Dilley was discovered with two gunshot wounds to her head on Sunday

Paul Audrey Adams, 19, was identified as the last person who spoke with 14-year-old Tristan Dilley

New details of the suspected killer of a 14-year-old girl from Texas emerged this week after investigators were able to collect valuable evidence through the victim's phone.

Text messages exchanged between Silsbee High School cheerleader Tristan Dilley and 19-year-old Paul Audrey Adams were discovered after police launched an investigation into her death on Sunday.

Adams was later found dead along a rural road from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Paul Audrey Adams (right), 19, was identified as the last person who spoke with 14-year-old Tristan Dilley

Jasper County Sheriff Mitch Newman told the Beaumont Enterprise that Dilley was killed Sunday at her home in Buna after her family had gone out shopping.

Dilley stayed behind at the house, saying she was tired and wanted to rest from a dance at her school the night before.

When the family returned, 'her mother hollered at her and when she didn't answer, she told her brother to go upstairs and wake her up,' Newman said.

That's when the 13-year-old boy made a grizzly discovery.

Newman says the girl was found in a second-floor room with a two gunshot wounds to the head.

The family of a Silsbee teen thought she was still asleep when they first checked on her but later made a horrible discovery when she was found fatally shot in bed Sunday evening

When investigators searched phone records they discovered Adams was 19-years-old and not 16 as Dilley's family believed

Authorities noted that there was no forced entry into the home nor signs of a struggle anywhere in the house, leading investigators to conclude that Dilley was most likely acquainted with the killer.

When detectives searched her phone, they found that a person named Adam was the last person in contact with Dilley.

The family confirmed that Dilley spoke of a 16-year-old boy with whom she began to communicate.

Investigators later searched phone records, and discovered that Dilley was actually speaking with the Paul Audrey Adams.

'From what we could gather, they were trying to see each other when her mother was gone,' Newman said.

Shortly thereafter, authorities set out to track Adams' cellphone in order to locate his whereabouts.

He was later pinged to a wooded area in Orange County located on the Texas-Louisiana border.

Jasper County Sheriff deputies were able to track Adams' location to a secluded stretch of FM 1135 in Orange County on Monday (Pictured: Memorial held for Tristan Dilley)

An all night search failed to track Adams down, but authorities caught a break when he called his mother Monday morning while police had come to question her at her home.

Although Adams admitted to being at Dilley's house the night of the murder, he maintained that he was not the one who shot her, Newman said.

Instead, Adams claimed that an intruder was responsible for Dilley's death, and that he ran from the residence because he was scared.

Jasper County Sheriff deputies were able to track Adams' location to a secluded stretch of FM 1135 in Orange County around 11:30 a.m. on Monday, according to the Enterprise.

Newman said that Adams had tried to set up camp at the site and that 'It didn't look like he had been there long.'

When the officers attempted to approach him, Adams took his own life.

'You say you get used to it, but you just don't,' Newman said. 'They were both seasoned officers. But no matter how long you are on the force, you don't ever want to see that.'

A preliminary test on Adams' weapon showed the same revolver to shoot himself that was used to kill Dilley, The Enterprise reported.

'He ruined two families,' Newman said. 'Not just her's, but he ruined his too.'

Police said that Adams had written a suicide note, which will be made public in the coming days.

Tristan Hope Dilley was born October 3, 2002 in Beaumont, Texas. She was a cheerleader and student athlete who friends described as kind, sweet and compassionate.
A group of 'mindless' students have been accused of wasting NHS funds after competing against each other to see who can get the most trips to A&E during fresher's week.

The University of York has launched an investigation into the youngsters who created an 'ambulance chart' to log call-outs for their drunken injuries - which cost the health service hundreds of pounds each time.

They have racked up five in just nine days - including for a booze-fuelled fight and a housemate who fell off a wall on their way home from a night out.

Two of the students - Jake Clarke and Oli Clarke - sparked fury after they were pictured online posing with one of their friends beside the chart which is pinned on their kitchen wall at the St Lawrence Court accommodation.

The youngsters are also thought to have a 'chunder chart' tracking the number of times they have been sick as well as a 'flat incest' tally - to keep count of housemates sleeping together.

Two of the students - Jake Clarke and Oli Clarke - sparked fury after they were pictured online posing with one of their friends beside the chart. It is not known if those pictured are among the students who were treated by NHS crews

The 'ambulance chart' logs call-outs for the students' drunken injuries - which cost the health service hundreds of pounds each time

Commenting on the shocking image, Kate Watson said: 'That's disgraceful. I hope they're happy with themselves wasting NHS resources deliberately and making a victory chart for it.

'I hope they realise someone could have passed away unnecessarily at a roadside because of them.'

Joanne Guy added: 'If this is for real I am stunned at the stupidity.

'When there is no ambulance to attend a heart attack or car crash or a child choking it may be because they were dealing with these selfish feckless idiots.'

Baz Wright said: 'Alcohol-related injuries and illnesses should not be treated for free.

'Charge these boys so their bad decisions don't cost the sensible British people, and charge then double if it happens again, to teach them some morals!'

Three of the students are pictured posing with their 'flat mascot' doll outside accommodation at University of York's Halifax College

One incident is thought to involve a student who needed emergency root canal surgery after getting into a fight on a night out.

Emergency services were also called after a student dislocated his shoulder jumping from a 15ft wall, student newspaper The Tab reported.

Second year students allegedly called for an ambulance twice in one night when they saw the condition two girls came home in.

Two of the housemates have since said that their drinks had been spiked on a night out.

The following night a student was taken to hospital after jumped off of a wall on his way home.

When he woke up, he discovered that another of his flatmates was in the hospital bed next to him for alcohol poisoning.

It is not known if those pictured are among the students who were treated by NHS crews.

Oli Clarke, pictured left, and Jake Clarke, pictured right, posed with the 'ambulance chart' in an image which has sparked a furious backlash

When approached for comment by MailOnline, one of the students said: 'We've all discussed it and collectively decided we are not going to speak to the media.'

But writing online, one of the other youngsters named Lewis Barrett defended his actions saying: 'If you need an ambulance, you need an ambulance.

He continued: 'I wasn't drunk either, I was the one making sure everyone got home OK and made a mistake. So get off your high horse, I needed an ambulance so one was called.'

At the university, international relations student Robert Thorpe, 18, who lives in an adjacent block, said the flat had become 'famous' within the campus.

Witnesses said ambulances were seen making repeated trips to the halls of residence on consecutive nights during recent weeks.

The square is occupied by more than 120 students in six blocks of flats which each contain a kitchen over-looking the main quadrant.

But others said they would take inspiration from the chart and planned to compete against the youngsters.

Witnesses said ambulances were seen making repeated trips to the halls of residence on consecutive nights during recent weeks

Two flatmates from an adjacent block of 'houses', who do not want to be named, said: 'That's annoyed me, I thought we were the best house. We need to up our game. We're going to get five ambulances in five days.

'We've had one ambulance because one of our flatmates fell off a stage and hit her head. We've got a chunder chart in the kitchen. I've got two.'

They added: 'We've been there once for a house party, there was a DJ. There have been ambulances going back and forth.

'I went to the house party last Monday night, this guy was topless and he had plasters over his nipples.

'We've had two people move out of our house already because it's too loud.

'This block is the best block because the houses are in a much more confined space, so you can't get away from each other.'

Police have called the ambulance chart 'mindless', while the university has been urged to do more to tackle students' behaviour during freshers week.

The square is occupied by more than 120 students in six blocks of flats which each contain a kitchen over-looking the main quadrant

PC Claire McNaney, the alcohol harm reduction officer at Durham Constabulary, said she was 'flabbergasted' to see students appearing to compete over who had been in an ambulance most often.

She told The Telegraph: 'When we are dealing with serious incidents where ambulances are needed, we often find they are not available. This is really dangerous, it is life-threatening.

'I am all up for people having a good time  not when they are competing [for ambulances]. It is really mindless and dangerous.'

Sir Anthony Seldon, vice-Chancellor at Buckingham University who has previously criticised universities for ignoring antics in freshers week, said it was time institutions took responsibility.

'Universities need to accept that they have a pastoral responsibility for their students, to provide a guidance and leadership role,' he said.

'This is not about infantilising them, but helping them learn how to be responsible adults. At the moment we are seeing a lack of moral leadership from universities.'

He previously suggested that first-year students should be offered alternative activities to parties and social events where heavy drinking and drug-taking are prevalent.

A University of York spokesman said the students' union worked closely with clubs and bars to encourage responsible drinking.

He confirmed an investigation was underway and the students involved have been called to a disciplinary meeting.

'We are deeply concerned by the behaviour highlighted in the report, especially at a time when the NHS and Ambulance Service is under severe pressure.

'We will continue to work with our Colleges and the students' union to ensure all our students are reminded of their responsibilities on and off campus.

'We have a good relationship with partners across the city and initiatives include a river safety campaign and a NightSafe student volunteering project, all designed to alleviate pressure on the emergency services.'
One-third of the nine-man board at Harvey Weinstein's company have resigned in protest 24-hours after allegations of sexual harassment against the movie mogul threw the firm into chaos.

Scrambling into damage-limitation mode the Weinstein Company also launched an internal probe into the claims against their disgraced co-founder and confirmed the 65-year-old would take an indefinite leave of absence.

And following the incendiary claims from actress Ashley Judd, Rose McGowan has slammed the women of Hollywood for their deafening silence.

Demanding to know where the 'ladies of Hollywood' were on this issue, McGowan - who is believed to have been paid asettlement by Weinstein after an incident in 1997 during the Sundance Film Festival - appeared to attack the mute A-listers.

Indeed, A-list actresses like Meryl Streep and Nicole Kidman and Gwyneth Paltrow who have used their fame to encourage and support women and who have worked with Weinstein have said nothing.

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Meryl!: Ashley Judd and the other women revealed they were sexually harassed by Harvey Weinstein are getting no public support from Hollywood stars (Meryl Streep and Weinstein above in 2012)

Demand: Rose McGowan took to social media after the allegations against Harvey Weinstein developed on Friday

Prompt: McGowan was responding to a tweet from Melissa Silverstein of Women and Hollywood who singled out the stars she believes have always spoken out including Lena Dunham and Brie Larson

Allies: Rose McGowan made it perfectly clear she felt actresses including Patricia Arquete, Lena Denham and Brie Larson have spoken out - she later included Jessica Chastain in that list

Harvey Weinstein is pictured here leaving his Manhattan home after taking a leave of absence from his own firm

Those same three women have also been more than willing to supply writers and journalists with quotes praising Weinstein over the years and taking about how wonderful he is to work with as an actor.

Kidman's lack of comment is perhaps the most glaring of the three as she just came off an awards season push for her HBO show Big Little Lies in which she repeatedly spoke about the importance of empowering women and supporting victims of abuse.

They are not alone in their silence either, as many other women who have sang the praises of Weinstein while speaking out against harassment also went mute as of Friday afternoon, including: Kate Hudson, Julianne Moore, Cate Blanchett, Renee Zellweger, Angelina Jolie, Salma Hayek, Penelope Cruz, Toni Collette, Minnie Driver and Uma Thurman.

Given the number of lawsuits that the company has settled over the years there is of course a chance that some of these women cannot speak because they signed a NDA or do not want to speak on account of their own personal experiences.

Weinstein had already indicated on Thursday in his written statement in which he acknowledged his behavior in the past had caused 'a lot of pain' that he was taking a leave of absence.

On Friday, four board members including Weinstein's brother Bob, said that it was 'important for him to get professional help' as they confirmed he was leaving the company he co-founded.

They left it unclear how long he would be gone, only saying that the 'next steps depend on Harvey's therapeutic progress, the outcome of the Board's independent investigation and Harvey's own personal decisions'.

Indeed, it has been suggested that it was Bob Weinstein himself who orchestrated the shocking New York Times story which detailed lurid allegations of sexual assault against his brother.

Best of friends: Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman (above in May with Weinstein) and Gwyneth Paltrow, who have all won Oscars for starring in Weinstein films, have made no public comment

According to the New York Post a former staff member said, 'Bob's wanted Harvey out for years' and one insider said that 'Bob may even have fed this story' to the Times.

And as the backlash grew, graphic revelations appeared in the HuffPost on Friday evening, claiming that Weinstein cornered a New York reporter and forcibly made her watch him masturbate in front of her.

Lauren Sivan, formerly a Fox News Reporter, claims that when she worked with the cable channel Long Island 12 a decade ago, Weinstein insisted she take a tour with him in Socialista, a club he part-owned.

She claims he took her downstairs to a kitchen and cleared it of staff and then tried to kiss her. When she refused his advance he said, 'Well, can you just stand there and shut up'.

The movie mogul is then alleged to have masturbated in front of her and ejaculated into a nearby flower pot.

Sivan says she was trapped and intimidated and deeply shocked.

Sisterhood: As of Friday afternoon, less than 10 American actresses of note had publicly and directly spoken out against Weinstein or shown support for Judd

Standing strong: Amber Tamblyn (above) issued a call to arms for those too weak to support Judd and speak out

Class act: Brie Larson, who has become one of the most vocal supporters of victims ever since filming the movie 'Room,' announced that she will always stand with the survivors of assault and harassment

Anger: Rose McGowan is pictured in 2007 at the ShoWest Award Ceremony in Vegas in 2007

Resignations: Dirk Ziff (left), Marc Lasry (center) and Tim Sarnoff (right) have all left the Weinstein Company board following allegations against co-founder Harvey Weinstein

There is rampant speculation among 'insiders' that Bob Weinstein (left) leaked details that led to the explosive New York Times story about his brother Harvey's (right) alleged sexual harassment of a number of women. The brothers are seen above in 2007

At the Weinstein Company, the three members of the nine-man board who resigned were named as Dirk Ziff, a billionaire investor, Marc Lasry the owner of the Milwaukee Bucks and Tim Sarnoff the president of production services.

They're with her: Paltrow, Hillary Clinton and Weinstein at a 1998 screening

And earlier on Friday in a damning interview, Lisa Bloom, the celebrity lawyer who Weinstein has retained admitted that some of his actions could be described as illegal.

Speaking to George Stephanopoulos on GMA, Bloom replied to a question about her clients actions.

'This is a real pattern over 30 years; this is like textbook sexual harassment,' said Mr. Stephanopoulos.

'It's gross, yeah', replied Bloom.

'It's illegal,' said Stephanopoulos.

'Yes. You know, I agree, said Bloom. She clarified this by saying, 'See, you have to understand, yes, I'm here as his adviser. Im not defending him in any sexual harassment cases  there arent any sexual harassment cases. Im working with a guy who has behaved badly over the years, who is genuinely remorseful, who says, you know, I have caused a lot of pain.

The silence from the women of Hollywood is even more galling as it comes exactly one year after the release of the infamous 'p****gate' tape.

The course language used by the then-presidential hopeful Donald Trump along with his threat of sexual harassment whipped Hollywood into a frenzy at the time, with celebrities speaking about the offense immediately and for days.

However this time, less than 10 American actresses of note have publicly and directly spoken out against Weinstein or shown support for Judd, including: Amber Tamblyn, America Ferrera, Brie Larson, Brooklyn Decker, Patricia Arquette, Jessica Chastain, Ellen Barkin, and Heather Matarazzo.

Victims: Ashley Judd (left in 1997) and Rose McGowan (right in 2004) were revealed to be two of Weinstein's alleged victims by the Times

Others, like Zoe Kazan and Jenny Slate have used retweets to voice their concern, but not come out in their own words at this time.

Barkin made her comments during an exchange with Rosie O'Donnell, revealing in the process that she grew up with Harvey and his brother Bob.

Former New York broadcast anchor Lauren Sivan said Weinstein once masturbated in front of her (Pictured: July 2015)

After Rosie wrote that she believed that allegations Barkin asked her why, and then went on to comment about the fact that Judd had spoken on the record.

'I don't know when she said this but I give Ashley Judd an enormous amount of credit coming forward,' wrote Barkin.

'I know it's not fair for other victims but it is just more loaded coming from a well known successful actress or unfortunately maybe more "newsworthy."'

Rosie also wrote: 'he once called me the c word for defending night shyamalan after we filmed WIDE AWAKE.'

Most vocal of all is Rose McGowan, who received a settlement in 1997 and therefore cannot speak about her experience but has found ways to work around a NDA.

Hollywood has treated McGowan like a pariah ever since she began to speak publicly about being harassed and assaulted early on in her career, which was expected to explode after her screen-stealing debut in 'Scream.'

Weinstein produced that film for Miramax, and it was released the same year that an incident involving the executive and McGowan transpired in a hotel room at the Sundance Film Festival according to The New York Times.

Whatta man: 'Life In Pieces' star Thomas Sadoski, who is married to actress Amanda Seyfried, showed his support of the women who came forward

Top prize: The most encouraging tweet from a member of the Hollywood community came from 'Girls' producer Jenni Konner

Too late now to say sorry: Ellen Barkin is a longtime acquaintance of the Weinsteins, but that did not stop her from speaking out

Model citizen: Brooklyn Decker wasted no time at all on Thursday voicing her support for Judd and problem with the silence from Hollywood stars

McGowan got on social media immediately after that story was released, writing: 'Women fight on. And to the men out there, stand up. We need you as allies. #bebrave'

She later tweeted: 'Anyone who does business with __ is complicit. And deep down you know you are even dirtier. Cleanse yourselves.'

On Wednesday, McGowan also engaged in a Twitter discussion with actress Asia Argento, known for her roles in films such as 'XXX' and 'Marie Antoinette.'

McGowan also wrote on Twitter: 'Women fight on. And to the men out there, stand up. We need you as allies. #bebrave'

'I want to buy the movie rights,' wrote McGowan soon after it was revealed that Weinstein would be the subject of two bombshell exposes, though she did not say she was directly referring to that report.

'I own the movie rights,' replied Argento, who then added: 'It's gonna be the best movie of the last 20 years.'

McGowan responded to that by stating: 'We're gonna lobby for so many Oscars.'

Weinstein had said to the initial report that two stories were soon to be published by scoffing at the notion, stating: 'The story sounds so good, I want to buy the movie rights.'

Kate Hudson loves social media, but has had nothing to say in the wake of the Times story

And while Ms. Kidman and Ms. Streep and Ms. Paltrow may be too busy to help prop up young women who are being harassed by a man in power, there are some young men in the industry who are also jumping in to support these victims.

It should be noted that unlike those three aforementioned women, these men have never won an Oscar for starring in one of Weinstein's films.

'Life In Pieces' star Thomas Sadoski, who is married to actress Amanda Seyfried, showed his support of the women who came forward by writing: 'The courage to do what they have done in the face of the threats they are undoubtedly getting cannot be dismissed.'

Anthony Bourdain, who is rumored to be dating Asia Argento, took on those who have kept quiet.

'Nauseating, chicken-hearted enablers all,' wrote Bourdain.

Bourdain, the host of Parts Unknown on CNN, made the statment in a Friday tweet

He quickly followed that up by clarifying his intended target, stating: 'Im not talking about his victims. Im talking about everyone else who knew and said nothing. Who are still staying silent.'

And 'Mindy Project' actor Ike Baranholtz simply stated: 'This is disgusting. Thanks to @AshleyJudd and the others who are speaking out about this.'

The most encouraging tweet from a member of the Hollywood community came from 'Girls' producer Jenni Konner, who said on Thursday: 'Who are the agents/managers that sent their clients to meet with him when this was a well known secret? Them nxt.'

Harass a nice day: Weinstein bid farewell to his newly hired attorney Lisa Bloom on Thursday (above)

Georgina Chapman was seen leaving her Manhattan home on Friday morning, marking the first time she has been seen in public since her husband's decades of sexual harassment were revealed on Thursday.

The Marchesa designer appeared morose but did manage to flash a smirk as she made her way out of the $15million townhouse she shares with Harvey Weinstein an hour after her husband headed off to work.

Weinstein exited the home on Friday carrying some papers under his arm and flashing a big smile as he made his way to the waiting SUV outside, with his trip to the office coming less than 24 hours after he informed the Times that he was taking a leave of absence.

The embattled Hollywood heavyweight appeared surprisingly upbeat and chipper, especially given the fact that his board will be voting on Friday afternoon on whether or not to cut all ties to the founder and namesake of the company.

He is also facing new allegations of improper conduct, with British actress Jessica Hynes taking to Twitter on Friday and writing: 'I was offered a film role at 19, Harvey Weinstein came on board and wanted me to screen test in a bikini. I refused & lost the job.'

She then added: 'I'm sure there are many more...'

Hynes, who earlier in her career went by Jessica Stevenson, in now 44 and has starred in the two most recent 'Bridget Jones' films as well as number of theatrical productions, being nominated for a Tony in 2009 for her role in 'The Norman Conquests' on Broadway.

Harvey Weinstein leaves his New York family home with security the day after explosive claims of sexual harassment were made against him

Her claim is remarkably similar to a blind item that has been floating around for over a decade, and is well known to many in Hollywood.

Writer and comedian Jack Howard noted that, replying to Hynes: 'Holy s*** I knew the story but I didn't know who it was about.'

Hynes did not reveal what the film was, but it would have been around 1991 or 1992 when Weinstein was beginning his ascent up the ranks in the movie industry while working in London.

It was also in 1991 when he allegedly sexually harassed the first of his many alleged victims who came forward to speak with the Times on the record about his behavior.

Laura Madden said that she was asked by Weinstein to give him massages while he was staying at hotels in Dublin and London at that time.

'It was so manipulative,' said Madden.

'You constantly question yourself  am I the one who is the problem?'

Easy breezey: Georgina Chapman, 42, stepped out of her $15 million townhouse in the West Village of Manhattan on Friday at around 9.30am on her way out of the city (above)

These $1050 Valentino rockstud leather sandals were made for walking: Chapman was off to work on her upcoming bridal presentation, which she is showing in appointments and will present next week

Chapman, 41, did not comment on any of the claims on her way out of the home, heading straight off to her atelier ahead of her label's bridal presentation next week.

She stayed similarly silent on social media Thursday, opting to post photos of her bridal line rather than address the bombshell report in the Times, which will soon be followed by at least one more story in the New Yorker.

Weinstein played a big role in Chapman's ascent in the fashion world, as the well-connected executive facilitated the relationships between his wife and stars like Blake Lively, Jennifer Lopez, Penelope Cruz and Sandra Bullock.

Chapman may have been a bit down on Friday, but her sartorial selections were, as usual, picture perfect.

The British-born designer paired $1,045 Valentino heels and a purse from the Italian brand with a jean jacket and skirt.

Chapman then added a pop of color with her silk blouse and a $1500 Gucci bow belt with pearl accents.

She kept her eyes hidden however behind a large pair of $500 Dior Diorama sunglasses, while her hair looked as if it has been perfectly blown out and styled on Thursday.

It was revealed on Thursday that Weinstein once allegedly asked Ashley Judd if she would like to watch him shower during a meeting in his room at the Peninsula Beverly Hills and paid $100,000 to Rose McGowan for an unknown incident shortly after she filmed her breakthrough role in the film 'Scream.'

That settlement is one of eight that Weinstein has reportedly paid out over the past 30 years, with Italian model Ambra Battilana also getting an undisclosed sum in 2015 after accusing the Hollywood executive of groping her and putting his hand under her skirt.

It was also inside his room at the Peninsula Beverly Hills where Weinstein allegedly stripped naked and forced a female employee to give a massage.

Weinstein did not deny any of the explosive claims uncovered by the Times, saying: 'I appreciate the way I've behaved with colleagues in the past has caused a lot of pain, and I sincerely apologize for it. Though I'm trying to do better, I know I have a long way to go.'

He added that he is now taking a leave of absence from the company to 'deal with this issue head on.'

More stories: Tony-nominated British actress Jessica Hynes said on Friday that she was once fired from a film when she refused to do a screen test in a bikini

Tough to stomach: 'I was with a bunch of other actors, and it was critical that it was actors: The exact same thing had happened to them by the exact same mogul,' wrote Judd in 2015

Judd recounted her encounter with Weinstein, saying she was doing night shoots for her 1997 film 'Kiss the Girls' when she got an invite to meet with Weinsten that she could not pass up.

She said she felt uncomfortable from the start and ordered cereal from room service because it would arrive quicker than a hot meal.

Judd said she was asked to give Weinstein a massage and then a shoulder rub, both of which she declined while trying to get herself out of the room.

That is when he allegedly asked her to help him pick out his clothes for the day and then watch him shower.

'I said no, a lot of ways, a lot of times, and he always came back at me with some new ask,' said Judd.

'It was all this bargaining, this coercive bargaining.'

She eventually made her escape by joking that Weinstein would have to help her win an Oscar before she would be willing to touch him, stating that the prestige of working for his studio made it too difficult to forcefully shut down his harassment.

'There's a lot on the line, the cachet that came with Miramax,' explained Judd.

Judd previously wrote about the same experience in 2015 for Variety without naming Weinstein, simply saying it was a studio mogul.

'I was with a bunch of other actors, and it was critical that it was actors: The exact same thing had happened to them by the exact same mogul,' wrote Judd.

'Only when we were sitting around talking about it did we realize our experiences were identical. There was a mutual strengthening and fortification of our resolve.'

She later wrote in that piece: 'The ultimate thing when I was weaseling out of everything else was, "Will you watch me take a shower?" And all the other women, sitting around this table with me, said, "Oh my godthat's what he said to me too."'
Patrick McElroy, 30, was arrested and charged with burglarizing a sorority home in Athens, Georgia

Students at a University of Georgia sorority were left shaken when an Uber driver was filmed peeping into their dorm room after allegedly burglarizing it, it was reported on Friday.

Patrick McElroy, 30, was arrested and charged with breaking into the sorority home in Athens, Georgia and walking away with thousands of dollars' worth of property, WSB-TV reported.

Closed circuit television footage shows McElroy creepily lurking around their home and peering through the windows.

'He came through this direction and he had a camera on his side right here,' said Samantha Folk, one of the sorority members.

'We hear shuffling down the stairs, went down to find out our roommate Alexis' window was wide open,' she said.

'Everything had been taken, anything he could fit into a pillow case, back pack. It was quite scary.

A few days after the burglary, McElroy was filmed on surveillance cameras lurking outside the home with a camera

'He took our laptops, everything,' another resident of the home, Jessica Pickens, said.

'He also went through my personal journal, which was very violating. But he also took little loves notes and things. I don't know why he would do that.'

'He took our laptops, everything,' another resident of the home, Jessica Pickens, said. 'He also went through my personal journal, which was very violating. But he also took little loves notes and things. I don't know why he would do that'

'He came through this direction and he had a camera on his side right here,' said Samantha Folk, one of the sorority members. 'We hear shuffling down the stairs, went down to find out our roommate Alexis' window was wide open,' she said

'They took passports, they took all of our credit cards, prescriptions, anything they could take,' student Kristin Brady said.

Police initially arrested McElroy for peeping, though a search warrant allowed investigators to look into his home.

There they reportedly recovered a number of the stolen items from the sorority home.

It was only later that the sorority members realized that the suspect was an Uber driver who had given them a ride days after the burglary.

They now believe he used his status as an Uber driver to get information about the girls' whereabouts.

'I'm not sure exactly what his intentions were through Uber but I do believe he used it as a tool to get what he wanted,' Folk said.

An Uber representative said they take these matters seriously and that they are looking into the case.
Celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain has blasted the Hollywood set who remained silent about Harvey Weinstein's alleged serial sexual harassment as 'nauseating chicken-hearted enablers.'

Bourdain, the host of Parts Unknown on CNN, quickly clarified his Friday tweet about the explosive allegations about the producer stretching back decades, adding, 'Im not talking about his victims.'

'Im talking about everyone else who knew and said nothing. Who are still staying silent,' Bourdain wrote.

Bourdain also linked to a Daily Beast article that claimed: 'One of the only members of liberal Hollywood to speak out about the disturbing Weinstein allegations was Lena Dunham, who did so through Twitter'.

Anthony Bourdain (left) blasted the Hollywood set who remained silent about Harvey Weinstein's (right) alleged serial sexual harassment as 'nauseating chicken-hearted enablers'

Bourdain, the host of Parts Unknown on CNN, made the statment in a Friday tweet

He quickly clarified that he was not talking about the alleged victims of harassment

Although assorted Hollywood types made vague statements condemning sexual harassment on Friday, Dunham was among the few to specifically name Weinstein.

'The woman who chose to speak out about their experience of harassment by Harvey Weinstein deserve our awe. It's not fun or easy. It's brave,' she wrote.

The shocking allegations against Weinstein emerged in a Thursday report revealing that Weinstein had settled with at least eight women in sexual harassment claims over the past three decades. Dunham is not believed to be among them.

Actress Ashley Judd went on the record for the New York Times report, saying Weinstein had greeted her in a bathrobe in his hotel room in 1996, inviting her to give him a massage or watch him shower.

'How do I get out of the room as fast as possible without alienating Harvey Weinstein?' Judd told the newspaper she recalled thinking.

Although assorted Hollywood types made vague statements condemning sexual harassment on Friday, Lena Dunham was among the few to specifically name Weinstein

Earlier on Friday, a photo emerged of Judd posing for a red carpet photo with Weinstein just months after the alleged encounter inside his hotel room at the Peninsula Beverly Hills.

The up-and-coming actress, who was 29 at the time, can be seen loosely gripping Weinstein's hand at a 1997 Oscars party, with the actress keeping his hand where she can see it as she digs her elbow into her side and away from her then-boss.

Judd is also flashing a giant, disingenuous smile for photographers at the event, who had no idea at the time that just a few months prior Weinstein had asked Judd to give him a massage and then watch him shower in the nude during a meeting at his hotel.

Weinstein was seen out and about in New York City on Friday morning, carrying some papers under his arm and smiling for the cameras as he made his way to the waiting SUV outside his home.

On Thursday, he provided a photo of the same 1997 Oscars event from a different angle to the New York Post, suggesting it was proof that he and Judd did not have any major issues after the incident at his hotel.

Hands were my eyes can see: Ashley Judd posed for a photo with Harvey Weinstein and Vince Vaughn at a 1997 Oscars party (above), just months after he sexually harassed her at his hotel

Big man on campus: Weinstein (middle) was with his first wife Eve Chilton (right in taupe gown) that night, celebrating the nine Oscars won by his film 'The English Patient'

Hi-ho, hi-ho: Weinstein was seen out and about in New York City on Friday morning (above), carrying some papers under his arm and smiling for the cameras

No worries: Weinstein (above on Friday) is also at risk of possibly losing his job at the namesake company her founded

Also seemingly unaware of the friction that is going on is Vince Vaughn, Judd's co-star in the 1997 film 'The Locusts' and her escort for the evening.

It is unclear if the meeting was by chance or planned, as Judd and Vaughn both starred in a number of Miramax films at that time and may have been trotted out as guests of Weinstein.

Weinstein was coming off the best night of his career, with his studio's film 'The English Patient' coming out as the night's big winner, taking home Best Picture and Supporting Actress for Juliette Bincohe on its way to nabbing a grand total of nine Academy Awards.

He was joined by his first wife Eve Chilton at the ceremony that night, but she was nowhere to be seen in photos from the afterparty.

Weinstein and Chilton would divorce in 2004 and are parents to three adult daughters.

Judd began bringing her mother and sister to red carpets with her after the 1997 Oscars (Wynonna,Ashley and Naomi above in 1998)

Judd was also not pictured again with Weinstein that night, who at the time had also just been involved in an incident with Rose McGowan at the Sundance Film Festival that he eventually settled with the actress.

McGowan has never commented on that alleged incident.

It was after this night that Judd got into the habit of attending events with her sister Wynona and mom Naomi by her side.

Judd, fresh off the success of her role in the film adaption of John Grisham's 'A Time to Kill' was in the middle of filming Kiss the Girls for Weinstein's studio Miramax when she got called in for the hotel meeting.

She never went public with the incident however until Thursday, when she detailed the incident for The New York Times in their bombshell investigation into Weinstein's decades of sexual harassment.

Judd said that she felt uncomfortable almost as soon as she arrived in Weinstein's rooms, revealing that she ordered cereal from room service because it would arrive quicker than a hot meal.

Judd said she was asked to give Weinstein a massage and then a shoulder rub, both of which she declined while trying to get herself out of the room.

That is when he asked her to help him pick out his clothes for the day and then watch him shower.

'I said no, a lot of ways, a lot of times, and he always came back at me with some new ask,' said Judd.

'It was all this bargaining, this coercive bargaining.'

She eventually made her escape by joking that Weinstein would have to help her win an Oscar before she would be willing to touch him, stating that the prestige of working for his studio made it too difficult to forcefully shut down his harassment.

'There's a lot on the line, the cachet that came with Miramax,' explained Judd.

Judd was at the Oscars a few months later, though not as a nominee, and in 1998 hosted the Sci-Tech Academy Awards.

Iron Woman: Judd revealed she almost called Weinstein out at the premiere of her film 'Double Jeopardy' two years later in New York City (above at that premiere with Naomi on left and Wynonna on right)

Not so suite: Judd told the New York Times that Weinstein asked her for a massage and later to watch him shower at his Beverly Hills Hotel (file photo of a suite at the hotel above) in 1996

She previously wrote about the same experience in 2015 for Variety without naming Weinstein, simply saying it was a studio mogul.

'I was with a bunch of other actors, and it was critical that it was actors: The exact same thing had happened to them by the exact same mogul,' wrote Judd.

'Only when we were sitting around talking about it did we realize our experiences were identical. There was a mutual strengthening and fortification of our resolve.'

Don't kiss or touch the girl: Judd was filmimg 'Kiss the Girls' (above) at the time of the meeting

She later wrote in that piece: 'The ultimate thing when I was weaseling out of everything else was, 'Will you watch me take a shower?' And all the other women, sitting around this table with me, said, 'Oh my god  that's what he said to me too.''

Judd also recalled the moment she almost called Weinstein out at the premiere of her film 'Double Jeopardy' two years later in New York City.

Photos from that event show a different Judd than the one at the 1997 Oscars, with the actress looking poised and steely as she walked the red carpet, surrounded by her mom and sister.

And she did not even bother posing for a photo with Weinsten.

In an exclusive interview with DailyMail.com, Weinstein, 65, expressed profound regret for his inappropriate behavior towards women stretching back decades.

He said he owns his mistakes and revealed he'd had frank talks with Chapman, 41, a British fashion designer and actress, and his five children aged between four and 22.

Weinstein also said he wants to 'earn the forgiveness' of Judd, but did deny some of the claims she made in her interview with the Times.
A man has suffered burns to 70 per cent of his body in a horrific house fire - with cries for help mistaken by neighbours as fighting.

The 39-year-old from Gymea reportedly came running out of the granny flat at full pelt with his father, who lived in the main house, attempting to put the flames out.

Neighbours reported hearing the man's girlfriend yelling 'help, help' at 2am on Saturday and thought they were having an argument, but this proved to be false as they began to hear fire crackling.

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The 39-year-old from Gymea reportedly came running out of the granny flat (pictured behind the main house) at full pelt with his father attempting to put the flames out

Neighbours reported hearing the man's girlfriend yelling 'help help' at 2am on Saturday and thought they were having an argument (pictured the house)

'I just couldn't believe how quick it was,' neighbours told the Sydney Morning Herald.

'It was right up against our unit and the flames were double the size of our units. And of course then it exploded because it was fibro.'

Seven fire trucks and 35 firefighters were called to the fire but Fire Rescue NSW Superintendent Norman Buckley told the Daily Telegraph that the flat has already been 'gutted'.

There was initially some confusion about how many people were inside, but only the one man was injured.

Neighbours were asked by firefighters to move their cars, as they held onto valuable possessions and pets outside their homes.

Neighbours were asked by firefighters to move their cars, as they held onto valuable possessions and pets outside their homes

The wounded man was taken to Royal North Shore Hospital in a critical condition but a spokesperson from the hospital said his condition has now been downgraded to serious

The wounded man was taken to Royal North Shore Hospital in a critical condition but a spokesperson from the hospital said his condition has now been downgraded to serious.

Police are currently investigating the cause of the fire and hope to speak to the injured man once it is safe to do so.

They haven't determined whether the fire is suspicious or not.
Anti-police brutality groups in Utah are livid after a prosecutor this week determined police were legally justified in a fatal shooting of a black man in August that was captured on body camera video released this week.

While one video appears to show the victim, Patrick Harmon, 50, shot from behind as he ran from police, a slowed-down version shows he pivoted toward officers with a knife, Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill said Friday.

Officer Clinton Fox told investigators Harmon threatened to stab him before he fired the fatal shots. Body camera video shows Fox shot Harmon at close range after Fox yells, 'I'll f....ing shoot you.'

Lex Scott, an organizer with Black Lives Matter in Utah, said the community is livid over the footage and wants the district attorney to resign. The Harmon family, which lives in Colorado and St. Louis, is 'shell shocked,' Scott said.

'You can't watch that video and not realize it is a clear case of murder,' Scott said. 'It is one of the clearest cases of murder we've ever seen.'

In shocking footage of the shooting, Harmon can first be seen surrounded by officers as he is handcuffed

He then appears to suddenly flee the cops and sprint away before being pursued and ultimately shot

African Americans make up about 2 percent of the population in Utah yet are over-represented in the criminal justice system, Scott said.

About 50 protesters rallied in front of Salt Lake City police building last weekend, including members of Harmon's family, demanding police release the footage. They did that this week after Gill's ruling.

The shooting comes amid an intense debate throughout the United States about race and policing following the fatal shooting of many black victims.

In 2014, police in Saratoga Springs, Utah, shot and killed Darrien Hunt, 22, after receiving reports of a man with a samurai sword. The Utah County attorney's office ruled the two officers involved were justified in shooting Hunt because they feared for their lives and the lives of others.

Hunt's family said the shooting was racially motivated. Hunt was black; the officers who shot him were white. He was wielding the sword as part of a Japanese anime costume.

Harmon was shot and killed on Aug. 13, after an officer saw him ride his bicycle across all six lanes of traffic and a median on a downtown Salt Lake City street.

He was stopped because he didn't have a required red rear tail light on his bicycle, according to the district attorney's report. Police say that Harmon gave 'a couple' of different names and eventually they found warrants for felonies including aggravated assault.

As they put him in handcuffs, Harmon pleaded with them not to take him to jail.

The video shows a distraught-looking Harmon peacefully putting his hands behind his back, then suddenly breaking into a run. The video from Fox's body camera is difficult to decipher as the officer ran.

Harmon reportedly did not give his correct name so the officer could check the police database, prompting the cop to call for backup. Pictured: The moment Harmon is shot by Officer Fox

In his conclusion, the district attorney said the killing of Harmon was justified because he 'threatened to stab or cut the officers as they tried to arrest him'

Fox said that as he chased him, Harmon suddenly turned and pulled out a knife and threatened to stab him. Neither that statement nor an obviously visible knife are captured on the video. But two other officers at the scene reported hearing Harmon say he would cut or stab the officers and a knife was found near Harmon's body.

'Officer Fox said he was terrified by how close Mr. Harmon was to the officers when Mr. Harmon stopped and turned toward them,' the district attorney report on the shooting states. 'Officer Fox said that in 10 years of law enforcement and two military deployments, it was the scariest situation he had ever been in.'

The report also includes stills from the video and an image of a knife found at the scene.

Gill said that when his investigators slowed down the video, it showed that Harmon was pivoting toward the officer.

Harmon was shot on his side, and a knife was found at the scene, he said.

His office has to decide whether to file criminal charges by weighing whether the officer could reasonably fear being seriously injured or killed, Gill said.

Given the slowed-down version of video from the body camera worn by Fox and a second officer, the knife found at the scene and the relatively close distance between Harmon and Fox, Gill found that fear would have been reasonable, he said.

Gill said he didn't come to that conclusion easily. The first time he saw the video at full speed, he thought, 'Oh my god, this isn't right,' he said.

'These are not easy decisions. They're difficult decisions. I don't take them lightly, and this was a very trying decision,' he said.

Jeanetta Williams, president of the Salt Lake branch of the NAACP, said Friday that the group will follow up with prosecutors to get more information before deciding what action to take.

'He ran, but in the video I didn't see a knife,' Williams said. 'I just saw him try to run and then they just shot him.'

___

Associated Press writer Janie Har in San Francisco contributed to this report.
A US official says investigators believe the Las Vegas shooter may have hired a prostitute in the days before the shooting, and they are interviewing other call girls as they look for clues into his motive.

The official said on Friday that prostitutes are among the hundreds of leads they are pursuing as part of their investigation into Stephen Paddock.

The official, who was briefed by federal law enforcement officials, wasn't authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

They also revealed that Paddock and his girlfriend Marilou Danley visited the Middle East on a cruise sometime during the past few years.

They did not reveal the significance of any of the trips. Officials have repeatedly dismissed ISIS's attempts to claim responsibility for the atrocity.

In Paddock's room, officials found a piece of paper containing a number of phone numbers but they reiterated no suicide note was found.

A US official says investigators believe the Las Vegas shooter, Stephen Paddock, may have hired a prostitute in the days before the shooting. Paddock is seen in this undated file photo

The official said Friday that prostitutes are among the hundreds of leads they are pursuing as part of their investigation into Paddock

A family friend of Paddock's revealed on Friday that he frequently enjoyed the company of prostitutes who were laid on and facilitated by some Vegas casinos.

Australian businessman Adam Le Fevre was in a relationship with the sister of Marilou Danley, Paddock's girlfriend.

Le Fevre told A Current Affair he went to Las Vegas with Paddock, 64, two years ago with his partner Liza and her sister Marilou, and had travelled to the Philippines with him twice, first in 2013.

Madisen Silva (right) and Samantha Werner (left) embrace Friday at a makeshift memorial for victims of the mass shooting

Jamie Lambert visits a makeshift memorial for the victims of the shooting on Friday

A woman places a candle in front of one of many white crosses set up for the victims of the Route 91 Harvest music festival mass shooting

Local and federal officials announced they are erecting billboards around the city appealing to the public to come forward with information about the shooting

A woman places a flower in front of one of many white crosses set up for the victims of the Route 91 Harvest music festival mass shooting in Las Vegas on Friday

He said Paddock was 'condescending' towards Danley, 62, making her 'nervous and jittery', while also making the most of prostitutes offered to him by casinos.

Referring to offers of free prostitutes offered to Paddock by casinos in Las Vegas, Le Fevre said: 'I did have no questions that some of those offers had been accepted, yes'.

He said the relationship between the shooter and his partner was 'not loving' or 'caring'.

'I experienced Steve talking to Marilou in an abrupt manner at times. Marilou... seemed very nervous and jittery around Steve, he would talk in a condescending way at times.'

Le Fervre said he was confident Danley had no knowledge of the planned attack, in which when Paddock opened fire on a music festival from his suite on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay casino before shooting himself dead.

Law enforcement have said they are 'confident' Paddock carried out the Mandalay Bay massacre from his hotel room alone.

Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said on Friday that investigators are sure no one else was in the room before he shot dead 58 and injured almost 500 on Sunday.

Earlier, NBC News had reported a mysterious charger that did not match any of Paddock's cellphones - raising the possibility that another person had been with Paddock beforehand.

However, later police said that they have now matched all the cell phones and all the chargers and that they belong to Paddock.

At a press conference on Friday, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Undersheriff Kevin C. McMahill said they were no closer to establishing a motive for the mass murder

'We're very confident there was not another shooter in that room,' said McMahill during a press conference in Las Vegas on Friday afternoon.

'What we cannot confirm is whether anybody else knew about this incident before he carried it out.'

This comes as local and federal officials announced they are erecting billboards around the city appealing to the public to come forward with information about the shooting.

The billboards will have the message 'If you know something, say something' and investigators hope this will help generate leads for the case which has so far left law enforcement struggling to find a motive.

'There are still a number of people out there that know that something looked out of place,' said McMahill

'Someone may have been acting suspiciously that night, or in the years prior, the months prior. Someone that may have seen something or knows something.'

A note containing a series of numbers was found on a nightstand in Paddock's room at the Mandalay Bay hotel after the shooting. Paddock's body, two of his weapons, and ammunition are seen in his hotel room shortly after he perpetrated the massacre

Police confirmed that Paddock was the only gunman, as suspected, and said there was no proof that anyone else accessed the room in the days before the attack

The FBI's special agent in charge in Las Vegas said that the idea is to reach 'as many people as we possibly can' and that they will not stop until 'they have the truth'.

But at the press conference on Friday, McMahill said detectives were no closer to understanding what motivated Paddock's killing spree.

'To date we have run down well more than 1,000 leads in this investigation. Some of it has helped create a better profile into the madness of this suspect but we do not still have a clear motive or reason why.

'In the past, terror attacks or mass murder cases, motive was made very clear by a note that was left by a social media post, by a telephone call that was made.

'Today, in our investigation, we don't have any of that uncovered. I wish we did.'

He confirmed that Paddock was the only gunman, as suspected, and said there was no proof that anyone else accessed the room in the days before the attack.

Authorities are however still investigating whether someone knew Paddock was about to commit the worst mass shooting in US history.

Workers board up a broken window at the Mandalay Bay hotel where Paddock conducted his mass shooting

The only other named person of interest is Paddock's girlfriend, Danley, who was in the Philippines on Sunday night.

Paddock paid for her ticket there and also wired her $100,000 in cash but Danley, 62, believed it was his way of breaking up with her.

She flew back to the US on Wednesday at the request of police after earlier telling family that her conscience was clear.

Detectives appeared convinced on Friday that someone else, somewhere, held information which could solve the mystery of what drove Paddock to commit the killings.

'It's really imperative that the listening public have a very clear understanding that there are still a number of people out there that know something looked out of place.

'If you know something, you need to say something,' McMahill said.

One suggested motive that was put forward by a reporter on Friday was that Paddock was 'obsessed' with the month of October however McMahill could not give any credit to the suggestion that it is what may have caused the killings.

He said they were 'keenly' pursuing his medical records to verify reports that he was taking prescription drugs and had potentially deteriorated into mental illness.

At Friday's press conference, detectives also gave further detail about some of the explosives that were found inside Paddock's car which was parked in the hotel parking lot.

It contained 50lbs of tannerite - an exploding target which triggers mass explosions when shot at. It is made out of ammonium nitrate and aluminum powder.

McMahill said he did not know what Paddock planned to do with the material but said it had not been modified in anyway to turn into an IED as was reported.

He also dismissed claims that someone else accessed the room using Paddock's key card while his Hyundai was not in the parking lot.

Detectives are working through 'voluminous' amounts of surveillance footage from inside the hotel, he said, but have so far not been able to find any other suspect.

It was also revealed that hotel security guard Jesus Campos, who alerted police to Paddock's specific location after being shot in the leg when he disturbed his killing spree, was on the floor investigating an open door on one of the rooms.

McMahill did not say whether it was Paddock's room which triggered the alarm but he offered a clearer picture of how Campos found himself in the firing line.

'Jesus Campos is a true hero. He was dispatched to what they call a door alarm on the 32nd floor,' he said, clarifying that such an alarm was issued when a door was left ajar.

'He went up there to investigate and as he was doing his job diligently, he came under fire from our suspect.

'He was struck in the leg, and he turned around retreated. He notified his dispatch which was absolutely critical to us knowing the location as well as advising the responding officers as they arrived on that 32nd floor.

'This was a remarkable effort by a brave and remarkable man. I don't think we've done a good enough job of recognizing him and his actions. For that I apologize.

'I want to clear the record. He is an absolute hero,' McMahill added.

The undersheriff also dismissed, again, the repeated claims from ISIS that Paddock carried out the attack in the name of Islamic terror.

The FBI also announced on Friday the launch of a designated campaign to the public for information.

Police are not yet able to tell the survivors who abandoned their belongings at the concert venue as they fled the scene when they will be able to retrieve them.

Members of the FBI walk among piles of personal items at the scene of the mass shooting on Friday

'We have thousands of pieces of property left on the field that day. We are diligently looking at ways to catalogue it, collect it and find the mechanism to return it but we're still days away from allowing that to happen,' he said.

The Route 91 Harvest festival was not the first music event Paddock targeted.

In August, he rented hotel rooms overlooking the Lollapalooza festival in Chicago which Malia Obama attended with friends.

Paddock never showed up for the event despite reserving a suite in the hotel.

A picture is slowly emerging of how he deteriorated into a gambling addiction in recent years, at times blowing $100,000 a time on video poker.

Paddock, whose family said made millions through real estate deals, was considered a low roller but spent enough in the casinos that he frequented to be treated favourably by staff.

His $500-a-night suite at the Mandalay Bay was comped because he always spent so much there.

Such was his relationship with other casinos that his girlfriend Marilou would be given all-expenses paid shopping trips by some of the establishments.

Paddock and Marilou lived in a $400,000 home in a retirement community in Mesquite, Nevada.
Thomas Gilbert Jr, 32, is charged in the 2015 shooting death of his father in Manhattan

The wife of a hedge fund boss who was shot dead immediately suspected their spoiled Princeton-graduate son, it has emerged.

Shelley Gilbert told police her suspicions of son Thomas Gilbert Jr, 32, just moments after discovering her husband Thomas Gilbert Sr shot dead in their apartment, a Manhattan court heard Friday.

In January 2015, the mother had stepped out to pick up a sandwich for her son at his insistence, and returned to find her husband shot.

'She told the 911 operator that her son shot her husband,' NYPD Detective Joseph Cirigliano testified at the Friday pretrial hearing for Gilbert Jr, according to the New York Daily News.

Police say that Gilbert Jr staged the scene of his father's shooting in an attempt to make it look like a suicide - but his mother apparently had no doubt that it was murder most foul.

Shelley Gilbert is seen leaving Manhattan Criminal Court on Friday. A detective testified that she told police that she suspected her son immediately after her husband was shot

Thomas Gilbert Jr (pictured) is accused of murdering his father, Thomas Gilbert Sr, after he threatened to slash his weekly allowance from $600 to $400 and stop paying his rent

While Gilbert Sr (right) was believed to be worth at least $200 million at the time of his death, court documents have revealed he was actually worth $585,555.50. Left, Thomas Gilbert Jr

At the hearing, which was to establish probable cause in Gilbert Jr's arrest, Detective Cirigliano testified about accompanying Shelly Gilbert to tell her daughter Claire about the shooting.

Claire was attending Mass at a nearby church. 'Mrs. Gilbert told Claire, "Dad's dead and Tommy shot him", Cirigliano said.

Shelley Gilbert (pictured) found her daughter in church to break the heartbreaking news

Claire 'let out a cry which stopped the entire Mass,' the detective recalled.

Investigators have said that Gilbert Jr was agitated after Gilbert Sr slashed his weekly allowance from $600 to $400 and stopped paying the rent on his $2,400-a-month Chelsea apartment.

While Gilbert Sr was believed to be worth as much as $200 million at the time of his death, court documents obtained by the New York Post revealed he had less than $10,000 in stocks and bonds, under $20,000 in cash and retirement accounts, and some $500,000 in 'miscellaneous' assets.

Gilbert Sr was once a successful Wall Street man who lived in an Upper East Side brownstone but after a bid to start his own hedge fund failed, he was forced to sell the home and start renting a Beekman Place apartment.

The family rented out a home in the Hamptons they had owned, where Gilbert Sr had been a member of the tony Maidstone Club.

Gilbert Jr - known as Tommy - meanwhile was not working, despite an economics degree from Princeton, and relied on his father to cover the $2,400 rent on his Chelsea apartment as well as a weekly $600 allowance.

A judge had previously rejected Tommy's lawyer's plea for insanity back in November after he said his client had been seriously mentally ill and should not stand trial

An exterior view of the Turtle Bay apartment in Manhattan where the murder occurred

Gilbert Sr, 70, was found with a single gunshot wound to the head at the family's apartment in Midtown Manhattan. Pictured, his body is carried out of the property

Before Princeton, he went to Deerfield for boarding school and the all-boys, exclusive Manhattan day school Buckley before that.

A judge had previously rejected Gilbert Jr's lawyer's plea for insanity, after he said his client had been seriously mentally ill and should not stand trial. The attorney, Alex Spiro, is being paid for by his mother, Shelley Rea Gilbert.

Gilbert Jr was taking medication for his mental illness while at Princeton, according to evidence alluded to in a prior State Supreme Court hearing in Manhattan.

In the same hearing, the court also learned that Gilbert Jr had experimented with illegal drugs while at Princeton, including LSD, magic mushrooms, cocaine and marijuana.

He has also previously talked about people 'infecting his mind' and claimed skits on Saturday Night Live were attempts to mock him.

Manhattan socialite Anna Rothschild, 51, dated the accused killer (pictured together) dated in 2014 and said he was a loner with few friends

Manhattan socialite Anna Rothschild, 51, dated the accused killer in 2014 and said he was a loner with few friends who deeply resented his father and was obsessed with how he would 'never be good enough' for his dad.

The twice-divorced Upper East Side woman said he was jobless - and seemed to have few prospects, and little interest, for finding serious work. Instead, he spent most his time in the Hamptons, going to the gym, doing yoga and surfing.

His one professional aspiration was founding his own hedge fund - but he complained that his father wouldn't give him the seed money to start it, Miss Rothschild said.

Miss Rothschild said Gilbert Jr was also preoccupied with how controlling his father was with his money and was convinced that he could never do anything to gain his approval

The socialite previously told DailyMail.com that she was repeatedly warned by her friend that Gilbert Jr 'would chop her into tiny pieces'.

Gilbert Jr's mother Shelley Gilbert (left) is paying for his attorney Alex Spiro (right)

Gilbert Jr (pictured left, while at Princeton, and right) experimented with illegal drugs, including LSD, magic mushrooms, cocaine and marijuana, a court heard

The trial is not Gibert Jr's first brush with the law.

While a student, in 2007, he was arrested after head-butting a nurse treating him at a hospital while he was high, but the charges were dropped after he agreed to counselling.

Gilbert Jr was also reportedly ordered to undergo anger management in 2013 after assaulting his roommate and friend Peter Smith, breaking his nose during a bust-up in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

In 2014 he stole a flag from the Smith family estate in Sagaponack, New York, and was charged with petit larceny.

He breached a court order later that year by approaching Mr Smith and was questioned after the Smith family home was attacked by an arsonist two weeks later. Gilbert Jr was not charged in connection with the blaze.

The millionaire heir was also banned from an exclusive club in the Hamptons after allegedly threatening to kill a member of staff there.

Gilbert Jr was a major beneficiary of his father's will  which was written just two years before the alleged patricide - and he could receive payments he is due to help pay legal fees. He also has one sister.
Former New York broadcast anchor Lauren Sivan said Weinstein once masturbated in front of her (Pictured: Sept. 2017)

New allegations of sexual misconduct have emerged against powerful Hollywood movie executive Harvey Weinstein.

Former Fox News reporter Lauren Sivan told The Huffington Post on Friday that the influential producer once trapped her in the hallway of a restaurant during a private event and masturbated in front of her until he ejaculated.

'Well, can you just stand there and shut up,' Weinstein allegedly told the anchor before he carried out his sex act.

Sivan's accusations come just one day after The New York Times published a bombshell story detailing Weinstein's decades long pattern of allegedly harassing women.

Sivan claims the incident happened more than a decade ago, when she was an anchor on Long Island 12, a local news broadcast.

The former TV journalist said she remained silent over the years out of fear of retaliation due to Weinstein's clout in the media industry.

According to Sivan, the incident occurred at a Manhattan nightclub called Socialista, connected to the well-known Italian restaurant Cipriani in 2007.

Sivan's accusations come just one day after The New York Times published a bombshell report

The former news reporter said she remained silent due to Weinstein's tremendous clout in the media industry (Weinstein is pictured here on October 6, 2017)

Sivan said the incident occurred at the Socialista restaurant and nightclub (pictured) in Manhattan

Lauren Sivan (pictured 2006) claimed the incident occurred over a decade ago in Manhattan

While partying with a friend and restaurant owner Giuseppe Cipriani, Weinstein offered the journalist a tour of the facilities.

Sivan said she reluctantly accepted the offer, with her friend remarking that if she wasn't back in 10 minutes she would come get her.

Once in the kitchen of the restaurant, Weinstein attempted to kiss Sivan, which she rejected explaining that she was in a long-term relationship.

At that point, Sivan claims that Weinstein exposed himself and began masturbating.

Weinstein quickly ejaculated into a potted plant near the vestibule leading to the kitchen, according to Sivan, and returned back to the nightclub after cleaning up.

Sivan's friend, who wished to remain anonymous, reiterated the details of the night to The Huffington Post, who was told about the incident immediately after the two left the club.

The next day, Weinstein called Sivan on the phone to ask if she wanted to get together after he returned from over seas, adding that he 'had a great time last night.'

Sivan quickly ended the phone conversation, reminding Weinstein that she had a boyfriend. She has not interacted with the movie mogul since.




Sixty-year-old Robert James Kuefler of White Bear Lake, Minnesota, is charged with interference with a dead body or scene of death

Prosecutors say a Minnesota man lived in his house with the decomposing bodies of his mother and twin brother for about a year.

Robert James Kuefler of White Bear Lake, Minnesota, is charged with interference with a dead body or scene of death because he neglected to tell authorities they died of natural causes, according to the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

The bodies were found last year but Kuefler was charged this week. Police say he told them his mother, 94-year-old Evelyn Kuefler, died in August 2015 and his brother, Richard Kuefler, died before that and he couldn't bring himself to bury them.

On the day of his mother's death, Kuefler told authorities that he was aware that she was near the end.

Not wanting to be around for when it happened, he went on a drive for a couple of hours.

Scroll down for video

His mother, 94-year-old Evelyn Kuefler, died in August 2015 and his brother, Richard Kuefler, died before that and he couldn't bring himself to bury them. He had neglected to tell police that his mother and brother died in the home of natural causes

The complaint says his mother's body was decayed and skeletal and his brother's body was 'mummified.'

Interference with a dead body is a gross misdemeanor which carries a maximum sentence of a year but may include a $3,000 fine.

Robert Kuefler didn't return a message left by The Associated Press.
A woman had to swim to save her life after crashing her car into a Melbourne river just after midnight on Saturday morning.

A 33-year-old woman drove her white Fiat 500 across a footpath and through a fence before landing in the Yarra River.

Victoria Police said the woman was the only person in the car and she managed to swim to the bank at about 12.30am.

A woman had to swim for her life after crashing her car into a Melbourne river (pictured)

A 33-year-old woman drove her white Fiat 500 into the Yarra River about 12.30am (pictured)

Ambulance Victoria spokesman told Daily Mail Australia the woman was cold when they arrived at the scene after being in the river

'She had lacerations to her head and arm and chest injuries ... in a serious but stable condition,' Ambulance Victoria said

Ambulance Victoria spokesman told Daily Mail Australia the woman was cold when they arrived at the scene after being in the river.

'She had lacerations to her head and arm and chest injuries ... in a serious but stable condition,' he said.

It is believed the 33-year-old was travelling west on the Citylink before taking the Yarra Boulevard exit.

The car was pulled from the river at about 10.30am after police divers searched the river.

The Prahran woman is in hospital with serious, but non-life threatening injuries.

The cause of the crash is unknown.

The woman was rushed to hospital with serious but non-life threatening injuries on Saturday

The car was pulled from the river at about 10.30am after police divers searched the river
Was Hollywood mega-producer Harvey Weinstein betrayed by his own flesh and blood?

There is rampant speculation among 'insiders' that Bob Weinstein leaked details that led to the explosive New York Times story about his brother's alleged sexual harassment of a number of women, according to Page Six.

Bob Weinstein, who co-founded The Weinstein Company with his brother and who currently serves as a board member, has reportedly been trying for years to unseat Harvey Weinstein as the sole head of the studio.

'Bob's wanted Harvey out for years,' a former staffer told Page Six.

The source claimed that 'the two brothers are becoming increasingly suspicious of each other.'

It has even been suggested that Bob Weinstein 'may have even fed this story' to the Times as a means of orchestrating Harvey Weinstein's downfall.

There is rampant speculation among 'insiders' that Bob Weinstein (left) leaked details that led to the explosive New York Times story about his brother Harvey's (right) alleged sexual harassment of a number of women. The brothers are seen above in 2007

Bob Weinstein (above), who co-founded The Weinstein Company with his brother and who currently serves as a board member, has reportedly been trying for years to unseat Harvey Weinstein as the sole head of the studio

Harvey Weinstein announced on Friday that he was taking an indefinite leave of absence as co-chairman of The Weinstein Company. He is seen above leaving his New York home on Friday

The New York Times reported that Harvey Weinstein, 65, had reached eight previously undisclosed settlements with women who made allegations of sexual harassment and unwanted physical contact

'Bob wanted Harvey to get what's coming to him,' Page Six quoted a source as saying.

The brothers jointly own 42 percent of The Weinstein Company, according to The New York Times.

Harvey Weinstein announced on Friday that he was taking an indefinite leave of absence.

A statement issued by four board members said that The Weinstein Company will be run in the meantime by Bob Weinstein and David Glasser, the president and COO.

By all appearances, if the rumors of a fraught relationship between the brothers is true, that means Bob Weinstein wins this round.

'There has always been a love-hate relationship between the brothers,' says a former Weinstein employee.

'There have been times they wouldn't speak for months. Let's just say they have an 'inconsistent' relationship.'

The Weinsteins broke into show business together. In the 1970s, they produced rock concerts in Buffalo. They then used profits from their concerts to found Miramax, which at the time was a small independent film distribution company. They're seen above in New York in 1989

Page Six quoted another source who agreed with the assessments among insiders about a fraternal rift.

'Bob's trying to take over and push Harvey out,' the source said.

Bob Weinstein has denied talk that he plotted his brother's fall from grace.

'These assertions are untrue,' he told Page Six.

The New York Times reported that Harvey Weinstein, 65, had reached eight previously undisclosed settlements with women who made allegations of sexual harassment and unwanted physical contact.

The alleged victims included an actress, a model and two assistants and their allegations spanned almost 30 years, the newspaper reported.

On Friday, former New York broadcast anchor Lauren Sivan told Huffington Post that the influential producer once trapped her in the hallway of a restaurant during a private event and masturbated in front of her until he ejaculated.

The Weinsteins broke into show business together. In the 1970s, they produced rock concerts in Buffalo.

They then used profits from their concerts to found Miramax, which at the time was a small independent film distribution company.

In the 1980s and 90s, Miramax gained a reputation for releasing critically acclaimed films.

On Friday, former New York broadcast anchor Lauren Sivan told Huffington Post that Harvey Weinstein once trapped her in the hallway of a restaurant during a private event and masturbated in front of her until he ejaculated

The studio's string of successes eventually led to its acquisition by the Walt Disney Company in 1993.

In 2005, the Weinstein brothers announced they would leave Miramax to form their own production company, The Weinstein Company.

After Harvey Weinstein announced Friday he was taking an indefinite leave as co-chairman, the film production company said it will conduct an internal investigation into the Times' report of sexual harassment allegations against one of the most powerful men in Hollywood.

The Weinstein Company board of representatives said in a statement that it takes 'extremely seriously' the accusations made in the Times story that said Weinstein had made eight settlements with women who had accused him of unwanted physical contact and sexual harassment over three decades.

Meanwhile, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and several Democratic politicians including Senators Kamala Harris, Cory Booker and Chuck Schumer said Friday they will re-route Weinstein's political donations to women's rights groups.

Weinstein Co board representatives called it 'essential' to company culture 'that all women who work for it or have any dealings with it or any of our executives are treated with respect and have no experience of harassment or discrimination.'

The company said it has retained an outside legal firm to conduct an independent investigation into the allegations.

'As Harvey has said, it is important for him to get professional help for the problems he has acknowledged. Next steps will depend on Harvey's therapeutic progress, the outcome of the Board's independent investigation, and Harvey's own personal decisions,' the board representatives added.

Weinstein initially responded to the Times story on Thursday by apologizing for causing anyone pain, and saying he was taking a leave of absence.

His lawyer later threatened to sue the New York Times.

Weinstein, one of Hollywood's best-known figures, has produced or distributed Oscar-winning movies including 'Shakespeare in Love' and 'Chicago.' He was a prominent donor to Democrats during the 2016 general election campaign.

'The DNC will donate over $30,000 in contributions from Weinstein to EMILY's List, Emerge America and Higher Heights because what we need is more women in power,' DNC communications director Xochitl Hinojosa said in a statement.
A 19-year-old woman has been charged with allegedly trying to help a family conceal their newborn daughter after she was snatched from a Sydney hospital.

Jasmine Taylor, from Doonside in Sydney's west, faced court on Saturday after she allegedly let the child's parents hide the baby in her pram.

However, the 19-year-old claimed to be innocent, and told 7 News that she was a 'victim of kindness' after she 'simply offered her pram to two strangers so that their newborn would be sheltered from the wind'.

Jasmine Taylor, 19, allegedly let the parents of a stolen baby hide the infant in her child's pram

This police officer saved a newborn baby girl who was allegedly stolen from a Sydney hospital

Ms Taylor said that the parents then took off with the pram, the newborn and her own baby, and that she was then arrested.

According to 7 News, police don't believe Ms Taylor's story.

She applied for and was granted bail, because she has a child of her own to care for.

Ms Taylor told Channel 7 that she as innocent of the charges and was and a 'victim of kindness'

Before the parents reportedly approached Ms Taylor, the baby was allegedly involved in a hit-and-run after a woman thought to be the baby's grandmother put the infant in her car.

The car, allegedly driven by the baby's 47-year-old grandmother, hit a pedestrian, 61, who had to be taken to hospital.

The baby's 47-year-old grandmother faced court after the incident on Friday - charged with seven offences including detaining a child with intent to remove it from parental control and dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm.

The woman then allegedly hit a 61-year-old man, who was taken to hospital with head injuries

The man hit by the child's grandmother was taken to Westmead Hospital with head injuries, and the Bidwill woman did not apply for bail.

Following the crash, the mother and father allegedly hid the child in Ms Taylor's pram.

According to News.com, the mother was allegedly approached by police shortly after the baby's family had 'run off' but she wouldn't let them search her pram for the missing baby.

Police allege that they approached Ms Taylor (pictured), who didn't let them search the pram

The man allegedly hit by the baby's 'grandmother' was taken to the nearby Westmead Hospital

Ms Taylor's lawyer said she did not know the family and agreed to help them as a service to their two-day-old baby.

She described the event as 'like a scene from a movie' before she was granted bail.

The infant was allegedly taken from Blacktown Hospital on Friday against the advice of the Department of Family and Community Services before being put in the car.

A witness describes seeing the woman hit a man with her car, and then continuing to drive

'The was a car speeding, and there was a lady inside,' a witness told 7News. 'In the back, there was a baby...The car hit a man and pulled him over.'

Police used CCTV to locate the child, who was in the car at the time of the incident.

She was unharmed, but taken to Patrick St Medical Centre as a precaution, before being returned to Blacktown Hospital.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman has said he is ready to take necessary measures to protect ethnic minorities in Ukraine.

"The reform of the educational system in Ukraine aims to perfect the system and improve the situation in Ukrainian language learning. Ukraine respects all ethnic minorities. We are ready to analyze the situation and, where necessary, hold consultations to determine measures necessary to support minorities," Groysman told a press conference in Chisinau on Friday after meeting with his Moldovan counterpart Pavel Filip.

"Ukraine requires knowledge of the official language, but will also provide all necessary conditions for the development of ethnic minorities," Groysman said.

The journalists disagreed with this by pointing out that the amendments to the education law ban teaching in minority languages, which violates the rights of ethnic minorities, including of the ethnic Moldovans living in Ukraine's Odesa and Chernivtsi regions.
Thousands of people gathered across Australia to protest a coal mine in North Queensland on Saturday.

Protesters in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne and the Gold Coast rallied against Indian company Adani's plans for the mine in the Galilee Basin.

The protests were part of Stop Adani group's 'big day of protest', with 45 rallies across the nation.

The $16 billion coal mine was given the green light earlier this year, with pre-planning construction set to begin next month.

Thousands of people gathered across Australia to protest a coal mine in North Queensland on Saturday

Protesters form a sign reading 'Stop Adani' at a Melbourne protest against the Adani coal mine

Protesters wearing masks depicting Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Adani founder Gautam Adani are seen rallying on Bondi beach

Organisers believe around 1500 people attended a protest on Bondi Beach, using their bodies to spell out '#StopAdani' on the sand.

Protesters in Melbourne's Princes Park followed suit, with many also running through 'Stop Adani' flags wearing 'Team Reef' shirts.

A further 2,000 protesters packed the Melbourne park carrying placards which read 'Protect our Future'.

The rallies also featured protesters wearing over-sized masks of Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Adani founder Gautam Adani.

A protester wearing a mask depicting Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is seen rallying on Bondi beach

Crowds gather at a protest against the Adani coal at Princes Park in Melbourne

A further 2,000 protesters packed the Melbourne park carrying placards which read 'Protect our Future'

Many protesters took to Bondi Beach with placards against the coal mine

Protesters are calling on the Queensland and Federal governments to stop the Adani coal mine

A play on words with a strong message, this banner calls for the coalition government to ban the Adani mine

Around 1500 people rallied against the mine on Bondi Beach on Saturday as part of Stop Adani group's 'big day of protest'

Nine hundred people are believed to have taken part in a Newtown rally, while protesters took to the lawns of Parliament House in Canberra with large banners against the coal mine.

CEO of 350.org, a group that opposes new coal, oil and gas projects, Blair Palese, said both governments were not listening to the public.

'While the Queensland and Federal governments remain staunch supporters of this dirty mine, new polling shows the Australian community is angry that $1 billion of public money could be handed to Adani for a mine which will wreck the climate and the Reef,' he told The Sydney Morning Herald.

Young protesters Alena and Naami were among the 2,000 who rallied against Adani in Melbourne

Crowds gather on Sydney's Bondi Beach to ally against a proposed coal mine in North Queensland

Protesters took to the lawns of Parliament House in Canberra with large banners against the coal mine

Opponents to the mine believe it will damage the already ravaged Great Barrier Reef

The construction of the mine, if it is given a green light, will be the largest in Australia

'Voters are clear. They believe the Queensland government should stick to its promise and block the $1 billion loan to billionaire Adani for his private rail line.'

A ReachTEL poll, released on Saturday by the Stop Adani movement, shows 56 per cent of Australians oppose the coal project.

The construction of the mine, if it is given a green light, will be the largest in Australia.

Opponents to the mine believe it will damage the already ravaged Great Barrier Reef

Protesters across the nation rallied against Indian company Adani's plans for the mine in the Galilee Basin

The event is one of many occurring around the country as part of the Stop Adani National Day of Action

Opponents to the mine believe it will damage the already ravaged Great Barrier Reef and bring environmental harm to the area.

Both State and Federal governments have defended the proposed mine, which promises to bring much-needed jobs back to far North Queensland.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said while the mine will help many families seeking employment, Adani will be held to 'the toughest environmental conditions'.

'You only have to travel to regional Queensland to understand what this project means to thousands of families out there that will be employed through this project,' she said.

'At the end of the day we have the toughest environmental conditions attached to that mine.'
Sydney's Moet and Chandon Spring Champion Stakes day has been deemed the 'most glamorous' day of the 2017 Sydney Spring Carnival.

But as the racing continues further into the afternoon, the earlier well-polished punters seem to have progressively dropped the ball on 'keeping it classy'.

Rowdy spectators have been spotted climbing aboard the backs of one another, compromising their modesty in unladylike spills and getting into the full spirit of the day.

Rowdy spectators have been spotted enjoying the full festivities of the Moet and Chandon Spring Champion Stakes day at Royal Randwick

Chesty display at Stakes day! There was certainly plenty of flesh to be seen as women strutted their way through the venue

No shame here! Another duo also stepped out in black, with one certainly not shy about flashing her choice in underwear to fellow spectators

Female friends were pictured poking their tongues in each other's direction, and clambering over each other as they attempted a clumsy embrace

A pair of friends noticed the cameras and put on series of inventive and imaginative poses

Keep your shirt on! One punter was eager to bare his chest before being restrained by a mate

The overcast weather did not stop this punter from showing off his fashionable sunglasses

Some punters got a little too excited, with one man in a suit needing to be escorted away by police

One quenched his thirst for a sip of his own foot-sweat, downing a beverage straight from the inside of his dress shoe.

He also seemed to have been in the wars, sporting an unfortunate tear to the crotch region of his trousers.

Another tucked into an undoubtedly well-deserved meat pie smothered in tomato sauce, surrounded by nothing but a table of empty grog bottles.

Female friends were pictured poking their tongues in each other's direction, and clambering over each other as they attempted a clumsy embrace.

Another woman had taken a clean backward tumble, leaving her derriere on full display.

A man quenched his thirst for a sip of his own foot-sweat, downing a beverage straight from the inside of his dress shoe

Another tucked into an undoubtedly well-deserved meat pie smothered in tomato sauce

Some managed to retain their class from prior in the day as they sipped on handfuls of 'double parked' cans of alcoholic beverages

Some managed to retain their class from prior in the day as they sipped on handfuls of 'double parked' cans of alcoholic beverages.

One of the fashion-forward spectators donned two bright pink 'pom pom' accessories in her hair, matching them eloquently with a flirty floral dress and matching pale pink heals and purse.

Her male pale also slapped on a daring ensemble, featuring a brightly patterned floral shirt, cream fedora hat and ankle-baring beige trousers.

There were plenty of bright pops of colour, with pants and wrap dresses a top choice for a large amount of ladies at the event

One of the fashion-forward spectators donned two bright pink 'pom pom' accessories in her hair, matching them eloquently with a flirty floral dress

Keeping their look simple and chic, one pair of fillies opted for long black dresses, offering a hint of ink and splashes of beige

Keeping their look simple and chic, one pair of fillies opted for long black dresses, offering a hint of ink and splashes of beige.

Another duo also stepped out in black, with one certainly not shy about flashing her choice in underwear to fellow spectators.

Tongue poking quickly emerged as a favourite pose among the females at the venue, with many utilising the jolly gesture for pictures with friends.

Some attempted candid shots, but looked to be struggling against the pull of gravity as they tried, and failed, to stand straight

A couple lept up the opportunity to pack on the PDA, shamelessly going in for a pash as they posed for cameras

Feminine prints, frills and floral patterns seemed to be the order of the day as ladies stepped out dressed to the nines

Royal Randwick course was host to a plethora of excitable spectators dressed in jumpsuits and pantsuits, which seemed a clear favourite choice of outfit among female attendees.

One couple lept up the opportunity to pack on the PDA, shamelessly going in for a pash as they posed for cameras.

Some attempted candid shots, but looked to be struggling against the pull of gravity as they tried, and failed, to stand straight.

Eager race-goers stormed Royal Randwick on Saturday for the Moet and Chandon Spring Champion Stakes day

The venue quickly became host to some excitable spectators, with jumpsuits and pantsuits a clear favourite among female attendees

Like any spring racing event there was no shortage of eye-catching fashions on the field.

Women led the way with a mixture of block coloured statement ensembles, many opting to ditch the traditional fascinator in favour of keeping it simple with boater hats and sunglasses.

Feminine prints, frills and floral patterns seemed to be the order of the day as ladies stepped out dressed to the nines.

Thigh-skimming dresses were also a major theme, with some forced to battle the breeze to keep their modesty intact.

Many opted to ditch the traditional fascinator in favour of keeping it simple with boater hats and sunglasses

Like any spring racing event there was no shortage of eye-catching fashions on the field

Tall strappy black and nude coloured high heels complemented the outfits of women wearing wrap dresses, jumpsuits and playsuits.

While some ladies strutted the fields with their gal pals arm-in-arm, for others, their mobile phones demanded their attention.

The ladies weren't the only ones to put the extra effort into their appearance, as men embraced the day looking suave in a variety of pant and suit combos.

Tall strappy black and nude coloured high heels complemented the outfits of women wearing wrap dresses, jumpsuits and playsuits

While some ladies strutted the fields with their gal pals arm-in-arm, for others, their mobile phones demanded their attention

Taking a leaf from their female counterparts, male punters accessorised with groovy head-wear and stylish sunglasses.

Some women protected themselves from the gusty conditions with the addition of a blazer, but most chose to brave the chilly weather in minimal clothing.

A pair of ladies were pictured looking particularly jovial, with one expressing her enjoyment of the day with a cheeky tongue poke and a thumbs up sign.

Men embraced the day looking suave in a variety of pant and suit combos, along with an array of stylish sunglasses

Feminine prints, frills and floral patterns seemed to be the order of the day as ladies stepped out dressed to the nines




A college student who stole a classmate's 'Make America Great Again' hat and demanded its wearer be punished could face felony charges in the incident.

University of California, Riverside student Edith Macias grabbed the hat off of Matthew Vitale's head on September 27, documenting the incident in a profanity-laced video.

Initially, Vitale said he hadn't planned to press charges against Macias, but that changed when a campus police officer told him her own bizarre video could be evidence of a felony, since it shows her taking the hat directly off of his person.

'Honestly, this isn't me trying to get revenge on her,' Vitale said in an interview with Fox News, revealing his intent to press charges.

'This is me just trying to say: "Look, behavior like this is not tolerated in this country",' he continued.

University of California, Riverside student Edith Macias is seen in stills from a video after snatching a Make America Great Again hat from the head of

Vitale, a member of the campus Republicans, says he plans to press charges. 'I very strongly believe that if she had been wearing a Malcom X cap or a pro-abortion cap, and I had snatched it off her head... I would be sitting in jail right now,' Vitale said in a new interview

California law defines second-degree felony robbery as 'taking of personal property in the possession of another, from his person or immediate presence, and against his will, accomplished by means of force or fear.' Penalties range from probation to five years in prison.

'I very strongly believe that if she had been wearing a Malcom X cap or a pro-abortion cap, and I had snatched it off her head and ran down to student life and turned her in and demanded that she be kept from wearing that hat, I very firmly believe that I would be sitting in jail right now,' Vitale said in another interview, with the Larry Elder Show.

Following the incident, comrades of Macias posted a petition demanding that the university pay Macias' rent, grant her amnesty from legal or disciplinary action, cover her legal fees, condemn 'white supremacist violence', and support a 'sanctuary campus'.

University officials have been vague in their public statements about the incident, speaking of a need to balance respect with free speech.

'The university stands very strongly for free speech and its protections, and for a congenial dialogue on campus,' university spokesman John Warren told Fox. 'The students on our campus have used this episode to affirm their support for free expression, and a productive exchange of ideas.'

Two videos of the hat-snatching incident and one Vitale's subsequent conversation with campus police were viewed by millions before they were removed by Facebook for reasons that are unclear.

Vitale was stunned when his fellow student snatched the hat and accused him of genocide

The staff manages to convince Macias to turn over the hat and it is returned to Vitale, but not before Macias is caught on video protesting their actions (left and right). She says: '[The education system] geared to benefit white people, white people, not me'

In the one, Macias is seen snatching the hat off of Vitale's head during a meeting of student organizations at the University of California, Riverside.

Vitale then films Macias arguing with him as they make their way to the school's student life office.

Stunned staff members look on as Vitale demands his hat be given back and Macias demands the school prohibit him from wearing it.

'This is mine. You do not get to take other people's property that is legally theirs in this county,' Vitale, a member of the school's College Republicans club, tells Macias.

'Man, f**k- your laws,' she replies.

Later in the video, Vitale says: 'I have a freedom of speech to wear this hat.'

'Your f**king freedom of speech is genocide, homeboy! Is that what you are trying to represent?' she asks.

Vitale is seen after retrieving the hat. Two videos of the incident garnered millions of views, but were quietly removed from Facebook for reasons that are unclear

In a video posted after the incident, Vitale said he was attending an annual school-organized meeting where leaders of student groups listen to presentations about combating hazing and sexual harassment.

This is where Macias grabbed the hat and sprinted off.

The staff manages to convince Macias to turn over the hat and it is returned to Vitale, but not before Macias is caught on video protesting their actions.

'Oh my God, you're going to keep letting him wear it? That just shows how the f**k UCR is and the education system,' Macias says as staff hands the hat back to Vitale.

'It's geared to benefit white people, white people, not me.'

Macias then turns to leave as she's met at the door by campus police officers, saying: 'I don't want to talk to none of y'all.'
A young Australian woman has died during her honeymoon in Fiji after falling ill to a mystery illness she initially dismissed as an upset stomach.

Kelly Clarke, 24, died on Friday night two days after she had been rushed to hospital after 'having a shower and putting herself to bed' after feeling sick on Wednesday evening.

According to the Daily Telegraph the newly wed was on her honeymoon with groom Chase Kelly, 28, who has revealed the couple's final conversation.

Kelly Clarke, 24 died in Fiji on Friday night two days after she had been rushed to hospital during her honeymoon with Chase Clarke, 28 (both pictured)

The young honeymooner was rushed to hospital just hours after complaining of a sore stomach

'She said over the phone she was scared she was going to die and I just told her I loved her, what else could I say?' Mr Clarke said.

'I told her to be strong, that I was coming straight back and to rest up because she needed her strength.'

Doctors initially thought the young honeymooner had caught Typhoid and started her on treatment - before putting her into a coma on Friday when her condition continued to deteriorate.

Her devastated husband has now revealed the blood tests have come back negative for the disease.

Mr Clarke has described his wife as intelligent, beautiful and caring.

Mrs Clarke's sister, Tam Brown, a nanny living in Sydney, opened a fundraiser page on Friday morning when the family realised she was not getting better in Fiji.

The newlywed couple pictured here on a graduation day were also in Fiji for a friend's wedding

Doctors initially thought the young woman had come down with Typhoid but a blood test shows this is not the case

Mrs Kelly's family managed to raise $14,300 for a medivac to help the woman but they arrived in the country an hour after she died

The page managed to raise $14,300 in just 21 hours - but the young woman wasn't to be saved.

The young woman's brother, Murray, posted a loving tribute to his sister after she died.

'Kelly has passed away,' he wrote.

'She went into cardiac arrest five times in the last hour and the medivac team didn't make it in time.

'You (were a) beautiful girl and amazing sister you will be deeply missed,' he wrote.

The young woman went into cardiac arrest five times before she died

'You (were a) beautiful girl and amazing sister you will be deeply missed,' her brother wrote

'We are so devastated to hear this news. Our thoughts are with you all at this sad time. Kelly was a beautiful girl,' said one friend

Tributes flowed in quickly for the young woman.

'We are so devastated to hear this news. Our thoughts are with you all at this sad time. Kelly was a beautiful girl,' said one.

'The world has lost a beautiful caring soul. Thinking of you all at this very sad time. Strength and love to the family,' said another.

The young woman pictured with her father on her wedding day in April

'The world has lost a beautiful caring soul. Thinking of you all at this very sad time. Strength and love to the family,' said another friend

Mrs Kelly's mother is believed to have been travelling to Fiji to be with her daughter and son in law on Friday

'I am sincerely sorry to hear of such a sudden and tragic loss. My thoughts are with you and the family. This is utterly heartbreaking. Sending my deepest condolences and love to you all,' another wrote.

The couple were married in April but held off their honey moon so they could be in Fiji for a friend's wedding.

Mrs Kelly's mother is believed to have been travelling to Fiji to be with her daughter and son in law on Friday.
The autopsy results in the death of a 19-year-old woman found dead in the freezer of a four-star hotel have been released, indicating she died accidentally of hypothermia.

The Cook County Medical Examiner's report, released on Friday, dealt another blow to conspiracy theories surrounding the death last month of Kenneka Jenkins in the Chicago suburbs.

The report found that Jenkins had no injuries save for a scrape on her right ankle and a bruise on her right thigh when she was found dead in The Crowne Plaza Hotel and Conference Center in Rosemont.

A toxicology screen found evidence she had used alcohol and topiramate, a prescription migraine medication that can cause drowsiness and confusion.

A medical examiner has ruled that Chicago teen Kenneka Jenkins died accidentally after wandering into the freezer of a hotel. Her family had insisted there was foul play

The medical examiner ruled that Jenkins died accidentally of hypothermia due to cold exposure in the freezer, with intoxication a significant contributing factor.

Speculation about foul play had swirled on social media in the aftermath of the unusual death, with local activists and family members insisting that investigators were covering something up.

Surveillance video was released showing Jenkins stumbling around the hallways and kitchen of the hotel where she was found dead inside of the walk-in freezer hours later, cooling suspicions.

Video shows the teen leaving the elevator alone at 3.20am then struggling to maintain balance as she navigates the hallways.

She was at the hotel the night of September 8 for a party with friends on the ninth floor. Jenkins was officially reported missing on the next day at 1pm and found dead in the freezer September 10 at 1am.

Though the footage doesn't show the moment Jenkins enters the freezer, authorities believe she did when she walked out of the frame.

There will be 36 more hours of footage from that weekend released, police told the Chicago Tribune.

Kenneka Jenkins is seen struggling to maintain her balance in the hallway of the The Crowne Plaza Hotel and Conference Center in Rosemont

Jenkins, seen leaving the elevator, was at the hotel for a party on September 8 and was reported missing the next day

The video of Jenkins walking by herself into the kitchen appears to disprove the social media speculation that foul play was involved

The teen's family's lawyer told the paper they will be seeking their own investigation and perhaps a second autopsy.

Attorney Larry Rogers said the hotel 'never checked. They never searched, they never did anything while a young, 19-year-old disoriented girl was sitting in their freezer.'

'Now there has to be an answer to how that happened. Better yet, there has to be an answer to why that happened.'

Her mother Tereasa Martin said: 'To me, I feel like they helped kill my child: the police department and this hotel.'

In a 911 recording made after Kenneka vanished but before she was found, Martin tells a dispatcher that she fears her daughter has been drinking after speaking to her friends.

Martin said 'one cup is too much for her' and asks if detectives can get the hotel surveillance video. But the dispatcher tries to allay her concerns and assures her that Kenneka will probably turn up.

The family filed a missing persons report at 1.15pm, at which time the hotel searched for Kenneka but failed to find her. It was only after the teen's parents went to the hotel herself at 6pm that staff phoned police, a second search was mounted and her body was found.

Kenneka was filmed by friends partying in the hotel room (L) and in an elevator (R) hours before she died

At 1am on Sunday, she was found dead in a freezer at the hotel (file above). Friends say they lost her after leaving her alone in a hallway momentarily. Holmes said: 'It was just an accident waiting to happen'

Andrew Holmes, who has worked in the community for decades fighting against violence, told the Chicago Tribune earlier that detectives in Rosemont allowed him to view the video on Wednesday when he went to seek answers on behalf of Jenkins' family.

'We all was wondering and wanted to know did anybody pull her down there?' Holmes told reporters Thursday.

'Did anybody force her down there? Was anybody on the other side in that room when she got down there? And the answer to that is 'no.'

Jenkins' body was discovered in the industrial, walk-in freezer at The Crowne Plaza Hotel and Conference Center in Rosemont, a suburb of Chicago, at 1am Sunday.

She had gone missing around 24 hours earlier after partying with friends in one of the hotel's rooms.

Viral Facebook videos of their antics around the time she vanished are being investigated by police alongside surveillance footage from 47 cameras inside the hotel.

A Chicago activist revealed he saw the video before it was released to the public that shows Jenkins alone in the hotel hallway and kitchen

Police plan to show he woman's mother, Tereasa Martin (above outsider her home), the same surveillance footage that Holmes viewed. Authorities say they will release it to the public once the investigation is complete

Holmes said one of the surveillance videos shows the 19-year-old woman waiting in the lobby of the hotel after her friends reportedly went up to the room to retrieve items they left behind.

He said that the video shows Jenkins take an elevator to a lower level before she wanders around and opens doors appearing to be disoriented.

He said that she opened two doors in a kitchen area and walked inside of the large freezer before the doors shut behind her.

KENNEKA JENKINS DEATH: A TIMELINE Friday 11.30pm: Kenneka goes to the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Rosemont with her friends Saturday 1.30am: She sends her final text message Saturday 1.36am: Kenneka's friends appear in Facebook live video Saturday 4.30am: Her friends call her family to report her missing Saturday 1.18pm: Kenneka is reported missing Saturday 1.56pm: Kenneka's 'best friend' posts video which shows her at the hotel Sunday 1am: Kenneka's body is found inside hotel freezer Sunday 2am: The same friend posts another video showing Kenneka in hotel elevator Advertisement

'It was just an accident waiting to happen,' Holmes told the newspaper.

His account of what occurred differs from the social media speculation that the teen was murdered.

Holmes said that the theories circulating online about Jenkins are 'just something they made up on social media.'

He urged people with hard information to call the police.

Rosemont police said they will show the full video to the woman's mother before they release it to the public at the end of the investigation.

Martin said that she plans to view the video with her attorney Larry Rogers.

The Crowne Plaza Hotel also announced that they intend to cover the cost of the young woman's funeral expenses.

A spokesman for the hotel said they extended the offer to the family that would also allow them to privately view 36 total hours of surveillance footage from 40 different cameras inside.

'Our hearts go out to the Kenneka's mother, her family and friends. We hope covering the funeral costs provides a small bit of relief for them,' hotel spokesman Glenn Harston said in the statement.

It was not known if Jenkins' family accepted either offer.
A lucky ticket holder who won last night's record-breaking Euromillions jackpot worth 168million has claimed their prize on the holiday island of Gran Canaria.

The ticket was validated at El Mirador Shopping Centre in Las Palmas on the island off Morocco which is popular with British tourists.

The prize had been accumulating after no player matched five numbers and two lucky stars in the twice-weekly draws since the start of September.

The jackpot had reached its maximum with organisers Camelot estimating that more than 26,000 tickets could have been sold in the run up to Friday night's draw.

A lucky ticket holder who won last night's record-breaking Euromillions jackpot worth 168million has claimed their prize on the holiday island of Gran Canaria (pictured)

The winning numbers of 01, 09, 15, 19 and 25 and Lucky Star numbers 01 and 07 were matched by a ticket sold in Spain, while four UK ticket holders matched five numbers and one Lucky Star to win 900,571 each.

Andy Carter, the National Lottery's senior winners' adviser, urged all UK players to check their tickets quickly to see if they are among the winners.

'We have champagne on ice ready to celebrate,' he said.

The record of the single biggest lottery win in the UK currently stands at 161million scooped by Scots Colin and Chris Weir in 2011.

This week's winner will have more in the bank than Adele (125million) and Rooney (92million).
Scandal-hit budget airline Ryanair said its chief operations officer will leave the company at the end of the month as the fallout from the bungling of pilots' holiday continues.

Michael Hickey will depart amid a crisis that has seen 715,000 customers' flights cancelled due to a rostering error.

Mr Hickey's job was to schedule the pilots' shifts.

Scandal-hit budget airline Ryanair said its chief operations officer will leave the company at the end of the month as the fallout from the bungling of pilots' holiday continues

That job is now in the hands of Ryanair's chief people officer Edward Wilson.

Announcing Mr Hickey's departure, the firm's embattled chief executive Michael O'Leary said: 'Over the past 30 years Mick Hickey has made an enormous contribution to Ryanair, especially the quality and safety of our engineering and operations functions.

'He will be a hard act to replace.'

Hickey joined Ryanair as an engineer in 1988 when the airline was far from the dominant carrier it is today and became Director of Engineering in 2000 before taking over as Chief Operations Officer three years ago.

Ryanair said it would start the process of identifying and recruiting a successor and that Hickey would hand over his responsibilities over the next three weeks.

Mr Hickey (centre in the pink shirt) will depart amid a crisis that has seen 715,000 customers' flights cancelled due to a rostering error. Mr Hickey's job was to schedule the pilots' shifts

After the cancellations sparked customer outrage and a wave of negative media coverage across Europe, Ryanair has been scrambling to appease its pilots and promised them significant improvements in pay and conditions on Thursday.

Ryanair has said reports it had a pilot shortage were false and that less than 260 of its 4,200 pilots had left so far this year amid some being poached by rival Norwegian Air Shuttle .

In a separate statement on Friday, it said it had hired 210 new pilots in the past 12 weeks, bringing to 822 the number who have joined since the start of the year.
A drug gang smuggled more than 100 kilos of high purity cocaine worth 10 million through Heathrow Airport with the help of bent baggage handlers.

Suitcases full of drugs were smuggled through Terminal 5 having arrived on flights from Brazil.

National Crime Agency (NCA) investigators intercepted a total of six consignments of cocaine, with a purity of up to 77 per cent and one bag of cannabis, but more would have got onto the streets of Britain.

Preetam Mungrah, 43, (left) and 30-year-old Wilfred Owusu (right) were found guilty by a jury at Kingston Crown Court yesterday for their part in the large drugs conspiracy

Corrupt baggage handlers would transfer the bags of drugs from an international flight from Brazil onto the domestic reclaim belt.

A courier arriving at Heathrow on an internal flight would then take the bag off the domestic belt and pass through a lower level of security for domestic passengers.

Preetam Mungrah, 43, and 30-year-old Wilfred Owusu were found guilty by a jury at Kingston Crown Court yesterday for their part in the large drugs conspiracy following a six week trial.

Heathrow baggage handler Joysen Jhurry, 40, had already pleaded guilty to his involvement in smuggling plot.

Some of the seizures made by Border Force officers. In total cocaine weighing more than 100 kilos and cannabis weighing around 50 kilos was seized

Heathrow baggage handler Joysen Jhurry, 40, had already pleaded guilty to his involvement in smuggling plot

Two couriers Danovan Bull, 45, (left) and Moses Awopetu, 38, (right) were arrested on arrival and would later plead guilty to importing class A drugs

Timothy Probert-Wood, prosecuting, said: 'The allegation is relatively straight forward and it involves these two defendants involved in a conspiracy with others to smuggle very large amounts of very pure and very valuable cocaine into this country through corrupt baggage handlers at Heathrow Terminal 5.'

Describing how the plot worked, the prosecutor said: 'It is in fact beautiful in its simplicity. It was simple method known to the authorities and rip on/rip off.'

The court heard that every week BA248 from Rio de Janeiro would arrive at Terminal 5 at about 1pm on the same day each week day, with the cocaine on it.

It was airside after security at Rio's international airport that the bag containing the drugs would be loaded onto a luggage crate for the UK bound flight.

Someone in Brazil would also note to what the bag looks like and inform the smugglers in the UK.

Baggage handler Jhurry would the search for the bag on the Tarmac at Heathrow and move it over it from the international arrivals carousel onto the domestic arrivals carousel.

National Crime Agency surveillance showing Joysen Jhurry and Damion Goodhall

National Crime Agency surveillance showing Joysen Jhurry and Damion Goodhall

A courier who had arrived at Heathrow on a domestic flight and been told which bag contained the drugs, would then pick it from the internal arrivals carousel and leave through the lower level security.

The prosecutor said: 'In any case it worked beautifully and we only know about this conspiracy when it went wrong, when a bag was intercepted.'

Six bags contains drugs were seized following the arrival of flights from Brazil from November 2015 and November 2016, with more than 100kg seized in total.

The wholesale value of 1kg of high quality cocaine is about 30,000, which is tripled for the street value, making the total seized worth more than 9million.

NCA regional head of investigations Brendan Foreman said: 'This was a sophisticated plot and at the centre of it was a man who used his privileged access to Heathrow and insider knowledge of the airport's systems for criminal purposes.

'This kind of corruption threatens the security of the UK border and the public at large which is why the NCA and its partners are tackling it as a priority.

'Working with Border Force, Airport authorities and the airline community we were able to stop this organised crime group in its tracks and pull together evidence which demonstrated their guilt to the jury.'

Damion Goodhall, 30, (left) of Tooting and Mark Agoro, 51, (right) of Thurrock pleaded guilty to being part of the conspiracy

Aziz Abdul, 37, (pictured) of no fixed abode, also pleaded guilty to being part of the conspiracy

Border Force Heathrow Director Phil Douglas said: 'Our officers played a pivotal role in this investigation, helping to bring these individuals to justice.

'Officers worked closely with the National Crime Agency, gathering vital intelligence before arrests were made. They also used their expert knowledge of the airport and its staff on the day arrests took place.

'This case demonstrates that Border Force officers are on constant alert at all times of the year to keep restricted and prohibited items out of the country and prevent them getting into the hands of organised crime groups.'

Two couriers Danovan Bull, 45, and Moses Awopetu, 38, were arrested on arrival and would later plead guilty to importing class A drugs.

Bull, of Clapham, south London, pleaded guilty to possession of class A drugs with intent to supply at Isleworth Crown Court in January 2016 and was sentenced to six years in prison.

Three other men, Damion Goodhall, 30, of Tooting, Mark Agoro, 51, of Thurrock, and Aziz Abdul, 37, of no fixed abode, also pleaded guilty to being part of the conspiracy.

All will be sentenced later this year.
North Korea has a store of lethal diseases that it could attach to missiles and fire into enemy countries in the event of war, a study has revealed.

Researchers believe the aggressive dictatorship has biological weapons factories containing the likes of anthrax, botulism, cholera, typhoid, yellow fever, typhus, smallpox and even the plague.

The totalitarian Stalinist regime could 'weaponise' the diseases by attaching them to missiles, bombs or spraying planes.

Anton Morozov claimed to have seen calculations showing the missile can range the US West Coast and that North Korea can bring a nuclear warhead back to earth intact (pictured, Kim Jong Un inspects what purports to be a hydrogen bomb)

North Korea is preparing to launch another missile 'in the nearest future', according to Russian lawmaker Anton Morozov who recently returned from a trip to Pyongyang

The new report - by intelligence firm AMPLYFI and Harvard University - is based on the mining of data from 840,000 websites mentioning biological weapons, of which 23,000 were linked to North Korea.

Titled 'North Korea's Biological Weapons Program', the research - first reported by The Mirror - suggests the pariah state could 'produce military-style batches of biological weapons - specifically anthrax'.

The study goes on: 'The most recent statement by the South Korean Defence Ministry is that North Korea has 13 types of biological weapons which it can weaponise within ten days.

'And anthrax and smallpox are the likely agents it would deploy.'

The report also shows that - given its history of 'treating people as expendable entities' and based on defectors' testimony - North Korea uses humans to test the barbaric weapons.

It also claims the weaponising of biological agents by the regime goes back to the 1980s, with North Korean troops long vaccinated against smallpox.

South Korea has previously said its benighted neighbour has three main biological weapons factories.

The report concludes by warning against 'complacency' and stresses that efforts should be made 'to combat any potential emerging bioweapons threat which may arise in the form of bioterrorism or in an all-out conflict'.

It comes after a Russian lawmaker who just returned from a visit to Pyongyang said North Korea is preparing to launch another missile 'in the nearest future'.

Anton Morozov, of the nationalist Liberal-Democratic Party, added that he has seen calculations showing the missile can hit the US West Coast.

Mr Morozov also said the North Koreans told him they have technology that would allow them to bring a warhead back down to earth intact.

Donald Trump discussed North Korea with his generals on Thursday before telling reporters it was 'the calm before the storm'. Asked what storm, he replied: 'You'll see'

The Party Foundation Anniversary, in which North Koreans celebrate the founding of their ruling communist party, is due to take place on Tuesday next week.

Monday is also Columbus Day in the US, meaning any potential launch would be very likely to happen on either of those two days.

Kim Jong Un usually times missile tests to coincide with American public holidays to ensure maximum media coverage.

The last major test conducted on a public holiday was a missile launch on the 4th of July, which Kim said was 'a gift for the American b*******'.

Kim threatened to tame President Trump 'with fire' in an unprecedented personal address last month, calling him a 'mentally deranged dotard'

The news comes after President Trump discussed the North Korean situation with military leaders on Thursday, describing the moment as 'the calm before the storm'.

When quizzed by reporters about what he meant, Trump said: 'You'll find out.'

The news also comes after Kim threatened to tame Donald Trump 'with fire' after the President threatened to 'totally destroy' North Korea in a speech to the UN.

In an unprecedented personal address to President Trump, Kim said the US would 'pay dearly' adding that North Korea 'will consider with seriousness exercising of a corresponding, highest level of hard-line countermeasure in history.'

He added: 'I am now thinking hard about what response he could have expected when he allowed such eccentric words to trip off his tongue.

'I will surely and definitely tame the mentally deranged US dotard with fire.'

North Korea has previously released images of what it claimed was a 'fire plan' for an attack on the US military base on Guam.

Kim was said to have reviewed the plans but decided not to attack.

Few international observers believe the North would actually attack the US or an allied country because there is no possibility it could win a war with America.

But Ri Yong Ho, North Korea's Foreign Minister, raised another prospect - that the hermit nation could land a warhead in the Pacific Ocean.

Such a demonstration would prove that they have a viable nuclear weapon, without necessarily prompting American military action.

North Korea has previously released images of what it claimed was a 'fire plan' for an attack on the US military base on Guam. Pictured: The country's dictator

Kim believes securing such a weapon, and proving to the international community that it works, is the key to ensuring his regime's survival.

Most experts agree that the North already has a missile capable of ranging most of the US, the Hwasong-14, which they have successfully tested multiple times.

Kim has also claimed to have a powerful hydrogen bomb that is small enough to fit on top of the missile, after the state carried out a sixth successful nuclear test earlier this year.

The final hurdle is in perfecting re-entry technology that would bring the warhead back to earth intact and on target.

It is not believed the North currently possesses this technology, as re-entry vehicles from previous Hwasong-14 tests were shown falling back into the ocean in flames.
The decapitated head of a Swedish journalist thought to have been murdered on board an inventor's home-made submarine has been found.

The naked, headless and limbless torso of 30-year-old freelancer Kim Wall washed up in August after she went to sea with Peter Madsen to research a story about him.

Danish police divers yesterday found her head and legs 12 metres deep off the coast of Copenhagen, near where her torso was discovered.

They also found plastic bags packed with her skirt, socks and shoes weighted with metal pieces and a knife to make them sink. Her arms are still missing.

The headless torso of Kim Wall (pictured), a 30-year-old freelance journalist who was researching a story on inventor Peter Madsen, washed up in August

Jens Mller Jensen (left), Deputy Police Officer at Copenhagen Police, said at a press conference this morning: 'We found a leg and shortly after a head'

Jens Mller Jensen, Deputy Police Officer at Copenhagen Police, said at a press conference this morning: 'We found a leg. An hour after, another leg. And shortly after a head also lay in a bag that was weighed down by several pieces of metal.'

The body-parts were confirmed to be Miss Wall's by autopsy last night.

Danish inventor Peter Madsen is awaiting trial after being charged with killing the Swedish journalist. He was arrested after his submarine sank and he was rescued.

A post-mortem examination revealed Wall, whose underwear was found on the submarine, was stabbed in her ribcage and groin 'around or shortly after her death', prosecutor Jakob Buch-Jepsen said at Madsen's pre-trial this week.

Miss Wall's DNA was found in inventor Peter Madsen's fingernails, face and neck, he added. The journalist's cause of death has not yet been established, Copenhagen City Court heard.

Madsen, 46, who faces preliminary charges of manslaughter and indecent handling of a corpse, claims Miss Wall died after being accidentally hit by a 155lbs hatch in the sub's tower.

But an autopsy on Miss Wall's head found no fractures, casting doubt on his claims.

Prosecutors believe Madsen killed Wall as part of a sexual fantasy, then dismembered and mutilated her body.

Peter Madsen (pictured), 46, faces preliminary charges of manslaughter and indecent handling of a corpse

Wall, a 30-year-old freelance journalist who was researching a story on Madsen, went missing after he took her out to sea in the 17-metre (56-foot) craft in August

Is murder of a Japanese woman linked? Police have said they are re-examining the unresolved case of a Japanese tourist whose mutilated body was found in a Copenhagen harbour in 1986, to see if there was any possible link to the Wall case. Kazuko Toyonaga, a 22-year-old student, was on vacation in Europe when she disappeared. Her legs were found in a plastic bag floating in the waters off Islands Brygge, a harbour in Copenhagen. Advertisement

Earlier this week, prosecutor Jakob Buch-Jepsen told a court custody hearing that a hard disk found in Madsen's workshop contained fetish films in which real women were tortured, decapitated and burned.

'This hard drive doesn't belong to me,' Madsen insisted, saying numerous people had access to his workshop.

Madsen has insisted there was no sexual relationship between him and Wall, and their that contacts had been purely professional.

Madsen has also denied amputating her limbs, saying he tried to bury her whole body at sea.

The pair went to sea on August 10 in Madsen's 40-tonne submarine, UC3 Nautilus.

Miss Wall's torso was found in Koge Bay on August 21  ten days after Madsen was arrested. Madsen will be detained for another four months while police continue to investigate.
Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Andriy Parubiy has signed the law "On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine Regarding Increasing Pensions", which introduces pension reform, the press service of the Ukrainian parliament has reported.

On Friday, October 6, the law was signed by the speaker and sent to the president of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko, the Verkhovna Rada's website reads.

As reported, on October 3, the Verkhovna Rada adopted a pension reform, which provides for modernizing pensions since October and raising the minimum insurance period for retirement from 15 to 25 years from January 1, 2018. Some 288 deputies voted for relevant bill No. 6614 (with 226 minimum required).
The mainline rail network will be populated by self-driving trains for the first time under plans to massively increase the number of services at city centre stations.

The Thameslink line through central London is being used for testing automated trains that can accelerate and brake more efficiently than those operated by a driver.

If successful, it could mean trains running every two and a half minutes at a similar frequency to the tube.

The mainline rail network will be populated by self-driving trains for the first time under plans to massively increase the number of services at city centre stations

The number of services could increase by 60 per cent, reports The Times.

Drivers will take control of the trains outside of central London with lines stretching as far as Brighton and Cambridge.

They will also need to operate the doors and carry out safety checks while the trains are driving themselves.

Self-driving trains are currently used on the London Underground on lines including Northern and Victoria.

They are also set to be used on Crossrail, the 14.8billion railway that will cross the capital from the end of next year.

Those in favour of the technology it will lead to shorter journey times and improve safety.

The Thameslink line through central London is being used for testing automated trains that can accelerate and brake more efficiently than those operated by a driver

Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) operates Thameslink and has backed automated trains.

However, critics, including train drivers' union Aslef, say it is essential a driver is retained on all services.

The self-driving technology has been rolled out on Siemens Class 700 trains which were first introduced to the tracks last year.

It will be used alongside a new signalling system that does away with lineside signals and instead puts the technology in the drivers' cab.

The revamp is part of a 6billion Thameslink upgrade led by Network Rail.
Disturbing footage has emerged of a man smacking two others in the face with a skateboard during a street brawl.

Police were called to reports of a fight in Frankston, Melbourne about 5.20pm on Friday.

Video footage of the fight shows a man belting another over the head with a skateboard during a brawl outside a shopping strip.

Scroll down for video

Disturbing footage has emerged of a man smacking two others in the face with a skateboard during a street brawl

The skateboard-wielding attacker goes after another man before he is overpowered.

The man then receives a flurry of blows from the three others once he has been knocked to the ground.

Witnesses told 7 News the fight was sparked by a theft.

A Victoria Police spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia the people had fled the scene once police arrived.

No formal complaints have been made regarding the incident according to Victoria Police, meaning they are unable to launch a formal investigation.

The skateboard-wielding attacker then goes after another man before he is overpowered
The results of the New Zealand election were finalised on Saturday however the outcome is still yet to be determined as popular Labour leader Jacinda Ardern falls short of majority.

In New Zealand a party must reach 61 seats to hold the majority under the proportional representation system.

Polling indicated National won 56 seats whereas Labour and Greens who have partnered gained 54 seats combining their 46 and nine seats, respectively.

Each are now in need of New Zealand First's nine seats to hold government which saw no change by the special votes counted along with the Act party's one seat.

Almost there: Just two months after taking over leadership of the Labour Party Jacinda Ardern (pictured) has has come close to steering her party to a win

The decision maker: New Zealand First's Winston Peters will now negotiate with the Labour and Greens as well as the National Party to tip one or another to a victory

Since the preliminary results National lost two seats to the Labour-Green bloc - an increase which Labour leader Jacinda Ardern believes will keep their position at the negotiating table afloat.

'We will continue our negotiations in earnest with potential support parties beginning this weekend,' Ardern told reporters in Auckland.

'This now means that we have a strengthened mandate to negotiate and form a durable, stable coalition government.'

The 37-year-old took control of the Labour party two months prior to the election and has been likened to other youthful leaders across the world including Canadas Justin Trudeau and Frances Emmanuel Macron.

Focused: Prime Minister Bill English (pictured) told reporters in Queenstown that the final results did not change the nature of the negotiations

Within the short time-frame leading up to the election she was able to almost gain a Labour-lead government.

New Zealand First said in an emailed statement that his party would hold discussions on Sunday with the National Party at midday and with the Labour Party in the afternoon.

New Zealand First leader Winston Peters told local media that knowing the facts 'puts us in a better position to make judgements'.

Peters has said he would only make a decision on which party to back after the final tally and after the results become official on Oct. 12.

Waiting: Against the preliminary results National lost two seats to the Labour-Green bloc continuing the wait for party leader James Shaw (pictured) after partnering with Ardern

Prime Minister Bill English told reporters in Queenstown that the final results did not change the nature of the negotiations, which would now likely focus on the economy.

'I don't think it weakens it significantly at all,' he said, referring to National's negotiating position.

'The fundamentals haven't altered, and that is National has significantly more seats than Labour, we are larger than a Labour-Greens combination.'
A father whose ex forged his signature on an IVF form to secretly have their baby has spoken of his 'profound guilt' over his feelings towards the child.

The man, who lost a High Court claim for 1million to pay for the girl's upbringing, said he sometimes struggles to hug the child after her birth caused 'so much pain'.

But the man also spoke of his desire to see his 'beautiful' daughter, who is now aged six, have the best start in life and said he felt a strong 'moral duty' towards her.

A man (left) sued a fertility clinic which was tricked by his ex (right) into impregnating her with his sperm. A judge found she had forged his signature on an IVF form but denied him compensation. Neither the father nor mother can be identified for legal reasons

His former wife tricked doctors at fertility clinic IVF Hammersmith into impregnating her with a frozen egg fertilized by his sperm.

The man, who has since married another woman, told the Today programme on BBC Radio 4: 'It is a very difficult situation for my wife and I.

'On the one hand, she is a beautiful child - intelligent, lovely and happy.

But it is a child that has represented so much pain and suffering for us and there are times when I find it impossible to reach out and hug her. I just have this inner block.

Then at the same time I am filled with this profound sense of guilt, and it is an extremely challenging thing to try and reconcile those extremely difficult feelings.

Its upsetting, its disrupting, it hurts my wife, which hurts me. But then there is this beautiful girl.

'She is not responsible for her being so she needs the best opportunity in life and I fell not only a duty as a father but I feel a moral duty to do as much for her as I do for the other children in the family. Its a very difficult position.

The father, who must remain anonymous for legal reasons, also spoke of his continued feelings of anger towards his former wife.

It was my child and one that was conceived not even in the same county as me. Its a boat from outer space,' he said.

And how do you respond to that, it was not as if I had a one-night stand with somebody, I wasnt even part of it.

We were in a relationship and that relationship ended and I was now in a new relationship.

And behind my back she went away and forged some documents and the clinic didnt have adequate protections in place.'

The father sued the clinic for the costs of raising his daughter, now aged six, plus legal fees for a custody battle with her mother.

But a judge ruled yesterday that the daughter should be seen as a blessing to him and not be viewed as a 'financial liability'.

Mr Justice Jay said children are a blessing and could not be seen as a 'financial liability' in the eyes of the law

Mr Justice Jay said he hoped his judgment would leave the reluctant father feeling 'morally vindicated', but said there were 'public policy reasons' why the claim had to fail.

Medics at the top fertility clinic owed a duty to ensure his consent was obtained before the fertilized eggs were used, but they had not been negligent, the judge found.

The judge said: 'Although he has lost his case, my judgment must be seen as a complete personal and moral vindication for this father'.

The former couple, who are in their 40s but who cannot be identified for legal reasons, previously had a son together following treatment at the clinic.

But the court heard she later went back by herself after their 'volatile and rancorous' relationship 'irretrievably broke down.'

The judge said she forged her ex's signature to secure the release of the fertilized eggs without his say-so.

The mother, who works as a teacher, gave birth to a daughter in 2011, who the father now 'understandably loves', the court heard.

But the man, who has since married another woman, blamed the clinic for implanting the embryo into his ex without his knowledge.

He sued health bosses for the costs of raising his daughter, including the cost of her private education, funding for a nanny, ski holidays and an eight-seater Land Rover.

He told the court she had emailed him after their break-up, writing: 'and by the way, I'm pregnant.'

The judge found the clinic, pictured, was tricked by the woman into providing the treatment

The man told the court: 'My response was, Oh my God, how could this happen? I'd never agreed to get her pregnant.

'My head was exploding. Can you imagine something like this happening?' he asked the judge.

'I was in a new relationship with a woman I loved very dearly. I thought: "Oh my God, this is going to destroy this relationship".'

He added: 'Then - here - I had a child coming. How could this happen? It was no joyous moment. We were barely on speaking terms.'

His QC, Michael Mylonas, argued her birth had placed on him 'a financial burden which is not offset by any benefits.'

In his ruling today, Mr Justice Jay said the clinic owed him 'an express obligation' not to thaw and implant an embryo without his written consent.

But the clinic had not been negligent and had been 'entitled to believe' that the signature on the consent form was his.

The case, heard at London's High Court (pictured), could now go to the Court of Appeal

After forging the signature, his ex had 'at least given the impression' to the clinic that having another child was their 'common objective'.

Desperate to be a mother again, she had 'resorted to desperate, dishonest measures', the judge said.

The judge was 'completely satisfied' that the father did not want another child with her, had not given his informed consent, nor would he have done so had she kept him in the picture.

Rejecting his claim, however, the judge cited 'legal policy objections' to awards of compensation for the birth of healthy children.

He said the law views parenthood as a 'benefit' and that it is 'morally unacceptable' to regard children as a 'financial liability'.

But Mr Justice Jay recognised the importance of the case, by granting the father permission to challenge his ruling in the Court of Appeal.
Doctors in Canada have helped nearly 2,000 people suffering with incurable illnesses commit suicide.

Since medically-assisted suicide was legalised in June last year, 1,982 chose to end their lives either by lethal injection at hospital or at home, according to Health Canada.

Meanwhile, Canadian bishops have instructed their clergy to deny religious funerals for those who chose to end their lives in such a way.

The number of assisted deaths is set to rise but remain at less than two per cent of all deaths nationwide this year  'consistent with international experience', the report added.

Since medically-assisted suicide was legalised in June last year, 1,982 chose to end their lives either by lethal injection at hospital or at home, according to Health Canada

Doctor-assisted suicide in Canada is reserved only for adults suffering serious problems who want to end their suffering  most are cancer patients.

Just days after the law was altered to allow the practice, a court challenged attempted to expand its remit to include Canadians suffering from wasting diseases but not facing immediate death.

These include those suffering from spinal muscular atrophy, multiple sclerosis, spinal stenosis, locked in syndrome, traumatic spinal injury, Parkinson's disease and Huntington's disease.

It comes after terminally-ill British man Noel Conway lost his battle in the High Court to be end his life with a doctor's assistance.

These include those suffering from spinal muscular atrophy, multiple sclerosis, spinal stenosis, locked

In a ruling on Thursday, three judges turned down Mr Conway's request for assisted suicide.

Mr Conway, 67, has motor neurone disease and has been given less than six months to live.

Conway had applied to the court in July, asking for a declaration that Britain's outlawing of suicide is incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights.

After the ruling, Conway said he was 'deeply disappointed' and intended to appeal.

He said that since he was now no longer well enough to travel abroad to obtain assisted suicide in Switzerland - the only country in Europe that legally helps foreigners end their lives.

His only option now was to die by suffocation, by removing his ventilator himself.
A woman has defended a man after he was shamed out of a parents' room in the Kawana Shopping Centre on the Sunshine Coast last month.

According to mother Mikaa Ives who witnessed the incident, the man was trying to change his son's nappy when another mother 'piped up' accused him of being a 'sicko' and made him leave.

To avoid confrontation, the man took his child outside and told him they would go back in soon, but hundreds of parents have since jumped to his defence.

A father was abused and made to leave a parents' room while he was changing his son's nappy

'[She] started started abusing the dad for being in the parents room [saying] ''it's only for mothers, get out you sicko" literally saying she would call security and say he was staring at her naked kids if he didn't leave the room,' explained Ms Ives in her supportive Facebook post.

'He picked up his son who mind you didn't even have a clean nappy on yet and went to stand outside the door.

'His son was hysterical and he's just saying 'its okay mate, we'll go back in there soon.'

Mother Mikaa Ives has explained on Facebook how a mother abused a man in a parents' room

A man was shamed out of a parents' room in the Kawana Shopping Centre (pictured) in QLD

'At this point I thought f*ck this, told the dad to come back in and finish changing his son, told the lady that if she wanted to call security to go ahead because I would 100% back the dad up.

'Old mate finished changing his son, thanked me and off he went.'

Ms Ives went on to say that the mother in question wasn't even changing her children - she had just gone into the parents room to check her phone while her kids played.

Ms Ives informed the security guard at the shopping centre about the woman's abusive threats

A Sunshine Coast mother has defended a man who just needed to change his son's nappy

She said she was 'absolutely shocked that the poor bloke felt he had no choice but to leave like she said', and also informed a security guard on the way out.

'ITS A PARENTS ROOM NOT A F***ING MOTHERS ROOM. If you're one of the people who act like that when a dad is simply changing his child, then I suggest you stay the f*** away from the PARENTS room,' she vented.

In comment posted later, she added, 'I hope all the nasty women who treat fathers like this for simply being a parent - I hope they heard my story on the radio or have read the post and realised the way they are acting is ridiculous.'

'ITS A PARENTS ROOM NOT A F***ING MOTHERS ROOM,' wrote an irate Ms Ives on Facebook

Hundreds of people have made supportive comments on Ms Ives' original Facebook post

More than 300 people have commented on the story, the vast majority of which are in support of Ms Ives and the anonymous father.

'Good on you for standing up and saying something to the rude lady. Can't believe she would even try saying some thing that disgusting and threaten to tell security that he was looking at her kids. Its good for some one to stand up in situations like this. Thank you,' wrote one woman.

'Not all caregivers have vaginas. Get over it,' commented another.

People were quick to remind the mother that children typically have female and male carers

People have flocked to Facebook to support Ms Ives for standing up for the rights of the father

Some of the commentators are fathers as well, and many said a similar thing had happened to them.

'Happened to me twice now. Thank goodness my little boy is out of nappies now,' one father shared.

Another wrote: 'I've had security called on me for taking my daughter into a parents' room to change her nappy. Security basically told her to to pull her head in as I was clearly changing a baby.'

Fathers commented in support of the man, and said they had similar experiences in the past

Fathers praised Ms Ives for her actions and spoke about having seen the same kind of abuse

Shine Lawyers discrimination law expert William Barsby confirmed to the ABC that all caregivers - regardless of sex - were allowed into parents' rooms.

'What we're seeing here is an example of someone being indirectly discriminated against because of their sex,' he told the publication.

'In Australia we have very strong laws that prohibit that type of behaviour.'
More than 10,000 wild animals have been culled by rangers in the last four years, including 1,734 deer, the majority in Richmond Park (pictured)

Animal rights activists have accused Londons biggest parks of callous slaughter after figures revealed over 10,000 wild animals have been culled by rangers in the last four years.

More than 8,400 mammals and 3,240 birds have been exterminated by the Royal Parks authority since January 2013, including 1,734 deer, 2,657 rabbits and 1,221 crows.

Rangers at the organisations eight open spaces, which include Hyde Park and Richmond Park, have also killed 3,679 squirrels, 330 foxes, 268 geese and 382 magpies.

Animal Aid urged the Royal Parks to adopt alternatives to culling such as removing food sources for problem species and urging members of the public against feeding them.

The charity believes culling animals such as foxes is pointless, because the removal of some foxes will simply cause other ones to move into the area.

Rangers at the organisations eight open spaces, which include Hyde Park and Bushy Park, have also killed 2,657 rabbits for ecological reasons. Pictured is a rabbit on Richmond Park

It also pointed out that no London councils trap and kill foxes but instead opt for alternative population control methods such as waste control and noise deterrents.

Long-standing government policy also advises against culling, stating that most effective strategies have primarily relied on non-lethal methods.

The total number of animals killed since January 2013 varies greatly across the eight historic open spaces managed by the Royal Parks authority.

Rangers at Bushy Park culled the most animals - 4,108 mammals and 1,802 birds.

Richmond Park, the largest of the Royal Parks, saw 2,999 mammals and 985 birds killed, the bulk of which were red and fallow deer.

Animal Aid revealed the figures in a series of Freedom of Information requests shared exclusively with MailOnline.

Animal Aid urged rangers to adopt alternatives to culling such as removing food sources for species including parakeets, 298 of which have been killed (pictured in Richmond Park)

Its director, Isobel Hutchinson, said: These shocking figures reveal the relentless persecution suffered by animals who help to make the Royal Parks so popular.

For many people, visiting a park offers a rare opportunity to see and interact with wild animals.

Richmond Park under fire for deer cull profits Richmond Park recently came under fire from animal rights activists for raking in tens of thousands of pounds by selling the carcasses of culled deer. The royal park, where 630 deer have roamed freely since 1637, received 24,985 from buyers after the shoot in February 2017, and 15,157 in November 2016, MailOnline revealed. Animal charities accused the park of making money out of the cull and criticised the 'highly disturbing' 10,000 leap in revenues. But rangers said the culls are strictly for conservation reasons and any profits from sales go directly into creating the best natural environment for the remaining deer. Advertisement

But rather than being cherished and appreciated, as they are by the parks visitors, these animals are being callously slaughtered.

If the Royal Parks wish to limit the number of wild animals in their parks, then they should turn to the many humane methods of deterrence that are available.

The Royal Parks insists humane culling is essential to maintaining ecological diversity in its open spaces.

A spokesman said: The Royal Parks are carefully managed spaces and complex environments inhabited by thousands of species of animals and plants.

Over 77 million people visit each year. Maintaining and enhancing a diversity of wildlife is at the heart of our work.

Its a very careful balancing act to make sure that the wildlife can co-exist and flourish in the parks delicate ecosystems.

Without effective management some species across the 5,000 acres of parkland could fail to thrive or disappear altogether.

Our humane approach to animal management also ensures the survival of ancient trees and other rare habitats  which in turn support a rich variety of other animals.

Mammals culled in the Royal Parks 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 (Jan) Deer* 412 362 381 427 152 Rabbits 818 695 553 537 54 Squirrels 580 748 954 1030 367 Foxes 96 71 77 75 11 *Deer are culled in Richmond Park, Bushy Park and Greenwich Park. Advertisement

Birds culled in the Royal Parks 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 (Jan) Crows 193 223 250 499 56 Geese 51 72 48 81 16 Jays 22 5 0* 17 2 Magpies 90 85 89 104 14 Parakeets 55 33 109 85 16 Pigeons 186 207 215 377 40 Advertisement
Concerns have been raised over a proposed new law that would allow police to hold children as young as 10 without charge for up to two weeks on suspicion of a terrorism offence.

The Turnbull government have agreed to the move, which has been slammed as 'draconian', at a meeting in Canberra this week.

The new measure was introduced on Saturday by Justice Minister Michael Keenan, who said that ISIS's determination to recruit children made such measure 'regrettable but necessary'.

ISIS is well-known for recruiting and radicalising children. In 2014, the 7-year-old son of Khaled Sharrouf was pictured (above) holding a severed head after the family left Sydney to join ISIS

Justice Minister Michael Keenan called the new laws 'regrettable but necessary', explaining they were in response to ISIS' determination to recruit primarily children and young people

During the same meeting, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews derided civil liberties concerns as a 'luxury', according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

'Some people have the luxury of being able to have that notional debate. Those of us in positions of leadership do not have that luxury,' he said.

As it stands, only police in NSW have the power to detain a person for questioning for up to 14 days - with most states allowing only a maximum of seven.

Mr Turnbull wants nationally consistent pre-charge detention laws and has been working on a stronger regime that gets around some legal impediments.

President of the Law Council of Australia, Fiona McLeod, cautioned against dismissing such concerns and called imprisoning children without charge 'draconian'.

'We believe that's crossed the line of intruding on civil liberties too much,' she said.

The federal Labor opposition also criticsed the move, with shadow attorney-general Mark Dreyfus saying, 'It's a shocking and drastic step to propose, without charge, the detention of child of 10 years old.'

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews (pictured) said that civil liberties were a 'luxury' in this case

'Unfortunately ISIL specialises in targeting children,' Minister Keenan said on Sunrise recently

President of the Law Council of Australia Fiona McLeod has slammed the move as 'draconian'

Australian Federal Police Commissioner Andrew Colvin said police no longer have the luxury to watch, wait and collect evidence before they act when it comes to terrorist activity.

Mr Keenen reminded viewers on Sunrise that the extremist who murdered Curtis Cheng was only 15 years old, and that 'unfortunately ISIL specialises in targeting children'.

'Any teacher, any criminologist, any psychologist would tell you that children's brains are maturing right through their teens and that you need to treat children differently,' he argued.

Under the proposed changes, children will be able to have a parent or legal guardian present if they are being questioned.

Shadow attorney-general Mark Dreyfus called the proposed legislation 'shocking' and 'drastic'

Australian Federal Police Commissioner Andrew Colvin said that police need to act quickly

'We need the time to properly disrupt criminal enterprises,' Commissioner Colvin said, referring to the operation to foil a plot to bring down a plane in Sydney.

'We're very comfortable that two weeks is the appropriate period of time - with the right scrutiny and safeguards in place - to investigate properly.'

The states and territories will also be asked to consider new criminal offences to target people who possess material that could be used to prepare or carry out a terrorist act.

That could include accessing instructions to build bombs or techniques to blow up planes.

'There's no legitimate purpose or justification for having information like that and that should be an offence,' Mr Turnbull said.

A new Commonwealth offence for terrorism hoaxes will also be put to leaders, to cover things like falsely claiming a knife or vehicle attack.

Meanwhile, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has flagged new laws to allow radicalised inmates to be detained beyond their prison sentence even if they were locked up for non-terror offences.

Justice Minister Michael Keenan reminded viewers that ISIS specialises in targeting children
A 15-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of murder after a 17-year-old boy was repeatedly stabbed to death as he fled from a car being attacked by a gang.

The victim, named locally as Kyle Yule, was chased after he ran from a Renault Clio before being stabbed shortly after 8pm in Gillingham on Friday.

The 15-year-old from the area was arrested and is being questioned by Kent murder squad detectives.

The devastated friends of Kyle, a former Brompton Academy pupil, posted tributes to him on Facebook.

Kyle Yule, 17, has been named locally as the victim of a fatal stabbing in Gillingham. It is alleged he was chased by a gang after he fled from his car

Maya Wilkinson wrote: 'Rest in peace Kyle Yule, such a messed up place we all live in.'

Kyle Webb wrote: 'Rest in peace Kyle Yule. No one deserves what has happened to you at all!

'Thoughts go out to your family! Fly high mate and see you soon.'

Pav Singh Pabla added: 'RIP Kyle Yule... can't believe what I've just heard.'

His mum, Nikki Yule, also posted a picture of her son on her Facebook page during the early hours of this morning.

She has been inundated with messages of support and sympathy from friends.

Collett Connell wrote: 'Lots of love Nikki u should be proud you raised a beautiful boy we're all here for you.'

According to his Facebook page, Kyle lived in Gillingham.

East Street in Gillingham, Kent. A 17-year-old boy was allegedly murdered after being attacked by a gang on Friday night

Reports on social media said police told people living in the area to stay in their homes as they dealt with the incident last night.

Detectives from the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate are investigating the incident and have launched a murder inquiry.

A spokesman for police said: 'Kent Police was called at 8.10pm to an incident in East Street, where it was reported that a number of people were causing criminal damage to a silver Renault Clio.

'A teenage boy is reported to have run from the vehicle before being chased by the offenders.

'A short distance away he received a number of injuries consistent with being stabbed. He later died in hospital.

'The victim's next of kin have been informed. One person has been arrested on suspicion of murder and remains in custody.

'Detectives would like to hear from anyone who may have information which can assist their enquires.'

Police say after the incident the Renault Clio was reported to have been moved and found parked in a different location, in Cleveland Road.

They are also seeking information from anyone who may have noticed this vehicle being moved or saw anything suspicious.
Pictured: Sharron Phillips, 20, went missing in 1986, and is believed to have been murdered by a taxi driver

The son of a now-dead taxi driver believed to have murdered Sharron Phillips has claimed police officers searching for the 20-year-old were merely metres from her body lying in the boot of his father's taxi.





After a three-decade investigation, police say they have enough evidence to pin the murder of Ipswich woman Sharron Phillips on taxi driver Raymond Peter Mulvihill.





He died in 2002 however his son says he confessed to killing Phillips on his deathbed, 9 News reported.

The son said a police officer had pulled him over for a broken tail light that night back in 1986 as he went to pick up his father, who had been out returning his taxi in Wacol, Queensland.

The man, who asked not to be identified, was only 19 years old at the time and says his father told him to give over the car before Mulvihill got in and drove it around the back of a building, telling his son to wait at the front.

With both the taxi and the vehicle now at the back of the building, the son says he remembers hearing the sound of both boots closing, while the cop had returned to follow up on the light issue.

Pictured: Raymond Peter Mullvihill, who would have been arrested for Sharron Phillips' murder if he were still alive

He believes his father moving Sharron Phillips from one boot to the other at the back of the building.

'When the boots closed it was quite a loud bang of the two boots closing,' the son said.

'Even the police officer who was standing there said 'what was that?''

He said not only did he believe his father had killed Ms Phillips, but after her body had been carried in the boot of his car, it had been dumped in a drain at Carole Park.

Last year, the son of a taxi driver told Nine News he believed his father was behind the woman's disappearance and he had unknowingly carried her body in his car

Pictured: Mr Mulvihill's Ascot Taxi, which police believe was parked behind the convenience store where Ms Phillips was last seen

Ms Phillips' remains were not found in the police search of the drain, and police are still investigating their whereabouts.

Det Insp. Hansen said while Mr Mulvihill could not be brought to justice for the murder, it was not certain that nobody would face charges.

'We will investigate if anyone has assisted Mulvihill during the offence or after the offence,' he told reporters.

Police are now looking to speak to Mr Mulvihill's former neighbours on Russell Drive, Redbank.

A man, believed to be the son of Mr Mulvihill, told police he believed the woman's body had been dumped in a drain at Carole Park

Police say they are still looking for anyone who may have assisted with the murder, or after the fact

Ms Phillips' alleged killer, Raymond Peter Mulvihill, has since died and cannot face charges for the murder

A search of the Carole Park area returned no evidence of human remains, and Ms Phillips' remains are still missing

Ms Phillips' siblings earlier cast doubt on the alibi provided by their father, Bob, who died in 2015.

Police now say there is no evidence Mr Phillips had any connection to the murder of his daughter.

A report is being prepared for the coroner. Following an anonymous tip-off to the Nine Network earlier this year, Attorney-General Yvette D'Ath said there were no plans to reopen the coronial investigation into Ms Phillips' disappearance.
The Foreign Ministry of Germany has called the decision of the Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada to prolong the law on special order of local self-government in certain regions of Donetsk and Luhansk regions (ORDLO) an important step.

The federal government highly appreciates the extension of the law on the special status of Donbas by the Ukrainian parliament. That was complicated, but important step that demonstrates Ukraine's commitment to its international obligations and the implementation of the Minsk agreements, the press release posted on the German Foreign Ministry's website, says.

The German Foreign Ministry said that the prerequisite for further progress was the stable provision of stabilization of the security situation, as well as a full and sustainable ceasefire regime in Donbas.

As reported, on October 6, the corresponding law on the creation of the necessary conditions for the peaceful settlement of the situation in certain regions of Donetsk and Luhansk regions (No. 7164), which extends for a year the validity of the law on a special order of local self-government in certain regions of Donetsk and Luhansk regions, was supported by 229 people's deputies at the plenary session on Friday.

On the same day, Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Andriy Parubiy, signed the law passed by the parliament.
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Hurricane Nate made its second landfall near Biloxi late Saturday as a Category 1 storm with winds of 85 miles per hour, threatening parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama with torrential rain and flooding.

The National Hurricane Center said the storm surge along the Mississippi coast could reach 11 feet, according to AL.com.

On social media, people posted photos of flooding in Biloxi and other locations along the Gulf Coast.

Widespread power outages were also reported throughout the coastal regions of Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, and the Florida panhandle.

The center of the storm will move across the Deep South, Tennessee Valley and central Appalachian Mountains through Monday.

Earlier Saturday, Nate passed to the east of New Orleans, sparing the city its most ferocious winds and storm surge.

And its quick speed lessened the likelihood of prolonged rain that would tax the citys weakened drainage pump system.

The city famous for all-night partying was placed under a curfew, effective at 7 p.m., but the mayor lifted it when it appeared the storm would pass by and cause little problems for the city.

Still, the streets were not nearly as crowded as they typically are on a Saturday night and Mayor Mitch Landrieu asked people to shelter in place.

This satellite image obtained from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) shows Hurricane Nate just moments before making landfall Saturday evening

This enhanced infrared satellite image made available by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows Hurricane Nate approaching the mouth of the Mississippi River on Saturday

A handout photo made available by NASA shows the system approaching the Gulf Coast earlier in the day on Saturday

Hours before Hurricane Nate was forecast to hit the Mississippi Gulf Coast, residents visit a pier in Biloxi, Mississippi, to look at the swells before nightfall

An abandoned boat takes on water on the Mississippi Gulf Coast near Biloxi on Saturday

Kevin and Stacy Marlow, from Vaiden, Mississippi, search for driftwood on the beach ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Nate as night falls in Gulfport, Mississippi, on Saturday

The Mississippi Gaming Commission closed the 12 casinos in south Mississippi including the Hard Rock in Biloxi, Mississippi ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Nate on Saturday evening

An Instagram user posted this photo of what appears to be the flooded parking lot of the Hard Rock Cafe in Biloxi

Heavy rain is seen at Orange Beach, Alabama, as Hurricane Nate approaches in this still image taken from a video obtained via social media on Saturday

Heavy rain is seen in the French Quarter of New Orleans as Hurricane Nate approaches on Saturday

A family takes photos of the Gulf of Mexico in Gulfport, Mississippi as Hurricane Nate approaches the northern Mississippi Gulf Coast on Saturday

Storm clouds hang over downtown New Orleans as Hurricane Nate moved into Southern Louisiana on Saturday

A man walks through the French Quarter as Hurricane Nate approaches the US Gulf Coast in New Orleans on Saturday

Tourists walk down Bourbon Street in New Orleans as Hurricane Nate approaches the US Gulf Coast on Saturday evening

Workers close the floodgates at St. Bernard Parish in Violet, Louisiana, on Saturday ahead of Hurricane Nate

Business owners board up their restaurant in the French Quarter on Saturday as Nate approaches

Hannah Jacole Powell-Yost takes photos of a danger sign in the Gulf surf in Gulfport, Mississippi as Hurricane Nate approaches on Saturday

Waitresses serve customers inside a Waffle House that plans to stay open all night across the street from the Gulf of Mexico in Long Beach, Mississippi as Hurricane Nate approaches the Gulf Coast on Saturday

Nate is expected to weaken after landfall.

The storm made its first landfall in a sparsely populated area of southeast Louisiana.

Nate, the fourth major storm to strike the United States in less than two months, killed at least 30 people in Central America before entering the warm waters of the Gulf and bearing down on the U.S. South.

The hurricane made landfall just after 8pm Eastern time Saturday.

The hurricane warning for New Orleans had been changed to a tropical storm warning. Though it appears the city has been spared the worst, it could still face wind gusts as high as 55 miles per hour, CBS News reported.

'While it appears we're being spared...our hearts go out to Mississippi,' said Amos Cormier, president of Plaquemines Parish, a low-lying area in the New Orleans area.

The hurricanes center was expected to pass over portions of Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee late Saturday through Sunday night, eventually weakening to a tropical depression.

New Orleans prepares for Hurricane Nate pic.twitter.com/ntx0lM67zQ  NOLA.com (@NOLAnews) October 7, 2017

Before then, storm surges of up to 11 feet on the Mississippi-Alabama border were still possible, the National Hurricane Center said.

A hurricane warning remained in effect for the Gulf Coast from Grand Isle Louisiana to the Alabama-Florida border, according to the National Weather Service.

Cities along the Mississippi coast such as Gulfport and Biloxi were on high alert. Some beachfront hotels and casinos were evacuated.

Rain began falling on the region Saturday and forecasters called for 3 to 6 inches with as much as 10 inches in some isolated places.

Nate had earlier approached the mouth of the Mississippi River at 4 p.m. Central time, moving north-northwest at 23 mph, the NHC said.

After hitting the US Gulf Coast, the storm is likely to veer to the northeast and cut through Alabama, the state likely to be hit hardest.

Republican Governor Kay Ivey urged residents in areas facing heavy winds and storm surges to take precautions.

On Alabamas Dauphin Island, water washed over the road Saturday on the islands low-lying west end, said Mayor Jeff Collier.

The storm was projected to bring storm surges from seven to 11 feet near the Alabama-Mississippi state line. Some of the biggest impacts could be at the top of funnel-shaped Mobile Bay.

With Nate marching to a second landfall on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, gauges showed tides are four feet above normal from Shell Beach, Louisiana, east of New Orleans, to Bayou La Batre, Alabama, southwest of Mobile.

In Mississippi, Hancock County Emergency Management Director Brian Adam said his agency received reports of rising water on low-lying streets facing the Mississippi Sound and the Bay of St. Louis.

In Biloxi, authorities reported water from Biloxi Bay rising on some streets.

The window for preparing 'is quickly closing,' Alabama Emergency Management Agency Director Brian Hastings said.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott warned residents of the Panhandle to prepare for Nates impact.

'Hurricane Nate is expected to bring life-threatening storm surges, strong winds and tornados that could reach across the Panhandle,' Scott said.

The evacuations affect roughly 100,000 residents in the western Panhandle.

Between four and eight inches of rain will fall from far southern Mississippi and northern and western Alabama to northern Georgia, middle and eastern Tennessee, western North Carolina and the Virginia Panhandle, AccuWeather forecast.

Nate will mark the fourth major storm to slam the United States in the current hurricane season, following Harvey, Irma and Maria, which devastated Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico, respectively.

But as a Category 1 or 2, the weakest in the five-category ranking used by meteorologists, Nate may not pack the same punch as its predecessors.

Major shipping ports across the central US Gulf Coast were closed to inbound and outbound traffic on Saturday, as Nate intensified and storm surges of up 11 feet were expected at the mouth of the Mississippi River.

The weather map above shows Hurricane Nate just before it made landfall near the Louisiana-Mississippi frontier

According to the National Hurricane Center, Nate will move relatively quickly through the Southeast toward Appalachia, the Northeast, and New England

Nate was approaching the mouth of the Mississippi River at 7pm Central time, moving north-northwest at 23 mph

After hitting the US Gulf Coast, the storm is likely to veer to the northeast and cut through Alabama, the state likely to be hit hardest. Republican Governor Kay Ivey urged residents in areas facing heavy winds and storm surges to take precautions

Between four and eight inches of rain will fall from far southern Mississippi and northern and western Alabama to northern Georgia, middle and eastern Tennessee, western North Carolina and the Virginia Panhandle, AccuWeather forecast

Strong winds are likely to result in power outages throughout Mississippi, Alabama, and parts of Tennessee, Georgia, and the Florida panhandle

Maximum sustained winds were hovering at about 90 mph, with higher gusts. The hurricane strengthened to Category 2 before landfall

The storm has curtailed 92 percent of daily oil production and 77 percent of daily natural gas output in the Gulf of Mexico, more than three times the amount affected by Harvey

The storm has curtailed 92 percent of daily oil production and 77 percent of daily natural gas output in the Gulf of Mexico, more than three times the amount affected by Harvey.

Workers had been evacuated from 301 platforms and 13 rigs as of Saturday, said the US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement.

Before heading north into the Gulf, Nate brushed Mexicos Yucatan peninsula, home to beach resorts such as Cancun and Playa del Carmen, the NHC said.

The storm doused Central America with heavy rains on Thursday, killing at least 16 people in Nicaragua, 10 in Costa Rica, two in Honduras and two in El Salvador.

Thousands were forced to evacuate their homes and Costa Ricas government declared a state of emergency.

Still a Category 1 hurricane, Nate was approaching the mouth of the Mississippi River at 4pm Central time, moving north-northwest at 23 mph, the NHC said.

Maximum sustained winds were hovering at about 90 mph, with higher gusts, but the hurricane could still strengthen to Category 2 before landfall.

The NHC issued a hurricane warning from Grand Isle, Louisiana to the Alabama-Florida border.

A state of emergency was declared for more than two dozen Florida counties and for the states of Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi.

President Trump tweeted his support for the region on Saturday

The three states have been mostly spared during this hectic hurricane season.

'This is the worst hurricane that has impacted Mississippi since Hurricane Katrina,' Mississippi Emergency Management Director Lee Smithson said Saturday. Everyone needs to understand that, that this is a significantly dangerous situation.'

Evacuation orders are in place in several states. Casinos closed at 5pm in Mississippi to deter people from staying out as the storm hits.

Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards warned on Saturday that the hurricane may strengthen to a Category 3 before it makes landfall.

'We feel like we're in a pretty good place right now but you just never know what you're going to get,' he told CNN on Saturday.

There are 1,300 National Guardsmen troops stationed in Louisiana alone to help with the storm.

Storm surge coming into parking lot of casino in Biloxi #HurricaneNate pic.twitter.com/CQBnQdG0e7  Mike Theiss (@MikeTheiss) October 8, 2017

President Donald Trump on Saturday approved an emergency declaration for Mississippi just as the hurricane made landfall, The Hill reported.

The declaration gives the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) authorization to coordinate all disaster relief work, supplementing local and state agencies.

On Saturday morning, the president tweeted his support for the southern states and said FEMA - the strained federal emergency management agency - was on hand to help.

'Our great team at FEMA is prepared for Hurricane Nate. Everyone in LA, MS, AL, and FL please listen to your local authorities & be safe!' Trump said.

Scores of boats were stacked into the Violet Canal to be kept safe as the storm approached on Saturday afternoon

Two men load sandbags into the back of their truck to take to people in the neighborhood where they live in New Orleans

Two people board up their home in Violet, Louisiana. Nate is expected to bring 90mph wind to the region

In New Orleans, businesses closed up early and put plywood over their store fronts before the storm hit

Two Stormtroopers walk through the French Quarter in New Orleans as the rain begins on Saturday afternoon

There was no dampening the spirit of this reveler who embraced the downpours with an extravagant umbrella

A woman braces the rain in some shorts and a running jacket while a man pushes a stroller through the downpours in New Orleans

Clara the dog goes for a walk in her rain coat on Saturday afternoon as Hurricane Nate approaches New Orleans

There was an organized volunteer effort in New Orleans where communities were out in force to fill and distribute sandbags

Residents in New Orleans fill and carry sandbags around the city as it braces for Hurricane Nate

Nate was fast approaching the southern states, barreling toward Alabama on Saturday

This is the hurricane's projected path until Tuesday. The National Weather Service said it was a 'life threatening' storm on Saturday

A satellite image shows the storm thundering towards Louisiana and Alabama after crossing the Gulf of Mexico

Storm surge warnings are in place along coastal Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi as the storm moves towards the coast

Ray Courterier and his daughter Alicia drink a beer in Pensacola, Florida, in anticipation of the storm. Parts of Florida will be hit by its outer bands

Residents in New Orleans fill sandbags on Friday ahead of the storm. A state of emergency had been declared in the city

A child helps volunteers preparing sandbags in New Orleans on Friday afternoon

A state of emergency was declared in New Orleans on Friday. Above, sand bags are placed near a levee at the pumping station at the end of the 17th street canal

Nate is the latest in a string of deadly hurricanes which have wreaked havoc on the South, the Caribbean and parts of Central America since August.

Residents in New Orleans and Mobile, Alabama, were seen preparing for the storm with sandbags on Friday and Saturday.

Nate was suddenly upgraded from a Tropical Storm to a Category 1 hurricane on Friday afternoon.

Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi declared states of emergency as the storm twisted toward the US Gulf Coast on Friday.

The National Hurricane Center issued hurricane and storm surge warnings for southeast Louisiana and the Mississippi and Alabama coasts.

Nate is the latest in a succession of destructive storms this hurricane season.

The storm is forecast to dump 3 to 6 inches of rain on the region - with isolated totals of up to 12 inches.

That much rain led authorities to warn of flash flooding and mudslides.

By mid-afternoon Friday, Nate was moving at a speed of 21 mph (33 kph).

Its center was located about 125 miles (200 kilometers) east-southeast of Cozumel, Mexico, and was expected to reach the U.S. late Saturday or early Sunday.

Evacuation orders were issued for some coastal communities, including the Louisiana towns of Jean Lafitte and Grand Isle.

Path of destruction; Municipal employees work on damage in the Panamerican Road, following the passage of Tropical Storm Nate, in Rivas, Nicaragua, on October 6

Damage: A view of a sinkhole on the street after the passage of Tropical Storm Nate in San Juan del Sur's bay in Nicaragua on October 6. Later that day, it strengthened to a hurricane

Shelly Jambon, owner of Sureway Supermarket in Grand Isle, said she plans on riding out the storm at her store even though it's across the street from the beach.

She bought it two years before Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005 and has weathered far more threatening storms than Nate.

'It's a mild one for us,' she said. 'Seventy to 80 mph winds? We get that in a winter storm.'

The state mobilized 1,300 National Guard troops. Some were headed to New Orleans, where summer storms already have exposed problems with the city's fragile pumping system.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards urged residents to make final preparations quickly and stressed that Nate will bring the possibility of storm surge reaching up to 11 feet in some coastal areas.

'We don't anticipate that this is going to cause a devastating impact to New Orleans or exceed the ability for the pumps,' Edwards said Thursday.

'Its going to hit and move through our area at a relatively fast rate, limiting the amount of time its going to drop rain,' Edwards said.

'But this is a very dangerous storm nonetheless.'

Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant declared a state of emergency in six southernmost counties. State officials, at a briefing Friday in Gulfport, warned that Nate's main danger in that state will be from up to 10 feet of storm surge in low-lying coastal areas, as well as from winds that could damage mobile homes.

'If you are in an area that has flooded, I would recommend you evacuate that area until the storm has ended and the water has receded for your own personal safety and for the safety of the first responders that will be responding in the event you are trapped,' Bryant said.

The storm threatened to disrupt one of the Mississippi coast's biggest annual tourist events, the 'Cruisin' the Coast' auto show.

Biloxi firefighters warned more than 700 recreational vehicle campers that they may need to leave early.

The event continued as normal Friday, but Saturday's events were cancelled, replaced by a brief closing ceremony.

Nate has already killed at least 22 in Central America. Costa Rica was hit hard, seen here on Friday

Dozens of offshore oil and gas platforms and drilling rigs in the Gulf of Mexico have been evacuated as Nate churns through warm waters.

Ingalls Shipbuilding, the Mississippi coast's largest industrial employer, announced Friday that only a skeleton crew of necessary employees would work Saturday and Sunday at the Pascagoula shipyard.

The northern Gulf Coast areas targeted by Nate largely have been spared the worst effects of a catastrophic hurricane season, but Louisiana's emergency declaration for Nate isn't its first since the start of the summer.

In August, a weakened Hurricane Harvey made landfall in Louisiana after dealing a devastating blow to Texas and then nudging back into the Gulf of Mexico.

Edwards also issued an emergency declaration in August for storm-related flooding in New Orleans.

The National Hurricane Center issued a hurricane warning from Grand Isle, Louisiana to the Alabama-Florida border.

Officials ordered the evacuation of part of coastal St. Bernard Parish east of New Orleans ahead of the storm.
A pensioner who was stabbed in the face and nearly killed by her crazed neighbour claims he attacked her because of the car she drove  and revealed she is still living in fear for her life in the unit where she suffered the horrifying ordeal.

Denise Pederson, 65, was attacked by her 64-year-old neighbour William Sampson in her Belmont unit on the Pacific Highway, north of Newcastle after a long-running dispute.

He tried to stab her in the heart, shouting 'you're going to f**king die', but Mrs Pederson refused to succumb to her attacker and miraculously fought back and survived.

Denise Pederson, 65, was attacked by her 64-year-old neighbour William Sampson in her Belmont unit on the Pacific Highway, north of Newcastle after a long-running dispute

He tried to stab her in the heart, shouting 'you're going to f**king die'

Mrs Pederson refused to succumb to her attacker and miraculously fought back and survived

She told Daily Mail Australia she had suffered more than a year of harassment from Sampson which stemmed from the car she drove, a 23-year-old BMW, and revealed she still fears for her life living in the same unit in which she was attacked.

'Bill Sampson told me he was very offended because I drove a BMW, but I said 'it's 23 years old',' she said.

'He threatened to cut my throat, he scratched and keyed my car, threatened to throw a petrol bomb at my house.'

On September 16, 2016, Sampson finally acted after 18 months of hurling abuse at Mrs Pederson.

Under the pretence of making peace, Sampson entered Mrs Pederson's unit and pulled out a knife, stabbing her in the face.

'He walked in, grabbed my hair, thrust the knife into my cheek. I could hear it hit my jawbone and feel my cheek open up.

She told Daily Mail Australia she had suffered more than a year of harassment from Sampson which stemmed from the car she drove, a 23-year-old BMW

On September 16, 2016, Sampson finally acted after 18 months of hurling abuse at Mrs Pederson

It wasn't until another resident of the housing complex saw Mrs Pederson struggling for her life and rushed over that the attack ended

'He said 'I'm going to stab you in the f**king heart'. I'm holding the knife and I could feel the knife going into my hand.

'There was blood splattered up the walls and everywhere.'

It wasn't until another resident of the housing complex saw Mrs Pederson struggling for her life and rushed over that the attack ended.

'She came to the door and saw he was ready to put the knife into my back.

Sampson was sentenced to a maximum term of 11 years and three months in prison by Judge Roy Ellis at the Newcastle District Court on Thursday, with a non-parole period of eight years

She said she was glad the 'mongrel' was in prison for what he had done to her

'There was blood splattered up the walls and everywhere,' Mrs Pederson said

'She stood at the door any yelled 'Bill, put the knife down'.'

Sampson was sentenced to a maximum term of 11 years and three months in prison by Judge Roy Ellis at the Newcastle District Court on Thursday, with a non-parole period of eight years.

She said she was glad the 'mongrel' was in prison for what he had done to her.

After going through the 'horrific' ordeal of being attacked and undergoing numerous surgeries and hundreds of stitches, on Saturday morning she found messages posted at the entrance to the housing estate she lives on insulting her and falsely calling her a liar.

'I'm feeling absolutely horrible, after what I've gone through and to have to look at that.'

On Saturday morning she found messages posted at the entrance to the housing estate she lives on insulting her and falsely calling her a liar

The messages called her a 'psychopathic liar', a 'fat lying s**t', and an 'ungrateful lying s**t c**ted fat slobby mole face worthless piece of s**t'

The messages called her a 'psychopathic liar', a 'fat lying s**t', and an 'ungrateful lying s**t c**ted fat slobby mole face worthless piece of s**t'.

Mrs Pederson said she still lives in fear for her life in the unit, but can't afford to move anywhere else.

She also still endures ongoing intense pain as a result of the attack.

'I can't eat food unless I hold a napkin up to my face, and I have to drink through a straw. If I have a bite of food, the pain is excruciating.

'I am very lucky to be here. I'm just a bloody mess, it's terrible.'

She still endures ongoing intense pain as a result of the attack

Mrs Pederson said she still lives in fear for her life in the unit, but can't afford to move anywhere else
Children as young as 12 are being trafficked from Britain's big cities to peddle crack cocaine in the countryside, a shock documentary claims.

Youngsters known as 'runners' are transported hundreds of miles from their homes to flood rural areas with class A drugs.

Urban gangs exploit them with promises of money and status, with some of the runners earning hundreds of pounds a week, according to BBC Three's Britain's Teenage Drug Runners.

Worried council chiefs have warned the phenomenon could be the next Rotherham grooming scandal.

Children as young as 12 are being trafficked from Britain's big cities to peddle crack cocaine in the countryside, a shock documentary claims

BBC Three's Britain's Teenage Drug Runners interviewed crack cocaine cook Mr A (pictured) who told them he did not feel bad about exploiting youngsters to sell drugs

The documentary follows senior London gang member and crack cocaine cook Mr A, who has been involved with drugs since he was 15 and labels crack 'white gold'.

It is his job to convert high-purity cocaine into crack and then package it up ahead of distribution.

Wearing a gorilla mask to protect his identity, he said: 'I got thrown out of school, thrown out of college. Life never looked that bright for me.

'Out on the street, cooking was the next thing that I learned.'

When the crack is divided up into chunks of 10 or 20, it is then put into a bigger stash worth around 1,000 and handed to a runner.

Typically vulnerable teenagers, the runners can earn up to 500 a week selling drugs in the countryside.

The drugs are 'cooked up' in major cities such as London before being handed over to runners who then take them to the countryside and sell them to addicts

The gangs can make vast profit on the drugs. Mr A claims this chunk of crack cocaine can net 500

London gangs dominate these rural networks, but there are now reports of other major cities being sucked in, including Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham and Reading.

One they are out in the countryside, the runners are on call 24 hours a day, even staying out there for as long as their drugs stash lasts, usually two or three weeks.

Drug runner SK said: 'You're not really allowed to come back. It's just working, working, working.'

Senior gang members often arrange a location for the runner to stay at ahead of their arrival.

Runners are often young boys from complicated backgrounds who are lured into a life of crime by promises of riches and respect

Runners are often kept in the countryside for weeks on end until their drug stash runs out

It is often the home of a local drug addict, in a practice known as 'cuckooing'. The addicts are either paid in drugs or money for the use of the property, though some are forced into it.

The dealers start by supplying the addict and their friends, texting them advertisements offering discounts and offers.

Gradually their customer pool grows and gangs can earn up to 3,000 a day from the one supply line.

And they can last years before the police swoop.

The practice has been described as 'the next big grooming scandal' by council bosses who compared it to the Rotherham sex cases.

The government has announced a crackdown on gangs who operate in this way and plan to introduce new laws to give police the power to block phone lines used to sell drugs.
Late night TV hosts laid into President Trump on Saturday after he complained about their 'unfunny' coverage of him.

Seth Meyers, Jim Jeffries and Jimmy Kimmel all ridiculed the president for the remark and his additional claim that they are conspiring with Democrats in their jokes about him.

Early on Saturday morning, Trump tweeted: 'Late Night host are dealing with the Democrats for their very 'unfunny' & repetitive material, always anti-Trump! Should we get Equal Time?'

He later added: 'More and more people are suggesting that Republicans (and me) should be given Equal Time on T.V. when you look at the one-sided coverage?'

Meyers was the first to return fire.

President Trump complained on Saturday morning about the treatment he received from 'unfunny' late night TV hosts

'We'd love to have you! Studio located at 15 Penguin Avenue, Antarctica,' he tweeted this morning.

Kimmel later replied to the president: 'Excellent point Mr. President! You should quit that boring job - I'll let you have my show ALL to yourself #MAGA'

Jim Jefferies said: 'The calm before the storm'. That's what Trump asks his barber for when he gets a haircut.'

Late night hosts like Meyers, Jimmy Kimmel and Stephen Colbert have relied on Trump consistently for material since he took office.

The president was immediately mocked by Seth Meyers, one of the hosts his complaint was no doubt directed towards

Kimmel also fired back and urged the president to quit the presidency

'The calm before the storm'. That's what Trump asks his barber for when he gets a haircut.  Jim Jefferies Show (@jefferiesshow) October 6, 2017

This week, their ordinarily jibing segments took a more serious tone in the wake of the Las Vegas massacre.

Kimmel implored the president and other Republicans to consider tighter gun control in an emotional monologue at the start of his Monday night show.

Later in the week, he returned to his jovial style to accuse Trump of pushing more 'fake news' than any media outlet.

Meyers (above on his show on Thursday) has been relentless in his ridicule of the president

Jimmy Kimmel and Stephen Colbert have focused much of their material in the past year on the president

Comedians feasted on Trump's visit to Puerto Rico this week and laughed at his efforts to mingle with victims. He is pictured tossing paper towels into crowds at a relief center in San Juan

The hosts feasted on Trump's visit to disaster-struck Puerto Rico on Tuesday, paying particular attention to his comment that the island's desperate need for emergency resources had 'thrown the budget a little out of whack'.

Jimmy Kimmel laid into the comment, telling his studio audience: 'He really puts the a** in compassion, doesn't he?'

Jim Jeffries echoed his criticism.

'Isn't the first rule of budgeting that you put money aside for a rainy day?

'There hasn't been a rainier day! And 'throwing the budget out of whack'? That's like going to a funeral and saying in the eulogy, 'Well, this has ruined my Sunday. I've got grave mud on my shoes  thanks, Granddad,'' he said.

Stephen Colbert picked up on his later remark to one victim who he told to 'have a good time'.

Later, the president turned his attention to the media and accused NBC of being 'knowingly inaccurate'

He made brief mention to his plans for Obamacare and informed followers that he'd called Dem. Sen. Chuck Schumer on Friday to discuss it

'You're in a disaster site, you're not working the floor at your casino! 'You guys having fun here? Listen, I'm gonna comp you half a gallon of drinking water. Enjoy your hurricane, everybody, don't forget to tip your FEMA worker!'' he joked.

Trump has been relentlessly teased by the comedians since he took office.

Their endless mocking is rivaled only by the cutting ridicule of Saturday Night Live stars for whom the president reserves a special depth of contempt.

On Saturday, after complaining about how he is depicted on television, Trump bounced immediately on to talk of his healthcare plans.

Trump (above at the White House on Friday) is spending the weekend in Washington DC but will visit North Carolina for a dinner on Saturday night

'I called Chuck Schumer yesterday to see if the Dems want to do a great HealthCare Bill. ObamaCare is badly broken, big premiums. Who knows!' he said.

Earlier, he relished in a report by the Washington Post on his campaign contributions.

'Can't believe I finally got a good story in the Washington Post. It discusses the enthusiasm of 'Trump' voters through campaign contributions.

'The RNC is taking in far more $'s than the Dems, and much of it by my wonderful small donors. I am working hard for them!' he said.

At 9.30am, he turned his attention to NBC.

'@NBCNews is so knowingly inaccurate with their reporting. The good news is that the PEOPLE get it, which is really all that matters! Not #1' he said.

The president will spend most of Saturday in Washington DC before traveling to North Carolina to meet with Republican supporters for a round table discussion and dinner.

He will return to Washington at around 10.30pm and spend the night there. No events are scheduled for Sunday.
Tanya Clish managed to fight off Joshua Okubeni with her makeshift weapon when he put his hand over her mouth and pinned her against a wall

A woman who fought off her would-be rapist by stabbing him in the neck with her house keys has slammed The Court of Appeal's decision to cut his sentence.

Quick-thinking Tanya Clish fought off Joshua Okugbeni, who fled with his pants round his ankles, with her makeshift weapon when he put his hand over her mouth and pinned her against a wall.

When the married mother-of-one, who was attacked in a deserted alley while on her way to work, reported her ordeal to the police, she was shocked to learn that she was Okugbeni's second victim that day.

Newcastle Crown Court heard how Okugbeni had already put his hand over the mouth of another woman on her way to work but fled after she frantically screamed for help.

The former pharmacy student, now 22, was sentenced to five years and four months behind bars last July after admitting common assault and committing an offence with intent to commit a sexual offence.

But following an appeal, the Appeal Court in London have now reduced Okugbeni's sentence to three-and-a-half years.

His lawyers argued his sentence was too tough because his intentions 'had not been clear'.

The court also heard claims that he was drunk on the morning of the offences and did not pose a danger to the public.

When the married mother-of-one, who was attacked in a deserted alley while on her way to work, reported her ordeal to the police, she was shocked to learn that she was Okugbeni's second victim that day

Tanya, a support worker, said: 'I'm absolutely shocked, I can't believe it. His intentions were perfectly clear.

'The justice system is so soft. But there is nothing I can do about it. I think there's a chance he could go on to do something worse.

'I think if he hadn't been caught that day he would have gone on to rape and murder someone. I feel angry. I just feel, what's the point?'

Tanya was walking to work alone in Seaburn, Sunderland, at 7am on Remembrance Sunday in 2015 and was just minutes away from her home when she noticed a man changing his direction to walk towards her.

Tanya, from Sunderland, said: 'He had a navy jumper, black trousers and heavy work boots on so I thought he might be going to work but then he jumped on me.

'He put one hand around my mouth and one around my tummy and I tried to push him back.

Support worker Tanya said: 'I thought in my head that if he attacked me I would have to use my keys to protect myself but I never imagined I'd actually have to do it'

'He pushed me against the wall and I think he was trying to reassure me saying 'shhh, it's alright all I want is a kiss'.

'I told him no and said "please don't do this".

'He asked if I had a boyfriend and I told him I was married and showed him my ring.

'I tried to get away but he pushed me back and then he said 'look at this'.

'That's when I panicked and thought he might have a knife.'

When Okugbeni took his eyes off Tanya to undo his trousers, she seized the opportunity to grab her keys and from her bag stab him in his neck.

Startled and wounded, Okugbeni ran away with his trousers halfway down his legs.

Tanya, who sprinted in the opposite direction and called the police, said:

'I thought in my head that if he attacked me I would have to use my keys to protect myself but I never imagined I'd actually have to do it.'

The police recognised Tanya's description of Okugbeni and realised they were already looking for him in connection with another attack just minutes earlier.

Brave Tanya believes that if Okubeni had not been caught that he could have gone on to 'rape and murder someone'

Okugbeni, a respected churchgoer and charity worker, was found close to the scene and arrested.

He was charged with common assault on the first woman and assault with intent to commit a sexual offence on Tanya to which he pleaded guilty.

During his sentencing, Judge Christopher Prince told him: 'The facts of your offences are disturbing to hear. They were terrifying for the two victims who were subjected to them.

'It is every woman and every man's nightmare that as they try to go about their every day lives in public streets they would be attacked by someone like you, with an intention to commit a sexual offence.

'Those who plan to, and do, stalk women in the streets with a view to assaulting them or a view to committing a serious offence on them will be sent to prison.'

Tanya says that the attack has had an impact on her life leaving her less trusting of men and scared to let them walk behind her when she is out alone.
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Pixie Lott's fiance told how he pinned down a taxi driver who had injured 11 people after mounting a pavement and running over pedestrians outside London's Natural History Museum.

Model Oliver Cheshire, 29, was sat in his Jaguar in Kensington when the man, said to be an Uber driver, ploughed into his vehicle.

He immediately leapt into action and helped apprehend the man, who he said was screaming on the ground.

Police have tonight ruled out terrorism and described the crash as a 'road traffic incident'.

A man aged in his 40s was arrested at the scene on suspicion of dangerous driving and was taken to hospital for treatment before being taken to a north London police station for questioning.

It comes as the country's current terror threat level stands at severe following a string of attacks this year and many witnesses feared the worst as panic ensued following the crash.

Mr Cheshire told MailOnline the cab driver had three female passengers in his car at the time of the crash.

He said: He was driving down the pavement and hit 11 to 12 people. Then the guy was screaming. He looked at me and I was really in shock. I got out of my car and grabbed him  three of us grabbed him  and someone phoned the police.

'The girls in his car said he was an Uber driver.'

Counter-terrorism officers were dispatched to the scene which has remained cordoned off following the crash.

Footage shows hundreds of terrified tourists fleeing as the black Toyota Prius - a registered minicab - careered into a sign before ultimately crashing into a crowd. The vehicle also hit a silver Vauxhall and Mr Cheshire's Jaguar.

Dramatic photographs show guards holding down a man covered in blood with rubble strewn across Exhibition Road.

Nearby venues, including the Science Museum, were evacuated while Tube stations were sealed off by police.

Dramatic pictures taken at the scene show three men holding down a man covered in blood with rubble strewn across the road

Witnesses said the man was pinned to the ground by security guards before being detained by police

Oliver Cheshire, pictured with fiancee Pixie Lott, was one of the men seen pinning the driver down after the crash

Mr Cheshire immediately leapt into action and helped apprehend the man, who he said was screaming on the ground

This graphic shows the spot on Exhibition Road where the crash took place. Eleven people have been hurt in the smash

Police cars at the scene of the crash in South Kensington. The area was cordoned off following the crash

Heavily-armed masked police officers converged on the scene and search dogs were seen patrolling the area

Mr Cheshire attended the wedding of PR guru Nick Ede to partner Andrew Naylor in Shoreditch, East London, just hours after the crash. Meanwhile Pixie Lott performed at The Girlguiding Big Gig elsewhere in the city

The injured were seen sitting on steps before being bandaged up and wheeled away by paramedics. London Ambulance Service confirmed they treated 11 people, mainly for leg and head injuries, with nine taken to hospital.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said he had been in 'close contact' with Assistant Met Commissioner Mark Rowley - the head of UK counter-terrorism policing - as authorities worked to determine whether the crash was terror-related before deciding it was not.

Today's incident follows a series of vehicle attacks across Europe which have left well over 100 people dead in Britain, France, Germany and Stockholm.

Banker Greg King, who was walking with his friend Georgie Sheard in the area, claims he was the first person to call the police after nearly being hit by the vehicle.

The 22-year-old told MailOnline: 'A black Toyota came ploughing straight towards us and the crowd. I heard tyres screeching and a lot of screaming and then a massive smash which was him hitting a sign and the glass falling.

'He then swerved and went smashing into the silver car on the other side of the road which stopped him.

'People were sprinting in all directions and then it looked like a security guard from the museum and two members of the public were pinning him down.

'He had blood in his mouth so I assume they smashed him down on the ground.

A woman injured in the crash is pictured being wheeled away by paramedics as investigative officers arrive on the scene

Armed police were quick to arrive on the scene and a security cordon was set up to keep away other passers-by

Injured victims are seen being treated at the scene of the incident in Kensington. Nearby venues, including the Science Museum, were closed off

A forensic officer works behind a police cordon on Exhibition Road. Scotland Yard said the incident was not being treated as terror-related

A Metropolitan Police spokesman told MailOnline that police were called to the scene of the crash at 2.21pm

The taxi driver was detained at the scene after several pedestrians were mowed down by the vehicle

A member of the National Fusion Team which, according to the Thames Valley Police website, help intelligence gathering for 'terrorism gathering and operations'

'If he hadn't turned in the road he would have gone straight into us. I could literally see the whites of his eyes.

'There were loads of families. There was one guy who was running with a pram above his head while his wife held the baby so they could move faster.'

Greg continued: 'If he hadn't done that turn at the last moment we would have been hit and he could have taken everyone down on that side of the road.

'The car was still practically in motion when I picked up the phone to the police. The woman said: "What do you need?" and I just said: "Send everyone". Within seconds I could see helicopters overhead.

Cab driver Simon Stylinaou said there were hundreds of people' queuing up for the museum when the driver struck.

I was sitting in the car and I heard a banging noise, he told MailOnline. I turned around to the right and saw him come around and hit my car.

A local restaurant owner told MailOnline: 'People started running into the restaurant, people were running around on the street'

Then I got out of the car and there was the guy on the floor with people holding him down and there was blood gushing out of his head.

There were hundreds of people queuing up for the museum.

'It was obvious to me that it wasn't an accident as it was a pedestrianised zone and cars should have been going along slowly anyway.

'Then the minute someone had him on the ground he wasn't saying anything or struggling. He'd be shouting if it was a mistake.'

Georgie Sheard, 21, a student from Warwickshire, said: 'It was literally so close. If we were 10 steps ahead it would have been us hit. I just froze. It happened so quickly I just didn't know what to do.'

Cab driver Simon Stylinaou (pictured) said there were hundreds of people queuing up for the museum' when the driver struck

Amy Philips, 28, was driving towards Harrods department store with her son and husband when she heard horns blaring and people screaming outside the Natural History museum.

The mother-of-one from Berkshire told MailOnline that many feared it was a terror attack.

She said: 'We just saw people running and screaming. I heard one woman shrieking "there's a terrorist, run, run".

'There were lots of Chinese tourists sprinting away and we heard one woman say it was just like the Barcelona terror attack.

'We managed to turn the car around but it was very scary'.

Timothyna Duncan, a 23-year-old Imperial College student from the USA, told MailOnline: 'It is very chaotic, and there are many police here and they seem confused about what is going on.

'They just don't know what's happening and are scared that it is a terrorist attack. Some people in the area are a bit tense and they are leaving their houses.'

WHY WERE PAVEMENTS AND BOLLARDS REMOVED FROM EXHIBITION ROAD? Exhibition Road was re-opened in 2012 with all barriers removed. The aim was to make cars and people co-exist harmoniously  without the need for hectoring signs and protective steel barriers. It is visited by millions of people from around Britain and the world but doesn't even have kerbs or pavements. The idea underlining the project was that when nannying rules and orders - in the form of countless signs, traffic signals and barriers - are removed, motorists take more personal responsibility for their own actions and drive more attentively, making more eye contact with pedestrians. Before and after: Exhibition Road in January 2010 (left) and November 2011 (right), after the refurbishment It emerged in June the former mayor of London Boris Johnson removed steel safety railings on London Bridge because they were 'ugly'. The barriers were taken down in 2010 leaving pedestrians vulnerable to vehicle attacks such as the ISIS massacre earlier this year which eight people were killed and dozens of others injured. The attackers' van mounted the bridge's pavement at 50mph and ploughed into people before the men left the vehicle and stabbed others. The day after the atrocity, security officials quickly rushed in new guard rails in a bid to keep people walking through the tourist hotspot safe. Boris scrapped hundreds of miles of the metal bars across the city in a bid to make the streets of the capital less 'cluttered' under a Transport for London initiative. The idea originated from the Netherlands where cities like Amsterdam where pavements and roads are made level to cater for cyclists. The railings were also removed from busy areas including Kings Cross and Hyde Park in a bid to prevent cyclists from being trapped between the barriers and traffic, according to the Daily Star. Despite a warning from counter-terrorism officers that Britain faces an 'unprecedented' risk of more vehicle attacks, Mayor Sadiq Khan's TfL last night said it planned to continue pulling down the balustrades. A spokesman said: 'Guardrail was removed in 2010 as part of a programme to improve safety  preventing vulnerable road users such as cyclists becoming trapped between railings and traffic  as well as reducing street clutter across London. Advertisement

A woman is treated by a London Ambulance Service paramedic near Cromwell Gardens in London, near where the incident took place

Enamul Hoque was in a nearby Chinese restaurant when events unfolded. He told Sky News he saw people running in Exhibition Road, adding: 'Then all of a sudden ... a large gathering of policemen turned up in yellow vests'

Police on Exhibition Road. The aim of the street's design was to make cars and people co-exist harmoniously  without the need for hectoring signs and protective steel barriers

Witness Katie Craine said she was coming out of the museum when she saw a man in handcuffs pinned down by police near a damaged car

Shopkeepers were told to evacuate and police established a large security cordon around the area minutes after the incident, closing some roads. Police helicopters circled the scene overhead

A local restaurant owner added: 'People started running into the restaurant, people were running around on the street.

'A policeman was shouting at us at the door to get out. Now I'm trying to calm down my staff.'

Witness Katie Craine said she was coming out of the museum when she saw a man in handcuffs pinned down by police near a damaged car. 'He looked really proud of himself,' she said. 'He was laughing.'

One witness, identified only as Katy, told LBC London she had seen two people injured, including a little boy who had hurt his leg and a woman who was 'not moving'.

Another onlooker named James Foster tweeted: 'Just been locked in a cafe near South Kensington Tube. Crazy. But better to be safe. Really hope nobody is seriously hurt.'

Axel Kronholm, who was visiting the Victoria and Albert museum, wrote online: 'We slipped out just before they had time to close. A police officer was waving people to move back from the incident and mentioned in passing it was an incident with a car.'

A police officer carries material in blue bin bags away from the scene of the incident in South Kensington. Downing Street said British Prime Minister Theresa May was being briefed on the incident

Minister for London Greg Hands said on Twitter: 'Concerned at events at the Natural History Museum. Watching developments closely & thankful to our emergency services'

Armed police were deployed to the scene, which is also near the Science Museum, and the whole area was subsequently cordoned off

One witness, identified only as Katy, told LBC London radio she had seen two people injured, including a little boy who had hurt his leg and a woman who was 'not moving'

Two women walk alongside a police officer to the outside of the police cordon on Exhibition Road near the Natural History Museum

A woman is led through a police cordon near the Natural History Museum by a paramedic while wearing a red blanket

American couple Annie Cutting and Joseph Degraff, both 23, were caught in the aftermath as they sat in a cafe on Exhibition Road while on holiday in the capital from Washington DC.

Mr Degraff said: 'We saw a large stampede of people running and thought, "what's going on?"

'Someone who works in the cafe said, "get on the ground". We hit the floor. We were there for a few seconds, then they told everyone to get in the basement.

'At that point I thought it was a shooting or a bomb or something. We just didn't know.

'The police told everyone to get out of the cafe and we got out and ran.'

The pair described the situation as 'scary' and Ms Cutting said she fell over as they fled the cafe.

Co-director of The Plastic Tide Ellie Mackay, 29, was working in her apartment just 50 metres from the incident when she heard the crash at 2:30pm. She said: 'I saw a dad dragging his kids along Exhibition Road and urging them to hurry up'

A forensic officer lays down markers near where the car crashed into pedestrians outside the Natural History Museum in south Kensington

Eye-witnesses have described how armed police and helicopters were on the scene 'in seconds'

Police officers stand next to a person with a bandaged ankle near the Natural History Museum

Workers in a cafe close the incident told how people fled the scene in a panic as police evacuated the area.

Merilin Mueller, 20, said: 'It just seemed like an accident because there was a police car. We couldn't see outside.

'Then there were loads of police cars and that's when all of these police came marching down saying, 'move, move'. They said, 'you need to evacuate'.'

Her colleague at Brown and Rosie, Kayla Spark, 23, said: 'They came into the shop really aggressively.'

She added: 'Someone outside said they heard what sounded like gunshots, but I think it was just the car colliding.'

Dieon Rurora, 25, who also works in the cafe, said: 'People were running down the street, falling over. It was quite scary.'

Nearby museums including the Science Museum and Victoria and Albert Museum were evacuated with Tube stations sealed off by police

Roxanne Dervliet, from Bristol, told the Sun Online: 'We'd just walked past the museum and saw what looked like a car crashed into a building.

'There were 100-odd people running away. Police were directing people out of the way and I think one person started running and it set everyone off. I was shaking, my friend was crying. We're all shook up.'

Another onlooker at the scene said: 'We were walking near the Science Museum and heard a bang, bang... at first I thought it was gunfire.

'Then we walked past the scene of the accident and saw a guy pinned down by other men and lots of people calling the police.

'There didn't appear to be many people hurt - a few sat by the side of the road but more looking shaken than anything.

'We were then ushered into the Science Museum and the area was quickly cleared of pedestrians.'

Another eyewitness said she had been walking down Exhibition Road when she heard a loud bang. She said a little boy around eight or nine had been injured along with a woman.

The witness told the radio station she believed the boy had broken his leg but was responsive but said the woman 'wasn't moving'.

She said: 'The ambulance took about ten minutes to arrive, all the officials from the museum were trying to help but a lot of people were standing around very scared.'

A British Transport Police officer with a dog walks past a cafe behind the police cordon near the Natural History Museum in South Kensington

Crowds of people - many taking photographs on mobile phones - were held back behind a police cordon around the popular attraction

Filmmaker and co-director of The Plastic Tide Ellie Mackay, 29, was working in her apartment just 50 metres from the incident when she heard the crash at 2:30pm.

She said: 'I was sat at my desk when I heard the crash. There was a loud bang, as the car smashed into others. At first I didn't take much notice, but all of a sudden people started running away and I knew it wasn't a normal accident.

'I saw a dad dragging his kids along Exhibition Road and urging them to hurry up, and then they were followed by streams of people. They were screaming and running like a typical worst nightmare scenario. It put me in mind of Las Vegas.

'Then the alarm went off in South Kensington station and everyone began to evacuate. Police officers were going into the restaurants and telling people to leave.

A BBC reporter at the scene said she could see a car diagonally across the road surrounded by a crowd of people with one or two on the ground. She said she was told by police injuries sustained were minor

The Natural History Museum is the fourth most popular tourist attraction in the United Kingdom, with 4.6 million visits during 2016, according to the Association of Leading Visitor Attraction. Pictured: Police at the scene today

'Within what seemed like seconds there was a helicopter overhead and four or five vans of armed police racing down the streets, as well as bomb disposal units. I was impressed by how fast they were to respond.

'There are 23 officers standing in the streets now, and another ten forming a barrier on Exhibition Road.'

One local shopkeeper, who saw the car crash into another, told Sky News: 'There was lots of panic. When I heard the crash I looked out and saw people running.

'I saw two police officers take the man out of the car and pin him to the ground.

'Thirty minutes later they evacuated the whole street. There were at least ten police cars on the scene.'

Police said they are working to establish the circumstances of the crash and more details would be released later

One shocked onlooker wrote on Twitter: 'Just witnessed a car drive into people in London. Safe for now please message your friends if they're here near the national museum.'

A London Ambulance Service spokesman added: 'At just after 2.20pm today, we received reports of an incident at Cromwell Road, South Kensington.

'We sent multiple resources to the scene, including our hazardous area response team, ambulance crews, paramedics in fast response cars and incident response officers.

'We treated 11 patients, mostly for leg and head injuries, and took nine of them to hospital.

'We have worked closely with other members of the emergency services at the scene, with our priority being to get people to safety and ensure they received the medical help they needed as quickly as possible.'

The Natural History Museum has now been shut to visitors and no one is allowed to enter, according to a spokesman for the attraction

Crowds in the busy tourist spot in South Kensington, which is also home to the Victoria & Albert Museum and the Science Museum, fled screaming in panic

South Kensington, where police are pictured today, is a busy area popular with tourists. Pictured: Dozens of police cars at the scene

Downing Street said that Prime Minister Theresa May was being kept up to date with developments.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn tweeted: 'Very concerning reports from outside the Natural History Museum. My thoughts are with those injured and our thanks to the emergency services.'

The Natural History Museum tweeted: 'There's been a serious incident outside the Museum.

'We are working w/ @metpoliceuk and will provide an update when we have more information.'

A spokesman added that no one was being allowed into the building and people were being let out through a different exit.

A spokesman for Transport for London said they would be assisting police with their inquiries if they were asked.

He said: 'We are not making any statements, all the information will be coming from the Metropolitan Police.'

The spokesman said it was difficult at this stage to comment because it was unclear what happened. He said: 'I'm not even aware which vehicle ultimately caused the crash.'

In March, a man drove a car into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge killing four before stabbing a police officer to death in the grounds of parliament.

Three Islamist militants drove into people on London Bridge in June before stabbing people at nearby restaurants and bars, killing eight. The same month, a van was driven into worshippers near a mosque in north London which left one man dead.

The Natural History Museum attracted more than 4.6 million visitors in 2016, while other popular attractions in the area are also on the list of must-see sights for visitors to the capital.

Exhibition Road in South Kensington, where the incident took place, is also home to the Science Museum as well as the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Those museums attracted more than three million visitors each in 2016, according to the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions.

The Royal Albert Hall and Imperial College are also in the area, which was dubbed 'Albertopolis' after the husband of Queen Victoria.

Prince Albert recommended that the proceeds of the 1851 Great Exhibition should be used to purchase the land south of Hyde Park for a new cultural quarter in the capital.

Today's incident comes as thousands of football fans have gathered on London's Park Lane in a demonstration against extremism.

The protest, which FLA founder John Meighan said was arranged to demonstrate concern at the 'recent upsurge' of UK terror attacks, was policed by dozens of officers amid criticism from charity Stand Up To Racism.
Two Florida mothers were charged with child neglect after they overdosed on heroin in a car while their months-old infants were in the back seats.

Kristen Leigh O'Connor and June Schweinhart, 28 and 29, overdosed on $60 worth of heroin on Thursday at Boynton Beach, Florida, while their infants - one and two months - sat in the back seats.

They told local authorities that they met in a drug treatment program, bonding during their pregnancies - their babies were born four days apart - and that O'Connor had gotten the drugs from her old dealer.

Kristen Leigh O'Connor (left) and June Schweinhart (right), 28 and 29, overdosed on $60 worth of heroin on Thursday at Boynton Beach, Florida. Their infants were in the back seats

'For whatever reason, they decided yesterday to buy heroin and then snorted it while inside the car with their children,' said the Boynton Beach Police Department on Facebook.

O'Connor had let Schweinhart drive her car because she believed the mother would be able to drive better under the influence, she said to police.

After O'Connor began overdosing, the other called police but too started convulsing as a result of the drugs.

The infants, only one and two months, were taken to the police department and given to family members

Both mothers are allowed to see their children but only under the supervision of other adults and were charged with child neglect

'Oh my God, oh my God,' O'Connor said her friend exclaimed before passing out, according to the Palm Beach Post.

A woman who had been nearby saw the commotion and spoke with police until they arrived. Both were taken to Bethesda Hospital East.

The infants, only one and two months old, were taken to the police department and given to family members. The Florida Department of Children and Families was notified.

They were found properly strapped into their car seats by police.

Both were charged with child neglect and a judge ruled that O'Connor can only see her child when her mother is present. The other mother has to do random drug test at least once a week and can only see her child with another adult present.
A 33-year-old man has been arrested after allegedly kidnapping a woman and driving her across northern NSW.

Sarah Leedham, 36, was last seen with Garry Fletcher in Glen Innes on the Northern Tablelands about 8am on Saturday.

Police were notified after the NSW Hunter region woman managed to make it known she was being held against her will when withdrawing money in Glen Innes, AAP reported.

Gary Fletcher (pictured), 33, was arrested after allegedly kidnapping a woman in NSW

The man was arrested at a property at Red Range near Glen Innes on Saturday evening after police conducted a day-long search for him and the 36-year-old victim.

The man was taken to Glen Innes Police Station while the woman has been taken to hospital suffering minor injuries.

The pair are understood to know to each other.

'Police will allege the woman, from the state's Hunter region, was being held against her will and serious concerns were held for her welfare,' a police spokeswoman said in a statement.

Ms Leedham is now in hospital recovering from minor injuries and an investigation into the incident has been launched.
A man has been charged after a newborn baby was allegedly taken from a hospital in Sydney's west - the third person to be charged since the incident on Friday.

Police will allege the 28-year-old man, understood to be the baby's father, left Blacktown Hospital with his baby daughter and two women, aged 27 and 47.

It's believed the women were the two-day-old girl's mother and grandmother, and that the infant was taken from Blacktown Hospital against the advice of the Department of Family and Community Services.

A third person has been charged over the alleged kidnapping of a newborn baby (pictured being taken to a clinic by a paramedic) from Sydney's Blackwotn hospital on Friday afternoon

A 47-year-old-woman, believed to be the baby's grandmother, allegedly hit Nader Rezae. He was taken to hospital and will undergo surgery. The woman was charged with seven offences.

The child was taken from Blacktown Hospital on Friday October 6 by three people - reportedly the child's mother, father and grandmother.

It's believed that the two women, the man and the baby were in the grandmother's car when she allegedly hit a pedestrian, Nader Rezae, aged 61, and then drove off.

The mother and father then allegedly fled with the child, before the grandmother returned to the scene and was arrested.

Police allege that the couple then hid the baby Jasmine Taylor's pram, a 19-year-old mother who already had a four-month-old baby inside.

According to news.com.au, Ms Taylor was allegedly approached by police shortly after the baby's family had 'run off' but she wouldn't let them search her pram for the missing baby.

However, she maintains her innocence and told Channel 7 she was simply trying to help a couple keep their newborn baby out of the wind.

On Saturday, the 19-year-old Ms Taylor was charged with allegedly trying to help a family conceal the child after she was snatched from a Sydney hospital.

Jasmine Taylor, from Doonside in Sydney's west, faced court on Saturday after she allegedly let the child's parents hide the baby in her pram, according to the Daily Telegraph.

However, the 19-year-old claimed to be innocent, and told 7 News that she was a 'victim of kindness' after she 'simply offered her pram to two strangers so that their newborn would be sheltered from the wind'.

Jasmine Taylor, 19, allegedly let the parents of a stolen baby hide the infant in her child's pram. She was the second person to be charged after the child was taken from Blacktown Hospital.

Police allege that they approached Ms Taylor (pictured), who didn't let them search the pram

Ms Taylor said that the parents then took off with the pram, the newborn and her own baby, and that she was then arrested.

According to 7 News, police don't believe Ms Taylor's story.

She applied for and was granted bail, because she has a child of her own to care for.

At 3pm on Saturday, the man thought to be the child's father presented himself to Kempsey Hospital where he was assessed, police confirmed.

He was then taken to Kempsey Police Station where he was charged with take/detain child with intent to remove from parental control.

The man was refused bail and is due to appear before Port Macquarie Local Court on Sunday, while the baby is now safe at Blacktown Hospital.

Ms Taylor told Channel 7 that she as innocent of the charges she was and a 'victim of kindness'

This police officer saved a newborn baby girl who was allegedly stolen from a Sydney hospital

Mr Rezae, who was run down by the baby's grandmother, was taken to Westmead Hospital where he will undergo surgery for head injuries, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

The baby's 47-year-old grandmother faced court after the incident on Friday - charged with seven offences including detaining a child with intent to remove it from parental control and dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm.

The Bidwill woman did not apply for bail.

Ms Taylor's lawyer said she did not know the family and agreed to help them as a service to their two-day-old baby.

'The was a car speeding, and there was a lady inside,' a witness told 7News. 'In the back, there was a baby...The car hit a man and pulled him over.'

Police used CCTV to locate the child, who was in the car at the time of the incident.

She was unharmed, but taken to Patrick St Medical Centre as a precaution, before being returned to Blacktown Hospital.

The man allegedly hit by the baby's grandmother was taken to the nearby Westmead Hospital
The family of a man that was killed in the Las Vegas shooting is suing the shooter's estate.

Victim John Phippen's family filed a suit Friday aimed at freezing gunman Stephen Paddock's assets.

Phippen, 56, was one of 58 people that were killed during the assault. The family attorney says he expects other victim's families to join their suit.

The lawsuit is aimed at preventing Paddock's brother Eric and girlfriend Marilou Danley from accessing his estate. Paddock was a successful gambler, raking in $5million in 2015 according to NBC News.

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Gunman Stephen Paddock (left) shot and killed 58 people including John Phippen (right). Phippen's family is suing Paddock's estate and expects other victims' families to join in the suit

John with his family including his son Travis Phippen (in grey, second from right) who was also shot. Travis survived after watching his father die. He still has a bullet in his arm

This photo combination shows some of the victims of the mass shooting that occurred at a country music festival in Las Vegas on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017

'This is an action for the benefit of all the victims to preserve these assets,' said the Phippens' attorney, Richard Patterson to NBC LA.

'We have filed a petition with the district court in Nevada, requesting that the court appoint a public administrator of the state of Nevada to take control of his assets,' Patterson said.

'It is for the benefit of everyone. It will preserve the assets subject to the court's direction and future distribution,' he added to ABC LA.

The shooter is not the only one they will hold responsible, says Patterson. He is aiming to include the hotel as well. He says he is looking into how many exits were at the venue, and that it took too long to get people out.

Patterson said he wants 'To make these concerts, make the hotels more responsible and diligent in preventing these sorts of things.'

Patterson says he is planning to file suit against Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino and its parent company, MGM Resorts International. He also said one other victim could be joining the lawsuit.

Travis (in sling) walks to court to file a suit against Paddock's estate to freeze his assets

Travis and his father John at the Route 91 Harvest Festival before Paddock shot and killed John and injured Travis

The fence (far right) was trampled on as people ran to escape the barrage of bullets. The Phippen family attorney says there were not enough exits

Phippen was killed when he was shielding a young woman from the gunfire.

His son Travis was with him and watched him die. Travis still has a bullet in his arm, and was wearing a sling as he walked to court to file the suit with his family attorney.

The gunman, 64-year-old Paddock, opened fire during the Route 91 Harvest Festival while he was on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay hotel.

Law enforcement Friday said they are 'confident' Paddock carried out the Mandalay Bay massacre from his hotel room alone.

Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said that investigators are sure no one else was in the room before he shot dead 58 and injured almost 500 on Sunday.

Earlier, NBC News had reported a mysterious charger that did not mach any of Paddock's cellpones - raising the possibility that another person had been with Paddock beforehand.

However, later police said that they have now matched all the cell phones and all the chargers and that they belong to Paddock.

'We're very confident there was not another shooter in that room,' said McMahill during a press conference in Las Vegas on Friday afternoon.

'What we cannot confirm is whether anybody else knew about this incident before he carried it out.'

Police are still looking into whether gunman Stephen Paddock (above with girlfriend Marilou Danley in 2013) had an accomplice who helped him plot his attack or knew about it

This comes as local and federal officials announced they are erecting billboards around the city appealing to the public to come forward with information about the shooting.

The billboards will have the message 'If you know something, say something' and investigators hope this will help generate leads for the case which has so far left law enforcement struggling to find a motive.

'There are still a number of people out there that know that something looked out of place,' said McMahill.

'Someone may have been acting suspiciously that night, or in the years prior, the months prior. Someone that may have seen something or knows something.'

The FBI's special agent in charge in Las Vegas said that the idea is to reach 'as many people as we possibly can' and that they will not stop until 'they have the truth'.
President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko has signed Law No. 2167-VIII "On creation of necessary conditions for peaceful settlement of the situation in certain regions of Donetsk and Luhansk regions."

This was reported on Saturday by the press service of the Ukrainian president.

As reported, the document stipulates that the procedures will only take effect "after all conditions stated in Article 10 of the law [on special local self-governance procedures] are fulfilled, specifically as regards the withdrawal from the territory of Ukraine of all illegal armed formations, their military equipment, and militants and mercenaries."

The presidential press service said that this law also determines that Ukraine in its strive to restore territorial integrity remains committed to a peaceful settlement of the situation in certain regions of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions on the basis of the principles and norms of international law and the UN Charter. The law also says that Ukraine's sovereignty extends over its entire territory, which, within the internationally recognized border, is integral and inviolable.

"The law also provides the necessary preconditions for deploying a UN peacekeeping operation in certain districts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, particularly taking into account the Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada's resolution No. 253-VII dated March 17, 2015 'On approving Ukraine's addressees to the Security Council of the United Nations and the Council of the European Union regarding the deployment of an international peacekeeping operation in Ukrainian territory," it said.

It was reported earlier that the Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada on October 6 had passed the legislation extending the law on special self-government procedures in certain districts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions by one year. The law was to expire on October 18, 2017.

The bill 'On providing essential preconditions for a peaceful settlement of the situation in certain districts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions' was supported by 229 parliamentarians.

"The responsible voting by a majority will help our army to minimize the number of casualties in holding the defense, and diplomats to increase international pressure on Russia," Poroshenko said in a video address in commenting on the legislation.
A stripper is suing a financier who she says 'forcibly raped' her in a private room at a New York club.

The woman, who is not being identified, claims the attack took place at Penthouse Executive Club in Manhattan on April 29.

She alleges that she was in the middle of performing a private dance for 35-year-old Patrick Dinneen when he pulled out his penis and forced her to to the ground.

She claims he raped her for two minutes and that she was only able to escape when she eventually pushed him off of her and ran for help.

The woman, who is not being identified, claims the attack took place at Penthouse Executive Club (pictured) in Manhattan's Hell's Kitchen on April 29

The woman filed her lawsuit in civil court and is also suing the strip club for not providing adequate attention.

Dinneen has never been arrested despite the woman claiming to have reported it to the police when it happened.

NYPD sources told New York Daily News that its only record of any such incident was reported on May 18.

The strip club was previously forced to pay other dancers for a technicality in their contracts.

They had been improperly categorized as independent contractors.

In her lawsuit, the woman claims she took Dinneen into the private room and began dancing for him when he 'unzipped his pants and pulled out his penis'.

She claims she told him to 'put his penis back in his pants and that she was going to stop the dance because she was uncomfortable' but he refused.

He then 'jumped' on top of her, she said. After raping her for two minutes, the man 'stopped struggling with her,' she claims.

'Then (she) pushed defendant Dinneen and ran to the door,' the lawsuit reads.

The woman was then able to call for help from other staff.

Dinneen, who previously worked for the hedge fund Pershing Square Capital, has not responded to the lawsuit.
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With a 1929 Model A Ford Phaeton making the final 3.1-mile journey across the Hudson River, the Tappan Zee Bridge in New York City's northern suburbs has officially closed.

Much of the fanfare that accompanied the opening of an adjacent $3.9bn twin-span named in honor of former New York Governor Mario Cuomo in August was missing Friday night when the Tappan Zee saw its final crossing, according to The Journal News.

Seth Kestenbaum was the last driver to cross the 61-year-old bridge around 10pm in the vintage Ford. He rode in a police escort.

'If you're first across the bridge, everyone's going to be repeating that,' Kestenbaum said. 'I'm the last one to cross the bridge. I've got to tell you, what an honor.'

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Seth Kestenbaum was the last civilian to drive a car across the old Tappan Zee Bridge connecting Westchester and Rockland counties in New York. He drove a vintage Ford

Kestanbaum (pictured with the vintage Ford) rode with a police escort on Friday night. The 61-year-old bridge has been closed and an adjacent bridge that cost $3.9bn to build has been opened in its place

Kestenbaum is pictured admiring the nighttime view of the Hudson River from the 1929 vintage Ford

Kestenbaum said: 'I'm the last one to cross the bridge. I've got to tell you, what an honor'

One of the two new spans is now accommodating traffic flowing both ways between Westchester and Rockland counties in New York's northern suburbs.

The new bridge was named for current Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo's and CNN host Chris Cuomo's father, who died in 2015.

That span officially opened in late August for Rockland-bound drivers.

Andrew Cuomo and other dignitaries were on hand for the ceremonial first ride across the bridge.

On Friday night, Westchester-bound traffic was quietly diverted onto the same span.

A temporary concrete divider will be used until the second span opens next year.

The new bridge project was launched by the state Thruway Authority in 2013 after decades of political squabbling. The Tappan Zee opened in 1955.

Eventually, the Thruway Authority will give away parts of the old bridge's deck and its moveable barrier system.

Eight counties have requested some of the 150 deck panels to be salvaged for reuse in other bridges.

The Governor Malcolm WilsonTappan Zee Bridge first opened in December 1955, and crossed the Hudson River at one of its widest points.

The crossing acquired its name after the an Indian tribe called the Tappan, while Zee is the Dutch word for sea.

The crossing was built by the engineering firm Madigan-Hyland and designed by Emil Praeger.

Praeger went with a cantilever design, which is constructed with a rigid structural element and projects horizontally into space, supported on only one end.

The total length of the bridge approaches was 16,013 feet long, and located about 25 miles north of Midtown Manhattan.

Pictured is a side-by-side view of the old bridge (left) and the new bridge (right). The old one was opened in 1955

The Tappan is the name of the tribe that once inhabited this area. The Dutch who came to NY in the 1600's referred to Hudson River as a 'Zee' which was their word for a wide expanse of water

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo (driver) and World War II veteran Armando 'Chick' Gallela (passenger) rode across the new bridge named for Cuomo's late father, former New York governor Mario Cuomo, in August 2017 as part of a dedication ceremony

Cuomo is pictured speaking during a dedication ceremony for the bridge named in his father's honor

Pictured is a daytime view showing the old and new bridges that span the Hudson River about 25 miles north of New York City

An aerial view shows steel and concrete piers for the old Tappan Zee bridge under construction in the 1950s. The Bridge connects Nyack and Tarrytown

Pictured are cranes working over the steel and concrete piers for the under-construction Tappan Zee bridge in July 1954. The bridge was opened in December 1955

This general view looking toward the toll bridge on the Tarrytown side of the old Tappan Zee Bridge was taken on December 15, the day the $60million bridge opened

The Governor Malcolm WilsonTappan Zee Bridge first opened in December 1955, and crossed the Hudson River at one of its widest points
This is the moment people were seen fleeing for their lives after a car crash causing panic outside one of London's most famous museums.

Hundreds of terrified tourists fled the scene as the black Toyota Prius - a registered minicab - careered into a sign before injuring eleven people.

Dramatic video footage obtained by MailOnline shows terrified people running in fear amid concerns it was a terrorist attack.

Witnesses described hearing a loud bang before seeing around people springing out of the way of the car. A young boy, described as being around eight, and a woman were among those to be hit.

In one video from the scene, a woman is so desperate to scramble away she can be seen falling to the floor and hitting the pavement.

Pictured: People scrambling away from the scene after a car crashed into a crowd of people outside the Natural History Museum this afternoon

Witnesses said the man was pinned to the ground by security guards before being detained by police

One man in a nearby restaurant said he looked out the window to see hoards of people running from South Kensington station.

Another witness said: I heard tyres screeching and a lot of screaming then a massive smash which was the driver hitting a sign and the glass falling. He then swerved and went smashing into the silver car on the other side of the road.

The suspected driver of the car could be seen being held down onto the pavement by a group of civilians before the police arrived.

Dramatic pictures taken at the scene show police holding down a man covered in blood with rubble strewn across the road

A spokesman for the Metropolitan Police said: 'Emergency Service attended the scene. Whilst enquiries continue it is believed a car mounted the pavement and collided with a number of pedestrians.'

Eleven people were found at the scene with varying injuries and nine of them have been taken to hospital, and this includes the man that was detained by police. Their injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.

The man detained by officers is currently under arrest and is in custody at a north London police station.

A spokesman added the incident is a road traffic investigation and not a terrorist-related incident.

Banker Greg King, who was walking with his friend Georgie Sheard in the area, claims he was the first person to call the police after nearly being hit by the vehicle.

The 22-year-old told MailOnline: 'A black Toyota went ploughing straight towards us and the crowd. I heard tyres screeching and a lot of screaming and then a massive smash which was him hitting a sign and the glass falling.

'He then swerved and went smashing into the silver car on the other side of the road which stopped him.

'People were sprinting in all directions and then it looked like a security guard from the museum and two members of the public were pinning him down.

'He had blood in his mouth so I assume they smashed him down on the ground.

Nearby museums including the Science Museum were evacuated with Tube stations sealed off by police.

The injured were seen sitting on steps being bandaged up before they were wheeled away by paramedics. London Ambulance Service confirmed they treated 11 people, mainly for leg and head injuries, with nine taken to hospital.

Scotland Yard said they were keeping an open mind as to whether the incident was terror-related with a Government source saying it is 'looking like a traffic incident'.

But London Mayor Sadiq Khan said he was in 'close contact' with Assistant Met Commissioner Mark Rowley - the head of UK counter-terrorism policing.

Today's incident follows a series of vehicle attacks across Europe which have left well over 100 people dead in Britain, France, Germany and Stockholm.
They came in their thousands wearing white, releasing balloons and begging their leaders to start peace talks to prevent Spains crisis over Catalonias push for independence spiralling out of control.

Demonstrations in 50 Spanish cities highlighted the seriousness of the situation confronting one of Europes most important nations.

In Barcelona 5,500 protesters chanted Lets talk in Catalan.

Thousands of people gathered yesterday in Sant Juame square in Barcelona urging

There were violent scenes last week as riot police tried to prevent people voting in Catalonia

Thousands of people wearing white took to the streets of Barcelona calling for talks rather than a unilateral declaration of independence in front of the Generalitat of Catalonia

Were afraid because there could be chaos, said Marieta Luma, 51, an engineer wearing a heart pinned to her white T-shirt. If politicians do not arrive at agreement there may be disaster.

At a pro-unity demonstration in Madrid thousands chanted Viva Espana beneath the massive Spanish flag that stands permanently in Colon Plaza. One leading Catalan politician called for a ceasefire with Spain to lower tensions. We have to give it one more chance, maybe the last chance, said Santi Vila, the business minister.

The events were organised by a new group formed after Catalonias controversial referendum last weekend, a vote which backed secession despite brutal police attempts to prevent polling in a ballot declared illegal. Police wielding batons tried to seize ballot boxes in scenes more redolent of a brutal dictatorship than a modern European democracy.

Many fear it may be a foretaste of what is to come as populist politicians in Catalonia push for separation from Spain while a weak Madrid government and a cack-handed king worsen the situation.

On Friday, the Catalan government revealed final results of the banned referendum. There was a huge majority to secede, although fewer than half the eligible 5.3 million voters cast ballots.

Carles Puigdemont, the Catalan leader, has said the result is binding. Now Europe waits anxiously to see if he will make a unilateral independence proclamation this week, sparking fears of spiralling confrontation  with the darkest historical echoes.

In Colon square in Madrid, thousands of people held a rally in support of unity

The scale of the crisis, Spains most serious since a failed coup in 1981, has been brought home by banks and other firms already starting to move legal bases from Barcelona to ensure they remain inside the European Union.

The stakes are high since Spain is the fourth-biggest economy in the eurozone and Catalonia is a substantial source of the countrys tax revenues.

More pro-unity rallies are scheduled in several cities today, with fears that far-Right groups may flock to one in Barcelona.

Madrid has chartered three ferries, with capacity for 6,600 passengers, to accommodate police sent to Barcelona and Tarragona, another seaside city. There are unconfirmed rumours of special forces sent to secure sites such as airports in case the crisis escalates this week.

People were wearing white during the neutral rally following the independence referendum

Left: Cristina Azogue, 34, physical therapist, who said she is 'against all the things that are happening now in Catalonia.' Right: A woman among the crowd in the peace demonstration in Barcelona

A woman holds a white flag with a red heart during a demonstration called by the 'Should we talk?' in Madrid in association for dialogue in Catalonia

Some of the worst violence last weekend was seen in historic Girona, north of Barcelona, at the primary school attended by Puigdemonts children, where riot police were determined to stop people reaching the ballot boxes. Old and young linked hands to defy them in defence of their democracy. But after firing warning shots close to their heads, the black- clad paramilitary forces charged at the voters, lashing out with their batons.

One man was coshed 12 times in the melee, others kicked as they lay bloodied on the ground. I was scared, said retired banker Jaume, 58, who went to vote. I was in the third row of the crowd so when they started to beat the first row, I knew they were going to soon beat me.

I put my hands up but I was hit on the head. Then as I tried to leave and cross the road, with blood pouring from my head wound, another policeman hit me on the leg.

The police looked savage. You could see from their faces they wanted to damage people.

Puigdemont is due to make an official statement on Tuesday evening. Spanish courts have already suspended a Catalan parliamentary session amid threats of sedition charges and imposition of direct rule from Madrid.

Carme Forcadell, speaker of Catalans parliament, said: We are living in an emergency situation in which the constitutional court, acting on orders of the Spanish government, is seeking to tell a democratic parliament what it can and cannot talk about. We will not let that happen. Declarations of independence made democratically and peacefully in nations freely exercising their right to self-determination are valid.

A couple kiss during a demonstration in Madrid in favour of dialogue to resolve Catalonia. The marches are being held as a desperate bid to appeal for calm ahead of violent protests planned for tomorrow

Catalonia is home of the defeated revolutionary forces during the 1930s civil war that led to the rise of General Franco whose fascist dictatorship which only ended with his death in 1975

Thousands of demonstrators have taken to the Plaza de Colon in Madrid to protest against Catalonian independence

The violent police response, followed by King Felipes fierce condemnation of attempts to break the unity of Spain in which he ignored their actions, has only inflamed the long-running sore of Catalonian nationalism.

Surveys show support for independence doubled after the financial crisis in 2008 that struck Spain hard, but there was never a majority in favour.

Catalonia pays billions more to Madrid than it gets back, provoking nationalist claims of robbery. Although one of the richest regions, with lower unemployment than most of Spain and thriving tourism, it still has more than one-third of young people without jobs. Many Catalans believe they are being restrained by a backward nation.

A youth walks under a giant Spanish flag in Madrid as thousands of pro-Spanish unity supporters donning Spanish flags have rallied in a central Madrid plaza to protest the Catalan regional government's drive to separate from Spain

The rally comes six days after Catalonia held a referendum on secession that Spain's government warned was illegal and the country's top court had suspended

It is impossible to ignore ghosts from the past in a region that was the home of the defeated revolutionary forces in the 1930s civil war that led to a fascist dictatorship under General Franco, which only ended on his death in 1975.

Several people on the streets quoted an infamous refrain by a 19th Century Spanish general  You have to bomb Barcelona at least once every 50 years  while a popular television comedy show made jokes about a sleeping Franco returning to the fray.

Ramon Tremosa, an economist and Catalan MEP, joked drily that at least they are only beating us, not shooting us.

If Puigdemont presses ahead with his proclamation, that quip may yet take a darker turn.

Madrid's central Colon Square was transformed into a sea of Spanish flags as several thousand people joined a 'patriotic' march organised by activists to defend the unity of Spain
Donald Trump Jr. joined the growing number of people calling on Hollywood heavyweights to condemn Harvey Weinstein over his decades of sexual harassment on Saturday.

The president's son took to Twitter to first dare Oscars-host and comedian Jimmy Kimmel to comment on the scandal, writing: 'Thoughts on Weinstein? #askingforafriend.'

Kimmel had just poked fun at Donald Trump for complaining about the 'unfunny' late night hosts who constantly berated him.

He swiftly responded to Trump Jr.'s challenge but didn't take exactly take the bait, instead retorting with a quip about how the New York Times - the Trumps' media nemesis - broke the Weinstein story.

'You mean that big story from the failing, liberal, one-sided New York Times? I think it is disgusting,' he responded.

Trump Jr., echoing his father's earlier complaints that Kimmel and other late night show hosts' criticism of their family was becoming repetitive, carried on the spat.

Donald Trump Jr. dared Oscars host Jimmy Kimmel to comment on the Harvey Weinstein sexual assault scandal on Saturday

Kimmel responded by poking fun at the fact that it was the NY Times - the newspaper most passionately hated by the Trumps - which broke the story

Kimmel fired back against Trump Jr. again, sharing a video to his father's 2005 Access Hollywood tape in which he boasted about grabbing women 'by the p***y'

'Great I look forward to your monologues next week. You're probably due for a change if only for a moment or two,' he said.

Ramping up the tone of their exchange, Kimmel fired back with a clip to his father's infamous 2005 Access Hollywood 'grab them by the p***y' tape'.

Kimmel has faced criticism along with fellow late night TV hosts Stephen Colbert, Seth Myers and Jimmy Fallon for not making mention of the Weinstein scandal in their shows this week.

They all rely on Hollywood and television stars to interview in order to draw high ratings.

Kimmel has been vocal in the past about his views on gun control and healthcare reform, dedicating the opening monologue of his show to each issue.

Don. Jr. has been on a mission to convince vocally liberal Hollywood stars to speak out against Weinstein since he admitted perpetrating decades of sexual harassment against female actresses and staff on Thursday.

He has found himself on the same side as anti-Trump stars like Patricia Arquette, Lena Dunham, Rose McGowan and Brie Larson who have so far been the only prolific voices in Hollywood to condemn Weinstein's behavior.

The spat erupted on Twitter on Saturday morning. Trump Jr. fired back at Kimmel who earlier made fun of his father

Retweeting another follower's post, Trump Jr. implored Jennifer Lawrence and Meryl Streep, two passionate and determine critics of the president, to join in on the condemnation of Weinstein's past.

'Where are the real powers: Streep, Hanks, Denzel, Lawrence,Cooper, Affleck, Damon other studio heads?? Silence from Hollywood is deafening,' the tweet read.

Trump Jr. also called on Hillary Clinton to voice her opinion on the subject and suggested that her silence was down to hopes that Weinstein will be instrumental in turning her recent memoir, What Happened, into a film.

'Weird, Hillary has been really quiet about Harvey Weinstein. You would think she would be all Over this. #WhatHappened?' he said.

Chelsea Clinton weighed in on the subject on Saturday but did not offer her own words on it.

Trump Jr. didn't stop with the TV host, calling on other Hollywood stars to speak out against Weinstein by sharing this tweet

Trump Jr. has responded enthusiastically to the scandal given Weinstein's powerhouse status in liberal Hollywood which has savaged his father's presidency since he took office

Instead, she redirected her followers to another account which described Weinstein's behavior as 'despicable' but also said it was wrong to politicize it with no regard to the victims.

Rose McGowan has slammed the women of Hollywood for their silence.

Demanding to know where the 'ladies of Hollywood' were on this issue, McGowan - who is believed to have been paid a $100,000 settlement by Weinstein after an incident in the mid-1990s - appeared to attack the mute A-listers.

Indeed, A-list actresses like Meryl Streep and Nicole Kidman and Gwyneth Paltrow who have used their fame to encourage and support women and who have worked with Weinstein have said nothing.

Meryl!: Ashley Judd and the other women revealed they were sexually harassed by Harvey Weinstein are getting no public support from Hollywood stars (Meryl Streep and Weinstein above in 2012)

Demand: Rose McGowan took to social media after the allegations against Harvey Weinstein developed on Friday

Prompt: McGowan was responding to a tweet from Melissa Silverstein of Women and Hollywood who singled out the stars she believes have always spoken out including Lena Dunham and Brie Larson

Allies: Rose McGowan made it perfectly clear she felt actresses including Patricia Arquete, Lena Denham and Brie Larson have spoken out - she later included Jessica Chastain in that list

Harvey Weinstein is pictured here leaving his Manhattan home after taking a leave of absence from his own firm

WHY IS WEINSTEIN ONLY BEING EXPOSED NOW? Weinstein's harassment of actresses and staff dates back 30 years. For decades, reporters have been trying to pin down the story and expose him but it did not break until last Thursday. The on-the-record testimony of several women including Ashley Judd who spoke to The New York Times is what got it over the line - in years gone by, they spoke anonymously in fear of rebuke. Weinstein also all but conceded their accusations in a wordy statement which accompanied the story. What prompted the women to put their names to their stories is up for debate but experts say it is part of a new trend of women who are finally speaking out against sexual assault after suffering in silence. 'Many women are not willing to suffer in silence anymore. Theyve reached their tipping point. 'And then one comes out, and then two, and it does encourage others  they feel safer in numbers,' Gloria Allred, the lawyer who represented Bill Cosby and Donald Trump accusers, said. Her daughter, attorney Lisa Bloom, was working with Weinstein but stepped down on Saturday. Advertisement

Those same three women have also been more than willing to supply writers and journalists with quotes praising Weinstein over the years and taking about how wonderful he is to work with as an actor.

Kidman's lack of comment is perhaps the most glaring of the three as she just came off an awards season push for her HBO show Big Little Lies in which she repeatedly spoke about the importance of empowering women and supporting victims of abuse.

They are not alone in their silence either, as many other women who have sang the praises of Weinstein while speaking out against harassment also went mute as of Friday afternoon, including: Kate Hudson, Julianne Moore, Cate Blanchett, Renee Zellweger, Angelina Jolie, Salma Hayek, Penelope Cruz, Toni Collette, Minnie Driver and Uma Thurman.

Given the number of lawsuits that the company has settled over the years there is of course a chance that some of these women cannot speak because they signed a NDA or do not want to speak on account of their own personal experiences.

Weinstein had already indicated on Thursday in his written statement in which he acknowledged his behavior in the past had caused 'a lot of pain' that he was taking a leave of absence.

On Friday, four board members including Weinstein's brother Bob, said that it was 'important for him to get professional help' as they confirmed he was leaving the company he co-founded.

They left it unclear how long he would be gone, only saying that the 'next steps depend on Harvey's therapeutic progress, the outcome of the Board's independent investigation and Harvey's own personal decisions'.

Indeed, it has been suggested that it was Bob Weinstein himself who orchestrated the shocking New York Times story which detailed lurid allegations of sexual assault against his brother.

Best of friends: Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman (above in May with Weinstein) and Gwyneth Paltrow, who have all won Oscars for starring in Weinstein films, have made no public comment

According to the New York Post a former staff member said, 'Bob's wanted Harvey out for years' and one insider said that 'Bob may even have fed this story' to the Times.

And as the backlash grew, graphic revelations appeared in the HuffPost on Friday evening, claiming that Weinstein cornered a New York reporter and forcibly made her watch him masturbate in front of her.

Lauren Sivan, formerly a Fox News Reporter, claims that when she worked with the cable channel Long Island 12 a decade ago, Weinstein insisted she take a tour with him in Socialista, a club he part-owned.

She claims he took her downstairs to a kitchen and cleared it of staff and then tried to kiss her. When she refused his advance he said, 'Well, can you just stand there and shut up'.

The movie mogul is then alleged to have masturbated in front of her and ejaculated into a nearby flower pot.

Sivan says she was trapped and intimidated and deeply shocked.

Sisterhood: As of Friday afternoon, less than 10 American actresses of note had publicly and directly spoken out against Weinstein or shown support for Judd

Standing strong: Amber Tamblyn (above) issued a call to arms for those too weak to support Judd and speak out

Class act: Brie Larson, who has become one of the most vocal supporters of victims ever since filming the movie 'Room,' announced that she will always stand with the survivors of assault and harassment

Anger: Rose McGowan is pictured in 2007 at the ShoWest Award Ceremony in Vegas in 2007

Resignations: Dirk Ziff (left), Marc Lasry (center) and Tim Sarnoff (right) have all left the Weinstein Company board following allegations against co-founder Harvey Weinstein

There is rampant speculation among 'insiders' that Bob Weinstein (left) leaked details that led to the explosive New York Times story about his brother Harvey's (right) alleged sexual harassment of a number of women. The brothers are seen above in 2007

They're with her: Paltrow, Hillary Clinton and Weinstein at a 1998 screening

At the Weinstein Company, the three members of the nine-man board who resigned were named as Dirk Ziff, a billionaire investor, Marc Lasry the owner of the Milwaukee Bucks and Tim Sarnoff the president of production services.

And earlier on Friday in a damning interview, Lisa Bloom, the celebrity lawyer who Weinstein has retained admitted that some of his actions could be described as illegal.

Speaking to George Stephanopoulos on GMA, Bloom replied to a question about her clients actions.

'This is a real pattern over 30 years; this is like textbook sexual harassment,' said Mr. Stephanopoulos.

'It's gross, yeah', replied Bloom.

'It's illegal,' said Stephanopoulos.

'Yes. You know, I agree, said Bloom. She clarified this by saying, 'See, you have to understand, yes, I'm here as his adviser. Im not defending him in any sexual harassment cases  there arent any sexual harassment cases. Im working with a guy who has behaved badly over the years, who is genuinely remorseful, who says, you know, I have caused a lot of pain.

The silence from the women of Hollywood is even more galling as it comes exactly one year after the release of the infamous 'p****gate' tape.

The course language used by the then-presidential hopeful Donald Trump along with his threat of sexual harassment whipped Hollywood into a frenzy at the time, with celebrities speaking about the offense immediately and for days.

However this time, less than 10 American actresses of note have publicly and directly spoken out against Weinstein or shown support for Judd, including: Amber Tamblyn, America Ferrera, Brie Larson, Brooklyn Decker, Patricia Arquette, Jessica Chastain, Chastain, and Heather Matarazzo.

Victims: Ashley Judd (left in 1997) and Rose McGowan (right in 2004) were revealed to be two of Weinstein's alleged victims by the Times

Others, like Zoe Kazan and Jenny Slate have used retweets to voice their concern, but not come out in their own words at this time.

Barkin made her comments during an exchange with Rosie O'Donnell, revealing in the process that she grew up with Harvey and his brother Bob.

Former New York broadcast anchor Lauren Sivan said Weinstein once masturbated in front of her (Pictured: July 2015)

After Rosie wrote that she believed that allegations Barkin asked her why, and then went on to comment about the fact that Judd had spoken on the record.

'I don't know when she said this but I give Ashley Judd an enormous amount of credit coming forward,' wrote Barkin.

'I know it's not fair for other victims but it is just more loaded coming from a well known successful actress or unfortunately maybe more "newsworthy."'

Rosie also wrote: 'he once called me the c word for defending night shyamalan after we filmed WIDE AWAKE.'

Later that night Barkin wrote: 'I'm sick to death of apologies, all of these endless meaningless apologies. Do something right or go f*** yourselves.'

Most vocal of all despite is Rose McGowan, who received a settlement in 1997 and therefore cannot speak about her experience but has found ways to work around a NDA.

Hollywood has treated McGowan like a pariah ever since she began to speak publicly about being harassed and assaulted early on in her career, which was expected to explode after her screen-stealing debut in 'Scream.'

Weinstein produced that film for Miramax, and it was released the same year that an incident involving the executive and McGowan transpired in a hotel room at the Sundance Film Festival according to The New York Times.

Whatta man: 'Life In Pieces' star Thomas Sadoski, who is married to actress Amanda Seyfried, showed his support of the women who came forward

Top prize: The most encouraging tweet from a member of the Hollywood community came from 'Girls' producer Jenni Konner

Too late now to say sorry: Ellen Barkin is a longtime acquaintance of the Weinsteins, but that did not stop her from speaking out

Model citizen: Brooklyn Decker wasted no time at all on Thursday voicing her support for Judd and problem with the silence from Hollywood stars

McGowan got on social media immediately after that story was released, writing: 'Women fight on. And to the men out there, stand up. We need you as allies. #bebrave'

She later tweeted: 'Anyone who does business with __ is complicit. And deep down you know you are even dirtier. Cleanse yourselves.'

On Wednesday, McGowan also engaged in a Twitter discussion with actress Asia Argento, known for her roles in films such as 'XXX' and 'Marie Antoinette.'

McGowan also wrote on Twitter: 'Women fight on. And to the men out there, stand up. We need you as allies. #bebrave'

'I want to buy the movie rights,' wrote McGowan soon after it was revealed that Weinstein would be the subject of two bombshell exposes, though she did not say she was directly referring to that report.

'I own the movie rights,' replied Argento, who then added: 'It's gonna be the best movie of the last 20 years.'

McGowan responded to that by stating: 'We're gonna lobby for so many Oscars.'

Weinstein had said to the initial report that two stories were soon to be published by scoffing at the notion, stating: 'The story sounds so good, I want to buy the movie rights.'

Kate Hudson loves social media, but has had nothing to say in the wake of the Times story

And while Ms. Kidman and Ms. Streep and Ms. Paltrow may be too busy to help prop up young women who are being harassed by a man in power, there are some young men in the industry who are also jumping in to support these victims.

It should be noted that unlike those three aforementioned women, these men have never won an Oscar for starring in one of Weinstein's films.

'Life In Pieces' star Thomas Sadoski, who is married to actress Amanda Seyfried, showed his support of the women who came forward by writing: 'The courage to do what they have done in the face of the threats they are undoubtedly getting cannot be dismissed.'

Anthony Bourdain, who is rumored to be dating Asia Argento, took on those who have kept quiet.

'Nauseating, chicken-hearted enablers all,' wrote Bourdain.

Bourdain, the host of Parts Unknown on CNN, made the statment in a Friday tweet

He quickly followed that up by clarifying his intended target, stating: 'Im not talking about his victims. Im talking about everyone else who knew and said nothing. Who are still staying silent.'

And 'Mindy Project' actor Ike Baranholtz simply stated: 'This is disgusting. Thanks to @AshleyJudd and the others who are speaking out about this.'

The most encouraging tweet from a member of the Hollywood community came from 'Girls' producer Jenni Konner, who said on Thursday: 'Who are the agents/managers that sent their clients to meet with him when this was a well known secret? Them nxt.'

Harass a nice day: Weinstein bid farewell to his newly hired attorney Lisa Bloom on Thursday (above)

Georgina Chapman was seen leaving her Manhattan home on Friday morning, marking the first time she has been seen in public since her husband's decades of sexual harassment were revealed on Thursday.

The Marchesa designer appeared morose but did manage to flash a smirk as she made her way out of the $15million townhouse she shares with Harvey Weinstein an hour after her husband headed off to work.

Weinstein exited the home on Friday carrying some papers under his arm and flashing a big smile as he made his way to the waiting SUV outside, with his trip to the office coming less than 24 hours after he informed the Times that he was taking a leave of absence.

The embattled Hollywood heavyweight appeared surprisingly upbeat and chipper, especially given the fact that his board will be voting on Friday afternoon on whether or not to cut all ties to the founder and namesake of the company.

He is also facing new allegations of improper conduct, with British actress Jessica Hynes taking to Twitter on Friday and writing: 'I was offered a film role at 19, Harvey Weinstein came on board and wanted me to screen test in a bikini. I refused & lost the job.'

She then added: 'I'm sure there are many more...'

Hynes, who earlier in her career went by Jessica Stevenson, in now 44 and has starred in the two most recent 'Bridget Jones' films as well as number of theatrical productions, being nominated for a Tony in 2009 for her role in 'The Norman Conquests' on Broadway.

Her claim is remarkably similar to a blind item that has been floating around for over a decade, and is well known to many in Hollywood.

Writer and comedian Jack Howard noted that, replying to Hynes: 'Holy s*** I knew the story but I didn't know who it was about.'

Hynes did not reveal what the film was, but it would have been around 1991 or 1992 when Weinstein was beginning his ascent up the ranks in the movie industry while working in London.

It was also in 1991 when he allegedly sexually harassed the first of his many alleged victims who came forward to speak with the Times on the record about his behavior.

Laura Madden said that she was asked by Weinstein to give him massages while he was staying at hotels in Dublin and London at that time.

'It was so manipulative,' said Madden.

'You constantly question yourself  am I the one who is the problem?'

Easy breezey: Georgina Chapman, 42, stepped out of her $15 million townhouse in the West Village of Manhattan on Friday at around 9.30am on her way out of the city (above)

These $1050 Valentino rockstud leather sandals were made for walking: Chapman was off to work on her upcoming bridal presentation, which she is showing in appointments and will present next week

Chapman, 41, did not comment on any of the claims on her way out of the home, heading straight off to her atelier ahead of her label's bridal presentation next week.

She stayed similarly silent on social media Thursday, opting to post photos of her bridal line rather than address the bombshell report in the Times, which will soon be followed by at least one more story in the New Yorker.

Weinstein played a big role in Chapman's ascent in the fashion world, as the well-connected executive facilitated the relationships between his wife and stars like Blake Lively, Jennifer Lopez, Penelope Cruz and Sandra Bullock.

Chapman may have been a bit down on Friday, but her sartorial selections were, as usual, picture perfect.

The British-born designer paired $1,045 Valentino heels and a purse from the Italian brand with a jean jacket and skirt.

Chapman then added a pop of color with her silk blouse and a $1500 Gucci bow belt with pearl accents.

She kept her eyes hidden however behind a large pair of $500 Dior Diorama sunglasses, while her hair looked as if it has been perfectly blown out and styled on Thursday.

It was revealed on Thursday that Weinstein once allegedly asked Ashley Judd if she would like to watch him shower during a meeting in his room at the Peninsula Beverly Hills and paid $100,000 to Rose McGowan for an unknown incident shortly after she filmed her breakthrough role in the film 'Scream.'

That settlement is one of eight that Weinstein has reportedly paid out over the past 30 years, with Italian model Ambra Battilana also getting an undisclosed sum in 2015 after accusing the Hollywood executive of groping her and putting his hand under her skirt.

It was also inside his room at the Peninsula Beverly Hills where Weinstein allegedly stripped naked and forced a female employee to give a massage.

Weinstein did not deny any of the explosive claims uncovered by the Times, saying: 'I appreciate the way I've behaved with colleagues in the past has caused a lot of pain, and I sincerely apologize for it. Though I'm trying to do better, I know I have a long way to go.'

He added that he is now taking a leave of absence from the company to 'deal with this issue head on.'

More stories: Tony-nominated British actress Jessica Hynes said on Friday that she was once fired from a film when she refused to do a screen test in a bikini

Judd recounted her encounter with Weinstein, saying she was doing night shoots for her 1997 film 'Kiss the Girls' when she got an invite to meet with Weinsten that she could not pass up.

She said she felt uncomfortable from the start and ordered cereal from room service because it would arrive quicker than a hot meal.

Judd said she was asked to give Weinstein a massage and then a shoulder rub, both of which she declined while trying to get herself out of the room.

That is when he allegedly asked her to help him pick out his clothes for the day and then watch him shower.

'I said no, a lot of ways, a lot of times, and he always came back at me with some new ask,' said Judd.

'It was all this bargaining, this coercive bargaining.'

She eventually made her escape by joking that Weinstein would have to help her win an Oscar before she would be willing to touch him, stating that the prestige of working for his studio made it too difficult to forcefully shut down his harassment.

'There's a lot on the line, the cachet that came with Miramax,' explained Judd.

Judd previously wrote about the same experience in 2015 for Variety without naming Weinstein, simply saying it was a studio mogul.

'I was with a bunch of other actors, and it was critical that it was actors: The exact same thing had happened to them by the exact same mogul,' wrote Judd.

'Only when we were sitting around talking about it did we realize our experiences were identical. There was a mutual strengthening and fortification of our resolve.'

She later wrote in that piece: 'The ultimate thing when I was weaseling out of everything else was, "Will you watch me take a shower?" And all the other women, sitting around this table with me, said, "Oh my godthat's what he said to me too."'
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The cheeky young son of the Croatian prime minister caused mischief today during a meeting with the Pope at the Vatican.

Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, 47, and his family were in the Apostolic Palace today for a reception where they discussed diplomatic relations between the Holy See and the Republic of Croatia.

But it was the PM's son Mario who stole the show by charging around the room and grabbing a statuette the Pope was handing his father.

The cheeky young son of the Croatian prime minister caused mischief today during a meeting with the Pope at the Vatican

Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, 47, and his family were in the Apostolic Palace for a reception where they discussed diplomatic relations between the Holy See and the Republic of Croatia

But it was the PM's son Mario who stole the show by charging around the room and grabbing a statuette the Pope was handing his father

Pope Francis, 80, seemed cheered by the little boy's antics as he stroked the youngster's hair.

A Vatican spokesman said: 'This morning the Holy Father Francis received Mr. Andrej Plenkovic. They subsequently met with His Eminence Cardinal Pietro Parolin, secretary of State, accompanied by the Rev. Msgr. Antoine Camilleri, under-secretary for Relations with States.

'During the cordial discussions, appreciation was expressed for the good relations that exist between the Holy See and the Republic of Croatia, and for the positive contribution of the Church to the life of the Country.

'The conversation continued with an exchange of views on some themes of mutual interest, including the future of the European project and the regional context, with particular reference to the situation of the Croatian people in Bosnia and Herzegovina.'

Pope Francis, 80, seemed cheered by the little boy's antics as he stroked the youngster's hair

A Vatican spokesman said: 'This morning the Holy Father Francis received Mr. Andrej Plenkovic. They subsequently met with His Eminence Cardinal Pietro Parolin, secretary of State, accompanied by the Rev. Msgr. Antoine Camilleri, under-secretary for Relations with States'

Pope Francis, receiving the participants in the first-ever World Congress on Child Dignity in the Digital World on Friday, also spoke of the painful lessons the Church has learned through its recent experience with clerical sex abuse, saying that the Church has come to acknowledge her own failures in providing for the protection of children

Pope Francis, receiving the participants in the first-ever World Congress on Child Dignity in the Digital World on Friday, also spoke of the painful lessons the Church has learned through its recent experience with clerical sex abuse, saying that the Church has come to acknowledge her own failures in providing for the protection of children.

Earlier on Friday, Pope Francis urged the world, including the Catholic Church, to face up to the effects of online sexual violence on young people, including extreme pornography and sexting.

'We have to keep our eyes open and not hide from an unpleasant truth that we would rather not see,' Francis said at a gathering of technology executives and health professionals at the Vatican.

Alluding to the paedophile scandals that have rocked the church, he added: 'For that matter, surely we have realised sufficiently in recent years that concealing the reality of sexual abuse is a grave error and the source of many other evils?'

Earlier on Friday, Pope Francis urged the world, including the Catholic Church, to face up to the effects of online sexual violence on young people, including extreme pornography and sexting

'We have to keep our eyes open and not hide from an unpleasant truth that we would rather not see,' Francis said at a gathering of technology executives and health professionals at the Vatican

Alluding to the paedophile scandals that have rocked the church, he added: 'For that matter, surely we have realised sufficiently in recent years that concealing the reality of sexual abuse is a grave error and the source of many other evils?'

In a speech about protecting the dignity of children in the internet era, Francis warned of the spread of extreme pornography, sexting and online bullying as well as sexual exploitation, trafficking and the live-streaming of rape and violence against children

In a speech about protecting the dignity of children in the internet era, Francis warned of the spread of extreme pornography, sexting and online bullying as well as sexual exploitation, trafficking and the live-streaming of rape and violence against children.

He also cited evidence of the 'profound impact of violent and sexual images on the impressionable minds of children'.

'These problems will surely have a serious and life-long effect on today's children.'

More than a quarter of the world's three billion internet users are children, with many adults unable to understand technology that can block and filter disturbing content.

He also cited evidence of the 'profound impact of violent and sexual images on the impressionable minds of children'

More than a quarter of the world's three billion internet users are children, with many adults unable to understand technology that can block and filter disturbing content

'We would be seriously deluding ourselves if we thought that a society, where an abnormal consumption of internet sex is rampant among adults, could be capable of effectively protecting minors,' he added

'We would be seriously deluding ourselves if we thought that a society, where an abnormal consumption of internet sex is rampant among adults, could be capable of effectively protecting minors,' he added.

While recognising how the internet has opened up a forum for the freedom of expression and exchange of ideas, he said it has also offered new means for the abuse and corruption of minors.

He said collaboration between governments and law enforcement was needed at a global level to address the problem.

While recognising how the internet has opened up a forum for the freedom of expression and exchange of ideas, he said it has also offered new means for the abuse and corruption of minors
Melissa Castruita, pictured, survived the 2015 massacre in San Bernardino, California, and was in the festival crowd on October 1 during the shooting that left 59 dead in Las Vegas

A woman who survived the massacre in San Bernardino, California, in 2015 was in the crowd at the Route 91 Harvest Festival on October 1 during the shooting that left 58 people dead in Las Vegas.

Melissa Castruita was in the VIP area near the stage singing along to Jason Aldean when the shots came pouring out of the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay, according to the LA Times.

She sent a text to her fiance, J.C. Monticone, 36, that read: 'Active shooter.'

Those were the same two words she texted him on December 2, 2015, when two people shot up her workplace in San Bernardino, California.

She never thought she'd be unlucky enough to be in the center of a mass shooting, let alone two separate times in two years.

On October 1 gunman Stephen Paddock opened fire on the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay, killing 58 and injuring almost 500 in the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history

On December 2, 2015, a terrorist duo shot up a holiday party at the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino, California, during a holiday party, killing 14 and injuring 21 others

During both shootings, Castruita texted her fiance, J.C. Monticone, 'Active shooter'. Monticone is pictured holding the phone that shows the text messages during the attack in Las Vegas

A terrorist duo killed 14 people and injured 21 others during a holiday party held at the Inland Regional Center where Castruita worked in San Bernardino.

The shooters were identified as Syed Farook and Tashfeen Malik. They were killed in a shootout with the police after they fled the scene.

Almost two years later, she experienced the most deadly shooting in American history when gunman Stephen Paddock killed 58 and wounded almost 500 others on Sunday in Las Vegas.

Castruita was celebrating her 34th birthday at the festival, according to the LA Times.

She had tickets for the VIP section but had arrived later than planned and missed out on getting seats in the outdoor arena.

Her aunt and cousin considered going into the pit area, but it was crowded. Ever since her experience with the San Bernardino shooting, Castruita had been nervous in large crowds.

She remembered driving to the Inland Regional Center on December 2 after the gunfire had started, knowing people had been shot and killed at the site where she worked.

A week after that shooting, nobody could go back into the building, so Castruita and Monticone decided to go to Disneyland.

The crowds at the park overwhelmed her to the point that they had to leave.

After the Vegas shooting, the two managed to meet up at the MGM Grand, where they hugged the same way they did when Monticone found Castruita after the San Bernardino shooting

Not long after the San Bernardino shooting she was out running and saw a man with a hand in his pocket. She panicked, wondering if he had a gun.

She told the LA Times that by the time this year's Route 91 Harvest festival came around, she was feeling better about being in crowded spaces and her gun-paranoia had subsided.

And then bullets rained down on the crowd.

Upon receiving Castruita's text about the shooter, Monticone ran out of the Luxor Casino toward her.

Similarly, he drove 95mph on the freeway to get her in San Bernardino two years ago.

After crouching in the VIP section while the shots were being fired, Castruita and other concertgoers ripped down the aluminum wall of the section and ran toward the Tropicana hotel.

She and Monticone finally met up at the MGM Grand.

They hugged, just as they had in 2015.
It is a name tainted by murder and scandal. But astonishingly, the new Lady Lucan says the evidence that her late father-in-law, Lord Lucan, killed the family nanny is weak and that she doesnt care.

In her first ever interview, outspoken Danish heiress Anne-Sofie Foghsgaard  the 8th Countess of Lucan  tells The Mail on Sundays You magazine today: Its time for everyone to move on. Its a new era.

The woman who married George Bingham, only son of Lucky Lucan  the 7th Earl who was accused of the brutal murder of nanny Sandra Rivett in 1974  wants to rebrand the family name.

In her first ever interview, outspoken Danish heiress Anne-Sofie Foghsgaard  the 8th Countess of Lucan  tells The Mail on Sundays You magazine today: Its time for everyone to move on. Its a new era'

The news follows the death a fortnight ago of the mother-in-law she never met, the troubled and tragic Veronica, the Dowager Countess of Lucan.

Anne-Sofie, 39, speaks of the bitter legacy that tore her husbands family apart and reveals:

The devastating feud between Veronica and her children that endured until her death;

The 7th Earls children adored him and never accepted his guilt;.

George Bingham, 50, now the holder of the title, is the love of my life and their relationship survived an earlier break-up.

The woman who married George Bingham, only son of Lucky Lucan  the 7th Earl who was accused of the brutal murder of nanny Sandra Rivett in 1974  wants to rebrand the family name

Richard John Bingham was a dashing gambler in the middle of a divorce and toxic custody battle with his wife when he became the target of Scotland Yards most infamous manhunt in November 1974.

Miss Rivett was found bludgeoned to death in the Lucans Belgravia home. Veronica  believed to be the main target  was also injured. she named her husband as the assailant.

The next day, Lucans blood-stained car was found abandoned at Newhaven, Sussex. The following year, an inquest jury named Lucan as the prime suspect in Miss Rivetts murder.

Since then there has never been a confirmed sighting of him and in 1999 he was officially declared dead.

In 2013 they began dating again and married last year. One important person who was not there, despite being invited, was Georges mother

George legally became the 8th Earl, and the daughter he had ten months ago with Anne-Sofie has the title Lady Daphne.

Anne-Sofie says she knew nothing of the dark past of the Lucan family when she met financial consultant George a decade ago at a party. I cant remember the moment when I did come to know.

'George is the love of my life  funny, clever, kind, warm. [The murder] had nothing to do with him  he was a small boy asleep in his bed when it happened.

It was a dark time for my husband. He lost his father, mother and nanny. But its time for everybody to move on. Its a new era. Those were very, very dark times for George, and like any of us, he doesnt like to dwell on dark times.

The relationship fizzled out after a few months. I was broken-hearted, but I do think if there is magic, it finds itself again.

Richard John Bingham was a dashing gambler in the middle of a divorce and toxic custody battle with his wife when he became the target of Scotland Yards most infamous manhunt in November 1974

Pictured, a Policeman Stands Outside Lady Lucan's Home In Lower Belgrave Street

In 2013 they began dating again and married last year. One important person who was not there, despite being invited, was Georges mother. She had been estranged from her three children  George and his sisters Frances and Camilla  for years.

But their attempts to heal the rift were in vain, perhaps because they all adored their father and never believed him guilty.

Anne-Sofie says: The children remember their father as being funny, warm and kind. And her own view of the crime? It seems to me the evidence is weak. I dont care.

Now the new chatelaine has sealed the modern Lucan brand by launching a range of outdoor clothing for men and women under that name.

Its a fresh start for the name, she says defiantly.
The elaborately carved wooden pulpit of Christ Church Eccleston has doubtless hosted many thought-provoking sermons during its 180-year history.

The handsome red sandstone church in the parish of St Helens, Merseyside, with its early Victorian lychgate and crumbling graveyard, attracts a dedicated and devout congregation every Sunday, thanks to the warm welcome from its bubbly vicar, the Reverend Sonya Doragh.

Her homilies are known for their candour and insight.

But, unusually for the normally sedate Anglican ministry, they can also prove shocking.

One Sunday late last year, Sonya took a deep breath before she stepped into the pulpit.

Then she confessed to her parishioners that she had been raped not just once, but twice, at the age of 17, by two separate attackers.

Sonya Doragh (pictured) stepped up to the pulpit one Sunday recently and told her congregation she was raped twice at the age of 17

'It was something I just had to do,' she explained today.

'It is a part of me, and it is a part of my faith, although it has taken me 20 years to articulate.

'I think it's important as a priest to engage with my brokenness, and my vulnerability.

'To be able to say from the front of church, 'I was raped, and I still love God,' is so simple but so important for anyone  women or men  who might have experienced similar trauma.

'I hope my honesty in turn encourages my own parishioners to approach me with a similar candour.

'Their reaction was, 'Wow! That was brave.'

'But I don't know who I would be or what I would be had it not happened. I know only that brokenness breeds compassion.'

That Sonya, now 45, has survived such extreme tests of faith in both God and mankind is testimony to a rather extraordinary strength of character.

It was fostered by her strong Christian upbringing in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, where her father left the corporate world to become a priest himself later in life.

But as a teenager, Sonya rebelled against the church.

It was the late 1980s, the beginning of the rave generation inspired by a new wave of dance music and party drugs, and it was all too easy to fall under its spell.

One summer's day in 1989, Sonya skipped school to hang out in a local park.

'It was a lovely, sunny day,' she recalls.

'People would have been smoking weed and drinking, but being the privileged girl that I was I had my mum's car so I didn't have anything, and offered people a lift home.

'It was mid-afternoon  I had to get home as if I'd been to school.

'One guy said yes and, when we arrived at his home, asked if I wanted to go in to meet his family.

Although he was a bit older, I had no reason not to trust him.' Once inside, he raped Sonya at knifepoint.

It is hard for her to discuss the details of it, even now. 'It was horrific, obviously planned. I was a virgin and I just retreated into myself.

I have no memory of what happened afterwards. I don't remember driving home. I was in total shock, and that lasted for quite some time. I lost part of myself that day.'

After the two horrendous ordeals she suffered at the age of just 17, Revd Doragh (pictured) had to be treated for several sexually transmitted infections and was left unable to conceive

She told no one, until some gynaecological symptoms led her to confide in a friend, who went with her to a sexually transmitted infection (STI) clinic at Stoke Mandeville Hospital.

'I don't suppose there is anything more frightening than being raped at knifepoint, though I went to the clinic thinking I might have AIDS.

'Then  at the height of the epidemic  it was a death sentence.'

Sonya was treated for several STIs, including chlamydia, although an HIV test came back negative.

But the horror and loneliness of the experience did, she admits, lead her to 'self-anaesthetise' with drink and drugs.

Just weeks later, she spent the night at a friend's house following a trip to a club.

She fell asleep in a room with other girls but woke to find herself being raped  again by a man she knew and trusted.

Sonya fled before morning and told no one, yet this horrific turn of events would throw her even more deeply into turmoil.

'There was shock, extreme horror. It felt like I'd watched it in a film, happening to someone else.

'I blamed myself  of course I did. Most victims do. You hear it, don't you, 'She was asking for it.'

'For a while I even believed that God had punished me for abandoning Christianity; that somehow the rapes were linked.

'I hadn't made myself vulnerable, but yet I still felt that guilt.'

Going into her final year at school, Sonya describes living 'a parallel life'. 'There was a dark, internal reality. I was screaming inside.

Revd Donargh made her brave confession in front of parishioners at Christ Church Ecclestone in St Helens, Merseyside (pictured)

Then there was the external reality where I just got on with everything, but avoided any proper conversation or intimacy. It was a whirlwind  I wanted to be too busy to think. I played netball, I played in my orchestra, I studied for my A-levels.

When there was nothing to do, I drank and partied.'

Incredibly, she passed her exams and began a degree in Business and French at Oxford Brookes University.

Largely, she hid the post-traumatic stress which haunted her, leaving her frightened, anxious and angry.

'There were certain triggers' She pauses.

'I had some bizarre reactions to kitchen knives. If I was alone in a room with a man I would have a wobble  or more, if someone grabbed hold of my wrist.'

Outwardly, however, she appeared focused and destined for success.

During her final year, in 1994, Sonya was offered a place on a Marks & Spencer fast-track management scheme, and had also passed the first round of tests for a Civil Service role.

But unsure of which path to take, she accompanied a friend to church.

Seeking clarity in her career, it instead gave her the courage to confront her experiences.

'Coming to faith helped. I'm not blaming my rapes for all my teenage decisions. I had a lot to be forgiven for.

'My experience of forgiveness has been it's a movement rather than an occasion. In being forgiven my movement was, and is, towards God.'

Ultimately she rejected the corporate path, instead choosing to work  unpaid  for Christian charity Viva, helping street children.

'It was greater than my drive for all the things that had motivated me before. All my peers were doing the management thing  I wanted to change the world.'

Meeting her husband Phil, who was training to be a youth worker, on a blind date in 1996 was transformative.

'He was very people focused, attentive, caring, gentle  the antithesis of the alpha male.'

They married within a year, but soon found that damage to Sonya's ovaries  linked to the delayed chlamydia treatment  was too severe to allow them to have their own children.

One fallopian tube was completely blocked; the other twisted at a 90-degree angle, making conception unlikely.

They learned only later that IVF was also not an option.

'It was then that the 'Why me?' questions really began. I know one of my rapists now has children,' she adds, quietly.

'That's not fair. But I've learned not to expect fair.'

The couple chose to adopt, and have three loud, messy boys  siblings who are now 20 and 19, and a five-year-old. In 2010, Sonya began her training to become ordained.

'People kept suggesting it,' she laughs. 'The call was gradual, but now it feels very much what I was made for.'

While she was studying, she made the decision to speak in front of her fellow trainees.

Sonya wrote a poem about the rapes, which imagined God being present 'and being as horrified as I was'.

'It was so difficult to do, but very cathartic. I realised God loved those men as well as He loved me.

'It's horrific to be able to say that  why didn't God stop what was happening?

'But I could now see that it was a loving God who had allowed it because he allows all of us all of our choices.

'One verse was about me screaming out to God that it wasn't fair, and being surprised to hear 'I agree' in return.'

But although Sonya believed she was confronting her long-buried past, it was only the following year, when she broke her leg falling down the stairs, which finally re-awoke the full horror of her experience.

'I would wake up in the night screaming. It was almost as though the trauma that I hadn't dealt with had clung on to this accident.

'I had counselling, which was painful and exposing. I had gone to great lengths to shut the door.'

Sonya finally found the strength, in 2015, to report the men who attacked her to the police. An investigation is ongoing.

The legacy they have left is in the chronic pain of pelvic inflammatory disease, which doctors believe could have been triggered by chlamydia.

A hysterectomy will, she hopes, finally address this.

Then last year, Sonya was appointed vicar at Christ Church Eccleston.

Interestingly, she says the recruitment panel had 'done their due diligence' and knew that Sonya had written about her rapes in the Church Times.

She now felt she had their blessing in exploring the issue with her congregation.

'They deserved to hear it directly from me,' she says. 'In church, we don't discuss our dark valleys enough and that's wrong.'

The sermon was a meditation on faith, and the challenges of believing in a God who allows such monstrous acts to take place.

Perhaps surprisingly, there were no shocked glances, no sharp intakes of breath.

Instead, most of those present that day praised their vicar for her bravery.

Crucially, Sonya has not only forgiven herself, but has forgiven her attackers  a troubling proposition for most of us.

'I know these men were very broken,' she says. 'I can only hope they've found a path that's shown them love in a more complete and whole way, because their brokenness is greater than mine.'

Sonya is now involved in a special 'Mother's Day Runaways' service at Liverpool Cathedral for anyone who finds the annual celebration of motherhood difficult.

'I've realised that my story is rarely given voice. To hear that trauma spoken about, and to hear that someone has thrived beyond it, is really helpful for other women.

'For me, telling my story has become a feminist thing. It's the only power I've got to vindicate a rape. Rape didn't take my life, my womanhood or my femininity.

'Speaking out is an act of power. But in the immediate aftermath, it felt like exposing weakness.'
Royal Mail is heading for a courtroom showdown after firebrand union bosses last night vowed to fight its legal bid to halt a strike over pensions and pay.

The company had threatened the Communication Workers Union with an injunction to prevent 110,000 staff conducting a wave of strikes in the run-up to Christmas.

But last night union bosses  led by CWU chief Dave Ward, a close ally of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn  said they had a cast-iron case.

Royal Mail is heading for a courtroom showdown after firebrand union bosses last night vowed to fight its legal bid to halt a strike over pensions and pay (File photo)

A union spokesman said: They are just trying to play for time. We feel we have exhausted all the processes.

Last week, tens of thousands of staff voted in favour of a two-day walkout from October 19, which the company fears will cause a huge backlog at sorting offices.

There are also fears that there could be more action before the festive period.

The CWU says it has been left with no alternative to strike action after 18 months of talks in a dispute over pay, working hours and plans to scrap the generous final salary pension scheme.

Last night union bosses  led by CWU chief Dave Ward (pictured), a close ally of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn  said they had a cast-iron case

But Royal Mail, which was privatised four years ago, insists the union failed to exhaust every option at mediation before calling the strike ballot.

It is on these grounds that the company is seeking an injunction to halt the walkout.

Sources said that a second strike could target the busy November period, including Black Friday sales held by many retailers at the end of the month.

Royal Mail chief executive Moya Greene wants to cut back the wage bill for the companys 140,000 employees.

Sources say that salaries have risen by about 10 per cent over the past four years, and average pay is about 23,000.
Ukraine's Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin, during his visit to India on October 5 and October 6, held talks with representatives of the republic's foreign policy department. The parties have agreed on joint film production in Ukraine for the first time, the press service of the Foreign Ministry has reported.

"During the talks, the entire spectrum of bilateral relations and a wide range of global and regional problems were considered. The sides agreed on the need for a significant intensification of the Ukrainian-Indian political dialogue and in principle agreed to exchange visits at the highest level in 2018," the press service of the department said on Friday evening.

Klimkin during his working visit to India met with Minister of External Affairs of the Republic of India Sushma Swaraj and the state external ministers Mobashar Akbar and Vijay Singh.

Separately, there was a marked increase in bilateral economic cooperation and official and business contacts in this area.

At the same time, the sides confirmed the agreement to hold the next meeting of the Joint Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technical, Industrial and Cultural Cooperation in Kyiv in November 2017.

The sides also positively assessed the significant revival of cooperation in the cultural and humanitarian sphere.

On the same day, Klimkin gave an interview to one of the leading newspapers of India, 'The Hindu', in which he analyzed the current state and prospects of Ukrainian-Indian relations in the main areas of mutual interest, and also noted Ukraine's readiness to further intensify bilateral cooperation with India in all key areas.

New positive trends in relations between states were separately noted. In particular, during 2016-2017 years it was recorded an unprecedented number of Indian students willing to receive higher education in Ukrainian universities - more than 4,000 people - in the history of diplomatic relations between Ukraine and India.

In addition, for the first time the parties have agreed on joint film production on the territory of Ukraine.

Also on Friday, Klimkin met with honorary consuls of Ukraine to the states of the South Asian region. The event was attended by honorary consuls to Mumbai (India), Nepal and Sri Lanka. During the conversation, the minister stressed the need to further intensify the work of the honorary consular institutions of Ukraine, primarily in terms of protecting the interests and rights of Ukrainian legal entities and individuals on the territory of their consulates.

"Specific tasks were set for each of the honorary consuls to promote the Ukrainian export products to the markets of South Asian countries, launch joint economic projects, develop cultural and humanitarian contacts, and popularize Ukraine's image," the report reads.
A British Islamic State fanatic who has spent two years fighting in the Syrian city of Raqqa is a former Porsche-driving barrister, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.

Abu Adam Al-Britani described last week how the ISIS stronghold  the scene of some of the terror group's most appalling atrocities  had been 'obliterated' in coalition air strikes and said US-backed forces were now closing in on him and his fellow militants.

In a pitiful 72-minute rant, he said life was so bleak that stray cats and dogs had become fat by feasting on 'dead human flesh'.

The terrorist gave few clues to his real identity on the tape, posted on encrypted messaging app Telegram, which ISIS uses to spread propaganda.

But The Mail on Sunday has learned he is 39-year-old Yaser Iqbal, a married lawyer from Birmingham who, before moving to Syria, boasted he earned more in a day than most do in a month.

ISIS fighter Abu Adam Al-Britani's true identity has been revealed. He is in fact 39-year old Yaser Iqbal (pictured), a married lawyer from Birmingham who drove a Porsche and 'was not a loser'

In the recording Iqbal emphasised his story does not conform to the jihadi stereotype, saying of his old life: 'I was not a loser I had a Porsche, I was doing very well in my life I was looking forward to saving up to buy a villa and a Lamborghini.'

After practising as a barrister in London he became a solicitor specialising in immigration, and ran a succession of firms, including one in Harrow, North West London.

It is unclear just what prompted him to give up his successful life, though he said he came to regard his UK existence as 'rubbish'. He criticises Western culture, describing Britain as 'a country of dogs'.

In 2010, Iqbal was one of 24 prominent Muslims who contributed to a book called '7/7 Muslim Perspectives' in which they reflected on the carnage caused by the London suicide bombers five years earlier.

Described as a barrister in Birmingham, he wrote: 'I am not pointing towards some conspiracy theory but what I am presenting is my view that the explanation as to the real perpetrators of 7/7 is not as simple as most people are led to believe.'

Neighbours in Birmingham said last night that Iqbal, who has a conviction for drink driving, encouraged his former friends to 'join him in jihad'.

Iqbal claimed he did not live up to jihadi stereotypes and 'was not a loser and drove a Porsche'

However before he quit Britain four years ago, initially for Saudi Arabia, he was held in high regard in his neighbourhood. Locals described him in glowing terms.

For some he had been the man to help resolve their immigration issues and for many he was a shining example of what was possible in British society.

One neighbour said: 'He's a lovely man and very humble. He would always be willing to help you with advice. He is not lying when he says he earned more in a day than many do in a month and he drove a silver Porsche. It was a Boxster.'

Iqbal lives with his teacher wife Wajda, 37, and toddler son, Adam, and is among the last 300 ISIS fighters left in Raqqa. The city  the group's de facto capital whose fall is now said to be imminent  is synonymous with cruelty and barbarism, with beheadings and other atrocities part of everyday life.

Yet in his rant, Iqbal complains bitterly about the air strikes and says he wants to tell the world of their horror.

The Islamic State militant has been fighting in the Syrian city of Raqqa (pictured) for over two years

He said streets were littered with bodies as people were too scared to go out to bury them for fear of being hit by missiles.

And yet he also claims: 'I would not trade the place I am in for any other place in the world.'

In another posted recording, this time spoken in Iqbal's native tongue of Punjabi, he addresses his parents, urging them not to worry about him, but to see his fate  of being in the capital of the Caliphate  as an honour. In the background his toddler son can be heard.

A former acquaintance said: 'He and his wife came back here the Ramadan before last and he kept talking about how everything in this country was haram [forbidden].

After that I heard he was texting friends here on the Telegram service and telling them to come and join him on jihad.'

The security services are analysing Iqbal's recordings. A year ago police raided his Birmingham home and that of his parents.

His sister, who asked not be named, said the family informed the authorities when he contacted them. She said they had tried to protect the children and his father, who was unwell, from the truth.

Her husband added: 'I do not want the actions of some f****** lunatic affecting my family. If he wants to put audios out there for the whole world, that's his business but nobody cares what he has to say.'

West Midlands Police declined to comment on the matter.
The severed head, legs and clothes of missing Swedish journalist Kim Wall have been found by police divers, Danish investigators said yesterday

The severed head, legs and clothes of missing Swedish journalist Kim Wall have been found by police divers, Danish investigators said yesterday.

The freelance journalist was last seen alive on August 10 when she went to interview inventor Peter Madsen aboard his self-built submarine, UC3 Nautilus, near the Danish capital Copenhagen.

Madsen has since been charged with her murder. Ms Walls dismembered torso washed ashore off the Danish coast 11 days after the 30-year-old writer boarded the 40-ton submarine to research an article about Madsen.

Copenhagen police investigator Jens Moeller Jensen said the head and other body parts were found in the same area on Friday in plastic bags, with a knife and heavy metal pieces to make them sink.

We found a bag within which we found Kim Walls clothes, underwear, stockings and shoes. In the same bag lay a knife, and there were some car pipes to weigh the bag down, he said yesterday.

A post-mortem confirmed that the head was Walls and that it showed no sign of fracture or any sign of other blunt violence to the skull, he said.

Madsen, 46, has claimed that Ms Wall died after being accidentally hit by a heavy hatch in the submarine, but police have said 15 stab wounds were found on the torso. Madsen denies murder and a further charge of mutilating Ms Walls corpse.
The Mail on Sunday can reveal that Pat Kirkwood (above) was indeed twice recommended for an OBE but also twice rejected, amid persistent embarrassing rumours linking her to Prince Philip

She was a stunning beauty and one of the most famous women of British stage and screen, enjoying a long and distinguished career.

So it is hardly a surprise that veteran showgirl Pat Kirkwood should have been deemed worthy of an honour.

Now The Mail on Sunday can reveal that she was indeed twice recommended for an OBE but also twice rejected, amid persistent embarrassing rumours linking her to Prince Philip.

Allegations of an affair cast a shadow over the early years of the Royal marriage, after Philip visited Kirkwood in her dressing room and had supper with her.

The rumours dogged Kirkwood throughout her life and are now to be resurrected in the new series of television drama The Crown.

This newspaper can also reveal that much of the Government paperwork regarding the snub has been destroyed  fuelling speculation over why she missed out.

Dubbed Britains answer to the major US star Betty Grable, Kirkwood found fame as a musical theatre star at the beginning of the Second World War and continued to perform even as German bombs fell on London. After the war, she became the first woman to be given her own show by the BBC.

It was at the height of this success that Prince Philip entered her life.

During a performance at the Hippodrome in 1948 the Prince visited Kirkwood in her dressing room. Later that evening the pair enjoyed supper at Les Ambassadeurs in Mayfair while a heavily pregnant Princess Elizabeth spent the night alone at Clarence House. Above, Kirkwood meets the Queen in 1953

Cabinet Office papers obtained under freedom of information laws reveal that Kirkwood was recommended for an OBE first in the Birthday Honours List and then the New Years Honours List of 2000. Above, a paper rejecting the actress for an OBE

During a performance at the Hippodrome in 1948 the Prince visited Kirkwood in her dressing room.

Later that evening the pair enjoyed supper at Les Ambassadeurs in Mayfair while a heavily pregnant Princess Elizabeth spent the night alone at Clarence House.

Kirkwood later recalled: He was full of life and energy. I suspect he felt trapped and rarely got a chance to be himself. I got off on the right foot because I made him laugh.

The meeting cause a sensation at the time and there were subsequent unfounded reports that the Prince had continued to see Kirkwood and had given her a white Rolls-Royce.

The star always denied they had an affair.

Cabinet Office papers obtained under freedom of information laws reveal that Kirkwood was recommended for an OBE first in the Birthday Honours List and then the New Years Honours List of 2000.

But despite the recommendation by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Ms Kirkwood, then aged 79, never received it.

The papers do not specify why, and the rest of the paperwork relating to her was destroyed by the Cabinet Office in 2002. The snub to Kirkwood, whose legs were once described by the theatre critic Kenneth Tynan as the eighth wonder of the world, will raise eyebrows, not least because of her stellar success on stage and screen.

The rumours dogged Kirkwood throughout her life and are now to be resurrected in the new series of television drama The Crown. It features marital tensions between the Queen and Philip (right), and his friendship with a dancer (left)

The upcoming second series of television drama The Crown will resurrect the rumours in scenes showing the Queen reacting jealously to Prince Philip. Royal biographer Margaret Holder said yesterday: I think giving Kirkwood an honour would have been embarrassing for the Queen regardless of whether or not the rumours are true.

In a contribution to an obituary of the star, a confidante said: In the normal course of events, she would have been a CBE or even a Dame, but she didnt get so much as an MBE, not even for her war work when she performed with the bombs raining down. She was denied the recognition she deserved.

It is unlikely that Kirkwood, who died on Christmas Day 2007, aged 86, turned down the honour.

TV presenter Gyles Brandreth, who knew four-times-married Kirkwood and is a friend of Philip, said: There was absolutely nothing in the story about her and the Duke of Edinburgh.

Pat resented the damage that the stories caused her and the embarrassment it has caused the Duke.

A spokesman for the Cabinet Office said: We can only comment on people who are on the honours list, not on names that dont appear.
Bitter Tory recriminations over the attempted coup against Theresa May have spilled into the open in lurid private messages seen by The Mail on Sunday.

During the furious exchanges between Tory MPs, a key Boris Johnson ally called for an end to the witch-hunt and urged his colleagues not to be w*****s.

The remarks by James Cleverly came as rebel MPs claimed that the Braintree MP had himself been one of the plotters  despite defending Mrs May in the media last week.

Bitter Tory recriminations over the attempted coup against Theresa May have spilled into the open in lurid private messages seen by The Mail on Sunday. ALLIES: James Cleverly with Boris Johnson

The attempted coup by former Tory chairman Grant Shapps was flushed out by party Whips last week in the wake of Mrs Mays calamitous party conference speech in Manchester.

Mr Shapps admitted collecting more than 30 names of MPs who want Mrs May to quit  short of the 48 required to trigger a leadership contest.

In his remarks on the WhatsApp messaging service, Mr Cleverly called on his colleagues to stop making accusations  and described it as political masturbation.

Mr Cleverly explained: It might feel nice for the person doing it [but] its really distasteful for everyone who is forced to watch and it achieves nothing other than a bit of a mess. So, please. Lets not be w*****s!

In response, Sutton and Cheams Paul Scully said: I need mind bleach, while Rochfords James Duddridge rebuked Mr Cleverly by saying: Far to [sic] graphic, Cleverly. This prompted Mid-Bedfordshires Nadine Dorries to accuse Mr Duddridge of being a plotter, saying: Perhaps you can deny that is the case while you are here.

When she did not get a response from Mr Duddridge, Ms Dorries persisted: You read my message three minutes ago  how long does it take you to type not true.

CHALLENGE: Nadine Dorries accused fellow Tory James Duddridge of being a plotter

Mr Duddridge stayed silent but Mr Cleverly intervened to say: How about we dont do witchhunt stuff on here. Undaunted, Ms Dorries names two more MPs she believes to be among the plotters  Bromleys Bob Neill and former Environment Secretary Owen Paterson.

Portsmouth Norths Penny Mordaunt then tries to calm tempers ahead of the return of the Commons tomorrow, by saying: Colleagues, we will all be in the trenches again next week, including those on GSs list let the Boss [Theresa May] know how well she is supported.

However, the bitterness showed no sign of abating last night after a senior rebel source claimed that Mr Cleverly had been one of the early plotters  only abandoning it after being bought off by No 10 with a Government job  he is a Commons aide to Immigration Minister Brandon Lewis. Mr Cleverly denies the accusation.

The source said: The reason Cleverly doesnt want a witch-hunt is because he was involved in the plot immediately after the Election. He told colleagues that Theresa had to go and discussed lists. He only pulled out when Downing Street got wind of it and gave him a job.

After the Shapps plot was exposed last week, Mr Cleverly had leapt to Mrs Mays defence, saying: Ive always liked Grant Shapps but he really is doing himself, the party and, most importantly, the country no favours at all. Just stop.

Mr Shapps started to collect the names of MPs in the immediate aftermath of Mrs Mays snap Election disaster, which led to the loss of her Commons majority. The 49-year-old Welwyn Hatfield MP employed five runners  MPs who toured the Commons tea rooms to ask colleagues if they wanted to add their names to a list of rebels.

By the time MPs had returned from their summer break for the two-week Commons sitting in September, the number of MPs on the list had risen from around 15 names to closer to 30.

They are understood to include former Brexit Minister David Jones and the former Education Secretary Nicky Morgan.

One of those MPs that Mr Shapps is known to have swapped notes with is the former International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell, who is a prominent ally of Brexit Secretary David Davis.

In July, The Mail on Sunday reported how former Cabinet Minister Mr Mitchell had told a secret Commons dinner that the party needed change at the top. Mr Mitchell said Mrs May was weak, had lost her authority, couldnt go on and we need a new leader.

Publicly, Mr Davis has said it would be a catastrophe if Mrs May stepped down, although he has not ruled out standing for the leadership if she quits.

The attempted coup by former Tory chairman Grant Shapps was flushed out by party Whips last week

Mr Mitchell has told colleagues that he believes nearly 50 MPs want Mrs May to leave  although Mr Shapps is understood to think that the figure is too high, because Mitchell ticks a yes too easily.

Mr Mitchell was the guest speaker at Mr Shappss annual Tory association dinner on Friday evening, although friends said that their conversation was restricted to what a long day they had had.

Mr Mitchell has been supportive of Mrs May since her conference disaster, putting out a statement saying he had respect for her, adding: It took courage of a high order to complete what was an important and interesting speech in impossible circumstances.

Mr Shapps has told friends that although his plot has not yet succeeded, he has been consulting colleagues involved in the move to topple Iain Duncan Smith in 2003, which took several weeks to reach fruition after a similarly dismal party conference.

Key to Mr Shapps swelling his numbers beyond 30 is persuading more pro-Brexit MPs to join, which could happen if they are disappointed by compromises which the Prime Minister makes in the Brussels negotiations.

When asked if it was true that he had been a plotter, Mr Cleverly said last night: How fascinating. Some people obviously dont know their a*** from their elbow. It is not true.

Mr Duddridge, Mr Neill and Mr Paterson all deny being on Mr Shappss list.

One rebel MP said: Those of us who want to see a change of leadership and dare not raise their heads in the WhatsApp group for fear of it being blown off are stunned by what amounts to cyber-bullying.

Another said: Its a bit rich of Nadine to demand loyalty, given the lengths to which she went to undermine David Cameron.
Former Prime Minister Sir John Major has told warring Tory MPs to stop trying to sabotage valiant Theresa May  or see her overthrown by a poisonous neo-Marxist government led by Jeremy Corbyn.

Sir Johns dramatic intervention in the Conservative leadership crisis came amid persistent rumours that Mrs May could be gone within weeks.

Writing in todays Mail on Sunday, Sir John says he is dismayed by senior Conservatives with their own agenda who were plotting against Mrs May  bound to be seen as a reference to the recent antics of Boris Johnson.

Former Prime Minister Sir John Major has told warring Tory MPs to stop trying to sabotage valiant Theresa May  or see her overthrown by a poisonous neo-Marxist government led by Jeremy Corbyn

He writes: I urge all Conservative MPs to reflect very carefully on what is at stake.

The country has had enough of the self-absorbed disloyal behaviour we have witnessed for weeks.

And in a highly significant move, Sir John says Mrs May must be more bold if she wants to survive.

He calls for big changes in the Governments timid policies to counter Labour attacks on heartless Tories, such as scrapping the messy, unfair and unforgiving Universal Credit welfare reforms.

He also urges a big emergency rise in public spending to help the have-nots.

His comments come amid a series of additional blows to Mrs Mays hopes of restoring Tory unity and re-establishing her authority in the wake of her disastrous speech at the party conference in Manchester last week.

Sir Johns dramatic intervention in the Conservative leadership crisis came amid persistent rumours that Mrs May could be gone within weeks

The Mail on Sunday can also disclose that:

Brexit Secretary David Davis wanted Mrs May to fire Mr Johnson for defying her over Brexit in the run-up to the conference;

Days before pledging to back Brexit in the 2016 referendum, Mr Johnson said he had to do so because he couldnt bear backing anti-Brexit PM David Cameron;

Boris ally James Cleverly, who has pledged loyalty to Mrs May, was accused by rebels of secretly plotting to bring her down  until he was bought off with a Government job. He denies the claim;

Downing Street kicked two Conservative MEPs out of the party for voting to block progress in Britains Brexit talks.

In his Mail on Sunday article, Sir John praises Mrs Mays valiant attempts to stay in control. He says he can recall the disastrous Left-wing Labour governments of the 1970s and describes the prospect of an administration led by two convinced neo-Marxists, Jeremy Corbyn and John McDonnell, as the return of a nightmare.

Most voters abhorred Corbyns views on the IRA and McDonnells economic plans would be pure poison to any hope of prosperity.

Mrs Mays allies will be delighted that Sir John, whose own 1990s premiership was riven by Tory feuds, has denounced Mr Corbyn and Conservative rebels.

Writing in todays Mail on Sunday, Sir John says he is dismayed by senior Conservatives with their own agenda who were plotting against Mrs May  bound to be seen as a reference to the recent antics of Boris Johnson

But they may be alarmed by his call for a massive shake-up in her policies and his claim that the Tories are seen as heartless by some because Right-wing, pro-Brexit reactionaries controlled the party.

Justifying his plea for a big rise in spending, Sir John warns that the Governments current piecemeal, timid, toe-in-the-water approach is not brave enough.

He argues that only drastic action will stave off the threat of Corbyn in No 10, starting by abandoning the new Universal Credit welfare system designed to streamline benefits, but which Labour says amounts to backdoor cuts.

A number of Tory MPs have warned that the system, due to be introduced nationwide soon, is in chaos, with the risk that some people may be left with no benefits.

It is unlikely to be lost on Conservative MPs that the architect of Universal Credit was former Welfare Secretary Iain Duncan Smith.

Brexiteer Duncan Smith is a long-time foe of Sir John and played a leading role in anti-EU revolts that contributed to Majors Election defeat by Tony Blair in 1997.

Brexit Secretary David Davis wanted Mrs May to fire Mr Johnson for defying her over Brexit in the run-up to the conference

In a scathing critique of Universal Credit, Sir John says it is theoretically impeccable but adds witheringly: It is operationally messy, socially unfair, and unforgiving.

The Conservative Party must show its heart again and dump the IDS benefits scheme. Sir John concedes such measures are a risk but insists Mrs May has no choice.

Barring the unexpected, we are soon to leave the frustrating but generally comfortable embrace of the EU and for the first time face the prospect of a neo-Marxist government.

In a cry from the heart, Sir John says: Many people are angry and fearful over what the future holds.

An uneasy nation is crying out for the Government to speak for them.

A spokesman for Mr Davis said last night that the claim that he thought Mr Johnson should have been sacked was tittle-tattle.

Meanwhile, MEPs Julie Girling and Richard Ashworth were suspended from the party for supporting a resolution to block Brexit talks moving forward.

Stop disloyal, self-absorbed plotting or we'll have a Marxist PM: A blistering intervention from SIR JOHN MAJOR who is filled with dismay

BySir John Major For The Mail On Sunday

I have watched the Conservative Party manoeuvrings of recent weeks with increasing dismay and have been saddened to see the news dominated by those who have been driven by their own personal agenda.

Their behaviour does nothing to repair the battered reputation of politics. It is not what our country wants or needs  nor does it serve it well. Politics is not a game. Government even less so. Their conduct has undermined their own party, their own Prime Minister, and their own Government. It is profoundly unbecoming and it must stop.

It is apparent  even four years out  that the Conservatives face a real challenge in winning the next Election.

I am among those who remember the far-Left influence on Labour governments in the 1960s and 1970s: the over-mighty unions; the strikes; the winter of discontent; the sky-high taxes.

Thus, for me, the concept of a Labour government led by two convinced neo-Marxists is the return of a nightmare.

And if Labour were elected, no voter could say that they were unaware of the likely priorities of a Jeremy Corbyn government, for Mr Corbyn and Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell have already spelled out the disaster they would inflict.

Mr McDonnell has been admirably frank. Born out of his distaste for the free market, his economic plans would be pure poison to any hope of prosperity. As for Mr Corbyn, his entire career has showcased his convictions: his admiration for revolutionary causes and unsavoury leaders are part of his political DNA. He holds to his views with honesty and sincerity, but they do not represent middle-of-the-road voters  nor any but a small handful of Britons.

I do not wish to see any sort of Labour government  although a tilt to the Left or Right is always in the nature of politics  but I recoil from the prospect of a Corbyn-led government.

For the Conservative Party to gain a fourth successive term, we need to win back hearts and minds that are  at present  lost to us. No one is attracted to a divided party, nor one that is in thrall to its most reactionary instincts. The party must widen its appeal and the Prime Ministers clarion call for social justice  delivered as she first entered No 10 and again at the party conference last week  clearly set out a programme that, if implemented, can and will change perceptions and re-engage the millions who have turned away from us.

We must embrace and build upon policies that help them. It would be fatal not to do so.

Such policies will not be easy to deliver. But to explore them and to implement them is the right thing to do. Right for our party, and  most of all  right for our country.

We must be ambitious. Deep-rooted problems need more than a piecemeal, timid, toe-in-the-water approach that might one day offer improvements. We need brave solutions. Our plans must engage government and private sector alike. We need to involve faster and better public investment. We need to widen and accelerate educational reform. And we must demonstrate a clear priority for the interests of the have-nots.

I hope such a programme will include a review of universal credit, which, although theoretically impeccable, is operationally messy, socially unfair and unforgiving. It is time for the Conservative Party to show its heart again, which is all too often concealed by its financial prudence. We are not living in normal times and must challenge innate Conservative caution.

Barring the unexpected, we are soon to leave the often frustrating  but now familiar and generally comfortable  embrace of the European Union and quite possibly, for the first time in our history, face the prospect of a neo-Marxist government.

I am therefore not simply advocating a change of tone by the Government, but swift and comprehensive action to correct problems that must not be left to fester.

Is such radical action necessary? Without a doubt.

Will it involve some risk? Yes.

Will it work? We must make it work.

People, people, people, must be our focus. Every individuals wellbeing must be at the forefront of our own conscience and policy.

We must persuade the Treasury that  while the cost of long-term borrowing is low  there is an opportunity to vastly accelerate public development of infrastructure and, in particular, housing. Useful initiatives have been announced but we need to go further. If this increases public debt we should  and could  accept that (as I believe the markets will) provided annual revenue expenditure is kept under control.

An essential ingredient is for the frustrating delays in planning law to be speeded up.

To house our nation better, we must unshackle the private sector. We must ensure that the windfall gains from planning approval are shared fairly between the vendor and the community.

Many education reforms are under way; that is excellent. But we must move faster and further to skill the next generation. All our talents will be needed for us to thrive in a competitive world.

And to help with re-skilling, Conservatives should actively encourage the same social cachet for blue-collar workers that has hitherto been given to white-collar professionals.

The lack of this is one of the worst legacies of a class-conscious Britain. It is out of date and must be cast aside. Government should make apprenticeships yet more attractive for employers and trainees alike.

And we should have no fear of breaking down any remaining taboos that inhibit the young or the old or minority groups from acquiring new skills. We must look for hope and opportunity for them all. It is a scandal that so much experienced talent is lying fallow.

Both radical and moderate Conservatives should all favour a programme whose primary focus is to help individuals and families the length and breadth of the UK.

We must not let ideology get in the way of common sense. Nor must we hesitate to engage the State in this cause.

I have set out only the bare bones of the action we need. The Government should invite the most original and creative minds to help flesh out the ideas and enact them.

The need for this political revolution is manifold: to end perceived unfairness; to accelerate decision-making; to improve productivity; and to allow hope to triumph over despair in the lives of too many who have fallen behind  and far more who wish to look with confidence towards their future.

We need not be caught up in a spiral of caution and fear when, by our own efforts, we can encourage opportunity and optimism. The Conservative Party has to regain the affection and support of young and old, North and South, East and West  and this can never be achieved while we restrict ourselves only to the drumbeat of Brexit, Brexit, Brexit.

The issue of Europe may obsess some but it has never been the principal concern of the public.

Every Conservative must recognise that Labours shortcomings alone will not deliver an Election victory to us. It is time for us to wake up and smell the coffee.

Our partys support is ageing. Our policies are not attracting enough of the young, millions of whom believe the decision to leave Europe has damaged their future, for which they blame us.

The reactionary element of our Right-wing repels more electors than it enthuses.

Many people in our country  especially those who have fallen behind  are disillusioned, angry, and fearful over what the future holds in an increasingly uncertain and volatile world. Speculation over who has which ministerial job  and when  is of absolutely no consequence to those whose money runs out before the end of each week.

The British people are sick and tired of the navel-gazing that has dominated the news headlines, all of which has been deeply unedifying to behold.

An uneasy nation is crying out for the Government to speak for them. To act for them. To be seen to understand what is most important to them. To create the circumstances in which they might feel more secure about the future of their families, their homes, their livelihoods. That must be the Governments task.

The Prime Minister herself made a valiant effort to get this message across last week but was drowned out by a series of events  none of which was of her own making.

But, as Parliament returns tomorrow, I would urge all Conservative MPs to reflect very carefully on what is at stake.

The country has had enough of the self-absorbed and, frankly, disloyal behaviour we have witnessed over recent weeks.

It is time for the individuals concerned  both in Parliament and in Government  to focus their minds instead on the needs of the British people, rather than on their own personal ambition.

Were they to do so, our party, our Government and  most important of all  our country, would all be the better for it.
A petrol station in Ghana's capital Accra exploded on Saturday evening, killing an unknown number of people, a government official said.

Footage shows a gigantic fireball lighting up the night sky after the fueling station at Atomic Junction exploded forcing hundreds to flee.

Deputy Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah said: 'Unfortunately there are some fatalities and we are working to have the numbers. There are quite a number also injured.'

The blaze started at 7.30pm local time (8.30pm GMT) but it now said to be under control with the government planning to release casualty figures later today.

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Pictured: Residents are fleeing Ghana's capital city tonight after a petrol station exploded sending a fireball into the sky

A police spokeswoman Efia Tenge said the blasts happened at a petrol station in the Atomic Junction roundabout area of Legon in northeast Accra at about 7:30 pm.

She said it was a gas explosion and added: 'I am in Legon and I heard two explosions. My whole building was shaking.'

A government official said it has left a number of fatalities but it was not known the exact number at this stage, according to local sources.

It is also reported that a number of cars had been burned out as fires spread.

The Accra city authorities warned people to avoid the area, which is also home to the University of Ghana campus.

Police are warning people to avoid the area, which is also home to the University of Ghana campus

Theres been a second explosion guys. Something bizarre going on in Accra. Im so fucking scared right now pic.twitter.com/pkJmFbdNzt  joel barish (@Lambertwrotedis) October 7, 2017

Hundreds of concerned residents took to social media in the seconds after the blast to find out what had happened.

One man wrote: 'There's been a second explosion guys. Something bizarre is going on in Accra. I'm so fucking scared right now.'

The explosion is a reminder of a tragedy in June 2015 when more than 150 people were killed as they sought shelter from seasonal rains and flooding at a petrol station.

Leaked fuel floating on top of rising waters had caught fire, burning down buildings and the filling station, trapping people in vehicles as the pumps exploded.

Kobby Boateng, a computer programmer, said he had returned to the university campus with his girlfriend Saturday when the blast happened.

'All of a sudden, we heard a 'boom' and the flash of an explosion, which made the building just shake and the lights went out,' he said.

'People were rushing out of their rooms. Some of them were naked and the heat that was coming from that blast, my God, it was unbearable.'

An AFP correspondent said the area had been cordoned off. Fire crews and ambulances were at the scene.
President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he has known movie mogul Harvey Weinstein 'a long time' and that he's 'not surprised' by the revelations he paid eight women money to settle sexual harassment claims over the past three decades.

When asked by a reporter how the Weinstein revelations were different from an Access Hollywood tape in which Trump is overheard saying he grabs women by the genitals, he replied: 'That's locker room. That's locker room.'

The president made the remarks to reporters at the White House on Saturday. They came as the scandal became politically charged with many on the right pointing out Weinstein's links to the Hillary campaign.

Clinton is yet to comment on the scandal but her daughter Chelsea retweeted a series of posts attacking the right for politicizing the Weinstein expose and bringing up his political donations.

President Donald Trump (seen waving to the media on Saturday on the South Lawn of the White House) said that he has known movie mogul Harvey Weinstein 'a long time' and that he's 'not surprised' by the revelations he paid eight women money to settle harassment claims

Trump and his wife, Melania, are seen above with Weinstein (far right) and his wife, Georgina Chapman, in New York in December 2009

Trump's comments about Weinstein were made nearly one year to the day that an audio tape of him bragging about 'grabbing women by the p***y' was leaked.

Trump was overheard using crude language about women while speaking with Billy Bush during a taping of an Access Hollywood segment in 2005.

The 'p***ygate controversy' which erupted during last year's presidential campaign threatened to derail Trump's candidacy.

Trump apologized for the remarks, which he attributed to 'locker room talk'.

Trump's comments were also made one day after Weinstein took an indefinite leave of absence as the co-chairman of The Weinstein Company, the hit-producing Hollywood studio.

When asked by a reporter how the Weinstein revelations were different from an Access Hollywood tape in which Trump is overheard saying he grabs women by the genitals, he replied: 'That's locker room. That's locker room.' Trump is seen on the 2005 Access Hollywood segment with Billy Bush (far right) and Arianne Zucker

In the wake of 'p***ygate,' Bush was fired from his job at NBC. He had been a regular presence on the TODAY show

The New York Times on Thursday published a bombshell story saying that Weinstein paid eight different woman financial settlements following claims of alleged sexual harassment.

Weinstein is on indefinite leave from the company he co-founded while it conducts an investigation into the allegations.

Trump wasn't the only member of his family to weigh in on the Weinstein saga.

Donald Trump Jr. joined the growing number of people calling on Hollywood heavyweights to condemn Weinstein over his decades of sexual harassment on Saturday.

The president's son took to Twitter to first dare Oscars-host and comedian Jimmy Kimmel to comment on the scandal, writing: 'Thoughts on Weinstein? #askingforafriend.'

Kimmel had just poked fun at Donald Trump for complaining about the 'unfunny' late night hosts who constantly berated him.

Donald Trump Jr (left) took to Twitter to first dare Oscars-host and comedian Jimmy Kimmel (right) to comment on the scandal, writing: 'Thoughts on Weinstein? #askingforafriend.'

He swiftly responded to Trump Jr.'s challenge but didn't take exactly take the bait, instead retorting with a quip about how the New York Times - the Trumps' media nemesis - broke the Weinstein story.

'You mean that big story from the failing, liberal, one-sided New York Times? I think it is disgusting,' he responded.

Trump Jr., echoing his father's earlier complaints that Kimmel and other late night show hosts' criticism of their family was becoming repetitive, carried on the spat.

'Great I look forward to your monologues next week. You're probably due for a change if only for a moment or two,' he said.

Ramping up the tone of their exchange, Kimmel fired back with a clip to his father's infamous 2005 Access Hollywood 'grab them by the p***y' tape'.

Kimmel has faced criticism along with fellow late night TV hosts Stephen Colbert, Seth Myers and Jimmy Fallon for not making mention of the Weinstein scandal in their shows this week.

They all rely on Hollywood and television stars to interview in order to draw high ratings.

Kimmel has been vocal in the past about his views on gun control and healthcare reform, dedicating the opening monologue of his show to each issue.

Don. Jr. has been on a mission to convince vocally liberal Hollywood stars to speak out against Weinstein.

Donald Jr, his sister, Ivanka Trump, and Weinstein all reportedly have something else in common - they were spared criminal charges by a Manhattan district attorney, Cyrus Vance Jr (pictured above), who received campaign donations from their attorneys

Weinstein is seen far left with Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner in New York in 2013

It was reported on Wednesday that in 2012, New York City prosecutors recommended criminal charges against Ivanka and Don Jr (above) for allegedly 'misleading prospective buyers of units in the Trump SoHo, a hotel and condo development that was failing to sell'

Vance declined to pursue criminal charges against the Trump children three months after a meeting with Marc Kasowitz (above), the Trump family attorney. Kasowitz was one of Vance's largest campaign donors

He has found himself on the same side as anti-Trump stars like Patricia Arquette, Lena Dunham, Rose McGowan and Brie Larson who have so far been the only prolific voices in Hollywood to condemn Weinstein's behavior.

Donald Jr, his sister, Ivanka Trump, and Weinstein all reportedly have something else in common - they were spared criminal charges by a Manhattan district attorney who received campaign donations from their attorneys.

It was reported by ProPublica on Wednesday that in 2012, New York City prosecutors recommended criminal charges against Ivanka and Don Jr for allegedly 'misleading prospective buyers of units in the Trump SoHo, a hotel and condo development that was failing to sell.'

But the district attorney, Cyrus Vance, declined to bring charges after he received a visit from the Trumps' lawyer, Marc Kasowitz.

Kasowitz donated $25,000 to Vance's re-election campaign, making him one of the largest donors.

Three months after Kasowitz asked Vance to drop the case, the DA obliged.

On Thursday, International Business Times reported that Vance declined to press sexual assault charges against Weinstein in 2015 after a complaint by an Italian model.

Months later, Vance received $10,000 in campaign donations from David Boies, Weinstein's lawyer.

'David Boies has been a supporter of the District Attorney since long before 2015, including before he was first elected, and has never spoken to him about Harvey Weinstein,' a spokesperson for Boies told IBT.

A spokesperson for Vance also denied any impropriety.

'David Boies did not represent Harvey Weinstein in 2015 during the criminal investigation,' Joan Vollero, communications director for Vance, told IBT in an email.

Meanwhile, many conservatives on the internet have seized on the Weinstein scandal because of his known political affiliations with the Democratic Party.

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) and several Democratic politicians including Senators Kamala Harris, Cory Booker and Chuck Schumer said Friday they will re-route Weinsteins political donations to womens rights groups.

'The DNC will donate over $30,000 in contributions from Weinstein to EMILYs List, Emerge America and Higher Heights because what we need is more women in power,' DNC communications director Xochitl Hinojosa said in a statement.

Weinstein was also a prominent supporter of the Democratic nominee for president, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

The movie mogul hosted numerous fundraisers for Clinton and former President Barack Obama.

Clinton's daughter, Chelsea, broke silence on Saturday on the Weinstein sexual harassment allegations by sharing a lengthy Twitter thread attacking reports that have attempted to politicize the Hollywood scandal.

Without making a formal confirmation, the former First Daughter turned businesswoman appeared to also support the reports bashing Weinstein after news erupted this week claiming the movie mogul had been paying off his accusers for decades.

Clinton took to Twitter this afternoon to retweet a seven-part thread published by ThinkProgress editor, Judd Legum, which detailed Weinstein's 'despicable' behavior addressed into detail in a New York Times report.

Meanwhile, many conservatives on the internet have seized on the Weinstein scandal because of his known political affiliations with the Democratic Party. Weinstein was a major fundraiser and supporter of Hillary Clinton (seen above with Weinstein in New York in 2012)

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) and several Democratic politicians including Senators Kamala Harris, Cory Booker and Chuck Schumer said Friday they will re-route Weinsteins political donations to womens rights groups. Weinstein is seen second from left with then-Senators Barack Obama (far left), Frank Lautenberg, and Schumer

Clinton's daughter, Chelsea, broke the ice Saturday on the Weinstein sexual harassment allegations by sharing a lengthy Twitter thread attacking reports that have attempted to politicize the Hollywood scandal

Clinton took to Twitter this afternoon to retweet a seven-part thread published by ThinkProgress editor, Judd Legum, which detailed Weinstein's 'despicable' behavior addressed into detail in a New York Times report

Legum wrote: Weinstein's conduct, as documented in the NYT, is despicable ... Also despicable, are those that are using the story exclusively as a political narrative, with no actual concern for the victims or issue.

'Core issue here is not Weinstein's political donations, but the powerful in Hollywood who knew about the conduct but stayed silent,' Legum said.

'It's an issue of powerful institutions protecting predatory men. If you care about this, you'll talk about that.'

He then continued: 'Instead it's being absorbed by the right into their slime machine ... This isn't just an effort to weaponize it politically against 'liberals.' It's also an effort to distract from the actual discussion.

'FACT: Most of the folks talking about Weinstein on the far right don't even believe sexual harassment is a problem.'

Before bringing attention to Legum's stance on the investigative claims, Clinton shared a tweet from one of Weinstein's newest accusers - former Fox News anchor, Lauren Sivan.
At a glittering engagement party exactly a year ago, Dan Macmillan, heir to a 300 million publishing fortune, and his new fiancee Daisy Boyd were every inch the golden couple.

But now her family have been left devastated after she was found dead, having apparently taken her own life just months after her husband-to-be ended the engagement.

The grand-daughter of the late River Cafe co-owner Rose Gray and daughter of leading architect Tim Boyd was found dead at the private Nightingale Hospital in Marylebone, central London on Thursday.

Daisy Boyd and Dan Macmillan attend their engagement party at River Cafe on October 9, 2016 in London

Daisy, 28, and 42-year-old Dan, were together for three years before Macmillan broke off the engagement in July

Daisy is pictured with her father Tim at her engagement party last October

In tributes, Daisy has been described as 'enormously popular, curious, generous and with a diamond sparkle'

The couple are pictured at an event last June just months before they had a party celebrating their engagement

The circumstances of her death were unclear last night. The hospital, which specialises in the treatment of eating disorders, addiction and other psychiatric illness was judged to require improvement on patient safety in the most recent report by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

Daisy, 28, and 42-year-old Dan, were together for three years before Macmillan broke off the engagement in July.

The sculptress had seemingly tamed wild man designer Macmillan, once dubbed the Vulgar Viscount, the great-grandson of Tory PM Harold Macmillan.

Indeed, their stylish engagement party at the River Cafe  where her stepfather Charles Pullan, married to her mother Lucy, is manager  left guests anticipating an equally glamorous wedding.

A devastated family friend said last night: Daisy died on Thursday morning and all her family and friends are devastated by this tragic news'

In the past Old Etonian Dan (pictured above with Daisy) has been romantically linked to models Kate Moss and Jade Jagger, who ended their friendship after finding he was dating them simultaneously

Just a year ago all eyes were on daisy at her engagement party when she wore a bold black and gold pinstripe suit

She was the picture of happiness as she cuddled up to her fiance Dan during the party last October

In tribute to Daisy, a family friend said: 'She was just 28 years old and we are all deeply pained that she has died so young. Daisy was a brilliantly vibrant and joyous person who lit up any room she entered'

Heir to the Macmillan familys 300 million fortune, Dan was also formerly engaged to Ukrainian model Sasha Volkova, but split from her in late 2011. Formally, he is Viscount Macmillan of Ovenden, a courtesy title as he is heir to the Earldom of Stockton.

His father, Tory peer Alexander, the 2nd Earl, sold the Macmillan publishing house to a German firm in the 1990s.

The Macmillans are a troubled dynasty, summed up by some as The Curse of the Macmillans. Dans father, Alexander, watched his own father drink himself into an early grave and his younger brother Joshua die from an overdose in 1965. His sister Rachael died from an overdose in 1987.

Prime Minister Harolds wife Lady Dorothy had an affair with her husbands best friend, Lord Boothby, which resulted in an illegitimate daughter, later adopted by Macmillan. This daughter, Sarah, became an alcoholic and died after falling downstairs in 1970.

The sculptress had seemingly tamed wild man designer Macmillan, once dubbed the Vulgar Viscount, the great-grandson of Tory PM Harold Macmillan

A family friend said: She had an infectious enthusiasm and has been cut off in the prime of her life'

The grand-daughter of the late River Cafe co-owner Rose Gray and daughter of leading architect Tim Boyd was found dead at the private Nightingale Hospital in Marylebone, central London on Thursday

But a devastated family friend said last night: Daisy died on Thursday morning and all her family and friends are devastated by this tragic news.

'She was just 28 years old and we are all deeply pained that she has died so young. Daisy was a brilliantly vibrant and joyous person who lit up any room she entered.

She had an infectious enthusiasm and has been cut off in the prime of her life. Enormously popular, curious, generous and with a diamond sparkle, she was greatly loved by her family and friends, and the gap she leaves is, at the moment, unfathomable.

The friend said the family wished to grieve in peace.

Daisy's grandmother Rose Gray, left, and River Cafe co-owner Ruth Rogers, right at the venue

Boyd was found dead at the private Nightingale Hospital (pictured) in Marylebone, central London on Thursday

Daisy was a former pupil of 36,000-a-year Woldingham, a Roman Catholic boarding school in Surrey.

In the past Old Etonian Dan has been romantically linked to models Kate Moss and Jade Jagger, who ended their friendship after finding he was dating them simultaneously.

In June, the CQC found Nightingale Hospital needed to improve patient safety, noting: Staff did not always know the whereabouts of patients [...] even when they were potentially at risk of harming themselves or others.

A spokesman for the 5,000- a-week clinic said: Nightingale Hospital sends our deepest sympathies to the family, but we are not in a position to comment owing to the delicacy of the situation and out of respect to the family.

Lord Macmillan could not be contacted last night.

For confidential support on suicide matters, call the Samaritans on 08457 90 90 90 or visit samaritans.org.
Vile internet trolls are to be targeted by the first national police unit dedicated to tackling online hate crime.

The Home Office is spending an initial 200,000 on setting up the hub in the hope that it will see more web users prosecuted for targeting minorities with abuse on social media.

A small team of officers will assess reports made to police website True Vision and improve investigations by removing the doubt over which local force is responsible when suspect and victim live in different areas.

Home secretary Amber Rudd complained that what is illegal offline is legal online, something she says the hub will change

They will also contact tech giants to ensure hate speech is deleted from websites.

Home Secretary Amber Rudd said last night: Online hate crime is completely unacceptable.

'What is illegal offline is illegal online, and those who commit these cowardly crimes should be met with the full force of the law.

Last year police set up the first unit of detectives dedicated to investigating online abuse, leading to fears it could chill free speech

The national online hate crime hub that we are funding is an important step to ensure more victims have the confidence to come forward and report the vile abuse to which they are being subjected.

The move comes after The Mail on Sunday revealed last year that Scotland Yard was setting up the first unit of detectives dedicated to investigating online abuse, prompting fears that they could chill free speech by acting as a thought police for risque jokes or unpopular views.
Shuffling with the crowds along Kuan Zhai Alley, a network of lanes dating from the Qing dynasty, I breathe in deep.

A familiar blend of smoky chilli, toasted Sichuan peppercorns and crushed garlic invades my nostrils; it instantly feels like home.

This is my first visit to Chengdu in three years, and, like each of my previous visits, the city has taken on a new visage. But in a place like this, it doesnt take long to get reacquainted.

Tradition: The area is known for its ancient architecture, like this temple complex on the outskirts of the city

Chengdu is the capital of Sichuan province in south-west China and arguably where the cream of Chinese cuisine can be found.

Its impossible to walk down a street without smelling something delicious.

There are a few spots I always visit because I know Ill find the best street food. Kuan Zhai Alley is one, crammed with stalls selling bites such as guo kui  fried bread filled with pork mince.

Although Chengdu has a reputation for good eating, it is the history and culture of this one-time capital of China that draws visitors.

Street food: Chengdu is also famed for its delicious Sichuan-style treats, available from stalls

Kuan Zhai Alley, for example, was once home to Manchu soldiers during the Qing dynasty and is one of the few remaining examples of imperial-era architecture in the city.

For those after a more modern feel, Taikoo Li is perhaps the best example.

TRAVEL FACTS China Southern flies twice daily from Heathrow to Guangzhou, with connecting flights to Chengdu. Fares start from 442 return. For further information, visit global.csair.com. The Temple House Hotel (thetemplehousehotel.com) in the Taikoo Li complex has rooms with king-size beds, with prices starting at 175 per night. Advertisement

Housed in imperial Chinese-style wood and glass buildings are luxury stores including Alexander McQueen, Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent.

But at the heart of this faux-retro complex is Daci Temple, a Buddhist sanctuary originally built between the 3rd and 4th Centuries. It has been rebuilt several times over the years.

Despite efforts to harmonise the Taikoo Li architecture with that of the temple, the juxtaposition of old and new is sharpest here.

Outside the temple, an afternoon tea will cost you the equivalent of 25. But inside, on rickety chairs, you can still experience the tradition for as little as 1.

Thats the thing about this city: the way it keeps pace with modernity means it never feels foreign, wherever youve come from.
Head of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), Vasyl Hrytsak, has said that the SBU established the involvement of the Russian so-called 'Wagner PMC', headed by Dmitry Utkin, in destroying Il-76 aircraft in Donbas, attacking Luhansk airport and events in Debaltseve (Donetsk region).

"What was the Wagner group engaged in? It downed Il-76 aircraft with our paratroopers on board, attacked Luhansk airport and Debaltseve," he said at a briefing in Kyiv on Saturday.

According to him, 72 militants of this PMC took part in the first two operations, 15 of them were lost killed. "We know their names," Hrytsak said.

"Some 205 Wagner militants took part in the attacking of Debaltseve, during which 51 members were killed. We know each of them," he said.

The SBU chief also said that 36 militants were killed on the line of demarcation.
Rob Kardashian and Blac Chyna have another court issue to deal with.

The exes - who have been embroiled in legal drama with one another over the past three months - are now jointly accused of cyberbullying and defamation of character by her ex-boyfriend Pilot Jones, TMZ reports.

Jones, a Louisiana-born entertainer, said that the reality stars exposed his bisexuality and disseminated his private information publicly, leading to so much stress that he nearly took his own life as a result.

Accused: Rob Kardashian, 30, and Blac Chyna, 29, are being sued by her ex-boyfriend Pilot Jones, who is accusing them of cyberbullyng and defamation of character

Jones, who previously told US Weekly that he and Chyna, 29, had grown 'really close' romantically 'around the end of 2015,' said that his issues with the former Rob and Chyna stars occurred in October of 2016. It was then when a shot of him kissing Chyna, whose real name is Angela Renee White, circulated online, according to TMZ.

Jones said in court docs that he didn't release the image and denied publicly that he was father to her then-unborn child Dream, TMZ reported.

Jones told the court that Chyna and Kardashian, 30, subsequently shared his email address and phone number with the public, opening the floodgates for a slew of threats from their fans. Among them included: 'Today will be the last day of you walking b----,' and 'You're a f------ snake for doing that to Rob & Chyna.'

Jones said in court docs he tried to kill himself in the wake of the incident, as he was upset about how the revelations would impact his relationship with two sons, TMZ reported.

Speaking out: Jones said that Chyna and Rob publicly exposed his bisexuality, which led to issues with his two sons

Harsh claims: Chyna, seen in LA earlier this week, 'tried to make me feel ashamed of who I am,' Jones told US Weekly

'[I was at] literally my lowest point in my life' and in a 'deep depression,' Jones said in his July chat with US Weekly. 'I look back at it and I don't understand how I even made it.

'I'm not the only bisexual man that Blac Chyna has dated, and I was not the last, you know what I'm saying? I feel like the thing that brought us together, she's used against me. She tried to make me feel ashamed of who I am, and that's not OK.'

He said that Chyna 'tried to intimidate [him] via social media' and 'clearly did bully' him over his sexuality.

'At the end of the day, all of us in this situation are parents and look at the example that we are teaching,' he said. 'These platforms are being used to really harass people. I was outed on social media.'

Revealing: Jones said that Chyna has past dated bisexual men, and that was something that initially drew them closer
PartyNextDoor was one of two men arrested for bringing drugs into the U.S. across the border from Canada on Thursday morning.

A spokesman for the New York State Troopers said the Canadian rapper and Jerome Nevins, from Ontario, both 24, were on a tour bus heading back to the U.S. when it was stopped for secondary inspection.

The Troopers were then called in to assist U.S. Customs And Border personnel at the Lewiston-Queenston Bridge in Niagara County, according to local news channel WIVB-4 in Buffalo, New York.

Official mugshot: PartyNextDoor, real name Jahron Brathwaite, was one of two men arrested for bringing drugs into the U.S. across the border from Canada on Thursday morning

PartyNextDoor, whose real name is Jahron Brathwaite, allegedly had Xanax and Oxycodone on him.

He and his pal reportedly co-operated with the cops, were briefly arrested, cited and released from custody.

Yellow peril: PMD, seen at an event in Toronto in August, allegedly had Xanax and Oxycodone on him when the NY State Troopers randomly stopped and searched the tour bus he was on

They were charged with seventh degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a misdemeanor.

The rapper briefly dated Kylie Jenner, 19, in May 2016 following her split from on-off boyfriend of two years, Tyga.

'Theyre talking and texting nonstop,' a source told Us magazine at the time. 'Hes as into her as shes into him.'

One-time beau: Kylie Jenner with PND in the video for his Come And See Me. They reportedly dated in 2016 after her break up with on-off beau Tyga. She is now said to be expecting her first baby with rapper Travis Scott

Although their relationship was short-lived, Kylie appeared in PNDs music video for his track Come And See Me.

In the steamy video, the rapper ignores Kylie's phone calls, opting to hang out with his pals and other girls at a piano bar instead.

Kylie has since moved on with another rapper, Travis Scott, with whom she is expecting her first child with him.
They've never shied away from showing off their phenomenal figures.

And Blac Chyna, 29, and Cardi B, 24, stepped out flaunting their famous curves in revealing ensembles while attending the BET Hip Hop Awards in Miami on Friday.

Chyna, who has recently been sued by her ex Pilot Jones, and Cardi were joined by some of the hottest names in music while walking the green carpet.

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Super stars: Blac Chyna and Cardi B stepped out flaunting their famous curves in revealing ensembles while attending the BET Hip Hop Awards in Miami on Friday

Cardi B showed off her generous cleavage in a silver dress that featured two slits that highlighted her toned legs.

The two-time platinum rapper wore her hair in a high ponytail with a braided base, along with glam make-up for her big night out.

Blac Chyna showcased her sexy physique in an all-white two-piece ensemble, that left little to the imagination.

The former girlfriend of Tyga wore her icy-blonde hair in a braided top-knot bun, and finished her look with luscious lashes and a nude pout.

Toned abs: Blac Chyna showcased her sexy physique in an all-white two-piece ensemble, that left little to the imagination

Look back at it! Cardi B showed off her generous cleavage in a silver dress that featured two slits that highlighted her toned legs

Putting her best foot forward: The two-time platinum rapper wore her hair in a high ponytail with a braided base, along with glam make-up for her big night out

Cardi B received some major recognition at the BET Hip Hop awards.

The new female rapper won 'Hustler of the Year,' along with being nominated for nine awards.

Her song Bodak Yellow has been her biggest claim to fame in the recent months, besides starring on VH1's Love & Hip Hop: New York.

The 24-year-old's rap song reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and The New York Times called it "the rap anthem of the summer'.

Recognition: The new female rapper won 'Hustler of the Year,' along with being nominated for nine awards

Queen of rap: Her song Bodak Yellow has been her biggest claim to fame in the recent months, besides starring on VH1's Love & Hip Hop: New York

All smiles: The 24-year-old's rap song reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and The New York Times called it "the rap anthem of the summer'

Cardi B also gave a very promiscuous performance that had onlookers staring at her busty chesty.

The rap-queen stepped on stage wearing a jewel encrusted bra teamed with neon pink leggings.

The Bodak Yellow songstress also wore a colorful fur coat that featured multiple patterns while performing her hit song.

She accessorized her new outfit with pink-lens sunglasses and diamond jewelry.

Cardi left the stage with a big smile on her face, as she held on to a box of Ciroc vodka.

Fur real: Cardi B accessorized her new outfit with pink-lens sunglasses and diamond jewelry

Shining bright: The rap-queen stepped on stage wearing a jewel encrusted bra teamed with neon pink leggings

Busting out: Cardi B also gave a very promiscuous performance that had onlookers staring at her busty chesty

She's a star! The Bodak Yellow songstress also wore a colorful fur coat that featured multiple patterns while performing her hit song

Junk in the trunk! Cardi B showed off her epic dance moves while on stage of the BET Hip Hop Awards

Celebrating later? Cardi left the stage with a big smile on her face, as she held on to a box of Ciroc vodka

Cardi B- who celebrates her birthday next week- was also joined by hip-hop's favorite DJ while at the award show.

DJ Khaled made and appearance with almost one-year-old son Asahd.

The hit-maker is nominated for a total of eight awards, with three of them being for his popular song Wild Thoughts featuring Rihanna and Bryson Tiller.

Anotha' one: Cardi B- who celebrates her birthday next week- was also joined by hip-hop's favorite DJ while at the award show

Baby on board! DJ Khaled made and appearance with almost one-year-old son Asahd

Starting them off young! The hit-maker is nominated for a total of eight awards, with three of them being for his popular song Wild Thoughts featuring Rihanna and Bryson Tiller

The A-listers were also joined by other sexy music mavens, such as Jazz Anderson, Tokyon Jetz, and Michelle Mitchenor.

All the women put their voluptuous curves on display while wearing risque outfits.

Model Keyshia Ka'oir in particular stepped on the green carpet baring her unmentionables in a see-through bedazzled jumpsuit that revealed her perky assets.

Keyshia is engaged to rapper Gucci Mane, and the couple have been dating for almost seven years.

Gucci Mane and his soon-to-be bride will be tying the knot in Miami on October 17.

Spotted: The A-listers were also joined by other sexy music mavens, such as Jazz Anderson, Tokyon Jetz, and Michelle Mitchenor

Dazzling: Model Keyshia Ka'oir in particular stepped on the green carpet baring her unmentionables in a see-through bedazzled jumpsuit that revealed her perky assets

Baring it all: Keyshia is engaged to rapper Gucci Mane, and the couple have been dating for almost seven years

The stars are out: Keyshia was also accompanied by Blac Chyna and rapper Dave East

Keyshia was spotted hanging out with Blac Chyna and New York rapper Dave East, while at the BET event.

Before all the stars stepped out on the green carpet Blac Chyna had her own mini photo shoot that she shared on her Snapchat.

The mother-of-two posted multiple pictures and videos of herself on the way the the music event, along with her best friend hairstylist Kellon Deryck.

Blac Chyna seemed all smiles, despite being recently sued by her ex Pilot Jones who accused Chyna and Rob Kardashian of bullying him about his sexuality.

Jones, a Louisiana-born entertainer, said that the reality stars exposed his bisexuality and disseminated his private information publicly, leading to so much stress that he nearly took his own life as a result, TMZ reports.

But the former stripper seemed to put all the drama behind her, as she enjoyed Hip-Hop's biggest night in Miami.

Sweet and sexy: Blac Chyna and Keyshia share a sweet moment together while at the BET Hip Hop Awards

Best friends forever: The mother-of-two posted multiple pictures and videos of herself on the way the the music event, along with her best friend hairstylist Kellon Deryck

Angelic: Before all the stars stepped out on the green carpet Blac Chyna had her own mini photo shoot that she shared on her Snapchat
She is currently flying high after scoring the top overall score on Strictly Come Dancing.

And Debbie McGee's sister Donna Phelan has now revealed that the dance show is responsible for bringing the sparkle back to her sibling's eye, after she lost her husband of 29 years (magician Paul Daniels) to a brain tumour in 2016.

Donna also believes that 58-year-old TV presenter Debbie's dance partner Giovanni Pernice, 27, is partially responsible for her happier demeanor, crediting their busy rehearsal schedule for taking her mind off things.

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Happy agqain: Debbie McGee's sister Donna Phelan has revealed that Strictly is responsible for bringing the sparkle back to her sibling's eye, after she lost her husband of 29 years (magician Paul Daniels) to a brain tumour in 2016

Speaking to The Mirror, 57-year-old Donna admitted happily: 'I have seen a change in her, I have seen her happy again, and she has a sparkle in her face.'

And admitting she been leaning on her less for emotional support, Donna added: 'She is putting in as many hours training as she can, normally nine hours upwards, and she is exhausted.

'But her face lights up on the dance floor with Giovanni. She always tries to keep happy, but you can see in her eyes now that she is really happy.'

'I have seen a change in her, I have seen her happy again, and she has a sparkle in her face,' 57-year-old Donna admitted happily

Debbie's first performance on the much-anticipated fifteenth season of Strictly Come Dancing sent tongues wagging as they engaged in a rather steamy smooch.

And on Saturday Debbie and Giovanni soared to the top of the leaderboard when their second top score of the night earned them the top overall spot in the competition.

But upset viewers took to Twitter to express their outrage, branding the decision unfair due to her background in professional ballet.

Soaring to the top! Late magician Paul Daniel's widow Debbie McGee, 58, and Giovanni performed a Viennese Waltz to She's Always A Woman by Billy Joel, earning them the top overall score of the night

Sweeping onto the dance floor in a sky blue floor-length gown the late magician Paul Daniel's widow performed a Viennese Waltz to She's Always A Woman by Billy Joel with Giovanni Pernice.

After causing controversy with their kissing skit last week, the duo put on a more classically romantic performance, winning them a standing ovation from the thrilled judges.

A usually stern Craig branded the performance 'amazing' and the couple were scored an impressive 34,- beat only by Alexandra Burke, and topping the leader board after last week's scores were added, smashing the night's scores.

But despite impressing the judges, viewers were not quite as happy with the results, sending Twitter into overdrive after accusing Debbie of having professional dance experience.

'She's a trained ballet dancer!' Despite impressing the judges, viewers were not quite as happy with the results, sending Twitter into overdrive after accusing Debbie of having professional dance experience

'She's a trained ballet dancer!' one viewer wrote, while another angry fan tweeted: 'Amazing? She should be! She's only been doing it for 51 years'.

'Why is Debbie McGee allowed on when she was a ballet dancer? She has an upper hand on the dancers,' one fan questioned.

Meanwhile Tess Daly put on a confident display as she opened the second live show of the series on Saturday, dressed in a strapless nude jumpsuit which made the most of her statuesque physique.

Wearing her glossy blonde hair in tumbling waves, the 48-year-old presenter was joined by Claudia Winkleman, 45, who sizzled in a black bardot dress.

Aston Merrygold and Ruth Langsford began the show in the lead, topping the board with the leading scores following last week's first live show.

Turning heads: Tess Daly opened the second live show of the series on Saturday, dressed in a strapless nude jumpsuit which made the most of her statuesque physique

And opening the show with a touch of comedy was Holby City actress Chizzy Akudolu, 43, and Pasha who performed the Foxtrot to I'm a Woman from Smokey Joe's Cafe.

Dressed in a plunging purple frock, she started the skit with a fun scene by the breakfast table, before breaking into the Foxtrot to the sound of rapturous cheers from an applauding audience.

But Shirley Ballas didn't agree, calling her performance disappointing and too 'lumpy for her taste'.

Stunning duo: Wearing her glossy blonde hair in tumbling waves, the 48-year-old presenter was joined by Claudia Winkleman, 45, who sizzled in a black bardot dress

Tense: Saturday marked the first show open to the vote, with eliminations taking place on Sunday

'I want more sophistication,' Shirley added, but Chizzy quipped back: 'I'm not a Rolls Royce, too expensive'.

'Too sassy too soon', Bruno Tonioli added, putting the disappointed dancer firmly in her place. Pulling no punches, a stern Craig Revel Horwood added 'more Foxtrott and less musical theatre.'

Darcey was kinder, gushing: 'I don't want to cut any of that enthusiasm', applauding her performance value. Taking it in her stride, Chizzy had more important things to attend to.

'Sorry to all the black woman around the world', Chizzy laughed, 'I just have to do this', she added before adjusting her wig.

The performance won the couple a score of 16 and added to last week's score making an overall score of 37.

First up: Opening the show with a touch of comedy was Holby City actress Chizzy Akudolu, 43, and Pasha will perform the Foxtrot to I'm a Woman from Smokey Joe's Cafe.

'Sorry to all the black woman around the world', Chizzy laughed, 'I just have to do this', she added before adjusting her wig

Next was JLS star Aston Merrygold, 29, Aston Merrygold and Janette who gave a colourful Salsa to Despacito (Remix) by Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee ft Justin Bieber.

Unfortunately Janette suffered a little tumble on her head, but she styled it out quickly and Bruno appeared impressed with their performance.

'I've never seen such a difficult sequence of lifts', he gushed, impressed.

The thrilled judges gave them an impressive score of 32 and the duo were thrilled with the results.

Scottish museum Susan Calman, 42, and Kevin won an impressive basic score of 32 with their hit performance of a Charleston to If You Knew Susie by Enoch Light and The Charleston City All-Stars.

Festival themed: Next was JLS star Aston Merrygold, 29, Aston Merrygold and Janette who gave a colourful Salsa to Despacito (Remix) by Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee ft Justin Bieber

Oops! Unfortunately Janette suffered a little tumble on her head, but she styled it out quickly and Bruno appeared impressed with their performance

And Charlotte stunned in a glitzy plunging silver mini dress, showing off her shapely pins and enviable curves as she took to the stage.

But her less than confident performance failed to impress the judges after they accused her of losing her rhythm early on.

'To flirt on live TV is not an easy thing and you recovered well from you losing your timing', Darcey said, 'but you'll come back stronger'.

But ITV presenter Charlotte Hawkins, 42, and Brendan's Cha Cha to Sugar by Maroon 5 earned them a distinctly lukewarm reception from the judging panel.

Not all that glitters? ITV presenter Charlotte Hawkins, 42, and Brendan's Cha Cha to Sugar by Maroon 5 earned them a distinctly lukewarm reception from the judging panel

Not distracted: Despite the blonde beauty's eye-popping appearance, her performance was branded a 'dance disaster' but a stern Bruno Tonioli

Despite the blonde beauty's eye-popping appearance, her performance was branded a 'dance disaster' but a stern Bruno Tonioli.

And Craig branded the piece 'a dance disaster' with the duo scored a more modest basic score of 12.

'You did brilliantly last week and your score will be added to that 12 so don't despair', Claudia told the couple optimistically.

Looking discouraged, the couple gave a cheering crowd a brave wave before disappearing off stage.

'You did brilliantly last week and your score will be added to that 12 so don't despair', Claudia told the couple optimistically

Cranford star Joe McFadden, 41, and Katya were up next, dancing the Tango to Castle On The Hill by Ed Sheeran.

Katya stunned in a plunging blue floor-length dress, performing to a clapping crowd.

Their dance got a lukewarm reaction from the panel, scoring a score of 22 out of 40.

Joining bottom of the leader board were comedian Brian Conley, 53, and Amy who performed the Cha Cha to Shake Your Groove Thing by Peaches and Herb and they recovered their overall score with an impressive scoring from the panel.

Hollyoaks star Gemma Atkinson, 32, and dance partner Aljaz Waltzing to an Italian version of A Time For Us by Josh Groban.

The fifteenth series show kicked off on the 10th September, revealing the hotly-anticipated pairings

The newly shaken-up judging panel headed up by Shirley Bassas after Len Goodman retired earlier this year

Gemma put on a head-turning display in a plunging sequin blue dress, but it was her dance that impressed the judges.

The blonde beauty's performance was rated as 'very impressive', winning them a score of 27.

Winning a score of just 2 last week, Rev. Richard Coles, 55, and Dianne performed an American Smooth to Love Really Hurts Without You by Billy Ocean.

Giving last year's Ed Balls a run for his money with his questionable moves, his performance was met by a wailing Darcey- before she surprisingly added 'I love you'.

Natural: Hollyoaks star Gemma Atkinson, 32, and dance partner Aljaz Waltzing to an Italian version of A Time For Us by Josh Groban

Racy: Next up was presenter Ruth Langsford, 57, and Anton who performed a Charleston to 'The Charleston' by Bob Wilson and his Varsity Rhythm Boys

'Falling petals have more grace', a cutting Craig added honestly to boos from the crowd.

And despite the somewhat stiff performance, Richard won a score of 17.

Next up was presenter Ruth Langsford, 57, and Anton who performed a Charleston to 'The Charleston' by Bob Wilson and his Varsity Rhythm Boys.

Ruth put on a rather saucy display in a red wig and sixties gold sequin dress, with her dance being praised by the judges with a top score.

Despite a hamstring injury, contracted during practice, Ruth managed to score an impressive 20.

TV chef Simon Rimmer, 54, and Karen Clifton performed an emotional Waltz to You'll Never Walk Alone by Rodgers and Hammerstein.

Checkmate! Speeding up the tempo is Eastenders star Davood Ghadami, 36, who will perform a Quickstep to Last Nite by The Strokes with Nadiya.

And the performance resulted in Shirley Ballas almost breaking down, giving an emotional tribute to the song and winning them a high score.

'That song means a lot of different things to different people', she said, her voice breaking and eyes welling up,' so thank you for that performance'.

Saturdays star Mollie King, 30, was up next with AJ, performing the Tango to Addicted To Love by Tina Turner.

'You certainly connected with your partner', Bruno teased of Mollie King and AJ's on-screen chemistry, before demonstrating with Shirley how you should hold your partner

Referring to boob-gate? He then threw his hands up and exclaiming: 'I didn't touch anything!'

With the screens set to black and white, the blonde beauty's scarlet frock and bold red lip stood out as she gave a confident performance to the hit song.

Following their performance AJ picked her up in excitement, thrilled with the results of their dance.

'You certainly connected with your partner', Bruno teased of their on-screen chemistry, demonstrating with Shirley how you should hold your partner- before holding his hands up and exclaiming: 'I didn't touch anything!'

The impressed panel scored the thrilled couple with a high score of 25.

Red hot: Saturdays star Mollie King, 30, and AJ will Tango to Addicted To Love by Tina Turner

Sprint runner Jonnie Peacock, 34, and Oti performed an energetic Jive to Johnny B Goode by Chuck Berry and got a standing ovation from the crowd, getting a score of 29.

Next up was Debbie Mcgee's controversial performance with Italian dancer Giovannie Pernice, earning them a top score and giving them the overall lead on the night.

Speeding up the tempo is Eastenders star Davood Ghadami, 36, who will perform a Quickstep to Last Nite by The Strokes with Nadiya.

Craig and Bruno branded the energy of the dance 'incredible' and the couple got a high score of 27.

A touch of romance: TV chef Simon Rimmer, 54, and Karen Clifton performed a graceful Waltz to You'll Never Walk Alone by Rodgers and Hammerstein

Final couple on the dance floor were songstress Alexandra Burke, 29, and dance partner Gorka, who performed a Paso Doble to On The Floor by Jennifer Lopez.

Giving Debbie and Giovanni's kiss a run for its money, the duo ended the performance in a mock kiss, and a breathless Alexandra Burke got a standing ovation.

The awe-struck panel, receiving the night's top score of 36 and smashing the show's scores- but still falling behind Debbie after last week's scores were added up.

With Debbie in the lead, Rev Richard and Charlotte Hawkins fell to the bottom of the leader board, relying on the public's score ahead of Sunday's elimination.

Confident: Gemma Atkinson looked in good spirits as she headed to the Elstree studios ahead of Saturday's show

Judging panel: Craig Revel Horwood, Darcey Bussell, Shirley Ballas and Bruno Tonioli

The fifteenth series show kicked off on the 10th September, revealing the hotly-anticipated pairings, with the newly shaken-up judging panel headed up by Shirley Bassas after Len Goodman retired earlier this year.

She joins the traditional Strictly judging panel, which consists of Craig Revel Horwood, Bruno Tonioli and Darcey Bussell.



As well as pairings, the show also featured a touching tribute to he late Sir Bruce Forsyth, who hosted the show from its 2004 until bowing out in 2013.

Tess Daly, who hosted the show alongside Sir Bruce, broke down in tears as she lead a special dedication to the beloved entertainer.

She is joined by Claudia Winkleman, with the duo replacing the former replacing the former presenting trio.

The second live show- and first live vote off with the results being shown on Sunday, took place tonight.

Eager: Die-hard Strictly fans camped out overnight to get tickets to the coveted show

The first live show last week got off to a controversial start, after Bruno Tonioli outraged fans when he appeared to cup Shirley Ballas' breast.

According to The Sun Strictly Come Dancing bosses have reportedly been hit by a barrage of complaints from fans about the incident and are said to be investigating after around 20 people objected.

A source told the website that although Bruno's behaviour was meant to be 'harmless' viewers did not feel the same.

They said: 'The BBC has now received formal complaints and will be officially looking into them to decide whether Bruno's behaviour was acceptable.

'He obviously thought it was light-hearted fun, but you could tell Tess was shocked by her reaction. She looked completely aghast.

'Bruno is obviously a larger-than- life sort of character but a number of viewers felt that touching a woman's chest like that even in jest sends out the wrong message.

The BBC declined to comment when approached by Mail Online.

Strictly Pairings - The Men Aston Merrygold & Janette Manrara Brian Conley & Amy Dowden Davood Ghadami & Nadiya Bychkova Joe McFadden & Katya Jones Jonnie Peacock & Oti Mabuse Reverend Richard Coles & Dianne Buswell Simon Rimmer & Karen Clifton Advertisement
She's become the 'go to' girl for high end fashion houses.

And Bella Hadid proved on trend as she posted an Instagram story of her preparations for a Christian Dior shoot on Friday.

The 20-year-old supermodel revealed her flawless figure in a couture black bikini as she was oiled up by assistants to get the perfect picture.

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Cover girl: Bella Hadid, 20, posted an Instagram story of her preparations for a Christian Dior shoot on Friday

Daring to impress, Bella showcased her toned tummy as she lay on the floor being prepared for the vigorous photo shoot.

Her ample cleavage and gorgeous gams took center stage as the young starlet's ensemble left little to the imagination.

Throwing caution to the wind, the California native kept her makeup to a minimum as she wore her trademark brunette tresses long and loose.

In a recent interview with Harper's Bazaar Arabia, Bella got candid about how she is not competitive with older sister and fellow model Gigi.

Stunning: Her ample cleavage took center stage as the young starlet's ensemble left little to the imagination

Toned tummy: Daring to impress, Bella showcased her toned tummy as she lay on the floor being prepared for the vigorous photo shoot

She said: 'Most of the time our markets are completely different.'

While Bella is the face of Fendi, Bulgari and Dior Beauty, Gigi works for Tommy Hilfiger and Maybelline.

Bella added: 'And if we get booked on a job and she gets it or I get it, we're both happy for each other. There are enough jobs in the world for both of us.'

'Theres no reason for us to be mad at each other or competitive. So if she gets it, then good for her.

Daring: Throwing caution to the wind, the California native kept her makeup to a minimum as she wore her trademark brunette tresses long and loose

All smiles: The It girl was all smiles as she was oiled up by assistants to get the perfect picture.

'Were in the family so she can buy me a pair of shoes.'

And when people tell her that modeling is not hard work, she laughs: 'Everybody has a different opinion of what hard work is. At the end of the day, if youre exhausted, you worked hard. Im definitely tired most of the time.'

Bella wanted to be an Olympic equestrian but came down with Lyme disease so she retired from the sport. That's when Gigi turned her on to modeling.

Pose: After the shoot, Bella gave a shout out to the Dior team

'Its not very giving, being a model, it doesnt warm your heart,' she noted. 'Its not as rewarding for the soul as most things.'

But she feels her personality has made a difference.

'Whats so beautiful about the time that we live in right now is that its not all about the face any more. You have to be more than that. You have to have a personality and you have to be able to go out there and have a conversation with somebody and not be a blank face,' she said.
They have quickly forged a close friendship through lighting up the Strictly dancefloor, amid claims she is getting close to Gorka Marquez.

And Gemma Atkinson and her professional dance partner Aljaz Skorjanec showed how comfortable they are around each other as he checked out sizzling photos from her latest magazine shoot and playfully ribbed her dancing ability.

In the funny video Gemma, 32, asks the newlywed dancer, 27, what he's looking at as the camera pans to show him leafing through a magazine, which contains photos of the star in a series of scantily-clad ensembles.

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Pals: Gemma Atkinson and her professional dance partner Aljaz Skorjanec showed how comfortable they are around each other as he checked out sizzling photos from her latest magazine shoot and playfully ribbed her dancing ability

Romance rumours: The playful video comes amid claims she is getting close to Gorka Marquez, pictured above with his dance partner Alexandra Burke

As he looks at the photos of the actress showing off her toned figure, the Slovenian ballroom king quips 'She doesnt look like she can dance though.'

Gemma shows off her natural beauty with only a light dusting of make-up, clad in a hoodie as the pair attempt to grab some rest after a hectic day of training.

Last week Gemma shot down rumours of a romance between her and professional dancer Gorka, saying a boyfriend is the last thing on her mind right now.

Speaking to OK! Magazine, the star was adamant she wasn't looking for love on the dancefloor and said she barely sees Gorka, who took the top score in last week's show with partner Alexandra Burke.

Funny: In the funny video Gemma, 32, asks the newlywed dancer, 27, what he's looking at as the camera pans to show him leafing through a magazine, which contains photos of the star in a series of scantily-clad ensembles

Chatty: As he looks at the photos of the actress showing off her toned figure, the Slovenian ballroom king quips 'She doesnt look like she can dance though'

Cute: Gemma shows off her natural beauty with only a light dusting of make-up, clad in a hoodie as the pair attempt to grab some rest after a hectic day of training

Candid: Gemma shot down rumours of a romance between her and professional dancer Gorka Marquez, saying a boyfriend is the last thing on her mind right now in a new interview with OK! Magazine

Not happening:Gemma was adamant she wasn't looking for love on the dancefloor and said she barely sees Gorka (right), who took the top score in last week's show with partner Alexandra Burke

She said: 'The last thing I'm looking for at the minute is a boyfriend. I'm happy to be the crazy dog woman with meals for one. They're like my kids.

'There was an online poll that asked who I should get with and they said Gorka, so it started from there! I've only seen him for the launch and live shows. He's a friend and the only thing we've shared is his guacamole recipe.'

The former Emmerdale beauty also weighed in on the 'Strictly curse', saying it won't strike her and partner Aljaz Skorjanec, who recently wed Janette Manrara, because they are friends who sit around 'burping' together.

She said: 'I thought it would be [awkward] but it's not like that with Aljaz because he's my mate. Hopefully the dance will look intimate when necessary but before and after rehearsals we're sat around eating Nando's, burping and having a laugh.'

Happy; She said: 'The last thing I'm looking for at the minute is a boyfriend. I'm happy to be the crazy dog woman with meals for one. They're like my kids' (Gemma and Gorka pictured end left)

Friendship: The former Emmerdale beauty also weighed in on the 'Strictly curse', saying it won't strike her and partner Aljaz Skorjanec, who recently wed Janette Manrara, because they are friends who sit around 'burping' together

The star, who is known for her dedication to fitness and her natural lifestyle also opened up about one Strictly essential, the spray tan, saying she opts for a quirky vegan version.

She said: 'We all smelt like digestive biscuits because that's what fake tan smells like. I had to ask what was in it because I don't want chemicals on my body, but it's a vegan spray tan, so it's all good.'

Gemma will return to Strictly next week with partner Alijaz for a Movie Special.

The blonde bombshell will be juggling her dance training with her job as a breakfast presenter for Manchester's Key 103 Radio Show.

The fourteen remaining couples will be dancing to some of the most iconic movie tracks when the Strictly returns to the BBC on October 7.
On last year's annual pilgrimage to Noosa, Bec and Chris Judd enlisted the help of a paid nanny to help with their four kids.

But she appears to be keeping it in the family this time around, having nabbed the services of her mother Kerry Brown to assist with parenting duties during a beach outing this week.

Putting on a leggy display in a summery dress, the 34-year-old was seen at one point handing twin sons Tom and Darcy, one, over to their grandma.

Keeping it in the family! Bec Judd enlisting the help of her mother Kerry at a Noosa beach this week, seen minding the kids during a fun-filled family outing

Using a unique gripping technique, the KIIS FM star held little Tom by the arms, with the toddler clearly enjoying the exchange.

Elsewhere, her former AFL star hubby Chris got in on the family fun, seen shirtless and flaunting his washboard abs.

He also took a turn keeping Tom occupied and was later seen sitting on the sand with his wife and mother-in-law.

Fun with nan! Putting on a leggy display in a summery dress, the 34-year-old was seen at one point handing twin sons Tom and Darcy, one, over to their grandma

Fun in the sun! Using a unique gripping technique, the KIIS FM star held one of her adorable brood by the arms, with the toddler clearly enjoying the exchange

Full house! Elsewhere, her former AFL star hubby Chris Judd got in on the family fun, seen shirtless and flaunting his washboard abs

Their eldest son Oscar, six, who kept safe in a fluro life vest, joined the group as they sat and soaked up the sun on the shoreline.

Bec cherished the chance to work on her trademark tan, eventually ditching her dress in favour of a stylish bikini top.

She and Kerry were a fitting mother-daughter duo and it became clear where the radio and TV star gets her fashion sense.

Dad's turn! He also took a turn keeping one of the twins occupied, pictured splashing in the waves with little Tom

Shore thing! Bec cherished the chance to work on her trademark tan, eventually ditching her dress in favour of a stylish bikini top (pictured here along with eldest son Oscar, six

Both looked flawless, sporting wide-brim hats and sunglasses, which were paired with breezy summer dresses.

Bec flashed a glimpse of her pinstripe bikini beneath her short blue one-piece, which featured a frilly overlay at the bust.

Thrill-seeker! It's clear that between the twins, It's Tom (pictured) who identifies as the thrill-seeker

So that's where she gets it! She and Kerry were a fitting mother-daughter duo and it became clear where the radio and TV star gets her fashion sense

Flawless! Both women looked flawless, sporting wide-brim hats and sunglasses, which were paired with breezy summer dresses

The ensemble was cropped high above the knee, exposing her enviable bronzed legs.

Noosa is a popular holiday destination for the Judds, with Chris proposing to Rebecca there in 2009.

The family often visit the popular beach area on Queensland's Sunshine Coast.
It may now be Autumn, but Courteney Cox was rocking a look fit for summer on Friday.

The 53-year-old actress flashed a hint of her bra and legs in a semi-sheer ensemble at the Bel-Air Hotel in Los Angeles.

Courteney looked in high spirits as she stepped out into the sunshine with some cash in hand.

Keeping her cool: Friends star Courteney Cox, 53, flashed a hint of her bra and legs in a semi-sheer ensemble as she left the Bel-Air Hotel in Los Angeles

She wore tinted glasses and carried several small items of shopping, an iPhone plus a twenty dollar bill.

The actress carried a small leather shoulder bag and added a casual touch with suede Puma sneakers.

She appeared practically makeup free, letting her natural features shine through.

But she accessorized the dressed down look with earrings, bracelets, and other jewelry.

Not so blue: The Cougar Town star/director wore a long, semi-sheet black skirt that gave glimpses of Cox's toned pins, and a blue cotton t-shirt

Future's so bright: She wore tinted glasses and carried several small items of shopping, an iPhone plus a twenty dollar bill for the valet

Cox is currently engaged to Snow Patrol rocker Johnny McDaid.

The Ace Ventura: Pet Detective actress took to social media in July to honor her new man's birthday.

Cox, who was previously married to actor David Arquette, posted a snap to Instagram of her with her arms around her Northern Ireland born flame.

She captioned the post: 'Happy birthday my love! So happy to be here with you [heart emoji] @johnnymcdaid'.

Out and about! Courteney was later seen wearing cuffed blue jeans with black slides and a matching striped T-shirt while running errands in West Hollywood

Fresh faced: It was the second outfit of the day for the Golden Globe nominee, who relies on stylist Maryam Malakpour for red carpet looks
The BET Hip Hop Awards are taking place in sweltering Miami this year.

But Keyshia Ka'oir probably was perfectly comfortable in her mostly mesh, airy outfit, which no doubt turned quite a few heads on the red carpet.

Rapper Gucci Mane's fiancee, who models and also heads up a fitness equipment company, seemed to steal the show in her silver mesh number, which appeared to channel medieval chain mail.

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Hello there! Keyshia Ka'oir probably was perfectly comfortable in her mostly mesh, airy outfit, which no doubt turned quite a few heads on the red carpet

All of the temptress's curves were on display, thanks to the see-through nature of the eye-catching garment.

Pasties appeared to cover her modesty up top, while nude spandex ensured she was properly concealed down below.

Even her knee-high silver boots sported the chain mail-style texture.

Leaving little to the imagination: All of the temptress's curves were on display, thanks to the see-through nature of the eye-catching garment

History buff? Keyshia's outfit appeared to channel classic medieval chain mail

Trick of the eye: Pasties appeared to cover her modesty up top, while nude spandex ensured she was properly concealed down below

Targaryen trend? Her silver locks were slicked back and fell most of the way down her back

Aside from her massive engagement ring, the model also opted for some small stud earrings.

Her silver locks were slicked back and fell most of the way down her back.

While her white manicure coordinated with her pale tresses, she did opt to inject some color in the form of some bright candy apple red lipstick.

Striking: While her white manicure coordinated with her pale tresses, she did opt to inject some color in the form of some bright candy apple red lipstick

High spirits! It seemed that her outfit definitely made a good impression on fellow model Blac Chyna, as the usually somewhat dour eyelash salon owner couldn't help but crack a smile for a snap with the faux armor-clad Keyshia

No secrets here! Gucci Many and Keysia famously fell in love after the model had the opportunity to bathe her future beau

A smokey eye and slight blush ensured the beauty looked stellar on the red carpet.

It seemed that her outfit definitely made a good impression on fellow model Blac Chyna, as the usually somewhat dour eyelash salon owner couldn't help but crack a smile for a snap with the faux armor-clad Keyshia.

Interestingly it seemed that Keyshia was not accompanied by fiancee Gucci Mane for the event.

On the mic! Rapper Cardi B donned two different ensembles at the Miami ceremony, including a bedazzled bra and pink high-waisted pants for a performance

Birthday girl: The Bodak Yellow hitmaker - who turns 25 next Wednesday - sported a gaudy-patterned, floor-length fur coat selected by stylist Mikiel Benyamin

Leggy: When the Bronx-born beauty (born Belcalis Almanzar) arrived on the green carpet she flaunted her surgically-enhanced curves in a purple sequinned gown

The couple famously fell in love after the model had the opportunity to bathe her future beau.

'I went on tour with Gucci in 2010  that is when it really started to get serious,' she recently told Page Six ,'I fell in love with Gucci when I bathed him  I put him in a shower and just bathed him. I just did things to him and he looked at me and said, Wow, no one has ever bathed me before.'

She then elaborated: 'I am a traditional Jamaican lady, that is what you do. You take care of your man.'

Curvaceous: Chyna displayed her jaw-dropping curves in a skintight cream mesh two-piece
She's the girlfriend of radio shock jock Kyle Sandilands who is not shy of putting on a risque.

And Saturday, Imogen Anthony took her legion of fans behind-the-scenes on the set of a raunchy photo shoot set in an old-school diner.

The 26-year-old shared footage showing her posing in a pair of thigh-high boots made from electric blue PVC.

Now that's a unique look! Imogen Anthony has taken her legion of fans behind-the-scenes of her raunchy photo shoot from the set of an old-school diner

She wore a cropped tank top that showcased her underboob and taut tummy.

Imogen showcased her pert posterior, in a pair of high-cut hot pants.

Her look was accessorised with a pair of long, bright red latex gloves, which contrasted the pair of very long satin blue, avant-garde heels.

Showing you how she slays! She wore a cropped tank top that showcased her underboob and taut tummy

Raunchy: Her look was accessorised with a pair of long, bright red latex gloves, which contrasted the pair of very long satin blue, avant-garde heels

To complete the look she sported a voluminous blonde wig

The glamour model's highly-stylised photo shoot comes after she recently shared a lengthy post about the inspiration behind her tattoo collection after her grandma told her she 'hates' her body ink.

She explained that her tattoos symbolise memories and milestones in her life such as road trips with her mother, her favourite music, and her late goat Cheechy.

Baring all: Shared a lengthy post about the inspiration behind her tattoo collection after her grandma told her she 'hates' her body ink, she said the tattoos symbolise memories and milestones in her life

'Memories may always be in your mind, but sometimes we also like to see them, even if it's only a reminder... I think the best point I'm trying to make here is to let people be, and what will be, will be.'

Kyle Sandilands recently revealed that Imogen banned him from using social media to doesn't want anyone else coming near him.

'I'm not allowed any social media, I'm not allowed any DMs (direct messages),' he said.

'I even have a team of people looking through every letter that comes to the house just so my girlfriend feels safe ... she doesn't let any b**** near me.'
Many reality TV stars readily admit to landing the role predominantly to boost their profile.

Not Australian Survivor's Tara Pitt, who's got no desire to take after Bachelor, Bachelorette, 2DayFM, Hell's Kitchen and Home and Away star Sam Frost.

'I'm not looking to use (Survivor) as a vehicle to change my life, I don't want to be on Home and Away or anything,' she told The Daily Telegraph this week.

'I don't want to be on Home and Away or anything': Australian Survivor's Tara Pitt (L) has no desire to follow in the footsteps of Bachelor, Bachelorette, 2DayFM, Hell's Kitchen and Home and Away star Sam Frost (R)

The final four contestant, who works as a professional Barrel Racer, insists it's not the fame or notoriety she's averse to.

'I don't mind the attention, I have been getting an enormous amount of support from mums...' Tara told the publication.

'(They) say 'you're making me get off the couch and want to apply for next season,' she beamed.

Just in it for the thrills! 'I'm not looking to use (Survivor) as a vehicle to change my life, I don't want to be on Home and Away or anything,' the final four contestant told reporters this week

Her advice: 'I tell them to go for it, just do it!'

It's a notably different approach than contestants of shows like The Bachelor and Married At First Sight have taken.

It's commonplace for many contestants booted off such shows to appear in paid endorsement deals on Instagram - often as soon as they're contractually allowed.

Mum's the word! 'I don't mind the attention, I have been getting an enormous amount of support from mums...' the professional barrel racer continued

Whatever floats your boat! It's a notably different approach than contestants of shows like The Bachelor and Married At First Sight have taken

Coincidence? Tara's Home and Away comment appeared to be general in nature, although it does reality TV veteran Sam Frost's post-Bachelor career trajectory

Tara's Home and Away comment appeared to be general in nature, although it does reality TV veteran Sam Frost's post-Bachelor career trajectory.

The personality also had a short-lived radio career, featuring in 2Day FM's ailing breakfast slot alongside Rove McManus.

At the start of 2017 they were moved to a less competitive 7pm drive slot due to poor ratings, before that too got the axe in June.
Mark Salling wasn't looking happy as he stepped out in Los Angeles on Friday.

The 35-year-old star of the now defunct show Glee entered a guilty plea for possession of child pornography involving a prepubescent minor in Los Angeles on Wednesday.

Salling looked stony-faced as he made his way across a parking lot, opting for a simple ensemble for the outing.

Expressionless: Mark Salling wasn't looking happy as he stepped out in Los Angeles on Friday

He paired a charcoal grey long sleeve shirt with a pair of navy blue track pants, while a pair of flip flops rounded out the demure look.

A pair of mirrored aviator shades hung from the neck of his shirt.

It's little wonder why the former actor looked downcast, as his plea deal means that he is looking at a prison sentence of four-to-seven years, according to documents first obtained by The Blast.

As part of the plea deal, he had to admit to the court that authorities retrieved massive quantities of child porn from his home in a December 2015 raid.

Nothing fancy: He paired a charcoal grey long sleeve shirt with a pair of navy blue track pants, while a pair of flip flops rounded out the demure look

Law enforcement in the raid found more than 50,000 images of child pornography on a laptop, with another 4,000 images and 160 videos on a flash drive, according to the plea deal.

The actor was originally facing a maximum sentence of 20 years behind bars after being charged with two counts of child pornography last year.

After being released from prison, he is banned from coming within 100 feet of schoolyards, parks, public swimming pools, playgrounds and video arcade venues; cannot communicate verbally or electronically with any person under 18 without their parent or guardian present; and will also have to enter a sex offender treatment program as part of the plea deal.

The agreement also states that Salling has been ordered to pay 'approximately $50,000' restitution to each victim who has requested it.

Breakout role: Salling was most well known for playing Noah 'Puck' Puckerman on the Fox musical show Glee

According to the court documents - first obtained by The Blast - Salling 'downloaded thousands of images of child pornography' between April and December 2015.

The papers state he used software to mask his IP address, but twice showed some of his collection to an adult woman, who ultimately reported him to police.

Following the tip-off, Salling was arrested in December 2015 at his home in Sunland, California, where police found a cache of explicit images on his computer depicting children as young as 10 in sexual situations. They later discovered more than 50,000 photos and videos on his laptop and another 4,000 on a flash drive.

Done deal: The 35-year-old star of the now defunct show Glee entered a guilty plea for possession of child pornography involving a prepubescent minor in Los Angeles on Wednesday

Sources who spoke with TMZ in December said police were '100 percent' certain they would find child pornography in Salling's home based on a tip they had received from his ex-girlfriend and additional evidence.

The allegations were first reported by Crime Watch Daily, who said police used battering rams to get into the house because Salling refused to let them in to the home. His computer and other electronic devices were reportedly seized by cops after Salling refused to tell them his password.

According to records, the house raided by the LAPD belongs to Jonathan Hernandez, who had been Salling's roommate as far back as 2011.
She's the PR queen that shocked social media this past week when she was pictured trying on wedding dresses.

But on Saturday, Roxy Jacenko turned heads by wearing a different type of white frock at the Moet & Chandon Spring Champion Stakes Day at Randwick Racecourse.

The 37-year old put on an eye-catching display in an unusual white, low-cut dress that hugged her busty figure.

Ruffling feathers with the fashion crowd? PR queen Roxy Jacenko flaunts her ample assets in an VERY unusual white frock as she attends Moet & Chandon Spring Champion Stakes Day

The Nicola Finetti dress featured short, puff sleeves and a furry peplum made from white ostrich feathers.

She strapped on a pair of beige ball-embellished heels and a studded Bulgari handbag.

The mother-of-two had her blonde locks styled into waves that flowed effortlessly over her shoulders.

Roxy further accessorised with a bespoke headpiece, adorned with light pink and white roses.

Bold fashion statement: The Nicola Finetti midi-dress featured short, puff sleeves and a a furry peplum made from white ostrich feathers

'To the races we go': Roxy flaunted her ample assets in the eye-catching dress as she posed for a selfie in an elevator

Stunning! The mother-of-two had her blonde locks styled into waves that flowed effortlessly over her shoulders

Roxy flaunted her ample assets in the eccentric dress as she posed for a selfie in an elevator.

'To the races we go,' she captioned and posted to Instagram.

She posed for photos with her publicist staffers Gemma Oldfield and Holly Brooke, as they arrived together at the event.

And while this dress was turning heads at the event, it's the frock Roxy wore last week which really had people talking.

Fashionista: And while this dress was turning heads at the event, it's the frock Roxy wore last week which really had people talking

The Sweaty Betty founder sent social media into meltdown on Thursday when she posted a photo of her wearing a wedding dress on Instagram.

But the PR queen has quashed rumours of an imminent wedding between herself and Oliver Curtis, revealing she only only tried on the gown as a bit of fun.

'At this stage I dont have plans for a second wedding,' she told Daily Mail Australia on Friday.

'Who knew it would throw everyone into such a spin!' Roxy Jacenko reveals she only tried on bridal dress for a bit of fun ... and has no plans to remarry Oliver Curtis in a second wedding

Roxy explained her and her staff had been trying on dresses, brought over by designer Oleg Cassi regarding a PR campaign.

'The founder brought some amazing garments from the website in for myself and the team to try on - was a fun (and very funny) afternoon,' she said.

Roxy added: 'Who knew it would throw everyone into such a spin!'

Husband Oliver proposed for a second time following his release from Cooma Correctional Centre on June 23, after serving a year behind bars for insider trading.
He's one of the most iconic actors in the industry.

But Harrison Ford was keeping it casual when he stepped out to run some errands in Santa Monica on Friday.

The outing comes after the Indiana Jones star, 75, recounted accidentally punching his co-star Ryan Gosling in the face while on set of Blade Runner 2049 three years ago, saying of the offending hand: 'It's beginning to heal.'

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Fountain of youth: Harrison Ford, 75, stepped out of a CVS in Santa Monica on Friday, wearing a t-shirt that accentuated the actor's rippling biceps

The Star Wars actor went casual for his pharmacy outing, wearing a plain gray t-shirt, gray shorts and hiking boots.

The Academy Award nominee was prepared for the sunny Los Angeles day, toting a cap hooked to his back pack by a carabiner and wearing tortoiseshell framed sunglasses.

Harrison Ford recently revealed that he accidentally punched co-star Ryan Gosling in the face on the set of Blade Runner 2049 in December.

And more than nine months on, Harrison claimed his hand is finally recovering.

Treadmill runner: The Star Wars actor went casual for his pharmacy outing, wearing a plain gray t-shirt, gray shorts and hiking boots

The Apocalypse Now actor told The Project: 'It's beginning to heal.'

Fist of fury: Harrison Ford recently revealed that he accidentally punched co-star Ryan Gosling in the face on the set of Blade Runner 2049 in December

During their joint interview, the stars laughed, as they acknowledged the humorous incident.

Ryan cheekily asked, 'How's your hand doing?' as Harrison returned: 'It's beginning to heal.'

Despite being hit by Harrison, the La La Land star praised working alongside the veteran actor: 'He's somebody I've admired for a long time... but then when you work with him... it's better than what you think.'
The last time Samantha Harris was at the races she was putting on a loved up display with jailbird husband Luke Hunt.

But on Saturday, the Indigenous Australian model appeared unimpressed as she arrived through the gates at Randwick Racecourse forMoet & Chandon Spring Champion Stakes Day.

The 27-year-old walked into the event surrounded by a group of friends, wearing a stunning floral gown.

Long day? Samantha Harris did not look impressed when a photographer spoke to her at the Moet & Chandon Spring Champion Stakes Day on Saturday

Once inside the race course, Samantha was approached by a photographer and appears unimpressed by the ensuing conversation.

The former Vogue cover girl wore a knee-high floral green dress as she walked through the crowds.

Wearing a white bespoke headpiece, Samantha looked stunning while she walked enjoyed her day in the sun with friends.

Not impressed! Samantha was approached by a photographer and appears unimpressed by the ensuing conversation

Samantha Harris looked radiant at the Colgate Optic White Stakes Day at Randwick Racecourse

Last month, the Tweed Heads born model was all smiles alongside her husband Luke Hunt at the Colgate Optic White Stakes Day.

Luke was released from St Heliers Correctional Centre in Muswellbrook, NSW, in May last year after serving time for his involvement in a fatal car accident.

At the race track, Sam was seen towering over her husband as she kissed him tenderly on his forehead.

Together again! Luke was released from St Heliers Correctional Centre in Muswellbrook, NSW, in May last year after serving time for his involvement in a fatal car accident

The brunette beauty later kissed him again on his head as he gleamed a massive grin to photographers.

In 2014 Luke was sentenced to four years in prison over the death of Kenneth Lay, 78, in a car accident in 2012.

Samantha and Luke last year revealed they had secretly married prior to him serving his prison sentence, but kept the news secret out of respect for the deceased's family.

Happily ever after! Since their reunion, Sam and Luke have consistently put on a united front
Rose McGowan called out silent Hollywood actresses amid the Harvey Weinstein sexual harassment scandal

Rose McGowan has voiced her pent-up frustration toward Hollywood actresses who have yet to speak out amid the Harvey Weinstein sexual harassment scandal.

The actress, 44, who is one of Weinstein's accusers, took to her Twitter page Friday evening to share some careful words to her famous comrades, writing: 'Ladies of Hollywood, your silence is deafening.'

In October of last year, the 'Charmed' starlet came forward with claims saying she had been raped by an unnamed studio executive. In a tweet, she posted the hashtag #WhyWomenDontReport.'

She further explained: 'Because my ex sold our movie to my rapist for distribution,' followed by, 'A (female) criminal attorney said because I'd done a sex scene in a film I would never win against the studio head.'

McGowan has yet to confirm the circulating New York Times report suggesting she was paid $100,000 in settlement by Weinstein following an undisclosed incident from the mid-1990's.

The movie star stands alongside several other actresses who have made harassment claims against the Hollywood producer, including Ashley Judd - who revealed she was lured to Weinstein's hotel room once and asked to perform sexual favors.

Former Fox News anchor, Lauren Sivan, came forward Friday saying in an interview with Huff Post that Weinstein once trapped her in a restaurant hallway at a private event and masturbated in front of her until he ejaculated.

The actress, 44, who is one of Weinstein's accusers, took to her Twitter page Friday evening to share some careful words to her famous counterparts

McGowan told Hollywood actresses to 'get brave,' while applauding those who spoke out

McGowan posted several other related tweets to her page Friday evening

A decade ago: Weinstein and McGowan pictured together at the Grindhouse premiere in Los Angeles back in 2007

Thus far, at least seven other Hollywood ladies have shown support for Judd and other accusers after the bombshell investigative report came out this week saying Weinstein had paid off his accusers for decades.

They include: Amber Tamblyn, America Ferrera, Brie Larson, Brooklyn Decker, Patricia Arquette, Jessica Chastain and Heather Matarazzo.

McGowan, one of the most vocal supporters, stepped out for the first time this week since the allegations erupted about years of sexual abuse against the Oscar-winning film producer, 65.

Putting on a defiant display as she headed out on Friday, the star was seen grabbing a refreshing iced coffee in West Hollywood.

The 'Dead Awake' actress rocked a pair of furry orange sliders with tight black and white graphic leggings, a grey woolly pullover, and a pair of circular mirrored shades.

Brave face: Rose McGowan has stepped out for the first time since Harvey Weinstein was accused of sexually harassing multiple female employees and movie stars

Just one day earlier, she shared another cryptic tweet not long after Weinstein was accused of sexually harassing multiple female employees and movie stars.

'Anyone who does business with __ is complicit. And deep down you know you are even dirtier. Cleanse yourselves,' she tweeted at the time.

This came shortly after The Times claimed that the Hollywood studio head paid $100,000 to McGowan for the unknown incident shortly after she filmed her breakthrough role in the film 'Scream.'

Out and about: Putting on a defiant display as she headed out on Friday, the actress, 44, was seen grabbing a refreshing iced coffee in West Hollywood

The settlement is one of eight that Weinstein has reportedly paid out over the past 30 years, with Italian model Ambra Battilana also receiving an undisclosed sum in 2015 after accusing the Hollywood executive of groping her and putting his hand under her skirt.

McGowan would not comment to the Times about her experience, but has been very vocal about the incidents of harassment and assault she experienced in her early years.

She has never named the perpetrators of these acts.

Dark: McGowan shared a cryptic tweet not long after Weinstein (pictured on Thursday night) was accused of sexually harassing multiple female employees and movie stars

Fill in the blank: McGowan, who was named in the NYT story as having settled a sexual harassment suit against Weinstein took to social media after it was released

Stand up: She also wrote on Twitter: 'Women fight on. And to the men out there, stand up. We need you as allies. #bebrave'

The incident between McGowan and Weinstein allegedly occurred in a hotel room at the 1997 Sundance Film Festival when she was 23.

McGowan did take to social media shortly after the report was released, writing: 'Women fight on. And to the men out there, stand up. We need you as allies. #bebrave'.

On Thursday, McGowan also engaged in a Twitter discussion with actress Asia Argento, known for her roles in films such as 'XXX' and 'Marie Antoinette.'

'I want to buy the movie rights,' wrote McGowan soon after it was revealed that Weinstein would be the subject of two bombshell exposes, though she did not say she was directly referring to that report.

Paid: The tweet came shortly after The New York Times claimed that Weinstein (pictured leaving his NYC office on Thursday), paid $100,000 to McGowan for an unknown incident

'I own the movie rights,' replied Argento, who then added: 'It's gonna be the best movie of the last 20 years.'

McGowan responded to that by stating: 'We're gonna lobby for so many Oscars.'

The Times report also claimed that Weinstein once asked Ashley Judd if she would like to watch him shower during the meeting in his room at the Peninsula Beverly Hills.

But Weinstein had denied parts of Judd's story - part of the reason he has chose to sue the Times, according to a statement from his attorney Charles Harder.

'The New York Times published today a story that is saturated with false and defamatory statements about Harvey Weinstein,' said Harder in a statement.

'It relies on mostly hearsay accounts and a faulty report, apparently stolen from an employee personnel file, which has been debunked by nine different eyewitnesses.'

Harder went on to say: 'We sent the Times the facts and evidence, but they ignored it and rushed to publish.

'We are preparing the lawsuit now. All proceeds will be donated to women's organizations.'

Called it: McGowan also tweeted not long after the Times story was published
She is no stranger to reality TV.

And Sharon Osbourne added a new genre of reality shows to her resume, with the series premiere of Sharon Flipping Osbourne which debuted on WE TV on Friday.

The reality TV star, 64, showcased her hidden talent, which is flipping houses, and she claims: 'I'm d*mn good at it'.

'I'm d*mn good at it!' Sharon Osbourne added a new genre of reality shows to her resume with Friday's premiere of Sharon Flipping Osbourne on WE TV (as pictured in trailer)

Sharon starts her new show by explaining her passion for renovating homes, as well as being able to make profit from it as well.

The wife of rock legend Ozzy Osbourne first finds a home that is located in the suburbs of Los Angeles that is affordable.

Sharon scopes out the house that she likes, and convinces the family of four to let her flip their home.

She explains that the money they profit from will be split 50/50 which fully convinces the family to let Sharon work her magic.

House to home: In it, the 64-year-old Talk host convinced a family-of-four to let her renovated their home

Cheers! The wife of rock legend Ozzy Osbourne enlisted two project managers - called Uzi and Shalomi - to help make her vision a reality

Sharon needs trustful contractors to make her vision a reality when it comes to remodeling the Los Angeles home.

That's when she is introduced to two men who are the best project managers in the area- Uzi and Shalomi.

Of course unfiltered Sharon pokes fun of their interesting names, as well as their fashion sense.

In one scene the TV host comments on their style by calling them ' an Israeli boy band'.

Plumbing situation: The two contractors spend over their $10K budget and realize that their promise to Sharon might not be as smooth sailing as they thought

Horrified: When Osbourne found out she was furious because of the lack of communication, and gave the two an ultimatum to have the house finished in five days top

The two new project managers are told about the budget and deadline and seem uneasy about getting the job done, but none the less they agree to do it for Sharon.

The mother-of-three gives the two men a long list of to-do's, which she emphasizes that the house's popcorn ceiling is a first on the list to be done.

Of course Sharon jokes that Uzi and Shalomi better get the house finished because she's 'Sharon f***ing Osbourne.'

In the episode the two contractors realize that their promise to Sharon might not be as smooth sailing as they thought.

For sale! Uzi and Shalomi finish the job and the flame-haired mother-of-three holds an open house

Triumphant! Despite going over budget, the resulting sale wound up earning $200K more than what was originally estimated for the house

Without any confirmation, Uzi and Shalomi spend over $10,000 over budget- which they left till the end to tell the British-born superstar.

When Sharon finds out she is furious because of the lack of communication, and gives the two an ultimatum to have the house finished in five days top.

While the project managers scurry around to get the job done, Sharon gets the fun part by getting furniture for decorating.

In the long run, the two men end up finishing the job on time and Sharon offers them the position of being her designated partners -which they obviously accept.

Rock 'n' roll! Throughout the show, the British presenter kept referring to herself as 'Sharon f***ing Osbourne'

As the new renovated house comes together, Sharon puts together a open house for neighbors and friends in the area.

The master piece ends up wooing the visitors as well as the home owners that are glad they let Sharon flip their home.

At the end of the episode the fiery headed entrepreneur sat down with the homeowners to discuss the profits.

Sharon explained how her team had to go over budget, which later worked out in the long run because they made over $200,000 than what was originally estimated for the house.

Sharon showed off her money making talents, and the family of four walked away happier than ever.

And Sharon proved that she is 'Sharon f***ing Osbourne.'
The stars came out on Saturday for the Spring Champion Stakes Day at Royal Randwick.

High jumper and model Amy Pejkovic flaunted her stunning figure in a grey green dress with a plunging neckline that displayed some cleavage.

She matched the eye-catching dress with a pair of black strapped heels and a black chained clutch handbag.

Loved up: Amy Pejkovic and her AFL boyfriend Adam Tomlinson stepped out on Saturday for the Spring Champion Stakes Day at Royal Randwick

By her side was her AFL star boyfriend Adam Tomlinson.

Adam, who plays for the Greater Western Sydney Giants, planted a tender kiss on Amy's head for the cameras.

Amy's Olympic dreams were shattered after she was diagnosed with a brain tumour in 2012.

Smooch: Adam, who plays for the Greater Western Sydney Giants, planted a tender kiss on Amy's head for the cameras

Say cheese: The blonde beauty appeared to love the attention and affection she was receiving

But the Australian high jumper has set the bar higher for herself by remaining hopeful for the 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast and the Tokyo Olympic Games 2020.

Speaking to Sunday Herald Sun earlier this week, the model spoke candidly of how she feared about losing her battle to a brain tumour in 2012.

She was misdiagnosed twice with a middle-ear infection after doctors initially dismissed her excruciating headaches and vomiting.

'I was probably days away from dying, that is what they [the doctor] said to me,' Pejkovic told the publication.

Glamorous: The high jumper and model flaunted her stunning figure in a grey green dress with a plunging neckline that displayed some cleavage

Leggy lady: She matched the eye-catching dress with a pair of black strapped heels and a black chained clutch handbag

Shattered: Amy's Olympic dreams were shattered after she was diagnosed with a brain tumour 2012

Before her shock diagnosis, Pejkovic revealed she was unaware of the extent of her condition despite suffering years of searing headaches.

'At one stage the headaches were daily, I was vomiting at every training session, I could not balance properly. I would try to walk through a door frame and just fall into the wall. I could not do anything properly,' she said.

After an MRI scan, the young woman was was diagnosed with a life-threatening five centimetre tumour that was found in her brain.

'All I could think of was that I was only 19, I still have so much left to do, I have so much left to give and I am not ready to die,' she said.

Two years after the tumour was successfully removed, she was ranked No.2 in the high jump in Australia.
He admitted he wanted to have surgery to get a 'manly, Italian-looking nose' like Hollywood film star Ray Liotta.

And James Argent proudly showed off the results of his 6,500 nose job in a proud before and after Instagram snap on Friday.

The former TOWIE star, who had his nose and nostrils reduced to 'even out' his features, gushed that he 'couldn't be happier' with his new look.

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He nose it looks good! James Argent proudly showed off the results of his 6,500 nose job in a proud before and after Instagram snap on Friday

He wrote in the caption: 'Ive recently had rhinoplasty with the incredible @drfrati to reduce the size of my nose & nostrils.

'The swellings going down & I couldnt be happier with the results.'

He continued: 'This is something that Ive considered for a long time, especially after losing a lot of weight where my features stood out more.

'It's subtle, hasn't changed my face & very natural (sic). It's definitely another step in improving my overall confidence, self-esteem & I couldnt be happier! X'

Pleased: He said of the nose job: 'It's subtle, hasn't changed my face & very natural (sic). It's definitely another step in improving my overall confidence, self-esteem & I couldnt be happier!' Pictured last year before the operation

Idol: James admitted he wanted to have surgery to get a 'manly, Italian-looking nose' like Hollywood film star Ray Liotta

And he's not the only TOWIE star keen to transform his looks, as former co-star Bobby Norris recently travelled to Turkey to get a nose job too.

Bobby, 31, flew abroad at the end of September to have the surgery alongside Jemma Lucy, but is yet to show off the results.

Meanwhile, Arg previously revealed plans to undergo surgery as he continues to rejuvenate his lifestyle and work on his physical appearance following a make-or-break 10-week stay at a Thai retreat in February.

Oops: TOWIE star Bobby Norris recently travelled to Turkey to get a nose job too

Before: Bobby, 31, flew abroad at the end of September to have the surgery alongside Jemma Lucy. Pictured in January

Speaking to Sun Online, he admitted slimming down during a physically gruelling stay in South East Asia left him feeling self-conscious about his nose, which he felt looked too big as a consequence of his remarkable weight loss.

He said: Ive always known Ive had a big nose, but where Ive been so up and down with my weight for so many years, my nose didnt stand out as much, but now Ive lost four stone my features show a lot more and Ive got this large bump and nostrils that are even more prominent.'

I think if I have the bump removed and the nostrils made smaller it will make me feel a lot more confident and be another step into helping me better myself since leaving rehab  and Im not gonna lie, better looking and more attractive.'

Transformation: Mario Falcone went under the knife in September to have his nose straightened after suffering years of taunts about its size and shape

The TV personality opted to follow the route chosen by handsome TOWIE co-star Mario Falcone, who made the surprising decision to have rhinoplasty after being trolled about his nose on social media.

Keen to obtain the same results as Mario - who later admitted he was delighted with the procedure - James paid 6,500 to be surgically enhanced by the same London based specialist, Dr. Riccardo Frati.

And the reality star had very clear ideas about who he wants to look like.

'I want a nose like Ray Liotta in Goodfellas or Mark Ronson,' he said. 'Theyve both got really manly and Italian looking noses and thats exactly the look I want to go for, I dont want a tiny pixie nose, I want to look manly.'
She touched down in the Philippines earlier in the week.

And on Friday, Natalie Roser took to Instagram to share a cheeky photo of her pert derriere.

Sporting a bikini from her own range Roser The Label, the 27-year-old flaunted her long and lean legs as she stood in front of a picturesque beach setting.

Stunner! And on Friday, Natalie Roser took to Instagram to share a cheeky photo of her pert derriere

'It doesn't get much better than this #IslandBaby,' she captioned the shot.

Standing on the beach, Natalie wore a floral G-String bikini that left little to the imagination.

The stunner also left her blonde locks out and natural for the racy picture.

Beauties: Posing next to former Miss Universe Australia Renae Ayris, the pair flaunted their taut stomach's and their genetically blessed looks

Racy: In another shot, Natalie flaunted her ample cleavage in a sultry selfie

In another shot, Natalie flaunted her ample cleavage in a sultry selfie.

And although on vacation, the clothing designer assured fans her washboard abs were still in peak condition.

Posing next to former Miss Universe Australia Renae Ayris, the pair flaunted their taut stomach's and their genetically blessed looks.

The new trend! Also wearing a Roser The Label black bikini, Renae held onto an ocean side palm tree and turned side on

Girls trip! The pair are enjoying an island getaway alongside models Tegan Martin, Brooke Nash, Nia Sanchez and former Bachelor lovers Tiffany Scanlon and Megan Marx

And it didn't seem to be just Natalie showcasing her pert behind.

Also wearing a Roser The Label black bikini, Renae held onto an ocean side palm tree and turned side on.

The pair are enjoying an island getaway alongside models Tegan Martin, Brooke Nash, Nia Sanchez and former Bachelor lovers Tiffany Scanlon and Megan Marx.
File Photo: Chinese flags and American flags are displayed in a company in Beijing on Aug. 16, 2017. (Xinhua/AFP)

WASHINGTON, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- In their first Law Enforcement and Cybersecurity Dialogue earlier this week, China and the United States pledged to produce stronger and closer bilateral cooperation in counter-narcotics, cybersecurity, repatriation and other fields.

FOCUS ON COOPERATION

The one-day meeting was co-chaired on Wednesday by visiting Chinese State Councilor Guo Shengkun, and U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Acting Secretary for Homeland Security Elaine Duke.

At the meeting, the two sides agreed to commit to mutual respect, equity, frankness and pragmatism, make a full use of the dialogue mechanism and further strengthen bilateral communication and cooperation in law enforcement and cybersecurity.

Guo, also China's public security minister, called on the two sides to focus on cooperation and manage their differences so as to make bilateral cooperation in law enforcement and cybersecurity a new highlight in China-U.S. ties, and work relentlessly to promote global security governance and build a universal and secure community of shared destiny for mankind.

The meeting has proved to be very fruitful as demonstrated in an intergovernmental joint statement.

In the statement released on Friday outlining the fruitful outcomes of the meeting, the two sides expressed their intention to enhance cooperation on narcotics control and enforcement and gave a nod to continue their implementation of the consensus reached by the Chinese and U.S. presidents in 2015 on China-U.S. cybersecurity cooperation.

China and the United States also consented to develop a repeatable process to verify the identity of illegal immigrants in a timely manner.

The two sides also intended to make a full use of the established hotline mechanism for addressing urgent cyber-crime and network protection issues and to communicate timely at the leadership and working levels.

The two sides will continue to push forward pragmatic cooperation, guaranteeing mutual benefit and promote a peaceful, safe, open, cooperative and orderly cyberspace, Guo said.

The meeting is one of four high-level communication mechanisms established during the Mar-a-Lago meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump at Palm Beach in the southeastern U.S. state of Florida on April 6-7, 2017.

WELL-PREPARED DIALOGUE

The two sides attached high importance to the dialogue and already showed intention for cooperation in the preparatory stage leading up to the meeting, according to the Chinese officials who attended the event.

Since June, the U.S. law enforcement has handed over two criminal suspects to Chinese police, while the Chinese side has repatriated two wanted suspects listed on an Interpol red notice to the United States.

The two sides also conducted several rounds of talks on anti-terrorism, counter-narcotics, cybersecurity and immigration ahead of their gathering in Washington.

The Chinese officials described the bilateral cooperation on cases of mutual concern as "smooth, positive and pragmatic."

The U.S. side stressed the importance of bilateral cooperation in law enforcement and cybersecurity, saying that the two sides face common threats as well as interests in these areas.

The United States also agreed to work with China to use the dialogue mechanism to strengthen bilateral cooperation in related areas, promote specific cases through dialogue with the Chinese side and work to yield more outcomes to benefit both countries and their peoples.
The Sydney PR queen isn't shy of flaunting her enviable frame in designer looks and flattering activewear.

And Roxy Jacenko put her trim pins on display in a pair of tiny bike shorts on Saturday as she headed for a pamper session at Bondi's Toni & Guy hair salon, ahead of her appearance later that day at the races.

The 37-year-old paired her activewear with luxury accessories, including a Hermes Birkin bag worth $15,000.

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Legging it! PR queen Roxy Jacenko shows off toned pins in TINY bike shorts as she heads to hair salon to prep for Sydney race day

The tight patterned shorts hugged her gym-honed physique, as she paired the outfit with a matching crop top, white singlet and white sneakers.

While she draped a grey sweater around her shoulders, Roxy's sculptured arms were clearly on display as she picked up coffee and take-away toast on her way to her hair appointment.

She was headed to the hairdressers to prep for a day at Spring Champion Stakes Day at Randwick Racecourse.

Looking good! The tight patterned shorts highlighted Roxy's gym-honed physique, as she paired the outfit with a matching crop top, white singlet, white sneakers and a Hermes Birkin handbag

Getting race-day ready! Posting from Toni & Guy, Roxy's take-away coffee could be seen on the benchtop as a stylist curled her luscious blonde locks before attending Spring Champion Stakes Day at Randwick Racecourse

Posting from Toni & Guy, Roxy's take-away coffee could be seen on the benchtop as a stylist curled her luscious blonde locks.

Appearing to get changed in the salon, she later posted in her white raceday frock in the salon: 'First official engagement with @toniandguyau today as their new ambassador - SO excited to be part of the family.'

She put on an eye-catching display in the low-cut dress that hugged her busty figure.

'To the races we go': Roxy flaunted her ample assets in the eye-catching dress as she posed for a selfie in an elevator

Bold fashion statement: The Nicola Finetti midi-dress featured short, puff sleeves and a a furry peplum made from white ostrich feathers

The Nicola Finetti dress featured short, puff sleeves and a furry peplum made from white ostrich feathers.

She strapped on a pair of beige ball-embellished heels and a studded Bulgari handbag.

The mother-of-two later posed for photos with her publicist staffers Gemma Oldfield and Holly Brooke, as they arrived together at the event.

Having fun! The mother-of-two later posed for photos with her publicist staffers Gemma Oldfield and Holly Brooke, as they arrived together at the event

And while this dress was turning heads at the event, it's another white frock Roxy wore earlier this week which really had people talking.

The Sweaty Betty founder sent social media into meltdown on Thursday when she posted a photo of her wearing a wedding dress after announcing her 'second engagement' to jailbird husband Oliver Curtis in August.

But the PR queen has quashed rumours of an imminent wedding between herself and Oliver Curtis, revealing she only only tried on the gown as a bit of fun.

'At this stage I dont have plans for a second wedding,' she told Daily Mail Australia on Friday.

'Who knew it would throw everyone into such a spin!' Roxy Jacenko reveals she only tried on bridal dress for a bit of fun ... and has no plans to remarry Oliver Curtis in a second wedding
She's currently in Thailand, enjoying a self-imposed isolation at a five star resort for the next few weeks.

But it appears that boredom may already be getting the better of The Bachelorette's Sophie Monk, the blonde bombshell resorting to inventing new items of clothing while sunbaking poolside on Saturday.

Taking to Instagram, Sophie showed off her newly invented accessory as she flaunted her figure in a bikini.

Feeling bored? The Bachelorette's Sophie Monk flaunts her cleavage in a bikini poolside as she shows off her improvised hat

In the photo shared to Instagram, a stunning Sophie shows off her killer figure in a 1950s style bikini.

The media personality went makeup free, showing off her stunning complexion, which was shielded under her makeshift hat.

'When you haven't got a hat?... Improvise! Introducing the skirt hat,' Sophie captioned the photo.

Trying to keep her mind off her secret boyfriend? The Bachelorette's Sophie Monk tries her hand at synchronised swimming in Thailand as she remains in lockdown to avoid spoiling the show

Her latest post comes as her self-imposed lockdown in Thailand continues, with Sophie previously revealing she had fled the country to avoid spoiling The Bachelorette's ending.

The blonde bombshell is widely tipped to choose millionaire publican Stu Laundy, 44, who this week made his appearance on The Bachelorette as an intruder.

In one video shared on Friday, Sophie can be seen trying her best at synchronised swimming, with the help of her BFF Oscar Gordon.

However the water sport isn't their strong suit, the pair resorting to doggy paddle to finish off their acrobatic routine.

Keeping busy: In one video, Sophie can be seen trying her best at synchronised swimming, with the help of her BFF

Whoops! However the water sport isn't their strong suit, with Oliver dropping Sophie into the water at one stage

In another snap posted to Instagram, Sophie and Oliver strike a very silly pose in their swimwear, covered head to toe in mud.

'Mud buddies,' she captioned the photo to her 304,000 followers on Instagram.

Sophie told News Corp this week she is staying at three different hotels in Thailand to avoid media detection.

That's different! In another snap posted to Instagram, Sophie and Oliver strike a very silly pose in their swimwear, covered head to toe in mud

Trying to avoid Stu? The blonde bombshell is widely tipped to choose millionaire publican Stu Laundy

After previously claiming she was going to Mexico, Sophie last week arrived in Thailand and has since posted several updates to her Instagram detailing her holiday.

But Sophie told the website the trip had so far been far from chilled out, as she has been forced to split her time between three different hotels to avoid photographers.

'Its very relaxing,' Sophie said jokingly.

Speaking to WHO magazine, Sophie said she was trying to avoid the current media circus by going overseas.

Sharing on social media: Sophie last week arrived in Thailand and has since posted several updates to her Instagram detailing her holiday

The real reason? A report last week claimed Sophie was leaving the country not just because she was afraid of slipping up and revealing who had won in an interview

'I'm just going to sit out for a little bit because it's been quite full-on, and also because I'm in lockdown for a while,' Sophie said.

'It's been tricky.'

It comes after a report last week claimed Sophie was leaving the country not just because she was afraid of slipping up and revealing who had won in an interview.

According to Fairfax Media, her Gold Coast mansion had become 'unlivable' due to intense interest from paparazzi who are staking out the premises.
She was embroiled in a heated debate with Stacey Solomon this week about the ethics behind Photoshopping social media snaps of herself.

But Lizzie Cundy looked comfortable without a filter when she flaunted her figure in a racy sheer dress as she attended the inaugural Float Like A Butterfly Ball held at London's Grosvenor House Hotel on Friday night.

The TV presenter, 47, showed off most of her torso including ample underboob in the daring mini gown.

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Daring: Lizzie Cundy flaunted her figure in a racy sheer dress as she attended the inaugural Float Like A Butterfly Ball held at London's Grosvenor House Hotel on Friday night

In keeping with her love for all things glam, Lizzie looked at ease in the glitzy golden number which was delicately covered in an intricate pattern.

She accessorised with a matching bangle and choker as well as chunky rings, injecting extra colour into the look with crimson nail varnish and a slick of peach lip gloss.

The This Morning and Good Morning Britain personality wore her poker-straight brunette tresses swept back behind her shoulders, with her trademark fringe grazing her bold eyebrows.

Leaving little to the imagination: The TV presenter, 47, showed off most of her torso including ample underboob in the daring mini gown

Kiss cam: In keeping with her love for all things glam, Lizzie looked at ease as she blew a kiss photographers as she left the event in the glitzy golden item which was intricately patterned

Glam: Lizzie accessorised with a matching bangle and choker as well as chunky rings, injecting extra colour into the look with crimson nail varnish and a slick of peach lip gloss

The former WAG completed the look with a chunky silver clutch and sky-high nude heels which had a covering of glitter in keeping with the rest of her sparkling ensemble.

Stacey Solomon and Lizzie took part in a heated debate about airbrushing on Thursday's edition of Good Morning Britain.

The former X Factor star, 28, was of the firm belief that Photoshopping pictures sets unrealistic standards for youngsters, while Lizzie argued there was no harm in using a filter or altering images to boost your own self-esteem.

Out for a good cause: Imogen Thomas also attended the charity gala in a stunning red dress

She's well red: The 34-year-old former Big Brother star wowed in a form-fitting scarlet red gown, which featured halterneck straps descending into a fringe over her bosom

Stylish: Amelia Lily arrived in style, wearing a black minidress under an open floor-length skirt

Flowing: Princess Tessy of Luxembourg swept into the event wearing a flowing blue gown

The frosty debate between the two was avidly followed by viewers at home, who largely sided with Stacey, yet some were quick to point out it was 'hypocritical' of her to filter her own Instagram posts - and Lizzie revealed to MailOnline that she agrees.

Lizzie was skeptical about Stacey's claims during the TV debate not to edit her own pictures. Explaining her side of the story, Lizzie told MailOnline: 'It did became very heated on set as the argument built up.

'My point was that everyone wants to look their best and want their best angle if you are honest. Stacey claimed to never use a filter... hmmmm.

Peachy: Also opting for satin was Melinda Messenger, who wore a peach gown for the event

Taking the plunge: Nicki Shields cut a chic figure in a white off-the-shoulder jumpsuit

Chic: Nell McAndrew displayed her long legs in a simple-yet-chic dress with a Bardot neckline

'It became quite tense and that's why I tried to bring some humour into the debate!'

During the segment, Stacey said she was worried about young people being influence by photoshopping in the media.

She said: 'They see all these influencers or celebrities and they say, "Why don't I look like that?"

'Everyone wants to look good', Lizzie counteracted, adding, 'These apps are never going to make you perfect, they're just enhancing what you've got which isn't a bad thing.'

Stacey wasn't backing down, saying: 'But I think it's dangerous, there's so much pressure on young people.'

Clash: Stacey Solomon and Lizzie took part in a heated debate about airbrushing on Thursday's edition of Good Morning Britain

Heated: The former X Factor star, 28, was of the firm belief that Photoshopping pictures sets unrealistic standards for youngsters, while Lizzie, 47, argued there was no harm in using a filter or altering images to boost your own self-esteem

Honest: The former WAG was frank about editing her own pictures to make herself look better

Social media pressure: Stacey wasn't backing down, saying, 'But I think it's dangerous, there's so much pressure on young people'

She's a natural! Stacey is refreshingly honest with her social media activity, regularly sharing snaps of her make-up free face
She tragically lost her husband of thirty years, magician Paul Daniels, to a brain tumour last year, but set tongues wagging when she engaged in a steamy smooch with partner Giovanni Pernice.

Addressing the now-famous kiss the former magician's assistant, 58, had with the handsome dancer, 27, Debbie McGee joked in an interview with The Sun that she was not oblivious to their 31-year age gap.

The blonde bombshell joked: 'I can categorically say that Im not romantically connected with Giovanni. Look at me, Im older than his mother!'

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'Look at me, I'm older than his mother!': Addressing the now-famous kiss Debbie McGee, 58, had with Giovanni Pernice, 27, in Strictly, Debbie joked in an interview with The Sun that she wasn't oblivious to their 31-year age gap

Debbie had wowed audiences with a sultry Paso Doble in Week One of Strictly, where she high-kicked and twirled around Giovanni with ease and she added an extra sprinkling of sass to the routine by planting a kiss on Giovanni's lips at the end of the dance, before pushing him to the floor.

Addressing that smooch that shocked viewers at home, Debbie insisted her late husband Paul would have had no problem with her locking lips with the stud.

She claimed: 'Paul would have definitely approved of that kiss. He loved showbiz and when people did something that got a reaction!'

All for fun: Debbie laughed off romance rumours, saying: 'If I was in my twenties hed probably break my heart, but Im not. I have lots of Italian friends, so Im used to Italian men. Theyre very friendly'

Proud: After tragically losing her husband Paul Daniels last year, Debbie said of the kiss: 'Paul would have definitely approved of that kiss. He loved showbiz and when people did something that got a reaction'

The starlet went on to credit her dance partner Giovanni for helping her get back on her feet after the heartbreaking news of her husband passing away last year - saying that it has made her feel 'alive' again.

Despite categorically ruling out any possibility of romance with Giovanni, Debbie admitted that the handsome Italian had made her feel at ease from the beginning and spoke of her close bond with the dancer.

After engaging in the steamy smooch in Week One, Debbie and Giovanni had found themselves at the centre of controversy in Week Two when they waltzed their way to second place on the leader board.

Sweeping onto the dance floor in a sky blue floor-length gown the late magician Paul Daniel's widow performed a Viennese Waltz to Shes Always A Woman by Billy Joel.

The duo put on a more classically romantic performance, winning them a standing ovation from the thrilled judges.

A usually stern Craig branded the performance 'amazing' and the couple scored an impressive 34 points, topping the leader board after last week's scores were added and smashing the night's scores, before narrowly being beaten by Alexandra Burke.

Amazing: The blonde bombshell had wowed audiences with a sultry Paso Doble in Week 1 of Strictly, where she high-kicked and twirled around Giovanni with ease, before planting a kiss on his lips at the end of the dance

Incredible: After engaging in the steamy smooch in Week 1, Debbie and Giovanni waltzed their way to second place on the leader board to Shes Always A Woman by Billy Joel

But despite impressing the judges, viewers were not quite as happy with the results, sending Twitter into overdrive after accusing Debbie of having professional dance experience.

'She's a trained ballet dancer!' one viewer wrote, while another angry fan tweeted: 'Amazing? She should be! She's only been doing it for 51 years'.

'Why is Debbie McGee allowed on when she was a ballet dancer? She has an upper hand on the dancers,' one fan questioned.
She became a first-time mother in early June, when she and husband George Clooney welcomed the birth of their twins, Ella and Alexander.

And Amal Clooney continued to show just how quickly she's bounced back to her slender form on Friday, when she stepped out in casual style in Beverly Hills.

The 39-year-old human rights lawyer looked sensational as she ran errands around the upscale locale in a tight black tank top teamed with ripped cuffed jeans.

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Stepping out: Amal Clooney was spotted running errands in Beverly Hills, California, on Friday

The Beirut-born beauty added an extra touch of pizzazz to her ensemble with a pair of silver platform shoes, while she carried a large beige leather handbag.

Her raven tresses were styled in voluminous waves, which fell beyond her shoulders, while she opted to shield her eyes with a pair of tinted oversized sunglasses.

Highlighting her natural beauty with a light dusting of makeup, she kept things low-key as she zipped between appointments during her busy day.

Looking sensational: The 39-year-old human rights lawyer looked sensational as she stepped out in a tight black tank top teamed with ripped cuffed jeans

The night before, Amal put on a glamorous display when she attended the William Vintage & Farfetch Unveiling of the Gianni Versace Archive in Los Angeles.

Mingling with such well-heeled guests as actress Isla Fisher, the mother-of-two wowed as arrived at the hot ticket bash in a flattering metallic dress.

Her husband George, 56, said in a recent interview with The Daily Mail that he may be a little sleep deprived after Amal gave birth to their twins on June 6 in London.

They dont cry, he said proudly. I cry more than they do. I cry four times a day right now, because Im so tired. Hey, remember back when you were single, before you didnt have to worry about keeping people alive? Wasnt that great?'

Yummy mummy: The night before, she wowed when she attended the Farfetch and William Vintage Celebrate Gianni Versace Archive in Los Angeles with Isla Fisher

New parents: Amal gave birth to Alexander and Ella in London on June 6; seen with her husband George Clonney in September at the 74th Venice Film Festival

George admitted that his new role as a father isn't so simple, but he gives the highest praise to his bride of nearly three years.

All they want to do is eat, so I have nothing to give them except a bottle once in a while (expertly, he crooks his elbow to mimic picking up and feeding an infant) and theyre happy about that, but its mostly Amal for them at the moment,' Clooney said. 'I dont even really understand whats going on.

And I have such admiration for my wife because shes breastfeeding them and getting about two hours of sleep per interval, and the love they have for her is a sight to see and its beautiful.

Praise: George admitted that his new role as a father isn't so simple, but he gives the highest praise to his wife of nearly three years; seen at the 74th Venice Film Festival in September

While Clooney stayed focused on building his incredible career, the actor admitted that he could have never predicted where he would be today.

'All of this is icing on the cake, he said. Look, Im 56 years old and I didnt think it was going to happen for me. I thought my life would be focused on my career, not relationships, and Id sort of accepted that.

And then I met Amal and I thought, "Well, I have this incredible relationship, this is wonderful." And then... all of a sudden we have these two knuckleheads around who make me laugh every day.'

Clooney directed his latest film Suburbicon, which premieres November 24 and stars Matt Damon and Julianne Moore.
She posted a sweet tribute to her former drug dealer boyfriend Liam Macaulay last month, hailing him as her 'one and only'.

And Candice Brown certainly looked smitten as she flashed a serene smile on Friday night while attending the Shocktober Fest at Tulleys Farm in Sussex.

The Great British Bake Off winner, 32, opted for a vampy look in keeping with the Halloween theme with some sexy leather trousers and her trademark plum lipstick.

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Looking good: Candice Brown certainly looked smitten while attending the Shocktober Fest at Tulleys Farm in Sussex on Friday

The former PE teacher showed off a bronzed glow with a stylish striped Bardot top and completed the look with suede ankle boots.

Scraping her dark hair into a slick topknot, she framed her eyes with lashings of mascara and iridescent shimmer.

Brown's outing comes after she posted a sweet black and white selfie with boyfriend of five years Liam, 31, and gushed that he made her smile and 'wiped away tears'.

Chic: The Great British Bake Off winner, 32, opted for a vampy look in keeping with the Halloween theme with some sexy leather trousers and her trademark plum lipstick

Say it in stripes: The former PE teacher showed off a bronzed glow with a stylish striped Bardot top and completed the look with suede ankle boots

She wrote: 'This dude has picked me up, dusted me down, made me smile, made me laugh, told me I'm good enough when I said I wasn't, stood by me, sang Tina turner, wiped away tears, holds my hand and tells me when my cake isn't quite perfect.

'He is my one and only.'

Their romance recently came under scrutiny after rumours emerged that she and the former jailbird Liam Macaulay, 31, were engaged.

'There are no wedding plans, were not engaged! Im sure we will get married one day, so we dont feel the need. Liam would never get down on one knee unless he was tying his shoelace,' she humoured the hearsay.

Seeing double: Scraping her dark hair into a slick topknot, she framed her eyes with lashings of mascara and iridescent shimmer

Cute couple: Brown's outing comes after she posted a sweet black and white selfie with boyfriend of five years Liam, 31, and gushed that he made her smile and 'wiped away tears'

Shortly before Candice burst on to screens last year, The Sun revealed that one year before the couple met, Scottish-native Liam, was serving a 16-month jail term for dealing cannabis.

He was arrested after police caught him with 6,970 worth of cannabis in his car as he an accomplice drove from Edinburgh to Inverness in 2009. Mr Macaulay then admitted supplying cannabis.

Sources close to Candice insisted she had nothing to do with the crime committed by Liam as she was not dating him at the time.

It comes after Candace discussed her 'weight worries' after revealing she's currently 'the heaviest she's ever been.'

'This is probably the biggest Ive ever been and I do have weight worries. I think its something that women worry about. If I have my photo taken Im always looking for the faults and the flaws,' the pro baker told The Mirror.

In the past: Shortly before Candice burst on to screens last year, The Sun revealed that one year before the couple met, Scottish-native Liam, was serving a 16-month jail term for dealing cannabis

Not involved: Sources close to Candice insisted she had nothing to do with the crime committed by Liam as she was not dating him at the time

Referring to her former job as a physical education teacher, which she quit last year after winning GBBO, Candice confessed that she wasn't taking part in many sporting activities nowadays.

Despite being partial to a 'slice of cake for breakfast', Candice does however try to eat 'healthily while at home' - but her efforts fall short as she admitted to keeping a 'bag of sweets' in her bag when she heads out.

Candice also revealed that her image comes under scrutiny from social media users who troll her.

'Most of it was about my facial expressions. I do purse my lips, and I do pout when Im concentrating. I pull funny faces - I wish I didnt. But people are always going to pick on things,' she revealed.

Admitting that the comments were 'hurtful', Candice revealed she fired back at certain trolls to let them know it 'wasn't OK to humiliate someone.'
She's the critically acclaimed Luther actress who has found success over the pond in the USA.

And Ruth Wilson, 35, showed off her cheeky side when she donned a see-through skirt to attend the How To Talk To Girls At Parties festival party at the Union club in London on Friday.

The Affair star flashed her white underwear beneath the sheer material of the skirt, and posed with actor Ben Whishaw at the bash.

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Racy: Ruth Wilson, 35, showed off her cheeky side when she donned a see-through skirt to attend the How To Talk To Girls At Parties festival party at the Union club in London on Friday

Ruth's quirky skirt featured embellished cartoon symbols all over the expanse of the material, which swept to the floor dramatically.

She ensured that her modesty was preserved with her white underwear, and paired the skirt with a cream jumper adorned with a tree motif.

Ruth carried her belongings in a gold embellished clutch bag, and sported natural make up to bring out her glowing complexion.

Cheeky: The Affair star flashed her white underwear beneath the sheer material of the skirt, and posed with actor Ben Whishaw at the bash

She styled her auburn tresses into waves, and appeared to be in high spirits as she slung her arm around Ben.

Spectre actor Ben looked dapper in an all-black ensemble, complete with a long gold chain layered over his neck.

How To Talk To Girls At Parties is an intergalactic comedy set in the punk era of the 1970s, and stars Ruth alongside Nicole Kidman and Elle Fanning.

Quirky: Ruth's quirky skirt featured embellished cartoon symbols all over the expanse of the material, which swept to the floor dramatically

Trendy: She ensured that her modesty was preserved with her white underwear, and paired the skirt with a cream jumper adorned with a tree motif

Dapper: Spectre actor Ben looked dapper in an all-black ensemble, complete with a long gold chain layered over his neck

Elle stars as Zan, an alien touring the galaxy who breaks away from her group and meets Enn, a wannabe punk played by Alex Sharp, who lives in 'the most dangerous place in the universe - the London suburb of Croydon,' according to IMDB.

Last June, speculation hotted up as to whether Ruth would return for Luther's highly anticipated fifth series, which begins filming four 'scarier than ever episodes' early next year.

Although Luther won rave reviews for his sizzling chemistry with Ruth's temptress villain Alice, it is unclear who will take on the role of sidekick in the new series or if she will pop up.

Exciting: How To Talk To Girls At Parties is an intergalactic comedy set in the punk era of the 1970s, and stars Ruth alongside Nicole Kidman and Elle Fanning

She's made no secret of the fact she'd be happy to reprise her role alongside Idris Elba, previously admitting: 'I would love to return to Alice but I dont know if that will happen. There is an enthusiasm for it.

The Affair star has also signed up for a BBC drama that will see her play her real-life grandmother Alice, who found out on her husband Alecs death that he was a bigamist.

It later transpired that Alec, an MI6 agent and author, had four families over the course of 30 years.

Ruth first learned of the scandal at 18, when her grandmother let her read a memoir she had written.
Her Strictly Come Dancing career got off to a less than auspicious start, but Charlotte Hawkins is hoping to impress judges and viewers alike with a sexually charged performance on Saturday evening.

The Good Morning Britain presenter, 42, received a unanimously negative response after a disappointing Cha-Cha-Cha, performed with dance partner Brendan Cole, saw her slide down the leader board.

But mother-of-one Charlotte is said to be desperate to impress when the second episode of its fifteenth series kicks off, and has worked hard to spice up her choreography with Brendan over the course of the week.

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Hopeful: Her Strictly Come Dancing career got off to a less than auspicious start, but Charlotte Hawkins is hoping to impress judges and viewers alike with a sexually charged performance on Saturday evening

An insider told The Sun: Charlottes been telling people she will sex up tonights performance to try to win some more votes. Her routine involves her flashing her thigh at the start.

She isnt ready to leave the competition yet and will do anything she can do to stay on the show.

MailOnline has contacted Charlottes representative for further comment.

Poor showing: The Good Morning Britain presenter, 42, received a unanimously negative response after a disappointing cha-cha-cha, performed with dance partner Brendan Cole, saw her slide down the leader board during the show's launch

Charlotte and Brendan's Cha Cha to Sugar by Maroon 5 earned them a distinctly lukewarm reception from the judging panel, after her performance was branded a 'dance disaster' by a stern Bruno Tonioli.

Charlotte stunned in a glitzy plunging silver mini dress, showing off her shapely pins and enviable curves as she took to the stage.

But her less than confident performance failed to impress the judges after they accused her of losing her rhythm early on.

Not all that glitters? ITV presenter Charlotte Hawkins, 42, and Brendan's Cha Cha to Sugar by Maroon 5 earned them a distinctly lukewarm reception from the judging panel

Not distracted: Despite the blonde beauty's eye-popping appearance, her performance was branded a 'dance disaster' but a stern Bruno Tonioli

'To flirt on live TV is not an easy thing and you recovered well from you losing your timing', Darcey said, 'but you'll come back stronger'.

And Craig branded the piece 'a dance disaster' with the duo scored a more modest basic score of 12.

'You did brilliantly last week and your score will be added to that 12 so don't despair', Claudia told the couple optimistically.

Looking discouraged, the couple gave a cheering crowd a brave wave before disappearing off stage.

Strictly Come Dancing continues on Saturday, October 7 on BBC1.
She's enjoyed travelling to Nepal, South Africa and Malaysia to film the latest series of Our Girl while her husband headed out to LA for his new job.

But Mark Wright seemed to brush off teasing remarks that his wife Michelle Keegan isn't missing him when he was spotted having dinner with friends before heading to a club in the Southern Californian city on Friday night.

The former TOWIE star, 30, looked sun-kissed and happy to be out and about as he left the venue flanked by pals.

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Steady as he goes: Mark Wright seemed to brush off jokes that his long-distance wife Michelle Keegan isn't missing him when he was spotted heading to a club in Los Angeles on Friday night

Mark wore a trademark all-black ensemble of skinny jeans, a simple T-shirt and a zipped jacket, complemented with dark lace-up trainers.

The reality star, who recently started his dream job as a presenter on USA showbiz programme, Extra, opted for his classic rough and ready stubble.

He slicked up his brown hair from his forehead and buried his hands in his pockets to complete his understated rock-star look.

Painting the town black: The former TOWIE star, 30, wore a trademark all-black ensemble of skinny jeans, a simple T-shirt and a zipped jacket, complemented with dark lace-up trainers

Jet-setter: The outing comes as his wife of two years, Michelle (pictured) opened up about how much she loves travelling with her job in the role of Georgie on the hit BBC drama, Our Girl

The outing comes as his wife opened up about how much she loves travelling with her job in the role of Georgie Lane on the hit BBC drama, Our Girl.

The former Coronation Street actress, 30, told the Sun: 'Today, two cast members and I were in the middle of a jungle, walking through a river, and it was so picturesque.

'We turned to each other and said: "This is amazing. We're doing this as a job." You never get to see these parts of the world and we're getting paid to do an amazing job in these countries.

'Sometimes you have to stop, pinch yourself and go: "Yeah. I'm very lucky."'

Stirring the pot: Rylan Clark, 28, decided to stir the pot on Friday when he suggested Michelle, 30, is not missing Mark as he embarks on his TV career in LA

Her comments come just hours after showbiz presenter Rylan Clark, 28, suggested Michelle is not missing Mark as he continues to embark on his TV career in LA.

The former Xtra Factor host's light-hearted jibe came as Mark said it was likely he'd head back home to spend Christmas with his wife of two years, rather than having her jet out to meet him as was previously thought.

Speaking to The Sun, the former TOWIE star explained: 'Wherever I spend it Michelle will be with me anyway but I don't know if I'll come home or not.

'Now I've been here a month or two, I think I'm already ready to go back at Christmas. I probably will go back for three or four days just to be with the family.'

The former Coronation Street actress said: 'Today, two cast members [pictured] and I were in the middle of a jungle, walking through a river, and it was so picturesque. I'm very lucky'

Flying home for Christmas: Mark said it was likely he'd head back home to spend Christmas with his wife of two years (pictured together in 2014), rather than having her jet out to LA as was previously thought

This came soon after he admitted finding it difficult to be away from Michelle.

And as well as missing his other half, the hunk also admitted that he felt isolated in LA without his friends and family.

This stood in stark contrast to brunette beauty Michelle, after she recently said their distance is 'nice'.

And this certainly gave gossip-giver Rylan amunition, as he appeared on This Morning on Friday. Teasing the couple, Rylan joked: 'Basically Mark's missing Michelle, Michelle's not really missing Mark at the minute.'

But Strictly's Ruth Langsford was quick to chime in, chiding: 'Stop it, don't start the rumour mill going!'

'I miss her': Mark's confession stood in stark contrast to brunette beauty Michelle, after she recently called their distance is 'nice'

In an attempt to divert the conversation, fellow host Eamonn Homes likened his own situation to what the former TOWIE star is currently going though.

Wife Ruth is currently dancing away on Strictly, and Eamonn says the long hours of training keeps the 57 year-old for too long.

He said: 'Our house is not a home anymore, its quite empty, we have to fend for ourselves basically'.

Last week, Michelle branded long-standing rumours of strife in her romance 'sexist', as she insisted their long-distance marriage should be 'celebrated'.

The actress has long-faced reports of strife in their two-year marriage due to their trying work schedules, which currently sees Michelle filming Our Girl in Kuala Lumpur while the former TOWIE star is launching his US presenting career.

Speaking to The Sun previously, the defiant beauty insisted their difficult set up is made harder by the rumours, yet she insists all is well while admitting they desperately miss one another and plan to start a family 'as soon as the time is right'.

Michelle and Mark have been together for almost five years after they first met in December 2012 while both holidaying in Dubai.

Nine months later, the duo had returned to the Middle Eastern resort where Mark had proposed and they went on to tie the knot in a lavish ceremony at St Mary's Church in Bury St Edmonds in May 2015.

Throughout 2016, as Michelle filmed Our Girl in Africa, reports suggested the couple's relationship was doomed, with sources insisting they were headed for a split.

But the two entered the New Year stronger than ever and have since continued their long-distance love between work.
They've been inseparable ever since they embarked on their romance back in 2014.

And Lily James, 28, and Matt Smith, 34, showed that they're still very much in sync on Friday, when they were spotted going for a bicycle ride together around the coastline of picturesque Croatian island Vis.

Lily, who is currently shooting her lead role in Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again! in Croatia, was seen leading the way for much of the time as the pair pedalled on their individual cycles while taking in all of the breathtaking scenery.

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This is how we roll: Lily James and her boyfriend Matt Smith were spotted enjoying a bicycle ride on the Croatian island of Vis on Friday

The former Downton Abbey star wore a plunging black minidress teamed with grey New Balance trainers for her leisurely excursion.

Shielding her eyes with a pair of stylish sunglasses, she tied her golden tresses back with a purple bandanna before throwing on a protective helmet for their long ride.

Matt was also seen looking casually cool, wearing a sleeveless grey top with black shorts and matching trainers, while shades and a helmet kept him protected.

Black to basics: The former Downton Abbey star wore a plunging black minidress teamed with grey New Balance trainers for her leisurely excursion

Casually cool: Matt was also seen looking casually cool, wearing a sleeveless grey top with black shorts and matching trainers, while shades and a helmet kept him protected

And Lily appeared keen to make the most of the Mediterranean sunshine, as later that day she shared an Instagram post of herself relaxing in a tiny striped bikini.

She captioned the scintillating snapshot: 'Day off, don't block my sun.'

Despite their busy acting careers, it seems Lily and Matt's romance is going from strength to strength, with the actress recently hinting that it could only be a matter of time before her boyfriend pops the question.

Lily playfully dropped hints that engagement could be on the cards when she tried on a number of diamond rings at a De Beers event, held at prestigious London department store Harrods, earlier this year.

Shady lady: Shielding her eyes with a pair of stylish sunglasses, she tied her golden tresses back with a purple bandanna before throwing on a protective helmet for their long ride

Safety first: As she rode through the streets, Lily ensured that her helmet was properly secured

The English rose brought her boyfriend's sister along, cabaret dancer Laura Jayne, 37, to make sure Matt knew what ring she has her eyes on.

Introducing Laura, she said: Im dating her brother, and hopefully she will soon be my sister-in-law.'

Although she was more than happy to try a 71-carat yellow oval-cut diamond solitaire, it would cost a pretty penny at 7million.

The Cinderella star, however, proved more modest in taste as she cherry picked the 9.1 carat diamond Aella ring at a cost of 200,000 as her fairytale choice.

Breathtaking: The lovebirds were seen admiring the breathtaking scenery during their ride

Shoot: The actress is currently shooting scenes for Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again! in Croatia

Lily told The Daily Mail's Sebastian Shakespeare: This is the diamond that has found its way to my finger. Its very unique. I would definitely want something like this.

Filming kicked off for the prequel to 2008's Mamma Mia in mid-August, with the hotly-anticipated film slated to be released next July.

The upcoming flick 'goes back and forth in time to show how relationships forged in the past resonate in the present', according to Deadline.

Lily will play Donna way before she became Mamma Mia! heroine Sophie's mother or the owner of the Villa Donna from the first film.

So in love: They've been inseparable ever since they embarked on their romance back in 2014

I thee wed? Earlier this year, Lily hinted that she was hoping Matt would one day propose

Seasoned actors Pierce Brosnan, 64, and Meryl Streep, 68, are expected to reprise their roles in the sequel, and pick up where viewers left off.

The original movie was set on a Greek island where young bride-to-be Sophie, played by Amanda Seyfried, discovered that any one of three men - Bill (Stellan Skarsgard), Sam (Pierce) or Harry (Colin Firth) could be her father.

The original was based on the smash hits of Swedish rock band ABBA, formed in Stockholm in 1972.

Although the storyline remains a secret, it is believed that a number of ABBA hits that werent included in the first film  such as Waterloo and Knowing Me, Knowing You - will be featured.

Another day at the office: Lily has been shooting scenes for her upcoming movie since August

Itsy bitsy: Later that day, Lily wowed fans when she took to Instagram to share a shot of herself wearing a vintage style bikini
(Photo/Yunnan.cn)

BEIJING, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- A total of 67 million Chinese tourists traveled around the country on the sixth day of the National Day holiday, the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) said on Friday.

The figure represents an increase of 12.3 percent year on year, the CNTA said.

Tourism revenue generated on Friday totaled 54.6 billion yuan (8.23 billion U.S. dollars), up 15.1 percent from the same period a year ago.

The number of tourists in major scenic spots remained high with that in Changbaishan Mountain in northeast China's Jilin Province rising by 78 percent to 22,500, according to CNTA statistics.

Zhejiang Province in east China hosted 9.77 million tourists who spent a total of 7.974 billion yuan on Friday.

CNTA said the tourist market over the latter half of the holiday running from Oct. 1 to 8 was mainly driven by road trips, periphery tours and leisure travel.

Folk customs, rural tourism, camping, theme parks and tourism complex were increasingly popular.

China's air, road and railway transport systems are to enter another peak as people have started to return.

On Oct. 1, the first day of the holiday, 15.03 million trips were made by train, an all-time high. This year's National Day holiday was extended by one more day due to the Mid-autumn Festival which falls on Oct. 4.

A separate report from the China Railway Corporation said trains were expected to carry 12.57 million travelers on Friday.X To cope with the high passenger flow, CRC scheduled 539 extra trains on Friday.

This was the second day that CRC expanded its train services during the holiday. On Thursday, 503 additional trains were arranged.

Tickets were almost sold out for trains traveling back to major sources of tourists in the next three days, CRC said.

Airports in China are also seeing a growing number of passengers returning home.
Channel Nine presenter Lisa Wilkinson renewed her vows to husband Peter FitzSimons during an intimate ceremony in Sydney on Saturday.

The happy couple chose the picturesque Balmoral Beach Bathers' Pavilion for their nuptials.

The venue holds special significance for Lisa and Peter, as they first wed in the exact venue 25 years ago in 1992.

Back to where it all began! Inside the stunning beachside venue that Lisa Wilkinson and Peter FitzSimons renewed their vows... AND it's where they first wed 25 years ago

Congratulations to the happy couple! Lisa and Peter chose the picturesque Balmoral Beach Bathers' Pavilion for their nuptials

The weather was perfect for the seaside location, as guests took to Instagram to congratulate the pair as they said 'I do' for a second time.

The Bathers Pavilion is a Sydney landmark, with the historical building featuring many Art Deco features.

Inviting ample light in with its large glass windows, the wall of its wedding venue room are also adorned with 1200 sheets of silver.

Flashback! The venue (pictured) holds special significance for Lisa and Peter, as they first wed in the exact venue 25 years ago in 1992

Intimate ceremony: They were pictured completing their vows on the venue's outside terrace, which is advertised with a fee of $500 in conjunction with a wedding pack

What a view! The pavilion overlooks the picturesque Balmoral Beach, located in Sydney's northern suburbs

The venue caters for up to 102 seated guests or 150 standing guests, with Lisa and Peter's renewal ceremony likely to have been quite intimate.

As the blushing bride was pictured posing and dancing with her husband on an elevated balcony, it's believed they also utlised the venue's terrace.

The terrace, which overlooks Balmoral Beach and Sydney Heads, is advertised online for the 'perfect private ceremony' with a fee of $500 to use the area in conjunction with a wedding pack.

The altar was decorated with a pink, red and green floral display, while Lisa held a white bouquet.

What a view! The terrace overlooks Balmoral Beach and Sydney Heads and it was decorated with a floral display during their special day

Small and special? The venue caters for up to 102 seated guests or 150 standing guests, with Lisa and Peter's renewal ceremony likely to have been quite intimate

Holding only two potential time slots throughout the day for weddings, it's assumed Lisa and Peter chose the 'lunch' option from 11.30am to 4pm.

On their price guide it also states a 'year-round lunch', not inclusive of drinks, for $115pp, which includes three canapes on arrival, a two-course lunch and dessert at an extra $5 per head.

Dressed for the picture perfect locale was bride Lisa in a gorgeous Pallas Couture gown, estimated to be worth up to $30,000.

The TV personality stunned in the off-the-shoulder white gown, that cinched in at her svelte waist and flared out into a large princess skirt.

Beautiful bride! Dressed for the picture perfect locale was bride Lisa in a gorgeous Pallas Couture gown, estimated to be worth up to $30,000

Taking to Instagram to break the exciting news, Lisa said she was 'so happy'.

'We just got married...again!,' she captioned a precious picture of herself and Peter adding the hashtags; '25 years', '25th anniversary', 'so happy' and 'I do'.

Besides Lisa's Channel Nine colleague Steve Marshall officiating the ceremony, the wedding was attended by many of the couple's A-list friends, including Sylvia Jeffreys and husband Peter Stefanovic, Richard Wilkins, Jodie Speers, Mia Freedman, Ben Fordham and Georgia Gardner.

Lisa and Peter married in the same venue in 1992, after being introduced by 60 Minutes reporter Liz Hayes, who was Lisa's roommate at the time.

The loved-up media couple share three children together - Jake, 24, Louis, 22 and Billi, 20.
On Saturday, Lisa Wilkinson and Peter FitzSimons celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary by renewing their vows.

The pair tied the knot for a second time in front of a star-studded guest list, which included Australian Ninja Warrior host Ben Fordham.

Before the ceremony, the cheeky Ben shared a video of Lisa to social media in which he playfully questioned her over whether she was sure that she wanted to marry Peter again.

All smiles: On Saturday, Lisa Wilkinson and Peter FitzSimons celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary by renewing their vows

'Now listen, are you sure about this?' he asks.

A giggling Lisa responds: 'It's been 25 years and that's how long I've had to make up my mind.'

She then adds: 'And the answer is YES!'

Cute: Before the ceremony, the Ben Fordham shared a video of Lisa to social media in which he playfully questioned her over whether she was sure that she wanted to marry Peter again

The couple renewed their vows at Sydney's Balmoral Beach Bathers Pavilion on Saturday, the same location they first wed a quarter of a century ago.

The blushing bride was walked down the aisle by her 22-year-old son Louis, while 20-year-old lookalike daughter Billi was her bridesmaid.

Lisa's eldest son Jade was also by her side as she renewed her vows with Peter under the historic beachside pavilion.

A giggling Lisa responds: 'It's been 25 years and that's how long I've had to make up my mind. And the answer is YES!'

The Today host looked stunning in an off the shoulder white wedding dress, with co-host Sylvia Jeffreys describing the ceremony as 'just magic'.

In a photo shared by Sylvia, Lisa looks every bit the blushing bride, wearing a stunning dress by Pallas Couture.

'So, these two love birds just got married again...in the same spot where they first said I do 25 beautiful years ago,' Sylvia captioned the sweet photo.
They started off their romance as friends more than a decade ago - and now share a four-year-old daughter, Azura Sienna, together.

And Alesha Dixon and long-term love Azuka Ononye looked as smitten as ever on Friday night, as they hit the town to celebrate her 39th birthday in London.

The Britain's Got Talent judge, who oozed sex appeal in a lacy semi-sheer bodysuit, beamed as she cosied up to her dancer boyfriend.

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Cute couple: Alesha Dixon and long-term love Azuka Ononye looked as smitten as ever on Friday night, as they hit the town to celebrate her 39th birthday in London

The former Misteeq star certainly took centre-stage in her eye-catching outfit, which boasted gold wide leg palazzo pants.

Scraping her dark hair into a glossy topknot, the mum-of-one framed her striking features with plenty of mascara and a slick of taupe lipstick.

Wrapping an arm around his girlfriend, Azura cut a dapper figure in a tartan shirt teamed with a leather jacket and tan suede boots.

Hinting that she gave a performance that night, Alesha later shared an Instagram snap of herself, which she captioned: 'Stepped on to the stage at Midnight!

'No place I would rather be on my Birthday #myhappyplace 7/10/78.'

happy: The Britain's Got Talent judge, who oozed sex appeal in a lacy semi-sheer bodysuit, beamed as she cosied up to her dancer boyfriend

The Midas touch: The former Misteeq star certainly took centre-stage in her eye-catching outfit, which boasted gold wide leg palazzo pants

Smouldering: Alesha later shared an Instagram snap of herself, which she captioned: 'Stepped on to the stage at Midnight! No place I would rather be on my Birthday #myhappyplace'

The couple started as friends ten years ago when Alesha was touring for her music and Azuka was a dancer.

'I was kind of playing hard to get for about a year,' said the star during an appearance on The Jonathan Ross Show.

'And then I had the foot operation and I couldn't walk and he was literally sleeping on the floor looking after me every day,' she said.

'I was just looking at him thinking, 'That is for better or for worse isn't it.' I looked a state, he was sleeping on the floor because I was on the couch, I couldn't even get up the stairs. If he can carry me to the toilet then he's a keeper.'

Old lovers: The couple started as friends ten years ago when Alesha was touring for her music and Azuka was a dancer

Happy families: They share one child together, four-year-old daughter Azura Sienna

It comes after A esha revealed that Azuka has stopped proposing to her - because she keeps on saying no.

The Britain's Got Talent judge says he has run out of ideas when it comes to popping the question after countless attempts.

'He's given up on that,' Alesha told Fabulous magazine. 'We just go with the flow. It's not really something we've discussed.

She also denied that the ring worn by her dancer boyfriend, who is known as AZ, is a wedding band.

Like mother, like daughter: Alesha also revealed that their 'cheeky' daughter Azurahas been throwing 'temper tantrums' - which she may have learnt from her mother.

'It's not a wedding ring, it's just a ring that I bought him on his birthday! We're not married!', she said.

But the mother-of-one added 'never say never' when asked whether marriage would ever be on the cards.

Alesha also revealed that their 'cheeky' daughter Azurahas been throwing 'temper tantrums' - which she may have learnt from her mother.

Alesha said the toddler began 'screaming the place down' in the middle of a restaurant in Dubai during a recent holiday.

'Both of us looked at each other like: "Wow, wow!' So this 'terrible twos' is a real thing",' she said.
Marital strife was swept to one side as Katie Price enjoyed a night out with cheating husband Kieran Hayler on Friday evening.

The former glamour model was joined by Kieran, 30, her third husband, at Kingston-upon-Thames nightspot PRYZM following a separate outing at the newly launched Shocktober Fest Scream Park in Crawley.

Sporting a thigh-skimming black minidress, Katie, 39, ensured she caught the eye while making her way inside the venue for a personal appearance.

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Still together: Marital strife was swept to one side as Katie Price enjoyed a night out with cheating husband Kieran Hayler on Friday evening

Matching knee-length boots added to her evening wear, while her make-up was liberally selected from a natural colour palate.

Following close behind, Kieran sported a casual black sweater and skinny jeans as he prepared to support Katie, who was on hand for a meet-and-greet with fans at the popular nightspot.

Offering a wry smile, the beleaguered ex-stripper showed no indication of any difficulties following his latest cheating scandal, a six-month fling with their children's nanny.

Here she comes: The former glamour model was makign an apeparance at Kingston-upon-Thames nightspot PRYZM following a separate outing at the newly launched Shocktober Fest Scream Park in Crawley

Hard to miss: Sporting a thigh-skimming black minidress, Katie, 38, ensured she caught the eye while making her way inside the venue for a personal appearance

Low key: Following close behind, Kieran sported a casual black sweater as he prepared to support Katie, who was on hand for a meet-and-greet with fans at the popular nightspot

Despite arriving in the same vehicle, the troubled couple opted to make separate entrances after keeping their distance from one another at the Halloween themed Shocktober Fest earlier that night.

A source told OK! Magazine: 'Katie was happy to pose for pictures with (her children) Princess and Junior.

'She looked happier than ever. However, Kieran was stood at the side smiling and trying to keep undercover. They looked happy.'

Striking: Katie's make-up was liberally selected from a natural colour palate, while her hair was styled with a simple centre parting

Don't mind me: Offering a wry smile, the beleaguered ex-stripper showed no indication of any difficulties following his latest cheating scandal, a six-month fling with their children's nanny

Incoming: Katie rounded off a busy night at the Kingston club, after making an earlier appearance at Shocktober Fest

Keep your distance: Despite arriving in the same vehicle, Katie made a separate entrance after the couple kept their distance from one another at the Halloween themed Shocktober Fest earlier that night

Not to worry: But Kieran seemed nonplussed as he plodded after his long-suffering wif

Kieran left mother-of-five Katie heartbroken after she discovered his six-month affair with their childrens nanny, just three-years after it emerged he bedded two of her closest friends.

But she is reportedly reluctant to kick her husband  a self-confessed sex addict  out of the sprawling property they share because of his willingness to take on many of their domestic chores.

A source told Sun Online: The thing is, Katie needs Kieran around  he cooks for the kids, he feeds the animals, he does the school run and he looks after (Katies oldest child) Harvey. Hes basically unpaid help, so if she kicked him out, things would be chaos.

However much she hates him for cheating on her, she cant cope without him.

Devastated: Kieran left mother-of-five Katie heartbroken after she discovered his six-month affair with their childrens nanny, just three-years after it emerged he bedded two of her closest friends

Upbeat: Despite her recent troubles, Katie appeared to be in high spirits during her latest public appearance on Friday evening

In good company: A female friend was also on hand to support the former glamour model as she stepped out in Kingston
The singing superstar was once given a book titled 'The Seven Deadliest Creatures in Australia' by TV host Rove McManus.

But Pink claims it was a seemingly harmless critter that left her most traumatized during her visit Down Under in 2009.

The 38-year-old pop artist even went as far as to label the encounter as 'the worst day of my life' in an interview with The Daily Telegraph.

'The worst day of my life': Pink details traumatising encounter with an Australian creature in 2009 that brought the tough pop star to tears

Pink explained the incident occurred when she and motocross star husband Carey Hart embarked on a 1600km road trip from Cairns to Brisbane.

The couple both chose to ride motorcycles for the lengthy drive, when they were forced to face an unsuspected tropical storm and a swarm of insects.

Pink, real name Alecia Beth Moore, recounted the unsavoury tale: 'Oh god, there were so many bugs that I was crying while I was riding. And there were all the signs which say watch out for wallabies and kangaroos everywhere, so I was just waiting to be taken out by a kangaroo while eating the most protein I have had in my life.'

'There were so many bugs that I was crying': Pink told the publication she drove through a swarm of insects as she and motocross star husband Carey Hart embarked on a 1600km road trip from Cairns to Brisbane

'I was like "I quit, Im done, I would rather die."': The What About Us hit-maker said she pulled over on the highway smeared in bugs, with her husband doubling-back 15 minutes to find her distraught and crying

The What About Us hit-maker said she pulled over on the highway smeared in bugs, with her husband doubling-back 15 minutes to find her distraught and crying.

'I told him "This is the worst day of my life, Im not going any further." And hes like "You cant stay here. Its only 88km to the next gas station, well call a hotel and get them come and get us."'

'I was like "I quit, Im done, I would rather die."'

Hasn't scared her off! Pink is due to return to Australia for her Beautiful Trauma tour in 2018

The onslaught of bugs hasn't been Pink's only run-in with undesirable natives, with the now-mother-of-two admitting to fleeing a hotel lobby in Port Douglas when two cassowaries waltzed in.

Pink is due to return to Australia for her Beautiful Trauma tour in 2018.

Usually travelling with her family, Pink will likely be joined by husband Carey Hart, six-year-old daughter Willow Sage Hart and newest arrival, nine-month-old son Jameson Moon Hart.
She flew back to the Gold Coast from Los Angeles on Friday.

And it party time for Amber Heard on Saturday night, the actress joining her co-stars for the wrap party of their film Aquaman, on Saturday.

Holding onto a friend's arm, the 31-year-old was spotted walking into Fishermans Wharf Tavern at Main Beach in a sleeveless black dress that showed off her cleavage.

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Time to let her hair down! Amber Heard shows off her cleavage in a little black dress as she heads to Aquaman's wrap party on the Gold Coast

Looking comfortable in the same black dress and snakeskin boots she'd worn the day before, Amber made her way into the party.

The dress that cinched in at her waist with a tie showcased her lean and toned physique.

Accessorising her look, the actress added a black fedora hat and over-the-shoulder black leather handbag.

A helping hand: The actress walked into the party with a female friend

Signature red: The actress wore lashings of her signature red lipstick

Accessories, accessories: Accessorising her look, the actress added a black fedora hat and over-the-shoulder black leather handbag

Dressing incredibly chic, the ex-wife of Johnny Depp was also seen with a neck scarf and bangles on her wrist.

Amber added a pop of colour with a bold red lip, smokey eye and a sweep of blush pink for her glam.

Walking in with a friend, it's unknown whether Aquaman stuntman Kelly Mcnaught was also in attendance at the wrap party.

Trying to keep a low profile? The star attempted to keep her head down as she made her way into the party

Comfort first: Looking comfortable in the same black dress and snakeskin boots she'd worn the day before, Amber made her way into the party

Back in Oz: Amber returned to Australia to attend the wrap party for Aquaman on Saturday nigth

Earlier in the week, Daily Mail Australia revealed Kelly was the man photographed hugging Amber at a Gold Coast restaurant last month.

It is believed the two met on set of Aquaman, where Kelly works as a stunt double for Jason Momoa.

Amber previously confirmed her split with Tesla billionaire Elon Musk in August.

Single: In August, Amber confirmed she'd split from Tesla billionaire Elon Musk in August
They're two single suitors who were rejected by Sophie Monk on The Bachelorette.

But things seem to be looking up in the romance department for Bingham Fitz-Henry and Jourdan Siyal, who spent their Saturday night surrounded by women at a Brisbane Oktoberfest party.

Unlucky in love Bingham was even spotted receiving a kiss from a dressed up female party-goer.

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Sophie who? On Saturday, Bachelorette reject Bingham Fitz-Henry was seen getting a kiss from a female at an Oktoberfest party he was attending with Jourdan Siyal

Looking suave, Bingham wore a tight-fitting button-up shirt with a few buttons left undone.

Pairing grey trousers with his look, the 25-year-old polo player accessorised with suspenders.

Looking directly into the lens of the camera, Bingham held onto his pint of beer whilst a brunette stunner gave him a kiss on the cheek.

Bingham, is that you? Looking suave, the polo player wore a tight-fitting button-up shirt with a few buttons left undone

Cheers! Spotted without his moonboot, 25-year-old bar manager Jourdan had his arm around busty celebrator while his photo was being taken

And things seemed to be looking up for Jourdan as well.

Spotted without his moonboot, the 25-year-old bar manager had his arm around busty female partier while his photo was being taken.

Wearing a loose fitting white shirt, he paired his look with tan pants.

Who's the girl? And things seemed to be looking up for Jourdan as well

Playing dress ups: Like Bingham, Joudan also sported suspenders for the annual event

Like Bingham, Joudan also sported suspenders for the annual event.

Growing a beard since his departure on the show, Jourdan showcased his fresh new look.

But Saturday night wasn't the first time Bingham has been spotted trying to find a Sophie replacement.

Tinder pics: And in an attempt to get more swipes to the right, Bingham even added a photo of Sophie

Last week, the equestrian enthusias's Tinder profile was revealed, with his bio stating he was a 'Bachelorette reject'.

And in an attempt to get more swipes to the right, Bingham even added a photo of Sophie.

The short-lived reality star also used his official Bachelorette promotional photo as his profile picture.
Work commitments were momentarily put on hold as Gemma Arterton enjoyed some down time on the set of her forthcoming historical drama on Friday afternoon.

The British actress kept her period costume covered beneath a quilted coat while taking a break in Dublin, where principal photography for new film Vita and Virginia is well underway.

With the lower half of a breezy pink dress evident, Gemma, 31, caught the eye as she made her way across the exterior set, where she was joined by co-star Elizabeth Debicki.

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Welcome break: Work commitments were momentarily put on hold as Gemma Arterton enjoyed some down time on the set of her forthcoming historical drama on Friday afternoon

The Bond girl, who plays poet and novelist Vita Sackville-West in the forthcoming film, showed off the carefully styled coif appropriate to its 1920s period setting.

Elsewhere co-star Elizabeth, 27, sported a similar padded coat as she made her way across the Irish set with an assistant.

Much like Gemma, the Australian actress sported period costume beneath while enjoying a short reprieve from her role as author Virginia Woolf.

Don't mind me: The British actress kept her period costume covered beneath a quilted coat while taking a break in Dublin, where principal photography for new film Vita and Virginia is well underwa

Hollywood legend Isabella Rossellini will also star in the biopic but was not present on the Irish film set.

Set in 1920s London, the movie will be helmed by Chanya Button who wrote the screenplay with Eileen Atkins.

It's based on the play of the same name by Atkins which was performed in London in October 1993 and off Broadway in November 1994.

In good company: Elsewhere co-star Elizabeth Debicki, 27, sported a similar padded coat as she made her way across the Irish set with an assistant

Foot off the pedal: The Australian actress sported period costume while enjoying a short reprieve from her role as author Virginia Woolf

The play was written based on the love letters between the two iconic feminists and has been described as 'a fresh, provocative study of creativity, passion, sex and sexuality'.

Rupert Penry-Jones, Peter Ferdinando and Sam Hardy also star, with the latter playing Vita's son Nigel Sackville-West.

The casting of Elizabeth comes after French actress Eva Green pulled out from playing Woolf in the biopic back in February.

Vita and Virginia is released in 2018.
She's been spotted flaunting her dramatically slimmer physique in recent weeks.

And Leona Lewis was putting on another confident display when she donned a sheer shirt to expose her bra and tiny waist as she arrived to The Road to Yulin and Beyond premiere in Los Angeles on Thursday.

The Bleeding Love hit-maker, 32, looked stunning in the shirt and trousers combo as she flashed a dazzling smile on the red carpet.

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Stunning: Leona Lewis put on a racy display when she donned a sheer shirt to expose her bra and tiny waist as she arrived to The Road to Yulin and Beyond premiere in Los Angeles on Saturday

Leona was the picture of glam as she rocked the flowing pants which were cinched at the midriff to emphasise her trim torso.

The X Factor winner from the 2006 series sported diamante detailing on the pretty blouse, which suggestively exposed her lacy white bra under the sheer material.

She wore her ombre locks slicked back from her face and twisted cleverly to fashion an elegant ponytail behind her shoulders.

Elegant: The Bleeding Love hit-maker, 32, looked stunning in the shirt and trousers combo as she flashed a dazzling smile on the red carpet

Sophisticated: The X Factor winner from the 2006 series sported diamante detailing on the pretty blouse, which suggestively exposed her lacy white bra under the sheer material

Stunner: She wore her ombre locks slicked back from her face and twisted cleverly to fashion an elegant ponytail behind her shoulders

Meanwhile, Lisa Vanderpump modelled a black and hot pink pantsuit at her film's world premiere.

The 57-year-old reality star's documentary is part of her years-long campaign against the Yulin Dog Meat Festival in China, for which canines are slaughtered and eaten.

Held at Regal LA Live, the premiere played host to such famous names as Lisa's fellow Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills Kyle Richards and Lisa Rinna.

But the reality star was putting on a brave face in the wake of her own personal tragedy, after losing two of her beloved pet pooches in just nine days.

Lisa announced the passing of her dog Pikachu on Instagram on Wednesday night, just days after the death of her Pomeranian Pink Dog.

Accessories: The singer completed her sultry look with a stylish black and red clutch

Striking: Leona was the picture of glam as she rocked the flowing pants which were cinched at the midriff to emphasise her trim torso

Glam: Leona was a vision of beauty as she posed for snaps at the event

Blue-tiful! Leona looked sensational on the evening as she walked the red carpet

Speaking to US Weekly at the event, she said of her loss: 'To even talk about that right now - having lost two of my dogs in just a few days has been unbelievable. At this time, its difficult to do it.'

Lisa's black blazer was garnished with a shining pink lapel that matched the pink purse she'd slung from her left shoulder, and her chic black blouse featured a cleavage-baring lace-trimmed neckline.

While attending the event, balancing on a pair of black stilettos, she was spotted posing with a cute pooch as well as with a bevy of celebrity attendees.
Kim Kardashian has been pictured using her phone while driving through the streets of Los Angeles - which is against the law in the state of California.

In photographs obtained by MailOnline, the 36-year-old Keeping Up With The Kardashians star is seen briefly taking her eyes off the road as she peers at her device, which is perched on the steering wheel of her silver Range Rover.

As she sits solo in the imposing luxury SUV, the mother-of-two appears to be reading from the screen of her smartphone - an offence which carries a first-time fine of $20, rising to $50 on second violation.

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On the phone: Kim Kardashian was pictured using her phone while driving her car in Los Angeles on Friday

Despite the action, newly blonde Kim is seen smoothly making her way along the traffic-filled roads as a line of vehicles roll along behind her.

MailOnline has contacted a representative for Kim for comment.

The photos, which were taken on Friday, have emerged after Kim was seen dealing with the emotional fallout from her October 2016 robbery in Paris, which has left her clearly exhibiting signs of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Checking messages? The reality TV star briefly took her eyes off the road to check her device while driving her silver Range Rover

Reality TV siren Kim has already been seen tearing up on last season of KUTWK over the shock of the event that left her bound and gagged with thieves taking $10million worth of her gems.

And again on Thursday, the wife of Kanye West was seen in a teaser for the next episode of her reality show. Kim rubbed her face as she broke down in tears over anxiety during her April vacation to Mexico.

The curvaceous star has some serious safety concerns about being at friend Joe Francis' home in Punta Mita.

'I just have anxiety. Are you sure it's safe here?' the star asks Joe as she sobs, wiping her tears away with her sleeve.

Tears: Kim is seen sobbing as she expresses her fears while on vacation in Mexico in a scene from Sunday's new episode of Keeping Up With The Kardashians

A while ago: The trip to Punta Mita took place in April, which was six months after her Paris robbery where she was bound and gagged

Sad: The mother of two has some serious safety concerns about being at friend Joe Francis' home

The Selfish author has on a plaid shirt with her hair pulled back and she is seemingly in one of the bedrooms of the posh spread.

'Yeah, yeah. It's safe there. I promise you,' the 44-year-old Francis, who made his money with the Girls Gone Wild sex tapes, said.

'Look, I went through the same thing. I promise you it's safe. I have my kids there. It's safe,' said the friend, doing his best to calm down the Vogue cover girl.

Her thoughts: Kim is then seen back in a Los Angeles studio giving an interview to the KUWTK cameras. 'Ever since Paris, I just go through this worst case scenario mode in my head,' the KKW Beauty entrepreneur said

On the bed: 'I just have anxiety. Are you sure it's safe here?' the star asks Joe as she sobs, wiping her tears away with her sleeve

Not a beach look: The Selfish author has on a plaid shirt with her hair pulled back and she is seemingly in one of the bedrooms of the posh spread

Talk: 'Yeah, yeah. It's safe there. I promise you,' the 44-year-old Francis, who made his money with the Girls Gone Wild sex tapes, said.

Kim is then seen back in a Los Angeles studio giving an interview to the KUWTK cameras.

'Ever since Paris, I just go through this worst case scenario mode in my head,' the KKW Beauty entrepreneur said.

'I was so excited to come on this trip [to Mexico] and I had no idea that I was going to end up feeling this way, but it hit me right as we were getting off the plane.

'All of these people at the airport are gonna see 17 or 18 girls with all of our Chanel bags and Louis Vuitton this, and it just hit me that we're the biggest target ever.'

He tries to soothe her: 'Look, I went through the same thing. I promise you it's safe. I have my kids there. It's safe,' said the friend, doing his best to calm down the Vogue cover girl

Worn out: Kim looks tired as she shows off her black tank top

The day before Kim was seen in another clip from Mexico. Here she is seen being in shock over unflattering photos.

The TV star's bottom looked bigger than usual and it also appeared as if she had cellulite.

Haters cried this was the real Kim and that previous flawless photos of the siren were 'airbrushed.' As a result, Mrs Kanye West lost 100,000 Instagram followers.

The strain: The daughter of Kris Jenner has had to cope with a lot since the ordeal in France

Her logic: 'I was so excited to come on this trip [to Mexico] and I had no idea that I was going to end up feeling this way, but it hit me right as we were getting off the plane,' she said

She has a point: 'All of these people at the airport are gonna see 17 or 18 girls with all of our Chanel bags and Louis Vuitton this, and it just hit me that we're the biggest target ever,' argued Kim

'Oh my god. Like, I dont get it. I literally DON'T look like this!' the mother-of-two cries after her assistant Stephanie Shepherd hands her a cell phone to look at the images online.

Kim is wearing a pink bikini and reclined on a lounger outside her Mexico rental. A towel is under her bottom. She is also with Larsa Pippen.

The Revenge Body guest star is so upset she decides to do something about it immediately. 'I need to untag myself in everything. Im literally going to go inside and just start untagging,' she said.

The pinup is angry but also seems like she could be on the verge of crying.

Taken off guard: Kim is shocked when she learns unflattering photos were taken of her in April in Mexico; she says she did not see anyone on the beach with a camera

Play by play: The star's reaction is seen in a Wednesday teaser for Sunday's episode of Keeping Up With The Kardashians

The snap: The 36-year-old TV star's bottom looked bigger than usual and it also appeared as if she had cellulite. Haters cried this was the real Kim and that previous flawless photos were 'airbrushed'

Later Kim is seem in a sexy black outfit next to sister Kourtney back at a studio in Los Angeles as she discusses how she felt.

'I'm already having this anxiety attack over security and Im already on high alert,' the beauty, who was robbed at gunpoint in Paris a year ago, said.

The Vogue cover girl added: 'Just the scrutiny that we get all the time - we try to avoid that. So Im doing all the steps to try to be as private and discreet as possible, and then you take pictures.

'And if theyre not perfect, people just body shame and criticize you. For people just to think thats okay is so frustrating.'

Back home: Later Kim is seem in a sexy black outfit next to sister Kourtney as she discusses how she felt

Frustrating: 'I'm already having this anxiety attack over security and Im already on high alert,' the beauty, who was robbed at gunpoint in Paris a year ago, said. Here she is seen with Kourtney

In June Kim talked about the photos on The View, saying: 'I saw these awful photos of myself when I was on a trip in Mexico and people were Photoshopping them and sharpening them.

'I mean, I definitely was not in my best shape  I hadnt worked out in 12 weeks. I had two surgeries on my uterus.

'I was already not feeling like myself. And then when people were sharpening them and making them look way worse, and then those were going around. I was like, "Okay. Im gonna get it together."'

Keeping Up with the Kardashians airs Sundays 9 pm ET on E! KUWTK stream & download Mondays on hayu, in the UK & Ireland, and airs Sundays at 9pm on E!
Nelly has been released following his rape arrest, USA Today has reported.

The rapper was taken into custody on Saturday morning after a woman accused him of raping her on his tour bus in Washington.

The 42-year-old is on tour with Florida Georgia Line there, had been set to perform in Ridgefield on Saturday night, but has since pulled out of the gig.

Arrested: Nelly has been arrested after woman accused him of raping her on tour bus ahead of a Washington concert

Upon his release, Nelly released a statement on Twitter branding the allegations false, and apologizing for 'putting himself in the situation.'

'Let me say that I am beyond shocked that I have been targeted with this false allegation. I am completely innocent. I am confident that once the facts are looked at, it will be very clear that I am the victim of a false allegation,' he wrote.

'I do want to apologize to my loved ones for the embarrassment and for putting myself in a situation where I could be victimized by this false and defaming allegation.

'I also want to thank my fans for their unwavering support. They know me. I assure you I will be vindicated. And I assure you, I will pursue every legal option to address this defaming claim. Thank you.'

Trouble: In April 2015 Nelly was also arrested after a stash of drugs and weapons was found on his tour bus

He then summarized: 'In other words y'all know damm well I ain't do no dumm S^*t like this..!! Love ..!!!!'

He also said he had not been charged with a crime in a follow-up tweet: 'To be absolutely clear. I have not been charged with a crime therefore no bail was required. I was released , pending further investigation.'

Earlier on Saturday, sources told TMZ the alleged attack occurred at 3.45AM, and Nelly - whose real name is Cornell Iral Haynes Jr - was specifically identified by the victim.

He was booked Saturday at seven in the morning on second degree rape charges, and then released, according to TMZ.

Auburn police spokesman Commander Steve Stocker confirmed officers arrested the Grammy-winner early Saturday morning in his tour bus at a Walmart, and that he will have an appearance before a judge 'at some point.'

Nelly's lawyer subsequently claimed he was 'the victim of a completely fabricated allegation.

Innocent: Upon his release, Nelly released a statement on Twitter branding the allegations false, and apologizing for 'putting himself in the situation.'

'I have not been charged with a crime': He continued on Saturday afternoon with a follow-up tweet

'Our initial investigation, clearly establishes the allegation is devoid of credibility and is motivated by greed and vindictiveness,' he said.

'I am confident, once the scurrilous accusation is thoroughly investigated, there will be no charges.

'Nelly is prepared to pursue all all legal avenues to redress any damage caused by this clearly false allegation,' he added.

In April 2015 Nelly was also arrested after a stash of drugs and weapons was found on his tour bus.

The incident unfolded when Tennessee Highway Patrol pulled the bus over because it failed to display a U.S. Department of Transportation and International Fuel Tax Association sticker.

But upon searching the vehicle, officers found methamphetamines, marijuana and handguns.

According to the police report, the trooper had smelled marijuana when they reached Nelly's bus, giving them probable cause to search the vehicle.

Hitmaker: Nelly remains one of the biggest selling rap artists in the US, shifting more than 22million albums

In the sleeper area on the bus they found five rocks that tested positive for meth, as well as a small amount of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.

WRCB TV in Chattanooga reported at the time that police had found 100 small Ziploc bags, often used for the sales of narcotics, in the bus along with three high powered handguns.

A gold plated 50-caliber Desert Eagle pistol, a 45-caliber Tarus pistol and a 500 magnum Smith and Wesson were confiscated from the vehicle.

The St. Louis native was booked on felony possession of drugs, simple possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Nelly remains one of the biggest selling rap artists in the US, shifting more than 22million albums.

His 2000, 2002 and 2004 albums Country Grammar, Nellyville and Suit all hit number one on the Billboard charts.

He also had four number one singles with Hot In Herre, Shake Ya Tailfeather, Grillz, and his 2002 smash hit featuring Kelly Rowland, Dilemma.
She used to be close friends with Kourtney Kardashian's boyfriend Younes Bendjima, regularly appearing in his Instagram snaps.

But rather understandably, now that Sofia Richie is dating Kourtney's ex-boyfriend Scott Disick, who is also the father of her three children, their friendship isn't the same.

According to US Weekly, Sofia and model Younes are 'not really speaking anymore.'

In the past: Sofia Richie is now no longer friends with model Younes Bendjima, who is the boyfriend of Kourtney; Sofia on the right in red and Younes in the green look

The website adds that they also unfollowed each other on social media.

In August, Sofia commented 'love this' adding a rose emoji to a Instagram picture Younes posted in Egypt; he was in the country on holiday with Kourtney.

A few weeks later, the teenager stepped out with Younes for a casual lunch together in Los Angeles.

Interesting choice: She is in a relationship with Kourtney Kardashian's ex partner and the father of her children Scott Disick; pictured with Scott

Not shy: Sofia, 19, is currently in a relationship with the Scott, 34, a self confessed 'sex addict'

Sofia, 19, is currently in a relationship with the Scott, 34, a self confessed 'sex addict.'

They went public with their romance in September.

The teenager's dad, Lionel Richie, spoke out in disapproval about Sofia's new relationship with the reality personality.

Flashback: The website adds that they also unfollowed each other on social media; seen in April with Younes (in blue shirt)

'Let me call your dad': They were good friends prior to her relationship with Scott; Younes pictured holding Sofia

Former friends: A few weeks later, the teenager stepped out with Younes for a casual lunch together in Los Angeles; pictured in September 2016

He talked to US Weekly on Wednesday while at the American Idol auditions in New York City; the 68-year-old will serve as a judge on the singing competition show.

Lionel said: 'Have I been in shock?! I'm the dad, come on.'

Sofia and Scott went public with their romance in late September, however they were linked as far back as May.

The father of three and the teen just got back to LA following a PDA filled trip to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

Last month, they spent time together during a romantic trip to Miami.

US Weekly also reports that Kourtney, 38, thinks Scott's 'fling with Sofia is a little weird, but nothing shocks her anymore.'

Classy: Kourtney started dating Younes in May; pictured with the model on Septebmer 30 during Paris Fashion Week for the Haider Ackermann show

The website adds that she just 'wants Scott to be his old self.'

Their source said that 'she shares three kids with him, so he'll always want the best for him and will always make sure he's happy.'

Younes, a 24-year-old Algerian-born model, began dating Kourtney in December, reports US Weekly.

He just returned to the US following a whirlwind trip to Paris for fashion week with the Kardashian beauty.

So happy: He just returned to the US following a whirlwind trip to Paris for fashion week with the Kardashian beauty; seen in the French capital on September 30
Brendan Cole caused tension on Strictly Come Dancing on Saturday when he disputed head judge Shirley Ballas' comments toward his dance.

The professional dancer took to the dance floor with Good Morning Britain presenter Charlotte Hawkins to perform a Tango inspired by 'Top Gun' as part of the BBC Latin and ballroom dance competition's movie week.

And despite giving what he believed was a solid performance, he was shocked to find that head judge Shirley disagreed.

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Supporting Charlotte: Brendan Cole caused tension on Strictly Come Dancing on Saturday when he disputed head judge Shirley Ballas' comments toward his dance

When the 57-year-old Queen of Latin told the duo there shouldn't be any rise and fall in the Tango, Brendan was quick to step in and tell her she was mistaken, as he was adamant her comments were false.

Giving them a rather scathing review, Shirley said of Charlotte: 'She needs to stand on her own feet and we've established that there's no rise and fall in Tango. So we've got to make a concrete decision not to use rise and fall. So no rise and fall.'

But Brendan, holding an emotional Charlotte supportively, argued: 'There was no rise and fall in that whatsoever.'

Shirley then hit back with: 'Well, there is, Brendan. You should play it back and see.'

'I think Shirley's right, you should be more respectful,' Bruno chided, joining the spat

Not convinced, Brendan fired back: 'I will my dear, I will. There was no rise and fall.'

But then fellow judge Bruno Tonioli stepped in to agree with Shirley, adding to the tension.

'I'm not an expert, I've only done about 500 shows but I think Shirley's right, you should be more respectful,' he chided.

Pledging his respect to her, Brendan explained: 'I do respect her but I just don't agree'.

And the exchange appeared to leave a deflated Charlotte emotional, as she looked on the edge of tears.

'She needs to stand on her own feet and we've established that there's no rise and fall in Tango', Shirley snapped at the couple earlier

Charlotte, 42, and Brendan scored a total of 17 for their Tango, which was significantly better than their salsa from last week's show, which was riddled with mistakes and scored them just 12 points.

Last weekend's show saw Debbie McGee soar to the top of the leader board, while Holby City actress Chizzy Akudolu was first to be voted off.

And the second week of eliminations centred around a movie-themed night of dancing, presented by Tess Daly, 48, who cut a glamorous figure in a gold floor-length dress, alongside a chic Claudia Winkleman, 45.

Judged by panelists Craig Revel Horwood, Darcey Bussell, Shirley Ballas and Bruno Tonioli, the show kicked off with the whole cast performing a musical tribute to La La Land.

Sizzling: The second week of eliminations centred around a movie-themed night of dancing, presented by Tess Daly, 48, who cut a glamorous figure in a gold floor-length dress, alongside a chic Claudia Winkleman, 45

Making the most of her statuesque figure, Tess' elegant frock skimmed her long and lean physique, and she teamed it with a pair of killer heels.

Wearing her hair in classic golden waves, the mother-of-two beamed as she took to the stage alongside raven-haired beauty Claudia.

Claudia complimented her co-presenter perfectly, opting for a classic black off-the-shoulder ensemble.

The show kicked off with the contestants introducing the hotly-anticipated dance-off with a musical-style intro, paying tribute to recent musical film La La Land with a group performance.

Power pair: Tess' elegant frock skimmed her long and lean physique while Claudia complimented her co-presenter perfectly, opting for a classic black off-the-shoulder ensemble

Judging panel: Craig Revel Horwood, Darcey Bussell, Shirley Ballas and Bruno Tonioli

First to perform were Simon Rimmer and Karen Clifton, who danced the Quickstep to You've Got A Friend In Me from Toy Story.

Dressed as the Buzz Lightyear and Jessie, the duo put on a cheery performance to the cheers of the crowd, adding comedy value to the show.

And their performance impressed, with Shirley stating: 'You have one of the best frames in the competition when you try!'.

The duo scored 19 out of 40, the same figure they achieved last week.

Ruth Langsford and Anton Du Beke were up next, dancing the Rumba to Diamonds Are Forever.

'I hope Eammon is going to be okay with us spending all this time together,' Ruth joked of her husband Holmes.

And not to be left out, husband Eammon Holmes brought a cardboard cut-out and joined the rehearsing couple in their practice.

And their rehearsals- helped by Eamonn clearly paid off.

Putting on a racy display in a dazzling sequin dress slashed to the thigh as they eventually performed the long-awaited sensual dance on Saturday night's show.

'I've cried,' Ruth admitted after the performance, and the judges scored them a modest score of 15- with Bruno claiming her 'hips needed defrosting'.

'I felt fabulous like I haven't in years', Anton cut in, defending her performance as her proud son looked on.

Lightyears ahead! Simon Rimmer and Karen Clifton, who danced the Quickstep to You've Got A Friend In Me from Toy Story

Next in Line were Mollie King and AJ Pritchard, who danced the American Smooth to Climb Every Mountain from The Sound Of Music after impressing with their tango last week.

And their performance went down a storm, scoring an impressive 30- their highest score so far.

A dramatically dressed Reverend Richard Coles and Dianne Buswell were up next, dancing the Paso Doble to Flash's Theme from Flash Gordon.

'A Paso Doble that took an alien form', Bruno joked about the dramatic display, while Craig described him as 'stamping around like a 3-year-old' and questioned his' weird hand shapes', much to the audience's rage.

Delighted!Mollie King and AJ Pritchard, who danced the American Smooth to Climb Every Mountain from The Sound Of Music after impressing with their tango last week

Despite being marginally entertaining, the performance sadly only won them a disappointing 14.

Woman of the moment Debbie McGee was up next, dancing the Quickstep to Let's Call The Whole Thing Off from Shall We Dance with Giovanni Pernice.

Landing top of the leaderboard last weekend, the duo had a lot to live up to.

Channelling Hollywood siren, they put on a smooth appearance to a clapping crowd, landing 29 (their lowest so far) from an impressed panel- as Darcey exclaimed 'I'm loving you!'.

Red hot! A dramatically dressed Reverend Richard Coles and Dianne Buswell were up next, dancing the Paso Doble to Flash's Theme from Flash Gordon

Brian Conley & Amy Dowden danced the American Smooth to If I Only Had A Brain from The Wizard Of Oz next, dressed as Dorothy and The Scarecrow.

Brian managed to wish former Strictly contestant Chizzy a happy birthday, before the couple were scored 22 out of 40- their highest so far.

Next up was Gemma Atkinson- who has been the subject of romance rumours with dancer Gorka- and Aljaz Skorjanec who danced the Charleston to The Bare Necessities from The Jungle Book.

The pair put on a cuddly display dressed as bears, and won a standing ovation from the crowd, scoring a cool 31- the highest of the night so far and landing them top of the leaderboard.

Chemistry: Their performance went down a storm, scoring an impressive 30

After a tough show last weekend, Charlotte Hawkins and Brendan Cole were up next, dancing the Tango to Danger Zone from Top Gun.

The duo put on a dazzling display, despite Brendan suffering a small slip, and the judges noticed the difference, but scored them just 17- causing Charlotte to become emotional.

And the verdict caused a little spat, after judge Shirley accused them of introducing a 'rise and fall' to the tango, with Brendan biting back that there wasn't one.

'Watch it back then', Shirley sniped as he shook his head in protest.

Co-judge Bruno then jumped him, reprimanding him for 'not respecting a lady's opinion, with Brendan replying: 'I always respect a lady, I just don't agree and Charlotte did amazingly'.

Steering the ship into calmer waters were Jonnie Peacock and Oti Mabusem who danced the Paso Doble to The Raiders March from Indiana Jones and landed a score of 26.

Joe McFadden and Katya Jones danced the Viennese Waltz to Somewhere My Love from Doctor Zhivago next, scoring 32- and newly topping the leaderboard.

Susan Calman- watched by proud wife sporting a Wonderwoman crown, and Kevin Clifton followed, dancing the Samba to the theme from Wonder Woman.

Thrilled with her own performance, Susan planted a huge smacker on Craig's cheek, surprising the stern judge with the lipstick mark.

And the cheeky move may have helped, with the duo scoring a cool 20.

Dressed as trolls, Aston Merrygold and Janette Manrara danced the Cha Cha to Can't Stop The Feeling from Trolls.

Despite getting a touch of glitter in his eye, Aston impressed the judges and scored 35- smashing the night's scores and landing top of the leaderboard (so far Alexandra's score of 36 last week was top of the competition).

Up next were Alexandra Burke & Gorka Marquez, who received top marks last Saturday landing the overall second on the leaderboard, dancing the American Smooth to Wouldn't It Be Loverly from My Fair Lady.

Branding her 'one to watch', the thrilled panel scored them with 33, landing them second of the leaderboard.

Last but not least were Davood Ghadami and Nadiya Bychkovawill, who danced a dramatic Samba to Stayin' Alive from Saturday Night Fever.

Davood even jumped on the judges' table- much to their surprise, with Bruno exclaiming it looked as though he had a 'ferret in his trousers'.

And his cheeky move appeared to do the trick, with the duo closing the night with a score of 25.

Finishing top of the leaderboard was Aston with a score of 35, and Reverend Richard Coles landed bottom with 14. Sunday's show will see the second eviction of season 17.

Strictly Pairings - The Women Alexandra Burke & Gorka Marquez Charlotte Hawkins & Brendan Cole Chizzy Akudolu & Pasha Kovalev VOTED OFF IN THE FIRST ELIMINIATION Debbie McGee & Giovanni Pernice Gemma Atkinson & Aljaz Skorjanec Mollie King & AJ Pritchard Ruth Langsford & Anton Du Beke Susan Calman & Kevin Clifton Advertisement
Richard Wilkins' love life has made headlines recently.

And now it's been reported by The Daily Telegraph that the 63-year-old media personality is dating an investment banker's 50-year-old estranged wife.

The Today star is said to be 'head over heels' for Virginia Burmeister, who was a dancer at Le Lido Paris in the 1980s.

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Off the market? Richard 'Dickie' Wilkins, 63, is 'dating' an investment banker's estranged wife, 50, and is 'head over heels'

The publication reports Virginia, a mother of three young children, has previously interacted with Richard on Twitter.

'Nice seeing you in the chairman's this morning...hope you had a good flight! X,' one tweet reportedly read, which was posted on February 2.

Another tweet from June reportedly saw Virginia reveal she was rubbing shoulders with the Today cast and Seal, which read: 'I'm with Seal #9Today The Voice.'

New flame? The Today star is said to be dating Virginia Burmeister, (pictured), who was a dancer at Le Lido Paris in the 1980s

Reports: Virginia is the estranged wife of 'extremely wealthy' Mark Burmeister, of Morgan and Stanley

Virginia is the estranged wife of 'extremely wealthy' Mark Burmeister, of Morgan and Stanley.

Meanwhile, The Daily Telegraph recently reported that Richard attended the opening night of Beautiful: The Carole King Musical with a mystery woman and that they were holding hands.

Richard has been married to Michelle Burke and had a high-profile relationship with designer Colette Dinnigan in the past.

Dating for a while? Meanwhile, The Daily Telegraph recently reported that Richard attended the opening night of Beautiful: The Carole King Musical with a mystery woman and that they were holding hands

Since then, he has been romantically linked to a number of high-profile personalities such as The Block contestant Suzi Taylor and Married At First Sight star and part-time model Nadia Stamp, 36.

Richard is a father of six.

Last month, he opened up to 9Honey's Super Mums podcast and spoke about how becoming a father at the age of 18 changed his life.

He said the arrival of his first son Adam in 1973, who has Down Syndrome and is now 44, forced the former pop star 'to suddenly grow up'.

Case for the ex? He has been romantically linked to a number of high-profile personalities such as The Block contestant Suzi Taylor (pictured)

Richard also revealed he 'first got lucky' on his 18th birthday and the girl subsequently fell pregnant.

'It was a 16-year-old girl who I didnt know very well and she fell pregnant... so we got married of course,' he explained.

'I didn't quite know how to handle all that at the tender age of 18, but now I often refer to him as my rock,' Richard said of his firstborn child.

'I don't know what would have happened to me if I hadnt been forced to suddenly grow up at the age of 18,' he continued.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Channel Nine for comment in regards to this story.
New Zealander Russell Coutts, five-time winner of the America's Cup, said his involvement in the competition was over

The America's Cup's most successful sailor, New Zealander Russell Coutts, announced Saturday he is walking away from yachting's most glamorous event.

The five-time winner of the oldest international sporting trophy said his involvement in the competition was over, even as his homeland prepares to host the next regatta in 2021.

"I dont really have any ambitions to continue with the Americas Cup at this point," Coutts told yachtingnz.org.nz.

"I have had quite a few years involved with it - loved it, fantastic event - but there are other things to do in life."

Coutts, 55, has dominated the America's Cup for nearly two decades.

He was skipper for Team New Zealand during their victories in 1995 and 2000, before switching to the Swiss entry Alinghi and winning in 2003.

He then twice oversaw triumphs by Oracle Team USA as their chief executive in 2010 and 2013.

But Coutts' glory days came to an end four months ago when his former sailing partners Team New Zealand regained the Auld Mug from Team USA in Bermuda.

He has since returned home but turned his attention to helping develop junior yachting.

In addition to being a five-time Americas Cup winner, Coutts has twice been named World Sailor of the Year, is a three-time world match racing champion and was the Finn class gold medallist at the 1984 Olympic Games.

Team New Zealand is preparing to defend the Cup in 2021 with a switch to monohulls rather than the hi-tech catamarans used in the last regatta.

On Friday, the New York Yacht Club (NYYC) said it would compete in New Zealand after a 14 year absence from sailing's most prestigious regatta.
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is the first of two top officials President Donald Trump is dispatching to Pakistan to drill home the message that state support for jihadist groups must end

President Donald Trump will dispatch his top diplomatic and military advisors to Pakistan in the coming weeks, turning up the heat on a nuclear-armed ally accused of harboring terror groups.

Weeks after Trump angrily accused Islamabad of providing safe haven to "agents of chaos," Secretary of State Rex Tillerson plans to depart for Pakistan late this month.

He will be followed by Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, according to US and Pakistani sources.

The one-two punch is designed to drill home Trump's message that Pakistani state support for jihadist groups has to end, according to officials briefed on the visits.

Washington has long been frustrated by Pakistan's willingness to offer cross-border safe havens to Taliban factions and armed jihadist groups fighting US troops and their Afghan allies.

The relationship reached the breaking point in 2011, when president Barack Obama sent commandos into Pakistan in 2011 to kill Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, who was living in a military garrison town.

With little change since then, Trump came to office indicating that Washington's frustration had reached the point where something had to give.

"We have been paying Pakistan billions and billions of dollars at the same time they are housing the very terrorists that we are fighting," he said in an August address.

But in the six weeks since Trump signaled that tougher tone, there have been precious few signs that the calculus in South Asia has changed.

Mattis told Congress this week that he will try "one more time" to "see if we can make this work."

- 'Not acceptable' -

US Secretary of Defense James Mattis told Congress that he will try "one more time" to make things work with Pakistan

"To this point, we have not seen any impact on military-to-military relations," said one Pentagon official, suggesting any change would not happen after Mattis's visit.

Visiting Washington, Pakistan's foreign minister Khawaja Asif appeared unwavering.

He lashed out at "hollow allegations" about Pakistan harboring terrorists as "not acceptable."

"That is not the way you talk to 70-year-old friends," Asif said bitterly.

"Instead of accusations and threats we should cooperate with each other for the peace in the region," he added in confirming Tillerson's visit.

While professing anger in public, Pakistani officials in private complain about receiving no concrete requests to target the Haqqani network or other groups.

US officials have been reticent to share some intelligence for fear of tipping off targets with links inside Pakistan's government.

Earlier this month, a US drone killed three suspected militants in an attack on a compound in Pakistan's tribal region.

Pakistani officials also complain of receiving mixed messages from the Trump administration, which is still struggling to find its feet under a mercurial commander-in-chief.

A September meeting in New York between Vice President Mike Pence and Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was said to be cordial, despite Trump's fire and brimstone rhetoric.

"It was a very good meeting with the vice president," said Asif.

After that, Pakistan officials said, they were surprised at a tougher tone outlined in public by Mattis and in private by Trump's National Security Advisor HR McMaster.

- 'Call Pakistan's bluff' -

Some optimists point to a visit by Pakistan's army chief to Kabul as evidence that Islamabad is moderating, after years of support propping up the Taliban.

But many, having watched this debate for decades, are less convinced.

Pakistani Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif rejects the "hollow allegations" that his country harbors violent extremists

The Taliban and groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba, they argue, remain a potent tool in the hands of Pakistani intelligence.

"Of course they don't get the message" said Christine Fair, a South Asia expert at Georgetown University.

"Pakistan is not going to do anything different than its already doing unless the administration can figure out a way to do what no administration has previously done."

"That is basically to call Pakistan's bluff and impose some meaningful punishment."

Trump has warned that military aid -- which was halved between 2012 and 2016 -- could be cut further, a move that Fair dismisses as insufficient.

"It's basically saying that we're going to cut back the money the US taxpayer is giving to Pakistan," she said.

"That's not punishment. Pakistan is not entitled to our money. What they are really talking about is giving Pakistan less of an allowance."

Policymakers have considered revoking Pakistan's non-NATO ally status, with deep symbolic but limited practical impact.

Punitive economic sanctions -- that could force Pakistan closer to China, Russia or Turkey -- seem a long way off.

And Pakistan remains vital for the United States as a route to resupply its forces in Afghanistan and for supplying the Afghan army.
A Syrian rides past a destroyed building in the Jisr al-Shughur district of Idlib province, on September 29, 2017

Two waves of air strikes on a jihadist-held town in northwestern Syria have killed at least 13 civilians over the past 24 hours, a monitoring group said on Saturday.

Four children were among the dead in the early morning strikes on the Idlib province town of Khan Sheikhun on Friday and Saturday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said the strikes were probably carried out by the Syrian air force, which has been carrying out an intensifying bombing campaign against jihadist targets in Idlib province alongside aircraft from ally Russia.

Like most of the rest of Idlib province, Khan Sheikhun is controlled by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an alliance of jihadist factions dominated by Al-Qaeda's former Syria affiliate.

The town hit the headlines in April when it was the target of a sarin gas attack that killed at least 87 people, 30 of them children.

US President Donald Trump blamed the Syrian government for the attack and ordered cruise missile strikes on the airbase from which he said it had been launched.

Damascus blamed jihadists on the ground for the deaths and received strong support for that position from Moscow.

A safe zone was supposed to be established in Idlib and adjacent areas of Hama and Latakia provinces under a deal reached in May by rebel backer Turkey and government backers Iran and Russia.

But during the summer the jihadists, who are not party to the agreement, drove out Islamist former allies from Idlib and took nearly full control.

Moscow says it has since killed 12 jihadist commanders and destroyed the group's largest arms depot.

But there has also been a heavy civilian death toll, according to the Observatory, a Britain-based monitoring group.
A speeding passenger van collided head on with a bus carrying university students and staff Saturday, killing 14 people and wounding 27 others in southwestern Pakistan, officials said.

The accident took place in the Mastung district of oil and gas rich Balochistan province.

"Some of the passengers in the university bus, which was on a picnic trip, sustained injuries but none of them died. All those who died in the crash were aboard the passenger van," said senior local official Salahuddin Noorzai.

Pakistan has one of the world's worst records for fatal traffic accidents, blamed on poor roads, badly maintained vehicles and reckless driving.

Farid Somalani, a senior doctor in one of province capital Quetta's local hospitals where bodies and injured were taken, confirmed the death toll.
The arrival of more than half a million Rohingya refugees who have fled an army crackdown in Myanmar's troubled Rakhine state since August 25 has put an immense strain on already packed camps in Bangladesh

A top UN official said Saturday Bangladesh's plan to build the world's biggest refugee camp for 800,000-plus Rohingya Muslims was dangerous because overcrowding could heighten the risks of deadly diseases spreading quickly.

The arrival of more than half a million Rohingya refugees who have fled an army crackdown in Myanmar's troubled Rakhine state since August 25 has put an immense strain on already packed camps in Bangladesh.

Hard-pressed Bangladesh authorities plan to expand a refugee camp at Kutupalong near the border town of Cox's Bazar to accommodate the Rohingya.

But Robert Watkins, the UN resident coordinator in Dhaka, told AFP the country should instead look for new sites to build more camps.

"When you concentrate too many people into a very small area, particularly the people who are very vulnerable to diseases, it is dangerous," Watkins told AFP.

"There are stronger possibilities, if there are any infectious diseases that spread, that will spread very quickly," he said, also highlighting fire risks in the camps.

"It is much easier to manage people, manage the health situation and security situation if there are a number of different camps rather than one concentrated camp."

At Dhaka's request the UN's International Organization for Migration (IOM) has agreed to coordinate the work of aid agencies and help build shelters at the new camp site.

According to the IOM, the proposed camp will be the world's largest, dwarfing Bidi Bidi in Uganda and Dadaab in Kenya -- both housing around 300,000 refugees.

Three thousand acres (1,200 hectares) of land next to the existing Kutupalong camp have been set aside for the project.

"700,000 is a big camp... we and our partners will have our work cut out for us", Joel Millman, an IOM spokesman, told reporters in Geneva on Friday.

But he added UN agencies "wouldn't be undertaking this if we didn't think it was feasible".

An estimated 331,000 Rohingya have already set up makeshift shelters in the area before construction begins, according to Watkins.

Bangladeshi officials say the new camp will help them better handle relief operations and manage security amid fears that dispersed camps could become recruiting grounds for militants.

- Island relocation -

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said some refugees would also be relocated to a new island, which emerged from the sea just a decade ago, where they would be provided with shelter, health and education facilities.

"We have some plans about the Rohingya. No one can live the way they are living now," she told a rally in Dhaka.

The Rohingya have opposed the idea of moving to Bhashan Char island -- also known as Thengar Char -- saying they will be exposed to powerful and deadly cyclones that frequently hit Bangladesh's coastal belt.

But Hasina said the government would build cyclone shelters for the refugees.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi last month said any relocation to the island should be "voluntary on the part of the refugees".

This week Bangladesh reported 4,000-5,000 Rohingya were crossing the border daily.

Observers believe, according to an IOM statement on Friday, that as many as 100,000 more people may be waiting to cross into Cox's Bazar from Rakhine's Buthidaung Township.

Watkins said the continuing influx represented "a very big challenge" for aid agencies.

"Just when we start to think we are getting on top of the situation, the numbers go up. We are not where we need to be right now," he said.

"There is still a lot more needed to be done."
A billboard calls for jihad in Iraq's Hawija, even after the end of three years under jihadist rule

One side of the billboard calls for jihad, while the other warns of death for smokers. Iraq's Hawija still bears clear signs of its three years under jihadist rule.

Islamic State group jihadists set fire to everything they could before they fled an Iraqi government offensive on the northern town in oil-rich Kirkuk province.

Thick black smoke billows from burning oil wells around the town. Fields lie scorched in the surrounding region known for its cereal crops and watermelons.

Government troops and paramilitary units on Thursday retook Hawija, one of the jihadist group's last bastions in the country.

Beside roads leading into the town, villagers throw themselves at passing military convoys begging for food.

"We haven't seen a teabag or spoonful of sugar for four years," Um Imed says, tears in her eyes.

"Our children are dying of hunger and go barefoot," she says, fiddling with the edge of her long black robe, covered in dust from the passing vehicles.

"Only IS families got fat from the taxes they levied on our crops and the quarter of our produce" they took for themselves, she says.

- Life under IS -

Islamic State group jihadists set fire to a hospital in Iraq's Hawija before they fled, according to paramilitary forces who helped retake the city

The desolation is the same inside the town, where the 70,000 Sunni Arab residents who were believed to have stayed on under IS rule are nowhere to be seen.

In 2014, "when IS seized the town, they used the hospital," a spokesman for the Shiite-dominated Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary force tells AFP.

"But as the Iraqi forces approached, they wanted to burn everything so no one could use it -- despite it being public infrastructure," Mohammed Khalil says.

But some of the medical centre has survived the flames.

In consultation rooms, glass shards and blood samples litter the floor, while in the nurses' staffroom, prescriptions, pamphlets and other pieces of paper recount life under IS.

On one sheet of paper headed "Islamic State, Kirkuk province", jihadist leaders ask staff to urgently treat "brother Adel, a soldier in the special forces".

"They too only got things through connections," a Hashed member scoffs, before slipping away.

Opposite the hospital, no one has entered the town hall for fear it has been booby-trapped.

IS has lost vast swathes of its territory in Iraq since it overran around a third of the country, imposing its brutal interpretation of Islamic law on those it ruled.

Smoking was banned under the jihadists and punishable in their so-called Islamic courts.

- 'We're waiting' -

A picture shows the damage in Hawija on October 6, 2017, a day after Iraqi forces retook the northern city from the Islamic State group

Hawija, 230 kilometres (140 miles) north of Baghdad, was at the centre of a pocket of mainly Sunni Arab towns that were among the group's final holdouts.

The town had been an insurgent bastion since soon after the US-led invasion of 2003, earning it the nickname of "Kandahar in Iraq" for its ferocious resistance -- an allusion to the Taliban's citadel in Afghanistan.

Jihad is nothing new in Hawija, as shown by pamphlets scattered in the hospital, or nearby in what was an IS court.

While a shiny pamphlet speaks of the "joy of martyrdom", another quotes late Al-Qaeda leader in Iraq Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who fought the Americans and ordered grisly executions of Western hostages before being killed in a US air strike in 2006.

But Hawija is now in new hands.

In the town's central market, reduced to rubble by a car bomb, Hashed members have planted their own flag on top of surviving stalls.

Instead of the jihadist standard, the new flag bears the face of Imam Hussein, grandson of the Prophet Mohammed and a revered figure in Shiite Islam.

"Let IS return," says Oday Salman, a 35-year-old who left his wife and baby girl in the Shiite shrine city of Najaf to come and fight the jihadists.

"We're here, and we're waiting."
Palestinian members of Hamas security forces stand at a security checkpoint in Gaza City on April 5, 2017

Hamas police detained a suspected jihadist leader in Gaza on Saturday, a security source said, the latest in a series of arrests of those accused of Islamic State group ideology.

"This morning, security forces arrested Nour Issa, 27, who is a leader of the deviant thought movement and is from Bureij Camp in central Gaza, along with others," the source said, using a phrase Hamas officials routinely use to refer to jihadists, including IS.

The internal security service confirmed on its Facebook page that it had made a number of arrests.

"One of the leaders of the deviant thought has been arrested along with others," it said, without giving a name.

The Islamist Hamas movement has run Gaza for a decade but it has been challenged by small hardline factions, some of them inspired by IS, who advocate a stricter, Salafist interpretation of the faith.

Some have carried out sporadic rocket attacks into Israel in defiance of an informal truce agreed by Hamas.

In August, a suicide bomber allegedly linked to IS killed a Hamas guard in southern Gaza along the border with Egypt, in a rare attack against the Islamists.

Hamas has arrested a number of Salafist and IS-linked figures.
Multiple locations including New York's subway, Times Square and certain concert venues were identified as targets in the plot that was foiled by an undercover FBI agent

A Filipino suspect in a thwarted jihadist plot targetting New York City had boasted that his country was "a breeding ground for terrorists", the US Justice Department said Saturday.

Russell Salic and two others have been charged with involvement in the plan to carry out the attacks in the name of the Islamic State group during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in 2016.

A Justice Department statement said Salic, 37, transferred money to the other suspects for the operation, saying he could safely do this from the Philippines without attracting attention.

Multiple locations including New York's subway, Times Square and some concert venues were identified as targets in the plot that was foiled by an undercover FBI agent, US authorities announced Friday.

The agent posed as an IS supporter and communicated with Salic and his two alleged accomplices Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy, a 19-year-old Canadian who purchased bombmaking materials, and Talha Haroon, a 19-year-old American citizen living in Pakistan.

El Bahnasawy told the undercover FBI agent that Salic was a trusted IS supporter who had provided funding to help the group on prior occasions, according to the Justice Department statement.

The statement quoted messages sent by Salic to others involved in the plot in which he described terror laws in the Philippines as "not strict" in comparison to countries such as Australia and the UK.

"Terrorists from all over the world usually come here as a breeding ground for terrorists... hahahaha... But no worry here in Philippines. They dont care bout IS... Only in west," he added, according to the statement.

Salic was arrested in the Philippines around April 2017, the statement said.

It added that El Bahnasawy, who authorities say has pled guilty to "terrorism charges", was arrested in New Jersey in May 2016 and Haroon was arrested in Pakistan around September 2016.

The extradition of Haroon and Salic to the US is pending, according to prosecutors. Philippine officials could not be contacted for comment.

US authorities said Friday that Salic had sent "approximately $423" to fund the attacks and had promised to send more.

The largely-Roman Catholic Philippines has been struggling for years with armed insurgencies arising from the Muslim minority in the country's restive south.

Various Muslim militant groups have publicly pledged allegiance to IS in the past. Armed militants flying the black IS flag have been besieging the southern city of Marawi since May, leaving at least 955 people dead.

The fighting, which is still raging despite the Philippine military using artillery, airstrikes and US military assistance, has left the once-thriving city in ruins with thousands of civilians displaced.
US charge d'affaires Steven Koutsis during a press conference at the American embassy on October 7, 2017

The top US envoy in Sudan said Saturday that conditions have to be "right" for holding talks with Khartoum on removing it from Washington's blacklist of state sponsors of "terrorism".

US charge d'affaires to Khartoum Steven Koutsis' remarks came a day after Washington ended its 20-year-old trade embargo on the east African country.

However, the US did not drop Sudan from the blacklist, a consistent demand by Khartoum in return for cooperating with US intelligence agencies in fighting "terrorism".

"This is something that both sides are keenly willing to discuss, but we have to be certain that conditions are right for discussions to remove (Sudan) from the list," Koutsis said at a press conference at the US mission in Khartoum.

"The government of Sudan knows fully well what it needs to do ... and we hope that those conditions will come soon," he said, without elaborating.

Later on Saturday, Sudan's Foreign Minister Ibrahim Ghandour said Khartoum faces a "paradox".

"We are the best country cooperating on countering terrorism and at the same time we are on the list of state sponsors of terrorism," Ghandour said in his first remarks since the trade embargo was dropped.

Ghandour, who led the Sudanese team negotiating the lifting of sanctions, said it was time to start talks for removing the country from the blacklist.

On Friday, Khartoum had expressed disappointment that this had not happened.

- 'Go to the big brother' -

"Discussion on removing from the (list of) state sponsors of terror was not part of our engagement under the five-track plan," Koutsis said, referring to the five conditions that Washington had insisted that Khartoum meet in return for ending the trade embargo.

Khartoum insists that there is no reason for it to be on the blacklist as it has cooperated with US intelligence agencies in fighting terrorism in the region, a claim acknowledged even by the US State Department.

Sudanese officials say that being on this list along with Syria and Iran makes it difficult to seek foreign debt relief, which has been a factor in hampering the country's economic growth.

"If you want to talk to anyone, they will say 'go to the big brother'," said Ghandour.

"As a foreign minister I thought what can I do? So, if you open the doors with the United States, you open the doors with others."

- 'Legal impediments' lifted -

Washington first imposed the sanctions in 1997 over Khartoum's alleged support for Islamist militant groups. Osama bin Laden, the slain Al-Qaeda founder, lived in Sudan between 1992 and 1996.

Following a significant improvement in relations, former US President Barack Obama eased the sanctions in January before leaving office with a view to lifting them completely after a six-month review.

But in July, President Donald Trump extended the review period to October 12. On Friday, his administration decided to lift the embargo permanently.

Koutsis said he expected increased interest from American companies on doing business in Sudan.

"But of course businesses will make business decisions based on entire level of risk involved, and they will be looking at other aspects of potential investment in Sudan," he said.

Washington's financial sanctions had put restrictions on international banking transactions, exchange of technology and spare parts. Combined with other cumbersome trade regulations, they hampered Sudan's economic growth.

Koutsis said that "legal impediments" that previously prevented such transactions have now been removed with the lifting of the embargo.
Armed clashes and assassinations of politicians are not uncommon in Mozambique

Suspected Islamists attacked a string of police stations in a small town in northern Mozambique killing two policemen but 14 of the gunmen were slain, police said on Saturday.

Police have been slow in releasing details of the attacks which occurred on Thursday and Friday in Mocimboa de Praia.

"We recorded 14 deaths and several bandits were wounded," police spokesman Inacio Dina told AFP.

Police said the attacks were coordinated.

Local media said three police stations in the sleepy town, 80 kilometres (50 miles) from natural gas fields, were targeted.

At a news conference on Thursday, Dina suggested the attackers were linked to a homegrown "radical Islamic sect" but gave no details.

Police have so far arrested 10 other gunmen, recovered four firearms and more than 100 rounds of ammunition.

"The motive of the attacks is still unknown but in the past police arrested some religious leaders of Islamic extremist sects," Dina said.

"The way they operated makes us believe that there is a structure behind the group," Dina told AFP, but ruled out any links "between the attackers and external forces".

"There is no evidence that they are members of Shabaab or Boko Haram. According to the information gathered, all those captured or killed are Mozambicans," said the police spokesman speaking from the capital Maputo.

A local journalist suggested on social media that the attackers belonged to the virtually unknown group, Swalissuna, which has been in existence for about five years.

"They have specific grievances with the police and aimed the attack at them," tweeted journalist and private media owner Erik Charas.

The attacks lasted two days, until the police dispatched special forces from Pemba, 500 kilometres away.

Armed clashes and assassinations of politicians are not uncommon in Mozambique.

On-and-off clashes have occurred in recent years between government troops and armed militias loyal to opposition party and former rebel movement Renamo.

But a truce unilaterally declared by Renamo in December has been observed with only minor breaches.
New technologies have disrupted news media over the past 20 years -- but one report says that's just the beginning

If you think technology has shaken up the news media -- just wait, you haven't seen anything yet.

The next wave of disruption is likely to be even more profound, according to a study presented Saturday to the Online News Association annual meeting in Washington.

News organizations which have struggled in the past two decades as readers moved online and to mobile devices will soon need to adapt to artificial intelligence, augmented reality and automated journalism and find ways to connect beyond the smartphone, the report said.

"Voice interface" will be one of the big challenges for media organizations, said the report by Amy Webb, a New York University Stern School of Business faculty member and Founder of the Future Today Institute.

The institute estimates that 50 percent of interactions that consumers have with computers will be using their voices by 2023.

"Once we are speaking to our machines about the news, what does the business model for journalism look like?" the report said.

"News organizations are ceding this future ecosystem to outside corporations. They will lose the ability to provide anything but content."

Webb writes that most news organizations have done little experimentation with chat apps and voice skills on Amazon's Alexa and Google Home, the likes of which may be key parts of the future news ecosystem.

Because of this, she argues that artificial intelligence or AI is posing "an existential threat to the future of journalism."

"Journalism itself is not actively participating in building the AI ecosystem," she wrote.

One big problem facing media organizations is that new technologies impacting the future of news such as AI are out of their control, and instead is in the hands of tech firms like Google, Amazon, Tencent, Baidu, IBM, Facebook, Apple and Microsoft, according to Webb.

"News organizations are customers, not significant contributors," the report said.

"We recommend cross-industry collaboration and experimentation on a grand scale, and we encourage leaders within journalism to organize quickly."

- Drones, virtual reality -

Drones and virtual reality are likely to cause fresh disruption for news organizations in the coming years

The study identified 75 technology trends likely to have an impact on journalism in the coming years, including drones, wearables, blockchain, 360-degree video, virtual reality and real-time fact-checking.

Webb's study said some changes in technology will start having an impact on the media in the very near future, within 24 to 36 months.

"In 2018, a critical mass of emerging technologies will converge, finding advanced uses beyond initial testing and applied research," the report said.

Some of these new technologies -- the ability to interpret visual data, develop algorithms to write or interpret news, and collect and analyze increasing amounts of data -- will allow journalists "to do richer, deeper reporting, fact checking and editing," the report said.

These technologies "will give journalists superpowers, if they have the training to use these emerging systems and tools," Webb writes.
Iraqi forces and the Hashed al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilisation units) hold a position as they advance towards the Islamic State group's stronghold of Hawija on September 30, 2017

The "final large fight" in Iraq against the Islamic State group will take place on the border with Syria, a general in a US-led coalition against the jihadists said Saturday.

He spoke two days after Iraqi forces recaptured the northern town of Hawija, the centre of one of the jihadist group's two remaining enclaves in Iraq.

"The next fight and the final large fight will be in the Middle Euphrates River Valley... on the Iraqi-Syrian border," Brigadier General Robert Sofge, the coalition's Deputy Commanding General, told AFP.

"All campaigns will aim in that direction, and it is going to happen sooner rather than later."

IS seized vast areas of Iraq and Syria in 2014.

Multiple offensives in both countries have since cornered it in a pocket of territory stretching from Syria's Deir Ezzor to the Iraqi towns of Rawa and Al-Qaim.

Sofge said some 2,000 IS fighters were still in the area.

Coalition-backed Iraqi forces ousted IS from second city Mosul in July, going on to inflict a string of defeats on the jihadist group.

After seizing the northern town of Tal Afar in August, they focused their efforts on Hawija and the Euphrates river area close to the Syrian frontier.

- 'Moving quickly' -

The jihadists are also under pressure in eastern Syria, facing separate offensives by Russian-backed regime forces and a Kurdish-Arab force supported by the US-led coalition.

Brigadier General Andrew A. Croft, the coalition's deputy air force commander, said Iraqi security forces had been able to regroup and move quickly into new battles following their Mosul victory.

"We, as the Coalition, are moving quickly to match," he said.

Sofge said the jihadist group was shifting from a military mindset to that of an insurgent group with "sleeper cells" able to launch surprise attacks.

"The challenge for the years ahead is police work in Iraq and Syria," he said.

"IS fighters who are not killed or captured are trying to fade back into the fabric of the society."

While jihadists have tried to hide among the thousands of people displaced by fighting, Croft said some 1,000 IS fighters were captured in Hawija.

Many ended up in the hands of the Kurdish peshmerga militias in Kirkuk province.

Control of the province is a key sticking point in a bitter dispute between Baghdad and Kurdish authorities, fanned by a September referendum on Kurdish independence, held in defiance of the central government.

Iraqi pro-government forces have also advanced towards Kurdish positions since retaking Hawija.

But Croft praised what he said was a "high degree of cooperation between peshmergas and Iraqi security forces".

"It is very positive," he said.

"Much of the tension is at a political level, not only does tension (between Iraqi forces and the peshmerga) not exist, but they keep their cooperation high."
The flow of foreign fighters to the conflict zone has partly reversed since IS's self-declared caliphate in Iraq and Syria began crumbling

The mass retreat of the Islamic State group from its territories in Syria and Iraq has left Europe grappling with the risk of foreign fighters returning home.

But in Belgium, authorities are also turning their attention to repatriating children stranded in the war zones.

With an estimated 500 citizens who have reached or attempted to reach the conflict zones, Belgium has the highest number of jihadists per capita in the EU.

The government has said there are at least 100 Belgian children under 12 years currently in Syria, who were either born there or were taken to the country with an adult.

In May, a Belgian jihadist took his three-year-old daughter to Syria without the knowledge of her mother, despite being under electronic surveillance.

Justice Minister Koen Geens said the children are usually brought home via Turkey under the protection of Belgian police officers.

He revealed that Belgium and NATO partner Turkey had set up a gathering point on Turkish territory for those children wanting to come back, usually but not necessarily with their mothers.

"Fourteen children have returned," said Interior Minister Jan Jambon, "11 of them under six years old."

- 'Small' threat from children -

The flow of foreign fighters to the conflict zone has partly reversed since the IS group's self-declared caliphate in Iraq and Syria began crumbling in the last year under assault from regional, US-backed and other foreign-backed forces.

An EU report in December said a third of the estimated 5,000 European jihadists who went to Syria and Iraq had returned to Europe, and some may have orders to carry out attacks.

An unspecified number of wives and children have also returned to their homes throughout Europe, with officials concerned that they too could be planning violence.

Jambon told lawmakers last month that the chances are "relatively small" that children so young have been radicalised.

But he said these children would probably need psychiatric and other follow-up care to recover from traumas they might have suffered during the conflict.

Such support must constantly be "refined" to ensure the children settle properly into Belgian life, prosecutors from Belgium, France, Spain and Morocco said at a meeting this week in Dutch-speaking Flanders.

Until now, children's aid officials in French-speaking Wallonia told AFP that they have cared for only four children in a specialised educational centre.

Under Belgian law, a judge must review cases of children who are at least 12 and have committed an offence in war zones, but this has not yet happened in the region.

That is a signal to some observers that the Belgian government has not done enough to try to help bring back its citizens from the Middle East battlegrounds.

- 'Complex problem' -

"It's a complex problem. What can we do? Dispatch teams to identify the children? If the parent is dead, his nationality may be difficult to ascertain," a senior security official said on condition of anonymity.

"In Turkey, Belgium provides consular services to help with repatriation, which is not the case in Syria and Iraq," the official said.

"But the minor will have first had to cross the border."

Bahar Kimyongur, a Belgian researcher who works with UN human rights experts, said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan holds a key to the solution, at least for children stranded in the northwestern Syrian province of Idlib.

"Erdogan has support through the Turkmen brigades. The Turks have lots of contacts and room for manoeuvre," Kimyongur told AFP.

The Turkish army is due to deploy in Idlib with Russian and Iranian forces to restore security to the province in line with the Astana accords.

Through his family and other contacts on both sides of the Turkish-Syrian border, Kimyongur helped two mothers, a French and a Belgian, bring back their young children.

The last case grabbed the Belgian media spotlight and prompted an emotional outpouring as the country waits for the return of another child.
A gunman has shot dead two Saudi royal guards and wounded three others at the gate of the palace in the Red Sea city of Jeddah

A gunman shot dead two Saudi guards and wounded three others at the gate of the royal palace in the Red Sea city of Jeddah on Saturday, the interior ministry said.

Royal guards killed the gunman, identified by the ministry as a 28-year-old Saudi national armed with a Kalashnikov and three grenades.

"An outpost of the royal guard came under fire by a person who got out of a Hyundai car," the ministry said in a statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency.

"He was immediately dealt with and his cowardly act also resulted in the martyrdom" of two royal guards, it added.

The US embassy in Saudi Arabia had earlier cautioned its citizens over reports of the attack.

"Due to the possibility of ongoing police activity, American citizens are advised to exercise caution when travelling through the area," the embassy said in a brief statement.

The warning comes after the Saudi police raided hideouts of a "terror" cell linked to the Islamic State group this week, killing two people and arresting five others, according to the national security agency.

The State Security Agency said police raided three hideouts in the capital Riyadh and exchanged gunfire at one of them, the SPA news agency reported on Thursday.

Since late 2014, IS has claimed a series of bombings and shootings against Shiites and security forces in the Sunni-majority kingdom.

Saudi Arabia is a member of the US-led international coalition that has been battling the Sunni extremist group in Syria and Iraq.
As US Gulf states brace for Hurricane Nate, workers place sandbags atop a storm-protection levee in New Orleans, Louisiana

Residents in three states along the US Gulf Coast scrambled to complete preparations Saturday ahead of Hurricane Nate as officials warned conditions would turn treacherous after sunset.

Nate was forecast to arrive late Saturday as a Category Two hurricane, packing winds topping 90 miles per hour as it churned in the Gulf of Mexico. The storm killed at least 28 people in Central America.

Storm surges along the US Gulf Coast are forecast as high as eight feet (2.5 meters) above ground level, prompting officials to order mandatory evacuations in some low-lying areas.

In Louisiana's flood-prone city of New Orleans, residents were out early Saturday to fill sandbags, as others in nearby communities packed cars to heed evacuation orders.

"This is going to be a major wind event, which can provide electrical outages... and this is a potential wind surge event, if you live outside the levee protection areas," New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu said Friday night while announcing a Saturday curfew of 7 pm (2300 GMT).

The levee system has been considerably fortified since Katrina, but authorities warn that it has reduced, but not completely eliminated, flooding risks.

The mayor urged residents in three areas under mandatory evacuation orders to leave by noon because nearby floodgates will be closing.

- 'To keep everyone safe' -

New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu warning residents to complete preparations before the arrival late Saturday of Hurricane Nate

Three states in Hurricane Nate's northerly path -- Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi -- were expected to bear the brunt of the storm before it weakens as it moves inland.

Multiple shelters were opened for evacuees, and officials urged residents to finish preparations before evening, including stocking up on several days' supply of food and water.

"We are prepared to keep everyone safe during this storm, and we will be enforcing the curfew," New Orleans police chief Michael Harrison said.

Shoppers emptied area stores of essentials -- while dwindling shelves of ice cream suggested that some residents in a part of the country used to hurricanes were taking Nate in stride.

With widespread electrical outages expected, New Orleans-area power provider Entergy prepositioned repair crews to go to work once the hurricane passes.

- Lengthy outages likely -

"Please be prepared for outages that can last up to seven days," an Entergy spokeswoman said.

Nate was forecast to arrive along the Gulf coast with "potentially life-threatening" storm surges in some areas, said Mark DeMaria of the US National Hurricane Center (NHC).

Unlike Harvey, which dumped record amounts of rain as it hovered over Texas for a week, Nate is expected to quickly pass along a northerly path -- drenching a vast swath of the US as it moves inland and weakens.

Nate is the ninth storm of a record-breaking US hurricane season, the National Weather Service said. The fourth-largest US city Houston was humbled by unprecedented flooding during Hurricane Harvey, and much of Florida evacuated for Hurricane Irma.

Then the US territory of Puerto Rico was devastated by Hurricane Maria, with huge parts of its infrastructure destroyed.
African migrants detained by Libya's UN-backed Government of National Accord at a shelter in Sabratha on October 7, 2017

A force allied with Libya's unity government in the people-smuggling hub of Sabratha has detained more than 3,000 migrants, a security official said on Saturday.

"We arrested 3,150 illegal immigrants of different Asian, Arab and African nationalities," the force's commander Bassem Ghrabli said.

His force said Friday it had driven a rival militia, led by the head of a former people smuggling network, out of the city after three weeks of fighting.

The clashes left 39 people dead and 300 wounded, according to the unity government's health ministry.

A fighter from the security force loyal to Libya's UN-backed Government of National Accord guards the ancient theatre in Sabratha on October 7, 2017

The fighting also damaged schools, hospitals and UNESCO-listed archaeological treasures in Sabratha, 70 kilometres (45 miles) west of Tripoli.

Following the ouster and killing of long-time dictator Moamer Kadhafi in a NATO-backed 2011 revolution, the city became a major hub for clandestine migrants seeking a chance to head to Europe.

Taking advantage of a security vacuum, some local smugglers controlled whole sections of the city and even built their own landing piers, equipped to launch dozens of migrant boats a day.

The Government of National Accord has struggled to impose its authority in a country where dozens of militias hold sway and a rival government backed by military strongman Khalifa Haftar controls much of the east.
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) - The state Supreme Court will hear an appeal for a new trial from a prep school graduate who was convicted in 2015 of sexually assaulting a classmate as part of a game of sexual conquest, an order released Thursday said.

Owen Labrie, of Tunbridge, Vermont, is challenging a judge's denial of his request for a new trial. His appeal will be argued before the full court, but a date hasn't been set.

Labrie, 21, was acquitted of raping a 15-year-old classmate the previous year at St. Paul's School in Concord. He was convicted of misdemeanor sexual assault and child endangerment as well as using a computer to lure the girl for sex, a felony requiring him to register as a sex offender for life.

FILE - In this Aug. 26, 2015, file photo, St. Paul's School graduate Owen Labrie raises his hand to be sworn-in prior to testifying in his trial at Merrimack Superior Court in Concord, N.H. The New Hampshire Supreme Court says it will hear an appeal for a new trial from a prep school graduate who was convicted in 2015 of sexually assaulting a classmate. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, Pool, File)

Although sentenced to a year in jail, Labrie has remained free under curfew while he also appeals his convictions. That matter is on hold until the issue of whether he gets a new trial is resolved. A message seeking comment was left for his attorney Thursday.

In April, a judge denied him a new trial, calling some of Labrie's claims of ineffective counsel absurd and almost frivolous. Labrie argued that his defense team erred in several ways, including not challenging the felony computer charge during the trial and not attempting to further damage the credibility of the girl and several of his friends who testified.

Labrie also argued he should not have been charged with or convicted of using a computer to lure the girl for sex because he exchanged messages with her through the school's intranet, not the wider internet as the law specifies.

Earlier this year, the state attorney general's office began an investigation of sexual assault and misconduct at St. Paul's School. That followed the school's release of a report detailing sexual assaults by teachers on their students, earlier information about student sexual conquest rituals and allegations of a similar ritual reported in June

School officials have said they're cooperating with the investigation.
WASHINGTON (AP) - Republican Rep. Tim Murphy of Pennsylvania, an anti-abortion lawmaker who allegedly urged his mistress to have an abortion when he thought she was pregnant, is resigning from Congress.

House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., on Thursday announced Murphy's plans to leave Congress, effective Oct. 21. The decision comes less than 24 hours after Murphy said he would retire at the end of his term next year.

"It was Dr. Murphy's decision to move on to the next chapter of his life, and I support it," Ryan said in a statement. "We thank him for his many years of tireless work on mental health issues here in Congress and his service to the country as a naval reserve officer."

FILE - In this March 26, 2015, file photo, Rep. Tim Murphy, R-Pa., speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington. Murphy who was caught up in affair scandal, announces he plans to resign from Congress effective Oct. 21, 2017, according to House Speaker Paul Ryan. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)

Murphy's downfall came quickly, within days of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette publishing text messages between the married congressman and Shannon Edwards.

A Jan. 25 text message from Edwards told the congressman he had "zero issue posting your pro-life stance all over the place when you had no issue asking me to abort our unborn child just last week when we thought that was one of the options," according to the newspaper.

A text message from Murphy's number in response said his staff was responsible for his anti-abortion messages: "I've never written them. Staff does them. I read them and winced. I told staff don't write any more."

Edwards, it turned out, wasn't pregnant. Murphy recently acknowledged his affair with Edwards, which became public as a result of her divorce proceedings.

The newspaper's revelation came as the House on Tuesday approved Republican legislation that would make it a crime to perform an abortion after 20 weeks of fetal development. Murphy, a member of the House Pro-Life Caucus, is among the bill's co-sponsors and voted for it.

On Wednesday, Murphy announced he would not seek re-election, saying he would "take personal time to seek help as my family and I continue to work through our personal difficulties."

Ryan said he supports the resignation.

"I've spoken to Tim quite a bit the last few days," Ryan told reporters at an event in Chestertown, Maryland. "I think it's appropriate he move on to the next chapter in his life."

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf is empowered to set a date for a special election to fill the seat.

The Post-Gazette also published a six-page memo apparently written by Murphy's congressional chief of staff and dated June 8, in which she accused Murphy of subjecting his staff members to "threats, hostility, anger and harassment."

Neither Murphy nor his office has commented on the newspaper report.

Murphy is serving his eighth term representing a district in southwestern Pennsylvania, including parts of suburban Pittsburgh. The district is a safe Republican seat, with Republican Donald Trump beating Democrat Hillary Clinton by a margin of 3-to-2 in last November's presidential election.

Murphy, a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee, was uncontested in his re-election bid.

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Levy reported from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) - Vice President Mike Pence received some unsolicited advice Thursday as he prepared to survey Hurricane Maria's fury in Puerto Rico: Go to the heart of the devastation.

Arriving at Orlando International Airport, Pence greeted a group of Puerto Ricans who had just landed and were getting help from relief agencies and local services at the airport. Walking table to table, the vice president met Everlinda Burgos, who had arrived earlier in the day from her home in Naranjito.

"Don't go to San Juan. Go inside the country, like where I live," Burgos told Pence, who listened intently along with his wife, Karen Pence. Burgos said President Donald Trump had visited "another part - not in the center" during his trip Tuesday to the hurricane-ravaged island. She said Pence needed to "go to the center because that's where the disaster is."

Vice President Mike Pence greets a group of Puerto Ricans who recently arrived at the Orlando International Airport and are getting help from relief agencies Thursday, Oct. 5, 2017, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/Kenneth Thomas)

Promising to help, Pence said the administration would "work every part of it and help Puerto Rico recover." He said that after the recovery, Burgos would be able to return home. "There's no place like home," Pence said, adding, "Can I give you a hug?" They hugged and then the vice president walked to another table.

Pence's meetings with members of central Florida's large Puerto Rican community came ahead of his trip Friday to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, which is dealing with the aftermath of the massive hurricane.

Trump toured a small slice of Maria's devastation during his visit to Puerto Rico on Tuesday and praised the relief efforts of his administration without mentioning the criticism that the federal response has drawn.

Pence was joined by Florida Sens. Bill Nelson and Marco Rubio at the airport disaster center, one of three across the state that was opened by Florida Gov. Rick Scott and is receiving federal support.

Nelson and Rubio later joined the vice president at a meeting with volunteers and congregants at a church in a Puerto Rican neighborhood in Kissimmee. Pence praised the church's efforts to fill 15 trucks with supplies and send 150 generators to the island.

"Puerto Rico will come back, as the president says, better and stronger than ever before," Pence said, adding with a touch of Spanish, "because we are all unidos por Puerto Rico."

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On Twitter follow Ken Thomas at @KThomasDC.
MADRID (AP) - The spokesman for Spain's government declared Friday that "coexistence is broken" in Catalonia, blaming separatist authorities in the wealthy northeastern region for pushing ahead with their independence bid.

Government spokesman Inigo Mendez de Vigo, who is also the cabinet's minister of cultural affairs, called on the Catalan regional government to drop its secessionist bid in order to begin a dialogue.

A disputed independence referendum in Catalonia last Sunday has led to Spain's biggest political crisis in decades, with the national government in Madrid condemning the vote as illegal, unconstitutional and invalid.

Catalan regional police chief Josep Luis Trapero, 2nd left, arrives at the national court in Madrid, Spain, Friday, Oct. 6, 2017. A Spanish judge is due to question Mossos d'Esquadra chief Trapero and two pro-independence campaigners about their role in an Oct. 1 referendum that the Spanish government declared as illegal. (AP Photo/Paul White)

Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont wants to address the regional parliament next week "to discuss the political situation" in Catalonia. That request comes after Spain's Constitutional Court suspended the Catalan parliament session on Monday during which separatist lawmakers wanted to discuss secession.

"In order to dialogue, you must stay within the legal framework," Mendez de Vigo told reporters on Friday.

The minister also warned Catalans that a parliamentary declaration of independence "is not enough" and that the international community needs to recognize independent nations.

No country has openly said it would support an independent Catalonia and the European Union says it would be kicked out of the bloc and forced to stop using the common euro currency. The EU says Catalonia would have to apply to rejoin, a lengthy, uncertain process.

Puigdemont says the referendum is valid despite a Constitutional Court ban on holding it and the fact that only 40 percent of the region's 5.5 million eligible voters turned out amid strong police pressure to shut down the vote. Catalan officials say 90 percent of those who cast ballots favored independence.

Puigdemont has asked now to address the regional parliament Tuesday to "report on the current political situation." Catalan lawmakers were meeting Friday afternoon to discuss the request.

The top Spanish official in Catalonia, Enric Millo, who is in charge of security, said Friday he regretted that hundreds of people were injured Sunday in the police crackdown on the independence vote - the first statement by a Spanish official lamenting the injuries.

"I can only say sorry" for the injuries, Millo told Catalonia's TV3 television.

He also tempered the apology by saying the Catalan government was responsible for the situation by encouraging people to vote despite the Constitutional Court order suspending the referendum.

Spain has defended police actions, saying there were firm and proportionate. Videos on Sunday saw police yanking voters and others by their hair and kicking and hitting them.

Catalan authorities say about 900 people were treated for injuries during Sunday's vote, when Spain's anti-riot squads fired rubber bullets, smashed into polling stations and beat protesters with batons to disperse voters.

The political turmoil has led to unease in Spain's business sector. Spain's main stock index was down slightly Friday, with Catalan banks leading losses amid the uncertainty.

Spain's government approved a decree Friday that would make it easier for Catalan companies to move base out of the region. The move will allow for the relocation of the registration of Caixabank -Spain's third largest bank in global volume of assets. Caixabank's board was due to meet in Barcelona on Friday to discuss the issue.

At least half a dozen companies, including the fifth largest lender, Banco Sabadell, have already relocated from Catalonia or agreed to do it.

"It's very sad what we are seeing," Economy Minister Luis de Guindos said Friday. "This is the result of an irresponsible policy that is causing uneasiness in the business community."

In Madrid, Spain's National Court unconditionally released two senior officers of Catalonia's regional police force and the leaders of two pro-independence civic groups being investigated for sedition in connection with the referendum. The four are to be questioned again in coming days.

The case is linked to Sept. 20-21 demonstrations in Barcelona, when Spanish police arrested several Catalan government officials and raided offices in a crackdown on referendum preparations.

The four are Catalan police chief Josep Lluis Trapero, Catalan police Lt. Teresa Laplana, Jordi Sanchez, the head of the Catalan National Assembly, and Jordi Cuixart, president of separatist group Omnium Cultural.

After being questioned for about an hour, Trapero left the courthouse to applause by Basque and Catalan party representatives and insults from bystanders.

"I ask strongly that the Spanish government, the national parliament and the head of state (the king) understand that time and the hours are very important to find a debated solution and give way to a political solution," Sanchez said.

Laplana, who had remained in Barcelona, declined to testify for medical reasons while Cuixart refused to testify, saying he didn't recognize the court's capacity to question him for a crime he didn't commit.

Spanish authorities say the demonstrations hindered the Spanish police operation, and that Catalan police didn't do enough to push back protesters blocking Spanish police officers from leaving a building.

Carles Campuzano, the spokesman for the Democratic Party of Catalonia, described the hearing Friday as an outrage, saying that demonstrations could not be considered illegal.

"It's just another expression of the absolutely mistaken, authoritarian, repressive response by the (Spanish) state to the pacific, democratic and civic demand of Catalan society," he told reporters.

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has urged Puigdemont to cancel plans for declaring independence in order to avoid "greater evils."

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Parra reported from Barcelona. Frank Griffiths contributed from London.

Catalan regional police chief Josep Luis Trapero, centre, arrives at the national court in Madrid, Spain, Friday, Oct. 6, 2017. A Spanish judge is due to question Mossos d'Esquadra chief Trapero and two pro-independence campaigners about their role in an Oct. 1 referendum that the Spanish government declared as illegal. (AP Photo/Paul White)

Catalan regional police chief Josep Luis Trapero, 3rd left, arrives at the national court in Madrid, Spain, Friday, Oct. 6, 2017. A Spanish judge is due to question Mossos d'Esquadra chief Trapero and two pro-independence campaigners about their role in an Oct. 1 referendum that the Spanish government declared as illegal. (AP Photo/Paul White)

In this Thursday, Oct. 5, 2017 photo, a pastry chef works on a chocolate bar with a drawing of Catalan regional police chief Josep Luis Trapero, in a patisserie in Barcelona, Spain. The patisserie in Barcelona is showing its support to regional police chief officer Josep Lluis Trapero by adorning chocolates with his image in the style of superman with a flowing cape of the Catalan flag. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

A man, wearing a t-shirt reading in Spanish: "Please, talk" chats with a passer-by about the current political situation in Catalonia, in Barcelona, Friday, Oct. 6, 2017. Catalan president Carles Puigdemont has requested to address the regional parliament next Tuesday amid growing challenges for his government to deliver on a pledge to declare independence for the northeastern region following a disputed referendum last weekend. (AP Photo/ Francisco Seco)

In this Thursday, Oct. 5, 2017 photo, a pastry chef makes white chocolate bars with drawing of esteladas or Independence flags, in a patisserie in Barcelona, Spain. The patisserie in Barcelona is showing its support to regional police chief officer Josep Lluis Trapero by adorning chocolates with his image in the style of superman with a flowing cape of the Catalan flag. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

In this Thursday, Oct. 5, 2017 photo, a pastry chef works on a chocolate bar with a drawing of Catalan regional police chief Josep Luis Trapero, in a patisserie in Barcelona, Spain. the patisserie in Barcelona is showing its support to regional police chief officer Josep Lluis Trapero by adorning chocolates with his image in the style of superman with a flowing cape of the Catalan flag. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
LAS VEGAS (AP) - The arsenal of the Las Vegas shooter also included tracer bullets that can improve firing accuracy in the dark, a a law enforcement official told The Associated Press on Friday.

It wasn't clear whether Stephen Paddock fired any of the illuminated bullets during the high-rise massacre last Sunday.

But his purchase of 1,000 rounds provided more evidence of how methodically he planned the attack that killed 58 people and injured nearly 500.

Melissa Gerber, left, Nancy Hardy, center, and Sandra Serralde, all of Las Vegas, embrace as they look on crosses in honor of those killed in the mass shooting Friday, Oct. 6, 2017, in Las Vegas. A gunman opened fire on an outdoor music concert on Sunday killing dozens and injuring hundreds.(AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

More about the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history:

THE INVESTIGATION

Paddock bought the .308-caliber and .223-caliber tracer ammunition from a private buyer he met at a Phoenix gun show last month, a law enforcement official not authorized to comment on the investigation said on condition of anonymity.

Tracer rounds illuminate their path so a gunman can home in on targets at night. But they can also give away the shooter's position.

Video images of the pandemonium when Paddock started strafing the country music festival showed a muzzle flash from his 32nd-floor room at the Mandalay Bay resort. But bullets were not visible in the night sky.

NRA PROPOSES REGULATIONS

The National Rifle Association is joining the Trump administration and top congressional Republicans in a surprise endorsement of a narrow gun restriction in the wake of the Vegas concert shooting.

The NRA said devices called "bump stocks" that allow semi-automatic rifles to perform more like fully automatic weapons should be "subject to additional regulations." The devices were found in Paddock's hotel room.

President Donald Trump said his administration is considering whether they should be banned. State lawmakers in Massachusetts and New York filed bills to ban the devices in those states

THE UNWITTING FIRST RESPONDERS

A group of firefighters driving back to their Vegas station after responding to a call for a minor car crash ended up being the first to respond to the shooting massacre.

Brian Emery recalled that gunfire rang out as hundreds of hysterical people swarmed the vehicle on the Las Vegas Strip.

It was pure coincidence that the Clark County Fire Department crew members on Engine 11 were the first on-duty emergency personnel to arrive at Sunday's shooting.

The surge of people forced Emery to stop driving, but he eventually inched the engine out and got it to a parking lot where the crew could start treating patients. The work continued until after sunrise.

58 WOODEN CROSSES

White crosses have been placed on the Las Vegas Strip for each victim of the concert shooting.

Retired carpenter Greg Zanis drove nearly 2,000 miles from the Chicago area to put up the 58 crosses Thursday afternoon.

The 66-year-old is known for installing the markers at the sites of other mass killings, including the Columbine and Sandy Hook school shootings and Orlando nightclub massacre.

He plans to keep the tribute up for 40 days before giving the crosses to the families of the victims.

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Associated Press writer Michael Balsamo contributed to this report from Las Vegas.

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For complete coverage of the Las Vegas shooting, click here: https://apnews.com/tag/LasVegasmassshooting.

FILE - This undated photo provided by Eric Paddock shows his brother, Las Vegas gunman Stephen Paddock. On Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017, Stephen Paddock opened fire on the Route 91 Harvest Festival killing dozens and wounding hundreds. Authorities trying to piece together the final days before Stephen Paddock unleashed his arsenal of powerful firearms on country music fans on the Las Vegas Strip have at least one potential trove of information: his gambling habits. Gaming regulators say they're sorting through documents that can include suspicious transaction or currency reports. (Courtesy of Eric Paddock via AP)

A little-known device called a "bump stock" is attached to a semi-automatic rifle at the Gun Vault store and shooting range Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2017, in South Jordan, Utah. Las Vegas shooter Stephen Paddock bought 33 guns within the last year, but that didn't raise any red flags. Neither did the mountains of ammunition he was stockpiling, or the bump stocks found in his hotel room that allow semi-automatic rifles to mimic fully automatic weapons. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

Sherri Camperchioli, left, and Jordan Cassel help set up some of the crosses that arrived in Las Vegas today to honor the victims of the mass shooting on Thursday, Oct. 5, 2017, in Las Vegas. A gunman opened fire on an outdoor music concert on Sunday killing dozens and injuring hundreds. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Michelle Potts of Hedgesville, W.Va. leans on the shoulder of her husband, Gary Potts, during a candlelight vigil she organized for her best friend, Las Vegas shooting victim Denise Burditus of Martinsburg, W.Va., Thursday, Oct. 5, 2017 on the football field at Hedgesville High School. Burditus, 50, was one of 58 people murdered at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival in Las Vegas, Nev. Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017. (Jeff Taylor /The Winchester Star via AP)

New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans shine flashlights during a moment of silence for the victims of the Las Vegas shootings before an NFL football game Thursday, Oct. 5, 2017, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan Ebenhack)

Clark County Fire Department engineer Brian Emery stands by one of his agency's Mass Casualty Incident vehicles in Las Vegas on Thursday, Oct. 5, 2017. Emery was driving a traditional fire engine the night of the shooting when his crew wound up being among the first on duty emergency workers to arrive at the scene on Sunday. The four members of the crew treated some 30 people with a range of injuries from shortly after 10 p.m. until after sunrise Monday. A gunman opened fire on an outdoor country music concert on Sunday killing dozens and injuring hundreds. (AP Photo/Anita Snow)

Veronica Hartfield, center right, walks alongside her son, Ayzayah Hartfield, center, as they arrive to a candlelight vigil for her husband, Las Vegas police officer Charleston Hartfield, Thursday, Oct. 5, 2017, in Las Vegas. Hartfield was killed when Stephen Craig Paddock broke windows on the Mandalay Bay resort and casino and began firing with a cache of weapons at a country music festival Sunday. Dozens of people were killed and hundreds were injured. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Las Vegas police Sgt. Ryan Fryman, right, and other officers attend a candlelight memorial for Las Vegas police officer Charleston Hartfield, Thursday, Oct. 5, 2017, in Las Vegas. Hartfield was killed when Stephen Craig Paddock broke windows on the Mandalay Bay resort and casino and began firing with a cache of weapons at a country music festival Sunday. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Cece Navarrette places flowers at a cross for her cousin, Bailey Schweitzer, who was among those killed during the mass shooting Friday, Oct. 6, 2017, in Las Vegas. A gunman opened fire on an outdoor music concert on Sunday killing dozens and injuring hundreds.(AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Cece Navarrette places flowers at a cross for her cousin, Bailey Schweitzer, who was among those killed during the mass shooting Friday, Oct. 6, 2017, in Las Vegas. A gunman opened fire on an outdoor music concert on Sunday killing dozens and injuring hundreds.(AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

A woman passes crosses for victims of the mass shooting Friday, Oct. 6, 2017, in Las Vegas. A gunman opened fire on an outdoor music concert on Sunday killing dozens and injuring hundreds.(AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
MOSCOW (AP) - Uzbekistan's Foreign Ministry says that 19 citizens of the ex-Soviet nation were killed when a train slammed into a bus carrying them near Moscow.

Russia's state Investigative Committee said that another five passengers of the bus were injured in Friday's collision, which occurred in the town of Pokrov, about 85 kilometers (53 miles) east of Moscow.

The Uzbek Foreign Ministry said that 56 people on the bus were Uzbek citizens and two others, drivers, from Kazakhstan. The local administration said that the bus was carrying migrant workers from Uzbekistan heading to their native country.

In this video grab provided by the RU-RTR Russian television via APTN, Russian Emergency Situation employees work at the scene of a derailment at a railway crossing near in the town of Pokrov, about 85 kilometers (53 miles) east of Moscow, Russia. Uzbekistan's Foreign Ministry says that 19 citizens of the ex-Soviet nation were killed when a train slammed into a bus carrying them near Moscow. (RU-RTR Russian Television/ APTN via AP)

According to preliminary information, the bus got stuck in a railway crossing because of a technical malfunction. The train's driver hit the brakes, but was unable to prevent the collision.

In this Russian Emergency Situations Ministry photo, made available in Friday, Oct. 6, 2017, shows a bus under the wheels of a train at the scene of a derailment at a railway crossing near in the town of Pokrov, about 85 kilometers (53 miles) east of Moscow, Russia. Uzbekistan's Foreign Ministry says that 19 citizens of the ex-Soviet nation were killed when a train slammed into a bus carrying them near Moscow. (Russian Ministry for Emergency Situations photo via AP)
HANOI, Vietnam (AP) - Vietnam's ruling Communist Party has fired the party boss of the central city of Danang, the site of next month's Asia Pacific summit, which U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to attend.

The government said in a statement Friday that the party's elite Central Committee dismissed Nguyen Xuan Anh as city party secretary and removed him from the Central Committee for serious violations of party rules and failing to set an example as a senior party official.

"The violations, mistakes of comrade Nguyen Xuan Anh are serious, negatively impacted the prestige of the party's organization and individuals, causing anger among the cadres, party members and the people," it said.

The party's inspection committee said last month that Anh had violated party rules and used a car and two houses belonging to private businesses, and disciplinary measures against him were needed. The committee also issued a warning to city Mayor Huynh Duc Tho for mismanagement.

At age 39, Anh was one of the two youngest people elected to the 180-member Central Committee at a party congress last year and was appointed party secretary of Danang, a dynamic city which is popular among tourists for its white sand beaches and is near the ancient town of Hoi An and Cham temple ruins.

Danang will host the 21-nation Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in the second week of November, which Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to attend.

Minister Mai Tien Dung, head of the Government Office, told state media earlier this week that the disciplinary measures against Danang's two top leaders would not affect the hosting of APEC, the country's most important international gathering this year.

In May, the party fired Dinh La Thang as party chief of the southern commercial hub of Ho Chi Minh City and removed him from the all-powerful Politburo for mismanagement during his time as chairman of the board of state energy giant PetroVietnam. Thang, however, retained his central committee membership and was appointed deputy head of the party's economic committee.

The party has stepped up its anti-corruption drive, jailing or arresting dozens of senior officials and executives.
FORT JACKSON, S.C. (AP) - Military officials say two soldiers are dead and six are hurt after a military vehicle struck them while they were in formation at an Army base in South Carolina.

Fort Jackson officials say two of the six soldiers injured Friday afternoon were in critical condition and all of the soldiers hurt were taken to a hospital off the base near Columbia.

The statement from Fort Jackson called the incident a "tragic accident," but did not give details about where the wreck happened or the type of vehicle involved.

Fort Jackson says the names of the soldiers killed will be released after families are notified.

The Army says it has started a thorough investigation.

Fort Jackson is the Army's largest training instillation, with more than 50,000 recruits assigned there each year.
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) - The Latest on the Austin police chief saying a repaired Ford SUV flunked a carbon monoxide test - then later contradicting that previous statement (all times local):

6:15 p.m.

The Austin police chief says a Ford Explorer SUV that the auto company repaired for a return to service with his department actually doesn't appear to have had exhaust containing carbon monoxide seeping into it - despite his saying earlier that it did.

Interim Police Chief Brian Manley said Friday that during a test of three SUVs repaired by Ford Motor Company, one tested positive for carbon monoxide.

But Manley told The Austin American-Statesman hours later that additional testing revealed alarms may have activated for some other reason.

He says: "We do not believe this issue is a Ford issue or related to the repairs they have done."

Ford responded to Manley's original comments by saying the methods it used to address Austin's carbon monoxide problem "have worked well."

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3 p.m.

Ford Motor Company says "the methods and parts we've utilized to repair Austin's vehicles have worked well to address" carbon monoxide concerns - even though the city's police department says one such repaired Ford Explorer is being pulled off the road because of continuing problems.

Interim Austin Police Chief Brian Manley said that during a Friday test of three SUVs repaired by Ford, one tested positive for carbon monoxide.

Ford spokeswoman Elizabeth Weigandt responded the automaker "was not provided with information on the levels of CO detected but we are ready to inspect any vehicle."

She said the company has "been happy to collaborate with Austin" police on SUV repairs.

This summer, Austin police took nearly 400 Explorers off patrol because of carbon monoxide concerns.

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12 p.m.

A Ford Explorer SUV that the auto company repaired for a return to service with the Austin police department has again been pulled off the street because exhaust containing carbon monoxide was seeping into it.

Interim Police Chief Brian Manley said that during a Friday test of three SUVs repaired by Ford Motor Company, one tested positive for carbon monoxide. The officer driving it was treated but didn't require hospitalization.

The story was first reported by The Austin-American Statesman. A police department spokeswoman confirmed the chief's comments for The Associated Press.

Austin pulled nearly 400 Explorers off patrol in July because of carbon monoxide concerns. Police departments across the country use Explorers and several have also pulled them off the road. Ford has said it is looking into the problem.
MEXICO CITY (AP) - The U.S. Embassy in Mexico says it is grateful for the Mexican government's offer to help the victims of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.

The embassy said Friday in a statement that "our governments have expressed their continued solidarity in the face of natural disasters that have ravaged both our countries."

The Mexican government said Wednesday it was sending 30 tons of bottled water and mosquito repellant to Puerto Rico.

The administration of President Donald Trump had been criticized for what some saw as a tardy response to the hurricane, which killed about 34 people directly and indirectly.

Some media outlets had portrayed Mexico's aid offer as slap in the face to the Trump administration, with which Mexico has had a rocky relationship.
A newly-minted task force in California will help Chinese investors and contractors seize business opportunities for building roads and infrastructure in the US state.

A worker cleans a train. [File photo: CGTN]

The unit will help Chinese developers - both public and private - collaborate on infrastructure projects in California including major railway expansions and potentially, bullet trains  an area of manufacturing that China has demonstrated prowess in.

Representatives from many of China's largest construction firms including China Communications Group and China Railway Construction Corp. Ltd., were present at the task force launch in San Francisco on Thursday.

During the event, China's Consul General in San Francisco Luo Linquan stated that the team's objective of leveraging technical expertise and prices to increase Chinese participation in the state's plans to renovate its transport system will also be a chance for China and the state of California to explore cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative.

This comes as US President Donald Trump continues to highlight his commitment to sprucing up America's roads, highways and bridges, bringing them to world-class standard with the proposal of a one trillion dollar federal infrastructure bill. The plan is still pending approval from Congress, but many have lamented that even that figure would be one third of the necessary amount to catch up on decades of underinvestment in the sector.

Chinese interest in participating could prove to be the answer for insufficient or delayed funds.

There are already clear models for public-private partnerships in California with Chinese investors at the ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach, and Oakland  a strategy that could prove the most effective in filling a funding gap. "As other projects (in California) develop, efforts should be made to standardize and create effective vehicles for investment from foreign funds, Chinese or otherwise," said a research note by the Milken Institute, a Santa Monica-based think tank.

California has been one of the largest recipients of Chinese capital over the past few years, totaling 16.6 billion US dollars in 2016, more than five times that of the prior year. Of that amount, six billion US dollars was poured into transportation and infrastructure, according to data compiled by consultancy Rhodim Group.

Earlier this year, Chinese and US political and business leaders, from both the public and private sectors, met in San Francisco to develop new partnerships at the China-US Infrastructure Cooperation Forum, with both sides eager to take new projects forward.

"We're getting ready to do an early train operator selection, and we're also working on rolling stock procurement," said Chad Edison, Deputy Secretary at the California State Transportation Agency. "There are many different opportunities and I know there has been Chinese interest in many of those bid packages," he said at the June event.
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Donald Trump is proclaiming Monday as Columbus Day - without any of his predecessor's qualms.

The president's proclamation Friday directs the U.S. to celebrate his discovery of the Americas, noting "the permanent arrival of Europeans ... was a transformative event that undeniably and fundamentally changed the course of human history and set the stage for the development of our great Nation."

Trump's proclamation only praises Columbus, Spain and the explorer's native Italy.

It contrasts with President Barack Obama's document almost exactly a year earlier. Obama's proclamation acknowledged Columbus' spirit of exploration. But he said the nation should "also acknowledge the pain and suffering reflected in the stories of Native Americans who had long resided on this land prior to the arrival of European newcomers."
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) - As a young boy growing up on Bikini Atoll, Alson Kelen spent idyllic days playing on the beach and fishing.

His grandfather built canoes and his father tended the land. With fewer than 150 people on the remote Pacific island it was a close community, he says, with few signs of the former U.S. nuclear testing program other than the concrete bunkers he was told to avoid and the sunken ships in the lagoon.

But in 1978, when Kelen was 10, officials evacuated everybody. It turned out they'd been premature in declaring the Marshall Islands atoll safe again for humans. Radiation levels were still dangerously high.

FILE - In this July 25, 1946 file photo, a huge mushroom cloud rises above Bikini atoll in the Marshall Islands following an atomic test blast, part of the U.S. military's "Operation Crossroads." Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands remains contaminated by radiation, part of a troubling nuclear testing legacy that continues to affect islands and people across the Pacific long after the U.S., Britain and France stopped their testing programs there. (AP Photo, File)

More than 70 years after the first tests, the atoll remains contaminated today. It's part of a troubling nuclear legacy that continues to affect islands and people across the Pacific long after the U.S., Britain and France stopped their testing programs there.

As nuclear tensions rise in the Asia-Pacific region, Kelen and others are reflecting on that legacy anew.

North Korea has discussed testing a hydrogen bomb in the Pacific after earlier firing a missile over Japan and threatening Guam. U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened to "totally destroy North Korea" if provoked and called leader Kim Jong Un "Rocket Man." The dictator has responded by calling Trump a "mentally deranged U.S. dotard."

Kelen says that if the threats do escalate to a nuclear test or even an attack, "it would be a huge, huge disaster."

The 49-year-old says he has no idea if his exposure to radiation during the four years he lived on Bikini as a boy has affected his health. He says scientists used to test him and his family regularly, but stopped within a couple of years of them leaving the atoll.

Scientists have calculated that about 1.6 percent of all cancers developed by Marshallese people exposed to radiation can be attributed to the nuclear tests. For some islanders who were close to the blasts, the rate rises to 55 percent.

The nuclear tests exacted an enormous social toll on Bikini residents and their children, who are now scattered across the Marshall Islands and beyond and have been left without a homeland. Kelen says they've lost the ancestral land that's central to their identity.

"Ninety percent of Bikinians have never seen Bikini. It's a legend; it's a fairy tale," he said. "They know more about Hawaii and the U.S. mainland than Bikini."

The U.S. government first asked Bikini residents to leave temporarily in 1946. It then conducted a series of tests over a dozen years, including detonating a massive hydrogen bomb hundreds of times more powerful than the nuclear bombs the U.S. dropped on Japan during World War II.

The inhabitants were moved to other islands that proved inhospitable. Kelen's family eventually ended up in Majuro, the capital. He says his parents always planned to return to Bikini but got to spend just four years there before being told to leave again. Kelen's father died two years ago and his mother, now 93, is too old to travel.

"They told us we were relocated from Bikini for the good of mankind, to bring peace to the world. But I think nuclear is the same as climate change," Kelen said. "It benefits the big countries and ruins the small countries."

Bikini residents have received some compensation from the United States. But many people, including Marshall Islands President Hilda Heine, say it's not enough.

Heine said in a speech this year that the removal of the Bikini residents produced "inconsolable grief, terror and righteous anger" that hadn't diminished in the seven decades since, and had been exacerbated by the U.S. being dishonest about the extent of the radiation and its effects.

Five thousand kilometers (3,000 miles) away in Tahiti, French Polynesia, Roland Oldham is also grappling with nuclear testing's legacy.

He is president of Moruroa e tatou, an organization that represents victims of French tests at Moruroa and Fangataufa atolls. The nuclear tests lasted 30 years, ending in 1996, the year the United Nations adopted the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty.

Studies have shown that people in the region during the tests had an increased risk of developing thyroid cancer. But information on radiation exposure remains classified, making it hard to estimate the risks.

Oldham says those who worked directly on the testing program suffered high rates of cancer and other health problems. He says it's difficult to get good statistics on the health effects on the broader community because of the continuing secrecy.

Much of the later testing was carried out underground, but some radiation has leaked. Oldham fears the problem could get much worse because parts of the atolls are in danger of subsiding.

Oldham, 66, says he sailed around Moruroa while completing his military service with the French Navy in 1970. He says he never saw or felt anything, and doesn't know if he was exposed to radiation or the extent of that exposure.

Oldham says the heated rhetoric between the leaders of North Korea and the United States has made much of the Pacific vulnerable at the moment because of U.S. military bases in places like Guam, Japan and South Korea.

"The day the two guys throw a punch at each other," he said, "the whole area will be suffering."

He says he worries that mankind is headed toward its own destruction by nuclear weapons.

"At some stage I want to be sick, when I observe the things happening in front of my eyes," he said. "What a world. What a crazy mess."

This Sept. 10, 2017 photo provided by Roland Oldham, shows him pictured at his home in Tahiti, French Polynesia. Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands remains contaminated by radiation, part of a troubling nuclear testing legacy that continues to affect islands and people across the Pacific long after the U.S., Britain and France stopped their testing programs there. (Annie Rousseau/Roland Oldham via AP)

This undated photo provided by Alson Kelen shows him pictured in Majuro, Marshall Islands. As a young boy growing up on Bikini Atoll, Kelen recalls idyllic days playing on the beach and fishing. But in 1978, when Kelen was aged 10, officials evacuated everybody. It turns out scientists had been premature in declaring the Marshall Islands atoll safe again for human habitation, with radiation levels still dangerously high. (Alson Kelen via AP)

FILE - In this May 21, 1956 file photo, the stem of a hydrogen bomb, the first such nuclear device dropped from a U.S. aircraft, moves upward through a heavy cloud and comes through the top of the cloud, after the bomb was detonated over Namu Island in the Bikini Atoll, Marshall Islands. Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands remains contaminated by radiation, part of a troubling nuclear testing legacy that continues to affect islands and people across the Pacific long after the U.S., Britain and France stopped their testing programs there. (AP Photo, File)

FILE - In this March 14, 1946 file photo, native people wave farewell to their Bikini Atoll home from a Navy LST transporting them to a new home on Rongerik Atoll 109 miles away. Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands remains contaminated by radiation, part of a troubling nuclear testing legacy that continues to affect islands and people across the Pacific long after the U.S., Britain and France stopped their testing programs there. (AP Photo/Clarence Hamm,File)
CLEVELAND (AP) - They've won this season in almost every way imaginable: comebacks, walk-offs, blowouts, nail-biters.

No. 104 for the Cleveland Indians topped them all.

Yan Gomes singled home Austin Jackson from second base with none out in the 13th inning as Cleveland rallied from five runs down to stun the New York Yankees 9-8 on Friday and snatch a 2-0 lead in the AL Division Series.

Cleveland Indians' Yan Gomes, second from left, is hugged by pitcher Josh Tomlin and mobbed by teammates after Gomes hit a game winning RBI-single in the 13th inning of Game 2 of baseball's American League Division Series against the New York Yankees, Friday, Oct. 6, 2017, in Cleveland. Austin Jackson scored on the play. The Indians won 9-8. (AP Photo/Phil Long)

Despite an atrocious start by ace Corey Kluber and losing slugger Edwin Encarnacion with a severely sprained ankle in the first, the Indians, with some help from a call that went their way, continued a charmed season growing more and more special by the day.

"The tendency of this team is to never give up," Kluber said. "Even when we were down 8-3, we didn't believe the game was over. We never feel like we're out of a game."

Jackson drew a leadoff walk in the 13th from Dellin Betances and stole second. Gomes went to a full count before pulling his bouncer just inside the third-base bag, easily scoring Jackson and touching off another one of those wild celebrations inside Progressive Field, where the Indians have been so good while running away with their division and winning 22 straight.

As Jackson sprinted home, Cleveland's players poured out of the dugout and mobbed Gomes at the conclusion of a wild, 5-hour, 8-minute thriller that featured 14 pitchers and a call that may haunt Yankees manager Joe Girardi for months.

"We just were supposed to win," said Indians outfielder Jay Bruce, who hit a game-tying homer in the eighth. "No words, honestly. I'm speechless."

Francisco Lindor hit a grand slam in the sixth to rally Cleveland, which will try for a sweep in Game 3 Sunday at Yankee Stadium. Carlos Carrasco will start for the Indians against Masahiro Tanaka, who will try to extend New York's season.

The Yankees had their chances late, but they stranded the go-ahead run at third in the ninth and 10th - and had pinch-runner Ronald Torreyes picked off second in the 11th by Gomes from the behind the plate.

Josh Tomlin, who had been scheduled to start later in the series, pitched two perfect innings for the win as Francona ran out of relievers in a game started by his best pitcher.

Aaron Hicks hit a three-run homer off Kluber and Gary Sanchez and Greg Bird hit two-run shots for the Yankees, who may have caught a bad break before Lindor's homer.

New York's Aaron Judge went 0 for 3 and is hitless in seven at-bats in the series with five strikeouts.

The Yankees lost consecutive games for the first time since they were swept at home in a three-game series by the Indians from Aug. 28-30. Now, they need to sweep three in a row from Cleveland.

Down 8-3, facing New York's vaunted bullpen, the Indians came back.

New York starter CC Sabathia was lifted with one on and one out in the sixth for Chad Green, another one of the Yankees' flame-throwers who got an out before Gomes doubled. Green came inside and Lonnie Chisenhall was awarded first by plate umpire Dan Iassogna on a hit by pitch.

TV replays showed the ball slightly change direction - it appeared to hit the knob of Chisenhall's bat.

Girardi said there wasn't enough evidence within 30 seconds to justify a challenge. He said the team later saw a slow-motion replay suggesting he should've contested the call, but it was too late.

"There was nothing that told us he was not hit by the pitch," Girardi said.

New York catcher Gary Sanchez said he heard something, but wasn't sure what. Sanchez caught the pitch on a fly - it would've been strike three if it had been ruled a foul tip - and immediately pointed to the Yankees dugout, indicating they should consider challenging the call.

Girardi nodded and held up a finger, asking for time to make a decision.

"I didn't think it hit him, because he never reacted," Sanchez said through a translator. "He stood there. But it's just stuff that happens in the game."

Lindor then stepped in and hit a towering shot off the inside of the right-field foul pole to make it 8-7. Before he left the batter's box, Lindor gave his shot some help.

"As soon as I hit it, I knew it had a chance of going out," Lindor said. "Then after a couple of steps, I was like, 'No, don't go foul, please. Just stay fair.' I started blowing on it a little bit. As soon as it went out, it was just a lot of emotions.

As Lindor rounded the bases with Cleveland's first postseason slam since Jim Thome in 1999, Progressive Field shook the way it did last November when Rajai Davis hit a two-run homer in eighth inning of Game 7 off Aroldis Chapman, then with the Cubs and now closing for the Yankees.

Bruce, who has done everything since coming over in an August trade, led off the eighth with his homer to left off reliever David Robertson, who pitched 3 1-3 scoreless innings and earned the win in the wild-card game over Minnesota.

Five innings later, the Indians finally broke the tie. They matched the longest postseason game in Cleveland history - Tony Pena's homer in the 13th beat Boston in Game 1 of the 1995 ALDS.

Kluber wasn't himself. Not even close.

The right-hander, who led the AL in wins, ERA and intimidation, didn't get out of the third inning as Francona pulled him after allowing Hicks' three-run homer.

It was the shortest outing this season for Kluber, and as he slowly walked off the mound, Cleveland's stunned crowd gave him a polite ovation and several teammates approached him to offer consolation.

"I threw too many balls," Kluber said. "And when I'd throw strikes, they were right over the plate."

SLUGGER HURT

After rolling his ankle, Encarnacion stayed on the ground and rolled in the infield dirt in obvious pain while waiting for medical attention. He was helped to his feet and had to be assisted off the field.

Francona said an MRI showed a sprain and that Encarnacion, who hit 38 homers with 107 RBIs, is day to day.

BRANTLEY'S RETURN

Sidelined for Cleveland's deep postseason run in 2016, Michael Brantley is along for the ride this year and the plan - before Encarnacion got hurt - was for the All-Star to start Game 3 in left.

He replaced Encarnacion in the second and went 0 for 5.

UP NEXT

Carrasco went 11-3 with a 2.65 ERA in 17 road starts. Tanaka, who struck out a career-high 15 in his last start, will be making his second postseason start for the Yankees. He lost the wild-card game in 2015.

Cleveland Indians' Jay Bruce, left, and Francisco Lindor celebrate after the Indians defeated the New York Yankees 9-8 in Game 2 of baseball's American League Division Series, Friday, Oct. 6, 2017, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/David Dermer)

Cleveland Indians' Yan Gomes, center, is mobbed by teammates after the Indians defeated the New York Yankees 9-8 in 13 innings in Game 2 of a baseball American League Division Series, Friday, Oct. 6, 2017, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/David Dermer)

New York Yankees' Starlin Castro walks off the field as the Cleveland Indians celebrate in the background after the Indians defeated the Yankees 9-8 in Game 2 of baseball's American League Division Series, Friday, Oct. 6, 2017, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/David Dermer)

Cleveland Indians' Yan Gomes celebrates after hitting a game-winning single off New York Yankees relief pitcher Dellin Betances in the 13th inning of Game 2 of a baseball American League Division Series, Friday, Oct. 6, 2017, in Cleveland. Austin Jackson scored on the play. The Indians won 9-8. (AP Photo/David Dermer)

New York Yankees' Todd Frazier stands on the pitcher's mound after being stranded at third base in the ninth inning against the Cleveland Indians in Game 2 of a baseball American League Division Series, Friday, Oct. 6, 2017, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/David Dermer)

New York Yankees relief pitcher David Robertson looks back at the dugout after giving up a solo home run to Cleveland Indians' Jay Bruce in the eighth inning of Game 2 of baseball's American League Division Series, Friday, Oct. 6, 2017, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/David Dermer)

Cleveland Indians' Francisco Lindor reacts after hitting a grand slam off New York Yankees relief pitcher Chad Green during the sixth inning of Game 2 of a baseball American League Division Series, Friday, Oct. 6, 2017, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Phil Long)
BAGHDAD (AP) - Thousands of Iraqi Kurdish mourners, Iraqi officials and world dignitaries have attended the funeral of Jalal Talabani, the country's first president in a post-Saddam Hussein Iraq and once a symbol of national unity.

Talabani was laid to rest Friday in Sulaimaniyah, the second-largest city in Iraq's Kurdish region, after his casket - draped in the Kurdish flag - was flown back from Berlin where he died at a hospital earlier this week.

From the airport in Suleimaniyah, a motorcade carried the casket to a nearby hill for burial. Crowds poured into the streets, following the funeral procession on foot, carrying flags and posters bearing Talabani's image and the emblem of the political party he founded more than three decades ago, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan.

FILE - In this Aug. 17, 2007 file photo, then Iraqi President Jalal Talabani talks to reporters in Baghdad, Iraq. Iraqi leaders and world dignitaries are gathered at Iraqi Kurdistan's Suleimaniyeh airport to pay their respects to the late Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, who died three days ago in Germany. (AP Photo/ Hadi Mizban, File)
MANILA, Philippines (AP) - A Filipino doctor accused of plotting terror attacks in the United States was arrested months ago in the Philippines for his alleged involvement in kidnappings and beheadings blamed on pro-Islamic State group militants, an official said Saturday.

Chief State Counsel Ricardo Paras told The Associated Press that a Manila court is weighing a U.S. government request that Russell Salic be extradited to face terrorism financing complaints.

U.S. authorities said Friday that they disrupted a plot by Salic and two other Islamic State group sympathizers to carry out terrorist attacks at New York City locations, including concert venues, subway stations and Times Square in the summer of 2016.

Even if the court approves the U.S. extradition request, the Department of Justice in Manila would have to decide whether to let Salic face criminal complaints in the Philippines first or be allowed to be flown to the U.S. to answer the terrorism allegations there, Paras said.

"The U.S. can also request for a temporary surrender of Salic to its custody, but it's in our options to require him to face criminal complaints here first," Paras said.

Salic, 37, is accused of sending money to help fund the planned attacks, according to U.S. court documents, which have been made public. He allegedly told an undercover FBI agent posing as an Islamic extremist that his ultimate goal was to join the Islamic State group in Syria but that "it would be a great pleasure if we can slaughter" people in New York, the documents said.

Salic's lawyer could not immediately be reached for comment Saturday.

One of the defendants, Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy, was arrested after traveling from Canada to New Jersey in May 2016 to stage the attacks, U.S. authorities said. An American suspect, Talha Haroon, was arrested in Pakistan last year.

Haroon's extradition was halted in March by a Pakistan court. Haroon's lawyer Tariq Asad told The Associated Press at the time that his client's father, Haroon Rashid, told the court that his son is innocent and that his life would be in danger if he is extradited to the United States where President Donald Trump has "biased and prejudiced policy against the Muslims."

Filipino state prosecutors say Salic was taken into custody around April of this year for alleged involvement in the abduction of six sawmill workers, two of whom were later beheaded, in the southern Philippine town of Butig in Lanao del Sur province in 2016.

The kidnappings and beheadings have been blamed on the so-called Maute group, a band of militants aligned with the Islamic State group that was largely unknown until they led a siege of southern Marawi city in May.

Nearly 1,000 people, including 771 militants, have been killed in the Marawi violence, which the military says will be contained soon following months of airstrikes and ground assaults.

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Associated Press writer Zarar Khan in Islamabad contributed to this report.
VATICAN CITY (AP) - The Legion of Christ religious order, stained by revelations that its founder sexually abused seminarians and fathered several children, is facing a new credibility scandal: The rector of its diocesan seminary in Rome is leaving the priesthood after admitting he fathered two children of his own.

In a letter released by the Legion on Saturday, the Rev. Oscar Turrion said he fell in love with a woman a few years ago during a time of turmoil in the Legion, fathered a son and, a few months ago, a daughter.

Turrion, a 49-year-old Spaniard, had been rector of the Pontifical Maria Matter Eclesiae International College since 2014. The institution is a residence for diocesan seminarians who study at Rome universities. Currently some 107 seminarians live there, most from India, Latin America and Africa, down from about 200 a few years ago.

The issue is particularly delicate given the international diocesan character of the seminary: Bishops entrusted their seminarians to the Legion to provide them with a wholesome living environment while they completed their studies.

In a statement, the Legion said it was "conscious of the impact that the negative example" of Turrion's case had on seminarians and the Christian faithful, and said it was committed to a path of renewal.

The Vatican took over the Legion in 2010, after revelations that its late founder, the Rev. Marcial Maciel, sexually abused seminarians and fathered at least three children with two women. It ordered up a wholesale reform, but the scandal hurt the Legion's credibility and stained the legacy of St. John Paul II, who had been a leading Maciel supporter.

Several priests have since left the order, the number of seminarians has fallen and the Legion has been forced to close some schools and sell off some of its property.

Legion spokesman the Rev. Aaron Smith declined to provide details of the Turrion case, citing the family's privacy. He confirmed that the mother of the child was an adult when she conceived the couple's first child.

The issue of priests fathering children has been in the news lately after Irish bishops issued guidelines earlier this year focusing on providing adequate care for the children and mothers. They often face emotional and psychological problems due to the secrecy often imposed on them, as well as financial difficulties.

In his letter, Turrion said he never used Legion funds to provide for his family, relying instead on donations from friends.

Recently, members of Pope Francis' advisory commission on protecting minors from sexual abuse said they had taken up the issue of priests' children in one of their working groups.

The Union of Superiors General, an umbrella group of religious orders, has said it sent the Irish guidelines to its congregations for implementation. Smith declined to say if the Legion was following the Irish provisions, which say the welfare of the child should be paramount.

The Legion said Turrion first informed the order of the birth of his daughter in March, at which time he took a leave and a new rector was named. In October, he revealed he had had a son "a few years ago" with the same woman and announced he intended to leave priestly ministry.

The case recalls that of another high-profile Legion priest, Thomas Williams, who left the priesthood and his post as a professor of moral theology at the Legion's university in Rome after acknowledging he had fathered a child.

In his letter, Turrion said he was at peace and asked for prayers.

"I ask everyone forgiveness for the lack of trust that this implies," he wrote. "I ask forgiveness for my bad example and the negative witness I have given."
ROCKVILLE CENTRE, N.Y. (AP) - A Roman Catholic diocese in suburban New York is creating an independent compensation program for people who were sexually abused by priests.

Newsday (https://nwsdy.li/2hVr1Yd ) reports the Diocese of Rockville Centre on Long Island sent letters this week to people who previously have filed complaints.

The diocese is the eighth largest in the United States with an estimated 1.4 million Catholics.

The compensation program will be modeled after ones established in the Archdiocese of New York and the Diocese of Brooklyn during the past year.

Victims deemed eligible for financial compensation must agree not to pursue legal action against the church in the future in order to collect.

Rockville Centre's program could involve dozens of cases of alleged abuse, some dating back decades.

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Information from: Newsday, http://www.newsday.com
GDANSK, Poland (AP) - Polish Catholics held rosaries and prayed together Saturday along the country's 3,500-kilometer (2,000-mile) border, appealing to the Virgin Mary and God for salvation for Poland and the world in a national event that many felt had anti-Islam overtones.

The unusual "Rosary on the Borders" event was organized by lay Catholics but was also endorsed by Polish church authorities, with 320 churches from 22 dioceses taking part. The prayers took place from the Baltic Sea coast in the north to the mountains along Poland's southern borders with the Czech Republic and Slovakia, and all along the border of this country of 38 million where more than 90 percent declare themselves Roman Catholics.

Organizers say the prayers at some 4,000 locations commemorated the centenary of the apparitions of Fatima, when three shepherd children in Portugal said the Virgin Mary appeared to them.

A devotee takes part in a rosary prayer on the Baltic beach in Gdansk, Poland, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Polish Catholics are holding rosaries and praying together at hundreds of locations along Poland's 3,500-kilometer (2,000-mile) border, appealing to the Virgin Mary and God for peace in Poland and in the world. (AP Photo/Alik Keplicz)

But the event also commemorated the huge 16th-century naval battle of Lepanto, when a Christian alliance acting on the wishes of the pope defeated Ottoman Empire forces on the Ionian Sea, "thus saving Europe from Islamization," as organizers put it.

While organizers insisted the prayers Saturday were not directed against any group, some participants cited fears of Islam among their reasons for praying at the border.

Halina Kotarska, 65, traveled 230 kilometers (145 miles) from her home in Kwieciszewo, central Poland, to express gratitude after her 29-year-old son Slawomir survived a serious car wreck this year. She described it as a miracle performed by St. Mary.

She said she was also praying for the survival of Christianity in Poland and Europe against what she sees as an Islamic threat facing the West.

"Islam wants to destroy Europe," she said. "They want to turn us away from Christianity."

Poles also prayed in chapels at airports, seen as gateways to the country, while Polish soldiers stationed in Afghanistan prayed at Bagram Airfield there, the broadcaster TVN reported.

A leading Polish expert on xenophobia and extremism, Rafal Pankowski, saw the prayers Saturday as a problematic expression of Islamophobia coming at a time of rising anti-Muslim sentiment in Poland, a phenomenon occurring even though the country's Muslim population is tiny.

"The whole concept of doing it on the borders reinforces the ethno-religious, xenophobic model of national identity," said Pankowski, who heads the Never Again association in Warsaw.

His concern was underlined by support the event has received from far-right leaders and Radio Maryja, a nationalistic Catholic radio station that is often critical of Islam.

At the Polish-Czech border near the town of Szklarska Poreba, hundreds of pilgrims arrived in buses and cars to pray at the Karkonosze mountain range. The procession, which included young and old and families pushing children in strollers, was made up of pilgrims who held rosaries and prayed to the Virgin Mary, braving the cold and rain.

"It's a really serious thing for us," said Basia Sibinska, who traveled with her daughter Kasia from Kalisz in central Poland. "Rosaries to the border means that we want to pray for our country. That was a main motive for us to come here. We want to pray for peace, we want to pray for our safety. Of course, everyone comes here with a different motivation. But the most important thing is to create something like a circle of a prayer alongside the entire border, intense and passionate."

In the northern city of Gdansk, people prayed on a beach lapped by waves as seagulls flew above. Krzysztof Januszewski, 45, said that he worries Christian Europe is being threatened by Islamic extremists and by a loss of faith in Christian societies.

"In the past, there were raids by sultans and Turks and people of other faiths against us Christians," said Januszewski, a mechanic who traveled 350 kilometers (220 miles) to Gdansk from Czerwinsk nad Wisla.

"Today Islam is flooding us and we are afraid of this too," he added. "We are afraid of terrorist threats and we are afraid of people departing from the faith."

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Janicek reported from near the town of Szklarska Poreba at Poland's border with the Czech Republic.

___

This story corrects the spelling the name of the town of Kwieciszewo.

Devotees pray as they walk through a forest in Szklarska Poreba, Czech Republic-Poland border, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Polish Catholics are holding rosaries and are praying together at hundreds of locations along Poland's 3,500-kilometer (2,000-mile) border, appealing to the Virgin Mary and God for peace in Poland and in the world. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Devotees pray as they walk through a forest in Szklarska Poreba, Czech Republic-Poland border, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Polish Catholics are holding rosaries and are praying together at hundreds of locations along Poland's 3,500-kilometer (2,000-mile) border, appealing to the Virgin Mary and God for peace in Poland and in the world. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Devotees pray as they walk through a forest in Szklarska Poreba, Czech Republic-Poland border, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Polish Catholics are holding rosaries and are praying together at hundreds of locations along Poland's 3,500-kilometer (2,000-mile) border, appealing to the Virgin Mary and God for peace in Poland and in the world. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Devotees pray as they walk through a forest in Szklarska Poreba, Czech Republic-Poland border, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Polish Catholics are holding rosaries and are praying together at hundreds of locations along Poland's 3,500-kilometer (2,000-mile) border, appealing to the Virgin Mary and God for peace in Poland and in the world. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Devotees pray as they walk through a forest in Szklarska Poreba, Czech Republic-Poland border, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Polish Catholics are holding rosaries and are praying together at hundreds of locations along Poland's 3,500-kilometer (2,000-mile) border, appealing to the Virgin Mary and God for peace in Poland and in the world. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A Catholic priest and devotees attend a rosary prayer on the Baltic beach in Gdansk, Poland, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Polish Catholics are holding rosaries and praying together at hundreds of locations along Poland's 3,500-kilometer (2,000-mile) border, appealing to the Virgin Mary and God for peace in Poland and in the world. (AP Photo/Alik Keplicz)

People take part in mass rosary prayer in Koden, Poland, eastern Poland, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017, on the border between Poland and Belarus. Polish Catholics are holding rosaries and are praying together at hundreds of locations along Poland's 3,500-kilometer (2,000-mile) border, appealing to the Virgin Mary and God for peace in Poland and in the world. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)

Devotees attend a rosary prayer on the Baltic beach in Gdansk, Poland, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Polish Catholics are holding rosaries and praying together at hundreds of locations along Poland's 3,500-kilometer (2,000-mile) border, appealing to the Virgin Mary and God for peace in Poland and in the world. (AP Photo/Alik Keplicz)

Devotees pray as they walk through a forest in Szklarska Poreba, Czech Republic-Poland border, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Polish Catholics are holding rosaries and are praying together at hundreds of locations along Poland's 3,500-kilometer (2,000-mile) border, appealing to the Virgin Mary and God for peace in Poland and in the world. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Reflected in a puddle, devotees pray as they walk through a forest in Szklarska Poreba, Czech Republic-Poland border, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Polish Catholics are holding rosaries and are praying together at hundreds of locations along Poland's 3,500-kilometer (2,000-mile) border, appealing to the Virgin Mary and God for peace in Poland and in the world. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
BOSTON (AP) - Fiery American patriot Thomas Paine is returning - in spirit- to the Boston hall where he and the other founding fathers planted the seeds of revolution.

British actor Ian Ruskin depicts Paine in his one-man play, "To Begin the World Over Again: The Life of Thomas Paine," to be performed Saturday evening at historic Faneuil (FAN'-yul) Hall.

It's the first time the play is being shown in Boston. PBS aired a film version over the Independence Day holiday.

Paine's book, "Common Sense," helped ignite the American Revolution.

Paine is best known for his quote: "These are the times that try men's souls."

The brick meeting house, built in 1742 and nicknamed the "Cradle of Liberty," was where some of the earliest speeches urging independence from Britain were made.
TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) - An appeals court in Ohio has sided with the state in its legal battle with the former owner of six tigers and several other exotic animals.

The state appeals court in Toledo says the Ohio Department of Agriculture had the right to deny a permit to the owner of a roadside animal sanctuary near Toledo.

The ruling issued Friday overturns a Wood County judge's decision ordering the state to give Kenny Hetrick a permit and to return the animals.

The tigers, bear, leopard and cougar have been kept in out-of-state sanctuaries during the state's appeal.

Ohio took custody of 11 animals from Hetrick in January 2015 after officials say he ignored warnings that he needed a permit.

Hetrick argued he was treated differently than other exotic animal owners.
TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) - Three years after toxic algae in Lake Erie tainted the drinking water for more than 400,000 people, many are still leery about what's coming out of their faucets.

Some have taken to stockpiling bottled water in the summer months when algae blooms blanket the western end in the shallowest of the Great Lakes.

Store shelves were emptied of bottled water a week ago when algae pushed into a river that flows through downtown Toledo into the lake, turning the river fluorescent green and sparking rumors that another "do not drink" advisory was looming.

In this Sept. 20, 2017 photo, a catfish appears on the shoreline in the algae-filled waters at the end of 113th Street in the Point Place section of North Toledo, Ohio. The 2017 algae bloom has stretched along the shores of Ohio, Michigan and Ontario, Canada, and will be among the largest in recent years. The 2015 bloom was the largest on record _ covering an area the size of New York City. (Andy Morrison/The Blade via AP)

It wasn't the first time there's been a run on bottled water even though there have been no water warnings since the first one in 2014.

Toledo's mayor has asked President Donald Trump for help from the federal government in cleaning up the lake and wants the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to declare the western end impaired, which would allow for increased pollution regulations.

"There is something very wrong with our country when our rivers and lakes turn green," Mayor Paula Hicks-Hudson wrote in a letter sent to Trump last week. "As I look out my office at a green river, I can tell you one thing: the status quo is not working."

A message seeking comment on the letter was left with the White House.

Scientists largely blame farm fertilizer runoff and municipal sewage overflows for feeding the algae growth. While there are a number of efforts to tackle the problem, it won't be solved for years.

This year's algae bloom has stretched along the shores of Ohio, Michigan and Ontario, Canada, and will be among the largest in recent years. The 2015 bloom was the largest on record, covering an area the size of New York City.

The uncertainty some still have about the Toledo's drinking water, the mayor said in an interview Wednesday, shows there's a general mistrust about what some hear from government leaders and how easily rumors spread.

She pointed to the water crisis in Flint, Michigan, and how residents there were told the water was safe for months despite dangerous lead levels.

"We're going to do what we can to regain their trust," said Hicks-Hudson, a Democrat who's up for re-election in November. "That's all we can do."

She said she has spent many hours talking with residents and reassuring them the water is safe. "Some will give me a suspicious look," she said.

The tap water, she said, is tested daily and more often than the state requires. The city also has invested in upgrading its treatment plant and there's an early warning system in the lake to notify the plant's operators when toxic algae is increasing.

The city also has created a site that shows the daily tests on raw and treated water. But that's not enough for some.

Tammie Nixon, of Toledo, said her family hasn't drunk the city's water since officials issued a "do not drink" for two days in September 2014. She was pregnant at the time and now also has a 3-month-old.

"Definitely not with the kids," she said while loading jugs of milk and water into her car at the grocery. "It's kind of scary. There's only so much you can filter out."

In this Sept. 20, 2017 photo, a catfish surfaces in the algae-filled waters at the end of 113th Street in the Point Place section of North Toledo, Ohio. The 2017 algae bloom has stretched along the shores of Ohio, Michigan and Ontario, Canada, and will be among the largest in recent years. The 2015 bloom was the largest on record _ covering an area the size of New York City. (Andy Morrison/The Blade via AP)
Facebook and Google once aimed to connect the world. Now they would be happy just to reconnect part of it.

In the wake of Hurricane Maria, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg pledged to send a "connectivity team" to help restore communications in ravaged Puerto Rico. Google parent company Alphabet offered to send its Wi-Fi balloons. They were among several tech companies proposing disaster response ideas, most aimed at getting phone and internet service up and running.

Some of these plans, of course, are more aspirational than others.

FILE - In this Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2017 file photo, power lines are down after the impact of Hurricane Maria, which hit the eastern region of the island in Humacao, Puerto Rico. In the wake of Hurricane Maria, Facebook pledged to send a "connectivity team" to help restore communications in ravaged Puerto Rico. It's just one of several tech companies - among them Tesla, Google, Cisco, Microsoft and a range of startups - with their own disaster response proposals, most aimed at getting phone and internet service up and running. (AP Photo/Carlos Giusti, File)

BATTERY POWER

Tesla CEO Elon Musk often takes to Twitter to mull over ideas, but on Friday his musings about sending his company's solar-powered batteries to help restore Puerto Rico's power attracted the attention of the island's governor.

"Let's talk," said Gov. Ricardo Rossello in a Friday tweet .

Musk agreed. Hours later, he announced he was delaying the unveiling of Tesla's new semi-truck and diverting resources, in part to "increase battery production for Puerto Rico and other affected areas."

The need for help in restoring power and communication after Hurricane Maria is great: The Puerto Rican energy authority reported Saturday that about 88 percent of the island is still without power. The Federal Communications Commission said Saturday that 82 percent of cell sites remain out in Puerto Rico; 58 percent are out of service in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The FCC's daily status report also shows significant wireline, TV and radio outages remain in both U.S. territories. The agency formed a task force this week and approved an advance of $77 million to support carriers working to restore telecommunications services.

VAGUE PROMISES

But many offers of help from big companies remain somewhat vague. Google parent company Alphabet has proposed launching balloons over the island to bring Wi-Fi service to hard-to-reach places, as it has in other parts of the world.

The FCC announced Saturday that it's approved an experimental license for Project Loon to operate in Puerto Rico. But that doesn't mean it will able to get them in the air anytime soon.

"We're grateful for the support of the FCC and the Puerto Rican authorities as we work hard to see if it's possible to use Loon balloons to bring emergency connectivity to the island during this time of need," said Libby Leahy, a spokesman for Alphabet's X division.

But there are limitations, she said Saturday.

"To deliver signal to people's devices, Loon needs be integrated with a telco partner's network - the balloons can't do it alone," she said, adding that the company is "making solid progress on this next step."

COLLABORATIVE EFFORTS

Cisco Systems has sent a tactical team and says it is working with local government, emergency responders and service providers to facilitate restoration and recovery efforts. The company, along with Microsoft and others, backs the NetHope consortium, which specializes in setting up post-disaster communication networks and has field teams now operating in Puerto Rico and several other Caribbean islands.

"Communication is critical during a disaster," Zuckerberg said after the hurricane hit, announcing that employees from his company's connectivity team - the same group working to build high-altitude drones that can beam internet service down to Earth - were heading to Puerto Rico. But with its aircraft still in the testing phase, the company said Friday that the engineers it's sent to Puerto Rico are focused on providing support to NetHope's teams.

SMALLER ORGANIZATIONS

Much of the ground work is being spearheaded by nonprofit organizations and small firms with expertise in rural or emergency communications.

Lexington, Massachusetts-based Vanu Inc., which sets up wireless communications networks in rural parts of the United States, Africa and India, is sending dozens of its small, solar-powered cellular base stations to volunteer crews on the ground in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Aid workers are pairing Vanu's devices with other technology, such as inflatable satellite antennas.

After setting up a network on the island of Vieques, off the main island of Puerto Rico, one team watched from a roof as local residents started getting text alerts from family members who had been trying to get in touch.

"They noticed everyone in the plaza pulling their phones out," said CEO Vanu Bose. "You don't have to announce you've lit up coverage. People know right away."
NEW YORK (AP) - A mahogany speedboat that belonged to John F. Kennedy sold for $75,000, and a flight suit that belonged to CIA operative Francis Gary Powers sold for $2,750 Saturday at a New York auction of Kennedy-era memorabilia.

The sale at Guernsey's included a wide array of Camelot-era lots, including documents, photos, stationery and even inscribed sterling silver baby toothbrushes.

A rocking chair that Kennedy used in the White House, specially made for him because of a back injury, sold for $30,000. A second rocking chair used by both Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson, who served after Kennedy was assassinated in 1963, sold for $10,000.

FILE- In this undated file photo provided by Guernsey's, is John F. Kennedy's speedboat, Restofus. Hot memorabilia with a Cold War theme, including property of the late President John F. Kennedy and CIA pilot Francis Gary Powers, is being featured at an auction in New York City on Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. (Guernsey's via AP)

Among the more romantic items was the 17-foot (5-meter) speedboat, a 1961 Century Resorter. Kennedy used the vessel when he was at home in Hyannis, Massachusetts.

The nautical history starts with family patriarch Joseph P. Kennedy Sr., who had a boat named "Tenovus," a reference to the number of Kennedy family members at the time: ten of us."

Later, when he won the speedboat in a church raffle, it got the name "Restofus," a nod to the "rest of us" in the expanding family. That became JFK's personal boat. After the nation's 35th president died, the boat went to his brother, Edward M. Kennedy, and then to other owners.

A blue bathing suit that belonged to first lady Jacqueline Kennedy sold for $1,800, and two pairs of swimming trunks owned by President Kennedy sold for $3,500 and $1,800.

The core of the sale came from the collections of Henry Hirschy, who was a Navy aide in the White House during the Kennedy administration; Mary Gallagher, who was Jacqueline Kennedy's personal secretary, and Powers.

In one of the landmark episodes of the Cold War, Powers was captured in the Soviet Union after his spy plane was shot down in 1960.

The U.S. initially tried to cover it up, inventing a story about a NASA weather plane going off course, and was embarrassed when the Soviets produced Powers alive.
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - A judge says 10 drunken-driving convictions are enough to justify revoking a Maine motorist's license for life.

The judge said Friday he'd make the recommendation to the Bureau of Motor Vehicles as he sentenced Patrick Murphy, of Windham, to six years for his ninth and 10th convictions.

Officials say the 53-year-old Murphy twice rammed a car in April and then a month later fell down drunk at a convenience store before staggering to his car and driving away.

Murphy apologized for the harm he caused, and his lawyer said Murphy will get treatment to deal with his "battles with alcoholism" while in prison.

A Maine Sunday Telegram analysis in 2013 found that more than 5,000 people who've been stopped four or more times for drunken driving may still be driving.
SEATTLE (AP) - Police arrested rapper Nelly early Saturday after a woman said he raped her on his tour bus in a town outside Seattle, an accusation the Grammy winner's attorney staunchly denied.

Nelly, whose real name is Cornell Iral Haynes Jr., was arrested about 4:37 a.m. Saturday in his tour bus at a Walmart, Auburn police spokesman Commander Steve Stocker said.

The woman called 911 to report being sexually assaulted by Nelly on the tour bus, police said in a statement.

FILe - In this April 18, 2015 file photo, rapper Nelly preforms on stage during a Corner Block Party concert at Auburn University in Auburn, Ala. Police have arrested rapper Nelly after a woman said he raped her in a town outside Seattle, an accusation the Grammy winner's attorney staunchly denies. Auburn police spokesman Commander Steve Stocker said officers arrested Nelly, whose real name is Cornell Iral Haynes Jr., early Saturday, Oct. 17, 2017 in his tour bus at a Walmart. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)

He will have his first appearance before a judge "at some point," Stocker said. Nelly was scheduled to perform in Ridgefield, Washington, on Saturday night.

Nelly's attorney, Scott Rosenblum, said Saturday afternoon that the singer was released from jail pending the investigation, and he is expected to be at the Ridgefield show.

Nelly performed at the White River Amphitheatre in Auburn, Washington, on Friday night. He's on tour with Florida Georgia Line.

At 12:23 a.m. Saturday, after that show, he sent out a Tweet that said in part: "its (sic) really you against the whole world because the whole world don't know you exist."

Rosenblum called the rape claim a "completely fabricated allegation."

"Our initial investigation clearly establishes this allegation is devoid of credibility and is motivated by greed and vindictiveness. I am confident, once this scurrilous accusation is thoroughly investigated, there will be no charges. Nelly is prepared to address and pursue all legal avenues to redress any damage caused by this clearly false allegation," Rosenblum said in an email.

Nelly was arrested in Tennessee in 2015 on felony drug possession charges after a trooper smelled marijuana on his bus. Nelly later pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor drug charges: possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia, the district attorney said. Nelly agreed to a pretrial diversion, which means his record was later cleared, Rosenblum said.

Nelly is a three-time Grammy winner, including for the song "Hot in Herre," which won the best male rap solo performance award in 2002.

The song has been sampled and re-recorded by other artists and is ranked No. 21 on a Rolling Stone magazine list of top summer songs. Nelly is also known for the hits "My Place" and "Over and Over." He appeared in the 2005 film "The Longest Yard."

The following year he shared a Grammy for the song "Shake Ya Tailfeather" with Murphy Lee and Sean Combs.

Nelly is also a minority owner of the Charlotte Hornets.
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) - A 30-page report released by a sheriff's office in the aftermath of a mass shooting at a Florida airport details how an Alaska man waited at a baggage carousel for several minutes last January before being paged to pick up the bag containing his gun.

Delta Airlines was paging 27-year-old Esteban Santiago to retrieve the bag after his flight arrived at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on Jan. 6. Minutes later, authorities say Santiago killed five people and wounded six others.

The SunSentinel reported that the document is the Broward Sheriff's Office's final review of its actions following the mass shooting. The page by Delta is a new detail in the airport shooting. The report didn't disclose whether airline officials knew what was in the bag.

On that afternoon, passengers from all terminals at the airport fled in a panic over erroneous reports of an additional airport shooter. The report also shed light on the extent of the radio problems police and fire personnel encountered in attempting to communicate as state, local and federal officials answered calls for backup and converged on the airport.

The report says that at one point, the crush of users sent the system into a "fail-soft" mode and all connections between responding agencies were lost. Dispatchers were not able to quickly reconnect groups and told "all units to stop transmitting until the radio bridges could be restored."

It took about four minutes, the report said. But the system began to "throttle," which resulted in garbled transmissions in which Broward Sheriff's Office deputies and fire officials could only hear parts of words or phrases.

Santiago, of Anchorage, Alaska, was caught by a deputy within minutes of the shooting. But an hour and a half later, the false reports of additional gunfire resulted in bedlam at the busy airport. A U.S. Customs and Border Patrol officer thought he heard shots and relayed the information to a sheriff's officer fire captain who broadcast it over the radio as: "Border Patrol reporting shots fired in Terminal 2," the SunSentinel reported.

"The words "shots fired" spread throughout the airport and triggered pandemonium as thousands of travelers, airline and airport employees began to escape from the concourses, gates, baggage claim areas, curbside loading areas and parking garages of all four terminals," the report stated.

Sheriff Scott Israel, in an introduction to the report, said the review is an effort to "objectively review and assess" its response to the deadly shooting. The report is much shorter and far less critical than a 99-page draft report released in June that faulted the agency for failing to seize control and set up an effective command system, the newspaper reported.

Santiago has pleaded not guilty to a 22-count indictment. He has stopped taking anti-psychotic medication to treat schizophrenia but remains mentally competent to stand trial, his lawyer told a judge last month.

The Justice Department may seek the death penalty in a trial currently set for January
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) - Although it's not a kingdom now, Serbia has hosted a wedding for dethroned royals.

Prince Philip Karadjordjevic, of the dethroned Serbian royals, married Danica Marinkovic on Saturday in a ceremony at Belgrade's main cathedral.

The wedding was performed by the head of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Irinej, and attended by many public figures. Dozens gathered outside the church on a sunny but chilly autumn day.

Serbian Orthodox Church Patriarch Irinej, right, performs the wedding ceremony of Prince Philip Karadjordjevic, of the dethroned Serbian royals, and his wife Danica Marinkovic in Belgrade's Congregational church in Serbia, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Prince Philip is one of the sons of Crown Prince Aleksandar Karadjordjevic, the heir to Serbia's now-defunct throne. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

Philip is one of the sons of Crown Prince Aleksandar Karadjordjevic, the heir to Serbia's now-defunct throne. The royal family ruled Yugoslavia until communists took power after World War II and abolished the monarchy. Exiled during WWII, the family returned to Serbia after 2000.

Philip was born in Fairfax, Virginia, while his wife is the daughter of prominent Serbian painter Cile Marinkovic.

Serbian Orthodox Church Patriarch Irinej, center, performs the wedding ceremony of Prince Philip Karadjordjevic, of the dethroned Serbian royals, and his wife Danica Marinkovic in Belgrade's Congregational church in Serbia, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Prince Philip is one of the sons of Crown Prince Aleksandar Karadjordjevic, the heir to Serbia's now-defunct throne. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

Prince Philip Karadjordjevic, of the dethroned Serbian royals, left, and his wife Danica Marinkovic during their wedding ceremony in Belgrade's Congregational church in Serbia, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Prince Philip is one of the sons of Crown Prince Aleksandar Karadjordjevic, the heir to Serbia's now-defunct throne. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

Prince Philip Karadjordjevic, of the dethroned Serbian royals, and his wife Danica Marinkovic leave Belgrade's Congregational church in Serbia, after their wedding ceremony, with Crown Princess Katherine, right, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Prince Philip is one of the sons of Crown Prince Aleksandar Karadjordjevic, the heir to Serbia's now-defunct throne. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

Serbian Orthodox Church Patriarch Irinej, right, performs the wedding ceremony of Prince Philip Karadjordjevic, of the dethroned Serbian royals, and his wife Danica Marinkovic in Belgrade's Congregational church in Serbia, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Prince Philip is one of the sons of Crown Prince Aleksandar Karadjordjevic, the heir to Serbia's now-defunct throne. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

Prince Philip Karadjordjevic, of the dethroned Serbian royals, and his wife Danica Marinkovic leave Belgrade's Congregational church in Serbia, after their wedding ceremony, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Prince Philip is one of the sons of Crown Prince Aleksandar Karadjordjevic, the heir to Serbia's now-defunct throne. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

Prince Philip Karadjordjevic, of the dethroned Serbian royals, and his wife Danica Marinkovic leave Belgrade's Congregational church in Serbia, after their wedding ceremony, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Prince Philip is one of the sons of Crown Prince Aleksandar Karadjordjevic, the heir to Serbia's now-defunct throne. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

Prince Philip Karadjordjevic, of the dethroned Serbian royals, and his wife Danica Marinkovic leave Belgrade's Congregational church in Serbia, after their wedding ceremony, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Prince Philip is one of the sons of Crown Prince Aleksandar Karadjordjevic, the heir to Serbia's now-defunct throne. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
WARREN, Mich. (AP) - Cindy Crawford says she's more concerned about her 16-year-old daughter sitting behind the wheel of a car than walking a runway.

The supermodel's daughter, Kaia Gerber, made her New York Fashion Week debut last month. Her 18-year-old son, Presley Gerber, also is a model.

"My daughter just got her driver's license. I'm a lot more concerned about her driving by herself than her entering the world of modeling," Crawford told The Associated Press during an interview at a charity event near Detroit. "The great thing for my kids is that I know a lot about that world. I feel like: Who better to help guide them than me?"

FILE - In this Sept. 29, 2017 file photo, model Cindy Crawford, right, poses with her daughter Kaia Gerber for photographers upon arrival at a party for Omega in Paris. Crawford says it's inevitable that her 16-year-old daughter has followed her famous mother into the world of international modeling. Kaia Gerber made her New York Fashion Week debut last month. In an interview with The Associated Press, Crawford say she's more concerned with her daughter getting her driver's license than becoming a model.(AP Photo/Kamil Zihnioglu)

Crawford says she understands it's inevitable that Kaia Gerber would enter the modeling world. Gerber bears a striking resemblance to her 51-year-old mother.

"In some ways, I wish I could have pushed it off a year or two. But she's 16. That's how old I was when I started, which is young, but in fashion that's kind of the normal age when people start," Crawford said Thursday.

Gerber already has made a splash walking the runway for a number of top designers, including Versace.

At Milan Fashion Week in September, Donatella Versace hosted a runway tribute to her brother, Gianni Versace, 20 years after his slaying in Miami. The show brought together the supermodels that Gianni Versace helped create - Claudia Schiffer, Naomi Campbell, Helena Christensen and yes, Crawford.

But it also featured the new generation of celebrity models, including the Hadids - Gigi and Bella; plus Kendall Jenner and Gerber.

"I didn't know my daughter was doing that show," Crawford said. "The models themselves don't really get booked until the day before or two days before. And finally Kaia got booked for it, and I said, 'You know I'm doing that show, right?'

"She's like, 'Wait, do we have to walk down together?' I said, 'No. I don't even want to walk down with you. I'm going to walk down with the ladies that are my age. You can go with the girls that are your age.'"

Crawford says she was proud to take part in Thursday's ceremony honoring five people who have made a difference in their communities. It was held at an Art Van Furniture store in Warren, Michigan.

Crawford has served for the past few years as the official ambassador of the Art Van Charity Challenge, a charitable giving initiative that has donated $8 million and raised more than $24 million for 359 charities.

___

Online:

Art Van Charity Challenge: http://www.artvan.com/ArtVan/upload/ArtVanCharityChallenge/index.html

FILE - In this Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2017 file photo, model Kaia Gerber wears a creation for the Chanel Spring/Summer 2018 ready-to-wear fashion collection presented in Paris. Supermodel Cindy Crawford says she understands it's inevitable that her daughter Kaia would enter the modeling world. Gerber bears a striking resemblance to her 51-year-old mother. (AP Photo/Francois Mori, File)
LAS VEGAS (AP) - A federal judge has agreed to postpone the trial of Nevada cattleman Cliven Bundy and others in a 2014 armed standoff because of the Las Vegas mass shooting.

Defense attorneys argued that the attack would cast a shadow over the trial, which was set to start Tuesday. On Friday, the judge rescheduled it for Oct. 30.

Bundy and others are accused of enlisting a self-styled militia to prevent federal agents from removing Bundy's cattle from federal land in Nevada.

Also Friday, defendant Pete Santilli of Cincinnati pleading guilty to conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer. Prosecutors say the 52-year-old faces up to six years in prison when sentenced Jan. 11.
File photo

WASHINGTON, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. government said Friday that it will limit access to contraception drugs, raising a debate between liberals and conservatives over women's rights.

The new rule announced by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) allows more employers and insurers to cite religious or moral beliefs to avoid providing free contraceptives to women.

The new rule is both an undercut to the Affordable Care Act and a move to appeal to social conservatives, who make up the chunk of the voter base for U.S. President Donald Trump and are mostly against contraception.

"The president believes that the freedom to practice one's faith is a fundamental right in this country," White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders told a press briefing.

The move immediately drew criticism from Democrats, who say the new rule infringes on women's rights.

"This administration's contempt for women reaches a new low with this appalling decision to enable employers and health plans to deny women basic coverage for contraception," House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said in a statement.

HHS officials said they do not have a precise prediction on how many women face losing free access to contraceptives, but estimated that the number will be about 120,000, and leave "99.9 percent of women" with free birth control with their insurance.

The prediction is based on how many entities have filed lawsuits against the Affordable Care Act clause that says providing free contraceptives is mandatory.
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) - Serbia's defense minister on Saturday praised a convicted war criminal for his role against NATO's 1999 intervention in Kosovo, saying Serbia no longer has to be ashamed of a bloody crackdown against ethnic Albanian separatists.

The remarks by Defense Minister Aleksandar Vulin illustrate Serbia's increasing defiance of the West. Serbia is formally seeking European Union membership but at the same time is edging closer to longtime Slavic ally Russia.

"The time of shame is gone. It's time for a quiet pride," Vulin said in the central Serbian town of Nis.

In this photo taken Thursday, June 29, 2017, Serbian Defense Minister Aleksandar Vulin, right, attends the Government swearing in ceremony at the Serbian Parliament building, in Belgrade, Serbia. Vulin has praised a convicted war criminal for his role in the defense against NATO's 1999 intervention in Kosovo, saying the Balkan country no longer has to be ashamed of a bloody crackdown against ethnic Albanian separatists. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

He was flanked by former Gen. Vladimir Lazarevic, who was sentenced to 14 years in prison by a U.N. war crimes tribunal for atrocities committed by Serb troops in Kosovo during NATO's bombardment, which stopped the crackdown.

Lazarevic, the commander of Serb troops during the Kosovo war that left some 10,000 people dead and thousands homeless, was released from prison after serving two-thirds of his sentence.

Vulin said Lazarevic and other Serb soldiers who fought in Kosovo "have the reason to be marked as the best among the best and the bravest among the brave."

Moscow has backed Belgrade's bid to maintain its claim over Kosovo - a former Serbian province that declared independence in 2008 with the support of Washington and its allies.

Serbia has never recognized the independence of Kosovo.
HONOLULU (AP) - Hawaii officials are working to raise awareness of the top cause of drowning for people visiting Hawaii: snorkeling.

Out of 650 ocean drownings from 2007 to 2016, the state Department of Health has recorded 169 as related to the common ocean activity, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported (http://bit.ly/2y7EoKX ) on Saturday. A total of 156 of those deaths were of tourists to the islands.

Motor vehicle crashes were the next highest cause of visitor deaths, with 85 recorded during the same period.

The numbers have prompted a state committee to explore ways to help prevent the deaths. Honolulu Ocean Safety and Lifeguard Services have teamed up with a major visitor television channel to air public service announcements on snorkeling safety in 25,000 hotel rooms on the island of Oahu.

On Oahu so far this year, 16 ocean drownings have occurred. Hanauma Bay, a popular snorkeling spot on Oahu that hosts about 1 million visitors each year, had 16 snorkeling-related drownings during the nine-year period.

Lifeguards rescue about four to five people every day at the bay, Ocean Safety Lt. Kawika Eckart said.

"More novice swimmers or people without any kind of ocean skills tend to go snorkeling because it's looked on as a really safe activity," Eckart said. "You're not getting into the surf. You've got fins, a mask and snorkel on . so there's a false sense of security."

___

Information from: Honolulu Star-Advertiser, http://www.staradvertiser.com
President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas in November 1963

A mahogany speedboat that belonged to John F. Kennedy sold for $75,000, and a flight suit that belonged to CIA operative Francis Gary Powers sold for $2,750 Saturday at a New York auction of Kennedy-era memorabilia.

The sale at Guernsey's included a wide array of Camelot-era lots, including documents, photos, stationery and even inscribed sterling silver baby toothbrushes.

A rocking chair that Kennedy used in the White House, specially made for him because of a back injury, sold for $30,000.

A second rocking chair used by both Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson, who served after Kennedy was assassinated in 1963, sold for $10,000.

Among the more romantic items was the 17-foot speedboat, a 1961 Century Resorter. Kennedy used the vessel when he was at home in Hyannis, Massachusetts.

John F. Kennedy's speedboat, Restofus, was sold on Saturday October 7, 2017, for $75,000

A rocking chair that Kennedy used in the White House, specially made for him because of a back injury, also sold for $30,000.

The nautical history starts with family patriarch Joseph P. Kennedy Sr., who had a boat named 'Tenovus,' a reference to the number of Kennedy family members at the time: ten of us.'

Later, when he won the speedboat in a church raffle, it got the name 'Restofus,' a nod to the 'rest of us' in the expanding family.

That became JFK's personal boat. After the nation's 35th president died, the boat went to his brother, Edward M. Kennedy, and then to other owners.

A blue bathing suit that belonged to first lady Jacqueline Kennedy sold for $1,800, and two pairs of swimming trunks owned by President Kennedy sold for $3,500 and $1,800.

The core of the sale came from the collections of Henry Hirschy, who was a Navy aide in the White House during the Kennedy administration; Mary Gallagher, who was Jacqueline Kennedy's personal secretary, and Powers.

In one of the landmark episodes of the Cold War, Powers was captured in the Soviet Union after his spy plane was shot down in 1960.

The U.S. initially tried to cover it up, inventing a story about a NASA weather plane going off course, and was embarrassed when the Soviets produced Powers alive.

A rocking chair that Kennedy used in the White House, specially made for him because of a back injury, sold for $30,000
Allies of Theresa May have claimed the plot to oust her from Number 10 is set to fizzle out after former Conservative Party chairman Grant Shapps was identified as the ringleader.

Mr Shapps insisted there was growing support among a broad spread of Tory MPs for a leadership contest in the wake of the Prime Ministers chaotic party conference speech.

But Charles Walker, vice chairman of the powerful Conservative backbench 1922 Committee, said the attempt to force her out lacked credibility and was set to fail.

Number 10 must be delighted to learn that it is Grant Shapps leading this alleged coup, he told the BBC.

Grant has many talents but the one thing he doesnt have is a following in the party. I really think this is now just going to fizzle out.

What you are seeing here is probably the coalition of disappointed people who think their brilliant political talents have not been fully recognised.

Mr Shapps was named by the Times as the leader of a group of around 30 Tory MPs planning to send a delegation to Mrs May to tell her she must go.

If @grantshapps, failed housing Czar, is leading revolt @TheresaMayPM must be doing something right. The Nasty Party is truly back.  Vince Cable (@vincecable) October 6, 2017

He accused the party whips of deliberately leaking his name to the newspaper in an attempt to smoke out the rebels.

The plan, he said, had been for a group  including five ex-Cabinet ministers  to approach Mrs May in private with a list of names to avoid the embarrassment of a formal leadership challenge.

But those loyal to the Prime Minister said it was clear that the rebels lacked the 48 MPs they needed to force a contest under the party rules.

Very solid start to @theresa_may #CPC17 speech, containing the all important 'Sorry' for the messed-up election, enabling her to now move on  Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP (@grantshapps) October 4, 2017

Mr Shapps said support for a leadership election was growing, with some current Cabinet ministers privately signalling their support.

They are Remainers, they are Brexiteers, he told BBC Radio 4s Today programme.

A growing number of number of my colleagues, we realise that the solution isnt to bury our heads in the sand and just hope things will get better. It never worked out for Brown or Major and I dont think it is going to work out here either.

He acknowledged, however, that they could not force the Prime Ministers hand and that it was up to her to decide whether she wanted to carry on.

Shoertest-servings prime ministers of the past 100 year

It will have to be her decision. I had rather hoped that we would be able to get to point where we could go to her privately and have this conversation, I am very sorry that the whips have not made this possible, he said.

He added: I am slightly surprised that the whips decided to brief a newspaper about it. That was their idea to smoke people out,

Senior ministers, meanwhile, continued to rally round Mrs May, with Environment Secretary Michael Gove  who ran against her in last years leadership contest  saying she was doing a fantastic job.

Incredibly powerful, passionate speech by PM. Bright, optimistic, addressing major social challenges, esp. housing. Renewing British Dream  Sajid Javid (@sajidjavid) October 4, 2017

He said the overwhelming majority of Tory MPs  including the entirety of the Cabinet  wanted her to carry on.

She showed an amazing degree of resilience and courage this week, of a piece with the fantastic leadership she has shown through the time that she has been Prime Minister, he told the Today programme.

The truth is that the overwhelming majority of people want the Prime Minister to concentrate on doing the job which 14 million people elected her to do earlier this year.

I think it would be disrespectful to those 14 million people to do anything other than concentrate on those areas where action is necessary.
A meteor shower could be visible from the UK this weekend with dozens of shooting stars streaking across the sky.

The Draconid meteor shower spawns from the comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner, which rounds the Sun every 6.6 years, and occurs every year in October.

On Sunday, there is a reasonable chance of Earth passing through a swarm of debris left in the comets wake, leading to meteors which appear as bright shooting stars when they enter the atmosphere and burn up.

Draconid meteor shower - where to look

The meteor shower is most likely to be visible in the direction of the constellation of Draco, the Dragon, in the northern sky, just after nightfall.

The best way to observe meteors is with the naked eye rather than through binoculars or a telescope.

A second meteor shower, the Orionids, will also take place later this month, peaking on October 21.
Andres Iniesta has signed a lifetime contract with Barcelona, the club have announced.

Barcelona said the 33-year-old midfielder had penned a deal which will keep him at the Nou Camp for the rest of his career, although did not specify exactly how many years it would run.

A club statement read: Andres Iniesta signed a lifetime contract with FC Barcelona on Friday, in a deal that will keep him at the club for the rest of his career.

Andres Iniesta made his Barca debut 15 years ago

Iniesta has made 639 appearances for Barcelona since making his debut 15 years ago, second only to his former team-mate Xavi in the list of the clubs all-time appearance makers.

He has been at the club since 1996, having joined their famed youth set-up at La Masia at the age of 12. The Spain international has won eight LaLiga titles and four Champions League crowns with the Catalan giants and has captained the side since 2015.

Iniesta is due to address the media alongside Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu from midday.
A teenager has admitted attempting to hack into the computers of senior US government officials from his home, including the director of the CIA and the deputy director of the FBI.

Kane Gamble, 18, pleaded guilty at Leicester Crown Court to eight charges of performing a function with intent to secure unauthorised access to the computers and two charges of unauthorised modification of computer material.

His targets included John Brennan, the then director of the CIA, and the former deputy director of the FBI, Mark Giuliano.

A computer keyboard

Also on the list was Barack Obamas deputy national security adviser Avril Haines and his senior science and technology adviser John Holdren.

Reports at the time said a British teenager had infiltrated the personal e-mail account of Mr Brennan and posted details online.

Gamble, of Linford Crescent in Coalville, Leicestershire, will be sentenced at Leicester Crown Court on December 15.
A diver has died after being recovered from the sea near Orkney.

The alarm was raised at around 4pm on Friday after the diver failed to surface while diving at a wreck in Scapa Flow, north east of Cava Lighthouse.

The UK Coastguard launched a rescue operation involving Stromness and Kirkwall coastguard teams, a search and rescue helicopter from Sumburgh and a Longhope RNLI lifeboat.

UK Coastguard helicopter

UPDATE: Search for overdue diver in Scapa Flow https://t.co/Dg9uhEtEQN  Maritime and Coastguard Agency (@MCA_media) October 6, 2017

A mayday relay broadcast was issued to all nearby vessels to join the search.

The lifeboat crew recovered the diver at around 5.30pm. He was confirmed dead by a paramedic from the UK Coastguard helicopter who was winched on to the lifeboat.

The lifeboat crew said in a statement: The diver was treated with respect and dignity by the volunteer crew members and taken to Stromness. RNLI Longhope would like to offer their condolences and deepest sympathy to his family, friends and loved ones.
England batsman Alex Hales is unlikely to face any charges for his involvement in last months late-night fracas in Bristol, according to his lawyer.

All-rounder Ben Stokes could miss this winters Ashes series after being arrested in the early hours of September 25 on suspicion of causing actual bodily harm during a night out in Bristol, before being released under investigation.

(PA)

Hales was with his England team-mate when they were involved in an altercation with several men.

After being interviewed by police, Hales was told he is not under investigation and his lawyer Ian Kelcey is not expecting the batsman to face further action.

Kelcey told Press Association Sport: Id be surprised if he did. Its unlikely from what Ive seen thus far. Hes in a totally different position to Ben Stokes.

Ben Stokes

Hales and Stokes were both stood down from international duty after footage of the incident came to light, with the pair missing Englands final two one-day internationals against the West Indies.

Hales is not part of Englands Test squad but, as one of the worlds premier limited-overs players, he will be in demand this winter.

The 28-year-old is due to play in South Africas new Twenty20 league next month as well as a tournament in Sharjah in December, while he is also sure to attract suitors for Australias Big Bash.
William Buick enjoyed a winning comeback from injury when making all the running on Blue Point in the John Guest Bengough Stakes at Ascot.

The Al Quoz Sprint at Meydan could be an early target in 2018 for the progressive Godolphin-owned sprinter, who held off the late charge of Projection to reward those who sent him off the even-money favourite.

Trainer Charlie Appleby suggested the classy three-year-old colt could miss the Qipco British Champions Sprint back at the Berkshire track in two weeks time, if the ground looked like being soft, while Godolphin do have the ante-post favourite in Harry Angel.

Buick had been out since fracturing his T12 vetebra in a fall from the ill-fated Permian in America and said: Its fantastic and I have to thank a lot of people. First of all, Sheikh Mohammed who has been very supportive all along and this horse is not a bad ride to come back on, so my thanks to Charlie and all the team at home.

A triumphant return for William Buick as he wins on Blue Point! Watch LIVE on @ITV4 pic.twitter.com/EblxpCAF2k  ITV Racing (@itvracing) October 7, 2017

Appleby was in France, where he said: Its great to have William back on board and it was good for Blue Point to get his head back in front as well. He just did not like that ground, so it was a brave performance.

We might put him away for the winter and take him out to Dubai for something like the Al Quoz Sprint and look forward to a four-year-old campaign with him.

Well speak to His Highness (Sheikh Mohammed), but if the ground is going to come up soft again we might give Champions Day a miss. Were going to stay in training ourselves and hopefully have some fun days with him.

Another odds-on shot beaten at @Ascot as Danehill Kodiac repels Group 1 winner Waldgeist



Fast Results https://t.co/7iJOPsdIyZ pic.twitter.com/P4VFQIISui  Racing TV (@RacingTV) October 7, 2017

Danehill Kodiac (8-1) could also be heading to Dubai after beating French Derby runner-up Waldgeist in the Gigaset Cumberland Lodge Stakes. The four-year-old made all the running in game style for Sean Levey to deny the 4-7 favourite by a neck.

Trainer Richard Hannon said: Hes done very well and he will stay in training and hopefully will win some very nice races.

I will speak to the owner, but we might be thinking of going to Dubai. Id like to think of something like the Coronation Cup next year for him.

One Master, ridden by Martin Harley, wins the October Stakes (Julian Herbert/PA)

One Master (20-1) took Listed honours in the totepool British EBF October Stakes on only her third start. The William Haggas-trained daughter of Fastnet Rock only made her debut in August and got off the mark next time out in a Yarmouth maiden last month.

Just Glamorous (33-1) bounced back to his best in amazing fashion as he sprang a surprise for trainer Ron Harris and jockey Oisin Murphy in the Hope And Homes For Children Rous Stakes.

Eve Johnson Houghtons memorable season continued as Accidental Agent (16-1), ridden by Charlie Bishop, took her tally for the campaign to 47 with victory in the ultra-competitive totescoop6 Challenge Cup.

Ride of the day

Sean Levey talks after winning on Danehill Kodiac! Watch LIVE on @ITV4 pic.twitter.com/V0byQKvw9J  ITV Racing (@itvracing) October 7, 2017

Sean Levey showed why he is an integral part of the Richard Hannon team with an inspired ride on Danehill Kodiac in the Gigaset Cumberland Lodge Stakes.

Quote of the day

BLUE POINT and William Buick win the Group 3 John Guest Bengough Stakes pic.twitter.com/vSsiFWYetV  Ascot Racecourse (@Ascot) October 7, 2017

William Buick after his fairytale comeback on Blue Point in the Bengough Stakes: Its nice to be back and thankfully I didnt make any mistakes.

Performance of the day

One Master comes through with a well-timed challenge to take a Listed race @Ascot on her third start



Results https://t.co/7iJOPsdIyZ pic.twitter.com/kNrhl190GV  Racing TV (@RacingTV) October 7, 2017

The William Haggas-trained One Master looks a filly with a big future after she made light work of decent and experienced opposition in the Listed October Stakes.
Sudan will stay on the US list of state sponsors of terrorism, which carries a ban on weapons sales and restrictions on US aid

Egypt praised Saturday a US decision to lift sanctions imposed on Sudan for nearly two decades, a statement by the Egyptian foreign ministry read.

Ministry spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid said the US decision would contribute to boosting stability and development in Sudan.

The decision comes in line with Egypts demand of lifting such sanctions, Abu Zeid said, highlighting efforts it has conducted with American counterparts in solidarity with Sudan.

Cairo has repeatedly denied claims that it supported a continuation of sanctions, despite mounting tensions between Egypt and Sudan this year, with media outlets in both countries exchanging attacks.

On Friday, the US lifted long-standing sanctions imposed since 1997 against Sudan, saying the country had made progress in fighting terrorism and easing humanitarian distress, while Khartoum has also commited not to pursue arms deals with North Korea.

The US decided to revoke economic sanctions with respect to Sudan and the Government of Sudan under Executive Orders 13067 and 13412, in recognition of the Government of Sudans sustained positive actions to maintain a cessation of hostilities in conflict areas in Sudan, improve humanitarian access throughout Sudan, and maintain cooperation with the United States on addressing regional conflicts and the threat of terrorism, US State of Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said in a press release.

According to Nauert, the US action came about through a focused, 16-month diplomatic effort to make progress with Sudan in these key areas.

The spokesperson, however, added that more progress is needed to fully and sustainably achieve peace in Sudan and to cooperate with the United States on a range of administration priorities, which included the countrys commitment to the full implementation of UN Security Council resolutions on North Korea.

Sudan will stay on the US list of state sponsors of terrorism, alongside Iran and Syria, which carries a ban on weapons sales and restrictions on US aid, US officials said, according to Reuters.

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By Parisa Hafezi and Tulay Karadeniz

ANKARA, Oct 4 (Reuters) - Iran and Turkey should prevent Iraq's Kurdistan region from declaring independence, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday after meeting Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan in Tehran, state TV reported.

Relations have generally been cool between Shi'ite Iran and mainly Sunni Turkey, a NATO member. But both have been alarmed by the Iraqi Kurds' vote for independence last month, fearing it will stoke separatism among their own Kurdish populations.

"Turkey and Iran must take necessary measures against the vote ... and Baghdad should make serious decisions ... serious and rapid decisions must be taken," Khamenei was quoted as saying.

"The Iraqi Kurdish secession vote is an act of betrayal toward the entire region and a threat to its future."

Iran and Turkey have already threatened to join Baghdad in imposing economic sanctions on Iraqi Kurdistan and have launched joint military exercises with Iraqi troops on their borders with the separatist region.

Erdogan, who was on a one-day trip to Tehran, said earlier that Ankara was considering taking further measures against Iraqi Kurdistan.

"We have already said we don't recognise the referendum in northern Iraq... We have taken some measures already with Iran and the Iraqi central government, but stronger steps will be taken," he said.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Erdogan vowed to work closely together to prevent the disintegration of Iraq and Syria and to oppose the Iraqi Kurds' drive for independence.

"We want security and stability in the Middle East ... The referendum in Iraq's Kurdistan is a sectarian plot by foreign countries and is rejected by Tehran and Ankara," Rouhani said, according to state TV.

"We will not accept a change of borders under any circumstances."

KHAMENEI BLAMES ISRAEL, U.S.

Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region said on Tuesday it was calling presidential and parliamentary elections for Nov. 1. Baghdad responded by announcing further punitive measures.

The central government, its neighbours and Western powers fear the vote in favour of secession could spark another, wider conflict in the Middle East region to add to the war in Syria. They fear it could derail the fight against Islamic State.

The Kurds are the regions fourth-largest ethnic group, spread across Iran, Turkey, Syria and Iraq, all of which oppose any moves towards a Kurdish state.

Khamenei accused Iran's arch foe the United States of planning to create a new Israel in the Middle East by supporting the Kurdish vote in Iraq. "America and Israel benefit from the vote ... America and foreign powers are unreliable and seek to create a new Israel in the region," he said.

The United States opposed the referendum as a destabilizing move at a time when all sides in the region are still fighting Islamic State.

Erdogan, whose security forces have been embroiled in a decades-long battle with Kurdish separatists in southeast Turkey, repeated his accusation that Israel was behind the Iraqi Kurds' referendum.

"There is no country other than Israel that recognises it. A referendum which was conducted by sitting side by side with Mossad has no legitimacy," he said, referring to the Israeli intelligence agency.

Israel has denied Turkey's previous claims of involvement in the vote, but has welcomed the Kurds' vote for independence.

Rouhani also said that Tehran and Ankara planned to expand economic ties. "Turkey will import more gas from Iran... Meetings will be held to discuss the details," he said. (Writing by Parisa Hafezi, additional reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu, Dirimcan Barut, Daren Butler; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
TRIPOLI, Oct 6 (Reuters) - The bodies of 21 Egyptian Christians killed by Islamic State in its former Libyan stronghold of Sirte have been recovered, the attorney general's office said on Friday.

The bodies were found in the same orange jumpsuits the victims were wearing when they were filmed being killed in the coastal city in February 2015, according to a statement provided to Libya's Al-Ahrar TV channel.

Sadiq al-Sour, the head of investigations for the attorney general's office, said last week that the area where the bodies were buried had been identified after a captured commander gave details of its whereabouts.

Islamic State took control of Sirte in 2015 and lost the city late last year to local forces backed by U.S. air strikes. (Reporting by Ahmed Elumami; Writing by Aidan Lewis; Editing by James Dalgleish)
Former Central Bank Governor Arjuna Mahendran yesterday told the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (PCoI) that he was unaware about the two meetings summoned by former Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake, where he had asked the state banks in the presence of public officials to bid at a lower rate at the March 29 and 31, 2016 Treasury Bond auctions with a guarantee that the Central Bank would not accept other bids at a higher yield rate.

During the continuation of former Governor Arjun Mahendrans Cross-examination Senior State Counsel (SSC) Shaida Barrie questioned him over the two meetings summoned by then Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake at the Finance Ministry on March 29, and 31, 2016.

Yesterdays proceedings revealed that the Central Bank (CBSL) had advertised a Bond auction to be held on March 24, 2016, which was ultimately cancelled. According to SSC Shaida Barrie, at the scheduled March 24 auction, the state banks had placed their bids at a much higher rate (the prevailing market rate) and hence there was competition with regard to the bids.

According Mr. Mahendrans testimony, the Tender Board had decided not to accept the bids received at March 24, 2016 auction due to the higher rates received at the auction.

Later, on March 29, 2016 and March 31, 2016, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka had held two bond auctions to raise funds to the Government. The advertised amount at the March 29, 2016 auction was Rs. 40 billion and it had ultimately accepted Rs. 76 billion. The advertised amount of the March 31, 2016 auction was Rs. 25 billion and the accepted amount was Rs. 50 billion.

During startling evidence by eight witnesses from the three state banks (BoC, NSB and Peoples Bank), before the PCoI it was revealed on October 4, 2017 that former Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake had asked the state banks to bid at lower rates at these two bond auctions with the assurance that other bids at higher rates would not be accepted. However, on both occasions at those auctions the CBSL had accepted bids much more than the advertised amount and at much higher rates.

It was revealed that former Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake had held two meetings on March 28, 2016 (before the first auction) and March 30, 2016 (before the second auction) with the state banks at the Finance Ministry.

Senior State Counsel Shaida Barrie stated yesterday that in the back drop of the State Banks being asked to bid at lower rates at these auctions (March 29, 31) Perpetual Treasuries Ltd (PTL) gained considerable advantage as Aloysius had received the precise cut off point (rate) about the March 29, 2016 auction which was revealed through a deleted phone conversation.

There was a deleted phone conversation earlier played before the Commission where, Aloysius was instructing his CEO Palisena on how to bid at the March 29, 2016 auction referring to vital information (including cut off rate) he received from a friend in the Department and friends in powerful places.. This conversation took place during mid-morning on the March 29 auction day.

Aloysius in the conversation says that there was a state banks meeting that had taken place closer to that day. According to what happened at that meeting, Aloysius tells Palisena the exact rates at which the state banks (NSB, BoC, and Peoples Bank) would bid at the March 29, 2016 auction.

SSC Shaida Barrie: Now you are aware that according to the evidence led before this Commission, former Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake had asked the state banks to bid at lower rates, right?

Witness Mahendran: Yes, I was not here listening to the proceedings but got to know from the media reports.

SSC Shaida Barrie: So, would it be a distortion of the Market, if the Public Debt Department knew about this meeting and the Ministers assurance to the state banks, but still went on to accept bids at higher rates?

Witness Mahendran: There are two things here. First is the instruction given by the Finance Ministry to the state banks to bid at lower rates. I dont know whether that was true or false. As far as the Public Debt Department (PDD at (CBSL) is concerned the PDD got bids at those auctions and considering the Governments fund requirements they had accepted it. When those bids keep coming, they compare it with the previous auction and select the necessary cut off rate. Then gives to the Tender Board for approval and then comes to me for the final approval. That is the process. Dont confuse PDDs matters with what the Finance Ministry does.

At this moment the Senior State Counsel said that there was a phone conversation between an official of the Treasury Operation Department of Peoples Bank and Mr. Sarathchandra (Superintendent of the PDD at that time), where the Peoples Bank official was seeking an assurance over the undertaking given by the Minister at the meeting on the rates. Mr. Sarathchandra in the phone conversation says that he would convey the message to the Tender Board.

It was also revealed during the evidence of eight officials of NSB, BoC and Peoples Bank that there were several officials present from the CBSL and the Treasury at the two meetings held with Minister Ravi Karunanayake.

At this moment Counsel Chanaka de Silva who was appearing on behalf of Mr. Mahendran objecting to the questioning moved that it was not fair to question on something which happened between third party witnesses.

The Commission was also concerned about the relevancy of the questioning.

SSC Shaida Barrie was of the view that these two auctions happened during Mr. Mahendrans watch, so that whether he would take the responsibility on those auctions.

However, the witness said that he had absolutely no knowledge of the meetings.

SSC Shaida Barrie said that there was significant market uproar at that time regarding the two auctions that took place on March 29 and 31.

There are uproars in various markets, this country is practicing a wide range of democracy and everybody was shouting due to that, said witness Mahendran.

At this moment Justice Jayawardena smiled and replied That is true.

When the Senior State Counsel continued to question Mahendran on the PTLs advantages in the secondary market due to the state banks bidding at lower rates at the primary auction, Counsel Chanaka de Silva objected and said that it was based on the third party evidence and not fair to be put the witness.

He also observed that the Superintendent of the Public Debt Department was also not questioned on this regard and the officials at the Public Debt Department were treated as angels.

SSC Shaida Barrie: I suggest to you that before the March 29 and 31, 2016 auctions then Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake had asked the state banks to bid at a lower rate at the auction on the undertaking that other bids at higher rates would not be accepted. Therefore PTL on the other hand gained an advantage having possessed the precise cut off rate at the auction. Their bids were accepted at a much higher rate than the state institutions so that they gained a monopoly at the secondary market.

W: I have no any knowledge on any of these events and I cant comment.

SSC Shaida Barrie: But those auctions took place during your tenure as the Governor. Have you heard of these things?

W: Ive never heard about them. I got to know about them through news papers. And there should be a proper investigation. Nobody had investigated about them in great depth therefore. I dont think anybody could come to this conclusion.

Justice Prasanna Jayawardena: Now the bids placed at the March 24 auction were not accepted on the rationale of high rates, right?

W: Yes

Justice Jayawardena: Subsequently, on March 29, 2016, the bids were accepted?

W: Yes

J: Were you informed anything about meetings conducted by the Finance Ministry with the state banks before the auctions?

W: No

J: Did the PDD inform you about the Finance Ministrys meetings with state banks?

W: No

In the meantime during yesterdays proceedings, when Mahendran was questioned on the decision which had been taken by him to suspend the Direct Placement method, he said he took the decision on the auction day (February 27) after he entered the auction floor (PDD) for the secondtime and it was his sole individual decision.

According to Mahendran it was explained that, he was having continuous discussions with the Monetary Board and other relevant officials at the CBSL to suspend the Direct Placement Method (DPM) before the February 27, 2015 auction.

According to his testimony it was revealed that he had discussed also with the Prime Minister regarding the suspension of the DPM and on February 24, 2015 the Prime Minister agreed to suspend the DPM.

While questioning, Senior State Counsel Shaida Barrie observed that under the Monetary Law Act, relating to the CBSL, there was no provision to its subject Ministry to give directions regarding Monetary Policy decisions and it should only come from the Monetary Board.

The Presidential Commission of Inquiry (PCoI) comprising Justice K.T. Chitrasiri (Chairman), Justice Prsanna Jayawardena and retired Deputy Auditor General Velupillai Kandasamy, will meet again at 10 am on Monday (10) and Deputy Solicitor General Milinda Gunetilleke will cross-examine witness Mahendran.

(By Shehan Chamika Silva)
The National Police Commission (NPC) has launched an investigation into an alleged assault on a protester by an Assistant Superintendent of Police during the Joint Oppositions protest march in Hambantota on Friday.

A spokesman for the NPC said that it has instructed the Police Chief to submit a report on the incident and also a special meeting will be held on October 11 to discuss the matter.

A video footage captured following the joint opposition-led protest held at Hambantota, showed a senior police officer assaulting an arrested protester.
The United States security forces, in a joint operation with Canada, Pakistan and the Philippines, dismantled in the summer of last year a terrorist operative who planned to detonate bombs in the new York subway and the square of Times Square, also had Planned to shoot civilians in concerts. The three suspects, who claimed to act on behalf of the Islamic State, were arrested. The defendants are Abdulrahman the Bahnasawy, 19 years of age and Canadian nationality, Talha Haroon, a 19-year-old American citizen and resident in Pakistan, and Russel Salic, 37 years and Filipino origin. The three individuals, according to the declassified summary this Friday, communicated through e-messaging applications over the Internet. The intention was to make the attacks in new York coinciding with the celebration of Ramadan in support of the cause of ISIS. The Bahnasawy was responsible for acquiring the necessary materials to manufacture the bombs and to find a place, not far from the city, where they could mount the explosives. Haroon made plans to fly to the U.S. to help him execute the attacks. Haroon came in parallel with experts in explosives handling. Salic was in charge of financing the operation. The terrorist plot was dismantled in May 2016. The Bahnasawy was arrested in new Jersey, arriving from a trip from Canada, and pleaded guilty. Haroon was detained by the Pakistani authorities four months later and Salic in April of this year. The Department of Justice details that about the defendants weigh up to seven crimes, some of them susceptible to being punished with life imprisonment. Crimes include conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction, conspiracy to commit acts of terrorism conspiracy to attack in a public place or in the transport system. The dismantling of the terrorist operation was made possible by the joint action of the National Security Division of the Department of Justice, the federal Investigation Agency and the new York Police Anti-Terrorist unit. They were also in coordination with detectives in Los Angeles (California) and Denver (Colorado) as well as the police from Canada, Pakistan and the Philippines.
The Supreme Court has heard a plea seeking "reinvestigation" into the daylight murder from point-blank range of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi by the Hindu Mahasabha and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh member Nathuram Vinayak Godse on January 30, 1948, in the national capital's then Birla House compound, which is now the Gandhi memorial. Almost every visiting dignitary pays an honorary visit to the Gandhi memorial, and Indian politicians across party lines still feel a strong urge to pay homage to the man who has been called the "greatest Indian" of 20th century, "Father of the Nation", "Bapu", among other sobriquets.

SC has appointed an amicus curiae in former additional solicitor general Amarendra Sharan on a plea to re-probe Gandhi's assassination today, a year after it was filed at the Bombay HC. The petition was filed in 2016 by Mumbai-based Pankaj Phadnis, who's a researcher and a trustee of Abhinav Bharat, which was formed in 2006 by Lt Col Shrikant Purohit and retired major of Indian Army Ramesh Upadhyay. The PIL (public interest litigation) was filed in May 2016 in Bombay High Court, and it sought "the appointment of a commission of inquiry to probe afresh the murder of Mahatma Gandhi and the conspiracy behind it".

It must be noted that Bombay HC dismissed the plea in June 2016 on two grounds. One, the fact-finding was recorded by a competent court and was given thorough judicial examination right up to the apex court. Two, the Justice JL Kapur Commission of Inquiry set up in 1966 that submitted its report in 1969, wasn't sufficient to convey any involvement besides Godse and his ideologues.

SC appoints amicus on a plea seeking re-probe of Mahatma Gandhi murder.#ITVideoMore video: https://t.co/NounxnP7mg pic.twitter.com/EE8dRe8uEe  India Today (@IndiaToday) October 6, 2017

Abhinav Bharat's Purohit, after spending nine years in jail after being convicted in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, has been recently granted bail by the Supreme Court. He has been "welcomed back" into the Army and has also donned the military uniform, the image of which was played on loop on TV channels that are perceived to be friendly to the Narendra Modi regime.

Purohit and Abhinav Bharat's alleged role in Malegaon and other blasts (including the 2007 Samjhauta Express bombings, Mecca Masjid bombing and Ajmer Sharif Dargah blast) led investigators and the media to coin the term "saffron terror", which is now being airbrushed as the National Investigation Agency (NIA) goes back on its own original findings to alter the course of the probes. Historian Dhirendra Jha has noted how Abhinav Bharat - a revived Abhinav Bharat Society (Young India Society), founded by Vinayak Damodar Savarkar in 1904, that believed in militant Hindutva and hated Gandhi's non-violence and civil disobedience as revolutionary strategies - allegedly continued on the original path. While it's being debated on social and mainstream media whether the NIA itself has become a caged parrot, the current petition and the re-probe portends far more fundamentally alarming shifts in the idea of India.

Exactly as Nathuram Godse is being gentrified and given "reasons" to assassinate Gandhi by none other than the BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya, a renewed push to saffron-wash the RSS' and Hindu Mahasabha's role in fomenting communal crisis before and after independence is afoot. Elaborate attempts to erase the contributions of Indian National Congress stalwarts like the first Prime Minister of independent India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, in bringing in the official freedom from British Raj, as well as in nation-building post-1947, until his death in 1964, are ongoing.

The petition seeking reinvestigation into Gandhi's assassination is significant.

Only last year, the fake news epidemic on the "Nehru letter bomb" was planted and circulated on mainstream and social media. It was alleged that Jawaharlal Nehru had sent a letter to British PM Clement Attlee calling Bose a "war criminal". The ridiculous spelling and grammatical errors gave the fakeness of the letter away, but that only cemented the semi-literate jingoism of TV channels and the vulnerability of social media, that went ballistic over it. Though this is being dismissed as the "WhatsApp history of India", in which the Mughals are constantly demonised and Taj Mahal is being dropped from an official Uttar Pradesh tourism brochure because it's ostensibly "Muslim", the sinister implications of this thorough rewriting of history cannot be more stressed, especially for millions of young and impressionable Indian youths.

It is in this context that the petition seeking reinvestigation into Gandhi's assassination becomes significant. Pankaj Phadnis, the petitioner, reportedly wants a probe into the "possibility" of the involvement of more than just Godse in the murder, alleging that this could reveal one of the biggest "cover-ups" in the history of independent India. The PIL bases its arguments on salacious media reports that there was a "fourth bullet" pumped into Gandhi on January 30, 148, when Godse had fired only three from a revolver carrying seven bullets.

This lurid attempt to indicate a possible involvement of a second assassin, with the goal of eventually exonerating Godse posthumously, is more or less the Sangh's idea of washing its hands off one of the foundational acts of violence of the newly independent India. Even though Sardar Patel's own writings [Correspondences, Volume 6] talks of RSS' and Veer Savarkar's "moral responsibility" in brainwashing Godse to ultimately pull the trigger, the Sangh's discomfort with Godse, both in resurrecting him for petty communal gains and in the silence on this elemental assassination of Gandhi and Gandhian pacifism from BJP's stalwarts and current leaders, indicates a larger project - that of saffron fascism - is afoot.

While a number of Godse fanboys who routinely abuse seculars and women on social media, sending out rape and death threats casually, saying Gauri Lankesh's fate awaits those who criticise/malign Modi and the Sangh, are followed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Twitter, their tribe feels emboldened when the likes of Amit Malviya "justifies" Gandhi's assassination as "reasonable". This ideological elasticity of the RSS/BJP complex is basically sanctioning "just" violence committed in the past and in the present and in the future, because it's in the interest of Hindutva and Hindu Rashtra. This isn't just cow politics gone mad, though that is very much an extension of this historical hatred that the Sangh has betrayed towards India's constitutional secularism and sociopolitical pluralism. This is striking at the foundations of the Republic of India and what it stands for.
In February 2015, a graphic video was posted online showing IS militants on a Libyan beach beheading 20 Egyptian Christians

Libya said Friday that the bodies of 20 Egyptian Copts beheaded by the Islamic State (IS) group in 2015 have been recovered.

In a report, Libyan Al-Ahrar TV channel said Sadiq Al-Sour, the head of investigations for the Libyan attorney generals office, said the bodies were recovered 6 October, adding that they were found handcuffed and in orange jumpsuits, a known signature of IS execution videos.

The statements from the Libyan prosecution office come nearly a week after Libya announced they arrested a key militant reportedly involved in the beheadings, which took place behind a hotel in the coastal city of Sirte in 2015.

The arrested militant, who watched and oversaw the incident, gave authorities details about the killings, while providing information about the whereabouts of the bodies.

In February 2015, a graphic video was posted online showing IS militants on a Libyan beach beheading 20 Egyptian Christians and vowing to fight those they described as crusaders."

Another victim, reportedly from Ghana, was killed along with the 20 Egyptian Copts.

Less than 24 hours after the release of the video, Egypt launched airstrikes on IS hideouts in the Libyan cities of Derna and Sirte in coordination with the Libyan army.

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The agreement was signed July 2016 between Egyptian Interior Minister Magdy Abdel Ghaffar and his German counterpart

Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi approved Saturday a security cooperation agreement with Germany aimed at combating terrorism as well as other crimes.

Issued in the official gazette, the agreement solidifies cooperation between the two countries in all categories of crime, including human trafficking, drugs and weapons smuggling, and money laundering.

The agreement was signed July 2016 between Egyptian Interior Minister Magdy Abdel Ghaffar and his German counterpart Thomas de Maiziere in Berlin.

The agreement includes also the exchange of information, technical training and expertise between Egypt and Germany.

It was signed after the Egyptian interior minister's visit to the German capital, where he held talks with German officials.

Germany and Egypt have been boosting economic and political ties over the past few years, with Egypt repeatedly stressing its appreciation for Germany's support on economic and security issues.

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Moshira Khattab, acclaimed Egyptian diplomat, human rights advocate and the official nominee for director-general of the United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), is campaigning to be the organisation's first African leader.

Permanent delegates of the African group countries met with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry last Friday in Paris, where they expressed their support for Egypts candidate.

Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid said the meeting aimed to coordinate positions within the framework of the African support for Egypt's candidate for the UNESCO Director-General post, two days before elections for the UNESCO top post kick off. This move came to implement the decision of African leaders to support Egypt's candidate for UNESCO's top post.

During the meeting, Shoukry voiced appreciation for the African support for the Egyptian candidate, asserting the importance of mass African moves to support Khattab especially in such a critical time in which the competition has been intensified.

The ballot for the position is set to be held on Monday in France.

With extensive experience in international diplomacy, the first Egyptian female candidate is looking to become the second woman to lead the organisation, replacing current director-general Irina Bokova, an ex-Bulgarian foreign minister who was the first woman to claim the position in 2009, as well as in 2013.

Khattab is up against a number of director-general hopefuls, including Lebanons Vera El Khoury-Lacoeuilhe, Qatars Abdulaziz Al-Kawari, Azerbaijans Polad Bulbuloglu, Guatemala's Juan Alfonso Fuentes Soria and Vietnam's Pham Sanh Chau. She faces strong competition from Chinas Tang Qian, UNESCOs assistant director-general for educatio and former French culture minister Audrey Azoulay.

Former Iraqi candidate Salah Al-Hasnawi voiced his support for Khattab after dropping out of the race, which he says "reflects the progress in Iraqi-Egyptian ties, which are intended to reach wide horizons on all levels and in all fields."

In an aim to push with efforts to secure Khattabs win, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry travelled to Paris on Thursday to support her candidacy.

The 73-year-old Khattab kicked off her campaign in July 2016 after her candidacy was announced in Cairo.

"As director-general for UNESCO, I will make sure we stay true to our timeless mission with rigorous determination to address the root causes of obstacles to achieving a sustainable impact," she vows.

The organisation is one of the first institutions to "actively fight against prejudice and discrimination and for the defense of human rights and the protection of cultural heritage," adopting an integrated strategy to combat racism, discrimination, xenophobia, and intolerence.

Who is Khattab?

A former ambassador and minister, Khattab has been trying to win the hearts of nations through a series of foreign trips throughout the past months to win the neck-in-neck race.

Khattab was born in Cairo in 1944.

She graduated from the Faculty of Economics and Political Science at Cairo University in 1967, and holds a PHD on child rights from Cairo University, as well as an M.A. in International Relations from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA.

She joined the ministry of foreign affairs to start her diplomatic career in 1968. She became Egypt's ambassador to Czechoslovakia from 1990 to 1995, and later the ambassador to South Africa from 1995 to 1999.

Shortly after the end of her diplomatic career in 1999, she shifted her focus to human rights, serving as secretary-general of the country's National Council for Childhood and Motherhood (NCCM), where she tackled the issues of female genital mutilation (FGM) and child marriage.

Through her work as secretary-general from 2003 to 2008, she pushed to criminalise child trafficking and FGM, as well as other forms of discrimination and violence, through the adoption of Law 126 in 2008, which is in accordance with the worldwide Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Her work throughout the 2000s led to Egypt raising the minimum age of marriage for girls to 18 years, with the punishment of violators, after a series of efforts to address child marriages in poor provinces and stressing the need for reform.

She was appointed as minister of family and population from March 2009 to February 2011.

During her short term as minister, she launched an initiative to establish and chair a committee on ethics and moral values, focusing on dealing with gender and religious-based discrimination and promoting a culture that esteems human rights and the rule of law.

UNESCO elections

The selection of candidates will begin on 9 October and the vote will be by secret ballot of the executive board, which includes 58 member states.



The winner must be supported by 30 of the 58 members of the board and then approved by the 195 members of the UNESCO General Assembly.

If no required majority is reached, a second round of ballot casting will be held on 10 October, with the ballot extending to a fifth round on 13 October if candidates fail to reach a majority.

During the final round, which would be restricted to the two candidates who obtained the most votes in the fourth ballot, the candidate with a majority of the votes shall be declared winner.

"If in the final ballot or an eliminating ballot two or more candidates obtain the same number of votes, the chairman shall decide between them by drawing lots, according to the UNESCO's voting process.

The newly announced director-general will be confirmed at the UNESCO General Conference in November.

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MADISON  The old Post Office building on South Main Street in Madison seems like a revolving door.

Longtime tenant Parasense exited the 47-year-old brick structure for bigger digs in Greene County.

A Brightwood couple has purchased the building with a business model of turning the structure into small shops catering to both locals and travelers seeking a simpler slice of life.

Amber Foster, sans husband Michael, who almost immediately left the country after the sale for a year-long overseas deployment with the U.S. Naval Reserves, went to work setting up their new business known as Market on Main.

The Fosters had a simple business plan  lease space inside the building to other small businesses seeking larger areas than they had with their already-burgeoning home-based concerns.

I look at it as the buildings an incubator, Foster said. As president of the [Madison County] Chamber of Commerce the past four years, we always are hearing how there isnt any space for small businesses or the rents too high. My husband and I saw [buying the building] as a way to help small businesses start out. We offer lower rent and short-term leases.

That the first four businesses  counting Fosters Mad Hollow artisan coffee and natural craft soda retail operation  are all led by women was coincidence.

It wasnt on purpose; it kind of evolved that way, Foster said.

A photography studio owned by Missy Cave will open soon, she said. She reports additional space may open up in coming months.

Merri Woodward had operated her Cake Krums bakery the past seven years from her Malvern home.

She moved to town because I wanted my house back, husband Jason said.

Another, Megan Willis, owned Annabelles Boutique from her home near Hood. She sought a larger work area and business-friendly conditions, such as cellphone and internet service, not possible in rural Madison County.

The third woman, Brittney Frick, had a successful online custom-client gifting business catering to wedding and events consultants and vendors but dreamed of something bigger.

She moved Southern Grown Vintage, a home-decor business that utilizes products made by other women (with a couple husbands thrown in for good measure) from her North Main Street home.

Frick now takes up the middle space of the open-floor plan Market on Main.

Foster has a coffee display along one wall and plans to offer her organic craft sodas once she locates a glass-front refrigerator. Potential customers can sample the coffee at Cake Krums, located at the entrance to the building.

Mad Hollow also will occupy space at the rear of the facility, near the loading docks, so roasted beans and sodas can easily be shipped to customers. One snag Foster said shes run into involves the current mechanics of the building.

It may be a year or so before we can move the operation from our Brightwood property into town, she said.

* * *

Woodward started her business in 2010 while still working for Comcast, in Culpeper. In 2014, when the company wanted its customer service representatives to move into sales, she left.

That wasnt for me, she said, adding that she took on a part-time position with the Madison Emergency Services Association, where she stayed for 18 months.

I needed a little income coming in while the bakery grew, Woodward said. Leaving full-time employment and the salary to pennies is a big hit.

She left MESA when Cake Krums started taking off, advertising via word-of-mouth and Facebook.

I always  and still do  post at least once a day on Facebook and offer specials there, Woodward said.

She started selling cakes, and clients posted photos on their Facebook accounts and then people called asking if she would do a cake for them.

Having never taken a baking class she honed her skills watching videos on YouTube.

Along the way, Woodward added items such as cake pops (cake on a stick) that proved popular with children and birthday parties. Now that she has her own storefront, shes added muffins and cake donuts to the mix.

She said shes most proud of her customer base and thankful theyve followed her to the new location.

If it werent for them, there wouldnt be a business, Woodward said.

* * *

Willis, 24, started making bows at home while pregnant with Annabelle, after realizing how expensive similar items cost retail.

After her daughters birth, she got into T-shirts with custom-made vinyl appliques and then expanded into glassware, other apparel and signs on almost any media.

She said business escalated once she started using Facebook and other social media as outlets for her unique works.

It was crazy and became hard to keep up with working from home, Willis said.

She said she heard about Market on Main in late August, just before the Sept. 1 soft opening.

Annabelles aunt, Ashley Artale, and I worked like crazy getting everything ready, Willis said.

A partial name change also happened during the move, replacing Boutique with Workshop.

Annabelle still has her name on it though, Willis said, smiling.

Business continues growing and she sees a bigger vinyl cutter on the horizon among other items needed to expand.

* * *

Frick, like Woodward and Willis, lived all her life in Madison County, and all three graduated from Madison County High School.

After high school, Frick headed north for college, first at Pace University and two years later, to Syracuse University, where she earned degrees in marketing and supply-chain management.

She worked in New York City for a couple of years and later in New Jersey. After obtaining an MBA from Virginia Techs Pamplin School of Business, Frick landed in Washington, D.C., where she met her husband, Brian.

I wanted to get as far away from Madison, where we had 68 graduates in my class and everyone knew everything about everyone else, Frick said.

But times change, and she and Brian purchased the Bleak House on Main Street three years ago.

Both work outside jobs from their home: Brian in IT consulting for government and nonprofits and Brittney for the federal government.

What Brian does is over my head and I cant talk about what I do, Frick said. Ultimately, we dont talk much about our work life.

But they have plenty to talk about now that shes moved her startup business, established in 2015, to its new site.

All three women seem to have the enthusiasm needed for new businesses. And all appear happy to be at the Market on Main.

Tracy Gardiner, Madison Countys economic and tourism director, said the new businesses will be a boon for the town.

Filling in current open space is always a plus, Gardiner said. And having businesses that already are successful businesses is huge.

Echoing comments made by owners of new Main Street businesses in the past year, Woodward likened Market on Main to a smaller version of Culpepers Davis Street.

I like the idea of customers strolling down Main Street, poking into small boutiques and restaurants, Woodward said. We can be like Davis Street without the traffic.
An Indiana man wanted on a charge of assault and battery stemming from the Aug. 12 white supremacist rally in Charlottesville was extradited to Virginia on Friday.

Dennis Mothersbaugh, 37, of North Vernon, Indiana, was booked into the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail on Friday, according to jail staff.

Mothersbaugh is charged with one count of assault and battery in the violence that erupted at the Unite the Right rally.

He was arrested in Indiana on Sept. 28.

A video that appeared on the internet shows a man  alleged to be Mothersbaugh  throwing a punch at a counter-protester, who parries the blow, outside of Emancipation Park. A few seconds later, the man is seen punching a woman in the face as she shouts at him and others walking down Market Street.
Though the exact location of its original capstone remains a mystery, the University of Virginia celebrated the early milestone with speeches, the Good Ol Song and a new marble time capsule Friday. The event was part of the kickoff to UVas two-year bicentennial festivities.

Faculty, the governor and current and former presidents of UVa joined together to praise the universitys past and to highlight its momentum moving forward.

President Teresa A. Sullivan described the growth of the school, from Thomas Jeffersons first proposal of a university in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains to its first class of students in 1825. The history of the university is inextricably linked to the history of the United States, she said, by Jefferson, by ideals of reason and freedom and by the history of slavery and oppression.

In a profound sense, the story of UVa is the story of America, born from an idealistic sense of mission, risen now to a position of global prominence, imperfect in its history yet perfectly optimistic as we look to its future, Sullivan said.

That history was referenced by Bobby Battle, co-chairman of UVas Bicentennial Commission, as he described the remarkable journey of the university from a field, well-situated to a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

But we must pause to remember, these lands were originally home to the agriculturally advanced Monacan Indians, and that these grounds were originally surveyed with the assistance of enslaved laborers, and that the Academical Village was originally built, staffed and served by enslaved laborers, as well.

Gov. Terry McAuliffe praised the universitys role in forming so many leaders in the commonwealth.

We are a better nation and a better globe today because of the University of Virginia, he said. Time and time again, the university has been a leader. Thomas Jefferson set that in motion 200 years ago.

Moving forward, Bryanna Miller, student representative to the Board of Visitors, said todays students can be inspired by that history and determined to continue using those ideals and goals to make the world a better place.

We should be inspired by students, Miller said. Because those are the ones  we are the ones  who are the seeds of the future. And each one of you alumni, staff and faculty members have had a role in planting each of those seeds.

While the university has had to reckon with its past over the years, and especially in recent weeks, since white nationalists stormed the Grounds on Aug. 11, students should still be proud to attend, said Dr. Marcus Martin, UVas vice president for diversity.

Martin was the first African-American head of a clinical department at the university. He described going to a segregated elementary school and being in the first generation of his family to go to college.

His success, and the success of the university, he reminded the audience, lay on the backs of enslaved workers.

The foundation for building and sustaining the university depended on the enslaved, such as Peyton Skipwith, Henry Martin, William Gibbons, Isabella Gibbons and thousands more, Martin said. The enslaved, indeed, were cornerstones, keystones, the heart, core, crux, center, backbone, centerpiece, mainstay and bedrock of the trust.

The universitys efforts to better acknowledge the work of slaves, Martin said, is not over, but hes hopeful that UVa, as it moves forward into its third century, will continue to reward and enrich the state and community.

In the words of Maya Angelou, When we give cheerfully and accept gratefully, all are blessed, Martin said.

We are blessed with the strong foundations today because of what many have given in the past. We are blessed by the work of each of you here in the present, and I pray the university community, including those yet to come, will be blessed in extraordinary ways in the next hundred years.
Gov. Terry McAuliffe estimates that by 2025, self-driving cars will all over the streets. To hit the gas on that projection, a Crozet-based technology company will invest $3.8 million to expand its research and development operation in Albemarle County.

McAuliffe was joined by local politicians from both sides of the aisle on Friday at Perrone Robotics, a developer of autonomous car software that has operated in Crozet since 2003, to announce the expansion and take a test drive in one of Perrones self-driving sedans.

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership will support the companys expansion through its Virginia Jobs Investment Program, which provides consultative services and funding to companies creating jobs. Virginia competed against California, Michigan and Pennsylvania to keep the expansion project in-state, which is projected to create 171 jobs over the next three years, according to founder Paul Perrone.

These kinds of subsidies and incentives are tremendously helpful, Perrone said. Especially a small company like ours that is trying to cross the chasm from a small company to a large company  anything like that can help out a tremendous amount.

Albemarle County will support the project by matching the states investment program funding. The amount of the per-job stipend from the state, and the corresponding local match, could not be determined by press time.

Albemarle County is pleased to have partnered with the Economic Development Authority to support this important economic development initiative in our community, said Ann H. Mallek, who represents Crozet on the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors. Working with the EDA to match funds provided through the VJIP grant, we have creatively and collaboratively leveraged our assets to support Perrone Robotics successful growth and expansion in our community, thereby providing access to employment opportunities and upward mobility for local residents.

Perrone said the expansion will create an abundance of high-end software engineering jobs, as well as some system and hardware engineering-type roles. He further praised the Albemarle-Charlottesville area as being on track to become a hub, akin to Silicon Valley, for growing technology companies.

[Silicon Valley] is really a convergence of commercial, government and university-type collaboration and cooperation, Perrone said. And were trying to foster that here, and it seems to be happening.

Rep. Tom Garrett, R-5th, said job creation and economic development has to be a bipartisan goal.

There is an appropriate role at the state and federal level to ensure that conditions for success are created, Garrett said. If nothing else, in a world where I see frustration from people of all political ilks, this is proof positive that sometimes things work like theyre supposed to.

Between the Perrone Robotics investment and Thursdays announcement that Facebook is investing $1 billion to build a 970,000-square-foot data center in Henrico County, McAuliffe said it has been a great week for economic development in Virginia.

Were leading cyber security. Were leading on data analytics. Were leading on drones, in the air, land and sea, McAuliffe said. These are the jobs of the 21st century. Its exciting.

McAuliffe said that in the past, the state has been far too reliant on federal spending, creating the impetus to invest in growing technology fields to promote internal self-reliance for the state economy. He added that keeping companies in the state, and attracting newcomers, only makes Virginia more attractive to the countrys industry leaders.
Ruth Serven has joined The Daily Progress as its higher education and health reporter.

Serven, 23, will cover the University of Virginia and Piedmont Virginia Community College and report on higher education trends and health care issues and how they impact Central Virginia.

In her second week on the job, Serven reported on the selection of James E. Ryan, dean of the Harvard University Graduate School of Education, as UVas next president.

After graduating from the University of Missouri with a bachelors in journalism earlier this year, Serven completed a Pulliam Fellowship with the Indy Star in Indianapolis, Indiana. She previously worked at the Columbia Missourian and The Kansas City Star.

In 2015, Serven did an internship teaching English as a second language in Sofia, Bulgaria.

An Oklahoma native, Serven first became interested in journalism during her senior year in high school after stumbling into a practicum offered by her local newspaper.

Midway through college, I became a higher education reporter for the Missourian. On my first day, graduate students decided to walk out from their classes at the University of Missouri. Later in the fall, student activists staged protests, demands and a hunger strike in an effort to get university officials to address racism on campus, Serven said. I got to see first-hand how much equal and equitable education mattered, and how much local coverage of hot-button issues mattered to people in Columbia.

Serven still nurtures her first passion, creative writing. Her 2016 short story, A Message, won the 2017 PEN/Robert J. Dau Short Story Prize for Emerging Writers.

When not writing, she enjoys hiking, reading, knitting and drinking tea and coffee. Basically Jane Austen hobbies, she said.
Emily Hubbard had never encountered the theory of implicit bias before moving into the University of Virginias Dillard Hall this August.

But by chance, residents of the dormitory were selected to pilot UVas implicit bias module. Participating in the module opened up good conversations about bias, stereotypes and discrimination, Hubbard said, and helped her to understand her new classmates better.

It was a little hard to talk about, but I think most people found it interesting, and we had really good discussions about it, she said.

Implicit bias, which refers to the unconscious attitudes that affect understanding and actions, has been a hot topic at universities rocked by racial tension. UVas implicit bias module, tested by about 300 first-year students, may provide a map for making students more aware of stereotypes they themselves hold, and soon will be expanded to all incoming students.

The module features the Implicit Association Test, which asks students to pair photos of black and white people with word associations.

The test, pioneered by Harvard researchers in 1998, is mostly used as a research technique to investigate thoughts and feelings that may exist outside conscious awareness, said Brian Nosek, a psychology professor at UVa who helped to develop the test and UVas module.

Taking the test is an interesting and potentially enlightening experience, said Nosek, who is also the director of the Center for Open Science in Charlottesville. It also gives people an occasion to think about methodology  how can we measure thoughts in peoples minds that they may not agree with or even know exist?

But the test only goes so far. Nosek also worked on a meta-analysis, published in January, that found its hard to prove that implicit bias is related to specific behaviors.

There is substantial evidence that implicit bias is correlated with behavior, but we are a long way from understanding under what conditions implicit measures predict behavior, he said.

UVas implicit bias module has four sections and includes videos, demonstrations and interactive media.

The short test and videos arent exactly earth-shattering, especially for students already exposed to concepts of bias.

My results dont change the way I act, said Stephen Sitnik, a first-year neuroscience student. I talk and treat everyone I meet the same way no matter their race.

What was more helpful than taking the test, Sitnik said, was that the module opened up a conversation with his resident adviser, who is black and who shared experiences of being treated differently on Grounds.

The university hopes the module will help prepare incoming students for deeper diversity and inclusion efforts they will experience at UVa, said Allen Groves, dean of students. The module isnt meant to be comprehensive, but a gateway to more conversations.

In the coming weeks, Groves said, the university will roll out a plan that will require all future incoming students to take the implicit bias module.

Other universities have begun mandating diversity and implicit bias training for faculty, staff and students.

Harvard has mandated implicit bias training for faculty search committees. Virginia Tech, the University of Missouri and Oregon State University recently began mandatory diversity classes for incoming students.
Egypt's interior ministry arrested on Saturday 14 terrorists in Menoufiya governorate whom it has identified as members of the militant group Hasm, an official statement by the ministry's media office said.

The militants, who include a leading member of the group, were plotting terrorist attacks against police targets, state-run news agency MENA reported.

Police arrested the suspects during a raid, where they confiscated three shotguns, explosive materials, three motorbikes, and EGP 160,000.

Hasm has claimed responsibility for a number of attacks against Egyptian security personnel in recent months, mostly targeting police checkpoints.

Egyptian security forces have arrested and killed dozens of suspected Hasm members in the past few months.

Egyptian officials have said that Hasm is linked to the banned Muslim Brotherhood group.

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Some 120 Islamic State group fighters and 60 foreign mercenaries were killed in a series of Russian air strikes in Syria over the past 24 hours, the defence ministry in Moscow said on Saturday.

"A command post of the terrorists and up to 80 (IS group) fighters including nine natives of the Northern Caucasus were destroyed in the area of Mayadeen," the ministry said, adding some 40 IS fighters were killed around the town of Albu Kamal.

As a result of an air strike more than 60 foreign mercenaries from the former Soviet Union, Tunisia, and Egypt were killed south of Deir Ezzor.

The ministry said the "large numbers of foreign mercenaries" were coming into the Syrian border town of Albu Kamal from Iraq.

Mayadeen is one of the Islamic State group's last bastions in Syria.

The advances against IS group in Deir Ezzor have cost a heavy civilian death toll from Russian and coalition air raids.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Russian air strikes on Thursday night killed 14 people, including three children, fleeing across the Euphrates on rafts near Mayadeen.

Russia has not acknowledged any civilian deaths from its strikes since it intervened in Syria in 2015, and dismisses the Observatory's reporting as biased.

Moscow has been carrying out air strikes in support of its ally Damascus targeting both IS in Deir Ezzor province and rival jihadists led by Al-Qaeda's former Syria affiliate in Idlib province in the northwest.

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Turkey said on Saturday that it and Syrian rebel groups it backs are starting a military operation in Syria's Idlib, where a jihadist alliance is blocking efforts to impose a truce between insurgents and the Syrian government.

Idlib and surrounding areas of northwest Syria are among the largest bastions for rebel groups fighting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, but have increasingly fallen under the sway of jihadist insurgent factions.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said the operation, part of a de-escalation deal agreed between Turkey, Iran and Russia, will involve Syrian rebel groups crossing into Idlib supported by Turkish soldiers from inside Turkey's borders.

"There's a serious operation in Syria's Idlib today and it will continue," Erdogan said in a speech to his AK Party.

"Now this step has been taken, and it is underway," he said, adding that Turkish forces were not yet involved and that it was a rebel operation so far.

Russia, an ally of Assad, is backing the operation from the air, he said.

Much of Idlib is controlled by the jihadist Tahrir al-Sham alliance, spearheaded by a former al Qaeda affiliate that changed its name last year from the Nusra Front.

"We will never allow a terror corridor along our borders in Syria," Erdogan said. "We will continue to take other initiatives after the Idlib operation."

Tahrir al-Sham has pledged to keep fighting Syrian government forces and their allies, casting doubt on the de-escalation agreement, but Ankara has worked to lure militants from it and two groups have defected from the jihadist alliance.

Turkey launched an incursion into Syria further east of Idlib last year, backing Free Syrian Army (FSA) groups in the Euphrates Shield operation against Islamic State and Kurdish groups.

The FSA groups supported by Turkey are now ready to enter Idlib, Mustafa Sejari, a senior official in the Liwa al-Mutasem group said.

"The Free Syrian Army with support from Turkish troops is in full readiness to enter the area but until this moment there is no movement," he said.

Erdogan said last month that Turkey would deploy troops in Idlib province as part of the de-escalation agreement brokered by Russia in August.

Another FSA rebel in the Euphrates Shield campaign told Reuters he believed an incursion into northwest Syria was imminent.

The Hamza Brigade, also part of Euphrates Shield, posted video online of what it said was a convoy of its forces heading for Idlib.

Residents near the Bab al-Hawa border crossing with Turkey in Syria sent Reuters photographs of what they said was a section of the frontier wall being removed by the Turkish authorities.

Idlib's population has ballooned to at least two million as thousands of civilians and combatants have left areas seized by the Syrian army in other parts of the country, with the help of Russian jets and Iran-backed militias.

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Tata Consultancy Serviceson Saturday said it has seen no impact on its systems due to "purported breach" flagged by security firm Seqrite Cyber Intelligence Labs.

New Delhi: Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), the country's largest software services firm, on Saturday said it has seen no impact on its systems due to "purported breach" flagged by security firm Seqrite Cyber Intelligence Labs.

"There is no impact to TCS data, mails or its other systems as a result of the purported breach," TCS said in a regulatory filing.

Earlier this week, Seqrite Cyber Intelligence Labs (a unit of BSE-listed Quick Heal Technologies) had said it had tracked an advertisement that claims to have "secret access" to database dump of over 6,000 Indian entities, including government agencies and private organisations.

It named a number of organisations in its blog, including UIDAI (Aadhaar) and TCS.

The Aadhaar-issuing body, UIDAI, had also clarified that there has been no security breach of its database or central repository.
Large protests were held across Australia on Saturday against Indian mining giant Adani Enterprises proposed Carmichael coal mine. Photo: AFP

Sydney: Large protests were held across Australia on Saturday against Indian mining giant Adani Enterprises proposed Carmichael coal mine, which would be the countrys largest coal mine but has been delayed for years over environmental and financing issues.

Environment groups say the mine in Queensland state would contribute to global warming and damage the Great Barrier Reef.

The Stop Adani movement organised 45 protests.

On the sands of Sydneys Bondi Beach more than 1,000 people formed a human sign saying '#STOP ADANI, said organiser Blair Palese from activist group 350.

I think theres a very real national concern that goes beyond Queensland about the idea of giving this mine a billion-dollar taxpayer-funded loan, she said.

The national rallies come as new polling shows more than half of Australians oppose the mine, reported local media.

Analysts have raised doubts about whether Adani can fund the mine, at an initial cost of $4 billion, given a global backlash to investment in fossil fuels.

Adani says the project would pay billions of dollars in royalties and taxes, create jobs and export coal to India help bring electricity to rural regions.

Adani has been counting on a A$900 million ($704 million) loan from the Northern Australian Infrastructure Facility (NAIF) for a rail link to the proposed mine.

The companys chief executive officer Jeyakumar Janakaraj, however, has said Adani may not have to borrow from NAIF. If the commercial banks take off all the debt then we will not have any need for NAIF as there will be no gap.

The Australian Conservation Foundation president Geoff Cousins, one of the countrys top businessmen, said it was unlikely Adani could proceed without the NAIF loan.

Theyve tried hard to secure commercial funding, but no bank will touch them, he said.

Stop Adani is an issues-based campaign, and the rest of the world sees the madness of building one of the worlds largest coal mines particularly when Australia has signed the Paris Agreement (on climate change).
RBI governor Raghuram Rajan features on the list of probable winners for Nobel Prize in Economics. Photo: AFP

Mumbai: While all eyes are on the announcement of the Nobel Prize Winner in Economics, Indians have a reason to rejoice as former RBI governor Raghuram Rajan features on the list of probable winners.

The announcement is due in Stockholm on Monday.

Rajan is a part of the list compiled by Clarivate Analytics, which publishes names of the possible Nobel Prize winners based on research citations.

The Wall Street Journal reported that the reason for Rajan's entry into the list is his "contributions illuminating the dimensions of decisions in corporate finance.

Rajan, who is the youngest and the first non-westerner to become the chief economist at the International Monetary Fund, served as Indias central bank governor from 2013 to 2016. He is also credited for having predicted the global economic meltdown of 2008.

The former RBI governor also featured on Time magazines 100 Most Influential People in the World list in 2016 and received the prestigious Fischer Black Prize, awarded every two years by the American Finance Association.

Recently, his book I Do What I Do has been making quite a stir as it sheds light on the many controversies raised after his departure from the central bank in 2016, just before the Modi government launched the note ban move. In his book, he said that he had cautioned the government that short-term costs of the note ban would outweigh its long-term benefits.

Rajan, who is currently a professor at the University of Chicago, has also been vocal about social issues like beef ban and rising intolerance in the society.
Mumbai: Aamir Khan starrer Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's Rang De Basanti is being screened at the first-ever Mauritius Film Festival. Mauritius is celebrating 50 years of independence next year and the inaugural annual festival is a part of the celebrations. Given the close ties with India, Rang De Basanti is one of the films that is being screened at the festival today and tomorrow.

Mehra has been invited as a guest of honour by Mauritian Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth to be part of the celebrations.

He will also be a part of a Film Directing Masterclass with actor and director Justin Chadwick.

"It's a rare honour to be invited for the inaugural Mauritius film festival. 'Rang de Basanti' has been chosen to be showcased among a prestigious selection of movies from around the globe like 'Gandhi', 'Amistad', '12 years of a Slave' and 'Mandela' to name a few.

"The honourable prime minister of Mauritius will himself be there to inaugurate and welcome the delegates. The event celebrates 50 years of Independence of the island country and the movies selected celebrate the human spirit," Mehra said in a statement.
Mumbai:When one thought the Hrithik Roshan-Kangana Ranaut couldnt get any murkier, one wouldnt have been more wrong. After Kangana reopened the can of worms, right before the release of her recently released dud Simran, people called it a publicity stunt, but she was nevertheless hailed a beacon of feminism and found support from most quarters.

However, after Hrithik Roshan chose to finally break his stoic silence, one that he had maintained throughout the ordeal, Kanganas staunchest of supporters find themselves in a soup.

Hrithik had taken to his social media feeds to clarify his innocence and the absolute non-existence of any form of relationship beyond a professional one between the two.

The actor, however, took a step further, by appearing on Republic TV and sensationally revealing his take on the infamous episode for the very first time.

First of all, I am not a victim. I dont think there is anything in my life that will make me think that way about myself. I know, and I have always known, that whatever I say can and will be used against me and I have to be honest that I am very, very uncomfortable right now, he said at the beginning of the interview.

I am not a confrontational person. I have never had a fight in my life - neither with a man nor a girl. Even in my divorce, there was no fight, he said. I know that there is absolutely no grace in what I am doing right now. There is no grace in sitting here and testifying for my character and making myself sound right and good and true, and by implication, making someone else seem wrong, he continued.

I was also very afraid. Im afraid that my words would be misconstrued. If I come across as strong they might term me as aggressive, if I show emotion they might term me as weak, if I show that I am vulnerable, they say hes looking for sympathy, Hrithik added.

If Im walking down the street and if a person abuses me, the dignified thing to do is to keep walking, but if that person starts throwing stones into my home, and affects the well being of me and my family, then that silence is no longer strength, that silence becomes weakness, he posited.

I need to say what I want to say, but I have to keep live up to this star thing of mine. I have to be cool and not give any attention to something that is not important, but after a while I realised I was pretending. It was affecting me, it was affecting my community, it was affecting my sense of well being. Thats not being a hero, thats being fake, he said.

When prodded on what made him finally speak up, Hrithik said, I was advised to stop. Im usually very stable, but in that state of mind, to come out and talk, was not advisable - not that I am totally comfortable right now - but one has to grow and realise that some things need to be done.

I was afraid, and now I am not going to be afraid. I am going to allow my mind and my heart to say what it wants to say. If I hurt somebodys sentiments, Id like to apologise right now.

I first met her in 2008-2009, Hrithik began, reiterating he was never friends with Kangana, when asked about the leaked emails, adding, "We did not become good friends. I found her to be extremely, extremely professional, not just in Kites, but through Krrish as well, to the extent that I was really, really proud of her. She came with her dialogues, and she was giving everything she had for my movies, and for an actor to give so much to my movies meant a lot. I was extremely proud of her, and I told her that several times. She said that she was inspired by me after seeing me in a film in Manali. I took that as a compliment, he said.

There were hundreds of people at those parties, and they were always around some movie, Hrithik clarified, when asked about the pictures doing the rounds, said to be from the time they were together'. You have a celebration, a birthday or whatever, and youre calling more than a hundred people, and you make sure you include all your team.

We were at a wrap party in Jordan, and I was ready to retire for the night, and she wanted to talk, and I was very, very tired, so I told her we should talk in the morning, he said, speaking on when he realised things had started to get out of hands. I ordered for room service, and there was a loud knock on my door, so I went to check - this was 2012, and everyone was really happy - and it was her through the keyhole.

She didnt appear to be in the right state. It was a party so youve had a few drinks, so I called my assistant, and he came down to her room and asked her sister to come get her. Rangoli (Kanganas sister) came and told me not to think badly of her, and that she is a good girl, Hrithik said, and I said of course, Im not for a moment judging her.

A year had passed by and Hrithik had started getting wary. I dont judge the behaviour, but I would not do that, my instinct said be nice.

Though reports of them being together had surfaced in 2013, Hrithik maintained, I have not met her one on one in my life. However, the proposal rumours did not pan out too well for the actor. When I heard that I was relieved, because I thought we this is a lie that can be demolished. Then came the photoshopped pictures. But no one saw the truth, he said.

I didnt give any clarification because its disgraceful. Everything I said, would be used against me. Even this interview right now, could be used against me. My friends told me I couldnt do that. I was a star, and I dont understand what being a star has anything to do with this, he added.

When the mails came up for discussion, upon asked why he didnt block the actress in the first place, Hrithik said, If you have a MacBook Pro, there is no option to block people. Believe me I hunted for this blocking option. You can only spam it or junk it, and I did that immediately. I must have read 40-50 of them. There were about 3-4000. All this time, the harassment was limited to my laptop, then she made it public. And that is when I got afraid.

However, the actor had chosen to ignore the mails, rather than responding an end to it. My higher understanding of life has taught me that ignorance is the best way forward.This is not the first time, Ive been sent mails of this nature. Ive learnt in the past that my ignorance discouraged it, and that is what I thought would happen now. I spoke to my friends, I spoke to people in the industry and asked them if they knew a friend of hers. The affect that my conversation with Rangoli last month had on me, when I heard terms like rape I was a mess, he said.

When asked why a police report had not been filed back then itself, Hrithik revealed, I didnt want to name her. I could have replied, I could have made a phone call, I could have sent an SMS saying come over, but thank God I didnt, Hrithik said. I didnt want to associate with this at all. I am a creative person. I have kids. I had no interest in this. Until it started manifesting in the outside world. I can handle things in my inbox. I deal with my problems. I can just brush it aside and move on.

Well, thats Hrithiks version of the events in its entirety and people are finding it extremely difficult to decide which side they would want to trust. Something tells us this is episode is nowhere close to closure.
Saudi Arabia's UN envoy said Friday "there is no justification whatsoever" for the Saudi-led coalition fighting rebels in Yemen to be on a UN blacklist for killing and injuring nearly 700 children in 2016.

Ambassador Abdallah Al-Mouallimi rejected "the inaccurate and misleading information and figures" in the U.N.'s annual report on Children and Armed Conflict.

But he told a news conference that one casualty is too many, and "we continue to endeavor to reduce this number to the lowest possible level."

This year's report was eagerly awaited because last year the U.S.-backed coalition was put on the blacklist but removed by then-Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

His successor, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, changed the blacklist which for the first time this year lists governments, rebel groups and other parties to conflicts that are taking action to protect children  and those combatants that aren't doing anything.

Saudi Arabia is on the list of parties that are taking action.

"We think there is no justification whatsoever for the coalition to be listed anywhere because we are conducting activities there in accordance with international legitimacy, in accordance with international law" and with a 2015 Security Council resolution, Al-Mouallimi said. "We are making an effort to try to preserve and protect children and all other civilians."

But he said the coalition is taking measures to reduce casualties by continually refining rules of engagement and investigating the 50 alleged incidents in Yemen that have been reported. He said 32 of those investigations have been concluded though he didn't provide details of the findings.

Last month, Saudi Arabia also established "a child protection unit" in coalition headquarters, staffed by a colonel and two officers, Al-Mouallimi said.

Its aim is to ensure that all units, commands and operations are carried out and have safeguards that "protect children as much as possible," he said. "So we are trying to do our best in that regard, and we will need to continue to improve on our best."

Yemen, which is on the southern edge of the Arabian Peninsula, has been engulfed in civil war since September 2014, when Houthi Shia rebels swept into the capital of Sanaa and overthrew President Abed-Rabbo Mansour Hadi's internationally recognized government. In March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition began a campaign in support of Hadi's government and against Houthi forces allied with ousted President Ali Abdullah Saleh, mainly using airstrikes.

Since then, the Iranian-backed Houthis have been dislodged from most of the south, but remain in control of the capital Sanaa and much of the north. The war in Yemen has killed over 10,000 civilians, displaced 3 million people, and led to the world's largest cholera outbreak with over 700,000 suspected cases and more than 2,000 deaths this year.

In the new report, Gutteres said, "the coalition's actions objectively led to the listing for the killing and maiming of children, with 683 child casualties attributed to this party, and as a result of being responsible for 38 verified incidents, for attacks on schools and hospitals during 2016."

The secretary-general said there were 1,340 verified child casualties in Yemen  over 50 percent caused by the U.S.-backed coalition  and 414 casualites, or just over 30 percent, by the Houthis and their allies.

Al-Mouallimi said the coalition believes the Houthi child casualties are "underrepresented" and the coalition figures are "overrepresented" because the sources of information are in Houthi-controlled territory. The U.N. says the figures have been verified.

Comparing this year's report with last year's, the Saudi ambassador said last year the coalition's consultation with the U.N. was "almost nil" while this year there has been extensive contact with the office of the U.N. special representative for children and armed conflict, Virginia Gamba.

While the coalition objects to being on the list, Al-Mouallimi said Saudi Arabia's relations with the U.N. "are very strong, and I hope that they will continue to be very strong."

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Mumbai: Movie mogul Harvey Weinstein is on indefinite leave from the company he co-founded while an internal investigation into numerous sexual harassment allegations against him is completed, The Weinstein Co.'s board of directors announced Friday.

"We strongly endorse Harvey Weinstein's already announced decision to take an indefinite leave of absence from the Company, commencing today," the board said in a statement. "As Harvey has said, it is important for him to get the professional help for the problems he has acknowledged. Next steps will depend on Harvey's therapeutic process, the outcome of the board's independent investigation and Harvey's own personal decisions."

The announcement came a day after The New York Times reported that the co-chairman of the Weinstein Co. has over the years reached at least eight legal settlements with women over alleged harassment.

Attorney John Kiernan of the firm Debevoise & Plimpton LLP was named the head of the investigation. The Weinstein Co. board did not give a time frame for when the investigation would be completed.

"We believe it is important to learn the full truth regarding the article's very serious accusations, in the interests of the Company, its shareholders and its employees," the company said. The statement was signed by four board members: co-chairman Bob Weinstein, who is Harvey Weinstein's brother, Tarak Ben Ammar, Lance Maerov and Richard Koenigsberg.

The statement was not signed by several businessmen who were part of The Weinstein Co. board before the story broke. They did not return messages seeking comment Friday.

Board member Dirk Ziff, a billionaire investor, resigned on Thursday.

Representatives did not immediately respond to questions about Weinstein's status with the film company. A person familiar with the board's deliberations but unauthorized to speak publicly told The Associated Press earlier Friday that Weinstein would be suspended from the company. But Friday's statement only said it "strongly endorsed" Weinstein's decision to take the indefinite leave of absence.

Weinstein's attorneys also did not respond to emails seeking comment Friday.

Weinstein has had a powerful perch in Hollywood for three decades, producing films like 'Pulp Fiction' and 'Shakespeare in Love,' for which he won an Oscar. But his stature has diminished in recent years and his company has suffered from a string of executive exits, layoffs mounting lawsuits and delayed releases.

The New York Times expose chronicled allegations against Weinstein from actress Ashley Judd and former employees at both the Weinstein Co. and Weinstein's former company, Miramax, over the course of several decades. The report made an enormous impact felt throughout the movie industry and elsewhere.

"This abuse of power must be called out, however powerful the abuser, and we must publicly stand with those brave enough to come forward," wrote actress America Ferrera on Twitter. Many others, including Lena Dunham and Brie Larson also added their voices to the uproar.

The board of directors has pressured Weinstein to step down from the company he helped create, said a person familiar with the board's deliberations who was not authorized to speak publicly. Weinstein has resisted, hoping to weather the storm. Discussions between Weinstein and the board have been heated and contentious, the person said.

Leadership of The Weinstein Co. will be assumed by Bob Weinstein and David Glasser, the company's chief operating officer.

Weinstein on Thursday issued a lengthy statement that acknowledged causing "a lot of pain." He also asked for "a second chance." But Weinstein and his lawyers, including Charles J. Harder, have criticized the New York Times' report in statements and interviews, though neither has referenced anything specific.

"We are confident in the accuracy of our reporting," said a New York Times spokesperson in a statement. "Mr. Weinstein was aware and able to respond to specific allegations in our story before publication. In fact, we published his response in full."

In an interview with The Associated Press on Friday, Weinstein attorney Lisa Bloom both defended Weinstein and acknowledged he'd been "stupid." She saluted the women who have come forward to allege wrongdoing but said many allegations were overblown and consisted of Weinstein telling a woman she "looked cute without my glasses."

Congressional Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, on Friday began giving charities thousands of dollars in donations they had received from the disgraced Hollywood titan.

Weinstein and his family have given more than $1.4 million in political contributions since the 1992 election cycle, nearly all of it to Democratic lawmakers, candidates and their allies, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics.

The biggest beneficiary of funds from Weinstein and his family was the Democratic National Committee, which received about $800,000 in several of its accounts, according to the center. Democratic National Committee spokeswoman Xochitl Hinojosa said the party plans to give more than $30,000 to Emily's List, Emerge America and Higher Heights.

Rutgers University says it will not return a $100,000 donation from movie mogul Harvey Weinstein for a position named after women's rights advocate Gloria Steinem.

The university said Friday that Weinstein's donation was one of more than 425 that has been used to Gloria Steinem Chair in Media, Culture, and Feminist Studies at the school.

The school says it can think of "no better use" of the donation than to apply it to the position and its work.
Kochi: Actor Rima Kallinagal says that a handful of Dileep fans, who have indulged in distributing sweets outside the jail after the High Court granted bail to the actor are not "real men". In a Facebook post, she has criticised and mocked the sweet distributors and those engaged in posting offensive materials from fake profiles on the social media. "We as a society need to tell my friend and the world that the 100 people who distribute sweets outside the jail and do 'copy paste' from fake profiles like cowards are not the real men of our society. These are not the men we want to be friends with, fall in love with, spend our lives with, enjoy a drink with, celebrate with and trust with all our hearts. Can the real men out there please stand up and take a bow", the post said.

The post that begins by mentioning about screenshot sent to her by the actor who was attacked on February 17 Ms Kallingal said " I think I have a duty to tell her that all our men shouldn't be shamed for the acts of a few and that we women should stand with the real men of this state". It is time we save our real men from the kind who spew expletives on a woman and make her take down a Pulimurugan review and bring shame to Mohanlal and all the real men out there.

Save them from the kind who make Lichi cry 'on live' and bring shame to Mammooty and all the real men out there.

Ms Rima says that the kind of Facebook message like this one spreads the message that Dileep indeed has given the quotation and he is capable of much more whereas he might actually just want to reflect on his life after 85 days in jail. Save our real men and the younger generation from the belief that this is machoism and heroism. Save them from appearing idiots cos they are clubbed with these brainless dimwits.
Study is now the most comprehensive and thorough estimate of the heritability of schizophrenia and its diagnostic diversity. (Photo: Pixabay)

London: Nearly 80 per cent of schizophrenia risk may be traced back to genes inherited from the child's parents, according to the largest study of twins for the disorder to date.

The study, published in the journal Biological Psychiatry, indicates that genetics has a substantial influence on risk for schizophrenia.

"The new estimate of heritability of schizophrenia, 79 per cent, is very close to the high end of prior estimates of its heritability," researchers said, referring to previous estimates that have varied between 50 and 80 per cent.

Researchers, including those from the University of Copenhagen, used a record of all twins born in Denmark since 1870 to assess genetic liability in over 30,000 pairs of twins.

They found a similar estimate of 73 per cent, indicating the importance of genetic factors across the full illness spectrum.

"This study is now the most comprehensive and thorough estimate of the heritability of schizophrenia and its diagnostic diversity," said Hilker.

"It is interesting since it indicates that the genetic risk for disease seems to be of almost equal importance across the spectrum of schizophrenia," even though the clinical presentation may range from severe symptoms with lifelong disability to more subtle and transient symptoms, said Hilker.

"Hence, genetic risk seems not restricted to a narrow illness definition, but instead includes a broader diagnostic profile," she said.

The researchers used a new statistical approach to address one of the factors that contributes to inconsistencies across previous studies.

Usually studies of heritability require that people be classified as either having schizophrenia or not, but some people at risk could still develop the disease after the study ends.

Researchers applied a new method to take this problem into account, making the current estimates likely the most accurate to date.
According to scientists, we need to talk is often good enough to soften the blow, without adding too much buffer. (Photo: Pixabay)

While breaking up with someone is never easy, anew study suggests that one should not beat around the bush when doing it.

Researchers looked at the best way to deliver bad news and found that most people prefer to a direct approach, rather than a build-up of small talk.

According to scientists, we need to talk is often good enough to soften the blow, without adding too much buffer.

The research was carried out by the Bringham Young University in Utah and looked at the best ways to deliver bad news. They found that people valued a direct approach more than an overtly polite conversation.

According to the lead author of the study, Profesor Alan Manning, while an immediate 'I'm breaking up with you' might be too direct, 'we need to talk' buffer  might be adequate to give just a couple of seconds for the other person to process that bad news is coming.'

The study further found that when it came to receiving negative information about physical facts, most people want it straight up.
The psychic was paid $3.5 million by an elderly Massachusetts woman in exchange for claiming to cleanse her of demons. (Photo: Pixabay)

A self-proclaimed psychic who was paid $3.5 million by an elderly Massachusetts woman in exchange for claiming to cleanse her of demons pleaded guilty on Thursday to trying to avoid paying taxes.

Sally Ann Johnson, 41, for more than seven years provided what she described as healing services to a resident of the island of Marthas Vineyard, who was more than 70 years old when she first met the spiritual healer, according to court papers.

Johnson, who ran businesses including Psychic Match Inc and Flatiron Psychic, admitted in Boston federal court that she tried to impede the administration of tax laws.

Johnson, who told the court she never passed the second grade, called herself a Romani spiritual consultant. She said in court she had not paid taxes in connection with the money she received as income as well as a gift.

I honestly did not do the right thing, she said.

Johnson, who has resided in New York, Florida, Illinois and at times Massachusetts, faces up to three years in prison.

She is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 17. Her lawyers declined to comment.

According to court papers, Johnson at various times lived with the unnamed woman on Marthas Vineyard, a favorite vacation spot for the rich and famous.

In an effort to evade the IRSs scrutiny, Johnson, using the alias Angela Johnson, directed the woman to make payments in the name of Sally Johnson and another of her businesses, Stones of the World, charging papers said.

Johnson directed the woman to wire payments to three different bank accounts including one in the name of an associate who used at least two aliases, court papers said.

Johnson made significant cash withdrawals from those accounts and also accrued charges on a credit card held in the womans name, according to charging documents.
New Delhi: An octogenarian woman and her three daughters were stabbed to death along with their security guard in their house in Mansarovar Park area of Shahdara, on Saturday morning, the police said.

Police officials are suspecting that someone known to the victims might have killed them, since, till now, there is no evidence of forced entry into the house.

It is suspected that the killings could be a fallout of a property dispute, they said.

The deceased have been identified as Urmila Jindal (82), her daughters Sangeeta Gupta (56), Nupur Jindal (48) and Anjali Jindal (38) and their security guard Rakesh (42), the police said.

Further details are awaited.
V. Satyanarayana, DCP, south, had ruled out involvement of any embassy officials in the racket (Photo: Representational Image)

Hyderabad: Hundreds of girls from the country, including Hyderabad, were trafficked to the Gulf countries in last three decades by submitting marriage certificates printed in Bhendi Bazaar in Mumbai and Chatta Bazaar in Hyderabad.

The police examined the records from the chief qazi of Mumbai, Farid Ahmed Khan, and found that between 1990 and 1992 the qazi issued 1,000 marriages certificates. The records were brought to the city by the police and a special team, set up with experts in Urdu language to translate the documents.

Around 200 marriage certificates were issued by qazi Farid every year and in all the cases men were senior to the girls and were foreign nationals, an official said.

The foreigners are from Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Kuwait and other GCC countries. All men were above 50 years, while the women were below 25 years. We suspect that teenagers were shown as majors by furnishing false affidavits , the official said. In one case, qazi Farid solemnised marriages of two women to a single man.

The women are from Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and other Indian states. Those from Hyderabad are from Amannagar, Misrigunj, Tallabkatta, Vattepally and Yakutpura.

As per the record, girls as young as 18 years were married off to foreign nationals above 60 years. Surprisingly, these certificates were accepted by the embassies and visas were issued, the official said.

The police conducted raids on the office of qazi Ali Abdullah Rifai and seized several marriage certificates and booklets. We suspect that the marriage booklets and the certificates were printed at Chatta Bazaar, said the official. Hundreds of certificates and marriage booklets were couriered to the city from Mumbai on charges ranging from Rs 20,000 to Rs 30,000.

V. Satyanarayana, DCP, south, had ruled out involvement of any embassy officials in the racket.

Omani national threatens local girl

The Omani national, Ahmed Abdullah Amur Al Rahbi, who married a teenager from Hyderabad, is luring another girl through an agent and is ready to pay Rs10 lakh to her family, said the police.

The Omani national married a teenager from Falaknuma four months ago and took her abroad following which a case was registered against him and two qazis and a few brokers were arrested. Ahmed was keen on marrying a 17-year-old girl from Kanchanbagh but the girl refused. After reaching Oman, he contacted a local agent, Haji, and sent him Rs 40,000 through a money exchange firm and is harassing the girl, V. Satyanarayana, DCP, south, said.

Meanwhile, the police registered one more case against Qazi Rifai for threatening and cheating a divorcee whose marriage he had solemnised with an Omani national. The woman, who has three daughters, got married to the Omani national who is visually impaired.
The men took turns to allegedly rape her after tying up her husband. (Representational Image)

Lucknow: A 30-year-old woman in Muzaffarnagar district was allegedly gangraped by four men in front of her husband and their toddler son.

The incident took place on Saturday. The woman and her husband, 35, had taken their baby to a pediatrician and were returning home on a motorbike in Muzaffarnagar when they were waylaid by four men, who were carrying weapons, in a car.

The suspects told them that the Ganga canal bridge on the main route was damaged and suggested another road.

The victims took the detour and it was there that they forced the motorcycle to pull over, beat up the husband and dragged the three to a sugarcane field, police said.

They stopped the couple, snatched the boy from them and beat up the man. Then they dragged the woman to a sugarcane field.

The men took turns to allegedly rape her after tying up her husband. They threatened to kill the boy who cried through her ordeal.
Shafin Jahan had on September 20 approached the Supreme Court seeking recall of its order directing the NIA to investigate the controversial case of conversion and marriage of a Hindu woman with him. (Photo: File | PTI)

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday said that it would examine the question as to whether the Kerala High Court can annul the marriage of a Muslim man with a Hindu woman, who had converted to Islam before tying the nuptial knot, by exercising its power under the writ jurisdiction.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra said that it will hear on October 9 the fresh plea of Shafin Jahan, the Kerala man seeking recall of its earlier order by which the National Investigation Agency (NIA) was asked to probe whether there was a wider pattern of alleged 'love jihad' in the case.

Senior Advocate Dushyant Dave, appearing for Jahan, argued that in a multi-religious society the apex court should not have ordered NIA investigation in the case and urged for an urgent hearing on the plea seeking recall of the order.

"Pattern or no pattern, the question is, can the high court annul the marriage by exercising its powers under Article 226 of the Constitution," the bench which also comprises Justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud said.

Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre sought an adjournment on the ground that another ASG Maninder Singh, who has been appearing in this case was out of station for personal purposes.

Read: Love Jihad: Kerala man files plea, urges SC to call off NIA probe

Jahan had on September 20 approached the apex court seeking recall of its order directing the NIA to investigate the controversial case of conversion and marriage of a Hindu woman with him.

The Kerala High Court had annulled the marriage terming it as an instance of 'love jihad', following which he had approached the apex court.

The top court had on August 16 directed the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to probe the incident under the supervision of retired apex court judge, Justice RV Raveendran.

Jahan has claimed in his plea that the Kerala human rights commission has received several complaints regarding the detention of the woman at her father's house.

He has also claimed that the woman has made it clear that she had accepted Islam on her own free will and after the May 24 order of the high court, she has been detained against her will and her rights have been violated.

Jahan, who had married a Hindu woman in December, 2016 had moved the apex court after the Kerala High Court annulled his marriage, saying it was an insult to the independence of women in the country.

The woman, a Hindu, had converted to Islam and later married Jahan.

It was alleged that the woman was recruited by Islamic State's mission in Syria and Jahan was only a stooge.

Ashokan KM, the father of the woman, had alleged that there was a "well-oiled systematic mechanism" for conversion and Islamic radicalisation.

The high court, while declaring the marriage as "null and void", had described the case as an instance of 'love jihad' and ordered the state police to conduct probe into such cases.
The SC disposed off the petition filed by Dhinakaran, challenging a Madras High Court order asking the poll panel to decide the election symbol row by October 31. (Photo: PTI/File)

New Delhi/Chennai: The Supreme Court on Friday granted time till November 10 to the Election Commission to decide the claims over the AIADMK's two-leaves election symbol by the rival factions of the party.

The apex court also said that the poll panel can go ahead with its scheduled hearing today itself.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra disposed off the petition filed by TTV Dhinakaran, the deputy general secretary of a faction of the AIADMK party, challenging a Madras High Court order asking the poll panel to decide the election symbol row by October 31.

Dhinakaran had sought at least four months more on some grounds, including that the rival factions have filed affidavits running into 10,000 pages and he needed time to respond to them.

Senior advocate Ashok Desai, appearing for Dhinakaran, assailed the order passed by the Madurai bench of the Madras High Court that he has not been given reasonable time to put forth his case before the poll panel.

Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for the rival AIADMK faction, claimed Dhinakaran had very few MPs and MLAs in his support and wanted to prolong the proceedings.

The apex court disposed off the petition, saying the poll panel was a high constitutional body which was competent to deal with the question as per the provisions of the law.
The "final large fight" in Iraq against the Islamic State (IS) militant group will take place on the border with Syria, a general in a US-led coalition against IS said Saturday.

He spoke two days after Iraqi forces recaptured the northern town of Hawija, the centre of one of IS's two remaining enclaves in Iraq.

"The next fight and the final large fight will be in the Middle Euphrates River Valley... on the Iraqi-Syrian border," Brigadier General Robert Sofge, the coalition's Deputy Commanding General, told AFP.

"All campaigns will aim in that direction, and it is going to happen sooner rather than later."

IS seized vast areas of Iraq and Syria in 2014.

Multiple offensives in both countries have since cornered it in a pocket of territory stretching from Syria's Deir Ezzor to the Iraqi towns of Rawa and Al-Qaim.

Sofge said some 2,000 IS fighters were still in the area.

Coalition-backed Iraqi forces ousted IS from second city Mosul in July, going on to inflict a string of defeats on IS.

After seizing the northern town of Tal Afar in August, they focused their efforts on Hawija and the Euphrates river area close to the Syrian frontier.

IS is also under pressure in eastern Syria, facing separate offensives by Russian-backed regime forces and a Kurdish-Arab force supported by the US-led coalition.

Brigadier General Andrew A. Croft, the coalition's deputy air force commander, said Iraqi security forces had been able to regroup and move quickly into new battles following their Mosul victory.

"We, as the Coalition, are moving quickly to match," he said.

Sofge said IS was shifting from a military mindset to that of an insurgent group with "sleeper cells" able to launch surprise attacks.

"The challenge for the years ahead is police work in Iraq and Syria," he said.

"IS fighters who are not killed or captured are trying to fade back into the fabric of the society."

While IS have tried to hide among the thousands of people displaced by fighting, Croft said some 1,000 IS fighters were captured in Hawija.

Many ended up in the hands of the Kurdish peshmerga militias in Kirkuk province.

Control of the province is a key sticking point in a bitter dispute between Baghdad and Kurdish authorities, fanned by a September referendum on Kurdish independence, held in defiance of the central government.

Iraqi pro-government forces have also advanced towards Kurdish positions since retaking Hawija.

But Croft praised what he said was a "high degree of cooperation between peshmergas and Iraqi security forces".

"It is very positive," he said.

"Much of the tension is at a political level, not only does tension (between Iraqi forces and the peshmerga) not exist, but they keep their cooperation high."

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Chennai: Banwarilal Purohit, 77, on Friday was sworn in as the 25th Governor of Tamil Nadu, taking over at a time when the state is witnessing political turbulence due to factions within the ruling AIADMK and demand by the Opposition for a floor test. Madras high court chief justice Indira Banerjee administered the oath of office to Purohit at a gala ceremony here at Raj Bhavan attended by VVIPS including Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palanisami and leader of the Opposition M K Stalin. Purohit assured the people that his decisions would have no political consideration and that he would strive for the state's development.

In his first public comments after taking oath of office, Purohit assured the people that his decisions would have no political consideration. "Purely all the decisions will be on merit. I am going to support the government and the administration for the development of TN. I have good friends in Delhi and through the Central ministry will ensure that a lot of development and infrastructure comes to Tamil Nadu. I will try my level best for the development of the state", he said.

Taking oath in the name of God, Purohit said he would "faithfully execute the office of governor of Tamil Nadu and will to the best of ability preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and the law and that I will devote myself to the service and well being of the people of Tamil Nadu". Deputy chief minister O. Panneerselvam and his cabinet colleagues were among those present. Senior BJP leaders including union minister Pon Radhakrishnan were among those present. Earlier, chief secretary Girija Vaidyanathan read out the warrant of appointment issued on September 29 by President Ram Nath Kovind, appointing Purohit as Governor of Tamil Nadu. The first full-time Governor to be appointed since the completion of term of K. Rosaiah in August 2016.
V K Sasikala, out of jail on a five-day parole, on Saturday visited her husband M Natarajan who is recovering at a hospital in Chennai after undergoing a liver and kidney transplant. (Photo: File | PTI)

Chennai: Sidelined AIADMK leader V K Sasikala, out of jail on a five-day parole, on Saturday visited her husband M Natarajan who is recovering at a hospital in Chennai after undergoing a liver and kidney transplant.

Sasikala, who was removed from the AIADMK in September after the factions led by Chief Minister K Palanisamy and now Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam united, met Natarajan and was with him for about two hours in the hospital, sources said.

Later, she returned to her niece Krishnapriya's residence in the city.

The beleaguered AIADMK leader's car briefly halted in front of a Ganesha temple in Kotturpuram and she prayed from inside the vehicle as used to be done by late AIADMK leader J Jayalalithaa.

Sasikala's low profile visit to hospital was in stark contrast to her public appearances prior to her incarceration in February.

During her days before being imprisoned, she used to be surrounded by party men and loyalists raising slogans praising her as "Chinnamma".

Sasikala has been lodged in the Parapana Agrahara central jail since February 2017 after the Supreme Court upheld her conviction by a special court in a disproportionate assets case. Her relatives Ilavarasi and V N Sudhakaran are also serving four-year jail terms in the case.

Facing tough parole conditions, she refrained from visiting party men or interacting with them during her hospital visit on Saturday.

The hospital, meanwhile, said in a statement that Natarajan, 74, is recovering and he is "awake and oriented and is on ventilator support through tracheostomy, which was performed on October 6".

TTV Dhinakaran loyalist and senior leader Nanjil Sampath said he saw Sasikala in the hospital and told her to pray.

He said he asked Sasikala to recite 'Sundara Kandam' from the Ramayana "as it would bring her relief".

Sasikala arrived in the city on Friday from the Parapana Agrahara central jail in Bengaluru after being granted parole for five days.

Natarajan was admitted at the liver Intensive Care Unit of Gleneagles Global Health City under the care of a team of doctors led by Professor Mohamed Rela, the hospital said.

It said that at the time of admission, he had "worsening liver failure, kidney failure and lung congestion, and underwent liver and kidney transplantation on October four."

In a statement, Director, Institute of Liver Disease and Transplantation of the hospital, Dr K Ilankumaran said considering Natarajan's age and his associated co-morbidities, his condition was stable during the surgery and he is "recovering well in the liver intensive care unit".

"He (Natarajan) is awake and oriented and he is on ventilator support through tracheostomy, which has been performed on October six."

As in any other combined liver and kidney transplant surgeries, his condition would be critical for the next few days, Ilankumaran said, adding "he is under close

observation and monitoring".

It may be recalled that Sasikala had sought parole for 15 days, but was granted only five days with tough conditions, including that she will not get involved in any political or other public activity or take part in party activities.

She is allowed only to visit the hospital where her husband is admitted and stay at the residence as mentioned in the application.

Sasikala has also been restricted from interacting with any media - print or electronic.
Former Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy was acquitted by a court in Bengaluru in a case relating to the alleged solar scam due to lack of evidence. (Photo: File)

Bengaluru: Former Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy was on Saturday acquitted by a court in Bengaluru in a case relating to the alleged solar scam due to lack of evidence.

Additional City Civil and Sessions Court accepted Chandy's application seeking annulment of an earlier order in which six respondents, including Chandy and a firm, were directed to pay about Rs 1.61 crore to M K Kuruvilla, a Bengaluru-based industrialist.

In the interim application, Chandy had stated that the order was ex-parte and his version was not heard.

Judge Patil Mohankumar Bheemanagouda acquitted Chandy on the grounds of lack of evidence to prove he had any money transaction with Kuruvilla.

"Even in the plaint that Kuruvilla had filed does not mention about Rs 1.61 crore changing hands between him and Chandy, and therefore, taking this premise into cognisance this honourable court acquits Chandy in the case," the judge said in his order.

However, the judge said the court will continue proceedings against other five accused, who allegedly did not give money to Kuruvilla.

Kuruvilla had filed a civil petition in 2015 seeking to return of Rs 1,60,85,700 deposited with SCOSSA Educational Consultants Private Limited, the first defendant, for setting up a solar power project in Kerala.

According to Kuruvilla, in 2011, he got acquainted with one Binu Nair who claimed to be the Director of Kochi-based SCOSSA.

The petitioner had said that Nair had approached him for setting up the solar power project.

The petition stated that Nair had claimed that one of the directors of SCOSSA, Andrews, was Chandy's first cousin and would be appointed consultant to the project and that he would operate from Abu Dhabi.

Kuruvilla had also submitted that Nair had named one Diljith as another director of SCOSSA who he claimed was the private secretary to Chandy and contended that the former chief minister too was jointly liable to return his money.

On October 24 last, the court had directed six persons, including Chandy, and a firm to together to pay Rs 1,60,85,700 to Kuruvilla with 12 per cent interest per annum for a solar power project that did not materialise.

Chandy had filed two applications appealing against the earlier verdict.

The first plea had challenged the court's ex-parte order and the second one sought that his arguments be heard.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrives in Jamnagar for his 2-days visit to Gujarat. (Photo: ANI | Twitter)

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached Jamnagar for his two-day visit to Gujarat, on Saturday.

Modi will start his visit with a special puja and darshan at Lord Dwarikadheesh Temple.

At Dwarka, he will lay the foundation stone for a four-lane cable-stayed signature bridge between Okha and Bet Dwarka to be built at a cost of Rs. 962 crore.

Other projects for which foundation stone will be laid include four-laning of 116.24 kilometers of Porbandar-Dwarka section of NH-51 and four-laning of 93.56 km of Gadu-Porbandar section of NH-51.

The Prime Minister will also address a public meeting in Dwarka.

From Dwarka, the Prime Minister will go to Hirasar in Rajkot district where he will lay the foundation stone for a Greenfield airport.

Prime Minster Modi will also lay foundation stone in Chotila for six-laning of 201-kilometer Ahmedabad-Rajkot section of NH-47 at a cost of Rs. 2,893 crore.

He will dedicate a fully automatic milk processing and packaging plant and a drinking water distribution pipeline for Joravarnagar and Ratanpur area of Surendranagar. The Prime Minister will address a public meeting there as well.

He will then proceed to capital city Gandhinagar where he will dedicate the newly-constructed building of IIT Gandhinagar, and launch the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan (PMGDISHA).

The Abhiyan is aimed at imparting digital literacy to citizens in rural areas, and provide access to information, knowledge, education, and healthcare.

On day 2, Modi will visit his birthplace Vadnagar in Mehasana district. He will then inaugurate a medical college and hospital having the total bed capacity of 650.

He will also launch the Intensified Mission Indradhanush, to accelerate progress towards the goal of full immunization coverage. The mission will provide greater focus on urban areas and other pockets of low immunization coverage.

The Prime Minister will also distribute e-tablets to health workers to mark the launch of ImTeCHO (Innovative mobile-phone Technology for Community Health Operations).

ImTeCHO is aimed at improving the performance of community health workers ASHAs (Accredited Social Health Activists) through better supervision, support and motivation for increasing coverage of proven maternal, newborn and child health interventions among resource-poor settings in India.

The same afternoon, the prime minister will reach Bharuch and lay the foundation stone for Bhadbhut Barrage, to be built over the Narmada River.

He will also flag off the Antyodaya Express between Udhna (Surat, Gujarat), and Jaynagar (Bihar).

Modi will also unveil plaques to mark the laying of foundation stone, and the inauguration of various plants of Gujarat Narmada Fertilizer Corporation. He will also address a public meeting there before returning to Delhi.
For years the Guruvayur temple has made it a must for women to wear a saree and for men to wear a white mundu (white panche) and be shirtless when entering it.

Bengaluru: Minister for Muzrai (Religious Endowment), Rudrappa Manappa Lamani appears completely against the idea of imposing a strict dress code for devotees at temples in the state given his own experience at the Guruvayur temple in Kerala.

Ruling out the possibility of having such a code in Karnataka, he recalled that on a visit to Kerala when he was still not a minister, his wife was not allowed to enter the Guruvayur temple in Kerala for a darshan of the deity, Guruvayurappan as she was wearing a churidhar and kameez and not a saree.

For years the Guruvayur temple has made it a must for women to wear a saree and for men to wear a white mundu (white panche) and be shirtless when entering it. So several shops near the temple offer sarees and mundus on rent but as my wife was not willing to wear an used saree we returned without having a darshan of the deity. So I know how devotees feel at such times. How can I then support a dress code in temples in Karnataka, he asked, when asked for his views on the subject by Deccan Chronicle.

Agreeing that some devotees visited temples in skimpy clothes, he argued the government could not ask people to dress in a certain way for a darshan of the deity. Clarifying that there was no such proposal before his Ministry, he explained that some months ago he had received a memorandum from some people asking for a dress code in Muzarai temples on the lines of temples in Kerala, and he had promised to consider it.

But later a section of the media reported that the government wanted to impose a impose dress code in all important temples, when its not true, he said.
Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi took a swipe at the Prime Minister, demanding an explanation about the new road construction being undertaken by China instead of continuing with his 'chest thumping'. (Photo: File/PTI)

New Delhi: The Congress has asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to "explain" to the nation what was happening at Doklam and state his government's policy on the issue.

Rahul Gandhi took a swipe at the Prime Minister, demanding an explanation about the new road construction being undertaken by China instead of continuing with his "chest thumping".

Congress spokesperson Kapil Sibal asked Modi to explain his policy to deal with the issue and whether he intended to invite Chinese President Xi Jinping to Sabarmati again.

The comments came a day after sources confirmed that China maintained a sizeable presence of troops near the site of the Doklam standoff with India and had now started widening a road, around 12 km from the area of conflict.

"Modiji, once you're done thumping your chest, could you please explain this?" Mr Gandhi tweeted, tagging an NDTV news report headlined, "With 500 Soldiers On Guard, China Expands Road In Doklam".

Modiji, once you're done thumping your chest, could you please explain this?https://t.co/oSuC7bZ82x  Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) October 6, 2017

At the All India Congress Committee (AICC) briefing, Sibal said, "Your (PM Modi's) meeting was good, but what was the result of it and what is happening about it. Please tell the country as to what is happening at the border, especially along the Dokalam plateau."

"What is going to be your policy in this regard and whether you will again invite President Xi to Sabarmati for a swing with him," the former minister asked.

Read: Chinese troops on guard near Sikkim, expands road in Doklam

Sibal asked what was happening in Doklam today and said it is "very disappointing" that Prime Minister Modi met Chinese President Xi at the BRICS Summit and there was a lot of talk about the meeting that would help ease the border tension with China as Chinese troops had withdrawn and so had India, removed their equipment and this matter will not be escalated further.

"But what we are hearing now is that in the Doklam plateau near the trijunction and 10 km from the chicken neck, a new road is being constructed and the same equipment is being used there. Reports also say that some 500 to 1,000 Chinese soldiers are also deployed there," he said.

The Congress leader also referrd to the statement of Army Chief Gen Bipin Rawat who said that the Chinese will be doing excursions and "we should be ready for that".

Troops of India and China were locked in a 73-day standoff in Dokalam that began from June 16 over road construction activity at the India-Bhutan-China trijunction.

The tension eased after talks between top officials of both the countries.

The Congress, in an article put out on its website, also said that the fresh Doklam development underscores that deft diplomacy was not practiced and requires an explanation from the government.

The article said that the news that China has stationed over 1,500 troops in close proximity to the standoff zone makes warnings given out by Congress leaders earlier sound prophetic.

"In the absence of the NDA government not clarifying particulars as to the de-escalation, this fresh development looks alarming and underscores that deft diplomacy was not practiced," the article stated.

It said that Indian surveillance has reportedly detected new bunkers, and some road re-laying has also been done in the vicinity. China is reportedly using the road construction materials it brought to Doklam, to strengthen infrastructure in the environs of the standoff zone.

The Congress said it is widely evident that a build-up of roads and bunkers is a step towards China's stated goal to "exercise its sovereign rights" in the region.

It said Army Chief Rawat has termed these as 'salami slicing tactics' and warned that continued tensions may snowball into a larger conflict.

In military parlance, 'salami slicing' is a series of many minor actions, often performed by covert means, that as an accumulated whole produce a much larger result that would otherwise be difficult to execute all at once.

The Congress article said in September, China also opened a strategic highway to Nepal via Tibet and China's state-run Global Times alarmingly stated that this highway is just a "forerunner" to a railway link.

It said as per a recent report, China is reinforcing its claim on the Doklam territory by upgrading the road around 10-km north and east of the earlier face-off site.

"One cannot be sure whether these events had been discussed on the table during the standoff. If it is so, then a legitimate question arises, what all concessions have the government made to the Chinese to solve the crisis?

"Is this just the tip of the iceberg? If instead, the government is getting cold feet, then China's salami tactics are working," the article said.
The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Saturday granted anticipatory bail to Ryan International Groups CEO, Ryan Pinto, and his parents, founding chairman Augustine Pinto and managing director Grace Pinto, till December 5. (Photo: File)

New Delhi: The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Saturday granted anticipatory bail to Pinto family till December 5.

The court has granted anticipatory bail to Ryan International Groups CEO, Ryan Pinto, and his parents, founding chairman Augustine Pinto and managing director Grace Pinto, with certain conditions.

The Pintos cannot leave the country and will have to join the investigation when needed, victims lawyer S Tekriwal said.

The court has also asked the CBI, which is probing the case, to submit a report in the matter on December 5.

"High Court Justice Surinder Gupta today granted interim bail to them (the three trustees) till December 5," said Arshdeep Singh Cheema, who along with Sandeep Kapur, appeared for the Pinto family.

The lawyer said the two other accused arrested have also been granted bail.

Pradyuman Thakur familys lawyer Tekriwal said that they are considering moving to the Supreme Court against the high courts order.

On September 28, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had stayed the arrest of the three trustees of the Ryan group, who had sought anticipatory bail in this case.

Ryan Pinto, and his parents had approached the high court on September 16, seeking anticipatory bail in connection with the student's killing.

Class 2 student Pradyuman Thakur was found with his throat slit in a school washroom on September 8.

Schoolbus conductor Ashok Kumar was arrested in connection with the crime.

There was nation-wide outrage over the child's killing and allegations were levelled against the school management also.

On September 25, the high court had impleaded CBI as a respondent in a petition seeking bail for the three Ryan International Group trustees.

The Haryana government had earlier recommended a CBI probe in the matter. The premier investigating agency took over the case on September 22.

With inputs from agencies.
Air Vice Marshal C.V. Parker (Retd.), holds a picture of the president conferring him the Maha Vir Chakra award in January 1972. In the backdrop are his medals and a picture of the hunter aircraft, he flew when he attacked Pakistans deepest air-base in Peshawar. (Photo: DC)

Hyderabad: Air Vice Marshal C.V. Parker (retd), the only Maha Vir Chakra awardee from the IAF in the Telugu states, is among the celebrated fighter pilots. He played a crucial role in the 1971 Indo-Pak war, commanding the Lightnings, as Squadron No. 20, is called.

Equipped with Hunter aircraft, the squadron attacked air bases deep in enemy territory. He was given nation's second highest gallantry award for his attack on Peshawar.

The officer, who was born a year before the Indian Air Force was formed, is a resident of Vayupuri, is a pupil of the Great Indian Escape hero Flt. Lt. Dilip Parulkar.

AVM Parker (retd) has flown 22 types of aircraft and has logged 3,850 flying hours in his 35-year career. His squadron was the second most decorated in the IAF. The AVM recalled, The attack on Peshawar on December 4 was a classic in air warfare. Earlier, only Canberras had dared to fly all the way to the air base in Pakistan and bomb it. On that day, our Hunters flew almost 75 minutes and pulled up over the Peshawar airfield, and executed the operation.

He said the raid was special as the four aircraft of the strike force damaged Pakistans deepest air base from which the enemy could no longer operate. He was conferred the Maha Vir Chakra award for the attack

AVM Parker (retd) was commissioned into the IAF as a pilot officer in 1951 and served in the fighter stream all through. He served with the squadron as Flight Commander during the 1962 war. He missed the war in 1965 he was on deputation in the US, but made up for it in 1971.

I encountered three major flying accidents but survived all of them, he said with a chuckled while sitting at his residence in Vayupuri.

A double masters degree holder, AVM Parker (retd) also served as Commanding Officer of the IAF training school at Hakimpet, Dundigal and in Jammu and Kashmir.
New Delhi: The Central government and the Kerala government seems to be at loggerheads with Kerala questioning in the Supreme Court the NIA probe into the love jihad case relating to marriage of a Hindu woman with a Muslim after she converted to Islam.

In its response filed in the apex court in the petition filed by Shafin Jahan seeking to recall the order, Kerala said during the two-month long thorough investigation by the Kerala Police, no such incriminating material was found that called for an intervention by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

The matter has been listed for further hearing on October 9. Virtually giving a clean chit to Shafin Jahan, Kerala said the investigation conducted so far by the Kerala police has not revealed any incident relating to commission of any scheduled offences to make a report to the the Centre under Section 6 of the NIA Act, the affidavit said.

The affidavit contended that a Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Kerala Police has conducted detailed investigation into conversion of the 24-year-old Hindu woman and her subsequent marriage to a Muslim man.

It added that the Kerala Police is competent to conduct investigation in such crimes and it would have reported to the Central government in case of any incident requiring the involvement of NIA.

However, the department said, the investigation had to be handed over to the NIA by Kerala police in view of the SC order in August.

The SC had entrusted the probe to the NIA to find out whether there was any emerging pattern in the conversion of Hindu girls to Islam and whether there are organisations linked to ISIS and other jihadi groups, which radicalise Hindu girls.
Hyderabad: Leaders of Opposition parties, on Saturday, condemned the verbal attack launched by Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on them and on Telangana Joint Action Committee (TJAC) chairman Professor M Kodandaram, stating that the comments reflected the arrogant mindset of the Chief Minister and that they were indecent and undignified.

I cannot use intemperate words like the Chief Minister used against me and other Opposition leaders. It is below my dignity to repay in him in the same coin, leader of Opposition in the Assembly K Jana Reddy said.

As Chief Minister, Mr Chandrasekhar Rao should not be arrogant and talk in this manner of national leaders of the Congress including Mrs Sonia Gandhi who granted statehood, he said.

He said he was pained at being called a thief by Rao, and that no one had accused him of wrongdoing in last 40 years of his political life as the Chief Minister had done.

Speaking elsewhere, Prof Kodandaram said, I can only say Chandrasekhar Rao after becoming Chief Minister has completely ignored those who worked for Telangana and started working with those who betrayed Telangana.

As far as the Chief Ministers comments against me are concerned, I have decided to leave it to his wisdom. Statehood was achieved by several persons, not by one individual, he said.

At a separate media conference, TS TD working president A Revanth Reddy said that even before Rao had launched his indefinite fast seeking statehood, several Joint Action Committees and leaders had held many agitations. He said Prof Kodandaram was honest and was the guiding force behind several agitations for statehood.

BJP Legislature Party leader G Kishen Reddy said, without the BJPs support, Telangana statehood would not have come about. He said that BJP leader Sushma Swaraj had challenged the UPA many times to bring the Telangana Bill. He said the CM was known for being arrogant.
Sudan faces a "paradox", its foreign minister said Saturday, after Washington acknowledged Khartoum's support in tackling violent extremism but kept it on a blacklist of state sponsors of "terrorism".

"This is a paradox. We are the best country cooperating on countering terrorism and at the same time we are on the list of state sponsors of terrorism," Ibrahim Ghandour said.

His remarks, the first since the United States lifted a 20-year-old trade embargo against Sudan on Friday, came hours after the top US envoy to Khartoum said conditions have to be "right" for talks on removing Khartoum from the list.

Ghandour, who led the Sudanese team that negotiated the lifting of sanctions, said it was time to start such talks.

Speaking Saturday on a panel organised by a private television channel to discuss the lifting of US sanctions, he welcomed the lifting of the trade embargo.

It was the "start of a road to build the right relations with the United States," he said.

On Friday, Khartoum hailed Washington's decision to end the sanctions as a "positive decision", but expressed disappointment at not being removed from the list, which also includes Syria and Iran.

Sudan insists that there is "no reason" for it to be blacklisted, as it has cooperated with US intelligence agencies in fighting "terrorism" -- a claim acknowledged by the US State Department.

Washington first imposed sanctions on Khartoum in 1997 over its alleged support for Islamist militant groups.

Osama bin Laden, the slain Al-Qaeda founder, lived in Sudan between 1992 and 1996.

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The apex court had on January 16 allowed a Mumbai-based woman, who was in her 24th week of pregnancy to terminate the foetus taking into consideration the medical report which had suggested that the foetus would not be able to survive without the skull.

New Delhi: Taking note of a medical report that both the kidneys of a 31-week foetus are not functioning, the Supreme Court on Friday allowed a woman, to abort her pregnancy.

A bench of Justices A.K. Sikri, A.M. Sapre and Ashok Bhushan passed this order after perusing the report of the medical board of Mumbai-based JJ Hospital, where the woman was examined, stating that continuation of pregnancy would cause more mental anguish to her.

According to doctors opinion, the foetus has severe congenital problem and both its kidneys were not functioning and the condition was not compatible to life after birth.

The medical report said, We feel that at this stage termination of pregnancy is not going to be more hazardous than spontaneous delivery at term. Considering poor prognosis of the baby, continuing pregnancy will cause more mental anguish to the mother, the board said in its report submitted in the top court.

The bench in its brief order said, The prayer made in the writ petition is allowed to the extent the petitioner (woman) is free to undergo medical termination of her pregnancy.

The woman had approached the apex court seeking its permission to abort her foetus on the ground that it was suffering from severe anomaly.

Section 3(2)(b) of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act prohibits abortion of a foetus after 20 weeks of pregnancy.
Kochi: A team of officials from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Friday conducted raids at the residence and office of N. Ajith Kumar, assistant general manager, Cochin Shipyard Ltd (CSL,) in connection with an alleged fraud in Rs 1.55 crore scrap deal. Raids were also held at the office and residence of the scrap dealer, P.A. Mohammad Ali of South Indian Scrap Traders, Palarivattom. According to the FIR filed by the CBI Ernakulam unit Mr Kumar who was entrusted with the scrap deal conspired with Mr Ali and allowed the latter to collect the scrap without advance payment as stipulated by the contract.

Mr Kumar and Mr Ali are the first and second accused respectively in the case. CSL had decided to dispose of around 1,000 tonnes of ship repair steel scrap through e-auction in October 2016. The reserve price was fixed by a CSL committee at Rs 18,500 per tonne and subject to approval price at Rs 17,575 per tonne. The e-auction was cancelled as the highest bid of Rs 14,632 per tonne was lower than the reserved price and the STA. CSL then engaged a private valuer and he fixed a reserve price of Rs 12,418 per tonne and STA of Rs 11,797.

Based on this, auction was held in February this year and the highest bidder was South Indian Scrap Traders for an amount of Rs 14,622 per tonne. As per the contract, South India Scrap Traders was to make the total payment of Rs 1.55 crore in four installments and remove the scrap accordingly. The contract also stipulated that entire available quantity of scrap has to be removed in total. Mr Kumar however allowed Mr Ali to segregate the scrap and take out quality steel scraps.
Hyderabad: A consumer forum helped a 66-year-old man get his PhD degree certificate after a five-year struggle. Mr Satyanarayan Raju began his post-doctoral studies at the CMJ University of Meghalaya, via the Shivani College of IT and Management in Dilsukhnagar, in 2009. When he completed his course in 2012, he was only given a provisional degree certificate and was told that the university was unable to give him the actual certificate because it was in the midst of a legal tussle. Despite him having paid `1.2 lakh, he did not receive either his documents or his thesis.

In 2016, Mr Raju learnt that the legal complications had been resolved. He then approached the college in Dilsukhnagar again, requesting that he be given his degree certificate. When the college demanded another `1.2 lakh from him, he decided to approach the consumer court in Nizamabad. Upon receiving a notice from the forum, the college returned all the relevant documents to the complainant, except for his PhD degree and his thesis, which remained with the university.

The forum took note of a deficiency in service on the part of the CMJ University, the authorities had irresponsibly demanded more money from a scholar despite him having made all payments at the time of admission. It said, As per the judgment of the NCDRC, New Delhi 2013 (1) CPR 133(NC), the Registrar of Manipal Vs Dr Sushith, the original degree certificate cannot be withheld from the scholar. The Nizamabad district consumer redressal forum ordered the university to issue Mr Rajus certificate and thesis to him within 30 days and to pay him Rs 1,000 as compensation.
Hyderabad: Minister K.T. Rama Rao on Friday took to Twitter to praise his sister and Nizamabad MP Kalvakuntla Kavitha after the TRS-affiliated Telangana a Boggu Ghani Karmika Sangham (TBGKS) posted big win in the Singareni Collieries staff union elections.

Many congrats @RaoKavitha great job, he tweeted.

Ms Kavitha is the honorary president of the union, and had has actively campaigned during the poll. Mr Rama Rao also took the opportunity to lash out at the Opposition over Singareni poll results.

He said, Immoral alliance of Opposition parties sans any ideology could not stop TBGKS from sweeping Singareni. The tweet received more than 900 likes by the evening. Ministers felt the win for the TRS union was a reflection of hopes that the people had placed on the CMs leadership.
Belagavi: With the indefinite hunger strike by various organisations to make Mudalgi a taluk entering the 28th day on Friday, Small-Scale Industries Minister Ramesh Jarkiholi dropped his opposition to the move and joined his brother Balachandra Jarkiholi of the BJP to demand the status for the town at a meeting with CM Siddaramaiah in Bengaluru.

Mr Balachandra Jarkiholi later said Mr Siddaramaiah had agreed to clear the proposal at the next cabinet meeting. I met him along with my brother and urged him to do justice to the people of Mudalgi, who have been demanding a taluk status for 40 years, he said, claiming that after the meeting, the CM instructed the Chief Secretary to place the proposal before the coming cabinet meeting and promised to announce the new taluk in the next two weeks.

But Mr Ramesh Jarkiholi continued to insist during the meeting with the CM that no parts of his constituency should be added to the new taluk, sources said, adding that the government could give in to him.
Speaking at the public meeting held on the occasion, CPI national secretary K. Narayana said the only intention of the campaign was to achieve social justice for the people of Telangana

Jangaon (Warangal): In a bid to create awareness amongst the people about the failures of the TRS government, the CPI joined forces with all the Opposition parties and launched its Porubata in Jangaon on Friday.

Speaking at the public meeting held on the occasion, CPI national secretary K. Narayana said the only intention of the campaign was to achieve social justice for the people of Telangana. He said the state government has failed to fulfil its elections promises. This campaign would highlight the failures of the KCR government, Dr Narayana said.

Speaking about the ongoing issue between Jangaon district collector A. Sri Devasena and MLA Muttireddy Yadagiri Reddy, he demanded the state government act immediately on the issue.

An IAS officer is accusing the MLA of encroaching land belonging to a tank while the MLA denies the charges. Why is the state government mum on the issue? Conduct an inquiry in the issue and if the MLA is found guilty, suspend him, if the Collector is making false allegation, suspend her. But if you do not act, the people will soon suspend you, he warned.

CPM state secretary Tammineni Veerabhadram said that the people of the state had never asked for Bangaru Telangana as is being claimed by Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao. The people need jobs, land to till and water to irrigate, he said, adding: The Telangana talli statue depicts a rich princess with all the gold ornaments. The real Telangana talli should be like Chakali Ilamma.

TD state president L Ramana said when the state government fails to look after the people; its the responsibility of the Opposition to question the rulers. He called up on all the Opposition parties to come together in this fight for social justice.

TJAC chairman Prof M. Kodandaram said development does not mean building big buildings, only when people lead a good life can it be said the state is developed.

The Porubata campaign that began in Jangaon is expected to travel 5,801 km across the 31 districts in the state for 59 days. The finale will be held at a public meeting in Karimnagar on December 3.
Hyderabad: Taking on Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao for his direct attack, Telangana JAC chairman Prof. Kodandaram accused him of acting in a dictatorial style leaving no role for ministers, officials and even legislators.

Governance is in the hands of one family, which was not the objective or aim of the statehood movement, he said.

Everyone is aspiring for Bangaru Telangana, but the TRS government is transforming the state into Appula Telangana by borrowing over Rs 2 lakh- crore to burden people of the state, he said.

Prof. Kodandaram was speaking after the conclusion of a TJAC meeting. He said the tone and tenor of Mr Rao not only lowered his (Mr Raos) image but also that of the post.

It is very evident the CM does not like it if anyone questions him. During his two-hour press meet, the CM did not respond to questions raised by the TJAC but focused only on personal attacks. This was not what we fought for. We wanted a democratic Telangana state not the autocratic type of functioning, he said.

Prof. Kodandaram said they faced such attacks from anti-Telangana forces during the statehood movement, but never expected this to come in their own Telangana state.

Responding to the CMs objection on need for TJAC to continue in the new state, he recalled the words of Telangana ideologue Prof. Jayashankar. Once the goal of separate Telangana was reached, he wanted TJAC to strive for development of the new state to ensure Samajika Telangana, Prof. Kodandaram said.

The TJAC chairman said TRS government was acting in a manner to benefit only Andhra contractors with an eye on kickbacks and commissions, while the interests of Telangana contractors were ignored.

He said public money was being wasted in schemes like Mission Bhagiratha and Mission Kakatiya, which was why TJAC demanded a social audit.

He said pipelines were being laid in areas that had pipeline connectivity, raising doubts about governments intentions. He said government was going ahead with irrigation projects without detailed project reports and at times changing designs at will.

He said the Chief Minister never went to the Secretariat, but had built a very big house-cum-camp office. Neither his party men nor the general public can get CM's appointment easily, he added.
A few days ago a man in the American city of Las Vegas killed 59 strangers who were in a concert. He shot his machine guns into the crowd for over an hour, and he wounded over 500 people. The American police said that this was not an act of terrorism because he acted alone. The killer was a Christian. Would the police have said the same thing if he was Muslim? I dont think so. Not much is known about the man or his motives and so this conclusion that this was not terrorism needs to be examined, along with the wider issue of how we understand terrorism. My dictionary defines terrorism as the unlawful use of violence and intimidation, specially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims. If we look at this definition, many acts of violence can be defined as terrorism. Communal violence fits this perfectly because it is unlawful, aimed to intimidate, aimed at civilians and has political aims.

However, most of us do not see communal violence as terrorism. The massacre of Sikhs in 1984 is called a riot. The Muzaffarnagar violence against Muslims was a riot. The Mumbai violence in which hundreds of Muslims were killed after the Babri Masjid was brought down were riots. The retaliatory bomb attacks that followed were called terrorism. The massacre of 97 Muslims in Ahmedabads Naroda Patiya in 2002 was a riot. The massacre of 30 Hindus in Ahmedabads Akshardham the same year was a terrorist attack. The second problem is the line aimed at civilians. The majority of attacks in Jammu and Kashmir are against the armed forces and not civilians, but we consider them to be terrorist attacks. American law defines terrorism as the unlawful use of force and violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.

This definition aligns more or less with the dictionary one. As I said before, not much is known about the Vegas shooter or his motives. Absent that, it is unclear how the police was convinced this was not a terror attack because his political or social objectives were unknown. Indias law against terror is called Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) and was legislated by the Vajpayee government in 2002. Like many laws in India, it is very poorly drafted and the language is all over the place. It defines terrorism as whoever (a) with intent to threaten the unity, integrity, security or sovereignty of India or to strike terror in the people or any section of the people does any act or thing by using bombs, dynamite or other explosive substances or inflammable substances or firearms or other lethal weapons or poisons or noxious gases or other chemicals or by any other substances (whether biological or otherwise) of a hazardous nature or by any other means whatsoever, in such a manner as to cause, or likely to cause, death of, or injuries to any person or persons or loss of, or damage to, or destruction of, property or disruption of any supplies or services essential to the life of the community or causes damage or destruction of any property or equipment used or intended to be used for the defence of India or in connection with any other purposes of the Government of India, any state government or any of their agencies, or detains any person and threatens to kill or injure such person in order to compel the government or any other person to do or abstain from doing any act.

This is not all, the law continues: (b) is or continues to be a member of an association declared unlawful under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (37 of 1967), or voluntarily does an act aiding or promoting in any manner the objects of such association and in either case is in possession of any unlicensed firearms, ammunition, explosive or other instrument or substance capable of causing mass destruction and commits any act resulting in loss of human life or grievous injury to any person or causes significant damage to any property, commits a terrorist act. The crucial words are unity, integrity, security and sovereignty. Our fear of Indian disintegration, a wholly unfounded fear, is what primarily drives the definition. Why such strange words like dynamite (which is a mining explosive never used in terrorism) were specifically included but not RDX or C14 or another modern explosive is not known. Probably because the bureaucrat writing the law got his knowledge of explosives from watching Bollywood movies.

The POTA definition is at once wide and broad and very narrow, which is a good indication that not much thinking went into it. This does not surprise me because we have many laws that are poorly drafted and sweeping. All states have them. Without any crime being committed, Tamil Nadu can lock you up for a year without trial under the Prevention of dangerous activities of bootleggers, drug-offenders, forest-offenders, goondas, immoral traffic offenders, sand-offenders, sexual offenders, slum-grabbers and video pirates Act. To repeat, no crime needs to be committed, the government can jail you for a year if they suspect you will or may commit a crime in future. How does the government know someone is going to be a sand-offender or video pirate? Perhaps it has employed soothsayers and astrologers to do bhavishyavani. To return to the issue of defining terrorism, I think we all know the real logic. The linguist and writer Noam Chomsky, talking about American atrocities across the world, said: When we do it, its counter-terrorism. When they do it, its terrorism. Similarly, when we do it, its a riot or individuals acting alone. When Muslims do it, its terrorism.
The political uncertainty prevailing in Tamil Nadu is making many babus in the state move to the Centre. Sources say that at least six senior IAS officers have left for Delhi on Central deputation in the past five months. They include Ambuj Sharma, Jatindra Nath Swain, K. Rajaraman, S. Gopalakrishnan and even Shiv Das Meena, principal secretary to chief minister E.K. Palaniswami. The latest to leave the state is Ashish Kumar, a 2005-batch IAS officer, who shifted to the national capital last month as officer on special duty to minister of state for PMO. The exodus, observers note, could be also driven by the thought of missing out on a Central assignment which would make them eligible to become secretaries at the Centre later on.

Much-needed push for reforms

Modernising policing is one reform that has been hanging fire for ages. Dilli however sprung a pleasant surprise by announcing a Rs 25,000 crore internal security scheme to strengthen the law and order apparatus, modernise state police forces and enhance their capacity to combat terrorism. The Centre will apparently finance around 75 per cent while the rest will have to be provided by the states. Sources say that state governments have been disinclined to make any investments in police, which has led to slow pace of modernisation. More than a decade ago, the Supreme Court had issued directions to the Centre and state governments to transform their police forces into professional, accountable and efficient service units.

However, a recent report shows that compliance remains far from satisfactory with none of the governments enacting laws to adhere to the guidelines. This move of the Centre will encourage states to step up and take the requisite measures within the next three years. But experts are warning against expecting too much. While agreeing that modernisation scheme is a progressive and necessary step, it does not address the need for structural reforms, specially the need to provide full autonomy to the police, for it to discharge its functions in a modern democracy. But successive governments have been silent on this crucial question. Will the establishment free the police from the stranglehold of politicians, is a question few netas dare answer with any honesty.
Karachi: When Yogi Adityanath, chief minister of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, wanted to celebrate six months of the BJP government, what did he decide to do? According to a news report, he dropped the Taj Mahal from Uttar Pradeshs list of tourist attractions. This is akin to Paris deleting the Eiffel Tower from its tourist brochures, or New York downplaying the Empire State Building. So why downgrade the importance of this sublime expression of love built by Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife Mumtaz Mahal? Because it does not represent Indian ethos, according to the Yogi. Excuse me? I thought India was a syncretic place where different cultures, faiths and people were absorbed to produce a rich and vibrant civilisation. I might have been right once, but not in Narendra Modis India where the notion of a monolithic Hindu nationalism has taken root. Now, foreign NGOs, Pakistani theatre groups and iconic artists like the late M.F. Hussain have no place in this vast country of over a billion people. Yogi Adityanath has decided to give visiting dignitaries gifts of copies of the Gita and the Ramayana instead of the traditional miniature replicas of the Taj. No offence, but speaking for myself, I would prefer the Taj replica.

The Yogi was the chief priest of the main Hindu temple at Gorakhpur, so one would expect his worldview to be a bit limited. And to be fair, hes not the first official to downplay the Muslim contribution to Indian culture. I was in Mumbai around 12 years ago, and visited the old Prince of Wales museum, or, as it is now called, the Chhatraparti Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya. Inside, I found a vast display of historical objects, but oddly, no sign of any Mughal artefact. Indeed, somebody unfamiliar with the history of the subcontinent could be excused for thinking that there never had been a Muslim presence of any kind in India. Authoritarian states can erase or rewrite inconvenient chapters of their history. Thus, after Leon Trotsky had been exiled and made a non-person, all photos of the revolutionary communist leadership were issued without his image. A similar fate awaited Maos comrades who had fallen out of favour.

Insecure states, too, have a problem with uncomfortable historical events that run counter to the official narrative they are trying to promote. Thus, as India moves away from its tolerant, secular foundations laid by Nehru, a new, stirring ideology of a muscular Hindutva is replacing it. For its proponents, it is distinctly problematic to accept the centuries of Muslim rule that preceded the British Raj. Thus the constant attempts to airbrush the role Muslims played in India.

Pakistan, too, suffers from a variation on this theme. In a search for identity, it soon decided that the new state was an extension of the Arab Middle East, rather than a part of the subcontinent. The official version of Urdu was shorn of its sizeable component of Hindi words, and much of our Hindu past was ignored. Our schoolbooks reflect a warped version of history that now begins with the arrival of Islam. Thousands of years of rich, pre-Islamic civilisations that rose and fell by the Indus are neglected.

Successful and secure states take pride in their past, and research it diligently. Any discoveries that extend their history further back in time are celebrated. Yet we in Pakistan are so fixated by faith that we regard any pre-Islamic finds with the same suspicion we would accord a newly discovered time bomb. I still recall a bizarre experience when I was a newly appointed joint secretary in the culture ministry: I received a call from the Japanese embassy, and an official asked me when we would open the Quranic gallery at the National Museum in Karachi. Not having a clue, I promised to call him back. When I asked the director general of the archaeology department, his reply flabbergasted me. Apparently, the Japanese had flown out experts to design a special display area on the ground floor to exhibit the museums collection of old, exquisitely illuminated copies of the Holy Book. But local clerics had objected to their display below a floor that housed ancient Gandhara statues.

This is one small example of how ideology and a distorted version of faith can make us blind to truth and beauty. Sadly, the rise of ignorance and the retreat of reason in Pakistan is now being mirrored across the border. There is little difference between a Hindu being lynched here for alleged blasphemy, and a Muslim in India being killed on the charge of eating beef.One kind of extremism feeds off the other. When a literal understanding of religious texts replaces the search for their underlying symbolism, we end up with a list of dos and donts.

By arrangement with Dawn
Russian police on Saturday violently broke up an opposition rally in Saint Petersburg and detained more than 60 people protesting against President Vladimir Putin on his birthday, a monitoring group said.

Artyom Platov, spokesman for OVD-Info, a group that monitors politically motivated arrests, said at least 66 had been arrested in Russia's second city and Putin's hometown.

"These are the people we have confirmed data on," he told AFP.

Witnesses said police violently broke up the rally in which some 3,000 people took part, throwing protesters into police vans, injuring several demonstrators and forcing some to run for cover.

That stood in stark contrast with a rally in Moscow where police largely showed restraint and allowed protesters to march in the city centre.

The protests, along with rallies in dozens of other cities, were called by the jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny to mark Putin's 65th birthday, urge him to quit power and allow the opposition leader to run for president.

A total of 235 people in 25 cities were detained over the course of the day, Platov said.

Navalny has declared his intention to run in a presidential election next March to unseat Putin, although officials say he is not eligible to stand because he is serving a suspended sentence for fraud.

On Monday, he was sentenced to 20 days in jail on charges of repeatedly violating a law on organising public meetings.

Polina Kostyleva, the head of Navalny's campaign headquarters in Saint Petersburg, and several other people were detained even before the rally began.

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Richard Henderson, one of the 2017 Nobel Prize winners in Chemistry, holds a bacterio rhodopsin model prior to a press conference at the Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, England, Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2017. Three researchers based in the US, UK and Switzerland won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry on Wednesday for developments in electron microscopy. The 9-million-kronor ($1.1 million) prize is shared by Jacques Dubochet of the University of Lausanne, Joachim Frank at New Yorks Columbia University and Richard Henderson of MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, Britain. (Frank Augstein/Associated Press)

New York: Three researchers won a Nobel Prize on Wednesday for developing a microscope technique that lets scientists see exquisite details of the molecules that drive life - basically providing a front-row seat to study these tiny performers in their biological dance.

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said molecules can be captured down to the level of their atoms, and snapshots can catch them in mid-movement. That can help reveal how they interact.

"This method has moved biochemistry into a new era," the academy said in awarding its chemistry prize to Switzerland's Jacques Dubochet of the University of Lausanne, German-born U.S. citizen Joachim Frank at New York's Columbia University, and Briton Richard Henderson of MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, England.

The detailed images may pave the way for developing new medicines, vaccines and industrial chemicals, but experts said such payoffs are largely in the future.

"This is a technique that is just starting to find its way into the research community," said Allison A. Campbell, president of the American Chemical Society. It was recently used to reveal the structure of the Zika virus.

The method is called cryo-electron microscopy. It's like "Google Earth for molecules," Campbell said, because it "allows the scientist to zoom in down to the fine detail (giving) that fine resolution that you want to have."

Other methods have been used before to determine structures of some biological molecules, but they run up against fundamental limitations. The three winners of the $1.1 million (9 million kronor) prize adapted another technique, electron microscopy, which uses a beam of electrons rather than ordinary light to inspect samples.

Between 1975 and 1986, Frank developed mathematical models to turn fuzzy two-dimensional images into sharp, three-dimensional ones. Henderson, in 1990, was able to generate a three-dimensional image of a protein at atom-level resolution, showing the technology's potential, the Nobel committee said.

Dubochet, in the early 1980s, found a way to cool the water in a biological sample so quickly that it solidified without forming the ice crystals that can disrupt the electron beam.

Those early advances were followed by others that have greatly improved the technique, the Nobel committee said.

"It's the first time that we can see biological molecules in their natural environment and how they actually work together down to the individual atoms," said Nobel chemistry committee member Heiner Linke.

Henderson said Dubochet "kicked off the field; he invented this method of making specimens we now use."

Speaking to reporters in Cambridge, England, Henderson also said he felt "the three of us have been awarded the prize acting on behalf of the entire field."

Frank said he was "fully overwhelmed" and speechless upon hearing he had won a share of the prize.

"I thought the chances of a Nobel Prize were minuscule because there are so many other innovations and discoveries that happen almost every day," he said.

He said he hasn't yet thought about what to do with the prize money, but added: "I was telling my wife that we don't have to worry about a dog sitter anymore."

The chemistry prize was the third Nobel announced this week.

The medicine prize went to three Americans studying circadian rhythms: Jeffrey C. Hall, Michael Rosbash and Michael W. Young. The physics prize went to Rainer Weiss, Barry Barish and Kip Thorne for detecting gravitational waves.

The literature winner will be named Thursday and the peace prize will be announced Friday.

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Details, such as how much the new ideas will cost, were scant and outside experts said they've heard grandiose plans before only to see them fizzle instead of launch.

Washington: Seated before the grounded space shuttle Discovery, a constellation of Trump administration officials used soaring rhetoric to vow to send Americans back to the moon and then on to Mars.

After voicing celestial aspirations, top officials moved to what National Intelligence Director Dan Coats called "a dark side" to space policy. Coats, Vice President Mike Pence, other top officials and outside space experts said the United States has to counter and perhaps match potential enemies' ability to target US satellites.

Pence, several cabinet secretaries and White House advisers gathered in the shadow of the shuttle at the Smithsonian Institution's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center to chart a new path in space - government, commercial and military - for the country. It was the first meeting of the National Space Council, revived after it was disbanded in 1993.

But details, such as how much the new ideas will cost, were scant and outside experts said they've heard grandiose plans before only to see them fizzle instead of launch.

"We will return American astronauts to the moon, not only to leave behind footprints and flags, but to build the foundation we need to send Americans to Mars and beyond," Pence said.

Space industry leaders say they and NASA are building the spaceships to get there. And they're promising that in five years, astronauts could be working around the moon.

David Thompson, president of the space company Orbital ATK, said NASA's Orion capsule and super-sized Space Launch System rocket should be ready in a couple years, so flying around the moon and even making a lunar orbiting outpost is within reach. But he said a lunar landing would take longer. Blue Origin rocket company chief executive officer Bob Smith said his firm could have a lunar lander program ready within five years.

No humans have been on the moon since Apollo 17 in December 1972. Only 12 men have set foot on the moon, all have been Americans.

Past presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush proposed returns to the moon and then going on to Mars. Barack Obama rerouted the moon plan to an asteroid as a first-stop with Mars as the goal. All plans had lack of money keep them from coming true, said space expert Brian Weeden of the Secure World Foundation. He wasn't part of the council meeting.

"Is it going to happen? Who knows? I feel like I've been disappointed so many times I refuse to get excited," said Roger Launius, a longtime space historian.

And Gwynn Shotwell, president of SpaceX, said her company next year will launch astronauts to the International Space Station, the first American launch of people since 2011. After the 2003 space shuttle Columbia broke apart on descent, then-president George W. Bush announced the phasing out of the space shuttle program. Eventually, NASA started building new multibillion dollar ships, the Orion capsule and the SLS mega-rocket.

Pence several times bemoaned a US space program that had fallen behind, asking space executives what they thought.

"America is out-innovating the world in space launch," Shotwell said, noting that her company had launched 13 rockets this year, more than any other nation.

After talking about how "we will blaze new trails into that great frontier" Pence turned the discussion to the dangers of space and how much of the U.S. intelligence system and day-to-day life are dependent on commercial satellites operating safely. And he and others outlined threats to those satellites from potential enemies that could cripple American security and daily life.

Experts worried that satellites could be destroyed and debris in orbit could ruin others.

Pence asked if the U.S. should "weaponise" space.

"The choice whether or not to weaponise space is not one that we can make. We can only decide to match and raise our adversaries who are already weaponising space," former NASA chief Michael Griffin said. "That horse is already out of the barn."

White House National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster said the country needs to "deter and when necessary defeat adversaries' counter-space efforts... We may not start it but we will finish it."

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I stayed in Kashmir for seven years consecutively, sometimes for six months at a stretch teaching the children art, and healing them through art therapy. It was a spiritually uplifting experience, a sort of Sufi healing, avers artist Jeetin Rangher. Since 2010, Rangher has been leaving his art teacher job in Bengaluru, and travelling to Kashmir to work with the children in this conflict ridden state. He was instrumental in a community art project in Kashmir called Healing Hands  Art intervention in a conflict zone and is among the few artists that have immersed themselves into society there. Jeetin was also chosen among six artistes by the India Foundation For Arts for a special grant  Project 560 in 2014. I was also a part of the Serendipity Art Festival last year and the Jaipur Art Summit. And the Colombo Art Biennale is a favourite, I have been a couple of times, says the painter who is altruistic in his search.

Ranghers family hails from Lahore and Rawalpindi till they moved to Delhi and later Bengaluru. So he calls himself the displaced artist, an aspect he can identify with in Kashmir as well. That quintessential searcher, who has with his paintings, installations and performance art much to the chagrin of his parents and his Air Force upbringing, seen him don some madhatting avatars. Sometimes, in that pursuit, he admits to being penniless, as material comforts dont feature high in priorities. In the recent past, Rangher has been working on Monsoon in a Bottle Project for Art Oxygen in Mumbai, and eagerly hopes for a FICA grant to explore art further. But it was Kashmir that shaped and changed his perspective, I taught at a public school called Motherland Public School in Anantnag District. I would ask school children if they liked art, and most said that it was a sin according to their teachings. Which took me aback. Since I was mostly working with the Sunni sect, many were apprehensive towards art. I would then give examples of something as mundane as setting up a home kitchen, or even designs on our clothes, how there was a pattern to it all, and that inadvertently came under art.

Jeetin Rangher with his golden rickshaw

They understood. Most students were eight and ninth graders who then started enjoying working with colours and drawing. Another exercise I would give them would be to scribble on newspapers, and then ask them to decipher forms in the garble. Most city children (in Delhi and Bengaluru) would see guns missiles and technology. Wahan (Kashmir) pay, they saw thool (egg), phool, hearts and balloons. That was an eye opener  that in such a volatile zone, the children were refreshingly simple, innocent and untouched  so soft inside, explains Jeetin, who would listen to their stories, which were unlike any ever heard before about homes displaced, their stark reality. The best thing about Kashmir is the warmth of its people. Ek autowallah ko aap achi tarah se baat karo aur sach bolo, aur woh aap ko apne ghar le jayaega, khana khilaaney (An auto driver who youve exchanged pleasantries with will invite you home for a meal), he smiles. Jeetin also worked at the Banat School, run by the J and K Yateem Trust.

Infact, many a times, he would himself extend his stay, living in different friends homes, working with children, hitching rides with strangers, That was sweet, in a state where a stranger wearing a jacket and a knapsack, asking for a lift at night is suspicious, in the least. Dont know other cities where people would offer a lift to a stranger, says Jeetin, who was helped in his Kashmir Healing Hands Project by his friend Naushad Gayoor, a lecturer at the fine art college in Kashmir who also runs a foundation in his fathers name Gayoor Art Foundation. His art explosion has lead him to Delhi, Bengaluru, Mumbai and Simla where he explores social issues. A brilliant painter, he has evolved into an interactive performance artist who can be seen sitting on a charpoy in Goa, hugging people (which raised eyebrows) or wearing a turban on a beach, or sitting in a pothole, with a table of dinner laid out, or even working with the colour red on Delhi streets to capture the various facets that the colour represents, or capturing the essence of India in a golden rickshaw.

Rangher is also working towards a trans Siberian journey, that will see him paint and draw over 14 days across the region. The student of Ken School of Art in Bengaluru who did a masters in fine arts from Bangalore University in painting, recalls his first project,  Karavaan, where he travelled around North India when the BJP was brandishing the India Shining campaign, I decided to travel in a golden rickshaw, starting from Shantiniketan, I made plastic missiles  plastic being a huge issue, and did about 18 pertinent works. The artist feels that art taught in colleges in India is very altruistic in nature  for arts sake. Most students come out with those ideals, making it difficult for them to earn. The most important thing that needs to be taught at an art school is art management, he stresses.

Ask him about some of his interactive installations that seem strange, and he says, Detached people need to be provoked to react. They should be disturbed in their own psyche and that is what my installations do. No favourites, Jeetin feels that picking one artist ultimately negates the others. He laughs at how his Air Force parents still have no clue as to what he is doing, as sometimes they see him with black soot on his face or even haldi! The art activist hopes to address serious issues through art, hopefully making a difference.
Pictures taken by Liu and displayed on ThePapers website showed an iPhone 8 plus split open along the side featuring the SIM card holding, with the phones internal parts visible.

Beijing: A fresh case of Apple Incs new iPhone popping open due to a swollen battery has been reported in state media in China, the worlds biggest smartphone market where the U.S. firm is seeking to revive faltering sales.

The incident comes as Apple investigates similar cases reported in Taiwan and Japan of batteries in its latest iPhone 8 Plus becoming bloated, causing the devices casing to open.

On its website on Thursday, Chinas state-backed ThePaper.cn cited an iPhone buyer surnamed Liu as saying his newly purchased iPhone 8 Plus arrived cracked open on Oct. 5. There was no sign of scorching or an explosion.

Liu told ThePaper he bought the handset through online marketplace of JD.com Inc. He said he did not charge the new device and returned it to the seller.

Pictures taken by Liu and displayed on ThePapers website showed an iPhone 8 plus split open along the side featuring the SIM card holding, with the phones internal parts visible.

An Apple spokesperson said the company is looking into the matter and declined to comment further.

The incident comes as indifferent reviews of the iPhone 8, which comes 10 years after Apple released the first version of the revolutionary phone, drove down shares of the company since the handsets launch.

Some investors worry whether pre-orders for the device were well below previous launches, although some Apple fans are waiting for the premium iPhone X due out in early November.

Apple competes in China with local makers, including Huawei Technologies Co Ltd and Oppo which sell phones with high-end features at lower prices.

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The company's widely used search engine, Gmail, maps, Chrome web browser and other services have yielded a fountain of data the company has used to smarten up its software and gadgets.

San Francisco: Google's upgrades to its Pixel smartphones and other gadgets are its latest steps toward turning its digital services into your backup brain. The products the company unveiled on Wednesday are packed with artificial intelligence that Google has accumulated from those very same services. The company's widely used search engine, Gmail, maps, Chrome web browser and other services have yielded a fountain of data the company has used to smarten up its software and gadgets.

Over the past year, Google has been transplanting that knowledge into its Pixel line of phones, internet-connected speakers and, as of Wednesday, a new type of laptop and a small, hands-free camera that automatically learns when to snap pictures or record video of candid moments.

"All that hardware is just housing, and that isn't as interesting as what's inside the house," said Gartner analyst Tuong Nguyen. "The hardware is just a way for Google to show people the best way to experience its services."

THE HARDWARE TROJAN HORSE

Google recently signaled a long-term commitment to its own phones by spending $1.1 billion to bring on board 2,000 HTC engineers specializing in mobile devices - and to acquire some related technology, too.

Although sleekly designed, Google's Pixel phones and Home speakers aren't breakthroughs in themselves. In many respects, Google is simply copying or offering slight variations on devices made by Apple and Amazon that have been bigger hits so far.

But Google believes its services, particularly those driven by AI, can give it an edge over its rivals. If its devices catch on, they'll then generate additional data that Google can use to further refine its AI systems.

Already part of Google's smartphones and speakers, the assistant will soon also be featured in the new Pixelbook laptop and in new wireless headphones called Pixel Buds. It will be easier to summon in the next generation of Pixel phones; a new feature lets you squeeze the side of the device to ask a question.

Google's emphasis on its assistant is part of a battle with Apple's Siri and Amazon's Alexa to prove which is the most intelligent and efficient aide - one that might, one day, become a trusted companion.

NEW PHONES

The second generation of Google's Pixel phones unveiled Wednesday feature larger, brighter screens that take up more of the device's front, changes that Apple is also making with its iPhone X scheduled to be released next month.

Both the 6-inch Pixel XL and the 5-inch Pixel will also do away with the headphone jack, something Apple did with the iPhone 7 last year.

Google also souped up the already highly rated camera on the Pixel, boasting that it will take even better photos than the iPhone.

The Pixel 2 and Pixel XL 2 are adding a new mode for taking portraits, another popular feature on the iPhone 7 and recently released iPhone 8. But instead of relying on two cameras to take better portraits, Google is using AI software that adjusts photos automatically to enhance close-ups and blur backgrounds.

The smaller Pixel will sell for almost $650, $50 less than the iPhone 8. The Pixel XL will sell for almost $850, or $50 more than the iPhone 8 Plus. Prices for the iPhone X, by comparison, start at $1,000.

SMARTER HEADPHONES

Google also announced wireless headphones, called Pixel Buds. In addition to relaying audio from the phone, the headphones can also translate spoken language in real time, working with translation software built into the new Pixels. The feature also will be coming to last year's Pixel models in an update.

Another new photo feature, called Lens, will automatically display information about a landmark or piece of art in a picture. This will also be added to last year's Pixel models as Google tries to build brand loyalty.

The company, a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., still has a long way to go before making a significant dent in the market. In the past year, Google sold just 2.8 million Pixel phones, accounting for less than 1 percent of the worldwide market, according to the research firm International Data Corp.

Most of the Pixel buyers so far have been "fanboys and fangirls who understand and appreciate what Google brings to the table with Android, and voraciously take advantage of every new feature," said IDC analyst Ramon Llamas.

SMART SPEAKERS

The Google Home Mini unveiled Wednesday is a button-sized speaker covered in fabric. It includes the same features featured in a cylindrical speaker that Google rolled out last year in response to Amazon's Echo.

The Mini will cost almost $50, roughly the small price as Amazon's smaller speaker, the Echo Dot. The standard Google Home speaker costs almost $130. Last week, Amazon announced the next generation of its Echo speaker, coming out in time for the holiday shopping season, will cost just $100, a price that Google decided not to match.

The Google Home Max is a rectangular speaker with superior acoustics for playing music, mimicking Apple's HomePod. Google is selling the Home Max for almost $400, about $50 more than the HomePod. Both speakers are due to hit stores in December.

CANDID CAMERA

In a surprise move, Google is introducing a hands-free camera that will automatically take photos and video for people looking to catch candid moments of their family, friends and pet.

The small, square device, called Google Clips, can capture images of everything within its range of view. It will rely on AI to decide what and who is important to its users so it knows the best times to snap a photo or record video.

Google is promising that privacy controls built into Clips will give the camera's users complete control over the images they want to transfer to another device or to share with someone else.

Clips will sell for almost $250 and will be available in stores in December.

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Pakistan FM Khawaja Asif meets US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson in Washington on Thursday (Photo: Twitter)

Beijing: Amid mounting US pressure on Pakistan to rein in terror groups, China on Saturday backed its all-weather ally and said Washington should "give full recognition" to Islamabads "active efforts" to combat terrorism.

"Pakistan is at the forefront of the fight against terrorism," the Chinese Foreign Ministry said, reacting to Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen Joseph Dunfords remarks that Pakistans spy agency ISI has connections with terrorist groups and Islamabad should change its behaviour.

Over the years, Pakistan has made active efforts to combat terrorism and made huge sacrifices to combat terrorism, the ministry said in a written response to a question from PTI about Gen Dunfords comments.

US Defence Secretary James Mattis told a House Armed Services Committee that the US has asked Pakistan to change its behaviour and Washington will "try one more time" to work with Islamabad to end its support for terrorists.

Latest reports said US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will visit Pakistan to convey President Donald Trumps tough message to change its policies of backing terrorist groups.

"We believe that the international community should give full recognition to Pakistans counter-terrorism efforts," the ministry said.

China supports the international community to strengthen international anti-terrorism cooperation and form a concerted effort, it said.

"We hope that the two countries will cooperate in the fight against terrorism on the basis of mutual respect and work together for the security and stability of the region and the world," the ministry added.
President Donald Trump will dispatch his top diplomatic and military advisors to Pakistan in the coming weeks. (Photo: AFP | File)

Washington: President Donald Trump will dispatch his top diplomatic and military advisors to Pakistan in the coming weeks, turning up the heat on a nuclear-armed ally accused of harbouring terror groups.

Weeks after Trump angrily accused Islamabad of providing safe haven to "agents of chaos," Secretary of State Rex Tillerson plans to depart for Pakistan late this month.

He will be followed by Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, according to US and Pakistani sources.

The one-two punch is designed to drill home Trump's message that Pakistani state support for terrorist groups has to end, according to officials briefed on the visits.

Washington has long been frustrated by Pakistan's willingness to offer cross-border safe havens to Taliban factions and armed Islamist groups fighting US troops and their Afghan allies.

The relationship reached the breaking point in 2011, when president Barack Obama sent commandos into Pakistan in 2011 to kill Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden, who was living in a military garrison town.

With little change since then, Trump came to office indicating that Washington's frustration had reached the point where something had to give.

"We have been paying Pakistan billions and billions of dollars at the same time they are housing the very terrorists that we are fighting," he said an August address.

But in the six weeks since Trump signaled that tougher tone, there have been precious few signs that the calculus in South Asia has changed.

Mattis told Congress this week that he will try "one more time" to "see if we can make this work."

'Not acceptable'

"To this point, we have not seen any impact on military-to military-relations," said one Pentagon official, suggesting any change would not happen after Mattis' visit.

Visiting Washington, Pakistan's foreign minister Khawaja Asif appeared unwavering.

He lashed out at "hollow allegations" about Pakistan harboring terrorists as "not acceptable."

"That is not the way you talk to 70-year-old friends," Asif said bitterly.

"Instead of accusations and threats we should cooperate with each other for the peace in the region," he said while confirming Tillerson's visit.

While professing anger in public, Pakistani officials in private complain about receiving no concrete requests to target the Haqqani network or other groups.

US officials have been reticent to share some intelligence for fear of tipping off targets with links inside Pakistan's government.

Earlier this month a US drone killed three suspected terrorists in an attack on a compound in Pakistan's tribal region.

Pakistani officials also complain of receiving mixed messages from the Trump administration, which is still struggling to find its feed under a mercurial commander-in-chief.

A September meeting in New York between Vice President Mike Pence and Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was said to be cordial, despite Trump's fire and brimstone rhetoric.

"It was a very good meeting with the vice president," said Asif.

After that, Pakistan officials said, they were surprised at a tougher tone outlined in public by Mattis and in private by Trump's National Security Advisor HR McMaster.

'Call Pakistan's bluff'

Some optimists point to a visit by Pakistan's army chief to Kabul as evidence that Islamabad is moderating, after years of support propping up the Taliban.

But many, having watched this debate for decades, are less convinced.

The Taliban and groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba, they argue, remain a potent tool in the hands of Pakistani intelligence.

"Of course they don't get the message" said Christine Fair, a South Asia expert at Georgetown University.

"Pakistan is not going to do anything different than its already doing unless the administration can figure out a way to do what no administration has previously done."

"That is basically to call Pakistan's bluff and impose some meaningful punishment."

Trump has warned that military aid -- which halved between 2012 and 2016 -- could be cut further, a move that Fair dismisses as insufficient.

"It's basically saying that we're going to cut back the money the US taxpayer is giving to Pakistan" she said.

"That's not punishment. Pakistan is not entitled to our money. What they are really talking about is giving Pakistan less of an allowance."

Policy makers have considered revoking Pakistan's non-NATO ally status, with deep symbolic but limited practical impact.

Punitive economic sanctions -- that could force Pakistan closer to Turkey, China or Russia -- seem a long way off.

And Pakistan remains vital for the United States as a route to resupply its forces in Afghanistan and for supplying the Afghan army.
President Donald Trump will dispatch his top diplomatic and military advisers to Pakistan in the coming weeks, turning up the heat on a nuclear-armed ally accused of harbouring terror groups.

Weeks after Mr Trump angrily accused Islamabad of providing safe haven to agents of chaos, secretary of state Rex Tillerson plans to depart for Pakistan late this month. He will be followed by secretary of defence Jim Mattis, according to US and Pakistani sources.

The one-two punch is designed to drill home Mr Trumps message that Pakistani state support for jihadist groups has to end, according to officials briefed on the visits.

Washington has long been frustrated by Pakistans willingness to offer cross-border safe havens to Taliban factions and armed Islamist groups fighting US troops and their Afghan allies.
New Zealand's Prime Minister Bill English talks to hundreds of supporters after election results are announced on Saturday (Photo: AP)

Turangi: New Zealanders still don't know who will next lead their country after a final vote count from a general election held two weeks ago tightened the close race between liberals and incumbent conservatives.

Election officials on Saturday released the final 17 percent of the vote tally, including votes cast by people who were outside of their district or overseas during the election. The conservative National Party ended with 44 percent of the vote, while the liberal bloc of the Labour Party and the Green Party ended with a combined 43 percent.

Negotiations to form the next government will now begin in earnest.

Both sides will need to talk with the small New Zealand First party, led by maverick 72-year-old lawmaker Winston Peters. That party finished with 7 percent of the vote, leaving it holding the balance of power.

Peters hasn't indicated which of the larger parties he favors. A former National Party lawmaker, Peters has formed coalitions in the past with both National and Labour.

In the 120-seat parliament, the votes translate to 56 seats for National, 46 for Labour, nine for New Zealand First and eight for the Green Party. The final vote count gave both Labour and the Green Party one extra seat apiece over their election night tally. Those came at the expense of the National Party, which lost two seats.

Prime Minister Bill English said voters had clearly favored National over Labour and he looked forward to engaging with Peters so National could lead a strong and stable government.

The National Party has held power for the past nine years.

"Not since 1969 has the National Party finished ahead of the Labour opposition at four successive elections, and I want to thank everyone involved in this historic achievement," English said in a statement.

Labour leader Jacinda Ardern said she welcomed the final tally.

"Today's final election count has strengthened the mandate for change," she said in a statement.

Peters has said he plans to make a decision this week.

His policies are eclectic. He wants to drastically reduce immigration and stop foreigners from buying farms. He opposes plans by the National Party to increase the pension age and plans by the Labour Party to tax certain water users.

Until negotiations are complete, English will remain as caretaker prime minister.
Danish police have confirmed the remains found are that of the missing Swedish journalist Kim Wall. (Photo: Twitter)

Copenhagen: Danish police said Saturday divers had recovered the decapitated head and two legs of Swedish journalist Kim Wall, who vanished in August while interviewing a Danish inventor aboard his homemade submarine.

In a grisly case worthy of a Nordic noir thriller, Copenhagen police inspector Jens Moller Jensen told reporters divers had found bags containing her missing clothes, her head and legs in Koge Bay, south of the Danish capital.

"Last night our forensic dentist confirmed that it was Kim Wall's head," he said.

Her headless torso was found floating in waters off Copenhagen on August 21, 11 days after she went missing.

Self-taught engineer and inventor Peter Madsen, 46, has been accused of Wall's death, with prosecutors saying he dismembered her body before throwing it overboard.

Madsen, who is married and has been in custody since August 11, claims the 30-year-old Wall died when a 70-kilogramme (154-pound) hatch door fell on her head, and in a panic, he threw her body overboard.

He has insisted her body was intact at the time.

But Jensen said the decapitated head contradicted Madsen's version of events.

There is "no sign of fracture on the skull and there isn't any sign of other blunt violence to the skull," he said, citing an autopsy carried out overnight.

Locating Wall's head has been a priority for investigators, as the final autopsy on the torso was not able to establish the cause of death.

However, it did show multiple mutilation wounds to Wall's genitals.

- Fetish films -

Prosecutors believe Madsen killed Wall as part of a sexual fantasy, then dismembered and mutilated her body.

Earlier this week, Prosecutor Jakob Buch-Jepsen told a court custody hearing that a hard disk found in Madsen's workshop contained fetish films in which real women were tortured, decapitated and burned.

"This hard drive doesn't belong to me," Madsen insisted, saying numerous people had access to his workshop.

Madsen has insisted there was no sexual relationship between him and Wall, and their contacts had been purely professional.

Jensen said the divers on Friday found the body parts and clothes in bags weighed down with metal pieces. Her torso had also been weighed down when it was found, also in Koge Bay.

"Yesterday morning we found a bag within which we found Kim Wall's clothes, underwear, stockings, and shoes. In the same bag laid a knife, and there were some car pipes to weigh the bag down," he said.

"Around dinnertime we found one leg, and then another leg. And then we found a head that also laid in a bag, and was weighed down with multiple metal pieces."

Wall worked as a freelance journalist based in New York and China, and her articles were published in The Guardian, The New York Times and others.

At the time of her disappearance, Wall was believed to be working on a feature story about Madsen, an eccentric, well-known figure in Denmark.

Madsen has successfully launched rockets with the aim of developing private space travel.

His homemade submarine Nautilus, launched in 2008, was the biggest private sub ever made when he built it with help from a group of volunteers.

But the group became engaged in a long-running dispute over the Nautilus, before members of the board decided to transfer the vessel's ownership to Madsen, according to the sub's website.

In 2015, Madsen sent a text message to two members of the board claiming: "There is a curse on Nautilus".

"That curse is me. There will never be peace on Nautilus as long as I exist," Madsen wrote, according to the volunteers.
India sent INS Gharial loaded with 21,000 units of relief material to help its neighbouring nation evolve from the ongoing crisis. (Photo: AP)

Coxs Bazar: A top UN official said Saturday Bangladesh's plan to build the world's biggest refugee camp for 800,000-plus Rohingya Muslims was dangerous because overcrowding could heighten the risks of deadly diseases spreading quickly.

The arrival of more than half a million Rohingya refugees who have fled an army crackdown in Myanmar's troubled Rakhine state since August 25 has put an immense strain on already packed camps in Bangladesh.

Hard-pressed Bangladesh authorities plan to expand a refugee camp at Kutupalong near the border town of Cox's Bazar to accommodate all the Rohingya.

But Robert Watkins, the UN resident coordinator in Dhaka, told AFP the country should instead look for new sites to build more camps.

"When you concentrate too many people into a very small area, particularly the people who are very vulnerable to diseases, it is dangerous," Watkins told AFP.

"There are stronger possibilities, if there are any infectious diseases that spread, that will spread very quickly," he said, also highlighting fire risks in the camps.

"It is much easier to manage people, manage the health situation and security situation if there are a number of different camps rather than one concentrated camp."

At the request of the Bangladesh government, the UN's International Organization for Migration (IOM) has agreed to coordinate the work of aid agencies and help build shelters at the new camp site.

According to the IOM, the proposed camp will be the world's largest, dwarfing Bidi Bidi in Uganda and Dadaab in Kenya -- both housing around 300,000 refugees.

Three thousand acres (1,200 hectares) of land next to the existing Kutupalong camp have been set aside for the new Rohingya arrivals.

"700,000 is a big camp... we and our partners will have our work cut out for us", Joel Millman, an IOM spokesman, told reporters in Geneva on Friday.

But he added that UN agencies "wouldn't be undertaking this if we didn't think it was feasible".

Bangladeshi officials say the new camp will help them better manage relief operations and ensure the safety of the Rohingya amid fears that dispersed camps could become recruiting grounds for militants.

This week Bangladesh reported 4,000-5,000 Rohingya were crossing the border daily, with 10,000 more waiting at the frontier.

Watkins said the continuing influx represented "a very big challenge" for aid agencies.

"Just when we start to think we are getting on top of the situation, the numbers go up. We are not where we need to be right now," he said.

"There is still a lot more needed to be done."


Zakaullah said the China Pakistan Economic Corridor will bring peace and prosperity in the region and Pakistan Navy is playing a role in providing security for it.



The Pakistan Navy will get Sea King helicopters from the UK this year, and a submarine contract has also been formalised, he said.

Pakistan's new naval chief Admiral Zafar Mehmood Abbasi today took command of the navy here amid several security challenges facing the country.Outgoing naval chief Admiral Muhammad Zakaullah passed the baton of command to Admiral Abbasi at a ceremony in the capital, which was attended by senior officials from the three services and other government functionaries.In his farewell speech, Zakaullah highlighted some of the challenges faced by Pakistan, making the defence of marine frontier vital for overall security."The regional challenges are complex and far from being over. We believe it is important to maintain the regional balance of power," he said.He said Pakistan cannot remain oblivious to the power of India and would continue to upgrade its defence capabilities due to the evolving nature of threats.


According to Foreign Office sources, Attorney General Ashtar Ausaf Ali yesterday presided over a meeting of law experts and officials of the ministry of foreign affairs and other relevant departments to discuss the line of arguments in the ICJ.



"We will forcefully defend our position which is based on the fact that Jadhav is a serving Indian spy tasked to carry out subversive activities in Pakistan," the sources said.



Meanwhile, Ausaf told the Dawn that they had decided to hold weekly meetings in order to review the situation and "to finalise Islamabad's point of view and convert it into an appropriate rejoinder to India's allegations".



He said they were in touch with relevant stakeholders, including Khawar Qureshi who had pleaded Pakistan's case at the initial stage, to formalise a robust reply refuting all allegations levelled against Pakistan.



The daily reported that the attorney general's office is also busy documenting the case and collecting instances of the "atrocities and human rights violations committed by India" in Jammu and Kashmir.



On Thursday, the Pakistan Army said it is close to a decision on the mercy petition of Jadhav.



"Kulbhushan Jadhav's mercy petition has come to the army chief. There is a process, everything goes through a process but I can assure that it is near finalisation and we will give you news about this very soon," army spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor said.



Jadhav's death sentence was confirmed by Pakistan's army chief General Qamar Bajwa on April 10. He has filed an appeal with the army chief to seek clemency, which is still pending.



After India approached the ICJ, a 10-member bench on May 18 restrained Pakistan from executing Jadhav till adjudication of the case.



Jadhav's sentencing had evoked a sharp reaction in India.



India has warned Pakistan of consequences and damage to bilateral ties if the "premeditated murder" was carried out.



In its application, India had also informed the ICJ that it learnt about the death sentence against Jadhav from a press release.



India acknowledges that Jadhav had served with the Indian Navy but denies that he has any connection with the government. It also said that Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran.



India has also handed over to Pakistan an appeal by Jadhav's mother, initiating a process to get his conviction overturned.

Pakistan has started the process to file its plea in response to India's memorial submitted in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against the death sentence of Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav.Jadhav, a 46-year-old retired Indian Navy officer, was captured in Balochistan in March, 2016 by Pakistani security forces and tried in a military court which sentenced him to death for "espionage and subversive activities".The ICJ had asked Pakistan to submit its written response or memorial by December 13 before the court could start further proceedings.


Heeding to a request by Uzair Humayun, a Lahore-based man, Swaraj said medical visa will be given to his daughter for an open-heart surgery in India.



"We are issuing visa for the open heart surgery of your three-year-old daughter in India. We also pray for her speedy recovery here," Swaraj said in a tweet.



The external affairs minister also responded positively when Noorma Habib asked for her intervention in granting medical visa to her father who she said needs an urgent liver transplant.



"Yes, Noorma. We are allowing visa for the liver transplant of your father in India. We wish him a successful surgery and a long life," Swaraj tweeted.



Swaraj has been sympathetically considering medical visa applications from scores of Pakistani nationals notwithstanding strain in the relationship between the two countries over a host of issues.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj has said India will grant medical visas to an ailing Pakistani man requiring liver transplant and a three-year-old girl from the neighbouring country who needs an open-heart surgery.
Some 120 Islamic State fighters and 60 foreign mercenaries were killed in a series of Russian air strikes in Syria over the past 24 hours, the defence ministry in Moscow said today.



Puzzlingly, the ministry also said three senior IS commanders including Omar al-Shishani had been confirmed dead as a result of an earlier Russian strike.



Moscow reported al-Shishani's death despite the fact that the Pentagon said in 2016 the notorious fighter had been killed by American troops in Iraq.



"A command post of the terrorists and up to 80 (IS) fighters including nine natives of the Northern Caucasus were destroyed in the area of Mayadeen," the ministry said, adding that another 40 IS fighters were killed around the town of Albu Kamal.



Mayadeen is one of the Islamic State group's last bastions in Syria.



In another air strike, more than 60 foreign mercenaries from the former Soviet Union, Tunisia, and Egypt were killed in the Euphrates Valley south of Deir Ezzor.



The ministry said "large numbers of foreign mercenaries" were coming into the Syrian border town of Albu Kamal from Iraq.



It also said Russian forces had killed senior IS commanders Omar al-Shishani, Alaa al-din al-Shishani and Salah al-Din al-Shishani, all natives of the Northern Caucasus.



Moscow reported their deaths after taking "several days" to confirm the results of an earlier strike on the northern outskirts of Albu Kamal which destroyed an IS command post with more than 30 fighters including the natives of the Northern Caucasus.



The Pentagon announced in March 2016 that American forces had killed Shishani, one of the most notorious faces of IS known for his thick red beard.



Shishani, whose nom de guerre means "Omar the Chechen," came from the former Soviet state of Georgia's Pankisi Gorge region, which is populated mainly by ethnic Chechens.



He fought as a Chechen rebel against Russian forces before joining the Georgian military in 2006, and fought Russian forces again in Georgia in 2008.



He later resurfaced in northern Syria as the commander of a group of foreign fighters and became a senior leader within IS.



The Russian defence ministry was not immediately available for further comment.

Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, disagreed with Moscow's report.



"Salah al-Din al-Shishani is still alive and is somewhere in the regions controlled by jihadist groups in the west of Aleppo province. He is a famous commander, and his jihadist group is allied with the jihadists of the Al-Nusra front but only in their fight against the regime," he said.



"He has no links with IS."



The advances against IS in Deir Ezzor have resulted in a heavy civilian death toll through Russian and coalition air raids.



The Observatory said Russian air strikes on Thursday night killed 14 people, including three children, fleeing across the Euphrates on rafts near Mayadeen.



Since it intervened in Syria in 2015, Russia has not acknowledged any civilian deaths from its strikes, and it dismisses the Observatory's reporting as biased.



Moscow has been staging air strikes in support of its ally Damascus targeting both IS in Deir Ezzor province and rival jihadists led by Al-Qaeda's former Syria affiliate in Idlib province in the northwest.




Expressing concern over the rampant unauthorised sale of medicines online, the Bombay High Court has asked the Maharashtra government and the Centre to list the steps taken to regulate it.



A bench of Chief Justice Manjula Chellur and Justice NM Jamdar also directed the Centre to inform the court of the steps taken to stop the widespread online advertisements for sale of drugs without prescription.



The directions came while the bench was hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking that the government tackle illegal sale of 'Schedule H' or prescription medicines online.



The PIL had claimed that often college students bought such medicines, including sleeping pills and abortion pills, online without any prescription or by providing fake medical prescriptions.



As per the plea, the provisions of Drugs and Cosmetics Act 1940, and Drugs and Cosmetics Rules 1945, prohibit online sale of such medicines that mandatorily require a doctor's prescription.



Such drugs include anti-pregnancy pills, sleeping tablets and abortion pills.



The Centre told the court that in order to regulate the online sale of such medicines, it had already proposed to set up an e-portal where all manufacturers, distributors, and retailers who wish to sell medicines online, will have to mandatorily register themselves.



It said that action had been taken against several portals in this regard.



The bench noted that several drug manufacturers and sellers continued to advertise the sale of such drugs online.



It took note of a bunch of prints of such advertisements submitted by the petitioner.



"This is a serious issue. So many young students fall prey to serious and, in some cases, irreparable health hazards because of taking medicines without a doctor's prescription.



What have you done to stop this?" the bench said.



Considering the seriousness of the issue, the bench also appointed advocate Zal Andhyarujina as the amicus curiae, or the lawyer to assist the court while hearing the matter, and to suggest remedial measures.


Karnataka Home Minister Ramalinga Reddy on Saturday said the Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed to crack the killing of journalist and activist Gauri Lankesh will solve the case soon.



While he did not give any specific time frame for the arrests of culprits while speaking to media persons in Hubballi on Saturday, he said the SIT formed specially for the case is a short distance away from solving the case. I dont know about the other murder cases, but one thing I can assure is the killers of Gauri will be soon arrested, he said and added such murder cases can not be solved keeping time frame. Even the Central Bureau of Investigation which is looking into the killing of rationalists Narendra Dabholkar and Govind Pansare have not solved it even after 10 years, he said.



Refuting the claims made in some sections of media about the involvement of five members of Sanatan Sanstha, he said the SIT is looking at the case from all angles. Neither SIT officials nor his ministry has given any details regarding the persons involved in the case. I cant respond to what media houses write or broadcast, he said.



Responding to a question on illegal sale of country-made pistols from Vijaypur route that are said to be used in the killing of Gauri and rationalist M M Kalburagi, Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) Alok Mohan said a special team has been formed to trace the guns and already few cases have been booked in this regard. We may not be able to reveal all the investigation details to media now, he said
Schools in the city are biding time and holding discussions on how to implement the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) directions to conduct psychometric evaluation of all teaching and non-teaching staff.



In question is the effectiveness of the test and its affordability, considering that the cost of psychometric evaluation ranges from Rs 2,000 to Rs 3,000 per candidate.



M Srinivasan, president of the Management of Independent CBSE Schools Association (MICSA), said, How many schools will be able to afford the test when the cost for staff strength of 400 could go up to Rs 10 lakh? In spite of this, if we conduct the test, there is no assurance that it is foolproof.



They are concerned that responses to the test could be faked. With attrition rate among class IV employees being high, schools will have to conduct evaluations every few months, making the exercise a hassle and a drain on the finances. The association, which has about 300 member schools across the state, intends to call a meeting to discuss the matter, once schools reopen after vacation. However, if CBSE insists, they will have no choice but to comply.



To have some level of screening is a good measure, said Dr Bino Thomas, assistant professor of psychiatric social work at Nimhans. The tests are validated, they follow a standardised procedure and could bring some level of clarity on the personality of employees. However, he said it would not guarantee against crimes in schools.



People who commit such crimes are not serial criminals. They act in certain situations. A person could pass the test and still commit crimes, Thomas said.



Some kind of deviant behaviour such as narcissism and short temper can be identified. But it is not clear how to rule out candidates based on this, because there is not enough research on what kind of personalities tend to commit crimes against children, he said. Since the test is based on responses, it can be faked as well, he said.



Mettl, a firm in Gurugram, Haryana, which conducts personality assessments for recruiters, has been receiving enquiries from schools all over the country, including Karnataka, after CBSE issued the circular last month.



Ankit Bansal, business head of its education vertical, said faking the test is not easy and one can often get caught.



Candidates have to choose from responses such as agree, strongly disagree, neutral and so on. If they give answers which are socially desirable too often, it shows up in the result. Moreover, we ask the same question presented in different ways. It is unlikely that they will be able to keep track of their responses and inconsistencies will be caught by the system, he said.
Sidelined AIADMK leader V K Sasikala, out of jail on a five-day parole, today visited her husband M Natarajan who is recovering at a hospital here after undergoing a liver and kidney transplant.



Sasikala, who was removed from the AIADMK last month after the factions led by Chief Minister K Palaniswami and now Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam united, met Natarajan and was with him for about two hours in the hospital, sources said.



Later, she returned to her niece Krishnapriya's residence in the city. The beleaguered AIADMK leader's car briefly halted in front of a Ganesha temple in Kotturpuram and she prayed from inside the vehicle as used to be done by late AIADMK leader J Jayalalithaa.



Sasikala's low profile visit to hospital was in stark contrast to her public appearances prior to her incarceration in February. During her days before being imprisoned, she used to be surrounded by party men and loyalists raising slogans praising her as "Chinnamma".



Sasikala has been lodged in the Parapana Agrahara central jail since February this year after the Supreme Court upheld her conviction by a special court in a disproportionate assets case. Her relatives Ilavarasi and V N Sudhakaran are also serving four-year jail terms in the case. Facing tough parole conditions, she refrained from visiting party men or interacting with them during her hospital visit today. The hospital, meanwhile, said in a statement that Natarajan (74) is recovering and he is "awake and oriented and is on ventilator support through tracheostomy, which was performed on October 6". TTV Dhinakaran loyalist and senior leader Nanjil Sampath said he saw Sasikala in the hospital and told her to pray.



He said he asked Sasikala to recite 'Sundara Kandam' from the Ramayana "as it would bring her relief". Sasikala arrived in the city yesterday from the Parapana Agrahara central jail in Bengaluru after being granted parole for five days. Natarajan was admitted at the liver Intensive Care Unit of Gleneagles Global Health City under the care of a team of doctors led by Professor Mohamed Rela, the hospital said. It said that at the time of admission, he had "worsening liver failure, kidney failure and lung congestion, and underwent liver and kidney transplantation on October four." In a statement, Director, Institute of Liver Disease and Transplantation of the hospital, Dr K Ilankumaran said considering Natarajan's age and his associated co-morbidities, his condition was stable during the surgery and he is "recovering well in the liver intensive care unit". "He (Natarajan) is awake and oriented and he is on ventilator support through tracheostomy, which has been performed on October six." As in any other combined liver and kidney transplant surgeries, his condition would be critical for the next few days, Ilankumaran said, adding "he is under close observation and monitoring".



It may be recalled that Sasikala had sought parole for 15 days, but was granted only five days with tough conditions, including that she will not get involved in any political or other public activity or take part in party activities. She is allowed only to visit the hospital where her husband is admitted and stay at the residence as mentioned in the application. Sasikala has also been restricted from interacting with any media -- print or electronic.




In a yet another 'fatwa' (religious decree), prestigious Islamic seminary Darul Uloom, Deoband has termed eyebrow doing by women as ''un-islamic''.



The 'fatwa' issued by the seminary's Darul Ifta (department of fatwa) in response to a query, has also said that women should not get their hair cut as it too was against the tents of Islam.



A man from Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur district had sent a query to the seminary seeking to know if haircut and eyebrow doing were allowed in Islam.



''Eyebrow doing and cutting hair should be avoided as they are not in accordance with the tents of Islam,'' said the fatwa issued by senior cleric of the seminary Maulana Saadique Quasmi.



He said that Islam imposed ten restrictions on the women. ''These two are among those ten restrictions...just as Muslim men are not allowed to cut their beard, the women are not allowed haircut,'' the cleric added.



He said that women these days visited beauty parlors frequently. ''They (women) should not do it,'' Quasmi said in the fatwa issued on Friday.



Earlier also Darul Uloom had issued fatwas on issues concerning the women. In the earlier fatwas the seminary had said that women should not work as it made difficult for them to put on veil.



The seminary has a created a record of sorts in the issuance of fatwas. Many of its diktats have also come under sharp criticism from women's activists and Muslim organisations. The seminary, however, defended them saying that it merely answered the queries on the basis of the 'Shariat' (Islamic law).
A woman was allegedly gang-raped by four persons in front of her husband in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar district, about 500 kilometres from here.



The incident occurred on Friday evening, when the woman, who had not been keeping well for the past few days, was returning home with her husband and a two month old infant after showing herself to the doctor on a motor bike.



According to the police sources here, four persons, who were travelling in a car, waylaid the family near Nirgajani village in the district.



The miscreants, two of whom had put on mask on their faces, held the husband and the infant on gunpoint, forced the the couple to walk toward the nearby forested area. They tied the hubby with rope.



They later took turns to rape the woman, sources said adding that all of them made good their escape from the sport after perpetrating the crime.



Some local farmers, who were passing by, heard the cries of the husband and untied him.



Police said that a case has been registered in this regard and a hunt has been launched to nab the culprits. The victim was sent for medical examination.



Police officials said that it could be the work of members of some local criminal gang. Earlier also incidents of gang rapes had been reported from the area.



The opposition Samajwadi Party (SP) and Congress launched a scathing attack on the BJP government in the state accusing it of failing to ensure safety of the women.




"We believe that the international community should give full recognition to Pakistan's counter-terrorism efforts," the ministry said.



China supports the international community to strengthen international anti-terrorism cooperation and form a concerted effort, it said.



"We hope that the two countries will cooperate in the fight against terrorism on the basis of mutual respect and work together for the security and stability of the region and the world," the ministry added.



Amid mounting US pressure on Pakistan to rein in terror groups, China today backed its all-weather ally and said Washington should "give full recognition" to Islamabad's "active efforts" to combat terrorism."Pakistan is at the forefront of the fight against terrorism," the Chinese Foreign Ministry said, reacting to Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen Joseph Dunford's remarks that Pakistan's spy agency ISI has connections with terrorist groups and Islamabad should change its behaviour.Over the years, Pakistan has made active efforts to combat terrorism and made huge sacrifices to combat terrorism, the ministry said in a written response to a question from PTI about Gen Dunford's comments.US Defence Secretary James Mattis told a House Armed Services Committee that the US has asked Pakistan to change its behaviour and Washington will "try one more time" to work with Islamabad to end its support for terrorists.Latest reports said US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will visit Pakistan to convey President Donald Trump's tough message to change its policies of backing terrorist groups.
Suspected Islamists attacked a string of police stations in a small town in northern Mozambique killing two policemen but 14 of the gunmen were slain, police said on Saturday.



Police have been slow in releasing details of the attacks which occurred on Thursday and Friday in Mocimboa de Praia.



"We recorded 14 deaths and several bandits were wounded," police spokesman Inacio Dina told AFP.



Police said the attacks were coordinated.



Local media said three police stations in the sleepy town, 80 kilometres (50 miles) from natural gas fields, were targeted.



At a news conference on Thursday, Dina suggested the attackers were linked to a homegrown "radical Islamic sect" but gave no details.



Police have so far arrested 10 other gunmen, recovered four firearms and more than 100 rounds of ammunition.



"The motive of the attacks is still unknown but in the past police arrested some religious leaders of Islamic extremist sects," Dina said.



"The way they operated makes us believe that there is a structure behind the group," Dina told AFP, but ruled out any links "between the attackers and external forces".



"There is no evidence that they are members of Shabaab or Boko Haram. According to the information gathered, all those captured or killed are Mozambicans," said the police spokesman speaking from the capital Maputo.



A local journalist suggested on social media that the attackers belonged to the virtually unknown group, Swalissuna, which has been in existence for about five years.



"They have specific grievances with the police and aimed the attack at them," tweeted journalist and private media owner Erik Charas.



The attacks lasted two days, until the police dispatched special forces from Pemba, 500 kilometres away.



Armed clashes and assassinations of politicians are not uncommon in Mozambique. On-and-off clashes have occurred in recent years between government troops and armed militias loyal to opposition party and former rebel movement Renamo.



But a truce unilaterally declared by Renamo in December has been observed with only minor breaches.
You should know the difference between a copy and a fake. I was about to run down the stairs of Viennas Falschermuseum (Museum of Art Fakes) when a lady in black at Museums front desk stopped me with an alert.



Legit, I mumbled. In the unusual museum that hangs many a frame of fakes and forgeries, I could not fake knowing fake. I walked down the immaculate staircase, ignored the wooden easel, a fake Picasso drawing and stared at a framed printed note with Basics in bold.



Copy: A copy of an existing work without the reference that it is original. But the original painter must be dead for at least 70 years. A copy is not a forgery!



Fake/forgery: A copy of an existing work with the wrong reference it is original. Or, a work which was painted in the styles of the artist with the wrong reference (for example, false signature) it is an original of the artist.



So, a copy is not a essentially fake. And a fake could be counterfeiting, forgery. Packed with basics, I looked askance at the art nailed in the low-ceilinged former woodwork manufacturing unit. I first noticed Judith I. Originally titled Judith and the Head of Holofernes, the 33x17 inch oil on canvas painted by Gustav Klimt in 1901. I fixed my gaze at Judith. There was something amiss.



A few hours ago, I had seen the original Judith I in Viennas Belvedere Palace. That Judith was voluptuous, sensual, her lips parted in seduction and rebellion. But this Judith was languid, the gold not so lustrous and the arm a tad shorter. Truth is I did not notice the arm; Jeannette Koller, the guide, did.



An art lover and textile designer, Koller knows the master forgers. Edgar Mrugalla, Han van Meegeren, Konrad Kujau, Lothar Malskat and the fabled tale of Michaelangelo who, as a student, was given the task of copying a painting. It was so good that he switched them, submitting the original as his copy. This Museum is all about the fakes. It even owes its beginning to a master forger.



A chance encounter with art forger Edgar Mrugalla prompted the curiosity of Diane Grobe and Christian Rastner, Museums founders, about the spectacular world of art fraud. Mrugulla was no ordinary forger. He made more than 2,500 fakes and came clean in 1987, providing the German police with a 167-page document detailing how he had used coffee, tea and sun to make the sketches and paintings look far older than they are.



The Museum was opened in November 2005 and now has nearly 80 fakes and master copies. On one wall is an identical forgery of Otto Mullers (1874-1930) lithograph Self Portrait of Model and Mask (1921/22) by Mrugalla which is currently priced at 14,000 Euros (nearly Rs 11 lakhs). On another wall hangs the identical forgery (colour lithograph) by Tony Treto after Marc Chagalls (1887-1985) Bouquet Sur La Ville. A couple of Picasso fakes stand near a master copy of Raffaels (1483-1520) Madonna of Belvedere, an oil on wood painting and Egon Schieles black chalk on paper Maria Steiner (1918) which was master copied by Diana.



However, nothing beats the audacity of Konrad Kujau (1938-2000), the infamous creator of the fake Hitler Diaries. The manager of a rather unsuccessful cleaning company in Stuttgart who bought and sold Nazi memorabilia, Kujau created a series of 60 volumes of journals purportedly written by Adolf Hitler which he forged between 1981 and 1983.



After writing the diary, Kujau sprinkled tea over the pages and bashed the diaries against his desk to give them an aged look. In 1983, West German news magazine Stern purchased the diaries for $3.7 million and announced the acquisition under the headline Scoop of the Century. Kujaus forgery was discovered and Hitler Diaries gathered unprecedented infamy. Much later, a woman claiming to be Kujaus great-niece started selling supposed original fakes of Hitler Diaries. For faking a fake, she was hauled and arrested in 2010. The Museum of Art Fakes has a couple of the forged Diaries which is still considered one of the most audacious journalistic hoaxes ever attempted.



In Viennas Museum of Art Fakes, my perception of real and fake were getting addled. A few hours ago, inside the ornate Belvedere Palace I had gaped at the original art work by Gustav Klimt, Egon Schiele, Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn and Edvard Munch Few hours later, I was gawking at the fakes in a former woodwork manufacturing unit. I stood in front of Rembrandts Self Portrait with Flat Cap faked by Mrugulla and remembered what the painter had said: A painting is complete when it has the shadows of a god. In the Museum of Fakes, there was no shadow of god. Art was not real. It was fake.



(OPTIONAL)Fact file:



Lowengasse 28, Vienna



Timing: Tuesday-Sunday: 10am to 5pm



Ticket: Adults: 5.70 Euros; Children (11-18 years): 3.20 Euros



Website: http://www.faelschermuseum.com



Duping the Nazi bigwig



Master forger Han van Meegeren became notorious for faking Johannes Vermeers paintings. Often touted as the boldest modern forger of Old Masters, Meegeren was so brazen that he sold his forged version of Vermeers Christ and the Adulteress for an astronomical sum to Hermann Goering, the Nazi bigwig. Story is that, in 1943, Goering swapped 137 paintings from his largely ill-gotten collection for a van Meegeren Vermeer. Later, Meegeren was put on trial as a collaborator for selling Dutch heritage to the enemy, and had to fake another Vermeer under the supervision of a committee of experts to prove that he had duped Goering.












The submission of a Detailed Project Report (DPR) on the proposed Metro to the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) is only the beginning of a long chain of processes which will need to be expedited to benefit commuters.



Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) needs to expedite work on the Gottigere-Nagawara line (Reach 6), which is a prerequisite for the airport line. Even if BMRCL starts work on airport line in the next few months, it will take at least five years to realise the dream of connecting south Bengaluru with KIA through a single metro line.



BMRCL officials have said the airport metro will run on an express line where trains will go at a speed of 60 kmph, taking passengers from Nagawara to KIA in 30 minutes. One can board the metro at Bommasandra and reach the airport in about an hour.



The state government has shown its eagerness with two gestures, bringing the project to Phase 2 and choosing an alignment that requires a minimum land acquisition. We need to acquire an acre of land for each of the stations at RK Hegde Nagar, Jakkur, Yelahanka, Hejjala besides the two stations at the airport, sources in BMRCL said.



More technical reports, including crucial works such as soil testing, need to be prepared before civil work on the 29-km line can begin. With the Centres new metro policy insisting on private investment, mobilising funds for the Rs 5,900 crore project will be a challenge to the government. The Bangalore International Airport Limiteds (BIAL)'s in-principle approval to fund two stations has definitely given a shot in the arm to the government.



It remains to be seen how quickly the different parties arrive at a decision. Sources in the government have said there are several components related to funding of the project which needs clarity and may take some time.



As metro reaches further corners of the city in Phase 2 and adds new lines, there is no doubt that commuters to KIA, which has posted 25% growth in passenger traffic last year, will prefer Metro over the road transport prone to traffic snarls.



However, as urban transport experts and activists have pointed out, people will not shift from private vehicles and taxis to metro if the government fails to provide first and last mile connectivity. Additionally, the government should facilitate airline check-in facilities at metro stations, a convenience that will add to the attraction of Namma Metro.


Two drunk bike riders who tried to argue with the Bengaluru traffic police paid the price for it on Friday night.



The duo was not only detained by the police for over five hours for not cooperating with them, but also had to leave their bike at the police station and take a cab home later in the night as both were drunk. Besides paying a court fine, both the riders were also penalised for not wearing helmets.



Motorcyclist Vijay Kumar and pillion rider Lokesh, both residents of Nagarabhavi were returning home after partying at a pub on MG Road when they were flagged down by traffic police at Corporation Circle. The traffic policemen were on a special drive to check drunk driving.



As Kumar was reeking of alcohol, the policemen asked him to take breathalyser test, to which he objected. The two then started arguing with the police saying that they were being unnecessarily harassed.



Kumar and his friend Lokesh then called up Namma 100 and complained that the traffic police were unnecessarily harassing them and had even taken away their bike to an unknown location. A Hoysala patrol rushed to the spot and tried to convince them that their traffic counterparts were doing their job.



While Kumar remained adamant and refused to cooperate, he was taken to a government hospital where his blood was drawn for determining the blood alcohol level.



Later, the police took both the men to Halasuru Gate traffic police station where Kumar was made to blow into the breathalyser and asked to pay the fine in court the next day. His bike was then released.
A passenger from the United States was arrested at Kempegowda International Airport for carrying the satellite phone without valid documents. The suspect was Pearl Angela Mecenas.



The suspect was Pearl Angela Mecenas.



Wireless Telegraphy Act (WTA) bans carrying satellite phones across India. According to the police, she was to fly by Jet Airways 9W488 flight to Mumbai from where she was scheduled to fly to America on October 3.



"She was carrying the instrument in her hand baggage when the CISF staff found the instrument in her hand baggage during a routine check at departure gate around 6.10 pm. She failed to produce documents for the instrument," said a police officer.



Later, she was taken into custody for questioning by the CISF personnel who lodged a complaint with the police on October 4.



"During the questioning, the suspect claimed that she was using the satellite phone in her country and had brought it to India from there," the officer added.



She was produced before the magistrate, while she paid penality for carrying Thuraya satellite phone violating the WTA norms.



The phone has been handed over to the American Embassy. She has been asked to collect it from there after producing valid documents.
Citizens participation in governance, last seen during the protest against the steel flyover, was again evident on Saturday as peoples representatives and activists decided to fight for the city's needs.



A round table discussion called by a group of four NGOs to discuss integrity of transport and access to Metro stations soon turned into a platform to shape the future of the city with a vision.



Ashish Verma, associate professor of Transportation Engineering at Indian Institute of Science, supported the demand of urban transport expert Sanjeev Dyamannavar and resident of Vasanthagar, Rajkumar Dugar, that Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (BMRCL) should build the proposed Metro station at Cantonment in front of the railway station.



The future of mobility in a growing city like Bengaluru doesnt stop at physical integration of multiple modes of transport. There is need for a larger coordination among different agencies working for the city and its residents. So we need one overarching body that connects all of them, he said, after making a detailed presentation of the delay caused by lack of last-mile connectivity.



Urban transport expert Ashwin Mahesh said it was unfortunate that citizens had to demand integration of transport at Cantonment. The subject of the discussion should be how to get it done. We need an action plan to get what the citizens want, he said.



MPs P C Mohan and M V Rajeev Gowda, MLA C N Ashwath Narayan and BMTC chairman Nagaraj Yadav assured people that they will represent their demand at the highest level.



Civic expert V Ravichandrar and urban architect Naresh Narasimhan questioned BMRCL's decision to "boycott" the citizens meet. "Is it Namma (our) Metro or nimma (your) Metro? It is not technical reasons we are facing at Cantonment. The problem is BMRCLs giant ego. Our agencies and officials should learn from previous mistakes," Narasimhan said.

MP moves Delhi officials over Metro station



Bangalore Central MP P C Mohan said he has already written to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah urging him not to change the location of the proposed Cantonment Metro station. "I received no reply. So, MP Ananth Kumar an I approached the secretary at Union Ministry of Urban Development Department and expressed our opposition to BMRCL's move. I have sought a joint inspection from central officials to put an end to the issue," he said.
She braved many odds and surmounted many challenges to become a nurse. Now, she will perform a dream role  Consul General of Canada in Bengaluru for a day  on October 10.



Jayanthi G was among nine girls interviewed from non-governmental organisations in Bengaluru and Tamil Nadu to be the honorary consul general for a day.



"I am excited about my selection. I did not expect to get selected. But I had made sincere efforts and my video presentation was good," the 25-year-old nurse at Kallamanaickerpatti Government Hospital in Virudhnagar (Tamil Nadu), told DH. "I am preparing for the big day. I come from a small place. But I have decided to be bold and confident when I meet people on October 10 in Bengaluru. I worked my way up in a hard way."



The event will be held on the eve of International Day of the Girl Child which falls on October 11.



Jayanthi hails from Ethirkottai village near Sivakasi and was brought up by her mother on her meagre earnings after her father abandoned the family. She says her job has given her an opportunity to serve the poor.



At the consulate, preparations began six weeks ago. "Based on the initial telephonic screening and review of the videos sent in by girls willing to be consul general, we chose Jayanthi. We also took into consideration her background, education and career," Jennifer Daubeny, the Consul General of Canada, told DH.



The honorary consul general was chosen after a consideration of her circumstances. Jayanthi also answered questions about how she could inspire girls.



Jayanthi will visit two schools with Daubeny and attend a lunch with female consuls general, besides active businesswomen.
The state government has directed Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) to operate buses using compressed natural gas (CNG) on a pilot basis to examine whether it is cost effective.



The transport department has directed BMTC to run CNG buses on a pilot basis. Concerns have been expressed on the cost of operating CNG buses. An appropriate decision on inducting CNG-enabled buses will be taken based on the results, transport department Secretary B Basavaraaju said.



The governments move comes almost two years after BMTC submitted a report claiming that the cost of operation and maintenance of CNG buses is higher compared to diesel buses.



However, GAIL Gas Ltd, which is developing infrastructure to supply CNG and piped natural gas (PNG) in Bengaluru Urban and Bengaluru Rural districts, has been claiming that CNG-enabled buses are not only cost-effective but also environment-friendly. Gail Gas has already set up four CNG refill stations at Beggars Colony, off Magadi road; Sumanahalli; Peenya and Hennur.



Even a high-level committee headed by the Chief Secretary had recommended to the government to extend financial assistance, if necessary, to BMTC to purchase CNG-enabled buses. But the corporation had been shying away from doing so.
The Supreme Court has asked the Centre to clarify its contradictory stand on raising the cap on iron ore extraction from Ballari, Chitradurga and Tumakuru districts.



In view of the contradictory stand taken in two sets of applications by the Union of India, we would like to know the precise stand and the precise prayer with regard to the ceiling/cap, a three-judge bench presided over by Justice Ranjan Gogoi asked.



The bench, also comprising Justices Abhay Manohar Sapre and Navin Sinha, noted that the plea made by the steel ministry was for raising the production cap from 30 MMT to 50 MMT.



The mines ministry, however, wanted the task of raising the iron ore extraction bar to be left for an experts body to determine. The court asked Additional Solicitor General Maninder Singh, representing the central government, to file a consolidated application on or before October 10, the next date of hearing.



The apex court had earlier approved the Central Empowered Committees recommendation to fix the cap of maximum 30 million tonnes of iron ore per annum for extracting from ore-rich districts of Ballari, Chitradurga and Tumakuru.



However, the Karnataka government subsequently wanted it to be raised to 40 MMT per annum.
The Karnataka State Bar Council and the Advocates Association, Bengaluru, have decided not to give a farewell to outgoing Chief Justice S K Mukherjee on Monday.



Y R Sadashiva Reddy, co-chairman, Bar Council of India, said that they were not inclined to give a farewell.



Reddy said this is probably the first time that the Bar Council is not bidding farewell to a judge or a chief justice.



A source in the Advocates Association said that they unanimously decided not to give a farewell.



Justice H G Ramesh has been appointed the acting chief justice. The Ministry of Law and Justice issued a notification in this regard.
Aditya Birla Health Insurance, a 51:49 joint venture between the Aditya Birla Group and MMI Holdings of South Africa, has put in place a multi-channel distribution model across agency, broking, bancassurance, direct marketing, online channel and more.



The company offers group and retail health insurance products. In an interview with Furquan Moharkan of DH, companys CEO, Mayank Bathwal explains how technological advances in the insurance segment will provide an opportunity for insurers. Edited excerpts:



How do you see Indias health insurance market poised right now?



The healthcare spend in India today is about Rs 6 lakh crore, and this excludes the fashionable part of the healthcare like beauty and cosmetics.



The amount that is being paid by the health insurance industry as claims is about Rs 30,000 crore annually. So the balance is funded by people themselves.



The category of expense that you have on healthcare, funded by health insurers is hospital benefits, which is a tertiary care.



Who is actually buying health insurance?



Early age customers, say up to age of 35, do not have interest in this product, because they feel what is in it for them. So, people typically start looking at this product in the late 30s. And by the time they turn 50, if they havent bought this product, chances of getting this is less. Insurance companies wont accept them, as they have some disease conditions. So there is a chance to penetrate across segments and across age groups.



How much is the penetration of health insurance in India?



About 30 crore people have taken health insurance throughout the country. A bulk of it through government funded schemes, such as Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY). Less than 3 crore retail insurance policies have been bought in India. So hardly 3-4% of the population has been covered through retail insurance.



How do you penetrate in segments that have been mostly untouched till now?



That is what attracted us to this category last year. Even though the category size is small today, but it is the second fastest growing segment across the insurance sector, after crop insurance.



Though this growth is still linked to hospitalisation benefit product. So I feel that there is a huge opportunity.



Why do you think so?



There are two to three reasons to it. Technology will provide us opportunity to ensure the things that were not earlier possible. Today, why are we not able to provide out of hospital expenses? Because if I visit a doctor, there is ambiguity with regards to possible fraud and abuse.



I have to provide a much wider choice in terms of the doctor network for out of hospital charges. It was very difficult earlier.



But now, it is possible because there are enough networks available now, like Practo.



So these are now an opportunity. Insurers can leverage those networks to reduce fraud and abuse.



Is Aditya Birla Health Insurance planning any kind of expansion?



We were clear when we started that we are not a me too player in this segment, because opportunity here is much larger. We have tied up with MMI Holding, a South African-based financial services group. Our proposition is that category should play a much larger role than just insurance.



Customers want good health. You dont buy this product wanting to go to the hospital next year. But what if I come and tell you, that if you do something to stay healthy, I will reward you.



Suppose if you have an interest in staying healthy, why not I help you in staying healthy.



A customer staying healthy is of paramount interest to us, because if you stay healthy, I also tend to gain.



After all my claims are going to be less. Today, the insurers are playing a passive role on this front.



Hence, we are rewarding our customers for staying healthy.




The commerce ministry on Saturday said it will revisit the $900 billion exports target by 2019-20 as the country's shipments are not able to show healthy growth rate in the first three years.



After holding over three-hour long meeting with exporters, Commerce Secretary Rita Teaotia said that certainly there is a need to revisit the export target because in the external world nobody calculated for the global commodity prices and currency fluctuations.



"We are certainly not going to aim for the same target because we have not been able to show that growth rate in the first three years," she told reporters here.



On April 1, 2015, the government announced a slew of incentives and new institutional mechanisms as part of the new Foreign Trade Policy (2015-2020) to nearly double country's goods and services exports to $900 billion by 2019-2020.



India exports goods worth around $300 billion per fiscal year, while services exports amounted to around $150 billion annually.



On whether the ministry would come out with the mid-term review of the foreign trade policy, she said Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu would take a call after returning from Morocco, where he is going for a WTO (World Trade Organisation) meeting.



"Whether we will issue a formal statement of intent (on the policy), the minister has to take a view on that," she said.



However, she added that the mid-term review is on and some got addressed through the Goods and Services Tax (GST).



Speaking to reporters, Prabhu said that it was agreed in the meeting that each export promotion council (EPC) "is now going to prepare a concrete strategic action plan for what can be done in the foreseeable future" to boost exports.



He said the ministry would act on the suggestions made by the stakeholders today.



"We will together act on those inputs in the next two- three weeks and therefore we will also prepare a plan," he said, adding most of the issues are related to the finance ministry and "we are going to take those issues with them".



People who participated in the meeting include leading exporters, EPCs, associations, industry chambers, spices board.



Minister for Textiles and Information and Broadcasting Smriti Zubin Irani also participated in the meeting.



Prabhu also stressed on the importance of export led growth and called for enhancing competitiveness and integration with global value chain.



The deliberations flagged global and domestic challenges faced by exporters.



GST related issues regarding working capital blockage, delay in refunds and usability of Merchandise Exports from India Scheme and Service Exports from India Scheme scrips were raised by exporters.



In the context of mid-term review of the FTP, exporters requested inclusion of more products under these schemes and interest subsidy scheme and also increase in the rates of incentive.



The meeting also provided inputs for a new export strategy focusing on integrating India into the regional and global value chain, focus on high and medium technology sectors of exports and unleashing potential of services such as tourism and ecommerce.



In a series of tweets, Prabhu said: "We must align our standards with global standards. Benchmarking will stimulate exports, ensure India's integration with global value chain".



"We are working on short, medium and long term strategies. There can be short term challenges but the future belongs to India," he added.



India's exports recorded a double digit growth of 10.29% after a gap of three months to $23.81 billion in August, mainly on account of rise in shipments of chemicals, petroleum and engineering products.



Cumulative exports during April-August 2017-18 increased by 8.57% to $118.57 billion, while imports grew by 26.63% to $181.71 billion, leaving a trade deficit of $63.14 billion.
Though Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Gujarat on Saturday likened the slash in GST to an early Diwali, former NDA minister Arun Shourie continued to attack him for the economic slowdown.



Shourie said it was a big mistake to have supported Modi initially and compared the prime minister to US President Donald Trump. Shourie said both the leaders claim that people and the media are after them in their respective countries, which he believed was a ploy to play victimhood.



Trump has all along been complaining that people are against him and the media also tries to portray him in a wrong light, he said.



Here, without naming Modi, Shourie said the prime minister insisted that post demonetisation he has been at the receiving end. Modi has also been saying that even if he is killed, he will not stop serving the Dalits.



Shourie said Modi was resorting to these tactics to play the victim card and exploit people.



Shourie joined his former colleague in the Vajpayee government, Yashwant Sinha, to launch a tirade against the sluggish economy, blaming it on demonetisation and GST.


In a case of jilted love, a man killed his would-be wife, suspecting her fidelity, and packed her body in a polythene sack and dumped it into the BDL lake near Kukatpally here.



The body was fished out on Saturday after the culprit surrendered before the police and narrated the gory details of the murder.



According to Kukatpally police, R Soumya, an intermediate student from Jeedimetla, was reported missing on Friday by her parents as she could not be reached on her mobile phone and did not return home from college.



Her parents suspected her fiance K Krishnaiah, a cab driver. Even before the police could apprehend him, Krishnaiah landed at the police station, under which the BDL lake falls. He admitted to killing his fiancee in a fit of rage.



Police said the suspect had got angry when he found Soumya chatting with someone on her mobile phone. On Friday, he took her to Chintal forest area where he strangulated her to death.



He then got a sack from the municipal dumping ground and packed her body in it before disposing it off in the lake.



Police have sent the body for postmortem to Gandhi Hospital. Krishnaiah has been booked under IPC Sections 363, 302 and 201, and has been remanded in judicial custody.



Married, divorced



The case took a curious turn when Soumyas grandfather and mother fought over the body at the mortuary. Soumyas aunt Kalyani told reporters that the victim was married four years ago.



She divorced her husband and was staying with her grandfather and studying, Kalyani said.



She said Soumyas marriage was fixed with Krishnaiah with the consent of both the families.



However Soumyas mother, a widow, blamed her father-in-law for the tragedy.
Despite nudging by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the European Union remained non-committal about reviewing a new regulation on basmati rice that would potentially stop exports to the EU nations after December 30.



Donald Franciszek Tusk and Jean-Claude Juncker, presidents of the European Council and the European Union, told Modi that reviewing the law would be possible only if the plant protection company comes up with data to support claims that the residual fungicide in the rice will not harm its citizens.



Introduced on June 9 last, the regulation wants residue level -or permissible limit- of fungicide Tricyclazole in imported Basmati Rice from 1.00 milligram per kilogram to 0.01 milligram per kilogram. The fungicide Tricyclazole is widely used by rice-growers across India. Basmati rice exporters at home had urged Modi to nudge the leaders to agree for a review, since the new regulations would be a telling blow on their earnings from selling the rice to the EU countries.



India exports over 350,000 tonnes of Basmati Rice, valued at over Rs1,700 crore, to European Union countries every year. The rice farmers and traders have been concerned over implication of the new regulation on the export of the cereal grain from India to Europe.



The Prime Minister raised the issue with the two leaders during the 14th India-EU summit held in New Delhi on Friday.



With regard to import tolerance level of Tricyclazole in rice the relevant plant protection companies will be invited to present new scientific data in order for the European Food Safety Authority to carry out an additional risk assessment without delay, read a joint statement of the EU with India after the meeting.
The process for the election of new Congress president has entered the last lap with state units passing resolutions urging Rahul Gandhi to assume the top post.



The newly elected Tamil Nadu Pradesh Congress Committee was the first to pass a resolution at its meeting on Friday asking the Congress president to nominate the state unit president, the executive committee and AICC delegates.



On Saturday, the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee passed a similar resolution at a meeting attended by its chief Ajay Maken, former prime minister Manmohan Singh among others.



We, newly elected delegates to the DPCC, unanimously resolve that Rahul Gandhi, should take over as the president of the AlCC, read a second resolution that was passed at the DPCC meeting held here.



Similar resolutions are expected to be passed by state units of the Congress across the country by Tuesday. Armed with these resolutions, the Chairman of the Central Election Authority, Mullapally Ramachandran is scheduled to meet Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday.



Gandhi is then expected to convene a meeting of the Congress Working Committee to draw up the schedule of the presidential election.



Our schedule for the presidential poll will be similar to the one announced by the Election Commission. Rahul Gandhi could be declared elected as Congress president if no one else files nomination papers to make it a contest, a senior leader said.



The presidential election will be followed by another round of polls to elect the Congress Working Committee. The CWC has 25 members, of whom at least 12 are elected by All India Congress Committee (AICC) delegates. The last elections to the CWC were held in 1997. Since then, the Congress president had been empowered to constitute the CWC, which is the partys top decision making body.
A Youth Congress leader sustained burns while protesting against the Central governments decision to hike prices of essential commodities, at Mysore Bank Circle on Saturday morning.



The injured was identified as Sumantha, General Secretary of the Youth Congress.



The protestors brought three large stoves and set up firewood to boil vegetables. To light the fire, they carried a bottle of petrol, the police said.



While one of them was pouring petrol, the bottle slipped and spilt on Sumantha's clothes who was sitting near a stove, waiting to cook. As soon as the fire was lit, it engulfed her clothes and she started screaming, leading to a commotion. Sumantha was rescued by a few supporters who put off the fire using the party flags. She was then rushed to a nearby hospital where she is said to be out of danger. However the protest continued amid the commotion, they added.
The Election Commission (EC) may find it difficult to procure enough Electronic Voting Machines and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail devices to hold simultaneous polls in the near future.



The discussion over the feasibility of holding simultaneous polls gained momentum this week after Election Commissioner O P Rawat commented on the logistical preparedness to conduct national and state elections together.



A source in the commission, however, said that the ECs own promise to deploy Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) devices with all the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) in all future polls made it all the more difficult for it to be logistically ready to hold simultaneous elections in the next two years, even if a political consensus was evolved and legal hurdles were overcome.



On April 3, the EC stated that it had 53,500 VVPATs and on April 21 it issued a Letter of Intent for the purchase of 16,15,000 VVPATs at an estimated cost of Rs 3,173.47 crore during 2017-18 and 2018-19 from Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) and Electronics Corporation of India Limited (ECIL). The EC communicated to BEL and ECIL its intent to purchase 8,07,500 VVPATs from each public sector undertaking by September 2018.



The number of VVPATs available with the EC is thus expected to go up to 16,68,500 within the next one year.



So the EC may have enough VVPATs to deploy with all the EVMs it will use for polling in the 14 states where Assembly elections will be held later this year, wnext year and 2019, as well as for the Lok Sabha elections in April-May 2019.



But another source in the EC said the commission would require much more EVMs and VVPATs if elections to all state assemblies and the Lok Sabha were to be held simultaneously in 2018 or 2019.



The EC had written to the Ministry of Law and Justice in May 2016 that it would require at least 25 lakh VVPATs to hold simultaneous elections.



The commission would thus have a shortage of about 8 lakh VVPATs if it would have to hold Assembly and parliamentary polls together towards the end of 2018.



Even if the elections to all the assemblies are held together with the Lok Sabha polls in 2019, it might still be difficult to procure the required number of VVPATs, the source said.



A NITI Ayog discussion paper on the proposal of simultaneous polls  co-authored by eminent economist Bibek Debroy with the panels official Kishore Desai  noted that the EC would require more than 8 lakh additional EVMs, only if the elections for the 14 states - which would go to polls over the next 20 months - were held along with the Lok Sabha polls in mid-2019.



The EC currently has about 17 lakh EVMs but it plans to phase out by 2019 about 9.3 lakhs machines which were purchased before 2006.
The government on Friday dismissed reports about fresh build-up by Chinese Peoples Liberation Army at Doklam Plateau in western Bhutan, stating that the scene of the 72-day-long face-off witnessed no further development since August 28 disengagement.



We have seen recent press-reports on Doklam. There are no new developments at the face-off site and its vicinity since the 28th August disengagement, Raveesh Kumar, official spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs, said.



His comment came after the opposition Congress criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP-led Government in view of the reports on fresh build-up by Chinese PLA near Doklam Plateau.



The status quo prevails in this area (Doklam), said MEA spokesperson.



The Doklam Plateau in western Bhutan witnessed a face-off between Chinese Peoples Liberation Army and Indian Army from June 18 to August 28. The face-off added to the strains in India-China bilateral relations.



The Chinese PLA soldiers had started building a road in Doklam Plateau near the disputed China-Bhutan border on June 16, brushing aside protest by the border guards of the tiny Himalayan Kingdom.



The Indian Army soldiers from Doka La in Sikkim had gone to Doklam Plateau on June 18 and stopped the Chinese PLA soldiers from constructing the road, which would have had serious security implications for Siliguri Corridor linking Indias north-eastern States with the rest of the country.



The face-off ended on August 28.



The recent reports however indicated that the Chinese PLA had deployed more troops in its forward posts in the vicinity of Doklam Plateau in the past few weeks. Besides, the PLA soldiers also reported to have made at least three incursion into territory claimed by Bhutan along Chinas disputed border with Himalayan Kingdom.
Seven private-aided engineering colleges are up in arms as the State government has asked them to repay grants they received between 2003 and 2009 under the World Bank-assisted Technical Education Quality Improvement Programme (TEQIP).



The Department of Technical Education, the nodal agency for TEQIP, has written to the colleges, informing them that the recovery will start from 2017-18 financial year.



TEQIP is aimed at improving infrastructure at technical education institutions in India, and approved by the Union government in 2002. Under the first phase - February 2003 to March 2009 - Karnataka received Rs 162 crore for 14 engineering colleges. This included two government colleges, seven private-aided colleges and five private-unaided colleges. The state government pitched in with a share of 20%, which is Rs 32.40 crore. Of this, the DTE says Rs 24.62 crore (76%) is recoverable because it was a loan, whereas the remaining 24% was a grant.



According to a MoU we signed with the State government, private-aided colleges were supposed to get a grant and not a loan, the principal of one of the colleges said, requesting anonymity.



The affected colleges are: BMS College of Engineering and Dr Ambedkar Institute of Technology (Bengaluru), Sri Jayachamarajendra College of Engineering and National Institute of Engineering (Mysuru), Basaveshwara Engineering College (Bagalkot), Malnad College of Engineering (Hassan) and PDA Engineering College (Kalaburagi).




The state government is considering increasing the minimum tenure of police officers at a place of posting from a year to two years to comply with the Supreme Court directions on police transfers, Home Minister Ramalinga Reddy said here on Saturday.



He was speaking to journalists after holding a review meeting with officers of the northern police range and the Belagavi police commissionerate. To a question on political interference in police transfers, Reddy said police officers should be posted and transferred through the Police Establishment Board. We will ensure there is no political interference and officials are posted in a non-political manner, he added.



The minister dismissed the accusations by Jagadish Shettar, the Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly, that the government is misusing the ACB to harass income tax officials who raided Energy Minister D K Shivakumar.
The High Court of Karnataka on Saturday extended the stay granted on the summons to PWD Minister H C Mahadevappas son Sunil Bose by the Special Lokayukta court at Mysuru.



The court had issued summons to Bose to appear before it in a bribery case. Justice Rathnakala extended the stay on the summons.



The case relates to Alphonse, an official attached to the Department of Mines and Geology, who was caught red-handed receiving a bribe of Rs 1 lakh from one Basavaraju. During investigation, the official stated that he took money on behalf of Sunil Bose (ministers son). However, after three years, while submitting the charge sheet, only Alphonse was charged with the crime, while Bose and his assistant Raju were left off.



Complainant Basavaraju, who worked as manager with one Nandakrishna, who runs a sand transport firm, took objection to it and moved the court. He sought directions to add both Bose and Raju as additional accused. Thereafter, the special court summoned them to appear before the court.



HC relief to BDA official



The High Court of Karnataka on Saturday granted a stay on the Anti Corruption Bureaus (ACB) proceedings against S N Gowrishankar, the then deputy commissioner (Land Acquisition), Bangalore Development Authority, one of the accused in the denotification of land pertaining to Dr Shivaram Karanth Layout in North Bengaluru.



Gowrishankar is accused of issuing the endorsement to the land owners with regard to the status of the acquisition. The endorsement issued by the Land Acquisition officer stated that the state government had decided to drop certain land from acquisition.



ACB contended that BDA wanted to acquire the land as only preliminary notification was issued and final notification was not issued.



Justice Aravind Kumar has granted the stay on the ACB proceedings as the proceedings initiated against Yeddyurappa stayed. The judge ordered notice to ACB in the matter and adjourned the hearing.








Mustangs by the Bay is more than just another car club show. It is an opportunity to spend a Sunday in beautiful Embarcadero Marina Park North in San Diego. This is a place where people from around the world come for their vacation.

In the background, yachts are docked in front of the San Diego Convention Center, and on one end is Seaport Village with its many quaint shops, a wide variety of restaurants and talented buskers  who entertained on this particular day with a mix of music, performance art and more.

Classic first generation Mustang (Jan Wagner / ) (Jan Wagner /)

New 2012 Super Cobra Jet FR500CJ drag race Mustang (Jan Wagner / ) (Jan Wagner /)

(Jan Wagner / ) (Jan Wagner /)

Mustang driving in Embarcadero Marina Park North after the car show (Jan Wagner / ) (Jan Wagner /)

The show was limited to 350 entries  mostly Ford Mustangs. They were displayed, according to their classes, on the gently rolling, green grass slopes of the park.

As in years past, the show was a fund raising benefit for the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1774s annual toy drive for local, needy, military families, as well as for other local charities.

The weather was picture-perfect, as it most always is in San Diego. Wispy white clouds floated against the background of a vibrant blue sky, above green grass and the Pacific Ocean. We are so spoiled in San Diego.

Many participants spent much of their day relaxing on lawn chairs and chatting with friends  old and new. Others applied final cleaning touches to their cars in advance of the judges critical visits.

Some strolled over to nearby Seaport Village, repeatedly pausing along the way to photograph cars, before arriving at their destination and exploring the fascinating shops  including the kite shop with its bright, multi-colored kites and lawn decorations.

Before returning to the car show to check out the vendors exhibits, to see if we had won any of the many raffle prizes and for the awards presentation, it was tempting to eat lunch at Seaport Village. My personal lunchtime favorite is the marinated and flame-broiled Grecian chicken breast sandwich, served as a wrap on pita bread, at the Greek Islands Cafe (celebrating 37 years in business).

Fortunately the stubborn shipboard blaze that had started on Friday in a ship that was docked near Seaport Village had finally begun to subside. The once raging flames and black smoke that had been seen on Friday were no longer visible. Nevertheless, a San Diego Harbor Police fireboat was still pumping water from a powerful water cannon against the side of the destroyed vessel in order to cool it down. The tremendous heat had transformed its superstructure into an eerily twisted mass of wreckage, in time for Halloween.

Back at the car show, one of the most rare Ford factory built Mustangs was a brand new 2012, race ready, 5.4 L Super Cobra Jet FR500CJ drag race Mustang (#25 of 50). This $100,000, 2012 Mustang was so new that it still had its little sheet of clear plastic covering the Mustang emblem on the center of its steering wheel. Its tires (drag racer skinny at the front and super wide slicks at the rear) had likely never seen duty on a drag race track and, since the car is not street legal, it has probably never been driven except for on and off of transporters. However its owner did treat us to the glorious sounds of its engine.

Other than the Mustangs, cool cars included Cobras, Panteras, a gorgeous 1955 Ford Crown Victoria (two-tone Regency Purple and Snowshoe White original factory color) and a 1947 Willys Jeep CJ2A with a trailer.

There were classes for Stock and Modified Mustangs, as well as classes for other makes. Stock is a mostly stock, mildly personalized class, whereas Modified encompasses cars with more significant alterations to their interior, exterior and performance.

While I did not win an award for my low mileage, 2011 Mustang GT 5.0 (white with red leather, six-speed manual transmission and high performance 3.73 rear end ratio), I did win one of the raffle prizes: Steve Magnantes new book entitled 1001 Mustang Facts, covering all six generations of Mustangs. Did you know that the 2005 Mustangs were the first ones built that did not share their platform with another Ford model?

One particularly cool tradition after the awards are given out takes place just before the cars leave the park. Many participants take advantage of the rare opportunity to photograph their cars in the park against backgrounds of the water, the San Diego Convention Center, yachts docked at the marina and the Coronado Bay Bridge.

Join in the conversation. Send your comments and suggestions to AutoMatters@gmail.com.

Copyright  2017 by Jan Wagner  AutoMatters & More #509
By Michael T. Klare

17 September 2017

(TomDispatch)  Deployed to the Houston area to assist in Hurricane Harvey relief efforts, U.S. military forces hadnt even completed their assignments when they were hurriedly dispatched to Florida, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands to face Irma, the fiercest hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic Ocean. Florida Governor Rick Scott, who had sent members of the state National Guard to devastated Houston, anxiously recalled them while putting in place emergency measures for his own state. A small flotilla of naval vessels, originally sent to waters off Texas, was similarly redirected to the Caribbean, while specialized combat units drawn from as far afield as Colorado, Illinois, and Rhode Island were rushed to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Meanwhile, members of the California National Guard were being mobilized to fight wildfires raging across that state (as across much of the West) during its hottest summer on record.Think of this as the new face of homeland security: containing the damage to Americas seacoasts, forests, and other vulnerable areas caused by extreme weather events made all the more frequent and destructive thanks to climate change. This is a war that wont have a name  not yet, not in the Trump era, but it will be no less real for that. The firepower of the federal government was being trained on Harvey, as William Brock Long, administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), put it in a blunt expression of this warlike approach. But dont expect any of the military officials involved in such efforts to identify climate change as the source of their new strategic orientation, not while Commander in Chief Donald Trump sits in the Oval Office refusing to acknowledge the reality of global warming or its role in heightening the intensity of major storms; not while he continues to stock his administration, top to bottom, with climate-change deniers.Until Trump moved into the White House, however, senior military officers in the Pentagon were speaking openly of the threats posed to American security by climate change and how that phenomenon might alter the very nature of their work. Though mums the word today, since the early years of this century military officials have regularly focused on and discussed such matters, issuing striking warnings about an impending increase in extreme weather events  hurricanes, incessant rainfalls, protracted heat waves, and droughts  and ways in which that would mean an ever-expanding domestic role for the military in both disaster response and planning for an extreme future.That future, of course, is now. [more]
By Hal Bernton

26 September 2017

(The Seattle Times)  The Washington State Department of Ecology has denied a key permit for the Millennium Bulk Terminals in Longview, a decision that if it withstands appeal would kill the last remaining proposal in the state to export Western coal to Asia.The department denied the permit citing nine problem areas, including rail safety, air pollution, noise pollution, and tribal resources. There are simply too many unavoidable and negative environmental impacts for the project to move forward, Ecology Director Maia Bellon, said in a statement Tuesday.The terminal developers have proposed to move as much as 44 million metric tons of coal annually  to arrive daily in up to 16 trains, each more than a mile long  through Cowlitz County. It would be the largest coal-export terminal in North America.The departments decision denies Millennium a state water-quality permit needed to fill 24 acres of wetlands and dredge 41.5 acres of the Columbias riverbed, according to the department statement.Bellon, in an interview with reporters, said the denial was based on a broader evaluation of the projects impact, including on water quality.The decision was denounced by Millennium President William Chapman, who accused the Ecology Department of ignoring decades of law in rejecting that permit and the need for employment in Cowlitz County. [more]
By Alan Burdick 21 September 2017 (The New Yorker)  Every spring, in alpine regions around the world, one of Earths tiniest migrations takes place. The migrants are single-celled green algae; they are kin to seaweed, but instead of living in the sea they live in snow. (Snow weed, maybe?) They spend the winter deep in the snowpack, atop last summers snow, as dormant cysts. In the spring, they wake and swim up through the trickle of snowmelt to the surface, dividing and photosynthesizing as they go. Then, at the top, they turn red. This creates what scientists call pink snow or watermelon snowdrifts and glaciers that look like Slush Puppies and eventually reduce to rivulets of crimson.The color comes from astaxanthin, a molecular cousin of the chemical that makes carrots orange. The algae produce it seemingly as a sunscreen; it absorbs UV light, warming the organisms, and, critically, melting the surrounding snow. The melting helps them a lot, Roman Dial, a biologist at Alaska Pacific University, told me recently. The surface of a snowfield can be a very dry place; the liquid water drains away. And life just cant use frozen water. Its like if you were out camping and your water bottle was frozen, youd be thirsty until it melted.Watermelon snow is a perfectly natural phenomenon, but in an age of disappearing glaciers it is also problematic. Last year, scientists discovered that the algae had reduced the amount of sunlight reflected by some glaciers in Scandinaviaand increased the amount of sunlight absorbedby thirteen per cent. The result, as Dial and his colleagues demonstrated in this months issue of Nature Geoscience , is faster melting. As in other parts of the warming planetparticularly the Arctic, where scientists fear that thawing permafrost may be triggering a climatic feedback loop the effect is likely self-perpetuating. Ice sheets are already being darkened by dust, soot, and ash, which hasten melting and add nutrients on which algae can flourish. As the organisms proliferate, they melt even more snow, which allows them to proliferate again. It spreads more rapidly than people realize, once it gets established, Dial said. [ more ]

Why the Last Snow on Earth May Be Red

In his study, done with Professor Roman Dial, Ganey discussed how an algae species found in glaciers can tint the snow crimson and cause the surrounding ice to melt faster.The paper explained that the red hue, which is found in alpine and polar settings around the world during spring and summer months, comes from a class of pigments in the algae. The more that are packed together, the redder the snow, and subsequently, the faster the ice melts. While the melt is good for the microbes that need the liquid water to survive and thrive, its bad for glaciers that are already melting from a myriad of other causes.To further test their theory, the researchers grew the pink snow with water or fertilizer in experimental plots in Harding Icefield and compared the growth response of the algae to control plots where nothing was added (they also sprayed some algae-destroying bleach on a few plots to make up for it). Adding water, they found, led to a 50 percent growth compared to the control regions. Adding fertilizer quadrupled the growth.They then tracked how much the areas melted over the course of 100 days. As they thought, places with more algae melted at a faster rate than where algae had been removed. They also employed satellite imagery to find that the algae grew on more than a third of the entire icefield (270 of 730 square miles).Dial said its too early to tell just yet what the melting means for Alaskans.We need to know how widespread the effects of snow algae are on melt, Dial explained. If they are widespread, then it means algae could contribute substantially to glacier melting, sea level rise, and even warming, since they absorb solar energy that further melts glaciers that reflect light that generally cools the atmosphere. If they are not widespread, then its just an interesting fact.The next step in the process in seeing just how widespread the melt is will using satellite imagery. Professor Jason Gecks Remote Sensing class is currently doing a class project on that right now.Though Dial has been involved with snow algae studies for 15 years, he said MSES student Gerard Ganey was the lead author on the paper and did all of the work.Over the course of the study, Ganey made dozens of trips up to Harding Icefield, none of the using helicopters or airplanes, rather all by foot and skiing. He enlisted APU Ski Team members and professional climbers to help him, as they were the only ones who could keep up.He weathered storms, wind, and rain, Dial said. He literally used data from the microscope to the satellite. He learned glaciology, microbiology, spectrometry, remote sensing, statistical analysis, GIS, and modeling on top of hiking from near sea level to 4,000 feet to undertake experiments in one of the harshest environments in Alaska: rainy, windy icefields.Dial added, From my point of view he represented what an APU grad student is all about: physically tough, intellectually capable, persistent, and inter-disciplinary.
The much anticipated highlight of the Donegal Bay and Blue Stacks Festival, the annual Ballyshannon Carnival Parade, takes place this evening, Saturday, October 7th, from 7.30pm.

This years theme is Away With The Fairies!, as Ballyshannons most famous literary son, William Allingham (1824-1889), is celebrated in a Carnivalesque interpretation of his most famous and best loved poem, The Fairies.

On Carnival Night, the streets will be brought to life by Dark Daughter Productions, LUXe landscape theatre company, Workhouse Studios, Ballyshannons Unstoppable Street Band and Stagecraft, against a special carnival soundscape created by local electronic music wizard, Slowplacelikehome.

They will be joined by up to 200 performers including Transition Year students from Magh Ene College Bundoran and Colaiste Cholm Cille, Ballyshannon, as well as visiting students to Ireland from the Donegal Language School Study Abroad Programme, ID Languages and the Turf n Surf USA Gap Year Students. Performers from many local adult community groups will also participate, including the Ernedale Heights Womens Group and the Adult Artists Group, who have participated with huge enthusiasm in workshops facilitated by Tom Meskell, Fidelma Flannely, Marie Loughlin, Stephanie Pawula, Niamh Currid, Corey McDermot and Michelle Bell.

The Carnival Finale, Where Fairies Play, will take place appropriately enough on the William Allingham Bridge in the centre of town. Devised and produced by Maria Loughlin and directed by Michelle Bell for Dark Daughter Productions, the new dance drama piece will focus on the Thorn Tree and its magical fairy power, as referenced in Allinghams poem. A Thorn Tree sculpture, created specially by Diarmaid Flaherty (of Blue Raincoat Theatre) will form the centrepiece of the drama and there will be music by Alain Finan and Niamh Currid with the Transition Year Drummers.

Please Note: Parking restrictions and traffic diversions will be in place along the parade route from 6pm to 9pm.
They say you should never stop learning because life never stops teaching.

Luckily in Donegal a valuable resource is available to help keep up with lifes lessons.

The Lifelong Learning programme run by Donegal Local Development CLG in collaboration with local education providers offers practical, motivational, and health-promoting workshops and courses free of charge to people of all ages at locations throughout the county. It is part of the Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP) currently being delivered by DLDC.

Lifelong Learning supports individuals on their lifelong journey, said Programme Co-ordinator Susan Kierce-Marsh of DLDC. It doesnt have an employment focus, but instead is designed to increase participants knowledge, skills, and competencies, which in turn can provide a big boost to their self-esteem. Everything we do is tailored towards what the individual needs and where they want to go.

Just some of the Lifelong Learning offerings designed to meet local interests and needs include Mind Your Mental Health, Women in the Home  New Beginnings, Farming Inheritance, Succession, and Tax Information, Mini-Me Yoga, and Digital Skills Training.

Information about these and more will be available at an Education and Training Showcase that DLDC is holding on Friday, 13th October, from 10am to 1pm at the Finn Valley Leisure Centre in Stranorlar.

The event, which is free and open to the public, will feature an address at noon by inspirational Donegal adventurer Nikki Bradley, whose achievements have earned her a Guinness World Record and a national Outstanding Young Person of the Year award.

Additional information about Lifelong Learning offerings is available on the DLDC website and at community centres throughout Donegal.

The Mind Your Mental Health workshop taught by Bill Vaughan of Mental Health Ireland has run at several locations in the three years since the Lifelong Learning programme began, and has received rave reviews.

This is a very popular workshop which looks at all the things that can cause poor mental health, Susan said. We find that people whove done this session have a sense that they can take charge of how they feel, which makes the world look brighter to them and leaves them more inclined to see opportunities that come their way.

Women in the Home  New Beginnings is a new Lifelong Learning course run with NCCWN-Donegal Womens Network which helps women who may not be on the live register to enter a new phase in their lives.

If youre not on the live register youre not invited to anything, youre just invisible, Susan said. This course for women in that situation offers a space where they can identify what they want for themselves and receive support in making their own dreams a reality after looking after the needs of others for so long.

Farming Inheritance, Succession, and Tax Information is a Lifelong Learning workshop taught by solicitor Brendan Kelly which has been designed for the agricultural community.

There is a lot of misinformation out there about agricultural succession planning, Susan said. This workshop helps participants make those decisions based on accurate and relevant information provided by someone with experience and expertise in the area.

Mini-Me Yoga, which offers simple techniques to increase childrens resilience and ability to express themselves, and Digital Skills Training, which includes instruction in the use of internet apps that can facilitate contact with loved ones who live far away, are additional Lifelong Learning offerings which have received enthusiastic reviews.

Its so rewarding when you see people who have participated in the programme and their face lights up because youve helped them in a very special way on their journey, Susan said. That is very fulfilling.

More information about DLDCs Lifelong Learning programme is available on the DLDC website or by ringing Susan Kierce-Marsh at (074) 912 7056 or (087) 984 9386.
Earlier this year the popular Rossnowlagh beach was left covered with litter on what was probably the warmest and sunniest days of the summer.

This served as a wake up call to many and not only in Rossnowlagh but in resorts all over the county - the local community and businesses and the vast majority of visitors were not going to allow this continue and as a result the vast majority of our beaches are in pristine condition.

The Friends of Rossnowlagh Beach community group are delighted to be celebrating their first anniversary. This group was set up last year to give a voice to the residents of Rossnowlagh and all those who love this glorious beach.

Since its inception the group have successfully organised several beach cleans-ups, a fun day in corporation with Clean Coasts Ireland, fundraising events, extended the car-free zone and have been in working closely with Donegal County Council coming up with ways to make the beach a nicer place to visit.

John Britton of the group told the Democrat, We are delighted to announce that the four bins will be kept on during the winter and the community group will voluntarily empty them on a weekly basis.

"We have also organised a beach clean up which will take place on the first Sunday of every month at the surf club car park. Our AGM will take place on the of 24th of October at 8pm at the Sand House Hotel and would love to see as many as possible attend. This beach is one of the best in the country and is our greatest natural asset - we must protect it.
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Police urge public not to speculate about fatal crash



Matthew McSevney died following the crash on Thursday.

Manx police are urging members of the public not to speculate on social media about a crash which resulted in the death of a cyclist.

43-year-old Matthew McSevney from Peel died following a collision on the Poortown Road on Thursday morning.

Officers say they can't comment on the cause of the collision at this time, and are asking locals not to speculate on sites like Facebook and Twitter.

Police have confirmed the driver of the car involved, an 18-year-old female, stopped at the scene and has spoken to officers as part of the investigation.

Those who witnessed the collision are urged to contact Police Headquarters on 631212.
ICAN's executive director, Beatrice Fihn, said she hopes the prize sends a clear message to nuclear states. "You can't threaten to indiscriminately slaughter hundreds of thousands of civilians in the name of security."

In announcing the award, the chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, Berit Reiss-Andersen, said the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons was performing vital work. "Some states are modernizing their nuclear arsenals and there is a real danger that more countries will try to procure nuclear weapons, as exemplified by North Korea."

The 2017 Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to the Geneva-based International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, or ICAN. The group consists of about 500 organizations in more than 100 countries that are working toward global nuclear disarmament.

The award, worth $1.1 million, is widely seen as a political statement at a time of high geopolitical uncertainty. Pyongyang's series of nuclear and weapons tests this year has shaken the global security order.

This past week, U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to end the 2015 Iran nuclear deal accusing Tehran of failing to live up to the "spirit of the agreement." Critics fear knock-on effects.

"If the U.S. proves itself to be an unreliable negotiating partner, I think North Korea would have no incentive really to engage in any sort of discussion about its nuclear program," says Paulina Izewicz of the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

The world's two biggest nuclear powers, the United States and Russia, are reducing their stockpiles of atomic weapons under the 2010 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty.

"The two sides are inspecting each other's arsenals, they're reducing warheads, delivery vehicles," noted Heather Williams of Kings College London; however, she adds that a Cold War-era agreement on intermediate range weapons is at a breaking point. "Russia is now deploying forces that are pretty flagrant violations of it."

The Nobel committee praised ICAN's efforts toward securing the 2017 UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. A total of 122 nations adopted the deal -- but none of the nine known nuclear powers signed up.

"One of the flaws with the treaty is that it doesn't address the reasons that states have nuclear weapons in the first place. Why does Pakistan want nuclear weapons? Why does India?" says Williams.

Nearly three decades after the end of the Cold War, the debate between disarmament versus deterrence is still being fought. "The deterrence camp views the disarmament camp as idealistic dreamers, completely unrealistic. And the disarmament camp looks at the deterrence people as morally deficient. So as a consequence, having the Nobel Peace Prize in the mix, I worry that it will not be helpful to bridging that divide," says Izewicz.

The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons says winning the Nobel prize "shines a needed light" on the pathway toward a world free of nuclear weapons.
Lisa Bloom is an American civil rights attorney offering counsel to Harvey Weinstein who is embroiled in the sexual harassment allegations.She was appointed by the media mogul after reports of his alleged misconduct towards eight women surfaced on Thursday.

Though Bloom took up Weinstein's case she was infact known for representing the alleged victims of sexual harassment. She was better known for fighting on the other side, reported The Guardian.

As a Women's right attorney Bloom has been credited with bringing down Bill O' Reilly, a top-rated host of Fox News over harassment allegations. Her clients Mischa Barton, Janice Dickinson and Black Chyna were victims of sexual harassment.

Bloom is the daughter of Gloria Allred who is also a popular women's attorney and her involvement in the Weinstein's case has even surprised her mother. According to Wrap magazine, Bloom's mother wouldn't approve of supporting a man like Weinstein. "Had I been asked by Mr. Weinstein to represent him, I would have declined, because I do not represent individuals accused of sexual harassment," Allred stated, in an interview.

Allred has been a renowned advocate herself fighting for the protection of women's rights for several years of her high-profile career. She claimed she couldn't speak for her daughter's action or take account of it but would never refrain from opposing her daughter's decision in court. "While I would not represent Mr. Weinstein, I would consider representing anyone who accused Mr. Weinstein of sexual harassment, even if it meant that my daughter was the opposing counsel," she said.

On Friday Bloom in a statement on her social media platform had mentioned her role in making Weinstein a better man. "As a women's rights advocate, I have been blunt with Harvey and he has listened to me," Bloom said. "I have told him that times have changed, it is 2017, and he needs to evolve to a higher standard. I have found Harvey to be refreshingly candid and receptive to my message. He has acknowledged mistakes he has made," her statement read.

Weinstein who denied news of sexual harassment allegations based on an investigative report of New York Times on Thursday called them innacurate. Instead, he stated that he had asked Bloom to tutor him as part of his journey to learn about myself and conquer my demons.

Soon after Weinstein announced about recruiting Lisa Bloom as his advocate, she sent out a statement to Times denying many of the accusations as patently false.Little later, Weinstein announced that he would take a "leave of absence" from his company and sought professional help from Bloom who was a "tutor" in this effort.

Weinstein and his brother Bob co-founded the indie film company Miramax in the late 1970s and grew into a powerhouse brand that made art-house films mainstream - and reshaped the Academy Awards race with aggressive marketing and buzz.The company was bought by Disney in 1993, where the brothers continued to run the company - and dominate the Oscar race - until they left in 2005 to launch the new privately held The Weinstein Company.He is currently serving as producer on "The Current War," which is viewed as a solid contender for awards.
The Adivasis of central India have been vied by various religious missions in history. Christian missions are, however, exceptionally blamed for duping Adivasis and subverting their society. The democratic ethos of propagating ones faith and the sensibility of the adroit Adivasi psyche must not be undermined in the present age of missionary competition on the brink of communal conflagration.
Hi all

I have an issue with a property developer in Sports City and issuance of my title deed. The property is complete and I have paid for the property in full. Now my lawyer and I are battling t get the title deed transferred to my name.

Just wondering if anybody in Sports City has had a similar issue? I won't mention the developers name for obvious reasons.



Thanx
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Hi Guys, I considering a trip to Thailand in January and Ive sort of planned an Itinery,

as you people know the land can I get your thoughts ie too long in some places, not enough time etc.

I'm a single traveller 49 years, here`s the plan - Chaing Mai 4 nights, fly to Kou Samuri 7 nights then back to Bangkok for 4 nights. Any other suggestions, I must say I don't want to be moving everyday.

Thanks in advance
An 11th-hour addition to the Texas Department of Transportation sunset bill has raised concerns that billboards in some parts of the state could soar to as high as 85 feet, double the current limit.

TxDOT officials insist the language only reflects what lawmakers intended  allowing those billboards already taller than the states 42.5-foot limit to remain.

Advocates for tighter sign rules, however, fear the change opens the door to a maximum height of 85 feet for many roadside signs.

The public never weighed in on this issue, said Margaret Lloydall, vice president for Scenic Texas, which has advocated for tighter controls on signs along freeways. We were told by both the House and Senate sponsors that this would be a clean bill. We were not expecting this.

At issue is language quietly slipped into TxDOT sunset legislation as it moved from the Texas House to a conference committee to sort out differences between House and Senate versions of the bill.

Rep. John Wray, R-Waxahachie, inserted the language in an amendment aimed at cleaning up an enforcement problem related to long-existing billboards that exceed TxDOTs maximum height of 42.5 feet. The amendment allows for signs as high as 85 feet.

The height-related language remained in the bill as it sailed through the conference committee and got quick nods from both chambers.

Authors of the sunset bill, notably Sen. Robert Nichols, R-Jacksonville, stressed the intent was to have the height change only apply to billboards already over the 42.5-foot limit. Existing signs can remain their current height, essentially grandfathered in, while billboards now at or below the limit will remain their height. Anything built later cannot go taller than 42.5 feet.

The state rules apply only to areas outside municipalities that regulate signs, where about 25,000 billboards currently are permitted. In cities such as Houston, local rules governing size and location of billboards carry the day.

Currently, the state has some enforcement issue with 159 billboards around Texas, transportation officials said. Others could exist that exceed the 42.5-foot standard, but were erected prior to height rules being established in 1986.

Gov. Greg Abbott signed the bill, with language related to the new height rules applying to billboards erected prior to March 1, 2017.

Lloyd and others, however remain concerned about how TxDOT is adjusting to the new rules, worried it opens a door to all billboards installed before March 1 going higher.

It says any billboard before March 1, 2017, can be 85 feet, Lloyd said.

The proposed rule change, which the Texas Transportation Commission will consider as early as November, includes a section that says a structure erected prior to March 1  may not be higher than 85 feet.

That section is followed by another that states billboards can be rebuilt at a height that does not exceed the height of the sign on March 1.

TxDOT officials said they believe they have fulfilled what the legislature decided, while providing some leeway so TxDOT does not have to meticulously measure every sign, many of which are on private property that could pose challenges with access.

Officials said they do not believe the rule changes allow for any billboards to be taller than they are now.

Whatever height they were, that is what they get to be, said Gus Cannon, director of right of way for TxDOT.

That interpretation, however, remains unclear, according to those in favor of strict sign controls and others who argue the regulations go too far.

Russ Horton, an Austin lawyer who has spoken critically of some of Texas efforts to regulate billboards, said TxDOT cannot interpret the law in a way that conflicts with what legislators passed, regardless of what they meant to do.

Horton said a carve out for noncompliant signs could pose problems should the sign industry want to challenge the agencys rules for not adhering to the legislation.

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.

If you have an agency rule that exceeds its legislative statute, that is an easy attack, Horton said.

Billboard height is just one of the issues TxDOT faces related to roadway signs. The agency also worked with lawmakers to address court challenges, including one that nullified parts of Texas highway beautification act. The court ruling led to SB 2006, which redefines signs and eliminates an earlier distinction that differentiated between commercial speech, such as advertising a business, and political speech, such as supporting a candidate or party viewpoint.

Horton said the states efforts might have fallen short, simply because they have responded to a court tossing a rule by trying to write a new law which also aims to control types of signs.

You multiply the problem if you create another regulatory scheme, Horton said.

Texas, home to Lady Bird Johnson, the first lady who championed highway beautification in the 1960s, has stricter rules for signs and billboards than many other states. Many, Horton said, do not regulate height at all because it is not covered in the national Highway Beautification Act.

He called it a little unrealistic that large numbers of billboards would sprout up taller than 42.5 feet because the actual dimensions of signs remain the same. Advertisers are not likely to put their signs farther from where people can see them.

Lloyd, meanwhile, said she worries any taller signs stand to ruin local character.

When I drive through Georgia or Alabama along their federal system  I see billboards that are towering over the trees and it is horrible, Lloyd said. It is pretty shocking to see signs that are twice as tall as the trees.

A lot of the problem, she said, could have been avoided by a more open and timely process in Austin.

I think the big picture for us was, the process here was horrendous and whenever there is legislation passed it needs to go through the public, she said.
Poonawalla was arrested on Saturday for killing his live-in partner Shraddha Walker on May 18 in the Mehrauli area of the national capital.
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PORTLAND  Where the coastal prairie meets Corpus Christi Bay, stubborn sunflowers bloom in the hard-packed earth and 90 construction cranes draw slashes across the blue sky.

From this spot, Houston-based Cheniere Energy in 2019 expects to launch global shipments of natural gas produced in Texas shale fields.

The idea would have sounded absurd a decade ago, when everyone thought the U.S. was running out of oil and natural gas.

Instead, the burgeoning export plant, on the remnants of a ranch that once spanned 1 million Coastal Bend acres, is one of the latest examples of the turnaround in the domestic energy industry.

After a decadeslong slide, U.S. oil and gas production have surged with shale drilling, the process of using water, chemicals and sand pumped at high pressure to shatter tight rock.

The mud of ancient sea beds buried deep in the earth holds vast stores of oil, but resembles a hard, black countertop, and no one could produce oil and gas from it before fracking.

National oil production next year is expected to reach around 9.9 million barrels per day and surpass the previous high of 9.6 million barrels per day from 1970.

This year, the U.S. Energy Information Administration expects the U.S. to become a net exporter of natural gas. It already surpassed Russia in 2009 to become the worlds largest natural gas producer.

The rush of new hydrocarbons into the U.S. market has spurred billions in port construction and new pipelines, helped create a glut of oil on the world market, and is changing the mix of electric power generation in both the U.S. and Mexico.

The Port of Corpus Christi now exports more crude oil than any other U.S. port, around 316,000 barrels per day, more than double its daily exports last year.

Mexico, which has vast natural gas reserves but cant keep pace with the demands of its growing population, has turned to Texas natural gas. In May, U.S. pipeline exports of natural gas to Mexico reached 129 billion cubic feet, more than double the level of May 2014, and most of it came from Texas.

The Cheniere liquefied natural gas plant, in Portland across the bay from Corpus Christi, is like a city under construction all at once, and everything is Texas-sized  from the $10 billion price tag for the first phase of construction, to the more than 5,000 workers on site every day.

Hurricane Harvey made landfall on Aug. 25 in Rockport about 15 miles north as the crow flies. The Category 4 storm caused workers to move equipment to high ground and evacuate, but put the Port of Corpus Christi on the weaker side of the hurricane. Harvey left only cosmetic damage at the Cheniere site.

Construction is about 70 percent complete, and wasnt slowed much by Harvey.

Already, a 48-inch, 23-mile pipeline is in the ground to deliver natural gas from Sinton to the plant, where it will move through the long, rectangular units called trains that super cool methane gas. At minus 260 degrees, methane becomes liquid and condenses to 1/600th the volume of its gaseous state, making it possible to export by ship.

Two concrete storage tanks, which employees refer to as the Yeti coolers of the plant, will hold the LNG until its loaded onto special tankers.

These tanks are big enough to store a 747 inside, construction manager Keith Hendricks said. Basically its 42 million gallons of LNG.

Across Corpus Christi Bay from the Cheniere mini-city, at the Port of Corpus Christi offices, chief commercial officer Jarl Pederson talked about how the port became the first in 2015 to export crude oil when Congress lifted a decades-old export ban. Last year, the port exported products to 26 countries.

All the story is about the energy renaissance in the United States, Pederson said. Its a large global shift.

The Cheniere project is part of $50 billion in construction and investment happening in and around the port  all projects announced in the years after shale oil was first discovered in the field just north of Corpus Christi, the Eagle Ford Shale.

Though the Eagle Ford is known for oil, it started as a gas field in 2008 and 2009. Prices dropped though  thanks to shale gas discoveries across the U.S. and the classic economic theory of supply and demand  and producers started chasing the more profitable crude oil.

In oil wells that happened to be drilled far from existing natural gas pipelines, many companies burned off the natural gas as an unwanted byproduct that was too expensive to get to market.

Natural gas flaring still is common in the Eagle Ford, but most of that natural gas makes it to market, and it has been there all along. Although gas has been overshadowed by oil, Webb County, the southernmost reach of the Eagle Ford before the formation continues across the Rio Grande into Mexico, is the states biggest producer of natural gas.

Much of the Eagle Fords hydrocarbons flow to Corpus Christi for refining and manufacturing. The port can receive around 2 million barrels per day of crude oil now, but there are six new pipeline projects in the works to connect the booming Permian Basin oil field in West Texas to the port  even more product that ultimately will get exported.

We think at least a couple of those will be built, Pederson said. It will have to go to export. The U.S. is not consuming it. Were not building new refineries to process it.

So far, Cheniere is the only company to have shipped LNG from U.S. shale fields abroad, all from its LNG plant and terminal in Sabine Pass, Louisiana. The first tanker sailed last year.

In August, the company announced it had become the countrys largest physical purchaser of natural gas, buying as much as 3 billion cubic feet per day, enough to run 21 natural gas-fired power plants the size of the largest one owned by San Antonios CPS Energy.

Despite rhetoric this year about trade wars and the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement, the export of oil and natural gas appear  on the surface at least  to have political support.

The Trump administration has described the LNG industry as a critical part of expanding the domestic energy industry.

Cheniere even has gotten the presidential shout-out. In June, President Donald Trump highlighted a deal between Cheniere and South Korea.

During a joint appearance with South Korean President Moon Jae-in, Trump talked about the 20-year agreement to make 3.5 million tons of LNG available to Korea Gas Corp. each year.

This month Cheniere is sending its first shipment of American liquefied natural gas to South Korea in a deal worth more than $25 billion, Trump said during a speech at the White House.

Vice President Mike Pence in July touted a Lithuanian firms decision to purchase U.S. LNG, saying: It will benefit not only our prosperity, but it will contribute to regional security and stability.

In August when it was delivered, the U.S. State Department highlighted the shipment again as it arrived in Lithuania, noting it was more than a dozen sent to Europe by Cheniere out of Sabine Pass this year.

Not everyone sees LNG exports as good for business, though.

U.S. manufacturers argue that LNG exports could deplete domestic supplies and cause natural gas price spikes.

Some point to Australia, one of the worlds largest LNG exporters, where the government said earlier this year said it would tamp down on exports because they were causing domestic prices to rise. Customers in eastern Australia were paying more for gas than Japanese customers receiving the countrys LNG, and it was not popular.

In a letter sent to Energy Secretary Rick Perry in August, the Industrial Energy Consumers Alliance asked him to stop issuing permits for new LNG export terminals that would send natural gas produced in U.S. fields to countries without a free-trade agreement, such as the one Canada and Mexico have with the U.S.

U.S. oil and gas producers counter that the country has abundant natural gas. The government estimates theres 86 years of supply in the ground still.

Its not just LNG thats controversial in some quarters. The utilities industry has questioned the increasing use of natural gas for electricity generation, too. About a third of electricity generation was from natural gas last year.

The Energy Department in August released a much-anticipated study on grid reliability and security, which noted that coal-and nuclear-fired power plants have been shutting down because of cheap natural gas, not because of environmental regulations. (Utility-scale wind and solar are also beating nuclear and coal on price).

Last week, Perry followed up that report and directed the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to consider setting rates that would require utilities to pay coal and nuclear plants for all of the full costs and all of the power they produce, compensating them for the full value of their reliability  the idea that they are important to stabilize the grid because wind and solar are intermittent sources.

That move created strange bedfellows. The oil and gas industry, the solar industry and the wind industry have teamed up to oppose Perrys idea.

The American Petroleum Institute this year also issued a report defending the use of natural gas-fired power plants.

The report argues that natural gas has a unique ability to support grid operations across the board because its cheap and reliable  natural gas plants can be fired up at will when needed, the same as coal or nuclear plants. The oil and gas industry has tried strategically position natural gas as an ideal compliment to solar and wind.

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Marty Durbin, API chief strategy officer and executive vice president, said the study was in the works for two years after API noticed that natural gas electric generation was drawing criticism within the utilities industry.

Its a disrupting force in the market, Durbin said. What we started to see was some individual utilities say we cant be too reliant on natural gas. You dont know whats going to happen to the cost.

Durbin said the supply of U.S. natural gas keeps getting bigger and bigger, though.

Cris Eugster, chief operating officer at San Antonios municipally-owned CPS Energy, said that proximity to the Eagle Ford Shale is one of the reasons the utility bought the Rio Nogales natural gas combined cycle power plant in 2012 to replace an aging coal-fired plant.

This is right on the edge of the Eagle For Shale, so this gas is Texas gas, said Eugster. The problem and challenge with natural gas before shale happened it was a highly volatile fuel you could have price spikes and there was a lot of volatility in the price of gas. With shale, I think that whole pictures changed. Now gas is a lot more plentiful.

Eugster noted the lack of volatility in natural gas prices since 2008 and 2009.

So I think that also bodes well from a cost standpoint that you have that kind of stability in your fuel source with this type of asset, he said.

The natural gas industry has been in a rut of low oil prices for a long time  a good thing for customers like CPS, or for residential customers who use natural gas for cooking and heating, or for a company like Cheniere that wants to buy low at home and sell high abroad. A decade ago, prices soared above $13 per million British thermal units, but are hovering around $3 now.

Texas Railroad Commissioner Ryan Sitton said in a recent interview that hes more bullish on natural gas than on crude oil for the long term, though.

Which one has the greater upward mobility in the next five years? I think its actually gas, Sitton said. Theres almost no way for it to go down and a lot of potential for it to go up.

It will take a combination of things to raise natural gas prices, though  everything from more exports to Mexico by pipe, LNG exports to Asia or Europe, increasing use of natural gas for utility generation, and having more fleet trucks switch to using compressed natural gas as a fuel instead of diesel, Sitton said.

If prices rise to $4 or $5 per British thermal unit, We wont be flaring anything. Theyll be building all the pipelines they can to capture that, Sitton said.

For now, the abundance of low-cost natural gas in the U.S. has found a willing buyer in neighboring Mexico.

Mexico has its own shale and conventional natural gas reserves, which have been the subject of speculation as the country opens its oil and gas fields to outside investment for the first time since the 1930s.

Mexicos state oil company, Petroleos Mexicanos, or Pemex, controlled nearly every aspect of the nations oil production and distribution since 1938, but Mexican officials decided in 2013 to end that monopoly.

It hasnt been able to develop its own gas fields quickly enough, though. Last year, Mexico imported 53 percent of the natural gas it used, according to its Ministry of Energy. What it cant bring in by pipeline from Texas or produce itself, its bringing in by LNG tanker.

LNG import terminals also help Mexico solve another energy infrastructure need  the LNG tanks also act as storage facilities.

Antonio Garza, former ambassador to Mexico and a former railroad commissioner, said Mexicos energy reform aims to boost its own natural gas production in the long-term, but market forces are at work now.

This means that as prices stay low, it makes more business sense to import cheap natural gas rather than invest more to produce it domestically, Garza said. But if natural gas prices rise  for example, as new U.S. LNG terminals begin exporting natural gas to other regions  then we could see more interest in developing Mexicos natural gas reserves and infrastructure.

Daren Gursel, analyst with the research and consulting firm Wood Mackenzie, said Mexico has seen increasing demand for natural gas for electric generation at the same time its own gas production has stagnated and plummeted. Its not a quick thing to turn around, so Mexico is trying to complete hundreds of miles of pipeline to connect with Texas.

Mexico relies more on the U.S. in the coming years, Gursel said.

In the first seven months of the year, the U.S. sent 39 LNG shipments to Mexico, according to the Department of Energy. It was the top country for U.S. exports, where 23 percent of domestic LNG was delivered, and all of the cargoes originated at Chenieres Sabine Pass plant.

jhiller@express-news.net

Staff Writer Rye Druzin contributed to this report.
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Texas growers of organic rice used for health food favorites like vegan burritos and tofu-vegetable bowls are breathing a sigh of relief now that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has decided the crop has not been compromised by mosquito spraying in the wake of Hurricane Harvey.

While Texas ranks sixth for the nation's overall rice production, it supplies nearly a third of the nation's organic rice. Farmers willing to go through the red tape of getting organic certification find it can bring in about twice as much money as conventional rice. Of the states approximately 160,000 acres of rice fields, between 18,000 and 20,000 acres are certified organic. Texas produced $13.7 million of organic rice last year, making it second only to California.

But this years organic status was at risk due to the mass aerial spraying to control mosquitoes hatching eggs in all the standing post-Harvey flood waters in Southeast Texas.

Harvey dumped an estimated 34 trillion gallons of rain over southeastern Texas and southwestern Louisiana  about enough to fill Lake Tahoe, a 192-square-mile lake with an average depth of about 1,000 feet. To keep mosquitoes from proliferating into a serious nuisance with the threat of spreading diseases like encephalitis and the Zika and West Nile viruses, the state Department of Health and Human Services and Federal Emergency Management Agency last month enlisted the U.S. Air Force to use massive C-130 aircraft to spray pesticides over hundreds of thousands of acres.

Harvey was devastating to growers in a swath of Texas state stretching north of the Coastal Bend up to the Louisiana coast. While agricultural damages are still being tallied, the storms record flooding and wind drowned out about 100,000 acres of rice, stranded 2,500 head of livestock in emergency shelters and took out a cotton gin as well as thousands of acres of the fiber and seed that make for Texas top crop. Before Harvey hit, cotton farmers were harvesting a record crop and rice farmers were looking at some of the best yields theyd ever had.

Michael Orrin Way, an entomologist with Texas A&M AgriLife Research Service in Beaumont, estimated that about 20 percent of the states primary rice crop, which includes most of the organic, and 50 percent of the ratoon, or second rice crop, was destroyed.

Since organic rice sells for about $20 for every 100 pounds compared with $11 for higher-yield conventional rice, growers were dismayed when the Texas Department of Agricultures Organic Certification Program said the USDA wouldnt allow them to sell what was left of this years crop as organic.

A lot of my growers right now, theyve lost corn crops, theyve lost the cotton crop, theyve lost the soybean crop. Right now all thats left is rice, said Steve Samra, a grower and organic consultant, said of that notice. Theres a lot of question marks and a lot of wiggle room on this. It all boils down to was the grower sprayed or does he know that he has been sprayed? Has it been documented that his field has been sprayed?

Samra and others urged the state to seek a variance similar to one granted to drought-stricken California organic meat producers in 2014.

In turns out they didnt need to. Upon review, the USDA said that its organic regulations included a section that allows for state and federal emergency pest or disease treatments and that the mosquito response wouldnt be considered a pesticide application.

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So basically that organic is still certified organic, Way said. That was really good news for our industry, because for the rates that they were using, the amounts would have been minuscule.

Another fear, that the flooding breached diesel tanks used to store fuel on farms and may have contaminated the rice, also proved unfounded. Tests by the state chemist showed the rice was fine, Way said.

Even if tanks had been compromised, flood waters that averaged four feet would have dispersed the diesel to less than one part per billion, Way said.

Theres data coming in now that that rice is not adulterated, he said.

lbrezosky@express-news.net
Bowe Bergdahl, the Army sergeant who spent five years in Taliban captivity after disappearing from his patrol base in Afghanistan, is expected to plead guilty to desertion and misbehavior charges, the Associated Press reported Friday.

Bergdahls court-martial was scheduled to begin later this month. Now, instead of a jury, a military judge will determine his sentence and whether the 31-year-old will spend any more time incarcerated, the AP reported. He faces life in prison and a dishonorable discharge from the Army.

Pending the outcome of his trial, Bergdahl has been working at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston.

An attorney for Bergdahl, Eugene Fidell, declined to comment. The Army would not confirm the APs reporting.

We continue to maintain careful respect for the military-judicial process, the rights of the accused, and ensuring the cases fairness and impartiality during this ongoing legal case, Army spokesman Paul Boyce said in a written statement.

Prosecutors say Bergdahl left his post without permission in 2009. Theyve argued that his actions resulted in the death and injury of other troops sent to search for him.

An Army investigation found no evidence that that had occurred, though his critics maintain that dangerous helicopter insertions and other exhausting missions may have indirectly contributed to troops deaths or injuries in Afghanistan, and that surveillance drones used to track or locate enemy fighters may have been diverted for search-and-rescue missions.

Bergdahl says he was beaten, caged and tortured, held in abhorrent conditions until the Obama administration in May 2014 swapped five Taliban detainees in exchange for the soldiers release. That controversial decision has challenged one of the militarys bedrock values: to always bring back its troops, living or dead.

One of Bergdahls harshest critics has been his commander in chief, President Donald Trump, who has called him a dirty, rotten traitor and suggested that, in prior eras, Bergdahl would have been executed.

In fact, only one accused deserter has been executed since the Civil War.

In November 2015, Trump brought up Bergdahl at a campaign rally in Massachusetts, where he pantomimed the use of a pistol with his hands. Thats right, he said. Boom. Boom! . . . Boom, hes gone. Hes gone!

After Trumps win, Bergdahls legal team sought to frame the presidents comments as unduly interfering with the accused soldiers due process right to a fair trial. In the military justice system, unlawful command influence occurs when a senior U.S. official, up to and including the commander in chief, seeks to influence the outcome of legal matters.

A guilty plea could signal an appeal for mercy and consideration of Bergdahls severe mistreatment while in enemy hands. The move comes after Barack Obama declined to pardon Bergdahl.
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AUSTIN  Republican Gov. Greg Abbotts campaign has paid at least $140,000 this year to a political consulting firm that was not in good standing in its home state for half of 2017 after failing to file required paperwork, records show.

Norway Hill Associates, led by longtime Abbott consultant David Carney, missed the April deadline to submit documents and a $100 fee to keep its corporate registration up to date in New Hampshire, according to records on the secretary of states website.

Businesses that arent in good standing there cant compete for state contracts, complete certain bank transactions or sell property, New Hampshire state officials said.

The firm rectified its status on Friday, after the San Antonio Express-News asked about its lack of compliance. Carney did not return several requests for comment.

Norway Hill Associates, based in Hancock, New Hampshire, has been working with campaigns in Texas for more than a decade. During that time, records show Norway Hill Associates hasnt registered with the Texas comptroller or the secretary of states office, though three tax experts say the situation likely calls for it to do so.

Companies doing business in Texas are subject to the franchise tax, generally levied on annual revenues that exceed $1 million. Though most smaller businesses dont have any tax liability, they still must file annual reports giving information about their company and state why they dont owe money.

If you have a physical presence in Texas, if you are doing business in Texas, that creates a filing obligation, said tax attorney Amanda Traphagan with Seay & Traphagan. A lot of people dont know about it, a lot of people dont follow that.

Three other businesses that Abbotts campaign tapped for campaign services are registered with the state comptroller, two of which are based in Texas, records show. The third is based in Canada.

Carney has long been on the Texas political scene, most notably for his work advising Rick Perry, from the Republicans 1998 run for lieutenant governor to his presidential bid in the 2012 election cycle.

Norway Hill Associates was paid for consulting Perrys gubernatorial campaigns beginning in 2002, according to finance reports filed with the Texas Ethics Commission. The firm has made more than $1 million total over the last four years working for Abbotts campaign, finance reports show.

In the first half of this year, Carney flew into Austin 11 times for campaign meetings and events, finance reports show. On Saturday, he is set to lead panels at a Latino outreach event put on by the Abbott campaign in San Antonio.

Though a number of complex factors play into whether a business should file, Carneys physical presence in Texas is one reason tax experts said the firm has cause to register.

Spokesmen for the secretary of state and comptrollers office declined to say whether Norway Hill Associates has to file.

Its not set up for a franchise tax in Texas, but that doesnt necessarily mean it should not be, said Kevin Lyons, a spokesman for the comptrollers office.

No staff members in the secretary of states office can determine whether an entity is transacting business in Texas or needs to file an application for registration. Determining whether to register is a business decision that may have tax consequences, raise legal issues, or impact licensing from another agency or state board, according to its website.

Businesses that should register and file face a $50 penalty for each year they dont.

A spokesman for Abbotts campaign didnt answer questions about whether it checks up on a business status before working with them.

The campaign expects all vendors to fully comply with the law, campaign spokesman John Wittman said in a written statement.

amorris@express-news.net
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WASHINGTON  A former U.S. Air Force judge advocate says a report that Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl is expected to plead guilty to charges of desertion and misbehavior before the enemy is unsurprising, given recent setbacks by Bergdahls defense team.

I think it was a wise choice, said retired Air Force Lt. Col. Rachel VanLandingham, a law professor at Southwestern University. The defense mounted incredibly vigorous pretrial attacks on absolutely every single legal issue. But at the end of the day, the evidence was rather clear.

Bergdahl, 31, an Idaho native, is expected to plead guilty to the charges, which stemmed from his captivity in Afghanistan after he walked away from his post, rather than face trial this month at Fort Bragg, N.C., according to an Associated Press report.

A lawyer for Bergdahl declined to confirm the report.

Our comment is no comment, said Eugene Fidell, Bergdahls civilian attorney.

Bergdahl could receive a sentence of up to five years on the desertion count and a life sentence on the misbehavior charge. Other possibilities include a bad conduct discharge or a dishonorable discharge.

The AP, citing unnamed sources, said Bergdahls sentencing is expected to begin Oct. 23, at which time U.S. military personnel who were wounded while searching for him are expected to testify.

Bergdahl was held for five years by the Taliban under brutal conditions, according to evidence presented by the defense at a hearing in San Antonio last year. He was freed in a 2014 prisoner swap for five Taliban detainees held at Guantanamo Bay. He has been assigned since then to Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston, which has expertise in treating prisoners of war.

An emotional debate that ensued was fueled by Donald Trump, who referred to Bergdahl during the presidential campaign as a traitor, a bum and a whack job who should have been executed.

In June 2009, Bergdahl, 23 at the time, walked away from his remote infantry post near the Pakistani border, leading to an intensive search. He did so, he has admitted, to bring focus on problems in his unit.

Two years ago, explaining why he left his unit, Bergdahl said in a podcast that he saw leadership failure to the point that the lives of the guys standing next me to were literally, from what I could see, in danger of something seriously going wrong, and somebody being killed.

VanLandingham, the former judge advocate, noted Bergdahl admitted that he purposefully decided to leave his post. To hear it in his own words, thats pretty powerful evidence.

In pretrial hearings, Army Col. Jeffery Nance, the judge in Bergdahls case, ruled that testimony from troops wounded during the search would be permitted during sentencing, complicating Bergdahls case by giving prosecutors leverage to seek stiffer punishment.

The judge also sided with the prosecutors in rejecting the defense argument that Trumps unrelenting criticism had unfairly affected the case.

blambrecht@express-news.net
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HOUSTON  As thousands of people waited in line for special emergency food assistance, area church leaders and nonprofit groups Friday demanded that Gov. Greg Abbott and others extend the application deadline for Texans who suffered because of Hurricane Harvey.

Storm victims waited for hours to apply for the Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as D-SNAP, that provides one-time emergency food aid for those devastated by natural disasters.

Im reminded of the great miracle of Jesus feeding 5,000, said Sam Dunning of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. We have the opportunity as a community to do the right thing by extending this deadline. The needs of people, children, the elderly and all in-between cannot be constrained by deadlines artificially set by man.

The deadline for the program, which provides cards that can be used only for food and drinks but not alcohol or tobacco, officially expired 7 p.m. Friday.

At a news conference in east Houston, Dunning pleaded for Abbott and other lawmakers to extend the program, calling the thousands left hungry nothing short of a travesty.

Others at the news conference, hosted by The Metropolitan Organization, said they believe thousands of people still have not gotten help and could overload local churches and other nonprofits.

People tend to look to the churches as the ideal place to get answers, said Rev. Simon Bautista, of Houstons Christ Church Cathedral. It puts a lot of pressure on our shoulders, and it is hard to tell people, Were sorry, we cannot help you with much.

More than 200,000 people have received D-SNAP funds in Harris County since the program opened Sept. 22, according to preliminary numbers.

Those who qualify receive benefits on a Lone Star Card, which is used to provide food stamps under the regular SNAP program in Texas. To qualify for the D-SNAP benefits, a family must live in a county declared a federal disaster area, have experienced loss of income or home and not receive regular SNAP food benefits.

Through the program, families receive amounts equal to two months of the maximum SNAP benefits for their household size, which range from $192 a month for one person to $760 for a family of five, plus $144 for each additional person.

The state health department, which oversees the program, said Wednesday that getting people food assistance has been their main focus for the last two weeks.

Jasmine Davis contributed to this report.
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BULVERDE  Area residents are raising numerous health and safety concerns about a rock quarry proposed for a tract of ranchland surrounded by residential subdivisions off Texas 46 in the Hill Country.

We are not against development. We want it done in a safe process, Sabrina Houser-Amaya said at a community meeting here Thursday night that drew nearly 200 people, including several Comal County officials.

Vulcan Materials, the firm that wants to open the quarry, was not invited to the briefing, but a spokesman said Friday that the company is committed to protecting water and air quality.

The quarry would be on 1,500 acres midway between New Braunfels and Bulverde, with 600 acres of that land serving as a buffer between the plant and the subdivisions. It came to light after Vulcan sought a state permit in June to process 1.5 million tons of limestone annually in a rock crusher at the site.

Friends of Dry Comal Creek, a grassroots group that is leading the opposition to the project and organized Thursdays meeting, has raised concerns over anticipated dust and fumes, traffic from trucks moving the rock, and fears about groundwater pollution. The site is over the Edwards Aquifer recharge zone.

There also are worries that shock waves from the blasting of rock will disrupt neighbors and damage houses, wells and groundwater formations.

Houser-Amaya, a member of Friends of Dry Comal Creek, said if residents cant stop the quarry from opening, they want to mitigate its impact as much as possible.

For their part, Vulcan officials are pledging to operate the facility in a safe and responsible manner.

Our project will meet or exceed regulations and guidelines established by local, state and federal laws and regulatory agencies that preserve and protect air quality and local water resources, spokesman Scott Burnham said Friday.

Plans call for excavation to remain above the water table, he said, projecting the operation will require less groundwater than if residential development occurred on the parcel, located at the southwest corner of Texas 46 and FM 3009

We expect to mine only about 50 acres in the first 10 years, and it will take up to 80 years to reach completion, he said, noting the more than 600 acres of undeveloped land that have been designated to serve as a buffer.

If the air quality permit is issued by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, he said, blasting would occur only once every couple of months, for a combined duration of less than 10 seconds, in the first year of operation.

The land was acquired for Vulcan in January by Blue Pine Holdings LLC from rancher Eric White, who says he expected it to be developed for residential use.

Before closing the deal, he said he asked the broker what was planned for the land but received no answer.

I can understand why they didnt tell me what they were going to do, because I told them after the fact that I wouldnt have sold it for a quarry, said White, 87, who still lives on 132 acres he retained there.

Everybodys against it, including me, but I dont think its going to be near as bad as people think, he said, citing assurances hed received from Vulcan officials. They said, If you didnt look down there (into the quarry) you wouldnt know it was there.

That scenario contrasts sharply with the picture painted Thursday by Friends of Dry Comal Creek, which has solicited support for their fight against the permit from local, state and federal elected representatives, among others.

Several officials responded by asking the TCEQ to conduct a public meeting on the project.

This area of Comal County is surrounded by established residential properties, subdivisions and some light commercial property, County Commissioner Scott Haag, who was on hand Thursday, said in one such letter. I have heard from many of the property owners in this area, and they are very upset and concerned.

TCEQ spokesman Brian McGovern said Thursday, The application is currently in technical review. A public meeting will be scheduled sometime after the technical review is complete.

The agency is still accepting public comments on the project.

Counties have very limited authority to regulate land uses, opposition member Mike Zimmerman told the crowd, and the quarry site is outside the limits of any city, which have greater power through zoning.

That makes it easy pickings for Vulcan  to come in and set up shop, he said.

Fellow member Ed Harris projected that 205 trucks hauling 20 tons each around-the-clock every day would be required to move the 1.5 million tons of rock listed in the permit request.

He puffed talcum powder into the air to demonstrate how particulate matter generated by a quarry would disperse over a wide zone. Describing dust-coated landscapes hed seen at other quarries, he said, The trees look like something in a Johnny Depp movie.

Guest speaker Krystal Henagan recounted recurring family health problems that she linked to pollutants from quarries near Loop 1604 and OConnor Road, including one run by Vulcan, where shed moved in 2013.

After wind deposited an unidentified layer of sediment in her area that damaged vegetation and vehicles paint, she said, we had blood coming out of our ears and noses.

They dont really make a good-faith effort to protect their community, Henagan, representing the national anti-pollution group Moms Clean Air Force, said of Vulcan. Thank goodness we were able to move away shortly after that.

Burnham said Vulcan will protect air quality using the best available control technologies and will utilize effective dust-control measures and recycle water at the site to minimize the impact on groundwater sources.

We are committed to working with our neighbors, answering questions and being a responsible member of the community, he said Friday.

zeke@express-news.net
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NEW ORLEANS  Tropical Storm Nate gained strength Friday as the central Gulf Coast prepared for its landfall as a Category 1 hurricane as early as Saturday evening, bringing damaging winds and storm surge to a part of the coast that had largely been spared in this extraordinarily busy hurricane season.

The storm, already blamed for at least 22 deaths in Nicaragua and Costa Rica this week, is expected to strengthen as it crosses unusually warm waters in the Gulf of Mexico and make landfall in the United States with maximum sustained winds of about 80 mph. New Orleans officials have ordered mandatory evacuations of three low-lying areas of the city.

The National Weather Service on Friday put much of coastal Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama under a hurricane warning. Rain bands are likely to strike the coast as early as Saturday afternoon.

Here in the Crescent City, where memories of the 2005 Katrina catastrophe remain vivid, officials have acknowledged that their hobbled network of pumping stations could be overmatched by Nates downpours.

But Mayor Mitch Landrieu sounded upbeat and resolute in a news conference Friday afternoon, even as he announced a curfew starting at 6 p.m. Saturday and lasting until Sunday morning.

We are ready for whatever Nate brings our way, Landrieu said. If we all stay informed, if we all stay alert, if we all stayed prepared, ultimately we will all be safe.

The citys drainage system has been challenged even by typical summer storms. Parts of New Orleans have flooded several times this year, including as recently as last week. The worst flooding occurred after torrential rains Aug. 5, when up to nine inches fell in just a few hours.

The citys drainage system is terribly underfunded, Landrieu said.

Its old. Its tired. Its like your grandmothers car thats got 400,000 miles on it, he said. The pumping system in the city of New Orleans is as old as Calvin Coolidge.

Landrieu said 109 of the citys 120 drainage pumps were operational, with contractors working around the clock to repair the remainder. But inland flooding from rain is not the primary threat from Nate, he said, but rather the storm surge along the coast, and most of all the wind, which he warned could turn objects left outdoors into dangerous projectiles.

He reminded residents that they should not drive through underpasses that flood readily. He said they can park their vehicles where they can find higher ground without fear of parking tickets, with enforcement of violations suspended starting at 8 a.m. Saturday.

By Saturday, the Port of New Orleans will be closed, and most of the 200 floodgates in the city and surrounding parishes will be closed. More than 350 members of the National Guard will be on the ground.

Friday morning, the city began providing 17,000 sandbags to residents at five locations across town. Police set up 146 barricades in flood-prone areas, and boats and high-water vehicles were lined up at fire and police stations.

Melonie Stewart, customer service director at Entergy, New Orleanss sole energy provider, warned residents to be prepared for up to seven days without power from the grid.

Nate appears most likely to hit the Gulf Coast to the east of New Orleans. It could deliver a storm surge of four to seven feet above normally dry land, forecasters said. Wherever the storm makes landfall, areas east of the eye will experience stronger winds than those to the west.

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Nate is then expected to weaken and travel northeast into the southern Appalachians, where flash floods Sunday and Monday are a serious risk. The storms remnants are then likely to head toward the Mid-Atlantic and the Northeast.

The last hurricane to strike this part of the Gulf Coast directly was Isaac in August 2012. It left hundreds of thousands of utility customers without power.

Under sunny skies Friday, New Orleans did not appear to be in a state of alarm. Stores were cleaned-out of bottled water, and residents filled sandbags provided by municipal authorities, but this was clearly not a city trembling in advance of Nate.

On Desire Street on Friday afternoon, Francois Robichaux, 45, lay on his belly on the sidewalk, his left arm elbow-deep in a hole. He was not clearing out a catch basin, but rather fidgeting with a broken water meter on the property of a house he is renovating.

Robichaux wasnt doing much to prepare for the storm. We usually evacuate, but this one came so fast, he said. He was confident that he would be safe in his three-story home. Its a Category 1, so Im not worried, he said.

The forecast includes a significant chance of the storms growing into a significant hurricane  even a Category 3, one with sustained winds of up to 129 mph.

The storm Friday was moving north over very warm water, which drives intensification. But that trajectory also meant interaction with Mexicos Yucatan Peninsula, with pockets of dry air and shearing winds that could enfeeble the storm.

The fast movement of the storm means it is unlikely to drop massive amounts of rain as Hurricane Harvey did while loitering in the Houston area of the Texas coast in August.

The National Weather Services hurricane warning, issued Friday, extends from Grand Isle, Louisiana  which is due south of New Orleans  to the Alabama-Florida border.
All in all we were very happy with the collaboration and co-operation between the different agencies, we left with the confidence that they are probably doing the best that they can do.
Warrenton, VA (20186)

Today

Rain showers in the morning will evolve into a more steady rain in the afternoon. High 43F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%. Rainfall around a half an inch..

Tonight

Rain ending early. Remaining cloudy. Low 33F. Winds NNW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 100%. Rainfall near a quarter of an inch.
Vogue Williams feared she'd never have children after splitting from Brian McFadden.

Vogue Williams

The 31-year-old model-and-presenter's marriage ended in 2015 and it left her feeling "really worried" about her future and being unable to fulfil her dream of being a mother, but now she's found love again with 'Made in Chelsea' star Spencer Matthews, her fears have eased.

She admitted: "My marriage broke up when what I really wanted in my life was children.

"I really worried about it and thought, 'I'm not married any more. I'm probably never going to get the chance to have children.'

"All those things run through your mind.

"I don't worry about it any more - I have a boyfriend now."

And Vogue is in a "happy place" in her life because of her relationship with Spencer, who she has been dating for seven months.

She said: "I'm really in a happy place at the moment.

"I think it does have a lot to do with meeting Spencer. I just feel much happier when I'm around him."

However, she admitted they find it tough to be apart, so she's recently been making a number of trips to Greece, where the 28-year-old reality star has been filming 'Five Star Hotel'.

She told Britain's HELLO! magazine: "The only thing I hate about our relationship is spending time apart.

"But he really is supportive of me and I'm the same with him, so that's why I'm going to Greece agian tonight. It's quite a trek to get to him, but it's great."
The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council in its 22nd meeting in New Delhi on October 6 approved a relief package for exporters, which includes improved refund procedures, nominal GST for procuring goods from domestic suppliers, e-wallet facility to handle cash blockage and exemption from furnishing bond and bank guarantee while clearing goods for export.Observing the difficulties faced by exporters after the implementation of GST, leading to a decline in export performance and export competitiveness, the council in September set up a high power committee on exports under revenue secretary Hasmukh Adhia to recommend suitable strategies for helping this sector, according to a finance ministry press release.

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council in its 22nd meeting in New Delhi on October 6 approved a relief package for exporters, which includes improved refund procedures, nominal GST for procuring goods from domestic suppliers, e-wallet facility to handle cash blockage and exemption from furnishing bond and bank guarantee while clearing goods for export.#

The council, under chairmanship of finance minister Arun Jaitley, found the major difficulties constraining the export sector are on account of delays in refunds of integrated GST (IGST) and input taxes on exports and working capital blockage as exporters have to pay upfront GST on inputs and capital goods for export production or for procuring goods for export.Another difficulty was that the duty credit scrips, such as those available under the Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS), were losing value due to its reduced usability as it could no longer be used to pay IGST or GST. Therefore, the council has done away with the 5 per cent GST on the sale and purchase of these scrips.By October 10, payment of the held-up refund of IGST paid on goods exported in July would start. The August backlog would be cleared from October 18. Refunds for subsequent months would be handled expeditiously and other refunds of IGST paid on supplies to special economic zones (SEZs) and of inputs taxes on exports under bond or letter of undertaking will also start from October 10.Exporters will now get refunds from one authority only and have been exempted from furnishing bond and bank guarantee when they clear goods, the press release said.To prevent cash blockage of exporters, the council approved two proposals, one for immediate relief and the other for providing long term support to exporters. Immediate relief is being given by extending the advance authorization (AA), export promotion capital goods (EPCG) and 100 per cent export-oriented unit (EOU) schemes to sourcing inputs from abroad as well as domestic suppliers. Such players will not have to pay IGST and cess on imports.Also, domestic supplies to holders of AA / EPCG and EOUs would be treated as deemed exports under Section 147 of CGST/SGST Act and refund of tax paid on such supplies given to the supplier.An e-wallet facility, to be operational from April 1 next year, will be credited with a notional amount as an advance refund, which will be used to pay IGST, GST to tackle cash shortage.Specified banks and public sector undertakings will be allowed to import gold without IGST payment. This can then be supplied to exporters as per a scheme similar to AA.Merchant exporters will now have to pay nominal GST of 0.1 per cent for procuring goods from domestic suppliers for export, the release added. (DS)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk  India
More than 1,500 visitors attended Denimsandjeans India, the international denim supply chain show that concluded recently. The first edition of the denim tradeshow witnessed participation of a large number of premium denim companies from various countries including India, Bangladesh, Turkey, Spain, Switzerland, Brazil, Italy and Ethiopia among others.

"The buyers' turnout at the exhibition as well as during seminars was phenomenal, we are very happy to see the responses. We thank everyone for supporting us and I hope all the stakeholders will be surely get benefited by such events in a long run," said Sandeep Agarwal - founder and CEO of Denimsandjeans.com.

This show brought together all segments of Indian denim industry including denim brands, retailers, traders, second tier brands, garment manufacturers and exporters, buying houses and international buyers, on one platform.

More than 1,500 visitors attended Denimsandjeans India, the international denim supply chain show that concluded recently. The first edition of the denim tradeshow witnessed participation of a large number of premium denim companies from various countries including India, Bangladesh, Turkey, Spain, Switzerland, Brazil, Italy and Ethiopia among others.#

On the first day of the show, Stefano Aldighieri, former creative director of 7 for all Mankind, talked about the secrets of making a denim brand successful while Jordi Juani from Jeanologia gave details about evolution of jeans finishing from hand to technology and how this has changed the jeans world.

Dr Dilek Erik from Turkey shared her ideas on why rigid denim is coming back but stretch is still being used on the second day of the international show. Further, Vasco Pizarro, the director at the largest European Laundry spoke about denim wash trends from top European brands for AW18 season. Also, experts from various countries shared their views on latest trends, technologies, sustainability, latest innovation and developments.

All the major retailers and brands including H&M, Marks & Spencer, VF Corporation, Landmark Group, Li Fung, GAP Inc, Zara, Tesco, Pepe Jeans, Killer Jeans, Spykar, Target, Benetton, V-Mart, Shopper Stop, Reliance Trends, Myntra, Hypercity Retail, ITC Limited, Levis, Marks and Spencer, C&A, Being Human, Blackberry, Jabong, Pantaloons, Tata Cliq, Westside, Asmara, Ostin, Mufti, PVH, Aditya Birla Fashion, Arvind Brands, Raymonds Apparels, etc visited the show. (RR)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk  India
It is likely that the Indian textiles and apparel exports to Canada may double by 2020, according to North American Brands Group, organiser of Apparel Textile Souring Canada (ATSC) fair. The exporters of India have a huge scope for expansion and growth to fill the gaps in the Canadian texiles and apparel market including its FTA partners.

"Canadas FTA with the United States, Mexico, Chile, Costa Rica and Honduras contain tariff preference level (TPL) provisions for certain textile and apparel goods being imported or exported within the respective free trade zones. TPL-eligible goods are goods that do not meet the requirements of the FTA Rules of Origin but can still receive the same preferential tariff treatment as goods from the country of origin, up to a negotiated quantity," said John Banker, director, ATSC.

"The total value of apparel production in Canada continues to decrease while apparel imports continue to increase," added Banker. Since 2011, apparel imports have increased by C$3.4 billion or 8.3 per cent annually (average) to total $12.5 billion in 2015. Between 2010 and 2014, the total number of establishments contracted by approximately 12 per cent or 199 establishments. In 2015, approximately 20,000 employees were employed in the sector.

The ATSC fair supported by the Indian High Commission in Canada, emerged as a great platform for manufacturers to interact directly with the Canadian buyers and fashion and apparel experts. The Indian participants attracted interest from brands like Aritzia, Le Chateau, Walmart-Canada, Jockey-Canada, Gildan, Canadian Goose and Roots.

The new Canadian buyers who visited the fair this time included, Assent Lebel, Attraction, Cananda Goose, YKK, New Era Cap, Ozeol, Remco, etc from the apparel, textiles fashion and accessories areas. It was seen that 45 per cent of the visitors were looking for apparel, 32 per cent for accessories and 23 per cent for textiles. The other countries that participated included China, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and the US, the UK, Canada, Turkey, Jordan, Switzerland, Vietnam, Nepal, etc.

"The post show report reveals that the Apparel Textile Sourcing Canada (ATSC) fair was a huge success; the fair expanded by more than 50 per cent from last year. Also, visitors growth was more than 67 per cent compared to previous fair, depicting huge potential that Canada as a market has for apparel and textiles. The increase in the number of participants clearly indicated the value that the event brings to manufacturers," said Banker.

"We are the sole partner responsible for Indian Pavilion for the coming years trade fair. We will be helping the Indian manufacturers to connect with the North American market, on continued basis. There are huge opportunities for Indian exporters; the apparel and textiles exports from India to Canada, is slated to double by 2020," said Dr Anurag Sinha, president and Sandeep Keshari, director, North American Brands Group, who represented at the second edition of ATSC as the organising partner.

The next edition of the fair will be held in 20- 22 August, 2018 in Toronto. (RR)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk  India
TUV Rheinland India, a subsidiary of the TUV Rheinland Group, has expanded its footprint in the country with a new 2.5 million facility in Bangalore. The expansion will offer customers a complete solution that will reduce turnaround time and accelerate time-to-market. The new facility features the latest technologies and innovations, including solar panels.

TUV Rheinlands massive 10 metre anechoic EMC testing lab, the first of its kind in India, will remain at its existing location in strategic proximity to the new facility. Each lab is equipped with the latest technology to address the needs of customers. The laboratories include the photovoltaic lab, material testing lab, electrical safety lab, medical lab, battery testing lab and the Softlines testing lab. It is also home to the wireless IoT testing laboratory, which conducts radiated and conducted signal measurements as well as wireless alliance certification.

The new facility is designed to be compliant with a variety of national and international accreditations, including the IECEE CB scheme. Key capabilities include X-ray equipment testing, vibration and shock test, wet test and energy efficiency testing. There is a calibration lab for electromagnetic interference and electromagnetic compatibility testing and measuring equipment. Additionally, TUV Rheinland has specialised set-ups for testing medical equipment such as ECGs, defibrillators, baby warmers, incubators, ultrasound scanners and photo therapy devices.

It will accommodate products ranging from medical to photovoltaic, IT and audio-video products, home automation, home & kitchen appliances, batteries for IT products, wireless devices and automotive components.

"Since its inception, TUV Rheinland has been on a continuous growth path with a view to providing the latest and best global practices to our customers in India. The setting up of this extensive, brand new facility in Bangalore is more than a milestone for our company; it is yet another initiative designed to meet the growing demands of our customers," said Dr Michael Fubi, CEO, TUV Rheinland Group.

"For example, if an electronic component manufacturer walks into our office, we can offer them a complete solution for their business. That means catering to their need for ISO certification, as well as providing comprehensive support on product certification or material testing. We also offer training solutions  both managerial and technical  for employees. And, although we are co-locating our laboratories in a single tailor-made building  a first for any international TIC organisation operating in India  there is still significant spare capacity for future expansion," explained Fubi.

"TUV Rheinlands services have created a lot of demand in India, where the market is constantly looking for safer products. Quality is another key element that consumers consider when looking for value-for-money when it comes to products or services," said Thomas Fuhrmann, managing director, TUV Rheinland India.

"Major markets like the US and the European Union have stringent mandatory regulations when it comes to the quality and safety of products. The Indian government is also moving in the right direction by initiating mandatory BIS regulation for local manufacturers. And, with our new facility, TUV Rheinland will be there to help every step of the way," concluded Fuhrmann. (RR)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk  India
Cotton USA, which promotes US cotton fibre and manufactured cotton products worldwide, announced that US cotton sales were boosted at the recent Cotton USA quality conference, held from September 13 to 15, 2017, in Belek, Turkey. It helped strengthen the business relationships between the 127 attendees from Turkish textile mills and US cotton merchants.The 41 participating mills represented 74 per cent of 2016/17 US exports to Turkey, an estimated 1.1 million bales of US cotton. US exporters and textile mills reported sales of 113,528 bales of US cotton during the Cotton USA quality conference, valued at approximately $38.1 million. As a result of attending the event, textile mill buyers said they would likely purchase an additional 365,700 bales of US cotton during the next year, an estimated $122.9 million increase in sales.

Cotton USA, which promotes US cotton fibre and manufactured cotton products worldwide, announced that US cotton sales were boosted at the recent Cotton USA quality conference, held from September 13 to 15, 2017, in Belek, Turkey. It helped strengthen the business relationships between the 127 attendees from Turkish textile mills and US cotton merchants.#

Cotton Council International (CCI) president Eduardo Esteve said, The Cotton USA quality conference gave us the opportunity to strengthen our commitment to supplying our important textile mill customers in Turkey with US cotton fibre, with an immediate sales impact. The entire US cotton industryfarmers, ginners, warehousers, merchants, classers, cooperatives, and manufacturersis proud to be able to work together to create cotton fibre that is preferred for quality.On post-event surveys, the majority (96 per cent) of respondents said they met their objectives for the conference, which included learning about the cotton market (the main objective for 72 per cent) and making new business contacts (the main objective for 54 per cent). Around 98 per cent of the respondents reported that they would recommend the Cotton USA conference to a colleague.The Cotton USA quality conference gave A Closer Look at US Cotton and explored topics surrounding the use of US cotton in the Turkish textile sector, including changing world supplies and challenges in fibre competition. Speakers focused on the consistent quality and reliable supply of cotton grown in the US, as well as the sustainability, transparency, and premium value of US cotton and US cotton producers commitment to maintaining their strong relationship with the global cotton supply chain.The Cotton USA quality conference featured esteemed speakers like Gary Adams, CEO, National Cotton Council; Bulent Alkanli, managing director, Perseus; Bruce Atherley, executive director, CCI; Eduardo Esteve, president, CCI; Seref Fayat, president, Turkish Apparel Manufacturers Association (TGSD); Kent D. Fountain, managing partner, Southeastern Gin and Peanut; Jeff Johnson, chairman, American Cotton Shippers Association; Marc Lewkowitz, president, Supima; Jarral T. Neeper, vice president, AMCOT; Ahmet Oksuz, vice president, Kipas Holding; and Ted Schneider, first vice president, Cotton Council International. (GK)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk  India
HON PM BAINIMARAMA AT THE BLACK AND WHITE BALL IN SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES





Ladies and gentlemen,

Bula vinaka and a very good evening to you all.Its wonderful to be around so many Fijians and friends of Fiji again tonight. You all clean up so well. Seeing you all dressed to the nines brings me great joy  what a great representation of Fiji you are.Mary and I have truly been humbled by the hospitality and warmth that you have shown to us during our time here in the United States. I cant think of a better way to have celebrated our first Fiji Day in America.While your smiles and kind greetings have made my delegation feel at home here in California, I have been even more touched by your words of encouragement. It gives me great reassurance to know that, thousands of miles away, you are still keeping Fiji in your thoughts and prayers. As I continue my push to grow and unite Fiji, I will always remember my time here. Know that when I say that I am fighting for all Fijians, I am also fighting for you.Over the past few days, Mary and I have seen and talked to so many accomplished and talented members of our diaspora community. From Vancouver down to San Francisco, we are also blessed to have such great ambassadors to Fiji spread far and wide around the globe.Every day as a Fijian in America, your pride is a testimonial for our country. The smiles that you share with neighbours can turn into diplomacy. Your words and cherished memories can be converted into increased tourism and investment. And most importantly, your pride in our shared identity as Fijians brings our entire Fijian family closer together.With COP23 fast approaching, the coming months are going to be an opportunity for you all to show that pride more than ever before. Fiji is not just leading the South Pacific  we are leading the worlds campaign on the most pressing issue of our time.Share the news and developments with your friends, your coworkers, and your community. By doing this, you are helping Fiji in ways that cannot be accomplished on our own. You are helping to build a better Fiji. And for this, you have my gratitude, and the gratitude of every Fijian.Vinaka vakalevu. Thank you.
ORANGE COUNTY, CA / ACCESSWIRE / October 6, 2017 / As a recognized businessman who has been very successful in California's thriving marketing industry, Nick Kohlschreiber recently shared his insights on the vital relationship between marketing and technology, explaining that a significant shift in marketing techniques is already well underway, as mobile apps and Internet users spend more time on their smartphones and computers. This has created a challenge for brands as they seek to connect with customers through all these devices in real-time, while also developing advertising campaigns that are effective across social media, display advertising and e-commerce.

Sweeping technological advances and the expansive outreach of social media has permanently altered the nature of marketing as a whole, a sentiment Guardian contributor David Benady noted prior to a panel discussion with industry executives. "Real-time conversations brands have with people as they interact with websites and mobile apps has changed the nature of marketing," Benady wrote. "The modern-day marketing department needs to combine the creative side of the discipline - using powerful narratives to tap into people's wishes and aspirations - with the technical side of data, digital engineering and analytics." The potential reach of an advertising campaign has also broadened. Facebook, YouTube, online news websites, and integrated apps for smartphones and tablets now allow strong ideas to quickly spread and influence in the span of a single day. "If you come up with that nugget of an idea, you've now got such reach that you can expand that and get tremendous coverage just from a little niche idea," said Mark Singleton, head of marketing at betting brand Paddy Power.

Various technological tools enable modern marketing techniques to provide a highly personalized customer experience, often through insightful analytics providing a more targeted audience. As the number of tools and options continues to grow at rapid rates, marketers are faced with increasingly complicated decisions while deciding on their strategy. Nick Kohlschreiber encourages them to carefully weigh the numerous choices available and focus on methods that best fit their brand, while offering the highest level of direct access to their targeted consumer base. Kohlschreiber also advises companies to constantly reevaluate their strategies in light of emerging entities that may ensure even higher degrees of innovative and strategic advertising. By continuing to embrace evolutions in technology, marketing experts can stay ahead of the latest trends, adapting to changes while receiving optimal results.

Nick Kohlschreiber is an experienced businessman and entrepreneur, beginning his career at a young age as the head of marketing at an online wholesale product company, where he invigorated sales with his innovative approach to the online selling and direct shipping of products to its consumers. Now the owner of a media company based in Newport Beach, Kohlschreiber oversees hundreds of employees and tens of thousands of clients every day, while striving to further the connections to the modern communication platforms -- from document preparation, to online, multimedia-driven business development. In his spare time, he is a dedicated philanthropist assisting both local charities and various international non-profit organizations.

Nick Kohlschreiber - Expert in Modern Marketing: http://www.nickkohlschreibernews.com

Nick Kohlschreiber - Business Entrepreneur & Founder of TeleTree: http://nickkohlschreiberreviews.com

Nick Kohlschreiber - Creative Marketing Solutions Expert: http://nickkohlschreibermarketing.com

Contact Information

NickKohlschreiberNews.com

www.NickKohlschreiberNews.com

contact@nickkohlschreibernews.com

SOURCE: Nick Kohlschreiber
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - October 6, 2017) - Metals Creek Resources Corp. (TSXV: MEK) ("Metals Creek" or the "Company") announces that it has amended the terms of the non-brokered private placement of flow-through and non flow-through units (the "Private Placement") previously announced by the Company on September 28, 2017.

The Company now intends to issue up to 7,500,000 non flow-through units at a price of $0.06 per unit (the "NFT Units") for aggregate proceeds of up to $450,000, rather than the 2,500,000 NFT Units previously announced. Each NFT Unit will consist of one non flow-through common share and one non flow-through common share purchase warrant (the "Warrants"). Each Warrant will entitle the holder to purchase one additional non flow-through common share of the Company at an exercise price of $0.12 per common share for a period of 36 months from the date of issue, rather than a period of 24 months, as previously announced.

The Company still intends to issue up to 6,250,000 flow-through units at a price of $0.08 per unit (the "FT Units") for aggregate proceeds of up to $500,000. Each FT Unit will consist of one flow-through common share (the "FT Shares") and one-half of one non flow-through common share purchase warrant (the "Warrants"). Each whole Warrant will entitle the holder to purchase one additional non flow-through common share of the Company at an exercise price of $0.12 per common share for a period of 36 months from the date of issue, rather than a period of 24 months, as previously announced. The FT Shares will entitle the holder to receive the tax benefits applicable to flow-through shares, in accordance with provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).

In connection with the private placement, the company may pay finders' fees in cash or securities, or a combination of both, as permitted by the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange (the "Exchange"). All securities issued pursuant to the Private Placement will be subject to a four-month hold period. The Private Placement is subject to approval by the Exchange.

The proceeds raised from the FT Units will be used for approximately 4,000 meters of diamond drilling on the Ogden Gold Project in Timmins Ontario and other Canadian Exploration Expenses (within the meaning of the Income Tax Act (Canada)), with the Company using its best efforts to ensure that such Canadian Exploration Expenses qualify as a "flow-through mining expenditure" for purposes of the Income Tax Act (Canada), related to the exploration of the Company's exploration projects.

About Metals Creek Resources Corp.

Metals Creek Resources Corp. is a junior exploration company incorporated under the laws of the Province of Ontario, is a reporting issuer in Alberta, British Columbia and Ontario, and has its common shares listed for trading on the Exchange under the symbol "MEK". Metals Creek has earned a 50% interest in the Ogden Gold Property, including the former Naybob Gold mine, located 6 km south of Timmins, Ontario and has a 8 km strike length of the prolific Porcupine-Destor Fault (P-DF) that stretches between Timmins, Ontario and Val d'Or, Quebec. The company has also entered into an Option/JV with Trifecta Gold Ltd. on Metals Creek's Squid properties in Yukon. Metals Creek also optioned Metals Creeks/Benton's Staghorn Gold Project in Newfoundland to Quadro Resources, as well as two option agreements with Anaconda Mining Inc. on Metals Creek's Jacksons Arm and Tilt Cove Properties also in Newfoundland. In addition Metals Creek has recently entered into an option/joint venture with Sokoman Iron on MEK's Clarkes Brook project in central Newfoundland. The company is engaged in the identification, acquisition, exploration and development of other mineral resource properties, and presently has mining interests in Ontario, Yukon and Newfoundland and Labrador. Additional information concerning the Corporation is contained in documents filed by the Corporation with securities regulators, available under its profile at www.sedar.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "estimates", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, such as costs of sales, general economic conditions, the success of marketing and competition from competing suppliers and businesses. Actual results and developments are likely to differ, and may differ materially, from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

For further information, please contact:

Alexander (Sandy) Stares, President and CEO

Metals Creek Resources Corp

telephone: (709)-256-6060

fax: (709)-256-6061

email: astares@metalscreek.com

MetalsCreek.com

Twitter.com/MetalsCreekRes

Facebook.com/Metals.CreekResources
Yoga is a very practical exercise and does not require complicated equipment, especially if you regularly practice in a studio that usually prepares all the equipment.

Over the past five years, the industry has grown, thanks to more health-conscious individuals participating in yoga. In the coming years, many studios will emphasize the health merits of yoga to attract the burgeoning elderly population. In addition, a lot of activities are moving online and mobile and theres nothing wrong if people want to start practicing yoga at home.

To follow this trend, a lot of startups and established companies are entering the market via digital content (DIY video and tutorials) to improve the tecnique, via digital tools to track the activity and get access to advanced information about the result, or via an Online Yoga Store that sells traditional equipment, digital devices and gadgets and other related products.

Lets have a look at the main yoga equipment and (physical and digital) tools people need to the practice.

1. Yoga mat

When practicing in the studio, usually you just come and can use a mattress that has been prepared in the classroom. But if you practice yourself at home, then the yoga mat is the main equipment that you must have, because yoga practice will be more comfortable and safe when using a good quality yoga mat. When you are going to buy a yoga mat, make sure you pay attention to the thickness of the mattress. Usually a thickness of 5mm up is good for everyday use. For mattresses that can be used or taken away, the thickness of 3mm is the most appropriate one. In addition to the thickness, mattress base material also needs to be considered. Make sure the material is easy to absorb sweat, and not slippery too. Surely you want to buy a durable mat so no need to often buy it repeatedly.

2. Yoga blocks

The first time you start practicing yoga, many poses may seem difficult to do. Using yoga blocks can help you in various yoga poses that you have not mastered. For choosing yoga blocks you can consider the material and weight. Some experts recommend blocks made of thick foam, cork, and wooden. The heavier your yoga blocks, the more stable them to be the support for your practice.

3. Yoga strap

In addition to yoga blocks, using yoga strap will help your practice, especially if you feel less flexible in some sitting poses. You can use this support rope to improve your posture, because the strap can help hold the position of the hands and feet so as not to change. There are two types of straps that you can choose the strap belt that looks elongated like a belt and two-circle strap (infinity strap). You need to make sure the strap material is made of thick fabrics that do not scratch your skin.

4. Gadgets aka electronic devices

Not that I advise you to stay online or busy with your electronic devices while practicing yoga, but I understand that often our lives cant be separated from electronic devices, and your gadgets can be very useful when used appropriately. I suggest you turn off the phone connection so you will not be disturbed by phone calls. And if you have a tablet, this electronic device will be more useful because the larger screen can be used to be a guide in looking at yoga poses. Or even, you can access yoga videos online from world-renowned yoga teachers. You might need a tripod!
Titan Company has launched the Design: Impact Awards for Social Change in collaboration with Tata Trusts for efficient and sustainable product design for social change. It is a project-based grant award that aims to impact the underprivileged communities and needs of the society, by encouraging and inspiring bright minds to design for the benefit of the Indian society.

Open to innovators across India, it will identify and mentor product design innovators who would like to upscale their products reach to a larger community. The program will also recognize grassroot innovators, particularly who have been able to design creative product solutions for contextual problems at hand using whatever means available.

The jury panel includes R A Mashelkar, former Director General, Council of Scientific & Industrial Research; Anil Gupta, founder - Honey Bee Network; Ashok Jhunjhunwala, Department of Electrical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Madras; V R Mehta, trustee, Sir Dorabji Tata Trusts; Harish Bhat, brand custodian, Tata Sons and Ramji Raghavan, founder and Chairman, Agastya International Foundation; and others.

Bhaskar Bhat, Managing Director, Titan Company Limited, said: With the Design:Impact Awards, together we aim to celebrate product design that brings about social change. We will jointly use our design experience and social sector connect to help innovators make an impact wherever they are needed the most.

The company said, product design innovators and teams with prototyped and tested products are eligible to apply for the award and grant. Eligible entries are those that aim at resolving a social problem through a well-designed product or a system related with tangible/hard products. Those interested can apply on www.designimpactawards.in by 31 October, 2017. Innovators who qualify will be financially supported upto Rs 65 lakhs.
Chennai: Superstar Vijay-starrer Tamil film Mersal is set for release in Tamil Nadu after the Madras High Court removed the stay on the use of the title. But its release in Kerala still looks uncertain as distributors want to be compensated for losses suffered during Vijay's last release Bairavaa.

Mersal is due to release around Diwali.

Last week, an interim injunction was passed on the use of Mersal's title following a case filed by producer A Rajendran, who contended to have registered a similar title Merrasalaitan as well as Naan Merrasalaitan with the Tamil Film Producers Council in 2015.

However, Justice Anita Sumanth vacated the interim order after agreeing with the production house that there was no illegality in using the title as alleged by Rajendran.

Mersal producer N Ramaswamy has confirmed the film will hit the screens on Diwali. "All decks have been cleared. It will be a feast for audiences when the film releases," he told IANS.

Directed by Atlee, the film features Vijay in a triple role. Kajal Aggarwal, Samantha Ruth Prabhu and Nithya Menen play the leading ladies.

In Kerala, Mersal is facing stiff opposition from the Film Distributors Association (FDA), which has directed theatres in the state not to release it as the losses incurred for Vijay's Bairavaa are yet to be settled. In a statement, FDA has urged the theatres to extend support and not facilitate the release of the film.

Global United Media (GUM), the Kerala distributor of Mersal, is hopeful the matter will be resolved. This is not the first time the company, popular for distributing Baahubali franchise, has been targeted.

In the past, GUM faced roadblocks during the release of Baahubali and Baahubali 2.
When I stepped out of the theatre after watching director Raja Krishna Menons Chef earlier this week, I hoped that Roshan Kalras (Saif Ali Khan) food truck Raasta Cafe was parked outside. Even though I have never tasted a Rottza (a desi version of quesadillas made with rotis instead of tortillas that Roshan describes as his invention), I was craving that with a side of banana and potato crisps.

A remake of Jon Favreaus 2014 sleeper hit, Chef has Saif Ali Khan playing a frustrated three Michelin-star chef in New York. A very public meltdown, where he ends up assaulting a customer, results in him being fired. In a bid to reconnect with his habitually disappointed son (Svar Kamble) and to get his cooking mojo back, Roshan reinvents himself with a food truck.

Even before the father-and-son duo bond over cheese-laden (paneer, egg burfi and kheema) rottzas, Roshan takes Armaan on a culinary journey from the narrow lanes of Chandni Chowk to the worlds largest communal kitchen in the Golden Temple and dhabas of Amritsar. The film opens with the crusty surface of an aalu tikki being broken open before being slathered with the usual chaat paraphernalia of cold yogurt, tangy tamarind and fiery mint chutney and juliennes of ginger. And, every single shot of food being cut, prepared and served is a feast for the eyes.

Imagine this  the theatre is dark; the film is rolling and, you are dreaming of chugging a chilled glass of lassi in Amritsar or a mouth-water grilled cheese or marching into the nearest patisserie for glorious gateaux or charming choux pastries.

Some movies make you fall in love, some movies make you cry, and a handful of them make you very, very hungry.

Roshan Kalra is not the only desi celluloid chef returning to his roots this year. In director Pratim D Guptas Bengali film Maacher Jhol, Dev D (Ritwick Chakraborty), a Parisian chef comes back to Kolkata to see his ailing mother (Mamata Shankar). Her only request  maacher jhol (film curry) like how he used to make it. Its been more than a decade after he had last made jhol for his mother so Dev struggles to get the flavors right. He tries different combinations of cauliflowers, peas and potatoes with fish in mustard broth but his mother tells him its not that maacher jhol. On his last attempt, Dev dazzles his mother with Katla Komola, a jhol with orange juice and no vegetables and garnished with fried curry leaves.

Like Maacher Jhol, director Lijo Jose Pellisserys Malayalam gangster film Angamaly Diaries also celebrates local culinary traditions. Unlike the previous two films, it seems that unlikely that food could be an integral part of a gangster film but it is. The food is always there in the background, being prepared or eaten. The main conflict between the two gangs is over pork; Pepe (Antony Varghese) describes his first love as Kappayum Muttayum (mashed tapioca with eggs) in the local thattukada; and a pivotal fight breaks out over the last plate of rabbit stew. And, all of this is washed down with abundant supply of home made arrack (toddy).

Malyalam cinema has delivered some delicious food films in recent years. In Ustad Hotel, a man takes baby steps toward repairing his relationship with his grandfather by perfecting the flaky kerala porottas. The duo cement their relationship over cups of fragrant sulaimani chai on the beaches of Kozhikode. The tagline of direct Aashiq Abus 2011 film Salt n Pepper is 'Oru Dosa Udakkiya Kadha' (A story born out of a dosa).

In the film, the love for dosa brings together two strangers.

Internationally, theres a food film out there for every palate. Watching Jiro Ono, the subject of the documentary, Jiro Dreams of Sushi, lovingly mold fish and rice together will make the pickiest eaters hungry. Food is an integral part of the Chinese culture and the opening sequence of Ang Lees Eat Drink Man Woman, features some of the most breathtaking shots of traditional Chinese cooking.

In I Am Love, a much married Emma (Tilda Swinton) falls in love with an Italian chef after he whips up a shrimp dish for her. Helen Mirren and Om Puris The Hundred Food Journey is all about the clash of the cuisines when an Indian restaurant opens opposite a world-famous French one.

Ready for dessert? Theres enough dessert porn in films to satisfy everyones sweet cravings. Watching artfully arranged plates of petit fours in Sofia Coppolas Marie Antoinette will definitely trigger a hankering for the pastel-coloured delicate confectionaries. Remember the satisfying crack when Amelie (Audret Tautou) hit the caramelized top of a creme brulee with the back of her spoon? In The Grand Budapest Hotel, Agatha (Saoirse Ronan) bakes courtesan au chocolat, the three-tiered chocolate-creme-filled pastry glazed with pastel colours.

When food is done well on the big screen, you can almost hear the audiences dreaming about what to eat or even cook once the credits roll. Hopefully, some day taste-o-vision will become a reality and wed be able to taste all the food we can see on screen.
The Dillinger Escape Plan is not unfamiliar with violence. Their live shows have been infamous for their particular brand of frantic intensity, violence and danger. Sometimes the audience and even band members have been injured. Some other times theyve violently pummelled their way through their set. Fire breathing became a regular feature and the band didnt seem all that far from inciting a riot. One could leave the concert bloodied, but boy, did they promise a good time.

None of that prepared bassist Liam Wilson for the horror that the Las Vegas attacks were. When the shock subsided, a flurry of emotions hit him. Battling confusion, anger, despair and a suspended state of existentialism, Liam attempted to process the reality of it: A terror attack at a music festival. It couldve been him. It was an attack quite close to home, literally and figuratively. Speaking exclusively with Firstpost, Liam says, Even if we had more armed personnel on the ground, even if we beefed up security measures, what can stop something like this from happening again. I chose to be a musician. Shooting is not my agenda. That is expected in the police or military line of work. I just cant get my head around what could possibly construe as the motive for this (the attack). It kills so many stereotypes about whats happening in the world today and really makes you question how safe it is to play in any country in the world. I find myself stopping and checking the exits at venues more consciously. I find myself convincing my wife that Im okay and I will be okay. But are we really?

Reeling from the attacks doesnt mean Dillinger Escape Plan will tone down its theatrics on stage when the band plays at the NH7 Weekender in Pune over 8-10 December. Liam is quick to admit that although the band thrives on its violent outbursts, it has matured enough to channelise its energy better. He laughs, Im a bass player. I stand right next to the speakers and Im listening to and internalising the sound of the bass. Those waves just push through your body, alter your molecular structure, travel all the way through you until you start tapping to it while feeling the beauty of your soul vibrating. The more high-pitched performances on stage are that of the guitar player. The nature of the instrument often shapes your reactions. Also, as you get older, you let off this pent up male energy in a healthier way. I have gotten more energetic, therefore more aggressive [laughs]. But I dont have as much teen angst anymore. This is my drama therapy, my outlet.

His on-stage persona may be a far-cry from his off-stage life, but the bassist plays every song like its his last. That didnt help him from finding work on DEPs final album Dissociation the hardest to do. It was the hardest record Ive worked on. Its the one I had most doubts about. I suppose it was me just responding to and projecting the general vibe of the band then. Dillinger Escape Plan is the embodiment of adventure and all things wild, but Dissociation was so much more than that. Different people were going through different issues personally, and I didnt officially know about the breakup though I heard it through the grapevine. I just went about doing my bit in the studio, playing every song like its my last. So in that sense, I cant really do better than my best!

Pioneers of mathcore, an avant-garde genre with elements of both hardcore punk and heavy metal, Dillinger Escape Plan announced a year ago that they were indeed breaking up, but not before one comprehensive farewell tour. They will make a pitstop in India in December before playing their finale at the end of the month. The band that was formed in 1997 has seen its fair share of adversities: from band members unceremoniously leaving, to an accident of a band member resulting in paralysis. Liam says, Weve seen a lot together and weve seen a lot of members come and go. But we want to walk away when were not knocked down but in full control of our fate. Yes, there have been some difficult times, but we want to quit when the going is good.

Liam believes that each of the five members have hedged their lives in different ways, with each of them going through different transitional phases in their lives. Hes non-committal about a possible reunion or the release of singles in the way people are on their extended notice period; decidedly soaking in the present with but a faint eye on the future. Being a part of the Dillinger Escape Plan has given me some of the best memories. Knowing that at any point in time, some 20 of us can share any given inside joke makes us part of something so special. I have a lot to be thankful for. Its one thing to have your parents proud of something you do, its a whole different thing to have them come around and truly appreciate it for what it is. I met my wife on tour. We conceived our daughter on tour in Australia. Dillinger Escape Plan is like family, and itll hold a very special place in my life, he says, with a tinge of nostalgia.

If nostalgia is on his mind, Liam Wilson will visit India with an unmistakable sense of wanderlust. For an avowed vegan, who practises Bikram Yoga, India is a place of endless opportunities. Although the NH7 Weekender festival will open its 2017 proceedings with its Shillong edition over 27 and 28 October, Liam will take to the stage only in the second weekend of December at NH7 Weekender, Pune. But he has every intention of taking a few days off to travel around. I love everything about India. It is my first visit, but I feel connected to it through yoga, meditation, food and more. Im planning to stay on in Mumbai and perhaps travel to Goa as well to explore the local culture, landscapes and more.
As has been widely reported, Samantha Ruth Prabhu and Naga Chaitanya tied the the knot in a lavish three-day affair in Goa on 6 October. First, a traditional South Indian ceremony was held on 6 October, and the couple will also have a church wedding shortly. Pictures of the first ceremony were recently released by Chaitanya's father, veteran actor Akkineni Nagarjuna.

Samantha Ruth Prabhu shared a few pictures in a white gown designed by Kresha Bajaj, who also created her engagement ensemble.

Akkineni Nagarjuna also shared pictures from the initial parts of the ceremony on social media:

The following photo shows Amala Akkineni, Nagarjuna, Naga Chaitanya and Akhil Akkineni posing for a family photograph.

Waiting for @Samanthaprabhu2  joining the family this evening. pic.twitter.com/7Li77LzHKa  Nagarjuna Akkineni (@iamnagarjuna) October 6, 2017

In another picture, we see the bridegroom flanked by Daggubati Venkatesh, who is his maternal uncle and Nagarjuna, his father. Dressed in simple kurta-pyjama, Chaitanya is all smiles for the camera.

The couple's church wedding took place on 7 October, and it looked like it was straight out of a fairy tale. Prabhu donned a light purple gown designed by Kresha Bajaj and Chaitanya complimented his bride in a black tuxedo.

Prabhu and Chaitanya met on the sets of Ye Maaya Chesave in 2010 and started seeing each other to finally get married seven years later. The two plan to spend some time in New York, where they shot for their first film together, after the wedding.

After the three-day extravaganza wraps up in Goa, a lavish reception will be held in Hyderabad.
Varanasi: The National Commission for Women (NCW) team probing the violence in Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in September, on Friday indicted the vice-chancellor for the incident.

Acting chairperson of NCW Rekha Sharma said in Varanasi that had the vice-chancellor met the girls who were agitating against eve-teasing (molestation), the situation would not have spun out of control.

Sharma said the girls told them during the probe that their agitation had been "taken over" by some outsiders and it was they who were responsible for the agitation going violent.

The NCW chairperson also said that there was a lot of eve-teasing and harassment of girls on the university campus and the situation in the hostels was very bad. Many a time, boys were spotted outside the windows of the girls' hostel, she said.

She also called for enhanced security outside hostels, especially girls' hostels. Hi-tech cameras for 24x7 monitoring of the campus have also been recommended. The CCTV cameras of specialised kind have, however, been already installed on the campus.

The Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Varanasi, has meanwhile also been asked by the women's panel to get 50 unlawfully staying students out of the hostels.

Sharma also rued that the vice-chancellor had so far not appeared before the panel and that he had not even taken telephone calls so far nor responded to SMSs.

Police have also been indicted in the probe for the cane-charge and faulted for the absence of women police personnel during the scuffle with agitating girl students.

The whole ruckus at the famous BHU started on 21 September when a group of girls were teased by three boy students in the arts faculty.

Girls alleged that they had raised the matter with the Warden and also the chief proctor, but no action was taken against the errant students. The girls were instead asked by the varsity officials not to step out late night.

Demanding that the security be enhanced at the hostels and the campus, hundreds of girls had staged a sit-in the next day when the prime minister was in town on a two-day visit.

The same night they had also staged a march along with boy students to the bungalow of vice-chancellor GC Tripathi but were cane-charged by the police when they refused to back off.

Irate students then took to violence, vandalised university property and torched some two-wheelers.
Jammu: The state unit of the CPM Saturday held that the youth of Jammu and Kashmir had been alienated to an "unimaginable level" and instead of addressing the sentiment, the Centre is pushing measures that are deepening the alienation.

The party said attempts were being made to remove the Constitution's Article 35A, which bars outsiders from holding land or government jobs in the state, and Article 370, which grants the state a measure of autonomy.

"At a time when alienation of the people of Kashmir has reached an unimaginable level, the response of the government should have been to understand and address this emerging challenge politically.

"But unfortunately the RSS, the core of the present government, is vehemently advocating the measures which instead of overcoming this sense of alienation is bound to further deepen it," senior CPM leader and legislator MY Tarigami said.

Tarigami was addressing a day-long convention of the party's regional committee here which highlighted "attempts made by those holding power to assault" the constitutional provisions of special status under Article 370 of the Constitution.

"The constitutional provisions under Article 370 guaranteeing autonomy to the state, which has been virtually reduced to a pale shadow of what it was in 1950, is being further desperately targeted day in and day out," Tarigami said.

He said statements are regularly pouring in from those who are in authority suggesting the abrogation of Article 370 and Article 35(A). Tarigami said a serious attempt was being made by those holding power to pursue an agenda which can only result in trifurcation of the state on communal lines.
The Delhi education departments progamme Chunauti 2018 has met with a speed breaker as many students who failed in class 9 could not take admission in National Institute of Open Schooling as required, due to the high examination fees.

Official sources informed that out of more than 58,000 students who were expected to enroll, only 8,048 students have taken admission in NIOS through their schools till the last date, which was 29 September.

The number of students who have enrolled themselves online are yet to be taken into account. But we fear that the students who might have enrolled themselves online would add up at the most another three thousand more candidates to the list. Thus, the total number of candidates enrolled would be far below the expected number, the source said.

As per a circular issued by the Directorate of Education, the examination fees in the NIOS are Rs 250 per theory subject and Rs 125 for every practical subject. The student has to pay another Rs 150 per subject as transfer of credit fees.

The circular also mentions that for students who take exams for five subjects, including two practical subjects, the total fees would be as high as Rs 1250.

Many poor students cannot pay the Rs 15 fees charged by the Delhi government schools in class 9 and 10. How can the government expect them to pay such a huge sum of money?, asked lawyer and activist Ashok Agarwal, while speaking to Firstpost.

The high fees in the NIOS have left many students asking for financial help from the schools where they studied till class 9. Some of the schools have already reached out to them.

Shashi Kant Singh, the principal of a government co-ed school in Dwarka has already announced that a part of the fees would be paid by the school from its funds.

We have asked the students who are facing financial problem in paying the NIOS fees to bear Rs.600 in total by themselves and the rest would be paid by the school, he said. He said that his school has nine such financially weak students.

Another teacher who spoke to Firstpost on the condition of anonymity said that the deadline for submitting enrolment forms is also one reason why many students could not take admission in NIOS.

The last date of submission was 29 September, but parents get their salaries on 1 October or even later than that. They sought financial help from various persons and institutions and promised to return the money soon after their salaries are credited, he said.

Speaking to Firstpost, Shashi Kant Singh opined that the government also can pay the fees on behalf of the students and bail them out.  I have written to the government asking it to bear the fees of the poor students, but I do not know whether the advice would be accepted, he said.

He also added that the government can also extend the deadline for students who failed to submit their forms due to financial reasons.

The state government had launched the 'Chunauti 2018' programme last year to curb school drop-out rates. The programme is meant to help academically weak students clear their Class X exams by the year 2018. It allows the students who failed in Class IX to appear for their Class X exams through Patrachar Vidyalaya.

And to ensure that these students find it easier to pass, they were also given some additional flexibility. "They would have the option of dropping subjects like Mathematics," the policy further added. But this flexibility could not help, because only 2.01 percent of the students who appeared for exams from Patrachar Vidyalaya could pass.

Official sources said that after a huge section of the students failed in Patrachar Vidyalaya, the government has decided to move them to NIOS so that they can be given separate classes. The government has decided to provide them with special classes, for which 163 study centres have been planned under 34 nodal centres throughout Delhi. In these study centres, the students will be given special classes in subjects in which they failed, a source said.

The government has allocated a budget of Rs 2.64 crores for this project, for which teachers will be recruited.

We are waiting for the final tally of the number of students who have enrolled in the NIOS programme to come, after which we will recruit teachers and other staff members for the study centres,says Shashi Kant Singh who himself also heads a zone.
A rambunctious, cacophonous democracy, one of Indias biggest strengths during a national crisis is the way our constantly warring political parties leave aside their differences (even if momentarily) and rally behind the government of the day. This redeeming feature has been witnessed at various moments of history of this young nation. The struggle for independence may not have been a monolithic, linear movement but post-Independence, political, ideological rivalries have been frequently put aside to meet challenges to sovereignty.

One may remember that Jawaharlal Nehru, the then prime minister, invited the RSS to take part in the Republic Day parade in 1963 for its role during the 1962 Indo-China conflict. During the 1965 war against Pakistan, the saffron organisation received praise for its work from former prime minister Lal Bahadur Shastri. UPA 1 defence minister Pranab Mukherjee, for instance, in 2004, had defended on the floor of the House Atal Bihari Vajpayee's decision to delay airstrikes during Kargil to prevent the conflict from descending into a full-scale war between nuclear rivals.

It is too much to expect solid agreements in a multi-party democracy but there has always been an operational consensus that challenges to national security demand maturity and sensitivity in response. It was therefore surprising to find Congress president-in-waiting Rahul Gandhi throw caution to the winds and make a rash comment on Friday about Chinas reported road construction activities on the Doka La plateau, suggesting that the NDA government had pulled wool over the eyes of Indians on the resolution of Doka La standoff.

Modiji, once you're done thumping your chest, could you please explain this?https://t.co/oSuC7bZ82x  Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) October 6, 2017

Gandhi's tweet was followed by a coordinated social media campaign by the Congress where the Doklam resolution was further questioned. Spokesperson Kapil Sibal, during the daily AICC briefing, duly picked up the thread and demanded an explanation from Narendra Modi.

"Please tell the country as to what is happening at the border, especially along the Doklam plateau... What is going to be your policy in this regard and whether you will again invite President Xi to Sabarmati for a swing with him and have a good sleep," Sibal was quoted, as saying by PTI.

"What we are hearing now is that in the Doklam plateau near the tri-junction and 10 km within the chicken neck, a new road is being constructed and the same equipment is being used there. Reports also say that some 500 to 1,000 Chinese soldiers are also deployed there," added Sibal.

Soon after, in an article on its website, the Congress raised the question whether India has made "concessions" to the Chinese and acceded to its salami-slicing tactics. It was clear that the Congress was trying to create a political controversy out of a situation that still remains unstable, and putting pressure on Sino-Indian bilateral tie that is still recuperating from a severe trust deficit arising out of the most serious dispute since the 1962 conflict.

The Congress carried out its role as the chief Opposition party responsibly during the entire duration of the 73-day standoff. It showed restraint in behaviour, language and the entire political class showed a collective will not to let the situation escalate. This considerably strengthened Indias hands in pushing for a diplomatic resolution against a powerful and deceptive adversary. The resolution, which came by way of disengagement of troops from both sides from the faceoff site without a single bullet being fired despite relentless incendiary rhetoric from China, is as much owing to governments resolve as it is the Oppositions.

What explains, therefore, Congresss sudden lapse into intemperate sniping over an issue that concerns national security? This question is more important than it appears. Did it arise out of a genuine fear that the NDA may have compromised Indias sovereignty? Does the Congress have a case in its accusation that road-building activities by the PLA near the faceoff site indicate an under-the-table deal by Modi where China gets to alter interminably the status quo while Modi claims a pyrrhic victory just to appear as muscular?

It isnt clear whether Gandhi while raising questions about the stability of the Doka La resolution and Modis "motive", relied on data other than some reports that appear to be ambiguous and misleading.

The key contention in the report tagged by the Congress vice-president in his tweet  that sparked off the controversy  seems to be news of Chinese attempts at widening an existing road on Doka La plateau. This in itself is unexceptional and holds little strategic significance for India as long as the 28 August status quo ante is met -- that involves no troop presence in within 150 metres of the standoff site, no construction of permanent structures and no widening of the road south of Sinche La ridgeline between Batang La (Indias claim of tri-junction point) and Gymochen (Chinese interpretation) towards Jampheri Ridge that is close to Indias so-called chickens neck.

If Chinese road-widening activity and troop presence do not violate these conditions, then 28 August status quo holds, and there is no reason for any alarm. The NDTV piece, which Gandhi mentioned in his tweet, is vague on specifics but nowhere does it mention that post-Dokalam consensus has been violated. The report claims that "China has now shifted its unused road construction material North and East of the face-off site" and is widening a road "barely 10 kilometres from the location".

It is to be noted here that China has long claimed sovereignty over Doka La plateau and has engaged with Bhutan, the co-claimant, in 24 rounds of inconclusive discussions. PLA has regularly patrolled the area and had constructed the road as early as 2003 as part of its well-worn strategy to change facts on ground and claim sovereignty post-facto. The Doka La resolution hinged on China agreeing not to extend the road south of tri-junction area (which triggered Indias vulnerability), it didnt involve China carrying on with construction activities elsewhere on the plateau.

If this is clear, then the entire Congress argument falls apart and Gandhi and Congress' insinuations are exposed as ill-informed jibes aimed at cheap political point-scoring which may end up souring further India's ties with China at a time when both nations are gingerly reengaging with each other.

China, expectedly, bristled with indignation at the suggestion that its latest construction activities harm Indias sovereignty in any way (it doesnt). PTI quoted its foreign ministry spokesperson as saying: "There is no dispute. The Chinese border forces have been patrolling in the area of Donglang (Doklam), exercising their sovereign rights and safeguarding territorial sovereignty according to the historical boundary." The Ministry of External Affairs, too, in a short statement clarified that there has been no change in status quo ante.

In response to recent press reports about Doklam, our statement : pic.twitter.com/vIUp4xvFXR  Raveesh Kumar (@MEAIndia) October 6, 2017

Congress' profligacy with words have clearly irritated the Chinese and we can do without these irritants in ties at the moment.

The key question, therefore, is why did Congress jump the gun and tried to build a narrative that Modi government has sold India short based on unverified reports? It betrays a deep anxiety on Congresss part that Modi might run away with all Doka La accolades.

Gandhi neednt feel so insecure because as has been already mentioned, India was able to find a diplomatic resolution to the crisis because it displayed a collective political will, and in this, as Indias chief Opposition party deserves as much credit as the government.

Sadly, Congress of today is small in health and spirit compared to the grand old party of yore, helmed by leaders equally small in stature. The ham-handed attempt at creating a controversy where there is none only reinforces the truth.
Mumbai: Efforts are still on to extinguish the fire that broke out at a fuel tank farm of the Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) located on the Butcher Island off the east coast of Mumbai on Friday evening, a top fire brigade official said on Saturday.

The firefighters had brought the blaze under control, but "excessive heat" led to reignition at the tank around 4.30 am on Saturday, the official said.

According to officials, the fire had broken out around 5 pm on Friday when Mumbai and the surrounding areas witnessed thundershowers. However, no causality was reported.

"Excessive heat caused reignition around 4.30 am on Saturday. Firefighting, as well as the cooling operations, are on. Foam and other extinguishing agents are being used for the purpose," Mumbai fire brigade chief PS Rahangdale said.

He said firefighters of MbPT, as well as the fire brigade team, are working in tandem to douse the blaze.

According to Rahangdale, fire brigade personnel involved in the firefighting operation through the night have been relieved and new staff have been deployed.

"There has been a good coordination between Mumbai fire brigade personnel and the MbPT fire service team. The fire brigade team had reached around 10 feet near the blaze-hit tank, but reignition at dawn has posed a new challenge before us. However, the blaze is under control," he said.

"I am monitoring the operation. Because of the heat, the foam (used as an extinguisher) is not settling down, this is causing reignition. But overall, the situation is under control," Rahangdale said but did not specify how long the firefighting operation would continue.

"Our main challenge is to keep the other tanks near the affected one safe. So, on one hand, our firemen are involved in cooling operations to keep other tanks safe, while on the other, they are also engaged in dousing the flames," he told PTI.

Butcher Island houses a marine oil terminal of MbPT.

Oil tankers discharge crude at the terminal, and it is transported to refineries at nearby Mahul through submerged pipelines, port officials said.

After the fire broke out, vessels in the vicinity of the island have been moved to a distance as a precautionary measure.

A BPCL spokesperson had said on Friday that a lightning strike amid thundershowers was the apparent cause of the fire. "A diesel tank caught fire due to the lightning and thundershowers," he had said.

Manohar Rao, executive director and head of safety, BPCL, had said that prima facie, the cause of the fire was lightning, though further probe will be carried out on Saturday.
Sharanya Gopinathan

Hearing a case on the barbaric conditions in over a thousand Indian prisons (trust me, you dont want to know) last month, the SC enthusiastically called for encouraging the establishment of [more] open prisons. An open prison is basically like a campus without locks and bars, where the inmates can come and go as they please (there's minimal supervision) so long as they report back to the prison every evening. They can work, receive visitors, in some cases live with their families, and most importantly, serve much shorter and some-times even half sentences.

So not only could establishing more open prisons take a huge load off of our already over-burdened prison system, but as lawyer Smita Chakraburtty observed in a recent interview, open prisons could be the key to shifting from a retributive to a rehabilitative justice system: one that reforms and readies convicts for regular life back in society instead of a system that hardens them instead. Open prisons are a great way to reward good behaviour in non-habitual offenders, and theyve been proven to result in more cooperative, well-adjusted, rehabilitated and mentally stable prisoners.

Too bad theyre only for men in India.

Back when doing research on open prisons in the 1980s, legal scholar Upendra Baxi said it was notoriously difficult to find any data at all on these jails, even for the governments own research purposes itself, because states dont keep clear records of their functioning. Two decades later, it doesnt feel like much has changed  theres shockingly little data available on open prisons, and what's available paints a pretty grim picture.

The latest NCRB data on prisons in India from 2015 shows that of the 3,789 inmates in open prisons, only 109 are women. While the numbers might have changed a bit by now, its clear that there are more men than women in open jails. In fact, of the 63 open jails in the country, only four accept women inmates at all: Yerawada Open Jail and the Womens Open Prison in Trivandrum are exclusively for women, and the Durgapura and Sanganer Open Camps in Rajasthan do take in a few women inmates. The other 59 open prisons in India have no women at all.

It gets worse. This isnt a simple case of inadequate infrastructure for women, or even bad execution, although thats frustrating enough. It seems that in most states, women are actually explicitly barred in the admission criteria to open prisons in the first place.

Recently, the Delhi High Court heard a PIL filed by advocate Sunil Gupta, a former legal advisor at Tihar Jail, which sought the quashing of biased Delhi prison guidelines that arbitrarily excluded women from open and semi-open prisons. The Delhi High Court remarked that it set a bad precedent and that discriminatory guidelines shouldn't exist.

A closer look at some of the available literature on open prisons (and theres woefully little out there) indicates that while the guidelines for admission into open prisons vary from state to state, this isnt just a Delhi problem. One of the main guidelines across states for entry into open prisons is that you must not be a woman. Just because.

So when it comes to being selected to go to an open prison, and availing all the mental, physical, social and economic benefits associated with it, women in India almost literally dont stand a chance. In fact, they suddenly find themselves in the same category as class one prisoners, people convicted of crimes like dacoity and drug dealing, and habitual offenders.

Incredibly, in Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan, people with youthful or boyish looks are also not allowed entry into open prisons. Some speculate that this is probably a guideline that comes from a terrible misunderstanding of the nature of sexuality in a bid to protect young men from homosexual advances in prison, but it also reflects how the baseline here is male. The rules consider highly specific threats to men, but dont even seem to consider the possibility of women inmates and the needs and protections they would require. Its because the working assumption is that only men deserve to go to open prisons.

The fact that women are denied the opportunity to go to open jails feels even more depressing when you look at some of the specific issues that affect them.

Firstly, there are some women prisoners who fall outside criminality as we generally see it  these women end up in jail because they reacted violently to continued abuse from their husbands, in-laws or family members. Psychologists and police officers working with women criminals point to the different kinds of strains that prompt women to commit crimes, and its also pretty telling that one of the most common charges against women in Maharashtra, which has the highest number of female prisoners, is cruelty to husband or relatives, which sounds like a murky charge that could likely tell a story of prolonged abuse.

These kinds of women are different from cold-blooded killers, profiteers and cruel criminals with the risk of recidivism, and point more to a glaring flaw in society than any dire criminal tendencies that need to be addressed in the women. Women like these are actually victims themselves, and its cruel to put them through the harsh punishments that are meant to rebuke and rehabilitate truly dangerous criminals who pose threats to society at large.

Secondly, given the fact that some women end up in jail because of abuse from their families, and several face ostracisation, abandonment and shame from them having gone to jail, many women have nowhere to turn to when theyve served their sentences. Being allowed to earn money for their work in open prisons would help them stand on their own feet when released without being forced to turn to other avenues for money. This will also reduce psychological pressure when they have to go back to living their normal lives.

Its also true that women face particular horrors in custody, from death and violence, men-tal and physical abuse, to sexual assault and other humiliating attacks by guards and prison officials (like when a Tumkur jailer filmed women prisoners and leaked it to the media, causing one inmate to attempt suicide). Experts say that conventional prison systems also force women into criminal or gang-related activities after prison for lack of other viable financial options and after prolonged association with hardened criminals. An open prison system, where there are no jailers and a less severe and violent power hierarchy, reduces the risk of abuse like this taking place against powerless women, and increases the chances of them settling back into regular society.

Open prisons also allow a lot more interaction with your family, and the outside world. The rules vary in different states and prisons, but in open prisons, subject to some regulations, you can live with your family full-time, or at least for one week a month. This would of course be a wonderful thing for women with children  not only would they be able to live with their children and families, but the kids also get to grow up in a much safer environment than a regular prison.

Its clear that women stand a lot to gain from the system of open prisons, perhaps even more than men, considering their precarious position within society and the family. Indias exclusion of women from the open prison system sounds like it was designed for convenience  while the government might have wanted to try to improve prisoners conditions, they chose to do it by simply forgetting about the existence of women, or by putting their needs last. This is an approach were perhaps all guilty of when we put our battles into a hierarchy  have you ever heard someone prioritize womens rights over gay rights over trans rights? If were going to try and take leaps forward by introducing cool systems like open prisons, lets make sure we take the leap together.

The Ladies Finger (TLF) is a leading online womens magazine.
Kolkata: The Trinamool Congress (TMC) took to the streets on Saturday blaming the BJP for stirring up fresh trouble in the Darjeeling hills where peace was returning after months of unrest. The party took out rallies across the state and burnt effigies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a tit-for-tat protest.

The BJP had on Friday burnt effigies of chief minister Mamata Banerjee for keeping mum on the recent attack on the party's state unit chief Dilip Ghosh in the hills. "We took out rallies across the state and burnt Narendra Modi's effigy to counter the saffron party's attempt to create disturbance in the Darjeeling hills," state power minister Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay told reporters.

Leading the protest in Behala in south Kolkata, TMC secretary general Partha Chatterjee accused the BJP of trying to disturb the peace in the hills. Chatterjee also alleged that the Centre was helping the divisive forces in the hills.

"When peace has returned to the hills, the BJP is trying to disturb it. It is helping Bimal Gurung, who has cases under the UAPA (Unlawful Activities Prevention Act) lodged against him. If it (BJP) tries to disturb the peace, the people of Bengal will never forgive it," Chatterjee said.

Stating that the TMC was not involved in the attack on Ghosh in Darjeeling, Chatterjee said that it was an outburst of the hill people who agitated against the BJP team's visit. State panchayat minister Subrata Mukherjee also led a protest demonstration at Gariahat in South Kolkata.

"The BJP is also trying to disturb the development programmes, initiated by the chief minister Mamata Banerjee, in the state. But they will never succeed," Mukherjee said. Demonstrations were also held in different districts.

The BJP on Friday took out rallies, burnt effigies of the chief minister Mamata Banerjee in various parts of the state and staged a sit-in here protesting against the attack on its state President Dilip Ghosh in Darjeeling recently. During Ghosh's visit to the hills, agitators waved black flags and demanded that Ghosh along with his team should leave the hills immediately and refrain from disturbing the "peace and stability" in the region.
The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Saturday granted interim bail to three Ryan International Group trustees till 5 December in connection with the murder of seven-year-old Pradhuman, according to reports. The class II student was found dead with his throat slit inside the toilet of Ryan International School at Bhondsi in Gurugram on 8 August.

His father's lawyer said that the interim bail has been granted with conditions. The Pintos cannot leave the country and have to join the investigation, when needed, the lawyer said. He added that Pradhuman's father is considering moving the Supreme Court against the bail. This comes after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) opposed the bail plea of Ryan group's Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Ryan Augustine Pinto, saying that he might be involved in Pradhuman's murder.

#BREAKING -- CBI says Ryan Pinto possibly involved in a conspiracy behind the #RyanInternationalSchool murder pic.twitter.com/bIDOg9Tmlh  News18 (@CNNnews18) October 7, 2017

"Prima facie, the careless attitude of the management has aided the murder of the Pradhuman. Investigation is at crucial stage and larger conspiracy is yet to be unearthed. Any relief at this stage may hamper the course of investigation and he (Ryan Pinto) may misuse the liberty of bail granted to him," the CBI argued in the court, according to The Times of India.

Pradhuman's father had earlier approached the Supreme Court challenging the interim anticipatory bail granted to the trustees in the case. His appeal, filed through advocate Sushil Tekriwal, said the grant of interim protection against their possible arrest was illegal and unconstitutional and should be set aside.

The Haryana government had recommended a CBI probe in the matter following massive outrage. The premier agency took over the probe on 22 September.

The case had been registered at the Bhondsi police station in Gurugram under the IPC sections related to murder, and relevant sections of the Arms Act, the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the Juvenile Justice Act.
Kozhikode: Kerala BJP President Kummanem Rajasekheran on Saturday slammed the state government for filing an affidavit in the Supreme court opposing a NIA probe into the case of a young Hindu woman who embraced Islam.

Hadiya, 24, was born Akhila Ashokan in a Hindu family in Kerala. She converted to Islam and married Shafin Jahan, 27, in December 2016.

"The stand taken by the (Pinarayi) Vijayan government clearly shows the soft corner of this Left government towards anti-national forces," Rajasekheran told the media here in the course of his "Jana Raksha Kerala Yatra" that entered its fifth day.

He asked why the Kerala government opposed a probe by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in the case.

On 25 May, the Kerala High Court declared the marriage "null and void", terming it a "sham" and ordered that Akhila be placed under her parents' protective custody.

On 16 August, the Supreme Court ordered a NIA probe, supervised by retired apex court Justice RV Raveendran into the religious conversion and her marriage to Jahan.

Jahan has since challenged the High Court order in the top court, saying it an "insult to the independence of woman in India".

The Kerala government has said the Crime Branch probe into the case was enough.
Chandigarh: The Haryana government on Saturday reinstated IPS officer Ashok Kumar, who was suspended following large scale violence in Panchkula after the conviction of Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in a rape case.

He has been posted as commandant, 1st Battalion, Haryana Armed Police, Ambala City, relieving Abhishek Jorwal from the additional charge of the post, an official spokesperson said in Chandigarh.

"The reinstatement of Kumar is subject to the final outcome of departmental proceedings pending against him," he added.

On 26 August, Kumar, the then deputy commissioner of police in Panchkula, was suspended by the Haryana government, a day after at least 35 people died in the district in violence triggered by the self-styled godman's conviction.

The police and administration were blamed for failing to get prohibitory orders under section 144 of the CrPC effectively implemented in Panchkula.

Dera Sacha Sauda followers had gone on rampage on 25 August following the conviction of Ram Rahim Singh by a CBI court in Panchkula in a rape case.
An essential component of the theory of a modern nation is the States power to discipline its citizens so as to maintain some sort of societal order. These punishments vary across jurisdictions. This is why stealing could mean the loss of your limbs in Mali, but only merit a short sentence in a cushy prison in Norway.

In some countries, however, the worst crimes attract the ultimate punishment: the death penalty. India finds itself in the company of countries like China, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia as one of the countries to retain the death penalty as a punishment for crimes.

India currently uses hanging to administer the death penalty. However, on Friday, the Supreme Court asked the Centre to respond to a plea challenging the legal provision that a death row convict would be hanged to death. Noting that science has progressed dynamically, the court observed that the legislature could look at other ways to administer the death penalty.

The court also said that the condemned should die in peace and not in pain. It observed that a human being is entitled to dignity, even in death.

These observations give rise to the obvious question: is it even possible for the State to ensure a peaceful and dignified death for criminals?

Not all deaths are equal

There are various ways in which the death penalty is administered. In 2016, countries used beheading, hanging, lethal injection and shooting to kill criminals, as per Amnesty International. Contrary to popular belief, there were no reports of judicial executions by stoning. Here is a look at these methods and how they work in the real world.

Hanging

Hanging is the preferred mode of execution in countries like Afghanistan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Sudan and, of course, India.

The basic problem with hanging is that it needs precision. If the rope is too long, the criminal could be decapitated, and if it is too short, they would die by asphyxiation which could take as long as 45 minutes. Neither of these are remotely humane methods.

There is a history of botched hangings to support the argument against it. A famous case is that of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Husseins half-brother Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti. Al-Takriti was decapitated after the hangman used a rope that was too long. This provoked widespread outrage and prompted Amnesty International to point out that the execution emphasised the brutality of a cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment.

There was also the case of Eddie Ives, the burglar who was convicted of killing a police officer. At just 36 kilos, Ives was too light for the rope and it took three attempts before he was strangled for 23 minutes and pronounced dead.

Even apart from the examples, the fact that the Supreme Court is considering abandoning it means that hanging is not quite acceptable as a death penalty method.

Beheading

Only Saudi Arabia used beheading as a form of punishment in 2016. A decidedly medieval form of punishment, this method barely deserves consideration but in case one needs convincing, consider the number of things that can cause a botched beheading, from a blunt sword/axe to a physically weak executioner.

One can be fairly sure that the Supreme Court was not thinking about beheadings when it asked the Centre to move away from hangings.

Shooting

Used by nations like China, Indonesia and North Korea among others, this method uses the invention whose sole purpose is to kill. In this method, the criminal is typically bound to a chair surrounded by sandbags to absorb their blood. A white cloth target is pinned over their heart and shots are fired. Death is a result of a heart rupture or tearing of the lungs. If the shooters miss the heart, the prisoner bleeds to death slowly.

While it might sound regressive, shooting could actually be the most humane method of administering the death penalty. In Arthur v. Dunn, Justice Sonia Sotomayor of the US Supreme Court observed that in addition to being near instant, death by shooting may also be comparatively painless. And historically, the firing squad has yielded significantly fewer botched executions.

There are however records of these being botched as well, with an 1879 execution going wrong after the shooters missed their target which resulted in the criminal staying alive for 27 minutes after being shot.

Lethal injection

Then there is the ostensibly safe option of the lethal injection which is used by USA, Vietnam and in certain cases, China. Using modern medicine to kill people was touted to be the answer to allegations of barbarism associated with the death penalty. Even the 187th report of the Law Commission of India recommended replacing hanging with the lethal injection in the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973.

The trouble with this line of thought is that there is a long history of botched executions using the lethal injection as well. The one in recent public consciousness is the 2014 execution of Clayton Lockett in the US state of Oklahoma. In an agonising experience which went on for 43 minutes, Lockett writhed, groaned and convulsed and it was later discovered that his vein had collapsed. He finally died of a heart attack instead of the drugs administered to him.

There are multiple other cases where the criminals have suffered tremendously after the injection was administered. While some doctors do take part in executions, they are generally prohibited by ethical concerns from doing so.

Another issue is that if the lethal injection is not delivered correctly, the criminal could be paralysed but still be able to feel tremendous pain, according to The New York Times. Thus they might be unable to move or cry out but be in terrible agony. Further, the makers of the drugs which go in the lethal injection have stopped selling them for this purpose, resulting in executioners experimenting and making dangerous drug cocktails.

Other methods

Other than the methods mentioned above, there is also the electric chair and the gas chamber, each of which has seen a decline in use due to  you guessed it  botched executions. They have resulted in excruciating deaths over protracted periods of time, and using them amounts to nothing less than torture.

Further, as the BBC found out in an episode of Horizon called How to Kill a Human Being, even when presented with a painless way to kill people (using Nitrogen which first makes them euphoric, then unconscious after which they die painlessly), pro-death penalty advocates were not satisfied. They pointed that few of us die painlessly and affording such treatment to the 'worst human beings amongst us' is hardly justice.

There is no good option

The Supreme Court is looking to reform a law which is extremely contentious. However, it has waded into an extremely unproductive debate as there is overwhelming evidence on hand to suggest that there is no good way of executing people.

The courts intervention is especially jarring as even apart from the obvious question of whether the death penalty should be allowed or not, there are other aspects which merit discussion. Research conducted by the Death Penalty Research Project at the National Law University, Delhi suggests that the prisoners on death row are generally those who are extremely marginalised and belong to very poor backgrounds and have had no means of defending themselves properly. The court could look into why these people are represented on the death row in a number which is disproportionate to their share of the population. It could look at the sort of the legal representation they get and why they fall victim to procedural violations.

The Supreme Court is tasked with an enormous array of responsibilities which it needs to fulfil. At a time where there is such a staggering backlog of cases before it and allegations have been made of the court ducking certain cases, it seems like a cruel waste of time and resources for the court to take up an issue with no good answer.

Lets fix what we can

If we as a country are ready to kill human beings as part of our justice system, then we should accept that we are handing out retributive justice as research has shown that the death penalty is not a good deterrent to crime.

Instead of wasting time looking for good ways to kill people, we should instead look to deal with the most common argument against the death penalty, which is that innocent people are sometimes executed. That is something which the court can try to fix by giving better guidelines on investigation and trials, and trying to firm up the judicial system in general.

Otherwise we are just scaling new heights of irony as we look for humane ways of killing people.
The Sirsa administration in Haryana has decided to use the services of school teachers to put out fire in farmlands. In a surprise move, the tehsildar of Dabwali sub-division in Sirsa issued an order directing 67 government school teachers to take part in 'monitoring of stubble burning' incidents in the district.

Vijay Mohan Syal, the tehsildar who issued the order on 4 October, asked the teachers to supervise the control room built specifically to monitor the stubble burning incidents. The teachers will attend calls from informers in the control room and then direct fire brigades to the affected farms. The order, which was accessed by Firstpost, is signed by the tehsildar and was sent to the Block Education Officer (BEO).

The order contains the list of 67 teachers and also has a detailed rotation system set up for them. The teachers will have to work in shifts of 9 am-5 pm and 5 pm-10 pm.

Directing the BEO to assign the teachers to the control room from 4 - 31 October, the order further states that anyone who is negligent in his/her duty would have to face disciplinary action.

Expressing shock over the decision, BEO Baljinder Singh Bhangu said that it was a thoughtless move and would severely affect the students, some of whom are currently appearing for their mid-year exams.

"Whenever teachers are asked to engage in non-academic duties, it is eventually the students who suffer," Bhangu said. He added that the department will take up the matter with the district administration.

Bhangu also said that it was wrong on the part of the district administration to assign teachers to these duties. "It is the duty of concerned Panchayat and revenue department officials to conduct checks on stubble burning. They have to visit fields and inform the authorities, not the teachers from schools!" he said.

Sirsa district education officer Yag Dutt Verma, who has directed the BEO not to assign teachers till he speaks to the Sub-Divisional Magistrate, said that the state and district were facing a severe shortage of teachers and in such a scenario, sending away the existing teachers for these duties was foolhardy.

"We have only 900 teachers when we should have 1,800 of them. Also, there are only 36 headmasters against the sanctioned strength of 93," he explained. "Now teachers who work at night for this stubble burning duty will have to miss class the next day!"

The teachers too are unhappy about the order from the tehsildar. Hansraj Kumar, the headmaster of Abubsehar village, said that one of their teachers' name was on the list and he did not know what to do. "We have 350 students and only seven teachers for all of them. Even losing one teacher to this stubble burning duty will upset our schedule," he said. "The teachers are already under immense pressure and sending them anywhere is impossible. But, we are bound by the order."

Bhagwan Dutt, president of Haryana School Lecturers Association, said that it was not the first case when government teachers were made to engage in non-academic duties.

"Instead of teaching in classrooms, government teachers are asked to be present for election duty, census duty, economic survey, distribution of pills and what not! On top of it, these are made compulsory," he said.

Tehsildar Syal confirmed that he had issued the order and defended it by stating, these teachers were the ones who were being regularly assigned duties for other projects. He denied having received any request from the education department to reconsider the order.

"The duty was assigned on the order of the Sub-Divisional Magistrate and only the his office has the power to revoke the order," he said.

Interestingly, Haryana education minister Ram Bilas Sharma who was recently in Bhiwani, where the education board headquarters is located, cited ignorance of any such order assigning duties to government teachers. "I am unaware of such an order but if it indeed exists, we will get it checked," he said.

Sat Singh is a Rohtak based freelance writer and a member of 101Reporters.com, a pan-India network of grassroots reporters
Jammu: Pakistani forces on Friday violated the ceasefire along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmirs Rajouri district.

The troops resorted to small arms firing along forward areas in Baba Khori and Kala along LoC around 19.30 hours, a senior district officer said.

The firing is going on intermittently, he said, adding there is no casualty.

The Pakistani Army had targeted the Poonch sector by initiating unprovoked and indiscriminate firing of small arms, automatics and mortars on 4 October. Three army jawans had suffered injuries in the incident.

On 3 October, an army jawan was killed when the Pakistani Army violated the ceasefire along the LoC in Poonch.
Former prime minister Manmohan Singh finds himself at the centre of another controversy after he shared the dais on Saturday with Sajjan Kumar, an accused in 1984 anti-Sikh riots case, according to media reports.

#NewsAlert -- Former PM Manmohan Singh shares stage with 1984 riots accused Sajjan Kumar pic.twitter.com/QrUY3puBeS  News18 (@CNNnews18) October 7, 2017

The following video by Times Now, which also reported that the incident has sparked massive outrage, shows Singh on the stage with Sajjan Kumar, along with several others.

Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh stirs a fresh row by sharing stage with 1984 riots accused Sajjan Kumar #CongForgets84 pic.twitter.com/jUHWKlqP8J  TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) October 7, 2017

Kumar, a Congress leader himself, was one of the key accused in the 1984 riots where 3,000 Sikhs were killed, mostly in Delhi, following assassination of then prime minister Indira Gandhi by two of her Sikh bodyguards.

In 2013, Kumar was acquitted in a related case by a Delhi court, while five other accused were convicted of charges including rioting and murder.

In 2016, Kumar got anticipatory bail in another case related to the 1984 riots, where he was accused of instigating a mob to kill two Sikhs  Sohan Singh and son Avtar Singh  in Janakpuri on 1 November, 1984.
The external affairs ministry said on Friday that there are no new developments at the India-China military face-off site in Doka La and its vicinity since the 28 August disengagement.

"The status quo prevails in this area. Any suggestion to the contrary is incorrect," the ministry said in a brief statement.

"There can be build-up anywhere else, away from the site, but that does not change the status quo. What was agreed by both sides, when they decided to disengage, has not been violated so far," The Indian Express also quoted a source as saying.

The ministry was reacting to recent press reports on Doka La.

The reports said that China has maintained a sizeable presence of its troops near the site of the Doka La standoff with India and even started widening an existing road which is at a distance of around 12 km from the area of conflict.

Troops of India and China were locked in a 73-day-long standoff in Doka La since 16 June after the Indian side stopped the building of a road in the disputed area by the Chinese Army. Bhutan and China have a dispute over Doka La.

Bhutan and India were in touch with each other during the course of the face-off that ended on 28 August.

On Friday, China had defended the presence of its troops in the Doka La area. "The Donglang (Doka La) area has always belonged to China and has been under the effective jurisdiction of China," the Chinese foreign ministry had told PTI.

"There is no dispute. The Chinese border forces have been patrolling in the area of Donglang, exercising their sovereign rights and safeguarding territorial sovereignty according to the historical boundary," the ministry had said in a written response.

It is also crucial to note that while India and China had decided to withdraw troops from the disputed region, there was no communication about the road which China was widening or even about stationing of PLA troops in the region in the future. Thus, troop deployment by China does not necessarily indicate the beginning of another standoff.

Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will also visit Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh on Saturday and Sunday to review the situation along India's border with China.

"The defence minister is scheduled to visit to border states of Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh, where she will take stock on the prevailing security situation, especially after the Dokalam face-off. During the visit, she will be briefed by top commanders of the Eastern command on the defence preparedness (sic)," The New Indian Express had quoted an official as saying.

India Today had also reported that the army is likely to brief Sitharaman about its preparations to prevent China's attempts at incursions into areas where the boundary is not demarcated and both countries have different claim lines.

With inputs from PTI
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"There were lots of possibilities of development in the tourism sector here, but earlier the UPA government had an indifferent attitude towards Gujarat because of the BJP government in the state... I clearly remember," Modi said at a public gathering.  PTI

Earlier, Rahul Gandhi had also gone to Saurashtra region and had targetted the Modi government.

The prime minister, during his two-day visit, will travel through Saurashtra, which sends the highest number of legislators to the 182-seat Gujarat Assembly.

"Because of Narmada's water, new employment opportunities will come up in Surendranagar. It will also become an important place for education," said Modi in Rajkot.

Modi also said that his government helped in the development of dairy industry in Surendranagar.

"The day is not far when this (Rajkot) airport will have international services," he said. "This Narmada project will become a sukh-sagar in the future," he added.

"We needed to take only 4 percent of land from farmlands for this airport. 96 percent of barren land was taken for this airport," said Modi, talking about the greenfield airport in Rajkot, which was inaugurated by the prime minister earlier.

We needed only 4 percent of farmland for the Rajkot airport: Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting his home town of Vadnagar and inaugurate a Rs 500 crore government hospital and a medical college. Modi spent his formative years in Vadnagar before leaving home to pursue a life in public service.

Modi is also scheduled to dedicate the redeveloped Sharmistha Lake to the people and inaugurate other public works, including the facelift of the Vadnagar railway station, where he is once said to have sold tea as a school boy, reports IANS.

Apart from being an RSS worker, Dwarka-resident Adhunik is also a member of the administrative committee of the famous temple.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today met his old friend and long-time RSS pracharak Haribhai Adhunik during his visit to the famous Dwarkadhish Temple. While leaving the temple after offering prayers this morning, Modi walked towards Adhunik upon spotting him standing with some people in the temple courtyard.

While opening his speech, Modi remembered his childhood days when he sold tea at the railway station in his hometown Vadnagar. "You all are IITians. But I am the one who is just a 'teaian', a chaiwala" Modi said, evoking laughter from the audience.

The prime minister is in the poll-bound home state for a third time in less than a month. Last time around, he inaugurated the Sardar Sarovar Dam project. Before that he had welcomed Japan's Shinzo Abe to his home state during his state visit.

Modi in Gujarat for third time in a month

While Modi has visited Gujarat quite often in the last three and a half years, this is prime minister's first visit to Vadnagar after he took power in May 2014.

First visit to Vadnagar after becoming PM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said yesterday's changes in the GST regime giving relief to small and medium businesses have been hailed across the country as they kindled the festive mood of Diwali a fortnight before it is celebrated.

In the afternoon, he will reach Bharuch and lay the foundation stone for Bhadbhut Barrage to be built over Narmada River. Modi will also flag off the Antyodaya Express between Udhna (Surat, Gujarat) and Jaynagar (Bihar). He will address a public meeting in Bharuch before returning to Delhi.

Under attack over the Gujarat model of development, Modi took a swipe at the Congress over economic progress under its governments, saying for them it meant installing a hand pump and asking for votes in return.

According to News18, Prime Minister Narendra Modi would pass by his school and also the old railway station where his father's tea stall was located. The hoardings also highlight several achievements of Modi's three-year rule at the Centre.

Modi will be pass by his old school, railway station

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone of the Rs 1,200-crore Devi Ni Mori International Buddhist complex near Shamlaji in Aravalli district, also in North Gujarat, News18 reported.

After addressing a public gathering in his hometown Vadnagar, Narendra Modi is also expected to address a public gathering in Bharuch, a key town in South Gujarat,

Watch: Modi bows down while visiting his school in Vadnagar

The perception in the BJP, that is ruling Gujarat since 1995, and rightly so is that Modi alone could dwarf all caste contradictions and anti-incumbency in the state just by a few visits with his "vikas purush" (development man) positioning. That the prime minister is on a veritable foundation stone-laying spree during this visit is also to forcefully drum home the message of development.

The BJP's biggest and the most loyal vote bank in Gujarat has been the urban middle class and GST has hit them the most, coming as it did after the sledgehammer impact of demonetisation. Rupani has also announced that petrol and diesel prices will come down in the state, though he has not given a timeframe.

While visiting his school, an emotional Narendra Modi smeared his forehead with the sand of Vadnagar and kneeled his head to the ground.

Narendra Modi interacts with the students of the medical college

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a Rs 500 crore modern six-storey Civil Hospital associated with the local medical college. He interacted with the medical students in the college in their own classroom. This hospital is set to cater to lakhs of patients in North Gujarat and south Rajasthan, which borders the region.

Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel and Union Minister JP Nadda are also present with Modi, News18 reports.

Every nook and every corner of the town was choc-a-bloc with people to receive him. The massive crowds made an emotional Modi hold a roadshow that was not part of the itinerary. Modi hung out of his Range Rover SUV through the route and waved at the surging crowds.

Hundreds of school students were mobilised by the local unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party to attend Modi's public address in his hometown Vadnagar, where he has come for the first time after becoming the prime minister in 2014. The students are attired in saffron or white dresses, with saffron caps. The T-shirts have the logo "Welcome NaMo." printed on them.

When Modi reached his school, he got down from his car impromptu leaving all security barricades aside and he went inside, followed by the crowds. Before entering the school, he sat down on the floor and bowed down at the entrance. 

By Saturday afternoon itself, the prime minister had laid foundation stones of as many as six infrastructure projects: Signature sea link bridge from Dwarka to the popular island pilgrimage centre, Bet Dwarka, four-laning of Dwarka-Porbander highway as well as Gadu-Porbander road, four laning of Rajkot-Morbi state highway, six laning of major Ahmedabad-Rajkot highway and Rajkot International Airport.

Saurashtra is like Uttar Pradesh of Gujarat for it sends the maximum number of MLAs, 52, to the 182-member state Assembly and is the BJPs bastion for two decades. Congress getting an unusually positive response to Gandhi in this region is a matter of concern for the BJP, which depends completely on the persona of Modi.

In Gujarat, to kickstart Congress' campaign under the theme, "Yuva Rojgar, Kisan Adhikar", Gandhi delineated the party's national theme for 2019 as he said while addressing village meetings, that the country faced two burning issues, one is the lack of jobs for lakhs of youth; and the other is the farmer plunging into deeper crisis".

Recap: What Rahul Gandhi said during his Saurashtra tour

"Once Carriappa went to his village, where he said that the experience of being welcomed by natives is something which cannot be compared," Modi said. "I feel the same," said Modi.

"Whatever I am today, it is all because of Vadnagar and its people," says Narendra Modi.

"I will work harder for the people of Gujarat. I will work on the ideals taught by the people of Vadnagar, I promise it," Modi said.

Modi said that the archeological excavations from Vadnagar have become the focal point of world community. He said that Vadnagar is now the only place in the world which has been continuously been inhabitant by people. Modi said that Vadnagar was a major Buddhist learning centre in the ancient times.

"I request people to think Indradhanush as your own campaign. As much as you feel happy when you donate blood or do other charities, you should also help the poor children to get immunised. You will be blessed," says Modi.

Slamming the UPA government for not bringing in a health policy, Modi said it was the Vajpayee government between 1998 and 2004, which brought a comprehensive health policy. He said that the UPA did not attach importance to the policy while it was after NDA came to power that the policy was renewed.

In a bid to reduce infant and maternal mortality rates in Gujarat, Modi urged doctors to work for free on the ninth day of every month. "This will help poor women to not travel far off places for delivering babies," Modi said.

"Sharmistha lake is the heart of Vadnagar. We will make it a tourist hotspot," says Modi in his hometown.

"Immense love showered by people of Vadnagar gives me new energy to serve the nation with more zeal," PTI quoted Modi as saying while promising to work even more harder for the people of Gujarat.

There were chants of "Modi-Modi" and flowers were showered on him at several places along the route of the roadshow. The locals told mediapersons it was a matter of great pride that the "son of the soil" was the prime minister and was visiting the town after a long time.

Recalling Modi's childhood, Pankaj said, "He used to focus on his studies and when free, he used to sell tea at the railway station. During the Indo-Sino war, he reached the station and gave tea and food to soldiers."

Pankaj Modi, a relative of the prime minister spoke to News18 on the mood in the town and said, "Gaon ka beta aa raha hai. Mood is ecstaitc in Vadnagar."

Modi launched the "Intensified Mission Indradhanush" to accelerate progress towards the goal of full immunization coverage. "I am happy that I have got to inaugurate projects relating to the health sector, particularly Intensified Mission Indradhanush," said Modi. "Work is constantly being done to make healthcare affordable for the poor," he added.

"Coming back to one's hometown and receiving such a warm welcome is special. I go back with your blessings and assure you that I will work even harder for the nation," said Modi, who is on a two-day visit to Gujarat. Whatever I am today is due to values I have learnt on this soil, among you all in Vadnagar," he added addressing a public meeting in Vadnagar. Read more here .

Modi will lay the foundation stone for Rs 3,000-crore Bhadbhut barrage project over river Narmada, as well as a Rs 650-crore Dahej-Ghogha Ro-Ro ferry service near Bharuch in South Gujarat. After that, Modi will fly off to New Delhi from Vadodara, CNN News18 reported.

This is where Modi addressed people of his hometown in Vadnagar

Modi reaches Bharuch, to lay foundation of barrage on the Narmada

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched the Antyodaya Express, which will run between Udhna in Gujarat to Jaynagar in Bihar. Interestingly, he flagged off the train via a video link.

"Workers come to Gujarat to work but then on holidays, he has to reach home. But there are so many difficulties, especially for those from UP, Bihar. So, we have launched the train. This part of Deen Dayal Upadhayay's dream of Antyodaya," Modi said.

The train is a gift for UP, Bihar workers

"Whether it is Diwali or Chhat Puja, the train is a gift from the West of India to the people from UP and Bihar. Now they can connect with us.," Modi said.

"Urea subsidy used to reach chemical companies and not the farmers. These companies, who used to get the urea at cheap rates, used to sell products in the market. But the farmers were deprived of urea. The central government used to be looted," Modi said.

"I have taken birth in the land of Gandhi and Sardar. So it does not matter how many thieves come and go, but ultimately truth and sincerity will win," Modi said in an apparent dig at the Opposition.

While claiming that the Sarovar dam was a result of government's sheer political will, Modi reiterated that the river Narmada is an integral part of Gujarat's economic and social life.

Political will helped us in building Narmada Sarovar Dam, says Modi

"Government of India is taking steps towards the empowerment of fishermen. We do not want our fishermen to live in poverty, we want to create more opportunities for them," Modi said in his Bharuch address.

"Due to the rules formulated by the past governments, very few students were able to secure admission in the medical colleges. Thus, we have taken up the task of opening one medical college for (every) three to four Lok Sabha constituencies across the country. Since we also need good professors for such colleges, we have also increased 6,000 seats in PG medical courses in the last one year. Though some people criticised the move, we remained firm because we understand that we will need good professors for producing good doctors," Modi said.

The prime minister also criticised the earlier government over the issue of seats in medical colleges which, according to him, were much less than the requirement of doctors in the country.

"Workers come to Gujarat to work but then on holidays, he has to reach home. But there are so many difficulties, especially for those from UP, Bihar. So, we have launched the train. This part of Deen Dayal Upadhayay's dream of Antyodaya," Modi said.

The train is a gift for UP, Bihar workers

"Whether it is Diwali or Chhat Puja, the train is a gift from the West of India to the people from UP and Bihar. Now they can connect with us.," Modi said.

"Urea subsidy used to reach chemical companies and not the farmers. These companies, who used to get the urea at cheap rates, used to sell products in the market. But the farmers were deprived of urea. The central government used to be looted," Modi said.

"I have taken birth in the land of Gandhi and Sardar. So it does not matter how many thieves come and go, but ultimately truth and sincerity will win," Modi said in an apparent dig at the Opposition.

We decided that 100% neem coating of urea has to be done so that it can only be used in farming & not in chemical factories: PM Modi pic.twitter.com/TUUt9Eykdm

While claiming that the Sarovar dam was a result of government's sheer political will, Modi reiterated that the river Narmada is an integral part of Gujarat's economic and social life.

Political will helped us in building Narmada Sarovar Dam, says Modi

"Government of India is taking steps towards the empowerment of fishermen. We do not want our fishermen to live in poverty, we want to create more opportunities for them," Modi said in his Bharuch address.

Gujarat's strides in animal husbandry have helped farmers. I told @CMOfficeUP @myogiadityanath to send a team to Gujarat and study the Pashu Arogya Melas. They did that and organised a similar one in Varanasi, which I had the opportunity to visit & see how it helped farmers: PM

"Due to the rules formulated by the past governments, very few students were able to secure admission in the medical colleges. Thus, we have taken up the task of opening one medical college for (every) three to four Lok Sabha constituencies across the country. Since we also need good professors for such colleges, we have also increased 6,000 seats in PG medical courses in the last one year. Though some people criticised the move, we remained firm because we understand that we will need good professors for producing good doctors," Modi said.

The prime minister also criticised the earlier government over the issue of seats in medical colleges which, according to him, were much less than the requirement of doctors in the country.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday laid the foundation for a bridge between Okha and Bet Dwarka, after he arrived in Gujarat for a two-day visit and offered prayers at the famous Dwarkadhish temple.

After visiting the temple dedicated to Lord Krishna, the prime minister came out and waved at people waiting outside to greet him. He also shook hands with some of them.

"Today, there is a mood of enthusiasm and hope in Dwarka," said the prime minister as he addressed the people at a rally in Dwarka.

Modi then said that no other government had done as much for Dwarka. "The people of Bet had to finish all their work before sunset earlier. If someone suddenly fell ill, the people of Bet know how difficult it was to get medical care to that person," he said.

"People come to Dwarka with God's grace. But people will stay in Dwarka only if we bring about development," said Modi, adding that the situation in Dwarka eight to ten years ago was poor.

"Tourism needs connectivity...Dwarka bridge will be a landmark in the tourism sector," he said.

The prime minister also talked about the need to develop the coastal areas of Gujarat.

"Gujarat has a coastline of 1,600 km. Blue economy's posssibilies lie on our coastlines," he said.

"Today, our fisherman who has small boats, cannot go beyond 10 to 12 nautical miles. He has to work for hours to get fish. We need to empower our fishermen. In a new scheme, the government will them loans with low interest," he added.

"For the security of coastal areas, India is working to make marine policing advanced. The first marine police training and research institute will be established in Dwarka," he said.

The prime minister also praised the decisions taken by the GST Council meeting on Friday.

"When we took important decisions for GST, Diwali came earlier. The entire country has welcomed this decision," he said.

Modi is on a two-day visit to poll-bound Gujarat. He will lay foundation stones and inaugurate a number of projects. He is also scheduled to visit his birthplace Vadnagar for the first time after becoming prime minister.

Other projects for which foundation stones will be laid include the four-laning of 116.24 km of the Porbandar-Dwarka section of NH-51 and the four-laning of 93.56 km of the Gadu-Porbandar section of NH-51.

From Dwarka, Modi will go to Hirasar in Rajkot district where he will lay the foundation stone for a greenfield airport, 20 km from Rajkot city.

Last month, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi had started his Gujarat political campaign by visiting Dwarkadhish temple.

During his three-day campaign tour across Saurashtra region of the state, Gandhi had visited four other famous temples.

With inputs from agencies
Ahmedabad: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday arrived in his poll-bound home state of Gujarat for a two-day visit less than a month after inaugurating the ambitious Sardar Sarovar Narmada Project.

He began the tour with prayers at the Dwarkadheesh Temple in the historic Dwarka town.

During his whirlwind tour, Modi is expected to address as many as six public meetings launching various schemes and projects at five places in three regions of the state.

Following his prayers at Dwarkadheesh, he would lay the foundation stone of a sea-link bridge between coastal town of Okha and Bet Dwarka Island.

Located about a couple of kilometres away from the temple, Bet Dwarka is frequented by thousands of pilgrims coming to this temple town of Lord Krishna.

At present, the pilgrims cross the sea in boats operated by private operators and Gujarat Maritime Board. The new bridge would connect both the pilgrim centres by road. Modi will also address a public meeting in Dwarka.

Next on his itinerary is the foundation stone-laying ceremony of a Rs 2,500-crore Rajkot International Airport on the outskirts of biggest city in Saurashtra.

He would also address a public rally at the pilgrim town of Chotila in Surendranagar district just an hour's drive from Rajkot.

Less than a fortnight ago, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, who toured the Saurashtra region for a three-day campaign, also began his visit with prayers at the Dwarkadheesh temple and subsequently paid salutations to the local deity in Chotila.

Modi would then inaugurate the new building of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) near Gandhinagar.

On Sunday, Modi will visit his birth town of Vadnagar in North Gujarat to inaugurate a Rs 500-crore civil hospital and a medical college.

Here, he will also dedicate the re-developed Sharmistha Lake to the people and inaugurate other public works, including the facelift of the Vadnagar railway station, where he once sold tea as a school boy.

The town has been decked up to welcome the son of the soil. Modi would pass by his school and also the old railway station where his father's tea stall was located.

Massive hoardings have been put up along the route, depicting his journey from Vadnagar to Varanasi. Some of them have a sketch of Modi as a school boy.

The hoardings also highlight several achievements of Modi's three-year rule at the Centre.

Modi will lay the foundation stone of the Rs 1,200-crore Devi Ni Mori International Buddhist complex near Shamlaji in Aravalli district, also in North Gujarat.

Later, the Prime Minister would lay foundation stone for Rs 3,000-crore Bhadbhut barrage project over river Narmada, as well as a Rs 650-crore Dahej-Ghogha Ro-Ro ferry service near Bharuch in South Gujarat before flying off to New Delhi from Vadodara.
A man with a big grubby beard sits cross-legged on a Central Delhi footpath. When someone approaches him, he pulls out a black slate-board to convey through scribbles that he hasn't uttered a word in 12 years. Newspaper cuttings which have lost its original hue due to the passing of time give out his name  Ambrose  and the fact that he was a PhD aspirant at Bangalore University before he gave up on his academic career and turned into an anshankari maun satyagrahi (one who resists in silence) for the rights of farmers. He has been agitating against the commercialisation of water and wants the government to declare as a free resource.

Stationed on the footpath all around him since three months are farmers from the South Indian Rivers Linking Farmers Association. They display a collection of skulls and bones, which, they quickly declare, belong to family members who committed suicide. Ambrose holds out a slate with demonetised notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 clipped on. He is offering his life's savings (Rs 25,000) to the Central government and wanting in exchange, a loan waiver for his farmer friends. The sadness and madness of being Ambrose are instantly normalised by those who surround him with dismantled skeletons. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has seen straight through the symbolic nuance of Jantar Mantar by ordering a ban on all protest activities on Delhis two-decade-old protest site, claiming that protestors violate environmental laws.

The authorities have been asked to shift those occupying its footpaths to the Ramlila Maidan, up north, near Old Delhis Ajmeri Gate. The necessary action needs to be taken in four weeks and all stakeholders have been asked to file a compliance report within five weeks. The order states: 'NDMC (New Delhi Municipal Corporation) is directed to remove all makeshift/temporary structures, loudspeakers and public address systems from the said stretch of Jantar Mantar road. NDMC is also directed to remove the garbage/waste lying on the stretch of Jantar Mantar Road and clean the entire area.'

The Ramlila Maidan isn't just another public park. It was the venue for Jayaprakash Narayans 25 June 1975 rally against the Indira Gandhi government, which marked one of the biggest social movements in the history of independent India. It was on its stage that the Janata Party came together and people filled up the vastness to witness those powerful addresses by Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Morarji Desai. The anti-corruption demonstration of Anna Hazare and the oath ceremony of the Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal also took place at the Ramlila Maidan. This is also where Narendra Modi delivered his famous speech My Idea of India in 2014. Since the spatial arrangement is that of a singular stage and a space for a much larger audience, the venue is ideal for political rallies and for uniting crowds in a singular cause. Jantar Mantar is a tighter fit, where all kinds of fragments of civil society can come, make a noise about a cause however specific, march towards the Parliament and leave. Usually, small groups of people with a plethora of issues from different states assemble on the street to protests and many do as loudly and as spectacularly as possible hoping that both the government and the national media would hear them.

"There are two kinds of protestors at Jantar Mantar, one kind comes in the form of rallies that make noise, uses mics and loudspeakers and marches towards the Parliament. The other kind stays here for the long haul. Their method of protest is simply their presence. The latter sleeps here, bathes here, eats here for months on end," says Sanjay Kumar, who works as some sort of a freelance assistant to protestors who come to the National Capital from far-flung corners of the country in the hope to strike justice like gold.

"The NGT order will distance the protesters from the government, not just in kilometers, but also in terms of trust," he explains. It is undoubtedly those who are stationed at Jantar Mantar, who will be affected the most when the site of resistance shifts to Ramlila Maidan. Reinstating his views is Prakash, son of a farmer from Trichy, "We have been protesting for three months and it is only on the first day that we used loudspeakers. In the last one week, there have been teachers' association rallies and protests marches for liquor bans that have used loudspeakers and shouted slogans. Why should we pay the price for their actions?"

But, he points to a protest being quietly staged by the All India Anganwadi Employees' Association who come here with demands like government employee status and increase the honorarium of the workers and helpers which is currently Rs 3,000. Om Prakash Singh, representative of this movement in Uttar Pradesh says this is only the second day of the protest and because of the order, the representatives from the administration unplugged their loudspeakers. He adds that if they are asked to relocate, they will, but their programme wont stop.

"If the law is tightened, discipline can be enforced. The daily protestors won't put up loudspeakers and if they're given a set of rules, they'll follow them because it's inconvenient to move to Ramlila Maidan. Now after this order all protests including rallies that last a day or two as well as the longer protests will move to Ramlila Maidan," explains Sanjay.

Seven minutes and some Lutyens roundabouts away from the Parliament is a road that bends inwards, where bright yellow barricades block out the traffic, people bathe under leaky water tanks, chai, cola and chhola-kulcha stalls offer respite, and carpets and folding cots are spread out on shaded footpaths. On days when aren't any rallies, one finds protesters sitting silently on either side of the street, sleeping in front of their banners. Present here since 2007 is Machinder Nath, who started the Rashtriya Joota Maaro Andolan in 2006. The banner has a picture of him hurling a shoe and clearly states that this movement is the solution to problems in every sector from land to government jobs to private sector jobs to unresolved murder cases. He asks the NGT why they arent planting trees instead of going after people like him. He isnt the only one here for reasons that seem vaguely broad.

Santosh Kumar who married a Dalit girl in 2003 has long been declared dead by the Uttar Pradesh government. He alleges that his family removed his name from the land records to eat into his share in the property and the state authorities obliged. In 2012, he also filed a nomination for the race to Raisina Hill to prove that he isn't dead. Santosh still floats about at Jantar Mantar, convincing people that he is alive. Madhusudan Biswas has come here all the way from Pathuria Village in 24 Paraganas district of West Bengal and is on an indefinite hunger strike until the government accepts his demand of a complete ban on plastics, glass, thermocol and flex. "I have come here to protect the environment, not to destroy it," says a frail and fatigued Biswas.

The protestors wish to be heard, to be written about, to be photographed. "This is a street, people stop and talk to us. At the Ramlila Maidan, we wont even be seen," says David Raja, a 30-year-old national-level fencing player from Tamil Nadu who has set up a fake bar to demand a liquor ban in his state. Since five months, Jantar Mantar has been his home. "Today, the government has asked us to go to another place, tomorrow, it might ask us to go to Pakistan," he says, repeating that he wants somebody from the government to respond, if not react, to his letters. He shares stories of taking hundreds of alcoholics to rehabilitation centres amid rising cases of families breaking up due to domestic violence by drunken men. One strange irony is that some of these protestors show photocopies of handwritten letters to the prime minister and various chief ministers instead of petitions they might have filed in the court. Yet, they seem to know that the Constitution guarantees them the right to protest.

In August 2016, a two-judge bench has held that the right to peaceful protest is a fundamental right guaranteed in the Constitution but this right is subject to restrictions in the interest of the sovereignty and integrity of India, and public order. The Bench observed that holding of peaceful demonstration to air their grievances and to see that their voice is heard in the relevant quarters is the right of the people. Article 19(1)(a) confers freedom of speech to the citizens of this country and, thus, this provision ensures that the petitioners could chant slogans in a peaceful and orderly manner, without the use of offensive language. Article 19(1)(b) confers the right to assemble and guarantees the right to assemble peacefully, without arms.

However, when passions are soaring, civic discipline disappears in seconds. At Jantar Mantar, Santh Rampal, the self-styled godman from Hisar, has a representation of over a hundred disciples from Nepal, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and lower middle class colonies in Delhi like Govindpuri, Madangiri and Sangam Vihar. At the slightest provocation, they scream and howl that the CBI charges against their guru (who is accused of murder, conspiracy, hoarding illegal weapons among other crimes) must be dropped. Some women in the group threaten to retaliate if forcibly removed them from their spot.

Some tents away, Sudesh Goyat, wife of Major Ajmer Singh from Haryana, who is leading the national cause of One Rank One Pension for retired servicemen since two years, also refuses to leave. "The authorities were so quick to react to a petition regarding pollution caused by us, what about my repeated appeals to them since 2015?" she asks.

NGT's order will leave behind memories of social movements big and small. It is hard to forget the outrage among students breaking down barricades at the Raisina Hill to demand justice for the girl who died and became Nirbhaya in 2012 or the anguish the Supreme Court's verdict on Article 377 caused among not just the LGBT community but among activists and students from across the country. The countrys psyche has changed and grown at Jantar Mantar. Even if it dies as a place, it will live on with time.
Gangtok: Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday made an aerial survey of the Doka La-Nathula area on the India-China border, a day after the government said the status quo at the site has not changed since the disengagement on 28 August.

Sikkim government officials said the defence minister also made a survey of the new Pakyong Airport in east Sikkim and neighbouring areas Saturday afternoon.

Sitharaman is on a day-long visit to Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim on Saturday.

The survey follows the external affairs ministry statement on Friday that there were no new developments at the India-China military face-off site in Doka La and its vicinity since the 28 August disengagement.

The statement had come amid reports that China has maintained a sizeable presence of its troops near the Doka La standoff site and even started widening an existing road around 12 kilometre from the area of the face-off.

"We have seen recent press reports on Doka La...The status quo prevails in this area. Any suggestion to the contrary is incorrect," the external affairs ministry had said in the statement.

Sitharaman is scheduled to meet Sikkim governor Srinivas Patil and Chief Minister Pawan Chamling at the Raj Bhavan and they are likely to discuss several issues related to defence in the border areas with China, the officials on Saturday said.

Improving strategic infrastructure like border roads in Sikkim, the new airport which is to be inaugurated in November, and development in areas along the India-China border in Sikkim are likely to be discussed, they added.
New Delhi: India has identified 140 vulnerable locations, deployed more security personnel and surveillance gadgets, and launched a "campaign" against organised criminal gangs that help Rohingyas sneak across the India-Bangladesh border, the BSF chief on Friday said.

The Border Security Force (BSF) concluded its bi-annual four-day talks with their counterparts, Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), and chalked out plans to keep a vigil on the "spillover effect of the Rohingyas crossing over to India."

BSF Director General (DG) KK Sharma and the visiting BGB chief, Major General Abul Hossain, addressed the media at the end of their talks that began after the Bangladeshi delegation arrived here on 2 October.

The BGB DG said they have assured the BSF that the policy of the Bangladeshi government is very clear and "does not allow" their soil to be used for any kind of terrorist activity, neither in their country nor against its neighbour India.

Hossain said his country was also planning to have a fenced border with Myanmar.

Sharma said both the sides discussed the issue of Rohingyas.

"We are both aware that the issue is very very serious as large number of Rohingyas have entered Bangladesh. You are very right in apprehending that the spillover effect of the Rohingyas crossing over to India is also very genuine. Both of us (BSF-BGB) have taken steps.

"The BGB has ensured that their (Rohingyas) movement is being regulated and they have mounted some nakas and check posts on various routes to ensure that they do not cross over to our side," the BSF DG said.

He added that "140 vulnerable border posts" along the 4,096-kilometre long India-Bangladesh border  that can be exploited for illegal crossing over of Rohingyas  have been identified by the BSF. These posts, Sharma said, are being "strengthened by us by deploying more manpower and by technological inputs and gadgets."

The surveillance equipments, the BSF chief said, have been "diverted" from other BSF posts and deployed all along the eastern frontier.

"We are also in touch with our sister agencies, the intelligence agencies, to identify and take action against the touts. Because, these people (Rohingyas) cannot come on their own. There are organised criminals on both the sides who assist in their crossing over to India. So, we are mounting the campaign against the touts," DG Sharma said.

He added that the border guarding force has "sensitised" the local population to inform them about people trespassing across the border.

The BSF DG said the force is constantly in touch with the BGB on a daily basis. "...our commanders on the border can speak to each other quickly and share intelligence on any movement of Rohingyas."

The BGB DG said his country has already begun the mandatory registration of all Rohingyas entering Bangladesh.

"This is a problem in Myanmar and this is not our problem. Five lakh people have already come to Bangladesh. But, this is a problem for our country also...they (Rohingyas) cannot spread all over the country.

"Our government has taken a decision and the Rohingyas have been put in the Cox's Bazar district," he said, adding they have identified the exit and entry points (of Rohingyas) which are being guarded properly.

"We have started the registration of these people...we have declared that anybody without registration will not be given any facilities. We have also informed our people in the country to inform about any such person to law enforcement agencies," Hossain said.

He added that Myanmar has told Bangladesh that they will "soon form a joint working committee to find out Rohingyas and take them back."
Bhopal: Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat arrived in Bhopal on Saturday to chair a three-day executive meeting of the organisation beginning on 12 October.

The Akhil Bharatiya Karyakarini Mandal (ABKM) Baithak is popularly known as the 'Diwali Baithak'.

The ABKM is considered the decision-making body of the Sangh Parivar. RSS Madhya Bharat Pranth Publicity head (Prachar Pramukh) Deepak Sharma said nearly 300 delegates drawn from various parts of the country were expected to take part in the meet.

The Sangh holds it executive meeting twice a year  in March and October, Sharma said, adding the meeting in Bhopal was being organised after a decade.

The meeting will review Sangh's work over the past six months and debate the issues besetting the country, another RSS functionary said.

Sources in the RSS said the meeting assumes significance in the backdrop of issues like the Rohingya influx into the country from Myanmar, terrorist activities in Kashmir, violence by cow vigilantes and economic slowdown.
Panaji: Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has been the home ministry's main target but Left-aligned forces are targetting the Sanatan Sanstha because we are "soft targets", a spokesperson for the Goa-based Hindu rightwing organisation said on Saturday.

Speaking to reporters, Chetan Rajhans, the spokesperson for the Sanstha based in south Goa's Ramnathi village, said no official of the Karnataka Police's Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the Gauri Lankesh murder had questioned any Sanatan member nor visited its ashram.

"Sanatan Sanstha's name is often raked up after the death of rationalists. It is because we are a soft target.

"After 2013, the home ministry has been working on a saffron-terror conspiracy. They had to target some Hindu organisation. Their big targets were the RSS.

"But because they could not target them, we are being targeted instead. I believe that Left-aligned forces are continuing to follow the same trajectory," Rajhans said.

Dismissing media reports which claimed that the Karnataka SIT had zeroed down on "missing" Sanatan Sanstha members as the suspects in the Lankesh murder, Rajhans said: "Some anti-Hindu forces are behind this and there is a planned conspiracy to defame Hindu organisations."

He added that leaks to the media were "false propaganda" and no agency of the Karnataka government had officially issued a statement naming the "missing" Sanatan Sanstha members as suspects.

Earlier this week, some media reports quoting sources said that Sarang Akolkar alias Sarang Kulkarni, Jay Prakash alias Anna and Praveen Linkar were on the SIT's radar in the connection with the journalist's murder.

Rajhans also said that the Sanstha condemned Lankesh's murder and said that several angles had cropped up during the investigation, including theories involving Naxalites.

"We have only one demand. Don't put political pressure. Let the investigation agencies probe. If the agencies want co-operation from us, we are fully ready," Rajhans added.
New Delhi: In a bid to bring in transparency in its proceedings, the Supreme Court collegium has decided to upload on the apex court website the decisions taken by it, including on elevation, transfer and confirmation of judges.

The collegium is headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra and has four senior-most judges of the apex court  Justices J Chelameswar, Ranjan Gogoi, Madan B Lokur and Kurian Joseph.

"The decisions henceforth taken by the collegium indicating reasons, shall be put on the website of Supreme Court, when recommendation(s) is/are sent to Government with regard to cases relating to initial elevation to High Court Bench, confirmation as permanent Judge(s) of High Court, elevation to the post of Chief Justice of High Court, transfer of High Court Chief Justices/Judges and elevation to Supreme Court, because on each occasion, the material which is considered by the collegium is different.

"The Resolution is passed to ensure transparency and yet maintain confidentiality in the collegium system," the resolution, adopted on 3 October, said.

In the first uploaded resolution, information was provided on the appointment of Ashok Menon, Annie John and Narayana Pisharadi R as judges of the Kerala High Court.

The resolution gives details about the elevation of the three Judicial Officers as Kerala High Court judges whose names were recommended by the then Chief Justice of the High Court on February 2, 2017 in consultation with two of his senior-most colleagues.

These names had received concurrence of the chief minister and the Governor of Kerala.

Similarly, the collegium recommended the appointment of S Ramathilagam, R Tharani, and P Rajamanickam as Judges of the Madras High Court.

The names of the T Krishnavalli, R Pongiappan, and R Hemalatha have been recommended by the collegium for appointment as Judges of the Madras High Court. While clearing the three names from Kerala, the collegium noted that nothing adverse was found against them, either from the high court collegium or in the intelligence reports.

In the case of Madras High Court, ten names were recommended and six were found suitable for appointment as high court judges based on the criteria adopted by the collegium.
Tawang (Arunachal Pradesh): Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Saturday said that Tibetans were not demanding Indian citizenship.

"The present population of Tibetans in Arunachal is around 7,000, which is decreasing every year. Many Tibetan families are being offered jobs and settlement in developed countries and hence they are leaving their settlement camps," he told the fifth BJP state executive meeting.

Moreover, he said that basic facilities of water, electricity, roads and public distribution system were extended to Tibetan refugee settlement camps across India by the central government through the Tibetan Rehabilitation Policy.

Pema said his government would adopt the policy only after consulting all indigenous communities and student bodies.

Several civil society groups, including the opposition People's Party of Arunachal and Congress, have opposed the state cabinet's decision on 12 August to adopt and extend the policy.

Blaming the Congress for the mess it created on the Chakma-Hajong refugee issue, Khandu, a former Congress-turned Bharatiya Janata Party legislator, said: "The BJP in the state is taking steps to solve it."

He said following the Supreme Court order to grant citizenship to these refugees, 2,000 applications were received. But none qualified.

"It's up to the Centre to decide on the citizenship of these refugees, but the state government is firm not to allow them into the state without an Inner Line Permit," he said.

Moreover, he said his government was firm that no land rights or any rights enjoyed by the tribals of Arunachal would be accorded to these refugees.
Lucknow: At least six persons were killed and more than a dozen went missing after a boat capsized in Bahraich district of Uttar Pradesh, police said on Saturday. The incident took place in the Saryu river at Pipraghat in Ramgaon. The dead include two children.

The victims, residents of nearby Gopalpur and Behta villages, were returning after attending a fair in Ramgaon area when the incident occurred, Bahraich district magistrate, Ajay Deep Singh said. The boat was said to have been in a dilapidated condition, IANS reported.

An official, who was at the spot to monitor the rescue operation, said the deceased have been identified as Rajesh (25), Brijesh (20), Magan (17), Vijay (16), Tirith (12) and Shakil (12).

While six bodies have been fished out of the water so far, those missing are being searched for by the PAC divers. "There were nine people on the boat, of which three swam to safety, " the district magistrate said.

All the bodies have been fished out and were being sent for post-mortem, Singh said, adding senior officials are present at the spot.

On 14 September, 22 people died after a boat, carrying 60 people, capsized on Yamuna River in Uttar Pradesh's Baghpat.

With inputs from agencies
New Delhi: To protest against the atrocities against and killings of RSS and BJP workers in Kerala, BJP president Amit Shah will lead the Jan Raksha Yatra in New Delhi on Sunday.

Delhi BJP president Manoj Tiwari, vice president and in-charge of Delhi, Shyam Jaju, party's national office bearers, MPs, MLAs, MCD leaders, and state office bearers will join the two kilometre long Yatra from Connaught Place to the office of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPM), the major party of the southern state's ruling Left Democratic Front.

"The BJP workers will assemble in the Central Park of Connaught Place and will march to the central office of Communist Party of India-Marxist at Gole Market," said convener of the Yatra Rajesh Bhatia.

Shah, who on Tuesday launched the state-wide "March for People's Protection" from Payyannur in Kannur, has held Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan responsible for the political murders of BJP and RSS workers in the state.

He had also asked all the state units to hold yatras in their respective states to oppose the "Left party's politics of murder".

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday joined the state-wide "Jana Raksha Yatra" being undertaken by Kerala BJP President Kummanem Rajasekheran.

Shah, however,failed to turn up to lead the state-wide yatra on Thursday.

The march, a show of strength by the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is to highlight the political violence of the CPM against their cadres. The 15 day yatra will cover 11 districts before reaching Thiruvananthapuram on 17 October.
Dehradun: Union Minister VK Singh said on Friday that the Congress had always worked to divide the nation on religious and caste lines.

The former army chief took part in a function attended by retired officers of the army, the navy and the air force at the Welham Boys' School in the city.

First it (Congress) divided the country on the basis of religion by creating Pakistan and in the post British era it fomented the politics of caste for votebank, he told reporters on the sidelines of the function.

"The Congress has always worked to divide the nation. It's a fact," the Minister of State for External Affairs said.

Singh admitted that people were migrating from the hills of Uttarakhand in search of jobs but hoped that with a new BJP government in office, the situation will improve.

"Locals are migrating from the hills as there are not enough jobs. But with a new government in office I am confident enough job opportunities will be generated to stop them from migrating in search of a livelihood," he said.

To a question on alleged Chinese incursions in Barahoti in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district, the former Army chief said China comes only to its own side of the disputed area and not beyond that.

"It (Barahoti) has been a disputed area between the two countries for the last 50 years. It has been agreed to keep it demilitarised and that is what is being done," Singh said.
Thiruvananthapuram: The CPI in Kerala on Saturday said the party was not averse to joining hands with the Congress to take on the BJP.

CPI state secretary Kannam Rajendran, however, said the stand on an electoral alliance would be clear only after its 23rd party congress next year.

The CPI is of the opinion that all democratic forces in the country, including the Congress, have to move together to fight the BJP and RSS, he told reporters in Thiruvananthapuram.

However, fighting elections is based on coalition politics and a decision on that could be arrived only after discussions, Rajendran said.

Asked if the Congress would be included in the Left parties' fight, along with "democratic forces", against the "Sangh Parivar policies", the CPI leader said, the Congress is not an "untouchable".

The party congress of both the CPI and the CPM is scheduled to be held next year and a concrete stand on their electoral approach would be clear only after that, Rajendran said.

The CPI is the second largest partner in the the CPM-led LDF government in Kerala.

Attacking the BJP government at the Centre over implementation of the GST, Rajendran said the slogan of 'One tax-One nation' has caused suffering to the people.

"Similarly, they are unilaterally trying to impose ideas such as 'one language-one nation', 'one election-one nation', and 'one nation-one religion," he alleged.

The CPI leader also alleged that the ongoing 'Jana Raksha Yatra' led by state BJP chief Kummanam Rajasekharaan was only to create communal tension in the state.

Flaying BJP president Amit Shah's comment on 'love jihad' in the state, Rajendran said such remarks only aimed at tarnishing the image of Kerala at the national level.

Shah had said, "Love jihad is a dangerous trend. The Kerala government has not taken effective steps to check it. The Supreme Court has already passed an order on it and the NIA is investigating it."

Asked whether the Kerala Congress (M), led by former state minister KM Mani, would be invited to join the LDF, the CPI leader said no such discussion were underway.

He also rejected any possibility of accepting Bharat Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS), floated by Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam, into the LDF fold, if it came out of the NDA.
The Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC) on Saturday passed a resolution requesting Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi to take over as party president, thus paving way for a possible confrontation between Gandhi and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the 2019 General Election.

According to CNN-News18, DPCC members met Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken on Saturday. It is also the first state committee to pass a resolution asking for Gandhi to be made the Congress chief.

Gandhi is currently at a rally in Himachal Pradesh's Bilaspur to launch the Congress' election campaign from Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh's stronghold of Mandi. "If India is facing any crisis right now, it is that of unemployment," said Gandhi on Saturday, as per ANI.

He has also been consistently vocal in his criticism of Modi and the BJP-led government at the Centre. On Friday, Gandhi took a swipe at Modi and asked him to explain reports of road construction activity by China in Doka La if he was done "thumping" his chest. "Modiji, once you're done thumping your chest, could you please explain this?" Gandhi tweeted.

On 4 October, Gandhi said Modi must stop wasting time and start providing employment to the youth as promised while addressing a farmers' rally in his Lok Sabha constituency, Amethi. He also said that if Modi cannot address main issues concerning farmers and youth, he should say so. Gandhi recalled how Modi had "ridiculed" the rural job scheme, MGNREGA, which was a Congress brainchild.

"But Modi realised later what MGNREGA meant for the common man and he began praising it. The Congress initiates programmes after consulting common people, taking their suggestions," he said.

The Congress vice-president has also repeatedly criticised demonetisation and GST. He said the "wrong implementation" of the GST has caused several hardships to small traders and narrated how a shopkeeper, who also sells a mixture of dry fruits in small packets, told him he was in a quandary.

With inputs from PTI
Days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed a rally in Himachal Pradesh's Bilaspur, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi is all set to launch the Congress' election campaign from Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh's stronghold of Mandi on Saturday.

On Friday, Virbhadra along with Congress' in-charge for the state Sushil Kumar Shinde and co-incharge Ranjeeta Ranjan, reviewed the arrangements for party vice-president Rahul's rally at the Paddal ground in Mandi.

Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to address the "Vikas se Vijay" rally of the Congress at Mandi.

Singh, Shinde and Ranjan reached Mandi from Kullu, inspected the venue of the rally and issued necessary instructions.

The chief minister held a meeting with government officials and Congress workers and directed them to ensure adequate parking facilities at the venue of the rally, so that traffic was not disrupted and no inconvenience was caused to the public.

On Thursday, Virbhadra said that Rahul's rally would be bigger than that of Modi in Bilaspur.

"People would witness the crowd themselves. We won't give exaggerated figures as many other political parties do. But the crowd would certainly be bigger than the gathering at BJP rally addressed by Modi in Bilaspur on 3 October," he said after attending an event on Maharshi Valmiki Jayanti in Mandi.

Modi had addressed a BJP rally at Paddal on 8 October last year, while he addressed a meeting at Shimla on 27 April this year and at Bilaspur on 3 October.

The BJP has criticised the Congress government in the state for organising the rally and "misusing" the official machinery.

"The Congress does not have the courage to take out a rally and that is why, a government rally is being held, for which all the ministers, chairpersons and vice chairpersons ofthe boards and corporations have been asked to mobilise people," state BJP vice-president Ganesh Dutt alleged.

"It is a betrayal of the people of the state and acceptance of defeat," Dutt added.



With inputs from PTI
Roxna Swamy, wife of economist-turned-politician Subramanian Swamy, has written a fascinating book on her life with him, titled Evolving with Subramanian Swamy: A Roller Coaster Ride. A mathematician-turned-lawyer who practices in the Supreme Court, Roxna has helped Swamy with a large number of public service litigation cases that he has filed in the apex court during his political innings. Roxna spoke with Firstpost about her book, and its subject. She told us the book's editor wanted her to add the "roller coaster ride" bit to the title, to "spice it up"  and it seemed apt, considering that there was "nothing even" about life with her spouse; it had been full of ups and downs. Edited excerpts follow:

Why was Swamy dismissed from IIT?

Even though Swamy had a professorship at Harvard, he returned to India with the best of intentions. He wanted to pursue a life of academia and do research. When he was teaching at the Delhi School of Economics, he also began to give lectures on the market economy and the need for a Hindu renaissance at the Delhi University campus. At that time he realised the extent to which Delhi University and the Delhi School of Economics was dominated by left wing politics. The students were thrilled to listen to his lectures and they turned up in large numbers.

This was not liked by KN Raj, the then vice chancellor of Delhi University, who was subsequently thrown out; but it was people like him who dominated the scene then. Indira Gandhi had split the Congress and she was kept in power with Communist support. Dr Amartya Sen, who was with us at Harvard, had told him, "You have to be realistic, Swamy, the Left is all powerful in India."

Swamys views were right wing. He wrote an article on how India could become a nuclear power and could produce an atom bomb and delivery system for just a few lakhs. The article was published in Blitz newspaper. The Jan Sangh sat up and asked who is this man and they invited him to address their parliamentary board.

Swamy was invited to Delhi University to fill a certain chair but instead of offering him the chair, they offered him a readership. IIT Delhi invited him for lectures and then offered him a professorship which he accepted. But as usually happens in India, he started talking to students and employees and soon realised just how much corruption there was. The then director of the IIT was a PWD engineer who had helped build Chandigarh. He had no academic qualifications. His wife used to teach ikebana to Indira Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi. Swamy raised some uncomfortable questions and the director was determined that Swamy not be confirmed (in his job). Things reached a point when the director was determined that the selection committee comprising nine people would be left-leaning in their ideology. Unfortunately for him, Prof Leon Hurwitz was selected, as was Prof Manmohan Singh. When Prof Hurwitz realised that Swamy had co-authored a paper with economist Paul Samuelson, he said, "That is something I would give my left arm for; of course he must be selected!" So Swamy was unanimously appointed to hold the professorship.

But soon the IIT employees started an agitation against corruption, and meanwhile Swamy had worked out an economic plan for the Jan Sangh titled 'The Swadeshi Plan  An Alternative Approach To Socialism'. Swamy ended up earning the ire of both Indira Gandhi and the director of IIT and within two years of joining, he was dismissed from the IIT with one months salary in lieu of notice.

But why would Indira Gandhi object to him writing a paper for the Jan Sangh?

It is not so surprising that she reacted the way she did. In 1969-71, she had an agenda to keep the Congress (O) out and she was dependent on the Left.

You showed presence of mind in moving all the furniture from the drawing and dining rooms to stop IIT officials from forcing you out of the house, after they served an eviction notice...

Swamy was not one to throw in the towel and had got a stay order from the courts permitting him to occupy the IIT flat, but the IIT authorities were determined to use force to evict us. I had the option of either walking out peacefully or else shutting the door on their force  which is what we did by pushing all the furniture against the door.

Later, the police came and told the IIT people, 'Dont be foolish; they have got a stay order from the court'. The IIT authorities claimed that they had not received the summons. When the despatch book was brought, someone had thrown ink over the signature (indicating receipt of the summons).

You mentioned how at one time, Swamy  during his tenure at Harvard  was a favourite of Lutyens Delhi. But on your return to Delhi from Harvard, both of you found yourselves being boycotted by that same circle.

I have nothing but contempt for these people. Every year, when we came from Harvard, we would be invited for dinner, to give lectures and people would coo over us. After all, Harvard was Harvard. I was then 25-30 years old. But most of the people who boycotted us are all dead.

Do you believe Indira Gandhi had some kind of personal vendetta against Swamy?

Not to start with. In her later years, she had a guarded relationship with Swamy. She went out of her way to be cordial to him. One day at Rashtrapati Bhawan, Swamy turned me around and there was Indira Gandhi, with whom we had a cordial exchange. Politically he had different views from her. At one time, Indira Gandhi was using Swamy to talk to the Chinese. China was encouraging Northeast insurgents and she told Swamy, 'Do something for the country and talk to the Chinese to halt this'. The result was that these people were disowned.

What was your reaction to the Emergency?

I hated it. I had to put up with the police following me around. I had to put up with my house being raided. But what was very upsetting was when my fathers house was raided. He was suffering from cancer then. All this did affect the children too.

How did Swamy show up inside Parliament House at the height of the Emergency?

All that has been documented in detail in the book and has already been written about extensively. He managed his appearance and disappearance very well. He entered the Rajya Sabha lobby when the chairman, vice president BD Jatti, was reading out the obituaries, to which Swamy interjected and said, 'You have made a notable omission by leaving out the demise of democracy' to which Jatti said, 'No point of order to be recorded'. Swamys reply to this was: 'I am walking out in protest'. He walked out to his waiting car and drove out unchecked to Birla Mandir, from where he took a rickshaw to New Delhi railway station.

You have very strong views against Atal Behari Vajpayee...

I hated him. He systematically cut out Swamy year after year. He cut out Nanaji Deshmukh, and Dattopant Thengadi. They were both from RSS and the founding fathers of the BJP. Thengadi built up the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh. Vajpayee did not want them in the BJP and they quietly moved out. Vajpayee was determined to have only his chamchas around him. The animosity in the BJP against Swamy continued for more than 30 years. Even after Vajpayee was felled by a stroke in 2009, the animosity against Swamy was continued and stoked by Vajpayees sidekicks.

Your book does not have a good word for Yashwant Sinha either, who you point out was responsible for the participatory note. What are you referring to ?

The participatory note is when the black money within the country is shipped abroad. A participatory note is given to a foreign consultancy company who can invest this money in the stock market there to buy stocks. This way the money becomes perfectly legitimate.

At one point, Swamy had good relations with Sonia Gandhi but now he has turned completely against her. What caused this falling out  given that he considered Rajiv Gandhi a friend?

[After a pause] Let Swamy reveal the reasons for their fallout in his own memoirs. All I will say is that she has a deep contempt for Indians. They (Gandhis) have been in a position of power and they are mis(u)sing that position.

Swamy, Sonia Gandhi and Jayalalithaa joined hands to bring down the Vajpayee government in 1999. But Swamy has also had a love-hate relationship with Jayalalithaa.

His relationship with Jayalalithaa went through three stages. Before 1990, they were good friends. Their interests did not clash. The second stage was when she became chief minister and corruption spiralled within her state.

In the book I have described it as "the temperature of Swamys relationship with Jayalalithaa continually veered crazily from one extreme to another: it started with the friendliness of the 1980s and early 1990s, descended to the rancour of the mid-1990s, when Swamy initiated a series of successful but not conclusive prosecutions against Jayalalithaa for various acts of corruption and AIADMK goons made violent attacks on Swamy, to the political alliance of the late 1990s".

But the most spectacular of the lot was the disproportionate assets case of 1996 wherein Jayalalithaa was convicted by the trial court and sentenced to several years in jail and fines amounting to Rs 100 crores.
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat's advice to cow vigilantes not to bother over much about judicial strictures shows a measure of annoyance with the roadblocks which the Hindutva lobby is facing in a secular polity.

The dissatisfaction may have increased in the saffron camp in view of two more Supreme Court pronouncements relating to inter-faith marriages and the fate of the Rohingyas, the hapless refugees from Myanmar who have aroused the saffron brotherhood's ire presumably because they are Muslims.

On inter-faith marriages, the court has wanted to know in the context of a Kerala High Court judgement whether the judiciary can annul a wedding between two adults belonging to two different religions.

It is a rhetorical question which strikes at the root of a Sangh Parivar agenda which seeks to prohibit by fair means and foul any love affair or marriage between a Hindu woman and Muslim man and, by implication, between Hindus and Christians as well or any other religious community.

The Parivar's argument is that such nuptials are no more than a ploy to lure the woman into a familial arrangement to facilitate her conversion. Hence, the phrase "love jihad", depicting a hapless Hindu woman who is the victim of a predatory Muslim male.

The apex court's intervention is in a case in Kerala where the High Court has nullified the marriage of a 24-year-old woman with a Muslim while the Supreme Court had earlier ordered a National Investigation Agency (NIA) probe in the matter although the NIA is supposed to look into only acts of terror.

Irrespective of the final outcome of the Supreme Court's examination of the case, the arguments that have already been aired such as whether the two prominent Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) politicians who have Hindu wives can be accused of "love jehad" are bound to be awkward for the Parivar.

But what must be no less disconcerting for the latter is that the undermining of some of the programmes, which the saffron camp has pursued diligently, can raise questions about other divisive initiatives like ghar wapsi or converting Muslims to Hinduism.

This is all the more so because the saffron objections to inter-faith marriages are not unlike the often violent disapproval of the khap panchayats to connubial ties between grown-ups belonging to different castes and communities or for being members of the same gotra.

As is known, one of the main proponents of the "love jihad" campaign was Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath before he took office.

Of late, his ardour to keep marriages within the confines of each community has been dampened by the Centre's unease about a rise in communal temperatures lest it should affect Narendra Modi's development agenda.

Besides, the Chief Minister has come under growing criticism because of his focus on erasing Muslim names such as that of Mughalsarai railway junction and omitting the Taj Mahal from a tourist brochure, rather than on saving babies in hospitals or ensuring that the police show a modicum of respect for girl students in Banaras Hindu University.

Clearly, at a time when Yogi Adityanath is proving to be as ineffective a Chief Minister as Suresh Prabhu was a Railway Minister, judicial reprimands are the last thing which the BJP wants, whether in internal affairs or in matters which have an external dimension.

If the judicial diktats on checking the gau rakshaks (cow vigilantes) and on "love jehad" have a domestic angle, the pronouncements on the Rohingyas impinge on issues of national security and international law and obligations.

Among the latter is the principle of "non-refoulement" which rules against sending back refugees to places where they are not wanted.

There is little doubt that if the government resorts to a forcible eviction of the Rohingyas, it will face considerable international opprobrium.

Considering, however, that the RSS chief has lambasted the refugees as vehemently as the government and BJP spokesmen have done, it is clear that the Parivar's political and "cultural" wings are on the same page.

The Supreme Court's verdict on the petition filed before it by two Rohingya refugees will be known after some time. But what the Hindutva group is likely to find disturbing is how the checks and balances built into the constitutional system can stall its efforts to take the country in a certain direction.

The only saving grace is the independence of the judiciary, especially at the higher levels, although this institution, too, experienced a troubling period during the emergency of June 1975 to March 1977, when even the principle of habeas corpus, the cornerstone of individual freedom, was suspended.

Interestingly, Justice DY Chandrachud, while upholding the right to privacy in August overturned the verdict on the habeas corpus case which was delivered four decades ago by, among others, his father, Justice Y.V. Chandrachud.

In the cases on gau rakshaks, love jehad and Rohingyas, the differences between the judiciary and the saffron Parivar are obvious.

For the average person, however, the judiciary continues to stand as a guardian against authoritarian and intolerant tendencies in the absence of an effective opposition.
tech2 News Staff

A man in Indonesia suffered minor burns as a smartphone violently exploded in his shirt pocket, seen in a security camera grab uploaded to YouTube. As reports emerged, the device turned out to be a Samsung smartphone, one that was released in 2013. Samsung's investigation soon revealed that owner was not using an approved battery, which lead to the explosion in what appears to be a restaurant.

The security camera video revealed the man in shock as the phone suddenly sparked and burst into bright blue flames in his shirt pocket. The man could be seen falling to the ground in an attempt to remove his shirt after failing to pull out the burning smartphone from his pocket. Bystanders, eventually helped him pull out his shirt, but the local police state that the man suffered minor burns.

Electronics giant Samsung provided an explanation to CNET, stating that battery used inside the Samsung device (identified as the Samsung Grand Duos) was a third-party unit. More so the battery manufacturer was not even approved by Samsung to begin with.

Samsung encouraged its customers to use Samsung's genuine products or at least approved batteries that have been specifically designed for their smartphones or at least approved by Samsung, if coming from a third-party manufacturer.

Indeed, the Samsung brand name is synonymous with the word "explosions" after the company's flagship, the Galaxy Note 7 started catching fire last year. Upon thorough investigation, the problem was attributed to faulty battery design.
tech2 News Staff

The Bell V-280 Valor rotated its rotors for the first time today, marking a major milestone in the US Militarys Future Vertical Lift (FVL) program. The aircraft aims to eventually replace the ageing Black Hawk helicopter that has so faithfully served the US armed forces for so long.

The Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk, made famous by the movie Black Hawk down, is classified as a utility helicopter. Its been serving the US Militarys needs since its introduction to the service in 1979. Following hard lessons learnt in Vietnam, the Black Hawk was designed to be significantly more powerful and survivable compared to helicopters of the past. To that end, it achieved its goal, continuing to serve as the militarys workhorse in several countries.

Over the years, the Black Hawk saw a number of upgrades to adapt to its changing mission profile. The chopper has been used in everything from close air support to medical evacuation and even electronic warfare. In fact, a modified version of the helicopter is said to have been used in the raid that took Osama Bin Ladens life.

The aircraft has proven itself so reliable and robust, that modified versions of this aircraft serve as the POTUS private transport.

Having served for almost 40 years now, its understandable that the US Military is looking for an upgrade.

Bells V-280 Valor, a potential replacement, looks very much like the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey, a tiltrotor aircraft designed for V/STOL (vertical/short take-off and landing). This aircraft was designed to marry the flexibility of a helicopter with the performance and speed of a fixed-wing aircraft.

The Osprey itself has been a controversial aircraft. Its suffered numerous failures and crashes over its development cycle and early deployment. Its also an expensive aircraft, priced three times higher than the Black Hawk.

While the V-280 bears a superficial resemblance to the Osprey, the company explains that the Valor is an entirely different beast. Speaking to Wired, Bell explains that the Valor has been designed from scratch using learnings from the V-22 and the Black Hawk. Its smaller and lighter, for one thing, and cheaper to boot, and Bell hopes that it will be a true replacement for the Black Hawk.

Bell isnt the only one vying for the contract, however. Sikorsky and Boeing are working on their own project, the SB-1 Defiant. Unlike the V-22 Osprey-inspired V-280, the SB-1 uses a three-rotor system that is more compact and helicopter-like than the Osprey.

The Defiant uses two co-axial, counter-rotating main rotors to provide lift, just like Russias Kamov Ka-52, but also includes a pusher propeller mounted on the rear, which provides forward thrust. The extra rotor means that the aircraft can accelerate and decelerate faster than a traditional helicopter, and that it might also attain a much higher top speed.

Given the V-22s history, however, its likely that the US Military will be reluctant to opt for the Bell design. That said, the competition has barely even begun yet and the Boeing-Sikorsky SB-1 Defiant is yet to be seen in the flesh.

The Valors test on 4 October is just the beginning of the ground-testing phase for the helicopter. Its yet to take flight.

Popular Mechanics reports that Bell is also working on an armed version of the V-280 and that it will be pitched as a replacement for yet another of Americas ageing workhorses, the AH-64 Apache.
PTI

The Trump administration will direct NASA to land humans on the Moon again, Vice President Mike Pence has said, reversing ex-president Barack Obama's vision of reorienting the space agency's focus towards Mars.

Pence made the administrations intentions known in a Wall Street Journal op-ed, as well as a speech he gave during the inaugural meeting of the National Space Council a newly resurrected executive group aimed at guiding the US space agenda.

"We will return NASA astronauts to the Moon not only to leave behind footprints and flags, but to build the foundation, we need to send Americans to Mars and beyond," he said to a crowd of representatives and press at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Virginia.

The announcement is a return to the vision of former president George W Bush, which was deferred when president Obama reoriented the space agency towards a journey to Mars.

Pence stressed that the US would lead in space again under the Trump administration.

He spent major part of his speech lamenting the fact that American astronauts have not launched into deep space in the last 45 years, and that NASA is currently relying on Russian vehicles to ferry astronauts to and from the International Space Station.

"America seems to have lost our edge in space. And those days are over," The Verge quoted him as saying.

The announcement marks a fundamental change for the space agency, which has been focused on sending humans to Mars since 2010, without any plans for landing people on the Moon.

But neither the Pence's speech nor the newspaper article mentioned the timeline or funding numbers.

President Obama had rejected the Moon as a return destination.

"We've been there," he had said and told NASA to take a more direct route to the Red Planet, setting the ambition to "send humans to orbit Mars and return them safely to Earth" by the mid-2030s.

He approved the development of a big new rocket, the Space Launch System, and a deep space capsule called Orion. All of this hardware is still some years away from carrying people
A 20-year-old student from Amsterdam decided to fight back against men harassing her and create awareness about objectification of women. In a month-long project, Noa Jansma took selfies with her street harassers and posted them on Instagram.

She created a new account, called dearcatcallers, and wrote that the aim of her account is to create awareness about the objectification of women in daily life. "Since many people still don't know how often and in whatever context 'catcalling' happens, I'll be showing my catcallers within a period of one month," she announced.

"Ey sexy Chiquita! A donde vas sola?/Ey sexygirl, Where are you going alone?" #dearcatcallers A post shared by dearcatcallers (@dearcatcallers) on Sep 5, 2017 at 4:05pm PDT

Jansma explained the concept of taking selfies as part of her project by saying that both the object and the objectifier are assembled in one composition in a selfie. "Myself, as the object, standing in front of the catcallers represents the reversed power ratio which is caused by this project," she added.

In all her pictures, she appears impassive and her catcallers are seen grinning at the back. She told Het Parool that the first man she asked to appear in her selfie replied "with enthusiasm." In the one month during which she did her project, Jansma said that only one man asked her why she wanted to take a selfie with him. She explained, saying she thinks "theyre not at all suspicious because they find what they do completely normal".

#dearcatcallers "baby! Baby! *whisting*" A post shared by dearcatcallers (@dearcatcallers) on Sep 16, 2017 at 10:43am PDT

According to The New York Post, Jansma said that a number of men actually followed her for a lengthy period, with one much older man even asking her to get into his car. She also told Newsbeat that she didn't want to just ignore it because it "felt weird" that the men could get away with saying whatever they wanted without consequence.

However, she claims that she does not intend to shame them but rather make a statement. "If these men ask me to take the picture off Instagram, I will do it, because I don't want to ruin their lives," she said. Trying to show how it is a global problem, Jansma said that she will give the account to another girl in another country and in another city just to show it can happen to anyone anywhere.

At the end of her project, she posted that "it doesn't mean catcallers are in the past as well."
Beijing: China on Friday defended the presence of its troops in the Doka La area, over a month after the standoff with India ended, saying its soldiers are patrolling the region, also claimed by Bhutan, to exercise Beijing's sovereignty.

"The Donglang (Doka La) area has always belonged to China and has been under the effective jurisdiction of China," the Chinese foreign ministry told PTI in response to questions about a report that the People's Liberation Army (PLA) is beefing up troops in the area.

"There is no dispute. The Chinese border forces have been patrolling in the area of Donglang, exercising their sovereign rights and safeguarding territorial sovereignty according to the historical boundary," the ministry said in a written response.

The 73-day Doka La standoff which began on 16 June over PLA's plans to build a road in area claimed by Bhutan, ended on 28 August following mutual agreement between India and China.

Recent reports in India said China has beefed up its troop strength in the area.

On Thursday, IAF chief Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa said Chinese troops were currently present in the Chumbi Valley, which is in the Doka La plateau, and added that a peaceful resolution of the issue would be in the interest of both countries.

"The two sides are not in a physical face-off as we speak. However, their forces in Chumbi Valley are still deployed and I expect them to withdraw as their exercise in the area gets over," Dhanoa said.

About foreign secretary S Jaishankar's visit to Bhutan, the first such visit after the Doka La standoff, the Chinese foreign ministry said "although China and Bhutan have not yet established diplomatic relations, the two countries have maintained traditional friendly relations".

It said China has always respected Bhutan's sovereignty and independence.

"China hopes that other countries also respect Bhutan's sovereignty and independence and develop normal bilateral relations with Bhutan, at the same time also hopes it can help enhance the mutual trust between regional countries, safeguarding regional peace and stability," it said.
Beijing: Claiming UN support for its controversial One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiative, China on Friday rejected US criticism saying the project has not changed its stand that the Kashmir issue should be resolved by India and Pakistan bilaterally.

"We have repeatedly reiterated that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is an economic cooperation initiative that is not directed against third parties and has nothing to do with territorial sovereignty disputes and does not affect China's principled stance on the Kashmir issue," the Chinese foreign ministry told PTI.

The ministry was responding to comments by US defence secretary Jim Mattis that the Belt and Road Initiative "also goes through disputed territory, and I think, that in itself shows the vulnerability of trying to establish that sort of a dictate".

In a globalised world, there are many belts and many roads, and no one nation should put itself into a position of dictating 'One Belt, One Road', Mattis told a Senate Armed Services Committee during a Congressional hearing on 4 October.

Mattis' comments were widely interpreted as the US backing India's stand on OBOR especially related to the $ 50 billion CPEC which is being built through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). India has protested to China in this regard. Rejecting criticism that it is dictating to the world through OBOR, the ministry said it is an "important international public product".

It is an important platform for China to cooperate with relevant countries. It is an open and inclusive development platform and more than 100 countries and international organisations actively supported and participated in it since it was proposed four years ago, it said.

More than 70 countries and international organisations which have signed cooperation agreements with China on OBOR, including the UN General Assembly and the UN Security Council, have incorporated it in their important resolutions, it said.

Over 130 countries and more than 70 international organisations sent representatives to attend the international cooperation summit 'Belt and Road Forum', organised by China in May and spoke highly of the initiative, the ministry said.

"This fully explains that the OBOR initiative is in line with the trend of the times and conforms to the rules of development and is in line with the interests of the people of all countries and has a broad and bright prospects for development," the ministry said.

India skipped the Belt and Road Forum due to its sovereignty concerns over the CPEC, a flagship project of China's prestigious Silk Road project, officially called OBOR. The 3,000 kilometre CPEC is aimed at connecting China and Pakistan with rail, road, pipelines and optical fibre cable networks.

It will connect Xinjiang province with Gwadar port, providing China with access to the Arabian Sea. The project, when completed, would enable China to route its oil supplies from the Middle East through pipelines to Xinjiang, cutting considerable distance for Chinese ships to travel to China.
Washington: President Donald Trump will dispatch his top diplomatic and military advisors to Pakistan in the coming weeks, turning up the heat on a nuclear-armed ally accused of harboring terror groups.

Weeks after Trump angrily accused Islamabad of providing safe haven to "agents of chaos," Secretary of State Rex Tillerson plans to depart for Pakistan late this month.

He will be followed by Secretary of Defence Jim Mattis, according to US and Pakistani sources.

The one-two punch is designed to drill home Trump's message that Pakistani state support for jihadist groups has to end, according to officials briefed on the visits.

Washington has long been frustrated by Pakistan's willingness to offer cross-border safe havens to Taliban factions and armed jihadist groups fighting US troops and their Afghan allies.

The relationship reached the breaking point in 2011, when president Barack Obama sent commandos into Pakistan in 2011 to kill Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, who was living in a military garrison town.

With little change since then, Trump came to office indicating that Washington's frustration had reached the point where something had to give.

"We have been paying Pakistan billions and billions of dollars at the same time they are housing the very terrorists that we are fighting," he said in an August address.

But in the six weeks since Trump signaled that tougher tone, there have been precious few signs that the calculus in South Asia has changed.

Mattis told Congress this week that he will try "one more time" to "see if we can make this work."

'Not acceptable'

"To this point, we have not seen any impact on military-to-military relations," said one Pentagon official, suggesting any change would not happen after Mattis's visit.

Visiting Washington, Pakistan's foreign minister Khawaja Asif appeared unwavering.

He lashed out at "hollow allegations" about Pakistan harboring terrorists as "not acceptable."

"That is not the way you talk to 70-year-old friends," Asif said bitterly.

"Instead of accusations and threats we should cooperate with each other for the peace in the region," he added in confirming Tillerson's visit.

While professing anger in public, Pakistani officials in private complain about receiving no concrete requests to target the Haqqani network or other groups.

US officials have been reticent to share some intelligence for fear of tipping off targets with links inside Pakistan's government.

Earlier in October, a US drone killed three suspected militants in an attack on a compound in Pakistan's tribal region.

Pakistani officials also complain of receiving mixed messages from the Trump administration, which is still struggling to find its feet under a mercurial commander-in-chief.

A September meeting in New York between Vice-President Mike Pence and Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was said to be cordial, despite Trump's fire and brimstone rhetoric.

"It was a very good meeting with the vice-president," said Asif.

After that, Pakistan officials said, they were surprised at a tougher tone outlined in public by Mattis and in private by Trump's National Security Advisor HR McMaster.

'Call Pakistan's bluff'

Some optimists point to a visit by Pakistan's army chief to Kabul as evidence that Islamabad is moderating, after years of support propping up the Taliban.

But many, having watched this debate for decades, are less convinced.

The Taliban and groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba, they argue, remain a potent tool in the hands of Pakistani intelligence.

"Of course they don't get the message" said Christine Fair, a South Asia expert at Georgetown University. "Pakistan is not going to do anything different than its already doing unless the administration can figure out a way to do what no administration has previously done."

"That is basically to call Pakistan's bluff and impose some meaningful punishment."

Trump has warned that military aid  which was halved between 2012 and 2016  could be cut further, a move that Fair dismisses as insufficient.

"It's basically saying that we're going to cut back the money the US taxpayer is giving to Pakistan," she said.

"That's not punishment. Pakistan is not entitled to our money. What they are really talking about is giving Pakistan less of an allowance."

Policymakers have considered revoking Pakistan's non-NATO ally status, with deep symbolic but limited practical impact.

Punitive economic sanctions  that could force Pakistan closer to China, Russia or Turkey  seem a long way off.

And Pakistan remains vital for the United States as a route to resupply its forces in Afghanistan and for supplying the Afghan army.
United Nations: India has sought zero tolerance against criminal acts committed by personnel serving on UN missions globally, saying such crimes are highly damaging for the image and credibility of the world body.

Addressing a committee meeting of the UN General Assembly, Yedla Umasankar, first secretary at permanent mission of India to the UN, said that at a broader level, the issue of accountability has remained elusive in some cases because of the complexities of legal aspects relating to sovereignty and jurisdiction of member states.

It may be also because of the "legal personality" of the UN that may bestow some immunity or privileges that may be necessary for UN operations in a country, and the functional capacity or the willingness of member states to investigate and prosecute the accused, he said.

The issue of accountability of UN personnel for any crimes committed by them during their work for the UN is an important one, he said. "Even a few of such instances or allegations of crimes committed by UN personnel is highly damaging for the image and credibility of the United Nations system and its work around the world," said the Indian diplomat.

Noting that the UN itself can take some disciplinary measures only and does not exercise any criminal jurisdiction, Umasankar said it is unclear whether investigations conducted by the UN may be accepted as evidence in criminal law proceedings in the courts of a member state.

It appears that the UN system itself may be reluctant to waive immunity even for serious misconduct carried out by its personnel while serving on its missions, so that such cases can be prosecuted by the host governments, he said.

As such India has asked for data from the world body, including total number of registered cases of serious misconduct committed by UN personnel, total number of cases where the host government asked for waiver of immunity for UN personnel, and total number of cases where the UN refused to

waive the immunity of their personnel.

Participating in the sixth committee debate, member countries stressed that nations must ensure accountability for crimes committed by their nationals when deployed as UN officials and experts on mission. But countries remained divided on elaborating an international convention addressing the matter.
Washington DC: Pakistan foreign minister Khawaja Asif has slammed powerful Republican Senator John McCain for comparing the war in Afghanistan with that of Vietnam.

"Senator McCain was drawing parallel between Vietnam and the war in Afghanistan. Let me remind him through this forum, he has a poor sense of history," Asif said while speaking at the US Institute of Peace, a Congress supported think-tank in Washington DC.

Asif's remarks surprised the audience mainly because McCain has often come to the defence of Pakistan and has been opposed to taking any punitive measure against the country.

McCain, the Chairman of the powerful Senate Armed Services Committee, is known as a friend of Pakistan.

A former Republican presidential candidate, McCain is widely respected across the political spectrum and in the American military establishment.

The reason for Asif's outburst against McCain was not immediately clear.

Asif said that when the Americans took over the Vietnam War, they had actually lost the war from day one.

"Because in Indo-China the French were too clever for the Americans. They handed over a lost war, a losing war to the Americans. And the Americans were too happy to fight for one and half decade a war which had no end," he said.

And then they had to bomb Laos and Cambodia for having sanctuaries, he added.

"There were many many other causes. So let's not play to the galleries. Let's not play to your constituents. Let's face the verdict of history. The verdict of the history was that you perused a folly in Vietnam and you lost it," he said.

The verdict of history will be that if the way the Afghan problem is being pursued, the United States will lose Afghan War also, Asif said as he expressed his opposition to the new South Asia Strategy of the Trump Administration.

In fact, the US has already lost the war, he said. "You are just trying to salvage the situation over there."

Asif also warned that pursuing a military solution will force the Taliban and Islamic State to join hands.

"That will be the biggest curse for us to face, for the region to face. We don't want to see that situation happening in our region. So that is why we want to cooperate with the Americans with full vigor, honesty and commitment," he said.

Asif also claimed that Pakistan is the only country which is fighting and winning the war against terrorists.
Las Vegas: After five days of scouring the life of Las Vegas gunman Stephen Paddock and chasing 1,000 leads, investigators have confessed they still don't know what drove him to mass murder, and they announced plans to put up billboards appealing for the public's help.

In their effort to find any hint of his motive, investigators were looking into whether he was with a prostitute days before the shooting, scrutinising cruises he took and trying to make sense of a cryptic note with numbers jotted on it found in his hotel room, a federal official said.

So far, examinations of Paddock's politics, finances, any possible radicalisation and his social behaviour, typical investigative avenues that have helped uncover the motive in past shootings, have turned up little.

"We still do not have a clear motive or reason why," Clark County Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said. "We have looked at literally everything."

The FBI announced that billboards would go up around the city asking anyone with information to phone 800-CALL-FBI.

"If you know something, say something," said Aaron Rouse, agent in charge of the Las Vegas FBI office. "We will not stop until we have the truth."

Paddock, a reclusive 64-year-old high-stakes gambler, rained bullets on the crowd at a country music festival Sunday night from his 32nd-floor hotel suite, killing 58 and wounding hundreds before taking his own life.

McMahill said investigators had reviewed voluminous video from the casino and don't think Paddock had an accomplice in the shooting, but they want to know if anyone knew about his plot beforehand.

Investigators believe Paddock hired a prostitute in the days leading up to the shooting and were interviewing other call girls for information, a US official briefed by federal law enforcement officials said. The official wasn't authorised to discuss the matter publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

The official also disclosed that Paddock took at least a dozen cruises abroad in the last few years, most of them with his girlfriend, Marilou Danley. At least one sailed to the Middle East.

It is unusual to have so few hints of a motive five days after a mass shooting. In previous mass killings or terrorist attacks, killers left notes, social media postings and information on a computer or even phoned police.

"The lack of a social media footprint is likely intentional," said Erroll Southers, director of homegrown violent extremism studies at the University of Southern California. "We're so used to, in the first 24 to 48 hours, being able to review social media posts. If they don't leave us a note behind or a manifesto behind, and we're not seeing that, that's what's making this longer."

What officers have found is that Paddock planned his attack meticulously.

He requested an upper-floor room overlooking the festival, stockpiled 23 guns, a dozen of them modified to fire continuously like an automatic weapon, and set up cameras inside and outside his room to watch for approaching officers.

In a possible sign he was contemplating massacres at other sites, he also booked rooms overlooking the Lollapalooza festival in Chicago in August and the Life Is Beautiful show near the Vegas Strip in late September, according to authorities reconstructing his movements leading up to the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history.

His arsenal also included tracer rounds that can improve a shooter's firing accuracy in the dark, a law enforcement official told AP. It wasn't clear whether Paddock fired any of the illuminated bullets during the high-rise massacre.

Paddock bought 1,000 rounds of the .308-caliber and .223-caliber tracer ammunition from a private buyer he met at a Phoenix gun show, a law enforcement official not authorised to comment on the investigation said on condition of anonymity. Tracer rounds illuminate their path so a gunman can home in on targets at night. But they can also give away the shooter's position.

Video shot of the pandemonium that erupted when Paddock started strafing the festival showed a muzzle flash from his room at the Mandalay Bay resort, but bullets weren't visible in the night sky.

Investigators are looking into Paddock's mental health and any medications he was on, McMahill said.

His girlfriend, Danley, told FBI agents Wednesday that she had not noticed any changes in his mental state or indications he could become violent, the federal official said.

Paddock sent Danley on a trip to her native Philippines before the attack, and she was unaware of his plans and devastated when she learned of the carnage while overseas, she said in a statement.
Moscow: North Korea is preparing to test a long-range missile which it believes can reach the west coast of the United States, a Russian lawmaker just returned from a visit to Pyongyang was quoted as saying on Friday.

Anton Morozov, a member of the Russian lower house of parliaments international affairs committee, and two other Russian lawmakers visited Pyongyang on 2-6 October, Russias RIA reported.

"They are preparing for new tests of a long-range missile. They even gave us mathematical calculations that they believe prove that their missile can hit the west coast of the United States," RIA quoted Morozov as saying.

As far as we understand, they intend to launch one more long-range missile in the near future. And in general, their mood is rather belligerent.

Tensions have risen in recent weeks over North Koreas nuclear weapons and missile programs as Pyongyang has test-fired several missiles and conducted what it said was a test explosion of a hydrogen bomb as it advances toward its goal of developing a nuclear-tipped missile capable of hitting the US mainland.

Morozovs comments drove up the price of US Treasury bonds, as investors, worried about the prospect of new North Korean missile tests, moved into assets the market views as a safe haven in times of uncertainty.

Reuters was not able to independently verify Morozovs account, and he did not specify which North Korean officials had given him the information about the planned test.

In Washington, a US official said that there had been indications that North Korea could be preparing for a missile test on or around 10 October, the anniversary of the founding of the ruling Korean Workers Party and a day after the Columbus Day holiday in the United States.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, did not disclose the type of missile that could be tested and cautioned that North Korea in the past has not staged launches despite indications that it would.

A senior CIA analyst, speaking at a conference in Washington this week, said the North Korean government likely would stage some kind of provocation on 10 October but did not elaborate on what form it might take.

"There is a clarity of purpose in what (North Korean leader) Kim Jong Un is doing. I dont think hes done," said Yong Suk Lee, the deputy assistant director of the CIAs Korea Mission Center, which was set up this year. "In fact, I told my own staff (that) 10th October is the Korean Workers Party founding day. Thats Tuesday in North Korea, but Monday  the Columbus Day holiday  in the United States. So stand by your phones."

Morozovs delegation had "high-level" meetings in Pyongyang, RIA news agency said, citing the Russian embassy in the North Korean capital.

Tensions over North Koreas nuclear programme have been running high in recent weeks since Pyongyang staged a series of missile tests, and conducted a text explosion on 3 September of what it said was a hydrogen bomb.

There has also been an exchange of tough rhetoric between Pyongyang and Washington.

President Donald Trump threatened to totally destroy North Korea if it threatens the United States. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un responded by calling Trump deranged and saying he would pay dearly for his threat. China, North Koreas main ally, has backed sanctions against Pyongyang and on Saturday in response to the Nobel Peace Prize being awarded to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, said it backed a worldwide ban on nuclear weapons.

"China has always supported a complete and total ban on nuclear weapons, but also believes that the goal of achieving nuclear disarmament cannot be achieved overnight and must advance gradually within the existing disarmament mechanism. China is willing to work with all parties to achieve a nuclear-weapon-free world," said Chinas foreign ministry.

"Bellicose rhetoric"

Morozov is a member of the LDPR, a right-wing populist party. It casts itself as an opposition party, but hews close to the Kremlin line on matters of international affairs.

Describing meetings with North Korean officials, Morozov said they "displayed serious determination and bellicose rhetoric," RIA reported.

"The situation, of course, demands the swiftest intervention of all interested states, particularly those represented in the region, in order to prevent wide-scale military action," the agency quoted him as saying.

Russia has closer relations with Pyongyang than many other world powers, linked in part to Kim Il Sung, the founder of North Korea and the current leaders grand-father, having lived for a time in the Soviet Union.

Russian president Vladimir Putin has joined other world powers in condemning North Koreas weapons programme, but has taken a softer line than Western governments.

Putin has said that Pyongyang will not be cowed into giving up its weapons programme. He has accused Washington of trying to effect regime change in North Korea, and predicted that would unleash chaos.

US Treasury prices surged on the report of a possible new missile test, pulling yields lower, as investors cut risk out of their portfolios and sought the safety of Treasuries. Treasury prices move inversely to their yields.

Benchmark 10 year US Treasury yields fell from the session high 2.40 percent mark to 2.35 percent around midday in New York.

"It has just been risk-off buying into the long (Columbus Day) weekend ... You look at the charts, it has really been a one-way trade of lower yields," said Justin Lederer, Treasury analyst at Cantor Fitzgerald in New York.
Dhaka: Some 2,000 Rohingya refugees a day continue to stream across the border to Bangladesh, bringing the total number people who have fled there from violence in Myanar since late August to an estimated 515,000, the United Nations refugee agency said on Friday.

Observers believe that as many as 100,000 more people may be waiting to cross to the southeast Bangladeshi port of Cox's Bazar from Myanmar's Rakhine state, the International Organisation for Migration said, citing staff members monitoring the Bangladesh-Myanmar border.

Aid agencies are warning of acute shortages of food for the exhausted, hungry and weak refugees arriving in Cox's Bazar, which could soon lead to widespread malnutrition, IOM said.

An estimated 218,000 people are already in need of urgent nutrition support, including 145,000 children under the age of five and thousands of pregnant and lactating women.

IOM medical staff, who have carried out over 33,000 consultations since August 25, say that healthcare is stretched to the limit in the overcrowded existing camps and makeshift settlements, partly due to the lack of access to clean water and growing numbers of diarrhoea cases.

"IOM has already delivered 310,000 litres of clean water to refugee sites, but this remains a drop in the ocean in the context of daily needs", the agency said.

IMO said it appealed this week to nations for 120 million dollars through March to provide desperately needed aid to the Rohingya refugees who have flooded into Cox's Bazar over the past six weeks.

Rohingya civilians began fleeing Myanmar after Rohingya insurgents attacked police posts there on August 25, prompting security forces to launch a counter-offensive which the UN has described as "a textbook case of ethnic cleansing".

The Rohingya, a stateless mostly Muslim ethnic minority, have long faced persecution in Rakhine in northern Myanmar (Burma).

Bloody riots in 2012 forced over 100,000 Rohingya to flee to refugee camps in southeast Bangladesh, where many still live.
Dhaka: Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday said her government would continue to support nearly 1 million Rohingya Muslims who have fled neighbouring Myanmar to escape violence.

Hasina said the government was pursuing a plan to build temporary shelters for the Rohingya on an island with the help of international aid agencies whom she praised for their support.

She made the statement at Dhaka airport on her return from New York after attending the UN General Assembly session. The UN has described the violence in Myanmar as "ethnic cleansing."

Hasina accused Myanmar of creating tensions at the border, but said she has asked the country's security forces to deal with the crisis "very carefully". "They pretended like they wanted a war," she said.

More than 500,000 Rohingya Muslims have crossed over to Bangladesh since late August, when Myanmar security forces responded to militant attacks with a broad crackdown that witnesses and rights groups say has included killing and arson. An equal number of Rohingya Muslims have previously fled Myanmar since 1978.

Myanmar doesn't recognise the Rohingya as an ethnic group, instead insisting they are Bengali migrants from Bangladesh living illegally in the country. Myanmar has come under international criticism for failing to stop the recent violence in its Rakhine state and in turn an exodus that has become the largest refugee crisis to hit Asia in decades.

The Myanmar government's information committee said in a statement late on Thursday that it had stopped 17,000 Rohingya from fleeing in just four days last week. Still villagers say Rohingyas are still attempting to leave and many are gathered on the beaches just across the water from Bangladesh waiting for a chance to leave the country.

On Saturday, Hasina reiterated that the settlements for Rohingya Muslims would be temporary until they returned to their homes in Myanmar. Her government would continue to support them with food and shelter.

"If needed, we will eat a full meal once a day and share the rest with them," she said.
Moscow: Some 120 Islamic State fighters and 60 foreign mercenaries were killed in a series of Russian air strikes in Syria over the past 24 hours, the defence ministry in Moscow said on Saturday.

"A command post of the terrorists and up to 80 (Islamic State) fighters including nine natives of the Northern Caucasus were destroyed in the area of Mayadeen," the ministry said, adding some 40 Islamic State fighters were killed around the town of Albu Kamal.

As a result of an air strike more than 60 foreign mercenaries from the former Soviet Union, Tunisia, and Egypt were killed south of Deir Ezzor.

The ministry said the "large numbers of foreign mercenaries" were coming into the Syrian border town of Albu Kamal from Iraq.

Mayadeen is one of the Islamic State group's last bastions in Syria.

The advances against Islamic State in Deir Ezzor have cost a heavy civilian death toll from Russian and coalition air raids.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Russian air strikes on Thursday night killed 14 people, including three children, fleeing across the Euphrates on rafts near Mayadeen.

Russia has not acknowledged any civilian deaths from its strikes since it intervened in Syria in 2015, and dismisses the Observatory's reporting as biased.

Moscow has been carrying out air strikes in support of its ally Damascus targeting both Islamic State in Deir Ezzor province and rival jihadists led by Al-Qaeda's former Syria affiliate in Idlib province in the northwest.
Beirut: Two waves of air strikes on a jihadist-held town in northwestern Syria have killed at least 13 civilians over the past 24 hours, a monitoring group said on Saturday.

Four children were among the dead in the early morning strikes on the Idlib province town of Khan Sheikhun on Friday and Saturday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said the strikes were probably carried out by the Syrian air force, which has been carrying out an intensifying bombing campaign against jihadist targets in Idlib province alongside aircraft from ally Russia.

Like most of the rest of Idlib province, Khan Sheikhun is controlled by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an alliance of jihadist factions dominated by Al-Qaeda's former Syria affiliate.

The town hit the headlines in April when it was the target of a sarin gas attack that killed at least 87 people, 30 of them children.

US president Donald Trump blamed the Syrian government for the attack and ordered cruise missile strikes on the airbase from which he said it had been launched.

Damascus blamed jihadists on the ground for the deaths and received strong support for that position from Moscow.

A safe zone was supposed to be established in Idlib and adjacent areas of Hama and Latakia provinces under a deal reached in May by rebel backer Turkey and government backers Iran and Russia.

But during the summer the jihadists, who are not party to the agreement, drove out Islamist former allies from Idlib and took nearly full control.

Moscow says it has since killed 12 jihadist commanders and destroyed the group's largest arms depot.

But there has also been a heavy civilian death toll, according to the Observatory, a Britain-based monitoring group.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will speak on Indias tax reform, the countrys political hot potato, at Harvards South Asia Institute (SAI) on the evening of October 11 at Loeb House which is one of University's most stately speaking venues. Jaitley will then head to Washington DC for the annual IMF and World Bank Fall meetings.

Before Harvard, Jaitley will speak at Columbia University in New York, October 10.

Tarun Khanna, director Harvard SAI and Jorge Paulo Lemann Professor at the Harvard Business School spoke to Firstpost on the Harish C Mahindra lecture that Jaitley is slated to deliver.

Excerpts, lightly edited for brevity, are here:

Firstpost: Did Harvard SAI send out the invite to the Finance Minister? Did you have a longlist of speakers?

Tarun Khanna: Arun (Jaitley) is here, I would gather, because of the IMF meetings primarily, so somebody reached out to me from the Embassy in India a few weeks ago saying that he (Jaitley) would like to make a speechand then I thought that this is a person whos in a senior enough position that perhaps its a good opportunity for the Mahindra Lecture Series. So, nobody is out there looking for speakers. We are constantly getting recommendations from the community and from our academic steering committee. Theres no solicitiation or blanket outreach.

We have 50 to 80 events a year. Within that we have more specific, slightly higher profile lecture series which are called endowed lecture series. They are set up based on some philanthropist deciding that he or she wants to support a particular type of conversation. So this particular one that Arun (Jaitley) is speaking at is the Harish C Mahindra lecture series. This was originally planned as an India-only series but occasionally, there have been deviations. But the idea generally is someone of eminence and status in India. Its roughly once a year but thats not watertight. Sometimes, two years have passed without a speaker but this year, this is our second speaker. So the periodicity is defined more by somebody that meets the criteria of having contributed to Indias society and from whom we can learn something and can productively engage with our community.

Firstpost: Jaitley is scheduled to speak on Indias tax reform ? Is the topic the speakers choice or Harvards?

Tarun Khanna: In most cases, its pretty obvious. Like when Mr. (APJ) Kalam came here, we knew what he would talk about. In this case too, the topic is chosen by Mr. Jaitley. This is the current thing, hes trying to reform the tax system in India and its a topic that I agreed to because it is very important and suited to his current role as Finance Minister and its of general interest to those who are following public finance and taxes in many developing countries.

Were an academic institution, 100%. Our objective is to facilitate dissemination of ideas and thats exactly what happens. After a speech or some comments by the speaker, there is audience engagement to various degrees...we usually have interactions planned around the event. Its like any other prominent event at a major University. It facilitates connections and the development of ideas.

On the South Asia Institute at Harvard University

Tarun Khanna: The South Asia Institute inside Harvard was set up a few years ago and we have speakers coming every week the entire year, connected to South Asia in some way. Some are academics, activists, some are politicians, heads of state scientists, filmmakers, creative people and the general objective is to create a forum where people can engage and discuss issues relevant to South Asia. So, over the last five years or so, this has become possibly the dominant platform at least on the US East Coast for conversations about South Asia and thats partly because Harvard is a sort of convening place. Thats the broader context.

Khanna, 49, along with HBS dean Nitin Nohria and professors Bharat N Anand, Srikant M Datar, Sunil Gupta, Ranjay Gulati and Krishna Palepu, is one of most celebrated academics of Indian origin at HBS. After schooling in Delhi, Khanna moved to the US. In 1984, he enrolled for a B.S. with a major in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from Princeton, which he completed in 1988, summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa. He then turned to business studies and economics and earned a Ph.D. in Business Economics from HBS in 1993. He, along with Dean Nohria, was one of the drivers of a Harvard Classroom in Mumbai. His work at the intersect of India and China, "Billions of Entrepreneurs," has been translated in 8 languages. Also, Khanna has co-authored, "Winning in Big Emerging Markets," and has a case to his name on Aadhaar (2012). The Narendra Modi government has gone on to make Aadhaar a major plank to grow its inclusion and digital strategy.
London: British prime minister Theresa May is to meet business chiefs on Monday in a bid to reassure them that the Brexit process is on track, following a bruising week for her leadership.

A plot to oust her by around 30 MPs in her Conservative Party went public on Friday, but cabinet colleagues refused to join the push.

The plot came after her showpiece speech to the centre-right party's annual conference on Wednesday  intended to steady her leadership  was plagued by mishaps.

A prankster managed to hand her an unemployment notice, a persistent cough left her almost unable to deliver her speech, while the set behind her started falling down.

Monday's business meeting at May's Downing Street office will come as British and European Union negotiators resume talks in Brussels in the hope of a breakthrough in the Brexit negotiations.

"Last month in Florence I set out my vision for a bold and unique new economic partnership with the EU," May said.

"We are working hard to achieve this and are optimistic about our future as a global, free-trading nation.

"The Business Advisory Council is an important part of our preparations for leaving the EU  allowing us to seek the views of experienced business leaders and to share with them the government's vision for a successful Brexit."

May will be joined by finance minister Philip Hammond and Brexit secretary David Davis for the council meeting.

Representatives from firms including Aston Martin, HSBC, Morgan Stanley and Vodafone will be among those attending.

Balfour Beatty, WPP, GSK, Bridgewater, JCB, EY, Whitbread, Nestle and ABF are also due to take part.

Britain's pound sterling currency tumbled on Friday as the plot cast fresh doubt over May's future.

May's Florence speech offered concessions, but pressure remains on the negotiators to make progress and reduce the uncertainty for citizens and businesses in Britain and Europe.

EU leaders are set to decide at a summit on October 19 whether there has been "sufficient progress" on three issues: Britain's exit bill, the fate of Northern Ireland, and the rights of three million EU citizens living in Britain.

If they fail to agree then, the next chance will not be until a summit in December, with the clock ticking to reach a final deal before Britain formally leaves the bloc on 29 March, 2019.

Britain voted to leave the EU in a shock referendum result in June 2016.
Cox's Bazar: A top UN official sais Bangladesh's plan to build the world's biggest refugee camp for 800,000-plus Rohingya Muslims was dangerous because overcrowding could heighten the risks of deadly diseases spreading quickly.

The arrival of more than half a million Rohingya refugees who have fled an army crackdown in Myanmar's troubled Rakhine state since 25 August has put an immense strain on already packed camps in Bangladesh. Hard-pressed Bangladesh authorities plan to expand a refugee camp at Kutupalong near the border town of Cox's Bazar to accommodate all the Rohingya.

But Robert Watkins, the UN resident coordinator in Dhaka, told AFP the country should instead look for new sites to build more camps. "When you concentrate too many people into a very small area, particularly the people who are very vulnerable to diseases, it is dangerous," Watkins told AFP. "There are stronger possibilities, if there are any infectious diseases that spread, that will spread very quickly," he said, also highlighting fire risks in the camps. "It is much easier to manage people, manage the health situation and security situation if there are a number of different camps rather than one concentrated camp."

At the request of the Bangladesh government, the UN's International Organization for Migration (IOM) has agreed to coordinate the work of aid agencies and help build shelters at the new camp site.

According to the IOM, the proposed camp will be the world's largest, dwarfing Bidi Bidi in Uganda and Dadaab in Kenya both housing around 300,000 refugees. Three thousand acres (1,200 hectares) of land next to the existing Kutupalong camp have been set aside for the new Rohingya arrivals. "700,000 is a big camp we and our partners will have our work cut out for us", Joel Millman, an IOM spokesman, told

reporters in Geneva.

But he added that UN agencies "wouldn't be undertaking this if we didn't think it was feasible". Bangladeshi officials say the new camp will help them better manage relief operations and ensure the safety of the Rohingya amid fears that dispersed camps could become recruiting grounds for militants.

This week Bangladesh reported 4,000 to 5,000 Rohingya were crossing the border daily, with 10,000 more waiting at the frontier. Watkins said the continuing influx represented "a very big challenge" for aid agencies.
Washington: The US will continue to put maximum economic and diplomatic pressure on North Korea even as President Donald Trump remains consistent in his position of keeping "all the options on table", the White House has said.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said Trump had an incredible team around him and has achieved tremendous accomplishments on the international stage by working with allies and confronting enemies.

"We're going to continue doing that, and we're going to continue doing that as a team with the president leading that effort," she said on Friday.

"We're continuing to put maximum economic and diplomatic pressure on countries like North Korea. We're going to continue to do that, but at the same time, the president is going to keep all of his options on the table. Our position has not changed. It's been very consistent," she said.

North Korea fired a missile over Japan last month and tested a hydrogen bomb, prompting Trump to insist that "all options were on the table" in an implied threat of pre- emptive military action.

In his maiden address to the UN General Assembly last month, Trump said that no nation on Earth had an interest in seeing "this band of criminals" arm itself with nuclear weapons and missiles.

The UN Security Council has unanimously passed a US-drafted resolution that imposes strongest sanctions ever on North Korea, with measures targeting its last remaining major exports and reducing about 30 per cent of oil provided to it.

Sanders said Trump was keeping the world from chaos, pushing back on the remarks made by a Republican Senator that some of his senior officials help separate country from chaos.

"I think that the President is the one that's keeping the world from chaos," Sanders told reporters at her daily news conference.

She was responding to a question on a statement made by Senator Bob Corker that some of the senior Trump administration officials were helping separate the country from chaos.

Early this week, Corker, who is Chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee had identified those officials as Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Chief of Staff John Kelly.

"I think Secretary Tillerson, Secretary Mattis and chief of staff Kelly are those people that help separate our country from chaos, and I support them very much," Corker told reporters on Capitol Hill this week.

Corker,who has announced that he will not seek re-election, said that these three officials "work very well together to make sure the policies we put forth around the world are sound and coherent".

"There are other people within the administration, in my belief, that don't," he said.

Sanders did not respond to questions on Trump's cryptic "calm before the storm" remark he made last evening after his meeting with military generals.

"As we've said many times before, I know the president has, as I have from this podium on quite a few occasions, we're never going to say in advance what the president's going to do. And as he said last night, in addition to those comments, you'll have to wait and see," she said.

Sanders said for Trump protecting American people was an extremely serious job.

He has been very clear that that is his number one priority, and if he feels that action is necessary, he will take it, she said.

The White House also did not respond to questions on Pakistan, in particular the meeting that visiting Pakistan Foreign Minister Khwaja Asif had with the National Security Advisor H R McMaster.

"Since the president indicated that you wanted Pakistan to move against the agents of chaos within Pakistani territory or areas under Pakistani control, the foreign minister was here in the White House this week to meet General McMaster. Have you guys seen any change in Pakistani behaviour in those six weeks?" she was asked.

"Nothing specific that I can weigh in to at this time. But we'll certainly keep you posted," Sanders said in response.
The latest and greatest from Apple; the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus are out. While they are the most powerful Apple phones ever, for all the wrong reasons, both these phones are in the news for the past couple of days. There seems to be problems with the batteries on the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus as reports started to come in saying that iPhone 8 splitting due to the battery swelling.

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The main reason behind the split is the battery swelling, thus bending the front panel and separating it from the body of the phone. Though there have been no signs or reports of fire, it is still an issue that Apple needs to deal with. Acknowledging the same, Apple has issued a statement saying We are aware and we are working on it.

The first report of the issue came out from Taiwan when a woman found her new iPhone getting swollen on charging it, and later a fresh picture of the iPhone 8 Plus split apart in Japan was posted on Twitter. In just matter of days, there have been many reports surfacing the internet from China, Canada, and Greece. That said, there are have been only six reports that have been publicly identified so far, so the issue is found to be on a smaller batch from the millions of units that Apple might have sold so far.

After the Note 7 Fiasco, there is a very good reason for Apple to be alarmed and carefully look into the issue especially because it is related to the batteries. Though being in a small count, the batteries shouldnt be expanding in the first place, and it seems like Apple isnt clear on what appears to be the problem with these iPhone 8s at the moment.

To find out what seems to be the issue here, The Verge had contacted Sam Jaffe, managing director of Cairn Energy Research Advisors for which he said Swelling is very unusual for a brand-new battery and leads toward the direction of theres something fundamentally wrong with this battery.

Jaffe, a battery analyst, says that brands have reached the saturation point with Lithium ION batteries and the designs of the phones might evoke short circuits in an attempt to include more power in a slim profile.

Source 1, 2, 3

Sai Krishna contributed to this post
To the Texas brokers who met him in 2004, Stephen Paddock was an unremarkable man looking to buy an unremarkable property near Dallas, hardly distinguishable from other casually dressed Californians who flocked to the area to make investments.

After touring the 111-unit apartment complex in Mesquite, Texas with the brokers, Paddock bought it for $8.4 million, partly with the proceeds from selling some smaller properties in Los Angeles. When he sold Central Park Apartments a decade later, he had likely made $5 million to $6 million in profits, according to financial records reviewed by Reuters.

Paddock's lucrative real estate ventures, which helped underwrite his high-stakes gambling, may have also allowed him to buy tens of thousands of dollars' worth of rifles and bullets in advance of his attack in Las Vegas on Sunday.

A complete picture of his finances is still being assembled by investigators who are trying to fathom what drove an apparently wealthy retiree to haul 23 guns up to a hotel suite before commencing one of the deadliest shootings in U.S. history.

"He was kind of a scruffy dude," said Jim Hearn, a broker who recalled showing Paddock around the complex of small, middle-class apartments in early 2004. "Didn't look like he had two nickels to rub together, but he had a few million bucks in an exchange account, which was clearly real, and he did his due diligence and closed the deal."

That purchase appeared to be among Paddock's most profitable investments, which included numerous smaller real estate deals in the Los Angeles area.

The rent from the 111 apartments in the complex gave him more than $500,000 in net income after expenses in 2011, for example, a sales brochure prepared for potential buyers showed.

He would feed some of that money into Las Vegas video poker machines, which are programmed to favor the house. The extent to which Paddock may have profited from his casino gambling was not clear.

Still, Paddock was considered a high-value player, and casinos rewarded his gambling with perks that included free trips, rooms, meals and other luxuries, his brother said.

BIG DEAL FOR A LITTLE GUY

He parlayed his way to the Mesquite deal from an initial investment with Eric in a duplex rental unit in North Hollywood, Los Angeles, some 20 years earlier.

They saved up at their day jobs for the initial downpayment, Eric Paddock said in text messages to Reuters, dismissing online speculation their father, a convicted violent bank robber with whom they had little contact, stashed loot away for his family.

Los Angeles county records show Eric Paddock bought a North Hollywood building in 1986 for $407,500.

In the years that followed, Stephen Paddock bought at least five other properties in Los Angeles. He would also buy a stake in a tract in Henderson, on the edge of Las Vegas's fast-growing sprawl, that remains undeveloped to this day.

In early 2004, he sold or transferred at least three rental units in Hawthorne, near Los Angeles International Airport, according to county records. At least one of those properties had more than doubled in value since he bought it in 1992, selling for $3.2 million.

Those sales lead to what appears to be his biggest deal, per public records: his purchase of the Central Park Apartments in Mesquite, paid for with a mortgage of $3.5 million and $4.9 million largely in proceeds from the California property.

Thomas Warren, another broker in the 2004 sale, recalled Paddock as unkempt in appearance. "But again, that's not all that disimilar from the bunches and bunches of folks coming from California with money," Warren said in a telephone interview, adding that he became accustomed to wealthy West Coast buyers showing up in shorts and flip-flops.

"I remember him as being odd," Warren said. "He wasn't an engaging person." But nor was Paddock the oddest or scruffiest buyer who ever showed up in Dallas, Warren said.

Not only did Paddock buy the complex, he ran it as the manager and lived onsite as a way of holding expenses down, apparently keeping his own books on a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet rather than pay an accountant.

His brother said the pair had been thrifty from the start, describing how they gutted and renovated a 20-unit building in Los Angeles largely themselves. Caring little about appearances, they bought cheap clothes from Walmart.

Stephen Paddock sold the complex in November 2012, for $9.45 million: $1 million more than he paid. His former wife, Peggy Paddock, and his brother Eric were partners in the venture, although the brother declined to say what share of the proceeds they took.

"We made enough money to do what we wanted to do in the rest of our lives," Eric Paddock wrote in a text message. "We all retired."

A few years later, per the police account, Stephen Paddock began amassing much of the arsenal he would need for Mandalay Bay. (Reporting by Jonathan Allen and Joseph Ax in New York; Additional reporting by Gina Cherelus in New York; Editing by Andrew Hay)
The destruction in the wake of two deadly hurricanes left two economic-powerhouse states with mounds of rebuilding to do -- but it also temporarily crippled the U.S. economy, a trend that experts say is unlikely to persevere.

On Friday, the Labor Department said the 33,000 jobs shed in September was the first loss in seven years, ending the longest stretch of job growth on record. Many experts have attributed that skew to the damage wreaked by Hurricane Harvey, which hit primarily Texas in early September, and Hurricane Irma which plowed through Florida in mid-September.

President Trumps economic advisor Kevin Hassett told FOX Business Trish Regan Friday that he estimated the impact of the hurricanes cost the country about 200,000 jobs, but that a more accurate glimpse into the job markets could probably be found in the October, November or December reports.

The good news is that there are pockets of the country that are so hot, that people are starting to be drawn back into the labor force, he said on The Intelligence Report.

Manufacturing optimism has hovered near record highs since President Trumps victory in the 2016 presidential election, according to the most recent National Association of Manufacturers survey. More than 87% of respondents thought the GOPs tax reform plan would address their current concerns with the tax system.

Republicans have made the manufacturing sector a lynchpin in their efforts to overhaul the United States tax code. House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and the president have traveled to different factories around the country to advocate for the plans potential benefits for corporations and workers, which includes reducing the corporate tax rate from 35% to 20%.

That reduction, White House officials said, will boost workers pension plans through a rise in stock prices, in addition to creating jobs and attracting investment.

Weve got to have a better economy than weve had, than we inherited from President Obama, Hassett said. And thats why now need to give this optimism some hope by passing the presidents policy.
It's no secret that the idea of retirement makes a lot of Americans anxious. In a Gallup poll last year, 64% of Americans listed not having enough money in retirement as their top financial concern. And in an even more recent GOBankingRates study, not being able to ever retire came in as Americans' greatest fear overall.

But new data from Transamerica tells us that women are even more worried about their financial security in retirement than their male counterparts. Only 10% of female workers are confident in their ability to retire in comfort, compared to 19% of men.

The fact of the matter is that countless male and female workers are woefully behind on retirement savings and, in fact, should be worried about the future. So why are women so much more concerned and so much less confident?

What are women so worried about?

Running out of money in retirement is a legitimate concern for all workers, especially those who are notably behind on savings. But women are even more likely to fall short on their nest eggs, and a big part of that boils down to the often-hyped wage gap that continues to plague female workers today. It's estimated that women earn just $0.76 to $0.79 for every $1.00 their male counterparts bring in. This means that if a man and woman are employed in the same capacity, and the male earns $60,000 a year, the female will earn just $45,600-$47,400, on average.

Of course, this doesn't apply to all industries. There are some professions, in fact, that are known to pay women more than men. But generally speaking, women earn less and so they have a harder time saving.

Here's the sad thing, though: While women may wind up with less money, on average, than men in retirement, they actually save at higher rates. Vanguard reports that 73% of female employees regularly contribute to an employer-sponsored retirement plan, while only 66% of men can say the same. But when we do the math, it's easy to see how women might still fall behind on a whole.

Imagine you have a woman with an annual salary of $47,000 who consistently saves 10% of her earnings, or $4,700 a year. If her male counterpart saves at that same 10% rate, but earns $60,000, he'll be putting an additional $1,300 a year into his retirement plan. Over a 35-year period, and assuming an average annual 8% return on investment, the women will wind up with $224,000 less in her nest egg as a result. And that's quite a sizable savings gap.

But it's not just that women have a harder time building their nest eggs; because they typically earn less than men, they also don't qualify for the same level of Social Security benefits. Throw in the fact that women typically outlive men, and therefore need more savings, and it's no wonder so many female workers are anxious about the future.

Making up for lesser wages

Though women might earn less than man, and therefore find themselves at a natural disadvantage, if there's one thing they have going for them, it's their tendency to be smart investors. According to Fidelity, women are less likely than men to take on needless risk in their portfolios, and they do a better job of diversifying. Men also tend to trade more actively and erratically, while women are more likely to sit tight and ride out the market's waves, which means they're less apt to get burned when their investments take a temporary dip.

On the other hand, there's no ignoring that wage gap, and so women intent on retiring comfortably need to step up their savings game and start setting money aside as early on in their careers as possible. (Of course, this advice applies to men as well, but it's even more imperative that women follow it.) And the good news is that those who do begin saving in their 20s or 30s have a good chance at not only retiring on time but in a very comfortable fashion.

Want proof? Here's a table that shows how much various monthly contributions can grow to over 35 years:

Monthly Savings Amount Total Accumulated After 35 Years (Assumes an Average Annual 8% Return): $200 $413,000 $300 $620,000 $400 $827,000 $500 $1.033 million $600 $1.24 million

Clearly, the right investment strategy (which, in this example, is a stock-heavy portfolio) can produce some impressive results over time, and while women might struggle more so than men to reach any of the above savings thresholds, all of the aforementioned numbers are also quite attainable. So while women may be more concerned about their long-term financial security than men, they don't necessarily need to be -- as long as they save early and invest wisely.

The $16,122 Social Security bonus most retirees completely overlook If you're like most Americans, you're a few years (or more) behind on your retirement savings. But a handful of little-known "Social Security secrets" could help ensure a boost in your retirement income. For example: one easy trick could pay you as much as $16,122 more... each year! Once you learn how to maximize your Social Security benefits, we think you could retire confidently with the peace of mind we're all after. Simply click here to discover how to learn more about these strategies.

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If Republicans successfully pass tax reform, U.S. companies could use the resulting cash windfall to make investments they have been holding out on, including in automation, market experts say.

We would see a variety of investments get made that CEOs and CFOs have been holding back on, Matt Litfin, a portfolio manager of the Columbia Acorn fund at Columbia Threadneedle Investments, told FOX Business. One of the higher  quicker payback investments that companies have been looking at are [in] automation.

In addition to automation, Litfin expects corporations to invest in accelerated acquisition activity, share buybacks and new manufacturing capabilities.

Eric Marshall, a portfolio manager with Hodges Capital, told FOX Business that investing in technology and automation will be corporate executives first move, as they seek to maximize the productivity of their existing employee base. This could come at the expense of hiring new workers.

Its going to be disruptive but it can be a positive and a negative, he said. Each employee becomes more productive [which means she is] worth more. However, we may need fewer employees.

As a result, Hodges expects the future labor force will require higher-skilled employees, as automation could weed out a greater proportion of lower-skilled positions.

For the U.S. economy as a whole, automation could lead to a boost in growth because it might encourage companies to bring production back onshore, one of President Donald Trumps main tax reform objectives.

Youre balancing labor productivity and labor costs and I think weve seen a 30-year trend toward off-shoring and sending jobs overseas, in Asia specifically  A lot of times automation allows companies to bring their manufacturing [back onshore], he said, adding that while there may be fewer jobs on the factory floor, at least the factory is in the United States.

As the stock market continues to hover near record-highs, Litfin said if the Republican Party fails to deliver on tax reform, that could derail the current momentum. On the other hand, Marshall said Wall Street is still skeptical about whether anything will get done in Washington after getting burned on infrastructure and health care.

I think that all year weve gotten used to the volatility from Capitol Hill, he said. I dont think the market has fully priced in the prospects for tax reform.

On Friday, National Economic Director Gary Cohn told FOX Business the administration is working every day to craft a bill that will garner enough support from lawmakers to pass both chambers of Congress before the end of the year.

Tax reform cleared a small hurdle on Thursday when the House of Representatives approved the budget resolution for fiscal year 2018. The measure is expected to be put up for a vote in the Senate later this month.

The budget contains the reconciliation mandate for tax reform, which will allow the Republican Party to use the fast-track process when it votes to approve the legislation later this year. It also sets aside money for tax cuts. In a statement released Thursday, Trump applauded the GOPs efforts, calling it a pathway to fix our rigged and burdensome tax code.

On Thursday, a source with knowledge of the matter told FOX Business that the budget resolution is expected to pass both chambers in late October or early November, after which the GOP will introduce the tax reform bill for discussion.
A Massachusetts museum dedicated to Dr. Seuss says it will replace a mural featuring a Chinese character from one of his books after three authors said they would boycott an event due to the "jarring racial stereotype."

The mural, located in the authors hometown of Springfield, features illustrations from the author's first children's book, "And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street."

Three children's authors declined an invitation to the museum's inaugural Children's Literature Festival, which was set for Oct. 14 before being canceled. After the museum offered to take down the mural, the authors said they would attend, but the museum has not said if the festival is back on.

Authors Mo Willems, Mike Curato and Lisa Yee signed a letter and posted it to social media explaining why they take issue with the mural's depiction.

"We recently learned that a key component of this institution honoring Dr. Seuss features a mural depicting a scene from his first book, 'And to Think That I Saw It on Mullberry Street,' and within the selected art is a jarring racial stereotype of a Chinese man, who is depicted with chopsticks, a pointed hat and slanted slit eyes," the complaint reads. "We find this caricature of 'the Chinaman' deeply hurtful, and we have concerns about children's exposure to it."

The Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno slammed the authors criticism and museums decision to remove the mural, asking where do we draw the line?

This is political correctness at its worst, and this is what is wrong with our country, he said in a statement, according to WWLP. We have extreme fringe groups on both the right and the left dictating an agenda to divide instead of working together towards the betterment of our country.

The museum said Thursday that the mural will be replaced by images from later books.

"This is what Dr. Seuss would have wanted us to do. His later books, like 'The Sneetches' and 'Horton Hears a Who,' showed a great respect for fairness and diversity," a statemen from the Museum read, via MassLive. "Dr. Seuss would have loved to be a part of this dialogue for change. In fact, Ted Geisel himself said, 'It's not how you start that counts. It's what you are at the finish.'"

The image in question can be seen in the video above.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Lisa Bloom resigned as Harvey Weinsteins adviser on Saturday as the controversy over bombshell sexual harassment allegations against the Hollywood mogul continued to grow.

Bloom tweeted: I have resigned as an advisor to Harvey Weinstein. My understanding is that Mr. Weinstein and his board are moving toward an agreement."

Bloom was facing mounting criticism for standing by the disgraced Hollywood producer while making a career of representing a long list of women who have been harassed or abused by powerful men. Her mother, Gloria Allred, is also famous for representing sexual harassment victims.

HARVEY WEINSTEIN TO TAKE INDEFINITE LEAVE OF ABSENCE FROM COMPANY FOLLOWING SEXUAL HARASSMENT CLAIMS

In an interview Friday with ABC, Bloom was grilled over her about-face.

Ive done a lot of cases for women and Ive often thought, Gee, I wish I could get on the other side and smack that guy around a little bit verbally, Bloom said. "Here was an opportunity of a guy saying, Lisa, what should I do? I have behaved badly. Im like, Good. Im going to tell you what to do. Be honest. Be real.

In the wake of the incident, a number of liberal celebrities have been criticized for remaining silent on the matter.

The New York Times published a story Thursday that the co-chairman of the Weinstein Company has over the years reached at least eight legal settlements with women over alleged harassment. In the report, actress Ashley Judd described being lured to Weinsteins hotel room, only to find him wearing a bathrobe and requesting sexual favors.

The report also detailed encounters Weinstein allegedly had with other women working for the Weinstein Company, as well as official settlements from people associated with him, including actress Rose McGowan, who was issued a $100,000 settlement that Weinstein specifically said was not an admission of guilt.

On Twitter Friday night, McGowan blasted Hollywood actresses for staying silent in wake of the report.

Ladies of Hollywood, your silence is deafening, McGowan tweeted.

McGowan praised actresses Patricia Arquette, Lena Dunham, Jessica Chastain, Amber Tamblyn and Brie Larson for supporting her and Judd.

She also praised MSNBC host Mika Brzezinski for stating she would drop the three book deal with Weinsteins company if he did not resign, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

The New York Times reported McGowan refused to comment in their article.

HARVEY WEINSTEIN RECEIVES PR HELP FROM FORMER OBAMA ADVISER, WOMENS RIGHT ADVOCATE ANITA DUNN

The Daily Mail noted A-list actresses such as Meryl Streep, Gwyneth Paltrow and Nicole Kidman who have collaborated with Weinstein previously have not publicly stated anything.

Other actresses, including Catherine Zeta-Jones, Cate Blanchett, Jennifer Lawrence, Holly Hunter, Mira Sorvino, Anna Paquin and Kate Winslet were all awarded Oscars for Weinstein movies.

The Daily Beast reported that it reached out to a number of famous actors who have collaborated with Weinstein in the past and were told no comment.

In wake of the report, many congressional Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Elizabeth Warren have given money they received as a donation from Weinstein to charity.

Weinstein and his family have given more than $1.4 million in political contributions since the 1992 election cycle, nearly all of it to Democratic lawmakers, candidates and their allies, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics.

Weinstein, who co-founded Miramax and the Weinstein Company with his brother Bob, announced he has left the company indefinitely as an internal investigation was launched.

Weinstein released a statement in response to the allegations.

I came of age in the 60s and 70s, when all the rules about behavior and workplaces were different. That was the culture then. I have since learned its not an excuse, in the office  or out of it. To anyone. I realized some time ago that I needed to be a better person and my interactions with the people I work with have changed. I appreciate the way Ive behaved with colleagues in the past has caused a lot of pain, and I sincerely apologize for it

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Grammy-winning rapper Nelly was released on Saturday hours after he was arrested in Washington state when a woman accused him of raping her on his tour bus.

Nelly was released without charges pending further investigation into the incident, the rapper said in a tweet on Saturday.

Auburn police spokesman Commander Steve Stocker said Nelly, whose real name is Cornell Iral Haynes Jr., was arrested in his bus outside a Walmart. He will have his first appearance before a judge "at some point," Stocker said. Nelly was scheduled to perform in Ridgefield, Wash., on Saturday night.

KATHY GRIFFINS NEIGHBOR FILES FOR RESTRAINING ORDER, CLAIMS COMEDIAN SPY ON HIM

Nelly performed at the White River Amphitheatre in Auburn, Wash., on Friday night. He's on tour with Florida Georgia Line and missed his Saturday night performance with the group.

Nelly's attorney, Scott Rosenblum, called the rape claim a "completely fabricated allegation."

"Our initial investigation clearly establishes this allegation is devoid of credibility and is motivated by greed and vindictiveness. I am confident, once this scurrilous accusation is thoroughly investigated, there will be no charges. Nelly is prepared to address and pursue all legal avenues to redress any damage caused by this clearly false allegation," Rosenblum said in an email.



IN NEW BOOK, IVANA TRUMP WRITES OF CONTENTMENT

In a series of tweets, Nelly also defended himself, saying he was "targeted with this false allegation" and is "completely innocent."

"I am confident that once the facts are looked at , it will be very clear that I am the victim of a false allegation," Nelly wrote on Twitter.

"I do want to apologize to my loved ones for the embarrassment and for putting myself in a situation where I could be victimized by this false and defaming allegation," he tweeted before thanking his fans for their "unwavering support."

He added: "They know me. I assure you I will be vindicated. And I assure you, I will pursue every legal option to address this defaming claim. Thank you."

Nelly is a three-time Grammy winner, including for the song "Hot in Herre," which won the best male rap solo performance award in 2002.

The song has been sampled and re-recorded by other artists and is ranked No. 21 on a Rolling Stone magazine list of top summer songs. Nelly is also known for the hits "My Place" and "Over and Over." He appeared in the 2005 film "The Longest Yard."

The following year he shared a Grammy for the song "Shake Ya Tailfeather" with Murphy Lee and Sean Combs.

Click for more from Q13Fox.com.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.


What a s--- show!

A Long Island winery lost its liquor license Thursday after it allegedly hosted a rowdy party where patrons reportedly got into fist fights, had sex in public and defecated on neighbors properties.

Vineyard 48 in Cutchogue was ordered by the New York State Liquor Authority to suspend its alcohol sales and consumption, Newsday reported.

Vineyard 48 has amassed a disturbing record of repeatedly serving patrons far beyond the point of extreme intoxication, straining police resources and wreaking havoc on their neighbors and the surrounding community, Christopher R. Riano, the liquor authoritys authority counsel, wrote in a news release.

Peter Sullivan, Vineyard 48s attorney, told Newsday the allegations were not true and the order would be reversed quickly.

MCDONALDS CUSTOMER CLAIMS SHE FOUND MAGGOTS IN QUARTER POUNDER

The State Liquor Authority decided to order the suspension after a boozy party disturbed some of the neighbors who lived nearby, the New York Post reported.

Some 400 customers reportedly had defecated and urinated on the homeowners premises due to long lines at the restrooms.

Security prevents people from going onto adjacent properties unless they live there, Sullivan said. Newsday reported that Southold Town Police were getting calls from neighbors about two patrons engaging in sexual acts in view of their backyard bordering Vineyard 48.

The liquor authority stated that police went to the winery due to an altercation involving 400 disorderly, heavily intoxicated patrons who were pushing, shoving and screaming at one another.

Sullivan denied the allegations and said he had proof to debunk them.

TACO BELL BRINGS BACK NAKED CHICKEN FOR A LIMITED TIME, EXPANDS BREAKFAST MENU

For example, they allege that there were 400 drunk patrons [fighting] and we have videotape showing that its six people  a son and his mom and a drunk girl and two girlfriends yelling at each other, Sullivan told the New York Post.

Authorities said the wild party was not the only incident where patrons at the winery lost control.

The disturbing incidents of September 30 are only the most recent in a long line of resident complaints and police encounters at Vineyard 48, the news release stated.

The vineyard has gotten in legal trouble previously, Newsday reported. In 2016, Southold Police reported alcohol overdoses and physical altercations on the vineyards property.

Next week, the vineyard will have a hearing on the matter.
The motive for Stephen Paddocks shooting rampage that claimed the lives of 58 people and sent nearly 500 to hospitals last Sunday might be found in the Las Vegas Coroners Offices autopsy and toxicological investigations. Did Paddock have any brain abnormalities or life-threatening illness that caused him to become a mass murderer and commit suicide?

An autopsy found that mass murderer Charles Whitman, who killed his wife and mother and then shot and killed 14 people at the University of Texas in 1966 before police killed him, had a malignant brain tumor. Whitman, who used a rifle to shoot at random from observation deck of the 27-story university clock tower, also wounded 31 people.

In a note written the day before he killed his victims, Whitman discussed his hatred for his family and plans to kill them, adding: After my death, I wish an autopsy on me to be performed to see if theres any mental disorders.

In addition to examining Paddocks brain, an autopsy on his body will show if he had the scars of a prior suicide attempt. What clues can be found for why decided to use the guns he loved to end his life and the lives of so many others?

Toxicological analysis will show whether there were any illegal or prescription drugs in Paddocks blood when he died. Analysis of his hair will show what drugs he had taken during the weeks or months before he died.

For the Las Vegas Coroners Office, the task of investigating so many deaths at once in a high-profile national tragedy is an enormous one.

Based on my over 50 years of experience examining more than 20,000 bodies to determine the cause of death and investigating many mass disasters  hurricanes, fires, airplane crashes and more  its clear that the Coroners Office right now must be a place of organized chaos.

Families want the bodies of their loved ones to be immediately released, while the bodies are still being studied by teams of pathologists, police, FBI agents, dentists and radiologists. The investigators are trying to reconstruct what happened and whether there are any clues as how to prevent future such deaths.

Here is an explanation of the work facing the Las Vegas Coroners Office:

First, the Coroners Office has the responsibility to properly identify each person who died and then to determine the cause of each death. Did everyone die from bullet wounds? Or did anyone die of a heart attack, a fall or from being trampled?

Then pathologists must remove bullets from the bodies of the shooting victims for ballistics examination. This is necessary to determine if there is a bullet taken from one of the deceased that does not match the weapons at the scene. That would indicate it had come from a second shooter.

Also, the coroner must confirm after an autopsy that Paddock did in fact shoot himself.

There are also certain procedures that coroners or medical examiners must employ in all mass disasters where many lives are tragically lost.

The Clark County coroner had to make sure there was enough cold storage space at his office to prevent decomposition of bodies and would have obtained additional refrigeration trucks if necessary.

The coroner also had to make sure that there are sufficient personnel available to professionally respond to all families making inquiries, whether in person, by telephone or email. In addition, the coroner needs staff to obtain descriptive information from family members regarding tattoos, birthmarks, scars and medical and dental information of those who died.

Family members may also be asked to provide photographs or DNA, if necessary.

Each body will be photographed and fingerprinted and may be X-rayed and autopsied as necessary. Examination of clothing, jewelry, rings and watches may assist in identification and will be returned to the families.

The Coroners Office must work closely with families to assure them that the bodies of their loved ones will be released as soon as they are definitely identified. Identification documents that may be with each body may have to be confirmed by direct visualization or photographs.

Sadly, we cant turn back the clock on this mass murder. The nation mourns the senseless loss of life. All we can do is investigate each death to help us better understand this tragedy and perhaps get some idea of what led Paddock to commit such a terrible crime.
Ironically, I was in bed last Sunday night reading a book about the challenges of America, when my 18-year-old daughter pushed open my bedroom door and blurted: Have you heard whats happening in Vegas? Theres a man with a machine gun whos killing people at a concert!

As I rushed to put on some clothes I caught myself whispering, No, no, not another tragedy.

I ran downstairs and flipped on the TV, where coverage had started only moments earlier. The first thing I saw was a reporter stopping wandering people and asking what they saw. Their zombie-like responses showed they were still in shock.

One shirtless guy in a cowboy hat had been splashed with blood, which prompted the reporter to ask if he had been injured. Unaware of the crimson stains, he semi-stuttered that the blood wasnt his own but came from a victim he had helped to carry to safety.

Another guy who looked to be in his mid-20s, when asked where his shirt was, stumbled and stammered out the reply that he took off his shirt to cover the faces of the dead.

Neither seemed to comprehend nor consider the paradox: the worst of men and the best of men  utter grace amidst utter evil. I glanced at my daughter who just sat there clutching a pillow to her chest and cried.

Our nation has been repeatedly ravaged by numerous shootings of individuals, police officers and mass groups of people. On top of that, we are plagued with natural disasters, racial division, political upheaval and even nuclear missile threats from abroad.

We are a nation filled with unrest, a people who have been saturated by every tragedy as it has been plastered across our televisions, newspapers, internet and social media. We grieve for those brothers and sisters who suffer, we are repulsed and sickened by the depraved perpetrators, and we are inspired by the gallant saviors who courageously disregard their own safety at the expense of complete strangers.

Lights shine brightest on the darkest of nights and unknown heroes arise in the days of adversity.

Television networks have given airtime to those champions who scampered through gunfire in Las Vegas to help, just as they did to those who waded through floods and storm damage recently in Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico. But we long for more; we desire to be quenched from their personal wells that drip with honor and valor.

In those heroes who willingly trod at deaths door, we see what is good in America and a portrait of who we can and should be. Its why, now more than ever, we need less blame, politicizing and villains. We need more exposure to the common people who epitomize courage in the midst of cowardice  those who give us hope when all hope seems to be lost.

As I watched the news coverage in the hours after the carnage in Las Vegas, I couldnt peel my eyes from the television. By the time my TV screen went dark after 4 a.m., the details were slim but there was less focus on the murderer and more on his victims.

Those in Las Vegas were exhibiting a new kind of protest, the kind everybody watching was uniting around: a protest against death, terrorism, evil and division. They were physically, verbally and morally objecting to the mayhem that sought to instill fear, hate and darkness. Their resistance converted into shielding others from bullets, calming the wounded as they were in the throes of death and carrying victims to safety.

And lets never forget our brave law enforcement officers  the lately vilified men and women in blue who didnt hesitate or vacillate when called upon to apprehend a demonic madman who was mowing down the innocent.

The book of John in the Bible states that there is a type of love that is greater than any other: it is the kind that embraces death so that others might have life. It is the rare, unconventional love that is dispensed independent of merit, worth or obligation but is gifted willingly because it comes from the purest of place  self-sacrifice.

This example has been written about for over 2,000 years and contains our greatest hope and purpose for eternal peace, purpose and brotherhood.
Vice President Mike Pence on Saturday traveled to Las Vegas to pay respects to the victims and honor the heroes of the countrys most deadly mass shooting, calling the actions of shooter Stephen Paddock pure evil.

On Sunday night, Las Vegas came face to face with pure evil, Pence said during brief remarks at the Las Vegas City Wide Unity Prayer Walk. But no evil, no act of violence will ever diminish the strength and goodness of the American people.

He added, It was a tragedy of unimaginable proportions.

Fifty-eight people were killed and about 500 were injured in Sundays attack when Paddock opened fire from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay casino at attendees of a country music concert.

The Bible tells us that the Lord is close to the broken-hearted and this will be our prayer for all of you, Pence, accompanied by his wife, said. We do mourn with those who mourn and grieve with those who grieve. But we do not grieve like those who have no hope. Because heroes give us hope.

He said the heroes in the attack inspired the nation.

After his speech, Pence visited a memorial of crosses in Las Vegas for the victims. His motorcade also drove to the Mandalay Bay casino, so Pence could stop for several minutes to view the site of the Route 91 Harvest Festival, where the shooting took place.

On Saturday, nearly a week after the shooting, federal agents started hauling away the piles of backpacks, purses, baby strollers and lawn chairs left behind when frantic concert-goers scrambled to escape the raining bullets.

FBI agents fanned out across the crime scene near the Las Vegas Strip throughout the week stacking the belongings left from last Sunday's shooting into more than a dozen large piles. On Saturday morning, the agents were seen loading the items onto dollies and into the back of a white truck. Authorities have said they plan to return the belongings to people in the next week.

Investigators remained stumped about what drove Paddock, a reclusive 64-year-old high-stakes gambler, to begin shooting at the crowd before taking his own life.

Clark County Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said investigators had "looked at literally everything" and still do not have a clear motive.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A university professor in Las Vegas was filmed in class this week suggesting President Trump deserves some blame for the citys shooting massacre because all hes done is encourage violence.

Right when he got elected, I told my classes, three semesters ago, that some of us wont be affected by this presidency, but others are going to die, University of Nevada, Las Vegas history professor Tessa Winkelmann said Thursday, according to video obtained by the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Other people will die because of this. And weve seen this happen, right?

Winkelmann cited Trumps comments threatening military action against North Korea and argued words, especially if theyre coming from someone who is the president, have consequences.

TRUMP PRAISES 'BRAVERY' OF FIRST RESPONDERS IN LAS VEGAS

I dont know that these events would have inevitably happened whether or not he got elected, but he has rhetorical powers every president has to encourage or to discourage, she said of the Las Vegas shooting. So far all hes done is to encourage violence.

Fifty-eight people were killed about 500 were injured in the attack when Stephen Paddock opened fire from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay casino at attendees of a country music concert.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that a student told them Winkelmanns comments polarized the classroom and students began shouting at each other.

The comments have since been criticized by both the university and the White House. Winkelmann has also issued an apology.

While we respect academic freedom in the classroom and the right to free speech, we believe the comments were insensitive, especially given the series of events this week and the healing process that has begun in the community, UNLV spokesman Tony Allen said.

It is sad she is teaching students such divisive, inaccurate and irresponsible rhetoric, said White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders. She should be ashamed of herself, and the university should look into it. What a terrible example to set for students.

Winkelmann expressed regret about her comments to the newspaper.

This week has been very difficult for members of our community, and we have allowed students space in our classes to discuss how they have been affected and to openly convey their feelings, Winkelmann said. I regret that my comments caused more pain during this difficult time. Emotions were running high and I wish I would have been more thoughtful in how I directed the conversation.
President Trump posted a pair of messages on Twitter Saturday afternoon, saying that "only one thing will work" when dealing with North Korea, but declined to specify or elaborate on what that thing was.

The tweets were the latest in a series of cryptic comments that appeared to be directed at the isolated communist regime and its dictator, Kim Jong Un.

Thursday evening, Trump told reporters as he posed for photos with senior military leaders and their spouses that "this might be the calm before the storm." On Friday, the president refused to elaborate on what he meant by that, saying simply, "You'll find out."

White House press secretary Sarah Sanders also declined to elaborate, saying Friday, "We're never going to say in advance what the president will do."

She also denied that Trump was simply being mischievous in an effort to mislead reporters.

During the military dinner that preceded Thursday's photo op, Trump praised those assembled, saying: "We have the world's great military people in this room, I will tell you that."

Earlier in the evening, the president had lauded the group, including his defense secretary and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and said they would be discussing the most pressing military issues facing the country, including North Korea and Iran.

Trump also offered another stark warning to Kim, saying "we cannot allow this dictatorship to threaten our nation or allies with unimaginable loss of life." The president also vowed to "do what we must do to prevent that from happening and it will be done, if necessary. Believe me."

He also said that, moving forward, he expects those in the room to provide him with "a broad range of military options, when needed, at a much faster pace."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
This is a rush transcript from "The Fox News Specialists," June 6, 2017. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

ERIC BOLLING, CO-HOST: Hello, everyone. I'm Eric Bolling, along with Kat Timpf and Eboni K. Williams. We are "The Fox News Specialists."

Terror on the European continent as France, again, fall victim with a jihadist yelling, this is for Syria, a tax police at the Notre Dame Cathedral. Terror on the Australia continent, a Somali born man killed one person and took one hostage in an apartment building with three police officers injured during the standoff. The gunman had pledged allegiance to ISIS before he was shot dead by police, and the third jihadist in Saturday's London terror is identified as Moroccan born, Youssef Zaghba. Terror every few days around the globe, no coincidence it's just a few days into Ramadan. Can't imagine what the next 18 days might bring. Eboni, every day seems like we're talking about another attack.

EBONI K. WILLIAMS, CO-HOST: Yes. I mean, it's absolutely insane. And then what happened with Paris, earlier this morning, for a second, certainly lots of questions going on there too. I think what's sad to me, Eric, is none of the even seems surprising anymore. It's almost expected at this point. Not to confuse that with comfortable or condoning it, but it's almost expected that this is a way of life.

BOLLING: Kat, every day, every day we're opening the show and talking about either a terror attack that happened today or a couple days ago. And again, Ramadan, ISIS had said find your 72 virgins during Ramadan. We've got 18 more days of this.

KATHERINE TIMPF, CO-HOST: Right, absolutely. It's gotten to the point where if you ask me to list what's happened in the past month, I would probably miss one. And that's a horrific thing. We should never get used to this. We absolutely should not. We have to get a handle on it. But at the same time, again, keep the civil liberties concerns in mind. But, yeah, there's really nothing to say other than that it's horrific.

BOLLING: Very, very interesting. All right. Let's leave it right there. Let's meet today's specialists. She's a reported for the Wall Street Journal, she covers politics from the United States to Asia and Africa, and hosts weekly segments for Barons, and she specializes in business and politics, Shelby Holliday is here. And he's president of judicial watch, he helped uncovered the Hillary email scandal, and is a New York Times best-selling author, and his specialty is being a government watchdog, and we need more and more of Tom Fitton's, Tom Fitton is here.

And now to follow up on everything developing today, the war on terror must be waged as a real war with a real enemy. The enemy must be named. It's radical Islamic terrorists. It's all hands on deck. See something, say something. Civil libertarians, hold your noses, we can't let this slime creep into the American streets. Surely our lawmakers get this right. They want to fight terror, right? Not lay down and rollover to Jihadist and allow them to take hold here in America, right? Well, let's hear one of those elected officials.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, MSNBC)

SEN. ANGUS KING, I-MAINE: It's very hard to prevent something like this in a free society. The only way to be fully secure is to lock everybody down, and I don't think any of us want to live in North Korea.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLLING: So let's not lock everyone down. Let's not lock down our vetting. Let's not tighten up our security and intel collections. Congratulations, senator. You take the prize for the dumbest comment heard from a lawmaker in a very long time. Now, Kat, you may take umbrage with something I wrote, some of the thing I wrote there, especially the civil liberties.

TIMPF: Yeah. I really don't like the idea that civil libertarians want terrorism -- be have a different view on how to protect against it, and what does and does not work in terms of protecting against it. You can't keep everybody really perfectly safe in a free society. That is true. That absolutely is true.

BOLLING: Shelby, your thoughts on what the independent senator had to say about how we fight terror, that we need to be just like relax, everything is going to be OK.

SHELBY HOLLIDAY, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Well, I don't think he's wrong but I think coming from a lawmaker, coming from an elected official, you want to hear more resolve, you want to hear more of a strength position. However, he's acknowledging what Kat said is absolutely right. It's impossible to prevent. These lone wolves though in many cases are known wolves, they're known to intelligence, and that's where we have major problems. If these guys are on the radar of U.S. intel, U.K. intel, they're flagged, how are they able to then commit acts of terror?

BOLLING: I don't know. Eboni, you know, this is a very important comment. We talk about yesterday that the jihadists -- one of the jihadist who pulled off the attack in London was on a documentary called, the jihadist next-door, and was on the watch list.

WILLIAMS: Literally. And also, your piece that you say, see something, say something, well, sometimes people aren't seeing something, they are saying something and nothing is being done about it. So that's a different issue, one that doesn't come close to breaching upon civil liberties. This is where we can ramp up as Mike and Aaron were both talking about yesterday on the show, ramping up our ability to identify these people and get them and capture them, and then keep a safe.

BOLLING: All right, let's turn to our judicial watch guy, the guy who watches over the government. Tell us how safe, how good are they at vetting the people coming into this country.

TOM FITTON, JUDICIAL WATCH PRESIDENT: Well, there is no vetting of people coming into this country, practically speaking. The president just implemented a new security measure. They ask a few more questions. But his instincts and the tweets are right that we need to broaden the list of countries of which we're asking questions of people coming in. We're not asking them, for instance, are you a believer in Islamic supremacism. That's a sort of basic information we need to know. Now they could lie, but at least we're on record of knowing what they're coming in here for. And if they come in here and begin agitating and begin doing the abdication of violence, we have them on record as telling as otherwise and you throw them out.

BOLLING: Tom, your group specifically makes a lot of foyer requests. It means, you go to the government and say we as a people want to know what the government is saying, and doing on paper we want to read some of these things. Talk to us about how much we don't know about some of the people coming into the country.

FITTON: Well, you know, we know more than we want to let on. You know, we ask, for instance, remember the Orlando shooting, we asked for documents from local law enforcement there. They asked the FBI about Omar Mateen, and the FBI told them he was, quote, not a terrorist, with the emphasis on the word, not. FBI Director Mueller, his FBI were telling his people don't focus on Islamic extremism. Try not to mention.

BOLLING: Why is that? Why?

FITTON: Because you have this politically correct attitude in dealing with the threat we face. And it's uncomfortable because it means you have to focus on people who believe in something that is seemingly religious. But in fact it's a world view that's political that wants to overthrow our country and our system with violence or through other more severe means.

WILLIAMS: Isn't it also true in the case of Omar Mateen, he was known at some point, right? There were eyes on him. There was an issue around him. And we watched him for a very long time. I forget, I think maybe over ten months and ultimately he was let go. So that's a separate issue. So how do we address that particular issue?

FITTON: Well, if necessary, we've got to broaden the loss to allow for the picking up of people like this who are advocating violence or may be advocating violence or part of this subversive movement. I wish they were terrorists that we didn't know about. Almost every one of them we know about.

HOLLIDAY: Omar Mateen was a American citizen. And much like the terrorists in London, as atrocious as their acts were, Donald Trump's travel ban would never prevented any of them from coming to the U.S. One of them was a British citizen. You can't prevent them from.

BOLLING: No, Shelby, -- ISIS says.

HOLLIDAY: It's a multi.

BOLLING: . when ISIS says -- it directs jihadists if you want to do, if you want to follow what we want you to do, get into the American system through the refugee program. They instructed their people to do this. So I think it's important that, yes, see something, say something, and there's going to be the ones that are homegrown, but you've got to at least lock up the borders and make sure -- in my opinion. Hang in there one second. I'll let you comment on this. Because if you watched the show yesterday, one of our specialists, Aaron Cohen, hit the nail on the head about the type of crackdown we need to do to stop the terror threat here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AARON COHEN: If I was leading this operation, I want it to rain warrants, terrorist warrants, so I can kick down every door of every possible terrorist, friend of a terrorist, family member of a terrorist. In Israel, if you cohorted with a terrorist or you had any knowledge of a terrorist attack, we're going to destroy your house. The reason why is because you don't deserve to even live here if you have any knowledge of a potential terror attack.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLLING: Shelby, that's where you change the debate, change the dialogue, change the pc culture so that you can.

HOLLIDAY: I will also say, big challenge here is resources. The FBI does not have the resources to put dozens of guys on one suspect who's saying crazy things online. At the end of the day, it all comes down to money and personnel, and the FBI has a hiring freeze.

(CROSSTALK)

WILLIAMS: Real quick, Kat, about what Aaron said. It sounds really hawkish, Eric, and people get really excited. Aaron is exactly right. It's really not even an extreme thing he's talking about. You know why, I wish it would rain warrants. Well, guess what, in most of these cases that we're talking about here there's a required for a warrant, articulable suspicion of criminal activity of foot. So when you got that in place, there's absolutely nothing wrong with a warrant. I don't even think someone with civil liberties concern may have a problem with that, right?

TIMPF: Right. That's absolutely the point. Warrants, that's fine. What's missing in this discussion which can create fear, and I'm not saying you shouldn't be afraid of terrorism, obviously, you should. But we are already doing a better job in this country than they're doing in Europe. Our vetting process is already better. It's chaos, the vetting process over in Europe. And also, Muslims do assimilate better to this society than over here. Hold on a minute, Eric. Whenever I say that, people go bananas on me on the internet. So you're saying every single Muslim has integrated perhaps perfectly in a society. Well, here's this one guy, no, that's not what I'm saying. I'm not saying it's perfect. I'm saying it's an absolute fact. It is a fact that they integrate better here. So it's not completely fair to say.

(CROSSTALK)

BOLLING: Here's the point though, we're different and we still are different. But you understand that Donald Trump was elected president.

TIMPF: Yes.

BOLLING: If Hillary Clinton was elected president, she had planned for four times the amount of refugees to come in to the country. We let 116,000 in last year, 116,000, right. She was looking for 400,000 or 500,000. Tom, are we going to be safe if we let 400,000 or 500,000 refugees come in to America?

FITTON: No, and the Obama administration admitted the vetting process was susceptible for being gain by the terrorists. And all President Trump wanted to do was put a pause on the refugee program, so we make sure that the vetting system is something that will keep us safe and secure. That's why he's angry because he knows these bad guys are out there and there's no practical way of stopping them. In fact, they have a pathway in thanks to these recent court rulings and the lack of any secure vetting system to keep them from coming. We outsource the vetting to the United Nation and it's actually moving along faster than they promise it would. That's a recipe for security (INAUDIBLE)

BOLLING: So let me address Eboni's concern as well. I understand what you're saying, get a warrant, go through the legal system. Donald Trump is trying to keep the place safe by executive order, and we have two circuits who are saying no, not so fast, but all he's trying to do is make the place safer. It's not as easy as one might think to do it Aaron Cohen suggested let it rain warrants.

WILLIAMS: I'm not saying it's easy, Eric, but it can be done. In many times it is done. Here's the issue, Tom lay out a perfect argument, you lay out a perfect argument is to why President Trump's ban should be permitted to go through, if only he would get out of his own way. And I'm going to stick by this, Eric, because unfortunately the president's own words are what is holding up his ban.

TIMPF: And not just during the campaign, after the campaign, either him calling it a ban, we need a stronger ban.

(CROSSTALK)

TIMPF: It's a ban.

HOLLIDAY: When you talk to legal experts they will say, you know, candidates a lot of stuff on the campaign trail. They can get a little crazy. They played to extremes. But now that he's put this on the record as president.

BOLLING: It's not a Muslim ban. Again, we can't ban people because of race or religion, but we can ban them, and we have in the past many times, over origin.

(CROSSTALK)

HOLLIDAY: President Trump wanted to put a 90 day pause on travel. Well, had his ban been implemented and executed, we'd be at the end of 90 days and nothing's happened, so has that hurt his case legally?

BOLLING: Do we not get the mayor of London who said Trump is not welcome here. Well, he's just the mayor of London. I guess if Trump is not welcome in London -- he's also talking to the 50 percent of Americans who may be traveling to England or throughout Europe -- that maybe travelling throughout Europe, you want not those as well. We're going to leave it right there. The U.S. back defensive to take the ISIS's capital of Raqqa, now underway. Would it success land a knockout blow to the terror group? And this, very important news, ABC News reporting that James Comey will stop short of saying President Trump obstructed justice when he faces the senate on Thursday. You won't want to miss this. We're going to break it all down in a few minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WILLIAMS: The U.S. backed offensive to take Raqqa, the capital of ISIS's self-declared caliphate, is finally underway. Syrian, Kurdish, and Arab rebel forces are now reportedly fighting the breakthrough in the cities east, with ISIS launching devastating attacks across the globe in recent weeks. But will this battle marked a decisive turning point against the terror group? Tom, I'll start with you. We opened the show talking about how every single day now it seems to be something worse and worse and worse coming from this terror threat. So we've had to do something different. Do you think this is the difference that needs to be made?

FITTON: Well, this is a big remaining hold out for ISIS. And obviously, if we knocked them out there that would be significant. But the question is, who's the, we? I mean, do we really know who were supporting here. It's mostly Kurdish, but you have these other groups involved. And the whole problem with that confrontation there is we don't know whose side we're on, if they're good guys or bad guys. We pretend to know but we really don't because I don't think many of our leadership understand the nature of the battle there in the Middle East, where you've got one group of terrorists who wants to see us destroyed, battling another group of terrorists who wants to see us destroyed, and we're picking sides. And I hope we're on the right side here. ISIS is a menace, but it's only one flavor of the month when it comes to Islamic extremists who wants to kill us.

TIMPF: You're absolutely right. And that's what makes this different than any other war where the enemy is much more clearly defined. Just like you said, there will be people who both hate us fighting each other. We pick one or we try to take out this leader and another group takes control, it's much more complicated than that.

WILLIAMS: That's why, Eric -- and so, conventional wisdom would tell people the enemy of my enemy is my friend and vice versa. But I don't know.

BOLLING: We got burned in Syria. We got burned by backing what we thought were the anti-Assad rebels ended up being a third faction, which ended up evolving into a form of ISIS. And there are pictures with -- I think they're legit, with Senator McCain standing with someone who he thought was a true rebel but ended up being an ISIS fighter. Let me explain something about Raqqa though. For about five years now, we've known Raqqa was not only the headquarters of ISIS but also their training ground. For five years, we've known this. Why haven't we gone and leveled Raqqa? Here's the pushback, well, there's a lot of innocent people in Raqqa. Well, you give them three months. If you're innocent and you're not a supporter of ISIS, get out of Raqqa. Sorry, just get out. And if you're still there in three months, we're going to make that place a parking lot and there's going to be collateral damage.

TIMPF: Wouldn't the bad guys also know?

HOLLIDAY: Washington Journal reported they've been preparing, ISIS has been preparing for this battle for a year. They're lining the city with explosives. ISIS is known to trap civilians into cities when they know there will be a battle, so it's tough to get them out. I will say there's some glimmers of hope, if you will, in this Raqqa battle. Not only are we squeezing one of their last stronghold but we've seen with these attacks. They tell their supporters, their sympathizer, to go out and commit lone wolf attacks because they're getting squeeze in the homeland. Well, they're getting slower and slower at responding and taking credit for these attacks. Their communications have been completely disheveled. They're slow to respond.

BOLLING: So what's different this time, Shelby?

HOLLIDAY: A lot of them have been taken off the battlefield.

BOLLING: OK, my point is, what are we waiting for? I mean, why is this not been done years ago, months ago?

HOLLIDAY: Well, you have to do it tactically. And I think the U.S. is making a statement by backing forces rather than going in as American forces.

WILLIAMS: OK. Guys, we've got one more to get to, President Trump now jumping into a dispute, threatening the coalition against ISIS. Now he's taking credit today for pushing seven Arab states to suddenly cut off diplomatic ties with the country of Qatar. That's a critical U.S. military partners which have been accused of supporting terror groups tied to Iran. So a Further complicating this, kind of going where you guys are picking up. I want to go back to something Eric said, though. This issue of civilian casualties because it's delicate and it's sensitive and people really get in their feelings about it, and understandingly so, you're right at some point, Shelby. At some point is, is that just the cost of keeping us safe and saving.

HOLLIDAY: Well, if you talk to security experts, they say there're two big issues that non-western societies have with how we handle terrorism, and one of them is that we allow free speech. So we allow people here to say anything they want about Muslims, about Muslim majority countries, about Muslim communities. That's part of living in a democracy. That's defensible. But on the other hand, when you are in these war zones and you are killing civilians with drones and bombs, that's a lot less defensible and that's something that.

FITTON: We're not targeting civilians, though. We're not targeting civilians. And the enemies will pretend that we're targeting civilians, but the facts are we're targeting the bad guys and sometimes mistakes were made. No one is doing it intentionally.

TIMPF: To be fair, though, if you're a dead civilian, you don't really care whether you're dead on purpose or not.

FITTON: So we shouldn't bomb anyone because there's a danger of accidentally hurting an innocent? We have to defend ourselves. And this is part of self-defense is killing the terrorists. And sometimes we use these allies to go after them. And my concern is we don't know who the allies are. You know, we're complaining about Qatar being associated with the Iranians, we've been playing footsie with the Iranians in the Syrian conflict for year now.

WILLIAMS: Four years. Four years.

BOLLING: Well, we've had been, and maybe less so now in the last five months.

FITTON: Probably more so than we want to be, even now.

BOLLING: Don't disagree with that.

FITTON: Really troubling.

WILLIAMS: Yeah, that's the point. And I'll get to final note on this, Kat, I'd like your take, you know, because the civilian issue is big. Even President Obama at this week kind of making some news in some circles around people criticizing him for the number of civilian deaths that came under his national leadership. Is it ever justified?

TIMPF: It should always be a consideration. The fact that they're not our people doesn't mean they're not people. And a lot of the conflicts that we've gotten in -- we've gotten in to for no reason. It's not like it's not understandable why people would be hesitant to want to get more and more involved in foreign conflicts.

(CROSSTALK)

TIMPF: And they will. This attack, they absolutely will use as a recruiting tool.

BOLLING: No one here is suggesting we just indiscriminately bomb places that we think are ISIS strongholds. We're talking about the headquarters of ISIS, self-proclaimed headquarters of the caliphate and the training ground of ISIS fighters.

WILLIAMS: And give them an opportunity to get out and hopefully, to your point, they do. Up next, James Comey set to face off on Thursday. But now, ABC News is reporting that he will stop short from saying that President Trump tried to stop the Mike Flynn probe. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TIMPF: We're just two days away from James Comey's testimony to the senate intel committee, and ABC News is out with a potential game changing report this afternoon. It says that Comey has told associates he will not accuse the president of obstructing justice in the Michael Flynn probe. The report cites a source familiar with Comey's thinking. And Charles Krauthammer has laid out why that may be the case.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "SPECIAL REPORT")

CHARLES KRAUTHAMMER, SYNDICATED COLUMNIST: If it were obstruction, then he is indicting himself.

(CROSSTALK)

KRAUTHAMMER: . or not making a statement, for not bringing it out in the open. So he can't say its obstruction, which is what everybody who wants to see Trump destroyed is waiting to hear. So what we will hear is something navigating in between and saying, well, it wasn't really pressure. He was speaking on behalf of an associate, a friend. It could be interpreted in various ways. That's what I think is going to happen, and that's why I think it's going to be a bust.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLLING: Explain a little bit further. Here's why -- and Charles is 100 percent right on this, 18 U.S. code number 4 talks about if you're a federal authority and you know of a felony and you don't report the felony, and here's the code right here, miss in-prison of a felony in the federal system is a felony punishable by a fine of up to three years in prison. So what he's basically, and Charles is right, that if he did say I knew that Trump obstructed justice, and under oath, whatever a month or two later I didn't report this felony, he would be indicting himself to open himself to.

WILLIAMS: And Eric, to your credit.

BOLLING: . prison time.

WILLIAMS: . I mean, you said that the day this kind of all broke. You know, before we've got the statute book out. You said, you know what, if indeed that's what he saying now, he's got a serious problem on his hand because he testified to something very different than that a couple months back. And also, why didn't you say anything when it happened? That's a huge credibility question.

HOLLIDAY: Eboni knows this, to obstruct justice requires intent. And I don't know if James Comey could tell Donald Trump's intent when Trump said that. Maybe he was joking. Maybe he was.

WILLIAMS: Being suggestive.

HOLLIDAY: Yeah. I mean, Donald Trump is certainly there to shake up Washington, and he says whatever is on top of his mind, and it's very hard to say I know exactly what you intended to say when you said that. And so maybe that's why James Comey -- I don't think it's possible for James Comey to come out and say he obstructed justice.

TIMPF: Here's the thing though, do you think that's going to change anybody's mind?

FITTON: This is where we're talking about Democratic talking point here. I mean, the headline is President Trump is president, and he's allowed to talk to the people who work for him, including the FBI director who answers to him. He's the top guy when it comes to making prosecutable decisions. It may make the people uncomfortable, but he is allowed to talk about what his views are.

WILLIAMS: Wait, what was that you just said?

FITTON: He is the top guy when it comes to making prosecutorial decisions.

WILLIAMS: President Trump?

FITTON: He could have told...

WILLIAMS: No, he's not.

FITTON: He could have told the FBI director and the Justice Department, "Don't pursue this issue."

WILLIAMS: No, actually, he can't.

FITTON: I think it's a waste of prosecutorial resources.

TIMPF: Not if it -- not if it's an investigation into him.

WILLIAMS: No, he can't. No president can.

FITTON: He can.

WILLIAMS: No, he cannot.

FITTON: He can.

WILLIAMS: He really cannot.

FITTON: He is -- he's running the -- he's running the government. They answer to him. Now, if they don't want to, they can resign. They can object. He can be impeached if he does it corruptly. But we're paying him to make these types of decisions. This is all a lot of noise.

WILLIAMS: He doesn't run the Justice Department, though. Right?

FITTON: What?

WILLIAMS: He doesn't run the Justice Department.

FITTON: He does.

WILLIAMS: No, he doesn't. I mean, he doesn't.

FITTON: Sure, he does. The attorney general reports to the president of the United States.

WILLIAMS: But the attorney general is the chief law enforcement officer of the United States.

FITTON: That's right. And he could direct the attorney general, "Don't waste your time on the Flynn prosecution."

WILLIAMS: Well, my goodness. I guess I wouldn't like a world like that.

FITTON: And it's not obstruction of justice.

BOLLING: It happened, though. President Obama was -- how many times -- listen, do you think it was coincidental that Bill Clinton boarded Loretta Lynch's airplane on that tarmac in Arizona? Or do you think -- is there at least a chance that Obama said, "You know what? Why don't you meet with Clinton? You two are going to be in Arizona."

TIMPF: Eric, this is what -- Eric, this is what I don't understand. So you're saying there's a chance when it comes to Lynch, but there's no chance when it comes to Russia.

BOLLING: I'm saying that Tom is right that the president appoints an attorney general. The attorney general still works for the president.

WILLIAMS: The attorney general works for the American people. You have to get that right.

BOLLING: No -- they all work for the American people.

FITTON: No one voted for the attorney general.

WILLIAMS: Wow.

BOLLING: However, if the president points to the attorney general, and Tom is right, if he does -- in the president, even the president does something that's corrupt, the attorney general can bring charges. And the Congress can impeach. That's the way this works.

HOLLIDAY: That's an important point, because what the president can do...

BOLLING: Hold on, hold on. The deputy attorney general is independent from the president. He's not.

HOLLIDAY: The FBI director is, but the FBI director can be fired by the president. However, that is becoming a huge problem for President Trump. Because people look at the firing of Comey as red flag. That's why we are where we are. That's why we have a special prosecutor. That's why we're turning this into must-see television on Thursday, because people can't stop talking about the firing of James Comey and everything that led up to it.

WILLIAMS: Tom, I want to be really respectful to you, but I don't want anybody watching this show to walk away thinking that any president -- not Barack Obama, not Donald J. Trump, not Abe Lincoln -- can decide who is prosecuted in this country. That is not true.

FITTON: He can direct the attorney general to prosecute people or investigate and then prosecute. Obviously, the attorney general has obligations to follow the law and not do anything inappropriate.

WILLIAMS: Right, right.

FITTON: But the president can have a say.

WILLIAMS: Well, he can have a say.

FITTON: And this is what he was doing. He was expressing concern that the Flynn investigation was going nowhere, and they should give him a break.

WILLIAMS: I don't think...

TIMPF: Nobody knows that.

FITTON: Now, the FBI director didn't take it anything other than, evidently, as his opinion.

WILLIAMS: Tom, for the record, I don't think President Trump obstructed justice, first of all. That's a legal conclusion that Jim Comey is not in the position to make. I just want to be clear.

BOLLING: Can I ask Kat? Kat, so on Thursday morning, 10:30, whatever time Comey is going to take the stand, raise his right hand, he's not going to say that Trump obstructed justice. He's not going to say there's any collusion between the Trump Organization and Russia to -- to affect the election outcome. He's not even going to say there's any evidence that Russia actually affected the outcome of the election.

Can we move on? Is it time now to say OK?

TIMPF: Not until it's complete. We haven't heard from Flynn. Flynn just submitted a whole bunch of new documents. We also don't even know what Comey said yet. We just should just wait until this is done.

The best thing that can happen for Trump, if it's as you're predicting, there's nothing. I'm saying that I don't know yet. People still have questions. And if it were something that the left was doing, I think that you would have questions, too.

HOLLIDAY: One other thing. ABC is reporting that Comey will counter the fact that he -- President Trump is saying Comey told him three times he was not under investigation. If Comey disputes that tomorrow, Thursday -- losing my days here -- that will be big news. And Eric, you saw that the market reacted severely last time Comey testified. So this could be a big day not just politically but also in terms of the market.

BOLLING: Well, you know what we're missing also? Tomorrow there are four intel heads that are going to testify, as well, under oath. We're getting lost on waiting to see on Thursday, what Comey is going to say. I think there's going to be a lot of news coming out of tomorrow's testimony.

FITTON: I encourage President Trump to release all the information so we find out what went on with Obama spying on him. Take the wind out of the sail out of a lot of these congressional ridiculous hearings.

HOLLIDAY: Should he release his taxes, as well?

FITTON: Another one. I would encourage him to do so.

HOLLIDAY: Might be helpful.

FITTON: Yes.

TIMPF: Me, too. All right. Well, pressure is growing on Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg to recuse herself from the Trump travel ban case. Why its outcome could be hanging in the balance, right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WILLIAMS: Welcome back to "The Fox News Specialists." Our specialists today are Shelby Holliday and Tom Fitton. Let's continue our conversation.

Calls are growing louder for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg to recuse herself from the Trump travel ban case. Last July, in an interview with The New York Times, Justice Ginsburg said this, quote: "I can't imagine what the country would be like with Donald Trump as our president. For the country, it could be four years. For the courts, it could be -- well, I don't even want to contemplate that."

Those remarks have critics claiming she would let her personal bias against him tilt her decision on the travel ban.

Now, I'd like to point out that our very own Gregg Jarrett has a piece now on FOXNews.com, talking about why he feels she should recuse herself. And I predicted, Eric, that this would be a problem for the justice when she came out and spoke politically...

BOLLING: Yes.

WILLIAMS: ... about the election. And here it -- here it is, biting her in the behind.

BOLLING: You did. You mentioned it, and a lot of jaws dropped when she did that, as well. Because now, I mean, look, as you well know, the only way that she's going to be able to be taken off this case is if she recused yourself. She can't be told to get off.

But now, when she did that, didn't she open yourself up to judicial activism, judicial bias on everything that she decides that is a very far- right, far-left debate, like this, for one? Trump travel ban, it's got his name on it. She's already said, "I don't trust him. I don't like him." Isn't it biased already?

TIMPF: Obviously, but she didn't think she'd ever really be in this position, which is why she said it. Let's all be honest.

BOLLING: No one thought he was going to win?

TIMPF: Nobody thought he was going to win. Or she wouldn't have said it.

WILLIAMS: Crazy, yes.

TIMPF: Nobody thought. I didn't think. Well, maybe you did. There was, like, a couple people at this network that predicted it. I wasn't one of them. Don't -- she certainly clearly didn't think so or she wouldn't have said that.

WILLIAMS: There were only two candidates, though, Kat. At some point, even if you thought Trump was a long shot, certainly, it's possible.

TIMPF: Bad move on her part, but that's clearly why she said it.

Now, the thing is people love her. Right? She's a pop culture icon. She is. They call her RBG, and the kids walk around in Brooklyn with, like, the little shirts where she looks like "Notorious B.I.G." And "Oh, she's so cool. Look at me and my cool shirt." So if she has to recuse herself - - she's very, very popular.

But I don't see any defense of her staying on when she's already shown she's impartial [SIC].

BOLLING: Do you? Do you?

WILLIAMS: Let me say this -- yes, of course. I think she has a serious problem here, let me be clear. But here's what her argument, I think, will be, Shelby: "Well, I did say that. I did feel that way. I still don't like Donald Trump, but I am such a Supreme Court justice that I can elevate and lift myself above my own partisan politics and still remain fair and impartial."

HOLLIDAY: Yes, I think she could argue that. And I think, once you become a Supreme Court justice, you get there because people trust your impartial decision making. But I do think those statements undermined the trust we have.

BOLLING: Don't go anywhere. Don't go anywhere, co-host.

HOLLIDAY: And Eboni brought this up.

BOLLING: I've got -- I've got to call on my girl here.

WILLIAMS: Here we go.

BOLLING: But Eboni...

WILLIAMS: Bring it, Bolling.

BOLLING: ... if Donald Trump -- and Kat -- if Donald Trump said something as a candidate, and you want told him to that standard with the executive order on immigration on the travel ban, that he said when he was a candidate, aren't we not saying the exact same thing about Ruth Bader Ginsburg?

TIMPF: Look at me, I'm being inconsistent.

WILLIAMS: Let me answer this.

BOLLING: You are.

WILLIAMS: If it were up to me and I got to make a decision, I would take her off the case. I would.

BOLLING: So is Eboni Wilson -- Williams recommending that Ruth Bader steps down?

WILLIAMS: I'm recommending she step down.

FITTON: By her recusing herself, it doesn't mean, "Hey, I'm saying I'm biased." It means, "Look, I've said these things in the past, and I understand as a judge, I can do -- justice, I can put it aside and decide the case independently. But I recognize if I were to participate in this, people would think that the system is rigged and that I'm biased. And I don't want to undermine the judiciary. I don't want to undermine the Supreme Court. For -- so for the sake of the rule of law, I'm going to step back, even though I know I can decide the case fairly."

Frankly, I don't think she could decide the case fairly. But you know, we do presume they're going to be honest and ethical up there. Otherwise, we can't let them be there. But given what she said, I would caution her...

WILLIAMS: I agree with Tom.

FITTON: ... that she step back, just for the sake of the court.

WILLIAMS: I think that would be a very classy move on her part.

HOLLIDAY: I have a question for you guys, though. When President Trump attacks the courts, the judiciary, when he attacks, as he just did with the travel ban, courts for being slow and political. Does that make it tough or impossible for justices to be impartial, because they're already being...

WILLIAMS: No, no, because different -- I'm going to defend President Trump here. He doesn't have a presumption of impartiality. He really doesn't. And he certainly didn't run that way. We don't elect presidents for their ability to be fair and impartial, necessarily.

But justices, and particularly the Supreme Court, the high court, the almighty highest court of the land is supposed to be apolitical.

TIMPF: And it's supposed to be hard to work there.

WILLIAMS: Yes. But no, I think she really stepped in it, Eric. I really do. I think I said it at the time. And this was going to always come back to haunt her.

BOLLING: The difference she did, versus what Justice Scalia would do as a conservative justice, he would talk about ideology. He would talk about "I believe in this or that." She went one step further and pointed at Donald Trump specifically, the man, not -- not his policies.

WILLIAMS: Right, not conservatives.

BOLLING: And therein lies one opportunity for her to say, "You know what? In the -- in the hat tip to impartiality, I will step down."

HOLLIDAY: Which also makes it tough for her. Because if she recuses herself from this one case, that sets a precedent for other cases.

WILLIAMS: Yes, and...

BOLLING: One can only hope. I have a better idea. I have a better idea. Ruth Bader Ginsburg, you know what? It's time to retire. You have a long life to go relax and hang out in Florida somewhere.

WILLIAMS: She's a little late for that, Eric.

Media bias has no bounds. One of the country's biggest news organizations now officially claiming that President Trump can't be trusted. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BOLLING: Media bias against President Trump has run wild in the days since the London terror attack, with the president's blunt reactions on Twitter provoking widespread hysteria in the press. The president hit back on Twitter today, writing, quote: "The fake mainstream media is working so hard trying to get me not to use social media. They hate that I can get the honest and unfiltered message out."

Helping prove his point, a report from the Associated Press about his response to London, saying, quote, "President Donald Trump can't be counted on to give accurate information to Americans when violent acts are unfolding abroad."

The media isn't even attempting to hide its disdain anymore. And Tom, we saw that with, well, the mainstream media also doing it, but we saw that with the mayor of London saying, "Hey, Donald Trump, you're not welcome here."

FITTON: You see this media taking itself -- they obviously don't think the Democrats are doing a good job, so they're going to be the opposition party to President Trump.

Everything he says and does is met with derision and opposition by the media. They disagree with everything, and everything is an argument. He says something, there's an argument. There's always someone trying to catch him, suggesting he said something wrong.

He got something wrong about the middle (ph) of the attack. Like everyone thought, it wasn't a terrorist attack. And he tweeted out that it might have been a terrorist attack. Or it was...

TIMPF: He said it was a terrorist attack in his speech, even though it wasn't.

FITTON: And he was wrong. So? He was wrong.

BOLLING: Let me...

FITTON: What's the big deal? But he's also right fundamentally on the issue of terrorism.

TIMPF: Come on.

BOLLING: Let's talk about this for a second. Let's stay on mainstream...

TIMPF: Come on. You can't -- so you're saying that -- so you're saying. No. What does it matter? Are you saying that he deserves no blame whatsoever in terms of people saying he can't be trusted to report accurately on terror when he hasn't accurately reported on terror as of a week ago?

FITTON: Look, he said -- conveying media links. And then he's being attacked for conveying media links.

TIMPF: Answer my question. Answer my question. So he deserves no blame for someone saying you can't trust him on how to report about terror when he himself has inaccurately reported about terror? He deserves no blame?

FITTON: He has made one mistake reporting about a terrorist attack that seemed like a terrorist attack for the idea that the president of the United States therefore can't be trusted on any reporting.

TIMPF: I didn't say that. I didn't say that.

FITTON: Or confirmation of terrorist activities. Not true.

TIMPF: I'm not saying he can never be trusted. I'm just saying so you're saying he deserves no blame?

FITTON: Your attention to the question on that...

(CROSSTALK)

HOLLIDAY: He did not get ahead of the Time Square. I will say he did not tweet about the Times Square car crash. That looked like it could be terrorism. He didn't say anything. That was an incident in the U.S. I think that's more important than...

(CROSSTALK)

BOLLING: What's the big deal that, if one time he called something a terror attack that happened not to be? I mean, in the meantime, he reaches out, when he tweets or hits social media, 110 million people get the message.

WILLIAMS: I will say this. I really like the Associated Press. It's one of the few, what I think, remaining trusted news sources. I actually don't like that they did this. I don't like that they -- they can have that opinion. He was wrong. I'll answer your question, Kat. I do think the president is to blame for some of this presumption. But I think to come out and say it, uniformly, that he cannot at all be trusted on any of these issues relating to terror, is -- is too broad...

BOLLING: Should we -- should we hold the AP at the same level, the same standard, that if they make a mistake...

WILLIAMS: That's what I'm saying.

BOLLING: ... that they will not -- ever to be trusted again?

WILLIAMS: They are one of the last standing perceived to be objective news outlets. This is too strong and broad and blanketed of a statement.

TIMPF: I agree that it's too strong and broad and blanketed, but I think it's also too strong and broad and blanketed to say that he deserves no blame for this reputation whatsoever, when he does.

BOLLING: Reputation at -- I mean, he made a mistake. He made a mistake in a tweet.

TIMPF: He did make a mistake. He made a mistake in the speech.

BOLLING: He didn't drop a bomb somewhere.

TIMPF: I'm not saying that he did. I never said that he did. I mean, well, he did. But that's not what I'm talking about.

Also, if you -- when you talk about London, when he said that the mayor said that there was no reason for alarm one when, really, what he was referring to was the police -- the police presence.

Shelby, as you pointed out there's times when he's done a great job of waiting and seeing. There's times when he hasn't. I think that the times when he hasn't could give someone pause. I also completely agree that to say that means he can never be trusted is asinine.

BOLLING: Go.

HOLLIDAY: And luckily, we haven't had anything happen in the U.S., you know, God forbid.

WILLIAMS: Thank God.

HOLLIDAY: But if and when, I think -- I would hope he could be trusted. I would hope Americans can look to the president.

FITTON: Come on.

HOLLIDAY: I also will say, though, I've been talking to a lot of Trump supporters recently, just to get their temperature, see what they're thinking, and they cannot stand that the media keeps talking about President Trump's tweets. They think it's overblown. They think, you know, he's always tweeted.

FITTON: Compare and contrast this honest mistake with the mendacious lies of the Obama gang about Benghazi, when they lied about a terrorist attack.

TIMPF: Why do you have to compare it to Benghazi? There's nothing relevant.

FITTON: An honest mistake versus knowing lies.

TIMPF: Obviously, knowing lies is worse than a honest mistake.

FITTON: Obviously.

WILLIAMS: Tom, what do you mean, Obama's gang?

HOLLIDAY: I think our president should be held to a higher level than both of that.

FITTON: Hillary Clinton, Obama, Susan Rice. The gang.

BOLLING: Susan Rice, who went out and...

WILLIAMS: The gang?

BOLLING: ... talked about it on five separate talk shows.

WILLIAMS: I resent that. It seems to have a racial connotation. I'm going to call you out on that.

BOLLING: All right. We're going to settle it down a little bit in the break. When we come right back, we're going to "Circle Back" with our specialists, Shelby Holliday and Tom Fitton. Don't go away.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TIMPF: Time to "Circle Back" with our specialists, Shelby Holliday and Tom Fitton.

Tom, I wanted to ask you this question. What did you think of the leaks and the rest and all that happened today?

FITTON: You know, 4.5 million people have security clearances, and it's no surprise that someone like Reality Winner -- we went to that.

TIMPF: Reality leaks.

FITTON: It's a serious issue. Too many people have access to this sensitive information. And this casual approach to leaking classified information just before you hate -- because you hate Trump can be used to justify a lot of lawlessness that can put our national security at risk.

BOLLING: How did she get security clearance, classified security clearance, when she's tweeting about standing with Iran if we ever went to war with them?

FITTON: Four -- how do you track 4.5 million people's security clearances?

BOLLING: I don't know. Better than we're doing now?

FITTON: It's an absurd process. They barely can figure out the names and addresses of the people who have security clearances, let alone investigate their social media.

TIMPF: The leaks don't even implicate Trump also. Great job on that one.

WILLIAMS: OK, I'm going to lighten it up just a little bit here. It's a bit of a heavy day with all our terror news. It's being reported that less American teenagers are working summer jobs. So in the spirit of that, Shelby, what was your first summer job?

HOLLIDAY: I was -- well, I worked at a frozen yogurt shop.

WILLIAMS: There you go.

HOLLIDAY: And then I was your average, boring nanny.

WILLIAMS: No. That's...

HOLLIDAY: To the best family ever.

WILLIAMS: That's excellent. Tom.

HOLLIDAY: Such a boring...

WILLIAMS: Tom, summer job? Any one of them.

FITTON: I worked at Bamberger's.

WILLIAMS: OK. Fry -- fry guy? Or cashier?

FITTON: That was retail. Macy's -- before Macy's, you have Bamberger's.

WILLIAMS: Oh, that's a retail shop! I thought it was a burger shop. Look at me. Go figure.

Bolling, what was your summer job?

BOLLING: I had a paper route.

WILLIAMS: Paper route. Kat?

TIMPF: I worked at a pizza and sandwich shop.

WILLIAMS: OK, excellent.

TIMPF: What was yours?

WILLIAMS: Well, I had so many. But I sold chicken wings. That's a bit of a buried lead there.

TIMPF: All right. Thank you.

Thank you to our "Fox News Specialists" today, Shelby Holliday and Tom Fitton.

And we thank you all for watching. And make sure to follow us on social media, @SpecialistsFNC on Twitter and Facebook. Remember, 5 p.m. will never be the same.

"Special Report" is next.



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Hours after the New York Times broke the news of sexual harassment allegations against movie magnate Harvey Weinstein on Oct. 5, many women took to Twitter to share stories of unwanted sexual advances in daily life. A vocal advocate for womens rights and sexual-assault survivors, actress Brie Larson revealed that she was recently forced to navigate an uncomfortable encounter with a male TSA agent at airport security.

I merely smiled at a TSA agent and he asked for my phone number. To live life as a woman is to live life on the defense, the 28-year-old Oscar winner wrote to her 633,000 Twitter followers.

YOUTUBE REMOVES AD FOR PROSTITUTE-FILLED 'SEX ISLAND' GETAWAY IN COLOMBIA

While hundreds lauded Larson for sharing the tale, a select few members of the Twitterverse challenged her statement.

How is a guy supposed to win? He thought you were pretty and asked for your number. It's not an assault. Just politely say no and move on, one user wrote. And asking for a number is harassment?? Imagine living as a man trying not to upset feminists... added another.

Holding her ground, the A-lister wasnt going to let the subversive comments slide.

KALEY CUOCO REVEALS AWKWARD DOUBLE-MISHAP WITH TSA

What you are saying is "I was asking for it" - a phrase that has disregarded a females experience for....the whole time, Larson wrote. When I'm a person going through security, and the other is an employee of said security. It's inappropriate.

Describing such experiences real + scary sometimes, Larson invited another disparager to take the time to learn more about the experiences of women."

FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK FOR MORE FOX LIFESTYLE NEWS

The California native won the 2015 Oscar for Best Actress for her role as a sexually abused women held captive in the film Room.

Famously, she also did not applaud Casey Affleck as she presented his Best Actor award at the 2017 ceremony: various women have reported harassment from Affleck in years past.
Neighbors called police because something seemed suspicious in Robert James Kueflers Minnesota home.

When officers walked in, they made a sickening discovery.

Police said Kuefler, 60, had been living with two corpses for over a year. The rotting corpses of his mother, Evelyn, and twin brother, Richard, were found in his home on September 2016. The bodies, one of them decayed and skeletal the other "mummified," had been dead in his home since 2015, police said.

DAD OF BOY WHO DIED AFTER SCALDING BATH SENTENCED TO 7 YEARS

He told authorities the two died of natural causes but he was too distraught to report the deaths.

I was traumatized. What would you do? Kuefler told The Associated Press on Saturday. I am not some nut ball. People think I am, but Im not. I loved them.

Last week, Kuefler was charged with interference of a dead body or scene of death after investigators discovered he had moved the bodies because they were in the way, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune. His brothers body had been moved to the bathroom and his mothers to her upstairs bedroom.

Kuefler also failed to report the deaths to his other family members, CBS News reported. He even sent them a Christmas card, claiming that his mother and brother were too ill for phone calls or visitors.

FLORIDA BANK ROBBER GOOGLED 'HOW TO ROB A BANK' BEFORE COMMITTING CRIME, POLICE SAY

Police Capt. Dale Hager said they are investigating the deceased persons bank accounts, where direct deposits of Disability and Social Security checks have continued. Kuefler claims he had not touched the accounts since the deaths.

Hager said that he hopes the case will help Kuefler, who has no criminal record, receive psychological help through the court system.

"This is our way of introducing this case onto the court," Hager said. "We do believe his actions violated the lawwe're depending on our partners in the court system to make a good decision."

Kuefler insists he needs no counseling.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A 19-year-old woman whose body was found in a Chicago-area hotel freezer died of hypothermia, according to autopsy results released Friday.

The Cook County medical examiner concluded that Kenneka Jenkins death was an accident  noting that her use of alcohol and an epilepsy medication were contributing factors.

However, police in Rosemont, Ill., said they were continuing to investigate the death at the Crowne Plaza Chicago O'Hare Hotel in Rosemont, even though no sign of foul play appears to exist at this time, the Chicago Tribune reported.

Jenkins family noted in a legal filing that the woman did not have a prescription for the epilepsy drug, called topiramate, which is known to cause dizziness and impaired judgment, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

Surveillance video shows Jenkins entering the hotels abandoned and unused kitchen alone at 3:32 a.m. Sept. 9, but the camera angle does not show the freezer door, the Tribune reported.

Although the kitchen was no longer being used, the freezer remained operational for an unknown reason, according to the legal filing by Tereasa Martin, the mother of Jenkins, the Tribune reported.

Jenkins body was not discovered until 12:24 a.m. Sept. 10  some 21 hours after she entered the kitchen, the newspaper reported.

The woman had left her Chicago home Sept. 9 to attend a party at the hotel. Toxicology tests found alcohol, caffeine and an epilepsy/migraine medication in Jenkins' system, the medical examiner's office said.

Authorities initial unwillingness to release information about the case sparked speculation on social media that Jenkins had been murdered. But the medical examiners office and the police said that no evidence currently exists to support the theory, the Tribune reported.

Nevertheless, police continue to seek information from people who attended the party or were in the hotel, the newspaper reported.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Authorities investigating Stephen Paddock, the Las Vegas mass killer, have yet to settle on a motive for the slaughter, but they are certain the retired accountant and heavy gambler was the sole shooter.

What they cant confirm yet is whether anybody else knew about his planned attack before it took place.

Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said Friday in a news conference that while tips and information have helped them build a profile into the madness of this suspect, they still dont know why he fired a heavy stream of bullets into a crowd of concertgoers at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino.

In the past, terror attacks or mass murder incidents, motive was made very clear, McMahill said about police examination of social media posts or evidence left at the scene. We have looked at everything, literally, to include the suspects personal life, any political affiliation, his social behaviors, economic situation and any potential radicalization that so many have claimed.

AUTHORITIES LOOKING FOR 'MYSTERY WOMAN' SEEN WITH LAS VEGAS GUNMAN

He also confirmed that investigators hadnt found any evidence to suggest that the Islamic State was in any way responsible for the attack, despite the Muslim groups earlier claims.

Police said they have reviewed video footage from the hotel and didnt see anyone that they view as a suspect.

They reiterated that authorities found Tannerite, a binary explosive, in the shooters car but said they do not know what Paddock was planning to do with it and based on the condition it was found in, it did not resemble an IED.

They also confirmed that authorities located a missing car they were looking for, a Hyundai Tucson with Nevada plates. It was at Paddocks house in Reno, Nev.

In a timeline of events, police confirmed that a security officer initially went up to the 32nd floor of the hotel because an alarm sounded.

LAS VEGAS SHOOTING PROMPTS POLICE ACROSS US TO RE-EVALUATE SECURITY AT HOTELS, HIGH-RISES

It was there that the security guard, Jesus Campos, came under fire by the suspect, during which he was hit by a bullet in the leg.

Campos turned back and notified his dispatch of the shooter, which McMahill said was absolutely critical because it gave police the exact location of Paddock.

McMahill referred to Campos as a brave and remarkable man who police had not done a good enough job of recognizing for his heroic actions.

Aaron Rouse, of the FBIs Las Vegas division, also detailed a campaign authorities are launching to obtain any information people may have from before, during or after the deadly attack.

He said there will be billboards in the area reading If you know something, say something, with the phone number, 1-800-CALL-FBI.
A man in Missouri was charged Friday after investigators reportedly discovered child pornography on computers in his home.

Thomas Guy, 58, of Ballwin, was charged with one count of promoting child pornography and three counts of possession of child pornography, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.

Police in St. Louis County were reportedly alerted by Yahoo that an internet protocol address in the area had distributed child porn.

Police obtained a warrant and searched Guys home on Thursday, where they said they found thousands of illicit pictures on three separate computers, Fox 2 Now reported.

CHILDRENS SINGER-SONGWRITER FACING CHILD PORN CHARGES

The pictures were reportedly of people under the age of 18 and at least one girl under the age of 14.

According to police, the suspect owns a media company called The Media Guy, which produces video presentations for schools that focus on drug abuse, bullying, peer pressure, and healthy living, Fox 2 Now reported.

Investigators said they dont believe any of the children at the schools Guy visited are his victims, KDSK reported.

Guy admitted to police that he owned the child porn and distributed it online, the Post-Dispatch said.

He is reportedly being held in jail with his bail set at $100,000.
An appeals court in Ohio has sided with the state in its legal battle with the former owner of six tigers and several other exotic animals.

The state appeals court in Toledo says the Ohio Department of Agriculture had the right to deny a permit to the owner of a roadside animal sanctuary near Toledo.

The ruling issued Friday overturns a Wood County judge's decision ordering the state to give Kenny Hetrick a permit and to return the animals.

The tigers, bear, leopard and cougar have been kept in out-of-state sanctuaries during the state's appeal.

Ohio took custody of 11 animals from Hetrick in January 2015 after officials say he ignored warnings that he needed a permit.

Hetrick argued he was treated differently than other exotic animal owners.
Two Florida women who became friends after meeting at a drug-treatment program were arrested after overdosing on heroin in an SUV with their 1-month-old and 2-month-old babies in the backseat, police said.

Kristen Leigh OConnor, 27, of Coral Springs and June Ann Schweinhart, 28, of Lake Worth, were charged with child neglect after they were released from the hospital, police in Boynton Beach, Fla., said.

This is an incredibly tragic situation and ultimately, the ones most affected by this are those innocent, beautiful babies, Boynton Beach police said in a Facebook post announcing the arrests. We hope this serves as a wake-up call for these moms, and that they seek further treatment for their addiction. We sincerely wish them all the best.

Family members of the two women took custody of the newborns.

Police said OConnor and Schweinhart went to a parking garage Thursday to snort heroin in the company of the two babies. They bought the heroin from a drug dealer for $60.

Schweinhart called 911 when OConnor began to overdose but then she started convulsing, police said.

Fortunately, there was a Good Samaritan nearby who saw all of this happening and took the phone from her to speak with dispatchers, Boynton Beach police spokeswoman Stephanie Slater said in the Facebook post.

Cops found the babies strapped in their car seats, the Palm Beach Post reported.

At the hospital, OConnor told police she and Schweinhart knew each other from a drug treatment program and decided to hang out on Thursday, the paper reported.

O'Connor also told police she and Schweinhart became friends because their babies were due the same day, according to the paper. The infants were born four days apart.

OConnor was released on $4,500 bond, the paper reported. Schweinhart was being held in lieu of $3,000 bail.

A judge told OConnor she can only see her baby if her mother is present, according to the paper.

Schweinhart was told that if she makes bail she can have contact with her baby if another adult is present.
Hurricane Nate made landfall near the mouth of the Mississippi River Saturday evening as a Category 1 storm with maximum sustained winds of 85 miles per hour.

The National Hurricane Center said that Nate was expected to make a second landfall along the coast of Mississippi later Saturday night and then pass over parts of Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee. The storm had weakened slightly and was moving north at 20 mph.

Cities along the Mississippi coast such as Gulfport and Biloxi were on high alert. Some beachfront hotels and casinos were evacuated. Rain began falling on the region Saturday and forecasters called for 3 to 6 inches with as much as 10 inches in some isolated places.

Nate was expected to pass to the east of New Orleans, sparing the city its most ferocious winds and storm surge. Mayor Mitch Landrieu lifted a 7 p.m. curfew approximately 90 minutes after it took effect, but warned residents to "shelter in place and use caution due to strong tropical force winds."

Waterside sections of New Orleans, outside the city's levee system, were under an evacuation order. About 2,000 people were affected. But not everyone was complying.

Gabriel Black stayed behind because an 81-year-old neighbor refused to leave.

"I know it sounds insane, but he has bad legs and he doesn't have anybody who can get to him," Black said.

Storm surge threatened low-lying communities in southeast Louisiana, eastward to the Alabama fishing village of Bayou la Batre.

"If it floods again, this will be it. I can't live on promises," said Larry Bertron as said as he and his wife prepared to leave their home in the Braithwaite community of vulnerable Plaquemines Parish. The hurricane veterans lost one home to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and were leaving the home they rebuilt after Hurricane Isaac in 2012.

Governors in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama declared states of emergency. The three states have been mostly spared during this hectic hurricane season.

"This is the worst hurricane that has impacted Mississippi since Hurricane Katrina," Mississippi Emergency Management Director Lee Smithson said Saturday. "Everyone needs to understand that, that this is a significantly dangerous situation."

Officials rescued five people from two sailboats in choppy waters before the storm. One 41-foot sailboat lost its engine in Lake Pontchartrain and two sailors were saved. Another boat hit rocks in the Mississippi Sound and three people had to be plucked from the water.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards urged residents to make final preparations quickly and stressed that Nate will bring the possibility of storm surge reaching up to 11 feet in some coastal areas.

"It's going to hit and move through our area at a relatively fast rate, limiting the amount of time it's going to drop rain," Edwards said. "But this is a very dangerous storm nonetheless."

On Alabama's Dauphin Island, water washed over the road Saturday on the island's low-lying west end, said Mayor Jeff Collier. The storm was projected to bring storm surges from seven to 11 feet near the Alabama-Mississippi state line. Some of the biggest impacts could be at the top of funnel-shaped Mobile Bay.

The window for preparing "is quickly closing," Alabama Emergency Management Agency Director Brian Hastings said.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott warned residents of the Panhandle to prepare for Nate's impact.

"Hurricane Nate is expected to bring life-threatening storm surges, strong winds and tornados that could reach across the Panhandle," Scott said. The evacuations affect roughly 100,000 residents in the western Panhandle.

The Pensacola International Airport announced it will close at 6 p.m. Saturday and remain closed on Sunday. However, the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport was open Saturday.

At 8 p.m. EDT Saturday, Nate was about 10 miles southwest of the mouth of the Mississippi River. The storm is expected to quickly weaken as it cuts a path through the Southeast on its way to the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast regions, which could see impacts from Nate early next week.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Nate was the first hurricane to make landfall in Mississippi since Katrina devastated the region in 2005  but it spared much of the areas already ravaged by hurricanes earlier this year.

The storm, which has since been downgraded to a post-tropical cyclone, brought heavy rainfall, flooding and power outages to the U.S. Gulf Coast over the weekend. It continued to dump rain on the East Coast as it made its way north.

Earlier Friday, the storm hit Central America, leaving at least 22 people dead.

Heres what you need to know.

Where is Nate now?

Nate is about 20 miles southwest of Akron, Ohio, and 85 miles northeast of Columbus, Ohio, according to the National Hurricane Center's 5 a.m. ET Monday advisory, its final advisory for the post-tropical cyclone.

The storm has maximum sustained winds of 20 mph and was moving northeast at 60 mph.

Flood warnings are in effect for parts of the southern and central Appalachians.

The National Hurricane Center said the central Appalachian and mid-Atlantic regions can expect modern to heavy rainfall with additional rain showers stretching into the Carolinas. Moderate to heavy rainfall is also expected in the Ohio Valley, lower Great Lakes, mid-Atlantic and northeast regions.

What else do you need to know?

The federal government declared emergencies in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi ahead of the storm. But while it left 22 people dead after it tore through Central America and Mexicos Yucatan Peninsula, Nate wasnt as intense as Hurricanes Maria, Harvey and Irma were.

"We are thankful because this looked like it was going to be a freight train barreling through the city," said Vincent Creel, a spokesman for the city of Biloxi, Mississippi.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The head of the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said Friday that his agency had no choice but to arrest illegal immigrants in Californias neighborhoods and worksites despite newly signed sanctuary city legislation in the state.

Those arrested would also likely be placed in out-of-state detention centers, ICE Acting Director Thomas Homan said in a statement.

Homans comments came a day after California Gov. Jerry Brown, a Democrat, signed state Senate bill SB54, or sanctuary state legislation.

The new state law, which takes effect Jan. 1, will ban police from asking people about their immigration status or participating in federal immigration enforcement activities. Jail officials would be allowed to transfer inmates to federal immigration authorities only if they have been convicted of certain crimes.

Homan cautioned the bill helped protect illegal immigrants from deportation and made the state a magnet."

CALIFORNIA BECOMES SANCTUARY STATE AS GOV. BROWN DEFIES TRUMP ADMINISTRATION

"Ultimately, SB54 helps shield removable aliens from immigration enforcement and creates another magnet for more illegal immigration, all at the expense of the safety and security of the very people it purports to protect," Homan warned.

However, Brown noted the law does not bar ICE from operating in the state. His office declined to comment further on the ICE statement Friday.

"They are free to use their own considerable resources to enforce federal immigration law in California," Brown wrote.

Brown said the law does prevent the commandeering of local officials to do immigration work.

These are uncertain times for undocumented Californians and their families, and this bill strikes a balance that will protect public safety while bringing a measure of comfort to those families who are now living in fear every day, Brown said.

CALIFORNIA LAWMAKERS APPROVE SANCTUARY STATE BILL

Democratic Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon, who carried the bill, said Homan's statement "exemplifies the fearmongering and lies that guide this Administration."

"The Trump Administration is once again making heavy-handed threats against California because we won't help them tear apart families and our economy in the process," de Leon said in a statement.

Democratic lawmakers in California have worked to create barriers to Trumps campaign pledge to bolster deportation efforts.

Trump highlighted sanctuary cities during his presidential campaign after the killing of Kate Steinle, a San Francisco woman who was fatally shot at a pier in 2015 by a Mexican national who had been deported five times. In June, the House passed Kates Law, which would increase the penalties for deported aliens who try to return to the U.S.

Trump has threatened to withhold federal funding to sanctuary cities, several of which have filed lawsuits to prevent that from happening.

California is home to an estimated 2.3 million immigrants without legal authorization.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Investigators believe Las Vegas mass shooter Stephen Paddock hired a prostitute in the days leading up to the massacre, according to an official briefed by federal law enforcement officials.

The investigators are interviewing other prostitutes for information, the official told Associated Press. While prostitution is legal in remote areas of Nevada, it is not legal on the Strip, where he was staying.

The massive investigation has failed to uncover Paddocks motive for the rampage Sunday night that killed 58 people. The 64-year-old Paddock was armed with 24 weapons and thousands of rounds of ammo when he opened fire on a country music festival from his room on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino on the Vegas strip.

Paddock also wounded hundreds before taking his own life.

The official also disclosed to the AP that Paddock, a high-stakes gambler, took at least a dozen cruises abroad in the last few years, most of them with his girlfriend, Marilou Danley, the AP reported Saturday. At least one sailed to the Middle East.

Also Saturday, federal agents began to haul away thousands of personal items left behind when at the music festival.

FBI agents were seen Saturday morning hauling baby strollers, lawn chairs, backpacks and purses onto dollies and into the back of a white truck.

Law enforcement officers had fanned out across the crime scene throughout the week, stacking up belongings of concert-goers into more than a dozen large piles.

Authorities have said they plan to return the belongings to people in the next week.

An estimated 22,000 people were attending the Route 91 Harvest festival when Paddock opened fire.

Investigators say Paddock was the lone shooter.

Danley, who was abroad in Asia at the time of the shooting has told investigators she had no idea Paddock was plotting a mass shooting. She returned to the U.S. Tuesday.

Clark County Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said Friday at a news conference that examinations of Paddock's politics, finances, any possible radicalization and his social behavior have turned up little information on what led to the attack.

The FBI announced a billboard campaign around Las Vegas seeking tips from anyone with information about Paddock.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A man who stabbed his wife more than 30 times after she told him she was having an affair with his friend and was leaving him has been sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Nitin Singh must serve 17 years of the sentence imposed Friday before he become eligible for parole. The 48-year-old Pennsville Township, New Jersey, man had pleaded guilty in August to aggravated manslaughter in a plea deal with Salem County prosecutors.

Authorities say the July 2016 stabbing of 42-year-old Seema Singh occurred in the couple's apartment while their three children slept nearby. The children were not injured.

Nitin Singh has said he attacked his wife after she said she was leaving him and would be taking all of his money and their children with her.
A 30-page report released by a sheriff's office in the aftermath of a mass shooting at a Florida airport details how an Alaska man waited at a baggage carousel for several minutes last January before being paged to pick up the bag containing his gun, which officials said he used to kill five people and injure six others.

Delta Airlines was paging Esteban Santiago, 27, to retrieve the bag after his flight arrived at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on Jan. 6. Minutes after he picked up the bag, the shooting began.

The SunSentinel reported that the document is the Broward Sheriff's Office's final review of its actions following the mass shooting. The page by Delta is a new detail in the airport shooting. The report didn't disclose whether airline officials knew what was in the bag.

On that afternoon, passengers from all terminals at the airport fled in a panic over erroneous reports of an additional airport shooter. The report also shed light on the extent of the radio problems police and fire personnel encountered in attempting to communicate as state, local and federal officials answered calls for backup and converged on the airport.

The report says that at one point, the crush of users sent the system into a "fail-soft" mode and all connections between responding agencies were lost. Dispatchers were not able to quickly reconnect groups and told "all units to stop transmitting until the radio bridges could be restored."

It took about four minutes, the report said. But the system began to "throttle," which resulted in garbled transmissions in which Broward Sheriff's Office deputies and fire officials could only hear parts of words or phrases.

Santiago, of Anchorage, Alaska, was caught by a deputy within minutes of the shooting. But an hour and a half later, the false reports of additional gunfire resulted in bedlam at the busy airport. A U.S. Customs and Border Patrol officer thought he heard shots and relayed the information to a sheriff's officer fire captain who broadcast it over the radio as: "Border Patrol reporting shots fired in Terminal 2," the SunSentinel reported.

"The words "shots fired" spread throughout the airport and triggered pandemonium as thousands of travelers, airline and airport employees began to escape from the concourses, gates, baggage claim areas, curbside loading areas and parking garages of all four terminals," the report stated.

Sheriff Scott Israel, in an introduction to the report, said the review is an effort to "objectively review and assess" its response to the deadly shooting. The report is much shorter and far less critical than a 99-page draft report released in June that faulted the agency for failing to seize control and set up an effective command system, the newspaper reported.

Santiago has pleaded not guilty to a 22-count indictment. He has stopped taking anti-psychotic medication to treat schizophrenia but remains mentally competent to stand trial, his lawyer told a judge last month.

The Justice Department may seek the death penalty in a trial currently set for January.
Pennsylvania police launched an investigation after a racially charged letter was sent to a day center serving 130 children.

The anonymous letter sent Tuesday targeted a black staff member at Bridge 2 Creative Learning Center in Whitehall. Angry staffers posted the letter on social media where it went viral, the Allentown Morning Call reported Friday.

Its disturbing, Whitehall Police Chief Michael Marks told the paper. This is not something you want to see in your community. This is something we as a police department are going take very seriously.

The letter says some of us are planning to pull our kids because the black workers skin was too dark.

That staffer burst into tears after being told about the letter, Bridge 2s owner Dominique McKelley told the paper.

She said she was going to quit but I convinced her to stay, McKelley said. This has gotten everyone here so fired up.

The letter was sent in an envelope without a return address, according to the paper. Inside were two identical letters, addressed to McKelley and the black staffer.

The letter prompted staffers to leave the facility in pairs as a safety precaution, the paper reported.


Hurricane Nate strengthened to a Category 1 hurricane Friday night and is expected to make landfall late Saturday evening or Saturday night, according to AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dan Pydynowski.

The storm could strengthen to a Category 2 prior to making landfall somewhere along the coast of southern Mississippi.

Impacts along the Gulf Coast will start as soon as Saturday evening, with storm surge possibly reaching 5 to 8 feet, according to Pydynowski.

There could be wind gusts approaching 100 miles per hour in a small area near the point of landfall right along the coast, Pydynowski said. Certainly, enough to do some structural damage and cause power outages.

1:27 p.m. CDT Saturday: Category 1 Hurricanes are still able to cause property damage, push down trees and lead to power outages. The National Hurricane Center now forecasts Hurricane Nate to have maximum sustained winds of 105 mph by landfall tonight.



1:08 p.m. CDT Saturday: Gas stations are already out of gas in Biloxi, Mississippi and possibly surrounding areas.



12:46 p.m. CDT Saturday: Early voting wrapped up sooner than scheduled in parts of Louisiana due to Hurricane Nate.



9:47 a.m. CDT Saturday: Power companies deploying trucks ahead of Hurricane Nate.



8:38 a.m. CDT Saturday: The National Hurricane Center issued an intermediate advisory.

The advisory listed a hurricane warning in effect for portions of the northern Gulf Coast from Louisiana to Alabama. A storm surge warning was is in effect from Morgan City, Louisiana to the Okaloosa and Walton county line in Florida.
A Texas woman is criticizing the two-year sentence an illegal immigrant received for killing her husband and two youngest children in a car crash last year.

Courtney Hacking told Fox & Friends Saturday that the sentence in a Texas state court doesnt compensate her for the loss of her 36-year-old husband Peter, a volunteer firefighter, 4-year-old daughter Ellie and 22-month-old son Grayson in the accident.

People think his crime and his punishment seem to fit because he was an illegal immigrant, she said, referring to Mexican Margarito Quintero Rosales who pleaded guilty to criminally negligent homicide in connection with the crash. But to me being illegal in the country was a crime on its own so I dont understand how he did get only two years.

She added, To me I take it offensively. I take it personally.

Cops say Quintero swerved into Hackings vehicle which was coming the other way when he fell asleep at the wheel, WFAA-TV reported.

The sentencing took place Sept. 29. The sentence was the maximum under state law, the station reported.

Quintero has been jailed since the accident. He will complete the sentence in about another 110 days.

He is serving that sentence as he serves a two-year federal sentence for reentering the U.S. illegally after being deported. Court records show he was charged with that crime after the accident and sentenced last month.

Quintero was also arrested after the crash for having no drivers license, the Dallas Morning News reported.

Peter Hacking was driving Ellie and Grayson home after picking them up at the babysitter, according to the paper.

I want our laws enforced, Hacking said on Fox & Friends.

The message needs to be put across to them that when you come to this country you need to do it legally because when they come here all theyre getting istheyre committing crimes, theyre getting a slap on the wrist and theyre going back to Mexico or theyre going back to whatever country they came from.

Her husband was a legal immigrant from England, she said.

Hacking is now caring for her other four children alone.

She said she each day she sees Ellie and Graysons beautiful faces from the moment she wakes up to the moment she goes to bed.

I miss their kisses, she said. I miss everything about them on a daily basis.
Three men were preliminary charged with having links to terrorism for a failed attack at a residential building in an upscale Paris neighborhood where wired explosives failed to ignite.

A judicial official said on Saturday the three men, identified as Aymen B., Amine A., and Samy B., were placed under formal investigation late Friday in the mysterious attempt.

Anti-terrorism prosecutor Francois Molins told reporters Friday that investigators have yet to find a logical explanation for why the building was targeted.

The men were arrested Monday after authorities found an apparent ready-to-detonate bomb in the affluent 16th district of western Paris.

Police said a neighbor alerted authorities to suspicious activity in the apartment building, saying he was woken up by a noise and a very strong smell of gasoline. The neighbor told police he discovered a device made of a gas cylinder in his hallway, Le Point newspaper reported.

A firing device, made with a mobile phone and connected to several wires, had been attached to these cylinders, law enforcement sources told Le Point.

"This device was perfectly made," a source close to the case told the newspaper.

FRENCH LAWMAKERS APPROVE TOUGH COUNTER-TERRORISM BILL AFTER STRING OF FATAL ATTACKS

The failed bombing came the same weekend a man slit the throat of one woman at a train station in Marseilles before killing her cousin. He was later shot dead by soldiers. Officials have opened a probe as to why the man was briefly detained by police the day before the attack in the city of Lyon, and then released.

On Tuesday, Frances lower house of parliament overwhelmingly approved a controversial counterterrorism bill that will give police wider search and arrest power.

The law is expected to become permanent before a state of emergency, which was put in place after the 2015 Paris attacks, expires on November 1.
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The Vatican says that leaders of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference have traveled to Rome to discuss "the restoration of trust" amid a sex abuse scandal involving Australian cardinal George Pell, a top adviser to the pope.

The Vatican announced the delegation's visit this week in a statement Saturday, saying key Australian church leaders met with top officials including the Vatican secretary of state and the secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith, which is the Vatican office that processes all cases of priests accused of sexually abusing minors.

The extraordinary meetings in Rome come months after the Vatican released Pell to return to Australia to face charges in the decades-old case. Pell, who took a leave of absence as the Vatican's financial czar, denies the charges.
A former British teacher was sentenced Friday to 16 months in jail after admitting to having a full-blown sexual relationship with one of her former students, a 15-year-old boy.

Alice McBrearty, 23, said she and the teenager had a four-month fling together that began when she sent the boy a friend request on Facebook, Sky News reported.

McBrearty pleaded guilty to seven counts of sexual activity with a child while in a position of trust, the BBC reported.

According to prosecutors, the teacher kissed the student in a classroom of the east London school she taught at and had sex with the pupil at her parents residence in Wanstead Park. She also had sex with the student in a hotel room in Ibis.

Prosecutor Lisa Matthews said the student, who was not named, felt special and appeared to be besotted with the teacher. McBrearty would take the teen out to eat and to parks.

MARRIED MAINE TEACHER INDICTED FOR MULTIPLE SEX ROMPS WITH STUDENT WHO TRIED TO COMMIT SUICIDE

The student and teacher engaged in seven sexual encounters between Feb. 11 and May 5, 2017 but ended when the teens father alerted police. McBrearty was arrested on May 8, Metropolitan Police said.

Judge Sheelagh Canavan called the teacher bright, intelligent and gifted and knew right from wrong, but that she had committed the grossest breach of trust.

You engaged in a full-blown sexual relationship with a 15-year-old child. I accept he was consenting  what 15 year-old schoolboy would turn down such an attractive offer? the judge said.

"I accept you truly believed this was a great romance, you were in love with him and vice versa, and that age didn't matter. But it did. You were supposed to keep him safe, to help him make the right decisions, the judge said.

"Instead, you helped him make all the wrong ones," she concluded.

The young woman cried and put held her head during her sentencing.

Emma Shafton, who defended McBrearty, said she has had a spectacular fall from grace.

"This is a young lady who has had a spectacular fall from grace - university educated, comes from a respectable family - she has been utterly disgraced by this, Shafton said.

Shafton argued the woman was not sexually attracted to children.

ARKANSAS HIGH SCHOOL TEACHER, 25, SLEPT WITH 4 TEEN BOY STUDENTS, 2 IN SAME NIGHT, COPS SAY

She will, of course, be branded a pedophile for the rest of her life. She is a sex offender, Shafton said.

Shafton added McBrearty was delivering packages to Amazon since she was unable to receive a decent job.
Hundreds of people supporting Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny were arrested Saturday after rallying across the country in a wave of demonstrations on President Vladimir Putin's 65th birthday.

Navalny, who is serving a 20-day jail term for calling for an earlier unsanctioned protest, called on his supporters to pressure authorities into letting him enter the presidential race.

The rally in Moscow was markedly smaller than previous demonstrations in the Russian capital staged by Navalny this year but ended peacefully. A rally in Putin's hometown of St. Petersburg attracted a bigger crowd and ended in clashes with police.

Several hundred protesters, most of them students, gathered on Moscow's downtown Pushkinskaya Square, waving Russian flags and chanting "Russia will be free!" and "Let Navalny run!" Police warned them the rally wasn't sanctioned and urged them to disperse, but let the protest continue for hours without trying to break it up.

Local media outlets reported that upwards of 200 people were arrested.

Escorted by police, mostly teenage protesters later walked down Moscow's Tverskaya Street toward the Kremlin, shouting "Putin, go away!" and "Future without Putin!"

Police lines blocked them from approaching Red Square and they turned back. Several hours later, some demonstrators made a new attempt to march on the Kremlin, shouting "Putin thief!" Some briefly attempted to block traffic.

Police also didn't intervene at first with a bigger unsanctioned rally in St. Petersburg, where over 1,000 gathered at Marsovo Pole park and then marched across the city, cutting traffic and chanting "Russia without Putin!" and "Putin, retire!"

Police later cracked down on the demonstrators, detaining dozens after some tried to break through police lines.

"Putin has been in charge since I was born," Dmitry Samokhin, 18, who was among protesters in St. Petersburg. "The country is mired in stagnation and I want to see changes."

The authorities' decision to refrain from breaking up the Moscow protest, contrasted with a more forceful response to previous Moscow rallies called by Navalny, when police detained more than 1,000 demonstrators. In St. Petersburg, police responded only after facing a violent attempt by protesters to break through their ranks.

Navalny's headquarters called protests in 80 cities. Most were not sanctioned by authorities, but police largely refrained from breaking them up. The Siberian city of Yakutsk saw the toughest police response, where a few dozen demonstrators were reportedly detained.

Navalny has declared his intention to run for president in the March 2018 election, even though a criminal conviction that he calls politically motivated bars him from running. The 41-year-old anti-corruption crusader has organized waves of protests this year, casting a challenge to the Kremlin.

Putin hasn't yet announced whether he would seek re-election, but he's widely expected to run. With his current approval ratings topping 80 percent, he is set to win another six-year term in a race against torpid veterans of past election campaigns, like Communist Party chief Gennady Zyuganov.

Navalny argues that the high level of support for Putin comes from the lack of real political competition and urged supporters to help him get registered.

"(Putin's) 86 percent approval rating exists in a political vacuum," he said. "It's like asking a person who has been fed rutabaga his entire life how eatable they find it and the rating will be quite high. Listen, there are other things that are better than rutabaga."

The sarcastic analogy demonstrated Navalny's stinging style, which has helped him get broad support among the young.

Navalny has worked to expand his reach with videos exposing official corruption and YouTube live broadcasts. His documentary about Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev's alleged ill-gotten wealth has been viewed nearly 25 million times since its release in March, helping galvanize protests.

Heeding his call, tens of thousands took to the streets in dozens of cities and towns across Russia in March and June, the biggest show of defiance since the 2011-2012 anti-government protests.

Unlike the past rallies, which were driven by anti-corruption slogans, Navalny this time focused on rallying support for his own presidential bid  a reason some gave for the smaller protest in Moscow.

"Some people dislike Putin and the government, but that doesn't mean they are willing to unequivocally back Navalny," political analyst Valery Solovei said on Dozhd television.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Libyan authorities have recovered the bodies of 21 Coptic Christian workers, mostly Egyptians, beheaded in 2015 by the Islamic State group in the coastal city of Sirte.

Saturday's statement by the media office of anti-Islamic State organization al-Bonyan al-Marsous, says an arrested IS militant, who witnessed the attack, provided details on the incident and the militants involved.

The beheaded bodies in orange uniforms were found with their hands cuffed to the backs, the group says. They included 20 Egyptians and one African.

The killings were documented in a grisly video released online by the extremists that shocked Egypt and led it to launch punitive airstrikes.

Libya has descended into chaos since a popular 2011 uprising that toppled and later killed longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi.
London police said a vehicle ramming into a crowd outside the Natural History Museum injuring a number of people Saturday was being treated as a road traffic collision, not a terror-related incident.

At least 11 people were injured - most with leg and head injuries, the London Ambulance Service said.

Londons Metropolitan Police said a man was detained at the scene and a motive was being investigated. Police confirmed they would release more information as time went on.

"The incident in Exhibition Road South Kensington earlier is not being treated as a terror-related incident. It is a road traffic collision," London's Metropolitan Police tweeted.

It is not being treated as a terrorist incident at this stage while we establish what has happened, a spokesperson told The Guardian.



No other information was available on the number of people injured or their condition. Emergency services were said to be on the scene outside the museum.

Witness Katie Craine said she was coming out of the museum when she saw a man in handcuffs being pinned down on the ground by police near a damaged car.

"He looked really proud of himself," she said. "He was laughing."

One witness, Lesley Carter, said passersby held the man down before police arrived.

I saw the man pinned down by about six people  one guy was trying to pin him down with his four- or five-year-old daughter in his arms, Lesley Carter, a witness, told The Guardian.

It looked like the car had smashed into the wall between two other cars and the guy got out to run before being pinned down. Loads of people were running away and within minutes the police had turned up. It was a very quick response, Carter said.

Maxim, another witness, told Sky News, the man was removed from his vehicle.

They took a man on the ground, they took the man from the car and put him on the ground and then 20 minutes later evacuated the street, he said. There was a lot of police, I saw people running, people were panicking.

British Prime Minister Theresa May has been briefed on the incident, Sky News reported.

May tweeted her thanks to the first responders and that her thoughts were with those who were injured.

Sadiq Khan, Londons mayor, tweeted his statement regarding the incident.

A number of people have been injured in an incident involving a car in Exhibition Road, South Kensington. A man has been detained by police, the statement said.

Details are still emerging and I have spoken with and am in close contact with Assistant Met Commissioner Mark Rowley and our other emergency services, Khan wrote.

The BBC reported that the injuries appeared to be minor.

London's official terrorist threat level has been set at "severe," indicating an attack is highly likely after a series of terror attacks have rocked London and Manchester this year, including a vehicle attack on pedestrians at Westminster Bridge and London Bridge.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Serbia's defense minister has praised a convicted war criminal for his role against NATO's 1999 intervention in Kosovo, saying Serbia no longer has to be ashamed of a bloody crackdown against ethnic Albanian separatists.

The remarks Saturday by Defense Minister Aleksandar Vulin illustrate Serbia's increasing defiance of the West. Serbia is formally seeking European Union membership but at the same time is edging closer to longtime ally Russia.

Vulin says "the time of shame is gone. It's time for a quiet pride."

He was flanked by former Gen. Vladimir Lazarevic, who was sentenced to 14 years in prison by a U.N. war crimes tribunal for atrocities committed by Serb troops in Kosovo during NATO's bombardment, which stopped the crackdown.

Lazarevic was released from prison after serving two-thirds of his sentence.
Thousands of Spaniards hit the streets Saturday morning rallying against Catalonias independence push as one of the regions leaders called for a cease-fire.

People dressed in white gathered in both the Spanish capital of Madrid and in the Catalan city of Barcelona under the slogan Shall We Talk? in a message to the countrys politicians.

Plaza de Colon in central Madrid was turned into a sea of Spanish flags while in Barcelona organizers asked people to not bring any flags, neither Spanish nor Catalan, and to wear white clothes.

Elsewhere, Santi Vila, Catalonias regional chief for business, pushed for a new opportunity for dialogue with Spanish authorities.

We have to give it one more change, maybe the last chance, and perhaps the only way that can happen is to start with a cease-fire, he told Cadena SER Radio late Friday. We can all calm down and give ourselves the opportunity to not take any decisions and see what channels we can open up to start a serene dialogue.

The calls for dialogue from within Catalonias separatist camp come after some of the regions most important banks and businesses announced they were relocating their headquarters to ensure that the possible secession of the region wouldnt immediately knock them out of the European Union and its lucrative common market.

Vila said he is against Catalonia unilaterally declaring independence at this moment and wants to see a committee of experts from both sides be created to work toward a solution to the political crisis.

From the central government in Madrid, Vila said he would like to see Spanish authorities return powers to the region which them have assumed in recent weeks, including control of a large part of its finances.

It is unclear how widespread Vila's moderate position is inside the Catalan government, which is being pressured from separatist grassroots groups and the far-left party CUP to declare independence soon.

Separatists said they won the Oct. 1 referendum by a landslide, but Spain says the vote was illegal, invalid and unconstitutional. Less than half of the electorate cast ballots in the referendum which was marred by a brutal police crackdown.

The most recent regional elections and polls taken before the referendum showed that the region's 7.5 million residents were roughly split on the divisive issue.

Catalonia's top two banks, Caixbank and Banco Sabadell, as well as energy giant Gas Natural, hurriedly transferred their headquarters to other parts of Spain this week. Other leading Catalan companies have said they are considering similar moves.

Separatist lawmakers had planned to discuss a secession plan on Monday, but that session in the regional parliament was suspended by the Constitutional Court.

The focus has now shifted to Tuesday, when Catalan president Carles Puigdemont is set to address the regional parliament "to report on the current political situation" in Catalonia.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Police in Denmark said Saturday that divers have found the head, legs and clothes of Swedish journalist Kim Wall, who was killed after boarding an inventors submarine.

The body parts and clothing were found Friday in plastic bags with a knife and heavy metal pieces to make them sink near where the 30-year-old Wall's naked headless torso was found in August, Copenhagen police investigator Jens Moeller Jensen said.

The discovery was made in Koge Bay by members of the Danish navy, Reuters reported.

"Last night our forensic dentist confirmed that it was Kim Wall," Moeller Jensen said, according to the BBC.

Moeller Jensen said there were no fractures to Wall's skull and he declined to comment on the discovery of the knife.

Peter Madsen, the 46-year-old Danish inventor who is in pre-trial detention on preliminary manslaughter charges, has said Wall died after being accidentally hit by a 155-pound hatch on the UC3 Nautillus submarine, after which he "buried" her at sea.

But police have said 15 stab wounds were found on the torso found at sea off Copenhagen on Aug. 21. Her arms were still missing.

Wall's cause of death hasn't yet been established yet.

The detention of Madsen, who has denied manslaughter, expires Oct. 31 when a court will decide if he will continue to remain in custody ahead of a possible trial. He is also held on preliminary charges of the indecent handling of a corpse.

Police have said the submarine only sailed in Danish waters Aug. 10-11.

During their investigation, police have found videos on Madsen's personal computer of women being tortured, decapitated and murdered.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Reports of forcible rape, stalking, domestic violence and dating violence were up slightly at the University of Mary Washington last year, according to the annual security report published this week.

The university, where approximately 4,000 undergraduates are enrolled, reported 11 forcible rapes on campus in 2016, up from eight the previous year. Virginia Tech, which has a student body of just over 33,000, also reported 11 rapes last year.

Virginia Commonwealth University reported 15, Longwood reported six and George Mason University reported 20.

UMW reported five occurrences of stalking last year, up from two the year before. There were three reported cases of domestic violence and eight of dating violence, both up from zero in 2015.

Reports of forcible fondling at UMW were down to two last year from six the year before.

Michael Hall, UMWs chief of police and associate vice president for safety, attributed UMW having the same number of reported rapes as a much larger school to the fact that UMWs report might be more inclusive.

We feel that we capture everything, he said. Im not saying that other institutions dont, but anything that is brought forward and followed gets reported.

Some of the cases that come to us dont end up meeting the necessary elements for a criminal prosecution, or the victim chooses not to move forward, but we still report all those so that we capture everything.

Hall said that occurrences of sexual assault on campuses nationwide sometimes go unreported because victims dont feel comfortable coming forward. But he said the collaborative effort between UMW entities such as the counseling center, Title IX office, residence life, deans office, Board of Visitors and awareness programs and Fredericksburg-area resources such as the Commonwealth Attorneys Office and Rappahannock Area Community Services Board create a supportive environment where students are empowered.

I think the close-knit community that we have contributes to them feeling comfortable and empowered to come forward, Hall said.

On Sept. 28, UMWs Title IX office issued a campus-wide email response to the Department of Educations withdrawal that week of mandates requiring schools to adopt a minimal standard of proof when investigating allegations of sexual misconduct.

[The Office for Civil Rights] has indicated an intention to engage in further rulemaking on this topic, so it is uncertain how this interim guidance will change in the future, the email read. What is certain is the Universitys and the Office of Title IXs commitment to creating and fostering a community free from sex or gender discrimination.

The email stated that UMW would continue to operate under its existing Policy on Sexual and Gender-Based Harassment and Other Forms of Interpersonal Violence, which does apply the preponderance of evidence standard, meaning that it is more likely than not that a Policy violation has occurred.

The Board of Visitors reapproved the policy on Sept. 15 and it is not scheduled for review again until next September.

Also in the security report, UMW noted one instance of burglary and no robberies, motor vehicle theft, arson or aggravated assaults.

Liquor law violations were also up in 2016. UMW reported 177 liquor law violations, up from 119 the previous yearbut it reported fewer of those violations than Virginia Tech, VCU, Longwood and George Mason.

There were 45 reported drug law violations at UMW, down from 56 the previous year.
A drugstore chain has lost its lawsuit against Spotsylvania that claimed the county overtaxed two of its stores by nearly $300,000 over five years.

The Walgreen Co. had disputed the tax assessments of its Walgreens stores on State Route 3 and Rollingwood Drive, saying the county overvalued the properties by millions of dollars from 2010 to 2015.

But Circuit Judge Ricardo Rigual ruled in favor of the county in an opinion issued Sept. 27, writing that Walgreen had failed to establish credible fair-market values.

Walgreen would have this court believe that its properties are no different than a mattress store or a coffee shop, he wrote. This is simply not the case.

Walgreen paid $625,802 in real estate taxes on its Spotsylvania stores from 201015, based on the countys assessments those years. That amount would have dropped by $284,132 under the drugstores valuations.

County officials said in a statement that they appreciated the judges time and attention to the case.

Rigual agreed with the county that the properties could be assessed based on their highest and best use as drugstores. Walgreen had argued that its stores should be valued no differently than any other retailer.

The judge also rejected the drugstore chains assertion that the purchase price of more than $7 million for each Walgreens should not influence the countys assessments. Walgreen called those sales prices the investment value rather than the propertys actual worth.

But Spotsylvania Assessor Edward Tolley testified that the purchase price should weigh heavily on assessments because it reflects the attitudes of the buyers and sellers.

The judge also noted that Walgreen had refused to provide Spotsylvania with information on its income and expenses. That would have disqualified the plaintiff from relief, he said, even if the county had wrongly assessed the property.

Walgreen rents its Spotsylvania property, but must pay real-estate taxes under the lease agreements, court papers show.

In some cases, the countys assessments more than doubled Walgreens estimates of the propertys worth.

In 2015, for instance, Walgreen calculated that its Rollingwood Drive location should have been worth $3.15 million when it came to paying the real estate tax of 86 cents per $100 of assessed value. The county assessed the property at nearly $7.2 million for a tax bill of $61,675 that yearmore than twice what Walgreen thought it should pay.

An attorney for Walgreen did not immediately return a call for comment.

The county has faced lawsuits over assessments before.

It established a $150,000 assessment challenge contingency fund in 2013 and added $950,000 to the account last year to address potential liabilities.

Still, challenges are relatively rare. The county assessed 61,040 properties last year, but the Board of Equalization received just 55 appeals, Revenue Commissioner Debbie Williams wrote in an email.
Morris Jones entered into eternal rest on September 28, 2017. He was the husband of the late Rosa L. Jones and is survived by two sons, Morris A. Jones and Carlton B. Jones (Maureen). He is also survived by one sister, Frances Morgan; brother-in-law Wilbert Ware; sister-in-law Annie Jones; seven grandchildren, six great-grandchildren; as well as a host of nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends. Friends may visit with family on Saturday, October 7 from 11 a.m. until time of service, 12 Noon, at People's Congregational Church of Christ, 4704 13th St., NW, Washington, D.C. Arrangements by McGuire. www.mcguire-services.com
Have you wondered why your voice is not heard in the Virginia General Assembly? Have you wondered why political change is so slow to come in Virginia?

You might want to look at gerrymandering. As has been noted many times, this is the process in which delegates choose their voters rather than the other way around. If you have also wondered why voting districts look like spaghetti thrown on a wall, this is the reason.

The ultimate result is a legislature that is no longer responsive to voter needs and one that has become more and more insular and radical.

The prime culprit in promoting the current gerrymandering scheme is Rep. Mark Cole, the delegate from the 88th District. As chairman of the Privileges and Elections Committee, he regularly tables requests for a non-partisan commission to create districts in Virginia, despite overwhelming support and comment from those who appear before his committee.

It is time for a change. Steve Aycock, the challenger in the 88th District, will fight for an independent, fair redistricting process to end gerrymandering so that your voice will finally be heard. I plan to give him my support to end the stranglehold on the legislature.

Michael Spragins

Stafford
Working class, poor are being left in the dust

Great news: Middle-class income has reached its highest level in years, increasing more than 3 percent from last year. Our country is finally overcoming the financial crisis that painted bank and retirement accounts red.

But there is a sector of Americans being left behind: the working class and poor. According to 2015 statistics by Data USA, an estimated 35 percent of the people in Fredericksburg make less than $35,000 per year. According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, a household in Virginia must bring home $48,000 (assuming a 40-hour workweek) to afford a standard two-bedroom apartment.

Combined with a roughly 35 percent homeownership rate (2015), the need for affordable housing is clear. Its a tragedy that the poor must work over 100 hours per week to afford a decent two-bedroom apartment in Fredericksburg and our immediate surrounding counties.

Are you tired of working two jobs and trying to provide a better future for yourself and your children? You can share your voice Saturday at 1 p.m. at Central Rappahannock Regional Library in Fredericksburg. Virginia Organizing is conducting a community forum to discuss affordable housing issues in and around the city.

NJ Robinson Spotsylvania
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Principe, Democratic Republic of Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Senegal, Republic of Serbia and Montenegro Seychelles, Republic of Sierra Leone, Republic of Singapore, Republic of Slovakia (Slovak Republic) Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia, Somali Republic South Africa, Republic of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Spain, Spanish State Sri Lanka, Democratic Socialist Republic of St. Helena St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia St. Pierre and Miquelon St. Vincent and the Grenadines Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Suriname, Republic of Svalbard & Jan Mayen Islands Swaziland, Kingdom of Sweden, Kingdom of Switzerland, Swiss Confederation Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan, Province of China Tajikistan Tanzania, United Republic of Thailand, Kingdom of Timor-Leste, Democratic Republic of Togo, Togolese Republic Tokelau (Tokelau Islands) Tonga, Kingdom of Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Tunisia, Republic of Turkey, Republic of Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda, Republic of Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom of Great Britain & N. Ireland Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe
A Pinch of Salt: The election is over, I think, so what now?
Here is a look at public meetings scheduled for the coming days:

Saturday

 Ward 5 Corvallis Councilor Charlyn Ellis is the government comment corner guest from 10 a.m. to noon at the Corvallis-Benton County Public Library, 645 NW Monroe Ave.

Monday

 The Corvallis-Benton County Economic Development Advisory Board meets at 3 p.m. at the Madison Avenue Meeting Room, 500 SW Madison Ave. On the agenda is a discussion of annexation policies featuring city of Corvallis Community Development Director Paul Bilotta.

 A Corvallis School District facilities planning meeting is at 6:30 p.m. at Wilson Elementary School, 2710 NW Satinwood St.

 The Corvallis Community Relations Advisory Group meets at 7 p.m. at the Madison room. On the agenda are discussions of its livability survey, issues related to Halloween night and possible changes in its meeting protocols and structure.

 The Philomath City Council meets at 7 p.m. at City Hall, 980 Applegate St. On the agenda is the annual rate review for Republic Services and a memorandum of understanding with Nova Dynamics on a robotic personal delivery service.

Tuesday

 A Corvallis School District facilities planning meeting is at 6:30 p.m. at Linus Pauling Middle School, 1111 NW Cleveland Ave.

 The Corvallis Historic Resources Commission meets at 6:30 p.m. at the downtown fire station, 400 NW Harrison Blvd. Commissioners are scheduled to discuss sidewalk and street stamps and other historic improvement provisions.

Wednesday

 The Corvallis Downtown Advisory Board meets at 5:30 p.m. at the Madison room.

 A Corvallis School District facilities planning meeting is at 6:30 p.m. at Jefferson Elementary School, 1825 NW 27th St.

Thursday

 The Corvallis Civic Beautification and Urban Forestry Advisory Committee meets at 9 a.m. at the Parks and Recreation Department, 1310 SW Avery Park Drive.
Do you want to know how bad the hurricane season has been? Just ask Bobbie OConnell, a Samaritan Health Services nurse since 1986.

OConnell served 30 consecutive days in relief missions for Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma and she thinks there is a 50-50 chance that she will wind up in Puerto Rico, assisting victims of Hurricane Maria.

The month-long deployment was the longest stretch she has been away from home since she began serving relief missions with the National Disaster Medical System.

Her team works a lot like the National Guard. You train to stay ready and when the federal government needs you, you go.

She's been to Guatemala and American Samoa as well as Hurricane Katrina, where she remembers sleeping on the baggage conveyor belts at the New Orleans airport.

OConnell receives a stipend for the work, but its less than a third of what I normally make as director of nursing support services at Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center.

And the money has nothing to do with why I do it, she said.

OConnell headed to Texas after Harvey hit, flying first to a staging area in Dallas. She wound up serving in Port Arthur, Texas.

You set up your field hospital and start treating people as soon as you can. Thats just the way it is. Youre going into an area where people have lost everything, she said. You want to keep em alive but also give them hope and give them light at the end of the tunnel.

One of the biggest challenges is caring for people who have lost their medications or who were due for refills when the storm hit.

You see people all the time trying to do without, but sometimes doing without for three days can be fatal. If you can give them a prescription refill  sometimes thats a lifesaver.

OConnell saw random acts of kindness on an almost continuous basis. She told a story of a shelter in a school in Port Arthur in which the floodwaters reached the level of the residents cots.

So the people just moved up into the bleachers. I saw people helping each other up and watching out for each other. You get to know people in a crisis. It brings out the best in people. It brings out the compassion in people.

In Orlando, Florida, during the Irma mission, OConnell worked with a woman who was taking care of her two grandchildren while dealing with congestive heart failure and a leg injury.

She kept saying 'thank you,' OConnell said. She had nothing, but she kept trying to find a way to say thank you. So she sang a hymn for us.

In Florida she had a face-to-face with a cottonmouth snake and was warned about alligators who also were displaced by the floodwaters. Sewers backed up, generators quit "and it was eight days before I could get people into showers."

OConnell worked a minimum of 12-hour days, which sometimes stretched to 18 hours. When traveling, she sometimes kept going for up to 28 straight hours. She ate a lot of military meals ready to eat (MREs)  "there was nothing flavorful about them"  and occasionally slept on floors using her Big Agnes air mattress, "the best investment I ever made."

One of the biggest challenges, she said, is for relief workers to make sure that they stay healthy.

I have to be sure to take care of myself, she said. I dont want to be sick and be an encumbrance. I try to be well-prepared. I bring my own food, bug pen, DEET and hand sanitizer. If you get sick you cant help anybody else.

And after youve been in the middle of a whirlwind of activity for days or even weeks, things start to slow down and you know that the mission is ending, OConnell said. You dont want to be consuming resources others need, so, yeah, they are going to pull you out of there.

When she returned to the Eugene airport after the 30-day deployment, her car was covered with dust and ash from the summer fires that plagued Oregon while Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico were under water.

She got home about 10 p.m., set her bags on the floor and stretched out on her bed, fully clothed.

Do I even get a hello? asked her husband, Bob, a software engineer for Garmin.

I can say hello from the bed, OConnell said.
Regarding the Oct. 5 Gazette-Times story, "Vietnam War Film Reopens Old Wounds:" Vietnam War vet Mike Hastie disputed the "many truths" about the war: "No! There was only one truth ... the war was a lie!"

The filmmakers, Ken Burns and Lynn Novick, attempted to present, in less than 18 hours of film, 117 years of Western power colonization and military occupation and warfare in Vietnam. Roughly 90 percent of the film footage focused on the final 21 years, the years of intense diplomatic efforts and, tragically, military assaults by the U.S. government.

Over those years the Vietnamese were motivated by nationalism, communism, anti-communism, Buddhism, and Catholicism as well as the desire for decent, peaceful lives.

On the American side, the government lied to the American people and to the troops on the ground about the origin and prosecution of the war.

We now know many, many facts about the war. Can all our knowledge of the Vietnam War be summarized as "only one truth"?

I suggest watching the Burns-Novick documentary to reach your own conclusion.

Leo Quirk

Corvallis (Oct. 6)
We just experienced the worst mass killing in U.S. history. Or did we? Wait a second. Lets at least try set the record straight.

 Colfax Massacre, 1873. In Colfax, Louisiana, 150 freed African-American men killed by white militiamen, most while in custody.

 Wounded Knee Massacre, 1890. U.S. cavalry killed 90 Native American Lakota tribesmen and 200 women and children.

 East St. Louis Massacre, 1917. White workers lynched, shot and beat to death as many as 200 African-American people.

 Tulsa Race Riot, 1923. Police supported rioters with guns in the killing of up to 300 African-Americans.

How soon we forget. Or disregard.

Michael Beachley

Corvallis (Oct. 6)
bohlah at 7-10-2017 02:04 PM (5 years ago) (m)

An Anti-corruption campaigner has discovered 10 multimillion properties located in the United Kingdom, owned by high-class Nigerians, two of which are top lawmakers.

An Anti-corruption campaigner has discovered 10 multimillion properties located in the United Kingdom, owned by high-class Nigerians, two of which are top lawmakers.

The video clip by the group who are identified as ClampK, trended on social media and was reported by international media organisations such as British Broadcasting Corporation, Aljazeera and Agence France Presse.



This new revelation has again put Nigeria in a bad light, as the high level of corruption by the top government officials has led to the investigations of the accumulated wealth of these people, some of which are detained in UK for probing, the likes of former minister of petroleum, Mrs Allison Madueke, who is under investigations for corruption.



Mr Debo Adeniran, the Executive Chairman for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, has called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and other anti-graft agencies to open investigations into the owners of the properties and prosecute them if found guilty



The cost of the seven properties is 15,785,000 (approximately N6,345, 570,000 using the Central Bank of Nigerias official rate of N402), while the costs of the properties can be broken down as: 5,650,000; 4,250,000; 2, 900,000; 850,000; 830,000; 820,000 and 485,000.



Investigations also revealed that the properties were acquired by proxy, which the anti-corruption campaigners believe was done to hide the identities of the owners.



One of the choice properties linked to an APC chieftain cost 4,250,000 (apart from other rents that had been paid on the grant of the lease).



Another property belonging to one of the powerful Nigerians had cost 5,650,000 when it was paid for on October 4, 2011, according to the records of HM Land Registry, Croydon.



The leaseholders were identified as Renocon Property Development Limited and Sandon Developments Limited.



Documents from the HM Land Registry, Croydon, also revealed that a choice property was acquired by a firm on behalf of a former military Head of State.



Further information made available by the land registry revealed that a property linked to one of the powerful Nigerians was registered with a companys name as the owner.



Similarly, findings from the HM Land Registry, Birkenhead office, UK, revealed that a property at Kensington West Blythe Road, was linked to one of the powerful Nigerians.



One of the anti-graft campaigners on the tour organised by ClampK, Rachel Davies of Transparency International, had described the UK as a ground that had been harbouring misused public funds, saying there were 40,000 land titles in London owned by companies based in many jurisdictions.



According to her, that meant that when they bought the properties, the owners didnt need to have a land registry to reveal who they really were and so the land registry, the police, and the local residents do not know who they are.



A similar tour organised earlier had focused on politically-exposed Russians. According to AFP, the tours are organised by an anti-corruption campaigner, Roman Borisovich, who is a specialist in exposing shady Russian money, and are held every few months.



It stated that Borisovich had set up the tours to attract public attention to the enormous proportions of money laundering that is being washed through UK properties.



He told AFP he had chosen Nigeria for the latest tour as it was the only country that is openly asking the British government to repatriate the proceeds of crime, which were stolen from the country.



Mr Deborah Adeniran had said, The revelation is a manifestation of how greedy our politicians are. Its a confirmation that our politicians go into the system to syphon public funds. Many of them have been doing it right from time. They launder the countrys funds and use them to buy posh properties abroad.



This situation has been persistent because of the lack of commitment by our anti-graft agencies to investigate and prosecute corrupt politicians using public funds to buy choice properties abroad. If not, we didnt have to wait for foreign investigators to do the job for us.



Be that as it may, all the agencies, from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission and even the Central Bank of Nigeria, should swing into action immediately and investigate those who own the properties and prosecute them if found guilty of corruption.



For an administration whose motto is fighting corruption, seeing that the proxies who illegally acquired properties for public office holders are also prosecuted should be a priority. The government should ensure that every sinner shouldnt go unpunished.



Also, the Executive Director, Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, Adetokunbo Mumuni, said the fact that the said persons did the transaction or acquisition clandestinely showed that they had things to hide. He said the EFCC should waste no time in investigating the matter.



He said, If you dont have the gut to buy a property in your name and you are using proxies, that means you have something serious to hide and once there is a reason to believe that a crime has been committed, the appropriate criminal investigation agencies, like EFCC, must take it up.



He added that Nigeria must stop relying on foreign help to solve all its problems, adding that We must be ready to do something serious about our matters ourselves and that is why agencies like EFCC should take it up.



The President Muhammad Buhari Administration has clamped down on corrupt public officers, recovering billions of stolen public funds; the establishment of the whistle-blowing policy. The video clip by the group who are identified as ClampK, trended on social media and was reported by international media organisations such as British Broadcasting Corporation, Aljazeera and Agence France Presse.This new revelation has again put Nigeria in a bad light, as the high level of corruption by the top government officials has led to the investigations of the accumulated wealth of these people, some of which are detained in UK for probing, the likes of former minister of petroleum, Mrs Allison Madueke, who is under investigations for corruption.Mr Debo Adeniran, the Executive Chairman for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, has called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and other anti-graft agencies to open investigations into the owners of the properties and prosecute them if found guiltyThe cost of the seven properties is 15,785,000 (approximately N6,345, 570,000 using the Central Bank of Nigerias official rate of N402), while the costs of the properties can be broken down as: 5,650,000; 4,250,000; 2, 900,000; 850,000; 830,000; 820,000 and 485,000.Investigations also revealed that the properties were acquired by proxy, which the anti-corruption campaigners believe was done to hide the identities of the owners.One of the choice properties linked to an APC chieftain cost 4,250,000 (apart from other rents that had been paid on the grant of the lease).Another property belonging to one of the powerful Nigerians had cost 5,650,000 when it was paid for on October 4, 2011, according to the records of HM Land Registry, Croydon.The leaseholders were identified as Renocon Property Development Limited and Sandon Developments Limited.Documents from the HM Land Registry, Croydon, also revealed that a choice property was acquired by a firm on behalf of a former military Head of State.Further information made available by the land registry revealed that a property linked to one of the powerful Nigerians was registered with a companys name as the owner.Similarly, findings from the HM Land Registry, Birkenhead office, UK, revealed that a property at Kensington West Blythe Road, was linked to one of the powerful Nigerians.One of the anti-graft campaigners on the tour organised by ClampK, Rachel Davies of Transparency International, had described the UK as a ground that had been harbouring misused public funds, saying there were 40,000 land titles in London owned by companies based in many jurisdictions.According to her, that meant that when they bought the properties, the owners didnt need to have a land registry to reveal who they really were and so the land registry, the police, and the local residents do not know who they are.A similar tour organised earlier had focused on politically-exposed Russians. According to AFP, the tours are organised by an anti-corruption campaigner, Roman Borisovich, who is a specialist in exposing shady Russian money, and are held every few months.It stated that Borisovich had set up the tours to attract public attention to the enormous proportions of money laundering that is being washed through UK properties.He told AFP he had chosen Nigeria for the latest tour as it was the only country that is openly asking the British government to repatriate the proceeds of crime, which were stolen from the country.Mr Deborah Adeniran had said, The revelation is a manifestation of how greedy our politicians are. Its a confirmation that our politicians go into the system to syphon public funds. Many of them have been doing it right from time. They launder the countrys funds and use them to buy posh properties abroad.This situation has been persistent because of the lack of commitment by our anti-graft agencies to investigate and prosecute corrupt politicians using public funds to buy choice properties abroad. If not, we didnt have to wait for foreign investigators to do the job for us.Be that as it may, all the agencies, from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission and even the Central Bank of Nigeria, should swing into action immediately and investigate those who own the properties and prosecute them if found guilty of corruption.For an administration whose motto is fighting corruption, seeing that the proxies who illegally acquired properties for public office holders are also prosecuted should be a priority. The government should ensure that every sinner shouldnt go unpunished.Also, the Executive Director, Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, Adetokunbo Mumuni, said the fact that the said persons did the transaction or acquisition clandestinely showed that they had things to hide. He said the EFCC should waste no time in investigating the matter.He said, If you dont have the gut to buy a property in your name and you are using proxies, that means you have something serious to hide and once there is a reason to believe that a crime has been committed, the appropriate criminal investigation agencies, like EFCC, must take it up.He added that Nigeria must stop relying on foreign help to solve all its problems, adding that We must be ready to do something serious about our matters ourselves and that is why agencies like EFCC should take it up.The President Muhammad Buhari Administration has clamped down on corrupt public officers, recovering billions of stolen public funds; the establishment of the whistle-blowing policy.

Post Reply I have been reporting on latest news from Nigeria for almost 10 years now. I report on every possible news area I come across, but always ensure my reports are compiled with dignity and fact to uphold my personal values and duty as a journalist Posted: at 7-10-2017 02:04 PM (5 years ago) | Addicted Hero
(TNS) -- City officials in Boston are staying tight-lipped about details of their pitch to Amazon, the online behemoth searching for someplace to put its second headquarters.But four spots are surfacing as likely locations that officials will promote in a bid they hope will net the region up to 50,000 high-paying jobs and a $5 billion headquarters.Suffolk Downs, a 161-acre site in East Boston and Revere, is first on the list as the horse track winds down operations. Owned by HYM Investment Group, LLC, it's located right off the Blue Line, which features some of the newest train cars in the troubled MBTA system. The site is also close to Logan International Airport.Massachusetts House Speaker Robert DeLeo, a powerful lawmaker at the State House, has said he supports the site. In a Twitter post last month, DeLeo noted the educated workforce in Massachusetts and added, "I encourage Amazon to consider Suffolk Downs site." The Boston Globe reported Thursday that other locations on Boston's potential Amazon list include Widett Circle in South Boston and Dorchester, Beacon Yards in the Allston neighborhood and possibly in the South Station area.The 83-acre Widett Circle site first came up as an area to redevelop when city officials were hoping to get the Summer 2024 Olympics and put a temporary stadium there. The bid later collapsed, but the site hasn't faded from conversations within the real estate community.The Beacon Park Yards in Allston, in the northwest part of the city, is another option. Harvard University owns the land, which sits close to the Massachusetts Turnpike.And what about South Station? A skyscraper is planned for the site, but as one real estate analyst noted to the Globe, additional locations would be necessary in the surrounding area like the Seaport District, which is across the Fort Point Channel and home to the incoming world headquarters of General Electric.Applications are due to Amazon on Oct. 19.
(TNS) - Tropical Storm Nate has strengthened as the storm continues moving toward the northeastern tip of the Yucatan Peninsula and the Yucatan Channel according to the National Hurricane Center's 5 p.m. advisory. The storm is forecast to move into the Gulf of Mexico and become a hurricane before striking Gulf states.Nate currently has maximum sustained winds of 60 mph and is moving north-northwest at 21 mph. It is expected to become a hurricane by the time it reaches the Gulf.On the forecast track, the center of Nate will move near or over the northeastern coast of the Yucatan peninsula this evening.The storm will then move into the southern Gulf of Mexico tonight, approach the northern Gulf coast Saturday, and then make landfall over the northern Gulf coast Saturday night or Sunday.A hurricane warning is in effect for Grand Isle, Louisiana to the Alabama-Florida border and for Metropolitan New Orleans.Hurricane watches are in effect east of the Alabama-Florida border to the Okaloosa-Walton county line in the Florida Panhandle and west of Grand Isle, Louisiana.Between 3 and 6 inches of rain are expected for the central Gulf Coast states, east of the Mississippi River, eastern Tennessee and the southern Appalachians, with a maximum of 10 inches possible, NHC reports state.At least 22 deaths have been attributed to heavy rains from Nate in Nicaragua and Costa Rica.2017 the Naples Daily News (Naples, Fla.)Visit the Naples Daily News (Naples, Fla.) at www.naplesnews.comDistributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
In an exchange of tweets beginning Thursday, Oct. 5, Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossello discussed the possibility of Tesla aiding in rebuilding the islands power grid. Hurricanes Irma and Maria left 97 percent of the island without power , and it is estimated that it will be several months before power is restored.Following this news, a Twitter user speculated whether Tesla  which has been able to use its solar and battery technology to provide power to entire islands in the past, as well as a section of California , and do it quickly  might be able to speed up the process. Elon Musk was quick to respond saying that it was possible, and it was not long before Gov. Rossello expressed interest in pursuing the idea.Tesla has already sent assistance to Puerto Rico in the form of hundreds of its Powerwall battery packs  but this would be a much bigger step. As Rossello said in one of his tweets to Musk, this could become a flagship project for Tesla, a way for the company to show the world the power and scalability of its tech. Only time will tell.
(TNS) -- Gov. Larry Hogan issued an executive order Thursday instructing his Office of Homeland Security to implement an updated cybersecurity plan to ensure the state is prepared for current threats of electronic mischief.Hogan ordered the office to work with other state agencies to seek input from the federal government, the private sector and universities to analyze plans, share strategies and make recommendations of best practices.Among the agencies Hogan wants involved are the Department of Information Technology, Maryland Military Department and Maryland Emergency Management Agency.The Governors Office said the new plan will incorporate recommendations from the April 2017 Maryland Cybersecurity Council and the Cyber Disruption Contingency Plan to help the state prepare to defend itself against a broad array of virtual threats and minimize the risk of any breach of government systems.The draft plan is expected to be delivered to Hogan by May 2018.
Eric Boullier has admitted Jenson Button could leave his role as official McLaren reserve driver next year.

Earlier in 2017, the 2009 world champion stood in for Fernando Alonso in Monaco, but Button indicated at Suzuka that he wants to return to another series full-time next year.

"I miss racing," said Button, present at the Japanese grand prix as a McLaren brand ambassador.

"I had sort of fallen out of love a little bit -- I think maybe I left it a year too long in F1. But I want to go racing and have fun again."

Button said he has "some sort" of contract with McLaren for 2018, but team boss Eric Boullier admitted the 37-year-old could actually leave his role with the team.

"In my view, he wants to spend next season in a racing series, and it is obvious that we cannot offer him that.

"But he is also an ambassador of the McLaren brand, and we would be happy to continue this cooperation," said the Frenchman.

However, Boullier admitted that Button's new racing role could clash with his ambassador duties, and therefore McLaren would need to seek a new official reserve driver.

Lando Norris is the leading candidate.

"Yes," Boullier admitted. "Let's see, because if he becomes F3 champion, which is quite possible, he will have enough points to receive the super license."

(GMM)
Eric Boullier is pushing hard to get Fernando Alonso's signature on a McLaren contract for 2018.

It appears that the two sides are headed for a new deal following the Honda split.

"Honestly, I don't think there are any special difficulties," Frenchman Boullier said at Suzuka.

"We are already discussing the details of the contract, and as both sides have an intention to continue, I think we will be able to agree."

However, Boullier said that as F3 champion, Lando Norris would have enough super license points to race next year, while Stoffel Vandoorne declared at Suzuka that he is "100 per cent" ready to lead McLaren from the cockpit in 2018.

"Is Stoffel ready?" Boullier said.

"So far he has 15 races this season and one more before that," he explained. "This is not a lot of experience.

"But if you see what he managed in the last three or four grands prix, it is clear that he knows how to use the full potential of the package. And that is helping the team a lot," said Boullier.

Alonso said earlier at Suzuka that Red Bull's Sepang victory shows that, with Renault power, McLaren should be able to win in 2018.

Boullier commented: "Their relationship with Renault has evolved over a period of ten years, but we are also determined to achieve the maximum possible results."

(GMM)
Talasani Shamed For Touching KCR Feet!

Telangana minister for animal husbandry, fisheries and cinematography Talasani Srinivas Yadav, well-known for his aggressive attack on his detractors, has virtually become a tamed pet in front of Telangana Rashtra Samithi president and chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao.

On Friday, Talasani went to the residence of KCR and took his blessings on the occasion of his birthday.

A picture of Talasani touching the feet of the chief minister seeking his blessings has now gone viral, making people wonder how people shamelessly surrender before the same persons who they had criticized with choicest epithets in the past, just for the sake of power.

Within no time, past video clippings of Talasani attacking KCR in strongest terms have gone viral in the social media.

The video clipping dating back to the GHMC elections in 2010 shows Talasani threatening to kick KCR out of Hyderabad.

Hyderabad is not your fathers jageer (Abba Jageer), KCR? How dare you ask the settlers to leave the city? If I want, I can see that you dont have even a house to stay in Hyderabad. I will kick you out of the city, mind it, Talasani was seen saying in the video clip.

But things have changed after the Telangana formation and TRS formed the government in 2014.

Talasani won the Sanathnagar assembly seat on the Telugu Desam Party ticket, thanks to the support from settlers for attacking the TRS so daringly. But within no time, he defected to the TRS and got a ministerial berth.

Now, he is attacking the TDP and the Congress and what is worse, forgetting his own comments, he is even touching KCRs feet. Otherwise, he knows, he would be kicked out of Hyderabad!

How shameful the politics is?
Will Foul Mouthing Of Kodanda Help KCR?

The tone and tenor of Telangana Rashtra Samithi president and chief minister K Chandrasekhar Raos attack on Telangana Joint Action Committee chairman Prof M Kodandaram has triggered a big debate in the social media circles.

KCR has not only addressed Kodandaram in first person calling him vaadu and veedu, but also used a very foul language like Langa, dikkumalinodu, tokkala yatra and bandi kinda kukka.. etc, which was highly unbecoming of a person of the chief ministers stature.

People of Telangana enjoyed when KCR used aggressive words like drokulu, dopidi gallu, sannasulu, daddammalu, etc.. against Andhra rulers, but he is now in a responsible position. People watch every movement of him and every word of him and that might even boomerang on him.

This was the opinion of many people after KCRs press conference on Friday. While there is no doubt that KCR played a major role in achieving Telangana statehood through political means, but he cannot undermine the role of others who contributed to the movement through social organisations.

It was just a joint effort. But KCR is trying to project as if he was the only person who had brought Telangana and all others are subservient to him, which is not correct.

People might differ with Kodandaram, but nobody can question his integrity and commitment to Telangana. Assuming that he had joined with the Congress party as KCR has alleged, one wonders what is wrong in it. Does KCR think all Telanganites should support only him and his party?

So far, Kodandaram has not disclosed his political leanings. He even declared that he does not want to enter electoral politics, but will fight on peoples issues on behalf of JAC. If people think what he says is correct, they will follow him. If they are happy with the KCR government, they will definitely vote for him. But he cannot suppress the voice of dissent.

Does he mean all those who dont vote for the TRS are Telangana betrayers?
SURUS leverages GMs newest Hydrotec fuel cell system, autonomous capability and truck chassis components to deliver high-performance, zero-emission propulsion to minimize logistical burdens and reduce human exposure to harm. Benefits include quiet and odor-free operation, off-road mobility, field configuration, instantaneous high torque, exportable power generation, water generation and quick refueling times.

Earlier this month, GM outlined its electric path to zero emissions, and introduced SURUSthe Silent Utility Rover Universal Superstructure (SURUS)a fuel-cell-powered, four-wheel steer concept vehicle on a heavy-duty truck frame thats driven by two electric motors. ( Earlier post .) Now, GM has provided a few additional insights into the construction of and role for SURUS.





Fuel cell technology represents a key piece of General Motors zero emission strategy. It offers a solution that can scale to larger vehicles with large payload requirements and operate over longer distances. SURUS was designed to form a foundation for a family of commercial vehicle solutions that leverages a single propulsion system integrated into a common chassis.

The SURUS platform is equally well-suited for adaptation to military environments where users can take advantage of flexible energy resources, field configurability and improved logistical characteristics. GM is evaluating multiple applications for SURUS, such as:

Utility trucks

Mobile and emergency backup power generation

Flexible cargo delivery systems

Commercial freight

Light- and medium-duty trucks, improving upon the Chevrolet Colorado ZH2 that has been evaluated by the US military under guidance of the US Army Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC) and is undergoing testing on bases (earlier post) (The ZH2 is the first fuel cell vehicle to wear the GM Hydrotec badge, a familial tie to the Ecotec gasoline engines.)

Future military-specific configurations

SURUS will deliver highly mobile autonomous capability and agility in unpredictable terrain. Operating multiple vehicles in a leader-follower configuration could reduce manpower needed.

For future potential military uses, the systems inherent low heat signature and quiet operation offer benefits in environments to reduce detection and risks. TARDEC has been in discussions with GM evaluating the commercial SURUS concept as a next step of the broader collaboration to evaluate fuel cell technology for future military applications.



The Exportable Power Takeoff (EPTO) feature demonstrates how high-voltage DC from the fuel cell stack could be converted to both high- and low-voltage AC to power tools or equipment. Click to enlarge.

SURUS redefines fuel cell electric technology for both highway and off-road environments. General Motors is committed to bringing new high-performance, zero-emission systems to solve complex challenges for a variety of customers. Charlie Freese, executive director of GM Global Fuel Cell Business

The SURUS platform leverages GMs vast experience in fuel cell technology, high-voltage batteries and electric drive systems, autonomous driving and vehicle manufacturing. The platform features:

Two advanced electric drive units

Four-wheel steering

Lithium-ion battery system

Gen 2 fuel cell system

Hydrogen storage system capable of more than 400 miles of range

Advanced propulsion power electronics

GM truck chassis components

An advanced, industry-leading suspension

The SURUS commercial platform draws on GMs more than 50 years of research and development of fuel cell technology. The scalable and adaptable technology enables land, sea and air applications across commercial and military environments.

Since April 2017, the Army has been testing the commercial Chevrolet Colorado ZH2 on its US bases to determine the viability of hydrogen-powered vehicles in military mission tactical environments. The vehicle has been operating in off-road conditions to evaluate its power generation, reduced odor, acoustic and thermal signatures, high wheel torque, extended operating range and the potential to use the byproduct water.

Military testing has shown the ZH2 reduced acoustic non-detection distance by 90% compared to current military vehicle in operation. This means the ZH2 can get 10 times closer before being detected. Leaders also observed the potential advantages for stationary power generation over diesel generators, including a significant reduction in idle noise and fuel use. Testing will continue through spring 2018.

Partnerships remain an important part of GMs electrification strategy. Last year, the US Navy unveiled a GM fuel cell-powered Unmanned Undersea Vehicle (UUV) for testing purposes that leverages GM fuel cell technology common with the Colorado ZH2.

General Motors aims to solve some of the toughest transportation challenges created by natural disasters, complex logistics environments and global conflicts. The company will display its Silent Utility Rover Universal Superstructure (SURUS), a flexible fuel cell electric platform with autonomous capabilities, at the fall meeting of the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) from 9-11 October 2017. The commercially designed platform could be adapted for military use.
Oct. 6, 1939

In a speech to the Reichstag, German Chancellor Adolf Hitler spoke of his plans to reorder the ethnic layout of Europe  a plan which would entail settling the Jewish problem. History.com records the pattern: When Hitler and the Nazis came to power in 1933, they instituted a series of measures aimed at persecuting Germanys Jewish citizens. By late 1938, Jews were banned from most public places in Germany. During the war, the Nazis anti-Jewish campaigns increased in scale and ferocity. In the invasion and occupation of Poland, German troops shot thousands of Polish Jews, confined many to ghettoes where they starved to death and began sending others to death camps in various parts of Poland, where they were either killed immediately or forced into slave labor. In 1941, when Germany invaded the Soviet Union, Nazi death squads machine-gunned tens of thousands of Jews in the western regions of Soviet Russia.
GREENSBORO

Rina Sky Wolfgang paused at the stretch of the Jordan River, watching groups from all over the world get dunked backward in the water.

Christians believed Jesus was baptized there.

What was really interesting, one group was African, another group was European, Wolfgang recalled.

While members of the European group came out of the water, placing their hands in a solemn pose, the Africans came out singing and dancing, she said.

That really touched me because it shows you how we are all humans, the Hebrew teacher said of that snapshot of faith. We all interpret God in one way or another, or feel that we should behave with God in one way or another.

The Jewish woman was in Israel on her spiritual journey two years ago, when doctors gave her a 28 percent chance of surviving a rare cancer.

She was so frail back then that the Grimsley High School community where shes teaching paid for Wolfgang to return to her spiritual homeland one more time.

When she got back, she continued teaching.

And she is continuing to teach even through daily chemotherapy treatments.

She just seems happy, student Greyson Grandis said.

On this day, the joy is in the witty back-and-forth in which she admonishes a long-time student. There is an old Hebrew expression that the mouth wastes time, Wolfgang said first in Hebrew and then in English.

Its also in whispering to another student, a senior, that she would be happy to write a letter of recommendation.

And its in walking across campus  on her own.

Some days you are better than others, Wolfgang said. Each morning I say, Thank God Im here to live another day. 

Wolfgang, 65, with a slight frame and pink-tinged glasses, has a reputation outside the Grimsley community.

The Hebrew class she teaches is not offered in another public school in the country. Just seven schools in the world  including Grimsley  have students registered in the subject to take International Baccalaureate exams for which they might earn college credit. Wolfgang attended the mandatory training class for instructors while in the throes of treatment and not feeling well.

They are getting my best, Wolfgang said. If I didnt feel like I was doing the best I could, I would retire.

Wolfgang, whose father is noted civil rights activist Rabbi Harry Sky, grew up in Maine before moving to North Carolina in 2006.

She was hired at Bnai Shalom, a Jewish day school, before eventually teaching Hebrew in the mornings at Elon University and in the afternoons at Grimsley. Soon she was at Grimsley full-time, teaching Hebrew and history.

Many of those Bnai Shalom kids signed up to take her course at Grimsley.

It was on a return trip to Maine in 2011, for a celebration for her father, that Wolfgang felt out of sorts.

Doctors found a ruptured, cancerous appendix and removed it.

Nine months later, she felt a knot beneath her belly button.

Doctors found 30 cancerous tumors there.

It was a type of cancer that cant be seen on an X-ray until it grows. A colonoscopy only detects 1 in 20 cases.

So by the time doctors made the discovery, the cancer was in a late stage with tumors that can react differently to treatment.

It is a formidable tumor, Dr. Edward Levine, the chief of oncology surgery at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, said at the time. The hospital had several ongoing studies related to Wolfgangs cancer.

Wolfgang worked through targeted chemotherapy, opting to have procedures largely during the summer.

During the school year, students scrawled inspirational messages on the smart board in her classroom, such as #prayforrina.

Wolfgangs cancer eventually went into remission, but it has come back repeatedly.

In October 2014, parent Jenny Kaiser approached people about setting up an account through an online fundraising site and at a local Wells Fargo bank branch to get Wolfgang to Israel.

Wolfgang, like many Jews, feels an emotional attachment to Israel, which is considered home. The Wailing Wall, where people tuck notes to God in the cracks and crevices, is one of the holiest sites in the Middle East.

She had not touched the ground there since she was a college student.

Students sold pink Rina wrist bands for a few dollars.

Former students, coworkers and others  money came in from around the globe  wrote checks large and small.

So many people wanted this to happen, Kaiser said. It wasnt if we could raise the money, I knew we could. It was, would the doctors give her the go-ahead?

Levine did.

Levine and the rest of medical team treating Wolfgang helped her think through the 10-hour trip  like suggesting she book a direct flight without a layover and making sure she got up and walked around every few hours during the flight.

Through an online search, Wolfgang also found an oncology specialist in Israel considered an expert in treating appendix cancer and made arrangements with him in case of an emergency.

Kaiser and others raised more than $13,000. They also hired a personal driver for the 10-day trip, which would lessen wait times in getting around the city while also reducing her exposure to germs on public transportation.

People sent notes and emails and letters and the amount of love was overwhelming  Rina was overwhelmed, Kaiser said. I think it was the sense that she wasnt alone, that there are people, and there is a community, and there is a network thats far greater than just oneself.

She got on the plane without a single worry.

If thats where my life is to end, thats where my life will end, she said at the time. You have to recognize what you cant control.

Touching down in Israel with her son and daughter-in-law provided an adrenaline rush, pushing them from the Dead Sea to views overlooking ancient cities and the Wailing Wall.

They snapped shots everywhere, even one of her pointing up to a storekeepers sign that shared her name.

It would be a full experience.

Taking in a sun-kissed day, they sat at an outdoor coffee house in one of the cities.

All of a sudden you hear some shots, like gunshots, Wolfgang observed.

Her guide was up and ready and had his hand on his waist. I thought, God what a shame. Here we have this beautiful day and yet underneath it there is all this tension.

Still, she left the country feeling full of life.

Back in Greensboro, she shared her experiences at the synagogue and with neighbors. She posted them to her Facebook page.

When school rolled around, she shared pictures with her students.

And she shares that experience anytime someone stops to chat.

I said to my oncologist just last week, How come Im doing so well?  He said, Well, I think its because you are doing something you love and you have a positive attitude. 

Wolfgang remains in the late stages of cancer and was told she will have to undergo chemotherapy the rest of her life. And every day can be a challenge even as she wills herself to be positive.

I know there are times she has to put her head on her desk, probably, said Barbara Barrett, whose son is in one of Wolfgangs classes. I honestly admire her so much. I think if I were her, I would want to curl up on the sofa and watch mindless TV all day.

Wolfgang has other plans.

She wont give up.

What good does it do to sit around and feel sorry for yourself? Wolfgang asked. Theres no point in it. I would much rather see the beauty in each day, get up and interact with my students and get the rest that I need.

I have a very good life.
GRAHAM  A Burlington family is suing Alamance Regional Medical Center claiming medical staff let a newborns routine problem with breastfeeding spiral into life-altering brain damage, and blaming the Cone Health takeover for creating the atmosphere where that could happen.

According to the suit filed Wednesday, Oct. 4, in Alamance County Superior Court, Frances Fraune gave birth to a 6-pound 8-ounce boy via a routine, elective cesarean section Aug. 22, 2013. There were no abnormal vital signs or issues with the fetal heart rate, and the babys Apgar score measuring respiration also was normal.

Problems, according to the suit, started when Fraune tried to breastfeed. The mother was producing little milk, and the child had trouble latching on from the beginning. A little more than 36 hours later, the baby weighed 5 pounds 14 ounces  a loss of more than 9 percent of his body weight. Breastfed newborns arent supposed to lose more than 7 percent of their body weight, according to American Academy of Pediatrics figures cited in the suit.

Early on the morning of Aug. 24, the suit reads, the babys body temperature dropped to 97.9 degrees, and at 9:57 a.m. the boy stopped breathing, his oxygen level was 72 percent, and his blood sugar was dangerously low at 11 milligrams per deciliter of blood.

After he stopped breathing two more times in the next 20 minutes, the suit reads, the baby was transferred to the neonatal intensive care unit, though, the suit alleges, not only was the doctor caring for the little boy not told he was malnourished, he was told verbally that there was good intake.

The boy was tested for sepsis or a blood infection, and diagnosed with low blood sugar and severe malnutrition only after infection was ruled out. The baby was stabilized after he was put on intravenous fluids and supplements.

The parents were told the baby was malnourished, according to the suit, but not that he was dehydrated or had dangerously low blood sugar.

A doctor recommended giving the boy an ultrasound later in the week, though, according to the suit, an MRI is the standard tool to check for brain injuries from severely low blood sugar. It appears neither test was done, or the results werent recorded and the parents allege they werent told the results.

The doctor also recommended getting the boy evaluated at the developmental clinic, but the recommendation was not passed on to the family, according to the suit, and there was no referral.

By the time the boy was 2, it was obvious he was not meeting speech and language milestones, according to the suit, and by the time he was 4, he was evaluated and found to have an IQ of 69.

It was only after the boy showed signs of delayed development that the parents saw the medical records showing the extent of his problems while he was in the hospital, the suit reads.

The family is charging ARMC with negligence for having incompetent, untrained staff who didnt follow standard nursing procedures, provide the baby with adequate food, keep accurate medical records, respond to recorded problems or tell the family what was happening or what they could do about it.

The suit even alleges staff members added false reports of good food intake to the chart, including feedings the mother says never happened.

The suit alleges that the hospital merger in spring 2013 caused a lot of the problems with the nursing staff at ARMC because, beginning in early May 2013, there were many staffing changes, and people who had been at ARMC for years were fired or pushed out, causing emotional insecurity and distraction among the medical staff, and preoccupying the hospital administration with business rather than medical matters.

The family is seeking money for current and future medical expenses, and compensation for emotional distress, pain and suffering.

Doug Allred, external communications manager for Cone Health, informed the Times-News by email that the company has not yet been served with this suit.

2017 Times-News (Burlington, N.C.)
By Panos Kotzathanasis | Published on 2017/10/07

The connection between politicians, the judiciary, the press, the police and the Capital (construction companies dealing with the redevelopment of various neighborhoods in this case), has been a major theme in Korean cinema the latest years, ranging from film likes "Whistle Blower" and "Haemoo" to "Asura: The City of Madness". "2 Doors" shows the reality of this concept in a thorough investigation of the 2009 Yongsan Tragedy.

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"2 Doors" (Festival entry) is screening at London Korean Film Festival that will be on October 26 to November 19.

The incident took place on on Jan. 20, when some 40 tenants, who had occupied a watchtower on the rooftop of a four-story building in Yongsan, central Seoul, protested against insufficient compensation for the redevelopment of the neighborhood and clashed with riot police. In the pre-dawn raid, a fire broke out. Five evictees and one policeman were killed in the blaze. What is even more appalling is that the survivor tenants were prosecuted as being accountable for the disaster, with the press, the government, the police, and the judiciary doing everything in their power to conceal evidence and portray a picture much different than the actual events.

HONG Ji-you and Kim Il-rhan thoroughly researched the incident and present a quite shocking documentary that entails interviews with a camera operator who shot the whole thing for an internet channel, the attorneys of the accused tenants and a member of the fact-finding committee, footage from the events, and some reenactment. Furthermore, the directors went a step further and found actual police reports from the members of the SWAT team that were in charge of the raid along with their court testimonies.

What comes out of all this research is that through orders from the higher-ups to end the protest as fast as possible, the SWAT team went in completely unprepared for the flammable paint thinners in the watchtower, not to mention the complete lack of knowledge of the premises. The reports are as shocking as the actual events, with members of the SWAT team (most of whom are former marines) stating that they panicked when the realized the true extent of the situation. The cover up takes a significant part of the documentary as the prosecution did not disclose some 3,000 pages of investigation records, which showed a completely different take on the events.

Eventually, the operation proved so messy that Kim Seok-ki, then chief of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency and the commissioner general-designate of the National Police Agency, resigned, although the true motives behind their orders were never disclosed.

Through this documentary, HONG Ji-you and Kim Il-rhan make a clear accusation of the then Lee Myung-bak administration. It is obvious they side with the tenants despite the fact that the policemen's side is also presented.

The sole fault of the documentary lies with its duration, since, in 101 minutes, it overextends a bit and becomes somewhat repetitious. However, the ending that shows the verdict regarding the tenants, erases all that.

"2 Doors" is a very interesting documentary, which manages to shed much light in a case that proved a major scandal, and, in the process, to make a harsh comment about all of Korean public institutions.

Review by Panos Kotzathanasis

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"2 Doors" is directed by HONG Ji-you and Kim Il-rhan.

Available on DVD from YESASIA



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By Panos Kotzathanasis | Published on 2017/10/07

Ma Dong-seok (aka Don Lee) has been moving up in the Korean cinema world for quite some time, with his role in "Train to Busan" actually shooting his career into stardom. Kang Yoon-Sung capitalizes on his fame and by presenting a number of favorite elements among the crime movies aficionados, ends up with a very entertaining film.

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"The Outlaws" (Festival entry as "Crime City") is screening at London Korean Film Festival that will be on October 26 to November 19.

The story is based on the 2004 Chinese-Korean gangster mop-up operation in Seoul's Garibong neighborhood (an area where Chinese immigrants have turned into a China Town), during which thirty-two gang members were arrested. Ma Seok-do (Ma Dong-seok) is a local detective, the second in the hierarchy of the organized crime unit in the area, and the enforcer of the team. Being a resident of the area, and by using a combination of looseness towards the head of the minor crime syndicates and violence when is needed, he keeps the local gangs and subsequently the neighborhood, under control. Everything changes though when three, ultraviolent Korean-Chinese gangsters, headed by Jang Chen (Yoon Kye-sang), appear in the area, seizing the organized crime control with their extreme methods, knifing whoever crosses their path. Seok-do and his crew are caught by surprise, due to the ruthless methods of the three, and soon the area is filled with terror.

Kang Yoon-Sung presents an impressive combination of true-story, crime, and action-thriller, with the added value that the film entails much humor, even in its most unexpected moments without losing its seriousness. In that fashion, he avoids the reef of the melodrama so frequently appearing in Korean cinema and manages to stand out from the plethora of similar productions.

Kang based the movie on Ma Dong-seok's performance as Ma Seok-do, and he delivered impressively, personifying the aforementioned aesthetics. However, and although his axis is the one that is the most obvious, there is another one that works quite well, and that is the "race" between Seok-do and Jang Chen, with the two of them being radically different in their use of violence, with the first applying it only when necessary and the second as his first choice. The fact that the two of them do not appear on screen simultaneously, almost at all before the finale, builds the final sequence quite nicely, with the fight being the most impressive scene in the film. This axis is also benefitted the most by Yoon Kye-chang's performance as Jang Chen, who presents a violent sociopath emitting danger from every pore, with gusto. The secondary roles are also quite good, with Jin Sun-kyu as the number two in the triad of the villains being impressive, in extremely violent fashion.

The cinematography of the movie functions well, with the imaging in the poor neighborhood of Garibong capturing the overcrowded essence of the area. The same applies to the editing, as the film retains a rather fast pace, that seems to benefit its script to the fullest.

"The Outlaws" is a great sample of modern Korean cinema, and a very entertaining film that highlights Kang Yoon-Sung abilities, in his debut feature.

Review by Panos Kotzathanasis

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"The Outlaws" is directed by Kang Yoon-Sung and features Ma Dong-seok, Yoon Kye-sang, Jo Jae-yun and Choi Gwi-hwa.
A man is facing a firearms charge after gardai found a pistol under a bed in a west Dublin house.

Sean Smith (20) was allegedly in the house with two other men when it was searched.

The accused, of Hermitage Park, Kilcullen, is charged with possession of a 9mm firearm without a licence on May 21, 2015.

Blanchardstown District Court heard the DPP had directed summary trial in the district court.

Warrant

Sgt Geraldine McManigan said gardai searched a house under warrant at Lealand Close, Clondalkin, and a firearm was recovered.

Judge David McHugh refused jurisdiction to deal with the charge and adjourned the case to allow the DPP to consider her position.

Mr Smith has yet to indicate a plea.
A Dublin man is to be sentenced next week after he admitted claiming his dead mother's pension for more than 16 years.

Father-of-two Brian Bobey (64) pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to fraudulently taking a total of 158,726 in benefits from the State between 1997 and 2013.

The court heard yesterday that Bobey began claiming his mother's pension after her death in May 1997 and stopped in October 2013, following an investigation by the Department of Social Welfare.

Warrant

None of the money has yet been repaid by Bobey, who still lives at his late parents' house in Walkinstown Parade, Dublin, with his partner and daughter.

Garda Niall Gaynor told Garrett McCormack, prosecuting, that Bobey cooperated fully when a warrant was obtained to search his house, telling gardai he knew it was "in relation to my mam's pension".

He met gardai by appointment and identified himself on CCTV footage entering a post office to collect the pension.

Gda Gaynor agreed with counsel for the State that there was no evidence to suggest Bobey had been living "any sort of high life" from falsely claiming the pension.

The court heard Bobey himself was in receipt of disability benefit since he lost the sight in his right eye due to a tumour.

Bobey has 15 previous convictions, the most recent of which was in 2002 for drink driving.

The rest of the convictions are historic and relatively minor, dating back to 1971, when he was charged with loitering at the age of 18.

Blaise O'Carroll, for Bobey, said his client had cared for both of his parents, who suffered ill-health in their final years, his father having died two years before his mother.

Bobey's daughter Grace said her father had always been there for her.

"He's a great dad, I can't fault him, to be honest," said Ms Bobey.

The court heard Bobey was born in the council house where he is still a tenant, paying rent of 35 a week.

His income from social welfare is 195 a week, which Judge Patricia Ryan said she couldn't impose upon as it was decided based on need.

Mr O'Carroll said his client had been one of six children, whose father was a gambler and a violent alcoholic.

Judge Ryan adjourned the case for sentencing next Friday.
The Court of Appeal has cleared the way for the construction of a 200,000sq ft extension to The Square Shopping Centre in Tallaght.

Dunnes Stores, one of its anchor tenants, had appealed a High Court decision in favour of the owners and operators of the shopping centre, who want to build the extension.

Yesterday, a three-judge appeal court upheld the High Court finding allowing the extension to be built.

The case was adjourned to allow Dunnes to consider whether it wants to bring a further appeal to the Supreme Court on a point of public importance and for the issue of costs.

The Square was Ireland's first large shopping centre, and Dunnes had argued that the 30m extension plan, on what is currently the northern car park, would inconvenience its shoppers, who would have to travel farther to get to its store.

The Square Management, which manages and operates the freehold of the centre's units, along with National Asset Property Management, which owns lands used for car parking at the centre, and Indego, the extension developers, went to court seeking declarations that Dunnes has no estate, interest or claim over the car park.

They argued the supermarket chain has no right to use the lands for anything, be it car parking or otherwise, beyond a lease it entered into in 1990.

It is also claimed that Dunnes was trying to frustrate the development.

Dunnes opposed the application.

Last March, the High Court found in favour of the Square plaintiffs.

Rights

Mr Justice Max Barrett found the lease for the centre en- titled the landlord to carry out development on the northern car park and Dunnes did not enjoy an irrevocable right for its customers to park there.

Dunnes appealed the dec-ision, and the plaintiffs also lodged a cross-appeal.

In her judgment on behalf of the appeal court, Ms Justice Maire Whelan found that while Dunnes had certain rights confined created under a certain lease, a licence created under that lease did not create any proprietary rights in favour of the retailer.
A man charged with the murder of David 'Daithi' Douglas outside a Dublin shop will go on trial next year.

Frederick 'Freddie' Thompson is accused of murdering Douglas.

Earlier this week, he launched a foul-mouthed tir-ade in court, shouting "f**k off" when his bail application was refused.

Douglas was shot dead outside the shop on Bridgefoot Street, Dublin 8.

Thompson (36), of Loreto Road, Maryland, Dublin 8, and Nathan Foley (18), of Rosary Road, also Maryland, are both charged with Douglas' murder on July 1, 2016.

Custody

Foley is also charged with damaging a car at Strand Road, Dublin 4, three days later.

Mr Justice Tony Hunt, presiding, set a trial date of April 30 next year.

The court heard that the trial is expected to last two weeks.

Both men were remanded in custody.

The case was listed for mention again on December 21.

Thompson previously applied to the Special Criminal Court to have the charge dismissed, but the court refused the application as it was satisfied there was sufficient evidence to put him on trial for the offences.

When his application for bail was refused on Tuesday, he stood up and said: "F**k off, I'm not listening to this."

He walked towards the door to the holding area from where he had been brought into the courtroom.

Prison officers tried to bring him back before the judge, but he shouted "I'm not f**king going back in" and "the state of the country. You're all the same".

Two women who were in the court to support Thompson left the courtroom before the judge had finished his ruling. Thompson had sought bail in the High Court, but the State objected to the application.

At that hearing, Sgt Brendan Brogan, of Pearse Street Garda Station, told Ronan Prendergast, for the State, that he was objecting to bail because of the "seriousness" of the charge.

Sgt Brogan also told the court he believed that if the applicant was released on bail he would be a flight risk and might not face trial.

Another ground for objection, the court heard, was Sgt Brogan's fear that, if the accused was released on bail, it could result in further serious offences being committed.

Prevent

The court also heard evidence from Chief Supt Francis Clerkin, who said that his objection was based on Section 2A of the Bail Act.

This section allows a chief superintendent to give evidence that the refusal of bail is necessary to prevent the commission of a serious offence.

Mr Justice McDermott refused bail on several grounds, including that Thompson represented a flight risk.

The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) previously granted an order to have Thompson face trial at the Special Criminal Court.

The DPP can direct that an accused face trial in the non- jury court if it deems "the ordinary courts are inadequate for effective administration of justice".
ABINGDON, Va.  The League of Women Voters of Washington County is hosting Meet the Candidates Nights during which some candidates running for either the Board of Supervisors or the School Board will answer questions from voters.

The events allow voters to learn about the candidates views and opinions prior to Election Day, Nov. 7.

On Monday, an event will be held for District B, Jefferson candidates at Greendale Elementary School. Supervisor Joel Harte, who is running against incumbent Randy Pennington, is expected to appear, along with School Board candidates J. Sanders Henderson and incumbent Daniel Lee Ruble.

On Tuesday, Oct. 17, District E, Taylor candidates will meet at Rhea Valley Elementary School. Board of Supervisors candidate Mike Rush, who is running against incumbent James E. Baker, is expected to attend. The School Board candidate is incumbent Thomas Musick.

All events begin at 7 p.m. The League of Women Voters hosts a voter education website, VOTE411/, which provides profiles of the candidates.
BRISTOL, Va.  A suspicious pressure cooker, ultimately determined to be empty, resulted in bomb technicians and law enforcement cordoning off the Walmart parking lot at Interstate 81s Exit 7 on Friday.

Washington County, Virginia, dispatch received a call at 5:23 p.m. about an object that was sitting on top of a trash can in the Walmart parking lot near Bristol. A concerned citizen had spotted the item and alerted authorities.

We responded and found a pressure cooker that was sitting on top of a trash can, Washington County Sheriff Fred Newman said. It was an object that was obviously of some concern to us.

Washington County contacted a bomb technician from the Virginia State Police in Wytheville to assist. The Bristol Virginia Police Department, the Bristol Tennessee Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were also called to the scene.

Authorities cordoned off much of Walmarts parking lot, blocking the lots entrance roads and alerting surrounding businesses. Many customers were kept inside Walmart and nearby restaurants as law enforcement dealt with the suspicious item.

After observing the pressure cooker from a distance, police used a state-of-the-art robot from the Virginia State Police to approach the object. The robot was able to pick up the item and carry it to an empty area of the parking lot on the side of the Walmart building.

Officers could not at first determine whether the pressure cooker was an explosive device, but after X-raying, they discovered that the pressure cooker was empty.

We were able to utilize some various techniques with the State Police robot, and we were able to disassemble the item, and it basically proved to be nothing, Newman said. Again, its one of those things where you have to use caution in that respect.

Newman said this was only the second time in his career that hes used the State Police robot, a valuable piece of equipment for bomb detection and disassembly that can perform delicate tasks without endangering officers.

After determining the pressure cooker was empty, the officers cleared the scene.

Police also checked Walmarts surveillance camera footage to find out who left the pressure cooker on the trash can, but the sun made it difficult to see the person, authorities said.

Were glad in all honesty that it did turn out to be nothing, Newman said. Were fairly confident that the individual that did set it up there most likely could not have gotten it in the trash can, and just sat it on top of the trash can to be disposed of.

A number of Walmart customers remained inside the store until the all-clear was given about 10:30 p.m.

We did not allow people to get their vehicles for obvious reasons  especially those that were parked near the object, Newman said.

One customer, who declined to be named, said he was bored as he waited to leave the store. He was also disappointed the ordeal took five hours and asked why local law enforcement did not have the proper resources in Bristol.
President Yoon Suk-yeol will hold his first summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Bali on Tuesday, his office said, with North Korea certain to dominate the talks amid concer...
Bristol Virginias school system is one of a number of divisions receiving grants to upgrade security equipment.

It has been awarded $100,000, according to an announcement from Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe on Friday.

We are very excited to receive this grant, said School Superintendent Keith Perrigan. Due to significant budget reductions over the last nine years, we have had to postpone some much-needed maintenance on the intercom system at Virginia High School.

SW Va. school divisions awarded security upgrade grants:  Bristol: $100,000 for Virginia High;  Buchanan County: $28,805 for Council High, Hurley Elementary/Middle, Hurley High, Riverview Elementary/Middle and Twin Valley High;  Dickenson County: $12,858 for Clintwood Elementary, Ervinton Elementary, Ridgeview High School and Ridgeview Middle School;  Lee County: $100,000 for Dryden Elementary, Elk Knob Elementary, Elydale Elementary, Flatwoods Elementary, Jonesville Middle, Lee County Career and Technical Center, Pennington Middle, Rose Hill Elementary, St. Charles Elementary and Thomas Walker High;  Russell County: $73,814 for Belfast Elk Garden Elementary, Castlewood Elementary, Castlewood High, Copper Creek Elementary, Honaker Elementary, Honaker High, Lebanon Elementary, Lebanon High, Lebanon Primary, Russell County Vocational and Swords Creek Elementary;  Scott County: $23,755 for Gate City High and Gate City Middle;  Smyth County: $80,000 for Chilhowie Elementary, Chilhowie Middle, Marion Middle, Northwood Middle and Rich Valley Elementary;  Tazewell County: $99,624 for Abbs Valley-Boissevain Elementary, Dudley Primary, Raven Elementary and Springville Elementary;  Washington County: $59,720 for Abingdon High, Damascus Middle, E.B. Stanley Middle, Glade Spring Middle, High Point Elementary, Holston High, John S. Battle High, Patrick Henry High, Valley Institute Elementary and Wallace Middle;  Wise County: $63,334 for L.F. Addington Middle and Wise County Career-Technical Center.

The grant will enable the district to replace the intercom system throughout the school, which Perrigan said will instant communication with every student and staff member in the 625,000-square-foot building.

Without this grant, we would have been unable to afford a new intercom system and the old system was unable to be repaired due to the age of the components, Perrigan said.

The superintendent added that the grant announcement brings the divisions total grant revenue for the school year to more than half-a-million dollars.

We are working hard to provide a safe environment to offer a top-notch education without requesting additional funding from the city of Bristol, Perrigan said.

School Board Vice Chairman Tyrone Foster added, Great news. Congrats to everyone who put their hands in this accomplishment. Its all about safety for our kids.

Bristols award was part of $6 million in school security equipment grants from the state to protect students and teachers in 104 school divisions and three regional educational programs. The grants will pay for video monitoring systems, metal detectors, classroom locks, electronic-access controls, visitor-identification systems, direct communications links between schools and law enforcement agencies, and other security upgrades in 545 schools and other instructional facilities.

School safety is imperative to providing an environment where students can learn, grow and thrive, McAuliffe said in a news release. These grants will provide our school administrators with the resources they need to keep their students and teachers safe so they can concentrate on providing a world class education and preparing for success in the new Virginia economy.

The program was established by the 2013 General Assembly in the aftermath of the December 14, 2012 mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut.

The largest grant a school division may receive under the program is $100,000.

Washington County Public Schools also received $59,720. Other grant recipients in Southwest Virginia were Buchanan, Dickenson, Lee, Russell, Scott, Smyth, Tazewell and Wise counties.
A string of threats of violence in the past week at the Ridgeview school campus in Dickenson County resulted in evacuations of students and employees and charges against two students.

During school hours on Sept. 29, a student made a threat to shoot up the school, according to Dickenson County Sheriffs Office Chief Deputy Scott Stanley. The student was immediately secured in a safe place with school officials. The school administration suspended the student and contacted law enforcement.

Stanley said the student was charged by police on Oct. 3 in connection with the threat and was taken to Highlands Detention Center.

The chief deputy said the incident had no relation to events that followed later in the day on Sept. 29.

School officials reacted in a timely and appropriate way and there was no immediate threat to students for officials to respond with an evacuation of the school, Stanley said.

At 7 p.m. on Sept. 29, school officials were notified of writing on a bathroom wall indirectly threatening a bomb, Stanley said. The wording consisted of a racial slur, and then Bomb Monday and Third block.

Law enforcement was notified and an investigation started. On Sunday, Oct. 1, the Sheriffs Office and Virginia State Police cleared the campus of all threats. Stanley said officers and explosive/bomb K-9 units searched the campus. Police notified school officials that the campus was safe for students to return to school on Monday, Oct. 2. Deputies were then placed on the campus throughout the night until school resource officers and officials arrived Monday morning.

Then, on Monday at 11:15 a.m., school officials discovered a threat to bomb the school written on a graphing calculator used by students, Stanley said. Law enforcement was once again contacted and the Ridgeview campus was evacuated without incident.

Students were dismissed and law enforcement cleared the campus. Police determined it was safe for students to return the next day with additional security measures in place, Stanley said.

And then on Friday, at 10:20 a.m., school officials observed a handwritten note with a bomb threat. Students were evacuated and dismissed early without incident. By 4:15 p.m. Friday, the Ridgeview campus was cleared and secured by law enforcement.

Stanley said one middle school student was charged during the investigation Friday with threatening to bomb a school facility.

The chief deputy said he wanted to eliminate any confusion that the number of incidents may have caused this past week and said some had no relation at all.

We have done the best to our ability to first make sure students are safe, second to find the responsible individuals and then to inform our citizens of the facts surrounding the incidents as fast as the investigation allows, Stanley said.

He added that Dickenson County Public Schools and the Sheriffs Office did everything possible to maintain safety of all students and staff.

We express, as we have before, these incidents are few and far between and do not represent our community and citizens, Stanley said.

He added, We encourage parents and guardians to discuss with their children the outcomes and consequences for these types of incidents.
BRISTOL, Va.  Its always a good idea to double-check that youre texting the right person before hitting the send button on your cell phone.

Its a lesson one Virginia woman learned the hard way after sending text messages about a drug deal to a police officer, according to the Bristol Virginia Police Department.

Chanin Miller, 46, of Chesapeake, was arrested last week after she texted the officer in an attempt to sell Suboxone sublingual strips, police said. The texts that Officer Steven Lowe received came through on his department-issued cell phone from an unknown number and were simply signed  babycakes.

[Miller] stated that she would be traveling from Virginia Beach to Kingsport the next day, according to Capt. Maynard Ratcliff with the Bristol Virginia Police Department. On Sept. 30, the conversation continued and babycakes agreed to meet Lowe in Bristol to complete the deal.

Later, in a text, Miller told Lowe she was staying at the Budget Inn off Interstate 81s Exit 5 and would meet him at Walmart on Lee Highway in Bristol, Virginia, according to police.

When she left her room and headed to Walmart, detectives with the Vice/Narcotics Unit performed a traffic stop on her vehicle, police said. She was found to be in possession of 58 Suboxone strips, with a current street value of $1,160.

Suboxone is a narcotic used to treat pain and addiction to pain relievers.

Miller admitted she thought she was texting a friend the entire time, Ratcliff said.

She was charged with possession of a Schedule III controlled substance with the intent to distribute and later released on $2,000 bail.

Ratcliff said an officer receiving text messages isnt something that happens too often.

I dont recall [any other incidents], Ratcliff said. The only thing close is when people get caught up in prostitution stings and come from elsewhere to arrange meetings.
ABINGDON, Va.  Due to security concerns, Washington County voters will go back to filling in circles to choose their candidates rather than using touch-screen devices during the November election.

Washington is one of the seven counties in Southwest Virginia that is switching to paper ballot voting machines, according to Derek Lyall, director of elections and general registrar. The county is purchasing 22 new voting machines that will cost around $200,000.

The important thing is we will now have a paper ballot to use for fallback in case the elections need to be reviewed at some point or if theres a recount of the election, Lyall said. The paper ballot provides a backup to ensure the security of the election.

Election Day is Nov. 7. This year, voters will choose a governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general and fill House of Delegates seats. There are also local races. Absentee voting began Sept. 22.

In 2016, the Virginia General Assembly passed legislation requiring that all localities retire their touch screen machines before July 1, 2020, Lyall said.

He added that some voters may think they are moving backward technologically, but the goal is to have a paper trail.

In July, DefCon, an annual hack-a-thon, was held in Las Vegas and several voting machines were reviewed to determine if they could be hacked. Several machines used in Virginia, including those in Washington County, were deemed hackable.

As a result of the conference, the Virginia State Board of Elections voted to decertify the touch-screen machines.

The hacking conference prompted us to take a closer look into the machines used in Virginia, Virginia Department of Elections Commissioner Edgardo Cortes said. It was important for the board to act quickly and not have that equipment [the touch screen machines] for the November election.

The state board worked with the Virginia Information Technologies Agency to do an initial review of the machines.

The overall issue is if something goes wrong theres no way to recover it, with the touch screen machines, Cortes said. With this equipment, theres a potential for a vote to be lost and then it cant be recovered.

The paper ballot machines are really the only way to go back to the votes, independent of the machine, he said.

The transition is a big step for the boards confidence in the election process, Cortes said.

Before the hacking conference, Lyall had been looking at voting machine vendors for nearly two years.

We were able to make an educated decision about which would be the best machine for us to use going forward, in response to the State Board of Elections decision, Lyall said.

Washington County Board of Supervisors Chairman Randy Pennington said during the Sept. 12 board meeting that hes amazed the State Board of Elections made the change so close to the election.

I want all machines to be certified and working, but to me, I just dont think it was something we should be changing at this time, Pennington said after the meeting. We had plans to change the machines in 2020.

For the past two budget cycles, Lyall advised the Board of Supervisors of the approaching deadline and the need to purchase the machines. Due to budget constraints, the supervisors have been unable to provide the money needed, Lyall said.

From the Board of Supervisors perspective, Lyall said: I think their concern is just the timing of making the purchase  to my understanding they would prefer to make a large expenditure like this in a more deliberate manner.

The chosen vendor deferred payment for the 22 machines until July 1, 2018, the start of the next fiscal year, according to Lyall.

Bristol, Virginia, transitioned to paper ballot voting machines before the November 2014 election.

We were starting to have issues with our touch-screen machines, said Penny Limburg, Bristols general registrar and director of elections. The machines were 10 years old at that time  it [became] difficult to push on the machine to cast a ballot.

Bristol, Virginia, is leasing the 13 machines for $13,000 over a six-year period.

People in Bristol did like the touch machines because they were so easy and quick, Limburg said.

Wise County Director of Elections and General Registrar Allison Robbins said that the transition to paper ballot machines is going well, as a number of voters have already come into her office to vote absentee.

I havent heard any complaints, Robbins said.

Wise County purchased 15 paper ballot machines for approximately $165,000.

In Tazewell County, some voters feel the transition is a step backwards, according to Brian Earls, the county director of elections.

The only negative comments have been before the voters actually vote on them, Earls said. Once they vote on them, theyll see how simple it is.

Tazewell County purchased 26 scanners and 26 machines for approximately $260,000.

Lyall stressed the importance of voters completely filling in the circle, not making an x or check mark, so it can be read by the machine.

Washington County election officials are undergoing training throughout October so they are familiar with the new machines prior to Election Day, Lyall said. There are approximately 150 election officials across the county.

I feel like we will be ready to go for Election Day, Lyall said.
Adding Las Vegas to the growing list of shootings and massacres in the U.S. follows with the expected pattern of reinvigorated gun control debate, boosts in gun sales and blame-shifting. But theres a chance to change this course away from ideology and toward community.

Over 50 people who attended the Route 91 Harvest Festival on Sunday will return to their homes and families around the country, but not as they (or anyone) expected. As the most deadly mass shooting in recent history, the Las Vegas massacre epitomizes what has made 2017 one of the most grievous years weve seen, from political turmoil to back-to-back natural disasters.

And though what we propose next will not negate the impact, its an act toward civility thats been seemingly superseded in the name of politics. Its deplorable that some companies can typically expect a profit after a massacre  and thats why gun and ammo companies and any organization collecting fundraising for or against gun reform should donate either profit or charity to victims and their families.

Its unfortunate that the occurrence of mass shootings like this is frequent enough to constitute another pattern: Stocks in gun companies typically climb after shootings of this scale. Gun manufacturers started seeing gains in stock after Las Vegas as early as Monday morning, with Olin, the company that owns Winchester, benefitting the most with a 6.63-percent jump to reach an all-time high.

Accompanying the stock rises is a similar escalation in demands for accountability. Most notable was Hillary Clintons tweets Monday morning, which identified the NRA as a group we can and must  stand up to.

Though the organization supported the exploration of additional regulations of bump stocks Thursday (used in the shooting to turn semi-automatic weapons into automatic ones), it cant be held directly responsible for those deaths. However, its vocal opposition to more rigorous gun control laws makes them not only an easy target for venting frustration but also necessarily part of this conversation. And whether the NRA will begin a fundraising campaign for gun rights (much like it did days after the Aurora, Colorado, shooting in 2012 or like pro-gun reform groups have already done since Sunday) remains to be seen.

But before the tragedy becomes too muddied with political finger-pointing and callouts, taking a moment to ache with the wounded and lost and rebuild them and their families opens opportunities for all parties to act humanely. Donating excess profits (on behalf of gun companies) or fundraising proceeds (on behalf of pro- or anti-gun control groups) is a move in that direction.

Its not a move implying responsibility but one conveying sympathy. It recognizes that some groups benefit from tragedies without overt exploitation. It demonstrates a sense of unity worthy of imitation and one desperately needed in times like this. Perhaps most attractive to gun rights advocates, it excludes the gun control debate carefully; for gun control advocates, it distributes help without blame and before more is known about the shootings motives.

Using that move to diffuse the immediate tension also establishes the potential for conducive discussion. Rather than jumping to conclusions or agenda-driven action, focusing on those mourning paves a path of post-traumatic conversation that is less partisan, more human and likely to be more collaborative.

Even if that generosity or neutralized discussion never materializes, we can still act accordingly. Before you, the reader, decide to purchase a new or another gun in response to the massacre, recall the choice of people over things. Until gun companies and other organizations admit the blood money either pocketed or solicited after this tragedy, they dont deserve a dime from you.
NEWTON  The Catawba County League of Republican Women will meet Tuesday, Oct. 17, at the Catawba Country Club. Lunch buffet starts at 11:30 a.m., and the meeting starts at noon.

The guest speaker for the meeting will be Judge Clifton Smith, who will provide updates on the current issues in the court system. Contact Jean Pitts at 828-294-3089 for information.

The organization is continuing to collect personal hygiene items for homeless veterans. It is also collecting baby items and school supplies for military families. Canned goods will be delivered to local food banks.
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For years now, Hrithik Roshan has kept mum on the entire debacle with Kangana Ranaut but he has decided it is finally time to speak his mind. The actor, after making a long, intimate post on Facebook that shared his side of the story, has now given a television interview to make things cleared for his fans.

The interview, taken by Republic TVs Arnab Goswami, will air the conversation on Saturday. The channel has also released two short promos from the interview on the website. You can watch them here and here.

Host Arnab Goswami asked what made Hrithik come out and talk about the issue?

#HrithikSpeaksToArnab | Which question do you think will nail the whole controversy? Let us know and tune in at 8 pm on Saturday. pic.twitter.com/IJAFMnqUS5  Republic (@republic) October 6, 2017

Ive just had enough, I need to say what I want to say. Enough of I dont know what word to choose, I cannot describe it, but it has... I realise that I have been pretending because I have to live up to this star.. thing of mine that Ive got to look on for it, Ive got to be cool and be okay and not give any attention to something that is not important.

After a while, I realized that I was pretending. It was affecting me. It was affecting my sense of community, it was affecting my sense of well being, and I said now I am pretending... Thats not being hero, thats not strength, its fake. I had to do something about this. Its about time, Hrithik said.

#HrithikSpeaksToArnab | Which question do you think will nail the whole controversy? Let us know and tune in at 8 pm today! pic.twitter.com/URibAEfjaC  Republic (@republic) October 7, 2017

The Hrithik-Kangana controversy broke out last year when the Queen actor hinted at the Krrish star being her ex-boyfriend. She said in an interview that she fails to understand why exes do silly things to get your attention.

The actor lodged a legal complaint against Hrithik for misusing the confidential emails and photographs of the time when they were together.

Hrithik later filed a complaint with the cyber crime cell, claiming an imposter had been emailing Kangana from a bogus email ID, pretending to be him.

The mud-slinging has continued, with Kangana and her sister Rangoli accusing Hrithik, who has only spoken out now.

I was also very very afraid. I have been afraid that my words would be misconstrued. If I come across as strong, they might turn me as aggressive, if I might show some emotion, they might turn me as weak, if I may sound vulnerable, theyll say Oh, maybe he is looking for sympathy and the list goes on.

It has been very confusing, it has been a dilemma in my head, but you know if I am walking down the street and a person abuses me, the dignified stronger thing to do is to keep walking.

He doesnt affect my life but if that person starts hurtling stones into my home and affects the well-being of me and my family, then that silence is no longer strength, that silence then becomes weakness.

It has been four years, I think I have had enough.

Hrithik also says there were times he wanted to say my truth, but people stopped me.

I was afraid and now I am not going to be afraid of that (coming to terms with my own vulnerabilities). I am going to allow my mind and my heart to say what it wants to say and allow the pieces to fall where they may.

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Film director and writer Kundan Shah died at his residence on Saturday morning after suffering a cardiac arrest. He was 69.

Kundan Shah directed films like Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa, Kya Kehna, and Dil Hai Tumhara. Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, which was his directorial debut, won him the prestigious National Film Award.

Shah introduced Indian cinema and television to satirical comedy. He directed the Doordarshan comedy series Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi in 1984, which was well received.

Other popular TV series directed by Shah included Nukkad and Wagle Ki Duniya which was based on cartoonist, RK Laxmans character. His last film P se PM Tak was released in 2014.

The industry paid tribute to the trailblazing filmmaker on social media. Here are some reactions.

A brave man Kundan Shah, who added vigour to the alternate cinema stream with movies like Jaane bhi do yaaro has left us. Adieux Kundan   Mahesh Bhatt (@MaheshNBhatt) October 7, 2017

Saddened 2 hear my favourite director Kundan Shah is no more.. i learnt a lot frm him whilst filming kabbhihaankabhina..quiet genius he was  Farah Khan (@TheFarahKhan) October 7, 2017

Good bye #kundan shah. We all @FTIIOfficial @Whistling_Woods shall remember u for your great films with us n in history indian cinema.  Subhash Ghai (@SubhashGhai1) October 7, 2017

Saddened to learn that Kundan Shah is no more. Will never forget his genuineness, his cinematic knowledge & his unique sense of humour. RIP  Farhan Akhtar (@FarOutAkhtar) October 7, 2017

It's probably wrong but I can't help but imagine Kundan Shah n Renu Saluja meeting n arguing over a cut n maybe Ravi Baswani is mediating!  Sudhir Mishra (@IAmSudhirMishra) October 7, 2017

Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron and Kabhi Haan Kabhi Na were truly ahead the times. Thank you for the great cinema #KundanShah sir. #RIP  Ayushmann Khurrana (@ayushmannk) October 7, 2017

RIP Kundan Shah.... a cult filmmaker ...a solid story teller.....  Karan Johar (@karanjohar) October 7, 2017

Thank you Kundan Shah - you filled our growing up years with satire, quirkiness, slapstick, realism, & a hope - 'Hum honge kaamyaab.'   (@varungrover) October 7, 2017

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The outrage following the murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh in Bengaluru last month found an echo at the Khushwant Singh Literary Festival in Kasauli on Saturday.

Journalists and authors, including panelists, expressed concern over the threat to freedom of expression in a digital age when even an anecdote could trigger a hate campaign on social media. Trolling and threats to journalist Barkha Dutt or author Rana Ayyub and student activist Gurmehar Kaur were cited.

TV journalist and author Rajdeep Sardesai said, The (Lankesh) episode has stirred a dormant volcano. She wrote in Kannada and English and was visible on TV. The state cant stay silent any longer.

His wife and journalist, Sagarika Ghose, who complained to Delhi Police recently on getting threats on Facebook, said, It is disturbing. We are agitated. We need to petition the government about a law. There is one in Maharashtra and we need to have such laws in other states. We are in the process of doing something on these lines so that we get legal and financial aid.

News anchor Nidhi Razdan said it wasnt true to say that Lankesh got attention, while others didnt. The Press Club of India and other journalists have come together during such instances. However, we are not doing enough. Things are changing now. There is realisation to stand up in unity against intimidation, she said.

She said there is a need for fixing accountability and ensuring closure in such cases.

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Let me start with a confession: I am truly, deeply, madly in love with the sea  the salty breeze, the shimmering sand and the clear blue waters make me go weak in the knees every single time. And the Seychelles islands in the Indian Ocean, those tiny dots on the Atlas, had always intrigued me. So when a friend suggested a vacation at an exclusive 10-villa private island resort on the northeast shores of Mahe, it was difficult to resist the temptation.

It took me just a glimpse of their website to be taken by its comforting home away from home vibe. It had every luxury that you might think of available within its gates, and opened to an unspoilt, serene and secluded beach. It seemed as if it had been custom-made for me!

Thats because I have always dreamed of spending the last days of my life away from the din of the city at a quaint resort on some gorgeous island amid a tranquil ocean. And the JA Enchanted Island Resort was right out of that dream. I knew it was time to tick one item off my bucket list, and without any ado, I got my tickets booked.

Life to the lees

Sonakshi Sinha poses on a private yacht on her day out snorkelling with her private island resort in the background (Colston Julian)

Life is short and I want to live it to the fullest. I am in a very demanding profession and although I love my job, I think it is necessary to take some time out for myself every now and then. I am very particular about this me time. And I love to travel. I think it is the best way to de-stress. So in between projects, or maybe when I am feeling saturated with work, I just switch off and fly out to some remote corner of the world to recharge my batteries.

Ideally, I do a beach holiday. I love to sprawl on the sand under a mellow sun, watching the waves. I can do that for days. But whenever I am near the ocean I mostly find myself running right into it. I am a water baby. I had learnt to swim at a very young age, probably even before I could walk properly, and today I am so much at home in the sea that at times I feel Ill grow fins and a tail and transform into a mermaid! You had me at hello!

Sonakshi felt that the JA resort, owned by an Indian family, had a very homely vibe (Colston Julian)

This was my maiden trip to this mostly uninhabited set of islands in the Indian Ocean, off East Africa. Although I had seen lots of pictures of this dreamy paradise and drooled over them for years, nothing prepared me for the experience. The very first glimpse of the archipelago from the flight got me under its spell. It seemed as if the earth was wearing blue chiffon sparsely studded with tin emeralds. It was breathtakingly beautiful!

At the resort, a warm welcome awaited us. It is owned by an Indian family, the Shahs, and had that home vibe that the images on their website had promised. And the owners went out of their way to ensure that. Right from what kind of food we wanted, to our need for privacy, everything was taken care of. It was like a home away from home and exactly what I needed at that point.

Me Time

Apart from the stunning beaches, Sonakshi enjoyed the green of the islands (Colston Julian)

For the next few days, my villa became my favourite spot in the whole wide world. It seemed as if someone had planted it right into the middle of a postcard version of a tropical paradise. It was surrounded by beautiful white powdery beaches hemmed by tranquil turquoise water teeming with marine life punctuated with coral reefs  I couldnt have asked for anything more. The first thing I did on getting there was to get a photo of me standing in front of the ocean overlooking the villa. It was also my first post on Instagram from the Seychelles.

Usually the days were very relaxed  my only agenda was to wake up and get my scuba gear and explore different diving spots. We had our own infinity pool and it opened out into the ocean. So I could go snorkelling whenever I felt like it, and I did feel like it quite often! Also, I was carrying my underwater camera. So I managed to capture some amazing photos of the reefs and the marine life. I also took some scuba diving shots.

Sonakshi tames her hair as it flies in the ocean breeze (Colston Julian)

I am a very private person and have very few close friends. I am glad I had them to share this trip with me  we went diving, snorkelling, on boat rides, and soaked in the golden sunshine while gazing at the blue sipping masala chai  good company always makes a trip better.

From HT Brunch, October 8, 2017

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As I sit here writing from the city of Barcelona in Spain, helicopters are buzzing in the sky. Every night around 10 pm thousands of people in this city, and in neighbouring cities, bang pots and pans outside their windows to register their anger at the government. The streets are lined up with police vans.

Some people have compared this situation to me to the Indian freedom movement against the British Raj. No, Im not joking about this. I sent them a link to the Wikipedia page for the Bengal famine and asked if two million people had been deliberately starved here too. They changed the subject.

But actually there are some similarities. The political leaders here have learnt from Mahatma Gandhis tactics quite well.

Let me briefly explain what is going on. Barcelona is the capital of the state of Catalonia, the richest region in Spain. A significant proportion of Catalans have always wanted their state to be an independent country, claiming their distinct culture, language and history, along with a list of grievances against the Centre, justified separation.

But two big problems stood in their way. Independent courts had ruled the move for separation was illegal as the constitution forbade it. The law needs to be changed first. Second, support for independence wasnt that high. A poll of public opinion a few weeks ago found it at around 40%. Half the people here wanted to remain a part of Spain.

The movement for separation (or independence, depending on where you sit) hit upon a cunning plan. To provoke the national government they called for a vote to settle the issue. The central government, led by an incompetent prime minister, fell straight into the trap.

The separatists adopted a Gandhian approach: There would be no violence of any kind. They wanted to do this peacefully, if not legally. The PM, in a bid not to look weak and ineffective as he did most of the time, sent in heavy-handed police to stop the vote from taking place. Disaster ensued.

On the day of the vote, Sunday October 1, videos and pictures of grandmothers being brutally beaten by national police were shared all over Facebook, Twitter and Whatsapp. Anyone could see police officers spraying gas into the faces of people standing peacefully at polling stations.

The backlash to police brutality was swift. On Tuesday, hundreds of thousands of people across the state gathered to protest. One popular banner read: Im not pro-independence but I cannot stay at home while they hit my people. The separatist movement had checkmated the prime minister.

Instead of talking about the legality of the vote, the debate is about police brutality. International opinion is also largely on the Catalan side. Who isnt moved by the sight of grandmothers being beaten by the police?

A showdown is imminent and Spain is facing its biggest political crisis in decades. The Catalonian leaders are in a hurry to declare independence before people start asking how it would all work.

They have a good reason to hurry. Most Catalans who didnt want independence boycotted the referendum because they thought it was illegal. Now theyre being rapidly pushed towards separation without being asked.

People are so frequently consumed in politics by what is directly ahead that they miss the bigger picture. The standoff in Catalonia isnt a victory but a tragedy for its people because it will drive a sharp knife right through society. It will divide them for decades to come. It will split families and relationships. It will make people bitter.

The lesson Catalonia can take from Indias struggle isnt just one from Mahatma Gandhi but from what happened afterwards. Partition showed how easy it is to turn neighbours into enemies. It showed how that divide can turn ugly and violent.

Look to the UK if you want a more recent example. The referendum to take it out of the EU sharply divided the country and now dominates the debate above all else. Theres even a joke going around that perhaps India can advise on partitioning the UK.

Once you poison a society with hate and suspicion, turning neighbour against neighbour, it can take decades for the wound to heal. Sometimes longer. As Mahatma Gandhi found out to his cost, once hatred is unleashed even noble intentions cannot shield you from the poison.

Sunny Hundal is a writer and lecturer on digital journalism based in London

The views expressed are personal

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Dehradun: Over two weeks after controversial tweets made from an account in the name of former chief minister BC Khanduri created flutter in Uttarakhand politics, the real culprit behind the episode is yet to be traced. The police has written to the microblogging site Twitter for sharing the account details of the person who had purportedly posted the tweets in the veteran BJP leaders name who is a Member of Parliament (MP).

On September 23, an unverified account @MG_BCKhanduri posing as that of the Lok Sabha MPs had posted a series of contentious tweets in Hindi, which appeared to claim the senior leaders disenchantment with the saffron party. As people interpreted it as coming from Khanduri, the tweets soon cooked up a political storm in the hill state.

Khanduri, however, denied having a Twitter account and a police complaint was filed by his daughter and sitting MLA from Yamkeshwar, Ritu Khanduri Bhushan at Nehru Colony police station in Dehradun the next day. The tweets were made to malign my fathers image, said Bhushan in her complaint. A case was registered against the unknown culprit on September 24 under Section 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code and the Information Technology Act.

Based on the complaint, we had written to the Twitter head office in Delhi to seek details of the account holder and are hoping to further proceed with the investigation as soon as we receive the response. A reminder letter has also been sent to them, said Kamlesh Sharma from the Nehru Colony police station.

The ruling BJP, meanwhile, has asked it leaders to ensure that they had social media accounts that are active. We have asked all MLAs, key functionaries and other leaders or party workers who do not have social media accounts till date to create ones immediately. They have also been asked to activate any dormant accounts and update them regularly, said BJP state president Ajay Bhatt, adding that directions were being issued down to the district level leaders.

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Senior officials of Delhi Development Authority (DDA) on Friday rushed to demolish a road made of debris that had reappeared on the Yamuna within a month.

The move came a day after Hindustan Times reported that the path had reappeared again under the Delhi Metro bridge between Yamuna Bank and Indraprastha.

Our team rushed to the spot after the report was published. The road will be demolished completely, said Udai Pratap Singh, DDA, vice chairman

The DDA had earlier demolished the road that was choking the river after Hindustan Times first reported about it on August 31.

Ecologists and environment activists, however, accused authorities of lax monitoring.

A team of seven DDA officials are now monitoring the site. The road is being razed using excavators and the debris is being taken away in lorries and trucks. The road that cuts through the river connecting its banks on either side is such that officials say it would take days to dismantle it completely.

Since the road has reappeared in a very short period of time, we will beef up vigilance in the area. It will take us three days to demolish the entire stretch, said Sompal (who goes by his first name), executive engineer (eastern division II).

When officials were first razing the road last month, they had stumbled upon a large ditch on the river island from where they suspected sand was being mined illegally. The road was being used to transport sand from the island to the river banks.

It is evident that the road has been rebuilt by dumping fresh debris. It is a brazen violation of the National Green Tribunals directions, said Manoj Misra of Yamuna Jiye Abhiyaan, a group campaigning to save the Yamuna, one of the filthiest rivers in India.

The road will choke the rivers natural flow, which can turn into an environmental disaster.

The river would start depositing silt on its bed upstream and become shallow. It would then flood the banks, ecologist CR Babu said.

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The Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR) said that during their inspection of a south Delhi school, where a six-year old was allegedly raped on Wednesday, they found security lapses that should have raised red flags earlier, even as the school principal maintained that no sexual assault had happened with the child at the school.

The capital had been rocked by headlines about an alleged rape of a Class 1 student in the bathroom of a private south Delhi school on Wednesday. Police had arrested the 22-year-old suspect, who was part of the schools housekeeping staff, for allegedly sexually assaulting the girl in the school toilet. The staffer has denied the charges and said he was helping the girl as a female attendant was not present at the time.

The school principal, however, maintained that no sexual assault had taken place. The girl had gone to the washroom, and for a split second the lady attendant had moved away. So when the child called for help, a male attendant rushed to her aid. The child relayed this story to her mother, and also while speaking at the good touch, bad touch awareness programme in the school, so she (the mother) panicked, said the principal, adding that the school had CCTV footage to back up their claims.

The principal claimed that the mother had urged her not to report the incident. When asked why the school had approached the police, the principal said, The mother refused to give us in writing that she was convinced her child was safe, and said she needed to wait for her husband, who had been busy, to return and submit it. What if the parents would have come tomorrow and asked us why we did not take any action? In any case, the male attendant was wrong to enter the girls washroom. Even if no female was present, he should have called for one and waited.

The girls father, however, refuted the principals claims. If nothing had happened, then why would I be running from pillar to post? There is physical proof that this happened. Moreover, my daughter has told me that the incident happened, he said.

Following the alleged crime, multiple government agencies, including the DCPCR, Directorate of Education (DoE) have initiated enquiries to probe if the school had lapsed on any necessary safety measures. A magisterial probe is also underway, as per the directions of the Delhi government.

The Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) has also issued notices to the school asking them to submit a report on what happened by October 10.

DCPCR members, Jyoti Duhan Rathee and Ranjana Prasad, visited the school along with a consultant on Friday and have prepared reports that Rathee said they would be sharing with the DoE soon.

According to Rathee, there were a few security lapses at the school, including the lack of sufficient staff and attendants at washrooms, and the presence of male attendants in the younger students area.

Rathee also said that the victims teacher had claimed that there had been no discernible behavioural or emotional change in the student when she had returned from the washroom.

Two officials from the DoE had also visited the school, and the DCPCR would also seek reports from them. Depending on the reports, we may have to take action. We may even reconsider the recognition offered to the school. Any assault on children will not be tolerated, ignored or forgiven, said Rathee.

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The newly-elected members of the Delhi Congress unanimously adopted a resolution on Saturday urging Rahul Gandhi to take over as the partys president. Gandhi is currently the Congress vice-president. There have been reports that he could soon take over the charge of the party.

Recently, Rajasthan Congress chief Sachin Pilot said Gandhi may take over as Congress president after Diwali and the time was ripe for him to lead from the front.

In a meeting held at state unit headquarters on Saturday, 280 delegates of Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC) passed a resolution seeking Gandhis elevation to the party chief.

Former prime minister Manmohan Singh also attended the meeting as a delegate from the New Delhi Assembly constituency. The Congress is currently conducting organisational polls, including for the post of president.

The Election Commission has set a December deadline for the Congress to conclude the exercise. The All India Congress Committee, however, plans to complete the process by the end of this month.

The DPCC members also passed another resolution authorizing the AICC president and the vice-president to nominate the president of the Delhi unit.

Speaking on the occasion, Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken said the election of former Prime Minister Singh as a PCC delegate was a matter of pride for the local unit.

AICC general secretary Janardhan Dwivedi, Delhi Congress in-charge P C Chacko, Delhi Pradesh returning officer (PRO) Ulhas Patil and APRO Manoj Chouhan also participated in the meeting with several senior leaders.

A total 280 delegates have been elected by block-level party workers across the 70 assembly segments in Delhi.
A 60-year-old womans foot came under a moving bus after she fell from it in central Delhis Daryaganj area. The police said the woman had been allegedly asked by the conductor allegedly get down from the bus even as the vehicle was moving.

The womans foot was badly injured in the accident on that occurred on Thursday. She was rushed to a hospital by the bus driver where doctors amputated her foot, the police said.

A case has been registered against the driver and conductor on the basis of the womans complaint. The matter is being probed, the police said.

The victim, a resident of Seelampur, after meeting a relative admitted at LNJP Hospital was waiting at Delhi Gate for a bus to return home, they said.

The police said the woman was allegedly irked after not finding a bus for Seelampur and boarded a low-floor bus.

However, the conductor reportedly told her the bus would not go to Seelampur, they said.

The woman, in her complaint, alleged that she was asked to get down from the moving bus and the conductor did not even ask the driver to stop the vehicle. While getting down from the bus, she fell and the rear wheel of the vehicle ran over her foot, the police has said.
Union housing and urban affairs minister Hardeep Singh Puri has said the Delhi government will need to pay Rs 3,000 crore annually for five years if it wants to stop the increase in Delhi metro fares next week, setting up a confrontation with the Aam Aadmi Party-run administration.

The Delhi Metro, used by over 30 lakh people every day in the national capital region that includes parts of Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, is set to implement its second fare revision in eight years on Tuesday, a decision chief minister Arvind Kejriwal has called anti-people.

Puris position was expressed in a written response to Kejriwal on Friday. The Union minister said his administration was not authorised to stop the fare hike but could consider a suspension if the Delhi government pitches in with funds.

In case the State Government agrees to provide grants-in-aid of nearly Rs 3,000 crore per annum to DMRC, then another FFC may be constituted, which may also examine the financial viability of DMRC, Puri wrote, referring to the fare fixation committee, a panel that suggested the hike which is now in contention.

Sources in the Delhi government said the CM was yet to receive Puris response. But from what we have heard so far, it looks like minister Puri is saying DMRC accumulated losses over the years and now people of Delhi should compensate for it, said an official in Kejriwals administration, requesting anonymity.

Kejriwals administration and the federal government have often locked horns on several issues. The turf war between the two is also expected to play out in the Supreme Court next week when it hears a petition by the AAP government challenging the powers of the Lieutenant Governor, an authority that functions on the recommendations of the Centre. On the metro fares issue, his party has threatened to launch a protest.

The Delhi Metros minimum fare was hiked from Rs 8 to Rs 10, and the maximum from Rs 30 to Rs 50 in May this year. If the fares are increased on October 10, those travelling more than two kilometres will need to pay Rs 5-10 more.

The tariff is based on the recommendations of a fare fixation committee, a panel that has members from the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation and the Union and state governments that are 50:50 partners.

The FFCs are temporary in nature and are set up by the Centre only when a metro rail corporation requests a fare hike.

The Union urban affairs minister said his department did not have the authority to suspend the hike. Your suggestion that this Ministry direct that the fare increase be kept on hold overlooks the fact the central government does not have any such authority. Tampering with the recommendations of FFC is legally untenable. Also, the company will be starved of finances resulting in the deterioration of the quality of services which it stands for, Puri has said in his letter.

Puri has further added that if the fares are not increased as per the recommendations of the FFC, the total grants in aid that the DMRC would require in the next 5 years starting from 2017-18 till 2021-22 would be Rs 3,040 crore, Rs 3,616 crore, Rs 3,318 crore, Rs 3,150 crore and Rs 2,980 crore respectively. DMRC needs this money to repay the Japanese International Cooperation Agency loans, depreciation for replacements etc.

Kejriwal had on October 2 called for an independent audit of the DMRC when he also asked for the fare revision to be put on hold till the exercise is completed. Kejriwal said private power distribution companies in the capital had earlier shown fake losses to justify a tariff hike.

The DMRC has been dealing with depleting savings and increasing operating costs, which has left it with little room for maintenance spends. In the next five years, the metro operator needs Rs 16,104 crore to repay its loan liabilities to Japan International Cooperation Agency and meet its operational expenses.

Delhi Metro were last revised in 2009, when minimum ticket prices were increased from Rs 6 to Rs 8 and the maximum from Rs 22 to Rs 30.

The DMRC has been requesting a fare increase since 2009, but hasnt been able to do so as the Centre failed to set up a fare panel. Since 2009, electricity costs have gone up by over 90%, accounting for almost 30% of DMRCs total operating costs.

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Most old-time residents of Shahdara know the Jindal Oil Mills, located next to the GT Road, as a local landmark. Though the mills stopped producing oil around four decades ago, the name continues to be displayed outside the yellow building.

Locals would often marvel at the number of cars, including high-end luxury cars, parked inside and outside the house that sprawls over 5,000 square feet and is surrounded by roads on all four sides.

Four women in the house and a security guard were found stabbed to death inside the sprawling house on Saturday morning.

This family was the first to construct a house in Shahdara. They drove around in an expensive car at a time when there were very few cars in Delhi. A lot of properties alongside GT Road in Shahdara belong to the family, said Naresh Prakash, a local trader.

But every local businessman and resident Hindustan Times spoke to on Saturday said that outsiders could hardly ever step into the huge haveli that housed 40 members of the extended Jindal family.

The family never had a dispute with anyone in the neighbourhood. Their youngsters are also friendly. But they ensured that locals barely got to enter the sprawling house, said Shoaib Qureshi, a garments trader in the area.

On Saturday, as speculations made rounds that a property dispute could have caused the murders, the family stood united against the allegation.

We have never been involved in any property dispute. We have lived happily as a large joint family and together celebrate each members birthday in our courtyard. We have never made enemies and are not embroiled in any police or court cases, said Rakesh Jindal, nephew of Urmila Jindal, the 82-year-old woman who was found dead along with her three daughters and a security guard.

The family members said that they always believed that staying together in a big, joint family would ensure security. We are reputed for our unity. Had any of us seen the killer, we would have taken care of him/her right there, said a relative, who wished to be identified as a family member.

Urmila lost her husband, Ram Krishan, a few years ago. Krishan ji had six brothers. Four of them are no more. One is settled in America and another stays here with us, said Rakesh. Besides Urmilas family, the family of Krishans six nephews have been living in the house.

Urmila lived with her three daughters  Sangeeta, Nupur and Anjali. Sangeeta lost her husband a few years ago, while the two others were unmarried. Nupur and Anjali were looking after their mother who was bed-ridden, said a relative, who again refused to be identified.

The family vehemently refuted claims that Nupur and Anjali suffered from mental health issues. Urmila had lost her only son at the age of four, around four decades ago. He had fallen from the window of a house in Mussoorie, said Vijender Sharma, a neighbour who sometimes interacted with the family.

Urmilas only surviving relative is her fourth daughter, Abha, who is married to a doctor. The couple live with their two children in South Extension.

Urmilas main source of income was the rent she got from the familys common properties and local businesses. According to Dependra Pathak, Delhi Police spokesperson, Urmila was planning to sell her share in the property. We are probing if this decision had anything to do with the murders, Pathak told Hindustan Times over phone.
One calls himself the father of MNREGA, the other a one-man army railing against the system, while yet another has been shooting off letters against corruption to ministers and bureaucrats for over a decade.

Jantar Mantar, the countrys resistance square, has them all, and more  army veterans demanding One Rank One Pension, farmers from Tamil Nadu clad in green loincloths raging against the state and followers of at least two controversial self-styled godmen, currently behind bars.

Here, some do stand out for their eccentricities and outlandish ideas, but a stroll down the road that connects Sansad Marg and Ashoka Road in the heart of the national capital reveals that not all the causes are frivolous.

A day after the National Green Tribunal banned all protests and dharnas in the area on grounds of pollution, the protest hotspot appeared to be going about business as usual, but a sense of uncertainty, anger and agony was all too palpable  uncertainty on the future of their demonstrations, anger against the unfair NGT order, agony over the establishment not willing to lend them an ear.

Ramlila Maidan does not even have a tree. Here at least we get some shade. Its not that we are treated very well here. Officials from the corporation routinely take our blankets and other things away, said Sunil Gore, a farmer from Madhya Pradesh who has been on a dharna since July 3 demanding a fair Minimum Support Price for crops.

The farmers from Tamil Nadu, who have been camping in New Delhi for nearly three months, said they may move the court against the decision of the NGT.

The farmers from Tamil Nadu, who have been camping in New Delhi for nearly three months, said they may move the court against the decision of the NGT. (Reuters File Photo)

The leader of the OROP movement Major General Satbir Singh (Retd) slammed the order as unfair, saying it amounted to throttling free speech.

You have shade, water, food facilities, urinals here. There are three hospitals over there (at Ramlila). Do they want that place to be utilised like that? We are beseeching the conscience of the government. It is a surprising decision. It is patently unfair, Singh said.

The shopkeepers in the area appeared divided on the issue. While some rejoiced at the prospect of some semblance of order, others lamented that they were staring at losses and possible closure.

See, it may appear that we do brisk business whenever there are protests but on the contrary we suffer losses. The police puts up barricades and restrict movements in the area which does not really help. And the protesters from near and far prefer to eat at the nearby Gurdwara rather than shelling out money, said a shopkeeper, who has been doing business in the Central Delhi neighbourhood since 1992.

But Vishnu, who runs a mini grocery store of sorts, disagreed. His business, along with that of three others adjoining his shop, depends entirely on protesters, he said.

Ankit, a water vendor, believes opening up the street to public transport will help. If buses start running and passenger shelters are put up, there will be an uptick in sales, he said.

Jantar Mantar, named after a nearby astronomical observatory built by Maharajah Sawaii Jai Singh II of Jaipur, emerged as the protest square after the government banned demonstrations at the Boat Club area near Rajpath in the late 80s.

The proximity to seats of power like the Parliament, North Block, South Block and a number of ministries, and good connectivity from all parts of the city added to the sites popularity.

Meanwhile, there has been no communication from the authorities, the police or the New Delhi Municipal Council regarding the ban, said Shyamlal Bharti, who left his family behind in Uttar Pradeshs Pratapgarh to get official acknowledgment of the fact that he conceptualised MNREGA.

MNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act) is a demand-driven wage employment programme.

Protest veterans like Machindranath Suryawanshi, locally known as the Juta Mar Baba for his strangely-named Akhil Bharatiya Juta Mar Andolan, and Jaswant Singh from Uttarakhands Pithoragarh dont seem particularly bothered.

Suryawanshi, who hails from Maharashtras Latur, says his movement is against the all-pervasive corruption. In his spare time, he doubles up as a writer of letters or petitions for others who flock to him for help.

Singh, who claims to have served the Uttarakhand Police at some point, says his one man struggle is to get justice for two youths of an indigenous tribe of the hill state who were jailed wrongfully in 2005.

Idhar, hum zameen mai sote hai, aasman ko orke, hume kis baat ka dar ya pareshaani. (Here we sleep on the ground, embracing the sky, what will we be worried or scared about).
Delhi Universitys Hindu College recently welcomed freshers with a rather shamelessly gendered and misogynistic poster. A sign on campus read, Hindu mein maal aur maal dono milta hai. The Hindustani word maal literally translates to goods, but is often used colloquially to refer to drugs and as a derogatory way to describe women.

The poster grabbed attention when Pinjra Tod posted the photo on their Facebook page on October 4, sent in by a student. A student sent the derogatory poster to out group, and we then put it out on our page, one of the admins of the page told Indian Express.

Facebook users called the banner disgusting, sad, patriarchal, perverted and shameful.

Pinjra Tod: Break the Hostel Locks is a student group that advocates for equal rights and non-discriminatory accommodation for female students across Delhi.

The student run organisation said the aim behind sharing the photo was to bring in focus the many ways in which patriarchy reinforces itself everyday on campuses. We may be studying in a university, we maybe sitting in classes together, but women are to be primarily seen as sexual objects of exchange amongst men, read the Facebook post.

A day after the poster received online backlash, the Hindu College Parliament issued a statement on its official Facebook page condemning the incident. Brijesh Tiwari, Hindu College Prime Minister, said the Parliament would do its best to nip all such practices in the bud and ensure that the student-driven crusade against misogyny never weakens.

We at the Parliament consider it our utmost endeavour to arrive at a stage of gender equality, withering of misogynist practices and tendencies and an overall climate of equal opportunities for all genders. We recognise how such phrases and their usage become an impediment in trying to achieve all of the above, wrote Tiwari.

Tiwari said that the everyday misogyny that leads to such phrases being used for women is deeply entrenched and works in insidiuos ways. We will work to do everything in our mandate to ensure that these phrases are rendered out of fashion and unprincipled for anybody to use.

This is not the first time Hindu College, one of Delhi Universitys celebrated institutions, has found itself in the news for the rampant sexism that operates within its walls. The colleges annual Valentines Day tradition Virgin Tree Puja saw students decorating the tree with balloons, condoms and posters of the actress considered the hottest that year. The tree was eventually taken down by the authorities during the construction of a new block on college grounds in 2016.
Haryana CM Manohar Lal will have a busy schedule in Gurgaon over the next two days. On Sunday, the CM is scheduled to hold a Janta Durbar (public meeting), chair a grievance committee meeting and also review the ongoing development works in the city.

On Monday, Khattar is scheduled to meet industrialists in Gurgaons Udyog Vihar and also interact with prominent persons to discuss development and infrastructure growth.

Later, he will also visit MDI Gurgaon and Sultanpur National park before leaving for Chandigarh.

According to sources in the Gurgaon administration, Khattar will arrive in the city on Saturday and is likely to hold a meeting with local BJP leaders and party workers in the evening. He will be staying at the PWD guest house in the Civil Lines area.

On the next day, Khattar will chair a meeting of district public relations and grievances committee at John Hall in Civil Lines.

At 11.30 am, Khattar will chair the Janta Durbar during which he will directly hear the grievances of complainants. They will be able to register their complaints on the spot from 9.30am onwards, the district administration has said. However, a meeting of the CM with public representatives, district level workers, and district officers has been cancelled and this part of the itinerary is likely to be rescheduled, sources said.

After attending all scheduled events, Khattar will return to New Delhi on Sunday, only to return to the city on Monday morning. At 9am, the CM is scheduled to hold a meeting with industrialists in Udyog Vihar where he will listen to the concerns and grievances of the manufacturers.

Later at 11.30pm, he will hold a meeting with prominent people of the city during which discussions with regard to development, infrastructure projects and other related issues will be held. At 2pm, the CM will inaugurate a girls hostel at MDI, Gurgaon.

Around 3pm, the chief minister will preside over the concluding event of the Wildlife week celebration at Sultanpur National Park. He will then leave for Chandigarh in the evening.

Read I Gurgaon: CM Khattar to hold first Janta Durbar in city on Sunday at John Hall

The Gurgaon administration said that adequate arrangements have been made for the CMs visit. These include special parking space and seating arrangements at John Hall where important meetings are scheduled on Sunday. The chief minister will hear grievances and meet the representatives of industry and civil society. He will also review the infrastructure and development work in the city as instructions have been issued that all works should be completed at the earliest, said Vinay Pratap Singh, deputy commissioner, Gurgaon.

Singh also said that the performance of the officials will be rated on the basis of timely delivery of projects.

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The eight-year-old male leopard which strayed into the Maruti Suzuki plant in Manesar on Thursday was released in the Aravalli forest on Saturday.

The leopard was first spotted inside the engine manufacturing plant of the factory, prompting an evacuation and bringing production to a halt.

The medical report of the leopard was normal and at midnight the animal was released into the Aravalli forest safely. It is now back in its natural habitat, Vinod Kumar, conservator of wildlife, south Haryana, said.

A seven-member wildlife team travelled deep into the forest to release the eight-year-old male leopard.

According to the wildlife team, the leopard was not given any food before it was released into the wild. Before releasing the leopard, no food was given to him. He has been certified healthy and all its vital organs are functioning well, Kumar said.

The exact location and the time the leopard was released were not disclosed in the interest of the animals safety. After being rescued, a leopard should be released into the wild at the earliest. It is not advisable to keep it inside a small cage foe a long time, R Anand, divisional forest officer, said.

This rescue operation was important to the wildlife wing as on November 24, last year, a leopard was beaten to death by the villagers after it strayed into Mandawar village in Gurgaon. As many as 12 people were injured in the melee that followed. The two-and-half-year-old male leopard was killed even as the forest and police officials were present in the village.

Read I Leopard tranquilised in Manesar 36 hours after it strayed into Maruti plant

Wildlife experts were of opinion that locals in the region needs to sensitised about wildlife.

Aravallis have a prey population prompting frequent leopard strayings. These incidents of animals venturing into civilian areas are expected to rise, as the numbers of leopards in the region have increased over the last five years. A sustainable programme is the need of the hour to conserve wildlife, Bilal Habib, wildlife project head, Wildlife Institute of India (WII), said.

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The pollution watchdog said that it will on Monday identify road stretches that have a high level of air pollution.

The data will be compiled and the information will be shared with the Municipal Corporation Gurugram (MCG), so that the agency can initiate take measures such as sprinkling water to settle the dust on these specific stretches.

The initiative is planned as every year, when the citys air quality turns poor before and after Diwali.

At present, the Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB) has marked out MG Road, Iffco Chowk and Rajiv Chowk as highly polluted areas .

A detailed report will be submitted soon and it will cover all sectors of the city. The three stretches were found to be highly polluted because of ongoing construction work. These stretches also have witnessed large scale tree felling in the last few months to facilitate the construction work, said JB Sharma, regional officer, HSPCB.

The initial study has pointed out that key commercial areas such as Sadar Bazar and Udyog Vihar are also highly polluted.

Also, the construction along the Southern Peripheral Road (SPR) and Northern Peripheral Road (NPR) is contributing to the poor air quality in the city.

Apart from the construction dust, these important stretches have a high level of air pollutants as they get a large number of vehicles every day.

According to the Centre for Science and Environment data, approximately 3.5 lakh vehicles ply on the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway every day, contributing to the growing level of pollutants in the air.

The carbon monoxide level, over the last few days, has been recorded more than five times higher than the prescribed limit of 4 mg/m. This is mainly due to emissions from vehicles that are trapped in the atmosphere as winter is approaching, said Shakti Singh, environmental engineer, HSPCB.

It was observed that major air pollutants in Gurgaon include carbon monoxide (CO), hydrocarbons (HC), particulate matter (PM), nitrogen oxides (NOx) and sulphur dioxide (SO2).

Water sprinkling will start once the air pollutants increase. We will follow the environment pollution control and prevention authoritys (EPCAs) graded response action plan when the Air Quality Index (AQI) falls to poor, Singh said.

Read I Gurgaons air marked good, but data on major pollutants not available for a week

The air quality index is an indicator of the pollution and it keeps tracks of three pollutants  NO2, PM10 and PM2.5. The index indicates air quality as good for values between 0-100, moderate for values 101-200 and poor for values between 201-300.

The index for individual pollutants at a monitoring location is calculated as per its 24-hour average concentration value (eight-hour cycle in case of CO and ozone) and health breakpoint concentration range.

All pollutants cannot be monitored at all locations. Overall AQI is calculated only if data of on a minimum of three pollutants is available.

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The Great Indian Desert is gradually spreading towards the east. And the reason is simple.

The Aravallis range of mountains, the last barrier between the expanding desert and the north Indian bread basket for ages, is gradually withering.

A study by the Haryana government in June showed there are at least 12 breaches (gaps) in the Aravallis, extending from the Magra hills in Ajmer district of Rajasthan to Khetri-Madhogarh hills in Jhunjhunu district and the northern most hillocks in Mahendragarh district of Haryana.

These vulnerable areas are biologically rich and support unique elements of flora and fauna.

Ruthless deforestation and degeneration of natural pastures on the Aravallis and erratic weather patterns have started taking a heavy toll on this ancient landform. Today, the Aravallis have become less effective and are not being able to perform their ecological functions to the fullest  primarily acting as an effective barrier between the desert and the fertile alluvial plains, said Narpat Singh Rathore, former head of the geography department, ML Sukhadia University, Udaipur, Rajasthan.

So as the green cover shrinks, these gaps expand. This allows the desert sand to travel eastward towards eastern Rajasthan, the Indo-Gangetic plains, Haryana, Delhi and western UP.

Hindustan Times takes a look at the role the Aravallis play in arresting the desertification, whats ailing these mountain ranges and why they are not being able to perform their function.

Aravalli as green barrier

The Aravalli hills once used to act as a barrier that provide a shield against desertification. But development without a sustainable plan means the forest areas are increasingly being sacrificed.

The Aravalli forest range in Haryana is now among the most degraded in India. Most of the indigenous plant species have disappeared, said experts.

The rapid deforestation and developmental activities are destroying the unique landscape that requires immediate attention, said Vivek Kamboj, an environmentalist.

Salinity in the soil is taking a toll on the forest. It adversely affects the vegetation by reducing plant growth and render areas unsuitable for cultivation. Areas with such soil are left barren because of their non-productive nature.

During 1972-75, the 16 Aravalli districts in Haryana recorded 10,462 sq km of area under various categories of forest cover. Less than a decade in 1981-84, the forest cover reduced to 6,116 sqkm.

This was revealed by the study carried out by Rathore based on remote sensing data of the Aravalli hills.

The change analysis indicates a decrease in the green cover between 1980 and 2016. There is an urgent need to increase the cover to improve environmental conditions, said MD Sinha, former conservator of forest, south Haryana.

Water divider

The Aravallis also act as a water divide between the Indus basin in the north-west and Ganga basin in the east, covering extensive areas of the plains of north India.

The occurrence of normal rainfall in north-west India depends much on the preservation of lush green forest cover and the resultant normal evapo-transpiration process over the Aravalli hills.

Hence, any change in the Aravallis will affect eastern Rajasthan, Haryana, western UP and Delhi, experts said.

Any obstruction and disturbance in the natural set-up will lead to large-scale changes in the areas adjoining the North Indian plains and will be devastating for the environment, said the Haryana government survey in June.

Groundwater recharge zones

The Aravalli range in Haryanas Gurgaon district and Alwar district of Rajasthan were notified as an ecologically sensitive area by the NCR planning board in May 1992. The Wildlife Institute of India too released a report in June this year, reiterating that these two districts are ecologically sensitive and serve as ground water recharging zones.

A Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) report in June 2017 said aquifers in Aravallis are interconnected and any alternation in the pattern can disturb the groundwater condition of Haryana and Delhi.

Any disturbance in the Aravallis should be avoided. If water is contaminated in the hills, it will affect the entire region. Mining activities should not be allowed. The Aravallis are recharge zones, said Virender Singh Lamba, a hydrologist based in Gurgaon.

Construction activities should be restricted along the foothills because they are important recharge spots, he added.

At present, however, Gurgaon is withdrawing ground water more than three times than what is being recharged. While Faridabad extracts around 75%, in Palwal the extraction is 80% and in Mewat it is 85%.

Also, because of unregulated mining, urbanization and large-scale tree felling, the water table is falling at an alarming rate. In some areas, the depletion rate is nearly 3 metres per year.

The ground water authority had warned that once the water table reaches 200 metre below ground level, only rocks will be left, said Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director (research and advocacy), Centre for Science and Environment (CSE).

Forest cover and category of forest in Haryana

The Haryana government has been turning a blind eye to all these problems. Even though Haryana has less than 4% tree cover, the exact area under forest cover is still a mystery. The state government has still not identified forest cover despite several court orders.

In Haryana, there are three categories under forests -- forest under section 4 and 5 of the Punjab Land Preservation Act (PLPA), natural conservation zones (NCZ) and yet to be decided NCZ.

The NCZ can be defined as an area where construction beyond a limit of 0.5% is not permitted under the National Capital Regional Plan 2021 (RP-21).

Around 1 lakh hectares fall under the Aravallis in south Haryana. More than 25,000 hectares are identified as forest under sections 4 and 5 of the Punjab Land Preservation Act.

Around 62,000 hectares have been identified as NCZ, while another 12,800 hectares have been put under the yet to be decided category.

The Mangar Bani forest -- the only sacred grove in North India -- has a buffer restored up to 500 metres in radius. A provisional definition of forest area was agreed upon.

About 50% of the Aravallis in Haryana was to be protected under NCZ, which is still undecided as of now.

Where are the forests?

The state has not identified forest areas yet despite several Supreme Court judgments in 1996, 1997 and 2011, directing it to protect the Aravalli forests.

However, the master plans in South Haryana apparently claim to treat the PLPA and Aravalli areas as forests, which can be modified. It is pertinent to mention that though the area notified under section 4 and 5 of PLPA and areas under Aravalli Plantation are not forest per se, but the same have been considered as forest in terms of the orders of Supreme Court of India till the same are modified, states the Gurgaon-Manesar Urban Complex master plan-2031 as well as the Sohna Final Development Plan 2031.

Need for conservation

Officials said removal of weeds will reduce pressure on forests and the process should be started on a priority basis. Long-term ecological monitoring should be initiated in Aravalli hills. Also, as the region is witnessing desertification and diminishing water level, the government should take steps to enhance tree cover, said Chetan Agarwal, environment analyst.

Need-based environmental improvement programmes taking care of the local requirement of hill people should be evolved for the Aravalli hill region. The basic needs of the people of Aravalli region such as food, fodder, water, shelter, clothing and employment should be fully met by pre-serving and redeveloping the resource base of the hills. The reforestation, soil and water conservation, animal husbandry and hill environment restoration programmes may fulfil the basic needs of the people of this area, Rathore said.

In June this year, union environment and forest minister Dr Harsh Vardhan had said desertification can be tackled effectively and solutions are possible. He had said active participation of the local people and cooperation at all levels can achieve this aim.

The minister urged the people of Haryana and the nation to become a large force of Paryavaran Rakshaks (environment protectors) to fight the challenges posed by desertification, global warming and climate change.

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Bangalore resident Naavneet Pusppraj Reddy, 37, had no idea why her baby had stopped feeding on her right breast even after going to five gynaecologists in six months. The doctors kept telling me the milk might be drying out, that I should use a heating pad, that I should pump the milk out at regular intervals, and that my milk had turned to pus, she said.

Reddy was asked to get surgery to remove an abscess, a pocket of pus. On the operation table, the doctor suspected the lump to be cancerous and took a sample for biopsy. The test was positive.

By the time the diagnosis came, Reddys cancer had spread and it was in stage four.

More than 60% of breast cancer patients come to my clinic in advanced stages, this includes even well-educated, rich people in cities, says Dr PK Julka, senior director of Delhis Max Institute of Cancer Care, who treated Reddy. To give you a comparison, a hospital in Italy detects breast cancer when a tumour is 40mm. On average, we detect it when a tumour is 40 cm.

Dr Reetu Jain, medical oncologist at Jaslok Hospital, says that even until five years ago, a stage four breast cancer patient would rarely have more than six to eight months. Today, dependent on the patient, treatments such as anti-HER2 therapy, injectable hormone therapy give the patient four to five years.

Doctors say that early detection affords over 95% chance of survival and a high chance that the patient wont need a mastectomy  a surgical process in with the breast is removed to ensure the cancer is removed too.

Mumbai travel-industry executive Jyotsana Tanksale felt a stone-like lump in her left breast in 2014, when she was 37. A test confirmed that she had stage two cancer. She underwent surgery to remove the lump and over the next eight months, she had 16 sessions of chemotherapy and 31 rounds of radiation, which set her back Rs 10 lakhs.

But by the end of it, the cancer was completely gone. Tanksales maternal aunt had the disease too  detecting it early was her smartest move.

Is breast cancer on the rise?

Each year, an estimated 1.5 lakh new cases of breast cancer are diagnosed in India, making it the leading type of cancer among women and replacing cervical cancer. Currently, 32 in every 100,000 women get breast cancer in India.

The cancer registries show that the incidence is definitely higher in metropolitan cities, says Dr PK Julka, who heads Delhis cancer registry as the head of the department of oncology at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi. This can be attributed to the lifestyle  obesity, alcohol consumption, having children later on in life. All of it increases the risk of breast cancer.

The disease is also hitting younger and younger women. Indian women get breast cancer ten years earlier than Western women, says Dr Mandeep Singh Malhotra, head of the department of head, neck and breast oncoplasty at Fortis Flt Lt Rajan Dhall Hospital, Delhi. I even get patients who are 19 or 20 years old.

Malignant cells in pleural fluid analysis as seen with a microscope. (iStock)

The role genes play The chances of breast cancer are high in women with a family history. However, only in 5 to 10% of the breast cancer cases, the gene is thought to be inherited. Men make up only 1% of all cases of breast cancer. Inheriting the gene can cause breast or prostrate in them. If you have a family history of breast and ovarian cancer, it is a good idea to get tested for BRCA 1 and BRCA 2 gene mutation. A genetic test involves giving a blood or saliva sample that can be analysed to pick up any abnormalities in these genes. You can consider gene testing if you have a history of breast or ovarian cancer at a young age in two or more close relatives, such as your parents, siblings and children.

(With inputs from fortis healthcare)

Oestrogen ups the risk

Having children before the age of 30 can reduce the risk of breast cancer. Anything that exposes the body to excess oestrogen increases the risk of breast cancer, says Dr Malhotra. A woman is exposed to more progesterone when she is pregnant and lactating, reducing the exposure to oestrogen.

Shikha Singh, 33, is the mother of two. She was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer two years ago while she was still feeding her baby girl. Unlike Reddy, she was immediately referred to an oncologist when she told her doctor that she could feel a lump in her breast and terrible pain in her left arm, making it unbearable for her to even hold the baby.

I kept wondering why they were sending me to the oncologist. To me, it was a gynaecological issue, said Singh. It also surprised Dr Malhotra, her doctor, as she had two young children, and was not at risk.

Early menarche (beginning of menstruation) and late menopause also increase the risk of breast cancer as both expose the woman to more oestrogen.

Processing of fats and alcohol increases the oestrogen levels in the body too, which is why it is a risk factor, said Dr Malhotra.

Dr Bharat Bhosle, a medical oncologist at Bombay hospital says that smoking and drinking should be completely avoided. For those who want to drink he advises, Moderate alcohol consumption (a peg or two a week), higher fibre intake, cutting down red meat, regular exercise (brisk walking for about two hours a week) and keeping ones weight in check can help.

Check whether you have it

Doctors suggest all women above the age of 20, especially ones with a family history of breast cancer, should self-breast test regularly.

Retired assistant bank manager, Lidwin Pinto, 68, felt a small lump in her left breast in 2015. She sought a diagnosis immediately, which confirmed that she had stage two cancer. Her first task was to warn members of her family about a regular self-breast exam. Its what helped her sister, ten years younger; detect a stage 1 condition in her own breasts a month later.

The breast examination should be done using the pads of the finger and with firm pressure, done seven days before or after menstruation. Look for any lumps in the breast, whether the nipples are retracted or whether there is any discharge from either of the nipples. If there is anything suspicious, contact your doctor, recommends Dr Malhotra.

After the age of 30, a clinical breast exam is a must, and after 40, an ultrasound or an MRI helps detection too.

It is only after the age of 45 that the doctors suggest that a woman undergo a mammogram. Even then, the woman must consult the doctor first. Sometimes the breast is dense and the mammogram is not able to pick up anything, said Dr Julka.

It is only after the age of 45 that the doctors suggest that a woman undergo a mammogram. (istock )

Checking for breast cancer Doctors suggest all women above the age of 20, especially ones with a family history of breast cancer, should self-breast test regularly, seven days before or after menstruation. With your arms relaxed look for any changes in size, shape, or position, or any skin changes. Look for sores, or skin discoloration. Check your nipples for peeling, or change in their direction. Place your thumb and forefinger on the tissue surrounding the nipple and with firm pressure look for lumps. Check if the nipples are retracted or whether there is any discharge. After the age of 30, a clinical breast exam is a must, and after 40, an ultrasound or an MRI helps detection too. It is only after the age of 45 that the doctors suggest that a woman undergo a mammogram. Sometimes the breast is dense and the mammogram is not able to pick up anything.

Genetic Testing

The chances of breast cancer are high in women with a family history (two or more cases of breast, ovarian, uterine or colon cancer, in two or more generations). However, only in 5 to 10% of the breast cancer cases, the gene is thought to be inherited.

What about the men? Inheriting a gene increases the risk of breast and prostate cancer in men. But, men make up only 1% of all cases, because they lack milk-producing tissue in breasts, and have lower oestrogen levels, which affect breast cell growth.

Dr Julka says that in people who have a family history of breast and ovarian cancer, it is a good idea to get tested for BRCA 1 and BRCA 2 gene mutation. Their presence increases the risk of breast cancer from 12% in general population to 85%.

The steps after that include a preventive removal of the breasts (which reduces the risk by 95%) but it doesnt reduce the risk of ovarian cancer so women are advices to remove the ovaries too. However, these are very drastic steps and nowadays there are drugs available that can lower the risk of breast and ovarian cancer, says Dr Julka.
Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein is taking an indefinite leave of absence from the Weinstein Company.

The news comes after the New York Times accused Weinstein of decades of sexual misconduct against his female assistants, employees and actors, resulting in at least eight private settlements.

The Hollywood mogul, 65, issued a lengthy statement after the article was published, acknowledging that his behaviour with colleagues had caused a lot of pain and he is apologising for it.

According to Variety, now the board has appointed John Kiernan, of Debevoise & Plimpton LLP, to conduct an independent investigation of sex harassment allegations.

Harvey Weinstein has a history of decades worth of sexual harassment allegations against him. (REUTERS)

We strongly endorse Harvey Weinsteins already-announced decision to take an indefinite leave of absence from the Company, commencing today.

As Harvey has said, it is important for him to get professional help for the problems he has acknowledged. Next steps will depend on Harveys therapeutic progress, the outcome of the Boards independent investigation, and Harveys own personal decisions, the board said in a statement.

Actor Ashley Judd said Harvey made unwanted sexual advances at her. (AFP)

Co-chairman Bob Weinstein and COO David Glasser will run the company in Weinsteins absence.

In the board meeting Weinstein made it clear that he intends to return. The board meeting got heated, as board members pushed back and argued for a full and independent investigation.

Tim Sarnoff, deputy CEO of Technicolor has tendered his resignation, while billionaire investors Marc Lasry and Dirk Ziff have already resigned from the board.

Follow @htshowbiz for more
Kisturi Devi, 62, lives with her two daughters-in-law and nine grandchildren in Ballana village of Alwar district in Rajasthan. All three women are widowed. Since 2013, Devi has been receiving an old-age pension of Rs 500 per monthhalf the amount that would qualify her as living below the poverty line of Rs 32 per day in rural India.

Nearly 1 in 10 Indians is over 60 years old, a fact often lost amid the economic bombast of Indias demographic dividend.

Devi is among Indias 100 million elderly people, numerous enough to form one of the 15 most populous countries in the world. This number is set to grow at the fastest pace among all demographic groupswhile Indias overall population is likely to grow by 55% between 2000 and 2050, the corresponding figures for the 60+ and 80+ age groups are 326% and 700%.

Yet, as Devis case makes clear, the majority of Indias aged subsist on meagre support from the government. The family continues to be seen as the normal site for the care of the elderly, even as factors such as decreasing family size, migration of the young for work and abuse within the family make this a less than ideal situation.

Left: Kisturi Devi (centre) with three of her grandchildren and a Panchayat Extension Officer; Right: the shanty where she lives.

Many elderly people live alonethe majority of them womenand are easy targets of crime. Residential homes are not yet a viable alternative. Only the economically privileged can afford private homes, and government ones are few and far between.

This has important implications for public policy as ageing does not just affect the elderly, it affects everyone in society.

The elderly, in numbers

Roughly 9% of Indias population is aged 60 years or more, as per Census figures from 2011, as opposed to 12% globally. By 2050, the 60+ age group is expected to form 19% of Indias population.

Source: Census 2011

Kerala, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Punjab and Haryana are the top five states where the elderly comprise 10% or more of the total population, while the north-eastern states of Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Mizoram and Assam have the smallest proportion of people aged 60 years or more.

Caring for the elderly is a Directive Principle of State Policy under Article 41 of the Constitution, which states: The State shall, within the limits of its economic capacity and development, make effective provision for securing the right to work, to education and to public assistance in cases of unemployment, old age, sickness and disablement, and in other cases of undeserved want.

Meagre financial support

In Khanpatla village of Panchmahal district of of Gujarat, Ranchhodbhai, 65, and his wife Gangaben, 63, have been enrolled as beneficiaries under the state governments old-age pension scheme since the last two years. This entitles them to Rs 400 each per month, but they said they have not received a pension for nearly nine months. This delay is not new, they said, and in any case it hardly covers their bare minimum survival needs.

Gangaben and Ranchhodbhai at their home in Khanpatla, Panchmahal, Gujarat.

The Indian government has been providing social pensions under the National Social Assistance Programme since 1995. In 2007, the programme was reintroduced as the Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme (IGNOAPS) for elderly people who belong to a below-poverty-line household. The central government contributes Rs 200 per month towards pension for each person aged 60 years or above and Rs 500 per month for everyone aged 80 years and above. State governments are expected to supplement this with at least a matching sum.

The draft National Policy for Senior Citizens of 2011 recommended an amount of Rs 1,000 as monthly pension under IGNOAPS. Although the policy has not yet been finalised, some states have increased their contribution to comply with this recommendation. By and large, pensions in most states remain meagre, varying from Rs 200 in Assam and Nagaland to Rs 250 in Mizoram, Rs 400 in Bihar and Gujarat, and Rs 500 in Rajasthan and Punjab. Consequently, lakhs of elderly citizens live in penury.

Old Age Pension Amounts, By State State Monthly Pension (In Rs) Andhra Pradesh 1000 Assam 200 (60  79 years) 500 (80+) Bihar 400 / 500 (80+) Chandigarh 1000 Delhi 2000 (60 to 69) 2500 (70 and above + 60  69 belonging to SC / ST/ Minorities) Goa 2000 Gujarat 400 800 (80 + ) Haryana 1600 Himachal Pradesh 650 (60 to 79 years) 1200 (above 80 years) India (Central) 200 500 (80+) Jammu & Kashmir 1000 Jharkhand 600 700 (80 + ) Karnataka 500 (for those between 60 and 64) Kerala 1100 (minimum amount) Maharashtra 600 Mizoram 250 (60  79 years) 550 (80 + ) Nagaland 200 (60  79 years) 500 (80 + ) Odisha 300 500 (80 + ) Punjab 500 Rajasthan 500 Tamil Nadu 1000 Telangana 1000 Uttar Pradesh 300 500 (80 + ) West Bengal 1000

Source: Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chandigarh, Delhi, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal (to the elderly of the Scheduled Tribe communities)

An ongoing public interest litigation (PIL) in the Supreme Court demands a basic old-age pension of Rs 2,000 per month. This 200 rupees was fixed years ago and it has no relevance to the cost of living today, Ashwani Kumar, former Union Minister of Law and Justice, who has filed the PIL, told IndiaSpend. The idea is to give to the elderly a minimum amount of financial help that can ensure to themselves in the autumn of their lives, a life of dignity and well being.

In a survey by the socio-economic advocacy group Centre for Equity Studies, pension beneficiaries said amounts of Rs 1,600 to Rs 2,000 were adequate. A study published in the HelpAge India-Research & Development Journal in 2013 had calculated that providing a pension of Rs 2,000 to 90% of Indias elderly would cost 1.81% of the GDP; a pension of Rs 1,000 would cost less than 1% of the GDP. (The other 10% of the elderly are presumed to have job-related pensions or to be otherwise well off.)

As per the National Social Assistance Programme website, millions of the elderly receive old-age pension. This makes them an attractive vote-bank during elections, when the pension amount becomes an important issue and finds mention in several election manifestos (such as here, here and here). Yet, despite successive elections, this wooing of the elderly voter has not translated into a dignified pension amount in a majority of Indian states.

Pensions, services difficult to access

Not only are pensions small, the elderly also have to contend with ambiguous processes and unhelpful and rude staff. My life as a citizen gets affected by the lowest level in the hierarchy I deal with, Anupama Datta, director of Policy Research and Development at the non-profit HelpAge India, told IndiaSpend, adding that often sympathetic and well-meaning senior officials are unable to infuse the same attitude lower down in the system.

The residents of Gharaunda, an old-age home in Fatehpur Beri, Delhi, shared with IndiaSpend the many challenges they face when applying for a pension. Renuka, 71, who goes by her first name only, hails from Bihar. She wanted to enrol for the Delhi governments old-age pension after she moved into Gharaunda but did not have local residential proof since all her earlier documents were from her native state. When she visited a government office to apply for local identity documents, she was turned away saying she did not need an identity proof at her age.

Lack of empathy and support is evident in other ways too. Neelam Mohan, chairperson and founder-trustee of Panchvati, a private old-age home in Delhis Tughlakabad, told IndiaSpend about her ongoing and thus-far futile struggle to get the entry road to their home cleared because ambulances and water tankers could not come in.

In our general psyche, subconsciously, the elderly are not seen as part of the productive population so governmentsI am not saying they are wilfully doing itare often not mindful of their concerns, Datta of HelpAge India told IndiaSpend. Further, elderly are still considered a family responsibility. This kind of thinking affects our policy making and policy intervention.

More elderly living alone

The murder of an elderly couple who were living by themselves in Delhis Ashok Vihar in early September 2017 was widely reported. The suspect was a male nurse they had hired and who fled when the incident came to light.

A few months ago, a 22-year-old man had been convicted by a local court for the rape and murder of an 81-year-old widow who lived alone. The man had been engaged by the victim for full-time care.

Crimes against the elderly warrant special attention, and the National Crime Records Bureau has started including a separate chapter on Crime against Senior Citizens in its annual publication on Crime in India since 2014. The number of crimes has risen by 9.7% in just the two years for which data are available18,714 cases were reported under the Indian Penal Code in 2014, which increased to 20,532 in 2015.

Maharashtra reported the highest incidence of crimein absolute numbersfollowed by Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. Mapping the data reveals a higher incidence of crime against the elderly in the southern parts of the country.

Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh, meanwhile, reported the highest rate of crimearrived at by dividing the incidence of crime by 100,000 population over a given period, a more meaningful metric.

Old age makes one an easier crime target, particularly if one lives alone. According to Census 2011, 4% of Indias 240 million households consist of a single person. In half of these (48%), the person is aged 60 years or more. In Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, this figure is as high as 63% and 62%, respectively.

Source: Census 2011

Further, 73% of these single, elderly persons are women. In the southern states of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh and the union territory of Puducherry, roughly 81% of elderly, one-person households consist of women.

Living with family may not, however, necessarily be the solution, even though families have traditionally been expected to care for their elderly. Half the respondents surveyed by HelpAge India for its report on Elderly Abuse in 2014 reported having faced some form of abuse. The figure had nearly doubled from 23% respondents reporting abuse in the previous years survey. Most of those abused lived with their families, and the daughter-in-law and son emerged as the most likely to inflict abuse.

Even in a progressive state like Punjab where there has been a very strong tradition of joint families where children look after their parents, I noticed a huge neglect of the elderly, Kumar said. They were vulnerable in their own families and economically dependent on their children I came across many people who wanted to stay away from their children, particularly their sons and daughters-in-law and I realised it was a serious humanitarian issue.

If families turn abusive, or when the aged have no children to look after them, many of them have no way out, especially when poor health leaves them unable to take care of themselves and when safety is a concern.

Residential homes

Residential homes for the elderly are one option. The Draft National Policy of 2011 recommends setting up homes with assisted living facilities for abandoned senior citizens in every district and providing adequate budgetary support for the same.

An IndiaSpend analysis of the latest data on the Ministry of Social Justices website shows that the 500-odd projects (old-age homes/day care centres/respite care homes only) supported by the ministry were concentrated in 215 of Indias 700-plus districts. Several of these were marked as Discontinued or Blacklisted.

In the four financial years from 2012-13 to 2015-16, the central government released a little over Rs 47 crore to all states to support old-age homes. In some years, this amounted to Rs 400,000 per home, or Rs 33,000 a month, for homes that would cater to lodging, food and other facilities for numerous residents.

Source: Lok Sabha responses here and here

Our analysis shows that half of these funds went to just the four states of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, which together have just over a fifth (21%) of the 60+ population of the country. States with the largest elderly population, Uttar Pradesh (15%) and Maharashtra (11%), received 3% and 6%, respectively.

Whats worse, Kumar said, is that this money is not even utilised: The reason given is that requests come from state governments towards the end of the financial year and they cant be processed, and the funds lapsehow apathetic can one be?

Private homes, meanwhile, are beyond the reach of most.

Policy blind spot

The few times the Lok Sabha (the lower house of parliament) has addressed the elderly question, the discussion has been restricted to three or four talking pointsmostly an overview of IGNOAPS and the Integrated Programme for the Older Persons, under which grants are given for the running and maintenance of old-age homes, day-care centres, etc., and the funds released for these.

There has been not a single debate, Datta said, just standard answers And if youre happy with standard answers that means you are just doing a formalityit does not move you.

Any change would have to begin with recognising the severity of the problem, and finding policy solutions.

Various experts IndiaSpend spoke to highlighted the need for a decent and realistic pension to enable the elderly to live on their own terms.

While there is need for more formal and institutional care, in a country with the scale and social norms of India, formal, institutional care cannot be the norm, Datta said. Even in the west where the numbers are so small and the budgets are so big, they are also finding it unsustainable and there is this movement of ageing in place, she explained. And with our kind of numbers, our kind of systems, formal care can take in the burden only of the very few. Basically well have to find ways of informal care.

Informal community-based care, where communities of elderly people watch out for each other, even hire helpers through pooled resources, have been successful in places such as Pune.

The wider community and law enforcement agencies must look out for the safety of elderly citizens, the latest Caring for Our Elders: Early Responses India Ageing Report report of the United Nations Population Fund suggests. It adds that India needs to create a cadre of home-based care providers, and make affordable assistive devices for the elderly widely available.

Family members who look after aged persons must be given concessions on the lines of maternity benefits, including work-from-home and flexi-work options, Datta of HelpAge India added.

(Chawla is an IndiaSpend-ICFJ Associate. With field inputs from Alok Arunam in Alwar, Rajasthan, and Roshni Sadhu in Panchmahal, Gujarat.)

(Indiaspend.org is a data-driven, public-interest journalism non-profit/FactChecker.in is fact-checking initiative, scrutinising for veracity and context statements made by individuals and organisations in public life.)
The decomposed body of a 75-year-old government employee was found in his flat at Sai Maruti Residency in Rocktown area in Hyderabad, the police said late on Friday.

The death of Lakshminarayana Murthy came to light only after his wife and two daughters returned from the US two days ago.

Murthy, who lived alone in a top floor flat, is suspected to have died on August 18 after the fall. Since all the doors and windows were closed, other residents in the building did not get any foul smell.

A police officer said Murthy seemed to have stepped on a lizard and fallen down while coming out of the bath. He sustained head injuries and died on the spot.

A dead lizard was found near his feet, indicating he skidded after stepping on it.

Murthy was not answering phone calls from his wife and two daughters in the US. As he had kept the mobile phone on charging, they simply assumed he was unhappy with them.

But when there was no response even after a month, they decided to return to Hyderabad and check on him.

The flat, owned by one of Murthys daughters, had a central locking system that does not give scope to guess if someone was inside.

As there was no response from inside, the wife and daughter broke open the door to find his body in a highly decomposed state.

Originally hailing from Rajamahendravaram in Andhra Pradesh, Murthy, a retired government employee, was not known to people in the apartment. Residents thought the flat was locked from outside and that the owner lives in the US.

Murthy had turned down repeated requests by his daughters to move to the US to live with them. In July, he had sent his wife to the US but preferred to live alone in Hyderabad.
All eyes are set on the election of the new president of the Bihar pradesh Congress committee (BPCC) which is expected to happen by October 16, as per the party poll schedule released by the central office of the party.

While many party leaders are said to be lobbying for the post, sources said there was a strong possibility that the all India Congress committee (AICC) leadership - comprising president Sonia Gandhi and vice-president Rahul Gandhi, may be authorised by the party to nominate somebody for the post, as has been the party tradition.

The election of the district Congress committee presidents, who are among the voters for the BPCC chiefs election, has been deferred by the AICC election authority. As such, PCC delegates, who number around 490 and who are to be elected by October 9, may be left as the only voters in the PCC chiefs election.

Former BPCC chief Ashok Choudhary is said to be unhappy with the suspension of election of the district party presidents and alleged that his rivals in the party were doing it to deny committed leaders their due in the organisation.

He has sought to put the blame for deferrment of the DCC chiefs election on officiationg BPCC chief Kaukab Quadri . What does Quadri know about the election process when he was out of party activities for the last two and half years, Choudhary asked.

Quadri, who assumed charge last month as officiating BPCC chief, however, dismissed the claims about his bid to upset the election process. All those who did well in the membership drive would be recognised and rewarded, he said.

Acknowledging the partys tradition of nomination of leaders for different committees by the AICC top brass after getting authorised by the respective committees, Choudhary said he wanted the election of leaders in due course on the pattern of electoral reforms suggested by AICC vice president Rahul Gandhi.

Former party spokesman Harkhu Jha said Congress workers would welcome any leader nominated by the AICC chief as the next BPCC president.

A section of the state Congress leaders said that the Choudhary faction was planning to field Buxar legislator Sanjay alias Munna Tiwari or MLC Dilip Chaudhary as claimants for the BPCC chiefs post in case the election took place.

Former Union minister Akhilesh Prasad Singh, AICC media panellist Prem Chandra Mishra, MLAs Ram Dev Rai, Ashok Ram, Vijay Shankar Dubey, Kripa Shankar Pathak and former BPCC chief Anil Sharma are among those the race for the BPCC chiefs post.

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Union Minister VK Singh on Friday said the Congress had always worked to divide the nation on religious and caste lines.

The former Army chief took part in a function attended by retired officers of the Army, the Navy and the Air Force at the Welham Boys School in the city.

First it (Congress) divided the country on the basis of religion by creating Pakistan and in the post British era it fomented the politics of caste for votebank, he told reporters on the sidelines of the function.

The Congress has always worked to divide the nation. Its a fact, the minister of state for external affairs said.

Singh admitted that people were migrating from the hills of Uttarakhand in search of jobs but hoped that with a new BJP government in office, the situation will improve.

Locals are migrating from the hills as there are not enough jobs. But with a new government in office I am confident enough job opportunities will be generated to stop them from migrating in search of a livelihood, he said.

To a question on alleged Chinese incursions in Barahoti in Uttarakhands Chamoli district, the former Army chief said China comes only to its own side of the disputed area and not beyond that.

It (Barahoti) has been a disputed area between the two countries for the last 50 years. It has been agreed to keep it demilitarised and that is what is being done, Singh said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi squared off on Saturday over Indias uniform national tax regime that rolled out to teething problems three months ago which the government has moved to fix.

At a rally in Gujarat, Modi hailed the tax rate cuts of 27 items under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) announced on Friday and said the changes would boost small and medium businesses. Today, I have seen newspapers from across the country. They carry headlines that Diwali has come 15 days early, the Prime Minister said in Dwarka after inaugurating a bridge.

Hours later in Himachal Pradesh, Gandhi hit back at the government, blaming the GST rollout and Modis economic policies for unemployment. The Congress had proposed GST maximum limit at 18% but the Modi government fixed it 28%. Small and medium businesses wont be able to pay such a huge tax, he told a crowd in Mandi.

The BJP and Congress are locked in a direct fight in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, which are scheduled to go to the polls later this year.

The GST subsumed a string of state levies and taxes and stitched together a uniform national market but has faced a bumpy ride after a midnight launch on July 1, especially on account of complex monthly tax-filing processes that is said to have caused hassles to shopkeepers and small businesses.

Responding to the concerns on Friday, the federal indirect tax body, the GST council, lowered the rates on 27 items  including Khakra, unbranded namkeen, man-made yarn and unbranded ayurvedic medicine  and announced a slew of rule changes, such as quarterly filing of returns for businesses with sales of up to Rs 1.5 crore.

The changes are expected to boost exporters and help small businesses, who are key to a revival of the economy, which clocked its slowest growth rate in three years last quarter.

The Opposition, especially the Congress, has repeatedly blamed the governments handling of the GST for the economic slowdown and unemployment. In meetings in Uttar Pradeshs Amethi this week, Gandhi had repeatedly highlighted the state of the economy and even dared the Prime Minister to resign and install a Congress government if the situation didnt improve.

But in Dwarka, Modi defended his government and said he had assured of remedies in areas of management, rules and technology if the business class complained about GST.

We do not want the countrys business class to get caught in red tapism, files, bureaucracy, I will never want this, Modi said. I am thankful to the people of the country for the way they have welcomed our effort to make simple tax simpler.

The textile industry, especially retailers, had threatened not to light any lamps this Diwali, if GST slabs were not revised. The latest changes introduced in the new tax regime are likely to calm down sentiments of businessmen, who form a potent vote base for the BJP that is aiming to continue a two-decade rule in the state.
Real weapons are hardly ever a match for the weapon of criticism. Especially if the latter is not the lone gun it appears to be at first sight, but is an entire battery of cannons. This is why the story of the targetted assassinations of Karnatakas public intellectuals, Gauri Lankesh and MM Kalburgi, is also the story of the people who are stepping forward to continue their unfinished work.

The things that made both Lankesh and Kalburgi see red were the same. A former vice-chancellor of Hampi University, Kalburgi, till the time he was silenced, was researching the irrationalities in Hindu religion, the unequal caste system that exists to perpetuate the dominance of upper castes, and the need to smash them. Kalburgi was also a litterateur. He was, therefore, somebody who was invited to speak at diverse fora and had a following. He was heard. Journalist Linganna Satyampet was a Lingayat like Kalburgi. A follower of Basavanna, that unorthodox 12th-century Brahmin who preached open revolt against Hinduism and its sacred texts and practices, Satyampet was murdered in 2012; Kalburgi in 2015. Like Kalburgi and Satyampet, Lankesh, a journalist, was a Hindutva critic and had lately developed a fatal flaw.

Gauri Lankesh, a newspaper editor and outspoken critic of Hindutva right-wing forces in India was killed in September 2017 outside her home in Bengaluru. (AFP/Getty Images)

Lankesh had spoken up about JNU, she was perceived to be pro-Maoist and she backed the separate religion demand toothis may have been the last straw, says retired IAS officer SM Jamdar.

Kalburgi, on his part, had compiled 15 volumes of 12,000 pages of the work of Fa Gu Halkatti, an authority on Basavanna. It sheds new light on the religion of the Lingayats, and on who we were, says MB Patil, a prominent Lingayat minister in the Congress-led Karnataka government. Simply put, this research has been the engine that now drives the Lingayats demand to be recognised as a separate religious community. That has also meant that Lingayats like Kalburgi and Lankesh  both of them backed the separate religion demand  have placed themselves in the line of fire from two quarters: the Hindu right, which finds their separatism a threat and a challenge to its quest for political power, and certain sections of the Veerashaiva community.

The Veerashaiva-Lingayats are sociologically the same but with some differences in their beliefs and practice of religion. Basavannas was an anti-Brahminical movement, but it drew followers from all castes. Academics claim, Veerashaivas are the descendants of his upper-caste followers who, after his death, smuggled Vedic and Brahminical rituals, and worship of Hindu gods back into the faith that Basavanna had helped found.

For Lingayats, their relationship to Shiva, for example, is through the ishtalinga. The Shiva of the Lingayats is not the god that he is in the Brahminised Hindu pantheon. He is, instead, a symbol of anti-Brahminism, and the only deity they recognise. Lingayats follow no ritual in death or marriage, which Veerashaivas, in their affinity for Hinduism, do.

Lingayat rituals are different from Hindus. The ishtalinga is the only god in their prayer-rooms. At their weddings there is no worship of fire. Lingayats who follow their tradition strictly, bury their dead in a seated pose. (Arijit Sen/HT Photo)

Kalburgis research was a reminder of these differences. The prominence of Veerashaivas is at stake if the separate religion project goes through, admits some Veerashaiva community members. It would also divide the Hindu vote. Veerashaivism is Brahminical. Veerashaivism is about coming back to Hindutva, says Patil.

To understand the issue that is roiling Karnataka today, as the state shifts gears to move towards assembly elections in early 2018 (the BJP has announced BS Yeddyurappa as its chief ministerial candidate), and how its outcome may impact other neighbouring southern states with a Veerashaiva-Lingayat population, we need to know about three old men.

Spiritual heads

Three men are dear to the Veerashaiva-Lingayats and for conflicting reasons. Basavanna, born in the 12th century, was a Brahmin in the Lutheran mould calling for an end to Brahmin domination and ritualistic religion. Lingayats love him. Veerashaivas, the other unit of the community, love him too, but they love Renukacharya more. Renukacharya is said to have emerged from the tip of a shivalinga. And, most importantly, he was born 1,400 years ago, beating Basavanna by a straight 500 years in antiquity. This one-upmanship seems to have been a friendly match till the Karnataka government, on receiving petitions from the community this April to move the Centre yet again for a separate religion status, placed a ringer around the subject  should the religion be called Lingayat or Veerashaiva-Lingayat? And the questions the community had not asked itself for years, swiftly acquired a new force and meaning.

Veerashaivas are talking up hurt and saying that this will split the community. Lingayats see it as an opportunity to correct historical blunders. The latter say that Kumaramangalaswamy, the third old dear, despite being a Lingayat, founded the community organisation in 1904 and called it the Veerashaiva Mahasabha to spite his own community for not making him the leader of a mutt. More than 100 years later, Lingayats feel its not too late to claim their inheritance.

A Lingayat leader of Belgaum in northern Karnataka, Shankranna, has, in fact, been sacked, along with the entire district unit of the Veerashaiva Mahasabha, for putting forth a proposal to start a separate Lingayat Mahasabha. He says the movement will now see no let-up. We are planning huge rallies in Vijaypura (on October 19) and Bengaluru (on December 10).

MB Patil, a Lingayat, is a minister in the government of Karnataka. He is active in the campaign for a separate religion. To his right is a statuette of Akkamahadevi, a Vachana poet and follower of Basavanna. (Arijit Sen/HT Photo)

Shankaranna is not an isolated case. Lingayat separatism now has important backers. All political parties seem interested in the idea even though they are unsure whether they should stake their entire reputations on it. Those from the Congress who are active on this separate religion issue -- there are difference in nuances in their demands (see box ) -- are ministers such as MB Patil, Sharan Prakash Patil, Eshwar Khandre, SS Mallikarjun, Vinay Kulkarni, Mohan Kumari; from Janata Dal (Secular) its Basavaraj Horatti. BJPs Yeddyurappa, a former chief minister and a Lingayat himself, too had earlier signed a petition asking for a separate religion but is now silent on the issue. The decision to have him contest from a north Karnataka seat, the hub of the Lingayat demand to be recognised as a separate religion, indicates the partys recognition of this as a crucial poll issue. Will Yeddyurappa get the vote this time too?

Battle of ideas

In the 2018 assembly polls, a divided Veerashaiva-Lingayat community will confront difficult choices  should it vote for a fellow Lingayat or go with the spirit of Basavanna? The BJP with Hindutva as its political agenda runs counter to the essence of Lingayatism, hence, Basavanna. But does that mean the Congress or the JD (S) can be the party of Basavanna? That Kannadigas are now seeing the election as a battle of ideas is due to the ground laid by the work and lives of intellectuals such as Kalburgi and Lankesh.

HM Renuka Prasanna, the All India Veerashaiva Mahasabha secretary, says Kalburgis momentous work on the seers of the religion and their Vachanas  the prose-poems of Basavannas followers ranging from the weaver and the cobbler, to the town crier and the prostitute  has brought to the fore the openness, and the pragmatic and radical nature of this indigenous spiritual tradition.

Jamdar, now secretary of the Lingayat Horatta Samiti formed three months ago, explains it thus: We are not Hindus. We Lingayats have a better tradition. The Right is more rattled if you challenge it in the name of an indigenous and older religion. Its proponents cant say we came from outside. Basavanna said earn what you need, eat what you require. You could say we are the old Left. Our humanist philosophy predates Marx. Even the rationalists support Basava. Ours is actually a demand for recognition of our old religion. Vested interests are trying to diminish our stand by emphasising the separateness angle.

His religion, he says, is 900 years old, older than the time Sikhism has spent in this country. The RSS, he adds, wants a Hindu Rashtra. By propping up Veerashaivas, they feel Veerashaivas will do that job for them.

There is, however, no clean break-up of political loyalties. Shankranna, a Lingayat, is a BJP man. He, however, feels the Karnataka chief minister did great by installing Basavannas photo in all government offices next to those of Ambedkar and Gandhi, which none of the BJP CMs, Yeddyurappa or Jagadish Shettar, did. Some members of the Veerashaiva community, on the other hand, such as Mahadevappa, a teacher at Tumkur, says that while he is uncomfortable with the BJPs Hindutva project, he notes the Congresss preference for non-Veerashaiva-Lingayat chief ministers. Lokesh, a Veerashaiva social activist from Mysuru, says his personal preference is for keeping the community united, and support the demand for a separate religion. He doesnt want to talk politics.

HM Renuka Prasanna, the All India Veerashaiva Mahasabha secretary, at the organisations office in Bengaluru. (Arijit Sen/HT Photo)

The main thing

MB Patil says his campaign is neither about dividing the community nor about throwing the Veerashaivas out; its about a rational way of sharing socio-economic power. Veerashaivas joined the Lingayats instead of the other way around. Adding Veerashaiva to our identity has been a blunder. It makes us seem aligned to Hindus and weakens our case for a separate religion. Veerashaivism is part of us but it is not the main thing. The community should unite under the Lingayat banner.

Professor HS Shiva Prakash, author of the acclaimed play Mahachaitra, which draws on the historical and legendary aspects of Basavannas life, says the birth of the religion was a political act. So is the present demand for a separate religion from which socio-economic benefits are expected to flow.

Prasanna, the Mahasabha secretary, says the community should stay united and tackle more urgent worries.

The Veerashaiva-Lingayat community is listed in the states Other Backward Classes category. Prasanna says the last two Census reports show the growth rate of the communitys population has remained static at 16%. This is just not possible. It means people are not identifying themselves as Veerashaiva-Lingayats but as other OBCs who get more by way of government benefits and reservations.

In Karnataka, reservation for our community is just 5%, which we share with some other castes, and certain traditional occupational groups within Christians and Jains. The fulfilment of our separate religion demand will get us minority status like that of the Jains, Christians, Buddhists, Sikhs and Muslims. [As minority religious communities they are not entitled to reservation but some sections from these communities get reservation because they belong to certain occupationally backward groups.]

This will ensure we become eligible for other socio-economic benefits from the government, over and above the quota we already have. says Prasanna.

A few minutes later, Shiva Kumbhar (name changed, not the surname), a student, lands up at Prasannas office. His case seems to prove Prasannas point.

Shiva is a Lingayat Kumbhar. But there are non-Lingayat Kumbhars as well who constitute another backward sub-caste, which has 15% reservation earmarked for it at the state level. For that reason, Shiva has tried to pass off as a non-Lingayat Kumbhar but now approaches Prasanna for accommodation in Veerashaiva-Lingayat-only hostels by owning up as a member of the community.

The recent demand that the community be recognised as a separate minority religious denomination will, according to Prasanna, change the contours of the Veerashaiva-Lingayat community. Pointing to the framed portraits of Renukacharya and Basavanna hanging close to each other in the Mahasabhas office, he says in half-jest: We dont want Basava and Renukacharya to quarrel. This is why we always keep a picture of Hangalakumaraswamy in the middle.

As we leave Bengaluru, the irony of the situation strikes us: a people fighting for an organised religion when the man who had initiated their movement had said there was need for none. The other side of the coin: the movement to institutionalise Basavannas cult could thwart the advance of the Hindu right-wing in the south.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in his poll-bound home state of Gujarat on Saturday for a two-day visit less than a month after inaugurating the Sardar Sarovar Narmada Project.

During his whirlwind tour, Modi addressed as many as six public meetings, launching various schemes and projects at five places in three regions of the state.

After laying foundation stone for the bridge in Bet Dwarka in the afternoon, the prime minister commented on the decisions taken by GST Council on Friday evening, calling it an early Diwali for citizens.

He laid the foundation of a Rs 2,500-crore Rajkot International Airport and addressed a public rally at Chotila in Surendranagar district.

In the evening, at Gandhinagar, Modi dedicated the newly-constructed building of IIT Gandhinagar to the nation and launched the Gramin Digital Saksharta Scheme . Here is the full schedule of his visit.

Follow live updates:

6:30 pm: Modi concludes his speech.

6:29 pm: We should create a culture of innovation, which should be need-based, instead of knowledge-based, then it will be sustainable and it will be commercial viable: PM say at IIT-Gandhinagar.

6:25 pm: Digital education will enhance health and other services in the country: PM Modin

6:22 pm: Innovation is the need of the hour. To change the fate the India, the talent of the country has to be directed towards to innovation: PM Modi

He says: Our academics should not be exam driven. The focus should be innovation.

6:18 pm: No where in the world there is a forensic science university but only in Gujarat: PM Modi in Gandhinagar

6:43 pm: We dont feature in the top 500 universities in the world. Govt has thrown a challenged to educational institutions. It has decided that 10 private and public universities will be selected, if they can feature in top 10 universities in the world, they will be given all freedom and autonomy to make their own rules and function on their own. Govt is ready to invest 100 crore for the endeavour: PM Modi

6:09 pm: If it was election time and I announced to give the 400 acre land to IIT near Sabarmati, they would have criticised it as they are about bullet train these days. They would have surely criticised but it wasnt election time when I granted the land: PM Modi

6:08 pm: PM says technological innovation is key to unite the nation for New India. Want to make every village digitally literate.

6:08 pm: A Digital India guarantees transparency, effective service delivery and good governance: PM

6:03 pm: PM says few years ago, people used to quote Marxs haves and have-nots, the thought is now shrinked and is confined to some placards but we have to ensure that there is no digital divide in the country. We have to get rid of the digital divide and so the scheme has been launched among villagers.

Work is underway to spread digital literacy to every part of India, among all age groups and sections of society: PM

6:00 pm: In this march towards swaraj, digital literacy is a very important strength: PM Modi

5:58pm: The world has seen immense technological revolution in the last 50 years compared to the previous 300 years. It has become a driving force and if any country wants to progress, people of every strata in India, to link everyone to technology is necessary: PM Modi

5:55 pm: You all are IITian but I dont have the double IIs, I was been a Tea-an when I was young- a chaiwala: PM Modi .

On this day, a few years ago, I took oath as CM for the first time. Till then, I had never even been an MLA. I had decided that whatever I will do, I will do to the best of my abilities: PM

5:49 pm: PM distributes laptops to people under the PMGDSA scheme.

5:40 pm: RaviShankar Prasad says India is increasingly emerging as a big hub of mobile manufacturing .

5:34 pm: We are trying to strengthen the country digitally. PM said I want that common Indian should have the government in the hands, the government shouldnt be in Delhi. Today through digital delivery of services : Ravi Shankar Prasad.

5:27 pm: Under Narendra Modi, here two projects- at one end the high-end IIT building and the other is the effort to digitally equip 6 crore Indians in villages.

A former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi once said I send Rs 1 from Delhi, only 15 paise reach the ground but under Narendra Modi Rs 1000 is sent to people and Rs 1000 reach the people: Ravi Shankar Prasad.

5:24 pm: Javadekar says we have adopted the motto: Educate everyone and provide quality education to everyone.

5:20 pm: Prakash Javadekar says this is a young IIT, saw the vibrancy in the campus.

This is a smart campus- near the Sabarmati, environment is taken care of, electricity is saved: Javadekar

4:51 pm: PM dedicates newly constructed building of IIT Gandhinagar to the nation, launches Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan and also distributes e-tablets to health workers.

3.15pm: Modi says, Im grateful for the love you have showered on me, coming here in big numbers in this heat.

The prime minister ends his speech with chants of Bharat Mata ki jai.

3.13pm: Water has always been important for Gujarat. Now that water is widely being made available, let us use it responsibly and conserve every drop of water, says PM.

3.07pm: Sursagar Dairy will be Sukh Sagar for people of this region. How can we forget how previous Governments in Gujarat did not allow dairy sector to grow in Saurashtra. We had the opportunity to change that and promote dairies, says Modi.

3.05pm: PM says only 4% of land for the airport was taken from farmers.

3.02pm: Aviation cannot be about rich people. We have made aviation affordable and within reach of the lesser privileged. There was no aviation policy post independence. We made those policies and took responsibility to connect smallest of places by air, says Modi.

3.00pm: PM Modi says that if there is one district that stands to gain maximum from waters of the Narmada, it is Surendranagar.

2.55pm: The definition of development is changing. Earlier, a hand pump would be put and a leader would use that for multiple elections. Things have changed now. We are bringing waters of the Narmada here, for the benefit of citizens, the PM says.

2.53pm: Modi says, Who imagined in this district that an airport will come? Is this not development? Is this kind of development not needed... such development works will empower citizens.

2.51pm: The prime minister begins his speech at the public meeting

2.50pm: The PM also inaugurates the 6-laning of Ahmedabad-Rajkot highway at Chotila.

Modi dedicates a fully automatic milk processing and packaging plant and a drinking water distribution pipeline for Joravarnagar and Ratanpur area of Surendranagar.

2.47pm:

Gujarat: Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid foundation stone of green field airport at Rajkot pic.twitter.com/VeBo4ETojo  ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

2.42pm: PM Modi lays the foundation stone for Greenfield airport.

2.40pm: A film on the Civil Aviation ministrys achievements in the last 3 years is screened.

2.27pm: Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani takes the stage and welcomes PM Modi.

2.26pm: Raju says the Greenfield airport will be built on 2,534 acres of land at a cost of Rs 1,405 and will handle 2.3 million passengers.

2.22pm: Union Minister for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju felicitates the prime minister.

We are passionately working for your dream of connecting the unconnected, serving the unserved, Raju says.

2.19pm: Modi will lay the foundation stone of Greenfield airport at Rajkot.

2.13pm: A fortnight ago, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi, who toured the Saurashtra region for a three-day campaign, had paid salutations to the local deity in Chotila.

He had also begun his visit with prayers at the Dwarkadheesh temple.

2.12pm: Modi arrives in Chotila, near Rajkot. The PM will address a public meeting here shortly.

1:40pm: ANI reports PM Modi met his friend while leaving Dwarkadhish Temple.

Gujarat: Prime Minister Narendra Modi met his friend Hari Bhai while leaving from Dwarkadhish Temple in Dwarka pic.twitter.com/we5ChhyIvr  ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

12.32pm: Modi ends speech with chants of Jai Dwarkadhish.

12.31pm: The prime minister says when there is trust in a government and when policies are made with best intentions, it is natural for people to support them for the best interests of the nation.

He says, The worlds attention is being drawn to India. People are coming to invest here. All this will bring opportunities for the people of India. I see Gujarat contributing actively to the development of India and congratulate the Gujarat government.

12.30pm: Modi says, Diwali has come early for our citizens due to the decisions taken in the GST Council. We had said we will study all aspects relating to GST for 3 months, including the shortcomings. And thus, the decisions were taken with consensus at the GST council.

GST Council reduces tax rates on 27 goods: Full list of what got cheaper

12.28pm: Modi says an institute for marine security will be set up in devbhoomi of Dwarka. It will draw people and experts from all over India, he says.

12.27pm: Kandla Port is seeing unprecedented growth. This is because we devoted resources to improve the port. New lease of life was added to Alang, steps were taken for the welfare of the labourers working there. These are steps we are taking towards development, says PM.

12.25pm: Modi: Government of India is taking steps towards the empowerment of fishermen. We do not want our fishermen to live in poverty, we want to create more opportunities for them.

12.21pm: Speaking on helping fishermen in the state, Modi says, We want development of ports and port-led development. The blue economy should help further the progress of India. To make life of our fishermen better we have to empower them. The government will give them loans on less interest so they can buy bigger boats.

12.15pm: Modi says, Development of the tourism sector cannot be in isolation. If we want to draw more tourists to Gir, we should also inspire the tourist to visit other parts like Dwarka.

Building of infrastructure should enhance economic activities and add to the atmosphere of development.

When Madhavsinh Solanki ji was Chief Minister, I recall front page advertisements for the CM coming to Jamnagar to inaugurate a water tank. This is how narrow their conception of development was. We have come a long way since then and are looking at more all round and extensive progress.

12.10pm: Modi speaks at the event, This is not a bridge of bricks and stones. Its a link to history. Today I am seeing a very different mood here in Dwarka. There is tremendous enthusiasm here. I know very well that Bet Dwarka has seen a lot of difficult times. But so much has changed.

12.02pm: PM Modi lays foundation stone for two road projects four-laning of 116.24 kilometers of Porbandar-Dwarka section of NH-51 and four-laning of 93.56 km of Gadu-Porbandar section of NH-51.

11.58pm: PM Modi lays foundation stone for the bridge. It will be built at a cost of Rs 962 crore.

11.48am: Union Minister Nitin Gadkari is also present. Speaking at the event, Gadkari says, You can donate eyes, but you cannot donate vision. PM Modis vision is going to transform villages, the poor and farmers.

11.35am: Modi is at the foundation stone laying ceremony of a four-lane cable-stayed signature bridge between Okha and Bet Dwarka.

Gujarat: PM welcomed at the foundation stone laying ceremony of a bridge between Okha and Bet Dwarka; Union Min Nitin Gadkari also present. pic.twitter.com/cszsIB6AKQ  ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

10.47am: PM Modi offers prayers at Dwarkadhish Temple.

Gujarat: PM Narendra Modi offers prayers at Dwarkadhish Temple in Dwarka. pic.twitter.com/mq1cJNGl0d  ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

9.50am: PM Modi arrives in Jamnagar. He will begin the tour with prayers at the Dwarkadhish Temple in the historic Dwarka town.

Gujarat: PM Narendra Modi arrives in Jamnagar for his 2-days visit to the state pic.twitter.com/qIpKOxi3fJ  ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

With agency inputs.
The Madhya Pradesh assembly is planning a foreign trip for a group of legislators to study modern farming technologies in other countries, prompting the opposition Congress to question the timing of the junket amid an agrarian crisis in the state.

The proposed trip was discussed at a meeting of legislators from most parties recently, barely a few months after five farmers were killed in police firing in Mandsaur during an agitation demanding loan waiver and better price for their produce.

The meeting in the state assembly premises was chaired by speaker Sitasharan Sharma.

As per initial discussions, 25-30 MLAs will form the delegation which will tour two to three countries for a duration of 8 to 10 days after winter session of the assembly in December, sources said.

Some of the expenses might be borne by Indian Parliamentarian Group and the remaining by the state government. The estimated expenditure per MLA is Rs 1.5-2 lakh. An MLAs spouse can be part of the group with the expenses paid for by the legislator, the sources said.

MLAs were, however, divided on the probable destinations.

While BJP legislator Omprakash Saklecha favoured Japan, Israel and US given their advances in the agriculture sector, some of the MLAs favoured countries closer to India to save time since assembly polls are due in November 2018.

However, leader of the Opposition Ajay Singh questioned the propriety of the jaunt.

Drought is staring at 50% of Madhya Pradesh, hence such a trip is ill timed, he said.

The state government says agriculture growth rate is more than 20% since 2014-15 which has earned the state Krishi Karman award from the Centre for several years in a row. There was an additional income of Rs 53747 crore to farmers in 2016-17.

Despite the impressive statistics, lakhs of farmers in vast areas of the state are bring driven to penury and suicide due to failing crop. In some areas, a production glut has also seen prices drop sharply, leaving farmers with no money to pay off their huge debts.

As per the state governments reply in the state assembly 1,982 farmers and farm labourers committed suicide between February 2016 to mid-February 2017, one which translates to one death every six hours on an average. The government says not all deaths are agriculture related.

Former director of agriculture, GS Kaushal, also said such a trip by MLAs will not help the farmers of the state.

Indias atmosphere and conditions are quite different. We need to learn successful Indian farmers techniques and replicate it. Also, the when Swaminathan Committee report lies unimplemented what to say of any other report based on any visit to foreign countries, he added.

If agriculture growth is really impressive as claimed by the government why farmers are committing suicide, he asked.

BJP legislator Omprakash Saklecha admitted that the state was facing a crisis but defended the propose tour.

Such a tour is undertaken every five years. Its true that farmers are facing certain problems but it doesnt mean that we sit idle and stop other practices which could benefit the farmers.

Bahujan Samaj Party MLA Sheela Tyagi said when Prime Minister Narendra Modi and chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan continued foreign trips why should not MLAs go aborad in the interest of the state.

Finance minister Jayant Malaiya said even Congress legislators were represented in the meeting.

There is no final decision on the trip yet. It all depends on what the MLAs want. If all the MLAs dont want to visit abroad there should be no problem, he added.

Speaker Sitasharan Sharma said, A decision has been taken initially but a sub-committee of 5 members has been constituted to look into possible destinations, expenses etc. There will be MLAs from every party in the delegation.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Jamnagar for his two-day visit to Gujarat on Saturday.

He is expected to lay the foundation stones for several development projects, visit his birthplace Vadnagar and address public rallies during the tour.

Modis visit comes after Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi toured the state in September with a three-day road trip, criticising the government for its economic policies and promising jobs for the youth.

Here is PM Modis itinerary:

Day 1, Saturday

PM Modi will kick-start the two-day trip to Gujarat by visiting Dwarkadhish Temple, followed by laying the foundation stone for four national highways projects worth Rs 5,825 crore at Dwarka and addressing a public meeting there.

From Dwarka, he will go to Chotila in Surendranagar district where he will lay the foundation stones for a greenfield airport at Rajkot.

The PM will also dedicate a fully automatic milk processing and packaging plant and a drinking water distribution pipeline for Joravarnagar and Ratanpur area of Surendranagar, a PMO statement said.

At Gandhinagar, Modi will dedicate the newly-constructed building of IIT Gandhinagar and launch the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan (PMGDISHA).

Day 2, Sunday

PM Modi will visit his birth place Vadnagar on Sunday for the first time since becoming Prime Minister in 2014. There, he will visit the Hatkeshwar Temple and distribute e-tablets to health workers to mark the launch of ImTeCHO (Innovative mobile-phone Technology for Community Health Operations).

In the afternoon, he will reach Bharuch and lay the foundation stone for Bhadbhut Barrage to be built over Narmada River. Modi will also flag off the Antyodaya Express between Udhna (Surat, Gujarat) and Jaynagar (Bihar).

He will address a public meeting in Bharuch before returning to Delhi.
Just days after the Supreme Court questioned the legality of NIA probe in the Hadiya love jihad case, the Kerala government on Saturday told it that the investigation by the state police has not revealed any offences that warranted a probe by the federal anti- terror agency.

The investigation conducted so far by the Kerala Police has not revealed any incident relating to the commission of any scheduled offences to make a report to the Central Government under section 6 of the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008, the affidavit by the Keralas additional chief secretary, home department, said.

The case pertains to the alleged forced conversion to Islam of Akhila Ashokan, alias Hadiya, and her marriage to Shefin Jahan.

The case grabbed nationwide attention after the Kerala high court annulled the marriage in May on a petition by Hadiyas father, Ashokan, who claimed that she was forcibly converted and would be sent to war-torn Syria like the 21 missing persons from the state believed to have joined the militant organisation Islamic State.

In August the SC refused to stay the HC order and asked the NIA to probe the circumstances that led to their marriage.

However, on Tuesday, the Supreme Court bench headed by the new chief justice Deepak Misra made a virtual U-turn questioning the legality of the NIA probe. The bench also questioned the legality of girls father keeping her in his custody for last four months.

Now, the Kerala government claims that the state police had done a detailed investigation into the incident surrounding the conversion of Akhila @ Hadiya to Islam and also the antecedents of Shafi Jahan.

The affidavit adds that the Kerala police would have reported to central government if any scheduled offences found to have been committed during such investigation as per the NIA act.

Two weeks ago Shefin Jahan had filed a fresh plea questioning the NIA probe. Similarly the State Women Commission also moved the apex court seeking its permission to meet Hadiya.

The case will come up for hearing at the SC again on Monday.

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Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi, who returned to Delhi from three-day visit to his Lok Sabha constituency Amethi on Friday, addressed Vikas se Vijay Ki Aur rally in Mandi of election-bound Himachal Pradesh.

Gandhi backed Himachal Pradesh chief minister Virbhadra Singh, who has been facing cases of alleged corruption and disproportionate assets, and said Singh will be CM for the 7th term.

using which the opposition BJP aims to pin him down.

In Amethi, rahul Gandhi targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying: The BJP government has completed three-and-a-half years and has only one-and-a-half years left. The prime minister should work now for employment generation and for farmers.

Here are the highlights of Rahul Gandhis speech:

2.15pm: The Congress vice president compares the Himachal Pradesh government with Gujarats BJP regime, says Himachal witnessed more development in five years.

2.10pm: Rahul Gandhi alleges NDA governments economic policies caused unemployment. Gujarat alone has 50 lakh jobless youth.

2.08pm: The Congress had proposed GST maximum limit at 18% but the Modi government fixed it 28%. Small and medium businesses will not be able to pay such a huge tax, says Congress vice president.

2.05pm: PM Modi has hurt the economy first by demonetisation and then 5-slab Goods and Service Tax, says Rahul Gandhi.

2.03pm: The Congress vice president criticises Prime Minister Narendra Modi, says the person who doesnt listen to people has no right to lead the country.

1.58pm: Rahul Gandhi says Virbhadra Singh will be chief minister for 7th term.

1.53pm: The only problem today before the country is unemployment: Rahul Gandhi at Bath in Himachal Pradesh.

1.52pm: Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi begisn speech in Mandi.
The opposition parties in Haryana on Friday upped the ante on the Dadupur-Nalvi canal issue with the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) submitting a memorandum to governor seeking reversal of the BJP governments decision to scrap the project and former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda condemning the decision.

The cabinet on September 27 had scrapped the canal project, evoking sharp reactions from the opposition parties. Led by Abhay Chautala, several INLD legislators submitted the memorandum to governor Kaptan Singh Solanki, claiming scrapping of the project will hit northern parts of the state.

HT Explainer: What the Dadupur Nalvi irrigation scheme is all about

Bhupinder Singh Hooda said if voted to power, the Congress would not only give the compensation to farmers for their land but also complete the Dadupur-Nalvi canal project.

While most of southern Haryana has been declared as dark zone due to less availability of groundwater, the northern Haryana comprising Yamunanagar, Ambala and Kurukshetra has also fallen in critical zone category due to overuse of groundwater. The Dadupur-Nalvi canal project, conceived in 1985, would have irrigated about 2.25 lakh acres of land and recharged the soil in these districts, Abhay told mediapersons after submitting the memorandum.

More than 1,000 acre land was acquired and the second phase of the project was in progress after spending about Rs 209 crore, he said.

However, since the matter of compensation was in the Punjab and Haryana high court and when the decision to pay enhanced compensation for the acquired land was delivered, the state government instead of paying higher compensation, decided to scrap the project and de-notify the land to return it to farmers, he said. The farmers will get compensation amount with 15% interest on it, he added.

Will raise issue in House: Hooda

Former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Friday said if voted to power, the Congress would not only give the compensation to farmers for their land but also complete the Dadupur-Nalvi canal project. In a press conference, he said, The Congress will raise the issue during the assembly session beginning October 23 and fight till the end, he said.

He said the state government has failed on all fronts and is neck-deep in corruption be in recruitments or power purchase. Besides, it has failed on law and order front.

Seeks probe by judge in Dera case

When asked about the case of the Dera Sacha Sauda head, Hooda alleged that there was a deal between the sect head and the government before the last assembly poll. The Congress demands a probe by a sitting judge of high court along with former IPS officer Prakash Singh into the entire case. There are so many deceptions keeping in mind contradictory statements coming from the government, he said.
The Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS), the labour wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, will march to the Parliament on November 17 against the Narendra Modi governments anti-economic and anti-farmer policies.

The BMS central working committee met at the RSS headquarters here on October 6 and 7 and chalked out a strategy for the success of the proposed march.

The BMS general secretary Vrijesh Upadhyay said the organization would attempt at bringing together all trade unions, including the Left-affiliated ones, to join the march.

Earlier, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat came out openly against the Modi governments economic policy in his annual Dussehra address in Nagpur. Although he tempered criticism with praise for demonetisation and GST, Bhagwat made no bones about his concern over the impact of these policies on the Sanghs core support base of small traders, small businessmen and small farmers.

After the two-day meeting, Upadhyay asserted that the Modi government and finance minister Arun Jaitley miserably failed to improve the economy and instead continued with the previous governments anti-people policies.

He squarely criticized the government for its several reform policies, including labour law reforms, which he claimed were detrimental to the interests of the labour class. The existing labour rights were obtained after a prolonged labour movement in India. Curtailing rights of workers will create friction at the floor level and will destroy industrial peace. We will not tolerate corporate-sponsored labour reforms philosophy, he asserted.

According to him, it is a misguided perception to say that the so-called labour reforms will create employment. It will only create cheap and below par jobs. For job creation government must rectify other basic flaws affecting the economy. It is a huge mistake to put all failures on the shoulders of workers and then curtail their rights.

He blamed all the advisors to the Modi government, particularly the Niti Ayog members, for being unaware about the ground reality of the country. We cant expect better outcome from these Harvard educated so-called experts, he said and demanded that the stakeholders in different fields should be involved in the decision-making process.

Answering a question, he said that the BMS had a talked with all trade union organizations to support the proposed march. The concerns of labour reforms are common to all of us, so Left or Right affiliation does not matter, he added.

Upadhyay demanded that there should be legal provision for accountability of management and punishment for mismanagement on a complaint from workers for industrial failures and losses. Though they welcome the attempt to simplify and codify multiple labour laws.

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Sidelined AIADMK leader V K Sasikala, out of jail on a five-day parole, on Saturday visited her husband M Natarajan, who is recovering at a hospital here after undergoing a liver and kidney transplant surgery.

Sasikala, who was removed from the AIADMK last month after the party factions led by Tamil Nadu chief minister K Palaniswami and now deputy chief minister O Panneerselvam respectively united, was with Natarajan at the hospital for about two hours, sources said, adding that a tight security cover was put in place at the hospital in view of her visit.

Sasikala was accompanied by her relatives during her visit to the hospital, they said.

Later, she returned to her niece Krishnapriyas residence in the city.

The beleaguered AIADMK leaders car briefly halted in front of a Ganesha temple in Kotturpuram, where she prayed from inside the vehicle as used to be done by late party supremo J Jayalalithaa.

Sasikalas low-profile visit to the hospital was in stark contrast to her public appearances prior to her incarceration in February.

Before being imprisoned, she used to be surrounded by partymen and loyalists raising slogans praising her as chinnamma.

Though AIADMK workers had gathered in good numbers at the hospital as well as at her nieces residence with banners hailing her homecoming, the level of exuberance was comparatively low.

Senior AIADMK leader and a T T V Dinakaran loyalist, Nanjil Sampath, said he met Sasikala at the hospital and told her to pray.

He said he asked Sasikala to recite the Sundara Kandam from the Ramayana as it would bring her relief.

He said steps would be taken to seek an extension of Sasikalas parole since she could not interact with Natarajan as the latter had undergone tracheostomy and could not verbally communicate because of that.

V Maithreyan, a Rajya Sabha MP of the ruling camp, while replying to a reporters question, ruled out any political change due to the visit of Sasikala as the MLAs and people were very clear (that she should not be in the AIADMK).

Private security personnel, including several bouncers and some plainclothesmen, could be seen in and around the T Nagar residence of Sasikalas niece. A police patrol vehicle was also stationed in the vicinity.

Sasikala has been lodged in the Parapana Agrahara central jail in Bengaluru since February after the Supreme Court upheld her conviction by a special court in a disproportionate assets case.

Her relatives, Ilavarasi and V N Sudhakaran, are also serving four-year jail terms in the case.

Due to the tough parole conditions, Sasikala refrained from interacting with the partymen during her visit to the hospital.

The hospital, meanwhile, said in a statement that Natarajan (74) was recovering and that he was awake and oriented and on ventilator support through tracheostomy, which was performed on October 6.

Sasikala arrived here on Friday from Bengaluru after being granted parole for five days.

Natarajan was admitted at the liver intensive care unit of the Gleneagles Global Health City under the care of a team of doctors led by Professor Mohamed Rela, the hospital said.

It said at the time of admission, he had a worsening liver failure, kidney failure and lung congestion, and subsequently, he underwent a liver and kidney transplantation on October 4.

In a statement, Director, Institute of Liver Disease and Transplantation of the hospital, Dr K Ilankumaran said considering Natarajans age and the associated co-morbidities, his condition was stable during the surgery and that he was recovering well in the liver intensive care unit.

He (Natarajan) is awake and oriented and on ventilator support through tracheostomy, which was performed on October 6, he added.

As in any other combined liver and kidney transplant surgery, Natarajans condition would be critical for the next few days, Ilankumaran said, adding, He is under close observation and monitoring.

It may be recalled that Sasikala had sought parole for 15 days, but was only granted five days with tough conditions, including that she would not get involved in any political, party-related or other public activities.

She is only allowed to visit the hospital where her husband is admitted and stay at the residence of her relative as mentioned in her parole application.

Sasikala has also been restricted from interacting with the media.
When Giani Zail Singh became President of India, he expressed his desire to dine with writer-editor Khushwant Singh whom he had known for long. What happened after that makes for one of the many interesting anecdotes about the writer, who believed not only in writing With Malice Towards One and All but also being pucca about time.

Relating this anecdote in the opening session of the Khushwant Singh Litfest here on Friday, Ashok Chopra, co-director of the event, said Khushwant fixed the date for dinner at his residence in Sujaan Singh Park in New Delhi and the scheduled time was 7O clock.

Ashok Chopra, co-director of the event, said Khushwant fixed the date for dinner at his residence in Sujaan Singh Park in New Delhi and the scheduled time was 7O clock.

I was one of the few friends invited to the dinner, with our drinks in our hands. But at 80 clock a phone call came from the Rashtrapati Bhawan that the President would come shortly. At this, Mrs Singh asked for the dinner to be served because Khushwants day started at 4 am. The dinner was almost gone when another call came that the President had got into the car and would be there soon. Khushwant Singh then replied that the food is finished and the cook has left for his quarters.

HE GREATLY ADMIRED GANDHI, MOTHER TERESA

Khuswants son Rahul Singh recounted that he greatly admired two persons, Mahatma Gandhi and Mother Teresa. Their pictures still hang in the authors Kasauli home, Raj Villa.

He said his father went to Kolkata to interview Mother Teresa for New York Times and when the article finally appeared in the prestigious paper, she sent a letter of appreciation. The last line of the letter was: I know that you not believe in God but I am sending you Gods blessings.

HIS IRRITATION JAYALALITHA

Arun Shourie spoke of Khushwants irritation Amma, former Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalitha, of course. Shourie said the writer told him that Amma wrote him long letters full of impropriety which he never replied to but just stored them in his Kasauli home archives.

Are they still there? Shourie asked Rahul Singh, forgetting that Khushwants son was too proper to read anyones letters, even those written to his late father.

There were many anecdotes shared by those who knew him well. One of these related to the writer request that he wanted to salute the soldier at the first Khushwant Singh Litfest.

Last but not the least was about a letter written by a pro-Khalistani from Norway during the era of terrorism in Punjab, with the address reading: Khushwant Singh, Bastard, India. What tickled him was that the letter was actually delivered at his house by the postal authorities.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday hit back at social media critics who mocked development under the catchphrase Vikas Gando Thayo Che (Development has gone crazy), asking whether setting up an airport near Rajkot was not development.

Has anyone thought of an airport in Surendranagar? Isnt that called Vikas (development)? Modi asked a gathering at the ground-breaking ceremony of Rajkot International Airport, as the audience replied Yes, and began chanting Modi, Modi in affirmation.

Vikas has gone crazy, a social media campaign started by Patidars and picked up by Congress, tries to make fun of the purported failure of development promised by Modi-led BJP before the 2014 general elections.

With the assembly elections coming up in his home state, Gujarat, Modi sought to negate the campaign, and started his two-day visit to the state by inaugurating a slew of projects worth Rs 10,000 crore before the model code takes effective with the announcement of polls, which is likely next week.

Modi reached Rajkot after offering prayers at Dwarikasdeesh temple in Dwarka and addressing a public rally at the pilgrimage place.

Among the projects he launched for the region are a cable-stayed bridge between Dwarka and Bet, an international airport at Rajkot, IIT Gandhinagar campus, a milk processing plant at Chotila and water supply project for Surendranagar.

The region, stronghold of BJPs traditional vote-bank of Patidars, has 52 of total 182 seats.

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi had visited the same temple in September and raised issues related to unemployment, farmers distress and failed economic policies of the Modi government.

Modi countered the criticism, saying for development and economic growth, one needs vision and will.

Earlier, one hand pump would be put and used by leader for multiple elections. But, we have changed definition of development now, he said.

In Gujarat, the BJP constructed good roads after it came to power in 1995, reducing the accident rate, he said and went on to list various development projects carried out by his party in the state in its 22 years of rule.

BJP is facing strong opposition in Gujarat, which has been its bastion for over two decades, especially with the Patidar community demanding reservation in public education and jobs, something the party has not encouraged.

On Saturday, the BJP had made elaborate arrangements for the PMs rally, with people being brought in state transport buses at the venues hours in advance. The party also ensured an overhead tent for all and decorated a huge stage with flowers.

On Sunday, Modi will preside over inauguration of medical college and hospital in Vadnagar and also visit Bharuch.

From Monday, Rahul Gandhi will be back in Gujarat for a three-day tour, the second leg of his Navsarjan Yatra, aimed at wooing voters in central parts of the state.

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Agitating farmers of Ninder village on the outskirts of Jaipur on Saturday launched an indefinite fast after the administration postponed a meeting scheduled on Friday to discuss modalities of conducting a re-survey of their land.

The re-survey will determine if any additional compensation is to be given to those who have surrendered their land.

Farmers, including women, have buried themselves neck deep in the pits to protest against the acquisition of their land by the Jaipur Development Authority (JDA) for a housing project. The protest has been termed as Zameen Samadhi Satyagraha.

An offer for a meeting failed to achieve any breakthrough as the farmers were adamant that a coordination committee should be formed but the administrative officials failed to give any assurance.

The administration appears to be going back on their word. They have not given any information on when the meeting will be rescheduled. We were left with no option but to intensify the agitation, Ninder Bachao Kisan Yuva Samiti president Nagendra Singh told HT.

As part of the protest, 22 men and 11 women have given up food and are taking only water, he said.

On Friday, former chief minister Ashok Gehlot came out in support of the agitating farmers. The government needs to take the farmers demand of resurvey of the land in Ninder seriously, Gehlot tweeted in Hindi.

Ninder Bachao Kisan Yuva Samiti president Singh said they had launched their protest three weeks ago against the JDAs land acquisition but had got no response from the government.

From October 2, we buried ourselves neck deep in the pits. Let them roll over the bulldozers over our head. We are ready to die but will not give our land, he said.

JDA commissioner Vaibhav Galaria said process of acquiring the land has been completed but a representative of the collector could be included in the committee for re-survey of the land.

The JDA plans to acquire 1,300 bighas (one bigha is equal to 17,424 square feet) land to develop the housing scheme out of which 1,100 bighas will be private land.

At present, the JDA has taken possession of 600 bighas located in the scheme and also deposited 60 crore in the court for the acquired land.

JDA had announced the scheme in January 2011. The proposed project will have 10,000 houses.

Locals whose land are being acquired are being left with two options  to get compensation for their land at 2010 DLC rates or surrender their land free of cost and get 25% developed land from the project in exchange in proportion to the land acquired.
Close on the heels of a molestation case on the Banaras Hindu University (BHU) campus last month that led to widespread outrage, a BA student from the home science department of the DDU University in Gorakhpur was sexually harassed by three youths, who allegedly also tried to abduct her.

Police have arrested the accused, Raj Kishore Yadav, Vijay Paswan and Alok Sharma, and booked them under sections 354, 354(D) of the IPC on the basis of a complaint filed by university proctor, Prof Gopal Prasad, and sent them to jail.

However, police denied the abduction claim. It is a case of eve-teasing and not an abduction bid. All three accused have been booked and sent to jail, said SSP Satyartha Anirudhdh Pankaj.

As per university officials, the incident occurred at 1111.45 am, soon after classes commenced.

Three outsiders on two bikes didnt listen to the guards and forced their way to the universitys home science department. They parked one of the bikes at the proctors office and rode on the other one to the home science department. Once they spotted the girl, a day scholar, at the department, they started harassing her. The guard deployed at the department informed us about the incident and we rushed to the spot along with the police. The culprits were then arrested, Prof Prasad told HT.

Patrolling has been intensified on the campus and all outsiders were being checked before entry, the proctor said, adding that 100 guards were keeping an eye on the hostels as well as various departments.

DDU enrols around 16,000 students in 50 courses of graduation, PG and diplomas. There are six hostels, including two for girls.
Chief minister Yogi Adityanath will be in Ayodhya on the Diwali eve on October 18 to welcome the Ram Shobha Yatra as his government intends to use the occasion to market the Hindutva hotspot as a major tourist destination.

For the first time in Ayodhyas history, Diwali festivities will begin in the chief ministers presence, Ved Prakash Gupta, the BJP MLA from Ayodhya, told HT.

Mahant Nritya Gopal Das of Mani Ram Das Chavni Peeth is likely to lead the yatra, being taken out for the first time around Diwali in Ayodhya. Hundreds of saffron-clad saints will participate. The whole of Ayodhya will be decked up for the occasion.

Preparations are going on a war footing to make the event a grand affair, Gupta said.

State cabinet ministers will accompany the chief minister. Governor Ram Naik is also likely to be present.

A 30-minute laser show on Rams journey from Ayodhya to Lanka will be the highlight. It will be shown at the Saryu ghat, also known as Naya ghat, in the chief ministers presence.

The riverbank will glow with 51,000 earthen lamps. Most of the 10,000-odd temples of Ayodhya will be adorned too.

Adityanath will address a gathering and welcome the yatra at the Ram Katha Park in the evening.

Ram Leela will also be organised at the Ram Katha Park the same day, added Gupta.

Gupta was in Lucknow on October 4 for a meeting with tourism minister Rita Bahuguna Joshi and principal secretary (tourism) Awanish Awasthi to inform them about the preparations.

The entire state government machinery, especially the tourism department, is working to make the festival memorable for Ayodhya residents.

The celebrations will begin with a heritage walk at 7am on Chhoti Diwali (Diwali eve). People from all walks of life will participate in it. After the two-hour walk, local BJP MP Lallu Singh, party MLAs and district administration officials will distribute Diwali gifts to 108 under privileged people.

But the disputed site will be left untouched during the celebrations.

After a change of guard, Ayodhya the temple town is being put on the tourism map by both the state and central governments.

This will be Adityanaths third visit to Ayodhya after becoming the chief minister.

He became the first UP CM to visit the temple town in 15 years on May 31 and was greeted with chants of Jai Shri Ram at Hanuman Garhi, the famous temple of Hanuman.

He paid also obeisance to the Ram Lalla (infant Ram) at the disputed site that day.

He visited the town for the second time on July 26 for Nritya Gopal Dass 79th birthday celebrations.

The chief minister has already announced a Rs 350-crore development package for Ayodhya, including round the clock power supply.

Some schemes of this package are also part of the Modi governments various projects for the temple town.

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Chinese railways set a record in daily passenger traffic as more than 15 million trips were made on National Day on Oct 1, the first day of an eight-day holiday, and over 113 million visitors flooded domestic resorts, the rail and tourist authorities said on Oct 2.

It is the year's longest public holiday as Mid-Autumn Festival happens to coincide with the National Day holiday this year.

The first day of the holiday's estimate of 15 million trips was up by 4.2 percent from the 14.4 million trips made on National Day last year, according to rail system administrator China Railway Corp.

Like many scenic spots around the nation, Beijing's Summer Palace is packed on Oct 2. Jiang Dong / China Daily

It said 12 million rail trips were expected on Oct 2, and 130 million rail trips forecast for the entire holiday travel season.

In addition, 560 million road trips and 15.9 million trips by water are expected, according to the Ministry of Transport.

Over 13 million trips are expected by air, an increase of 14 percent, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of China. The number of daily flights was pegged at nearly 14,800.

Beijing Capital International Airport, China's busiest, expects to see 3.95 million trips during the rush, the airport says.

On Oct 1, cars were trapped in kilometers-long traffic jams on expressways, and passengers stood in long lines at stations and airports. Large groups of tourists crowded into resorts.

At Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, Guangdong province, nearly 1,000 passengers missed their planes due to a traffic jam on the airport expressway, officials said. Passengers around the country were advised to take subways to airports when possible.

Provinces took measures to ease traffic congestion on Oct 1.

In Jiangsu province, police used 80 drones for traffic surveillance. About 1,000 patrol cars equipped with video transmission systems received real-time information sent by the drones. The drones had helped clear 52 minor road crashes by 4 pm on Oct 1, according to the provincial Public Security Bureau.

Tourists were estimated to have made 115 million trips across China on Oct 1, a year-on-year increase of 10.5 percent, according to the China National Tourism Administration.

Those tourists were estimated to have spent 96.5 billion yuan ($14.5 billion; 12.4 billion euros; 10.9 billion), 12.2 percent more than on National Day last year.

For tourists heading abroad, Russia, Australia and the United States were cited by industry sources as popular destinations, as were countries in eastern and southeastern Asia.

zhengjinran@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily European Weekly 10/06/2017 page15)
Chief minister Yogi Adityanath, who has been celebrating Diwali with underprivileged children of Vantangiya community as local MP for the last 10 years, is awaited eagerly by community members who expect him to continue the practice despite his busy schedule.

Tinkuniya Jangal village (one among the many where Vantangiyas reside), deprived of basic facilities as it has not been recognised as revenue village even after 70 year of Independence, has a strong bond with Yogi who has been raising the issue of their plight time and again in Parliament as the MP.

It was after Yogi became the chief minister that the village received attention and facilities like electricity, toilets and schools. Soon, it is also likely to be declared a revenue village--a prerequisite for a village to get benefit of government run schemes.

As the local MP, Yogi ji has been vociferous in raising our issue. He has been visiting here since 2007 to share happiness of Diwali with children. He has now been elevated as UP CM but we are sure that he would come here on Diwali despite his busy schedule, village head Ranvijay Tilkonia told HT.

He said the excitement to celebrate Diwali had doubled among the locals after Yogis elevation as the CM. The locals have already started cleaning the village in the anticipation of Yogis visit. Even women folk are taking part in making the village spick and span.

He shared that every year, Yogi distributed copies, books, pens, pencils and sweets among children while celebrating the festival of lights with them. To ensure education of children, the Hindu Vidyapeeth was also established by Gorakhnath temple in 2007, he added.

Some of them are so strongly attached to him that they have decided not to celebrate Diwali if the CM fails to join them on the festival of light, the village head said. He said although no official programme of the CM has been announced yet, Yogi was likely to arrive at the Gorakhnath Temple to celebrate Diwali on October 19.

Who are Vantangiyas?

Vantangiyas derived their name from their ancestors who were made to grow and cut down trees in Van (forest) by the British. Their families settled in forests. Later, when the forest department forced them to vacate the land, Yogi Adityanath fought for their rights.
Congress vice president Rahul Gandhis sharpened attacks on Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his three-day visit to Amethi, his Lok Sabha seat, are likely to intensify the ongoing war of words between the Congress and the BJP.

On the first day of the visit on Wednesday, Rahul blamed the PM for failing to deliver in the past three years. He said instead of wasting time, the PM should focus on creating of jobs for youths and resolving the crisis in the agriculture sector.

He attended a chaupal (gathering) of farmers at Kathaura village on the first day and a closed door interaction with party workers and brief interaction with reporters on second day. He met senior Congress leaders from Amethi and Rae Bareli before winding up his three-day visit on Friday.

This visit to Amethi was Gandhis first after the UP assembly elections. As it preceded the proposed visit of BJP president Amit Shah, chief minister Yogi Adityanath, union minister Smriti Irani and other senior BJP leaders to Amethi on October 10, the Congress leaders will keep a close watch and launch a counter offensive on the ruling party soon afterwards.

Gandhi set the tone for the Congress counter-attack on BJP leaders by giving a list of 12 development projects that he claimed were brought to Amethi during the tenure of the UPA government. He said the BJP leaders were now trying to take credit and re-inaugurate many of these projects. He asked his party leaders to take to people the failures of the Modi government on the job creation front and farmers problems. The partymen have started working out a plan to reach out to villagers.

Addressing partymen, Gandhi specifically targeted the PM for his 56-inch chest remark. He also spoke about the UPA governments schemes and listed the achievements of Manmohan Singh as PM. He briefed party workers about the Modi governments policies on demonetisation and implementation of the GST.

He said party workers should tell the people how lakhs had been rendered jobless after implementation of these policies.

Amethi District Congress Committee (DCC) president Yogendra Mishra said: Yes, BJP leaders do come to Amethi for a picnic. We are not aware of what they will be doing in Amethi. We will, however, take the Congress vice-presidents message to the people. The Amethi Congress has already launched a programme to reach out to a village every day and take his message to the people. We have covered about 200 villages. The remaining 600 villages will be covered soon.

Gandhi also met party workers from Rae Bareli, the Lok Sabha seat of his mother Sonia Gandhi, the Congress president.

We will soon work out a programme to launch an agitation and focus on failures of the Narendra Modi government, said VK Shukla, the Rae Bareli Congress chief.

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Vrindavan: Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Aditya Nath said here on Friday it was ironic that the Allahabad high court had to tell the citizens that they had to sing the national anthem, when it should have been a self- motivated endeavour. He said this while welcoming the Allahabad HCs dismissal of a PIL challenging a government order by which singing of the national anthem in all the schools and madarsas of UP was made mandatory. The court had also observed that the recitation of the national anthem was in essence the act of every citizen honouring the history and tradition of this great nation.

Yogi, who was in Vrindavan for the inaugural function of Mansi Dhyan Kendra with RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and Baba Ramdev, said similarly Prime Minister Narendra Modi had to launch a cleanliness campaign which again should have been a self-motivated project.

On Hindutva, the CM said it was not an agenda for the BJP but a way of life.

Recollecting his recent visit to Kerala to attend a BJP programme, Yogi said that there were questions from the media there about Hindutva. My answer was that for the BJP, Hindutva is not a political agenda but a way of life, he said.

Lauding the contribution of RSS and seers in strengthening the nation, Yogi said, The presence of organisations like the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh provides strength to the nation and keeps it unified through spiritual awareness. The nation can come to no harm till organisations like the RSS and saints are active in India, despite misleading campaigns against them, he said.

Appealing for plantation of eco-friendly trees, he said, Our government is planning to develop seven spots in Braj as pilgrim centres but for this we need to revive the Yamuna. Required measures include more water released from Delhi and projects for flow of garbage in the river. Such measures are being undertaken but the masses should also cooperate, by planting eco-friendly trees like peepal. 

The chief minister also voiced concern at the falling level of education, saying students availed of holidays in the name of great personalities but were not aware about them.

I cut short the list of holidays and saved R60,000 crore. These holidays will now be working days and young students will be told about the great personalities and freedom fighters. The 22 crore population of the state has welcomed the step, said Yogi.

He praised the Braj heartland where Lord Krishna lived in each nook and corner but said often we were blamed for not keeping our religious venues clean. He stressed that this should be proved a myth, calling Nikunj Van in Vrindavan as a spot which was very clean and beautiful.

Photo ::: Chief Minister Yogi Aditya Nath addressing the gathering at Mansi Dhyan Kendra in Nikunj Van ashram in Vrindavan on Friday.

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To get married for the fifth time, a 50-year-old man murdered his 19-year-old fourth wife in Kale ka Purwa village of Amethi district, nearly 125 kilometres south-east of Lucknow. Police arrested the man on Friday after recovering the womans decomposed body in Naseerabad area of Rae Bareli, around five km from the victims house on Thursday.

The accused Mustakeem is a truck driver and has a criminal record of involvement in drug supply. The victim Reshma was married to Mustakeem two years ago and gave birth to her first child only three months ago.

Rae Bareli deputy superintendent of police (DSP) SK Yadav said although villagers and the victims aunt Samina claimed Reshma was Mustakeems thirteenth wife, the police had proof of only four marriages. He said Mustakeem too said that he married Reshma after the death of his first wife and leaving two previous wives. Reshma belonged to a very poor family, so her father Sattar easily agreed to Mustakeems marriage proposal, he added.

Yadav said police probe revealed that Mustakeem had strained relations with Reshma after the birth of her child and was planning to get married again. He said Mustakeem even went to Reshmas father Sattar complaining about her character a year ago. He even told the victims father he did not want to continue the relationship with her.

The DSP said Mustakeems house was basically under Amethi police jurisdiction but the victims body was found on a deserted stretch near Parsadepur village of Naseerabad area of Rae Bareli . He said the probe revealed that the accused had strangled Reshma after a spat on Monday night and disposed of the body in Naseerabad .

He said the accused lodged a complaint with Amethi police about Reshma having eloped with one Bablu, leaving her infant alone at home. He said investigation later confirmed Mustakeems involvement in the crime .

Read more: 6-year-old raped in toilet of south Delhi school, housekeeping staff arrested

He said Mustakeem allegedly killed Reshma as she opposed his intention to get married for the fifth time. He said the accused was arrested after he confessed to his crime during interrogation.
Though residents across the city have been complaining to the civic body about 1,811 Aarey Sarita, Aarey dairy and other milk stalls being used for other purposes since 2013, there has been no action in the matter so far. Recently, some of the stalls in K/West ward (consisting of Andheri-West and Oshiwara), have been converted into residences and a chemist shop. While authorities fail to act, people are illegally occupying the stalls, said Hina Shroff, director, My Residents Association, an NGO.

An Aarey stall near DN Nagar police station is being used as a residence at night by someone. Some people around my house are also using these stalls for cooking purposes, said Shroff.

Shroff has approached ward authorities, asking them to take action against such stalls, but her attempts have fallen on deaf ears.

Aftab Siddique, chairperson, Khar Advanced Locality Management, who had raised the issue with authorities in 2014, saidSince there is no proper agreement between the diary commissioner and municipal commissioner, there are no rules for these stalls. Three years ago, we had asked them to monitor stalls by checking their licenses and name, but till today no one has acted on it,

According to a 2015 notification the assistant commissioners of each ward are to remove stalls which do not have a license under the Mumbai Municipal Corporation (MMC) Act. According to Siddique, only 12 stalls across the city have a license under section 313 of the MMC Act.

An official from K/west ward said that no was cooking being done in any stall in his ward. He said, Aarey has to decide about the stalls which are empty, we cant take a call on it. In case the stalls are not being used, we will demolish it, if they ask us to.
The Bombay high court last week granted bail to Ansar Ahmed Badshah Shaikh, a suspected Indian Mujahideen operative. more than nine years after he was arrested for alleged links with the terror groups key members, Mohammed Sadiq Israr Shaikh and Riyaz Bhatkal.

Considering the material on record against the applicant (Shaikh), there are reasonable grounds for believing that the applicant is not guilty of the offences he is charged for, said justice Revati Mohite-Dere, referring to the charge that he was a member of the group.

The judge also took into consideration that he has been in custody for more than nine years and the trial was yet to commence. The charges was framed on December 10, 2013 but, the chances of the trial resuming soon were bleak. Justice Mohite-Dere granted Shaikh bail on a personal bond of Rs 50,000 and local solvent sureties . He has also been asked to come to the crime branch on the first Saturday of every month until the trial is over and surrender his passport.

On July 26, 2008, 21 bomb blasts rocked Ahmedabad, killing 59 people. A few months prior to the blasts, newspapers and channels had received mails threatening a series of blasts. A few months later, in a Mumbai police crackdown, 22 people, including Shaikh, were arrested.

The judge noted that Shaikh was neither involved in the sending of the email nor was he linked to the blasts , and that he is being prosecuted only on the basis of his alleged links with the co-accused and for being a member of the group. The prosecution said Shaikh had been trained in Pakistan, and he had harboured Sadiq and Riyaz . The court, however, said Shaikh had not taken part in any criminal activity after he was said to have returned from Pakistan and also that on an odd evening Sadiq brought Riyaz to Shaikhshome and both of them stayed for a night.
Once we go back home, we will tell all our relatives and friends how India is helping us put our children back on their feet, said Mohammad Ali, grandfather to seven-year-old Ali Talal. Against the backdrop of World Cerebral Palsy Day, families from Yemen, a war-torn country in the Middle East, said Indian doctors are offering hope to children suffering from congenital disorder of movement, muscle tone or posture.

Cerebral palsy a neurological disorder  is a result of abnormal brain development often before or immediately after birth. Patients show symptoms such as impaired movement, abnormal reflexes, floppiness or rigidity of the limbs, abnormal posture, involuntary movements, unsteady walking.

Orthopaedic surgeon Dr Atul Bhaskar said he has treated at least four Yemeni children diagnosed with cerebral palsy. Two of them, Talal and Abdul Rehman, underwent surgeries for contracture removal Wockhardt Hospital, Mira Road, last week. A contracture is the permanent shortening of a muscle or joint in a concentrated muscle area.

A year after he was born, we realised that he was not able to walk or stand properly. We stay in Yafee, a small village. It takes us two days to reach the nearest hospital, said Mohammad.

The boys families said the majority of Yemens medical resources are focused on attending to the war. None of the hospitals we visited offered our children any surgery or treatment, Mohammad added.

Both families are from the same village, but met only at the Mumbai airport. They arrived on October 1. That same day, Dr Bhaskar and his team performed surgery on the children. Surgeries are only 40% of the work, the real task is physiotherapy, which helps strengthen the muscles so the children can stand and walk. We will train the families in physiotherapy, so they dont have to hunt for a professional physician or physiotherapist when they return home, said Dr Bhaskar.

In Yafee, there are about 25 children who are facing similar complications, but have no treatment options. The absence of an Indian Embassy, since the past four months, makes it difficult for families to find treatment options and get a medical visa to travel to India.

Raniya Karim, a former Indian embassy employee, said she has helped 15 to 20 families get medical visas. Civil unrest has resulted in a scarcity of resources. As a majority of the locals are farmers, they dont have the financial means to travel to India for treatment. But, now with non-government organisations such as Red Cross, families are travelling to Mumbai, Pune and Bangalore for treatment, said Karim.

Both families are likely to return home by the end of October.
After recording the statements of friends and parents of 20-year-old law intern whose body was found in mysterious circumstances on the railway tracks near Currey Road station, the police have concluded that she had committed suicide.

The police, however, refused to reveal the reason that caused her to take the extreme step.

The body of the ICAI presidents daughter, Pallavi Vikamsey, was found on the tracks between Curry Road and Parel stations on Wednesday night.

Based on the statements of her parents and friends, it is clear that Pallavi committed suicide, said Manoj Kumar Sharma, deputy commissioner of police (zone 1).

The MRA Marg police, who were investigating Vikamseys case, said that they are yet to record a few statements of her friends, but it is confirmed that there is no foul play involved in her death. The Dadar Government Railway police who had recorded a case of accidental death also recorded the statement of eyewitnesses.

Vikamsey had removed her gold earrings and chain and left them in her office drawer, before boarding the train from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus at 6pm on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, a prayer meeting was held for Vikamsey at Dadar on Saturday, which was attended by several of her friends and colleagues.

We neither found her mobile phone near her body nor in her office drawer, said Machindra Chavan, assistant commissioner of police (GRP) Dadar division.

The police want to check Vikamseys call data records, to find out who the last person she spoke to was.

After she did not return home on Wednesday night, her parents tried to call her, but could not get through. They then approached the MRA Marg police, who registered a missing persons complaint. Police officers said Vikamsey was last seen boarding a train from CSMT station towards Thane at 6pm  as was her routine.

Vaikamsey had sent her parents a text message saying No one is responsible, before her phone got switched off.
Ghaziabad: Cops and criminals are friends here, and the proof is in the picture taken at district police headquarters on Friday afternoon.

The camaraderie between the anti-social elements and the keepers of the law and order in the district was for all to see when the six accused were brought to the office of superintendent of police (rural), for a press briefing.

The accused were arrested by the Loni police in connection with different cases of robberies with collection agents at Kavi Nagar, Loni and Indirapuram areas.

As the accused waited for the press briefing to start, their faces wore smiles instead of fear. They sat at the working table of police officers, cracked jokes with the uniformed men and also got pictures clicked in different poses, sitting or standing by their side.

Though it may take time to address the deeper problem of cops and criminals being friends, the major lapse in protocol did not go unnoticed.

Superintendent of police AK Maurya has initiated an inquiry in to the goof-up took place just outside his office, where the press briefing was scheduled.

The accused was seen sitting at the table while one of our officers was completing the documentation. Such acts cannot be tolerated, Maurya said, adding, The policemen got too friendly with the accused persons. We will inquire into the matter, which has been taken up seriously and the conduct of officers responsible will be looked into. Action will be initiated against the erring police personnel.

The six persons arrested by Loni police are part of gang of robbers who targeted cash collection agents in different areas across the city. They have criminal cases lodged against them at Kavi Nagar, Loni and Indirapuram police stations.

The policemen should follow the set procedure after making arrest and till the time the accused are produced before the court. In such cases when police personnel get friendly with accused, the criminals use the opportunity to flee from police custody. Such incidents have happened in Ghaziabad in past as well, said Vikrant Sharma, a lawyer at the district court.
A committee has been set up under the leadership of the divisional commissioner (Meerut) Prabhat Kumar to analyse the municipal work in Gautam Budh Nagar.

The report to be submitted by Kumar will suggest whether there is a requirement for a separate municipal corporation in the district or not.

Details on the other members of the committee have not been released and a notification in this regard is likely within a week, Noida authority officials said.

The Noida authority has been drawing flak from residents welfare associations and the district magistrate for not being able to perform civic duties in an efficient manner.

District Magistrate BN Singh had written to the state urban development minister Suresh Khanna highlighting alleged shortcomings of the Noida agencies in handling civic responsibilities.

The DM, in his letter, had clearly said that during an inspection, he found out that the Noida authority has failed to clean the drainage system.

He had also mentioned that the slum areas are in a bad shape.

Encroachment on the sides of the road was also mentioned as the failure of authority. People defecating in open was also a matter of concern in the letter.

The district magistrate had also mentioned that the authority has failed to address the ongoing massive issue between the builders and the buyers so its obvious that it cant pay much attention to the civic work.

Singh had said that the Noida authority has failed in the upkeep of the city as it also had to handle several other responsibilities such as industrial development.

Following the criticism, chief executive officer (CEO), Noida authority, Alok Tondon took a serious note of the issue and assigned the complete responsibility of municipal work to additional chief executive officer (ACEO) RK Mishra.

Earlier, too, Mishra was looking after the municipal work but he had other responsibilities as well.

Now the ACEO will now only be focusing on municipal work. Issues such as parking was previously handled by another department of the authority but from now on, it will come under Mishras supervision.

We have given all responsibility related to municipal work to a dedicated ACEO in order to make him a centre point. Previously, he had other responsibilities also. Now, we have added all the possible municipal work to his portfolio, Tondon said.

Tondon confirmed that a committee has been formed to analyse the municipal work in the district.

The committee will be analysing the municipal work to decide whether there is a requirement for a separate municipal body or not. We are trying our level best to come up with every possible measure to ensure better municipal functioning, he said.

When asked about the criticism by the DM and the suggestion of having a separate municipal body, Tondon said, When the authority was founded, municipal work was an important part of it. To create a separate municipal body, the state government will have to come up with a proper Act and/or amendments. I believe the authority is capable of handling this work, but the final decision will be of the government.

The issue of having a separate municipal body was raised in a recent builder-buyer meeting in Delhi featuring state industries minister Satish Mahana, urban housing minister Suresh Khanna, cane development and sugar mills minister Suresh Rana, BN Singh and other officials of the Noida authority.

It was after this meeting that it was decided that a committee would be set up to study the need for a separate municipal body.

RK Mishra was not available for comment.
Police officers stand next to a person with a bandaged ankle near the Natural History Museum, after a car mounted the pavement, in London on Saturday. Photo/Agencies)

LONDON - London police said on Saturday a number of pedestrians had been injured near the city's Natural History Museum and that a man had been arrested at the scene.

British media reported a car had mounted the pavement outside the tourist attraction.

Police described the incident in the South Kensington area of west London as a collision and said the motive for the incident was under investigation.

"Inquiries to establish the circumstances and motive are under way," police said.

Police officers stand in the road near the Natural History Museum, after a car mounted the pavement injuring a number of pedestrians, in London on Saturday. (Photos/Agencies)

The museum said on Twitter it was working with police after "a serious incident" outside and would provide more information later.

The police statement said officers were on the scene and that London Ambulance Service had been called. The Ambulance Service said it was responding.
In a bid to make the city clean and green, the district administration has started work to beautify the 10.3km Hindon elevated road. Later, the administration will take up the beautification of seven other major roads that are known as the gateway to Uttar Pradesh and used by thousands of long-distance commuters on a daily basis.

The district administration plans to paint stretches of citys arterial roads and conduct a tree plantation drive. Among other civil works, all potholes along these roads will also be filled.

Major stretches below the elevated road are already being used by commuters. We will clean the areas below the elevated road. In a first, we will rope in artists to paint all the pillars near Vasundhara, the central verge and the dividers, Ghaziabad district magistrate Ritu Maheshwari said, adding that fine arts students will also be roped in for the project.

Artists will use environment and cleanliness as themes to paint the pillars.

The elevated road, the cost of which is pegged at Rs1147 crore, spans from Raj Nagar Extension to UP Gate, which is the Delhi-Ghaziabad border. The elevated road is being laid on 227 pillars, the work on which is now being taken up. The Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA) is likely to open the road by end of November.

Once this 800-metre stretch is completed, we will take up other stretches of the road. Areas below other major flyovers and walls alongside these roads will also be painted on similar lines, Maheshwari said.

Tree plantation will also be taken up in all these places. We will rope in the GDA, municipal corporation and the forest department for this work, she said.

The administration has assigned the responsibility of revamping seven major road stretches across the city to seven magistrates.

These stretches areUP Gate to Mohan Nagar, Apsara border to Lal Kuan, Meerut trijunction to Raj Nagar Extension, Hapur crossing to Dasna (near NH-24), NH-24 to GT Road, Karhera to Raj Nagar Extension bypass and Loni border to Karhera.

All potholes on these roads will be leveled and saplings would be planted along their length. Progress of the work would be monitored to ensure that all works is completed on time, said Prem Ranjan Singh, joint magistrate, Ghaziabad.

These roads will also be fitted with street lights, broken dividers would be repaired and damaged poles would be removed, among other civil works.

The administration is also planning a major cleanliness and environment event on October 12. Private players have been invited to get funds for the project from their corporate social responsibility corpus.

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Ghaziabad: The district administration is saving nearly 3 lakh kilograms of wheat, 2 lakh kilograms of rice and approximately 50,000 litres of kerosene per month, thanks to the three-month-long clean-up job of scrapping ration cards issued to ineligible citizens.

The drive started in May and ended in July. It was taken up on directions of the Yogi Adityanath-led state government which took charge in March this year.

During the drive, the district authorities in Ghaziabad scrapped nearly 95,000 ration cards which were issued to ineligible residents by the former state government. The ineligible ration card holders were identified and their cards scrapped after physical verification.

There were nearly 3.99 lakh ration card holders in the district before we started the physical survey for scrapping the ineligible card holders. After we scrapped 95,359 ration cards following a physical survey from May to July, we have a total of 3,67,792 valid ration cards at present, district supplies officer Sunil Kumar Singh said, adding that many eligible families who were not being able to reap the benefits of public distribution system (PDS) were also added.

Effectively, nearly 30,000 card holders were scrapped as we added more eligible families after physical inspection, he said.

Based on the number of ineligible ration cards scrapped, the department computed the monthly savings estimate for an assumed family of four members.

As per the norms, the annual family income of ration card holders should be below Rs 3 lakh; the house should be built on plot size smaller than 100 square metres, commercial space should be less than 80 square metres and the card holder should not be an income tax payee.

The family members of a ration card holder receive 3kg of wheat and 2kg of rice per month per member from the PDS. Further, 2 litres of kerosene is also issued on a single ration card for a family in a month.

The district supplies department has also issued new ration cards to beneficiaries, whose cards bore the picture of former UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav. The department has replaced such cards across the state.

The ration card cover with an image of former UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav came under severe criticism as it was provided to beneficiaries just before the announcement of state assembly elections in 2016.

In yet another initiative to save stock and make ration dealers accountable, we have provided biometric devices to nearly 516 out of 723 dealers in the district. The devices have their locations mapped and are also linked to the Aadhaar card of family members. The devices check stock pilferage and the entries of disbursal and receipt of stocks are automatically updated on government sites, Singh said.

Sources said that due to the introduction of the biometric devices in the PDS, nearly 67 dealers surrendered their dealership to other eligible persons.

The biometric devices are linked to the government control room. The opening and closing time of stock distribution, daily processing and issue of stocks on rations cards, etc. automatically get updated in government system.

Nearly 10 lakh Aadhaar cards are still to be linked to biometric devices provided to PDS distributors.

Officials expect that the provision of the rest of biometric devices and linking of Aadhaar with devices will be fully complete by the end of December.

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A series of media reports indicate that the India-China tensions over Doklam are far from resolved. The Chinese have reportedly stationed 1,500 to 1,700 troops a few hundred meters from the site of the 71-day standoff between Indian and Chinese forces. China has started fresh construction on an existing track around 10 kilometres from the standoff site. The Indian Express reported that around 1,000 Chinese troops are still on the plateau, a few hundred metres from the faceoff site. Indian and Chinese troops moved back around 150 metres each on August 28 as per the decision to disengage but status quo ante as on June 16 has not yet been restored.

The immediate implication of this is that the August 28 disengagement may no longer be considered as a diplomatic victory for India. Analysts were quick to applaud India for holding firm and stated that India had shown the world how to stand up to Chinese coercion. That appears to be a hasty claim since the situation is still unfolding and it reflects a view that underestimates how important notions of status and primacy in Asia are for Chinese policymakers  especially now when they aim to challenge the US in the continent. Analysts may well have misconstrued Chinas tactical retreat before the BRICS summit in Xiamen as weakened strategic resolve.

That said Chinas motivations for initiating the crisis through building the road at Doklam are still a matter of guesswork. It may be seeking to achieve several purposes at once. These include improving its negotiating position to extract concessions elsewhere on the Line of Actual Control (LAC), making inroads to threaten the narrow Siliguri corridor that connects Northeast states to the rest of India and driving a wedge between India and Bhutan. All this is really a precipitous decline in ties from two years ago in 2015 when the two countries enthused about realising the Asian century saying that development goals and security interests must unfold in a mutually supportive manner with both sides showing mutual respect and sensitivity to each others concerns, interests and aspirations.

Beijings views on India have clearly changed since then. A fascinating paper by Prof. Kanti Bajpai that was published in the journal International Affairs earlier this year explores the reasons as to why China now sees the relationship in adversarial terms. In the paper titled Narendra Modis Pakistan and China policy: assertive bilateral diplomacy, active coalition diplomacy, Bajpai argues that Modi has made two distinctive shifts in foreign affairs: He has emphasised assertiveness at the expense of cautious prudence and he has set aside Delhis aversion to alliances and focused on international coalition-building  directed at the two neighbours.

Modis approach, in Bajpais view, features a cooperation-defection dynamic whereby exuberant high-level summitry is preceded or succeeded by strategic coalition-building with other nations. In the case of Pakistan during 2014-15, this entailed attempting high-level contact with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif while attempting to isolate Pakistan on the issue of terrorism.

Modi has tried this approach with China as well. The Indian PM invited President Xi Jinping to India in September 2014 and himself visited Beijing in May 2015, but this phase was also marked by Delhis outreach to other powers in the region in way that will have rankled Beijing. Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj, for instance, Modi himself and the Indian President Pranab Mukherjeee made trips to the two most anti-Chinese states in east Asia, Vietnam and Japan, prior to Xis India visit. Modi visited Japan three weeks before Xis visit while Mukherjee was in Vietnam a day before the Chinese President landed in India. Modi also adopted a harder military line when PLA troops confronted Indian soldiers at Chumar in Ladakh, during Xis visit.

Soon after he visited the US for the UN General Assembly session in September 2014, Vietnam in October and Australia in November. Obama arrived in India in January 2015 where the two sides signed the joint strategic vision for the Asia-Pacific and Indian Ocean region. India has been not only strengthening military cooperation with the US, Japan, Vietnam and Australia but it is also consolidating links with key Indian Ocean states. Modi visited Seychelles, Mauritius and Sri Lanka in 2015 as part of an effort to build a maritime coalition to block Chinas growing diplomatic and military inroads into the Indian Ocean region.

Indias assertiveness is also evident in its rhetoric and other policy moves. Modi and Barack Obama co-wrote a Washington Post op-ed in 2014 pledging to jointly work to maintain freedom of navigation and lawful commerce across the seas, thus referring to a partnership in the East and South China Seas. Modi publicly derided China in Japan only days before Xis visit to India. Talking to business leaders in Tokyo he said, The world is divided in two camps. One camp believes in expansionist policies [i.e. China], while the other believes in development. We have to decide whether the world should get caught in the grip of expansionist policies or we should lead it on the path of development. Bajpai plots other points of friction in his research, including Delhis pressure on Beijing to put terrorist Maulana Masood Azhar on a sanctions list and India pressing China to support its admittance to the Nuclear Suppliers Group (and subsequently blaming China when it did not happen). India also went on to oppose the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) as is well-known.

What Bajpais paper shows is that at the time China was seeking to establish dominance in Asia, India was simultaneously pursuing a set of coalition-building strategies to contest Beijings primacy. Given how perceptions matter to aspiring great powers Beijing could not have been seen as taking Indias balancing attempts lightly. The crisis over Doklam may thus have been intended to reset the terms of the bilateral relationship.

How should India view the situation? Its policymakers are well within their rights to argue that Delhis assertiveness was necessary to counter Chinas backing of Pakistan, its periodic incursions on the LAC or its encircling tactics through the putative string of pearls approach or subsequently the BRI and its elements like the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

But the Doklam crisis is an opportune moment to ask if Delhis assertive diplomacy has been effective. Bajpai writes that one of Modis motivations for his policy was to push China towards a border settlement, in the hope that peace would lead to normalisation, rather than the other way around as has been the belief so far. That objective has clearly not been achieved as the border question has been further complicated by the Doklam standoff.

There are a couple of factors for India to consider hereon. One that confrontation with China works only if India has the economic, military and intellectual resources to sustain it. With the growth rates being what they are and universities the state they are in and ammunition reserves only capable of lasting 10 days in a war, India may be better off with an engagement strategy that bides its time, addresses its own weaknesses and is more judicious about which battles to pick with Beijing. Delhi will also know that Asian geopolitics are in a state of drift with a Trump administration in disarray or otherwise preoccupied with North Korea. India will accordingly need to calibrate its ties with a distracted Washington and a rising China in ways that advance its own interests.

Former foreign secretary Nirupama Rao has recently argued that China is, all said and done, an adversary that India can be pragmatic with. Doklam may yet be an opportunity to reset the terms of how Asias two biggest countries deal with each other, if the right lessons are learnt.

The authors Twitter handle is @SushilAaron.

View expressed by the author are personal.

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A Class 11 student, belonging to an upper caste Maratha community, allegedly attacked two of his teachers on Friday with a sharp weapon near Pune after he was asked to come to class with a proper haircut.

The student, who was booked under various Sections including the prevention of atrocity act, also passed some caste remarks against one teacher who reportedly belongs to a scheduled caste community.

According to district police, the two teachers, Dhananjay Abnave (33) and Darshan Chaudhary (30), sustained head injuries after Sunil Popat Bhor (18) attacked them with a sharp weapon on the college premises at Jogeshwari High School and College at Wagholi. Following the assault, Sunil fled the spot and is on the run.

Teacher Darshan Chaudhary also suffered injuries in the attack. (HT Photo)

Police officials said, the teacher reprimanded Sunil for his long hair and indiscipline in class. An irked Sunil, who was asked to come to the school with a proper haircut, attacked the teacher and abused him by passing a caste slur, said police sub-inspector Annasaheb Tapare.

According to Tapare, Chaudhary was standing on the stage of the school and watching the children walk to their classes while Abnave was standing near the stage.

He approached me from behind and suddenly attacked me. He hit my head repeatedly and used the sickle on my chest as well, Abnave told Hindustan Times. While Chaudhary teaches Commerce, Abnave is an Economics teacher.

Chaudhary, When I saw Sunil attack the teacher, I ran towards Abnave sir and tried to separate them. However, the sickle landed on my head as well, Chaudhary added.

He had failed Class 11 last year. In the first three months of his second time in Class 11, his hair was long and he did not follow the discipline demanded by the college. We had held a parent teachers meeting and his parents were not present. On Wednesday, he brought one boy saying he was his brother. However, we asked him to bring his parents, Chaudhary said.

According to Abnave, the headmaster called Sunils father on the phone after which he cut his hair, but wore a monkey cap to class. I asked him to take off the cap inside the classroom which enraged him, Abnave said.

The two teachers claimed that he had assaulted another student last year. Dr Sagar Khadilkar said, There is a fracture in Abnaves parietal bone and he has a 8-9 cm long injury on his head. He also has wounds on his body. He is in the ICU. We will observe him for the next 24 hours.
The Panchkula police on Friday claimed to have arrested the kingpin of a gang that executed at least seven robberies in Panchkula in the past decade.

In the latest incident, the gang had shot at and looted Rs 2.5 lakh from an accountant of a private firm in the Industrial Area on August 11 before absconding in an Alto car.

7 cases in 10 years in Panchkula November 2007: Snatched Rs 4.8 lakh from two youths near Amartex in Industrial Area March 2008: Snatched Rs 40,000 from two men in Sector 5 August 2009: Looted Rs 2 lakh at a petrol pump in Sector 5 February 2012: Rs 16 lakh looted from a bank van near Vishal Mega Mart in Sector 5 May 2012: Shoot at, snatch Rs 4.5 lakh from an ICICI bank customer in Sector 12 January 2013: Rs 7.5 lakh looted at gunpoint in Sector 14 August 2017: Shoot at an accountant of a private firm in Industrial Area, loot Rs 2.5 lakh

The gang is also involved in the robberies at a filling station in 2009 and bank cash van loot in 2012, both in Sector 5 here. The 56-year-old kingpin, Satpal Singh, used to conduct a recce of the area in the guise of a taxi driver, said police.

He executed the latest crime along with his aide Sukhjit Singh of Amritsar, who is absconding. Police have recovered the Alto car, but the pistol with which he shot at the accountant is untraceable, said police.

CCTV footage helped trace him

A glimpse of the accused in a video footage helped us trace him, said inspector Suraj Chawla, who was leading the crime branch team that arrested Satpal. During interrogation, we were surprised to know that he had a major role in several crimes in the past decade.

Panchkula police commissioner AS Chawla said the accused has confessed to having committed seven snatching and robberies. We have got his remand till October 11 to look into his involvement in other crimes and trace his gang members, he said.

Worked as taxi driver

Operating along with at least three other accomplices, Satpal worked as a taxi driver. Hailing from Thera village in Amritsar, he had been living with his family in Kansal village on the outskirts of Sukhna Lake. He has two sons.

Police did not reveal if his family knew about his criminal background, although his elder brother might be involved, they said. He used his brothers pistol to execute the August 11 loot. Probe is underway to find if family was also involved, said the commissioner.

Zen, Etios, Alto  infamous by many names

In late 2000s, the gang became infamous by the name of White Zen gang after executing armed snatchings in Panchkula. Then the gang shifted to an Etios car, before moving to the Alto. Chawla said Satpal could not be arrested, as after each crime he used to lay low for months before striking again.

Their modus operandi was simple, said Chawla. The gang kept an eye on people who withdrew heavy cash from banks or ATMs. The moment such persons came out, the gang used to follow them and waylay them at a secluded place. If anyone resisted, they used to shoot them, said the police commissioner.
The Justice JS Narang (retd) Commission, constituted by the Punjab government to look into power and irrigation minister Rana Gurjit Singhs role in the controversial sand mining auction, found blatant violations of bidding conditions in awarding the tender for two mines to persons alleged to be linked to the minister.

The one-man inquiry panel, which gave a clean chit to Rana Gurjit on all counts, said the bids of Rs 26.52 crore and Rs 9.21 crore by Amit Bahadur and Kulvinder Paul Singh, who were accused of being front-men of the minister, for mines in Saidpur Khurd and Mehadipur villages of Nawanshahr, respectively, were not sustainable.

The two mines were at the centre of the hugely embarrassing controversy that broke out just weeks after the Congress formed the government, forcing it to constitute the inquiry commission.

The two mines were at the centre of the hugely embarrassing controversy that broke out just weeks after the Congress formed the government, forcing it to constitute the inquiry commission.

In its 85-page report, the Narang commission said the two bidders had given categorical statements that they had neither deposited any amount, including processing fee, earnest money and 50% of the bid money, themselves nor any amount had been deposited through their bank accounts as mandatorily provided in the bidding conditions.

As per bidding conditions number 5 and 25, Amit and Kulvinder were required to deposit the earnest money through their respective bank accounts. The earnest money was deposited by Sahil Singla from his personal bank account... he is neither an applicant bidder nor is he recognised by the department as a bidder. The violation stands conclusively established, it said.

Mining dept took deposit in breach of terms

The inquiry report said the department of mines erroneously took the deposit of earnest money on behalf of Amit and Kulvinder from the bank account of Sahil. Also, once the bids were accepted, Amit and Kulvinder were required to pay 50% of the bid amount, which came to 13.35 crore for Saidpur Khurd and 4.61 crore for Mehadipur. However, Sanjit Randhawa, a resident of Chandigarh, deposited this amount for the two mines from his sole propriety firm M/s Rajbir Enterprises, according to the report.

Amit and Kulvinder admitted before the commission that they did not deposit any money towards 50% of the bid amount for the two mines. The violation of condition number 22 stands established, concluded the panel. The report said that Amit and Kulvinder could not have been allowed to participate in the auction. The provisional and final acceptance of the bids for Saidpur Khurd and Mehadipur is not sustainable, it said.

Leader of opposition in Punjab assembly Sukhpal Singh Khaira, who released the commission report at a press conference here, said, Randhawa and Sahil were connected with the power minister and the inquiry panel needed to dig deeper to ferret out the truth in the matter.

Justice Narang had handed over his report to chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh on August 10, but the government kept it under wraps. Khaira got a copy of the report under the Right to Information Act.

Both bidders were put up as front men

The inquiry panel, which was asked to probe whether the two bidders for these mines were bidding on behalf of the minister, said there was ample evidence on record that Amit and Kulvinder were the front men of Randhawa and Sahil.

The entire money has been deposited by Sahil and Randhawa from their accounts and that such monies were not linked with the minister in any manner. Since there is not even an iota of evidence pointing towards the minister for any kind of financial link with the two bidders, the allegation that the two bidders were bidding on behalf of minister is not sustainable, it said.

The commission also rejected the charge that the minister tried to influence the price bid at which these two mines were awarded, saying that the process and procedure of the auction held on May 19 and 20 was computer-controlled, with no human intervention.

Minister and others

called up mines director

Director, mines, Amit Dhaka, told the inquiry commission that when the auction was scheduled to be held, he received calls from a number of persons, including politicians, regarding the procedure of auction. When the officer was put a specific question by the panel on whether Rana Gurjit had phoned him up prior to the date of auction, he stated that the minister did call up and asked for the procedure and process finalised and prescribed for holding the auction. No influence was exerted with regard to these two mines or any other mine by the minister, he told the commission.

Strap/Blurb

Clean chit to Rana Gurjit

One-man inquiry panel gives clean chit to Rana Gurjit on all counts; adds the bids to two men, accused of being front men of the minister, for mines in Nawanshahr, were not sustainable.
Twenty-eight workers, mostly women, had to be hospitalised after fire broke out at a factory producing incense sticks in the Industrial Area, Phase 2, here on Friday noon.

Sources said a spark caused due to electrical works being carried out on the premises of Devdarshan Dhoop factory at Plot No. 345 led to a minor blast in two chemical containers lying there. Sandalwood sawdust, used in preparation of incense sticks and other ceremonial items, caught fire following the blast and soon the blaze spread further. We saw plumes of smoke coming out of the factory around noon, said Radha Devi, who works in an adjacent industrial unit.

At least 20 workers fell unconscious due to asphyxiation.

As many as 28 workers were trapped inside as there was no emergency exit. As fire engulfed the premises, the area was filled with their cries for help, said a witness. The rear wall had to be broken to rescue the trapped workers, said Mukesh, a passerby who helped rescue about a dozen workers. They could hardly speak and were gasping for air, said another rescue worker.

At least 20 workers fell unconscious due to asphyxiation, said Sector-31 station house officer Jaswinder Kaur. All workers  24 women and four men  were rushed to Government Medical College and Hospital, Sector 32, where their condition is stated to be stable. None of them suffered any burn injuries.

Two workers had to be provided extra oxygen, said GMCH director-principal Dr AK Janmeja. He said most of them will be discharged by night.

7 tenders reach spot

Seven fire tenders were rushed to the spot. Besides the civil defence disaster team, UT superintendent of police (SSP) Nilambari Vijay Jagdale too reached there. As the blaze could not be brought under control till as late as 6pm, a JCB machine was called to break the front wall, following which fireman brought out sacks of sandalwood sawdust and other chemicals.

Uma Shankar Gupta, chief fire officer of the Chandigarh municipal corporation, said the fire spread due to incense and desi ghee lying in the factory.

Inquiry ordered

Gupta said he has sought a report from the fire officer. If any violation is found, the factory will be sealed. The SSP, too, has ordered a thorough investigation. Gupta has also issued a show-cause notice to sub fire officer Baljinder Singh for not informing him about the incident. The officer has been given three days to reply.

Rs 40-lakh loss expected

Devdarhsan Dhoop owner PK Jain put the losses at Rs 40 lakh. Most of the machinery and equipment has been gutted, he said. The factory was operating from a rented accommodation. It has been manufacturing incense sticks and other items used in religious ceremonies for the past two decades.
The Punjab and Haryana high court on Friday pulled up the Punjab government for failing to increase its annual grant to Panjab University, during the resumed hearing on the issue of financial crisis being faced by the varsity.

Sexual harassment: PU syndicate meet on Oct 7 In a special meeting of the Panjab University syndicate will be held on Saturday to discuss a letter sent by the Vice-Presidents office, seeking the status report in an alleged case of sexual harassment involving vice-chancellor AK Grover

Reasoning that 90% colleges affiliated to Panjab University (PU) are in Punjab, the high court (HC) asked the state government to enhance its grant, which stands at Rs 27 crore at present.

Earlier, during the hearing, PU vice-chancellor professor Arun Grover told the court that the Punjab government had been providing Rs 20 crore annually to the university since 2001. He said the recent enhancement in the grant to Rs 27 crore was not in proportion to the increased expenditure of the varsity. Prof Grover told the HC that PU generates Rs 293 crore from fees and other resources, while the Centre provides Rs 207 crore annually, but the amount is not enough to meet the ever-increasing expenses.

He said an enhanced grant and its timely disbursal by Punjab will come as a relief to PU.

Affiliation of Haryana colleges on cards

During the hearing, the Haryana government apprised the HC bench that it had sent a proposal to the Union home ministry regarding affiliation of colleges in the state to PU. The Union ministry counsel confirmed that they had received the proposal to allow affiliation of certain colleges in Haryana to PU and the decision will be taken soon. The HC asked the Centre to expedite the decision.
The chief legal adviser and the personal assistant of Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh have had their testicles removed, police found after arresting them, raising fears that forced castrations may have been widespread in the sect led by a man who is now in prison for rape.

Lawyer Daan Singh and Rakesh Kumar were arrested over the widespread violence carried out by followers of the sect after their leader was convicted of rape in late August.

During investigation, it was found that testicles of the two were missing. We have now asked for their medical examination from the local government hospital, said a police official in Panchkula, the epicentre of the violence.

Officials have now set up a committee of medical experts to determine if there was a natural explanation for the missing testicles.

A former Dera Sacha Sauda member had in 2012 alleged that at least 400 men were castrated after being drugged inside the sects Sirsa, Haryana campus. Gurmeet Singh would apparently tell his followers that the procedure would get them closer to god.

Navkiran Singh, the counsel of the former Dera leader who made the allegation, said: These findings are not really surprising. We want CBI investigation to conclude at the earliest in this matter.

The CBI is investigating the castration cases since 2015 and the recent findings could give momentum to the case.

A senior police officer said the CBI has been informed and according to Panchkula civil surgeon Dr Sanjeev Trehan, a medical board has been set up to determine the circumstances in which the testicles of Daan Singh and Rakesh Kumar were removed.

The medical examination of the two will be conducted on Monday.

Trehan said such examinations involve hormonal studies and diagnostic tests such as ultra scan to find out whether or not they faced any surgical removal of organs.

Also read | Former Dera Sacha Sauda follower says, Castrated sadhus were given licence to kill

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Samantha Ruth Prabhu and Naga Chaitanyas Hindu wedding took place in the wee hours of Saturday in presence of family and close friends. The videos of rituals surfaced online and have already gone viral. Pictures of the happy bride and groom are being shared by fans with their wishes for their favourite couple.

After the mehendi ceremony in which Samantha and Naga Chaitanya enjoyed music and the company of their friends, the guests headed out for dinner before the muhurtham began at 11.52pm. The videos showed both Samantha and Chay during the rituals of Telugu wedding customs. From being on the opposite side of a long piece of cloth to showering each other with rice, it was all done.

Samantha is seen sporting a happy grin on her big day with her long-time sweet heart. She looked gorgeous in the vintage sari, which was worn by Chays grandmother before.

Photos from Samanthas Instagram stories.

The pictures of the couple were also posted by Nagarjuna on his official Twitter page. He wrote, Chaisam happiness is now official.

 A post shared by samantha ruth prabhu (@samantharuthprabhuofficiall) on Oct 6, 2017 at 11:00am PDT

A post shared by samantha ruth prabhu (@samantharuthprabhuofficiall) on Oct 6, 2017 at 11:21am PDT

Naga Chaitanya, who met Samantha on the sets of Ye Maaya Chesave looked happy. On Saturday, the couple will be say I do in a Christian ceremony and we cannot wait to see Samantha in her wedding gown. Also, the actor has promised to her fans on Twitter that she will be sharing her wedding vows with them.

It is going to be a dreamy wedding for this gorgeous bride, who has won hearts of fans everywhere with her films.

A post shared by samantha ruth prabhu (@samantharuthprabhuofficiall) on Oct 6, 2017 at 10:51am PDT

Present at the wedding was the family of Nagarjuna, Venkatesh, Samanthas close friends from the industry Chinmayi and Rohit Ravichandran, popular VJ Ramya Subramaniam and Vennela Kishore among others. They also shared moments from the wedding with their fans on social media.

Its yet unknown where the couple will head for their honeymoon, amidst rumours that they might go to the Bahamas in December and not immediately due to their work commitments. Chaitanya will commence work on his new Telugu film Savyasachi, to be directed by Chandoo Mondeti, from October third week. Samantha, on the other hand, awaits the release of Vijays Mersal, which is due to hit the screens this Diwali. She also has Telugu horror-comedy Raju Gari Gadhi 2 in her kitty.

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Police officers stand next to a person with a bandaged ankle near the Natural History Museum, after a car mounted the pavement, in London on Saturday. Photo/Agencies)

London Metropolitan Police said on Saturday afternoon a car hit and injured several pedestrians outside the Natural History Museum in West London.

The police has confirmed the car crash incident is not being treated as a terror-related incident. It's a road collision.

One person has been arrested by security staff members following the incident in Exhibition Road in South Kensington.

A spokesperson of Scotland Yard said: "It is not being treated as a terrorist incident at this stage while we establish what has happened."

Images and footages on social showed a black Toyota Prius mounted the pavement.

An eyewitness who was walking to the Science Museum told BBC: "When waiting for the light, we heard what I thought was gunshots and saw a car drive over the pavement. We just ran. My friend dived on the floor and cut her hands."

Exhibition Road is home to the Natural History Museum, the Science Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum, which are popular with tourists.

Inquiries are under way to establish the circumstances, according to the police.

A Downing Street spokesman said the prime minister is "being kept up to date on events".

The current terror threat level in the UK is "severe", the second-highest, which means an attack is highly likely.

wangmingjie@mail.chinadailyuk.com
Television actor Vivian Dsenas personal life has remained the hottest talk of the town, especially after his separation with wife, actor Vahbiz Dorabjee. While there has been speculation about him and Vahbiz finding love in someone else, Vivian sets the record straight saying that he doesnt like to pay attention to gossip mongers.

I laugh at those who spread rumours about me. I pity those people who create and cook up such things. They should use their imagination to create something constructive instead. Actually, I feel honoured that they take out time to talk about me in this otherwise busy life, he quips.

The actor so far has remained tight-lipped about his personal life and plans to keep it that way only. I dont like to talk about my private life. Personal life is meant to be personal and Im happy in my professional space. I go to the set and work, he says.

Asked if people taking so much interest in his personal life bothers him in any way, Vivian adds, Being a public figure, Im aware that people are curious to know more about my life, but that doesnt give me sleepless nights.

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What happens when two former chiefs of intelligence agencies of India and Pakistan meet in London  not covertly but openly in the company of diplomats, students and current operatives in the academic environs of the London School of Economics?

AS Dulat, the former head of Indias Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), and Ehsan-ul-Haq, former chief of Pakistans Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), retired long ago but the unique event on Friday night was marked by much banter and barbs, delighting the packed audience that was left wanting more.

Lost in the air was the theme of the seminar  Can intelligence services do good?  when Ehsan-sab and Boss, as Dulat called him, focussed on Jammu and Kashmir and terrorism in his opening remarks, setting the stage for the two issues that dominated the event.

Dulat and Ehsan, who served in their respective offices in the early 2000s, were key players in sensitive issues, often taking adversarial postures and actions, but at LSE they could not agree more with each other on Jammu and Kashmir, terrorism and peace talks.

Ehsan dwelt on what he called the mass uprising in Jammu and Kashmir since July last year, following the death of jihadi commander Burhan Wani, and harped on the need to resume the stalled dialogue between the two countries. Dulat agreed with him that India had committed mistakes and created a mess in the state.

Dulat also agreed that talks should be resumed between the two sides, since war is not an option and dialogue is the only way out. India, he said, needs to make an exception and talk along with terrorism (New Delhi has ruled out parleys until Pakistan-backed terrorism is stopped).

The former RAW chief said: The magic of it all, as Ehsan-sab said, is mainstreaming and also democracy. The mistakes that we are making (in Jammu and Kashmir), apart from the mess that we have created, still not talking to people, high time we started talking to peopleWe need to deal with Kashmir in a more civilised manner.

These red lines about Hurriyatwe have got it absolutely wrong because the whole idea of talking to the Hurriyat is to mainstream them, get them into the democratic processThe PDP-BJP coalition was expected to bring Jammu and Srinagar closer, but it has taken them further apart because Kashmiris have never forgiven the PDP for bringing the RSS into the (Kashmir) valley.

In the BJPs mind, the RSS may have come into the valley but the RSS is not going to achieve anything there, he added.

A flyer for the seminar on the theme Can intelligence services do good? that was held at the London School of Economics on October 6, 2017. (HT Photo)

Another point of agreement between the two former spooks was the need for cooperation between Indian and Pakistan intelligence agencies.

Dulat, an old Kashmir hand who headed Indias external intelligence agency during 1999-2000, said there were instances when interaction between RAW and ISI had produced more than the desired results, and Ehsan had been witness to at least one such major result.

Amid knowing guffaws and smiles, Dulat chided Ehsan and reminded him of his relationship with his Indian counterpart, of India tipping off Pakistan about a potential threat to the life of former president Pervez Musharraf, and of covert talks defusing a major flashpoint in the early 2000s.

Dulat said: He (Ehsan) is still using the ploy of plausible deniability and being rather modest about his relationship which was well known. And from all that I know it was a great relationship that produced results. I think Sir, you recall the 2003 ceasefire took place because of you and your friend.

The remarks evoked laughter from Ehsan.

Dulat added, And if I can go beyond, your friend also tipped you with intelligence which may have saved Gen Musharrafs life. And I think that is something that even Gen Musharraf in a way acknowledges. So I dont think we need to deny that. It is a feather in your cap, Sir, and a feather in your friends cap.

Ehsan was made the head of the ISI in October 2001, weeks after the 9/11 attacks in the US, and remained in the post for three years. His elevation was part of a reshuffle carried out by Musharraf to purge the military and intelligence agencies of officers who were considered sympathetic to the Taliban and al-Qaeda.

In early 2004, media reports had suggested that a tip-off from then RAW chief CD Sahay to Ehsan had helped thwart an attempt on the life of Musharraf, who had survived two assassination attempts in December 2003. At the time, Islamabad had strongly denied receiving any tip-off from India.

According to Ehsan, a debate was on in Pakistan about deradicalising and mainstreaming these entities which have been involved in extremist and militant activities. A consensus is needed on this but such attempts, he said, should be music to Indias ears.

The development of democracy in Pakistan, he said, had a difficult history but he felt encouraged by events of the past decade. After the 2008 general election, there was the first peaceful transition from one elected government to another.

There are growing demands for better democracy, governance and accountability, and not to support military intervention, Ehsan said.

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Danish police said on Saturday divers had found the head and the legs of Swedish journalist Kim Wall, who died in mysterious circumstances on an inventors home-made submarine.

Peter Madsen has been charged with killing the Swedish journalist who disappeared after she went on a trip with him in his submarine on August 10.

Madsen, a Dane, was arrested after his submarine sank and he was rescued.

Police identified a headless female torso that washed ashore in Copenhagen later in August as Walls, but a cause of death has not been determined.

Madsen has said Wall died in an accident when she was hit by a heavy hatch cover on board his submarine.

On Saturday, a police spokesman said in Copenhagen that there were no fractures to Walls skull.

The body parts, a knife and some of Walls clothes in bags weighted down by bits of metal were found in Koge Bay on Friday by Danish navy divers who are assisting the police.

Police spokesman Jens Moller Jensen said on Saturday that the body parts will be investigated further to try and determine a cause of death.

He said the Madsen and his lawyers had not had time yet to react to the new evidence.

A police prosecutor said this week that officers had found images which we presume to be real of women being strangled and decapitated on the hard drive on Peter Madsens computer in a laboratory he ran.

Madsen said the computer searched by police was not his but was used by everyone in the laboratory.
A Swedish model said she received rape threats on social media for an ad in which her legs were unshaven.

Arvida Bystrom, 26, wrote in an Instagram post on September 25 that she received nasty comments and rape threats after an Adidas ad featuring her was released.

Literally Ive been getting rape threats in my DM inbox. I cant even begin to imagine what its like to not posses all these privileges and try to exist in the world, she wrote in a post liked by over 21,000 Instagram users.

Bystrom, who is also a photographer and an artist, says in the ad that has been viewed more than 5 lakh times on YouTube: I think femininity is created by our culture. I feel like everyone can do feminine things, be feminine.

Some users abused the Swedish model and said the ad was disgusting, calling Bystrom a hairy woman and feminist scum.

However, many users stepped up to defend the models choice and said it is a womans body and her right alone to decide how she wants to look. Others said it was natural for women to have body hair and they shouldnt have to conform to societal standards of grooming.

This is what a woman looks like in her natural state. Societal standards have warped what is conceived as normal for a while now, said a user Andy D.

Adidas said in a statement it is honoured to work with creators like Arvida for their creativity, diversity and unique ideas, adding that it wants to provide a platform for positivity, discussion and change, the BBC reported.

Bystrom regularly posts photos challenging the accepted notions of body image. She and artist Molly Soda had collaborated on a book Pics or It Didnt Happen which featured bodies of 270 women. The book was taken down on Instagram for violating its community rules, The Guardian said. Bystrom was also a part of Vice series in 2012 -- called There will be Blood -- that photographed women during their menstrual cycles.
Saudi King Salmans historic four-day trip to Moscow, where he met Russian President Vladimir Putin for talks, came to an end on Saturday.

This was the first ever visit to Russia by a Saudi monarch and experts have viewed King Salmans trip as signalling a shift in global power equations. Oil was the number one issue on the agenda as the two countries cemented their new friendship by signing billion dollar deals and trade agreements. Russia and Saudi Arabia also inked a $3 billion arms deal, under which Saudi Arabia is set to buy S-400 air defence systems, Kornet anti-tank guided missile systems and multiple rocket launchers.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud attend a welcoming ceremony ahead of their talks at the Kremlin. (AFP)

Ties between the two countries were often strained in the past. During Cold War times, the Saudis helped arm Afghan rebels fighting against the Soviet invasion. More recently, tensions were high over the war in Syria, in which Russia has staunchly backed Syrian President Bashar Assad while Saudi Arabia has supported his foes.

But hostilities seemed a thing of the past as Russia rolled out a lavish carpet for King Salman.The Saudi king landed in Moscow to be greeted by giant billboards emblazoned with his own image and a message welcoming him to Russia in Arabic and Russian, reported CNN.

The two leaders discussed an oil deal, trade agreements and an arms deal as well. (AP)

Hosting the Saudi king in the ornate, gilded Kremlin interiors, Putin hailed his visit as a landmark event that will give a strong impulse to bilateral ties. Salman said he was looking to expand relations with friendly nation Russia in the interests of peace, security and development of the world economy.

Members of the Russian delegation, led by President Putin, meet with members of the Saudi delegation, led by King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, at the Kremlin. (AFP)

Besides its implcations for realpolitick, King Salmans visit garnered interest for its lavishness. The Saudi monarch was reportedly travelling with a delegation of 1500 people, his own carpets and a golden escalator that malfunctioned while the 81-year-old was deboarding his private jet in Moscow.

Saudi King Salman walks down the escalator of his plane upon arrival in Moscow's Government Vnukovo airport, Russia. (AP)

But the Saudi kings grand entry was more than matched by Putins hospitality. News site Al Arabiya shared photos of Putin and King Salman having tea at the Kremlin, where the Russian President is seen pouring the beverage for his guest, under the Kremlins golden interiors.

Social media, of course, spotted the potential for a few jokes as pictures of the high-optics Putin-Salman meeting started doing the rounds.

From Putin to Saudi King Salman: If you have got dysfunctioned golden plane escalator, I have golden palaces see! ;) pic.twitter.com/AYy1RJb7Dc  curdistani (@curdistani) October 6, 2017

The photo album of the Putin and Salman date is the best thing to hit the internet this year. pic.twitter.com/pDbDLtegl3  Jamal Ghosn (@jamalghosn) October 6, 2017

The most epic anime battle ever pic.twitter.com/Ysyzw6LAqC  DAVE (@BalkanJesus) October 5, 2017

Folks, this is Vladimir Putin, the Leader of Russia meeting with Saudi Arabias King Salman. Trump needs to work with Russia #AllianceShift pic.twitter.com/D0EAD5gkNf  For Thou Art With Me (@kmbiamnozie) October 7, 2017
After a 12-hour ordeal, rescue workers pulled a two-year-old girl unharmed out of a deep crevice she tumbled into during a family hike in the Swiss Alps, police said Friday.

She emerged basically unscathed, with just a few scratches, Christian Zuber, a spokesman for the regional police in the canton of Valais, told AFP.

The girl and her family, reportedly from the German-speaking part of Switzerland, had been visiting the region near the Aletsch glacier in southern Switzerland when she strayed from a footpath and fell into a narrow fissure in the ground.

The accident occurred around midday Wednesday, Zuber said.

More than 100 rescue workers toiled into the early hours of Thursday to hoist the girl out of six-metre-deep (20-foot) cavity, he said, adding that she was finally pulled up around 2 am (0000 GMT).

Matthias Lorenz, who heads the fire brigade in the Aletsch region, told the ATS news agency that the rescue workers had been in a race against the clock as they carefully moved away earth, rocks and boulders, centimetre by centimetre.

The child had given signs of life throughout the rescue operation, he said.

I have never before seen such a rescue operation, he added.

The girl was later taken by helicopter to a hospital in Bern, where she spent one night under observation before being released, Zuber said.
Could US President Donald Trump just have been messing with the press when he shot off the mysterious calm before the storm comment? Was he subtly giving a nod to a general perception of the madman theory  that he says crazy things to keep people guessing?

Trumps remark came at a dinner with military leaders on Thursday. While posing for a picture with them and their spouses, Trump had pointed to the room and asked reporters if they knew what it represents.

Maybe its the calm before the storm, he said.

He ignored follow up questions and refused to divulge whether he meant North Korea, Iran, Syria or the Islamic State  four entities he had repeatedly attacked on Twitter since become president. Youll find out, he simply said.

Trump followed that line of thought on Friday, when reporters asked him about his cryptic remark at a White House event. Youll find out, he said.

Questions about his remark dominated the daily White House briefing on Friday, with reporters returning to in different ways to get some clarity from an evasive press secretary Sarah Sanders, who seemed as much in the dark about it everyone else.

Second-guessing Trump is one of possibly the most tricky adventures for anyone to undertake in this White House. He is known to contradict his spokespersons and aides with both words and actions.

Asked if Trump was referring to military action, Sanders hedged, As weve said many times before... were never going to say in advance what the president is going to do. And as he said last night, in addition to those comments, youll have to wait and see.

To another question, if US citizens and adversaries should take those remarks seriously, Sanders said, I think you can take the president protecting the American people always extremely serious.

In reply to a general query about the administration having exhausted diplomacy, Sanders offered up North Korea, unprompted, Were continuing to put maximum economic and diplomatic pressure on countries like North Korea. Were going to continue to do that. But at the same time, the President is going to keep all of his options on the table.

So, was Trump referring to North Korea? Sanders reeled herself back saying she had cited the country only as an example, and added ominously: There are several examples there.

With the spokesperson unable to furnish a satisfactory response, reporters fell back on the madman theory  could he have subscribed to that? Sanders agreed: He certainly doesnt want to lay out his game plan for our enemies. So if youre asking, is the president trying to do that  absolutely.

Or could Trump be messing with the press? I wouldnt say that hes messing with the press, Sanders said. I think we have some serious world issues here. I think that North Korea, Iran both continue to be bad actors.
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Apart from hosting and possible maintenance costs, there are not exactly downsides to having your own website. Even if its just a personal blog it can always become more useful down the line, if you utilize it in the right manner. In other words, more
It was another highly memorable night in Kilkenny!

We suspect that the champagne corks are still popping in Kilkennys Lyrath Estate Hotel where last night the IMRO Radio Awards were doled out.

98FM drive man Dara Quilty scored a notable double with General Music Programme and Music Broadcaster gongs heading home with him to Dublin.

There were impressive showings by RTE Radio 1, Newstalk and BBC Radios Ulster and Foyle.

We were thrilled to see Paul McLoone bagging Specialist Music Programme while Pat Kenny, Ray DArcy and Neil Prendeville were all acknowledged for still being top of their game after all these years.

Here are the winners:

General Music Programme  The Big Ride Home with Dara Quilty (98FM)

Specialist Music Programme  The Paul McLoone Show (Today FM)

Breakfast Programme  PJ & Jim In The Morning (Classic Hits 4FM)

New Irish Music  ALT Guerilla Sessions (Spin South West)

Music Special - Fleadh Cheoil na hEireann (Clare FM)

Music Broadcaster  Dara Quilty (98FM)

Music Station  RTE Lyric FM

Radio DJ  Steve K (Spin 1038)

Specialist Music Broadcaster  John Toal (BBC Radio Ulster)

News Broadcaster  Sarah McInerney (Newstalk)

News Reporter  Kevin Magee (BBC Radio Ulster)

News Story - The Stephen Nolan Show: The RHI Scandal (BBC Radio Ulster)

Sports Programme  Off The Ball (Newstalk)

Sports Broadcaster  Ger Gilroy (Newstalk)

Speech Broadcaster  Mark Patterson (BBC Radio Foyle)

Music Documentary  Cathal Funges 1977 (Today FM)

News Bulletin  Q Radio News Bulletin

News Programme  The National Lunchtime News (Today FM)

Current Affairs Programme  President Trump (Newstalk Drive)

Sports Story  A Warrior On The Field (BBC Radio Foyle)

Newcomer  Una Kelly (BBC Radio Foyle)

Documentary/Feature  No Time To Lose (RTE Radio 1)

Short Feature  The Pat Kenny Show: A History Of Scandal In The Catholic Church (Newstalk)

Magazine Programme  The Ray DArcy Show (RTE Radio 1)

Drama  I See Refuge (RTE Radio 1)

Specialist Speech Programme  Living With Locked-In Syndrome (Newstalk)

Craoltoireacht Le Gaeilge - Cormac ag a Cuig (RTE Raidio na Gaeltachta)

Interactive Speech Programme  Neil Prendeville Show: Breaking The Silence (Red FM)

Comedy Programme  Colm ORegan Wants A Word (Sideline Productions for RTE Radio 1)

Community/Social Action  Corks 96FM Giving For A Living Radiothon

Best Live Sound, Music  John Benson (BBC Radio Ulster)

On-Air Competitions/Promotions  The Chosen One (Red FM)

Station Imaging  98FM

Entertainment Inserts  Gift Grub (Today FM)

Innovation  Liveline 1917 (RTE Radio 1)

Local Station Of The Year  LMFM

Full Service Station  RTE Radio 1
Nashville's finest descend on the 3Arena again next March...

The first batch of acts has been confirmed for 2018s Country 2 Country festival, which runs from March 9-11 in Dublins 3Arena and Glasgows SSE Hydro with the bills switching over.

Its an intriguing mix of new and established Nashville acts, with Hot Press faves Margo Price, Kacey Musgraves and Emmylou Harris lining up alongside Faith Hill & Tim McGraw, Little Big Town, Kelsea Ballerini, Luke Combs, Midland and Kip Moore.

Tickets go on sale on Friday October 20, with day splits and more artists being announced soon.
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An angry, cursing face. A head of broccoli. A "Citizen Kane"-style sled. A black mountain climber. A genderless person, available in a range of races and ages.

Apple's new emojis are here.

First announced on World Emoji Day (yes, apparently, that exists) in July, hundreds of new emojis will be available next week on iPhone and iPad with iOS 11.1, Apple said Friday.

Emojis, colorful and playful pictograms that are available on a range of devices, have altered the way that humans communicate with one another and have become a powerful force in pop culture, both online and off.

Hillary Clinton tried to use emojis to reach out to young voters during the 2016 campaign. Last summer, Sony Pictures released a movie that imagined emojis' inner emotional life. (Neither the campaign nor the film was a success. The real-world track record of emojis is not great.)

Nevertheless, emojis have provided a cheeky visual shorthand for such common experiences as laughing, vomiting and, with the latest update, the desire to reference a hedgehog in everyday conversation.

Greater diversity

The latest update appears to continue a yearslong trend toward greater diversity among emojis, which began in earnest in 2015, when Apple allowed users to select the skin tone of most of the human pictograms.

The company said in a statement that the new emojis were "designed to reveal every detail" and were adopted from approved characters used in earlier updates.

Among the options announced Friday were a woman in a headscarf, a woman breast-feeding and what the company called the love-you gesture, which it said was designed after the sign for "I love you" in American Sign Language, which combines the signs for the letters I, L and Y.

So, how does a new emoji find its way to your screen? The process is complicated enough that it might make you feel like a smiley face with a nuclear mushroom cloud erupting from your head. (Yes, that is one of the new ones.)

The process is shepherded by the Unicode Consortium, a little-known group that meets quarterly and includes executives from several large technology companies, including Apple and Google.

The consortium was founded in the 1980s to develop a standardized code for text characters - including letters, numerals and, in the present day, emojis - that enables different computers easily to communicate with one other.

'Completeness'

The Unicode Consortium's co-founder and president, Mark Davis, 63, described how the group chose emojis in an interview with the New York Times in 2015.

Among the factors he cited for inclusion were whether the symbol had been translated into Unicode and how likely it was to be popular or useful.

"Completeness" was also an influential factor, he said, citing the addition of a mosque and a synagogue to the emoji lexicon that had already included an image of a church.
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A man was found dead on the ground with multiple gunshot wounds Friday night in north Houston.

Police found the man around 10:30 p.m. in the 900 block of Greens Road at the Woods of Greenbriar apartment complex, according to Kyle Heaverlo with the Houston Police Department.

He was pronounced dead at 10:40 p.m. by the Houston Fire Department.

A witness was brought downtown to talk with detectives, but Heaverlo said the motive is unclear.

Anyone with information should contact HPD Homicide at 713-308-3600.
Student and instructor face and bow. Both utter in Japanese: onegaishimasu  please teach me  because in karate, disciple and sensei can learn from one another.

At this Missouri City dojo, or school, one practitioner is both, and he is proving that teachers are as varied as the colors of karate belts.

Mike Griffith, a 21-year-old who lives in Sugar Land, has earned a second-degree black belt at Dai-Ichi Shotokan Karate-Do. The accomplishment is perhaps doubly impressive because he has autism and hypotonia, a condition marked by low muscle tone and strength that meant when he started seven years ago, he struggled to balance on one foot, let alone kick.

"Karate has boosted my confidence," Griffith said.

That's putting it mildly, according to his mother, Holly Griffith, who recalls that her son didn't speak until he was over 2 years old and didn't use standard American Sign Language as a toddler because he had trouble opening his hands.

Her son wasn't bullied in school, but he wasn't coordinated or involved in sports, either. By the time an acquaintance enrolled in karate when Griffith was a high school freshman, his mother and father, Phil, wanted to "find somebody, anybody who (would) go out of their way to make this project work," she said.

They discovered that Shotokan karate at this dojo was the perfect fit.

"Shotokan is not about fighting," Holly Griffith said. "It's about discipline, respect and mental fortitude"  qualities her son has in spades.

More Information Shotokan karate Master Gichin Funakoshi introduced modern "karate-do" from Okinawa to mainland Japan in the early 20th century. His method became known as Shotokan (literally "House of Shoto," Funakoshi's pen name as a poet). Shotokan karate bears influences in technique and philosophical teachings of older Chinese Shaolin kung fu and southern Shokei style. Today it is widely practiced in the United States. As a personal development discipline, it emphasizes nonviolence.

Source: Shotokan Karate of America See More Collapse

His sensei, Ricardo Johns, who owns and runs Dai-Ichi with his wife, Audrey, and two sons, had to overcome a learning curve, too. For decades, Johns, 66, has trained Olympians and other elite athletes as well as military in the United States and his native Panama (he was born in the Canal Zone and holds dual citizenship). He knew training Griffith would be different.

"Mike was a challenge," said Johns, a ninth-degree black belt who's called "Hanshi," an honorific title meaning master. From the students in his special-needs class, "I had to learn the way they learn. ... You have to wait for them to respond to you.

"(Griffith) may not have looked like he was listening, but he was. When the typical kids were (running) all over the place, I'd tell Mike, 'Don't move,' and he wouldn't move. It was the way he internalized instruction."

Indeed, "kids come and go, but his dedication is unmatched," said Khalil Johns, a Houston police detective who has taught Griffith alongside his father.

The elder Johns and his fellow senseis aim to develop the whole person in a setting where everyone is family. For children, that includes helping with homework and teaching Spanish in Dai-Ichi's after-school program. If Griffith was struggling, Johns often asked, "Do I need to meet with his teachers?" Holly Griffith said.

Griffith embraced the culture around karate as well.

"I took three years of Japanese in high school because I had Pokemon cards I wanted to be able to translate," he said with a small smile. Dai-Ichi's classes are peppered with a mix of English and Japanese. On one wall of the dojo hang the Panamanian, American and Japanese flags.

At 18, as he neared black-belt level, Griffith started holding his head up around the neighborhood, his mother said. How did Johns know he was ready to test for the top color?

"I saw his eyes," Johns said. "Mike looked very deep."

The sensei "didn't cut him any slack" by excluding any of the 15 katas, or sequences of punching, blocking and kicking moves, required to earn a black belt. Hypotonia may mean Griffith's punching arm isn't in a perfectly straight line, and his fist may be turned up slightly at the wrist. Still, he met the technical requirements.

During his test, his sparring partner's eyes got wide as Griffith landed his punches. Dozens of black belts called out "ous!"  a declaration that something really good is happening.

"The point is to be the best him," Johns said. "I wasn't looking for perfection by the classic standard. I was looking for Mike's perfection."

Three years and three additional katas later, Griffith, who studies biology at Wharton County Junior College, has his second-degree black belt.

A teaching component is required to earn a third-degree black belt; Griffith now demonstrates techniques in the children's classes and for adults with lower belts  including his mother. Holly Griffith was so inspired by her son, she took up karate and is now an advanced green belt, an intermediate level.

"He's my sensei," she said, laughing. "But I always tell him, 'I'm the sensei at home, you're the sensei here.' "

Griffith is more matter-of-fact.

"I mostly watch how she does things, and then at home I'll go over things with her and how we both can do better," he said. "We're kind of each other's sensei in that regard."

The fourth-degree test likely will be tougher  Griffith will have to complete a research project and write an essay. Writing, he says, has never come easily to him. In high school, his learning accommodations included multiple-choice and oral exams (though for an assignment on everyday applications of math, he wrote about the angles in karate moves).

Another black belt compared Shotokan karate to tai chi and other disciplines; Griffith plans to focus on karate and special needs. It's a subject he's written about before: A framed copy of the college-application essay he agonized over hangs at the dojo.

"I am physically weak. I have scoliosis, hypotonia (low muscle tone), Autism, anxiety and many other characteristics that would make me the least likely individual to study karate," it reads in part. "... I did not notice my own great progress until I began to write this paper and compared myself now with my former self. I am stronger, more balanced and more confident and I have developed into a leader."

Part of being a leader in the martial arts is letting go of ego. He embraces the idea of "once a student, always a student," regardless of belt color, giving a fist bump to a preteen purple-belt girl during class.

His advice to those with special needs who might like to try karate: "Go for it, but keep in mind that it is a big commitment.

"And for parents, don't expect the kid will want to be there right off the bat. ... Once I got used to how things went and the people involved, I got to where I actually wanted to do things more."

The mark of a good student, and a good teacher.
Rapper Lecrae declared five years ago, "I see more trials than Cochran."

He had no idea what was yet to come. The cover of his new album "All Things Work Together" is a carefully assembled visual: Lecrae's head is pictured in profile leaning toward looking away with a two-tone background.

"White and black, in and not, chaotic hair, but that's by design," he says. "There's this gray hope in chaos, and you have to be OK with it. Because there will be chaos. You don't know what will happen: If a hurricane will hit, if an earthquake will hit. You go in with hope and try to keep it through, so you don't have to live in despair. The idea is you tunnel through chaos and come out the other side."

"All Things Work Together" is the sound of a man working through a chaotic year. Lecrae Moore, who plays Revention Music Center Thursday, is one of the most successful rap artists working today, and he's done so outside the traditional hip-hop machinery. Namely, his music has been marketed to a Christian audience drawn to his transparent and earnest lyrics about struggles - including drug addiction. But last year when Lecrae lent his voice to the growing chorus of people questioning policing tactics that were leaving unarmed black men dead, the backlash snapped quickly.

Last summer on his Twitter account, Lecrae posted an undated photo of seven African-American people in a cotton field with the comment, "My family on July 4th 1776."

More Information Lecrae When: 6 p.m. Thursday Where: Revention Music Center, 520 Texas Tickets: $28; 713-230-1600, livenation.com See More Collapse

"Done supporting you bro," went one Tweeted response. "You make everything a race issues (sic) lately instead of a gospel issue. You promote guilt instead of love."

Other replies followed, many suggesting cut ties between performer and fan.

"I just got to a place last year where I didn't care anymore," Lecrae says. "I got to a place where I knew I wouldn't heal if I kept pretending and hid from things that mattered to me. It came at a cost. But a lot of times people think they love a person, but they don't know the real you. I want to make music for people who genuinely love me. And the only way for that to happen is if they see all of me. So that's why I did what I did."

"All Things Work Together" charts this tumultuous time in the tumultuous life of the Houston native. As with his previous work, the new album is full of doubt. But he also serves a more sharpened sense of defiance.

"I'm in the gray, too, and I'm OK with that," he says. "I reserve the right to be wrong sometimes. But I also reserve the right to explore complexity instead of resting in what I think of as certainty. Certainty deserves to be shaken up. There are absolute truths: I have two legs. But there aren't many of them. And there are things we're just comfortable with that aren't necessarily true. Resting in those is dangerous."

Lecrae front loads the album with the defiance: "Always Knew," "Facts" and "Broke" make no apologies.

"When you speak out for your race, just watch," he raps on "Always Knew." "They gon' twist and say you hate these cops."

He gets into various audience expectations on "Facts": "Choppin' out the church, he ain't real, he fake/He divisive, he don't rep the King, he just want the fame/Aw man, now they actin' like I'm suddenly political/Told me shut my mouth and get my checks from Evangelicals."

These issues were bound to find a crack to get to the surface, but Lecrae has maintained for years he doesn't believe the word "Christian" should've been used as an adjective tied to the word "rapper."

"I'm a Christian," he told me two years ago. "And I'm a rapper."

Scareface was huge influence

Houston references can be found throughout "All Things Work Together"; a reference to the Third Ward here, or Hakeem Olajuwon there.

Lecrae Moore was born in Houston in 1979, though his was a peripatetic childhood, with his mother relocating multiple times including to Colorado and California. Still Houston culture left an imprint.

"Scarface was a huge influence," he says of the H-town rapper. "And my family is huge, and most of them are in Houston. It's the base, so even when I was living elsewhere, I soaked up that culture."

His teenage years were a blur of drugs and drink, but by the time he turned 20 he had given up that lifestyle and found himself in a Bible study. At 25, he made his first album, "Real Talk."

At first Lecrae made ripples on the Gospel and Christian charts. He was the right guy making the right music at the right time. A generation raised on hip-hop but not necessarily down with the indulgences associated with the genre found him to be a singular voice. Subsequent albums crept onto the pop charts, while sales jumped into the tens-of-thousands.

Gatekeepers of mainstream music often are slow to recognize things occurring on the fringes. When Lecrae released "Gravity" in 2012, people outside his community finally took notice. The record sold more than 70,000 copies in its first week of release, good enough for No. 3 on the Billboard 200. Two years later "Anomaly" sold nearly 90,000 copies in its first week and bowed at No. 1.

The Christian rapper tag continued to be affixed to his work, but Lecrae wasn't playing to a small niche audience. He had found another path to mainstream hip-hop success and was interacting with his heroes.

On the new song "Always Knew," he raps, "Never met my dad but I met the music that made me," which he rhymes with "Jay-Z."

"That's just expressing my reality," he says. "It's crazy to me that I don't have a relationship with my biological father. But hip-hop really did become the leading developmental force in my life in a lot of ways. Those were the male figures I looked up to. And then I'd find myself at a party with Kanye West and Jay-Z. To me, it was just making the most of what life handed to me. I got lemons, I made lemonade."

"All Things Work Together" tells a story, though not necessarily a linear one.

While the early songs are at times combative, they then lead to the album's middle, which is more richly nuanced. "Hammer Time" is a redemption story; "Lucked Up" is a showing of gratitude for what his wife brought to his life. "Can't Stop Me Now (Destination)" references the low points when longtime listeners slung criticisms at Lecrae for speaking his mind about the subject of police violence and black men. "Last year I was feeling hopeless," it begins.

Song recorded 'just for me'

"I think bearing your scars can help others with the wounds they have," he says. "I approached the album as something cathartic. And that song, even if I wasn't going to release it, I needed to write and record it just for me."

The song is striking because it fits thematically with so much of Lecrae's earlier work, the work that courted an audience that, in part, turned on him. It's informed by self-doubt and a drive for self-improvement.

Two songs later he offers "8:28," which touches on a feeling of resolution: "You don't have to worry about tomorrow," is his "I can see clearly now."

"That's it exactly," he says. "It's like climbing a mountain. It's a terrible climb, but exhilarating when you get to the top. You leave a memento there to show you survived. This album is my flagpole."

His journey sort of begins with the album's end, which naturally segues into the beginning again.

One of those first songs, "Facts," finds him wiser. "I live in a multiple world," he raps.

"Hip-hop has been historically an outlet for people to express themselves," he says. "I think some people appreciated what I represented to them, but they didn't see that I'm a product of hip-hop and the struggle articulated in that music. But I'm a whole person. Sometimes we hide different aspects of who we are instead of owning that we're complex and nuanced people who live in multiple worlds. If that upsets people, I'm sorry for them. But this is who I am. I live in multiple worlds, like Taylor Swift and Tupac. And I'm no longer afraid to say that."
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The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1995 examined a series of proposals to reduce flood risks around the Addicks and Barker dams, including a flood warning system and evacuation plan to protect lives and homes, but dropped the ideas after deciding there were "insufficient economic benefits" to further investigate.

It is unclear whether the Corps ever took up the warning system idea again, and two decades later, city and county officials do not recall that such a plan was ever developed by the federal agency that constructed and operates the dams.

After at least two people died in Hurricane Harvey floodwaters following an Aug. 28 midnight release from the swelling reservoirs, downstream residents are wondering why a better plan was not put into place to warn them.

"I could have done a lot had I had some warning," said Hank Bussa, Jr., 71, who lives downstream of Addicks reservoir. "I could have saved some very expensive furniture and valuables and all my important papers and my computers and my personal files and my cars."

Bussa said he chose to live below the dams because he thought he would be most protected there from Houston's perennial floods. He said he would have welcomed a better warning system.

"If they thought it was important to propose that, somebody looked at what kind of water it would take to make that happen and deemed it possible," Bussa said.

Corps officials did not respond to requests for comment Friday.

The revelation of the 1995 report comes as public officials begin a concerted campaign to better prepare for events like Harvey. The storm dropped up to 52 inches of rain across Harris County, killed nearly 80 people across the state, and flooded an estimated 136,000 homes and structures in the county.

Pressure is building at the federal, state and local level to better prepare for the next flood.

An Oct. 5 letter from Gov. Greg Abbott, Texas Senators and Congressmen to congressional appropriations committees calls for nearly $19 billion in funding, including $10 billion for the Corps.

Harris County Judge Ed Emmett last month called for a sweeping reexamination of the region's flood control strategy. He, and other members of the Commissioners Court, have said they would back a bond referendum that could fund upwards of $1 billion in flood control projects.

The 1995 report was part of a larger study in the aftermath of a 1992 flood that "severely tested the capacity of the reservoirs," looking at whether the Corps should make any changes as the threats around the reservoirs increased. Development upstream was increasing runoff into the reservoirs, threatening to swamp more homes in the designated flood pools - emergency lake beds behind the Barker and Addicks dams that fill with water as the reservoirs fill. Downstream, prolonged releases were eroding Buffalo Bayou's banks.

In anticipation of the increased flooding, the report examined several alternatives, including buyouts upstream of the dams, excavation of the reservoir pools, increasing discharge from the reservoirs, buying out homes downstream, and the implementation of a flood warning system.

"In the absence of a public awareness program, residents are likely to forget or ignore the flood threat," the report states. "Turnover in home ownership could also result in a significant proportion of residents being unaware of the risk. A low intensity information program backed by a strong, direct early warning system and an implementable evacuation plan could substantially reduce health and safety risks and moderately reduce flood damages."

Ultimately, the report's authors concluded that further investigation into the idea "be terminated because of insufficient economic benefits to justify project modification."

Jim Blackburn, an environmental lawyer who co-directs Rice University's Severe Storm Prediction, Education, and Evacuation from Disasters center, said he had never heard of the Corps plan or the warning system idea.

"It's exactly what should have been done," Blackburn said. "If we had had that in existence, it would have made quite a lot of difference."

Two experts said warning systems are common across the country when it comes to other natural disasters, such as tornados or earthquakes, and implementing a targeted system could be a relatively low-cost initiative compared to other infrastructure improvements needed.

"It's good practice to have such plans, processes in place and working," said Robert Bea, a University of California-Berkeley engineering professor emeritus who formed the campus's Center for Catastrophic Risk Management, and who lived in Houston along Buffalo Bayou near the reservoirs from 1969 to 1980. "We've lost our concern, our worriedness for something that we need to be worried about fairly constantly."

Dennis Mileti, University of Colorado at Boulder professor emeritus who wrote a 2015 report for the Corps on how to improve public alerts and warnings for dam emergencies, said the public and political will to fund flood warning systems and evacuation planning drops in the years after a disaster, hampering the implementation of such projects.

"You come back in two years, no one will have much concern about it at all, because people go back to living life wondering and worrying about putting food on the table," Mileti said.

"You wouldn't even notice the cost of a flood warning system," he added.

Mileti said local officials - not the Corps - should be responsible for flood warnings and evacuation planning.

While Harris County Judge Ed Emmett agreed with the sentiment for developing a better warning system, he said the county does have rain and stream gauges that measure flows and floods. If an evacuation is necessary, both he and Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner can issue evacuation orders.

Harris County Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management spokesman Francisco Sanchez said the Corps had expressed interest this summer, before Harvey, in developing a better flood warning system.

"There's a lot of people moving toward what can we do better for flood warning," Sanchez said.

In the mid 1990's, such system likely would have been a "reverse 911" system that used peoples' telephone landlines to alert them of danger, he said. These days, with the explosion in wireless communications, the county is working to use social media and mobile phones to warn residents of flood dangers.

Sanchez said the county has developed a system to automatically send out messages through the social-media platform Twitter when bayous are out of their banks.

Turner did issue a voluntary evacuation order Sept. 1 for flooded homes west of Gessner, east of Highway 6, south of I-10 and north of Briarforest, and a mandatory evacuation order for the same area the day after.

Questions to Turner's office about the Corps's 1995 proposal and why it was not pursued further were not answered Friday afternoon.

Michael Walter, spokesman for the Houston's Office of Emergency Management, said the city does communicate with the Corps and the Harris County Flood Control District during flood events, and will pursue evacuations if necessary.

Walter said the city does have the ability to target certain geographic areas and send text messages in emergencies. However, he said he could not explain why that was not done downstream of the reservoirs when the releases began.

Walter said next month, the city plans to buy a new warning system that could send longer warnings in different languages. Currently, alert messages only can be sent in English.

Matt Zeve, Harris County Flood Control District's director of operations, said the district is working on maps showing flooding across the county in "real time," with the eventual goal of being able to project which areas will flood ahead of time based on weather forecasts.

Flood control officials could not explain why the 1995 report was never examined further.

Zeve said such an endeavor likely would require Congressional approval.

"All these seemingly simple things have to go through Congress," he said.
Vietnam: bitter memories

Regarding "Echoes of Vietnam (Page A29, Oct. 1), I am very pleased to watch Ken Burns and Lynn Novick's documentary "The Vietnam War." Too many have condemned the great endeavor that was not a military failure but a political one.

I saw first-hand the bravery of our men and women in Vietnam as a chaplain in the 101st Airborne division. It was too much to see that bravery betrayed by a weak-kneed Congress and a people bamboozled by anti-war protestors who knew nothing of what was going on in Vietnam. We won every battle in the field, beat the North Vietnamese to make them withdraw and forced them to the negotiating table because they were beaten.

According to the Paris Agreements, the United States government vowed to replace gun for gun, tank for tank for any loss of the South Vietnamese army. The Congress went back on its word. The North took advantage of this mortal weakening and conquered the South. Vietnam defeat? Hardly. It was American cowardice and a congressional betrayal of the people of South Vietnam. Now their only memories are their names on a wall in a ditch in Washington, D.C.

Peter J. Riga, Houston

Uncivilized nation

In response to the shootings in Las Vegas ("Massacre in Vegas 'an act of pure evil,'" Page A1, Tuesday), I call to mind one of my favorite writers, Louis L'Amour. His tales of the Wild West are regarded as classics. In many of his novels the goal of the "good guys" was to live in peace in a small western town. These men prevailed only when they became lawmen, and then disallowed anyone from bringing six-shooters or rifles into town. Thus, the town was no longer ruled by "bad guys" with guns - it had become civilized. If I apply this measure to America today, I can only conclude that we have become an uncivilized nation.

In the mid-1990s a mass shooting in Tasmania impelled the Australians to become more civilized by limiting the number of guns one could own and who could have guns - no "bad guys" could have them. This was not an easy step, but the number of gun deaths dropped precipitously, and mass killing ceased. There are no excuses for why we Americans cannot do this here.

The primary barrier to civilization is the will of those who worship at their version of the Second Amendment, exercised through the National Rifle Association and its money, to maintain an uncivilized country. It is time for civilization to return to America. Fifty-eight new voices from the grave cry out for this.

John T. James, Houston

Taking a knee

Regarding "Kaepernick vs. Tebow" in the Belief section (Page F3, Sunday), I was struck by a seemingly similar dichotomy between the motto of the United States, e pluribus unum (out of many one) vs. "One nation under God."

I guess the former is of a more secular bent than the latter, but essentially they aim for the same thing, a blending of individuals to form a more perfect union. In this nation we have struggled since our creation to achieve this blending by both secular and sacred means.

Morgan Rauch, Houston
Federal law governs protocol for when the American flag - that revered fabric of our national identity so ubiquitous in the news of late - should be lowered to half-staff. The regulations include 30 days after the death of a president, 10 days after the death of other prominent officeholders, every Memorial Day and an ad hoc period of time upon presidential proclamation for tragedies from time to time.

Monday, President Trump ordered flags to be lowered on account of the massacre in Las Vegas, where a terrorist murdered 58 people, and sent to the hospital more than 500. The ritual is a familiar one, having been done already in the incumbent's term, and done before so often during the Obama and Bush presidencies.

It's almost trite. A so-called "lone wolf" murders a chance number of Americans. Feckless leaders offer "thoughts and prayers," but no true policy solutions. Critics are admonished to silence, for fear of politicizing a tragedy. People forget. The cycle repeats - with the flags at half-staff, of course.

I am not going to suggest actually implementing the customary policy solutions. Assault weapon bans, increased emphasis on background checks or anything of the like will not come to fruition. Not with Republicans controlling the levers of government. Not with the malevolent National Rifle Association and this country's perverted fetish of the machinery of death being more important to leaders than the children and grandchildren in their midst. Not with a media that bamboozles and scares folks into thinking a bipartisan approach to reduce violence is a Stalinist ploy to confiscate rifles and enslave the population into tyranny.

No, I want to speak about the flags.

If we are not going to do anything, the least our leaders - and indeed, all of us - can do is accept our abdication of responsibility and failure of imperative moral action. The least we can do is not to pretend we have taken care of the problem with thoughts and prayers and figuratively sweep the unholy mess under the rug.

We should leave the flags at half-staff as long as this hellish cycle continues, which all available data suggests will be the foreseeable future. A mass shooting occurs in this country, on average, every day. In no other civilized country is this even a perennial problem, but for us it is a daily one.

As the president has so bravely put it of late, the flag represents this country. It represents her citizens and values and strengths. It represents us. And we're dying. We're bleeding and in agony over leaders unwilling to do the right thing and fix the problem with which we have been confronted. A country like that is hurt, and federal law is clear that such hurts and tragedies prompt a sign of respect. Our president, after all, is so keen on respecting the flag.

Horwitz is a student at the University of Texas School of Law.
A regional planning organization that is instrumental in grant funding to the area will hold its annual meeting Oct. 17 in Mountain View.

The South Central Council of Governments, which serves a seven-county area, will meet at 1 p.m. at the Mountain View Chamber of Commerce, 125 E. First St.

The meeting will include a presentation on low water crossing problems and regulatory frustrations presented by John Fantz, Missouri Department of Conservation.

The board will vote on the annual operating budget and its fiscal year 2018 work program.

City and county members, as well as associate members, are invited. RSVP at 417-256-4226.
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The EU continues to work closely with its Eastern partners in the digital area, focusing on promoting high-speed broadband internet to boost economies and expand e-services, creating more jobs in the digital industry and reducing roaming tariffs among the Eastern partner countries. Using digital solutions brings efficiency and transparency to governance and benefits to citizens. Andrus Ansip

EU Ministers responsible for the Digital Economy and their representatives met their counterparts from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine on the 5th of October to discuss progress in their digital cooperation since their first meeting in June 2015, as well as the challenges and opportunities of the digital economy in the Eastern Partnership. The meeting was co-organised and co-chaired by the Estonian Presidency of the Council of the European Union and the European Commission.

The participants have adopted a declaration which reflects a clear commitment of all parties to deepen their cooperation in six joint priority topics: electronic communications and infrastructure, trust & security, eTrade, digital skills, ICT innovation & startup ecosystems and eHealth. In their declaration, the participants define specific targets for 2020 as part of a roadmap for their digital cooperation and in order to ensure concrete benefits for citizens and businesses.

The Presidency and the Commission stressed the importance of Digital Economy as a core element of the Eastern Partnership policy and underlined the need to strive for Harmonisation of Digital Markets (HDM) among the EaP partners and with the EU. The participants affirmed their shared commitment to the Digital Economy, including HDM and underlined its importance for social and economic development and for creation of growth and jobs. The participants proposed their adopted Declaration as input to the 5th Eastern Partnership Summit, which will be held in Brussels on 24 November.

More information on the EaPConnect project
Former UAW 2322 Ron Patenaude is one of many members of other labor unions to join the picket line. Marie Geary. Many non-nurses joined the picket line on Friday to show support. Ron Patenaude. Paul Mark. The line of picketers started on Wahconah Street and wrapped around the corner and along North Street. PreviousNext

Striking Nurses Get Support From Other Labor Unions



Liz Morrison said the nurses wouldn't strike if they didn't believe there is an issue. PITTSFIELD, Mass.  The striking nurses at Berkshire Medical Center are finding support from other labor unions.

On Friday, an array of other union members joined the picket line, linking arms with the nurses from the local chapter of the Massachusetts Nursing Association, and spread out along the sidewalks surrounding the hospital. The effort was a show of solidarity from others who have gone through the same battle in the past.

"This is what solidarity looks like. It is when not only your own union members are out here but when others recognize why you are here and come to join you," said Liz Morrison of the Central Berkshire Labor Council.

The nurses are currently locked out from returning to work by Berkshire Medical Center following a one-day strike. The hospital has temporary workers on contract and the regular nurses will return once that contract is completed Sunday morning. The nurses went on strike after more than a year of contract negotiations stalled. The nurse's main issue is staffing levels and has been picketing for what it calls "safe staffing" and wants levels written in a collective bargaining agreement.

"We need to have the resources in order to provide the care our patients deserve," nurse Marie Geary said. "We want to get back to work. IT is our hospital. It is our families. It is our friends. It is our neighbors. We need to get back to work. We should have a contract by now. We should be caring for our own patients. There shouldn't be agency nurses caring for our patients. It is our community and our patients."

Former UAW 2322 Ron Patenaude said most of the management doesn't have the experience of actually doing the job, so when the nurses say there is an issue, there is an issue. He praised the nurses for having the courage to go on strike.

"This fight is not just money or benefits, costs which management never ever seems to find issue with when it is for themselves. This fight is about patient safety and reasonable workloads. This is not a factory where a product like a car is produced," he said.

Patenaude said the people who go on strike do so for the betterment of themselves, their families, and the community, highlighting the word community.

"The families that are taking this action are not just taking this action for themselves as management would like to claim," he said.

State Rep. Paul Mark is still a dues-paying member of the international brotherhood of electrical workers and he remembers the first time he went on strike at age 21.

"When I first went on strike, I was 21 years old. When you are 21 years old and first go on strike you think, this is awesome, I don't have to go to work anymore, people are sneaking me beers, this is great.



Andrea Harrington praised the nurses courage. And then over the course of the weeks, we were on strike, I realized what a strike is really about. We're going to show the community the same thing here in the Berkshires. What a strike is really about is that people are going without pay, they are taking time away from their families, and from the job they love. They are coming here without pay to stand together and to stand strong to fight for something they believe in," Mark said.

"If no one ever went on strike and stood together in solidarity, there would be no minimum wage, there would be no health care benefits, there would be no pensions, there would be no vacation time, there would none of those things that every single person in the country takes for granted every single day. All of this exists because of people like you and me were willing to go without for the better of everyone else."

Patenaude agrees with the power of unions and the benefits strikes have done for the American workers. He joined the rally to support the actions the nurses union has taken.

"I am here today and I believe all of us are here today because of the women and men who came before us, whose shoulders we stand on," he said.

Meanwhile, former state Senate candidate Andrea Harrington showed her support. She may not be a member of a union but remembers the late nights taking her kids to the hospital and being treated by the nurses or her grandfather's final days. She said everybody in Berkshire County has their own interactions with the nurses and should support them.

"This is about fighting for working people. This is about standing up for your patients. You are going to take this fight from Berkshire County and take it across the Commonwealth and you are going to win," Harrington said.

Harrington also praised the nurse's courage in going on strike.

"You've really pissed some people off and that's scary. But you are doing the right thing and the people in Berkshire County support you. I know it has been a hard road to get where you are today and I want to thank you for your courage and I want to thank you for your steadfastness," Harrington said.

The nurses gained support from other unions as well. Friday's rally was sponsored by the Berkshire Central Labor Council.
Imperial Valley News Center

Mourn for the victims

Las Vegas, Nevada - Dan Weber, president of the Association of Mature American Citizens [AMAC], has issued the following statement in the aftermath of what he described as "the madness in Las Vegas."

Take a pew in your house of worship this weekend and say a prayer for those who died and those who suffered injuries on Sunday in the madness in Las Vegas. Pray for the brave first responders who put themselves in harm's way to protect lives, those in uniform and those civilians who risked their own lives to help others.

This is no time for political rhetoric. It is a time to mourn and reach out for consolation, consolation for the loved ones of the 59 who were murdered in cold blood like the wife whose husband was shot and killed when he took a bullet for her and consolation for the nearly 500 who were wounded and their families.

Say a prayer, too, for ourselves so that we may come together as a nation. It was an horrific event, too gruesome to comprehend. Police found the killer, who in the end committed suicide, in his room on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay hotel. They also found his cache of weapons and ammunition. But, they have found no motive, as yet, for his appalling deed.

Thousands of ordinary citizens throughout the U.S. gave blood for the survivors of the senseless attack. And, tens of thousands of others in America and around the world have been posting kind words on social media to express their sorrow and sadness. The world's political and religious leaders, too, were moved to express their hopes that such madness as occurred in Las Vegas will wake us up.

Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops put it this way: "At this time, we need to pray and to take care of those who are suffering. In the end, the only response is to do good, for no matter what the darkness, it will never overcome the light."

Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein, founder and president of the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, said: "We pray for those most closely impacted by the horrific attack in Las Vegas, and we ask God to speak words of comfort and resolve in the mind of every child so that instead of fearing the world, they will be inspired to bring peace to the world. "

Pastor Robert Jeffress of the First Baptist Church of Dallas noted that the violent event in Las Vegas marked "a day where there are no Democrats or Republicans, there are no conservatives or liberals - we are all united as Americans."
Imperial Valley News Center

Life on a Generator

San Juan, Puerto Rico - What happens when the lifelines of an island's lifelines fail? After Hurricane Maria passed over Puerto Rico, leaving behind the bare, broken bones of nature and an island without power, at least 51 hospitals were left running on generators.

Blocked roads and silenced phones made communication with help nearly impossible for many medical centers.



Those hospitals became the focus of the Sailors and Marines embarked aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD 3).



Over the course of four days, teams visited 51 hospitals to solve issues like dwindling fuel reserves, low medical supplies and shortages of fresh water.



Lt. Iris Manso, Kearsarge's medical administration officer, is from Puerto Rico and was on one of the first assessment teams.



"As I flew over the island, it became very, very real to me," said Manso. "To see it in those conditions, to know that my family was somewhere out there living like that -- it was definitely very personal."



Each team found different needs at every hospital. Each person on those five teams had different experiences.



"At one hospital, we were the first people from the military there to help," said Chief Engineman Blake Morton, a member of team four. "When we landed, the hospital staff greeted us and you could see the relief that someone was finally there to help them."



Before any work started, it was the spirits of the hospital workers and patients that had to be restored.



"They thought that all of the aid was going to San Juan - they were completely shut down from the world, basically," Manso said. "I told one person at one of the hospitals that we are assessing the airports; they're going to open any day now. We're assessing the ports and they're going to open any day now. There are ships literally waiting out in the water to bring fuel and supplies, and that made him very emotional."



After they arrived, the responders assessed the situation at each hospital and began planning their next steps.



"In some cases, the teams were able to perform immediate repairs and get broken (or almost broken) generators working," said Capt. David Guluzian, Kearsarge's commanding officer. "In other cases, teams were able to relay a message to responders who could deliver the right assistance."



Forty-nine of the 51 hospitals visited had critical fuel, water, food, oxygen or medical supply needs. After teams from Kearsarge assessed them, all of the hospitals were put at the top of resupply lists, with some getting aid just in time.



"We got a message that one dialysis center had just run out of fuel in their generators and lost power," Morton said. "We were able to route that back through FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) and within four hours that hospital's power was restored and they were able to put their patients back on dialysis."



Similar stories rang from every corner of Puerto Rico. At every hospital, a need was found and, in one way or another, met. At every hospital, the destruction left by Hurricane Maria was made a little more bearable.



"We had an old man come up and give us a kiss and a hug and thank us," Manso said. "Another lady became very emotional when she heard about the help that was coming. It gave her peace of mind to know that our Marines and Sailors were there to help them."



Although the situation might be better than it was before the teams completed their mission, more help is needed.



"There are still a lot of areas in Puerto Rico that don't have anything right now," Morton said. "A lot of places have nurses and doctors sleeping on cots in the hospitals because they don't have enough gas to go home and make it back to work, and they want to be at the hospitals to help - we're definitely still needed here."



That is the mission of Kearsarge - to stay as long as help is needed. So, what happens when the lifelines of an island's lifelines fail? With Kearsarge off Puerto Rico's coast, the chances of that question being answered grow smaller each day.



Kearsage and the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit are assisting with relief efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria. The Department of Defense is supporting FEMA, the lead federal agency, in helping those affected by Hurricane Maria to minimize suffering and is one component of the overall whole-of-government response effort.
HSC Weapons School Pacific Hosts Second Annual PHOENIX FIRE Exercise 2017

San Clemente, California - Helicopter Sea Combat (HSC) Weapons School Pacific (HSCWSP) closed the 2017 fiscal year by hosting the second annual Phoenix Fire combined arms, live-fire joint exercise utilizing the Navy's Southern California Offshore Range (SCORE), September 11-22.

Phoenix Fire is designed to enhance the HSC community's combat readiness through a robust, realistic warfighting exercise while providing Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTACs) the ability to control a multitude of assets providing air-to-surface and surface-to-surface close air support (CAS) fires. The exercise afforded the opportunity for participants to conduct joint and combined combat training missions in a realistically-contested littoral environment; in direct support of U.S. Navy training and readiness interests related to current and future operations in the 7th Fleet.



The lead planners from HSCWSP were Navy Lt. David Richardson, Navy Lt. Drew Kollmann and U.S. Air Force Capt. Przemek Strekowski. Air Force Master Sgt. Tavis "TD" Delaney of the 116th Aviation Support Operations Squadron (ASOS) also supported the planning and execution of the exercise as the lead JTAC.



Phoenix Fire integrated multiple assets from all over the world.



Participants included JTACs from the 116th ASOS, 6th Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company (ANGLICO), Canadian Special Operations Forces (CANSOF), Special Operations Command Australia (AUSOF), and 60MM mortars from the 1st Marine Logistics Group.



Air assets included HSC Wing Pacific MH-60S squadrons, MH-60R Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadrons (HSM), F/A-18 Super Hornet Strike Fighter Squadrons (VFA) and EA-18G Electronic Attack Squadrons (VAQ), F-35B Marine Fighter Attack Squadrons (VMFA), U.S. Air Force MQ-9 Reapers, and the Royal Netherlands Air Force with F-35A Lightning II. Air refueling support was provided by KC-130 Hercules Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadrons (VMGR) and KC-707 OMEGA Refueler Squadrons. Together they provided more than 360,000lbs of fuel.



The Ticonderoga-class cruiser USS Lake Champlain (CG 57) provided Naval Surface Fire Support (NSFS). These forces prosecuted land-based targets on the island, one expendable high-speed maneuverable surface target (HSMST), and multiple towed targets.



Training included live and simulated combined fires from rotary wing, fixed wing, and surface assets, all in coordinated support of ground force maneuver and mission objectives.
Remarks at the Swearing-in Ceremony for the 146th Foreign Service Specialist Class

Washington, DC - Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson: "Please be seated, thank you. And good afternoon, everyone. It really is a privilege for me to be here with you today for a very special milestone event for all of you, for your family members, your friends. And Im so pleased to see many of them here to share this with you.

"This is truly an impressive group of people. And I want you to think about other impressive people you know out there and help bring them into this family as well. Because I know all of you have a great network of other talent, as well. This class includes former pilots, professors, law clerks, investigators, and a number of other professions, which gives us a rich diversity of skills coming into this Department to help us.

"The overwhelming majority of this class has spent significant time working, studying, or volunteering abroad. So being abroad is not going to be new to you. And many of you are coming to the Department with prior government experience already, including Peace Corps service and service in our military. And importantly, some of you come with incredibly skilled languages, which are important to us: Arabic, Japanese, Korean, Maltese, Farsi and Slovak. Thank you. Thank you. Those are terribly important to us.

"We are all grateful, truly grateful, that you have decided to use your skills to serve the United States and this Department.

"And obviously, like hundreds of others that have gone before you, we require a constant stream of fresh talent. You will learn from those more experience Foreign Service officers that youll have the opportunity to work with, but its your fresh eyes to things, your fresh energy that are really important to the vitality of what we do.

"In particular, this group of foreign specialists in many ways represent our first responders in the face of security, health, and logistical challenges. And the entire country is appreciative of your willingness to serve and your dedication to be ready to take action.

"It is an honor to officially welcome all of your family, friends, and others to the State Department, as well, and with it a profession  and welcome you to a profession that offers a future of opportunities to advance U.S. national security and foreign policy interests the world over.

"This time last week I was on my way to Beijing in preparation for the Presidents upcoming summit in Beijing and his trip to Asia. And all the way along that trip I had very capable and important Foreign Service officers helping me, some with some difficult logistics, in fact, on that trip. It was kind of exciting to land in Beijing on a C-130. That was not the aircraft of choice, but it was the aircraft that we were able to find to go on in to the country. But the Foreign Service officers and the support you provide, not just to the Secretarys office, but to our missions, our embassies around the world, our bureaus, its just vital to our ability to deliver on our mission, day in and day out.

"We need your dedication, we need your expertise, we need your energy. So again, thank you for your willingness to take on this hard work. I know youve worked hard to get to this point. In many respects, though, that work is just beginning, and I know youre well aware of that.

"So I want to offer just a few brief words of counsel to you as you begin.

"First, remember that it doesnt matter what your title or your job is; what matters is how you do it and how you work with the colleagues around you. This group represents, as I said, a variety of skills and talents that the Department requires to function properly, from managing our properties to protecting all of us, to keeping us healthy. So no matter the task, I know you will aim for excellence.

"Second, I encourage you to fight complacency. Its very easy in many of the tasks we face to just say, You know, Im just not going to move the needle, so Ill just  Ill get through this and Ill move to the next opportunity. Never accept that. Never accept that. There is an opportunity in each one of these challenges to move the needle, and you will move the needle with your perseverance and your dedication.

"The other aspect is never conclude that youve finished growing. Im still learning, even at this ripe old age. I learn something every day. Learn from the people around you. This is an institution with enormously rich talent and experience. Please soak that up and never stop growing in your assignment and what youre doing. Every assignment you take, every location, youre going to grow and continue to grow, and youre not going to stop growing until the day you leave and go on to other things.

"The second part of that, I want to mention the redesign efforts of the Department that are going on are a clear example of how we want to work as a team to reshape the State Department to improve how we deliver on mission here at the Department as well as USAID. All of your colleagues  and you will learn as you go to work in your assignments  know what we can do to improve the ability to deliver on mission. What are the obstacles we need to clear? What are the systems we need to change or adjust? How can we make it easier for people to fulfill their responsibilities, and also to fulfill them more effectively?

"So dont be afraid to share your ideas with us. We have portals that are open. We are getting terrific input from people throughout the Department. We have teams that are tasked with addressing these ideas. Please share your creativity, your innovative ideas with us, as well. Again, youre coming with fresh eyes. Youre probably going to see some things that a lot of people that have been here for a while may be looking right past, so encourage you to be an active participant in this undertaking.

"Third, please embrace and bolster a culture of personal accountability, honesty, and respect for others. These are tenets that I put in place the day I came into this office and spoke to the entire organization. Its how we want to treat each other with that respect, how we want to treat each other in an honest fashion. If were honest with one another, well be honest with the people were delivering the mission to, countries around the world. And finally, we have to hold ourselves accountable. We cant hold others accountable if were not holding ourselves accountable first.

"This organizations best asset and greatest strength is truly its people. It really is the people. Its not about the size of our budget. Its not about the size of our infrastructure. Its not about anything. Its about: Do we have the right people? If weve got the right people, we will deliver on the mission with whatever tools were given. I am quite confident of that.

"So value one another, cherish one another, take care of one another. This is required of all of us. So again, we can do that by committing ourselves to accountability, honesty, and respect.

"So as you now prepare to take the Oath of Office, and as your family, friends, and colleagues bear witness to it, remember the special solemn nature of this Oath. The Oath youre about to take, its an important part of our nations history, and youre about to make it an important part of your history that is yet to be written.

"The United States Congress prescribed the Oath as one of its first legislative acts over two centuries ago  establishing a bond between the American people and those who serve them.

The Oath you are about to take is the same Oath of Office all of our colleagues have taken, myself included, as well as the Vice President, federal judges, Members of Congress, military officers, and all cabinet members.

"So now I would invite all 61 members of the 146th Foreign Service Specialist Orientation Class to join me on the stage, and Ill administer the Oath of Office.

"That is a fine-looking group of people. Someone should take a picture. Oh, we are. (Laughter.) Okay, good, all right.

"Please raise your right hand and repeat after me.

(The Oath of Office was administered.)

"Its my honor to be the first to congratulate each of you, as members of the 146th Foreign Service Specialist Orientation Class. Please join me in honoring them."
Elections in Kenya

Washington, DC - The United States Government is deeply concerned by the deterioration in the political environment in Kenya in advance of the October 26, presidential election. We remain committed to supporting a free, fair, and credible election that is consistent with Kenya's Constitution, current laws, and institutions, and we do not back any party or candidate.

Unfortunately, in recent weeks actors on all sides have undermined the electoral commission and stoked tensions. We are closely monitoring Kenyas electoral process and what politicians are saying and doing.

A peaceful and transparent poll that provides all Kenyans a voice in choosing their next President will require that the electoral commission have the independence and support it needs to fulfill its Constitutional and legal obligations. While we support freedom of speech, baseless attacks and unreasonable demands on the electoral commission are divisive. We fully support the commissions efforts to engage leaders and parties in dialogue, and urge all to participate openly, seriously, and in good faith.

Changing electoral laws without broad agreement just prior to a poll is not consistent with international best practice, increases political tension, and undermines public perceptions of the integrity of the electoral process.

Kenyan leaders and citizens must reject violence and call on others to do the same. Security services should use the utmost restraint in handling demonstrations, and any response must be proportionate and appropriate.

This election offers Kenya the opportunity to inspire and shape the future of Africa. We stand with all Kenyans who seek to advance democracy and prosperity, and strengthen security.
Sanctions Revoked Following Sustained Positive Action by the Government of Sudan

Washington, DC - Today, the United States decided to revoke economic sanctions with respect to Sudan and the Government of Sudan under Executive Orders 13067 and 13412, in recognition of the Government of Sudans sustained positive actions to maintain a cessation of hostilities in conflict areas in Sudan, improve humanitarian access throughout Sudan, and maintain cooperation with the United States on addressing regional conflicts and the threat of terrorism. The revocation will be effective October 12, 2017. This action came about through a focused, 16-month diplomatic effort to make progress with Sudan in these key areas.

To implement this decision, pursuant to Executive Order 13761, as amended by Executive Order 13804, and following consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, the Director of National Intelligence, and the Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), Secretary of State Tillerson will publish a notice in the Federal Register and has provided a report to the President on the Government of Sudans sustained positive actions over the mandated reporting period of the last nine months.

The Government of Sudans actions during the last nine months show that it is serious about cooperating with the United States and has taken significant steps to stop conflict and improve humanitarian access within Sudan, and to promote regional stability. However, much more progress is needed to fully and sustainably achieve peace in Sudan and to cooperate with the United States on a range of Administration priorities, including further expanding humanitarian access, improving the Government of Sudans human rights and religious freedom practices, and ensuring that the Government of Sudan is committed to the full implementation of UN Security Council resolutions on North Korea.

The United States will continue efforts to improve bilateral relations with Sudan. Any further normalization of ties will require continued progress by the Government of Sudan. Furthermore, the United States is prepared to use additional tools to apply pressure if the Government of Sudan regresses on progress to date in the five areas noted above or takes negative actions on other areas of concern.
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The heart of Peruvian food is felt in all corners of the Andes: in the many markets, street stalls and restaurants, and in the aromas emanating from the kitchens inside the Andinas homes. But, I think, the heart beats faster and louder in Arequipa than anywhere else. Here, gastronomy is the result of plentiful native ingredients, dishes and traditions; like a culinary Inca warrior, it conquers the taste buds of all who cross its path; it is living, breathing history. The sheer quantity of dishes from Arequipa is exceptional. If I found 120 recipes in books from the region of Apurimac; I found more than 600 in books from Arequipa.

The region of Arequipa stretches across the central-south Andes right up to the Paci coast. It is a place rich in indigenous culture and tradition; a place where its early tribes were overpowered and organised by the Incas. Legend has it that in the late 13th century, the Inca leader Mayta Capac was the first to settle in Arequipa, stationed there with his troops. When the time came for the troops to move on, many men asked Mayta Capac if they could stay. Ari quipay, he replied, meaning Yes, stay. In time Arequipa became a melting pot of settlers from Europe, as well as mestizos (those of combined descent).

Like so many other cities of the Andina regions, Arequipa is the name of the regions capital city as well as the region itself. Founded by the Spanish in 1540, the city enjoys a fine location and climate, and easy distance from both fertile lands and the coast. Arequipa prospered, so much so that after Peru declared independence from Spain in 1821, Arequipa city became the countrys capital, remaining so for almost 50 years. Now, it is second only to Lima. With its stunning churches and plazas, and buildings made using volcanic white rock (earning it the nickname the white city), Arequipas Old Town is a Unesco World Heritage site.

Migrants bring both their labour and cooking influences to Arequipa (Dave Brown)

A key economic outpost for the colonialists, Arequipa has attracted many migrants making it the land of opportunity within the Andes for those daring to venture from the capital city. For more than 500 years, migrants to Arequipa have brought their many influences and traditions. For me, this fusion has made it a culinary giant on the Peruvian food scene.

As in many second-largest cities (think Barcelona or Manchester), Arequipas residents are a proud people with a fierce regional patriotism that aims to differentiate the city from Lima. I think there is a lot Arequipa can claim as unique. For a start, Arequipa can boast being the origin of several of Perus most recognisable and emblematic dishes. These include the chupe de camarones antiguo, which is a kind of prawn chowder; the solterito  a delicious broad bean, queso fresco and olive salad; the ocopa sauce made with herbs and nuts and the rocoto relleno or stuffed hot red peppers. These were dishes my great aunts Carmela and Otilia cooked every week at home in Lima when I was a child. Today, everywhere I go I look for Carmela and Otilia. I miss them in so many ways, but most of all, I miss their cooking. During all the terrorism and violence we had to live through while we were in Peru, their food provided comfort  it made me happy and gave me hope.

When I left Peru in 1984, I left Carmel and Otilia in Lima, old but alive and well. Sadly they passed away almost a decade ago. I was not there, of course, and a part of me shall always mourn them. But, I will also always feel them with me. I see Otilias eyes in the eyes of my own daughter, whom I named after her; I have kept Aunt Carmela alive in recipes that have been published in books and newspapers, each printing bearing her name. I have photos of both of them all around my house. When I go back to Peru, I see them in different places: in markets, in churches, in restaurants  the places they so often took me. Above all, though, I see them through the eyes of the picanteras, the women chefs and mothers who hold their families together through food and love, feeding them, their friends and their customers in their picanterias. These traditional family-run restaurants pop up in many parts of Peru, but they appear especially in Arequipa, serving the regional versions of the dishes my great aunts used to cook. In a way these dishes are my spiritual connection to this ancestry and it is in Arequipa that I feel and hear Carmela and Otilia most.

Every time I go back to Arequipa, Im received more and more like a prodigal son. The picanteras of this city have adopted me as one of their own. These exceptional women hold the secrets to traditional cooking techniques. They have set up the Picantera Society of Arequipa, a group of 40 or more (mostly) women, who come together to organise and chronicle their knowledge and establish key rules on how to run a picanteria. Their generosity and enthusiasm is limitless.

Food and drink news Show all 35 1 /35 Food and drink news Food and drink news Healthy living makes us more inclined to binge, research suggests Gluten-free breads, dairy-free milks and other plant-based products have been some of the most favoured foods in British supermarkets this year. However, while were busy filling our shopping trolleys with gluten-free goodness, were also jamming it with junk food and alcohol, new research suggests Getty/iStock Food and drink news Growing list of Vegan celebs Making the switch to veganism is a major lifestyle choice, one that many claim can improve energy levels, lower the risk of cardiovascular disease and clear up any skin issues. Beyonce, Natalie Portman and Jessica Chastain are among the growing list of Hollywood stars who have eschewed animal products from their diets in recent years. Theres also been an increasing number of professional athletes who have gone vegan, such as boxing champions Mike Tyson and David Haye, thus debunking the myth that following a plant-based diet will leave you feeling weak and malnourished. AFP/Getty/NARAS/iHeartMedia Food and drink news McDonald's has announced the launch of a new vegan burger on its menu in Germany This will mark the first time the German franchise of the fast food chain has offered a vegan burger to its customers. The Big Vegan TS burger consists of a patty made from soy and wheat. It is served in a classic sesame seed bun, and contains salad, tomato, pickles and red onion. McDonald's Germany Food and drink news Drinking too many protein shakes could lead to an increased risk of obesity and a reduced lifespan, a new study has claimed Researchers from the University of Sydney's Charles Perkins Centre carried out an investigation to determine the impact excessive consumption of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) has on the body. BCAA supplements are often consumed in the form of powder, which is then added to water to make a shake. Published in journal Nature Metabolism, the study found that while BCAAs help to build muscle, they can also negatively impact an individual's temperament, cause weight gain and lead to a shortened lifespan Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Britain consumes more chocolate than any other country Most people love chocolate but it turns out no one does more than the Brits  with the average Brit found to have consumed 8.4 kg of chocolate in 2017, according to new data. Chocolate consumption around the world is on the rise, according to Mintel Global New Products Database (GNPD), which found that in the past year alone, Easter chocolate production has risen by 23 per cent Food and drink news 'Easter eggs should be banned for children under four' Dr Becky Spelman, chief psychologist at Harley Streets Private Therapy Clinic, is calling for Easter eggs to be banned for consumption for children under the age of four, claiming that giving them the opportunity to binge on chocolate so young will give them an unhealthy relationship with food later on. "This is a nightmare situation for parents of this generation as they have no idea how to teach their children to delay their response to cravings, she said, explaining that too many young kids binge on these chocolates because their parents dont know how to stop them. "Once a child starts overeating behaviour at a young age its very hard to turn things around for them in terms of food and their eating habits moving forward, leading to obesity from at very young age," she added PA Food and drink news Pineapple overtakes avocado as the UK's fastest-selling fruit According to Tesco, pineapple has overtaken avocado as the UKs fastest-selling fruit, with sales increasing by 15 per cent in 2017. In comparison, avocado sales rose by just under 10 per cent last year. The popular supermarket says the surge in popularity comes as shoppers buying the versatile fruit are beginning to use it as a main ingredient in everything from curries and barbecues, to juices and cocktails Getty Food and drink news Marks & Spencers launches stoneless avocados Rather than the result of genetic modification, the avocados are formed by an unpollinated avocado blossom. The fruit develops without a seed which in turns stops the growth, creating a small, seedless fruit. Whats more, the skin is actually edible, unlike a regular avocado. The flesh is much like that of a normal avocado - smooth and creamy, pale in colour and rich in flavour M&S Food and drink news Office teabags contain 17 times more germs than a toilet seat, reveals study The average bacterial reading of an office teabag was 3,785, in comparison to only 220 for a toilet seat. Other pieces of kitchen equipment also stacked up highly in their findings, with the bacterial readings averaging at 2,483 on kettle handles, 1,746 on the rim of a used mug and 1,592 on a fridge door handle Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news New study shows drinking more coffee leads to a longer life There is good news and a final hope for coffee addicts and lovers. You will now be able to drink coffee for longer as new study shows its can lead to a prolonged life. Scientists showed that those who drank between two and four cups of coffee a day had 18% lower risk of death compared to non-coffee drinkers. PA Food and drink news Coke Zero is replaced with Coke Zero Sugar Coca-Cola is pulling the plug on its Coke Zero. The much loved drink will be replaced with a new improved taste. The move, backed with a 10 million campaign, is said to come from Coca-Cola supporting people to reduce their sugar intake. Coca-Cola want people make this move while not sacrificing sugary taste of Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola Food and drink news Starbucks introduce new avocado spread The avocado craze has grown from hipster brunch restaurants to Starbucks. Starbucks have introduced their new avocado spread earlier this year and it has the internet in debate. Some argue that it not a spread but guacamole while others question if there is any avocado in there at all. When buying the new spread you can also buy an optional toasted bagel. It is a must try for all avocado connoisseurs. Starbucks Food and drink news New Mars chocolate bar The iconic British chocolate bar is about to get its partner in crime. The new bar, named Goodness Knows, will replace the gooey caramel goodness of the mars bar with oats. It is said to be more like a Florentine biscuit with a thin dark chocolate bottom. While being moderately healthy Mars says that is has good intentions. One pack has 154 calories and will sell for about 90p. Mars Food and drink news Wine prices could increase because of Brexit Wine lovers across the UK might soon have to shell out close to a quarter more for their favourite tipple after Brexit, as a weaker pound and sluggish economy takes its toll, a new study shows Rex Food and drink news Chocolate may be good for the heart A new study, published in the British Medical Journal: Heart, found that moderate chocolate intake can be positively associated with lessening the risk of the heart arrhythmia condition Atrial Fibrillation Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Brits throw away 1.4 million bananas each year British families are throwing away 1.4 million bananas that are perfectly good to eat every day at cost of 80m a year, new figures have shown PA/Armin Weigel Food and drink news Rosemary sales spike over exam time There has been a surge a surge in sales of the herb rosemary after a recent study found it helps improve memory. According to high street health food chain Holland & Barrett, sales of the herb have increased by 187 per cent compared to the same time last year Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Gluten-free diets 'not recommended' for people without coeliac disease Avoiding wheat, barley and rye in the belief that a gluten-free diet brings health benefits may do more harm than good, according to a team of US nutrition and medicine experts Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Starbucks launches two new coffee-based drinks Starbucks is launching two new coffee-based drinks in the UK, as it strives to tap into consumers growing appetite for healthy beverages. The Cold Brew Vanilla sweet cream and the Cappuccino Freddo, will both be available in stores throughout the UK from the start of May Twitter/@SbuxCountyHall Food and drink news Cadburys Dairy Milk Tiffin is making a permanent comeback after 80 years The Cadbury Dairy Milk Tiffin, first produced in 1937, is making a permanent comeback to the UK. The raisin and biscuit-filled chocolate bar is being launched after a successful trial last summer saw 3 million chocolate treats  at the cost of 1.49 for each 95g bar- purchased by nostalgic customers Cadburys Food and drink news Pizza restaurant makes worlds cheesiest 'Scottie's Pizza Parlor' in Portland Oregon has created the worlds cheesiest pizza using a total of 101 different cheese varieties. Facebook/Scottie's Pizza Parlor Food and drink news A pizza joint in Portland Oregon has created the worlds cheesiest pizza using a total of 101 different cheese varieties. Why not eating before a workout could be better for your health A study published in the American Journal of Physiology by researchers at the University of Bath found you might be likely to burn more fat if you have not eaten first Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news New York restaurant named best in the world A New York restaurant where an average meal for two will cost $700 has been named the best in the world. Eleven Madison Park won the accolade for the first time after debuting on the list at number 50 in 2010. The restaurant was praised for a fun sense of fine-dining, blurring the line between the kitchen and the dining room Getty Images Food and drink news Why you crave bad food when youre tired Researchers at Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University in Chicago recently presented their results of a study looking into the effects of sleep deprivation upon high-calorific food consumption. Researchers found that those who were sleep-deprived had specifically enhanced brain activity to the food smells compared to when they had a good nights sleep Shutterstock Food and drink news Drinking wine engages more of your brain than solving maths problems Drinking wine is the ideal workout for your brain, engaging more parts of our grey matter than any other human behaviour, according to a leading neuroscientist. Dr Gordon Shepherd, from the Yale School of Medicine, said sniffing and analysing a wine before drinking it requires exquisite control of one of the biggest muscles in the body Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news British dessert eating surges after people ditch healthy eating in February : In heartening news for anyone feeling guilty about quitting their New Year diet, it seems lots of us have given in to our sweet tooths once again. New data from nationwide food-delivery service Deliveroo reveals there was a surge in Brits ordering desserts in February compared to the first month of 2017 Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news US congress debates definition of milk alternatives A new bill has been created that seeks to ban dairy alternatives from using the term milk. Titled the DAIRY PRIDE Act, the name is a tenuous acronym for defending against imitations and replacements of yogurt, milk, and cheese to promote regular intake of dairy every day. It argues that the dairy industry is struggling as a result of all the dairy-free alternatives on the market and the public are being duped too Getty Images Food and drink news Cadburys launches two new chocolate bars UK confectionary giant Cadbury has launched two new chocolate bars, hoping to lure those with a sweet tooth and perhaps help combat some of the challenges it faces from rising commodity prices and a post-Brexit slump in the value of the pound.The companys new products will be peanut butter and mint flavoured. They will be available in most major super markets as 120g bars, priced at 1.49, according to the company Cadburys Food and drink news You can now get a job as a professional chocolate eater The company responsible for some of your favourite chocolate brands  think Cadbury, Milks, Prince and Oreo  have officially announced an opening to join their team as a professional chocolate taster. The successful candidate will help them to test, perfect and launch new products all over the world. Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news MSG additive used in Chinese food is actually good for you, scientist claims For years, weve been told MSG (the sodium salt of glutamic acid) - often associated with cheap Chinese takeaways - is awful for our health and to be avoided at all costs. But one scientist argues it should be used as a supersalt and encourages adding it to food. Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Lettuce prices are rising Not only are lettuces becoming an increasingly rare commodity in supermarkets, but prices for the leafy vegetables seem to be rising too. According to the weekly report from the Governments Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, a pair of Little Gem lettuces had an average market price of 0.86 in the week that ended on Friday, up from an average of 0.56 in the previous week  thats an almost 54 per cent increase. Getty Images Food and drink news Do-It-Yourself restaurant To encourage more people to cook and eat together, IKEA has launched The Dining Club in Shoreditch  a fully immersive Do-It-Yourself restaurant . Members of the public can book to host a brunch, lunch or dinner party for up to 20 friends and family. Supported by their very own sous chef and maitre de, the host and their guests will orchestrate an intimate dining experience where cooking together is celebrated and eating together is inspirational Mikael Buck / IKEA Food and drink news Ping Pong menu with a twist Gatwick Airport has teamed up with London dim sum restaurant Ping Pong to create a limited edition menu with a distinctly British twist; including a Full English Bao and Beef Wellington Puff, to celebrate the launch of the airports new route to Hong Kong Food and drink news Zizzi unveil the Maamgharita Unique pizza art has been created by Zizzi in celebration of the Queens 90th birthday. The pizza features the queen in an iconic pose illustrated with fresh and tasty Italian ingredients on a backdrop of the Union Jack Food and drink news Blue potatoes make a comeback Blue potatoes, once a staple part of British potato crops, are back on the menu thanks to a Cambridge scientist turned-organic farmer and Farmdrop, an online marketplace that lets people buy direct from local farms. Cambridge PhD graduate-turned farmer, Adrian Izzard has used traditional growing techniques at Wild Country Organics to produce the colourful spuds, packed with healthy cell-protecting anthocyanin, which had previously disappeared from UK plates when post-war farmers were pushed towards higher-yielding varieties

My most recent visit to Arequipa was in the week of my birthday. La Nueva Palomino is a picanteria in the heart of Arequipa. It is run by the charismatic and loving Monica Huerta Alpaca, who invited me to celebrate my birthday with her, asking several other local picanteras to bring a celebratory dish, too. Monicas chicha corn brew, which Id go so far as to say is the best in Peru, flowed freely. We tucked into this and every other dish on offer. Every woman had chosen to cook something special  she had not only prepared it, but also offered it with love. It wasnt just what these women did to celebrate my birthday that mattered, but how they did it.

Picanterias are unique, distinguished by four things:

1. They serve chicha

2. Every day has its own specific chupe (soup)

3. They serve a variety of picantes (stews) and other traditional dishes

4. They are democratic places where anyone from any walk of life can eat traditional food, drink chicha and socialise.

Presidents and authors, bricklayers and lawyers, artists and dentists  all are welcome. Years ago in fact, picanterias were primarily places of cultural exchange. Social gatherings, political protests, art exhibitions, poetry readings and live music all found a voice there. Now, many are attached to farms, orchards or allotments. They all use local and sustainable produce that is organically grown.

On the walls of Casita Andina hang specially commissioned portraits of four picanteras who have particularly inspired us: La Lucila, La Benita, La Cau Cau and La Palomino. Some of these women have now passed away, but I hope that our gesture on the walls of the restaurant keeps their spirit alive.

While I was in Arequipa, I spent the day at Picanteria La Lucila. Dona Lucila, who reminds me of my own great grandmother Luchita, died just a few years ago, but Gladys and Ruth, two of Lucilas five daughters greeted me. Their kitchen is well-known in Arequipa. At more than 100 years old, this kitchen has been handed down through several generations. With its whitewashed adobe walls, natural light that streams in sunbeams through a ceiling hatch, wood-burning stove, and years of history etched on its walls, this kitchen embodies the real cooking of the Andes. The women have a large sink with fresh drinking water, but they have no electricity and no gas  theres not a modern-day kitchen appliance in sight. All mixing and blending is done patiently and painstakingly by hand using the traditional batan. This is a giant moon-shaped smooth stone that the cook rocks from side to side over a flat boulder, using it as a grinder, a mill and a pestle and mortar. Lucilas daughters use the same batan that has been used since the opening of their picanteria. It holds the key to their slow, fresh cooking that places no importance on time. Cooking is unrushed; tradition and flavour come first.

Preparation starts at dawn, with the rest dishes arriving on the table at 11am. The women keep going until the food runs out, or the picanteria closes at late afternoon. When I was there, I sat at the kitchen table and watched how Gladys spent an hour using the batan to make a traditional ocopa sauce, while Ruth fed me carrot fritters, and let me try some exquisite sarza de criadillas and sarza de patitas, all washed down with chicha. I was intrigued by their raw prawn dishes, such as sivinche, a kind of spicy prawn tartar, and celador de camarones, which is like a raw prawn ceviche. Packed with flavour and character, these are ancestral dishes that are hard to find outside Arequipa  which is all the more reason to have included them in my book.

While I sat there watching these women and tasting their beautiful food, I became aware of the utter importance of this restaurant and all the restaurants like it. These are kitchens rich in history, steeped in tradition, committed to serving the best food for the benefit of all people. I feel passionately about them and want t support them in any way I can.

Ive brought many of my chefs and members of my team here. I want them to experience the roots of our traditions, and the ingredients and techniques that inspire our cooking back in London. I want them to witness the personality, ethos, ethics and attributes of these mothers of Peruvian cooking. It is the closest thing I can do to bottling that spirit and expertise and brining it back to London.

That day, as I watched Gladys and Ruth in their kitchen, they told me that I was sitting in the very place that had played host to thousands of other customers. Among those visitors was the great Latin American poet Pablo Neruda. Enriched by his experience, inspired and full of love, he looked over the small valley towards the fields of onions and wrote Ode to the Onion, a small tribute to a great region held up by its Andina women.

Andina: The Heart of Peruvian Food by Martin Morales is published by Quadrille, priced 27
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I became a distiller 12 months ago, says Tom Read of the Cornish Distilling Company, 13 months ago I didnt have a clue. That, of course, doesnt mean the end product isnt a worthy rum. Kalkar takes its name from the word for weaver fish in Cornish  a nod to Reads lifeguarding days. It was awarded three gold stars at the Great Taste awards in August.

As head distiller at the company, Read is served by his training in chemistry. I use my PhD more than I realise in making the rum. It isnt just about what you learn, its about having an idea and working out the best way to get there  in this case how to make good rum. The whole process for fermentation is essentially microbiology. And distilling is chemistry.

The Cornish rum differs from others because the entire spirit is made from scratch and uses only four ingredients. Everything is made from the raw starting ingredients, which is all done on site at the Norton Barton Artisan Food Village, in Bude, north Cornwall, says Read.

Recommended The 10 best rum cocktails around the country

The four ingredients include Nicaraguan coffee, white rum, water and a little raw sugar cane. Read says it doesnt need anything else.

To make the rum, he uses sugar, adds yeast, water and a few nutrients and then lets the yeast do its thing, converting into alcohol. It makes the whole process much more time-consuming and complex  along with the fact its produced drop by drop  but means it is the first truly artisan Cornish rum.

The coffee thats used in the drink comes from Falmouths Origin Coffee Roasters and is a single-origin coffee cold brew from Nicaragua instead of a blended one as other similar drinks use. I knew I wanted to use a single origin so it was just a case of finding the right one and the right brew ratio, says Read. He chose the Nicaraguan for its light and fruity roast.

Food and drink news Show all 35 1 /35 Food and drink news Food and drink news Healthy living makes us more inclined to binge, research suggests Gluten-free breads, dairy-free milks and other plant-based products have been some of the most favoured foods in British supermarkets this year. However, while were busy filling our shopping trolleys with gluten-free goodness, were also jamming it with junk food and alcohol, new research suggests Getty/iStock Food and drink news Growing list of Vegan celebs Making the switch to veganism is a major lifestyle choice, one that many claim can improve energy levels, lower the risk of cardiovascular disease and clear up any skin issues. Beyonce, Natalie Portman and Jessica Chastain are among the growing list of Hollywood stars who have eschewed animal products from their diets in recent years. Theres also been an increasing number of professional athletes who have gone vegan, such as boxing champions Mike Tyson and David Haye, thus debunking the myth that following a plant-based diet will leave you feeling weak and malnourished. AFP/Getty/NARAS/iHeartMedia Food and drink news McDonald's has announced the launch of a new vegan burger on its menu in Germany This will mark the first time the German franchise of the fast food chain has offered a vegan burger to its customers. The Big Vegan TS burger consists of a patty made from soy and wheat. It is served in a classic sesame seed bun, and contains salad, tomato, pickles and red onion. McDonald's Germany Food and drink news Drinking too many protein shakes could lead to an increased risk of obesity and a reduced lifespan, a new study has claimed Researchers from the University of Sydney's Charles Perkins Centre carried out an investigation to determine the impact excessive consumption of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) has on the body. BCAA supplements are often consumed in the form of powder, which is then added to water to make a shake. Published in journal Nature Metabolism, the study found that while BCAAs help to build muscle, they can also negatively impact an individual's temperament, cause weight gain and lead to a shortened lifespan Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Britain consumes more chocolate than any other country Most people love chocolate but it turns out no one does more than the Brits  with the average Brit found to have consumed 8.4 kg of chocolate in 2017, according to new data. Chocolate consumption around the world is on the rise, according to Mintel Global New Products Database (GNPD), which found that in the past year alone, Easter chocolate production has risen by 23 per cent Food and drink news 'Easter eggs should be banned for children under four' Dr Becky Spelman, chief psychologist at Harley Streets Private Therapy Clinic, is calling for Easter eggs to be banned for consumption for children under the age of four, claiming that giving them the opportunity to binge on chocolate so young will give them an unhealthy relationship with food later on. "This is a nightmare situation for parents of this generation as they have no idea how to teach their children to delay their response to cravings, she said, explaining that too many young kids binge on these chocolates because their parents dont know how to stop them. "Once a child starts overeating behaviour at a young age its very hard to turn things around for them in terms of food and their eating habits moving forward, leading to obesity from at very young age," she added PA Food and drink news Pineapple overtakes avocado as the UK's fastest-selling fruit According to Tesco, pineapple has overtaken avocado as the UKs fastest-selling fruit, with sales increasing by 15 per cent in 2017. In comparison, avocado sales rose by just under 10 per cent last year. The popular supermarket says the surge in popularity comes as shoppers buying the versatile fruit are beginning to use it as a main ingredient in everything from curries and barbecues, to juices and cocktails Getty Food and drink news Marks & Spencers launches stoneless avocados Rather than the result of genetic modification, the avocados are formed by an unpollinated avocado blossom. The fruit develops without a seed which in turns stops the growth, creating a small, seedless fruit. Whats more, the skin is actually edible, unlike a regular avocado. The flesh is much like that of a normal avocado - smooth and creamy, pale in colour and rich in flavour M&S Food and drink news Office teabags contain 17 times more germs than a toilet seat, reveals study The average bacterial reading of an office teabag was 3,785, in comparison to only 220 for a toilet seat. Other pieces of kitchen equipment also stacked up highly in their findings, with the bacterial readings averaging at 2,483 on kettle handles, 1,746 on the rim of a used mug and 1,592 on a fridge door handle Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news New study shows drinking more coffee leads to a longer life There is good news and a final hope for coffee addicts and lovers. You will now be able to drink coffee for longer as new study shows its can lead to a prolonged life. Scientists showed that those who drank between two and four cups of coffee a day had 18% lower risk of death compared to non-coffee drinkers. PA Food and drink news Coke Zero is replaced with Coke Zero Sugar Coca-Cola is pulling the plug on its Coke Zero. The much loved drink will be replaced with a new improved taste. The move, backed with a 10 million campaign, is said to come from Coca-Cola supporting people to reduce their sugar intake. Coca-Cola want people make this move while not sacrificing sugary taste of Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola Food and drink news Starbucks introduce new avocado spread The avocado craze has grown from hipster brunch restaurants to Starbucks. Starbucks have introduced their new avocado spread earlier this year and it has the internet in debate. Some argue that it not a spread but guacamole while others question if there is any avocado in there at all. When buying the new spread you can also buy an optional toasted bagel. It is a must try for all avocado connoisseurs. Starbucks Food and drink news New Mars chocolate bar The iconic British chocolate bar is about to get its partner in crime. The new bar, named Goodness Knows, will replace the gooey caramel goodness of the mars bar with oats. It is said to be more like a Florentine biscuit with a thin dark chocolate bottom. While being moderately healthy Mars says that is has good intentions. One pack has 154 calories and will sell for about 90p. Mars Food and drink news Wine prices could increase because of Brexit Wine lovers across the UK might soon have to shell out close to a quarter more for their favourite tipple after Brexit, as a weaker pound and sluggish economy takes its toll, a new study shows Rex Food and drink news Chocolate may be good for the heart A new study, published in the British Medical Journal: Heart, found that moderate chocolate intake can be positively associated with lessening the risk of the heart arrhythmia condition Atrial Fibrillation Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Brits throw away 1.4 million bananas each year British families are throwing away 1.4 million bananas that are perfectly good to eat every day at cost of 80m a year, new figures have shown PA/Armin Weigel Food and drink news Rosemary sales spike over exam time There has been a surge a surge in sales of the herb rosemary after a recent study found it helps improve memory. According to high street health food chain Holland & Barrett, sales of the herb have increased by 187 per cent compared to the same time last year Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Gluten-free diets 'not recommended' for people without coeliac disease Avoiding wheat, barley and rye in the belief that a gluten-free diet brings health benefits may do more harm than good, according to a team of US nutrition and medicine experts Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Starbucks launches two new coffee-based drinks Starbucks is launching two new coffee-based drinks in the UK, as it strives to tap into consumers growing appetite for healthy beverages. The Cold Brew Vanilla sweet cream and the Cappuccino Freddo, will both be available in stores throughout the UK from the start of May Twitter/@SbuxCountyHall Food and drink news Cadburys Dairy Milk Tiffin is making a permanent comeback after 80 years The Cadbury Dairy Milk Tiffin, first produced in 1937, is making a permanent comeback to the UK. The raisin and biscuit-filled chocolate bar is being launched after a successful trial last summer saw 3 million chocolate treats  at the cost of 1.49 for each 95g bar- purchased by nostalgic customers Cadburys Food and drink news Pizza restaurant makes worlds cheesiest 'Scottie's Pizza Parlor' in Portland Oregon has created the worlds cheesiest pizza using a total of 101 different cheese varieties. Facebook/Scottie's Pizza Parlor Food and drink news A pizza joint in Portland Oregon has created the worlds cheesiest pizza using a total of 101 different cheese varieties. Why not eating before a workout could be better for your health A study published in the American Journal of Physiology by researchers at the University of Bath found you might be likely to burn more fat if you have not eaten first Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news New York restaurant named best in the world A New York restaurant where an average meal for two will cost $700 has been named the best in the world. Eleven Madison Park won the accolade for the first time after debuting on the list at number 50 in 2010. The restaurant was praised for a fun sense of fine-dining, blurring the line between the kitchen and the dining room Getty Images Food and drink news Why you crave bad food when youre tired Researchers at Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University in Chicago recently presented their results of a study looking into the effects of sleep deprivation upon high-calorific food consumption. Researchers found that those who were sleep-deprived had specifically enhanced brain activity to the food smells compared to when they had a good nights sleep Shutterstock Food and drink news Drinking wine engages more of your brain than solving maths problems Drinking wine is the ideal workout for your brain, engaging more parts of our grey matter than any other human behaviour, according to a leading neuroscientist. Dr Gordon Shepherd, from the Yale School of Medicine, said sniffing and analysing a wine before drinking it requires exquisite control of one of the biggest muscles in the body Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news British dessert eating surges after people ditch healthy eating in February : In heartening news for anyone feeling guilty about quitting their New Year diet, it seems lots of us have given in to our sweet tooths once again. New data from nationwide food-delivery service Deliveroo reveals there was a surge in Brits ordering desserts in February compared to the first month of 2017 Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news US congress debates definition of milk alternatives A new bill has been created that seeks to ban dairy alternatives from using the term milk. Titled the DAIRY PRIDE Act, the name is a tenuous acronym for defending against imitations and replacements of yogurt, milk, and cheese to promote regular intake of dairy every day. It argues that the dairy industry is struggling as a result of all the dairy-free alternatives on the market and the public are being duped too Getty Images Food and drink news Cadburys launches two new chocolate bars UK confectionary giant Cadbury has launched two new chocolate bars, hoping to lure those with a sweet tooth and perhaps help combat some of the challenges it faces from rising commodity prices and a post-Brexit slump in the value of the pound.The companys new products will be peanut butter and mint flavoured. They will be available in most major super markets as 120g bars, priced at 1.49, according to the company Cadburys Food and drink news You can now get a job as a professional chocolate eater The company responsible for some of your favourite chocolate brands  think Cadbury, Milks, Prince and Oreo  have officially announced an opening to join their team as a professional chocolate taster. The successful candidate will help them to test, perfect and launch new products all over the world. Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news MSG additive used in Chinese food is actually good for you, scientist claims For years, weve been told MSG (the sodium salt of glutamic acid) - often associated with cheap Chinese takeaways - is awful for our health and to be avoided at all costs. But one scientist argues it should be used as a supersalt and encourages adding it to food. Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Lettuce prices are rising Not only are lettuces becoming an increasingly rare commodity in supermarkets, but prices for the leafy vegetables seem to be rising too. According to the weekly report from the Governments Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, a pair of Little Gem lettuces had an average market price of 0.86 in the week that ended on Friday, up from an average of 0.56 in the previous week  thats an almost 54 per cent increase. Getty Images Food and drink news Do-It-Yourself restaurant To encourage more people to cook and eat together, IKEA has launched The Dining Club in Shoreditch  a fully immersive Do-It-Yourself restaurant . Members of the public can book to host a brunch, lunch or dinner party for up to 20 friends and family. Supported by their very own sous chef and maitre de, the host and their guests will orchestrate an intimate dining experience where cooking together is celebrated and eating together is inspirational Mikael Buck / IKEA Food and drink news Ping Pong menu with a twist Gatwick Airport has teamed up with London dim sum restaurant Ping Pong to create a limited edition menu with a distinctly British twist; including a Full English Bao and Beef Wellington Puff, to celebrate the launch of the airports new route to Hong Kong Food and drink news Zizzi unveil the Maamgharita Unique pizza art has been created by Zizzi in celebration of the Queens 90th birthday. The pizza features the queen in an iconic pose illustrated with fresh and tasty Italian ingredients on a backdrop of the Union Jack Food and drink news Blue potatoes make a comeback Blue potatoes, once a staple part of British potato crops, are back on the menu thanks to a Cambridge scientist turned-organic farmer and Farmdrop, an online marketplace that lets people buy direct from local farms. Cambridge PhD graduate-turned farmer, Adrian Izzard has used traditional growing techniques at Wild Country Organics to produce the colourful spuds, packed with healthy cell-protecting anthocyanin, which had previously disappeared from UK plates when post-war farmers were pushed towards higher-yielding varieties

By using a single origin cold brew, it allows the individual characteristics of the beans to shine through, much like a filter coffee, he adds. From this, Read can extract a strong and complex flavour without the sourness or bitterness.

This also means the drink is not as sweet. I like to think the sugar is used to balance the drink, not sweeten it. You can always add sugar but you cant take it away, he says.

Drink it neat with a cube or two of ice. For a longer drink it matches great with coconut water or even tonic. It also makes a mean espresso martini or affogato.

Next in line from the team is a white rum, a spiced rum and aged rum.

Kalkar is available from theartisanfoodvillage.com, 35, 70cl / ABV approx 25%
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Lucky Sir Thomas Gage. He imported plums from France in the early 18th century and  so the story goes  during the journey the label was lost so no one knew the fruits real name. When the small green plums arrived in England, they were given his surname and called greengages.

Not all greengages are green, although most are and theyre ideal dessert fruit, perfect for eating as is. They also make a superb jam and are a treat poached.

You could poach them in two-parts water to one-part sugar, but Ive replaced half the water with sweet Vin Santo wine from Italy, and reduced the sugar.

I leave the stone in and poach and serve them whole but you could slice them in half before or after poaching.

The skin will pucker slightly when you cook them but it doesnt affect the taste. Toss some blanched almonds into the poaching liquid and they become lovely and syrupy.

Add crushed Italian cantuccini (almond biscotti) for some bite and creamy ricotta cheese with vanilla and youre sorted.

Serves 4-6

500g greengage plums, ripe but still firm

50g blanched, whole almonds

1 strip of lemon peel

250ml Vin Santo or Marsala wine

250ml water

150g caster sugar

 vanilla bean, scraped or 7g vanilla bean paste

75g cantuccini (almond biscotti)

250g ricotta cheese

Place the whole plums, almonds and lemon peel in a pan with the Vin Santo, water and sugar. Bring to a low simmer and cook until the plums are slightly softened.

The cooking time will vary based on how ripe your plums are but around 10 minutes. The skin may crack and peel slightly but this wont affect the taste. When the plums are done, scoop them out of the poaching liquid and set aside.

Food and drink news Show all 35 1 /35 Food and drink news Food and drink news Healthy living makes us more inclined to binge, research suggests Gluten-free breads, dairy-free milks and other plant-based products have been some of the most favoured foods in British supermarkets this year. However, while were busy filling our shopping trolleys with gluten-free goodness, were also jamming it with junk food and alcohol, new research suggests Getty/iStock Food and drink news Growing list of Vegan celebs Making the switch to veganism is a major lifestyle choice, one that many claim can improve energy levels, lower the risk of cardiovascular disease and clear up any skin issues. Beyonce, Natalie Portman and Jessica Chastain are among the growing list of Hollywood stars who have eschewed animal products from their diets in recent years. Theres also been an increasing number of professional athletes who have gone vegan, such as boxing champions Mike Tyson and David Haye, thus debunking the myth that following a plant-based diet will leave you feeling weak and malnourished. AFP/Getty/NARAS/iHeartMedia Food and drink news McDonald's has announced the launch of a new vegan burger on its menu in Germany This will mark the first time the German franchise of the fast food chain has offered a vegan burger to its customers. The Big Vegan TS burger consists of a patty made from soy and wheat. It is served in a classic sesame seed bun, and contains salad, tomato, pickles and red onion. McDonald's Germany Food and drink news Drinking too many protein shakes could lead to an increased risk of obesity and a reduced lifespan, a new study has claimed Researchers from the University of Sydney's Charles Perkins Centre carried out an investigation to determine the impact excessive consumption of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) has on the body. BCAA supplements are often consumed in the form of powder, which is then added to water to make a shake. Published in journal Nature Metabolism, the study found that while BCAAs help to build muscle, they can also negatively impact an individual's temperament, cause weight gain and lead to a shortened lifespan Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Britain consumes more chocolate than any other country Most people love chocolate but it turns out no one does more than the Brits  with the average Brit found to have consumed 8.4 kg of chocolate in 2017, according to new data. Chocolate consumption around the world is on the rise, according to Mintel Global New Products Database (GNPD), which found that in the past year alone, Easter chocolate production has risen by 23 per cent Food and drink news 'Easter eggs should be banned for children under four' Dr Becky Spelman, chief psychologist at Harley Streets Private Therapy Clinic, is calling for Easter eggs to be banned for consumption for children under the age of four, claiming that giving them the opportunity to binge on chocolate so young will give them an unhealthy relationship with food later on. "This is a nightmare situation for parents of this generation as they have no idea how to teach their children to delay their response to cravings, she said, explaining that too many young kids binge on these chocolates because their parents dont know how to stop them. "Once a child starts overeating behaviour at a young age its very hard to turn things around for them in terms of food and their eating habits moving forward, leading to obesity from at very young age," she added PA Food and drink news Pineapple overtakes avocado as the UK's fastest-selling fruit According to Tesco, pineapple has overtaken avocado as the UKs fastest-selling fruit, with sales increasing by 15 per cent in 2017. In comparison, avocado sales rose by just under 10 per cent last year. The popular supermarket says the surge in popularity comes as shoppers buying the versatile fruit are beginning to use it as a main ingredient in everything from curries and barbecues, to juices and cocktails Getty Food and drink news Marks & Spencers launches stoneless avocados Rather than the result of genetic modification, the avocados are formed by an unpollinated avocado blossom. The fruit develops without a seed which in turns stops the growth, creating a small, seedless fruit. Whats more, the skin is actually edible, unlike a regular avocado. The flesh is much like that of a normal avocado - smooth and creamy, pale in colour and rich in flavour M&S Food and drink news Office teabags contain 17 times more germs than a toilet seat, reveals study The average bacterial reading of an office teabag was 3,785, in comparison to only 220 for a toilet seat. Other pieces of kitchen equipment also stacked up highly in their findings, with the bacterial readings averaging at 2,483 on kettle handles, 1,746 on the rim of a used mug and 1,592 on a fridge door handle Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news New study shows drinking more coffee leads to a longer life There is good news and a final hope for coffee addicts and lovers. You will now be able to drink coffee for longer as new study shows its can lead to a prolonged life. Scientists showed that those who drank between two and four cups of coffee a day had 18% lower risk of death compared to non-coffee drinkers. PA Food and drink news Coke Zero is replaced with Coke Zero Sugar Coca-Cola is pulling the plug on its Coke Zero. The much loved drink will be replaced with a new improved taste. The move, backed with a 10 million campaign, is said to come from Coca-Cola supporting people to reduce their sugar intake. Coca-Cola want people make this move while not sacrificing sugary taste of Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola Food and drink news Starbucks introduce new avocado spread The avocado craze has grown from hipster brunch restaurants to Starbucks. Starbucks have introduced their new avocado spread earlier this year and it has the internet in debate. Some argue that it not a spread but guacamole while others question if there is any avocado in there at all. When buying the new spread you can also buy an optional toasted bagel. It is a must try for all avocado connoisseurs. Starbucks Food and drink news New Mars chocolate bar The iconic British chocolate bar is about to get its partner in crime. The new bar, named Goodness Knows, will replace the gooey caramel goodness of the mars bar with oats. It is said to be more like a Florentine biscuit with a thin dark chocolate bottom. While being moderately healthy Mars says that is has good intentions. One pack has 154 calories and will sell for about 90p. Mars Food and drink news Wine prices could increase because of Brexit Wine lovers across the UK might soon have to shell out close to a quarter more for their favourite tipple after Brexit, as a weaker pound and sluggish economy takes its toll, a new study shows Rex Food and drink news Chocolate may be good for the heart A new study, published in the British Medical Journal: Heart, found that moderate chocolate intake can be positively associated with lessening the risk of the heart arrhythmia condition Atrial Fibrillation Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Brits throw away 1.4 million bananas each year British families are throwing away 1.4 million bananas that are perfectly good to eat every day at cost of 80m a year, new figures have shown PA/Armin Weigel Food and drink news Rosemary sales spike over exam time There has been a surge a surge in sales of the herb rosemary after a recent study found it helps improve memory. According to high street health food chain Holland & Barrett, sales of the herb have increased by 187 per cent compared to the same time last year Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Gluten-free diets 'not recommended' for people without coeliac disease Avoiding wheat, barley and rye in the belief that a gluten-free diet brings health benefits may do more harm than good, according to a team of US nutrition and medicine experts Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Starbucks launches two new coffee-based drinks Starbucks is launching two new coffee-based drinks in the UK, as it strives to tap into consumers growing appetite for healthy beverages. The Cold Brew Vanilla sweet cream and the Cappuccino Freddo, will both be available in stores throughout the UK from the start of May Twitter/@SbuxCountyHall Food and drink news Cadburys Dairy Milk Tiffin is making a permanent comeback after 80 years The Cadbury Dairy Milk Tiffin, first produced in 1937, is making a permanent comeback to the UK. The raisin and biscuit-filled chocolate bar is being launched after a successful trial last summer saw 3 million chocolate treats  at the cost of 1.49 for each 95g bar- purchased by nostalgic customers Cadburys Food and drink news Pizza restaurant makes worlds cheesiest 'Scottie's Pizza Parlor' in Portland Oregon has created the worlds cheesiest pizza using a total of 101 different cheese varieties. Facebook/Scottie's Pizza Parlor Food and drink news A pizza joint in Portland Oregon has created the worlds cheesiest pizza using a total of 101 different cheese varieties. Why not eating before a workout could be better for your health A study published in the American Journal of Physiology by researchers at the University of Bath found you might be likely to burn more fat if you have not eaten first Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news New York restaurant named best in the world A New York restaurant where an average meal for two will cost $700 has been named the best in the world. Eleven Madison Park won the accolade for the first time after debuting on the list at number 50 in 2010. The restaurant was praised for a fun sense of fine-dining, blurring the line between the kitchen and the dining room Getty Images Food and drink news Why you crave bad food when youre tired Researchers at Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University in Chicago recently presented their results of a study looking into the effects of sleep deprivation upon high-calorific food consumption. Researchers found that those who were sleep-deprived had specifically enhanced brain activity to the food smells compared to when they had a good nights sleep Shutterstock Food and drink news Drinking wine engages more of your brain than solving maths problems Drinking wine is the ideal workout for your brain, engaging more parts of our grey matter than any other human behaviour, according to a leading neuroscientist. Dr Gordon Shepherd, from the Yale School of Medicine, said sniffing and analysing a wine before drinking it requires exquisite control of one of the biggest muscles in the body Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news British dessert eating surges after people ditch healthy eating in February : In heartening news for anyone feeling guilty about quitting their New Year diet, it seems lots of us have given in to our sweet tooths once again. New data from nationwide food-delivery service Deliveroo reveals there was a surge in Brits ordering desserts in February compared to the first month of 2017 Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news US congress debates definition of milk alternatives A new bill has been created that seeks to ban dairy alternatives from using the term milk. Titled the DAIRY PRIDE Act, the name is a tenuous acronym for defending against imitations and replacements of yogurt, milk, and cheese to promote regular intake of dairy every day. It argues that the dairy industry is struggling as a result of all the dairy-free alternatives on the market and the public are being duped too Getty Images Food and drink news Cadburys launches two new chocolate bars UK confectionary giant Cadbury has launched two new chocolate bars, hoping to lure those with a sweet tooth and perhaps help combat some of the challenges it faces from rising commodity prices and a post-Brexit slump in the value of the pound.The companys new products will be peanut butter and mint flavoured. They will be available in most major super markets as 120g bars, priced at 1.49, according to the company Cadburys Food and drink news You can now get a job as a professional chocolate eater The company responsible for some of your favourite chocolate brands  think Cadbury, Milks, Prince and Oreo  have officially announced an opening to join their team as a professional chocolate taster. The successful candidate will help them to test, perfect and launch new products all over the world. Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news MSG additive used in Chinese food is actually good for you, scientist claims For years, weve been told MSG (the sodium salt of glutamic acid) - often associated with cheap Chinese takeaways - is awful for our health and to be avoided at all costs. But one scientist argues it should be used as a supersalt and encourages adding it to food. Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Lettuce prices are rising Not only are lettuces becoming an increasingly rare commodity in supermarkets, but prices for the leafy vegetables seem to be rising too. According to the weekly report from the Governments Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, a pair of Little Gem lettuces had an average market price of 0.86 in the week that ended on Friday, up from an average of 0.56 in the previous week  thats an almost 54 per cent increase. Getty Images Food and drink news Do-It-Yourself restaurant To encourage more people to cook and eat together, IKEA has launched The Dining Club in Shoreditch  a fully immersive Do-It-Yourself restaurant . Members of the public can book to host a brunch, lunch or dinner party for up to 20 friends and family. Supported by their very own sous chef and maitre de, the host and their guests will orchestrate an intimate dining experience where cooking together is celebrated and eating together is inspirational Mikael Buck / IKEA Food and drink news Ping Pong menu with a twist Gatwick Airport has teamed up with London dim sum restaurant Ping Pong to create a limited edition menu with a distinctly British twist; including a Full English Bao and Beef Wellington Puff, to celebrate the launch of the airports new route to Hong Kong Food and drink news Zizzi unveil the Maamgharita Unique pizza art has been created by Zizzi in celebration of the Queens 90th birthday. The pizza features the queen in an iconic pose illustrated with fresh and tasty Italian ingredients on a backdrop of the Union Jack Food and drink news Blue potatoes make a comeback Blue potatoes, once a staple part of British potato crops, are back on the menu thanks to a Cambridge scientist turned-organic farmer and Farmdrop, an online marketplace that lets people buy direct from local farms. Cambridge PhD graduate-turned farmer, Adrian Izzard has used traditional growing techniques at Wild Country Organics to produce the colourful spuds, packed with healthy cell-protecting anthocyanin, which had previously disappeared from UK plates when post-war farmers were pushed towards higher-yielding varieties

Reduce down the poaching liquid with the almonds until its slightly thickened and syrupy. Remove from the heat and pour over the plums. At this point you can place the plums, almonds and poaching liquid into a clean glass jar and refrigerate until youre ready to serve.

Mix the ricotta with the scraped vanilla bean or the vanilla bean paste. Roughly crush the cantuccini biscuits, reserving one or two whole per person to use as a garnish. For each person, serve several plums with almonds, a generous spoonful of ricotta cheese and a sprinkling of the crushed biscuits. Drizzle some of the poaching liquid on top and garnish with a whole biscuit. Serve with a glass of Vin Santo on the side, if youre so inclined.

@Juliapleonard
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Apple granted ride hailing app Uber "totally unprecedented" permission allowing its app to read iPhone screens even when only in background use, it has been alleged.

Will Strafach, the CEO of Sudo Security Group, pointed out the "anomaly" on Twitter earlier this week, saying it was "very unusual" and could only have been granted to the taxi-hailing company by Apple.

Asked why this was a concern, the security expert tweeted that it apparently gave the company the "ability to read directly from the screen even in background".

Another Twitter user claimed the permission would enable Uber to record the screen of the device even when app was closed and in theory potentially access sensitive information.

In reply to Mr Strafach, Melanie Ensign, the head of security and privacy communications for Uber, said: "(The software) was used to render Uber maps on iphone & send to Apple Watch before Watch apps could handle it. It's not in use & being removed. Thx!"

Mr Strafach replied: "Do you have any details on how Uber convinced Apple to grant this entitlement? (totally unprecedented)."

He said he could not see evidence of any other app having been granted a similar sensitive entitlement.

An Uber spokesman said the software was only used for a short period on an old version of the Apple Watch app and had not been in use for some time.

Apple unveils the iPhone X Show all 10 1 /10 Apple unveils the iPhone X Apple unveils the iPhone X Apple Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing, Phil Schiller, introduces the iPhone x during a launch event in Cupertino, California, U.S. September 12, 2017 REUTERS/Stephen Lam Apple unveils the iPhone X Apple Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing, Phil Schiller, introduces the iPhone X during a launch event in Cupertino, California, U.S. September 12, 2017 REUTERS/Stephen Lam Apple unveils the iPhone X Apple Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing, Phil Schiller, introduces the iPhone X during a launch event in Cupertino, California, U.S. September 12, 2017 Reuters Apple unveils the iPhone X Apple Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing, Phil Schiller, introduces the iPhone x during a launch event in Cupertino, California, U.S. September 12, 2017 REUTERS/Stephen Lam Apple unveils the iPhone X Apple Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing, Phil Schiller, introduces the iPhone x during a launch event in Cupertino, California, U.S. September 12, 2017 REUTERS/Stephen Lam Apple unveils the iPhone X Apple Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing, Phil Schiller, introduces the iPhone x during a launch event in Cupertino, California, U.S. September 12, 2017 REUTERS/Stephen Lam Apple unveils the iPhone X Apple Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing, Phil Schiller, shows Animoji during a launch event in Cupertino, California, U.S. September 12, 2017 REUTERS/Stephen Lam Apple unveils the iPhone X Apple Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing, Phil Schiller, speaks during a launch event in Cupertino, California, U.S. September 12, 2017 REUTERS/Stephen Lam Apple unveils the iPhone X Apple Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing, Phil Schiller, introduces the iPhone x during a launch event in Cupertino, California, U.S. September 12, 2017 REUTERS/Stephen Lam Apple unveils the iPhone X Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, speaks about the iPhone X during a launch event in Cupertino, California, U.S. September 12, 2017 REUTERS/Stephen Lam

The spokesman said: "It enabled the app to run the memory-intensive rendering of maps on the iPhone & then send the image to the Watch app. It was never used for any other purpose and has been non-functional in our code for quite some time.

"The memory limitation of Apple Watch was fixed by subsequent updates in the OS (operating system) and we've issued an update to our app to remove the (software) completely."

It comes days after a "constructive" meeting between Uber's new boss and London's transport commissioner to discuss the firm's future in the capital.

Uber seeks to continue operating in the city, after regulator Transport for London refused to renew the firm's licence on the grounds of "public safety and security implications".

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Dan Wasyluk discovered the hard way that trading cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin happens in an online Wild West where sheriffs are largely absent.

Mr Wasyluk and his colleagues raised bitcoins for a new tech venture and lodged them in escrow at a company running a cryptocurrency exchange called Moolah. Just months later the exchange collapsed; the man behind it is now awaiting trial in Britain on fraud and money-laundering charges. He has pleaded not guilty.

Mr Wasyluks project lost 750 bitcoins, currently worth about $3m, and he believes he stands little chance of recovering any money.

It really was kind of a kneecapping of the project, said Mr Wasyluk of the collapse three years ago. If you are starting an exchange and you lose clients money, you or your company should be 100 per cent accountable for that loss. And right now there is nothing like that in place.

Cryptocurrencies were supposed to offer a secure, digital way to conduct financial transactions but they have been dogged by doubts. Concerns have largely focused on their astronomical gains in value and the likelihood of painful price crashes. Equally perilous, though, are the exchanges where virtual currencies are bought, sold and stored. These exchanges, which match buyers and sellers and sometimes hold traders funds, have become magnets for fraud and mires of technological dysfunction, posing an underappreciated risk to anyone who trades digital coins.

Huge sums are at stake. As the prices of bitcoin and other virtual currencies have soared this year  bitcoin has quadrupled  legions of investors and speculators have turned to online exchanges. Billions of dollars worth of bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies, which arent backed by any governments or central banks, are now traded on exchanges every day.

These are new assets. No one really knows what to make of them, said David L Yermack, chairman of the finance department at New York Universitys Stern School of Business. If youre a consumer, theres nothing to protect you.

Regulators and governments are still debating how to handle cryptocurrencies, and Mr Yermack says the US Congress will ultimately have to take action.

Some of the freewheeling exchanges are plagued with poor security and lack investor protections common in more regulated financial markets. Some Chinese exchanges have falsely inflated their trading volume to lure new customers, according to former employees.

There have been at least three dozen heists of cryptocurrency exchanges since 2011; many of the hacked exchanges later shut down. More than 980,000 bitcoins have been stolen, which today would be worth about $4bn. Few have been recovered. Burned investors have been left at the mercy of exchanges as to whether they will receive any compensation.

Nearly 25,000 customers of Mt. Gox, once the worlds largest bitcoin exchange, are still waiting for compensation more than three years after its collapse into bankruptcy in Japan. The exchange said it lost about 650,000 bitcoins. Claims approved by the bankruptcy trustee total more than $400m.

Tech developer Dan Wasyluk lost $3m worth of bitcoin and says there is little chance of recovering his losses (Reuters)

In July, a federal judge in Florida ordered Paul Vernon, the operator of a collapsed US exchange called Cryptsy, to pay $8.2 m to customers after he failed to respond to a class-action lawsuit. The judge ruled that 11,325 bitcoins had been stolen but did not identify the thief. This is no different than bank robbers in the Old West, said David C Silver, one of the plaintiffs attorneys. Cryptocurrency is just a new front. Vernon could not be reached for comment.

Another challenge for traders: government intervention. This month, Chinese authorities ordered some mainland Chinese cryptocurrency exchanges to stop trading. The order, however, did not apply to exchanges based in Hong Kong or outside China, including those affiliated with mainland Chinese exchanges.

So-called flash crashes  when cryptocurrencies suddenly plummet in value  are also a threat. Unlike regulated US stock exchanges, cryptocurrency exchanges arent required to have circuit breakers in place to halt trading during wild price swings. Digital coin exchanges are also frequently under assault by hackers, resulting in downtimes that can sideline traders at critical moments.

On 7 May, traders on a US exchange called Kraken lost more than $5m when it came under attack and couldnt be accessed, according to a class-action lawsuit filed in Florida. During the incident, the suit alleges, the exchanges price of a cryptocurrency called ether fell more than 70 per cent and the traders leveraged positions were liquidated. They received no compensation. The Kraken exchange declined to comment on the lawsuit. In a court filing, it asked for the case to be dismissed and said the claims should be decided by arbitration.

Another two flash crashes occurred this year on the US exchange GDAX. The exchange said it compensated traders who lost money.

Not surprisingly, many banks are leery of cryptocurrency exchanges and some have refused to deal with them. At a bank investor conference this month in New York, Jamie Dimon, chief executive of JPMorgan, called bitcoin a fraud and predicted it will blow up.

Boycotts by banks can make it impossible at times for exchanges to process wire transfers that allow customers to buy or sell cryptocurrencies with traditional currencies such as dollars or euros. In March, Wells Fargo stopped processing wire transfers for an exchange called Bitfinex, leaving customers unable to transfer US dollars out of their accounts, except through special arrangement with the exchanges lawyer. Wells Fargo declined to comment.

Dealing with the banks is a constant and ongoing challenge said Bitfinex chief executive Jean-Louis van der Velde. Citizens and businesses [are] being treated like criminals when they are not, including myself. He declined to say which banks Bitfinex is now using.

In part, banks say they are concerned about the due diligence cryptocurrency exchanges do on their customers to guard against money laundering, criminal activity and sanctions violations. While regulators require banks to verify who their customers are, some cryptocurrency trading platforms have performed minimal checks.

Internal customer records from the BTCChina exchange, which has an office in Shanghai but is stopping trading at the end of this month, show that in the autumn of 2015, 63 customers said they were from Iran and another nine said they were from North Korea  countries under US sanctions.

Americans are generally prohibited from conducting financial transactions with individuals in Iran and North Korea. Statements on BTCChinas website from 2013 and 2014 identify Bobby Lee, who holds American citizenship, as its chief executive and co-founder. Mr Lee is currently CEO of BTCC, a separate Cayman Islands-registered cryptocurrency exchange company, according to a spokesman for the exchanges.

The spokesman did not respond to repeated questions as to Mr Lees current role at BTCChina, and Mr Lee did not comment on the issue. The spokesman said that BTCChina complies with Chinese law and is run by a Chinese citizen, and its legal representative is also a Chinese citizen.

The spokesman originally said the exchange had significantly strengthened its compliance processes over the last two years, including banning registrations from sanctioned countries such as Iran and North Korea. Our system still has some inactivated accounts from some sanctioned countries for audit and logging purposes. He said most of those accounts had never been used to trade.

He later said that BTCChina has never had any North Korean customers and has had only one Iranian customer. The Iranian used a bank account in China, not Iran, therefore all of that customers transactions on our trading platform did not violate US sanctions, the spokesman said. He added: BTCC has never had and does not have any North Korean or Iranian customers.

The US Treasury Departments Office of Foreign Assets Control in Washington, which enforces economic and trade sanctions, declined to comment.

In mid-2016, the Chinese exchange hired a compliance analyst to help monitor any suspicious activity on the trading platform. It selected Constance Yuan, then 23 years old, who said she had no prior formal training in compliance. On her LinkedIn page, she listed her title as Senior compliance manager.

I was a bit surprised, she said of her hiring. I felt I had no experience, and it was a pretty big responsibility. She said lawyers taught her on the job, which she recently left.

The spokesman for BTCChina said it has had a vice president in charge of compliance on its staff since 2013 and that person helped to develop a robust system to verify customers identities.

MICKEY MOUSE IDENTITIES

Bitcoin, the first digital currency to gain widespread acceptance, sprang up during the financial crisis about nine years ago. Its attraction, early proponents maintained, was that it offered a way to bypass banks and governments, and to conduct financial transactions more cheaply. Every transaction is validated and recorded on a public ledger called a blockchain that is maintained by a network of computers. While anonymous, the individual transactions are available for all to see on the internet. They are secured by cryptography, the computerised encoding and decoding of data.

Mike Hearn, an early bitcoin developer, said the currency was initially viewed more as a hobby than a serious alternative to traditional money. People didnt really think it could take off and get big, he said. It was a thought experiment that happened to have some code.

Though bitcoin turned out to generate huge attention and media coverage, it is still not widely used by ordinary consumers. Few retailers accept it, and processing transactions on the blockchain remains much slower than payment card networks, despite some recent technical changes.

The computer maker Dell, which announced in 2014 that it would accept bitcoin payments, has stopped due to low usage, a spokeswoman said. At the US online retailer Overstock, only a fraction of one per cent of sales are transacted in bitcoins, according to the company.

Most of the cryptocurrencies right now are more commodities than currency, said Dan Schulman, chief executive of payments company PayPal. You trade them based on what you think will happen to their value. Theyre not really accepted by many merchants as a currency.

Instead, cryptocurrencies have proved attractive to those seeking anonymity.

Poloniex, a US exchange, has allowed some customers to trade cryptocurrencies and withdraw up to $2,000 worth of digital coins a day by providing only a name, an email address and a country. In a statement, Poloniex said it has spent considerable resources developing a culture of compliance and has systems in place to prevent users from abusing the platform.

The exchange isnt allowed to accept New York residents as customers because it lacks a state licence to operate a cryptocurrency exchange. We interviewed two New York residents who had claimed that they lived elsewhere and were able to trade on Poloniex. A Poloniex spokesman said: Any New York resident who submits false profile information in order to trade on our platform is in breach of our terms of service.

New Yorks Department of Financial Services said it would take appropriate action. In a statement, the department said: As New Yorks regulator of cryptocurrency, DFS will not tolerate any activity by unlicensed operators who attempt to conduct business in the state.

In June, a former US federal prosecutor testified before Congress that criminals  including distributors of malicious code called ransomware, large drug kingpins and serial fraudsters  were increasingly using unregulated foreign exchanges that dont verify their customers.

Criminals can open anonymous accounts or accounts with phony names to fly under the radar of law enforcement, Kathryn Haun, a former assistant US attorney, said at a congressional hearing. Thus, we have received Mickey Mouse who resides at 123 Main Street in subpoena returns.

Ms Haun left the Justice Department in May and joined the board of Coinbase, which runs the GDAX exchange. She said she was impressed with Coinbases team and vision. A class-action lawsuit was filed last year against Coinbase on behalf of customers of the collapsed Cryptsy exchange. It claims that Coinbase converted bitcoins allegedly stolen from Cryptsy into about $8.2m that was then withdrawn. ms Haun and Coinbase declined to comment on the case; in a court filing, Coinbase denied any wrongdoing.

In July, US authorities shut down the website of the BTC-e exchange, one of the worlds largest, and ordered it to pay a $110m fine. The Treasury Department said it had facilitated transactions involving ransomware, computer hacking, identity theft, tax refund fraud schemes, public corruption and drug trafficking.

BTC-e, whose base of operations was unclear, could not be contacted, though it continues to have a website using a New Zealand domain name. It now forwards to a new exchange called WEX, which didnt respond to a request for comment.

FAKE VOLUME

One of the criteria traders say they use to select an exchange is trading volume. The more trades an exchange handles, the faster buyers and sellers can be matched.

From about early 2014 until late January this year, Chinese exchanges accounted for about 90 per cent of global bitcoin trading volume, according to the website bitcoinity.org, which collates trading data reported by exchanges.

Some of that high volume occurred because traders were attracted by the fact that these exchanges at that time charged no transaction fees. But some of the volume was fake, said six former employees at two Chinese exchanges. Artificially pumped-up volumes in China could have affected the often volatile price of bitcoin because investors elsewhere monitor and respond to the activity.

One exchange, OKCoin, inflated volumes through so-called wash trades, repeatedly trading nominal amounts of bitcoin back and forth between accounts, two former executives said. The transactions were logged on the exchanges but not recorded on the blockchain, according to a former employee.

Zane Tackett, who held several positions at OKCoin from 2014 to 2015, including international operations manager, said he resigned partly out of concern about its fake volumes. The motivation is to seem larger than their competition, he said.

Changpeng Zhao, a former chief technical officer at OKCoin, stated on the website reddit.com in May 2015 that OKCoin used bots that are designed to pump up volumes. In a response to the post, OKCoin said: OKCoin does not need to have any fake volume.

In a statement, OKCoin said it never artificially inflated trading volume.

Four former employees at BTCChina, including one of its co-founders, said the exchange had also engaged in faking its trading volumes. A spokesman for the exchange said it has never faked its trading volumes.

The Chinese exchanges sky-high volumes appear to have caught the attention of the Peoples Bank of China. After a series of inspections by the central bank, Chinese exchanges in January began charging trading fees  as exchanges elsewhere typically do  and volumes in China plummeted.

A deceptive market is not a healthy market, said Xiaoyu Huang, co-founder of BTCChina, who said that the exchange had faked some of its volume. And, in fact, it was the fake volumes that made the government mistakenly believe that the Chinese market accounted for so much of the global trading volume, and caused the government to supervise bitcoin in China so forcefully. Mr Huang said he had left the company in part over a disagreement over its direction.

The spokesman for BTCChina said: The Chinese governments scrutiny into bitcoin exchanges earlier this year was because of a dramatic increase in bitcoins price. Chinas central bank declined to answer questions.

Exchanges are frequently targeted by hackers, causing additional problems for investors.

Walle Wei, a Chinese trader based in Guangxi in southern China, said he was trading futures in bitcoin and a cryptocurrency called litecoin on OKCoin.com on 10 July, 2015. Betting that the litecoin price, then about $4, would rise, he bought contracts for long positions using borrowed money. This meant that he only had to put down 10 per cent to trade. Trading with that much leverage meant that a small move in the price could either wipe out his positions or greatly magnify his gains.

Instead of rising as Mr Wei had hoped, litecoins price began falling and OKCoins website slowed down, he said. He was unable to buy or sell. When he regained access to his account, his contracts had been liquidated. He said he lost 3,136 litecoins, then worth about $12,500.

OKCoin announced on its blog that it had been a victim of large-scale attacks by hackers who flooded its websites with traffic, preventing some users from accessing their accounts.

On 13 July, Mr Wei suffered a second, similar event with bitcoin. He said the exchanges website became inaccessible, his contracts were liquidated and he lost 57.9 bitcoins, then worth about $16,900.

Mr Wei said he complained and OKCoin covered 15 per cent of his bitcoin losses, waived one months worth of trading fees and gave him a mobile phone charger. He said he also filed complaints with police and five government agencies, including the central bank and the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC). Most ignored his complaints, he said, and those who replied told him his problem didnt fall under their jurisdiction.

They said to find the relevant department. But I dont know what other relevant government departments there are, he said.

A person close to the CSRC said cryptocurrency exchanges fall under the purview of the central bank, which declined to answer questions.

In a written response, OKCoin said it had invested heavily in guarding against attacks and there was no precedent for multinational corporations to compensate users for service interruptions. All tradings profit or loss should be solely borne by the users, OKCoin said. To open an account, customers must agree to terms of service that absolve the company of liability for losses from hacker attacks and computer virus intrusion or attack.

Inaccessible websites arent the only way investors can lose money on exchanges. In February, a hedge fund called GABI, based in Jersey, bought a futures contract on OKCoins Hong Kong exchange, betting the price of bitcoin would rise. But the contract was liquidated soon afterwards when another investor placed a giant bet the other way that dwarfed it.

In regulated exchanges, such as the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, there are limits to the size of futures contracts to prevent one trader from dominating the market. Thats not the case on some cryptocurrency exchanges.

In its online February newsletter, the hedge funds manager called the incident clear market manipulation. He said he questioned OKCoin about it: They confirmed to us that there were no position limits whatsoever and that people were free to do whatever they wanted in their happy trading environment.

The February bitcoin contract cost the hedge fund between $400,000 and $500,000, according to a person familiar with the matter.

OKCoin said the two customers traded fairly and there is no regulation restricting the trading strategy. Hong Kongs Securities and Futures Commission declined to comment.

AN ABSOLUTE DISGRACE

In the past 15 months, Bitfinex, one of the worlds largest cryptocurrency exchanges, was fined by a US regulator, lost $72m worth of bitcoins to hackers and was cut off by Wells Fargo, one of Americas biggest banks.

Bitfinex was set up four years ago. Its hundreds of thousands of clients include banks, investment funds and other cryptocurrency exchanges, according to Mr van der Velde, its CEO and co-founder, and its lawyer.

Bitfinex has no head office, is owned by a British Virgin Islands company and is managed by three executives who live in Hong Kong, the US and Europe. Besides its Dutch chief executive, they include chief financial officer Giancarlo Devasini, who is Italian, and chief strategy officer Philip Potter, an American who once worked at Morgan Stanley.

In June 2016, the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission fined Bitfinex $75,000 for offering illegal cryptocurrency transactions and failing to register as a futures commission merchant.

We were happy with the terms of the settlement, said Stuart Hoegner, Bitfinexs general counsel.

In August 2016, hackers stole 119,756 bitcoins from Bitfinex.

As customers and others went online to vent their anger  @bitfinex is an absolute DISGRACE to the #bitcoin community and needs to go, one Twitter user wrote  Bitfinex executives weighed their options. Convinced they couldnt get a bank loan and lacking insurance, they decided to reduce their customers balances by 36 per cent, regardless of whether the investor accounts had been hacked, a technique known as the socialisation of losses.

The exchange distributed IOUs in the form of digital tokens, which could be traded on Bitfinex. Some customers converted the tokens into equity in the company that operates the exchange. Although the exchange later redeemed the tokens in full, some customers had already sold them at a loss.

In an interview, Mr van der Velde expressed regret for the hack. But he defended his firms response. I felt, and I still feel, terrible for those people who lost their money, he said.

He declined to discuss how the hack happened, citing an ongoing police investigation. We took responsibility. How many financial institutions in the past can you find that say within a very short time, We are good for that loss, and we issue an IOU for that? Please find me one.

He also said Bitfinex has acted transparently, has rigorous know-your-customer procedures and co-operates with law-enforcement agencies.

Despite its numerous challenges, Mr van der Velde said Bitfinex is now handling about $12bn in trades a month and is very profitable. Last year the exchange said it expected to make a $20m profit in 2017. Despite all the Wild West problems besetting cryptocurrencies, Mr van der Velde predicted the final amount will turn out to be even higher. Additional reporting by Anna Irrera and Alexandra Harney / Reuters
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Catalonias biggest banks are getting closer to leaving the politically volatile region as customers signalled that a declaration of independence would prompt them to pull their deposits.

Banco Sabadell confirmed late on Thursday it will move its headquarters to the Spanish city of Alicante, while CaixaBanks board will meet on Friday to consider transferring its registered office to the Balearic Islands, said a person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified. No one at CaixaBank was immediately available to comment on the meeting when contacted by Bloomberg News.

The two lenders have spent years seeking to reduce the political risks of being located in Catalonia through expansion, but are once again being pulled into the regions upheavals following an attempted independence vote on Sunday that resulted in a police crackdown. Some of the heat was taken out of the situation on Thursday as separatist leaders sought to avoid an immediate declaration of independence from Spain as officials in Madrid and business leaders in Barcelona ratcheted up pressure on the nationalist camp.

The political situation is a pain in the neck for these banks, said Cesar Molinas, founder of Multa Paucis, an investment consultancy firm. They dont want clients in Madrid to see them as Catalan banks, nor clients in Barcelona to see them as Spanish banks. Theyre treading on thin ice.

Leaders Divided

With the separatist movements leaders divided, some on the Catalan side want to create more time for a negotiated settlement, two people familiar with their plans said.

Shares of the banks recovered some of this weeks losses following reports of the separatist leaders more conciliatory stance. After tumbling on Wednesday by the most in more than a year, Sabadell climbed more than 6 per cent while CaixaBank rallied almost 5 per cent. Spains IBEX 35 index jumped 2.5 per cent, almost wiping out the previous days declines.

Markets were looking for a rational solution, and it now looks like well get one, said Alberto Espelosin, a fund manager at Abante AsesoresGestion. Its good to see both sides willing to have some kind of dialogue.

Some of the Catalan banks wealthy clients have already started moving money to lenders outside the region or inquired about doing so, according to an executive at a firm that received calls from prospective customers. Managers at CaixaBank private banking in Madrid have been calling customers to dispel their concerns, according to one client, who asked not to be identified discussing the matter.

Business as Usual

On the potential for a customer exodus, CaixaBank said it has not been affected by any unusual movements in customer deposits, and that its business as usual. Sabadell described customer flows as absolutely normal, and said there is no significant movement of deposits in an emailed statement.

I can assure you that the management teams of these banks are fully committed to the interests of clients, depositors and shareholders, Spanish Economy Minister Luis de Guindos said in an interview with Francine Lacqua on Bloomberg Television. These institutions are quite solvent, are very strong.

One concern with Catalan independence is whether the region would be able to join the European Union, either straightaway or sometime later. In Strasbourg on Wednesday, Manfred Weber, leader of the biggest group at the European Parliament, warned Catalans that who leaves Spain, leaves the European Union, including the euro zone and the single market.

CaixaBank, founded in 1904, has often worn its origins with pride, conducting business in Catalan and under a blue star emblem designed by Barcelona-born painter Joan Miro. The Caixa group is the main shareholder in Barcelona-based Abertis Infraestructuras SA and holds 24 percent of Gas Natural SDG, also based in the city.

Business news: In pictures Show all 13 1 /13 Business news: In pictures Business news: In pictures Flybe collapses Airline Flybe has collapsed. All future flights on the Exeter-based airline have been cancelled  leaving more than 2,300 staff facing an uncertain future, and wrecking the travel plans of hundreds of thousands of passengers. The chief executive, Mark Anderson, said: Europes largest independent regional airline has been unable to overcome significant funding challenges to its business. AFP via Getty Business news: In pictures Future product placement will be 'tailored to individual viewers' Marketing executives say that product placement in films and televison shows on streaming services such as Netflix may be tailored to individuals in future. For instance, if data shows that a viewer is a fan of pepsi, a billboard in the background of a shot would host an advert for pepsi, while for a viewer known to have different tastes it could be for Coca-Cola Paramount Business news: In pictures Corbyn wishes Amazon a happy birthday In a card sent to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos on the company's 25th birthday, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn writes: "You owe the British people millions in taxes that pay for the public services that we all rely on. Please pay your fair share" Business news: In pictures No deal, no tariffs The government has announced that it would slash almost all tariffs in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Notable exceptions include cars and meat, which will see tariffs in place to protect British farmers Getty Business news: In pictures Fingerprint payment NatWest is trialling a new bank card that will allow people to touch their hand to the card when paying rather than typing in a PIN number. The card will work by recognising the user's fingerprint NatWest/PA Wire Business news: In pictures Mahabis bust High-end slipper retailer Mahabis has gone into administration. 2 Jan 2019 Mahabis Business news: In pictures Costa Cola Coca-Cola has paid 3.9bn for Costa Coffee. A cafe chain is a new venture for the global soft drinks giant PA Business news: In pictures RIP Payday Loans A funeral procession for payday loans was held in London on September 2. The future of pay day lenders is in doubt after Wonga, Britain's biggest, went into administration on August 30 PA Business news: In pictures Musk irks investors and directors Elon Musk has concluded that Tesla will remain public. Investors and company directors were angry at Musk for tweeting unexpectedly that he was considering taking Tesla private and share prices had taken a tumble in the following weeks Getty Business news: In pictures Jaguar warning Iconic British car maker Jaguar Land Rover warned on July 5, 2018 that a "bad" Brexit deal could jeopardise planned investment of more than $100 billion, upping corporate pressure as the government heads into crucial talks AFP/Getty Business news: In pictures Spotif-IPO Spotify traded publically for the first time on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday. However, the company isn't issuing shares, but rather, shares held by Spotify's private investors will be sold AFP/Getty Business news: In pictures French blue passports The deadline to award a contract to make blue British passports after Brexit has been extended by two weeks following a request by bidder De La Rue. The move comes after anger at the announcement British passports would be produced by Franco-Dutch firm Gemalto when De La Rues contract ends in July. The British firm said Gemalto was chosen only because it undercut the competition, but the UK company also admitted that it was not the cheapest choice in the tendering process. Business news: In pictures Beast from the east economic impact The Beast from the East wiped 4m off of Flybes revenues due to flight cancellations, airport closures and delays, according to the budget airlines estimates. Flybe said it cancelled 994 flights in the three months to 31 March, compared to 372 in the same period last year.

Banks Expansion

But the lender has also grown away from its home region by buying Banca Civica SA, a group of struggling savings banks, during Spains banking crisis, and earlier this year took control of Banco BPI in Portugal. Sabadell expanded in the crisis by buying Caja de Ahorros del Mediterraneo and in 2015 acquired the U.K.s TSB Banking Group.

These banks have changed their image to become significant national lenders, said Ricardo Wehrhahn, Madrid-based managing partner at Intral Strategy Execution. Outside Catalonia, people dont normally necessarily think of them as Catalan banks but when a crisis like this emerges, it emphasizes their Catalan heritage.

Bloomberg
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Old 1 coins will no longer be accepted to make purchases after 15 October.

The new-look 12-sided quid will be the only valid 1 coin from next Sunday so any old 1 coins lying around in sofas or piggy banks around the UK need to be spent before then.

GoCompare Money estimates there are around 420 million old 1 coins stashed away that shops will no longer have to accept after the deadline at 23:59 on 15 October. Consumers are being urged to spend the old money before then.

After the deadline, coins can still be exchanged for notes at a bank, building society or post office branch. Most will also only agree to do so if you're an account holder for a temporary period.

The BBC is also running a Children in Need campaign, 'Pudsey's Round Pound Countdown', to persuade people to donate old coins to the charity if they can.

The Government announced the new 1 coin in the 2014 Budget and it has been described by the Royal Mint as the most secure coin in the world.

The 12-sided coin has a number of features that make it considerably more difficult to fake. It is made from two metals, the outer gold ring of nickel-brass and the inner section of nickel-plated alloy. The old coins wont be wasted - Some of those returned by the public will be melted down and used to make the 12-sided version.

Its craziness that 1 coins as we know them will soon become worthless, Hannah Maundrell, editor in chief at Money.co.uk, told The Independent earlier this year.

"It sends a bad message about saving to the many children that will be left disappointed when they find the 1 coins theyve squirrelled away in their piggy bank are worthless.

"With more of us using cards and contactless payments to pay, the worth of going to all of this effort to replace what soon could be a redundant medium is questionable.

You can get your bank to trade 1 coins for notes as long as theyre in bags of 20. If you dont have this much sitting around you can just pay them into your bank or savings account and draw them back out in note form. Dont use coin machines to swap them as theyre likely to charge.

Business news: In pictures Show all 13 1 /13 Business news: In pictures Business news: In pictures Flybe collapses Airline Flybe has collapsed. All future flights on the Exeter-based airline have been cancelled  leaving more than 2,300 staff facing an uncertain future, and wrecking the travel plans of hundreds of thousands of passengers. The chief executive, Mark Anderson, said: Europes largest independent regional airline has been unable to overcome significant funding challenges to its business. AFP via Getty Business news: In pictures Future product placement will be 'tailored to individual viewers' Marketing executives say that product placement in films and televison shows on streaming services such as Netflix may be tailored to individuals in future. For instance, if data shows that a viewer is a fan of pepsi, a billboard in the background of a shot would host an advert for pepsi, while for a viewer known to have different tastes it could be for Coca-Cola Paramount Business news: In pictures Corbyn wishes Amazon a happy birthday In a card sent to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos on the company's 25th birthday, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn writes: "You owe the British people millions in taxes that pay for the public services that we all rely on. Please pay your fair share" Business news: In pictures No deal, no tariffs The government has announced that it would slash almost all tariffs in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Notable exceptions include cars and meat, which will see tariffs in place to protect British farmers Getty Business news: In pictures Fingerprint payment NatWest is trialling a new bank card that will allow people to touch their hand to the card when paying rather than typing in a PIN number. The card will work by recognising the user's fingerprint NatWest/PA Wire Business news: In pictures Mahabis bust High-end slipper retailer Mahabis has gone into administration. 2 Jan 2019 Mahabis Business news: In pictures Costa Cola Coca-Cola has paid 3.9bn for Costa Coffee. A cafe chain is a new venture for the global soft drinks giant PA Business news: In pictures RIP Payday Loans A funeral procession for payday loans was held in London on September 2. The future of pay day lenders is in doubt after Wonga, Britain's biggest, went into administration on August 30 PA Business news: In pictures Musk irks investors and directors Elon Musk has concluded that Tesla will remain public. Investors and company directors were angry at Musk for tweeting unexpectedly that he was considering taking Tesla private and share prices had taken a tumble in the following weeks Getty Business news: In pictures Jaguar warning Iconic British car maker Jaguar Land Rover warned on July 5, 2018 that a "bad" Brexit deal could jeopardise planned investment of more than $100 billion, upping corporate pressure as the government heads into crucial talks AFP/Getty Business news: In pictures Spotif-IPO Spotify traded publically for the first time on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday. However, the company isn't issuing shares, but rather, shares held by Spotify's private investors will be sold AFP/Getty Business news: In pictures French blue passports The deadline to award a contract to make blue British passports after Brexit has been extended by two weeks following a request by bidder De La Rue. The move comes after anger at the announcement British passports would be produced by Franco-Dutch firm Gemalto when De La Rues contract ends in July. The British firm said Gemalto was chosen only because it undercut the competition, but the UK company also admitted that it was not the cheapest choice in the tendering process. Business news: In pictures Beast from the east economic impact The Beast from the East wiped 4m off of Flybes revenues due to flight cancellations, airport closures and delays, according to the budget airlines estimates. Flybe said it cancelled 994 flights in the three months to 31 March, compared to 372 in the same period last year.

Martin Lewis, founder of the MoneySavingExpert website encouraged people to spend their old 1 coins before its too late. Carting a bag of coins to the bank is a real faff  particularly if there isnt a branch near you, he wrote.

This year has been a busy one for the Royal Mint. It has also released a number of commemorative coin designs including a 2 coin to mark the 200th anniversary of the death of Jane Austen and a 50p celebrating Sir Isaac Newtons influence on science, mathematics and minting.

There have also been new coins to mark the 100th anniversary of the House of Windsor, the 200th anniversary of the modern Sovereign, the 1000th anniversary of the coronation of King Canute and to commemorate the centenary of the First World War.
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Ryanairs chief operations officer has resigned weeks after the airline was engulfed in a pilot scheduling error that saw 20,000 flights cancelled.

Michael Hickey will leave the company at the end of the month, the airline announced.

Around 700,000 passengers were forced to change their travel plans after a rostering error forced the airline to cancel thousands of flights up to March 2018.

Ryanair boss Michael OLeary said Mr Hickey, who has had a three-decade career with the airline, will continue in an advisory role.

Over the past 30 years, Mick Hickey has made an enormous contribution to Ryanair, especially the quality and safety of our engineering and operations functions, he said.

He will be a hard act to replace, which is why we are grateful he has agreed to continue in an advisory role to smooth the transition to a successor and to complete a number of large projects he is currently working on, including a multiyear engine maintenance contract and new hangar projects in Seville and Madrid.

Mr Hickey had been with the company for 30 years (Ryanair)

Mr Hickey will be the first executive to leave the embattled airline following the scheduling fiasco.

The company was already coming under heavy fire for cancelling up to 50 flights a day in the middle of September, before an extra 18,000 flights were axed at the end of the month.

Ryanair said the cancellations were brought about because of an error with pilot holiday rosters, and insisted the latest reduction in its schedule will eliminate all risk of further flight cancellations.

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It comes on the same day that Mr OLeary sent a three-page letter to staff apologising for the incident, with the subject: A note to all Ryanair pilots.

The letter promised pilots a 12-month loyalty / productivity bonus of up to 12,000 (10,700) for captains, with half as much for first officers, subject only to reasonable and achievable performance or targets being met.

This, we hope, will dissuade people leaving to join less financially secure airlines and damaging their careers, he writes.

We are a very secure employer  in a very insecure industry.

Additional reporting by PA
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The calm before the storm. Daryl Murphy scored twice to help Ireland to an ultimately easy 2-0 win over Moldova, and set up a momentous play-off for the play-offs against Wales in Cardiff on Monday.

This result put Ireland within a point of the Welsh, who lie in second, but those stats are almost immaterial since the bottom line is that both sides need to win to ensure they are not bottom of the nine European runners-up, since only eight go through to the eliminators.

There is also the opportunity of topping the group, after first-placed Serbia slipped up with a 3-2 defeat away to Austria.

Before we get to all the complications of Monday, this much more simplistic night at least saw Martin ONeill justify his somewhat-debated new contract by taking Ireland right to the last match of the campaign.

That is not to be dismissed given that Ireland were without so many first-team players in the suspended Robbie Brady and James McClean and injured Seamus Coleman and Jon Walters.

Throughout this campaign, as well as much of the last decade, Ireland have had a tendency to make hard work of matches against notionally easy opponents and it did seem set up for a long night after it was confirmed that Wales had made short work of Georgia. A depleted Ireland were instead very quickly in the lead, because they quickly realised how susceptible Moldova were to set-pieces. After just two minutes, Stephen Ward took a long throw-in from the left, it took a deflection, and Murphy was in to steer it past Ilie Pavel Cebanu from close range.

There was more to the strikers celebration than just the fact Ireland had taken the initiative and taken the lead. It was just Murphys second goal for Ireland, but it wasnt too long until hed trebled his pre-game account.

On 19 minutes, Wesley Hoolahan played one of his typically glorious crossfield balls to Ward, who then curled in a decent ball of his own. It wasnt quite perfect, but Murphys header was. The Nottingham Forest striker agilely adjusted his body to deftly direct the ball back across goal, and into the corner of the net.

It was the first time in two years that Ireland had been 2-0 ahead at half-time at home, and the reasons for that were shown just minutes before the goal, after the misfiring Shane Long  the first-choice striker  missed a fine opportunity after good work from Callum ODowda.

That was the greater value to Murphy suddenly hitting the net twice and hitting form.

Ireland supporter 'The Green Hulk' cheers the team (Getty Images)

Ireland werent completed composed yet, though, as reflected when Darren Randolph pulled off a fine save from a long-range Sergiu Platica piledriver.

A certain one-dimensional functionality to Irelands play has been a criticism of the ONeill era even allowing for the fact this is one of the countrys weakest squads for some time, and it is something to concentrate on for the next spell of his time in charge - as is a tendency to sit back unnecessarily deep on taking a lead.

The latter became all too evident again in the second half, creating unnecessary nerves. Those nerves only got worse on the hour when Ireland finally broke through Hoolahan. For once, he picked the wrong pass when through on goal and in the box, the move eventually ending with Long trying to pick his spot in an open net, only for it to drop wide. You could see why he had gone 24 games without a goal for club or country.

Ireland did drop off a bit too much, but it didnt matter as Moldovas frustrations rose, leading to Aleksandru Gatcan getting sent off in the final moments for head-butting Harry Arter. That was as hectic as it got, and is just as well given how tense and chaotic Cardiff is set to be. Just another manic Monday
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Elon Musk has said he believes he will be able to rebuild Puerto Ricos hurricane-ravaged power grid with batteries and solar power.

Millions of Puerto Ricans are currently living in the dark after Hurricane Marias 140mph winds and torrential rain annihilated 80 per cent of the islands electricity.

A whole two weeks later, just nine per cent of residents have electricity, according to Puerto Rican government figures.

The SpaceX and Tesla founder announced that he would be able to help with relief efforts by restoring electricity to the country.

The Tesla team has [built solar grids] for many smaller islands around the world, but there is no scalability limit, so it can be done for Puerto Rico too, Musk wrote on Twitter on Thursday.

Such a decision would be in the hands of the PR govt, PUC, any commercial stakeholders and, most importantly, the people of Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rossello expressed interest in response, saying: Let's talk. Do you want to show the world the power and scalability of your Tesla Technologies? Puerto Rico could be that flagship project.

The tech titan said he hoped Tesla, which has already completed similar battery and solar power projects with the Kauai Island Utility Cooperative in Hawaii and in American Samoa, would be helpful to the people of Puerto Rico.

Despite the fact both previous projects catered for much smaller populations than Puerto Rico, the billionaire entrepreneur said he was confident his companys existing operations could be expanded to meet larger demand.

On Monday, Mr Rossello said it could take around a month to reinstate power to only a quarter of households in the territory. The Puerto Rico state owned electric company said some households will be bereft of power for four to six months.

 David Usborne drives down a road in Puerto Rico lined with collapsed telephone polls

Embarking on a Tesla-powered system would signal a total turnaround for Puerto Rico's current energy grid. The island uses an outmoded system of importing and burning oil to generate electricity which means Puerto Ricans have been slapped with costly electric bills for years.

Hurricane Maria killed 34 people in Puerto Rico and wreaked damage costing up to $85bn (65bn) since hitting last month. Much of the population was left without access to clean water, medical supplies, and electricity.

As its infrastructure lies in ruins, the island that is home to 3.5 million American citizens is plagued with logistics, communications and supply issues. It has been a struggle to get diesel fuel to hospitals so they can run on generators, with some hospitals being forced to shut down temporarily after running out of fuel.

Tensions between the mayor of Puerto Ricos capital, San Juan, Carmen Yulin Cruz, and Donald Trump have steadily mounted. Ms Cruz has argued the Trump administration is killing us with the inefficiency and broke down in an interview while describing the humanitarian crisis on the island.

The war of words culminated in Ms Cruz wearing a t-shirt with the word nasty emblazed on it after the US president claimed the Democratic party told Ms Yulin Cruz to be nasty to him.

President Trumps visit to the Caribbean US territory this week was dominated by a slew of controversies. The billionaire was widely criticised after he tossed packs of paper towels at residents, insulted local leaders and suggested the category 4 hurricane was not a real catastrophe.

He arrives with a smile on his face, makes fun of the situation, shows no empathy, lies and lies on camera as he does 24/7. And then throws paper towel rolls to people in need as if he was playing Go Fetch with dogs, Joel Isaac, a Puerto Rican who moved to New York in 2014, told The Toronto Star.

Reports suggest President Trump had to be advised not to do the same with tins of canned chicken.
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A 15-year-old boy has been arrested after a teenager was stabbed to death in a street attack.

The 18-year-old victim was found badly wounded in Neasden, north-west London, at 3.50pm on Friday.

Paramedics fought to save the boy but he was pronounced dead at the scene in Tanfield Avenue from multiple stab wounds, Scotland Yard said.

Police confirmed his next of kin had been informed and a post-mortem will take place in due course.

The 15-year-old is being questioned by detectives on suspicion of murder.

A Met Police spokesperson said: "Police were called at 15:50hrs on Friday, 6 October, to reports of a male stabbed in Tanfield Avenue, NW10.

"Officers and London Ambulance Service attended the location and found an 18-year-old male suffering from multiple stab wounds.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 14 November 2022 Members of the hospitality sector demonstrate outside parliament in London. The head of the Confederation of British Industry is urging the UK government to relax immigration rules to help British companies with severe staff shortages, ahead of the chancellors autumn statement EPA UK news in pictures 13 November 2022 England celebrate winning the mens T20 World Cup in Melbourne Cricket Ground, Australia AAP Image/Reuters UK news in pictures 12 November 2022 The City of London Pride Group take part in the parade during the Lord Mayor's Show PA UK news in pictures 11 November 2022 City workers attend a Remembrance Day ceremony at Lloyd's of London, in the City of London, to mark Armistice Day, the anniversary of the end of the First World War PA UK news in pictures 10 November 2022 A grey heron lands on the river Dodder in Dublin on a sunny autumn morning PA UK news in pictures 9 November 2022 Australia and Spain play during the Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup group A match at the Copper Box Arena, London PA UK news in pictures 8 November 2022 A migrant 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winter sunshine in the Dutch Gardens in Holland Park AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 3 November 2022 Florence Kasumba, Letitia Wright, Tenoch Huerta and Lupita Nyongo attend the European Premiere of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever in London Getty 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

"Despite the efforts of attending officers and LAS crews, he died at the scene."

A crowd gathered around the victim soon after the attack, according to police, and detectives are appealing for those who witnessed what happened or saw those involved leaving the scene after the attack to get in touch.

Those with information should call 020 8785 8244 or to give information anonymously call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

PA
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Graduates from black, Asian or minority-ethnic (BAME) backgrounds are less likely to be in work than their white peers, new analysis has shown

A study by The Resolution Foundation found that despite a higher proportion of BAME people obtaining degrees, they face employment and pay penalties.

Bangladeshi and Pakistani graduates are 12% less likely to be employed than white British graduates.

While Indian and Black Caribbean graduates have a jobs gap of about 5%.

The proportion of working-age people with degrees has increased across all ethnic groups, from 12% in 1996-99 to 30% in 2014-17.

Since the end of the 1990s, the numbers of Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi people with degrees has more than trebled - to 50% 30% and 25% respectively.

The proportion of white British people with degrees has also increased over the same period, although less rapidly from 12% to 28%.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 14 November 2022 Members of the hospitality sector demonstrate outside parliament in London. The head of the Confederation of British Industry is urging the UK government to relax immigration rules to help British companies with severe staff shortages, ahead of the chancellors autumn statement EPA UK news in pictures 13 November 2022 England celebrate winning the mens T20 World Cup in Melbourne Cricket Ground, Australia AAP Image/Reuters UK news in pictures 12 November 2022 The City of London Pride Group take part in the parade during the Lord Mayor's Show PA UK news in pictures 11 November 2022 City workers attend a Remembrance Day ceremony at Lloyd's of London, in the City of London, to mark Armistice Day, the anniversary of the end of the First World War PA UK news in pictures 10 November 2022 A grey heron lands on the river Dodder in Dublin on a sunny autumn morning PA UK news in pictures 9 November 2022 Australia and Spain play during the Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup group A match at the Copper Box Arena, London PA UK news in pictures 8 November 2022 A migrant attempting to communicate with journalists is pinned against a fence by members of staff, before being taken out of view, at the Manston immigration short-term holding facility, located at the former Defence Fire Training and Development Centre in Thanet, Kent PA UK news in pictures 7 November 2022 Handout photo issued by Just Stop Oil of a protester who has climbed a gantry on the M25 between junctions six and seven in Surrey, leading to the closure of the motorway PA UK news in pictures 6 November 2022 A grey seal with its pup, at the Donna Nook National Nature Reserve in north Lincolnshire, where they come every year in late October, November and December to give birth to their pups near the sand dunes, the wildlife spectacle attracts visitors from across the UK PA 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 Florence Kasumba, Letitia Wright, Tenoch Huerta and Lupita Nyongo attend the European Premiere of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever in London Getty 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

Kathleen Henehan, from the think tank, said the rising numbers of those attending university was a success story of recent decades.

She added: The progress made by black and ethnic minority groups is astounding, with the share of Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi graduates trebling in less than 20 years.

But despite this success, graduates from a black and ethnic minority background still face significant employment and pay penalties in the workforce.

These labour market disadvantages are a big living standards concern and mean we risk failing to make the most of the investment made in their education.
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Police have confirmed the car crash outside the Natural History Museum this afternoon where a number of pedestrians were injured was a road traffic accident and not terrorist-related.

The Metropolitan Police put out a statement which said: The man detained by officers is currently under arrest and is in custody at a north London police station.

The incident is a road traffic investigation and not a terrorist related incident.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 9 November 2022 Australia and Spain play during the Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup group A match at the Copper Box Arena, London PA UK news in pictures 8 November 2022 A migrant attempting to communicate with journalists is pinned against a fence by members of staff, before being taken out of view, at the Manston immigration short-term holding facility, located at the former Defence Fire Training and Development Centre in Thanet, Kent PA UK news in pictures 7 November 2022 Handout photo issued by Just Stop Oil of a protester who has climbed a gantry on the M25 between junctions six and seven in Surrey, leading to the closure of the motorway PA UK news in pictures 6 November 2022 A grey seal with its pup, at the Donna Nook National Nature Reserve in north Lincolnshire, where they come every year in late October, November and December to give birth to their pups near the sand dunes, the wildlife spectacle attracts visitors from across the UK PA 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 Florence Kasumba, Letitia Wright, Tenoch Huerta and Lupita Nyongo attend the European Premiere of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever in London Getty 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

Police were called at 2.41pm to reports of the collision in Exhibition Road in South Kensington just outside the museum at one of the busiest tourist hotspots in the capital.

Eleven people were hurt in the collision although none of their injuries are believed to be life threatening or life changing.

The car reportedly mounted the pavement, sending the crowd into a panic.

Witnesses said the driver was pulled from the car and detained by bystanders while police were called.

Dozens of officers descended on the area along with a number of ambulances and a wide cordon was put in place.

The Prime Minister was kept informed of developments as speculation swirled online that the incident was a terrorist attack.

The arrested man has not yet been charged with any offence and inquiries continue.
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Police in the UK are starting to use futuristic technology that allows them to predict where and when crime will happen, and deploy officers to prevent it, research has revealed. Predictive crime mapping may sound like the plot of a far-fetched film, but it is already widely in use across the US and Kent Police is leading the technological charge in the UK.

A report on big datas use in policing published by the Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies (RUSI) said British forces already have access to huge amounts of data but lack the capability to use it.

Alexander Babuta, who carried out the research, said predictive crime mapping tools had existed for more than a decade but are only being used by a fraction of British forces. The software itself is actually quite simple  using crime type, crime location and date and time  and then based on past crime data it generates a hotspot map identifying areas where crime is most likely to happen, he told The Independent.

In the UK, forces have found that its about 10 times more likely to predict the location of future crime than random beat policing. It allows you to allocate a limited number of resources to where theyre most needed.

Mr Babuta said the software relies on evidence that crime is contagious, frequently being carried out in the same area, by the same offenders, targeting the same people.

Greater Manchester Police developed its own predictive mapping software in 2012 and Kent Police has been using a system called PredPol since 2013.

A screenshot of the predictive crime hotspot mapping used by Kent Police

A spokesperson for the force said the software uses an algorithm originally used to predict earthquakes to estimate the likelihood of a crime occurring in a particular location during a window of time.

It will pin a series of locations on a map where the highest likelihood of a crime occurring to patrol, she added. For every 15 minutes spent in the 500ft square zone it equates to two hours of no crime.

All officers in Kent can access the system from force computers and print out maps to use on patrol. The reports give the location and main crime types predicted, such as burglary, robbery and sexual offences, and officers are asked to patrol the areas most at risk.

Kent Police said it had received no negative response from staff or the public but PredPol has generated controversy after research showed it appeared to be repeating systematic discrimination against black and ethnic minority offenders. Critics said that by relying on past data to create the software, the program had itself learned racism and bias, and would continue reinforcing it even if police forces and wider society progresses. The same allegations have been levelled at another computer program used in American courts to carry out risk assessments for prisoners, Compas.

Durham Constabulary is currently in the process of developing a similar artificial intelligence-based system to evaluate the risk of convicts reoffending. The Harm Assessment Risk Tool (HART) puts information on a persons past offending history, age, postcode and other background characteristics through algorithms that then classify them as a low, medium or high risk.

RUSIs report said the system, first tested in 2013, was found to predict low-risk individuals with 98 per cent accuracy and high-risk with 88 per cent accuracy.

But researchers identified vulnerabilities, including the fact that because only Durham Constabularys own data was used, offences committed in another area will not show up and dangerous criminals could slip through the net.

RUSI also acknowledged the fact that systems like HART that use machine learning will reproduce the inherent biases present in the data they are provided with and assess disproportionately targeted ethnic and religious minorities as an increased risk. Acting on these predictions will then result in those individuals being disproportionately targeted by police action, creating a feedback loop by which the predicted outcome simply becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy, the report warned. Perhaps partly for this reason, Durham Constabularys HART system is intended to function purely as an advisory tool, with officers retaining ultimate responsibility for deciding how to act on the predictions."

 Cressida Dick says terrorism is putting 'unsustainable' strain on Met

Mr Babuta said that as well as ethical concerns and a lack of legal frameworks to govern the new technology, a cultural barrier had been experienced in some police forces. He added: Officers rightfully fear that [predictive crime mapping and risk assessments] will replace existing strategies and minimise the role of their professional judgement. All forms of technology can only be used to supplement existing policing ... its the role of the police officer acting on the recommendations that is the most important part.

The researcher said predictive mapping and risk assessments were only a fraction of the ways that technology could improve policing. Sensors currently used for traffic management in cities could be adapted to monitor crowds and prevent riots, Mr Babuta added. Theres huge amount of digital data that could predict when violence will break out.

RUSIs report found that the key limit on the use of emerging technology in policing was data itself, with much crime underreported, making the data unreliable. In theory there are over 12 million individuals registered on the Police National Computer (PNC), so in theory this kind of analysis could be applied to millions of people, Mr Babuta said. But at the moment the data is very much localised and limited to people who have been convicted.

The researcher said that so far, the highly localised structure of British policing had let some race ahead to embrace new technology while others lag far behind the curve.

British police forces use a mix of records PNC, a separate Police National Database (PND), biometric Ident1 database and Europe-wide Schengen Information System.

RUSIs research found that the fragmented databases forced officers to input the same data multiple times, reducing productivity and the will for increased reliance on technology. The UK Digital Strategy was launched in March and lists consolidating databases as a top priority, but limited progress has so far been made.

Policing has changed massively in recent years thanks to technology (Getty)

Mr Babuta said budget cuts to police forces had undoubtedly hindered technological development by cutting both investment and the training offered to officers. The vast majority of police IT budget is being spent supporting legacy systems, many of which are many years out of data, rather than funding new ones, he added. Theres now such huge variation across the UK that it will take many years to sort out.

RUSIs report was commissioned by John Wright, the head of strategic initiatives at the public sector arm of global technology company Unisys. He first attempted predictive hotspot mapping in 2004, while serving as a borough commander in Derbyshire Constabulary. I was faced by a huge increase in vehicle crime and burglaries and things like that  we were in a position where volume crime was significant and I was looking for ways where you could prevent it, Mr Wright told The Independent.

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His force used an early form of hotspot mapping that allowed them to allocate patrols and other measures like CCTV cameras and changing road layouts.The challenge isnt the technology, Mr Wright added. Law enforcement agencies have got rid of a lot of support staff who would have done this data administration and officers are trained largely to rely on their own discretion - theyre very independent.

Mr Wright said that for emerging technology to work for British forces, analysts needed to put information in a format that offices can use easily and trust. Restrictions on public finance arent going to go away and the rising amount of data that threatens to overwhelm agencies is not going to go away, he warned. I think theres a need to change the culture and exploit that willingness of people using smartphones to help police - the ability to collect that information is so much better.

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. 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Mr Wright noted that many members of the public are already reporting incidents on social media before contacting police on 999, allowing security forces to gather evidence even before they arrive at the scene.

Recent terror attacks in the UK have seen forces appeal for witnesses to send them mobile phone footage and photos that have been used to investigate suspects. Mobile phone apps that can be used to report crime and submit evidence have been rolled out in some countries, but some like the New York-based Citizen app  have met with controversy.

RUSIs report concluded that police forces in the UK have access to a vast amount of digital data but lack the analytical capability to make effective use of it. The think tank called for improvements to data systems and the exploration of predictive mapping software to be made a priority.

RUSI called on the Home Office to issue clear national guidance to drive the procurement of new technology across the country, as well as better data sharing between individual forces, as well as between the police, councils and other agencies.

The report cautioned that there was an urgent need for an ethical framework on how the growing amount of data on individuals should be used without violating privacy.

The College of Policing spokesperson said advances had already changed the nature of policing rapidly over recent years. A spokesperson said any practices and systems shown to reduce crime and increase public satisfaction would be welcomed, adding: It is likely that greater efficiency and effectiveness could be achieved through better integration and analysis of police data and we have previously provided forces with information to support their use of predictive policing software.

The Police ICT Company, a private company established by elected police and crime commissioners, said it supported initiatives but faced obvious logistical challenges. The observations and recommendations in the RUSI report are no surprise to those senior police leaders who are already driving information and system- sharing arrangements, and exploring innovations like facial recognition technology and crime hotspot mapping, said chair Katy Bourne. We need to ensure that policing is not constrained by legacy technology or limitations in the current ICT marketplace, or by a lack of interoperability.

The Home Office said work to address the issues identified by RUSI was already underway, with more than 1bn invested in national law enforcement digital programmes. Initiatives include the Emergency Services Mobile Communications Programme, Home Office Biometrics, National Law Enforcement Data Programme and the National ANPR Service.

As the report highlights, issues resulting from system fragmentation and disparity are by no means insurmountable, a spokesperson added. We have protected police budgets since the 2015 Spending Review to ensure forces have the resources they need including making funding for available for reform through the Police Transformation Fund."
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English Defence League (EDL) founder Tommy Robinson arrived at the scene where a car mounted the pavement outside Londons Natural History Museum injuring several pedestrians, declaring it a jihadi attack before police had made a formal statement which said it was a "road traffic incident".

Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, was seen standing by the police cordon being filmed discussing the incident.

When approached by The Independent to discuss his motives, Lennon declared the incident a jihadi terror attack despite no formal recognition of this being the case by the authorities.

A police officer intervened during the discussion and confirmed that authorities had not confirmed if it was a terror incident at the time of the discussion.

Subsequently police said it was a road traffic accident and not terror-related.

The Metropolitan Police put out a statement which said: The man detained by officers is currently under arrest and is in custody at a north London police station.

The incident is a road traffic investigation and not a terrorist related incident.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

Police were called at 2.41pm to reports of the collision in Exhibition Road in South Kensington just outside the museum at one of the busiest tourist hotspots in the capital.

Eleven people were injured in the collision although none of their injuries are believed to be life threatening or life changing.
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EU Brexit negotiators have reportedly stepped up backroom talks with Labour amid concerns Theresa May will be ousted before Britain leaves the bloc.

Brussels has been increasingly seeking assurances from Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn that he will honour commitments made by the Conservative government if he comes to power, it has been claimed.

EU officials have "significantly" increased the number of talks held with Labour since the snap election in June in which Ms May failed to win an outright majority, according to the Daily Telegraph.

 Brexit talks: European Parliament says sufficient progress not made

Sources told the paper there had been a "significant change in tone" from Brussels since the result, with efforts being made to foster closer ties with Labour.

Negotiators reportedly fear that talks may be rendered completely useless if Ms May is ousted from office before their completion.

It follows Mr Corbyn's bold claims in June that Labour was a "government in waiting" and was ready to "take up the responsibility for Brexit negotiations."

In July, Labour held "very frank" talks with EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier lasting more than two hours.

The Prime Minister weathered fresh calls for her resignation this week following a disastrous speech at the Conservative party conference and claims more than 30 Tory MPs were plotting her demise.

 Jean-Claude Juncker: Britain needs a 'miracle' to meet deadline for Brexit deal

Former party chairman Grant Shapps was denounced as the ringleader of the coup by loyalist MPs who rallied round in support of Ms May.

But the extra support for Ms May has done little to quash speculation that her premiership may be short lived.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 14 November 2022 Members of the hospitality sector demonstrate outside parliament in London. The head of the Confederation of British Industry is urging the UK government to relax immigration rules to help British companies with severe staff shortages, ahead of the chancellors autumn statement EPA UK news in pictures 13 November 2022 England celebrate winning the mens T20 World Cup in Melbourne Cricket Ground, Australia AAP Image/Reuters UK news in pictures 12 November 2022 The City of London Pride Group take part in the parade during the Lord Mayor's Show PA UK news in pictures 11 November 2022 City workers attend a Remembrance Day ceremony at Lloyd's of London, in the City of London, to mark Armistice Day, the anniversary of the end of the First World War PA UK news in pictures 10 November 2022 A grey heron lands on the river Dodder in Dublin on a sunny autumn morning PA UK news in pictures 9 November 2022 Australia and Spain play during the Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup group A match at the Copper Box Arena, London PA UK news in pictures 8 November 2022 A migrant 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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 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Haaland went on to score a hattrick, his third of the season in the Premier League. City beat United 6-3. Manchester City FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 October 2022 Protesters hold up flags and placards at a protest in London. A variety of protest groups including Enough is Enough, Don't Pay and Just Stop Oil all demonstrated on the day AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 September 2022 British Prime Minister Liz Truss, who has not been seen in days, leaves the back of Downing Street after a meeting with Office For Budget Responsibility following the release of her governments mini-budget Getty UK news in pictures 29 September 2022 The Virginia creeper foliage on the Tu Hwnt i'r Bont (Beyond the Bridge) Llanwrst, Conwy North Wales, has changed colour from green to red in at the start of Autumn. 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Conservative MPs told The Independent there was no compelling reason to replace the Prime Minister for the time being, despite her conference disaster, but admitted her position remained perilous.

One former minister predicted, Grant will fail, but suggested the failed coup could accelerate a leadership bid by a more serious player.

Recommended Brexit is more important than party politics

The latest poll of who would make the best prime minister saw Mr Corbyn encroaching on Ms May's lead in the wake of her Manchester conference performance.

YouGov found she was still preferred over Mr Corbyn, by 36 per cent to 33 per cent - a three point lead down from eight points two weeks ago.
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Paris and Berlin will reportedly reject requests for Brexit talks to move on to a possible transitional arrangement until the so-called divorce bill is settled, in a huge setback to Theresa May after her well received speech in Florence.

In that speech, the Prime Minister proposed a two-year transitional period after the UK leaves the EU, in a bid to break the deadlock of the negotiations.

But, according to the Financial Times, any hope of moving on to discussion of establishing a transitional deal will be effectively vetoed by France and Germany, until the question the UKs exit settlement is fully agreed.

Recommended Nick Clegg urges people to join Labour to stop Brexit

The UK has consistently argued said that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed making the point that it is hard to agree on the size of the UKs financial obligations to the EU until future trading terms are known.

Theresa May said in Florence that the UK would continue current payments to the EU until 2021, and would stay in the single market during that time.

But, according to the FT, when the EU's chief Brexit negotiator Michael Barnier met ambassadors from 27 EU countries the plan was rejected by Berlin and Paris, leaving it all but dead in the water.

Mrs Mays speech in Florence two weeks had been considered an effective intervention in unlocking the talks, but the Prime Minister has since lost momentum after her disastrous Conservative party conference speech, which has caused news to surface of fresh plots to remove her as party leader, further damaging her credibility in Brussels and elsewhere in Europe.

Earlier this week, a leading association of German businesses warned German companies operating in the UK to start preparing for a "very hard Brexit", in which the UK left the EU with no trading arrangements in place. This would lead to the immediate imposition of large tariffs on cars and other goods, and the possibility of customs checks and huge tailbacks at Dover.
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The leader of the plot to oust Theresa May has been told to shut up by former leadership hopeful Andrea Leadsom, as the party desperately attempts to put on a show of unity at the end of yet another chaotic week.

In a private text message sent to Conservative MPs via their Whatsapp group, Boris Johnson urged them to get behind the PM.

The Foreign Secretary said: Ordinary punters I have spoken to thought her speech was good and anyone can have a cold.

Circle the wagons turn the fire on Corbyn and talk about nothing except our great policies and what we can do for the country.

But other MPs have urged Theresa May to regain control of the party by sacking Mr Johnson, in the wake of two troublemaking articles in the last two weeks, in which he outlined his own, personal Brexit red lines as distinct from the governments position. She has also been encouraged to have a major cabinet reshuffle, bringing in younger, fresher faces from the 2015 and 2017 intake.

Three Tory MPs  Heidi Allen, Anna Soubry and Sarah Wollaston  all called for Mr Johnson to be sacked after his insensitive comments at Conservative party conference that Sirte in northern Libya could become a new Dubai, once they clear the dead bodies away.

Commons Leader MsLeadsom said Mr Shapps should shut up, after his media appearances on Friday, claiming to have a list of 30 names of Tory MPs who want Ms May to stand down. Tory MP Michael Fabricant meanwhile described Mr Shapps as "embittered" while colleague Vicky Ford dismissed the former party chairman as "completely out of touch", revealing "he's not even in our WhatsApp group".

Ms Leadsom, who ran against Mrs May for the party leadership in 2016 only to pull out of the contest, said: "I don't think that there's anything like 30 others and I think what Grant Shapps is doing is incredibly unhelpful. Like a lot of my colleagues have said today, he should shut up."

She told BBC Radio 4's Any Questions that Ms May "has the absolute support of her entire Cabinet and of her party".

Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson - who has been tipped as a potential successor to Mrs May - hit out at the plotters. "I have to say I've not got much time for them. I really don't think that having a bit of a cold ... when you are trying to make a speech changes the fundamentals of whether Theresa May is the right person to lead the country," she told the BBC's Political Thinking podcast. "I think there's an awful lot of people in our party that need to settle down."
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A Canadian province is preparing legislation that will ban protests outside abortion clinics.

Ontarios attorney general announced the government will introduce the ban under the Safe Access to Abortion Services Act.

If the legislation is passed it would create safe access zones around clinics, pharmacies that sell pregnancyending pills and also the homes of people who work there.

Activists holding anti-abortion protests would not be allowed within at least 50 meters of a clinic or staff residence.

Other Canadian provinces, British Columbia, Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador have already enacted the safe access zone laws.

Our government is standing up for every woman's right to choose, and protecting the safety of abortion service providers, said Yasir Naqvi, Ontario's Attorney General in a statement.

The proposed safe access zones would mean that patients, visitors and staff are able to enter and depart from clinics and facilities that provide abortion services in a manner that protects their safety, security, health and privacy.

(Getty (Getty)

Within another application the safety zones could be extended from 50m to 150m and the law would allow all hospitals and pharmacies that provide abortion services to apply for a safe zone.

In addition to the zone around clinic staff's residence, the law would protect clinic staff from harassment everywhere they go in Ontario.

Those convicted of violating the law would face a fine of up to 3,000 Canadian dollars (1,800) or $5,000 (3,000) and up to six months in prison for a first offence.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

For subsequent offences the fine could exceed $10,000 (6,100) and up to one year in jail.

Mr Naqvi said he was moved to act when a woman was spat on outside an Ottawa clinic where protesters frequently gather, carrying graphic signs and chanting slogans.
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The Trump administration is poised to roll back the federal requirement for employers to include birth control coverage in their health insurance plans, vastly expanding exemptions for those that cite moral or religious objections.

The new rules, which could be issued as soon as Friday, fulfil a campaign promise by President Donald Trump and are sure to touch off a round of lawsuits on the issue.

More than 55 million women have access to birth control without co-payments because of the contraceptive coverage mandate, according to a study commissioned by the Obama administration. Under the new regulations, hundreds of thousands of women could lose birth control benefits they now receive at no cost under the Affordable Care Act.

One new rule offers an exemption to any employer or insurer that objects to covering contraceptive services based on its sincerely held religious beliefs.

Another regulation offers a new exemption to employers that have moral convictions against covering contraceptives.

Both rules would take effect as soon as they are on display at the office of the Federal Register.

The Trump administration acknowledges that this is a reversal of President Barack Obamas conclusion that the mandate was needed because the government had a compelling interest in protecting womens health.

In the new rules, the Trump administration says the Affordable Care Act does not explicitly require coverage of contraceptives.

The administration lists health risks that it says may be associated with the use of certain contraceptives, and it says the mandate could promote risky sexual behaviour among some teenagers and young adults.

By contrast, many doctors, including obstetricians and gynaecologists, say contraceptives have generally been a boon to womens health.

The new rules, drafted mainly by political appointees at the White House and the Department of Health and Human Services, seek to better balance the interests of women with those of employers and insurers that have conscientious objections to contraceptive coverage.

Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Show all 30 1 /30 Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Threatening to shut down Twitter after being fact-checked After the president tweeted that voting by post would be "substantially fraudulent", Twitter attached a warning label to his tweet and referred readers to a site which explained how the claim was "unsubstantiated". Trump then said Twitter was "stifling free speech" and that he may have to shut it down, something which he would not have the power to do AFP/Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Flippantly dismissing a serious allegation of sexual assault When author E Jean Carroll accused Trump of raping her, the president responded: Number one, shes not my type. Number two, it never happened. It never happened, OK?" AFP/Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... 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Accusing Obama of wiretapping him Trump accused former president Barack Obama of wire tapping him on twitter. The Justice Department later clarified: Obama had not, in fact, done so Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Claiming there had been 3 million 'illegal votes' Trump was never very happy about losing the popular vote to Hillary Clinton by 2.8 million ballots. So, he and White House voter-fraud commissioner Kris Kobach have claimed that anywhere between three and five million people voted illegally during the 2016 election. Conveniently, he says that all of those illegal votes went to Clinton. (There is no evidence to support that level of widespread voter fraud.) Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Leaving Jews out of the Holocaust memorial statement Just days after taking office, Trumps White House issued a statement on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, but didnt mention jews or even the word jewish in the written statement Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Anger over Inauguration crowd size Trumps inauguration crowd was visibly, and noticeably, smaller than that of his predecessor, Barack Obama. But, he really wanted to have had the largest crowd on record. So, he praised it as the biggest crowd ever. Relatedly, Trump also claimed that it stopped raining in Washington at the moment he was inaugurated. It didnt, the day was very dreary Reuters

Dr Haywood L. Brown, the president of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, said the rules would turn back the clock on womens health.

Affordable contraception for women saves lives, he said. It prevents pregnancies. It improves maternal mortality. It prevents adolescent pregnancies.

The New York Times
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The US government has approved the possible sale of a THAAD anti-missile defence system to Saudi Arabia at an estimated cost of $15 billion, the Pentagon said on Friday, citing Iran among regional threats.

The approval opens the way for Saudi Arabia to purchase 44 Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) launchers and 360 missiles, as well as fire control stations and radars.

This sale furthers US national security and foreign policy interests, and supports the long-term security of Saudi Arabia and the Gulf region in the face of Iranian and other regional threats, the Pentagons Defence Security Cooperation agency said in a statement.

Saudi Arabia and the US are highly critical of what they consider to be Irans aggressive behaviour in the Middle East.

Iran also has one of the biggest ballistic missile programmes in the Middle East, viewing it as an essential precautionary defence against the US and other adversaries, primarily Gulf Arab states and Israel.

THAAD missile systems are deployed to defend against ballistic missile attacks.

Saudi-owned al Arabiya television reported that the kingdom had agreed to buy Russian S-400 surface-to-air missile systems, an announcement that came as Saudi King Salman made during his visit to Russia, the first by a Saudi monarch.

US military sales to Saudi Arabia have come under increased scrutiny over the Saudi-led coalitions war in Yemen.

The situation in Yemen Show all 14 1 /14 The situation in Yemen The situation in Yemen Houthi supporters trample on a US flag during a gathering mobilizing more fighters into several Yemeni battlefronts, in Sana'a, Yemen EPA The situation in Yemen People carry the coffins of men, who were killed in the recent Saudi-led airstrikes during their funeral, in the Old City of Sanaa, Yemen AP The situation in Yemen Pro-government fighters give food to Yemeni children on the road leading to the southwestern port city of Mokha. Yemeni rebels are putting up fierce resistance in a key Red Sea port city where they are encircled by pro-government force Getty Images The situation in Yemen A Yemeni stands in front of a graffiti protesting US military operations in war-affected Yemen, in Sana'a, Yemen. According to reports, US Special Forces troops allegedly disembarked from US helicopters in the Yemeni town of Yakla and attacked several houses belonging to members of the terrorist group Al-Qaeda, killing three high-ranking Al-Qaeda members and nine civilians, six women and three children. One American serviceman has been killed and three injured in the attack EPA The situation in Yemen US Special Forces troops allegedly disembarked from US helicopters in the Yemeni town of Yakla and attacked several houses belonging to members of the terrorist group Al-Qaeda, killing three high-ranking Al-Qaeda members and nine civilians, six women and three children. One American serviceman has been killed and three injured in the attack EPA The situation in Yemen A Yemeni female fighter supporting the Shiite Huthi rebels, and carrying weapons used for ceremonial purposes, takes part in an anti-Saudi rally in the capital Sanaa Getty Images The situation in Yemen Yemeni female fighters supporting the Shiite Huthi rebels, and carrying weapons used for ceremonial purposes, take part in an anti-Saudi rally in the capital Sanaa Getty Images The situation in Yemen A boy shouts slogans next to pro-Houthi fighters, who have been injured during recent fighting, during a rally held to honour those injured or maimed while fighting in Houthi ranks in Sanaa, Yemen Reuters The situation in Yemen Balls of fire and smoke rise from a Houthi-held military camp following alleged Saudi-led airstrikes, in Sana'a, Yemen EPA The situation in Yemen Yemenis search under the rubble of damaged houses following reported Saudi-led coalition air strikes on the outskirts of the Yemeni capital Sanaa Getty Images The situation in Yemen A Yemeni boy looks on as Yemenis search under the rubble of damaged houses following reported Saudi-led coalition air strikes on the outskirts of the Yemeni capital Sanaa Getty The situation in Yemen A Yemeni boy sits amidst the rubble of damaged houses following reported Saudi-led coalition air strikes on the outskirts of the Yemeni capital Sanaa AFP/Getty The situation in Yemen Marine One with US President Donald Trump flies with a decoy and support helicopters to Dover Air Force Base in Dover, Delaware, for the dignified transfer of Navy Seal Chief Petty Officer William 'Ryan' Owens who was killed in Yemen Getty Images The situation in Yemen US President Donald Trump aboard the Marine One to greet the remains of a US military commando killed during a raid on the al Qaeda militant group in southern Yemen on Sunday, at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware, US Reuters

Riyadh and its allies have been bombing the Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen since the Houthis seized much of the countrys north in 2015.

Riyadh insists the coalition is fighting terrorists and supporting Yemens legitimate government but the office of the UN human rights chief has said Saudi-led air strikes cause the majority of civilian casualties including many children.

Lockheed Martin is the prime contractor for the THAAD system, with Raytheon playing an important role in the systems deployment.

The United States deployed THAAD to South Korea this year to guard against North Koreas shorter-range missiles, drawing fierce criticism from China, which says the systems powerful radar could probe deep into its territory.

Reuters
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After almost 10 tumultuous months of Donald Trump as President of the United States, his former wife has suggested he may not be the last member of the family to hold the position.

Speaking in her new book, the leader's first spouse, Ivana, says their daughter - Ivanka - could run for office in 15 years time.

In the book, Raising Trump, Ivana discusses her marriage to the real estate magnate from 1977 to 1992 and the future for their three children, including Ivankas own political career.

Maybe in fifteen years, she could run for president? she writes about her daughter, Ivanka, before musing about her own possible title.

First Lady? Holds no appeal for me personally. First Mother? That could work.

The book pulls back the curtain on a stormy period of the leader's life, including the messy divorce that was splashed across tabloids for weeks after his public affair with Marla Maples.

President Donald Trump speaks about small businesses while daughter and advisor to the President Ivanka Trump listens (Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

Ivana Trump was married to the former reality show star for 15 years and says she knew her marriage was over soon after a day in December 1989 when she was approached by Maples.

This young blonde woman approached me out of the blue and said 'I'm Marla and I love your husband. Do you?'

I said 'Get lost. I love my husband.' It was unladylike but I was in shock.

Donald Trump with his second wife Marla Maples in 1993. (Getty)

Mr Trump's public affair with Maples spawned the infamous Best Sex I've Ever Had headline in the New York Post in 1990. After divorcing his first wife, he married Maples in 1993.

Raising Trump is released next week and also reveals the couple's three children, Donald Jr, Ivanka and Eric. Don Jr didn't speak to their father for a year after the split.

I can only shake my head at how it insane it was, Ivana Trump writes. I couldn't turn on the television without hearing my name.

But she and the President have returned to far warmer terms. She said they speak about once a week and that she encourages him to keep using Twitter.

Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Show all 30 1 /30 Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Threatening to shut down Twitter after being fact-checked After the president tweeted that voting by post would be "substantially fraudulent", Twitter attached a warning label to his tweet and referred readers to a site which explained how the claim was "unsubstantiated". Trump then said Twitter was "stifling free speech" and that he may have to shut it down, something which he would not have the power to do AFP/Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Flippantly dismissing a serious allegation of sexual assault When author E Jean Carroll accused Trump of raping her, the president responded: Number one, shes not my type. Number two, it never happened. It never happened, OK?" AFP/Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Insulting the Mayor of London as he landed in London Just before touching down at Stansted Airport for his state visit, Trump took time out to @ the London mayor Sadiq Khan on twitter. He said that Khan has done a "terrible job"as mayor and that he is a "stone cold loser" Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Taking plenty of "Executive Time" The president's official schedule sets aside the hours from 8 to 11am daily for "Executive Time". Further intermittent periods of "Executive Time" are scheduled throughout any given day, ranging from 15 minutes to 3 hours. His duties in these hours have not been officially disclosed, though Axios reports that he spends them watching TV, reading the newspapers and tweeting Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Shutdown the government for over a month in an effort to secure funding for his wall With Mexico declining to pay for the wall, the president has faced difficulty in raising the required $5bn at home. Due to his demand that the money for the wall be included in the budget, and Congress's refusal, the government partially shut down on 22 December 2018. It remained shut for over a month, the longest period in history Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Joking about the Nazi occupation of France to President Macron In this tweet from 13 November 2018, the president mocks Emmanuel Macron's suggestion of a "true, European army" by invoking the conflict between France and Germany in the world wars Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Railing against the Mueller investigation The president has repeatedly claimed that the Mueller investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, is a "rigged witch hunt" Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Contradicting a US intelligence report on Russian meddling in the presence of Vladimir Putin In the press conference that followed his landmark meeting with Russian president Vladimir Putin, Trump stated that he saw no reason why Russia would have meddled in the 2016 US election. This contradicted a 2017 report by the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence that found evidence of Russian interference in favour of Trump Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Contradicting his contradiction of a US intelligence report on Russian meddling Following furious backlash in the US, the president claimed that he meant to say that he saw no reason why it would not have been Russia who meddled in the 2016 US election. As to why he would have intended to use such bizarre phrasing, he did not comment Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Colouring in the US flag wrong The president coloured in the US flag wrongly during a visit to a children's hospital in Columbus, Ohio. He added a blue stripe where in tradition, and statute, there have been only white and red stripes AFP/Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Firing a Secretary of State over Twitter The president announced on Twitter that he was appointing Mike Pompeo as Secretary of State, much to the surprise of then Secretary of State Rex Tillerson Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Quoting a catchphrase from a reality TV show when discussing police brutality While addressing the issue of black athletes not standing for the national anthem in protest of police brutality, the president made reference to his catchphrase from reality TV show "The Apprentice": you're fired! Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Calling African nations "S***hole Countries" Ever one for diplomacy, the president reportedly referred to African nations as "s***hole countries". Asked to confirm this when meeting with Nigeria's President Buhari, Trump stated that there are "some countries that are in very bad shape". Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Defending Russian President Vladimir Putin Trump appeared to equate US foreign actions to those of Russian president Vladimir Putin, saying: There are a lot of killers. You think our countrys so innocent? Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Asking for people to 'pray' for Arnold Schwarzenegger At the National Prayer Breakfast, Trump couldnt help but to ask for prayers for the ratings on Arnold Schwarzeneggers show to be good. Schwarzenegger took over as host of The Apprentice  which buoyed Trumps celebrity status years ago Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Hanging up on Australian PM Malcolm Turnbull Early in his presidency, Trump reportedly hung up the phone on Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull after the foreign leader angered him over refugee plans. Mr Trump later said that it was the worst call he had had so far Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... The 'Muslim ban' Perhaps one of his most controversial policies while acting as president, Trumps travel ban targeting predominantly Muslim countries has bought him a lot of criticism. The bans were immediately protested, and judges initially blocked their implementation. The Supreme Court later sided with the administrations argument that the ban was developed out of concern for US security Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Praising crowd size while touring Hurricane Harvey damage After Hurricane Harvey ravaged southeastern Texas, Trump paid the area a visit. While his response to the disaster in Houston was generally applauded, the president picked up some flack when he gave a speech outside Houston (he reportedly did not visit disaster zones), and praised the size of the crowds there AP Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... 'Little Rocket Man' During his first-ever speech to the United Nations General Assembly, Trump tried out a new nickname for North Korea leader Kim Jong-un: Rocket Man. He later tweaked it to be little Rocket Man as the two feuded, and threatened each other with nuclear war. During that speech, he also threatened to totally annihilate North Korea Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Attacking Sadiq Khan following London Bridge terror attack After the attack on the London Bridge, Trump lashed out at London Mayor Sadiq Khan, criticising Khan for saying there was no reason to be alarmed after the attack. Trump was taking the comments out of context, as Khan was simply saying that the police had everything under control Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Claiming presenter Mika Brezinkski was 'bleeding from the face' Never one not to mock his enemies, Trump mocked MSNBCs Morning Joe co-host Mika Brzezinski, saying that she and co-host Joe Scarborough had approached him before his inauguration asking to join him. He noted that she was bleeding badly from a face-lift at the time, and that he said no MSNBC Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Claiming the blame for Charlottesville was on 'both sides' Trump refused to condemn far-right extremists involved in violence at 'the march for the right' protests in Charlottesville, even after the murder of counter protester Heather Heyer AP Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Retweeting cartoon of CNN being hit by a 'Trump train' Trump retweeted a cartoon showing a Trump-branded train running over a person whose body and head were replaced by a CNN avatar. He later deleted the retweet Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Tweeting about 'slamming' CNN Trump caught some flack when he tweeted a video showing him wrestling down an individual whose head had been replaced by a CNN avatar. Trump has singled CNN out in particular with his chants of fake news Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Firing head of the FBI, James Comey Trumps firing of former FBI Director James Comey landed him with a federal investigation into Russias meddling in the 2016 election that has caused many a headache for the White House. The White House initially said that the decision was made after consultation from the Justice Department. Then Mr Trump himself said that he had decided to fire him in part because he wanted the Russia investigation Mr Comey was conducting to stop Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Not realising being president would be 'hard' Just three months into his presidency, Trump admitted that being president is harder than he thought it would be. Though Trump insisted on the 2016 campaign trail that doing the job would be easy for him, he admitted in an interview that living in the White House is harder than running a business empire Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Accusing Obama of wiretapping him Trump accused former president Barack Obama of wire tapping him on twitter. The Justice Department later clarified: Obama had not, in fact, done so Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Claiming there had been 3 million 'illegal votes' Trump was never very happy about losing the popular vote to Hillary Clinton by 2.8 million ballots. So, he and White House voter-fraud commissioner Kris Kobach have claimed that anywhere between three and five million people voted illegally during the 2016 election. Conveniently, he says that all of those illegal votes went to Clinton. (There is no evidence to support that level of widespread voter fraud.) Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Leaving Jews out of the Holocaust memorial statement Just days after taking office, Trumps White House issued a statement on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, but didnt mention jews or even the word jewish in the written statement Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Anger over Inauguration crowd size Trumps inauguration crowd was visibly, and noticeably, smaller than that of his predecessor, Barack Obama. But, he really wanted to have had the largest crowd on record. So, he praised it as the biggest crowd ever. Relatedly, Trump also claimed that it stopped raining in Washington at the moment he was inaugurated. It didnt, the day was very dreary Reuters

She said in a CBS News interview this week that she was offered the post of ambassador to the Czech Republic, her native country, but turned it down because she already has a perfect life.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the ambassadorship post.
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Investigators still dont have a clear motive related to the shooting in Las Vegas nearly a week after it took place.

During a press briefing Friday, officials said that theyd gone through the shooters personal and financial life, and still had not figured out what motivated him to open fire on the Route 91 country music festival.

Weve run a thousand leads Kevin McMahill, the under-sheriff for the Clark County Police Department said. While some of it has helped create a better profiling to the madness of the suspect, we do not still have a motive or reason why.

Recommended Therapy dogs flown in to help and comfort Las Vegas shooting victims

Officials urged the public to come forward if they know anything that might help them figure out what made Stephen Paddock killed 58 people and injuring nearly 500 more Sunday night before turning the gun on himself. Investigators are looking at all aspects of the 64-year-olds life, from his birth to his death. If someone recalls even something slightly off about the shooter, they said, the detail could be helpful in the investigation.

They also said that reports indicating that the shooter was affiliated with any particular group, and reports speculating about motive, have not helped the investigation.

All of the rumours about affiliation have not been helpful, Mr McMahill said.

Las Vegas shooting  in pictures Show all 15 1 /15 Las Vegas shooting  in pictures Las Vegas shooting  in pictures People scramble for shelter at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after gun fire was heard Getty Las Vegas shooting  in pictures People carry a person at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after shots were fired David Becker/Getty Las Vegas shooting  in pictures People run from the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after gun fire was heard David Becker/Getty Las Vegas shooting  in pictures A handout photo released via Twitter by Eiki Hrafnsson (@EirikurH) showing concertgoers running away from the scene (C) after shots range out at the Route 91 Harvest festival on Las Vegas Boulevard EPA/Eiki Hrafnsson Las Vegas shooting  in pictures People lie on the ground at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after hearing gun fire Getty Las Vegas shooting  in pictures A man in a wheelchair is taken away from the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after hearing gun fire David Becker/Getty Las Vegas shooting  in pictures People stand on the street outside the Mandalay Bay hotel near the scene of the Route 91 Harvest festival on Las Vegas Boulevard EPA/Paul Buck Las Vegas shooting  in pictures FBI agents confer in front of the Tropicana hotel-casino after a mass shooting during a music festival on the Las Vegas Strip Reuters/Las Vegas Sun/Steve Marcus Las Vegas shooting  in pictures Las Vegas police run by a banner on the fence at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival grounds after shots were fired David Becker/Getty Las Vegas shooting  in pictures An injured person is tended to in the intersection of Tropicana Ave. and Las Vegas Boulevard after a mass shooting at a country music festival Ethan Miller/Getty Las Vegas shooting  in pictures Metro Police officers pass by the front of the Tropicana hotel-casino after a mass shooting at a music festival on the Las Vegas Strip Reuters/Las Vegas Sun/Steve Marcus Las Vegas shooting  in pictures A woman sits on a curb at the scene of a shooting outside of a music festival along the Las Vegas Strip AP/John Locher Las Vegas shooting  in pictures A cowboy hat lays in the street after shots were fired near a country music festival in Las Vegas Getty Las Vegas shooting  in pictures Las Vegas Metro Police and medical workers stage in the intersection of Tropicana Avenue and Las Vegas Boulevard South after a mass shooting at a music festival on the Las Vegas Strip Reuters/Las Vegas Sun/Steve Marcus Las Vegas shooting  in pictures Sheriff Joe Lombardo (2-R) speaking during a press briefing in the aftermath of the active shooter incident on Las Vegas Boulevard EPA

The security guard who first approached the shooters hotel suite, Jesus Campos, was hailed as a hero during the briefing.

This was a remarkable effort by a brave and remarkable man Mr McMahill said.

After searches of Paddocks belongings by investigators, it was determined that he was in possession of a substance commonly used to build improvised explosive devices, however it was not found in the form of an explosive when it was found. Investigators also found aluminium nitrate and aluminium powder.

Paddock broke the windows on the 32nd floor of his hotel room in the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino Sunday night, and rained gunfire on thousands of people below and across the street at a country music festival. He shot for just over 10 minutes before stopping. It wasnt clear if her had shot himself at that moment, or if he did so later.

Police didnt clear his room until nearly an hour later, after removing everyone from the 32nd floor and clearing the other rooms. They moved slowly because they no longer heard the sound of active gunfire.

Paddocks girlfriend, Marilou Danley, returned to the United States from a trip to the Philippines Wednesday, and was interrogated by the FBI to determine if she had prior knowledge that the attack would take place. They also interviewed her to determine if she could provide further details about why he might shoot innocent people, and if there were any clues.

I knew Stephen Paddock as a kind, caring, quiet man, Ms Danley in a statement read by her lawyer Matthew Lombard, a criminal defense attorney. He never said anything to me or took any action that I was aware of that I understood in any way to be a warning that something horrible like this was going to happen.

Ms Danley said that the shooter had surprised her with plane tickets to go see her family in the Philippines just over two weeks ago, but had thought nothing of it. She said that she had later received $100,000 from him, and told to buy a home for herself and her family. She said that was only troubling to her because she was concerned that he was going to break up with her.

Investigators found 23 firearms in Paddocks hotel room, and another 24 at his homes in Reno and Mesquite, Nevada.

Paddock was known as a man with a penchant for high stakes gambling, and his preference was for virtual games. Neighbours in his 55-plus living community in Mesquite said that he mostly kept to himself.

Ms Danley and Paddock reportedly met while she was working as a high-limit hostess at the Atlantis Casino Resort Spa in Reno. Friends said that they both enjoyed the casino lifestyle. They never married, but reportedly lived together.
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A grieving widower survivalist and a young Puerto Rican couple have found a way to turn tragedy into hope.

Forty barrels, filled with over 300 pounds of food each are making their way to Puerto Rico after Joseph Badame ran into Victoria Barber at an estate sale where bankers were selling of Mr Badames New Jersey home. The food  amassed over 45 years as Mr Badame prepared with his late wife for a potential national or international crisis  were not for sale, and the 74-year-old was concerned it would all get tossed.

But on the day of the estate sale, Ms Barber was in the market for massive food donations: Just the day before, Hurricane Maria made landfall on Puerto Rico, leaving most of the island without food, water, and reliable food supplies  including Ms Barbers hometown. She and her husband Anthony had started a fund out of their food truck for donations to help, but she was not expecting to come across a stash of supplies as big as what Mr Badame had to offer.

"I'm having trouble putting it into words, but it was just lifesaving for my family," Ms Barber told The Independent. "There were 70 barrels filled with food when my entire family was completely devastated from the hurricane, and in dire need of help. So, it was, like, this miracle."

Ms Barbers hometown, Arecibo - just west of San Juan - was devastated by Hurricane Maria alongside much of Puerto Rico.

Water remains scarce there more than two weeks after the storm made landfall, and temperatures have exceeded 110 degrees Fahrenheit. Hospitals remain on emergency power with no air conditioning. An official at the hospital there says there are at least 49 dead from indirect deaths related to the storm  those who have had heart attacks but not been able to get adequate care, those who fell from roofs expecting damage, people on kidney dialysis machines that failed, for example.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. 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In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

We have not heard from my grandmother since Tuesday about 8:30 am. Since then we learned she was on her roof waiting to be rescued because floods were 10 feet high, Ms Barber wrote on the GoFundMe page she set up to help. My home town is gone, my family are all displaced. My heart is broken.

Ms Barber said that each barrel has enough food to feed 84 people for up to four months. The first shipment, due to arrive Saturday, will be taken off of the private plane it was sent on and brought directly to her town on trucks. The flight was volunteered to them, so they just need to pay the truck drivers. The next shipment will cost about $175 a barrel to fly over, and will occur in a few weeks.

The shipment will help out quite a bit: So far, she's only aware of her family receiving one box of food.

"I know that they did receive a box. They waited in line for eight hours to receive a box of food, and they were very grateful, you could hear it in their voices," she said. "Happy to have oatmeal. Happy to have cans of Chef Boyardee."

Mr Badame had developed the stockpile alongside his wife, Phyllis, after they returned to the US from stints in the Peace Corps in the 1970s. That time was particularly volatile in South Jersey, where they lived, with race riots erupting in Camden, leading to an exodus of white families out of that city after one in 1971 after a Puerto Rican man was killed by two white police officers.

The Badames moved a bit further away from Camden two years after that riot, and over the years had built a large home equipped to withstand a major crisis, should one happen.

But Phyllis had a massive stroke that left her paralyzed in 2005. Mr Badame had to quit his job to care for her, and he went broke. His wife died in 2013 after another stroke. Mr Badame received his eviction notice last month, after defaulting on mortgage and tax payments.

Faced with that tragedy, the opportunity to help Puerto Rico has given him a new sense of purpose.

Im tired, old, depressed, feeling like Im a failure regarding the survival thing, he told the Washington Post. Then she came along, gave me a shot of adrenaline. I couldnt believe it.
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The FBI has declared that black identity extremism is a violent threat in the US according to a leaked report.

The document obtained by Foreign Policy is dated August 2017 and written by the Domestic Terrorism Analysis Unit within the bureau.

It read: The FBI assesses it is very likely Black Identity Extremist (BIE) perceptions of police brutality against African Americans spurred an increase in premeditated, retaliatory lethal violence against law enforcement and will very likely serve as justification for such violence.

The FBI wrote that alleged police abuse is what has continued to feed the resurgence in ideologically motivated, violent criminal activity within the BIE movement.

Around 750 people have been shot and killed by police thus far in 2017 and almost 170 of them were African-American.

The actual label of BIE appears to be an invented one, as Foreign Policy reported.

Michael German, a former FBI agent and now Brennan Center fellow, told the outlet: Basically, its black people who scare them.

A former senior counterterrorism and intelligence official from the Department of Homeland Security reviewed the report for the news outlet and said BIE is a new umbrella designation that has no basis...There are civil rights and privacy issues all over this.

The 12-page report points to the 2014 shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri as well as the grand jury decision not to indict the police officer who shot the unarmed teenager as a sort of catalyst.

Black Lives Matter organises march to Trump Tower Show all 15 1 /15 Black Lives Matter organises march to Trump Tower Black Lives Matter organises march to Trump Tower Kandy Freeman participates in a Black Lives Matter protest in front of Trump Tower in New York City, U.S. January 14, 2017. Stephanie Keith/Reuters Black Lives Matter organises march to Trump Tower People participate in a Black Lives Matter protest in front of Trump Tower in New York City, U.S. January 14, 2017. Stephanie Keith/Reuters Black Lives Matter organises march to Trump Tower Hawk Newsome, a Black Lives Matter activist, leads a protest outside Trump Tower in New York City on January 14, 2017. Dominick Reuter/AFP/Getty Images Black Lives Matter organises march to Trump Tower Hawk Newsome (C) leads a chant during a Black Lives Matter protest in front of Trump Tower in New York City, US. January 14, 2017. Dominick Reuter/AFP/Getty Images Black Lives Matter organises march to Trump Tower People participate in a Black Lives Matter protest in front of Trump Tower in New York City, U.S. January 14, 2017. Stephanie Keith/Reuters Black Lives Matter organises march to Trump Tower An NYPD officer speaks with a Black Lives Matter leaders during a protest in the snow outside Trump Tower in New York City on January 14, 2017. Dominick Reuter/AFP/Getty Images Black Lives Matter organises march to Trump Tower Kandy Freeman participates in a Black Lives Matter protest in front of Trump Tower in New York City, U.S. January 14, 2017. Stephanie Keith/Reuters Black Lives Matter organises march to Trump Tower An NYPD officer speaks with a Black Lives Matter leaders during a protest in the snow outside Trump Tower in New York City on January 14, 2017. Dominick Reuter/AFP/Getty Images Black Lives Matter organises march to Trump Tower Carol Garza, a Black Lives Matter supporter, protests outside Trump Tower in New York City on January 14, 2017. Dominick Reuter/AFP/Getty Images Black Lives Matter organises march to Trump Tower People participate in a Black Lives Matter protest in front of Trump Tower in New York City, U.S. January 14, 2017. Stephanie Keith/Reuters Black Lives Matter organises march to Trump Tower A Black Lives Matter supporter protests in the snow outside Trump Tower in New York City on January 14, 2017. Dominick Reuter/AFP/Getty Images Black Lives Matter organises march to Trump Tower Black Lives Matter activists march in front of Trump Tower on January 14, 2017 in New York City. Kevin Hagen/Getty Black Lives Matter organises march to Trump Tower Black Lives Matter activists march in front of Trump Tower on January 14, 2017 in New York City. Kevin Hagen/Getty Black Lives Matter organises march to Trump Tower Black Lives Matter supporters protest in the snow outside Trump Tower in New York City on January 14, 2017. Dominick Reuter/AFP/Getty Images Black Lives Matter organises march to Trump Tower Black Lives Matter Kandy Freeman marches in front of Trump Tower on January 14, 2017 in New York City. Kevin Hagen/Getty

His death spurred an increase in premeditated, retaliatory lethal violence against law enforcement and will very likely serve as justification for such violence, the report stated.

It cited six events since 2014 as evidence to support this theory.

Even though five of these attacks occurred following controversial police shooting of African Americans by white police officers, BIE targeting of officers was not, in every incident, based on their specific race, the report said.

The report stated that Micah Johnson, who shot at police officers during a July 2016 Black Lives Matter march in Dallas, Texas was influenced by BIE ideology based on journals and police statements.

The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment however issued a statement clarifying that the bureau cannot initiate an investigation based solely on an individuals race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, or the exercise of First Amendment rights.

The timing of the report is chilling - issued on 3 August just nine days before violence erupted at a rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Torch-wielding white supremacists, neo-Nazis, and Ku Klux Klan members marched on the college town to protest the removal of Civil War Confederate General Robert E Lees statue.

 Miss Texas criticises Donald Trump for Charlottesville response in Miss America contest

They clashed with counter-protesters who said the statue was only a reminder of hundreds of years of brutal slavery and a war that sought to divide the nation

Three people died that day, two Virginia State Police officers and one counter-protester who was fatally injured when an alleged Hitler Youth member drove his car into the crowd.

Donald Trump was heavily criticised for not immediately denouncing the hate groups and though he did do so later, he maintained his conviction that many sides were responsible for the violence.

Activists fear that the Trump administrations influence over the bureau is outlined in this document and that BIE will be used to justify arresting or prosecuting civil rights protesters.

DeRay McKesson, a Black Lives Matter activist, was not surprised by the information in the report.

There is a long tradition of the FBI targeting black activists like Martin Luther King, Jr and the NAACP, he told Foreign Policy.

This is confirmation that the work of social justice continues to threaten those in power, he said.
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President Donald Trump has again called for the Senates Republican leadership to end the filibuster, saying it is a death sentence for the Republican agenda.

Its a disaster, OK. Its a disaster for the Republicans, Mr Trump said in an interview with former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, a Republican and the father of White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

They have to get rid of it. If they dont get rid of it, its just a death sentence, Mr Trump said.

The filibuster rule requires that most legislation receive 60 votes to end debate, or invoke cloture.

Republicans currently hold a 52-seat majority in the 100-member Senate.

Requiring 60 votes to stop debate is a unique characteristic of the Senate and has the effect of requiring some Republicans to work with Democrats to push bills forward.

Mr Trump has repeatedly called on the Senate to scrap the filibuster for legislation, but Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has so far ignored the Presidents requests.

While Mr Trump appears to believe that getting rid of the rule is the key to securing legislative victories, it is unclear whether doing so would actually help Republicans.

Mr McConnell on multiple occasions tried to pass a healthcare bill using a process known as reconciliation  meaning he only needed 51 yea votes on the measure instead of the normal 60.

Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Show all 30 1 /30 Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Threatening to shut down Twitter after being fact-checked After the president tweeted that voting by post would be "substantially fraudulent", Twitter attached a warning label to his tweet and referred readers to a site which explained how the claim was "unsubstantiated". Trump then said Twitter was "stifling free speech" and that he may have to shut it down, something which he would not have the power to do AFP/Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Flippantly dismissing a serious allegation of sexual assault When author E Jean Carroll accused Trump of raping her, the president responded: Number one, shes not my type. Number two, it never happened. It never happened, OK?" AFP/Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Insulting the Mayor of London as he landed in London Just before touching down at Stansted Airport for his state visit, Trump took time out to @ the London mayor Sadiq Khan on twitter. He said that Khan has done a "terrible job"as mayor and that he is a "stone cold loser" Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Taking plenty of "Executive Time" The president's official schedule sets aside the hours from 8 to 11am daily for "Executive Time". Further intermittent periods of "Executive Time" are scheduled throughout any given day, ranging from 15 minutes to 3 hours. His duties in these hours have not been officially disclosed, though Axios reports that he spends them watching TV, reading the newspapers and tweeting Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Shutdown the government for over a month in an effort to secure funding for his wall With Mexico declining to pay for the wall, the president has faced difficulty in raising the required $5bn at home. Due to his demand that the money for the wall be included in the budget, and Congress's refusal, the government partially shut down on 22 December 2018. It remained shut for over a month, the longest period in history Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Joking about the Nazi occupation of France to President Macron In this tweet from 13 November 2018, the president mocks Emmanuel Macron's suggestion of a "true, European army" by invoking the conflict between France and Germany in the world wars Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Railing against the Mueller investigation The president has repeatedly claimed that the Mueller investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, is a "rigged witch hunt" Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Contradicting a US intelligence report on Russian meddling in the presence of Vladimir Putin In the press conference that followed his landmark meeting with Russian president Vladimir Putin, Trump stated that he saw no reason why Russia would have meddled in the 2016 US election. This contradicted a 2017 report by the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence that found evidence of Russian interference in favour of Trump Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Contradicting his contradiction of a US intelligence report on Russian meddling Following furious backlash in the US, the president claimed that he meant to say that he saw no reason why it would not have been Russia who meddled in the 2016 US election. As to why he would have intended to use such bizarre phrasing, he did not comment Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Colouring in the US flag wrong The president coloured in the US flag wrongly during a visit to a children's hospital in Columbus, Ohio. He added a blue stripe where in tradition, and statute, there have been only white and red stripes AFP/Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Firing a Secretary of State over Twitter The president announced on Twitter that he was appointing Mike Pompeo as Secretary of State, much to the surprise of then Secretary of State Rex Tillerson Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Quoting a catchphrase from a reality TV show when discussing police brutality While addressing the issue of black athletes not standing for the national anthem in protest of police brutality, the president made reference to his catchphrase from reality TV show "The Apprentice": you're fired! Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Calling African nations "S***hole Countries" Ever one for diplomacy, the president reportedly referred to African nations as "s***hole countries". Asked to confirm this when meeting with Nigeria's President Buhari, Trump stated that there are "some countries that are in very bad shape". Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Defending Russian President Vladimir Putin Trump appeared to equate US foreign actions to those of Russian president Vladimir Putin, saying: There are a lot of killers. You think our countrys so innocent? Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Asking for people to 'pray' for Arnold Schwarzenegger At the National Prayer Breakfast, Trump couldnt help but to ask for prayers for the ratings on Arnold Schwarzeneggers show to be good. Schwarzenegger took over as host of The Apprentice  which buoyed Trumps celebrity status years ago Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Hanging up on Australian PM Malcolm Turnbull Early in his presidency, Trump reportedly hung up the phone on Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull after the foreign leader angered him over refugee plans. Mr Trump later said that it was the worst call he had had so far Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... The 'Muslim ban' Perhaps one of his most controversial policies while acting as president, Trumps travel ban targeting predominantly Muslim countries has bought him a lot of criticism. The bans were immediately protested, and judges initially blocked their implementation. The Supreme Court later sided with the administrations argument that the ban was developed out of concern for US security Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Praising crowd size while touring Hurricane Harvey damage After Hurricane Harvey ravaged southeastern Texas, Trump paid the area a visit. While his response to the disaster in Houston was generally applauded, the president picked up some flack when he gave a speech outside Houston (he reportedly did not visit disaster zones), and praised the size of the crowds there AP Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... 'Little Rocket Man' During his first-ever speech to the United Nations General Assembly, Trump tried out a new nickname for North Korea leader Kim Jong-un: Rocket Man. He later tweaked it to be little Rocket Man as the two feuded, and threatened each other with nuclear war. During that speech, he also threatened to totally annihilate North Korea Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Attacking Sadiq Khan following London Bridge terror attack After the attack on the London Bridge, Trump lashed out at London Mayor Sadiq Khan, criticising Khan for saying there was no reason to be alarmed after the attack. Trump was taking the comments out of context, as Khan was simply saying that the police had everything under control Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Claiming presenter Mika Brezinkski was 'bleeding from the face' Never one not to mock his enemies, Trump mocked MSNBCs Morning Joe co-host Mika Brzezinski, saying that she and co-host Joe Scarborough had approached him before his inauguration asking to join him. He noted that she was bleeding badly from a face-lift at the time, and that he said no MSNBC Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Claiming the blame for Charlottesville was on 'both sides' Trump refused to condemn far-right extremists involved in violence at 'the march for the right' protests in Charlottesville, even after the murder of counter protester Heather Heyer AP Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Retweeting cartoon of CNN being hit by a 'Trump train' Trump retweeted a cartoon showing a Trump-branded train running over a person whose body and head were replaced by a CNN avatar. He later deleted the retweet Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Tweeting about 'slamming' CNN Trump caught some flack when he tweeted a video showing him wrestling down an individual whose head had been replaced by a CNN avatar. Trump has singled CNN out in particular with his chants of fake news Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Firing head of the FBI, James Comey Trumps firing of former FBI Director James Comey landed him with a federal investigation into Russias meddling in the 2016 election that has caused many a headache for the White House. The White House initially said that the decision was made after consultation from the Justice Department. Then Mr Trump himself said that he had decided to fire him in part because he wanted the Russia investigation Mr Comey was conducting to stop Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Not realising being president would be 'hard' Just three months into his presidency, Trump admitted that being president is harder than he thought it would be. Though Trump insisted on the 2016 campaign trail that doing the job would be easy for him, he admitted in an interview that living in the White House is harder than running a business empire Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Accusing Obama of wiretapping him Trump accused former president Barack Obama of wire tapping him on twitter. The Justice Department later clarified: Obama had not, in fact, done so Reuters Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Claiming there had been 3 million 'illegal votes' Trump was never very happy about losing the popular vote to Hillary Clinton by 2.8 million ballots. So, he and White House voter-fraud commissioner Kris Kobach have claimed that anywhere between three and five million people voted illegally during the 2016 election. Conveniently, he says that all of those illegal votes went to Clinton. (There is no evidence to support that level of widespread voter fraud.) Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Leaving Jews out of the Holocaust memorial statement Just days after taking office, Trumps White House issued a statement on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, but didnt mention jews or even the word jewish in the written statement Getty Donald Trump's least presidential moments so far... Anger over Inauguration crowd size Trumps inauguration crowd was visibly, and noticeably, smaller than that of his predecessor, Barack Obama. But, he really wanted to have had the largest crowd on record. So, he praised it as the biggest crowd ever. Relatedly, Trump also claimed that it stopped raining in Washington at the moment he was inaugurated. It didnt, the day was very dreary Reuters

But the majority leader repeatedly failed, unable to convince at least 50 members of his party to support the legislation that would have dismantled Obamacare, otherwise known as the Affordable Care Act.

In the event of a 50-50 tie, Vice President Mike Pence would have cast the deciding vote.

Republicans are attempting to reconciliation again  this time to pass a bill that would rewrite the US tax code, a key part of Mr Trumps legislative agenda.

But the issue already appears to be dividing the party, with multiple Republicans expressing concerns about the proposed tax plan.

Mr McConnell can only afford two defections from his own party and still be able to pass a tax bill.

Republicans have still not secured a major legislative victory since Mr Trump took office in January, despite having control over both the House and the Senate.
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Bangladeshis will go without food to help Rohingya Muslims fleeing violence in Burma, the countrys prime minister has said.

Sheikh Hasina said her government would continue to support nearly a million Rohingya Muslims who have fled neighbouring Burma to escape violence.

If needed, we will eat a full meal once a day and share the rest with them, she said.

She added she was pursuing a plan to build temporary shelters for the Rohingya on an island with the help of international aid agencies whom she praised for their support.

She made the statement at Dhaka airport on her return from New York after attending the UN General Assembly session. The UN has described the violence in Burma as ethnic cleansing.

Ms Hasina accused Burma of creating tensions at the border, but said she has asked the countrys security forces to deal with the crisis very carefully.

They pretended like they wanted a war, she said.

Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina speaks during a reception program upon her return from New York after attending the UN General Assembly session, in Dhaka (AP)

More than 500,000 Rohingya Muslims have crossed over to Bangladesh since late August, when Burma security forces responded to militant attacks with a broad crackdown that witnesses and rights groups say has included killing and arson. An equal number of Rohingya Muslims have previously fled Burma since 1978.

Burma does not recognise the Rohingya as an ethnic group, instead insisting they are Bengali migrants from Bangladesh living illegally in the country. Burma has come under international criticism for failing to stop the recent violence in its Rakhine state and in turn an exodus that has become the largest refugee crisis to hit Asia in decades.

Rohingya refugees  in pictures Show all 15 1 /15 Rohingya refugees  in pictures Rohingya refugees  in pictures A young girl and a baby wade through mud after arriving in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh from Burma on 10 September Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Rohingya refugees  in pictures Rohingya refugees walk through a camp in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh after arriving from Burma Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Rohingya refugees  in pictures A young Rohingya refugee gathers firewood after arriving in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh from Burma Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Rohingya refugees  in pictures Rohingya refugees wait for sacks of rice to be distributed in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Rohingya refugees  in pictures Rohingya Muslim refugees arrive on a boat in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh after crossing from Burma on 8 September Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Rohingya refugees  in pictures Rohingya Muslim refugees react after being re-united with each other after arriving in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh on a boat from Burma Getty Rohingya refugees  in pictures Rohingya Muslim refugees walk along the remains of a road after arriving in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh on a boat from Burma Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Rohingya refugees  in pictures Rohingya Muslim refugees wade through water after arriving in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh by boat from Burma Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Rohingya refugees  in pictures Rohingya Muslim refugees wade through water after arriving in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh by boat from Myanmar Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Rohingya refugees  in pictures Rohingya Muslim refugees stand in the rain after arriving in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh by boat from Burma Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Rohingya refugees  in pictures Indian children hold placards and shout slogans during a protest against the alleged persecution of the Rohingya Muslims in Burma EPA/Raminder Pal Singh Rohingya refugees  in pictures Supporters of the Difa-e-Pakistan Council (DPC), an Islamic organisation, listen to their leaders' speeches against Burma's persecution of Rohingya Muslims, during a demonstration in Karachi Reuters/Akhtar Soomro Rohingya refugees  in pictures Hundreds of Iranians take part in a protest against violence in Myanmar after weekly Friday prayers, in Tehran EPA/Abedin Taherkenareh Rohingya refugees  in pictures Indonesian Muslim activists hold placards and shout slogans during a protest against the alleged persecution of the Rohingya minority in Magelang, Central Java, Indonesia EPA/Ali Lutfi Rohingya refugees  in pictures Members of an Islamic organisation shout slogans against the Burma government during a protest in Dhaka, Bangladesh EPA

The Burma governments information committee said in a statement late Thursday that it had stopped 17,000 Rohingya from fleeing in just four days last week. Still villagers say Rohingya are still attempting to leave and many are gathered on the beaches just across the water from Bangladesh waiting for a chance to leave the country.

On Saturday, Ms Hasina reiterated that the settlements for Rohingya Muslims would be temporary until they returned to their homes in Burma.

Her government would continue to support them with food and shelter.

AP
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Thousands of people gathered in Madrid and Barcelona on Saturday as Catalonia prepared to declare independence from the rest of Spain after police responded with violence to last week's referendum.

Many showed their support for a peaceful solution following the clashes with police by dressing in white, carrying doves and signs calling for talks to resolve Spain's worst political crisis in decades.

The wealthy north-eastern region of Catalonia, with its own language and culture, has long claimed to be distinct from the rest of the country and last Sunday held a referendum on leaving Spain, a vote the constitutional court had banned and the Government will not recognise.

The Catalan authorities claim the overwhelming majority of those who voted supported a split from Spain, something Madrid says is illegal under the country's 1978 constitution.

Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters Show all 17 1 /17 Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters A man faces off Spanish Civil Guards outside a polling station in Sant Julia de Ramis Reuters Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters Riot police form a security cordon around the Ramon Llull school in Barcelona EPA Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters Riot police evict a young woman during clashes between people gathered outside the Ramon Llull school in Barcelona EPA Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters Spanish Civil Guard officers break through a door at a polling station in Sant Julia de Ramis Reuters Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters Spanish National Police clash with pro-referendum supporters in Barcelona on Sunday AP Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters Crowds raise their arms up as police move in on members of the public gathered outside to prevent them from voting in the referendum at a polling station where the President Carles Puigdemunt will vote later today Getty Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters People confront Spanish Civil Guard officers outside a polling station Reuters Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters Three man hold each other as they try to block a Spanish police van from approaching a polling station AP Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters A woman shows a ballot to a Spanish Civil Guard officer outside a polling station Reuters Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters A man wearing a shirt with an Estelada (Catalan separatist flag) and holding carnations faces off with a Spanish Civil Guard officer Reuters Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters Police try to control the area as people attempt to cast their ballot at a polling station in Barcelona Getty Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters A man is grabbed by officers as police move in on the crowds Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters Two women argue with a Spanish National policeman during clashes between Catalan pro-independence people and police forces at the Sant Julia de Ramis sports centre in Girona EPA Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters Sant Julia De Ramis in Spain Getty Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters Confrontation outside a polling station in Barcelona, where police have tried to stop people voting AFP/Getty Images Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters A Spanish National Police officer aims a rubber-bullet rifle at pro-referendum supporters in Barcelona AP Catalonia independence referendum: Riot police clash with voters Riot police clashed with voters as polls opened in Barcelona Sky News

The political stand-off has divided the country and caused economic ructions, prompting banks and companies to move their headquarters outside Catalonia.

Those anxious for the country to remain united waved the Spanish flag and carried signs with slogans including: Catalonia we love you.

I've come because I feel very Spanish and makes me very sad what's happened, Rosa Borras, 47, an unemployed secretary who had joined a noisy gathering in central Madrid.

She added: I wanted to be here for unity, because I also feel very Catalan. My family lives in Catalonia.

While Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont has said he is open to mediation, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy insists the region must give up its call for independence which generated support during a near-six year economic crisis in Spain, before he will meet for talks.

Recommended Madrid offers apology to injured Catalan voters as independence looms

Mr Rajoy's government mobilised thousands of national police to try and stop Sunday's vote going ahead, leading to clashes with would-be voters as they attempted to close polling stations in schools and remove ballot boxes.

The police brutality drew widespread condemnation and forced the Government to issue an apology, although tensions continued to rise after reports that plans for a unilateral declaration of independence will be handed to the Catalan parliament on Tuesday.

The crisis has alarmed Spain's EU partners, with German Chancellor Angela Merkel discussing the matter with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, an EU official told Reuters.

Concern is mounting within the governments of other EU countries about the negative impact of the crisis on the Spanish economy, the fourth largest in the euro zone, with fears of possible knock-on effects for neighbouring economies.

European finance ministers are meeting in Brussels this week for a routine meeting and are expected to discuss the issue, although it is not formally on the agenda.

EU leaders have offered public support to to the Spanish government but in private many are understood to have expressed concern over the use of police force to try and prevent the vote.

Some EU states are also worried that talk of Catalan independence could fuel secessionist feelings in other parts of Europe, and are anxious for a political solution to be found as quickly as possible.

Additional reporting by Reuters
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The head of Swedish journalist Kim Wall has been discovered two months after she disappeared during a submarine trip in Denmark.

Wall, a widely travelled foreign correspondent, was allegedly murdered in August aboard a submarine owned by Danish inventor Peter Madsen.

Copenhagen police investigator Jens Moeller Jensen said her head, legs and clothes were found on Friday inside plastic bags, with a knife and heavy metal pieces to make them sink, near where Ms Walls naked, decapitated torso was found in August.

Mr Madsen, who is in pre-trial detention, has said Ms Wall died after being accidentally hit by a heavy hatch in the submarine, but police have said 15 stab wounds were found on the torso found at sea off Copenhagen on 21 August.

A police spokesman told reporters in Copenhagen that there were no fractures in Walls cranium. Her arms are still missing. The cause of death has not been established.

A police prosecutor said earlier this week that officers had found images which we presume to be real of women being strangled and decapitated on Peter Madsens computer in a laboratory he ran.

Mr Madsen said the computer searched by police was not his but was used by everyone in the laboratory.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

The inventor told a court Wall had died when a heavy hatch inside the submarine that he was holding open swung shut. I lose my foothold and the hatch shuts, he said. Kim had been severely hurt and was laying with an intense bleeding. There was a pool of blood where she had landed.

He said he had tried to bury her at sea and intended to take his own life inside the submarine.

Wall was an experienced foreign correspondent who had reported from Uganda, Haiti and Sri Lanka. Her mother said after she was found dead: She gave voice to the weak, vulnerable and marginalised people. That voice had been needed for a long, long time, now it has been silenced.

Additional reporting by agencies
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Russias day of protests is underway, with hundreds attending nationwide rallies and dozens of arrests already reported.

The protests are an unwanted birthday present for Vladimir Putin  who celebrates his 65th today  from leading critic Alexei Navalny. Mr Navalny is himself watching at distance from a Moscow detention cell after being jailed together with his campaign chief last Monday.

The protests were originally only planned for Mr Putins home town, St Petersburg, but were extended after the sentences. Police told Interfax news agency an estimated 700 people were present at the protest in Moscow.

A heavy police presence was visible in the capital, along with members of the supposedly voluntary druzhina pro-Kremlin brigades.

A total of 80 arrests were reported during demonstrations in other regions across the country, including 18 in Yekaterinburg, 12 in Tula and 10 in Samara.

Mr Putin will apparently be spending his birthday at his desk. There are no plans for a celebration, his spokesman said. Instead, Mr Putin expects a few phone calls from foreign leaders (Donald Trump isnt one of them) and a meeting with members of his Security Council.

The agenda at that meeting is a complex and developing one: How to deal with protests taking place in 80 cities across 11 time zones.

Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Show all 12 1 /12 Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday An opposition activist wearing a rubber mask depicting Russian President Vladimir Putin walks past gift boxes with lettering reading trial, resignation, impeachment, true election and others during an event dedicated to Putins 65th birthday in downtown Moscow, October 7 2017 AFP/Getty Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Demonstrators holding yellow ducks are interviewed by journalists as they arrive for the rally AP Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday A demonstrator chats slogans during the unauthorized anti-Kremlin rally called by jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny AFP/Getty Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Demonstrators shout slogans and wave Russian flags during the rally in Moscow AP Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Demonstrators in downtown Moscow hold a poster which reads We demand a fair election. AFP/Getty Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Demonstrators walk down Tverskaya street during the unauthorized anti-Kremlin rally AFP/Getty Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Riot police block an area AFP/Getty Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Demonstrators clench their fists during the rally. Opposition leader Alexei Navalny has worked to organize protests in support of his presidential bid across Russia on Saturday AP Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Demonstrators gather near a monument of Russian poet Alexander Pushkin AFP/Getty Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Demonstrators march and wave a Russian flag AFP/Getty Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday A topless activist from the feminist group Femen depicts American actress Marilyn Monroe singing the happy birthday song EPA Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday On the birthday of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, Femen wants to remind the world of the threat that it bears to all of us, and not only to those countries where it has now launched bloody wars, Femen said. AFP/Getty

While protests in Russias far east have already passed without much incident, or indeed attendance, the real drama is expected late in the day in the major European cities. The vast majority of Mr Navalnys rallies have not been sanctioned by authorities.

State and loyal media were curiously silent on todays protests. Semi-state news aggregator Yandex led its Moscow section with changes in bus timetables. The tech giant has previously been criticised for blanking coverage of opposition rallies.

In the build up to the protests, authorities warned of a robust response. Last Wednesday, state media news agency TASS reported a law enforcement source who claimed police had been given instructions to respond harshly at the St Petersburg protests.

Independent media outlet Fontanka.ru also reported that police had booked 20 buses, with a capacity of 800, to arrive near the protest site; the assumption being that they would be used for arrests.

While the authorities have been known to surprise  going soft when least expected, and vice versa  Mr Navalnys most recent protest actions were accompanied by mass arrests.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

On 26 March, 1,800 people were detained nationwide, according to OVD-Info, an independent police watchdog that monitors detentions. There were almost the same amount of arrests on 12 June. Both rallies were attended by several tens of thousands.

On the eve of the protests, police raided Mr Navalnys campaign headquarters and detained key regional organisers.

Writing on Twitter, Mr Navalnys campaign manager Leonid Volkov has said that the aims of todays protests are two-fold: To overturn the jail sentences and to allow Mr Navalny to participate in a free election.

The Kremlin has shown no signs of entertaining either request. Elections chief Ella Pamfilova has already confirmed that Mr Navalnys uninvited presidential bid will not be allowed, owing to a criminal conviction that some consider to be politically motivated.

How Mr Navalny and his team will respond to a ban as the elections get nearer is anyones guess. Today, the Kremlin seemed to give a few clues as to how it intends to play it.
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Russian police went face to face with anti-government protesters in rallies timed to coincide with President Vladimir Putins 65th birthday. Hundreds were detained in cities across the country, with violent arrests witnessed in the presidents home town of St Petersburg.

The rallies were an unwanted birthday gift from Mr Putins leading critic, Alexei Navalny. In the most part, they were unsanctioned, meaning participants faced arrest for turning up. Mr Navalny, jailed for 20 days earlier this week, had hoped for a large turnout to push for his release and currently unlikely participation in next Springs presidential elections.

Heavy police presence, and warnings about the likelihood of arrests seem to have put paid to those hopes. The protests were attended by hundreds, rather than the thousands seen in actions earlier this year.

In Moscow, police estimates of 700 seemed close to the real numbers. A similar number attended the St Petersburg rally. In other cities, the numbers were even less impressive.

The Moscow rally was made up of all colours, old and young  many very young. Liberal and leftists also attended, both the dedicated and simply interested. The crowds had barely gathered on the citys central Pushkin Square when the police megaphones began working.

Dont stay, move away, dont get in citizens way, went their mantra. The tone was initially polite, but before long, the words "don't let citizens get in our way" were howled out.

Does that make us non-citizens? some protesters asked in reply.

Otherwise, the policing was, by Russian standards, low-key. Officers seemed content with allowing the most dedicated core of 200 or so  mostly late teens  to do their thing. Lacking central co-ordination, that group first decided to march down along the main Tverskaya street from Pushkin Square, towards the Kremlin, before debating among themselves, and turning back to the square.

Later in the afternoon, as news of riot police moving in formations started filtering through, Mr Navalnys Moscow team decided to call an end to the-the rally. Not all of his young supporters agreed however. Many gathered on Manezhnaya Square, near the Kremlin, with the intention of staying until the morning.

Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Show all 12 1 /12 Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday An opposition activist wearing a rubber mask depicting Russian President Vladimir Putin walks past gift boxes with lettering reading trial, resignation, impeachment, true election and others during an event dedicated to Putins 65th birthday in downtown Moscow, October 7 2017 AFP/Getty Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Demonstrators holding yellow ducks are interviewed by journalists as they arrive for the rally AP Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday A demonstrator chats slogans during the unauthorized anti-Kremlin rally called by jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny AFP/Getty Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Demonstrators shout slogans and wave Russian flags during the rally in Moscow AP Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Demonstrators in downtown Moscow hold a poster which reads We demand a fair election. AFP/Getty Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Demonstrators walk down Tverskaya street during the unauthorized anti-Kremlin rally AFP/Getty Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Riot police block an area AFP/Getty Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Demonstrators clench their fists during the rally. Opposition leader Alexei Navalny has worked to organize protests in support of his presidential bid across Russia on Saturday AP Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Demonstrators gather near a monument of Russian poet Alexander Pushkin AFP/Getty Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday Demonstrators march and wave a Russian flag AFP/Getty Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday A topless activist from the feminist group Femen depicts American actress Marilyn Monroe singing the happy birthday song EPA Russia protests on Vladimir Putins birthday On the birthday of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, Femen wants to remind the world of the threat that it bears to all of us, and not only to those countries where it has now launched bloody wars, Femen said. AFP/Getty

But if the Moscow protest went off fairly peacefully, with only two arrests reported, the same could not be said of the other main event. In President Putins home city of St Petersburg, several dozen arrests were recorded, and some of them violent.

The protests began on the Field of Mars square, in the west of the city centre in the early evening. Later the protests moved from the original location to the Liteiny Prospekt, a central throroughfare.

Witnesses told The Independent that protesters then took up part of the road, and were intercepted by riot police, and taken away in police vans. Among the arrested was Ildar Dadin, the first to have been imprisoned under Russias controversial persistent protest laws (he was later pardoned.) One woman received head injuries during arrest.

In the days leading up to the event, authorities had warned of a robust approach to unsanctioned protest in the city. Earlier this week, state media news agency TASS carried an article stating police had been given instructions to respond harshly.

Local media Fontanka.ru also reported police had booked 20 buses to arrive near the protest site, with the assumption being that they would be used for arrests.

As of 9 pm local time, a total of 271 arrests nationwide had been reported to the independent police watchdog OVD-Info. The most had been made in St Petersburg (62), followed by 57 in Yaroslavl, 21 in Krasnodar and 20 in Lipetsk.

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Staff at the watchdogs ad-hoc call-centre in central Moscow said that the day had been less busy than they had expected. In the last two nationwide rallies, OVD-Info registered approximately 3,600 detentions, creating a caseload of 400 for the teams 25 lawyers.

Ive been working here for six years, and I can tell you theres no logic to it, the watchdogs co-founder Grigory Okhotin told the Independent. Its always a political decision from above. Its impossible to guess the number of arrests, and its wonderful if numbers are less than first feared.

Navalnys team claimed the nationwide day of protests had been a success. But the low attendance is likely to have dampened the mood of all but his fiercest supporters.

It was the classic case of an unprepared meeting, said former Kremlin advisor Gleb Pavlovsky, speaking on the liberal TV Rain channel. Navalny has clearly got a lot of thinking to do, but then again hell have the time to do that in jail.
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A Scot is facing a three-year jail sentence in Dubai after putting his hand on a man in a bar so he did not "bump and spill drinks", according to his representatives.

Campaign group Detained in Dubai said Jamie Harron, from Stirling, was arrested for public indecency after touching a man on his hip.

Mr Harron has reportedly spent more than 30,000 in expenses and legal fees, having been detained in the UAE since July.

Radha Stirling, chief executive Detained in Dubai, said: "It is quite outrageous that he has been held in the country for so long already.

"This is another example of how vulnerable tourists are to arrest and detention in Dubai and at how drawn out and disorganised legal proceedings are."

The 27-year-old electrician is said to have been holding a drink, moving through a crowded bar, and held a hand in front of him to avoid spilling it on himself or others.

He then "touched a man on his hip to avoid impact".

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

The organisation claims it was only after Mr Harron and his friend sat at a table that the man who had been touched seemed aggravated.

Police arrived at the scene "20 to 30" minutes later and arrested Mr Harron, according to his representatives.

His charges after the alleged event at the Rock Bottom Bar are said to include drinking alcohol and public indecency.

Mr Harron is said to have been locked up for five days in Al Barsha prison, before being released after bail with his passport confiscated.

Ms Stirling added: "I have spoken to Jamie today who is under immense pressure and stress. He was expecting to appear in court this Sunday, but the court moved the date without telling him or his lawyer.

"This led to a sentence of 30 days' imprisonment for failing to present himself at the hearing."

A Foreign and Commonwealth Office spokesman said: "We have been in contact with a British man following his arrest in Dubai in July. We are providing consular assistance."

PA
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At least 100 European Isis fighters will be prosecuted in Iraq, with most facing the death penalty, the countrys ambassador to Belgium has reportedly said.

Jawad al-Chlaihawi said Belgians were among those detained, along with jihadists from Russia, Chechnya and Central Asia.

Fighters from around the world joined Isiss call to arms when the group established its so-called caliphate across Iraq and Syria in 2014.

British fighters, including the notorious Mohammed Emwazi, also known as Jihadi John, were among them. He is believed to have been killed in a drone strike in Raqqa, Syria in 2015.

Mr Chlaihawi told Belgiums RTPF there were around 1,400 family members of foreign fighters of suspected Isis members, including children, being held near Mosul.

Many are reportedly from Turkey, and former Soviet countries in Central Asia, but there are also believed to be some French and Germans among them.

It is unclear what will happen to the families and children of members of Isis.

We are holding the Daesh [Isis] families under tight security measures and waiting for government orders on how to deal with them, Army Colonel Ahmed al-Taie told Reuters.

He added: We treat them well. They are families of tough criminals who killed innocents in cold blood, but when we interrogated them we discovered that almost all of them were misled by a vicious Daesh propaganda.

In pictures: Mosul offensive Show all 40 1 /40 In pictures: Mosul offensive In pictures: Mosul offensive A doctor carries an Iraqi newborn baby at a hospital in Mosul, Iraq July 18, 2017. Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi girls play at a yard of a school in Mosul, Iraq July 18, 2017alal Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive A woman on crutches who is a relative of men accused of being Islamic State militants is seen at a camp in Bartella, east of Mosul, Iraq July 15, 2017. Picture taken July 15, 2017. Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive A displaced girl, who fled from home carries a doll at Hamam al-Alil camp south of Mosul, Iraq July 13, 2017. Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi federal police members and civilians celebrate in the Old City of Mosul on 9 July 2017 after the government's announcement of the "liberation" of the embattled city. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's office said he was in "liberated" Mosul to congratulate "the heroic fighters and the Iraqi people on the achievement of the major victory" AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive A picture taken on 9 July 2017, shows a general view of the destruction in Mosul's Old City. Iraq will announce imminently a final victory in the nearly nine-month offensive to retake Mosul from jihadists, a US general said Saturday, as celebrations broke out among police forces in the city. AFP In pictures: Mosul offensive Members of the Iraqi federal police raise the victory gesture as they ride on a humvee while advancing through the Old City of Mosul on 28 June 2017, as the offensive continues to retake the last district held by Islamic State (IS) group fighters. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Smoke billows as Iraqi forces advance through the Old City of Mosul on 26 June 2017, during the ongoing offensive to retake the last district held by the Islamic State (IS) group. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi man wearing the green scarf of the Shi'ite faith kisses an Iraqi Army soldier on safely reaching the Iraqi forces position as Iraqi civilians flee the Old City of west Mosul where heavy fighting continues on 23 June 2017. Iraqi forces continue to encounter stiff resistance with improvised explosive devices, car bombs, heavy mortar fire and snipers hampering their advance. Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive A picture taken from the inside of an Iraqi forces armoured vehicle shows residents walking through a damaged street as troops advance towards Mosul's Old City on 18 June 2017, during the ongoing offensive to retake the last district still held by the Islamic State (IS) group. Military commanders told AFP the assault had begun at dawn after overnight air strikes by the US-led coalition backing Iraqi forces. They said the jihadists were putting up fierce resistance. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi Army soldiers advance in a destroyed street after an Iraqi forces airstrike targeted an Islamic State sniper position 17 June 2017 in al-Shifa, the last district of west Mosul under Islamic State control. IS snipers, as well as car and suicide bomb attacks continue to hinder the Iraqi forces efforts to retake the final district. A series of airstrikes by Iraqi helicopter gunships attempted to hit multiple Islamic State sniper positions in al-Shifa. Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier frisks a displaced Iraqi man at a temporary camp in the compound of the closed Nineveh International Hotel in Mosul on 16 June 2017 which was recovered by Iraqi troops from Islamic State group fighters earlier in the year. A screening centre set up in the compound's fairgrounds sees a constant stream of Iraqis fleeing the battle for Mosul, awaiting their turn to be checked by the Iraqi forces who are searching for suspected Islamic State (IS) group members. The small fairground lies at the end of a pontoon bridge across the Tigris recently opened to civilians that is the only physical link between the two banks of the river. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqis staying at the al-Khazir camp swim in a river near the camp for internally displaced people, located between Arbil and Mosul on 11 June 2017. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi government forces drive on a road leading to Tal Afar on 9 June 2017, during ongoing battles to retake the city from Islamic State (IS) group fighters. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi policeman carries a poster bearing an image of Mosul's iconic leaning minaret, known as the "Hadba" (Hunchback), on 22 June 2017. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqis stand in line to receive food aid in western Mosul's Zanjili neighbourhood on 7 June 2017, during ongoing battles as Iraqi forces try to retake the city from Islamic State (IS) group fighters. Living conditions in Mosul have again deteriorated since the start of the Iraqi government's offensive on the city in October in which they retook a large part of the west of the city. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Displaced Iraqis carry lightbulbs and sacks as they evacuate from western Mosul's Zanjili neighbourhood as government forces advance in the area during their ongoing battle against Islamic State (IS) group fighters on 13 May 2017 AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) flashes the victory gesture as he patrols in western Mosul's al-Islah al-Zaraye neighbourhood on 13 May 2017 AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi army soldiers from the 9th armoured division on a truck flash the sign of victory as they drive back from Mosul to the town of Qaraqosh (also known as Hamdaniya) Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Members of Iraqi forces flash the sign of victory on their vehicle as they advance towards Hammam al-Alil area south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of Iraqi security forces gestures in Hammam al-Alil, south of Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi children, one flashing the sign of victory, greet Iraqi army's soldiers from the 9th armoured division in the area of Ali Rash, adjacent to the eastern Al-Intissar neighbourhood of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Peshmerga forces look at a tunnel used by Islamic State militants near the town of Bashiqa, east of Mosul, during an operation to attack Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier takes a photograph with his phone as his comrade stands next to a detained man, whom the Iraqi army soldiers accused of being an Islamic State fighter, who was fleeing with his family in the Intisar disrict of eastern Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Iranian Kurdish female members of the Freedom Party of Kurdistan (PAK) hold a position in an area near the town of Bashiqa, some 25 kilometres north east of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi families, who fled their homes in Hamam al-Alil, gather on the outskirts of their town Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Displaced people walk past a checkpoint near Qayara, south of Mosul, Iraq AP In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi families who were displaced by the ongoing operation by Iraqi forces against jihadists of the Islamic State group to retake the city of Mosul, are seen gathering in an area near Qayyarah In pictures: Mosul offensive A boy who just fled Abu Jarbuah village is seen with his family at a Kurdish Peshmerga position between two front lines near Bashiqa, east of Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi child eats a pomegranate upon the arrival of Iraqi forces in the village of Umm Mahahir, south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive People who just fled Abu Jarbuah village sit as they eat at a Kurdish Peshmerga position between two front lines near Bashiqa, east of Mosul, Iraq Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive A couple who just fled Abu Jarbuah village are escorted by Kurdish Peshmerga soldiers Reuters In pictures: Mosul offensive Women carry a boy over a wall as civilians flee their houses in the village of Tob Zawa, Iraq AP In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier and a civilian ride a motorbike as smoke rises behind them, on the road between Qayyarah and Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of Iraqi forces, wearing a skull mask, waits at a checkpoint for people fleeing the main hub city of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive An Iraqi soldier sits at a checkpoint in an area near Qayyarah Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi men prepare food portions for Iraqi forces deployed in areas south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi forces celebrate upon the arrival of vehicles bringing food to them Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive Iraqi childen smoke cigarettes upon the arrival of Iraqi forces in the village of Umm Mahahir, south of Mosul Getty In pictures: Mosul offensive A member of Iraqi forces distributes drinks to children in the village of Umm Mahahir, south of Mosul Getty

Mr Chlaihawi told the broadcaster that Iraq was working with European governments to determine what should happen to them, but some did not want to receive them.

The fight against Isis is believed to be entering its closing stages in both Iraq and Syria.

Mosul, the extremist groups largest urban stronghold in the country, was liberated by Iraqi forces in July, but thousands of civilians died during the nine-month battle.
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Brexit, Krexit and Crexit: Britain leaves the EU, Kurdistan declares independence from Iraq, Catalonia secedes from Spain  three massive political changes either under way or put on the political agenda by recent referendums. Three very different countries, but in all cases a conviction among a significant number of voters that they would be better off on their own outside any measure of control by a supranational authority like the EU or a nation state like Iraq or Spain.

Referendums have a lot to answer for: no wonder divided governments, demagogues and dictators have such a fondness for them. They have the appearance of popular democracy and give the impression that important decisions are finally being made by reducing complex questions into an over-simple yes or no. They make public opinion easy to manipulate because what voters are being asked to assent to is most often wishful thinking and what they are opposing is a rag-bag of unrelated grievances. There are a great many unhappy and dissatisfied people in the three countries which have voted in referendums in the last 15 months, but no reason to suppose that their vote will make them happier or better off.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

The lack of substance in promises of good things to come should be more obvious than it is. It is particularly obscure in Britain because the pros and cons of Brexit are debated by both sides in economic terms, or in relation to the impact on immigration. The discussion is almost entirely in the future tense, but in practice the main disasters flowing from Brexit have already occurred.

From the moment the polls closed on 23 June 2016, British society has been deeply divided, probably more so than at any time since the 17th-century civil war 375 years ago. It really is like a civil war without the gunfire, said one commentator to me last week, speaking of the depth, rancour and lasting nature of these divisions. The Government is so split that it has yet to find enough common ground to get rid of Theresa May, even though she seems to be having a rather public nervous breakdown.

 Catalan firefighters protect public against police in Barcelona

There is another danger at work here. The Brexiteers hark back to a golden British past when Britain stood alone and was the workshop of the world aided by the virtues of free trade. But this is a misreading of British history: being on the winning side in the Napoleonic and in First and Second World Wars had less to do with economic strength and more to do with naval power and skill in making alliances. Once again, the weakening of the British state is not something which will be postponed until after some elastic transition period  but has already begun.

The British experience of referendums is not unique and has parallels elsewhere. Experience shows that referendums are always used by the winning side to pretend that their majority, however slim and however low the turnout, represents the undivided national will. In fact, the 52 to 48 per cent Brexit vote reflected exactly that: a country split down the middle. The turnout in the vote in Catalonia last Sunday was only 42 per cent, but the Catalan Prime Minister is expected to declare independence if he is allowed to address parliament on Tuesday.

 Footage shows riot police brutally eject Catalans from polling station

As is so often in history, those who want to carry out radical or revolutionary change do not get anywhere without provoking an unreasonable and counter-productive overreaction by those who want to preserve the status quo. It should not have required much consideration for the Spanish government to realise that sending in the national police to try and fail to stop the referendum, while beating up ordinary people in front of television cameras, was the best way to win sympathy for the pro-independence side. Hailing the Catalan chief of police, Josep Lluis Trapero, before a judge in Madrid on suspicion of sedition against the state, is likewise guaranteed to do nothing but give legitimacy to those holding the referendum.

The self-destructive idiocy of governments when defending their own interests never ceases to amaze. Those who justify their power by maintaining law and order cannot suddenly behave like thugs without wounding their authority. I remember half a century ago  in Northern Ireland in 1968  asking a civil rights organiser about the next steps to be taken by his movement, which was seeking equal rights for Roman Catholics in a sectarian Protestant-run state. He said that he and his colleagues had just voted at a meeting to do nothing, but instead to wait for the government to make another crass mistake such as allowing the police force to attack peaceful civil rights marchers in front of photographers and television cameras. This the government duly did.

 Brexit talks: European Parliament says sufficient progress not made

The referendum in Iraqi Kurdistan on 25 September has distinct features, but also points in common with other referendums: the vote was for or against independence for the Iraqi Kurds, the poll taking place in territories disputed by the Iraqi government as well as in Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) areas. It appears to have been called by KRG President Masoud Barzani to wrap himself in the Kurdish flag and present himself as the standard bearer of Kurdish nationalism. It can be taken as a given that most Kurds want an independent state, but the question is how feasible this is.

The vote was useful to Barzani in giving him legitimacy, though his term in office controversially ran out in 2015. Despite the KRGs near economic collapse, Barzani has been able to divert attention from this and present the non-binding referendum result as a panacea or cure-all for the troubles of the Kurds, many of which are the fault of the corrupt and dysfunctional KRG government.

 Theresa May: UK committed to Nato despite Brexit

There is another similarity between Brexit and Krexit: Leave politicians in the UK pretended to voters that the balance of power between the UK and 27 EU states was equal and negotiations could proceed on that basis. Mr Barzani likewise said post-referendum he would negotiate independence directly with a compliant government in Baghdad. Of course, this was fantasy: May and Barzani both have weak hands to play against much stronger opponents. Baghdad is saying that there will be no negotiations about anything until the results of the referendum are annulled, and Turkey and Iran are in a position to squeeze the KRG into compliance.

Supporters of Brexit, Krexit and Crexit promise short-term dislocation in return for their countries achieving real independence and long term prosperity.

In fact, Britons, Kurds and Catalans are more like Edward Lears Jumblies, who famously went to sea in a sieve despite warnings that they would all be drowned, to which the Jumbles replied: Our Sieve aint big / But we dont care a button, we dont care a fig / In a sieve well go to sea!
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When a premeditated massacre occurs  such as the terrifying carnage in Las Vegas or the heartbreaking murders in the Sandy Hook elementary school  journalists, politicians and millions of ordinary people turn their attention to the families that raised the killers, the siblings that shared their childhoods, and the wives or girlfriends who lived with them.

Particularly when the killers commit suicide, taking their dark secrets to the grave, those who were close to them are often the only window we have into their motivations. But in the absence of a living person to blame and a figure against whom we can vent about the pain and the loss, their nearest relations are also the people at whom we can point fingers.

Having spent two years studying rampage shooters in American middle and high schools, I saw the same pattern of moral archaeology unfold. The families of the shooters were looked upon as the proximate agents of the shooters acts, not because they pulled the actual trigger, but because commentators assumed they might have been pulling emotional triggers for years in advance.

 Partner of Las Vegas gunman releases statement describing him as "kind, caring, quiet man"

Did they pressure their sons? Mock them? Drive them into seclusion? Did they know their sons were killers-in-waiting and if they had any hints, why didnt they act to protect the community that surrounds them?

Within minutes of learning about the shootings I studied, the families knew they would be confronted with these questions. Yet, they were almost as much in the dark about why these terrible events had happened as their neighbours or the police. These young shooters were masters of concealment, capable of planning their mayhem for months in advance without evoking suspicions.

In part this was because they were living in an interior world filled with demons that they well knew were signs of illness or deviance. They didnt want anyone  least of all their closest loved ones  to know how quickly they were descending into psychological chaos.

 Fox News host suggests atheism may be to blame for Las Vegas shooting 2

Being labelled a sicko is not what any teenager wants. And these teens were already having trouble fitting in. What they most wanted was peer acceptance and it was among peers that the clues were most visible, not necessarily about the murders to come, but about the driving desire for social acceptance. Sadly, the pathway to peer affection lay in plotting a spectacular event that would change the definition of their social persona from loser to notorious.

For older shooters, though, the dynamics of peer group acceptance are no longer in play. Hence they give off even fewer clues to the people around them. Not their families, not their friends.

They may display odd behaviour in the workplace  which was the gambling casino for Steven Paddock (or the post office for others). Workers would often say they were gruff, hostile, and prone to verbal outbursts. But millions of people fit this description and only a tiny handful express their hostilities with guns in their hands.

Families of older shooters are often concerned about them or wary of them because of these socially awkward behaviours, but they rarely imagine this conduct is a precursor to murder because 99 per cent of the time it isnt.

Las Vegas shooting  in pictures Show all 15 1 /15 Las Vegas shooting  in pictures Las Vegas shooting  in pictures People scramble for shelter at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after gun fire was heard Getty Las Vegas shooting  in pictures People carry a person at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after shots were fired David Becker/Getty Las Vegas shooting  in pictures People run from the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after gun fire was heard David Becker/Getty Las Vegas shooting  in pictures A handout photo released via Twitter by Eiki Hrafnsson (@EirikurH) showing concertgoers running away from the scene (C) after shots range out at the Route 91 Harvest festival on Las Vegas Boulevard EPA/Eiki Hrafnsson Las Vegas shooting  in pictures People lie on the ground at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after hearing gun fire Getty Las Vegas shooting  in pictures A man in a wheelchair is taken away from the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after hearing gun fire David Becker/Getty Las Vegas shooting  in pictures People stand on the street outside the Mandalay Bay hotel near the scene of the Route 91 Harvest festival on Las Vegas Boulevard EPA/Paul Buck Las Vegas shooting  in pictures FBI agents confer in front of the Tropicana hotel-casino after a mass shooting during a music festival on the Las Vegas Strip Reuters/Las Vegas Sun/Steve Marcus Las Vegas shooting  in pictures Las Vegas police run by a banner on the fence at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival grounds after shots were fired David Becker/Getty Las Vegas shooting  in pictures An injured person is tended to in the intersection of Tropicana Ave. and Las Vegas Boulevard after a mass shooting at a country music festival Ethan Miller/Getty Las Vegas shooting  in pictures Metro Police officers pass by the front of the Tropicana hotel-casino after a mass shooting at a music festival on the Las Vegas Strip Reuters/Las Vegas Sun/Steve Marcus Las Vegas shooting  in pictures A woman sits on a curb at the scene of a shooting outside of a music festival along the Las Vegas Strip AP/John Locher Las Vegas shooting  in pictures A cowboy hat lays in the street after shots were fired near a country music festival in Las Vegas Getty Las Vegas shooting  in pictures Las Vegas Metro Police and medical workers stage in the intersection of Tropicana Avenue and Las Vegas Boulevard South after a mass shooting at a music festival on the Las Vegas Strip Reuters/Las Vegas Sun/Steve Marcus Las Vegas shooting  in pictures Sheriff Joe Lombardo (2-R) speaking during a press briefing in the aftermath of the active shooter incident on Las Vegas Boulevard EPA

Moreover, parents and girlfriends have a very limited data base for assessing the behaviour of their father, brother, or lover against a range of cases that might tell them how far outside the margins of normal the concerning behaviour might be. They just know that Adam Lanza doesnt have any friends (Sandy Hook) or that Steven gives people a hard time if they cross him in the casino (Las Vegas). But these signals are faint and rarely lead to psychiatric treatment or a police file.

Still, because we dont like to think the world is that hard to fathom, we often blame families in the aftermath. If they were truly good parents, they wouldnt have raised a killer. Because the families know this moral terrain, they are forced into a difficult choice.

 Las Vegas sheriff says Paddock may have been 'radicalised'

Gretchen Woodard, the mother of Mitchell Johnson who killed his Arkansas classmates and a teacher in Westside Middle School, took public responsibility for her son even though she had no idea he was about to kill anyone. She attended church services after the shooting, apologised before her community, explained that she loved her son even though she condemned his actions, and after doing as much penance as she could, asked for their forgiveness when her small rural community was ready.

The family of Andrew Golden, Mitchells younger accomplice, took the opposite approach: they literally headed for the hills, secluded themselves, and attempted to remain permanently out of any spotlight.

Understanding the pathway to murder, especially on such a massive scale, is important because living with randomness is psychologically and politically impossible when the costs are so high.

If we know that a killer spent his formative years in the company of a pathological father who was a bank robber  as now appears to be the case for the Las Vegas perpetrator, Steven Paddock  we can imagine how such a warped childhood may have produced a sociopath who would kill 58 people and maim over 500 others. It doesnt reduce his moral culpability, but it makes us feel that the social world is more predictable.

Recommended Las Vegas investigators seek second woman seen with shooter

When we learn that he shielded his girlfriend by sending her away to the Philippines before setting up his arsenal and that she knew him as a kind, caring, quiet man  then we also recognise his capacity for cold-blooded planning and his expertise at duplicity.

His methodical approach tells us he was not an impulsive person. And we feel both terrified and comforted: terrified because who knows how many caring, quiet men there are in our midst who are also capable of mass murder and comforted because it is very hard to predict or stop someone who is this dedicated to an evil end. If his loving girlfriend didnt have a clue, how could any of the rest of us?

Family members bear the suspicion and the blame, especially in the absence of the killer, and the experience haunts them for the rest of their days.

Katherine S Newman is the senior author of Rampage: The Social Roots of School Shootings, the Torrey Little professor of sociology and the incoming senior vice president for academic affairs at the University of Massachusetts system office in Boston
Mr Cosgrave died on Wednesday at the age of 97

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar arrives for the funeral of former Irish taoiseach Liam Cosgrave, at the Church of the Annunciation in Rathfarnham in Dublin

The coffin of former Irish taoiseach Liam Cosgrave is carried into the Church of the Annunciation in Rathfarnham in Dublin, for his funeral service

Former Taoiseach Liam Cosgrave left Ireland a better place, one of his closest friends told his funeral.

Mr Cosgrave was leader of the Republic's Government during some of the most turbulent years of the Northern Ireland conflict and has been described as a courageous voice against terrorism.

In his public life, the late statesman was a figure of great integrity and a true patriot, Monsignor John Wilson told mourners.

He said: "Liam left our country a better place as a result of his life and his life's work."

Mr Cosgrave died on Wednesday aged 97.

His son Liam said: "Affection, kindness, love and loyalty dad gave to us in abundance."

Current premier Leo Varadkar and his predecessors Enda Kenny and Bertie Ahern were among those who attended the simple service at the Church of the Annunciation in Rathfarnham in south Dublin on Saturday.

Ten military policemen had carried his remains into the church in the middle-class surroundings near where he built his political power base as part of a dynasty stretching back to the state's foundation.

Born in 1920, the Dubliner had a 40-year political career and was part of the government which saw Ireland become a Republic in 1949.

He also oversaw Ireland joining the United Nations, addressed the US Congress in 1976 and signed the Sunningdale Agreement in Northern Ireland which led to a short-lived powersharing executive in Belfast in 1972.

Attendees represented the establishment worlds of politics, the judiciary and security forces, befitting of a man dubbed the law and order Taoiseach.

His son said: "I would like to acknowledge the great support given by members of An Garda Siochana down the years to the Cosgrave family and to dad in particular.

"He was a great supporter of theirs, and they returned it tenfold.

"My father had a great affinity for the Army and it is great to see them here with him to the very end."

Others present included former Irish premiers John Bruton and Brian Cowen, European agriculture commissioner Phil Hogan and chief justice Frank Clarke. President Michael D Higgins was represented.

It was a relatively low-key and private funeral, with few of the trappings associated with similar state occasions. The hearse carried no flowers, and there was little sign of public grief.

Mr Cosgrave said his father eschewed eulogies and he would not do anything to upset him.

He took great interest in the welfare of his grandchildren Barry and William.

His son added: "One of the last things to bring a smile to his lips was being told last Monday that William had passed his driving test at the first attempt, albeit by a short head."

Mr Cosgrave was a devout Catholic, and family friend of 50 years Monsignor Wilson presided over the service.

He said: "Liam Cosgrave loved his family, he loved his country, he loved his faith.

"He was a patriot in the very best sense of that term."

He said he had great humility.

"Integrity was the hallmark of his private life and his public life."

Mr Cosgrave was buried in Goldenbridge Cemetery, Inchicore, beside his father WT Cosgrave, a key figure in the foundation of the Irish Free State and an officer in the 1916 Rising.

His wife Vera died last year.

He was Taoiseach from 1973-77. He was at the head of government on the worst day of atrocities in the Troubles - the Dublin-Monaghan bombings on May 17 1974 when loyalists killed 33 people, including a pregnant woman at full term.
Ryanair has cancelled tens of thousands of flights because of errors in how pilots are rostered for work

Ryanair's chief operations officer will leave the company at the end of the month, the airline has announced.

Michael Hickey's resignation comes after the cancellation of tens of thousands of flights through to March next year because of errors in how pilots are rostered for work, disrupting the travel plans of 700,000 passengers.

Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary said Mr Hickey, who has had a 30-career with the airline, will continue in an "advisory role".

"Over the past 30 years Mick Hickey has made an enormous contribution to Ryanair, especially the quality and safety of our engineering and operations functions," he said.

"He will be a hard act to replace, which is why we are grateful he has agreed to continue in an advisory role to smooth the transition to a successor and to complete a number of large projects he is currently working on including a multiyear engine maintenance contract and new hangar projects in Seville and Madrid."

Mr Hickey will be the first executive to leave the embattled airline following the scheduling fiasco.

The company was already coming under heavy fire for cancelling up to 50 flights a day in the middle of September before an extra 18,000 flights were axed at the end of the month.

Ryanair said the cancellations were brought about because of an error with pilot holiday rosters and insisted the latest reduction in its schedule will "eliminate all risk of further flight cancellations".
They fight for airtime all year long but how many of our ministers are instantly recognisable?

We took to the streets to find out, showing students in Dublin City University images of some of Ireland's more high profile Ministers.

It turns out that despite his starring role in Tuesday's budget, Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe was only recognised by a handful of students.

But who was the politician that was best known among the students?
Farm organisations remain steadfast that safety should not be linked to payments despite the rising number of accidents and deaths on Irish farms.

Their stance comes as the Health and Safety Authority (HSA) announced that they have been granted permission to hire 11 more inspectors in an effort to curb the amount of farm fatalities, which have now risen to 18 this year.

ICMSA president John Comer told the Farming Independent that linking farm payments to health and safety measures would only increase "the constant pressure" that is already placed on farmers.

"ICMSA doesn't believe that the way to go about addressing the terrible rates of farm deaths and accidents is by adding another layer of inspection, stress and anxiety to the farmer's schedule, which is already notable for huge and intensive workloads for what are increasingly one-person operations," he said.

IFA farm family chairperson Maura Canning believes education rather than linking farm safety to payments is the best way to ensure safety.

"Awareness and education programmes to support farmers to change behaviour are the best way to reduce farm accidents," she said.

"Any link between farm safety and payments will not bring about the sustained behavioural change that is required to make our farms safer and will only add to the stress on farm families."

INHFA president Colm O'Donnell called on the Government to set up an awareness course that all farmers would be obliged to complete as the current safety campaigns were not going far enough.

"The awareness campaigns haven't worked. All farmers should do an awareness course funded by the Government. In light of recent catastrophes, something more formal needs to be put in place," he said.

Pat Griffin of the HSA said that 2017 is set to be a bad year for farm accidents, as 18 have already died this year and the average number of deaths for a whole year is 20.

"This is going to be a fairly bad year for farm safety. If you look at the last 10 years, we've 197 deaths, that's an average of 20 per year - we're nearly at 20 at this stage already, and the year isn't over. Things need to change and we need to rethink what we're doing."

New farm safety and mental health organisation, Awareness Head to Toe, had its first open day last Saturday in Gorey, Co Wexford. Chairperson and champion sheep shearer George Graham (pictured) said that if a farmer has poor mental health, they will be less concerned with farm safety, and it's important to make farmers aware of this link.

"It's about looking after yourself from the top of your head to your feet. There's a serious lack of services in rural Ireland and without services like the Samaritans, we'd be in dire straits," he said.

"Farmers prefer being talked with rather than down to. There's so much pressure on farmers, and they're always rushing.

"We want to engage with them and make them realise that accidents can happen in a split second on a farm."

Speaking about the issue of farm safety, Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed said: "While there are many risks in farming, farming does not have to be a dangerous occupation. We must all work together with the single goal of preventing accidents and therefore saving lives and minimising serious injuries.

"Safety must become an integral part of farming culture."
The European Union farm products offer presented this week during talks in Brasilia on a trade deal with the Mercosur bloc was disappointing, negotiators for Brazil and Argentina said on Friday.

Brazils chief negotiator, Ambassador Ronaldo Costa Filho, said the European offer to allow 70,000 tonnes of beef and 600,000 tonnes of ethanol to enter the EU with lower tariffs was far from what Mercosur members were expecting and will make the goal of reaching a deal by December more difficult.

The small offer came as a surprise, but did not impede productive and constructive talks on other areas, Costa Filho said.

Given the level of commitment by both sides to reaching an overall deal by December, he said he believed it was technically possible to resolve the beef and ethanol issues.

Mercosur, which also includes Paraguay and Uruguay, had previously said an offer without beef in particular could not lead to a deal. According to Argentinas powerful farm lobby, the beef quota as proposed is equivalent to just two hamburgers a year per EU resident.

EU nations led by France and Ireland had previously proposed postponing the farm trade offer until rules can be agreed to avoid unfair competition.

We made it clear to the EU that there has to be a substantial improvement for there to be a deal, Horacio Reyser, secretary for international economic relations at Argentinas foreign ministry, told Reuters. This does not allow us to advance at the speed we would have hoped.

He said Argentina was also hoping for an improvement in the EUs offer for other agricultural products including poultry, rice and fruit.

The next round of negotiations is scheduled for November 6-10 in Brasilia and diplomats said there might be an additional round if necessary that could be held in Brussels.

Were hoping for some instrument that allows us to say that the deal will be finalized, although we will certainly need to keep polishing it a little more in 2018, Reyser said.
THOUSANDS of businesses face being hit with higher water charges when a new tariff system is introduced.

Almost 190,000 firms will be impacted by the new charging system which comes into effect in 2019.

The new system aims to standardise tariffs across the country but it will result in winners and losers.

Currently, more than 500 different tariffs are in place and imposed by the country's 31 local authorities for non-domestic customers, ranging from small retail outlets to heavy industry, including those in the IT and pharmaceutical sectors.

Prices vary from a low of 1.59 per 1,000 litres in Kildare, to a high of 3.04 in neighbouring Wicklow.

The water regulator will streamline the complicated charging system as part of efforts to make it more transparent, which is likely to result in standard rates being applied.

This will inevitably result in some firms being asked to pay more, while others will pay less.

It is not clear how many firms will be forced to pay higher bills, nor is it decided what will happen in cases where local authorities have entered into legal contracts to provide discounts to customers.

In an information note, the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) says that tariffs currently imposed are in place since 2013, and that a framework has been in place since last year aimed at updating the system.

"The framework will introduce harmonised non-domestic tariffs, which will benefit non-domestic customers in terms of transparency, simplicity and equity," it said.

The work is complicated by the fact that as many of 33pc of non-domestic customers, or 63,000, are mixed-used customers such as farmers or those 'living above the shop', who use water for business and domestic purposes.

Domestic charges have been scrapped, so Irish Water and the regulator will have to ensure that households are not obliged to pay.

An industry group has been established to facilitate engagement with the business and industry community, the CRU said, which has met three times.

The project to introduce a standard tariff had been delayed to allowed the Dail Committee on the Future Funding of Domestic Water Services to complete its work.

The public consultation phase will begin early next year, when the CRU publish information papers setting out possible tariff structures.

These could include a national charge, or one which varies across geographical locations; a tariff structure which could include a volumetric and/or standing charge, and discussions around how firms will transition to the new system.

The new system will be introduced from quarter 3, 2019.

Separately, the CRU has also said it will shortly begin a public consultation on a new connection charges regime.

Irish Water is obliged to establish a connection charging policy, to replace the existing arrangement which includes more than 900 connection tariffs.

The 31 local authorities use different methods for calculating the charge to connect to the public water supply and wastewater system, which will be streamlined.

The system affects builders of one-off homes and developers, as well as industry.

A final decision is expected in the second half of next year. Public consultation is expected to begin over the coming months.
Electric Ireland has become the latest energy provider to increase its prices.

The State-owned company said it will raise residential electricity prices by 4pc, but will defer applying this increase until February.

The move will add 35 a year to the average bill.

Mark Whelan of price comparison site Bonkers.ie said the average annual bill will go from 971 to just over 1,000 a year.

It comes just a week after Bord Gais said it was hiking electricity and gas prices, and SSE Airtricity said it was raising its electricity prices.

Electric Ireland, which is the retail brand of ESB, said it was protecting customers from the impact of rising energy costs this winter by delaying the rise to the new year.

The company blamed a rise in wholesale energy costs.

Executive director of Electric Ireland Jim Dollard said the energy company was conscious of the financial pressures facing customers.

"We are committed to keeping prices as low as possible for as long as possible," he said.

Mr Dollard defended the decision, pointing out that over the past four years Electric Ireland "has passed on all savings as a result of wholesale energy cost reductions".

He said his company became the first supplier in the Irish market to offer enduring long-term savings of up to 8.5pc to residential electricity and gas customers who stay with Electric Ireland.

Eoin Clarke of price comparison site Switcher.ie warned that other suppliers will now hike prices.

"This is the third large energy supplier to announce a price increase in the last week, so the other suppliers are probably not far behind," he said.

Mr Whelan added: "One thing is very clear - energy prices are on the rise. It is likely that more suppliers will announce hikes over the coming weeks."

Bord Gais Energy said last week its electricity prices are going up by 5.9pc and gas bills by 3.4pc from November 1.

This will mean the average electricity bill will rise by 57 a year, with typical gas bills rising by 25 a year.

The latest increase comes as the levy on all electricity bills went up last week.

The public service obligation (PSO) levy has risen by 25 to 104.50 a year on every household's bill.

The latest Vayu Energy report shows wholesale electricity prices are up 28pc year on year.

However, average gas and electricity users could save up to 324 by switching from typical standard tariffs to the cheapest deals in the market.

Energy experts said that if you live in a large household with higher consumption, you can make even bigger savings.

Mr Clarke said only about 15pc of us switch energy supplier each year, which means most households are on expensive standard energy tariffs and could do better by moving to another provider.
A man claiming to have travelled back in time from the future has been arrested by police in Wyoming.

Casper police arrested the man for public intoxication and said they when they encountered him at 10.30pm on Monday he claimed to be from 2048.

KTWO-AM radio in Casper reported that the man wanted to warn everyone in the area of an alien invasion due to happen in 2018 and advise them to leave the area.

He was, he said, supposed to travel back to 2018 instead of 2017 and he said he was only able to travel back in time because the aliens had filled his body with alcohol.

The man asked to speak to the president of the town but was arrested instead.
My very dear friend Deirdre and I went to London this time 11 years ago - right after our Leaving Cert exams. It was our first time going on holidays with a friend rather than our parents so, naturally, we did what all 18-year-olds do on their first unaccompanied trip abroad - we got our photograph taken and put on a mug in Hamley's toy shop.

We chose to travel to London that July because, as two huge Harry Potter fans, we thought it a fitting place to queue up for the first editions of The Half-Blood Prince - the sixth book of the series. We queued up for the book, flipped through it in excitement, scanning the chapters and letting the familiarity of the words and names whet our appetites. We then popped them into our backpacks and travelled on the Victoria line to King's Cross station, where we stood between platforms 9 and 10 to get our Kodak moment with our new books. Other classmates of ours were dancing on table-tops in Ibiza or Ayia Napa, but we were wild in our own way - we stayed up all night to finish the book the day we got it.

I remember distinctly a feeling of being incredibly grown-up on that trip. Walking around vast streets in a European capital with huge buildings looming overhead, using the Underground, tipping waiters in sterling and keeping my money split between my backpack and my jacket for fear of being pickpocketed - all the tell-tale signs of adulthood. Our final exams were done, school was only to be spoken of in the past tense, we were heading to university, using a different currency, and even having a glass of wine with our lunch because we were just that mature!

Spicy lyrics

I look at the photo on that mug now and I look like a baby. The big red cheeks of me are lit up - possibly because I was in the biggest toy shop in London. You can barely see my eyeballs through my squinty joy. I sort of resemble how cherub angels are drawn; dewy and full cheeks with messy hair. At the time, I was the oldest I had ever been. I'm aware that in the future I will look back at these articles and photos and think 'I was so young and naive', but today I feel very grown-up as I sit in the food hall of a Dublin shopping centre, eating apple slices and drinking sparkling water through a straw. I'm the oldest I have ever been. But I'm also the youngest I will ever be.

As I've aged, many of my memories have changed in light of my adult perspective. They're not seismic shifts, but they do change how I view my past. Let's look at the Spice Girls' song 2 Become 1. I recently re-listened to the lyrics of this song. I was eight or nine when it was released, and I knew every lyric. I used to sing it with my friends around the schoolyard. Can we take a second to look at some of the lyrics that seemed so innocent to me at the time? I'm actually shocked our fifth-class teacher didn't pull us up on it.

Come a little bit closer baby, get it on, get it on

'Cause tonight is the night when two become one

I need some love like I never needed love before

(Wanna make love to ya baby)

I had a little love, now I'm back for more

(Wanna make love to ya baby)

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Set your spirit free, it's the only way to be

Excuse me?

I mean come on! I presume the only way they got it past the controllers (if there even are music controllers) is because they could argue that the lines "Get it on/ Get it on" are promoting safe sex by suggesting that these spicy women-girls won't condone unprotected sex. But Jesus Christ, I feel retrospectively violated. Once I re-heard the lyrics, my memories of putting on my friend's mother's leopard-print heels and dressing gown (I was Scary Spice) and performing for the rest of our friends and teachers at school are tinged with a hue of shame and a desire to protect my nine-year-old self.

I re-read Harry Potter in the last couple of weeks, spurred on by the fact that it's the 20th anniversary of the first book's release. I'm here to tell you that it's not just memories of London and Spice Girls lyrics that change with age - the entire subtext of Harry Potter has changed, too. As a teenager, the books were about magic and friendship, but now, in 2017, I cannot but read them as a pointed political commentary on the triumph of good over evil, the importance of resistance in the face of tyranny and the perpetual danger of authoritarianism. (Rereading that sentence makes me feel like I am back writing a Leaving Cert essay).

Some non-believer once said to me: "Oh I don't do the Harry Potter thing, I'm all about Twilight. It's much better". Excuse me? Harry Potter is about how important it is to keep fighting an epic battle for justice against a raging tyrant. Twilight is about how important it is to have a boyfriend.

With global politics going the way it inexorably is, the feeling of instability, terror and unpredictability, I suddenly feel like Neville Longbottom. One of Rowling's most adorable characters, he is a chubby, sort of pathetic student with a pet toad for the first couple of books. Later, he shows himself to be a courageous hero and a striking addition to Dumbledore's Army. Maybe my Neville Golden Years are ahead of me, too. I am certain I would not be in the hero-trio of the Potter series. Faced with the scary realities of Ron, Harry and Hermione, I would certainly have 'apparated' to the closest chimney and used the Floo network to get out of Dodge. Like young Neville, I feel a sense of doom when I read the papers or watch the news. Or even when I'm just walking in town and there are a large group of people congregating. I am never too far from the feeling that something terrible could happen at any moment. I'm naturally anxious and need hardly any invitation to attend the Worst Case Scenario party, but since things like the London Bridge attacks and the Ariana Grande concert, I don't even like going to the cinema.

Killing curse

The good news is that I was reassured on re-reading the Harry Potter series. Reassured, and reminded that, just like in the wizarding world, there are good people in the real world who tolerate difference, and fight for ideals like kindness and respect. There are people, like Harry & co, who oppose violence. It's simple in Potter-Land to just kill off people who annoy you or disagree with you. You just point your wand and say "Avada Kedavra" and they die instantly. However, faced with many people who try to kill him, and in many situations where it would be possible to do so, Harry never uses the Killing Curse. In a way, it's just too simple. Voldemort tries to kill Harry and his friends, and somehow the 16-year-old finds the magnanimity to respond with: "You're the one who is weak. You will never know love or friendship. And I feel sorry for you."

After many of the recent terror attacks, there is a wave of strength that seems to come from the people of a city that says: "We will not be destroyed by this". Ariana Grande, barely an adult herself, came back to Manchester armed with the conviction of someone beyond her years, accompanied by a cohort of celebrities to show that city and the world that she will not be forced into fear.

Voldemort can be seen - through my adult lens - as a racist bigot who is systematically trying to facilitate and promote a genocide against "half-bloods" (people with only one wizard parent), Muggles (non-wizards), Mudbloods (Muggle-born wizards) and Squibs (wizard-born non-wizards). But the main players in the books see how important it is to fearlessly protect anyone who is vulnerable and a potential victim under this law. There is something akin to a caste society in the wizarding world. Below the rung of wizard there is a thing called a house-elf. It's basically a slave. Harry shows the depth of his good nature when he doesn't stop at just protecting vulnerable humans but goes further and protects house-elves Dobby and Kreacher from the dangers that threaten them. The protests that ignited immediately after Donald Trump's travel ban were borne out of that same impulse. I could write endless essays on the relevance of Harry Potter and his struggle against Voldemeort and how it is frightening to see it play out in similar ways in the real world. But I've made my point. Terrorism has created for some "a nice little climate of panic" with "a strategy of remaining unpredictable and in the shadows".

I realise that it takes longer to vanquish real evil than it does to read seven novels, but the escape into the world of fiction was eye-opening and gave me hope. That kind of youthful hope where you feel like maybe nothing is impossible and the world will be right again. The rosy-cheeked 18-year-old Stefanie on the Hamley's mug travelled around London with a tome of Harry Potter in her backpack. A backpack that wasn't looked at suspiciously on the underground train she travelled on, carefree. Things change. Sometimes for the worse.

I recently met my friend's baby for the first time. (My friend had a planned baby. Now if that isn't a sign that we are ageing, I don't know what is.) Her baby boy is basically an old man. He's only six months, but he looks and acts like an old man. He's kicked back in his high chair looking at the birds outside the window. No childlike wonder or awe, he just sits there as if he's seen it all before. I imagine he's thinking, "Ah yeah, there's the crows again".

I wonder if he'll regress when he's a teenager and have his childhood then. I sort of feel that's what I did. I was a very grown-up child and teenager. I hung around with adults a lot, being an only child. It wasn't until my 20s that I started to have that moment where

you realise the size and scale of the world and how insignificant you are in it. Sometimes I wish I'd never had that realisation. Reality is really a bitter pill. If there was a Peter Pan pill, I would take it.

I was always a little jealous and in awe of Harry's relationship with Dumbledore. He was a mentor, a father figure and an idol all wrapped up into one Michael Gambon-shaped hero. Dumbledore was Harry's grown-up. He made sure Harry was able to remain a kid for the longest time possible, even if it was incredibly brief.

I think my generation of young Irish people had to grow up pretty fast. One day it was all "Ooooh Voldemort killed all the Muggles in London" and the next it was "Some unknown force just orchestrated several explosions across London". Maybe we're having our adolescence now. Like a generation of Benjamin Buttons with the ability to design websites but who cry when we have to make our own doctor's appointments. All of our parents left us to fend for ourselves while they went off to re-mortgage their designer handbags to deal with their negative equity.

Deceitful lover

As I age, I feel more and more that my life is a test I haven't remembered to study for. I'm very grateful for my education. I still see myself as a student. I learn a new word every day. Today, it is perfidious.

1. deliberately faithless; treacherous; deceitful: a perfidious lover.

I love listening to people who have wide vocabularies. It's like my brain is at the gym when I hear people like Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe, Terry Prone, or Stephen Fry speak. I love the idea that I learn from them, even though they're on a screen and I'm in my living room. I get the same feeling when I do the cryptic crossword with my nana every Sunday. Humans are designed to learn from one another. We learn to speak, walk and eat from our parents. We learn from our friends and either directly or indirectly through

books. Fiction is capable of opening our minds, and in doing so it makes change possible. Harry Potter (maybe subconsciously) influenced a generation of young people's social and political attitudes by virtue of the lessons taught in its plotline. When stories feature clear protagonists to whom audiences relate and whom they identify with, that is mechanism for changing public perception, and it's remarkably powerful.

I told Deirdre I was writing this article. She told me that some of the memories I have about that London trip are way off. She says we never took the Victoria line up to King's Cross with our books. She says we had beer with lunch and not wine. She questioned whether or not we tipped the wait staff. We recall different experiences entirely when we discuss that trip to London. But we both still have the mug. My memories may be perfidious (Yes! I got to use it) but the truth is not. When Dee and I sip coffee from the decade-old ceramics and see the post-Leaving Cert joy on our faces - there's no room for misinterpretation. That day in Hamley's, I had hope and joy, I had Harry Potter, I was the youngest I have ever been. And I still am.

Photograph by Kip Carroll
A leading Hollywood studio has launched an inquiry into allegations of sexual harassment concerning one of its founders, the Academy Award-winning producer Harvey Weinstein.

The Weinstein Companys board said it was taking claims contained in a piece published by the New York Times extremely seriously and it sought to learn the full truth.

Harvey Weinstein, who is co-chairman of the studio, issued an apology on Thursday and announced he was taking leave of absence following the emergence of allegations made by women with whom he had worked.

Those involved include Kiss The Girls star Ashley Judd and Rose McGowan, who appeared in films including Scream, according to the NYT.

The producer said he appreciated the way he had behaved with colleagues in the past has caused a lot of pain and that he realised he needed to be a better person.

I came of age in the 60s and 70s, when all the rules about behaviour and workplaces were different. That was the culture then, the 65-year-old said.

I have since learned its not an excuse, in the office  or out of it. To anyone.

The money and the power behind some of the biggest Hollywood films of the past 25 years, Weinstein and brother Bob founded Miramax in 1979, building it into a major Hollywood player before selling it to Disney in 1993.

They continued to work for the firm until 2005 when they quit to set up the Weinstein Company, which spawned hits including The Kings Speech, Django Unchained and Silver Linings Playbook.

The firms board said on Friday that a majority of its members strongly endorsed co-founder Harvey Weinsteins decision to step aside indefinitely while he receives professional help for the problems he has acknowledged.

What the future holds for Weinstein depends on Harveys therapeutic progress, the outcome of the Boards investigation and Harveys own personal decisions, the board said in a statement.

We take extremely seriously the accusation published in todays New York Times about our Companys co-chairman Harvey Weinstein, the statement said.

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It is essential to our companys culture that all women who work for it or have any dealings with it or any of our executives are treated with respect and have no experience of harassment or discrimination.

We believe it is important to learn the full truth regarding the articles very serious accusations, in the interests of the company, its shareholders and its employees.

To that end, we have retained an independent and leading lawyer and firm to undertake a thorough and independent investigation.
SHE'S up against a beauty queen and a make-up artist to meet the man of her dreams, and "feisty" Dubliner Ciara Noone has promised to pull no punches on the Irish premiere of Blind Date.

The 23-year-old, from Blan- chardstown, is expected to be one of the most dynamic guests when she makes her appearance on the new TV3 dating show tomorrow night.

Barwoman Ciara has been described as a lady "who doesn't mince her words", and viewers are in for a treat as she competes for a date with six-foot-five personal trainer Gary O'Grady (27), from Tallaght.

Ciara will face stiff competition from Jennifer Greally (24), a beauty queen from Tara, Co Meath, and Niamh McGrane, a make-up artist from Leixlip, Co Kildare.

"I'm always being called a little loo-la by all my friends, who think I'm mad, and everyone was laughing at the answers I gave on the show - it was so funny. But I was just me," said Ciara.

"I can't say if I won or not, I've been told not to give any-thing away, but all I can say is the craic was unbelievable."

Ciara, who works at The Vineyard pub in Blanchardstown, said she'd been in a long-term relationship until recently and, when that came to an end, she thought, why not live life with a dash of excitement?

She signed up as an extra for Vikings, playing a maid, and then, when she was out on a shopping trip with her mum, Catherine, Blind Date popped up in their conversation.

"We were in the Liffey Valley car park after coming out from shopping and Mam told me she'd heard about this show, Blind Date," Ciara told the Herald.

"She said, 'Why don't you go on it?' I'd loved being on Vikings. It's my favourite show, and I wanted to meet some of the stars, so I thought I'd apply for Blind Date for a laugh.

"When they phoned me up and said they liked me and wanted me on the show, I couldn't believe it.

"I rang Mam and we were in stitches. I didn't really want to find a man to fall in love with, it was just a bit of a laugh.

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"I'm too young to settle down, to get married, so the show was just a place to have fun, and I met lots of lovely people and made some new friends."

Ciara said she could see how Blind Date could be the perfect option for Dublin women who do want to find a partner because men are outnumbered in the capital, so it's never easy to find Mr Right.

"I don't go out that many weekends as I'm a bartender," Ciara said.

"But I know it can be tough finding a good man out there.

"I've always been in long-term relationships, so I'm quite new to the dating world and I couldn't be bothered with those dating apps. I've wiped them from my phone.

"I've had some experiences in dating that have scarred me for life - sitting there and you have nothing in common and you don't talk.

"I don't want to settle down and get married, but I do know I'd like to meet someone who's fun."

Her perfect man is British bad boy Jason Statham.

"Blind dates are all very good, but it's nice to see the person before you get chatting. The show was amazing, an adrenaline rush," said Ciara.

"Gary seemed like a nice guy, but I can't say any more. It's been a blur and it's all a bit mad but I'd do it all again."

Catch Ciara on the first episode of Blind Date on TV3 tomorrow at 9pm.
Liam Cosgrave has died at the age of 97

The Army will render military honours at the funeral of former Taoiseach Liam Cosgrave today.

Mr Cosgrave and his family were determined that there would be no formal State funeral for the man who played a key role in Irish politics for four decades.

But after consultations, the ceremonies will remain a mainly family event, with also a strong participation by the military.

On arrival at the Church of the Annunciation, Rathfarnham, Dublin, for Mass at noon, a bearer party of 10 military police will carry the coffin to church.

Family members will shoulder the coffin from the church afterwards.

At Goldenbridge Cemetery, Inchicore, there will be an Army honour guard, a military band and Army musicians. Volleys of shots will be fired and the 'Last Post and Reveille' will be sounded in formal farewell.

The family want to minimise any pomp attaching to the funeral and Mr Cosgrave himself was keen to keep things as simple as possible.

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Fine Gael has said activists and members past and present will gather to honour the memory of a much revered leader.

Mr Cosgrave, aged 97, died in Dublin on Wednesday after several months of illness.

He was Taoiseach from 1973 to 1977 but eschewed publicity after quitting politics in 1981. He is survived by two sons, a daughter and his extended family.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar this week led tributes to Mr Cosgrave, describing him as a man of great loyalty and kindness with a wonderful sense of humour and strong personal dignity.

"Liam Cosgrave's entire life was in the service of the State: politician, soldier, Taoiseach.

"He inspired so many with his quiet, showless determination, courage and fortitude," Mr Varadkar said.

Mr Varadkar also said that Mr Cosgrave had a commanding presence, but also great humility.

"In my own career, I have been inspired by his spirit of incredible public service and as Taoiseach I hope to live up to his great example," he added.
A gravedigger who slipped on ice and fractured his ankle at a funeral has been awarded more than 50,000 by a High Court judge.

Mr Justice Kevin Cross said gravedigger Nicky O'Brien struck him as a most decent individual who did not exaggerate his injuries and did not even mention to the court he has been left with scars.

Grave digging, the judge said, is a noble vocation and the graveyard where the accident occurred - St Ibar's Cemetery in Crosstown, near Wexford town - is a typical old Irish graveyard which has hazards and is not laid out with precision like those in continental Europe.

The judge believed the accident was caused by the "slippy" nature of the ground, which was sheltered by a headstone.

If there had been grit, the judge said, this accident would have been avoided.

Mr Justice Cross also rejected there was contributory negligence on the part of Mr O'Brien.

"He was not running. He was wearing his work boots. He did nothing inappropriate," Mr Justice Cross stated.

Mr O'Brien (56), of Windmill Heights, Co Wexford, had sued his employer at the time, Wexford Borough Council, as a result of the accident on January 8, 2009.

Mr O'Brien had told the court he was walking away after the grave of an elderly woman had been covered to be filled in later when his foot went and he fell.

"I felt a crack in my foot. The path was slippy. It should have been salted," he said.

He later had to have reconstruction surgery on his right ankle and said he was out of work for about eight months after the accident.

Mr Justice Cross said the issue was what caused Mr O'Brien's fall and whether it was because of the slippy nature of the ground due to frost and ice.

The judge accepted that salt had been requested and a bag of sand at the cemetery had been exhausted. Mr O'Brien's evidence, he said, was supported by the cemetery caretaker at the time and a funeral mourner.

Mr Justice Cross said he was asked by the Wexford Borough Council side to prefer the theory offered by a witness from the Met Office who had examined the reports and the data for the date in question over the evidence of witnesses to the accident. Mr Justice Cross said he believed the witnesses to the accident.

He awarded 40,000 for pain and suffering to date and a further 10,000 for pain and suffering into the future, and with special damages, the total came to 50,850.

Mr O'Brien had claimed the council permitted the footpath to be and remain in a dangerous and unsafe condition. The council denied the claims.
The gangster (above right in white t-shirt) was arrested at Dublin Airport last month. His gang is suspected of ordering the murders of pals John Gibson and Darragh Nugent

A MAJOR west Dublin mobster whose gang is suspected of carrying out two gruesome Monday night murders in the capital has been arrested in England as part of a massive international investigation into the deadly Kinahan cartel.

The 36-year-old west Dublin thug, whose gang is believed to have murdered pals Darragh Nugent and John Gibson last month, was arrested by specialist British police in an operation in which about 5.5m of drugs were seized, as well as 250,000 (278,000) in cash, a handgun and ammunition.

The gangster was one of five Irish people arrested as part of a probe into the activities of the cartel by the British National Crime Agency (NCA).

All have been released from custody by police in England but Independent.ie can reveal that this is not the first time in recent weeks that the gangster has been arrested by officers investigating serious organised crime.

On the evening of August 27, gardai investigating a sinister plot to murder a senior member of the Hutch mob arrested the suspect at Dublin Airport.

The Clondalkin criminal was quizzed for a number of days at Irishtown Garda Station on the citys southside, where he was questioned about a conspiracy to murder Kinahan cartel target James Mago Gately.

The burly alleged gang boss was arrested by almost a dozen gardai after arriving in Dublin Airport when he got off a flight from Malta.

The father-of-three was returning from a lavish holiday with his wife when armed gardai pounced as he walked into the arrivals hall.

It has emerged he has spent a lot of time in the Birmingham area of England after being released from garda custody.

In the meantime, his mob is suspected of carrying out the two latest gangland murders in the capital against a rival west Dublin gang.

Gardai have not yet made any arrests in the gun murders of Gibson (28) and his pal Nugent (36), who were shot dead on Monday nights just a week apart from each other in September.

These hits are suspected of being carried out by the gang in which the thug is considered the main player.

In a statement to the Herald, the NCA confirmed it had arrested five Irish people in a major operation.

Officers from the National Crime Agency have arrested a woman and four men in the West Midlands on suspicion of conspiracy to import controlled drugs after 15kg of cocaine and 220kg of herbal cannabis were seized by Border Force officers in Dover on Monday 2 October, a spokeswoman said.

The woman, aged 34, and two men, aged 56 and 39, have been released under investigation.

The other two men, aged 34 and 36, have been released on bail.

Border Force officers also arrested a 37-year-old man in Dover, who has since been released under investigation, she added.

Following the arrests, NCA officers seized a handgun and 85 rounds of ammunition at an industrial unit, and 250,000 cash at one of the suspects home addresses.

As enquiries are ongoing, we are unable to comment further, said the spokeswoman.

Sources said all the arrested suspects are from Dublin and specialist gardai have been monitoring their activities for a long time.

The 36-year-old arrested mans gang members are

now suspects for three brutal gun murders in the Clondalkin area.

The major Clondalkin criminal was previously quizzed by gardai investigating the gangland murder of innocent man Dean Johnson (21).

Sources say his west Dublin home is decked out with a state-of-the-art CCTV system and he rarely leaves the property without wearing a hidden bullet-proof vest.

This individual has been a long-term target for the Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau for many years as well as the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB), a senior source said last night.

The CAB has carried out a large number of raids against the mobsters gang in the past year, but the criminal has been able to explain some of his wealth by a major claim he gained in the civil courts.

Investigators are probing whether he was involved in the logistics of the conspiracy to commit the murder of Hutch mob associate James Mago Gately.
The family of a retired Co Tyrone vice principal who died while on holiday with his wife have paid tribute to "a man of great integrity".

Father-of-four Seamus Quinn (79), who taught at St Patrick's Academy for more than three decades, died after suffering a sudden heart attack in his hotel room in Mallorca, Spain last Saturday.

"He began to feel unwell after lunch and thought he would be fine after an afternoon nap, but it wasn't to be," his heartbroken daughter Eimear said.

The fit and active pensioner had spent the morning swimming in a quiet cove outside his hotel in the resort of Cala Sant Vicenc, a place he visited regularly with his wife Angela.

The retired midwife watched as paramedics tried to save her husband but they were unable to revive him.

"Dad was never ill and he had really been enjoying his holiday up until that point - he was always really positive. He was a very honest and trustworthy man who was known for his integrity - his pupils always said he was fair," Eimear explained.

Friends of the passionate bridge player gathered for a minute's silence at Armagh Bridge Club on Tuesday night in remembrance of the competitive player, who had won numerous trophies.

Eimear said her dad enjoyed spending most of his time entertaining his seven grandchildren when he wasn't swimming or walking.

Current principal of the Academy, Fintan Donnelly, said the tragic passing of the former teacher had upset everyone at the school.

Mr Quinn began his teaching career at St Patrick's College in Banbridge in 1960 before moving to the Boys' Academy, Dungannon in 1965.

He taught there as a history teacher and for much of his career he also taught A-level economics.

He was appointed vice principal in 1973, a position he held until he retired in 1997.

"Seamus was a superb administrator who introduced many far-sighted curricular reforms in his role as vice principal," said Mr Donnelly.

"He worked to the highest professional standards and he brought order and innovation to every task but most importantly, he is remembered as a committed and compassionate teacher who made a difference for generations of pupils and as a supportive colleague to the many staff who had the privilege of working with him."

Parish priest of St Patrick's Church, Fr Kevin Donaghy, described the regular church-goer as "extraordinarily generous with his talents" and said he will be missed by many in the local community.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has been providing consular assistance to the Quinn family and the remains are due to return to Northern Ireland this evening.

His coffin will be taken from his home to St Patrick's Church tomorrow evening ahead of the funeral service which will be held at 10am on Monday.
Dr Ryan said there are not enough intensive care beds Stock photo

Critically ill patients are dying because they are forced to stay in A&E departments when they should be in an intensive care unit, a senior doctor warned today.

They are relying on life support machines in emergency departments for hours, said Dr Tom Ryan, President of the Irish Hospital Consultants Association.

Dr Ryan, an anaesthetist in St James Hospital in Dublin, said there are not enough intensive care beds, leaving patients with inadequate care.

Public hospitals also need more robotic surgeons to reduce waiting lists and shorten patients hospital stay, he told the organisations annual conference in Limerick.

He said that robotic assisted surgery is mostly available in private hospitals and it leads to better patient outcomes.

However, there is just one of these new-age technologies in a public hospital in Limerick.

The technique involves a surgeon sitting at a computer and directing a robot. It is one of the areas where hospitals are lagging behind.

Dr Ryan said waiting lists for outpatient appointments is now five times the population of Limerick.

He said cuts to hospitals in the last decade have left hospitals struggling with obsolete equipment.

Speaking about the proposal to move more patient care to the community, he warned about shunting people who need to see a specialist back to a GP.

Dr Ryan insisted there is too much wishful thinking in the Slaintecare report which wants a one tier system, with no divide between public and private wait.

He also warned against plans to phase out the treatment of private patients in public hospitals.

This would take 600m income from public hospitals but also hit the earning power of consultants.

The IHCA said more doctors will take flight if this is implemented.

Health Minister Simon Harris who addressed the conference reiterated that he will carry out an impact study before deciding if the removal of private patients from public hospitals should proceed.

Mr Harris said the days of health cuts are over.

He called on doctors to back his efforts to pass legislation to curb alcohol abuse by highlighting its harm

He said the best the drinks industry can come up with is accusing him of cancelling Christmas by banning the Guinness Christmas ad.
Hollywood star Johnny Depp has been accused of libelling Limerick after referring to it as "Stab City".

Former minister Willie O'Dea has criticised the actor for using an "outdated and unjust" moniker for the Treaty City.

Mr O'Dea has now extended an invitation to Depp to make a return visit to appreciate Limerick's business and cultural achievements.

The controversy arose after Depp made a passing reference to Limerick while penning the foreword to a book about Gerry Conlon, 'In the Name of the Son: The Gerry Conlon Story'.

In the foreword, entitled 'Upon Thinking on My Long-Lost Brother, Gerry', the actor recalls a drunken road trip the pair took from Dublin to Kerry in 1991.

The 'Edward Scissorhands' star had joined the Conlons on holiday when a trip to the tourist town of Dingle was suggested.

"Gerry decided that we must go to Dingle to see Fungie, the dolphin. Very important. Gerry had no need to convince me, of course I was going to say yes.

"Who wouldn't want to go to a place called Dingle to see a dolphin named Fungie," Depp writes.

Depp explains how after spending the night in an unnamed Dublin pub the pair set off for Dingle, driven by Gerry's friend and armed with two full pints of Guinness.

Conlon and Depp stopped off in Limerick on their way to Dingle and the Hollywood star revealed how things got a little bit out of hand.

"Our brief pitstop in Limerick proved to be one of the most chaotic nights that I can ever remember. Suffice to say, we conquered Stab City," the actor wrote.

Libel

However, his throwaway remark about the city has caused controversy.

Mr O'Dea, the local Fianna Fail TD said he had received calls from constituents upset at the dated term reemerging.

"He's basing this on a visit back in 1991," he said.

"Not only was Stab City the wrong designation in 1991 but in 2017 it is so out-of-date it is laughable. It's a libel on a city."

The longstanding Limerick TD said that while it may have been an offhand comment, the term needed to be tackled on each and every use.

"It was always a grossly unfair and grossly overstated description of Limerick.

"We have worked very hard and come an awful long way and I think it's very unfortunate that someone would choose to resurrect this insult," he added.

Mr O'Dea has now extended an open invitation to the star to make a return to the city.

"I would extend an invitation to this gentleman to meet me on any weekend in Limerick and I'll take him around and show him what Limerick has become.

"I'm available any weekend at all and he'd be more than welcome.

"I'd take him to the industrial parks where there's huge inward investment and I'll take him to all the cultural spots and we can finish off by going for a drink in some of the up-market bars along the river," he added.

Limerick Chamber of Commerce chief executive James Ring seconded the call for Depp to make a return visit to the city.

He said the comment was not reflective of modern Limerick and its citizens.

"That comment bares no relation to the Limerick of today.

"Limerick now doesn't really have a crime problem, the gardai have done wonderful work here and it is a very cultural city.

"I'd love to see Johnny Depp return to the city and we would show him the real Limerick," he said.
Recently released documents concerning the 1974 Guildford IRA pub bombing expose "criminality" by police and prosecutors in the UK, lawyers have claimed.

The bombing led to one of the most infamous miscarriages of justice in Britain after the Guildford Four, Gerry Conlon, Paddy Hill, Paddy Armstrong and Carole Richardson, were wrongly convicted of the atrocity.

The BBC reports that KRW Law said newly released archive material contained "evidence of perverting the course of justice" and demanded a new inquiry be launched. The attorney general said it had not yet received the application. Surrey Police said it was aware of the letter and was awaiting any decisions by the attorney general.

Soldiers Ann Hamilton (19), Caroline Slater (18), William Forsyth (18), and John Hunter (17), died in the blast at the Horse & Groom on October 5, 1974, along with Paul Craig (21).

In a letter to Attorney General Jeremy Wright QC, the law firm urges him to launch a fresh probe into the actions of police and lawyers at the time.

Human rights law firm KRW Law is representing a former soldier who survived the bombing. Spokesman for the firm Christopher Stanley said the ex-soldier, who wants to remain anonymous, still suffers PTSD.

The firm also represents Ann McKernan, sister of Mr Conlon. Mr Stanley said she wanted a new inquiry because her late brother had been falsely imprisoned.
A Cork teenager raised almost 18,000 for Syrian refugees through busking after he was struck by the photo of three-year-old Syrian boy Aylan Kurdi's body on a beach in Turkey.

Milo McCarthy was just 11 when he decided to turn his hobby - busking - into a fundraiser for the Irish Red Cross.

The talented youngster, now aged 14, raised a remarkable 17,742 in the space of just 12 weeks by busking on the streets of Cork city and Midleton.

Milo was awarded a Rehab People of the Year award in 2016 for his tremendous act of kindness. His proud father Ronan told Independent.ie how it all came about.

"We had been discussing the Syrian refugee crisis and why it came about at home," Ronan said.

"As a family we had been on holiday with Milo and his younger siblings and we had spent a lot of time on the beach.

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"When Milo saw the image of the little boy drowned on the beach it rattled him.

"For him, the beach was associated with fun and after seeing that picture he felt strongly he wanted to do something."

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Milo had been busking in his home town of Midleton from the age of about eight or nine, so after he saw the image of Aylan Kurdi he started busking twice a week, every week, from September up until the end of the year.

In that short space of time, Milo raised a staggering 17,742.

"On one busk in Midleton he collected over 1,000," Ronan reveals and, while he had set himself an initial target of 10,000, he eventually raised close to 18,000.

Milo's efforts saw him appear on The Ray D'Arcy Show where he sang 'Ireland's Call' but his dad says his son remains very "down-to-earth".

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"He's a normal 14-year-old boy (Milo turned 14 last week). He loves his Playstation, he loves catching big fish and he gives guitar lessons now.

"He loves acting too, appearing in school plays at Midleton College where he is a pupil."

Milo is currently taking a break from busking at the minute, but his father expects him to take it up again soon.

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"Milo always felt it didn't take much to put in an hour for others," Ronan tells us. "Actions speak louder than words."

The People of the Year Awards, organised by Rehab, provide a unique opportunity for the Irish public to honour those who have made a real difference to people's lives, whether as unsung heroes or household names.

Nominations are now open for the People of the Year Awards 2017 and you can nominate your hero here

Deadline for nominations is December 3rd.

Other former winners include comedian Brendan OCarroll, Olympian Katie Taylor, Detective Garda Adrian Donohoe, and Davitt Walsh.
Superintendent Thomas Murphy and Sgt Peter Woods with some of the signs seized as part of Operation Sign-Off

Illegal 'cars for cash' posters have effectively disappeared from Dublin city and county after gardai smashed the sophisticated criminal operation behind them.

Over the last three years signs seeking cars for sale started appearing on signposts, traffic lights and other "street furniture" across the capital on an almost nightly basis.

The plastic signs, erected illegally, typically carried messages that people were willing to pay cash for any vehicles including those that had failed the NCT or ones that had been written off. The advertisers also included a mobile phone number for the seller to call.

Sergeant Peter Woods of the DMR Traffic Division explained that he became concerned about the signs in May 2015 after members of the public complained that they couldn't see other road alerts

"People were using this as an excuse to avoid Fixed Charge Penalty Notices (FCPNs). They were saying that they couldn't see the speed limit or the traffic lights because of these signs."

In Summer 2015 Sgt Woods began to look into the signage and what he uncovered shocked him.

He soon realised that there was a "considerable amount of organisation" involved in the operation.

"It soon became apparent that the signs were colour coded and those behind it had the city carved out amongst themselves."

He explained: "For example the signs covering Tallaght were blue, the signs in Rathfarnham were purple and so on. The mobile phone numbers on each sign were different and referred to the operator behind that specific area.

"There were at least four different colours and there were around half a dozen people, all with close links to each other, involved in the operation."

Many of these individuals were found to be active criminals involved in the trading of vehicles for cash.

Sgt Woods put together Operation Sign-Off as part of the Safer Roads for Dublin strategy, with the dual objectives of reducing Distracted Driving and removing the income potential for those involved in this illegal practice.

He found a little known law that prohibited the erection, placement or retention of signs on public roads without the consent of the roads authority.

Armed with this legislation and working with local authorities gardai removed more that 450 signs on six dates between May and November 2015. Sting operations offering unmarked garda vehicles for sale were put in place to identify the culprits responsible for the signs.

Sgt Woods explained that most of those behind the scam stopped once they were warned by gardai but one individual persisted.

John McDonagh (24), with an address at Sillogue Green in Ballymun, was summonsed to appear before Blanchardstown District Court in September 2016. Here he was found guilty of 28 offences contrary to Section 71 of the Roads Act 1993. He was fined 5,600, reduced on appeal to 1,400, and jailed for three months.

McDonagh, who has previous theft convictions, appealed but his custodial sentence in March 2017 but the judge upheld the District Court decision.

Sgt Woods said operation Sign-Off is continuing and over the last number of months they have targeted garages around Dublin city centre that have used cars and signage in public areas to advertise services.

"This legislation, Section 71 of the Road Traffic Act, has been used to shut down these buyers and it has been successful. These signs have effectively disappeared. However, we remain vigilant and will continue the work of Operation Sign-Off."
Senior Government figures have received private assurances from Brussels that Ireland will not be hauled in front of the EU Courts over the 13bn Apple tax deal - as long as the collection process begins before the end of the year.

Despite her strong criticism of Ireland's 'sweetheart' deal with the technology giant this week, EU chief Margrethe Vestager has told colleagues that she is prepared to pull back from issuing infringement proceedings - as long as certain conditions are met.

The news will come as a relief to Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and members of Cabinet, who were taken aback by her intervention on Wednesday.

The Competition Commissioner told a hastily arranged press conference that Ireland had missed a January 3 deadline to recover the money and that she was referring the State to the EU Court of Auditors.

She tweeted: "Know it may be difficult, but more that 1 year after Apple decision, tax benefits not recovered by Ireland. We ask EU court to look into it."

Mr Varadkar later described the decision as "unwarranted", while Tanaiste Frances Fitzgerald said it was "unhelpful".

The Irish Independent can today reveal that a blame game has erupted within Government over the handling of the issue.

Senior sources confirmed that Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe had planned to meet Commissioner Vestager in July in order to hammer out a deal that would avoid the issuing of infringement proceedings.

But it is understood that Mr Donohoe was advised against doing so by Department of Finance officials.

Ireland's representative in Brussels was then only contacted last Thursday about the prospect of an announcement by the Commission - giving little time to prepare a response.

Mr Donohoe's spokeswoman declined to comment when contacted last night.

The record-breaking case surrounding Apple has placed a major spotlight on Ireland's tax regime and led to criticism from the likes of US President Donald Trump.

But any court action - as threatened by Commissioner Vestager - would cause further damage to the country's reputation and prove very costly for Ireland to defend.

One well-placed source told the Irish Independent that "private assurances" had been given to Ireland that the Commissioner will not follow through on legal action so long as the money begins to be collected by the end of the year.

Finance officials have now begun putting in place the measures for an escrow account to be set up, pending the outcome of the appeal by both Ireland and Apple.

In May, Ms Vestager warned that Ireland was taking too long to collect the amount and that court action could follow.

The Commission said then that if European Union nations "fail to meet their obligation, the Commission may decide to refer them to the EU courts for failure to implement a state aid decision".

Reputation

The watchdog said it was aware that recovery can in some cases "be more complex than in others and thus may require some more time," but added that a nation "must demonstrate progress on recovery".

Ms Vestager has also turned her sights to Luxembourg and the tax deal that the EU member state extended to the internet retail giant Amazon.

Luxembourg has been told that it too faces infringement proceedings after granting undue tax benefits to Amazon totalling around 250m.

Politically, Ms Vestager is seen as harbouring ambitions to succeed Jean Claude Juncker as head of the European Commission.
Fianna Fail finance spokesman Michael McGrath has defended Micheal Martin's decision to object to the construction of accommodation for 350 students.

However, Mr McGrath, who shares a constituency with Mr Martin, refused to say whether he supported the Fianna Fail leader's attempt to block much-needed student digs in Cork city centre.

Speaking at a pre-budget briefing for journalists, he said he had "no issue" with members of the public or politicians objecting to planning developments.

"I support the right of our leader, of every other public representative, to make their views known whether they be favourable or unfavourable on any planning," he added.
Yesterday's 'Irish Times' MRBI poll on abortion supports much of what the Citizens' Assembly returned earlier this year - that a desire exists for a change to the Constitution on the limits to access to abortion. In the MRBI poll, 70pc of respondents said the Oireachtas should be allowed to legislate for abortion by repealing the Eighth Amendment and opening up abortion services in less limited situations.

In the three public sittings of the Oireachtas Committee on the repeal of the Eighth Amendment, legal experts were asked to give their opinion on what would be the likely outcome for Ireland's abortion laws on the day after the public voted to repeal the Eighth.

Mary O'Toole SC told the committee it was "very unlikely" that a repeal would lead to an abortion regime which allowed access to abortion in any circumstances. She said the "whole ethos" of the State and the interpretation of the Constitution would not likely permit this.

But the implications of the Eighth Amendment have been much wider than perhaps voters had comprehended when they voted back in 1983.

"People didn't grapple with the impact" the Eighth would have, when certain issues like the 'X-case' arose, says Dr Neville Cox from the Law School at Trinity College Dublin.

"It was entirely foreseeable" though that the Eighth Amendment would impose obstacles against doctors treating women for rape or assisting women making tragically difficult decisions in situations where their foetus was not viable outside the womb.

"But people at the time voted for it because the Church told them, and maybe didn't like the idea of abortion," and when the 'X-case' happened, people thought "this wasn't what I voted for in 1983", he added.

Similarly, Ms O'Toole spoke about how the Eighth Amendment had "captured" aspects of women's health. She referenced the tragic case in December 2014 when the body of a deceased young pregnant woman was kept artificially alive in order to preserve the viability of her 15-week-old foetus. She had technically become a "cadaveric incubator".

According to Ms O'Toole, that situation did "engage the Eighth Amendment" where doctors couldn't use ordinary clinician practices because they were concerned they would be in breach of the law.

"There was no realistic prospect of an Irish court finding a right to abortion at the time in 1983," anyway says Dr Cox. However observers point to the landmark decision in the US of Roe v Wade in 1973 as one of the reasons that spurred on anti-abortion groups in Ireland to lobby for the insertion of the Eighth Amendment in the first place.

It started in 1965 with a case called Griswold v Connecticut at the US Supreme Court which decided that a law prohibiting contraceptives violated the right to marital privacy. Thus, it created a right to privacy drawn from various sections of the Bill of Rights.

At the time, 30 US states had laws prohibiting abortion and pro-choice campaigners wanted to campaign for a federal right to access an abortion which would strike down such laws.

They found a willing participant with a perfect test case in Jane Roe (real name Norma McCorvey), a woman who was pregnant and didn't want to be, who was willing to argue that the laws restricting abortion in Texas, where she lived, represented a violation of her right to privacy.

McCorvey, who died this year, spent much of her life afterwards campaigning against abortion.

Meanwhile, in Ireland, at the same time, the Supreme Court heard the McGee case, which concerned a young married woman living with her husband and four young children on a very modest income. She faced considerable risk of death or crippling paralysis if she were to become pregnant again.

The Supreme Court held that her right had been infringed by the State in confiscating spermicidal jelly which she had ordered from England on medical advice to stop her from becoming pregnant. This led to the acknowledgement of marital privacy.

The similarities with Griswald v Connecticut and Roe v Wade to the Mary McGee case were apparent for activists on all sides. Mary McGee was a woman with a strong legal case who, for life-saving reasons, needed contraception, and the State's laws were impinging on her right to life and privacy.

Anti-abortion activists in Ireland saw the thread and not illogically assumed, based on the American situation, the McGee case would lead to abortion legislation down the line. So they set about charting the course for the introduction of the Constitutional ban.

However, even with the major cultural changes in Ireland over the last almost 35 years, yesterday's poll shows 50pc of Irish people would still vote against a fully liberal abortion regime up to 22 weeks, similar to that in Britain.

In the end, and as the Oireachtas Committee continues to hear from experts, the publication of the proposed legislation that the Government intends to implement after the Eighth Amendment is vital for voters so they can be given as much clarity and legal certainty as possible before making a choice of such fundamental importance.

The anti-abortion groups were thinking way ahead into the next generation.
As of July, 2,419 children and adolescents were waiting for a first appointment with mental health services and 6,000 for primary care psychology appointments (stock picture)

Fine words have been exchanged in the Dail in recent days about the need to address deficiencies in the mental health services.

The Taoiseach has acknowledged that waiting lists for child and adolescent mental health services are unacceptably high; Micheal Martin has said that mental health must be a priority in the Budget. But on Budget day on Tuesday, will these fine words translate into action?

Will we see the public mental health services receive the funds promised in the agreement between Fianna Fail and Fine Gael when this Government was established? Will mental health be given parity of esteem with physical health? Or will we see once again, as in years past, that the pain of mental distress is considered less important than our physical ailments?

The omens are not good. Year on year, mental health services have lost out to other parts of the health budget. In 1984, mental health spend represented 13pc of the health budget; in 2017 it was just 6pc.

Currently, we spend less than half the proportion spent by Britain. Slaintecare recommended that the mental health allocation should go up to 10pc, but translating aspirations into reality has been the difficulty over and over again.

Of course, you get what you pay for. The HSE's own information shows that Ireland is suffering with a mental health system reflective of its low resources.

As of July, 2,419 children and adolescents were waiting for a first appointment with mental health services and 218 had been waiting for more than a year;

6,000 children were waiting for primary care psychology appointments;

Much of the country has no out-of-hours specialist mental health service available for individuals in crisis, giving people no choice but to go to A&E when in severe mental distress;

In April of this year, 20pc of people referred to Ireland's national free counselling service had been waiting at least three months;

There is no specialist perinatal mental health service outside Dublin.

It is estimated that 65m is needed just to meet the current level of demand for care.

This is not extra money; it is core funding to ensure that there are adequate beds for people with highly complex, severe mental health difficulties who need long-term residential care; it is the funding that provides residential services for people with eating disorders; it is the funding for services that have a shortage of inpatient beds for people in acute mental distress.

It is the resource needed to respond to the 26pc increase in referrals to child and adolescent mental health services between 2012 and 2016.

When people wait too long for mental health care, their difficulties can escalate, leading to worse outcomes and higher social costs in the long term.

Aside from the human and social costs, there is a strong economic basis for investment in mental health services. The Healthy Ireland framework reports that the economic cost of mental health problems in Ireland is 11bn per year, much of which is related to loss of productivity.

In 2008, it was identified that mental health difficulties cost 2pc of GNP annually and most of the costs are in the labour market as a result of lost employment, absenteeism, lost productivity and premature retirement.

Of course, it's not all about more money. More than 11 years after publication of the national mental health policy, there is still no information system that reports regularly on what services that money provides, to whom and how often. Nor do we have any idea of how well our community-based mental health services perform.

How many people recover after receiving support from a mental health team? How many return to work or education?

That information is not available because the HSE still operates on paper records throughout the mental health services.

Still, the core issue is that there simply are not enough staff to provide the mental health services we need.

The HSE is short 20pc of the recommended staff overall and in child and adolescent mental health services, it has only half of the staff it needs. And these staffing shortages get compounded as frustration and low morale lead to more and more professionals leaving the public mental health services.

So the next time you hear a politician say that mental health is important to them, ask them if they are voting for 55m to be in the 2018 Budget to develop the services.

Ask them if they are putting in place the funding for mental health nurses, psychologists, social workers, psychiatrists and other social care workers - the human resources that must be there to help children and adults recover from a mental health difficulty.

And on Budget day, listen out for the sign that our politicians have turned their fine words into fine deeds.
Will Tilston as Christopher Robin Milne and Domhnall Gleeson as Alan Milne in Goodbye Christopher Robin

The dark age of celebrity parents monetising their cherubic children dawned many years before the scourge of selfies, social media and smart phones.

In the handsomely crafted drama Goodbye Christopher Robin, battle-scarred author A A Milne and his wife Daphne treat their young son as a sales tool in the mid-1920s to promote the literary adventures of a hunny-loving bear called Winnie-The-Pooh.

A tender exchange by telephone between father and son is broadcast live on the radio without the boy's consent or prior knowledge, a trip to the zoo turns into a calculated photo opportunity with the resident brown bear, and playtime is curtailed to make way for a busy schedule of interviews and meet 'n' greets.

The sacrifice of one little boy's childhood innocence for the happiness and healing of a shell-shocked Britain, which has been devastated by the Great War, is at the wounded heart of Simon Curtis' picture.

The script, co-written by Frank Cottrell-Boyce and Simon Vaughan, gradually exposes the anguish and resentment that festered beneath the Hundred Acre Wood.

Milne (Domhnall Gleeson) returns to London from the trenches, where he witnessed hundreds of countrymen cut down in their prime.

'Find something to be happy about and stick to that,' glibly suggests his wife Daphne (Margot Robbie), who cannot understand her husband's inner turmoil.

Angered by the senseless loss of life, Milne abandons the capital for a quaint house in Ashdown Forest, transplanting Daphne, their young son Christopher Robin (Will Tilston) and the boy's nanny Olive (Kelly Macdonald) to the verdant idyll.

Milne hopes to pen a fierce rebuke against war, but is repeatedly distracted by his son.

'I'd really like if you wrote a book for me,' says Christopher Robin sweetly. 'I'd definitely read it.'

A walk with the boy through the sun-dappled landscape fertilises Milne's imagination and he contemplates a book that magically brings to life his son's menagerie of stuffed toys including a morose donkey named Eeyore and a porcine runt called Piglet.

Good friend Ernest Shepard (Stephen Campbell Moore) illustrates these enchanting escapades, which take the Milne clan around the world including glamorous New York.

'It's just like London, but with more money.' chirrups wide-eyed Daphne.

Goodbye Christopher Robin is a classy evocation of an era that tore countless families apart.

It's an emotionally chilly picture, reflected in Gleeson's restrained performance, which internalises Milne's post-traumatic stress and shuts out his family as well as us.

That facade fractures in a couple of scenes, including one mournful heart-to-heart with his teenage son (now played by Alex Lawther) overlooking the East Sussex countryside.

Robbie relishes her flashier if underwritten character, while Macdonald provides warmth as the nanny, who recognises the damage being wrought on her dimple-cheeked young charge.

Sadly, Milne and his wife don't heed her sage counsel till it is too late.
On Friday night I headed for St. Louis school for their past pupil's reunion night which was open to all ex pupils from the school and saw a huge crowd come together specially for the occasion.

The event was organised by teacher Orla Dromgoole and ably assisted by principal Michelle Dolan who told me there had been a past pupil's union before, organised by the late Sr. Claire and after her untimely passing, the union ceased to exist. Orla then took the mantle and with the aid of social media contacted as many of the pupils as she could.

Orla told me she received very positive reaction from everyone and is looking forward to relaunching the PPU with the 70th anniversary of the school coming up in 2020 and also to help with much needed fundraising for the school.

She went on to say St. Louis school is a real community with daughters following their mums to be educated there and said that the music on the night was being provided by her daughter Fionnghuala playing the fiddle and principal Michelle informing me her mother-in-law Terese Dolan nee Crossan from Cootehill was a boarder in the school back in the '60s and daughters Clara, Orla and Aoife all being pupils there in the '80s and 90's.

I then decided to have a look round to see who was there and met three generations of the same family who had all been at St. Louis whom included Rosemary Winkless from St. Malachys Villas with her daughters Elaine Durnin and Linda Murphy both from Railway Terrace, sisters Karen and Debbie McGee from Fatima and Karen's daughter Carla McEvoy from Saltown all there to relive all the old memories.

Not too far away I then got talking to Anne Reilly nee Lennon from Brid-a-crinn, Hillary Ramege nee Russell from Belfast, Moirin Taggart nee Whelan from Blackrock and Ann Hennessy from Ardee who lied to me and tried to tell me they were from the Class of '83 and couldn't wait to meet everyone there.

After this I caught up with Maggie Kavanagh from Dublin who would have been better known as Margaret Muckian from Mount Avenue who had completed her Leaving Cert. back in 1970 and was joined by Jean Power from Dublin (was once a boarder there), Claire Byrne nee McKeown from Avenue Road, Bridie Curran nee Hinfey from Gyles Quay and Marion McAlester nee Ramsey who told me they were the best year ever.

Next I met up with Sinead O'Callaghan from Blackrock, Eithne Bell from Haggardstown and Lynda McQuaid from Blackrock who were part of the Class of '86 and assured me it was going to be an exciting night seeing all those faces again.

I headed over for a chat with some of the girls from the Class of '82 and included Anne Duffy nee Gaffney from Glenwood, Una Mackin nee Lally from Walterstown, Aiveen Robinsons nee Clarke from Blackrock who told me not only were there at school together in St. Louis, but had come from the Friary Girls national school together too.

Later on I then got talking to teacher Yvonne McDermott from Dromiskin who was welcoming in two girls from the Class of '95 who were Niamh Dunleavy from Blackrock and Anne Campbell from Dublin Road and Yvonne told me they were both model pupils and totally epitomised the ethos of the school? Eh ok, Yvonne, if you say so!!!!

After this I headed over for a chat with Sr. Mary O'Connor who taught in the school between '76 and '86 and told me it was a lovely school and they were lovely children to teach. She was chatting to ex principal Siobhan Greer nee Ladd from Blackrock who told me she started in the school back in '83 and became principal in '05 and enjoyed the position until '14 saying there is a lovely community feeling in the school and a strong work ethic, both her daughters Doireann and Rioghnach had been taught there and she was delighted to come back for the reunion. She was with her friend Thaea Collins from Bristol in Connecticut.

Finally, before I departed I met up with Karen O'Reilly nee Owens from Hillview who was just after arriving with Jennifer Hanlon nee Hearty from Greenore, Kim Reenan from Blackrock Lynn Devlin nee Shearman from Oliver Plunkett Park and Sinead Murphy from Lis Na Dara who were part of the infamous Class 4B, the Class of '94 who were legendary in their time in the school and couldn't wait for the wine and cheese to get going so they could meet up with all their old mates.
The Oriel Centre Dundalk Gaol has teamed up with Music Generation Louth in the development of an exciting new venture for young musicians in the Louth and surrounding areas in the formation of the regions first Youth Folk Orchestra - Nos Nua.

'Through Nos Nua are looking to engage with competent young musicians (12-18yrs) who will work through a series of workshops led by qualified music teachers who come from both traditional and classical backgrounds. It is a tremendously exciting initiative being led by two organisations (Comhaltas & Music Generation) with a track record in practical music education, and offers a new path (nos nua) in bringing young musicians together to learn about and perform local and regional traditional music.' stated Comhaltas Regional Manager and project director Kay Webster.

Participation in Nos Nua is not confined exclusively to young traditional musicians, but is open to all young people from varying musical backgrounds interested in exploring the contemporary and traditional repertoire of local Irish music and song.

Project director and Music Generation Louth Coordinator Gemma Murry said: 'Nos Nua will serve as a unifying centre of excellence for young traditional players, and support the infrastructure of traditional musical learning, both regionally and nationally. The project is quite unique in that it particularly welcomes instrumentalists of all kinds to apply, not just those playing instruments most associated with traditional music'.

Music Generation Louth and the Oriel Centre have met with hugh support on this initiative and will be preparing for the inaugural performance of Nos Nua to coincide with Comhaltas' most important calendar event in 2018 - Fleadh Cheoil na hEireann which will be held this year in Drogheda.

To have an opportunity to take part in Nos Nua - the Louth Youth Folk Orchestra please register your interest by contacting info@orielcentre.ie or musicgeneration@lmetb.ie
On Friday night I headed for Byrne's No10 where a rather special Class Reunion night was taking place for the St. Vincents Class of 1987 who were celebrating 30 years since they walked the corridors of the Seatown Place school and a good crowd had turned out specially for the occasion.

I wasn't too long in the door when I met up with organiser Jennifer Harrison from Newtownbalregan who told me they were running the night to get all the girls back together and also as a mark of respect to the girls who were no longer with them. She also wanted a special mention for fellow classmate Mandy Fee who couldn't make it on the night but had provided the music, the best hits from their time at school from 1982 to '87.

Next I caught up with Catherine Maguire from Dowdallshill whom when I asked her if she recognised everyone said no but when they started to giving out, then she knew who they were.

Catherine was sitting with Linda Hearty from Fr. Murray Park who told me she said she felt they had all aged well and was delighted to be there.

Also in their company were Selena Clarke from Happy Valley, Siobhan McGoldrick from Bay Estate, Anita McEneaney from Meadow View and Gillian O'Hanrahan from Blakely Close who were all looking fab, having a great laugh together and wanted to thank Jennifer for organising a brilliant night.

After this I headed over for a chat with Mary Dullaghan from Dromiskin and Rita Boyle from Garrybawn who were in great form and assured me it was going to be anything but a quiet get together.

Also in their company were Majella Keating from Mulholland Avenue who told me that she and Gillian were the first to arrive and could possibly be the last to leave the craic was that good.

Making my way through the crowds I then met up with Siobhan Rice from Newry who was sitting with Paula O'Reilly from Tullyallen and Fiona Flood from Point Road who told me there were 8 different leaving cert classes when they were there and it was great to see all their old mates again.

I then met up with my old friend Sandi Murtagh from Manydown Close who was having a fond look at Joanne Conlon from Dublin's photos from their time in school and told me about their religious experience back in the day when they went to see Luv Bug who were performing in Keady.

Just arrived in the door was my old friend Oonagh McKevitt form Upper Merches who said it was great to see all the faces again and told me it was going to be a fantastic night.

She then joined up with Geraldine McGuinness from Springfield Manor, Katriona Mathews-Lynch from Lower Point Road, Teresa Carroll from Point Road, Dorothy Cairns from Racecourse Road and Janette Byrne from Medebawn who told me they were all in the same class A1 and had some catching up to do.

I then headed for a table where I got talking to Niamh McKeown from Lough Egish and Theresa McKenna from Culloville who told me they almost recognised everyone but were going to have a nostalgia filled evening with their old class mates.

Finally, before I departed I then got talking to Barbara English from Meigh who was sitting with Fionnuala Birdy who had come over specially from Isle Of Mann and was definitely going to make a night of it with all their old mates.
Judges, John Fitzgerald, Eileen Collery and Tom Hayes, with Teachers, Florence Gillan and Paula Quigley, along with pupils of St. Oliver NS and Bush Post Primary School during the judging of the Enterprising Towns Awards Competition in Carlingford

Carlingford took centre stage as adjudicators from Bank of Ireland Enterprising Towns Awards visited the beautiful coastal town.

The judging team were made up of Eileen Collery (Bank of Ireland), John Fitzgerald (former Dublin City Manager) and Tom Hayes (former Director of Enterprise Ireland). They were looking for examples of how local towns are made stronger by community and business working together. The visit was hosted by Carlingford Community Forum, Louth County Council and Local Enterprise Office Louth.

The judging process started with presentations in Carlingford Heritage Centre. The Carlingford Community Forum explained how the local community all work together. From arts, heritage and tourism to Tidy Towns, local business and many others, the judges were very impressed by the level of collaboration right across the town.

After the formal presentations, the judges had a chance to ask questions and chat to community representatives. This gave them a really good sense of how well everyone works together.

During their walking tour of Carlingford, the three judges had the chance to meet local business owners in their premises and at the Station House. It was a beautiful day and Carlingford absolutely looked its best.

Perhaps the highlight of the visit was meeting with local school children and hearing about Carlingford Citizenship Day. This initiative really impressed the adjudicators.

The biggest guffaw of the day came when one of the adjudicators asked one of the primary school pupils what he loved about Carlingford. He paused, hesitated, thought about it and finally declared 'Everything'. The adjudicators definitely agreed!

The adjudication team have 80 towns to assess for the competition. The announcement of winners is expected in November. The winning town will secure a fund of 23,000 to invest in a local enterprise initiative and scoop the Enterprising Town 2017 title.

Last year's winner was Boyle, Co. Roscommon.
Having raised over 5,000 for the Irish Cancer Society with their Today FM Dare to Care Wedding Dress Wednesday Challenge last year, sister Michelle Hanlon and Lorraine Clifford decided to go one better this year.

The result saw visitors to Carlingford turning their heads in wonder as 135 women and girls wearing their wedding gowns, bridesmaid dresses, mother of the bride outfits, and flower girl dresses paraded through the village streets on a recent Sunday afternoon.

'We said this was going to be the last year we'd do it so we put a lot of effort into organising it,' says Michelle.

As last year's event proved such a success, even more women signed up for this year's soiree which saw them being told to gather at Cooley Hall where they would be taken on a 'mystery tour'.

'We had three buses from Anchor Tours when they got there and as we were travelling to Carlingford we went past a 'bride' driving a pony and trap,' says Michelle.

The 'bride' was none other than her Dad Michael who had entered the spirit of the event by donning a wedding dress and hat.

He met them as they arrived in Carlingford and escorted them through the village to P J O'Hare's which hosted a champagne reception.

'There were lots of people in Carlingford and they thought they were seeing things,' says Michelle. 'Everyone was completely shocked to see so many women in wedding dresses - sure it was great craic.'

After their trip to Carlingford, it was back to Cooley Hall which was transformed into a magical wedding venue thanks to the talented Martina Crilly Creative Designs.

'It was absolutely fabulous and you'd never think it was a GAA hall,' says Michelle.

The women were then treated to a delicious feast with food provided by Fitzpatrick's Bar and Restaurant and Avenue Deli. They then danced the evening away while a few of the die-hards ended the night in Lily Finnegan's.

Everyone left with a goodie bag kindly donated by Exhale Beauty and Horseware and some went home with lovely prizes which they won in the raffle.

Michelle thanked everyone who contributed to the event, who donated prizes, and especially all those who turned up on the day.

'We thought last year was brilliant but it paled in comparison to this,' she says, revealing that the event has raised at least 11,000 for the Irish Cancer Society, for their work supporting those affected by cancer as well as funding medical research to help find a cure for the disease.

Today FM had a camera crew on hand to record all the action, having asked Michelle to stage the event after last year's success.
Dundalk Chamber of Commerce highlighted the concerns of business and industry over 'any reinstatement' of a border post Brexit as Taoiseach Leo Varadkar attended an event at the Carrickdale Hotel last week.

'It is somewhat pertinent that we are here dining 500 metres from what is a very open border,' said Michael Gaynor, President of Dundalk Chamber of Commerce.

'Any suggestion whatsoever that the position might change in the future is indeed very concerning.' He added the acceptance from all governments that an open border must be maintained.

'But Dundalk Chamber of Commerce is justifiably concerned that the reinstatement of any kind of hard border would have obvious negative consequences for cross border trade, and economic activity. There is a real fear within border communities that any reinstatement of a border may impact on our hard earned peace process.'

Speaking at the event sponsored by CX+Sport, Mr. Gaynor added: 'Dundalk Chamber recognise that Brexit, and the economic challenges that it may bring to our country, may best be addressed by seeking platforms where our fellow EU states can recognise and understand and support the unique position of the island of Ireland within the EU.'

He added 'In recent days we welcomed the European co-ordinator Guy Verhofstadt's comments in Dail Eireann that the EU will not allow Ireland to suffer because of Brexit, a most welcome statement.'

'We also acknowledge and welcome the participation of Louth County Council, along with 11 other local authorities in the preparation and compilation of a Brexit report which is being presented to Brussels in the next number of weeks.'

An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar welcomed proposals from the UK government for a two year transition period for the UK's exit from Europe, that would take effect in 2021.

'That at least means that if there is any sort of a border on our island that it won't be before 2021, if it ever happens at all, and that gives us time to prepare and negotiate a new trading relationship between the UK and the rest of Europe.

He added: 'When it comes to the challenge of Brexit, we intend to shape our own destiny and not allow others to do it for us. We seek three key things, of course continuing the gains of the peace process and the visions of the Good Friday agreement, retaining crucial things like INTERREG and Peace funding, even if the UK leaves these should remain in place for particularly important reasons. We also want to ensure that there are no new barriers to trade, not just north south, but also east west, which is so important for agri food industry.

We also want to maintain the common travel area, which is essentially a common citizenship, it says to Irish people in the UK and British people in Ireland that we can live and work in each other's countries, access housing and welfare, education, pensions, as though we are citizens of both.
A Louth Councillor has highlighted his concerns about the 'lack of progress' in establishing a second primary care centre in Dundalk.

Councillor Tomas Sharkey spoke after submitting a query to the Regional Health Forum, Dublin and North East on the number of primary care centres in Dundalk, and what plans there are to increase that number.

In a written response, a spokesman for the HSE confirmed; 'There is currently one primary care centre operational in Dundalk, situated adjacent to the county council offices at St. Alphonsus Road. This facility accommodates the full range of primary care services other than a GP.'

The spokesman added 'It is intended that a second primary care centre will be provided through the HSE's 'operational lease' mechanism, and this is progressing satisfactorily. Final submissions have been received, and are currently under evaluation, with a view to identifying a preferred provider in the current year.'

But Cllr. Sharkey said he was 'exacerbated at the lack of progress in providing a second primary care centre in Dundalk.

'Primary Care Centres are locations where many health professionals are available in the one location. In Dundalk we have one on the Alphonsus Road.'

'I raised the issue again with the HSE and the response indicates that we are in the same position as we were under the last Fianna Fail government years ago.'

'The response I received from the HSE indicates that there is no political commitment to the health of Dundalk people and certainly no urgency to provide important services,' said Cllr. Sharkey.

He concluded that it was 'time for accountability on this matter.'
This month marks Intact Software's 25th year in business.

Intact Software was born in 1992 with a mission to create straightforward, easy to use accounting and business management software.

It now employs 130 people across Ireland and the UK offering businesses; predominantly in the wholesale, distribution, merchant, retail & engineering sectors, complete business management and ERP software solutions.

In those early days' co-founders Paul Marry and Aidan Lawless explained how they saw a gap in the marketplace.'

'We were going in to businesses who were looking at other systems and we knew they were good systems but with a fundamental flaw. Our differentiator was that if you want something to accommodate a niche in your business that makes you want the software to be able to adapt. Others won't or can't adapt it for you, but we will.', Paul Marry, Co-Founder.

In the early 2000's Intact grew its customer base significantly both in Ireland and the UK adding five channel partners to the group, and expanding the Intact Family to 19.

Then in the middle of the recent recession Intact Software took the brave decision to invest deeply in research and development for a five year period to develop the next generation of their product using the most extendible, customisable and scalable architecture they could imagine.

This led to the creation of their third generation ERP software; Intact iQ; a unique product in the ERP market, which enables businesses to adapt the software to fit their unique ways of working, not the other way around.

The launch of Intact iQ in 2010 saw customer numbers rise to 1,582 and in 2015 Intact moved their HQ to a state of the art facility in Blackthorn Business Park, Dundalk.

In 2016, Intact acquired a UK partner and established their UK head-office in Hemel Hempstead, just outside London.

Today, Intact Software has grown its customer base to over 28,000 users across over 2,500 customer sites located in Ireland, UK, Australia, New Zealand and the Mediterranean.

Speaking of the future of the company, co-founder Paul Marry said; 'In 25 years I'd love to see Intact Software in every country in the world and I can't see any reason why that couldn't happen. I believe that after seeing the product and hearing our story and understanding our ethos, no matter what country you are in, the Intact Software model will appeal.'

Aidan Lawless, co-founder and CTO, believes that 'the success of the company is attributed to the great team of employees, customers and partner's that we work with.'

Speaking at an event held to mark the occasion Justin Lawless, CEO noted; 'Our growth still remains attributable to that simple but unique premise that drove our business from day one; technology designed for your business, drives and elevates your business.'

'It is upon these pillars we look forward to where the next 25 years will take us.'
A Dundalk woman has spoken out to defend the staff of Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda and to thank them for the excellent care and attention she received when she suffered a heart attack.

Bernadette Hearty, Ashbrook suffered a massive heart attack on Wednesday, August 31 last and was treated in Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital and the Mater Hospital in Dublin.

'Maybe I was just lucky, but I have to say that the care and attention I got was excellent and I just want to thank everyone from the paramedics to the nurses and doctors'.

This is the second time that Bernadette has been treated by hospital medical staff and her first experience four years ago was simliarly positive.

'I am fed up listening to people giving out about the health system, I am just an ordinary person, I don't have private medical insurance and the care I got was second to none'.

Recalling her experience, Bernadette said she went to bed on Wednesday, August 30 feeling unwell and woke at 2.30am.

'I was sitting on the stairs and told my adult daughter that I would go back upstairs, but we called the ambulance and within five minutes, I had three paramedics looking after me'.

'I said to them, there's enough of you, but they were great at keeping me calm and walked me to the ambulance'.

'From calling the ambulance at 4am, I was in intensive care by 6am with the ECG, blood tests and x-ray all done'.

Bernadette was told that there was a cancellation in the Mater Hospital and by 7.10am she was in a private ambulance on route to Dublin.

'I had the angioplasty done by Hugh McCann's team and I met Dr McCann himself later and he was excellent'.

'I was told that I was a lucky girl and there is no damage, but I had had a massive heart attack which was stress related'.

Bernadette returned to the Lourdes Hospital later than afternoon and remained in hospital for two days, during which time further ECGs and x-rays were carried out to ensure she was ready to be allowed home.

'It really annoys me when I hear people giving out about our health system. I know it can be hard to get into the system, but once you are being cared for, the quality of the care and the staff are just excellent'.

'From the paramedics right through to Rita Mulligan, all the nurses and Dr McCann and Dr Keelan, everyone was just brilliant in looking after me'.
The scene of the accident on the Avenue Road last Thursday morning

A Dundalk woman and her 16 year old son who were seriously injured in a 'freak accident' involving a trailer along the Avenue Road have begun the recovery from their injuries.

Dolores Kearns and her 16 year old son Aaron McKeown were caught up in the shocking collision involving a trailer which was being pulled by a 4x4 vehicle.

The incident occurred shortly before 9am on Thursday morning last as the local mum and her son were walking along the Avenue road

The trailer reportedly become dislodged from the 4x4 which was carrying a flatbed for a truck, and then caused a collision with the pedestrians. The trailer also struck a pole which is reported to have fallen.

Ms Kearns was airlifted from the nearby Dundalk Gaels GAA grounds to St James's Hospital in Dublin.

Both mother and son were a understood to have suffered a number of injuries including broken bones and cuts, but which were miraculously non-life-threatening.

There was a large emergency response to the incident including fire tenders and an army helicopter.

A garda spokesperson said: 'Gardai are investigating a collision involving a lorry and two pedestrians on Avenue Road, Dundalk. The collision occurred at approximately 8.50am. A 16-year-old boy was taken to Our Lady Of Lourdes Hospital. A woman in her 40s was brought to St James's Hospital in Dublin.'

The Avenue Road remained closed until later that evening.

Meanwhile Shannon McKeown confirmed her mum and younger brother were recovering, posting on her Facebook page: 'I'd like to tell everyone thank you for all the well wishes for my mam and brother and I'd like to make people aware that they are both doing great and that it was all external and not internal and thank god that bones can be fixed. I'd also like if people would not believe what other people are saying about the injuries of my brother and mam because rumours can spread and some people don't know the truth, I don't want people believe something that's not true so just need you all to know their both okay and I thank god or whoever was looking over my brother and mam because it could've been way worse.'
'It has been a dream come true to sing at the Metropolitan Opera,' says Ravensdale opera star Tara Erraught who made her debut at the famous New York venue last week.

Her parents Brianain and Joe and 90 year old Veronica Dunne with whom she studied, fly out to New York to see her in the opening night of Les Contes d'Hoffmann/The Tales of Hoffman.

An excited Tara praised her mother for her support, saying she 'drove me (and sat through) every singing lesson from the very beginning! From the age of 10!' And as if by way of award, Brianain got to see her daughter singing on the Met stage on her birthday.

Voicing her appreciation for the Irish contingent who attended the opening night, Tara said 'as always I felt the full support from home.'

'From my first lessons with Geraldine McGee, this has been one of the dream houses to sing in, and I am excited to have begun this new relationship with them. Already looking forward to singing in Hansel & Gretel in December!'

Tara's debut didn't go unnoticed in music circles.

She was named by Opera Wire online magazine as their 'artist of the week' as they previewed the Met's autumn season. 'Usually, we also get a new star making a prominent debut, as is the case with mezzo-soprano Tara Erraught, who is coming to the Met as Nicklausse in 'Les Contes d'Hoffmann.'

She impressed the critics with the New York Classical Review saying: 'The Irish mezzo Tara Erraught made a strong company debut as Hoffmann's companion Nicklausse, largely on the strength of her dramatic performance. Sher's Nicklausse plays the long game-as the alter ego of Hoffmann's poetic muse, it is his ultimate wish to see his friend return to his writing desk, and so in this production he is complicit in every one of the villains' treacheries. That can be a tough line to take without become an outright antagonist, but Erraught's cheeky Nicklausse has no trouble winning the audience's affection. Her hard-edged mezzo didn't sit well in the role's lyrical material, but she showed lively spark in all of her sing.

The New York Times wrote 'Tara Erraught, making her Met debut as Nicklausse and Hoffman's Muse, seemed most comfortable as her lines rose: billed as a mezzo-soprano her tone paled down in traditional mezzo territory.'
All residents of Fairfield Park have now been housed, it emerged last week at Greystones Municipal District.

Fairfield Park in Greystones has provided private rented accommodation to households since 1973. However, in August 2016, 48 households were issued with Notice to Quit with an effective date of August 31, 2017.

At last Tuesdays meeting, members heard that this presented a significant added challenge to Wicklow County Council, with over 3,200 on the housing list and over 500 homeless presentations per year.

The council engaged with the landlord and the residents and engaged the services of a housing support worker from the Simon Community.

Each household was assessed to determine housing need and the support worker ensured that all eligible households were registered for social housing support.

They also ensured that eligible households would receive rent supplement or HAP where appropriate and actively engaged with landlords and agents to create rental opportunities.

All residents were interviewed, their initial assessment completed and a priority list was devised which informed the proposed exit pathway for each household.

Of the 52 units at Fairfield Park, 48 were occupied. The residents included seven couples, 41 singles, and of the couples, there were six families with seven dependents or children.

A site clinic was set up with a constant presence from Dublin Simon and visiting support from Wicklow County Council. This greatly facilitated the residents, many of whom were elderly and/or infirm and had been resident in Fairfield Park since the 1970s.

Challenges facing the team included a lack of social network supports for some residents, and the lack of housing availability and affordability, as well as accessing a deposit and first month's rent.

The team liaised with social workers, gardai, legal services, Tusla, medical and addiction services, Department of Social Protection and Approved Housing Bodies. The Homeless Team, the HAP/RAS team and the Allocations Officer were significantly involved in this process.

Tenancy sustainment and continuation of support services to the more vulnerable of the residents accommodated is critical and ongoing.

Members heard at last week's Municipal District meeting that feedback from all the clients assisted into alternative accommodation has been extremely positive and all have expressed their satisfaction with the holistic, supportive and enabling support services provided by the council in this case.

The households moved to a mix of social housing, private rented accommodation, to family, rental schemes, and purchased housing. Sadly, two residents have died.
Bray man James Nealon works at the Las Vegas hotel where at least 59 people died last Sunday. He happened to have the day off and learned about the shooting on Facebook.

James and his wife Lisa just had a new baby, Liam, four weeks ago and James's mother is over helping them out at the moment.

'We were all at home watching TV when I look at my phone and on Facebook I notice something strange about the Route 91 country music festival,' said James.

'I stand up and pause the TV and let the girls know that there is an active shooter in Mandalay Bay and that it's happening right now. We all frantically start to see if we can find any more information on what's happening.'

James works in an Irish bar in Mandalay Bay called Rira and his father-in-law works as a dealer in the poker room. 'Lisa starts calling her dad, I start calling everyone I know who's working there. I finally get through to a girl called Sara who is freaking out. Nobody knows what's going on.'

A short while later the TV news started to report that there was a shooting under way, with numerous victims deceased or injured.

'The things that go through your head when you hear something like that are so scary. Waking up after a day like that, you don't know how to feel,' said James. 'You're hoping that everything is going to be okay the next day but you're not sure. I went into work after all of the road blockages had been cleared but there was still an active crime scene outside where we work.

'It was very eerie. You see hundreds and hundreds of people queuing up to give blood and people going out and buying food for these people. They say there were eight-hour lines to give blood.'

James said that the community really came together in the aftermath of the massacre. 'Even though Las Vegas is such a fast-paced town it really is quite a close-knit community. They say that Nevadans are battle born and I think it really shows in times like this.'

James said that the work of all of the first responders, paramedics and police officers saved hundreds of lives. 'To have a crowd as big as the country festival and to be able to get everybody out as safely as possible was amazing.

'It's such a weird feeling being a part of all this,' said James. One of his wife's friends was shot in the leg, others even worse. 'It makes you realise how short life is and how quickly it can be taken away from us.

'Fifty-nine people killed and more than 500 injured - it's scary to think that one man could do that.

'It will never be forgotten. It's been heard about all over the world and people can relate to a tragedy like this. I believe there has been over $2 million raised in efforts to help out. I think from that you can tell how many hearts this event has touched.'

James and his friends and colleagues are determined to carry on.

'It would be very easy for everyone to stay inside and not go to work, to be scared, but that's what people like that want. To strike terror and fear into the community. But you can't. Everyone has to get out and help. If it's not donating blood or money, its distributing water and food to the needy. I think as scary and as chaotic as it was, it's times like this that drive the people of Las Vegas and surrounding community together and everyone should be very proud of themselves.'

Wicklow County Council has opened an online Book of Condolence in solidarity with the people of the US and in memory of the victims of the mass shooting in Las Vegas.

Members of the public are invited to sign the book of condolence on line at www.wicklow.ie and once closed, the book will be delivered to the US embassy in Dublin.

'On behalf of Wicklow County Council and the people of Wicklow, I wish to extend my deepest sympathies and condolences to the families and friends of those killed and injured. Our thoughts and prayers are with them at this difficult time,' said Cllr Edward Timmins, cathaoirleach of Wicklow County Council.

Frank Curran, chief executive of Wicklow County Council, said: 'By opening this book of condolence, Wicklow County Council is giving the people of County Wicklow the opportunity to express solidarity with the people of America and Las Vegas following this meaningless attack.'
The former garda station in Donard, which is now a base for the Glen of Imaal Mountain Rescue.

The rural community of Donard in west Wicklow has suffered because of the closure of its local garda station and calls are now being made to reinstate the station.

This is according to Edward Timmins, Cathaoirleach of Wicklow County Council, who also said the area in west Wiclow has been left devoid of any State services.

'Any move to re-open Donard Garda Station would be welcome. There is extensive areas of rural housing and farms with no nearby towns and no garda presence,' said Cllr Timmins.

'East Wicklow has the council offices, there's a small council office in Blessington but there is no public service presence in west Wicklow - apart from three excellent schools.'

Re-opening the garda station would, he said, give some confidence to the rural community that they have not been forgotten.

'The rural community here needs support. They have suffered without garda presence and for people to know there is a garda station there they can access, that itself would be a sign of support for rural Ireland.'

Donard Garda Station was one of 139 Garda stations nationwide to have closed its doors since 2013. The building has since been put to use as a base for the Glen of Imaal Mountain Rescue and Wicklow Red Cross.

'I am sure there is something in the lease that allows the Department of Justice to take the building back if required,' said Cllr Timmins.

Controversy was sparked last week when an interim report recommended the re-opening of Stepaside Garda Station in Minister for Transport Shane Ross's constituency in what has been called 'cherry picking.'

Although Donard Garda station has been recommended to be re-open in the course of the proposed pilot project, additional research on crime trends and relevant CSO statistics have to be completed before it is considered. This is according to the interim report on the proposal to re-open six garda stations published this week where it is reported the Assistant Commissioner with responsibility for the Eastern Region has requested the additional research in advance of the re-opening of the station.

Echoing Cllr Timmins calls for the reopening of Donard Station, Deputy John Brady said: 'There has been a growing concern that the closure of local Garda stations has reduced Garda visibility and made rural communities vulnerable to crime. This has contributed to many older people feeling vulnerable in their homes, particularly those in isolated areas.

'In addition, farmers have increasingly found themselves dealing with the theft of valuable farm machinery and livestock,' he said.

He said he was astonished that Stepaside Garda Station was 'cherry-picked' over all other Garda stations for 'political reasons'.

Deputy Brady accused the Government of 'stalling for time'. He has also called for the Minister for Justice to immediately publish the full report and to 'commence the pilot scheme without further delay.'
The Avoca River was described as the 'most polluted in the country' at Monday's meeting of Wicklow County Council.

Jonathan Sexton provided the elected members with an update of the Water Framework Directive - Draft Basin Management Plan, and sought feedback on any water body which Councillors feel may be at risk.

Cllr Tommy Annesley said: 'The Avoca River is the most polluted in Ireland, between raw sewerage and the Avoca Mines. It was proposed many years ago that it would be cleared up. I wonder what the current situation is and what sort of costing would be required?'

Cllr Pat Fitzgerald said the river had been clearly deteriorating for the past number of decades.

'Back in the 1980s you could swim in it. Now, if you did go for a swim, you would come out a different colour.'

He added that even sub-aqua divers were reluctant to swim in the river.

Mr Sexton replied that the proposal Cllr Annesley was referring to involved two options - a quick fix and a proper fix - both of which would cost hundreds of millions. While the biology around the river has improved, fish numbers are still bad. After heavy rain, flushes of pollution still enter the river.
A young man charged with unlawful carriage in a car which was involved in a fatal accident was denied bail at Wexford District Court after being extradited from the UK.

Michael Christopher Connors (19) said that he had been resident in the UK at Teesside with his parents at 2A Dixon Street since leaving Ireland two and a half years ago.

Charges initiated by Sergeant Victor Isdell arose from his investigations into an accident near Scarawalsh in Co Wexford on January 12, 2015 when the defendant was still aged 16.

The State alleged that Connors was a front seat passenger in a Cork registered Volvo which had been stolen in Wicklow.

On the date in question, the Volvo made its way south from Wicklow before colliding south of Ferns on the N11 with another vehicle.

The crash left Enniscorthy pensioner James Brennan dead at the scene while the woman travelling with him in the other vehicle suffered multiple injuries.

Connors was later interviewed in connection with what happened.

He was eventually extradited and brought to court on September 28 after a European arrest warrant was issued.

The accused was called into the witness box where he explained that he left Ireland because his parents moved to England.

He applied to have bail granted as he wanted to spend time with his family, and to spend time visiting the graves of his aunt and his cousin.

Barrister Jordan Fletcher said that his client's relatives had raised 1,000 in cash to offer as a surety, with an offer that he could stay with an uncle who lives in Loughlinstown.

However, the court ruled that Connors must remain in custody.

Judge Haughton agreed with the DPP that the matter should be referred to the Circuit Court and adjourned to October 4 for preparation of a book of evidence.
Officials from Wicklow County Council unveiled plans for 24 social housing units at last week's meeting of Greystones Municipal District.

The project is planned for Farrankelly Road, opposite an existing estate. Members heard that the project would cost 4.3 million. This depends on funding from central government. The scheme cannot go out to tender until funding is approved.

Cllr Derek Mitchell welcomed the scheme. He noted that pedestrian access from the existing estate to the bus stop would be included. 'It is a long way and they are jumping fences to get there,' he said.

Cllr Mitchell wondered if there would be lighting installed on Priory Road. 'There will be quite a number of council houses with 70 or so private houses also. It's very dark.'

Members heard that street lighting would be included.

Cllr Tom Fortune said that he was pleased with the plans. He asked how long it would take. Members were told that it could be 2020 before the scheme is completed.

Cllr Fortune asked if there was any way for the process to be sped up in light of a current housing crisis. 'It's smoke and mirrors,' he said.

District Manager Michael Nicholson said that it does take a long time to complete a project, usually three years from start to finish.

Cathaoirleach Gerry Walsh said that it was fantastic news, with 24 units to be delivered within three years.

Cllr Tom Fortune said that he was aware of a house in the district recently offered to the council for purchase. 'That person was told there was no funding for that, is that true?'

Officials said that there is limited funding in certain circumstances. The authorities are generally trying to buy houses in areas where it is not possible to build.

'There is light at the end of the tunnel, even though it's three years down the road,' said Cllr Gerry Walsh.
Buttevant Heritage Group is organising a conference, 'Developing a Sustainable Heritage Tourism Sector in Small Irish Towns,' on Saturday, October 14 at Colaiste Mhuire, Buttevant.

The support from the Irish Walled Town Network has made this inclusive event possible. Buttevant has enjoyed considerable investment in the recent past and is now central to a visitor's heritage experience of North Cork.

The hard-working local group now wish to focus their attention on the future and what they as a small Irish town, can contribute to heritage tourism and rural development in North Cork.

This conference is an opportunity for heritage groups, community groups and rural businesses to meet and discuss the strengths and challenges they meet every day. In addition to the open discussion, they are also seeking out solutions. The idea behind this conference has sparked great interest amongst heritage, community and business groups. This is a free conference, however, places are limited and registration is essential. Please visit www.buttevantheritagetourismconference.com for further details and information.
Mallow Credit Union is gearing up for what promises to be a very busy October.

Not only is it time for all the incredibly creative budding artists to showcase their talents again in this year's All Ireland Credit Union Art Competition, but they are also getting ready to celebrate International Credit Union Day on Thursday, 19th October.

The hugely popular art competition, now in its 34th year, attracts up to 30,000 entries nationally each year through around 250 credit unions. The competition is open to age groups across the spectrum, including children aged 7 years and under, right through to those aged 18 years and over. There is also a special category for those with physical or intellectual disabilities.

This year's 'Set your Imagination Free' theme is designed to give everyone, young and old, full scope to express their thoughts, imaginings, and anything that inspires them. Participants are encouraged to interpret the theme in any way they wish.

Last year Mallow Credit Union were delighted that their very own Margaux Gilbourne won her 7 years & under category at a national level with her vibrant hillside creation so they expect great things from all entrants again this year.

Winners, runners-up and merit award-winners at local level will go on to represent the credit union at regional level and from there, winning artworks will go forward to national level.

Entry forms are available form Mallow Credit Union and all partnering Credit Unions. The closing date to submit entries to Mallow Credit Union is Thursday 19th October 2017, which is also International Credit Union Day.

This year, credit unions across the globe are celebrating the important role that financial co-operatives play in their local communities. Mallow Credit Union Ltd and it's seven branches are inviting everyone to come and celebrate all that it offers.

Dreams thrive with credit unions so they are reaching out to the public to help them realise their dreams with fantastic financial services both instore and online as well as the availability of competitive loans.

Visit Mallow CU on Thursday 19th October for a day of celebrations, with treats and giveaways, and find out what your credit union can do for you!

For further information please contact Ciara Fitzgerald at Mallow Credit Union on 022 21121, cfitzgerald@mallowcu.ie
An amazing stock of wedding dresses will be sold off at bargain prices to raise funds for the Irish Cancer Society.

Epiphany Weddings & Events are hosting the Ever After Bridal Sale on October 28 and 29 in the Clayton Hotel, Lapps Quay, Cork city and have over 100 bridal gowns up for grabs.

Prices range from 50 to 500 so there's something to suit all budgets and there will also be a selection of bridesmaid dresses, occasion dresses, flowergirl dresses, veils, accessories and jewellery on sale.

Kelly O'Callaghan-Gaughan of Epiphany Weddings & Events was devastated at the death of a dear friend to cancer shortly after her own wedding earlier this year. The wedding planner decided to host an event to raise funds to support others affected by cancer. She now has over 100 dresses ready for sale, some of which have been kindly donated, and proceeds from the day will go to the Irish Cancer Society.

For more information on the event or to donate your dress contact Kelly on 087 7673693. Tickets are available on Eventbrite www.eventbrite.ie/e/ever-after-bridal-sale-tickets
The second annual Giant Pumpkins Ireland competition will take place in Collon on Sunday, October 8th.

The ginormous autumn squashes will be officially weighed at and event in the Irish Military War Museum - and the competition looks set to be fierce as local growers keep their fingers crossed that theirs will be the biggest.

Challengers from all the four corners of Ireland will attend, pitting their horticultural wits against one another each vying to see their pumpkin season crowned with success.

The competition will coincide with a Pick a Pumpkin and Play All Day Event at the Museum on Saturday and Sunday, October 7th and 8th from 12pm to 5pm.The cost is 10 per child and includes unlimited access onto all of the bouncy castles and obstacle courses as well as a pumpkin of your choice.

Adults go free and no tickets are needed for this event, you can pay on the day, pick your pumpkin and play away.

The Giant Pumpkin Class will likely be dominated by Louth's own Lord of the Gourd, three times record holder Micheal Byrne.

Tight lipped about his chances Micheal has 'one or two decent ones'.

Similar remarks were said in 2016 before doing the impossible and producing two half ton pumpkins in one year , smashing his previous Irish record with a 1166lb behemoth.

The Outdoor field pumpkin class has been a more open competition , in 2016 a novice grower Daireen Caffery of Greystones, Co Wicklow , defied the odds and set a new Irish record. New to 2017's line up of events is the Novice Class for growers with less than two years experience.

There will be a cash prizefunds of 100 on the day have been sponsored by Douglas Nursery Ardee and the Irish Military War Museum.
Fire Safety Week was jointly launched by Fire Services North and South at Belfast Central Fire Station on Monday.

The event was launched by Gary Thompson, Chief Fire Officer, Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service and Eamon Woulfe, Chief Fire Officer, Louth County Council, representing the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management and Fire Services in the South.

Eamon Woulfe hopes that Fire Safety Week can be used to raise public awareness of the main causes of accidental fires in the home and how they might be prevented.

Based on fires attended by Brigades in the South over the past few years, cooking and heating are now the main causes of house fires.

In 2016, 38% of house fires were as a result of cooking and heating, whether through faulty appliances or hazardous practices such as leaving hot oil and cooking appliances unattended.

There are a number of Fire Safety Week activities planned in Louth.

All Brigades will be distributing fire safety in the home guidance leaflets to the public and these will also be available at Louth County Council offices.

There will be fire safety stands in the Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda and in the Marshes Shopping Centre in Dundalk, where fire crews will provide fire safety advice and will also be handing out smoke alarms and smoke alarm testers.

There will also be chip pan demonstrations in Dundalk and Drogheda, which vividly show the dangers of deep fat frying.

You can contact your local fire station in relation to Fire Safety week activities.
Warm tributes have been paid to a real pioneer of the Medical Missionaries of Mary who was the oldest surviving member of the worldwide organisation.

Sister Maureen O'Sullivan was born in Co Limerick in 1920 and on her 19th birthday arrived in the village of Collon to join the MMMs, among the first members of the Novitiate in the early days of the growth of MMM. Indeed, she was the eighth Sister to be professed.

On completion of her novitiate formation, Sister Maureen trained as a nurse at St. Vincent's Hospital in Dublin and then returned to Drogheda to study midwifery.

Before being assigned to Africa, she spent a number of years helping at the Apostolic Nunciature in Dublin after which she served in a leadership role as a member of the General Council, working closely with the Foundress, Mother Mary Martin. In 1959, she was asked to take a nursing position at the Clinica Mediterranea in Naples, and the following year her long-time ambition to work in Africa was fulfilled.

She spent four years in Tanzania, in the remote missions of Chala and Mpanda, and the MMM hospitals at Kabanga and nDareda. In addition to her nursing duties, she was often in demand to teach English to nurses and young women who wanted to join MMM.

When she was transferred to Ethiopia in 1965, she worked in public health and community health, and took specialist training in the care of people with Hansen's Disease (leprosy). After sixteen years in Africa, Sister Maureen became keenly interested in natural Family Planning and travelled to Australia to study and research the Ovulation Method developed by Drs. John and Evelyn Billings. This study also took her to Nigeria the following year before returning to Ireland.

For the rest of her life she worked to promote the understanding of Family Planning and was passionate in her concern for the life of the unborn child. Sister Maureen moved to Aras Mhuire for nursing care in 2015. Her cousin, Sister Aideen O'Sullivan, followed her into the MMM way of life.
Drogheda's main street needs to clean up its act - with begging, drug dealing and abuse of the alcohol bylaws just some of the concerns of local traders.

Calls have been made for increased resources to be deployed to curb the increase in begging on Drogheda's West Street.

The area has seen a marked increase in the number of people begging on a daily basis, with homeless people also sleeping overnight in shop entrances.

'Whatever the circumstances are, there is an increase in the number of people looking for money on the town's main street and people, especially, older people, are feeling intimidated by it,' one trader told the Drogheda Independent this week.

'It must be tackled, along with the drug use and drinking in public. We have to clean up our act as far as West Street is concerned,' they added.

They say that drug dealing is on the increase in locations around the main thoroughfare.

The appeal comes in advance of a public meeting, hosted by the gardai and council in the Westcourt Hotel on Monday, October 9th (7.30pm).

Gardai have been on the streets in a bid to curb the issues.

'An Garda Siochana acknowledge the recent upsurge in street begging and in some cases drinking on the streets in Drogheda,' Supt Andrew Watters stated.

' This problem had reduced considerably as a result of a previous initiatives by the Gardai. The problem is a mixture of begging, primarily by non Irish nationals.'

Gardai have also had to deal with a rise in the number of homeless people now living on the streets.

They say there has been 'an increased number of homeless males in Drogheda in recent weeks.'

He feels the present situation is 'not the image I want to see for Drogheda' and matters will be tackled.

'A new focused initiative working with other agencies will be put in place,' he advised.
Founder of the Drogheda Soup Kitchen, Mark O'Neill, is planning to expand the services at the facility at Sunday's Gate to cater for homeless people and those impacted by addiction.

He's planning to introduce the 'pop in' service once a week from 10.30am to 12.30pm, following a successful pilot programme in their centre in Navan.

'It will deal with issues such as homelessness and how people can be assisted as well as addiction, drink and drugs, and what's out there for people and families.

'I'm hoping to get SOSAD and the Simon Community involved as well,' he explained.

Marking the second anniversary of the soup kitchen, he says he has come across a lot of issues in the Drogheda region.

'Some people do say, why are we doing this. 20 years ago I might have questioned it too, but as you go through life you see different situations, and in my circumstances, deal with some situations, and only then does the penny drop.

'I would not like my son or daughter to be in that situation, with no-one there to help them, but that's why we do what we do and I know not everyone will agree with it.

'We want to not only feed the people but address issues as well. Surely it's everyone's right to have a hot meal or two each day, a roof over their heads and a little bit of happiness,' Mark added.

He says that in the past two years the service in Drogheda has given out over 175,000 hot meals and approx 16,500 food hampers.

He has also issued an open invitation to the older residents of Drogheda to drop in at any time to the centre.

'Members of the older generation can be struggling with funds or the cost of heating and food.

'We want them to use here as a restaurant. Come in and get an Irish breakfast or cereal, a dinner or a sandwich and soup and it's free,' he adds.

And perhaps the biggest thing they are more than anxious to promote is the fact that the volunteers are always ready to listen and chat - about anything!

'There's always four or five people about to talk and they get to know those coming in.'

The centre is also available for a food parcel service for those that might not want to visit.

'We have a mobile number, 0858811112 and people can just ring and we'll help them out,' Mark continued.
Irish Water has said it 'recognises and deeply regrets' the disruption and hardship caused to the people of Drogheda, South Louth and East Meath during the summer when a burst critical main left much of the town without water for a week.

The apology comes as a review of the Staleen Water Treatment Plant is published on the Irish Water Website.

In the report, the company acknowledges that they should have acted sooner in relation to the Drogheda Water Crisis, which began on Thursday, July 20th when the pipe burst.

The report acknowledges that in hindsight, the incident 'could have' been formally escalated from an operational incident to a high severity incident prior to Sunday, July 23rd.

'It's important to note that this would not have shortened the overall time to repair or allowed tankers to be mobilised any sooner, however it may have enabled detailed contingency planning to have been more developed coming into Monday 24th and potentially supported a more comprehensive communications response to be established on Saturday 22nd.'

It notes that watermain bursts are and will continue for some time to be a common occurrence across the water network. It said what differentiated this incident was that three repair attempts using standard and modified standard couplings did not result in an effective repair and 'a prolonged outage ensued'.

A number of recommendations were set out in the report. These included that IW and Local Authority Incident Management Procedures should be reviewed and revised to ensure incident classifications, escalation protocols and roles and responsibilities are clear and consistent throughout, that escalation thresholds and roles and responsibilities are clear and consistent throughout and that they formally include the role of IW Incident Liaison Engineer which was found to be extremely effective once in place on Monday 24th.

The report said IW should establish a central stores to provide for the quick deployment of equipment, establish frameworks with suppliers, complete with out of hours arrangement and look at establishing mutual aid arrangements with other water utilities. Irish Water said work is currently underway to design and progress the replacement of the high pressure asbestos water main following the burst on this critical pipe last July.

The company said additional funding has been committed to replace this pipe along with the 24m already prioritised for upgrades to the Staleen and Cavanhill Water Treatment Plants. Construction on these projects will begin in the coming months.
It was a day filled with emotions for lollipop lady Kerry Coyle as she retired from her post after 34 years in the job last Friday.

Kerry, who works at St Mary's Parish Primary School on the Dublin Road, first interviewed for the role of lollipop lady at Scoil Mhuire na Trocaire Girls School on the Dublin Road when she was just 16.

When Scoil Mhuire na Trocaire Girls School and Congress Avenue Boys School merged to form St Mary's Parish Primary School, Kerry moved from the Dublin Road to the new purpose built premises at Bryanstown. During her three decades in the job she has helped thousands of children safely across the road and has watched as some of her former charges have gone on to become teachers in the school.

'It is emotional, I was more nervous coming out the door today than I was the first day I started. I love the job, I love the kids and I love talking to people. It's been amazing, my whole adult life has been spent doing this job,' said Kerry who lives in Clogherhead. 'I have past pupils coming now who are bringing their own children to school. I have secondary students who are coming back to do their TY here in the school and even some of the teachers are former students I would have walked across the road at Fatima every day.

'I'm not leaving than for any other reason that it's long enough and it's the right time to change.'

Kerry herself is Mum to three boys, a 26-year-old, a 20-year-old and a 16-year-old, David Ben and Adam, but they never passed through her care at the school gates as they lived on 'the far side' in Brookville when they were attending primary school. She has seen huge changes over the years, from working on the Dublin Road when it was the main route to Belfast, to the opening of Scotch Hall and finally the big move to Bryanstown and the amalgamation of the two schools.

'When I started on the Dublin Road there was no signs, there were no lights and it was the main Dublin to Belfast Road. So I had articulated lorries coming down the road at me! then they put in a Pelican Crossing which was great because I had the lights. A few years later they built Scotch Hall so they moved me up the road away from the building. Then when we moved up to Bryanstown it was chaotic in the beginning because you were moving from two separate schools with 400-500 students to a huge school with almost 1,000 students but it was grand, you just get on and do it.'
The counties of Louth and Meath have joined forces to stage an inspiring and educational National Women's Enterprise Day event.

The theme for the event, which takes place on October 12th, is 'Opening Doors to New Markets'.

Women from across the north east are invited to attend what is sure to be an inspiring and educational event.

Sarah Mallon of Local Enterprise Office Louth explained: 'The theme for National Women's Enterprise Day is 'Opening Doors To New Markets'. Our speakers have all done this in the process of building their businesses and they've a wealth of expertise and experience to share with our audience.'

Lorna Cooney of Local Enterprise Office Meath continues: 'We've a stellar line-up of business leaders for this years event. We'll start with Keelings CEO Caroline Keeling and Niamh Sherwin Barry, founder of The Irish Fairy Door Company. They'll be joined by star of BBC's The Apprentice Roisin Hogan of Hiro by Roisin, Margaret Robb of Sweet Little Babies and Margie Burns of Aviation Selection Consultants.

'This event promises to be filled with great advice, insights and learning opportunities.'

Taking place at CityNorth Hotel on Thursday 12th October, this half day event will have lots of opportunities for networking.

Tickets are priced at 10 and 15 and include refreshments and lunch.

For bookings visit www.LocalEnterprise.ie/Louth.

The event is co-ordinated by Jane Manzor of Network Meath who concludes: 'Come join us and a host of powerful and inspiring women at our conference to celebrate National Women's Enterprise Day!'
From little acorns, mighty oaks grown. So goes the old saying. It's something that definitely rings true in the context of the Gerard Murphy Memorial Run. Started seven years ago by the Murphy family as a means of keeping the memory of their son Gerard alive, raising some funds for charity and raising the issue of mental health, it has gone on to become one of the biggest motoring events of its kind in the country.

From early on Sunday morning, hundreds of gleaming cars of all makes, models and eras began to roll into the Mart on the Old Dublin Road creating an unbelievable spectacle for petrol heads and the general public alike. At one stage, the site contained every type of car imaginable - restored runarounds from the 60s, drift cars, impeccably tuned Japanese imports, raw American muscle, the popular Escorts and Capris and some modern beauties as well - this show had it all.

While the weather probably ensured that there was a little more polishing and cleaning to be done on the cars, the rain held off on the day and there was a great atmosphere as people made their way around the vehicles to the tune of the music on the main stage and chatted underneath the bonnets of all kinds of cars.

At around 1.30 p.m. a balloon release took place before Gerard's beloved Nissan 200SX led the run to Bunclody, Kildavin, Myshall, Fenagh, Borris, Kiltealy, Ballycarney and back.

'We are absolutely delighted with the turnout,' said Brid Murphy. 'A lot of work went in and now it's a matter of taking a breath, paying the bills and seeing how much we made for our charities (Slaney Search & Rescue & The Local Hub, Glenbrohane). The feedback has been great.'

The organisers wished to thank everyone who contributes to the ongoing success of the event, particularly those who travelled long distances.
events in Catalonia have led to a renewed focus on the importance of democracy and a peoples' right to have a say in how they are ruled and who rules them.

The Spanish Government's decision to forcibly prevent an independence referendum in Catalonia has been condemned by various Irish civil liberty groups and political parties including Sinn Fein, Labour, the SDLP and the Socialist Party.

A unifying theme among many of those who have condemned the violent crackdown by Spanish authorities is that the government in Madrid should have allowed the referendum take place to recognise the democratic will of the people.

The current crisis is one of the biggest faced by Spain since the death of Franco and restoration of democracy in 1976.

Rather than launching a violent police crackdown - which has only served to inflame the situation - the Spanish Government should have taken part and argued its case.

The Government might even have won and resolved the Catalan Independence question, at least in the short term.

That might sound preposterous but a closer look at opinion polls in the lead up to the Catalan referendum tells a very different story to the one dominating global headlines.

In the wake of the referendum on Sunday, Catalonia's regional government said that 90 per cent of the voters who came out on Sunday had opted for independence from Spain.

It sound's like an overwhelming majority - akin to those seen in North Korea or Iraq under Hussein - but a few other factors have to be considered.

First - probably due to the threat of violence and the police action that shut half of the polling stations in the region - turnout was remarkably low, with just 42 per cent of Catalonia's 5.3 million voters actually casting a ballot.

It is logical to assume that the most motivated voters - those most willing to defy the police and risk violent reprisals - were on the pro-independence side and presumably they came out in far greater numbers than those who wish to remain part of Spain.

Indeed, pre-referendum polls suggest the remain and leave sides in Catalonia are far closer than the referendum result implies.

While an overwhelming 85 per cent of voters in Catalonia - on both sides - wanted a referendum on independence, the pro-independence movement only had a six per cent lead over the pro-Madrid 'remainers'.

An average of 53 opinion polls taken in Catalonia since September 2010 has the pro-independence movement on 44 per cent compared to 38 per cent for the pro-Madrid said.

These polls also showed that 14 per cent of Catalan voters were undecided and - if a full lawful referendum had been allowed to proceed - it is these people who would have decided the issue.

Both Brexit and the last General Election in the UK proved how crucial undecided voters can be. In the wake of the weekend's violence one imagines many of those undecided Catalonian voters are now firmly in the pro-independence ranks.

Spain's Government has thrown away a huge opportunity and handed a major propaganda coup to their Catalan opponents.
A former Swords secondary school teacher has joined the publishing world

Caitriona Coyle has just unveiled her debut novel 'College Girls' which features the lives of three women living in Dubin during the 1970s set against the backdrop of The Troubles and the psychedelic movement.

A teacher at St Finian's Community College , Caitriona took early retirement in 2012 to concentrate on her own writing. She completed a creative writing course in Dublin city centre.

Caitriona was born and reared in County Donegal, Ireland but has lived in Dublin for most of her adult life.

These days, she divides her time between her native Donegal and Dublin. Caitriona is married and has two grown-up daughters.

And last week her former colleagues and friends all descended on the Carnegie Court Hotel for the local launch of her novel, which which chronicles the lives of three women who share a flat in Dublin during the 1970s.

'I chose the Carnegie Court Hotel because it was so familiar to me, and I knew the room that I had the launch in would be ideal,' the author said. 'Over the years the school I taught in had used the hotel for all kinds of functions and we were always happy.'

In the book, Cathy Logue is delighted to be out of boarding school, away from nuns, and heading to college in Dublin. She is delighted to be escaping her unhappy home life too. Cathy soon moves into a flat with two other boarding school survivors, and although the flat is a dive, the girls are determined to make the best of it.

The troubles in Northern Ireland are at their height but Dublin seems oblivious as it moves slowly out of the hippy era, seducing Cathy with its bohemian village atmosphere.

The girls are fascinated by Rosie, who lives in the flat above them and who takes Cathy on a hilarious but shocking journey that ends in hurt and disappointment.

Humorous, yet poignant, College Girls is a coming of age story, telling a tale of longing, betrayal but ultimately, survival.
Award-winning concert pianist Maire Carroll from Malahide was at the launch of Top Security's Frank Maher Classical Music Awards for 2017, a competition she won herself eight years ago.

With a 5,000 top prize, the Awards are Ireland's biggest classical music competition for secondary schools.

Joining Maire at the launch in the grounds of Malahide Castle were sixth year music students Cian Riordan (17), Andrea Jones (17) and Nicole Cosgrave (18) from Malahide Community School.

The Frank Maher Classical Music Awards were created in 2001 by Emmet O'Rafferty, chairman of the Top Security Group, to showcase outstanding young talent in classical music.

Past winners have received national and international recognition for their achievement and used their prize money as a springboard towards a professional career by funding their studies at some of the world's most renowned music colleges and institutions.

Emmet said: 'I established the Awards to honour the memory of one of my late teachers, Frank Maher, who would have been delighted with the incredible young talent they have attracted over the years, as so ably demonstrated by former winners like Maire Carroll and Aidan Chan. I wish this year's prospective entrants the very best of luck.'

The Awards are open to sixth year post-primary students of string, woodwind, brass and piano.

The 5,000 top prize will be used by the winner to attend a recognised place of tuition, a course of study in Ireland or abroad or on a purchase necessary for the development of their talent. The finalists will each receive a 250 bursary.

Maire Carroll said: 'Winning the Frank Maher Award in 2009 was a great honour and privilege.

'I am incredibly grateful to have had that financial support at such a crucial stage in my career. It is a fantastic opportunity for sixth-year students and I would encourage all aspiring professional musicians to enter it.'

The closing date for entries is Thursday 12th October 2017. Seven finalists will be selected by an independent board of adjudicators to attend the competition night on Friday, November 10 7 at the Royal College of Physicians in Dublin to perform in front of an invited audience.

Full details, including rules and a copy of the application form for downloading, are on www.topsecurity.ie.
The Fingal Volunteer Expo 2017 is taking place on Thursday at the Pavilions Shopping Centre from 11am to 3pm.

The Fingal Volunteer Centre is inviting all not-for-profit, volunteer involving organisations and volunteers to the event.

It is aimed at helping organisations attracting people who are interested in becoming volunteers but who may not know exactly where or how to go about it.

This is a great opportunity for your organisation to showcase your volunteer opportunities; let the community know about the work you do; network with other organisations; and get to engage with Fingal Volunteer Centre and develop new opportunities.

If you are currently recruiting volunteers, why not book a stand by contacting Daiga daiga@volunteerfingal.ie or call 0876360637/018991921.

Meanwhile, the Volunteer Ireland Awards are an awards programme that makes a difference.

They aim to shine a light on the remarkable work of volunteers around the country by celebrating them on a national level.

The Volunteer Ireland Awards are a unique opportunity to say 'thank you' to ordinary people doing extraordinary work across the country.

Nominations for the 2017 Volunteer Ireland Awards are now open and will close at midnight on Friday.

A special commendation for Volunteer Manager of the Year is also awarded. This can be a paid or unpaid position. You can nominate a volunteer or group of volunteers here. You can nominate a Volunteer Manager here.

For more info check out www.volunteer.ie. Each nominee gets a thank you card!
Ireland's Got Talent judge Jason Byrne has avoided a driving ban after he pleaded guilty to driving without insurance and driving without a driving licence.

The stand-up comedian, who was a disqualified driver on the day he was stopped by gardai as he had accumulated 13 penalty points for speeding offences, only drove as he was in 'severe difficulty' to collect his nine year old son.

He said he was afraid his son would walk home on a dangerous, rural road after his wife could not pick the child up.

Swords District Court heard on the day he was stopped by the Garda Traffic Unit at a checkpoint in the village he lives in, he admitted to the garda he had no driving licence and no insurance as he had 13 penalty points.

On hearing that Byrne had informed the garda he had penalty points, Judge Brian O'Shea said he was impressed with his roadside honesty.

'I am part impressed by his honesty at the roadside,' said Judge O'Shea. 'There is significant weight to the honesty in that.'

Byrne (45), with an address at Oldtown, pleaded guilty at Swords District Court to driving without insurance and driving without a driving licence on June 13 on the R122 near his home in Oldtown village.

Byrne's defence barrister Patrick Jackson said the comedian 'took a chance' on the day.

'His nine year old son was at primary school in a rural area and the defendant's wife was due to collect their son,' explained Mr Jackson.

'However, there was a significant succession of unfortunate events as he couldn't get in contact with his wife. He also tried unsuccessfully to get in contact with a neighbour to collect his son. He was afraid his son may have tried to walk home on a dangerous rural road. He made a decision to drive and took a chance.'

The prosecuting garda agreed with Mr Jackson that the road 'wouldn't be a safe road' for walking on.

When Judge O'Shea asked if any of the 13 penalty points Byrne had accrued for speeding offences had gone, Byrne replied: 'Tomorrow' and that his licence is due to be returned to him then.

'There is some degree of recklessness of the general adherence of road traffic laws and it seems to me he had a relatively benign view of road traffic matters. He was a disqualified driver but he declared that to the garda,' remarked Judge O'Shea.

Judge O'Shea said he has significant concerns of Byrne's ongoing speeding incidents.

'You are going to have to declare to your insurance company you were driving without insurance on that day. If you were involved in an incident you'd have no insurance and the reason we all have to pay higher premiums is to fund people like you who drive without insurance. Those are my concerns,' said Judge O'Shea.

Addressing the court, Byrne apologised for his actions. 'I shouldn't have done it and I have never done it before and I won't do it again.'

Taking Byrne's word that he won't drive again without insurance Judge O'Shea said he won't impose a disqualification as the defendant has no previous convictions for similar.

When he imposed a 500 fine for having no insurance, Byrne asked if he could pay the money to Temple Street Children's Hospital, which the judge agreed to allow him to do.

He took the charge of having no driving licence into consideration.

'It won't undo your conviction and you now have a significant number of points again,' said Judge O'Shea and warned Byrne to 'be very careful driving.'

Replying, Byrne quipped: 'I will, I'll drive in reverse.'

Speaking afterwards Byrne said: 'It was a spur of the moment thing and I shouldn't have driven. I was panicking about my son. I am glad I can give the money to Temple Street.

'If you break the law, you break the law and that's it. The thing is that I was just unfortunate with the penalty points. No-one got hurt thankfully.'
Following last week's featuring of the alleged murder on RTE's Crime Call, Crimestoppers and gardai have renewed the appeal for information in relation to the killing of Michal Kurek whose body was found at Ballyboughal.

He had died from multiple stab wounds. Michal was a 33 year old man, originally from Dziewin in Poland, who had resided mainly in Ireland since 2010. He was recently homeless and frequented the Ongar area, Dublin 15.

Detective Inspector Eddie Carroll, Balbriggan Garda Station said: 'In August, Michal was murdered and we are appealing for anyone with information or anyone who saw Michael between Thursday 3rr or Friday 4th August, 2017 to come forward.

'Based on Michal's last known movements, we are particularly keen to hear from people residing in the areas of Ongar, Clonsilla, Coolmine, Hartstown and Huntstown.

'We are also appealing to members of the Polish community (Crimestoppers posters have been designed in the Polish language, to assist any witnesses).'

Detective inspector Carroll said: 'I genuinely believe that members of the public have information in relation to the murder and I am asking these individuals to come forward. Information can be given to investigating Gardai at Balbriggan Garda Station on 01 6664500 or any Garda Station. If a member of the public prefers to give the information without identify themselves, they can call Crimestoppers on 1800 25 00 25.'
The winners of the Martin Mullen Bursary, operated by the Balbriggan-based Progressive Credit Union, has been presented with their funding towards their further education plans.

Both Liam Kavanagh and Hannahmarie Vickers were successful in securing a place on their preferred courses, and the funding sees them start a new chapter in their lives.

Liam who has a keen interest in physics has secured a place in Trinity College Dublin and will be studying Theoretical Physics. Liam hopes to continue his education to complete his masters and then pursue a career in this field.

Hannahmarie plans to make a difference to people's lives with her choice to study Law and Politics and has secured a place on her desired course in Dublin City University.

Hannahmarie also has plans to continue her education to masters level and pursue a career in criminal psychology.

Brian Howard, Marketing and Development Officer, said: 'It was a pleasure to meet both winners, and we wish them all the best in their future. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our applicants and encourage you all to apply next year.

'We are delighted to continue this Bursary and keep alive the memory of our great mentor Martin Mullen. Martin was the manager of the former Balbriggan Credit Union Ltd, now Progressive Credit Union Ltd until his untimely death in 2009.

'He was a great believer of self-development, and his inspiration is still vastly changing young peoples lives through our 'Martin Mullen Bursary' funding for further education.'
The Minister for Transport is adamant that the delivery of Dublin Airport's new runway will not be delayed despite more than a year's delay in establishing a new noise control regime for airports that will ultimately decide the fate of night-time flying from the new runway.

A planning condition attached to the new runway restricting night-time flying is being challenged by the daa but neighbours of the airport want the condition to stay in place. Thanks to a new noise control regime for Irish Airports, it will be the Irish Aviation Authority that will decide between those two competing interests but a year down the track, the Government appears no closer to giving the IAA that power.

Minister for Transport, Shane Ross was quizzed on the issue last week in the Dail by Deputy Robert Troy TD, who said: 'The lack of progress on this is having a huge impact. Dublin Airport is at capacity. It will have severe negative economic impact on the wider area.'

The Government has been seeking legal advice on how best to introduce the new regime and according to the Minister for Transport, that remains the case. He said: 'I regret enormously but it is very important that we get it right. We are dependent on legal advice wherever it is coming from but mostly from the Attorney General's office. We will take that legal advice. What is important to hear is that we get it right.'

Minister Ross said the long delayed process would not knock the runway off schedule, saying: 'That route is slower than we expected but it will be finalised in good time so that the timetable is not in any way knocked.'

The minister said that once the new regime is in place, residents would have their say. He told the Dail that 'the residents have a real interest in this issue as well and they have a right to a hearing'.

He added that residents 'have a right to a certain tranquility and not to be disrupted too much by airlines. That is why we will have a noise regulator.'
We have just returned from a family trip to Skibbereen where we were joined by both granddads and our most placid, diplomatic friends who happen to have a fondness for old people and children. The friends were invited deliberately to act as a buffer just in case things went a bit arseways at some stage during the proceedings.

Thankfully that didn't happen. We made it to Skibereen in one piece and made it home again two days later, slightly the worse for wear but all still talking which has to be viewed as a success. There may have been a few minor hiccups - The Youngest coming down to the bar at 11 p.m. in just her sweatshirt to inform us we hadn't packed any pajamas for her, a teenager who wasn't happy about having to share a room with his younger sister and one grandad getting a bit shirty because we wouldn't go to Mass with him, but we got over it.

The itinerary was jam packed because Grandad D wanted to show us his ancestral home. We visited Bandon, Union Hall, Glandore, Innishannon, Castletownsend and Sherkin Island. We knocked on the doors of cousins he hadn't seen in 20 years and they welcomed us with open arms, forcing tea, coffee, cakes and whiskey on us with wild abandon.

We dined in a magnificent converted Protestant church where we ate Clonakilty black pudding and locally sourced fish. We drank Murphy's and Jameson and Grandad D shouted at a crowd of women sitting beside us to be quiet only for one of them to come over and challenge him while the rest of us ducked for cover under the table cloth.

Turns out she didn't berate him at all. Instead she threw her arms around him and declared she was a second cousin twice removed or something along those lines. He also bumped into some other random woman as we were leaving who also maintained she was his cousin.

And Granddad D went to bed happy as Larry, the only fly in the ointment being we wouldn't get up to go to 11 o'clock mass with him. Heathens the whole lot of us!

We concluded the trip with a visit to Beal na mBlath where Michael Collins was assassinated by Anti-Treatyites in August 1922. We took vast numbers of photos at the monument erected to Collins at the side of the road before getting in the car to begin the long trip home.

'Here,' says Grandad D, shoving a newspaper into my hand. 'Read that. It might save your soul.' I looked down - a copy of the Catholic Times.

I wouldn't hold my breath!
Two Wexford professionals have been selected as new Bord Bia Origin Green Ambassadors to promote the Irish agri-food industry's sustainability efforts.

James Atkinson, from Wexford town, and Elaine O'Connor, from Piercestown, both graduates from UCD, will study for an MSc in Business Sustainability with the UCD Smurfit Graduate Business School while working abroad on behalf of Bord Bia and the Irish food industry.

Chosen from over 200 applications, these ambassadors, part of a larger group, all of whom have a minimum of five years' professional experience, will continue the important role of building awareness of Ireland's food and drink industry's sustainability credentials, both at home and abroad as part of Bord Bia's Origin Green initiative.

Origin Green is the world's first sustainability programme for a country's entire food and drink sector. Origin Green enables Ireland's food industry to set and achieve measurable sustainability targets, establishing a baseline for continuous improvement.

The Ambassador programme is unique in that it brings education, leading global food and drink brands and entrepreneurial sustainability professionals together to collaborate and learn.

Following an intensive induction in UCD, James and Elaine will each be assigned to an international company placement in an overseas market to promote Origin Green while also gathering invaluable insights into trade strategies which will be fed back into industry at home here in Ireland.

In the past, Origin Green Ambassadors have worked in some of the world's most influential brands across Europe, North America, and Asia, including Alibaba, Coca-Cola, Cargill, Five Guys, Mars, McDonalds, Sainsbury's, Sodexo, Tesco and WWF.

James Atkinson, who has previously worked for Irish Distillers, said:

'I'm proud to be a Bord Bia Origin Green Ambassador. Ireland is a world leader in food and drink production and now we are leading the way for sustainable business solutions.'

Elaine O'Connor said she was looking forward to learning from global food companies and working with thought leaders within the industry as they face increasing sustainability challenges, while also promoting our Irish food and drink industry overseas.
Verity Fleming is a miracle baby, and its a miracle that she and her mother Annemarie survived her difficult birth.

This made last Saturday a particularly emotional one at the family home at Creagh, Gorey as they celebrated Veritys first birthday.

Verity was born 15 weeks premature, at just 25 weeks gestation, and weighed just 1 lb 12 oz, or 810 grams. She had to be delivered early to save her mothers life. Verity was not expected to survive, but she did. Annemaries life hung in the balance too, but thanks to the vigilance of the staff at Holles Street Hospital in Dublin, they both lived.

It was then discovered that Verity was born with five holes in her heart, and she spent months in hospital. She finally arrived home three days before Christmas and met her three sisters and brother for the first time.

Her father David said that Veritys first birthday was a day they thought they wouldnt see.

It all kicked off a little before the end of September last year, he recalled. Annemarie was pregnant with their fifth child. Three of their children had been delivered by caesarian section, and the doctors had warned that this was potentially something to worry about.

Annemarie suffered from various bouts of pain, and had been to hospital several times, but there didnt appear to be anything sinister.

On September 23, she was brought to Wexford General by ambulance, suffering from sever pain. The following day, the pain had started to subside, but the doctor referred them to Holles Street Hospital in Dublin for a scan.

A number of issues were discovered, including an issue with the babys heart, and with the placenta which had attached to scar tissue. Injections were administered to help the babys lunge mature. The due date was January 10, and Annemarie was told shed have to stay in hospital until then.

A week later, the doctor was doing the rounds on the ward, and he said if she stayed pain free, he might let her go home, recalled David.

Unfortunately, Annemarie suffered a seizure that evening. She was stabilised and moved to the high dependency unit. Later that night, David got a call at 1 a.m. to get to the hospital. The implication was she might not see the night out, said David.

The gardai in Gorey brought him up to the hospital at speed.

Annemaries blood clotting factor was gone, and David was told that if they operated, she would bleed out. They spent the night giving her transfusions to try to get the body to clot.

By 7 a.m., she was stabilised, and the doctors took an educated guess that in the scans, the baby was blocking their view of a bleed.

The consultant was brought in. He was an absolutely brilliant man, and he said weve got to go, said David. I was taken out, and she was prepared for surgery.

At this point, the Master of the Hospital visited David and said the baby would definitely not make it, and that Annemaries survival was their paramount concern.

I thought my world was falling down around me, he said.

Another doctor then came in and said there may be a chance for the baby as she was 25 weeks. David was given Annemaries wedding ring and engagement ring.

I was asked to say goodbye to her, he said. She was petrified, and she said to me look after our kids. I know youll be a great Dad, She knew she would die.

At 9.05 a.m., David was given the thumbs up. The baby was born alive, and she was brought to the neo-natal ICU. Its hard to explain just how small she was, said David. She was less than a bag of sugar. I was allowed to briefly touch her hand.

Then it was back to the theatre. A surgeon came out at 2 p.m. and said they had been successful in saving Annemarie. The equivalent of three times the entire blood from her body had been lost and replaced.

A team from St Vincents Hospital had been called in to assist with various aspects of the surgery. Annemarie was brought to St Vincents overnight to recover, and David went home to tell their children they had a new sister. They wouldnt see her for another three months.

Annemarie was then brought back to Holles Street to be with Verity, and she stayed there for two-and-a-half weeks. They both have nothing but praise for all the team at Holles Street.

Verity faced numerous challenges, but overcame them all. Five holes were found in her heart, but fortunately they healed naturally. She had seven transfusions. Surgery had been anticipated but would not have been possible until her weight reached 5 lbs.

Shes a healthy baby now, said David. Shes a bit smaller than a one-year-old, but shell catch up. Annemarie is also recovering well.

Saturday was an extremely emotional day, added David. A year ago, I thought Id be telling the kids they didnt have a sister and their mother wasnt coming home.

There were so many moments where youd think youre out of the woods, and then something would happen, he said. It was extremely stressful, but we were one of the lucky families.'
Wexford-based infection control company Medentech has been ranked in the top six of Fortune Magazine's 'Firms Changing the World on a Global Scale'.

The nomination for the company of 100 employees at the Whitemill Industrial Estate on the Clonard Road, was selected by Fortune Magazine through suggestions from readers around the globe.

Fortune Magazine, a multinational business magazine is published and owned by Time Magazine, in New York City. It is internationally recognised due to its annual high profile publication of company rankings worldwide.

Although Medentech has been successfully running for 35 years, this is the first major global recognition of the innovative, ground-breaking work they produce in Wexford for the international market.

This is not least due to their newly-appointed management team two years ago.

The predominantly female-led team have already created a number of global-leading products, including the world's lowest cost system for pressurised water treatment and the fastest-growing disinfectant to kill the hospital acquired mutant germ that kills most patients in the US.

Michael Gately, MD of Medentech, said that over the past two years, the team at Medentech have achieved things of which he really could only have dreamed and the development pipeline for the next two years goes beyond that.

Other major products produced by Medentech are Aquatabs, the world's no 1 water purification tablets. Aquatabs are used for emergency water treatment in disaster situations by all of the world's major aid agencies, NGOs, relief organisations, defence forces and Ministries of Health.

Medentech is owned by Irish management and Hypred France. The company develops and manufactures disinfectant solutions and water purification tablets to improve access to safe, drinking water worldwide as well as reducing surface contamination in clinical, food and farm environments. With distribution agents in over 100 countries they offer world leading, technologies and expertise. Medentech make 1 billion tablets each year to save the most vulnerable lives of under two year olds.
They want to realise the full potential of a remote, beautiful area - and bring jobs and youth back in the process.

Tourism representatives in South Kerrt have joined forces to promote the Skellig region in the most effective way possible - and Skellig Coast Tourism Network (SCTN) Chairperson Frank Curran said there's a lot more to the place than just Star Wars and Skellig Michael.

SCTN was formed earlier this year, acting as an umbrella over 13 tourism, community, business and development groups within a catchment stretching from Kells to Castlecove. The network was formed in a bid to co-ordinate and strengthen the activities of these 13 groups, combining the area's strengths to boost its reputation as a quality tourist destination, as Mr Curran explained.

"Failte Ireland was the catalyst behind forming this group, and we've also been backed in various capacities by Kerry County Council, IT Tralee, Udaras na Gaeltachta, South Kerry Development Partnership, Kerry ETB, Kerry Local Enterprise Office, and LEADER," Mr Curran explained. "Failte Ireland wanted to promote certain points along the Wild Atlantic Way as destinations in their own right, and thankfully the Skellig area was chosen as one of Failte Ireland's pilot regions for its plans.

"There is logic behind it. Instead of having 40 different groups putting out 40 different brochures, we will now see groups combining their efforts into one solid package. South Kerry has many selling points - like its place within the Wild Atlantic Way, its Dark Sky Reserve Status, and archaeological and walking attractions to name just a few things - and by promoting these in a package, we hope to increase average dwell-time by tourists in the region, extend our tourist season, and spread tourism more evenly across the catchment," he added.

The initial steps in reaching those goals are outlined in the SCTN's Visitor Experience Development Plan (VEDP), which Mary Hartnett (Project Manager) and Susan Baughman (Project Animator) will spearhead as part of a six-month contract co-funded by Udaras na Gaeltachta and Kerry County Council.

"Mary has gained a lot of experience within the tourism sector, while Susan has a strong understanding of the locality and marketing," Mr Curran said.

"With 13 groups involved, both Susan and Mary will help us steer the network in the right direction. South Kerry is facing many challenges, but we hope this network can bring more of our young people back as we go and create more jobs across this entire region."
Fr Pat Moore's memory was very much to the fore of a charitable event in the late cleric's beloved parish of Duagh on Friday night as a donation of more than 1,000 was made to a vital health cause in his memory.

The 1,100 was the proceeds of the recent and massive Bringing Back the Showbands concert held in the Duagh Sport and Leisure Complex as a fundraiser to support their own operations as well as the Kerry Cork Health Link Bus - a lifeline of a service for the many Kerry people travelling to Cork for regular treatment.

Chairperson Anne Scanlon said the group was delighted to present the funds in memory of Fr Moore: "On behalf of the committee I wish to thank all those who made the concert such an incredible success with support that was very much appreciated. We will make this an annual event and continue our partnership with the Kerry cancer support group and in doing so keep the spirit of Fr Pat alive in the hearts of all the people of the parish and all North Kerry."
Two hundred and ninety general operative workers at the Kerry Ingredients plant in Listowel were set to mount the second of four 24-hour strikes from 10pm on Tuesday.

The workers, represented by SIPTU, are demanding a 3.5 per cent annual pay rise for the period of 2015-2018 (14 per cent over the four years, instead of a 2.5 per cent rise (amounting to a ten per cent rise for the period) that was recommended by the Labour Court following a conciliation process earlier in the year.

Kerry Group employers accepted the Labour Court recommendation for a rise above the average for the sector, but it was rejected by workers at the plant. They are seeking the higher increment to recognise what they feel is the greater demand placed on them by the introduction of a new 'SAP' computer system at the plant.
Kerry farmers will receive more than 14,000,000 in funds through the Areas of Natural Constraints (ANC) scheme, following an announcement by Minister Michael Creed TD.

Just under 6,000 farmers across the county are set to benefit. The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine said it has started issuing payments and will continue the process "as a matter of urgency over the coming weeks".

In welcoming the news, Minister Brendan Griffin TD said: "Farmers, especially on the hills and in the disadvantaged areas, took heavy cuts in direct support during the recession and the funding for this year, totalling 14,112,602. in Kerry will go some way to rectifying that." He added that farm families are the heartbeat of the rural economy.
There will be a children's book festival at New Ross Library this month.

The festival begins on October 10 at 9.30 p.m. with a storytelling session with Liz Weir.

Liz is one of the best storytellers in Ireland and she has been practising her art for over 40 years. She is a narrator who mesmerises children, transporting them into wonderful imaginary worlds. The event is suitable for 6 to 9 year olds.

On Wednesday, October 11, at 12 noon writer Caroline Busher will host a 'Vulgar Victorians and Ghastly Georgians' Workshop.

Suitable for children aged between 10 and 12 years those attending will travel back in time to the Vulgar Victorian Era and learn about the Ghastly Georgians. Children will explore the strange and wonderful superstitions and beliefs of the Victorian Era. Caroline will also read a chapter of her latest novel 'The Girl Who Ate the Stars'.

On Friday, October 13, at 10 a.m Jackie Burke, author of the popular 'Grindlewood' series will be at the library. She will talk about how to come up with ideas for stories, how to structure them, what to do if you get stuck and also explore how to improve your writing and the importance of keeping notes. Jackie will be reading short pieces from her books and will finish up with a lively question and answer session. The event is suitable for 8-12 year olds.

On Saturday, October 14, at 11 a.m. there will be a book clinic at the library where Dr Patricia will be on duty to diagnose reading habits and prescribe good reads for children.

On Monday, October 16, at 2 p.m. illustrator and storyteller Wayne O'Connor will bring teenagers on a magical journey into the world of JRR Tolkien, author of the Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. A New Ross native Wayne is now living and working in Sligo as an illustrator. This event is suitable for 12-15 year olds.

On Tuesday, October 17, at 6 p.m. children under 7 are invited to the library for bedtime storytime. Children are asked to wear their favourite pyjamas and snuggle up with milk and cookies for bedtime stories. Teddies welcome too!

On Wednesday, October 18, at 9.30 a.m. Matha-magician Caolan McBride will be celebrating Maths Week by using a combination of his magical and mathematical skills to amaze and wow audiences. Through astonishing tricks and slights of hand he will promote pupils' interest in the wonderful world of magic and of mathematics. The event is suitable for 9-12 year olds.

On Friday, October 20 at 1.30 p.m. Aine Ni Shuilleabhan of Broga Nua will demonstrate how to use simple games, songs and action rhymes to encourage young children to start learning and enjoying Irish. You do not need to be an Irish speaker to enjoy this interactive workshop which will focus on introducing Irish in a fun and playful way. It is suitable for Junior/Senior Infants.

On Friday, October 24, at 10 a.m. there will be a visit from BUMBLEance, the National Children's Ambulance Service. The Bookworms for BUMBLEance project provides a unique and exciting session for children as they get to hear authors from Little Island Books reading from their own work and talking about why and how they write their books. Lucinda Jacob will be the author attending and will be reading from 'Hopscotch in the Sky', her latest poetry collection. This is suitable for 8-12 year olds.

Finally on October 25 at 12.30 p.m. there will be a workshop with Colm Keegan.

Colm is the current All Ireland Slam Poetry Champion and appears regularly as a poetry reviewer and contributor to Arena on RTE Radio 1. The session with Colm begins with a talk/show on the power and importance of one's own voice before the group breaks up to write their own work before finishing with a poetry slam at the end. This is suitable for 12-15 year olds.

For more information on any of the events or to book contact 051 421877.
Singing songs from each of their traditions with a rare, raw passion and tangible energy, Eliza Carthy and Tim Eriksen are two of the most respected voices in traditional folksong. Together they form a powerhouse duo that is, in turns, hilarious and heart-breaking, intense and joyful and this Thursday, October 5th, they visit the Hawk's Well Theatre.

Living on opposite sides of the Atlantic Ocean can prove difficult for the duo who have been friends for some time, but, it matters little when they meet up to perform. They may not be able to rehearse their music together for weeks on end, but that is part of what makes it so special.

"We have a whole day to rehearse together in Enniskillen," joked Eliza.

Tim is based in the United States, while Eliza is based in the UK. Both have families, so spending weeks on end abroad is not always ideal. Eliza has not yet played in Sligo, but has played across venues in Ireland such as the Roisin Dubh, Whelan's and more with her parents.

"We've known each other a long time. Mum and Dad would tour in the States and Tim has been a follower of my Dad's for a long time. The first time we met I was probably 13 and I didn't really talk much back then! He's been around in my life a long time," she explained.

She continued: "We became friends as an adult and I guess there was a sort of 15 year gap where we didn't see each other. Then four years ago we started playing together."

More than most, Eliza Carthy has revitalised folk music and captured the most hardened of dissenters with intelligent, charismatic and boundary-crossing performance. This year Eliza was honoured with a MBE for her amazing services to folk music. Tim Eriksen is acclaimed for transforming American tradition with his startling interpretations of old ballads, love songs, shape-note gospel and dance tunes from New England and Southern Appalachia. The time difference means that communication can be tough, but the pair speak through Skype and Messenger. Tim has family in Eastern Europe so visits the continent from time to time.

A great show is promised: "It's a great show, it's quite raw in places. There are lots of nice harmonies, and it's mainly trad stuff really. I sing in places. It's sort of mutual confusion! Our album 'Bottle' was half live and half studio. We recorded eight tracks in Dorset and we mixed that with the live show."

Tickets are 18 with a special Go See rate of 9 for under 18s.
The rise and fall of Landed Estates in the north west will be the topic under the microscope at Sligo Field Club's annual conference this weekend at the Sligo Park Hotel.

A number of expert historians will take to the stage for a series of lectures including Professor Raymond Gillispie of NUI Maynooth, Economist Desmond Norton and Dr. David Fleming of UL.

Talks will include the transfer of land from Celtic Lords to Landlords in the 16th and 17th centuries and 'Life in the Big House.' By the 18th century when Catholic Irish held a mere 5% of land, new ownership and its power were expressed in the building of great houses. In this respect the role of the Temple and Wynne families in Sligo and their powerful influence will also be discussed.

That power would not, however, last and following the economic downturns of the 1800s, bankruptcies and tenant agitation inevitably led to collapse and the assisted purchase of their land by in excess of 80% of tenants.

That transfer will be considered by Prof. Gearoid O Tuathaigh in Land Agitation, Land Acts and social change in Ireland 1870-1914. The survival of some will be discussed by Country House Historian David Hicks in Chronicles for Change.

His lecture will focus on the survival of estates such as Lissadell and Glenveagh. The conference fee will be 60.00 Further details are available at www.sligofieldclub.com and on Facebook.
Sligo Anglers are seeking an urgent meeting with the Minister for Rural and natural resources Sean Kyne TD and the Fisheries Chairman Fintan Gorman on pike control in Lough Arrow.

They say there is a need to control pike in western lakes, including Sligo's Lough Arrow to ensure the development of wild brown trout stocks.

The announcement follows the launch of their campaign 'Pike are Predators - Save our Wild Brown Trout' which attracted over 200 anglers to Oughterard.

Chairperson of the Connacht Angling Council, Martin Kinneavy said: "I have informed both Minister Kyne and Mr Gorman of the threat posed by pike to wild brown trout in the great western Loughs. Inland Fisheries Ireland is currently reviewing its policy regarding control of pike. I have asked that both do all in their power to ensure that these world famous Irish wild brown trout fisheries are protected by law from pike so they can reach their full trout angling potential."

"Anglers are deeply concerned that Inland Fisheries Ireland is already rowing back on pike control in advance of a relaxation of the existing bye-laws.

"Pike are far more prolific breeders than trout and a pike will eat as much as 20kgs of wild brown trout in western fisheries per-year.

"I have pointed out that West of Ireland wild brown trout waters were internationally recognised as the best in the world and that wild brown trout angling is worth 148m per-year to the Irish economy, the bulk of that money spent in the West, where, as they are both are well aware, it is badly needed.

"It is the view of the Connacht Angling Council that designated wild brown trout fisheries should be managed exclusively for the benefit of wild brown trout. West of Ireland wild brown trout fisheries are unique eco-systems and need to be protected as such by law; otherwise, we are staring at severe damage to Wild Brown Trout stocks in this region.

"Inland Fisheries Ireland must maintain its bye-laws in relation to the gill netting and electro fishing of pike for the pike spawning season. A closed season for all fishing needs to be introduced from September 30 to February 15, excluding events covered under section 59 of the Fisheries Act.

"There must be an immediate pike cull, an end to the ban on culling by by and line, and severe penalties for the importation of live bait. Inland Fisheries Ireland should establish a fully staffed and full-time office in Galway to deal with issues around wild brown trout, salmon, seatrout, and eels as the West of Ireland is a renowned breeding ground for all of these species.

"Wild brown trout anglers are deeply, deeply concerned regarding the situation which is developing. We intend to strongly campaign to save our wild brown trout," he said.
It was being planned for at least two years but Dermot McNally didn't know anything about a planned break-out from the Maze Prison until two days before it happened.

There was always a prison escape committee in place but its dealings were kept top secret. The more people that knew of the plans the more the risk of it being rumbled.

On September 25th 1983, 38 Republican or IRA prisoners escaped from what was once described as one of the most secure prisons in Western Europe through the commandeering of the prison food van.

It was a major embarrassment for the British Government led by Margaret Thatcher and came some two years after ten Republican prisoners had died on hunger strike in the prison.

Lurgan, County Armagh native, McNally serving a life sentence and a 20 year term for explosives and other offences imposed in 1977, was one of the escapees.

He was on the run for a few days, mainly hiding out in South Armagh, before heading for Sligo, where, he says, he was sheltered by several of its townspeople including some its leading business people.

"Sligo was very good to me. I love Sligo. I wouldn't say a bad word about it. I think the people of Sligo are fantastic. They kept me for years, not only me but other escapees like those who broke out from Crumlin Road prison in June 1981, all hidden here in Sligo, given beds and everything.

"Some of these people would have been very wealthy people, business people, some of them Fine Gael people, some of them Fianna Failers,

"Their whole lives could have been ruined if I'd have been captured in their house.

"I was able to stay under the radar because of people like that. And, there's a lot of those people still in this town today, running their businesses.

"At least I'm able to talk to them now without anyone passing any heed," he says.

He says he wasn't surprised by the fact so many were willing to provide him shelter.

"No, not in the sense because, believe it or not, it's in everybody, it just takes a certain thing to ignite it and I think the escape in itself ignited that. An Irishman loves to see people escaping from jail."

It wasn't a case of picking Sligo.

"That's not the way it works. I'd come down here, meet family, stay with people. It was a place where I could go out and have a pint without coming under suspicion.

"And, that's what I did and I met a local girl so I wasn't dependant on people like I was on putting me up all the time. We got a flat and I was able to stay with her. That broke my security right down. I was here for a few years before they even knew I was here.

"I was living openly then, I never hid then, I was married. I was on the dole at the time."

A film about the Maze prison escape starring Tom Vaughan-Lawlor of Love Hate fame, hits the cinema in Sligo this week and Dermot (60)says it was an experience that comes and goes in his mind.

"Sometimes it's very distant but most of the time....it's part of your life.

He'd been five and a half years on the blanket or dirty protest as Republican prisoners sought the reintroduction of special category status to allow them to wear their own clothes amongst other concessions such as free association and the right to refuse to do prison work.

The situation escalated to the hunger strikes of 1981 and McNally was one of those who signed up but a perforated ulcer meant he'd have died faster so he was ruled out.

"That would have been counter productive to what the hunger strikers wanted to achieve," he says.

"It was the only alternative we had. Our conditions were described as being worst that the sewers of Calcutta by Cardinal Tomas O'Fiach. Men were being brutally beaten on a daily basis at wing shifts, every time we were going on visits, every time there were cell searches.

"It was constant with different tactics being used in different blocks. The leadership within the jail made a decision that this could not continue. Bobby Sands was the OC before the Hunger Strikes. He says the Maze, formerly Long Kesh, was like a tinderbox in the weeks after Sands' death.

"It had become more than a prison issue, it was a political one and one of criminalisation," he says, adding "eventually, we got most of our concessions."

The planned escape had one draw back, no one knew the lay out of the prison. They needed a blueprint of the whole prison so they were constantly intelligence gathering.

Dermot says that the Republican movement was at a very low ebb at the time due to the impact of the Supergrass trials on the outside with "men and explosives being caught and safe houses raided."

A number of escape plans were put forward. with one in particular raising hopes.

"When you were sent to the punishment cells there was just one person in charge at night. It was also next door to the canteen which was next door to the main car park. The plan was to take over this block. That's where it all stemmed from. If we could get two men out why not forty by taking over a block?"

It took two and a half years to find out the layout of the prison. This was gathered by asking those going to the workshops, on visits, and going in and out of the hospitals outside to observe and not.

The reason H7 was picked was because it was across from H8 which was empty, there was no one even in the towers.

The escape plan involved the prison's food lorry. It was being used all the time around the prison and also for "nixers" by the prison officers so its movements wouldn't raise an eyebrow. Officers used playing cards as a form of pass from one security check to the next.

On the outside too it was one of the biggest IRA military operations they had planned for some time.

Dermot had been asked six months before would he be interested in going on an escape. That's all he knew. Then, two days before he was asked if he was ready.

"My job was to take a prison warden at the alarm bell. If he had pushed that alarm bell I'd have killed him. I've no qualms in saying that. I'd have ended his life.

"On the morning we were told specifically under no circumstances were we to harm any prison officer or degrade any officer in the way they had treated us during the blanket protest."

The IRA had smuggled in five guns while a wooden made one made up the armoury for the escape bid.

"They were smuggled in. In the soles of boots in small, different parts."

Originally the plan was to make the attempt a week earlier.

"We were going to go the week before but the All Ireland final was on and not only that but the warders went out on strike and the RUC was brought in so we couldn't go.

"We also didn't know if information had been passed into the hands of the security forces due to the Supergrass situation and whether they'd be waiting for us to come out on the other side to riddle us."

On the afternoon of the 25th the plan was put into action.

"There was no resistance whatsoever and I was delighted. I didn't use a gun. I used a chisel to this throat. I put him down on the ground and put a pillow case over his head. We then waited until we were told to bring him into where all the other warders were We tied his hands and left them sitting in a comfortable position. We took some of their uniforms."

The food lorry was late coming on its rounds but matters proceeded.

"Thirty eight of us got into the back of it and there was just silence. You could literally hear the grass growing. Your heart stopped at every point we went through. It was waved through all the time but you were just waiting on the back of the lorry to come up.

The lateness of the lorry meant they ran into a change of prison officer shift.

"I'll always remember us all running out the back and all the warders were there. They were stunned by the amount of us. Our OC said 'lean ar aghaidh' which means go ahead, it was every man for himself."

There was a car at the main gate and they were able to get past it. It wasn't an escape that wasn't without violence. One officer was stabbed and he later died of a heart attack while another was shot in the head but from which he recovered.

At that stage there was no plan. A British soldier opened fire as they headed for the fields.

Dermot says he was thrown right over a 30 foot perimeter fence. There no waiting cars as planned. He and seven others got out on to the road where they hijacked a car and van. They subsequently took over a house in Dromore about a quarter of a mile away from the prison.

They drove later to an isolated farm, the fog came down so helicopters couldn't go up.

"We then walked for five days, all eight of us. We went through mostly protestant areas and we walked all the way to South Armagh along train tracks, back roads, rivers., drinking water out of cow throughs.

They called to a house in South Armagh, explained they were escapees and were taken in. Later, cars came and brought them away.

"We went across the border that night and came back again to South Armagh and were sitting in the ditch when a helicopter landed nearby. We saw them get out and we had armed guards guarding us. They were casual saying, don't be worried about them. That's how confident they were."

And, soon life was to be in Sligo for Dermot. Some fifteen escapees were recaptured on the first day, and four over the following two days. In 1996 he was arrested in Sligo and fought his extradition to the North and eventually the case was dropped with the Good Friday Agreement of 1998 taking hold.

He hasn't totted up the time he has spent in various prisons but says it was worth it "because of the sacrifice he and others made with thousands alive today because of it."

"People mightn't agree and say I'm this or that but I was born into the conflict, participated in that conflict and I make no apologies for that and I'm able to sit here today at sixty years of age and I want to see my ideas come to fruition. But, I also want to see it resolved in a peaceful and democratic way in which no one has to lose their life."

Long jail terms he never focused on.

"You don't think abut it. It's not in your head. You were always thinking about how to get out to rejoin the conflict.

"All the time on the run, when I went to bed at night I would say well, if I get caught in the morning I've had a good run."

The youngest in a family of nine, Dermot was married at 17 but the marriage didn't last long after he received his life sentence.

"You walk into jail and you close the door, she's not there. I know that sounds cold hearted but you forget about that. His first child was just two months old when his marriage broke down.

"The biggest casualty of the conflict is family and any man involved in it will tell you that."His first wife was also jailed along with a brother and a sister.

"Being a married man and being involved in the conflict believe me is a disaster. Family suffer. Most of the marriages wouldn't have lasted. You can understand it,. They're rearing the children while you're never there. You can't ask you're husband where were you. When you're leaving the house you say, sorry have to go. That's the sad part of it."

Despite his time in prison he has no regrets about his involvement inside or outside of prison in what he terms was the conflict.

"If I was asked if I would do it all again, then I would answer, yes, no bother. I felt it was an awful sacrifice made by the hunger strikers. It will take another 20 years for ordinary people of today to realise what that sacrifice was all about in terms of changing this country.

I do believe that very strongly. When I got out of jail I had one objective and that was to continue on with the struggle to which they gave their life to. And, I will continue it on to the day I die, in a peaceful and democratic manner.

Was it worth it? My parents had no vote. I was attacked going to school every day. I know others didnt get involved but nine of ten people I went to school with ended up in jail.

What Id like to see today is an island of equals where everyone is given the same opportunity. Brexit enhances the argument for a united Ireland in my view.

The hunger strike, he says, was a peaceful protest. And it was one the prisoners had control of with no outside pressure, he insists.

It was the beginning of a journey that hasnt ended yet, he says.

The twice married father of six is out on licence from his life sentence and while he says he never received any letter of comfort from the British he is no longer wanted over the 1983 escape and he regularly visits Northern Ireland.

His mother died last year. At the time, the PSNI contacted him about a death threat and the family home also had to be cleared after a bomb threat. The funeral route was also changed after a similar warning. A helicopter flew overhead and armed police were ever present.

I seen a lot of changes (in Lurgan) but not enough..... its still back in time. It is moving in the right direction It s being held back by dissident republican activity. Can that achieve anything? In my eyes, no.

Not in the slightest can it achieve anything. Armed struggle in relation to any conflict in Western Europe is finished. 9/11 killed all that. Its going nowhere.

He describes himself a reactionary in his teenage years as regards his involved in Republicanism and that he hadnt become politically aware until a couple of years into his early sentences. And conflict resolution he says has a vital part to play in the coming years.

Of course there were victims. There were victims on all sides. But, there has to be equal rights for everybody. The only way to deal with that is to deal with the legacy of the past. It cant be one sided.

Hed like to see the legacy of the past dealt with through a truth commission style set up. There are a lot of people out there who have a right to know why their loved ones died.

And, he distinguishes this from those whom he describes as wearing a uniform representing the crown.

There were people shot in the wrong. Those people deserve an answer.

The IRA inflicted too, no doubt about that, a lot of pain on a lot of people. And some people were innocent. That, in itself has to be addressed as well. Its the same with the disappeared. Its only right that the bodies be found and handed over. It shouldnt have happened in the first place.

And, he disagrees that the Troubles could have been ended sooner. The will just wasnt there, the Brits just wanted to conquer, he says
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A man who has been battling with alcohol has been remanded on continuing bail after it emerged he is getting a fresh start with a Faith based Community Initiative.

Sligo District Court heard that on 9th May Gardai got a call about a man threatening staff at The Snug bar in Stephen's Street car park. When they arrived they viewed CCTV footage and identified the defendant, David Kelly (29) with addresses given at Garavogue Villas and Chestnut Grove, Castlebar.

He was later stopped on JFK Parade, "highly intoxicated". Inspector Paul Kilcoyne said Kelly started shouting abuse at the Gardai and was subsequently arrested.

Nine days later, on 18th May, Gardai responded to a report of a man drunk at the Garavogue Bar at 11.45pm. They found Kelly being restrained by security staff and arrested him due to his intoxication.

Kelly pleaded guilty to both Public Order charges before Judge Kevin Kilrane on 21st September.

His solicitor, Mr Eddie Henry, told Judge Kilrane that when his client was off alcohol, "you couldn't meet a nicer person."

"The reality is that when David takes alcohol, he's a completely different person, abusing Gardai blatantly and foolishly," he told the court.

He handed up a urine analysis from the day before and said Kelly had gotten a "clean bill of health."

Mr Henry said Kelly had been engaging with The Joshua Project, a Faith based community initiative designed to give marginalised people new direction to bring their life back on track, such as the long-term unemployed or people who suffer from substance abuse.

Co-founder of The Joshua Project, Mr Liam McNamara gave evidence in Kelly's defence. He said they met Kelly two months ago in Ballina "in a bad state" where he was "suicidal and intoxicated."

The not-for-profit Joshua Project was founded less than a year ago and is pending Charitable Status approval.

Mr McNamara said he and his wife Mary and a third Trustee Mr Roddy Gallagher had taken Kelly, his partner and two children (including a newborn) under their wing.

He said their programme was designed to help people over 16-20 weeks and the defendant was in the Second Cycle of the programme along with 9 other students.

"All of them have either gone back to further education and four have set up businesses under our protection. Our objective is that if he co-operates with us he will become like the other people and set up a business," Mr McNamara told the judge.

He added that if Kelly was given a custodial sentence it would be "a retrograde step."

Mr McNamara said he was an accountant with a tax practice in Dublin and had a passion to help what he sees as a very big problem nationally.

He said the Joshua Project had its base in Cavan but hoped to expand into Ballinrobe and Ballina next.

The court heard Kelly was now living with one of their trustees Mr Paul Maloney in Westport until alternative accommodation was found for him.

Mr McNamara told Judge Kilrane that the Project start in conjunction with Cavan Drugs Awareness Service, who were partners.

Judge Kilrane said he was "impressed" by Mr McNamara's testimony, adding that it "shows a level of commitment above and beyond the call of duty of the organisation."

He told the court that he was anxious Kelly was given the opportunity to complete the programme "and go on to live a productive life."

He remanded Kelly on continuing bail to next April 5th on all matters to monitor and to hear Mr McNamara again on that date. "I'd be happy to do so," said Mr McNamara.
The Bishop of Elphin Kevin Doran has called on people to pray at least once a week in order to defeat what he says is the campaign for abortion.

He said political strategies would not work alone and he called also for prayers for politicians and healthcare professionals in "these challenging times" that they have "the courage and the wisdom to live up to their responsibilities to protect life."

The Bishop made the remarks during his Homily at midday Mass in Sligo Cathedral on Sunday to mark Day for Life Sunday.

He said: "The attitude that would suggest that human life is disposable or that some lives are of no value, has its roots in the spirit of evil.

"For that reason, I believe that the campaign to legalise abortion will not be defeated by political strategies alone. It requires constant prayer. Today I am asking people throughout our diocese, even if it has not been your practice up to now, to consider committing to spend one hour each week in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament, or to come together with your neighbours or friends to pray the rosary once a week, specifically for the intention of the protection of life and for the needs of women who are experiencing difficulty in pregnancy."

Bishop Doran also stated: "It is more difficult to understand how some politicians and healthcare professionals can justify to themselves their promotion of abortion. Politicians are more immediately removed from the personal "crisis" that provokes the choice of abortion and their particular remit is to serve the common good, which includes the good of all.

"Doctors and nurses have a more detailed scientific knowledge of unborn human life and cannot be in any doubt that the unborn child is a unique human being who has already embarked on the path of life. Obviously, healthcare professionals and politicians come under significant pressure at times like this.

"Sometimes, like the rest of us, they make choices on the basis of a misguided compassion.

"We must always speak out courageously against unjust laws and practices which conflict with the right to life, but it is not our place as Christians to condemn anyone. I invite you instead to pray especially for politicians and healthcare professionals in these challenging times, that they may have the courage and the wisdom to live up to their responsibilities to protect life while at the same time respecting women."

He pointed out it was 50 years this year since legalisation of abortion in England.

He added: "How many babies have been aborted because people wanted to cling to their own agenda (my plans, my reputation, my social life, my absolute right to control my body). How many more have died because their mothers felt lonely and afraid, rather than supported by their partners, their families, their friends and their society. or for our society?"
A Sligo childcare provider will brief members of the Oireachtas at Leinster House today (Tuesday).

Louise Kilbane from Lollipop Lane creche in Tubbercurry will present to TDs on More Affordable Childcare, at a briefing hosted by Fianna Fail Spokesperson on Children and Youth Affairs Deputy Anne Rabbitte.

Lollipop Lane is one of over fifty Early Childhood Ireland members in Co. Sligo. Ms. Kilbane will be joined at the session by fellow member Elizabeth Jackson from Tallaght Childcare Centre in Dublin. Early Childhood Ireland CEO Teresa Heeney will also speak at the session.

More Affordable Childcare is expected to form a key part of the providers' presentations.

This is the name given to a series of childcare supports which came into effect in September.

The supports, which include a universal subsidy as well as targeted subsidies for low-income families, are an interim measure put in place in the wake of the delay in the full Affordable Childcare Scheme.

This scheme was itself delayed when a dedicated IT portal, designed to facilitate the registration of children and families for subsidies, was not completed in time for a planned September 2017 roll-out.

The task of registering families under the scheme therefore passed to providers, creating a considerable burden for a sector already grappling with capitation and staffing difficulties. Today's briefing will enable childcare providers to brief members of the Oireachtas about their direct experience of delivering the scheme for the first time.

Speaking ahead of the briefing, Teresa Heeney, CEO Early Childhood Ireland noted, 'This is an important opportunity for early years providers to discuss their experiences at Leinster House. More Affordable Childcare provides welcome supports for families, but its implementation has entailed a considerable burden for providers and it is important that this context is discussed.

"I am grateful to Deputy Rabbitte for hosting this briefing, and for providing our members with the opportunity to raise these concerns with their elected representatives ahead of Budget 2018.'"
John Boorman, author Declan Murphy and Hon Dr Garech Browne at the launch of A Life In The Trees

Movie-director John Boorman was among the crowd as Declan Murphy launched his new book 'A Life in the Tress' at the Glendalough Hotel on Thursday.

The book is a personal account of the Great Spotted Woodpecker in Ireland and much of the story takes place in the oak woodlands around Glendalough, near where the author lives.

Almost 150 people filled the room on launch night, leaving many people standing, and guests were greeted with two presentations on arrival. A short film showing Great Spotted Woodpeckers feeding their young at a nest and also a slideshow showing extracts from the book itself.

Pat Casey TD opened the evening by welcoming John Boorman, Garech de Brun, Minister Andrew Doyle TD, and various public dignitaries to the event.

Declan then gave an exciting 20 minute presentation which introduced the packed audience to the fascinating and quirky lifestyle of the Great Spotted Woodpecker before inviting John Boorman to speak.

The foreword to the book had been written by John Boorman who then explained to the audience that the book was 'highly visual' and written as 'an engaging narrative.' The book also contains both artwork and photographs.

'A Life in the Trees' by Declan Murphy is available in book shops in Wicklow and Greystones and Blessington and can be ordered online at www.birdwatchireland.ie
Irish Blood Transfusion Service chairman Anthony Staines loves meeting regular contributors and discussing with them their experience of his organisation. And he reckons that many of the donors he speaks to become involved out of family tradition while others are swayed by personal experience of the benefits of having blood in stock.

Recently the chairman had the pleasure of presenting County Wicklow man John O'Reilly with a ceramic pelican to honour his 100th donation at a ceremony in the Crowne Plaza hotel. And John certainly fitted the profile, following in the footsteps his late mother to the IBTS clinic and also influenced by the experience of his late father during his final illness.

Sixty-three-year-old John is Dunlavin born and bred, proud to have lived most of his life in the town, apart from the 20 formative years he spent in Dublin. His wife Catherine hails from Baltinglass and he spent much of his working life in the employ of the family building firm.

His exposure to blood donation dates back more than half a century when his mother brought him with her when she paid a visit to the Imaal Hall. The nurses of the transfusion service had set up shop and he was fascinated, his boyish interest copper-fastened by the bottles of fizzy minerals which were handed out so liberally.

He moved on to reside in Dublin where he gained professional qualifications as an engineer specialising in the field of heating, ventilation and air conditioning.

He worked on the building of offices springing up around Stephen's Green in the seventies and he loved rubbing shoulders with some of the country's best architects.

The Baggot Street office where he had his desk was not far from the transfusion service's then headquarters in Leeson Street at Pelican House where there were regular clinics.

Passing by on his way from work one day, he succumbed to their offer of a free bottle of Guinness - 'it seemed a good idea'.

The beer - alleged to be effective in replacing the iron sucked from the arms of donors - is no longer on the menu. But, stout or no stout, John was hooked, and the new recruit discovered that he was of particular interest to them.

His contribution was analysed and turned out to be of the O Negative type - the much prized universal donor. He saw it as his duty to turn up to Leeson Street four times a year, enjoying his bottle of stout and a few biscuits for reward.

When the full-time clinic moved to nearby Mespil Road, this was not a problem and he continued to call in.

After he married Catherine and their four boys began to arrive, he made the effort slightly less often but never quite called a halt.

They moved back to Dunlavin, so he attended passing clinics that occasionally visit all the local towns rather than reporting to head office.

The immaculate record keeping of the service eventually detected that he had hit the 50 donation mark and the milestone was marked with a gold emblem.

By now he was working for the family building business run by his brothers, which had been set up by his father, Larry O'Reilly.

It was in 1992 that Larry was diagnosed with the leukaemia that claimed his life at the age of 80 within a matter of a year after diagnosis.

The treatment for the disease featured the use of blood transfusions: 'That made me determined to keep going, to keep donating,' says John.

Life has moved on since and his work circumstances have changed dramatically, given a jolt into a fresh direction by the Celtic Tiger crash.

'The recession came very suddenly and we did not see it coming,' he says. 'There was such a turnaround from 2008 into 2009.'

He moved from the battered remnants of the construction industry to become a first aid instructor, drawing on his experience as a member since 1980 of the Red Cross through the Glen of Imaal mountain rescue service.

He has also been involved in the pioneering work of the Dunlavin Community First Responders - 'that's my passion, my hobby.'

The idea is to support people who may be on the verge of heart attack or stroke with the help of neighbourly volunteers.

The reality is that an ambulance will not roll up to the door of the patient for at least half an hour after the 999 call is made, or much longer if the paramedics have to drive all the way from Dun Laoghaire.

Into this worrying gap step the First Responders with their defibrillator, who can be on the spot within very few minutes.

The former engineer is one of 14 volunteers who take it in turn to hold the phone dedicated to the service, primed to spring into action whenever the alarm is raised

Along the way, the record keepers in the IBTS noted recently that John had reached the 100 donation mark and sent him out an invitation to dinner. He found himself in the Crowne Plaza enjoying a very pleasant meal in the company of more than 30 others who had attained the same impressive landmark.

All the centurions were called up one by one to receive their mementoes.

The man handing out the ceramic pelicans at the Crowne Plaza was Transfusion Service chairman Professor Anthony Staines.

The professor is full of admiration for John O'Reilly and others who have chalked up 100 donations.

And he has a confession to make to these stalwarts of the organisation that he heads.

He reveals that he is not himself a donor, being barred as someone who received a transfusion during a past illness which required extensive surgery. The rules are very strict and this legacy from a spell of poor health has ruled him permanently offside.

Such rigidly enforced guidelines reflect an organisation which is devoted to meticulously high standards.

The chairman, who lectures in public health at DCU, acknowledges that failure to take precautions can lead to fatalities and has done so in the past. The scandal of hepatitis infected supplies of blood products was a disaster, still remembered with horror a generation later.

Most of the problems at that time were imported from the United States where donors were often paid to roll up their sleeves.

Now the American service has fallen into line with the way it has always been in Ireland, relying on volunteers. 'We give a cup of tea and a chocolate biscuit,' is how Anthony sums up the approach which has always been the policy in this country.

More than 80,000 donations are taken each year, enough to keep supplies of all blood types in stock throughout the country's health service.

'Our donors select themselves and they are a very committed group. It is quite an achievement to reach the century,' comments the professor. 'If you give blood regularly for 35 years of so you'll be at the 100 mark - at three per year.' The amount taken each time is fairly close to a pint - a precisely measured 450 millilitres in fact. 'For an adult in good health, losing that much blood is not of any consequence.'

The precious liquid is usually split up into red cells, plasma and platelets at a facility in Dublin at St James's Hospital, with the white cells thrown away. Some of the blood is required to deal with surgical emergencies, bowel haemorrhages and crisis births. But the greatest demand of all comes from cancer units, combating the side-effects of chemotherapy in a way that allows more effective treatment of tumours.

Donors really do make a difference and there is always room for more of them in the clinic, whether they donate once or donate a hundred times like John O'Reilly.

'We encourage people to come and to bring a friend,' says Anthony Staines.

Ironically, after all the applause and the dinner and the fuss, John O'Reilly has been stood down as a donor - though only temporarily. A one year bar was imposed after he attended a family wedding on the island of Santorini. The expedition to Greece automatically triggered the 12-month disqualification on the off chance that he (and his precious O Negative blood) might have been exposed to malaria.

However, he is told that there is no age limit on donation once all other criteria are met, so he looks forward to rolling up his sleeve once more in the near future. One incentive to do so is born of sibling rivalry, as it might be nice to surpass the record of his brother Larry junior who has also clocked up 100. And he needs to maintain his lead over his sister Maebh who is fast approaching three figures, making the O'Reilly family one of the transfusion service's most remarkable supporters.

'I still hate needles,' John reveals. 'I feel the pinch and I look away.'
Wicklow company Miena's Handmade Nougat will showcase its range of delicious Irish homemade nougat bars at the BBC Good Food Show on its returns to Belfast Waterfront in November.

Willemien Rust came to Ireland from South Africa in 2001, and when she was made redundant from her job with an engineering company in 2010, she invested in a nougat cooker and cutter and began crafting her signature blend of South African and Irish inspired nougat. Miena's hands make all her nougat in a specially designed nougat kitchen based in the picturesque Glen of Imaal.

All products are individually wrapped with care to make them the perfect gift for any occasion.

The BBC Good Food Show runs from November 10 to November 12. There will also be top celebrity chefs and culinary experts present for demonstrations, tastings, chef interviews, book signings and more. Guests will include Michelin-star chef Michel Roux, The Hairy Bikers and MasterChef's John Torode.
At the launch were: Gertie Salley, Arklow Municipal District cathaoirleach Cllr Tommy Annesley, Cllr Pat Kennedy, Cllr Pat Fitzgerald and Minister Simon Harris, and, in front, Mary ORourke and Cllr Miriam Murphy

Former TD and deputy leader of Fianna Fail Mary O'Rourke and Minister for Health Simon Harris officially launched the Positive Ageing Week in Arklow.

Many gathered for the launch in Starbucks at Bridgewater Shopping Centre, where Mary O'Rourke gave an inspirational speech, followed by a Q and A session.

Simon Harris, who is also a member of the Fine Gael party, thanked everyone as he was delighted to be invited.

Bank of Ireland is this year's title sponsor and the theme for 2017 is 'Back to the Future', which focuses on getting all generations celebrating ageing in their local community.

Organiser Gertie Sally said they have been busy all week taking part in different events around Wicklow, which they enjoyed.

'We took a trip to Glendalough, had a tea-dance to mark our 10th anniversary, and had a Harvest Thanksgiving ceremony,' said Gertie.

The Harvest Thanksgiving was a great success and Fr Martin Cosgrove was given a presentation for all the work he has done. The ceremony is to thank for the fruit and vegetables provided by the local farmers.

The group will host a coffee morning this Friday (October 6) in aid of Care and Repair and people can also catch them at the Arklow Enterprise Town event Saturday (October 7), where they will be showcasing some pictures.
Some of the participants in the LetsTalk About event on disability at Arklow Presbyterian Church Hall

Arklow Presbyterian Church Hall was recently filled with voices advocating for people with disabilities who live, work and socialise in the Arklow and Wicklow areas.

As part of their Let's Talk About information and community engagement series, Co Wicklow Public Participation Network (PPN) in collaboration with Disability Federation Ireland and Wicklow County Council invited people to examine some of the articles in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which Ireland signed up to in March 2007 but have yet to ratify.

With the hope that ratification will take place in 2017, people were asked how the convention could be implemented at local level.

Topics covered included participation in public and political life; participation in cultural life, recreation, leisure and sport, accessibility, freedom of expression and opinion and access to information, personal mobility; awareness raising and more.

At the end of the discussions volunteers agreed to join an advocacy group for the Arklow and Wicklow area to work towards raising awareness, as well as identifying and progressing solutions to the challenges identified.

Volunteers were also recruited to take part in the #MakeWayDay campaign, an initiative to encourage people to think before blocking footpaths and access points with cars, bins, advertising boards and other objects.

This initiative encouraged people to go out on Tuesday, September 26, and put stickers on obstacles that made it difficult and dangerous for wheelchairs and walking aids to manoeuvre around.

Co Wicklow PPN and Disability Federation Ireland hope to encourage more regional groups to develop in the county and bring them together so that they can feed in to the Wicklow Local Authorities Disability Action Group.

For more information contact Laura English on 086 8206736 or Lauraenglish@Disability-federation.ie. For more information about Co Wicklow PPN contact Helen Howes on 087 1895145 or countywicklowppn@gmail.com
A jury has been sworn in the trial of a former Anglo Irish Bank official on conspiracy charges.

Tiarnan O'Mahoney (58), who was formerly Chief Operations Officer at Anglo Irish Bank, has pleaded not guilty to a charge that he conspired to destroy, mutilate or falsify books and documents affecting or relating to the property or affairs of Anglo Irish Bank Corp PLC.

The offence is alleged to have occurred between March 25, 2003, and December 31, 2004, and relates to a number of named accounts.

Mr O'Mahoney, a business consultant with an address at Glen Pines, Enniskerry, held his position at Anglo Irish Bank until December 2004. He denies the charge.

On Monday last, Judge Martin Nolan at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard from barristers in the case that the trial is expected to last four to six weeks. A jury of eight women and four men were selected to serve and the trial is expected to begin before them on Monday.

Prior to the jury swearing process, Judge Nolan told the panel that anyone who had any association with Anglo Irish Bank, such as through working there or holding shares, or who knew anyone who had such an association should not serve. He said no one working in Revenue should serve.

He said that anyone who felt they could not act impartially or had strong feelings about the bank should also not serve on the jury. He warned the jury that investigating Mr O'Mahoney on the internet would be a breach of their oath.

Judge Nolan said Mr O'Mahoney was entitled to a fair and impartial trial and should be tried only on what is heard in the court room.

A list of witnesses including bank staff and revenue officials were outlined in court.

Dominic McGinn SC and Kerida Naidoo SC, appear for the prosecution, and Brendan Grehan SC, with Lorcan Staines BL and Edward Doocy BL, appear on behalf of Mr O'Mahoney.

Following the selection process, Judge Nolan told the jury that there were legal and procedural matters to be dealt with and they were not required until Monday next.
After seven years living at ASH Animal Rescue centre, social media sensation Angel has well and truly settled in to her new forever home.

Back in June, Helena and Remi Le Mahieu from the Kiltegan sanctuary made an appeal through social media to find a home for long-term resident Angel, as she was facing into her seventh year at the centre. Thankfully, Dublin couple Cian and Sarah Morris came forward and visited the centre six weekends in a row along with their dog Beau to see Angel.

'They would travel from Dublin to see Angel so she could become familiar with them before making the big move' said Helena.

After such a long time with ASH, it was a bit difficult for Angel at first as she moved to her new surroundings but Cian and Sarah have happily informed ASH that Angel has settled well and loves her home.

Angel, a Jack-Russell-Beagle cross who was rescued in Wicklow town, deserved her big break after she was overlooked by prospective owners time and time again.

Remi and Helena said everyone at ASH is delighted that Angel, once a shy and terrified dog, has finally found a good home and they praised the merits of the social media campaign, which spread the word nationwide.

The animal rescue centre re-homes five to 10 dogs every year who have been there for more than three years. The ASH philosophy is that these dogs deserve a second chance at life, be it one year or seven years later, and Angel is a prime example of this. Helena said there is no need to kill them off; when they are ready, they will find their forever home.

Meanwhile, there are a number of kittens and dogs seeking new homes in ASH and also a hand-reared fox called Freddie who can be sponsored for 50 per year. Freddie was abandoned as a cub and could not survive in the wild and is now well looked after by the rescue team.

For further information see the ASH Animal Rescue page on Facebook or call 059 6473396.
Heres how to check your tyres to ensure theyre safe.

Your tyres are your cars only contact with the road, heres how to look out for signs they may not be safe.

Worn, damaged or inferior quality tyres on your car can be dangerous. Watch out for dangerous defects like sidewall tears, bulges, penetration damage, exposed layers or steel wires. These indicate that a tyre has reached the end of its useful life and is a potential safety risk.

If you need a new tyre, make sure its good quality and always ask the retailer to explain its performance rating. Most new tyres have performance labels that indicate wet grip and fuel efficiency. They provide a performance rating from A to G, the RSA recommends that you buy as close to the A rating as possible. Research has shown that over 20% of young adults choose second hand or part worn tyres. The RSA does not recommend you buy part worn tyres. Their history is unknown and they make not have been quality checked, which could be dangerous for you.

In this series of videos by the Road Safety Authority, Motoring journalist Geraldine Herbert discusses a range of checks that you should do regularly to keep your car roadworthy between services and therefore, safe for you and your family.

These videos include information on how to check your tyres, engine oil, lights and much more. This video series can be found on the RSA Youtube page and further detail on these checks can be found in our 12 checks booklet here.

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Safety on our roads is everyones responsibility. Sometimes we can forget that when we get behind the wheel, were taking a risk. Cars are powerful machines and no matter how good a driver you are or how good the roads are, sometimes they can let us down.

Therefore we have to do all we can to ensure our cars are in the best condition and that we get to our destinations safely and to do this, we must take simple steps to maintain them between services.

Irish Road Safety Week from Monday 2 to Sunday 8 October 2017.

This year, Irish Road Safety Week (IRSW) will be taking place from Monday 2 October to Sunday 8 October with lots of road safety activities planned nationwide. Find out more here.

Sponsored by:
Thirty-nine-year-old Emmanuel Macron is France's youngest president since Napoleon and, to many, "France's answer to JFK".

Beside him through it all is the woman who has been his greatest champion since he was a schoolboy: his wife and former teacher, Brigitte Trogneux.

In 1993, after Macron's star turn in a school play, Trogneux planted a tender kiss on the cheek of 15-year-old Macron in front of the parents and pupils at a private Jesuit school in Amiens. Two years later, he declared his intention to marry her.

Last month, Trogneux was on stage again in Paris, blowing kisses to a roaring crowd, as it was announced that her husband - some 24 years her junior, and leader of France's progressive En March movement - had beaten the country's two long-established main parties to join Marine Le Pen in the final round of the presidential election.

The couple waved and grinned broadly for the cameras, before giving the crowd the photo opportunity they wanted - a good, old-fashioned French kiss.

A real-life drama

Dressed in an elegant pale grey suit, which showed off her impressive tan, with her blonde hair expertly coiffed, the woman who would go on to become France's next first lady looked every inch the part.

Clever and stylish, with sparkling blue eyes and a Hollywood smile to match her husband's, Mme Trogneux - at 64, a mother-of-three and grandmother-of-seven - is the picture of a modern first lady. She is also the second oldest, behind Bernadette Chirac.

Add to that the fact that Brigitte divorced the father of her three children to be with Macron, and you have all the makings of some classic real-life French political drama.

Typically, though, the quasi-scandalous backdrop of their marriage is something the rest of the world has made a great deal more fuss about than the French themselves.

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When it comes to what goes on behind closed doors, the French are, as in most areas of life, altogether cooler about it than the rest of us.

What's more, the French press has been historically unwilling to delve into the private lives of its ruling class. Former president Francois Mitterand had an affair for 32 years, which produced an illegitimate daughter (and possibly a son from another relationship, too), but such matters were written about in French newspapers only after his death.

Current president Francois Hollande parted ways with his mistress and de facto first lady, Valerie Trierweiler, in 2014 after it was revealed that he had also been having an affair with Julie Gayet, an actress 18 years his junior.

A media glitch

Macron did come under fire following his first-round win - but for celebrating too lavishly when he hosted a glitzy dinner for his supporters. Which goes to show that, in France, it is still more controversial to be flash than to marry your schoolteacher.

The couple have, nevertheless, managed to pique the interest of the French press. Mme Trogneux gave a somewhat regrettable interview to Paris Match last year in which she let in some light on the early days of their relationship. She was quoted saying: "At the age of 17, Emmanuel said to me: 'Whatever you do, I will marry you!'"

The interview was quickly brushed off by the politician's camp, with Macron saying: "My wife doesn't understand the media. She regrets it profoundly. It was a mistake, a mistake we both made. My relationship, my family, it's what I care about the most, there is no strategy to exhibit them, it is without a doubt a blunder. I take full responsibility and it won't be something we will be repeating."

So why are we intrigued by her? Is it the deliciously controversial circumstances of their relationship? Is it because Macron himself has pledged to carve out an official role for her in his administration? Or is it simply because of her magnificent "forme olympique", as was described by one French magazine?

Written in the stars

As far as Macron's biographer is concerned, the couple's relationship was written in the stars in a rather uncomfortably Freudian way. The young Emmanuel enjoyed a provincial, bourgeois family life, with parents who were both doctors and worked a lot, and it was his grandmother, Manette, who was his biggest influence growing up.

Manette, also a teacher, was "demanding and determined" and "opened the door to reading and culture for him", writes Anne Fulda. He would call her every night, and says of her: "She helped me believe in my political destiny".

So, well before he married his own teacher, clever, cultured women were a huge influence in the young Macron's life.

"He wasn't like the others," Trogneux told a French documentary last year. "He wasn't a teenager. He had a relationship of equals with other adults."

At 16, Macron, who as a young man wanted to be a novelist, left his prestigious but provincial school to finish his education in Paris, vowing to marry his former teacher.

"We'd call each other all the time and spend hours on the phone," she remembered. "Bit by bit, he defeated all my resistance, in an amazing way, with patience."

A more public relationship

And sure enough, Trogneux - still married, and with three children (her eldest daughter, Laurence, is the same age as Macron, and was his classmate) - left her husband and began a relationship with her former pupil, marrying him in 2007.

For years, they avoided the public eye, presumably aware that their unconventional marriage risked overshadowing Emmanuel's lofty political plans. But since launching his presidential bid last year, having previously served for two years as industry minister in Francois Hollande's unpopular socialist government, something has shifted.

His biographer told the BBC: "He wants to give the idea that, if he was able to seduce a woman 24 years his senior and a mother-of-three's children, in a small provincial town, without opprobrium and mockery, he can conquer France in the same way."

As he beat Le Pen, it was with Trogneux by his side. She has been quoted as saying she is "the president of his fan club", and is often seen attending high-level meetings with him; at his campaign launch, she could be seen taking notes in the front row. As France's first lady, and with her husband's blessing, she will play a big role in helping him realise his dreams to revitalise the country.

A cool sense of style

Even more thrilling for some is how Trogneux has turned heads with what Vogue magazine described as her "chic-bobo aesthetic". With her slim-cut navy tailoring, low-heeled shoes, and immaculately highlighted but not overly coiffed hair, she is the quintessential femme d'un certain age, with a dignified but cool sense of style, which the French respect immeasurably.

Why did everyone like Carla Bruni-Sarkozy? Because, unlike her husband with his distinctly dodgy platform shoes, she looked wonderful in a grey Christian Dior suit and a pair of Louboutins.

Delphine de Canecaude, a Paris-based art director, told L'Express magazine: "She's rock'n'roll. Not for a second does she say, 'I'm 64, so I cannot wear short skirts.' Twelve-inch heels, sleeveless dresses, leather trousers, she dares everything. She is a mega wonder woman."

But, as Vogue's fashion features editor points out, she also displays a degree of deference to the "lynchpins of the French fashion industry", with her array of Louis Vuitton Capucines bags, and her regular appearances on the front row at all the biggest fashion shows.

In the run up to the French election, Trogneux was by Macron's side all the way. "She will have the role that she always had with me," he told French radio station RTL. "She will not be hidden, because she shared my life, because her opinion is important, and because the presidential position carries something of a personal dimension.

"She has always been by my side; she's my equilibrium."

Macron had better watch out that the brilliant Brigitte doesn't soon eclipse him altogether.

The new first couple of France

BRIGITTE TROGNEUX

Born: April 13, 1953 (age 64)

Occupation: Teacher

Family: Married to French president and former minister Emmanuel Macron

Media: The French media has praised Trogneux for her "cool attitude" and "wonderwoman" look

Relationship with Macron: Trogneux and Emmanuel Macron met when she was his literature teacher at a private school in Amiens. They developed a close relationship and stayed in touch after Macron left, eventually marrying in 2007 and moving in together along with Trogneux's three children

EMMANUEL MACRON

Born: December 21, 1977 (age 39)

Previous role: French Minister of the Economy, Industry and Digital Affairs

Party: En Marche! (On the Move). In August 2016, Macron quit the government to form a centrist party and launch a presidential bid as an outsider. On May 7, Emmanuel Macron beat opponent Marine Le Pen to become the youngest president of France in the Fifth Republic's history.

Political career:

2012-2014: Head of the Economy and Finances Division

2012-2014: Deputy Secretary-General of the Presidency

2014-2016: Minister of the Economy, Industry and Digital Affairs

2017: Presidential candidate for the En Marche! party

2017: Elected France's youngest head of state since Napoleon, with 66.1pc of the vote against 33.9pc for far-right leader Marine Le Pen
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson insists he's staying at Foggy Bottom despite reports that, after one humiliation on top of another from President Donald Trump, he threatened to quit.

People who think Tillerson will be in his present job at year's end could have put down 71 cents yesterday for a chance to win a buck; a 30-cent wager could win the same dollar if they're wrong.

Go for the bigger payout.

Despite Tillerson's ineptitude as secretary, his departure wouldn't be altogether welcome. He is part of the Trump administration's "sane caucus" led by Defence Secretary James Mattis, bringing rational judgment to decisions on explosive foreign-policy issues involving North Korea, Iran, Russia and the Persian Gulf. The counter caucus is led by Trump himself.

Perhaps Trump was wrong to tap a chief executive of ExxonMobil to manage US foreign policy; the history of CEOs moving to top cabinet posts is mixed at best. But Tillerson never had a fair chance. The latest conflict with his erratic boss came last weekend, while Tillerson was in China working on a diplomatic approach to North Korea's nuclear threat. Trump publicly blasted the effort, writing on Twitter: "I told Rex Tillerson, our wonderful Secretary of State, that he is wasting his time trying to negotiate with Little Rocket Man..."

Still, it's impossible to defend Tillerson's tenure. He has ignored or alienated much of the foreign service, and mid-career diplomats are leaving in droves. US foreign policy will pay a price for this brain drain well after Trump is gone.

Tillerson is politically tone-deaf. He doesn't appreciate the importance of public diplomacy, he has a weak staff and he hasn't cultivated good relations with Congress.

Two pillars of the Republican foreign-policy establishment, former defence secretary Bob Gates and former secretary of state James Baker, urged Tillerson to take the job, hoping that his international business experience would be helpful to a neophyte president. Another wise predecessor, George Shultz, counselled that the most important initial task was to forge a good relationship with Trump.

Tillerson tried, but his effort proved futile. Trump ignored his chief diplomat, allowing him to be undercut by his son-in-law, Jared Kushner. And that was before the public humiliation.

In August, Tillerson distanced himself from Trump's bigoted comments in sympathy with the far-right and neo-Nazi agitators who incited violence in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Mattis has been more successful. For one thing, he's better versed in the ways of Washington. He also appeals to Trump on a visceral level, though for the wrong reason; the president, who fancies himself a tough guy, loves that Mattis's Marine nickname was "Mad Dog." He may not know that it's an ill-chosen label that Mattis doesn't like.

Many Washington observers expect Tillerson to be replaced by UN Ambassador Nikki Haley. A former governor of South Carolina, Haley has displayed a good sense of public diplomacy, is politically skilful and excels at one key magic trick: She knows how to flatter Trump.
An ostrich has been spotted strolling down a road in Giza, Egypt, and of course, someone filmed it and asked what the heck was going on.

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Applied arts student Allaa Salah Eldin Abdo uploaded the video, tweeting: I dont know how to tell you this but I found a lost ostrich in the street.

Shed been trying to get to her English class when she got lost, found herself in the wrong street and face to face with a wandering ostrich.

But the sassy young ostrich started gaining fans.

And why not? With a nonchalant attitude, it clearly wasnt afraid to stand out from the crowd.

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So it doesnt look like everyone else, who cares?

It still had places to go and people to see.

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The lady in the red headscarf is so relaxed about it all, she barely looks up from her phone.

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The ostrich seems relaxed too, like a stroll down the street is something it does often.

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The real question is, where was the ostrich off to?

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Well it turns out it might not have had a very happy ending at all.

Allaa said responses to her video made it clear that the animal wasnt lost after all, but belongs to someone in that street who sells ostrich meat.

If it did end up as a burger, at least it inspired us all first.
EU negotiators have "significantly" increased back-room talks with the British Labour Party because they are becoming concerned that Theresa May's administration will collapse before Brexit is complete.

Brussels is seeking assurances from Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn that he will honour agreements reached by the EU with the Conservatives if he comes to power.

Sources said there had been "a significant change in tone" from Brussels towards Labour since the general election and that meetings since then had been at a higher level and more frequent.

Both Mr Corbyn and Keir Starmer, the shadow Brexit secretary, have held meetings with Michel Barnier, the European Union's chief negotiator, and Frans Timmermans, the first vice-president of the European Commission, and others, including members of the Brexit negotiating teams.

Meanwhile, Nigel Sheinwald, Britain's former permanent representative in Brussels, said Mrs May's vulnerability was now a "destabilising" influence on the negotiations.

Mrs May's calamitous conference speech and her failure to unite her party behind her Brexit plans have caused concern in Brussels ahead of the resumption of Brexit talks on Monday.

Mrs May will travel to Brussels on October 19 for a meeting of the European Council, which is expected to refuse to allow Brexit negotiators to begin trade talks with the UK.

This will mean that no progress will be made on trade talks until at least December, when the council next meets.

Yesterday, Mrs May played down calls for her to quit and said she would continue to provide "calm leadership".

Speaking for the first time since her mishap-strewn conference speech in Manchester, she said she had the full backing of her cabinet.

She is also expected to take on her critics in a media blitz next week, thought to include a radio phone-in, in an unusual move for the typically reserved Mrs May. It comes after Grant Shapps, the former Conservative Party chairman, was identified as the ringleader of 30 rebel MPs who are attempting to force her from office.

Facing the cameras in her constituency of Maidenhead, Berkshire, Mrs May said: "Now what the country needs is calm leadership and that's what I am providing with the full support of my Cabinet."

Earlier, MPs claimed a backbench plot to oust her from No 10 was set to "fizzle out".

Charles Walker, vice chairman of the Tories' 1922 Committee, said the attempt to force a leadership contest lacked credibility and was doomed to fail. ( Daily Telegraph, London)
Alice McBrearty, 23, has been jailed for a total of 16 months at Snaresbrook Crown Court in London after pleading guilty at an earlier hearing to seven counts of sexual activity with a child while in a position of trust. Credit: Metropolitan Police/PA Wire

A teacher who engaged in a full blown sexual relationship with a teenager has been jailed after a judge remarked: What 15-year-old schoolboy would turn down such an attractive offer?

Alice McBrearty, 23, blamed the affair on the stress of being thrown in at the deep end by Teach First, a prestigious fast-track scheme designed to attract the brightest graduates into the teaching profession.

Snaresbrook Crown Court heard how she booked a room at an IBIS hotel where she had sex with the pupil, after befriending him on social media.

They kissed passionately in the classroom, met up three times at her parents' Wanstead home for sexual encounters and kissed in the school classroom, the court heard.

As a birthday treat she picked the boy up from his home and took him to a nearby garage to perform oral sex on him.

Several members of staff raised concerns that she was getting too close the pupil, and she was repeatedly warned by other teachers, but the affair continued.

The relationship unravelled after the boy's father went to police afraid that McBrearty was grooming his son. The boy was interviewed by police with social services, where he admitted the affair.

Judge Sheelagh Canavan told McBrearty that she has had a spectacular fall from grace, as she jailed her for 16 months. "You engaged in a full-blown sexual relationship with a 15-year-old child," Judge Canavan said.

"I accept he was consenting - what 15-year-old schoolboy would turn down such an attractive offer?

"I accept you truly believed this was a great romance, you were in love with him and vice versa, and that age didn't matter. But it did.

Lisa Matthews, prosecuting, said they became besotted with each other and talked about their future together.

It started in January when she befriended him on social media, Ms Matthews say. He woke up one morning to see a friend request from Alice McBrearty on Facebook. He felt special and accepted it.

She messaged him asking for his number at the weekend. She took him out to Olympic Park, went for strolls and out for meals. "

Ms Matthews told of sexual encounters that took place in various locations, including an IBIS hotel, her parents' house and her car. "She also kissed him in her classroom in school," Ms Matthews said.

McBreaty, who lives at home with her parents in Wanstead Park, north-east London, wept throughout the hearing.

Emma Shafton, defending, said McBrearty felt demoralised after being thrown in at the deep end and teaching subjects she had no experience in at a challenging school, having just completed a Teach First programme.

She detested her job, and that is why instead of socialising with her colleagues she socialised with students in the classroom, Ms Shafton added.

She said that although McBrearty has a university degree, the only work she has managed to find since leaving the teaching profession is delivering parcels for Amazon.

A Teach First spokesperson said: "The safety of the pupils in our partner schools is our absolute priority. We have clear and robust safeguarding procedures in place.

All first year participants on our programme complete DBS safeguarding checks before they embark on their training. Schools also require them to complete a DBS check before they begin working in school in September."

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022]
Damage left by Nate on the outskirts of San Jose, Costa Rica (AP)

Hurricane Nate is now expected to be a Category 2 hurricane when it makes landfall on the US central Gulf Coast in the coming hours.

The National Hurricane Centre in Miami said Nate's top sustained winds have recently risen to 90mph, and the core is now about 180 miles south-south-east of the mouth of the Mississippi River.

Nate is accelerating to 26mph and headed north-north-west on a course expected to take it onto the central Gulf Coast on Saturday night.

Forecasters said the hurricane-force winds extend out up to 35 miles, mainly to the east of the eye of the storm.

In addition to hurricane warnings and tropical storm warnings already in place along a wide stretch of Gulf Coast, a new tropical storm warning has been issued in the Florida Panhandle from east of the Okaloosa-Walton County line to Indian Pass, Florida.

Louisiana and Mississippi officials declared states of emergency, and Louisiana ordered some people to evacuate coastal areas and barrier islands ahead of Nate's expected landfall.

The National Hurricane Centre in Miami projected that Nate would brush by the south-east tip of Louisiana, near the mouth of the Mississippi River, around 7pm on Saturday (1am BST).

Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards said he spoke with President Donald Trump on Saturday morning.

"He assured me that LA would have all the assistance we need as we prepare for #Nate," the governor posted on Twitter.

Mr Edwards thanked Mr Trump for approving Louisiana's pre-disaster emergency declaration for 17 south Louisiana parishes.

Nate has already killed at least 21 people in Central America.

A hurricane warning is in effect from Grand Isle, Louisiana, to the Alabama-Florida border and also for metropolitan New Orleans and nearby Lake Pontchartrain.

Tropical storm warnings extended west of Grand Isle to Morgan City, Louisiana, and around Lake Maurepas and east of the Alabama-Florida border to the Okaloosa-Walton County line in the Florida Panhandle.

In Louisiana, Mr Edwards mobilised 1,300 National Guard troops, some headed to New Orleans to monitor the fragile pumping system there.

With forecasts projecting landfall on the central Gulf Coast as a Category 1 hurricane, Mr Edwards urged residents to ready for rainfall, storm surge and severe winds - and to be where they intend to hunker down by the time it gets dark on Saturday.

Mr Edwards said forecasts for the fast-moving storm indicate the greatest threats are winds and storm surge.

The hurricane centre warned that Nate could raise sea levels by 4ft to 7ft from Morgan City, Louisiana, to the Alabama-Florida border. It had already had caused deadly flooding in much of Central America.

A White House statement said Mr Trump has authorised the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Homeland Security to co-ordinate all federal disaster relief efforts.

In New Orleans, the city's pumping system remains fragile but is working.

Two flash floods this summer led to revelations about personnel and equipment problems at the agency that runs the system that drains the city.

New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu said 109 of its 120 pumps are functioning, which is 92% capacity.

"We are ready for whatever Nate brings our way," Mr Landrieu said of forecasts that Nate could dump 3-6in of rain on the region - with isolated totals of up to 10in.

Officials ordered the evacuation of part of coastal St Bernard Parish east of New Orleans ahead of the storm.

Earlier, a voluntary evacuation was called in the barrier island town of Grand Isle south of New Orleans.

On Alabama's Dauphin Island - a barrier island south of Mobile, Alabama - owners hauled boats out of the water ahead of the storm's approach.

The major concern was the storm surge was projected to coincide with high tide. Shelters were being open for coastal residents.

In neighbouring Mississippi, Governor Phil Bryant declared a state of emergency in six southernmost counties.

State officials warned storm surge was the biggest danger in that state's low-lying coastal areas, as well as high winds that could damage mobile homes.

The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency also announced the opening of shelters on the coast.
Thousands of people have rallied in Madrid and Barcelona in a last-ditch call for Spanish and Catalan leaders to stave off a national crisis amid Catalonia's imminent threat to secede from the rest of Spain.

The demonstrations in the Spanish capital and the Catalan city of Barcelona were held simultaneously under the slogan "Shall We Talk?" in an effort to push legislators in both cities to end months of silence and start negotiating.

The crowd wore white T-shirts and respected the organisers' call to not bring Spanish or Catalan flags.

Catalonia's regional president, Carles Puigdemont, has vowed that he will make good on the results of last Sunday's disputed referendum on secession won by the Yes side.

Spanish prime minister Mariano Rajoy warned that the vote was illegal and has promised that Catalonia is going nowhere.

Protesters packed Barcelona's Sant Jaume Square where the Catalan government has its presidential palace, shouting "We want to talk!" and holding signs saying "More Negotiation, Less Testosterone!" and "Talk or Resign!"

The gathering around Madrid's Cibeles fountain boasted a huge banner demanding that the leaders start talking. Some people chanted "Less hate, and more understanding!" and "Carles, Mariano, let's see if you can call each other."

There was a separate rally in Colon Square where thousands clamoured for the unity of Spain and against any attempt by the north-eastern region of Catalonia to break away.

The crowd bristled with Spanish flags, and some people danced in a fountain in the square.

Tensions almost boiled over when a small group of people waving Spanish flags, apparently from the pro-union rally, began shouting at people at the pro-dialogue rally. Police quickly moved in to separate the two groups.

The calls for dialogue and unity come after a traumatic week in Spain, which reached its peak last Sunday during Catalonia's referendum. Riot police stormed several polling stations in an unsuccessful attempt to impede the vote. Instead, they left hundreds of voters in need of medical attention.

Even though 2.2 million Catalan voted despite the crackdown- with 90% voting for independence- the vote polled less than half of the region's electorate.

Mr Puigdemont said he would seek a declaration of independence in the regional parliament anyway.

The referendum was followed by a strike on Tuesday across Catalonia to protest over the police violence. Then came a stern message from King Felipe VI that the Catalan government and parliament were breaking the law.

But just when secessionist sentiment was at its high point, Mr Puigdemont and his separatist cohorts were struck a blow when Catalonia's top two banks, Caixabank and Banco Sabadell, as well as energy company Gas Natural announced they were relocating their headquarters from Catalonia to other parts of Spain.

Other companies are also considering such a move to ensure that the possible secession of the region would not immediately knock them out of the European Union and its lucrative common market.

The warnings sent by the business sector have coincided with the first calls from within Mr Puigdemont's government to hold off on a declaration of independence.

Santi Vila, Catalonia's regional chief for business, told Cadena SER Radio he is pushing for "a new opportunity for dialogue" with Spanish authorities.

"We have to give it one more chance, maybe the last chance, and perhaps the only way that can happen is to start with a ceasefire," Mr Vila said.

"We can all calm down and give ourselves the opportunity to not take any decisions and see what channels we can open up to start a serene dialogue."

AP
President Donald Trump declined yesterday to explain what he meant when he described a gathering of military leaders as "the calm before the storm," but the White House said he was not just being mischievous when he made the remark.

White House reporters were summoned suddenly on Thursday evening and told the president had decided he wanted the press to document a dinner he was holding with the military leaders and their wives.

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Reporters were led hastily to the grand State Dining Room, where they walked into a scene of the president, his highest-ranking military aides and their wives posing for a group photo. The cameras clicked and they smiled. A joke was made about someone's face being tired. Live classical music played.

Then, Mr Trump gestured to the reporters in the room.

"You guys know what this represents?" Mr Trump asked. "Maybe it's the calm before the storm. Could be the calm, the calm before the storm."

"What storm Mr President?" one reporter shouted. Isil? North Korea? Iran?

"You'll find out," the president said.

White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders also declined to say what Trump meant.

When asked whether Trump was just being mischievous, Sanders denied he was just "messing with the press."

"I think we have some serious world issues here. I think that North Korea, Iran both continue to be bad actors and the president is somebody who's going to always look for ways to protect Americans," Sanders said.

Leon Panetta, a former Defense secretary and CIA director, said Trump's remarks would be something "you'd really worry about" under a previous U.S. president. But he said Trump's comments appeared to follow a pattern he'd established on Twitter.

"You begin to assume that it's more about getting attention than it is about proclaiming some kind of national policy. I don't think it's responsible...but I think in this instance we probably all should take a deep breath and try to assume he's just making a play for attention," Panetta told CNN.

"There is no indication that there is a strategy or a policy behind that statement," he added.

Read More

The president also appeared to criticize the military leaders on Thursday for moving too slowly to provide him advice.

"Moving forward, I also expect you to provide me with a broad range of military options, when needed, at a much faster pace. I know that government bureaucracy is slow, but I am depending on you to overcome the obstacles of bureaucracy," he said.

Meanwhile, businesses in the US will be able to deny insurance to pay for a woman's contraception under an amendment announced yesterday by Donald Trump's administration.

Companies will be able to cite religious or moral objections to birth control, and deny the funding to their employees - a new policy which unpicks a key provision of ObamaCare.

The move was greeted with anger from reproductive rights advocates, and praise from conservative Christian activists.

It remained unclear how many women would lose contraception coverage and which companies would use the exemptions, but Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood, said: "The Trump administration just took direct aim at birth control coverage for 62 million women." The government claims only 120,000 women will lose their coverage. California's Democratic attorney general pledged to fight to protect the mandate from circumvention.

The president, who criticised the birth control mandate in last year's election campaign, won strong support from conservative Christian voters. The Republican president signed an executive order in May asking for rules that would allow religious groups to deny their employees insurance coverage for services they oppose on religious grounds.

Yesterday's announcement increases that rule to apply to all businesses. "All Americans should have the freedom to peacefully live and work consistent with their faith without fear of government punishment," the conservative Christian legal activist group Alliance Defending Freedom said in a statement. "Health and Human Services has issued a balanced rule that respects all sides - it keeps the contraceptive mandate in place for most employers and now provides a religious exemption," said Mark Rienzi, one of the lawyers for the Little Sisters of the Poor, an order of Roman Catholic nuns that previously challenged the mandate in court.

The National Women's Law Center, which estimates that in 2013 the contraception requirement saved women $1.4 billion in oral contraceptive costs, has vowed to challenge the administration in court.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani says hes not willing to renegotiate the nuclear deal. Photo: Reuters

US President Donald Trump is to announce next week that he will 'decertify' the international nuclear deal with Iran, saying it is not in the national interest of the United States and kicking the issue to a reluctant Congress, people briefed on the White House strategy have revealed.

'Decertification' would not kill the agreement as such, but would begin a 60-day period of review by Congress. During that window, the legislature could opt to reimpose economic sanctions on Iran, which were lifted as part of the agreement.

Such a move would derail the deal limiting Iran's nuclear activities that Tehran reached in 2015 with the US and five other nations.

But Mr Trump would hold off on recommending that Congress reimpose sanctions, which would constitute a clearer break from the pact, according to four people familiar with aspects of the president's thinking.

Preserving

The decision would amount to a middle ground of sorts between Mr Trump, who has long wanted to withdraw from the agreement completely, and many congressional leaders and senior diplomatic, military and national-security advisers, who believe the deal is worth preserving - with changes, if possible.

This week, Defence Secretary Jim Mattis and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Joseph Dunford expressed qualified support for the deal during congressional testimony.

And Mr Mattis suggested that he did not believe taking the step to decertify would scuttle the agreement.

Mr Trump is expected to deliver a speech, tentatively scheduled for Thursday, laying out a larger strategy for confronting the nation that he blames for terrorism and instability throughout the Middle East.

Officials cautioned that his plans could still change, and the White House would not confirm either plans for a speech or its contents.

Mr Trump faces an October 15 deadline to report to Congress on whether Iran is complying with the agreement and whether he judges the deal to be in the US national security interest.

"The administration looks forward to sharing details of our Iran strategy at the appropriate time," said Michael Anton, spokesman for the White House National Security Council.

The fate of the nuclear pact is only one consideration in that larger strategy, US officials said - although, given Trump's focus on it as an "embarrassment", it is the most high-profile element.

The deal, which was signed under President Obama, was intended to close off the potential for Iran to quickly build a nuclear bomb by curbing nuclear activities the US and other partners considered most troubling.

It allowed some uranium enrichment to continue for what Iran claims is peaceful medical research and energy; the country says it has never sought nuclear weapons. In exchange, crippling economic sanctions were lifted.

At issue now is the fate of US sanctions - which were lifted by Mr Obama and - by extension whether the US will move to break the deal. That could open a breach with European partners who have warned that they will not follow suit.

Seeking a 'transatlantic understanding' about reopening or supplementing the deal is likely to be part of Mr Trump's announcement, according to one Iran analyst, who has discussed the strategy with administration officials.

Mr Trump said last month that he had decided what to do on Iran but that he would not divulge the decision.

Welcoming military leaders to a White House dinner, he said Iran had not lived up to its end of the nuclear bargain.

Bloodshed

"The Iranian regime supports terrorism and exports violence, bloodshed and chaos across the Middle East," said Mr Trump. "That is why we must put an end to Iran's continued aggression and nuclear ambitions."

The president's senior national security advisers agreed within the past several weeks to recommend that Mr Trump "decertify" at the October 15 deadline, two of those sources said.

The administration has begun discussing possible legislation to "strengthen" the agreement, congressional aides and others said - a "fix it or nix it" approach suggested by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

But the prospects of such an approach are highly uncertain and many supporters of the deal consider it a dodge.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said last month that he would not reopen the agreement for negotiation.

Separately, representatives of Iran, China and Russia told Secretary of State Rex Tillerson the same thing during a meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session last month, two senior diplomats familiar with that meeting said.

Senator Tom Cotton, a leading Republican hawk on Iran, appeared to preview the main elements of the administration's plan this week, although he said he did not know exactly what Mr Trump plans to do. The two met on Thursday at the White House.

In a speech on Tuesday at the Council on Foreign Relations, Senator Cotton said that Mr Trump should "decline to certify the deal and begin the work of strengthening it." ( Washington Post)
US President Donald Trump has said "only one thing will work" when it comes to dealing with North Korea after previous administrations had failed to get results.

In a series of tweets, the Republican man wrote: "Presidents and their administrations have been talking to North Korea for 25 years, agreements made and massive amounts of money paid...Hasn't worked, agreements violated before the ink was dry, making fools of U.S. negotiators. Sorry, but only one thing will work!"

Trump did not specify what the "one thing" is, but his comments seemed to suggest that military action was on his mind.

Earlier this week, during a meeting with top US military leaders and their spouses, Trump told reporters it was the "calm before the storm."

Presidents and their administrations have been talking to North Korea for 25 years, agreements made and massive amounts of money paid......  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2017

...hasn't worked, agreements violated before the ink was dry, makings fools of U.S. negotiators. Sorry, but only one thing will work!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2017

When asked by reporters what he meant, Trump said: "You'll find out."

The president has previously said the US would destroy North Korea if necessary to protect itself and its allies.

He has refused to rule out military action and has made dramatic threats against Pyongyang, tweeting that he would unleash "fire and fury", before claiming North Korea's Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho and leader Kim Jong Un "won't be around much longer" if Ri echoed the thoughts of "Little Rocket Man", an apparent reference to Kim.
A member of the FBI walks among piles of personal items at the scene of the Las Vegas mass shooting (AP Photo/John Locher).

Police investigating the Las Vegas mass shooting have said they are still no closer to working out what drove Stephen Paddock to commit mass murder.

Paddock unleashed gunfire on Sunday from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay hotel casino on the Las Vegas Strip, killing 58 and injuring nearly 500 people.

He killed himself as police closed in.

Investigators - who have chased 1,000 leads - have announced plans to put up posters as they appeal for information.

Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said: "We still do not have a clear motive or reason why. We have looked at literally everything."

The FBI announced that billboards would go up around the city asking anyone with information to phone 800-CALL-FBI.

"If you know something, say something," said Aaron Rouse, agent in charge of the Las Vegas FBI office. "We will not stop until we have the truth."

Mr McMahill revealed at a news conference on Friday that police are confident there was not another gunman in Paddock's room, and do not have any information that anyone else used his room key.

Paddock, 64, fired indiscriminately from his upper-level room at the Mandalay Bay hotel casino at people attending a country music festival below.

Investigators believe Paddock hired a prostitute in the days leading up to the shooting and were interviewing other sex workers for information, an official briefed by federal law enforcement officials said.

The official also disclosed that Paddock took at least a dozen cruises abroad in the last few years, most of them with his girlfriend, Marilou Danley.

It is unusual to have so few hints of a motive five days after a mass shooting.

In previous mass killings or terrorist attacks, killers left notes, social media postings and information on a computer - or even phoned police.

"The lack of a social media footprint is likely intentional," said Erroll Southers, director of homegrown violent extremism studies at the University of Southern California.

"We're so used to, in the first 24 to 48 hours, being able to review social media posts. If they don't leave us a note behind or a manifesto behind, and we're not seeing that, that's what's making this longer."

What officers have found is that Paddock planned his attack meticulously.

He requested an upper-floor room overlooking the festival, stockpiled 23 guns, a dozen of them modified to fire continuously like an automatic weapon, and set up cameras inside and outside his room to watch for approaching officers.

In a possible sign he was contemplating massacres at other sites, he also booked rooms overlooking the Lollapalooza festival in Chicago in August and the Life Is Beautiful show near the Vegas Strip in late September, according to authorities reconstructing his movements leading up to the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history.

AP
The attacker was immediately shot dead, according to reports

An attack on the Al-Salam Palace in Jeddah has killed two members of the Saudi Royal Guard, according to reports.

A spokesman for the interior ministry said an attacker got out of a vehicle and opened fire on the western gate of the palace, killing two Guard members and wounding three others.

The gunman was shot dead on the spot, according to the Saudi Press Agency report.

The ministry identified the attacker as Mansour bin Hassan bin Ali bin Al Fahid al-Amri, a 28-year-old Saudi national.

The report added that he was carrying Kalashnikov rifles and three Molotov cocktails.

Investigations are ongoing.
President Donald Trump delivered a foreboding message, telling reporters as he posed for photos with senior military leaders that this might be "the calm before the storm".

The president did not elaborate on what he meant, saying simply, "You'll find out."

White House reporters were summoned on Thursday evening and told the president had decided he wanted the press to document a dinner he was holding with the military leaders and their spouses.

Reporters were led hastily to the grand State Dining Room, where they walked into a scene of the president, his highest-ranking military aides and their spouses posing for a group photo.

After pictures were taken, the president gestured to the reporters in the room.

"You guys know what this represents?" Mr Trump asked. "Maybe it's the calm before the storm. Could be the calm, the calm before the storm."

"What storm, Mr. President?" one reporter shouted. ISIS? North Korea? Iran?

Mr Trump would not say. Nor would he clarify the next day during a gathering of manufacturers at the White House, once again teasing that an announcement would be forthcoming down the road.

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders also declined to elaborate, saying: "We're never going to say in advance what the president will do."

She also denied that Mr Trump was simply being mischievous in an effort to mislead reporters.

During the military dinner, the president praised those assembled for the photo, saying: "We have the world's great military people in this room, I will tell you that."

Earlier in the evening, the president had lauded the group, including his defence secretary and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and said they would be discussing the most pressing military issues facing the country, including North Korea and Iran.

Mr Trump said "tremendous progress" had been made with respect to the Islamic State group, adding: "I guess the media's going to be finding out about that over the next short period of time."

He also denounced Iran, saying the country should not be allowed to obtain nuclear weapons, and offered another stark warning to North Korea's Kim Jong Un.

"We cannot allow this dictatorship to threaten our nation or allies with unimaginable loss of life," he said, vowing to "do what we must do to prevent that from happening and it will be done, if necessary".

He also said that, moving forward, he expects those in the room to provide him with "a broad range of military options, when needed, at a much faster pace."

AP
Pope Francis on Friday denounced the proliferation of adult and child pornography on the internet and demanded better protections for children online.

It came even as the Vatican confronts its own cross-border child porn investigation involving a top papal envoy.

Francis met with participants of a Catholic Church-backed international conference on fighting child pornography and protecting children in the digital age.

He fully backed their proposals to toughen sanctions against those who abuse and exploit children online and improve technological filters to prevent young people from accessing porn online.

Francis said the Catholic Church knew well the "grave error" of trying to conceal the problem of sexual abuse, a reference to the church's long history of having priests who rape and molest children and bishops who cover up for them.

Several well-known cases have involved priests having child porn, or photographing their victims.

Francis said an international, cross-disciplinary approach was needed to protect children from the dark net and the "corruption of their minds and violence against their bodies".

Using terms that are certainly new to papal lexicon, Francis denounced "extreme pornography" on the web that adults, and increasingly children consume, and the increasing use of "sexting" and "sextortion" among the estimated 800 million minors who navigate the internet.

"We would be seriously deluding ourselves were we to think that a society where an abnormal consumption of internet sex is rampant among adults could be capable of effectively protecting minors," he said.

The conference was planned some two years ago, but it unfolded precisely at the time when the Vatican is facing back-to-back child sex scandals: One of Francis' top advisers, Cardinal George Pell, recently took leave to face old abuse charges in his native Australia, while in August the Vatican recalled a senior diplomat from its embassy in Washington who got embroiled in a child porn investigation.

Canadian police have issued an arrest warrant for Monsignor Carlo Capella, accusing him of accessing, possessing and distributing child pornography during a visit to an Ontario church over Christmas.

He is now in the Vatican, where prosecutors have opened an investigation.

The Vatican in 2013 criminalised child porn possession, distribution and production, with sanctions varying from up to two years and a 10,000-euro fine to 12 years and a 250,000-euro fine.

Francis said he wanted people to remember that children look to adults, with light in their eyes and trust in their heart, to protect them.

"What are we doing to make sure they are not robbed of this light, to ensure that those eyes will not be darkened and corrupted by what they will find on the internet?"

The Pontifical Gregorian University drew plaudits for hosting the conference and bringing together a remarkable spectrum of specialists to discuss a little-reported issue.

Victims' advocates and other groups nevertheless pointed to the church's many cases of priests convicted of having child porn, and church authorities who covered up for them.

"It is astonishing that those problems were not only swept under the rug at this conference, but treated as qualifications for sponsoring the event," said Terence McKiernan of BishopAccountability, an online resource of the abuse scandal.

The victims group SNAP concurred: "The Vatican should not be leading this summit. They should be the target of this summit."

AP
Despite predictions of a "red wave" rolling throughout the country  one in which Republican political candidates would cruise to victory up and down the ballot on the strength of nationwide frustration with crime, inflation and dissatisfaction with the Biden administration  Tuesday's midterm election delivered more of the same for many Rhode Islanders. In addition to Democratic victories in all the major statewide races, voters in North Kingstown, Narragansett and South Kingstown skewed overwhelmingly blue in General Assembly races and all local school boards and town council races. With the results of Tuesday's midterm election all but finalized pending a few outstanding mail-in ballots and certification, it appears local boards of government in Southern Rhode Island towns will see a large number of familiar faces. With that in mind, do you believe your local town and school committee seats are held by the best representatives available in your town? Why or why not? Let us know in this week's poll question below.

You voted:
Ind Ra assigns Walchandnagar Industries rating to 'IND B-/Stable'; Stock gains 2.5% India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) has assigned Walchandnagar Industries Limited (WIL) a Long-Term Issuer Rating of IND B-. The Outlook is Stable. Moreover, the short-ter... November 15, 2022 | 12:26 pm

Godrej Properties achieves sales of Rs500 crore in Pune project launch Godrej Properties Ltd. on Tuesday has announced that it has achieved sales worth Rs500 crore through the launch of its new project, Godrej Woodsville in Hinjewadi, Pune. The company, till... November 15, 2022 | 12:17 pm

ONGC stock up by more than 2% today After the oil explorer reported a standalone net profit of Rs 12,826 crore for the September quarter, shares of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) rose 3% in intraday trade on Tuesday in an... November 15, 2022 | 10:36 am

W S Industries India secures Rs200.55 crore order; Stock soars 4.9% W S Industries (India) Ltd has informed that Company has bagged an order worth Rs200.55 crore. As per the regulatory filing, the order is for the Construction of Integrated Bus Termi... November 15, 2022 | 10:27 am

Fusion Microfinance debuts with discount of 2% at Rs 359 Non-Banking Financial Institution (NBFC) Fusion Microfinance opened at a minor discount of 2.44% to issue price on November 15, following a lower-than-expected subscription to its initial publi... November 15, 2022 | 10:09 am
Hrithik Roshan and Kangana Ranaut's 'alleged' love affair has become a full-fledged national drama. With Kangana's sister Rangoli defending her sister and accusing Hrithik of several things, people have been eyeing Hrithik for his response now.

Two days after his statement that he posted on social media, Hrithik for the first time in four years made an appearance on National television with Arnab Goswami's Republic channel.

Twitter

The channel has released two short promos from the interview and the internet can't get over it. Here are some of the details.

Screengrab

"Ive just had enough, I need to say what I want to say. Enough of I dont know what word to choose, I cannot describe it, but it has... I realise that I have been pretending because I have to live up to this star.. thing of mine that Ive got to look on for it, Ive got to be cool and be okay and not give any attention to something that is not important."

He added,

YouTube Screengrab

After a while, I realized that I was pretending. It was affecting me. It was affecting my sense of community, it was affecting my sense of well being, and I said now I am pretending... Thats not being hero, thats not strength, its fake. I had to do something about this. Its about time."

On being asked why Hrithik was quiet when Kangana claimed that he proposed to her in Paris, he had the best response to give. He said,

What could that have done? Its just one thing that couldve changed. Oh it was not Paris but some other place.

Watch one of the promos right here!






Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) the armed militant group in Myanmar said their one-month ceasefire in the restive Rakhine province would end in two days.

ARSA, however, added that they were open to peace if the government reciprocated.

"The humanitarian pause was conducted in order to enable humanitarian actors to assess and respond to the humanitarian crisis in Arakan (Rakhine)," the ARSA statement on Twitter said.

afp

"If at any stage, the Burmese government is inclined to peace, then ARSA will welcome that inclination and reciprocate," it said.

It was an attack by the small Rohingya militant group on a police station Rakhine state at the end of August triggered an army crackdown in Myanmar, unleashing a huge wave of refugees.

AFP

The army's reprisal has been so sweeping and savage that the UN says it likely amounts to ethnic cleansing of the Muslim minority, who have faced decades of persecution.

More than half a million Rohingya have fled into Bangladesh in six weeks, an exodus that has spiralled into one of the world's most urgent refugee crises.

afp

In its statement, ARSA said it had helped provide "safe passage" to refugees fleeing to Bangladesh.

While the worst of the bloodshed appears to have abated in recent weeks, tens of thousands of Rohingya continue to stream over to Bangladesh, passing through a violence-scarred region where hundreds of villages have been reduced to smouldering ash.

Founded in 2012, the ARSA carried out its first attack in 2016. Even though the exact numbers of ARSA fighters are believed to be in few hundreds.

Significantly under-armed, the ARSA uses sickles, machetes and arrows to carry out their attacks.

With the Rohingya community facing one of the worst crisis, ARSA recruiters say many have shown interest in joining them in their fight if they get back to Myanmar.

reuters

In the squalid refugee settlements sprouting up in Bangladesh, alleged ARSA recruiters have told AFP that they have enlisted hundreds who are willing to go back to Myanmar to fight.

The Rohingya have faced decades of systematic repression in mainly Buddhist Myanmar, with many relegated to apartheid-like restrictions that analysts have long warned could breed extremism.

The government denies the existence of the Rohingya ethnicity, instead describing them as "Bengali" interlopers.
Within a month of the murder of 7-year-old student Pradhyumn Thakur inside a toilet in Ryan School and the rape of a 5-year-old girl by a peon in an east Delhi school, a six-year-old girl was raped, allegedly by a member of the housekeeping team, inside the toilet of a private school in south Delhi's Malviya Nagar on Wednesday.

bccl/representational image

The contractual worker, Rakesh Kumar (23), was arrested later in the day and sent to 14-day judicial custody after the child complained to her parents and class teacher of pain in her abdomen and private parts.

The girl, a Class 1 student of the reputed school, had gone to the toilet on the second floor around 1.15 pm after her last class got over. She called out for a woman attendant who helps the girls clean up, but she didn't answer the girl's call.

bccl/representational image

Kumar, who was employed as a sweeper a fortnight ago, was lurking nearby and entered the washroom. He then locked it from inside and allegedly raped the girl on the pretext of cleaning her. When the girl started crying loudly, the sweeper threatened her, left her inside the toilet and fled.
Another shocking gangrape case has come up in Uttar Pradesh. A 19-year-old girl was allegedly gangraped by five men in Malihabad village, on the outskirts of the capital city Lucknow.

BCCL/ Representational Image

The incident happened on Thursday when the girl went out of her house to relieve herself.

According to her complaint, the men wanted to avenge the elopement of the main accused sister with the brother of the victim.

The men also shot at the victim after she tried to resist the attack. The teenager was shot on the nose and was left profusely bleeding.

BCCL/ Representational Image

The girl's father who was alerted by the gunshot saw his daughter lying in a pool of blood and rushed her to a hospital.

Police said the BA student has been admitted to the trauma centre of a hospital and is out of danger.

Based on the girl's complaint police have arrested four men including the main accused, Sandeep, while one of them is still on the run.
In a horrifying incident, a Class XI student of Jogeshwari Mata Secondary and Higher Secondary School in Wadebolai near Pune attacked two of his teachers with a sickle, landing one of them in an Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

On Friday morning 19-year-old Sunil Bhor from the commerce stream brutally assaulted economics teacher Dhananjay Abnave.

BCCL

Bhor, who was carrying the sharp weapon in his bag, attacked Abnave from behind, hitting him on his head, upper back and arms. Horrified witness Darshan Choudhari, who teaches secretarial practice, rushed to stop the boy, but Bhor turned on him, too, hitting him on the head.

Bhor fled the school premises immediately after the assault, with a friend who was waiting with a two-wheeler.

Both the teachers were rushed to a nearby hospital immediately.

While Choudhari had five stitches near his eye, Abnave got 16 stitches in his head, along with seven injuries on his body and was admitted to the ICU.

BCCL

"Bhor has been aggressive in the past  he was constantly impolite and his language left much to be desired. Last year, he was involved in three serious cases of fights and arguments with his classmates," Choudhari told Pune Mirror.

"Bhor was reprimanded two days ago in the classroom by Abnave over his long hair and was asked to attend the classes with a proper haircut. On Thursday, Bhor came to the classroom with haircut, but since he was wearing a cap, Abnave asked him to remove the cap or leave the classroom," a police officer said.

According to school principal Kalawati Dherange, Bhor's academics were suffering and he had been asked to bring his parents to school to talk to the teachers.

This was Bhor's second attempt to pass Class XI, having failed to do so last year.

According to locals, the friend who helped Bhor escape also has attempted to murder charges against him.
The United Nations in its annual report has accused the Naxals of using children to fight in Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.

The report also accused terrorists of burning at least 30 schools in Kashmir in the past one year.

bccl/representational image

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, in his annual report on Children in Armed Conflict, said,

"Children continued to be affected by incidents of violence between armed groups and the government, in particular in Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, as well as tensions in Jammu and Kashmir."

"The United Nations continued to receive reports of the recruitment and use of children by armed groups, including the Naxalites, in particular in Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand," he said.

bccl/representational image

Guterres quoted government reports to say that at least 30 schools were burned and partially destroyed by armed groups in Jammu and Kashmir.

"In addition, government reports confirmed the military use of four schools by security forces in that region for several weeks."

Guterres's report for 2016, however, shows that the prevalence of the use of children by Naxalites and other armed groups had come down to only two states compared to six in the previous year.

In the report for 2015 released last year, the then-Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon had said the Naxalites were using children as young as six in Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Odisha and West Bengal.

The report that talks about a number of other nation also said that there were about 4,000 verified cases of violations against children involving government forces and over 11,500 by non-state armed groups in the 20 nations covered in the report.

bccl/representational image

"I call upon the (Indian) government to develop appropriate mechanisms to protect children from recruitment, as well as to separate and reintegrate recruited children," Guterres said.

"I also urge the government to ensure the protection of children from any form of violence in the context of civil unrest or law and order operations."

"Children continued to be killed and injured in the context of operations of national security forces against Maoist armed groups," Guterres said, but did not provide any numbers.

According to the Home Affairs Ministry, 213 civilians were killed in encounters, a sharp increase from the 171 deaths in 2015. However, the number of children killed or injured have not been provided, the UN report said.

"Armed groups reportedly resorted to abduction and threats against parents in order to recruit children, who subsequently underwent military training and served as messengers, informants or guards in child squads (bal dasta)," Guterres said in the latest report.

In what he described as a "troubling development," Maoists were allegedly providing combat training as part of the curriculum in several schools they were running in Chhattisgarh.

In one incident recounted in Guterress report, police moved 23 children threatened with abduction by armed groups in Gumla district, Jharkhand, in March 2016 and "supported their enrollment in schools".
Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Shahidul Haque has said that the country has not seen any sign of radicalisation among Rohingya refugees.

AP

Haque who was in India on Friday said, We have not seen any huge case of radicalisation of the Rohingyas so far.

The Bangladeshi diplomat who met the likes of Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval urged India to treat the issue as a humanitarian issue.

Rohingyas are facing ethnic cleansing in Myanmar possibly due to a free economic zone that is likely to come up in their region. They were also attacked in 1977-78 and in 1991. Earlier their homes were not destroyed. But this time their homes were burnt. During my discussion in Delhi with Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, I said that the condition of the Rohingyas should be treated as a humanitarian issue, he said.

Reuters

He also said that Bangladesh was happy the way India is currently dealing with the crisis. "I think the way India is currently approaching on the Rohingya issue, we are extremely happy," he said.

BCCL

The Indian government which sees the Rohingyas as illegal immigrants wants around 40,000 of them living in the country to be deported citing threats to national security.
Denmark will soon become the latest European country to ban the use of Islamic veils such as the burqa and the niqab, worn by Muslim women.

representative image/reuters

The decision was taken after a majority of parties in the Danish parliament voted in favour of the ban on full-face coverings.

Muslim women in Denmark wear full-face veils. The law proposal for 'Burqa Ban' is mainly directed at ultra-conservative Muslim women and not at any religion. It also doesn't call for a ban on turbans, scarfs, or kippas (the traditional Jewish cap).

representative image/reuters

No formal date for enforcing the law has been announced yet. Austria, France, and Belgium already have similar laws. In 2011, France became the first country to ban the veils in public spaces.
Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz has a reputation of travelling lavishly on his state visits. As part of his entourage on his latest visit to Russia, he flew in 1,500 staff members, plush carpets, and a golden escalator.

afp

The 81-year-old king met with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday. But before that, he had to go through an ordeal that made headlines all around the world.

While disembarking his aircraft, the gold escalator malfunctioned forcing His Majesty to walk to the tarmac of Vnukovo International Airport.

Saudi King's gold escalator fail during his arrival to Moscow on historic state visit pic.twitter.com/5l1GeBT7bH https://t.co/IvVqAarbbO  RT (@RT_com) October 6, 2017

For a few brief seconds, he stood confused, not knowing what to do. Twitter picked up on that and made a few jokes.

I half expected him to be carried the rest of the way; the way he was standing there.  blacanuck (@blacanuck) October 6, 2017

And the poor guy had to walk?  Alex Max (@AlexMax4500) October 6, 2017

The bloke in charge of the escalator will have his head chopped off when he gets back to Saudi..  Simon Cotto (@simon_cotto) October 6, 2017

All the problems money can buy.  Cris Palomino (@crispalomino) October 6, 2017

I just don't have any words to express my sympathy  Roger (@roger1over) October 5, 2017

Hope he's okay after this traumatic test of courage  Hadi Abdul (@hadi_abd92) October 6, 2017

Glad he survived!
It's fair to say that people don't search but Google their queries online.

Everything from researching about the best smartphone to buy or learn to cook instant noodles like a boss, Google helps us find it all.

Image Courtesy: Reuters

And for all those avid Googlers, weve got a bunch of advanced tips to step up your game in searching the web and getting more accurate and appropriate results. Googling this way is far more convenient and fun.

Cached websites

Have you stumbled on a website to note something down and it isnt loading up? Simply Search for the website on Google, and where under the website URL, youll find a tiny triangle. Click on it to reveal a drop-down menu. Now select Cached to open a cached version of the website. This will be a static website that Google has captured and although it wont let you go to another link from it, you can take necessary information from the static data at your disposal.

Similar websites

Searching for a bed online, and you just know about one online furniture website? Search for the site you know and again click on the same triangle below the URL, as we did for the cached website, and click on Similar which will reveal sites similar to the category.

Search images like never before

We all love looking for wallpaper on Google Image search. However, there are times when the image isnt of the best resolution, which doesnt make a good wallpaper. Instead, click on the resolution on the image search and itll show you the same image in multiple resolutions on the web. Pick the highest resolution and youre good to go.

Moreover, if youre looking for images in a specific category, you could select- Search by Image and itll show you different images with a similar content.

Voice Search

We love searching on our smartphones using the voice, but did you know you could do the same on a laptop browser? Tap on the microphone on the Google Search Bar and shout out what you want to search, just like on our Android smartphones.

Search Nearby

When youre hungry and you dont know about a certain place, or youre looking for gas stations in the area, just use the word nearby at the end of the search- like Restaurants Nearby or Gas Stations Nearby. This will make the device use your GPS location to find out best results for you.

Search meanings for words

Reading a book and youre confused about a words meaning? Simply search for the word and end the search with the word meaning. For example- Pragmatic Meaning. This will tell you not only what the word means, but also its synonyms as well as the origin of the word.

Search Tab

If you want to search for content within a certain website, like Amazon, or YouTube, just enter the URL and hit Tab. This will turn the search bar specifically for that very website, making looking up for things much simpler. This might not work with all the websites, so a little trial and error can be expected.

Search for File type

There are times when you could be browsing on Google for a certain file type. It could be a PDF file or an application with a .EXE file. Mentioning this in the search can help find specific searches, like Mumbai University Syllabus PDF or CCleaner.exe and itll link you directly to it.
Mark and Kolinda Messier love the excitement that comes along with going to storage unit auctions.

My husband always says its just like Christmas, Kolinda Messier said.

The couple, who attends numerous storage unit auctions across Nebraska and Iowa, recently turned their hobby into a full-fledged business.

Their business, Second Chance Merchant, recently opened its doors at 1686 E 23rd Avenue North and features a variety of second hand goods that previously sat collecting dust in those very storage units.

It could be a dollar to five hundred dollars, we never know what we are going to find, Messier said. We just sold a brand new recliner sofa last week, which was a surprise find that we found covered in a blanket in the back of a unit.

Along with a variety of furniture, the store also features clothes, shoes, artwork, books, motorcycle gear, decorations, and jewelry among many other unique items.

We have trendy stuff, vintage stuff, different collectibles, Messier said. If it is in Goodwill you will probably find it in here, but we also do a lot more high end stuff as well.

The second hand goods available at Second Chance Merchant are always changing, as the Messiers move in new products from their warehouse into the storefront.

We keep our warehouse full, so we keep pulling in new things every day, Messier said.

One of the drawback of storage unit auctions, is the fact that sometimes you can end up with a lot of junk.

Sometimes theyll will have units that nobody wanted, so they will take all the junk and put it into one unit, and then put something really nice in front of it to fool everybody, Messier said. Then you end up stuck with kind of a dud.

When the Messiers get a unit full of junk, they donate and recycle what they cant sell in the store.

We recently bought a unit that was full of books, and there was a library close to the unit so we just donated all the books to that library, Messier said.

Along with giving slightly used goods a second chance, the Messiers also extend that same philosophy to people.

We believe in giving all the merchandise a second chance, if it is broken or needs paint my husband will give it a second chance by fixing it up, Messier said. But we also believe everyone deserves a second chance, so if someone comes in feeling down we can give them an encouraging word or help them out however we can.

Second Chance Merchant is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and anyone looking for specific items, or more information can contact the store at 402-727-0733.
US President Donald Trumps administration annulled on Friday an Obamacare provision that obliged employer health plans to pay for contraception.

The move extends to all commercial enterprises an exemption already given to religious institutions.

It expands exemptions to protect moral convictions for certain entities and individuals whose health plans are subject to a mandate of contraceptive coverage under Obamacare, a note published by the US Department of Health and Human Services said.

Obamacare is the common name for the Affordable Care Act, health reforms that took effect under former President Barack Obama in 2010. It allowed millions of uninsured people to get health insurance.

Repealing the act was one of Trumps most strident campaign promises. He described Obamacare as a total disaster, but his Republican Party has failed in efforts to repeal the health reforms.

Millions of American women who had the cost of contraception reimbursed could be affected by the Trump administrations decision, which conservative groups had been seeking since Obamacare began.

Challenges to Obamacare reached the US Supreme Court, which in 2014 ruled that family-owned private companies could choose not to provide contraceptive coverage to female employees on religious grounds.

In May, Trump signed a decree on religious liberty ordering his administration to take account of objections of conscience on matters of contraception.

Source; (AFP)
The Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has urged the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to be fair to all parties contesting the 2018 governorship election in the state.

The governor spoke on Friday in his reaction to INECs release of the timetable for the election.

He admonished INEC to conduct a credible poll that would be commended by the international community, noting that the June 21, 2014 election which he won, was hailed by the government of the United States of America.

He said he needed no help from INEC or any agency of the government for the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to win the election, just as he urged INEC and federal government agencies not to provide help for other contestants.

Mr. Fayose and his supporters within the PDP in the state have adopted his deputy, Olusola, as the preferred party candidate for the election.

However, other aspirants have kicked against the adoption, and are going ahead with their aspirations.

The international community as well as local election observers should from now, take very strong interest in the Ekiti 2018 governorship election and monitor INEC as it begins the processes leading to the conduct of the election, he said.

Concerning this election and others, INEC should be honourable by ensuring free, fair and credible elections.

This is considering the fact that Ekiti is a state controlled by the opposition and I am the number one opposition figure in Nigeria today.

INEC should take note that we cannot all be in the same political party and Nigeria cannot be one party state. The electoral commission should therefore be fair to all concerned.

As for me, I do not need INEC or agency of the government to help me and the PDP candidate to win the election and INEC and federal government agencies should not also provide help for other contestants.

INEC on Thursday announced July 14, 2018 as the date for the Ekiti State governorship election.

Mr. Fayose said the PDP was prepared for the election even before the election date was announced.

It is hopeful that INEC will not succumb to pressure from those who may want to take Ekiti State by means other than free, fair and transparent electoral process and truncate the rights of Ekiti people to make their choice, he said.

To our teeming supporters, eternal vigilance is most required from now till the end of the election.

I am confident that Ekiti people will resist any plot to subvert their collective wish because they have done it not once, not twice. Most importantly, support of the people of Ekiti for me and the PDP has never been in doubt.

It is on this note that I call on the international community as well as local election observers to from now, take very strong interest in the Ekiti 2018 governorship election and monitor INEC as it begins the processes leading to the conduct of the election.

The international community must monitor INEC from now and see to it that the electoral commission conducts a free, fair and credible election so that the world can be assured of a hitch-free election in 2019.

On our part as Ekiti people, we must pray persistently because with prayers, all the plots against our collective wish as a people will come to naught.

Source: ( Premium Times )
The leadership of the Nigerian Army has announced the arrest of some criminal elements operating in the South-eastern part of Nigeria.

The Nigerian Army said on Friday that it had arrested at least eight suspected cult members, vandals and a drug peddler in the ongoing military operation, Python Dance II.

The Deputy Director, Army Public Relations, and 82 Division Spokesman, Colonel Sagir Musa, who confirmed the arrests, said the suspects had been handed over to the police for further interrogation.

A Punch correspondent noted that Operation Python Dance II, which began on September 15 in the five southeastern states amid controversies, has only a week to round off.

It was gathered that troops of Sector 2, during the operation in Obile community in the Ohaji Egbema Local Government Area of Imo State, raided a hideout of cult members and vandals, recovering three locally made single barrel guns and an AK 47 rifle, loaded with 15 rounds of ammunition.

Also, the troops of 34 Brigade in Owerri arrested suspected members of the Degbam cult group, identified as Onyewokechi Chiwuanya, Uchechi Agu and Esoro Chibuzor, who were all handed over to the Egbema Police Station for further action.

The army spokesman in 82 Division, which is coordinating the Python Dance operation, Col. Musa, said, Patrols and raids on suspected criminal hideouts and confirmed flash-points across the South-East have been sustained during this period. This has denied criminals the freedom of action.

Similarly, crisis prone areas such as Ohaji Egbema in Imo State, Aba, Ngwa and Umuahia areas of Abia State, Ogorude and Edda areas of Ebonyi and Cross River states have so far been stabilised.

Due to regular patrols and search operations on confirmed criminal hideouts, some recovery of ammunition has been made. Following a tip-off, troops of 342 raided a criminal den and arrested four cultists in the Umukpo and Omoglogo villages in Ohuba community of the Ohaji Egbema LGA of Imo State. They have since been handed over to the police for further action.
Nigerian musician, Oristsefemi has blamed the failure of most marriage on se-x inadequacies.

In a chat with Saturday Beats, the musical taliban said that it always upsets him when he hears that lack of sex leads to the failure of some marriages in Nigeria.

He said:

Marriage is something that you have to be very diplomatic about. You have to be very careful and know what you are doing because it has its ups and downs. No marriage is perfect.

Some people talk about cheating in marriage and that is why I sang in my song, Igbeyawo, that women should not starve their husband of sex. If you do that, it would bring problems in your home. I dont want lack of sex to be a problem in my marriage.

Any time my wife wants to have sex, I would always give it to her, at any time.Some people think that marriage is all about money but it is not. It takes God and the couple to understand each other.
Former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, has hailed the Ooni of Ifes stance, that the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), is not a terrorist organization.

In a tweet on Saturday, Fani-Kayode said he was proud of Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi.

One of the most reverred traditional rulers in Yorubaland told the FG that IPOB is NOT a terrorist organisation. COURAGE! Proud of him, he wrote.

Oba Ogunwusi has disapproved of the declaration made by South East Governors that IPOB are terrorists.

The Monarch says members of the group should not be seen as terrorists because they are only seeking justice and equity.

He made the remark on Friday, when he paid a courtesy visit to Abia State Governor, Okezie Ikpeazu.

Source  Dailypost
Fuji musician and Yoruba actor, Alhaji Alao Malaika recently completed his new house in Lekki Phase One, Lagos and he is set to move into the house.

The Fuji star has planned the house warming ceremony for December.

He confirmed the reports at a wedding ceremony where he performed recently saying; It has happened. December has been fixed for my house warming ceremony. I will invite all my fans to be part of it.

Heres the picture of the house

source: Stargist
The president general of the Igbo socio-cultural groups, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, at the third inauguration of the state and local government executives committees of the Abia state chapter of , said the restructuring of the polity is and remains the position of Ndigbo in the ongoing debate about the future of the country.

The groups position counters the demand for independence canvassed by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

The group, led by Nnamdi Kanu, has urged the federal government to convene a referendum that would give birth to Biafra, for the South East and some parts of the South South regions of the country.

But, Mr. Nwodo insisted that Biafra is a tall order, given constitutional roadblocks in this dispensation.

We should forget Biafra and insist on restructuring; there is no Igbo person that is happy with the situation of things in Nigeria, we must seek for peaceful ways of resolving the issues, he said.

He said while the youth are justified in expressing their anger at the way Igbo are being marginalized in national affairs, they should moderate their actions and words.

The presidency had on Monday said the Igbo group could have done more to check the excesses of the separatist group, IPOB.

This was in response to the groups criticism of President Buharis independence speech. The Ohanaeze had criticised the speech saying Mr. Buhari refused to take responsibility for the various challenges facing the country.

However, in his speech on Thursday, Mr. Nwodo said the Ohaneze had urged IPOB, Mr. Kanu and his followers, to tone down their rhetoric and desist from denigrating people and groups.

He said the group was also told that its insistence on Biafra and its call for boycott of Anambra election, were unacceptable.

Mr. Nwodo said making inciting speech is capable of causing crisis which could lead to mass violence in the nation, and added that is pertinent to respect constituted authorities.

He said the firsthand experience he had during the civil war has given him an understanding of the throes of war.

There are 11.6 million Igbo people living in the North and, it will be wise for Igbo people living in the South East, and elsewhere, to put them into consideration while speaking or engaging in certain activities.

I urged Igbo youths to desist from activities and comments that could spark violence in the nation. At the moment, what Igbo people need to fight for is restructuring of the nation, he said.

Source: ( Premium Times )
The Nigerian Army says it has deployed troops for the commencement of Operation Crocodile Smile in the six Niger Delta states.

Maj.-Gen. Enobong Udoh, the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 6 Division

, Nigerian Army, Port Harcourt, said this on Saturday while addressing troops to signal the commencement of the exercise.

Udoh said the operation was confidence building patrol rather than a show of force as widely reported.

Operation Crocodile Smile is not a show of force but a confidence-building patrol that seeks to reassure the people of Rivers state and the Niger Delta that the army is ready to work.

We are ready to work in close synergy and collaboration with other security services and agencies of government to ensure that there is peace and security for the people.

Our operation aims to reassure the public that we are ready to fight crimes like cultism, militancy, and kidnapping so that people can go about their business without fear, he said.

Udoh said that troops would carry out collaborative patrols with the Nigerian Police, Federal Road Safety Corps, Nigerian Immigration Service and the Department of State Security (DSS).

Others are Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Corps, Nigerian Customs Service and personnel of the Nigerian Prison Service.

He said the division would carry out the exercise in Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Delta and Rivers states while another formation would cover other states in the Niger Delta.

Army, police and other security services was established to ensure peace; enforce law and order and create the enabling environment for economic activities to thrive.

This is our ultimate mandate, and, as such, we urge Nigerians to give us the necessary support to enable us to succeed, he said.

The three weeks exercise is slated for Oct. 7 to Oct. 28.

Source: ( NAN )
Nigerias Hairiest Woman, Queen Okafor, shot into limelight years ago when she said she gets not less than 100 suitors and admirers everyday due to her hairs. She recently shaved her beard off so she can look more feminine and showed off her new look on Instagram. According to Queen, people look at her embarrassingly whenever she steps out. She said she lived a normal live until she was 21 when hair started growing all over her body.Queen who is now 26, said she inherited this from her mother;

Once you get to 21 to 23 years in my family, you start experiencing hair growth, she said. I want people to treat me like a normal human being and I will also love to appear in movies she added. Queen Nonyerem Okafor is a Nigerian-born, 29-year-old lady who is said to be Nigerias hairiest woman. A native of Nneobi-Nnewi, Anambra State in South eastern Nigeria, Queen spent her early years schooling in Owerri.

She is second child in a family of five children. At first born hairless, she started sprouting hair in prodigious quantity at age 21. She currently resides in Lagos, Nigeria where she is trying to get into the Nigerias movie industry (popularly called Nollywood). Queen is constantly trimming her hair. Thus no measurement has been taken to establish the real length of her hair.

source: Theinfong
At least eight suspected cult members, vandals and a drug peddler have been arrested by the Nigerian Army in the ongoing military operation, Python Dance II.

According to the Deputy Director, Army Public Relations, and 82 Division Spokesman, Colonel Sagir Musa, who confirmed the arrests, said the suspects had been handed over to the police for further interrogation.

Our correspondent noted that Operation Python Dance II, which began on September 15 in the five southeastern states amid controversies, has only a week to round off.

It was gathered that troops of Sector 2, during the operation in Obile community in the Ohaji Egbema Local Government Area of Imo State, raided a hideout of cult members and vandals, recovering three locally made single barrel guns and an AK 47 rifle, loaded with 15 rounds of ammunition.

Also, the troops of 34 Brigade in Owerri arrested suspected members of the Degbam cult group, identified as Onyewokechi Chiwuanya, Uchechi Agu and Esoro Chibuzor, who were all handed over to the Egbema Police Station for further action.

The army spokesman in 82 Division, which is coordinating the Python Dance operation, Col. Musa, said, Patrols and raids on suspected criminal hideouts and confirmed flash-points across the South-East have been sustained during this period. This has denied criminals the freedom of action.

Similarly, crisis prone areas such as Ohaji Egbema in Imo State, Aba, Ngwa and Umuahia areas of Abia State, Ogorude and Edda areas of Ebonyi and Cross River states have so far been stabilised.

Due to regular patrols and search operations on confirmed criminal hideouts, some recovery of ammunition has been made. Following a tip-off, troops of 342 raided a criminal den and arrested four cultists in the Umukpo and Omoglogo villages in Ohuba community of the Ohaji Egbema LGA of Imo State. They have since been handed over to the police for further action.

Source : ( Punch Newspaper )
DAR

The Lewis-Clark Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, met Oct. 3 at Keene Memorial Library with Regent Dixie Lambert presiding.

Jane Dugan read the National Defender which was regarding the Rolling Thunder group that is celebrating their 30th anniversary last Memorial Day. In 2017, there were over 900,000 riders through Washington, D.C.

Betsy Hansen read the President Generals message. During the month of October, DAR members celebrate the 127th anniversary of the founding of DAR. Members are encouraged to participate in service projects on Oct. 11 and throughout the month of October as part of the National DAR Day of Service in honor of the anniversary.

Pam Hancock gave the veterans minutes. According to the Dept. of Veterans Affairs, we are losing over 500 Vietnam veterans each day. Since 2013, the Vietnam War Commemorations History & Legacy Branch has been conducting video-recorded oral history interviews to capture the memories of our Vietnam veterans. Unedited footage of the interviews will be kept on file and shared with the Library of Congress Veterans History Project.

Hancock gave the Indian Minutes. It was on Paul Brill, who died on March 19, 2017, in Terre Haute, Indiana. He was 86. He spent more than 25,000 hours tracing the Omaha lineage, and learning the Omaha language along the way. He was made a member of the tribe by proclamation of the tribal council, a rare honor, in 1988. He was adopted into the Merrick family as a sign of respect and appreciation. His ashes are buried in the Merrick family plot in the Macy cemetery.

Laree Skelton gave the Conservation Minutes. You can conserve water by using rocks, etc., in your landscaping. Also check your outdoor hoses and sprinklers for any leaks.

The John F. Kennedy quote in honor of his 100th birthday is from a 1963 Thanksgiving Day Proclamation: As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.

Hancock read the Lewis-Clark Chapter minutes from Oct. 5, 1905. Mrs. Kemp made a motion to give a prize of $5 in gold to a member of the senior class of 1906 for the best history article. Carried. The details of the prize and historic article were put in the hands of Mrs. McDonald and Mrs. Miller.

Hancock read the minutes on Wives of signers of the Constitution. This month it was on the life of Elizabeth Mullen Brearley. Shye was born in 1741 in Amwell, New Jersey, and died Aug. 3, 1777, in Allentown, New Jersey. At age 18, she fell in love with Henry Luttrell, an Englishman, an ensign stationed in Trenton during the French and Indian War.

Henry received a commission which required his return to England, so the couple eloped. Henry and Elizabeth were aboard a ship to England when her mother arrived to take her back. Luttrell returned to England alone; later Elizabeth bore a daughter by Henry.

David Brearley was admitted to the New Jersey Bar in 1767, and he and Elizabeth married in 1767, and they had three children. In 1776, Brearley joined the New Jersey militia of the 2nd Regiment as Colonel. When he was in command less than two months, Elizabeth died.

Chapter members are to reconstruct their volunteer hours since February of this year through September and get them to Betsy Hansen and she will record hours onto the DAR website.

Plans were finalized for the DAR Day of Service project for this year. Members were to serve the evening meal at Care Corps in partnership with Thrivent Financial and Hy-Vee on Oct. 6.

The chapter received an invitation to mark the grave of Charlotte Faulk Parmer, Nebraskas first State Regent. It will be held at 2 p.m. Oct. 7 at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Omaha.

Several members then shared items from their family for American Heritage Minutes. Laree Skelton brought a quilt made by her great-great-grandmother. The fascinating bit of history is that she sheared the sheep and spun the wool to make the quilt.

Ruth Anne Siders brought a sampler made by her parents. Her father carved the wooden frame, and her mother made the sampler saying in the frame in 1930. Jane Dugan brought a quilt made in 1931 by her grandmother. Hancock brought a picture painted by her grandmother in 1975.

The business meeting was adjourned and the program on the Star Spangled Banner was given by Dugan. It was an extensive study on DVD of the things going on in our history during the time the anthem was written.

Francis Scott Key was a gifted amateur poet. He was also a religious man and composed a couple of hymns. He wrote the anthem on Sept. 14, 1814, while watching the bombardment of Ft. McHenry. When Key declared that our flag was still there, he fused the physical symbol of the nation with universal feelings of patriotism, courage, and resilience. After the war, he practiced law in the District of Columbia. It was finally determined to be our national anthem on March 3, 1931.

Hostess for the month was Hancock who had a Fall theme for the table. The next meeting will be held on Nov. 7 with a Vietnam veteran as speaker.
Nollywood actress, Iyabo Ojo, recently ventured into the hospitality business and became a food vendor with her amala joint which she called Abula Spot.

But even as she opened the joint, not just a few wondered where and how she was able to get the money which she used in acquiring the two-storey building that houses her joint.

Reacting to the speculations, the actress claimed that she had to sell some of her landed property and also her jewellery in order to achieve her dream.

I did not collect a loan to open my business, I saved. I had been planning to open this place for a very long time, so I had been saving. When I wanted to get my new office building, I sold some of my property. I sold almost all my gold if not everything. During that time, I sold one batch and when I needed more money, I sold the rest. I told myself to forget about gold for now because I know that I can make the money back later. With the support of good people as well, I was able to get my office building. The first lady of Kwara State who came to inaugurate the building supported me. Some of my godparents also supported me because I told them that I wanted to sell amala, she said.

Apparently, her new found love would eat much of her time if she wants the business to survive but during the course of chatting with Saturday Beats, the actress said that she has everything figured out.

She further said that selling amala can never make her quit acting. I can never quit my career for anything. I am a very organised person. When you are organised, you plan ahead. My life is planned and that has helped me a lot. I knew I was going to do this food business but I waited till the right time. For about a month or two, I am not going to be filming so that I can look after my business. I have a structured plan for my business. It is insured, I have an auditor who comes to look at the records. Everything is well planned, she said.

Ojo who jokingly said that people now refer to her as Iya alamala (amala seller) said that she is not ashamed to sell food some people perceive to be local.

I am a local chic. I made a name for myself by acting in my local dialect which is the Yoruba language and in our culture, amala is the in-thing. I am proud to be selling amala because that is my culture. A Chinese man cannot be ashamed of owning a Chinese restaurant. What I did was that I brought something perceived to be local to the Island and I made it look posh. When something is local, it does not mean that it is dirty. People really long to eat amala and I am not ashamed to be selling it.

I opened the Abula Spot because I noticed that on the Island, they do not really have anywhere you could go to get the local dish unlike the way we do on the mainland. When I moved to the Island, I decided that I was going to open my restaurant here. I had been planning to open this business for a long while but I did not have the time to monitor it at the time. When I saw that I had the time to go into the business, I went for it. I had two shops on the mainland so I decided to close one down, the actress said.

Source: Punch
All Progressives Congress chieftain, Lalong claims his brother knew he was going do die and he wishes he could also see his death coming.

Plateau State Governor, Simon Lalong, on Friday said that he wished that he would die like his late brother, Dr. Tsenba Wummen Bako, who he said had the opportunity for an encounter with Jesus Christ.

The governor said his late brother knew he was going to die. Lalongs late brother was a lecturer in the Department of Management and Accounting at the University of Jos.

Lalong spoke in his home town, Nyak Ajikamai, in Shendam Local Government Area, during a valedictory church service conducted by the Catholic Archbishop of Jos Diocese, Most. Revd. Fr. Ignatius Kaigama, and other bishops.

g that Bako had finished his job on earth and was resting in the bosom of the Lord. He described the deceased as God-fearing, adding that Bako had finished his job on earth and was resting in the bosom of the Lord.

The governor said, It has not been easy for us since his death because of the number of people who have been coming to greet us and pay condolence visits. We were all born in this village. Our father died and left nothing for us. It has been the grace of God for the past 30 years. Our sisters were the people who took care of us.

The grace of God has been sufficient. I wish I would die like him. My brother knew he was going to die and as we put in our efforts, (but) he repeatedly said, Dont worry; I know I am going to die. We are happy he died in the Lord, he had the opportunity. He has finished his job on earth and he is now resting in the bosom of the Lord.

Another member of the family, whose name could not be ascertained as of the time of filing this report, said the deceased neither drank nor smoked; his accomplishments are great. At 46, he accomplished what people who died at over 90 years couldnt accomplish.

The valedictory church service was attended by many dignitaries, including governors of Sokoto State (Aminu Waziri Tambuwal); Kano State (Abdullahi Ganduje); and representative of Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo.

In his sermon, Kaigama said, We cannot question or argue with God. We cannot quarrel or insult Him. It is our unshakable conviction that he who believes in God never dies.

Death brings agony, sorrow and tears. The late Wummen Bako would have been a pride to Nigeria. We are all guilty; all we can do is to plead for pardon. But the good news is that God is merciful and full of compassion. Death is liberation from life. Death is inevitable and we all hope to see God one by one.

The cleric condemned the killing in Las Vegas, United States, describing it as a senseless cheapening of human life.
SimplyStow, a Lancaster, Pa.-based startup, is scheduled to launch a peer-to-peer self-storage marketplace next month that will serve the local community and student body at Franklin & Marshall College (F&M). Similar to other shared-economy networks, the app-based company will provide an online platform where people in need of storage can find local hosts willing to rent available space.

Beginning Nov. 16, those in need of storage will be able to peruse the SimplyStow app in search of local storage options. The company is currently running a beta program, allowing hosts and storage seekers to sign up for early access. Thus far, 250 people have registered, with 60 percent listing space for rent and 40 percent looking for storage space, according to the source.

There arent any size constraints for hosts to list, and theyll be allowed to set their own rental price. Listings will include space descriptions and photos. Those looking for storage will be able to consult user ratings and reviews. App-user accounts will be verified through social profiles, the source reported.

Unlike other peer-to-peer storage marketplaces, SimplyStow intends to offer a valet-storage component through which customers will be able to schedule item packing, pick-up and delivery. The company also will provide a digital inventory of stored belongings.

SimplyStow will charge for pickup and delivery based on travel distance, and intends to take a cut of space rentals by charging a transaction fee, possibly 15 percent, according to CEO Paraj Mathur, a 21-year-old senior at F&M, who conceived the company at the end of his junior year.

A business and computer-science major, Mathur is working with fellow student Ionela Turcin, a 21-year-old carrying a double major in biology and Spanish. Mathur came up with the idea for the peer-to-peer service when storing his belongings at Turcins house for the summer, while he returned home to California. Our goal is that no college student or anyone [who has more stuff than space] will need to suffer through self-storage again, Mathur told the source.

SimplyStow is seeking outside investment to help with startup costs, staffing, further app development, and pickup and delivery services. Mathur plans to eventually expand the services reach to other colleges and cities.

Our goal at a larger scale is to bring the tech-company ecosystem to Lancaster, he told the source. Thats a big part of who we are. Whatever our success comes as a company, it stays rooted in Lancaster.
PETERBOROUGH, ON (October 7, 2017)- From every corner of the province, Ontarios top short-track asphalt racing stars have converged on Canadas Toughest 1/3-Mile Paved Oval for the 25th annual running of the Autumn Colours Classic presented by Lucas Oil Products at Peterborough Speedway. The first round of action got rolling on Friday, October 6 with qualifying heats for the Battlefield Equipment Rental 4Fun, Jiffy Lube Mini Stock, Thunder Car, Organics & Glass Late Model, Pro Late Model and OSCAAR Modified divisions. Also on the schedule were the APC Auto Parts Mini Stock and Thunder Car Young Guns races.

Brandon Watson, the 2017 APC Series champion, scored the lone Pro Late Model heat win, with Shawn Chenoweth, Terry Woodley and Warren Paxton sharing the Jiffy Lube Mini Stock qualifiers. OSCAAR Modified heat races went to Brad Stevenson, Cory Horner and J.R. Fitzpatrick. A trio of Thunder Car qualifying heats were shared by Dan Archibald, Carson Nagy and Treyten Lapcevich.

Former track champion and past Autumn Colours Classic winner Ryan Kimball and Gord Shepherd split the Organics & Glass Late Model heats. Rob Crick, Chad Strawn and two-time track champion Jeremy Kelly took checkered flags in the Battlefield Equipment Rental 4Fun qualifiers.

In the APC Young Guns events for drivers 21 or younger Coltin Everingham took the Mini Stock win over Miles Tyson, Nolan Gould, Gil Brooks and Bailey Jacobs. In the Thunder Car 20 lapper, Gerrit Tiemersma was first to the line, with Treyten Lapcevich, Carson Nagy, Lane Zardo and Bailey Jacobs completing the top five.

Action continues Saturday, October 7 with the second round of qualifying for the Friday night divisions and the first round for the Trailers Plus Eastern Ontario Legends. The OSCAAR Midgets will run their heats, B main and feature events. Pit gates will open at 10:00, with racing getting started at 3:30.

Bullring bullet points: Ron Allison of Peterborough left the opening night of the 2017 Autumn Colours Classic with $709 win in the 50/50 drawThere were a couple of issues during afternoon practice sessions, with Nick Goetz and Paul Pierik both being cradled off the track after contact. Goetz pulled a back-up car from his hauler, while Pierik  who was also scheduled to run with the Trailers Plus Eastern Ontario Legends  had help from crew members, neighbouring teams and friends as they tried to get the #33 Late Model repairedQuebecer Samuel Charland  who was making his first career Peterborough Speedway start  was also involved in a crash, but hard work by his crew got the car back on the trackBailey Jacobs made his first career Autumn Colours start in a car the team acquired following the 2016 season, while Tim Burke  the 2017 Renegade Truck division champion  steered Jacobs former ride in his Thunder Car debutBrandon Watson qualified his Pro Late Model and also hot-lapped an OSCAAR Super Late Model that had yet to have its graphics package appliedShort track racing has always been about friends and family. Helping in the pits of recent Velocity 250 Late Model winner Danny Benedict were the drivers father, his girlfriend, along with former OSCAAR Modified driver Max Beyore and past Peterborough Speedway Late Model champion Craig Graham.

Full event details and information can be found by selecting the Autumn Colours tab at www.peterboroughspeedway.com, checking the tracks Facebook page or Twitter feed. Fans can also download the free speedway app for their Smartphone.

Prepared by: Jim Clarke, Clarke Motorsports Communications/First Draft Media

clarkemotorsports@hotmail.com, www.facebook.com/clarkemotorsports

613.968.6410
More than six months after Cyclone Debbie dealt a $1.4bn blow to the Australian economy, climate experts are increasingly concerned that lessons haven't been learnt, as many Australians continue to expose themselves to significant risk by not taking up adequate cover against extreme weather.Climate research groups, including the Climate Council, all agree that extreme weather events, such as heavy rainfall, storms and ocean swells tied to rising sea levels, and bushfire-prone conditions  are becoming increasingly severe and intense.This is a sizable problem considering a Climate Council finding that eight out of 10 Australian homeowners are underinsuring their home and contents due to lack of funds or the lack of awareness on the potential amount of repair costs, Domain reported.Underinsured homeowners also have more to lose if their properties get badly damaged because of the high house prices in Sydney and Melbourne, which doubled in the last 10 years, and record-high household debt levels.Home-and-contents insurance has become less and less affordable for homeowners in recent years, and the industry continues to raise premiums to the point where homeowners in some areas, particularly those prone to natural disaster, have been priced out of the market, a Choice official told Domain. An increase in extreme weather events will only make matters worse for those who are already stretched to pay for home insurance.According to the Climate Risk report, in some high-risk areas, premium prices are 10 times higher than premiums in locations that are less vulnerable to weather hazards.In terms of rebuild costs, Richard Deakin, CoreLogics head of Australian and New Zealand Insurance Research, said a lot of people don't really understand how much rebuilding their property will actually cost because they're not property experts.They may look at their sales price and say the property is worth $400,000 on the market' but it might cost $500,000 to rebuild that property, if not more, he told Domain.But the underinsurance problem runs deeper than a lack of affordability and the consumers' lack of knowledge, the study found.Transparent risk disclosure to homebuyers is a vital precursor to risk mitigation, management, and adaptation, Dr Karlon Mallon and his team of researchers wrote. Currently, this market failure means that many homes are being built in the wrong locations, specified for the wrong level of hazards, using the wrong materials and the wrong designs. The first unwitting victims of this market failure are homebuyers. The second unwitting victims are taxpayers.Exacerbating the underinsurance problem in the country is the complexity of insurance policies. A central complaint was the lack of standardised key terms across insurance products, which would help consumers understand their cover and not be caught out by restrictive definitions that catch them out at claim time, Choice told Domain.
Businesses are still unprepared for the launch of mandatory breach notification early next year, an expert has said.Dougal Hawkes, founder and CEO of cyber risk assessment firm Augmentor, said that businesses are still some way off where they need to be with February fast approaching.A lot of people I talk to are not even aware of it so there is an element of needing to raise that awareness, Hawkes told Insurance Business. February 22 is not very far away and if you are not talking about this with your clients now, then there is an issue.The mandatory breach legislation, which was unveiled earlier this year, will mean that all businesses and government agencies governed by the Privacy Act and those with a turnover of more than $3 million a year will be made to notify the privacy commissioner and affected customers as soon as they become aware of a cyber breach.Similar legislation is already commonplace in the US and has led to an uptick in the take-up of cyber insurance. Firms that fail to comply with the Australian legislation could face penalties of $360,000 for individuals and $1.8 million for organisations.Hawkes said that brokers have an important role to play for those businesses that will fall under the remit of mandatory breach legislation, and warned that client awareness needs to be at the forefront.From a brokers perspective, it is educating their clients, Hawkes continued. It is going to be really important that people are aware [of mandatory breach legislation], of their obligations and what they need to do with reporting it to the commissioner.With headlines across the globe dominated by cyberattacks throughout 2017, Hawkes said that it is important to translate attacks against larger businesses to small business clients. The recent hack of global credit reporting agency Equifax, for example, and the subsequent fall-out which saw its CEO retire, offers brokers an opportunity to highlight the importance of a cyber breach response plans to their clients, regardless of size.There is a lot of press in the market but it is the high end and I think how that then translates to the SME and lower end of the market is a bit lacking, Hawkes continued. For me, size is not really important.If you take, for example, the lower end of town, dentists, doctors or any small business, what is key for them is their customers and customer data. It would be catastrophic for an SMB to lose it on a scale equivalent to that Equifax breach.
Environmental liability insurance is a notoriously tricky business. Its underpinned with complex vocabulary and acronyms that can be hard to master. Tackling this tough terminology and grasping full understanding of environmental insurance markets is a specialized task.However, the opportunities are there to be taken - the specialty environmental insurance industry is extremely healthy and competitive in the US, according to Chris Dockery, senior vice president, Brown & Riding Insurance Services.There are lots of new players entering the market and bringing competition for transactional business, said Dockery. New entrants to the market are driving product evolution and placing downward pressure on prices so that everyone can stay relevant.Proactive brokers that are comfortable with the unique coverages available and understand the various markets, products and prices, will be most effective in the environmental space, according to Dockery.There are different segments within the environmental insurance world with various degrees of technicality. One area that is distinctly difficult is Pollution Legal Liability or Site Pollution. Dockery said that many brokers and retailers are hesitant to get involved in these areas and, as a result, are unaware of specialty products available in the E&S and wholesale markets.The more sophisticated and larger buyers are often most aware of their environmental exposures  but you do still find larger companies with in-house risk managers who are oblivious to the risks, Dockery told Insurance Business. At Brown & Riding, we deal with companies of all shapes and sizes. It can be a little bit harder to sell environmental liability insurance to smaller companies who dont fully understand their exposures.Environmental legislation helps to bring more awareness of the product. Contract requirements drive a lot of purchases in the construction world, and lender requirements underline lots of real estate transactions, mergers and acquisitions. That tends to heighten awareness of the product and get people to really drill down on their exposures and get environmental site reports completed.Some environmental exposures are just too risky for standard insurance policies and need to be solved with products from the E&S markets, which are enjoying a period of sustained growth, according to Dockery.As for trends or what the next environmental exposure might be - who knows? he added. 15-20 years-ago, mold, lead, asbestos and legionella were not considered issues, but now theyre common exclusions on standard insurance policies that were solving with specialty market products.The definition of a pollutant is such a broad entity that I think the specialty environmental insurance market will continue to grow and evolve.
Hurricane Nate weakened to a tropical depression on Sunday after coming ashore in Mississippi, flooding roads and buildings but sparing the state from catastrophic damages.

Maximum sustained winds from Nate, the fourth major storm to hit the United States in less than two months, dropped to 35 miles per hour (55 km per hour) as it moved through Alabama and into Tennessee.

The remnants of the storm spawned tornado warnings in those states and the western portions of North Carolina and South Carolina. It is forecast to bring gusty winds and up to 4 inches (10 cm) of rain to parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York on Monday.

The storm made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane, the weakest designation by the U.S. National Hurricane Center. Only a few hours earlier, its winds had been blowing at 70 mph (113 kph) but appeared to lack the devastating punch of its recent predecessors.

Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant told reporters there had been no deaths or reports of catastrophic damage. We are very fortunate this morning and have been blessed, he said.

Nate killed at least 30 people in Central America before entering the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico and bearing down on the U.S. South. It has also shut down most oil and gas production in the Gulf.

Nate follows hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria, which have devastated areas of the Caribbean and southern United States.

Estimated $2.5 Billion Gulf Coast Damage from Nate Less Than First Feared

The tropical depressions center will move up through Alabama into Tennessee and Kentucky through Monday, the hurricane center said. Heavy rainfall and storm-surge flooding remained a danger across the region, and the hurricane center said Floridas Panhandle and parts of Alabama and Georgia might feel tropical storm-force wind gusts.

Nate made its first U.S. landfall on Saturday evening near the mouth of the Mississippi River and then made a second one early on Sunday near Biloxi, Mississippi.

In Biloxi, water surged over roads during the storm and quickly receded on Sunday, leaving a boat that broke loose marooned on the beach. At a Waffle House restaurant, the storm surge deposited a dumpster in its parking lot.

Jeff Pickich, a 46-year-old wine salesman from DIberville, Mississippi, was counting his blessings. Heavy winds left only minor damage, blowing down part of a fence on his rental property in Biloxi.

Im just glad, he said, digging fresh holes for fence posts. I was afraid of the water. The water is Mother Nature. You cant stop it.

Water flowed through Ursula Statens yard in Biloxi, pushing over part of her fence and scattering debris, but did not breach her house.

I have a mess, the retired massage therapist said. If we had got Irma, I would have lost everything.

At the Golden Nugget Casino, one of eight Biloxi gaming establishments, workers rushed to clean up mud, debris and minor damage from 3 feet (1 m) of water sloshing into an entrance and the parkade. The gaming room stayed dry.

Three hundred guests remained in the hotel, some eager to try their luck after survivingNate.

But dangers from the storm remain, with Florida Governor Rick Scott warning of tornadoes springing up in the Panhandle region and Alabama Governor Kay Ivey urging residents to prepare for strong winds and storm surges.

U.S. President Donald Trump declared federal emergencies in Alabama and Florida on Sunday, which provides additional funding for disaster relief.

Mississippi Power had restored electricity to 10,000 customers, but 4,800 were still without it. More than 1,000 people had arrived at shelters, the state Emergency Management Agency said.

Alabama Power said it had restored electricity to 58,000 of 146,000 customers who lost it.

Rainfall of 3 to 6 inches (8 to 15 cm), with a maximum of 10 inches (25 cm), was expected east of the Mississippi River in Alabama and Tennessee, the hurricane center said.

NEW ORLEANS THREAT DOWNGRADED

Forecast at one point to make landfall in Louisiana, Nate headed farther east and spared many New Orleans parishes that were devastated by Hurricane Katrina 12 years ago.

I had prayed for this  that we would be spared, said Amos Cormier, president of Plaquemines Parish, Louisianas equivalent to a county.

Bernice Barthelemy, a 70-year-old Louisiana resident, died from cardiac arrest overnight after telling Reuters on Saturday that she did not mind having to evacuate, Cormier said on Sunday. He attributed her death to the stress of the move.

New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu said he expected that evacuated residents could return home soon.

Vessel traffic and port operations at New Orleans resumed on Sunday afternoon, while the Port of Mobile in Alabama remained closed. Oil ports, producers and refiners in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama were planning reopenings as the storm moved inland on Sunday.

The storm curtailed 92 percent of daily oil production and 77 percent of daily natural gas output in the Gulf of Mexico, more than three times the amount affected by Harvey.

The storm doused Central America with heavy rains on Thursday, killing at least 16 people in Nicaragua, 10 in Costa Rica, two in Honduras and two in El Salvador.

(Reporting by Rod Nickel in Biloxi, Miss. and Jessica Resnick-Ault in Pascagoula, Miss.; Additional reporting by Marianna Parraga, Erwin Seba and Gary McWilliams in Houston; Jonathan Allen in New York; Writing by Lisa Shumaker; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn and Peter Cooney)

Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters USA Florida Louisiana Windstorm Hurricane Mississippi Tennessee Alabama
Midland University is preparing to host a special presentation that seeks to delve beyond the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation and examine its lasting impact on modern-day life.

The event features the Rev. Dr. Ashley Hall, associate professor of Historical Theology and chaplain of the Lutheran Campus Ministry at Creighton University.

There will be two opportunities for the public to participate in Reformation 500  The Impact Today on Thursday, Oct. 12, released information from Midlands Communications Department says.

The first is at noon at Midland Universitys Omaha Campus, 11231 Davenport St. The second is at 7 p.m. in the Presidential Dining Rooms on Midlands Fremont campus.

Lunch will be provided during the noon presentation, and reservations for that event are required. Reservations can be made at alumni.midlandu.edu/reformation500 or by calling 402-941-6055. Reservations are not needed for the evening event in Fremont.

Hall also is associate pastor for Adult Faith Formation at Kountze Memorial Lutheran Church in Omaha. He is a delegate for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in Round XII of the national Lutheran-Roman Catholic dialogue, and has been active in coordinating the historical joint Lutheran-Catholic worship services and dialogue in the Omaha area.

The posting of Martin Luthers 95 Theses in 1517 marks the beginning of the Reformation, a breaking away from the Roman Catholic Church. The events that followed altered the religious, educational and sociopolitical landscape of the world.

We are so used to our modern world and church and state separation that we take for granted some really significant paradigm shifts, said the Rev. John Eggen, officer of major gifts for Midland University. What it means to have an education that embraces the sciences and open inquiry. Luther helped us understand the framework that God works through things like the sciences and teaching students.

The event is perfect for Midlands campus, where Eggen says a fairly even portion of students are Lutheran and Catholic.

The two talks will run approximately one hour long each, and Eggen said that Hall will remain after to answer any additional questions attendees may have.

We feel like its important for people to intellectually explore why these (changes) are important and why it fits into our history moving forward, he said.

The event will be informative as well as entertaining, Eggen said. Throughout the day, people will see a large inflatable Martin Luther walking around campus.

Im talking an 8-foot-tall Martin Luther, and if I get my way he may be walking down Main Street Fremont, because why not?, Eggen said with a laugh. So you can see that we are taking both a very reflective approach and a very fun approach to commemorating the reformation.
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Investigators still have not found a motive for the Las Vegas shooting rampage that killed 58 people, Undersheriff Kevin McMahill has said.

The Clark County official said the authorities have looked at gunman Stephen Paddock's personal life, political affiliation, economic situation and any potential radicalisation.

He said investigators are aware the Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but so far there is no evidence that it had a role.

Mr McMahill said the authorities will continue to investigate those areas as well as look into leads and tips that come in.

Paddock unleashed gunfire on Sunday from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay hotel casino on the Las Vegas Strip, killing 58 and injuring nearly 500 people.

He killed himself as police closed in.

The authorities are planning to put up billboards in Las Vegas to seek more tips as they investigate the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history.

Mr McMahill revealed at a news conference on Friday that police are confident there was not another gunman in Paddock's room, and do not have any information that anyone else used his room key.

He said they are interested in Paddock's medical history and are looking into that.

Paddock, 64, fired indiscriminately from his upper-level room at the Mandalay Bay hotel casino at people attending a country music festival below.

It had emerged earlier that investigators are looking into whether Paddock scoped out bigger music festivals in Las Vegas and Chicago before Sunday's massacre.

Paddock booked rooms overlooking the Lollapalooza festival in Chicago in August and the Life Is Beautiful show near the Vegas Strip in late September.

It was not clear if he contemplated massacres at those sites.

The investigation into Paddock also came across mention of Fenway Park - home of the baseball side the Boston Red Sox - Boston police Lieutenant Detective Mike McCarthy said.

A federal official said authorities are looking into the possibility Paddock planned additional attacks, including a car bombing.

Authorities previously disclosed Paddock had 1,600 rounds of ammunition in his car, along with fertiliser that can be used to make explosives and 50 pounds of Tannerite, a substance used in explosive rifle targets.

The profile developed so far is of a "disturbed and dangerous" man who acquired an arsenal over decades, Sheriff Joseph Lombardo said.

But investigators have been frustrated to find that he lived a "secret life," Mr Lombardo said, "much of which will never be fully understood".

A former executive casino host at the Atlantis Casino Resort and Spa in Reno said Paddock had a "god complex" and expected quick service without regard to how busy the staff was at the time.

"He liked everybody to think that he was the guy," John Weinreich said. "He didn't boast about anything he had or anything. It was just his demeanour. It was like, I'm here. Don't cross me. Don't look at me too long."

Meanwhile, Las Vegas police announced on Thursday they had found a Hyundai Tucson they had been searching for as part of the probe while executing a search warrant at the home in Reno that Paddock shared with his girlfriend, Marilou Danley.

Paddock had an arsenal of 23 weapons in his hotel room. A dozen of them included "bump stocks," attachments that can effectively convert semi-automatic rifles into fully automated weapons.

In a rare concession on gun control, the National Rifle Association announced its support on Thursday for regulating the devices.

AP
A second preliminary levy of 80% has been loaded on the sales of aerospace manufacturer Bombardier.

The Canadian-owned multinational is already facing a planned 220% tariff on its aircraft as part of a separate investigation, confirmed the US Department of Commerce.

Bombardier employs more than 4,000 people at its Belfast factories and is due to begin delivering a blockbuster order for up to 125 new jets to Atlanta-based Delta Airlines next year.

US commerce secretary Wilbur Ross said: The United States is committed to free, fair, and reciprocal trade with Canada, but this is not our idea of a properly functioning trading relationship. We will continue to verify the accuracy of this decision, while doing everything in our power to stand up for American companies and their workers.

Unions at the plant in Belfast have warned that thousands of jobs could be in jeopardy.

The US government said its intervention was prompted by concern to prevent injurious dumping of imports into the country, establishing an opportunity to compete on a level playing field.

The commerce department said Bombardier had failed to provide information requested.

The US governments preliminary decision affects imports of 100-150 aircraft from Canada.

The wings for the new aircraft, which are due to be delivered to the US next year, are made at Bombardiers plant in the DUP stronghold of East Belfast.

The manufacturer has been a major employer in Northern Ireland for 30 years.

Trade unionists expect a final ruling on the pricing policy to be made in February.
The late John ORiordan, a prison officer from Farnanes, Co Cork, tripped on a 12mm lip of tarmac and fell out in front of an oncoming lorry on September 29, 2011.

The 562,500 offer was approved by Mr Justice Henry Abbott at the High Court sitting in Cork. Mr Justice Abbott noted liability would have been an issue if the case had gone to trial.

It would not be a foregone conclusion that you would bring it all home, the judge said to the plaintiffs counsel, John OMahony, in relation to proving liability against the defence.

Mr OMahony agreed that this would have been a huge uphill battle in a contested case, particularly so as there was a footpath on the opposite side of the road and that the late Mr ORiordan was not using the footpath at the time.

Mr OMahony said the jogger was on the road facing oncoming traffic which would have been the correct place to be except for the fact that a footpath was available on the opposite side.

The jogger tripped on a 12mm lip where one section of tarmac met another and he fell out in front of an oncoming lorry.

Approving the sum on offer to Mr ORiordans family, Mr Justice Abbott said: The court is always sad to rule these fatal cases, but this is one of the saddest I have come across. It should help to give some element of closure.

Mr OMahony said the ruling of the case could be against Cork County Council only and not any of the other defendants named in the proceedings. Counsel said that ultimately one defendant, the local authority, was carrying the can.

The fatal accident occurred at Ballyhooley Road, Ballyvolane, Cork, on September 29, 2011.

In a discussion about proving the facts if the case had been contested, Mr Justice Abbott referred to the fact that it happened six years ago but that nowadays, it was not uncommon for people involved in training like this to have a camera attached while running. However, that was not a factor in the in the present case.
According to an Ipsos MRBI poll, seven out of 10 voters would vote in that manner, with 17% against and 12% undecided.

Furthermore, 57% of people said the Government should hold a referendum on abortion in cases of rape, fatal foetal abnormality or real risk to the life of the woman.
Dozens of customers lost their homes after banks wrongly hiked mortgage rates and lenders have been accused of being tardy in paying back customers.

Ulster Bank told an Oireachtas committee this week it has identified almost 3,500 customers affected by the tracker scandal. The crisis saw thousands of customers across different lenders wrongly charged different rates. Ulster Bank said that as few as 40% affected by the overcharging have been compensated.

Lenders including KBC, Bank of Ireland, AIB and PTSB have all appeared before the committee in recent weeks answering questions on the scandal.

Fianna Fails Michael McGrath said yesterday that he thinks the Central Bank must intervene to hold banks to account, and ensure customers are repaid and take action: Overall, the way they are handling the tracker issue is not acceptable, it is not satisfactory. Some are worse than others. We were completely stonewalled by KBC bank. Ulster Bank has been tardy to say the least in repaying people the money that they are owed.

I think the Central Bank needs to step up its involvement. I think it is about time they [the Central Bank] flex their muscles, they use the powers they have and if they need more powers, then please ask the Oireachtas for more powers.

The Department of Finance said last night that the Central Bank has powers to compel lenders to redress customers, but only dating to 2013 legislation.

It added: The Central Bank does not have statutory powers to compel lenders in respect of failures that occurred prior to the introduction of the Act.

However, the Central Bank has clearly articulated its expectations of lenders to provide appropriate redress and compensation to all impacted customers in line with prescribed Principles for Redress developed by the Central Bank.

The timeframes for progression of the redress and compensation programmes vary from lender to lender, however the Central Bank remains focused on challenging lenders to ensure that they are progressing redress and compensation and that impacted customers are treated fairly.

But Mr McGrath said talk was not good enough: Its just not good enough that people who are overcharged for six years or more and in some cases are still waiting to get their money back. And there has been no answer to the basic question: how is it that all of the banks happen to make the same mistake in a way which hurts their customers? The ball never seems to bounce the other way and if it does, it is corrected very quickly.

It is just not good enough. There will need to be graver and more decisive and assertive action from the Central Bank and Im not satisfied with the redress and the compensation package because what they are actually doing is when they finally get around to it, they are paying back what you are overcharged with no interest. I never heard of it going the other way, where you pay back the bank a loan they gave to you but without interest.

The compensation element in most cases has not been dealt with yet. This has put lives on hold and we have heard some of those cases. It has had a devastating impact on families. Not least for up to 100 cases where people lost their family home.

Editorial: 14
Shares in CRH fell by as much as 2% at one stage after acquisition target Ash Grove said it had received an offer, valuing it at between $3.7bn and $3.8bn, from an unnamed company, later identified as Summit Materials.

It said it would take about two weeks to consider the new terms.

Last month, CRH said it had struck an agreement ahead of final approval to acquire Kansas-based Ash Grove, which last year generated a pre-tax profit of $215m from its eight cement plants.

The acquisition is part of the Irish companys renewed expansion in the US, where it already earns most of its profits. Plans by US President Donald Trump to pump billions into Americas dilapidated infrastructure have boosted the shares of many US construction firms this year.

At the time, both CRH chief executive Albert Manifold and Ash Grove chairman Charlie Sutherland  whose family had helped grow the cement firm  hailed the prospects for the bid.

CRH is Ash Groves biggest customer and has long had a close and highly productive relationship with CRH in the US, said Mr Sutherland.

Darren McKinley, senior analyst at Merrion Capital, said there was a 60% probability that CRH would still secure Ash Grove by increasing its offer by a modest amount and staring out rival Summit Materials.

Valued at 25.9bn, CRH is by far the bigger of the two suitors and should have the wherewithal to secure Ash Grove. It will nonetheless want to avoid being dragged into any bidding war.

The opportunistic rival offer was unlikely to disrupt plans by CRH to pursue other US targets as it uses up an estimated 4bn war chest for acquisitions, said Mr McKinley.

Given CRHs position as Ash Groves largest customer, they are well placed to determine whether a higher offer makes sense or whether to let Ash Grove shareholders decide whether they want cash in hand now from CRH or to merge with a company that is trading on 26 times earnings which currently doesnt pay a dividend, he said.

Davy analysts said that CRH is better placed and has the financial firepower to increase its offer.

CRHs options are now threefold: Pursue its original proposal if Ash Grove continues to see it as a superior bid (there is no indication the new bid is a better proposal); match or better the new proposal, which the group clearly has the financial firepower to do; or walk away if the value is not there for shareholders. Given the groups track record, shareholder value will be the key determinant of its next step, said Davy.

CRHs US operations include a cement plant in Montana, and five cement terminals.
During a four-day exercise, personnel from Artillery Regiments based in Cork and Athlone conducted live firing and simulated training on the RBS 70 and the latest generation of the system, the RBS 70 NG.

The Defence Forces has operated a Ground Based Air Defence (GBAD), RBS 70 system for over 30 years, said a spokeswoman for the Defence Forces.

She said the system was upgraded in recent years in order to allow the system meet with current and future capability requirements.

The upgrade programme will ensure that the system will remain as a state of the art GBAD system for at least the next 15 to 20 years, she said.

The purpose of the live firing exercise in Sweden, facilitated by Saab Dynamics and attended by personnel from Artillery Regiments based in Athlone and Cork, was to validate the training and capability of the Defence Forces GBAD personnel.

The testing took place at Bofors Test Centre in Karlskoga, part of Saabs business area Dynamics.

The Defence Forces have used the air defence system to protect high profile visits of foreign heads of state and dignitaries.

The RBS 70 system is a reliable air defence system which is easy to use, Lieutenant Colonel Noel Murphy told Saab after the testing.

It has been in service with our army for many years and we have used it in various environments for protection of national events and state visits.

He added: Defence Force operators consider it a system which they can rely on no matter the weather conditions or countermeasures.

As well as simulated training, soldiers fired 10 missiles against aerial and static surface targets.

Eight missiles were fired from the RBS 70 system against both target types and two missiles were fired from the latest generation, the RBS 70 NG, also at both target types.

The firing was a huge success with great results from the operators engaging the targets, said Gorgen Johansson, senior vice president and head of Saabs Dynamics.

We have been working closely with the Irish Army in supporting their ambition to improve their air defence capability and we will continue doing do in the future.

The RBS 70 is known as a short-range air defence laster guided missile system.

It is portable and can be attached to vehicles.

Saab said the new generation model has an effective range of 8km, with altitude coverage in excess of 5,000m.

It is also supposed to be suitable for urban terrain as well as tropical, desert and arctic conditions.

The manufacturers said the NG sight has been designed for greater flexibility and modularity. In addition to the Man-Portable Air Defence System configuration, the NG sight unit can be used in remote-controlled or vehicle applications.
Shane Kilcommins and Eimear Spain of the School of Law at the University of Limerick highlighted three areas, including two key recommendations in the Murray Report which are completely absent from the proposed laws.

The general scheme of the Communications (Retention of Data) Bill 2017 will replace the 2011 act under which state agencies, such as the gardai, can directly request communication data from service providers.

The proposed scheme states that all requests will first have to be authorised by a district court judge.

But the draft legislation does not contain specific recommendations in Murray regarding the protection of journalists data, including that all requests must go before a High Court judge.

This is surprising, said Mr Kilcommins. There are very few categories of privileged communication existing in Irish law  journalists and their sources is one such category.

He said journalistic sources have been specifically recognised by the European Court of Human Rights and in the Irish courts.

A number of judgments have emphasised the importance of the protection of journalistic sources for press freedom in a democratic society and the potentially detrimental effect that surveillance or disclosure would have on the exercise of that freedom, he said.

The Murray Report made a very sensible recommendation that the amending legislation should include a provision expressly prohibiting access for the purpose of identifying a journalists sources except in very limited circumstances and subject to authorisation by a judge of the High Court.

A second key recommendation in the Murray Report  for an independent and resourced monitoring body to oversee the service providers  is also absent from the general scheme.

The Murray Report placed a strong emphasis on the need for constant and continuous oversight by an independent supervisory body of the security measures adopted by service providers of retained communications data, said Mr Kilcommins.

He said Murray had reviewed the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights and found that a resourced and powerful oversight body was an important means of vindicating individual rights.

The bill also appears to repeat the provisions for a High Court judge to review the operation of the process.

The ex-post facto [retrospective] nature of such reviews has previously been criticised, particularly having regard to their thoroughness, said Ms Spain.

She said the previous reports were typically short, one or two pages, with very little alteration.

The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission described that framework as light touch, and not human rights compliant.

It is important that future reviews are robust and focused to ensure that they take seriously the privacy rights of individual citizens.

Though the bill retains such reviews, it should be pointed out that it does seek to greatly enhance the instances where prior judicial authorisation will be necessary, she added.
The two connected premises at 12-14 Old County Rd, Crumlin, housed 22 people, believed to be mainly from Brazil, when it came to the attention of the fire authority last Friday. It had housed up to 52.

Conleth Bradley, for the council, told Mr Justic Seamus Noonan yesterday the building had been vacated in line with the court order which was made against the registered owners, John and Yvonne McEleney, who had not been contactable to date.
IN THE months since she took her White House role, public information about the companies importing Ivanka Trump goods to the US has become harder to find.

Information that once routinely appeared in private trade tracking data has vanished, leaving the identities of companies involved in 90% of shipments unknown.

Even less is known about her manufacturers. Trumps brand, which is still owned by the first daughter and presidential adviser, declined to disclose the information.

The deepening secrecy means its unclear who Ivanka Trumps company is doing business with in China, even as she and her husband, Jared Kushner, have emerged as important conduits for top Chinese officials in Washington.

The lack of disclosure makes it difficult to understand whether foreign governments could use business ties with her brand to try to influence the White House  and whether her company stands to profit from foreign government subsidies that can destroy American jobs.

Such questions are especially pronounced in China, where state-owned and state-subsidised companies dominate large swathes of commercial activity.

There should be more transparency, but right now we do not have the legal mechanism to enforce transparency unless Congress requests information through a subpoena, said Richard Painter, who served as chief White House ethics lawyer for George W. Bush, and is part of a lawsuit against President Donald Trump for alleged constitutional violations.

I dont know how much money shes making on this and why its worth it. I think its putting our trade policy in a very awkward situation.

The Ivanka Trump brand does not manufacture goods itself, but licenses out the name to other companies, which pay royalties.

An AP review of the records that are available about Ivanka Trumps supply chain found two potential red flags. In one case, a province in eastern China announced the award of export subsidies to a company that shipped thousands of Ivanka Trump handbags between March 2016 and February of this year, Chinese public records show  a possible violation by China of global fair trade rules, trade experts said.

AP also found that tonnes of Ivanka Trump clothing were exported from 2013 to 2015 by a company owned by the Chinese government, according to public records and trade data.

It is unclear whether the brand is still working with that company, or other state-owned entities. Her brand has pledged to avoid business with state-owned companies now that shes a White House adviser, but contends that its supply chains are not its direct responsibility.

Ivanka Trumps brand doesnt actually make its products directly. Instead, it contracts with licensees who oversee production of her merchandise. In exchange, those licensees pay the brand royalties. AP asked Ivanka Trumps brand for a list of its suppliers. The company declined to disclose them. The clothing, footwear and handbag licensees contacted by AP also declined to reveal source factories.

Trumps Democratic opponents have previously faulted Ivanka Trump for outsourcing the production of her companys branded goods to Chinese factories with questionable working conditions.

Democratic National Committee spokesman Daniel Wessel cited the APs reporting to argue that the secrecy around her brands subcontracting relationships could conceal potential conflicts of interest.

What we dont know is the extent to which foreign governments could use, or are already using, her business ties to try to influence the White House, he said.

ABIGAIL Klem, president of IT Operations LLC, which manages Ivanka Trumps brand, said the company does not contract with foreign state-owned companies or benefit from Chinese government subsidies. However, she acknowledged that its licensees might.

We license the rights to our brand name to licensing companies that have their own supply chains and distribution networks, Klem said in an email.

The Ivanka Trump brand does not manufacture goods itself, but licenses out the name to other companies, which pay royalties.

The brand receives royalties on sales to wholesalers and would not benefit if a licensee increased its profit margin by obtaining goods at a lower cost, she added.

But Michael Stone, chairman of Beanstalk, a global brand licensing agency, said lower production costs for licensees would ultimately benefit Ivanka Trump by freeing up money for marketing or lower retail prices, both of which drive sales.

It gives her a competitive advantage and an indirect benefit to her financially, Stone said.

The more successful the licensee is the more successful Ivanka Trump is going to be.

AP identified companies that sent Ivanka Trump products to the United States by looking at shipment data maintained by ImportGenius and Panjiva Inc., private companies that independently track global trade.

Panjivas records show that 85% of shipments of her goods to the US this year originated in China and Hong Kong, but beyond that, its becoming more difficult to map the brands global footprint.

The companies that shipped Ivanka Trump merchandise to the US are listed for just five of 57 shipments logged by Panjiva from the end of March, when she officially became a presidential adviser, through mid-September.

Panjiva collects data from US Customs and Border Protection, which did not immediately release the missing data to AP.

The Ivanka Trump brand does not manufacture goods itself, but licenses out the name to other companies, which pay royalties.

While in many cases the manufacturer ships goods directly, merchandise can also be made by one company and shipped by another trading or consolidation company.

There used to be more visibility. Last year, 27% of the companies that exported Ivanka Trump merchandise to the US were identified in Panjivas records, and back in 2014 a full 95% were named.

For two of Ivanka Trumps licensees  G-III Apparel Group Ltd. and Marc Fisher Footwear  the number of shipments appears to plunge in 2015, likely because they requested to hide their shipment activity, according to Panjiva records. Neither company responded to APs questions.

The brand declined to comment on the growing murkiness of its supply chain.

Chris Rogers, an analyst at Panjiva, said any company can ask customs authorities to redact its information for any reason. About a quarter of companies request anonymity, he said, but the majority dont mind disclosing who theyre doing business with.

A lot of companies have said, yes there might be a commercial disadvantage, but we want to be transparent about our supply chain, he explained.

Why would we want to cover up the fact that were working with this particular company?

While ethics lawyers may see disclosure as the best antidote to conflict of interest, many brands see it as a tool to keep supply chains scandal-free.

Public outcry over sweatshop conditions and worker suicides prompted companies like Nike and Apple to disclose the names and addresses of their manufacturers, and a growing number, including Gap, the H&M Group, New Balance Athletics, Adidas and Levi Strauss, publicly identify their suppliers.

Ivanka Trump should do the same, said Allen Adamson, founder and CEO of BrandSimple Consulting.

Its a missed opportunity to lead by example.

The Ivanka Trump brand does not manufacture goods itself, but licenses out the name to other companies, which pay royalties.

What shipping records do show is that a company called Zhejiang Tongxiang Foreign Trade Group Co. Ltd., a sprawling conglomerate once majority-owned by the Chinese state, sent at least 30 tonnes of Ivanka Trump handbags to the US between March 2016 and February.

Zhejiang provinces commerce department said in June 2014 that it would help lower export costs for that same company, along with nine other local enterprises, through a special three-year trade promotion program.

AMONG the measures outlined were export insurance subsidies and funding for online trading platforms and international marketing, as well as special funds earmarked for foreign trade companies with large-scale, fast-growing exports.

The value of the subsidies is unclear, as are details about how the directives were implemented, but using subsidies to reduce the price of exports is considered so destructive to fair trade that the World Trade Organisation generally bans the practice.

Chinese government subsidies hurt American workers but can lower costs for US companies that import made-in-China merchandise, potentially boosting their profits.

US President Donald Trump has called companies that benefit from foreign government subsidies cheaters.

AP spoke with four trade experts in the United States and China who said the Zhejiang measures appeared to violate World Trade Organisation rules. These are clearly export subsidies, said Gary Hufbauer, a trade expert at the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington.

Zhejiang provinces Department of Commerce and the Zhejiang Tongxiang Foreign Trade Group declined comment.

AP also found that from October 2013 to Jan 2015, Jiangsu High Hope International Group Corp, a conglomerate majority-owned by the Jiangsu provincial government, shipped 45 tonnes of Ivanka Trump clothing to the US, according to records from ImportGenius and Panjiva.

High Hope told AP it had a small number of business dealings with Ivanka Trump licensee G-III Apparel, but declined to answer questions about whether the relationship is ongoing.

G-III, which is based in New York City, declined to respond to specific questions but said in a statement that it is committed to legal compliance and ethical business practices in all of our operations worldwide.

Ivanka Trump licensee Mondani Handbags & Accessories Inc., also headquartered in New York, did not respond to requests for comment.

Ivanka Trumps brand said it was in the process of reviewing its supply chains with the help of independent experts whose mission it is to advance human rights and emphasized that all licensees, manufacturers, subcontractors and suppliers are required to abide by the law, as well as ethical practices set forth in a vendor code of conduct.

AP asked to see the code of conduct, but the brand declined to share it.
AS WE know, Planet Viral Video is not the real world and yet there is a forgotten truth in the tear-jerking snippet that earned ICU Grandpa, the latest video sensation, his 15 minutes of fame.

Its entirely probable you missed the story in the week that was  what with the Las Vegas shooting, Budget 2018 and the Disclosures Tribunal, to mention a few more serious entries on the news cycle. So lets revisit it now.

A video showing David Deutchman, a retired marketing executive, cuddling premature babies in an intensive care unit in Atlanta, Georgia, was viewed several million times. Hes been going to the ICU every Tuesday and Thursday for the last 12 years where hes a volunteer baby buddy, or professional snuggler.

Nicknamed ICU Grandpa, he cradles babies when their parents cant be there or when the nurses dont have time, which is often. Sure, he says, he gets peed on and puked on, but he says that far outweighs the benefits of doing something so meaningful.

Hes a big hit with the parents and the nurses. One of them, Nurse Elizabeth Mittiga, says holding fragile babies improves their health and helps them to digest their feeds better.

Then the camera pans back to ICU Grandpa, who is rocking and singing to a tiny mite in his arms.

It is the sweetest thing.

The sad part is that the pairing of baby and grandpa is so unusual a sight it has become a talking point. It is a rare thing to see the very young and the very old together. More often than not, they are confined to their own age-specific quarters, even when there isnt a medical issue.

Age segregation, unfortunately, applies to all age groups. Things arent necessarily better when it comes to the less young and the less old  youll find a gap there too.

It is, of course, entirely natural that each generation thinks its own the best, while looking down on the out-dated one ahead of it and writing off the upcoming one as civilisation-wreckers and good-for-nothings.

Take this quote as an example: The young people of today think of nothing but themselves.

A comment on the so-called self-obsessed snowflake generation? No, actually. Those words were apparently utterly by First Crusade preacher Peter the Hermit  in 1274. Youll find similar examples going all the way back to ancient Greece where the elders complained that the frivolous youth were reckless beyond words (Greek poet Hesiod, 8th century BC.)

If anything, weve seen a very welcome softening in modern times.

For one thing, age no longer takes as heavy a toll on the body, which means older people can be much more active and involved.

Recently, the crippling cost of childcare has meant that grandparents have often stepped in to help with the little ones. Of course that brings its own pressures, but anything that helps to bridge the generation gap is a good thing, as ICU grandpa so poignantly reminded us.

Its just a pity that the very young and the very old dont get to meet each other as often as they might because, in the States and in Japan, weve seen how preschools in old peoples homes have brought immense health benefits.

That was the idea behind the recent Old Peoples Home For 4 Year Olds, a six-week experiment filmed by Channel Four which proved, even to the cynics, how children can transform the lives of pensioners.

A lively bunch of boisterous four-year-olds swept into the nursing home and, over six weeks, showed that the benefits for both groups were considerable.

The experiment prompted discussion in the UK that bringing together old and young could transform the provision of services for the elderly, although it has yet to become a reality.

Its time for much outside-the-box thinking when it comes to caring for older people here, however, some really good intergenerational things are happening.

Take next weeks Zeminar, for example. More than 16,000 people are expected at the RDS in Dublin from October 10 to 12 for the second year of the youth wellbeing and education movement, which aims to equip Generation Z with the tools to deal with lifes challenges.

The age gap between its co-founders, the pre-middle-aged (their description) Damien Clarke and Ian Fitzpatrick, and those they are trying to help (the 15- to 25-year-olds of Generation Z) is not as pronounced as the previous examples. Yet these two ordinary heroes  all their efforts are voluntary  have been working 85-hour weeks with 10-year-old laptops to bring together an intergenerational range of speakers to help out a generation that gets a lot of flak.

But heres a statistic to ponder. Some 13% of Gen Zers already own and run their own business and have a clear role in shaping the future of society. And another one: They have nearly 44bn in in buying power annually. By 2020, they will make up 40% of the global consumer-base.

What is striking about Zeminar is that it celebrates Gen Zers, but also tries to identify their problems and figure out ways in which older generations can help.

RESEARCH tells us that depression, anxiety, stress and alcohol consumption are all big issues, but also that young peoples use of positive coping strategies has fallen.

We also know that about 75% of mental health issues emerge between the ages of 15 and 25, but discussing those issues has been shown to reduce distress, suicidal thoughts, and self-harm.

As Ian Fitzpatrick says: The impact one good adult can have is considerable.

In a week when everyone is going to Government with begging bowls ahead of Budget 2018, an event such as Zeminar shows what can be achieved by people with a dream and a willingness to get up and do it for themselves.

It also shows the immense benefits that come with bridging the generation gap. Lets hope this is the start of a new age where age is no longer a barrier.
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Investors positive response to Herbalife Ltd.s $600 million share purchase program sent its shares soaring to a 52-week high Friday.

The company, with more than 1,000 employees at its Winston-Salem plant, issued a preliminary report that it has committed to date $457.8 million toward repurchasing 6.7 million shares at a payout price of $68 a share.

The total represents 7.2 percent of its outstanding shares as of Wednesday.

The amount spent includes money dedicated to a grant of the non-transferable contractual contingent value right for each share tendered, allowing participants to receive a contingent cash payment should Herbalife be acquired in a going-private transaction within two years of the commencement of the tender offer.

Investors sent the share price up as much as 11.5 percent to $75.41 before closing up 11.1 percent, or $7.55, to $75.25. The previous 52-week high was $74.49 reached on June 26.

The response was very healthy with shareholders, said Bowman Gray IV, a local independent stock broker. The company on Tuesday raised its third-quarter and fiscal 2017 earnings guidance.

A company typically buys back its shares from the marketplace to reduce the number of outstanding stock shares. Because there are fewer outstanding shares, those remaining can become more valuable. Companies also buy back shares when they believe the shares are undervalued.

The company unveiled the decision to accelerate its $1.5 billion, three-year share-repurchase program  initially announced Feb. 23  after disclosing Aug. 18 it had flirted with selling the company to an unidentified private investment group.

Herbalife did not name Carl Icahn, its largest individual shareholder, as the private investor.

The most recent Herbalife filing disclosing Icahns ownership was June 30, which had him at a 24.3 percent stake, or 22.87 million shares.

Herbalife and Icahn agreed that Icahn would not expand his stake beyond 50 percent for two years unless he and the company reach an agreement for him to acquire 100 percent of the company. The board has approved authorizing Icahn to own up to 34.99 percent of the company.

The company conducted a modified Dutch auction tender offer that expired at 5 p.m. Thursday. The company said it would pay between $60 and $68 a share in the offering.

Companies use the Dutch auction method to repurchase a predetermined value of shares within a set price range in a relatively short amount of time, typically one to two months, according to analysts with SeekingAlpha.com.

Herbalife said it expects to enter into the contingent value right agreement when the final results are announced and the tendered shares are accepted for purchase.

A sharp daily bump or sizable decline in Herbalifes share price is not unusual given all the financial, legal and regulatory controversies that have surrounded the company the past five years.

However, the share price has been on a roller-coaster ride in recent months.

For example, it had a one-day drop of 7.8 percent in August when a generic Chinese regulatory statement targeting pyramid schemes was released.

The share price also dropped and rebounded following Herbalife releasing a mixed quarterly earnings report Aug. 1.

The report featured another increase in its fiscal 2017 guidance being offset by slumping North American and global sales related to implementing recently added Federal Trade Commission regulatory restrictions from its $204 million settlement announced in June 2016.

Herbalife continued to have legal and regulatory expenses related to billionaire hedge-fund activist Bill Ackmans claim that Herbalife operates as a pyramid scheme. Ackman made his claim public Dec. 19, 2012  the same date the company confirmed its plans for a $130 million local plant.

Ackman has placed a more than $1 billion short-selling bet against Herbalife. He has said the share price has to drop below $30 before he makes money, but his goal has been to put the company out of business.

Gray said that a higher share price will continue to pressure the short-sellers into covering their positions, and I think that speculation is exactly what we are seeing today.

Whether or not this sets the stage to take the company private is anybodys guess. I think they have done an admirable job managing the pressure brought about by activist investors to the benefit of their shareholders.

Timothy Ramey, an analyst with Pivotal Research Group, said when Herbalife announced plans for the Dutch auction that it is a complete game changer. Ramey has been bullish on Herbalifes stock.

Ramey has said Herbalife has appetite to buy more than the $600 million of shares disclosed in the offer .... Upsizing to $1 billion would not be an unreasonable expectation.

Tendering shares is logical and the most obvious strategy since the holder will not only receive the tender price in cash, but the conditional value right which will pay the difference between the tender price and the price of any go-private transaction within a two-year period ending Aug. 21, 2019.

Ramey has maintained a share-price target of $120 in 2018, based in part on the share repurchase program and with potential for 2 percent to 5 percent organic growth.
Downtown partnership sets fall meeting speakers

The Downtown Winston-Salem Partnership will hold its fall meeting from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Oct. 26 in the Grand Pavilion ballroom in downtown Embassy Suites.

Presentations will be made by Don Flow, president and chief executive of Flow Co. Inc., on the redevelopment plans for the former GMAC Building, and Pat Ivey, Division 9 engineer for N.C. Transportation Department, on Business 40 improvement project.

Also speaking will be Richard Geiger, president of Visit Winston-Salem, and Eric Tomlinson, president of Wake Forest Innovation Quarter.

For more information, go to www.downtownws.com.

Richard Craver

First Citizens forecast finds boost in optimism

A majority of small business owners said they expect their business to grow over the next six to 12 months, according to the third annual First Citizens Bank forecast.

Millennial owners of small businesses were more optimistic, with 82 percent projecting a business expansion.

However, 20 percent of millennial small business owners said they did not expect retaining employees to be as difficult as it has been in recent months. About 47 percent of those owners plan to address their concern by hiring additional employees.

Of the states surveyed, North Carolina had the most significant increase in optimism around economic conditions, rising 3 percentage points from last year.

About 34 percent plan to expand their business by securing additional funds through a bank loan, personal savings or a business credit card in the next six to 12 months.

The forecast is done annually among small business owners in the Carolinas, California and Florida. For more information, visit www.firstcitizens.com/smallbizstudy.

Richard Craver

Bassett Furniture board declares 11-cent dividend

The board of directors for Bassett Furniture Industries Inc. declared Thursday a dividend of 11 cents per share for its common stock.

The dividend is payable Nov. 24 to shareholders registered as of Nov. 10.

Richard Craver

US Chamber sounds alarm about a NAFTA pullout

WASHINGTON  Americas biggest business group is warning the Trump administration that a withdrawal from the North American Free Trade Agreement would be a political and economic debacle that would cost hundreds of thousands of U.S. jobs.

Talking with reporters Friday, John Murphy, a senior official with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said the chamber would work to rally support for the trade deal. and against the administrations hardline demand for concessions from Canada and Mexico. The comments were unusually blunt for Americas biggest business group.

The Trump administration, which has threatened to pull out of NAFTA if the three countries cant agree on far-reaching changes to favor American interests, quickly returned fire.

The president has been clear that NAFTA has been a disaster for many Americans, and achieving his objectives requires substantial change, said Emily Davis, spokeswoman for the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. These changes of course will be opposed by entrenched Washington lobbyists and trade associations. We have always understood that draining the swamp would be controversial in Washington.

Associated Press
States are willing to give a little money to get a few jobs, and Iowa is no exception.

But Iowas various economic development programs, which each year dole out hundreds of millions of dollars in tax relief to businesses looking to move or grow here, have received some extra scrutiny in recent months.

State lawmakers have wondered whether the state is giving away too much money to businesses, and state economists say the giveaways often are unnecessary.

But at the local level, economic development officials say those programs are vital and have provided a return on the investment to the taxpayers who are footing the bill.

The focus intensified with the construction of a $3 billion fertilizer plant in Lee County, in the states southeast corner. The project, which was completed this past spring, has been awarded more than $100 million in state tax breaks and has generated 165 permanent jobs.

Late this summer, the Iowa officials announced they were offering Apple $20 million in tax relief for a new data center in suburban Des Moines as part of an overall $200 million assistance package (the rest was local relief). The project is expected to create roughly 50 permanent jobs.

While the $20 million in state money for Apple was not as large as the incentives given to the fertilizer plant, the announcement coincided with news of trouble with the state budget. State officials were forced to make a third adjustment to the budget year that ended June 30, bringing the total in spending cuts and borrowing to $262 million. Critics suggested Iowa should not be foregoing millions of dollars in future tax revenue while the state budget is requiring multiple adjustments to balance.

The debate has seeped into the political realm as candidates line up to run for governor in 2018. Multiple Democrats have argued the state is too generous with its tax incentives.

But local economic development officials say its all worth it.

These programs are an important tool and compliment the incentives that are offered by the communities that we represent, said Lisa Skubal, vice president of economic development with the Greater Cedar Valley Alliance and Chamber. Debi Durham (executive director of the state economic development board) has done an excellent job being fiscally responsible for how they review projects, and I applaud the attention to detail, that they look at it and evaluate not only for external projects but for existing businesses.

Big money, big projects

One such example in the Cedar Valley would be a $14.8 million incentive package put together for John Deere, which used the assistance to help fund a $90 million upgrade at the companys Waterloo Works Foundry. The project helped the company retain a projected 295 jobs, 138 of which have been realized, according to the state economic development boards 2016 report.

All of the projects we have, regardless of size, there isnt one that I can think of that wasnt a good deal, Skubal said.

Deere also was the recipient of a $10.8 million incentive package for a $43.7 million investment in 2005. That project created 300 jobs, according to the economic development boards 2016 report.

McKesson Corporation in 2015 received a $4.2 million incentive package to help build a new, $65 million pharmaceutical distribution center in Clear Lake. The project was expected to create 164 jobs.

Chad Schreck, president and CEO of North Iowa Corridor, the areas economic development organization, said the company has produced roughly 250 jobs.

I think it most definitely was worth it, Schreck said of the incentive package.

CF Industries Nitrogen scored a $31 million incentive package for its $1.7 billion expansion project in Sioux City. The project, which was completed this past spring, created 100 new jobs.

It gave this whole area a great manufacturing facility for years to come, said Nick DeRoos, the general manager of the CF Port Neal complex who also served as project director for the expansion.

In the Cedar Rapids area, Rockwell Collins has been a big beneficiary of state incentives: four projects since 2007 totaling more than $28.5 million in tax relief. The various projects have created just more than 800 jobs.

Bait or handout?

State economists argue that in many cases, state tax incentives are awarded to companies that would proceed with the project regardless.

David Swenson, an economist at Iowa State University, said for example fertilizer plants and pork processing plants should not require tax incentives because Iowa is the most logical landing spot for their facilities. Even data centers, like those opened in and incentivized by Iowa in recent years -- Apple was preceded by Google and Microsoft -- do not need money dangled in front of them because Iowa has low energy costs and a favorable climate.

They were going to happen anyway, Swenson said. Economists cant make this work out. Economists will look at this and say the taxpayer never gets paid back.

Swenson said economic development officials delude themselves into thinking they are creating jobs when they, in fact, are simply putting bait to attract jobs that would happen in the economy nonetheless.

Peter Fisher, an economist with the liberal-leaning Iowa Policy Project, called most state tax incentives a waste of money for many of the same reasons.

I think its gotten out of hand, Fischer said. Its just not worth it.

Fisher pointed to his previous research, which in 2013 concluded corporate tax breaks are a very inefficient means of promoting state economic growth.

Most of the lost revenue simply flows to corporations who are doing nothing different, nothing that they wouldnt have done anyway, Fishers report says.

Theory and reality

These arguments against tax incentives may sound good in theory, but do not match the reality of competition for projects that will create new jobs, one economic development official said.

John Stineman is executive director of the Iowa Chamber Alliance and a principal consultant with Strategic Elements in Des Moines. He called Swenson and Fischers arguments a great philosophical discussion, but said the reality is that Iowa competes with other states for projects, and that he thinks it would be self-defeating for the state to not offer competitive tax relief packages.

At the end of the day you do have to compete for projects, Stineman said. Were not about to lay down arms in that fight over academic principal. ... There is a competition taking place and were going to do the best we can.

Durham said more than 80 percent of Iowa's economic development portfolio is in existing companies, which means the state is focusing on local growth first. She said she understands the criticism of forfeiting future state revenue to chase businesses, even calling the criticism valid. But, she said, the states tax incentive programs must be considered by the bigger picture.

You cant do it without incentives, Durham said. Apples going to do it somewhere; it doesnt mean theyre going to do it in Iowa. ... It is simply naive to believe in this world that we have to compete in that we dont need incentives to land deals.

Durham touted Iowas incentive program, which in most cases requires jobs to be created at a certain wage threshold and does not award the incentives until the project is completed. She pointed to a report published in May by the non-partisan Pew Charitable Trusts that hails Iowa as one of 10 states with the best tax incentive programs.

Iowa is leading other states because it has a well-designed plan to regularly evaluate tax incentives, experience in producing quality evaluations that rigorously measure economic impact, and a process for informing policy choices, the report says.
GREENSBORO  Vendors selling food during N.C. A&T homecoming weekend without a permit could land in hot water.

Members of the Guilford County Department of Health and Human Services, along with Greensboro police and the citys collection division, are out looking for vendors serving food without proper permits. In order to sell food within city limits, the county health department has to approve the food truck or grills and the vendor has to apply for a permit through the city, said Richard Hawk with the citys collection division.

With thousands of people in the city for A&T homecoming festivities, Hawk said there are ample opportunities for illegal vendors to set up.

What we try to do on Saturday morning is go around and look for vendors without permits, said Hawk, who added all the vendors at the Aggie FanFest at War Memorial Stadium have met all local and state health requirements. Its been a good effort.

The county health department last year made three vendors throw away all their cooked and uncooked food for not having permission to sell perishable items, the penalty for going rogue. Officials havent said how many they shut down so far this year. For the last three years, the task force has sought out illegal food vendors during A&Ts homecoming. Hawk said the group searches the area surrounding the school.

Gregory James of Raleigh went through the four-week process to get permission to sell food during homecoming. He saw it as an opportunity to raise money for his nonprofit community uplift program. On Friday, he and his team set up grills and deep fryers to sell chicken, barbecue and funnel cakes near Gillespie and East Market streets.

To get permission to sell food, his equipment not only had to be clean and functional but his food had to be refrigerated at 41 degrees or less, according to state health department guidelines.

James sees rogue vendors as a threat.

Its disrespectful to the people who went through the process legally, he said.

Paula Weston-Cox, with the county health department, said her department approves what items food vendors can sell based on the size of their tent or truck. She said they limit the menus so vendors can sell items quickly at consistent temperatures.

Approved vendors can only operate from tents or trucks inspected by the health department.

We do not permit anyone to sell food out of their home for a temporary event, she said.
Winston-Salem scores low in a new ranking of places for people with disabilities to live, although no city in North Carolina cracked the top 100 in the overall rankings.

WalletHub, a website that focuses on helping people improve their financial credit, released rankings of cities across the country for economy, quality of life and health care.

Going into the ranking were data about conditions in the cities in general and factors relating specifically to those with disabilities.

Winston-Salem placed 147th among 150 cities ranked, ahead of Greensboro, which came in at No. 149, but behind Raleigh (No. 104), Charlotte (126), Durham (131) and Fayetteville (142).

Winston-Salem is the 89th largest city in the country, according to estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau. The WalletHub survey looked at the most populous 150 cities in the country for the survey.

Winston-Salem scored best for its economy, where it came in at No. 84. Winston-Salem ranked 132nd for quality of life and 145th for health care. By contrast, Raleigh placed 61st in the economy, 84th in quality of life and 126th in health care.

This should be a wake-up call not just to Winston-Salem but the Triad area and all of North Carolina, said Mark Steele, executive director of The Adaptables Inc., an organization here that supports the disabled in independent living. What you hear about from the individuals we deal with is the need for transportation, affordable housing, in-home services and employment.

The top city in the country for those who are disabled was Overland Park, Kans., a suburb of Kansas City, Kans.

Among the three categories rated, Pembroke Pines, Fla., scored first in the economy, New York scored first in quality of life, and Grand Rapids, Mich., placed first in health care. Pembroke Pines is a suburb of Miami, Fla.

To come up with the rankings, WalletHub measured economic factors such as housing affordability, median earnings and the employment rate for the disabled, the percentage of disabled people in poverty and the cost of getting in-home services.

Quality of life metrics included the number of special education teachers per 1,000 students, the effectiveness of state Medicaid programs, and the presence of wheelchair-accessible restaurants, grocery stores and trails.

Health care factors included the number of uninsured people, the cost of health insurance premiums and the per capita number of doctors, hospitals and occupational therapists.

Winston-Salems getting better, Steele said. For instance, the newly opened Quarry Park has good accessibility. But there are still lots of streets that have no sidewalks as well.

I think some of the things that are happening here are pretty comparable to cities of similar size, Steele said. Some of it is not the citys doing, things like the need for Medicaid reform. Most of the most accessible places are your larger cities. They are easier to get around in because of the availability of mass transit.
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SEATTLE  Amazon, which has made this city the epicenter of a retailing revolution, is not the Northwests only commercial disrupter. In the nearby city of Everett, Liberty Ziska and some other bikini baristas, giving new meaning to coffee as a stimulant, have provoked the City Council to pass, unanimously, ordinances requiring baristas to be less nearly naked when they work. The baristas, in turn, have hired a lawyer and made an argument that is germane to current disputes about freedom of speech. Their argument, they might be surprised to learn, is Aristotelian. Sort of.

Everett has not succumbed to Pecksniffian Comstockery: The police chief and city attorney allege that bikini barista stands attract a clientele that sometimes behaves badly, and that some of the baristas do, too. The city reports a proliferation of crimes of a sexual nature occurring at bikini barista stands, which it primly suggests has something to do with the minimalistic nature of the clothing worn by baristas. Seattles ABC affiliate reports that in 2014, the owner of Java Juggs pleaded guilty to running a brothel out of several stands. Henceforth the baristas must wear at least shorts and tank tops. The new dress code cannot be faulted for vagueness. Indeed, it has notable specificity (it mentions the bottom one-half of the anal cleft and is even more detailed about breasts) that has the baristas incensed about the examinations and anatomical measurements that law enforcement might require.

What makes this a matter of more than mere ribaldry is that the baristas have unlimbered heavy constitutional artillery. They fire it in ways pertinent to the manner in which freedom of speech is debated and defended  or not  where it is most important and most besieged: on campuses. The baristas say:

The ordinances banning bikinis violate the First Amendment because they are content-based and viewpoint-based restrictions that impermissibly burden and chill their freedom to convey their messages of female empowerment, positive body image and other things. Their bikinis are a branding message communicating approachability and friendliness. The ordinances regulate only speech common and fundamental at bikini barista stands, targeting them because Everett does not agree with their message and restricting channels of communication. Ziska says that if clothing covers the tattoos on her legs, arms, wrists, back, neck and hips she cannot have such interesting conversations with customers. Brittany Giazzi and Leah Humphrey argue similarly about their piercings and scars, respectively.

Never mind the baristas further barrage of allegations in their everything-but-the-kitchen-sink complaint  e.g., that the ordinances are an equal-protection violation because they target women (a protected class) and do not burden men. Instead, note how strenuously, even imaginatively, Ziska and her co-workers strain to argue teleologically.

In recent lectures at Georgetown and American universities in Washington, Greg Weiner, an Assumption College political philosopher and frequent contributor to the Library of Law & Liberty website, urged participants in the campus arguments to reason as Aristotle did. That is, to be less deontological (rights-based in their advocacy) and more teleological (ends-based). To argue deontologically is to treat speech as an autonomous good, regardless of its moral or social purpose, if it has one. To argue teleologically is to stress why  for what purpose  we should value speech.

Aristotle  here he was not the baristas ally  defined human beings as language-using creatures, which makes the expressive value of tattoos, piercings, body parts, etc., less than fundamental. The Supreme Courts First Amendment jurisprudence, Weiner notes, has generally accorded the most robust protection to speech, and speech that is political, broadly defined  concerned with securing the goods of self-government. The fundamental purpose (telos), although not the only purpose, of the right to free speech is to protect a panoply of other rights.

So, the First Amendment rightly protects not just speech but expression, and a free society should give generous protection even to expressions that serve no public purpose, but just make the expressing persons happy. But speech about the pursuit of truth, justice and other important public matters  the sort of speech central to academic institutions  merits more rigorous protection than the baristas right to display, among much else, their tattoos, piercings and scars.

Everett should have some latitude to balance other public goods against the expressive pleasure and even commercial advantages that Liberty Ziska and her colleagues derive from sartorial minimalism. Universities should protect almost absolute freedom for arguments about politics, classically and properly defined broadly as the subject of how we should live.
Scorecard panelists rate news events on a scale of 0 to 10, with 0 being negative and 10 being positive. This weeks event: In the wake of the Las Vegas massacre, Congressional Democrats renew their push for tighter gun control.

Stephen Flynn: 10. To the members of Congress: Why, if not for NRA money, is this a Republican vs Democrat issue? Why, if not for NRA money, has the question of hard background checks for every gun purchase been blocked? Why, if not for NRA money, are laws preventing persons who have mental illness from buying guns not on the books of every state? Why, if not for NRA money, does almost every Republican have excuses for not supporting banning automatic military style weapons? Why, as we again say my thoughts and prayers are with the victims, are we silently saying, oh my God, I'm glad it wasn't my family,,,,this time? As with Sandy Hook, and other mass shootings, I can't erase this image from my mind. I hope you can't either.

JoAnn Dunn: 0. The tragedy in Las Vegas is almost unfathomable, but the Democratic Partys response is predictable. Since the killer had no prior record, no amount of back-ground checks would have been found to deny him the purchase of a firearm, and his apparent skill to alter the weapons could not have been foreseen. The Lefts response is always to blame the weapon when it is a gun, but for some reason they dont blame trucks that mow down and kill crowds of people or box cutters that take down planes or fertilizer that blows up buildings. The strictest gun laws in the country exist where gun crime is the highest. Explain that. It wasnt an hour after the tragedy before they began politicizing it. What will always stay in my mind is the video of that huge crowd with cell phone lights shining as they sang God Bless America.

Don Witte: 8. Should be done but remember the Republicans are close friends with the NRA, and the president supports white supremacists.

Clint Johnson: 2. What kind of gun control are the Democrats pushing? There might be a good reason to ban devices that make semiauto rifles into automatic rifles, but why are the Democrats' taking issue with sound suppressors? Do they really believe drug gangs will buy suppressors to make their shootings some kind of secret from the police or other drug gangs? What suppressors do is lessen the noise of a fired round to help save a shooter's hearing and to lessen the chance that a missed shot will scare game.

No laws the Democrats are suggesting stops drug gang killings which go on in every city in the nation - including Winston-Salem. That's what disturbs so many people who are skeptical when new laws are suggested. The Democrats in Congress never seem willing to target criminals with their new laws; only law-abiding citizens. How about passing federal laws that keep people arrested for serious gun crimes such as murder, assault or robbery from getting bail, and if convicted sends them to long prison terms without parole? Such laws would slow gang killings which are much more prevalent than the mass shooting in Las Vegas.

Khaetlyn Grindell: Tuesday afternoon, while the rest of the country was in mourning over yet another mass shooting, House Republicans passed a ban on abortion after 20 weeks. Gun safety should be a priority for Congress, yet they continue to entangle themselves with restricting reproductive healthcare under the guise of concern for children. Members of Congress had a chance to prove to the nation that they care about childrenwhen 20 of them were murdered at Sandy Hook Elementaryand still all they offered up was a moment of silence full of thoughts and prayers. Congressional elections are approaching. I'll give any Democrat who supports national gun safety legislation a 10 on this scorecardand my vote.

Joseph Eskridge Sr.: 0 Same old, tired response from Democrats. Fact: LV shooter has nothing to connect him to anything that would suggest he would commit such a heinous crime. Fact: the number of guns sold have gone up dramatically since 1994; murders have gone down. Fact: Only three (3) shootings involving totally automatic weapons (fires rounds as fast as designed/modified while the trigger is engaged until the clip or magazine is empty) since 1934. Everybody needs to realize when a criminal, terrorist or crazy person decides to act, its practically impossible to stop them. So, whats the solution? There are basically threego about your business, live in fear or go hide under a rock. Quit blaming guns for peoples actions.

Suzanne Carroll: 3. Nice try but let's face it, the Second Amendment will always trump the Fifth Commandment as far as the GOP is concerned.

Jim Monroe: 0. This is another example of congressional/Washington gridlock. The Democrats are acting as if they have never been in control of Congress. In the old days, when members of Congress worked together, they would sit down and talk through all of the issues and come up with an answer. However, there are certain issues that a politician must never be in favor of in order to continue their career on the public dole. Gun control has the same chance of passing as an overhaul of Social Security.

Tony Gagliardi: 0. Same story, different day. A shooting occurs and the dems run around in circles screaming it's the guns fault. After throwing the Constitution away, the dems could confiscate every gun they could find. The evil folks would still find other guns and commit crimes. Almost everything he did was against the law. He still managed to do this atrocious feat.

Gun laws only regulate the law abiding citizen, criminals don't care about laws.

Hayes McNeill: 0. Las Vegas illustrates the utter inadequacy of our gun laws. We should face the fact that the gun lobby has flogged an antique right, tailored for a citizen militia with single-shot flintlocks, to justify an industry which routinely buys off politicians (including our own) which feeds societal fear, division, and hatred to increase their profits.

Pat Blankenship: 8. If you want to know how tougher gun laws can help reduce violence, take a look at the situation in the city of Chicago, which has some of the strictest gun laws in the United States. Chicago is on its way to another record high murder rate. So far in 2017, Chicago has had 533 murders and 2,880 shootings. The heavy violence that is being experienced throughout America in recent years is not caused by a lack of strict gun laws; it is caused by deep-seated societal and cultural dysfunctionalities and politicians cannot solve those problems.

Anne Wilson: 0. Without empathy, compassion, and action prayers ring hollow. The lack of political will to tackle common-sense gun legislation defies all logic, so we wait for the next inevitable national tragedy to occur. Gun sales and company stock profits increase, and the NRA gets a tighter grip on legislators who were elected to represent We the People. Responses opposite mine will appear in this Scorecard as sadly we continue to be polarized. How long can we as a nation continue to tolerate the abusive and insane nature of our government? What are we teaching our children and grandchildren?

John Harrison: 0. As always, the thoughts prayers, platitudes and political hypocrisy flow in torrents and the Second Amendment is venerated, when what is needed is stricter regulation of firearms to curb the mindless violence that occurs daily. How many more mass killings will it take to drive home the simple lesson that easy access to firearms translates into 30,000 lives curtailed annually? The U.S. must be the only advanced country that is unable to understand this equation. In the 1990s Britain and Australia each had a single one killing and clamped down on access to weapons. There has been no repetition and their homicide rates are dwarfed by the U.S.

Linda Petrou: 5. What happened in Las Vegas was just malicious and most experts have said it could not have been prevented. The evil done by this revolting individual is incalculable. But to immediate rush to more gun control before we even have had an investigation is just normal democrat idiocy. The shooter purchased all his weapons legally; he passed numerous FBI back-ground checks; he had no criminal record; there was no reason to deny him his weapons. It is hypocritical of the democrats to demand more gun control when they have done little to nothing to make the changes they are now demanding of the Republicans. Are there things that could be done? Yes. A good start might be the banning of the sale of the kits that allow the weapons to be turned into machine guns (which have been outlawed since the days of Al Capone). But in order for anything to be done we need to just stop and wait until the investigation is over and then listen to each other. Do I think it will happen. No I don't. We need solutions not issues; unfortunately the democrats just want an issue, they don't want a solution. Banning all weapons is not a solution it is an issue.

Virginia Underhill: 0.Even though there are some laws restricting the possession and sale of weapons easily convertible to automatic status, our citizens need to re-examine their motives for acquisition of these arms. There are ways to turn our present laws to favor those who are questionably mentally handicapped and those who can alter weapons with a screwdriver. Collecting now is in itself a sacred sport among segments of our citizenry whose rights have seesawed between one political party and another, each hating any attempt at control. The NRA continues to interject their silly phrases and slogans in order to goad their membership into acceptance and purchase. Members and their sympathizers obviously have given little or no regard to the consequences of their resistance--mindless murders which are accelerating at a frightening rate. They seem to feel that gun collection and use is their individual and collective right allowed by a murky Second Amendment that, by the way, has been argued over by lawyers and Supreme Court justices for years. NRA advertising claims guns don't kill people, people do. The opposition could challenge this slogan with: Guns used by violent people are murder.

Linda Hill: I am giving this a ten because, after the horrendous attack in Las Vegas, there has to be way to stem the tide of senseless gun violence. Banning guns is not the answer, because the bad guys obviously have no regard for the law. So, where do we begin?

The Democrats are planning a protest on the Capital steps. They are pushing for stricter background checks nationally, especially for potential gun buyers with known mental health issues. The key words are known mental health issues. The Republicans are not in favor of that because they believe that exposing a person's mental health issues is an infringement of their civil rights. They are both right, in my humble opinion.

Adapters for regular, legal guns which convert them to fully automatic are available on the internet. What is the answer? Do we beef-up mental health screening? Do we push for accountability from the internet sellers of products that are dangerous? Do we ask our leaders to tighten the justice system and stop judges from releasing habitual criminals?

What I do believe is that there is an answer that is somewhere in the middle. I pray that Congress can unite and reach across the aisle and find the answer before there is another massacre.

Charles E. Wilson: Human life in our country seems to have a lower value than gun industry profits. Democrats score a ten if they can reverse this situation. The National Rifle Association (NRA) has made it impossible to pass gun safety laws. The government is not even allowed to study the issue. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recognized gun violence as a major public health issue. But in 1996, Congress passed the Dickey Amendment (named for Jay Dickey, the Republican sponsor) forbidding the study of gun control by the CDC.

Gun deaths are so common that only mass killings make headlines. On an average day, guns kill ninety Americans. That is far above the rate for other industrial countries after adjusting for population. We deserve a safer America.

Steve Lawson: 10. Kudos to any group or person raising the pressure for gun control. I am beyond sick of America's perverted obsession with guns and the ammosexuals whose worship of them over human lives approaches idolatry. Guns and clips like the ones used in Las Vegas and many other massacres by gun sites have absolutely no business outside the military and law enforcement.

Like the guns available when it was written, the Second Amendment is archaic and should be repealed. The Founding Fathers could never have envisioned the rapid fire weapons and armor piercing bullets so easily accessible today. And I'm sure they were intelligent enough not to believe the lies and myths so frequently spewed by the NRA, the group that has bribed several members Congress.

Sandy Hook was the fill line for me. The height of the body pile has no effect on some.

Mike Walker: There is no question that gun laws need to be changed, and made uniform, though it is unclear what legislation would have prevented the Las Ve-gas murders. The killer apparently passed, or would have passed background checks, but they should be instituted nonetheless for all firearms transfers. Go-ing further, there should be a licensing process for purchase, possession, and transport of firearms that is similar to North Carolina's licensing for concealed handguns. Also, devices to allow any semblance of fully automatic fire should be strictly banned.

Consideration of violence in this country needs to extend past our immediate shock at this most recent atrocity. Rep. John Lewis may be "sick and tired of moments of silence on the House floor" after mass shootings, but how many moments of silence have been staged over the grinding slaughters in cities like Chicago, St. Louis, and Baltimore? Last year, Chicago's criminals averaged slightly more than the Las Vegas body count each month. It is politically conven-ient to blame firearms for violence, but politically cynical to ignore the societal rot that places so many dysfunctional fingers on triggers.
MASON CITY | James Dean Michelson crouches slightly in his chair in a meeting room at Cerro Gordo County Jail.

Holding a copy of the newspaper and seeing photos of the accident for the first time, his hands are cuffed.

G-d damn, he said, becoming visibly emotional looking at the mangled car and where he lost the love of his life and an unborn daughter. A man he says he didnt know died there, too.

Bowing his head, Its so hard.

***

James and Jessica Herker, 28, met through a mutual friend nearly six years ago.

They already have a 2-year-old daughter, Erika, whom they did not have custody of. The couple planned to name their unborn child Olivia Michelson.

Erika is the name she was given by her biological parents at birth. Since then, her new foster parents changed her name when she became part of their family.

Jessica saw her daughter for Erikas birthday, weeks before she was killed. The family allowed James to see her before he was incarcerated.

Sheila, James mother, is also involved with her granddaughter, even though Erika has been adopted.

I have a good relationship with her adoptive family, she said. She's my everything, and I have enjoyed watching her grow up in life and will continue to watch her grow up.

***

Jerrick Rinnels, 29, was the youngest of four children. According to his obituary, he had a daughter who is 6.

He loved Raelee Marie Rinnels with all his heart and soul, the obituary said.

His family wrote that he had a heart of gold no words can express. Rinnels also had some trouble with the law over the years.

He had Jesus in his heart, but demons in his head, his family wrote in his obituary.

The Globe Gazette attempted to contact family members for Herker and Rinnels, though none responded.

So many whys and very little answers, Sheila said.

***

This isnt James first time behind bars. He said he served time in prison for probation revocation involving the original charge of first-degree theft during the course of his relationship with Jessica.

Today, James is in jail for a controlled substance violation and possession of a controlled substance, methamphetamine  second offense charges.

He pleaded guilty to a drug charge and will be sentenced Nov. 14.

In September, James said the court would allow him to attend the memorial service for Jessica. A Cerro Gordo deputy escorted him to the Sept. 30 service in Clear Lake.

Jessica also had run-ins. She pleaded guilty in 2008 to fifth-degree theft and was fined.

Sheila described Herker as a free-spirited person who lived her life in her own way.

***

According to James, Jessica went to the emergency room the morning before the accident with some discomfort and complications. She wasnt due until Sept. 27.

She was supposed to check into the hospital that day, James said. She had been in the emergency room that morning, and they told her to check in.

But Jessica never made it back to the hospital. James has no idea why she was in the Rinnels car.

All I know is that Jerrick took off, and they got into an accident, James said.

About 12:45 p.m. Sept. 7, Rinnels lost control of a 2005 Chrysler 300 at Third Street Northwest and North Jefferson Avenue in Mason City. The vehicle rolled and hit a tree, killing Rinnels, Herker, and the unborn child.

Sheila, James mother, read news of the accident on Facebook. A gut feeling told her something was wrong. She sent Jessica a text message. No reply.

I actually thought it was a different friend's car in the accident that she hung around with, Sheila said.

Less than a half an hour later, Sheila received a call from James father saying that Jessica was gone.

That day is a total complete blur in my mind, Sheila said.

For James, the day still kind of feels like a dream.

***

According to the Iowa State Patrol crash report, a Cerro Gordo County deputy initiated a pursuit of the vehicle Rinnels was driving. It was brief and fatal.

We are struggling as a family to figure out why he really fled from the police and why he took an innocent, unborn 9-month child that we were looking forward to, Sheila said. In some ways, I play the accident over in my mind daily and believe there's more to this all then we are being told.

The pursuit began near 12th Street Northwest and North Jefferson Avenue, and the deputy stopped pursuing the vehicle at Sixth Street, State Patrol said. The chase lasted for 35 seconds.

The driver made very poor choices that day and took two other lives with him, Sheila said.

Rinnels had a warrant for his arrest and did not have a valid driver's license, officials say. The warrant called for Rinnels to spend 30 days in jail for non-payment of child support. The Mason City Child Support Recovery Unit will not release the amount owed.

Do I think all this could've been prevented? Yes, Sheila said. Do I blame the police for all this? No.

State Patrol officials, citing unreleased dash-cam video, said the vehicle was out of the deputys view at the time of the crash.

You think, 'What if?' One little thing could have changed everything, James said. Of course you think of, 'Why?' Its just so hard.

The full report for the crash, which involves a medical examiner's report, could take as many as three to four months.

***

Sheila said the social media comments and opinions on the crash have been difficult to read. James has been shielded from them, for the most part.

The sad part is an innocent child was involved and now we, family, have to figure out ways to move on and put this all behind us and cherish the memories we have of Jess, Sheila said. The accident affected my family in ways no one can understand.

James said his family and Jessicas family have been helpful in coping, but when asked what he is doing to deal with the deaths, Right now, Im really not.

If James could tell Jessica anything now, he says, he would tell her that he loves her.

James said he hopes to be more involved with Erika when he is out of jail.

He blinked several times to avoid tears and sniffed, looking at the pictures.

James stood up to return to his cell, clutching the newspapers that included stories and photos about the crash and the memorial at the tree on North Jefferson Avenue.

He asked to keep them.
The United States announced an end to its 20-year-old trade embargo against Sudan on Friday, citing what it said are improvements in Khartoum's human rights record.

Washington did not drop Sudan from its blacklist of state terror sponsors nor end its support for the international war crimes indictment targeting President Omar al-Bashir.

But the decision was nonetheless a breakthrough for Bashir's regime, which has engaged with Washington in a bid to end the international isolation that it has suffered since the bloody crisis in Darfur that broke out in 2003.

Some human rights advocates denounced the move, the fruit of an intense 16-month diplomatic initiative that began under former US president Barack Obama, but other observers cautiously hailed it as a small step forward for the region.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson published a report confirming the decision, and State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said the order would come into effect on October 12.

It came, she said, "in recognition of the Government of Sudan's sustained positive actions to maintain a cessation of hostilities in conflict areas in Sudan."

And she cited what she said was Sudan's sustained commitment to "improve humanitarian access throughout Sudan and maintain cooperation with the United States on addressing regional conflicts and the threat of terrorism."

Sudan welcomed the move, in a foreign ministry statement carried on the official SUNA news agency.

"The leaders of Sudan, the government of Sudan and the people of Sudan welcome the positive decision taken by American President Donald Trump of removing the economic sanctions completely," it said.

- 'More progress is needed' -

Specifically, US officials told reporters Sudan had refrained from new violence in three areas of its territory where its forces were accused of widespread atrocities: Darfur, South Kordofan and Blue Nile.

In addition it has improved humanitarian access to former conflict zones and halted its attempts to destabilize South Sudan, granted independence in July 2011.

The officials said US and Sudanese counterterrorism cooperation had improved and Khartoum was now helping regional efforts to hunt Joseph Kony's rebel Lords Resistance Army.

But work remains to be done, and Washington wants to see more improvement in Sudan's behavior before there is any talk of restoring full diplomatic ties.

"This marks one step forward on a long and hard road where much more progress is needed," a senior administration official told reporters.

As one of three countries designated a state sponsor of terror -- in Sudan's case for allegedly sponsoring violent Islamist extremists -- Khartoum remains under a US arms embargo.

Another official also cautioned that Sudan must comply with UN Security Council resolutions banning the import of weapons from North Korea.

"We will not necessarily take the government at their word," he said.

"We will be closely monitoring the situation, and they understand that we have zero tolerance for continued arms deals with North Korea."

In 2009, the International Criminal Court in the Hague issued an arrest warrant for Bashir, alleging he was responsible for five counts of crimes against humanity.

- Government atrocities -

The US officials said that nothing had changed in Washington's support for this action, and that targeted US sanctions related to the Darfur conflict would remain in place.

"We continue to call for all those responsible for crimes in Darfur to be held accountable and to support... justice for all the victims of the crimes in Darfur," one said.

Reaction to the decision from experts was mixed.

Andrea Prasow, deputy Washington director of pressure group Human Rights Watch, said: "It sends the wrong message to lift these sanctions permanently when Sudan has made so little progress on human rights.

"Sudanese government forces continue to attack civilians, gun down peaceful protesters, and imprison human rights activists and Sudan's president is wanted for atrocity crimes in Darfur."

But the International Crisis Group, which studies and promotes conflict resolution, gave a guarded thumbs up.

"This is a big day for Sudan," said ICG Sudan analyst Magnus Taylor, arguing that the US "five-track" diplomatic process had proved effective in convincing Sudan to cooperate.

"Sudan sees this as a first rung, albeit a big one, on the ladder towards normalization," he said.

"If the US is smart it will use the momentum it has gained in its relations with Sudan and push for further improvements in the conduct of the Sudanese government."

In January, then US president Obama eased the sanctions with a view to lifting them completely after a six-month review.

But in July, President Donald Trump extended the review period to October 12, then last month, he removed Sudan from a list of countries hit by a US travel ban.
The top US envoy in Sudan said Saturday that conditions have to be "right" for holding talks with Khartoum on removing it from Washington's blacklist of state sponsors of "terrorism".

US charge d'affaires to Khartoum Steven Koutsis' remarks came a day after Washington ended its 20-year-old trade embargo on the east African country.

However, the US did not drop Sudan from the blacklist, a consistent demand by Khartoum in return for cooperating with US intelligence agencies in fighting "terrorism".

"This is something that both sides are keenly willing to discuss, but we have to be certain that conditions are right for discussions to remove (Sudan) from the list," Koutsis said at a press conference at the US mission in Khartoum.

"The government of Sudan knows fully well what it needs to do to remove from the list and we hope that those conditions will come soon," he said, without elaborating on what the conditions were.

On Friday, Khartoum hailed Washington's decision to end the sanctions as a "positive decision", but expressed disappointment at not being removed from the blacklist.

"Discussion on removing from the state sponsors of terror was not part of our engagement under the five-track plan," Koutsis said, referring to the five conditions that Washington had insisted that Khartoum meet in return for ending the trade embargo.

"If you are talking about a dialogue on this issue it has not happened yet."

Khartoum insists that there is "no reason" for it to be on the blacklist as it has cooperated with US intelligence agencies in fighting "terrorism" in the region, a claim acknowledged even by the US State Department.

Sudanese officials say that having Khartoum on this list along with Syria and Iran makes it difficult to seek foreign debt relief, which has been a factor in hampering the country's economic growth.

Washington first imposed the sanctions in 1997 over Khartoum's alleged support for Islamist militant groups. Osama bin Laden, the slain Al-Qaeda founder, lived in Sudan between 1992 and 1996.

Following a significant improvement in relations, former US president Barack Obama eased the sanctions in January before leaving office with a view to lifting them completely after a six-month review.

But in July, President Donald Trump extended the review period to October 12. On Friday, his administration decided to lift the embargo permanently.

With the embargo lifted, Koutsis said he expected increased interest from American companies on doing business in Sudan.

"But of course businesses will make business decisions based on entire level of risk involved, and they will be looking at other aspects of potential investment in Sudan," he said.

Washington's financial sanctions had put restrictions on international banking transactions, exchange of technology and spare parts. Combined with other cumbersome trade regulations, they hampered Sudan's economic growth.

Koutsis said that "legal impediments" that previously prevented such transactions have now been removed with the lifting of the embargo.
There's no doubt, Iowa's U.S. senators are regretting their votes in February to confirm Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt. Thing is, their massive error was obvious from the outset to anyone who wasn't solely interested in being a good partisan soldier.

President Donald Trump's EPA could cost Iowa billions in business output and countless jobs if it follows through with its proposal to roll back mandates on ethanol-blended gasoline within the Clean Air Act. On this front, the Renewable Fuel Standard, drafted years ago by the often-derided EPA, has been a boon for Iowa above any other state.

And, now, Pruitt and his friends in the oil industry want to hobble the program.

Grassley had a veritable meltdown in a media release, on the Senate floor and on Twitter following the EPA announcement earlier this week. The righteous indignation is a little late, Senator.

In December, Sens. Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst pledged that Pruitt would defend the RFS. In January, Pruitt again promised that he'd protect the program if confirmed.

It was bull from the outset. In December, this editorial board urged Grassley and Ernst to oppose Pruitt and Rick Perry, then Trump's nominee to lead the Energy Department. Both men had spent their entire careers in service to oil companies. Trump's lip service to middle America was laughable and unrealistic to any serious observer. It was obvious from the outset that Trump was selecting cabinet members based on their fervor for tearing down that which they were named to lead.

Grassley and Ernst were either naive or willfully oblivious. Partisan allegiance blinded them. They, like the rest of the Senate's GOP majority, proved little more than a rubber stamp. And, in a year, Iowa could pay the price for their willingness to sell out the state.

The average price of corn more than doubled since the creation of the RFS in 2005, topping off at an $4.11 a bushel in 2014, reported The New York Times. Iowa, more than any other state, has benefited from RFS, according to multiple studies. As such, it's become a flashpoint in political circles. Urban centers see it as a backdoor tax on food and an additional subsidy for a farm industry that already receives substantial assistance from the federal government. Officials in other rural states wonder why their crop-of-choice isn't getting a boost from taxpayers. Politicians from oil producing states hate the competition. And libertarians and free-market conservatives are philosophically opposed to the program.

It's within this political reality that Grassley and Ernst backed Pruitt. As Oklahoma's attorney general, he made a career waging war on any campaign that weakened oil and gas production. He filed lawsuit after lawsuit attacking federal regulation of energy. Now, Trump is batting 0 for eternity on the legislative front. The administration's only so-called victories are in rollbacks of executive branch regulation, Rust Belt be damned.

Supporting Pruitt in February wasn't just a gamble. It wasn't simply being a good soldier. It was a predictable vote against Iowa's interests.

Grassley and Ernst made promises about the RFS' political safety that they couldn't keep. Their assurances were grounded only in words from an administration that's been incapable of honesty and loyalty from the outset. They got burned and slashing RFS is now on the table.

Grassley and Ernst might be shocked. But it's no surprise to anyone who chose healthy skepticism over political patronage.
A Country Is Its People

I spent the past two weeks in Canada, north of a town called Nelson in British Columbia. One evening, while nearing sleep, I heard a rumbling that sounded like a train. In the morning, I woke and people were taking about an enormous fireball that had passed overhead. The rumbling had been the result a meteor crashing to Earth.

A bit later, I headed out for a hike. The country north of Nelson was beautiful and very lightly inhabited. That morning it was covered with what seemed like a thick and eerie mist. It was in fact the result of massive forest fires that had ravaged British Columbia.

Where I was, I had a sense of both extremes that nature presents in Canada and also its loneliness. A meteor could fall and not disturb anyone. I had been to Canada many times before, but always in the south. Here I got a sense of loneliness that I had never quite experienced in the United States. The roads were sparse, as were the people. It was that loneliness amid beauty that riveted me. I have, of course, visited most major Canadian cities and they are simply cities, as inviting and confining as most. Obviously, every country has the paradox between the rural and urban, but the first thing you notice about Canada is the profound division between human life and the absolute solitude of most of the country.

A Country Is Its People

Canada is the second largest country in the world, larger than China and the United States. But as has been frequently said, a country is its people. If Canada were reduced only to its populated areas, it would be a much smaller country. It would be a narrow strip bordering the United States, stretching unevenly from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The widest point of Canada would be 420 miles in Alberta. The narrowest point would run only a few miles from the border. Most important, the country would be divided into its eastern and western parts, separated by 400 miles of sparsely populated land.

From this perspective, there are two Canadas. Eastern Canada runs from the base of southern Ontario northeast along the U.S. border and St. Lawrence River. It extends into Nova Scotia and as for north as Newfoundland. This is the most densely populated area in the country, with the population concentrated in cities like Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Halifax.

The second Canada runs through Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and into British Columbia. Its northern border extends in a diagonal line westward until the structure collapses west of Edmonton. The population here is also concentrated along the U.S. border but also runs north in a narrow line toward western and central British Columbia, finding an anchor in Vancouver.



The Canadian Rockies in the Banff National Forest Nov. 30, 2006 during morning sunrise. AFP PHOTO / JEFF HAYNES (Photo credit should read JEFF HAYNES/AFP/Getty Images

The eastern segment of Canada was the area first settled and fought over by the English and French. It has vast areas of farmland, with a social structure similar to the American upper Midwest.

The western segment was settled later. It also has extensive farmland, but extractive industries are a key part of the economy here. The area on the map that shows a major surge in population toward Edmonton is where energy resources are pulled from the earth. This region has long prospered drilling and mining. So, for example, the pattern of population distribution in British Columbia is a remnant of similar activity.

Culturally and economically, some of these western regions have more in common with parts of the U.S. than they do with other parts of Canada. Vancouver is far more in tune with Seattle than it is with Alberta; Alberta has more in common with Texas than it has with Manitoba and Saskatchewan; and Manitoba and Saskatchewan have more in common with their southern neighbors than they do with Ottawa. Culture and economy are determined by the ground a society rests on, and the land in Western Canada links it to the United States more than to other Canadian provinces.

The eastern population bloc also has internal variations in culture and economy, but its less culturally linked to the United States. There are three parts of the bloc: the Maritime region, Quebec and Ontario. Quebec is differentiated from the other two regions by language and culture. It has historically been the least comfortable in Canada, and Canada with it. The two English-speaking areas are also wildly different from each other. The maritime region is the poorest in Canada, its economy still rooted heavily in traditional and declining activities like fishing. Ontario, built around Toronto and Ottawa, has the most modern and self-sustained culture of the group.

These profound differences between the provinces have resulted in division within Canadian society. In Quebec, there was a serious movement for secession just two decades ago. Today, when I visit Alberta, I hear occasional talk, mostly wistful, about secession and joining the United States. In British Columbia, the differences with Calgarys culture are openly discussed and the disdain for its Texas-style culture is clear. There is a general disdain for the Maritime provinces, seen as poor and backward in the eyes of many.

A Nice Approach to Foreign Policy

Such diverging economic interests and cultural perspectives have torn other countries apart. Reconciling the interests of places as diverse as Calgary, Quebec and Nova Scotia is difficult to imagine. They are too different in every sense to feel part of a single country. Canadas founders understood this. In a country this diverse, any unity beyond confederation is impossible.

Canada manages this tension in an interesting way. Calling Canadians nice is commonplace, but its also symbolic of Canadas approach to coping with this divide. Canada cannot afford to confront its diversity. Different parts of the country look at the world in very different ways, and attempts to delegitimize these interests and values would have explosive effects if pressed to the extreme. There is an unspoken agreement not to understate the differences, and to avoid confronting the tension underlying the country.

We see this in foreign policy as well. Given its proximity to the U.S., the heart of any Canadian foreign policy must pivot around the United States. There are issues with this but the relative weight of the two countries make accommodation difficult to avoid. As to its broader foreign policy, if consensus cant be reached, no region can be pushed to an impossible point. An aggressive foreign policy would be risky. Canada must therefore establish a nonassertive foreign policy. I do not mean this ironically, but this is a nice foreign policy. It is not that Canada is weak. Others are weaker. It is that creating internal stress in Canada would be dangerous.

Canada has built a brilliant strategy recognizing, even respecting, regional differences. And so it is that Canada pursues an imperative it has no choice but to pursue. Underneath the comity of Canada, there is a frailty that would not withstand excessive pressure. This is therefore a nation that will survive by brilliantly balancing forces that would ruin other countries.
LINCOLN  Nebraskas inventory of all hogs and pigs on Sept. 1 was 3.45 million head, according to the U.S. Department of Agricultures National Agricultural Statistics Service.

That total was down 4 percent from Sept. 1, 2016, but up 1 percent from June 1.

The breeding hog inventory of 410,000 head was down 2 percent from last year, while the market hog total of 3.04 million was down 4 percent.

The June-August pig crop, at 2.21 million head, was up 5 percent from 2016.

Nebraska hog producers intend to farrow 185,000 sows during the September-November quarter, which would be 3 percent more than from the same period in 2016.
MINDEN  As he sits in his office along busy Highway 10 north of Minden and next to climate-controlled warehouses, CSS Farms manager Ben Zechmann knows one thing for certain.

Most of the people driving by have no idea the storage buildings hold locally grown potatoes. The vast majority of people do not know that potatoes are grown in the Kearney area, he said.

They also dont realize that most of those potatoes are trucked to a Frito-Lay chip plant in Topeka from August to late April or mid May.

I can tell you if youre in Kearney and eat Frito-Lay potato chips, youre eating ours, Zechmann said about the locally grown potatoes.

CSS Farms was born in Watertown, S.D., and the first expansion was in 1993 to the Platte Valley, where there are farms in the Minden and Columbus areas.

Zechmann, an Elm Creek native with bachelors and masters degrees in biology from the University of Nebraska at Kearney, started at CSS Farms as a part-timer in 2002, was named lead agronomist in 2004 and has been the Minden farm manager for four years.

He oversees production of 80 million pounds of chip potatoes on 1,600 leased acres along the south side of the Platte River between Odessa and Gibbon. Zechmann said thats 200 acres fewer than two years ago, so meeting the same yield goal requires greater efficiency to fill the bins.

The Minden farm has 17 full-time farm, shop and warehouse employees, plus 10 to 20 part-timers and 50 to 70 seasonal workers. Three of the seven potato harvesters are operated by South Africans. Zechmann said its difficult to find local people with the required skills who can work only at harvest time.

CSS Farms also contracts with Kearney trucking companies owned by Jack Bullington and Steve Roeder for field to warehouse and warehouse to processing plant hauling.

Farmland is cash rented. Most of the same landowners are involved from year to year, Zechmann said, with eight this year and up to 14 in some years.

Most farmers use a three-year potato-corn-corn rotation, but hed like to see soybeans added between the corn years.

We have no GMOs because most of our crop is sold to Frito-Lay and they wont take any GMO, Zechmann said, so using crop rotations and herbicides with older chemistries and multiple modes of action are important for weed management.

Innovations developed by CSS Farms with grower and university partners to help control the main pest, the potato psyllid, include releasing pirate bugs and a stinky fish oil spray.

Growing season

We want very sandy soil, Zechmann said, and thats found in fields within three miles of the river that once were part of the riverbed. Its almost entirely for ease of harvest. The harvester essentially sifts the sandy soil away from the potatoes.

He said the soils organic matter must be less than 1.3 percent, but averages 0.7 percent in the potato fields.

CSS Farms does all the growing season through harvest work, which starts with chopping cornstalks and preparing the ground to plant seed potatoes from other CSS farms. Also, rye grass is planted as a cover crop within 24 hours of harvesters leaving a field.

Soil temperature is critical throughout the growing season. Zechmann said planting usually starts between April 10 and 15, but the soil temperature must be at least 50 degrees or on its way up strongly.

Fields arent touched after early May, so later applications of fungicides or insecticides are done by airplane. Dry fertilizer might be applied right after planting, but most nutrients are spoon-fed through the pivot irrigation systems.

We plan to be here a long time, and I dont want my kids drinking something I put in the water years ago, Zechmann said about using smaller amounts of water and fertilizer over time so they dont go past the root zone and into the aquifer.

Soil and plant tissue tests are weekly throughout the growing season to check on water and nutrient needs. We want our plants to be healthy, but we dont want to waste money or contaminate the groundwater, he said.

Overall water use is equal to or less than for corn, according to Zechmann, but pivots on the potatoes are run more often at a rate of no more than 0.60 of an inch at a time. Pivot end guns are shut off to save water in fields with an average of approximately 120 planted acres.

Soil and nutrient testing also is done after harvest in some fields so landowners know the conditions as they prepare for a new crop. I think we have some of the best farmers in the world. You have to be with the sand, Zechmann said.

Harvest season

Another benefit of sandy soils is they dry more quickly. We had only a day off after three days of rain, Zechmann said Wednesday afternoon. Thats a big advantage because if it freezes, it (potatoes) is junk.

The race against having potatoes still in the ground at freeze time usually starts Sept. 15  it was Sept. 16 this year  because the average date is Oct. 10 for the first hard freeze of 28 degrees for at least three hours, he said.

Harvest can start when the tuber pulp temperature is 50 to 65 degrees. If it approaches 65, the temperature is checked at least every hour.

We could be done by the 10th (Tuesday), but it probably will be more like 85 percent, Zechmann said, explaining that his two crews of three or four harvesters each can cover 100 acres a day.

We have to move almost a whole city from field to field, he said, a process that can take four hours and includes harvesters, trucks that run alongside them, conveyors that move potatoes from those trucks and into warehouse transport trucks, and tractors that pack furrows left by the harvesters.

Great care is taken to avoid potato damage. Workers adjust conveyor heights and speeds to make sure potatoes arent dropped into trucks or on warehouse piles, and to ensure there are no spaces as potatoes move along.

We really want this to flow like a river. You want potato on potato everywhere, Zechmann said. We rip them out of the ground and then move them around real gentle like.
LINCOLN  The Nebraska Supreme Court has dismissed a Frenchman Cambridge Irrigation District lawsuit that claimed damages from integrated management plans written by the Upper, Middle and Lower Republican natural resources districts and Nebraska Department of Natural Resources.

In a decision issued Friday, the judges concluded that Frenchman Cambridge failed to establish standing for the lawsuit. Therefore, the court lacked jurisdiction.

The lawsuit reached the Supreme Court as an appeal of a Nov. 3, 2016, decision by Furnas County District Court Judge James E. Doyle IV to dismiss Frenchman Cambridges case for failure to state a claim for which relief could be granted.

The background section of the Supreme Courts ruling says the integrated management plans were required by the Nebraska Ground Water Management and Protection Act because most of the Republican Basin was designated in 2004 as fully appropriated. The integrated management plans were developed to achieve and sustain a balance between water uses and water supplies in the long term.

The original plans provided for a 25 percent reduction in groundwater pumping. Updated plans adopted by DNR and NRDs in December 2015 set a 20 percent reduction.

In January 2016, Frenchman Cambridge attorneys filed a lawsuit that challenged the new integrated management plans on constitutional and statutory grounds. They alleged that increased groundwater pumping would interfere with stream recharge and flow ... and diminish surface waters otherwise subject to capture and diversion for use by Frenchman Cambridge to fill its priority flow permits.

The lawsuit also said reduced streamflow will cause other modifications in district operations.

The Supreme Court decision reviews requirements to establish standing as a litigant.

The first is to demonstrate it has suffered an injury in fact. A complainant must allege an injury to itself that is distinct and palpable, as opposed to merely abstract, and the alleged harm must be actual or imminent, not conjectural or hypothetical, the decision says.

The court found that the harm alleged in the Frenchman Cambridge lawsuit does not occur unless the integrated management plans actually reduce the water supply and that the plans by themselves cannot cause more groundwater to be pumped. Instead, IMPs are simply jointly developed plans for how water will be managed. ... FCIDs asserted injury is not sufficiently imminent because in order for the water controls set forth in the IMPs to be implemented, the NRD would have to determine that such controls were necessary and issue subsequent orders.
Lin-Manuel Miranda's been hard at work trying to ramp up donations for his ancestral Puerto Rico, and last night he dropped a new star-studded single about the devastated island. All proceeds, of course, will benefit hurricane recovery.

Dubbed "Almost Like Praying" (from a line from the song "Maria," from West Side Story) the bilingual track features a slew of Latin stars, including Jennifer Lopez, Marc Anthony, Fat Joe, and Luis Fonsi of "Despacito" fame. It's pretty good:

Miranda told Spotify Latino that he wrote the track while he waited anxiously to hear from family in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria. "I was on vacation when Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico. I stayed in constant contact with my parents as we waited for word from our family on the island. And we were all wondering what to do with our time," Miranda said. "And I began writing a song, hopefully for fundraising relief. I thought, what better way to honor Puerto Rico than to create a lyric that includes all 78 towns?"

So he put the song together and reached out to a slew of Puerto Rican artists, all of whom agreed to perform on the track. "Everyone said yes, sight unseen," Miranda told the Times, later adding, "I dont want anyone in Puerto Rico to ever feel forgotten again."

Miranda has spoken out against the federal response to the hurricane, which has left the island with little-to-no power, cell service, or drinkable water. On Tuesday, President Trump visited Puerto Rico, but was criticized for, among other things, telling Puerto Ricans they've "thrown our budget a little out of whack," using erroneous facts to compare Hurricane Maria with 2005's Hurricane Katrina, and throwing paper towel rolls at residents during a photo opp.

On Saturday Miranda's father, Luis Miranda, Jr., wrote an op-ed for the Daily News condemning the White House's response to the storm, particularly Trump's Twitter feud with San Juan mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz:

The President is calling 3.4 million Puerto Ricans lazy. Puerto Ricans who are doing everything they can to get the island back to normal, or at least, first, inhabitable. He is politicizing the devastation and criticizing a Mayor who has worked overtime to provide love, comfort and hope to her neighbors, and images of her tireless and selfless efforts are now iconic. He is calling lazy my brother Elvin who yesterday and today, and again tomorrow, spends five hours on a line to retrieve pallets of food for people in my hometown of Vega Alta. He is calling lazy my friends on the island who have been working nonstop to open lines of communication to barrios buried under debris. He is calling lazy my son Lin-Manuel, who has worked day and night to raise funds to rebuild and feed and clothe the people on the island we love. We all know what the President was REALLY doing - throwing red meat to the only supporters he has left who feast upon his insults about minorities, immigrants, women, the handicapped, those perceived to be different or less than. It is his way of detracting from a presidency that has delivered nothing to his supporters on the protectionist and anti-immigrant promises he made, nor to the country.



You can purchase "Almost Like Praying" on iTunes.
GRAND ISLAND  The Nebraska agriculture economy may soon stabilize, economic experts told Tri-Cities leaders Friday.

There could be some hope with our farm economy, Bree Dority said. The accounting/finance associate professor with the University of Nebraska at Kearney explained a graph on Nebraska and nationwide farm income from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to a group of attendees at the Tri-City Area Economic Forum.

After years of economic decline, net cash farm income for 2017 is projected at $100.4 billion, up $11.2 billion from 2016, according to the USDA.

We can see that Nebraskas net farm income trends, Dority said. It looks like the farm economy may be stabilizing. ... Obviously well have to wait and see if this is just a pause or if this is in fact the bottom or if it heads back up. So there could be some hope in the farm economy, which would then trickle into the closely linked manufacturing industry.

Representatives from businesses, organizations and schools gathered at Bosselmans Conference Center at Fonner Park in Grand Island to hear the latest business and economic statistics and listen to entrepreneurs and educators. The event was an alliance between UNK, local businesses and economic development councils in Kearney, Hastings and Grand Island to provide data to work with employers addressing challenges in the Tri-City and state economy.

Dority and Daniel Chaffin, UNK assistant professor of management, provided attendees an economic overview of the Tri-City area, which includes Kearney, Grand Island and Hastings.

Since 2010, the service-providing industry has been a major driver of real gross domestic product growth in the Tri-Cities, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The top growth contributors include finance and insurance; wholesale trade; real estate, rental and leasing; and health care and social assistance. The goods-providing industries  including manufacturing, agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting  have taken a dive in GDP growth.

Manufacturing makes up the largest chunk of the states GDP growth at 11.2 percent, followed by real estate at 10.2 percent.

According to the Nebraska Department of Labor, in the Tri-City area the top four industries for employment growth are manufacturing at 16 percent, health care and social assistance at 15 percent, retail trade at 13 percent and accommodation and food services at 9 percent. While each of the four areas experienced overall employment growth at 5.9 percent from 2010-2016, the top three areas dipped overall -0.1 percent from 2014-2016, which may be attributed to the poor agricultural economy, Dority said.

Attendees heard from keynote speaker Tim Hodges of Gallup Education who spoke on the cultural changes in the job market and the focus on personal strengths among companies and organizations.

Participants also engaged with a panel of entrepreneurs  Broken Bows Kinkaider Brewing and Schmicks Market Co-Founder Cody Schmick, CEO/President Dan Shundoff of Intellicom in Kearney and Hastings Pacha Soap co-founder and CEO Andrew Vrbas  and from a panel of educators, Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost Gary Johnson of Hastings College, Grand Island Career Pathways Institute Director Daniel Phillips and UNKs College of Business and Technology Dean Tim Burkink.

@AmandaPush
LINCOLN  ServeNebraska, the governor-appointed State Volunteer Service Commission, announced that Nebraska has received $1,427,216 in AmeriCorps funding from the Corporation for National and Community Service, the federal agency for volunteering and service programs.

The federal investment is delivered to ServeNebraska, which uses these funds to make grant awards to AmeriCorps programs in Nebraska. This year, 15 AmeriCorps programs received a total of $1,427,216.

Among the grant recipients were:

n The University of Nebraska at Kearney Department of Counseling and School Psychology. The UNK-CSP Rural NE Behavioral Health Services program increases access to behavioral health care in rural Nebraska. AmeriCorps members are graduate-level counselors-in-training who provide behavioral health and substance abuse screenings and treatment services in underserved areas. The program is expected to provide 2,500 screenings, assessments and treatments.

n YWCA Adams County in Hastings. AmeriCorps members provide direct service to clients, including: afterschool programs; health and nutrition education; homework assistance; job training for women; English as a Second Language and GED classes; and connection to services for homeless and/or youths in the court system. Programs are offered in Adams, Nuckolls, Clay, Kearney and Webster counties.
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People walk on a subway platform in New York on June 22, 2016. .S. authorities said a 19-year-old Canadian pleaded guilty to terrorism-related charges in connection with what they call an ISIS-inspired plot to target landmarks in New York City more than a year ago, including Times Square and the city's subway system. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York says the Canadian, identified as Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy, of Mississauga, Ont., has been in custody since the FBI arrested him in New Jersey in May 2016. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, Frank Franklin II
In his rambling statement after the NY Times published a story about "decade of sexual harassment allegations" against him, movie producer Harvey Weinstein admits to bad behavior, adding at one point, "Over the past year I've asked Lisa Bloom to tutor me and she's put together a team of people." This morning, Bloom, who has made her career working with women who accuse men of sexual misconduct, told Good Morning America's George Stephanopoulos that she thought Weinstein's behavior was "gross."

During the segment, Stephanopoulos said, "This is a real pattern over 30 years. This is like textbook sexual harassment."

Bloom, who has represented women who have accused Bill O'Reilly, Bill Cosby and Donald Trump of sexual harassment, replied, "It's gross, yeah," and added, "I agree. See, you have to understand that, yes, Im here as his adviser. Im not defending him in any sexual harassment cases  there arent any sexual harassment cases. Im working with a guy who has behaved badly over the years, who is genuinely remorseful, who says, you know, 'I have caused a lot of pain.'"

Earlier in the segment, Bloom explained, "I've known Harvey for about a year. These rumors have been swirling around him. It's not okay." (Weinstein optioned Bloom's book about Trayvon Martin's killing for a TV series). She said that when the Times was about to publish their story, she told him, "We have to throw out the old playbook. You're not going to be attacking women... if you're genuinely remorseful, say so, admit what you've done wrong."

The Times details numerous incidents, alleged by Hollywood stars like Ashley Judd and Rose McGowan as well as Weinstein employees, in which the producer allegedly requested massages or asked women to watch him shower or forced himself on them. Weinstein reportedly settled at least eight incidents.

Bloomberg said she was proud of Ashley Judd for coming forward and wants more women to come forward. "What Harvey Weinstein has done is wrong. He has caused pain... I've done a lot of cases on behalf of women. I wish I could get on the other to smack that guy around verbally. Here was an opportunity of a guy asking 'Lisa, what should I do? I have behaved badly,'" Bloom said. "He is ashamed of his behavior."

When Stephanopoulos asked why Weinstein is suing the NY Times, since Bloom said that Weinstein admitted to sexual harassment, Bloom pointed out that he has a different lawyer working on that. That lawyer is Charles Harder, who represented Hulk Hogan in his case against Gawker.

Weinstein complained to the NY Post that the Times didn't give him adequate time to respond to the story. The NY Times' spokesperson said, "We included all relevant comments from Mr. Weinstein in our story and published his entire response. Mr. Weinstein and his lawyer have confirmed the essential points of the story. They have not pointed to any errors or challenged any facts in our story."

The Times is reportedly looking to get women who settled their allegations with Weinstein released from their NDA's, if the producer's lawsuit moves forward.

The Weinstein Company, which Weinstein founded with his brother Bob, is preparing to suspend him, and one board member has resigned.

In the meantime, PR experts are calling Weinstein's crisis response awful: One told Variety, "From a personal reputation point of view, suing the New York Times only serves one purpose, and that is to keep the story alive. The saber-rattling strategy just isnt going to work," while another said, "Its simple, you provide a heartfelt statement of apology, and you mean it, and you disappear and you go into counseling. And then what you do is have others talk about the good work you have done throughout your career. Him doing it himself sounds narcissistic. All he has done by responding the way he has is lit the tinderbox, and encouraged others to come out now Hes made himself a really attractive target by seeming so insincere."
People gather during a protest in favor of talks and dialogue in Sant Jaume square in Barcelona, Spain, Saturday Oct. 7, 2017. Thousands gathered at simultaneous rallies in Madrid and Barcelona in a call for dialogue amid a political crisis caused by Catalonia's secession push. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
Three men conspired to detonate a car bomb Times Square and shoot up concert venues and subway cars in NYC last summer, according to an indictment that was unsealed by a federal judge today. One of the men, a Canadian, was arrested last year and pleaded guilty to a number of charges, while the two othersa U.S. citizen who was living in Pakistan and a Philippines Citizenhave been arrested but are awaiting trial.

Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York Joon H. Kim announced today that three men, Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy, Talha Haroon and Russell Salic were arrested and charged with various terrorism-related crimes stemming from a plot the three undertook to detonate bombs in Times Square and on the subway system during Ramadan, between June 5th and July 5th 2016.

El Bahnasawy, a 19-year-old Canadian citizen, allegedly bought bomb-making materials (40 pounds of hydrogen peroxide) in Canada and sent them to an undercover FBI agent, who also secured a cabin near New York City at his behest. Prosecutors say the cabin was intended to be used as a place to make bombs and practice shooting, but the plot was thwarted before it got to that stage. Haroon, a 19-year-old US citizen living in Pakistan, is alleged to have met with experts in explosives to help refine the attack and was planning on traveling to New York to assist El Bahnasawy. Salic, a 37-year-old resident of the Philippines, is accused of financing the plot by wiring money from the Philippines to Haroon and El Bahnasawy.

The three men, who were said to be communicating electronically during spring 2016 for most of the alleged conspiracy, allegedly believed they were planning the attack on behalf of ISIS. El Bahnasawy allegedly wrote told the undercover officer that he was hoping to "create the next 9/11," and Salic allegedly told the undercover officer "[i]t would be a great pleasure if we can slaughter" people from New York.

The three men allegedly talked about planning a number of different attacks, including setting off a car bomb in Times Square, an idea to "shoot up concerts cuz they kill a lot of people," like the attackers at the Bataclan in Paris, and shooting as many passengers as they could on the subway system. Haroon allegedly told the undercover officer "I wanna kill . . . them in thousands" and the attacks "will scar them for life knowing the soldiers of Allah are everywhere and ready... When we run out of bullets we let the vests go off."

El Bahnasawy and Haroon both allegedly told the undercover office they declared allegiance to ISIS, under the impression that he was in fact an ISIS-connected individual. El Bahnasawy traveled from Canada to New York in May of 2016, and was arrested by the FBI on the night of May 21st in Cranford, New Jersey. Haroon was arrested in Pakistan in October of 2016, and Saric was arrested in the Philippines in April 2017 and is awaiting extradition.

El Bahnasawy has pleaded guilty to charges including conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction, conspiracy to commit acts of terrorism transcending national boundaries, conspiracy to bomb a place of public use and public transportation system and conspiracy to provide material support and resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization, i.e., ISIS. The two others face a mix of similar charges, but have not pleaded guilty.

The first three charges, which have also been brought against Haroon and Saric, all carry a maximum penalty of life in prison.
A doomsday prepper in New Jersey has decided to send all the food that he's been amassing for several decades to the victims of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.

Joseph Badame, 74, told the Washington Post that his late wife, Phyliss, came up with the idea for the survival bunker. After two years in the Peace Corps and the violent Camden riots in 1969 and 1971, Phyliss and Joseph began building a larger home with a fallout shelter.

Badame, an architect, designed the property and he and his wife continued to fill the shelter for 40 years. Phyliss had a stroke in 2005 and Badame began to care for her fulltime. In 2013, she had another stroke and passed away. Since then, Badame told NJ.com, he hasn't felt the same about the shelter. Last month, the bank foreclosed on the property.

"This will never be a survival dwelling for Phyliss or I," he told NJ.com.

The house was meant to hold the couple and potentially up to 100 other family and friends.

Last month, Badame met Victoria and Anthony Barber, who run a Puerto Rican food truck, and Victoria told him how some of her relatives were now without food in the aftermath of Maria. Badame responded by telling her that she could have all the food in his basement.

"Those people are starving and they have nothing," he said to the Post. "I just can't sit by."

Badame had 80 barrels in his basement, each of which weighed 360 pounds. Each barrel was filled with non perishables, such as rice, dried beans, flour, and sugar. The food, which Badame said he was going to lose anyway because of the foreclosure, can feed 84 people for up to 4 months, according to NBC4.

"I can't put into words just how much food there was," Victoria told the Post. "It was enough to feed a town."

Half of the barrels were flown to San Juan on Friday, Victoria told the Washington Post. Trucks will then deliver the barrels to Arecibo, the city where she grew up.

The Barbers plan to deliver the rest of the barrels to another area of Puerto Rico later on.

In other relief news, Tidal, which partnered with Gov. Andrew Cuomo's Empire State Relief and Recovery Effort, has sent off a cargo plan with 200,000 pounds of supplies to the island. Fat Joe told CNN that they've received about 2 million pounds of supplies.

Yesterday Vice President Mike Pence toured a San Juan neighborhood and told reporters that the Trump administration will be "here for the long haul," the Washington Post reported. His visit was in contrast with Trump's on Tuesday, were he tossed paper towels to onlookers and compared Hurricane Maria with Katrina, which he called a "real catastrophe."

The visit also came while the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) was getting criticized for removing statistics about Puerto Rico's access to water and electricity. The statistics were restored on Friday.
Anyone who dabbles in individual stocks is probably familiar with price-earnings ratios. The P/Esimply a stocks share price divided by the underlying companys earnings per shareis the simplest, most elegant way of assessing value. It essentially tells you how much investors are willing to pay for each dollar of a companys reported profits. All things being equalrarely the case, unfortunatelythe lower the P/E, the better the value.

Earnings, however, are not a perfect measure of profitability. Before companies post their results, they make accounting adjustments that include noncash charges against income such as depreciation and amortization. That leaves room for manipulation, says Sean Gavin, manager of Fidelity Value Discovery Fund. Earnings are an accounting metric, he says, which means theyre often misleading.

For a better sense of a companys profitability, Gavin and many other pros prefer to focus on free cash flowthe cash profits a company generates annually after making the capital expenditures necessary to maintain the business. That figure represents the money a company can use to make acquisitions, buy back shares and pay dividends, among other things. In short, its the money a firm can use to create value for shareholders.

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You can also use free cash flow to hunt for undervalued stocks. For this story, we found five companies with solid growth potential and share-price-to-free-cash-flow ratios well below those of similar companies and the broad market. Prices are as of August 31.

Gilead Sciences (symbol GILD, $84, price-to-free-cash-flow ratio 8)

In just a few short years, Gilead went from the biotechnology penthouse to the stock markets doghouse. But Gilead may be on the verge of a comeback. A key development: Gileads August announcement that it plans to buy Kite Pharma, a cutting-edge cancer-drug developer, for $12 billion in cash. The deal, expected to close later this year, marks the beginning of a new chapter for Gilead, say analysts at investment firm Credit Suisse.

Gileads stock zoomed skyward in the first half of the decade, soaring from $16 in September 2010 to $123 in June 2015. The driving force behind the stock: Gileads hepatitis C drugs, sales of which fueled strong gains in sales and profits. But the treatment may have been too effective. The medicines didnt just ameliorate hep C patients symptoms, they cured themand thereby depressed future demand for the drugs.

Whats more, Gileads treatments for HIV (its other core business) face patent expirations in 2018 and 2021, and investors remain skeptical that new drugs in development will plug the revenue gap. As a result, the stock fell to as low as $64 in mid June, down nearly half from its all-time high.

But even with its business slumping, Gilead has been generating tons of cash. Jeffrey Loo, an analyst at investment research firm CFRA, projects that Gilead will produce $11.8 billion in free cash flow this yearjust about what its spending to buy Kiteand still leave the firm with $36.6 billion in cash and investments on its balance sheet. He rates the stock a buy.

Gilead shares had begun recovering even before the Kite deal was announced, and they are now up 31% from their June low. Mark Finn, manager of T. Rowe Price Value Fund, expects Gilead to make additional acquisitions of similar size over the next year or so. In the meantime, Gilead is sharing more of its cash with investors. It hiked its payout by 11% in March, and the stock now yields an above-average 2.5%.

Western Digital (WDC, $88, P/FCF 9)

If you cant beat them, buy them. Until recently, Western Digital, a maker of data-storage products, focused on traditional hard disk drives, a form of memory for electronic devices that is rapidly losing ground to faster, more stable solid-state drives (SSD). So in May 2016, Western acquired SSD leader SanDisk for $19 billion in what Western CEO Steve Milligan called a transformational acquisition.

The new Western now supplies storage for a wide variety of applications, from personal computers and mobile devices to the huge data centers that make up the cloud. For the fiscal year that ended in June, sales soared 47%, to $19 billion, stoked largely by the SanDisk deal. Shareholders responded, too. The stock price has nearly doubled since the deal.

Even after the run-up, the stock still looks cheap, says Angelo Zino, an analyst at CFRA. He rates the stock a buy because of rising demand from ever more powerful smartphones and cloud data centers for Westerns line of diversified memory products.

Westerns shares have dipped recently, partly because of a messy fight with Japanese electronics giant Toshiba over Westerns plan to acquire Toshibas memory business, in which Western is already a partner. But T. Rowe Prices Finn says investors can withstand some uncertainty given the stocks current valuation. The shares sport a 2.3% dividend yield.

Treehouse Foods (THS, $67, P/FCF 10)

Even if youve never heard of TreeHouse Foods, chances are youve sampled its products. TreeHouse is Americas largest processor of private-label foods, supplying beverages, baked goods, snacks and other products to grocers nationwide.

TreeHouse shares reached record highs in 2016 after the company bought ConAgras private-label food business, Ralcorp, for $2.7 billion. The stock has since surrendered more than one-third of its value, as TreeHouse has had difficulty integrating the acquisition and ratcheted down earnings projections. Beyond TreeHouses own problems, the entire packaged-food industry is losing shopper dollars to healthier and fresher products.

Still, says Jack Murphy, comanager of TransAmerica Large-Cap Value Fund, supermarkets derive a large share of their profits from private-label items, and large grocers, such as Walmart and Trader Joes, are expanding their lineups of low-price, store-brand products. TreeHouse hopes to capitalize by focusing on its most profitable products and business partners. To that end, it recently announced plans to prune 20% of its customers and 25% of its product offerings by 2020. The firm says it expects these and other moves to result in a three-percentage-point increase in its operating profit margin (operating profits divided by sales), to 9%, by 2020.

Trading at only 10 times free cash flow, TreeHouse shares go for about 50% less than the P/FCF of the average large food processor, says Murphy. The valuation seems unfairly low, given that the companys free cash flow increased at an annualized clip of 24% from 2013 through 2016. Analysts at investment firm Stifel say that once TreeHouse has fully digested Ralcorp, the company will realize a cost advantage over its rivals, which should support superior earnings growth. They rate the stock a buy.

Cisco Systems (CSCO, $32, P/FCF 13)

Cisco is the worlds leading producer of networking gear, such as switches and routers, but its days as a great growth company are long past. Its stock has yet to fully return to where it was before the Great Recession, and it trades more than 60% below its March 2000 high.

But dont write off Cisco just yet. Although its router and switching business saw a 9% decline in sales in the quarter that ended July 31 from the same period a year earlier, the company still commands nearly half of all corporate network spending, says Morningstar. The firm produces a prodigious amount of free cash flow, to the tune of 26% of total revenues over the past 12 months, but it trades at just 13 times free cash flow, well below the P/FCF of other large tech companies. Moreover, the $66 billion in cash and investments on the companys balance sheet represents an astounding 43% of Ciscos market capitalization.

Cisco gets a bad rap among investors as old-school tech as companies shift their technology functions, such as switching, to the cloud, says Mike Liss, comanager of American Century Value Fund. But as businesses shift away from buying hardware, he says, Cisco is, too. Its upcoming $320 million acquisition of Springpath, due to close this fall, will be the sixth purchase in 2017 aimed at facilitating the sale of its software over the internet to customers that pay recurring fees.

What Cisco doesnt spend on future deals, it will likely return to shareholders. The company has raised its dividend at an annualized rate of 36% since 2011. The shares currently yield 3.6%.

Alphabet (GOOGL, $955, P/FCF 26)

Most people dont think of Googles parent as a bargain. Its stock has soared nearly sevenfold since 2008 and, with a market cap of $656 billion, Alphabet is the worlds second-most valuable company. But compared with other fast-growing tech leaders, Alphabet, selling for 26 times free cash flow, looks inexpensive. The comparable figure for Amazon.com is 54; for Facebook, its 35. Netflix has negative free cash flow.

Given Alphabets superior prospects, the stock deserves more respect, says Fidelity Value Discoverys Gavin. Alphabets earnings are growing at 16% per year when the market is growing at mid single digits, he says. So you have a company trading for the same valuation as the market, but with a significantly faster pace of growth.

Analysts dont see that growth slowing down anytime soon. Googles advertising business accounts for more than 80% of Alphabets total revenue, and CFRA analyst Scott Kessler projects ad sales to increase by 18% this year, followed by a 16% boost in 2018. He expects companywide revenue growth to pop 21% this year, accompanied by a 23% bump in earnings.

Alphabet produces huge free cash flow ($4.6 billion in the most recent quarter alone), thanks to strong profitability and relatively modest capital spending needs. The company invests wisely in high-growth areas, such as its business providing public cloud services, a market that Morningstar projects will grow by 25% annually through 2020.

The basics of free cash flow

To understand free cash flow, you must know operating cash flow. On the surface, a companys profits are its revenues minus costs and taxes. But firms that follow generally accepted accounting principles subtract certain items from those profits, such as depreciation of equipment and the costs of intangible assets (such as patents) spread over time through a process called amortization. Add those things back to earnings and you arrive at operating cash flow. You can find that figure in the cash flow statement within the quarterly and annual reports (on Form 10Q and Form 10K, respectively) that firms file with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Free cash flow is operating cash flow minus the capital outlays and investments a firm makes to maintain and expand its business. These expenses might include the cost of a new factory or a new fleet of vehicles. You can subtract the expenses, listed as capital expenditures on the cash flow statement, from operating cash flow to get the most common version of free cash flow, what Warren Buffett calls owner earningsthe surplus cash that would flow directly into your pocket if you owned the whole company.

These calculations are not especially helpful for banks and insurers, which use a unique set of accounting rules. But for everyone else, free cash flow is an important measure of profitability because a firm can use the cash to create value for shareholders by using it to pay dividends, buy back shares, expand the business or acquire other companies. Executives can also use free cash flow to pay down debt or save for a rainy day.
ANKARA, Oct 4 (Reuters) - Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday after meeting Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan in Tehran that the two countries should prevent Iraq's Kurdistan region from declaring independence, state TV reported.

"Turkey and Iran must take necessary measures against the vote," Khamenei was quoted as saying.

He also said the United States and foreign powers planned to create a new Israel in the Middle East by supporting the vote in Kurdistan, according to state TV.

"America and Israel benefit from the vote ... They want to create a new Israel in the region ... The Iraqi Kurdish secession vote is an act of betrayal toward the entire region," Khamenei said.

Israel has denied being involved in the vote, but it has welcomed the Kurds' vote for independence.

The United States opposed the referendum as a destabilizing move at a time when all sides in the region are still fighting Islamic State.

(Writing by Parisa Hafezi; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
By Michael Holden

LONDON, Oct 7 (Reuters) - Lawmakers in British Prime Minister Theresa May's Conservative Party who are trying to oust her as leader have been told to "put up, shut up" by the party's chief in Scotland.

Others in the party warned that the uncertainty over May was damaging Brexit negotiations with the European Union.

May on Friday said she would remain as leader after a former Conservative chairman said he had garnered the support of 30 lawmakers who wanted her to quit.

It followed a disastrous speech at the party's conference and a snap election in June in which May lost her party's majority in parliament. Senior figures have rallied round May, but the open rebellion comes as Britain embarks on crucial talks just 18 months before Britain is due to leave the European Union.

One newspaper reported on Saturday EU negotiators were stepping up talks with the opposition Labour Party amid concerns the government will collapse.

Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson, who is considered a possible successor should May be forced out, told the BBC the prime minister's critics should "put up, shut up and get off the stage".

"I would tell my party to get its house in order, get together, knuckle down, and make sure that our first commitment, last commitment and only commitment is to the country," she said.

Her message came after former party chairman Grant Shapps toured media studios calling for a leadership election. Shapps said 30 Conservative lawmakers backed his view, well short of the 48 needed to trigger a contest.

NO OBVIOUS REPLACEMENT

Commentators said a lack of an obvious replacement and deep divisions in the party over the direction of Brexit meant the rebellion had lost momentum despite disquiet over May's performance as leader.

One Conservative lawmaker, Nigel Evans, said the "botched plot" appeared to have fizzled out within 24 hours but said it would play into the hands of EU's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier and EU Commission head Jean-Claude Juncker

"The sniping from people like Grant Shapps is ... going to be used by people like Michel Barnier and Juncker to say there's divisions within the government, maybe we can offer them a worse deal or drag things out," Evans told BBC TV.

"He's done us absolutely no favours whatsoever."

The Daily Telegraph reported EU negotiators had increased private talks with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and the party's Brexit spokesman as they feared May's government would fall before the a divorce deal was agreed ahead of Britain's exit in March 2019.

The paper, citing unnamed sources said there had been a "significant change in tone" towards Labour and Corbyn had held meetings with Barnier.

In a sign of the challenges facing May over Brexit, the Financial Times reported on Saturday that Germany and France had dashed hopes of fast-tracking talks a two-year transition deal after Brexit in 2019, and instead wanted details of the divorce settlement resolved first.

As May tries to reassert her authority, the Guardian newspaper said she would be urged by her lawmakers to sack Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson who used media article and interviews ahead of this week's party conference to put forward his own view of Brexit. While he professed loyalty to May, his interventions were seen as undermining her and causing unnecessary unrest.

"There's a general feeling that there's support for her there, but I do think she needs to do a major reshuffle, and if she doesn't act to sack Boris and to bring some new people on board, she has a problem," one unnamed Conservative lawmaker told the paper.

(Reporting by Michael Holden Editing by Jeremy Gaunt)
By Raquel Castillo and Sam Edwards

MADRID/BARCELONA, Oct 7 (Reuters) - Thousands of people gathered in Madrid and Barcelona on Saturday as Catalonia prepared to declare independence, many dressed in white and calling for talks to defuse Spain's worst political crisis for decades.

The wealthy northeastern region of Catalonia, with its own language and culture, has long claimed to be distinct from the rest of the country and on Sunday held a referendum on leaving Spain, a vote the constitutional court had banned.

The Catalan authorities say that a majority of those who voted supported a split from Spain, something Madrid says is illegal under the country's 1978 constitution.

The political stand-off has divided the country, pushed banks and companies to move their headquarters outside Catalonia and shaken market confidence in the Spanish economy, prompting calls from the European Commission for Catalan and Spanish leaders to find a political solution.

"I've come because I feel very Spanish and makes me very sad what's happened," Rosa Borras, 47, an unemployed secretary who had joined a noisy gathering in central Madrid, said.

Borras, wearing a "Catalonia, we love you" sticker and surrounded by thousands waving Spanish flags, added: "I wanted to be here for unity, because I also feel very Catalan. My family lives in Catalonia."

While Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont has said he is open to mediation, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy insists the region gives up the independence push, which grew in strength during a near-six year economic crisis, before he will sit down to talk.

Rajoy's government mobilised thousands of national police to stop Sunday's vote, leading to clashes with would-be voters as they tried to close polling stations in schools and remove ballot boxes.

The police violence drew widespread condemnation and forced the government to issue an apology on Friday, although tensions continued to rise after reports that plans for a unilateral declaration of independence will be handed to the Catalan parliament on Tuesday. EU CONCERNS

The crisis has also caused disquiet among Spain's European Union partners and German Chancellor Angela Merkel has discussed it with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, an EU official told Reuters. Concern is growing in EU capitals about the negative impact of the crisis on the Spanish economy, the fourth largest in the euro zone, and on possible spillovers to other economies.

European finance ministers, gathering in Brussels on Monday and Tuesday for a regular meeting, could discuss the issue, although it is not formally on the agenda, EU officials said.

The support given in public statements by EU leaders to Rajoy is combined with concern expressed in private about how the Spanish government's use of police to prevent Catalans from voting last week in an independence referendum could backfire.

Some EU states are worried that talk of Catalan independence could fuel secessionist feelings in other parts of Europe.

(Reporting by Raquel Castillo; Writing by Paul Day; Editing by Alexander Smith)
LONDON, Oct 7 (Reuters) - A British Sunday newspaper said Prime Minister Theresa May had signalled in an interview that she might demote Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, after she faced an open rebellion from within her own party this week.

The Sunday Times said it had asked May what her plans were for Johnson, who has professed loyalty to the British leader but has been accused by some of her allies of undermining her by putting forward his own vision for Britain's exit from the EU.

"It has never been my style to hide from a challenge and I'm not going to start now," it quoted May as replying, in what it called a signal that she was prepared to bring in new ministers to her cabinet and axe those who had caused her problems.

"I'm the PM, and part of my job is to make sure I always have the best people in my cabinet, to make the most of the wealth of talent available to me in the party."

May's Downing Street office declined to comment on the Sunday Times story late on Saturday, saying it had not yet seen the interview.

May has seen her authority over her Conservative Party erode since calling an election for June in which she lost the party's majority in parliament.

Johnson, widely seen as a potential candidate for the Conservative leadership, wrote a newspaper article last month outlining his vision of Britain's exit from the EU just days before May was to give a major speech on the subject.

The party held a conference last week that culminated in a disastrous speech by May, marred by a coughing fit and letters falling off the slogan on the set behind her. Former party chairman Grant Schapps said a group of Conservative lawmakers were plotting to remove May from the party leadership.

Speaking about her conference speech difficulties, May told the Sunday Times: "I am a very determined person. I am not someone who gives up."

(Reporting by Michael Holden; Editing by Peter Graff)
* Thousands gather across Spain in call for talks, unity

* Political leaders in Barcelona, Madrid in deadlock

* EU heads concerned as crisis escalates

* PM vows to stop referendum declaration amounting to anything

(Adds Rajoy interview)

By Raquel Castillo and Sam Edwards

MADRID/BARCELONA, Oct 7 (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of people gathered across Spain on Saturday as Catalonia prepared to declare independence, many dressed in white and calling for talks to defuse Spain's worst political crisis for decades.

Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who has maintained a hard line as the crisis has escalated, told El Pais newspaper on Saturday his government would "prevent any declaration of independence amounting to anything".

The wealthy northeastern region of Catalonia, with its own language and culture, held a referendum on Oct. 1 on independence, in defiance of the Spanish constitutional court which had ruled the vote illegal.

The Catalan authorities say around 90 percent of those who voted supported a split from Spain. Madrid says secession is illegal under the Spain's 1978 constitution. Residents of Catalonia who oppose secession largely boycotted the vote.

The crisis is a political test for Rajoy, who has been uncompromising. Some 900 people were injured during the vote when police tried to disrupt voting, firing rubber bullets and charging crowds with truncheons.

The political stand-off has divided the country, pushed banks and companies to move their headquarters outside Catalonia and shaken market confidence in the Spanish economy, prompting calls from the European Commission for Catalan and Spanish leaders to find a political solution.

"I hope that the Catalonia that makes pacts, is moderate and for many years contributed to Spain's economic growth and improvement in welfare and wealth returns. It can't be in the hands of extremists, the radicals and the (far-left secessionist party) CUP," he said.

PEACEFUL PROTESTS

In peaceful protests called across 50 Spanish cities on Saturday morning, thousands gathered dressed in white and carrying banners calling for peace and dialogue between leaders.

In Barcelona, protesters chanted "let's talk" in Catalan, while many carried signs criticising political leaders for not finding a diplomatic solution to the impasse.

"This is producing a social rupture in Catalonia and this has to be resolved through dialogue, never via unilateralism," Jose Manuel Garcia, 61, an economist who attended the protest dressed in white said.

"I'm very worried. This will end badly and everyone will lose (without dialogue)."

While Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont has said he is open to mediation, Rajoy has demanded he give up the independence campaign before discussions can be held.

In Madrid thousands gathered beneath the enormous Spanish flag in Colon Plaza waving their own flags, singing and chanting "Viva Espana" and "Viva Catalonia".

"I've come because I feel very Spanish and makes me very sad what's happened," said Rosa Borras, 47, an unemployed secretary who had joined a noisy gathering in central Madrid.

Borras, wearing a "Catalonia, we love you" sticker and surrounded by thousands waving Spanish flags, added: "I wanted to be here for unity, because I also feel very Catalan. My family lives in Catalonia."

EU CONCERN

Rajoy's government mobilised thousands of national police to stop Sunday's vote, leading to clashes with would-be voters as they tried to close polling stations in schools and remove ballot boxes.

The police violence drew widespread condemnation and forced the government to issue an apology on Friday, although tensions continued to rise after reports of plans for the Catalan parliament to vote on a unilateral declaration of independence on Tuesday. The crisis has also caused disquiet among Spain's European Union partners, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel has discussed it with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, an EU official told Reuters. Concern is growing in EU capitals about the impact of the crisis on the Spanish economy, the fourth largest in the euro zone, and on possible spillovers to other economies.

European finance ministers, gathering in Brussels on Monday and Tuesday for a regular meeting, could discuss the issue, although it is not formally on the agenda, EU officials said.

The support given in public statements by EU leaders to Rajoy is combined with concern expressed in private about how the Spanish government's use of police to prevent Catalans from voting last week in the independence referendum could backfire.

Some EU states are worried that talk of Catalan independence could fuel secessionist feelings in other parts of Europe.

(Reporting by Raquel Castillo; Writing by Paul Day; Editing by Alexander Smith and Peter Graff)
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* Thousands gather across Spain in call for talks, unity

* Political leaders in Barcelona, Madrid in deadlock

* EU heads concerned as crisis escalates

* PM does not rule out using article 155 of constitution

(Adds Rajoy comments, recasts)

By Raquel Castillo and Sam Edwards

MADRID/BARCELONA, Oct 7 (Reuters) - Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said on Saturday he would not rule out using the constitutional powers to remove Catalonia's autonomous status if it claimed independence as tens of thousands took to the streets to call for talks.

The wealthy northeastern region of Catalonia, with its own language and culture, held a referendum on Oct. 1 on independence, in defiance of the Spanish constitutional court which had ruled the vote illegal.

Until now, Rajoy has remained vague on whether he would use article 155, the so-called nuclear option, of the constitution which enables him to sack the regional government and call a fresh local election.

In an interview with Spanish newspaper El Pais on Saturday Rajoy was asked if he was ready to trigger the article 155 of the constitution, and said: "I don't rule out absolutely anything that is within the law ... Ideally, it shouldn't be necessary to implement extreme solutions but for that not to happen things would have to be changed."

Tens of thousands of people gathered across Spain earlier on Saturday as Catalonia prepared to declare independence from the rest of the country, many dressed in white and calling for talks to defuse Spain's worst political crisis for decades.

The Catalan authorities say around 90 percent of those who voted supported a split from Spain. Madrid says secession is illegal under the Spain's 1978 constitution. Residents of Catalonia who oppose secession largely boycotted the vote.

The crisis is a political test for Rajoy, who has been uncompromising. Some 900 people were injured during the vote when police tried to disrupt voting, firing rubber bullets and charging crowds with truncheons.

The political stand-off has divided the country, pushed banks and companies to move their headquarters outside Catalonia and shaken market confidence in the Spanish economy, prompting calls from the European Commission for Catalan and Spanish leaders to find a political solution.

"I hope that the Catalonia that makes pacts, is moderate and for many years contributed to Spain's economic growth and improvement in welfare and wealth returns. It can't be in the hands of extremists, the radicals and the (far-left secessionist party) CUP," he said.

However, Rajoy ruled out using mediators to resolve the crisis and also said the issue would not force a snap national election.

PEACEFUL PROTESTS

In peaceful protests called across 50 Spanish cities on Saturday morning, thousands gathered dressed in white and carrying banners calling for peace and dialogue between leaders.

In Barcelona, protesters chanted "let's talk" in Catalan, while many carried signs criticising political leaders for not finding a diplomatic solution to the impasse.

"This is producing a social rupture in Catalonia and this has to be resolved through dialogue, never via unilateralism," Jose Manuel Garcia, 61, an economist who attended the protest dressed in white said.

"I'm very worried. This will end badly and everyone will lose (without dialogue)."

While Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont has said he is open to mediation, Rajoy has demanded he give up the independence campaign before discussions can be held.

In Madrid thousands gathered beneath the enormous Spanish flag in Colon Plaza waving their own flags, singing and chanting "Viva Espana" and "Viva Catalonia".

"I've come because I feel very Spanish and makes me very sad what's happened," said Rosa Borras, 47, an unemployed secretary who had joined a noisy gathering in central Madrid.

Borras, wearing a "Catalonia, we love you" sticker and surrounded by thousands waving Spanish flags, added: "I wanted to be here for unity, because I also feel very Catalan. My family lives in Catalonia."

EU CONCERN

Rajoy's government mobilised thousands of national police to stop Sunday's vote, leading to clashes with would-be voters as they tried to close polling stations in schools and remove ballot boxes.

In the El Pais interview, Rajoy said the around 4,000 extra police shipped in to the region would stay until the conflict had been resolved.

The police violence drew widespread condemnation and forced the government to issue an apology on Friday, although tensions continued to rise after reports of plans for the Catalan parliament to vote on a unilateral declaration of independence on Tuesday. The crisis has also caused disquiet among Spain's European Union partners, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel has discussed it with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, an EU official told Reuters. Concern is growing in EU capitals about the impact of the crisis on the Spanish economy, the fourth largest in the euro zone, and on possible spillovers to other economies.

European finance ministers, gathering in Brussels on Monday and Tuesday for a regular meeting, could discuss the issue, although it is not formally on the agenda, EU officials said.

The support given in public statements by EU leaders to Rajoy is combined with concern expressed in private about how the Spanish government's use of police to prevent Catalans from voting last week in the independence referendum could backfire.

Some EU states are worried that talk of Catalan independence could fuel secessionist feelings in other parts of Europe.

(Reporting by Raquel Castillo and Paul Day; Writing by Paul Day; Editing by Alexander Smith and Peter Graff)
Puerto Rico governor praises DoD for Hurricane Maria relief efforts

By Terri Moon Cronk







Soldiers assist the Federal Emergency Management Agency to deliver relief supplies to the residents of Puerto Rico. DoD photo by Raymond Piper



WASHINGTON, Oct. 6, 2017  Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossello this morning described the relief missions on the U.S. island territory following Hurricane Marias devastation as part of a comprehensive effort and thanked the Defense Department for its assistance.Right now, were at about 11,500 active [DoD personnel] doing missions, airlifting medical and logistics around Puerto Rico, Rossello said in his daily morning press conference.

The governor also announced the death toll from Maria in Puerto Rico has risen to 36 people.



Vice President Mike Pence is expected to visit Puerto Rico today, Rossello said.



[He] will be here for several hours seeing the damages that have occurred in Puerto Rico, and of course reiterating his commitment to stay here for the long haul and help Puerto Rico rebuild, Rossello added.





Guajataca Dam



Rossello also warned that potential flooding exists today at Guajataca Dam.



[At] Guajataca Dam, there has been an effort in the past couple of days with the Army Corps of Engineers to establish Jersey barriers -- big concrete barriers -- to avoid a collapse, the governor said. [The Corps has] placed 148 Jersey barriers at this juncture, helping as a preventative mechanism, recognizing that it's not a long-term fix, but certainly to attend to the immediacy of the potential collapse.



DoD is supporting the Federal Emergency Management Agencys priorities in spillway mitigation of the dam, in addition to route clearance ad commodity distribution, DoD sources said.





Medical Care



DoD is also expanding a comprehensive commodities distribution and medical support network in support of FEMA and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, a DoD official said.



[The USNS] Comfort already deployed on its first mission, Rossello said, noting that the ship has more than 70 patients from several municipalities.



[We] will still be using Central Medical as the main hub to receive critical patients but we also have the Comfort as an alternative for specific needs and for overflow of these patients.



FEMA, HHS and DoD are setting up a 24/7 medical operations cell to ensure timely response to Puerto Ricos emergency needs, the DoD official said. USNS Comfort will transit west from San Juan and make stops at five or six locations for a few days each, beginning with Aricibo-Manati and finishing in the vicinity of Ponce. HHS and Puerto Rico department of health representatives will prioritize patients for care aboard the ship prior to arrival.



DoD personnel also are working with FEMA to install and repair generators in the next 24 hours, Rossello said.



In terms of energy, we are at 10.7 percent of normal consumption, increasing from 9.2 percent yesterday, he said.





Food, Water



The governor said food and water and supplies delivered yesterday comprised 95 missions across Puerto Rico, with help from FEMA and the National Guard.



Yesterday there were over 160,000 liters of water and 260,000 rations of food distributed across municipalities, he said.



In terms of deployment from the DoD, they have deployed 162,000 gallons of water, 44,000 gallons of fuel, [and] 23 million meals across Puerto Rico in the past couple of days that they've been working on these missions.




USNS Comfort aids Maria relief efforts in Puerto Rico

By Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Ernest R. Scott







The Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Comfort arrives in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Oct. 3, 2017. The Comfort will help support Hurricane Maria aid and relief operations. The Defense Department is supporting the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the lead federal agency, in helping those affected by Maria to minimize suffering and is one component of the overall whole-of-government response effort. Air Force photo by Capt. Christopher Merian



SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico  The Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Comfort arrived here on Tuesday to assist in humanitarian relief efforts in the wake of Hurricane Maria.During a news conference on Thursday, Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossello said the Comfort's arrival gives officials the flexibility to help in more hurricane-affected areas.

While in San Juan, the hospital ship will host a summit with key stakeholders to synchronize efforts for the ship's mission throughout the area.



Comfort is a seagoing medical treatment facility that currently has more than 800 personnel embarked for the Puerto Rico mission including Navy medical and support staff assembled from 22 commands, as well as over 70 civil service mariners.



The hospital ship has one of the largest trauma facilities in the United States and is equipped with four X-ray machines, one CAT scan unit, a dental suite, an optometry lens laboratory, physical therapy center, pharmacy, angiography suite and two oxygen-producing plants.



Comfort's primary mission is to provide an afloat, mobile, acute surgical medical facility to the U.S. military that is flexible, capable, and uniquely adaptable to support expeditionary warfare. Comfort's secondary mission is to provide full hospital services to support U.S. disaster relief and humanitarian operations worldwide.




Volunteer Tennessee announces AmeriCorps funding opportunity









AmeriCorps is the national service program of the Corporation for National and Community Service that engages more than 75,000 Americans each year to meet locally identified community needs in the areas of disaster services; economic opportunity; education; environmental stewardship; healthy futures; and veterans and military families.



Volunteer Tennessee, a 25-member bi-partisan board appointed by the Governor, encourages volunteerism and community service.



Agencies interested in hosting an AmeriCorps program are invited to visit the Volunteer Tennessee website at www.volunteertennessee.net to download application materials. New Tennessee State Formula Grant, Education Award-Only Program Grant, and Professional Grant applications are due to Volunteer Tennessee on February 16, 2018 by 3:00 p.m. CST. Evidence-Based Planning Grant applications are due to Volunteer Tennessee on November 16, 2017 by 3:00 p.m. CST.



A recorded AmeriCorps informational webinar will be available on September 1, 2017, and an Application Grant Information webinar will take place September 8, 2017. Additional technical assistance calls will be scheduled on an as-needed basis. Please visit



AmeriCorps outreach sessions will take place throughout the state from September 25-October 18, 2017. Please visit



To register for the outreach sessions, please visit Volunteer Tennessees website or contact Stephanie Houghton at 615-741-9237 or stephanie.houghton@tn.gov. Volunteer Tennessee strongly encourages all applicants (new and re-competing) to attend at least one webinar or outreach session in this extremely competitive year.



AmeriCorps is a terrific way for organizations to benefit from eager, service-minded individuals  who in turn get education awards to help pay for college, said Jim Snell, Volunteer Tennessee Executive Director. For more than 20 years, AmeriCorps members have cleaned up polluted urban streams, provided child abuse prevention services, taught children to read, and helped senior citizens live longer and healthier lives through preventative health education. Our programs help local agencies maximize their capabilities to serve.



By placing AmeriCorps members in communities across the state, they are able to reach our most at-risk and frail citizens, he continued.



Volunteer Tennessee currently funds 18 AmeriCorps programs and two AmeriCorps planning grants across the state. Examples of these include:



 The Exchange Club Carl Perkins Center (Jackson): One Child At A Time AmeriCorps members help prevent child abuse and provide assistance to abused children and their families in West Tennessee. Members are mentors and role models to children, recruit new volunteers, and provide educational and emergency assistance.



 AIM Center (Chattanooga): AmeriCorps*Building Futures AmeriCorps members help address the stigma of mental illness while serving at the AIM Center. Members holistically address the basic human needs for meaningful relationships, self-sufficiency, and community reintegration for people in the greater Chattanooga area with a psychiatric diagnosis.



 Martha OBryan Center (Nashville): The Martha OBryan Center empowers children, youth, and adults in poverty to transform their lives through work, education, employment, and fellowship. THRIVE AmeriCorps members serve in one of five program areas: K-8 Youth Education, High School Education, Post-Secondary Success and Digital Inclusion, Adult Education, and Family Support. Members build relationships, tutor, teach, plan curriculum and enrichments, and perform community outreach and engagement.



Since 1994, more than 1 million Americans have provided more than 1.4 billion hours of service addressing critical challenges from poverty and hunger to disasters and the dropout crisis. In Tennessee, more than 12,000 AmeriCorps members have served more than 24 million hours and earned more than $42.9 million in education scholarships.



Volunteer Tennessee is the Governors commission on volunteerism and service. Its mission is to encourage volunteerism and community service. Annually, Volunteer Tennessee provides more than $4.5 million in AmeriCorps, Volunteer Generation Fund, and volunteer center grants to local agencies throughout the state so they can engage volunteers to meet community needs in disaster services, economic opportunity, education, environmental stewardship, healthy futures, and veterans and military families. The commission consists of a 25-member, bi-partisan volunteer citizen board appointed by the Governor and eleven State Government ex-officio positions. For more information, visit



AmeriCorps is administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service, a federal agency that engages millions of Americans in service through AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, and the Volunteer Generation Fund, and leads the President's national call to service initiative, United We Serve. For more information, visit



NASHVILLE  Volunteer Tennessee anticipates the availability of approximately $2.7 million in new and continuation grant funding for Tennessee AmeriCorps programs pending federal congressional appropriations. Public and private non-profit, governmental and faith-based agencies are eligible to apply.AmeriCorps is the national service program of the Corporation for National and Community Service that engages more than 75,000 Americans each year to meet locally identified community needs in the areas of disaster services; economic opportunity; education; environmental stewardship; healthy futures; and veterans and military families.Volunteer Tennessee, a 25-member bi-partisan board appointed by the Governor, encourages volunteerism and community service.Agencies interested in hosting an AmeriCorps program are invited to visit the Volunteer Tennessee website at www.volunteertennessee.net to download application materials. New Tennessee State Formula Grant, Education Award-Only Program Grant, and Professional Grant applications are due to Volunteer Tennessee on February 16, 2018 by 3:00 p.m. CST. Evidence-Based Planning Grant applications are due to Volunteer Tennessee on November 16, 2017 by 3:00 p.m. CST.A recorded AmeriCorps informational webinar will be available on September 1, 2017, and an Application Grant Information webinar will take place September 8, 2017. Additional technical assistance calls will be scheduled on an as-needed basis. Please visit www.volunteertennessee.net for exact times and call-in information for the webinars. Volunteer Tennessees staff will record and place links to these recordings on our website within 24 hours following the webinar.AmeriCorps outreach sessions will take place throughout the state from September 25-October 18, 2017. Please visit www.volunteertennessee.net for dates and locations of the outreach sessions.To register for the outreach sessions, please visit Volunteer Tennessees website or contact Stephanie Houghton at 615-741-9237 or stephanie.houghton@tn.gov. Volunteer Tennessee strongly encourages all applicants (new and re-competing) to attend at least one webinar or outreach session in this extremely competitive year.AmeriCorps is a terrific way for organizations to benefit from eager, service-minded individuals  who in turn get education awards to help pay for college, said Jim Snell, Volunteer Tennessee Executive Director. For more than 20 years, AmeriCorps members have cleaned up polluted urban streams, provided child abuse prevention services, taught children to read, and helped senior citizens live longer and healthier lives through preventative health education. Our programs help local agencies maximize their capabilities to serve.By placing AmeriCorps members in communities across the state, they are able to reach our most at-risk and frail citizens, he continued.Volunteer Tennessee currently funds 18 AmeriCorps programs and two AmeriCorps planning grants across the state. Examples of these include: The Exchange Club Carl Perkins Center (Jackson): One Child At A Time AmeriCorps members help prevent child abuse and provide assistance to abused children and their families in West Tennessee. Members are mentors and role models to children, recruit new volunteers, and provide educational and emergency assistance. AIM Center (Chattanooga): AmeriCorps*Building Futures AmeriCorps members help address the stigma of mental illness while serving at the AIM Center. Members holistically address the basic human needs for meaningful relationships, self-sufficiency, and community reintegration for people in the greater Chattanooga area with a psychiatric diagnosis. Martha OBryan Center (Nashville): The Martha OBryan Center empowers children, youth, and adults in poverty to transform their lives through work, education, employment, and fellowship. THRIVE AmeriCorps members serve in one of five program areas: K-8 Youth Education, High School Education, Post-Secondary Success and Digital Inclusion, Adult Education, and Family Support. Members build relationships, tutor, teach, plan curriculum and enrichments, and perform community outreach and engagement.Since 1994, more than 1 million Americans have provided more than 1.4 billion hours of service addressing critical challenges from poverty and hunger to disasters and the dropout crisis. In Tennessee, more than 12,000 AmeriCorps members have served more than 24 million hours and earned more than $42.9 million in education scholarships.Volunteer Tennessee is the Governors commission on volunteerism and service. Its mission is to encourage volunteerism and community service. Annually, Volunteer Tennessee provides more than $4.5 million in AmeriCorps, Volunteer Generation Fund, and volunteer center grants to local agencies throughout the state so they can engage volunteers to meet community needs in disaster services, economic opportunity, education, environmental stewardship, healthy futures, and veterans and military families. The commission consists of a 25-member, bi-partisan volunteer citizen board appointed by the Governor and eleven State Government ex-officio positions. For more information, visit www.volunteertennessee.net AmeriCorps is administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service, a federal agency that engages millions of Americans in service through AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, and the Volunteer Generation Fund, and leads the President's national call to service initiative, United We Serve. For more information, visit www.NationalService.gov Published October 7, 2017










Anton Morozov claimed to have seen calculations showing the missile can range the U.S. West Coast and that North Korea can bring a nuclear warhead back to earth intact. / AP-Yonhap



By Park Si-soo



North Korea is preparing to fire a long-range missile "in the near future" which is believed to be able to reach the west coast of the United States, said a Russian lawmaker after a visit to Pyongyang.

Anton Morozov, a member of the international affairs committee of the Duma, the lower house of the Russian Federal Assembly, visited Pyongyang with two other lawmakers on Oct. 2-6, during which they took part in "high-level" meetings, according to Russia's RIA news agency.

"They are preparing for new tests of a long-range missile. They even gave us mathematical calculations they believe prove their missile can hit the west coast of the United States," Morozov told the RIA on Friday. "As far as we understand, they intend to launch one more long-range missile in the near future. And in general, their mood is rather belligerent."

Morozov didn't mention the type of missile that could be tested. He also didn't specify whether the North had given him detailed information about the test.

His remarks give weight behind earlier analysis of many experts and Korean and U.S. intelligence agencies that the nuclear-armed North would conduct a missile test on or around Oct. 10. The day marks the 72nd anniversary of the founding of the ruling Korean Workers Party and a day after the Columbus Day holiday in the United States.
It's a beautiful mid-70s October day here in New York City (just uh, put the larger context of that fact out of your mind), and that can mean only one thing: time to grab your best girl and go get some ice cream. You COULD pay full freight for it, but you've got another option today: head to the new Van Leeuwen shop on the Lower East Side and pay just a single dollar for a cone. Yeah, do that.

It all works pretty simply. To celebrate the opening of their seventh store in New York City, Van Leeuwen will be selling scoops for just one dollar each from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. today. Okay so there's one catch, which is that the new LES spot (at 172 Ludlow Street) is a no-cash store, so you'll have to pay with a credit card or debit card. Wow! The future is here and it will track your every move! Better than Skynet killing us all I guess? Maybe.

Anyway, as long as you're headed to the LES to grab some ice cream, can you get me a cone of the organic black sesame/coconut ash/chocolate cake? Just one of you? Come on, you're outside enjoying a beautiful day and I'm sitting here blogging and telling you where the cheap ice cream is.

(And for other days when ice cream isn't just a dollar, be sure to check out any one of our picks for the best ice cream in the city.)
A North Korean propaganda organization criticized South Korea and the United States on Saturday for planning to rotationally deploy U.S. strategic weapons in South Korea, warning that Pyongyang will take the toughest countermeasures against such deployment.

After a summit between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Donald Trump in New York last month, Seoul officials said Seoul and Washington had agreed on the rotational deployment of U.S. strategic assets in South Korea, possibly by the end of this year.

In a report in English carried by Pyongyang's official news agency, the North's Pan-Korean Emergency Measure Committee for Opposing Nuclear War Drills said the planned deployment of U.S. strategic assets in South Korea "clearly proves that Trump's lunatic pledge to 'totally destroy' the DPRK (North Korea)."

If U.S. strategic assets were deployed in South Korea, the North Korean organization said the weapons would become "the first target of destruction" by North Korea, and that Seoul and Washington "face total destruction even by by-blow."












The Ministry of Education said Saturday it will gradually edit out foreign words in elementary school textbooks to help young pupils better acquire the Korean language.



In the first phase, a total of 322 foreign words in textbooks for third and fourth graders will be replaced with Korean ones in their 2018 editions, the ministry said.



Most of the foreign words are Korean pronunciations of English, Chinese and Japanese words, it noted.



On the 30th page of the moral education textbook for third graders, for instance, the Korean pronunciation of knife, or "na-if," appears to explain a tool to spread jam on bread.



But a team of textbook researchers have proposed replacing na-if with kal, a Korean word for knife, of jugeok-kal (spatula knife), according to the ministry.



Other English words chosen for replacement include Korean pronunciations of guest, greenbelt, balance, campfire, camping, handsome and helmet, it noted.



A number of Japanese-style expressions, such as maejang (store), ji-bul-ha-da (pay) and sa-ryo (feed), will also be replaced with purely Korean words, it said.



"The list of foreign words to be removed from textbooks has been compiled based on opinions of Korean language researchers and other education experts to better express Korean language in new textbooks," said a ministry official.



"Efforts will also be made to remedy Chinese-style expressions in consideration of elementary students' progress in learning and growth."



The ministry said foreign words in textbooks for fifth and sixth graders will also be subject to changes in their 2019 editions. (Yonhap)




Believe it or not, despite homosexuality being a largely taboo topic in Korea and most of Asia, there are a fair few of K-Pop idols who openly support the LGBTQIA+ community in their country and across the globe. With October being a time to celebrate awareness and the process of coming out in the gay community, what better time to check out some of the idols you wouldn't expect to show their support for equality! View the idols who feel love is love down below.

CL

CL is one fierce and fabulous diva who many drag queens have tried to emulate. She is known for being close friends with openly gay fashion designer Jeremy Scott of Adidas.

Super Junior Heechul

Heechul of Super Junior not only loves sporting some epic drag but he loves showcasing his support as well! He is known for his statement regarding gays during an interview sayng, "I have friends who are close to Seong Hwan (a gay director). This thing called love is between two people. But if you care too much about what people say or read online, then it's really a pity. So, just don't care too much."

Girls' Generation Taeyeon



Taeyeon and the rest of Girls' Generation are supporters of the LGBTQIA+ community. Member Taeyeon, in particular, showed her love on National Coming Out Day (October 11th) with a photo of a rainbow unicorn! If you haven't seen their "Love and Girl" MV, then you are missing up.

BTS Rap Monster



Rap Monster of BTS is a supporter of many causes and gay rights are one of them! He was the composer of girl group GLAM's song "Party XXO" which sported an equal love concept and queer-oriented lyrics. Watch the MV down below!

IU

IU has expressed her love for gay TV personality and restaurant owner Hong Suk Cheon time and time again. The two are like glue and IU has become aware of the kindness LGBT people share.

Jo Kwon

Despite the rumors of him being gay and his denial of said allegations, Jo Kwon is known as Korea's one and only male diva. He stared in a gay musical called "Priscilla" which voiced the hardships of life as a drag queen.

BoA



BoA actually showed her support for the LGBTQIA+ community by performing at the San Francisco Pride Festival!

f(x) Amber

Amber has spoken out about her beliefs and love for all people on numerous occasions. She often comments on her appearance saying people shouldn't be restricted to gender roles and also showed her support or the New Orlean's Gay Night Club shooting one year ago.

GOT7 Jackson
New court documents, unsealed Friday, give more detail about the gruesome scene of an August double murder in Missoula.

On Aug. 17, a tip led police to believe that two people had been killed in the basement of a home on the 1900 block of Strand Avenue. Missoula police searched the residence and located the bodies.

It took a county coroner nearly a month  through the use of DNA and dental records  to officially identify the victims as 15-year-old Marilyn Pickett and 24-year-old Jackson Wiles.

On Wednesday, Augustus Standingrock, 26, and 23-year-old Tiffanie Pierce pleaded not guilty to charges of deliberate homicide and accountability for deliberate homicide during their arraignment hearings in Missoula County District Court. The pair remain jailed on $2 million bail each.

A search warrant unsealed Friday gives more details about what police found during a sweep of the Strand Avenue home.

Three plastic tubs contained the victims' body parts. A machete, a double-headed ax, a serrated kitchen knife and a steak knife were removed from the home and taken as possible evidence. The kitchen knife had potential bloodstains on it and the steak knife had what may be human tissue on it, according to the search warrant.

Swabs of what is believed to be blood were taken from around the home.

The detective assigned to the case, Stacy Lear, also wrote in the return for the search warrant that 12 bottles of muriatic  or hydrochloric  acid, most of which were empty and some with bloodstains, were recovered from the home, as were three bottles of ammonia.

At the time of their arrest when the home was searched, Pierce was already being investigated in connection with a July home invasion and stabbing on Montana Street. No charges have been filed in that case as of Friday.

Standingrock was out on conditional release after serving a portion of a Department of Corrections sentence in a felony case.
LAME DEER  The Northern Cheyenne Tribal Council on Friday voted to remove the tribes president from office, but the reservations top elected official has refused to recognize the resolution and says the vote violated a tribal court ruling from the day before.

By a vote of 9-1, the council concurred with a recommendation from Ronald Bigback Sr., a tribal elder who served as the hearing officer during the special meeting Friday morning, to remove President Jace Killsback.

The hearing stemmed from a formal complaint against Killsback filed by Councilman Dana Eaglefeathers last month, alleging gross neglect of his duties as president and arguing he had violated the tribes bylaws.

A former councilman himself, who was elected president in November 2016, Killsback was not present during Fridays hearing. In a letter to the council sent the day before, he called the planned proceedings unlawful and in conflict with a decision by the Northern Cheyenne Constitutional Court.

During the Friday hearing, Bigback said, "I believe that Mr. Killsback had adequate time to prepare for this. This is an important event. This is an important meeting. He should be here in person. That, to me, is just not caring. It is just neglect.

Referring to an alleged smear campaign that council members say Killsback conducted through an anonymous Facebook account, Councilman Waylon Rogers became emotional before casting his vote, appearing to fight back tears as he explained his decision in favor of removal.

I looked for leadership from Jace. You were my friend since I was a kid, Rogers said. I was the last one here trying to say, Lets work this out. But instead I heard justification  Thats not a leader.

Killsback has denied the councils allegations. Seated in his office after the vote, he insisted that the hearing was procedurally flawed.

Right now, (the court) has decided, as the law of the land, that the complaint is defective, Killsback said. Essentially, what the council did was violate the constitution.

On Thursday, the tribes Constitutional Court sided with Killsback, declaring Eaglefeathers complaint against him constitutionally defective, because it was not sworn to under oath, and because it did not include enough detail to give the president adequate notice of the allegations against him.

Later that day, Eaglefeatherss attorney, Robert McLean, filed an amended complaint including a sworn statement and a list of allegations against Killsback, which he said satisfies those deficiencies. Killsback said the amended complaint did not provide him enough time to respond to the allegations.

In a separate ruling also issued Thursday, Northern Cheyenne Tribal Court Judge John J. Robinson denied Killsbacks request for a temporary restraining order, ruling that Killsbacks own filing also failed to include a sworn affidavit.

Under the laws governing the Northern Cheyenne Tribe, Killsbacks office would be filled by Vice President Conrad Fisher until a special election can be held to elect a new president. Also a member of the Tribal Council, Fisher had recused himself from the removal hearing.

As far as Im concerned, the removal decision is in effect immediately, Councilman Benji Headswift said after the vote. He added, The council made their decision, and we look forward to better days.

After the vote, however, Killsback said he has no intention of recognizing the hearing, referring to the Constitutional Courts decision.

It was unclear Friday whether the Bureau of Indian Affairs will recognize the councils vote, or side with Killsbacks assertion that the hearing was indeed unconstitutional. A receptionist for the bureaus Rocky Mountain Regional Director, Darryl LaCounte, directed inquiries to BIA spokeswoman Nedra Darling.

Darling did not respond to emailed questions sent by The Billings Gazette on Friday morning, and follow-up phone calls to her office were not returned.

Tribal police under the direction of the Bureau of Indian Affairs met privately with council members later Friday morning, but declined to comment.

In July 2013, a tribal council voted to remove then-tribal president John Robinson. That vote came while Robinson was hospitalized in another city after an emergency operation.

Robinson was criticized for firing the head of a center for abused children who had been accused of child abuse. After voting to remove Robinson, the council voted to reinstate the head of the child center.
This article appears in the October 6, 2017 issue of Executive Intelligence Review.

HELGA ZEPP-LAROUCHE

Chinas Vision for a New Silk Road:

A Nightmare for Evil People,

But a Dream for Mankind

Sept. 30Helga Zepp-LaRouche was interviewed by V the Guerrilla Economist, a contributor to the Rogue Money website, on Sept. 28, 2017. An edited transcript follows.

[Print version of this article]

V the Guerilla Economist: Today is Thursday, 10 AM on the Eastern seaboard of the United States and we have a very special guestin fact we have two guests: We have none other than Harley Schlanger, who needs no introduction; and we have a very, very, very special guest, who Im absolutely humbled to have on. We have Helga Zepp-LaRouche, who is a German political activist. Many have called her the Mother of the Silk Road. She is the wife of none other than the famous Lyndon LaRouche. They are the creators and founders of LaRouche PAC, as well as the Schiller Institute.

Incredible opportunity here, so without further ado, Im going to hand it over to Harley. Harley, why dont you introduce Helga and give a little bit of a background, and then Helga, feel free to take this program however you want and for as long as you want. Go ahead.

Harley Schlanger: Thank you. Helga is probably most well-known for the founding of the Schiller Institute in 1984, and since that time, the Schiller Institute has played an increasingly important role in shaping events in world history. And I think rather than saying anything more about it, well just let her tell you what shes up to and what her view is of the strategic situation. So, Helga, why dont you start and give us a sense of where you think things stand right now in the world?

Helga Zepp-LaRouche: What I would like to start with is something which I think is the most important, and which is, unfortunately, not well known in the United States and in Western Europe: It is a fact that there is, already, a completely new model of economics, of international relations among nations, and of a completely different paradigm. I think if people would know more about it, they would have much more hope for the future. What Im talking about is that there is right now a New Silk Road dynamic. The old Silk Road, which connected cultures and nations about 2,000 years ago, and which exchanged not only goods but also especially technologies, cultures and ideas, laid the foundation for the economic wellbeing of all the participating nations. This was during the Han Dynasty.

The New Silk Road View full size



In the recent periodexactly four years agoPresident Xi Jinping revived that policy and he called it the New Silk Road. In these four years, this policy has taken off like a rocket. It is already now the largest infrastructure program in history. People are saying its maybe twelve times or even twenty times as big as the Marshall Plan was in the postwar period for the reconstruction of Europe. And, it involves the collaboration of more than seventy countries. To put it in a nutshell, Chinawhich I had the fortune to visit already in 1971 in the middle of the Cultural Revolutionespecially in the last thirty years, has made gigantic progress in economic development. They have lifted 700 million people out of poverty, and the Chinese economic miracle is the most impressive economic miracle in history, ever, even bigger than the German economic miracle in the postwar period. China is now simply offering that model to all participating countries, providing an infrastructure connection among the different countries, and it is just taking off.

I think if Americans who are right now in a real hardshipwith all these hurricanes in Texas and then Florida and Puerto Ricoonly knew about the potential of that program, they would have a completely different outlook for the future. So I would like to talk more about it, if you want me to.

V: Yes, please.

Zepp-LaRouche: First of all, the New Silk Road is based on win-win cooperation. Most people in the West cannot imagine that any government would be devoted to the common good and also have an interest in the common good of the other nation, because in the last fifty years or soI would say since the assassination of John F. Kennedyforeign policy was always based on geopolitics: you have to defend your interests against another nation. And in the Bush and Obama period you had interventionist wars to change regimes. Because of these policies, people have the wrong idea of what policy can be.

But Im telling you as a person who has been involved with China for more than forty years, that I really have come to the conclusion that China has offered a new model of win-win cooperation: China is pursuing its own interests, but it is also at the same time, making sure that the other country is fulfilling its own interests. And that is simply a completely different model of cooperation: They have the win-win cooperation policy for infrastructure development with a completely new financial system which goes along with that, which is the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, the AIIB; the New Silk Road Fund, and the New Development Bank which goes along with the BRICS countries which are cooperating with this project. And these new financial institutions offer credit for infrastructure financing.

Its a completely different model. Its not like Wall Street or the City of London, looking toward high-profit revenues of 20-25%. Rather it starts from the understanding that without infrastructure there can be no economic development and no agricultural development. So in a certain sense, its not profit oriented, but its oriented to create the framework for industrial development.

So you have infrastructure development and a new financial system, but you also have a new model of foreign policy, based on the absolute respect for the sovereignty of the other country, based on the respect for the different social system of the other nation. In that sense, it may sound funny to American ears, but when President Trump talked about the American System, and the Chinese model, they have much more in common than you would ever think if you just read the New York Times.

I think it is really an incredible new model, and I wish to encourage people to find out more about it. If you want to learn more about it, you can visit many Chinese websites, but you also can go to our website of the Schiller Institute and the Schiller Institutes New Paradigm page where we have featured many, many projects and many conferences. Right now, President Trump is faced with the incredible task of the necessity of financing the reconstruction of these states which have been hit by these hurricanes. Given the combination of powers in the House and in the Senate, two days ago he had a meeting in the White House with Democrats and rejected the public-private partnershipPPPmodel as a way of financing the reconstruction.

Since 2015, we have promoted the idea that the best way for U.S. infrastructure to be builteven long before these hurricanes hitwould be for the United States join with the New Silk Road and take up the offer of President Xi Jinping to President Trump when they met for the first time in Mar-a-Lago in April, that the United States should cooperate with China on building the New Silk Road, even inside the United States.

V: Helga, let me ask you this question: Why do you think the Atlanticists, the British, and the deep state influence thats here in the United Stateswhy do you think they are so resistant to the Silk Road? I know Chinas been calling on the United States from the beginning saying, Hey, cmon, get involved, theres a lot of money to be made here, everybody can prosper, everybody can be successful, and youll be helping many nations, and time, and time, and time again, the politicians here in the United States have always said, no. Why do you think that is, Helga?

Zepp-LaRouche: The concept of oligarchy is really important to be understood, because the trans-Atlantic establishment is really an oligarchy in the old tradition of empires: the idea that you have a small elite which has all the privileges, and they form a club, and they have rules and these rules must be followed by those people who want to be members of the club. And they do that to the detriment of most of the population.

For example, why did the German election just now go in the same directiona rejection of that policy? Because the majority of the people are the victims of this globalization. So, these Atlanticists, or neo-cons, or neo-liberals, whatever you want to call themsee an emerging paradigm which is for the benefit of the common good; they can see that. The reason why the New Silk Road is so attractive is because people benefit from it! And this old oligarchy sees that this new model is much more attractive to the population, but all of the privileges of the oligarchy rest on high-profit, high-risk speculation,all this virtual paper of derivativessomething which has no real value. The reason why this oligarchy wants to stick to this system is that all of their privileges are associated with the system.

So in a certain sense, its really like an old oligarchy, with entrenched powers, and they dont want to give it up. But I think its a question of time, because the new paradigm is already emerging, and since it is so much more attractive for the common people, I think it will win.

V: Yeah. Can you detail for us some of the latest developments with the New Silk Road and One Belt, One Road Initiative? I see there are some clues that are being given. For instance, we now have Saudi Arabia meeting with President Putin; China is launching their new gold settlement, petro-yuan standard, for purposed of pricing oil in the Asian markets, which I think eventually will go worldwide as a replacement for the petrodollar.

What other major events are happening? Because I think the way the New Silk Road is being built up, it is unavoidable, and you simply cannot ignore it.

View full size

Xinhua

Zepp-LaRouche: There are many things, but the most dramatic is the Chinese investments in Africa. For many centuries, colonialism left Africa in a horrible condition. Subsequently, IMF conditionalities prevented any real development. There was very clearly, from the side of the West, no intention to ever industrialize Africa. Look at the horrible conditions which caused the refugee crisis, thousands of people drowning in the Mediterranean, fleeing from hunger and warthere was no intention of the West to do anything efficient about that.

View full size

Xinhua

With the New Silk Road development, China has simply brought the new development approach to Africa. They have built a railroad between Djibouti and Addis Ababa, 750 km, which is already functioning. Theyre in the process of building other railroads from Kenya all the way to Rwanda. They have also built many hydropower dams, industrial parks, and agricultural development projects. And most recently the Chinese government and the Italian government have agreed to do a feasibility study for what will become the largest infrastructure project in history, ever: the Transaqua project.

Transaqua is something we have been supporting for decades. The idea was more recently developed by Italian engineers, to bring some of the surplus water of the Congo River tributariesthese tributaries are at an altitude of 500 metersand you can build a canal system which brings the water down to Lake Chad, which has dried out and shrunk to about 10% of its previous volume. That way you would develop an internal shipping system for twelve countries; you would develop hydropower, water for irrigation; it would completely change the character of Africa.

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wikipedia

So this is now seriously on the agenda. I have talked recently to many Africans who are, for the first time, culturally optimistic, that they can overcome hunger and poverty in the short terma perspective of hope which the African continent never had before! And that has changed their self-confidence, so African leaders no longer want to listen to the sermons and advice from the European Union, for example, about good governance, when these Europeans never offered any development. Theyre now saying, we want to be treated as equal partners. We want to have direct investment: And China has offered to join hands with all countries, because obviously, if you want to industrialize the African continent the opportunities are enormous.

View full size

Xinhua

And there are some economists who agree with us, that while China is now an absolutely incredible economic miracle, Africa will be an even more gigantic development miracle following that.

So I think it has completely changed the world, and Im very optimistic that this will become the way we will reshape all the relations among nations. And we will overcome geopolitics: This is the most important. If all the nations cooperate in a win-win policy, you do not need geopolitics any more. Geopolitics has caused two world wars in the last century, and obviously, with thermonuclear weapons, we cannot afford to have war as a means of conflict resolution. With the New Silk Road, that option is on the table, and as dangerous as the North Korea situation is right now, I think but for the good relations between President Xi Jinping and President Trump, this conflict could have gotten out of control already; but fortunately, they telephone a lot, and so far they have been able to avoid complete disaster. Even so, it obviously remains extremely dangerous.

V: I agree with you. I think even in the North Korean situation theres a stability that can be brought there, because of the New Silk Road and some investment that China and Russia want to do in North Korea. Lets be honest: Last year, or the year before, it was discovered that North Korea has close to $10 trillion worth of rare earth deposits as well as strategic metals and minerals, and now, all of a sudden, the war rhetoric is starting to heat up amongst the Atlanticists. I dont think its a coincidence to see all this saber rattling, so to speak, Helga. What say you?

Zepp-LaRouche: I think the geopolitical forces in the world consciously created this North Korea crisis to have an opportunity to work against Russia and China. Remember that an earlier South Korea President, Jim Dae-jung, already had a Sunshine Policy with North Korea: They were building an industrial zone in the north of South Korea, where the Russians, and North and South Korea worked together. That was then interrupted by Bush and Cheney, for no good reason. And the whole THAAD deployment and the military drills which the U.S.A. and South Korea are carrying out is a continuous provocation, in order to provide a pretext for a policy which is really an encirclement policy against Russia and China.

But this is being outflanked right now, because at the recent Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, President Putin had a big meeting with the North Koreans and the South Koreans, and they discussed restarting the economic development zone in the northern part of South Korea, where Russia and the two Koreas would work together, with Chinese input, to put this back on the agenda.

As you said, the New Silk Road is really a prescription for peace, everywhere where you apply it! We have always said, if North Korean and South Korean engineers are working together on building railroads and industrialized areas, then the reason for war would be eliminated. And I think that that is the only path to solve that problem definitively.

Schlanger: Id like to jump in here, and ask Helga to talk a little bit about the whole question of the New Silk Road and Europe, given the changes going on in Europe and the election in Germany: Whats happening with the Italian banking system; Macrons proposal [in France]. Do you see a shift in Europe, an openness now toward the Chinese and the New Silk Road?

Zepp-LaRouche: Its unexpected, but I think its coming here as well. First of all, the German situation after this election is total chaos! Merkel and the CDU/CSU, as well as the SPD both had their lowest election results ever. In the case of the SPD, the lowest since Bismarck, and in the case of the CDU, the lowest since the Second World War. They got payback for their neoliberal policies, which was the same reason Hillary Clinton lost the U.S. election. Merkel, like Hillary Clinton, is just not willing or capable of reflecting on the causes. So Merkel said she could not imagine having done anything betterand thats her problem: She cant think of anything better, and thats why she lost the election.

As a result, since the SPD said they would not go back to a grand coalition government, the only option left is a so-called Jamaica coalition, which would be the CDU/CSUand they have trouble now among themselves, so this is in a messand the liberals, the Free Democratic Party (FDP), and the Greenies. This is called Jamaica because these parties colors are the same as the flag of Jamaica [black, gold, green]. But this may not function: You could have an unstable government for the rest of the year in Germany, because inside these parties you have tremendous frictions and faction fights.

Im saying this because I think the danger of a new financial crash is high, and the signs for that are mounting. The EU used to be really run by the Merkel/Schauble combination, but Schauble will no longer be finance minister, because one of the preconditions for the negotiations to form a new government, the FDP wants to have the Finance Ministry. So if a financial crash hits, at a time that we dont have a stable German government, you dont have a stable European Union either. If you look at all the other countries, the Southern European countries are completely unstable: Italy is a mess; in France, Macron won the election on the second round, but he fell in the polls and hes now regarded as a liberal, so you can forget his famous proposal for a new European Union. Its in the wastepaper basket, because he clearly conceptualized that speech for a different German election outcome than what actually happened.

What you have instead is that the attractiveness of the New Silk Road for East and Central European countries is enormous: The so-called 16+1 [16 Eastern and Central European countries plus China], they all want to cooperate with the New Silk Road. The Balkan countries want to cooperate; Greece, Serbia, Hungary and even Poland, theyre all on the bandwagon. The same goes for Italy, which together with Greece, was worst-hit by the refugee crisis, and between the Italian and the Chinese government there are many discussions and agreements that they have to cooperate in developing Africa as the only way to overcome the refugee catastrophe.

Even Spains Prime Minister Rajoy is now fully onboard. He wants Spain to be a hub for the New Silk Road, not only that it should be the Western end of the Eurasian New Silk Road, but he wants to have Spain to be the hub in the connection to Ibero-America. The same goes for Portugal, where they want to become the hub, not only for Ibero-America, but also for the Portuguese speaking countries in Africa.

Switzerland is entirely in favor of the New Silk Road. Austria is also absolutely for it.

I have said for a very long time that we have to surround Germany with Silk Road developments. The German government is still aligned with the European Union, which is hysterically against the New Silk Road. The EU tries to block some of the projects being built by China by saying that we have to insist on the rules, we set the standards, but these countries dont want to listen to the European Union when they can have a high-speed rail line built built byand connected toChina. The EU is clearly on the losing end in this.

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Xinhua

Right now the spirit of the New Silk Road is slowly but steadily coming into Germany. You have literally dozens of conferences taking place on a local level in Munich, in Stuttgart, in Cologne, in Koblenz,just all overChambers of Commerce, industrial associations, and they all have their Silk Road events, because they realize that for industry this is the future. So I dont think that this can be stopped. Its just a question of whether we can get results quick enough, before chaos strikes: If you have a new financial crash, without having some alternative in place, it could end up in chaos, and there, actually, is the biggest danger.

V: Thats excellent to know. What other developments are there? We talked about Europe; we talked about Africa. Are there any inroads that Chinas making in the Western Hemisphere? Whats in South America, maybe Canada, or anything like that?

Zepp-LaRouche: There are several countries in Ibero-America that are absolutely catching on: Peru, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, and Ecuador. Now the project for the Bioceanic Railway is seriously on the agenda, to be built from Brazil to Peru; and another rail line is to go through Bolivia. This is very important, because, like Africa, before this Chinese investment started, if you looked at the map of Latin America or Africa, there was absolutely no infrastructure connecting across the continent linking the coasts, or connecting to the interior of the continent. Now, with this Bioceanic Railway, you have for the very first time, something which was first considered by Alexander von Humboldt [in the 19th Century]. And naturally it was promoted by my husband, Lyndon LaRouche, when he worked with President Jose Lopez Portillo of Mexico on Operation Juarez, which was his proposal in 1982 to have an Ibero-American infrastructure integration. So now all these things we have been campaigning for are, step by step, coming true; so I feel vindicated, also for the lifes work of my husband.

V: Absolutely. Harley, do you have any questions for Helga?

Schlanger: I would like to get Helgas thoughts on the Trump Administration, where we see the prospect of the Trump-Xi Jinping meeting in November: Things have to happen pretty quickly. What do you think, Helga? Any possibility that we can see some change? You mentioned earlier that Trump seemed to indicate in a meeting with Democrats that infrastructure has to be government funded, rather than private partnerships.

Zepp-LaRouche: Xi Jinping campaigned for Trump to attend the Belt and Road Forum in May in Beijing. This was a very big summit, with twenty-nine world leaders addressing itXi Jinping, Putin, and others, and we campaigned strongly, calling on Trump to attend, that that should be the occasion for the United States and China to reach out and work together on this. Well, this did not quite succeed, but we may have had an influence that there was a very important representative sentMatthew Pottinger, who attended the Belt and Road Forum. There have been many events since between Chinese and Americans in New York and elsewhere, and I think there actually is a steady process of integration and dialogue in four different categories. Economics, security, people-to-people exchangesall of this is going on. If President Trump goes to China in November, as is now being prepared by Secretary of State Tillerson, and considering that Commerce Secretary Ross Wilbur was just in China, I think there is the potential to really upgrade, and I cannot imagine that Trump would go and not come back with really not just something on North Korea and trade, but a vision.

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video grab, www.news.cn

I think President Trump has surprised both his supporters and his opponents again and again, that despite all of these attacks on him, he has not given up, and he has come out again and again with principled policies. So, I think the fact that in the past he had mentioned the American System, the policies of Alexander Hamilton, Henry Carey, Lincoln, Glass-Steagallall of these things are still on the agenda. Now, he should join hands with the New Silk Road development. I have written an article, which was distributed at the Belt and Road Forum, where I basically said, the Chinese have $1.4 trillion in foreign reserves in U.S. Treasuries. If they just sit on this paper, it doesnt mean anything for them, but if they would invest this money through an infrastructure bank, or better through a National Bank, in infrastructure in the United States, such Chinese investment could go a very long way to help finance rebuilding U.S. infrastructure, and thus kick-start such a program. Chinese firmsChina Invest Corp. for examplehave said that the infrastructure requirement of the United States is not $1 trillion as Trump has said, but actually $8 trillion!

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Xinhua

I have the idea that the United States should do what China is doing in terms of high-speed rail. China has built already, as of the end of last year, more than 20,000 km of high-speed rail; theyre now building high-speed trains which will top 400 kmh, and cruise at about 330 mph. These high-speed rail systems in China are really good. Theyre smooth, quiet, and theyre planning now to connect every major city in China by 2020thats an enormous perspective. I think the United States urgently needs a fast train system: The infrastructure in the United States really needs modernization, and why not go, really, for a big program right from the beginning, to connect all the big cities through high-speed rail, while building a couple of new cities! You have the East and the West Coast which are pretty developed, but all the states in between, they could easily take a couple of new modern citiesscience cities, research citiesand I think it would inject into the American population a sense of great optimism, providing a vision of the future, which is very difficult right now because of the heritage of the last two administrations.

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Xinhua

So I think this visit could really become a breakthrough, and obviously, our organizationLaRouche PAC in the United Stateswe are fully mobilizing to get precisely that on the agenda. And I would like our listeners to really help. If you want to do something good for the United States, note that Trump said again, recently, that he likes the Chinese, that he likes Xi Jinping, and that is clearly something people should start thinking about: Why is Trump saying that? And I fully agree, the Chinese model right now is something to study, and the world can only profit if the two nations, the United States and China, find a way to cooperate on this development. I think this will be absolutely decisive for history at this moment.

V: Absolutely, I agree with that. For world powers like the United States and China, and even Russia, to cooperate, and communicate and to help build a better world, is something so remarkable, and I think it will usher in a new era of peace such as the world has never seen, and I guess that is a nightmare to some of these cabal Atlanticists, some of these individuals you see up in the halls of power, and in the City of London and Wall Street, as well as Washington, D.C.

Zepp-LaRouche: Yes! I think its a nightmare for the evil people, but its a dream for mankind.

Schlanger: V, one of the things Id like to propose, is that since Helgas going to begin doing a weekly briefing in the United States, we can get a link to you at Rogue Money that you could put up, so people can get regular updates from her.

V: Absolutely. Absolutely. We could definitely do that, and well definitely get that done. Well get that set up, and when you have that link, well go right to Rogue Money and blast that through all our networks, and put it out to all our distribution as well. Thanks for allowing us to do that.

Helga, your closing comments and anything else you want to say? And how can people follow you in your work?

Zepp-LaRouche: People should just have the idea that we are at a turning point in history. Most people dont think in terms of the long arcs of history; they think about events and news and breaking developments, but I, because of my relationship and marriage with my husband, I have started to think in terms of long arcs of history. And you can actually see that we are right now at a turning point: I always say, the way to imagine the new paradigm that is emerging, is that it is as different from what has existed up to now, as the Middle Ages were with respect to the modern era. What separated these two was the Italian Renaissance, and with that emerged the completely different idea of the individual, of science, of the state. You know, in the Middle Ages, people believed in superstitions, you had the scholastics, the Aristotelians, and they had a different set of axioms of belief than what came with the Italian Renaissance: Namely the idea that man is endlessly perfectible, that the state needs to be devoted to the common good, and there were many ideas, which would take too long to go into; but it led to completely different axioms of thinking, and everything we enjoy today, in terms of science, technology, culture, came really from that shift, especially Classical music, Classical poetry, all of these things.

Thats the kind of change we are experiencing right now: What we used to associate with globalization, with Wall Street, with profit for a few and poverty for manyall of this will go, and we enter a new paradigm where, as President Xi Jinping always says, we are entering a community for a shared future of mankind, where the idea that we are one humanity, that that idea comes first, and that we will define the future, how we want to be in 100 years from now, or even 1,000 years from now. Do we still want to have wars, do we still want to kill each other? Obviously, not. We want to concentrate on the common aims of mankind, on thermonuclear fusionresearch and commercial applications. If we reach that, we will have energy security; we will have raw materials security; we will have space transportation. We are only scratching the surface of what space is like. As a result of the recent findings of the Hubble Telescope, it is now known that we have two trillion galaxiesnow that blows my mind. I cannot imagine two trillion galaxies, but that is out there! And we know absolutely only a tiny detail about it.

I think if we concentrate on the joint tasks of the future, people will start to grow up. For me, its mankind growing up and that is very exciting. So I want people to be optimistic and be part of our movement. We are shaping the future in the best possible way by thinking this way.

V: Right, absolutely. With that being said, Helga LaRouche, thank you so much for being on, and Harley, thank you so much for being on as well, and thank you for setting up this interview. I want to thank the both of you, and were looking forward to having Helgas weekly address in the United States broadcast through our channels as well.

Zepp-LaRouche: Thank you.
This article appears in the October 6, 2017 issue of Executive Intelligence Review.

Columbus First Belt and Road

Inspired by Cusa

by Will Wertz

[Print version of this article]

Sept. 30As long maintained by Lyndon LaRouche, the seed crystal for todays One Belt, One Road grand design for world peace based on economic development traces itself back to Nicolaus of Cusa and his immediate collaborators: Paolo Toscanelli and Ferdinand Martin, the Canon of Lisbon, Portugal and confessor of King Alfonso V of Portugal. Together, they were responsible for organizing the first attempted maritime belt between Europe and China carried out by Christopher Columbus to complement the already existing Silk Road.

Toscanelli and Martin were among the closest collaborators of Nicolaus of Cusa. In fact, they were the executors of his last will and testament. Toscanelli appears in Nicolaus of Cusas Dialogue on the Quadrature of the Circle and Martin in Cusas On the Not-Other. Nicolaus of Cusa had known Toscanelli since Cusanus studied law in Padua, Italy, graduating in 1424. When Cusanus traveled to Constantinople in 1437 at the behest of Pope Eugene IV, he was accompanied by Antonio Martin, the Bishop of Oporto, the brother of Ferdinand Martin, King Alfonsos confessor. The purpose of Cusanus trip to Constantinople was to bring Greek and Russian Orthodox Church representatives back to Italy for the ecumenical Council of Florence, Italy, which started in 1439 and concluded in 1445.

Toscanelli, in a letter to Martin on June 25, 1474 (to be relayed to King Alfonso V of Portugal) reported that a Chinese Ambassador had met with Pope Eugene IV in Florence, Italy before the start of the Council of Florence. After meeting with the Pope, the Chinese Ambassador then met with Toscanelli personally.

The Chinese then had an advanced navigational capacity and conducted, under the leadership of Zheng He, seven major voyages. Two of these in 1414, and the last voyage in 1433, sailed up the Red Sea to Jeddah, which is very close to Mecca. It is also reported that they visited Cairo, Egypt. The meeting with Pope Eugene IV in Florence is believed to have occurred soon after the 1433 visit to Cairo. Such diplomatic exchanges between the Roman Catholic Church and Ming China began as early as 1371. During the reign of Yongle (1403-1424) China received a delegation from the papacy.

Both the letter written by Toscanelli to Ferndinand Martin in 1474 and the letter written to Columbus in 1480 appear below.

In the letter to Martin, Toscanelli makes it clear that the Chinese were governed by astronomers and other men skilled in the natural sciences. Then in his letter to Columbus, Toscanelli emphasizes the most copious and good and true information from distinguished men of great learning who have come here in the [Papal] court of Rome [Florence at that time] from the said parts. These passages, considered together, suggest strongly that the Chinese knowledge of astronomy and navigation contributed to his confidence in the success of the project to reach China and India by sailing west.

Following that visit of the Chinese Ambassador to Florence, the ecumenical Council of Florence was organized with the intention of reuniting the Roman Catholic Church with the Greek and Russian Orthodox churches.

At that moment, the possibility of realizing a common destiny among key nations and cultures of the world, centered on Europe, Russia, and China was coming into existence. This is the concept later developed by Gottfried Leibnizand advocated today by Lyndon and Helga LaRouche, as embodied in the One Belt, One Road conception.

The reunification achieved at the Council of Florence, however, was short-lived. After the death of Zheng He, during his last voyage in 1433, the Chinese discontinued their ambitious navigational project. In 1453, with the help of the Venetians, the Ottoman Turks took over Constantinople.

Nicolaus of Cusa responded with his dialogue On the Peace of Faith, in which he argued for unity in diversity among all humanity, based on the fact that all human beings are created in the living image of the Creator,what the Chinese today call a win-win approach. The characters in the dialogue include representatives of European, Indian, Arab, Persian, Tatar, and other cultures. As Toscanellis letter to Ferdinand Martin indicates, the ruler of Cathay or China at the time of Marco Polo was the Great Khan, who was a Tatar.

Before Cusanus death, he convened a synod to reform the Catholic Church, from his position as Vicar General of the Papal States. Unfortunately, Cusanus reform effort failed at that time because of the oligarchical corruption in Europe, reflected in the Curia.

Cusanus died in 1464: It was left to his immediate associates Toscanelli and Ferdinand Martin to continue his vision and to outflank the Venetian corruption then dominating Europe.

In 1476 Christopher Columbus was shipwrecked in Portugal, where he was befriended by Ferdinand Martin. Guided by his correspondence with Martins collaborator Toscanelli, Christopher Columbus became the indispensable instrument for furthering the grand design, which, through the rediscovery of the Western Hemisphere and the creation of the United States of America, is now once again on the agenda. This time we must win!

Toscanellis Letter

to Ferdinand Martin

(1474)

To Fernan Martinez, Canon of Lisbon,

Paulus the Physician sends greetings.

It pleased me to hear of your intimacy and friendship with your great and powerful King [Afonso V]. Often before have I spoken of a sea route from here to India, the land of spices; a route that is shorter than that via Guinea. You tell me that His Highness wishes me to explain this in greater detail so that it will be easier to understand, and to take this route. Although I could show this on a globe representing the earth, I have decided to do it more simply and clearly by demonstrating the way on a nautical chart. I therefore send His Majesty a chart drawn by my own hand, on which I have indicated the western coastline from Ireland in the north to the end of Guinea, and the islands that lie along this path. Opposite them, directly to the west, I have indicated the beginning of India, together with the islands and places you will come to; how far you should keep from the Arctic Pole and the Equator; and how many leagues you must cover before you come to these places, which are most rich in all kinds of spices, gems, and precious stones. Do not be amazed when I say that spices grow in lands to the west, even though we usually say the east; for he who sails west will always find these lands in the west, and he who travels east by land will always find the same lands in the east.

The upright lines on this chart show the distance from east to west, whereas the cross lines show the distance from north to south. The chart also indicates various places in India that may be reached if one meets with a storm or head-wind, or any other misfortune.

That you may know as much about these places as possible, you should know that the only people living on any of these islands are merchants who trade there.

There are said to be as many ships, mariners, and goods there as in the rest of the world put together. Especially in the principal port called Zaiton [Marco Polos Zaitum, probably Quanzhou], where they load and unload a hundred great ships of pepper every year, not to mention many other ships with other spices. That country has many inhabitants, provinces, kingdoms, and innumerable cities, all of which are ruled by a prince known as the Great Khanwhich in our language means The King of Kingswho mainly resides in the province of Cathay.

His forefathers greatly desired to make contact with the Christian world, and some two hundred years ago they sent ambassadors to our Pope, asking him to send them many learned men who could instruct them in our faith. But these ambassadors met with difficulties on the way and had to turn back without reaching Rome. In the days of Pope Eugenius, there came an ambassador to him, who told him of their great feelings of friendship for the Christians. I had a long conversation with the ambassador about many things: about the vast size of the royal buildings, about the amazing length and breadth of their rivers, and about the great number of cities on their banksso great a number that along one river there were two hundred cities with very long, wide bridges of marble that were adorned with many pillars.

This country is richer than any other yet discovered, and not only could it provide great profit and many valuable things, but also possesses gold and silver and precious stones and all kinds of spices in large quantitiesthings that do not reach our countries at present. There are also many scholars, philosophers, astronomers, and other men skilled in the natural sciences who govern that great kingdom and conduct its wars.

From the city of Lisbon to the west, the chart shows twenty-six sections, of two hundred and fifty miles eachaltogether, nearly one-third of the earths circumference before reaching the very large and magnificent city of Quinsay. This city is approximately one hundred miles in circumference, possesses ten marble bridges, and its name means The Heavenly City in our language. Amazing things have been related about its vast buildings, its artistic treasures, and its revenues. It lies in the province of Manji, near the province of Cathay, where the king chiefly resides. And from the island of Antillia, which you call the Island of the Seven Cities, to the very famous island of Cipangu are ten sections, that is 2,500 miles. That island is very rich in gold, pearls, and precious stones, and its temples and palaces are covered in gold. But since the route to this place is not yet known, all these things remain hidden and secret; and yet one may go there in great safety.

I could still tell of many other things, but as I have already told you of them in person, and as you are a man of good judgment, I will write no further on the subject. I have tried to answer your questions as well as the lack of time and my work have permitted me, but I am always prepared to serve His Highness and answer his questions at greater length should he so wish.

Written in Florence on the 25th of June. 1474.

Toscanellis Letter to Columbus (1480)

Paul, the physician to Christopher Columbus, greeting. I received your letters with the things you sent me, and with them received great satisfaction. I perceive your magnificent and grand desire to navigate from parts of the East to the West in the way that was set forth in the letter that I sent you and which will be demonstrated better on a round sphere. It pleases me much that I should be well understood: for the voyage is not only possible, it is true, and certain to be honorable and to yield incalculable profit, and a very great fame among all Christians. But you cannot know this perfectly save through experience and practice as I have had in the form of the most copious and good and true information from distinguished men of great learning who have come here in the [Papal] court of Rome [Florence at that time] from the said parts and from others being merchants, who have had business for a long time in those parts, men of high authority. Thus when that voyage shall be made it will be to powerful kingdoms and cities and most noble provinces, very rich in all manner of things in great abundance and very necessary to us, such as all sorts of spices in great quantity and jewels in greatest abundance.
This article appears in the October 6, 2017 issue of Executive Intelligence Review.

The Attack on Christopher Columbus:

Irregula r Wa r far e Against th e Ne w Sil k Road

by Dennis Speed

[Print version of this article]

Oct. 1The intelligence warfare being waged by British imperial forces against the integration of the United States, China and Russia into a single World Land-Bridge as a new economic platform is currently being flanked by Lyndon LaRouche and his co-thinkers on the culture front. Now that the attack on the Presidency by the FBI has been accurately placed in its proper context by the LaRouche dossier on Robert Mueller, a new front is being opened up in the war to bring the United States into the World Land-Bridge as a partner with those two continental nations, thus thwarting the danger of thermonuclear war. Following the release last week of the Open Letter to President Donald Trump in Defense of Columbus by Liliana Gorini, leader of the Movisol organization in Italy, American artists, political figures, historians, and citizens have begun an animated re-investigation of the origins and purpose of the voyages of Christopher Columbus. Through new and newly reconsidered historical documents, the Columbian expeditions are being re-situated in the context of the alliance that is now possible among Presidents Trump, Putin and Xi Jinping.

Addressing a New York City meeting on September 30, Helga Zepp-LaRouche, founder of the Schiller Institute, and known for more than twenty years as the Silk Road Lady because of her tireless campaigning for the economic policy now known as the World Land-Bridge, said:

Some of you may remember that a couple of months ago, at a meeting in New York at which the Chinese Ambassador in Washington, Cui Tiankai, gave a presentation, he said that there were sixteen examples in history in which a country surpassed the then dominant power: that in twelve cases it led to war, and in four cases, the rising power just replaced the old dominant power. Ambassador Cui said that China wants neither a future like one of the twelve cases in which war ensued, nor a future like that of the other four cases, because what China is offering is a completely new model of relations among states. I want to go through this because I think it is absolutely key. China is proposing a new model for major powers, based on absolute respect for the sovereignty of the other statesincluding the principle of non-interference, the principle of the acceptance of another social model, and a win-win cooperation between the two of them.

A new diplomacy, free of geopolitics, based on a shared community of scientific principle: This is the future for the world if so desired by the United States. Celebrating the best of each cultures contributions to world civilization, and a dialogue among all cultures, is a most effective way to initiate that diplomacy, and this has been the mission of the Schiller Institute since its inception. Fundamentally, that was also the mission of the Columbus voyages, as conceived by their originator, Nicholas of Cusa, friend of the Toscanelli who provided the maps to Christopher Columbus. It is this outlook which is the true target of the attack on Columbus. And just as British intelligence deployed Jacobin mobs to destroy France, so today Antifa and other forces are deployed to destroy the capability for this new dialogue of civilizations.

The New Khmer Rouge

The past decades have seen an intensification in the worldwide destruction of irreplaceable cultural artifacts as ostensibly collateral damage

in warfare: the Baghdad Museum, the artifacts of Palmyra, the books of Timbuktu. In this destruction, the active hand of British intelligence, as well as the Malthusian cultural outlook of British-affiliated oligarchical forces is manifest. Such was the moral disposition that expressed itself in the firebombing of Dresden and the destruction of other targets of little military value during the Second World War. Antifa, Boko Haram, ISIS and other organizations are the fronts for this organized assault on the cultural memory and heritage of humanity as a whole.

A 225-year-old monument to Christopher Columbus, the oldest in the United States, was smashed in Baltimore, Maryland on Aug. 21. On Aug. 30, in Yonkers, New York, a statue of Columbus was beheaded. On Sept. 12 a Columbus statue was defaced in Central Park. In Columbus Circle, New York City, on Sept. 23, the hands of Columbus were painted. Just as in 1793 France, when the terrorist fanatics that beheaded statues of prophets and saints at the Cathedral of Notre Dame referred to themselves as The Cult of Reason, so todays fascist Antifa has declared that Oct. 9 will be Deface Columbus Day, using slogans like the future is racial and economic justice.

While they claim to be defending others against racial and economic injustice, Antifas roots are with the Ku Klux Klan and the anti-Italian campaigns in the America of 125 years ago. In an Aug. 25 op-ed in The Hill newspaper, authors J. P. McCusker and Patrick Korten of the National Christopher Columbus Association wrote:

In the 1920s, from coast to coast, members of the Ku Klux Klan opposed Columbus. In Richmond, they tried to stop the erection of a Columbus monument. In Pennsylvania, they burned fiery crosses to threaten those celebrating Columbus. The Klan newspaper, The American Standard, attacked honoring Columbuson the basis that a holiday for him was some sort of papal plot. The Klan was no fan of Columbus.

There is no reason to assume that the dupes, in or supporting Antifa, know any of this, since there is no reason to assume that they know anything. There is also no reason to assume that since George Soros simultaneously supports right wing Ukrainian fascists (who indeed do use the Confederate flag as a symbol of white supremacy) and Black Lives Matterto the order of tens of millions of dollarsthat the Soros funding conduit is not flowing in all directions in this case as well. Reversing the ongoing assault on human civilization in the form of the defacing and beheading of Columbus statues is best undertaken by using this present circumstance to probe Friedrich Schillers question: What Is, and To What End Do We Study, Universal History?

Columbus, Cusa, and the World Land-Bridge

In the past two weeks, a re-investigation by Will Wertz and others, of extant materials regarding the fifteenth century cultural interchange between the city-builders, astronomers, artisans and machinists of Florence, and the scholars, ship-builders and navigators of China, has established something that is simultaneously of exciting historical significance, as well as urgent importance to the immediate future of the United States. It is, that the 1492 Columbian mission to China, involving advanced knowledge of techniques for the circumnavigation of the globe, and entrusted to Columbus in the 1470s, was discussed by Paolo Toscanelli with Chinese scholars as early as 1433. The Columbus mission was never merely to discover a westward path to the east, for purposes of trade. Rather, it was intended to create the basis to re-establish, if necessary, a failing European civilization in another location on the planet, free of the corruption of the Old World, and to initiate a dialogue on the most advanced principles of machine design, navigation and invention itself with a civilization potentially as, or more, advanced than that of Europe. The extraordinary Ming Dynasty fleet, which ruled the worlds known waterways for a quarter century (1405-1433) and dwarfed anything that would be seen from Europe for the next 400 years, demonstrated the scientific capabilities of that civilization.

It must, however, also be noted that in the Florence of those years, there was a qualitative difference, a new, unique accomplishment, one that would have already greeted the Chinese scholars that traveled to the Florence in 1433. A fundamental revolution in science had been effected by Cardinal Nicholas of Cusa, Filippo Brunelleschi, Paolo Toscanelli and others, which did not exist anywhere else in the world. This was their, and specifically Cusas, investigation of the creative principle of discovery itself. This was expressed in the three-fold process of Nicholas of Cusas book On Learned Ignorance, the building of the Brunelleschi dome, and the Cusa-proposed mission to the New World, an extension of his work to unify the world through the Council of Florence.

Toscanelli lived from 1397 until 1482, and was closely associated with Brunelleschi, Cusa, Leonardo da Vinci, Columbus, and others. The machine-tool principle was expressed in the various machines invented by Brunelleschi (recorded in drawings by his friend Mariano Taccola, 1382-1453), and was expressed in Toscanellis own astronomical inventions and experimental observations. Cusas De Docta Ignorantia was written by 1439 and transformed all of the science and theology before his time. That, in turn, informed and advanced the knowledge of his perpetual interlocutors, who together shared, once Cusa formulated it, his mission: Ever to the West.

It is the implications of this, the true mission of Columbus, for the United States of 2017, and for the future of the United States that embraces the World Land-Bridge idea, that the anti-Columbus campaign is intended to attack. For example, Lyndon LaRouches design of his Four Laws, including the Fourth Law emphasis on new Physical principles, on thermonuclear fusion for space flight, and on industrializing the Moon, including mining it for Helium-3, are the proper basis for a new diplomacy involving China, Russia, India, Japan, South Africa and all nations in a new world arrangement, never before seen or created. If Americans understand that it is this, the very historic mission that brought this nation into existence, that is under assault in the attacks on Columbus, they will also understand how to use the vigorous defense of Columbus to move the World Land-Bridge policy into place as Americas future. Ever, Ever to th West!

Dvorak and Columbus
PRESS RELEASE

U.S., Russian Envoys on Ukraine To Meet In Belgrade

Oct. 6, 2017 (EIRNS)Kurt Volker, the U.S. Special Envoy for Ukraine, and his Russian counterpart Vladislav Surkov, will be meeting tomorrow in Serbia. Russian President spokesman Dmitri Peskov said yesterday, reports TASS, that this meeting is not aimed at achieving specific results. Rather,

"This is the process of synchronizing the two sides stances, exchanging information, straight from the horses mouth, as the saying goes,"

he said. He noted that the United States is party to neither the Normandy Format not the Minsk agreements on the conflict in southeast Ukraine. "Nevertheless, it is important for Washington to receive first-hand information from the countries that are involved in the Normandy format," he stressed.

Volker, however, seems to have a different idea on what the meeting is to accomplish. "Will meet Russian counterpart Oct. 7 in Belgrade to discuss how to catalyze Minsk implementation and restore Ukraines territorial integrity," he tweeted, reports Balkan Insight.
Question: Ive owned and lived in my very small Los Angeles condo complex for 16 years and am president of the association. Many of my neighbors are established professionals, including a couple of financial advisors across the hall. They have lived in the building for more than 40 years and have no plans to move. But they have serious drinking problems and never-ending blowout fights.

At all hours of the day and night they scream at each other and throw and slam stuff inside their unit. Our units are in an area of the complex where noise ricochets out their balcony, bounces across the building behind ours and then comes right back through my balcony. I have called the police several times and one of them was arrested once when the police noticed the other had bruises, but no charges were filed.

Language in our covenants, conditions, and restrictions provides that nothing shall be done to create unreasonable noise, disturbance or annoyance to other owners in the use and enjoyment of their units. But the only stated remedies are seeking injunctive relief (good luck with that) and actual damages (hard to quantify unless their noise prevented me or others from renting or selling our units). Do I have any other recourse? Can they be forced to sell their unit under any California laws?

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Answer: It appears that you are experiencing the challenges of high-density living that one California court, in a case involving feuding neighbors, described as the natural consequence of living among other people in an urban or suburban environment. A reasonable person must expect to suffer and submit to some inconveniences and annoyances from the reasonable use of property by neighbors, particularly in the sometimes close living of a suburban residential neighborhood.

Most owners are aware there are consequences for breaching their associations covenants, conditions, and restrictions, but those consequences only work when the board enforces it. Forcing your neighbors to sell their unit or move is unlikely. And while police will respond to noise complaints and ask your neighbors to keep quiet  and may even make an arrest for domestic disturbance, prosecutors often decline to pursue such cases.

If you filed a civil lawsuit and obtained a restraining order or injunction, that also is no guarantee the neighbors will keep quiet. For the police to make an arrest on a violation of a restraining order, they have to witness the violation  an unlikely scenario given your set of facts. A judge could find owners in contempt for violating an injunction but that involves a lot of time, money and gathering of evidence on your part with little guarantee of success.

The upshot is that your legal options are woefully limited, especially given the common view that dwellers of common-interest housing are simply expected to put up with it. The court in the case involving the feuding neighbors wrote in its opinion: People who live in organized communities must of necessity suffer some inconvenience and annoyance from their neighbors and must submit to annoyances consequent upon the reasonable use of property by others.

So although your neighbors conduct goes beyond what is reasonable for what the average person is expected to endure, sometimes there are problems that courts and the police are ill-equipped to deal with.

You might try to sensitively steer your neighbors toward a dispute resolution program. Shaphan Roberts, director of the city attorneys Dispute Resolution Program, (213) 978-1880, welcomes the opportunity to interact with residents in resolving issues like these. There is no fee to use these services. But it is not your responsibility to do so  and your attempted assistance may be misconstrued as interference. That then makes it the boards responsibility to enforce the associations governing documents, rules and regulations.

As a board director, failure to take action to protect the quiet use and enjoyment of your and others units may subject the board, and association, to liability. Breaching its own duties to all the owners sets a dangerous precedent for other violators. If it hasnt already, the board should establish a fine schedule for violations of the associations rules and regulations, including nuisance provisions in the CC&Rs and perhaps quiet hours.

When your neighbor breaches those rules the board can impose a fine. Should your neighbors continue to ignore the rules and mounting fines, then the board can file a lien against their property and suspend their membership privileges. If your neighbors conduct is egregious enough, and if your governing documents provide for this remedy, your board may be able to install soundproofing in one or both units common-area walls. The neighbor can be invoiced for the cost through a special assessment, with the failure to pay resulting in foreclosure.

Finally, nothing prevents you from moving, though there are laws requiring disclosures at the time of sale that include problematic neighbors.

Still, being miserable for 16 years is enough!

Zachary Levine, a partner at Wolk & Levine, a business and intellectual property law firm, co-wrote this column. Vanitzian is an arbitrator and mediator. Send questions to Donie Vanitzian, JD, P.O. Box 10490, Marina del Rey, CA 90295 ornoexit@mindspring.com
Design trickery is Sabrina Sotos stock in trade as host of HGTVs The High Low Project. Shell also appear as a designer on TLCs Trading Spaces early next year.

Both shows use pared budgets to create winning looks. The High Low Project is built around two reveals: Homeowners drool upon seeing Sotos $20,000-$30,000 redesign of a chosen room. The high-end look is then replicated using replacements costing less than $5,000.

You guessed it: Few can tell the difference.

Trading Spaces has a race-against-the-clock premise, with neighbors redecorating a room in each others homes using a designer and carpenter saddled with meager budgets. The redesign must be accomplished in 48 hours.

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Interior designer and lifestyle expert Soto, 41  a self-described clean freak  lives in Studio City with her toddler, Olivia, and labradoodle Harper.

Youre just too good at this  something must occasionally stump you.

Finding great wall art is a little difficult. Big-scale pieces are usually really expensive. Swap meets are awesome, but sometimes you go and its nothing but junk. I find a lot of amazing pieces on Etsy that are coming out of Europe  pieces on paper, like charcoal drawings on paper. I have them framed locally.

Whats design-trending in Los Angeles?

Im seeing a lot of natural-wood elements coming back into play. Live-edge tables and things like that paired with monochromatic looks of whites, grays and ivories, but with lots of texture. And a little hint of ethnic print  like mud cloth.

We hear that youre addicted to Windex.

I use Windex a lot, but I also use 70% rubbing alcohol in a sprayer to clean my windows, glass and mirrors. It leaves them streak-free. Watch  youre going to try it and youre going to thank me.

Whats the latest word on sanitizing sponges? Dishwasher? Microwave? Soak them in a bleach solution?

I dont use sponges, because I find them to be super gross. The only sponge I have is a silicone brush sponge. It doesnt keep all the germs like a typical sponge does.

Name your favorite Ikea hack.

I had closet manufacturers come in, and they were bidding from $10,000 to $16,000 to do my closet. I built my entire closet with a vanity  I just took two [Ikea] file cabinets and a desktop to make my vanity desk area, all outfitted with an Ikea closet system  for less than $2,000. And I did it myself, and I was seven months pregnant.

Kitchens are known to bust some budgets.

The kitchen should be the space where you splurge: higher-end appliances and countertop materials like quartz and marble. Ceramic tile that mimics the look of wood is beautiful, and I love the black matte appliances on the market. If you have wood cabinets, you can save by repainting them yourself.

Whats up with out-of-control dogs at home dinner parties?

Dogs and sometimes small children! [Our dog] is super needy and loves to get up in everybodys grill. If we have a big dinner party and shes acting out of control, we put her in another room. Listen, youre speaking to somebody with a toddler and a dog, so Im sure people come to our house and they think its sometimes chaotic, but, hey, thats my life.

hotproperty@latimes.com

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After their daughter was born eight months ago, Audrey and George Amirian knew they wanted to move out of their 900-square-foot, one-bedroom North Hollywood apartment.

They just didnt know where they wanted to move to.

So the couple enlisted the help of Suburban Jungle, a New York-based company that expanded to Los Angeles this year. The start-up specializes in helping city-based families identify suburban areas to move to and connects them with local real estate agents.

In L.A., the prime customers are people who live in fast-paced, expensive areas such as downtown and Hollywood but who are ready for smaller, more affordable communities with quieter streets, less traffic and a more neighborly vibe.

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We need more space in an area with good schools and a small-town feel but which is still close enough to Los Angeles, said Audrey, 25, a stay-at-home mother.

Suburban Jungle clients are assigned a strategist who sends over a detailed questionnaire to determine what they expect from a new living environment, what their definition of a good school is, what they like to do on weekends, and where they might shop or dine.

The company then prepares a home search strategy focusing on two to six potential towns, with details that include taxes, length of average commute and distance to preferred gyms and grocery stores.

For the Amirians, that became Santa Clarita, Valencia, Westlake Village, Moorpark and Oak Park.

The service is free. Founder and President Alison Bernstein, who describes the company as relocation for the noncorporate employee, said her company doesnt do transactions.

Instead, the client is directed to a reputable agent in a particular area. Once a client buys a home, Suburban Jungle collects a commission from the sellers broker.

Our clients go out to look at houses with the agent directly, Bernstein said. Were happy to go with them too, but we dont want to be breathing down peoples necks.

Instead, Bernstein and her team focus on the deep-dive of a particular suburb while letting a broker handle such things as comps and open houses.

We dont locate the house, Bernstein said. We help the client understand the town and who lives there, the context of where they might move to, from the sort of nursery schools in the area to whether theres a good dog groomer. It goes far beyond just real estate.

Audrey Amirian said those are the kinds of details she might otherwise have overlooked as she and husband George search for the right home, which they are doing with the help of Kelly Sedano, Suburban Jungles head strategist in L.A.

She knows that we try and have a healthy lifestyle and eat organic food, so she researched how far those grocery stores are from the areas we are looking at, Audrey said. She arranged town tours, and we looked at everything from the hospitals to the theaters. Its not just house hunting.

Bernstein said she wanted to establish a presence in Los Angeles  in late September she opened an office in Hollywood  because of people moving to the region from other big cities.

There seem to be a lot of people expressing a desire to move to Los Angeles, Sedano said. They dont know what to expect in these different neighborhoods, which have a different look, pace and vibe from each other. Cities and towns change every 15 years, and everyone is trying to figure out where best to raise their kids.

Suburban Jungle also operates in Chicago, Boston, San Francisco and Dallas, with Washington D.C., Philadelphia, Atlanta and London soon to follow.

hotproperty@latimes.com

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In a photographic self-portrait from 1993, Laura Aguilar stands in front of an unidentified gallery, holding a cardboard sign that reads: "Artist  Will Work For Axcess." Aguilar had been making photographs for more than a decade by then, and she has mapped the rough terrain of her inner world and cataloged the faces of under-acknowledged communities.

Pictures filling two floors of the Vincent Price Art Museum attest to her persistence, to the unvarnished honesty of her inquiry  and to the institutional access she has earned.

The retrospective "Laura Aguilar: Show and Tell" is one of the revelations brought forth by Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA. The exhibition  her first full survey  could serve as the PST poster child, so vividly does it fulfill the Getty initiative's mission to tell a broader, deeper version of L.A., Latino and Latin American art history by fleshing out the plot and diversifying its cast of characters.

The show is organized by independent curator Sybil Venegas (a former professor of Aguilar's at East Los Angeles College, where the museum is housed) in collaboration with the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center. It includes more than 130 works, most of them black-and-white portraits or self-portraits.

The camera democratized portraiture, making it affordable to those outside the traditional patron class. Aguilar pushes that process further by turning her lens toward photographically under-represented subjects like herself: Latina, lesbian, large-bodied.

Aguilar examines identity and belonging, the friction of feeling unworthy and the peace of reaching self-acceptance. She captions a group of portraits of women (1986-90) with their thoughts on identifying as both lesbian and Latina. In "How Mexican Is Mexican" (1990), she cannily adds along the bottom edge of each print a row of thermometers like those found on jars of salsa. Statements of ambivalence measure mild; ethnic pride raises the temperature to hot.

The most stirring and paradigm-shifting works are Aguilar's nude self-portraits, starting with "In Sandy's Room" from 1989. Here, she brilliantly transposes the self-consciously sexual, reclining nude of Western tradition to the unglamorized suburban present. On a hot day, she spreads her ample body beneath an open window, fan blowing directly on her, iced drink resting on her thigh. The terms of comfort are hers; she is the very image of content self-containment.

Laura Aguilars Nature Self-Portrait #2, 1996, gelatin silver print, 16 inches by 20 inches. (Laura Aguilar / UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center)

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Nudes posed in nature, as nature, follow. In these scenes of Aguilar sitting among boulders and lying beside pools of water, she enacts a primal sort of belonging, where she is continuous with the world rather than at odds with it, her shape and color as right as anything of the Earth.

In a 2007 video, Aguilar speaks to the camera about her struggles with depression, fear, self-doubt, the lack of touch in her life. She stands naked, literally and metaphorically, before a wall of stone, describing how her photographs help remind her of her own capacity and beauty. Photographs, especially those that make visible what usually goes unseen, have that kind of declarative, affirming power. Aguilar has worked hard, against the current, to land on these museum walls. We are the ones graced with access.

Vincent Price Art Museum, East Los Angeles College, 1301 Avenida Cesar Chavez, Monterey Park. Through Feb. 10; closed Sundays and Mondays. (323) 265-8841, www.vincentpriceartmuseum.org

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CNN correspondent Bill Weir is back at Saturday at 9 p.m. for another trip through The Wonder List, the networks original series that largely sends him to pristine habitats around the globe to learn how they will survive in the face of development, social conflict or industrialization. Though the lush look of the show can resemble what Weir calls travel porn, he says its about all of our little decisions, all 7 billion of us on this blue marble, and how they add up to sometimes to monstrous results.

Weirs first stop is Patagonia where he conducted the first interview with Kris Tompkins since the death of her husband Doug, the outdoor clothing entrepreneur. Tompkins died in a 2015 kayaking accident in Chile, where the conservationist couple have used their fortune to buy up huge tracts of land solely to preserve it. Next weeks episode took Weir to Alaska, where he examined the ongoing conflict over a massive proposed gold and copper mine, which could threaten the states salmon population.

Weirs travels have made him highly attuned to the natural disasters that have struck the U.S. during the current hurricane season. He offered to pitch in on CNNs coverage of Hurricane Irma in Florida and Puerto Rico where he viewed the destructive results of Maria. After his return, he shared his views about the new season of The Wonder List and the future of this mortal coil.

There is a lot of news reporting on The Wonder List, but it doesnt look like a news show. It unfolds like a movie.

Thats what Im going for. Ive joked that by the rules of breaking news, if Wolf Blitzer was explaining the Star Wars saga, he would open with this just in  Darth Vader is Lukes father instead of a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. The original series format allows me to start at the beginning, introduce you to the characters and then drop the bomb on you in the fourth act where it belongs.



The Trump administration plays a role on the series this year. The president shows up for the first time during your episode about Alaska.

One of the first acts of Scott Pruitt, the new EPA administrator, was to meet with the head of the Pebble Mine group and to drop all lawsuits and essentially give them the green light to proceed with a permit. The fishermen up in Bristol Bay thought they had won that battle. It was a 10-year slog. But they couldnt find a scientist to say you could mine that gold and copper and not hurt the fishery. But this administration believes differently. So thats just the beginning. There are uranium mines in the Grand Canyon that I want to go back and follow up on. There are the Great Lakes restoration projects that conservationists have been banking on that are being gutted financially. This turnover politically has given environmental reporting a whole new challenge.

This turnover politically has given environmental reporting a whole new challenge.  CNN's Bill Weir

Youve traveled around the world a lot in the last few years. How is the perception of CNN right now after the beating its taken from this White House?

Around the world we are the gold standard. If you tell a diplomat in some capitol that were here from CNN, they sit up and pay attention. Honestly, the only issue Ive run into is when I go back to visit my old high school buddies in Tulsa, Oklahoma or Wautoma, Wisconsin: Yeah, I told my niece that my old buddy Bill Weir was coming to town and she turned her nose up ...

Because they think you're working for the fake news?
No other American filmmaker has as mighty a track record of combining artistic ambition with popular success as Steven Spielberg. A multiple Oscar winner as well as, somewhat divisively, the co-inventor of the modern blockbuster, Spielberg and his films have left an enormous footprint on moviemaking and pop culture.

So why, given all the space his work and the discussion of it already occupies, does Spielberg now merit a new, two-and-a-half hour HBO documentary, premiering Saturday, that looks back at those films and his methods and is called, appropriately, Spielberg?

Because, to cross genres for a moment, the documentary-industrial complex surrounding the likes of the Beatles, Bruce Springsteen and others has proved that nothing inspires a thorough, even celebratory, look back quite like massive success. And in Spielberg, director Susan Lacy (creator of the musician-heavy PBS biography series American Masters), has a subject with such a far-reaching influence that you practically have to venture to the titans of classic rock for a comparison.

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In a way, its that massive success that is one of the biggest challenges for Spielberg. How do you cast new light on Spielbergs story when so much of it has already been thoroughly examined by both cinephiles and casual fans ?

Its not a balance the film always gets right. But its a testimony to Spielbergs career that a two-and-a-half-hour documentary on his life and work could both feel too long in some places and yet oddly inadequate in others.

While much of the first half of the film is structured around the creation of landmark films  Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind and that weapons-grade emotion-wringing machine, E.T. The Extraterrestrial  the early footage of Spielberg the teenage auteur is a fascinating look at how an obsession can become a life.

Drawn to the camera as a means of navigating a childhood in Phoenix marked by an absent father, schoolyard bullying and low self-esteem, Spielberg tells us, When I was able to say action and cut, I wrested control of my life.

The film then shows some of his shockingly sophisticated teenage 8mm movies, one of which featured his friends climbing into WWII-era planes from a local airstrip cut with actual war footage (shot by, the ever-obsessive Spielberg reminds us, John Ford). The production value was off the charts! the 70-year-old Spielberg says, still giddy at the memory, and in that we see the energy and childlike enthusiasm his career was built upon.

Spielberg also indulges in some mythmaking of his own in remembering that his rise at Universal began with his sneaking off the tour tram (a detail that seems a bit Catch Me If You Can), and, studio chief and mentor Sid Sheinberg, Richard Dreyfuss and James Brolin coyly talk of his keeping a secret office on the lot as a teenager. David Geffen brushes aside the idea, but references The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and says, When the legend is bigger than the facts, print the legend, which offers a small hint at where the documentary is coming from.

Spielbergs time as a young filmmaking phenom is recounted by his 70s contemporaries who, backed by some amusing home movie footage, offer interesting glimpses of their impressions. Future Indiana Jones collaborator George Lucas admits he found Spielberg too Hollywood-y before seeing his man-versus-truck debut feature Duel, and Francis Ford Coppola, in an ever-so-slightly backhanded compliment, describes Spielberg as a creature of the studio and fortunate that the kind of movie he really had a sense for was also the kind of movie that the audience had a sense for.

The bulk of the documentary focuses on where that connection between Spielberg and the audience was strongest. He still sounds a little wounded by his greatest box-office failure, the oddball 1979 comedy 1941, but its ushered to the wings quickly. Later films like Hook, The Terminal, Warhorse and The BFG are relegated to montage, and his TV work is brushed aside entirely.

Thats partly a necessity of time but also a shame because the moments where the documentary examines Spielbergs blind spots are its most revealing. In discussing his Oscar-nominated 1985 adaptation of Alice Walkers The Color Purple, the director says he was too timid to handle the books sexual material, an admission that speaks to one of his long-held on-screen difficulties. Along with a few film writers on hand, Tom Stoppard also offers one of the films few notes of criticism with what he considered the unnecessary softness in 1987s Empire of the Sun.

And for all of Spielberg and Lucas enthusiasm in remembering the advances that made Jurassic Park possible in 1993, only production designer Rick Carter recognizes the parallel between the films cautionary tale about unchecked technology and how the movie helped usher in an era when digital effects were the new stars of summer blockbusters.

With widescreen spectacle Spielbergs stock-in-trade, digital was a natural draw for the director, and the odd juxtaposition in Jurassic Park and Schindlers List being released the same year is not overlooked. Filmed on location in Krakow, Poland, with a harrowing intimacy, the film acts as testimony of Spielbergs obsessive sense of detail, from using hand-held cameras to Liam Neeson confessing that he, at times, felt like a puppet under his direction.

While the words intuitive and natural keep cropping up among Lacys subjects in their impressions of Spielberg, the documentary examines some of what fuels him in the impact of his parents divorce and subsequent reconnection (even Lincoln, Spielberg admits with a laugh, is a story of a family torn apart and coming back together). Ive avoided therapy because movies are my therapy, he says.

Does this explain how Spielberg knew to build tension from a floating barrel in Jaws or a ripple through a glass of water in Jurassic Park? Not really, but no documentary could. But for fans who have followed him through an unparalleled career that saw an ever-growing mystique surround his biggest films, Spielberg offers some insight into a rare filmmaker who became a genre unto himself.

Spielberg

Where: HBO

When: 8 p.m. Saturday

Rating: TV-MA (may be unsuitable for children under the age of 17)

chris.barton@latimes.com

Follow me over here @chrisbarton.

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A 28-year-old man suspected of shooting two teenagers at a Pasadena birthday party was fatally shot by authorities Friday after being sought by a task force that included the U.S. Marshals Service.

The man was located along with a 36-year-old woman inside a vehicle about 1 p.m. in the 700 block of Encanto Parkway in Duarte, according to Deputy Joana Warren of the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department.

After making contact with the occupants of the car, officers from three law enforcement agencies opened fire, Warren said. The man, who was on parole, was struck at least once and was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

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The woman was also shot but was expected to survive. She was arrested on suspicion of possessing narcotics.

One officer was treated for minor injuries.

The man is suspected in a Pasadena shooting that took place Thursday about 8:30 p.m. in the 1700 block of North Summit Avenue, Pasadena Police Lt. John Mercado said.

A 19-year-old man and a 16-year-old girl were both struck. The male victim remains hospitalized in critical condition; the girl was treated and discharged that night.

In addition to the U.S. Marshals Task Force, the police departments of Pasadena and Glendale and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation had been tracking the suspect, Warren said.

The suspects vehicle is being searched and evidence will be processed by the crime lab, Warren said.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call the sheriffs homicide bureau at (323) 890-5500.

corina.knoll@latimes.com

@corinaknoll

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Authorities said street racing may have been involved when a speeding car crashed into a tree in Northridge late Friday, killing all four occupants.

The crash occurred about 11 p.m. Friday, when the driver of the silver BMW lost control of the car while speeding east on Lassen Street alongside a dark-colored sedan, said Officer Shane Bales of the Los Angeles Police Department. The BMW crossed into oncoming traffic lanes near Balboa Boulevard and hit a light pole before slamming into a tree.

Flames engulfed the car and the impact was so severe that it ejected the cars engine, Bales said. The car broke into several pieces.

The victims were identified as Martin Gomez, 20, of Granada Hills, who was said to be at the wheel; Denney Lomeli, 20, of North Hills; Leena Ammari, 21, of Reseda; and Amanda Alfar of Panorama City, whose family said she was 21.

The two men were seated in the front and the women in the backseat, police said. All four were killed instantly.

Joanne Falahat, Alfars aunt, said her niece had gone out to dinner Friday night to celebrate another friends birthday.

Just two weeks ago, dozens of family members had gathered to celebrate Alfars own birthday, along with her younger sisters, at a Middle Eastern restaurant in Sherman Oaks, Falahat said.

She was the rock of the family, said Falahat, who described her niece as bubbly, intelligent and driven. Were absolutely devastated.

Amanda Alfar was one of four people killed in a high-speed crash in Northridge Friday night. (Joanne Falahat)

Alfar was a student at Cal State Northridge , worked part time at a law firm and had recently started a side business as a makeup artist, Falahat said. She hoped to become an attorney one day to help immigrants like her mother, who was from Jordan.

The oldest of three daughters, Alfar was born in Los Angeles but spent her early childhood in Jordan. She was raised by a single mother and a network of close-knit aunts and uncles, Falahat said. Falahat, who is battling breast cancer , said Alfar messaged her after a recent surgery, promising to visit her this weekend and bring her lunch.

You were always here for me, she wrote to her aunt, so now Im going to be here for you.

Police are still searching for the driver of the other vehicle that was seen driving alongside the BMW.

It was last seen speeding down Balboa Boulevard and did not stop, officials said. Police suspect the drivers of the two vehicles may have been racing.

"We have very little details, but we're hoping since people did die that the family members, friends, somebody's going to come forward," Bales said. "It's rare that people race each other that don't know each other."

The LAPD posted dramatic video on Twitter and Instagram showing a black car zooming through the camera frame, followed by flashing lights and smoke behind it, apparently from the impact and flames shooting up after the crash. LAPD needs your help to solve this tragic crash that took four young lives, officials said in another post, asking neighbors to check their security camera videos.

As word spread about the accident, families and friends began to mourn.

Javier Vazquez, 20, a friend of the victims, was at the scene of the crash early Saturday. He said he got a call from Gabriel Gomez, the twin brother of the driver, Martin Gomez, telling him about the crash.

I woke up to a horrible nightmare of him telling me the news, Vazquez said. I knew all of them . These people didnt deserve to go like this.

The Times Marc Olson and Irfan Khan contributed to this report.

christine.maiduc@latimes.com

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1:50 p.m.: This article was updated with the names of all four victims and comment from Alfars relatives.

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This article was originally posted at 5:20 a.m.
When Ref Rodriguez ran for his seat on the Los Angeles school board, opponents accused him of underpaying the lowest-wage workers at the charter-school group he helped found.

His supporters quickly countered with testimonials on mailers  from three of the charter schools janitors.

Dont believe the lies youve heard about Ref Rodriguez, one of them, Maria Hernandez, said in the mailer. I have worked for Ref Rodriguez for 15 years and he has always done right by me.

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These janitors who so wholeheartedly backed their boss also are connected to the criminal case now plaguing the school board member  who has been charged with three felonies and more than two dozen misdemeanors.

Prosecutors allege Rodriguez laundered $24,250 in campaign money by listing people  including these janitors  as individual donors to his campaign when he actually paid them back for the money they donated.

A charter school principal also gave a testimonial and is on the list of alleged reimbursed donors.

This looks bad, said Jack Pitney, a professor of government at Claremont McKenna College. When the same people who provided testimonials turn out to be employees who gave suspect donations, at very least, it creates a politically damaging appearance of impropriety.

Rodriguez is holding on to his board seat but stepped down as board president last month, a week after he was charged. Since then, hes declined to discuss the case publicly.

The 2015 campaign between Rodriguez and incumbent Bennett Kayser was heated and sometimes got nasty.

Most of the low blows were paid for by outside groups, not controlled by the candidates. The pro-Rodriguez effort was spearheaded by the political arm of the California Charter Schools Assn., whose mailers falsely accused Kayser of trying to stop Latino children from attending schools in white neighborhoods.

Kayser was trying to retain a seat in a district where a majority of voters are Latino. The teachers union, which supported him, fought back by trying to tar Rodriguezs reputation.

One attempt was a mailer, sent out in English and Spanish, asserting that it would take a custodial worker at a Refugio Rodriguez school nearly 12 years to make what he pays himself every year.

The pro-Rodriguez campaign responded with the three janitors, misleadingly described as employees of the Los Angeles Unified School District. All were employees of Partnerships to Uplift Communities or PUC Schools, which was co-founded by Rodriguez. Though they are public schools, charters are independent organizations.

The mailers had janitor Carlos Villagomez allude to Kaysers opposition to some charter schools. Bennett Kayser voted to close down great schools serving our communitys poorest children, Villagomez was quoted as saying. Now his allies are lying about how Ref Rodriguez treats his janitors.

Added fellow janitor Socorro Villagomez: Ref Rodriguezs parents were janitors who hailed from Jalisco, Mexico, and who worked hard to put him through school. Ref knows as well as anybody how important it is to treat workers well.

In another flier, Carlos Villagomez  this time identified as an employee of Excel Academy, a PUC school  again accused Kayser of trying close down great schools.

If Bennett Kayser had his way, he said, I wouldnt have a job and this school would be shut down. Ref Rodriguez has always had the best interest of the workers and the children at heart.

A third mailer relies on a testimonial from Nancy Villagomez, who is identified as a middle school principal. Ref is a passionate advocate for helping all students  regardless of what neighborhood they live in  succeed, she said. No candidate has done more to turn around failing schools and improve graduation rates.

Nancy Villagomez was  and still is  a principal at a PUC school. It is unclear whether she is related to the Villagomez janitors. She donated $900 to the Rodriguez campaign in late December 2014. In that same period, Carlos and Socorro Villagomez, who each earned about $10,000 from their PUC jobs in 2014, donated $1,000 apiece. Maria Hernandez donated $800. Rodriguez allegedly reimbursed all of these donations.

Of the 25 contributions to Rodriguezs campaign that prosecutors allege were illegal, 13 came from employees at Rodriguezs charter organization. Of these 13, as many as nine were relatives of Rodriguez, according to PUC administrators, who reviewed internal files in response to a public records request from The Times. Without identifying individuals, they said PUC employs 14 Rodriguez relatives in a workforce of 900.

School board member Ref Rodriguez and his cousin are accused of recruiting relatives and employees of his charter schools to make large campaign donations for which they were illegally reimbursed. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times )

Rodriguez left his $192,610-a-year position at PUC shortly after he joined the school board in 2015.

Kathy Feng, executive director of California Common Cause, an ethics watchdog group, said employee donors are worrisome.

Theres been a long history of coercion of employees to take political positions or make donations at the direction of their employers, Feng said. There is a power relationship. A staff person might feel compelled to donate regardless of how they might feel personally about a candidate or a campaign.

In 2014, Rodriguez was a senior executive at PUC; his co-defendant in the alleged conspiracy is his cousin Elizabeth Tinajero Melendrez, who was a PUC administrator. According to prosecutors, Rodriguez asked Melendrez to solicit donors and then use his money to reimburse them.

PUCs other co-founder, Jacqueline Elliot, who remains a senior PUC executive, said she had no knowledge of any improper donations until the charges were filed.

It is not known whether Rodriguez or anyone in his campaign worked with the pro-charter group in obtaining the testimonials. Such coordination between a candidates official campaign and an independent-expenditure campaign would be illegal but would be difficult to prove, experts say.

Nancy Villagomez did not respond to attempts to reach her Friday by phone and email. Maria Hernandez also could not be reached. Rodriguez did not respond to questions submitted Friday afternoon to his lawyer and his board office.

Approached outside their home as they got in their car Thursday, Carlos and Socorro Villagomez were less effusive than during the campaign.

Carlos Villagomez said they spoke no English, but both refused to answer questions posed in Spanish. Socorro Villagomez said they just worked at PUC and knew nothing about the criminal case. Carlos Villagomez said only their attorney could respond. They would not provide the name of their attorney.

We have to go to work, Carlos Villagomez said in English, as they drove off.

howard.blume@latimes.com

Twitter: @howardblume

Times staff writers Nina Agrawal, David Zahniser and Anna M. Phillips contributed to this report.
After nearly a year, Los Angeles Countys Department of Children and Family Services will once again have a top leader starting Dec. 1.

The Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to appoint Bobby Cagle, who currently serves as director of the Division of Family and Children Services in Georgias Department of Human Services, to the position at a salary of $300,000. He will take over from acting director Brandon Nichols.

Cagle has a long history of working in child welfare, having served as a case worker and ascended the ranks of the state agency, becoming director in 2014.

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Bobby Cagle earned my vote because of his tried and true experience running a child welfare system, Supervisor Hilda Solis said in a statement. He met or exceeded all the criteria set forth by foster youth and advocates.

Cagle currently oversees an agency with a $1.3-billion budget and about 13,000 kids in foster care. As director he expanded the child welfare budget and hired more than 600 case workers. He also persuaded the state to raise worker pay by nearly 20% and to increase foster care reimbursements.

He is able to understand the importance of negotiation [and] the politics involved in this job, said Kathy Colbenson, who has run a local foster care agency for more than 30 years.

Cagle has also taken pains to solicit the input of foster youth, social workers, service providers and advocates, Colbenson and others said, conducting ongoing listening tours around the state.

But under Cagles leadership the number of children in foster care in Georgia rose, from about 9,000 in June 2014 to just above 13,000 in March 2017, according to state data.

A giant spike in the number of children removed from their homes did nothing to keep children safer, said Richard Wexler, executive director of the National Coalition for Child Protection Reform, which advocates for keeping children with their families. He is very clearly the wrong choice for Los Angeles County.

Others said the increase was tied to factors beyond Cagles control, like the opioid epidemic, and that previous policies had focused on keeping the population low above all else.

I dont think [the increases are] a reflection of his personal philosophy or ideology about how the system works, said Melissa Carter, who runs a child law and policy program at Emory and has known Cagle for nearly 10 years. Bobby inherited it in a reactive moment.

One of the things he did, Carter said, was standardize how social workers take in complaints, investigate and respond, with a focus on partnering with families.

That was a big deal  something that reflected a real core strategy for the first time, she said.

But Carter, who previously served as the states ombudsman for child welfare, said that emphasis may have come at the expense of planning for kids permanent homes and exit from the system. That does contribute to an uptick in the foster care population, she said.

Cagle also helped negotiate a plan to exit a consent decree resulting from a 2002 lawsuit over inadequate safety at foster shelters and other violations in the Atlanta-area foster system, the largest in the state.

Yet the latest monitoring report found that during the second half of last year, the number of case managers in the Atlanta area declined, as did the timeliness and quality of investigations. Duration in care increased and a foster home shortage led to reliance on group homes and, sometimes, hotels.

Last year Cagle sent out a staff-wide memo announcing a goal to place at least 50% of children with kin by 2018, but there are little data on its effects so far.

He declined to be interviewed for this article, saying he preferred to wait until assuming office.

Cagle will likely face some skeptics in L.A. County, including among his bosses. His confirmation was approved 4-0, with Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas abstaining. When the board previously met to consider finalists, Ridley-Thomas and Supervisor Janice Hahn voted for another candidate and  somewhat unusually for the county  released her name.

The alternate, JooYeun Chang, was an appointee in the Obama administration and director at Casey Family Programs.

The candidates were equally qualified, Hahn said in a statement. I chose to vote for the candidate who would add diversity to our department leadership. She added that Cagle has her full confidence.

Ridley-Thomas declined to explain his votes, saying only that Im obliged to work very hard in the interest of children and their families, and thats precisely what we will attempt to do.

Philip Browning, who served as head of Children and Family Services for five years before retiring in January, said he wasnt surprised the supervisors differed. But he said it would be helpful for them to unite around the new director.

The DCFS job was the most challenging one I ever had, he said. This individual is going to need all the help he can get.

nina.agrawal@latimes.com

Twitter: @AgrawalNina
A Los Angeles city councilman is calling on the council and Mayor Eric Garcetti to oppose a crucial vote by a Southern California water board on a $17-billion project that would be funded in part by Los Angeles ratepayers.

Councilman Paul Koretz introduced a resolution Friday that asks the city and Garcetti to formally object to a vote by the board of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California on the project, known as California WaterFix.

The 38-member board is scheduled to vote Tuesday on whether to commit $4.3 billion in MWD funds to the project.

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Echoing the concerns of some environmentalists that oppose the proposal, Koretz said ratepayer money should instead be spent on local water projects.

It puts us on the hook for billions of dollars, Koretz, a former MWD board member, said of WaterFix.

Koretzs resolution is symbolic, since the city doesnt formally have a say in the proposal. However, his move could put pressure on the mayor.

Garcetti hasnt taken a position on WaterFix. Five of the MWD board members are appointed by the mayor.

WaterFix is a priority of Gov. Jerry Brown, who was in Southern California this week promoting the proposal.

Long planned, the project seeks to ease restrictions on water deliveries from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. It involves the construction of new diversion points on the Sacramento River and two massive tunnels under the delta.

MWD imports water from the delta and sells it to Los Angeles and other Southern California water agencies serving 19 million people. The MWD staff has recommended that the board vote yes, saying the project is necessary to maintain deliveries of Northern California water.

Amid financial concerns, the Westlands Water District, the countrys largest agriculture water district, voted last month not to participate in the plan.

Garcetti spokesman Alex Comisar declined to comment on Koretzs motion. Earlier in the week, he said the mayor is still considering the project.

The mayor wants to protect ratepayers, develop local water resources, and ensure that L.A. has enough water for generations, Comisar said. With that in mind, he is carefully looking at the project, listening to many opinions, and will decide based on the merits.

About two dozen activists protested outside Garcettis home Wednesday night, calling on him to oppose the project.

Koretz said the city sought assurances from the MWD about WaterFix, such as requiring a public vote if the districts obligations changed. Those requests were ignored, he said.

He said he hopes his resolution will be voted on at Tuesdays City Council meeting, before the MWD is expected to vote on the project that afternoon.

To go into effect, Koretzs resolution must be passed by the council and be approved by Garcetti, a spokesman for City Atty. Mike Feuer said Friday.

dakota.smith@latimes.com

Twitter: @dakotacdsmith
For years, hundreds of children in the Fullerton School District have taken part in a seemingly heartwarming program called Flutes Across The World.

The initiative aims to connect young students in Southern California with underprivileged counterparts in the Philippines through a simple round of arts and crafts, according to Robert Pletka, the school districts superintendent.

During the classes, students were shown how to make colorful flutes out of PVC pipe, Pletka said. Then they would write personal notes to students half a world away that would be folded inside the instruments.

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But in the past 10 days, the program  which is said to have collaborated with schools throughout Southern California and large national charity organizations  became ensnared in a grotesque scandal that has left parents and educators horrified.

Late last week, the U.S. Postal Service and the California Department of Justice launched an investigation to determine if some of the flutes that were delivered to schools earlier this year had been contaminated with semen, leaving parents panicked and school officials struggling to determine how many students may have come in contact with the instruments.

In recent days, officials issued warnings to parents in the Los Angeles Unified, Saugus Union, Capistrano Unified, Fountain Valley, Culver City, Newport-Mesa and Fullerton school districts, according to statements released by school officials. In those warnings, school officials said they had been contacted by federal and state investigators who were trying to determine if a music specialist had provided contaminated flutes during presentations given to young students within their districts.

The person did not work for any of the affected school districts, and was described as an outside contractor and music performer in several school district news releases.

No children have been sickened as a result of the nauseating discovery, and it remains unclear if any of the possibly contaminated instruments actually wound up in the possession of students, according to school officials in Los Angeles and Orange counties. Public health officials have said it is highly unlikely that a sexually transmitted disease or other illness could be contracted by touching dried semen.

News of the possibly contaminated flutes left parents in several school districts shaken and disturbed this week.

Its disgusting and its horrible, said Tracey Taber, whose children attend classes at Sonora Elementary School in Costa Mesa. And its heartbreaking, across the board.

Stacia Crane, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Postal Service, said Friday that no one has been arrested in the case, but declined to comment further because of the active investigation. She also declined to identify the music performer described in the letters issued by school officials.

Local police have asked parents whose children received flutes from the program to place them in a sealed brown paper bag and bring them to the nearest police or sheriffs station.

Flutes Across The World has collaborated with a number of large national charity organizations  including the American Cancer Society and the Ronald McDonald House  as well as performing arts centers in Orange County and child advocacy groups in the Philippines and Haiti, according to a website detailing its origins.

The program also offered camp and retreat workshops for students, according to the website, and aimed to promote flute and wind music of indigenous cultures and people around the globe.

A spokeswoman for the American Cancer Society in Los Angeles said Friday that the organization has no record of ever working with Flutes Across The World. An e-mail sent to a spokeswoman for the Ronald McDonald House was not returned.

Calls and e-mails to the chief executive of the organization were not immediately returned. Flutes Across The World was registered as a domestic nonprofit organization based in Ojai in 2013, public records show. Attempts to contact other people listed in the companys incorporation documents were unsuccessful.

School officials have also said they have had trouble determining if, and when, the organization provided lessons in their district.

It was difficult for our district to try to pin down what exactly are we looking for as far as this individual, said Ryan Burris, the chief communications officer for the Capistrano Unified School District.

Late Thursday, Capistrano Unified School officials said they had confirmed that the flute program had not been held in the district in recent months.

In Fullerton, Pletka said nearly 130 students 11 to 12 may have been involved with the program at Rolling Hills Elementary School this year, though it is unclear if they came in contact with possibly contaminated flutes.

In a statement, the Saugus Union school district said the person under investigation had either taught students to build flutes or had delivered other presentations to roughly two dozen classes since 2013.

The other affected schools include Courregus Elementary School in Fountain Valley and Sonora Elementary School in Costa Mesa, school officials said. LAUSD officials said one school may have been involved in the flute program, but did not name the facility.

Pletka said the person who made the presentations in the Fullerton School District came highly recommended from members of the Orange County arts community and was associated with some pretty reputable organizations who also do background checks on their people.

Times Community News staff writer Bradley Zint and Los Angeles Times staff writer Doug Smith contributed to this report.

james.queally@latimes.com

Follow @JamesQueallyLAT for crime and police news in California.

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UPDATES:

10:45 a.m.: This article was updated to include Culver City among the school districts that might be affected.

This article was originally published at 6 a.m.
A Los Angeles jury has awarded $4.8 million to a former South Pasadena police officer who alleged he was fired by the city because of a disability.

After a two-week trial, the jury on Thursday found unanimously in favor of Timothy Patrick Green, an 18-year veteran who was dismissed from the Police Department in 2013.

Greens lawsuit said the reason given for his dismissal, dishonesty, was untrue and that the real reason was discrimination based on his attention-deficit/hyper-active disorder.

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South Pasadena City Atty. Teresa L. Highsmith did not return a call from The Times.

Former Police Chief Joseph Payne, who retired before Greens dismissal, testified on his behalf, saying he was a good officer, a good man, perhaps the best cop in the department at community policing, said Greens attorney, Vincent Miller.

According to Miller, Payne testified that the city failed Green by not providing accommodations to help overcome his difficulty writing reports. Instead, the lawsuit alleged, Paynes replacement, Chief Arthur Miller, endorsed the recommendation of a captain who had long been trying to have Green fired.

Greens termination revolved around a 2012 pre-dawn incident when he failed to cite a motorist he had stopped for speeding.

Green said he let the motorist go when he saw what he thought were silhouettes at the middle school across the street and went to investigate.

The next day, the driver went to the police station to report that he may have fled a police officer. Later investigation established that he had been involved in a hit-and-run accident before he was stopped by Green.

Green said he had not seen the damage on the front of the car. Greens attorney said his client gave slightly different statements in two interviews. In one, he said he had not gone past the rear bumper of the car. In the other, he said he hadnt gone past the rear quarter panel.

According to the lawyer, Chief Miller claimed Green was lying about being more concerned about suspicious silhouettes at the school than the driver he pulled over.

The jury clearly felt it was obvious disability discrimination, the lawyer said.

The award, he said, was to compensate Green for lost wages and the fact that they destroyed his career permanently.

They fired him on charges of dishonesty, the attorney said. Its known as the death penalty in law enforcement.

doug.smith@latimes.com

Twitter: @LATDoug
The exit of a second dean at USCs Keck School of Medicine over inappropriate behavior brought shock and outrage to the campus Friday and demands that university leadership explain what went wrong.

A number of physicians, researchers and scholars at the Keck School of Medicine said they were stunned to learn that Dr. Rohit Varma, who was removed Thursday as dean, had been disciplined 14 years ago after a sexual harassment and retaliation complaint by a woman fellow he supervised.

Varmas departure came a little more than a year and a half after Dr. Carmen Puliafito stepped down. Puliafito was the subject of a Times investigation that found he regularly abused methamphetamine and other drugs and associated with addicts and prostitutes.

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A Keck administrator described the school as completely in shock over the Varma revelations. She said many on campus learned of the deans departure from colleagues who whispered the news or forwarded a link of The Times story on the resignation.

Its sad because a bulk of the folks who work here do great stuff, but this has sullied that, said the administrator, who like others requested anonymity because USC has asked employees not to speak publicly on the matter.

In a letter to colleagues Thursday, Varma wrote that he felt it was in the best interest of the school for me to step down at this time.

In a statement to The Times released Friday, Varma added: While I am disappointed that I will no longer be serving as dean of the Keck School of Medicine, I am proud of the many accomplishments I have made together with students, residents, the staff and faculty of both the Keck School and the USC Roski Eye Institute and look forward to continuing my work at USC as a member of the faculty.

USC disciplined Varma in 2003 after allegations that he sexually harassed the young researcher while he was a junior professor, according to confidential personnel records reviewed by The Times and interviews with people familiar with the university investigation.

As The Times was preparing to publish a story disclosing the case, USC announced Thursday afternoon that Varma was no longer dean.

USC Provost Michael Quick said in a letter to the campus community Friday that Dr. Laura Mosqueda, Kecks chair of family medicine, would serve as interim dean while the university searched for Varmas permanent successor.

Quick acknowledged the widespread anger over the latest black eye to Keck. I understand how upsetting this situation is to all of us, but we felt it was in the best interest of the faculty, staff, and students for all of us to move in this direction, he wrote in a Thursday letter.

At a packed town hall meeting in Mayer Auditorium on Friday, university administrators heard from a large crowd of angry Keck medical students, many in scrubs and white doctor coats.

I really want to talk about the culture thats being propagated at the highest levels of USC leadership, and it seems to be a culture that values money above all else, especially ethics, said one male student, according to a recording of the meeting reviewed by The Times.

Both former deans were known as financial rainmakers for USC. Puliafito claimed to have raised $1 billion while leading Keck  a number USC now disputes. The National Institutes of Health sent more than $60 million in grants to USC for Varmas projects, according to federal databases.

The deans present at the meeting tried to allay fears that the scandals could affect the medical schools reputation or the careers of the students. One administrator told the students they would be given written talking points to use during residency interviews so you feel like youll have a little security in your back pocket.

A female student demanded action by USC President C.L. Max Nikias and the universitys Board of Trustees.

We need to have the freaking trustees, we need to have Nikias, we need to have Quick in here, and we need them to apologize, she said.

In July, The Times published a lengthy story that detailed the 66-year-old Puliafitos partying with much-younger drug abusers while he was dean. He resigned as dean in March 2016, but USC allowed him to remain on faculty and continue to treat patients.

University leaders later said they were unaware of Puliafitos drug use, although Varma told a gathering of students that his predecessors excessive drinking was known to administrators. After The Times investigation was published, USC barred Puliafito from campus and began the process to fire him. He is under investigation by the Medical Board of California.

A committee headed by Quick selected Varma as Puliafitos replacement last year from a pool of more than 140 applicants from across the nation, according to USC. The candidates included academics from top universities. After winnowing the field to 15, USC interviewed the candidates and chose Varma.

On Tuesday, The Times informed USC of the newspapers findings on the sexual harassment case involving Varma and asked the university for comment. USC on Wednesday told The Times the incident had been addressed nearly 15 years ago and that it remained confident in Varmas leadership. In meetings with faculty members Wednesday, Varma told colleagues he had the support of USC leadership, according to two Keck employees knowledgeable of the conversations.

Less than 24 hours later, USC reversed course and said Varma was out, citing The Times reporting and previously undisclosed information.

A university spokesman said Friday that USCs investigation led to new disclosures of employment incidents that caused it to lose confidence in [Varmas] ability to lead. He declined to elaborate.

Senior faculty members at Keck said they were stunned by the developments over the last two days.

Some feared for schools reputation. Its not that weve lost [Puliafito and Varma], but that these individuals were ever appointed, another faculty member said.

sarah.parvini@latimes.com

paul.pringle@latimes.com

harriet.ryan@latimes.com

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8:20 p.m.: This article was updated with minor editing changes throughout.

This article was originally published at 7:40 p.m.
A candlelight vigil will be held Sunday in Orange County for Teresa Nicol Kimura, one week after she was killed when a gunman opened fire on the Route 91 Harvest festival in Las Vegas.

The vigil is scheduled for 6 p.m. on the back field of Sierra Vista Elementary in Placentia at 1811 N. Placentia Ave.

A memorial for another shooting victim is also planned Sunday night at the Huntington Beach Pier. Andrea Castilla, a Huntington Beach resident, was killed while celebrating her 28th birthday at the festival.

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The massacre at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival claimed the lives of 58 people and left hundreds more injured. The shooter, Stephen Paddock, killed himself.

Kimura, who went by Nicol, graduated from El Dorado High School and Cal State Fullerton and worked for the state government. She was known for her energy and infectious smile.

Her friend Chad Elliott said the pair had attended 15 concerts this year alone, but that the last weekend of Route 91 was her favorite weekend of the year. Videos filmed by her friends at the concert show the 38-year-old wearing a black tank top that said Dirty Martini is My Spirit Animal and joyfully singing and dancing.

A GoFundMe page set up for Kimura has raised $47,500 toward its $50,000 goal as of Saturday.

andrea.castillo@latimes.com

@andreamcastillo
The day was meant for prayer, reflection, and most of all, slowly continuing to heal.

On Saturday, Vice President Mike Pence visited Las Vegas, offering prayers and encouragement for a community reeling days after a gunman went on a killing rampage at an outdoor country music festival along the Strip.

Pence, flanked by several local elected officials, including Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman, spoke from a lectern inside City Hall, where he emphasized that the country stands united with the Las Vegas community.

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No evil  no act of violence  will ever diminish the strength and goodness of the American people, said Pence, whose visit came days after President Trump arrived here to meet with victims and first responders. We are united as one nation, as one people, with one voice  united in our grief, united in our support for those who have suffered, and united in our resolve to end such evil in our time.

He added, when one part of America cries out for help we always come together to answer the call. Today we are all Vegas strong.

The vice presidents remarks came at the conclusion of a unity prayer walk among local elected officials and residents in memory of the 58 people killed and nearly 500 injured on Oct. 1 at the Route 91 Harvest Festival. The gunman, Stephen Paddock, 64, fired hundreds of rounds at the crowd from his 32nd-floor Mandalay Bay hotel room.

Amid the prayers, tears and strides toward healing, local and federal law enforcement officials pressed ahead Saturday with their investigation.

Authorities continued to look for a motive as to why Paddock, known as a professional gambler who frequented casinos here and in Mesquite, Nev., about 80 miles northeast of Las Vegas, carried out one of the deadliest mass shootings in U.S. history. Billboards have been placed around the city asking residents to contact authorities if they have any information about the shooting.

At the site of the shooting  a parcel of land along Las Vegas Boulevard  federal authorities began to haul away piles of backpacks, purses and lawn chairs that were left behind as thousands of concertgoers fled the area amid a torrent of gunfire.

For many, Saturday was a day to reflect, move ahead and celebrate Las Vegas, a global hub for tourism which last year saw a record 43 million visitors.

A short drive from the site of the shooting, 58 white crosses bearing the names of those killed were placed near the renowned Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign. Locals and tourists alike laid flowers and teddy bears in honor of the victims, 36 women and 22 men.

Goodman, who has served as mayor since 2011, said her city would not be defined by hate and violence.

We will not be defined by anger and we will not be defined by fear, she added. We will be defined by our humanity. We will be defined by our unity, our compassion for each other.

Others who joined Pence and Goodman at City Hall included Rep. Dina Titus (D-Nev.) and Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto, a Democrat, and Dean Heller, a Republican.

Last week, Titus, whose district spans the Strip, announced legislation that would ban possession of bump stocks, a device that makes semiautomatic firearms behave like a fully automatic ones. Authorities have said Paddock used the device during the shooting. In recent days, Democrats and Republicans alike have signaled support for banning these devices, and even the National Rifle Assn. has said more regulation is needed for bump stocks.

Titus said Saturday that more action must take place on the part of elected officials to prevent future mass shootings like the one in her district.

Over the past week our eyes have brimmed with tears, but our chests has also swelled with pride, she said. Let us pray for those who are in power that they will have the wisdom, power and resolve to come together  end the gun violence that plagues our nation.

kurtis.lee@latimes.com

david.montero@latimes.com

Montero reported from Las Vegas and Lee from Los Angeles.

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UPDATES:

5:35 p.m.: This article was updated to with more information about the investigation.

1:55 p.m.: This article was updated to with remarks from Vice President Mike Pence in Las Vegas.

12:55 p.m.: This article was updated with Pences arrival in Las Vegas.

This article was originally published at 10:25 a.m.
Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. Its Saturday, Oct. 7, and heres whats happening across California:

TOP STORIES

Scariest man Ive met in my 70 years: John Meehan insisted hed been a victim, in case after case. To prove it, he planned to unleash lawsuits against his accusers. The attorney he approached had other ideas. This is Part 5 of our six-part series Dirty John. Los Angeles Times

The scene at USC: At the universitys Keck School of Medicine, faculty members and students expressed shock and anger after a second dean departed amid accusations of questionable behavior. Los Angeles Times

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Housing pitch: When the AIDS Healthcare Foundation waged an unsuccessful campaign this spring to crack down on mega projects, affordable housing developers argued its ballot measure would hurt poor renters and thwart sorely needed construction. Now the huge nonprofit is getting into affordable housing itself, saying it can provide it quicker and cheaper than such groups. Los Angeles Times

Downtown boom heads south: The downtown L.A. development boom has spread south of the 10 Freeway, for better or worse. Los Angeles Times

Master of the river: Lewis MacAdams, a poet and founder of Friends of the Los Angeles River, has spent a lifetime fighting for a disrespected river. The hub of MacAdams life today is a cramped apartment in a Los Angeles retirement community. Each weekday morning historian Michael Block uses an audio-recording machine, archival photos and documents to retrace MacAdams influence in making river restoration a credible issue for Southern California nature lovers and policymakers from former Mayor Tom Bradley to Mayor Eric Garcetti. Los Angeles Times

Gun show goes on: A two-day gun and Western Americana show is scheduled for the OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa beginning Saturday, despite concern from some people about the events timing after Sundays mass shooting in Las Vegas. Los Angeles Times

Mortality gap in L.A. County: The big gap in life expectancy in different parts of L.A. (76 in Lancaster, 90 in Malibu). SCPR

Red in deep blue: What its like to be a conservative Republican in liberal San Francisco. SF Gate

New law: Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill Friday that lowers from a felony to a misdemeanor the crime of knowingly exposing a sexual partner to HIV without disclosing the infection. Los Angeles Times

California versus Trump: President Trumps top immigration chief on Friday blasted Californias new sanctuary state law, saying it would undermine public safety, keep federal officers from performing their jobs and result in more arrests. Los Angeles Times

Plus: Is Trumps immigration crackdown causing more absenteeism in California schools? EdSource

Hollywood scandal: Harvey Weinstein is on indefinite leave as Hollywood is roiled by sexual harassment allegations against him. New York Times

Valley milestone: Twenty years ago, Boogie Nights changed the way America looked at the San Fernando Valley and its now-famous porn business. Press-Enterprise

Helping hands: A homeless man who drives for Uber and Lyft lost his home and and his livelihood when his car caught on fire. But strangers stepped in to help. Orange County Register

THIS WEEKS MOST POPULAR NON-DIRTY JOHN STORIES IN ESSENTIAL CALIFORNIA

1. For second time in two years, his fiancee texts: Active shooter. And so began a night of hell in Vegas. Los Angeles Times

2. At his local Starbucks, the Las Vegas gunman was remembered for berating his girlfriend. Los Angeles Times

3. Los Angeles apartments: What $1,500 rents you. Curbed Los Angeles

4. The top 10 California filming locations. Mercury News

5. The story that brought the allegations against Harvey Weinstein to light. New York Times

ICYMI, HERE ARE THIS WEEKS GREAT READS

Remembering the victims: Wrenching stories of those killed in the Las Vegas massacre. Los Angeles Times

Plus: The surreal  and difficult  act of mourning in a city where tourists are gambling and partying amid the memorials to the worst mass shooting in recent U.S. history. Orange County Register

How Milo normalized white nationalism: Milo Yiannopoulos placed himself at the center of the far-right debate in California with a tour of college campuses that have sparked violence  and a free speech debate  at Berkeley. But the Yiannopoulos show was part of a much larger effort by Breitbart and others on right that normalized white nationalism in shocking ways. BuzzFeed

Death review: Could police have saved Cecilia Lam? She begged for years, and called 911 repeatedly, about an abusive boyfriend. But that was not enough, and many are now asking why. San Francisco Chronicle

A new muse: Two sisters created a star-studded film that uses the landscape of Northern California as a key character and muse. California Sunday Magazine

Big move: How Tom Pettys trip from Florida to Los Angeles became the stuff of music legend, and gave the City of Angels a devoted chronicler. New York Times

Please let us know what we can do to make this newsletter more useful to you. Send comments, complaints and ideas to Benjamin Oreskes and Shelby Grad. Also follow them on Twitter @boreskes and @shelbygrad.
Twentieth century Southern California quenched its thirst with a series of ingenious projects, from the aqueducts that bring snowmelt from the Eastern Sierra to Los Angeles, and the dams along the Colorado River that impound water from the Rockies, to the State Water Project that directs the flow of the distant Feather River through the Sacramento River, the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, down the California Aqueduct and over the Tehachapis. These engineering feats brought us water and wealth  and bred waste, although for decades Southern Californians were blissfully unaware of just how foolish it was to keep front yards emerald green in August or to turn five gallons of the worlds most pristine water into sewage with every flush of the toilet.

Times change. We are well into the 21st century, recovering from a historic drought and reckoning with changing climate patterns and smaller snowpacks. The great water engineering feats of this era will more likely take the form of new information technology that help us track every drop. Although civil engineering projects will still be needed  to capture and cleanse stormwater, to recycle sewage, to make salty groundwater or even seawater drinkable  most will be local projects that collect and distribute local water.

But one great project proposed in the last century remains uncompleted. The essential question about the California WaterFix  the proposed $17 billion, 40-mile-long twin tunnels to shore up the State Water Project by diverting Southern California-bound water around the fragile delta  is whether its a 20th century notion whose time has come and gone, or the necessary last link in a system that must be finished before we can finally turn our full attention to the next generation of water thinking and engineering.

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Southern California needs the delta tunnels to secure (not to increase) its water supply.

It comes down to this: We need the tunnels. Southern California needs them to secure (not to increase) its water supply. So does much of the Bay Area, despite the false belief by many residents there that they are independent of the delta and imported water. So does the delta itself, which is suffering from the operation of pumps at its southern end that reverse the flow of a portion of the San Joaquin River and suck migratory fish to their doom. So does the entire state, even those portions that dont directly use delta water, because they are economically intertwined with agricultural industries and urban areas that do rely on that water. California should not for a moment slow work on the next generation of sustainable, local water projects, but they will take time, and many of them are as yet untested, at least on the scale we will need them to be. The state needs backup. The tunnels provide it.

If Californias water is its lifeblood, its heart is the delta, where the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers meet and carry much of the states rainwater and melted snow through a succession of bays and to the Pacific  or else, through diversions, to irrigate Central Valley fields and provide water to urban areas from Silicon Valley to L.A. and many points south. The tunnels are a kind of coronary bypass, sending Sacramento River water to the aqueduct without it first having to go through the delta.

The point of the project is not to send Southern California more water, but rather to lessen the reductions that we will inevitably see in coming years. Imports are likely to continue to decline from each of the great, but aging, projects. Los Angeles will take less from the Owens River as the city reckons with the years of environmental damage William Mulhollands project visited on Mono Lake and the Owens Valley. Southern California cities will get less from the Colorado River, as other states exercise rights they didnt need when their populations and economies were smaller. Even with the tunnels, the delta will likely provide less. But the tunnels will allow water to be diverted to Central and Southern California during wet winter storm pulses when scientists have determined that the delta ecology has what it needs.

The physical infrastructure will be only as environmentally responsible as the laws and regulations that govern it, and many of the details have yet to be determined.

One thing urban ratepayers can count on, though, is that their water bills will go up. The issue is whether they will be paying more because they are financing a project that keeps a sustainable amount of water coming to them, or because there is no project and water therefore becomes a scarcer and more precious commodity.

There is a lot of work to be done on water reclamation, recapture and reuse, which may eventually sustain us. In the meantime  build the tunnels.

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The California coastline belongs to all of us. It cannot be bought. That hasnt stopped people from trying, however, by blocking access to the beaches near their homes. Up and down the coast, property owners are obstructing designated public paths across their properties to the beach, and theyre spending small fortunes to fight orders from the California Coastal Commission or the courts to do otherwise.

One notable beach-blocker is billionaire venture capitalist Vinod Khosla. After buying an expansive property south of Half Moon Bay in 2008, Khosla closed off a regularly used access road through it to the popular Martins Beach. Since 2009, he has battled San Mateo County officials, the Coastal Commission and the courts in his effort to keep the road closed.

Contending that there was no easement through his land, he argued that forcing him to keep the road open essentially violated his property rights. The Coastal Commission and the Surfrider Foundation, which sued him, countered that the road  the only dry land route to the beach  had been historically accessible to the public and heavily used since the 1920s. They also say that Khosla was well aware of that when he bought the property.

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But last week, the gates suddenly opened. Had Khosla finally done the right thing and restored access to Martins Beach? Not exactly. His representatives told Coastal Commission officials that they would open the gates from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., provided someone on the property was available to do so. Sorry, but thats not the maximum access the law requires, as Coastal Commission officials have rightly pointed out. The beach  when it has been accessible  has been used to surf, fish, swim, picnic, watch the sun rise and watch it set. That means keeping the road open for longer than banking hours.

What these property owners dont seem to understand is that the beachfront property they bought came with strings attached.

Just as troubling, Khosla appears not to have given up the fight. A state appeals court panel in August upheld a lower courts ruling, in a suit filed by the Surfrider Foundation, that Khosla could not close the road without a permit to do so from the Coastal Commission. The appellate panel also said he had to maintain the same level of public access that existed before he bought the property. Khoslas attorneys have petitioned the state Supreme Court to review the case; Khosla is also suing the Coastal Commission in federal court.

Meanwhile, the commission notified Khosla last month that he was violating several provisions of the Coastal Act, and that penalties were accruing at up to $11,250 a day per violation. The penalty just for blocking access to the beach for the last two and a half years comes to more than $10 million, and is still accumulating.

Khosla can afford to keep fighting, unfazed by court orders and multimillion-dollar fines. But this is a ridiculous use of his resources and, frankly, his continued resistance is an affront to the public.

Sadly, Khosla is hardly alone. He follows in the sandy footsteps of other stubborn, deep-pocketed landowners whove spent years fighting the Coastal Commissions efforts to protect the publics access to beaches. Many of them are resisting to this day; the commission has 2,373 open violation cases, about a third of which are related to access. In another high-profile case, the commission fined a doctor, Warren M. Lent, and his wife, Henny, $4.2 million in December for diverting a public easement to private use at their oceanfront property in Malibu. The couple has been tussling with the commission for nine years, and are now suing the agency.

What these property owners dont seem to understand is that the beachfront property they bought came with strings attached: a requirement to let the public cross their property to reach the beach. Thats just the nature of living at the edge of this treasured  and public  shoreline. No less an authority than the state Constitution guarantees the public access to the coast. Either accept it or live further inland where you can completely wall off the public.

In Khoslas case, he has said that he simply doesnt want to maintain the access road or the amenities  like a cafe and a restroom  that were available on the beach near the road. Thats understandable, yet he has declined repeated offers from the Coastal Commission to work out an arrangement that limits his responsibility to opening the gate and minimally maintaining the road.

Khosla should accept that offer. But if he does keep fighting, so should the Coastal Commission.

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With President Trump, one can never be sure what action he will take on a controversial issue until he takes it  as he himself famously said, You want to be unpredictable. But several reports suggest that, after twice certifying to Congress that Iran is in compliance with the international agreement placing limits on its nuclear program, Trump will refuse to do so on Oct. 15.

That may sound like a prelude to U.S. withdrawal from the agreement, the reimposition of economic sanctions and, potentially, the resumption of nuclear activities by Iran. But to hear the Trump administration tell it, decertification wouldnt have that effect at all.

Indeed, some of Trumps advisors are even suggesting that decertification would lead to negotiations that would improve the agreement; they talk about a strategy of decertify and fix.

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That scenario, however, seems highly unlikely and, frankly, it doesnt strike us as the most likely explanation for a decision by Trump to disregard the advice of some of his key advisors and refuse to issue a third certification. A more plausible explanation is that this president is simply unable to admit that he was wrong when he denounced the agreement on the campaign trail as the worst deal ever negotiated.

Decertify and fix isnt a considered strategy; its an attempt to contain the damage from a presidents refusal to admit that he was wrong.

The truth about the deal is that while it is imperfect, it is clearly in the interest of the United States. As Trumps own defense secretary, James N. Mattis, told Congress this week, its something that the president should consider staying with. Equally important, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Iran has been complying with its terms.

Why is Trump being asked to certify Iranian compliance on Oct. 15? The problem lies with language in the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act, the law passed by Congress and reluctantly signed by President Obama in 2015.

Under the law, the president must certify every 90 days not only that Iran is complying with the letter of the nuclear agreement but also that the suspension of U.S. sanctions against Iran is appropriate and proportionate to the specific and verifiable measures taken by Iran with respect to terminating its illicit nuclear program and vital to the national security interests of the United States.

This imprecise language would allow Trump to refuse to certify Iranian compliance even though Iran has been abiding by the agreement. At that point Congress would have 60 days to debate whether to reimpose sanctions.

The premise of decertify and fix seems to be that Congress wouldnt actually follow through and reimpose sanctions. Instead, the mere possibility that it might do so would pressure Iran to return to the bargaining table to make new concessions, such as extending the time period of restrictions in the agreement on its nuclear-related activities or agreeing to limits on its ballistic missile program. Supposedly, American allies would join the U.S. in pressing Iran to make further concessions.

This is a highly speculative strategy and it could easily backfire. The U.S. and its allies should explore the possibility of engaging Iran in negotiations over extending the life of the nuclear agreement or placing limitations on its ballistic missile program. But such negotiations will be less, not more, likely if Trump throws the status of the current agreement into confusion by refusing to certify Iranian compliance and tossing the issue back to Congress.

Why would Iran consider negotiating a new agreement with representatives of the U.S. when this country is attempting to undermine an agreement it signed only two years ago? And why would U.S. allies go along with this gambit? They wouldnt.

Decertify and fix isnt a considered strategy; its an attempt to contain the damage from a presidents refusal to admit that he was wrong. If Trump really wants to be unpredictable, hell put the interest of the country first and certify again that Iran is in compliance.

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To the editor: The deadly toll of mass murders will continue to rise until citizens get more mad than sad. (We dont need your prayers in Sin City. We need gun control, Opinion, Oct. 4)

The repeated national emphasis on sadness that follows these attacks evokes the emotion of empathy and our shared humanity. That is fine, but it does not evoke much action outward. This emotion is cultivated by leaders who do not want us to get angry, unless terrorists, who we are encouraged to fear, are involved. Then it seems to be OK for people get mad and want to do something.

Polls suggest that people dont fear guns in the hands of Americans, but they do fear terrorists, and this fear underlies most anger. The problem is that were not fearful of the more than 300 million guns and especially the millions of assault-type weapons, which can often be transformed into automatic weapons.

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The anger must start by changing our mass mediated messages about fear: It is our fellow Americans, often armed to the teeth, who provide the largest threat to our lives. We need to focus on the arms industry, on the lobbyists and on Congress. This cabal has no qualms about providing numerous assault rifles to virtually anyone who wants one, and that is scary.

Lets mourn the slain, but then lets get mad at what we should fear.

David Altheide, Solana Beach

The writer, a professor at the Arizona State University School of Social Transformation, is the author of the book Terrorism and the Politics of Fear.

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To the editor: Before District of Columbia vs. Heller was decided in 2008, the late Chief Justice Warren Burger correctly called the reasoning underpinning it  that the 2nd Amendment guarantees an individual right to own guns  a fraud. In fact, there is nothing in the 2nd Amendment that gives ordinary citizens the right to bear arms.

Freedom isnt free, as the saying goes, so make gun owners pay for it.  Elisabeth Eliassen, Alameda

Because I made a film on the American Revolution, I studied colonial society for years. Any historian of that period worth their salt can tell you that the meaning of the amendment is not what Justice Antonin Scalia attributed to it in his Heller decision. If you understand colonial society, it is clear that this language pertains not to individuals but to the state militias  the purpose of the amendment is to establish that the federal government cannot prevent states from maintaining their own armed bodies for their own protection.

This does not mean that the founders intended individuals not to have guns; it means that the Constitution does not address the issue of individuals owning arms. Furthermore, the framers could not have imagined todays assault weapons any more than they could have imagined iPhones.

Steven Schechter, Thousand Oaks

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To the editor: One need only to look at the high homicide rate in Chicago to see that gun control does not prevent murder. Chicago has tough gun laws, and yet it has more homicides than any other U.S. city.

It is supremely more relevant to look at the closing of mental health institutions in California and elsewhere. Currently, there are not enough services for our fellow citizens with mental illnesses, contributing directly to incidents of mass murder.

Spending our resources on helping people suffering from delusions, paranoia, depression and other afflictions is a far better use of that money than trying to defeat the National Rifle Assn. or change the 2nd Amendment.

Catherine Wirtz, Westlake Village

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To the editor: I was raised in a family of hunters and recreational shooters, and my grandfather was a competitive trapshooter. As no stranger to gun culture, I say this: The NRA is no longer a sportsmens club.

Today its possible to legally purchase weapons and accessories capable of injuring or killing more than 500 people in a short period of time. Until this week, Congress was considering rolling back restrictions on silencers, and legislation was moving to require concealed carry reciprocity among the states.

These laws dont solve problems, they are problems.

If the Mandalay Bay hotel pool had chemically burned 500 people, we would regulate pool chemicals. We can and should pass common-sense gun laws. For example, AB 424, a bill to keep guns out of K-12 schools, is sitting on Gov. Jerry Browns desk.

No more thoughts and prayers. Its time for action.

Darby Saxbe, Los Angeles

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To the editor: When you purchase and drive a car, you have to be licensed and you need to register the car and pay for insurance; occasionally, one must attend traffic school.

We need to tie gun ownership to the civic duty implicit in the 2nd Amendment phrase well regulated militia. The surest path to this is waving the possibility of shiny new revenue streams at our state governments and the insurance industry.

Make gun owners pay in these ways: certifications, registration and licensing that must be renewed; liability insurance; and required public service in the National Guard or local emergency management services.

Freedom isnt free, as the saying goes, so make gun owners pay for it.

Elisabeth Eliassen, Alameda

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Orange County at center of fundraising in Californias most contested races By Sarah D. Wire More than half of the money raised for the most contested House races in California is going to candidates in Orange County, another indication of its starring role in the Democratic effort to win back control of the House next year. Of the 80 or so challengers in California, 27 are running in Orange County. A Los Angeles Times analysis of this years campaign finance filings found it is also where the cash is going to: About $15 million of the nearly $28.5 million raised this year for 13 key races went to candidates in just four Orange County districts: Read More Facebook

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Gov. Jerry Brown plans climate trip to Vatican, Belgium, Norway and Germany By Chris Megerian (Eric Risberg / Associated Press) Gov. Jerry Brown has mapped out a busy European travel schedule that includes attending the next United Nations conference on climate change in Bonn, Germany. While the White House declares war on climate science and retreats from the Paris Agreement, California is doing the opposite and taking action, Brown said in a statement. We are joining with our partners from every part of the world to do what needs to be done to prevent irreversible climate change. Roughly two dozen public events are planned over 10 days, starting with a speech at a Vatican symposium on Saturday. Brown wont be the only California politician at the conference. Rep. Scott Peters (D-San Diego) is speaking later that day, and state Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon (D-Los Angeles) is scheduled to appear Friday. After the Vatican, the governor is bouncing between Germany and Belgium, plus a stop in Norway to meet with scientists. Hes holding press conferences with the president of the European Parliament and the minister-president of Baden-Wurttemberg, a German state that has collaborated with California on an international climate pact. Once the Bonn conference begins, much of Browns focus will be on how states, provinces and other local governments can tackle climate change absent stronger action from national leaders. He was named a special advisor to the U.N. conference for states and regions earlier this year. Brown is scheduled to appear with former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Nov. 11 and speak at numerous other events, a packed itinerary much like the one he kept at the Paris climate conference two years ago. His last event is expected to take place Nov. 14. Facebook

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California business tax incentive program should end, legislative analyst says By Liam Dillon California no longer should give specific tax incentives to businesses and instead should provide broad-based tax relief, the states nonpartisan Legislative Analysts Office said in a new report. The analysts office examined California Competes, a program that began four years ago to give tax credits to businesses looking to move to the state or remain here, and found it puts existing companies that dont receive the awards at a disadvantage without clear benefits to the overall economy. Picking winners and losers inevitably leads to problems. In the case of California Competes, we are struck by how awarding benefits to a select group of businesses harms their competitors in California, the report said. We also think the resources consumed by the program are not as focused as they should be on winning economic development competitions with other states to attract major employers that sell to customers around the country and the world. California Competes has allowed the awarding of nearly $800 million in tax credits. The legislative analyst found that more than a third of the credits awarded through California Competes resulted in no change to the overall economy and put the states existing businesses at a competitive disadvantage. The analyst couldnt assess the value of the remainder of the credits because its impossible to know how businesses would have reacted had they not received them. California Competes is scheduled to end next year. The analysts office recommends replacing it by lowering business taxes overall or, should lawmakers want to keep it, tailor the program more narrowly to focus on attracting and retaining high-value companies. Facebook

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Electric companies found at fault in North Bay fires wont be able to pass costs onto residents under proposed bill By Liam Dillon Jason Miller, 45, plants an American flag on the charred remains of his house in Coffey Park. He had lived in the Santa Rosa neighborhood for 23 years. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) If electric utilities are found at fault in the recent wildfires in the North Bay, a group of state lawmakers want to ensure they dont pass along their costs to residents. Victims of devastating fires and other customers should not be forced to pay for the mistakes made by utilities, state Sen. Jerry Hill (D-San Mateo) said in a release. Hill is one of four Bay Area legislators who said they plan to introduce a bill when lawmakers return to the Capitol in January to block any effort by utilities found at fault to recoup any costs from ratepayers. Investigators have not identified the cause of the wildfires that ripped across Northern California this month that left more than 40 people dead and thousands of homes destroyed. But the lawmakers said their legislation is motivated by San Diego Gas & Electrics efforts to recover costs from wildfires in that region a decade ago. Co-authoring the bill with Hill is Sen. Mike McGuire (D-Healdsburg), Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) and Assemblyman Marc Levine (D-San Rafael). Facebook

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Proposed initiative would end early release for some crimes, allow more DNA collection By Patrick McGreevy (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times) A coalition including police officers and prosecutors on Monday proposed a California state initiative that would end early release of rapists and child traffickers and expand the number of crimes for which authorities could collect DNA samples from those convicted. The ballot measure is sponsored by the California Public Safety Partnership, and would reverse some elements of Proposition 47, which was approved by voters in 2014 and reduced some crimes deemed nonviolent from a felony to a misdemeanor. The proposed initiative would add 15 crimes to the list of violent crimes for which early release is not an option, including child abuse, rape of an unconscious person, trafficking a child for sex, domestic violence and assault with a deadly weapon. These reforms make sure that truly violent criminals stay in jail and dont get out early, said Sacramento County Dist. Atty. Anne Marie Schubert, a leader of the coalition. The initiative would also allow DNA collection for certain crimes, including drug offenses, that were reduced to misdemeanors under Proposition 47. Assemblyman Jim Cooper (D-Elk Grove) said there have been 2,000 fewer hits matching DNA to cold cases annually in recent years. He cited one case from 1989 involving the murder of two young girls in Sacramento that was solved last year by DNA taken from a man in a drug case before those were excluded from DNA collection. If that case happens today, right now, it does not get solved, said Cooper, a former sheriffs captain. Changes in law also made theft of goods valued at less than $950 a misdemeanor, so some criminals are committing serial thefts and keeping each one to $949 or less, Cooper said. The initiative would make serial theft a felony. The measure also mandates a parole revocation hearing for anyone who violates the terms of their parole three times. A Whittier police officer was recently murdered by a parolee who had violated parole five times, said Los Angeles Police Protective League President Craig Lally, who supports the initiative. A representative of the group behind Proposition 47 said it was not reasonable to blame the ballot measure for an uptick in some crimes in some parts of the state. Fluctuations in crime have much more to do with economic and social policies and practices, said Tom Hoffman, a spokesman for the group Californians for Safety and Justice. Its so much more complicated than one piece of legislation as an issue. The proponents of the initiative need to collect signatures from 365,880 voters by the end of April to qualify the initiative for the November 2018 election. Facebook

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When men with power go too far: After years of whispers, women speak out about harassment in Californias Capitol By Chris Megerian Tina McKinnor, left, Sadalia King, Amy Thoma Tan, Jodi Hicks and Sabrina Lockhart have come forward to talk about their experiences with sexual harassment at the Capitol. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times) It started with a dinner invitation from a former assemblyman more than twice her age. He had offered his services as a mentor, but his hand reaching for her knee under the table revealed other intentions. Then came the late-night phone calls and unexpected appearances at events she had to attend for her job in the Capitol. Fresh out of college, Amy Brown did what she thought women were supposed to do in these situations  she reported him. The former assemblyman accused her of slander, an experience that left her so humiliated that she left Sacramento for a new job in San Jose. I immediately got the hell out of town, Brown said. I felt like the people  the person  I was relying on for advancement in my career was preying on me. Stories like these have taken many forms through the years. Sometimes its a professional meeting that turned inappropriately sexual, or its a groping hand on a backside. In one case, a woman said a lawmaker masturbated in front of her in a bar bathroom. No matter the details, each story involves a man with power  the kind of power bestowed by voters, an influential lobbying client or a supply of campaign cash. And instead of wielding that power to shape politics or public policy, the man used it to proposition women or to touch them inappropriately. Read More Facebook

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Big jump in the number of House challengers isnt great news for California Republicans By Christine Mai-Duc So far this year, 80 challengers have reported raising money across California for the 2018 midterm elections, more than triple the number who had done so at this point in the 2016 election. Collectively, theyve raised more than $14.9 million, and 70% of that has gone to the four Republican-held districts in Orange County that Democrats consider key to their chances. There havent been this many congressional challengers in Californias House races this early in the game since at least 2003, and that could be bad news for Republican incumbents. Read More Facebook

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Californias Senate culture doesnt encourage women to file complaints. Heres how that could change By Melanie Mason Senate leader Kevin de Leon (D-Los Angeles), shown in September, acknowledged that the Senate could improve its procedures for reporting misconduct. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) In 2014, reeling from scandals that led to the suspension of three Democratic senators, Californias state Senate changed its policies to make it easier for employees, members and the public to sound the alarm about misconduct. A Times analysis of those rule changes shows a lack of follow-through to make reporting complaints more accessible. And the lawmaker who worked on changes in the Senates operations after that scandal says more could have been done. Then-Senate leader Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento) suggested at the time that the move would lead to positive cultural change and strengthen the integrity of this great institution. But as the Capitol now soul-searches over allegations of widespread sexual harassment, the current legislative leaders acknowledge the culture still does not encourage women to file complaints. The Senates effort to reform itself three years ago  and how it fell short  is instructive as both legislative houses embark on a new round of self-improvement. Read More Facebook

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Have you experienced sexual harassment in government or politics? Tell us your story If you work in government or politics and have experienced sexual harassment, wed like to hear from you. Please tell us your story using the form below. We will not share your personal contact information. Facebook

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California Assembly Speaker applauds Capitol staffers bravery in going public with complaint against assemblyman By Melanie Mason Gyore spoke publicly for the first time about a 2009 complaint she filed against Bocanegra. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times) Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Paramount) said Friday that the experience of a staffer who filed a complaint eight years ago against now-Assemblyman Raul Bocanegra illustrates why the Capitol culture must change. Elise Flynn Gyore told The Times about her experience filing a complaint against Bocanegra, who was then a legislative staffer, after she said he groped her and followed her in a manner she found threatening at a 2009 after-work event in a Sacramento bar. The Friday morning story in The Times was the first time she had spoken publicly of the incident and the complaint, which resulted in Bocanegra being disciplined. I appreciate Ms. Gyores bravery in bringing this incident forward. We have to change the culture in the Capitol and in society and her experience shows why, Rendon said in a statement Friday afternoon. How incidents of harassment were handled in the past can inform our current efforts to improve the system and to build a future where these injustices are prevented before they happen and no employee has to fear harassment or abuse. Bocanegra, who was first elected in 2012, is part of Rendons leadership team, serving in the position of majority whip. A top lieutenant to Rendon, Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher (D-San Diego), also chimed in with support for Gyore on Friday. I dont know Elise Gyore. But, I believe her & Im grateful for her bravery. This is unacceptable.  Lorena (@LorenaSGonzalez) October 27, 2017 Former Speaker John A. Perez (D-Los Angeles), who led the Assembly from 2010 to 2014, said he was unaware of the complaints existence until The Times report. He said he had never heard of any complaints  formal or informal  against Bocanegra, nor had he witnessed any inappropriate behavior from the Pacoima Democrat. Also on Friday, the organizers of We Said Enough, a recently launched campaign against harassment, thanked Gyore for sharing her story. This is an act of true courage  and we support every woman who chooses to do so. Sadly, this story is just one example of how the existing system fails victims and survivors. We are resolute in our call for action, the group said in a statement. The groups organizers added that they are calling for an overhaul to the complaint process  such as confidential reporting, an independent oversight body and whistleblower protections  to better guard against harassment. Read More Facebook

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Gov. Jerry Brown says California Republicans have slavish adherence to their partys tax plan By John Myers (Rich Pedroncelli/AP) Gov. Jerry Brown took aim at the sweeping tax overhaul plan in Congress and Californias Republican delegation on Thursday, saying their support of the plan is wrong economically and morally. Brown, who joined New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on a conference call with reporters, aimed most of his fire at the provision to cancel deducting local and state taxes paid from federal taxes. Both governors said it could have a profound impact on their states bottom lines. Brown criticized Californias 14 Republican House members for their Thursday budget vote, which allows for a $1.5-trillion deficit to help finance tax cuts. I know there is a lot of slavish adherence to the Republican leadership, Brown said. Its bad for California. Theyre doing a disservice. California and New York taxpayers have long been able to deduct the cost of paying local and state taxes from their federal tax liability. Both governors said Thursday they believed the effort by President Trump and Republicans to be at least somewhat motivated by their states voting for Democrat Hillary Clinton over Trump last November. Its using a handful of states to finance the tax cuts for their states, Cuomo said. Brown, who sent personal letters to all California GOP members of the House urging them not to go along, said the proposal was particularly unfair in light of how it would not apply equally to corporations. Its a gross manipulation of our tax code, he said. Its a Hail Mary pass by the Republicans. Facebook

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Heres why Republicans could help send Dianne Feinstein back to Washington  even if they cant stand her By Mark Z. Barabak Its the voters like Republican Larry Ward  conservatives who feel voiceless and adrift, bobbing like red specks in a blue sea  who could help usher the 84-year-old Dianne Feinstein back to Washington with a new lease on her Senate seat. Like most voters here in El Dorado County, Ward supported President Trump. He cant understand why Democrats and the media pile on and keep him from cutting taxes and fulfilling a campaign pledge to repeal Obamacare. He certainly doesnt think Feinsteins been too kind to Trump  the argument made by her newly announced challenger, Kevin de Leon. The state senator from Los Angeles and others on the left were spitting fire a few weeks back when Feinstein allowed as how she hoped, given time and a radical transformation, Trump might end up being a good president. Read More Facebook

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Car runs into immigration protesters outside Rep. Ed Royces district office By Sarah D. Wire  A vehicle drove into a group of protesters outside of GOP Rep. Ed Royces office in Brea on Thursday afternoon, but no injuries have been reported to police so far. (Tony Mendoza / Unite Here) A vehicle drove into a group of protesters outside GOP Rep. Ed Royces office in Brea on Thursday afternoon, but no injuries have been reported to police so far. The alleged driver, 56-year-old Daniel Wenzek of Brea, was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon. He was booked and released pending further investigation, according to Lt. Kelly Carpenter of the Brea Police Department. Organizers say several hundred people were protesting outside Royces office, many of them arriving on buses after a morning news conference with elected officials and labor leaders in Los Angeles MacArthur Park. They were trying to deliver letters to Royce (R-Fullerton) about what losing temporary protected immigration status would mean to them, said Andrew Cohen, a communications specialist with the organization Unite Here. Read More Facebook

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California Secretary of State Alex Padilla backs Gavin Newsom for governor over former colleague Antonio Villaraigosa By Seema Mehta California Secretary of State Alex Padilla, left, and Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) Secretary of State Alex Padilla, the highest-ranking Latino in a statewide elected position in California, endorsed Gavin Newsom for governor on Thursday. Padilla said he had known Newsom for more than a decade and admired his track record as mayor of San Francisco and now lieutenant governor. Its always important to [have] leaders that are committed and get it done, and thats what Ive seen in Gavin Newsom over and over and over again, Padilla said, speaking to dozens of Newsom supporters at a union hall in downtown Los Angeles. The endorsement was seen as a slap at former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who is one of Newsoms top rivals in the governors race. Padilla was president of the Los Angeles City Council during the two years Villaraigosa was a member of the body, and for the first six months of Villaraigosas tenure as mayor. But the two men have never been viewed as close allies. They come from different power bases for Latino politicians in Los Angeles  Villaraigosa from the Eastside and Padilla from the San Fernando Valley. They also have not supported each others political pursuits. In 2001, Padilla backed James Hahn over Villaraigosa in the mayoral race. In 2006, Villaraigosa backed Cindy Montanez in a state Senate race over Padilla. Padilla said he has a relationship with all of the top Democrats running for governor. This is a tough one because I do know Antonio Villaraigosa and I know John Chiang and I know Gavin Newsom, but I think that because of whats happening in the political environment at this time, this isnt one where we can sit back, Yeah. OK. Cool, lets see who wins and well work with whoever, Padilla said. If there is a candidate I believe is best for the future of California, Im compelled to weigh in and thats what Im doing today. Luis Vizcaino, a Vilaraigosa spokesman, said the announcement was to be expected and noted that Padilla had a leadership role in Newsoms short-lived 2009 gubernatorial campaign. The only surprise here is we thought Alex had endorsed Gavin months ago considering he was Gavins Campaign Chair the first time he ran for governor, Vizcaino said in an email. Villaraigosa and Chiang, the state treasurer, have also received key endorsements from Latino politicians. Villaraigosa has the backing of the Latino Caucus in the state Legislature, former Los Angeles County Supervisor Gloria Molina and Lucille Roybal-Allard. Chiang has won the support of Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon and Los Angeles City Councilman Jose Huizar. Updated at 2:07 p.m.: This post was updated to add a comment from Villaraigosas campaign. Facebook

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Californias Rep. Paul Cook picked to lead Foreign Affairs subcommittee By Sarah D. Wire Rep. Paul Cook (R-Yucca Valley) has been named chairman of the House Foreign Affairs subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-Fullerton) made the announcement in a news release Thursday morning following the former subcommittee chairman Rep. Jeff Duncans (R-S.C.) departure from the committee this week. As a former Marine Corps colonel, Rep. Cook is deeply committed to defending U.S. interests worldwide. I look forward to working with him to continue holding the [Raul] Castro and [Nicolas] Maduro regimes [of Cuba and Venezuela, respectively] accountable for their brutal repression, while increasing U.S. commercial opportunities throughout the hemisphere, Royce said in a statement. California holds several leadership positions on the Foreign Affairs Committee. Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Costa Mesa) is the chairman of the Europe, Eurasia, and Emerging Threats subcommittee. Rep. Brad Sherman of Sherman Oaks is the highest ranking Democrat on the Asia and the Pacific subcommittee and Rep. Karen Bass of Los Angeles is the highest ranking Democrat on the Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations subcommittee. Facebook

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GOP tightens restrictions on Rep. Dana Rohrabachers subcommittee because of scrutiny over his Russia connections By Sarah D. Wire Rep. Dana Rohrabacher speaks to Russian lawmakers at a meeting in the Russian parliaments lower house in Moscow in 2013. (Misha Japaridze / Associated Press) The congressional subcommittee led by California Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Costa Mesa) is being heavily monitored by GOP leaders because of allegations the Orange County congressman has been overly influenced by his connections to Russia. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-Fullerton) will be more involved in guiding the direction of the subcommittee that is in part responsible for examining U.S. policy in Russia, said a senior congressional aide who asked not to be identified in order to discuss internal committee matters. Rohrabacher has long said that the United States needs a better relationship with Russia, puzzling colleagues who have speculated privately about why hes willing to work with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Connections between Rohrabacher and Russian officials have been newly highlighted as Congress investigates Russian attempts to interfere in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Read More Facebook

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Californias GOP members vote in favor of Republican budget, paving way for tax overhaul By Sarah D. Wire All 14 California House Republicans on Thursday voted in favor of the GOPs budget, which paves the way for overhauling the U.S. tax system. The budget, which allows for a $1.5-trillion deficit increase that sets the stage for President Trumps tax cuts, passed 216 to 212, with 20 Republicans joining Democrats in opposing it. At the root of their objection is the potential repeal of the federal deduction for state and local taxes, which would hit especially hard in wealthier states like New York and California. Gov. Jerry Brown had implored the GOP members not to support the budget, saying there hasnt been enough time to fully understand what it will mean to the estimated 1 in 3 Californians who claim the deduction. Democrats are targeting nine of the states 14 Republican-held districts, and have said theyll make the elimination of the tax deduction an issue in the campaign. Rep. Steve Knight of Palmdale said he voted for the budget because hes been assured that a fix will be made to the tax plan that will address or offset the potential tax increase caused by the elimination of the tax deduction. The tax plan is scheduled to be unveiled next week. Still worried about it, still working on it, Knight said after the vote. I am confident [it will be fixed], but Ive also said that is my No. 1 priority, so if we cant get it fixed then were going to have problems. Facebook

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Gov. Jerry Brown urges California GOP House members to vote no on budget bill: First lets get the facts By Sarah D. Wire Gov. Jerry Brown implores each GOP member of California delegation to vote no on budget today over end of state and local tax deduction. pic.twitter.com/bkCihAtvFG  Sarah D. Wire (@sarahdwire) October 26, 2017 Gov. Jerry Brown implored Californias GOP House members to oppose their partys budget bill over a provision that will end a deduction for state and local taxes used by one in three Californians. In letters to each Republican member of the California congressional delegation, Brown asked the members to at least ask for more time to learn the specifics of the plan. First lets get the facts. Then, debate the issue. And then we can decide whats the right thing to do, Brown says in his letter. The potential repeal of the state and local tax (SALT) deduction  the federal income tax deduction for state and local taxes paid  would hit especially hard in wealthier areas. The vote is scheduled to take place Thursday morning. Facebook

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Six female California lawmakers back Dianne Feinstein in Senate race By Sarah D. Wire Assemblywomen Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, right, and Susan Talamantes-Eggman in May. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) Six California Assembly committee chairwomen endorsed Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein on Wednesday over their state Capitol colleague, Senate leader Kevin de Leon. In a statement released by Feinsteins campaign, Assemblymembers Cristina Garcia (D-Bell Gardens), Susan Talamantes Eggman (D-Stockton), Jacqui Irwin (D-Thousand Oaks), Blanca E. Rubio (D-Baldwin Park), Cecilia Aguiar-Curry (D-Winters) and Anna Caballero (D-Salinas) said the state needs Feinstein in these uncertain and difficult times. We are proud to endorse Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who has been an inspiration for all of us. The first woman to serve on the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Feinstein is now the ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Committee. In that position, she is defending California against the Republicans and the Trump administration on critical issues like immigration, womens rights, federal judicial appointments, LGBT rights, civil rights, and gun control, they said. De Leon is the highest-profile Democrat to announce plans to challenge Feinstein in her bid for a fifth full term. Facebook

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Kevin de Leon vows to back Medicare for all, signaling key issue in 2018 Senate campaign By Sarah D. Wire State Senate leader Kevin de Leons opening salvo in the U.S. Senate race against Sen. Dianne Feinstein takes on one of the main frustrations progressives have voiced with her, a refusal to support single-payer health care. I believe that every family, it doesnt make a difference who you are or where you come from, deserves to have quality healthcare. It is a universal right, De Leon says in a video released by his campaign Wednesday. Its not the exclusive privilege of the elite and the wealthy. The concept of single-payer healthcare has grown in popularity among Democrats since the 2016 election, with some members of the so-called Sanders wing of the party urging Democrats to use support for it as a litmus test in 2018. Such a program is unlikely to become law while Republicans control both chambers of Congress. Feinstein has said she doesnt support expanding Medicare to the entire population at this stage and has cited the cost of doing so as a reason. If he were elected, De Leon would join Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) and 15 other Democratic Senators as co-sponsors of the bill proposed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). Facebook

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Sen. Kamala Harris wont back federal spending bill without DACA fix By Sarah D. Wire Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) said Wednesday that she wont back a bill that allows the federal government to spend money unless Congress has a legislative fix to address the legal status of hundreds of thousands of people brought to the country illegally as children. I will not vote for an end-of-year spending bill until we are clear about what we are going to do to protect and take care of our DACA young people in this country, Harris said. Each day in the life of these young people is a very long time, and weve got to stop playing politics with their lives. President Trump announced in September that he was giving Congress until March before the program would shutter and recipients would begin losing work permits and protection from deportation. An estimated 200,000 of the nearly 800,000 recipients of the Delayed Action for Childhood Arrivals program live in California, giving the Golden State an outsized stake in resolving their legal status. Harris spoke at a Capitol Hill news conference Wednesday with other members of the California delegation to urge quick action on the issue. It is absolutely urgent that we pass the legislation, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) said. We are determined that the Dream Act will be the law of the land before the year is out. Democrats and Republicans are negotiating the details of a fix, and when something could pass. Pelosi has hinted that if Republicans dont have the votes within their party to pass the end-of-year spending bill, which Congress has to pass to keep the government open, Democrats will offer their votes  for a price. Facebook

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Rep. Dana Rohrabacher gets a second Republican challenger By Christine Mai-Duc A second Republican is jumping in to challenge GOP Rep. Dana Rohrabacher of Costa Mesa, and hes pitching himself as an alternative for conservatives who are fed up with Rohrabachers controversial antics. Paul Martin, 52, is a freelance writer and self-proclaimed Reagan Republican who lives in Costa Mesa. Rohrabacher is himself a former speechwriter for Reagan. Martin grew up in Anaheim with an Italian immigrant mother and a Mexican American father, and says hes opposed to many of the policies coming out of the Trump administration. Ive had enormous struggle with the rhetoric thats coming out of Washington, D.C., and even more so with the rhetoric that comes out of Dana Rohrabachers mouth, Martin said in an interview. Its just not in the spirit that I grew up with. Following President Trumps travel ban announcement, Martin started the Christian-Muslim Alliance, a campaign aimed at fostering dialogue between people of different faiths. He describes himself as a raging centrist on a personal blog, where hes criticized Trumps response to white supremacist violence in Charlottesville, Va., and Rohrabacher for taking money from the National Rifle Assn. Still, Martin says hes a true conservative who wants to focus on issues of human dignity and bring better-paying jobs to the district. Facebook

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Gov. Jerry Brown, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott send a message with their World Series bet By John Myers (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) As governors of states hit hard by natural disasters, the leaders of California and Texas hope to send a message with their wager on the outcome of the World Series. The winner will receive food or drink from either Californias wine country or Houstons best barbecue joints. The bet, made Tuesday before the start of the first World Series game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Houston Astros, came with a request from both Gov. Jerry Brown and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott for tourists to come back to those regions as soon as possible. While we dont expect to have to send any vino to Texas, we hope travelers from all over the world  yes, even the Lone Star State  will continue to visit California, said Brown in a written statement. If the Dodgers win, Abbott will send Brown Texas-style barbecue and a six-pack of Houston-brewed beer. Should the Astros prevail, Brown has promised wine from the Sonoma, Napa and Mendocino regions. Texas and California are recovering from some of the worst natural disasters our states have ever encountered, Abbott said in a joint statement from the two governors. As we work to overcome these challenges, our two states are united by Americas pastime as we cheer on our home teams in the World Series. Go Astros! Facebook

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California Assembly to hold public hearings to address sexual harassment By Melanie Mason Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon, right. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)) The California Assembly will hold public hearings next month to address sexual harassment in the Capitol, Democratic lawmakers announced Tuesday, as allegations of pervasive mistreatment continue to ripple through Sacramento. The announcement comes one day after the California Senate announced it has hired lawyers and human resources consultants to investigate allegations of widespread sexual harassment and evaluate Senate procedures. In a joint statement, Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Paramount), Assemblyman Ken Cooley (D-Rancho Cordova) and Assemblywoman Laura Friedman (D-Glendale) said that sexual harassment of any kind is intolerable. The lawmakers say a three-pronged approach is necessary to confront the issue: changing a climate that has been permissive to sexual harassment, offering victims have a safe place to discuss complaints and ensuring that sexual harassment is dealt with expeditiously and that the seriousness of consequences match the violations committed, they said in a statement. Vowing a comprehensive effort to address these issues, lawmakers said there will be public hearings in November to discuss how the Legislature can tackle the issue. The panel, tasked to discuss harassment, discrimination and retaliation prevention and response, is chaired by Friedman and was formed in June, though it has not yet met. The panel is a subcommittee of the powerful Rules committee, chaired by Cooley, which functions as the chambers de facto human resources department. As we move forward, we must remember that the bottom line is harassers need to stop their abusive actions, the statement said. The rest of us need to call out harassment and abuse by its name and stigmatize this behavior each and every single time we see it. Adama Iwu, who helped organize the public letter published last week decrying an atmosphere of sexual harassment in the Capitol, said she and some of the women who signed the letter were concerned if any victim would be asked to testify with no legal guarantee against retaliation. Furthermore, we are concerned about the divergent paths of the Assembly and Senate, Iwu said in a statement. It is imperative that we work with outside experts, as part of a public independent review with whistleblower protections, to address the pervasive culture of sexual harassment in the Capitol community. Meanwhile, the trade association representing lobbyists, the Institute of Governmental Advocates, said in a statement Tuesday that it unequivocally supports [the women who signed the letter] and any other person in our Capitol community who has suffered harassment. Dates for the hearings, which are expected in late November, have not been set. Facebook

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Recall effort against Sen. Josh Newman still on track after too few voters request to remove their names from petitions By Patrick McGreevy State Sen. Josh Newman (D-Fullerton), left, listens to debate in June on a measure to change the rules governing recall elections. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) Of the more than 70,600 voters who signed petitions to hold a recall vote on state Sen. Josh Newman of Fullerton, only 849 asked that their signatures be withdrawn by the deadline, clearing a major hurdle for an election on whether to oust the Democratic lawmaker, officials said Tuesday. Opponents of the recall needed to get more than 7,000 voters to withdraw their signatures to deprive supporters of the 63,593 signatures needed to put the measure on the ballot, under a new system approved recently by the Democratic-controlled Legislature that slows down the process. Sen. Josh Newman has spent months lying to his constituents by claiming people were duped into signing the recall petition against him, and with todays tally, he has been unmasked again as a pathological liar who is unfit to hold office, said Carl DeMaio, a Republican activist heading the recall drive. We eagerly look forward to voters having a chance to vote him out for his lies and his decision to increase the gas tax. Newman won a close contest last November in a district formerly represented by a Republican. He was targeted for recall by Republican activists for voting in April for a $52-billion transportation plan that raises gas taxes and imposes a new annual vehicle fee. A successful recall would deprive Democrats of a supermajority in the Senate. Once Secretary of State Alex Padilla certifies that there are sufficient valid signatures based on the data collected Tuesday, the new process calls for him to notify the state Department of Finance, which will be given 30 business days to prepare a cost estimate for the recall election. Once the estimate is prepared, the Joint Legislative Budget Committee will have 30 calendar days to review and comment on the estimate, said Sam Mahood, a spokesman for Padilla. On the following business day, the secretary of State will certify to the governor that the recall has qualified for the ballot. That could happen as late as Jan. 11 if the reviews take all the time allotted. Gov. Jerry Brown must then call an election to be held 60 to 80 days later, or within 180 days if there is a regularly scheduled election within Senate District 29 during that period. There will be a June 2018 primary election for the Assembly districts that make up the Senate District, so Brown could consolidate the Senate recall vote with that state primary. However, the new, longer process could end up being abandoned if supporters of the recall are successful in a lawsuit alleging the new rules are improper. At the same time, opponents of the recall have filed a lawsuit to block the recall, alleging petition circulators misled voters by saying their signatures would help repeal the gas tax. The underhanded methods used to qualify this recall likely represent one of the worst cases of voter fraud in California history, said Derek Humphrey, a consultant for the Newman campaign. Now, millions of tax dollars will be wasted to redo an election the Sacramento special interests lost barely a year ago. Its a shameful waste of money that voters will soundly reject and vote to keep Josh Newman fighting for them in the state Senate. Facebook

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Rep. Devin Nunes announces investigation into Obama-era uranium deal By David S. Cloud House Republicans are opening investigations of the Obama administrations 2010 decision to approve the sale of American uranium mines to a Russian-backed company, and California Rep. Devin Nunes is at the forefront. Nunes (R-Tulare), the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said at a news conference that his panel and the House Oversight Committee would jointly probe the deal, which President Trump has called the real Russia story. Nunes and other Trump supporters have raised the 7-year-old uranium deal while four congressional committees and Special Counsel Robert S. Mueller III are looking into Russia interference the 2016 election and whether Moscow had any direct links to the Trump campaign. Read More Facebook

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Former deputy director of California tax agency says he was fired for whistleblowing By Patrick McGreevy The state Capitol (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) A former deputy director of the state Board of Equalization said Tuesday he was improperly fired this month after cooperating with a state Department of Justice investigation into allegations that agency officials improperly used public resources. Mark DeSio was fired Oct. 12 as the director for external affairs of the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration, which recently was split off from the board in an agency shakeup. He has filed a whistleblower complaint and appeal to the state Personnel Board seeking reinstatement to his position. He alleges the agency before its split up was rife with nepotism and that there is improper hiring and use of employees from one fund to instead help elected board members in field offices. For more than a year, DeSio gave information about the BOE to the Department of Justice and several state agencies and auditors, right up until the time of his firing, said a press release from his attorney, Mary-Alice Coleman. Despite being pressured, DeSio refused to engage in certain activities. DeSios job was threatened multiple times during the course of his employment. In April, Gov. Jerry Brown called for a Justice Department probe of allegations that employees of the state Board of Equalization misused state resources assigning high-paid tax auditors to tasks such as directing traffic for community events promoting elected board members. Brown also set in motion steps that broke up the agency in June, putting the five-member board in one office, and tax collection and appeal system in two other offices. At the time, Brown cited serious problems of mismanagement identified in a Department of Finance audit of the agency, which is responsible for collecting $60 billion in tax revenue annually. DeSio said he has also provided information on alleged improprieties to the state Fair Political Practices Commission, which investigates political wrongdoing. Days before he was notified of his termination, DeSio said he told Department of Justice investigators that the board had misused 30 information officer positions as personal staff for board members. He also said supervisors overruled him when he refused to hire 10 new call center employees from funds not set aside for that purpose. He said 10 people were hired even after Brown had revoked the agencys hiring power. DeSios complaint alleges that in August 2016, board member Jerome Horton pressured DeSio to promote a particular employee who was funded by DeSios office, but actually worked in Hortons office. When DeSio refused, saying the employee was not the top-scoring candidate, the complaint says Horton became angry and his chief of staff threatened DeSio. Board Executive Director David Gau, the complaint alleges, contacted Desio and told him to either do what Horton wanted or be fired. After meeting with Department of Finance auditors, DeSio said he was contacted by Horton in November 2016. Horton demanded to know what DOF had asked and what documentation Desio had provided in response. DeSio said he refused to disclose what he gave the auditor. Horton threatened DeSio, saying, I only need one more vote to take you out, the complaint alleges. Horton disputed the allegations. If he has filed a complaint, the facts will show that I had an excellent professional relationship with Mr. DeSio and the allegations are not true, I had nothing to do with his termination, Horton said in a statement. Gau did not immediately respond to requests for comment. DeSio also alleged multiple cases of nepotism in the agency. In one example, he alleges agency officials improperly orchestrated the hiring of the man whose wife worked for a top manager at the agency. Updated at 3 pm to include comment from Board member Jerome Horton. Facebook

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Want the Sierra Clubs endorsement? Here are its standards By Chris Megerian The Sierra Club is setting some ground rules for California gubernatorial candidates that may want its endorsement. No. 1 on the list is independence from the oil industry, which has been a fault line in the Capitol during debates over climate change policies. This year, given how important Californias role has become to the nation for leadership on the environment, it made sense to lay out in advance what some of the overall characteristics that the endorsement committee will be looking for in candidates, said Kathryn Phillips, director of Sierra Club California. Other requirements include independence from the tobacco and e-cigarette industry and a commitment to public health, environmental equity and transparency. Facebook

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California Senate hires investigators to look into sexual harassment allegations By Melanie Mason California Senate leader Kevin de Leon will hire two outside firms to look into allegations of a widespread culture of sexual harassment in the state Capitol. De Leon announced Monday he has hired the law office of Amy Oppenheimer to conduct an external investigation into harassment and assault allegations, and the consulting firm CPS HR Consulting to review Senate policies on harassment, discrimination and retaliation. De Leon also sent letters to lobbyists in the Capitol community detailing how existing rules protect non-employees. Theres always more employers can do to protect their employees, De Leon said in a statement. Everyone deserves a workplace free of fear, harassment and sexual misbehavior and I applaud the courage of women working in and around the Capitol who are coming forward and making their voices heard. The women behind an open letter sent last week calling out a pervasive culture of mistreatment in the political industry said that De Leons actions were insufficient. More than 140 women, including legislators, Capitol staff, political consultants and lobbyists, signed the letter. To find the truth and rebuild trust, we need a truly independent investigation, not a secretly hand-picked self-investigation, said Adama Iwu, a government affairs director for Visa who spearheaded the campaign. We need full transparency. How was this firm selected? Who will they report their findings to? What exactly are they investigating? Is the Assembly involved? Meanwhile, the women who have signed the letter, who have coalesced into a group called We Said Enough, announced they were formalizing their advocacy efforts on Monday by launching a nonprofit organization. The group plans to hold forums to outline a plan of action for improving how harassment and abuse complaints are reported, investigated and addressed. Facebook

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Kevin de Leon has millions in state campaign accounts that cant be rolled over to his Senate race By Patrick McGreevy State Senate leader Kevin De Leon has millions of dollars socked away in state campaign accounts, but federal law prohibits him from rolling over the money into his federal campaign for the U.S. Senate. So what options does the Los Angeles legislator have as he puts together a campaign to unseat Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a fellow Democrat, in next years election? Read More Facebook

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Gov. Jerry Brown heads to Washington to talk about the threat of nuclear war Facebook

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California Politics Podcast: What happens next in Sacramentos discussion of sexual harassment is important By John Myers Theres a big, challenging question beyond the initial shock of sexual harassment stories told by women working in California politics: What happens next? On this weeks California Politics Podcast, we discuss the allegations that have emerged from an open letter first reported by The Times on Tuesday. And a key part of the next chapter is how legislative leaders and the states major political parties respond to the concerns raised in the letter signed by more than 140 women. We also take a closer look at the new effort by wealthy activist Tom Steyer to demand impeachment proceedings against President Trump, and whether the San Francisco Democrat is thinking seriously about jumping into the U.S. Senate race. And with Gov. Jerry Browns action on hundreds of bills complete, we offer up a few notable decisions in those final signings and vetoes. Im joined by Times staff writer Melanie Mason and Marisa Lagos of KQED. Facebook

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Sen. Tom Cotton chides Californians: Your sanctuary cities werent enough, you had to have a sanctuary state instead By Phil Willon Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton addresses the California Republican Party at its fall convention in Anaheim. (Phil Willon / Los Angeles Times) Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton told California Republicans they should expect better days ahead, in part, because of liberal overreach by California Democrats on taxes, immigration and other issues affecting the daily lives of working-class Americans. Cotton invoked the memory of former president and California governor Ronald Reagan as a guiding light, and ridiculed House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) as a harbinger of doom. All it takes is a little new thinking applied with old principles. The principles of Ronald Reagan, Cotton told a packed ballroom at the California Republican Partys fall convention in Anaheim on Saturday. Cottons keynote address hewed toward traditional conservative themes and was peppered with light moments and witty jabs about the Democrats grip on California politics. When Jerry Brown has to veto your legislation because its too liberal, you might have to take a look in the mirror, Cotton told the crowd. It was a big departure from the speech the night before by GOP firebrand Steve Bannon, President Trumps former political strategist. Bannon unleased attacks on former President George W. Bush and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.). He told Republicans they needed to rise up in California or else the progressive left and lords of the Silicon Valley would try to secede from the union in 10 to 15 years. Cotton, who at 40 is the youngest member of the U.S. Senate, is widely believed to be eyeing a run for higher office. During the 2016 Republican National Convention, he was the most active politician on the breakfast circuit, visiting the South Carolina, Ohio, Iowa, New Hampshire and California delegations. California, of course, is home to more than 5 million Republican voters and has been a wellspring of political cash for GOP presidential candidates. Cottons message of hope has been a running theme throughout the three-day GOP gathering as the state party tries once again to turn things around in left-leaning California. The partys share of the state electorate has fallen to 26% and no Republican has been elected to statewide office since 2006. Cotton, however, told the party faithful to remain upbeat. Californias Republican members of Congress play a pivotal role in Washington, and there are ample opportunities to rekindle the partys presence in Sacramento and throughout the state. Cotton zeroed in on the new gas tax and vehicle fee hike in the state, which would raise $5.2 billion annually for transportation and mass transit improvements, saying it would hurt ordinary Californians. If you live in West L.A. or San Francisco and you have the money to afford a Tesla, maybe youll be OK, Cotton said. What about the farmer in the Central Valley who has a pickup truck and needs to fill it up three times a week? He also took shots at the so-called sanctuary state law signed this month by Gov. Jerry Brown, which will limit law enforcement agencies from questioning and detaining people for immigration violations. Your sanctuary cities werent enough, you had to have a sanctuary state instead, Cotton said. So all your citizens will face greater danger no matter where they live. Before he took the stage, the state GOP played a short video introduction of the Arkansas senator, focused on his experiences serving as an Army officer in Iraq and Afghanistan. In Washington, Cotton was a harsh critic of President Obama and is considered a hawk on national defense. During a hearing in June, Cotton also openly mocked the idea of the Trump administration colluding with Russia. Facebook

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House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy criticizes Gov. Brown, lauds Trump at California GOP convention By Seema Mehta McCarthy is lauding Trump for his "character and vision and understanding," compares him to Reagan. #cagop17 pic.twitter.com/AlyvgOvQWF  Seema (@LATSeema) October 21, 2017 House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) on Saturday blasted Gov. Jerry Brown over Democrats positioning the state as the liberal resistance to President Trump and for legislative efforts to circumvent the presidents policies. Brown, he warned, could be viewed similarly to southern governors who sought to pick and choose which federal laws to uphold during the civil rights era. He focused on Browns recent signing of a bill to make California a so-called sanctuary state, which will limit law enforcement agencies from questioning and detaining people for immigration violations. I dont think history will be very kind to Gov. Brown, McCarthy told a few hundred delegates and guests at a luncheon at the California Republican Party convention in Anaheim. California is a critical part of Democrats efforts to retake the House of Representatives, with a focus on seven Republican-held districts that Hillary Clinton won in the 2016 presidential election. Only one of the Republican representatives of those targeted districts had appeared at the convention as of Saturday afternoon, Rep. Mimi Walters of Irvine. McCarthy said Vice President Mike Pence raised $5 million for the efforts to protect the seats during a recent three-day fundraising trip through California, but he did not otherwise go into detail about the congressional battle expected in 2018. He instead lashed out at Republican members of the state Legislature who voted for Democratic policies. My advice to those Assembly members in Sacramento: You will not win a majority by thinking youll be Democrat-light. You will win the majority by showing the differences in the party, McCarthy said. You will not win the majority by voting against your own principles on a Democratic policy, and let Democratic targets vote no. You will not win the majority if youre concerned about being able to stand behind a podium with a Democratic governor instead of giving the freedom to Californians across this entire state. McCarthy did not name the members he was speaking about, but it was clear he was referring to Assemblyman Chad Mayes (R-Yucca Valley) and other Republicans who voted for an extension of the states cap-and-trade program this year. Mayes stepped down as Assembly Republican leader under pressure from others in his party who were upset over his vote for the climate change program, which requires companies to purchase permits to release greenhouse gases. McCarthy spoke a day after former Trump White House advisor Stephen K. Bannon addressed the group. Bannon has declared war on the GOP establishment, of which McCarthy is a member. McCarthy did not push back at Bannons remarks, which included criticism of former President George W. Bush and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.). Rather, McCarthy lauded Trumps vision, compared him to former President Reagan and pointed to economic gains and regulatory reform since Trump took office. What a difference nine months and one election makes, McCarthy said. What a difference: A man who ran for president on issues and keeps his word and actually enacts the things he promised to do. Trump has tried to enact many of his campaign promises but has been unsuccessful on several priorities, including a travel ban on citizens from Muslim-majority countries and a repeal of the Affordable Care Act. Tax reform is the latest priority on the Republicans agenda, and McCarthy promised that Congress would push a package by Thanksgiving that includes lowering rates for small businesses and corporations, and simplifying the tax code from seven income tax brackets to three. He also spoke out in support of one of the more controversial parts of the proposal: eliminating the deduction of state and local taxes. I dont think its fair for somebody else to subsidize poor management in California, McCarthy said. Look at the entire [tax reform] bill when it comes out, you will pay less. But no longer can Sacramento say, Im going to raise the rates just because Ill have the federal government subsidize it. They will have to be held accountable for when they want to raise taxes. Facebook

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Gold Star father Khizr Khan, who clashed with Trump during the election, goes after him again in California By Phil Willon Khizr Khan at the National Union of Healthcare Workers conference in Anaheim on Saturday. (Phil Willon / Los Angeles Times) Khizr Khan, the father of a Muslim U.S. Army captain killed in Iraq who feuded with Donald Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign, on Saturday criticized the Trump White House for its clash with a widow of a fallen soldier this week. Khan, speaking to reporters after addressing a National Union of Healthcare Workers conference in Anaheim, said the families of all military members killed in combat deserve to be treated with dignity and respect, especially in the days and weeks immediately following the death of their loved one. It was disappointing to see the behavior of [the White House], Khan said, before criticizing Trump administration officials for standing in front of the cameras and providing a defense for the indefensible behavior. Khans comments came just days after the uproar over Trumps call to the widow of Army Sgt. La David T. Johnson of Florida, one of four U.S. soldiers who died in an Oct. 4 ambush in Niger. Rep. Frederica S. Wilson of Florida was with Johnsons wife, Myeshia Johnson, in a car when the widow took Trumps call on speakerphone. Wilson publicly described Trumps comments as insensitive, saying he suggested that the sergeant knew what he was getting into when he joined the Army. White House Chief of Staff John F. Kelly, whose son was killed in combat, defended the presidents comments, saying that he advised Trump on what to say and that the president was trying to praise Johnsons unselfish military service as well as offer words of comfort to his widow. Khan avoided attacking Trump directly or expanding on his remarks, saying he will address the controversy in more detail after Johnsons memorial services. The clash between Khan and Trump ignited after Khans speech at the 2016 Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia. There, Khan ripped into Trump, then the Republican nominee for president. Hillary Clinton was right when she called my son the best of America. If it was up to Donald Trump, he never would have been in America, Khan said at the convention. Donald Trump consistently smears the character of Muslims. He disrespects other minorities  women, judges, even his own party leadership. He vows to build walls and ban us from this country. Trump responded by questioning whether Khans wife, who stood by her husbands side during the couples high-profile appearance, was silent because of her Muslim faith. The controversy ignited by Trumps jabs at a Gold Star family dragged on for days, and he drew rebukes from Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). During his speech to the healthcare union Saturday, Khan lamented the loss of civility in national political discourse and pointed squarely at the president. He said the current White House has sown division by attacking immigrants and belittling political rivals. Facebook

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California Teachers Assn. votes to endorse Gavin Newsom for governor By Seema Mehta Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks with participants of a march in Pan Pacific Park in Los Angeles commemorating the 102nd anniversary of the Armenian genocide in April. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) The politically influential California Teachers Assn. on Saturday endorsed Democratic Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom for governor, praising his support for public schools and his promise to hold charter schools more accountable. Gavin has long supported increased funding for education and is committed to making investing in students a top priority as governor, CTA President Eric Heins said in a written statement Saturday. He supports a public education system that attracts, not attacks, teachers, universal preschool and affordable college for all. The move is not entirely surprising given the antagonism between one of Newsoms top Democratic rivals, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, and teachers unions in California. Villaraigosa launched his career as a union organizer, including for United Teachers Los Angeles, and labor played a critical role in getting him elected to office. But after he tried to gain control of Los Angeles schools, he questioned policies fiercely guarded by teachers unions, such as seniority protections that resulted in regular layoff notices to younger teachers who tend to staff the most challenging schools. He grew to support using student test scores to evaluate teachers and other overhauls opposed by union leaders. Villaraigosa, who eventually gained control of more than a dozen struggling city schools through a nonprofit, ultimately blasted the citys teachers union where he once worked as the largest obstacle to creating quality schools. The teachers association also passed over Democrat Delaine Eastin, a long-shot candidate who jumped into the 2018 governors race last year. Eastin, who served as Californias state superintendent of public instruction, has vowed to put education at the forefront of her campaign. The key question going forward is how much CTA plans to invest in the governors race and how it plans to spend it. In 2014, the union spent $12 million to defeat Marshall Tuck, a huge sum in an obscure race to be state superintendent of public instruction. A Democrat and former charter school leader, Tuck was hired by Villaraigosa to run the nonprofit that oversaw his schools. Tuck, who narrowly lost his race in 2014 against an incumbent, is running for state superintendent again in 2018. CTA on Saturday also endorsed his opponent, Assemblyman Tony Thurmond (D-Richmond). Facebook

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Bannons mention of Sen. John McCain, George W. Bush draws boos at California GOP convention By Seema Mehta  Former Trump White House advisor Stephen K. Bannon ripped into former President George W. Bush and Arizona Sen. John McCain Friday night at the California Republican Party Convention in Anaheim, saying there has not been a more destructive presiden Mere mentions of former President George W. Bush and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) drew loud boos and catcalls as former Trump advisor Stephen K. Bannon derided the GOP leaders in his address to California Republicans on Friday night at their fall convention in Anaheim. Bannon, who runs the far-right website Breitbart News, blasted Bush for his harsh assessment of Trump and his policies, which the former president delivered at a policy seminar in New York on Thursday. Bush suggested that Trump has promoted bigotry and falsehoods, violating this countrys values. President Bush to me embarrassed himself. Speech writers wrote a highfalutin speech, Bannon said. Its clear he didnt understand anything he was talking about.  Just like it was when he was president of the United States. Bannon, who was ousted from the White House in August but said he considers himself Trumps wingman, didnt stop there. He ripped into Bush, saying he allowed China to grow as a world power under the premise that global engagement might shepherd the county toward democracy. Theres not been a more destructive presidency than George Bushs, Bannon said. Bannon also had no love for McCain, who has openly clashed with Trump and helped torpedo Republican efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act. The crowd at #CAGOP17 just booed George W. Bush and John McCain. "Hang him!" one man yelled about McCain.  Seema (@LATSeema) October 21, 2017 He praised McCains military service, but said as a politician, Hes just another senator from Arizona. The boos from the crowd of Republican donors and activists show how much the state party has changed as its influence has waned and its numbers have dwindled in California. The brand of conservatism belonging to Bush and McCain resonated with Californias GOP voters during their presidential campaigns. Both men forged deep ties with the states Republican elected leaders and donors, raising tens of millions of dollars here for their political campaigns. In California, Bush received 1.1 million more votes in the November 2004 presidential election than Trump did last November. McCain received almost 600,000 more votes in the November 2008 presidential election than Trump received in the state in 2016. Read More Facebook

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College journalists say covering Bannon at GOP convention prepares them for Yiannopoulos on campus By Anh Do Student journos Amy Wells + Brandon Pho of #CalSrateFullerton say peers are interested in party politics, esp info collected by young ppl. pic.twitter.com/b2MikBGnQD  ANH DO (@newsterrier) October 21, 2017 Student journalists Amy Wells and Brandon Pho from Cal State Fullerton teamed up outside Anaheims Marriott Hotel as night descended, assigned to cover Stephen K. Bannons speech and protesters targeting him. We dont underestimate how movements can pull in more youth, especially if they hear other youth pushing it on social media, said Pho, a sophomore majoring in journalism. Were always on the lookout for more policy to dig into because we have a lot of undocumented students on our campus and theyre way aware of national issues, added Wells, a senior pursuing a journalism degree. Pho and Wells said reporting on the small crowd of protesters will prepare them for much larger turnouts when provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos visits their campus at the end of this month. While Bannon is more provocative, he doesnt have the reach of someone like Milo who knows how to engage an online audience, said Pho, 19. We learn from watching how different public figures do outreach. Wells, 22, described the nights gathering as having the feel of a college campus protest. And of course, that feels familiar, with people here maybe figuring out what to do next. Small steps. Facebook

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Indivisible members rally ahead of Stephen K. Bannons speech to California Republicans By Anh Do Michelle Fowle, founder of The Resistance - Northridge, Indivisible, along w 100 supporters, launch protest vs. #SteveBannon in #Anaheim. pic.twitter.com/1yEdrUm9Si  ANH DO (@newsterrier) October 21, 2017 Growing up as a Republican in Southern California, Michelle Fowle said she automatically registered to join the party because her parents were also members. I didnt know the right civics, recalled the Northridge activist, 50. I didnt really know women died for the right to vote. I just voted for whoever I saw on signs, or whose names I remembered. Now Fowle is the founder of The Resistance - Northridge, Indivisible, which united supporters outside the California GOP convention in Anaheim on Friday to protest an appearance by Stephen K. Bannon. She joined a crowd of about 50 people across the street from the Anaheim Marriott on Friday night as they denounced President Trumps former advisor. They were separated from conventiongoers by metal barriers and a cordon of private security guards while police officers observed from nearby. Information and exposure and understanding show us that he is dangerous. Hes a very, very good manipulator, Fowle said of Bannon. His goal is to try and get rid of established Republicans and bring in more extreme people. Bannon is using whatever base Trump has left to recruit. Carolyn Criss, a retired film industry researcher, drove from Sherman Oaks to protest. Bannon is a clear danger to our democracy, she said. Criss said Trumps election awoke her dormant activist tendencies, and she now regularly attends protests against the president. She said she thought Bannons visit was an effort to amplify his voice while also helping the GOP raise money. I really hope the GOP just wants to make some money off him and doesnt believe what he says, she said. Facebook

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California lawmaker plans to introduce legislation to protect workers who exercise right to free speech By Mina Corpuz San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick and Eric Reid, left, take a knee during the national anthem in a 2016 game against the Rams. (Daniel Gluskoter / Associated Press Images for Panini) A California lawmaker plans to introduce legislation that would help protect workers from employer retribution for exercising their right to free speech. Sen. Henry Stern (D-Canoga Park) said Friday that the state should be a sanctuary for free speech, including the kind that some might find offensive. He said he will introduce a measure when the Legislature is back in session in January. It doesnt matter if youre Ben Shapiro speaking at UC Berkeley, a brave female employee standing up to misogyny in her workplace through the #MeToo movement, or a Dallas Cowboy playing in California this Sunday, he said in a statement. The Constitution does not limit speech based on value judgments so long as it doesnt harm others. Stern said the presidents attempt to urge NFL owners to fire players who kneel during the National Anthem is a troubling attack on the 1st Amendment. The Constitution trumps Trump, he said. Americans of all political stripes ought to stand up and defend it. The legislation would also help public institutions fund security for events that could include offensive speech. Public institutions and law enforcement shouldnt have to bear the cost of ensuring constitutional protections for such events, Stern said. Stern, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, is part of the ongoing work to define hate speech and find a way to address it while upholding the Constitution. Facebook

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Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom fights NRA over gun control law in federal court By Patrick McGreevy Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom. (Tim Berger / Times Community News) Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom has asked the courts to lift an order that blocks Californias ban on large-capacity ammunition magazines, which was approved in November by voters when they passed Proposition 63. In June, a federal judge in San Diego ruled in favor of a request by the National Rifle Assn. to temporarily delay the magazine ban until the court could make a final decision on the law. U.S. District Judge Roger T. Benitez wrote then: If this injunction does not issue, hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of otherwise law-abiding citizens will have an untenable choice: become an outlaw or dispossess ones self of lawfully acquired property. In a friend-of-the-court filing, Newsom and the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence argued the ban on large-capacity magazines is needed to help prevent the occurrence of high-fatality gun massacres, and to reduce the bloodshed when these tragedies occur. Newsom, a candidate for governor, sponsored Proposition 63 with the law center. Its a tragic reality that as time passes, we are presented with more and more evidence on the devastating power of large-capacity magazines, which are consistently the accessory of choice in mass shootings for mass murderers, Newsom said Friday in a statement, predicting the federal courts would uphold the ban. Facebook

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State GOP leader says the new gas tax and high poverty rate make Democrats vulnerable in California By Phil Willon California Republican Party Chairman Jim Brulte, center, addresses GOP delegates at the state partys convention in Anaheim on Friday. (Phil Willon / Los Angeles Times) California Republican Party Chairman Jim Brulte kicked off the state GOPs fall convention with a speech to delegates that outlined why he thinks Democrats will be vulnerable in the upcoming 2018 elections. Brulte zeroed in on the new gas tax and policy declaring California a sanctuary state  both approved by Gov. Jerry Brown and the Democratic-controlled Legislature and both, he said, unpopular with California voters. He said Democrats have tried to deflect voter attention from these issues, as well as Californias high poverty rate and an uptick in crime, by continually attacking President Trump. Here in California, the reason they want to talk about Donald Trump is because they dont want to talk about the record they created, Brulte said. They broke it. They own it. If Donald Trump were not president, we would still have 22% of Californians living below the poverty line. Thats not Donald Trumps fault. Thats the Democrats who control California. The state GOPs three-day convention at the Anaheim Marriott will kick off in earnest Friday night when Trumps former political strategist, Steve Bannon, takes the stage for a keynote address to delegates. Facebook

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Far-right blogger Chuck C. Johnson gave bitcoin donation to Dana Rohrabacher By Christine Mai-Duc Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Costa Mesa) speaks to Russian lawmakers at a meeting in Moscow in May 2013. (Misha Japaridze / Associated Press) Right-wing blogger and provocateur Chuck C. Johnson gave Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Costa Mesa) a $5,400 campaign contribution weeks after he said he helped arrange a meeting between the Orange County congressman and Wikileaks founder Julian Assange. The donation, the maximum amount allowed by law, came in the form of bitcoin, a virtual currency. Johnson, who previously was banned from Twitter after soliciting donations toward taking out a prominent black activist, is listed on campaign finance forms as a self-employed investor who lives in Rosemead. Rohrabacher campaign spokesman Jason Pitkin confirmed the donor was the same person who helped arrange the Assange meeting. Johnson also recently sat in on a meeting between Rohrabacher and Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul in the Capitol. Pitkin said they discussed Assanges legal situation and cannabis policy, among other things. Rohrabacher previously said Assange had emphatically stated that the Russians were not involved in hacking the 2016 elections but claimed his plans to bring the information directly to President Trump have been thwarted by White House staffers. Pitkin said Johnson approached the Rohrabacher campaign shortly after his trip to London and said he wanted to donate. He said, Do you take bitcoin? and I said, I think we can,  Pitkin recalled. The campaign then set up a bitcoin wallet to receive the funds, Pitkin said. Rohrabacher is not the only California House candidate this cycle who has accepted contributions in bitcoin. Democrat Brian Forde, who is challenging GOP Rep. Mimi Walters of Irvine, reported raising more than $59,000 in bitcoin donations between July 1 and Sept. 30. Facebook

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Government needs more women, Nancy Pelosi says By Colleen Shalby Nancy Pelosi has 30 years worth of insight for women starting out in politics. Shes run into plenty of naysayers over the years, but said she hasnt let other peoples doubt stop her. Her advice for those at the beginning of their career is simple. Know your purpose, she said in an interview Wednesday night before a Summit event hosted by the Los Angeles Times and the Berggruen Institute. The House minority leader said she hopes more women will run for office, calling their participation a necessity for government and the future. Whether its education, the environment, equal rights, womens health  whatever it is. Master your subject. Have a plan on how you will implement your ideas and you will attract support. Facebook

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This Los Angeles representative spent $105,500 on Hamilton tickets By Sarah D. Wire Rep. Tony Cardenas asks a question of Lin-Manuel Miranda during a town hall at Panorama High School in Panorama City. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) Hamilton fever has caught at least two Los Angeles area members of Congress whove used campaign funds to purchase tickets to the hit musicals run at the Hollywood Pantages. Rep. Tony Cardenas campaign and his political action committee Victory by Investing, Building and Empowering PAC spent $105,500 in April buying tickets to the show, which is playing in L.A. until Dec. 30. Two fundraisers using the approximately 400 tickets have raised more than $300,000, a spokesman for the congressmans campaign said. For both Cardenas campaign and the PAC, the tickets were the single most costly expense of the year. Basically they saw this as an opportunity to have a nice fundraising opportunity and go to a show that celebrates American democracy, campaign spokesman Josh Pulliam said. The Los Angeles Democrat is friends with the father of Lin-Manuel Miranda, the Tony- and Pulitzer-winning creator of Hamilton. When the show opened in Los Angeles in mid-August, Miranda spoke to nearly 1,000 students in Cardenas largely Latino San Fernando Valley district . He raffled off some tickets to the show as an online fundraiser in September. Miranda has a history of supporting Democrats, and Hamilton has been used as a fundraiser before. In July 2016, Hillary Clintons presidential campaign hosted a special showing of the musical for donors, with a starting ticket price of $2,700. Cardenas held two fundraisers tied to the show. Miranda did not attend either event, Pulliam said. Pulliam said a few dozen tickets went to people in the community as gifts. He also raffled off some tickets to the show as an online fundraiser in September. Cardenas isnt in a particularly tough race for 2018. A Democrat and a Green Party member have filed to run in his district, but neither have raised or spent enough to require them to file campaign finance reports. Cardenas most recent report, which covers what he raised and spent in the last three months, shows he raised $232,389 and had $481,049 in the bank as of Sept. 30. Its fairly common for lawmakers or candidates to use sports events or concerts as major fundraising opportunities, especially when big names such as Taylor Swift or Bruce Springsteen play concerts in Washington. Rep. Maxine Waters campaign spent just under $11,000 on tickets to Hamilton in August. Reached by phone, the Los Angeles Democrat seemed surprised reporters were asking about the tickets. She said her campaign made $110,000 at a fundraiser using the tickets. Everybody does it, whether its a concert or a baseball game, she said. Several conservative groups have targeted Waters, an outspoken critic of President Trump, for the 2018 election. She won in 2016 with 76% of the vote over Republican Omar Navarro, who is challenging her again. In a statement released by her campaign, Waters stressed that fundraising at an event means the campaign doesnt have to rent space or buy food. These fundraising activities are similar and sometimes less expensive than the amount of money a candidate would spend to host a fundraising dinner within a private room at a restaurant or hotel  once you factor in associated catering costs, she said. The price for the Hamilton tickets was similar to what one would have to pay at these venues. There was nothing improper or unusual about the expenditure. Facebook

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California Republicans increase security at state convention ahead of Steve Bannon speech By Seema Mehta (Ross D. Franklin / Associated Press) The California Republican Party is ramping up security at its weekend convention in anticipation of protests at the Friday night keynote speech by Steve Bannon, a former advisor to President Trump and the executive chairman of Breitbart News. Part of providing a good experience for our convention goers is assuring your safety, state party Executive Director Cynthia Bryant wrote in an email to attendees on Thursday describing the security measures. Attendees will pass through metal detectors and their property is subject to be searched before they are allowed to enter the ballroom at the Anaheim Marriott, where the speech and dinner are taking place. Weapons, noisemakers and signs are prohibited. We did not make the decision for the additional security lightly and we know that it does impact your convention going experience, Bryant wrote. I sincerely regret that. Its a level of security rarely seen at political party gatherings in California. Convention attendees were also screened when Donald Trump, then a candidate seeking the GOP presidential nomination, appeared at the spring 2015 convention in Burlingame. That decision was made in consultation with the Secret Service, which had already begun protecting Trump. That convention attracted large-scale protests that at times turned into tense stand-offs between activists and police officers. Bannons speech is also expected to draw protests. Bannon, a conservative media leader, promoted Breitbart as a platform of the alt-right and needled establishment Republicans when Trump selected him to be the chief executive of his 2016 presidential campaign. His views as a nationalist, economic populist and nativist indelibly shaped Trumps message to voters. Once Trump was sworn in as president, Bannon was named White House chief strategist. He was a divisive figure in the administration, disparaging his colleagues to the media before he left the White House in August. He has since declared war on the GOP establishment, including supporting challengers to incumbents and other candidates backed by Trump. Facebook

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L.A. County Supervisors unanimously back Sen. Feinstein for reelection By Sarah D. Wire L.A. County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times) The five members of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors have all endorsed Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the senators campaign announced Thursday. The announcement comes as factions of California Democrats begin weighing in on the Senate race between Feinstein and state Senate leader Kevin de Leon next year. Its a snub for De Leon, a native Angeleno who has represented part of the city for more than a decade in the Assembly and state Senate. Sen. Feinstein has been our strong partner on the critical issues confronting L.A. County  homelessness, healthcare, and transportation. Her support for our county hospitals, including her commitment to our new Martin Luther King Jr. Community Hospital, has been essential to our countys healthcare system, Board Chairman and 2nd District Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas said in a statement. Ridley-Thomas said the board members support Feinstein -- including the lone Republican on the board, 5th District Supervisor Kathryn Barger, who said in a statement that California needs Feinstein in the Senate. Ive worked with Sen. Feinstein for many years. Shes extremely knowledgeable and always prepared on the tough issues we confront. Shes a problem solver we can count on now and in the future, Barger said. Feinstein already has the backing of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which traditionally backs incumbents. Soon after he announced a challenge, De Leon was endorsed by Democracy for America, the progressive political action committee formed by former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean in 2004. Facebook

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Northern California wildfires mean thousands of families will flood the regions already strained housing market By Liam Dillon Tom and Shelly Lanning, from left, talk with Lannings mother, Jeannie Anderson, on Oct.17, 2017. The Lannings have been staying with Anderson since they lost their home in wildfires. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) Even before devastating wildfires struck Northern California last week, the regions housing market was in crisis. Home values and rents already were at or near record highs, and decades of slow construction has left few homes available for the thousands of displaced residents. The number of new families flooding the market is giving rise to fears of widespread displacement and even higher costs. The scope and magnitude of the rehousing is unfathomable, said Larry Florin, chief executive of the nonprofit Burbank Housing, one of Santa Rosas largest low-income housing providers. If you take 3,000 units being demolished in a market that was already dramatically constrained, its hard to imagine whats going to happen, where people are going to go. Read More Facebook

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California lawmaker wants to ban secret settlements in sexual harassment cases after Weinstein scandal By Melanie Mason State Sen. Connie Leyva (D-Chino), shown speaking at a 2016 news conference for ending the statute of limitations for rape, wants to ban confidentiality provisions from sexual harassment settlements. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) A California state senator says she intends to introduce a bill next year to ban confidentiality provisions in monetary settlements stemming from sexual harassment, assault and discrimination cases. Secret settlements in sexual assault and related cases can jeopardize the public  including other potential victims  and allow perpetrators to escape justice just because they have the money to pay the cost of the settlements, Sen. Connie Leyva (D-Chino) said in a statement Thursday. This bill will ensure that sexual predators can be held accountable for their actions and ideally prevent them from victimizing others. The measure comes after revelations of decades-long alleged sexual misconduct by Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein. Some of those incidents were obscured from public view thanks to monetary settlements whose terms required confidentiality. The issue has a renewed resonance in Sacramento after scores of women working in state politics renounced a pervasive culture of harassment and abuse in the Capitol in a public letter this week. Leyva told the Times she intends for her proposed settlement ban to include both private employers and public ones, such as the Legislature. 9:41 a.m.: This post was updated to specify Leyvas proposal would apply to private and public employers. This post was originally published at 8:54 a.m. Facebook

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Nancy Pelosi: Its your problem if you dont recognize that women are ready to do any job By Colleen Shalby Nancy Pelosi knows what it feels like to have to prove herself in politics simply because shes a woman. She says she experiences the pressure every day. But its your problem if you dont recognize that women are ready to do any job, the House minority leader said in an interview before a Summit event hosted by the Los Angeles Times and the Berggruen Institute on Wednesday night. When she decided to run for a leadership position in Congress, Pelosi said a man questioned her move. As if a woman had to be told she could run, she recalled. We just laughed and said poor babies. In the midst of a growing sexual misconduct scandal centered on Hollywood film producer Harvey Weinstein, many women are sharing their stories of sexual harassment and assault. No industry has been spared  women at Californias Capitol signed an open letter Tuesday outlining pervasive harassment in Sacramento. Pelosi said she wasnt prepared to share a so-called me too moment, but she thanked the women who have. The sheer numbers speak eloquently to the fact that we should get to zero tolerance, she said. Facebook

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Watch: The View from California political panel with John Myers Sacramento Bureau Chief John Myers hosted a panel discussion about the view from California as part of our L.A. Times and Berggruen Institute Summit series. Joining him were state Sen. Robert Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys), Republican strategist Luis Alvarado, UCLA political scientist Lynn Vavreck and Alma Hernandez, executive director of SEIU California. We also had a conversation with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. Watch that here. Facebook

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Watch: House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi talks to the L.A. Times House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) spoke Wednesday about her view of national news, working with the Trump White House and the future of the Democratic Party. The event was co-hosted by The L.A. Times and the Berggruen Institute. Following that conversation, Sacramento Bureau Chief John Myers hosted a panel discussion about the view from California. Joining him were state Sen. Robert Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys), Republican strategist Luis Alvarado, UCLA political scientist Lynn Vavreck and Alma Hernandez, executive director of SEIU California. Watch that here. Facebook

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Kevin de Leon: My whole life, Ive been told to wait my turn and know my place You know, my whole life, Ive been told to wait my turn and know my place. Well, its Californias turn to lead. And Californias place to be a shining example for the world and a stark contrast to the failures of Washington.  State Senate leader Kevin de Leon, kicking off his U.S. Senate campaign Read More Facebook

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Pelosi, in Los Angeles visit, calls on Congress to pass Dream Act By Makeda Easter Rep. Nancy Pelosi meets with young immigrants protected by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program in downtown Los Angeles. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday called on the GOP-controlled Congress to pass the Dream Act by years end. Pelosi appeared at the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights with community leaders and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival recipients in Los Angeles. The San Francisco Democrat said she has confidence Republicans and Democrats will be able to work together to pass the Dream Act. President Trump said we had shared values when we spoke to him, Pelosi said. I trust that he will honor that commitment because the American people want him to do so. The Democratic leader had conversations with Trump about continuing DACA after his heartless decision to end the program. Pelosi said that President Reagan was great on immigration and noted his immigration agenda protected a larger percentage of people than President Obama did with his executive order regarding DACA. She added the last three Republican presidents strongly acknowledged the value of immigration to America. A majority of the estimated 800,000 immigrants who were brought to the United States illegally as children live in California. These newcomers make America more American, Pelosi said. She noted there have been a handful of Republicans who support forcing a Dream Act vote via a procedural move. Still, her party is in the minority. You can have all the conversation in the world that you want, but youve got to have the votes, she said, encouraging moderate Republicans to support the Dream Act. She was joined by Democratic Reps. Jimmy Gomez of Los Angeles, Judy Chu of Monterey Park and Lucille Roybal-Allard of Downey, the first Mexican American woman elected to Congress and original co-author of the Dream Act. Roybal-Allard said the so-called Dreamers have lived in this country, they have grown up here, they have pledged allegiance to our flag. To do anything else but to protect them by passing the Dream 
DECATUR  In its 16th year, the WSOY Community Food Drive once again met its goal, raising a total of 1,501,537 million pounds/dollars over the course of 12 hours.

Either by phone or in person at Kroger, 1818 S. Airport Plaza, thousands of people donated food and funds toward the 1.5 million goal on Friday. To Brian Byers, who has overseen the event since the beginning, the community's response continues to be "awe-inspiring."

"This is a ton of food," said Byers, vice president of development at Neuhoff Media. "All of this money and food will go to work. It'll be donated to nine organizations as a way to continue to support the great work they do for the community."

The local charities and food banks on the receiving end of the food drive's donations include the Northeast Community Fund, the Good Samaritan Inn, the Judy Mason Thanksgiving Basket Project, Reasonable Service, Gods Shelter of Love, AMELCA Food Pantry, Interchurch Council of Blue Mound-Boody-Stonington and Mount Zion United Methodist Food Pantry.

At Kroger, Larry and Nancy Bullock of Decatur bought a cartload of groceries, and then came outside to donate it. Nancy Bullock said it is hard to explain why they want to donate, but it's just their way of giving back.

This is our community and we've lived here for 45 years, and we just want to help the community who's been good to us, she said.

Ten-year-old Kyleigh Baker felt the same way. The Decatur Christian student was shopping at the store with her grandfather and younger brother, and before they left, she handed off a cart of canned goods to one of the food drive's many volunteers.

"Whenever I see people who don't have many things, I feel sad, and want to donate things to them," she said. "Sometimes I go to the Salvation Army with my mom and my brother, and we donate things."

In addition to the general public, several prominent companies and community leaders donated throughout the day, like Archer Daniels Midland Co., Green Valley Manufacturing and the Airport Road Kroger. Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner called in with a $25,000 donation, and the Howard G. Buffett Foundation matched $75,000 raised during the last two hours of the drive.

Participating in a competition with one another, several Decatur schools were also responsible for a hefty amount of donations. St. Teresa High School and St. Patrick's School were locked in a tight race for the top spot in the contest for most of the day.

Ultimately, St. Teresa finished on top with 252,296 pounds/dollars collected. It was followed by St. Patrick's with 210,780, Mount Zion High School with 101,153, Eisenhower with 95,743, and Warrensburg-Latham with 92,851.

While Our Lady of Lourdes didn't make the top five, the school undoubtedly made an impact when a semi-truck full of non-perishable food items arrived to the Kroger lot and was donated on the school's behalf.

When Lourdes student Bryan Burcham II overheard his grandfather talking about the semi truck on the phone, he was surprised and confused. Once he learned of its purpose, he was ecstatic.

Brian Burcham told his grandson to keep the truck a secret, and he did.

Then, Friday morning at school, when he could finally tell, his eighth-grade classmates at Our Lady of Lourdes didnt believe him.

They joked around with him, teasing about when his semi would show up, and when it did, they were surprised too. Bryan was still in shock as the semi was unloaded Friday afternoon.

I dont know about the semi, he said. They didnt believe me.

The elder Brian and his wife Becky have worked hard to make sure all their children and grandchildren take care of other people, said Alexas Burcham, his granddaughter.

We want to teach the grandkids to give, the elder Brian Burcham said.

Brian Burcham said it took a lot of talking and searching to find enough food to fill a semi truck. But he was glad he could gift the gift to his grandson and teach him to continue giving back to the community, he said.

Other semi-trucks and large vehicles pulled up to the lot at different points during the drive, and over 500 volunteers dedicated their time in different way to ensure the food and donations were received as efficiently as possible.

Some volunteered for shifts throughout the day, while others stayed for the entire day.

"We don't turn anybody away," Byers said. "(The food drive) is something people want to be a part of."

Longtime volunteer Don Klinker of Decatur started directing traffic when the drive began at 6 a.m. He said he volunteers every year with the Knights of Columbus organization.

It's fun. I'm a people person, and I get to talk and joke, he said. And you get to see community people people you don't get to see very often.

Another reason he volunteers is he is upset with the amount of homeless people and people in need in the community. And he hopes to do what he can.

In a country like ours, with the money we have, and there are people who are starving to death  that is something wrong, he said.

Despite all the donations on Friday, the shelters will be out of food before next year, Klinker said.

It's just unbelievable, he said. There are so many people in this town that don't have anything.

ADM Business Solutions Analysts Angela Hill and Derek Stevenson volunteered their time at the tent, donning pink shirts that said Team ADM on the back. This was Hills third time volunteering for the food drive, and Stevensons first.

I think its important to help the community, Hill said. Everything donated here goes toward helping Decatur.

Stevenson said he enjoyed his first year as a volunteer, and will sign up to join the team again for next years drive.

We all live in the community, he said. Its all about helping others. Its like, if theyre helping out people, then Ill help them too, and take the initiative. Ill do it again next year.

At the end of the day, Byers said he's expecting more donations to come in over the weekend, extending the final total well beyond the intended goal.

"It always ends up being more," he said. "We always get a lot of phone calls, or people come home from vacation and send donations in. But the good news here is, we met our goal."
The pro-gun community had reason to be suspicious of Donald Trump.

He wrote in favor of an assault weapons ban and a slightly longer waiting period before gun purchases in a 2000 book, and accused Republicans of walking the NRA line. And even as he rebranded himself a 2nd Amendment maven in 2013, he sounded conflicted, suggesting he favored expanded background checks.

No one on either side of the gun debate seems to know exactly when or why Trump shifted. But they agree that the mogul from Manhattan has become one of the most forceful pro-gun presidents in decades.

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Now, after the worst mass shooting in American history, Trump faces a gut-check moment on guns. He could not have imagined that within his first year as president he would come under pressure, even from within his typically pro-gun party, to support legislation restricting gun use, however limited  in this case, a ban on so-called bump-fire stocks like the Las Vegas shooter used, which turn semiautomatic weapons into virtual machine guns.

White House officials, both privately and publicly, insist he is not likely to endorse fundamental change, that is, broader gun controls. Meanwhile, the gun lobby is watching.

When a crisis happens you can really tell who your friends are, said Dudley Brown, president of the National Assn. for Gun Rights, which advertises itself as more hard-line on gun rights than the NRA.

For decades, as he flirted with presidential runs, Trump tried to stake a position between what he called, in 2000, the extremes of the two existing major parties.

In his book that year, The America We Deserve, Trump accused Democrats of trying to confiscate all guns and Republicans of refusing even limited restrictions because of the NRAs hold on the party. In a brief, four-paragraph section on guns, between multi-page sections on prisons and capital punishment, Trump wrote that he supported President Clintons assault-weapons ban along with a brief waiting period for gun buyers.

Eleven years earlier, in a 1989 interview on MSNBC, Trump seemed even more ambivalent about gun rights.

Saying he owned a couple of guns, he added: Now, I hate the concept of guns. Im not in favor of it, except for one thing: the bad guys are going to have them. He would be all for a total ban  if you could take the guns away from the bad guys.

Trump had not renounced those positions as late as 2013, when he told radio host Howard Stern that the focus should be on gun purchasers medical problems and past records.

Its a very, very difficult subject, but you need guns for protection, he told Stern.

That ambivalence vanished when Trump ran for president and tried to distinguish himself in a crowded Republican primary. He boasted in a 2015 debate of carrying weapons on occasion  sometimes a lot.

Opponents of gun rights try to come up with scary-sounding phrases like assault weapons, military-style weapons and high-capacity magazines to confuse people, Trump said in a campaign position paper. Law-abiding people should be allowed to own the firearm of their choice. The government has no business dictating what types of firearms good, honest people are allowed to own.

The NRA helped to elect Trump, spending more than $30 million and endorsing him at a point in the campaign when many Republicans were still reluctant to support him, even as he closed in on enough delegates to get the partys nomination.

Trump returned the favor with some of the strongest pro-gun rhetoric ever delivered by a presidential candidate. He told an NRA audience that Democratic rival Hillary Clinton wanted to destroy the 2nd Amendment and that terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino would have been stopped if more victims were armed.

He said of the Paris attackers in the November 2015 incident: They just stood there and shot everybody.

If you would have had guns on the other side, he added, I promise there wouldnt have been 130 people killed and hundreds of people lying in the hospital to this day.

Trump has sought to fortify his gun-loving credentials by association with his sons, Eric and Donald Jr., who have been photographed hunting exotic animals in Africa. They have so many rifles and so many guns, even I get concerned, Trump joked at the NRA conference.

He endorsed a national right to carry, regardless of local laws that are restrictive, and promised, on his first day in office, to eliminate restrictions on bringing guns within 1,000 feet of primary and secondary schools.

Trump failed to overturn the federal gun-free-zone law, an action that requires Congress to pass repeal legislation. Yet he has generally pleased the gun lobby since taking office.

In February, the president signed into law a measure overturning an Obama administration rule that would have denied gun access to about 75,000 Social Security beneficiaries per year who had been declared both incapable of handling their own affairs and mentally incompetent.

Trumps Justice Department narrowed the definition of fugitive under federal gun laws, clearing the way for thousands of additional people to buy guns, according to The Trace, a news site supported by advocates of gun limits. And his Interior secretary, Ryan Zinke, overturned a ban on using lead ammunition on wildlife refuges.

Gun groups are hoping for more, including measures in Congress that would make it easier to buy silencers and for veterans deemed mentally incompetent to carry a firearm. A separate measure would allow people who have permits under state law to carry guns anywhere in the country, regardless of local laws.

Now it is Trump who is owned by the NRA, gun control groups say.

Speaking of NRA members, Kris Brown, co-president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, said, I suppose theyre betting people, and having put all of their money into candidate Trump, theyre expecting that hes bought and paid for.

Yet Brown and others on her side are hoping Trump will shift again. He has a real moment here, Brown said, adding, Im not Pollyannaish about things.

After Sundays Las Vegas attack, Trump echoed rhetoric that the NRA and its supporters often use following mass shootings, saying it was too soon to talk about gun policy. But he and his administration dropped hints that he might be open to discussion in time.

Well talk about gun laws as time goes by, Trump said on Tuesday, ahead of a visit to Las Vegas.

By Thursday, after the NRA said there should be restrictions on bump stocks  but through regulation, not a new law  White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the administration was eager to have that conversation. But she added that Trump is a strong supporter of the 2nd Amendment. That hasnt changed.

Another White House official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said that Trump was most likely to back narrow measures. The official said Trump would also continue to appoint judges and other officials who share his view of expansive 2nd Amendment rights.

The NRA, which is often silent after mass shootings, did not respond to several requests for comment.

At the National Assn. for Gun Rights, Dudley Brown said he is fighting to make sure Trump doesnt act. But hes not especially worried.

There certainly was some question about his history, especially when youre not an elected official in any manner, he said. But, Brown added, This administration has done much better than we thought.

noah.bierman@latimes.com

Twitter: @noahbierman
The Laguna Beach City Council on Tuesday will consider whether to adopt rules for temporary outdoor furniture, such as umbrellas, on private property, and whether to approve added regulations regarding privately-maintained trees.

Councilman Steve Dicterow received complaints from residents that the city does not regulate temporary outdoor furniture, thus he wanted to bring forth the issue to his council colleagues and determine whether changes to city code are needed, according to a city staff report.

The city currently does not regulate temporary outdoor furniture such as umbrellas, free-standing patio covers, tables and chairs, though does have rules regarding permanent shade structures such as retractable and non-retractable awnings attached to buildings.

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Concerns have centered on open umbrellas and free-standing patio covers blocking views from neighboring properties, the report said.

Lagunas design review process includes taking views from both private and public property into account when an applicant proposes a project, such as a home remodel.

Council members were supposed to discuss the tree topic on Sept. 26, but decided to postpone their talk because of concerns the meeting could last past midnight.

Laguna currently has rules in place for people seeking to remove heritage trees, trees on a city-approved landscape plan and privately-maintained trees rooted in the public right-of-way, but nothing on the books for trees on private land that are not included in any of the aforementioned categories.

For privately-maintained trees that stand in the public right-of-way, current rules kick in only when a tree has a perceived risk of failure, the staff report said.

Depending on the situation, a property owner may need approval from the council, Design Review Board or Planning Commission.

People may want to remove trees for a variety of reasons such as maintenance, aesthetics or view improvement.

Councilman Robert Zur Schmiede requested the matter be discussed because he was concerned about property owners cutting down trees without letting the city know ahead of time, the Daily Pilot reported last month.

The council could consider adopting a policy that would require property owners to obtain a city permit before removing a tree.

As for non-heritage trees that are not part of a city-approved landscape plan and do not sit in the public right-of-way, the city would need to determine whether it could legally require a property owner to remove a tree on private property.

A tree is eligible for heritage status if it meets any of five criteria, including possessing distinctive characteristics of form, size, or shape, or being associated with a person or an event of community-wide significance, according to Lagunas municipal code.

Tuesdays meeting begins at 6 p.m. at City Hall, 505 Forest Ave.

bryce.alderton@latimes.com

Twitter: @AldertonBryce
More than a dozen people were evacuated from a construction site and a restaurant in Costa Mesa on Friday after crews discovered a leak in a natural gas line.

At about 2:50 p.m., Costa Mesa fire officials responded to 580 Anton Blvd., where a seven-story apartment complex is being built, after workers discovered a pinhole leak in a 2-inch gas line, said fire Capt. Chris Coates.

People working on the site had already begun to evacuate when fire crews arrived. Firefighters evacuated a nearby restaurant as a safety precaution, Coates said.

Southern California Gas Co. is working to repair the line, according to Coates.

No injuries were reported.

It isnt clear how the line was punctured.

hannah.fry@latimes.com

Twitter: @HannahFryTCN
After a year off, local residents can once again board the Ghost Train in Griffith Park as part of the 17th annual Halloween-themed event staged by the Los Angeles Live Steamers Railroad Museum.

The Live Steamers is a nonprofit of train enthusiasts who convert their year-round 1/8-scale trains and track system into a haunted ride for guests across roughly 30 professional Halloween displays.

Diana Manchester, the nonprofits art director, said the organizations members are excited to return after taking last year off for facility maintenance, and they hope past attendees will enjoy the new displays.

Many of the displays will be ones people have seen over the years, but we always try and change it with twists and turns that weve never done before, she said.

Returning will be a steam engine operated by skeletons, a pirates cove and an abandoned mine.

For the first time, there will be a zombie containment zone, which will be a fake warehouse dedicated to the undead. A 350-pound, fire-breathing, metal dragon will also debut this year.

Manchester said she likes to remind attendees about Ghost Trains family-friendly atmosphere, with no actors in scary costumes jumping out of dark areas, no blood and no gore.

Gary Baker, who has produced the event since its inception, will return this year. He also produces a Halloween festival called Midsummer Scream at the Long Beach Convention Center.

The Ghost Train is also an annual fundraiser for the nonprofit to help pay for maintenance of the 13-acre railroad facility and museum.

The Live Steamers was founded in 1956 by lovers of all things railroad. Many of the trains are owned, operated or renovated by the groups volunteer members, who also operate the Ghost Train.

This years Ghost Train will run for 11 nights from 7 to 10 p.m. over three weekends this month, starting on Oct. 13. The event will also be held on Halloween, which falls on a Tuesday this year.

For more information, visit facebook.com/laghosttrain.

jeff.landa@latimes.com

Twitter: @JeffLanda
MURPHYSBORO  Lugging two flat totes filled with food, Alinda Heron made her way across a field littered with the remains of cut soybean plants, the red soil sinking at each footstep.

The totes were filled with baggies of sandwiches, carrots, chips, cream pies and other snacks for the crew that numbered two dozen, who had gathered at her family's farm Wednesday to help with the harvest.

It was bittersweet, this outpouring of support for her family. Until their lives changed, it might very well have been her 40-year-old brother, Ben, working with her father to start the harvest of the soybeans. Ben Arbeiter lost his life in a tragic accident in early August.

"It's one of the greatest days of my life to see how Ben's friends came together to (make this happen)," Ben's father, David, said, standing at the edge of one of the fields northeast of Murphysboro. "You don't see it on TV  this is the good news."

In the distance, plumes of a dusty red cloud hung in the air, the byproduct of the combine cutting the two-feet-high soybean plants, leaving behind the bare nubs of what once was. Plumes of dust were also kicked up in the air from the combines cutting the soybeans behind the family's house on Arbeiter Road.

Alinda said around two dozen farmers and other workers came together to harvest the soybeans that were ready from the Arbeiters' crops. Ten of them drove the large combine harvesters through the beige-bronze fields to cut the soybean plants, seven others operated auger carts, or buggy trucks, which took the soybeans from the combines, and 11 others drove the large semi-trailers that transported the harvested soybeans to a grain operator.

The work contributed would have taken her brother and father about six weeks to complete, she noted. Heron said her family was so encouraged by the farming community's embrace  displayed with the physical labor to harvest the crops.

"This isn't about us," she said. "It's about the community, the farmers that came together."

Those working Wednesday were doing so in honor of Ben, born Benjamin David Arbeiter on July 7, 1977. Ben was crushed by an antique tractor in an accident on his property in the early morning hours of Aug. 6. In addition to his father, mother and sister, he is survived by his wife of almost four years, Holly, another sister, Rhonda Kings, and her husband; nieces and nephews; his mother-in-law and other relatives.

He served in the U.S. Marine Corps and was a trustee of the Somerset Township Board.

When he thought about the pending harvest, Ben's father, David Arbeiter, said he thought about hiring someone to bring in the crops.

"I was going to hire a visiting operation to come in and do it," David said. "And Ben's friend Mike (Imhoff) said, 'No, you're not, we've got it all taken care of.'"

As soon as word spread about Ben's death, local farmers started calling to offer their help, Imhoff said. Such efforts are not uncommon in the farming community, he said, noting that he has not been able to participate in one until now.

Assisting with the planning was one of Ben's business associates, Tony Boyle.

"Ben would have done the same thing for my family that I'm doing for his," said Imhoff, who served as best man at Ben's wedding. "And that's why I'm doing it. I'd rather Ben be here and (harvesting) his own property."

David said he is committed to keeping the farm in business.

"We're going to keep the farming operation going," he said. "We're just going to have to adjust."
A Glendale man missing since Saturday was found in a Los Angeles hospital suffering from an apparent head injury, police said.

A hospital social worker recognized 78-year-old Teodoro Zamora from a missing persons alert and notified authorities. Tahnee Lightfoot, a spokeswoman for the department, said he was admitted to the hospital after paramedics in L.A. found him in the city with a head injury.

Its not clear when or where in the city he was found.

Zamora was last seen at a liquor store near Chevy Chase Drive and Adams Street on Sept. 30 before disappearing.

Adela Zamora, his granddaughter, said he had gone missing before but was always found within a few hours.

Lightfoot said hospital staff will continue to monitor Zamora, who has dementia, to make sure hes healthy before releasing him to family members.

andy.nguyen@latimes.com

Twitter: @Andy_Truc
Thousands of supporters of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny demonstrated in 80 cities across the country Saturday in response to calls from the anti-corruption crusader to petition for his release from jail and to allow him to register as a candidate against President Vladimir Putin in next years election.

The protests were the third such anti-corruption, anti-government demonstrations organized this year by the fierce Putin critic. But unlike the previous rallies, Saturdays protests saw significantly fewer participants and fewer arrests than were recorded in March and June.

In 25 cities across the country, there were about 271 detentions reported, according to OVD-Info, an independent watchdog group that monitors police detentions. Previous demonstrations on March 26 and June 12 saw more than 1,800 detentions at each event, including the arrest of Navalny himself on both dates.

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Saturdays demonstrators came out in response to Navalnys video message this week calling for supporters to pressure the Kremlin to allow for free and open elections. Navalny, 41, has been holding election campaigns across the country, despite the fact that Russias election committee has declared him ineligible because of a 2013 criminal conviction. He has dismissed the conviction as politically motivated.

Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny is seen leaving a police station in Moscow on Sept. 29, 2017. (Maxim Zmeyev / AFP/Getty Images )

Navalny was detained on Sept. 29 as he exited his Moscow apartment building on his way to catch a train to a campaign rally in Nizhny Novgorod, the city formerly known as Gorky, almost 250 miles east of Moscow. A Moscow judge sentenced Navalny to 20 days in jail on Monday for repeated violations of laws against organizing unsanctioned demonstrations.

Several of Navalnys campaign staff in Moscow and other cities were detained ahead of Saturdays rally. His campaign headquarters in Moscow was raided by police on Friday. His campaign manager, Leonid Volkov, was sentenced to 20 days in jail. He was released briefly on Friday before being arrested again.

Saturdays protest was originally scheduled as a Navalny campaign rally in St. Petersburg, although city officials refused to sanction the event. But after Navalny was sentenced to another jail term earlier this week, he appealed to his followers in a video message posted on his popular YouTube channel to protest against his imprisonment across the country.

Oct. 7 is also Putins 65th birthday, and Navalny said it would be a birthday present for the Kremlin leader.

Putin has been in power as president or prime minister since 1999. He has not yet confirmed that he will seek reelection, but there is little doubt that he will run. The election is in March.

With approval ratings hovering above 80%, Putin is unlikely to face serious competition if and when he declares another run for office.

Navalny has gained popularity in recent months, although mainly with a new, younger generation of followers who are dedicated to his YouTube channels straight-forward messages about what Navalny describes as government-supported corruption. State television does not cover Navalny-related stories, and his name recognition around the country remains low.

Let Putin go on a well deserved pension already, Navalny wrote in a Facebook post on Wednesday from his Moscow cell. He has been in power for 18 years, thats enough.

The Kremlin tightly controls the political process in Russia by allowing only a handful of opposition candidates to register in elections. In the past, those candidates have included leader of Russias Communist Party Gennady Zyuganov and firebrand nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky.

In 2013, Navalny challenged a Kremlin-backed mayoral candidate in Moscow and received 30% of the vote. Some say this surprised the Kremlin, which has since tried to prevent Navalnys popularity from spreading, through media blackouts of his activities.

In St. Petersburg, the demonstration turned out to be the days largest with more than 2,000 protesters marching down the street of the presidents hometown, chanting, Happy birthday and Putin, go on pension! In Moscow, many protesters refrained from carrying political signs and placards. In St. Petersburg, waves of demonstrators waved Navalny 2018 campaign placards.

A protester wearing a mask depicting Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a rally in St. Petersburg on Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. (Dmitri Lovetsky / Associated Press )

The demonstration started with thousands of people gathered in the historic Field of Mars Park in Saint Petersburg, just blocks from the Hermitage Museum and Winter Palace. The crowd then marched along the picturesque Liteyny Prospect, where more people joined. Within an hour of its start, the demonstration was blocked by several columns of riot police and buses. Dozens were detained and taken away in police buses, the first and harshest mass arrest of the day.

In Moscow, police told Russian news agencies that about 700 demonstrators had participated in a rally that started on Pushkin Square, a central square at the top of the capital citys main drag, Tverskaya Street. Under the shadow of Alexander Pushkin, Russias beloved poet, the crowd of mostly younger demonstrators chanted, Russia without Putin and We are the power here and Free Navalny.

After about an hour on the square, the crowd moved down Tverskaya toward Red Square, despite bursts of sometimes heavy rain. A column of police blocked the demonstrators entry to the square, and the crowd returned to Pushkin Square.

Many protesters carried Russian flags, which Navalny has encouraged followers of his popular YouTube channel to do as a way of showing their support for a strong but free Russia.

Other demonstrators carried rubber ducks or balloons shaped like yellow, rubber ducks. The ducks have become a symbol of the Navalny-inspired protest movement after his Anti-corruption Foundation published a video alleging that Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev through corruption schemes has amassed lavish mansions complete with a dedicated duck house.

We are here because we dont want Putin in power anymore, and we support Navalny as president, said Artyom Telunts, 18, a university student in Moscow. We want a free Russia, with free press, free elections, free internet. Freedom in general. Putin needs to go.

The fact that Navalny has chosen Putins 65th birthday to protest is particularly irritating to the Kremlin, said Alexander Baunov, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Moscow Center, a think tank.

Navalny wants to show that Putin, after nearly 18 years in office, is closer to the age when his predecessor, Boris Yeltsin, left the presidency and appointed Putin to replace him, and past the age when Russian men can start to collect their pension, which is 60.

Putin has been well received for many reasons, but one of the important reasons is that he was shown as in a good physical form and a strong man, Baunov said. Now at 65, he doesnt like society to be reminded that he was the same age as Yeltsin, and this is what Navalny is doing.

Indeed, young followers of Navalny frequently comment about Putins having maximized his time in office.

Its time for him to go on pension, said Dasha Schastnaya, 16, who was waving a duck balloon on Moscows Pushkin Square as a light rain fell. We need someone new and fresh who doesnt just want power. Someone who wants to do something for our country to make us perfect.

sabra.ayres@latimes.com

Twitter: @sabraayres

Ayres is a special correspondent.

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After an intense two-day search, local military forces Friday recovered the body of a U.S. Army commando who was inadvertently left behind after a daylight ambush by militants killed three other Green Berets in a rugged border region in Niger.

Pentagon officials had not previously announced that a Green Beret was missing in action after the surprise attack on a joint patrol of U.S. commandos and Nigerien troops Wednesday. Six of the 12 Americans on the patrol were killed or wounded.

Officials hoped the missing U.S. Army Special Forces operative might still be hiding in the dense brush, rather than taken captive, and launched a massive search-and-rescue mission with aerial drones and other aircraft, as well as Nigerien ground forces.

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The death of four Green Berets in remote West Africa marks the worst single loss of U.S. forces under fire since President Trump took office. The president was briefed on the search and the discovery of the body, officials said.

The casualties came as a heavy blow to the insular special operations community that increasingly shoulders the burden of Americas counter-terrorism operations overseas. The four fatalities, as well as two wounded Green Berets, were in the 3rd Special Forces Group based in Ft. Bragg, N.C.

The Pentagon identified the first three fatalities as Staff Sgt. Bryan C. Black, 35, of Puyallup, Wash.; Staff Sgt. Jeremiah W. Johnson, 39, of Springboro, Ohio; and Staff Sgt. Dustin M. Wright, 29, of Lyons, Ga.

Officials did not release the name of the Green Beret whose body was found Friday. It wasnt immediately clear if he was killed in the firefight or died later.

According to the Pentagon, the Special Forces Operational Detachment Alpha, otherwise known as an A-Team, went on a routine patrol Wednesday afternoon with about 20 troops from the Niger Armed Forces when they came under heavy fire.

Officials said a barrage of machine gun fire and rocket-propelled grenades from about 50 militants forced the U.S. and Nigerien troops into defensive positions near the border with Mali. The fire peppered the troops trucks and shattered windows before they could regroup and fire back.

The soldiers called in support from French attack helicopters and fighter jets. Its not clear whether the aircraft fired.

Amid the chaos, the officials said, one of the 12 Green Berets was left behind in a border region notorious for drug smuggling, human trafficking and myriad extremist militias, including allies of Al Qaeda and Islamic State.

The other Green Berets only noticed his absence after they had pulled back.

Col. Mark Cheadle, spokesman for U.S. Africa Command, which oversees U.S. military operations on the continent, said commanders are reassessing whether U.S. forces on patrol are properly supplied to defend themselves.

We are reevaluating, he said. This was not expected. This was clearly something that, had we anticipated this sort of attack, we absolutely would have devoted more resources to it to reduce the risk.

Cheadle said the patrol had planned to talk to local leaders about security. He said the military has no indication that someone tipped off the militants to set up an ambush in the brush.

It wouldve been easy to have good concealment in this terrain, he said, adding that an unarmed surveillance aircraft was overhead, but no armed air cover because the threat was considered unlikely.

Four Nigerien soldiers also were reported killed, with eight wounded. The two wounded Green Berets were flown to the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany, the largest U.S. military hospital overseas.

The deadly attack drew attention to the little-known U.S. military presence in Niger, an impoverished desert country in Francophone West Africa. About 800 U.S. personnel are deployed there.

Niger is considered strategic for U.S. counter-terrorism operations. It lies between Nigeria to the south, where Islamic State affiliate Boko Haram has been fighting to establish Islamist rule, and Mali to the west, where multiple extremist militias are active.

In all, U.S. special operations teams are deployed in 124 countries to train, advise and assist friendly forces, although most are focused in Africa and the Middle East.

The special operators clandestine operations and extensive training in guerrilla warfare became critical in tracking terrorist networks rooted in the Middle East and Horn of Africa.

Brig. Gen. Donald C. Bolduc, former commander of U.S. Special Operations Command in Africa, told Special Warfare Magazine, an internal military publication, in January that the future for special operations isnt in Iraq or Afghanistan but in areas where were seeing violent extremist organizations spreading, like Africa.

The program has vastly expanded in recent years as the Obama administration sought to bring U.S. troops home from Iraq and Afghanistan and rely more on U.S.-trained and -armed local forces for counter-terrorism operations.

But it has put a burden on special operations forces who face repeated deployments in remote areas that often have little resources in the case of emergency.

william.hennigan@latimes.com

Twitter: @wjhenn

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A group of five men assaulted and robbed another man early Saturday morning in Easton, according to city police.

Officers were sent shortly after 1 a.m. to the 900 block of Northampton Street, where the 23-year-old victim said the robbers took his cash, police said in a news release.

Police reported that no weapons were involved.

The robbers were all described as black men in their teens to early 20s, police said. One was wearing a gray hoodie, and another had a black shirt and braided hair. A third man was described as tall and light-skinned with tattoos on his face.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Christopher Miller at 610-250-6656 or the police tip line at 610-250-6635.

Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @type2supernovak and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
By Tony Rhodin | For lehighvalleylive.com

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A Northampton County Top 10 fugitive and a father and son wanted on unrelated charges were arrested Friday in Allentown, the Northampton County Sheriff's Department reports.

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The arrests were made by the U.S. Marshals Violent Fugitive Task Force, made up of marshals, sheriff's deputies from the Criminal Warrants Unit, Pennsylvania State Police, Pennsylvania State Parole agents and, in these three cases, Allentown police.

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Trisha Samuels

The 36-year-old was only on the Top 10 list for a few days when she was arrested Friday on North Fourth Street in Allentown.

She was the mastermind of a November 2015 burglary at the Lester Pfeffer American Legion Post at 429 S. 16th St. in Wilson Borough, police said.

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She faced a slew of charges after her arrest in February 2016. Police said she was on the phone with Jose Anibal Rodriguez Jr., 21, of West Easton, as he stole $1,900 from the storage room of the club, borough police said at the time.

She was returned to Northampton County Prison.

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Tim Wynkoop | lehighvalleylive.com contributor

Hakeem Williams

The 20-year-old, who was picked up in the 800 block of Elliger Street, faced a June 2 charge of possession with intent to deliver drugs in Easton. He was not home in the 100 block of West Nesquehoning Street during a city drug raid a few days later, police said at the time.

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He also violated his parole, the sheriff's department said, from a June 29, 2016, incident in which a running gun battle on Lehigh Street led to a West Ward resident being wounded. Williams pleaded no contest to a weapons offense and was sentenced to six to 18 months in prison and two years of probation.

He was returned to Northampton County Prison.

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Alhakeem Hamilton

The 40-year-old was taken into custody along with his son in the 800 block of Elliger Street, the sheriff's department said.

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Hamilton was wanted on a bench warrant on parole violations involving a no contest plea on a July 7, 2013, receiving stolen property charge  on which he violated supervision several times  and a March 18, 2016, drug charge out of Easton, records show.

He was returned to Northampton County Prison.

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Drugs were found as well

Allentown police recovered cocaine in the home where Williams and Hamilton were found, the sheriff's department said. If charges are filed, they will come through Allentown police, the sheriff's department said.

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Thursday arrests

On Thursday, the Criminal Warrants Division and parole agents made four other arrests, the sheriff's department reports.

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Michael Hendershot

The 29-year-old was arrested Thursday in the 800 block of Walnut Street in Bangor, the sheriff's department said.

He was charged Sept. 15, 2014, with possession with intent to deliver drugs, records show.

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He pleaded guilty May 15 of the next year and received the Intermediate Punishment Program in state prison, but got booted from that on Jan. 13 of this year, records say. He was resentenced April 7 to 15 to 30 months behind bars and 24 months of probation.

It wasn't clear from records how he got out of custody.

He was returned to county prison.

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Samantha Ike

The 20-year-old was taken into custody Thursday in the 700 block of Washington Street in Easton, the department said.

She missed her preliminary hearing and first county court appearance on an October 2016 receiving stolen property count, records show. A bench warrant was issued Dec. 15.

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Since her most recent arrest, she went before a judge on Friday and her bail was set any 10 percent of $2,500, records show.

She was returned to county prison.

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Rakeem Smith

The 21-year-old was arrested Thursday at the Super 8 Motel on Airport Road in Allentown, the department said.

He was facing supervision violations in three cases  receiving stolen property, theft and possession of drug paraphernalia, the department said.

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His status was reviewed Sept. 28, records show. His supervision was violated by a simple assault charge on Sept. 5 out of Easton, the department said.

He was returned to county prison.

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Brad Fernsler

The 34-year-old was picked up Thursday hiding in a bedroom in a home in the 100 block of Shafter Street in East Bangor, the department said. Bangor and East Bangor police assisted in executing the warrant tied to domestic relations, the department said.

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Fernsler was also wanted on false reports and possession of a controlled substances charges, the department said.

He was returned to county prison.

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Tony Rhodin may be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyRhodin. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
The number of prisoners in Irish jails has become manageable according to Laois TD and Minister for Justice Charlie Flanagan.

In an address to the annual Human Rights conference Minister Flanagan said Ireland has finally started to enter a more positive space, in that the numbers in prison have reduced significantly in the last six years.

Minister Flanagan, who represents a constituency with two large jails, said there are now 88 people per 100,000 of our population. He said this compares 'favourably' to England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

"When prison numbers are manageable, as they are now, it gives us space to increase our focus on strategically and holistically addressing, the broader social problems that are tied up with imprisonment," he said.

He said several strategies targeted specifically at reducing the prison population adding that the resulting decrease in the prison population has been an important part of addressing the problem of overcrowding.

He said prisons are an integral part of our criminal justice system and the response to crime but extent to which prisons dominate that response is changing.

He said that while numbers in jail has declined, there is room to further reduce the numbers sent to prision.

"We must critically examine the use and effectiveness of imprisonment for short sentences and the commencement of the Fines (Payment and Recovery) Act 2014 in 2016 should result in a large reduction in the number of committals to prisons on short sentences," he said.

"I am a firm believer that prison should be reserved as a last resort and this approach must be complemented with providing viable alternatives to custody," he said.

As a TD the Minister has many constituents who are prison officers or who work in the prison service. He praised the men and women who work in prisons are integral to creating an environment where inmates can flourish, balancing their traditional security focussed role with a renewed emphasis on supporting and facilitating the rehabilitative focus.

"Those at the coalface play a key part in ensuring our prisons are more secure, safer and more effective; and founded on a respect for decency and humanity," said the Minister.

The Laois TD also felt the society needs to show a greater interest in prisons.

"I strongly feel that prisons need to move from being closed entities into institutions in the public domain. Society should have an interest in their prisons and in how effective they are at reducing potential harm in their communities. After all, 98% of prisoners return to their community. By improving the prison system, we can help prisoners change their lives. We can better protect prisoners and those who work in prison. We can work to break the cycle of reoffending, yielding benefits for communities," he said.

The following is the full text of Minister Charlie Flanagan's address to the Annual Human Rights Conference 7th October 2017, organised by the Law Society Professional Training Centre in partnership with the Irish Human Rights & Equality Commission and the Irish Probation Service

"Members of the Law Society, Members of the Judiciary, Members of the Public & Distinguished Guests.

"I would like to thank the Law Society Human Rights Committee for the invitation to speak at this the 15th Annual Human Rights Conference. The conference places a valuable spotlight each year on human rights and confirms their relevance across Irish society. In particular, I would take this opportunity to pay tribute to the work of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission in protecting and promoting human rights in Ireland and for its tireless work and engagement in building a culture of respect and dignity to ensure continuing progress towards the fulfilment of human rights.

"Todays conference is co-hosted by the Irish Probation Service an agency that places human rights at the very core of its ethos. I am highly appreciative of the work of the Committee in bringing together these key groups and partners today to consider themes that go to the root of human rights issues. Our conversation today builds upon prior discussions of human rights in relation to health, domestic violence, criminal justice and economic, social and cultural rights. These are areas which Im sure you will agree are all of critical relevance to todays theme.

"This years focus on prisons goes to the heart of my remit as Minister for Justice and Equality. The role of prisons, their impact on society, on offenders and the needs of victims are central questions in the age-old debates on crime, punishment, fairness & equity. It is, and always has been a central issue for the criminal justice system and for society as a whole.

"These will be issues with which future generations will also need to grapple.Over 10.2 million people worldwide woke up in a prison today. Prison populations are growing in all five continents. By contrast, Ireland has finally started to enter a more positive space, in that the numbers in prison have reduced significantly in the last six years. We now imprison 88 people per 100,000 of our population. This compares favourably to our nearest neighbours. England and have 148 prisoners per 100,000 of population, while Scotland has 147 and Northern Ireland has 101. When prison numbers are manageable, as they are now, it gives us space to increase our focus on strategically and holistically addressing, the broader social problems that are tied up with imprisonment.

"Many people in prison are poor economically, but also poor emotionally, educationally, socially and in the context of their health status. Many have difficulty regulating their emotions. Typically, they are young men (18-35) who have fallen out of school, education, training or wider society and into prison.

"Prisons are an integral part of our criminal justice system and our response to crime. However the extent to which prisons dominate that response is changing. In the broader historical context, imprisonment has had multiple aims including punishment, incapacitation, reparation, deterrence and rehabilitation. Depending on the societal context at any given point, each of these aims will have a different emphasis. Punishment has been a core theme historically but our view of this has evolved in recent years to bring an increased focus on rehabilitation in particular.

"While the courts effect punishment through incarceration, this course of action, of itself, does not always lead to rehabilitation, deter someone from future crime, or indeed make society as safe as possible. It does not address the underlying factors that will lead to future offending. And whilst the State can imprison, it also has to be conscious of the social harm to offenders, families and communities in doing so. The decision to deprive someone of his or her liberty is not one to be taken lightly. I am a firm believer that prison should be reserved as a last resort and this approach must be complemented with providing viable alternatives to custody. Such alternatives focus on addressing offending behaviour in the community in a way that best meets the needs of society, offenders and victims.

"When speaking about imprisonment as it resides in the broader context of the criminal justice system, it would be entirely remiss of me not to mention the victim. This is a human rights conference, which by virtue of the universality of human rights, must consider the rights of all parties. That includes the rights of offenders, the rights of their families and the rights of their victims. Conversations about human rights inevitably require a balancing of competing rights and interests, for example the right to liberty and the right to be protected by the laws of the State from unjust attack.

"How do we strike this balance in the criminal justice system? We must continue to ensure that violent offenders and other serious offenders serve appropriate prison sentences while at the same time moving towards less costly non-custodial options for non-violent and less serious offenders. We need open discussions on the benefits of reducing prison numbers and the subsequent introduction of evidence based interventions that aim at promoting desistance, reducing recidivism and mitigating the impact of intergenerational offending.

"Ensuring balance in our criminal justice is also about continuing to emphasise the importance of access to justice. In this context inevitably, a core concern is the cost of such access. Our legal aid structure provides for those without sufficient means in both the civil and criminal law spheres. I want to particularly mention the States Criminal Legal Aid Scheme. My Department will spend not very much less than 60 million this year across the various components of criminal legal aid to ensure at all relevant stage of the process that fairness and justice applies in respect of those brought before the courts.

"Instrumental in securing this access are those highly professional and dedicated members of the legal professions  both solicitors and barristers  who represent accused persons in the preparation and presentation of their defence. I am aware that during our deep recession the legal profession like so many others endured difficult cut backs in fee rates. As we are slowly rectifying the public finances and, as a government, grappling with the monstrous legacy difficulties caused by that lost decade of recession, we are endeavouring to better fund schemes.

"I must sound a note of caution and say that as Minister I am in the same boat as my colleagues  I will not be allocated the budget I would like. But I am conscious of the commitment and service of those who work in the legal aid sphere and I am mindful of the difficulties lawyers in this field face. I have been engaging with the Law Society in particular about this matter and I will continue to work constructively with the professional bodies to address these issues.

"To go back to the specific issue of the prison population, in recent years, my Department, the Irish Prison & Probation Services, with the support of other agencies and stakeholders, has introduced several strategies targeted specifically at reducing the prison population. The resulting decrease in the prison population has been an important part of addressing the problem of overcrowding.

"In February, 2011 the number in custody reached a peak of 4,621. As of 27th September 2017, there were 1,033 fewer prisoners in custody, an overall decrease of 22%. In 2016, there were 12,163 persons committed under sentence to Irish prisons, which marked a decrease of 13% on the previous years figure. However, 90.4% of all committals under sentence in 2016 were for sentences of less than 12 months. Moreover, committals for the non-payment of a court ordered fine accounted for 8,439 of these committals. We must critically examine the use and effectiveness of imprisonment for short sentences and the commencement of the Fines (Payment and Recovery) Act 2014 in 2016 should result in a large reduction in the number of committals to prisons on short sentences.

"There are alternatives to custody. For example, the Criminal Justice (Community Service) (Amendment) Act 2011 which requires a sentencing judge to consider the imposition of community service where a custodial sentence of 12 months or less is being considered.

"In conjunction with the Probation Service, the Irish Prison Service has continued the national roll out of the Community Return Programme, an incentivised scheme for earned temporary release under which carefully selected offenders can be granted structured temporary release in return for supervised community service. In addition to this programme, Community Support Schemes have been set up in Cork Prison, Mountjoy Campus, West Dublin Campus, Midlands and Limerick Prisons, the aim of which is to reduce recidivism rates by arranging for additional support structures and provide for a more structured form of temporary release.

"In serious cases and where it has been determined that a custodial sentence is the most appropriate sanction, the principles of normalisation and rehabilitation apply.

"In relation to the former, the Irish Prison Service is committed in its Strategy statement to ensuring that prisoners are detained in accordance with the law including international human rights law and that prisoners are treated with dignity and respect. Prisoners are deprived of their fundamental right to liberty through incarceration but should retain the full complement of their remaining rights.

"Much work has been undertaken recently to improve the conditions of detention in Irish prisons. The construction of a new prison in Cork which opened on 12 February 2016 and the complete refurbishment of all the wings in Mountjoy Prison has resulted in the elimination of the practice of slopping out in both those prisons. Now over 98% of prisoners across the prison estate have access to in-cell sanitation.

"The Irish Prison Services Capital Strategy 2016-2021 outlines plans for the complete replacement of the outdated accommodation in Limerick and Portlaoise prisons as well as improvements across a number of other prisons. On completion of the Limerick and Portlaoise projects, slopping out will be completely eliminated across the prisons estate.

"In addition to developing a step down unit for female offenders, the Irish Prison Service are developing plans to address the female accommodation situation within the prison estate. This will be achieved by the modernisation & expansion of facilities in Limerick Prison, which will include the provision of high quality prison accommodation & services for female prisoners with a capacity of approximately 50 individual cells and 8 transition units.

"The men and women who work in our prisons are integral to creating an environment where inmates can flourish, balancing their traditional security focussed role with a renewed emphasis on supporting and facilitating the rehabilitative focus. Those at the coalface play a key part in ensuring our prisons are more secure, safer and more effective; and founded on a respect for decency and humanity. The Irish Prison Service places a major emphasis on the training of prison service staff in the area of human rights and appropriate behaviour towards prisoners. By maintaining and promoting positive relationships with prisoners and their colleagues, by supporting an environment that promotes the dignity of everyone in the prison community, prison staff are a central influence and key driver of the reform agenda.

"Prison provides an opportunity for a person who may have been marginalised by society, missed out on education, or caught in a spiral of addiction and criminal activity, to address the causes of their offending behaviour. It is the States responsibility through their staff, partners both statutory and non-statutory, to provide those opportunities through the provision of services such as education, work training, healthcare services and drug treatment. In turn, this enhances the capacity and commitment of prisoners to make a more positive contribution in their local communities upon release. The Irish Prison Service provides a wide range of rehabilitative programmes that include education, vocational training, healthcare, psychiatric, psychological, counselling, welfare and spiritual services.

"The closure of St Patricks Institution in April this year by my predecessor the Tanaiste, Frances Fitzgerald marked a significant and progressive step forward in the treatment of children and fulfilled a long-standing Government commitment. St Patricks Institution was the subject of much criticism by various bodies and persons involved in the area of human rights and childrens rights. Children are now committed by the Courts to the Childrens Detention Centre at Oberstown, and no children remain in the adult prison system.

"Ireland is an active participant in the International Human Rights agenda where there has been much emphasis on the human rights of prisoners of late. Our engagement on human rights at international level enables us to reaffirm our commitment to the universality, indivisibility and interrelatedness of all human rights, to accountability for human rights violations and abuses, and to the protection of those who are most vulnerable and marginalised. Our participation in UN human rights mechanisms in terms of examining on our own human rights record and in looking at conditions of detention in other states provides an invaluable framework for international collaboration and reflection.

"Indeed the UN Expert Committees (UNCAT) concluding observations on the second periodic report of Ireland, following Irelands recent appearance before the Committee on 27 & 28 July, acknowledge the progress made in the area of prisons. Minister David Stanton who led Irelands delegation acknowledged the principal subjects of concern and the Committees recommendations and noted that Ireland is making steady progress in addressing many of the human rights issues raised.

"In June this year I made a Statutory Instrument entitled Prison (Amendment) Rules 2017 (No. 276 of 2017) which takes into account the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners - known as the Nelson Mandela Rules in respect of the issue of solitary confinement. This will ensure that all prisoners will spend a minimum period of two hours out of their cell or room with an opportunity during that time for meaningful human contact.

"The Irish Prison Service is focussed on helping to support children and families as well as providing supports to the people in their care, to desist from criminal behaviour upon their release. A pilot project in Limerick prison supported by the University of Limerick is currently underway to support this and aims to involve families and children in the lived experience of prisoners. By keeping families involved, through close contact visits, involving them in their childrens school work, daily activities and decision making, while other agencies are working with the child and the family, the Prison Service aims to support prisoners and their families to maintain relationships; a difficult thing to do in a prison environment.

"In order to maintain and support familial links, the Irish Prison Service are working promoting and sustaining strong partnerships with civil society in general who are dealing with the same complex issues such as drug abuse and crime that undermine the fabric of Irish society. The active involvement of civil society in our prisons is essential to help the prison service achieve their strategic objectives. These groups also play a key role in supporting prisoners and ex-prisoners to reintegrate into society and engaging actively with them brings a broad range of expertise, knowledge, resources and experience that may otherwise not be available.

"I strongly feel that prisons need to move from being closed entities into institutions in the public domain. Society should have an interest in their prisons and in how effective they are at reducing potential harm in their communities. After all, 98% of prisoners return to their community. By improving the prison system, we can help prisoners change their lives. We can better protect prisoners and those who work in prison. We can work to break the cycle of reoffending, yielding benefits for communities.

"There simply cannot be an effective prison service without an effective probation service. The Irish Prison Service and the Probation Service are working together under a joint strategy to address cycles of sustained offending behaviour through approaches that tackle the complex range of needs and problems rather than focussing on single issues in isolation. Achieving our strategic objectives would not be possible without the professionalism of the Probation Service, and Im sure that Vivian Geiran the Director of the Probation Service will elaborate further in his address on their role and the valuable work they do.

"Our duty is not just to the people in custody today; it is also to those who are going to come into prison after them. We know that a significant percentage of boys who have a parent in prison will go to jail themselves. We can see this inter-generational drift into imprisonment. We can clearly see the profound effects that the imprisonment of a parent can have on children. We need to keep this aspect of imprisonment, and the effect that it might have on a childs life, at the forefront of our minds.

"Improving accommodation and regimes, ensuring dignity and respect, providing meaningful programmes, supporting people to mend their ways, providing an opportunity for people to re-educate and re-skill themselves, in preparation for their return to their community, is what the Irish Prison Service strives to do. This is a significant challenge in a custodial environment, especially when considering the effect that imprisonment has on factors known to promote desistance from crime such as maintaining a stable relationship or marriage; having stable employment; moving away from same-age, same-gender peers; having a sense of responsibility and showing a concern for others, especially caring for ones children.

"I share those goals and support the Irish Prison Service in striving to achieve them. Prison must be built on the principles of normalisation, progression and re-integration. I believe that one of the biggest challenges that the Irish prison service faces and which they are very much focussed on, is mitigating the pains of imprisonment and supporting prisoners rehabilitation, while simultaneously working to prevent the next generation from ending up in prison.

"These are not just the Irish Prison Services challenges, they are societys challenges. By helping and supporting the people in our care, I am certain that we can make society safer. By doing so, we will have fewer victims and less crime.

"Seventy years ago, the Commission on Human Rights began the process of drafting the Universal Declaration on Human Rights. Next year, we will celebrate the seventh anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration by the UN General Assembly. The Declaration is as relevant today as it was, seventy years ago, when it gave hope of a better future to a world that had experienced war and barbarity. Over the intervening decades, our understanding has grown of the areas of human experience where an individuals human rights can be infringed. Equally, our public institutions have gained expertise in defending human rights. Indeed the positive duty which requires all public bodies to have due regard to respect for equality and human rights has constituted a crucial step change in our institutional capacity to promote and protect human rights. I would like to acknowledge IHRECs work to guide public bodies in the performance of that duty.

"Respect for human rights has to be embedded in the DNA of our public institutions. Zeid Raad Al Hussein, the High Commissioner for Human Rights, whom I had the honour to host in Ireland last June, reminds us that human rights and healthy public institutions are fundamentally interlinked. As he says When the fundamental principles of human rights are not protected, the centre of our institution no longer holds. Todays conference confirms the truth of his observation. Ensuring respect for human rights principles make our criminal justice and penal systems all the stronger.

"After all, it is in everyones interests to convince more individuals that their contribution to Irish life need not be as prisoners but rather as valued members of our society.

"Thank you very much".
Gardai have just completed a special briefing this morning and are starting their seventh day of searches for missing Dublin man, Janusz Jasicki.

Janusz disappeared a week ago on Saturday, September 30 while attending a function in Carrick-on-Shannon.

Members of the Civil Defence, local gardai, Garda Dog Units, Garda Diving Units, the Garda Air Units and a Coast Guard helicopter have all been involved in searches along the Shannon and the town in recent days.

However, despite this, no trace of Janusz has been found. Gardai have already appealed for property owners in the Carrick-on-Shannon area to check all vacant properties and sheds for any signs of the missing man. They are now appealing for anyone who may have been driving in the area, or who may have noticed a man matching the description of Janusz, walking in the Carrick-on-Shannon area on the night of September 30/October 1, to contact them.

Janusz is described as being 5 10 with light brown hair and blue eyes. When last seen he was wearing a navy jacket, blue jeans and a light blue t-shirt. Gardai have CCTV footage of Janusz in the Priests Lane/Main Street area of Carrick-on-Shannon at arond 8.45pm on September 30. They also have tracking of his phone which show he moved out towards the Hartley area of the town. However the battery on the phone died some time on Sunday morning, October 1 and no further tracking information is available.

Any detail, no matter how insignificant, could help with the search for Janusz. If you have CCTV footage from your home or if you noticed Janusz on the night in question, contact Carrick-on-Shannon Gardai on (071) 9650510.

Janusz Jasicki.




This is the seventh of my posts based on a recent tour of the eastern half of the USA. I visited a number of sites relevant to African American history. To mark Black History Month, I am relating some of the things I saw, in the order I saw them.

When I started planning my US trip, I had two items high on my bucket list which I wanted to tick. One was the Rosa Parks museum (of which more later in this series) and the other was the Motown museum in Detroit. I was extremely excited to visit the home of Tamla Motown. I made a major 3000 mile detour in my trip just to do it! And I was not disappointed. I have still not completely calmed down from my excitement three weeks after visiting it!

For those readers who are not familiar with Motown music, heres what the Historic Michigan plaque outside the museum in suburban Detroit says:

The Motown Sound was created on this site from 1959 to 1972. The company started with an $800 loan from the savings club of the Bertha and Barry Gordy Sr., family. Originally called Tamla Records, the companys first national release was Money (Thats What I Want), in August 1959. The founder, choosing a name that reflected the Motor City, coined the word Motown for the company that was incorporated as the Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. That same year it produced its first gold record, Shop Around. In 1968 the company, which had grown from a family-oriented business to an international enterprise, moved its business operations to 2457 Woodward. Motown provided an opportunity for Detroits inner-city youth to reach their full potential and become super stars. By the end of its first decade, Motown was the largest independent manufacturer of single 45 rpm records in the world. Among Motowns record labels were Tamla, Motown, Gordy, Soul, VIP, Rare Earth, Black Forum, Workshop, Jazz, Divinity and others. In 1972 Motown moved its headquarters to Los Angeles, California. The company expanded its television productions and entered the motion picture industry. Lady Sings the Blues, Motowns first feature-length film, received five Academy Award Nominations. By 1975, Motown Industries was the largest black-owned corporation in the world. In 1980 the Motown Historical Museum was established at Hitsville U.S.A. to commemorate the Motown Sound and to memorialize Motowns distinctive heritage and its global impact.

The largest black-owned corporation in the world  thats amazing. But the big significance of Motown is that it united everyone in their love of the music. It wasnt just black people who enjoyed Motown  it was everyone. Indeed, in this country the leading pioneer of Motown music, dare I mention him, was Tony Blackburn.

What is stunning about the Motown Museum is how small the operation was (when it started  later it expanded to several suburban houses). It was literally just a house. Berry Gordy lived upstairs with his family (you can visit the flat with its original 1960s furnishings) and shipped the records from his dining room table. Downstairs the studio was in the garage and the control room was in the kitchen.

To stand in Studio A, the garage, and just imagine all the vast number of Motown hits which were created there  was just mind-blowing. Heres a gratuitous snap of me standing outside Hitsville USA:

* Paul Walter is a Liberal Democrat activist and member of the Liberal Democrat Voice team. He blogs at Liberal Burblings.
A FINE Gael senator has called on the Government to include a 96-bed block at University Hospital Limerick in its capital plan which is due to be revealed in the next two months.

The UL Hospitals Group has put in a bid to secure funding from the Department of Health for the 25m project, which could alleviate UHLs overcrowding crisis.

Sen Kieran ODonnells calls come after a new report showed that UHL had the worst rate of overcrowding in the country in September, with 902 patients being treated on emergency department trolleys and on extra trolleys or beds in the wards.

The overcrowding rate was significantly higher than any other hospital in the country, with the second worst level of trolley numbers found at Cork University Hospital, with 628 patients.

The report shows that it is the worst ever September for overcrowding since records began in 2006, when there were just 139 patients on trolleys. The lowest ever rate of September overcrowding was in 2008, when there were 72 people on trolleys.

Sen ODonnell said that there was always a need for the extra 96 beds, following the closure of St Johns, Ennis, and Nenagh emergency departments since 2009.

He described this as putting the cart before the horse.

I have spoken to Minister Harris about the overcrowding and he is well aware of the difficulties. The new ED has made it a more bearable visit for patients, but nonetheless, unacceptable in terms of being on trolleys. And I am impressing upon him that the 96-acute bed unit would be included in the capital plan, which is due to be announced over the next month or two, he told the Leader.

Sen ODonnell lobbied to secure funding for the design and planning phase of the new 96-bed block. He said that it is an utter priority.

As we stand at the moment, no time is lost, as the design work has to go underway. The key thing now is to ensure that we can get the project included in the new capital plan, he said.

The new emergency department at UHL opened on May 29, and was launched by Minister for Health Simon Harris on June 13.

Emergency consultants have said that until it removes its bed deficit, overcrowding in Dooradoyle will persist.

A spokesperson for the UL Hospitals Group said that it has submitted its winter plan for 2017 to the Department of Health, in conjunction with HSE Mid-West Community Healthcare.

This plan will set out measures to manage the predicted number of attendances in the ED during the forthcoming winter period.

In order to alleviate overcrowding in the interim, the hospital has transformed the former emergency department into a 17-bed medical short stay unit.

One measure to relieve ED pressure includes the transfer of suitable patients from UHL to Ennis, Nenagh, St Johns, and Croom Hospital.

The UL Hospitals Group is in discussions to reopen 20 beds at St Johns, which have been closed since early summer 2016, by the end of this month.
TRAIN services out of Limerick's Colbert station  and around the country  look set to grind to a halt later this month.

Travel disruption is on the way, with talks between the National Bus and Railworkers Union (NBRU) and Siptu warning strike action is very likely over the October Bank Holiday weekend.

Staff are looking for a pay rise in the region of 3.75%, with talks at the Workplace Relations Commission ending this Friday.

Both of the unions have indicated workers could go to the gate on the Bank Holiday weekend, between October 28 and 30, traditionally one of the busiest times for travel in the year.

Some 60 staff work at Limerick Colbert station.

Union sources have indicated that if workers in Limerick set up pickets, they would be instructing bus drivers to pass these and attend work  unlike earlier in the year, when Bus Eireann drivers were engaging in industrial action. Then, rail services from Limerick were disrupted.

Sinn Fein TD Maurice Quinlivan called on Transport Minister Shane Ross to intervene.

Minister Ross has this knack for not getting involved. He needs to get involved and make sure the service is maintained, and these workers get their pay increases. Not many people in either the public or private sector would hang around for ten years waiting for a rise, he said.

Workers are seeking the same rate of pay as staff on the Luas and Dublin Bus in the capital.

These workers have done a very important and valuable service to Limerick, and I'd fully support their claim for a pay increase. They have been very patient through years of austerity.

I know how hard they work. Ianrod Eireann have said its income is up. So it's time workers who have been loyal to the company to get their reward for that, Mr Quinlivan added.

His party colleague, Senator Paul Gavan, a former trade union official, said: Any government should understand the need to do a deal. Both unions and management at Irish Rail have acknowledged they are suffering an under-funding to the tune of 125m a year. It is a governmental failure to address this issue.

Services run between Limerick Colbert station and Sixmilebridge, Ennis and Galway.

Other destinations served from the Parnell Place terminus include Dublin Heuston station, Thurles, Portarlington and Portlaoise in the midlands.
THE greatness of family and its core role in peoples lives will be celebrated this Sunday as young and old from across the Diocese of Limerick gather for a festival of fun at Mary Immaculate College, Limerick.

The family fun day, which will be free to the public, is Limerick Dioceses formal launch of its World Meeting of Families programme as it builds towards the first ever hosting of this global event in Ireland next year.

Sundays event, which runs from 1pm to 5pm, will capture the essence of family as children, parents, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, uncles, aunts and cousins come together for a fun-filled celebration that will be a reminder of the beauty of family.

A special festival Mass will be held at 4pm but before that there will be three hours of inter-generational revelry as all ages come together to enjoy family fun activities.

They will get to enjoy food stalls, a mobile farm, face painting, archery, an obstacle course, water zorbs, music and games, and more.

Looking ahead to the day, Bishop of Limerick Brendan Leahy said: We have the exciting prospect next year of Ireland hosting the World Meeting of Families in Ireland and we wanted to launch our programme in support of this great event by celebrating families in a fun environment.

There is a deeply spiritual aspect to the World Meeting of Families and, appropriately, we will have a festival Mass on Sunday. Theres few things more sacred than families enjoying time together.

Family is such a special institution. Its there for you on the good days and also there when you need it most.

Everyone is welcome on Sunday.
GARDAI in Limerick have launched a fresh investigation into the death of a hospital patient that occurred seven years ago.

Michael Daly Snr, of Lee Estate, aged 66, died on April 7, 2010, after repeatedly presenting at the Mid-Western Regional Hospital  now University Hospital Limerick  after two years of complaining of pain and rectal bleeding.

As reported in this newspaper in September 2012, the Limerick Coroners Court returned a verdict of death by natural causes.

Unhappy with the verdict, Mr Dalys son Michael Jnr led an appeal with his family to have the inquest reopened. In March last, coroner John McNamara informed the family that a second inquest would take place in late 2017.

A spokesperson for the gardai confirmed this week that they are investigating the death of Mr Daly.

An investigation team has been established at Henry Street in Limerick to look into all aspects of this investigation. It would be inappropriate to discuss any further matters at this stage, the spokesperson said in a statement.

As a result, it is likely that the second inquest will be postponed until a further date. The Limerick Leader made a number of attempts to contact the coroners office this week.

It is understood that State pathologist Dr Marie Cassidy has been called in to review the case.

Michael Daly Jnr told the Leader this week that the past seven years have been a battle for truth.

The past seven years have been horrendous for us as a family with the realisation of what happened our dad, and as a family we are delighted that our dad's death is being investigated by An Gardai Siochana and the State pathologist Professor Marie Cassidy, it has been a long seven years, he said.

He said that following the gardais investigation, we feel we will finally see justice for our dad.

Mr Daly added they immediately took issue with the verdict of the first inquest in September 2012. After appealing the findings, Mr Daly did extensive research of his late fathers medical records. Earlier this year, Mr Daly said that since weeks before his fathers death, he and his sisters, Sandra and Susan, have been requesting for all of his health records, adding that they had studied more than 3,200 documents.

And after a four-year long investigation, I found myself in a position to request a second inquest, based on my findings.

He said that the family are very happy with the gardai and their handling of the matter and with coroner John McNamaras role.

In November 2016, the UL Hospitals apologised to the deceaseds family after confirmation that an important medical document had been omitted from his healthcare record at University Hospital Limerick.

The omitted document was a review by a locum consultant cardiologist on Mr Dalys condition. The UL Hospitals Group responded with an apology describing it as an oversight.

When contacted by the Leader this week, the UL Hospitals Group stated: UL Hospitals Group are liaising directly with the family of the late Mr Michael Daly on all of their queries. An external review into the clinical care provided to Mr Daly is currently underway and his family are fully engaged in this process. As the review is ongoing we are unable to comment further at this time.

In March, Mr Daly said that the family had been enduring four years of grief since the first inquest.
IT is not a farewell to writing. But for the Limerick man who has written 20 titles spanning 30 years it is an ending of sorts.

He will, inevitably, take up the pen again but for now, Dr Pat OConnor, retired academic, geographer, poet and author, is happy to launch the book which he sees as completing his memoirs.

These began with The New Houses, continued with So Long to Coolanoran and now finishes with Home and Reach.

I do like trilogies, he remarks, almost surprising himself with the observation. They have a beginning, a middle and an end. There is a certain roundedness to them.

His astonishing output, over three decades, can be counted out in trilogies.

Things have run in threes, he agrees, sometimes by design, sometimes perhaps not.

There is his Rathkeale trilogy which includes one of his best known books, People make places: the story of the Irish Palatines. There is his Irish trio of books about Irish place names, Irish fairs and markets and Irish geography and identity. Now comes the last in his trio of memories. And, he says simply, it is timely. I did want some kind of rounding out.

Home and Reach is, in many ways, his most personal book yet, a looking back over his writing life from which emerge the dominant themes that inspired him, as man, as geographer and as writer.

The best thing of all is to go walking. The road is made for walking and the best thing of all is to allow yourself to get lost, he says by way of maxim and philosophy.

There is a counterpoint to this, a kind of stricture by which he behoves us to know the world we inhabit because by knowing our own small world intimately, we can come to discern and to know the wider world.

Through book after book, whether history, geography, memoir or poetry, he has demonstrated his belief in these philosophies, which have led him into unexplored territory but always, linking the local with the international, the known with the newly discovered, and seeing the backwash of the wider world ruffle the waters of smaller ones.

A passionate explorer of worlds and words, his abiding theme is that people make places, one that shines through again in his new book.

But Pat is more than happy to acknowledge that people are also shaped by place, as he has been. And there is a curious rightness in the fact that it was only when he returned to his native West Limerick with his wife Esther and family, that his literary life began.

He settled in Coolanoran, Ardagh, uncannily near to the spot where, as a seven year old, he and his brother once found themselves lost and out of their comfort zone while out searching for bird nests. But Dad arrived on his bicycle to bar them home. A classic Pat O'Connor story of setting out to get lost only to find yourself found.

"I didn't want to be bound by academia," he says now, trying to recall what impelled him to his desk and the blank page. It came, he believes, from a certain rugged individuality, something he feels he shared with fellow Newcastle West man and sometime neighbour in Assumpta Park, the poet Michael Hartnett. Hartnett also followed a far from linear path, Pat points out.

The writing began modestly, as he explains in the book, but quickly gathered pace. Within two years, his Exploring Limerick's Past had won the Irish Historical Research Prize and in 1989, he won it again for People make places; the story of the Irish Palatines.

Now, he describes his writing life as a journey.

"It was a real odyssey. It was very enjoyable and even the frustrations added colour and tonality to the experience, he says.

There was too, he acknowledges, a lot of hard, unseen drudgery associated with the writing: the scouring through documents, checking of facts. Three years of research went into his Atlas of Irish Place Names alone.

But he revelled in words and making them sing and along the way he also found a new voice for himself in poetry. In 2005, his geography and poetry came together in To Mete a Humanist Geography, a book of new and selected poems in which he paid homage to mentors and to the giants of the geography world. Their delight, conveyed to him through letters, remains a delight for him to this day.

The individualist in Pat also ensured that he took control of the publishing side of things, under the imprint he established at the very beginning, Oireacht na Mumhan. This brought him right into the heart of the book trade, a world he came to enjoy, peopled by colourful and unusual characters and which we get a glimpse of in this book.

But Pat also believes he was lucky in his literary life. He was, he feels, also very fortunate in the influences on his life. "When the chance came up, I was there to meet it and I did meet it." And in the end, he says imply: I went out and I did it.

The book Home and Reach is a fitting summing up of three decades of creativity and endeavour. It is quintessentially Pat, a rare blend of people and places knitted into a wide sweep of accumulated knowledge and observation. At heart, it is a tender book written by a shy and intellecutal man who has laboured mightily in many fields and who retains the intellectual curiosity and vigour of his youth.

The book comes with a bonus in that the last section contains a number of new poems under the title To cut a fresh swathe. But mark this well. There will be another cut to come, whatever he may say now.

Seamus Smyth, former president of NUI Maynooth, will launch Home and Reach this Sunday in the Red Door, Newcastle West at 4pm. All are welcome.
Second Vintage Rose counterfeit discovered in on-paper mixture; patterns of raised dots mimic engraved printing on genuine stamp

May 1, 2021, 5 PM

At left is an on-paper example of a newly reported counterfeit of the 2015 United States Vintage Rose forever stamp. On cover examples of the first Vintage Rose counterfeit [(Scott 4959(CF1)] and a genuine Vintage Rose stamp (4959) are shown in the middle

When viewed under 60x magnification, the two lithographed counterfeit Vintage Rose stamps are readily distinguishable from the engraved genuine stamp. From left to right (shown cropped from panes of 20): the new bogus stamp reported to Linns in early Sep

By Charles Snee

For the United States Postal Service, a rose by any other name, it seems, is a counterfeit.

In early September, Linns Stamp News learned of a second counterfeit of the 2015 nondenominated (49) Vintage Rose forever stamp (Scott 4959) from an eagle-eyed collector.

Carrie Latour of New Hampshire, while poring over an assortment of on-paper stamps, found a Vintage Rose stamp that didnt look quite right.

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It has a fake intaglio feel via tiny lines of clear dots, Latour wrote in an email to Linns Sept. 3. In bright light at an angle the dots appear to be clear acrylic lumps pressed on after the counterfeit is printed.

Latour, who says she has people saving stamps for me all over the country, spotted the suspect stamp quickly.

Linns asked Latour to send an example of the suspect counterfeit for examination.

The stamp, close-cut on gray paper, is a distinctly different counterfeit from the bogus Vintage Rose stamp that began appearing in 2015 [Scott 4959(CF1)].

Unlike its counterfeit cousin, the new lithographed fake does not have ink that stands up as on genuine engraved Vintage Rose stamps.

To mimic engraved printing, the counterfeiters added tiny, raised dots over the surface of the printed flower and its stem. These dots are easily felt by gently rubbing a fingertip across the stamp.

Seeing the dots is best accomplished by viewing the stamp at an angle, with a direct light source overhead or to the side.

For comparison, Latours on-paper single is shown at left with on-cover examples of Scott 4959(CF1), middle, and 4959, right.

An overall darker appearance is seen on Scott 4959(CF1), while the engraved printing of the genuine stamps shows a much crisper appearance, with finer lines and shading.

Note the conspicuous dots on the newly reported counterfeit, which resemble small rain drops.

Under high (60x) magnification, these dots impart a grayish cast to the underlying black ink, similar to a dried drop of Elmers glue on a sheet of black construction paper. Other dots look like white pinpoints because of the light reflecting off them.

Arrows point to a few of these dots on the bogus stamp pictured at left on page 11.

Linns careful examination revealed additional important characteristics that allow the observant collector to separate the new fake from the already listed counterfeit and the genuine stamp.

1. Panes of real Vintage Rose stamps are printed on prephosphored paper, which makes the stamps glow a light yellow-green under shortwave ultraviolet light.

Panes of both counterfeit Vintage Rose stamps are printed on paper that glows bright blue under shortwave UV light because the paper is not tagged.

2. Die-cut peaks of both bogus stamps are more pointed than those of genuine stamps. On counterfeit panes, there is a slight misalignment of the horizontal and vertical serpentine die cuts where four stamps come together.

Specifically, the straight-line breaks in the vertical and horizontal wavy-line die-cutting patterns do not intersect perfectly where stamp corners meet the gutter selvage between columns and rows of stamps. This is easily seen under high (60x) magnification.

3. Under high magnification, the lithographed printing of both counterfeit Vintage Rose stamps appears as distinct patterns of dots. On the genuine engraved stamp, in contrast, the printing appears as a mix of fine lines and dots.

4. On both counterfeit Vintage Rose stamps, the end of the loop of the 5 in the 2015 year date at top right points up. The loop points down on a genuine Vintage Rose stamp.

5. Both counterfeit Vintage Rose stamps have gauge-11 die cuts. Genuine stamps have die cuts that measure 10 by 11.

6. In the text printed on the bottom of the back of counterfeit panes (both types), the word news is misspelled new. Of course, this difference is visible only on intact panes of 20 stamps.

This oversight, now repeated, suggests that both counterfeit Vintage Rose stamps are coming from the same source.

Counterfeits are a special type of forgery, which is a completely fraudulent reproduction of a postage stamp.

Forgeries are of two types: counterfeits, which are intended to defraud postal authorities of revenue; and bogus issues, which are intended to fool collectors. Here, the terms counterfeit and bogus are used interchangeably.

Unlike its genuine engraved counterpart, the newest bogus Vintage Rose stamp was printed using offset lithography, an indirect printing method easily susceptible to counterfeiting because the technology is readily available and affordable.

That yet another counterfeit of a U.S. stamp has surfaced should not come as a surprise. An active supply chain, operating out of China or Taiwan (or both, perhaps), has been funneling bogus U.S. stamps into the country for at least the past decade or so.

More troubling are the frequency and speed with which these bogus stamps are now being produced. Also worrying is the noticeable improvement in overall production qualities, including better paper stock, clearer printing, and more accurate die cutting.

Stamp collectors, armed with the information provided via Linns analysis, wont be easily fooled by these fraudulent stamps. The same cannot be said for the vast number of postal customers who are not philatelically inclined.

Thus far this year, counterfeits of the following U.S. stamps have appeared in the marketplace (primarily via online channels such as eBay and Amazon) and are listed for the first time in the 2018 Scott Specialized Catalogue of United States Stamps and Covers: 2015 Love [Scott 4955(CF1)-4956(CF1); Linns, Feb. 27], 2014 Flag and Fireworks coil [Scott 4868(CF1); Linns, March 13], 2016 Diwali [Scott 5142(CF1); Linns, April 3], and 2012 Four Flags coils [Scott 4637(CF1)-4640(CF1), 4637(CF2)-4640(CF2); Linns, May 1].

The counterfeit 2017 Love Skywriting stamp, which Linns reported in the Sept. 4 issue, came to light too late for inclusion in the 2018 Scott U.S. Specialized catalog, which was published this month.

In 2004, Linns was first to report the discovery of counterfeit 2002 37 Flag stamps, which is now listed as Scott 3635(CF1). At that time, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service was engaged in an ongoing investigation to determine the source of the counterfeit stamps.

Thirteen years later, a total of 52 additional counterfeit stamps have been listed in the Scott U.S. Specialized catalog.

Postal counterfeits of U.S. stamps were listed for the first time in the 2013 edition of the Scott U.S. Specialized catalog, published in October 2012.

Todays web of stamp counterfeiting has spread far and wide, making it even more difficult for postal inspectors to pinpoint the producers and sellers and shut them down.

Linns ongoing investigation into the murky origins of the newest Vintage Rose and other recent counterfeits, which began in early February, suggests that the problem is larger than initially thought.

However, the powers that be in the Postal Service and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service seemingly dont have the time or inclination to dig more deeply. Linns tried several times to contact the USPIS for comment regarding any action taken against counterfeit stamps. No reply was received.

And if Carrie Latours recent experience is any indication of a broader pattern, more education is needed.

While attending a stamp show recently, she was surprised to discover most dealers and collectors didnt know there were lots of modern U.S. counterfeits and never looked for them.

I think the fake feel technique on my stamp is a fascinating new criminal invention, she told Linns. I hope more are found but not manufactured.

Linns welcomes reports of the appearance of counterfeit stamps in the online marketplace, as well as examples of postal use.

Please send information to Linns managing editor Charles Snee via email, or write to him at Box 4129, Sidney, OH 45365-4129.
The ninth annual Robert Whitey McKown Master Breeder Award will be presented to Wendon Holsteins of Innisfail, Alberta, Canada, at the 51st World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wis. The prestigious award recognizes a well-managed breeder and herd that has been successful at showing and judging, and it emphasizes all the qualities of the Klussendorf Award, including ability, character, endeavor, and sportsmanship.

Established in 1976, Don and Wendy Chalack combined their interests and passions to form their prestigious herd that features 65 milking Holsteins and a small herd of purebred Black Angus on 900 acres just outside of Innisfail. Don and Wendy farm with their son-in-law Scott Hastie and daughter Jillian and their children, Marshall and Maddyn. Oldest daughter Linsey and her children, Paige and Nathan, help out when they can, and both children are involved in 4-H. Don and Wendys son, Logan, who was known for his love of breeding and marketing cows, lost a battle with cancer in July 2016. Fortunately, Logans wife, Charity, and daughter, Chloe, still live close by.

Starting with a 50-cow tie stall operation in 1976, the herd recently converted to a 60-cow freestall robot barn in 2015 with 12 tie stalls for show cows. The original tie stall barn is now a more efficient and spacious calf barn. The herd is 90 percent homebred with a classification breakdown of 24 Multiple Excellent, 15 Excellent, 62 Very Good, and six Good Plus cows. Their current rolling herd average is 27,557 pounds of milk, with 4.0 percent fat and 3.3 percent protein. Wendon Holsteins has bred 14 All-Canadian nominees and received two Holstein Canada Master Breeder shields in 1995 and 2008.

Don served as the Alberta Holstein president in 1989 and 1990 and as a director on the Alberta Holstein Branch from 1980 to 1992. He was also one of the founders of the Western Canadian Classic program 33 years ago. In addition, Don joined with a few neighboring herds in the early 1980s to bring the first show string from western Canada to World Dairy Expo. Passing on their love for cattle and hard work ethic, their three children were a part of dairy and beef clubs and the Western Canadian Classic junior show.

Their breeding philosophy is based on cows with deep pedigrees and show type. Wendon Holsteins has bred 55 Star Brood cows (13 of those being greater than 4*), 102 Excellent cows, and 391 Very Good cows. The Wendon prefix has also won numerous recognitions in the All-Canadian contest with two winners, two Reserves, six Honorable Mentions, and four more nominations. In addition, they have bred one All-American winner.

Prominent cow families in their herd include Wendon Triump Alaska EX-91 2E 4*, Wendon Gibson Prudence EX-92 5E 5*, Wendon Starbuck Renette EX 3*, Wendon Triump Divine EX-94 4E 7*, and Tolamika Goldwyn Mercedes EX-94 2E. Wendon Goldywn Allie EX-95 2E, daughter of Alaska, gained popularity after winning first-place 5-year-old at the Royal Winter Fair and World Dairy Expo in 2012, as well as All-American and All-Canadian for owners Ferme RayDor.

The Chalack family is the epitome of dedication, strength, and a love for cattle that make them a deserving winner of the McKown Master Breeder Award.

Elise Regusci grew up on her family's farm in Modesto, Calif. Regusci attends Cal Poly University, majoring in dairy science with an agricultural communication minor. On campus, she is the Los Lecheros Dairy Club Ag Council representative and a member of the Cal Poly dairy judging team. Regusci is the current Brown Swiss Youth Ambassador and was the 2017 Hoard's Dairyman summer editorial intern.
Paul Petriffer of Funes, Italy, was presented the 27th Klussendorf-MacKenzie Award during the 51st World Dairy Expo, in memory of Duncan MacKenzie, the 1961 Klussendorf winner.

Carousel, Lylehaven, Lookout, MD-Hillbrook, Dupasquier, Stanhope-Wedgewood, and the Walkerbrae show strings.





Likewise, the list of champions that this man has prepared would fill a book. In fact, Petriffer probably has laid a brush on more champions worldwide than anybody in the business. This is just a partial list of the great cows he has worked with in North America  Buggs Blackstar Buffy, Quality Ridge Stormi Hazel, Responses Wonder, Leduc Broker Mandy, and Kinyon Linjet Ideal. On top of that, there are Lavender Ruby Redrose, Vandyk-K Integrity Paradise, and Waymar Patrick Nadine who were all named Supreme Champion on World Dairy Expos colored shavings. Outside of North America Petriffer has worked with more champions worldwide in the past 20 years than any other cowman.





Corey Geiger One of the most popular people in the dairy cattle show business, Paul Petriffer, known to many at shows at Paulo, served as associate judge at World Dairy Expos International Holstein Show in 2009, and his selection for this award marks the first time a Duncan MacKenzie winner has been selected from outside of North America. Most importantly, Paul exemplifies the standards that made Duncan MacKenzie the forebearer of this award. The author is the managing editor, and he brings 20 years of industry leadership to our readers overseeing all editorial content and production of the magazine. His degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison combined dairy science and agricultural economics.

Since making his first trip to North America as a teenager, with a willingness to learn and carrying a friendly attitude to this very day, Petriffer has been the go-to guy for many of North Americas finest show herds. During working at the past 25 of the 30 World Dairy Expos, Petriffer has worked top herds, including Rosedale, Keightley Core,
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Thousands of music lovers, ship lovers and plane lovers, undeterred by a horrific shooting that targeted a country music concert five days earlier in Las Vegas, descended Friday on San Francisco for a pair of free weekend spectacles that never fail to stir the faithful.

Fleet Week plied the blue waters of San Francisco Bay and the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass music festival convened on the green meadows of Golden Gate Park, events that will dominate the city through Sunday.

Police and organizers promised a strong and visible security presence, seeking to reassure those joining the crowds. But while many people said they appreciated the response, they were determined not to let fear deter them from gathering together and getting on with the business of boats and bluegrass.

We cant be afraid, said Crystal Mitchell, 40, of Milpitas, who went to Marina Green, a prime viewing spot for Fleet Week awash with tents, food booths, sailors and sailors families. I dont live in fear. If we lived in fear, we would never go anyplace.

In Golden Gate Park, fans turned out for dozens of guitar-and-banjo-plunking bands that will play on seven stages. Along the northern waterfront, they showed up to see a small armada of majestic gray Navy vessels and a small squadron of stunt pilots and parachutists followed by the head-spinning Blue Angels precision flight team.

Early birds like Mitchell flocked to each site to stake out good spots to lay down their blankets for the noisy stuff to follow.

My son is active in the military, and when I heard about Fleet Week I just wanted to come, she said. People have a misunderstanding of everything going on, that we as a people dont respect our troops.

Nancy Charnoski, 65, of Campbell, who was wearing a U.S. flag shirt, peered at the ships through binoculars. She said she has been coming to Fleet Week for 20 years because its a tradition.

Susan Barbeau, 65, a visitor from Ontario, Canada, said it was her first Fleet Week and that the parade of ships is pretty neat.

On the great swath of Golden Gate Park lawn renamed Hellman Hollow in honor of the late festival founder, investment banker and banjo plunker Warren Hellman, fans took their positions on the turf for a chance to hear such legends as Laurie Lewis, Billy Bragg and T Bone Burnett. The music wafting from the loudspeakers joined the aromas wafting from the food tents.

Ladies and gentleman, we want to welcome you to Hardly Strictly No. 17, an announcer said from the stage. We hope to continue our tradition of a safe and peaceful event. Look out for each other. But you dont have to be told that.

The crowd of music lovers nodded. The specter of Las Vegas seemed a world away. The crowd lazed under the hot autumn sun and the eucalyptus trees, listening to the clamor of banjos. There were no bag checks or metal scanners.

If someone wants to do something, theyll find a way one way or another, said Drew Smith, 58, of Sarasota, Fla., who was swathed in sunscreen. Theres only so much you can do. You just have to have faith.

Nearby, Sandy Lowery of Boulder, Colo., sat on a blanket with her husband, Norm.

Its my husbands birthday week, and we wanted to see Laurie Lewis, Lowery said. The Vegas shooting was tragic. But I feel safe here. It was such a random thing.

People of all ages, from infants to the elderly, clustered around the stage. James Mendenhall, 6, said he plays the piano and wants to hear Sam Chase.

I think its going to be good, James said. I like music.

And you dont have to wear earplugs, his nanny, Ziva Hadar, 35, said.

Meanwhile, along the waterfront, the gray ships paraded and the air show planes buzzed. Navy Special Operator Brendon Peterson jumped out of an airplane at 4,500 feet, opened his parachute and fluttered to earth displaying a U.S. flag and trailing red smoke from a canister while the crowd cheered.

A lot of work goes into this, Peterson said after touching down on Marina Green. It took about 300 jumps to get it right.

Vangie Ibarra, 50, of San Francisco said its hard not to think about Las Vegas.

I thought about it, she said. You keep your fingers crossed.

Fleet Week continues with its noon to 4 p.m. air show Saturday and Sunday. Hardly Strictly Bluegrass continues, too, with such musicians as John Prine, Randy Newman, Natalie Cressman and Emmylou Harris trying their best to cope with the screeching of six Blue Angel jet planes, which can be louder than a banjo.

Hardly Strictly regular and Rooster Stage curator Conor Oberst helped close out Friday night with a cover of Walls (Circus) by Tom Petty, who died this week. Oberst said he was happy to play his sunset performance for the crowd after a week that felt like such a brokenhearted time for music, between the death of Petty and the mass shooting in Las Vegas. Just being out here with you guys has renewed my faith. As human beings, as homo sapiens, I think we need these kinds of things, these gatherings, where we can hear music and sort of be nourished in our souls. ... This is some of the best stuff in life.

Fans of both the music and military festivities said it was clear the smart thing to do was come to each by public transit because finding a parking spot near either site was tougher than performing a loop-the-loop in a F/A-18 jet or a solo of Foggy Mountain Breakdown on the five-string.

Chronicle Arts Content Editor Mariecar Mendoza contributed

to this report.

Jenna Lyons, Lizzie Johnson and Steve Rubenstein are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: jlyons@sfchronicle.com, ljohnson@sfchronicle.com, srubenstein@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JennaJourno, @LizzieJohnsonnn, @SteveRubeSF

Look! Up in the sky!

What: Fleet Week Air Show

When: Saturday and Sunday, noon to 4 p.m., weather permitting.

Who: Exhibitions by stunt pilots, parachutists and precision fliers including the Canadian Snowbirds and the Patriots Jet Team, followed at 3 p.m. by the Navys six Blue Angels jets.

Where: The best viewing is along the northern San Francisco waterfront, although the Blue Angels can be seen from many vantage points.

How much: Free.

More information: fleetweeksf.org.

Hardly Strictly Bluegrass

For the latest updates on the music festival: www.sfchronicle.com/hardly-strictly-bluegrass
The president of an East Bay transportation company that provides rides for disabled people was sentenced Friday to 18 months in prison for filing fraudulent business tax returns to conceal more than $4.6 million that he used as spending money, federal prosecutors said.

Dublin resident Shiv Kumar, 60, who founded A-Paratransit Inc. in 1996, according to the companys website, filed the fraudulent returns with the IRS for tax years 2009 and 2010, according to the U.S. District Attorneys Office for the Northern District of California.
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Webb County District Attorney Isidro R. "Chilo" Alaniz is teaming with a group of people to benefit the victims of deadly earthquake in Mexico and hurricane victims in Puerto Rico. Read a review of earthquake kits here.

Alaniz's office is partnering with the Laredo Motor Carriers Association and local logistics and transportation companies to send aid to the victims. Volunteers dubbed the project "Sin Fronteras."

Alaniz announced the opening of three collection points at local Wal-Marts: 5610 San Bernardo Ave., 2615 N.E. Bob Bullock Loop and 4401 S. U.S. 83.

RELATED: Trump tells Puerto Rico it has thrown the U.S. 'budget a little out of whack'

The collection kicked off Thursday. Volunteers will continue collecting items from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. today.

"As Laredoans and as Hispanics, we feel a strong connection to the people of Mexico and Puerto Rico," Alaniz said.

He added, "Transportation, logistics, commercial traffic is one of Laredo's strong points. This is one way that we can use our strength to help these people who are in need."

READ MORE: Lin-Manuel Miranda Tells Trump He's 'Going Straight to Hell' Over Puerto Rico Tweets

Volunteers are asking for items such as feminine hygiene products, diapers, toilet paper, dust masks, construction gloves, first aid kits, towels, aspirins, syringes, toothpaste, canned goods, shovels, alcohol, brooms, gauze pads, soaps and pickaxes, among others.

Ismael Delgado, District Attorney's Office international affairs officer, said a group of business owners, trucking services owners and forwarding agencies from the Laredo and Nuevo Laredo, Mexico areas wanted to come together for the victims.

"We're inviting the community to support this. This is for our brothers who have been affected by these catastrophes," Delgado said.
The city of Albany renamed Hawk Street between Washington Avenue and Elk Street the "L/Cpl. Richard Rockenstyre Way" on Sept. 30 in honor of a Marine killed in action 50 years ago on Aug. 31, 1967 in Vietnam. American Gold Star Mother Dorothea Rockenstyre was joined by her family, Gold Star Mothers from recent wars, Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan, former Congressman Michael R. McNulty of Green Island, the Patriot Guard Riders, Tri-County Council of Vietnam Era Vets, some who went to Albany High School with Rockenstyre. The street is opposite the state Capitol alongside the park where the Gold Star Family and Vietnam War Monuments are located. Rockenstyre was stationed in the Quang Nam Province when he was killed three months before he would have turned 20.
Judge Chris Lahmers tapped Springhill Mentor Jazzy-ET as Grand Champion of the 2017 International Guernsey Show. The 4-year-old cow was exhibited by Springhill Farms of Big Prairie, Ohio. Judge Lahmers said she was long from end to end with great dairy strength. He also pointed out her long fore udder attachment and venation of the mammary system.

Jazzys awards from the day were many, as she was also named Senior Grand Champion and Best Bred and Owned. Additionally, she was awarded the title of Best Udder. Jazzy has gotten better with age, as she had previously been named Intermediate Champion at the 2016 World Dairy Expo.

Reserve Grand Champion and Reserve Senior Champion was Lantz Farm Preppy Indy, owned by Melinda Rushing of Yukon, Okla. She was the winning 6-year-old and older cow.

Intermediate Champion was Adams Creek Ap Bianca-ETV, a Junior 2-year-old exhibited by Alyssa Nuttleman of Bangor, Wis. Bianca was also Intermediate Champion of the Open Show and was later named Grand Champion of the Junior Show.

It was a big day for Bianca and Alyssa, as the cow was also named Best Bred and Owned of the Junior Show. Bianca has had success on the colored shavings before, as she was named Junior Champion at last years show.

Reserve Intermediate Champion of the Open Show was the Senior 2-year-old, Milborne HP Kringle Tara, shown by P.M. Miller, Hillpoint Partners, and P. Vail, Granby, Conn. Reserve Intermediate of the Junior Show was Prairie Moon L Abriella-ET, owned by Landon and Leslie Sivesind Waukon, Iowa. She was also from the Senior 2-year-old class.

Reserve Grand Champion of the Junior Show was Broke Showtime Taytor, owned by Dana and Madison Sickles, Marengo, Iowa. She was also the Senior Champion of the Junior Show. Reserve Senior Champion of the Junior Show was Knapps Best Buy Tarina, exhibited by Alexis and Frederick Williams, Mable, MInn.

Junior Champion was Nicleys HP GG Cordell Annie-ETV, owned by L. Harbaugh, D. Basse, M. Miller, and Hillpoint Partners from Marion, Wis. Reserve Junior Champion was Gr-Dix Lee Royce Starskittles, owned by Justin and Daniel Chupp, India, Okla.

Nicleys HP GG Cordell Annie-ETV was also Junior Champion of the Junior Show. Reserve Junior Champion was Knapps Kringle Tappy-ET, exhibited by Landree Fraley from Muncey, Penn.

Premier Breeder and Premier Exhibitor went to Knapps Guernseys, Epworth, Iowa. The Premier Sire was Indian Acres American Pie-ET. Judge Lahmers of Marysville, Ohio, and his associate, Bernie Heisner of Fairview Heights, Ill., placed more than 200 Guernseys over the two-day show.

The author is an associate editor and covers animal health, dairy housing and equipment, and nutrient management. She grew up on a dairy farm near Plymouth, Wis., and previously served as a University of Wisconsin agricultural extension agent. She received a masters degree from North Carolina State University and a bachelors from University of Wisconsin-Madison.
The Pentagon said Friday that the body of a U.S. service member has been recovered in Niger following a militant ambush Wednesday near the Malian border, raising to four the number of Americans killed in the attack.

Officials have not disclosed the service member's name or unit affiliation, pending family notifications. It was not immediately clear how the service member became separated from other Americans on the patrol, precisely when the body was recovered or if the service member had fallen into enemy hands.

A small group of U.S. and Nigerien troops were conducting a reconnaissance patrol when they encountered dozens of heavily armed militants riding in pickup trucks. A pair of French Mirage fighter jets and other aircraft were scrambled in response to the attack, presumably to hunt for the missing service member and provide support for those on the ground.

On Friday, U.S. officials identified three of the fallen soldiers as Staff Sgt. Bryan Black, 35, of Puyallup, Washington; Staff Sgt. Jeremiah Johnson, 39, of Springboro, Ohio; and Staff Sgt. Dustin Wright, 29, of Lyons, Georgia. All were assigned to the Army's 3rd Special Forces Group, which is based at Fort Bragg in North Carolina and serves as the primary unconventional-warfare unit operating in Africa.

Two other U.S. troops were wounded in the battle, but their names have not been disclosed. Officials said this week that they were evacuated and in stable condition at a U.S. military hospital in Germany.

At the White House on Friday, press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders demurred when asked whether the Trump administration intends to avenge the troops' deaths.

"Obviously," she replied, "any time one of the members of our great military are injured, wounded or killed in action, that is something we take very seriously. . . . We're continuing to review and look into this," she added, noting that White House Chief of Staff John Kelly, a retired general whose Marine son was killed in combat, had kept President Trump apprised of efforts to locate the missing service member.

Trump met with his top generals and admirals Thursday to discuss a range of national security issues. While posing for a group photo, he cryptically referred to the moment as "the calm before the storm." When asked what he meant, the president responded, "You'll find out."

The Pentagon and the White House have long sought to frame the U.S. military's activities in Niger and elsewhere in Africa as providing support for American allies battling extremists throughout the region - and being removed from direct combat with those groups.

Officials have said the attack occurred during an "advise and assist" mission, a broad term that critics say downplays the danger associated with training partner nations using only small numbers of troops near militant strongholds.

U.S. forces have expanded efforts in Niger, military officials have said, as part of a growing presence in the Sahel region. The vast expanse of desert stretches across the continent, and affiliates of al-Qaida and the Islamic State have taken advantage of instability in Libya, where arms and fighters flow into a region difficult to govern.

About 800 U.S. personnel are assigned to posts in Niger, mostly at two sites focused on gathering aerial reconnaissance for Nigerien forces. That is an increase from 645 in June. About 300 to the south in Cameroon provide logistical and intelligence support. An unknown but probably small number operate in Mali.

The four combat deaths mark the first known hostile-fire casualties among U.S. forces in Niger. A soldier with the 3rd Special Forces Group was killed in a vehicle accident there in February.

- - -

Video: Fourth American soldier killed in Niger

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders provided little information in response to questions about a fourth American soldier killed in Niger.

Short URL: http://wapo.st/2y0p8NH

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BEIRUT - Civilian casualties have spiraled across Syria in recent weeks as pro-government forces launch hundreds of bombing raids across areas marked for international protection.

Groups monitoring the conflict have recorded hundreds of strikes since the end of a sixth round of peace talks among Russia, Iran and Turkey in mid-September. On Friday, the White Helmets rescue group reported that 80 percent of those attacks targeted civilian areas.

September was the deadliest month on record this year in Syria, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group, with almost 1,000 civilians killed across the country.

"Now the planes are back, there is just terror all the time," said Tim al-Siyofi, an activist from the besieged Damascus district of Douma. 

Analysts took the violence as a sign that piecemeal cease fires struck in the Kazakh capital of Astana have done little to change the core objectives of the Syrian government. With support from Russia and Iran, President Bashar Assad's military is ascendant and on course to reclaim most of the territory that slipped from its grasp during six years of war.

They also said it underscored the paucity of diplomatic options for the United States and European nations, which championed an earlier, U.N.-backed process without success, and now hold little leverage over any side in the conflict.

"For the international community, who have failed in large part to see through this process, a return to violence may have larger implications for their attempts to push for a political and sustainable solution," said Emma Beals, a Beirut-based expert monitoring the war in Syria.

Attacks by government and Russian warplanes followed a failed al-Qaida-led offensive in the western province of Hama.

In the next-door province of Idlib, a rebel stronghold in which the peace talks are meant to have guaranteed a cease fire, warplanes have targeted the hospitals in which many of the wounded would have sought treatment.

Interviews with civilians in the area were interrupted on several occasions by the sound of rocket fire and explosions. Inside the Idlib and Kafr Takhareem hospitals during one nighttime attack, staff said they were overwhelmed with the number of casualties.

"Our emergency room is full during the bad nights, so we're treating casualties in the chairs. The dead are wrapped in blankets and laid on the ground as we work," said a 34-year old medic who gave his name as Abdulhamid.

In the Damascus suburbs, areas covered by the truce have also come under sustained attack, striking civilian homes and a rehabilitation clinic for victims of earlier bombings.

In a video from the district of Douma, a father held the body of his son tightly as he kissed the young boy through his burial shrouds. "Why did you leave, we have just started our life," he repeated.

With the bombings, rebel corruption and infighting, Siyoufi, the activist, said trust in the community has plummeted. "People say we do not want either the regime or the armed groups, we just want to eat, open the sieges and to live in peace and not to get bombed."

Under the terms of the Astana agreement, four areas have been named as "de-escalation zones": Idlib, portions of the Damascus suburbs and the central province of Homs, and a stretch of land in Daraa province along the Jordanian border.

Each area has been the subject of flurries of diplomacy to reduce violence or restore the areas to government control under deals that a United Nations inquiry has criticized for spurring the forced displacement of opposition supporters.

"The de-escalation process is allowing Assad to continue to implement this strategy within the framework of an internationally sanctioned political process," Beals said.

Government and Russian airstrikes appear to have been concentrated in areas around the strategic M5 highway, a vital artery for the Syrian state that runs from Damascus through Homs and on to Aleppo, which was recaptured from rebel forces last December .

On Saturday, Turkish troops readied along their southern border with Syria, suggesting that an attempt to enter Idlib could be imminent.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the operation was a "new step" to establish security in the de-escalation zone across the border, and that Turkey would not desert civilians there. Separately, Turkey's official Anadolu news agency said that any deployment would be intended to achieve de-escalation, rather than engaging local militia or the Syrian army.

But others saw few gains to be made.

"Astana is just like a piece of fabric stretched over parts of the country," said Ahmed Rahhul, a former general in Assad's army who now works as an Istanbul-based military analyst. "These de-escalations freeze the problem, they do not solve it."

- - -

Zakaria Zakaria in Istanbul contributed to this report.
Hurricane Nate is headed toward landfall in the northern Gulf Coast. Upgraded to hurricane strength just before midnight on Friday, the storm is now packing maximum sustained winds of 90 mph. It is moving speedily to the north at 26 mph.

Hurricane warnings are in place from Grand Isle, La., to the Alabama border with Florida. This includes the city of New Orleans, which has prompted the mayor of the Crescent City to issue mandatory evacuations for parts of the area.

Nate is expected to make landfall Saturday night, now as a Category 2 storm with 105 mph sustained winds. Rain had already begun along the northern Gulf Coast Saturday morning, and conditions will go downhill further through the afternoon and Saturday night.

In the region under a hurricane warning, a dangerous combination of damaging winds, gusting over 100 mph at times, severe coastal flooding, and torrential rain are likely.

Nate is the ninth hurricane to form in the Atlantic this season, which is the highest total since the infamous 2012 season featuring Hurricane Sandy.

Since Friday, Nate has steadily become better organized over the warm waters of the Caribbean and southern Gulf of Mexico. While some wind shear is preventing the storm from explosively intensifying, Nate is expected to strengthen right up until landfall.

The inner bands of the storm are still located offshore, but with Nate's fast forward motion, wind speeds and rain intensity will increase throughout Saturday. While landfall is expected to occur Saturday night, tropical storm force are likely to move into the Louisiana coast by mid-afternoon. They should be impacting Mississippi and Alabama near or shortly after sunset.

Storm surge and damaging wind gusts are the most pressing hazards

Nate is expected to make landfall as a Category 2. Sustained hurricane-force winds and gusts over 100 mph likely to affect some locations from Southeast Louisiana to the near the Alabama-Florida border. These winds could cause widespread downed trees and power outages, as well as some structural damage. The most severe damage will tend to be concentrated in a relatively narrow zone near and just to the east of the storm center. Hurricane-force winds extend about 35 miles from the center, mainly on the east side.

But wind may not be the most dangerous hazard from Nate.

The most immediate threat for the coast will be storm surge generated from the hurricane. Storm surge is best thought of as a general rise in the water level at the coast as the storm comes ashore. It does not include waves on top of it. Water levels as high as 7 to 11 feet above normally dry ground are expected in the hardest hit parts, which the National Hurricane Center expects to be from roughly from the mouth of the Mississippi River to the Mississippi-Alabama border. Around that - as far west as Morgan City, Louisiana and as far east as the Okaloosa-Walton County line in Florida, less severe but still problematic water rises are anticipated - and this whole zone is under a storm surge warning.

"Unfortunately, locations from Grand Isle, Louisiana to Panama City, Fla., will have high tide around midnight, coinciding with landfall and peak storm surge, maximizing coastal inundation anywhere east of the landfall point," said Brian McNoldy, The Post's tropical weather expert

On top of the surge, there are giant waves. Nate is already generating wave heights upwards of 24 feet in the Gulf of Mexico. While heights seen in open water are unlikely to make it to shore, battering waves are likely to accompany surge along the coast, especially to the east of the center.

Forecast trending to the east of New Orleans

The first round of model runs Saturday morning showed a bit of an eastward shift in Nate's forecast. If this occurs, it would keep New Orleans on the west and generally less intense side of the storm. Given Nate's fast movement and imminent arrival of bad weather, there's no reason to let any guard down in these areas, even if the worst misses.

In New Orleans itself, the city's pumping system is still reeling from several heavy rain events over the summer, with 11 of the 109 city wide pumps still out of service as of earlier this week. Rain from the outer edges of Nate has already reached the area Saturday morning.

After landfall

Nate will also be carrying a lot of moisture and promises to drop a large amount of rainfall, despite the fact that the storm is moving quite fast.

A widespread two to six inches of rain is expected to fall along its track through Sunday. Higher amounts are likely in spots. All of this rain will fall in under 24 hours, so flash flooding will be a concern.

Because the storm is moving so fast, tropical storm-force winds, which could down trees and cause power outages, may extend fairly far inland - through much of Alabama. The National Hurricane Center predicts it could sustain tropical storm strength into Sunday evening, when it should be passing through Tennessee.

Both the "cone of uncertainty" for Nate's future path and the rainfall forecast for the system include the Mid-Atlantic and northeast as well. What's left of Nate will pass west of Washington, D.C. Sunday, but D.C. will still be close enough to tap into some much needed rain.

---

The Washington Post's Jason Samenow contributed to this story.
The biggest obstacle to Peru's dream of one day supplanting Chile as the world's largest copper producer may be Peru itself.

Despite higher-grade ores and lower mining costs than neighboring Chile, the Peruvian government says the country's potential in copper is being restricted by too much bureaucracy. Mine owners also complain about weak infrastructure and strong opposition to projects from people who fear increased environmental risks and disruption to their communities.

President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, who was elected last year, is pushing expansion of the mining industry as a key to stimulating growth and reducing poverty. His government wants to exploit ore reserves that are the third largest in the world. While copper output has been rising in the past two years, it remains well below the amount produced in Chile.

"We are not saying it will be easy," Peru Mines and Energy Minister Cayetana Aljovin said in an interview, referring to matching Chile's output. "We can reach those levels if Peru keeps sending positive signals. We need to create the necessary conditions for mining to grow in our country so the government can invest in basic services, healthcare, education and infrastructure."

Peru already is the second-largest producer in the world. Last year it boosted output by 35 percent, driven by increases at the Las Bambas mine, run by Chinese-owned MMG Ltd., and by gains at Phoenix-based Freeport-McMoRan Inc.'s Cerro Verde, the largest copper mine in the Andean country. Based on data from the first eight months of 2017, Peru already has surpassed Chile as the largest supplier of mined copper to China, the world's No. 1 metals buyer.

The Peruvian government sees more growth ahead, with $51 billion of new projects slated to start in the next few years as demand from China grows and commodities prices recover. Copper on the London Metal Exchange has rallied 39 percent since the end of 2015, halting a three-year slide, though prices still remain well below their 2011 peak.

On Tuesday, Glencore said it plans to increase its stake in Peruvian zinc miner Volcan Cia. Minera by spending from $531 million to $965 million on Class A shares. Volcan said last month it's exploring in three different areas in the country and would prefer to partner with a major international partner to develop its copper operations.

Peru's production last year of 2.3 million tons of refined copper lagged behind its southern neighbor Chile, which supplied 5.5 million tons. Plus Chile remains an "attractive" place to invest, said Erik Heimlich, a copper analyst at CRU Group.

But if Peru can overcome obstacles such as local antipathy to mining, its growth possibilities are huge. "Peru's potential in terms of resources is unquestionable," Heimlich said last week by phone.

To get there, Minister Aljovin says the country has a three-pronged plan:

- Reduce regulations and the number of permits required to mine;

- Create a single government department where companies can request all required mining permits at once; and

- Create a fund the government can use to invest in social programs in areas that may be affected by mining.

At the moment, mining companies operating in Peru need to abide by 265 different rules and regulations, compared with 12 in 2001, the minister said. Of these, only 10 percent are under the Mines and Energy Ministry, with the rest under the aegis of a host of other governmental organizations, according to Luis Marchese, who runs the local assets held by Anglo American Plc and serves as head of Peru's mining association.

"This has an impact on the country's competitiveness and affects issues such as informal miners," Marchese said. "How are you going to bring them into the system if there's such a legal tangle?"

The bigger challenge, says Luis del Carpio, a professor at Pontificia Universidad Catolica del Peru's business school, will be getting the general populace to join in the government's zeal for mining.

"Bureaucracy doesn't stop projects," Del Carpio said by phone. "Community relations remain our Achilles' heel. That's the main reason why many projects are on the waiting list."

Peruvian citizens living close to mines tend to oppose them, while citizens living far away tend to favor them, according to research by the International Council on Mining and Metals.

"It's exactly the other way around in other mining countries," Tom Butler, ICMM's chief executive officer, said at the recent Perumin mining conference in Arequipa, Peru. "A high proportion of Peruvians reject mining, and the situation around the issue remains highly polarized because people living close to the operations don't feel empowered."

MMG's Las Bambas was the latest mining operation to face disruptions because of community protests. The company has agreements with villages around the mine, but some communities along the road oppose the traffic of heavy trucks that transport copper concentrate to Pacific ports. Five people have died in protests since 2015 and supply has been interrupted three times in the past year.

"We have been engaging with each of those communities and we are involved with the government," Suresh Vadnagra, head of MMG's South American operations, said in an interview. "We have made some real advances, but this is a long-term game."

Infrastructure is a challenge in a country where road and rail links can be antiquated and some of the largest deposits are in the Andes, several thousands of meters above sea level and hundreds of kilometers from the sea. Despite government commitments to invest in remote regions, no projects have been made public yet.

"We are not seeing great changes in infrastructure investment that can lead us to think the situation will be different in five years' time," Del Carpio said. "Mining companies are developing their own infrastructure, but this means they need to invest more and projects become less competitive."

Still, the example of Las Bambas provides hope. The only copper mine to start operating in Latin America last year, it became Peru's second-largest mine within its first year of operation. MMG compared the deposit's potential with the world's largest copper mine, BHP Billiton Ltd.'s Escondida in Chile.

"To MMG, Peru is a strategic destination," Vadnagra said. "Las Bambas is a platform for growth for the company, and we want to use that to grow more locally and at a regional level."
Authorities in Salt Lake City have cleared a police officer in the fatal shooting of a man who ran after being stopped on his bicycle, an incident caught on police body-camera video that was released this week.

The ruling comes after a month-and-a-half-long investigation into the Aug. 13 shooting. Police say they stopped Patrick Harmon, 50, on State Street near downtown Salt Lake City because he was riding his bicycle erratically and did not have a red rear light. After finding that Harmon had multiple open arrest warrants, including one stemming from a felony aggravated assault charge, the officers informed Harmon that he was under arrest. That is when he ran, according to a police body-camera video.

In their review, investigators considered accounts given by the three officers present during the shooting, including the one who fired the shots, Officer Clinton Fox, as well as footage from their body cameras.

The district attorney of Salt Lake County, Sim Gill, said in an interview that the use of deadly force was legally justified because Harmon was armed and turned back to lunge at the officers while running away.

"While the officers were in very close proximity to Mr. Harmon, he presented an opened knife as he turned towards the officers who were running at him," Gill wrote in a letter explaining his office's determination this past week. "Officer Fox reasonably believed deadly force was necessary to prevent death or serious bodily injury to himself and/or others and therefore his use of deadly force was 'justified' under Utah State law."

The body-camera footage shows the moment that Harmon bolted from the officers as they began to arrest him. Harmon appears visibly distraught, and after one of the officers asked him to remove his backpack and put his hands behind his back, he takes off running. After a few paces, he quickly turns back toward the officers.

A split-second struggle ensues, with one of the officers falling to the ground, before Harmon keeps running. The footage is blurry in parts and the audio is muddled; it appears that one of the officers yells "I'll [expletive] shoot you," before three shots were fired.

All three officers told investigators they heard Harmon threaten to stab them.

Officer Fox said that Harmon had stopped running, turned, and yelled "I'll [expletive] stab you," with a knife in his hand. He told investigators it was the most frightening situation he had experienced during 10 years in law enforcement and two military deployments.

Officer Kris Smith, who had fired his Taser during the struggle, said he heard Harmon say, "I'm going to cut . . ." and saw him reach toward his pants. Officer Scott Robinson told investigators that Harmon said something about stabbing and that he saw him holding something in his hand.

Police said they found a knife near where Harmon had fallen after being shot, which is visible on video in the moments after the shooting. Gill's office released still images from the videos that it said showed Harmon pivoting back toward police.

Gill acknowledged that the videos did not fully corroborate the officers' accounts, saying that body camera footage doesn't always capture what an officer sees.

"I wish everything was properly framed in ultra 4000HD so we could have it, but that's not the luxury I have," he said.

The debate about use of deadly force by police and its potential racial implications has churned for years, and it continues to be a heated subject of national debate.

Harmon is one of 748 people who have been killed in interactions with the police this year, according to data compiled by The Washington Post. Mental illness played a role in one out of every five incidents, The Post has found. Harmon's shooting joins a litany of others captured on video and released to the public, in what has become a grim facet of the modern news cycle. It is rare for officers to face charges and rarer still for them to be convicted, due in large part to the dangers they face and requirements of their jobs.

In Utah, a police officer is justified to use deadly force against a fleeing subject when making an arrest or preventing an escape from custody if the officer has probable cause to believe that the suspect poses a threat of death or serious injury to the officer or others if not arrested immediately.

The police officers said that they had stopped Harmon in part because his bicycle did not have a red rear taillight; but red rear taillights are not required by Utah law if a rider has a red reflector. Video appears to show Harmon's bike with a red reflector.

The Salt Lake City Police Department declined to comment on the case through a spokesman, but said that Fox remains on modified duty pending the results of an internal investigating into the shooting.

"Often times we end up being tried in the court of public opinion prior to any in-depth investigation," Detective Richard Chipping told The Post. " So we appreciate people giving us time to work it out so we can do a thorough investigation, and other agencies can do an investigation so we can shed light on what the situation is."

Harmon's most recent address, listed in court papers from November 2016, was the Road Home homeless shelter, according to the Salt Lake Tribune. The newspaper reported that Harmon had arrest warrants stemming from a felony aggravated assault charge he had pleaded guilty to earlier this year, and the failure to comply with probation requirements from a misdemeanor drug possession case.

Harmon's family told the Guardian they had not heard from him in recent years and were distressed by the shooting.

"The police are going to stick together no matter if it's wrong or right," said Antoinette Harmon, his 54-year-old sister. "They don't care about black lives."

"They just murdered him flat out," said niece Alisha Shaw. "He was only trying to get away."

The footage from one of the body cameras shows Harmon groaning on the ground as he loses consciousness, losing blood as officers try to handcuff him and give him aid.

"Stay with us," one of the officers says. "Hey Patrick, stay with us."

Jeanetta Williams, the president of the NAACP's Salt Lake City branch said that Rio Grande, the district where Harmon was killed, has been the subject of a recent effort to get a large homeless population off the streets and tamp down on issues like drug dealing.

"I know the Salt Lake police department has been working on de-escalation and they said they tried to do de-escalation in this case but it seems like it wasn't enough," she said in a phone interview. "By looking at the video you would think they could have apprehended him in some other way."

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http://wapo.st/2xY735w
TOKYO - The ruling bloc has become increasingly wary of the upcoming House of Representatives election descending into a populism-driven campaign, while casting doubt on whether Kibo no To (Party of Hope) will be able to realize its election pledges.

Kibo, led by Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike, on Friday released its pledges for the lower house race, which include a freeze of the planned consumption tax rate hike and the realization of "zero nuclear power." In response, the ruling parties have intensified criticism of Kibo's policies, expressing strong doubts over their feasibility.

However, the ruling bloc has recently veered away from statements on the consumption tax rate. Some are concerned that the upcoming lower house poll will be a race consumed by populism, filled with ear-pleasing pledges to woo voters.

Kibo has pledged to make preschool education free of charge and introduce a basic income system that provides subsistence payments among other benefit-related policies. However, the party has also vowed to freeze the planned consumption tax rate increase to 10 percent in October 2019.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga criticized Kibo, saying the party should clarify concretely where the revenue to realize its campaign pledges will come from. "We can't engage in an irresponsible debate that promotes a significant reform without specifying fiscal resources," Suga said at a press conference on Friday. Regarding the realization of "zero nuclear power" set by Kibo, Suga said, "They need to explain to the public how exactly they are going to realize it."

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe raised the importance of debating policies during a stump speech in Kokubunji in Tokyo on Friday evening. "Turning on the TV, I only hear stories about policy realignments, while policy details are completely ignored. We want to present policies to voters sincerely," said Abe.

The Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito are both concerned about experiencing a repeat of the 2009 lower house election that led to a change of government.

The Democratic Party of Japan - predecessor of the Democratic Party - won the election, pledging to distribute a monthly allowance of 26,000 yen (about $230) per child, among other promises. The ruling parties during the election campaign criticized the DPJ, saying it had no revenue source, but their claims didn't convince voters. After the inauguration of the DPJ administration, it had to review some of its pledges because it lacked the fiscal resources.

"Kibo has rehashed and resurrected some of the pledges that could not be realized under the DPJ administration," said Komeito leader Natsuo Yamaguchi, implying that influence is being exerted by the many DP politicians who have defected to Kibo.

Meanwhile, the LDP and Komeito have pledged to allocate part of the increased revenue from the consumption tax rate hike toward purposes such as free education for children, changing their initial plan to use it for fiscal recovery.

At the Sept. 25 press conference in which Abe announced he would dissolve the lower house, he said the reason for the dissolution was to seek the public's approval of a change to the plans for the increased revenue from the consumption tax rate hike. Abe began the conference speaking about the tax hike and Abenomics, before moving on to the government's handling of North Korea, which continues its nuclear and missile development.

However, in subsequent stump speeches, the prime minister followed a pattern in which he spent more time talking about North Korean issues before shifting to Abenomics. On Tuesday, Abe did not even mention the increased tax revenue, which was supposed to be the main cause for the dissolution.

It is believed that Abe is stressing the North Korean issue because it is easier to advocate the importance of continuing a stable administration from a security standpoint.

Kibo has now vowed to freeze the planned consumption tax rate hike in its campaign pledges. A veteran LDP member said, "From past experience, tax-hike related campaign pledges are certainly likely to be disadvantageous [to the LDP].

"Therefore it's safer not to put too much emphasis on the purpose for the use of the increased revenue from the consumption tax hike," the LDP member added. Changes in the tone of Abe's remarks probably are a reflection of such an election atmosphere.
Premier Sire of the entire show was Apples Absolute-Red-ET, Premier Sire of the Heifer Show was Mr D Apple Diamondback, Premier Breeder was Apple Partners, and the Grand Champion was sired by Absolute. The Apple we are talking about is KHW Regiment Apple-Red-ET, a previous Grand Champion at the International Red & White Show and successful brood cow.

The sweetest Apple in the basket was Meadow Green Abso Fanny-Red, the winning Aged Cow. In addition to being named Grand Champion of the International Red & White Show, she also was awarded Best Udder of Show. She is owned by Triple-T Holsteins, Mike Berry, Frank and Carol Borba, and Frank and Diane Borba. Fanny-Red is housed in Ohio at Triple-T Holsteins, but Fannys offspring are located in both California and Ohio.

The Intermediate and Reserve Grand Champion was Heatherstone Redhot-Red owned by Milk Source of Wisconsin. Redhots dam is sired by Apples brother, KHW Kite Advent-Red-ET.

Reserve Intermediate Champion was won by Miss Pottsdale Dfi Tang-Red. This Senior 3-year-old is owned by Golden Oaks Farm of Illinois. Tangs granddam was sired by Advent-Red.

The Reserve Senior Champion was Miss Apple Snapple-Red-ET, also owned by Milk Source. Snapple is a Redburst from the original Apple. She topped the 4-year-old-class.

Champion Bred and Owned went to Parkvue Absolute Rap-ET, owned by Jason and Jordan Thomas and Adam Liddle of New York.

Junior Champion was Greenlea Ad Annie-Red-ET. This Winter Yearling is owned by Michael Heath and cousins, Will and Mark Iager in Maryland. Her dam is an Advent daughter. Reserve Junior Champion was Ms-AOL DB Raspberry-Red-ET. Jaydyn Kimball of Maine owns the winning Fall Calf, who is sired by Mr D Apple Diamondback. Raspberry also claimed Junior Champion of the Junior Show.

Premier Exhibitor was awarded to brothers, Grady and Lane Wendorf of Wisconsin. These junior exhibitors had a great day, including Reserve Grand Champion of the Junior Show with Milksource Dty Tammy-Red-ET, the winning 5-year-old. Tammys dam is sired by Advent. They also had Reserve Junior Champion of the Junior Show with Cleland Defiant Kailene-Red, an Advent granddaugher.

Champion Bred and Owned of the Show was awarded to Britney Hill of Vermont. This Redburst daughter is from an Advent dam.

Grand Champion of the International Red & White Junior Show was Redtag Destry Sneezy-Red-ET. Sneezy is owned by Chase Savage of Maryand and is the only Champion without Apple in her DNA.

Chad Ryan was the lead judge and was assisted by Brian Kelroy, together they placed 262 Red & White entries.

The author is the online media manager and is responsible for the website, webinars, and social media. A graduate of Modesto Junior College and Fresno State, she was raised on a California dairy and frequently blogs on youth programs and consumer issues.
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Gov. Greg Abbott told a group of conservative Hispanics that they were the future of Republican politics in the state, signaling in a Saturday speech his intention to once again court Latino votes in the 2018 race.

The first Hispanic governor must be a Republican, Abbott told the audience of about 200 in San Antonio.

We are running to win the next generation, he added. You are that next generation.

The governors remarks came at a Hispanic Leadership Conference hosted by his reelection campaign at the Norris Conference Centers. It featured a series of panels, closed to reporters, on political outreach, appointments and the media.

Abbott connected with Hispanics when elected in 2014, garnering an estimated 44 percent of their vote. He ran ads on Spanish-language television channels that featured his wife Cecilia, who would become the first Hispanic first lady of Texas, and his mother-in-law, who immigrated to Texas from Monterrey, Mexico.

Abbott invoked that history again Saturday, joking that his ability to win over the Latino electorate was due to support from his wifes large extended family.

But much has changed in the years since, including the governors support this year for Senate Bill 4, the controversial legislation that would criminalize so-called sanctuary cities and allow police officers to ask people about their immigration status. Now disputed in court, the bill became a flashpoint in the politics of immigration, with Democrats saying it was a show me your papers law that encouraged racial profiling.

If you are a Republican candidate for governor or a Republican candidate for high office in Texas, you have to rebuild your connection to the Hispanic community every election cycle, said Cal Jillson, a political science professor at Southern Methodist University. You can woo Hispanics in a campaign, but then in governing you alienate some of those same Hispanics, including conservative Hispanic leaders.

The governor shied away from any mention of Senate Bill 4 on Saturday, instead focusing on the shared values between the Latino community and conservatives, including commitment to religious faith and freedom.

It is essential that your voice be heard, Abbott said.

He also accused Texas Democrats of trying to use race as a way to divide us.

Prior to his speech, about three dozen Texas Democrats and progressive organizers gathered outside the conference to criticize the governors track record with Latinos.

Manuel Medina, chairman of the Bexar County Democratic Party and an unsuccessful San Antonio mayoral candidate this year, said Abbott needs to be challenged on various aspects of his tenure as governor, including his positions on public education, health care and immigration.

When it comes to Latinos, theres too many of yall now, Medina said, pretending to speak from the governors point of view. Were going to ask you for your papers. Thats his record on immigration.

Political experts say it is unclear whether SB 4 will hurt Abbott much in 2018. He remains highly popular among his core base of white voters, has amassed tens of millions of dollars in campaign funds and faces no serious Democratic opponent, said Mark Jones, a political science fellow at Rice University.

Damage to Abbotts reputation with Latinos because of SB 4 is likely marginal, Jones said. Plus, hes entering his reelection campaign with higher-than-typical ratings among Hispanics. When Abbott won three years ago, his support from those voters was about 10 points higher than the one-third of Hispanics who usually vote for Texas Republicans, Jillson said.

Furthermore, data indicate Abbott would still win handily even if his support among Latinos takes a hit next year. White voters alone place him as having 46 or 47 of the overall vote, Jillson said.

However, looking to the future, the states conservatives are keenly aware of Texas rapidly changing demographics, including its ever-growing Hispanic population, a fact that Abbott alluded to during his remarks.

The key thing is that Anglo votes alone, if you have strong support within the Anglo community, are almost enough, he said. But thats not the case getting 10 years, 20 years from now.

If Texas Republicans can continue making inroads among Hispanic voters, the conservative stronghold on statewide offices will continue for the foreseeable future, said David Crockett, a political science professor at Trinity University.

Abbott did pretty well with the Latino vote when he ran the first time. He would certainly love to replicate that, Crockett said. If they can replicate that, Republicans would be virtually unbeatable.

lcaruba@express-news.net | Twitter: @LaurenCaruba
Paul Moseley /TNS

AUSTIN  Nine Republicans in the U.S. Senate, including Texas John Cornyn, Friday wrote a letter urging the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to review the agency's decision that allows the sale of bump stocks, the accessory used to maximize gunfire in the Las Vegas massacre.

The bump stocks use the force of the guns natural recoil to allow the gun to bounce off the shooters trigger finger. The modification allows a semi-automatic weapon to fire rounds at a rate that resembles that of an automatic weapon. In 2010, the AFT allowed sales of the accessory because it did not change a weapon's mechanics.
DENIS POROY/AP

Smokers will continue to be able to light up at state beaches and parks after Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed a bill Friday that would have banned smoking in both those places.

In his veto message, Brown suggested that the ban  which would have applied to cigarettes, cigars, marijuana and e-cigarettes  was overkill.
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MARTINSVILLE  The state awarded all three local school divisions a total of $178,711 in grants on Friday to make security improvements at individual schools.

The money is part of $6 million in School Security Equipment Grants awarded to 104 school divisions and three regional educational programs statewide, the governors office announced in a statement.

The Patrick County Public Schools were awarded $94,863 for improvements at Hardin Reynolds, Blue Ridge, Patrick Springs, Stuart and Woolwine elementary schools as well as Patrick County High School. The grant was the largest received by one of the local divisions.

Most of the money will go toward upgrading cameras and other devices in the schools electronic security network, said Assistant Superintendent Dean Gilbert.

Weve got some equipment thats right at, if not just past, its useful life, Gilbert said.

The Martinsville City Public Schools were awarded $69,448 for improvements at the Clearview Early Childhood Center, Albert Harris and Patrick Henry elementary schools, Martinsville Middle School and Martinsville High School.

T.J. Slaughter, director of security and emergency management, said some of the money will be used to buy new two-way radios and improve efforts to control access to the schools by requiring employees to use an electronic card-reading system to enter instead of keys.

The card-readers keep a tally of who all is in the buildings during the daytime, Slaughter said.

Some of the money, he said, will be used to install a visitor badging system in the schools that will quickly scan criminal records in all 50 states to determine if a visitor has ever been convicted of a sexual offense involving children.

Money also will be allocated toward the installation of additional security cameras as well as bollards in front of the high school, Slaughter said. Bollards are short metal posts designed to stop vehicles from ramming buildings.

The Henry County Public Schools were awarded $14,400 to use at Fieldale-Collinsville and Laurel Park middle schools. The money will be used to install more cameras and upgrade some already at the schools, said Monica Adams Hatchett, director of communications and organizational learning.

The county school division continually works to ensure the safety of our students and staff by making use of innovative safety equipment, said Facilities Maintenance Director Keith Scott.

Were excited to have the opportunity to add (to) and upgrade some of our surveillance cameras thanks to this generous grant funding, Scott said.

Gilbert, Slaughter and Zeb Talley, superintendent of the Martinsville schools, also said they were excited that their divisions are receiving money.

The School Security Equipment Grants program was established by the General Assembly in 2013 following the Dec. 14, 2012, mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.

This years fifth round of grants brings the total number of school security projects that have received state funding through the program to 2,327, according to the news release.

Slaughter said he hopes the program continues well into the future because its really helped us to better secure our schools.

"School safety is imperative to providing an environment where students can learn, grow and thrive, Gov. Terry McAuliffe said in the release. These grants will provide our school administrators with the resources they need to keep their students and teachers safe so they can concentrate on providing a world class education and preparing for success.

Criteria for issuing the grants, developed by the Virginia Department of Education and Department of Criminal Justice Services, gives priority to schools most in need of modern security devices, schools with relatively high numbers of offenses, schools with equipment needs identified by security audits, and schools in divisions least able to afford security upgrades.

The largest grant that a school division can receive under the program is $100,000. A local match of 25 percent is required of most divisions, the release stated.

The local divisions grants represented almost 3 percent of the $6 million provided for this years program.
Industry analysts are warning that Trump administration efforts to support coal and nuclear energy could upend wholesale markets and drive up electricity rates for Wisconsin consumers.

U.S. Secretary of Energy Rick Perry has proposed a new rule that would boost prices for electricity generated at plants with a 90-day supply of fuel on hand  which translates to coal and nuclear generators  in an attempt to slow market trends toward natural gas and renewable sources.

Under the current system, producers bid in their power at a certain price and independent system operators call on generators as they are needed, taking the cheapest power first. Perry has asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or FERC, to mandate that utilities like Dairyland be paid a higher wholesale rate for electricity generated at coal-fired plants  whether or not the electricity is needed.

The wholesale market is basically capitalism at its best, said Gary Radloff, an energy policy researcher at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. To sort of come out with a rule that says we want to prop up coal and nuclear plants that arent competing in the wholesale market is kind of anti-capitalism.

The National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates, which represents consumer utility advocate groups in 41 states, warns the rule represents a fundamental change in how markets operate and will materially affect the price that tens of millions of residential and business consumers pay for electricity.

This would blow the market up, former FERC Chairman Jon Wellinghoff told the industry publication Utility Dive.

Its not clear what the impact on retail consumers would be, but industry experts say the rule would put upward pressure on rates, especially in states such as Wisconsin that still rely heavily on coal for fuel.

I dont see how it could lower them, said Tom Content, executive director of the Citizens Utility Board of Wisconsin, which advocates for utility consumers. Our costs are high enough already.

Perry has directed FERC to act within 60 days, and the commission has set an Oct. 23 deadline for comments on the proposed rule, though both industry and consumer advocacy groups have urged the commission to slow down the process.

A solution in search of a problem

The justification for Perrys proposed rule is that baseload coal and nuclear generators, which are being rapidly retired, are valuable because of their ability to store fuel on site.

But the study that Perry cites as the impetus for the new rule actually showed that cheap natural gas and falling electricity demand  not renewable energy tax subsidies  are primarily responsible for the demise of coal, and that the early retirement of coal and nuclear plants has not affected grid reliability.

Researchers at the strategic planning and research firm Rhodium Group found that, during the past five years, just 0.0007 percent of the major power disruptions were caused by fuel supply.

More than 96 percent of lost customer hours were attributed to the Atlantic storm Sandy and other severe weather events. And of the 0.0007 percent caused by fuel supply problems, the vast majority was attributed to one outage  at a coal-fired plant in northern Minnesota.

Outage data from the Energy Information Administration show that of the nine major outages in Wisconsin since 2014, four were due to coal shortages. (Severe weather and vandalism were the other culprits.)

Minnesota and Wisconsin utilities get their coal from out of state, and more than 96 percent comes on trains from Wyoming and Montana. Utilities warned of possible shutdowns in 2014 when a rail backlog delayed coal deliveries.

A coalition of 11 trade groups  representing the natural gas and renewable energy sectors as well as utilities and petroleum producers  filed comments Monday with FERC arguing there is no justification for the rule.

Theyre using this rationalization that the grid stability is threatened, and there is absolutely no evidence that thats true. I mean none, Radloff said. Its a solution in search of a problem.

Mixed reviews

Though it produces no coal, Wisconsin is among 13 states where more than half of the electricity is generated with the fossil fuel. Nearly a quarter of the electricity produced in Minnesota comes from two nuclear plants operated by Xcel Energy, which supplies power to about 257,000 customers in western Wisconsin.

Were about twice as dependent on coal as other states, Tyler Huebner, executive director of RENEW Wisconsin, a clean energy advocacy group. It could have outsize impacts on our rates if it moves ahead.

With coal-powered plants in Alma and Genoa, as well as a share of a plant in Wausau, coal accounts for 90 percent of Dairyland Power Cooperatives generation assets and about 70 percent of its total contracted capacity.

But during the past two years, the La Crosse-based cooperative has aggressively invested in wind and solar generation, and earlier this year announced plans for a jointly-owned $700 million natural gas plant, part of a plan to reduce its reliance on coal in the coming decade.

John Carr, vice president of generation, said he hasnt determined if the proposal would benefit Dairyland

Were just not certain yet, he said. Its something were still trying to wade through.

While it is possible to stockpile a 90-day supply of coal, Carr said Dairyland typically keeps less on hand because of increased handling costs. (The Genoa plant, which relies on barge transport, maintains larger reserves to get through the winter.)

Spokeswoman Katie Thomson said Dairyland will continue its diversification strategy, which calls for increasing generation capacity by up to 15 percent with renewable sources in the next two years.

Strategic diversifying of our resources is in the best interest of our members and the environment, and we are staying true to that commitment  despite what may or may not happen from a regulatory standpoint, Thomson said.

The Edison Electric Institute, the trade group for investor-owned utilities, said it is reviewing the proposal, but issued a statement praising the DOE.

The U.S. Department of Energy recognizes that a balanced energy mix that includes 24/7 energy sources is vital to sustaining a secure, reliable, and resilient energy grid, Richard McMahon, vice president of energy supply and finance, said in a written statement. (W)e believe competitive electricity market rules should promote a diverse energy mix and should recognize the role that all generation sources play in maintaining the reliability and resiliency of the energy grid.

But CUB director Content said the proposal seems out of step with Wisconsins investor-owned utilities, which have all pledged to to reduce their carbon footprints. Xcel Energy has lead the way, reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 30 percent during the past decade and pledging a 60 percent cut by 2030.

The Minnesota-based company released a statement saying it is still evaluating the rule, but at first glance it doesnt appear that this proposal would affect our strategies in Wisconsin or Upper Midwest. Our plans will assure a reliable, clean and low-priced electricity system for Upper Midwest consumers.

Xcel plans to shutter its largest coal-fired plant ahead of schedule and replace it with natural gas-powered generators. The company is also investing in wind and solar resources as part of a strategy to reduce fuel costs.

While he doesnt expect the rule would change the long-term trend, Hueber said it could delay retirement of coal plants and slow investment in new alternatives.

This is like propping up the horse and buggy industry when the automobile is hitting mass markets, he said. Its a look to the past.

Note: This story has been updated to reflect the position of the Edison Electric Institute. The industry group says it has not taken a position on the proposal.
AMHERST -- Within five to seven years a piece of clothing -- a watch band, a bandage -- might be able not only to monitor the wearer's heart rate but also perform more sophisticated diagnostic tasks, even harvesting sweat to instantly get a handle on body chemistry and hydration.

And research at the University of Massachusetts Amherst is helping to make that happen, now with the help of $500,000 from the state. Gov. Charlie Baker announced the funding Friday with a visit to the campus' Institute for Applied Life Sciences and its Center for Personalized Health Monitoring.

"Imagine if your Fitbit was much, much smarter," said polymer scientist James Watkins. "Imagine if your Band-Aid went to a really good university. Imagine how helpful that would be to first responders or to medics responding to casualties in the military."

He said the sophisticated monitoring sensors could send health data to a smartphone, or to a military commander or a doctor.

The UMass work is being done along with industry partner Uniqarta of Cambridge.

That "really good university" would be a place like UMass, where the Institute for Applied Life Sciences opened in June with five laboratories, called "Core Facilities," for use by manufacturers. The labs in the campus Life Sciences Laboratories Building, 240 Thatcher Road, are the result of a $95 million state investment and $55 million in support from the university.

James Capistran, executive director UMass Innovation Institute said companies, including E Ink of South Hadley and the United Technologies Research Center in East Hartford, are already partnering on the research.

The $500,000 Baker came to announce Friday has already been spent on tools and lab equipment, Capistran said.

The money is part of $6.98 million in state manufacturing research grants Baker distributed Friday. It will help university and industry researchers develop products and get those products manufactured here in Massachusetts, he said.

"We have always been a state that lived by its wits," said Baker, who'd just come form a visit to the Springfield High School of Commerce. "We've always been a state that looked at what's next. We need to develop these technologies so these technologies can provide good jobs."

Ten members of Girls Inc. of Holyoke and its Eureka program for high-school girls attended the event. Eureka students spend one day a week on the UMass campus for the month of July and learn about science, technology and other academic disciplines the rest of the year.

Baker's announcement fell on Manufacturing Day, a national celebration of making things and specifically making high-tech things designed for the economy of the future.

Some 245,000 people in the Bay State are employed creating goods that drive research, exports and wages that surpass the state average by 25 percent, according to Associated Industries of Massachusetts.

Other funding recipients are, according to a news release from the Mass Technology Collaborative:

Analog Photonics, Boston: $1.39 million. Sophisticated light sensors used in the autonomous vehicle industry, among others.

MIT Lincoln Labs, Lexington: $1.9 million. Photonics research for the Pentagon.

MIT/Ministry of Supply, Cambridge: $90,000. Clothing that can sense and adapt comfort to the local .

MIT Northeast Regional Robotics Innovation Collaborative (RRIC) in Boston at MassRobotics: $1.98 million over three years. "Teach-Bot," a robotics instruction and demonstration machine that interacts with the learner. The idea is re-educate workers.

MRSI of Billerica: $570,000. Silicon photonics.

Saint-Gobain/UMass-Lowell, Northborough and Lowell: $550,000. Optical fabric that can be woven into infrastructure and provide a civil infrastructure monitoring system (buildings, pipelines, bridges and tunnels, rail lines, etc.).
Springfield Mayor Domenic J. Sarno spoke with Dr. Seuss Enterprises on Friday about its decision to pull a mural from The Amazing World of Dr. Seuss Museum after complaints from three authors that it contains a "jarring racial stereotype" of Chinese man with chopsticks.

The mayor said he received a call from Susan Brandt, president of licensing and marketing for the company on Friday afternoon.

"I told her next week it will be something else," Sarno said of the controversy. "You have to put your foot down and draw a line in the sand."

He said he reiterated to Brandt that he wanted the "And To Think That I Saw It On Mulberry Street" mural to remain in place.

"I sense they are looking for a plausible compromise," Sarno said.

The mayor said he believed that Springfield Museums President Kay Simpson had been "put under the gun by Dr. Seuss Enterprises and they felt they had to make a move on this."

Prior to the announcement on Thursday night by the Springfield Museums and Dr. Seuss Enterprises, Simpson had written in a letter, "As a museum, we do not alter or edit an artist's work."

Authors Mo Willems, Mike Curato and Lisa Yee of Northampton, who signed a letter to the Springfield Museums and posted it on social media, said they found part of the mural "deeply hurtful" and would not attend a planned Oct. 14 event there.

Springfield Museums officials said they offered to meet with Willems, Curato and Yee, but they declined.

The mural character in question was described by Geisel in his 1937 book as "a Chinese man who eats with sticks."

In a statement to the media, Sarno said "This is political correctness at its worst, and this is what is wrong with our country. We have extreme fringe groups on both the right and the left dictating an agenda to divide instead of working together towards the betterment of our country."

The mayor accused the authors of manufacturing an issue to boost their profile.
Two men were arrested days after a shooting on the set of The Equalizer 2, a movie starring Denzel Washington, currently being shot in Roxbury.

The suspects, Thomas Perkins, 18, of Quincy, and Dionte Martinez, 18, of Boston, were arrested Thursday and charged with assault with intent to murder and gun offenses, the Associated Press reports.

They were arraigned in Roxbury District Court on Friday.

The shooting occurred on Sept. 30, around 12:53 a.m. Police said no scenes were being filmed at the time and the stars of the movie were not on set.

Two security guards, a 40-year-old woman and 33-year-old man, suffered minor injuries and have since been released from the hospital.

Police arrived to search the area, but could not locate the suspects. They did, however, managed to recover two firearms discarded during the shooting.

"After a complete and thorough investigation, officers were able to later learn and ascertain the identities of the suspects wanted in connection to the shooting," Boston police wrote.

Perkins and Martinez were arrested by the Youth Violence Strike Force and Quincy police five days later.

According to the Boston Globe, bail was set at $10,000 for Martinez and $8,000 for Perkins. Both were ordered to wear GPS monitors, stay away from each other and all witnesses and follow a strict curfew.
BILLERICA - A Billerica man was indicted on sexual exploitation charges in U.S. District Court in Boston on Thursday.

Philip Toronto, 43, faces two counts of sexual exploitation of children.

Toronto was arrested in February following an investigation into his activities by the U.S. Postal Service police and Massachusetts State police.

According to court documents, investigators were led to Toronto after Massachusetts State police received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children regarding a Skype user who had uploaded suspected images of child porn to the internet site in October of 2016.

Investigators subsequently subpoenaed Verizon for account information associated with with the Skype account, which led them to Toronto.

When questioned, Toronto initially denied involvement with child porn or child abuse but later admitted to investigators that he had been responsible for the images uploaded to Skype, the documents say.

Investigators also found images of child pornography on Toronto's computer and cell phone.

An arraignment hearing for Toronto is set for Oct. 19 in U.S. District Court in Boston.
CHICOPEE - Harry E. Dumay was sworn in as the 11th president of the College of Our Lady of the Elms at a formal inauguration ceremony Friday.

Dumay, who has previously served in senior and executive capacities in higher education finance and administration for 19 years, was selected to head the school in July of 2017 after a nationwide search.

Dumay holds a doctorate in higher education administration from Boston College, as well as an master's in business administration from Boston University, and a master of arts degree in public administration from Framingham State University.

Friday's events included a special Mass at the school, as well as a campus-wide picnic, a dedication ceremony for a new chapel in one of the school's halls, and a post-inauguration reception as well as the annual President's Evening of Appreciation dinner.

Delegates from 45 sister colleges and associations across New England and around the country attended the ceremony. Numbered in the attendees were some of Dumay's former colleagues from Harvard University, Boston University, Boston College, and Saint Anselm College.

Dumay's inaugural address focused on the large contributions of Catholic colleges--discussing the responsibility of the schools to their students as well as to the communities they serve.

"The Catholic intellectual tradition stems in great part from John Henry Newman's exhortation to Catholics in England in his time: 'to cultivate [their] reason, to get an insight into the relation of truth to truth, to understand how faith and reason stand to each other,' " Dumay said.

"[A] strong and active Catholic higher education is our promise to you, our students. We have chosen you because you have met the requirements to be part of our community of teachers and learners. You have chosen us to help you achieve your dreams and aspirations," he said. "You have chosen us because you know that we are prepared to help you unleash your creativity, your passion, your determination to better yourselves and the world."

"This is truly an exciting time to be a part of the Elms, with our new president taking the helm as we enter our 90th anniversary year," said Alumni Association President Jenn Putnam. "With Dr. Dumay's vision and commitment, and all of us working toward a common goal, we can be certain that the Elms will continue to provide leaders for the future of the college and for our society."

"In the first months of Dr. Dumay's tenure, we have witnessed a president who is engaging, approachable, transparent, humble, responsive to the community, committed to the mission, shows a genuine interest in students, faculty, and staff, and is 'present in the moment' in each interaction," said Eileen Kirk, associate director of Campus Ministry, in a speech on behalf of staff and administration.

"On behalf of the students of Elms College, it is an honor and privilege to welcome Dr. Harry Dumay into our college community," said John Dunphy '19. "Dr. Dumay, as we begin this journey together, we look forward to learning from the experiences and wisdom that you bring to our beloved college. Likewise, we are excited to share with you what we treasure most about our community."
LAS VEGAS -- After five days of scouring the life of Las Vegas gunman Stephen Paddock and chasing 1,000 leads, investigators confessed Friday they still don't know what drove him to mass murder, and they announced plans to put up billboards appealing for the public's help.

In their effort to find any hint of his motive, investigators were looking into whether he was with a prostitute days before the shooting, scrutinizing cruises he took and trying to make sense of a cryptic note with numbers jotted on it found in his hotel room, a federal official said.

So far, examinations of Paddock's politics, finances, any possible radicalization and his social behavior -- typical investigative avenues that have helped uncover the motive in past shootings -- have turned up little.

"We still do not have a clear motive or reason why," Clark County Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said. "We have looked at literally everything."

The FBI announced that billboards would go up around the city asking anyone with information to phone 800-CALL-FBI.

"If you know something, say something," said Aaron Rouse, agent in charge of the Las Vegas FBI office. "We will not stop until we have the truth."

Paddock, a reclusive 64-year-old high-stakes gambler, rained bullets on the crowd at a country music festival Sunday night from his 32nd-floor hotel suite, killing 58 and wounding hundreds before taking his own life.

McMahill said investigators had reviewed voluminous video from the casino and don't think Paddock had an accomplice in the shooting, but they want to know if anyone knew about his plot beforehand.

Investigators believe Paddock hired a prostitute in the days leading up to the shooting and were interviewing other call girls for information, a U.S. official briefed by federal law enforcement officials said. The official wasn't authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

The official also disclosed that Paddock took at least a dozen cruises abroad in the last few years, most of them with his girlfriend, Marilou Danley. At least one sailed to the Middle East.

It is unusual to have so few hints of a motive five days after a mass shooting. In previous mass killings or terrorist attacks, killers left notes, social media postings and information on a computer -- or even phoned police.

"The lack of a social media footprint is likely intentional," said Erroll Southers, director of homegrown violent extremism studies at the University of Southern California. "We're so used to, in the first 24 to 48 hours, being able to review social media posts. If they don't leave us a note behind or a manifesto behind, and we're not seeing that, that's what's making this longer."

What officers have found is that Paddock planned his attack meticulously.

He requested an upper-floor room overlooking the festival, stockpiled 23 guns, a dozen of them modified to fire continuously like an automatic weapon, and set up cameras inside and outside his room to watch for approaching officers.

In a possible sign he was contemplating massacres at other sites, he also booked rooms overlooking the Lollapalooza festival in Chicago in August and the Life Is Beautiful show near the Vegas Strip in late September, according to authorities reconstructing his movements leading up to the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history.

His arsenal also included tracer rounds that can improve a shooter's firing accuracy in the dark, a law enforcement official told AP. It wasn't clear whether Paddock fired any of the illuminated bullets during the high-rise massacre.

Paddock bought 1,000 rounds of the .308-caliber and .223-caliber tracer ammunition from a private buyer he met at a Phoenix gun show, a law enforcement official not authorized to comment on the investigation said on condition of anonymity.

Tracer rounds illuminate their path so a gunman can home in on targets at night. But they can also give away the shooter's position.

Video shot of the pandemonium that erupted when Paddock started strafing the festival showed a muzzle flash from his room at the Mandalay Bay resort, but bullets weren't visible in the night sky.

Investigators are looking into Paddock's mental health and any medications he was on, McMahill said.

His girlfriend, Danley, told FBI agents Wednesday that she had not noticed any changes in his mental state or indications he could become violent, the federal official said.

Paddock sent Danley on a trip to her native Philippines before the attack, and she was unaware of his plans and devastated when she learned of the carnage while overseas, she said in a statement.

-- By Ken Ritter and Michael Balsamo, Associated Press
The first Massachusetts tribe to make contact with the Pilgrims is changing its holiday calendar to recognize 'Indigenous Peoples Day' in place of Columbus day.

According to a release from the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, the second Monday of October on the tribe's government calendar will now celebrate the indigenous peoples of North America.

"Be it further resolved, that the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe shall continue its efforts to promote the well-being and growth of all Indigenous communities and continue to protect the Indigenous homelands of the Wampanoag Nation," the resolution declares.

A spokesman told the Associated Press that no formal activies were planned to celebrate the new holiday on Monday.

In addition to being the first tribe to make contact with English Puritan settlers in Massachusetts, the Wampanoag Tribe are also said to have celebrated the first Thanksgiving with the Pilgrims and helped them through their first years in North America.

However, in the years following the Pilgrim's arrival, the Wampanoag, like many other tribes, suffered from deadly smallpox epidemics and had their land seized by settlers.

Columbus Day has generated controversy in recent years as some groups consider the Italian American explorer Christopher Columbus a conquerer rather than a hero. According to Time, Indigenous Peoples Day, first observed on Oct. 22, 1991 in Berkeley, California, was started as a way to express appreciation for the tribes that ultimately suffered as a result of Columbus' expedition.

While the holiday is sometimes regarded as a counter-celebration to Columbus Day, the Wampanoag tribe said the calendar change is not in repudiation of Christopher Columbus and Italian American heritage.

"As the Tribe that first came into contact with the Pilgrims and whose modern-day descendants govern sovereign tribal land in parts of Mashpee and Taunton, we are intimately familiar with, and have been tremendously impacted by, the legacy of Columbus," Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Council Chairman Cedric Cromwell said. "There's enough social space in this country to recognize the proud heritage of our Italian American brothers and sisters, while never forgetting America's First People."
SPRINGFIELD - After allegedly tying up and pepper spraying an elderly Springfield woman during a home invasion, Lily B. Bodenlos and an accomplice got away with $8,000 in cash, several bottles of prescription pills and a key to the woman's safe deposit box.

Bodenlos, 29, of Naugatuck, Connecticut, also left something behind: Her resume.

Minutes after arriving at the victim's home on Aug. 30, Springfield detectives found a folder with Bodenlos' work history, phone number and email address in the first-floor bathroom, according to the arrest report.

Three weeks later, Bodenlos and Melissa Mimitz, 37, of Newington, Connecticut, were arrested in Connecticut and charged with seven felony counts, including home invasion with a firearm, armed and masked robbrery with a firearm and kidnapping.

Bodenlos denied the charges in Springfield District Court on Sept. 22 and is being held without right to bail. She is due back in court Oct. 25.

Mimitz pleaded not guilty to the same charges Friday. At the request of Assistant District Attorney Mary Sandstrom, Mimitz was held without right to bail for a so-called dangerousness hearing next week.

Posing as workers for a cable television company, the defendants knocked on the woman's door around 10 a.m., acccording to the report. They said the woman's daughter, who also lived in the house, had requested an upgrade of her service, the report said.

The woman said she was ill, and asked the defendants to come back another day. The pair knocked on the door again, and Bodenlos asked if she could use the bathroom, the report said.

Once inside the house, both defendants went into the bathroom and emerged several minutes later, with Bodenlos wearing an improvised mask and brandishing a firearm, the report said.

They tied the victim to a kitchen chair and demanded to know where her safe was. When the woman denied having a safe, Bodenlos pepper sprayed her in the face and went upstairs to search the bedrooms, the report said.

Mimitz remained in the kitchen and kept pressuring the victim for money. At one point, she tripped over the chair, knocking the woman to the floor. Mimitz "then kicked (the victim) in the midsection with her construction-boot clad foot," the report said.

When Mimitz went upstairs, the woman freed herself, ran to a neighbor's home and called 911, the report said.

When police arrived, the defendants were gone, along with $8,000 of the victim's savings, a small amount of medical marijuana and bottles of prescription pills, among other items, the report said.

In addition to the resume with Bodenlos' contact information, police located surveillance video showing the defendants arriving at the home in a white Honda Pilot and leaving about 25 minutes later, the report said.

The vehicle was tracked down in Connecticut, and Mimitz's ID was found inside along with $3,000 of the missing money and a black B.B. gun, the report said. Two sweatshirts with Comcast logos were also in the car, according to the report, which identified Mimitz as a former Comcast employee.

Mimitz knew the vicitm's daughther and believed she kept money in the home, the report said.
The mood at the Webster Police Department was somber as officers from across Worcester County gathered to honor Police Officer Michael J. Lee, who was killed in a motor vehicle crash while off-duty Saturday morning.

Deputy Chief Michael Shaw summed up the department's feelings on the crash in one word: "Devastated."

Lee, 38, of Webster, had been with Webster police for 10 years. He served as a patrol officer and assisted with investigations.

Shaw said Lee would brighten up any room he entered.

"He was probably one of the most well liked guys at the department. I didn't know anyone that didn't like Mike," Shaw said.

Lee served as a firearms instructor for citizens interested in receiving their gun licenses.

He briefly served with the Falmouth Police Department, but eventually returned to his home in Webster.

"One of the saddest days of my life was when Mike left for Falmouth. That was until today," Shaw said.

According to Massachusetts State Police, toopers from the Sturbridge barracks responded to a crash on Interstate 395 southbound in Auburn around 1 a.m. Saturday. They discovered that a 2015 Toyota Tundra driven by Lee struck a 2012 Freightliner tractor-trailer, which was stationary in the breakdown lane.

Lee was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash.

State police said the other driver, a 50-year-old man from Central Islip, New York, was inside the cab of the truck and was not injured.

Shaw did not specify if any memorial or vigils will be held for Lee, although the flags outside the Webster Police Department were brought down to half-staff.

"Anybody who met him was a better person because of it," Shaw said.
Top Reasons Why YOU as a Community Leader Who Wants to Grow Your Downtown Need to Register NOW for the 10th Annual MT Downtown Conference, October 19-20, in Great Falls!

The Speakers.

Here are just a few of the amazing professionals that are coming to share their success stories with you!

Larry Leasure, White-Leasure Development in Boise, ID, was instrumental in developing Downtown Boise from a closed, abandoned neighborhood into a thriving, vibrant downtown. Learn how a committed team of developers reshaped their downtown!

Katheryn Carnahan, the President of FCR, an Oregon based customer service business that has expanded into Montana. They chose to locate their first MT site in Downtown Great Falls and hope to continue the trend into other MT cities. Hear what is important to them.

Mark Esponda, Vice President of Project Development at Dick Anderson Construction why they chose to develop Downtown Helena and what you can do to encourage major development projects in your community.

The opportunities.

We are bringing together developers and businesses that are investing in downtown communities  you are going to want to meet them and we will give you that chance!

The food.

Seriously, this conference features amazing food from Downtown Great Falls restaurants. Not your typical conference chicken.

Professional Development with your peers.

Once a year we get to share ideas with each other, learn best practices and grow as professionals. Dont miss this opportunity!

Click here for the Living Agenda! http://bit.ly/2hSqeae

Click here to register! http://bit.ly/2vCdoPw
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A group of African-American men gathered on the steps of the State Capitol for photographs on Sunday, an event with a two-fold mission. First,
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"That knowledge can lead to the development of new drugs which could be designed to 'switch on' PINK1 to the benefit of patients with Parkinson's."Professor van Aalten, a Wellcome Trust Investigator in the Division of Gene Regulation and Expression in the School of Life Sciences, said, "There has been great interest in directly targeting PINK1 as a potential therapy, but without knowledge of the structure of the enzyme, this posed a major barrier.Our work now provides a framework to undertake future studies directed at finding a new drug-like molecules that can target and activate PINK1."Parkinson's is a progressive degenerative brain disorder which to date remains incurable. Previous advances in genetics identified mutations in the PINK1 gene in patients with early-onset forms of Parkinson's.PINK1 encodes a special class of enzyme known as a kinase that plays a critical role in protecting brain cells against stress.In patients harboring PINK1 mutations, this protective effect is lost leading to the degeneration of cells controlling movement that account for Parkinson's symptoms.Previous work had indicated that the main role of the PINK1 enzyme is to sense damage to the energy centers of cells known as mitochondria and then switch on a protective pathway involving the targeting of two key proteins, ubiquitin, and Parkin, to reduce the damage. But how this occurred was unknown.In the new research, published in the journal eLife, the team of Dundee scientists reveals that PINK1 has unique control elements not found in other enzymes of this class that explain how it targets ubiquitin and Parkin to exert its protective role in Parkinson's."This provides detailed insights into how mutations carried by hundreds of Parkinson's patients worldwide interrupt the function of the enzyme," said Professor van Aalten."This is a good example of collaborative research resulting from scientists with different expertise working together. It is only with the hard work of several Ph.D. students and postdocs that we have been able to make this transformative step in our understanding of how PINK1 works. As is often the case, has now solved this important problem, there are many new interesting questions on PINK1 that will direct our future research."Dr. Muqit added, "Our research has been focused on defining the most fundamental aspects of the causes of Parkinson's which we think will uncover new ideas for better treating the disease in the future."Michael Dunn, Head of Wellcome's Genetics and Molecular Sciences team, said, "The PINK1 protein has been the focus of research all over the world, so this finding from the Dundee team is a fantastic step forward for the community. If we understand the structure of this protein, which holds so many clues into what goes wrong in Parkinson's, it may help us develop novel drugs to protect against this devastating disease. Basic research is fundamental to understanding and treating many diseases and only by working in collaboration can we hope to make breakthroughs like this."Dr. Nathan Richardson, MRC Head of Molecular and Cellular Medicine, said, "Discovering the fundamental structure of this protein is vital for understanding its cellular function and paves the way for the development of drugs to combat forms of early-onset Parkinson's disease. This advance will also help reveal the molecular basis of genetic mutations in Parkinson's disease, illustrating the merit of long-term support for underpinning biomedical research."Professor David Dexter, Deputy Director of Research at Parkinson's UK, said, "The PINK1 gene was identified as a key player by Parkinson's UK-funded researchers back in 2004".Drugs that can switch the PINK1/parkin pathway back on may be able to slow, stop or even reverse nerve cell death, not only in people who have these rare inherited forms of the condition, but also those with non-inherited Parkinson's."This research, for the first time, gives us a view of what the PINK1 protein looks like and how changes in the gene can prevent the PINK1 protein working properly. This knowledge is vital for developing drugs that can switch PINK1 back on, which has the potential to slow or even stop the progression of the condition, something current treatments are unable to do."Source: Eurekalert
Well, that's one way of packing light for a vacation!

Let's be honest, travel pictures of people you don't know or barely know plastered all over Instagram and Facebook can get a little annoying; no one really likes looking at them that much. But, Nick and Lins, a couple from Belgium have captured the internet's attention.

On the surface, they're just another couple, in their 30s, travelling the world together. But, here's the catch  they're doing it all in the nude and people can't get enough of it.

Until now, they have visited countries like Croatia, Greece, the Balkans, Italy, and Brazil, and have explored all the spots where they can enjoy the sights completely naked. In an attempt to promote naturism, the stated posting hilarious, strategically-posed pictures on their social media accounts, documenting their journey.

While talking to the Metro, they said, The main reason was to show people that naturism is something for everyone, not just for a bunch of old hippies or perverts. We noticed that most of the available online info was either completely outdated or very patronising or with a huge list of stupid rules.

Apparently, they stumbled upon naturism accidentally. After receiving a coupon for a birthday, the couple decided to cash it in at a public sauna, but later realized that there were no swimsuits allowed. They ended up trying it anyway and were surprised by how much they loved it.

The liberation of taking off our clothes was extraordinary, it was pure freedom, the couple wrote on their blog.

Soon, they were full on into nudism after visiting a crowded campsite in Luxembourg.

It was loud, full of people, and not really what we were looking for, they told Metro.co.uk.

At the back of the camp we noticed a naturist part which was all peace and quiet so we decided to try that out. And since then we're completely sold to naturism.

Much to their surprise, people have been quite accepting of their nudist ways, for the most part, with a few exceptions, obviously. In Albania, public nudity is still frowned upon and they also had an unpleasant encounter with a woman in Greece, a country with very few official nude beaches.

That is one of the things they hope they can change by sharing their journey online. Our main objective is to take naturism out of the shadows and to make nudity less sexualised and more accepted  and to show people that it's actually a fun thing to do and that a human body is nothing to be ashamed of.
RACINE  A West Allis man is being charged after allegedly shooting and killing a man on Holmes Avenue last fall, possibly bringing the victims family one step closer to justice.

Michael A. Cina, 39, of the 1600 block of South 63rd Street in West Allis, is charged with first-degree intentional homicide with the use of a dangerous weapon and possession of a firearm by a felon.

On Sept. 14, 2016, Racine police responded to the 1600 block of Holmes Avenue after it was reported that a man had been shot. Police found the victim, later identified as 36-year-old Joey Torrez, in a grass parkway between the sidewalk and street.

Torrez had reportedly been shot eight times in his car and was initially taken to Ascension All Saints Hospital. He was then transported to Froedtert Hospital in Wauwatosa for treatment. On Sept. 20, 2016, Torrez was removed from life support and died from the gunshot wound injuries he sustained.

During the investigation, police were able to obtain footage of the shooting from a surveillance camera in the neighborhood. The video reportedly showed Torrez getting into his vehicle, and a blue Ford Focus driving up next to Torrezs vehicle. The video shows a persons arm reach out of the Ford Focus, fire at Torrez and then drive away.

A witness reported that the Fords occupant was a allegedly a heavyset Hispanic male. Another witness told police Cina had reportedly admitted to killing a Racine man and not to worry about it because it had been handled.

The suspect was identified as Cina after police spoke with witnesses and learned Cina drove a blue Ford Focus with unique wheels matching the video footage of the shooting.

Also facing charges in Kenosha murder

Cina is also the suspect in a Kenosha homicide in which a glove with Cinas DNA was found. Shell casings from the Kenosha homicide also reportedly were fired from the same gun used in the Racine homicide.

In connection to the Kenosha homicide, Cina is charged with first-degree intentional homicide, burglary, armed with a dangerous weapon and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

A preliminary hearing is set for Thursday at the Law Enforcement Center, 717 Wisconsin Ave. for the Racine case.

These new charges are something Torrez family has been waiting for all year. Even though its been a year, Esther Martinez, Torrez aunt, said it still feels like it was yesterday.

We are still having a hard time, said Martinez. We are trying to be strong. But its hard.

Torrez said her family doesnt know why Cina would shoot Torrez. Now, she is concentrated on the justice to come through the criminal justice system.

We want justice, Torrez said. Joey deserves it. We want him to rest in peace.
The orange barrels, barricades and detours that have cropped up this week on Interstate 39 and Highway 16 in Portage are just the beginning of some major transportation changes  including the construction of Columbia Countys first roundabout.

Theyre multiple projects, but theyre closely related, said Matt Dapp, project manager for the Wisconsin Department of Transportation.

And all told, they could cost as much as $7 million  mostly federal dollars.

Drivers accustomed to exiting northbound I-39 to westbound Highway 16 (Exit 89B, toward Wisconsin Dells) might want to allow a few more minutes of travel time than usual, to navigate a detour.

The exit will be closed at least through Tuesday, and when it reopens, it no longer will be a cloverleaf, but a T-intersection with a stop sign.

For now, drivers are being directed to continue to Exit 92 at Highway 51, where they would turn around and head back south to exit either direction on Highway 16.

According to Dapp, the intersection restructuring is designed to decrease the number of crashes in the area that stem from drivers weaving across lanes as they move from the ramp to westbound Highway 16.

When the work is done early next week, he said, there still will be two separate exits from northbound I-39  89A for those heading east on 16 toward downtown Portage and 89B for westbound motorists. Eventually, he said, there will be just one northbound exit toward Highway 16.

Other projects going on at the same time, Dapp said, entail building three I-39 crossovers in the median, to prepare for rerouting that will be necessary when the time comes to paint and refurbish four I-39 bridges  the north and southbound bridges over the Wisconsin River and the north and southbound bridges over Canadian Pacific Railroad tracks.

During this work, expected to begin in the spring, the interstate will be closed in one direction, with northbound and southbound traffic rerouted temporarily to one lane in each direction.

Work also is expected to start in the spring on a roundabout that will replace the intersection of Highway 16, Highway 127 and the I-39 southbound on-ramp.

Some attendees at a January 2016 DOT open house at the Portage Municipal Building expressed concern about whether drivers in the area know how to navigate a roundabout.

A roundabout is an intersection with a large circular island in the middle. Instead of the traffic from different directions taking turns via stop signs or traffic signals, all traffic enters the roundabout by yielding to drivers from the left who are already in it and drives around the circle, following signs and arrows guiding them to their desired direction.

Bill Tierney, who was mayor of Portage when the open house was held, said he favored a roundabout because, as a paramedic, he had worked often at crash scenes at conventional intersections, where the crashes tend to be more severe than they are in roundabouts.

Dapp said it was his impression, at subsequent public meetings, that Portage-area residents had become more receptive to the concept of a roundabout at highways 16 and 127.

The roundabout project also will include pavement improvements in deteriorated areas of Highway 16 between Boeck Road and the railroad overpass south of Silver Lake Drive.

The project thats going on right now, Dapp said, and costs a little more than $4 million, of which 80 percent comes from federal transportation dollars and the rest from the state. Zenith Tech Inc. of Waukesha is the contractor.

The bids have not yet been let for the upcoming projects, including the roundabout, which have an estimated cost of between $2 million and $3 million.

Dapp said there will be traffic disruptions, lane closures and detours in northwestern Portage for much of next year, but once the work is done, he said he believes motorists will appreciate a safer roadway.

It will be an improvement, he said. There are quite a lot of crashes in the area.
A federal court approved a $142 million national class-action settlement with Wells Fargo and Co. in July that covers millions of unauthorized accounts the bank set up in clients names dating back to 2002.

The court ruled that the settlement was fair, reasonable and adequate. Wells Fargo CEO Tim Sloan called the court ruling a major milestone in their efforts to make things right for their customers. Wells Fargo admitted in September 2016 that these accounts were unauthorized by their customers, and blamed unrealistic sales goals. As a result of these fraudulent accounts, longtime CEO John Stumpf was forced to resign.

Wells Fargo opened 3.5 million unauthorized accounts between May 1, 2002, and April 20, 2017. These unauthorized accounts encompassed checking and savings accounts, credit cards and lines of credit. Wells Fargo has customer accounts in almost every U.S. state.

If Wells Fargo opened one or more unauthorized accounts in your name, or if you were a Wells Fargo customer and filed for identity theft protection during this time frame, you should file a claim for reimbursement. No supporting documentation is required to fill out the form.

Information regarding this class-action suit is available on the Wells Fargo settlement website (wfsettlement.com). If you register on this site, Wells Fargo will provide you with the forms you need to submit a claim, the deadline for which is Feb. 3, 2018.

If you would like to talk to a Wells Fargo customer service representative regarding information about this class-action suit, and filing information, call 866-431-8549.

Wells Fargo has already paid $5 million in fee refunds to some customers as part of a settlement with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Los Angeles City Attorney. If you have already received compensation as a result of that settlement, you are not eligible to receive compensation related to the $142 million class action.

If you plan to file a separate lawsuit against Wells Fargo for opening unauthorized accounts, you have to exclude yourself from this settlement. Exclusion forms will be available on the settlement website in the future and must be filed by Dec. 5.

There are three categories of compensation:

Fee reimbursement: If you had an unauthorized open account between Jan. 1, 2009, and April 20, 2017, you will receive compensation equal to the fees incurred as a result of the accounts. If an unauthorized account was opened in your name outside those dates but after May 1, 2002, or before Dec. 31, 2018, you will receive a flat fee reimbursement based on the average fee paid to the 2009-17 group. The reason for the flat fee is because Wells Fargo did not maintain adequate fee information prior to 2009.

Credit impact damages: The unauthorized accounts had a negative impact on some Wells Fargo customers credit scores. This resulted from unauthorized credit cards, lines of credit and small-business accounts. In order for you to determine whether your credit score was affected, you have to authorize a law firm representing Wells Fargo to check your credit reports.

Additional compensation: The amount available for additional compensation is based on the amount of funds remaining from the $142 million after fee reimbursement and credit impact damages are paid. The amount you could be awarded will be based on the number of fraudulent accounts you claim were opened in your name. Wells Fargo has indicated that regardless of the amount remaining from the $142 million after fee reimbursement and credit impact damages, there will be at least $25 million available for the additional compensation allocation.
HARBOR BEACH -- Appropriately named Michigan College Month, October signals a time of change.

Harbor Beach Community Schools has focused on sculpting a new mindset by providing initiatives to inspire students to pursue higher education. Through encouragement to enroll in a technical school, community college, or university, staff hope to instill in youth the belief that college campuses have become increasingly inclusive. That is, anyone may obtain a postsecondary credential through an investment of time and effort.

Activities throughout the month will empower students to envision their futures as meaningful contributions to the community.

To mark the beginning of a month-long event, a school-wide college kick-off assembly sparked enthusiasm recently as college advocates participated in relevant games and team competitions. A high school organization known as the Postsecondary Action Council, or the PAC Squad, facilitated the project with the aim to positively influence their classmates.

According to college advisor Byron Williams, the PAC Squad is beneficial because young adults are most receptive to the ideas and advice of their peers. He believes that adolescents are capable of inspiring one another to reach for the stars.

Raising a generation of dreamers and doers requires educators to invest early in children's aspirations. Williams has sought not only to connect with high schoolers, but to actively involve elementary and middle school students in Michigan College Month. Assemblies are designed to feature grade-appropriate activities for all student. The ultimate objective is to initiate the passionate development of goals, that kindergarten students may set themselves up to achieve those dreams by the time they reach college.

When students do apply for postsecondary admission, they will possess the knowledge to make informed decisions independently, based on endeavors they want to accomplish. With the viewpoint that older students are ready to manage additional responsibility, Williams describes his approach to guiding the class of 2018 as "hands-off."

His role is to discuss options with seniors and to share his own story of self-insight, but also to give them the space to find and forge their paths.

He emphasizes the importance of remaining flexible, of accepting and embracing unexpected discoveries. After speaking with students, Williams reassures them that multiple roads lead to a fulfilling destination.

"I want to paint for them the reality of life," he said. "I want them to be aware that plans change."

Seniors also have the opportunity to participate in a class designed to assist them in realizing their postsecondary goals. For the first time, Harbor Beach High School's college planning course operates on an innovative platform through its objective to provide assignments while promoting college readiness. The course instructor, Theresa Hessling, serves as the school's academic advisor and utilizes her position to advocate for higher education.

"I think college awareness changes our entire culture," she said. "We are training kids to believe in themselves."

Based on her experience as an educational leader, she suggests seniors spend their October applying to colleges, searching for scholarship awards, retaking the SAT, and filing the FASFA. She also reminds students to focus on their schoolwork and to put forth their best effort in achieving academic success.

To embody the overall mission of acknowledging postsecondary options, students and staff have collaborated to plan initiatives for the upcoming weeks of Michigan College Month. Children in younger grades will have the chance to create college-themed bookmarks, enjoy a face painting day, and express their creativity with coloring books. High schoolers may choose to attend a financial aid night, seek information from college reps visiting campus, and participate in themed dress-up days for college spirit week. The activities are intended to widen students' views and to show them their own potential.

Williams hopes staff efforts to incorporate Michigan College Month into school events will inspire students to utilize higher education as a platform on which to elevate their dreams. He wants young adults to find the opportunity to explore their interests and values and to follow a complementary career path.

"If they have a vision early on, they will be better prepared to make important decisions about the future," he said.
Middletown  Wright-Pierce, an employee-owned environmental engineering firm, has been recognized again this year by Engineering News Record (ENR) as one of the Top 200 Environmental Firms in the country, according to a press release issued by the company.

ENR, a renowned trade publication of the AEC (architecture, engineering and construction) industry, compiles and publishes annual rankings of engineering and construction firms in the US, measured by gross revenues. In June, ENR also cited Wright-Pierce as a Top 500 Design Firm. Wright-Pierce has been ranked in the Top 500 and the Top 200 for eight consecutive years.

Wright-Pierce, founded in 1947, continues to rank among the top firms in the country during a decade that has seen significant mergers and acquisitions among companies in the AEC industry. The firm continues to earn award recognitions, including two ACEC Engineering Excellence Awards. The Mattabassett WWTF Upgrade Project in Cromwell, CT was recognized for engineering excellence by ACEC for contributing to the multi-state effort to improve the water quality of Long Island Sound. Improvements that decreased energy consumption and increased capacity at the Manchester, NH wastewater treatment facilities earned an ACEC Gold Award. The Firm was also recognized by Healthiest Employer, LLC for promoting a culture of wellness through the company-wide program, The Wright Way to Wellness, which provides incentives and rewards to all employees for healthy life choices.

Authors named for annual book awards

Middletown  The 2017 Connecticut Book Awards, a program of the Connecticut Center for the Book at Connecticut Humanities, will be held Sunday, Oct. 22, 2-4 p.m. at the Mark Twain House and Museum in Hartford. This tribute to Connecticuts literary community recognizes and honors books with specific ties to our state: the author or illustrator must be native-born or have been a legal resident of Connecticut for at least three years, or the book must have a Connecticut setting to be considered.

Finalists from the shoreline area include Leslie Connor from Madison and Gray Jacobik from Deep River.

All Rise for the Honorable Perry T. Cook by Leslie Connor is a soaring and heartfelt story about love, forgiveness, and how innocence makes us all rise up. (Young Readers)

The Banquet, a lifetimes collection of verse by Gray Jacobik, reveals rich and startling poems that speak to our emotional and spiritual selves, essential to living fully in this complicated, heartbreaking, and exhilarating world. (Poetry)

The Connecticut Book Awards have been reinstated after a six-year hiatus.

Ellen Paul, Library Director for East Hampton Public Library said, I was so happy to hear of the return of the CT Book Awards. Connecticut has some real power-house authors and it's wonderful to have the opportunity to be able to honor them for their contributions to the literary landscape and to the state.

We are pleased to bring the Connecticut Book Awards back, said Lisa Comstock, Director of Connecticut Center for the Book. Connecticut has so many talented authors who produce such thoughtful literature. We are proud to be a part of it.

New York Times bestselling author Beatriz Williams will deliver the keynote address and winners in each category will be announced for the first time during the program.

Tickets are $30 and are available until Oct. 19; order online at https://ctcenterforthebook.org/.

Books will be available for purchase following the awards, and signings with finalists and winners will be offered at the reception.

Church to hold holiday fair

MIDDLETOWN  The Church of the Holy Trinity will hold their Annual Holiday Fair on Saturday, Dec. 2 from 9 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. at 381 Main St. Middletown. The fair will be held on the 1st and 2nd floors of the Parish Hall and the Church, with elevator access to the 2nd floor. This is a great location as the Holiday on Main Street activities are all going on. Many people are out and about on Main Street during the holidays.

Spaces are still available; call Taylor Duckworth at 860-342-3800, Holy Trinity office at 860-347-2591, or e-mail to office.holytrinityct@gmail.com for more information about renting a space, which is $35 for a 6 foot table.
Madison could get another shot at the Rise of the Rest tour  if enough people vote for the city by the deadline, next Thursday.

Steve Case and his Rise of the Rest tour  featuring cities with innovative companies that are outside the usual coastal hubs  are holding a competition among the 26 cities theyve already visited. One of them will get a return trip, with the promise of a $100,000 investment from Case in another promising startup.

Voting is being held through Oct. 12 on the Rise of the Rest website to #BringBackTheBus, and the city receiving the most votes will get another visit from the team, which will meet with local entrepreneurs and check out the entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce president Zach Brandon, contacted Friday, was not sounding too confident that Madison will be chosen.

If this competition were solely about the best example of a city accelerating into the Third Wave, Madison would be a very strong contender to receive a return trip from Rise of the Rest. It is clear that Steve Case likes what he sees in greater Madison and Wisconsin, based on the fact that he has visited here twice, Brandon said.

Case was the keynote speaker at the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerces IceBreaker luncheon in 2016.

However, since a majority of the cities we are competing against have substantially larger populations, and the winner will be based on total number of votes, we certainly face an uphill battle, Brandon said.

Madison played host to the Rise of the Rest tour in October 2014. Nine local companies each had five minutes to wow Case and a group of local judges with their technology.

The winner was Solomo Technology, a Madison company with a cloud-based platform for indoor location analytics and customer engagement. In other words, it could tell a retailer which products their customers showed the most interest in, when they stopped at store displays. Solomo won $100,000. However, Solomo suspended operations earlier this year after a key client unexpectedly ended a partnership with the company, CEO Liz Eversoll said Friday.

Eversoll also co-founded a toy-tech company, Meeper Technology, in Whitewater, where she is CEO and chairman. She said Meeper, a robotics company, continues to grow.

Rise of the Rest is about to begin its sixth trip on Oct. 10, and Green Bay is one of the cities it will visit. Its the only other Wisconsin city that has been part of the campaign.
The amphibious assault ship Iwo Jima and the transport dock New York have been ordered to back up the federal response to Tropical Storm Nate on the Gulf Coast this weekend, the Defense Department said Friday.

The two ships, with Marines aboard from the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit based at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, were to leave port in Mayport, Florida, on Saturday to be prepared for search-and-rescue and recovery efforts, the DoD said.

Tropical Storm Nate, which the National Hurricane Center said could build to a Category 1 hurricane, is expected to hit Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi and parts of the Florida Panhandle beginning early Sunday morning.

Mayor Mitch Landrieu of flood-prone New Orleans said, "I have instructed all departments and agencies to begin executing their emergency plans. There is no reason to panic; there is reason to prepare."

The governors of Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi have all declared statewide emergencies.

At least 22 people have reportedly been killed in Nicaragua and Costa Rica as Nate passed over Central America.

The strain on the military from responding to Nate and Hurricanes Maria, Irma and Harvey in quick succession is expected to impact the deployment of troops and assets worldwide into next year, according to the Pentagon.

At a Pentagon news conference Thursday, Marine Lt. Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, the Defense Department's Joint Staff Director, said the deployment of more than 3,000 additional troops to Afghanistan would be delayed because of the ongoing commitments to storm relief.

U.S. Northern Command has the main responsibility for the military response to Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, while U.S. Southern Command is tasked with the response in the Caribbean's Leeward Islands.

On Thursday, SouthCom announced that its Joint Task Force-Leeward Islands mission, which began when Hurricane Maria hit on Sept. 20, is ending.

At its peak strength, the task force included more than 300 Marines, soldiers, sailors and airmen, as well as 10 Army and Marine helicopters; four Air Force C-130 Hercules aircraft; the amphibious ship Wasp; the expeditionary fast transport vessel USNS Spearhead; and support from P-8 Poseidon and P-3 Orion aerial reconnaissance aircraft.

The Wasp has shifted to Puerto Rico, where more than 90 percent of the 3.4 million U.S. citizens on the island still lack electricity more than two weeks after the storm, and more than half lack access to clean water.

In a news conference in San Juan on Friday, Gov. Ricardo Rossello said the island's death toll from Hurricane Maria and its aftermath has risen from 36 to 38.

One of the additional two fatalities was killed by flying debris during the hurricane, and the second was killed after the storm by a falling tree, he said.

The hospital ship USNS Comfort, which began taking aboard critical patients in its intensive care unit Thursday, had treated more than 70 patients as of early Friday, Rossello said.

The ship, which had been moored in San Juan on the island's northern coast, is now working its way counter-clockwise around the island with stops offshore for communities where local hospitals have been overwhelmed.

It is expected to moor again in Ponce, on the island's southern coast, the DoD said.

Vice President Mike Pence was visiting the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico on Friday, and Rossello said he intended to impress upon Pence "the magnitude of the damage" caused to Puerto Rico and the need for an immediate aid package from Congress.

In Washington on Friday at a Hispanic heritage event, President Donald Trump said of Puerto Rico, "We're doing great stuff there. We're martialing every federal resource at our disposal" and "we will not rest until that job is done."

-- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com.
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...
A protracted and contentious state budget debate could cast a long shadow over what is expected to be a short fall and winter legislative session.

Before lawmakers adjourn for the 2018 campaign season early next year, there are plenty of hot-button issues left to address.

They include proposals from business and conservative groups to change the workers compensation system, loosen mining restrictions and wetland protections and scrap state family and medical leave protections that overlap with federal ones.

Lawmakers will grapple with other contentious bills targeting so-called sanctuary cities, restricting use of fetal tissue in research and allowing concealed firearms to be carried without permits and in school zones.

But Capitol observers say the tension between Assembly and Senate Republicans left over from the budget debate could grind the legislative session to a standstill. The nearly three-month delay in completing the budget also creates a compressed timeline for getting bills to the desk of Gov. Scott Walker.

What went on during the budget will have an impact on any piece of major legislation moving forward in this short legislative period, said Brandon Scholz, president of the Wisconsin Grocers Association and a longtime Capitol lobbyist.

It would not be surprising if the Legislature grinds to a halt because of bad blood over final budget negotiations, Republican strategist Brian Fraley said.

Complicating the picture: Many of the remaining high-profile bills are sponsored by hard-line conservative GOP senators who tangled with Assembly Republican leaders during budget talks.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, was left fuming after three conservative GOP senators  Chris Kapenga, Stephen Nass and Duey Stroebel  struck a budget deal with Walker that cut out provisions important to Vos. A fourth, GOP Sen. David Craig, opposed the budget altogether.

Vos, who was traveling last week and unavailable for comment, told Walker in a text message the day after the budget passed the Senate that he was disappointed with the way he was treated.

I wont forget this, he wrote.

Vos could retaliate by blocking bills authored by the three senators who struck a deal with Walker, say lobbyists and advocates who follow Capitol politics.

Assembly Majority Leader Jim Steineke, R-Kaukauna, said regulatory reform will be a priority for Assembly Republicans. He added I dont anticipate any issues from the heated budget talks.

For me, politics isnt personal, Steineke said.

Gov. Scott Walker, who is expected to launch his 2018 re-election campaign next month, will advocate for measures that reduce unemployment fraud, subject business regulations to review every seven years and limit lawsuits against businesses, as well as delivering more resources to rural schools and expanding statewide broadband access, spokesman Tom Evenson said.

Democrats push back

Democrats, stuck in the minority for seven years, see an opportunity to capitalize on an unpopular Republican president, unpopular health care bills pushed by the GOP-controlled Congress, and the Legislatures inability to solve the states transportation-funding woes.

Democrats are advocating for bills that would help student loan borrowers refinance, divert more offenders from prison, decriminalize marijuana possession, legalize medicinal marijuana and register voters when they renew their license plates, said newly elected Assembly Minority Leader Gordon Hintz, D-Oshkosh.

Republicans are unlikely to go along with those measures. But Hintz said there are also proposals that could draw bipartisan agreement, such as allowing higher property taxes on vacant big box stores, connecting workers in Milwaukee with suburban employers and any measures to address Russian attempts to hack the states election system.

Senate Minority Leader Jennifer Shilling, D-La Crosse, said Democrats are most concerned about the mining bill, the fetal tissue bill  which would ban research on new stem cells taken from fetuses  and a bill that could eventually scale back licensing requirements for various occupations.

Workers compensation

The states largest business group and health care industry are gearing up for battle over proposed changes to the workers compensation system. The biggest change would be introducing a fee schedule that would cap payments for medical treatment.

The Legislature typically passes a bill every two years with changes to the system recommended by the Workers Compensation Advisory Council, which includes representatives from labor, business and health insurance industry. Four years ago the council forwarded a proposal including a fee schedule, but the Legislature failed to pass a bill for the first time in decades.

Once again Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce is pressing for the change, which the council agreed to include in its model bill. WMC lobbyist Scott Manley emphasized that the model bill requires a unanimous vote from both labor and management.

This is something where we want to show the Legislature that they can get past gridlock, Manley said.

WMC recently announced a coalition of 46 groups pushing for the workers compensation bill to pass this time. In a letter to lawmakers they noted the number of workers compensation claims in the state dropped 58 percent between 1994 and 2014, but companies didnt experience any savings because medical costs rose 450 percent.

Mark Grapentine, a lobbyist for the Wisconsin Medical Society, countered that Wisconsins system remains a model for the country, with injured workers returning to work faster than any other state and total costs slightly below average. This year there was also an 8.46 percent drop in workers comp rates, saving companies $170 million.

WMC has dramatically turned up the rhetoric, which is often a sign of the old saying, If you dont have the facts on your side, pound the table and yell, Grapentine said.

Environmental changes

Bills pitting businesses against environmental groups are also advancing through the Legislature.

A Senate committee last week approved a bill to lift Wisconsins requirement that mining companies show they have operated without polluting elsewhere before being permitted to extract sulfide metals, such as copper or gold, in Wisconsin.

Sen. Tom Tiffany, R-Hazelhurst, has sponsored the bill to scrap the requirement, calling it an impediment to creating much-needed mining jobs in economically stagnant northern Wisconsin.

Steineke is one of the authors of another bill that would eliminate state protections for wetlands, leaving such oversight to the federal government. WMC is pushing for that change after the state approved the measure for Foxconns $10 billion LCD-screen factory in Racine County.

If aligning our wetland regulatory framework is good for Foxconn, why shouldnt that be the paradigm for the rest of the state? Manley said.

Family and medical leave

WMC also is pushing a bill that would eliminate state family and medical leave requirements for employers governed by the federal Family and Medical Leave Act.

The 1993 federal law requires employers to provide unpaid leave for employees for certain medical reasons, such as the birth of a child. Wisconsin enacted its own law five years earlier. Companies have complained that complying with two similar laws is onerous.

The bill would keep in place certain protections that the federal law doesnt cover, such as the ability to take a leave of absence to care for a domestic partner.

Democrats want to expand the states Family and Medical Leave Act to allow workers to take a leave of absence to care for grandparents, siblings and children when a spouse is deployed overseas.

Time and time again we have put the thumb on big corporations and big businesses in this state, and working families want to catch a break and be treated fairly, Shilling said.

Permit-less

concealed carry

Another contentious proposal expected to come before lawmakers this fall would scrap the requirement for a state permit to carry a concealed firearm and eliminate the states gun-free school zone law.

Craig, R-Town of Vernon, is sponsoring the right to carry measure. It passed a Senate committee last month but has yet to see a vote in the full Senate or Assembly.

Walker has balked at the measure, saying the existing permit requirement system works well.

Democratic lawmakers also have assailed the proposal. In the wake of the recent Las Vegas shooting, Democrats proposed a measure banning the sale of gun attachments used by the shooter, known as bump stocks, which allow semi-automatic rifles to effectively function as automatic weapons. Similar legislation is being considered at the federal level.

Sanctuary cities

Nass is sponsoring a bill targeting so-called sanctuary cities and counties in Wisconsin that limit cooperation with federal officials to enforce immigration laws.

The bill likely will receive a hearing in the Senate Labor Committee soon, Nass spokesman Mike Mikalsen said.
GRAND RAPIDS, MI -- The ArtPrize Nine jurors - each of them experts in art - went for a neighborhood picnic in awarding the $200,000 juried grand prize for ArtPrize Nine.

"Heartside Community Meal," an outdoor meal for 250 guests in Heartside Park on Sept. 23, was entered by Seitu Jones, a Saint Paul, Minnesota, artist who teaches urban food systems at the University of Minnesota.

"This is a project that came out of love," said Jones after the award was announced on Friday, Oct. 6.

The meal, served on a 300-foot-long table in Heartside Park, was aimed at engaging residents of the mixed-income neighborhood with each other over a table of locally produced foods.

The time-based entry was chosen by jurors Gaetane Verna, director of The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery in Toronto; Christopher Scoates, director of Cranbrook Academy of Art and Art Museum in Detroit; and Gia Hamilton, director at the Joan Mitchell Center in New Orleans.

"Seitu's work speaks to some of the key issues in America now," Verna said. "Access to food, access to community and people being able to create a space of conversation, exchange and synergy for everyone. He speaks to what is important in the context of the 'now' in his practice, not just the ability to paint or draw."

Juror Scott Stulen, director and president of Philbrook Museum of Art in Tulsa, Oklahoma, nominated "Heartside Community Meal," saying he was struck by the event, where "people were sitting down and talking to people they would never talk to otherwise."

"For a day, nearly 1/2 square mile of the city will be set aside as an artful backdrop for food storytelling, our reading of poetic grace and closing, and our participation in facilitated conversation about food," Jones said in his artist statement.

Inviting residents of condos and luxury apartments to dine with homeless residents who live beneath overpasses was a challenge for both groups, Jones said.

Guests, both rich and poor, were moved by the experience, said Jones, who declared, "Of course this is art!" when asked about the artistic nature of the big meal.

"This is actually old school," said Jones, noting that meals have served to bring people together for generations, with farmers serving as some of humanity's earliest artists.

"Seitu Jones shows us how artists can have an expanded social and political role," ArtPrize Exhibitions Director Kevin Buist said.

"Jones crafted this artwork by deftly orchestrating a network of individuals and organizations to create a poetic and fleeting monument to the power of community," Buist said.

"For many, it's a new way to think about what art can be: the artwork is one big, beautiful moment made of the many small moments that happen when strangers and friends share a meal."

The Heartside Community Meal was inspired by a similar meal in 2013, when Chicago's Joyce Foundation helped Jones to develop CREATE: The Community Meal, a dinner for 2,000 people at a half-mile-long table that focused on access to healthy food.

Jones, who was the city of Minneapolis' first "Artist in Residence," has created more than 30 large-scale public artworks and completed artwork for three stations along the new Green Line LRT system connecting Saint Paul and Minneapolis, according to his biography.

In 2016, Jones was awarded a $50,000 Forecast McKnight Public Art Grant to design and build a floating sculptural installation (boat) to act as a research vessel for the Mississippi River.

Asked how he would use the $200,000 grand prize, Jones replied, "I have no idea. I probably will pay more in taxes than Donald Trump has paid in the last 10 years."
GRAND RAPIDS, MI - ArtPrize Nine voters gave Battle Creek graphic designer Richard Schlatter the $200,000 Grand Prize for his 12-foot portrait of Abraham Lincoln made from about 24,500 pennies that bear Lincoln's image.

Located in the Pantlind lobby of the Amway Grand Hotel, the 400-lb portrait won in the same room as last year's Grand Prize winner, "Wounded Warrior Dogs," an collection of wooden dog sculptures created by Ohio craftsman James Mellick.

The 73-year-old Schlatter said he believes his work resonated with the public because of the current political controversy over the presidency. Although the portrait was not intended to be political, Lincoln is revered as the nation's best president, he said.

"Everybody loves Lincoln," he said. "I had people coming back two or three times to look at it."

Schlatter said he decided to create the portrait after he was mesmerized by the various shades of pennies he had accumulated.

He began working on his portrait on Feb. 12 - Lincoln's birthday -- and said it took 465 hours to complete. It was completed on April 15, the anniversary of Lincoln's death.

The portrait, which involved using about 5 pounds of glue, includes pennies from each year they have been produced, from 1909 through 2017. Lincoln's shirt was made with 1,681 steel pennies that were produced during World War II as the nation preserved copper for ammunition.

Once he finished the work, Schlatter said he committed to using it as an educational tool to teach students about Lincoln and his legacy. That included creating a four-color brochure explaining the project and Lincoln's legacy.

Part of the $200,000 grand prize will be donated to a Battle Creek shelter for battered women, Schlatter said.

Schlatter, who is semi-retired from the Battle Creek advertising agency he founded in 1972, has won more than 75 awards in the field of graphic design, according to his biography.

His previous achievements include designing fonts and illustrating children's books. Early in his career, he designed several fonts, including "Wexford," which became popular and inspired similar fonts.

In 2011, Schlatter wrote and illustrated a children's book, "The Old Man and The Tree," a story that teaches children the lessons of loyalty and respect as they apply to friends, nature and oneself.

Schlatter's award-winning portrait is not the first time ArtPrize voters liked an entry made with pennies.

In 2010, Kentwood resident Wander Martich created a 10-foot replica of a Lincoln penny using 84,000 pennies. Her creation took a 6th place in voting and was acquired by the Ripley's Believe It Or Not Museum.

Although many visitors asked him about Martich's penny, Schlatter said he was not familiar with her entry. He said he also has been approached by Ripley's but could not comment on whether the museum would purchase his portrait.

In 2009, an ArtPrize artist created "$9.11," a sculpture made of 911 pennies to commemorate the 9/11 attack. Pushpins and corks also have been popular mediums for portrait artists, but none have scored like the pennies.
Jake May | Mlive.com

BY AMY SHERMAN | asherma2@mlive.com

It's no lie, we have a pretty great bar culture here in Michigan. From the down and dirty dives, to high end classy affairs, there is somewhere for everyone, and every taste. There are holes in the wall, and wood paneled beauties. You can meet friends for beers and a good talk at some, and enjoy a loud local band at others. There are so many to choose from across Michigan that we thought we'd help you find some of the coolest ones in each of our 83 counties.

Each of these spots offers something unique, from the decor, to the food, to the patrons and owners. Some are drinks only, while other bars are specifically known for offering incredible home cooked meals as well.

There are bars on this list that we know you've driven by dozens of times and always wondered if it was worth a stop. We lay out what to expect at these gems, and what patrons love about their favorite watering holes. This is your guide to explore some new places, or remember why you've always loved your neighborhood spot.

As always, we encourage you to drink responsibly, and never drink and drive.

Cheers, Michigan!

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Alcona County- Glennie Tavern

3229 State Rd

Glennie, Michigan, MI 48737

(989) 735-3981

Get to the tavern early on a Friday, it's their most popular night of the week because of their awesome fish fry. You can get either lake perch or cod, and you won't go wrong with either. A classic "Up North" bar, you can play pool, darts, or in the summer, horseshoes.

Also recommended by reviewers are the pizza and the burgers. And, of course, the very cold beer.

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Alger County- Foggy's Bar

E7876 W State Highway M28

Christmas, Michigan, MI 49862

(906) 387-3357

On your way to Marquette from Munising, you've driven right by this gem of a place on HWY 28. Walk in the front door, and you'll be in the friendly bar, where you can belly up and enjoy a shot and a beer, or a mixed drink. They've got several Michigan craft beers to enjoy, including local UP favorite Blackrocks. The patrons here range from locals, to tourists just driving through. You'll be in a conversation before you know it, trust me.

The thing that sets Foggy's apart is that it is also a steakhouse. Head back to check out the live fire grill they have right in the middle of the restaurant, where you can cook your own steak, or have them help you. It is really good steak, and the perfect base for your night of merriment. You can eat in the restaurant or right at the bar.

Don't drive by Foggy's again, pull in and get a taste of the UP.

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Celebrating another year older with Broken Arrow at The Sand Bar! Posted by Jim Jones on Saturday, May 20, 2017

Allegan County- The Sand Bar Saloon

141 Butler St

Saugatuck, Michigan, MI 49453

(269) 857-2676

A dive bar, but a "nice" one, reviewers say. The Sand Bar is a local haunt, with cheap drinks, and a super friendly atmosphere. You can play pool, they have a few snacks, and it's cash only. Pitchers of beer are available, which is always a good sign, and the Bloody Mary's are recommended. Live music often on the weekends. Open year round for your drinking pleasure.

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Alpena County- Chief's Bar and Grill

626 N 2nd Ave

Alpena, MI 49707

A neighborhood bar in Alpena, with a chill vibe according to locals. They usually have a local band playing, plus cheap drinks, and lots of fun bar games, including a pool table and Keno. Food too if you are hungry, a great place to kick back with friends.

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Antrim County- Green Lantern Bar II

3958 US Highway 131

Alba, Michigan, MI 49611

(231) 584-2800

Located right on the side of 131, the Green Lantern is a quick stop, whether you arrive by car or by sled. Good beer selection, plus food to fill your belly, including pickled bologna, a pretty solid burger, and homemade soup.

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Arenac County- Cliff's Bar

108 Main St

Sterling, Michigan, MI 48659-9564

(989) 654-3551

Cliff's is well known for their pizza, which features an entire additional layer of cheese on top of all your ingredients, for a thick and very hearty pizza pie. Cold beer, bar games like pool, and a fun motorcycle ride away, Cliff's is a fun stop with great service.

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Baraga County-The Baraga Side Track Bar

111 Main St

Baraga, Michigan, MI 49908

(906) 353-6777

People like the historic charm, both inside and out, at this UP bar. Browse the many pictures of what the bar and the town used to look like, while you enjoy a cold beer or a burger from their (newer) kitchen. Play a tune on the jukebox, or join them on the mic for one of their karaoke nights. Located trailside, you can arrive by ORV or sled if you like.

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Barry County- Tujax Tavern

103 S Grove St

Delton, Michigan, MI 49046

(269) 623-8310

A small town dive bar, featuring an actual chef cooking up some top notch food, including barbecue. Patrons can't believe that you can get food like this, in a tavern like this. Recommended are the fresh salads, walleye, homemade breads and cookies, and yes, even creme brulee. Pair something with their special Tujax craft beer, and enjoy a chat with friendly locals at this great example of what a classic Midwestern bar can be.

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John Gonzalez | Mlive

Bay County- Bay City Bill's

1215 Michigan Ave

Bay City, Michigan, MI 48708

(989) 894-4140

This south side gem was originally an "iron bar", frequented by iron workers. Original owner Bill Borcht was a steel worker who helped build the Mackinac Bridge, so be sure to check out the mini bridge on the wall. Also be sure to try one of their fantastic Bloody Mary's, one that was one of the

best in the state.

You might enter a stranger, but trust us, by the time you leave you'll have your finger on the pulse of all that goes on at Bay City Bill's.

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Benzie County- Villa Marine Bar

228 Main St

Frankfort, Michigan, MI 49635-9048

(231) 352-5450

Tons of Michigan craft beer options here, plus the Villa Marine is located in one of the prettiest lake side towns anywhere. A step above bar food, try the fried fish, the ribs, or the parmesan whitefish. Cocktails are well poured as well, with a butt kicking Long Island Ice Tea, or a Cosmo, if that's your poison. Waitresses here get a thumbs up for friendly service.

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Berrien County- Kathy's Riverside Tavern

3899 riverside road

Benton Harbor, Michigan, MI 49022

(269) 849-3030

Some of the best burgers in Southwest Michigan can be found at this little "hole in the wall" bar. Home town attitude and service, it's cash only here at Kathy's Riverside. And be sure you punch in Benton Harbor into your GPS, despite the name it is not located in Riverside.

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Branch County- The Willow's Bar and Grill

716 W Chicago St

Coldwater, Michigan, MI 49036

(517) 279-8490

You can arrive by boat to The Willows, or just enjoy a spot out on their deck, they have the perfect location on the chain of seven lakes in Coldwater. In addition to boaters, they are always ready to welcome in groups of bikers too. Nice strong drinks and cold beer here, as well as a recommended fish fry and roasted pork sandwich.

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Calhoun County- The Seven Deuce

104 N Main St

Tekonsha, Michigan, MI 49092

(517) 767-4230

Small town bar with locals in the seats. I called to make sure they were still opened, and asked what the hours were. "We don't really have set hours," the bartender told me. "Think you might be open till 11?" I asked. "Most days", she replied. Everything is good on the menu here, she explained. During happy hour (3-5pm), domestic beers are $1. You can't beat that.

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Come celebrate your Sunday funday here at the wounded minnow saloon with a yummy fish bowl.  Posted by Wounded Minnow Saloon on Sunday, July 16, 2017

Cass County- Wounded Minnow Saloon

236 S Front St

Dowagiac, Michigan, MI 49047

(269) 782-9690

People talk about the "Big Ugly Burger", which looks pretty fantastically huge. You can also enjoy a "Fish Bowl", pictured, which is most likely a good idea anytime. There is usually live music here as well, all in a nice atmosphere.

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Charlevoix County- Whi-Ski Inn

2670 US-131 S

Boyne Falls, Michigan, MI 49713

(231) 549-3346

Located close to Boyne Mountain, the Whi-Ski is a great stop whether you ski or not. It looks like a classic "Up North" bar, but you'll be surprised by the tasty barbecue that they offer, and the huge list of bourbons to choose from. Great servers, and a welcoming atmosphere.

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Amy Sherman | asherma2@mlive.com

Cheboygan County- Club 27 or Pub 27

506 N. Main Street

Cheboygan, Michigan, MI 49721

(231) 445-9355

Hometown feel, and a welcoming atmosphere. Within moments of ordering your cold beer, by the pint, bottle, or pitcher, you'll be chatting it up with everyone, including the bartender. Nothing crazy here, just good people and good burgers. Live the high life, and stop on by.

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Chippewa County- The Merch

108 W Spruce St

Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, MI 49783

(906) 259-7227

The Merch is one of the oldest bars in the Soo, and is also one of the only bars to be a third shift bar, opening up at 7 am. Patrons like to say "Let's go to church at The Merch", and enjoy a cold beer (including Bell's Two Hearted) with friends. Great happy hour deals, plus foosball.

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Clare County- Long Lake Bar

8038 N Clare Ave

Harrison, Michigan, MI 48625-8872

(989) 539-9616

According to one reviewer on Facebook "It reminds me of being in someone's basement, and that's not a bad thing here." We feel that is the highest compliment one can pay a dive bar. Super friendly staff that also know how to cook, ice cold beer, shots poured freely, this is the best little bar in Harrison. Cash only, but they do have an ATM.

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Haven't been here in 24 years! But just like I remember!! And I saw one of my high school buddies!! How cool is that?! Steve Desprez and Carole Post Desprez it was great to see you both!! :) Posted by Chris Woodruff on Friday, April 10, 2015

Clinton County- Bruno's Bar

226 N Clinton Ave

Saint Johns, Michigan, MI 48879

(989) 224-4184

Patrons like how Bruno's hasn't changed at all over the years, still serving up solid food (especially the humongous nachos) and cold drinks. A definite favorite with locals, current and returning. Be sure to check out the hilarious old school photos on the walls, they are walk down terrible hair memory lane.

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Crawford County- Spike's Keg O' Nails

301 N James St

Grayling, Michigan, MI 49738

(989) 348-7113

"The meeting place of the North" is Spike's. A fun gathering place in Grayling, with a pretty good craft beer list, patrons love the Spike burger, and the fish fry on Fridays is stellar. There is a mysterious sounding dip called "Boom Boom Sauce" that is supposedly delicious on their onion rings, that seems like a winner to me. It's not a big place, so you may have to wait on the weekend.

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Amy Sherman | asherma2@mlive.com

Delta County- Rapid River Pub

10491 S Main St

Rapid River, Michigan, MI 49878

(906) 474-6329

We stopped in because we heard they had an excellent Bloody Mary. They sure do. Their pizza is also pretty fantastic. Best thing about the pub? You'll walk out friends with everyone, it just seems to happen here. Equally welcoming to locals, tourists, families or local sports teams out celebrating.

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Dickenson County- The Thirsty Whale

825 US-2

Norway, Michigan, MI 49870

(906) 563-5466

Nicely remodeled inside, The Thirsty Whale is a classic UP bar. Nice and clean, with a warm and fun staff. Welcome to all, including families, they are known for their incredible burgers and onion rings. Many customers stop in year after year during their annual trip to the UP.

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Eaton County- CB's Bar N Zoo

200 State St

Charlotte, MI

517-541-0026

You never have to wait too long for a drink at CB's, they've got a fast and friendly staff here. Then new owners have recently updated the inside, and there is both a pool table and a juke box. A popular stop for bikers, but you are also welcome to arrive by car. It's not a family bar, instead it's a bar that feels like your family.

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Emmett County- Don's Bar

1041 N US-31

Petoskey MI

231-347-7030

Don's Bar is a true dive, with cheap beer, hard liquor, and the only food on offer is potato chips. No mixers, and please don't ask for wine. Pool, darts, shuffleboard and a jukebox. If you shoot the cue ball off the table, you have to put $5 into the jukebox. A strangely wonderful, classic down and dirty bar.

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William Ketchum | MLive.com

Genesee County- The Torch Bar and Grill

522 Buckham Aly

Flint, Michigan, MI 48502

(810) 232-0626

The Torch is a Flint institution, tucked away in a little alley right downtown and open for over 50 years. Head up the stairs, grab a seat at one of their ten tables and order up their famous half pound Torch Burger, a wonderful concoction of burger awesomeness. They have a pretty extensive craft beer list that rotates constantly. A must visit bar when in Flint.

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Gladwin County- Hotel Bar

145 W Cedar Ave

Gladwin, Michigan, MI 48624

(989) 426-9961

In addition to the "very rare" fur bearing trout that you can see at the Hotel Bar, you can also enjoy buckets of beer, and some good food too. Reviewers like the coney dogs, chicken wings, and the fish fry. There have been some recent updates to the inside, but the bar still retains it's clubby feel and friendly home town service.

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Gogebic County- J J's Yale Bar

807 Eli Ave

Bessemer, MI

906-667-0435

A quaint little UP bar, that often hosts live music. You might arrive a stranger, but by the time you leave, you'll feel like long lost family. They've squeezed in a pool table, and have super reasonable prices on drinks and food.

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Grand Traverse County- Sail Inn Bar & Grill

1104 Barlow St

Traverse City, Michigan, MI 49686-4255

(231) 946-4195

Known to true locals as "The Yacht Club", this bar is a local hangout, not frequented by the hordes of tourists that descend upon Traverse City all seasons. This is a good thing, you'll get a taste of the real TC here. The place for karaoke in town, where the host doesn't play favorites and allows everyone to embarrass themselves equally. Cheap beer and classic dive bar decor just add to the feel. Ignore reviews that call this place sketchy, you are sketchy if you don't appreciate a place like the Sail Inn.

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Gratiot County- Ghost Town Saloon

6422 Pingree Rd

Elwell, Michigan, MI 48832

(989) 463-4693

There is everything right with a bar that you can arrive at by car, motorcycle, sled or horse. Guests love the food, including the burger. Limited cocktails, but very cold beer. Pool table and a horseshoe pit, along with very friendly staff at this out of the way spot.

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Amy Sherman | asherma2@mlive.com

HIllsdale County- Here's to You Pub and Grub

45 North St

Hillsdale, Michigan, MI 49242

517-437-4002

These guys serve one of the best baskets of chili cheese fries in the state, which is reason alone to pay them a visit. Located downtown Hillsdale, the bar is a gathering place for professors, students, and lots of out of town visitors. They've been open for seven years now, and host everything from pool leagues, to karaoke, to a book club at this downtown Hillsdale pub.

Great craft beer on tap, friendly owners who are usually behind the bar, and sometimes live music, a perfect spot to stop.

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Houghton County- Schmidt's Corner

16810 Fire Hall Rd

Houghton, Michigan, MI 49931

(906) 487-9572

Schmidt's has literally just reopened under new owners, but still offering excellent service, food and drinks to the locals. Try the wings or the pizza, especially with their home made sausage, that both come highly recommended from a regular patron. Pool table for bar games if you'd like, or just belly up to the bar.

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Huron County- Razuco's Lounge

7217 N Van Dyke Rd

Port Austin, Michigan, MI 48467

(248) 505-3087

A cool little bar, that some describe as a bar in a garage, right at the tip of the thumb. The owners are especially gregarious, and you'll leave feeling like friends. Welcoming to all, you can indulge your love of bar sports here as they offer shuffleboard, pool, darts, and even a beach volleyball court in the summer.

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Make it happen Monday. Put in the work and join us for a cold one afterwards! Or schedule a meeting over a beer... #seeyousoon Posted by Unicorn Lounge on Monday, September 18, 2017

Ingham County- The Unicorn Lounge

327 E. Grand River

Lansing, Michigan 48906

(517) 485-9910

Recently remodeled, to the delight of some and consternation of others, The Corn is a long time staple in Lansing. It's been cleaned up, bathrooms updated, and new lighting, which many patrons hope they turn down a bit. As one reviewer on Facebook said "People are going to see how ugly I am". Good beer choices, cheap mixed drinks, live music featuring local bands many nights.

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Happy Birthday Dear Joe! Love, Everyone at Hot Shots Posted by Hot Shots Tavern on Friday, March 17, 2017

Ionia County- Hot Shots Tavern

137 Kent St

Portland, Michigan 48875

(517) 647-9959

According to Ron, a reviewer on Google Hot Shots is "quite possibly the friendliest bar in Michigan." Sounds good to us. Free popcorn, and lots of bar games including pool and shuffleboard also sound good. The gregarious owners and staff host locals in a clean, nice renovated space, with a pretty decent beer list, and food too, try the burger.

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Iosco County- Office Lounge and Grill

Office Lounge and Grill

110 E Dwight St

Oscoda, Michigan, MI 48750

Bar: (989) 739-3388 Grill: (989) 739-EATS

What could be better than telling your significant other "hey honey, I'm going to the office" and really meaning it. This little storefront located in downtown Oscoda is a favorite of locals and summer residents alike.

Great prices, good service, and tasty food are lauded here. Try the huge "Paul Bunyon" burger, or interestingly, the escargot. The Office is also the place to be in Oscoda late night, with a DJ on the weekends. On Wednesdays in the summer they close the street down out front for bike night.

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Amy Sherman | asherma2@mlive.com

Iron County- Up North Bar and Grill

207 W Genesee St

Iron River, Michigan, MI 49935

(906) 265-9413

Belly up to serpentine bar and get comfy in your swivel pleather chair. Order up a beer (and they do have a few craft options on tap), and a shot if it strikes you. Need an activity? They've got pool, darts, and even corn hole sometimes. The menu is more than just bar food, you can get a pizza, fish fry, and more.

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Isabella County- Corky's Beal City Tavern

2007 N Winn Rd

Beal City, Michigan 48858

(989) 644-3698

A great little dive, where the bartender is most likely also going to cook your meal. Homemade soups are popular here, and the burgers are rated top notch. They come with a fun little condiment tray, and crinkle cut fries. They also make something called "drunken mushrooms" that is now on my bucket list. A comfortable place to relax after work with friends.

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J Scott Parks | Mlive

Jackson County- Duffy's Food and Spirits

751 N Waterloo St

Jackson, Michigan 49202

(517) 789-8450

Jackson is one of Michigan's best bar towns, and Duffy's is one of the many reasons why. As soon as you enter, you'll be warmly greeted by some of the friendliest staff around. Homemade food specials are unbelievably affordable, with $1.50 burgers on Mondays, $1.50 tacos on Tuesdays, $1 Sloppy Joes on Wednesdays and $1.50 coneys on Thursdays.

Every day is a good day to have a beer and a shot at Duffy's. With both cheap domestics (PBR is only a dollar every day) and a few craft offerings, beer flows here. Do not miss the very popular breakfast shot, which features a shot glass with Jameson's Scotch and butterscotch schnapps and a second shot glass with orange juice. The chaser is a piece of bacon. I can attest that it is a nutritious and delicious way to start the day.

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Katie Alaimo | kalaimo@mlive.com

Kalamazoo County- Old Dog Tavern

402 E. Kalamazoo Ave.

Kalamazoo, Michigan 49007

I've never had a bad time at the Old Dog, and neither will you. What you will have is some of the best food in Kalamazoo, including one of Michigan's best mac and cheeses. Don't miss their hand made pasties either. They are the best ones we've found below the bridge. You'll also probably have some pretty great drinks, from Michigan craft beers, to a build your own Bloody Mary bar. In addition, you'll end up making friends with everyone from the bartender, to the owner, to the groups of locals ripping it up.

You might catch a local band playing, and they sometimes bring in family friendly musicians on Saturday morning for the kids to dance to. Seriously, such a fun place in downtown Kzoo.

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Kalkaska, MI. Give me that filet of fish, give me that fish! Posted by Greg Baird on Thursday, August 12, 2010

Kalkaska County- Kal-Ho Lounge

340 S Cedar St

Kalkaska, Michigan 49646

(231) 258-8221

Google reviewer Hubert Baugus gave the most glowing review for the Kal-Ho. "The last time I was this happy and entertained, was the last time that I was here....at the Kal-Ho! They always feed me well and drink me down! I love it!" And why wouldn't you? They make some of the best pizza in the county, whip up some stiff drinks that are served by a warm and welcoming crew.

The Ho is a must stop when traveling through, and is sled friendly too.

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Kent County- Pickwick Tavern

970 Cherry

Grand Rapids Mi

(616) 774-9647

This no frills, cozy little spot might be the finest watering hole in all of Grand Rapids. You might be welcomed when you come in, or you might just be served a stiff drink or a cold beer. No huge fancy draft list here, you'll pick from about three and you'll like it. Food selections can be made from the wall of chips in the back. Yes, that is a real pay phone on the wall.

The Pick is where you go when you don't want to dress up, you do want to laugh heartily with your friends, and you don't care to be part of the scene. This bar is for drinking and talking. Bring cash, and get here before 11pm.

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Keweenau County- Gay Bar and Grill

925 Lake St

Lake Linden, MI

(906) 296-0951

Located way up the Keweenau Peninsula, the Gay Bar is a charming little spot in a historic UP town. Considered a must visit if you are in the area, you'll be able to enjoy some homemade food, including coney dogs. Cold beer, including Upper Hand, which you can only get in the UP.

It's a destination, for sure. Don't miss getting a NSFW t-shirt here, they've really embraced their location with some pretty funny plays on being the Gay Bar.

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Lake County- Na-Tah-Ka South

6392 W 76th St

Baldwin, Michigan 49304

(231) 898-5252

A nice stop when you are "up North", with a nice community vibe. You can watch the game here, and chat it up with friends. Recommended to eat is the bacon cheeseburger, the Rueben sandwich, and the lemon pepper catfish. Yes, they have cold beer, but they also have a few wine selections as well.

Located close to Big Star Lake and open year round. You can also visit their sister bar Na-Tah-Ka North on Big Bass Lake.

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Lapeer County- Cascaddan Lounge

4099 S Lapeer Rd

Metamora, Michigan 48455

(810) 678-2116

A great place to cill, maybe play some pool, and hang out with friends, the Cascaddan Lounge is also family friendly early in the night. People recommend the nachos, chili cheese fries and the Friday night all you can eat fish fry. Feels a bit like your best friends basement, but thats ok. They are also known for their pool tournaments that they host, you can play a few rounds when you visit if you like.

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Leelanau County- Garage Bar and Grill

108 Waukazoo St

Northport, Michigan 49670

(231) 386-5511

Northport is one of the coolest small towns in Michigan, located way up at the tip of the mitt's pinkie finger. Head to the Garage, a cute little spot right downtown for excellent food and great drinks. Patrons love the whitefish, perch, Brussel sprouts and burgers, and love to stop by after a day of wine tasting on the peninsula. We love the quaint, yet lively atmosphere. This is a place locals go at the end of the day.

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Lenawee County- Embers Bar and Grill

1370 W Chicago Blvd

Tecumseh, Michigan 49286

(517) 423-2601

Professional service, awesome foods, and drinks that are never allowed to run dry, these are the hallmarks of Embers in Tecumseh. Has a bit of a Cheers feel, where everyone knows you, and is a favorite of locals. They offer a Sunday brunch (try the breakfast burrito), which is also wing day, with discounts on chicken wings. Sing your heart out on karaoke night, or shoot a game of pool at this bar.

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Livingston County- 2 Fogs's Pub

118A W Grand River (Entrance off the Alley)

Howell, Michigan 48843

(517) 518-8056

Any bar that is actually located in a basement gets extra points from me. With an accommodating staff that is happy to make you feel comfortable and welcome, 2 Fog's is known for making some interesting and well poured craft cocktails for you to enjoy in their hip, cool atmosphere. The food is equally up to date, with offerings as diverse as a classic burger, to seared ahi tuna, and be still my beating heart, shrimp and grits.

Add in the fact that they have shuffleboard, and you've got a winner.

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Luce County- Joshua James Bar and Grill

12896 M-28

Newberry, Michigan 49868

(906) 293-1557

It's not all typical bar food here at Joshua James, but their burgers are some of the best. You are in the UP, so you should probably have the whitefish basket too. There might also be a poutine on the menu, so trust us, you'll eat well here. Keweenau Brewing on tap, try the Black. Patrons love that this bar is clean, well managed, fun and friendly to all.

An easy spot for snowmobilers, the bar is right across the street from the America's Best Value Inn, so if you are staying there, no need to unhook your trailer to go and find a meal.

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Amy Sherman | asherma2@mlive.com

Mackinac County- Timmy Lee's Pub

W 748 us 2

Saint Ignace, Michigan 49781

(906) 643-8344

Timmy Lee's is located right over the bridge, just a few miles West. We fell in love with this place during our search for Michigan's Best chicken wings, and now make it a regular stop as soon as we are in the UP. The owners are awesome, and always working, with owner Timmy cooking in the back, and his wife and co-owner, Diane, bartending out front. Craft beer from the UP, like Upper Hand and KBC on tap, and tons of options for well mixed cocktails. Obviously, the wings are incredible here.

There's a pool table to enjoy, plus a few TV's. This is also a great last stop for wi-fi before you get to unplug and unwind, UP style.

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Macomb County- Boatworks

29917 Harper Ave

St. Clair Shores, Michigan 48082

(586) 777-5730

A favorite bar with locals and a landmark in the community, with good food and fair prices. Swing in and try the nachos or the pizza. A big selection of beers to choose from as well. Trivia is popular here several nights a week, and patrons claim that The Works has the best prizes around.

According to a regular, the best thing about this bar is the "What happens at The Works, stays at The Works."

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Manistee County- Stu's Pub

506 Ramsdell St

Manistee, Michigan 49660

(231) 723-9128

Big mugs of icy cold beer are poured freely at Stu's, and so are perfect dirty martinis. Great place to watch a game, or to just catch up with friends. You can play corn hole out on the patio. Patrons love the great service and friendly atmosphere, they all agree that this is a classic neighborhood pub.

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Amy Sherman | asherma2@mlive.com

Marquette County- Pat's Bar

922 W Washington St

Marquette, Michigan 49855

(906) 225-1534

So much to love at this little bar, located right next door to the Black Rocks Brewing production facility. The bar itself is padded for easy leaning, and you can walk right in and feel right at home. Simple bar, a few taps, and cans of that neighborhood brewery to enjoy. A fantastic fresh made burger for like $4, and hand cut fries made to order. Simplicity at its finest, and open early till late. An unassuming stop when you are in Marquette.

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Mason County- The Mitten Bar

109 W Ludington Ave

Ludington, Michigan 49431

(231) 843-7616

The Mitten Bar is an all Michigan bar, where according to their Facebook page "they've created a destination and culture that celebrates craft beer as well as artisan wine and fine spirits from all around Michigan." We love the incredible craft beer selection they have, and the well made cocktails made with some of the best distilled spirits that Michigan offers, not to mention all the Michigan wines you can choose. Live music is offered some nights to enjoy as well.

Located right downtown, this is a great stop on a downtown bar hop.

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Mecosta County- Sawmill Saloon

1003 Maple St

Big Rapids, Michigan 49307

(231) 796-9812

A townie bar in a college town, The Sawmill has an awesome outside area, with all sorts of fun things to do, including pool, horseshoes and a firepit. Inside, they host open mic nights, karaoke, and have some pretty good bar food. Friendly, relaxing stop for a drink.

While you are there, be sure to check out their massive matchbook collection, they've been building it for years.

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Menominee County- The Shop Bar and Grill

N13756 N3rd St

Nadeau, Michigan 49863

(906) 639-2535

Facebook reviewer Jennifer says that this is a "great place to have mad fun." Sounds good to us. Located West of Escanaba, stop in here for cold drinks, and a good burger. This may just be the best bar in Nadeau.

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Midland County- Decker's Lounge

402 E Ellsworth St

Midland, Michigan 48640

(989) 835-7592

An easy and comfortable bar for getting together with friends. Located on the East side of downtonw, Decker's is known for good burgers, and some yummy waffle fries served covered in nacho cheese sauce. Longtime patron Lindsay loves that they have inexpensive beers that come in frosted pitchers or mugs. Nothing fancy here, just a solid Midland bar.

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Missaukee County- Town Pump Saloon

117 Main Street

Lake City, MI

(231) 839-4869

The lovely little town of Lake City is indeed lakeside, and is a charming little place. The Town Pump is vying for best bar in town, it's a hot race between them and LC Tap House. The Town Pump offers the true dive bar experience, with cheap drinks and simple food. I loved one review on Facebook who claimed "I can't remember much, but I left with money in my pocket."

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Monroe County- The Next Door Lounge

7717 Bluebush Rd

Maybee, MI

(734) 587-2333

The Next Door Lounge is just that.

I guess I can't just leave it like that. This bar is popular with bikers, which means it is probably the best kind of bar. We've heard from patrons that these are some partying people, enjoying some good drinks and maybe some pool. You are here to drink some beer, if you want food, head to the other bar in town.

And there is a town called MAYBEE in Michigan? I love this.

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Montcalm County- Hog's Head Saloon

204 S Main St

Sheridan, Michigan 48884

A bar that puts a premium on Fireball is a premium bar in my book. Add in a burger that is a legend, and a welcoming small town atmosphere and you'll find it hard to leave the Hog's Head. Great bartenders and a nostalgic feel in a quant and cozy spot. If you find yourself in mid-Michigan, you should find yourself at the Head.

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Montmorency County- EL-BO INN

24300 M 33

Atlanta, Michigan 49709

(989) 785-4713

A hole in the wall bar located Up North, that is exactly what you want. Don't listen to Google reviews, who the heck orders a salad at a bar? Don't. Instead get the grinders, or the jalapeno popper skillet, which looks amazing, or the walleye. Good beer choices on tap, and an outdoor patio to enjoy too. Good people, great food, cold beers.

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Mischa Lopiano | MLive.com

Muskegon County- Skeetown Tavern

1308 W Sherman Blvd

Muskegon, Michigan 49441

(231) 755-6818

A bar that was nominated as one of the

best steakhouses on the lakeshore

? Yep, that's Skeetown. Totally a bar, nice and dark, and decorated with a few holiday lights, you can come here just to drink and hang out, or enjoy live music and dance late night. You can also come here to get some incredible food that is way, way above your typical bar offerings. Steaks and prime rib are hand cut, and served with home made potatoes and sauces. The jalapeno poppers are made in house and hand breaded. Pair them with a cold beer and your party just started.

It's not a huge bar though, so on a busy night be prepared for a wait.

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Brandon Champion | MLive

Newaygo County- Blind Squirrel Tavern

19 W Main St

Fremont, Michigan 49412

(231) 335-2147

A storefront bar in downtown Fremont, The Blind Squirrel is much bigger than it appears from the outside. When you enter, head down the hallway and enjoy some of the art created by patrons adorning the walls and then enter the bar. There is a separate dining room, which makes this bar family friendly. Many customers plan their trips around a stop at the Squirrel. Burgers are popular here, including some unique offerings like a fried pickle burger, and you can get tater tots as your side, which automatically makes this a good stop. Unique offerings are also popular, like the sweet potato hash and potbelly pig sandwich. You really can't go wrong with anything at the Squirrel.

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Oakland County- New Way Bar

23130 Woodward Ave

Ferndale, Michigan 48220

(248) 541-9870

Located in fashionable Ferndale, this little divey gem has local bands playing live music pretty frequently, as well as trivia and a comedy night to keep you busy. With a gritty rock and roll feel that isn't too common in this town, the locals love it's easy vibe. Local beers on draft, well priced drinks, and free popcorn only add to its charm. Lay down a base for a great night with one of New Way's burgers.

And, as several patrons pointed out, THEY HAVE SKEE BALL. No need to say more.

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Oceana County- Antler Bar

283 S Hancock St

Pentwater, Michigan 49449

(231) 869-2911

Located in the beach town of Pentwater, the Antler is a place you can stop in throughout the day. Come in for lunch with the family and enjoy both Mexican and American food offerings. The taco salad is popular, and so is the perch dinner on Fridays. It is a very popular spot, and often hosts large groups, so during the season be prepared.

As the night progresses, this bar gets rowdier and rowdier as it fills up with tourists and locals alike. It is the place to party in Pentwater.

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Ogemaw County- The Cedar Tavern and Grill

2246 Shady Shores Rd

Lupton, Michigan 48635

(989) 473-3900

A welcoming spot, with a classic Up North feel, including wood paneling and a tin ceiling. Locals love how the owners are involved in the community, and the fun time that they offer at the tavern. You'll feel like family before you know it. Local bands perform on the weekends, and there is pool too.

The food here is some of the best around, patrons enjoy the ribs, the huge onion rings, and poutine. Burgers are, of course good, and they pop a mean corn as well.

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Ontonagon County- Twilly's Sports Bar and Grill

13909 US HWY45

Bruce Crossing, Michigan 49912

(906) 827-3360

Both the meeting place for the community of Bruce Crossing and a stop for tourists and snowmobilers who are in the area, Twilly's offers a welcoming vibe, and good food. Taco Tuesday is popular, as is the Italian beef sandwich. They've got a well stocked bar, including a couple of shot machines. If you want to get a taste of the local flavor, stop by Twilly's.

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Osceola County- Horseshoe Bar

142 E Main St

Marion, Michigan 49665

(231) 743-9814

Best food in the area, try the mushroom Swiss burger. Don't be put off by the chain link fence out front, it allows you to enjoy drinks outside if thats your jam. Very popular during hunting and snowmobile season, this bar is used to accommodating large groups. Nice and dark, filled with locals, a great stop in between far flung towns out here in Osceola County.

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This group was alot of fun. Thanks for coming in! Posted by Knot Hole Bar on Tuesday, July 25, 2017

Oscoda County- The Knot Hole Bar

4262 N Abbe Rd

Comins 48619

(989) 848-5224

The Knot Hole has been around a long, long time as a long term resident of the tiny Northern Michigan town of Comins. Relax in the knotty pine interior, or head outside for some horseshoes. A great staff is assisted by the always on site owners, Dan and Sandy. Patrons love the burgers and the pizzas that come out of the tiny kitchen here.

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Otsego County- Elkhorn Tavern

8372 Mill St

Vanderbilt, Michigan 49795-9701

(989) 983-3550

One of the all time great bars in Northern Michigan. Located right along side the North Central State bike trail, you can ride in or sled in if you wish. They not only have cold beer, quick shots, and mixed drinks, they also offer everything from breakfast to dinner. On our last visit, we rode from Gaylord, enjoyed both omelettes and beers, and then rode back.

Please be sure to check out the ceiling tiles that are sponsored by local teams and businesses, the large collection of taxidermied animals, and most especially, the posts holding up the bar.

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Andraya Croft | acroft@mlive.com

Ottawa County- Stan's Bar

208 W Savidge St

Spring Lake, Michigan 49456

(616) 842-1553

Stan's is a classic carpeted bar located right on the main drag in Spring Lake. It's loud and boisterous, with talkative patrons who readily share stories and buy beers for each other. You can imbibe in some local beers from Unruly or Perrin, and if it is your first time you must try a "Laker Liter" a massive glass of beer you can have for $7. You can also indulge in one of their famous cheeseburgers, cooked on a flat top right behind the bar.

The best part about Stan's is that they fully understand that heading out to the bar isn't always smiled upon by certain family members. To combat this, they sell cartons of eggs for $1.50 from a local farmer from behind the bar. That way you can say "I'm going to pick up some eggs", and not be fibbing.

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Presque Isle County- Grekas Tavern

326 S. 1st St.

Rogers City, Michigan, MI 49779

(989) 734-9029

Grekas' is the type of place where one of the loud, friendly, possibly tipsy locals will buy the whole bar a shot, just because. It's a little place, yet still has room for both arcade games and a couch. Friendly, chatty bartenders make everyone feel welcome. Enjoy a pickled egg. Grekas' is a true community gathering spot.

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Roscommon County- The Sand Bar

2546 S Gladwin Rd

Prudenville, Michigan 48651

(989) 366-7836

The Sand Bar is the same as always, and that is a good thing. Aging nicely, they offer all sorts of bar games, including pool and shuffleboard. Nothing flashy, but a well stocked bar to partake in, with low prices. No food, just come to hang out.

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Neil Barris | Mlive

Saginaw County- Big Ugly Fish

1418 State St

Saginaw, Michigan 48602-5239

(989) 249-5884

Seriously, a great time can be had at Big Ugly Fish, simply due to the hilarious characters that call this bar home. If you come on the right day, you'll be regaled with crazy local stories the moment you walk in, from both the customers, and possibly the owner, Mike Hanley. They have a couple of rotating craft beer handles, and pour shots as quick as you ask for them. Enjoy some popcorn as your meal.

When you visit, be sure to check out the ever changing sign out front, it is a billboard for clever humor.

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St. Clair County- Skidgie's Bar

1204 12th Avenue

Port Huron, MI

One Facebook reviewer claims to have seen Elvis at this bar, we cannot confirm. We can tell you that Skidgie's is home to the KONG, an enormous goblet that you can have filled with you cold beer of choice and enjoy it immensely. We've heard that the prime rib dinner is pretty good as well. Super friendly dive bar, a Port Huron tradition.

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St. Joseph County- Eddie and Luann Whitetail Saloon

71042 M 103

White Pigeon, Michigan, MI 49099

(269) 483-7471

Everything you need to make it a great bar. Tasty burgers, including a delicious bacon cheeseburger. Taxidermied animals on the walls. A jukebox. Cold beer. Friendly owner. A great stop to relax and chat with friends.

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Amy Sherman | asherma2@mlive.com

Sanilac County- Water Tower Sports Pub

7245 Lakeshore Rd

Lexington, MI 48450

(810) 359-3310

There are other bars in Sanilac County, but we are going to be honest, we love the Water Tower. It was a gem we found on our search for Michigan's Best pizza in 2016, and again when we learned they have some of Michigan's Best french fries as well. Add in one of the best craft beer lists around (meaning well picked, not huge) and you've got a top notch stop. The owners have upgraded the whole inside, and are super friendly to boot. If you find yourself out this way, you owe it to yourself to stop.

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John Gonzalez | Mlive

Schoolcraft County- Wheaty's Pub

204 S Cedar St

Manistique, Michigan, MI 49854

(906) 341-6776

We fell in love with

Wheaty's Pub

during our search for

Michigan's Best chicken wings

. This classic little UP bar was one of our top ten finishers with their creative sauces and meaty wings. No frills, a few tables and a bar, the open kitchen is right in the corner of the room. There's a pool table if you need to keep busy, but you'll be plenty entertained by both the owner Nick Wheaton, and the fun patrons that visit.

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Shiawassee County- Rainbow Bar

905 W Main St

Owosso, Michigan, MI 48867

(989) 725-9880

The charming town of Owosso is home to the Rainbow, where the drinks "are generous, well poured and coming at you just as fast as you want them" according to one reviewer. We can't argue with that. Add in some pretty good bar food, including a killer burger and deep fried cheese curds, and you've got a winning combination at this old school, little rough around the edges, bar.

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Tuscola County- The Pub at The Elbow Room

133 South State St.

Caro, Michigan, MI 48723

(989) 672-0975

A no frills bar, but really what do you need? Cold beer, shots, shots, shots, popcorn for all, and Keno if you want it.

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Van Buren County- M-40 Bar

106 N Phelps St

Decatur, Michigan, MI 49045

(269) 423-8659

Patrons love how friendly everyone is here, from the staff to the guests. The burgers come highly recommended, especially their signature mushroom swiss burger. A gathering place for the Decatur community.

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Washtenaw County- 8 Ball Saloon

208 S 1st St

Ann Arbor, Michigan, MI 48104

(734) 996-8555

Patron Chris Smith said, via a Facebook review "This place is a real bar, and represents the Ann Arbor I love, where students and residents hang out, and have fun. It's a great place to wait before a blind pigevent.They don't have 200 giant screen TVs, but you can watch a game on the one TV. They have great bartenders, darts, pool, liquor, beer, and a jukebox, my idea of a perfect hangout. It's gritty and has character long live the 8 Ball Saloon."

We couldn't have said it any better.

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Wayne County- The Old Miami

3930 Cass Ave

Detroit, Michigan, MI 48201

(313) 831-3830

This is a legendary Detroit bar, and if you've never been, get there now. Originally a veterans bar (the MIAMI stood for Missing In Action MIchigan), there is a bar, couches, a stage for live music, pinball machines, cold beer, and an outside patio/backyard that is a true oasis in the middle of the city. They host everything from punk bands, hip hop DJ's, open mic night, to dance parties. The burger isn't too bad either. Seriously, everything you need for a great night out can be found here.

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Wexford County- Bucksnort Inn

106 W Mesick Ave

Mesick, Michigan, MI 49668

(231) 885-2314

Good food, including the Buck Burger, at the Bucksnort. Stop by when you are camping or snowmobiling, there are happy hour specials to enjoy. A tip: put your phone away at this bar, and actually talk to the bartender and patrons. Cell phone usage is frowned upon here, as it should be at a quality bar.

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Emily Rose Bennett | Mlive.com

Other county by county fun on MLive

The must try diners in every county in Michigan.

The most unusual places in each of Michigan's 83 counties.

What is your county in Michigan known for?

How each county in Michigan got its name.

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The Grand Valley State volleyball team dropped a three-set decision to the Bulldogs of Ferris State on Friday night (Sept. 6). Ferris State took the first set by a score of 25-17 before sets two and three both finished 25-20 in favor of the Bulldogs. The loss drops the Lakers to 8-8 overall this season and 5-3 in GLIAC play. The Lakers will be back in action tomorrow afternoon, as they are slated to face off against Northwood at 5:00 p.m.

The Bulldogs held the advantage in most statistical categories including kills (42-34), assists (40-33), aces (6-1), digs (58-56), and blocks (12-10). Ferris State also hit .216 while holding GVSU to .099 throughout the match.

Senior Sydney Doby and sophomore Jayci Suseland led the Lakers in kills, as they both put down nine on the night. Doby also assisted on four block assists and five digs while Suseland tallied one block assist as well. Juniors Shannon Winicki and Staci Brower also put down six kills apiece. Brower also assisted on two blocks and picked up a solo rejection as well.

Sydney Benchley led the Lakers in digs with 20, while also tallying three assists. The team leader in assists was setter Katie Olson, as the senior picked up 22 to go along with her 12 digs.

After an early 2-2 tie, the Bulldogs used a 5-2 run to open up a 7-3 lead over the Lakers. The early lead led to some momentum for Ferris State as they found themselves up 15-7 about halfway through set one. The Lakers then used a 5-2 run of their own to bring the score to 17-12 before the Bulldogs rattled off four straight points. The Bulldogs would eventually claim the first set victory, 25-17.

After a Hannah Murdock kill gave the Lakers a 4-3 lead over the Bulldogs, Ferris State used another four-point run to regain the 7-4 lead. GVSU battled back and tied the match at 11 apiece before back-to-back four-point runs brought the score to 15-all. Once again, the Bulldogs used a run to open up a 22-17 lead. Ferris State would wind up winning the second set by a 25-20 margin.

Much like the first two sets, Ferris State used two large runs in the third set to gain a 15-6 lead over the Lakers. Grand Valley State used an 8-2 run of their own to shirk the Bulldog lead to three points. The early deficit proved too much for the Lakers to overcome, as they would fall in the third set by score of 25-20.
FLINT, MI -- The ranking Democrat on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform says he will consult with Republicans about a new conflict in Gov. Rick Snyder's Flint water crisis timeline.

U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD), issued a statement Friday, Oct. 6, saying he is "deeply concerned the governor may have misled the Oversight Committee and the people of Flint" based on testimony given Friday during a preliminary exam in a criminal case related to the city's water crisis.

"I plan to consult with Chairman (Trey) Gowdy immediately to determine the Committee's next steps," Cummings said in the statement. "One thing that all members of this Committee -- Democrats and Republicans -- agree on is that witnesses testifying before us must tell the truth."

Harvey Hollins, director of the Michigan Office of Urban Initiatives, testified under oath in a preliminary exam for state Department of Health and Human Services Director Nick Lyon that he told Snyder about Legionnaires' problems in Flint in December 2015, weeks before the governor told Congress he was first made aware of the outbreak.

Snyder testified before the Oversight Committee in March 2016, telling members of Congress that he did not act sooner to inform the public about the unprecedented Legionnaires' outbreak in the Flint area because he wasn't told about it until Jan. 12, 2016.

"As soon as I became aware of it, we held a press conference the next day," Snyder said. "That was clearly a case where the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services should have done more to escalate the issue to get it visible to the public and me."

Cummings has questioned Snyder's testimony about the water crisis previously.

In an April 2016 letter to the governor, Cummings said Snyder's comments about his willingness to work with Mayor Karen Weaver and others "to deliver the assistance our citizens deserve" didn't appear to be accurate.

At that time, a spokesman for Snyder contested Cummings' remarks, saying the governor's staff had been in "near daily contact with the mayor and her key staff."
FLINT, MI -- A congressional oversight committee should look further into conflicting statements from Rick Snyder and a top aide about when the governor knew of a Legionnaires' outbreak in the Flint area, U.S. Rep. Dan Kildee says.

Harvey Hollins, director of the Michigan Office of Urban Initiatives, testified in a preliminary examination in Flint Friday, Oct. 6, that he told Snyder about Legionnaires' problems in December 2015, weeks before the governor has said he was first made aware of the outbreak.

Snyder testified before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform in March 2016, telling members of Congress that he did not act sooner about problems with Flint's water supply because he wasn't told about Legionnaires' issues until 2016.

Snyder assured the Oversight Committee that he did not delay in acting to inform the public, holding a news conference on Jan. 13, 2016, the day after he was made aware of a Legionnaires' outbreak that coincided with the use of the Flint River as the city's drinking water source.

Hollins said he relayed the information to the governor in a phone call in late December and participated in a staff meeting where the state's response to the health crisis was discussed.

During a preliminary examination in the criminal case against Michigan Department of Health and Human Services Director Nick Lyon Friday, Hollins said he assumed the state Department of Environmental Quality or DHHS had already informed Snyder of the outbreak and the potential connection to the river.

At least 12 people died as result of the Legionnaries' outbreak in parts of 2014 and 2015.

Flint was being run by emergency managers appointed by Snyder from 2011 until mid 2015.

"Mr. Hollins' testimony raises concerning questions about the governor's statements that need to be answered," Kildee said in a statement issued by his office.

"I have already spoken to the Ranking Member of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, Congressman Elijah Cummings, and asked that the committee immediately look into these conflicting statements. I am confident that the committee will look into this matter right away and get to the truth," the statement says.

"People have to tell the truth when they testify before Congress. No one is above the law and misleading Congress is a very serious offense," Kildee said.

MLive-The Flint Journal could not immediately reach a representative of Cummings for comment.

Anna Heaton, press secretary for the governor, declined to comment on Hollins' testimony.
GRAND RAPIDS, MI - Bishop David Walkowiak of the Diocese of Grand Rapids backed the Trump administration's directive to allow more employers to stop providing no-cost birth control for workers.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Friday, Oct. 6, announced rules that allow employers having a religious or moral objection to paying for health insurance that covers contraceptives to opt out.

Health insurance plans that were compliant with the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, were required to cover all FDA-approved contraception as "preventive services."

"Along with bishops across the United States, I applaud the actions taken by President Trump and his administration in providing exemptions to faith-based and other organizations from the Health and Human Services mandate. The mandate violated the religious freedom we hold dear and did not allow us to provide insurance coverage that was consistent with our Catholic faith," Walkowiak said in a statement.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said: "A government mandate that coerces people to make an impossible choice between obeying their consciences and obeying the call to serve the poor is harmful not only to Catholics but to the common good. Religious freedom is a fundamental right for all, so when it is threatened for some, it's threatened for all."

Several groups, including the National Women's Law Center, plan to wage court fights over the birth-control rollback, the Associated Press reported.

The American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit just hours after the announcement.

"The Trump Administration is forcing women to pay for their boss's religious beliefs," ACLU senior staff attorney Brigitte Amiri said in a statement.

She co-wrote a blog with Georgeanne M. Usova: "President Donald Trump finally made it clear today. He believes business owners like him should have a decisive role in their female employees' intimate and personal family planning decisions.

"It's outrageous. It's unfair. It's discriminatory. If only it were surprising. On the contrary, it's exactly what we have come to expect from an administration that takes every opportunity to attack women's health and to license discrimination in the name of religious liberty."
GRAND RAPIDS, MI -- A man was arrested after he struck a police vehicle and another vehicle and fled on foot, police say.

About 2:30 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 7, a vehicle struck a Grand Rapids Police Department vehicle being driven by a female police lieutenant that was stopped at the intersection of Michigan Street and Lafayette, Grand Rapids Police Department Lt. Pat Merrill said.

The vehicle fled and crashed into a Jeep SUV near the intersection of Michigan and Monroe, Merrill said.

The driver ran a short distance before he was caught and arrested, Merrill said.

He was arrested on charges of operating while intoxicated causing an accident and failure to stop at the scene, police said.

No one was seriously injured, Merrill said. The police vehicle was operable after the crash, he said.
It's been more than 20 years since nurses at one of Northern Michigan's largest hospitals felt compelled to strike, but current contract negotiations between nurses and their employers at UP Health System - Marquette led at least 400 people to walk off the job this week.

The 48-hour strike, which started at 7 a.m. Thursday and is scheduled to run through early Saturday morning, was called Sept. 22 after months of ongoing contract negotiations between the Michigan Nurses Association, representing nurses at UP Health System - Marquette, and Duke LifePoint, a for-profit health system based in Tennessee that acquired the hospital in 2012.

Nurses involved contend they're being asked to work an unsafe number of hours to cover unfilled shifts, and say that it's unusual for negotiations at the hospital to deteriorate to the point where a strike felt like the best option.

"This time around, it truly felt different right from day one," said Scott Balko, Operating Room RN and President of the UPHS Marquette RN Staff Council/MNA. "It didn't seem like they had any interest. There's been a lot of delay tactics, no agreements on anything."

In a statement, hospital officials said they'd been preparing for a strike and said there was "a comprehensive plan in place to ensure that there is no interruption in care of our patients and community members."

This week's strike isn't the first time nurses in the Upper Peninsula have resorted to a strike in an attempt to address staffing concerns.

In 1994, 320 unionized nurses working at the hospital, then known as Marquette General Hospital, took to the picket lines to strike over pay, benefits and staffing levels, according to Associated Press reports from the time.

The two parties came to an agreement after more than 50 days of striking. Part of the settlement at the time involved creating a specific system for determining staffing levels within individual hospital units, according to a book detailing the history of the Michigan Nurses Association.

Registered nurse and current strike participant Kris Hough told ABC 10 she was involved in the 1994 strike, which resulted in some agreements between striking employees and employers by the strike's end. She told the news outlet current conditions are worse.

"It's much worse staffing now than it's ever been," she told ABC 10. "I'm an ER nurse, and I'm very overwhelmed as most of my coworkers in the hospital have been."

In Michigan and throughout the country, strikes have become less common over time, with the amount of strikes in the U.S. plummeting dramatically after the 1980s, said John Beck, an associate professor in the School of Human Resources & Labor Relations at Michigan State University.

For many unions, "it's very, very tough to go on strike" because of the possibility of losing jobs if companies decide to permanently replace striking employees, Beck told MLive during a recent interview on union activity in Michigan over time. "We've seen a lot less strikes, and we've seen a lot more savvy use of social media -- there's a good amount of tweeting and Facebooking from people in the union movement."

The two-day strike in Marquette is likely meant to be a symbolic "wake up call" to indicate the nurses are serious, Beck said.

"It's not necessarily saying that there will be longer-term action, but not necessarily ruling it out either," he said. "It really is meant to kind of put things into perspective for the parties."

State Sen. Tom Casperson, R-Escanaba, said Thursday he supports the nurses in Marquette and planned to join them at the strike on Friday. He's introduced a bill, SB 388, that would give nurses more leeway to refuse a hospital's request to work overtime following a full shift.

"They have a legitimate beef," Casperson said. "At the end of a 16, 17-hour day, you're spent. You're just not the same...they are reaching the end of their ropes."

Casperson said part of what makes the situation unusual is that medical professionals generally feel obligated to work through disagreements so the patients aren't negatively impacted. He said the frustrations that led to the strike could have been avoided had the hospital taken the nurses' concerns seriously.

"I know they don't want to do it -- they want to be inside the hospital taking care of the patients," he said.

Since the strike began, other unions throughout the state have expressed support for participating nurses, and members of the House Democratic Caucus posted a video of support in Lansing.

@jonhoadley behind the camera, getting the caucus fired up in support of Michigan nurses - https://t.co/aqtpObqAVV pic.twitter.com/9twjaBPZHY

-- MI House Democrats (@MIHouseDems) October 5, 2017

Balko said strike particpants have appreciated the support from members of the community and other organizations throughout the state, and said he hopes people see the strike as an issue of making the hospital safer for nurses and patients.
REDFORD, TWP, MI -- It's not often that a wanted man will contact police directly and offer to turn himself and bring a treat with him. However, on Friday, a man -- presumably wanted by police -- challenged the Redford township Police Department to get 1,000 shares of his post on Facebook and he would turn himself in.

Less than an hour later police are waiting for the wanted man to live up to his word.

CHALLENGE ACCEPTED! Mr. Champagne Torino has issued the RTPD a challenge. As you can see below, if we can have this... Posted by Redford Township Police Department on Friday, October 6, 2017

It's unknown what the man did to be wanted by police, but the department acknowledges there are outstanding warrants related to the man who made the post.

Once the post was shared by the department, almost immediately it started spreading before it hit the magic target of 1,000 shares about an hour after the department shared its post.

Now police are hoping the man behind the challenge will live up to his word and turn himself in along with the donuts he promised. The man also said he would clean up the grounds of public schools in the community.

And while police are not sure when or if the man will actually turn himself in, they are grateful to the community for helping them reach the goal so quickly.
A proposed agreement for Fitchburg to continue funding nonprofit groups such as the Boys & Girls Club of Dane County in 2018 is doomed to failure because there are not enough City Council members who will support it, Mayor Jason Gonzalez said.

A multifaceted agreement proposed Friday by Boys & Girls Club CEO Michael Johnson at a meeting with Fitchburg officials and business leaders calls for the city to commit $100,000 in its 2018 budget and for businesses to donate $22,500 to continue programming and essential services to needy children and families through funding from the city and private donations, Johnson said.

Its a bridge that could work for the interests for all, Johnson said.

Gonzalez said he told Johnson that he wouldnt veto an amendment to the citys 2018 budget that would include the proposed agreement but that he doesnt know of any City Council members who want nonprofit funding to go in that direction. He also questioned why Johnson would risk upsetting potential supporters by going on Facebook Live Friday and saying that he was told at the meeting that one reason an agreement hasnt been reached is that he isnt controlling the voices of black people in the community.

So were still at an impasse, Gonzalez said. It seems the more (Johnson) pushes, the more the council pushes back. Im not sure where this is going to end up.

Johnson questioned whether the council members are willing to give his proposal a close look and asked city officials and business leaders to keep meeting with him until they can come up with an agreement.

We have an opportunity to do whats right and put our egos aside and to sit down and meet and come up with a resolution, he said. Our kids deserve to be represented in this budget.

Funding for Fitchburg nonprofits came to the forefront last month when Gonzalez eliminated funding for three groups, including the Boys & Girls Club, from his proposed $20 million operating budget for 2018. The club received $50,000 in each of the past three budgets and two other nonprofits received a total of $25,000 in the 2017 budget.

Gonzalez said the cuts were necessary because of the need to increase services, including a new fire station, for the rapidly growing city. Exacerbating the increase in costs was a $650,000 cut in shared revenue from the state tied to higher-than-usual local spending in 2015, he said.

There was an almost immediate backlash from Johnson and others in support of him and the Boys & Girls Club. Johnson has been often outspoken as he has used social media to demand that Fitchburg match previous funding so the club can cover costs of providing transportation and meals for Fitchburg children at the clubs Allied Drive-area youth center.

On Tuesday, a local group announced that recall efforts to have Gonzalez removed from office have begun and will continue unless the funding is restored.

Gonzalez said there is wiggle room in the budget for a council member to introduce an amendment to fund nonprofits in 2018 but the money would be divvied up through a competitive process.

Gonzalez met with Johnson and other business leaders and city staff members Thursday and Friday to try to find a compromise. Everybody felt optimistic after Thursdays meeting that included a proposal by the mayor that would add $50,000 to the budget, via an amendment by a council member, that would be split evenly between a large nonprofit like the Boys & Girls Club and a grass-roots nonprofit, according to Gonzalez. His proposal also called for local businesses to donate $25,000 for the nonprofits.

Johnson called the meeting a good step in the right direction.

But Gonzalez said the meeting Friday morning took a step back when Johnson showed up with his proposal. On Facebook Live, Johnson said Gonzalez supported the concept of his proposal, but Gonzalez said that wasnt factual.

The first of the three facets of Johnsons proposal would be a contract between Fitchburg and the club to provide services to 850 adults and children in the city. The contract would include a financial commitment of $32,500 from the city, while the club would secure an additional $17,500 through private funding, Johnson said.

The second facet would be a competitive grant for nonprofits that provide food for needy families, and the third facet would be a competitive grant for nonprofits that would support new or existing programs through arts and culture, youth activities and elderly activities, Johnson said.

The proposal called for the city to make a financial commitment of $60,000 for the community impact grant and $7,500 for the food grant, Johnson said. Each grantee would receive $2,500 from local businesses, Johnson said.

Gonzalez immediately talked to some council members to determine if any would sponsor an amendment in support of the agreement.

I did not say to Michael that I would support such a proposal, Gonzalez said. I also said if I could get council to buy into it, there would be no more than $25,000 from the city to a big nonprofit.

Gonzalez said the only support he heard for an amendment was one council members Julia Arata-Fratta and Tony Hartmann plan to introduce at an Oct. 18 meeting that would direct $50,000 to fund nonprofits that serve the citys three neediest areas  the King James Way neighborhood, the area surrounding Allied Drive and the neighborhood bordered by Fish Hatchery, Post and Leopold roadsthrough a competitive bidding process overseen by multiple groups.

Weve been working on this for awhile. It levels the playing field, Hartmann said.

Its going to be all grant-based. No more earmarks. And thats what this is all about.  If you talk to any sane person, they like what the Boys & Girls Club offers. Thats not the issue. Just the way weve been funding them is wrong.

Hartmann also made it clear that the council is tired of Johnsons outspoken approach, especially considering all the gifts the city has given his club over the years. Gonzalez has accused Johnson of bully tactics and intimidation to get his way the past few weeks and during previous budget processes.

Johnson tried both a soft and hard approach during his talk on Facebook Live, but he finished in a fury in an effort to get people to show up and support his cause at a public hearing on the city budget next Tuesday evening at Fitchburgs City Hall. He said he was offended during the recent meetings when they kept telling me  the reason we cant get it done is that you arent controlling the voices of black people.  I just cant believe that is part of the conversation.

Johnson followed that by telling City Council members that they have to meet us halfway. If you dont, you are pretty much telling the community, You dont care. Lets stop with the deflective tactics. Nobody is bullying you all. Nobody is threatening you all. Nobody is calling your bosses. Weve raised the issues around budget and Im asking you to step up and make this right.

Gonzalez said 90 percent of the comments he has read via emails or heard during phone calls or in public places from Fitchburg residents has been supportive of his budget proposal. They say, Dont give in, he said.

The mayor said he was in disbelief when he heard Johnson say that he was told to control the voices of black people.

What was said to Michael at the meeting was that he set the tone on social media about stuff and people make comments, Gonzalez said. There was nothing said about you control all black people, so get them in line. There was nothing to that effect at all. I dont know where that came from.
GST

India Inc today welcomed the outcome of the GST Council meet and said the decisions will improve compliance and provide much needed relief to the taxpayers.

CII Director General Chandrajit Banerjee said that the SME sector compliance will greatly improve as limit for composition scheme has been increased to Rs 1 crore. Now for SMEs with annual turnover of Rs 1.5 crore will be allowed to file quarterly returns, this will be a big relief to the small-scale players.

Banerjee further commented that deferment of Reverse Charge Mechanism (RCM) is welcome as it encourages registered taxpayers to continue sourcing from small and unregistered taxpayers.

The decision to bring down rate for AC restaurants to 12 per cent and reduction of tax slabs for around 60 items to 5 per cent from 12 per cent will help boost household spending and further economic growth, he said.

Banerjee also stated that raising of turnover for composition scheme from Rs 75 Lakh to Rs 1 crore and deferment of E-way bill provisions till April 2018 are indeed a big relief which will help trade and industry in getting adjusted to the GST compliances.

Regarding the e-wallet scheme for exporters and move to reimburse them within the next week, CII said this was a much needed step and would help exporters save costs of working capital.

Exporters body FIEO's President Ganesh Kumar Gupta said that these initiatives will address the problem of the exporters particularly micro and small segments.

"The refund of GST for the month of July by 10th October and August by 18th October will address the liquidity concerns of the exporters," he said.

Gupta also welcomed the decision to introduce e-wallet, mooted by FIEO, at the introduction of the GST which will provide a permanent solution to the liquidity problem of the export sector.

These are very pragmatic decisions which show the flexible approach of the government which will ameliorate the problem of export sector and will impart much needed competitiveness to exports, Gupta said.

The GST Council today made sweeping changes to give relief to small and medium businesses on filing and payment of taxes, eased rules for exporters and cut tax rates on more than two dozen items.

Businesses with annual turnover of up to Rs 1.5 crore, which constitute 90 per cent of the taxpayer base but pay only 5-6 per cent of total tax, have been allowed to file quarterly income returns and pay tax instead of the current provision of monthly filings.

Also, the turnover threshold for businesses to avail of the composition scheme that allows them to pay 1-5 per cent tax without going through tedious formalities, was raised to Rs 1 crore from current Rs 75 lakh.

Small and medium enterprises had complained of tedious compliance burden under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) that was supposed to be a simple indirect tax regime which replaced over a dozen Central and state taxes.

The Council also decided to cut GST rate on 27 common use items. GST on unbranded namkeen, unbranded ayurvedic medicine, sliced dried mango and khakra has been cut to 5 per cent from 12 per cent, while the same on man-made yarn used in textile sector has been reduced to 12 per cent from 18 per cent.

Exporters, who have been facing sluggish growth due to global slowdown, will get refunds for the tax paid by them on exports during July and August by October 18, he said.

For the remainder of the fiscal, they will operate under an exempted category paying a nominal 0.1 per cent GST, he said, adding from April 1 attempt would be made to launch an e-wallet facility for the exporters to provide liquidity.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Friday announced some reforms in the mutual funds industry. The regulator has categorised mutual funds into five schemes  equity, debt, hybrid, solution oriented, and other schemes.

Fund houses will be allowed to have one scheme in each category, except for index funds/ETFs tracking indices, fund of funds and thematic schemes investing in different sectors.

The move is to bring in uniformity in the characteristics of similar type of schemes launched by different mutual funds and to standardise the scheme categories. The regulator wants funds to clearly distinct schemes in terms of asset allocation, investment strategy, etc.

The reforms, which were anticipated by the industry, will make it easier for investors to evaluate their options before investing.

The regulatory direction is supportive of our belief that for investors to make optimal choices, the industry needs to offer fewer well-defined choices rather than a plethora of clones," said Aashish Somaiyaa, MD & CEO of Motilal Oswal AMC.

As per the circular, mutual funds would have to carry out the necessary changes in all respects within a maximum of 3 months.

The solution oriented schemes will have a specified lock-in period, but that would not be applicable to the existing investments made by an investor, registered SIPs (systemic investment plans) and incoming STPs (systemic transfer plans) in the current solution oriented schemes.

SEBI also defined the large cap, mid cap and small cap companies. The first 100 companies in terms of market capitalisation will be categorised as large cap companies, 101-250th companies as mid caps, and comapanies on ranks 251 onwards, will be defined as small caps.

The list will get updated on the website of AMFI (The Association of Mutual Funds in India) two times in a year based on the data at the end of June and end of December of each year.

The said rule will be applicable on all existing open-ended schemes of mutual funds, schemes which have received Sebis clearance but not launched, all open-end schemes where draft documents have been filed with Sebi as on date and all open-end schemes where mutual fund is planning to file draft scheme document.
18:38 With this, we bring the liveblog for today's news updates to a close for now. Stay tuned for more updates.

18:29 PM Modi says we must boost India's standing in world education, adding that at the moment, Indian universities do not feature on the list of top 500 universities worldwide.

18:27 PM Modi says that our academics should not be exam driven but focused on innovation.

18:13 PM Modi says he is

committed to promote the IIT brand across the world.

18:05 Tech innovation is key to building Digital India, says PM in a public rally in IIT Gandhinagar.

17:56 China today said a healthy and stable relationship with India serves the fundamental interests of both the countries, as it downplayed the remarks by the Indian Air Force chief about a two-front war.

17:36 The Punjab and Haryana High Court today granted interim bail to Ryan International Group CEO Ryan Pinto, and his parents, founding chairman Augustine Pinto and managing director Grace Pinto, in connection with the killing of a 7-year-old student in a Gurgaon school run by the group.

17:24 Around 54,000 petrol dealers will be going on a 24 hour strike on October 13, CNN News 18 has reported.

17:04 Southern India Mills Association (SIMA) today said that the reduced rate of GST for MMF yarn from 18 to 12 percent would benefit the spinning and power loom sector.

The Wall Street Journal has reported that former Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan is one of the six economists to have made it to Clarivate Analytics' list of probable candidates for the Nobel Prize in economics.

Clarivate Analytics is a company involved in academic and scientific research and maintains a list of dozens of possible Nobel Prize winners based on research citations.

16:45 The newly-elected members of the Delhi unit of Congress today unanimously adopted a resolution urging Rahul Gandhi to take over as the party's president.

Gandhi is currently the Congress vice president and there have been reports that he could soon take over its presidency.

16:15 The Congress today accused the Modi government of wasting an opportunity to put India on the growth path through GST, which it said should be a "good and simple tax" rather than a "grossly scary tax".

16:12 Some 120 Islamic State fighters and 60 foreign mercenaries were killed in a series of Russian air strikes in Syria over the past 24 hours, the defence ministry in Moscow said today.



Aviation cannot be about rich people. We have made aviation affordable and within reach of the lesser privileged: PM @narendramodi

 PMO India (@PMOIndia) October 7, 2017

15:21 Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed the sweeping changes made in GST to give relief to small and medium businesses, saying his government does not want the country's business class to get caught in red-tape.

15:06 Prime Minister takes to the stage to address the public in Surendranagar district. Talking about the international airport in Rajkot, he says that the airport was built on barren lands, not on farmers' land.

14:17 Anguished by the passing away of Shri Kundan Shah. He will be remembered for his wonderful usage of humour and satire to showcase the life & struggles of common citizens. My thoughts are with his family & admirers. May his soul rest in peace: PM (Tweet from Prime Minister's Official handle)

14:10 Efforts are still on to extinguish the fire that broke out at a fuel tank farm of the Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) located on the Butcher Island off the east coast of Mumbai last evening, a top fire brigade official said, reports PTI.

The firefighters had brought the blaze under control, but "excessive heat" led to reignition at the tank around 4.30 am today, the official said.

According to officials, the fire had broken out around 5 pm on Friday when Mumbai and the surrounding areas witnessed thundershowers. However, no causality was reported.

13:20 Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron director Kundan Shah passes away at 69. Shah died of a heart attack, reports PTI. His last rites are likely to be held at Shivaji Park, Dadar, this evening.

Born on October 19, 1947, Shah studied direction at the Film and Television Institute of India in Pune and made his directorial debut with "Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro" in 1983.

13:00 PM Modi is addressing a public meeting at Dwarka, Gujarat

12:29 Kandla Port is seeing unprecedented growth. This is because we devoted resources to improve the port. New lease of life was added to Alang, steps were taken for the welfare of the labourers working there. These are steps we are taking towards development: PM

12:20 We will boost tourism by developing Dwarka. Dwarka bridge will help the poor. Building of infrastructure should enhance economic activities and add to the atmosphere of development: PM

12:17 Modi launches development schemes in Gujarat ahead of polls in the State. PM lays foundation stone of Bridge between Okha and Beyt Dwarka.

12:16 Previous Central governments did nothing to develop Gujarat: Modi

12:05 Prime Minister Modi is addressing the public in Gujarat after laying foundation stone for Ahmedabad-Rajkot highway

11:15 At Dwarka, PM Modi will lay the Foundation Stones of a bridge between Okha and Beyt Dwarka; and other road development projects. He will address a public meeting later.

From Dwarka, the Prime Minister will arrive in Chotila, in Surendranagar district. He will lay the Foundation Stones for a greenfield airport at Rajkot; six-laning of Ahmedabad-Rajkot National Highway; and four-laning of Rajkot-Morbi State Highway. He will also dedicate a fully automatic milk processing and packaging plant; and a drinking water distribution pipeline for Joravarnagar and Ratanpur area of Surendranagar.

11:10 PM at the Dwarkadhish Temple, tweets Prime Minister's office. Watch. http://narendramodi.in/watch-live

10:45 Prime Minister Narendra Modi reaches Jamnagar, marking the start of his 2-day Gujarat visit. Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, Deputy CM Nitinbhai Patel, Former CM Anandiben Patel and others welcomed him at the airport.

10:20 The implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) has led to reduction in collection of taxes by 22 per cent in Goa so far as compared to the revenue collection during the corresponding period last year, a senior official said.

State Commercial Taxes Department, which keeps a record of tax collection, said the drop is not expected to continue in the future, reports PTI.

The state government expects the GST to stabilise from January 2018 onwards.

10:06 The government will launch the next tranche of sovereign gold bond (SGB) scheme, the second in 2017-18, on October 9 to cash in on festive fever.

The bonds will be sold through banks, Stock Holding Corporation of India Limited (SHCIL), designated post offices and recognised stock exchanges namely the NSE and BSE, the finance ministry said in a statement today.

The sovereign gold bond scheme was launched in November 2015 with an objective to reduce the demand for physical gold and shift a part of the domestic savings, used for purchase of gold, into financial savings.

Read full story here.

9:50 The Goods and Services tax (GST) council on Friday cut rates on 27 items and 12 services, and approved sweeping changes in rules to soothe frayed nerves of millions of small enterprises and exporters that have been battling with procedural irritants, delayed refunds and technical glitches on returns filing.

Click here for the full list of revised rates on 27 goods and 12 services

9:30 Ahead of the assembly elections in Gujarat, the government has removed gems and jewellery dealers from the purview of the reporting requirement under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

This effectively means that a PAN card will not be needed for jewellery purchases of over Rs 50,000.

The government rolled back August 23 notification that notified dealers in precious metals, precious stones and other high value goods as persons carrying on designated business and professions under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.

Under the PMLA, every reporting entity is required to maintain record of all transactions of value exceeding Rs 10 lakh, all cross border wire transfers of more than Rs 5 lakh and all purchase and sale of immovable property of Rs 50 lakh or more.

Read full story here
Indian policemen march near a poster of Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu J. Jayalalitha in the southern Indian city of Madras May 6, 2004. Hundreds of policemen patrolled the streets of Madras to ensure security for the fifth and last stage of polls on Thursday. Tamil Nadu goes to polls on May 10. REUTERS/Babu AH/FA - RTRIVUN

The Madras High Court dispensed with the personal appearance of the principal secretary of the Election Commission K F Wilfred for the day but directed him to appear on October 13 with necessary documents in connection with the attestation of former chief minister Jayalalithaa's thumb impression on documents relating to a bypoll last year.

Nirajan Rajagopalan, counsel for Election Commission of India, submitted that the official could not appear today as earlier directed by the court as he was busy with the 'Two Leaves' symbol case which came up before the EC in New Delhi today.

Recording the submission, the judge directed the counsel to ensure the appearance of Wilfred on October 13 without fail.

The matter relates to a plea filed by P Saravanan, DMK candidate for the November 2016 Thirupparankundram assembly bypoll, challenging the election of AIADMK candidate A K Bose.

During the pendency of the case, he filed an additional affidavit questioning the validity of the election documents.

He contended that the thumb impression of Jayalalithaa had been obtained without her consent and knowledge, while she was unconscious with the "connivance" of doctors who attended to the former chief minister, and others.

He had also questioned the decision taken by the Election Commission to accept the left thumb impression of Jayalalithaa affixed on documents filed in support of the nomination papers.

He further submitted that following the attestation, the AIADMK candidate (Bose) was allowed to contest using 'two leaves' symbol under the 'defective form A and form B' of the documents, which had materially "affected the outcome of the election".
This State Journal editorial ran on Oct. 2, 1942:

Need for streamlining the Dane County Board, described as second-largest in the United States, continues.

The board itself, unfriendly toward any such change, showed a reluctance even to authorize public hearings on the advisability of a referendum on this subject. The boards special committee has completed three required hearings, but whatever its recommendation is to the board, the proposed question of Shall the state Legislature provide for a smaller government body for Dane County probably will not be presented to the voters in November.

War overshadows politics so completely at the present time that the County Board doubtless will take advantage of the fact and deny the somewhat indifferent voters the opportunity to pass upon this question.

The scandals of embezzlement, perjury and malfeasance by public servants under the eyes and administration of the County Board, the costly audit which was required to straighten out these matters, and the expensive investigations which these difficulties entailed all are part of the loose and lax type of administration characteristic of an oversized, 82-member government body such as Dane County tolerates.

Since the need for streamlining and modernization grows, rather than relaxes, during this period of stress, the State Journal will continue its fight for a change.
Railway Minister Piyush Goyal today called for innovation in making the railways safer while stressing that enough money is available for the purpose.

Speaking at the International Conference on Technological Advancements in Railway and Metro Projects, Goyal also said that budget allocations are a limitation and tend to hold back research and innovation.

"Personally, I believe a budget is a limitation, it holds you back. Allocation of a budget doesn't allow scientists to flourish as he wants to. Budgets restrict innovation," said Goyal as he called for out-of-the-box thinking to improve rail safety features like as signalling systems and fog vision for locomotive pilots.

The railways are embarking on a massive programme to ensure safety of the entire network, he said. "As much money as required is available for safety.

"I am not even saying it will be made available, I am saying it is available," he said, adding that he cannot make the railways safe without new ideas and he hoped that the conference will help generate innovations.

The rail minister also pointed to Vice President Venkaiah Naidu's speech on September 27 at the IISc Bengaluru where he said that innovation plays a key role in driving the knowledge-based economy.

To highlight his point, Goyal said that the last time a train with additional speed, comfort and safety features was introduced was way back in 1969 -- the Rajdhani Express.

"From 1969 to 2017 we have not embarked on any major new technological initiative that will take us to international standards of passenger safety, comfort, convenience and speed," he said.

Japan, he said, has progressed technologically as it has managed to create an ecosystem where scientists and researchers can think out-of-the-box.

"Our plan for the future is to create an ecosystem where the scientific community will choose to stay in India and not go to NASA," the minister said.

He said the railways is open to engaging with experts in improving the environment, stations and passenger convenience.

Enumerating his expectations from the scientific community, Goyal said he needs technology and knowhow to improve driver vision during foggy weather, make the signalling systems better, manufacture tracks faster and more efficiently, and predict track failures or fractures.

"I do believe that the time has come for us to aggressively go in for newer technologies and better ways of doing work. We will have to work collectively to see what can be done faster and smarter," he said.
October 07, 2017

Syria - Erdogan Is Afraid Of Entering Idleb

The Turkish President Erdogan announced the start of a Turkish operation in Idleb province of Syria. Idelb has been for years under the control of al-Qaeda in Syria, currently under the label Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.

In the talks in Astana, Turkey, Russia and Iran agreed on a deescalation zone in Idelb to be supervised by all three of them. But the fight against al-Qaeda, aka HTS, would continue. Turkey is supposed to control the western part of the province including the city of Idleb. But the Turkish government is afraid to go there.

During the last days there have been many reports and lots of pictures of Turkish force movements along the north-western Syrian border. But Turkey made no attempt to enter the country and it is doubtful that it will.

Erdogan's announcement needs some parsing:

"There's a serious operation in Syria's Idlib today and it will continue," Erdogan said in a speech to his AK Party, adding that Turkey would not allow a "terror corridor" on its border with Syria. "For now Free Syria Army is carrying out the operation there," Erdogan said. "Russia will be protecting outside the borders (of the Idlib region) and we will handle inside," he said. "Russia is supporting the operation from the air, and our armed forces from inside Turkey's borders," he added.

"[F]rom inside Turkey's borders" means of course that the Turkish army will not (again) enter Syria. At least not now.

Turkey has transferred some 800 of its "Turkmen" mercenaries from the "Euphrates Shield" area north-east of Aleppo [green] to the western border next to Idleb. "Euphrates Shield" was a fight against the Islamic State with the aim of interrupting a potential Kurdish "terrorist" corridor from north-east Syria to the north-western Kurdish enclave Afrin [beige]. Turkey lost a bunch of heavy battle tanks and some 70 soldiers in that fight. Erdogan was criticized in Turkey for the somewhat botched operation.

The Turkish proxy fighters now sent into Idleb belong to the Hamza Brigade, Liwa al-Mutasem and other Turkish "Free Syrian Army" outfits. They will have to go in without tanks and heavy weapons. Some Turkish special forces with them might be able to call up artillery support from within Turkey. But no Turkish air support will be available as Syria and Russia insist of staying in control of the airspace.

A recent video shows a group of HTS maniacs attacking an outpost like professional soldiers. They are equipped with AT-4 anti-tank missiles, 60mmm mortars, light machine guns and Milkor grenade launcher. They have good uniforms, fairly new boots and ammo carrier belts. This is not equipment captured from the Syrian army or second hand stuff from some former eastern-block country. It is modern "western" stuff. These folks still have some rich sponsor and excellent equipment sources.

Russia has in recent weeks extensively bombed al-Qaeda positions in Idleb. Turkish intelligence may have helped with that. But AQ still has a very decent fighting force. The Turkish supported forces are likely no match for well equipped and battle hardened al-Qaeda fighters.

Turkey had for nearly six years supplied and pampered al-Qaeda in Syria. The group has many relations and personal within Turkey. The Astana agreement now obligates Turkey to fight HTS. Erdogan sits in a trap he set up himself. Should it come to a conflict between HTS and Turkish forces in Syria, the fight would soon cause casualties in Ankara and Istanbul.

Erdogan might still believe that he can somehow domesticate HTS. The government controlled Anadolu agency does not even mention the al-Qaeda origin of the group nor its long control of the area. It is trying to paint a somewhat rosy picture of HTS as an anti-American outfit:

Tahrir al-Sham, an anti-regime group, has come to the forefront with increasing activity in Idlib recently. Tahrir al-Sham has not made a direct statement against the deployment of Turkish troops to the region. On the other hand, the group and some opponents oppose the entry of various Free Syrian Army groups to Idlib, which are prepared to come from the Euphrates Shield Operation Area. The group justifies the opposition, saying that other groups expected to arrive in the region get support from the United States.

The Turkish paper Hurriyet is less sensible with Erdogan's needs:

Idlib is largely controlled by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), spearheaded by a former al-Qaeda affiliate that changed its name last year from the Nusra Front. HTS is not party to a deal brokered by Russia, Turkey and Iran for the safe zone in the province, one of four such "de-escalation" zones nationwide. Ousting HTS forces from the area will be needed to allow the arrival of Iranian, Russian and Turkish forces to implement a de-escalation zone.

In Astana Erdogan was given the task to clean up the mess he earlier created in Idleb by supporting the Jihadis. Erdogan does not like the job but has no choice.

If the de-escalation fails because HTS stays in control, Syria and its allies will move into Idleb. Turkey will then have to cope with thousands of battle seasoned Jihdis and a million of their kinfolk as refugees. If Erdogan moves Turkish forces into the Idleb area it will become a very costly fight and he will soon be in trouble in his own realm. Making peace with HTS is not an option. HTS rejected all offers to "change its skin" and to melt away. Iran, the Astana agreement and a number of UN Security Council Resolutions also stand against that.

It will be difficult for Turkey to untangle that knot.

Posted by b on October 7, 2017 at 16:04 UTC | Permalink

Comments
Tom Price resigned his post as secretary of health and human services because the president didn't like the optics of his using taxpayer money to fly in private jets to venues easily accessible by commercial flights  or even by car. But plenty of others in the administration have exercised similar bad judgment and are still on the job.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin tried to commandeer a military plane for his honeymoon but was refused. However, he used a government plane to fly to Kentucky during the solar eclipse in August, with his wife in tow, ostensibly to visit Fort Knox. Mnuchin is worth nearly $400 million; if he wants to avoid commercial travel, he can afford to pay for private jets. That's what Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos does. She owns her own plane, which she uses for official travel, and doesn't charge the government a cent. Not so with Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke, who is under investigation for chartering a private plane so he could fly from Las Vegas to his hometown in Montana and another one to fly between Caribbean islands to attend a ceremony honoring Denmark, even though commercial flights were available in both cases. And Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin took his wife along for a 10-day trip to Europe that included both government business and several days of sightseeing, with the taxpayers footing the bill for the secretary's wife's travel and per diem. Zinke and Shulkin are relative paupers among Trump's Cabinet; Shulkin is worth about $17 million, and Zinke is worth just under $2 million. Forbes magazine estimates the Cabinet's total net worth at $4.3 billion, the richest in modern history.

Trump's Cabinet members aren't the first in history to abuse their travel schedules, and the president did force Price to resign, though the failure of health care reform may have been the real impetus and the travel just a good excuse. However you look at it, Trump's swamp is deeper than most administrations'. His own conflicts of interest are legion: His Washington hotel is a magnet for foreign governments and lobbyists trying to curry favor; his sons get Secret Service protection while they fly around the world attending to Daddy's empire, at a cost of millions to the taxpayers; his daughter and her husband occupy prime West Wing offices without any experience or expertise to justify their expansive portfolios; and, despite promising to distance himself from managing his financial holdings, he reportedly gets frequent updates from his sons, which would be illegal for any other government official.

Trump's supporters don't seem to care. They still believe he'll "drain the swamp" as he promised. I'm still waiting to learn what a deal breaker would look like to the most die-hard Trumpkins. Maybe there isn't one for the one-third of voters who have been with him from the beginning. They've stuck by through Trump's embarrassing lack of knowledge about policy. Remember the nuclear triad and the Quds Force? Trump had no clue about the former, which Sen. Marco Rubio gently schooled him on during the presidential debate, and now he commands the nuclear-armed submarines, bombers and ballistic missiles, which he could launch without any check on his power. As for the elite Iranian troops, they've killed Americans in Iraq and committed unspeakable crimes against the Syrian people, but has Trump ever learned the difference between the Quds Force and the Kurds, our allies in Iraq?

It might be one thing if his supporters could point to major achievements of this administration, but so far those achievements have been elusive. Yes, he got an excellent Supreme Court justice through confirmation, and his administration has made some important changes in regulatory policy. But there is no major legislation to point to, and he's yet to learn how to use the power of the presidency to get his own party members in Congress to get things done.

Trump supporters may be willing to ignore the administration's ethical failures, but Congress shouldn't. And the broader American electorate will send the GOP a message in 2018 if things don't change.

Linda Chavez is the author of "An Unlikely Conservative: The Transformation of an Ex-Liberal." To find out more about Linda Chavez, visit www.creators.com.
I am Kerry Burgess. This is what I think.
Mount Pleasant, SC (29464)

Today

Rain and scattered thunderstorms in the afternoon. High 72F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms during the evening, then cloudy skies overnight. Low 56F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
The price of oil tumbled nearly 5 percent this week, ending a four-week stretch of gains.

West Texas Intermediate futures contracts for November delivery settled Friday at $49.29 a barrel, down $1.50 (2.95 percent) on the day and down $2.38 (4.61 percent) for the week.

WTI dropped in price very day except Thursday, when it rose by 81 cents and set a week high. Fridays close was the week low. WTI had spent 10 consecutive trading days in the $50s until Wednesday, when it dipped two cents below that mark.

WTI has an average price of $49.39 and is down $3.04 (5.81 percent) this year. Its year high is $54.45, and its low is $42.53.

Crude oil stocks tumbled and exports jumped, according to the Energy Information Administrations weekly inventories report, released Wednesday.

Commercial crude supplies fell by 6 million barrels to 465 million barrels. The Strategic Petroleum Reserve saw a drawdown of 1 million barrels, leaving 673.6 million barrels in inventory.

Total motor gasoline inventories rose by 1.6 million barrels to 218.9 million barrels. Distillates were down by 2.6 million barrels to 135.4 million barrels.

Domestic crude oil production was slightly higher by 14,000 barrels per day to 9.561 million barrels per day. Imports fell by 213,000 barrels per day to 7.214 million barrels per day, while exports rose by 493,000 barrels per day to 1.984 million barrels per day.

Plains Marketing did not have new posted prices as of late Friday afternoon.

In other futures trading Friday, December contracts fell by $1.50 to $49.65 a barrel, January dropped $1.52 to $49.92 and February was down $1.52 to $50.12.
You Can Now Purchase Stock In Eminems Royalties

In what could be the canary in the coalmine for music business, rapper Eminem is now allowing stock in his music royalties to the buying public via the Royalty Exchange owned company Royalty Flow. Cha-ching Slim Shady.

____________________________

Guest post by Bobby Owsinski of Music 3.0

In what may be the wave of the future, a company offering stock in rapper Eminems music royalties will soon hit the stock market. The new company owned by Royalty Exchange (a company that brokers royalties) called Royalty Flow filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to raise between $11 million and $50 million via a Regulation A+ crowdfunding effort. This is a little complicated, but significant.

First is the fact that stock crowdfunding is now legal, which means that a company doesnt have to undergo the expensive underwriting costs of an investment bank in order to be publicly traded. Royalty Flow expects to sell stock in some of Eminems future royalties for $15 per share, with a minimum investment of $2,250 (150 shares). It will then purchase anywhere from 15 to 25% of the available royalty stream, depending on how much money it raises.

Now heres where it gets a little complicated. The royalties actually come from the FBT Productions, the company that signed and developed Eminem and owns his contract. The rappers personal royalty stream is not involved. To date, the Eminem catalog has sold 172 million albums worldwide, while Nielsen Music says 47.4 million of them have been sold in the United States. Its also one of the most heavily streamed catalogs online. 25% of FBT royalties for last year amounted to around $1.3 million, according to Royalty Flow.

This isnt the first time that an artist has issued securities based on their catalog. David Bowie sold his famous Bowie Bonds in the early 1990s in order to raise enough money to buy himself out of his management contract. James Brown, the Isley Brothers and Holland-Dozier-Holland, among others, have also issued bonds based on their publishing catalogs in the past.

Crowdfunding stock is a bit different and brand new, and may open up the door for more artists to do the same in the future though. Expect to see some other major artists, management or production companies attempt the same in the future.

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Small Bites is back with news on area restaurants and food trends.

Appetizers

See photos here from Thursday's Oktoberfest: The Beer, Sausage and Pretzel Festival at Bank of America Plaza in downtown.

The West Texas Food Bank was among 20 food banks across Texas to benefit from H-E-B's Help End Hunger. The campaign raised more than $734,000, which will help provide more than 3.3 million meals to people in need.

Now Open

Perhaps the biggest news in the local food scene is the opening of Buttermilk Sky Pie Shop. After building much anticipation on its Facebook page with contests and "coming soon" posts, the homemade pie shop has opened in the Cornerstone shopping center. Owner Lisa Forga said that they are in the soft opening right now.

"We're looking at a grand opening sometime in the next two weeks as of right now," she said.

She and husband Dwayne Forga are the licensed franchise owners of the location.

With a rustic charm and cozy space, Buttermilk Sky Pie's full menu includes fresh homemade pies with daily and seasonal flavors. Currently, the Midland location will start with three pie flavors: pecan, buttermilk and the signature I-40 pie made with chocolate chips, pecans, toasted coconut and pecan pie filling. Pies are sold in a 4-inch size for $4.25 and a nine-inch size for $26.

As more staff are hired and trained, the shop will begin increasing its flavor options.

The shop will also add menu options such as ice cream and thumbprint cookies.

Pies aren't the only items for sale. Buttermilk Sky has a mercantile side that includes t-shirts, mugs and even soy candles with a sweet tea scent.

Buttermilk Sky Pie Shop is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday. See more photos on MRT's Instagram here.

On the Menu

For his November Wine Dinner at Opal's Table, Chef Chip Hight has released his four-course menu. The dinner will feature labels by Silver Oak Winery with a representative providing tastings notes with each pairing.

The dining event will be at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 16. Reservations are $85 per person and can be made online. The restaurant is located at 223 W. Wall St.

The menu includes:

Goat cheese and herb-stuffed mushrooms

Venison stew

Prime rib with mashers, green beans and au jus

Chocolate truffles.

The Garlic Press will hosts its popular Beer Dinner this month. The restaurant recently posted its menu for the dinner. The dining event is scheduled at 7 p.m. Oct. 23. Reservations are $80 per person and can be made by calling 432-570-4020. The restaurant is located at 22 W. Wadley Ave .

The five-course menu includes:

Chilled mussels with glass noodles, Thai basil, mango, sweet chile and fried shallot. Paired with Adelbert's Brewery Mosaic Pale Lemon Rye.

Brick Chicken with preserved lemon, thyme, black garlic, yogurt, lemony rocket greens. Paired with Community Beer Company Yessir! Pale Ale.

House-made black breead with obazda (Bavarian cheese dip) and grilled andouille sausage. Paired with Ayinger Oktober Fest-Marzen.

Alder-smoked Wagyu short rib from Midland Meat Co. with charred broccoli rabe, butter beans and milk-braised winter squash. Paired with Oskar Blues Hotbox Coffee Porter.

Flourless dark chocolate fig torte with spiced candied hazelnuts, black tea ice cream. Paired with Avery Brewing Co. Chai High.

Brunch Bunch

Chef Timm Rogers (Lori's Cafe, Taste of 508) is teaming up with Flying Y Farms for his first Farm-To-Table Brunch dining event. Rogers hasn't released the menu yet and with good reason. For absolute freshness, he's waiting to see what's picked on Wednesday for his Saturday meal.

"I'm going to do four courses with vegan options available," he said.

The menu will showcase his fusion of Mexican and Thai cuisines into the champagne brunch.

The Farm-To-Table Brunch is at 11 a.m., Oct. 14 at Flying Y Farms, 3456 FM 1212 in Tarzan. Reservations are $55 per person or $100 per couple. RSVP by calling 806-789-4177 or by visiting Flying Farms online.

High Bar

The Blue Door announced its newest cocktail for October. Fight Like a Girl was created to for Breast Cancer Awareness and it's appropriately pink for the month. The bubbly drink is made with Tito's vodka, Cava sparkling wine, cranberry and lemon. Proceeds from the drink will go to Pink the Basin.

Meal Deals

October is National Pizza Month and Thrillist revealed that Papa John's is offering one heck of a deal.

The pizza chain's buy one get one free deal comes with a free bonus pizza if you use the Visa Checkout option.

The free extra pizza will actually be a promo code that is emailed and good up to 30 days. The deal is available for a limited time but no specific date has been announced.

Upcoming food, drink and restaurant events

Saturday | Midland Downtown Farmers Market celebrates National Farmers Day. The market is open Saturdays through Oct. 28. 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. at Museum of the Southwest, 1705 W. Missouri Ave.

Saturday | Post-Symphony Mixer by the MOSC Symphony Young Professionals. 9 p.m. at Proof, 7270 E. Highway 191, Odessa.

Wednesday | October Wine Dinner features a four-course meal with wines by Duckhorn Vineyards. 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at Opal'sTable, 223 W. Wall St. $85. opalstable.com.

Wednesday | Trivia Game Night, 7 p.m. Wednesdays at True Texas BBQ, 5407 Andrews Hwy. Free.

Oct. 13 | The 17th Annual Breast Cancer Awareness Chili and Bar-B-Que Cook Off. The CASI and IBCA sanctioned event. benefits Gifts of Hope, Hope House and Look Good Feel Good Shop. 5 p.m. at American Legion, 501 Veterans Airpark Lane. $25-$150. patsyscookoff.com.

Oct. 13 | Kids Que will be held in conjunction with the 17th annual Breast Cancer Awareness Cook-off. Hosted by Midland Meat Company. Categories are or ages 6-10 and 11-16. 5:45 p.m. at American Legion, 501 Veterans Airpark Lane. patsyscookoff.com.

Oct. 13 | West Texas Fest 2017, a fundraiser supporting the Ellen Noel Art Museum's exhibitions and programs. Guests can enjoy beer, wine and whiskey tastings along with live music and a corn hole tournament. 6 p.m. at CAF High Sky Wing, 9612 Wright Drive. $40 advance, $45 door. noelartmuseum.org.

Oct. 13 | Midland Downtown Farmers Market Founders Day Celebration with birthday cake, jumpers, photo booth and more. This marks the closing of the summer season of the market. 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Oct. 28. Museum of the Southwest, 1705 W. Missouri Ave.

Nov. 9 | Second Annual Divas and Desserts: Rock of Ages benefiting Permian Playhouse. Local talent will sing the hits of the '80s followed by appetizers and dessert bar. 7 p.m. at CAF Airpower Museum, 9600 Wright Drive. Permianplayhouse.com.

Nov. 13 | LaVenture Beer Sessions Dinner Series with San Antonio brewery Alamo Beer Company. The dining event will offer five courses with five craft beer pairings. 6 p.m. Nov. 13 at Hotel Saint George in the Laventure, 105 S. Highland Ave., Marfa. $50. Reservations can be made by emailing jeff@marfasaintgeorge.com or by calling 432-729-3701.
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Police arrested a suspect on Friday who they say is behind a series of lewd actions and comments toward children in the Dallas-area.

Grapevine Police say Kenneth Dewayne Roblez, 38, a registered sex offender from Dallas, entered a Target in Grapevine on Sunday and approached a 9-year-old girl to make lewd comments about assaulting her.
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Volusia County residents have a few days left to sign up for Operation Blue Roof in their local area.

Volusia residents running out of time for Operation Blue Roof

Right of Entry Centers closing Oct. 9

Operation Blue Roof temporarily repairs damaged roofs

The sign-up locations, called Right of Entry centers, will be closing Oct. 9, 2017.

Local government officials, FEMA and the Corps cited dwindling numbers of sign-ups for the closures.

Operation Blue roof is a FEMA mission carried out by the Corps of Engineers and their contractors, who cover roofs with fiber-reinforced plastic sheeting until residents can arrange permanent repairs.

This is a free service for homes that are a primary residence, or for permanently occupied rental properties that meet eligibility requirements.

Residents of those Blue Roof-eligible counties can still sign up in neighboring counties that have a Right of Entry center still open.

For those who have signed up for the service in counties where the ROE centers are closing, the mission isn't over yet.

"Our job isn't done until we've visited every home that has filled out a right of entry form," said Chris Stoltz, Operation Blue Roof mission specialist.

As of Oct. 6, 2017, the Corps of Engineers had installed 2,511 roofs on eligible roofs in Florida. More than 10,000 residents in Florida signed up for the program.


Health Bozeman, newly appointed Plainview area engineer for the Texas Department of Transportation, met with Hale County Commissioners at Fridays work session to introduce himself and discuss the agencys future operations in Hale County. Thats despite the fact that he was on a first-name basis with just about everyone there.

Bozeman, who replaces Mike Craig as area engineer, is a longtime local resident. His wife, Kelly, teaches at Coronado Middle School, their oldest daughter is a graduate of Plainview High who attends West Texas A&M University, and their other two children attend Plainview public schools.

Although living in Plainview, for the past decade Bozeman has been working throughout the state with TxDOT, including assignments in Austin, El Paso and Beaumont. For the past three years, he was district design engineer out of the Amarillo TxDOT office. He assumed his new post in Plainview about three weeks ago.

Bozeman told commissioners that Lubbock District Engineer Steve Warren is stressing three principal points for TxDOT employees in this area: 1. Focus on safety  both TxDOT crews and the traveling public; 2. Follow the chain of command; 3. Work with local governmental agencies  with both assistance and cooperation. Already, Bozeman is working with Precinct 2 Commissioner Mario Martinez on specifications for county roads that will be used by heavy equipment during the construction of wind turbines in the Petersburg area.

Commissioners reminded Bozeman that a bridge on County Road Z west of prison is on TxDOTs list for repairs. The roadway across the bridge is closed for safety reasons.

In other action:

--County Treasurer Ida Tyler reported that current accounts payable total $1,212,809.05, including about $800,000 in interfund transfers within the countys precincts, along with a $218,769 reimbursement to the Texas Association of Governments after a recalculation on stop-gap payments for health benefit payouts.

--Learned from Covenant Health representative Lamar Hayes that the Wellness Testing Program for Hale County employees will be Nov. 9 at the Ollie Liner Center.

--Reviewed action items on Mondays agenda, including a proposal for new trees at the courthouse from Roberts Tree House, appointment of Judge Bill Coleman and Larry Williams to the Hale County Industrial Development Corp. board, a request from the Parade of Breeds to participate in the installation of overhead fans at the Ollie Liner Center, review usage charges and rental guidelines for the Ollie Liner Center and RV Park, approve a bond for new Precinct 1 Constable Brent Hackett, and approve polling locations and election judges for the Nov. 7 Constitutional Amendment Election.

Mondays meeting begins at 9 a.m. at the Hale County Courthouse, 500 Broadway, and is open to the public.
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BART should be fined $220,000 and overhaul lax safety rules and practices that contributed to the deaths of two workers on a track near Walnut Creek in 2013, a state hearing officer recommended Friday.

The evidence in this case shows that there may be a serious safety culture problem at BART, said Kimberly Kim, an administrative law judge for the state Public Utilities Commission.

Christopher Sheppard, 58, of Hayward, a BART track engineer, and Lawrence Daniels, 66, of Fair Oaks (Sacramento County), a contract employee, were fatally struck by a train in October 2013 while they were checking on a reported dip in the tracks between the Walnut Creek and Pleasant Hill stations.

The accident happened on the second day of a strike by union employees that lasted four days. The train, traveling at 60 to 70 mph, was being operated by a manager who was being trained to take over driver duties in the event of an extended walkout.

At the time, BART trains did not slow down during routine track maintenance, and workers were supposed to look out for their own safety. A coroners report found that neither of the workers had been acting as a lookout for oncoming trains.

State regulators with Cal/OSHA found the practice unsafe in 2014 and fined BART $210,000. The district has also settled a suit by Daniels family for $300,000. BART has since changed its policy.

Kim found numerous safety violations in Fridays decision. She said a veteran BART manager, Paul Liston, who was supposed to be training and supervising the operator, instead had been on his cell phone for hours, including the moments before the accident. Five top-level managers on the train did nothing to stop him, Kim said.

She said neither Liston nor the train operator, Richard Burr, sounded the horn as they approached the work site, and other managers failed to warn them of the presence of track workers. Kim also said BART was supposed to investigate the accident and file its report with the Public Utilities Commission within 60 days, but did not submit its report until January 2017.

Kim said the violations warranted $659,000 in fines, but recommended that BART pay only one-third of that amount while upgrading its practices. She said the transit district, within six months, should propose improvements to its safety training programs and require managers to undergo at least 40 hours of training, with the PUC monitoring its compliance.

BART or a PUC member can seek review of Kims decision by the full commission. BART spokeswoman Alicia Trost said the district is reviewing the decision.

After the 2013 accident, Trost said in a statement, BART moved swiftly to implement profound changes to its trackside procedures.

Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter:@egelko
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Facebook employees were embedded in President Donald Trumps digial operations in San Antonio, adviser Brad Parscale told CBS News 60 Minutes in an interview scheduled to run Sunday.

Parscale ran the digital operation out of San Antonio widely credited with helping Trump win last year and thats now under scrutiny as part of a broader look at Russias meddling in the 2016 election. Parscale, whos agreed to meet with House lawmakers investigating the matter, oversaw the campaigns targeted social media outreach as digital director.

Meet the Trump campaign digital director whose strategic use of Facebook political ads may have been a critical factor in Donald Trumps victory, CBS News said the press release.

Asked about the campaigns use of Facebook, Parscale told Lesley Stahl the campaign took opportunities that I think the other side didnt, according to a clip of the segment posted Friday.

Well we had their staff embedded inside our offices, Parscale said of Facebook. Facebook employees would show up for work every day in our offices.

Facebook, Google and Twitter employees were there multiple days a week, Parscale said, helping them learn how to use the platform. Parscale had previously said that his staff worked side-by-side with staff provided by Facebook, Twitter and Google, according to a statement he posted July 14 to Twitter.

Parscale has been making headlines this year for major changes to his business, as well as for agreeing to interview with the U.S. House Intelligence Committee as part of its ongoing investigation into Russias meddling in the 2016 presidential election.

I have accepted a request from the House Intelligence Committee to meet with them for a voluntary interview, and I look forward to sharing with them everything I know, Parscale said in the July statement.

Parscale said at the time that the presidential campaign used the same online marketing strategies as corporate America and that he wasnt aware of any Russian involvement in the digital and data operations.

Earlier that month, Parscale also said he was moving his firms political data and marketing operation from San Antonio to Florida in pursuit of an airport with more direct flights. And it was later announced on August 1 that Giles-Parscale was selling its commercial design and online services to e-commerce service provider CloudCommerce in a deal valued at $9 million.

Although he has moved his political work to Florida in search of better airports with more direct flights to Washington and New York, Parscale told the Express-News this summer he considers San Antonio his home.

The story is scheduled to broadcast on 60 Minutes on the CBS Television Network on Oct. 8, and 60 Minutes runs from 6 to 7 p.m. CDT.

sehlinger@express-news.net | Twitter: @samehlinger
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TV star Mario Lopez fired back at a San Antonio chef and restaurateur on his national radio show today saying he never called asking for a free meal.

The comments came after a Facebook post by Jason Dady pointed to a certain celebrity calling his new restaurant Range and asking for a free meal in exchange for a single Instagram post promoting it.

Dady never actually named the celebrity, but liked another post suggesting Lopez was the culprit. He then posted a GIF, or moving image, of the actor during his Saved by the Bell days. Haters gonna hate, Slaters gonna slate, the GIF read around a grainy old pic of Lopez, who played A.C. Slater on the popular show in the late 80s and early 90s.

After a mySA.com story reporting these posts landed Lopez back in the Hollywood buzz, as the Extra host put it, Lopez decided to publicly broach the controversy on his iHeart Radio program, On with Mario Lopez.

He explained that his schedule left little time for anything other than crashing at his hotel, attending the Ultimate Womens Expo alongside Charo and eating a quick meal on the way to the airport at this Mexican restaurant I always go to (Mi Tierra).

Circling back to the buzz created by the Facebook posts by Dady, Lopez completely distanced himself from the incident. This ones funny, he said on the broadcast. Either this guy got punkd  someone phone-pranked him  or he has a shady publicist and theyre trying to get press. Its really, really funny.

Told of Lopezs radio comments, Dady found it the opposite of funny.

I just have a problem that hes using his platform to try to separate himself from it and forcing me to respond, Dady said in a phone chat, emphasizing that up until then, he has had no comment for the media.

Its funny that I have a shady publicist when our publicist had nothing to do with it, absolutely zero. It all came from one Facebook post on my personal page, he added.

He said that he wouldnt have posted the incident in the first place had it not been for the rudeness of the man who requested the meal on behalf of Mario Lopez.

We called back to decline, he wrote on Facebook, and literally got hung up on.

Dady mentioned the mans name, but attempts to confirm it via email and a phone call were unsuccessful.

Dady was willing to let all the media attention die a natural death until hearing of Lopezs broadcast today. Weve been saying all week that this is hilarious. We cant even believe this became a story, but its the day and age of social media that we live in.

I was a little taken aback by his response on the radio show. It again basically accepted zero responsibility that he has people that are making these phone calls on his behalf ... vs. just owning it and saying Hey, maybe it was a miscommunication. Maybe he didnt represent it to the restaurant the way I would have done it, and Im sorry.

Instead, Lopez decided to disparage our PR team, and I think thats incredibly ridiculous, Dady said.

The ball is now in Lopezs court, if he cares to pick it up. At the suggestion of Jimmy Villarreal, a talent booker in L.A. who provided a link to Lopezs radio segment as well as the stars number, attempts were made to reach the star. They were not successful.

jjakle@express-news.net
Everybody in Texas knows rice and beans. But get ready for a different take on the classic combination with the opening of Hoppin John in the former home of the beloved Saigon Express, which closed April 7.

The new business at 1626 McCullough Ave. is the latest project from couple April Carter and Guillermo Galvan, who previously operated several Dickeys Barbecue Pit locations in San Antonio and a chain of taquerias in the McAllen area.
Police have given the all-clear at a Heights-area Walmart Friday night after a bomb threat was called into the store, according to the Houston Police Department.

Authorities received the bomb threat around 6:45 p.m. for the Walmart at 111 Yale St. Police were investigating inside as customers remain in the parking lot.
Andrew Cuomo's attempts to get national attention for his 2020 presidential run is like watching a hog on ice.

Lots of look-at-me squealing and expended energy, but not much progress.

Even after two recent "humanitarian" trips to hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, which gave him platforms to sound statesman-like and to repeatedly take the man in the White House to task, Cuomo regardless remains not much in the national political conversation. U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand yes, Andrew Cuomo no. It's got to be frustrating for him. Although, granted, it's early and the national political scene remains wildly unfocused.

As we recall from his responses in-state to Hurricanes Lee and Irene and Tropical Storm Sandy, the governor is drawn to the scenes of natural disasters. He generally acquits himself very well at them. He's good on his feet.

However, in the governor's eagerness to get down there and help out, apparently liberties were taken with the state ethics laws. A particularly sensitive area for the governor.

Cuomo and his entourage flew to the Virgin Islands on a private jet to survey the damage paid for by New York City billionaire John Catsimatidis. The general counsel to the state ethics watchdog, JCOPE, offered the legal opinion that because of the state of emergency and the public benefit that would accrue, it was acceptable for the governor and staff to take the free gift and that the trip was legal.

However, it turns out one of Catsimatidis's businesses directly benefited from legislation signed by the governor just two days before the flight, according to published accounts.

"There are two separate standards to consider here," opines state ethics guru and frequent JCOPE critic David Grandeau. "The governor's and the donor's. It's a gray area in terms of the governor, and he's probably okay under the circumstances in accepting the gift. Not the best idea, but okay. But Catsimatidis is a client of a state-registered lobbyist with business before the state and is therefore subject to the lobbying law." Grandeau said such gifts are simply "not allowed."

And as for the waiver given by the general counsel's opinion, the law does not allow that either, says Grandeau. "The law is clear that only the commissioners themselves meeting in public can do that."

Thickening the soup is the unsurprising revelation that JCOPE, long viewed as an extension of the governor's office, seems to have a double standard when it comes to gifts from this particular billionaire. When Cuomo wants a free ride to the Virgin Islands, it's okay, but when a nonprofit lobbyist promoting Cuomo rival New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio's agenda takes $20,000 from Catsimatidis, subpoenas from JCOPE come flying.

"Let's be clear, JCOPE is corrupt," claims Grandeau. "It is not an honest broker."

Interestingly, the governor did not take another free ride from Catsimatidis when he and another entourage of staffers subsequently flew to the horrors of storm-tossed Puerto Rico. They flew courtesy of JetBlue, which flies commercially to the island.

Battered ethics, in many manifestations, continues to plague the Cuomo administration, in spite of his oft repeated assertion his administration has done more than any other in 60 years to clean up Albany. We are just around the corner from 2018, a state re-election year for legislators and the governor, the latter looking for a third term. The year will also bring us an incredible daisy chain of federal corruption trials and retrials the total which will likely reveal in redundant and exquisite detail the inner workings of the Cuomo administration.

Even as the Legislative session begins in January with the governor giving his vision for New York, and presumably the country, the trial of close Cuomo operative Joe Percocco will begin in New York City. It's not hard to guess which will be playing second fiddle for media attention, the lawmakers or alleged law breaker.

In May, just as the session winds down, a trial is scheduled for former SUNY nano mastermind Alain Kaloyeros and a host of upstate developers, although as much on the block for scrutiny will be the governor's upstate economic development schemes, and those who carried out his wishes.

Still fluid, but assumed for next year are the promised retrials of former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos and his son, Adam. All saw their corruption convictions overturned because of a subsequent Supreme Court ruling that narrowed official corruption.

My lawyer friends, though, remind me that in both cases the court acknowledged there was sufficient evidence to reconvict, even under the newest ruling. The convictions were overturned because since the law changed, the judges' instructions to the respective juries were no longer valid.

Silver's case is pending before the U.S. Supreme Court, so that's on hold for now, but not so the Skelos retrial. A plea deal before a retrial is always a possibility, although seemingly remote.

The sum of all these trials is a breathtaking richness and detail into how business is done in Planet Albany. Which should bring the governor the national attention he deserves after all.

flebrun@timesunion.com  518-454-5453
On the occasion of the World War I centennial, the state Division of Military and Naval Affairs is issuing articles and period photographs based on information provided by the state Military Museum in Saratoga Springs. Here, soldiers of the 165th Infantry Regiment are watched by local residents as they parade at the Nassau County fairgrounds in the fall of 1917 while waiting to go to war in France.
Less than 24 hours after a shooting massacre in Las Vegas left 58 people dead, Sean Hannity was on his Fox News program talking to his audience about one of his favorite subjects: liberals. That night he was focused on the "despicable" ones whom he accused of "politicizing" the mass shooting. They have "no shame," he said. Did his viewers hear about the CBS lawyer who was fired for a Facebook comment saying she had "no sympathy" for any "Republican gun toters" among the victims?

Then he mentioned a tweet that he said had been sent his way. It was written by "a teacher," can you believe it? Hannity paraphrased the tweet: "Oh they're probably Trumptards. I hope only Trumptards were killed."

Hannity's viewers were horrified. Who was she? Has she lost her job? They weren't the only ones wondering.

An image of that tweet, from a user named @TheResistANNce, was shared tens of thousands of times before Hannity mentioned it on his show. It prompted the usual machinations of the Internet's outrage cycle: finding, naming and shaming the teacher out of her online anonymity to get her fired from her job. But there's one problem: A mounting pile of evidence strongly suggests that the hated liberal teacher behind @TheResistANNce doesn't exist.

"I'm sure the tweet was either a 'troll prank' or fake," emailed Janne Ahlberg, who runs the @HoaxEye account on Twitter. Ahlberg investigates visual hoaxes online as a hobby, particularly those that go viral on Twitter. He's pretty experienced at it, and this tweet raised his suspicions almost immediately. But on the Internet, virality often outpaces verification. Days after @TheResistANNce became embedded in the Internet's collective memory as a villain who to conservative eyes symbolized all that was vile about liberals, Ahlberg still doesn't know exactly how this tweet came to be.

What he does know is that several things about the tweet don't add up.

First, there was the way it circulated. @TheResistANNce's viral tweet seems to exist only in a single image, taken when the tweet had zero likes or retweets - indicating that the image was taken before very many people had discovered it. The image also showed @TheResistANNce's profile, which said that the account was created in November 2011.

An anonymous Twitter account called the Columbia Bugle was one of the first accounts with a large following to tweet out the image. As it circulated, @TheResistANNce's Twitter account was still active, but it suddenly looked very different.

The account's creation date said it "May 2017 instead of "November 2011." And instead of the middle-aged woman seen in the viral image, the account's profile image was now that of a younger man. The tweet about "trumptards" was nowhere to be seen. Instead, when Ahlberg checked, the account showed only one tweet that seemed to be a promotion for a podcast. (The newer profile picture also happens to be the first Google image search result for the full name of one of that podcast's hosts.)

The archival material available on @TheResistANNce is more or less nonexistent. Neither Google's cache nor the Internet Archive's Wayback machine have archived versions of the account available. A reverse image search turns up no matches for the profile picture of the older woman seen in the image. And, as both Ahlberg and I have found out while looking into this tweet, the two people on the Internet who say for sure that they saw the actual tweet, and not the image of it, aren't exactly forthcoming with more information.

First, there's "SPOOKY," the nickname on a Twitter account that appears to belong to a Midwestern teen. Even though the image of @TheResistANNce's tweet was taken before anyone had liked or retweeted it, there is one, single reply to the tweet. That reply is from "SPOOKY," and it's not appropriate for a family newspaper's website.

For those sharing the tweet, "SPOOKY" became a viral hero for putting @TheResistANNce in her place with a sexist, obscene insult. But when Ahlberg and others began asking him how he found the tweet - or perhaps whether he knew anything about its creation, "SPOOKY" set his Twitter account to private and then deleted it altogether. He didn't respond to a request for comment from The Washington Post sent by Facebook messenger on Tuesday to a profile that appears be his.

And then there's the anonymous Twitter user who says they took the image. This person replied to HoaxEye on Twitter claiming that the image was genuine, and promised to answer some of Ahlberg's questions on DM. They've been talking for a couple of days so far, that conversation has been slow and inconclusive - the person claims to live in New Zealand, while Ahlberg is based in Finland.

All Ahlberg can do now is wait. "TheResistANNce account is gone," he said. "There's no sign of the tweet except one screenshot. The only person who responded to the tweet deleted their account." And the person who took the screenshot can, due to the time difference, take as many as 20 hours to respond to Ahlberg's questions.

The gap between virality and verification often opens a space for an online version of a folk tale, complete with a viral hero or villain. As a vague tale of a teacher who dared to wish death on Trump supporters, @TheResistANNce has embedded itself into this space, no matter what Ahlberg eventually concludes.

We've seen this before. For instance, in May, Liberal Twitter couldn't stop sharing a tweet that appeared to show a young girl telling Trump he was a "disgrace." By the time Snopes debunked it (it was a clip from Comedy Central's "The President Show" featuring a Trump impersonator), the viral tweet had spawned nearly 200,000 retweets. The debunkings often come too late to stop the spread of a tantalizing story.

'This kind of debunking case requires a lot of time," Ahlberg said. "Finding the source, related accounts, point of escalation etc. alone took about 8 hours. I think I've spent several hours per evening since Monday on this case, most likely over 20 hours."

But the thing is, as inconsequential as this churn of dubious, fading virality can seem, it's not always victimless. @TheResistANNce might not exist, but that doesn't mean that a real person couldn't get hurt by all this. "What worries me is that the photo in 'Ann's' profile might be of a real person," Ahlberg said. In other words, the woman seen holding a baby in the viral image could be someone who has nothing to do with any of this mess.

"There are many people online who have said: 'lets find her', 'contact her school' etc.," Ahlberg wrote. "If someone manages to find a matching profile, this could lead to real life problems."
NEW HAVEN  A crowd of approximately 150 people gathered outside the New Haven Police Department Friday as U.S. Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy, along with U.S. Rep. Rosa L. DeLauro, addressed the issue of gun violence and proposed legislation in wake of Sundays mass shooting in Las Vegas.

Against a backdrop of colorful picket signs, the congressional delegates and others signed their names and condolences on a poster from the Newtown Action Alliance that will be sent to Las Vegas in a show of support.

One of those people was Nicole Hockley of Newtown, whose 6-year-old son Dylan died in the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings. She said when she first heard the news of the Las Vegas shootings it took her a very long time to get out of bed. At that point there were only about 20 reported dead, and I just stayed in bed for about an hour and a half, just watching the news reports and learning more and crying, she said.

Fifty-nine people were killed in the Las Vegas shootings, with more than 500 left wounded.

While she feels immense frustration and anger, comparing herself to a volcano about to erupt on weeks like this, Hockley said she directs that energy into making sure people know there are actions they can take to prevent these things from happening.

We will not accept Las Vegas or any mass shooting as normal, nor will we accept that gun violence cannot be stopped. We can do something. Inaction is unacceptable, said Blumenthal.

Mark Barden of Newtown, who lost his 7-year-old son Daniel in the Sandy Hook shootings, said he has no words to describe what happened in Las Vegas, only his actions to make sure something like that never happens again. However, he wishes change would come sooner.

After the Newtown massacre, New Haven Police Chief Anthony Campbell believed there would be significant gun legislation across the board, but five years later, nothing has really changed.

The reality is that every day in this country lives are lost to unnecessary gun violence. This city, the city of New Haven, is no stranger to that, he said. We have been fighting and advocating for realistic gun laws that will help us in the law enforcement industry to ensure that each and everyone of our citizens are safe.

No one is asking for any impediments on someones constitutional rights, he said. What were asking for is commonsense legislation, so that situations like what happened in Las Vegas or what happened in this state up at Sandy Hook can never happen again.

Connecticut has the second-strongest gun laws in the nation, and the fifth-lowest rate of gun deaths. The data tells you only one thing: If you keep dangerous people from getting their hands on weapons and if you keep dangerous weapons out of the hands (of) civilians, you will save lives, less people will die, Murphy said.

Marty Isaac of Trumbell, board president of Connecticut Against Gun Violence, said, theres a long way to go.

This is a going to be a crack; this is going to be the first time were going to get some legislation through in years and years and years, Isaac said. Its hardly done, but we just need to begin to change.

DeLauro, D-3, said even though the American people continue to demand action and beg us to stop the killing, the congressional delegates havent been able to vote on gun violence legislation. She said offering prayers and moments of silence are no longer enough, believing, we would win overwhelmingly if these issues were brought forward.

What more information do we need? she asked. When we saw Sandy Hook, we said, never again. Columbine, we said, never again. Aurora, we said, never again. San Bernardino, never again. Orlando, never again. Las Vegas. How can we say, never again, when it continues to happen over and over and over again?

Murphy said they have to tried every technique in their arsenal, from standing on the Senate floor for 15 hours to a 24-hour sit-in the House of Representatives. Ultimately, he believes no matter how many good ideas they come up with, things wont change in Washington, D.C., until the people in office are afraid they are going to lose an election if they continue to vote against the wishes of their constituents.

The proposed legislation includes a ban on bump stocks, an attachment that enables a semi-automatic rifle to fire more quickly, which Stephen Paddock, the gunman in the Las Vegas shootings, used to modify his rifles.

People in Las Vegas might well be alive today if bump stocks were illegal and access were barred because the shooter there was able mow down so many people with a machine-gun-like weapon that he converted ... with the use of bump stock, Blumenthal said.

He said the ban, not the regulation, of bump stocks is the least they can do, but it is still far from the most that they must do. Legislation was introduced Thursday that would repeal the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, a law which protects firearm manufacturers and dealers from being held liable when crimes have been committed with their products.

Other measures that should be taken, according to Blumenthal, include a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines; a background check; and elimination of a provision that allows anybody, even felons, to obtain a weapon if a background check is not completed within 72 hours. Dylann Roof, who killed multiple parishioners in a church in South Carolina, obtained his weapon in such a fashion.

No check, no gun, ought to be a principal applied to all sales and background checks should be applied to every sale, Blumenthal said. We are moving forward with a full agenda. The idea that we cant do anything about gun violence because there are evil people or folks with mental illness is absolutely false. The idea that we must be inert or inactive simply because some deaths will continue. We cant perhaps eliminate all deaths but every life we save ... is a gift, and it is our obligation to work toward this goal.

Despite the perceived opposition from staunch supporters of the Second Amendment, Blumenthal described a persons right to bear arms as the law of the land, reiterating that gun owners do have rights and the proposed legislation is not trying to take away those rights.

Murphy said people sometimes make the assumption that proponents of the Second Amendment are on the other side of the argument. In fact, he believes gun violence is a unique issue in which gun owners and non-gun owners are on the same team.

I think in terms to enact change, we need to engage a lot more people, Hockley said. Thats something we absolutely need to do because this is about saving lives and preventing death. This is not about whether or not you can own a gun. So we need to get past that to reframe the debate to save lives.

Murphy said he has yet to meet a single gun owner in the state who thinks automatic weapons should be legalized, explaining that gun owners often are the most vocal supporters of the changes since they believe in responsible gun ownership, are law-abiding citizens and want weapons that help them hunt, not weapons that help them kill people.

According to Murphy, the problem is the gun industry . He said the gun industry doesnt want any of these restrictions put on weapons sales because they make the money off the really dangerous weapons.

Thats why this visual here, with hundreds of people gathered, demanding change, which is being replicated in states all across this country this weekend, is ultimately going to make the difference, he said. It is going to be the growing anti-gun violence movement, represented here today by all of these groups, growing stronger by the minute that are going to force Congress to act and are ultimately going to save peoples lives, he said.
An unusual ripple effect of the mass shooting that left 58 people dead and hundreds wounded along the Las Vegas Strip on Sunday is that it could have implications for a high-profile federal trial that is set to begin here next week - a case that also involves weapons.

A Montana militiaman who is accused of weapons charges and conspiring against the U.S. government asked a federal judge this week to delay his trial by 60 days because of the Las Vegas shooting. The charges against Ryan Payne stem from the 2014 Bundy ranch standoff in Bunkerville, Nevada, and the trial is slated to start with jury selection Oct. 12.

On Thursday, Payne's attorneys filed an additional motion, seeking to move the trial out of Las Vegas and to a different venue nearly 450 miles away: the federal courthouse in Reno, Nev. They argued that it would be impossible to seat a fair jury in light of the gun-related massacre.

"In Reno, the jury pool will not include an overwhelming number of persons who personally know victims or survivors," Payne's attorneys wrote. A jury pool from the Las Vegas area, they argued, "will find it impossible to put the events of Oct. 1 out of their memory any time in the near future."

Ammon Bundy, also charged in the case, filed a similar motion Friday seeking to join the request to delay and move the trial.

The judge Friday evening agreed to move the trial to Oct. 30, according to an attorney for Payne.

Investigators are still examining evidence in the Mandalay Bay hotel room that Stephen Paddock used to fire upon a country music festival, and wounded victims and their families are still in Las Vegas as people begin to recover. More than two dozen of the wounded remain in critical condition at area hospitals.

Attorneys for Payne filed a first motion Monday - hours after the shooting - asking for a continuance because of the slayings.

"Las Vegas is in mourning," the motion read. "The tragedy has affected the daily lives of every resident in this city. Thousands of people have lost friends and loved ones. This is not the time to pick a jury and commence a trial in this case."

The court case emerged from events in April 2014, when Payne and hundreds of other people gathered at the Bundy family ranch to protest what they called overreach by the federal government. Cliven Bundy, an elderly rancher, had refused to pay grazing fees to the Bureau of Land Management for two decades. And when officers came to impound his cattle, he and his supporters put out a call for reinforcements.

People from all corners of the country rushed to his defense, some on horseback, some carrying American flags, some wearing camouflage and flak jackets.

And they carried guns. In photos from the standoff, men stood sentry on a nearby overpass, looking down the scopes of rifles pointed at those agents.

Now, with jury selection set to begin, Payne's attorneys are arguing that it is too soon for residents in Las Vegas to be unbiased in a trial that will heavily discuss the presence of firearms at the 2014 standoff.

"The shooting has immediately led to a discussion about guns, with much negative attention focused on a perceived laxity of gun laws and on persons who choose to bear and carry high-powered firearms, as is legal in Nevada," the motion reads.

Payne was not the only defendant worried about the mood in the city after the shooting. On Tuesday, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that co-defendant Peter Santilli, who says he was acting as a reporter at the Bundy ranch incident, accepted a plea deal in the case.

"One of the reasons he took the deal is because of the events that happened at Mandalay Bay," his attorney, Chris Rasmussen, told the newspaper. "The shooting made him realize that this is a difficult case in trying to defend Second Amendment rights, and after the shooting it's going be onerous, or very difficult. People aren't going to be in the mood to hear about gunmen. . . . He knows that this isn't a time to be talking about the Second Amendment. It's kind of offensive."

On a bright spring day in 2014, when federal agents came to round up Bundy's cattle, they faced a crowd of hundreds of angry protesters in a dusty desert wash. Some simply stood and shouted at the agents; others stood sentry on a nearby overpass, armed with sniper rifles.

The federal government, in its indictment, alleges that Payne, Santilli and several others led a conspiracy against federal agents who "recruited gunmen," "organized gunmen" and "led the armed assault on federal officers at the Impoundment Site."

Although no shots were fired during the 2014 incident, Payne's defense says that jurors inevitably will see the presence of rifles and other weapons differently because of Sunday's mass shooting, and that could lead to bias and an unfair trial.

Attorneys for Payne declined to comment beyond what is in the motion.

Payne's motion clearly states that he and other defendants "have nothing to do with this act of mass murder."

Paddock's motive - or any reason at all behind the attack - remains elusive, although it is clear that he planned it out, shuttling nearly two dozen weapons into his room at the Mandalay and setting up video surveillance of the hallway outside the doors. His relatives have said they did not know Paddock to have any strong religious or political views, and his girlfriend said she had no indication he was planning any kind of violence.

"For the deadliest mass shooting in American history to go down without any indication about what this guy is about is very peculiar," said Ryan Lenz, a senior investigative reporter for the Southern Poverty Law Center's Intelligence Project. "What's even more confounding is there's no evidence to suggest it's tied to any particular ideology, which puts journalists and researchers in a very peculiar place. Is this really an instance of meaningless violence? Bloodshed for bloodshed's sake?"

Lenz says there is no evidence to suggest Paddock's attack had any connection to the upcoming trial or the Bundy family's land-rights cause.

Paddock's home was located in Mesquite, Nev., a city of 18,000 next to tiny Bunkerville. Paddock - like many people in the town - purchased weapons from a store there called Guns & Guitars. At least one gun recovered in the Mandalay Bay hotel room was purchased there.

Jonathon Speece, 41, a gunsmith at the store, said he is a close friend of the Bundy family, lives near their ranch and has helped out around the property. Speece also has helped organize protests against the treatment of the Bundy family and their pretrial detention.

Speece said he interacted with Paddock casually at the store but said Paddock had no connection with the trial or the Bundy family.

"He had absolutely no ties with the Bundys," Speece said. "He never made any inquiries about them, he never visited them - nothing like that."

The Bundy ranch trial slated to start next week will be the third of its kind this year. A spring trial for a group of defendants resulted in a mistrial, while a second resulted in mostly acquittals.

---

Sottile reported from Portland, Ore., and Sullivan from Las Vegas and Mesquite, Nev. Julie Tate in Washington contributed to this report.
In all the man-versus-python stories, the snake is almost always the coldblooded antagonist.

Reticulated pythons like the ones involved in two attacks in Indonesia this year are among the world's longest and strongest. They kill by coiling around their prey and squeezing until its heart stops. Then the serpents swallow their victims whole.

It's certainly the stuff of villains. Even when the end result isn't death, the attacks often make international headlines.

But scientists and snake lovers say the strikes may be more than just alarming stories about reptilian foes. They may be the indirect result of our global food chain's insatiable desire for an inexpensive product.

The latest snake attack victim was Robert Nababan, according to Metro.co.uk. On September 30, he was riding his moped home from his security job at an oil palm tree farm in Indonesia when he came across a gigantic python lying across the road - and tried to move it.

Accounts diverge from there. Some say he was simply trying to clear the road; others say he was trying to capture the snake.

What happened next is not in dispute: The python latched onto his arm and began to coil, the reports say. At some point, it also bit his head. He was able to dislodge the animal, possibly with a machete, but not before he was seriously injured.

He was rushed to a hospital where doctors treated him. His snake attack story rocketed around the globe.

He survived, unlike a python attack victim in Indonesia earlier this year. Villagers on the island of Sulawesi went searching for a man who never returned from a palm oil fruit harvest in March. Instead, they found scattered pieces of fruit, a picking tool, a boot and a 23-foot-long python, swollen from a recent meal.

When they sliced the snake open, they found the missing man, dead and covered in reptilian digestive juices.

The attacks are more than just the result of unsuspecting people who stumbled upon slithering snakes. And the causes may indirectly stretch all the way across the globe, to a grocery store near you stocked with shampoo or ice cream or chocolate, or some other product made with palm oil.

By some estimates, half of all things found in grocery stores are made with the fruit of the palm oil plant, a versatile and cheap ingredient that happens to grow best in areas of the world where reticulated pythons thrive.

Because producing palm oil is so lucrative, plantations have razed giant swaths of rain forest to make room for the cash crop.

It's sparking an environmental crisis in Indonesia, an aggregation of thousands of islands that contains the third-largest chunk of the world's rain forests, behind Brazil and Congo.

Most of the world's palm oil is harvested from two countries, Malaysia and Indonesia, with devastating effects.

By 2012, the amount of deforestation in Indonesia was estimated to be higher than the amount of deforestation in Brazil, according to a research paper in Nature Climate Change.

"Much of this palm oil is produced in ways that involve the destruction of tropical forests and peatlands, adding to global warming emissions and reducing habitat for many already threatened species, according to the Union of Concerned Scientists.

The effects on the climate are well documented, but there's another, unintended consequence, says Doug Boucher, a scientific adviser for the Union of Concerned Scientists. The plantations increase the chances that Indonesians will come in contact with a snake.

"They're not coming after us," he told The Washington Post. "In various ways, either directly or by our actions with changing land use, we're coming after them."

It's more complex than deforestation eating away at the snakes' habitat, Boucher said. The palm oil plants are a magnet for rodents and other small animals that feed on the fatty, energy-dense fruit.

And the snakes hunt the rats.

"You have these sudden encounters," Boucher told The Post. "It's not that the snakes are attacking. They're just not expecting people."

The results are often bad for the people, but can have a devastating effect on snakes.

The one that attacked Nababan last month didn't get away.

According to police, as the man was whisked off to the hospital, villagers took the newly dead snake home and strung it up between two trees.

Pictures spread of a child straddling the snake corpse, riding it like a horse.

Afterward, the report said, the villagers cut the snake into small pieces, fried it and made a meal of it.
A disease linked to puppies sold at Petland, a nationwide chain of about 80 pet stores, has sickened 55 people and hospitalized 13, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Since the outbreak began in mid-September, the disease has spread from seven states to 12 states, with cases reported in Florida, Kansas, Maryland, Missouri, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Utah, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

While Campylobacter is a fairly common bacteria among puppies and dogs, it's unusual to see a large, multistate outbreak of human infections, said Mark Laughlin, a CDC veterinarian, in an email. Most cases are associated with eating raw or undercooked poultry or meat, or from cross-contamination of these and other foods.

The infection can cause bloody diarrhea, vomiting and fever.

Lab results show that puppies sold through Ohio-based Petland are probably the source of the outbreak. About 35 of the people diagnosed recently purchased a puppy from Petland, visited one of the chain's stores or visited a home with a Petland puppy that was sold before the outbreak began. Fourteen of the people diagnosed are Petland employees.

But animals can also be infected, and can spread the disease to people even though they might not show any symptoms. People who touch even a small amount of feces on a dog's fur or food bowl, and then inadvertently touch their mouths, can get an infection, Laughlin said.

The Campylobacter strain in the recent outbreak appears to be resistant to commonly recommended antibiotics, Laughlin said. But most people who get sick don't need antibiotics and can recover within a week without any specific treatment.

Children under 5, adults over 65 and people with a weakened immune systems might require additional treatment, Laughlin said.

Petland said in a statement Tuesday that "regardless of where they are from, any puppies and dogs may carry Campylobacter germs." Petland said it has been able to provide traceback for any puppy purchased as requested by the CDC. The company is redoubling its efforts on education regarding proper hand sanitation as well.

"The CDC has no new recommendations for Petland but continues to advise that Petland reinforces proper hand sanitization before and after playing with any of our puppies with the many sanitation stations in each store," Petland officials said in the statement.

The CDC estimates that about 1.3 million cases of Campylobacter occur in people each year, about two-thirds of which are food-borne. The remainder of cases come from animals and other sources. Most of the people infected during the current outbreak are in Florida or Ohio.

The CDC has seen 13 human outbreaks of Campylobacter infections linked to contact with dogs since January 2009, Laughlin said. Those outbreaks have caused 47 illnesses and two hospitalizations.

Most infections related to this bacteria do not spread from one person to another, but activities like changing an infected person's diapers or sexual contact with an infected person can lead to an infection. During the current outbreak, one person contracted the disease from sexual contact with a person with a confirmed illness linked to Petland, according to the CDC.

The CDC announcement has spurred criticism of pet stores that source puppies from commercial breeding operations, which increasingly have become the targets of animal protection groups. More than 200 cities and counties have enacted laws that ban pet shops from selling so-called puppy mill puppies, and Petland is now the only major national chain selling dogs from commercial breeders.

As the CDC continues to investigate the outbreak, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is calling on states to protect their residents and consumers by stopping the importation of puppies for resale until the source of the outbreak is fully determined.

Last month, The Post's Karin Brulliard and Lena H. Sun reported that the Animal Legal Defense Fund filed a class-action lawsuit in July against Petland, saying it defrauded customers by "guaranteeing" puppies it knew were prone to illnesses and other defects:

"The company, which says it only sells puppies from breeders licensed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and with clean federal inspection reports, provides a 'Health Warranty' to purchasers of puppies and kittens saying the animal has been examined by two or three veterinarians before being offered for sale.

"But the animal group's director of litigation, Matthew Liebman, said Monday that those inspections are cursory at best and sometimes 'rubber-stamped' by veterinarians who are beholden to the company. While Campylobacter is not among the conditions that customers have reported to the group, Liebman said he was not surprised to hear about the outbreak.

" 'It's not hard to see how animals raised in these cramped and unsanitary conditions, trucked hundreds of miles from puppy mills to the pet stores, intermingled with other fragile young animals and handled by numerous employees and customers could become disease vectors,' he said."

To avoid contracting the illness, the CDC advises puppy and dog owners to wash their hands well after handling their pets and to promptly clean up feces, urine or vomit. It's also a bad idea to let a dog lick your mouth or face, CDC officials said.
. To do so, first type the original number into the text box. Then click on the "Scientific Notation" option located at the top of the floating window. Finally, click on the "Standard" button found beneath the text box to display your result. This program is useful for scientists and engineers working with decimal-based numbers. It provides easy access to those who need to convert those numbers into more compact forms without having to do heavy math calculations first.

Scientific notation is a way to express very large or very small numbers. It is used in physics, chemistry and other fields where large numbers are common. Those numbers are written as a power of 10 followed by a number with an exponent. For example, 1,000,000 (one million) is written as 1  103. The exponent shows how many zeros are after the first digit. For example, 1,000,001 is written as 1  102. Scientific notation is a useful tool for making calculations easier. You can use it to write down very big or very small numbers in one step instead of writing out both the large and small numbers separately. You can also use it to express large or small numbers in terms of other units like centimeters or millimeters.

Scientific notation solver is an online tool that can be used to convert any number into scientific notation. Simply enter any number to the left of the decimal point and it will automatically convert it into a scientific notation equivalent. This web tool can be very helpful when you need to convert a large number into scientific notation. However, please note that this online tool can only convert numbers that are in scientific format. For example, it cannot convert a non-scientific number like "1,085" into a scientific notation equivalent. It is also important to keep in mind that this web tool only works when converting numbers from one particular format to another. For example, if you want to change a non-scientific number like "1,085" into standard format, then you will have to use another online tool like NumberFormatting.com.
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NEW HAVEN  People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals supporters on Saturday protested experiments on house sparrows by a Yale University postdoctoral student, holding signs outside Woodbridge Hall while the universitys board of trustees met inside.

The demonstrators decried experiments by Christine Lattin, whose studies on the stress response of sparrows include adding crude oil to bird feed and creating small wounds on the birds.

PETA has known of Lattins research since she first started experimenting at Tufts University. The organization in May called for a formal investigation by a district attorneys office in Massachusetts.

Ashley Byrne is an associate director for campaigns at PETA and one of the primary organizers of Saturday mornings protest, which included at least 13 participants. PETA also held a rally against Lattins research in August, the same month it released a report saying Yale had the fourth-worst record of mistreatment of rats and mice used in research.

Shes tormenting these birds in her lab and doing so for no reason, Byrne said. The results dont benefit human beings. They dont benefit other birds. Theyre not applicable to human beings or other animals.

Yale Vice President for Communications Eileen OConnor briefly met with protestors Saturday after stepping out of Woodbridge Hall. She notified them that the trustees meeting had no set end time, since demonstrators sought to protest while trustees exited the building. OConnor said the university stands by its previous statement on the matter, which indicates the universitys laboratories comply with federal regulations and independent accreditation standards.

In an email Saturday, the university said Yale takes seriously its responsibility for the appropriate care of animals; our laboratories comply with or exceed all federal regulations and independent accreditation standards. As we continue to advance scientific knowledge and modern medicine, providing hope for millions of patients and their families, Yale scientists will sustain their commitment to the appropriate use of animals in research. Our faculty members employ animals only when there are no alternative models for advancing their research.

Dr. Lattins research represents a valuable contribution to a growing body of knowledge that will help advance, among other things, veterinary medicine, animal conservation and animal model development, the university said. Those individuals who have responsibility for the oversight of animal care at the University have found that all of her research activities were approved and there was no evidence of non-compliance or inappropriate care.

As to the medical value of the research, the statement said Virtually all medical advances of the last century would have been impossible without animal research. From antibiotics and blood transfusions to dialysis and organ transplantations, nearly every modern treatment to cure disease and control pain is based on knowledge gained through animal research. Medical advances are the culmination of iterative scientific advances that were initially rooted in basic, mechanistic studies, including those in animals. Thus, it can be difficult to fully appreciate a studys relevance and contribution to medical advancements, especially when considered in isolation.

Lattin arrived at Yale in 2014. The university highlighted her research in November 2016, in an article published in an issue of Yale Engineering, focusing on how 3-D printing assisted her research.

According to her website, Lattins research focuses on understanding how different neurotransmitters and hormones help animals successfully choose mates, raise young, escape from predators, and survive harsh winters and other challenging conditions.

Lattin reportedly studies house sparrows in part because theyve been successful in invading new habitats.

One of the major areas of my research is the stress response, Lattins website reads. While stress helps animals and humans survive and cope with challenges, too much stress is bad and causes health problems.

In an emailed response to the Register, Lattin said the situation with PETA has been a source of a lot of frustration.

I care deeply about animal welfare  I actually worked at a wildlife rehabilitation center for several months before starting graduate school, Lattin said in the email. Understanding more about how stress affects wild animals may allow us to save some species that might otherwise go extinct.

Lattin said PETA consistently misrepresents her work, adding the organization has made misstatements about her research. She discredited claims from PETA suggesting her research is not relevant for humans or other animals.

That claim shows a real misunderstanding of how biology works  the hormonal and brain systems that underlie stress are very similar across different groups of animals, Lattin said. I dont know why PETA has decided to target me in particular, except that Yale is a high-profile institution, and perhaps the fact that Im an early-career researcher (a postdoc) has made me a more appetizing target for activists.

Among the demonstrators Saturday was Yale alumnus Hanh Nguyen, who graduated from the university in May and now works for PETA. She joined Saturdays demonstration because animals are sentient beings who deserve respect and consideration.

Nguyen said she felt the university kept most students in the dark about animal experiments conducted by college researchers.

I would love to see Yale do the right thing and stop supporting cruelty to animals, Nguyen said. Theyre not things, theyre living beings.

Reach Esteban L. Hernandez at 203-680-9901 or esteban.hernandez@hearstmediact.com.
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Adrienne Sanchez relayed feedback near the offshore platform model made of wooden blocks. Three young girls carefully dropped pennies onto a floating Lego boat they crafted under Sanchez's supervision.

As soon as the 11th coin plopped aboard, the rainbow-colored structure capsized.

"Looks like it's time for a redesign," Sanchez said. "Remember, you want to displace the water by adjusting the weight of the boat."

Sanchez, a project engineer for the oil and gas consulting firm, New Tech Global Environmental, traded in her usual cohorts Saturday for students eager to learn the fundamentals of buoyancy.

More than 600 elementary, middle and high school students attended Comcast Techpak at the Houston Community College West Loop South campus. They spent the day getting to meet and learn from professionals in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math fields as they created mobile apps, used an open-source program to modify the videogame, Minecraft, and tested their engineering skills by seeing how many pennies their Lego boats could hold up before they sank.

While Comcast has held a number of digital literacy events for children in the past, Saturday's event was the first to feature a partnership with the Houston Hispanic Forum and the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, said Michael Bybee, spokesman for Comcast.

The premise of Saturday's event was to ensure students from underserved communities, many of whom are Hispanic, receive exposure to professionals working in STEM fields that they may not get in school or at home, said Sineria Ordonez, interim executive director of the Houston Hispanic Forum.

By having them partake in hands-on activities, Ordonez hopes these students will be inspired to one day fill in the diversity gap that exists in STEM related industries. According to a 2013 study by the U.S. Census, Hispanics made up 7 percent of the STEM workforce in 2011, while blacks made up 6 percent.

"There is definitely a need for diversity in STEM," Ordonez said.
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The costumes of a Texas State University sorority have angered many but left others wondering if it's worth the outrage.

Members of Texas State's Alpha Delta Pi recently wore Hispanic and Native American-themed costumes during an event that welcomed newcomers.

A tweet to the university by Joseph Nicholson showed photos of costumes and argued that "we need to do better."

NOT LEGAL: Law expert weights in on Cy-Fair school that suspended student who sat during pledge

Not everyone agreed.

"Idk I'm not offended by it and I'm Mexican," replied one Twitter user. "Like come on guys stop being so damn sensitive. It's a damn costume."

The debate over the costumes eventually made its way onto The University Star  Texas State's student-run newspaper  in an opinion piece titled "The energy you save: Why I can't be bothered by another case of Greek racism."

Matthew Flores, a spokesperson for Texas State, said the costumes are not in violation of the school's code of conduct, but noted that the incident was brought up while speaking to the campus Greek society.

POLICE: Fort Bend teenager who attacked man on video turns himself in

According to Flores, sorority and fraternity members attended an interactive workshop that helped students "embrace diversity" and "peel back the layers of social justice."

Flores said the workshop occurs every year and was not a direct response to the costumes, but added that "there was a discussion about that specific sorority activity."

See more photos of the costumes above.
A man accused of stabbing a 17-year-old teen who was dating his ex-girlfriend was arrested Friday morning.

Chad Ray Bethel Jr., 18, faces a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, according to court records. His bail was set at $50,000.

A Bexar County Sheriffs Office deputy found the stabbed teen at about 11:30 p.m. July 31 in the 6800 block of Stockport Drive, according to Bethels arrest warrant affidavit.

The teens girlfriend told deputies her ex-boyfriend, Bethel, stabbed him in the 8100 block of New World Drive.

Earlier in the evening, a fight had occurred between Bethel and the teen, witnesses said, who added that the two were separated by another person.

After the fight, the girlfriend and a relative gave Bethel a ride to a nearby gas station. The girlfriend and Bethel then walked to a car wash and talked. The girlfriend then started walking back home. While heading home, she called the 17-year-old to walk with her the rest of the way because she didnt know what (Bethel) was capable of, the warrant states.

Soon after they met up, Bethel came out of nowhere, and began fighting the teen, the girlfriend told investigators. During the fight, Bethel brandished a knife and stabbed the teen twice, once in the chest and once in the outer right arm, deputies said. Bethel then ran away.

The girlfriend and the teen called 911 after they realized they couldnt stop the bleeding. He was taken to University Hospital for treatment.

jbeltran@express-news.net | Twitter: @JBfromSA
SAN ANTONIO - One man is dead after he was shot Friday night on the West Side.

San Antonio Police Department Sgt. Kris Maurice said the man, 27, was shot at about 9:30 p.m. in the 300 block of Cortez Ave. in front of his home.
San Antonio police are searching for a man they say shot his girlfriend just south of downtown early Saturday morning.

According to authorities, the couple were arguing in back of a residence around 3:25 a.m. on the 1400 block of Chalmers Avenue.
As we are in the midst of Hispanic Heritage Month and the political debates draw attention to the Latino population, it is important to reflect on the changing demography of that population in the 21st century.

Long seen as the engine propelling demographic changes in the United States, the growth of the Latino population has slowed somewhat from the close of the 20th century. The Latino population increased by an average annual growth rate of 5.8 percent between 1990 and 2000, but by 4 percent between 2000 and 2015, and even slower (2.3 percent) the past five years.

However, this is not to say that Latinos are no longer driving the nations population growth. Between 2000 and 2015, the Latino population increased by nearly 21.3 million while the white population rose by close to 3.1 million. While the Latino population increased 60.4 percent between 2000 and 2015, the white population crept up by only 1.6 percent. The white population is at the eve of a population decline because of its aging population.

We draw on data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Center for Health Statistics to assess the changing demographic patterns of the Latino population during the past 15 years.

The reduction in the pace at which the Latino population has been growing is due to significant declines in immigration and fertility.

The number of Latinos immigrating to the United States has fallen dramatically the past 15 years. Approximately 3.4 million Latinos came to the United States between 1995 and 1999, compared to nearly 1.9 million between 2010 and 2014, a drop of 46 percent.

Immigration from Mexico fell even more steeply, with a 66 percent descent from 2.3 million to nearly 768,000.

The major decline in immigration is due to various factors, including the economic recession that began in 2008; the increasing difficulty associated with entering the United States, especially after 9/11; the violence in Mexico; and the rising costs of hiring coyotes to smuggle people into the United States.

The portion of Latinos who are foreign-born dropped from 40 percent in 2000 to 34 percent in 2015.

The data clearly do not support President Donald Trumps image of an out-of-control border that allows hordes of Mexican immigrants easy entry into our country.

Latino births have also fallen significantly. The number of Latino births dropped from close to 1.1 million in the peak year of 2007 to 924,000 in 2015, a decline of 13 percent. The average number of births to Latinas (ages 15 to 44) fell from 2.73 in 2000 to 2.12 in 2015, a reduction of 22 percent.

This has been due largely to the recession, which disproportionately impacted the Latino population, as well as to declines in foreign-born Latinas, who tend to have higher rates of fertility than Latinas born in the United States.

Despite drops in immigration and fertility, the Latino population grew widely across the 50 states and the District of Columbia between 2000 and 2015. However, California, Texas and Florida accounted for approximately half of the 21.3 million Latinos added to the nations Latino population during that time.

Other states experiencing significant absolute increases in its Latino population include New York, Arizona, New Jersey, Illinois, North Carolina, Georgia and Pennsylvania.

Twenty-seven states experienced at least a doubling of their Latino populations between 2000 and 2015. Among the most prominent states are Tennessee, South Carolina, Maryland, Arkansas, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Virginia, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Nevada, Indiana, Louisiana, Utah and Missouri.

Overall, socioeconomic changes between 2000 and 2015 are mixed. For example, there have been some modest improvements in the area of education. The percentage of Latinos 25 and older who are high school graduates rose from 52 percent in 2000 to 66 percent in 2015, and the percentage with at least a bachelors degree increased slightly from nearly 11 percent to 15 percent.

Unemployment also declined somewhat, from 9 percent in 2000 to 7 percent in 2015.

On the other hand, income changes have not been as favorable. The median income measured in 2015 dollars fell from $46,270 in 2000 to $44,800 in 2015, a drop of 3.2 percent. While the overall poverty rate among Latinos remained unchanged at about 22.5 percent, impoverishment among Latino children increased slightly from 28 percent to 31 percent. Latinos still lag significantly behind whites and most other racial groups on these socioeconomic indicators.

It is important to reflect on the demographic and socioeconomic conditions of Latinos during this time of the year when we celebrate Latino heritage. Consider the racial discord, with much animosity targeting Latinos.

We also need to distinguish fact from fiction concerning Latinos and their place in this country. The facts are clear. Immigration among Latinos is way down, and this pattern has impacted the demography of the Latino population. The growth rate of the Latino population has waned somewhat. Yet the course that demographers have been projecting over the last several decades of a declining white and an increasing Latino population is still in motion. Of the 40 million people added to the U.S. population between 2000 and 2015, Latinos accounted for 53 percent of the growth  compared to nearly 8 percent for whites.

The share of the U.S. population that is Latino rose from nearly 13 percent in 2000 to close to 18 percent in 2015, while that of whites declined from 69 percent to 61 percent.

Latino children already outnumber white children in Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico and Texas, with other states to soon follow.

This represents a harbinger of demographic shifts that will intensify in the coming decades. The latest U.S. Census Bureaus population projections suggest that the Latino share of the nations population will climb from 18 percent now to 29 percent in 2060, while that of whites is expected to fall from 69 percent to 44 percent.

Despite the importance of Latinos to the future of the United States, they continue to be neglected in discussions concerning the development of public policy, debates on current social, economic and political issues, and planning for the future.

Latinos will increasingly impact all institutions of our country; thus, they need to be at the table rather than having people from other groups speaking for them.

Latinos will increasingly flex their expanding political and economic muscle to counter racism, disenfranchisement and anti-Latino policies  efforts to exclude and minimize Latinos from civic participation.

Rogelio Saenz is dean of the College of Public Policy and is the holder of the Mark G. Yudof Endowed Chair at the University of Texas at San Antonio. He is co-author of the book Latinos in the United States: Diversity and Change.
He grabbed my whole (expletive), Divina Flor told me. It was what he always did when he caught me alone in some corner of the house, but that day I didnt feel the usual surprise but an awful surge to cry.

The he in this line, taken from Gabriel Garcia Marquezs novella Chronicle of a Death Foretold (1981), does not refer to President Donald Trump  heaven forbid  but rather the character of Santiago Nasar, a young man whose murder in a small Colombian town prompts the narrator to investigate it 27 years later.

From the opening pages of the novella, readers learn not only who killed Santiago Nasar and why, but also that all the townspeople knew it was coming and no one did or said anything to stop it.

Its in this vein, in this current political climate, that Garcia Marquezs novella is relevant more than ever 36 years after its original publication.

Consider that in the 2016 presidential election, Hillary Clinton had nearly 3 million more popular votes than Trump yet lost the Electoral College by a wide margin.

Collectively, then, a question was asked across the nation, and it went something like this: How could this happen?

It seemed the idea that faith could prevent a morally corrupt businessman from becoming president of the United States  a man who candidly admitted in 2005 that he could do whatever he wanted to women, like grab em by the (expletive)  was reared on its trusting back.

We were again reminded that what was once thought impossible could indeed become an ugly reality. And again, a famous cartoon series, The Simpsons, got it right in an episode that aired 17 years ago. It saw a world in which Trump could be president, and we shouldve, too.

So, lets look at how this election came to pass through the lens of Garcia Marquezs book  Americans as the victims and how this election might have been foretold.

Garcia Marquezs novella is a case study in human psychology of what happens when the status quo is maintained, when good people fail to act. The novella is also Garcia Marquezs biting criticism of the racism and patriarchy deeply embedded in South American culture  and around the world, for that matter.

The boys were brought up to be men. The girls had been reared to get married. They knew how to do screen embroidery, sew by machine, weave bone lace, wash and iron, make artificial flowers and fancy candy, and write engagement announcements.

These lines, which might accurately describe a number of families in the country, let alone in our city, are about the Vicario family in the novella. Twins Pedro and Pablo Vicario, raised to be men, kill the young Santiago Nasar in an act of revenge on behalf of their sister Angela, whose virginity was supposedly taken by Santiago before she was to marry another man.

While the novella covers the events leading up to Nasars death via the unnamed narrators interviews with the townspeople many years later, readers ascertain that some recollections are more truthful than others. The townspeoples memories, as in reality, are imprecise and biased. We dont know whom to trust.

Here are the facts of the novel: Santiago Nasar was a descendant of Arabs who immigrated to Colombia; he was rich; and he had a reputation as a charmer. Other than that, his murder, as the narrator will deduce, was ultimately unjustified because no one in the town had actually seen him with Angela.

The question then becomes, for the narrator and readers, So why did this happen?

Is a solid answer ever provided? Yes and no, but mostly no.

The novella is a metaphysical murder mystery, after all. The more the narrator finds out, the less he understands, which may be true for readers as well.

The central theme lingering in the aptly named novella is fatalism, which has been familiar territory for Garcia Marquez since his days as a journalist. Take the first sentence of his most famous work, One Hundred Years of Solitude (1967): Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, Colonel Aureliano Buendia was to remember that distant afternoon when his father took him to discover ice.

While Divina Flor, the young and infatuated girl whom Nasar molested and whose own mothers virginity was taken by Santiagos father, represents womens lack of free will  another recurring theme in Garcia Marquezs work  Santiago represents the authors belief that man is doomed from birth. All existence, in some way, is mysteriously cursed.

Marquez, an icon of the literary genre of magical realism who won the Nobel Prize in literature in 1982, was somewhat of a mystifying figure himself. He befriended Fidel Castro in the late 1960s in hopes that his ties with the dictator would help facilitate world peace.

It certainly didnt do him justice in the U.S., not at first.

Garcia Marquez moved his family away from New York City shortly after the Bay of Pigs invasion because of death threats from counterrevolutionary Americans, whom he called worms. Then, a few years later, when One Hundred Years of Solitude was released, Garcia Marquez became a worldwide celebrity overnight. He never shied away from politics in his writing or in his personal life.

Until he died in 2014, Garcia Marquez supported Castro.

In Chronicle of a Death Foretold, Marquez exposes the Colombian townspeople for who they are: victims of a suppressing, macho culture. In the wake of Trumps presidency, the novella makes us wonder if perhaps we might be reading about our own cultural values.

Angela Vicario never forgot the horror of the night on which her parents and her older sisters with their husbands, gathered together in the parlor, imposed on her the obligation to marry a man whom she had barely seen. The twins stayed out of it. It looked to us like woman problems, Pablo Vicario told me.

The fact that the novella contains dialogue early on  and throughout  thats strangely reminiscent of Trump is merely icing on the sugarless cake.

By the end of the novella, some readers might be compelled to pull out their hair and scream Santiago Nasars sentiment as he faces the Vicario twins before they stab him to death: I dont understand a (expletive) thing.

San Antonian Alex Z. Salinas flash fiction has been published online by Every Day Fiction, Nanoism, escarp and 101 Words.
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Sounding alternately angry and rueful, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned a crowd at Stanford University on Friday night about the growing danger to democracy posed by cyberattacks on the countrys political system.

Clinton painted her loss to Republican Donald Trump in Novembers presidential election as the opening volley in what she called a new level of political warfare.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his intelligence services jumped into the 2016 presidential race in a brazen assault ... to throw an election to their preferred candidate, she said.

But the Russian interference, which has also been seen in recent European elections, was about far more than just her own campaign, Clinton added.

The Russians are working to turn Americans against each other, she said. They want to fan the flames of division and weaken us.

Clinton was in the Bay Area as part of the tour for her new book on the 2016 campaign, What Happened. She stopped at Stanford to celebrate the universitys new Global Digital Policy Incubator, which addresses not only digital technology, but also digital security, digital rights and government standards for the Internet.

An enthusiastic audience of more than 500 people, most of them students, jammed into Cemex Auditorium to hear Clinton give a 25-minute speech and then spend almost another hour in an onstage conversation with Eileen Donahoe, executive director of the new incubator.

Theres a part of me that wishes you couldnt be here for this, Donahoe said as she greeted the two-time presidential candidate.

Me too, Clinton shot back.

Clinton said she was shocked to see how widespread the Russian cyberattacks were. Not only did they hack into computers at the Democratic National Committee and one belonging to John Podesta, her campaign manager, but recent reports have shown the Russians also used state-run news services such as RT and Sputnik to spread disinformation. The Russians, disguising themselves as American groups and organizations, spent tens of thousands of dollars buying online political ads on Facebook and Twitter and focusing them on states such as Michigan and Wisconsin, where Trump squeezed out narrow victories.

They flooded the zone with ads designed to whip up support for Donald Trump, she said.

The country cant afford to let that type of outside interference happen again, Clinton said, not only in politics, but also in cyberattacks on the military, state, local and national governments and the nations businesses and infrastructure.

The government must make it clear that cyberattacks on vital information sources should be treated as an act of war and responded to appropriately, she added.

Clinton closed with a plea for students not to be discouraged by a political loss like Novembers.

Young people cant afford to be depressed, she said. The future is more about you than me.

Political action can change political direction, Clinton added as she called for the students to take their concerns into the political arena.

We need you, we need your votes, she urged. And some of you need to move to other states.

John Wildermuth is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jwildermuth@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @jfwildermuth
Imperial Valley News Center

California, Quebec and Ontario Sign Agreement to Link Carbon Markets

Quebec City - Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today signed an agreement with the leaders of Quebec and Ontario to officially integrate their cap-and-trade programs, expanding the three-year partnership between California and Quebec to include Ontario, Canadas most populous province and leading industrial region. The agreement takes effect January 1, 2018.

"Climate change, if left unchecked, will profoundly disrupt the economies of the world and cause untold human suffering," said Governor Brown. "That's the reason why California and Quebec are joining with Ontario to create an expanded and dynamic carbon market, which will drive down greenhouse gas emissions."

Governor Brown, Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne (left) and Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard (center) sign agreement to expand cap-and-trade partnership.

Climate change is a global problem that requires global solutions. Now more than ever, we need to work together with our partners around the world and at home to show how our collaboration can lead to results in this international fight. Todays carbon market linking agreement will add to the success we have already seen in reducing GHG emissions in Ontario, California and Quebec. We are stronger together and by linking our three carbon markets we will achieve even greater reductions at the lowest cost. I look forward to continuing to work with Governor Brown and Premier Couillard on our common goals, including advocating for the adoption of carbon markets and emissions cap programs across North America and around the world, said Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne.

Quebec has been active for many years in the fight against climate change. We believe in concerted and coherent actions with our partners as well as in cooperation to face the challenges posed by this global challenge. On behalf of the Government of Quebec, I want to assure Ontario and California of Quebec's full cooperation in the implementation and promotion of carbon markets in North America and internationally. We should rejoice in the progress made so far and the new milestones made today in strengthening our relations, which contribute to a more prosperous, more responsible and low carbon society, said Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard.

Governor Brown delivers remarks at the 7th joint meeting of Cabinet Ministers of the governments of Ontario and Quebec.

California's cap-and-trade program, which launched in 2012 and linked with Quebecs program in 2014, sets a declining limit on carbon pollution and creates a market to achieve the emission reduction targets in the most cost effective manner.

Expanding the partnership to include Ontario will further strengthen this market-based system and drive additional investment in clean energy and innovation.

A strong cap-and-trade program, together with California's full suite of climate programs and actions, will help ensure the state can cut carbon within its borders to meet its ambitious targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020 and 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2030.

The linkage agreement reflects California, Quebec and Ontario's shared commitment to operate an efficient, linked market and supports coordinated information sharing and continued consultation. It also lays out a process for other jurisdictions to join the linked program and establishes a working model for other states and provinces that are seeking cost-effective approaches to reducing their greenhouse gas emissions.

Today's agreement comes after Governor Brown signed AB 398 in July, extending the state's cap-and-trade program to 2030. In March, as required by SB 1018, Governor Brown produced findings that Ontarios program was as stringent as Californias program and could be considered for linkage and in July, the California Air Resources Board adopted an amendment to its cap-and-trade regulation setting January 1, 2018 as the start of the linkage. Ontario and Quebec are both on track to finalize corresponding linkage amendments to their regulations.

While California, Quebec and Ontario developed their cap-and-trade programs through separate legislative and regulatory processes, the three jurisdictions have worked together to ensure that their programs complement each other and provide participants in all three jurisdictions with the benefits of an expanded program.

Under the linked program, carbon allowances and offset credits can be exchanged among participants in all three jurisdictions cap-and-trade programs. The expanded market leverages additional greenhouse gas reductions at reduced cost and enhances the ability of jurisdictions to effectively work together to develop and implement cost-effective regional greenhouse gas emission reduction programs.

The agreement was signed today in Quebec City during the 7th joint meeting of Cabinet Ministers of the governments of Ontario and Quebec and can be found here. For additional information on the cap-and-trade program, visit: http://www.arb.ca.gov/cc/capandtrade/linkage/linkage.htm

Today's action follows the Governors events and meetings earlier this week tied to Climate Week NYC, the Yale Climate Conference and the UN General Assembly. Over the course of the week, the Governor met with the UN Secretary-General, opened Climate Week NYC 2017 and discussed subnational climate action from governments and the business community at events with other global leaders. Governor Brown announced co-chairs for the Global Climate Action Summit, highlighted state, city and business-led climate initiatives at the Yale Climate Conference and joined fellow U.S. Climate Alliance co-chairs to release a report on the progress by member states to meet their portion of the U.S. commitment under the Paris Agreement. In addition, the Governor participated in a wide-ranging discussion organized by the Skoll Foundation and the UN Foundation on the need to mobilize all levels of society to decarbonize the economy, signed an agreement with Denmark on water and climate issues and welcomed the Republic of the Marshall Islands and other new members to the Under2 Coalition.
A 34-year-old South African woman yesterday appeared in court after she was arrested at Robert Mugabe International Airport in Harare with more than five kilogrammes of cocaine with a street value of $430 000 loaded in 125 bobbins of white sewing thread.

Thlinolui Jack was coming from Angola.

She appeared before Harare magistrate Ms Rumbidzai Mugwagwa facing a charge of dealing in dangerous drugs.

She was represented by Mr Norman Tsarwe and was remanded in custody to January 16.

Prosecuting, Ms Linda Gadzikwa alleged that on December 31, Jack arrived in the country aboard an Angolan flight.

The court heard that during clearing of passengers, Jacks red suitcase went through the scan while she went through the green route as if she did not have anything to declare.

She was allegedly stopped by suspicious Zimbabwe Revenue Authority officials, who alerted the police.

CID Drugs and Narcotics detectives demanded to search her luggage and it is alleged that Jack showed signs of discomfort.

Suspecting that she was carrying an illicit consignment, the detectives searched the luggage and discovered 125 black bobbins of white sewing thread containing a whitish powder stashed in the holes.

The powder was tested in the presence of Jack and tested positive for cocaine. It weighed 5.382kg and was estimated at $430 560.

Last year, a 32-year-old drug trafficker, Beauty Mutashu, was sentenced to an effective eight years in prison for trying to smuggle 3,8 kilogrammes of cocaine worth $304 000 into Zimbabwe from Brazil.

She was arrested at the airport with the cocaine concealed in 11 shirts in her luggage.

In March last year, Fungai Maguta (39) was sentenced to four years in prison for smuggling into the country 274 grammes of cocaine worth about $22 000.

She arrived at the then Harare International Airport with the cocaine hidden in her bottom.

 Herald

Breaking News via Email
A BULAWAYO man has been taken to court and charged with unlawful possession and wearing of a Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) military fatigue.

Thubelihle Ncube (22), who allegedly falsely identified himself as Thabani Moyo to military police officers, yesterday appeared before Bulawayo magistrate, Racheal Mkanga. He admitted the offence and is yet to be sentenced.

The court heard that the complainant in the matter is ZNA Sergeant Freedom Mandhlokuwa of Headquarters One Brigade MQ1.

It is the States case that on December 31 last year at 2pm, Ncube was in the Bulawayo city centre when he was apprehended by a military officer for wearing a camouflage combat shirt.

In his statement, Mandhlokuwa said Ncube had falsely identified himself as Thabani Moyo at the time of his arrest.

I recall that on December 31 at 3pm at Headquarters One Infantry Brigade, I received a telephone call from one Munkuli in Charge HQ 1 Infantry Provost Platoon to the effect that Colonel Ncube of 1 Engineers Field had arrested the aforementioned accused after he was found donning a military combat shirt. Pursuant to the report, I went to the HQ 1 Infantry main gate, where I was handed over the accused person by Munkuli, he said.

On asking his name, he said he was Thabani Moyo and he indicated that he was not a soldier. On asking him where he got the combat shirt from, he said he had been given by one Sergeant Nyauchi Douglass of 3 Signals Squadron.

Mandhlokuwa called Nyauchi, who denied giving the accused the shirt.

That is when Nyauchi told me that the accused was Thubelihle Ncube, not Thabani Moyo, and had illegally acquired the shirt, he said.

 NewsDay

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Borcea, Romania - A Portuguese Air Force F-16 detachment deployed to Borcea Air Force Base, Romania in mid-September for training and exercise missions within the Assurance Measures framework.

Lieutenant Colonel Joao Jedi Rosa, Portuguese Air Force detachment commander and one of his colleagues at Borcea Air Base, Romania, in front of a Portuguese F-16 fighter aircraft. Photo by Matos Pires

On September 18, 2017, Portugal landed a military force in support of four F-16 fighter jets, starting a two-month deployment to the Romanian Air Base of Borcea for the exercise "Falcon Defense 2017".

The Portuguese fighter aircraft will fly training missions in the area in support of NATO policy, to include combined joint missions with the Romanian Air Force, Army and Navy and the Canadian Air Force CF-18s, also deployed in the region, conducting enhanced Air Policing and training missions in Romania. Some of this flying activity will be controlled by a NATO E3-A AWACS operating over the two Allies on the Black Sea shores. The aim of this training is to hone skills and further consolidate cross-Ally interoperability.

Portugal transferred to the Romanian Air Force, 12 F-16 aircraft, while providing training to more than 80 Romanian military personnel in Portugal. With all the fighters delivered, the Portuguese Air Force is now conducting joint training of tactics, techniques and procedures for operations of the jets until late 2018.

"This training deployment is highly beneficial said Detachment Commander, Lieutenant Colonel Joao "Jedi Rosa, who is in charge of 70 military to include pilots, operators, maintainers as well as communications, logistics and other specialists. "While my team has the opportunity to practice deployment and operation, they can, simultaneously, test skills and capabilities away from their home base. Additionally, we are able to fly joint training sorties alongside with our Allies further strengthening the bonds and the interoperability of this Alliance, he added.

This deployment is one example of Allies organizing joint training activities underlining cohesion and interoperability and showcasing the level of cooperation and consistency required to maintain high NATO standards.

Story by Public Affairs Officer of the Portuguese F-16 "Falcon Defence 2017 Detachment
Former presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton, visited the Bay Area Friday to join fans for a book signing in San Francisco and a keynote address at a Stanford Conference on global digital policy.

Clinton made her first Bay Area stop at Books Inc. on Van Ness Avenue in San Francisco to sign copies of her new memoir, titled "What Happened." The event, which sold out in less than 18 hours, had more than a thousand fans hoping for a few seconds to say hello and thank you to the former Secretary of State.

I am feeling really inspired and a mess. I just love her, she is an incredible human being, said a fan and volunteer for the Clinton campaign in Washington state, Shelby Healy.

Clinton was then slated to head south to attend the launch of the Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Laws Global Digital Policy Incubator at Stanford University.

During her keynote speech, in CEMEX Auditorium, Clinton said the United States is in a cyber war with Russia.

"We learned just this week some of the Facebook ads specifically targeted Michigan and Wisconsin," said Clinton. "Two states that decided the election with razor-thin margins which suggest the Russian strategy was more sophisticated than we knew."

The former Secretary of State continued to discuss Russia's involvement with fake news, encouraging lawmakers to take cyber threat security.
Electric car maker Tesla appears ready to expand its operations in Fremont.

The company is leasing two buildings in the 6000 block of Dumbarton Circle, which is roughly two miles from the Dumbarton Bridge. The move could bring up to 1,000 new jobs to the area, but that could also mean 1,000 more cars on already congested roads.

The two properties on Dumbarton Circle are about 11 miles from the Tesla factory off Interstate 880 in Fremont and about 20 miles from Tesla's Palo Alto headquarters.

John Goodwin with the Metropolitan Transportation Commission believes the root of the issue is a serious imbalance in jobs being located in areas where there is little affordable housing. The issue translates into longer commutes for drivers.

But Goodwin said if the city is looking ahead a few years, they could do a lot to smooth out future traffic concerns. Example of what could improve traffic conditions are signal light synchronizations and improved roads. There is already plans to convert parts of Highway 84 into express lanes and to encourage more carpool use.

In an e-mail to NBC Bay Area, the City of Fremont boasts about the new location and said "it's a reverse commute from the Peninsula." Read the full statement below. (Note references to Ardenwood indicate an area within Fremont)

City of Fremont statement:

Tesla can't be underestimated in terms of its importance to Fremont, the region, and the state. It's the largest manufacturer in California.

The ecosystem that supports Tesla through the supply chain is right here in Fremont and the rest of the region. The supply chain also has a broader reach and is being utilized by companies moving to our area.

The resurgence of manufacturing both here and across the United States, fueled by more advanced manufacturing processes, is very well represented by Tesla.

Ardenwood is perfectly positioned between the Peninsula and the greater East Bay talent pool. Not only does it sit in the right place, it takes advantage of open space amenities such as the Bay Trail and Coyote Hills Regional Park. Weve seen a lot of new companies moving to Ardenwood such as EFI, Sportsvision, TE Connectivity, Boehringer Ingelheim, Asterias Biotherapeutics, Soraa, Ardelyx, and NEXTracker.

Another attraction for Ardenwood is it's a reverse commute from the Peninsula. Ardenwood provides a 7-minute ride across the Dumbarton Bridge and connects Fremont with its neighboring cities of Menlo Park and Palo Alto. For East Bay commuters, Ardenwood provides the opportunity to work closer to home.
Massachusetts could be moving quickly to outlaw devices used by the Las Vegas shooter that allow semi-automatic weapons to mimic fully automatic guns.

Democratic and Republican lawmakers have both filed bills to ban the devices, called bump stocks. Republican Gov. Charlie Baker said he supports a ban.

The devices fit over the stock and grip of a semi-automatic rifle and allow the weapon to fire continuously. The Las Vegas shooter had 12 weapons fitted with such a device, which is why witnesses heard what sounded like automatic-weapons fire as the shooter rained bullets from a hotel high-rise, killing 58 people and wounding hundreds more at a concert below.

State Rep. David Linsky, a Natick Democrat, has filed legislation that would outlaw any devices that increase the rate of discharge of a weapon and ban the sale of large capacity feeding devices.

"These devices were created by gun manufacturers as a work-around of the federal law banning the sale and possession of automatic weapons, and there is absolutely no reason for any citizen to possess a bump stock device or a high-capacity magazine," Linsky said.

Linksy's bill would also eliminate a state law that allows magazines that hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition, if they were manufactured prior to 1994. The Natick Democrat said there's no way to distinguish between old and new magazines, making the current law impossible to enforce.

Republican Senate Leader Bruce Tarr of Gloucester has sponsored another bill that would also prohibit devices like "trigger cranks and bump stocks" that effectively turn rifles and shotguns into weapons with firing capabilities similar to fully automatic weapons.

Tarr said the bill would make using a device to cause the rapid fire of a weapon illegal and would subject an offender to a potential penalty of life in prison. House Republican Leader Bradley Jones of North Reading also supports the bill.

The push for the ban has surged in the days since the Las Vegas shooting.

Asked by reporters on Thursday about a possible ban, Baker said he would quickly sign a bill if it reaches his desk.

"If that were to pass tomorrow, we would sign it," Baker said, noting that Massachusetts has passed some of the country's toughest gun laws with bipartisan support.

"I think it would be terrific if folks at the federal level took a look at some of the standards and the practices and policy and laws that we have here in Massachusetts," he added.

House Speaker Robert DeLeo also supports the ban. A spokesman for the Winthrop Democrat said DeLeo "believes bump stocks should be illegal, and the House will move quickly on the issue."

An aide to Senate President Stan Rosenberg said the Amherst Democrat also supports banning bump stocks and similar devices, saying they serve no legitimate purpose.

The state's main gun rights lobbying group did not immediately return a request for comment on the bills.
An Illinois man known for honoring the victims of mass shootings around the country installed 58 white crosses on the Las Vegas Strip on Thursday.

Greg Zanis drove nearly 2,000 miles from the Chicago area to install the crosses on a patch of grass near the iconic "Welcome to Las Vegas" sign, not far from the site of the Route 91 Harvest country music festival where 58 people were killed on Sunday night.

Zanis, a 66-year-old retired carpenter, made his first cross 20 years ago when his father-in-law was killed.

"That just changed my life," Zanis said. "My first cross was for somebody that I loved. And when I put up these crosses here, I always think of my personal loss here too. Always."

Zanis has become well-known for erecting more than 20,000 of the markers over the past two decades, including after the Columbine and Sandy Hook school shootings and the massacre at an Orlando nightclub.

The crosses, which Zanis said took him two days to cut and paint, feature a red heart.

He plans to keep the tribute up for 40 days before giving the crosses to the families of the victims.
Hurricane Nate gained force as it continued rapidly moving over the central Gulf of Mexico early Saturday after drenching Central America in rain that was blamed for at least 21 deaths. Forecasters said it was likely to reach the U.S. Gulf Coast over the weekend.

Louisiana and Mississippi officials declared states of emergency and Louisiana ordered some people to evacuate coastal areas and barrier islands ahead of its expected landfall Saturday night or early Sunday. Evacuations began at some offshore oil platforms in the Gulf.

Mississippi's government said it would open 11 evacuation shelters in areas away from the immediate coast, with buses available for people who can't drive.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center warned that Nate could raise sea levels by 4 to 7 feet (1.2 to 2.1 meters) from Morgan City, Louisiana, to the Alabama-Florida border. It had already had caused deadly flooding in much of Central America.

The center added metropolitan New Orleans and Lake Pontchartrain to its latest hurricane warning.

The storm had maximum sustained winds of 80 mph (128.74 kph) and was likely to strengthen over the Gulf of Mexico, reaching the U.S. Gulf coast near New Orleans late Saturday, according to the hurricane center's 4 a.m. CDT update.

The storm was located about 345 miles (555.2 kilometers) south-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River and was moving north-northwest at 22 mph (35 kph).

Authorities cancelled Friday afternoon classes in parts of Mexico's Caribbean coast state of Quintana Roo, where Cozumel and Cancun are located. But Gov. Carlos Joaquin said it appeared the storm would stay well offshore and not hit land, adding "that, I believe, is good news."

In Nicaragua, Nate's arrival followed two weeks of near-constant rain that had left the ground saturated and rivers swollen. Authorities placed the whole country on alert and warned of flooding and landslides.

Nicaragua's vice president and spokeswoman, Rosario Murillo, said that at least 11 people had died in that country due to the storm. Earlier Thursday she had said 15 people had died before later revising to say some of those were still counted as missing. She didn't give details on all the deaths, but said two women and a man who worked for the Health Ministry were swept away by a flooded canal in the central municipality of Juigalpa.

Costa Rica's Judicial Investigation Organism blamed seven deaths in that country on the storm and said 15 people were missing. Flooding drove 5,000 residents into emergency shelters.

In Honduras, there were three dead and three missing, according to Oscar Triminio, spokesman for the country's firefighters.

Damage caused by the storm prompted Costa Rican officials to postpone a World Cup qualifying soccer match between that country and Honduras, which had been scheduled for Friday night.

In Louisiana, Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency and mobilized 1,300 National Guard troops, with 15 headed to New Orleans to monitor the fragile pumping system there.

With forecasts projecting landfall in southeast Louisiana as a Category 1 hurricane, Edwards urged residents to ready for rainfall, storm surge and severe winds  and to be where they intend to hunker down by "dark on Saturday."

Louisiana's governor said Nate is forecast to move quickly, rather than stall and drop tremendous amounts of rain on the state. State officials hope that means New Orleans won't run into problems with its pumps being able to handle the water.

Edwards warned, however, against underestimating the storm.

The National Hurricane Center issued a hurricane warning from Grand Isle, Louisiana to the Alabama-Florida border.

Officials ordered the evacuation of part of coastal St. Bernard Parish east of New Orleans ahead of the storm. Earlier Thursday, a voluntary evacuation was called in the barrier island town of Grand Isle south of New Orleans.

New Orleans officials outlined steps to bolster the city's pump and drainage system. Weaknesses in that system were revealed during summer flash floods.

The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement's New Orleans office said in a news release that as of midday Thursday, six production platforms, out of the 737 manned platforms in the Gulf, had been evacuated. No drilling rigs were evacuated, but one moveable rig was taken out of the storm's path.

The agency estimated less than 15 percent of the current oil production in the Gulf of Mexico has been shut-in, which equates to 254,607 barrels of oil per day.
Connecticut State Police have arrested two men accused of involvement in a drag race on Route 15 in Meriden back in June.

Police said 23-year-old Alexis Burgos and 30-year-old Efren Santiago, both of Meriden, were arrested Friday and charged in connection with a drag racing incident on June 10.

According to police, on that date around 12:30 a.m. troopers spotted several cars setting up for what appeared to be a drag race. Troopers attempted to stop one of the vehicles, but they all took off and troopers did not pursue because the vehicle was traveling too fast.

However, the vehicle hit a cruiser, damaging both vehicles. The driver and his passenger got out and were picked up by another driver and left the scene. They were later found at Midstate Medical Center in Meriden, receiving treatment for minor injuries.

Burgos faces various charges including illegal racing on the highway, interfering with an officer, third-degree assault, and reckless driving, among others. He was issued a $10,000 bond and is due in court on Oct. 19.

Santiago was charged with interfering with an officer, speeding for wager or speed record, and operating a vehicle without a license. He was issued a $7,500 bond and is due in court on Oct. 20.
A Voluntown man was killed in a crash on Main Street (Route 138) Friday night, according to Connecticut State Police.

Police said 25-year-old Nolan Vachon was driving east on Main Street near Lillibridge Road around 11:45 p.m. when he lost control of his vehicle and veered onto the wrong side of the road, striking several objects on the side of the road.

Vachon was airlifted to Rhode Island Hospital where he died of his injuries.

According to police, a second driver traveling west lost control and struck a street sign during the incident. That driver fled and has yet to be identified.

The crash remains under investigation. Anyone with information should contact Trooper Dwyer of Troop E at 860-848-6500 ex. 5008.
President Donald Trump on Saturday again lashed out at North Korea on Twitter, claiming that for decades U.S. administrations have tried to reason with the state to no avail. Now, "only one thing will work!" he wrote.

"Presidents and their administrations have been talking to North Korea for 25 years, agreements made and massive amounts of money paid......" Trump wrote in his first tweet Saturday afternoon.

He added minutes later: "...hasn't worked, agreements violated before the ink was dry, makings fools of U.S. negotiators. Sorry, but only one thing will work!"

Trump did not immediately specify what that one thing is.

The tweets come days after Trump delivered a foreboding message on Thursday, telling reporters as he posed for photos with senior military leaders that this might be "the calm before the storm."

The president refused Friday to elaborate on what he meant, saying simply, "You'll find out."

White House reporters were summoned suddenly Thursday evening and told the president had decided he wanted the press to document a dinner he was holding with the military leaders and their spouses.

Reporters were led hastily to the grand State Dining Room, where they walked into a scene of the president, his highest-ranking military aides and their spouses posing for a group photo. The cameras clicked and they smiled. A joke was made about someone's face being tired. Live classical music played.

Then, Trump gestured to the reporters in the room.

"You guys know what this represents?" Trump asked. "Maybe it's the calm before the storm. Could be the calm, the calm before the storm."
A day after the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders deflected reporters' questions about gun control by saying "there will certainly be a time for that policy discussion to take place, but thats not the place that were in at this moment."

Yet the topic was by then already top of mind across the country, according to an analysis of Americans' online searches. Within hours of gunman Stephen Paddock opening fire on a crowd of concertgoers at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas, search interest in "gun control" spiked across the country, according to data compiled by Google Trends.

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At 3 a.m. ET Monday, about three hours after Paddock began spraying the crowd with a barrage of bullets from the 32nd floor of the nearby Mandalay Bay hotel, search interest in "gun control" surpassed search interest in "gun shop." It was the first time that has happened in nearly a year.

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Since Sunday nights attack that left 58 people dead and scores more wounded, search interest for "gun control" has maintained its dominance over "gun shop" in nearly every state accept Kentucky. Queries for gun stores has regained popularity there. Search interest in "gun rights" has plateaued over the last decade and remained unchanged in the last six days.

It is not clear if the shift in search term interest reflects a shift in attitudes toward gun ownership. Google Trends makes no speculation as to whether the searches for "gun control" during this time were for, against or just seeking information on the topic following the shooting. The trend also appears to be common after such attacks. Spikes in searches for "gun control" following the San Bernardino, California, Virginia Tech and Sandy Hook massacres also occurred while "gun shops" has maintained popularity among Americans over the long term.

A recent national survey by the Pew Research Center found that 81 percent of Americans support expanding background checks, 76 percent support laws that would prevent the mentally ill from buying guns, and 71 percent are for barring people on the no-fly list from purchasing guns. About half support bans on assault-style weapons  52 percent  and high-capacity ammunition clips. The poll, conducted in August, showed a partisan divide on banning assault weapons. Fewer Republicans, 35 percent, favor an assault weapons ban compared to 67 percent of Democrats.

Yet gun control measures have been essentially off the table in Congress since a bipartisan deal to expand background checks  forged in the wake of the killing of 26 people, including 20 elementary school children, in Newtown, Connecticut  failed in 2013.

In a rare concession for the National Rifle Association, the nations largest gun lobby embraced regulations on bump stocks, the device found on several of the Las Vegas shooters guns. Paddock appeared to have used bump stocks to covert semi-automatic weapons into fully automated ones.

Las Vegas Shooter Stephen Paddock had at least 12 bump stocks attached to his guns, which allowed him to fire his weapons at a machine gun-like rate. Lawmakers are now pushing for them to be banned. Here is how these devices work.

The NRA, which famously opposes virtually any hint of new restrictions, said in a statement: "The National Rifle Association is calling on the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE) to immediately review whether these devices comply with federal law. The NRA believes that devices designed to allow semi-automatic rifles to function like fully automatic rifles should be subject to additional regulations."

President Donald Trump, who has declared himself an ardent backer of gun rights and has moved to roll back some of the executive actions President Barack Obama took to tighten access, agreed.

House Speaker Paul Ryan added his support, as have other top Republicans.

"Obviously we need to look at how we can tighten up the compliance with this law so that fully automatic weapons are banned," the Wisconsin Republican told reporters at an event in Chestertown, Maryland.

[NATL-LA] Mass Shooting at Las Vegas Concert Leaves 58 Dead

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a California Democrat, introduced a bill Wednesday to ban bump stocks and other devices that can enable a rifle to fire as many as 400 to 800 rounds per minute. More than 20 Democratic have signed on as co-sponsors. U.S. Rep. David Cicilline, a Rhode Island Democrat, said he introduced a similar bill Wednesday in the House of Representatives.

The Republican-controlled Congress has not taken up new gun restrictions in light of recent mass killings. And before Sunday's shooting, House GOP leaders had been moving forward with bills to ease regulations on gun silencers and allow people with concealed-carry permits to take their weapons to other states. A vote on the bill has been delayed.

Meanwhile, gun control advocates have shifted much of their campaign for tighter firearms laws to the states  and they've chalked up some modest, unexpected successes.

Republican governors in Nevada, North Dakota, Tennessee, Utah and New Jersey all have signed bills this year tightening access to guns. At the same time, efforts to loosen restrictions have failed in several states where Republicans are in control.

The gains expose revealing limits to what some had felt was the virtually unlimited influence of the gun lobby. Some GOP state officials have shown a willingness to break ranks  largely on incremental steps  tacking closer to overall public opinion about a need for some curbs on gun purchases, broader background checks and limits on where guns can be carried.

Hoping it's at least a mini-trend, gun control advocates say they plan to exploit newly fertile ground in the wake of the Las Vegas shootings.

The Associated Press Contributed to this report.
A Florida man is accused of killing his 13-year-old daughter whose body was found in a nature preserve nine days after he reported her missing.

Hillsborough County Sheriff's spokeswoman Donna Lusczynski didn't offer many details surrounding the death of Janessa Shannon while announcing 37-year-old Nahshon Shannon's arrest on Thursday. He is charged with first-degree felony murder and aggravated child abuse.

He reported the girl missing July 3, a day after he says she vanished from his home. But the Tampa Bay Times reports investigators believe the girl's life ended before she was reported missing.

Lusczynski says Shannon picked up the girl from her mother's house on July 1. At some point, she says, they got into an argument, "ultimately ending in the death of Janessa."

Jail records don't list a lawyer for him.
Everybody does it-- pays their workers off the books, that is, according to former U.S. Rep. Michael Grimm.

The reality is that you cannot operate a small business in New York City like a restaurant and not have a dishwasher off the books, said the ex-congressman who represented parts of Brooklyn and Staten Island.

Grimm is eyeing another run for the U.S. House of Representatives seat he resigned in 2015 after pleading guilty to tax evasion after prosecutors said he hid more than $1 million in sales and wages partly through off-the-books payments to workers in the country illegally while running a Manhattan health food restaurant. And in a wide-ranging interview with News 4 this week, Grimm said he is ready to go back to public office -- and has called on President Donald Trumps former chief strategist Steve Bannon to help him unseat his successor, Rep. Dan Donovan, in a race that is already drawing national attention.

Im an attorney, he said. I know better than that. What I should have done is closed the restaurant, lost my house, lost everything and walked away. That was the only option.

Grimm says he deserved a fine, but not jail time, insisting he was targeted as a Republican by a politically motivated Justice Department under the Obama administration. While he admits his actions were wrong, Michael Grimms new stump speech is not one of contrition.

I think its a disgrace what the weaponized Obama administration did to me, he said. No other restaurant owner in the history of the city has ever been given more than a civil fine.

He added that what I did was civilly wrong. And I am sorry for that, before making the case that all restaurant owners do the same thing.

(Paying someone off the books is) the only choice. You can ask any restaurant owner anywhere in this city right now. Theyll tell you of course we cant get someone on a bicycle to deliver food on the books. They dont show up for work if theyre not.

A Justice Department spokesman Friday declined to respond. News 4 has reached out to the New York State Restaurant Association seeking comment.

Now, the fiery Grimm is swinging hard at Donovan, saying the former Staten Island prosecutor never wanted to be a congressman. He added that its time for Donovan and other members of Congress who have opposed Trumps policies to be punished.

The job fell in his lap, Grimm said. And quite frankly its a big disappointment. He doesnt show up for work.

But Grimm claims since he jumped into the race, Donovan appears to be warming up to President Trump in his statements and policy positions.

Thats the definition of a swamp politician, Grimm said.

Donovan spokeswoman Jessica Proud denies any shift in positions, saying While Mr. Grimm was in a jail cell for fraud, Dan Donovan was fighting against the Iran deal, and for Zadroga funding for our 9/11 heroes and FEMA reform for Sandy victims. Mr. Grimm is a con artist who didnt even vote for President Trump.

Grimm confirmed he did not vote in the 2016 election because of his felony conviction, but he promised to have President Trumps back if he is elected.

I think overall he is doing very well, considering the Congress is not there to support him.

Grimm says he would like to see Trump campaign for him in his district, but does not advise the president to get involved in GOP primaries.

But Grimm is still trying to capture some of the excitement he said Trump generates on Staten Island and parts of Brooklyn.

He said he reached out to Bannon, currently the executive editor at the right-wing website Breitbart, to help him with strategic advice. Bannons involvement has drawn national attention to the race, with political insiders saying the firebrand could help Grimms fundraising efforts with out-of-state Republicans supportive of the president.

But Grimm told News 4 that money never came up in his conversations with Bannon.

We never spoke about fundraising, he said.

Grimm also waded into city and state politics. He said that Mayor de Blasios Republican challenger, Nicole Malliotakis made a very big mistake saying she regretted voting for Trump. And she lost a lot of her base and thats gonna hurt her. Grimm says the New York State GOP made a calculation that they cannot win in the overwhelmingly Democratic city, and has under-invested in the Mayors race. The Malliotakis campaign declined to respond to Mr. Grimm.

He declined to detail how he has paid off his legal fees and $139,000 in fines, but said a full accounting on the rest of his debts will be filed publicly in the weeks to come.

I borrowed the overwhelming majority of that from my family and a very small loan from a friend. This isnt like a mystery like it came from some sort of nefarious source.

Grimm says if elected, he hopes to turn his attention to the scourge of opioids and reforming the justice system, after experiencing prison first-hand which he described as a horrible experience.

A big part of this is certainly about redemption.
A mahogany speedboat that belonged to John F. Kennedy sold for $75,000, and a flight suit that belonged to CIA operative Francis Gary Powers sold for $2,750 Saturday at a New York auction of Kennedy-era memorabilia.

The sale at Guernsey's included a wide array of Camelot-era lots, including documents, photos, stationery and even inscribed sterling silver baby toothbrushes.

A rocking chair that Kennedy used in the White House, specially made for him because of a back injury, sold for $30,000. A second rocking chair used by both Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson, who served after Kennedy was assassinated in 1963, sold for $10,000.

Among the more romantic items was the 17-foot (5-meter) speedboat, a 1961 Century Resorter. Kennedy used the vessel when he was at home in Hyannis, Massachusetts.

The nautical history starts with family patriarch Joseph P. Kennedy Sr., who had a boat named "Tenovus," a reference to the number of Kennedy family members at the time: ten of us."

Later, when he won the speedboat in a church raffle, it got the name "Restofus," a nod to the "rest of us" in the expanding family. That became JFK's personal boat. After the nation's 35th president died, the boat went to his brother, Edward M. Kennedy, and then to other owners.

A blue bathing suit that belonged to first lady Jacqueline Kennedy sold for $1,800, and two pairs of swimming trunks owned by President Kennedy sold for $3,500 and $1,800.

The core of the sale came from the collections of Henry Hirschy, who was a Navy aide in the White House during the Kennedy administration; Mary Gallagher, who was Jacqueline Kennedy's personal secretary, and Powers.

In one of the landmark episodes of the Cold War, Powers was captured in the Soviet Union after his spy plane was shot down in 1960.

The U.S. initially tried to cover it up, inventing a story about a NASA weather plane going off course, and was embarrassed when the Soviets produced Powers alive.
The Santa Clarita family of a man killed in the Las Vegas mass shooting has filed a lawsuit aimed at freezing the gunman's assets.

John Phippen, 56, of Valencia was killed at the Route 91 Harvest Country Music Festival on Sunday when 64-year-old Stephen Craig Paddock shot and killed 58 people and injured more than 500 others.

The attorney for Phippen's family filed a lawsuit in Clark County, Nevada. It seeks to block Paddock's girlfriend, Marilou Danley, and his brother, Eric, as Paddock's rightful heirs. NBC News reports Paddock was a successful gambler, earning at least $5 million in 2015.

"This is an action for the benefit of all the victims to preserve these assets," said the Phippens' attorney, Richard Patterson.

Patterson says he plans to file suit against Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino and its parent company, MGM Resorts International. He also said one other victim could be joining the lawsuit.



"We hope that this doesn't happen again," Phippen's son, Nathan, told NBC4 News outside of the courthouse. "This is a terrible loss for not only our family, (but) the community and the world because we lost an amazing person."
A Delaware high school student with special needs was assaulted by another student and then suspended for using inappropriate language.

Now, the victims mom says her son doesnt want to go back to school.

Rose Boyles said her son, Josh, was beat up in the Caesar Rodney High School cafeteria after an argument with another student over a girl.

Just when her son through the argument seemed to be over, felt a punch to the back of his head, Boyles said. And the blows kept coming.

The boy jumped over the table and continued to punch my son, Boyles said.

A video showed her son attempting to protect his head as the second student threw punch after punch. Josh remained on the ground for the duration of the attack.

After the ordeal ended, Josh was suspended for two days while the student who punched him was charged with offensive touching.

Its more than offensive touching, Boyles said. It is actual assault.

Josh, who has special needs, refuses to return to school and Boyles said she wouldnt feel comfortable sending him there anyway.

Caesar Rodney High School said in a statement that disciplinary action was taken and an arrest was made."
The source of hate mail that juxtaposed a swastika and President Trump's campaign slogan is under investigation in Los Angeles and New York, authorities said.

"We were in shock when we saw it out of the blue," said Mervyn Hahn, whose shop, Los Angeles Diamond Factory, received one of the hate letters that were also sent to at least seven shops in New York, all with owners who are Jewish.

At the top of the one page flyer is a Nazi swastika on a red background. Below it is printed, "Make America Great Again!!!" and then vulgar phrases disparaging minority groups.

Hahn's wife Gelenda was going through the mail on Monday, the first business day after the Jewish High Holy Day of Yom Kippur, when she came across the letter, gasping loud enough that her husband heard.

None of the envelopes had return addresses. But the last line on the flyer implied which hate movement sent it.

"Christian Identity is back," it stated.

"Christian Identity is the racist religion of white supremacy," said Professor Brian Levin, director of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino. Across the nation, Christian Identity has an estimated 25-30,000 adherents, Levin said. Aryan Nations is among the groups that has subscribed to the Christian Identity racist dogma that only certain Western European whites were created in God's likeness.

While there is no evidence in any increase in the numbers of white supremacists, it appears they have become bolder in the past year, said Levin, citing an uptick in hate crimes and public white supremacist events.

"I think these people, in an era of nationalism, feel they are emboldened and can hide under those coattails," Levin said.

Los Angeles Diamond Factory is located amid hundreds of shops in downtown LA's jewelry district. Hahn said he had no idea how the hate mailer picked his. It is one of the longest-established shops under continuous ownership, dating back to 1980. The hate letter was addressed to the business, not him personally.

Levin said it is possible the businesses on the mailer's list were chosen at random.

The letter included a German phrase used in the 1930's as Nazi exhortation for the expulsion of those of Jewish ancestry. It also used crude epithets for Gays and those of African descent, asserting they "must burn in hell."

Stunned at receiving the letter, Hahn said his rabbi advised him to report it to law enforcement. LAPD assigned the investigation to its elite Robbery Homicide Division.

Local authorities in New York city are also investigating the letters sent there, and the FBI confirmed that it is also looking at the mailing.

Evaluating whether the letters made an explicit threat is crucial to determining whether or not a crime was committed, or is protected as free speech.

Hahn had mixed feelings about discussing the letter. He wants people to be informed, he said, but at the same time recoils from giving attention to hate mongerers.

"The last thing we want to do is given them recognition," said Hahn, before adding, "People have to realize there are groups around who are anti-Semitic, anti-black, anti-gay. We have to be aware."
Threats against employees of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency have spiked 50 percent this year, according to an investigation by the News4 I-Team.

Agents with EPAs Office of Inspector General have launched at least 70 investigations into threats against EPA employees in 2017, including a surge of threats against agency Administrator Scott Pruitt.

None of the threats resulted in injury, according to investigators, but the threats have been deemed legitimate risks to the safety and well-being of some agency employees, including those at EPA headquarters at Federal Triangle in Washington, D.C.

"I do feel weve prevented acts of violence through our investigations. I feel very confident we have," said EPA assistant inspector general for investigations Patrick Sullivan.

Sullivan said the agency often touches on politically sensitive issues, which can inspire angry responses. Sometimes people are mentally ill," he said. "Sometimes they're members of radical groups on the left side of the political spectrum or the right side. Sometimes they're members of domestic terrorism organizations."

EPA provides its own internal security for staffers and agency officials. Those efforts are supplemented by investigators with the agencys inspector general. The federal agents are armed and trained at the federal law enforcement training center.

Officials who spoke with the I-Team said an increase in threats against agency Administrator Scott Pruitt, who has overseen high-profile policy changes at the EPA, is responsible for some of the sharp increase in cases in 2017.

An EPA spokeswoman said the agency does not comment on security or threats against the administrator.

Some of the threat cases targeted the agencys former administrator, Gina McCarthy, according to the I-Team report. Court filings from prosecutors said former EPA employee Barbara Jordan is awaiting trial for sending an email threatening to murder McCarthy and other colleagues. According to the filings, Jordan wrote that she was outside a hotel and that "i am going to murder those (expletive).... and i hope they drop dead like flies. She's pleaded not guilty.

According to a public report from the EPA Office of Inspector General, agents ordered a person banned from entering agency grounds in November 2016 for threatening EPA staff.

In the email, the mentioned the harmful use of glyphosate and provided personal contact information," the report said. "During an interview at the individuals home, an SKS assault rifle was found. The subject advised during the interview of having a mental illness (paranoid schizophrenia), and admitted to threatening McCarthy and other politicians for years via the internet.

Several D.C.-area members of Congress said they would support a boost in funding for federal inspectors general to ensure the safety of federal workers.

"In a climate of intense anti-government hostility, federal employees like scientists and medical researchers face relentless political and bureaucratic attack," Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) said. "The inspectors general play a key role in protecting federal employees' rights and their ability to do their jobs."

"Civil servants work hard every day to serve the American people - from caring for our veterans, to keeping our borders safe, to protecting our environment, to performing life-saving research," Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) said. "We must ensure they have a work environment free from threats and intimidation, and Im committed to ensuring agencies have the resources needed to keep their employees safe."

"It's critical that inspectors general have the independence and resources necessary to carry out effective oversight of their agencies, especially threats against federal employees," Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) said.

Reported by Scott MacFarlane, produced by Rick Yarborough, and shot and edited by Steve Jones.


A Republican member of Congress suggested the deadly white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, this summer was instigated by "the left" and backed by billionaire George Soros.

In an interview published Thursday by Vice News, Rep. Paul Gosar, of Arizona, described the rally's organizer as "a person from Occupy Wall Street that was an Obama sympathizer."

Blogger Jason Kessler planned the Aug. 12 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville. A woman was killed when a car plowed into a group of people at the rally, where white nationalists and counter-protesters clashed.

The Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups, has described Kessler as a "relative newcomer to the white nationalist scene." The SPLC noted, "Rumors abound on white nationalist forums that Kessler's ideological pedigree before 2016 was less than pure and seem to point to involvement in the Occupy movement and past support for President Obama."

Some conservative outlets and commentators have picked up that portion of the center's description to raise the question of who was to blame for the violence in Charlottesville.

Gosar expanded on the theory in an interview with Vice. "Let's look at the person that actually started the rally. It's come to our attention that this is a person from Occupy Wall Street that was an Obama sympathizer. So, wait a minute, be careful where you start taking these people to," Gosar said.

"And look at the background. You know, you know George Soros is one of those people that actually helps back these individuals. Who is he? I think he's from Hungary. I think he was Jewish. And I think he turned in his own people to the Nazis. Better be careful where we go with those."

When the Vice News reporter asked Gosar whether he thought Soros was funding the neo-Nazis who marched in Charlottesville, he replied, "Wouldn't it be interesting to find out?"

Gosar's comments aren't sitting well with some conservatives. Commentator Bill Kristol tweeted: "Will other Republicans rebuke him? If not, is this a party to which one can belong?"

A spokesman for Soros' Open Society Foundation told Vice News that Soros was 14 years old when World War II ended and has spent his life supporting efforts to ensure that such terrifying authoritarianism never takes root again.

"He did not collaborate with the Nazis. He did not help round up people. He did not confiscate anybody's property. Such baseless allegations are insulting to the victims of the Holocaust, to all Jewish people, and to anyone who honors the truth. It is an affront to Mr. Soros and his family, who against the odds managed to survive one of the darkest moments in our history," the spokesman said.

Gosar made the statements during an interview about his decision to block his critics on social media.
President Donald Trump is weighing in on Virginia's governor's race.

Trump attacked Democrat Ralph Northam on immigration issues in a tweet late Thursday, accusing Northam of "fighting" on behalf of violent MS-13 gang members. Trump urged Virginians to vote for Republican Ed Gillespie.

Gillespie - a consummate Washington insider - has sought to keep Trump at arm's length throughout the campaign while also trying to rally Trump supporters with hard-edged attacks on Northam over immigration.

Northam responded on Twitter he's been expecting Trump's attack and asked supporters for donations.

"To accuse me of promoting gang violence in Virginia as a pediatrician who has taken care of sick children and their families all of my adult life, and to be a veteran of the United States Army, you know, I think it's just someone who doesn't understand who I am," Northam said in an interview with News4.

Gillespie said in a phone call with reporters he wasn't surprised that a Republican president is endorsing a Republican candidate for governor.

The tweet was retweeted more than 19,000 times.

"I saw it come up on my iPhone and my thought was my ads must be running in D.C.," Gillespie said.

The Republican candidate is pushing hard on the issue of gangs in his ads.

"Ralph Northam. Weak on MS-13. Putting Virginia families at risk," says one ad.

Northam pushed back against that statement on Friday.

"I regret that our president and my opponent have continued to promote this path of just fear mongering that is so divisive. We need to bring Virginians and this country together right now," he said.



Virginia is just one of two states electing governors this year, a swing state contest viewed as a possible referendum on Trump's first year in office.

MS-13 has become a target of Trump in seeking support for a broader immigration crackdown.
Police are investigating after a man was shot while sitting on the front deck of a home in Providence, Rhode Island.

WJAR-TV reports that officers were called to the home just before 3 a.m. Saturday. Police say the man had been shot in the ankle.

The victim wasn't immediately identified.

Investigators say they're searching for a woman driver and three men who were in a van at the time of the shooting.
PCD captures Division IV girls soccer title as Rogers comes up short

When the final horn sounded the Knights raced toward their keeper Sarah Howe and the celebration was on. It was a sweet win, one the Knights earned.
Kolkata: Ahead of Diwali, nearly 2 lakh sweet shop owners in Bengal had pinned their hopes on a rethink on GST imposed on sweets for a boost in sales. So it came as a rude shock to them when the government decided to keep the tax rate unchanged.

Pointing out at the reduction in rate for khakra, a snack mainly consumed in poll-bound Gujarat, they said the governments tax reform reeks of step-motherly treatment.

The central government should understand the plight of people associated with the business. If they continue with this, we will be left with no other option but to call a strike, Ram Chawrasia, head of the Paschimbanga Mistanna Byabsayee Samity, told News18. He said the association is planning to launch a protest in Delhi after Diwali.

Concerned over the dip in sales due to GST pushing up prices, the All Bengal Sweetmeat Shop Owners association had written to finance minister Arun Jaitley and Prime Minister Narendra Modi to decrease tax on sweets  if not remove it completely.

Before GST was introduced, sweets were not taxed in the state.

Currently, there is 5 percent GST on Rossogolla, Sandesh, Jal Bhara, Gulab Jamun, Rabri, Kaacha Golla and Makha Sandesh. There was some confusion that chocolate coated sweets will be taxed at 28 percent, but the government clarified it would also fall in the 5 percent slab. Tax on snack items like namkeen, bhujia, radhaballavi (stuffed kachori), and plain kachori has been reduced from 12 to 5 percent.

Chawrasia said that although they welcome the reduction in tax on namkeen, their business will still suffer because of the tax rate. We can see that there will be huge impact on our industry during Diwali. The sales are likely to go down. We are really worried, he said.

Highlighting the procurement of raw cheese, he said that a large number of women in rural areas are also suffering. We procure 95 percent cheese from rural Bengal and mostly women are involved in this sector, he said.

RK Paul, general secretary of PMBS, said, After Diwali, we are planning to go for a mass agitation in Delhi. We will also try to meet the finance minister to raise our concern. If they continue to be ignorant towards us, we will again go for a strike, he said.

Nearly 80,000 people associated with the sweet industry in the state. Sweet shop owners had objected to GST earlier too and had shut their shops for 24 hours as a mark of protest.

The association claimed that nearly 80 percent sweetmeat business falls under the informal sector. How will these people maintain a log book and bill book when they dont have any idea about the tax system, Paul said.

The GST Council, headed by Jaitley, had on Friday tweaked the GST structure and reduced the tax burden on 27 goods, apart from easing the burden on small traders and exporters by making filing returns simpler.
Meerut: The 21st century police cannot be a "brute force" but will have to be a "civilised" unit, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said on Saturday and asked the police personnel to be patient in dealing with challenging situations such as riots and protests.

The minister also urged the police forces, both under the Centre and the states, to adapt new technology and psychological solutions to "control and divert the minds" of the rampaging crowds during a protest or a riots-like situation.

Singh made the remarks while addressing the personnel of the blue dungaree-donning Rapid Action Force (RAF) at their base here on the occasion of their silver jubilee (25th) anniversary.

Singh urged the security personnel to keep an effective check on the incidents in which attempts are made to break the country on the lines of casteism, religion or regionalism.

"The police of the 21st century cannot be a brute force. It will have to be a civilised force. Patience and control has to be practised and followed by police forces and the personnel on ground while dealing with hard and challenging situations like riots and protesting crowds.

"I understand sometimes police forces have to use slight force but in such situations too, prudence is required," he said.

Singh said he has already asked the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPRD) to look for "less-lethal" solutions to be used in policing tasks and crowd control.

The head of the country's internal security mechanism asked the forces to apply "minimum force" and obtain maximum results.

While lauding the efforts of the RAF, he said that five new battalions of the force will be made fully operational from January 1 next year.

The RAF, at present, has ten operational battalions and they are based in ten cities that are regarded as sensitive from the communal and the security point of view.

The home minister also declared that personnel of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs)will be granted an annual allowance of Rs 10,000 to get stitched uniforms and the practise of providing them ready-made uniforms has been discontinued.

He said that he was "seriously" thinking about ways to ensure timely promotions to the about 10 lakh personnel of these forces.

He also took a dig at those who say that only taking a pledge does not transform the country. "We took a pledge in 1942 and called it the 'Quit India' movement...we achieved independence in the next 5 years, that is in 1947. This is the power of determination and pledge," Singh said.

The minister asked the forces to contribute to the 2022 'new India' vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The RAF is a specialised anti-riot and crowd control unit under the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and it was raised and made fully operational this day in 1992.

It has ten battalions (of about 10,000) based in various parts of the country in order to cut down response time to counter an incident of trouble.

The ten RAF bases are in Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Allahabad, Mumbai, Delhi, Aligarh, Coimbatore, Jamshedpur, Bhopal and Meerut.
New Delhi: Indian Air Force (IAF) Chief Birender Singh Dhanoa on Thursday said if the need arises, the IAF had the capability to disarm Pakistans nuclear arsenal by conducting what he called a full-spectrum operation. But when would such a need arise? What situation would cause India to strike back and how does Indias no-first-use doctrine affect such an operation? News18 tries to answer some of these questions.

Addressing a press conference on the eve of Air Force Day, Dhanoa said, Air Force has the capability to locate, fix and strike across the border.... We are ready to take on any challenge." Dhanoas statement came in response to questions on Pakistans claim of possessing short-range nuclear weapons to counter the cold start doctrine adopted by the Indian Army.

According to reports, Pakistan has stored its nuclear stockpiles in at least six different locations. These are reportedly in Akro (Sindh), Gujranwala (Punjab), Khuzdar (Balochistan), Pano Aqil (Sindh), and Sargodha (Punjab). Except for the base in Khuzdar, all bases are in provinces that share a border with India.

A report by US-based experts Hans M Kristensen and Robert S Norris released last year estimated that Pakistan had anywhere between 130-140 nuclear weapons, as opposed to Indias estimated stockpile of 110-120 weapons. The report also suggested that Pakistan had modified its F16 fighter jets, of which it reportedly has 76, to carry nuclear weapons.

Unlike Pakistan, India has a no-first-use policy on nuclear warfare. This means that India has vowed never to be the aggressor in a nuclear war but will retaliate with full force if weapons of mass destruction were used against it. So does that mean India does not necessarily need nuclear weapons to destroy Pakistans stockpile?

Air Vice Marshall (Retd) Manmohan Bahadur said, Obviously, you cant go full-Rambo and pull out their nuclear weapons through a non-nuclear operation. I think what the Chief meant when he made those comments was that India was tracking Pakistans stockpile and would continue to do so in both peace times and war times. No country in the world, not even the US, has the capability to perform what is called a Splendid Nuclear Strike  a strike that would entirely obliterate a country. But we can easily destroy the Pakistani arsenal if we are able to track it effectively.

So how does the no-first-use policy affect Indias response? According to Bahadur, Pakistan has coined a term called Tactical Nuclear Weapons (TWNs), which it claims it can use for strategic advantage in war. This term is absolute sense. There is no such thing as a tactical or regular nuclear weapon. A nuke is a nuke. The correct term for these TNWs would be battlefield ballistic missiles. The only difference is in yield. The bomb dropped on Hiroshima was 20 Kiloton while this one will be much lighter. Naturally, the blast radius would also be limited to the battlefield

A TNW or Battlefield Ballistic Missile is meant to be used not on civilian targets but on military targets. Pakistan, Bahadur said, plans to use these low-yield missiles on Indian troops if India were to cross a so-called Red Line. He added, When they say Red Line, they probably mean a scenario in which Indian troops manage to enter Pakistani territory or are close to breaking up Pakistan like we did in 1971. Of course, India has made it clear that a so-called TNW is a nuclear weapon and it would make Pakistan a nuclear aggressor. If such a situation ever arises, India would then be free to retaliate with full force and obliterate the Pakistani stockpiles.

While Pakistan is now modifying its F16s to carry nuclear weapons and, if reports are to be believed, it has a marginally larger stockpile than India; it is at a disadvantage when it comes to nuclear weapon delivery.

Pakistan relies heavily on surface-to-surface missiles and even though it may have nuclear capable F16s, the size of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) fleet is less than half that of the IAF. PAF reportedly has around 800 active fighter aircraft in total while the IAF has over 1,700. Pakistan Navy does not have any known nuclear capable submarines.

They (Pakistan) are also trying to modify some of their ships to carry nuclear weapons. However, ships will be very ineffective when it comes to stealth missions. We will easily be able to detect their ships through our satellites, Bahadaur said.

India, on the other hand, can deliver nuclear weapons through air, surface and submarines. The IAF would become very critical in such a scenario. IAF has three different aircraft - Sukhois, Mirages and Jaguars  that have the capability to carry nukes. These aircraft make up around 425 fighter jets in the IAF, although it is unclear how many can carry a nuclear payload.

Bahadur said, Because of our no-first-use policy, we are not on 24X7 trigger alert. However, in the event of a nuclear confrontation, India would have ample warning signs. A nuclear buildup will take time before the threat is immediate. But once we have activated our nukes, it would be a matter of minutes before our missiles reach any point in Pakistan.
New Delhi: In a new twist to what has now come to be known as the 'Kerala Love-Jihad' case, the Left government has questioned the Supreme Court-mandated NIA probe into the marriage of a Hindu woman with a Muslim man after she converted to Islam.

Submitting its affidavit in the Supreme Court, the state home department has pointed out that during the two-month long "thorough" investigation by the Kerala Police, no such incriminating material was found that called for an intervention by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

The investigation conducted so far by the Kerala police has not revealed any incident relating to commission of any scheduled offences to make a report to the the Central government under Section 6 of the NIA Act, stated the affidavit.

The affidavit contended that a Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Kerala Police has conducted detailed investigation into conversion of the 24-year-old Hindu woman and her subsequent marriage to a Muslim man.

It added that the Kerala Police is competent to conduct investigation in such crimes and it would have reported to the Central government in case of any incident requiring the involvement of NIA.

However, the department said, the investigation had to be handed over to the NIA by Kerala police in view of the SC order in August.

Pursuant to an order by the high court in May, the Kerala Police has begun its investigation in June first week and was conducting it till the SC roped in NIA, which had told the top court that there is a pattern to convert Hindu girls and get them married to Muslim men.

The state government affidavit signifies the politics being played out between the Left government in Kerala and the BJP, which has been raising the issue of Love-Jihad at every opportune moment. During a political rally earlier this week, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had also spoken out against this.

During a hearing on this case on Tuesday, the Supreme Court had observed that prima facie, the high court could not have nullified the marriage of a Hindu woman with a Muslim man after her conversion.

The court also remarked that a father cannot have control over a 25-year-old woman and that such a claim cant be made in respect of a major.

The case pertains to a 25-year-old woman from Kerala, who married Shafin Jahan after converting to Islam. The HC nullified the marriage and ordered the state police to investigate into such cases. The HC also handed over the custody of the adult woman to her father.

Jahan challenged the annulment of his marriage in the Supreme Court and urged the Court to seek presence of the woman before it. The court will hear the case next on Monday.
Islamabad: Pakistan has started the process to file its plea in response to India's memorial submitted in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against the death sentence of Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav.

Jadhav, a 46-year-old retired Indian Navy officer, was captured in Balochistan in March 2016 by Pakistani security forces and tried in a military court which sentenced him to death for "espionage and subversive activities".

The ICJ had asked Pakistan to submit its written response or memorial by December 13 before the court could start further proceedings.

According to Foreign Office sources, Attorney General Ashtar Ausaf Ali on Friday presided over a meeting of legal experts and officials of the ministry of foreign affairs and other relevant departments to discuss the line of arguments in the ICJ.

"We will forcefully defend our position which is based on the fact that Jadhav is a serving Indian spy tasked to carry out subversive activities in Pakistan," the sources said.

Meanwhile, Ausaf told the Dawn that they had decided to hold weekly meetings in order to review the situation and "to finalise Islamabad's point of view and convert it into an appropriate rejoinder to India's allegations".

He said they were in touch with relevant stakeholders, including Khawar Qureshi who had pleaded Pakistan's case at the initial stage, to formalise a robust reply refuting all allegations levelled against Pakistan.

The daily reported that the attorney general's office is also busy documenting the case and collecting instances of the "atrocities and human rights violations committed by India" in Jammu and Kashmir.

On Thursday, the Pakistan Army said it is close to a decision on the mercy petition of Jadhav.

"Kulbhushan Jadhav's mercy petition has come to the army chief. There is a process, everything goes through a process but I can assure that it is near finalisation and we will give you news about this very soon," army spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor said.

Jadhav's death sentence was confirmed by Pakistan's army chief General Qamar Bajwa on April 10. He has filed an appeal with the army chief to seek clemency, which is still pending.

After India approached the ICJ, a 10-member bench on May 18 restrained Pakistan from executing Jadhav till adjudication of the case.

Jadhav's sentencing had evoked a sharp reaction in India.

India has warned Pakistan of consequences and damage to bilateral ties if the "premeditated murder" was carried out.

In its application, India had also informed the ICJ that it learned about the death sentence against Jadhav from a press release.

India acknowledges that Jadhav had served with the Indian Navy but denies that he has any connection with the government. It also said that Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran.

India has also handed over to Pakistan an appeal by Jadhav's mother, initiating a process to get his conviction overturned.
New Delhi: A case against national award-winning actor Prakash Raj over his comments on Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be heard in Lucknow court on Saturday. Raj had last Monday called PM Modi a bigger actor than him.

Speaking at the 11th state meet of the Left-leaning Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) in Bengaluru, the actor had launched a scathing attack against PM Modi over his silence on the Gauri Lankesh murder. "The PM is a bigger actor than me, I should give him my award," he said.

Prakash Raj had said that those celebrating activist-journalist Gauri Lankeshs brutal murder were being followed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Twitter.

Prakash Raj was a very close friend of Lankesh. The 55-year-old editor of Kannada weekly, Gauri Lankesh Patrike, was killed by unidentified men outside her home in the city suburbs on September 5.

There is a huge crowd out there enjoying and celebrating it (Gauri Lankeshs murder) on social media. We all know what their ideology is. Some of those celebrating this ghastly episode are being followed by none other than Mr Narendra Modi himself. This worries me, Deccan Chronicle quoted Raj as saying.

The acclaimed actor further said that he knows when a person is acting and when is he telling the truth.

"I am a renowned actor, do you (Modi) think I will not be able to detect when you are acting. At least show me some respect, considering the fact that I am an actor and I will be able to tell what the truth is and what is acting," another report in News Minute quoted him as saying.
United Nations: The world body has received reports of Naxals using children to fight in Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand and of terrorists burning at least 30 schools in Kashmir in the past one year.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, in his annual report on Children in Armed Conflict, said, "Children continued to be affected by incidents of violence between armed groups and the government, in particular in Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, as well as tensions in Jammu and Kashmir."

"The United Nations continued to receive reports of the recruitment and use of children by armed groups, including the Naxalites, in particular in Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand," he said.

Guterres quoted government reports to say that at least 30 schools were burned and partially destroyed by armed groups in Jammu and Kashmir.

"In addition, government reports confirmed the military use of four schools by security forces in that region for several weeks."

Guterres's report for 2016, however, shows that the prevalence of the use of children by Naxalites and other armed groups had come down to only two states compared to six in the previous year.

In the report for 2015 released last year, the then-Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon had said the Naxalites were using children as young as six in Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Odisha and West Bengal.

Guterres's report covering conflicts during 2016 was sent to the Security Council on Thursday.

The report that talks about a number of other nation also said that there were about 4,000 verified cases of violations against children involving government forces and over 11,500 by non-state armed groups in the 20 nations covered in the report.

"I call upon the (Indian) government to develop appropriate mechanisms to protect children from recruitment, as well as to separate and reintegrate recruited children," Guterres said.

"I also urge the government to ensure the protection of children from any form of violence in the context of civil unrest or law and order operations."

"Children continued to be killed and injured in the context of operations of national security forces against Maoist armed groups," Guterres said, but did not provide any numbers.

According to the Home Affairs Ministry, 213 civilians were killed in encounters, a sharp increase from the 171 deaths in 2015. However, the number of children killed or injured have not been provided, the UN report said.

"Armed groups reportedly resorted to abduction and threats against parents in order to recruit children, who subsequently underwent military training and served as messengers, informants or guards in child squads (bal dasta)," Guterres said in the latest report.

In what he described as a "troubling development," Maoists were allegedly providing combat training as part of the curriculum in several schools they were running in Chhattisgarh.

In one incident recounted in Guterress report, police moved 23 children threatened with abduction by armed groups in Gumla district, Jharkhand, in March 2016 and "supported their enrollment in schools".

However, he added, "unverified reports suggest that police may be using children formerly associated with armed groups as informants, potentially making them targets for retaliation."

Guterres also said that because of "access restrictions" to the conflict areas, the UN was not able to verify the incidents.
About two decades ago, a Supreme Court Constitution Bench was constituted in Gian Kaur Vs. State of Punjab. The bench had to consider the fundamental issue of a persons right to die.

Among the things that the Bench unanimously agreed on was that the Right to Life includes a dignified procedure of death.

Such a right, though the judgment doesnt explicitly say so, would also include the right of a person awarded the death sentence to die with dignity.

Death sentence awarded in India translates to death by hanging. According to Section 354(5) of the CrPC: When any person is sentenced to death, the sentence shall direct that he be hanged by the neck till he is dead.

And in observations made by the Supreme Court as well as the Law Commission, the fact that death by hanging is cruel and inhuman, has been underlined several times.

Take for instance Supreme Courts 1982 Bachan Singh Vs. State of Punjab case. Justice Bhagwati had observed and held that hanging a condemned prisoner involves intense physical pain and suffering coupled with mental anguish, psychological strain and physical agony which is nothing but an act of cruel and inhuman mode of execution.

The Law Commission of India, way back in 1967, in its 35th report, had studied the various modes of executing the death sentence in India.

In Paragraph 1149, the Law Commission concluded that there is a considerable body of opinion which would like hanging to be replaced by something more humane and more painless.

In the following paragraph, the Commission noted that the method of execution of death sentence should be certain, humane, quick and decent.

However, it is common knowledge that the current method of executing convicts on death row, i.e. by hanging them, is neither humane nor quick.

To understand the reasons, read this excerpt on hanging death-row prisoners written by one Warden Duffy of San Quentin prison in the USA.

The day before an execution prisoner goes through a harrowing experience of being weighed, measured for length of drop to assure breaking of the neck, the size of the neck, body measurements etc. When the trap springs, he dangles at the end of a rope.

There are times when the neck has not been broken and the prisoner strangles to death. His eyes pop almost out of his head, his tongue swells and protrudes from his mouth, his neck may be broken and the rope many times takes a large portion of skins and flesh from the side of the face that the noose is on. He urinates, he defecates and dropping fall to the floor while witnesses look on and at almost all executions one or more faint or have to be helped out of the witness room.

The prisoner remains dangling from the end of the rope from 8 to 14 minutes before the doctor, who has climbed up a small ladder and listen to his heartbeat with a stethoscope, pronounces him dead.

A prison guard stands at the feet of the hanged person and holds the body steady because during the first few minutes there is usually considerable struggling in an effort to breath. It has also noted that if the drop is too short, there will be a slow and agonising death by strangulation. On the other hand, if the drop is too long, the head will be torn off.

Death by hanging is, in fact, not only barbaric, inhuman and cruel, it also goes against the resolutions adopted by the United Nations Economic & Social Council (ECOSOC) which had categorically resolved by way of a safeguard which states, Where Capital punishment occurs it shall be carried out so as to inflict minimum possible suffering.

The Supreme Court has also held that the execution of the death punishment should satisfy the following test:

1. The Act of execution should be as quick and as simple as possible and free from anything that unnecessarily sharpens the poignancy of the prisoners apprehension.

2. The Act of the execution should produce immediate unconsciousness passing quickly into the death.

3. It should be decent.

4. It should not involve mutilation.

The Law Commission of India in its 187th Report, published in October 2003, on the mode of the Execution of Death Sentence held that intravenous lethal injections are the best-controlled way of executing death-row prisoners.

It remarked that hanging undoubtedly is accompanied by intense physical torture and pain.

It also noted the fact that there was a significant increase in the number of countries where hanging has been abolished and it has been substituted by electrocution, shooting or lethal injection.

Yet, another interesting aspect of the issue involved is the fact that there is a complete discrimination vis-a-vis a condemned prisoner who has been tried under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 and the prisoner who has been tried under the provision of The Air Force Act, 1950, The Army Act, 1950 and The Navy Act, 1957.

Under Section 354(5) CrPC, the only mode which has been prescribed for the execution of the death sentence is hanging by neck till death whereas, under the above-mentioned acts, the execution has to be carried out either by hanging by neck till death or by being shot to death.

Shooting a condemned man necessarily involves less agony when compared to hanging in which there is a torturous procedure of weighing, measuring the height of the convict etc. in order to determine the length of the drop etc.

Thus, an endeavour has been made where the mode of execution has to be changed keeping in view the developing society at large and the intent and the objects of the various pronouncements of the courts as well as the Law Commission. All of them in unequivocal voices have said that the mode of execution of death sentence should not only be less painful but should be quick and have a humane touch to it.

(The author is a Supreme Court lawyer and a petitioner in this case. Views are personal).
Dwarka (Gujarat): Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarked on a two-day visit to his home state Gujarat on Saturday, kicking off the trip with prayers at famous Dwarkadhish temple.

After visiting the temple dedicated to Lord Krishna, Modi laid the foundation stone of a four-lane, cable-stayed bridge between Okha and Beyt Dwarka and said it was a link between old and new Dwarka.

Addressing a public meeting at the event, Modi lauded Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley for announcing relaxations in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) mechanism, saying it had brought Diwali 15 days early for Gujarati traders.

Diwali has always been celebrated with fervour in Gujarat. But this year, changes to GST mechanism have brought Diwali 15 days early for traders, he said.

Vowing to boost tourism in Dwarka, Modi said the previous central government had not done much for Gujarat. "There were lots of possibilities of development in the tourism sector here, but earlier the UPA government had an indifferent attitude towards Gujarat because of the BJP government in the state.... I clearly remember," Modi said, referring to his days as Gujarat chief minister.

The PM addressed the public meeting after laying the foundation stone for the 2.32 km Okha-Beyt Dwarka bridge, which will be constructed at a cost of Rs 962.43 crore.

(Image: PIB India/Twitter)

Terming the bridge a link between the old and new Dwarka, he said it would benefit the people of Beyt (island) Dwarka and devotees.

The four-lane 27.20 metre wide bridge will have 2.50 metre wide footpaths on each side. Solar panels installed on the roof of footpath will produce 1 MW power for street lights on the bridge, officials said.

At present, devotees visiting the Shri Dwarkadhishji temple at Beyt Dwarka can travel only during the day by ferry. Once the bridge is constructed, they can travel any time of the day.

On Sunday, the Prime Minister is scheduled to visit Vadnagar, his birthplace, for the first time since coming to power in 2014.

The PMs visit comes days after Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi kicked off the partys campaign in the state for Assembly elections this year.
Muzaffarnagar: Four men pointed a gun at a 25-year-old woman, dragged her to a field and raped her in front of her husband and infant child in Muzaffarnagar district.

The accused persons allegedly held the child hostage, threatened to kill it and took turns to rape the woman. The accused are yet to be identified, officials of Bhopa Police Station in Muzaffarnagar said.

ANI quoted the victim saying, "Four men dragged me to a sugar cane farm and raped me. They constantly threatened to kill my child, also tied and beat up my husband."

According to Superintendent of Police Ajay Sehdev, the woman and her husband were returning after visiting a doctor with their three-month child on a motorbike, when the four men in a car intercepted and waylaid them off the road near Nirgajni village.

They pulled her off the bike and dragged her to a sugarcane field nearby. The four then raped the woman and threatened her and her husband against disclosing the incident to anyone, the woman has said in her complaint to the police.

The accused also beat up her husband, the police said.

The SP further said that an investigation into the incident has been started and medical examination of both the husband and the wife is being done.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said his government is committed to promote the IIT brand across the globe. Indias universities do not figure in the top 500 worldwide. We must boost Indias standing in global education. Rs 1,000 crore fund has given to IITs to boost education," he said. Modi, who was speaking at IIT Gandhinagar, is on a two-day visit to his home state Gujarat.

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New Delhi: Suspended Trinamool Congress leader Mukul Roy is likely to float a new political outfit and target next year's panchayat polls in West Bengal to test the political waters in the state.

Roy has sparked rumours of joining the BJP after coming out with statements that seem to indicate a softening of stand towards the saffron party. However, BJP sources felt that Roy is likely to form his own political outfit to show off his political strength to it.

"I have candidates for every single seat for the first tier of panchyat polls. But I will chalk out my future course of action after I resign from Rajya Sabha," Roy told reporters in New Delhi.

The suspended TMC leader is in the national capital to submit his resignation next week from his Rajya Sabha seat. He has already sought an appointment with the upper house Chairman to hand over his resignation in person.

Once the second-in-command in the TMC after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Roy was suspended for six years for "anti-party activities" after he said on September 25 that he would resign from the party after Durga Puja.

One of the founding members of the TMC, he said he will continue to play an active political role and is exploring various options, including floating his own party. He remained tight-lipped on joining BJP but said he never thought it is a "communal party".

After his resignation from Rajya Sabha, he said, he is free to chalk out his own political path.

Roy was said to be the "mastermind" behind the Nationalist Trinamool Congress Party, a political outfit which registered itself with the Election Commission in 2015. He claimed he is in touch with many "party workers and leaders of TMC" besides "many people who are dissatisfied" with the party.

After arriving in Delhi on Friday evening, he met Bengal Congress President Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and expelled CPI(M) leader Ritabrata Banerjee On Saturday.

Incidentally, both Chowdhury and Banerjee had been in the news for their perceived closeness to BJP. Roy has been maintaining distance from the party leadership for the last few months and was removed as the TMC vice-president after the party decided to revamp its structure.

He was earlier removed as the party's in-charge of Tripura where the TMC was steadily making inroads till its members switched over to the BJP earlier in 2017.

He earlier said, "I do not consider the BJP to be a communal force. It is a secular party. Had it been a communal party, it would not have been recognised by the Election Commission. When the TMC was formed, it had forged an alliance with the BJP. The alliance was there from 1998-2006, except for a few months during the (West Bengal) Assembly election in 2001."

Roy had also said the TMC would not have tasted success, had it not got the BJP's backing in its initial years.
Ahmedabad: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on a two-day visit to Gujarat, on Saturday doubled down on the development model of the BJP and hit back at the Congress Vikas has gone crazy campaign ahead of the assembly elections in the state.

Speaking at a public rally after laying the foundation of the Rajkot international airport at Chotila in Surendranagar, Modi asked the audience if they wanted vikas or not and whether they had dreamt they would get an airport.

Should we call it vikas if an airport is constructed here? Is vikas necessary? Will it change your future? he asked the crowd in Gujarati, and got a resounding yes in response. Then, shifting to Hindi, the PM further said, Ask a poor person if he or she wants a house? It is not possible without vikas.

Alluding to the Congress, he said there was vikas earlier too, but of a different kind. A neta would ask for votes, saying that he installed a hand pump in a village or street. Installing a hand pump was the definition of vikas. Today there is a government that provides Narmada water through pipelines all across the state," Modi said.

Chief Minister Vijay Rupani was a bit more direct in his attack on the Congress and praise of the PM. Claiming that development and Prime Minister Narendra Modi are synonyms, he said that people will not pardon those who are poking fun at vikas.

For them, vikas is 'mazaak' (fun), but it is mijaaz (matter of prestige) for us, he said. Quite clearly, Rupani was referring to the onslaught of "Vikas Gone Crazy" memes on social media that have rattled the BJP leadership over the past one month or so.

The Congress IT Cell, on the other hand, said the fact that the PM has responded to the campaign means he has acknowledged all is not well with the BJP's Gujarat model.

The PM has acknowledged that all is not well and claims of development are exaggerated. We will respond to his statements with an appropriate campaign soon, said Rohan Gupta, head of the partys IT cell in the state. He added that the party would also respond to Rupani's statement that Vikas is the mijaaz' of people of Gujarat.
Amethi: Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi's assertion that the economy is on firm footing and said he was "dreaming".

Addressing party workers in his Lok Sabha constituency, he said the GDP has fallen by two percent in one go and lakhs of people have become jobless.

Gandhi also took a dig at the "56-inch chest" remark of Modi, saying, "Our Manmohan Singh did not have a 56-inch chest but had done a lot of work like bringing MNREGA, loan waiver, right to information (RTI) and right to food."

The Congress leader also appeared to be critical of the bullet train project, saying, "Had rupees one lakh crore been used to improve the railway line, station or freight train, the country would have benefitted but Modiji is only interested in gimmicks."

On the second day of his three-day visit, he asked Congress workers to question RSS on the raging issues like unemployment and farmers suicide.

A day after Modi said the economy was on firm footing, Gandhi said, "Don't know what track he is talking about and what is he dreaming of... economists, newspapers, shopkeepers say that he has spoiled the economy but he says that it is on the right track... he is not ready to hear anyone."

Modi, while lashing out at critics of his economic policies, had said yesterday that he will never jeopardise the country's future for immediate gains and that his government will continue reforms to reverse the GDP slowdown witnessed in the last two quarters. "Farmers are committing suicide, only 450 (people) get employment, the economy has been damaged, still long speeches are being delivered," Gandhi said.

Referring to the demonetisation decision announced on November 8 last year, Gandhi claimed that it was brought without consulting anyone. "Had he (Modi) asked, no one would have advised," he contended.

"The same was done on GST," he said, adding that Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Manmohan Singh and P Chidambaram had said that the GST was the Congress' idea "but you have not understood it ... do not bring five different slabs."

He went on to add, "Running a government and making false and hollow promises are two different things and today the entire country is aware of it."

Talking about unemployment, he said India's competition is with China but in that country, 50,000 youth get jobs every day while in India only 450 get employment. "This is Modi's 'make-up India'," Gandhi said.

He alleged that "the BJP people sometimes talk of the temple, Hindu-Muslim or Jat non-Jat and of dividing the nation."

Apparently referring to the bullet train project of the NDA government, he said rupees one lakh crore loan has been taken from Japan and the ticket between Ahmedabad and Mumbai will be Rs 4000.

He told the party workers that "as soon as RSS people start talking" they should be asked what has been done regarding employment and farmers' suicide.

"You ask them these questions ....you have given jobs to only 450 people, in every state farmers are committing suicide, economy has been spoiled, note ban has snatched jobs from crores of youth crores, 150 people have died, the businesses of small and middle traders have suffered losses," he told the workers.
Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi is currently addressing a Vikas se Vijay Ki Aur rally in Himachal Pradeshs Mandi, kicking off the partys election campaign in the hilly state. The rally comes amid reported infighting in the party between Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and state unit chief Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu.

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New Delhi: The Congress on Saturday said Rahul Gandhi was the unquestioned choice of all its workers across the country to take over as the party president and hoped that their desires would be fulfilled once the intra-party poll was over.

The newly-elected members of the Delhi Congress on Saturday unanimously adopted a resolution, urging Rahul Gandhi to take over as the party president.

This came two days after the Tamil Nadu unit of the party passed a resolution, authorising Congress president Sonia Gandhi to announce the new body of the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) and names of the All India Congress Committee (AICC) delegates from the state.

"Congress workers and leaders have unanimously expressed their desire for Rahul Gandhi to take over as the president of the party. We respect their sentiments. Nobody has any difference of opinion in this regard. Rahul Gandhi is the unquestioned choice of all the Congress workers," Congress communications in-charge Randeep Surjewala told reporters here.

Saying that the intra-party poll process was currently underway, he said, "We sincerely hope that the aspirations of the leaders and workers, who continue to express their desire, would fructify once the poll process is over."

The Congress organisational poll process is underway and the process of electing the AICC delegates and PCC bodies, which make the electoral college for the election to the post of Congress president, is to be completed soon.

The party has told the Election Commission (EC) that it would conclude the internal poll process by December-end as per the poll panel's directions. The EC had given a year's extension to the Congress in this regard.

Surjewala also took a dig at Railway Minister Piyush Goyal for his reported statement on job losses, saying "ignorance of the ignorant is bliss".

"If Piyush Goyal wants all the people of the country to become unemployed, so that they become entrepreneurs, I think they must start that charity from the BJP itself and let him first resign from his current employment and find an entrepreneurial job for himself," he said.

Goyal had reportedly said companies cutting down employments was a good sign as the youth of tomorrow wanted to be entrepreneurs.
Blue Origin, a commercial space company founded by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, plans to launch humans into space within the next 18 months, CEO of the space firm Bob Smith said. These people Blue Origin plans to launch into space will be everyday citizens, not astronauts, Smith said at the first meeting of the newly revamped National Space Council - an executive group aimed at guiding the US space agenda -- on Thursday. Blue Origin has not yet indicated exactly how much the tickets will cost, CNNMoney reported.

The firm earlier announced its plans to launch space tourists by 2018. A 2019 launch would put Blue Origin's first space tourism trip slightly behind its competitor SpaceX, headed by Tesla CEO Elon Musk. "Within the next 18 months we're going to be launching humans into space," Smith was quoted as saying. "These won't be astronauts...these will be everyday citizens," Smith added. SpaceX plans to take two tourists on a trip around the moon sometime in the last quarter of 2018.

Sending paying customers to space is part of Blue Origin's early business strategy. The company wants to conduct frequent launches to the edge of space -- where passengers can briefly experience weightlessness and marvel at the view.

Watch Video: Tech And Auto Show | EP14 | Apple iPhone 8, 8+, X, Isuzu D-Max & More
On October 4, 1957, Sputnik I became the first man-made object sent into space. The USSR had begun humankind's space age and in the last 60 years, there has been no looking back. Like the age of exploration before it, the space age saw countries hustling to make their mark in exploration and research. What started out as a race between the USSR and the USA for prestige, weapons technology, and political dominance, grew to become a truly global club of space explorers.

In the late 1950s and 60s, the world was firmly in the grip of the Cold War and both the USA and the USSR wanted to dominate each other on the space front. The militaries of both the countries saw it as an opportunity for tactical advantage over one another. Take for instance, the fact that the USA launched a total of 28 satellites in 1957-59 despite that only 10 of these achieved their objectives. The USA's main aim here was to match up to the USSR's 100% launch record: the country launched only 6 satellites in the same time period, but all of them successfully. To match up to and better the USSR, Kennedy famously increased funding to the US space agency NASA by 500% in the 1960s and declared that before the decade was over the US would be the first country on the moon.

His word was made good by astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin'Buzz' Aldrin on July 24, 1969. The USA's Apollo 11 landed on the moon and the US won the space race. In the two decades that followed, the US landed an unmanned mission on Mars, sent spacecrafts to the outer planets and sustained its dominance over world space exploration. Voyager 1 reached Jupiter in 1979 and Saturn in 1980 while Voyager 2 flew past Uranus in 1986 and Neptune in 1989.

The rest of the world though had begun taking its first steps in the field. In the 1970s, China launched its first satellite, while India followed suit in 1975. With the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the collapse of the USSR in 1991, Russia's space program was dealt a heavy blow. This opened up the possibility for other countries, like India to gain importance on the world space stage. India reached the moon in 2009 and Mars in 2014. Even as the context for space superiority has changed over time, humankind's fascination with space continues unabated to the present day. Watch the video for a recap of the world's space age.

Watch: News18.com Originals | Humanitys Space Story | 60 Years in Space (1957-2017)

Creatives: Hitesh Singh
Dresden, Germany: German Chancellor Angela Merkel urged her conservatives on Saturday to try to forge a nationally untested three-way alliance with the Free Democrats (FDP) and the Greens, her most explicit backing yet for the so-called Jamaica coalition.

Merkel, whose conservatives won a fourth term in the September 24 election but bled support to the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), needs to form a coalition, most likely a Jamaica alliance, named for the black, yellow and green party colours which match Jamaica's flag.

Merkel said a special party meeting should be held to let members of her conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) vote on any coalition deal.

"I advise everyone to concentrate on what lies ahead," Merkel told young members of her Christian Democrats (CDU) in Dresden.

"First between the CDU and (Bavarian) Christian Social Union (CSU) then with the Free Democrats (FDP) and Greens and to understand the mandate that voters handed us," she said.

She also said she believed agreement between her CDU and her CSU Bavarian sister party was possible even though they are at odds on migration policy. The two parties meet on Sunday.

"I will do everything I can to move forward...With good will, that should be possible," Merkel said.
Beijing: Amid mounting US pressure on Pakistan to rein in terror groups, China on Saturday backed its all-weather ally and said Washington should "give full recognition" to Islamabad's "active efforts" to combat terrorism.

"Pakistan is at the forefront of the fight against terrorism," the Chinese Foreign Ministry said, reacting to Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen Joseph Dunford's remarks that Pakistan's spy agency ISI has connections with terrorist groups and Islamabad should change its behaviour.

Over the years, Pakistan has made active efforts to combat terrorism and made huge sacrifices to combat terrorism, the ministry said in a written response to a question from PTI about Gen Dunford's comments.

US Defence Secretary James Mattis told a House Armed Services Committee that the US has asked Pakistan to change its behaviour and Washington will "try one more time" to work with Islamabad to end its support for terrorists.

Latest reports said US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will visit Pakistan to convey President Donald Trump's tough message to change its policies of backing terrorist groups.

"We believe that the international community should give full recognition to Pakistan's counter-terrorism efforts," the ministry said.

China supports the international community to strengthen international anti-terrorism cooperation and form a concerted effort, it said.

"We hope that the two countries will cooperate in the fight against terrorism on the basis of mutual respect and work together for the security and stability of the region and the world," the ministry added.
Washington: US President Donald Trump will dispatch his top diplomatic and military advisers to Pakistan in the coming weeks, turning up the heat on the nuclear-armed nation which has been accused of harbouring terror groups that strike India and Afghanistan.

Weeks after Trump angrily accused Islamabad of providing safe haven to "agents of chaos," Secretary of State Rex Tillerson plans to depart for Pakistan late this month. He will be followed by Secretary of Defence Jim Mattis, US and Pakistani sources said.

The one-two punch is designed to drill home Trump's message that Pakistani state support for jihadist groups has to end, according to officials briefed on the visits.

Washington has long been frustrated by Pakistan's willingness to offer cross-border safe havens to Taliban factions and armed Islamist groups fighting US troops and their Afghan allies.

The relationship reached the breaking point in 2011, when president Barack Obama sent commandos into Pakistan in 2011 to kill Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden, who was living in a military garrison town.

With little change since then, Trump came to office indicating that Washington's frustration had reached the point where something had to give.

"We have been paying Pakistan billions and billions of dollars at the same time they are housing the very terrorists that we are fighting," he said an August address.

But in the six weeks since Trump signalled that tougher tone, there have been precious few signs that the calculus in South Asia has changed.

Mattis told Congress this week that he will try "one more time" to "see if we can make this work."

"To this point, we have not seen any impact on military-to military-relations," said one Pentagon official, suggesting any change would not happen after Mattis' visit.

Visiting Washington, Pakistan's foreign minister Khawaja Asif appeared unwavering.

He lashed out at "hollow allegations" about Pakistan harbouring terrorists as "not acceptable."

"That is not the way you talk to 70-year-old friends," Asif said bitterly.

"Instead of accusations and threats, we should cooperate with each other for the peace in the region," he said while confirming Tillerson's visit.

While professing anger in public, Pakistani officials in private complain about receiving no concrete requests to target the Haqqani network or other groups.

US officials have been reticent to share some intelligence for fear of tipping off targets with links inside Pakistan's government.

Earlier this month, a US drone killed three suspected militants in an attack on a compound in Pakistan's tribal region.

Pakistani officials also complain of receiving mixed messages from the Trump administration, which is still struggling to find its feed under a mercurial commander-in-chief.

A September meeting in New York between Vice-President Mike Pence and Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was said to be cordial, despite Trump's fire and brimstone rhetoric. "It was a very good meeting with the vice-president," said Asif.

After that, Pakistan officials said, they were surprised at a tougher tone outlined in public by Mattis and in private by Trump's National Security Adviser HR McMaster.
Tehran, Iran: Iran's president defended the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers on Saturday, saying not even 10 Donald Trumps can roll back its benefits to his country, state TV reported.

Hassan Rouhani's comments came as President Donald Trump appears to be stepping back from his campaign pledge to tear up the deal, instead aiming to take other measures against Iran and its affiliates.

State TV broadcast Rouhani while addressing students at Tehran University, marking the beginning of the educational year. "We have achieved benefits that are irreversible. Nobody can roll them back, neither Trump, nor 10 other Trumps," he said.

Rouhani warned the US not to violate the deal.

"If the United States violates (the nuclear deal), the entire world will condemn America, not Iran," he said.

Iran accepted curbs on its contested nuclear program as part of the agreement. In return, Iran has benefited from the lifting of sanctions against its oil exports among others.

Trump is expected to take new action against Iran's Revolutionary Guard and the Iranian backed Shiite militant group Hezbollah.

He is set to deliver a policy speech on Iran next week in which he is expected to decline to certify Iran's compliance in the landmark 2015 agreement that the US and its partners signed with Tehran to rein in its nuclear program.

That would stop short of pulling out of the deal. Lawmakers say Trump isn't going to immediately announce new nuclear sanctions, which are prohibited by the deal, and instead will refer the matter to Congress.

President Trump has repeatedly described the deal as "bad." He signed a bill that imposes mandatory penalties on people involved in Iran's ballistic missile program and anyone who does business with them.

Rouhani is struggling to keep the deal on two fronts. One is with Trump, who always says it is a bad deal, and on the other side, hardliners inside the country.

By the time of his 2017 re-election, Rouhani increasingly criticized hard-liners within Iran who criticized him and the atomic deal for giving too much away to the West, especially the US, still the "Great Satan" for some even decades after the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Islamabad: Pakistan has decided to recommend the appointment of former chief justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani as an ad-hoc judge to the International Court of Justice to hear the case of Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav.

Officials said that names of Jillani and senior lawyer Makhdoom Ali Khan were sent to the office of the Prime Minister for final approval.

"The Prime Minister after due consultations decided to appoint Jillani as an ad-hoc judge," government sources said. Jillani was appointed as chief justice in December, 2013 and remained at the post till his retirement on July 5, 2014.

He was among the judges who refused to take oath under of allegiance to former dictator Gen Pervez Musharraf after he imposed emergency on November 3, 2007. Jillani was kept in illegal confinement by Musharraf. Musharraf is currently facing a criminal case for illegally confining the judges.

The decision to appoint Jillani as an ad-hoc judge came as Pakistan started the process to file its plea in response to Indian memorial submitted with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on September 13 against the conviction of Jadhav.

The ICJ had asked Pakistan to submit its response or memorial by December 13 before the court could start further proceedings.

According to the Foreign Office sources, Attorney General Ashtar Ausaf Ali on Friday presided over a meeting of law experts and officials of Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other departments concerned to discuss the line of arguments in the ICJ.

Meanwhile, Ausaf told the Dawn that they have decided to hold weekly meetings in order to review the situation and "to finalise Islamabad's point of view and convert it into an appropriate rejoinder to India's allegations".

He said they were in touch with relevant stakeholders, including Khawar Qureshi who had pleaded Pakistan's case at the initial stage, to formalise a robust reply refuting all allegations levelled against Pakistan.

On Thursday, the Pakistan Army said it is close to a decision on the mercy petition of Jadhav.

Pakistan, which announced the death sentence on Jadhav on April 10, claims its security forces arrested him from its restive Balochistan province on March 3 last year after he reportedly entered from Iran. However, India maintains that he was kidnapped from Iran where he had business interests after retiring from the Navy.

"Kulbhushan Jadhav's mercy petition has come to the army chief. There is a process, everything goes through a process but I can assure that it is near finalisation and we will give you news about this very soon," army spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor said.

Jadhav has filed an appeal with the army chief to seek clemency, which is still pending.

After India approached the ICJ, a 10-member bench on May 18 restrained Pakistan from executing Jadhav till adjudication of the case.

Jadhav's sentencing had evoked a sharp reaction in India. India has warned Pakistan of consequences and damage to bilateral ties if the "premeditated murder" was carried out. In its application, India had also informed the ICJ that it learnt about the death sentence against Jadhav from a press release.

India acknowledges that Jadhav had served with the Indian Navy but denies that he has any connection with the government. It also said that Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran. India has also handed over to Pakistan an appeal by Jadhav's mother, initiating a process to get his conviction overturned.
Karachi: A suicide bombing at a shrine in southwest Pakistan killed 22 people and wounded more than 30 on Thursday in the latest sectarian attack in Baluchistan province, authorities said.

Minority Islamic groups in the province are routinely attacked by militant outfits including Islamic State, which has claimed responsibility for several bombings.

A police officer apprehended the bomber at the entrance to the Sufi shrine and was among those killed, but his heroic action reduced the number of casualties, Baluchistan home minister Sarfraz Bugti told Reuters.

Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack via its Amaq news service.

The shrine in the district of Jhal Magsi was packed with devotees mourning the death of a local spiritual leader.

Such incidents fuel concern about security for projects in the $57 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a planned transport and energy route from western China to Baluchistan's deep-water port of Gwadar.

The province has been rocked by violence on two fronts for over a decade. As well as the Taliban and other Sunni Islamist militants, Baluchistan separatists mount attacks on targets linked to the central government.

A suicide bomber killed 52 people and wounded over 100 at a Baluchistan Sufi shrine in November last year, in an attack claimed by Islamic State. In February, IS attacked a Sufi shrine in Pakistan's southern Sindh province, killing 83 people.
Madrid: Catalonia's government has threatened to declare independence after the region voted in an outlawed referendum.

Here are six key players in Spain's deepest political crisis in decades:

Mariano Rajoy

The 62-year-old leader of the conservative Popular Party (PP) has served as Spain's prime minister since December 2011.

Rajoy has headed a minority government since a 2016 general election, backed by centrist party Ciudadanos.

His detractors accuse him of not having done anything to stop separatist sentiment from surging in Catalonia.

Rajoy argues he could not negotiate an independence referendum in the region because it violates Spain's constitution which declares the country indivisible.

Carles Puigdemont

The 54-year-old president of Catalonia, a former journalist, has advocated for independence since his youth.

He became head of the regional government at the start of 2016.

He said Wednesday that the region would declare independence in days after 90 percent of voters who took part in the referendum backed Catalonia breaking away from Spain.

Puigdemont has said he is willing to go to jail over his separatist push.

He is under investigation for alleged crimes of civil disobedience, abuse of office and misuse of public funds for staging the plebiscite.

Soraya Saenz de Santamaria

Spain's deputy prime minister, 46, is in charge of the central government's relationship with its regions.

She launched an "operation dialogue" with Catalonia's separatist government but failed to convince them to drop their plans to hold an independence referendum.

Spain's central government in March promised to invest 4.2 billion euros ($4.9 billion) in Catalonia, mostly in rail infrastructure, between 2017 and 2020.

That was considered by many to be too little too late in a region which has long demanded more powers and money for infrastructure.

Oriol Junqueras

The 48-year-old is the leader of the leftist Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya (ERC) party, which has called for Catalan independence since 1931.

A lawmaker in the European Union parliament between 2009 and 2011, since January 2016 he has been the vice president of Catalonia.

Like Puigdemont, this history professor at the University of Barcelona is also being investigated for civil disobedience, abuse of office and misuse of public funds over the referendum.

Carme Forcadell

The president of the Catalan regional parliament since October 2015, she has for years helped organise massive street demonstrations for Catalan independence. She belongs to the ERC party.

She was fiercely criticised in early September for pushing through two laws that paved the way for the referendum through the assembly with little debate.

The laws were swiftly suspended by Spain's Constitutional Court.

She is also being investigated for civil disobedience, abuse of office and misuse of public funds.

Ada Colau

This 43-year-old former social activist was elected mayor of Barcelona, the capital of Catalonia, in 2015.

She became well known as the spokeswoman of a group that fought housing evictions at the height of Spain's economic crisis.

Colau says she has never been pro-independence but she defends Catalonia's right to hold a secession referendum with the agreement of Spain's central government.

Colau and her leftist Catalunya en Comu party say separatists cannot unilaterally declare independence as this would not be recognised internationally.
Washington: The US-Pakistan relationship is in "serious trouble" and the mistrust between the two countries runs deep, an expert on the bilateral ties at a top American think-tank has said, a day after Pakistan's Foreign Minister concluded his three-day visit to Washington.

Moeed Yusuf, a senior expert on Pakistan at the United States Institute of Peace, a top American thin-tank funded by the Congress said that the default position in Islamabad and Washington was very sceptical of other's intentions.

"The sense that I have is that this relationship is in serious trouble," Yusuf told PTI on Thursday.

His remarks came a day after Pakistan's Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif concluded his three-day official trip to Washington during which he met Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and National Security Advisor H R McMaster.

"The foreign minister said himself something to that effect, Yusuf said, pointing to the remarks made by Asif at an event after his meetings with Tillerson and McMaster.

"I won't be extravagant. Meeting with Secretary of State went very well. Meeting with McMaster, I will be a bit cautious about, but it was good. It wasn't bad. I think we need to pursue this course of contact in discussions and exchange of views. I think we need to pursue it more rigorously," Asif said when asked what message he was taking back.

A known expert on US-Pakistan relationship, Yusuf said the real issue here was that of mistrust.

"The mistrust is so deep and that is going to be very difficult for both sides to work a way out in which they would essentially rely on each other, trusting that they would be sincere to whatever is being done. On both sides the default position is one that is very sceptical of the intentions on the other side," he said.

Yusuf said that no one should expect "a major breakthrough" anytime soon.

At best this relationship is going to muddle through and limp along till both sides are able to find a way to work together or till there is a sense that both sides are willing to give and take in a way that the other feels that there is a real incentive to do that, he said.

"Right now, I do not think that that is the case," he said, adding that both the US and Pakistan recognise that the rupture is going to be costly and would hurt them in Afghanistan.

"I do think that this is the first time there is a possibility that the relationship could come to a standstill despite neither side seeing this as the preferred option," Yusuf said.

Observing that there is a very serious divergence of interest when it comes to Afghanistan, Yusuf said Pakistan sees "a very curtailed" Indian influence in the war-torn country.

"The US view of stability in Afghanistan is one that sees a much larger influence for India by default, because of the Kabul's preference, but also a role for itself ensuring that there are no continued threats coming out of Afghanistan for the US," he said, explaining the sharp difference emerging between the two countries on the role of regional players in Afghanistan.

Noting that the US' message to Pakistan consistently has been the need to do more on terror sanctuaries. "I think there's a clear message delivered again that that needs to be dealt with but not in terms of promises but in terms of actions," he said.

The Pakistani view is that it is being scapegoated and the problems really lie in Afghanistan and Pakistan part of the problem is being exaggerated, he said, referring to Asif's post-meeting remarks.

"I think this was also candidly conveyed to the Pakistani side," he said, adding that the meetings between the US and Pakistani officials this week were candid and both sides laid their cards on the table.

However, there is definitely no appetite for an imminent rupture on either side, Yusuf said. Responding to a question on India's role, Yusuf said Pakistan's Afghan policy reflected how it views its relationship with India.
A zoo-keeper gives peanut to an orangutan inside a cage shortly after it arrived from Thailand at Halim Perdanakusuma airport in Jakarta. Fourteen orangutans smuggled into Thailand illegally were sent back to Indonesia, but the operation was not without incident -- one of the powerful apes tore a wildlife officer's finger off when he tried to put them in cages. (Image: Reuters)
NEW YORK  Ron Chernow's timing is exquisite, even if it took six years and 25,000 index cards to get to this moment.

As Americans debate the continued reverence for Confederate general Robert E. Lee in the wake of the Charlottesville, Virginia, protests, the biographer of Hamilton  the "Hamilton" who inspired the theatrical juggernaut  delivers his latest brick of a book, "Grant" (publishing Oct. 10), to help rescue the Union commander and 18th president from the ash heap of history.

Ulysses S. Grant, you may recall, won the Civil War. He was the military architect who triumphed on multiple battlefields and vanquished Lee in Virginia after six other Union generals failed.

Yet after the South's defeat, "Lee was puffed up to almost godlike proportions, not only as a great general, but as a perfect Christian gentleman, this noble and exemplary figure and an aristocratic example," says Chernow, 68, sitting in his sun-splashed kitchen on the top floor of the 19th-century Brooklyn Heights brownstone where he rents two stories. "The glorification of Lee and the denigration of Grant are two sides of the same coin. We've created our own mythology of what happened."

"Grant" is Chernow's second successive book about an American general who became president, following the Pulitzer Prize-winning "Washington" (2010). It is also his first volume since Chernow became a household name  a claim few scholarly biographers can make.

Lin-Manuel Miranda's little play helped sell more than a million copies of "Alexander Hamilton," making Chernow the rare historian of 900-page, footnote-saturated tomes who can claim that "teenagers all over the country want to take selfies with me."

Now, he's moved from the Founding Fathers on the one- and 10-dollar bills to the Civil War victor on the 50, a man adored by Walt Whitman and Mark Twain.

Yet, "I'm giving you every reason not to buy this book," he admits, gesturing at the three-pound door stopper by his elbow. "It's $40. Its more than 1,000 pages."

It's 1,074 pages, to be exact. But he's grateful. "To my loyal readers, who have soldiered on through my lengthy sagas," the dedication reads.

"This is a story unlike any that I have written, maybe one more people can identify with," says Chernow, who has also written biographies of John D. Rockefeller (the masterful "Titan"), J.P. Morgan and the Warburg banking family.

Those previous subjects, he says, "were built for success. They had a focus, a drive, an intelligence, and an ambition that when you begin the story, you know they're going to succeed."

Grant "goes through more failure and hardship and degradation I think than anyone else in American history who becomes president." He notes, "I was so moved by the pathos of the story, of a bright, hard-working and fundamentally decent man who again and again is defeated by circumstance and seems destined to a life of complete obscurity."

Grant "becomes a hero despite himself."

Grant's grand ambition was to be a math professor  an assistant math professor  at the U.S. Military Academy, from which he graduated in the middle of his class. He was plagued by money woes until the end, fleeced by the Bernie Madoff of his day. Grant's wife, Julia, the daughter of an unrepentant slave owner, had a pronounced taste for status.

"The psychological portrait is at the center of all these books," says Chernow, a New York native  his schmear of an accent is a giveaway  with English degrees from Yale and Cambridge, who began his career as a freelance journalist.

Most of his subjects had "an impossible parent." Grant was doubly cursed, with an impossible father and father-in-law, both of whom lived well into old age.

"This man who had been a clerk in a leather goods store in Galena, Illinois, a man who was almost 40 years old," Chernow says, a man no one marked for success. "And four years later, he's a general with a million soldiers under his command. Is there a more startling transformation in American history?"

Grant is remembered as a heavy drinker, a president riddled by scandal, scoundrels and nepotism, all of which Chernow addresses.

"It was always Grant, the drunkard. I felt they got it wrong," he says, describing the general as opposing two enemies during the war, the Confederacy and liquor. "He was Grant, the alcoholic."

As recently as 1996, a poll of historians ranked Grant as an abject failure, scraping the bottom of the presidential barrel along with Warren G. Harding, Richard Nixon and James Buchanan. That assessment has begun to change.

Grant was the two-term president of the Reconstruction, an era of extraordinary if fleeting gains for African-Americans. It was also a time of relentless violence fomented by the Ku Klux Klan and other hate groups, which Chernow deems "the largest outbreak of domestic terrorism in American history, where thousands of people were killed."

The Department of Justice, established during Grant's presidency, brought 3,000 indictments against Klan members and other agitators.

For many American students, the war stops cold with Lee's surrender at Appomattox and Lincoln's assassination days later, on April 15, 1865.

"We historians, in the wake of the controversy over Confederate monuments, we have to use this as a teachable moment," Chernow says. "Reconstruction is the great black hole that remains to be filled. Even experts on the Civil War don't really understand its full significance."

Chernow's wife, Valerie, a community college professor, died in 2006. He still wears his wedding ring. He's "a pretty active cultural consumer," he says, of all things that New York has to offer: the Metropolitan Opera, film, theater, art, the Yankees.

Tidy, too. His immaculate study displays the thousands of 4-by-6-inch index cards, amounting to 22 boxes, that he compiled in researching Grant. The task did not daunt him. "There were 900 books on Washington when I began writing on him," he says.

"He's a very happy writer," says his friend, the financial writer Roger Lowenstein. "Ron often uses the phrase 'Never underestimate the laziness of your predecessors.' "

Nine years ago, Miranda prophetically purchased Chernow's "Hamilton" before going on vacation and envisioned  what else?  a hip-hop musical about the nation's first treasury secretary. He enlisted the biographer as the show's historical adviser.

Chernow asked to experience the musical fully, to be as involved as he could be, to attend one performance seated in the orchestra pit and to sit in on the album recording. He estimates that he has seen the show "dozens of times," the young cast becoming a second family. (Chernow has no children.)

He spent his days with Grant, his nights with Hamilton. He's listed in the show's playbill and, though he demurs on the subject  "I don't go there"  he has a reported 1 percent royalty of the show's adjusted grosses, which amounted to an estimated $900,000 in 2016. This year, with three additional productions, his return is substantially larger.

After the musical's first week, Chernow called his longtime editor Ann Godoff and said, "Print up a lot of copies of 'Hamilton.' Everyone's coming up to the theater and saying, 'Mr. Chernow, I loved the show. I was embarrassed to realize how little I knew about the history of the country.' "

Godoff, Penguin Press president and editor in chief, says, "I remember thinking, 'Ha ha ha.' Then we went to the Public Theater, and there were a lot of people crying, and I was crying for my author. What this meant, watching his whole career and life, was knowing that I was experiencing this transformative experience."

"Grant," Godoff says, is an entirely different biography. "You feel his vulnerability, as well as his successes. He feels a figure much more capable of our empathy."

Chernow hopes that with his book, people will reassess the hero of the Civil War and his presidency.

"There have been other good books on Grant, but in terms of dramatizing and humanizing this character, and making the character vividly come alive on the page, I feel that's my comparative advantage," Chernow says.

He only has to point to "Hamilton" to prove his point.
On a recent Wednesday, Sandy Wallace was out on the Blackwater Creek Trail before dawn with a special rock in hand.

Shed inscribed it simply, with the message I (run) for Meg, with a small, running stick figure in place of the word run. She painted the rock in honor of Meg Menzies, a Richmond runner who died in 2014 after being hit by a car.

Early in the morning is when the runners are out, she explained. You cant [control] who finds your rock, but I wanted to increase the chances a runner found it.

Wallace is among the thousands of people in our area who belong to various Facebook groups dedicated to the painting and hiding of rocks.

The concept is simple: Participants paint rocks (see how to get started below) and hide them in public places for others to find. Whoever finds them is asked to post a picture of the rock on a Facebook page dedicated to the hobby before either keeping the rock or rehiding it.

The origins of the practice seemingly can be traced back to two separate projects  two stories that start completely across the country from each other [and are] both unique and amazing, said Jodi Thomas, who started one of the areas first groups, Appomattox Rocks, in February with her husband, Will.

Love Rocks  which encourages people to attach fabric hearts to rocks and leave them for others to find  originated in Oregon in 2014, created by a grieving mother whose two young daughters had recently died.

The Kindness Rocks Project began in Cape Cod in 2015, also started by a mother who began leaving rocks with inspirational messages at the beach.

Thomas didnt learn about the growing trend until last year after her niece added her to a Florida-based group.

For months, we had seen all the activity from this group in our news feed, commented on some of the rocks and [were] just really inspired by the community bonding that occurred there, Thomas said via email last week. People loved it, and so did we. We wanted to bring the idea to our local town.

Now, type in nearly any locality on Facebook, and youre bound to find a rock group for that area. Rustburg, Bedford, Forest. Theres also a Smith Mountain Lake-based group called Lake Life Rocks.

They pop up almost as often as the rocks themselves, which are hidden all over town.

Samantha Baldwin started a Lynchburg Facebook group in March after she heard about the one in Appomattox, then an Amherst one.

Since then, she said, The pages have blown up. I mean, Im getting requests every single day, at least 10 requests, if not more. I think yesterday, I had 30-some for the Amherst page. Im kind of in shock.

Wallace is a member of the Lynchburg and Amherst groups and also founded her own, Faith Rocks Virginia.

As I was painting, I was more and more drawn to painting things to do with my faith, said Wallace, who began participating over the summer because she wanted to write about it for the website she runs, Lynchburg Macaroni Kid.

She threw a rock-painting party with some friends and family, including two of her six grandchildren, and started hiding them. It wasnt long before she was hooked.

Its kind of a pay-it-forward sort of thing, she said. Its just a way for me to make people happy, [and] leave a little love and joy.  [Its] another way to make the world a better place.

The sentiment is similar among others who paint and hide the rocks.

Sarah Clay and her family also joined the fray over the summer, after her 4-year-old son found one during a family bike ride.

We looked at it, flipped it over, followed the directions and started reading all the posts on Facebook, she said. We decided to join in on the fun when we [saw] how much that one rock put so much joy into our son.

She said they usually take one day out of the week to paint the rocks and then another to go out as a family to hide them.

Bedford resident Ashley Fields uses it as a family bonding exercise with her almost-3-year-old daughter. They participate at least four times a week, she said, in the evenings or on her days off.

It gets us outside and active, she said.  It really makes our daughter aware of her surroundings at all times, which is really something we are thankful for.

Its not uncommon for people to make special rock requests to the groups. One woman asked for rocks to be painted for her mother, who has Alzheimers disease. Another mom requested textured rocks for her young daughter, who is blind.

There are also cause rocks, as Wallace calls them, which usually request prayers for people who are facing difficulties and include hashtags for that individual movement (she recently hid one with the hashtag Pray for Spenser on it, for a Lynchburg native who was in a car accident).

Businesses and other organizations also have gotten involved.

Lynchburg Parks and Recreation has hidden a series of Lynchburg Park rocks, said Director Jennifer Jones. They are gold, with a question on the bottom, and those who contact the parks department via Instagram with the correct answer will win a T-shirt.

Some groups will do a themed rock of the day, said Wallace, who always carries her painted rocks with her and goes out hiding most days, after work or church.

She recently took her grandchildren to a pumpkin patch, where they hid a few.

This time, they got to see, from a distance, someone else find their rocks, she said. They were so excited. From a parents perspective or a grandparents perspective, its a great way for kids to learn how to give something small back to their community.

The joy you can share with other people is priceless.

Want to get involved? Here are some tips to get started:

 Join the local Facebook groups by searching for your locality with the word rocks.

I think you can get a lot of inspiration from just joining the Facebook groups to see what other people are doing, said Sandy Wallace, who belongs to two of them and runs a third of her own.

 Assemble your materials

Most people we contacted for this story use acrylic paint and then seal their rocks with either the popular craft supply Mod Podge or a coat of clear gloss spray paint.

Sarah Clay, who began painting the rocks over the summer with her 4-year-old son, said she buys her acrylic paint at Walmart  where tubes are priced as low as 50 cents  and Mod Podge at Dollar Tree.

And instead of buying rocks, she and her family use ones found in their backyard.

Wallace buys her rocks at Home Depot by the bag and says shell occasionally use a found, loose rock.

She also likes to use sharpies and brush markers to inscribe her messages.

 Start small, and dont be intimidated.

Its not about how artistic you can be, or what you can paint, said Jeramiah Brooks, who belongs to the Amherst Facebook group. I didnt know I could paint until about two weeks ago when I started this. Just get out there and start doing it.

 Paint any design you want (as long as its appropriate and kid-friendly).

Brooks tends to take inspiration from popular culture, with recent designs featuring scenes from The Lion King and Pocahontas, as well as Dirty Dancing. He even painted a tribute to the band KISS.

I do stuff that would appeal to people, that I know people would love, he said, adding that he also kind of lets the rock guide what I do.

Others inscribe their rocks with messages or paint animals, nature scenes and local landmarks. The sky is really the limit.

 Write the name of the Facebook rocks group you belong to on the back. That way, the person who finds it knows where to post a picture of it. You can also take a picture of the rock you paint and post it to the page, to let people know youve hidden one.

 If you find a rock, take a picture and share it to the requested Facebook group.

Then you can either keep it or rehide it; if you keep the rock, replace it with one of yours, participants said.

 Dont be disappointed if you never see yours posted on Facebook.

Wallace said shes painted hundreds of rocks but has only seen maybe 50 of them reposted.

You really have to look at it as being like a gift, she said. Its something youre giving without expecting anything back.

Clay echoed that: When we hide our rocks, we know they may never be seen again. But its also a good feeling to know that someone has found them and hopefully got just as much excitement as we do finding and painting.

Hiding dos and donts

 Dont hide in national parks, on private property or inside retail stores.

The parks ascribe to a leave it as you found it ethos, meaning youre not supposed to leave things or take things, Wallace said.

Locally maintained parks  think Peaks View, Riverside, etc.  are OK though.

Lynchburg Parks and Recreation Director Jennifer Jones recently wrote a blog post encouraging the practice, and advised people  tongue in cheek  to leave smaller pebbles for the fairies on Percival Island.

As for stores, Wallace says she avoids hiding them inside to avoid any confusion. If a cashier or manager isnt aware of the rock project, they might think someone is taking something that belongs to the store, she said.

Also avoid outdoor kiosks, such as Redbox. A Redbook employee recently took to Facebook asking participants to not place them where they could fall on someones head.

 Do choose something eye level or near eye level, such as on fence posts or benches.

Its more like an Easter egg hunt, Wallace said, hiding in plain sight.

 Dont hide the rocks in grassy areas, where visibility is low or where lawnmowers could run over them.

 If hiding on area trails and locally maintained parks, Jones had a few tips: Stay on the trail and minimize stress on the natural environment; dont disturb habitats; and dont dig, cut, burrow or harm trees.

 Do place them in safe locations.

Think as if you were a child looking for rocks, said Ashley Fields, a member of the Bedford group. Dont make it so difficult. They are meant to be found and spread joy to others.

 And it should go without saying, but do keep your subjects appropriate for children.
Perrymont Elementary Schools accreditation status has been updated from to be determined to Partially Accredited-Reconstituted School for the 2017-2018 school year.

This means Perrymont has failed to meet the Standards of Learning requirements for full accreditation  a 70 percent pass rate in history, science and math, and a 75 percent pass rate in English  for four consecutive years, but has been sufficiently restructured to prevent its accreditation from being denied completely.

The Virginia Department of Education this week released the names of 34 schools in the state whose statuses were updated after additional deliberation.

When state accreditation results were first released Sept. 13, Perrymont was one of four Lynchburg public schools with a to be determined status, which meant the VDOE needed to further consider what designation the schools would receive.

Interim Lynchburg City Schools Superintendent Larry Massie said he expects to hear about the other three schools  Dearington Elementary, Heritage Elementary and Dunbar Middle  by the end the month.

On the Standards of Learning tests in the spring, Perrymont met the requirements in all areas except English, where it had a 74 percent pass rate. The school had a 77 percent pass rate in math, 89 percent in history, and 75 percent in science.

Perrymont is currently the only Partially Accredited-Reconstituted School in the Lynchburg division. Heritage High School is labeled a Partially Accredited: Warned School-Pass Rate, which means it is making acceptable progress toward achieving the required pass rates.

VDOE allows eligible schools to reconstitute instead of having their accreditation denied when they restructure some aspect of the school  whether its new leadership, staff, or changing the way they teach students. At Perrymont, teachers changed their instruction strategy.

Perrymont Principal Karen Nelson said she is pretty confident with the strategies and practices that weve put into place, that well see gains.

Teachers restructured their math and English blocks to reduce the amount of time spent in whole-group activities and leave more time to focus on small groups. All students are assigned a group based on analysis of student achievement data, so teachers can address specific students needs.

Nelson described these groups as very fluid. They change based on how students perform on frequent teacher-created assessments.

The school also has increased emphasis on students reading to themselves, writing, reading to others, listening to reading and working with words. Especially, Nelson said, the school has focused on building stamina so students can read to themselves for longer periods.

We really want them to get accustomed to sitting and reading a book that they can read with ease and fluency to get that additional practice, she said.

The students now make small notes about what theyre reading, called small notes on the side or, as the kids refer to them: SNOTS. Through these notes they learn to focus on surprising things or facts they didnt know before. Students also learn to pay attention to context clues to learn words they might not know.

Nelson, who has spent her entire career at Perrymont as both a teacher and a principal, said she and her faculty follow the motto: If it doesnt work, we dont keep doing it.

Youve got to always be willing to learn, she said. You cant stop learning in this job because the needs of children change, state requirements change, testing changes The days are gone when you could write a lesson plan and use it year after year after year.

Massie said he was very pleased with Perrymonts changes to its instruction.

They are making sure they are teaching children every day the concepts that the children will be tested on in the Standard of Learning test given in the spring, he said. They have become very efficient in their instruction, that is, they have maximum time on task with no wasted efforts.

He said Nelson deserved the lions share of the credit for the schools improvements, and that he expects the school to be fully accredited next year.

Also this week, Amelon Elementary Schools status was updated from to be determined to Partially Accredited-Reconstituted School. Like Perrymont, the Amherst County school missed the English benchmark by one point, with a 74 percent pass rate. The school had a 74 percent pass rate in math, 85 percent in history and 72 percent in science.

Amherst County Schools Director of Academics Dana Norman said the partially accredited status shows Amelon continued to improve in student performance.

That kind of growth doesnt just happen, and it certainly doesnt happen in just one year, Norman said. It takes time and support from every stakeholder  in order to move a struggling school into full accreditation. I am proud of what our schools have been able to accomplish.

Staff writer Nicole Steenburgh contributed.
As time ticks closer to a federal-level decision expected sometime this fall on the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline, candidates in the packed field for the Virginia House of Delegates 59th District seat have taken a wide variety of positions on the controversial energy project.

Incumbent Del. Matt Fariss, R-Rustburg, is the only one of the four candidates heading into Novembers election who supports the pipeline, which is proposed by Dominion Energy and three other partners and if approved will carry natural gas through West Virginia, Virginia and North Carolina.

Fariss said he supports the project  which will pass through both Nelson and Buckingham counties in the 59th District  due to the need for energy in the growing economy and because of his trust in the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality to oversee its safe construction and ongoing use. ACP will be required to obtain permits regulating water quality, erosion and other environmental impacts from the state agency.

I support the pipeline as long as its done carefully and constructed well, which I think it will be because I trust the DEQ especially, Fariss said in a September interview with The News & Advance. I really trust the DEQ to do a good job and keep [environmental concerns] under control.

In response to pipeline opponents worries about land rights, Fariss said he understands those concerns but said the project is for the greater good.

Its bad, but its the cost of doing business and being in a society that requires a lot of electricity and a lot of energy, Fariss said. Its just a bad situation, but in the long run, I think its a good thing for the state.

Currently, Dominion Energy is working out easement agreements with landowners on the proposed pipeline route. According to Dominion Energy spokesman Aaron Ruby, more than 75 percent of landowners have reached an agreement with ACP. If the ACP is approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which currently is reviewing the project, ACP will initiate eminent domain proceedings in federal court to condemn properties for which landowners have not reached easement agreements with ACP. Judges must determine whether ACP has exhausted all options in attempts to reach easement agreements as well as appropriate compensation for the land.

Democrat Tracy Carver  one of Fariss three opponents  told The News & Advance when he announced his candidacy in the summer his opposition to the pipeline was one of his biggest motivators for entering the race. While he opposes its construction because he believes it will threaten water quality and imposes on the land rights of citizens, he said he mostly opposes the project because of its use of natural gas fracking.

Also called hydraulic fracturing, fracking is a process used to fracture rock with a pressurized liquid to create cracks in deep rock formations to release natural gas and petroleum below the earth. The pressurized natural gas that will flow through the Atlantic Coast Pipeline will be sourced from fracking wells in West Virginia, which is troubling to Carver due to his concerns about impacts to drinking water for residents near the wells.

[Contamination] comes from chemicals they use that they inject into the rocks in order to have them fissure and break open, Carver said in a September interview. Thats just going to be sitting below the water table in the northern part of West Virginia. Where theyre fracking is the headwaters of the Chesapeake Bay, so now were risking contamination on the smallest amount of the Chesapeake Bay, which is detrimental to the entire state, all the way out to the Atlantic Ocean.

A comprehensive study of the environmental impacts of natural gas fracking in the United States completed over six years and released in December 2016 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency did not definitively find whether the controversial energy production process is harmful to drinking water due to data gaps and uncertainties, according to the reports abstract.

However, the report did find that fracking can impact drinking water under certain circumstances, such as fracking in areas with limited groundwater availability, accidents during fracking that cause chemical spills, the injection of hydraulic fracking fluids directly into groundwater resources and the discharge of inadequately treated fracking wastewater to surface water.

In addition to his concerns about the safety of the groundwater, he also is concerned about the link between fracking and an increase in earthquakes. Carver specifically pointed to Oklahomas increase in earthquakes in recent years, attributed to fracking, as a reason he is concerned about the pipelines source of natural gas.

According to The Associated Press in September 2016, Oklahomas increase in earthquakes of 3.0 magnitude or higher has been linked to underground disposal of wastewater from oil and natural gas fracking in the state.

Taking a more moderate position, Independent David Ball said while he supports pipelines in general, he has concerns about the Atlantic Coast Pipelines path due to his background as an engineer who has worked with pipelines and his time with the Fairfax County Department of Environmental Management. He said he believes the pipelines path is not efficiently laid out and curves too many times, which will put unnecessary pressure on the joints of the pipe.

If you know fluid mechanics, you can see this has problems, Ball said in a September interview. All of those different welded joints at different angles will present tension forces at those joints. It jumps side to side of the road and tries to touch as many parcels as possible.

In response to Balls criticism of the design of the pipeline, Ruby defended the project design and the engineering experience of its planners and said there are checks to ensure its safe operation.

Theres no such thing as infrastructure built on a straight line. Every kind of infrastructure has bends and turns. How else would it reach its destination? Ruby said. These pipelines are developed by our finest engineers. They have decades of experience building this kind of infrastructure. The engineers who designed the ACP have designed thousands of miles of other pipelines across West Virginia, Pennsylvania and other areas with similar terrain.

Regarding Balls argument about the pipelines reach, Ruby added, Weve been very diligent throughout the routing process to impact as few landowners as possible. Its the right thing to do, and its what the agencies require of us.

Also in the race, the Green Partys Marcus Sutphin views the pipeline and both the federal and state governments review process of the proposed project as corrupt.

The issue is corruption in our state legislature, Sutphin said. Its crooked business people basically lining the pockets of crooked politicians. I believe first and foremost we have big oil trying to push their agenda in the state. Thats why theyre donating money to your politicians left and right.

Fariss has received a total of $5,750 in donations from Dominion Energy since he first ran for office in 2011. The most recent donation was for $750 in August 2016. None of Fariss challengers has received political contributions from Dominion.

Instead of building a pipeline for natural gas, Sutphin wants Virginia and its energy companies to invest in renewable energy sources like solar, which provide high-paying jobs.

[Renewable energy jobs] are good, paying jobs that were losing in Virginia,Sutphin said. Meanwhile we have Republicans trying to bring coal back. Coal is basically a thing of the past. I doubt youll find many coal miners out there who are choking from black lung that are begging you to bring coal jobs back instead of bringing them clean energy jobs or some other type of work.
Tropical Storm Nate is expected to strengthen into a hurricane and hit the central Gulf Coast on Saturday night, then its remnant rainfall will track through Virginia on Sunday and Monday.

Most of Virginia will get showers from the system, but the heaviest soaking will be along and west of the Blue Ridge mountains.

For Richmond, it's unlikely that Nate will bring hazardous weather, but it should be the most rain we've had in several weeks.

The track

Tropical Storm Nate was located east of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula on Friday afternoon, and it will continue moving northwest into the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday.

The National Hurricane Center expects Nate to strengthen into a hurricane with 80 mph sustained winds before making landfall in the central Gulf Coast on Saturday night.

Hurricane warnings and storm surge warnings are in effect for southeastern Louisiana, coastal Mississippi and coastal Alabama.

After coming ashore somewhere near Biloxi, Miss., Nate will curve to the northeast and weaken.

The center of low pressure will track along the southern Appalachians on Sunday night, and may be located over the Roanoke area by daybreak on Monday.

The remnants of Nate will not spend long over Virginia. By Tuesday morning what's left of the storm will be around New England.

The rain

Rain totals will generally range from 2 to 4 inches across the mountains of Virginia, 1 to 2 inches in the Piedmont, and 1 inch or less along and east of Interstate 95.

The fast movement of the storm and the recent dryness should prevent this from being flash flooding or river flooding threat, though rain could be excessive in isolated parts of southwest Virginia.

Richmond is most likely to have about 0.75 inches, but that amount could be higher or lower depending on the exact track of the storm.

If it tracks a little farther east, we may end up with 2 inches, which would still not be enough to threaten us with flooding.

However, if there's a westward shift, the Richmond metro may only see a few tenths of an inch.

In either case, that would be the most rain locally since the remnants of Hurricane Harvey came through right before Labor Day.

The timing

Saturday will be a dry, warm and humid day across Virginia albeit with increasing clouds.

Occasional showers will begin to move into western Virginia on Saturday night, then eastern Virginia on Sunday.

Richmond isn't going to have continuous rain on Sunday, but it's likely that there will be a shower or two at some point during the day.

Sunday night and Monday morning will bring a steady rain to western Virginia as Nate tracks through.

Richmond and eastern Virginia probably won't get several hours of steady rain, but showers could come and go instead.

Any rain associated with Nate should move out quickly by Monday evening, but spotty showers will still be possible on Tuesday and Wednesday as the unseasonably warm and humid air lingers in the region.

The wind

Nate will weaken after crossing onto land, so hurricane-force winds are only a concern for the immediate coastline between New Orleans and Mobile.

Tropical storm-force winds may come as far inland as Atlanta or the Great Smoky Mountains.

Richmond is not in line for any wind-related problems with Nate, though it will be noticeably breezy on Monday.

Things could get gusty in the higher elevations of western Virginia, where wind speeds could occasionally top 40 mph on some of the ridgelines.
White House counselor Kellyanne Conway used a visit Friday to Optical Cable Corp. for Manufacturing Day as an opportunity to promote tax reform, with a focus on business.

President Donald Trump and Republic lawmakers proposed sweeping changes to the federal tax code last week. The proposal suggests reducing the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 20 percent and setting a tax rate of 25 percent for "pass-through" businesses, which are currently taxed at the rate of their owners.

Conway told a crowd that included Optical Cable employees, area business leaders and representatives from Virginia Western Community College's mechatronics program that the manufacturing industry is "so near and dear to the president's heart."

Trump and his administration already have demonstrated their commitment to giving manufacturing a boost, Conway said, by reviving the Dakota Access and Keystone XL pipelines, renegotiating trade agreements and rolling back "job-killing regulations." Tax reform is next on the agenda, though Conway said the changes are better described as "tax cuts."

"Were very excited about the prospect of tax cuts," she said. "The president says that tax cuts is better than tax reform. I think reform strikes some as swamp-like semantics, weve heard it all before."

Jay Timmons, president and CEO of the National Association of Manufacturers, said the "intense focus" the Trump administration has given to strengthening manufacturing is unlike anything he's seen before. Timmons served as chief of staff to George Allen, the former Republican governor and U.S. senator, for a decade.

Conway cast this as a "historic" effort to simplify a tax code with which Americans spend countless hours and dollars trying to comply.

"We look at the tax cuts as being a pay raise for hard-working Americans, so you can keep more of your hard-earned money," she said.

Lowering the tax rates for corporations and businesses will foster a more competitive environment, Conway said, and give companies the ability to reinvest and reward their employees.

Timmons said a recent survey of the association's 14,000 members done in conjunction with Industry Week magazine found that, if tax reform is adopted, two-thirds of businesses would use savings to invest in plants and equipment and hire additional workers. He also said a "vast majority" indicated they would increase wages and benefits for employees.

"If we get this one thing done, were going to see an incredible improvement in the business climate in this country," Timmons said.

Conway said she hopes Democrats, many of whom have said the proposal benefits the wealthy rather than the middle class, will get on board with tax reform, as Trump wants major initiatives to be bipartisan efforts.

"We think Americans deserve a pay raise and we dont care if those Americans are Republicans, Democrats, independents, or hate politics," Conway said. "We want the rising tide to lift all boats. So we hope the Democrats will come to the table."

On behalf of the president, Conway said she wanted to honor and thank the Optical Cable employees who are among the 12 million men and women in manufacturing improving the everyday lives of Americans.

"Each and every one of you adds true meaning and consequence to those four words: made in the USA," she said.

An apt slogan for Manufacturing Day might be "Make it in America Again," Conway said, playing off of Trump's "Make America Great Again."

She presented Optical Cable CEO Neil Wilkin with a letter from Trump recognizing the company's contributions.

Wilkin said it was an honor to have Conway visit Optical Cable, and he appreciated the administration's commitment to manufacturing and tax reform.

"It's a bright future for manufacturing right now," he said.

Conway said she felt tax reform was key to Trump's win in the election.

"He promised to reduce the tax burden on the hardworking men and women," she said. "And I was very, very pleased to see so many of them in the room today at OCC."

The event at Optical Cable was one of 3,000 organized by the National Association of Manufacturers. Conway said she chose to attend this one because she was impressed by Optical Cable's work.

"And not just because one of their expertises is harsh environment connectivity solutions. At the White House we can learn about that since were all being thrust into those," Conway quipped, noting she was smiling as she said it.

From her days as a pollster, Conway said she learned that going to the source, in this case manufacturers, is the best way to come up with solutions.

"If we can shine a light on businesses like this and employers like this and they can tell us what they would do with a tax break, then its good for everyone," she said.
Thumbs up to Chris Bailey and Matt Silva, the two new leaders of Endstation Theatre Company, one of Central Virginias premier performing arts organizations.

Bailey, 23, is Endstations new managing director, while Silva, 32, is the companys artistic director. Endstation itself just turned 11 years old, after being founded by Geoff Kershner and Krista Franco in 2006. (Kershner, by the way, is the executive director of the Academy Center of the Arts.)

Silva is an alumnus of the Florida State University performing arts program, and he has a long track record in the Sunshine States artistic circles where he was known for his directing skills.

Bailey is a graduate of James Madison University and a native of Lynchburg, where he attended Dunbar Middle School and graduated from E.C. Glass High School. While at JMU, he became involved with the Virginia Theatre Association, which is now headquartered in Lynchburg, and became interested in the business and management sides of an arts company.

As Endstation begins its second decade, you know its future is good hands with its new leaders. We, along with the rest of Central Virginia, look forward to enjoying the fruits of their collaborations for years to come.

* * *

Thumbs up to the Lynchburg Regional Business Alliance on the occasion of the organizations move into its new headquarters in downtown Lynchburg.

The Alliance, formed in 2015 with the merger of the Lynchburg Regional Chamber of Commerce and the Region 2000 Business and Economic Development Alliance, had been in search of a new home for years. The Chambers headquarters were on Memorial Avenue, while Region 2000 operated out of rented office space downtown.

The opportunity to purchase the James River Conference Center, located just off Fifth Street, presented itself soon after the merger became official, and Alliance leaders jumped at the chance.

The new headquarters has undergone a complete interior remodeling, while the exterior got a total facelift and redesign, courtesy of Atelier 11, Ltd. Architecture.

Staff will make the final move into the new building Monday and Tuesday, reopening to the public at 9 a.m. Oct. 11.

And mark your calendars for Nov. 4, the date of Alliances grand opening gala.
THE Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has unearthed malpractices in the banking sector that could be fuelling cash shortages in the country.



RBZ Governor Dr John Mangudya yesterday said a recent bank inspection has shown that some banks were not conforming to financial regulations.



Officials at a number of banks in the country said some of their colleagues were in hot soup for allegedly taking bribes to exceed withdrawal limits, with some individuals getting as much as $5 000 per day. A majority of banks peg daily withdrawals at $20 daily.

Bank tellers told The Chronicle some of their colleagues were under fire following the RBZ probes across different banks in the city.





A teller who preferred to be anonymous for professional and legal reasons said his bank had failed during the inspection, with the branch manager expected to go for a hearing soon.





RBZ personnel were here for two days and some of us were interviewed in isolation on issues to do with some people making clients pay money to access cash. Afterwards, we just heard that our branch did not make the cut, said the teller.





In a telephone interview Dr Mangudya said the central bank was moving towards taking decisive action on banks that were failing to comply with its new rules.





We put up policies to promote better circulation of money in the country so that the economy can be functional. However, some financial institutions are causing a setback as they are not complying with these set regulations, he said.

Dr Mangudya could not say how many banks were complying as he said he was yet to see the final report of the investigative exercise.





I have not seen the report myself as our team is still out there carrying out these exercises therefore at this point I cannot point fingers and say who is doing what and who is not. This is a normal exercise that we carry out on a regular basis to ensure that there is transparency and normalcy in the banking sector. We do inspection exercises on commercial banks and building societies across the country so that all irregularities are fished out and sorted out, said Dr Mangudya.





People should understand that there is no cash crisis in the country. The real problem that we have is poor circulation of cash. People have a tendency of wanting to hoard physical money and not bank it, which leads to the long queues in banks, because most of the money in the economy is not circulating.





Whatever money that people get their hands on, they want to keep. There is more money being withdrawn than being deposited. That is where the problem is. People should have a banking culture if our cash situation is to normalise, he said.





Non-compliant banks should be warned. They will be charged under the Abuse of Public Office Act and would be liable to long prison terms if convicted.



Dr Mangudya called for honesty and integrity among people working in the banking sector

as he said it was possible to cheat the system.





It is possible to manipulate the system. However this is a human issue and we entrust the sector in the hands of capable, reliable and trustworthy people.





I urge branch managers to monitor tellers and their activities and bank management to be honest and credible themselves, said Dr Mangudya.





He, however, highlighted that there were too many employees in the banking industry and as such, it was difficult to trace all illicit dealings.





There are too many tellers as each bank will have a number of branches across the country, so really for our teams to really follow up on each and every teller would be tedious, we are just entrusting the job in people whom we hope were hired on integrity and met recruitment requirements, said Dr Mangudya.





Bankers Association of Zimbabwe executive officer Mr Sijabuliso Biyam said the institution was behind RBZ in moving to ensure that all banks were compliant.





We are behind the RBZ. We want a situation whereby all 16 registered banks are fully compliant with the RBZ regulations so that we may see an end to this madness and see sanity being brought back to banking halls, said Mr Biyam.





He could, however, not disclose which banks were found wanting and what action was to be taken.





We know that there are certain malpractices in some banks, however, we have not yet received feedback from RBZ after commencement of the inspection exercise, said the BAZ official.





This week, some Chinese nationals and 19 illegal money changers were arrested in Harare, shortly after the gazetting of regulations criminalising cash vending with police recovering $55 000 worth of bond notes, US$1 662 and R6 000.





The suspects were also found in possession of 10 000 Tanzanian shillings and 320 Botswana pula.





Under the new regulations gazetted last week through Statutory Instrument (SI) 122A of 2017  Exchange Control (Amendment) Regulations 2017 (No 5), police are now empowered to arrest illegal money changers and seize currency in their possession.





The Government has been able to establish that cash vending has become a catalytic agent to both arbitrary price hikes and rent-seeking behaviour. Herald




Central bank Governor Dr John Mangudya said yesterday that prevailing exchange rate distortions on the black market could be avoided if people dealt with registered financial institutions. So far, Dr Mangudya said, 45 financial institutions had been licensed to deal with exchange rates on financial markets.



In order to ensure the orderly dealing in currency and for the convenience of the transacting public, the (RBZ) wishes to advise members of the public to transact in currency with or through licensed bureaux de change and money transfer agencies listed here under, he said.

The bank will continue to advise additional bureaux de change. The permissible currency exchange is as follows: 1 Bond Note: 1 United States Dollar. The exchange between the United States Dollar or Bond Note with other currencies shall be a fee spread of not more than 10 percent of the nominal value of either currency.



Among the listed financial institutions are banks, telecommunications companies like Econet Wireless and Telecel, and other micro finance institutions such as Nissi Global, Kwik Forex. Dr Mangudya expressed satisfaction with recent developments which have seen illegal money changers being arrested after Government gazetted a new law criminalising illegal forex trading.



Following the promulgation of Exchange Control Amendment) regulations, 2017 Statutory Instrument 122a of 2017, a number of people have been arrested for offences related to dealing in currency without being licenced or through unauthorised persons, he said. Dr Mangudya said the RBZ, working with the police, would descend on retailers who were rejecting other modes of payments except cash.



It has come to the attention of the bank that certain retailers and traders of goods and services are refusing to accept modes of payment other than cash. The bank advises members of the public that such practices are undesirable and distort markets. Members of the public are, therefore, urged to report to the Zimbabwe Republic Police or bank, any such persons who refuse to accept other modes of payment, insisting on cash payments only. The necessary corrective action shall be taken against such malpractices.



Last week, Government promulgated a new law to deal with money changers who were inflating US dollar and bond notes cross rates. The inflated cross rates caused panic, resulting in some people sending social media messages suggesting that the bond note had lost its value. This caused people to start panic buying of basic commodities, creating an artificial shortage of goods. The situation has since returned to normal with goods on the shelves, but some commodities are still priced higher than the normal prices. herald The official United States dollar to bond notes exchange rate remains 1:1 and the public should use licensed financial agencies to conduct monetary exchange transactions, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) has said.Central bank Governor Dr John Mangudya said yesterday that prevailing exchange rate distortions on the black market could be avoided if people dealt with registered financial institutions. So far, Dr Mangudya said, 45 financial institutions had been licensed to deal with exchange rates on financial markets.In order to ensure the orderly dealing in currency and for the convenience of the transacting public, the (RBZ) wishes to advise members of the public to transact in currency with or through licensed bureaux de change and money transfer agencies listed here under, he said.The bank will continue to advise additional bureaux de change. The permissible currency exchange is as follows: 1 Bond Note: 1 United States Dollar. The exchange between the United States Dollar or Bond Note with other currencies shall be a fee spread of not more than 10 percent of the nominal value of either currency.Among the listed financial institutions are banks, telecommunications companies like Econet Wireless and Telecel, and other micro finance institutions such as Nissi Global, Kwik Forex. Dr Mangudya expressed satisfaction with recent developments which have seen illegal money changers being arrested after Government gazetted a new law criminalising illegal forex trading.Following the promulgation of Exchange Control Amendment) regulations, 2017 Statutory Instrument 122a of 2017, a number of people have been arrested for offences related to dealing in currency without being licenced or through unauthorised persons, he said. Dr Mangudya said the RBZ, working with the police, would descend on retailers who were rejecting other modes of payments except cash.It has come to the attention of the bank that certain retailers and traders of goods and services are refusing to accept modes of payment other than cash. The bank advises members of the public that such practices are undesirable and distort markets. Members of the public are, therefore, urged to report to the Zimbabwe Republic Police or bank, any such persons who refuse to accept other modes of payment, insisting on cash payments only. The necessary corrective action shall be taken against such malpractices.Last week, Government promulgated a new law to deal with money changers who were inflating US dollar and bond notes cross rates. The inflated cross rates caused panic, resulting in some people sending social media messages suggesting that the bond note had lost its value. This caused people to start panic buying of basic commodities, creating an artificial shortage of goods. The situation has since returned to normal with goods on the shelves, but some commodities are still priced higher than the normal prices. herald
It is becoming increasingly clear that Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa is now left with two options  to resign from his position or risk dismissal  analysts have said.

This comes as relations have broken down between him and the First Family over a series of events that drove a hunk between them.





Mnangagwa has also fallen out with his counterpart  Vice President Phelekezela Mphoko  who accused him on Tuesday of undermining President Robert Mugabes authority over claims that he was poisoned in Gwanda on August 12, contrary to what he had told the Zanu PF leader.



While the vice president has rebuffed Mphoko for distorting his speech, delivered in Gutu last Saturday, he has become isolated since his appointment in December 2014.

Although he still enjoys the backing of ex-liberation war fighters, through the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association (ZNLWVA), and pockets of the military, influential organs of the party  the youth and womens leagues  have cut him off.



On Thursday, the first lady, who is Zanu PFs womens league secretary, told Mnangagwa that he was free to leave the party after she became infuriated by his alleged prevarication over the Gwanda incident.





In remarks analysts see as portentous, Grace made it known that there was no love lost between her and Mnangagwa, and inferred her husband was no exception.



If you are at your wits end, go home and rest. If you try everything and there is no positive outcome dont keep on repeating the same things. It is not possible to love the president and hate the wife, it means you dont like the president, said Grace.





In September 2014, Grace started what eventually led to the dismissal of Mnangagwas predecessor, Joice Mujuru, from Zanu PF and government over allegations of plotting to unseat her husband using unconstitutional means.



Many are therefore wondering if history could repeat itself.

Analysts canvassed by the Daily News said as long as Mnangagwa continues to fight back like he did on Thursday, when he hit back at Mphoko, the situation in Zanu PF might become messy.



In a statement issued late on Thursday night, Mnangagwa said he would never rebel against Mugabe while expressing grave concerns over Mphokos utterances.





He said he could not believe that Mphoko, who is a trained cadre and veteran of the struggle, would issue a statement that goes against the spirit and grain of our national Constitution and the principles, which is further alien to the revolutionary ethos, culture and decorum of our party Zanu PF.



It is further disconcerting that the statement is littered with subjective falsehoods, mischievous perceptions and malicious innuendos written in a language and tone which is disrespectful and contemptuous to my person and indeed to the office I occupy, he added.

Political analyst Shakespeare Hamauswa said Graces statement sounded a death knell for Mnangagwa, for long perceived as a shoo-in to succeed Mugabe.



I think it is now a question of when Mnangagwa is going to be booted out. The Generation 40 (G40) faction is obviously behind the attacks. Mnangagwa is also being backed by some in the military. It is now up to Mnangagwa to make a strategic move.



Hanging on is too risky and resigning might see him going to Chikurubi. But he will not continue serving as vice president under the current developments, said Hamauswa.

G40 is an acronym for Generation 40, which refers to a faction in Zanu PF that does not believe Mnangagwa has what it takes to lead the ruling party.





Another political analyst, Maxwell Saungweme, said while Mujuru went down without a murmur, Mnangagwa, will go down fighting.



Saungweme said the vice president has been emboldened by the support of ZNLWVA and the military.



Its clear to him that Mugabe is no longer himself; is of advanced age and some faculties, as expected, are waning. He understands that the man he served for a long time is no longer himself and is being manipulated. So he cant watch himself go down like Mujuru, he opined.



So he is doing what he has to do to survive, politically. If he keeps quiet, he would still go the Mujuru way and probably end up in jail. So he is doing what a soldier has to do  attack before you are attacked. This is a basic principle in war  you kill, before you are killed. He is doing just that. I think what he is doing is the most reasonable thing under the circumstances, added Saungweme.





Critics often accuse Zanu PF of persecuting its rivals by preferring trumped-up charges against them just to silence them.



Respected United Kingdom-based scholar Stephen Chan said for now G40 had an upper hand and will stop at nothing to ensure that Mnangagwa is swept away.



Certainly, the G40  with frontline people such as (Jonathan) Moyo, Mphoko and Grace Mugabe, would like to see Mnangagwa go, said Chan.



And theyre pushing very hard in a coordinated fashion right now. Mnangagwas account of being poisoned is in fact a warning to them not to go too far. But he remains confident that he retains the backing in key security quarters. This will be messy, but he is stronger than Mujuru was. However, I repeat that this power struggle means no one is looking at how to rescue the economy. The winner may inherit a ruined country, he added.





Uncharacteristically, the army, that for long has been perceived to back Mnangagwas presidential bid, has been conspicuous by its silence.



Interestingly, Grace told her audience on Thursday that there were some mulling a coup if their preferred successor does not become the countrys next president.

Mugabe has already hinted at retiring some of the army generals.



Mnangagwas crime, in the eyes of the G40 faction, is his claim that he was poisoned by his political rivals which rivals claim is contradictory to what his medical doctors told Mugabe.

Moyo, one of the fiercest critics of Mnangagwa, wrote on his twitter account yesterday slamming the vice president for doublespeak.



This I was not poisoned, I was poisoned Mnangagwa statement is an example of desperate dog-whistle politics. Even fools are not fooled! Moyo said.

On Thursday, Mnangagwa insisted that he was poisoned, contrary to what his counterpart Mphoko had said.



Saungweme said that the Mnangagwa and his co-vice president are fighting does not bode well for Mugabe and government.





He said the result of it was that it speeds up the decomposition and implosion of Zanu PF which he said was long overdue.



The opposition needs to be serious, do away with power and rank fights, come together and overthrow Zanu PF and share power spoils later, said Saungweme.

Yesterday, ZNLWVA chairperson Christopher Mutsvangwa  a close ally of Mnangagwa  came out guns blazing, accusing Grace and her allies of fuelling tensions over the poisoning saga.



Mphoko and Jonathan are not medical doctors. Why has been this tribal duet been so uptight on this ever since the Gwanda incident? Surely, only South African doctors who treated the VP can speak on authority. Their ranting(s) only serve to confuse rather than clarify. Why such a sustained and spirited outburst on this matter when they are so distant to it? he queried.





On Graces scathing attack on Mnangagwa, Mutsvangwa replied rhetorically: Kuramba uchivhunduka chati kwatara hunge uine katurike (the guilty are afraid).

He also branded Moyo, Grace and Mphoko as poisonists.



The poisonists, having failed to kill their quarry, are haunted by the prospect of being exposed.



They now frantically wish their surviving victim to absolve them of their sordid and heinous act, he said.





Zimbabwe Youth Platform Forum leader Tonderai Chidhawa  a Mnangagwa loyalist  said Mugabe must deal with Moyo and other party leaders who are fomenting factionalism.

It is no more a secret that Zanu PF continues to disintegrate due to factionalism and personal fights that are aimed at discrediting each other in the race to succeed president Mugabe. That being the case, we condemn factionalism, regionalism and tribalism that has been demonstrated by senior officers in the party and government and manifested in the on-going fights, said Chidhawa.





He added Mphoko as the vice president must know that there is something called patient-to-doctor confidence and that cannot be disclosed to anyone, not even the president. Mphoko must focus more on working for his party,



He alleged that the biggest culprit was Moyo whom he accused of causing the expulsion of several Zanu PF officials in order to isolate Mugabe from the likes of Mnangagwa.



The VPs admission that he was poisoned and is recovering from the poison ailment makes us believe that statements made by one Energy Mutodi, who is currently facing trial for revealing the suspects who allegedly poisoned VP Mnangagwa, he said.



Cde Energy Mutodi was also expelled from the party for the same reason. We wish therefore to see finality to this issue with the truth being laid bare to allow unity of purpose and togetherness as we approach next years elections, added Chidhawa. daily news
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A Chicago man has been removed from the Jewish deli his family has owned for three generations after tweeting about the "relief" he felt in the wake of the Las Vegas shooting, the Chicago Tribune reports. "Soon as I heard it was country music, I felt relief," Greg Morelli, co-owner of Max's Deli, tweeted Monday. "White people shooting white people isn't terror...it's community outreach." According to Fox 32, the tweet garnered Morelli death threats and Max's Deli a slew of one-star Yelp reviews. "The owner of this deli is a hateful, vile man," reads one such review. One person stoking anti-Morelli sentiment is Andrew Anglin, the head of neo-Nazi website the Daily Stormer, Newsweek reports.

Joey Morelli, Greg's brother and co-owner of Max's Deli along with a cousin, released a statement Thursday saying he would be buying out his brother's share of the business ASAP. "He is out, he has agreed to be out and he is gone," Joey Morelli says. "I love him, but he must move on." Joey says his brother's tweet "created a toxicity around us." But it isn't the first time Greg's actions brought negative attention to Max's Deli. In the wake of the events in Charlottesville, Greg posted a drawing of someone in Nazi garb to the Maxi's Deli website. Greg Morelli says he decided to leave the deli, which he calls "the love of my life," for the good of the business. "They didn't ask for this," he says. He blames "a bunch of people who hate free speech." (Read more Chicago stories.)
A Russian lawmaker has returned from a trip to Pyongyang with some alarming news, Reuters reports. Anton Morozov says North Korea is preparing to test a missile it believes can reach the west coast of the US. Morozov says "they even gave us mathematical calculations" to prove it, though the Independent notes the Russian lawmaker didn't claim to have checked North Korea's math. According to Bloomberg, Morozov says North Korean officials told him the missile could have a range of up to 7,500 miles. They also allegedly claimed to have perfected the technology for their missiles to withstand the heat of atmospheric reentry. Theyre not preparing for nuclear war, says Alexei Didenko, another Russian lawmaker on the North Korea trip. Theyve been ready for it for a long time.

Morozov didn't say who specifically gave him the information on the upcoming missile test, and Reuters was unable to verify it. But US officials have said there are some indications North Korea is preparing for a missile test on Oct. 10. The country has conducted at least 14 missile tests already this year. "In general, their mood is rather belligerent," Reuters quotes Morozov as saying. "They did everything to show theyre seriously ready for confrontation, he tells Bloomberg. Morozov says the situation "demands the swiftest intervention of all interested states ... to prevent wide-scale military action." (Read more North Korea stories.)
An alleged plot to attack New York Citydetonating bombs in Times Square and the subway system while shooting civilians at concert venuesin the summer of 2016 "in the name of ISIS" was stopped by the FBI, according to newly unsealed records. "Three men allegedly plotted to conduct bombings and shootings in heavily populated areas of New York City during the Islamic holy month of Ramadhan," ABC News quotes the Justice Department as saying in a statement. A 19-year-old Canadian citizen named Abdulrahman el Bahnasawy allegedly bought materials to make bombs only to send them to what turned out to be an undercover FBI agent, WABC reports. El Bahnasawy was arrested in May 2016 after traveling to the US and renting a cabin in New Jersey.

Also arrested over the past year were two alleged accomplices: 19-year-old Tahla Haroon and 37-year-old Russell Salic. Haroon, an American citizen living in Pakistan, allegedly planned to meet with bomb experts there before joining El Bahnasawy in the US, the New York Daily News reports. Haroon was arrested in Pakistan and is awaiting extradition. Salic was arrested in his native Philippines and is also awaiting extradition. He was allegedly providing financing for the plot. El Bahnasawy has pleaded guilty. He allegedly said he wanted to "create the next 9/11." (Read more terrorism stories.)
Two attorneys general filed lawsuits Friday over the Trump administration's decision to allow businesses to refuse to cover employees' birth control in their insurance plans. The move rolled back a mandate of the Affordable Care Act and allows companies to claim moral or religious objections to providing birth control coverage. Donald Trump wants businesses and corporations to control family planning decisions rather than a woman in consultation with her doctor," the Hill quotes California Attorney General Xavier Bercerra as saying. "By gutting this mandate, the religious belief of employers will replace the basic right of a woman to care for herself and her family," MassLives quotes Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey as saying. Both attorneys general filed lawsuits Friday.

Bercerra claims the Trump administration's decision represents illegal discrimination against women, puts the financial burden of providing birth control on the state, and violates the First Amendment by allowing religious beliefs to infringe on federal benefits, the Los Angeles Times reports. What group of Americans will they target next? Will they allow businesses to deny you cancer treatment? Will they exclude you from insurance coverage because of a pre-existing health condition?" Bercerra says. Healey calls the move "a direct attack on women's health." Becerra has filed more than two dozen legal challenges against the Trump administration, and Healey has filed lawsuits challenging its travel ban and changes to environmental rules. (Read more birth control stories.)
Danish divers made a grisly discovery Friday: They found the head and legs of journalist Kim Wall in a bay near Copenhagen, reports Reuters. What's more, the discovery appears to further undermine the unraveling story of inventor Peter Madsen, who has been accused of killing her. Divers in Koge Bay found two bags, one with Wall's remaining body partsher torso had previously washed upand another containing her clothes and a knife, per CNN. The bags had been weighted down with pieces of metal. The 30-year-old was last seen alive on Aug. 10 when she boarded Madsen's submarine. Madsen, whose story has changed, maintains that Wall died accidentally when the sub's heavy metal hatch struck her in the head.

However, authorities say an autopsy shows no such damage to Wall's head, reports the BBC. Madsen, 46, remains imprisoned as the investigation continues. He has admitted to disposing of Wall's body at sea, but says he did so in a panic because he blamed himself for losing his grip on the hatch. Prosecutors, however, paint a much darker picture. They point to disturbing videos found on Madsen's computer showing the torture and decapitation of women and to a post-mortem examination that revealed knife wounds to Wall's genitals and rib cage "around or shortly after her death." Authorities say they hope the new evidence will help them determine a cause of death. (Read more Kim Wall stories.)
Nelly was arrested Saturday morning for allegedly raping a woman on his tour bus in Washington state, TMZ reports. According to Q13, the "Hot in Herre" rapper performed at the White River Amphitheater on Friday and was also scheduled to appear at a nightclub event in nearby Seattle the same night. A woman called police around 3:45am Saturday saying Nelly raped her on his tour bus. He was arrested around 7am on suspicion of second-degree rape while his tour bus was parked at a Walmart in Auburn, the AP reports.

Nelly's lawyer, Scott Rosenblum, says he's confident no charges will be filed, describing the rape allegation as "completely fabricated" and Nelly as the "victim." He says the woman is accusing Nelly out of "greed and vindictiveness." It's unclear when Nelly will make his first court appearance. (Read more Nelly stories.)
"Scariest man I've met in my 70 years," attorney John Dzialo tells the Los Angeles Times in Part 5 of its six-part series on "Dirty John" Meehan, a conman who married a California woman desperate to find love. Dzialo was hiredand quickly firedby Meehan to get legal revenge on his list of enemies, and the attorney immediately found himself concerned about Debra Newell. Newell had discovered the truth about Meehan but decided to forgive him, fearing both the prospect of a fifth divorce and Meehan's wrath. But by their one-year anniversary in December 2015, it was all an act. She was done. You dont look at me the same way, Meehan told her. I know youre going to leave me. Newell did just that in March 2016 and filed for an annulment in April.

And that's when Dirty Johnwho had already harassed Newell's daughter Jacquelyn, threatening to throw her into the ocean, telling her to kill herself, sending her dirty messagesgot really scary. He used his intimate knowledge of Newell's history, family, religion, and insecurities to attack her. He demanded $7,000 a month to live on, posted naked photos of her on her nephew's Facebook page, claimed to be dying of cancer, and threatened to "ruin" her family and interior design business. Newell started wearing disguises and living out of motels. A judge refused her request for a restraining order, but it seems Meehan had decided not to go after Newell directly. Part 5 of the Dirty John sagaread the full thing hereends on a foreboding note, with Meehan apparently setting his sights on Newell's daughter Terra. (Read more Longform stories.)
Harvey Weinstein has already lost at least one adviser as he faces accusations of sexual misconduct dating back years, Variety reports. Attorney Lisa Bloom, who defended Weinstein to the New York Times on Thursday by calling him "an old dinosaur learning new ways," tweeted her resignation as his adviser on Saturday. Bloom, who made her career on defending women and represented a number of Bill O'Reilly's alleged victims, was called a hypocrite for her defense of Weinstein. Bloom's own mother, famed attorney Gloria Allred, said she would not have accepted a job defending the Hollywood producer. Sources say another of Weinstein's advisers, Lanny Davis, has also resigned.

Meanwhile, Lauren Sivan told HuffPost on Friday that Weinstein cornered her in the hallway of a New York restaurant and forced her to watch him masturbate a decade ago. Sivan, a local TV news anchor at the time, says Weinstien "ejaculated quickly into a potted plant" at Cafe Socialista. She says she told her friends about the incident but didn't go public because she feared Weinstein's clout in the industry. The producer is on indefinite leave from the Weinstein Company. (Read more Harvey Weinstein stories.)
A Minnesota man who lived in a house with the decomposing bodies of his mother and twin brother for about a year said he could not bring himself to report their deaths to authorities. "I was traumatized," Robert Kuefler tells the AP. "What would you do?" White Bear Lake Police Capt. Dale Hager says Kuefler, 60, was charged this week with interference with a dead body or scene of death because Kuefler moved his brother's body. Hager says both the brother and the mother died of natural causes in 2015. Several months after their deaths, Kuefler wrote to other family members in a Christmas card that both were in bad health and could not talk on the phone and did not want visitors. Police did not find the bodies until September 2016, when a neighbor reported that the Kueflers' lawn was overgrown and that it had been a long time since she had seen activity at the house.

Kuefler says his mother, 94-year-old Evelyn Kuefler, died in August 2015 and his brother, Richard Kuefler, died several months before. Court records say the mother's body was decayed and skeletal and the brother's body was "mummified." "I am not some nut ball," the maintenance worker says. "People think I am, but I'm not. I loved them." Hager says authorities decided to file the misdemeanor charge against Kuefler in part to help get him some psychological help through the court system. "This is our way of introducing this case onto the court," Hager says. "We're depending on our partners in the court system to make a good decision." Kuefler, who has no criminal history, says he needs no counseling. "I watched my mother die," he says. "She always said she wanted to die at home. She didn't have any burial plans."

(Read more Minnesota stories.)
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New Delhi:

Five people including four women of a single family were found dead at their home near Jindal Oil Mills in Mansarovar Park area of Delhi's Shahdara on Saturday.

The police said they received a PCR call at 7:30 am in the morning about the brutal murder of 5 people. All the five bodies were having knife wounds.

All the murdered people were identified as Urmila (65), Sangeet Gupta (43), Nupur Jindal (35), Anjali Jindal (33) and a security guard Rakesh (50).

Urmilas husband had died a few years ago and she lived with her three daughters. Two of them were unmarried and one was a widow, Nupur Prasad, DCP (Shahdara) said.

Also Read | ICAI president's daughter Pallavi Vikamsey sent no one is responsible text to parents

All five of them had been stabbed to death. It appears a knife was used in the murder, the DCP said.

According to the Delhi police, a family of seven brothers was living near Jindal Mills. There was some dispute in the family over a property and police is also probing the property angle.

The Delhi police is trying to find out the motive behind the mass murder and a police team has started manhunt to nab the killers.

#Visuals Delhi: 5 people, including 4 women, found dead in Shahdara's Mansarovar Park. Police at the spot. pic.twitter.com/T269mafB4Z  ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

More details are awaited.
New Delhi:

If you are an ardent follower of the Bigg Boss 11, then this latest tittle-tattle will definitely astonish you. Zubair Khan, Bigg Boss 11 contestant who presented himself as Dawood's late sister, Haseena Parkar's son-in-law is evidently not related to the family.

Since the inception of the show, Zubair Khan is saying that he has strong link-ups with the Dawood's family. But, shockingly, in the latest turn of events, it has come that he has not any link to Dawood' family. He is using fake identity for publicity.

Not only this, the limit of fakeness has crossed when Zubair said he had produced the movie Haseena Parkar featuring Shraddha Kapoor in the lead role.

However, Sameer Antulay who is a part of Dawood family and also the co-producer of the film has said that the family will be approaching to the FIR.

"Zubair Khan is a fraud. He has no connections with our family. He is misusing the Dawood title for publicity. We will be approaching the cops to register a FIR against him," Antulay told to the mid-day.

Also Read: Bigg Boss 11 Friday Ka Faisla: THESE three contestants to go to JAIL tonight

The co-producer of the film, Sameer Antulay, who is also a part of the Dawood family, told Mid-Day that the family will be approaching police to file a FIR. "Zubair Khan is a fraud. He has no connections with our family. He is misusing the Dawood title for publicity. We will be approaching the cops to register a FIR against him," Antulay said.

He further said: "Haseena Parkar has two daughters  Qudsia and Humeira. Neither of them knows Zubair. Some media platforms Zubair had been able to reach have claimed that Qudsia was his wife, but Qudsia is married to businessman Zaheer Shaikh, who deals in garments. These rumors need to end as my sisters are facing a lot of problems."

Sameer Antualy has enough evidence which can prove that Zubair is not connected to the film nor the Dawood family.

"In 2014, Zubair had approached Haseena, seeking permission to make her biography. But Haseena had rejected the idea," the producer added.

Now there is a chance that Zubair Khan might have to see an exit in the show if the makers of the film file a complaint against him.

Also Read: Bigg Boss 11: Meet Zubair Khan, underworld don Dawood Ibrahim's kin

Although, Zubair Khan has cheated with the audience and other housemates. But for the fervent followers, here are the things which you should definitely know about self-claimed Dawood's family member.

1- Zubair Khan talked about his marriage in an interview with India Today, he said that "My wife was 12-year-old when I married her, she was a kid. I have literally raised her and still, she stabbed me in the back."

2- Not Haseena Parekh but Lakeer Ka Fakeer had been produced and directed by the Zubair Khan that featured Ajaz Khan in a significant role.

3- He also owns a production house named Garbage.

4- Zubair had apparently worked with Ekta Kapoor's production house, Balaji Telefilms, as an executive producer.
New Delhi:

In an affidavit filed in the Supreme Court, the Pinarayi Vijayan government in Kerala said that there is no need for National Investigation Agency (NIA) probe in alleged Hadiya Love Jihad case.

Rejecting NIAs claims, the Kerala govt told Supreme Court that the Hadiya case was not part of an alleged pattern of religious conversions and radicalication, reported the Hindu.

In the affidavit, the Pinarayi Vijayan government even expressed satisfaction over the Kerala Police probe and said it was doing an efficient job before the apex court intervened and handed over the case to Centres investigative agency.

"The investigation conducted so far by the Kerala Police has not revealed any incident relating to the commission of any scheduled offences to make a report to the Central Government under Section 6 of the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008," the state government said in the affidavit.

Defending state Polices investigation in the matter, the affidavit said the Kerala Police is competent to conduct the investigation in such crimes.

"The Kerala Police had conducted a thorough investigation in an efficient manner. The Kerala Police is competent to conduct the investigation in such crimes and would have reported to the Central government if any scheduled offences were found to have been committed as per the provisions under the NIA Act," the affidavit said.

26-year-old Muslim man Shafin Jahan had filed a petition in the Supreme Court for the production of his wife, whom his father-in-law took away after Kerala HC declared their wedding invalid.

Jahan has sought a stay on the divorce order of Kerala high court which had ruled that he married Hadiya/Akhila after she was radicalized by elements associated with Islamic State and other terrorist organizations.

Hearing Jahans plea, the top Court had handed over the probe to NIA and sought response from Kerala government.

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New Delhi:

India and European Union on Friday failed to decide a date to relaunch negotiations on the proposed bilateral Free Trade Agreement (FTA).

A Joint Statement during 14th India-EU Summit held on Friday in the national capital only said the leaders of both the sides have  noted the ongoing efforts ... to re-engage actively towards timely re-launching negotiations for a comprehensive and mutually beneficial India-EU BTIA.

The two sides met during the 14th summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the European Council President Donald Franciszek Tusk and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker.

India and the EU have been strategic partners since 2004. The 13th India-EU Summit was held in Brussels on March 30 last year during Modi's visit.

India and the EU reiterated the importance of reconciling economic growth and environment protection and highlighted the importance of moving towards a more circular economic model that reduces primary resource consumption, a joint statement said.

Leaders also agreed to further intensify cooperation on addressing environmental challenges, such as water management and air pollution, acknowledged the progress in implementing the India-EU Water Partnership, including an agreed action programme, it said.

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
New Delhi:

As the Gujarat assembly polls nears, the election campaigns of both Bhartiya Janata Party and Congress have gained momentum. Prime Minister Narendra Modi started his two-day tour to Gujarat by visiting Dwarkadhish temple on Saturday.

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi had also visited Dwarkadhish temple in the recent past.

PM Modi is expected to lay foundation stones of many projects during his visit to Gujarat. He is also scheduled to visit his birth place Vadnagar.

It will be PM Modias third visit to the state in a monthas time. PM Modi along with Japan PM Shinzo Abe had laid foundation stone of Bullet Train on September 14.

PM Modi had also visited Gujarat on his birthday on September 17. He inaugurated Sardar Sarovar Dam and also addressed a rally.

Here are the updates from the PM Modias Gujarat tour:

#A We made aviation affordable & within reach of the lesser privileged: PM Narendra Modi in Rajkot

#A There was no aviation policy post independence. We made those policies & took responsibility to connect smallest of places by air: PM Modi

#A Once, setting up hand-pumps used to be govt's achievement. Today there's a govt which has supplied Narmada's water to villages: PM Modi

#A PM Narendra Modi addresses a public meeting in Gujarat's Rajkot

# An institute for this (marine security) will be set up in Dwarka. It will draw people and experts from all over India: PM



# Marine policing is a sector we are looking at very closely. We are modernising marine security apparatus: PM Modi in Dwarka



# Common citizen of India wants fruits of development to reach him/her. Noone wants their children to live in poverty. We want to help our people: PM

# Had already stated earlier that we would look into GST for 3 months and make changes, mend loopholes as per the experience: PM in Dwarka

# It was like Diwali yesterday when we made some important changes in the Goods and Services Tax: PM in Dwarka

# When Madhavsinh Solanki ws CM, I recall front page ad for water tank inauguration by him. This is how narrow their development conception was: PM

# To make life of our fishermen better we have to empower them, govt will give them loans on less interest so they can buy bigger boats: PM

# We are taking steps to ensure greater income for our farmers: PM Modi in Gujarat's Dwarka

# Building of infrastructure should enhance economic activities and add to the atmosphere of development: PM in Dwarka

# Today's Dwarka has been changed, says PM ModiA

# We have given priority to development, says PM Modi

# Connectivity is required to promote tourism: PM Modi

# Bet Dwarka has huge for tourism: PM Modi

# Brij is medium to connect cultural chain, says PM ModiA

# I thank people of Dwarka, says PM ModiA

#A PM Modi inaugurates a bridge between Okha and Bet Dwarka

Dwarka, Gujarat: PM Modi lays foundation stone for a bridge between Okha and Bet Dwarka. pic.twitter.com/dOvLgTjGhe a ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

# PM welcomed at the foundation stone laying ceremony of a bridge between Okha and Bet Dwarka; Union Min Nitin Gadkari also present.

Gujarat: PM welcomed at the foundation stone laying ceremony of a bridge between Okha and Bet Dwarka; Union Min Nitin Gadkari also present. pic.twitter.com/cszsIB6AKQ a ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

# PM Narendra Modi at Dwarkadhish Temple in Dwarka; will lay foundation stone of bridge between Okha & Bet Dwarka, later.

Gujarat: PM Narendra Modi at Dwarkadhish Temple in Dwarka; will lay foundation stone of bridge between Okha & Bet Dwarka, later. pic.twitter.com/AezIRP7lFf a ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

# PM Narendra Modi offers prayers at Dwarkadhish Temple in Gujarat's Dwarka; CM Vijay Rupani also present.

PM Narendra Modi offers prayers at Dwarkadhish Temple in Gujarat's Dwarka; CM Vijay Rupani also present. pic.twitter.com/Wi9Fclo317 a ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

# PM Narendra Modi offers prayers at Dwarkadhish Temple in Dwarka.

Gujarat: PM Narendra Modi offers prayers at Dwarkadhish Temple in Dwarka. pic.twitter.com/mq1cJNGl0d a ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

# PM Narendra Modi arrives in Dwarka. He will visit Dwarkadhish Temple later.

Gujarat: PM Narendra Modi arrives in Dwarka. He will visit Dwarkadhish Temple later. pic.twitter.com/XAoxGPQRaP a ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

# Gujarat: PM Narendra Modi arrives in Jamnagar for his 2-days visit to the state.

Gujarat: PM Narendra Modi arrives in Jamnagar for his 2-days visit to the state pic.twitter.com/qIpKOxi3fJ a ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

At Dwarka, Modi will lay the foundation stone for four-lane cable stayed signature bridge between Okha and Beyt Dwarka to be built at a cost of Rs 962.42 crore.

Other projects for which foundation stone will be laid include four-laning of 116.24 kms of Porbandar-Dwarka section of NH-51 and four-laning of 93.56 km of Gadu-Porbandar section of NH-51.

He will also address a public meeting there.

From Dwarka, the prime minister will go to Hirasar in

Rajkot district where he will lay foundation stone for a greenfield airport, 20 kms from Rajkot city.

He will also lay foundation stone in Chotila for six-laning of 201-km Ahmedabad-Rajkot section of NH-47 at a cost of Rs 2,893 crore.

He will also dedicate a fully automatic milk processing and packaging plant and a drinking water distribution pipeline for Joravarnagar and Ratanpur area of Surendranagar, a PMO statement said in Delhi.

He will address a public meeting there too.

Modi will then proceed to Gandhinagar where he will dedicate the newly-constructed building of IIT Gandhinagar, and launch the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan (PMGDISHA).

PMGDISHA is aimed at imparting digital literacy to citizens in rural areas, the PMO said, adding it will provide access to information, knowledge, education, and healthcare.

It will create avenues for livelihood generation and financial inclusion through digital payments, the statement said.

On Sunday morning, he will visit Vadnagar, his birthplace in Mehasana district where he grew up.

He will then inaugurate a medical college and hospital having total bed capacity of 650.

He will also launch the Intensified Mission Indradhanush, to accelerate progress towards the goal of full immunization coverage.

The mission will provide greater focus on urban areas and other pockets of low immunization coverage, the statement said.

The prime minister will also distribute e-tablets to health workers to mark the launch of ImTeCHO (Innovative mobile-phone Technology for Community Health Operations).

ImTeCHO is aimed at improving the performance of community health workers ASHAs (Accredited Social Health Activists) through better supervision, support and motivation for increasing coverage of proven maternal, newborn and child health interventions among resource-poor settings in India.

The same afternoon, the prime minister will reach Bharuch and lay the foundation stone for Bhadbhut Barrage, to be built over the Narmada River, the statement said.

He will flag off the Antyodaya Express between Udhna (Surat, Gujarat), and Jaynagar (Bihar).

Modi will also unveil plaques to mark the laying of foundation stone, and inauguration of various plants of Gujarat Narmada Fertilizer Corporation.

He will also address a public meeting there before returning to Delhi.

Modi was in Gujarat on September 17 to inaugurate the the Sardar Sarovar Dam on Narmada river.

With PTI inputs

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New Delhi:

Movies can play an important role in exposing and eliminating the menace of terrorism and radicalism, Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said on Saturday.

Naqvi said this while addressing a aGlobal Film Tourism Conclavea organised by PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry in suburban Mumbai.

The Indian film industry has been playing a key role in eliminating various social evils, the Minority Affairs Minister said adding movies create an atmosphere against various social problems and also towards bringing social reforms.

aIndian films have succeeded in delivering effective messages social, cultural and reformist issues. Films can play an important role in eliminating the menace of terrorism and radicalism,a he said.

The film makers from across the world have their own favourite places in India to shoot films, he added.

ALSO READ: Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi's sister, Farhat Naqvi gets death threats

aIndia is geographically, socially and culturally a rich and beautiful country. In India, from Kashmir to Kanyakumari and from Gujarat to northeast states, beautiful locations attract not only domestic, but also foreign film makers to shoot their movies at these places,a the minister said.

He also stressed that Centre and various state governments encourage film makers from across the country and the world to make film in their regions.

aWe should provide information to the entire world about these promotional programmes,a Naqvi said.

India has all the afacilities, possibilities and resourcesa to become a afilm tourism huba, he added.

He added that organisations such as PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry can play an important role in encouraging these possibilities.

Naqvi said that India is one of the few countries in the world, where the film sector has an industry status.

(With PTI inputs)

ALSO READ | Vande Mataram row | Not singing national song doesn't make one anti-national: Union Min Naqvi

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New Delhi:

Gujarat Dalit teen who claimed he was stabbed by two Rajpoot men on October 3 allegedly for wearing moustaches, faked the attack to gain media attention, police said.

17-year-old Dalit teen Digant Maheria had claimed that he was attacked allegedly by two Rajput men in the Limbodara village in Gujarat's Gandhinagar district.

According to the Gujarat police, the youth has confessed that he faked the attack "because he wanted media attention" and his attackers were his schoolmates.

"We had registered a complaint and began an investigation. Our suspicion grew when the forensic team visited the spot where the boy claimed to have been stabbed," NDTV quoted police officer Virendra Yadav as saying.

Also Read | Dalits thrashed for sporting moustache in Gujarat, one arrested

"The team didn't find any blood marks. Neither did we, on examination of the boy's clothes, find them soiled, despite the attack allegedly having taken place in a muddy patch," he added.

The incident of fake attack took place days after a Dalit youth was killed in the same district for sporting moustaches.

Following the attack, several Dalit men started protesting and changed their WhatsApp display picture to a twirled-up moustache with crown and Mr Dalit written on it.

The Mr Dalit intensified after an alleged attack on Digant and people started posting pictures on social media twirling their moustaches.

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New Delhi:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on a two-day visit to Gujarat, has said that Diwali has come early for the people of India because of the latest decisions taken by the GST Council.A



He was addressing a public rally at Dwarka.A



Highlighting the achievements of his government, he said, aWe made aviation affordable and within reach of the lesser privileged. There was no aviation policy post-independence. We made those policies and took responsibility to connect smallest of places by air.a



PM Modi also emphasized setting up of hand-pumps adding that his government has supplied Narmada's water to villages.



He announced setting up of an institute for marine security in Dwarka as he said, aMarine policing is a sector we are looking at very closely. We are modernising marine security apparatus.a



He also added that the government had already stated they would have a look at all the aspects of GST for three months and then make necessary changes as per the experience.A

#WATCH PM Narendra Modi addresses a public meeting in Gujarat's Rajkot https://t.co/BXysyY9qew a ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017



PM Modi said that the common citizen of India wants development to reach him/her and nobody wants their children to live a life in poverty. PM stressed that the government wants to help the people of India.A



He also added it is natural for citizens to support the government when policies are made with the best intentions. ''The world's attention is on our country and people are coming to invest here'', Modi asserted.

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New Delhi:

Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi demanded on Friday that petrol and diesel be brought under the Goods and Services Tax regime to prevent excessive profiteering.

He also said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should not view the new tax reform to further electoral interests.

Time to correct the One Nation, Seven Tax, multiple form filing and draconian power of taxman. Make it Good and Simple beyond rhetoric, Gandhi said on Twitter.

In a series of tweets, he said, Wish Modiji viewed economic slide and GST mess from prism of solving suffering of people than furthering electoral interests.

The Congress leader said, Then, 1st step would be to bring Petrol/Diesel under GST to prevent excessive profiteering from common man as GOI alone earns Rs 2,73,000 crore.

His statement came on a day when the GST Council met to give relief to small and medium enterprises and exporters.

In a video message on the Congress Twitter handle, Gandhi asked the government to support small and medium businesses and the informal sector to create jobs and not unleash taxmen on them.

He asked the prime minister to focus on job creation.

Gandhi said around 30,000 youth are demanding jobs and

only 450 get them everyday, thereby creating an army of 10-lakh unemployed youth a month.

He warned that the youth, farmers and small businessmen are getting angry at the government and this is not good for the country.

This will be dangerous for the country, he said.

Gandhi accused the government of attacking these small and medium businesses first through demonetisation and then through the GST.

Instead of helping them, the government is attacking them... These are brutal attacks on these sectors which will wipe them out. Without respecting these sectors you cannot get jobs... For employment generation, small and informal sectors need to be helped, he said.

The Congress leader alleged that the government was spending all its energies on big businesses but neglecting the small and medium sectors.

On Twitter, he said the textiles sector is the second biggest job generator that yearns for correcting the distorted GST structure.

Traders, MSMEs, small businesses suffer and cronies profit, Gandhi said.

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New Delhi:

US Vice President Mike Pence has stated that the Trump administration will direct NASA to land humans on the Moon again. With this statement, he has reversed ex-President Obamas vision of reorienting the space agencys focus towards Mars.

Pence not only made the Trump administrations intentions clear in a Wall Street Journal op-ed but also in a speech which he gave during the inaugural meeting of the National Space Council. It is a newly resurrected executive group aimed at guiding the US space agenda.

Speaking at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Virginia, the vice-president said, We will return NASA astronauts to the Moon, not only to leave behind footprints and flags, but to build the foundation, we need to send Americans to Mars and beyond.

With this announcement, Pence has revived the plans of former US president George W Bush. It is to be noted that Obama administration had deferred the missions to Moon and reoriented the space agency toward a journey to Mars.

The US would lead in space again under the Trump administration, Pence stressed.

ALSO READ: NASA study reveals Moon had atmosphere about 3 to 4 billion years ago

The American astronauts havent launched a mission to Moon in the last four decades. NASA is currently relying on Russian vehicles to ferry astronauts to and from the International Space Station.

America seems to have lost our edge in space. And those days are over, The Verge quoted Pence as saying.

Since 2010, the American space agency has focused of sending humans to Mars only. It hasnt made any plans for landing people on the Moon since then.

However, it was not mentioned neither in the vice-presidents speech nor in the newspaper article about the timeline or the funding of the future Moon missions.

Earlier, Obama had rejected the Moon as a return destination.

Weve been there, he had said and directed NASA to be more specific towards the Red Planet Mars. His ambition was to send humans to orbit Mars and return them safely to Earth by the mid-2030s.

He approved the development of a big new rocket, the Space Launch System, and a deep space capsule called Orion. All of this hardware is still some years away from carrying people.

(With PTI inputs)

ALSO READ | NASA's Mars Insight mission: Know how to send your name on the red planet; check here

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Islamabad:

Pakistan has started the process to file its plea in response to Indias memorial submitted in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against the death sentence of Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav.



Jadhav, a 46-year-old retired Indian Navy officer, was captured in Balochistan in March, 2016 by Pakistani security forces and tried in a military court which sentenced him to death for "espionage and subversive activities".



The ICJ had asked Pakistan to submit its written response or memorial by December 13 before the court could start further proceedings.



According to Foreign Office sources, Attorney General Ashtar Ausaf Ali yesterday presided over a meeting of law experts and officials of the ministry of foreign affairs and other relevant departments to discuss the line of arguments in the ICJ.



"We will forcefully defend our position which is based on the fact that Jadhav is a serving Indian spy tasked to carry out subversive activities in Pakistan," the sources said.



Meanwhile, Ausaf told the Dawn that they had decided to hold weekly meetings in order to review the situation and "to finalise Islamabads point of view and convert it into an appropriate rejoinder to Indias allegations".



He said they were in touch with relevant stakeholders, including Khawar Qureshi who had pleaded Pakistans case at the initial stage, to formalise a robust reply refuting all allegations levelled against Pakistan.



The daily reported that the attorney generals office is also busy documenting the case and collecting instances of the "atrocities and human rights violations committed by India" in Jammu and Kashmir.



On Thursday, the Pakistan Army said it is close to a decision on the mercy petition of Jadhav.



"Kulbhushan Jadhavs mercy petition has come to the army chief. There is a process, everything goes through a process but I can assure that it is near finalisation and we will give you news about this very soon," army spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor said.



Jadhavs death sentence was confirmed by Pakistans army chief General Qamar Bajwa on April 10. He has filed an appeal with the army chief to seek clemency, which is still pending.



After India approached the ICJ, a 10-member bench on May 18 restrained Pakistan from executing Jadhav till adjudication of the case.



Jadhavs sentencing had evoked a sharp reaction in India.



India has warned Pakistan of consequences and damage to bilateral ties if the "premeditated murder" was carried out.



In its application, India had also informed the ICJ that it learnt about the death sentence against Jadhav from a press release.



India acknowledges that Jadhav had served with the Indian Navy but denies that he has any connection with the government. It also said that Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran.



India has also handed over to Pakistan an appeal by Jadhavs mother, initiating a process to get his conviction overturned.

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Yangon:

Rohingya militants whose attacks triggered an army crackdown in Myanmar's Rakhine state unleashing a huge wave of refugees said today their one-month ceasefire would end in two days, but added they were open to peace if the government reciprocated.



In a statement released through its Twitter account, the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) said its unilateral truce would end at midnight on October 9.



"The humanitarian pause was conducted in order to enable humanitarian actors to assess and respond to the humanitarian crisis in Arakan (Rakhine)," the statement said.



"If at any stage, the Burmese government is inclined to peace, then ARSA will welcome that inclination and reciprocate," it said, using the former name for Myanmar.



It did not include any direct threats of new violence.



The armed group tipped northern Rakhine into crisis when it ambushed police posts on August 25.



The army's reprisal has been so sweeping and savage that the UN says it likely amounts to ethnic cleansing of the Muslim minority, who have faced decades of persecution.



More than half a million Rohingya have fled into Bangladesh in six weeks, an exodus that has spiralled into one of the world's most urgent refugee crises.



In its statement, ARSA said it had helped provide "safe passage" to refugees fleeing to Bangladesh.



While the worst of the bloodshed appears to have abated in recent weeks, tens of thousands of Rohingya continue to stream over to Bangladesh, passing through a violence-scarred region where hundreds of villages have been reduced to smouldering ash.



Rohingya refugees and rights groups have accused the army of setting the fires with the help of Buddhist vigilante mobs.



But the military has denied the charge, instead accusing militants of razing their own homes to drum up global support.



Myanmar authorities have cut off access to the conflict zone, making it difficult to verify claims over who is driving the communal bloodshed that has intensified already bitter ethnic hatreds in Myanmar.



Aid groups have also been unable to reach vulnerable communities of Muslim Rohingya still living in the region, where tensions with Rakhine Buddhist neighbours are sky-high.



It is difficult to measure the fighting capacity of ARSA, a shadowy, poorly-armed group that claims to defend the Rohingya's political rights.



In the squalid refugee settlements sprouting up in Bangladesh, alleged ARSA recruiters have told AFP that they have enlisted hundreds who are willing to go back to Myanmar to fight.



Those claims could not be independently verified.



The Rohingya have faced decades of systematic repression in mainly Buddhist Myanmar, with many relegated to apartheid- like restrictions that analysts have long warned could breed extremism.

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Moscow :

Some 120 Islamic State fighters and 60 foreign mercenaries were killed in a series of Russian air strikes in Syria over the past 24 hours, the defence ministry in Moscow said today.



Puzzlingly, the ministry also said three senior IS commanders including Omar al-Shishani had been confirmed dead as a result of an earlier Russian strike.



Moscow reported al-Shishani's death despite the fact that the Pentagon said in 2016 the notorious fighter had been killed by American troops in Iraq.



"A command post of the terrorists and up to 80 (IS) fighters including nine natives of the Northern Caucasus were destroyed in the area of Mayadeen," the ministry said, adding that another 40 IS fighters were killed around the town of Albu Kamal.



Mayadeen is one of the Islamic State group's last bastions in Syria.



In another air strike, more than 60 foreign mercenaries from the former Soviet Union, Tunisia, and Egypt were killed in the Euphrates Valley south of Deir Ezzor.



The ministry said "large numbers of foreign mercenaries" were coming into the Syrian border town of Albu Kamal from Iraq.



It also said Russian forces had killed senior IS commanders Omar al-Shishani, Alaa al-din al-Shishani and Salah al-Din al-Shishani, all natives of the Northern Caucasus.



Moscow reported their deaths after taking "several days" to confirm the results of an earlier strike on the northern outskirts of Albu Kamal which destroyed an IS command post with more than 30 fighters including the natives of the Northern Caucasus.



The Pentagon announced in March 2016 that American forces had killed Shishani, one of the most notorious faces of IS known for his thick red beard.



Shishani, whose nom de guerre means "Omar the Chechen," came from the former Soviet state of Georgia's Pankisi Gorge region, which is populated mainly by ethnic Chechens.



He fought as a Chechen rebel against Russian forces before joining the Georgian military in 2006, and fought Russian forces again in Georgia in 2008.



He later resurfaced in northern Syria as the commander of a group of foreign fighters and became a senior leader within IS.



The Russian defence ministry was not immediately available for further comment.



Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, disagreed with Moscow's report.



"Salah al-Din al-Shishani is still alive and is somewhere in the regions controlled by jihadist groups in the west of Aleppo province. He is a famous commander, and his jihadist group is allied with the jihadists of the Al-Nusra front but only in their fight against the regime," he said.



"He has no links with IS."



The advances against IS in Deir Ezzor have resulted in a heavy civilian death toll through Russian and coalition air raids.



The Observatory said Russian air strikes on Thursday night killed 14 people, including three children, fleeing across the Euphrates on rafts near Mayadeen.



Since it intervened in Syria in 2015, Russia has not acknowledged any civilian deaths from its strikes, and it dismisses the Observatory's reporting as biased.

Moscow has been staging air strikes in support of its ally Damascus targeting both IS in Deir Ezzor province and rival jihadists led by Al-Qaeda's former Syria affiliate in Idlib province in the northwest.

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New Delhi :

In what can be called a major step taken towards crackdown of terrorism US Prsident Doanld Trump is about to send his top military and diplomatic advisors to Pakistan in the coming weeks.

Among the top officials are US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Defence Secretary James Mattis.

This step by Trump is being seen as very important from the point of fighting global terrorism where Pakistan has been a major ally to the United States (US) ever since its creation.

Pakistan which is a non Nato ally of the US has also been accused of being the safe heaven for various terrorist groups which are banned by the US.

In his speech on 'US' military engagement in Afghanistan', Trump said, "The U.S. can no longer be silent about Pakistan's safe havens for terrorist organizations, the Taliban and others, that pose a threat to the region and beyond ... No partnership can survive a country's harboring of militants, the U.S. will further develop its strategic partnership with India," he added.

"We have been paying Pakistan billions and billions of dollars at the same time they are housing the very terrorists that we are fighting," he said an August address.

The US-Pak relationship became more bitter when in 2011 former President Barack Obama send a team of US Navy Seals to Paksitan to take down al- Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden.

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paraklisi

VersesBrazen as sinews Bacchus was forced to the sinews,And with fire in his heart Sergius went to the sword.On the seventh Sergius was killed by the sword, Bacchus by sinews.1. When the tyrant Maximianus was emperor great error had seized the race of men; for they worshipped wood and stone, the creations of man, and feasted on impure sacrificial offerings.Sts. Sergius and Bacchus (Feast Day - October 7)Moreover those who were unwilling to offer sacrifice were forced by the infliction of violent punishments and penalties to serve the demons. Thus an edict containing the severest threat was publicly posted in every city. Thereupon the clean air was polluted by the diabolic stench from the altars, and the darkness of diabolic error was thought an opportunity to meet friends. Then, like earth-bound stars, Sergius and Bacchus exercised great influence in support of Christianity in the palace, and were honoured by the emperor Maximianus. Indeed blessed Sergius was the primicerius and commander of the schola gentilium, a friend of the emperor and trusted by him so much that he acceded swiftly to his requests.2. For this reason Antiochus, a friend of Sergius, asked the emperor to make him the dux of the province of Augusto-Euphratensis; blessed Bacchus was a friend of this same man also, and he was secundicerius of the schola gentilium. They were one in the love of Christ, and were never separated from each other in their earthly military service, joined not by their natural temperament but by the chain of faith, always singing and saying, "How good and pleasant it is for brothers to live together" [Psalm 133:1]. They were, therefore, intelligent and happy soldiers of God, perfectly resolved by the divinely inspired scriptures upon the destruction of the devil's error, and they exercised themselves fully in battle for the destruction of barbarians. Seeing them to converse elegantly in the royal chambers, and to advance in the military service, and to have the emperor's confidence, some from that same schola gentilium were goaded by the envy of a cruel and evil demon. When they did not *otherwise succeed in ensnaring them in their traps they made the accusation to the emperor that they were Christians.3. Waiting for a time when blessed Sergius and Bacchus were not present with the emperor, they found him alone and said, "Great indeed is the devotion of your immortal highness to the worship of our great and venerable gods; your instructions on this account have reached everywhere and in every place. In these you have instructed that the guilty, those unwilling to honour and worship them, should be killed by the many punishments prescribed in your fault- less edict. How is it, therefore, that Sergius and Bacchus who enjoy so much confidence in the matter of your eternity's authority, the leaders of our schola, revere Christ himself, he whom those called Jews crucified and killed as a mischief-maker, and by persuasion draw many others from the worship of the gods, and lead them to their religion ?" Hearing these things, but not believing them, the emperor said, "I do not think that you are telling the truth, because Sergius and Bacchus are not devoted to the honour and worship of God.4. While I have an unblemished regard for them, they do not deserve to acquire this unless they are devoted and sincere; but if they are of that cult, as you allege, they shall be arrested. And calling them together, ignorant of what has been said, I shall go with them to the shrine of great Jove, and if they offer sacrifice, you will find acting in favour of such lies a cause of danger to you; but if they are unwilling to offer sacrifice, they will suffer the penalty suited to their wickedness. For the gods do not want the attendants of my empire to be impious or ungrateful." In response the accusers said to the emperor, "Moved by our love and affection for the gods, we have reported to your immortal highness that which we heard about them; it will be the task of your undiluted wisdom to detect their wickedness." Thus the emperor immediately called them together, and when they had entered with the customary obedience of attendants, taking them with him he entered [the shrine], and offered sacrifice along with his officials. He looked around at these when they were feasting upon the offerings, and he did not see blessed Sergius or blessed Bacchus.5. For they had not entered into the temple, thinking that it was wicked and unlawful to watch people offering sacrifice and feasting on the impure offerings: they stood outside and prayed, saying as if with one voice, "O King of Kings and Lord of Lords, you who inhabit the inacessible light, enlighten the eyes of the heart of those who live in the darkness of ignorance, who have exchanged your glory, that of the incorruptible God, for the likeness of perishable men, birds, four-legged beasts and serpents, and serve the creature rather than the Creator [Romans 1:23-25]. Convert them, that they may recognise you as the only true God, and Our Lord Jesus Christ as your only-born son, who suffered death and rose for us and our salvation, to rescue us from evil and free us from the error of vain idols. Preserve us pure and unstained along the journey of witness to you, that we may be changed in accordance in with your commands." And while this prayer was still on their lips even, the emperor sent some of his aides who were standing nearby, and ordered that they be brought into the temple.6. He said to them as they entered, "I see it this way, that trusting in my great clemency and humanity, with which protection the gods have provided you, you are willing on top of this to scorn the imperial edict as law-breakers and enemies of the gods. But I will not uphold the complaints which have made about you unless they are proven. Approaching, so, the altar of great Jove, offer sacrifice and taste the mystical offerings, just as the rest do." However Sergius and Bacchus, the martyrs and most brave soldiers of Christ, said in response, "We must discharge to you, O emperor, the earthly military service of our bodies; but we have a true king, Jesus Christ eternal in heaven, the Son of God, to whom we devote our souls, he who is our hope and saving refuge. We offer to him everyday a holy and living sacrifice, and reasoned worship; for we do not sacrifice to, or adore, stones and wood. Your gods have ears but they do not hear the prayer of men. They have noses likewise, but they do not smell the sacrifice which is offered to them. They have mouths but they do not talk, hands but they do not touch, and feet but they do not walk. May they and all who trust in them become like those things which they make" [Psalm 134:18].7. Thus the emperor was infuriated, his whole face changed, and he ordered that their military belts be immediately removed, that they be stripped of their cloaks and any other military garments, and, at the same time, that their golden collars be removed from about their necks. He dressed them in women's clothing, and he ordered that they be dragged in this way, with the heaviest chains about their necks, right through the middle of the city as far as the palace. When the holy men were being dragged through the middle of the forum they chanted together, saying, "Although we walk in the shadow of death, we shall fear no evils, since you are with us," [Psalm 24:5] and the words of the Apostle, "Denying to this extent all wickedness and earthly desire, [Titus 2:12] and having removed the clothing of the old-man, [Colossians 3:9] let us rejoice naked in our faith in you, O Lord, because you have clothed us in the garment of salvation, and you have wrapped us in the tunic of joy. You have adorned us in women's clothes, like a spouse, unite us to you through our confession [Isaiah 61:10]. You, O Lord, have put your trust in us, saying, "You will be led before kings and governors on my account, and when they hand you over [to trial] do not worry how you will sound or what you will say. You will be given what to say at that hour. For they will not be your words which you are speaking, but words from the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you" [Matthew 10: 19-20].8. Rise, Christ, help us, and fight off our attackers, comfort our souls, that we may not be moved, and the wicked may cry, "Where is their God?" [Psalm 118:9-10]." When they came to the palace the emperor called the saints and said, "O most wicked of all men, do you think that you can trust in the friendship which you had with me, and reply in such an unpermissible manner ? Why do you blaspheme against the gods through whom the human race enjoys great peace ? Do you not know that he whom you call Christ was the son of a carpenter, and that his mother conceived of him by an act of adultery before the marriage was legalised ? He whom the Jews also crucified because he caused disturbances and riots among them, deceiving with his magic skills and calling himself God. The most great family of our gods was conceived of the legitimate marriage of Jove. The great gods Jupiter and Saturn are mentioned with respect because of their connection with the blessed Juno. But I suppose that you have heard of the twelve great heroic labours."9. But the most brave soldiers of Christ said in response, "You are wrong, emperor; for these are fables which deceive the ears of simple men, and lead them to perdition. He whom you say to have been the son of a carpenter by an act of adultery, he is the son of the true God, with whom and through whom he made all things, spread-out the heavens, founded the earth, restrained the abyss and the great sea unfettered by sand, adorned heaven with a multitude of stars, created the sun for lighting-up the day, and the moon for comfort during the night, separated darkness and light, and fixed the length of the day and the end of the night. He has produced everything from nothing, as he allows. For he has made all things in wisdom, just like God. Moreover in the last days he was born on earth for the salvation of man, not by the will of a man, nor by physical pleasure, but by the Holy Spirit and an ever-virgin girl. And he mingled with men, teaching us to desert those vain idols, and to recognise him and that he shared in the true God.10. Although the Jews killed him according to the flesh, he plundered the lower world and rose on the third day by his divine nature, and established the law of incorruptibility and the resurrection of the dead." When the emperor heard these things he was filled with fury, and ordered their accusers to be conscripted into the army in their place, and said to them, "I am sending you to the dux Antiochus, you accursed men, because of the friendship and the trust which you enjoyed from me, and because you raised him to that rank; that you may realise from what honour you have fallen, and how little your discernment as a result of which you have to bear the ultimate punishment for the blasphemy which you dared to commit against the gods." When he had said these things he sent them to the dux Antiochus, and ordered them, their whole bodies bound with heavy chains, to be conducted to the regions of the East by the officials of the individual cities [along the route].11. Moreover he also wrote a letter as follows: "The emperor Maximianus, pious and victorious, sends his greetings to the dux Antiochus. The most great providence of the gods desires that no man, least of all the guardians of my empire, be impious and unacquainted with them, and accordingly I have judged deserving of the ultimate penalties Sergius and Bacchus who have been convicted by their own confession of the impious religion of the Christians. These, who did not think the questions of the imperial judges worthy [of reply], I have sent to your authority, so that if they repent and offer sacrifice before the gods, you will grant them pardon and send them back to me without tortures. For then they will receive back their military rank, better rank even than that which they held now beforehand. However if they are absolutely unwilling to do these things, but persist in their wickedness, do not delay in subjecting them to the severity of the law, and destroy their hopes of a long life. Farewell." The day itself being late they took them as far as the twelfth milestone from the city, and they remained in a stable under great supervision and guard.12. About midnight an angel of the Lord came and said to them, "Have confidence and fight against the spirit of the devil, like most brave soldiers and athletes, in order that by your struggling you may cast him beneath your feet, and that when you come to see Christ, the king of glory, we may meet you with a multitudinous army of angels, singing the praise of your victory, bearing to you the palms of your perfect faith and the crowns of your confession." Thus when it was dawn, rejoicing with every gladness, they began walking along the road. There were with them certain of their servants who, because of their love of Christian piety and their care for the physical well-being of their masters, were unwilling to leave them in such need. They heard about the visit of the angel which [their masters] saw that night and repeated the story to each other in turn. As they walked they both sang psalms together, and prayed as in with one voice, saying, "We have been attracted along a journey of witness to you, and we shall be occupied upon your commands as if upon every treasure, and we have meditated upon your ways. We shall reflect upon your righteousness, Christ, grant your servants that we may live and preserve [your teachings]" [Psalm 118:14, 17].13. Thus, in accordance with the emperor's command, the soldiers of Christ were dispatched with every guard through all the cities, in consequence of the life of the martyr which had been laid before them, until they were brought to the province of Augusto-Euphratensis, to soldiers in a fort by the name of Barbalissus which borders the tribe of the Saracens, in which fort Antiochus held his seat. They surrendered them to him, along with the emperor's letter, about the ninth hour. Antiochus rose from his seat, and in his purple cloak accepted the emperor's letter which he read silently to himself. He called his staff commentariensis and said to him, "Take these men who have been sent here and place them in military custody, without the usual ill-treatment. Set their feet in stocks; but on the following day bring them to court that I may hear them in accordance with the laws." The commentariensis, just as he was instructed, took them and set them in stocks.14. Late that night they sang psalms together, and prayed as if with one voice, both saying, "O Lord, you who crushed the heads of the great serpent, who have dried rivers, caused springs and floods to burst forth, you who have made the ends of the earth; look down upon us, Lord Our God, since the enemy has abused us on account of your name. Do not surrender the lives of men who trust in you to these men who are more savage than wild beasts even. Do not leave neglected to their end the lives of wretched men. Remember your covenant, for the lands have been filled and darkened with houses of wickedness. Let us not return in shame, wretched and distressed, to praise your name [Psalm 123: 13-21].15. Do not neglect the voices of those who beseech you, since the pride of those who hate you always rises to your notice; men hate us for no reason, but you, O Lord, help us and free us for your name's sake." When the saints said these things they fell silent, and an angel of the Lord came and said to them, "Have confidence and remain steadfast in your faith and confession, since Our Lord Jesus Christ is with you." They rose from their sleep and told to their servants the angel's revelation, and took confidence. Moreover they began to sing psalms as follows, "We cried out to the Lord when we were troubled, and he heard us from his holy mountain. We laid down and slept, and rose again since the Lord guarded us. We will not fear the thousands of people who besiege us. Rise, Lord, save us, Our God, since you are our salvation, and hoping in you also we give you praise" [Psalm 119:1, 3:6-7].16. When morning came the dux took his seat in the praetorium, called the commentariensis and said to him, "Let the prisoners enter". The commentariensis replied, "They are present in your might's court." He read the emperor's letter to the saints as they stood there. When this had been done the dux Antiochus, having been induced by his counsellor to soften somewhat, said, "You should have always fulfilled the emperor's commands and sacrificed to the gods, in order to have his gratitude; since, for what reason I do not know, you were absolutely unwilling to do this, and have fallen from such glory, sacrifice to the gods now, knowing that if you do this you will have greater honour and glory among men than previously, and you will receive back your military rank with its trappings multiplied. For your emperor, humane by nature, has promised you that if you repent of your previous actions and sacrifice to the gods, all these things will be restored to you. Mindful of your friendship and of the favours which I had from you especially, my lord Sergius, I advise you to do this. But if you absolutely refuse to do this I must carry out to their strict letter the commands of the emperor."17. In response to this the saints said, "We have left everything and followed Christ in order to serve among the angels, despising earthly military service, and to possess the heavenly treasures, tossing aside the earth's wealth. For what would it profit us if we gain the world but lose our souls ? So do not give us such advice, Antiochus; your tongue speaks deceit, and your lips con- ceal the venom of a viper. But your talk which urges us to perdition does not touch our souls. Do what you will; for we do not worship wood and stone, but Christ, the Son of God, the eternal king, to whom bends every knee of heaven, earth and the underworld; and every tongue confesses to him. For your gods are not gods but man-made idols. For if they were gods they would make men sacrifice to them, and would not rely on human foresight to be avenged upon those who are unwilling to adore them and offer them sacrifice."18. The dux, Antiochus, replied, "We do not avenge the gods; but through their foresight our enemies' every strength is subjected to us; but we accuse you because your's is an unholy and impure worship." But the holy martyrs responded and said to him, "You are the impure and unholy, and those who fol- low you and sacrifice to demons and adore wooden objects which are hurled into the fire a little while afterwards." Then, greatly angered, the dux Antiochus ordered that blessed Sergius be taken back into custody again, but that blessed Bacchus be stretched out and beaten with heavy clubs until those that were beating him fell exhausted upon the ground. But when these were tired out by their work he ordered others to ?????? the holy martyr and beat his stomach again, and he himself said, "Let us see if Christ can help, he whom you call God." When the saint's body had been beaten for a long time, and blood was flowing all about, the martyr Bacchus said to Antiochus, "Satan's servants have wearied of their beating, your wickededness has failed. The tyrant Maximianus has been defeated, and so has your father the devil. To the extent that that which is external, my body, is destroyed, the being within is renewed for future life."19. As he said this a voice descended from heaven, saying, "Come now to the kingdom which has been prepared for you, my athlete Bacchus." Hearing this voice those who stood about were amazed and struck speechless, and when the saint was being killed he surrendered his soul into the hands of angels. In his anger Antiochus ordered that his body was not be buried, but was to be thrown out for the dogs, wild-animals and birds. When his body was thrown out a long way from the camp there gathered a crowd of beasts who surrounded it; but birds hovering above did not permit the cruel beasts to touch it. And they continued guarding him until night-time. When it was evening some of the brothers who lived in caves there came down and took the body. They were allowed to do by the animals, as if by intelligent human-beings, and they buried him in one of their caves. But blessed Sergius, who was greatly saddened and distressed, was left alone and cried as he wept, "Alas for me, my brother and messmate Bacchus, never will we sing together saying, "How good and pleasant it is for brothers to live together." Ascending into heaven you have been separated from me, and I have been left alone upon the earth."20. When he had said these things there appeared to him that same night blessed Bacchus, dressed in military garb with his face shining like that of an angel, and he said to him, "Why are you sad and distressed, brother ? Even though I am not physically present with you, I am with you in the chain of faith, singing and saying, "I hastened along the way of your commands when you broadened my heart." So hurry to reach me, brother, by a good and whole con- fession, guarding your faith and achieving your end. For righteousness and a crown have been laid aside for you with me." Therefore, rising at dawn, he described to those who were with him the garb in which he had seen blessed Bachus that night. In this way the dux, being about to leave Barbarissus for Sura, ordered that blessed Sergius follow him also, and besought him to offer sacrifice. But rejecting his enticements he made his journey in silence.21. When they reached Sura Antiochus took his seat in front of the tribunal in the praetorium, called blessed Sergius to him and said, "The most impious Bacchus, unwilling to obey and offer sacrifice to the gods, chose to be deprived of his life, and got the death he deserved. But you, my lord Sergius, why have you surrendered yourself to such great misery by following this seductive and wicked religion ? I respect you, remembering your favours, and I thank you that you provided me with this command. And now you are the accused, questioned in detail, but I sit on the judge's bench." But Christ's martyr Sergius said in response, "This affliction and temporary disturbance earn for me great trust and eternal glory in the house of the king of heaven and earth and every soul, Jesus Christ the Son of God. Would that you would hear me now also, and recognise God and my king Christ, and take thought for yourself, that eternal office and immortal glory might be presented to you, for just as it is with the earthly and mortal emperor, so also it is with Christ the heavenly and eternal king.22. For the leaders of the earth fall swiftly, as the psalmist said, "Just as men you will die, so also each of you princes will fall." And again, "I saw a wicked man exalted and raised as high as the cedars of Lebanon. I sought him, and his place was not found." The dux Antiochus said, "Leave behind this empty and disordered nonsense and sacrifice to the gods, and be obedient to the wor- thy commands of our emperor Maximianus. But if you are unwilling to sacrifice, know that you are forcing me to forget everything which you gave to me, and to subject you to most severe legal penalties." Thereupon blessed Sergius said, "Do what you will; for I have Christ helping me, he who said, "Do not fear those who kill the body; for they are not able to kill the soul. Rather fear him who is able to delver to perdition in hell body and soul. Thus my body is subject to you; punish and afflict it as much as you want, in the knowledge that even if you destroy my body, you cannot have power over my soul, neither you nor your father Satan."23. Angered by this the dux said, "It seems that my humaneness has made you bolder and more insolent." Thus he called his adjutant and said, "Dress him quickly in boots pierced with nails, with the nails left upright." When he was so dressed Antiochus, sitting in his carriage, ordered him to run before him, instructing that the horses be driven swiftly as far as the fort Tetrapyrgia. This fort is nine miles distant from Syrus. As he ran he prayed the psalms, saying, "I have awaited the Lord in expectation, and he has looked down upon me and led me forth from the lake of pagan misery and the mud of filthy idolatry, and has set my feet upon the rock of confession." When they reached the fort of Tetrapyrgia the dux Antiochus said, "I am amazed at you, Sergius, that having being interrogated in so great a court you have been able now to endure such great punishments." But the holy martyr of Christ said in response, "Your punishments are not bitter to me, but sweeeter than honey from the comb." Descending from his carriage the dux entered the praetorium, order- ing that the martyr of Christ be placed in military custody.24. When it was evening blessed Sergius began to sing, saying, "Those who used to eat my bread at one time have increased their trampling upon me, and by the cords of their most severe penalties have laid a snare for my feet, wishing to trip me up. But rise, Lord, obstruct and overthrow them, and free my soul from the wicked." Around midnight an angel of the Lord came and restored his feet to health for him. Thus when it was dawn, sitting before the tribunal, the dux ordered that he be led forth, thinking that he would not be able to come as a result of the pain, except perhaps if he were carried. When he was being led forward the dux, seeing from a distance that he was walking, and that he had no limp at all, was terrified and said, " This man is a magician; it was in this way that he had such great influence over the emperor, acquiring it by his magic skills, and the things witnessed here are evidence of those allegations. I thought that he would not have been at all able to walk on his feet seeing that they had been made useless for this as a result of yesterday's punishment. I am amazed, by the gods, at how he now approaches as if he had suffered nothing."25. Thus, when blessed Sergius stood before the tribunal, Antiochus said, "Wretch, think about it for the final time once more, and sacrifice to the gods and save yourself from the forthcoming punishments. For I spare you because I am mindful of your favours. But if you do not offer sacrifice, know that your magic by which you thought you could be saved will avail you nothing." But blessed Sergius said in reply, "Would that you would recover your senses from the drunkenness of demonic error ! For I am sober in the Lord, he who ground the arms of your father the devil beneath the feet of his humble servant, who has granted me victory against you, who has sent his angel to me and healed me. But you are the real magician, you and those who worship demons. For the unspeakable worship of demons is the mother of all impiety. That is the beginning, cause and end of every evil." Further exasperated Antiochus took his seat again in the carriage, and ordered him, wearing the same boots, to run before him as far as the fort of Resapha, nine-miles dis- tant from Tetrapyrgia.26. When they had reached the fort of Resapha, the dux Antiochus said to blessed Sergius, "Most wretched one, has the punishment of the nails chased away your urge for foolishness, that you may at last submit to to sacrifice to the gods, or do you persist in that urge which has preoccupied you ?" The most brave martyr of Christ said in response, "Let it be known to you, Antiochus, that it is through this folly that I continue to destroy your strength and that of your father the devil. Do what you want, so; for I do not worship demons, nor offer sacrifice to idols, but I hurry to offer the unstained sacrifice of myself to my Lord God." Thus Antiochus, seeing that he was persisting fixed and unmoveable in his faith and confession of Christ, passed the following sentence against him, "Sergius, who has shown himself unworthy of the piety of the gods, who has joined himself to the most impious sect of those who are called Christians, and has offended against the great fortune of the emperor Maximianus, in that he was unwilling to be obedient to his venerable edicts to sacrifice to the gods, this man the laws command to be put to the sword." Thereupon some of those present hailed as just the penalty which had been passed against him. Thus the deputies came, gagged him, and led him from their midst to a remote spot in order to perish by the sword.27. Then a great crowd of men and women followed him in order to see the death of the blessed martyr. When they saw the freshness of his face and his great youth they wept most bitterly, sighing over him. Even the beasts of that region, leaving their dens, all gathered together. Attacking no-one, and touched by their cries, they reflected upon the death of the holy martyr. When they were drawing near to the place in which the martyr of Christ, Sergius, was about to be killed, he asked the guards to provide him with a little time to pray. Stretching out his hands to heaven he said, "The beasts of the field and the birds of the sky, recognising your lordship and rule, have gathered for the glory of your holy name, that by their confession they might turn the mind of intelligent men to you, you who by the nod of your goodness and will desire that all men be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth. Suspending their death, and awaiting their repentance, heed not, Lord, their sinful ignorance which they directed against me on account of your name.28. Enlighten the eyes of their hearts and lead them to recognition of you. Finally, take my soul and lay it to rest in your heavenly tents with those of this age who have pleased you. For I entrust my soul to you, since you have rescued me from the snare of the devil." Thereupon, when he had said these things, he made the sign of the cross, and knelt down. He was beheaded and surrendered his soul to the angels. Moreover a voice was heard from heaven, saying, "Sergius, my soldier and athlete, enter into the kingdom which has been prepared for you. For the ranks of angels, the numerous patriarchs, the unions of Apostles and prophets, and the spirits of the just await you that you might learn with them the good things which have been prepared for you." Moreover the place in which the life of the holy martyr was taken was split and formed a great abyss, God so arranging, so that those who wallow in filth like pigs would not dare, because of their fear of the abyss, to draw near and trample upon the blood of the holy martyr in that very place. For this reason was that great void created, and that place has remained so right until the present day, preserving signs of the will of God of old, that a firm foundation for faith may be laid in [the hearts of] those who do not believe by the existence of this special miracle.29. Thereafter some of those who had gathered to see the death of the holy martyr, noticing the natural safety of the place, gathered up his corpse, and covering it as best they could, laid him to rest in the same place in which he had also suffered. Thus a long time afterwards some religious men, coming from the fort of Syra and fired by a zeal for Christ, began to remove him from his place like some most precious treasure. But saint Sergius did not permit his body to be secretly removed, the body which had suffered punishment publicly, but besought God to rouse a fire in that same place, not to be avenged upon those who were trying to steal his corpse, nor to burn them, but to light up the darkness of the night and signal this theft to the fort of Resapha. Thus, when a fire had been roused in the place where the body lay, some of the inhabitants of the camp saw the flame reaching to the heavens, thought that the very great fire had been caused by some enemies, and sallied forth armed. They pursued those who tried to steal the corpse of the holy martyr; but in response to the requests of the thieves they allowed them to stay there for a few days; these, making a building from stone and clay in the place where the body lay, and covering it over in honour of the martyr, departed thus.30. The worship of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ gradually prospered, and 15 most holy bishops, gathering as one, built beside Resapha a cemetery worthy of his confession. They translated to there the body of the holy martyr, and deposited it in its martyrion on the same day that he had suffered, 7 October. Many saving-works and miracles are performed wherever his holy relics have been, especially at his grave where he had previously lain. The holy martyr beseeches God as an endowment of the place where he suffered that all who flock there should be cured of their differing ailments.He cures those who are possessed by unclean spirits; and the wild beasts are tamed also. For the beasts preserve the day on which he suffered as an annual holiday, and gathering from the wild which is all about and mingling with men, none at all attack, nor do they rush to the harm of the other gathering animals. Rather, honouring the martyr of Christ, they persist in gentleness at that place in accordance with the command of the Lord, whose is the honour and glory forever and ever. Amen.(BHL 7599)Apolytikion in the First ToneIn contest you were victorious warriors of the Trinity, and an illustrious pair of martyrs, Sergius godly champion, and Bacchus noble athlete. In the radiancy of your glory you shelter those who cry: Glory to Him Who has strengthened you; glory to Him Who has crowned you; glory to Him Who through you works healings for all.Kontakion in the Third ToneLet us gather and crown with praises, the noble martyrs and brothers in the faith, Sergius the warrior of the Trinity, and Bacchus who with him in tortures persevered in praising Christ, the Prizegiver and Creator of all.
Are you among the nearly 50% of Americans who have access to a 401(k) program but don't contribute to it? If so, what's keeping you from utilizing this valuable savings tool?

According to a new survey from Schwab Retirement Plan Services, Inc., non-savers are simply having trouble dealing with the combination of daily financial stresses and significant debt.

The survey found that respondents were split evenly between contributors and non-contributors to their 401(k) programs  roughly the same results as a U.S. Census Bureau study reported by Bloomberg in February.

In the Schwab survey, 45% of the non-savers reported being either even or behind on their monthly bills, as compared to 23% of 401(k) savers. Not surprisingly, a similar 2:1 ratio of non-savers said that keeping up with monthly expenses is a significant stress source.

The short-term stressors for non-savers included basic monthly bills (cited by 46% of respondents), paying down credit card debts (42%), dealing with unexpected expenses (34%), and medical bills (33%). It's not that savers don't have the same financial stressors  they just don't affect as many savers as they do non-savers.

People realize the importance of 401(k) plans in saving, since the majority of respondents call them a primary method of saving for retirement. 401(k) plans are not only the largest or only source of retirement funds for 60% of savers, they are also the largest or only source for 53% of non-savers  thanks to previous contributions that non-savers made to a 401(k).

Employer-matching 401(k) programs are harder to find, but if you have one, it's even more important to use it. To ignore an employer match is literally to give away free money.

The Schwab survey shows a disconnect between knowing what to do and having the discipline to do it. A large majority of respondents (89% of savers/79% of non-savers) are relying on themselves or their spouses for retirement income. Just over half of respondents expect to receive any Social Security benefits at all. Even so, it's clear from the study that even savers are having difficulties establishing a sound retirement plan  and one quarter of non-savers don't have any savings or retirement plans at all.

How do you switch from being a non-saver to a saver, with 401(k) programs or otherwise? You have to decide that saving for retirement will be a priority from now on. Start with a revised budget that allows you to put away at least a bit for retirement.

Assume your 401(k) is just another monthly bill to pay, and rebalance your budget as if your income had dropped by the 401(k) amount. Take a detailed look at where all your money is going. What if you stopped getting a latte or doughnut every morning on the way to work? Do you really need the level of cable/satellite TV that you have? Can you find a better cell phone bill and data plan?

Saving is a mindset, and true savers approach all aspects of life this way. Am I getting value for my money? If not, make a change.

Once you start to cut expenses and see the benefits, momentum kicks in. You'll save more cash to apply to debt and/or savings and less stress in the process. Put some away for savings, but focus on reducing high-interest credit card debt first.

Regardless of how you choose to invest for retirement, it's important to start running a surplus of cash so you actually have something to invest. Whether you decide to invest your cash in a 401(k), IRA, traditional savings account, or collectible bobbleheads is up to you. We strongly discourage that last choice ... but it's a free country.

Let the free Retirement Planner by MoneyTips help you calculate when you can retire without jeopardizing your lifestyle.
After the GST Council meet on Friday, Arun Jaitley announced a slew of measures to reduce the burden and stress the implementation of the new tax regime brought to exporters and small businesses.

By Rahul Shrivastava: The government on Friday signalled to crores of small businesses after the 22nd GST Council meet that it's ready to make taxation a less painful exercise. Apart from significant cuts in taxes of various commodities, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley announced a slew of measures to reduce the burden and stress the GST implementation has brought to exporters and small businesses.

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Announcing the measures, Jaitley said, "After almost three months since GST roll out, it is time to deliberate on its effect on various trades and the transition." The government pushed for the measures in the wake of outcry from small businesses and exporters becoming a political tightrope for the ruling NDA. BJP's own assessment had indicated that the troubles faced by small businesses and other sections of the economy was dictating a negative perception against the government. Earlier this week, PM Modi had indicated that the government was ready to push for relief measures to reduce the problems faced by small businesses in complying with GST rules.

RELIEF FOR EXPORTERS

The finance ministry, last week, held a series of meetings with groups of exporters to understand their problems. The key feedback received was that post GST, exporters started facing problems in organising working capital.

To address this problem, the GST Council in its meeting decided to start the refund process for July by October 10. The second tranche of refund for August will start by October 18.

For the remaining months of the financial year, exporters will operate under an exempted category paying a nominal GST of 0.1 per cent. By next April, the government will kick start a new digital e-wallet system for every exporter. The government will deposit a notional amount in the e-wallets in advance and refund will be adjusted against that amount later.

FOR SMALL BUSINESSES

The GST council on Friday announced measures which can be divided under two broad heads- relaxation in compliance and offering a choice to end the need for compliance.

Studying the stress points in the GST regime with 72 lakh taxpayers having migrated to the new tax system, the Council identified that 25-26 lakh GST assessees are new taxpayers. Jaitley said that a majority of them have a turnover of less than Rs 1 crore and the compliance expected from them exceeds the tax input from them.

In a major move, small businesses can now file returns on a quarterly basis compared to the monthly cycle which is currently practiced. This can be called a paradigm shift in the GST regime because when the the rules were set, the idea was to create tough compliance norms to check leakages in taxes. But now facing public ire and political fire, the government has decided to line the tax regime with softeners.

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Businesses with annual turnover of up to Rs 1.5 crore can now file quarterly income returns. People under this category form 90 per cent of the vase. The monthly to quarterly switch over for filing of returns for small businesses will kick off from October 1. But they will be asked to file monthly return for the July-Septembr period.

The GST Council also put its stamp on raising the limit of composition scheme to Rs 1 crore from current Rs 75 lakh for small businesses. With this tweak, small businesses can file returns on a quarterly basis. So far, only one sixth or 15 lakh of the 90 lakh registered entities have chosen the composition scheme. The government expects improvement in the figure after the change. A group of ministers has been tasked to study the modalities for extending the composition scheme on inter-state sales and to rationalise taxes on restaurants.

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The composition scheme is a less paperwork scheme. Those trading in goods under this scheme have to file 1 per cent tax. For manufacturers, the rate is 2 per cent and 5 per cent for suppliers of food or drinks (without alcohol). Though those opting for the composite scheme can claim no input tax credit and tax payers can only indulge is intra-state supply (in the same state) of goods, the schemes comes with a hassle free no three-stage return filing process.

But not all can opt for the scheme. Suppliers of services other than manufacturer of ice cream, pan masala, or tobacco; casual taxable people or a non-resident taxable person; restaurant related services; and businesses which supply goods through an e-commerce operators cannot get into this category.

REVISED RATES

Meanwhile, Jaitley said the Council also decided to cut GST rate on 27 items. GST on sliced dried mango, Gujarati delicacy khakra, unbranded namkeen and unbranded Ayurvedic medicine was slashed from 12 per cent to 5 per cent.

There is good news for mid-day meal schemes as well. Food packets for school children under Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) will be taxed at 5 per cent instead of 12.

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In a signal to textile traders in Gujarat, the tax rate on man-made yarn has been fixed at 12 per cent, down from 18 per cent.

Tax on stones used for flooring (non-marble and granite), diesel engine parts, pump parts and stationery items has been reduced to 18 per cent from 28 per cent.

There is good news on the services front too. Jobs like imitation, food items, zari and printing items will be taxed st 5 per cent and not 12 per cent. Service providers with less than 20 lakh revenue have be added to the GST exempt list.

ALSO WATCH | GST council meet: Exporters to get e-wallets from April, 2018, says Arun Jaitley

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NEWTOWN - With the November 7 elections one month away, three candidates vying for the towns top elected office are making their case to replace four-term GOP First Selectman Pat Llodra, who is retiring.

At stake is the towns continuing recovery from the 2012 Sandy Hook massacre and the towns ability to withstand the state budget crisis without raising taxes on overburdened homeowners.

Democrat Dan Rosenthal, Republican William Rodgers and unaffiliated candidate Andrew Clure all believe they have the vision to unify the town and set it on an independent financial footing.

This year marks the first time since 2012 there has been a contest for first selectman. The race features Rosenthal, a former member of the Legislative Council whose grandfather and father have both served as first selectman; Rodgers, a four-term member of the Board of Selectmen and a former chairman of the Legislative Council; and Clure, a member of the school board who chose not to challenge Rodgers in the September GOP primary but collected enough signatures to appear on the ballot as an independent.

I am not just some person throwing my name in the hat, said Clure, who works in a family-run marketing business that he would give up if elected. A lot of people have told me (that) with all the partisan stuff going on it is refreshing to have someone run unaffiliated. But my struggle is going to be getting my name out there.

Rodgers, who won a Sept. 12 primary against Legislative Council Chairman Mary Ann Jacob, said he will step down from duties at his law practice if elected to the full-time job, a two-year term that pays $105,000.

I strongly feel that I have the most experience to lead Newtown - and I am not touting that in the abstract, Rodgers said. Its a time when experience is needed.

Rosenthal, whose last position in the work world was managing marketing and client relations for a financial services firm, said he has experienced the same community-mindedness on the campaign trail that he remembers growing up as a kid in Newtown.

People have been very nice to me, Rosenthal said. I dont confuse people being nice with votes, but there has been a lot of enthusiasm for our campaign.

Its unclear what impact Clures run as an unaffiliated candidate will have. There are 8,300 unaffiliated voters in Newtown, followed by 6,560 registered Republicans and 5,800 registered Democrats.

The election comes as Newtown approaches the fifth remembrance of the 2012 massacre of 20 first-graders and six educators at Sandy Hook School. Since that tragedy, home grown nonprofits such as Sandy Hook Promise have risen to national prominence, a state-funded $50 million replacement school has been built, Newtown has made the transition from a federally funded trauma team to a town-run Center for Support and Wellness, and designs are being drawn up for a new community center and a separate memorial to victims of the tragedy.

The election also comes at a time of economic pressure for cities and towns across the state as Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and the legislature grapple with a $3.6 billion budget deficit.

As a result, Newtown stands to lose as much as $5 million in state aid. The town has a $12 million fund balance, which could be used to absorb some of the unexpected cuts, although the hope is legislators will pass a budget that restores funding for municipalities.

Regardless of what happens in Hartford this year, all three candidates say, more has to be done to attract businesses and increase Newtowns commercial tax base, so homeowners are not burdened with more taxes.

Economic independence

Rodgers says his approach to putting Newtown on solid financial footing is to pursue aggressive economic development and contain costs through regionalization, privatization and collective purchasing.

My style does not tend to be micro-management, but in this arena, I plan to be personally involved with economic development, said Rodgers, a retired Marine colonel. I am going to work closely with our economic development commission and our in-house economic development staffers.

He said his efforts could focus first on attracting medical and light-industrial development to Hawleyville and promoting commercial development along Route 25, Church Hill Road and in Sandy Hook Center.

He added that 911 dispatching centers are a good candidate for regionalization, and that maintenance of town facilities is a promising area to explore privatization.

Rosenthal said one of his first tasks if elected would be to establish a business advisory council to encourage innovation and recommend best practices from across the country.

We cant sit and wait for the phone to ring - we have to go out and attract businesses, said Rosenthal, whose grandfather, Jack, and father, Herb, both served multiple terms as First Selectman. We need to do more to expand our commercial tax base to take the load off our residential owners, who pay 90 percent of the taxes.

He said that weaning Newtown from dependence on state aid means looking outside Connecticut for solutions.

We cant benchmark ourselves with what Bethel or Brookfield are doing, he said. Connecticut has made us less competitive from a business standpoint with income taxes and fees.

Clure also said he would invite business executives to town to identify barriers to business and suggest solutions.

We have to look at our planning and zoning and listen to why businesses dont come to our town, Clure said. We have no drive-thrus in our businesses; that is just one example.

Clure termed the budget crisis in Hartford just horrible and said the fact that Malloy and lawmakers have not been able to agree on a budget was hard to fathom.

Thankfully, our town is in good shape, but it seems like we are being penalized for being proactive, he said. Clure was referring to a request by Malloy made of municipalities to turn over financial records, including those concerning fund balances, to help his office determine where to make cuts.

Newtown unity

Although none of the candidates are trying to politicize the ongoing recovery from the Sandy Hook massacre, they each see the need for vigilance when it comes to community wellness.

We need to establish one central place for people to go with questions about behavioral health and mental health wellness, Clure said. We need to do more than just put it up on a website.

The town already has a four-person support and wellness center that provides referrals and other information services. Clure said more organization and effort is needed to reach the need in Newtown.

There is always going to be healing in Newtown, said Clure, who opened a free arcade for town kids in the months after the Sandy Hook massacre. We have all these groups that are doing great things, but we have people in situations where they dont know where to go.

Rodgers agreed about the need to channel all the good will in Newtown.

I am going to work to coordinate all the charitys and non-governmental organizations to ensure that those most affected are not going to be abruptly left without help as we transition to continued recovery as outside funding sources start terminating aid to us, he said. The construction of the permanent memorial will also be helpful in the healing.

Rosenthal agreed that building projects such the community center will help bring people from the four corners of town together.

I do think we need to encourage inter-generational interaction to help tie the community together, Rosenthal said, referring to the community center, which is being funded in large part by a $15 million gift from General Electric. It will help us get the word out that our overarching focus is on wellness.

rryser@newstimes.com 203-731-3342
WESTPORT  Oscar-winning Hollywood movie producer Harvey Weinstein is taking a leave of absence from his own company after an explosive expose on decades of sexual harassment against women, from employees to actress Ashley Judd.

The revelations came Thursday in a story published in The New York Times. Weinstein owns a home in Westport.

At this time there is nothing for Westport police to investigate because we have received no complaints of this nature, Lt. Jillian Cabana said.

Cabana said the department will not investigate unless a complaint is filed.

Weinstein owns two adjacent properties on Beachside Avenue - one assessed at $8.5 million and the other, $7.1 million. One of those Beachside Avenue houses was on the market in 2016, but had no takers.

Weinstein, a prominent Democratic fundraiser, held a fundraiser for President Barack Obama in 2012 that raised $2 million. The star-studded event featured celebrities Anne Hathaway, Jim Naughton, Joanne Woodward, Aaron Sorkin, and Anna Wintour.

On Oct. 2, Weinstein sold a house on Minute Man Hill for $1.65 million; the listing price was $1,795,000. Weinstein purchased the house for $825,000 in October 1995. The four-bedroom house has 3,049-square feet of living space.

The New York Times story includes interviews with current and former employees from Weinsteins businesses, Miramax and the Weinstein Company, as well as film industry workers.

The article includes first person accounts of Weinstein's alleged conduct, including from Judd, who recounts an incident from two decades ago in which she said she was asked to meet Weinstein in his hotel room. Weinstein greeted her wearing a bathrobe and asked her if she would give him a massage or watch him shower, the paper reported.

Women have been talking about Harvey amongst ourselves for a long time, and it's simply beyond time to have the conversation publicly, Judd told the Times.

Weinstein has been accused of sexual harassment and unwanted physical contact and reportedly reached at least eight settlements with women. One of them was identified as Rose McGowan, the actress who was only 23 when the incident occurred in 1997.

McGowan, who has spoken out in the past about rape and harassment issues, also tweeted Thursday. She did not name anyone, but said that anyone who does business with (blank space) is complicit.

Women fight on. And to the men out there, stand up. We need you as allies, she wrote

Nevertheless Weinstein's attorney Charles J. Harder said in a statement that the story is saturated with false and defamatory statements about Harvey Weinstein.

We sent the Times the facts and evidence, but they ignored it and rushed to publish, Harder said. He did not respond to questions about what specific allegations Weinstein was contesting.

Weinstein apologized Thursday and announced he will take a leave of absence from his businesses. In a statement responding to the Times article, Weinstein wrote he will now focus his anger towards combating the NRA and its leader, Wayne LaPierre, as well as President Trump.

I appreciate the way I've behaved with colleagues in the past has caused a lot of pain, and I sincerely apologize for it, Weinstein said in a statement. Though I'm trying to do better, I know I have a long way to go.

His statement did not address any specific incidents.

Weinstein had a powerful perch in Hollywood for three decades, and was known for producing films like Pulp Fiction and Shakespeare in Love, for which he won an Oscar.

He has also launched the careers of numerous actresses and directors and executed extremely successful Oscar campaigns with his company Miramax, which he ran with his brother Bob Weinstein. In 2005, they launched a new production company, The Weinstein Co.

Known for his angry outbursts, his often aggressive tactics were chronicled in the Peter Biskind book Down and Dirty Pictures.

Weinstein has been married to designer Georgina Chapman since 2007, they have two children together. He has three children from his previous marriage.

In Weinstein's lengthy statement, in which he quotes a Jay-Z lyric about being a better man for his children, he references coming of age in the 60s and 70s when, all the rules about behavior and workplaces were different.

I want a second chance in the community but I know I've got work to do to earn it, he wrote.

Weinstein quickly became a trending topic on Twitter. Lena Dunham wrote that the women, who chose to speak about their experience of harassment by Harvey Weinstein deserve our awe. It's not fun or easy. It's brave.

The Weinstein Company has in recent years suffered from a string of executive exits, mounting lawsuits and increasingly hectic distribution decisions.

In 2016, the company didn't receive a best-picture nomination for the first time since 2008. Weinstein returned to the category with Lion at this year's Oscars, but his preeminence as an Academy Awards heavyweight has undeniably waned.

Money problems have plagued the company intermittently since 2009, when it entered bankruptcy. But last year, The Weinstein Company continually shuffled release dates and delayed films amid reports that it was too cash-strapped to put a full slate of films into theaters. Some 50 staffers were let go last year.

Movies like The Founder and Tulip Fever were juggled over numerous release date shifts.

After The Founder, with Michael Keaton, was released in January along with the Matthew McConaughey-led Gold, the co-financier of The Founder, FilmNation, sued The Weinstein Company for $15 million, alleging Weinstein violated the non-compete clause of their agreement.

The Weinstein Company had a modest hit this summer with the acclaimed thriller Wind River. The $11 million film has made $33 million. But the company's fall season awards hopeful The Current War, with Benedict Cumberbatch, premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival to withering reviews.

Contact svaughan@hearstmediact.com

Staff Writer Michael P. Mayko and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
TORONTO, Oct. 6, 2017 /CNW/ - In response to Chef Jamie Oliver's comments on Canada's beverage industry, the Canadian Beverage Association issued the following statement:

The Canadian Beverage industry is proud of the work we do as an industry to inform Canadians about the products they are consuming. Mr. Oliver's comments and claims on age restrictions for energy drinks are unnecessary and based on neither sound research nor scientific evidence.

CBA members adhere to the strict regulations set out by Health Canada on the products they produce, including energy drinks. By law in Canada, energy drinks must be clearly labelled that they are not recommended for children. In addition, energy drinks must adhere to caffeine limits imposed by Health Canada, which limits both the caffeine concentration and the maximum total amount of caffeine in energy drinks. The maximum caffeine concentration is 100 mg/ 250 ml, and the maximum total amount of caffeine is 180 mg per container. Energy drink labels must also have a high caffeine content statement on the label and display all ingredients.1 Energy drink labels in Canada already contain information to help consumers make an informed decision and meet or exceed all applicable regulatory requirements.

In addition, Health Canada's own 2013 risk assessment concluded that for adults, "a typical energy drink per day would not be expected to pose a health risk for the general adult population." For teens 12  18 years of age, the assessment also concluded that the caffeine content of 250-500 ml of a typical energy drink "would be unlikely to pose an acute health hazard."2

As an industry, we rely on sound research and evidence to guide our initiatives, including: the Health Canada 2013 Risk Assessment3; and recent 2015 European Food Safety Authority scientific opinion on the safety of caffeine, which concluded that caffeine at the levels found in energy drinks was safe to consume4.

Energy Drink Industry Commitments

In addition to abiding by strict food laws, the industry adheres to the following voluntary guidelines as part of the Energy Drink Industry Commitments:

Energy Drinks are not made available in primary or secondary schools;

Marketing and advertising activities of energy drinks are not directed at children;

No promotional activities are undertaken to encourage excessive consumption of energy drinks;

Labels of energy drinks do not promote the mixing of energy drinks with any other beverage.

More information about energy drinks, including who energy drinks are suitable for, is available at www.energydrinksinformation.com

The Canadian Beverage Association is the national trade association representing the broad spectrum of companies that manufacture and distribute the majority of non-alcoholic refreshment beverages consumed in Canada. For more information, visit: balancecalories.ca and canadianbeverage.ca

______________________________

1 Health Canada, Food and Nutrition Guidelines: https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/food-nutrition/legislation-guidelines/guidance-documents/category-specific-guidance-temporary-marketing-authorization-caffeinated-energy-drinks.html

2 Energy Drinks: An Assessment of the Potential Health Risks in the Canadian Context, Joel Rotstein, Jennifer Barber, Carl Strowbridge, Stephen Hayward, Rong Huang and Samuel Benrejeb Godefroy: http://cdn.intechopen.com/pdfs/45380/InTech-Energy_drinks_an_assessment_of_the_potential_health_risks_in_the_canadian_context.pdf

3 Ibid.

4 European Food Safety Authority, Scientific opinion on the safety of caffeine, 2015 https://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/efsajournal/pub/4102

SOURCE Canadian Beverage Association

For further information: please contact Jeff Rutledge, 416-362-2424, [email protected]
By PTI: By Lalit K Jha

Washington, Oct 7 (PTI) US authorities foiled multiple terrorist attacks in New York in 2016, including at the iconic Times Square and the citys subway system, plotted by three Islamic State sympathisers with one of them living in Pakistan, US prosecutors said today.

Three people have been charged with involvement in the planned attacks, which were to be carried out in the name of the Islamic State group during the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan in 2016, they said.

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While Talha Haroon, 19, (a US citizen based in Pakistan), Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy, 19, (a Canadian citizen), and Russell Salic, 37, a Philippines national - were arrested last year, the charges against them were recently ordered to be unsealed by a federal court in New York.

According to the Department of Justice, El Bahnasawy purchased bomb-making materials for use in the attacks.

Haroon allegedly planned to carry out the attacks with El Bahnasawy. He is pending extradition to the US. Salic allegedly provided financing for the planned attacks. He too is pending US extradition.

Federal prosecutors said the plans included detonating bombs in Times Square and the New York City subway system and shooting civilians at specific concert venues.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the New York Police Department (NYPD) successfully thwarted this terrorist plot, the Department of Justice said.

An undercover FBI agent, posing as an Islamic State (ISIS) supporter, convinced the accused that he was prepared to carry out the attacks with them.

El Bahnasawy, who has been in custody since he was arrested by the FBI in May, 2016, pleaded guilty to terrorism offenses and is awaiting sentencing.

Haroon and Salic have been arrested in other countries by foreign authorities in connection with these charges and the Justice Department expects that they will be extradited to the US to face justice in an American court.

According to court papers, El Bahnasawy told the undercover FBI agent that he was in contact with an ISIS affiliate about obtaining official sanction of the planned attacks by the Khorasan Province - a branch of ISIS active in Pakistan.

Haroon, who was based in Pakistan and was introduced to the agent by El Bahnasawy, informed him that he was in contact with ISIS associates within the Khorasan Province.

El Bahnasawy told the agent that "these Americans need an attack," that he aspired to "create the next 9/11," and that he planned to "come to New York around May 22" from Canada.

Haroon stated that he intended to fly from Pakistan to New York City to carry out the attacks with El Bahnasawy, and hoped to "cause great destruction to the filthy kuffars (infidels) by our hands".

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El Bahnasawy and Haroon identified multiple locations and events in and around New York City as targets of the planned attacks, including the New York City subway system, Times Square, and some concert venues.

On May 12, 2016, El Bahnasawy sent the agent an image of Times Square stating, "We seriously need a car bomb at Times Square. Look at these crowds of people!".

That same day, he also expressed his desire to "shoot up concerts cuz (sic) they kill a lot of people".

El Bahnasawy described the plan to attack concerts as "We just walk in with guns in our hands. Thats how the Paris guys did it," referring to the 2015 attack on the Bataclan concert hall in Paris.

On May 5, 2016, Haroon told the agent that the subway was a "perfect" target, and that they should shoot as many passengers on the train as possible, including "women or kids" and that "when we run out of bullets we let the (suicide) vests go off".

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That same day, Haroon discussed with the agent the necessary supplies for making explosive devices for use in the attacks.

On May 9, Haroon said "NY needs to fall. Its a must". PTI LKJ KUN AKJ AKJ

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STRATFORD  A civilian employed by the New Haven Police Department has been arrested by police in Stratford for allegedly swiping a computer monitor.

Police say that Jennifer McDermott, 38, of Milford, turned herself in to officers at Stratford Police Headquarters after a warrant was issued for her arrest.
Ohanaeze Youths Council, OYC, said it will convene a meeting of all Ethnic Nationalities Youth Groups in Aba this month to consolidate cordial relationship among all the youth groups in the country.According OYC, the Aba gathering will also provide the youth opportunity to give full support to the Nigeria Project.Meanwhile, the group has expressed joy that the controversial October 1 deadline has come and gone without any ugly incident recorded, saying it has gone to show the belief in one united Nigeria,OYC said it was impressed that the efforts of the youths from across the country in dousing the tension has paid off and urged Igbos anywhere in the country to go about their lawful businesses, assuring them that there was no cause for alarm.In a statement issued by the National President of OYC, Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro, since October 1st 2017, we have not received any sad news on any loss of lives or properties in any part of the North, we appreciate the efforts Ethnic Nationalities Youth Groups especially the Coalition of Northern groups for keeping the part of the negotiation and decision reached on September 14th 2017, tagged Abuja Peace Accord between Ohanaeze Youths Worldwide and Coalition of Northern Groups.Isiguzoro explained that during the meeting, it was agreed that no Igbo man will lose his life or business or properties in any part of 19 Northern States of Nigeria.According to him, the Abuja peace accord would be followed this month by Aba peace declaration, where all the Ethnic Nationalities Youth Groups will gather to give full support to the Nigeria Project.Ohanaeze Youths call for calm, especially in the forthcoming Anambra governorship election scheduled for November 18th 2017. We are aware of some desperate politicians who want to use Youths as a vehicle to get power by all means. The youths will welcome a man who has the interest of the youths to win the election.We call for the rehabilitation of all the dilapidated federal roads in the south east, OYC said.
The Governor of Ebonyi State and Chairman of South East Governors Forum, David Umahi has disclosed that President Muhammadu Buhari assured...

The Governor of Ebonyi State and Chairman of South East Governors Forum, David Umahi has disclosed that President Muhammadu Buhari assured him of addressing problems facing the region while they were in New York for United Nations summit.

He said this while fielding questions from Sun regarding agitations for the actualization of Sovereign State of Biafra and the recent proscription of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB.





Umahi said, I had private discussion with Mr. President in New York and I want to assure the South-Easterners that the President will address all our problems.





Nigeria is going to see peace. We are stronger when we are bigger. Let me also tell our people that we are playing too much politics. It is only in the South-East that you see petitions that they are piling in the EFCC. Everything is now about politics and we left our hard work for politics.





I want to thank the Governors of South-East and the North for their efforts in ending the ugly incident that occurred recently. Let me assure Nigerians that Mr. President has heard you and he is going to address all the issues raised.





There is no need to continue insulting our leaders and abusing other tribes. No need trying to pose danger to the existence of our people. We are not untrustworthy people. We are very, very trustworthy. We are hardworking and well cultured people and so, we have made our points.




Ex-President Goodluck Jonathan has said the National Conference he convened in 2014 was a strategy he deployed towards dousing tensions acr...

Ex-President Goodluck Jonathan has said the National Conference he convened in 2014 was a strategy he deployed towards dousing tensions across Nigeria prior to and after the general elections one year later.

He made this known while giving his remarks at the opening panel of the Dialogue of Civilisations, Multipolarity and Dialogue in Regional and Global Developments, Rhodes Forums 15th Anniversary Summit in Greece.





Jonathan said dialogue was an essential tool in preventing or resolving communal conflicts.





He said: When I was in office as President, I championed the cause for good governance, transparent elections and peaceful power transfers, because I also believed that at the heart of the dialogue for a more peaceful world, is the need to cultivate a culture of democracy and good governance at the national levels. This is a good way to reduce local tensions that could blossom into global crisis.





In Nigeria, through a process of dialogue, we arrived at an amnesty programme that brought an end to the crisis in the Niger Delta, an oil-rich region in my country that accounts for all the oil wells that remain the mainstay of Nigerias economy.





Sometime in 2014, I had a thought in my mind. Nigeria is easily the most ethnically and religiously heterogeneous society in Africa, and one of the most diverse nations in the world.





Many times, these different ethnic groups are pulling in diverse directions that as a leader, you may experience genuine fears that the centre may not hold.





At that time, I asked myself, how can I as President, help build a more harmonious union in Nigeria. One based on the words of our National Anthem which ends with to build a nation where peace and justice shall reign.





To address this I convened a National Conference where the various ethnic groups and other stakeholders deliberated for five months on the future of the country. They had the mandate to discuss and advise the Government on all matters pertaining to our nationhood, except the sovereignty of the country.





On Thursday August 21, 2014, I received the report. Our general elections came up six months after the national conference. The confidence and national goodwill the conference inspired, helped bring down the tension during and after the general elections. It was a confidence-boosting outcome, despite the predictions by some international bodies that Nigeria was going to disintegrate in 2015.





There is one important point people often overlook whenever the issue of global peace arises. There can be no peace at the global level if there is no peace in the heart, conscience and character of leaders of nations.




A team of the NCW officials visited the varsity on Wednesday and after speaking to girl students and questioning the BHU staff, shared its finding with the media on Friday.

By Rajat Rai: The National Commission for Women (NCW) has found Banaras Hindu University (BHU) vice-chancellor Girish Chandra Tripathi responsible for the disturbance and the violence that took place on campus last month.

A team of the NCW officials visited the varsity on Wednesday and after speaking to girl students and questioning the BHU staff, shared its finding with the media on Friday.

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"The incident took place because of the insensitivity and non-communication... the incident could have been averted without taking making much effort," Rekha Sharma, working president of NCW told media persons.

It was also found that male cops lathi-charged girl students and women cops were not roped in to handle the disturbance, she added. It is to be mentioned that the commissioner of Varanasi, Nitin Ramesh Gokarn, also found the V-C and the BHU administration guilty for the entire episode, she added.

"Outsiders were also involved in instigating the disturbance and we will be handing over our report to the HRD ministry and the UP government in a week," she said. Violence gripped BHU about two weeks back when a group of girls' tried to meet the V-C after an incident of eve-teasing and molestation.

Failing to meet the V-C, the girls sat on a dharma and were also joined by male students. The protest took an ugly turn when police lathi-charged girl students following which several two-wheelers were torched. Tripathi was sent on leave and major steps were taken to upgrade security of girl students.

ALSO WATCH | BHU protest: Five key questions about the unrest

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Former Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Nigeria, Akin Olujimi, on Friday explained why the police, the Economic and Financial Cr...

Former Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Nigeria, Akin Olujimi, on Friday explained why the police, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC), continue to lose corruption cases in court.

He explained that the ugly trend was due to lack of thorough investigation.





Olujimi noted that the fight against corruption in Nigeria would remain shallow if anti-graft and security agencies only rush to court to satisfy Nigerians thirst for conviction.





Speaking in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, the former AGF insisted that lack of thorough investigation has led to anti-graft and security agencies presenting insufficient evidence in court.





Olujimi also urged Nigerians not to expect hurried judgements when corruption cases were brought before the courts.





He said, From 2003 till today, even though the EFCC, ICPC and police make arrests and take people to court, corruption still seems to be on the front burner, and is fighting back.





As practitioners of the law, we have come to know that investigation of cases is not thorough. The judge was not there when the offence was allegedly committed and can only rely on the evidence produced by the prosecution.





So, if that evidence cannot sustain the charge, the judge releases the accused. It is therefore very important for the EFCC, ICPC to ensure that they carry out a thorough investigation and there is no need for them to rush to court just to please the public.





The public would want the judge to convict the accused person in one or two weeks. It doesnt work like that anywhere in the world.





The UK, US may trail the suspect for a year before they make an arrest. Before they make an arrest, they would have gathered all evidence, such that the lawyers would guide the police so as to gather the necessary evidence to sustain the charge.





In Nigeria, it is only the police, EFCC that carries out their investigation alone without carrying along the prosecution, and so, there are gaps in the investigation, which the defence counsel exploits to his advantage.





The public needs to know that the procedure for trial in court does not move as rapidly as they think, except where an accused person pleads guilty.





The prosecution may be presenting his case for a year and defence has not started because he has many witnesses. The judge taking the case also has other cases to attend to.




By India Today Web Desk: The fifth day in the Bigg Boss house was quite happening and exciting. The episode, which is also called Friday Ka Faisla was presented by Aaj Tak's Shweta Singh, who was accompanied by Bigg Boss 8 contestant Pritam Singh and RJ Malishka in the panel. They discussed about how the contestants have started playing games from the very first week.

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Pritam names Zubair as the strongest contestant while Malishka chooses Angoori bhabhi aka Shilpa as her bet.

Arshi , who is under the impression that Hina asked Zubair to abuse her, hurled abuses at Hina and called her 'Patli Dolly Bindra' and 'Zubair Ki biwi'. Hina tried her best to remain calm and be unaffected by Arshi's crass behaviour. The actress compared her to Priyanka Jagga, and claimed that Arshi will be thrown out of the house just like Jagga.

Shilpa continued to trouble Vikas. She pretended to have accidentally dropped a whole ginger in his cup of tea. Irked with her behaviour, Vikas spilled the tea on Shilpa's luggage and spoiled her clothes. Shilpa didn't stop there, she dropped tea on Benaf's dress, so that Benaf could blast Vikas. Later, Shilpa regretted spoiling Benaf's dress. Shilpa tried to irritate and poke Vikas by continuously singing Bang-bang and was accompanied by Arshi and Akash.

Vikas Gupta in a still from the show. Picture courtesy: Twitter/BiggBoss

Bigg Boss asked the contestants to give three names with mutual consent, who could be sent to kaal kothri. After a lot of discussion, the inmates decided to send Arshi, Shilpa and Akash to the jail. Bigg Boss introduced another twist, where the padosis are asked to save one of the contestants and nominate one for the kaal kothri. To everyone's surprise, Padosis saved Arshi, as they want to break the growing bond between Shilpa and Arshi and nominated Zubair Khan to be sent to kaal kothri along with Shilpa and Akash.

Hina became very upset with Padosis' decision to save Arshi , as according to her they could have saved Akash instead of Arshi, who deserved to be in the jail for abusing her. Hina broke down in front of the inmates but later composed herself.

Akash, Shilpa and Zubair seemed to be having a gala time in kaal kothri, where Shilpa again devises a plan to trouble Vikas. With Akash's help, she manages to escape the prison and enter the house. She keeps a slipper near Vikas' head and leaves, which is later removed by Bandgi.

Puneesh flirst with Bandgi and the duo strategise to pretend to be a couple. It would be interesting to see if their strategy work.

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Let's see, what new turn will Vikas-Shilpa's and Hina-Arshi's enmity take.

--- ENDS ---
Anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of Jerry Hebert, 59, pictured above, is asked to call Sixth District detectives at 504-658-6060 or 911. (NOPD)
By India Today Web Desk: Bigg Boss 11's Weekend Ka Vaar Salman Ke Saath is going to be very interesting, as Salman seems to be very annoyed with some of the contestants.

First week of Bigg Boss 11 was quite happening with too many things happening at the same time. The viewers witnessed too many tiffs between the housemates including Shilpa-Vikas , Hina-Arshi, Hina-Shilpa and Zubair-Sapna.

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In tonight's episode, Salman will address the tiff between Arshi and Hina Khan. Arshi, who thinks Hina instigated Zubair to badmouth her might come know the truth.

On the other hand, Pinky Padosan has given some juicy details from Weekend Ka Vaar episode. According to her, Salman will grill Hiten Tejwani and Hina Khan for not standing up when they should have. Both Hiten and Hina are trying to play it safe. Let's see what does Salman have in store for them.

The biggest challenge for Salman will be the tiff between Shilpa Shinde and Vikas Gupta, that has turned uglier by the day. It would be interesting to know his take on their fight.

Shilpa Shinde aur @lostboy54 ke fight ka kya hoga verdict? Denge @beingsalmankhan aaj ke #WeekendKaVaar mein at 9PM! pic.twitter.com/FIqF15Pzao- COLORS (@ColorsTV) October 7, 2017

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Detectives believe Morris "Mo" McKnight, 19, was one of two men who pulled handguns on the victim moments after she parked her vehicle Wednesday (Oct. 4, 2017) at Felicity Street and Robert C. Blakes Sr. Drive, the NOPD said.(NOPD)
FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP)  Survivors of Hurricane Ian face a long emotional road to recover from one of the most damaging storms to hit the U.S. mainland. For those who lost everything to disaster, the anguish can be crushing to return home to find so much gone. Grief can run the gamut from frequent tears to utter despair. The Lee County medical examiner says two men in their 70s even took their own lives a day apart after viewing their losses. Experts say suicides climb after disasters and more funding for mental health should be provided as climate change makes storms and fires more frequent and devastating.
By Vidya : Bigg Boss 11 contestant Zubair Khan has been in the news for all the wrong reasons. Zubair, who entered the Bigg Boss house as Haseena Parkar's son-in-law is not related to her.

Haseena Parkar's family has taken offense to the tall claims made by the contestant and wants to take action against him by filing a complaint.

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Advocate Shyam Keswani, who has been dealing with the legal issues concerning Dawood Ibrahim's family says that a family member of Haseena Parker had called to say that Big Boss contestant Zubair Khan is a fraud.

Zubair, who is currently in the Bigg Boss House had claimed that he is Haseena Parker's son-in-law.

However, now Haseena's family wants to lodge a complaint against Zubair, as he does not belong to their family.

Keswani said that he will be filing a complaint with CID by Monday, October 9.

--- ENDS ---
The study looks at two smaller-scale projects that are in some ways predecessors to the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion, the $2 billion plan to slow land loss erasing Louisiana's coast. Construction on that project could begin as early as next year, while a similar one on the opposite side of the river known as the Mid-Breton Diversion could follow.
WOODBINE  Seven southwest Iowa school groups with a total of 210 students toured Woodbine Manufacturing Co. Friday for Manufacturing Day 2017.

The plant, which produces Tommy Gate hydraulic lifts, held an open house to show students what todays manufacturing processes look like.

We want the kids to know theres an alternative to a four-year degree, said Marian Bosak, human resources director.

Along the way, students observed employees at work, listened to them talk about their jobs and backgrounds and had opportunities to ask questions.

Exposure is the best way to make career decisions, said Heather Eischeid, school counselor at Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton, who brought five students.

Engineers at the plant use AutoCad and Solidworks three-dimensional software to design parts and improve products, said August Siefken, engineering assistant.

Most of our parts we make here, she said.

The technology ranges from high-tech to old school, said Kellen Liddell, production manager.

That includes robotic welders, a variety of computer-numerically controlled machines and human welders.

The robotic welders are more efficient, more consistent and dont get tired as fast, Liddell said.

The robotic welder pretty much replaced three employees, he said. The robot does really well with small, high-volume parts.

A CNC lathe is used to cut bars of steel and shape them into pins, collars and other parts that meet precise specifications, Liddell said.

We used to buy this part from a vendor, he said holding up a collar. Well, then you have issues  they dont get you the part on time, or they stop production.

The company now makes the parts on site and saves about 40 percent on the cost, Liddell said.

Woodbine Manufacturing exports quite a few Tommy Gates to Australia and some to England and South Africa, he said.

Said Bosak, Last year, we made over 22,000 lifts.

This is the only place that Tommy Gates are produced, Liddell said. We have 1,000 distributors. Its a relatively small company, but we made a pretty big impact in our territory.

The company makes six different lifts designed for trucks and vans and can customize them to fit a customers needs, he said.

Liddell said the plant hires people with just a high school diploma, as well as those with technical training or college degrees. Company officials are willing to train good workers, he said. Entry-level positions pay from $11 to $14 per hour, with raises after a 60-day probation period and annual reviews. Woodbine Manufacturing offers good benefits and is one of the few companies that still pays quarterly bonuses, he said.

Eischeid said she thought the field trip was worthwhile for the students.

It allowed them to see something theyve never seen before, she said.

Justin Petersen, a sophomore at Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton, especially enjoyed the tour. He said he had learned more about some possible careers.

This is what I might enjoy doing, he said.

Petersen said his brother had taught him to weld, but he plans to take a class to get some formal instruction in it.

Noah Petersen, also a sophomore at Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton, said the tour was interesting and might affect his career choice.

I learned a lot, he said.

Emma Koeppl, another sophomore from Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton, said she came to learn more about Tommy Gate but wasnt interested in that kind of job.

Trevor Gallagher, sophomore at Arcadia-Westside-Vail, said he thought the experience was interesting. He said he might be interested in a welding job at the plant.

Craig Ragaller, who brought the Ar-We-Va group, said he thought it was good for students to learn about career options that dont require a college degree.

We concentrate on the four-year college degree all the time but not the trades, and I think thats a good area, he said. Theres a lot of these jobs out there.

The other thing is, everybody thinks youve got to run off to the big city to get a job, Ragaller added. Woodbine Manufacturing shows that isnt true, he said.
Lalu Prasad Yadav's family allegedly received the land, located in Patna's Saguna Mor, for awarding a private firm a contract for the maintanence of two IRCTC hotels.

By Rohit Kumar Singh: The Nitish Kumar administration wants to repurpose three acres of land in Patna that RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav's family allegedly received for awarding a private firm a contract for the maintanence of two IRCTC hotels.

Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Modi said Lalu should come clean before the CBI, and let the Bihar government build either a school (or college) or an orphanage on it.

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"I have been closely associated with this case, and I can tell that Lalu has no answers for the corruption he has indulged in," he said.

"Lalu should accept before the CBI that he is involved in corruption and hand over the three acre plot to the state government, which will build an orphanage or open a school or college."

CBI INTERROGATION

The CBI had questioned Lalu Prasad Yadav and his son, former Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav, in connection with the alleged IRCTC scam on Friday.

Why did former Corporate Affairs Minister and his close aide Prem Chand Gupta hand over his company, Delight Marketing Pvt. Ltd - along with the 3 acres of land - to Tejaswi Yadav for just Rs 4 lakh? How can a mall worth Rs 750 crore be built on the land? Sushil Modi said Lalu Prasad Yadav has no answers.

"If Lalu had any answers for the corruption charges slapped on him, Tejashwi would not have had to resign from the deputy CM post. Nitish Kumar had asked Tejashwi to explain the corruption charges levelled against him but he chose not to," Sushil Modi said.

This proves that Lalu's family has no answers for the crime they have done, so what will they tell before the CBI?"

WATCH | Investigations show substantial evidence against Lalu Yadav in IRCTC hotel scam

--- ENDS ---
By PTI: (Eds: Updating with more details)

Kolkata, Oct 6 (PTI) The BJP today took out rallies, burnt effigies of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in various parts of the state and staged a sit-in here in protest against the attack on its state unit chief Dileep Ghosh in Darjeeling.

A BJP delegation, led by the partys national secretary, Rahul Sinha, met West Bengal Governor K N Tripathi at the Raj Bhavan here and submitted a memorandum to him, demanding an immediate arrest of those involved in the attack on Ghosh.

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Sinha also led a BJP rally at Hazra Road, near Banerjees residence, and demanded a statement from the chief minister on the incident which took place yesterday.

Banerjees effigies were burnt in various parts of the state by BJP supporters, who shouted slogans demanding "restoration of democracy" in the state. They also staged a sit-in on the busy Hazra Road.

Rallies were taken out in various parts of the state by BJP workers, demanding the arrest of the culprits.

The Darjeeling police arrested two men in the early hours today for their alleged involvement in the assault on BJP workers during a Vijaya Sammelani meeting called by Ghosh in Darjeeling yesterday.

Ghosh himself was allegedly roughed up and had to cancel the meeting because of the ensuing chaos.

Darjeeling Superintendent of Police (SP) Akhilesh Chaturvedi said the two arrested accused were nabbed from Lebong, which is adjacent to Darjeeling town, at around 3 am during a night-long search by the police.

They were identified as Chandan Thapa and Santai Gurung, both members of the GJM Yuva Morcha, he said, adding that they were produced before the Darjeeling district court during the day and remanded to judicial custody for 14 days.

For the last two days, agitators in Darjeeling have been demanding that Ghosh and his BJP team leave the hills immediately and refrain from disturbing the "peace and stability" in the region. The BJP leaders have also been shown black flags by various hill parties.

The ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) leadership in the state meanwhile accused the BJP of trying to disturb the peace in the hills and said it would take out rallies across the state tomorrow to counter the saffron party and burn effigies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"Tomorrow, from 1 pm to 2 pm, we will hold protest rallies and burn effigies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The central government is helping the divisive forces in the hills," TMC secretary general Partha Chatterjee told reporters.

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"When peace has returned to the hills, the BJP is trying to disturb it. It is helping a person (Bimal Gurung), who has cases under the UAPA (Unlawful Activities Prevention Act) lodged against him. If it tries to disturb the peace, the people of Bengal will never forgive it," he said.

Ghosh, who left for Sikkim along with the BJP team today, earlier told reporters in Darjeeling that he would convey all the demands related to the hills to the Centre.

To questions on whether he would meet Gurung, who is on the run, Ghosh said the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) supremo had rung him up and criticised the attack on him.

"I told him (Gurung) that democracy in the hills was very crucial. But I have no intention of meeting Gurung. I am not aware of his whereabouts and he is under the police scanner," he added.

Gurung, in an audio message from his hideout, condemned the attack on the BJP workers.

"Those behind the attack should immediately be arrested. Those against a separate state of Gorkhaland have attacked the BJP delegation. We condemn it," he said. PTI PNT KK RC

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By PTI: Mumbai, Oct 7 (PTI) Efforts are still on to extinguish the fire that broke out at a fuel tank farm of the Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) located on the Butcher Island off the east coast of Mumbai last evening, a top fire brigade official said here today.

The firefighters had brought the blaze under control, but "excessive heat" led to reignition at the tank around 4.30 am today, the official said.

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According to officials, the fire had broken out around 5 pm yesterday when Mumbai and the surrounding areas witnessed thundershowers. However, no causality was reported.

"Excessive heat caused reignition around 4.30 am today. Firefighting as well as the cooling operations are on. Foam and other extinguishing agents are being used for the purpose," Mumbai fire brigade chief P S Rahangdale said.

He said firefighters of MbPT as well as the fire brigade team are working in tandem to douse the blaze.

According to Rahangdale, fire brigade personnel involved in the firefighting operation through the night have been relieved and new staff staff have been deployed there.

"There has been a good coordination between Mumbai fire brigade personnel and the MbPT fire service team. The fire brigade team had reached around 10 feet near the blaze-hit tank, but reignition at dawn has posed a new challenge before us. However, the blaze is under control," he said.

"I am monitoring the operation. Because of the heat, the foam (used as an extinguisher) is not settling down, this is causing reignition. But overall, the situation is under control," Rahangdale said but did not specify how long the firefighting operation would continue.

"Our main challenge is to keep the other tanks near the affected one safe. So, on one hand our firemen are involved in cooling operations to keep other tanks safe, while on the other, they are also engaged in dousing the flames," he told PTI.

Butcher Island houses a marine oil terminal of MbPT.

Oil tankers discharge crude at the terminal, and it is transported to refineries at nearby Mahul through submerged pipelines, port officials said.

After the fire broke out, vessels in the vicinity of the island have been moved to a distance as a precautionary measure.

A BPCL spokesperson had said yesterday that a lightning strike amid thundershowers was the apparent cause behind the fire. "A diesel tank caught fire due to the lightning and thundershowers," he had said.

Manohar Rao, executive director and head of safety, BPCL, had said that prima facie, the cause of the fire was lightning, though further probe will be carried out on Saturday. PTI APM NP NSD

--- ENDS ---

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The two communities that will be impacted most by the South Shore Line's double-tracking project will be the sites of public hearings this week on the $312 million plan.

Gary's Miller neighborhood will see the shifting of the intersection of U.S. 12 and 20 east of Lake Street, opening land for a new station and parking facility as well as related development.

A hearing will be held at the Marshall J. Gardner Center for the Arts in that neighborhood Wednesday.

In Michigan City, tracks that currently run down the middle of 10th and 11th streets will be moved to the side of the road. The number of rail crossings will be significantly reduced, and stations and parking will be upgraded.

A hearing will be held in the city at the Stardust Event Center on Thursday evening.

The hearings are being held in light of publication of the federally mandated environmental assessment for the project. The document provides exhaustive detail on the project and its potential impact on the communities it crosses.

"That's another huge hurdle," South Shore President Michael Noland said of the document's completion. After public comments are collected and addressed, the assessment will be finalized in partnership with the Federal Transit Administration.

"We expect to have the environmental process completed by mid- to late-December, when we would get a Finding of No Significant Impact and be done with the environmental process," Noland reported to the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District board at its recent meeting.

The South Shore submitted documentation to the FTA in early September that would take Double Track and the proposed West Lake Corridor extension a step closer to federal grants that would cover half their construction costs.

Noland said formal decisions will be announced in February, though railroad officials will have a good sense of the FTA's position before then.

"We're extremely confident," Noland said.

This week's public hearings will be in an open house format, allowing the public to interact with South Shore staff and consultants.

The double-tracking project will extend from Virginia Street in Gary to East Michigan Boulevard in Michigan City. About 16 miles of that 27-mile stretch currently has a single set of tracks.

Stations along the route that will receive upgrades include Miller, Ogden Dunes, Dune Park, Beverly Shores and 11th Street.

Some impacts of the project, as described in the assessment, are:

 Closing of 21 grade crossings in Michigan City.

 Changing 11th Street to one-way eastbound.

 Acquisition of 81 homes; 62 commercial properties; 9 transportation, communication or utility properties, and 7 municipally owned properties.

 Adverse effects on 27 properties eligible for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places.

 Clearing of 20.56 acres of trees.

 Filling of 5.73 acres of wetlands.

Railroad officials have touted the shifting of the Michigan City tracks to the side of the road, and the reduction in crossings, as major safety improvements. Of 53 grade-crossing accidents over the last 10 years, 24 were between Sheridan Avenue and East Michigan Boulevard in Michigan City.

The property acquisitions include 29 residential and 47 commercial parcels without buildings. Fifty-one parcels with homes, and 15 with commercial buildings, will be acquired.

Most of the acquisitions will be in Gary and Michigan City, though two commercial properties will be in Portage.

The historic properties that will be adversely affected are in Michigan City. NICTD is working with the State Historic Preservation Office to mitigate those effects, including on the railroad's own 11th Street station.

Impacts on the natural environment would be mitigated according to state and federal requirements, generally by replacing trees and by enhancing wetlands in the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore.

The Double Track NWI Environmental Assessment is available online at www.doubletrack-nwi.com in the "Docs" section.
Before modern combines changed the way corn is harvested, the process for drying corn was shocking.

Gloria Miller described the traditional process of setting up cornstalks in shocks as "so picturesque."

For Miller, a past officer of the South Lake County Agricultural Historical Society, devoted to historic preservation and education, farmers drying corn this way rekindles images of the Pilgrims  the things you see this time of year.

Miller recalled Injun Summer, a drawing by newspaper cartoonist John T. McCutcheon from the early 1900s. The drawing depicts an old man and a boy beside a cornfield. While the adult sees cornstalks, the boy sees Indians and teepees  images from the fields past.

Similarly, people today see old-fashioned farming. Miller said, They see these things, but they dont know how its done.

Thats where the historical society steps in. For 33 years, the group has been educating adults and youth on farm life prior to modern machinery. That includes shocking corn. This old-time process involves cutting the cornstalk at the ground, binding the corn into six to eight stalks, and then tying those small bundles into larger bundles, or shocks. The shocks are then set aside for drying, a process which could take several months.

Working in the pre-combine era, the societys Bill Wiater explained, farmers shocked corn to prevent wet corn from rotting on the ground.

As society president Perry McLemore explained, the process begins with binding done by machine, followed by shocking done by volunteers. When initially picked, corn may hold 15-22 percent water, which is too much, McLemore said. Shocking can reduce that moisture down to 7 percent by January, which is acceptable.

Historical society members recently gathered bundles for nearly 20 shocks. They loaded those shocks onto wagons for storage and later use or display.

Were an educational society, Wiater said. We want to keep history alive.

Kelly Miller, the societys vice president, explained that shocking continued through the early decades of the 20th century. Combines reduced that process of taking corn from field to elevator from months to under an hour.

For those early farmers, Kelly Miller explained, Corn was their livelihood, their food, their cattles food. Nothing went to waste.

That included stalks, which could be used for animal bedding or food and seasonal decorative purposes. Corn also is used in ethanol, a fuel for vehicles.

Among those watching and photographing the shocking was Wehlan Triedbold, who had farmed corn, oats and beans near Crete.

This is like when we were farming, said Triedbold, 84, who farmed into his 70s. He recalled feeding shocked corn to cows, then mixing the remainder with blackstrap molasses, which livestock loved.

Watching this age-old process in action, McLemore said, Its all about preserving the past. I want to keep the visions of the past alive. You have to see where youve been before you can go forward.
VALPARAISO  A 36-year-old Hebron man attempted to rob an Aldi store Friday night but instead was met by several apparently upset customers who held him to the ground until police arrived.

Wearing a mask, Thomas Powell reportedly entered the store at 2906 LaPorte Ave. on Friday night and demanded money from the cashier, according to a Valparaiso Police Department news release. Powell implied he had a weapon in his pocket, police said.

Officers arrived to find "five of six individuals" holding Powell on the floor. They immediately handcuffed Powell, who is now being held on robbery charges, police said.

Police continue to investigate the incident. All money was recovered at the scene.
ROLLING PRAIRIE  LaPorte County police are investigating a fatal crash that occurred Friday evening.

Emergency responders were sent at 7:40 p.m. to U.S. 20 near Bootjack Road, east of Rolling Prairie, police said.

An eastbound Ford Mustang crossed the center line on U.S. 20 and collided head on with a westbound Honda Odyssey minivan, according to the preliminary investigation.

The minivan's driver, Don Kaczmarek, 47, and his wife, Angie Kaczmarek, 49, of Michigan City, were killed on impact, police said.

Tron Gorbonosenko, 40, of New Carlisle, was the driver of the Mustang, according to police. He was extricated from his vehicle and flown by Med Flight to Memorial Hospital in South Bend.

Sheriff's detectives and the Fatal Alcohol Crash Team investigated.

Investigators are also waiting on the results of toxicology tests to determine if alcohol may have been a factor in the case of the crash, police said.

A traffic crash reconstructionist is working with detectives from the sheriff's office to determine the cause of the crash. The investigation remains open and ongoing, police said.

Sheriff's deputies were assisted by the New Carlisle Police, LaPorte County Emergency Medical Service, Indiana Department of Transportation and the Kankakee Township Volunteer Fire Department.
The Chhattisgarh government has banned chlorinated plastic and PVC with immediate effect. Polyvinyl Chloride is known to cause cancer, birth defects and other health issues.

By India Today Web Desk: The Chhattisgarh government has banned the use of chlorinated plastic and short-life Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) in the state.

The recent decision taken by the Chhattisgarh government comes as a relief for the environment. It may not solve the problem but it is bound to do its bit as the chemical used to make PVC is a known human carcinogen, according to the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).

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CHHATTISGARH BANS PVC

A lot of advertisements and promotions make use of materials like PVC banners, flex and hoarding and Chhattisgarh has banned them with immediate effect.

The chemicals dispensed from PVC and chlorinated plastic contaminate the water, soil and air and the state government has also banned the manufacture, storage, import, sale, transport and use of such plastic-borne goods.

The latest notification in this effect has been issued by the Department of Housing and Environment.

"From the Article 48-A of the Constitution of India, it is expected that every state will try to conserve and improve the environment. But these plastic-borne goods cause blockages in drains and gutters, leading to serious environmental problems," the notification read.

PVC IS THE MOST TOXIC PLASTIC

The manufacture and incineration of PVC is known to create and releases dioxins.

The released dioxin causes a wide range of health effects including cancer, birth defects, diabetes, learning and developmental delays, endometriosis, and immune system abnormalities.

The dioxin end up in the food that animals eat, the food we eat.

They accumulate in animal fats and then they end up accumulating in human fat as we eat the meat and dairy products from the animals.

It may come as a surprise because food accounts for 95 per cent of human exposure to dioxin.

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MICHIGAN CITY  Health insurance for City Council members was soundly defeated even after cost-sharing was placed on the table, but the issue doesnt appear to be going away.

Bryant Dabney proposed each councilman opting for coverage pay $5,000 of the $15,000 annual expense, but only he and Ron Hamilton Jr. were in support of offering medical benefits to councilmen.

Dabney, a councilman from the 1st Ward, said he plans to bring up the idea again at some point. Dabney said he firmly believes that coverage is deserved for a position that sometimes demands full-time hours.

The cost-sharing would have been deducted from each council members $14,000 annual salary.

"I just think its something that should be offered," Dabney said.

Opponents said it was unfair, even with cost-sharing, when part-time city employees arent provided coverage. The council voted it down 7-2 this week.

"We got a lot of employees who are not compensated enough in their basic pay, I dont think, and for us to order ourselves health insurance was 180 degrees in the wrong direction for me," Councilman Tim Bietry said.

Bietry also said the cost of medical insurance is already high and going up again next year.

Dabney said he understands the argument but believes offering coverage to council members is warranted given the responsibilities of the job and the long hours required at times.

"There are weeks when Im not putting in full-time hours but there are weeks when Im doing quite a bit, Dabney said. He pointed out he already has medical coverage through his employer.

He looks at the benefit as a way to attract more candidates and a tool for any council member who lacks coverage following early retirement.

"Its something I will push for in the future," he said.
GRIFFITH  It's "game on," with another residential signature drive to authorize a referendum for Griffith voters on leaving Calumet Township.

Town Council President Rick Ryfa, R-3rd, said this week Calumet Township is "potentially" over 12 times the state average for the township assistance rate.

He said this triggers a 2013 state law that allows the referendum where Griffith residents could vote to leave the township.

Council members have said Griffith pays about $1 million to the township each year and receives little in return. Calumet Township is composed of the town of Griffith and the city of Gary.

On Wednesday, Calumet Township Trustee Kimberly Robinson disagreed with Griffith's claim that the township is over 12 times the limit.

Robinson said that the township's calculations show that it is under the limit.

She also said it is unknown, at this point, whether the township would file a lawsuit to challenge a new referendum.

"At this time ... I'm going to talk with my board and my attorneys, but we're always going to do what's best for the township," Robinson said. "It's not my single decision."

In a repeat of last year, drawing enough legal signatures would allow the referendum to be scheduled by the Lake County Elections Board.

The number of required signatures is about 1,300, which represents 30 percent of the number of Griffith voters who participated in the last election, Ryfa said.

"The petition will be available to sign at Oktoberfest this weekend in Central Park," he said.

The council referred to an official statement from the Department of Local Government Finance revealing the average 2016 property tax budget assistance of the state's 1,004 townships to be $0.008 per $100 assessed value.

Twelve times this average is $0.096, whereas Calumet Township's 2017 rate is $0.1545, Ryfa said. The township is probably more than 60 percent over the threshold, he said.

Ryfa said many residents have asked what they can do to start the petition drive again as in 2016.

In 2016, the township filed suit in Lake Superior Court, claiming the DLGF's method of using actual numbers to calculate the statewide township assistance budgets was the wrong way to do it.

Prior to 2016, the DLGF used a weighted-numbers method for the calculations, which always showed the township to be under the limit.

Since 2016, however, the DLGF has used the actual numbers, after the Indiana Attorney General's office said the state Legislature intended for actual numbers to be used.

Last year's lawsuit resulted in Griffith's withdrawing the referendum.

If this year's referendum gets a green light, Griffith residents would vote whether to stay with the township or request a move to North, Ross or St. John townships.

Ryfa said the council recently learned Griffith would not be allowed to form its own township.

Robinson, who took office in 2015, has said she inherited the responsibility of dealing with some of the states highest concentration of low-income residents. About 39 percent of Garys residents are below the poverty line, according to U.S. census data.

Robinson has said she is expected to provide more than $3 million annually in housing, utilities, food and health care payments to about 17,000 recipients primarily living in 1,300 Gary households.
Barnabas and Isaiah comfort dogs deployed to Houston to bring comfort to those affected by the hurricane and flooding. Barnabas comfort dog spent a week there in early September then returned to continue his work in the community. Isaiah comfort dog, who usually works full time at Portage High School, deployed with Barnabas and remains in Houston. Isaiah will return to Portage next week. While in Houston the group visited schools that were reopening after flooding, nursing homes that were affected by flooding, the Houston FEMA processing area and both the Houston Police and Fire departments. Isaiah and his handlers are continuing the work in Houston and visiting other schools and facilities as they re-open as well as the Houston Office of Emergency Management. Barnabas and Isaiah are Lutheran Church Charities comfort dogs and are two of over 100 dogs placed in churches around the country to work in their communities and respond to disasters when needed. Barnabas and Isaiah are both placed with Trinity Lutheran Church in Hobart. Besides having Isaiah in Houston, Lutheran Church Charities has 17 dog teams deployed to Las Vegas and Barnabas is waiting to hear if he may be needed there.
EAST CHICAGO  Hijos de Borinquen will host a fundraiser Saturday for families of Puerto Rico, two weeks after the island was battered by Hurricane Maria.

At the Unidos Por Puerto Rico event, 100 percent of the proceeds will go toward hurricane victims, said Jose Valles, vice president of Hijos de Borinquen, a nonprofit organization with a banquet hall at 1411 Broadway in East Chicago.

Tickets are $15 at the door. The event will include live bands, DJs and raffle drawings. Alcohol at the bar and food donated by St. Patrick's Church will be available for purchase.

Valles said he has been worried about relatives on his mother's side, who live in Puerto Rico.

"We finally heard from them two days ago. We stayed on the line for only 30, 40 seconds before they lost a signal again," Valles said.

While Valles said he's relieved to hear his family is OK, he knows thousands of Puerto Ricans are still without electricity, food, clean drinking water and basic supplies.

The nonprofit is accepting monetary donations as well as bottled water, canned goods, baby formula, diapers, powdered milk, first-aid kits, toiletries and feminine hygiene products, he said. He asked people not to bring clothing.

The Hijos de Borinquen is an official drop-off point for donations. Lubrifleet, 2500 Gary Road, in East Chicago, is also accepting donations. Until Friday, Gavit Middle School High School, 1670 175th St., in Hammond, was also accepting nonperishable items for the fundraiser.

All ages are welcome from 2 to 6:30 p.m. From 7 p.m. until midnight, the event is 21 and older, Valles said.

"100 percent of proceeds are going to Puerto Rico. Not a dime is going back to us," he said. "It's what we do."
CROWN POINT  Winning the grand prize of the Northwest Indiana Raffle produced a variety of emotions Friday morning, including disbelief.

A ticket purchase by Jack Menser, of Hobart, was selected as the winner of the top prize  $100,000. Menser wasn't at the Marian Education Center when the ticket was pulled from a large drum, but Laurie Halaska, CEO of the Crossroads YMCA, quickly grabbed a phone and gave the man a call.

His wife kindly answered the phone and said her husband wasn't available. There was a brief pause after Halaska explained her family won $100,000 in the raffle.

Is this for real? Menser's wife later replied.

Halaska chuckled and assured her the call was legitimate. The reaction quickly turned to excitement as Menser's wife received more details about the situation.

Nearly 4,000 raffle tickets were sold, and the Mensers were among 50 people who won prizes during Friday's event.

Proceeds from the raffle will benefit St. Jude House and the Crossroads YMCA.

This is our largest fundraiser, said Linda Perez, executive director of St. Jude House.

St. Jude House provides numerous services to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. They include temporary shelter, a 24-hour crisis hotline, one-to-one counseling, case management, legal advocacy, a children's advocate and community education.

The purchase of your ticket really does help transform lives, Perez said.

Crossroads YMCA has several offerings, such as fitness programs, before- and after-school care, summer day camp and youth and toddler sports.

Halaska said the organization never turns anyone away who cant afford to pay for memberships at its branches.

She said more than $400,000 in scholarships were provided last year so families in need could participate in YMCA programs.

Halaska added that funding from the Northwest Indiana Raffle helps support that cause.
EAST CHICAGO  Building inspectors who don't pass a training course could see a pay cut.

That came up during an East Chicago City Council discussion last week concerning an ordinance that sets salaries for appointed officers and employees of the city.

Sandra Favela, Mayor Anthony Copeland's chief of staff, went over some changes to the annual ordinance that included a reduction in pay for building inspectors who did not pass a training course at South Suburban College in South Holland.

Councilman Robert Garcia, D-5th, asked how pay could have been decreased already since the council had not yet approved the salary ordinance.

"By an executive order, by the mayor," Favela said.

Monroe and Councilman Richard Medina, D-at-large, joined Garcia in voting no to the ordinance, which passed through first reading by a 5-3 vote.

The council voted 8-0 to adopt on second reading an ordinance that fixes 2018 salaries for elected officials.

Steve Dalton, the council's financial adviser, said the ordinance contains no changes in salaries for elected officials.
The trial for a Lowell man accused of operating a multimillion-dollar investment scam now may be delayed until later next year.

Richard E. Gearhart's attorney said Friday he will need more time to prepare his defense and may ask for a new trial date sometime after May 2018.

Attorneys for Gearhart, 67, of Lowell, and co-defendant, George R. McKown, 66, of Indianapolis, appeared Friday morning before U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge John E. Martin for a pre-trial conference in the federal securities fraud case.

Gearhart and McKown, who were required to be present in court Friday, are pleading not guilty to allegations they stole money from a number of Region residents who did business with their asset preservation specialists business in Schererville.

Their trial currently is set to begin April 30.

Highland attorney J. Michael Katz, who represents Gearhart, said Friday he has another client in an unrelated fraud case whose trial is scheduled the same month in another court, and both are complex cases.

Chicago attorney Richard S. Kling, who represents McKown, said Friday he is attempting to negotiate a non-trial disposition of his client's charges and wouldn't object to a new date.

The court previously had moved the trial's date in July to avoid professional and family obligations for government prosecutors.

Matin told the attorneys to consult with their clients and for Katz to file a written request to continue the trial as soon as he can, so they can make the change in U.S. District Court Joseph S. VanBokkelen's trial calendar.

Allegations against Gearhart first became public four years ago when he filed for federal bankruptcy, and the Indiana Secretary of State's Securities Division began investigating complaints from his former customers.

The U.S. Attorney's office charged the pair in December 2016. The grand jury indictment alleges the defendants' fraudulent conduct resulted in more than $3.5 million in losses to those who dealt with Gearhart and McKnown between 2008 and 2013.
The tall white wall that now surrounds the Indiana State Prison in Michigan City was built in 1999.

But just to the right of the main entrance on the east side of the prison is a surviving section of the original wall that was erected when the Civil War was raging, according to the facility's public information officer Pam James.

The original wall, which encompassed 8.3 acres, as compared to the 24 contained acres of today, was built between 1860 and 1866, according to a historical diagram provided by James.

The prison was initially the second in the state and was designated Indiana State Prison North, James said. The state's first prison, known as Indiana State Prison South, was located in Jeffersonville, which looks out over the Ohio River to Louisville, Kentucky.

When a fire destroyed the Jeffersonville prison in 1922, the Michigan City facility became the oldest in the state prison system, according to the Indiana Department of Correction.

The prison walls were enlarged beginning in 1907, and the height was increased in 1935 by 8 feet when a catwalk was added to create a tunnel for staff to walk among the 10 gun towers, according to the historical wall diagram. The gun towers are staffed every day, around the clock.

The prison is designated a level three and four maximum security facility, for offenders with long sentences and inmates convicted of violent crimes. It contains the states only death row.

Something in the Region left you baffled or just plan curious? Send an email to Bob Kasarda at bob.kasarda@nwi.com and he'll do his best to find the answer and report back in a future column.
PORTAGE  Mayor James Snyder has named an Indianapolis attorney to take over as lead attorney in his defense in his federal corruption case.

Jackie M. Bennett Jr., of Taft Stettinius & Hollister, will replace Thomas L. Kirsch II as Snyder's new attorney, according to documents filed in federal court. Kirsch was confirmed last week as the next U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Indiana.

Snyder, a Republican in his second term, was indicted in November 2016 on charges of bribery, extortion and tax evasion. He has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial, which is set to begin in Hammond district court on Jan. 29.

According to Bennett's biography on the Taft Stettinius & Hollister website, Bennett represents individuals and corporations in cases expected to go to trial.

"His practice concentrates in the areas of commercial, civil and white-collar criminal litigation, as well as regulatory investigations by state and federal agencies. Jackie has experience and expertise in matters involving internal corporate investigations, corporate governance, securities regulation, foreign corrupt practices, patent infringement, environmental crimes and an array of contract and business tort actions," according to the website.

Prior to entering private practice in Indianapolis, Bennett was a federal prosecutor for 14 years. He served in the Office of Independent Counsel Kenneth W. Starr from 1995 to 1999, the last two years as the principal deputy in charge of the OICs Washington, D.C., operations, supervising day-to-day operations, according to the website.

He served as senior advisor to Starr on investigative and prosecutorial aspects of several matters, including the impeachment referral of former U.S. President Bill Clinton. In that regard, he was one of three prosecutors selected by Starr to conduct the grand jury questioning of Clinton. Bennett also played a principal role in several trials during the Arkansas phase of the Whitewater investigation, including the 1996 fraud and conspiracy trial resulting in the convictions of Arkansas Gov. Jim Guy Tucker and former Madison Guaranty Savings & Loan owners Jim and Susan McDougal, according to the website.
Reacting to the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council's easing of rules for exporters and small companies, the Congress termed the reduction in GST rates "too little, too late".

By India Today Web Desk: Reacting to the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council's easing of rules for exporters and small companies , the Congress termed the reduction in GST rates "too little, too late" and said the government needed to do much more to address people's concerns under the new tax reform measure.

The party's commmunications-in-charge Randeep Surjewala said, "Too little, too late. Procedural reliefs will not compensate for messing with the basic architecture of GST by the Modi government."

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"Huge opportunity of adding 2 per cent to India's GDP squandered away by the GST mess and the subsequent half-baked rollbacks by the panic-stricken Modi government", he added.

Surjewala went on to say, "Wish the Prime Minister and Finance Minister could stop being arrogant and listen to the sane counsel of Rahul Gandhi, Manmohan Singh and P Chidambaram."

The Congress party, on its Twitter handle, said, "It is ironic that the government has brought an anti-profiteering bill. But it itself indulges in profiteering with fuel taxes. While we appreciate the government reducing GST rates in some segments, a lot more needs to be done to address concerns of the people."

COMPLEXITY OF GST REGIME YET TO BE ADDRESSED

The party said reduction in number of slabs and complexity of GST regime are yet to be addressed and these are critical for the economy's long-term health.

"This govt remains clueless about reforms, which are supposed to reduce complexity and remove discretion, arbitrary decision-making," it said.

Congress spokesperson Kapil Sibal said, "I feel pained that when someone tells you the truth, you say pessimism is being spread. We want that all the people of the country should get a proper sleep but that is not happening."

The former Union minister said that it is sad that on every issue, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is in denial, be it on corruption, economy or people losing their jobs.

(WITH INPUTS FROM PTI)

WATCH VIDEO | GST council meet: Exporters to get e-wallets from April, 2018, says Jaitley

--- ENDS ---
EAST CHICAGO  One of the companies responsible for polluting the city's Calumet section will investigate groundwater contamination throughout the Superfund site bearing its name, and soil contamination at its former factory property under an agreement with the U.S. EPA effective Wednesday.

USS Lead will perform a remedial investigation and feasibility study, with work set to begin in spring, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. An EPA spokeswoman said the agency entered into the agreement with USS Lead on Sept. 20.

Residents had been pushing EPA to expedite a groundwater study for the USS Lead Superfund site, but EPA's announcement this week was met with reservation.

"We have concerns about USS Lead leading the RI/FS process, because we know from experience that financial considerations lead responsible parties to drag out the study process or cut corners," said Debbie Chizewer, an attorney at Northwestern University Pritzker Law Schools Environmental Law Clinic.

"EPA has a mission to protect public health and the environment and should be the lead on analyzing the human and ecological risks and developing the possible plans for remediation," she said.

Chizewer, who represents the East Chicago Calumet Coalition Community Advisory Group, said the CAG "will be keeping a close eye on this process and pushing for protection of the entire Superfund site."

2 groundwater studies planned

EPA employees said at a community meeting in September they planned to begin two studies related to groundwater at the Superfund site.

The first, a study of whether groundwater could be contaminating residents' basements, is being funded with government money and is not subject to the agreement with USS Lead, EPA said. The agency said it will begin seeking residents this fall to participate in the study.

The second, a wider remedial investigation and feasibility study, will be led by USS Lead but will require EPA approval, according to the agreement. USS Lead must submit its list of qualified contractors, subcontractors, consultants and laboratories, and designate a project coordinator within 30 days of the effective date.

The remedial investigation will involve collecting data to characterize site conditions, determine the nature and extent of contamination and assess the risk to human health and the environment. USS Lead contractors also will conduct testing to evaluate potential treatment technologies.

Several cleanup alternatives will be evaluated as part of the feasibility study, which must use permanent solutions and alternative treatment and resource-recovery technologies to the maximum extent practicable, the agreement said.

USS Lead's former factory site is at 5300 Kennedy Ave. The former DuPont site, 5215 Kennedy Ave., also could be a source of groundwater contamination in the Superfund site, records show.

EPA said in September it plans to release a proposed cleanup plan this fall for the DuPont site, where lead arsenate, zinc oxide and zinc chloride were manufactured at various times between 1893 and 2000. Once the DuPont proposal is released, residents will have 30 days to submit their comments.

The agreement with USS Lead also said facilities in zone 1 of the Superfund site  identified in other documents as Anaconda Lead Products, International Lead Refining Co. and Eagle-Picher  processed and refined significant quantities of lead and other metals and chemicals, including arsenic, from 1912 to 1954.

The East Chicago Housing Authority evacuated more than 1,000 residents from the West Calumet Housing Complex last year because of contamination levels in zone 1.

U.S. EPA names project manager for cleanup

Residents and activists peppered EPA employees last month with questions about whether EPA took all available information into account, whether the agency adequately identified sources of groundwater contamination, whether it accurately characterized the flow of groundwater in the area and why cleanup efforts have taken so long.

The USS Lead, DuPont and Anaconda sites all sit along the Grand Calumet River or the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal, which flow into Lake Michigan.

This week's agreement designated Katherine Thomas as EPA's remedial project manager for the study of groundwater and soil at the former USS Lead factory.

After the September meeting, Thomas said work done since EPA announced in January it would expedite a groundwater study, included research, planning and enforcement activities.

"We've been really putting information together from the DuPont site, from the former USS Lead facility, from different academic studies that have been done by (U.S. Geological Survey) to really pull together all that information internally," she said.
Hawkes Bay abandoned after rain causes safety issues

Livamol Classic raceday, the biggest meeting on New Zealands spring racing calendar, was abandoned midway through proceedings when constant rain caused the Hastings track to become unsafe for further racing following the running of the Gr. 2 Scared Falls Hawkes Bay Guineas.

Rated a Good 3 surface at the start of the day, steady drizzle saw the Hastings track downgraded to a Dead 4 after the first race and then again to a Dead 6 prior to the Guineas which was carded as race 5 on the days programme.

Mark D Plessis (centre) discusses the incident that caused the abandonment of Livamol Classic raceday with trainer Tony Pike (left) and owner David Archer Photo: Trish Dunell Photography

Concerns for the safety of riders and their mounts were immediately apparent after Guineas runner-up Bostonian was observed to slip badly when pulling up shortly after contesting a dramatic finish to the three-year-old feature.

Chief Stipendiary Steward John Oatham outlined the reasons for the abandonment.

The film footage clearly showed that Mark Du Plessis mount (Bostonian) slipped quite badly when pulling up so the riders had concern about that part of the track, he said.

The track had been ground-hogged at the start of the day after some light rain this morning, however as the day progressed the horses cut into the surface and were down to a firmer part of the track again.

We re-inspected it again with the riders but it was clear there was a not a lot of confidence that they could ride competitively into that bend.

Accordingly, in the interests of safety for both horse and rider, we didnt believe we had any other option but to abandon the meeting.

It is bitterly disappointing for everyone concerned but safety must come first.

Hawkes Bay Racing Incorporated and New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing will now hold discussions as to the immediate future for the remaining five races carded on the day including the Gr. 1 Livamol Classic and the Gr. 3 Red Badge Spring Sprint.  NZ Racing Desk
UPDATED 2:30 P.M. SUNDAY:

A wind advisory remains in effect for the area until 10 p.m.

The storm is expected to bring sustained winds of 15 to 30 mph across Central Alabama, according to information from the National Weather Service office in Birmingham.

Wind gusts up to 45 mph will remain possible through tonight.

As of noon, Alabama Power personnel have restored service to over 2,000 customers in central Alabama since earlier this morning.

Work to restore service is ongoing.

UPDATED 10:30 A.M. SUNDAY:

Lee County EMA offices shut down after the National Weather Service canceled tropical storm watches and warnings for the local area.

Although steady gusts continue, the worst of the storm looks to be winding down.

Still, Alabama Power Company reports that 85,000 customers are without power.

Here is the latest from the National Weather Service:

**Tropical Storm Watches and Warnings Cancelled** NEW INFORMATION --------------- * CHANGES TO WATCHES AND WARNINGS: - The Tropical Storm Watch has been cancelled for Bullock, Fayette, Lamar, Macon, Marion, Pike, Randolph, Tallapoosa, and Winston - The Tropical Storm Warning has been cancelled for Autauga, Bibb, Blount, Calhoun, Cherokee, Chilton, Clay, Cleburne, Coosa, Dallas, Elmore, Etowah, Greene, Hale, Jefferson, Lowndes, Marengo, Montgomery, Perry, Pickens, Shelby, St. Clair, Sumter, Talladega, Tuscaloosa, and Walker * CURRENT WATCHES AND WARNINGS: - None * STORM INFORMATION: - About 40 miles southwest of Birmingham AL or about 80 miles northwest of Montgomery AL - 33.1N 87.3W - Storm Intensity 35 mph - Movement North-northeast or 30 degrees at 24 mph SITUATION OVERVIEW ------------------ Tropical Systems Nate has been downgraded to a Tropical Depression. Therefore, all Tropical Storm Warnings and Tropical Storm Watches have been cancelled. POTENTIAL IMPACTS ----------------- * WIND: Windy conditions are still possible and a Wind Advisory is now in effect. * FLOODING RAIN: Localized flooding remains possible and a Flash Flood Watch is in effect. * TORNADOES: A small tornado threat remains for the east half of Central Alabama.

UPDATED 7:30 A.M. SUNDAY:

Nate continues on its path north. Strong wind gusts, heavy rain and flickering power began in Tallapoosa County and portions of western Lee County.

The following updated in the forecast was released by the National Weather Service shortly before 5 a.m.:

Nate is expected to have possible significant impacts across much of Central Alabama on Sunday. Sustained winds of 40 to 50 mph may begin as early as 5 to 6 AM Sunday in the southwest counties. Conditions will worsen through Sunday morning into the afternoon as strong winds 30 to 40 mph and heavy rain spread northward. Wind gusts could reach 45 to 60 mph in a swath encompassing much of Central Alabama with 60 to 70 mph gusts possible in the far southwestern counties. Scattered to numerous downed trees may cause damage along with a significant number of power outages. The greatest wind gusts and impacts are expected to be generally along and east of a line from Pickensville to Lake Tuscaloosa to Blountsville. Isolated tornadoes are also possible Sunday generally along and east of a line from Livingston to Jasper. Conditions will improve Sunday night into Monday morning as Nate continues to weaken and move to the northeast.

UPDATED SATURDAY, 11 P.M.

Hurricane Nate came ashore a sparsely populated area at the mouth of the Mississippi River on Saturday and pelted the central Gulf Coast with wind and rain as the fast-moving storm headed toward the Mississippi coast, where it was expected to make another landfall and threatened to inundate homes and businesses.

Cities along the Mississippi coast such as Gulfport and Biloxi were on high alert. Some beachfront hotels and casinos were evacuated. Rain began falling on the region Saturday and forecasters called for 3 to 6 inches with as much as 10 inches in some isolated places.

Nate weakened slightly and was a Category 1 storm with maximum winds of 85 mph when it made landfall in a sparsely populated area of Plaquemines (PLAK'-uh-minz) Parish. Forecasters had said it was possible that it could strengthen to a Category 2, but that seemed less likely as the night wore on.

Lee County EMA urges preparedness

While the coastal southeast was anticipating the most direct impact from Nate, the Lee County Emergency Management Agency was urging local residents to be prepared for inclement weather such as strong winds and a slight risk of tornadoes.

Lee County was placed under a tropical storm watch and a wind advisory ahead of Nate's arrival and both are scheduled to be in place through this evening.

Rita Smith, public information officer for the Lee County EMA, said the office will be open and is on alert till the storm subsides.

"The Lee County EMA is continuing to monitor this storm due to the instability of wind gusts and slight risks for isolated tornadoes," Smith said.

As of Saturday evening, the Lee County area was listed as a slight risk area for isolated tornadoes. The area was also listed as a slight risk for wind gusts 35-45 mph, isolated power outages and scattered downed trees, according to information from the National Weather Service in Birmingham.

For those who don't feel safe in their homes, Smith said Providence Baptist Church, located at 2807 Lee Road 166 in Opelika, will serve as a "safer shelter."

"If you don't feel safe you can go there, it's nice. It's cozy," Smith said. She did advise that the building is only used as a shelter and people would need to bring bedding and items such as toiletries, food, medications and flashlights. No pets are allowed.

Along with being prepared, Smith said people can follow along with the Lee County EMA on both Facebook and Twitter.

"This county has some of the best responders I've ever worked with," Smith said. "We also have a lot of citizens who listen. We put it on Facebook, they take it. So we're really careful not to throw things on there that would scare people. But if the National Weather Service tells us something, we take it."

UPDATED SATURDAY, 5:45 P.M.

The Associated Press reported around 4:30 p.m. that The National Hurricane Center in Miami said Hurricane Nate is about 50 miles south of the mouth of the Mississippi River at Louisiana's southeastern tip. The storm is moving north-northwest toward the Gulf Coast at an unusually fast 23 mph.

With maximum sustained winds of 90 mph, Nate had not gained strength as of the center's 4 p.m. advisory. But forecasters said it might still reach Category 2 strength of 96 mph or more by the time it makes landfall.

Nate was on a track that could take it over or near the mouth of the Mississippi by around 7 p.m. on its way to a later landfall on the Louisiana or Mississippi coast.

UPDATED SATURDAY 1:20 P.M.

A wind advisory was issued for Lee County effective 7 p.m. Saturday through 10 p.m. Sunday, according to the National Weather Service out of Birmingham.

Sustained winds of 20-35 mph are possible with some gusts into the 35-45 mph range. The wind speeds and gusts are capable of snapping some tree limbs, damaging unsecured smaller outdoor items, and may produce isolated power outages, according to the NWS.

The National Hurricane Center said Saturday was Nate expected to be a Category 2 hurricane at landfall on Gulf Coast, according to an Associated Press news alert. Nate is expected to make landfall Saturday night along the central U.S. Gulf Coast.

The Lee County Emergency Management Agency is urging Lee County residents to start making preparations immediately.

UPDATED SATURDAY 9:30 A.M.

Lee County and the surrounding counties remain under a Tropical Storm watch through Sunday from the expected impact of Hurricane Nate.

At 6 a.m., the National Weather Service in Birmingham reported that the eye of Hurricane Nate was located about 540 miles south of Montgomery AL with a storm intensity of 80 mph winds, moving north-northwest.

Nate is expected to have possible significant impacts across much of Central Alabama on Sunday as a tropical storm. Sustained winds of 40 to 55 mph may begin as early as 4 AM Sunday in the southwest counties.

Conditions will worsen through Sunday morning into the afternoon as strong winds 30 to 40 mph and heavy rain spread northward. Wind gusts could reach 45 to 60 mph in a swath encompassing much of Central Alabama.

Isolated tornadoes are also possible Sunday afternoon generally along and south of Interstate 85. Conditions will improve Sunday night into Monday morning as Nate continues to weaken and move to the northeast.

UPDATED, FRIDAY 11:25 P.M.

Tropical Storm Nate was officially upgraded to a hurricane late Friday, according to The National Weather Service.

Hurricane Hunters found maximum sustained winds have increased to 75 mph, which makes Nate a Category 1 hurricane, according to weather.com.

As of 10:30 p.m., the Lee County area was still listed as under a tropical storm watch.

UPDATED, FRIDAY 6:45 P.M.

The Auburn-Opelika area has been placed under a tropical storm watch by the National Weather Service in anticipation of windy conditions over the next 48 hours from Tropical Storm Nate.

The watch, issued shortly after 4 p.m. Friday, is a notification of expected below tropical-force winds with the potential for tornadoes through late Sunday.

The latest local forecast predicts peak winds of 15-25 mph with gusts to 35 mph. However, the National Weather Service in Birmingham advises that emergency planning should include a reasonable threat for hazardous tropical force winds up to 57 mph.

In addition, the forecast lists somewhat favorable conditions for tornadoes during the watch.

Residents are advised to secure loose items outside their homes to prevent damage and injury from projectiles.

Expected rain amounts in the latest forecast continue to be 1-3 inches with locally higher amounts due to scattered thunderstorms. Localized flooding is possible, according to the NWS.

********

ORIGINAL STORY

Lee County residents can expect thunderstorms and windy conditions over the weekend as Tropical Storm Nate continues on its track to impact most of the state of Alabama.

According to Fridays 4 p.m. update from the National Weather Service, Nates impact is expected to affect the Lee County area starting Saturday afternoon and peaking Sunday shortly after 8 a.m. with a little more gusto than was expected 24 hours earlier.

The worst of the weather for Lee County looks like it will be between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. Sunday, said Jason Holmes, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Birmingham. There should only be one to three inches of rain, so were not really concerned about flooding. Power outages will be the real big story, with a threat of possible tornadic activity.

Local wind gusts early Sunday are expected to be between 20 and 30 miles per hour, with intensity progressing throughout the day. Later, there is a 50 to 60 percent chance that sustained winds could reach 40 miles per hour or greater. Gusts of 55 mph are possible later in the day.

At 4 p.m. CT on Friday, Nate was located southeast of Mexicos Yucatan Peninsula with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph and moving north-northwest at about 20 mph.

It is expected to be upgraded to Hurricane Nate sometime around 7 p.m. Saturday and come ashore as a Category-1 storm near Biloxi, Miss.

Holmes said that while Friday morning was a little too early to predict with certainty, the National Hurricane Center expects Nate to be a low-end hurricane, possibly a Category 1.

Thunderstorms are expected to start Saturday afternoon, continuing intermittently through Tuesday night.

Because wind gusts likely will topple trees and power lines, Lee County residents should prepare now to deal with possible power outages.

Now is the time to ensure you have what you need, said Rita Smith, public information officer for the Lee County Emergency Management Agency. Do you have a NOAA weather radio? Is it programmed? Do you have backup batteries for it?

Lee County EMA staff will be in their office at 908 Avenue B in Opelika on Saturday and can program weather radios at no charge for residents who need help doing so.

Smith advised that cellphones should be fully charged, as well as backup portable chargers. Playing cards, board games and other ways to pass the time that dont require electricity should be kept on hand, as theres no way to know how long a possible power outage might last.

Residents should purchase bottled water and non-perishable food items as soon as possible, before the storm impacts the area Sunday.

We also tell people to fill their bathtub with water, Smith said. You can use that water to flush toilets in case of a power outage. You can use it as water for your pets.

Preparations for greater impact are being made around the state after Governor Kay Ivey issued a statewide state of emergency, effective at Friday morning, in anticipation of the potential impacts of Tropical Storm Nate.

Forecasters said Nate is expected to be a compact, fast-moving storm, bringing direct impacts from high winds and heavy rain across the state.

Alabama Emergency Management Agency Director Brian Hastings said the time to prepare is now.

"Please build or restock your emergency preparedness kit," Hastings said. "Have a plan to communicate with family members if you lose power. Review your evacuation plan with your family. Stock your vehicle with emergency supplies and have a method to receive the latest weather updates and emergency instructions.

It is important for Alabama residents to understand the potential threat of this storm goes beyond the coastal counties,' Hastings added. "Everyone needs to closely monitor this system as it moves across the state in the coming days.

The State of Emergency will remain in effect until the threat diminishes.

Smith commended Lee County agencies for their preparedness and cleanup when Tropical Storm Irma created some wind damage and power outages here last month.

With Irma, Opelika Power and Alabama Power were awesome, she said. And Lee County is blessed to have so many really good first responders.

The EMA is posting updates on Nate, via its Facebook page, Lee County Alabama EMA. The Opelika-Auburn News also will continue to update the situation locally as the storm moves closer to the Gulf Coast.
PRSA/New York has joined national PRSAs press blackout of todays Assembly by refusing to supply any coverage of the meeting.

Chapter president Olga Gonzales refused to identify the six delegates at the meeting in Boston even though the chapter website promises their names. She referred questions to national staff which has not responded for many years.

Olga Gonzales

PRSA bylaw proposal 1702, changing PR to communications in most locations, has touched off a furious debate on the Societys website.

PRSA should be advocating on behalf of public relations, wrote Kay Barkin, MHMR, Fort Worth. The bylaw will be voted on today. Reporters are barred from the meeting and there is no live web coverage.

PRSA CCO Laura Kane, answering the critics, said only 13% of members have PR in their titles. We selected the term communications because it is more encompassing than PR.

The intention of the bylaw, she said, was to address the importance of digital and social on the profession as it continues to evolve. What has traditionally been defined as PR is now being described as social media, digital communications, content management and influencer marketing among others.

PRSA Should Promote PR, Says Member

Wouldnt it be the role of PRSA to help individuals with all these different titles to understand they are part of PR, instead of simply making PR part of communications? Barkin asks.

Titles that Kane had mentioned in a response to her would fit neatly under PR in the professions truest sense as strategies or tactics, and it seems to me PRSA should be advocating on behalf of PR, she added.

Anthony Hicks of SRVS, Memphis, said Completely eliminating the words PR from the bylaws of a professional assn. with PR in its official name, that is founded and grounded in PR, is a pretty significant move that seems to warrant a compromise.

The reason for the change, wrote Kane, was to take a forward look at where titles associated with our profession are headed.
By PTI: By Sajjad Hussain

Islamabad, Oct 7 (PTI) Pakistan today said that the USD 50 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor project is for development and it aims at the betterment of the people in the region.

The CPEC is a planned network of roads, railways and energy projects linking southern Pakistan, and the Gwadar Port, to Chinas restive Xinjiang Uyghur autonomous region.

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Foreign Office spokesman said this in response to a query regarding US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis statement on CPEC.

Mattis had said that the Belt and Road Initiative "also goes through disputed territory, and that in itself shows the vulnerability of trying to establish that sort of a dictate".

In a globalised world, there are many belts and many roads, and no one nation should put itself into a position of dictating One Belt, One Road (OBOR), Mattis had told a Senate Armed Services Committee during a Congressional hearing on October 4.

Mattis comments were widely interpreted as the US backing Indias stand on OBOR especially related to the USD 50 billion CPEC which is being built through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

The Pakistan Foreign Office spokesman said CPEC is for the betterment of the people and the region.

"CPEC is a development and connectivity project for the betterment of the people in the region and beyond," the spokesperson said.

He said as far as the Kashmir is concerned, efforts should be made to implement UN Security Council resolutions in the region.

"The international community should focus on human rights violations and heinous crimes committed in Kashmir," the spokesman said. PTI SH UZM

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Sinn Fein spokesperson on Community and Rural Development Carol Nolan TD has called on the Minister for Communications to intervene in the ongoing row between An Post and the Irish Postmasters Union over the future of the post office network.

The Offaly TD said, The programme for Government makes a clear commitment that this government would act swiftly on the recommendations of the Report of the Post Office Network Business Development Group. Unfortunately, very little progress has been made with respect to the implementation of these recommendations.

Deputy Nolan welcomed the fact that the Irish Postmasters Union have taken the decision to engage with the roll out of the new smart account, although she said she was 'horrified' that this was brought about after reported threats to the contracts of postmasters.

The rejection by the union of a proposal by An Post on the future of Post Offices clearly indicates the growing level of concern that Irish Postmasters have in relation to the direction of the network.

In particular the emphasis on the commercial aspect of post offices ignores the social function of the local post office as a hub for small rural communities.

I welcome the fact that the Minister is due to meet with members of the Irish Postmasters union tomorrow to discuss their concerns.

I urge him to intervene and work with both An Post and the Postmasters in order to establish a comprehensive investment and development strategy in order to secure the future of the post office network, Deputy Nolan concluded.
By PTI: Rajendran

Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 7 (PTI) The CPI in Kerala today said the party was not averse to joining hands with the Congress to take on the BJP.

CPI state secretary Kannam Rajendran, however, saidthe stand on an electoral alliance would be clear only after its 23rd party congress next year.

The CPI is of the opinion that all democratic forces in the country, including the Congress, have to move together to fight the BJP and RSS, he told reporters here.

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However, fighting elections is based on coalition politics and a decision on that could be arrived only after discussions, Rajendran said.

Asked if the Congress would be included in the Left parties fight, along with "democratic forces", against the "Sangh Parivar policies", the CPI leader said, the Congress is not an "untouchable".

The party congress of both the CPI and the CPI(M) is scheduled to be held next year and a concrete stand on their electoral approach would be clear only after that, Rajendran said.

The CPI is the second largest partner in the the CPI(M)- led LDF government in Kerala.

Attacking the BJP government at the Centre over implementation of the GST, Rajendran said the slogan of One tax-One nation has caused suffering to the people.

"Similarly, they are unilaterally trying to impose ideas such as one language-one nation, one election-one nation, and one nation-one religion," he alleged.

The CPI leader also alleged that the ongoing Jana Raksha Yatra led by state BJP chief Kummanam Rajasekharaan was only to create communal tension in the state.

Flaying BJP president Amit Shahs comment on love jihad in the state, Rajendran said such remarks only aimed at tarnishing the image of Kerala at the national level.

Shah had said, "Love jihad is a dangerous trend. The Kerala government has not taken effective steps to check it. The Supreme Court has already passed an order on it and the NIA is investigating it."

Asked whether the Kerala Congress (M), led by former state minister K M Mani, would be invited to join the LDF, the CPI leader said no such discussion were underway.

He also rejected any possibility of accepting Bharat Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS), floated by Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam, into the LDF fold, if it came out of the NDA. PTI JRK SS NSD

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People who don't get vaccinated are the most likely reason for the steady increase in the rate of measles and major outbreaks in the United States, according to an analysis released Tuesday.

The findings, published in JAMA Pediatrics, add to the body of evidence linking failure to vaccinate with the spread of the highly infectious and potentially fatal disease. Once common in the United States, measles was eliminated nationally in 2000 but has made a return in recent years largely because of people who reject vaccinating their children, experts say.

Most of those cases occur when the disease is brought into the country by unvaccinated people who get infected in other countries, where measles may remain endemic. The 2014-2015 outbreak that originated at Disneyland most likely started when a traveler who became infected overseas visited the theme park.

In the latest findings, researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention analyzed 1,789 measles cases among U.S. residents reported to the CDC from January 2001 through December 2015. They found that nearly 70 percent, or 1,243 individuals, were unvaccinated.

Babies and toddlers had the least protection. Of 163 infants ages 6 to 11 months who became sick, only two had been vaccinated. Among 106 toddlers ages 12 to 15 months, 95 were unvaccinated.

Federal guidelines typically recommend that children get their first vaccine dose at 12 to 15 months of age and the second when they are ages 4 to 6. (Babies may be vaccinated at 6 months or older if they are at risk of exposure to measles, by traveling to an area with an outbreak, for example.) Two doses of vaccine are 97 percent effective in preventing the viral disease, which can cause pneumonia, brain swelling, deafness and, in rare instances, death.

The authors said the rate of measles increased over time, with 10 of 13 outbreaks with at least 20 cases occurring after 2010. In 2014, the United States recorded 667 measles cases, a record since the disease's official elimination. One major outbreak that year occurred primarily among unvaccinated Amish communities in Ohio.

The analysis also shows that the proportion of imported cases has declined over time, while the proportion of people getting infected in the United States rose. Imported cases of measles fell from almost 47 percent of all cases in 2001 to about 15 percent in 2015, the data show.

The trend is significant because it may suggest "increased susceptibility and transmission" in certain U.S. communities where many people are unvaccinated, said Nakia Clemmons, a CDC epidemiologist who conducted the analysis.

A common scenario is this: A family leaves the country on vacation and one child gets infected and develops measles upon returning to the United States. "Then the child goes to a play group with other kids who are unvaccinated, and those kids catch measles," said Saad Omer, a professor of global health, epidemiology and pediatrics at Emory University.

Omer, who was not involved in the analysis, said the data illustrate the increasing number of "pockets of vulnerability" in the United States. Cases typically occur in such communities as well as in metropolitan areas or those with major ports of entry. During the 15-year period studied, the largest number of cases were in California (380), New York (250), Ohio (396) and Washington state (102).

Although measles vaccination rates remain high overall nationally, there are communities across the country where vaccine coverage is slipping below the 90 percent to 95 percent level that experts say is needed to prevent an outbreak.

The authors said one limitation of their analysis was the lack of verifiable immunization on nearly half of the adult cases. Still, public health officials said the bottom line is clear.

"Americans should get vaccinated and make sure that we maintain this social norm in our play groups, in all of our communities," Omer said.

The spread of measles in communities of unvaccinated people increases the risk for transmission to vulnerable groups, such as people who can't be vaccinated because of underlying medical conditions or babies too young to be vaccinated.

In studying the data, researchers also looked for clues about the vaccine's effectiveness. If it were not working well, researchers would expect "to see more vaccinated cases having measles," Clemmons said. But that was not the case.

And if vaccine performance had decreased over time, researchers would have expected to see higher rates of measles among older age groups but that was also not the case, she said.
The CRPF has sent 21,000 rounds of newly-developed and "less lethal" plastic bullets to the Kashmir Valley to tackle street protests, says a top officer of the force.

By PTI: The CRPF has sent 21,000 rounds of newly-developed and "less lethal" plastic bullets to the Kashmir Valley to tackle street protests, says a top officer of the force.

The bullets, developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and manufactured by the Ordnance factory based in Pune, can be fitted in the AK series of assault rifles and will be an alternative to the much-criticised pellet shotguns.

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"Tests have shown that these plastic bullets are less lethal. This will reduce our dependence on pellet guns and other non-lethal weapons used for crowd control," CRPF Director General (DG) R R Bhatnagar told PTI.

He said this will be newest less lethal ammunition the force has introduced to tackle crowds and counter stone pelters in the Valley.

"About 21,000 rounds have just been sent for distribution to all our units," the DG said.

The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), deployed in counter-insurgency and law and order operations in Jammu and Kashmir, had ordered for the plastic bullets so that troops can just replace lethal metal bullets and use the new plastic ones.

Bhatnagar said both 47 and 56, the AK series of rifles, are used by the CRPF units deployed in the Kashmir Valley. The bullets have been prepared in such a calibre that it fits the barrel, he added.

"As soon as a crowd or stone pelting incident is encountered, the troops just need to change the bullets and fire," the DG said.

Bhatnagar added that the force has not done away with other non-lethal weapons and is getting more pump action guns fitted with metal deflectors so that pellet injuries do not go above the waist.

"Even our specialised anti-riot unit RAF can use it at some point of time to render their duties. We will see how to go about it in the future," the DG said.

The usage of pellets in the Kashmir Valley had come under heavy criticism after locals suffered grievous injuries, including blindness in some cases, in the last few years.

The Union government had then ordered for the introduction of chilli-based PAVA shells to replace the pellet shotguns.

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LINCOLN  A caseworker at the Nebraska State Penitentiary who was arrested Friday was the source of synthetic marijuana used this week by inmates, prison officials said.

Jami Cutshall, 33, was being held at the Lancaster County Jail on suspicion of unauthorized communications with a committed offender, unlawful acts by a corrections employee and sex abuse of an inmate or parolee.

Many of the prisons operations were modified this week after some inmates were found to be using K2.

The introduction of any contraband into prisons puts my staff and the incarcerated population in danger, said Scott Frakes, the director of the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services. Drugs are especially dangerous due to the possible medical reactions and potential for violence.

Cutshall, who was arrested by the Nebraska State Patrol, has been a caseworker at the penitentiary since her state prisons employment began in July 2015. She was suspended without pay, pending personnel action.

A week ago, prison officials suspected at least 15 inmates of using the synthetic drug. On Friday, five of eight housing units at the penitentiary were in modified operations as more inmates used K2.

Inmates in housing units 2, 3, 6, 7 and 8 will have no visits through Sunday, officials said. Units 1, 4 and 5 will operate normally, which includes the usual visiting schedule.
One South Omaha man always leaves the doors of his 1997 Honda Accord unlocked so thieves dont break the windows. The car was stolen one night last week.

The next day, a woman left her 2008 Pontiac G6 running outside her South Omaha home to run inside and grab her dog. The car was gone by the time she returned.

And two 1990s Honda Civics were taken last week on the same night near 76th and Pacific Streets.

Last year the Omaha area had 4,079 vehicle thefts. According to recently released 2016 FBI crime statistics, the areas rate of about 442 vehicle thefts per 100,000 residents ranked 18th among the 100 most-populous cities.

The metro area, which is the 53rd-most-populous, includes the five Nebraska counties surrounding Omaha and three adjacent Iowa counties.

The area ranked in the middle of the pack or below for rates of violent crimes, robberies, rapes, property crime, burglary and other crimes. Fewer people were slain in the area in 2016 than in 2015, dropping the metro area to 63rd for murder.

Omaha Deputy Police Chief Kerry Neumann said car thieves are repeat offenders who may steal dozens or hundreds of cars per year. They target vehicles that are running, unlocked or easy to steal  1990s-model Honda Accords and Civics are common targets. (Matthew Gottsch, a service manager at Exclusive Repair, said once thieves get inside those cars they can take apart the ignition switches and start the cars with a screwdriver.)

About 75 percent of stolen vehicles are recovered, Neumann said.

Many times, he said, thieves are charged with misdemeanors because of the low value of the vehicles they steal. They then receive probation or a short time in jail, he said, and most likely will reoffend.

The risk and punitive damages for them is very low, he said.

Last year, in the city of Omaha alone, 3,125 vehicle thefts occurred, marking a gradual increase since 2009  with the exception of a sharp decrease in 2015, which had 2,543 thefts.

Neumann touted the departments arrest clearance rate for vehicle thefts  25 percent in 2015 compared with the national average of 13 percent.

When the department created a separate auto theft unit in 2015, the clearance rate rose more than 10 percentage points.

The officers in the unit know the ins and outs of these, Neumann said. Theyre very skilled at what they do and very knowledgeable.

Kori Colens 1997 Honda Civic was stolen while she worked at Freddys Frozen Custard & Steakburgers at 7419 Dodge St. last week. It was the second time within two months that it had been stolen  someone took it when it was parked at the University of Nebraska at Omaha in August, full of her belongings because she was moving. Colen said she thinks the thieves broke into the car and found a spare key inside.

She had gotten her car back only a couple of weeks ago before it was stolen again.

Colens boyfriend and friends were helping her get around, but she said shes frustrated because of the money she spent to fix the car after the first theft.

On Monday, authorities recovered her car, but Colen said Thursday that she had not yet gotten it out of the citys impound lot.

A vehicle that is found will be processed for evidence and turned over to the owners if officers can reach them, Neumann said. Otherwise it will be towed to the impound lot at 78th and F Streets.

Vehicle owners must pay a $95 tow fee and $50 administration fee. The first three days of the $20 daily storage fee are waived. Neumann said insurance may cover those fees.

I definitely want to buy a different car that has a better alarm system, Colen said. It sucks. If people are going to steal your car, theyre going to steal your car.

Neumann suggests that owners of the susceptible 90s Honda Civics and Accords buy anti-theft devices or car alarms.

Gottsch, with Exclusive Repair, said owners should consider getting a different car  at least one thats newer than 2002  to reduce the theft risk.

Most importantly, they shouldnt leave the keys in the car  even if the car is in a garage  and never leave it running unattended. Vehicle thefts increase in the winter months because people want to warm up the car while they go inside and wait.

If youre going to do that, you cant leave that vehicle unattended. Either sit in the car or watch whats going on, Neumann said. Prevention is the key.

Mick Manley, an agent for Farmers Insurance, suggests that if a person has a vehicle that is less than 10 years old, its worth it to have theft coverage.

Owners should review their insurance with their agents to make sure theyre not under- or over-insured.

You need to be in contact with your agent, Manley said. Each persons situation is different.
For Alicia Gates, volunteering an hour of her Friday afternoon meant more than just participating in a day of community service.

Gates, 37, remembers her first foster home placement, showing up with little more than the clothes she wore to school.

We didnt have anything like this, Gates said, looking out over the two long tables full of donated toiletries, stuffed animals and fleece blankets. The hundreds of items, collected from First National Bank employees, will be packed into bags for the Nebraska Families Collaboratives Duffels 4 Dignity program. The program began in 2013, when staff noticed that many children transitioning into foster care were transporting their personal belongings in trash bags.

For the past few years, the agency has been relying on community donations to help fill duffel bags with personal care items and a soft toy or blanket for each child. But lately, the shelves of donations for the program have been sparse.

Enter First National Bank. As part of 24 Hours of Impact, First National was one of several companies that encouraged employees to get involved in one of a handful of community service opportunities on Friday, including organizing and packing items for the Duffels 4 Dignity program.

Viv Ewing, vice president of human resources and community relations, said the items collected by the banks employees will help fill a couple hundred bags for children. Each bag will also have an encouraging note written by the bank employees.

Gates, who works in operations at the bank, said she hopes that the bags give each foster child a sense of hope.

I hope its a reminder that people in their community care about them, she said.

That was the goal behind 24 Hours of Impact, now in its third year. This years participating groups organized a car wash, a trash pickup and several small service projects at area nonprofits and shelters.

Dan Hanus, one of the 24 Hours of Impact committee members, estimated that the events equaled about 300 hours of community service.

That number was smaller than the past two years, Hanus said, but he hopes that the message continues to grow and spread.

Its just about encouraging people to help someone  we dont need to hear about it, it doesnt have to be organized by a company. Its just about a day full of small acts of helping our community.

Those small acts add up, said Tina Anderson, who also works in operations at First National Bank and helped pack the donated items for Duffels 4 Dignity.

After a week of listening to the coverage of the mass shooting in Las Vegas on Sunday, Anderson said she was happy to spend her afternoon giving.

This day of volunteering does come at a good time. Its a reminder that we should always be proactive about serving, Anderson said. It just takes an hour out of your day to make an impact.
By Kamlesh Damodar Sutar: PM Narendra Modi is pushing for a clean and open defecation free India through campaigns. But, in rural Maharashtra this has gone horribly wrong as a Zilla Parishad (ZP) CEO went overboard with the mission and in an attempt to shame those defecating in open 'felicitated' women by garlanding them. The ZP CEO Rajendra Bharud, who is an IAS officer, didn't stop at that, he sent those pictures to mediapersons for 'publicity'.

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The shocking incident took place in Chikmahud village in Solapur district.

According to villagers these women were poor labourers who had no access to toilets.

The ZP CEO was in the village to spread awareness about building toilets. He took a round early in the morning with the 'Good Morning Squads' and garlanded two women who were returning after defecating in the open.

Women politicians have slammed the move and demanded immediate action.

Speaking to India Today, MLA from Solapur Praniti Shinde has demanded immediate suspension of the ZP CEO. "This kind of insulting behaviour towards women is harassment of women and this certainly has percolated from the top. The CEO should also be booked under provisions of IT Act for circulating such pictures of women," Praniti demanded.

Shiv Sena leader Neelam Gorhe has demanded a thorough inquiry into the incident.

"Whatever the intention is, such brutal use of force will not serve any purpose. There have been earlier instances where 'Good Morning Squads' have gone overboard. The matter should be thoroughly probed," Gorhe demanded.

After the incident received flak from activists, ZP CEO Rajendra Bharud said, "We did not felicitate the women or shame them. Local women from self help group did that. I am against any such photo session. I had even asked not to make these pictures viral."

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The human experience in Nebraska has long been shaped by how wisely or irresponsibly people make use of our areas precious natural resources. Sound stewardship is vital to the states future.

Each year The World-Herald and the University of Nebraska-Lincolns Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources present Master Conservationist awards to highlight and salute outstanding approaches toward management of Nebraskas land and water resources.

The two recipients for 2017: farmer Dennis Wacker, who has had major success after converting his 500-acre, 117-year-old family farm in Pierce County to certified organic, and the Success Academy in Grand Island, a student group that has planted multiple habitats to host migrating monarch butterflies and help young people understand environmental stewardship and science.

The organic years have been the most profitable years this old farmers had, Wacker, 70, told The World-Heralds Elizabeth Rembert.

Wacker plants different crops in alternate strips to prevent soil erosion and uses irrigation and weeding techniques as alternatives to traditional reliance on pesticides and other chemicals. He credits support he received from other farmers and from the northeast Nebraska Resource Conservation & Development agency in Plainview.

Im not saying everyone needs to be organic, Wacker says, but we need to be careful about what were doing to the environment.

In Grand Island, the work by students in the Success Academy tackled a major concern: supporting the monarch butterfly population, which has seen a significant decline here and nationally in recent decades.

The Success Academy, an alternative education program for middle and high schoolers in the Grand Island Public Schools, converted more than four acres into a butterfly-friendly habitat by planting 44 live plants and 30 pounds of seeds.

The students received support from a variety of people and groups: Grand Island Public Schools teachers and students, including Ken DeFrank, principal of the Success Academy; the Nebraska Wildlife Foundation; Grand Islands Roots and Shoots program and the Central Platte Natural Resources District.

Pheasants Forever helped in a big way by donating $1,200 worth of seeds for milkweed, prairie grass and pollinator plants.

These Master Conservationists  Dennis Wacker and the students of the Success Academy  provide great examples of responsible care for Nebraskas natural resources.
by  Graham Pierrepoint



Harvey Weinstein is arguably one of the most important people in Hollywood. He helped to lead Miramax into the spotlight and has acted as a producer on films as successful as Pulp Fiction and Scream  and hes also, of course, an important force as part of the Weinstein Company studio. However, revelations made in the New York Times in recent days appear to make allegations that could prove shocking if verified in the long term.

According to the outlet, it is being alleged that Weinstein has been responsible for the harassment of several women in the film industry spanning decades  alleging a huge abuse of his power that has resulted in the studio mogul taking temporary leave to deal with (the issue) head on. Among those alleging sexual harassment at the hands of Mr Weinstein include actresses and colleagues alike  among them, household names such as Rose McGowan and Ashley Judd. Its beyond time to have the conversation publicly, states Judd of women talking amongst themselves about Weinsteins actions in the past.

Sources also state that Weinstein has previously settled accusations made by women several times in the past  though official sources wish not to reveal further details on the ground of anonymity. Among those making allegations supposedly include assistants, models and actresses  and while Weinstein himself is denying much of the allegations through legal representation, he has apologized for the fact that the way (he) behaved with colleagues in the past having caused a lot of pain. Though Im trying to do better, I know I have a long way to go, the mogul adds.

Weinsteins lawyers have outright stated that the boss denies many of the accusations as patently false. Those arguing for Weinsteins guilt state that there is a common narrative in accusations made by different women  and it seems that the recent outing of more allegations has encouraged the studio executive to take time away from the workplace. It is reported that Weinstein will be consulting therapy to be able to process the allegations  and it is not entirely clear what will happens regarding said claims once the movie boss returns. However, what is clear that a lot of women feel the same way  and while Weinsteins lawyers may advise that much of the accusations being made are fictitious, they could end up having to defend him further in the near future.
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By Maneesh Pandey: The Centre wants Delhi's AAP government to put its money where its mouth is to prevent an impending increase in Metro fares. Following a wave of criticism from the city's ruling party led by chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, Union housing and urban affairs minister Hardeep Singh Puri turned the tables on the CM by asking him to pay a price to halt the hike. "If you want low fares, state govt has to give a huge Rs 3,000 crore to DMRC since operational loss is the responsibility of the state government," Puri wrote in a letter to Kejriwal.

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A fare fixation committee (FFC) set up by the Centre had advised a hike to be implemented in two phases: once in May and the other in October. So, the minimum fare was raised from Rs 8 to Rs 10 and maximum from Rs 30 to Rs 50 five months ago. From October 10, the price is set to go up by Rs 5-10 for more than two kilometres. The move will affect over 27 lakh people who travel by the Metro on a day. The previous revision of fares was done in 2009. Despite repeated attempts, Mail Today could not contact the Delhi government spokesperson for a response. The CM too has not reacted on the matter so far.

Sources say Since the Metro Act does not allow the Centre to put on hold the proposed hike, setting up a fresh FFC could be be considered if the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government agrees to pay up about Rs 3,000 crore annually for five years to Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC). The development has deepened a longstanding feud between the two governments led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Kejriwal over a range of issues.

The power struggle is rooted in Delhi's unique position as a union territory functioning as the Capital, with the state government having no say over several important departments and agencies that function under the lieutenant governor, who reports to the Centre. The Supreme Court next week will hear a petition from the AAP government challenging the powers of the L-G. The Aam Aadmi Party has also threatened to launch protests in the Capital over the Metro fare hike. The five-page letter of Puri addressed to the CM is a response to Kejriwal's September 29 letter to the central government, asking it to direct the DMRC to put the proposed fare revision on hold.

The AAP convener had also called for an independent audit of the DMRC, saying private power distribution companies in the Capital had earlier shown fake losses to justify a tariff hike. In a blunt tone, the Union minister's letter noted: "The alternative is to provide to the DMRC grants-in-aid every year over the next five years, starting from 2017-18 to the tune of Rs 3,040 crore, Rs 3,616 crore, Rs 3,318 crore, Rs 3,150 crore and Rs 2,980 crore for 2021-22 to meet loan repayment liabilities. In case the state government agrees to provide grants-in-aid of nearly Rs 3,000 crore per annum to DMRC, then another FFC may be constituted."

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Attacking the Delhi government's alleged politics of populism, as the AAP first wooed voters with promises of cheap electricity and water and is now campaigning for low Metro fares, Puri produced some comparisons. "The fares charged by DMRC are far lower than those of the Metros in other parts of the country like Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kochi and Lucknow. You will appreciate that the Per Capita Income of all these cities is far less than that of Delhi," he wrote. His letter took a jibe at the Delhi government's handling of its DTC bus fleet. "I am sure it is not our intention that the DMRC, which offers world class facility, should meet a similar (DTC's) fate," it said.

Puri also slammed the state government on delays caused to the phase-IV Metro projects. "You (Kejriwal) had assured me when we met on 26 September, 2017 that you would convey the state government's clearance for Phase IV in ten days time. As a citizen of Delhi, this would make me immensely happy." he signed off.

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An 82-year-old woman, her three daughters and a guard were found dead at their home in Shahdara's Mansarovar Park.

By India Today Web Desk: An 82-year-old woman, her three daughters and a male guard were found dead inside a house on Saturday in Delhi, police said.

The four women belonged to a family having oil business in the area. They were found dead at their house in Shahdara's Mansarovar Park area, according to Deputy Commissioner of Police Nupur Prasad.

The deceased have been identified as Urmila Jindal, and her daughters Sangeeta, 56, Nupur, 48, and Anjali, 38.

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The guard has been identified as Rakesh, 42.

According to a media report, a sharp weapon has also been recovered from the spot. It is believed that the weapon was used to stab the five victims.

PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION

The police control room received a call about the incident around 7 am on Saturday.

Preliminary investigation showed there was "no forced entry" into the house and no valuables were stolen, a police officer said.

The 42-year-old guard was killed on the ground floor and the women on the first.

The first floor where the three women were killed has only one room, and the dead body of the guard was found near the staircase.

One of the family members, Rakesh Jindal, said, "Four members of my uncle's family were killed by criminals. We are suspecting labourers who were doing whitewash."

"There were 40 members in our family living in the ancestral house. No one heard anything."

A friend of one of deceased was quoted by ANI, "I got a call from a friend and got to know about the incident. Four family members and one guard were murdered. Some days ago, tension regarding property dispute was going on."

"The crime scene indicates a friendly entry. Can't say motive behind the murders now but we have a few inputs and probe is underway," Special Police Commissioner said.

It is suspected that the killings could be a fallout of a property dispute, according to the police.

Watch the video here: 5 murdered in Delhi house while 40 family members were asleep

--- ENDS ---
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There have been a few signs over the past year that things are terribly amiss within the state agency tasked with watching over the businesses that care for more than 100,000 babies and young children.

In June, The Oregonian/OregonLive's Brad Schmidt detailed how Oregon's Office of Child Care allowed a Keizer day care center to continue operating over nine years collecting more than 100 violations and logging the state's highest count of broken bones. The agency's response to the troubling pattern? Fines totaling just $325.

The story helped illustrate the findings of a 2016 state audit critical of the agency's systemic failures to identify problem facilities and act quickly to be sure kids are safe.

Then last week, the agency's governing body ignored recommendations by the Oregon Health Authority and the Department of Education that licensed day care centers test their water for lead. Instead, the Early Learning Council decided it was a "huge burden" to require operators to cover tests estimated to cost between $63 and $95.

Concern that facilities might close - broken by the $100 charge - apparently outweighs the risk that young children could suffer lasting learning disabilities or nervous system damage from even a low-level exposure to lead.

Lead is a neurotoxin that's most dangerous for children 6 and younger - the very population likely to spend large portions of their days in care centers. As Schmidt reported, at least five other states have figured out that this is a valid concern they should address. Among them is Washington, where leaders shrugged off questions about cost and required licensed daycare providers to test their water by the end of the year.

But no, the Early Learning Council seems more worried about operators' financial health than children's health. As one member, Bobbie Weber, put it, "we're going to run these people out of business." She went on to ask what good comes from testing if facilities can't be forced to fix the problem?

Now it's encouraging when regulators take the time to consider the impact of their decisions, especially those likely to hit smaller businesses harder than their larger competitors. In fact, most day care operate on increasingly thin margins. That's especially true for businesses anticipating minimum wage increases rolling out in coming years.

It's also true that parents sometimes struggle to find affordable child care, especially in Oregon's smaller towns. The state has argued that in some cases, their reluctance to shut down problem operators stemmed from concern they'd leave some families in the lurch.

But to answer Weber's question, the good that would come from lead testing is transparency and integrity, which is listed as one of the council's core values.

Parents have a right to know whether the facilities where they leave their children are safe. And it's the state's job to help establish the definition of safety. Water without neurotoxins is a good start.

For those with tainted water, the solutions may not be so complicated or costly. Parents could be asked to provide their own bottles or other drinks from home. Operators also could use water coolers, as Portland Public Schools officials have done at many buildings since the district's own lead crisis was discovered more than a year ago.

Instead, Oregon's day care regulators plan to rely on videos to train workers. They also plan to require daycare staff to run water for two minutes if a tap hasn't been used for more than six hours.

Yet these recommendations are simply unacceptable. Council members should take another look at this issue and consider the very young Oregonians who they're tasked to protect. They could also take another look at their governing body's mission statement, "to support all Oregon families to learn and thrive."

Lastly, they could take a look at the agency's budget. On Sept. 13, the state hired a public relations company to "craft persuasive messages" to address questions being raised by Schmidt and other reporters about these ongoing issues.

Instead of spending $9,900 on out-of-state spin masters, perhaps the money could go toward grants to help struggling operators pay for lead tests.

Just a thought.

-- The Oregonian/OregonLive Editorial Board

Oregonian editorials

Editorials reflect the collective opinion of The Oregonian/OregonLive editorial board, which operates independently of the newsroom. Members of the editorial board are Laura Gunderson, Helen Jung, Mark Katches and John Maher.

To respond to this editorial, post your comment below, submit an OpEd or a letter to the editor.

If you have questions about the opinion section, email Laura Gunderson, editorial pages editor, or call 503-221-8378.
(No) gun control: If we don't think that a few shooters committing mass murder should lead to gun control, why do we think a few terrorists should lead to banning a whole country?

Kevin Smith, Northeast Portland

Diplomacy works: October 15 is the date by which President Trump must either recertify/extend or end U.S. involvement in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action - "the Iran Deal." As The Oregonian reported on September 20, Mr. Trump indicated in his United Nations address that he does not like this accord and is leaning toward withdrawing the U.S. from it. Sadly, he has affirmed his position since that time.

The deal, negotiated between the United States with five other nations and Iran, was ratified by Congress in fall 2015. It is considered internationally to be a major victory in diplomacy. In addition, by all U.S. and international intelligence reports, Iran is keeping its end of the bargain and the accord is widely seen as working successfully.

The consequences of the U.S. pulling out of the deal include international opposition and isolation. It also could pave a catastrophic path toward greater instability in the Middle East and war with Iran. Surely, this would be disastrous for the entire world.

It may be a novel concept to Mr. Trump, but diplomacy does work. The Iran deal is an excellent example where international cooperation is preserving peace and removing the peril of one more nation developing nuclear weapons. It would be highly irresponsible at this time, with many areas of tension in the world, for President Trump to be so brazen as to jeopardize millions of innocent lives and world peace by ending the Iran deal. We must stop that from happening.

Maxine Fookson, Southeast Portland
A top Clackamas County sheriff's supervisor was placed on paid administrative leave this week amid allegations that male deputies staged a nude photoshoot at the courthouse after hours for a calendar they gave to a retiring colleague.

The Sheriff's Office will launch an internal investigation, officials said Friday.

The allegations were contained in an anonymous letter addressed to Sheriff Craig Roberts and also mailed to The Oregonian/OregonLive.

The letter writer said the calendar contains photos that include nude deputies with objects hiding their genitals, including a gun belt and a firefighter's hat, another nude deputy on a desk with his backside facing the camera and shirtless deputies posing in a flower bed, on the second floor of the courthouse, and with an assault rifle and a cat.

Capt. Dave O'Shaughnessy, a 24-year veteran with the Sheriff's Office who heads the civil division, is now on leave, said Deputy Ben Frazier, an agency spokesman. O'Shaughnessy supervises courthouse deputies, among other duties.

The allegations are being taken "very seriously" and employees will be held accountable if any laws or policies are determined to have been violated, the sheriff said.

"Behavior like this, if true, is not acceptable and extremely troubling," Roberts said.

KPTV first reported the investigation.

The unsigned, typed letter said the calendar was meant to mock gay men. The letter writer didn't identify himself but said his wife, a state worker, told him a courthouse deputy "was laughing and bragging to her" about the calendar last week.

The letter does not name any of those involved, but said a commander, supervisor and deputies were among those who took part in the photoshoot. The photos were taken on a Saturday in and around the county courthouse in Oregon City, the letter said.

The calendar was presented to the retiring deputy at the end of the retirement party by a sheriff's office commander to prevent another supervisor from finding out about it, the letter said.

-- Everton Bailey Jr.

ebailey@oregonian.com

503-221-8343; @EvertonBailey
China seems to be developing the Doklam dispute as a template to drive a wedge between India and Bhutan. India has so far resisted this attempt. But, are there other goals for China?

By Prabhash K Dutta: The Ministry of External Affairs has denied that there is any change in the status quo at Doklam as agreed on August 25 between India and China paving way for "disengagement" at the disputed site.

Following the "disengagement" understanding, Indian troops came back to their posts in Doklam. Chinese troops too pulled back. But, they stayed put at about 800 metres from the site of stand-off.

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There are reports suggesting that the People Liberation Army of China has been building up its strength in the vicinity of the Doklam. China has officially reiterated its sovereign claim over Doklam plateau. But, the Indian side has maintained that the status quo agreed in August has not been altered.

Meanwhile, Indian forces have also strengthened their presence in the high mountainous regions for better acclimatisation to keep themselves ready in the event of any Chinese adventure along the borders - near Doklam or any other part of about 3,800 km-long boundary.

WHY CHINA IS INSISTENT UPON DOKLAM?

Many observers believe that Doklam build up by the Chinese side is largely due to the domestic political compulsions of President Xi Jinping, who is facing a stiff opposition in the Communist Party of China from the loyalists of former President Jiang Zemin, who continues to wield significant influence in the ruling party.

Jinping is hoping for an unprecedented third term in 2022. But, for this to happen he needs the decision to be approved by the CPC Congress, which will be held from October 18 in Beijing. The loyalists of Zemin are said to be against the idea of re-electing Jinping for the third time.

However, another set of observers believe that Doklam is a plot in the larger geostrategic game of China which it is playing with India. China harbours an ambition of replacing the US as the world leader. Its various infrastructure projects including One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiative and development ventures in many countries are part of that strategy.

INDIA, CHINA AS RIVALS

China finds India as a big stumbling rock in its global ambition. The hangover of 1962 war makes Beijing believe that if India is again demoralised militarily - not necessarily in direct conflict, it will establish China head and shoulder above India.

The military and economic gaps between India and China have grown wider over the last four-five decades. But, since the turn of the century, India has gained much confidence in dealing with China on both military and economic fronts. With Pakistan falling prey to the monster of terrorism that it created itself, China is the only rival of India for future.

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Since the days of Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, India has focused on planning developmental projects in the areas bordering China. Manmohan Singh's government worked on improving connectivity in those areas. But, the process has gained a fresh momentum under the Narendra Modi government.

With the change in attitude towards China, the construction of dual use - military and civilian - infrastructure in Arunachal Pradesh and other states with international boundaries have been stepped up.

Security cooperation with Japan, Vietnam, Australia and the US has deepened. India is expanding its reach in the Pacific region. Narendra Modi government has increased focus on the northeast region for strategic purposes. Narendra Modi has travelled to the region, including Arunachal Pradesh, a few times.

In 2016, the US ambassador was encouraged to tour Arunachal Pradesh. Six months later in February this year, Tibetan leader Dalai Lama was permitted to tour extensively in Arunachal Pradesh including Tawang.

Dalai Lama's Tawang visit received wide publicity and huge participation by the local people. This all happened while China kept expressing its opposition to validate its claim over Arunachal Pradesh, which it describes as South Tibet.

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MESSAGE FROM CHINA

Doklam is a territory that is disputed between Bhutan and China. Located near India, China and Bhutan tri-junction, Doklam is inhabited by Bhutan's pastoral communities and seasonally frequented by Tibetan herders. For long, China laid claim on entire Bhutan terming it part of Tibet.

Chinese logic is this: if Tibet forms part of China (India agrees to this), then all those regions that were part of Tibetan kingdom in the past legally belong to it. It was only during 1980s that China agreed to engage with Bhutan as an independent country.

India and Bhutan have a security arrangement under which New Delhi is bound to protect sovereign rights of Thimphu against external forces. China and Bhutan have border disputes in three pockets. It is believed that China wants to test if India would actually resort to military option to defend its ally.

Doklam stand-off happened as part of the Chinese scheme of testing India's willingness in standing by its allies. Doklam tension may also be an attempt by China to create a divide between India and Bhutan.

Some other countries like Nepal, Sri Lanka and the Maldives have traditionally looked to India for some degree of security and protection. China has been trying for years now to wean away these countries from India's security system.

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Some other Southeast Asian countries like Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia have shown increasing inclination in having some sort of security ties with India. China has been vying for similar arrangements. But, China has turned out to be unreliable partner.

China has been heavily constructing infrastructure in border areas. In some cases, these activities have helped it expand its effective territorial control. China has captured Paracel and Spratly in the South China Sea region from Vietnam with massive construction on uninhabited islands.

China may be willing to replicate its South China Sea experiment in Doklam. If China succeeds in its achieving its goals of raising wedge between India and its long standing ally Bhutan over Doklam, it may be looking to execute the same template elsewhere. So, far India has proved an equal match in geostrategic maneuvering by China.

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Former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan has a shot at winning the Nobel Prize in Economics, according to a list put out by research firm Clarivate Analytics. The list was drawn up using research citation data.

By India Today Web Desk: Former Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan could end up winning the Nobel Prize in Economics, if predictions made by research firm Clarivate Analytics are to be believed.

Clarivate Analytics uses research citation data to draw up predictions of Nobel Prize winners across scientific fields.

In its list of probable Nobel Prize in Economics winners, Clarivate Analytics has named six contenders - Colin F Camerer, George F. Loewenstein, Robert E. Hall, Michael C. Jensen, Stewart C. Myers, and, of course, Raghuram G. Rajan.

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Clarivate has clubbed Rajan's work with that of Myers and Jensen, and says that they could be awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics "for their contributions illuminating the dimensions of decisions in corporate finance".

As a 'Citation Laureate', Rajan's work "is clearly 'of Nobel Class' according to its significance and utility", Clarivate says on its page explaining what goes behind predicting Nobel winners.

Click here to Enlarge Photo: Clarivate Analytics website/screenshot

Now, predictions are just that - there is no way to know whether Rajan is even in the running for the Nobel Prize in Economics. At least, not for a while.

The Nobel committee does not release names of people shortlisted for a particular year's Nobel Prize until 50 years after the award is announced.

Another factor to consider is that Clarivate's prediction that Raghuram Rajan could win a Nobel Prize is valid for the future as well. For example, if Rajan misses out on winning the award this year, he will still remain a Clarivate 'Citation Laureate', meaning that the former RBI chief could win the prize next year, or the year after, and so on.

This year's Swedish National Bank's Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel, as the award is officially called, will be announced Monday.

Notably, it is not among the prizes the Alfred Nobel established in his will. However, it considered to be a Nobel Prize and is a prestigious award in the filed of economics.

CLARIVATE'S HISTORY

Clarivate has a decent history of successfully predicting Nobel winners, especially in the field of economics. The company has been predicting Nobel Prize winners since 2002 and has correctly forecast the Economics award eight times.

Off late, though, the analytics company has been on a hot streak of predicting the Economics Nobel winners. The firm has correctly predicted the prize's winners for four years in a row.

This year, Clarivate has successfully predicted the Nobel Prize in Physics. The prize was awarded to Rainer Weiss, Kip S. Thorne and Barry Barish - Clarivate had previously named Weiss and Thorne 'Citation Laureates', the same classification the firm has given Rajan.

Another two successful @NobelPrize predictions! Weiss and Thorne were named #CitationLaureates last year for their research in #Physics. https://t.co/G9CmyUxEfQ- Clarivate Analytics (@clarivate) October 3, 2017

RBI CHIEF RAJAN

The flamboyant Rahghuram Rajan served as India's chief banker for three years. Rajan served as the governor of the Reserve Bank of India under both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his predecessor Manmohan Singh.

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Rajan left his post in September 2016, weeks before PM Modi announced his controversial decision to demonetise currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 2,000.

In recent weeks, Rajan, who went back to his teaching job at the University of Chicago, has said that the RBI was not asked to make a decision on demonetisation when he was in office. Rajan recounted that he was asked for his opinion on the topic, which he gave orally.

Click here to Enlarge Raghuram Rajan served as the RBI chief under both PM Modi and former PM Manmohan Singh (Reuters file photo)

"I was asked by the government in February 2016 for my views on demonetisation, which I gave orally. Although there might be long-term benefits, I felt the likely short-term economic costs would outweigh them, and felt there were potentially better alternatives to achieve the main goal," Rajan wrote in his recently published book.

RAJAN THE ECONOMIST

Raghuram Rajan is considered to be a world renowned economist. He is said to have foreseen the 2008 market crash caused by subprime mortgage crisis in the US that would trigger the global financial recession.

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He has won the British magazine Central Banking's Central Banker of the Year award for his handling of the rupee crisis in 2013 and bringing back foreign investors to the country.

Rajan has also served as the chief economist at the International Monetary Fund and as a visiting professor at the visiting professor at Stockholm School of Economics, the Kellogg School of Management and the MIT Sloan School of Management.

Born in 1963 in Bhopal, Rajan graduated from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi.

(With inputs from IANS)

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Sean Keohane, president and chief executive officer of Cabot Corp., and Howard Ungerleider, chief financial officer of DowDuPont joined more than 150 officials, business leaders and community members today to celebrate the groundbreaking of Cabot's world-class, fumed silica plant located adjacent to Dow's Carrollton site in western Kentucky.

The groundbreaking coincides with the 50th anniversary of the Dow site in Carrollton and celebrates the company's history of innovation through silicones chemistry.

Announced in May 2017, the new manufacturing facility is scheduled to be operational by 2020, and will extend Cabot's long-term relationship with Dow while furthering Cabot's position as a leading producer of fumed silica. Upon completion, the plant will incorporate Cabot's latest technology advances into the plant design and operations. Additionally, the collocation enables a fence-line relationship with Dow, creating a closed-loop system that reduces transportation risks, increases manufacturing efficiencies and reduces waste.

Dow and Cabot have developed a cooperative relationship as both supplier and customer to each other over the last 30 years, with current neighboring operations in Midland and in Barry, Wales, United Kingdom. Silicone products made at the Dow site are used by Cabot as a building block for producing fumed silica, an ultra-fine, high-purity particle used as a performance additive in a broad range of applications. Dow, in turn, uses Cabot's fumed silica in its silicone products as well as by-product from Cabot's process in its operations.
By Rajat Rai: The Darul-Uloom Deoband has termed hair cutting and eyebrow threading by Muslim women as illegitimate. The body issued a fatwa in this regard on Saturday. Maulana Lutfurrehman Sadiq Qasmi of the fatwa department has maintained that such fatwa should have been issued a long time ago. The Islamic University from Saharanpur issued the order after a person had questioned the fatwa department in this regard a few months ago and in reply to his query, the fatwa was issued.

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Issuing the fatwa, the department has said that Islam does not permit hair cut and eye-brow threading and if a woman does this, it is against Islam. "This is included in the list of ten prohibitions for women, because hair is considered the beauty if women. It could only be done when there is an emergency and without this, it is illegal", Kasmi said.

"Visiting beauty parlors has become a tradition for (Muslim) women and they are frequently taking their services. This is against Islam and should be prohibited." "Hair cutting and eye-brow threading is illegal for women as it is illegal for men to shave or trim beards", he added. A similar fatwah was also issued about three years ago.

Meanwhile, Muslim clerics have more or less justified the fatwa, saying, "It could not be termered it as un-Islamic, but whatever Muslim women do to enhance their beauty should not be displayed publicly. It should only be limited to their husbands", Maulana Kalbe Jawad, Imam Asifi Masjid and member of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) told Mail Today.

ALSO WATCH

Bathinda shocker: Woman kills grandchildren in bid to ward off evil spirits

--- ENDS ---
This year, the 9/11 Heroes Run hosted at Saginaw Valley State University benefited a Midland-based nonprofit dedicated to sending morale-lifting care packages to military service members serving overseas.

"It was quite the honor that SVSU chose to help us," said Debi Bartley-Ullom, executive director of Aaron's Gifts From Home. "The postage for sending these care packages has skyrocketed, and any type of help we can get is a blessing."

The 5K race and a 1K "fun run" for children as well as a 9/11 remembrance ceremony was conducted Sept. 11 at the university.

Bartley-Ullom, who founded Aaron's Gifts From Home along with her husband, Kevin Ullom, after their son was killed in Afghanistan. Aaron Ullom, a 2009 Midland High School graduate, was a U.S. Navy hospital corpsman when he was shot and killed by enemy fire in July 2011.

His mother said, in a way, Aaron's Gifts From Home was her son's idea. Bartley-Ullom frequently sent her son care packages featuring items -- food, clothing, books, DVDs, etc. -- to lift his spirits after he was deployed in February 2011.

"Sometimes, he would tell me, 'Mom, a lot of people here aren't receiving much from home: Can you send a little extra?'" Bartley-Ullom said. "It really bothered him when others wouldn't receive any packages from back home."

After he died, Ullom's parents decided to continue to honor their son's request by sending care packages to other military men and women serving overseas. What began as an operation out of her basement in June 2012 developed into a nonprofit organization about one year later.

With growing support from the Midland community, Aaron's Gifts From Home eventually moved to an office in Midland Towne Center. On the organization's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/AaronsGiftsFromHome Bartley-Ullom documents the group's behind-the-scenes work as well as photos of the packages' recipients.

She estimates the nonprofit sent 12,000 care packages over its five-year existence. These days, the organization sends an average of 200 packages monthly to destinations including Afghanistan and Iraq.

"He would be so proud of this," she said of her son. "I just know he's smiling down on us."

Bartley-Ullom said any help is appreciated, from volunteers preparing care packages to good Samaritans donating money and supplies to the cause. Each package costs about $50 in contents and hefty overseas shipping prices.

"Community support is so important to us," she said.

SVSU's 9/11 Heroes Run also will support The Travis Manion Foundation, the national nonprofit that has organized the annual fundraiser at locations across the world since 2007. The foundation works to empower veterans and families of fallen heroes to develop character in future generations.
Federal and state programs help many in need. But, what about the youth that don't qualify for aid, or those who fall through the cracks? That's exactly when Just for Kids-Maier & Associates Foundation steps in.

JFK was designed to help catch those kids that other governmental and private organizations may miss, or not be able to provide full assistance.

"Just for Kids recognizes and rewards kids in the community who see the big picture and want to make a difference," said JFK Executive Director Carrie Dahlberg. "They realize how they can make a difference in their community."

Many of those children that have been impacted by JFK, continue their influence by serving on the Kids Youth Board.

"We're amazed at what our Youth Board does," Dahlberg said. "We use them to do functions by helping out in the community."

Currently, the Just for Kids Youth Board has 30 active members guided by a director/leader and co-leader to assist them as they make decisions, and to oversee activities.

"By making a difference and allowing them to do what they do, they are also being effected," Dahlberg said. "They will go visit veterans at the VA Hospital and then come back with a whole new appreciation for vets."

Since 2007, JFK has been active in the Great Lakes Bay Region and impacts about 150-200 youth per year.

The JFK program contains some unique features. It does not take applications for assistance but relies on the community to share regarding children in need.

"Referrals come to us through a school system, church or (Michigan Department of Health and Human Services)," Dahlberg said. "Since we're basically a one-person operation, it helps to have other organizations initially screen kids."

The organization also does not maintain a long list of "standing" programs. Instead it looks at different individual situations and develops a plan to fulfill the need. A typical year has JFK presenting about 40 laptops, 70 bikes and 30 scholarships to youth.

During 2016-2017, JFK provided:

 Funding for an area teen to renew her green card so she could continue to work in the U.S. and help support her family.

 Numerous shoes, boots and coats to area students in need.

 Over 50 bikes and helmets to local kids who were caught "doing good deeds."

 Awarded over 40 area eighth-graders with citizenship awards and laptops to help them be successful in high school.

 Provided area high school seniors with $42,000 in scholarships.

 Took 35 young people to dinner and shopping for new shoes before the 2016 school year started (a total of 400 new pair of shoes have been distributed since the Annual Shoe Shopping trips began).

JFK is holding its 12th Annual Benefit Dinner on Oct. 26 at Apple Mountain. Presently, they are also sponsoring a vehicle raffle for a 2017 Camaro Convertible or 2017 Silverado 4X4.

"Maier & Associates Foundations donates the vehicle, so JFK receives 100 percent of the raffle money," Dahlberg said.

Anyone wishing to donate to JFK, or for more information about JFK, may visit its website at: goodkids123.org
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BLOOMINGTON  Sheila Diaz wants potential tutors to know STAR Adult Literacy will be persistent in working with their needs.

"If they say, 'Im busy,' that's OK. Well call the next time we have a student that matches their time and availability, she said. And if they say 'no' then, well still call and ask again.

STAR, a local program that pairs adults learning basic reading, language and math skills with volunteer tutors, is looking for volunteers again as it enters its third year as a one-on-one learning program.

Tutors are required to do 15 hours of training  the next session is Oct. 14 in downtown Bloomington  and spend at least two hours a week, of their choosing, working with students at one of more than a dozen public facilities across the Twin Cities.

Many of our students are trying to work in working with a tutor between two jobs or when a friend can watch their child, so sometimes they have a very specific group of hours they can come, and we need tutors across a wide range of availability, said Diaz. "It can be morning, afternoon or evening. We even need volunteers on weekends.

She said it's a common misconception that tutors need to be teachers, retirees or Spanish speakers, although some are. Tutors need only be 18 years old and hold a high school diploma or a GED certificate.

It helps if youre a caring person who's patient and able to work with adults, said Diaz. "These students want to strengthen their reading and math skills with the goal of eventually getting a GED at Heartland (Community College), and maybe help their children and family by getting a better job. Thats what these classes mean to adults making this time.

Potential volunteers should register for training by Thursday by leaving a message at 309-834-9222, or filling out an application at starliteracy.org. More information on the program, run with state funds under the Regional Office of Education for DeWitt, Livingston, Logan and McLean counties, is available at that site as well.

This year we have 49 students and 44 tutors working with them; in the last week weve placed at least six new students; and were still testing additional students to be placed, so theres definitely a need, said Diaz. "It's a great way to help your community."
Artist Guadalupe Rosales started her popular Instagram account Veteranas and Rucas in 2015, out of a desire to reconnect with her Los Angeles roots and the west coast latinx community after many years spent living in New York. She began sharing personal photos of her friends in the rave scene that flourished on Los Angeles' east side in the '90s, mixed in with party flyers, scans from her Street Beat magazine collection, and an entire trove of other anecdotal snapshots, glamour shots, prom photos, boys flashing gang signs and pictures of friends hanging out in teenage bedrooms. A call for submissions resulted in an inundation of incredible crowdsourced images pulled from photo albums and shoeboxes across Southern California, that tease out the specific experiences of thousands of chicanx teens in their respective subcultures and scenes from the '70s-'90s, collaging together to paint a rich portrait of diversity and self-determined identity. Rosales moved back to Los Angeles in 2016, and her archive was officially recognized earlier this year when Rosales was named the first ever Instagram Artist in Residence by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA).

The archive Rosales has lovingly compiled is an absolute treasure, and with over 131k followers, Veteranas and Rucas has become a full-time job. We got Rosales on the phone to talk about her youth culture archive and its rave-specific spinoff Map Pointz, along with memories of her own teenage experiences in the 1990s Los Angeles rave culture.





Can you tell me a bit about your background and how Veteranas and Rucas got started?

I was living in NY when I started Veteranas and Rucas back in 2015. I felt like I was neglecting a part of my history, or a part of myself. I moved to NY when I was 19 or 20 years old and I was feeling removed from my culture and I felt I needed to reconnect with the people on the west coast. I started doing some research online, and I didn't really know what to look for... mostly everything that I was finding was stereotypes, and I needed to find something more, find a deeper connection to those images, stories, and histories. Pretty much everything I was finding [online] was men, gangs, low riders, and that made me think  "Who is the person that grew up surrounded by all of that? The gangs, the raves, the cruising and all of that? And what would I call that?" So I guess in that process I also had to create a new language to describe my own experiences living in LA with all that stuff.

Then my friend encouraged me to start something online, like a blog or a Facebook page, and I decided to start an Instagram page because the focus was more on images rather than text. Since I didn't have all the materials I was looking for, I put up a call for submissions. I wasn't very specific. I said, "Send me DMs of anything pre-selfies and earlier." It grew so quickly in a couple of weeks, then LA Weekly interviewed me and it just took off.

What made you create a separate account for raver culture?

Map Pointz started a year after I started Veteranas and Rucas. For me it was very important to create a separate space for Veteranas and Rucas because that account is a little loose. It's about that latina or person of color that experienced a lot of scenes, not just one, in LA. The Map Pointz page is mostly focused on party crews and raves. That's more because at the time when people started creating these party crews, they didn't want to associate with anything else but the raves. So Map Pointz is about creating a separate space within another space, but the focus is still people of color.

You grew up in LA in this moment you're creating this visual archive for... Can you tell me a little bit about party crews and what they were?



The party crew scene started in the late '80s early '90s, and they were groups of teenagers getting together and throwing backyard parties and raves in warehouses all over LA and Southern California. My sister and brother were in two different party crews and introduced me to the scene. Each party crew has a different name, so my brother's party crew was East LA's Madness and my sister's was East LA's Cuties and I was East LA's Aztek Nation. We gave ourselves names we felt good about - not exactly like it was empowering, but something that best described who we were.









Did each party crew have a different vibe?

Yeah, definitely. We had the rebels, we had ravers, we had greasers. There were as many different styles as there were types of music we listened to. There were party crews that only listened to techno, stuff like that.

What were you into?

I really loved every type of music. House music, rap, Morrissey, techno, all that stuff.

So what were the parties like?

The usually started around 9:00 or 10:00 on the weekends, and then we organized ditching parties during the week, and those started around 7:00 in the morning. The parties would last an hour or two, but there was always more than one party going on - we always had another party to go to. We also had the warehouse parties down by the LA river. Everything that we played was all vinyl and there were like five DJs at every party.

What are map points - weren't they a way of finding parties?

Yes! It was definitely before Google maps or cell phones. We were using Thomas Guides, and map points were the locations we went - like say a gas station or two main cross streets - where someone like a promoter would be waiting with the directions. So we'd pay them, they'd give us the address and then we'll go to the party.

That's so sophisticated!

Yeah, it's kind of crazy!









Do you have any favorite memories from that period of time?

Oh man, I have a lot. I think the most nostalgic memories are of going to a party in the morning, you know? Being outside on a school day, and going to a party at like 8:00 in the morning with your friends from school. It's just so specific, you know?

It's sort of surreal to see these pictures of these beautiful girl crews walking across the street in Echo Park in the '90s wearing literally exactly the same thing that people that age are wearing today.

It's interesting you should say that because that came up a few days ago I posted this image that a friend of mine took. It was a photo from 1992 and it's a couple walking in Boyle Heights, and a lot of people in the comments were seriously doubting that it was from 1992. They're like, "There's no way." But the thing is, the people that were saying that are young people - teenagers or people in their 20s - you'll see them in the comments and you have to say like "no, look at his shoes, they don't make those anymore." I think a lot of people were having a hard time with it because that style came back.





As the administrator for this project, have you learned anything about your community that you didn't know at the time?



Yeah, I'm constantly learning from people. I have more appreciation for people that were designing the rave flyers. It's something I never really thought about when I was growing up or when I was going to these parties. I never even thought - who made these flyers? You know what I mean? Everything we were doing from how we designed the flyers who organized the parties, who were the best DJs  things like that. There are people that are making a living now out of the thing they were doing as teenagers. A bunch of them are successful well-known DJs who started off DJing at a backyard party. Also people who are running their own business, doing graphic design and stuff like that - it's something that's very new to me and it's something that I also like to talk about in the work.









You were named LACMA's first ever Instagram Artist in Residence this year. What does it mean to you to have your project and the people and culture it represents acknowledged by an institution like that?

It's really amazing. When I took over their Instagram, it was also something that wasn't that easy. I'm entering a whole different platform where people might be disrespectful, or racist or all of the above. Overall, it was a really great experience and really new to a lot of us. I think people learned from it, and I definitely learned a lot from it.

Do you think that social media has the power to change the way that POC histories of marginalized communities gets recorded, remembered and shared outside of mainstream white historical narrative?



Definitely. It's definitely a tool that a lot of people have access to, especially the younger millennials. People have access to words, language and news ways of expressing ourselves and people learn from that. It's definitely something that is making a difference. I noticed after I left LACMA, they also adapted this new way of thinking and talking on social media. The short answer to your question is: definitely.





Check out some of our favorite photos from Veteranas and Rucas and Map Pointz in the slideshow below...






Beneficiaries of the Free Senior High School policy, as well as hundreds of residents from the three northern regions have lauded President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for implementing the policy.



As the President visited the many municipalities and towns on his tour of the three regions, first year students from several Senior High Schools and Technical and Vocational Institutions lined the principal streets of the Regions, showering appellations on the first gentleman of the land for his vision of instituting the educational policy.



The ecstatic students and scores of residents for moments held the President's convoy as he rode into the country side, with many displaying placards with inscriptions like We are beneficiaries of Free SHS, Thank you, Mr. President.



Other placards read President Akufo-Addo, the visionary leader, Free SHS is a blessing to Ghanaians, Ghana is working again, In 9 months, promises fulfilled, We need NPP in power for 50 years, We now have a competent President, amongst others.



Upon President Akufo-Addo's entry into Bolgatanga in the Upper West region last Wednesday, several hundreds of Free SHS beneficiaries from the Bolgatanga Girls Senior High School gave the President a rousing welcome to the Upper East Region.



And on his arrival in the Northern Region on Friday, on his way to Nalerigu to pay a courtesy call on the Nayiri, Naa Bohogu Abdulai Mahami Sheriga, students from the Walewale Vocational Institute, Walewale Secondary Technical School, Gambaga Senior High School and Nalerigu Senior High School, lined up along the streets of Walewale, Nalerigu and Gambaga to welcome the President.



The Nayiri in his welcome address to President Akufo-Addo, summed up the outpouring of joy by the students and parents, who met the President.



I wish to express my appreciation and gratitude for the many good things and support you have done to benefit my people and the country at large. The government under your able leadership needs to be commended for the numerous pro-poor policies rolled out within the few months into office.



"Policies such as the Programme for Planting for Food and Jobs, free fertilizer, Free SHS, restoration of teacher and nursing trainee allowances will help reduce poverty in Ghana, the Nayiri said.



President Akufo-Addo, on September 12, 2017, launched the Free Senior High Policy at the West Africa Senior High School, in fulfilment of the New Patriotic Party Manifesto pledge of 2016.



Parents and students, as a result of the Free SHS policy, no longer pay tuition fees, admission fees, library fees, science centre fees, computer lab fees, examination fees and utility fees. Additionally there are free textbooks, free boarding and free meals, and day students get a meal at school for free.



The Policy also covers agricultural, vocational and technical institutions at the high school level. Government has also outlined a well-thought out plan that involves the building of new public Senior High Schools and cluster public Senior High Schools.



En route to Damongo, first year students of the Pong Tamale Senior High School and Savelugu Senior High School also came out in their numbers to welcome President Akufo-Addo.

Source: Peacefmonline.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 conference "Future 50 Schools Shaping Success" saw participation of school principals from across the country who discussed impacts of opportunities, involvement and exposure on student learning in high schools.

Vasant Valley School principal Rekha Krishnan (extreme left) receives an award at the 'Future 50 Schools Shaping Success' convention in the Capital on Friday. (Photo: Ramesh Sharma)

By Mail Today Bureau: Aiming to recognise the efforts of schools, introduce best practices of learning and inspire others, Fortune India has identified 50 schools in the country for 'Future 50 Schools Shaping Success' in a first-of-its-kind initiative.

Handpicked for their best practices, 50 schools from across the country will now be recognised for their progressive schooling in a year-long process of evaluation. The schools will further receive certification through a thorough evaluation conducted by a combination of independent process advisor and jury panel scoring.

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The evaluation and recognition of these schools are being carried out with an objective to help shortlisted schools, including Vasant Valley School, Delhi Public School and Bal Bharati Public School, to inspire other schools by mitigating their path-breaking ideas to garner commendable outcomes.

The conference "Future 50 Schools Shaping Success" saw participation of school principals from across the country who discussed impacts of opportunities, involvement and exposure on student learning in high schools. Going a step further, the conference also engaged teachers and principals on how young learners can be prepared for future jobs.

"With the definition of success being re-evaluated constantly, "Future 50 Schools Shaping Success" was conceived to provide schools a platform to learn and share best practices across various fields," said Jaideep Gupta, founder of Univariety, an organisation behind the recognition procedure.

Explaining how learning should go beyond marks for a student, the panel discussion agreed on that the future of schooling and education is set to undergo substantial changes as schools and students will not be defined by their marks but also what kind of students they are producing as leaders.

"We look at success in education with a myopic lens, which is often a shortsighted benchmark or yardstick of evaluating the success of schools. It should instead be looking at, 30 years from now, how our students are taking decisions and what kind of work are they doing," said Rekha Krishnan, principal of Vasant Valley School.

"Are they doing any work that can impact our society by their pioneering thinking or are they simply doing run-of-the-mill kind of work? We need to prepare our students keeping these futuristic goals in mind," she added.

The jury members for evaluation of these schools include notable academicians Lata Vaidyanathan, director, TERI Prakriti School; Priyamvada Taneja, regional manager, Middle East, Africa and India fieldwork education; Rishikesh Krishnan, director, IIM-Indore; Sumer Singh, education consultant; and Ruchira Ghosh, regional director of south Asia, Cambridge assessment international education.

--- ENDS ---
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has appealed to the Overlord of Mamprug, Nayiri Naa Bohogu Abdulai Mahami Sheriga, to work hard to bring lasting peace to Dagbon.



As the eldest son of Naa Gbewaa, you have a particular responsibility in the matter, the President told the Nayiri when he called on him at the commencement of his three-day tour of the Northern Region.



The President said as one of the three eminent chiefs - Otumfuo Asantehene, the Yagbonwura and the Nayiri - who were working on bringing lasting peace to Dagbon, he should intensify his efforts and work even harder to make sure that, at this years Damba Festival in Yendi, we will have a new Ya Naa presiding over the Festival.



He gave the assurance that government would lend support to whatever formula and efforts the three eminent chiefs brought to resolve the issue in Dagbon.



"We will give you full support to make sure that the negotiations and understandings come to a fruitful conclusion, he said.



President Akufo-Addo called on Ghanaians to support him as he works to put the country onto the path of progress and prosperity.



I need the support of all of you, whether you voted for me or did not, whether you have supported my party or have not supported my party. In the period of my mandate, I will need your support so that together we can rebuild Ghana and let the Black Star shine and shine again.

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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NDC Member of Parliament for Bolgatanga Central in the Upper East Region, Hon. Isaac Adongo has described the 9-month old government of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo as too incompetent to fulfil promises made to Ghanaians.



According to him, the poor work by the Attorney General, the office of the President and Cabinet on the Zongo Development Fund Bill will make it impossible for the Zongos to see development this year as captured in the 2017 budget.



Speaking on Okay FMs 'Ade Akye Abia' Morning Show, the NDC lawmaker insisted Akufo-Addos government has been sleeping on the Zongo Development Fund bill till Parliament resumed work, without coming up with the proper bill for Parliament to work on.



He indicated that Parliament earlier rejected the bill on the Zongo Development Fund due to the improper way it was prepared.



The Attorney-General is responsible to make sure the Zongo Development Fund becomes a reality this year . . . they have been sleeping till Parliament resumed work. Do you know they brought the bill to Parliament and we asked them to withdraw it because the bill was not properly laid?



When they relaid that bill, we met at Koforidua last Monday to look at that bill, the Attorney-General had added 97 Amendments to the bill which has passed through her office and submitted to Cabinet, and legal opinion has been written to approve to Parliament to work with. The Attorney-General again wrote to the Speaker requesting that the bill she brought before the House, Parliamentarians should go through it and act on 97 Amendments, he indicated.



He reiterated that the 97 Amendments means the government was not ready before it brought the bill to Parliament; wondering whether the Attorney-General looked into the bill before she submitted it to Parliament.



" . . what kind of work was done on the bill before they submitted to Parliament to work on?" he asked.



He was of the view that the Attorney-General has disappointed the government over the poor review of the bill before submitting to Parliament; adding that it may be a deceptive move by the government on the Zongo Development Fund.



"This government is so incompetent that they cannot put together a simple bill. This means that in 2017, we will not get anything for the Zongo development and Ghana will run at a loss, he indicated.

Source: Daniel Adu Darko/Peacefmonline.com/[email protected]









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The second deputy Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin has stated that he is poised to defeat former President John Mahama in the race to become the next flagbearer for the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC).



According to the Member of Parliament for the Nadowli-Kaleo constituency, he possesses the qualities to pip Mahama to NDC flagbearer ticket.



He knows my capacity and has worked with me for many years as a minority leader and later as a minister of state, the former Majority Leader in Parliament told GHOne TVs Nana Aba Anamoah on political show State of Affairs.



He said Mahamas leadership style led to his defeat in the 2016 elections as the first incumbent president under the Fourth Republic to have lost a general election.



Bagbin stressed Mahama lost the elections by over 800,000 votes to the New Patriotic Partys (NPP) Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo because he refused to listen to advice from the party.



So I know hes a very nice person to deal with, he has the gift of the tongue, high accumulation of knowledge and the energy and vim, but it is the style of leadership that has left a lot of the people behind," he stated.



The issue about lack of inclusiveness is very detrimental trait in political leadership. I think John [Mahama] would have been a very good president in a better democratic setting than Ghana. He did very well in terms of infrastructure and focused a lot on putting the basics in place. In trying to do this I think he outrun the party and left the party behind. His leadership style led to this, the longest-serving MP in Ghanas parliament opined.



He also stressed that despite the negative perceptions that he did not back Mahama's Presidential bid during the 2016 elections, he did his best to help him succeed.



Im grateful to the NDC as a party to be in leadership. I did all I could to help Mahama to succeed, he stated.







Source: Graphic Online









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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Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has revealed how the Mahama-led National Democratic Congress (NDC) governments contract worth about GH4.6 billion ($1.2 billion) is going to be executed by President Akufo-Addos New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration for less than $4 million.



The multi-billion dollar project involved the establishment of a national switch to make mobile money payments and other transfers interoperable (i.e. link to each other).



It was awarded to a company called Sibton Switch Systems Limited by the Bank of Ghana (BoG) under Governor Dr. Abdul-Nashiru Issahaku, who resigned not too long ago.



What is even more remarkable about what has happened is that again, a lot of people were quoting billions of dollars and it became an issue of public debate, but by the way, this system has now been built for less than $4 million dollars, the vice president disclosed at the University of Cape Coast on Wednesday when he gave a public lecture on institutional advancement.



The project in question is called the Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems Limited (GhIPSS) which is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Bank of Ghana, incorporated in May 2007 with a mandate to implement and manage interoperable payment system infrastructure for banks and non-bank financial institutions.



Dr Bawumia, who spoke on the theme, Building stronger economies for African countries; the missing link, said the Akufo-Addo-led administration is determined to ensure value for money in every transaction that it undertakes.



There were many people who were offering similar solutions, but thankfully, the BoG, in collaboration with GhIPSS, has finally been able to solve this problem and the interoperability system for Ghana will be launched next month, he said, adding, We have to protect the public purse and that allows us to build our productive capacity.



He continued, Having an interoperable payments system among banks, mobile operators and other financial and non-financial sector players enables people to make payments to anyone else in a convenient, affordable, fast, seamless and secure way with one account.



The vice president, who is an economic guru, said, Payments for our buying and selling will be made far easier throughout the country. Interoperability is key to financial inclusion. Thankfully, Ghana will launch an interoperable payment system in November this year.



He also announced that the government was going to launch a digital addressing system in two weeks at the cost of $2.5 million, saying that the project would ensure that even if you live in the middle of the River Oti, you can be traced.



He said the digital addressing system is expected to provide addresses to 16.1 billion locations in the country, adding, Every 5 by 5 metres square will be provided with an address.



According to Dr Bawumia, the NPP government is convinced that to build the productive capacity of the country, it is important to know who is in the country and where people actually live, and added that the launch of the biometric National ID would serve as catalyst for accelerated development.



If you are looking to somebodys house, the koko seller on the right, the blue kiosk on the left by the gutter before you get there and then the day the koko seller does not come, you are in trouble, he noted jokingly and added that everything is going to change very soon.



It is very exciting, he said, and explained that the addressing system is GPRS-enabled and is more advanced than the systems of powerful economies.



Dr Bawumia was even more excited in pointing out that the digital system is actually designed by Ghanaians at Dansoman.



In February  in the heat of the transition  Sibton Switch Systems vehemently defended the GH4.6 billion cost for the establishment of an interoperable platform.



The company insisted that the quality and extent of services provided by the platform, guaranteed its selection by the central bank.



Its a long term infrastructure; its a retail payment system that does not just cover one party which will be interoperability for Mobile Network Operators (MNOs). It cuts across the entire retail payment systems; it comes with MNOs, banks, aggregators, merchants, among others, an official of Sibton Switch systems, Keiko Wantanabe, had explained on Citi FM.



She added, If we believe that this amount is what is going to get us this infrastructure, then were investing this amount into it.



The company had been selected from three institutions that put in bids; the value of Sibtons bid was GH 4,669,414,340.82 was deemed relatively higher than two other bidding competitors  Vals Intel Limited and Mericom Solutions Limited  which quoted GH14 million and GH 5.5 million respectively.



The contract to Sibton Switch Systems Limited was seen by many industry experts as unnecessary and shady.



Daily Guide learnt that minutes of a tender committee meeting on Monday, July 04, 2016, captured the bids submitted by all the three interested companies.



The tender committee, then chaired by Innocent Asamoah, in its remarks after the evaluation of the tenders, concluded that all three were responsive and met their expectations and so awarded the contract to Sibton Switch Systems Limited, which Daily Guide learnt  had Roland Agambire of RLG fame highly connected to it.



This led Vas InteL Limited to write to the BoG to protest the award of the contract to Sibton Switch Systems Limited.



In its letter dated July 25, 2016, Vas Intel wrote that it was conceivably impracticable for the BoG to award a contract to Sibton within six business days after the opening of tenders on July 4, 2016.



According to the letter, All procurement actions taken by the BoG pursuant to Act 663, must be done with a strict and uncompromising adherence to the principles of transparency and fairness so as to protect and preserve public property and interest, as well as the integrity of the laws governing public procurement within the territory of the Republic of Ghana.



Telecom operators in the country were also unhappy about moves by the central bank to impose on them a third-party company which will be intermediate in mobile money transactions across different networks.

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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By PTI: New Delhi, Oct 7 (PTI) Womens rights activists have appealed to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to extend state protection to Hadiya -- the woman at the centre of a religious conversion row.

Hadiya, earlier known as Akhila, was a Hindu woman who converted into Islam and married Shafin Jahan. Her father approached the Kerala High Court which declared the marriage null and void calling it a case of "love jihad" and directed that Hadiya return to the protective custody of her Hindu parents.

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The activists, comprising academicians, authors, womens collectives and womens right advocates, have urged the Kerala chief minister as well as the State Commission for Women to ensure that the woman is not forcibly confined in her parents house.

"It is alarming to have an adult woman today to be ordered into protective custody of her parents home under the orders of a court, denied mobility, communication and the company of her friends and well wishers," the activists said in their letters to the CM and the state commission.

In the letter, they also appealed to the commission to visit Hadiya, asses the nature of human rights violation she is facing, and make public a report on her condition.

The activists, including publisher Urvashi Butalia, DU professor Nandini Sundar, JNU professors Ayesha Kidwai and Nivedita Menon, and Suneeta Dhar among others, have sought that "Hadiya be brought under the protection of the state, perhaps in a shelter in consultation with her".

They also demanded that the state women commission and the LDF government ensure that Hadiya is able to meet friends and well wishers and allowed access to a phone.

In August, Hadiyas husband approached the Supreme Court challenging the high court order and seeking that Hadiya, who is in her father?s custody, be produced before the court. Hearing the case, the apex court directed the National Investigation Agency to investigate the alleged forced conversion.

Earlier this month, Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra questioned the annulment of the marriage by the Kerala HC in May as well as the NIA probe ordered by a SC bench led by former CJI JS Khehar. PTI JC BSA RBS

--- ENDS ---
A protester wearing a mask depicting Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a rally in St. Petersburg, Russia, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. The sign reads: ' A thief and a murderer'. In a challenge to President Vladimir Putin on his 65th birthday, protesters rallied across Russia on Saturday, heeding opposition leader Alexei NavalnyAos call to pressure authorities into letting him enter the presidential race. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky)
Tara Roe is seen in this undated family handout photo. A model with two young sons and a restaurant employee about to be promoted to manager are among the Canadians confirmed dead in a mass shooting at a country music show in Las Vegas. Tara Roe Smith, who was 34 and lived in Okotoks, Alta., was there with her husband, Zach, and another couple for a weekend getaway, her aunt Val Rodgers said Tuesday. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO
Bimal Gurung's pictures were taken down from the walls of GJM offices, including in Kalimpong. The beleaguered GJM chief is seeing his support base in the hills decreasing alarmingly.

By Arindam De: Defying threats, warnings and repeated attempts of disruption from absconding Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM ) leader Bimal Gurung and his supporters thousands of supporters thronged its foundation day meeting chaired by Binay Tamang .

Despite threats, Gurung loyalists made no attempts to disrupt public meetings. Bimal Gurung's pictures were taken down from the walls of GJM offices, including in Kalimpong. The beleaguered GJM chief is seeing his support base in the hills decreasing alarmingly.

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Binay Tamang had invited people for public meetings to celebrate the tenth foundation day of GJM in Darjeeling's Chowk Bazar, Kurseong, Kalimpong and Mirik. Packed crowds were seen in all the venues.

There were some attempts to disrupt the meeting in Darjeeling. Sources said that some roads were dug up and Binay's supporters threatened at some areas including Patlebas and Singmari. But, that did not put a dampener on the celebrations.

Addressing the gathering at the motor stand in Darjeeling after hoisting the party flag, Tamang said, "Fight for Gorkhaland will continue. Gorkhaland is our dream. If needed, I shall travel to Delhi and sit on a fast, but the agitation will not take recourse to violence. We shall not add to the misery of the people in the hills with bandhs."

Taking a dig at Gurung without naming him, Binay said, "Some people are trying to win support of people via threats of blasts. Such threats achieve nothing. This crowd shows who the hill dwellers support."

Meanwhile, Anit Thapa addressed the meeting at Kurseong, a day after the party unit there pledged alliance to the GJM faction led by Tamang and Thapa.

--- ENDS ---
Courtney Daily, of Bloomington Moms Demand Action, holds her son Liam, 3, while watching Allie Wineland, the vigil's organizer, reads the names of those killed in the mass shooting in Las Vegas a week ago, at the Monroe County Courthouse in Bloomington, Ind., Sunday, Oct. 8, 2017. Late Sunday night, when exactly a week has passed since the shooting, casino marquees and other lights on the Las Vegas Strip will go dark for about 10 minutes to pay tribute to the victims who spent that much time under fire. (Alex McIntyre/The Herald-Times via AP)
The Caernarvon floodgate closes in St. Bernard Parish before the arrival of Tropical Storm Nate in Caernarvon, La., Friday, Oct. 6, 2017. May fisherman and crab trappers were allowed to dock their boats inside the floodgate at the St. Bernard Parish line before 1 p.m., Friday. (Matthew Hinton/The Advocate via AP)
Chief Police investigator Jens Moeller makes a comment concerning the latest findings in connection with the Kim Wall murder case during a press conference at police headquarters in Copenhagen, Denmark, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. Danish police say divers have found the decapitated head, legs and clothes of a Swedish journalist, who was killed after going on a trip with an inventor on his submarine. (Tariq Mikkel Khan/Ritzau via AP)
By Manjeet Sehgal: Gurmeet Ram Rahim, who till August 24, enjoyed a life soaked in luxury, had never imagined he would one day have to survive on jail food. Perhaps why, the rape convict is shedding weight. According to sources in Sunariya Jail in Rohtak, Ram Rahim has lost 6 kg in the past 40 days of his imprisonment. Sources told Mail Today that baba weighed 90 kilograms when he was lodged in the jail in August. His current weight is 84 kilograms.

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Gurmeet Ram Rahim's opponents say the plausible reason for weight loss is his distance from his close aide and adopted daughter, Honeypreet. "Gurmeet Ram Rahim may be missing Honeypreet Insan apart from the luxuries and energy drinks that he was accustomed to. The person who used to import packaged water from foreign countries is now drinking jail water and eating jail food," said former Dera follower Gurdas Singh Toor. Others have attributed the 6kg loss to the lifestyle changes Ram Rahim underwent since his arrest.

Apart from the jail food, it is the agricultural activities - assigned to him by the jail authorities - that are taking a toll on him as he is an unskilled worker. The 50-year-old has been given the task to cultivate vegetables for the jail inmates. Sources say that baba spends at least four hours daily in the fields located inside the jail complex. They add that Ram Rahim wanted to slim down before acting in the films and had also employed physical fitness trainers but failed to lose the weight.In other words what the physical trainers failed to do was done by the jail food.

Ram Rahim is a patient of high blood pressure and diabetes and the dose of some of the prescribed has been reduced after he lost 6 kg. Dr KP Singh, DGP prisons, Haryana, says the Dera chief's health is fine and if he reports any health complications, he will be referred to Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (PGIMS), Rohtak. Singh refused to share Gurmeet's medical history but clarified that he is healthy and the stories about his health and sex life are false. "How can one comment on a prisoner's personal life? The stories published by the newspapers about his health are fictitious," Singh said.

Life for Honeypreet, who was arrested by the Haryana Police on October 3 in connection with Panchkula violence, is no different. "She spends most of her day silently staring at the walls of her cell. She eats food halfheartedly, consuming only a little portion of the meal. I offered her tea but she refused it saying she doesn't drink tea," a jail official told Mail Today.

Also watch: Honeypreet complained of chest pain during questioning after arrest

--- ENDS ---
Homeowners Colleen and Collin Whelan grew up in Wayne and wanted to return there to raise their family. They have expanded a historic 1905 house designed by noted architect L.V. Boyd. Read more

Collin Whelan lived in the historic district of South Wayne for much of his youth. "My dad was constantly working on the house," he says, "which sparked my interest in old homes."

He met his wife, Colleen, who also grew up in Wayne, at Radnor High School  "He was 14 and I was 15," she says. When they married in 2007 and moved to the Roxborough section of Philadelphia, they hoped someday to return to Wayne to raise a family.

The couple began house hunting after daughter Aislyn was born seven years ago. When nothing was immediately available in Wayne, they searched all over the Main Line. "We probably looked at 25 to 30 houses," Collin says. In 2013, they found a 1905 house in the North Wayne Historic District.

Wayne was one of more than a dozen communities developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries by Pennsylvania Railroad investors to encourage commuter use of rail lines. Investors hired prominent architects such as L.V. Boyd, who designed the Whelans' residence.

Boyd's three-story gambrel-roofed structure featured a bay window and a handsome columned porch. The house had a nice front lawn and a backyard for the Whelans' pug, Jack. There was an elegant foyer, dining room and living room, but the kitchen was tiny.

"The refrigerator stuck out into the room. There wasn't even space for a microwave," Colleen recalls. Plus the upstairs bedrooms were small, and there was no bath on the third floor.

In January the Whelans began a five-month project to add a three-story addition. By then, their family included a second daughter, Adelyn.

Collin, 36, who is project superintendent for the real estate development company MLP Ventures, was his own general contractor. Colleen, 37, who is with a vendor representative firm that sells products to QVC, was the interior designer. They worked with Forest View Carpentry and Santa HVAC, among others.

Now, a new side entrance opens into an airy white kitchen. Instead of protruding, the refrigerator is built into Amish-crafted, Kingwood cabinetry. Two-year-old Adelyn likes pushing a button to access the microwave, now tucked into a drawer. The family makes frequent use of a water spigot added over the stove to fill pots for cooking pasta, the girls' favorite food.

Colleen chose a neutral bisque for most walls. The dining room has white wainscoting to accent the white and dove gray wallpaper above. Shades were added to original crystal and glass sconces and the chandelier. Colleen added her own touch to furniture that had belonged to Collin's parents. She antiqued a table and chairs with white chalk paint and painted the buffet and sideboard a pale aqua. Chairs in the kitchen and the upholstered ottoman in the living room are also aqua.

The Whelans enlarged the original powder room and created storage in the old kitchen space. Oak floors were refinished.

The second-floor addition includes a master bedroom and bath, complete with shower jets, which the girls love, Colleen says.

The children's area has lots of accents  quilts, rugs, furniture  in Aislyn's favorite color, orange. Their bathroom even has an orange faucet. Collin had "ugly green" tile floors and walls resurfaced white.

The third floor has an office and playroom. The addition has an open space awaiting installation of a bathroom and larger play area.

The archway in the new side entrance mimics the front. Siding made of Allura fiber cement product matches the original wood siding on the free-standing garage. Exterior changes and additions were approved by Radnor Township's Historic and Architectural Review Board. Colleen chose indigo blue paint for the siding.

"I wanted it to pop," she says.

Everyone was involved in selecting the decor. Daughter Adelyn found a large gold jack, an homage to their dog, to display in the living room. And Collin made the case to keep a seductive brass mermaid holding a tray that he purchased when he was single. It stands beside the front Dutch door.

"It's a great place to put keys," he insists.
You know what I despise more than people who advocate for abortion rights? It's a really tiny category, occupied by only one life form, because I hate few things as much as the people who dehumanize the developing child. But this week I encountered that creature, one that slithered out from under its moss-covered Western Pennsylvania rock (no, not Steelers' QB Ben Roethlisberger).

The individual who made me consider for a fleeting, painful moment that even Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards is perched in the human pyramid of mediocrity above something worse is Rep. Tim Murphy, Republican from that distant land where Wawa is a cry of desperation, not a really great convenience store.

I have heard of Murphy in my pro-life advocacy, and knew him as one of the strongest, loudest, most valiant supporters of unborn babies, a man who consistently sponsored or supported legislation that would keep chipping away at a woman's right to choose abortion.

Western Pennsylvania tends to be more sympathetic to the concerns of the vulnerable child in utero than we here in the evolved blue fog of Philadelphia and her environs. The strong pro-life voices along the Allegheny, the Monongahela, the Susquehanna, and up by Lake Erie generally make up for the "Aw, abortion Dr. Kermit Gosnell was an exception" fabulists along the Schuylkill.

But now I have to rethink my affection for a region that could produce a man like Murphy.

The congressman was outed this week as someone who wanted to ban abortions for everyone except his mistress. Murphy and his gal had a text-message exchange that strongly implied that when she thought he'd gotten her pregnant, his knee-jerk response was to abort that child.

Girlfriend didn't take kindly to the idea, and it turned out to be only a pregnancy scare. Still, the hypothetical child caused very real problems for the 65-year-old almost-baby-daddy.

Here is a reported excerpt from the Heloise and Abelard meets Silicon Valley exchange:

Girlfriend: "And you have zero issue posting your pro-life stance all over the place when you had no issue asking me to abort our unborn child just last week when we thought that was one of the options."

Murphy: "I get what you say about my March for Life messages. I've never written them. Staff does them. I read them and winced. I told staff, don't write any more. I will."

So, not only do we have a semi-confirmation (through lack of denial) that this valiant pro-life champion actually urged his woman to abort their possible child, we also know that he has absolutely no respect for the grassroots men and women who spend cold January afternoons marching to defend the lives of the unborn. He "winces" at the thought of those embarrassing religious zealots, those misogynists, those useful idiots who are foolish enough to respect him for his "principled" stand on society's great moral failure.

This man seems to actually know a lot about moral failure, and the betrayal of his wife is the least of it.

Murphy betrayed more than his wife, his family, and his constituents. He broke faith with those of us who have to deal with the ridicule and suspicion of the enlightened crowds in D.C. and the satellite capitals, filled with evolved Planned Parenthood acolytes. We have carried the water on these issues for decades, and he has been able to use that genuine devotion to the silent victims of abortion, "the least of these," to advance his own political goals. His apparent willingness to destroy his own child is an example of the rankest hypocrisy, and it does immeasurable damage to the pro-life movement.

Those who support abortion rights now have another scalp for their belts, another white Republican male they can use as a symbol of all that is wrong with a movement dedicated to the protection of the unborn. They have every right to make him the poster boy for the things they hate, because he earned that spot with his own misconduct.

Tim Murphy's great genius was to unite pro-lifers and pro-choicers in one thing: Our disgust for him.

Who says we can't find common ground?
A worker was killed in an industrial accident Friday afternoon in Bucks County, a fire marshal said.

The accident happened shortly after noon at the U-Haul Falls Manufacturing facility in Falls Township, said Falls Fire Marshall Rich Dippolito. The man was crushed between a machine and a table. He was transported to a local hospital and pronounced dead.

The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration was notified about the accident, Dippolito said.
LAS VEGAS  Oscar Goodman sat Thursday on the couch in the corner of his downtown steakhouse  Oscar's Beef, Booze and Broads  framed by a plate-glass window with a view of the huge Plaza Casino sign in the city's famed downtown district.

In his oversized pinstriped suit, the mob lawyer who cut his teeth in Philadelphia courtrooms  and rose to become a three-term mayor of Las Vegas known for shameless flamboyance, the occasional controversy, and an unflagging loquaciousness  was, for once, at a loss for words.

"I guess I kidded myself," he said, sighing, "that it couldn't happen here."

Like all big-city mayors, Goodman, 78, trained for years to deal with any disaster that could befall his town. He never imagined he or his wife, Carolyn Goodman, who succeeded him as mayor and has served for the last seven years, would have to put that training to use. But on Sunday night, they were awakened at home with the news that a gunman had opened fire from a 32nd-floor room in the Mandalay Bay, killing 58 and wounding hundreds at a country-music concert.

In the wake of unimaginable tragedy, the town's famous buoyancy has kept them going, too.

"It's the lowest low one can possibly imagine," Carolyn Goodman said Thursday, after attending a vigil for an off-duty Vegas police officer killed in Stephen Paddock's shooting rampage. "But I've been struck by the beauty of good people. So many did what they could in a time of desperation."

One example: In the days after the shooting, community organizations and blood banks were almost overwhelmed by donations.

The Goodmans have always functioned as mayor-cheerleaders, never missing an opportunity to boost their adopted hometown. They moved here in 1964, when he was a freshly minted Philly lawyer and she a graduate of Bryn Mawr College  long-enough ago to now consider themselves natives, they say. (Still: "You can't take the Philly out of the boy," he said, asking a reporter whether Pat's Steaks was still open.)

Oscar Goodman made his name defending Philly mobsters such as Nicky Scarfo and Phil Leonetti, and has never shed the eccentric mob-lawyer persona. That attitude translated well into Vegas pomp, and into a political career that spanned 12 years. Now largely on the political sidelines, he's watched with pride as his wife has navigated their city through the crisis.

Like nearly everyone in town, the Goodmans had friends among the 20,000 concertgoers in the crowd Sunday night.

"Everyone's going to have to overcome nightmares," Oscar Goodman said.

He may have grown up in Philly, but Vegas made him, he says, and Vegas will help him  and everyone else  somehow soldier on, he says. It's in the city's nature to keep moving. Its people will, too.

"This evil person isn't going to change us," he said. "Our veneer is very tough, but our hearts are mushy. And we've shown the mushy side this week."
Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh has filed an appeal against the 20-year jail sentence he was handed for raping two female followers.The Dera chief has already moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court against his actual conviction.

By India Today Web Desk: Jailed Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh today moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court against the 20-year jail sentence handed to him for his rape conviction.

The self-styled godman has prayed for a lesser sentence and the Punjab and Haryana High Court is likely to hear Ram Rahim's appeal next week.

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Gurmeet Ram Rahim, who was convicted and sentenced by a special Central Bureau of Investigation court in Panchkula, has already appealed the actual conviction. Today's appeal is against his punishment and not against his conviction.

On August 28, the Special CBI court in Panchkula sentenced the controversial Dera chief to 20 years in jail - 10 years each for two counts of rape. The sentencing was two days after the court held him guilty of raping two female Dera followers in a 15-year-old case.

Today's development comes days after the two women raped Ram Rahim approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court, praying that the Dera chief's punishment be extended to a life term.

Following the August 25 conviction, Dera followers, who had gathered in Panchkula ahead of the verdict, ran riot. At least 30 people had died in the violence that followed Ram Ram Singh's conviction.

Gurmeet Ram Rahim's foster daughter and close aide Honeypreet Insan is among the prominent names accused of inciting the post-conviction violence. Hooneypreet was recently arrested by the Haryana Police following a 38-day manhunt.

MURDER

Troubles for the jailed Dera chief are far from over. Even as Ram Rahim Singh gets ready to argue his two appeals related to his rape conviction, he must also prepare for a verdict in a murder case he is accused in.

The murder case - relating to the alleged assassinations of two men - is closely linked to Ram Rahim Singh's rape conviction.

The two men Ram Rahim allegedly had killed were believed to have played a major role in making public an anonymous letter that revealed information about Ram Rahim's rapes.

One of the murdered men Sirsa-based journalist Ram Chander Chhattrapati, who published the letter in his newspaper, while the other was Ranjit Singh, a manager at the Dera headquarters, who is believed to have been responsible for leaking the letter in the first place.

The murder case, which is in its final stages, is being heard by same CBI court that convicted and sentenced Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh for rape.

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(With inputs from Manjeet Sehgal in Chandigarh)

--- ENDS ---
Staff Graphic

One of the projects, located along a lane called Ed Browns Meadow, is completed. The two others, both along Church Street  another narrow lane between the meandering Rancocas Creek and Main Street in this rural Burlington County town  are in varying stages of completion.

The most severe of the floods came in 2004, when clay dams broke upstream and a wall of water rose from the usually lazy creek. The Rancocas spilled over onto miles of Burlington County  including areas not considered in a flood zone  damaging houses and washing away bridges and roads.

Liebehenz remembers a subsequent storm-driven flood that seemed to rise up from the earth, filling her basement and covering the first floor in a couple of feet of water.

Its been a really long road for all of us living along this creek, Liebehenz said one recent afternoon as she watched workmen from Wolfe House & Building Movers, a Bernville, Berks County, contractor, begin hoisting her circa 1784 house off its foundation.

It took about two work days for the seven-room house to be lifted about four feet. Another contractor, Penn Smith LLC of Langhorne, will build a new concrete foundation and finish the other structural work on the property before the couple and their daughter can move back. The rehab will cost $220,000.

While public infrastructure was repaired quickly following the floods, many homeowners found it challenging to obtain grants and loans to repair their houses through the National Flood Insurance Program, administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Some homeowners, including a couple of Liebehenzs neighbors, themselves paid to lift their houses.

Others, including the Liebehenzes and their neighbor, Cheyenne DiEnno, spent years plowing through local, state, and federal red tape to obtain what they contend is their due for paying years of flood insurance premiums. In all three cases in the current Lumberton project, the homeowners have had to obtain private funding to pay for the contracting work upfront and then be reimbursed through FEMA as each stage of work was completed.

DiEnno said that while she is grateful her project finally got underway in the summer  after 13 years of fighting to get FEMAs attention and writing to everyone from township officials to the president  shes unhappy with the outcome.

Her kitchen floor slopes nearly two inches from one end to the other, she said, and that has caused cracks in her granite kitchen counters and created structural damage. Doors wont shut because walls are off-kilter.

This entire process has been extremely stressful and very disheartening, said DiEnno. The original section of the 3,000-square-foot house was built about 100 years ago as a summer home. There have been additions since DiEnno bought the property in 1985. Besides the work Penn Smith did, DiEnno, 65, and her partner, David Bjornsson, who used to operate a deck-building business, built a small addition, a foyer, to replace some of the square footage lost when the house-lift took away their basement.

She blames Penn Smith for the problems.

Sam Smith, who owns Penn Smith, said in a telephone interview that the issues with DiEnnos house have to do with its age and the condition of the structures beams, not work his firm did after Wolfe lifted the structure.

Its unfortunate and Im very sorry that Cheyenne is unhappy with the result, but the existing conditions in the structure created the gap in the floor and other problems, not the work we did there, Smith said.

Its unclear how the issue will be resolved, but Susan Mazzitelli, a Yardley floodplain project manager hired by the township, called the work a very emotional process.

People in this process have endured so much.  And its a process that takes so long, from securing the funding to finally getting the work done and being able to move back into your home, Mazzitelli said.

Meantime, since the first major flood in Lumberton, in 2004, a number of national weather catastrophes have occurred, including Hurricane Sandy, that seemingly pushed the Lumberton project to the bottom of the list.

After Sandy, 7,000 homes in New Jersey were placed in a FEMA-funded program, administered by the state Department of Community Affairs, called Rehabilitation, Reconstruction, Elevation and Mitigation (RREM). Many of those properties either have been or are in the process of being lifted to comply with new flood-zone standards.

According to the National Flood Insurance program, 14,800 buildings in New Jersey have been damaged by floods two or more times over the last decade, with more than 4,300 damaged at least four times.
Jerry J. Ross, 84, a hit songwriter and record producer who was inducted into the Philadelphia Music Alliance Walk of Fame in 2013, died Wednesday, Oct. 4, of prostate cancer at the Holy Redeemer Hospital hospice unit in Meadowbrook.

Mr. Ross co-wrote "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me" with Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. It was a 1968 hit recorded as a duet by Diana Ross and the Supremes and the Temptations.

Mr. Ross is credited with discovering and mentoring Gamble in a relationship that goes back to the late 1950s, when he helped Gamble and Thom Bell record "Someday" for his Heritage label as Kenny and Tommy.

"Jerry Ross was instrumental in introducing Thom Bell and me to the music business, including signing me to my first recording artist deal with Columbia Records," Gamble said in a statement Friday. "He mentored Thom Bell and me to write songs. He was our good friend and was key to the beginning of the Gamble, Huff and Bell legacy."

Gamble pinch-hit in 2013 when Mr. Ross was unable to attend his Philadelphia Music Alliance Walk of Fame induction ceremony. "Jerry Ross is a very special person," Gamble said then. "He had faith in me at a young age and taught me a lot of things about the music industry."

Gamble said it was a shame Mr. Ross wasn't able to be there because "he used to call me every year and say, 'Try to get me in the Walk of Fame.'" Gamble smiled and said, "So, Jerry, you are in the Walk of Fame."

Reading from an acceptance speech Mr. Ross had prepared, Gamble said, "Before there was Rodgers and Hammerstein, there was Rodgers and Hart. Before there was Gamble and Huff, there was Gamble and Ross. The day that I met Kenny Gamble, our lives changed."

Mr. Ross, who broke into the music business during his Temple University student days when got the booth announcer gig on Dick Clark's American Bandstand, wrote or produced gold records including "Sunday Will Never Be the Same" (by Spanky and Our Gang), "Apples, Peaches, Pumpkin Pie" (Jay and the Techniques), "Sunny" (Bobby Hebb), and "Venus" (Shocking Blue).

Mr. Ross' daughter, Cheri Dorwart, remembered growing up with a dad who was immersed in music.

"I'd be in my second-floor bedroom and my dad would be in his basement office, playing tapes on his reel-to-reel, and I could hear every song he was playing," she recalled, including "'You Gave Me Somebody to Love' by the Dreamlovers, which he wrote for my mom."

She said her father referred to himself as a musicologist or a musical architect, and was proud of his ability to discover talent, including what he called his "Dutch Invasion" trip to the Netherlands, where he found the rock band Shocking Blue and produced the million-seller "Venus."

"He had this thing about him," Dorwart said. "He would know instinctively whether a group would be successful or not. Even if they were performing a song he didn't like, he always knew if he could do something with them.

"When he heard a song," she said, "he would know within the first couple of bars whether it was a yes or a no. Sometimes, there were songs that the big companies would turn down, and my dad's like, 'They're all wrong. I know this is a hit.'"

He told his daughter that he started his own record labels because "I'm tired of being told no by other people. They don't hear what I hear. It's going to be a hit and they will realize they made a mistake." He proved it by producing the hit single "When We Get Married" by the Dreamlovers on his own Heritage label in 1961.

He is survived by his daughter and two grandchildren. Mr. Ross was predeceased by his wife, Janice, and son Kenneth.

A funeral service will be at 11:15 a.m. Sunday, Oct. 8, at Goldsteins' Rosenberg's Raphael Sacks Suburban North, 310 Second Street Pike, Southampton. Interment will be in King David Memorial Park, Bensalem.

Contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society, 1626 Locust St., Philadelphia 19103.
In August, the Supreme Court asked the NIA to probe allegations that people with links to the Islamic State were behind the conversion of a 24-year-old Hindu woman, Akhila, who married a Muslim man.

By India Today Web Desk: The Kerala government on Saturday told the Supreme Court that the police investigation into a prominent case of alleged 'love jihad' had revealed nothing worthy of being reported to the Centre under the 2008 NIA Act.

In August, the top court asked the National Investigation Agency to probe allegations that people with links to the Islamic State (ISIS) were behind the conversion of a 24-year-old Hindu woman, Akhila (or Hadiya), who married a Muslim man, Shafeel Jahan.

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On Tuesday, the Supreme Court also said it would examine the validity of the Kerala High Court's decision to nullify Hadiya's marriage to Jahan.

In an affidavit, the Pinarayi Vijayan administration today told the court that Kerala Police's crime branch had conducted a "efficient and sincere" investigation.

In saying that the police probe hadn't "revealed any incident realting (relating) to commission of any scheduled offense to make a report to the central government," it effectively suggested that the NIA probe was unnecessary.

Shafeen Jahan, who challenged the High Court order nullifying his marriage in the Supreme Court, has asked it to cancel the NIA investigation.

He says his wife willingly converted to Islam in 2014.

With inputs from Gopikrishnan Unnithan and Asian News International.

ALSO WATCH | India Today EXCLUSIVE: How ISIS lures youth with women, meat, chocolates to recruit in Kerala

--- ENDS ---
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Trumps approval has hit a new record low of 32% according to a new AP poll, which means that this president is worse than unpopular. He is being soundly rejected.

The AP-NORC poll found, Thirty-two percent of Americans say they approve of the way President Trump is handling his job and 67 percent disapprove. His approval rating is down from 42 percent in March and 35 percent in June. While 67 percent of Republicans still approve of the job the president is doing, support among Republicans has decreased significantly since March when 80 percent of Republicans expressed approval. Twenty-eight percent of independents and 5 percent of Democrats say they approve of Trumps handling of his job. Among Democrats, this also represents a decline since March when 11 percent said they approved.

Additionally, just 24% of Americans think the country is moving in the right direction, only 26% think Trump is a strong leader, and 23% think he is honest. The floor for Trump support with Americans is 23%-26%, which means that Trump could lose another 6-9 points of approval before he hits rock bottom. Trump is losing is losing his Republican base. The standard Republican level of response in public opinion polls has been 34%-37%. Trump is five points below the high end of the range, which suggests that he is losing members of his own party.

The American body politic is rejecting the Trump presidency like a bad organ transplant, and unpopular decisions like rolling back contraceptive coverage are designed to appease the 32% that still support him, but if Republicans go into elections in 2018 and 2020 with Trump at 32% approval, they will lose and lose badly.
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This was already a big week for immigration law at the Supreme Court, and it could get even bigger.

First, there may be news on the Muslim Ban. Recently, Trump added Venezuela and North Korea to his ban list, as if to say, See! This isnt a Muslim ban, after all!

Then the DOJ filed a motion with the Supreme Court of the United States, asking it to discontinue proceedings, and nullify all lower court rulings on the previous version of Trumps ban because it no longer exists. For their part, opponents of the ban asked the Court to go ahead and issue a ruling on the case.

Lawrence Hurley, who covers the Supreme Court for Reuters, suggested in a Tweet the court could discuss the current status of the Muslim ban case, during the Justices Friday conference.

Justices have their weekly meeting tomorrow so next steps on travel ban could be discussed then  Lawrence Hurley (@lawrencehurley) October 5, 2017

The fact that opponents of the Muslim ban want a ruling strongly suggests they are confident of a favorable outcome, while the DOJ would rather leave the case undecided. Its possible this is because the DOJ doesnt want to be embarrassed with yet another loss in court. More likely, they believe that Trumps tweaks of the Muslim ban may be sufficient enough to disguise the original intent to ban people from the United States on religious grounds. At any rate, if the court decides against ruling on the case, it means that if needed, further down the road, the DOJ has another chance to convince the court an unconstitutional Executive Order really is constitutional.

On Wednesday, the Court heard oral arguments in another major immigration case, Jennings v. Rodriguez. This was a class action challenging the constitutionality of several laws pertaining to the detention of immigrants. The court heard argument on if immigrants seeking admission and are subject to detention, must be afforded bond hears and possible release if detention exceeds six month. Another issue is if alleged criminal or terrorist aliens are entitled to bond hearings and possible release if detention lasts six months. Finally, the court heard argument on the claim that at bond hearings immigrants should be entitled to release if detention lasts six months unless the government can prove the immigrant is a flight risk or a danger to the community.

If the court rules in favor of the plaintiffs, the ruling will place restrictions on the terms and conditions under which the government can detain an undocumented immigrant for more than six months.

If the court rules in favor of indefinite detention for immigrants, it weakens this constitutional protection for everyone else  not based on criteria like if they are a flight risk or a risk to society, but simply because of who the detainee is. Once the roots of this concept are established in law, its far easier for the government to simply expand the list of who can be detained indefinitely. Were seeing the use of this approach in Trumps Muslim Ban.

Initially, the DOJ was trying to argue that immigrants have absolutely no constitutional protections and therefore could be held indefinitely without review, regardless of circumstances.

That argument didnt go very well, as reflected in this exchange between Justice Kagan and DOJ attorney, Malcolm L. Stewart.

JUSTICE KAGAN: Mr. Stewart, is  is your argument about the new admits, the people who are coming to the border, premised on the idea that they simply have no constitutional rights at all?

MR. STEWART: It is premised on that. Now, we do have the 

JUSTICE KAGAN: Okay. If it is premised on that, I mean, Justice Scalia in one of his opinions talked about, surely, that - that cant be right; could we torture those people, could we put those people into forced labor? Surely, the answer to that is no. Is that right?

MR. STEWART: Yeah, I should have been more precise in saying they have no constitutional rights with respect to the determination whether they will be allowed to enter the country.

There may be cases where that is justified, but the government wants a blank check.

The problem is as Justice Breyer pointed out, the treatment of undocumented immigrants is inconsistent some immigrants dont get bail hearings and in other cases, the decision on if an immigrant can have a bond hearing is at the discretion of the agency.

And so whats the basis for reading the word detained sometimes to allow bail hearings at the discretion of the agency; other times not to allow bail hearings and keeping the people possibly for a year, a year and a half, in a jail cell without  sorry, I dont mean my voice to rise  but  but with - without even a bail hearing?

The implications of a ruling in the Trump administrations favor is to allow indefinite detention, without charge and without bail hearings, for an unrestricted period of time, regardless of whether the immigrant is a suspected terrorist, or someone who is otherwise law abiding and is neither a flight risk nor a threat to society.

Should the court rule in the DOJs favor, it means the Trump administration could, theoretically, keep immigrants in detention for years, without any legal rights at all. Of course, this will appeal to nationalists. Heres the thing. If an authoritarian like Donald Trump establishes a way to hold immigrants indefinitely, its a matter of time before the list of people who can be held indefinitely expands.
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Donald Trump was enraged when he found out that it is illegal for US companies to pay bribes to heads of foreign governments.

There was an enlightening tidbit in The New Yorkers profile of Sec. of State Rex Tillerson, In February, a few weeks after Tillerson was confirmed by the Senate, he visited the Oval Office to introduce the President to a potential deputy, but Trump had something else on his mind. He began fulminating about federal laws that prohibit American businesses from bribing officials overseas; the businesses, he said, were being unfairly penalized.

The exchange between Trump and Tillerson illustrates that the President Of The United States wants to encourage corruption. Trump has no ethical or moral compass. He doesnt see why it is illegal for US companies to be handing out bribes.

It is unfathomable that a president is raging because his country cant be more corrupt. Trumps attitude on the issue should also perk up the ears of the Special Counsel as a businessman president who doesnt think it is wrong to pay bribes to heads of foreign governments has probably broken the law and paid bribes himself.

As Russia investigators get closer to the truth, look for Trump to start complaining about how unfair the anti-bribery laws are, because he might be looking to change the law to cover-up his own crimes.
As PM Modi and BJP are stepping up attack on CM Virbhadra, focusing on the corruption charges against him, sources said Rahul Gandhi is not very keen on going ahead with Virbhadra as the party's chief ministerial face yet again. Rahul is scheduled to address a rally in Mandi district today.

By Sweta dutta: A day ahead of Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi's first public meeting in poll-bound Himachal Pradesh, undercurrents of simmering tension in the state party unit could still be sensed.

As incumbent chief minister Virbhadra Singh marked out his territory and tagged the event a celebration of the government's achievements in five years, the state party unit led by Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, who has been at loggerheads with Virbhadra, has taken it upon himself to draw crowds for Rahul's rally in Mandi on Saturday.

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Virbhadra, who had refused to share the dais with Sukhvinder, though had been pacified following an audience with the party vice president and AICC state in-charge Sushil Kumar Shinde last week and had called truce, party sources in the state unit insist the rift is far from settled. Sukhu has Rahul's blessings and despite Virbhadra's strong disapproval of him, his removal was summarily dismissed by the Gandhi family scion, who has been effecting a new regime across the party organisation in the run-up to his taking over the top job.

As PM Narendra Modi and the BJP are stepping up attack on Virbhadra, focusing on the corruption charges against him, sources said Rahul is not very keen on going ahead with Virbhadra as the party's chief ministerial face yet again. However a final call is yet to be taken by the party high command. "The anti-incumbency too works against him. Though he has emerged as a one-man-army in Himachal and has considerable clout, it is also time for change. The present CM is 83-years-old. It is time for new talent to come up," said a senior party leader.

Members from Virbhadra's faction, however, brazen out the corruption allegations and maintain that the CM's 'good governance' will pay off for the party. "The charges not proven yet, whatever be the allegations, governance has never suffered. People are very happy," said a local leader.

Ridden with infighting and with no clear-cut plan for the upcoming polls, the Congress party walks on slippery ground in the state. While Modi has held big three rallies in the poll-bound state, Rahul will address the electorate on Saturday for the first time this year. Torn between Virbhadra's clout and Sukhu, who marks a shift in the politics of the state, Rahul postponed his tours of the state.

"Personal differences between leaders are always there but we have resolved our issues. Tomorrow's event is very important. It is a government event on the achievements of its five years and we are calling it 'Vikas Se Vikay Ki Oar'. I just finished three meetings today and the preparations are absolutely on track. The party organisation is backing the event and we will be mobilising masses. In hill states, it is difficult to draw big crowds. Particularly in Himachal, where the total population is 60 lakh with 11 lakh families, to quote a number will be inaccurate but ours will be as good as Modi's rally," Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee president, Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu told Mail Today.

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Asked if Virbhadra, despite the corruption allegations, will be the party's face in the upcoming polls, Sukhu said, "That is for the party high command to decide. As for the corruption charges, unless they are proved in a court of law he cannot be held guilty. The matter is sub judice. There might be antiincumbency but our government's work is being lauded."

ALSO WATCH | Rahul Gandhi may take over as Congress chief after Diwali, says Sachin Pilot

--- ENDS ---
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Responding to Donald Trumps Saturday morning tantrum about late night comedians being too hard on the president, Jimmy Kimmel tweeted out a suggestion that would benefit everybody: Trump should resign and host his own show.

Kimmel said he would be more than happy to give up his program if it means Trump stepping down.

Excellent point Mr. President! You should quit that boring job  Ill let you have my show ALL to yourself #MAGA  Jimmy Kimmel (@jimmykimmel) October 7, 2017

Kimmels epic response came after Trump tweeted this complaint on Saturday:

Late Night host are dealing with the Democrats for their very unfunny & repetitive material, always anti-Trump! Should we get Equal Time?  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2017

As The Hill noted, Trumps tweet came about an hour after Fox News Fox and Friends aired a segment accusing late night comedians like Kimmel and Jimmy Fallon of [taking] a hard turn to the left.'

The commander-in-chiefs social media tantrums have become a regular occurrence in recent weeks as his presidency continues to spiral out of control.

Last month, Trump thought it was worth his time to create a firestorm by picking a fight with professional athletes. This weekend, he chose to spend part of his Saturday whining about the jokes told about him on late night talk shows.

Meanwhile, the nation continues to grapple with the unspeakable violence in Las Vegas, Puerto Rico is still recovering from a catastrophic hurricane, and another storm is barreling toward the United States at this hour.
Charleston, SC (29403)

Today

Rain in the morning. Scattered thunderstorms in the afternoon. High 72F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms during the evening, then cloudy skies overnight. Low 56F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
By India Today Web Desk: Hrithik Roshan and Kangana Ranaut's legal battle has kept netizens puzzled for months now. It seemingly started when Kangana referred to him as a "silly ex". In no time, legal notices were exchanged, private e-mails were being made public and accusations were made.

In spite of much mudslinging, Hrithik had maintained a stoic silence, which was taken by many as a sign of his guilt. However, he reached his breaking point earlier this week and finally bared it all. Hrithik questioned how a passionate affair between two high-profile celebrities could be kept under wraps for years, with not a single witness or any piece of evidence left behind.

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The 43-year-old actor opened up in an interview and answered every question about the legal battle. Hrithik began by saying that he was "not a victim" and admitted that he saw "absolutely no grace in sitting here and testifying my character".

"If I'm walking down the street and if a person abuses me, the dignified thing to do is to keep walking, but if that person starts throwing stones into my home, and affects the well-being of me and my family, then that silence is no longer strength, that silence becomes weakness," he said about finally breaking his silence.

Hrithik said that he wanted to come out in the open with his side of the story several times, but friends and well-wishers stopped him from doing so.

He then went on to narrate his story from the very beginning. Hrithik and Kangana first met in 2008, during the shooting of his home production, Kites. "We did not become good friends. I found her to extremely professional, to the extent that I was proud of her. She was just giving that camera everything she had. An actor giving so much for my film, that's more than I can ask. I was extremely proud of her, and I mentioned that to her," he said in response to reports that they found solace in each other while working together on the film.

Hrithik said, "She told me that she was inspired by me. She was 8 or 9 years old when she saw my picture in a magazine, in Manali. I took that as a compliment." About their supposed bonding, he said, "She had issues with her language, she was trying to learn how to speak better. I come from a place where I had problems with my language too. I used to tell her my stories." But that is where it ended, Hrithik maintained.

Kangana asked in an interview around the time of the release of her film, Simran, that if she was acting in an improper manner, then why persuade her to work in his film, Krrish 3, for six months, after she refused the first time. To this, Hrithik had to say that it was his father, Rakesh Roshan, who convinced her to come on board, and that he himself was nowhere in the picture.

"She had apprehensions that her character might be cut off, because it was not the lead. That took some convincing, hence six months," Hrithik said.

According to Kangana, it was during the making of Krrish 3 that they were in a passionate affair, but Hrithik denied having any relationship other than professional with her. "I feel my need to please my co-actors might have led her on in some way. She would send me videos of some feat that she achieved, like during the training for the film, and I would use complimentary words and smiley faces. I don't know if that led to her believing this."

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Hrithik reiterated what he had said in his clarification on Twitter - "I have never met this person one on one in my entire life." Kangana's lawyer had claimed that the fact that she attended his parties and vice versa was proof that their relationship was not just professional. Hrithik said, "We were shooting for my film. Yes, I would invite them and hug them, because they were my team. I don't think she was invited for any other party when a film was not under production. There were more than a hundred people invited."

He then opened up about the first signs of troubling behaviour that Kangana had displayed. "We were at the wrap party for Krrish 3, we had finished the schedule that we did in Jordan. I was going to retire for the night. She came up to me and wanted to have a chat about her choices and things going on in life. I told her I was tired, let's talk in the morning. I went to my room and ordered room service. Then I heard a knock on my door, it was a loud knock, I looked through the peephole and I didn't think she was in the right state. I called my assistant to call her sister to come and take her back to her room. Everyone has a few drinks at parties, so I didn't think too much of it. The next day, Rangoli apologised. I told her it's okay, please ask your sister not to be embarrassed. This was 2012, and that was the last conversation we had that year."

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The next time Hrithik met Kangana was in 2013 during for the promotion of Krrish 3. But he had a gut feeling that she was trouble. "I told myself not to be too friendly. My instincts said be nice, but stay away," he said.

It was in 2014 that Hrithik supposedly popped the question to Kangana in Paris. When this story started doing the rounds, he was not upset. On the contrary, he felt good about it. "When I heard that, I was pretty relieved. I thought, now we have a lie that can be demolished in a second. Then came the photoshopped picture, and that could also be refuted. But nobody asked these questions," he said.

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The question on everyone's mind was, why did the actor not speak out earlier? Hrithik responded, "It's disgraceful, the he said, she said. It was such a hostile environment. Everything I said was used against me. Even this interview will be used against me in some manner. Who would give me the right platform? You think I didn't try? I wanted to. I've written some 20 blogs. I shared it with friends and they said, 'You can't do this. You are a huge star.' I didn't know how to merge the star and the person that I am."

He added, "We're missing the point. The fact is that this Paris thing was mentioned was always in third person, so it could be denied in a second."

Hrithik said that he has been through hell for four years. "I have had to go through a lot of emotions, and I am not willing to share them with you. I don't think I'm going to be able to describe it, and I don't expect you or anyone else to understand."

After the Krrish 3 promotions, Hrithik met Kangana at Karan Johar's birthday party next. It was May 24, 2014. She walked up to him and thanked him for his "honest feedback" on Queen. A stumped Hrithik did not know what Kangana was talking about when she said that she received a mail from him. She was upset and walked away, and he didn't think much of it then.

"I woke up the next morning and I had a barrage of text messages from her. The last text I got was on my birthday, she said she sent me a present. I didn't reply," he said, adding that they were all "abusive messages" in Hindi. But Hrithik still did not think anything was wrong. "I thought she lost her phone and some guy got hold of it and wrote all that," he said.

"I didn't think it was her until I opened my mail and Rangoli accused me of hacking her sister's ID and forcing her to shoot some videos and all. As proof, she attached an email sent two days ago from an ID that wasn't mine. I responded by saying that this is not my e-mail," Hrithik said, This is when he consulted his IT team and sent Rangoli a mail saying that if they could get the original mail, it was possible to catch the imposter.

But Rangoli responded with a shocking accusation - "You've been emotionally and psychologically raping Kangana." Hrithik revealed that this was the point that he chose to distance himself from the entire thing. "That's when I shut myself up. That's when I switched off. I did not want to associate or be a part of any more exchange after hearing that word. I had nothing to do with this. I have had a very good working relationship with this person. I was trying to wish this away. I didn't want my name being dragged through anything," he said.

The mails stopped coming for a while, but a month and a half later, it started all over again, Hrithik claimed. It was on July 13 that Kangana sent an e-mail promising to keep their interactions secret and expressing an interest in going to Prague. "These were not the first mails. It started with 'I miss you' and then some explicit mails. And then this particular one," he said. "It started with 1, then 10, then 15. I got scared and started sending them to junk," Hrithik said, adding that he could not block the e-mails because there was no option to do so in a Macbook Pro. He said that he read only about 40-50 out of the 3000-odd e-mails that he got.

Kangana has claimed that it was Hrithik who hacked into her account and sent himself e-mails to prove that she was in the wrong. However, he immediately dismissed her claims. "First of all, if I have hacked these mails and sent myself whatever, the e-mails recount the happenings of her entire day, what she ate, who she met etc. Plus the pictures. How can I send myself those very private pictures that she herself has taken?"

The Queen actor's claim is that they were in a relationship, which is why she sent him such pictures which he later used against her. "That depends on the assumption that I have had a relationship. I have not," Hrithik asserted.

He added that the mails were "not sensuous, they were offensive to the senses."

ALSO WATCH: Kangana accuses Hrithik of circulating her intimate photos

--- ENDS ---
MINNEAPOLIS  Desperation drove Richard Copeland into business.

Newly married with a baby on the way, Copeland found himself unemployed  booted from his father's trucking business after an argument. It was 1980. He was 25 years old.

"I didn't know what I was going to do," Copeland recalled. "All I had was a pickup truck, a shovel and a hammer. I would just drive around all day, hoping to find yard work."

His north Minneapolis neighbors dubbed him "Sanford and Son," a barbed reference to the 1970s TV comedy about an irascible junkyard owner and his hapless son, who also drove an old pickup.

Copeland, however, refused to follow that script.

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Instead, he built his one-man, one-shovel operation into a landscaping company, then a construction firm, and now Thor Companies, a Fridley-based holding company with 200 employees, $375 million in revenue and projects all over the country, making it one of the nation's largest black-owned businesses.

Thirty-seven years later, Thor is headed back to north Minneapolis, blocks from where Copeland grew up, with a plan to bring investment and jobs into a corner of the Twin Cities that desperately needs both.

A $35.9 million headquarters building that counts Target Corp. as an investor is under construction in north Minneapolis. Copeland plans to leverage the success of his business to spur an economic renaissance in a community crushed by the Great Recession and still struggling to recover nearly a decade later.

"We see North Minneapolis as an asset, not a liability," he said.

Copeland's also on a mission to wake up Minnesota to the struggles and potential of minority-owned entrepreneurs. His company has done far better winning contracts outside the state than inside, a reality he says is driven by racial discrimination.

State officials don't disagree.

"Thor's experience isn't unique," said Minnesota Human Rights Commissioner Kevin Lindsey. "I think it is the case that discrimination, unfortunately, still exists in the state of Minnesota. And it exists as it relates to employment, and it also exists as it relates to state contracting or contracting opportunities between individuals."

'Distinct responsibility'

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The new headquarters is a vital part of Hennepin County's multimillion-dollar plans to redevelop the area around Penn and Plymouth avenues and bring employment opportunities. Target is the master lease holder and was instrumental in the deal.

Copeland and others, though, see it as more than just a new building. They believe it will show the local building industry that it's good business to be in north Minneapolis and to hire minority workers.

"As African-Americans, I think we have a distinct responsibility," said Ravi Norman, Thor's chief executive officer. "It may only be a $35 million building. But it's an investment with intentionality in a very specific part of the neighborhood."

The local construction industry, he added, "is recognizing that the chasms that exist between whites and communities of color is something that's not going to be a sustainable model for Minnesota" and its rapidly growing racial and ethnic diversity, Norman said.

The number of minority businesses is growing at a much greater pace than white-owned firms in Minnesota, and the state's aging workforce and tight labor market mean the state's prosperity increasingly will depend on workers of color and the skills they have, said Gary Cunningham, president of the Metropolitan Economic Development Association, an organization that aids minority entrepreneurs.

"That shift means we're going to have to figure out how to ensure that people of color are thriving because they are the future consumers of products that are being sold, and they are the future workforce," Cunningham said.

The state agrees and has been moving in recent years to aid minority businesses. Minnesota officials recently created a set-aside for diverse businesses of any size  a break that Thor, a big company, long had sought  and it boosted workforce goals for minority and women in state construction.

Government contracts were the catalyst of Thor's growth.

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"When we were small and there were inclusions efforts made to have minority-owned businesses do state work, we participated in that work and bid on that work," Copeland said. "It helped us a lot."

Copeland, though, said the company became stuck  too big to work within the state's inclusion programs but not big enough to outmuscle Minnesota's construction giants for business.

Thor has worked on some big projects in Minnesota, including U.S. Bank Stadium and TCF Stadium, thanks to a longstanding partnership with Mortenson Construction. While high-profile, Thor's Minnesota work accounts for a sliver of its volume, more than 85 percent of which is from out of state.

Copeland said race plays a role in how his company is viewed by Minnesota's construction industry and that his vocal advocacy for inclusion, which included calling out agencies and companies, contributed to Thor's dearth of contracts.

Elsewhere, the company has prospered. That includes work in California and Nevada working with companies such as Disney and MGM Grand and being the only black-owned firm to build a building from the ground up on the Las Vegas Strip, Copeland said.

Norman and Copeland believe discrimination can't be excluded from the reasons Thor's been challenged in its hometown Twin Cities.

Race was a factor from the beginning, said Copeland, who was reminded of that early on when a white competitor scrawled "Thor" on Copeland's pickup truck. The hammer-wielding god from Norse Mythology was fitting for construction. Copeland kept it.

"I always say people like to do business with people they are comfortable with. So when the population over the years has been predominantly white, there's also going to be relationships on a localized level that are going to be white to white," said Norman.

"That has its own connotation of all the things that go into race and class and everything else," he added. "So as you're trying to find your way in that space with just those competitive dynamics and demographics, it's going to be tough to win some market share."

No longer undervalued

As its north Minneapolis building rises, Thor is poised to have its best year with projects around the country and an increasing amount in Minnesota.

Copeland and Norman are working now to build Thor's community involvement and visibility. Norman, for instance, sits on 11 corporate and organizational boards, including the influential Itasca Project.

Thor also, in recent months, expanded from general construction to a holding company, offering development, architectural design and consulting services. The expansion makes Thor a one-stop shop and increases its chances for contracts and employing more people of color, Norman said.

Engaging Thor could help bridge the income gap in the state, said James Burroughs, who was hired last year as Minnesota's first chief inclusion officer with a mission to improve the diversity of Minnesota's workforce.

"They tend to employ more people of color on their projects, therefore we're creating an economic impact that's doubled up because we've got a minority-owned business that's getting money and resource and they're employing people in the community," he said.

Norman said the building isn't just a building. It's envisioned as a hub for economic and community development.

Confirmed tenants include Build Wealth Minnesota as well as Cunningham's Metropolitan Economic Development Association, nonprofits that work to grow ventures of entrepreneurs of color, improve personal finance management and homeowners.

MEDA serves 700 businesses a year. Cunningham said the move from downtown Minneapolis to a bigger space in north Minneapolis coincides with major programming upgrades and will allow 3,000 clients per year.

Copeland searched for 10 years for his new headquarters. He and Cunningham are childhood friends and remember the corner bustling with businesses that vanished after the riots 50 years ago. It's been without economic activity for many years.

In a way, the community and the company are facing similar battles. They've been undervalued and excluded, Copeland said, but not anymore.
Harvey, Irma and Maria have taught small business owners that disaster planning is more than just evacuating and trying to mitigate physical damage  it's also about the "what ifs."

Many realized they hadn't done the right kind of preparation, including buying flood insurance. Some say they want to have their own generators. But even those with carefully made plans ran into situations their plans didn't account for.

Michael Mohl, owner of a Senior Helpers home care business in Palm Beach, Fla., thought he had a thorough strategy in place before Hurricane Irma hit. It included plans to meet the specific care needs of each client, a list of hurricane shelters and alternate routes for staffers, reminders to fill their gas tanks and Mohl having supplies and extra cash on hand.

"But we didn't plan on cellphone towers going down," Mohl says. Without them, he couldn't communicate with employees. He now plans to buy two-way radios similar to the ones emergency responders use.

Here's what some other owners learned:

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OWNER:Lexi Montgomery, Darling Web Design, Miami Beach, Fla.

HER STORY:Irma was the first hurricane Montgomery, who originally is from Missouri, experienced. She and her husband drove out of Miami Beach with their two dogs as the storm approached Florida and headed to Tampa, where she expected to run her business from a hotel. Several staffers were staying in Tampa as well. When the storm changed course and it appeared Tampa would take a direct hit, Montgomery and her husband fled to Atlanta, a drive that took 14 hours instead of the normal six to seven because the roads were packed.

Atlanta isn't usually a hurricane target but turned out to be in Irma's path. Montgomery's hotel was left without power and Wi-Fi. She struggled to stay in touch with U.S. and overseas clients using the internet at cafes and wasn't able to return home for 11 days. When she did, there was no power or air conditioning and her office had developed mold from the humidity.

WHAT SHE LEARNED:Montgomery, who lost revenue because her company fell behind, realized she needs a portable generator to be sure she can keep working. And she's going to stock up on supplies such as heavy-duty flashlights, canned food, extra dog medication and heavy boots. She also believes she left Miami Beach too late and didn't seek safety far enough away.

"As soon as I hear there's a storm, I'm leaving. And if it's a sudden thing and I can't leave, I would have a portable generator," she says. She's even considering renting an apartment on the West Coast for the entire hurricane season next year.

OWNER:Rachel Charlupski, The Babysitting Co., based in Miami

HER STORY:Charlupski's company has branches in several cities, but Florida is a key market with many clients being visitors to the state. She had more than 500 cancellations starting the week before Irma hit and lost thousands of dollars in revenue because clients weren't charged. Moreover, she has paid the baby sitters who committed to appointments that were canceled.

WHAT SHE LEARNED:Charlupski had accepted appointments through Sept. 7 when the storm wasn't expected to hit until the weekend. "Next time what we would do differently is not take on additional reservations when the weather conditions are bad," Charlupski says.

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She's also considering instituting a cancellation policy, explaining to clients they'll be charged if they cancel after a sitter has been lined up. But safety will be her first consideration.

"We would never penalize reservations when it is not safe for a sitter to work," she says.

OWNER:Jonathan Marsh, Home Helpers, in Bradenton, Fla.

HIS STORY:Marsh had a plan to ensure the company's elderly and sick clients and its employees would be safe. The office windows were boarded up, and the electronic and paper business records were secured. Administrative staff members were to meet at the office after the storm to arrange for caregivers to visit clients who had not evacuated.

But Irma was a larger and more violent storm than any Marsh had been through and took out the power, internet and cellphone service. That made it impossible to contact caregivers and arrange for all the client visits.

WHAT HE LEARNED: Similar to others, Marsh plans to get a backup generator  "That is my biggest concern," he says. But he's also changing post-storm procedures to deal with the possibility that communication will be difficult or impossible. After the next big storm, all staffers including caregivers are to meet at the office to arrange for client care.

Marsh also is thinking about the possibility that caregivers won't be able to travel to the office, or a backup location such as his home, in addition to being out of touch. In that case, they'll "be empowered to assist clients in their area after the storm, regardless of any communication problems with the office," he says.

OWNER:Michael Motylinski, wedding planner and officiant, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands

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HIS STORY:Hurricanes Irma and Maria caused extensive damage to the Virgin Islands. Dozens of couples, worried their dream Caribbean beach weddings wouldn't happen, tried to get in touch with Motylinski and his partner, but phone and internet service was down. About 40 couples canceled, including some whose weddings weren't scheduled until next summer. "By all appearances we'll be back on track by then," Motylinski says.

WHAT HE LEARNED:Before the next storm, Motylinski and his partner will be in touch with clients to try to quell their anxiety. Then either Motylinski or his partner will leave St. Thomas and go to a location where clients can reach them. He's also planning to include in future contracts a provision that he can move the weddings if necessary to a resort on St. Croix, 40 miles away, as long as St. Croix hasn't been hard hit.

"If an event were to occur in St. Thomas again, we would be set up and ready for business within two to three days at our new location," Motylinski says.
It was a perfect day to be out on the Calvin Fremling, a boat built for Winona State student research and other functions on the Mississippi River. Funded by corporate and individual donations, the boat honored long-time WSU professor, Calvin Fremling, who taught and researched there for 32 years before dying in 2010 at age 80.

I recall taking a class from Cal, and doing an independent study on Lake Winona, which he oversaw. His knowledge and enthusiasm for the river was evident, as he enjoyed both fishing and hunting on the nation's largest river, as well as researching its ecosystems. His main research subject was mayflies, which he determined were major indicators of the river's health.

Invited to go for a three-hour fundraising cruise on the Fremling with Izaak Walton League members and officials, we traveled both upstream and downstream from Winona, taking in the scenery after seeing a short video about John Latch. Latch, a successful 19th century Winona businessman, donated more than 18,000 acres over the years for the betterment of the river and those who lived near it.

One thing that intrigued me on the cruise was passing by some leafless shoreline trees full of birds not welcome in most places. Cormorants have been in the news lately, with efforts by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to once again allow killing of these migratory birds. A recent column in the Star Tribune focused on these efforts after the birds have had a year of protection like most all birds always have. This was granted by a federal judge in 2016 who agreed "shooting cormorants for eating fish is like shooting buffalo for eating grass".

Cormorants are between ducks and geese in size, found around both fresh and saltwater. They feed almost exclusively on fish, about a pound of one- to four-inchers daily. They are adept at catching fish by diving from the water surface, sometimes down more than 100 feet, moving rapidly enough to snatch unwary fish in their beak.

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Like loons, cormorants don't have the hollow bones of most birds that would make underwater diving difficult, and they also have large webbed feet and streamlined wings for propelling through the water. They sometimes may be seen perched in trees, wings outstretched, something it is believed they do to dry their wings, which don't have as much oil applied to them as other birds'.

Although the FWS is trying to alter the judge's ruling, pointing out many reasons for shooting the birds, the main, between-the-lines reason is that many people do not like the cormorants eating fish they want for themselves, or profit from having other people catch. Shooting has previously been done throughout the Great Lakes region, including many sites in Minnesota, especially on Leech Lake, a favorite fishing hole.

Although cormorants aren't as graceful or spectacular-looking as many birds, they are an important part of the natural food chain. But fish farmers, lakeshore owners, fishermen, and bait suppliers hope authority will once again be granted to kill cormorants. Another somewhat archaic method of cormorant control is oiling eggs in the nest to suffocate the embryos, thereby tricking cormorant parents into thinking they are incubating viable eggs.

Leech Lake Ojibwe Band biologist Steve Mortensen is in favor of returning to permitted shooting, although he admits "it's not easy to tell if colonies of fish-eating cormorants make a given lake less productive for game fish." Oddly enough, to me at least, he also states, "Anything that tends to compete with us for food is a species of concern."

Seems to me this ignores the fact cormorants have been around here longer than we have. They survive by eating fish, and were wiped out throughout most of the Great Lakes by human use of DDT in the 1970s. Perhaps the Fish and Wildlife Service, supposed protector of fish and wildlife, should be taking the opposite approach that any human recreational sport competing for wildlife food resources should be of concern, especially since most fishing by humans is not done for our survival.

Correction: As a follow-up to last week's column, I want to apologize to the Wescott family for misspelling their name. Given how much I enjoyed doing the column on their family apple business, and the kindness of Fred Wescott to help me do so, I feel badly about this error, and will be more diligent in the future.
STYLE, Rochester's definitive fall fashion event, celebrated its 10th anniversary late last month with iconic success, according to planners and participants.

"It was truly a special evening," reported STYLE Fashion Coordinator Lauren Scott. "I could see smiles on faces everywhere. Moving inside this year not only presented new challenges, but also great new ideas."

The show moved from an outdoor location on Peace Plaza to the Kathler Hotel's Heritage Hall, where weather would not interfere.

A Rochester Downtown Alliance event, STYLE had a full audience of 300, according to RDA Executive Director Jenna Bowman. All but 15 tickets were purchased.

"As a community, we are incredibly fortunate to have such a passionate and knowledgeable retail community in our downtown core," Bowman said. "The last decade of STYLE has shown what is possible when many people come together to make something happen."

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RDA survey results for STYLE were favorable, Bowman said. For example, 82 percent of attendees stated they felt more connected to the Rochester community after attending. Thirty-five percent said the primary reason for attending was for a night out in downtown Rochester. Seventy percent said the show inspired them to shop more in downtown Rochester.

Retailers furnishing fashions were 99 Giggles, Baby Baby, Blu H20 Salon, Ginny's Fine Fabrics, Hanny's, Hers, Knight's Chamber, Lasker Jewelers, M Gear, O&B Shoes, Poppi Italian Leather and The Nordic Shop.

This was the first time all featured emerging designers were from Rochester. Among them: David Cotterman, Denise Flynn, Teaki Garcia, Sophie Heublein and Sherry Sanden Will.

"Having them all from Rochester added to that community feeling we were hoping to bring into this year's STYLE show," Scott explained.

Emerging designers were equally positive.

Heublein said, "As a recent graduate from UW-Stout, in the Apparel Design and Development Program, it was exciting to be a part of STYLE. To get to meet new people who are just as passionate about creating beautiful garments is exciting as well."

Sherry Standen Will echoed Hueblein's sentiment. "I was proud to show my clothing designs and creations here in my hometown of Rochester," she said.

Teaki Garcia said, "As a Rochester native, I am thrilled to be part of our STYLE show. Rochester is a sophisticated city, and I'm proud of our downtown retailers, restaurants and culture."

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And Denise Flynn said, "STYLE is a wonderful forum. It's fun and exciting to see what the other designers are creating and also what trends the shops are promoting. If you love style and fashion, it's a great Rochester experience."

According to Hers owner Bruce Dahlstrom, the show was "an exciting way to show all the cutting edge fashion that is available right here. As soon as we stepped in to the new venue, it was amazing. Customers told us afterward how much they liked it and how elegant it felt."

"We were very pleased with the turnout for the after-show shopping," Dahlstrom said. "We had ladies in both of our stores and until after 9:30 p.m. We sold novelty tunic tops, jackets and coats. Also embroidered jeans and printed pants. Many of the things we sold were featured in the show."

Looking ahead, Scott said, "We are looking forward to many more anniversaries to come. Cheers to a decade of fashion."
Maria Cameron, 26, recently returned to her Rochester roots after a few years of living and studying in Minneapolis and Chicago. Nursing assistant by day and artist by night, Maria wears many hats, professionally speaking. Her affinity for interactive art and visual design spills into her wardrobe by way of unique thrifted finds and timeless family heirlooms.

"I've always been a firm believer in giving new life to old things," she said.

We recently caught up with Maria to talk about style, confidence and how to shop secondhand.

Your style summed up.

Eclectic. Situational. Kinda-out-there.

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How has your style evolved into what it is today?

I've grown a lot personally, professionally and creatively and have come into my own more than ever before simply wearing what I'm most comfortable in. I dress for the day and what I'm doing. If I have a business meeting, I'm dressed appropriately. But if I'm doing my creative work, I think it's important to wear what makes me happy and is both practical and comfortable.

How is your work as a creative artist reflected in your personal style?

My creative work is based on a mixture of interactive pop art but is also inspired by human experience and memory. I think my personal style shares a connection with my creative work by being equal parts new and old.

Whose style do you admire most? Why?

I admire my best friend Alexandria's style the most of anyone. She is bold and beautiful and comfortable with everything she wears, whether it's her flight attendant uniform or her favorite vintage romper or ratty T-shirt with a howling wolf on it. I admire everyone who boldly owns their look.

Where do you find outfit/style inspiration?

From vintage fashion and everything I see around me. A woman was walking down the street the other day wearing a clean-cut modern blouse and suit jacket with a pair of insane plaid yellow vintage trousers. Like business on top and party on the bottom  it was incredible.

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In your opinion, what makes someone "stylish"?

Confidence in what they wear, no matter what it is.

What is the most essential component(s) in your wardrobe?

A lot of black. I have seven pairs of basically the same black shoe. Oops.

My outfit just doesn't feel complete without ...

My grandmother's baby ring. It's tiny and gold with the letter 'A' on it. It's the simplest touch, but I don't feel like myself if I forget it.

I feel most confident when I'm wearing ...

Something I bought for a specific occasion. I tend to fill my closet with everyday rewearable pieces so it gives me a lot of confidence to wear something I bought for a special reason.

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You have two minutes to get ready for a night out on the town. What do you grab?

A black romper and a bold lipstick. These two items are the ultimate confidence boost.

Anything surprising in your wardrobe?

I've accumulated a lot of pieces with an interesting history. I have a vintage go-go dress that I bought from Joanna Newsom at a garage sale as well as an insane collection of bizarre T-shirts I've thrifted.

It's clear you have a love for vintage. What decade do you think rocked the best fashion and why?

I'll never get over the timelessness of the '20s, but I think my favorite style subculture is the teddy girls of the 1950s. They rebelled by embracing "man fashion" and Edwardian flamboyance with reckless abandon.

What's your advice for someone wanting to incorporate a vintage piece or two into their wardrobe?

I like to encourage people to just start by trying vintage on. Vintage dresses are often so well-tailored that they fit like a dream. Another way to start getting into it is by starting small. I started with jewelry and accessories first and the love grew from there.

How could the Rochester style scene be improved?

I'd love to see people embrace vintage items as viable options for everyday wardrobe. It's not just a costume  sometimes it's a piece of history. I've always been a firm believer in giving new life to old things.

Best place to people-style-watch in Rochester?

I draw a lot of inspiration just by hanging around downtown. Cafe Steam always has an abundance of eclectically stylish people. Local concerts are another go-to because there is a mix of everything from upscale chic to grungy punk, and I like a world with all of that in it.

Words of style wisdom you think everyone should live by.

Be kind about style. I hear too many people cut themselves and others down about clothing choices and fits. Clothing is a gateway into who a person is, but it doesn't have to completely define them.

Biggest fashion pet peeve?

Ridiculously impractical shoes. There is no reason to go through life wearing uncomfortable shoes.

Favorite local places to shop?

I thrift more often than anything else, but I love Primp for shopping locally. I also buy off of Instagram a lot. In fact, my friend, Corrie, and I are just launching our own little vintage shop on Instagram right here out of Rochester. Stay tuned.

Top tip for shopping secondhand:

Definitely to try on before you buy. I also recommend getting your items dry cleaned. It gives them a new feel and, obviously, a fresh scent.

---

Want more of Maria? Find her creative work online at www.maria-cameron.com , and be on the lookout for her soon-to-open vintage Instagram shop.
MANTORVILLE  A Wanamingo woman who was on probation for an arson case when she led law enforcement on a high-speed chase through two counties has been sentenced in the chase.

Jecika Katherine Radloff, 23, was charged in June with one count each of fleeing a peace officer in a motor vehicle, a felony; reckless driving-disregarding a substantial risk, a misdemeanor; speeding and failure to stop at stop signs, both petty misdemeanors.

She pleaded guilty to the felony in July; the remaining counts were dismissed during Wednesday's sentencing.

Dodge County District Court Judge Jodi Williamson placed Radloff on probation for three years, ordered her to complete psychological evaluation/treatment, a mental health screening and pay a fine of $1,155, in addition to other conditions.

She also sentenced Radloff to 65 days in jail, with credit for 65 days already served.

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The case began the night of June 20, when a Kenyon police officer cited Radloff for failure to signal a turn in Kenyon. Shortly after, the same officer saw her drive through the stop sign at Minnesota State Highway 56 and Second Street, also in Kenyon, in Goodhue County.

When the officer initiated a traffic stop with emergency lights and siren, Radloff's vehicle accelerated to 90 mph, the complaint says, driving erratically and driving south in the northbound lane.

She soon crossed into Dodge County, where a deputy spotted Radloff's vehicle; a radar reader indicated the car was traveling 76 mph, the report says.

Radloff didn't slow down as the deputy fell in behind her and allegedly ran the stop sign at the intersection of Minnesota 56 and U.S. Highway 14, west of Dodge Center. She drove east on U.S. 14, driving on the shoulder, crossing the center line and fog line and changing lanes without signaling, the court documents say.

Radloff took the off-ramp to Dodge County Road 25 without stopping at the stop sign, then drove across the road onto the on-ramp and returned to eastbound U.S. 14, the document continues.

Kasson police officers assisted with stop sticks at the intersection of U.S. 14 and Minnesota State Highway 57. Radloff's front right tire struck the stop sticks; the vehicle stopped near the overpass, and Radloff was arrested.

She was charged in the same case in August in Goodhue County District Court with one count of fleeing in a motor vehicle, a felony; misdemeanor counts of reckless driving and speeding; and failure to stop at a stop sign, a petty misdemeanor.

Her first appearance there is set for Dec. 1.

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Last winter, Radloff received a stay of adjudication in an arson case after she admitted to trying to set a park building on fire.

She was sentenced to two days in jail, with credit for two days already served, ordered to undergo psychological evaluation/treatment and fined $125.

Radloff also was banned from Riverside Park in Wanamingo, where the incident occurred, and was placed on probation for five years.

With a stay of adjudication, the charges are dismissed when probation and its conditions are successfully completed. The defendant's criminal record doesn't reflect a conviction, but the arrest record remains.
First-time customers to Christ United Methodist Church's new thrift store may not notice it at first. It probably won't hit them until they make a purchase.

The store has no cash register.

But then who needs one when everything on the shelves  from jackets and winter coats to hats and mittens to jewelry and scarves  sells for a dollar or 50 cents?

"We're all going to wear these aprons," said Bobbi Nichols, the coordinator of the new church store, called Thrift on Fifth. "As we get the money, we're just going to put them in our aprons."

This Wednesday, the church will hold Thrift on Fifth's grand opening. Store hours will be Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon and Wednesday from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

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One dollar clothes! Who can beat prices like that? But that's not the store's chief selling point, say Nichols and the team of church ladies who have worked to transform a storage room into a second-hand clothing store.

A skeptic might ask: What business does a church have in opening a thrift store in the first place?

Their answer is that the shop opens up possibilities, from starting a daycare facility, to serving the poor, to building community. In that sense, the enterprise fits snugly, like a warm pair of gloves, into the church's broader mission.

Money raised from the thrift store will fund scholarships so children can attend a daycare center that the church plans to open next fall. The center, called THRIVE!, seeks to address a gaping community need for daycare slots. A recent report commissioned by the United Way and Families First found that Olmsted County was short nearly 1,900 daycare slots.

Church volunteers say the store fits with a Saturday noon meal program that the church provides to low-income people who now will be able to shop at the store, too.

Church volunteer Wendy Francis sees the store as lending a boost to a kind of virtuous cycle. Obtaining a daycare scholarship may open possibilities for a parent to go out and find work. He or she will need business clothes, which the thrift store can provide.

"I can come and buy a lady's suit for a dollar," Francis said.

Before they began work on the store, the women at Christ United Methodist researched the idea by visiting a couple of Twin Cities church thrift stores. That research, combined with own thrifty instincts, guided them in developing a store that they believe will appeal to shoppers. Thrift stores are about the hunt. They're about clothing your family. The volunteers feel the shop meets their standards, because they admit to eyeing some of the clothes themselves.

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"I want to shop here. Our staff wants to shop here," Nichols said.

The aim, they say, is to help low-income residents buy clothes cheaply, but it's not designed to serve them exclusively. The store, Nichols said, is open to people from all income levels.

"We're not discriminating against anybody," Nichols said.

That benefits the store in the long run, Nichols said. People who frequent the store, no matter their socio-economic background or church affiliation, will hopefully donate clothes to the store in the future. A donation box is located on the church's first floor. Store organizers ask that clothing donations be clean, quality items. In that way, they can spend more time with customers than cleaning clothes.

The church has also enlisted a local girl scout troop to spread an overall sense of welcomeness. The fifth-graders will be playing hopscotch in the hallway.

"We're really interested in building community here," Nichols said. "I mean, we want this to be an outreach for everybody, not just members of our church, not just Christians. We want everybody to come. Everything is going to cost a dollar or 50 cents."

Nichols seems unconcerned that the one dollar clothing might fly off the shelves with such speed that it will exhaust their inventory. The donations so far have come from a small silver of the 1,000-member church, mainly those connected with the store and their neighbors. They haven't yet begun to solicit the congregation for donations.

"We do need donations, because I think this is going to go quickly," Nichols said, adding at one point, "We're going by the loaves and fishes."
India and the European Union have pledged to strengthen efforts to fight terrorism by taking "decisive action" against internationally banned terrorists and such organisations, including the 26/11 attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed, Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi and Dawood Ibrahim.

By Press Trust of India: India and the European Union have pledged to strengthen efforts to fight terrorism by taking "decisive action" against internationally banned terrorists and such organisations, including the 26/11 attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed, Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi and Dawood Ibrahim.

After the 14th India-EU Summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, European Council President Donald Franciszek Tusk and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker adopted a 'Joint Statement on Cooperation in Combating Terrorism' that seeks to deepen their strategic and security cooperation.

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Addressing a joint press event with the EU leaders, Modi said, "We have agreed to strengthen our security cooperation and work together against terrorism. We will not only boost our bilateral cooperation further on this issue, but also increase our cooperation and coordination in the multilateral fora."

Tusk said, "We have adopted a joint declaration on counter terrorism in which we agreed to counter violent extremism and radicalisation, particularly online, and to deal effectively with the threat by foreign terrorist fighters, terrorist financing and arms supply."

Later briefing reporters, Ruchi Ghanshyam, secretary (west) in the Ministry of External Affairs, said that it was for the first time that the EU had not only agreed to mention terrorist entities but also terrorists in an India-EU document.

She said the joint statement on combating terrorism talks of cutting flow of funds and economic resources to individuals and to other entities involved in terrorism.

"The leaders agreed to strengthen cooperation to take decisive and concerted actions against globally proscribed terrorists and terror entities including Hafiz Saeed, Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, Dawood Ibrahim, Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish-e- Mohammed, Harkat-ul-Jihad, the Haqqani Network, al-Qaeda, ISIS and their affiliates", she said.

Only recently, Hafiz Saeed slapped a Rs 100 million defamation notice against Pakistan's foreign minister.

The two sides, she said, reaffirmed their commitment to jointly combating terrorism and violent extremism in all their forms and manifestations, irrespective of their motives.

"They (the two sides) have agreed to exchange information on domestic and international terrorist designation listing proposals", Ghanshyam said.

The leaders strongly condemned the recent terrorist attacks in many parts of the world, underlining their common concern about the global threat posed by terrorism and extremism.

Ghanshyam said the leaders also called for perpetrators of the recent terrorist strikes like those in Pathankot, Uri, Nagrota in Jammu and Kashmir) Stockholm (Sweden), Nice (France), London, Barcelona (Spain), Brussels (Belgium) and also the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks to be brought to justice.

RESPONSIBLE STATES SHOULD TAKE ADEQUATE STEPS TO CRACK DOWN ON TERROR

"They recalled that responsible states should take adequate measures to ensure that their territories are not used for terrorist activities", Ghanshyam said, in an apparent reference to Pakistan.

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The leaders welcomed the joint commitment to exploring opportunities to share information, best practices, including those related to countering the online threat of radicalisation, and engaging in capacity-building activities such as training and workshops.

They emphasised on the need to deepen cooperation within the UN and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

The EU congratulated India on becoming a signatory to the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) and welcomed its subscription to The Hague Code of Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation (HCoC).

They also noted New Delhi's intensified engagement with the Nuclear Suppliers' Group (NSG), the Wassenaar Arrangement and the Australia Group.

The two sides reaffirmed their commitment to enhancing maritime security cooperation in the Indian Ocean and beyond.

They noted that the recent joint manoeuvres (PASSEX) between the EU Naval Force and the Indian Navy off the coast of Somalia was a successful example of naval cooperation.

"The EU looks forward to India's possible participation in escorting World Food Programme vessels in the near future", Tusk said.

The EU appreciated the "positive role" being played by India in extending development assistance in Afghanistan, including the building of social and economic infrastructure, governance institutions and human resource development and capacity building.

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WATCH VIDEO | Pakistan's move to ban Hafiz Saeed's party a delaying tactic to fool the world?

--- ENDS ---
ST. PAUL  Kler Say had a problem when he graduated from St. Paul's Harding High School last spring.

Say really wanted to go to college and study business. But he'd come to the U.S. from Thailand only five years ago and knew his English skills weren't college-ready.

"(My cousin) said if you go to college, you'll have to take the English language learner class, they will take your financial aid and you'll spend more money," Say said.

Minnesota students collectively spend millions of dollars each year on "developmental courses," classes taught on college campuses that students must take if they don't meet the school's competency requirements. While required, they do not count toward a student's degree. The courses average $542 each at Minnesota public colleges.

A recent state report found 8,452 students from the high school class of 2013 enrolled in developmental courses within two years of graduation, spending $11.8 million on the courses.

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Say didn't want to spend that money. So his cousin pointed him toward another option.

Say enrolled in a free course last summer called College Yes! at St. Paul's Hubbs Center for Lifelong Learning. It's part of a program called the College Readiness Academy, offered through the state and federally funded adult basic education system.

Say said his English has improved in the class, although he still has some difficulties. He said he might take more classes at the Hubbs Center. "I will be ready here, and if I go to a college it will be better for me."

Adult basic education is not typically known for this kind of college preparation. It's more commonly recognized for classes geared toward high school diploma alternatives such as the GED. Just 1,751 adult basic education students throughout the state were enrolled in courses specifically designated for college preparation during the 2015-16 school year, according to the state education department.

"(College readiness) is kind of a new way of thinking about adult basic education coursework," Hubbs Center teacher Elizabeth Fontaine said.

Public colleges and universities throughout the state assess new students' skills using a test called the Accuplacer. Students who enroll in the college and score below a cut-off in reading, math or writing are placed in developmental courses.

Fontaine said high school graduates often don't know there's a free alternative to that placement.

"They feel like they should be in college, for whatever reason. That's where they're supposed to be. And so they don't want to spend the time in courses that have no direct affiliation with a community college," Fontaine said.

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St. Paul College student Mihret Issa depended on College Readiness Academy staff to teach her about college finances. Issa said she learned a state grant she's using to help pay for college will run out eventually. She also gained academic skills in the classes.

But the free courses didn't get Issa all the way to a degree program. This fall she's enrolled in two developmental courses at St. Paul College.

Some students pay for developmental classes even after having completing adult basic education. And in some cases, the two programs work together. One of the College Readiness Academy courses takes place on the St. Paul College campus. The college is considering bringing more of the program on-site in the spring.

"There's an element of overlap, but our goal is not to be seen as a competitor for adult basic education," St. Paul College vice president of academic affairs Kristen Raney said.

College officials insist the distinction between the course options isn't just free versus paid.

"There's more at stake. ... It's a faster pace, and it's a lot more work for the students," St. Paul College developmental reading instructor Celeste Mazur said.

Mazur said when students are on a college campus, they start learning about how college works. Instructors match "the expectations, demands, rigor of college courses in a supportive environment."

Still, it's clear both options are recruiting some of the same students.

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A report on the College Readiness Academy identified student recruitment as the program's biggest challenge and noted students "save money by taking developmental education classes free-of-charge at (College Readiness Academy)."

Available state funding for adult basic education has been underutilized each of the past four years, and overall enrollment in programs has declined during that period.

At the same time, colleges have made reforms to developmental education, including accelerating courses and reducing enrollment in them.

This year the Minnesota State system launched its own free college preparation program: a summer program that provided 143 students free developmental instruction. Students who completed the program received a $150 scholarship for fall tuition at a Minnesota State college or university.
ST. CLOUD  How do you teach a child to code?

How do you get a student just learning simple math to understand programming that often requires algebra skills?

It's not as hard as you'd think, and it's happening every day at Talahi Community School in St. Cloud.

"First we teach them unplugged lessons," said Jason Menth, STEM integrationist at Talahi. "That means they're not using technology, so it's a lot of just moving their body."

First, students use a large walkable grid to form paths. Students lay down arrows in boxes to form a path that will get them to their destination the fastest, Menth described.

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It's a lot of trial and error. But it's working.

"They start to understand what a computer is doing  following a sequence of directions," Menth said.

'Putting it all together'

Menth, in his sixth year at Talahi, became the STEM integrationist two years ago. A similar position was created four years ago, when Talahi became a STEM-focus school.

STEM stands for science, technology, engineering and math. But it's much more than an acronym. It's a new way of thinking about how to combine subjects and create hands-on projects that look more like real-world experiences and skills required for careers.

"Old education was (where) you're just learning math, or you're just learning reading, or you're just learning science," Menth said. "What STEM is is project-based learning where you're putting it all together."

In people's careers, they never need to only master just one skill. But for many years, the education system revolved around teachers teaching students one subject  such as math, reading or science  in a silo.

"It doesn't make sense," Menth said.

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Jenny McNew, media specialist at Talahi, is helping Menth integrate STEM into the curriculum. McNew has been teaching for 31 years; she has been a media specialist in St. Cloud school district for 19 years.

McNew and Menth are rearranging a former classroom into a "creation station" that has wide open space for students to learn using engineering projects and robots. The room is temporarily housing STEM bins filled with pattern blocks and cubes that will rotate through classrooms. It also is the temporary home to iPads before they get distributed to students; Talahi has one-to-one technology for students in grades 2-5. That means each student gets a device.

Aye, robots

Each classroom at Talahi also has its own robot, and the robot is more advanced with each grade level.

The younger grades use Bee-Bots, which look like small beetles with arrows on the top that can be programmed to move certain ways. Second-graders use Dash, a blue robot made of four spheres that responds to voices, navigates objects and can use apps to learn new behaviors. And fourth-graders use Sphero, a clear ball-like robot that can be programmed to navigate mazes, swim across water or create chalk lines to help students learn about circumference and other math skills.

"You don't need all these resources to make it STEM," Menth said. "It's taking what you do in math and applying it to science or social studies together. We're just lucky to have all these resources to make it more engaging and more fun and go the extra mile with it."

STEM programming is funded through grants and resources dedicated by the district to make Talahi the district's first STEM-focus school. While Talahi is the designated STEM school, other elementary schools in the district are implementing STEM curriculum, too.

"Our challenge was to take what we already do  reading and math, which are two big skills  and how to bring our science and engineering and technology into those areas and still cover the standards," McNew said. "We utilize a lot of things that are considered STEM but what we really pushed for this year was to what we call 'STEMify' our curriculum."

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An hour a day

What that means is every classroom dedicates one hour each day to "STEMify" its lessons. And once a week during that time, the classroom can go to the STEM room, library or computer labs to use different equipment.

McNew described a typical science lesson  how plants grow  that is "STEMified" by not only writing and reading about germination and photosynthesis, but by integrating math skills into the lesson by measuring plant growth. A teacher could even integrate engineering into the lesson by having students create a device to water the plant when they are not there.

"It's a lot of big ideas and inquiry. You want kids to have questions after they solve their initial question," Menth said. "That's what the STEM process is  how can we keep pushing our boundaries?"

Transitioning to a STEM-focus school requires buy-in from teachers. Getting the students excited about engineering is easy, Menth said.

"You put an iPod or a robot in a student's hand, they are going to figure it out. They love to explore," he said. "It's more of actually getting the teachers familiar. You can't just change into a STEM school overnight. Each year, we give teachers something else to build upon to incorporate more things into the classroom."

Talahi has an after-school robotics club for students. Staff are also planning a STEM night in December to show parents and community members how STEM is being implemented in the classroom.
DULUTH  Many people who've spent much time around the Great Lakes take for granted that Lake Superior is the largest, coldest and clearest of the lakes.

Not anymore.

While Lake Superior has not gotten any dirtier, lakes Huron and Michigan have gotten significantly clearer in the past 20 years or so, a study published earlier this year in the Journal of Great Lakes Research found.

Anecdotally, scientists knew water clarity was improving in those lakes. But it hadn't been quantified.

"What surprised us was the magnitude of the change," said Robert Shuchman, a study co-author and co-director of the Michigan Tech Research Institute. "We had no idea the data was going to tell us that Huron and Michigan have surpassed the water clarity in Lake Superior. That was the startling piece."

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Scientists analyzed satellite images of the lakes captured between 1998 and 2012. Over that period, they found, the depth that light could penetrate down into the water  known as the photic zone  increased by about 20 percent in lakes Michigan and Huron.

They attribute part of that change to less phosphorous runoff. Climate change also likely plays a role. But the dominant factor is the explosion of invasive zebra and quagga mussels in the lakes since the late 1990s, researchers concluded.

Some of the highest abundances of quagga mussels in the world are found in Lake Michigan, said Gary Fahnenstiel, a senior research scientist at Michigan Tech and study co-author.

"So in a somewhat figurative sense, you can almost walk on a bed of mussels from one side of Lake Michigan to the other," he said.

Those mussels can filter the entire volume of water in Lake Michigan in only six days, Fahnenstiel said, citing current estimates.

They do that by gobbling up the plankton in the water, which are the dominant light absorbers.

Remove plankton, and the water gets a lot clearer.

"Lake Michigan now reminds me of the Caribbean," Shuchman said, with crystal clear, aqua blue water and white sand beaches along its eastern shore.

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But it's critical to think about the ramifications of that clarity, Shuchman stressed.

The plankton that mussels filter also form the base of the food chain. If it's gone, the rest of the chain risks starvation. "It's very disconcerting," Shuchman said. "Because if you take it to the limit, the Great Lakes may be totally clear and you're kayaking, and you're seeing the bottom, but they may end up being literally ecological deserts."

The clearer water has also led to a surge in the growth of an algae called cladophora. Big storms then churn up the algae, which drifts to shore in stinky mats or settles to the bottom of the lake and rots.

"You see the places where it collects on the lake bottom, these vast graveyards of decomposing algae," said National Park Service aquatic ecologist Brenda Lafrancois, who often dives near Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore on Lake Michigan.

That algae is a hotspot for the growth of a harmful bacteria that in turn produces a botulism toxin that has killed large numbers of fish and birds, including migrating loons.

Lafrancois, who's based at the Apostles Islands National Lakeshore on Lake Superior, said even though Lake Superior as a whole is still pristine, there are also indications that nearshore water quality in Lake Superior is deteriorating.

An analysis of satellite maps shows a declining trend in water quality in the western Apostles since the mid-2000s, she said, due largely to rivers like the St. Louis and Brule washing huge loads of sediment into the lake during big rainstorms.

She suspects larger rain events, which are forecast to increase in a warming climate, are likely driving the trend.

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But there may be a bit of good news. The number of invasive mussels may have peaked in Lake Michigan, said scientist Gary Fahnenstiel. "If I was a betting man," he said, "I'd think Lake Superior would go back to being clearer than Lake Michigan in 15-20 years."

And he believes the intense clarity of Lake Michigan, especially, may help more people recognize the beauty of the Great Lakes, and take more pride in caring for them, "and hopefully some better stewardship of the resource," he said.

Outside Duluth on a rocky stretch of Lake Superior shoreline called Brighton Beach one recent day, 70-year-old Rob Hall was throwing sticks to his yellow lab Liesel.

Asked what he thinks about Lake Superior losing its crown as the clearest of the Great Lakes, Hall said he knows firsthand just how clear the lake is. Hall, a retired firefighter, is a scuba diver who's done about 500 dives in the big lake.

"I drink it, I swim in it, I eat the fish that come out of it."

And when told about Superior being surpassed in clarity by Michigan and Huron, his opinion of his favorite lake wasn't swayed.

"No, it's still the best," he said. "They call it Superior for a reason."
I want to add a few notes to Pauls comments as well as my own on the gargantuan Ken Burns/Lynn Novick PBS documentary The Vietnam War. I think it warrants more informed commentary than my own, but let me these offer notes while we wait for knowledgeable observers such as Mackubin Owens, Victor Davis Hanson and James Robbins to weigh in.

As of this weekend, we do have George Veiths helpful Law & Liberty review (in many ways [the documentary] is a lengthy redundancy, repeating old stories and unchallenging surface realities) as well as Mark Moyars critique in this Wall Street Journal column (the documentary is a partisan harangue). It seems to me, however, that we have only begun to scratch the surface of this profoundly dishonest piece of work.

On the absence of commentary criticizing the documentary, Boston Globe columnist Kevin Cullen recalled the controversy over Stanley Karnows 1983 PBS series on the war. In his column on the documentary, Cullen quoted Sara Altherr, the publicist and wife of the executive producer of the 1983 series. Cullen exulted: [W]hat surprises Altherr and others who worked on the 1983 series is the absence of a coordinated attack against it by conservative forces similar to those who rose up in indignation 35 years ago. If anything, the most compelling criticism of Burns/Novick is that they strayed too close to the middle. (Paul discussed this most compelling criticism in his comments.)

Although the Burns/Novick documentary concedes the misleading media coverage of the war at the time of the Tet Offensive of 1968, it does so only in passing. It does not pause over it. The documentary serves up the stray reflections of many witnesses who lived through the period, but it utterly omits any consideration of the medias misunderstanding. For that one must turn to Peter Braestrups monumental Big Story and James Robbinss This Time We Win.

As Robbins shows, this was a misunderstanding with a legacy all its own. The documentary has time to look back at Woodstock (intercut with footage from the battlefield in Vietnam), but no time to give any thought to media misfeasance. Instead the documentary recycles the received version of the media as heroes. Witness, for example, the documentarys account of the Pentagon Papers case.

The documentary pretends to Olympian if sorrowful detachment, but the tone of detachment is a pretense. The documentary adopts old leftist critiques of the war as a civil war in which we had no business and were, moreover, on the wrong side. In Vietnam we were always chasing ghosts. The war could not be won. The documentary orchestrates these assertions into motifs that run from the first episode through the tenth.

The motifs add up to a shoddy argument in a shoddy form. Among other things, the civil war motif implies that South Vietnam was not a legitimate country. This implication of the documentary remains unsupported by express argument from anyone other than partisans of the North Vietnamese cause, although one or two of the South Vietnamese refer to the fratricidal nature of the war.

The first episode presents a glaring example of the documentarys argument by implication. Recounting French colonial involvement in Vietnam, the documentary departs from chronological form to cut back and forth between French colonial involvement following World War II and American participation in the war in the mid 1960s. The unstated implication is that Americas involvement represented a continuation of French colonialism, or that the United States had succeeded to France in Vietnam.

Despite the civil war motif, the documentary of course acknowledges and indeed establishes the role of North Vietnam in creating, directing and supporting the Viet Cong. Reviewing the documentarys companion book by Geoffrey Ward, who also wrote the documentarys narrative, (leftist) historian David Greenberg banged the gong in the New York Times, of all places. Professor Greenberg noted that Ward provides an oddly starry-eyed sketch of Ho Chi Minh. This is a rather crippling limitation in understanding our enemy, as I persist in thinking of him (and Le Duan, Le Duc Tho and the rest of the North Vietnamese leadership).

The documentary does not take the line that I learned at the time from antiwar historians such as Kahin and Lewis in The United States in Vietnam (1967) that the conflict was limited to South Vietnamese factions. No one is now selling the line that the conflict constituted a civil war in that sense. The left long ago moved on.

The books sugarcoated view of Ho appears in the documentary as well, but the phenomenon of sugarcoating extends to the documentary generally. It sugarcoats Ho Chi Minh, to be sure, but it also sugarcoats Communist persecution and Communist atrocities. How many Vietnamese civilians did the Communists massacre in Hue? The documentary doesnt say, but the answer is thousands. It sugarcoats the American antiwar movement. John Kerry, however, does not emerge entirely unscathed.

While presenting voices speaking from numerous perspectives, the documentary is ruthlessly partial. Among other things, it glosses over the voices of American armed forces proud of their service and not disillusioned by the cause they served. Bing West makes this point (and more) in his New York Post column on the documentary, as does George Veith in the column linked above. The documentarys tone of detachment is, as I say, a pretense.

The documentary includes interviews with commissioned officers such as West Point grad Matt Harrison (a member of the class of 1966, Harrison also appears in Rick Atkinsons The Long Gray Line) and retired Air Force General (then Major) Merrill McPeak. As they look back, they are eloquent in their bitterness.

Those of the 2.7 million Americans who served at lower levels in Vietnam range from the disillusioned to the disgusted: Karl Marlantes, John Musgrave, Bill Ehrhart, Roger Harris, Denton Mogie Crocker (killed in action at age 19, but speaking through letters and surviving family), Tim OBrien, Vincent Okamoto, James Gillam, Ron Ferrizzi and others. Their testimony is compelling. In one way or another, however, they look down on their younger selves for their service or for having believed in the cause they served. (I might ask here why Leslie Gelb is the one former government official called on to chime in as a sort of Greek chorus.)

Where, I wondered, is someone like my friend Tim Kelly, the prominent attorney now at the Minneapolis office of the Dykema law firm? Tim graduated from the University of Minnesota and was commissioned through Army ROTC in 1968. Once commissioned, Tim volunteered for the infantry and for service in Vietnam. He served as an Army infantry officer in Vietnam and Cambodia from 1968-1970, attaining the rank of First Lieutenant. I asked Tim what he thought of the documentary. He responded:

Watched a single episode in part and it was so distorted that I quit. Compare the book Hue 1968, by Mark Bowden, to this polemic. Hue leans left but is fair while this documentary is really propaganda. I think most combat soldiers in Vietnam thought that what they themselves did was noble, but had differing views whether the war effort itself made sense. Everyone just wanted to serve his tour and get home.

Tim is no shrinking violet, but the producers of The Vietnam War somehow overlooked him and others like him in the ten years they worked on the documentary.

Paul Mirengoff wrote about the bias reflected even in the documentarys musical soundtrack. Man, the producers are proud of that soundtrack. In their precis of the documentarys episodes, they list the songs that appear on each one. The soundtrack draws on the folk, rock, blues and soul music of the era, but why? It emits a sentimental glow, like the soundtrack of The Big Chill.

It also marks out an approved canon, like Samuel Johnsons selection of quotations illustrating usage in his Dictionary of the English Language. Bob Dylan is a heavy  and I do mean heavy  favorite of Burns and crew, especially in the early going. The documentarys online site includes David Frickes liner notes for the soundtrack. Fricke hails the soundtracks vivid atmosphere and pointed commentary.

You may recall the powerful portrayal of the Cambodian holocaust in 1984s The Killing Fields. The movies portrayal of the horror was unblinkered. Even so, the film wound up with John Lennons Imagine, as though nationalism or patriotism or traditional religious belief rather than Communism had given rise to the killing fields. Sheer, witless stupidity.

The same is the case with the soundtrack as commentary here, from Bob Dylans A Hard Rains A-Gonna Fall and Masters of War to the Beatles Let It Be. As implicit commentary on the war, this is sheer, witless stupidity.

And if were going to revisit P.F. Sloan, lets go with Sins of a Family or Where Were You When I Needed You or Let Me Be or Secret Agent Man. Please, anything but Eve of Destruction.

The Burns/Novick documentary adds to Stanley Karnows 1983 PBS documentary and companion book. The combat footage is riveting. The voices of the Vietnamese are indeed of interest. I think it is worth watching, especially if you know enough about the war to understand what the documentary is up to. The documentary nevertheless reiterates the line for which Mac Owens faulted Karnow in the Claremont Review of Books. Consider this:

Karnows great error is that he insists on seeing the North Vietnamese and the Viet Cong as primarily nationalists, not Communists. While he has done a service in treating the Vietnam War as part of the 2,000-year historical struggle of the Vietnamese against foreigners, he does not pay enough attention to the qualitative differences between the traditional Vietnamese nationalism and that of the Stalinist Ho Chi Minh. Perhaps this was never possible for Karnow. After all, he began his journalistic career as a correspondent and writer for the leftist National Guardian in the late 1940s. His writings in that period were strongly anti-anti-Communist and pro-Marxist. In 1949 he was parroting Soviet attacks on the Marshall Plan and on the Socialist marionettes in France whose strings were being worked by American interests. In April of that year he explained how the Marshall Plan enabled the French to torture nationalist Vietnamese peasants, and in August how it allowed Frenchmen to murder 80,000 civilians in a Madagascar bloodbath. Although Vietnam clearly indicates a change of viewpoint from his Guardian work, one cannot help but be struck by the fact that his view of Vietnamese nationalism seems to have changed very little over twenty-five years. While Karnow now admits that the Communists were often repressive, brutal, and dogmatic, he still uncritically accepts the view that they remain primarily nationalists, but nationalist with a revolutionary vision for an agrarian society. And this is the point missed by many of those who have praised Karnows book but should have known better. While Karnow has forgone the Marxist rhetoric that characterized his youthful scribblings on behalf of anti-imperialism, he still holds fast to the Marxist view of history. For Karnow, there was no way the U.S. could have won. We were simply on the wrong side of history; the progressive forces could not help but overwhelm us. Thus Karnow has written a book which, on its surface, is moderate. But his thesis is the same as that of the demonologists: U.S. foreign policy is doomed unless it accepts the legitimacy of the revolutionary paradigm. He does not tell us that the revolutionary paradigm seeks to destroy the republican paradigm, the most successful example of which is the United States. While nationalists per se do not see the U.S. system as their enemy (although they may on occasion see the U.S. as their particular enemy), Communist revolutionaries do. If the Vietnamese Communists were primarily nationalist, they would not have eliminated all independent nationalists.

The necessary changes being made, Mac Owenss critique applies to the Burns/Novick documentary as well. This is a point also noted by Mark Moyar in the Wall Street Journal column linked above. What we seem to have here is a case of (media) history repeating itself.
The Associated Press reports on a 3rd Circuit decision involving a movie theater:

Federal disability law requires movie theaters to provide specialized interpreters to patrons who are deaf and blind, an appeals court said Friday. The Philadelphia-based 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against Cinemark, the nations third-largest movie chain, in a case involving a Pennsylvania man who wanted to see the 2014 movie Gone Girl and asked a Cinemark theater in Pittsburgh to supply a tactile interpreter. The theater denied his request.

Why would a person who is blind and deaf want to attend a movie?

The plaintiff, Paul McGann, is a movie enthusiast who reads American Sign Language through touch. He uses a method of tactile interpretation that involves placing his hands over the hands of an interpreter who uses sign language to describe the movies action, dialogue and even the audience response.

Interesting. But who pays for the tactile interpreter? Or interpreters?

The federal appeals court concluded Friday that tactile interpreters are covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act, which requires that public accommodations furnish auxiliary aids and services to patrons with vision, hearing and speech disabilities. It would be impossible for a deaf-blind person to experience the movie and understand the content without the provision of tactile interpretation, said Carol A. Horowitz, managing attorney of Disability Rights Pennsylvania, which filed suit on McGanns behalf.

I think it is impossible for a deaf and blind person to experience the movie even with tactile interpretation.

Because of the intensive nature of the work, McGann requires the services of two interpreters. The interpreters cost a few hundred dollars per showing.

So Cinemark is required to furnish two interpretersone for each hand, I take itat a cost of a few hundred dollars apiece, in exchange for this individuals $15 ticket?

Perhaps not:

The ruling said Cinemark still can argue that providing the interpreters would present an undue burden, an exception to the disability law that takes into account the cost of the accommodation and the businesss ability to pay for it. It sent the case back to a federal judge to consider that argument.

It seems obvious that paying hundreds of dollars for a single person to attend a movie is an undue burden. But this is not an area of the law in which I am an expert, and perhaps Cinemarks ability to pay for it will tilt the needle the other way.

The broader point is that this is insane. Our indiscriminate provision of rights never before heard of to groups that are often vanishingly smallCinemark says this is the first time it has had a request to furnish a tactile interpreter; I doubt that any such interpreters would even be available in most locations where there are Cinemark theatershas made an expensive joke out of our legal system. We may be a society that is too stupid to survive.
By India Today Web Desk: Lyricist Irshad Kamil and filmmaker Imtiaz Ali go back a long way. Irshad has written songs for all Imtiaz's films, from Socha Na Tha to Jab Harry Met Sejal.

Talking about their special relationship at The Lallantop Show in Lucknow, Irshad said, "Hum un dino ke dost hai jab na woh Imtiaz Ali the, na main Irshad Kamil," adding that at that time, they did not have enough money to even buy a cup of tea.

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Revealing an incident from their first collaboration together, Irshad said that Imtiaz was not too happy with the lyrics he had written for the title track of Socha Na Tha. They were brainstorming at 2.30 am on Mumbai's Versova beach, when the police got suspicious.

The two were taken to the Versova police station, where they were kept for 40 minutes. Irshad said that it was sharing this experience that strengthened the bond they had.

ALSO WATCH: India Today presents Imtiaz Ali's short film 'My Dream'

--- ENDS ---
MAYS LANDING  A former Buena Regional High School teacher was sentenced to five years in state prison Friday for having sex with a 17-year- old student, the Atlantic County Prosecutors Office announced Friday.

William J. Jacobs, 33, of Folsom, pleaded guilty in June to official misconduct and endangering the welfare of a child.

He was her teacher, and he should have known better, Chief Assistant Prosecutor John Flammer said in a statement.

Jacobs is barred from public employment and has agreed to the revocation of his teaching license. He must serve two years before he is eligible for parole.

Investigators found that from November to January, Jacobs met with the student on multiple occasions to engage in sexual relations. Investigators also found hundreds of electronic communications between the two.

Buena Regional teacher pleads guilty to having sex with student MAYS LANDING  A Folsom man who taught at Buena Regional High School pleaded guilty Monday t

Detectives said Jacobs, who was arrested in February in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and returned to New Jersey, had urged the victim not to cooperate with the investigation.

Todays sentencing brings some measure of closure to a young woman and her family, Flammer said. The consequences the defendant faced today for his actions in engaging in a wholly unacceptable relationship with his student is one of his own making.
ATLANTIC CITY  Superior Court Judge Julio Mendez said Friday he will rule early next week if the state is allowed to cut the citys Fire Department by 15 members as a cost-saving measure.

State overseers have asked Mendez to reconsider his ruling that prevented them from reducing staff. In August, Mendez ruled all reductions in force in the department must come through retirements and attrition.

Atlantic City has enough money to fund the department through Nov. 30.

The state is looking to reduce the Fire Department from 195 to 180 members. It would look to eliminate by Nov. 30 positions related to the federal Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response grant program.

Currently, 79 members are paid through a SAFER grant, which expires in September. Mayor Don Guardian has said the city will apply for a SAFER grant for 57 firefighters for next year, though he was unsure how much the city will seek.

Mendez said he hopes to release his ruling on the matter Tuesday.

Its important that I rule quickly on this, Mendez said. If I rule against the state, they have to figure out how to pay for it. If I rule against the union, they have to make plans. Neither option is good.

During the 45-minute hearing Friday, Ron Israel, attorney for the state, said if the state is not allowed to trim the department, the state will impose a double-digit pay cut to offset the cost.

I wish the city would have dealt with these issues 10 years ago, Mendez said.

In September, the state filed a motion asking Mendez to reconsider his late-August ruling preventing the layoffs. In the ruling, Mendez said the layoffs would compromise the safety of residents and visitors.

The Courts August 25, 2017, Decision and Order has left the City of Atlantic City in a financially untenable situation, in which the City cannot afford the Court-mandated number of firefighters, court documents said. According to the most recent calculations available, the Courts decision has created a new shortfall of approximately $5.9 million for 2018.

Megan K. Mechak, attorney for the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 198, said the department has 15 people eligible to retire in 2019.

A layoff for some would mean taking away their careers, Mechak said. We are not talking about brand-new employees, we are talking about people who have been with the department for the last five years.

Israel said the state is not considering offering an early retirement incentive package to those who are eligible in the department. Hours after Mendez made his original ruling, Gov. Chris Christie signed a bill allowing an early retirement incentive program for the citys police officers, firefighters and first responders facing layoffs.

Based on our calculations, it would cost $4 million a year over the next 10 years. That is something that we are not going to do, Israel said.
On Sept. 15, Carmela Cortes said goodbye to her two children, Emma, 12, and Daniel, 11, who were off with family for a trip to Puerto Rico. She didnt know then that her children wouldnt be back in their Mays Landing home for three weeks, due to the strongest recorded hurricane to hit the U.S. territory, causing floods, destruction and ongoing power outages.

Emma and Daniel were traveling to Isabela, Puerto Rico, with their fathers family to attend their grandmothers funeral. The family, already grieving, faced a new challenge when news outlets reported Category 5 Hurricane Maria was heading straight for the island.

Their father called me on Monday and said, I have bad news. Dont panic, but the hurricane is going to hit us.

The news shocked Cortes, who said all she could do was cry. Her last phone contact with her family was Sept. 19, the day before Maria made landfall. The next phone call wasnt until Sept. 22.

It was days without knowing, Cortes said. Its like youre stuck. You dont know what to do.

The Cortes family in Puerto Rico stayed together and prepared for the storm. Isabel, in the northwest, is about about 75 miles from San Juan. Emma and Daniel said they watched from a window of their grandfathers bedroom as heavy rain and wind knocked over trees, blew roofs off neighboring buildings and severed power lines.

It was all white at one point  you couldnt see anything, said Emma, describing Marias lashing rains.

I told my dad, You know how when I was little, I was afraid of thunderstorms? Well, not anymore, said Daniel.

Though unable to make phone calls or text, the Cortes children took iPhone photos of the damage around them. Daniel has printed them out to take to school.

My social studies teacher asked me if I would tell the class what we went through, Daniel said, so Im going to write it all down.

Being stranded away from home during a natural disaster didnt seem to faze the Cortes children too much: Having family there made them feel safe, the siblings said. Much of their three weeks there was spent helping relatives clean up after the storm and traveling with their father, who was trying to get them back home as quickly as possible.

Back in Mays Landing, Cortes relied on a network of family and friends for support. I was posting on Facebook and people were commenting that they were praying. I relied on my faith to get me through, she said, fighting tears.

My mother would tell me to just imagine theyre on vacation, Cortes said. She had a feeling everything was going to be OK.

After several canceled flights and trips to San Juan, the Cortes children, with their father, uncle and aunt, were able to get an American Airlines flight into Philadelphia on Thursday.

Leaving Puerto Rico seemed bittersweet for the Corteses, who knew their loved ones were safe but still affected by the massive damage.

Were fortunate that we got to come back to a home thats perfectly intact  we have electricity, water, food, said Emma. It took my dad seven hours to get get gas for his car, and now (on the mainland) we can freely go get gas and it takes two minutes.

The Corteses still have extended family in Puerto Rico, who believe it will be months until power is restored. My cousins said this year, for Christmas, they dont want presents  they just want the power back, said Emma.

After three weeks of uncertain communication, electricity and travel, Emma and Daniel were ready to return to their regular routine, even getting to school at St. Josephs Regional School on Friday.

I saw my friends when I got to school, and they cried and hugged me and told me how much they miss me, said Emma.

Cortes said St. Josephs has offered to help put together a benefit for Puerto Rico. With firsthand experience, Emma and Daniel said the people of Puerto Rico need generators, fresh water and monetary donations.

The family requested donations to the American Red Cross at redcross.org.
TOMS RIVER  A missing 79-year-old woman was found dead Saturday in her Holiday City senior community, authorities said.

Search crews found the body of Martha Hesse about 10:45 a.m. in a wooded area of Holiday City, according to a statement from the Police Department on its Facebook page.

At this time, there is no reason to believe that foul play was involved, the statement read.

Police said an autopsy will be completed to determine the cause of death.

Hesses husband alerted police about 6 p.m. Thursday that she drove from their Mount Fairweather Lane home to an unknown location earlier in the day but never returned, police said.

Hesses car was located a little after 6 p.m. near the community lake. Her purse, wallet, cash, credit cards and cellphone were in the car.

Police had said they had reason to believe the woman was distraught or in need of assistance.

Previous efforts to locate Hesse involved a flat-bottom boat with underwater sonar, a State Police helicopter with thermal technology and 40 volunteers from police, fire and EMS agencies, the statement said.

Toms River investigators Friday followed up on tips and potential sightings.

Police Detective Randy Petrick is leading the investigation, which involves the Ocean County Prosecutors Office, Sheriffs Department and Medical Examiners offices.

Police ask anyone who saw or interacted with Hesse on Thursday or Friday to call Petrick at 732-349-1050, ext. 1235, or email rpetrick@trpolice.org.
President Trump has unveiled a tax plan to ignite economic growth and simplify the tax filing ordeal. Sadly, top Democrats are responding with divisive rhetoric and lies. Sen. Chuck Schumer dismisses the plan as wealth-fare. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi calls the plan giveaways to big corporations and billionaires.

Intent on stoking envy, these class-warfare politicians are willing to forfeit economic growth. But the nation cant afford to.

Here are the facts to rebut their demagoguery.

Sen. Bernie Sanders smears the Trump plan as morally repugnant, claiming the rich dont pay their fair share.

Youll hear the same complaint in the Not One Penny TV ads paid for by MoveOn.org and other left-wing groups. They warn Congress not to allow one cent of tax cuts for high-income people. But the top 10 percent of earners pay 80 percent of federal income taxes. Do the math. Any sizable tax cut will have to benefit them. Earners in the bottom half of the nation pay only a sliver  under 3 percent  of federal income taxes collected.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren rages that the plan delivers massive cuts to corporations and kicks working families to the curb. Wrong, senator. Business tax cuts dont just benefit businesses. They produce higher wages and more job opportunities for workers.

America taxes corporations at the highest rate of any industrialized country. That drives companies overseas, sabotaging our workforce. The Trump plan would lower the rate from 35 percent to 20 percent to make the U.S. competitive. The plan also would allow companies to immediately deduct 100 percent of plant and equipment costs  a change that would encourage companies to buy more computers and trucks and hire more office workers and drivers.

When countries lower corporate taxes, wages go up, according to data from 72 countries. American workers have toiled for years without an improvement in take-home pay or standard of living.

Democrats label Trumps cuts as trickle-down economics, claiming they dont produce growth. These Dems have forgotten history.

In 1962, President John F. Kennedy slashed investment taxes. After his assassination, his broader tax cuts were enacted, producing eight years of soaring growth  5 percent a year.

In the 1980s, President Reagan slashed rates again, giving the nation nearly a decade of robust 3.8 percent growth.

In 2003, George W. Bushs tax cut boosted the economy, producing 4 percent growth for six straight quarters.

Compare this vigorous growth with President Obamas eight years of stagnation. Obamas economy lumbered along at around 2 percent because high taxes and over-regulation discouraged companies from investing. Democrats still insist that 2 percent growth is the new normal. Nonsense. Roll back regulations and taxes, and the economy will surge.

For individual filers, Trumps plan simplifies the maddeningly complex process, lowers rates and doubles the standard deduction  a big savings. To goose the economy and get money into peoples pockets faster, Congress should make these changes retroactive to January 2017. Just because Congress dragged its feet on tax reform doesnt mean the public should have to wait.

Pelosi warns that Trumps plan would blow a huge hole in the deficit. Thats a new religion for Democrats. Dont be fooled. The real problem isnt that taxes are too low. Its that spending is too high, and Dems want to push it higher.

Trumps plan would eliminate the deductibility of state and local taxes. That deduction has lulled residents of tax hell  in Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey and California  into complacency. Without it, residents will feel the full pain caused by the tax-and-spend politicians running their states. Representatives from these states are up in arms, demanding that Congress keep the deduction, and they may prevail. But the real issue isnt whether state taxes are deductible  theyre just too high.

Expect more demagoguery as Democrats try to block Trumps tax relief. They claim to want a bipartisan plan. Their inflammatory rhetoric proves otherwise. Unwilling to help govern, they call themselves the Resistance. Dont count on them to help rebuild Americas economy or grow your paycheck.

Email Betsy McCaughey, a senior fellow at the London Center for Policy Research and a former lieutenant governor of New York State, at betsy@betsymccaughey.com.
Waiting to hear about legal charges against all the city employees who received kickbacks and payments for their bogus prescriptions they submitted for claims.

Tonjua Jones

via Facebook

Northfield pharmaceutical rep admits role in massive health benefits fraud

Thats why they canceled the concert!

Lily Bloom

Sewer leak stopped near Bader Field, water tests continue

Cant tell you how many construction jobs I lost or couldnt get because of the Mexicans doing the work for a lot less money.

Ed Lovell

Fighting deportation

in a changing America

It truly was a great place to work. I still have my ears and tail!

Lori Reider Welch

via Facebook

Hugh Hefners Atlantic City

Playboy Casino

Millions of good American workers might now get the opportunity to finally be freed from the shackles of forced unionism.

Richard Graham

Supreme Court poised to deal sharp blow to unions for teachers, public employees

Most corrupt town and thats why its gonna take a total overhaul to resuscitate it.

Sarah N. Cecilia

via Facebook

Atlantic City Police tow lot manager charged with stealing $80K

My taxes went up. I really dont believe anyones taxes went down.

Amy Hardy

via Facebook

Christie panels property tax

findings spark dispute

These dealers know exactly what is in the stuff they sell.

Shannon Michelle Wilson

via Facebook

Atlantic City man charged

in fatal 2016 drug overdose

It was great when Steve Wynn owned it. It went downhill after that.

Charles Cullari

via Facebook

Look back at the Atlantic Club Casino closing in January 2014
The FBI announced that billboards would go up around the city asking anyone with information to phone 800-CALL-FBI.

People attend a candlelight memorial for Las Vegas police officer Charleston Hartfield, who was killed when Stephen Craig Paddock broke windows on the Mandalay Bay resort and casino and began firing with a cache of weapons at a country music festival. (Ph

By AP: After five days of scouring the life of Las Vegas gunman Stephen Paddock and chasing 1,000 leads, investigators confessed Friday they still don't know what drove him to mass murder, and they announced plans to put up billboards appealing for the public's help.

Investigators have examined Paddock's politics, his finances, any possible radicalization and his social behavior - typical investigative avenues that have helped uncover the motive in past shootings.

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"We still do not have a clear motive or reason why," Clark County Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said. "We have looked at literally everything."

The FBI announced that billboards would go up around the city asking anyone with information to phone 800-CALL-FBI.

"If you know something, say something," said Aaron Rouse, agent in charge of the Las Vegas FBI office. "We will not stop until we have the truth."

Paddock, a reclusive 64-year-old high-stakes gambler, rained bullets on the crowd at a country music festival Sunday night from his 32nd-floor hotel suite, killing 58 and wounding hundreds before taking his own life.

McMahill said investigators had reviewed voluminous video from the casino and don't think Paddock had an accomplice in the shooting, but they want to know if anyone knew about his plot beforehand.

It is unusual to have so few clues five days after a mass shooting. In previous mass killings or terrorist attacks, killers left notes, social media postings and information on a computer - or even phoned police.

"The lack of a social media footprint is likely intentional," said Erroll Southers, director of homegrown violent extremism studies at the University of Southern California. "We're so used to, in the first 24 to 48 hours, being able to review social media posts. If they don't leave us a note behind or a manifesto behind, and we're not seeing that, that's what's making this longer."

What officers have found is that Paddock planned his attack meticulously.

He requested an upper-floor room overlooking the festival, stockpiled 23 guns, a dozen of them modified to fire continuously like an automatic weapon, and set up cameras inside and outside his room to watch for approaching officers.

In a possible sign he was contemplating massacres at other sites, he also booked rooms overlooking the Lollapalooza festival in Chicago in August and the Life Is Beautiful show near the Vegas Strip in late September, according to authorities reconstructing his movements leading up to the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history.

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His arsenal also included tracer rounds that can improve a shooter's firing accuracy in the dark, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. It wasn't clear whether Paddock fired any of the illuminated bullets during the high-rise massacre.

Paddock bought 1,000 rounds of the .308-caliber and .223-caliber tracer ammunition from a private buyer he met at a Phoenix gun show, a law enforcement official not authorized to comment on the investigation said on condition of anonymity.

Tracer rounds illuminate their path so a gunman can home in on targets at night. But they can also give away the shooter's position.

Video shot of the pandemonium that erupted when Paddock started strafing the festival showed a muzzle flash from his room at the Mandalay Bay resort, but bullets weren't visible in the night sky.

WATCH | Las Vegas shooting: 11 horrific videos that show what's happening at Mandalay Bay Casino

A federal official said authorities are looking into the possibility Paddock planned additional attacks, including a car bombing. The official wasn't authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity.

Paddock had 1,600 rounds of ammunition in his car in a casino parking garage, along with fertilizer that can be used to make explosives and 50 pounds (23 kilograms) of Tannerite, a substance used in explosive rifle targets.

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His girlfriend, Marilou Danley, told FBI agents Wednesday that she had not noticed any changes in his mental state or indications he could become violent, the federal official said.

Paddock sent her on a trip to her native Philippines before the attack, and Danley was unaware of his plans and devastated when she learned of the carnage while overseas, she said in a statement.

ALSO WATCH | The Harrowing Moment Las Vegas Gunman Shoots Into Crowd

--- ENDS ---
NEW ORLEANS, Oct. 6, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Former Attorney General of Louisiana, Charles C. Foti, Jr., Esq., a partner at the law firm of Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC ("KSF"), announces that KSF has commenced an investigation into Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE: BANC).

On October 18, 2016, SeekingAlpha published an article revealing alleged connections between the Company's senior executives and Jason Galanis, a financier who had pled guilty to securities fraud resulting from "multiple schemes to defraud investors of millions of dollars." On January 23, 2017, the Company disclosed that its October 18, 2016 rebuttal press release (denying the Galanis allegations) had contained false statements, that the SEC was investigating the matter and that the Company's CEO had resigned. The following months saw an exodus of the Company's executives and board members.

The Company's actions, directed by its executives, have exposed it to significant financial losses, an exodus of high-level personnel and an SEC investigation, among other things. The Company has been sued in a securities class action lawsuit for failing to disclose material information, violating federal securities laws. Recently, the court in that case denied the Company's motion to dismiss, allowing the case to move forward. A shareholder derivative lawsuit has also recently been filed against the Company's current and former executives.

KSF's investigation is focusing on whether Banc of California's officers and/or directors breached their fiduciary duties to its shareholders or otherwise violated state or federal laws.

If you have information that would assist KSF in its investigation, or have been a long-term holder of Banc of California shares and would like to discuss your legal rights, you may, without obligation or cost to you, call toll-free at 1-877-515-1850 or email KSF Managing Partner Lewis Kahn ([email protected]).

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

[email protected]

1-877-515-1850

206 Covington St.

Madisonville, LA 70447

SOURCE Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC

Related Links

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PITTSFIELD, Mass., Oct. 7, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Berkshire Medical Center nurses will gather outside the hospital before the anticipated 7 a.m. conclusion of the hospital's four-day lockout as they prepare to march in solidarity back inside BMC to care for their patients.

"If Berkshire Medical Center had agreed to reasonable compromises such as limiting the patient assignments of charge nurses to ensure safe patient care, we would have been inside the hospital this entire week, taking caring of our patients with the proper resources," said Alex Neary, RN and Co-Chair of the MNA BMC Bargaining Unit. "On Sunday morning we will proudly return to the patients we have been advocating for outside the hospital. We will keep fighting for a fair contract that benefits our patients, our nurses and our community."

Anticipated RN Lockout Conclusion

What: BMC nurses and supporters gather outside the hospital in anticipation of RNs being allowed back inside to care for their patients after the one-day strike and four-day lockout.

When: 6:30 a.m. to 7 a.m.

Where: Outside the main entrance of BMC at 725 North St. in Pittsfield

BMC Nurses File Charge

On Thursday, Oct. 5, the Massachusetts Nurses Association filed an unfair labor practice charge against Berkshire Medical Center for failing and refusing to provide relevant and necessary information and documents surrounding the use of replacement nurses.

For a copy of the unfair labor practice charge, email Joe Markman at [email protected].

BMC refused to allow its own nurses back into the hospital on Wednesday morning after their 24-hour strike ended. Nurses were ready to return to caring for their patients after advocating for them and a fair contract. The hospital said instead it would pay for replacement nurses from outside the community. The MNA is seeking information from the employer to obtain evidence that this is retaliatory and therefore unlawful.

This is the fifth unfair labor practice charge filed by the MNA on behalf of BMC nurse against the hospital. Nurses have also filed charges with the National Labor Relations Board against BMC for refusing to bargain in good faith over RN workload and staffing, threatening to retaliate against nurses if they engage in protected activity and refusing to provide health insurance data necessary for bargaining.

One-Day Strike and Lockout Background

During a rally in North Adams on Thursday, Berkshire Medical Center nurses and advocates brought attention to the economic and health care injustice of BMC making $47 million in profits last year  more than three times the state average  while refusing to provide safe RN staffing and essential hospital services in North Adams. Read more about that issue here: http://massnurses.org/news-and-events/p/openItem/10669

A Labor Solidarity Rally on Friday included several hundred nurses and community members speaking up for patient safety and a fair contract. Afterward they linked arms in a massive display of unity surrounding the hospital. For photos and video go to www.facebook.com/MassNurses or email [email protected].

The nearly 800 registered nurses of Berkshire Medical Center, who are represented by the Massachusetts Nurses Association, delivered a 10-day notice to hospital management on Friday, Sept. 22 notifying BMC of their intent to hold a one-day strike. That strike ran from 7 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 3 until 7 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 4. Nurses were then locked out by the hospital at 7 a.m. on Wednesday.

BMC nurses have been bargaining in good faith for a year, seeking to ensure that their patients are able to receive the safest and most effective nursing care possible. The hospital has refused to negotiate over concrete improvements to patient care and RN staffing. BMC management has also refused to provide information necessary for nurses to negotiate quality, affordable health insurance.

MassNurses.org  Facebook.com/MassNurses  Twitter.com/MassNurses  Instagram.com/MassNurses

Founded in 1903, the Massachusetts Nurses Association is the largest union of registered nurses in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Its 23,000 members advance the nursing profession by fostering high standards of nursing practice, promoting the economic and general welfare of nurses in the workplace, projecting a positive and realistic view of nursing, and by lobbying the Legislature and regulatory agencies on health care issues affecting nurses and the public.

SOURCE Massachusetts Nurses Association

Related Links

http://www.massnurses.org


NEW ORLEANS, Oct. 6, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- ClaimsFiler, a FREE shareholder information service, reminds investors that they have until October 16, 2017 to file lead plaintiff applications in a securities class action lawsuit against Blue Apron Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: APRN), if they purchased the Company's securities pursuant to its June 29, 2017 initial public offering ("IPO") and/or on the open market between June 29, 2017 and August 9, 2017. This action is pending in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

Get Help

Blue Apron investors should visit us at https://www.claimsfiler.com/cases/nyse-aprn or call to speak to our claim center toll-free at (844) 367-9658.

About the Lawsuit

Blue Apron and certain of its executives are charged with failing to disclose material information in its Registration Statement filed in connection with its IPO, violating federal securities laws.

The alleged false and misleading statements and omissions include, but are not limited to, that: (i) advertising spending was significantly reduced, despite prior statements to the contrary; (ii) delivery delays or defects were causing customer retention problems; (iii) the Company's new facility launch was delayed; (iv) new product offerings were delayed; and (v) as a result of the foregoing, Blue Apron's Registration Statement was materially false and misleading at all relevant times.

About ClaimsFiler

ClaimsFiler has a single mission: to serve as the information source to help retail investors recover their share of billions of dollars from securities class action settlements. ClaimsFiler's team of experts monitor the securities class action landscape and cull information from a variety of sources to ensure comprehensive coverage across a broad range of financial instruments.

To learn more about ClaimsFiler, visit www.claimsfiler.com.

SOURCE ClaimsFiler

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RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif., Oct. 7, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- New World Medical today announced that data will be presented comparing the intraocular pressure (IOP) lowering efficacy of cataract extraction (CE) combined with either goniotomy performed with the Kahook Dual Blade (KDB, New World Medical) or trabecular meshwork microbypass device implantation (iStent, Glaukos Corporation, San Clemente, CA). These data will be presented by Dr. Kaweh Mansouri, MD, MPH, of the Glaucoma Center, Montchoisi Clinic, Lausanne, Switzerland and the Department of Ophthalmology, University of Colorado, Denver, during the annual meeting of the European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons (ESCRS), being held October 7-11, 2017 in Lisbon, Portugal.

The poster, entitled Comparison of the Intraocular Pressure Lowering Efficacy Between a Novel Goniotomy Blade and a Trabecular Meshwork Device, includes data from a retrospective chart review of patients with mild-to-moderate glaucoma who underwent CE with either KDB goniotomy or iStent implantation. The study took place at 12 sites (11 US, 1 Mexico) and evaluated post-operative IOP as well as medication use of 435 eyes treated either by CE+KDB or CE+iStent (198 and 237 eyes, respectively).

At 6 months, the mean IOP in the CE+KDB cohort demonstrated a statistically significant greater reduction compared to CE+iStent (24% vs 16%, respectively, p<0.05). This result was statistically significant as early as day 1, with a reduction of 14% in the KDB group versus 4% in the iStent group, and continued through the 6-month study period. The mean reduction in medication use between the two groups was significantly different with a 63% reduction in the CE+KDB group (1.7 to 0.6 medications) compared to 46% in the CE+iStent group (1.9 to 1.0 medications), p<0.05. Both groups had similar baseline demographics and reported comparable adverse events, which were mild and self-limited.

"This large study demonstrates that goniotomy with the Kahook Dual Blade has the ability to provide significant reductions in IOP and medication use when compared to iStent for glaucoma patients undergoing cataract extraction," said Dr. Mansouri. "These results represent an important advance in the surgical treatment for patients undergoing cataract surgery who have uncontrolled mild-to-moderate glaucoma or who want to reduce their medication burden."

About Glaucoma

Glaucoma is a group of complex eye diseases which produce increased pressure within the eye. This elevated pressure is caused by a backup of fluid and can damage the optic nerve, resulting in vision loss and blindness. Normal fluid flow and drainage occurs through a small, spongy tissue in the eye called the trabecular meshwork (TM). When the TM becomes clogged, fluid cannot leave the eye as fast as it is produced, and intraocular pressure (IOP) becomes elevated.

The mainstay of current treatment is the lowering of IOP pharmacologically, by laser, or through incisional surgery. While many topical medications are available to treat glaucoma, they require consistent, regular use which can become unmanageable by the glaucoma patient population. Recent evidence indicates that patients may significantly benefit from the removal of diseased TM tissue via a safe procedure that results in sustained IOP reduction and reduced dependence on IOP-lowering medication.

About the Kahook Dual Blade

The Kahook Dual Blade (KDB) is an elegant, single-use, ophthalmic blade designed to make parallel incisions in the trabecular meshwork (TM) to enhance aqueous outflow. The KDB is precision engineered to fit in the Canal of Schlemm and the unique ramp on the distal end lifts and stretches the TM in order for the dual blades to excise the desired portion of diseased TM.

About New World Medical

New World Medical was founded by Dr. A. Mateen Ahmed, who was determined to develop, manufacture, and market cutting-edge medical devices to alleviate ophthalmic ailments globally. New World Medical's mission is to preserve and enhance vision by delivering innovations to all of humanity, and achieves this through partnerships with surgeons and eye care professionals who are dedicated to alleviating the burden of blindness around the globe. The company's flagship devices include the Kahook Dual Blade and the line of Ahmed Glaucoma Valves. To learn more about the unique mission of New World Medical or their innovative product line visit http://www.newworldmedical.com.

SOURCE New World Medical

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NEW YORK, Oct. 7, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- American television viewers were recently was exposed to the little known Chinese province of Sanmenxia, which enjoys the reputation of a beautiful Swan City.

Sanmenxia, 'China's Pearl On The Yellow River,' gained a wave of applause after its airing last Saturday night, Sept. 30th on ABC7 TV in New York.

Even U.S Congressman Joseph Crowley sent a congratulatory letter, pointing out the episode will further strengthen the relationship between Sanmenxia and the United States.

The show exposed the audience to the modern and historical aspects of the city, including the Yellow River, which is the cradle of Chinese civilization and has shaped the uniqueness of Sanmenxia as an amazing combination of old and new.

The show discussed the development of the "Silk Road" as well as the vital ancient fortress, Hangu Pass and gave the audience the opportunity to delve into Taoism and the origin of its most famous masterpiece, Tao Te Ching, as well as the Yang Shao culture and the remains of the Guo Kingdom.

The city is also known for a dam with the same name, which is the first major water control project on the Yellow River.

The Sanmenxia episode opened up a gate for viewers to see the sparking Yellow River pearl. One of the highlights of this episode was the theme song, "Travelling Around the World," with lyrics by Li Jinzao, Chairman of China National Tourism Administration.

"Great Wall sees the beauty on her left and right; To every lovely corner in this world I shall ride; Into the archaic sites and onto the ancient roads Travel China and around the world," states the lyrics, which captured the core of the series and has gained popularity with US fans.

Media Contact:

Cimagine Media Group, LLC

[email protected]

SOURCE Sanmenxia Tourism
Blockchain ICO to bring cryptocurrencies and financial services to 'unbanked' population of SE Asa

JAKARTA, Indonesia, Oct. 6, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Pundi X, a blockchain startup that aims to make cryptocurrencies an enabler of ubiquitous cashless payment environments across South East Asia, will launch its ICO programme tomorrow, Saturday 7 October, with the goal of raising USD 84 million (280,000 ETH) by the end of November.

The Pundi X fund-raising activity kicks off with a pre-ICO period from 7 October to 28 October, during which early investors will be rewarded with a significant bonus of 30% to 60% extra tokens. The ICO itself commences on 30 October and will be completed by 29 November or as soon as the targeted funds have been raised, whichever is earlier.

Interested parties can find details of the KYC (Know Your Customer) process required by the Isle of Man Financial Service Authority, which is the regulatory body overseeing this ICO, at pundix.com, by clicking the 'Join the ICO now' link. The KYC process is designed to bring the highest degree of protection to participants in the Pundi X ICO and requires answering a short series of questions and must be completed before investment can commence.

Funds raised by the sale of PXS Tokens during the ICO period will be used to purchase Pundi X POS devices that will be installed in retail outlets enabling consumers to quickly and easily buy or sell cryptocurrency using fiat money (Dollars, Rupiah, Baht, etc.), bank card, mobile wallet or Pundi X Pass.

The Pundi X goal: universal access to Cryptocurrency - anytime, anywhere

The goal of this ICO is to provide funding for as many as 700,000 Pundi X POS devices to be installed over the next three years starting across Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and other Asian markets and around the world, giving up to 100 million users access to cryptocurrency at their nearest shops, cafes, or convenience stores.

Pundi X builds on the existing Pundi-Pundi business model of cashless payment systems, which uses smart phones to scan QR codes and make instant payments in retail and restaurant outlets, and which has already signed up more than 100,000 registered users and over 500 merchant partners in Jakarta in less than a year into operation.

"Pundi X stands out from most ICO candidates in a crowded market because we already have a successful business model built around influential business partnerships and existing technology that means we are ready to execute our plan," said Zac Cheah, CEO of Pundi X. "We've demonstrated the demand for cashless transactions with our Pundi-Pundi QR app which is now established as one of the biggest in Indonesia, following the Alipay model. Now we want to address the 99.9% of the global population that does not yet own cryptocurrency by making the purchasing process as easy as buying a bottle of water for the man or woman in the street."

Pundi X Development Strategy

The pre ICO cap for the Pundi X ICO is 5% of ICO which is 14,000 ETH with a total ICO hard cap of 280,000 ETH.

Ether (ETH) are exchangeable with PXS Tokens at a rate of 1 ETH: 500 PXS and pre ICO investors stand to enjoy bigger discounts.

The target for this IPO is to raise 280,000 ETH which will help fund up to 700,000 Pundi X POS devices to be installed over a three year period in Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam and other Asian markets, in line with the Pundi X business plan. The cost of each POS device is approximately USD 300 and consequently about USD 30 million will be spent on rolling out 100,000 devices. The remaining 600,000 devices over the three year period will also be funded by sales proceeds from tokens and revenue from participating B2B merchants in the Pundi X ecosystem. Pundi X expects to generate a profit from services offered by POS devices including sales of cryptocurrency such as bitcoins.

Pundi X willl be tradeable within 30 days after conclusion of the ICO and Pundi X Gold, Platinum. Diamond and Black cards will be released within 60 days. These special cards will allow investors to enjoy important discounts when shopping at Pundi X-supported online and offline outlets.

Once the ICO is complete, 30% of the token pool will be distributed immediately with 20% going to investors and 10% to founders, employees, advisors and ICO marketing costs. The remaining 70% will be distributed to investors through 'Proof of Stake' by airdrop over a 3-year period, with the incentive amount discounted 50% annually compared to the previous year. Consequently, earlier purchasers will receive significantly better returns. Details are as follows:

Year 1: 40% of total token supply distributed, monthly average 7.3160% of monthly interest;

Year 2: 20% of total token supply distributed, monthly average 2.1163% of monthly interest;

Year 3: 10% of total token supply distributed, monthly average 0.8818% of monthly interest.

Funds used for the Pundi X business plan will be allocated as follows: R&D for hardware and software: 30%; Manufacturing and installation of Pundi X POS: 70%; Operations: 10%; Other expenses: 10%.

PXS and the growth of the Pundi X network

The more funds that are raised by the Pundi X ICO, the more Pundi POS devices can be manufactured and installed at a lower price per unit. The greater the number of installed devices, the higher level of usage in retail outlets, and the greater number of tokens consumed. Consequently Pundi X will benefit significantly from '"the Network Effect", as the reach of its community continues to grow.

PXS is a key component of the Pundi X ecosystem and ICO investors who hold PXS will be rewarded by the long term growth in its value. Demand for PXS will be boosted because any company or individual that wants to connect to the Pundi X sales network will have to purchase PXS from the market in order to pay a transaction fee in PXS. Early investors will also be rewarded as they will receive another 70% of total tokens circulated through the "airdrop" program, hence an investor will receive 50% extra tokens based on his original stake in the fifth month post-ICO, based on the airdrop program. For details about the "airdrop" execution, please check the pundix.com website.

Investors can also sell PXS tokens to B2B merchants such as other blockchain companies that uses PXS as "gas" to fuel transactions like sales of existing or newly launched cryptocurrencies and product advertisements in the Pundi X ecosystem. The "gas" is used as a ticket to entry into the system for B2B merchants, once the tokens are used the "gas" is "burned up" and as a result the supply of PXS will gradually become scarcer. Participating ICO token holders can acquire PXS at a discounted rate before PXS are traded on major exchanges from December 2017.

ICO token holders can store or sell their PXS on the Pundi X Platform, or sell it on other exchanges or privately, just like ERC20 tokens.

Token holders who shop at any outlet that supports Pundi X payments, will get an additional discount whether they are in Bali, Phuket, Bangkok, or anywhere else in the world according to their status as a Gold, Platinum, Diamond or Black card holder:

Black Card (Ranked 1 - 50); 5% discount for 10 years;

Diamond Card (Ranked 51 - 150); 5% discount for 5 years;

(Ranked 51 - 150); 5% discount for 5 years; Platinum card (Ranked 151 - 300); 5% discount for 3 years;

Gold card (Ranked > 300; Contributed >10 ETH); 5% discount for 1 year.

About Pundi X

Pundi X is a blockchain startup that aims to make cryptocurrency an enabler of ubiquitous cashless payment environments across South East Asia and beyond. Pundi X POS enables shops, cafes and convenience stores to sell cryptocurrency to a broad cross section of general consumers and builds on the success of Pundi-Pundi which is one of Indonesia's most popular QR code cashless payment apps. The launch of Pundi X POS is a stepping stone towards an ICO in late 2017 that will provide funding for as many as 700,000 Pundi X POS devices to be installed over the next three years across all target markets.

For a detailed understanding of the platform and who we are, check out our website https://pundix.com

You can also find us on the following social media channels:

Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/pundixlabs

Twitter: https://twitter.com/PundiXLabs

Medium: https://medium.com/pundix

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOIf6WeLEzZi3DQxzenTZeA

Telegram (ENG): https://t.me/pundix

Telegram (INA): https://t.me/pundix_id

Telegram (CHN): https://t.me/pundix_zh

Telegram (FR): https://t.me/pundix_fr

Kakaotalk (KOR): https://open.kakao.com/o/gNNBYXA

Telegram (VN): https://t.me/joinchat/D0-9GULzCrE_MUNqzxvj9g

SOURCE Pundi X

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During his session at The Lallantop Show, UP CM Yogi Adityanath said that he felt politics wasn't suiting him a few months after he won the elections in 1998.

By India Today Web Desk: From confessing to having doubts about politics to telling the world that he hasn't watched a movie in 25 years, Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath said a lot about himself at The Lallantop Show in Lucknow today.

And even though he doesn't watch movies, he did seem to be aware of who Vin Diesel when told that many think the Fast and Furious star resembles him.

@TIME vin diesel and Yogi pic.twitter.com/MJFha6nNsi- Dr Ramesh sharma MD (@drsharmaramesh) April 4, 2017

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As CM Adityanath revealed these little details about himself, his childhood, and his life as a 'yogi' and in politics, we bring a list of some interesting facts we now know about him:

1. "My brother-in-law wanted me to join SFI in college...but my motive in life was to serve my country, which is why I joined ABVP."

2. "Once, police raided the students' hostel in Gorakhnath temple and beat up some boys. When I found out about it, I spoke to the warden, and he told me the students had not done anything wrong. I took the matter ahead, investigation was done, the real wrong-doers were identified, and the said police officer who barged into the hostel was suspended... That was the first time I took to the streets, and I did it for the poor students."

3. "I heard the Kerala government has decided to put Dalit priests in charge of temples; it made me laugh. This is something we had done way back in the 90s in Patna's Mahavir temple. My guru had already proved that untouchability and discrimination is not a part of Hinduism."

4. "My guru has eaten meals with the Dom Raja, along with other saints. The Dom Raja and his family were surprised and moved, for they were used to being treated as Untouchables, but Mahant Avaidyanath preached that untouchability is not something we practice."

5. "About five to six months after winning the elections in 1998, I told my guru that politics was not suiting me. Having seen people lie and commit crimes in it, I was losing interest in politics. My guru then advised me to not run away from it, but instead use it as a medium of service."

6. "Thirteen months later as we prepared for the elections, we had to face a lot of hard times. That's when I felt that my decision to not take part in the elections was correct..."

7. "I was myself a victim of illegal detention (in March 2007). I was kept in custody for 11 days, even had an FIR lodged against me...if an investigation is started today, I wonder how many people will land in jail because of it."

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8. "Communism has this weapon: tell a lie a 100 times, and it'll become truth. My belief is, a lie will always be a lie, and truth will always be truth."

9. When asked about being compared to Hollywood actor Vin Diesel, Yogi Adityanath confessed, "I haven't had a chance to watch a single movie in the last 25 years."

Watch the live coverage of The Lallantop Show here.

--- ENDS ---
Las Vegas, Oct 2 : At least two people were killed and 24 others injured when an attacker opened fire at a music festival here, according to police and witnesses.

The victims died early Monday morning after they were admitted to the University Medical Centre following the shooting at around 10.30 p.m. in the Route 91 Harvest festival near the Mandalay Bay Casino on the city's Strip, a hospital spokesperson confirmed to CNN.

Out of the 24 injured, 12 were critical, she added.

The Las Vegas Police Department announced that they were not looking for additional shooters at this time.

Earlier they said one suspect was "down" without giving further details.

Large numbers of ambulances and police cars continued to head to the scene of the shooting.

A video posted on Twitter showed the shooting outside the casino. What sounds like automatic gunfire can be heard, as well as the screaming of the crowd.

Facebook has initiated its Safety Check feature for "the violent incident in Las Vegas, Nevada", so people in the area can tell their friends and relatives they are safe.

A witness told CNN that she helped drive an injured man to the hospital in her car.

She said the whole incident was "insane", adding: "There are crazy people out there."

Another witness said there was "complete chaos" following the incident.

Flights to and from the city's McCarran International Airport have been temporarily halted.
Mumbai, Oct 3 : Actress Vidya Balan says her husband and film producer Siddharth Roy Kapur (SRK) is the most good looking guy, and she is glad that she got married to him.

Vidya, who got married to film producer Siddharth Roy Kapur in 2012, spoke about her personal life with actress Neha Dhupia for her chat show "No Filter Neha", read a statement.

When Neha asked her what's it like waking upto SRK every morning, Vidya said: "Let me specify, those who are desperately waiting for a controversy around my name because it's been a while... I wake up to a better looking SRK. He is the most good looking guy on the planet Earth. I'm glad I signed up for it."

SRK is otherwise an acronym popular for Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan.

"The Dirty Picture" star also said that she likes to inhale the smell of "paint and turpentine" on a film set.

"Wherever I smell paint or turpentine, I ask for people to get me a little bit of it and I keep inhaling it. And people have told me it's an addiction and I'm like no it's not an addiction," she added.

On the film front, Vidya will next be seen in "Tumhari Sulu".
San Francisco, Oct 4 : After revealing last year that a data breach in 2013 affected its one billion user accounts, Yahoo has now announced that all of its users -- nearly 3 billion at that time -- were impacted by the massive hacking.

Yahoo, now part of Oath -- a subsidiary of American telecommunications conglomerate Verizon -- said late on Monday that it is providing notice to additional user accounts affected by an August 2013 data theft previously disclosed by the company on December 14, 2016.

At that time, Yahoo disclosed that more than one billion of the approximately three billion accounts existing in 2013 had likely been affected.

"Subsequent to Yahoo's acquisition by Verizon, and during integration, the company recently obtained new intelligence and now believes, following an investigation with the assistance of outside forensic experts, that all Yahoo user accounts were affected by the August 2013 theft," Yahoo said in a statement.

Yahoo is now sending email notifications to the additional affected user accounts.

"The investigation indicates that the user account information that was stolen did not include passwords in clear text, payment card data, or bank account information. The company is continuing to work closely with law enforcement," the statement further said.

According to Jason Hart, Vice President and Chief Technology Officer for data protection at Gemalto, the Yahoo breach would be the largest data breach of all time.

"While it is 'news' that Yahoo is making another announcement about its 2013 breach, it should be more concerning that it's taken almost four years to get to the bottom of a breach of this magnitude," Hart said in a statement.

"If Yahoo, one of the largest tech companies in the world, struggled with security, how can other companies combat these bad actors?" he added.

Yahoo was acquired by Verizon for $4.48 billion.

"Verizon is committed to the highest standards of accountability and transparency, and we proactively work to ensure the safety and security of our users and networks in an evolving landscape of online threats," said Chandra McMahon, Chief Information Security Officer, Verizon.

"Our investment in Yahoo is allowing that team to continue to take significant steps to enhance their security, as well as benefit from Verizon's experience and resources," McMohan added.

Last year, Yahoo disclosed a new security breach that may have affected more than one billion user accounts.

"For potentially affected accounts, the stolen user account information may have included names, email addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, hashed passwords (using MD5) and, in some cases, encrypted or unencrypted security questions and answers," said Bob Lord, Chief Information Security Officer, Yahoo.
New Delhi, Oct 4 : Photographers, amateur or professional, usually like to capture beauty -- snow covered mountains, breathtaking flora and fauna, beautiful landscapes and the like, but her camera lens follows pictures of destruction and misery. Conflict photojournalist Heidi Levine who took breathtaking photographs of the Gaza war in 2014 has recently been in the news for one such photograph of hers being misused by Maliha Lodhi, Pakistan's Permanent Representative at the UN.

"I have dealt with bloggers and newspapers using my photographs without my permission but this is the first time I have dealt with a situation like this one and I hope it will be the last one. I was very upset and shocked to hear that Maliha Lodhi misused my photograph claiming it was the photograph of a girl from Kashmir. For me, it truly compromises the dignity of Rawya (the girl in the picture) from Gaza," Levine told IANS in an email interview of the gaffe.

Lodhi had displayed the photograph in the UN General Assembly on September 23 while responding to External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj's scathing attack on Pakistan, saying it was evidence of "Indian brutality" in Kashmir.

Did she think there should be stricter norms for the use of photographs and other content by third parties?

"It seems as though people are disregarding the copyright of photographers and forgetting the fact that even downloading and copying our photographs is illegal without our permission or the companies many work for. Many photographers are taking legal action against those stealing their work. I am not sure how many people understand that it is illegal and for sure it would be helpful if this was better known and also if there are higher penalties," Levine replied.

Speaking of capturing pictures of destruction and misery, the gutsy risk-taker said: "My first experience with covering misery and destruction was the refugee crisis in southern Lebanon in the aftermath of the Israel-Lebanon War of 1982. It was in the very beginning of my career as a professional photojournalist when I stared working for the AP in Israel."

There's been no looking back since then for Levine as she has documented most volatile war zones around the world.

Asked what drew her towards this passion, Levine said: "I always wanted to help people and before I became a professional photojournalist, I spent a lot of time trying to help those who were in need when I was growing up. I am not sure if I can pinpoint the exact reason that attracted me to document conflict because it feels as though it is something I feel I was born with. For me, photography has been a universal language that can connect all of us. It is a tool."

Being in dangerous war zones away from family, children and home, for prolonged periods, bullets whizzing overhead, death always around the corner, how difficult is it to cover conflicts? How does her family perceive her work? Do they support and encourage her or, being apprehensive of her wellbeing, try to dissuade her?

"My family is very proud and supportive of my work but it has been very difficult on them as well. At times it has been very difficult to cover tragic events and then come back home and try to switch roles and take care of my children...I know that at times my children wished that I had a 'normal job', but today they are very proud of me. They do worry and I believe that because so many journalists have been killed and injured, my family worries more today than in the past," Levine replied.

As for covering the Israel-Palestinian conflict, there wasn't even time to unwind, she added.

"When I was in Libya, I decided to tell my youngest daughter that I was only on the border covering the refugee crisis. But in today's social media connected world, it is much harder to lie, so I had to hide from her on Facebook. Later she told me that she knew I was inside Libya," Levine said.

Working in war-torn areas, close to the action, positioned very near to explosions, firing and shelling, does she sometimes feel shattered seeing all this misery and feels like quitting?

"Of course I often get very upset. After all, I am a human and not a machine. But I have never felt like quitting because when I see misery, it makes me feel I need to work even harder to make people understand what is happening in the world," Levine explained.

Has she noticed any change in the nature of conflict over the years?

"It is true that our world does seem to be in more of a state of conflict now. With modern technology, we are watching these tragedies unfold in real time. I wish I could answer why this is but I do not know the answer for this rise in conflict we are witnessing," Levine replied.

(Mamta Aggarwal can be contacted at mamta.a@ians.in)
Chandigarh, Oct 5 : The Centre on Thursday sanctioned a Cash Credit Limit (CCL) of Rs 28,262.84 crore for paddy procurement in Punjab this kharif season that will last till October-end, official sources said.

Chief Minister Amarinder Singh's personal intervention in the matter facilitated the CCL release, required to ensure timely payment to farmers, a spokesperson in the Chief Minister's Office said.

"The Chief Minister has been taking up the issue with the Centre on a regular basis and met both Union Agriculture and Finance Ministers this week in New Delhi to press for Punjab's case in the interest of state's farmers," the spokesperson said.

Amarinder Singh has directed all state procurement agencies to take immediate steps to ensure timely payment to farmers against their procured produce.

Punjab is expecting a bumper paddy crop, with likely procurement of over 180 lakh tonnes by various government agencies.
Empress Elizabeth, one of the four Romanov women rulers who presided over Russia's fortunes most of the 18th century Image Source: IANS News

New Delhi : Title: The Romanovs; Author: Simon Sebag Montefiore; Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson; Pages: 736; Price: Rs 699 They came to power through blood and suffering and bowed out in blood and upheaval. But in the over three centuries that they ruled, their medium-sized realm on Europe's far fringes rose to become a multi-continental power that influenced -- and still does -- the course of developments far beyond its borders and whose governance continues to bear their stamp.

Taking over a war-ruined principality, the Romanovs ended up with dominion over a sixth of the world's land over three continents -- the third-greatest empire ever after the British and the Mongols, though the second by contiguous territory -- accumulated painstakingly over centuries. And then they lost it irretrievably within about a decade, following reverses in war and revolution fuelled by repression.

How they achieved both these feats is engagingly and masterfully told here by acclaimed British historian Simon Sebag Montefiore.

But why should we focus on the Romanovs, as even the Bolsheviks, who stormed to power after them, are gone too? This is because their story, he says, is "also a portrait of absolutism in Russia -- and whatever else one believes about Russia, its culture, its soul, its essence have been exceptional, a singular nature which one family aspired to personify."

Montefiore, who has biographies of a prominent representative of the dynasty and Stalin to his credit, among others, combines rigorous research and inspired story-telling to present the colourful (and sometimes dark) pageant of the dynasty's tsars and tsarinas -- some enlightened and some despotic (or both), some touched by genius and some by madness or sadism or a raging sex drive, but all autocratic, ambitious and decadent.

Along with them are the others who defined the course of their rule -- the religious patriarchs, administrators, diplomats, explorers, generals, police and spy chiefs, courtesans, as well as hostile foreign potentates, rebellious subjects and other disgruntled elements (including family) in a whirlwind of debauched excesses, conspiracy and coups, assassinations and torture, and wars and revolutions.

And the record of Romanovs, as Montefiore shows, bears testimony to Alexander Pushkin's observation (in "Boris Godunov"): "Heavy is the cap of Monomakh" -- referring to the headgear of the Prince of Kievan Rus, the forerunner of the Russian state.

This is exemplified, as he goes on to recount, with the dynasty's founder -- Michael I, a 16-year-old who wept when a delegation came to offer him the crown in 1613 -- to its last ruler, Nicholas II, who was also reluctant to rule, and went on to meet a tragic fate along with his wife and children in a dark, dank house basement far from his glittering palaces in 1918.

But the Romanovs were never only marked by their male members, be it larger than life figures like the towering Peter the Great (1682-1725), for their women did not merely exercise influence behind-the-scenes or as regents for minor sons, but as rulers too. Most of the 18th century after Peter saw the rule of four empresses, who out-manoeuvred, ousted or even eliminated their male co-rulers/consorts.

Montefiore also dwells amply on them -- not only Catherine II (1762-96), the second after Peter to be called "the Great" and as key as him in extending territorial expanse -- but also her earlier namesake Catherine I (1725-27), Anna (1730-41) and Elizabeth (1741-62).

But what keeps his account from becoming a mere tale of rulers, battles and other historical facts is his eclectic approach, and vividly colourful and relatable turns of phrase.

Take Peter the Great, who takes up quite a bit with his literal hands-on approach to strengthening and modernising his realm. Along with him feature his grotesque "All-Mad All-Jesting All-Drunken Synod", a "half military headquarters and half drunken carnival" with its obscene religious titles ("Archdeacon F***-off"). Montefiore describes him as seeming "like a terrifying circus master presiding over a seventeenth-century version of a decadent rock band on tour".

Others get the same treatment.

History at its most entertainingly lurid yet incisively instructive, Montefiore's tome is also an apt reminder that the past continues to influence the present, whatever be the differences in form or ideology and we only forget or ignore it at our peril.

(Vikas Datta can be contacted at vikas.d@ians.in)
New Delhi : Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat's advice to cow vigilantes not to bother over much about judicial strictures shows a measure of annoyance with the roadblocks which the Hindutva lobby is facing in a secular polity.

The dissatisfaction may have increased in the saffron camp in view of two more Supreme Court pronouncements relating to inter-faith marriages and the fate of the Rohingyas, the hapless refugees from Myanmar who have aroused the saffron brotherhood's ire presumably because they are Muslims.

On inter-faith marriages, the court has wanted to know in the context of a Kerala High Court judgement whether the judiciary can annul a wedding between two adults belonging to two different religions.

It is a rhetorical question which strikes at the root of a Sangh Parivar agenda which seeks to prohibit by fair means and foul any love affair or marriage between a Hindu woman and Muslim man and, by implication, between Hindus and Christians as well or any other religious community.

The Parivar's argument is that such nuptials are no more than a ploy to lure the woman into a familial arrangement to facilitate her conversion.

Hence, the phrase "love jehad", depicting a hapless Hindu woman who is the victim of a predatory Muslim male.

The apex court's intervention is in a case in Kerala where the High Court has nullified the marriage of a 24-year-old woman with a Muslim while the Supreme Court had earlier ordered a National Investigation Agency (NIA) probe in the matter although the NIA is supposed to look into only acts of terror.

Irrespective of the final outcome of the Supreme Court's examination of the case, the arguments that have already been aired such as whether the two prominent Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) politicians who have Hindu wives can be accused of "love jehad" are bound to be awkward for the Parivar.

But what must be no less disconcerting for the latter is that the undermining of some of the programmes, which the saffron camp has pursued diligently, can raise questions about other divisive initiatives like ghar wapsi or converting Muslims to Hinduism.

This is all the more so because the saffron objections to inter-faith marriages are not unlike the often violent disapproval of the antediluvian khap panchayats to connubial ties between grown-ups belonging to different castes and communities or for being members of the same gotra.

As is known, one of the main proponents of the "love jehad" campaign was Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath before he took office.

Of late, his ardour to keep marriages within the confines of each community has been dampened by the Centre's unease about a rise in communal temperature lest it should affect Narendra Modi's development agenda.

Besides, the Chief Minister has come under growing criticism because of his focus on erasing Muslim names such as that of Mughalsarai railway junction and omitting to mention the Taj Mahal in a tourist brochure rather than on saving babies in hospitals or ensuring that the police show a modicum of respect for girl students in Banaras Hindu University.

Clearly, at a time when Yogi Adityanath is proving to be as ineffective a Chief Minister as Suresh Prabhu was a Railway Minister, judicial reprimands are the last thing which the BJP wants, whether in internal affairs or in matters which have an external dimension.

If the judicial diktats on checking the gau rakshaks (cow vigilantes) and on "love jehad" have a domestic angle, the pronouncements on the Rohingyas impinge on issues of national security and international law and obligations.

Among the latter is the principle of "non-refoulement" which rules against sending back refugees to places where they are not wanted.

There is little doubt that if the government resorts to a forcible eviction of the Rohingyas, it will face considerable international opprobrium.

Considering, however, that the RSS chief has lambasted the refugees as vehemently as the government and BJP spokesmen have done, it is clear that the Parivar's political and "cultural" wings are on the same page.

The Supreme Court's verdict on the petition filed before it by two Rohingya refugees will be known after some time. But what the Hindutva group is likely to find disturbing is how the checks and balances built into the constitutional system can stall its efforts to take the country in a certain direction.

The only saving grace is the independence of the judiciary, especially at the higher levels, although this institution, too, experienced a troubling period during the emergency of June 1975 to March 1977, when even the principle of habeas corpus, the cornerstone of individual freedom, was suspended.

Interestingly, Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, while upholding the right to privacy in August overturned the verdict on the habeas corpus case which was delivered four decades ago by, among others, his father, Justice Y.V. Chandrachud.

In the case on gau rakshaks, love jehad and Rohingyas, the differences between the judiciary and the saffron Parivar are obvious.

For the average person, however, the judiciary continues to stand as a guardian against authoritarian and intolerant tendencies in the absence of an effective opposition.

(Amulya Ganguli is a political analyst. The views expressed are personal. He can be reached at amulyaganguli@gmail.com)
Goa: Actor Naga Chaitanyain and Samantha Ruth Prabhu during their wedding ceremony in Goa on Oct 6, 2017. Image Source: IANS

Goa: Actor Naga Chaitanyain and Samantha Ruth Prabhu during their wedding ceremony in Goa on Oct 6, 2017. Image Source: IANS

Goa: Actor Naga Chaitanyain and Samantha Ruth Prabhu during their wedding ceremony in Goa on Oct 6, 2017. Image Source: IANS

Goa: Actor Naga Chaitanyain and Samantha Ruth Prabhu during their wedding ceremony in Goa on Oct 6, 2017. Image Source: IANS

Goa: Actor Naga Chaitanyain and Samantha Ruth Prabhu during their wedding ceremony in Goa on Oct 6, 2017. Image Source: IANS

Goa: Actor Naga Chaitanyain and Samantha Ruth Prabhu during their wedding ceremony in Goa on Oct 6, 2017. Image Source: IANS

Goa: Actor Naga Chaitanyain and Samantha Ruth Prabhu during their wedding ceremony in Goa on Oct 6, 2017. Image Source: IANS

Goa: Actor Naga Chaitanyain and Samantha Ruth Prabhu during their wedding ceremony in Goa on Oct 6, 2017. Image Source: IANS

Goa: Actor Naga Chaitanyain and Samantha Ruth Prabhu during their wedding ceremony in Goa on Oct 6, 2017. Image Source: IANS

Goa: Actor Naga Chaitanyain and Samantha Ruth Prabhu during their wedding ceremony in Goa on Oct 6, 2017. Image Source: IANS

Goa: Actor Naga Chaitanyain and Samantha Ruth Prabhu during their wedding ceremony in Goa on Oct 6, 2017. Image Source: IANS

Goa: Actor Naga Chaitanyain and Samantha Ruth Prabhu during their wedding ceremony in Goa on Oct 6, 2017. Image Source: IANS

October 7: : Destination Goa. Fairytale picture-perfect wedding. Grandeur Reception.

And above all this a picture-perfect couple- Naga Chaitanya and Samantha Ruth Prabhu. One of the most talked about couples in South India, Naga and Samantha tied the knot on October 6 in Goa in the presence of their family and close friends.

The adorable couple looked gorgeous, while Naga Chaitanya looked the perfect groom in his ethnic white attire and Samantha looked like a princess in a regal cream saree, belonging to Chaitanyas grandmother.

Many from the Tollywood industry including Venkatesh, Suresh Babu and actors Rahul Ravindran, Vennela Kishore, Sushanth and Adivi Sesh were present.

Image Source: IANS Goa: Actor Naga Chaitanyain and Samantha Ruth Prabhu during their wedding ceremony in Goa on Oct 6, 2017.

Sharing the sneak peeks from the wedding, Naga's father Nagarjuna wrote: #chaisam happiness is now official!!.

For people who don't know, the love couples met on the set of the movie Yeh Maaya Chesave. The rumor mill went buzz with their love affair but the couple kept it under wraps for quite a while. It was only last year the couple's family made the news public.

Popular among their fans as Sam and Chay, they have shared some adorable moments together. The rituals

The marriage rituals were fun and it was too endearing to see them together as they smiled at each other, their chemistry and all that fun moments make one believe in fairytales, again.

Today, the couple is going for a Christian wedding which will be followed by a lavish reception.

Best wishes Sam and Chay!
A Reuters reported quoted police as saying they were not treating the incident as an act of terrorism. One man was detained at the scene.

A screenshot taken from a video uploaded by Twitter user @RavensDarkAngel, which shows the suspect being pinned down.

By India Today Web Desk: The London Ambulance Service on Satuday said 11 people were injured when a car crashed into pedestrians outside the Natural History Museum.

A Reuters reported quoted police as saying they were not treating the incident as an act of terrorism. One man was detained at the scene.

Deputy Director of Operations Peter McKenna said nine of the injured were taken to the hospital for treatment, most with leg and head injuries.

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The crash happened at 2:20 pm on a day when the central London museum is usually teeming with pedestrians, including international tourists.

Photographs showed a dented silver car and a man being pinned to the ground outside the museum. It was not immediately clear if he was pinned down by police or others at the scene.

Witness Katie Craine said she was coming out of the museum when she saw a man in handcuffs being pinned down on the ground by police near a damaged car.

"He looked really proud of himself," she said. "He was laughing."

The television presenter Greg Scott posted an image of the man.

This is the arrested man following the incident near Londons Natural History Museum an hour ago. He appears to be bleeding. What a shame. pic.twitter.com/1rHnFUo7ap- Greg Scott (@GregScottTV) October 7, 2017

Another Twitter user even uploaded a video.

GOT HIM!! I hope everyone at #naturalhistorymuseum #london is ok after this coward ploughed through a crowd pavement #londonattack pic.twitter.com/nHSyJhl5lV- ???Sarah??? ???? (@RavensDarkAngel) October 7, 2017

Shopkeepers in the immediate area were told to evacuate and police established a large security cordon around the area minutes after the incident, closing some roads. Police helicopters circled the scene overhead.

The Natural History Museum tweeted that there had been a "serious incident" outside the museum, which is located near the world famous Victoria and Albert Museum and other attractions.

There's been a serious incident outside the Museum. We are working w/ @metpoliceuk and will provide an update when we have more information- NaturalHistoryMuseum (@NHM_London) October 7, 2017

Downing Street said British Prime Minister Theresa May was being briefed on the incident.

(Inputs from AP)

VIDEO | This Twitter video shows the man's detainment from another angle. (Courtesy: @DrewLiquerman/Twitter)

BREAKING| the moment a man is arrested outside of the London Natural History Museum for ramming his car into a crowd pic.twitter.com/G3acheElip- Drew Liquerman ???? (@DrewLiquerman) October 7, 2017

--- ENDS ---
Ranchi, Oct 7 : Three persons, including a Bharatiya Janata Party leader were murdered in Jharkhand, police said on Saturday.

BJP leader Manoj Nagesia was shot dead on Saturday at Lachragad village in Simdega district. The other two persons were killed in Gumla district on Friday.

Nagesia, who was a former Maoist commander, was shot while he was having breakfast.

He had joined the BJP in 2014 and had made an unsuccessful bid in the 2014 state assembly poll from Kolebira. The police were yet to arrest anyone for Nagesia's murder.

In the other incident on Friday in Taisera village, 25-year-old Manohar Tirkey was shot dead by Vijay Sahu, who was immediately lynched by an angry mob.

Sahu shot Tirkey over a minor incident when the latter collided with Sahu while dancing at a tribal festival.

The villagers caught Sahu and thrashed him, smashing his head with stones. No one has been arrested for the killing.
Tawang (Arunachal Pradesh), Oct 7 : Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Saturday said that Tibetans were not demanding Indian citizenship.

"The present population of Tibetans in Arunachal is around 7,000, which is decreasing every year. Many Tibetan families are being offered jobs and settlement in developed countries and hence they are leaving their settlement camps," he told the fifth BJP State Executive Meeting here.

Moreover, he said that basic facilities of water, electricity, roads and public distribution system were extended to Tibetan refugee settlement camps across India by the central government through the Tibetan Rehabilitation Policy.

Pema said his government would adopt the policy only after consulting all indigenous communities and student bodies.

Several civil society groups, including the opposition Peoples Party of Arunachal and Congress, have opposed the state cabinet's decision on August 12 to adopt and extend the policy.

Blaming the Congress for the mess it created on the Chakma-Hajong refugee issue, Khandu, a former Congress-turned Bharatiya Janata Party legislator, said: "The BJP in the state is taking steps to solve it."

He said following the Supreme Court order to grant citizenship to these refugees, 2,000 applications were received. But none qualified.

"It's the Centre to decide on the citizenship of these refugees, but the state government is firm not to allow them into the state without an Inner Line Permit," he said.

Moreover, he said his government was firm that no land rights or any rights enjoyed by the tribals of Arunachal would be accorded to these refugees.
San Francisco, Oct 7 : US President Donald Trump's 2016 election campaign received help from handpicked Republican-supporting Facebook employees, revealed the man who directed the digital aspects of the campaign.

In an interview given to CBSNews, Trump campaign digital director Brad Parscale said he used carefully-curated political advertisements on Facebook to directly reach voters with messages they cared most about.

The majority of the digital ad budget was spent on Facebook ads, particularly in reaching the rural voters, where infrastructure was a key issue, he added in the report on Saturday.

"I started making ads that showed the bridge crumbling -- that's micro targeting -- I can find the 1,500 people in one town that care about infrastructure. Now, that might be a voter that normally votes Democrat," Parscale told CBSNews host Lesley Stahl.

Parscale said the campaign would average 50,000 to 60,000 different ad versions every day, some days peaking at 100,000 separate iterations -- changing design, colours, backgrounds and words -- all in an effort to refine ads and engage users.

Both campaigns -- Republican and Democrat -- used Facebook's advertising technology extensively to reach voters, but Parscale claimed that the Clinton campaign didn't go as far as using "embeds".

According to Parscale, certain Facebook employees, who he called "embeds", showed up for work in his office multiple days a week to teach him every aspect of the technology.

Facebook is currently facing intense scrutiny over the presence of Russian ads on its platform during the 2016 American presidential election and along with Twitter, is set to appear before the US Congress on November 1 to testify.

An estimated 10 million people in the US saw the Russian ads that were present on Facebook during the 2016 presidential election, the social media giant said while finally handing over nearly 3,000 Russian political ads worth $100,000 to the US Congress.

"Twitter is how Trump talked to the people, Facebook was going to be how he won," Parscale was quoted as saying.
Kozhikode (Kerala), Oct 7 : Kerala BJP President Kummanem Rajasekheran on Saturday slammed the state government for filing an affidavit in the Supreme court opposing a NIA probe into the case of a young Hindu woman who embraced Islam.

Hadiya, 24, was born Akhila Ashokan in a Hindu family in Kerala. She converted to Islam and married Shafin Jahan, 27, in December 2016.

"The stand taken by the (Pinarayi) Vijayan government clearly shows the soft corner of this Left government towards anti-national forces," Rajasekheran told the media here in the course of his "Jana Raksha Kerala Yatra" that entered its fifth day.

He asked why the Kerala government opposed a probe by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in the case.

On May 25, the Kerala High Court declared the marriage "null and void", terming it a "sham" and ordered that Akhila be placed under her parents' protective custody.

On August 16, the Supreme Court ordered a NIA probe, supervised by retired apex court Justice R.V. Raveendran into the religious conversion and her marriage to Jahan.

Jahan has since challenged the High Court order in the top court, saying it an "insult to the independence of woman in India".

The Kerala government has said the Crime Branch probe into the case was enough.
New Delhi, Oct 7 : The Supreme Court collegium has cleared the names of nine judicial officers for appointment as judges of the Kerala and Madras High courts but rejected three including two on account of adverse reports from the Intelligence Bureau.

Of the three recommendations that were declined by the collegium, the two turned down due to the IB reports are A. Zakir Hussain and Dr. K. Arul.

The collegium, in both the cases, said that "keeping in view the material on record, including the report of Intelligence Bureau, he is not found suitable for elevation to the High Court Bench."

Both Hussain and Arul were part of six judicial officers who were recommended for appointment as High Court judges by the Chief Justice of Madras High Court on January 23.

Hussain was Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Egmore (Chennai) and Arul was District Judge, Additional Director of the Tamil Nadu State Judicial Academy & Officer on Special Duty, Madras High Court.

Another judicial officer who lost on becoming Madras High court judge include Vasudevan V. Nadathur. He was Judicial Member, ITAT, Kolkata when his name was recommended along with three others by the Chief Justice of Madras High Court on December 16, 2016.

In his case, of the two judges of the Supreme Court who are conversant with the affairs of the Madras High Court and were consulted, one did not offer any view while the other did not find him suitable for elevation.

The top court collegium said that as per its records, Nadathur's name was also recommended by the Calcutta High Court Collegium on November 28, 2016 but West Bengal disagreed.

Even earlier a proposal for his elevation was initiated by Bombay High Court Collegium but was rejected by the Supreme Court Collegium on August 1, 2013.

Further a complaint pointing out this fact was also received in the office of the Chief Justice of India.

Taking note of "the views of the consultee-Judges and the material on record", the collegium said that in its considered opinion, Nadathur is not suitable for elevation to the High Court.

In the case of B. Sarodjiny Devy, the Principal District Judge at Villipuram, it sought further report from the Chief Justice of Madras High Court on the inquiry pending against her. Deferring the decision to elevate her to the high court, the collegium said that the proposal be resubmitted after receipt of information from the Chief Justice.

Those who were successful in making to the Kerala High Court are Ashok Menon, Annie John and Narayana Pisharadi R, while R. Ramathilagam, R. Tharani, P. Rajamanickam, T. Krishnavalli, R. Pongiappan and R. Hemalatha are for the Madras High Court.

The top court collegium had on October 3 decided to make public the information on the recommendation for the appointment, elevation and the transfer of judges to the High Courts and to itself.

The information about 13 proposals that were considered by the top court collegium was uploaded on the top court website in pursuance to its October 3 resolution to "ensure transparency and yet maintain confidentiality in the Collegium system."

The 13 recommendations for the appointment of judicial officers too were considered and decided during October 3 meeting of the collegium.
New Delhi, Oct 7 : Kundan Shah's father was not happy with his choice to leave a regular job and follow his heart into filmmaking, reveals the "Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro" director's friend Amit Tyagi.

Shah died early on Saturday after suffering a cardiac arrest. He was 69.

"Kundan started working as a clerk after completing his graduation. He realised that cinema is where his heart lay. His father was really unhappy that though he had a regular job, he still wanted to make films," Tyagi, currently the Dean (Films) at the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune, told IANS.

Shah studied direction at FTII, where he found friends in Saeed Mirza and Vidhu Vinod Chopra, who are also well-known in the Indian film industry.

After making his directorial debut with cult film "Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro" in 1983, Shah forayed into television and made shows like the hugely popular "Nukkad", "Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi" and "Wagle Ki Duniya". He returned to films with "Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa".

Shah visited FTII for an event only last week, Tyagi said.

"I didn't ask him much on what he is planning next. But I knew there was a feature film which was being negotiated. He was also talking about a TV series. He didn't get into the details, but said, 'There are things happening'.

"He wasn't a kind of person who would sit idle. He even said he would love to come to FTII for a week and teach students about comedy," Tyagi added.

Over the years, Shah continued to visit FTII and worked closely with some at the institute.

"His attachment with FTII was very deep... I got my first job through him in 'Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro'. I have known him for some time now. An interesting aspect of Kundan's work was that he was very local," Tyagi said, indicating towards the filmmaker's knack of telling stories about the common man.
Lucknow, Oct 7 : Newly re-elected President of the Samajwadi Party and former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday drove to his father Mulayam Singh Yadav's house and was closeted with him for about an hour, raising hopes of a possible patch-up between the two.

This is his first meeting with his father after being elected as the party chief at the Agra convention of the party on October 5.

Mulayam, along with his younger brother Shivpal Singh Yadav, had skipped the important national convention -- a first in 25 years of the party's history.

The political grapevine in the state capital has it that there is finally some thaw in the father-son relations, which fell apart in January this year when Akhilesh overthrew his father as the party chief and replaced him in a coup of sorts.

Sources in both camps told IANS that while there were "still many knots", the ice had been broken between the two, raising hopes that realignment of the family as well as the party might take place soon.

Mulayam is sullen at the way he has been edged out in the party that he formed 25 years back and Akhilesh has a grouse with his father that he sides with his estranged uncle Shivpal over him.

Mulayam has reportedly told Akhilesh to regain the respect of his uncle Shivpal by naming him as the national General Secretary of the party. Shivpal, however, wants that the post of party President is honourably returned to Mulayam.

This looks unlikely, at least for now, as Akhilesh has already been elected party chief for the next five years at the Agra convention.

All eyes are now on 5, Vikramaditya Marg (Mulayam's residence) on what emerges from there. Only last month Mulayam had hurriedly called a press conference, apparently to announce a new party and breaking of ranks with the SP, but he developed cold feet at the last minute and refused to read from the prepared text that would have announced a new party.

Since then Shivpal has gone into a sulk over what his camp perceives as "yet another ditching by Mulayam", but with not many options left, Shivpal has for now stuck to his brother.

Akhilesh on his part ensured that there were no hostile comments or speeches and slogans against his uncle at the Agra convention, unlike the one at the Janeshwar Mishra park in Lucknow on January 1 this year when Shivpal was the target of many.
New Delhi, Oct 7 : The central government has informed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal that it cannot put on hold the proposed Metro fare hike unless his government gives over Rs 3,000 crore annually to DMRC.

Minister of State for Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri has told Kejriwal in a letter that the Metro Act does not allow the central government to put on hold the fare hike.

The AAP government has opposed the fare hike proposed from October 10. It has locked horns with the Delhi Metro Rail Corp (DMRC) over the impending second hike this year, following the recommendation of the fourth Fare Fixation Committee (FFC).

Puri said setting up a fresh FFC could be considered if the Delhi government agrees to pay up over Rs 3,000 crore annually to DMRC.

The DMRC was formed in 1995 with equal equity participation of the central government and the government of National Capital Territory of Delhi.

Puri's letter dated October 6 was a response to a letter from Kejriwal on September 29 asking the central government to put the hike on hold.

"Your suggestion that this Ministry direct that the fare increase be kept on hold overlooks the fact the central government does not have any such authority. Tampering with the recommendations of FFC is legally untenable," Puri said in his letter.

Puri noted that the alternative to fare hike was to provide DMRC yearly grants-in-aid for the next five years: Rs 3,040 crore, Rs 3,616 crore, Rs 3,318 crore, Rs 3,150 crore and Rs 2,980 crore respectively.

Rebutting the Delhi government's claim that FFC had recommended that the two fare hikes should have a gap of one year, Puri said Kejriwal's statements vis-a-vis the FFC were both "misleading and factually incorrect".

Puri said the people of Delhi wanted efficient, reliable and punctual Metro services and added that DMRC should be allowed to function as an autonomous company in the best interest of the citizens.

Puri said the Phase-IV of Delhi Metro was running behind schedule by two-and-a-half-years due to decisions taken by the Delhi government.

Responding to Puri's letter, a Delhi government spokesman said: "Why is the Centre not putting on hold DMRC fare hike? Because it is not the khakhra of poll-bound Gujarat!!"

He added that Puri's arguments meant that the people of Delhi should suffer as DMRC didn't rationalize its fares for eight long years.

Last week, Kejriwal asked Delhi Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot to find a way to stop the "anti-people" fare hike.

The DMRC defended its decision by saying its input costs had gone up over the years and the increase was at par with Metro rails in other cities.

The Delhi assembly will meet on Monday to discuss the proposed hike.
Darjeeling, Oct 7 : A number of Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) banners with the picture of GJM supremo Bimal Gurung were on Saturday removed from a party office in West Bengal's Kalimpong district during the celebration of the party's 11th foundation day, sources said.

According to sources close to GJM, a section of Gorkha Janamukti Morcha activists in Kalimpong district's Damber Chowk party office, removed all the party banners and placards with Gurung's picture on it, ahead of the celebrations.

The celebrations across the hills were themselves cut short amid confusion over the party leadership, a GJM leader said.

The GJM, that that has been spearheading the revived movement of Gorkhaland in the northern West Bengal hills in the recent months, is facing "heightened internal differences and confusion" as a section of activists remain with Gurung while another faction has shifted allegiance to expelled party leader Binay Tamang, a party leader said.

"There is massive confusion among the people in the hills now as there are two groups within the party. One still supports Bimal while the other is with Binay. As a result, the foundation day programmes this year have been very brief as compared to the previous years. The celebration is not as jovial as it used to be before," GJM leader Kalyan Dewan told IANS.

"It is unfortunate that there is a struggle between the two factions in the party. Everyone has the democratic right to support a party or an individual, but that has to be observed in a democratic and peaceful manner," he said.

Both Tamang and Anit Thapa, who were expelled by GJM chief Gurung following a dispute over the withdrawal the shutdown, were present in the party's foundation day programs in their respective localities.

About Tamang's position in the party, Dewan said no one in the hills wishes to get disassociated from the GJM as that would make them irrelevant in the hill politics.

"Though Tamang has been made the chairman of Board of Administrators in the hills by the Bengal government, he is keen to be part of the GJM claiming that his expulsion was unofficial and improper. No one wants to get disassociated from GJM here," he said.
Barcelona, Oct 7 : Thousands of people congregated in Barcelona on Saturday for a rally calling for a dialogue between the Spanish government and Catalan officials amid concerns that the wealthy northeastern region of Catalonia could unilaterally declare independence.

The event was held almost a week after the Catalan regional government conducted a controversial secessionist referendum in defiance of Spain's national government and the country's Constitutional Court, which called the referendum illegal, Efe news reported.

"Catalans do not seek division," and "we want to talk", were some of the slogans at the political gathering in Sant Jaume Square, situated at the heart of Catalonia's regional capital and largest city, Barcelona.

The demonstration was not organised by any political group but it was attended by a delegation of officials from the Catalan Socialist Party, a regional branch of Spain's principal Socialist Party opposition.

Tensions between the Spanish national government and the regional government of Catalonia skyrocketed since the banned Catalan independence referendum went ahead on October 1.

Senior Catalan officials were said to be studying a possible unilateral declaration of independence, an act that had been roundly discouraged by the Spanish government and the wider international community.

According to Catalan officials, 90 per cent of the 2.3 million people voted for independence and the turnout was 43 per cent.

Catalan President Carles Puigdemont is expected to address the Catalan Parliament on Tuesday.
In a major embarrassment for the Congress party, former PM Manmohan Singh has been seen sharing the stage with Sajjan Kumar, one of the main accused in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.

By India Today Web Desk: In a major embarrassment for the Congress party, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has been seen sharing the stage with Sajjan Kumar, one of the main accused in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.

Kumar has been accused of inciting violence and making inflammatory speeches during the 1984 riots.

A trial court in 2011 acquitted Sajjan Kumar in the case. In 2016, SIT ordered a reinvestigation into Sajjan Kumar's involvement in the 1984 riots, following which the trial court asked him to cooperate in the probe.

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The development is likely to give fresh fodder to the BJP to corner the Congress, which has attacked the Centre over the state of the economy in its latest charge against the government.

More details are awaited.

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Helsinki, Oct 7 : A pregnant man in Finland is facing problems with the Finnish social security system, the media reported on Saturday.

The man was born as a woman and started a sex correction process to stay with another man. The couple are in their 30s, Xinhua news agency reported.

The couple wanted a baby and the man had interrupted his hormonal sex correction treatment before getting pregnant. But now he faces problems with the current legislation which does not recognize his access to social security.

Currently, men are not entitled to parental child compensation in Finland. The law on "maternity compensation" determines that the eligible person must be a woman who has been pregnant at least 154 days.

The future father told news agency Lannen Media that the legislation should be amended.

"It is the rights of the child that matter," he said. The man is four months pregnant, so the couple still have some time to the start of authorized public compensation, the report said.

The couple said the Finnish healthcare professionals had no problem with them except that the administrative systems do not recognize a situation where a pregnant person has the male social security number.

Finland maintains a system of social security numbers where men and women have different codes.

American Thomas Beatie was reportedly in 2008 the first man in the world to give birth. Since then there have been reports about men who had given births at least in Germany, Austria and Britain, according to the Lannen Media report.
Mumbai, Oct 7 : A government-appointed panel for revising India's Haj policy has recommended abolishing subsidy for the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mekkah and Medina in Saudi Arabia besides allowing women devotees aged over 45 to travel in a group of at least four without a male relative.

The proposed Haj Policy 2018-22, submitted to Union Minister for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi here on Saturday, has been drafted in light of a 2012 Supreme Court direction to gradually reduce and completely remove the subsidy by 2022.

"It is advisable that the existing reduction plan (phasing out of subsidy) be followed," according to the recommendations.

Haj subsidy is given to those who go through the Haj Committee of India and not through private operators. The subsidy amount has in the recent years been between Rs 650-700 crore.

In a major reform, the draft policy proposes to partially quash an earlier rule that barred women Haj aspirants to travel without 'mehram', a close family member like husband, father or brother.

"Ladies above 45 years of age be allowed in a group of four or more to go for Haj without a mehram," the panel recommended.

Women below 45, however, will have to be accompanied by a male family member, according to the draft policy that proposes to increase the quota for mehrams from 200 to 500.

Among other recommendations, made by the panel headed by former secretary Afzal Amanullah, are bringing down the number of embarkation points from which pilgrims can take flights to Saudi Arabia from the present 21 to nine.

The embarkation points for Haj pilgrims from next year would be New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Lucknow, Kochi and Ahmedabad.

The distribution of quota between Haj Committee of India and private tour operators will be in the ratio of 70:30 -- almost a five percent hike for the private players.

This year, the Haj quota for India -- home to the world's third largest Muslim population -- was increased to 170,025, of which 125,025 was allocated to the Haj committee and 45,000 to the privater tour operators.

On the long-pending proposal to revive Haj pilgrimage by ship, Naqvi said the Saudi government would be consulted and then it would float an expression of interest to guage the market for such travel.

Independent tour operators say travel by ship would drastically reduce the cost per pilgrim to around Rs 60,000, making it affordable to a larger section of the population.

Regarding the distribution of Haj quota among states and union territories, the panel has recommended that it should be in the ratio of the Muslim population and in proportion to the number of applications received from each state or union territory.

Special quota for Haj pilgrims from Jammu and Kashmir will be increased from existing 1,500 to 2,000.

The reserved category of applicants in the 70-plus age group and fourth-timers has been abolished and they would go through the normal lottery.
Srinagar, Oct 7 : A Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) officer was injured in a militant attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag district on Saturday evening, police said.

Police said militants fired at a CRPF party in Mir Bazar area of Anantnag town, injuring the Assistant Sub-Inspector of the paramilitary force.

"The injured trooper has been shifted to hospital for treatment. The area has been cordoned and an operation has been launched to trace the militants," police said.
Rabat, Oct 7 : Morocco and Denmark have signed a memorandum on cooperation in the fight against torture.

The agreement was signed here on Friday between Morocco's Justice Ministry and the Danish institute against torture, DIGNITY, within the framework of the Danish-Arab Partnership Programme (DAPP).

The agreement marked the start of the official cooperation between the two sides in justice administration, rehabilitation and prevention of torture.

It also aimed to exchange knowledge and best practices through the drawing-up of a set of guidelines on the role of criminal justice in the fight against torture.

Speaking on the occasion, Morocco's Justice Minister Mohamed Aujjar said that the country had made the fight against torture an irreversible choice.

For her part, DIGNITY Director General Karin Verland said there had been many positive commitments from the Ministries of Justice in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

She said that DIGNITY will continue its cooperation with Morocco through the conclusion of this agreement with a view to establish a fruitful cooperation in the fight against torture.
New Delhi, Oct 7 : To protest against the atrocities against and killings of RSS and BJP workers in Kerala, JP President Amit Shah will lead the Jan Raksha Yatra here on Sunday.

Delhi BJP President Manoj Tiwari, Vice President and incharge of Delhi Shyam Jaju, party's national office bearers, MPs, MLAs, MCD Leaders, and state office bearers will join the two km long Yatra from Connaught Place to the office of the Communist Party of India-Marxist, the major party of the southern state's ruling Left Democratic Front.

"The BJP workers will assemble in the Central Park of Connaught Place and will march to the central office of Communist Party of India-Marxist at Gole Market," said convener of the Yatra Rajesh Bhatia.

Shah, who on Tuesday launched the state-wide "March for People's Protection" from Payyannur in Kannur, has held Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan responsible for the political murders of BJP and RSS workers in the state.

He had also asked all the state units to hold yatras in their respective states to oppose the "Left party's politics of murder".

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday joined the state-wide "Jana Raksha Yatra" being undertaken by Kerala BJP President Kummanem Rajasekheran.

Shah, however,failed to turn up to lead the state-wide yatra on Thursday.

The march, a show of strength by the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is to highlight the political violence of the CPI-M against their cadres. The 15 day yatra will cover 11 districts before reaching Thiruvananthapuram on October 17.
Moscow, Oct 7 : About 120 Islamic State (IS) militants and more than 60 foreign mercenaries in Syria were killed in airstrikes launched by Russia over the past 24 hours, the Russian Defence Ministry said on Saturday.

The Russian airstrikes destroyed an IS strongpoint in the town of Albu Kamal near the Syrian-Iraqi border, killing about 40 militants from Tajikistan and Iraq, said the ministry's spokesman Igor Konashenkov in a statement, Xinhua news agency reported.

Russian jets bombed an IS command post, eliminating about 80 militants in the town of Mayadeen in Deir al-Zour province, one of the terrorist group's last footholds in Syria.

In the Euphrates Valley south of Deir al-Zour, the Russian air force killed more than 60 foreign mercenaries from the Commonwealth of Independence States, Tunisia and Egypt.

In addition, Konashenkov confirmed the deaths of three IS field commanders in recent Russian air attacks in Syria, including senior leader Abu Omar al-Shishani.
New Delhi, Oct 7 : Nobel Peace laureate Kailash Satyarthi's "Bharat Yatra", which is in its final leg, has attracted influential people including chief ministers to take a pledge to make India a safer place for children.

The Yatra -- part of a three-year campaign against child rape and child sexual abuse -- is aimed at increasing awareness about crimes against children and reporting of the cases.

It also aims at strengthening institutional response, including medical health and compensation, ensuring protection for victims and witnesses during trials, and increasing convictions in child sexual abuse cases in a time-bound manner.

Joining the campaign, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan emphasised the need to award death penalty to the perpetrators of sexual abuse on children.

According to a statement issued by Satyarthi's office, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has announced that the state would house a first of its kind global policy institute dedicated to formulating an environment conducive for the protection of children of the country.

"Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan lent his support for the Bharat Yatra and encouraged all his fans also to do the same.

"Bhagwanth Khumba, a Member of Parliament from Bidar, also declared that he would put forward a proposal to dedicate a day in the Parliament...to the discussion of the rights of children and how best to look after their safety, security and well-being," said the statement.

The Yatra rolled out from Kanyakumari on September 11.
Jaipur, Oct 7 : Haryana Steelers edged out Telugu Titans 32-30 in a thrilling encounter of the Pro Kabaddi Season 5 contest at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium here on Saturday.

Wazir Singh's critical raid in the 40th minute proved to be the difference as Telugu Titans are now in real danger of not making it to the super playoffs. Singh scored 14 points for Haryana Steelers.

Rahul Chaudhari (11) and Nilesh Salunke (10) combined in unison to score 21 points for Telugu Titans but fell short in the end.

Haryana Steelers are second in Zone A with 69 points from 20 matches. Telugu Titans are fourth in Zone B with 49 points from 21 matches.

Haryana Steelers were the stronger team in the first half with Wazir Singh and Surjeet Singh in fine raiding form. The first all out of the match was inflicted in the 12th minute by Haryana Steelers to lead 13-6.

Rahul Chaudhari scored his first raid point in the 13th minute as Telugu Titans trailed 8-13. Nilesh Salunke scored the bulk of raid points for Telugu Titans in the first 10 minutes.

The defence of both teams had a quiet first half as Haryana Steelers scored just one and Telugu Titans scored just two tackle points in the first 14 minutes. Nilesh Salunke got three more points with two raids for Telugu Titans in the 20 th minute.

Haryana Steelers went into the break leading 16-11.

Both teams kept picking points in the first five minutes of the second half as Haryana Steelers led 19-14. Haryana Steelers maintained their lead for most of the second half as they led 24-18 in the 32nd minute. The Steelers defence had a quiet game as they managed to score just one tackle point in 34 minutes.
Ankara, Oct 8 : Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron discussed the current situation in Syria and Iraq via phone on Saturday.

Erdogan and Macron exchanged views on developments in Iraq and Syria, as well as bilateral relations and regional issues, Xinhua cited state-run Anadolu Agency as saying.

The two leaders stressed the importance of preserving Iraq and Syria's territorial integrity, the source said.

Earlier in the day, Erdogan announced to launch a "serious operation" in Syria's Idlib, while Turkey and Russia jointly plan to set up "de-escalation" zones in Syria.

On September 25, Iraqi Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) held a controversial independence referendum despite fierce opposition from Baghdad and neighbouring Iran and Turkey.

According to results announced by the KRG, almost 93 per cent of registered voters cast ballots in favour of independence.

Turkey warned that the "irresponsible" referendum would damage the territorial integrity of Iraq and harm regional stability.
London, Oct 8 : At least 11 people were injured on Saturday after a car ploughed into pedestrians outside London's Natural History Museum, London Metropolitan Police said, adding that it was not an act of terrorism.

One person was arrested after the road traffic collision outside the museum, Xinhua news agency quoted the police as saying.

"The incident is a road traffic investigation and not a terrorist-related incident," the statement added.

The police said they were called at 14:21 p.m. local time to reports of a collision in Exhibition Road, South Kensington.

Pictures and video shared on social media showed street damage and a large police presence in the capital's museum district, which is home to the Natural History Museum, the Science Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Nearby museums were evacuated while the roads remain closed.

The Natural History Museum tweeted: "There's been a serious incident outside the Museum. We are working w/ @metpoliceuk and will provide an update when we have more information."

One video online showed a man being restrained on the ground in the middle of Exhibition Road. None of the four people around him were in police uniform. A black Toyota car is seen behind them with the driver's door open.

Police have described the incident in the South Kensington area of London as a collision and said the motive for the incident was under investigation.

"Officers are on scene, and the London Ambulance Service have been called. A man has been detained at the scene. Enquiries to establish the circumstances and motive are underway," police said.
After reaching election-bound Gujarat on a two-day tour of the state, PM Narendra Modi today offered prayers at the famous Dwarkadheesh temple. Later in the day, he laid the foundation stone of the green field airport in Rajkot.

By India Today Web Desk: After reaching election-bound Gujarat on a two-day tour of the state, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today offered prayers at the famous Dwarkadheesh temple and said that development projects in Dwarka will boost tourism here.

Modi reached Jamnagar this morning. This is the second visit of the PM to Gujarat in less than a month. Narendra Modi was in Gujarat on September 17 to inaugurate the the Sardar Sarovar Dam on Narmada river.

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Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi also visited the Dwarkadheesh temple recently as he kicked off his election campaign in Gujarat. The state will go polls by the end of this year.

At Dwarka, Narendra Modi also laid the foundation stone of the for four-lane cable stayed signature bridge between Okha and Beyt Dwarka, which will be built at a cost of Rs 962.42 crore. He will also inaugurate a number of projects during his visit to his home state.

HERE ARE THE LIVE UPDATES

The prime minister talks about the BHIM payments app, calling it an example of India's technological prowess.

We need to work to end the digital divide in India, PM Modi says.

A Digital India guarantees transparency, effective service delivery and good governance: PM @narendramodi- PMO India (@PMOIndia) October 7, 2017

Tech innovations are a must to unite India, PM Modi says.

You are IIT-ians, I was a Tea-ian when I was young (I sold tea). On this day, a few years ago, I took oath as CM for the first time. Till then, I had never even been an MLA. I had decided that whatever I will do, I will do to the best of my abilities: PM @narendramodi- PMO India (@PMOIndia) October 7, 2017

PM Modi is now spekaing at a rally in IIT Gandhinagar.

We made aviation affordable and within reach of the lesser privileged, says PM Modi in Rajkot.

Once, setting up hand-pumps used to be govt's achievement. Today there's a govt which has supplied Narmada's water to villages.

There was no aviation policy post independence. We made those policies & took responsibility to connect smallest of places by air: PM Modi in Rajkot.

Gujarat: Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid foundation stone of green field airport at Rajkot pic.twitter.com/VeBo4ETojo- ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

Gujarat: 15 bombs recovered from Ahmedabad's Dariapur earlier this morning, all the bombs diffused, more details awaited

Gujarat: Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrives in Chotlia, to address a public meeting shortly pic.twitter.com/WVOihbLXRf- ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

Gujarat: Prime Minister Narendra Modi met his friend Hari Bhai while leaving from Dwarkadhish Temple in Dwarka pic.twitter.com/we5ChhyIvr- ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

The world's attention is being drawn to India. People are coming here to invest. All this will bring opportunities for the people of India. I see Gujarat contributing actively to the development of India and congratulate the Gujarat government.

GST Council SOPs have brought Diwali early to India.

Diwali is auspicious for all traders and businessmen. With GST, Diwali has come early.

Marine policing is a sector we are looking at very closely. We are modernising marine security apparatus. An institute for this will be set up in this Devbhoomi of Dwarka. It will draw people and experts from all over India.

Government of India is taking steps towards the empowerment of fishermen. We do not want our fishermen to live in poverty, we want to create more opportunities for them. We want development of ports. The blue economy should help further the progress of India.

Kandla Port is seeing unprecedented growth. This is because we devoted resources to improve the port. A new lease of life was added to Alang, steps were taken for the welfare of the labourers working there. These are steps we are taking towards development.

Lives of the fishing community will improve and grow. Fishing community will then be able to go into deep sea. To make lives of our fishermen better, we have to empower them. Government will give them loans on less interest, so that they can buy bigger boats.

Need to empower the poor in Gujarat. The bridge in Dwarka will help the poor.

Dwarka, Gujarat: PM Modi lays foundation stone for a bridge between Okha and Bet Dwarka. pic.twitter.com/dOvLgTjGhe- ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

A developed Dwarka will make tourists want to stay here.

We are taking steps to ensure greater income for our farmers.

Development projects in Dwarka will boost tourism, says Modi. Building of infrastructure should enhance economic activities and add to the atmosphere of development.

I am here to boost the ordinary lives of Dwarka residents.

Previous governments did nothing to develop Dwarka.

The bridge will boost development in Dwarka.

PM Modi addresses at foundation stone laying ceremony of bridge between Okha and Bet Dwar.

Gujarat: PM welcomed at the foundation stone laying ceremony of a bridge between Okha and Bet Dwarka; Union Min Nitin Gadkari also present. pic.twitter.com/cszsIB6AKQ- ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

#WATCH IMMEDIATE PLAYOUT: PM Narendra Modi at Dwarkadhish Temple in Gujarat's Dwarka. https://t.co/qixG8YblkU- ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

Gujarat: PM Narendra Modi at Dwarkadhish Temple in Dwarka; will lay foundation stone of bridge between Okha & Bet Dwarka, later. pic.twitter.com/AezIRP7lFf- ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

Gujarat: PM Narendra Modi arrives in Dwarka. He will visit Dwarkadhish Temple later. pic.twitter.com/XAoxGPQRaP- ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

Gujarat: PM Narendra Modi offers prayers at Dwarkadhish Temple in Dwarka. pic.twitter.com/mq1cJNGl0d- ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

PM Narendra Modi offers prayers at Dwarkadhish Temple in Gujarat's Dwarka; CM Vijay Rupani also present. pic.twitter.com/Wi9Fclo317- ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

PM @narendramodi reached Jamnagar, marking the start of his 2-day Gujarat visit. CM @vijayrupanibjp, Deputy CM @Nitinbhai_Patel, former CM @anandibenpatel and others welcomed him at the airport. pic.twitter.com/tOh3nhitYc- PMO India (@PMOIndia) October 7, 2017

PM NARENDRA MODI IN GUJARAT: THINGS TO KNOW Other projects for which foundation stone will be laid include four-laning of 116.24 kms of Porbandar-Dwarka section of NH-51 and four-laning of 93.56 km of Gadu-Porbandar section of NH-51. He will also address a public meeting after laying down foundation stone. From Dwarka, Narendra Modi will go to Hirasar in Rajkot district where he will lay foundation stone for a greenfield airport, 20 kms from Rajkot city. He will also lay foundation stone in Chotila for six-laning of 201-km Ahmedabad-Rajkot section of NH-47 at a cost of Rs 2,893 crore. Narendra Modi will also dedicate a fully automatic milk processing and packaging plant and a drinking water distribution pipeline for Joravarnagar and Ratanpur area of Surendranagar, a PMO statement said in Delhi. He will address a public meeting there too. Narendra Modi will then proceed to Gandhinagar where he will dedicate the newly-constructed building of IIT Gandhinagar, and launch the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan (PMGDISHA). The PMGDISHA is aimed at imparting digital literacy to citizens in rural areas, the PMO said, adding it will provide access to information, knowledge, education, and healthcare. It will create avenues for livelihood generation and financial inclusion through digital payments, the statement said. On Sunday morning, he will visit Vadnagar, his birthplace in Mehasana district where he grew up. This will be Narendra Modi's first visit to Vadnagar since he became the prime minister in 2014. Narendra Modi will then inaugurate a medical college and hospital having total bed capacity of 650. He will also launch the Intensified Mission Indradhanush, to accelerate progress towards the goal of full immunization coverage. The mission will provide greater focus on urban areas and other pockets of low immunization coverage, the statement said. The prime minister will also distribute e-tablets to health workers to mark the launch of ImTeCHO (Innovative mobile-phone Technology for Community Health Operations). The ImTeCHO is aimed at improving the performance of community health workers ASHAs (Accredited Social Health Activists) through better supervision, support and motivation for increasing coverage of proven maternal, newborn and child health interventions among resource-poor settings in India. The same afternoon, the prime minister will reach Bharuch and lay the foundation stone for Bhadbhut Barrage, to be built over the Narmada River, the statement said. He will flag off the Antyodaya Express between Udhna (Surat, Gujarat), and Jaynagar (Bihar). Narendra Modi will also unveil plaques to mark the laying of foundation stone, and inauguration of various plants of Gujarat Narmada Fertilizer Corporation. He will also address a public meeting tat Bharuch before returning to Delhi. Meanwhile, there is excitement in Modi's ancestral village over his first visit as the PM. There is a lot of excitement in Vadnagar as well as nearby villages such as Badarpur and Molipur over the visit, the prime minister's elder brother Somabhai Modi said. Ahead of the prime minister's visit, the administration here is busy working on roads and ensuring cleanliness. Fire engines have also been deployed inside the railway station for cleaning of trees on its premises. Somabhai Modi said that his father had built a house in Vadnagar in 1949 but it was destroyed in the 2001 earthquake, following which they sold the land. He said the family has constructed a shelter home for the elderly in the village. The prime minister's school teacher, Dr Prahlad Patel, said he hopes to meet Narendra Modi who writes letters to him occasionally. There will be an exhibition of photos at the canteen of the local railway station where the prime minister's father used to prepare tea. Narendra Modi in his childhood would often help his father and paternal uncle, and also deliver tea to train passengers.

(With PTI inputs)

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1900 The Alameda, San Jose Were excited to be able to offer this unprecedented combination of property and financial services to San Jose"

Bringing together world-class real estate services, mortgage banking, and wealth management service providers, leading firms Intempus, CMG Financial, and ARIA Wealth Management on October 26 will celebrate the launch of their unique partnership at the firms central office location at 1900 The Alameda in San Jose.

This groundbreaking partnership of preeminent firms brings an unrivaled level of service and convenience to the San Jose market. It offers in a single, centralized location a comprehensive range of property management, mortgage brokerage, and investment services. At the October 26 celebration and open house, San Jose businesses and investors will have the opportunity to experience first-hand the groundbreaking possibilities of this first-of-its-kind partnership. A reception is planned at which San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo will conduct a ribbon-cutting and executives of all three firms will be present to greet clients and potential clients as well as answer questions.

Were excited to be able to offer this unprecedented combination of property and financial services to San Jose, said Eugene Korsunsky, President of Intempus. Intempus, which offers property management, real estate, and construction services, has recently expanded to our new headquarters at 1900 The Alameda, allowing us to employ more staff, more technology resources, and more services, to meet the complete range of San Jose property owners needs.

Intempus San Jose headquarters is equipped with cutting-edge resources to streamline operations, and the company has greatly expanded its professional staff in order to meet the demands of the growing San Jose market, Korsunsky added.

Every year since 2013, weve grown our property management portfolio by over 100 percent, said Michael Khesin, CEO of Intempus. Our new partnership with CMG and ARIA will fulfill the needs of our growing client base who require additional services in the areas of financing and investment. Together, our firms will be able to help clients build profitability and fuel their further growth.

With their headquarters and offices at 1900 The Alameda, San Jose West Valleys premier office location, the three firms will offer optimum convenience for property owners and potential clients, presenting the services of three leading-edge companies in their respective spaces.

CMG is thrilled to serve our community by adding these partners to our customer offerings, said CMG Branch Manager Kimberly Allen. CMG Financial is a well-capitalized, privately held mortgage-banking firm built on over twenty years of lending transparency and client service.

At CMG, we are dedicated to building life-long relationships with clients and my referral partners. This partnership brings tremendous opportunity for customers to grow their businesses and for CMG to better serve the San Jose community with extraordinary loan programs and operational efficiency, Allen added.

ARIA is extremely pleased to join with these firms as this reflects our collaborative approach to wealth management, said ARIA Chief Operating Officer Erik Shei. ARIA brings more than 70 years combined industry experience from trained professionals specializing in wealth management, retirement plan consulting and administration, personalized investment management, and financial planning.

Our approach is centered on understanding our clients and their goals, so adding this ability to partner with leading firms in these important spaces will allow us to deliver truly unmatched service to our clients, Shei added.

At the grand-opening celebration, existing clients and potential clients will have the opportunity to learn more about the innovative partnership among these leading firms and consult personally with representatives from each company at their new central San Jose location. Mayor Sam Liccardo will attend and officiate the ribbon cutting ceremony.

About Intempus

Intempus is one of the fastest growing property management companies in Santa Clara County. The company has doubled in size each year due to their dedication to professionalism and trustworthiness. Intempus offers a wide range of services for residential and commercial property owners, including property and HOA management services, unparalleled property marketing to help owners get the most out of their investment, and maintenance, so owners can rest easy knowing their investment will last. Intempus has also recently launched a construction division, Intempus Builders, and a real estate brokerage, Intempus Realty.

About CMG Financial

CMG Financial is a well-capitalized, privately held mortgage-banking firm built on over twenty years of lending transparency and client service to deliver the right loans for the right reasons in a way that exceeds all expectations. Founded in 1993, CMG Financial now currently operates in 50 states and the District of Columbia and holds federal agency lending approvals with HUD, VA, RHS, GNMA, FNMA, and FHLMC. CMG Financial contributes to the lending market with three distinct origination channels: Retail Lending, Correspondent Lending, and Wholesale. CMG Financial thrives on providing a personal experience while operating with the resources of a national firm. The company achieves extraordinary experiences through operational efficiency and support, product innovation, investment in technology, and in-house marketing. CMG Financial proudly partners with some of the top real estate agencies, financial planning and investment firms, and builders in the nation to help ensure their clients home purchase closes on-time, every time.

About ARIA Wealth Management

With more than 70 years of combined industry experience, our ensemble approach offers the benefit of a diversified group of trained and experienced financial professionals specializing in: Wealth Management, Retirement Plan Consulting and Administration, Personalized Investment Management, and Financial Planning. Our collaborative approach to wealth management is centered on understanding who you are, what you hope to achieve, and what keeps you up at night. We put our financial experience to work, sorting through these complexities and offering financial insights and strategies to bring harmony, confidence and clarity to your financial life. Experience what its like when a dedicated team of specialized professionals work in harmony to accomplish one single objectiveyour financial success.

FOR NEWS MEDIA ONLY:

Accredited media representatives wishing to attend the October 26 event at 1900 The Alameda, please contact Courtney Treffkorn at 408-320-5509 or info(at)intempus.net.

Grand Opening reception starts at 2:30 pm, in suite 100 at 1900 The Alameda in San Jose. Please send interview requests to info(at)intempus.net
The renowned plastic surgery center Doctors Plastic Surgery is pleased to welcome the newest addition to their team of dedicated and skilled surgeons. Dr. Pey-Yi Kevin Lin, a plastic surgeon focusing on body contouring, has recently joined Doctors Plastic Surgery to help patients achieve beautiful results and newfound confidence. Building on the excellence Doctors Plastic Surgery has always offered patients, Dr. Lin will help patients reach their goals by performing expert breast augmentations, tummy tucks, liposuction, body contouring and other surgical procedures. Dr. Lins training and experience have helped him become an expert in meeting patients high standards.

After graduating from medical school at the University of Toledo, Dr. Lin went on to study under nationally-renowned aesthetic and reconstructive surgeons during his next eight years of training. He completed a five-year residency at the University of Illinois Chicago Metropolitan Group Hospitals in General Surgery and spent the following three years completing a Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery fellowship at the Health Science Center (University of Texas). Dr. Lins extensive training and experience working under respected mentors have given him the breadth and depth of knowledge to help patients reach their goals.

As a plastic surgeon, Dr. Lin emphasizes passion for his craft and dedication to his patients well-being and results. Dr. Lin brings extensive knowledge and compassion to his new role, and approaches every procedure with the goal of helping patients achieve their ideal body. Though his focus and primary interest has been in body contouring, he has the skill and knowledge to help patients with differing needs find a solution that suits their needs. Patients can expect an enthusiastic and respectful consultation with Dr. Lin, allowing them to discuss different options and create a custom treatment plan. Dr. Lin always has his patients best interests at heart, and personalizes each treatment plan to optimize results.
Working in what excites you and what you are passionate about is a crucial aspect of living an extraordinary life.!

Rizi Khan, President of the sales and marketing collective, outlined a number of ways to transform a life from lackluster and ordinary, to exciting and extraordinary. During a morning meeting, the business owner explained: The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is just that little bit extra!

About K&A Global Inc.: http://www.kaglobalinc.com/

The K&A Global Inc. president continued by defining ordinary as being in a job you dont particularly enjoy and certainly dont love, plodding along day to day without fulfilling any of your real dreams or goals.

He went on to define an extraordinary life as "a life that has been hand-designed as the life you WANT to live, an invigorating life that you are in charge of and sees you doing exactly what you want to be doing. I personally believe the best definition of an extraordinary life is a happy life, he said.

To motivate the K&A Global Inc. workforce to transform the ordinary into the extraordinary, Mr. Khan revealed the following four tips:

1. Do what you love

"By identifying what motivates you and emits genuine feelings of fulfillment, you can design an extraordinary life around these aspects." states the CEO. Professionals should maximise the amount of time they are doing these activities and utilizing their best skills. This can mean committing time to being paid to do what they love. The ultimate goal is to earn a living doing something they are genuinely passionate about.

2. Understanding your true self

"Working in what excites you and what you are passionate about is a crucial aspect of living an extraordinary life.! Outlines Mr. Khan. By Dedicating some time to understanding themselves and observing what makes them genuinely excited to get out of bed in the morning, professionals will be able to focus their time and effort on the things in life that make them feel fulfilled.

3. Invest in learning

As firm advocates of personal development, K&A Global Inc. always reiterate the value of continued learning and education in both a personal and professional capacity. To live an extraordinary life the firm believes professionals must focus on improving themselves every single day. Setting challenges to educate themselves on a topic of interest or a relevant work subject is a great way of getting each week off to a positive, extraordinary start.

4. Work harder

Giving a little bit more and working that little bit harder is the difference between the average person and the super successful person; ordinary and extraordinary. To achieve more, professionals must give that little bit more and put the extra in extraordinary. K&A Global Inc. believes the best way to do this is not by simply doing whats necessary, but in fact going beyond what is needed.

Following this motivational team meeting, Rizi Khan has seen a rise in workplace morale across all areas of the company and believes it is important to provide his workforce as many personal development tips and guidance as possible.

K&A Global Inc. is an outsourced sales and direct marketing firm based in Chicago. The company specializes in a personalized form of marketing whereby they can connect with their clients' ideal consumers on a face-to-face basis. This one-to-one interaction with consumers helps to drive long-lasting and personal business relationships between brand and consumer as well as increases customer acquisition, brand awareness and brand loyalty for their clients.

Source: http://www.success.com/blog/7-ways-to-go-from-ordinary-to-extraordinary

For more information on K&A Global, head to their Facebook page.
With offices across the world in the U.S, U.K, and Europe, CEO of MarketStorm Global knows a thing or two about not only establishing a positive company-wide culture but maintaining it too.

About MarketStorm Global: http://www.marketstormglobal.com/about-us/

The firm, which has headquarters in Miami, Florida, prides itself on its ability to go from strength to strength and the MarketStorm Global brand has become globally recognized for its personalized approach to sales and marketing since setting up shop in Leeds, England back in 2012.

The company is not only a known as a powerhouse in the sales and marketing industry but also has a proven track record for launching the careers of many other successful business owners over the years. Mr Walsh often speaks on being proudly passionate about the career development of each and every one of MarketStorm Global's brand ambassadors.

In addition to these factors, the business leader has exclusively revealed three other key things the company always considers, all of which have a beneficial impact on the enterprise culture:

1) If there is a problem, confront it

Mr. Walsh is a firm believer of acknowledging mistakes and dealing with issues head-on. If company morale is lapsing or there is a matter within a particular area, it is vital for business owners to acknowledge this. Taking an unfiltered look at the situation at hand allows companies to discover what solutions must be implemented to fix the problem. Sugar-coating the truth simply encourages a company to become complacent and eventually this will result in stagnant operations. "The only way to fix the issue is to admit you have one," says Mr. Walsh.

2) Don't shy away from heart-to-hearts

The CEO recognizes how important it is to appear present and genuinely invested in every employee and for this reason, he reveals he isn't afraid of sitting down for one-on-ones with his contractors. Clearly and concisely specifying any issues or cultural misinterpretations with those that are struggling allows both parties to establish a clear picture of where the company is headed and consider whether this new direction works for them. During these talks, Gavin encourages other leaders to focus on progress and not rapid change as this is likely to seem stressful to staff.

3) Shameless self-promotion

Reiterate the actions, values, and behaviors expected of the company on every possible occasion. By creating opportunities and reasons to discuss the kind of culture that is desired, members of the workforce are given a chance to consider what each of these things means to them. Gavin Walsh recommends business owners should be prepared to shout from the rooftops about the type of company culture they want to achieve.

MarketStorm Global is Miami's premier marketing firm with market reach spreading across the U.S. The company specializes in a personalized form of marketing which allows them to connect with their clients' ideal consumers via face-to-face interactions. To find out more about the company and stay in the knows with business developments, like their Facebook page or follow them on Twitter.

Source: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/298633
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By PTI: Salem, Oct 7 (PTI) Nine country pistols were today seized and four persons arrested in this connection in a hilly area bordering Villupuram district, police said.

Several areas were raided in the Kalvarayan hills following reports about brewing of illicit arrack and manufacturing of country pistols, they said.

The pistols were seized at Melmudiyur, police said, adding one person managed to escape.

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Police said an illegal pistol manufacturing unit was unearthed in 2014 and 250 pistols seized. PTI COR BN RBS

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As the story goes, on June 22, 1969, the chemical-filled Cuyahoga River in Cleveland burst into flames, possibly ignited by a spark from a passing train.

That had happened at least dozen times before on the Cuyahoga. Additional fires were known to blaze up on rivers in Detroit, Baltimore, Buffalo, and in other cities.

River fires were far from the only environmental disasters in the US at the time. A spill from an offshore oil rig in California coated the coast in oil and pollutants. Smog and car exhaust choked cities around the country.

In the late 60s, Americans were growing more aware of the fact that unregulated pollution and chemical use were endangering the country and the people in it. People were ready for a change.

In his 1970 State of the Union address, President Richard Nixon said: "We still think of air as free. But clean air is not free, and neither is clean water. The price tag on pollution control is high. Through our years of past carelessness we incurred a debt to nature, and now that debt is being called."

Nixon followed that up with a list of requests to Congress and later that year announced the formation of the Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA.

Soon after it was founded, the EPA began a photo project called Documerica that captured more than 81,000 images showing what the US looked like from 1971 to 1977. More than 20,000 photos were archived, and at least 15,000 have been digitized by the National Archives.

The EPA's role since then has varied from administration to administration. Right now, administrator Scott Pruitt is working to roll back a number of rules that were previously put in place to protect air and water. Pruitt has announced plans to kill the Clean Power Plan, the Obama administration's main initiative to fight climate change by lowering emissions.

Under Pruitt, the EPA has also reversed a ban on a pesticide that can harm children's brains and moved to rescind the Clean Water Rule, which clarified the Clean Water Act to prohibit industries from dumping pollutants into streams and wetlands.

Many reports suggest that Pruitt's primary aim is to eliminate most environmental protections and dismantle parts of the regulatory agency.

But as a reminder of what the US looked like before many of the EPA's policies were in place, here's a selection of the Documerica photos from the 1970s.

Many of these photos show life in America at the time, but several also document concerning environmental issues.

Smog, seen here obscuring the George Washington Bridge in New York, was a far bigger problem.

Smog was common, as this shot of Louisville and the Ohio River from 1972 shows.

Factories burned discarded automobile batteries in the 1970s, releasing pollutants into the air. Current regulations require the batteries to be recycled without contaminating the surrounding area, though some are exported.

Mary Workman of Steubenville, Ohio, holds a jar of undrinkable water from her well in this photo. She filed a lawsuit against a coal company, accusing it of polluting her water. The EPA now uses the Clean Water Act to prevent companies from contaminating drinking water.

An abandoned car sits in Jamaica Bay in New York City in 1973. Landfills and auto salvage yards fall under the EPA's regulations now, though improper disposal still occurs.

The Atlas Chemical Company belches smoke across pasture land in Marshall, Texas, in this image. A local farmer told the photographer that the soot and chemicals had killed several of his cows.

EPA officials used briefcase-size monitors to test radiation levels. This image shows them testing the monitors in a Las Vegas lab before sending them out to be used.

Air pollution that can cause respiratory illness and other health problems was far less regulated before the EPA was founded. The EPA estimated that the Clean Air Act, which regulates pollution from industries, prevented more than 160,000 early deaths, 130,000 heart attacks, and millions of cases of respiratory illness in 2010 alone.

Source:

Coal-mining companies were bigger polluters in the 1970s as well. President Donald Trump has pledged an industry resurgence and recently nominated a coal lobbyist to be Pruitt's second-in-command at the EPA.

Source:

Pollution in industrial cities like Cleveland, Ohio, was particularly severe.

This photo shows a burning barge on the Ohio River in May 1972. A fire on the Cuyahoga River in 1969 (the 13th time that river had caught fire) helped to inspire the creation of the EPA.

The agency helps regulate cleanups in particularly polluted sites. The Twin Towers are visible behind the trash heap in this image.

Trash and old tires littered the Baltimore Inner Harbor in 1973. The EPA regulates waste disposal now, including in coastal locations. EPA cleanups in the harbor over the years have targeted dangerous chemicals.

All kinds of trash used to be dumped outside New York City, like this car at Breezy Point, south of Jamaica Bay. The EPA helped institute regulations for how the city disposed of trash to prevent dumping in the Atlantic.

Raw sewage flowed into the Potomac through the Georgetown Gap, pictured here in 1973 with the Watergate Complex visible in the background. The Clean Water Act now regulates pollutant discharge into bodies of water.

The Army Corps of Engineers was set to work trying to clear drift and debris from the Potomac and Anacostia Rivers in 1973.

Los Angeles has long been known for its smog issues. Here in 1972, it obscures the sun above a railroad near the Salton Sea.

Auto pollution across the country was far worse before the Clean Air Act was used to regulate pollutants and fuels.

Without regulation, more companies and manufacturers would be able to dump pollutants into waters and the air we breathe.
The Magistrate, Mr Aro Lambo, who gave the reprieve, granted him bail in the sum of N200,000 with two sureties in like sum.

Lambo said one of the sureties must be a civil servant not less than Grade Level 14, while the other surety must either be a community leader or a cleric.

In addition, the sureties should provide evidence of tax payments to Lagos State Government.

Awoniyi, whose address was not provided at the court, had pleaded not guilty to a two-count charge of unlawful sexual intercourse and unlawful penetration of the girls private parts.

Earlier, Sgt. Anthonia Osayande, prosecuting, told the court that the accused committed the offences sometime in April at 8.00 p.m. at No. 11, Shogie St., Ijeshatedo in Surulere.

The accused came to the house to see his friend and he saw the 12-year-old girl in the compound and took her to a corner where he defiled her.

She alleged that the accused disappeared into the thin air immediately he committed the crime.

The offences contravened Sections 137 and 261 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015.
Speaking at a forum organized by the Centre for Social Democracy (CSD-Ghana) in partnership with the Political Science Department of the University of Ghana with support from Friedrich Ebert Foundation last Wednesday, Dr Atuguba said the office will not pass master in the Supreme Court.

Under our current constitutional dispensation, no prosecutor in Ghana can be legally independent. Again, under our current constitutional dispensation, no prosecutor can be legally special, he said.

Any attempt to pass a law that establishes the Office of the Prosecutor that purports to be special or independent does not only do violent to Article 88 of the constitution but will not pass constitutional master in the Supreme Court.

The legal expert also bashed parliament, saying it was allowing the Executive to take the country on the wrong path as the nation sought to right the wrongs of corruption.

Parliament, he said, must be bold to tell the Executive that wasting money and time on backing a bill that will be dead on arrival amounted to causing financial loss to the state.

To him, Every prosecutor in Ghana is within the meaning of Article 88 of the 1992 Constitution under the prosecutorial discretion, direction and control of the Attorney General.
A local journalist in the area told Accra-based Citi FM that the presence of a joint police and military team could not prevent the youth from burning assets of the foreigner alleged to have killed the Ghanaian.

I saw the army and policemen, they are around here. But they could not stop what the youth in the town are doing now. They [the youth] are burning the houses around and their cars the fire service came here but they didnt get the chance to even quench the fire.
The President, who is in the Northern Region for the last leg of his seven-day tour of the three regions of the north, noted that the creation of new regions rest in the hands of areas calling for it.

Speaking on Friday, he said the Constitution stipulates that, once the President receives a petition for the creation of a region, he must forward it to the Council of State for advice.

The Council of State received my request for their advice, and they were positive. They agreed that there was a demand for the creation of new regions from the Western Region, Northern Region, Brong Ahafo Region and Volta Region, he said.

The President continued, The Constitution states that once the Council of State has given a positive response to the President, the President would have to establish a Commission of Enquiry to go into the areas which have requested the creation to see whether, indeed, there is a substantial demand.

Next week I am going to establish a Commission of Enquiry to examine the petitions for the creation of the regions.

The creation of new regions was a campaign promise of then candidate Akufo-Addo. So far, it has been reported that about four more regions will be created in addition to the existing ones.

To this end, the President told the Nayiri that when the Commission of Enquiry comes into your areas, it is up to you to make it clear to the Commissioners that all of you want a new region.

President Akufo-Addo explained further that if the Commission of Enquiry, after examining the areas, decides that there is, indeed, a substantial demand, they will make recommendations to the President.

If the President receives the recommendations and they are positive, he will send the matter to the Electoral Commission to organise a referendum in the areas of the demand. It will require that 50% of all those registered in the area of the demand come out to vote, and, after that, 80% of those who come out to vote must vote Yes for the new region, he said.

READ MORE: Local governance expert describes creation of new regions useless

If you are determined to have the new region, it is in your hands. The way you respond to the Commission of Enquiry, and the way you vote, that is what will decide if you will have a new region, President Akufo-Addo said.
By PTI: Bhubaneswar, Oct 7 (PTI) The Odisha government today rejected the Centres plea to reduce VAT or sales tax on petrol and diesel, official sources said.

The Centre had urged all the states to cut sales tax or VAT by 5 per cent to ease the burden on consumers after it cut the excise duty by Rs two per litre on petrol and diesel.

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"Well not reduce VAT on petrol and diesel as suggested by the central government," said Finance Minister Sashi Bhusan Behera here.

Stating that out of the Rs two reduction in excise duty by the Centre, Behera said the state government, as per the devolution process, would bear a loss of 84 paise at the rate of 42 paise per rupee.

This apart, Behera said, the state would also lose 52 paise which it would have collected as VAT at 26 per cent on that Rs two as excise duty.

The finance minister also blamed the Centre for increasing the fuel prices even though the prices of petroleum products had fallen in the international market.

Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on October four had appealed to the states to cut VAT on petrol and diesel by five per cent following the Centre cutting down the excise duty by Rs two per litre of petrol and diesel. PTI AAM PR PR KKB

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The fund is O-Cap Management, a small New York-based hedge fund managed by Michael Olshan.

Olshan is the son of Morton Olshan, the chairman and founder of commercial real estate giant Olshan Properties, and is a former managing director at hedge fund Jana Partners.

Launched during the Great Recession, O-Cap's primary fund lost 17.7% after fees from September 2009 through the end of June this year. The S&P 500 was up 161% over the same period.

O-Cap lost 4.3% in the second quarter this year and was down 8.03% year-to-date in 2017.

Michael Olshan did not respond to calls and emails, and the fund's chief financial officer, Lloyd Jagai, hung up on a Business Insider reporter when reached by phone.

In a September letter to clients, O-Cap blamed its losses on poor market conditions, pointing to the rise of passive investment vehicles like ETFs, the disproportionate share of FAANG tech stocks in the S&P 500's gains, and an overall lack of public sector opportunities. The company was heavily exposed to energy, a bet that took a hit amid oil and gas industry turmoil, losing 8.45% in the first half of this year.

"We do not feel todays market is rife with attractive buying opportunities in the core sectors in which we focus," Michael Olshan wrote in the client letter. "In our opinion, market participants are taking on an increasing amount of risk for lower return expectations, and are doing so late in a cycle that has been characterized by strong reflation in asset prices and public equities."

"Todays public equity markets can be defined by too much capital chasing a meager set of bargains," Olshan added. "The result is increased risk taking for lower and lower return expectations."

The fund continues to manage money for Olshan and his family, and said it sees more opportunities in private company investments.

O-Cap Management is a small fund. Documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission say the firm held $14.1 million in gross assets in its primary fund at the end of March, 56% of which belonged to management. Management owned 5% of the smaller fund, which had $5.8 million in assets.

Olshan comes from a prestigious and successful New York business family, and O-Cap at one point had its sights set on raising as much as $1 billion, according to trade publication HFMWeek.

Morton Olshan began buying real estate properties in the 1950s and amassed an enormous portfolio of properties in Manhattan and beyond. Today, Olshan Properties owns and manages "14,000 units of multifamily, 10 million square feet of retail, 3 million square feet of office and 1,447 hotel rooms located across 11 states," according to the company's website.

Morton Olshan became a minority owner of the New York Yankees in 2000 and remains a member of the club's board of directors. He also serves as a member of The Presidents Council of the New York Public Library.
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson made that admission during a meeting with Russian and Iranian foreign ministers at the United Nations headquarters late last month.

Tillerson had gathered officials involved in the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran in what turned out to be a sort of airing of US grievances related to the Obama-era agreement. The New Yorker's Dexter Filkins outlined the exchange in a report set to be published in the magazine later this month.

In the meeting, Tillerson echoed some of President Donald Trump's broad reservations about the nuclear deal. He accused Iran of funding militant groups, supporting Syrian President Bashar Assad, and antagonizing American troops in the Persian Gulf, according to the report.

Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif pushed back, saying the US had not held up its promise to lift certain financial sanctions against Iran. Tillerson was resolute, but ultimately seemed to back off from the exchange, Filkins wrote, with Tillerson suggesting that US relations with Iran were mired in generations of baggage. "Maybe we don't have it in our capacity to change the nature of this relationship," Tillerson said according to the report. "Maybe we leave it for the next generation to try."

Tillerson added: "I don't know. I'm not a diplomat."

Indeed, the former ExxonMobil CEO had not previously served in any diplomatic capacity before Trump appointed him as secretary of state. Tillerson spent much of his professional life working for the oil giant.

The experience has been challenging amid months of news reports that Tillerson and Trump's working relationship was tenuous, and that Tillerson had considered resigning on more than one occasion.

The job only seemed to get tougher in the last two weeks as Trump publicly undermined Tillerson's efforts to open a dialogue with North Korea, and culminating in reports that Tillerson had called Trump a "moron" during a meeting with the president's national security team and Cabinet officials.
Bloom, a lawyer who built a reputation on representing women in high-profile sexual harassment cases against powerful men, came under fire from critics. They pointed to Weinstein's recent purchase of the movie rights to a book Bloom published, and they suggested Bloom seems to have a blind spot for Hollywood executives.

But Bloom still has some defenders: Her former clients.

Bloom was by Wendy Walsh's side during a press conference earlier this year in which the former Fox News contributor described losing her status as a contributor after rebuffing former host Bill O'Reilly's sexual advances in 2013. (O'Reilly has denied Walsh's claims.)

In a brief telephone interview with Business Insider on Friday, Walsh fiercely defended Bloom, arguing she is "still protecting women" and saying that "will not slam the victims." She advised Weinstein to come clean and apologize.

"She said, 'I dont need consciousness raising, I need consciousness lowering,'" Walsh said, adding: "Lisa doesnt need money, she has a successful shes doing well without Weinstein."

Bloom has acknowledged that her strategy for helping Weinstein navigate the scandal has been somewhat unusual: She's insisted that he apologize and has said the Hollywood mogul is working to rehabilitate himself through therapy.

Walsh said she had a "knee-jerk" negative reaction when she heard Bloom was representing Weinstein, but changed her mind when she thought about projects Weinstein worked on that benefited women and heard Bloom's explanation.

"What else could Harvey Weinstein do?" Walsh said. "He has spent a period of time and will continue to do so underwriting female projects, bringing voices to womens stories, as hes had these new kinds of awakening."

As an example of what she said was Bloom's commitment to women and social-justice issues, Walsh described Bloom's reaction when Walsh gave her a copy of "Why I Am Not A Feminist: A Feminist Manifesto," a critique of mainstream feminism as toothless.

One other former client, Jill Harth, settled a sexual harassment lawsuit against President Donald Trump in 1997. She retained Bloom last year when Trump threatened to sue women who accused him of sexual harassment.

In an email, Harth wrote that Bloom had a "very high level of integrity" and said she had "no reason to doubt her reasons to take him on as a client at all."

Further, she praised Weinstein for appearing to take responsibility for some of his actions, which she argued Trump never did.

"I am all for people who have done wrong to evolve and improve themselves and she is too," Harth said.

She added: "Thats all we ever wanted from Trump when he accused me of lying about acts he knows he did. Trump never did that for me. As far as I am concerned, Harvey Weinstein is a far superior as a human just for doing that. Its more than I can ever say for Trump."

Still, many others have expressed disappointment at Bloom's decision to represent Weinstein, and one of them is her mother, the high-profile attorney Gloria Allred, Variety reported on Friday. Allred released a statement a day earlier expressing her disapproval of Bloom's work in support of Weinstein. Allred said she would only consider representing one of Weinstein's accusers, even if it meant facing her daughter as opposing counsel.

While Bloom has argued that she is simply advising Weinstein, the studio head has also prepared a lawsuit against The New York Times, which he said published its expose on his history of alleged sexual harassment without giving him ample time to respond. (The paper gave him 24 hours.)

In an interview on ABC's "Good Morning America" on Friday, host George Stephanopoulos said he was surprised to see Bloom defending Weinstein when she's taken on individuals like O'Reilly, Trump, and Bill Cosby.

"Heres the problem," Stephanopoulos said. The New York Times says in interviews eight women described varying behavior by Mr. Weinstein that he appeared naked, or nearly or fully naked in front of them, requiring them to be present while he bathed, or asking for a massage or initiating one himself."

"This is a real pattern over 30 years," he said. "This is textbook sexual harassment."

"It's gross," Bloom replied.

"It's illegal," Stephanopoulos pointed out.
The prosecuting counsel, Miss Vivian Oporomo, told the court that Adamu was arrested on September 11 at about 9. 30 p.m. along CBN Quarters by MTN office Lugbe.

Oporomo said Adamu was arrested with unregistered Bajaja motorcycle in the mixed of gang of thieves, who were armed with Knives, cutlass and about going to commit crime, when the police arrested him.

In the process of the arrest, others escaped while Adamu was caught, she said.

The prosecutor said that Adamu could not give satisfactory account of the Bajaja motorcycle.

The prosecutor said further that the offence contravened the provision of Section 306 of the Penal Code.

The defendant denied committing the offence, while the Senior Judge, Mr Abdullahi Garba, admitted Adamu to bail in the sum of N50,000 and a surety in like sum.
The judge, Alhaji Abubakar Sadiq, however, gave the convict an option to pay N10,000 fine.

He also ordered Muazu to pay N48,000 as compensation to the complainant.

Sadiq advised the convict to desist from committing crimes, adding that the sentence would serve as deterrent to others.

Muaza, who resides at Dei-dei Apian-way, Abuja, was convicted on a two-count charge.

The convict, who pleaded guilty to the offences, urged the court to temper justice with mercy.

The Prosecutor, Florence Avhioboh, had told the court that one Samuel Uzoma of Karmo, reported the matter at the Gwa-gwa Police Station, Abuja, on September 29.

Avhioboh said that the complainant sometime in June 2017, paid the convict N10,000 to repair damaged panels and spray his Honda Academy car.

With an agreement to finish the work in two days, but the convict criminally took the car from his workshop to an unknown place, without the consent of the complainant, she said.

She said the car was recovered through the convicts apprentice.

She said during police investigation, the convict confessed to the crime.
Speaking during a Constituency Stakeholders Meeting themed: True Representation and Accountability, Agunbiade said he galvanised community leaders to take some behind the scene  measures that brought an end to Badoo killings in the area.

 We were troubled by Badoo,but we all played a prominent role behind the screen and Badoo killing has stopped forever.

"I also took it upon myself to stop militancy in our community, said Agunbiade representing Ikorodu 1 Constituency in the Lagos State House of Assembly.

Giving his scorecard, Agunbiade said he had provided boreholes in markets, rehabilitated several roads and renovated classroom blocks in schools, including his alma mata, Jamaitul Islamiyah Primary School. Ikorodu.

We have continued to improve on our legislative competences and accomplishments over the past two years.

 We have also initiated various legislation effectively addressing challenges such as ritual killings,kidnapping,land grabbing,armed robbery and other crime related issues,  Agunbiade said, adding that the meeting was organised to strengthen participatory democracy.
The LASEMA General Manager, Mr Adesina Tiamiyu, said at the signing of the agreement on Saturday in Lagos that the collaboration would enable the agency to provide necessary assistance and support during any emergency.

The epoch making event started with a team set up a year ago to look into the documents, regulations and statutory functions.

It was to ensure that all necessary issues were properly looked into for the mutual understanding of both parties involved, Tiamiyu said in a statement signed by Mr Adebayo Kehinde, LAAEMA Head of Public Affairs.

The general manager commended FAAN for providing adequate security and safety at the airports in line with international standard.

Tiamiyu, however, called on FAAN management to ensure easy passage of LASEMA operatives through the airport toll gates and corridors during emergency situations.

This would facilitate prompt respond to such unexpected events within the shortest time. A minute delay is not good for timely intervention during emergency, he said.

Also, Kehinde said in the statement that the two agencies would deploy resources to tackle emergency situations at the Lagos Airports.

Kehinde said, The two agencies agreed to collaborate in information gathering, equipment, materials and expertise that will assist FAAN and other relevant agencies.

This is aim at bringing any emergency within the five nautical miles of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMA) under control.

In her remarks, the Airport Manager, Mrs Victoria Shin-Aba, commended the Lagos State Government for taken a pro-active measure in disaster management.

Shin-Aba said that the signing of the MoU would further deepen the existing relationship between the two organisations.
54,000 petroleum dealers have threatened to go on strike next Friday. Their demands including bringing petrol and diesel under the GST regime.

By India Today Web Desk: 'We want GST,' petroleum dealers figuratively said today as they announced a nationwide strike on October 13.

Around 54,000 petrol pumps will likely be shut that day, a Friday, as fuel dealers press for long-standing demands.

The petrol dealers' demands include an upward revision of the dealer margins every six months, better terms for return on investment, resolution of manpower issues, a fresh study of handling losses, and resolution of issues related to transportation and ethanol blending.

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The dealers are also demanding that petrol and diesel be brought under the Goods and Services Tax regime - a demand also made by Opposition parties and critics of the Narendra Modi government.

The announcement of the stir, which a dealers' association warned would become indefinite from October 27 if demands aren't made, comes in the same week when the government reduced the Centre reduced excise duty on petrol and diesel and when Finance Minister Arun Jaitley reduced the GST rate on a number of products.

The government, battling criticism over high petrol prices, has indicated that it is working on a mechanism to bring the two petroleum products under GST.

The announcement of the strike was made by the United Petroleum Front, which represents over 54,000 dealers from the Federation of All-India Petroleum Traders, the All-India Petroleum Dealers Association and the Consortium of Indian Petroleum Dealers.

The front alleged that the letters which it wrote to oil marketing companies as well as a letter from the Cabinet Secretariat dated June 28, did not elicit positive response on their demands.

Among the issues that have upset petroleum dealers is the announcement of marketing discipline guidelines announced by oil marketing companies. The guidelines seek to penalise dealers for shortcomings up to Rs 2 lakh under a zero-tolerance policy towards shortchanging of customers.

Fuel dealers are also opposed to the daily price mechanism introduced from July 1, saying that the move has benefited neither the consumers nor the dealers. The dealers have also voice opposition, citing safety concerns, to a proposal of the government to allow home delivery of oil products.

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Ihekweazu who spoke in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Saturday in Abuja, assured that the centre was taking all the required steps to manage the cases and prevent further spread.

He said that a Rapid Response Team (RRT) from NCDC was immediately deployed to support the Bayelsa State Government in the investigations and public health response.

He said that if cases are detected early and well managed, the chances are that they will survive, it is a self limiting illness, which means that there is no specific treatment for the virus.

Ihekweazu said that doctors and healthcare providers have been advised on what to do; the key thing is to bring in patients with characteristic rash on their face which is what stands monkeypox out from other diseases.

Monkeypox looks like an extreme case of chickenpox, but a little bit more severe and the disease looks and sounds a lot worse than it actually is.

The virus circulate in a few more animals apart from monkeys like rats, squirrels and bush meat, and the period of increased risk is at the point of killing, touching or preparing them.

The people at risk are those who kill, touch or cook the animals, that is, those who come in contact with the animals and dont use protective measure or wash their hands after wards.

Once the virus gets into the human population , then there is a risk of human to human transmission, which is what has happened in Bayelsa, but the first contact is from animal to human, he said.

Ihekweazu also explained that monkeypox infection is a relatively rare disease that has previously been reported in Nigeria in the 1970s.

He said that it is primarily a zoonotic infection that is transmitted primarily from animals to humans, with limited subsequent person-to-person transmission.
The Ooni of Ife also renamed IPOB, and called it the Indigenous People of Brighter Nigeria (IPOBN).

According to him, the Federal Government should not ignore people who are legitimately protesting for what is their right.

He said There is something that is bothering them that is making them to cry. We should not throw them away; we should draw them closer (because) the youths of this country are the future, the energy. They are the heart beat of this country.

We must chart the course of doing things with positive energy. I want to let you know that you are not alone in this; we stand by you positively in a very progressive manner. We stand by you that we all must come together to build a united Nigeria. We dont want any war; we dont want any disintegration.

ALSO READ:France denies financial ties to IPOB

The monarch also joined the call for the restructuring of Nigeria, saying it will ensure justice, equity and fairness.
The Vice Presidential Spokesman, Mr Laolu Akande, in a statement issued on Saturday in Abuja, said the vice president leaves for London on Saturday, and is expected back on Monday.

Akande stated that the Africa Summit hosted by the Financial Times (FT) of London is a global forum, reputed as one of the leading conferences in the world on African business and economic matters.

He noted that the FT itself has had a relationship with the African continent that stretched back to its opening issue more than 125 years ago.

He said the summit would attract global leaders, economic experts, investors and intellectuals from Africa and around the world.

Osinbajo will discuss the increasing economic prospects in Africa and detail the progress of the Buhari administration, especially through the Federal Governments medium-term Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP), to the global audience.

ALSO READ: Osinbajo thinks Nigerians are not angry enough on corruption

The summit which will also include presentations from other leaders and speakers will feature first-hand experiences and interactions from government and business leaders in the continent, while providing credible opportunities and encouraging foreign investments.
The states Commissioner of Police, Mr Hafiz Inuwa, who disclosed this in an interview with the News agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Calabar, said the victim was released early hours of Saturday.

Inuwa told NAN that the suspect was whisked away by the gunmen on Oct. 2, from her Jesus Avenue residence in Calabar south on Oct. 2 and taken to Akpap-Okoyong village in Odukpani Local Government Area of the state.

The commissioner said that the rescue operation was carried out by the newly formed Anti-Kidnapping/Cultism Unit of the command.

In the early hours of today, my men swooped on the kidnappers hide-out identified to be that of a syndicate that specialises in kidnapping, robbery and assassination as well as that of a group that kidnapped Mrs Udoenwang.

On sighting the police, the hoodlums opened fire on our detectives and as a result of the exchange of fire, one of the suspects, Isaac Sabastine was shot dead.

His corpse has been deposited in the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital mortuary.

We recovered one locally made pistol and a live cartridge, an axe, a Nigerian army camouflage uniform, one face mask and one black axe confraternity banner.

We also arrested one of the suspects, Elle David, while their kingpin, Ayi Etok, narrowly escaped with gun-shot wounds.

A Toyota Highlander jeep with registration number ANA 420 CK belonging to the victim, Mrs Udoenwang, was also recovered.

 Investigation is ongoing to arrest the fleeing suspects, he said.
Past and present administrations have continued to grapple with the challenge of increase in population such that the Abuja Master Plan is not altered.

The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) is saddled with the responsibility of maintaining the citys beautiful outlook.

But, like other parts upcountry, Abuja continues to struggle with the menace of street begging.

Attempts to rid the city of beggars and destitute by past and present administrations have remained a difficult task.

Former FCT minister, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai conceived the idea of creating a special location for these Nigerians.

This gave birth to Karamajiji Disability Colony.

Apart from providing shelter for these physically challenged Nigerians, the FCTA through its Social Welfare Secretariat, is saddled with the responsibility of catering for other needs of the occupants.

The department also trains these Nigerians in various skills that would help them contribute meaningfully to their communities.

Despite all these, street beggars can still be found in selected locations within the capital city.

So decided to pay a visit to the Karamajiji disability colony.

Karamajiji is a hidden location right behind the National Military Cemetery; a few metres away from the popular city gate, along Umar Musa YarAdua Expressway.

The area is home to low income earners and some natives of Abuja, called the Gbagyi or Gwari.

After close to an hour search, we located the facility.

As the taxi approached the colony, some disabled were seen begging along the road with their kids.

But theres a problem.

You must get the permission of the Social Welfare Secretariat'

The facility houses the blind, cripples, deaf and those suffering other forms of disability.

Standing outside the building was a man who simply introduced himself as the Secretary, People Living With Disabilities.

He tells that they are not allowed to speak to outsiders on their plight except there is a permission from the Social Welfare Secretariat.

Good day, sir. Ill like to meet the head of the colony, I requested.

Young lady, the head of this colony is an Emir and he is sleeping right now. You will need to come back some other time, the Secretary said.

He also turned down my request to speak on some issues regarding the colony, unapologetically.

You see; I cannot talk to you about anything except you have the permission of the FCT minister of the Social Welfare Secretariat. Were under the Secretariat and they need to be aware of your coming here before me or anyone can speak to you.

Please dont take any pictures too until you bring a letter from either the minister or Secretariat. You will have to go and explain to them and if they permit you, then we can speak to you, he added.

After much pressure, he asked us to come back at 10am on Friday.

Call me before coming so you dont waste money on transport again, he warned.

We exchanged contacts and I left

A letter before I speak to the Emir? I wondered while trying to get a taxi that would take me back to the office.

Few kilometers after the colony were former occupants of the facility.

We left that place because of everything that happens there, said one who asked not to be named.

A lot of politics goes on at the colony. When NGOs bring us things, the emir and others will select the best or the one that will satisfy the himself and the family.

Later, they will share the remnant for us. Its better I come here and work to get my own money

After all, these politicians will not come here except during elections and they want our votes. That is when you all see them bringing food items for us so we can vote for them. Its better I stay here and work, he added.

I soon got a taxi and left Karamajiji for the secretariat.

'No permission needed'

Speaking to , the Public relations officer of the Social Development Secretariat, Shaka Sunday, denied the allegation.

That is not true. There is no way the minister or this secretariat would ask them to demand for permission before speaking to you on their plight.

How can we send them out because they expressed themselves? No, we cant do that," he said.

While speaking on the relationship between the secretariat and the colony, the PRO advised Nigerians to stop giving alms to street beggars.

As a matter of fact, that place we are building a better place for them because where they are now is a temporary location. The place is also small to properly house all of them.

We take food items, clothing, drugs and other things to them on a regular basis.

I will like to use this opportunity to please beg members of the public to stop giving alms to street beggars because it will encourage them to continue in the trade, said Shaka.

On Friday morning, I called the secretary to inform him of the visit.

My sister, the Emir is not around now but have you gotten the permission? He asked.

Yes, I spoke to the PRO and he said they never gave you such directive, I answered.

My sister, forget that thing. I know what I am saying. If anything happens, they wont suffer it with us, he noted.

'They were threatened'

A source at the FCTA who craved anonymity also claimed that they were threatened by someone.

He gave us an insight into the conspiracy of silence at the colony.

I heard someone threatened to send them out of that place if they speak that is why they are afraid. Before now, they do speak to people about their needs but everyone is now scared of what will happen if the minister sees their name on the paper.

Again, they do not like to talk to people except you bring food items.

If you had carried one carton of biscuit, Allah the man would have gone to wake the Emir from sleep. Those people are like Oliver Twist, they are always asking for more.

The worst is; no one can satisfy their needs. Even if you give them Nigerias budget, they will still say it is not enough the source said.

At this point, there was only one thing on my mind  deadline.
The governor spoke on Saturday in Talata-Mafara town, when he visited the hospital.

Yari said that apart from trauma centres, the government would also provide modern emergency units, theatre and intensive care units.

Our aim is to upgrade all the general hospitals in the state to modern standards to ensure effective provision of health care delivery to the people of the state.

Our administration prioritised health and education sectors, and provision of road networks, considering the major needs of the people of the state.

Our policy on health is to improve the standard of all health care centres, including the general hospitals, primary health centres by providing standard structures and equipment as well as the required health personnel.

Our administration from 2011 to date, had upgraded various primary health care centres to general hospitals, we established the modern Yariman Bakura Specialist Hospital, Gusau.

We are still making efforts, we are going to improve the standard of some selected general hospitals to improve the health care delivery, especially to the rural communities, he said.

ALSO READ:Zamfara government to recruit 280 health workers

The governor directed State Hospital Services Management Board to meet with state team of engineers to provide good work plan for the project and submit it to the state government for implementation.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the governor had earlier visited some of the projects being executed by the state government.
The independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has fixed Nov. 18 for governorship election in the state.

Mr Arinze Ekweozor, Chairman of the chapter, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on the telephone from Johannesburg, South Africa that they endorsed Obiano because he had transformed the state in his first term.

 From what we have seen, the governor has transformed the state in four years. There are massive infrastructural developments all over the state.

 He built fly-over bridges, the first of its kind in the state to ease traffic congestion in the state capital.

 The governor also built several roads, especially in the rural areas and major cities in the state, he said.

Ekweozor said the governor put a smile on the faces of the people through regular payment of salaries to workers.

 At a time the country was witnessing hard times, Gov. Obiano paid workers regularly. This action trickled down to all facets of the state economy because people could go to the market to shop.

 We are also impressed with his style of administration because he is in touch with the people through consultations and town hall meetings, he said.

The chairman said that Anambra indigenes in the Diaspora were happy to return home because of improved security in the state.

 More importantly to us, the governor has commenced the building of a cargo airport. This means that very soon, we will fly home directly from any part of the world, he said.

ALSO READ:INEC assures Anambra guber poll will be flawless

Mr Osita Amalukwue, vice chairman of the chapter, commended the governor for initiating people-oriented projects.

 Anambra people are proud of his achievements in four years. We decided to endorse him for a second term for continuity.

We believe that if given another mandate, the governor will take the state to greater heights, he said.

Amalukwue urged the people to re-elect Obiano to complete the work he started.
He made the statement in Lagos while formally declaring his intention to contest the chairmanship seat of the party.

George said what the PDP needed at this critical moment was a committed, energetic, experienced party man to redeem and reposition it.

He attributed the partys loss of the presidency to deviation of the goals and standards erected by of the PDPs founding fathers.

The party chieftain said the party had been facing some challenges as a result of the defeat, but pledged to return the party to winning ways if elected.

Our party needs a rescue. Our party needs redemption. Our party deserves a balanced, experienced, tested, trusted and a faithful hand.

"Our party needs a team player and a unifying leadership. Our party needs stability.

Here and now, I am humbly making a stand and a declaration as a candidate for the position of the office of National Chairman of our great party with a vision to serve as a bridge builder, as a peace maker and healer of broken pieces, he said.

Giving more reasons why he was the best man to lead the party, he said he had been a loyal party man who had stayed with the PDP through thick and thin.

George said he fully understood the precepts,the mechanisms and constitution of the party and that he knew the ethos, the tradition and culture built by founding fathers.

He said it was not a time to experiment, appealing to all party members to support his aspiration to lead the party.

Also speaking at the occasion, a former Minister of Transportation, Chief Ebenezer Babatope, said George was the most qualified to lead the party.

He said he had a track record of performance and that he had the experience to return the party to winning ways.

George has the maturity, the experience, the courage to lead our party. He has a track record of performance. He will deliver, Babatope said.

In his goodwill message, former National Vice Chairman of the party (South West), Alhaji Tajudeen Oladipo, said George had laboured and suffered for the party.

Oladipo said it was time for the party to reward George for all he had done by voting him as next chairman.

Apart from the fact that he laboured for the party, he is articulate, strong, courageous and energetic, and I can bet he will give the party the best,  he said.

Also a former Minister, Sen. Adeseye Ogunlewe, said George is the man PDP needs to reposition the party.

He described him as a performer who would change the fortunes of the party if elected.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that other PDP chieftains such as former ministers, Mrs Olusola Obada and Chief Dapo Sarumi, also gave open support to George at the declaration.

The South West Zonal Excutive of the party led by Chief Eddie Oyefeso also threw their weight Georges aspiration.

Former Deputy governor of Lagos State, Mrs Bucknor Akerele, among others, was also at the occasion to give her support.
The former Governor also said that it is Fayoses constitutional right to run for President as a Nigerian.

Ladoka said Governor Fayose is my own brother and he is a go-getter. Whatever he sets his mind to achieve, he goes for it and he gets it. He is eminently qualified and possesses all the leadership capabilities to rule Nigeria and take us out of the woods.

Some people in the PDP have said that they have zoned the presidency to the north, but it is left for Fayose to convince the members in the PDP to support him for his presidential ambition. He is fit for it judging from his antecedents as a quintessential leader in the country.

I also want to advise the party leadership to use zoning of the presidency in a way that would guarantee the PDP winning the election in 2019 and not as a way of favouring some individuals who may not be ready for the job.

He also praised the Governor for his performance in Ekiti state, saying Fayose has performed excellently well in governing Ekiti. There is no governor in this country today who can beat his chest two times and say my state came tops for two consecutive times in NECO.

ALSO READ:Reuben Abati mocks governor Fayose over his 2017 prophecies

Fayose as a political enigma cannot be uprooted in Ekiti based on his good governance, transparency and the many good projects he is embarking on in the state and which has adorned the landscape of the Fountain of Knowlegde. I therefore advise APC to forget Ekiti in 2018, as Ekiti people would not like to leave Fayose for the need to continue the good works of Fayose.
With an estimated 500 citizens who have reached or attempted to reach the conflict zones, Belgium has the highest number of jihadists per capita in the EU.

The government has said there are at least 100 Belgian children under 12 years currently in Syria, who were either born there or were taken to the country with an adult.

In May, a Belgian jihadist took his three-year-old daughter to Syria without the knowledge of her mother, despite being under electronic surveillance.

Justice Minister Koen Geens said the children are usually brought home via Turkey under the protection of Belgian police officers.

He revealed that Belgium and NATO partner Turkey had set up a gathering point on Turkish territory for those children wanting to come back, usually but not necessarily with their mothers.

"Fourteen children have returned," said Interior Minister Jan Jambon, "11 of them under six years old."

'Small' threat from children

The flow of foreign fighters to the conflict zone has partly reversed since the IS group's self-declared caliphate in Iraq and Syria began crumbling in the last year under assault from regional, US-backed and other foreign-backed forces.

An EU report in December said a third of the estimated 5,000 European jihadists who went to Syria and Iraq had returned to Europe, and some may have orders to carry out attacks.

An unspecified number of wives and children have also returned to their homes throughout Europe, with officials concerned that they too could be planning violence.

Jambon told lawmakers last month that the chances are "relatively small" that children so young have been radicalised.

But he said these children would probably need psychiatric and other follow-up care to recover from traumas they might have suffered during the conflict.

Such support must constantly be "refined" to ensure the children settle properly into Belgian life, prosecutors from Belgium, France, Spain and Morocco said at a meeting this week in Dutch-speaking Flanders.

Until now, children's aid officials in French-speaking Wallonia told AFP that they have cared for only four children in a specialised educational centre.

Under Belgian law, a judge must review cases of children who are at least 12 and have committed an offence in war zones, but this has not yet happened in the region.

That is a signal to some observers that the Belgian government has not done enough to try to help bring back its citizens from the Middle East battlegrounds.

'Complex problem'

"It's a complex problem. What can we do? Dispatch teams to identify the children? If the parent is dead, his nationality may be difficult to ascertain," a senior security official said on condition of anonymity.

"In Turkey, Belgium provides consular services to help with repatriation, which is not the case in Syria and Iraq," the official said.

"But the minor will have first had to cross the border."

Bahar Kimyongur, a Belgian researcher who works with UN human rights experts, said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan holds a key to the solution, at least for children stranded in the northwestern Syrian province of Idlib.

"Erdogan has support through the Turkmen brigades. The Turks have lots of contacts and room for manoeuvre," Kimyongur told AFP.

The Turkish army is due to deploy in Idlib with Russian and Iranian forces to restore security to the province in line with the Astana accords.

Through his family and other contacts on both sides of the Turkish-Syrian border, Kimyongur helped two mothers, a French and a Belgian, bring back their young children.
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, and Yoga guru Baba Ramdev said in unison that under PM Modi, India will become a global superpower and will lead the world.

By Siraj Qureshi: The Agra division has become the center of both central and state politics these days. As soon as the Samajwadi Party's national convention ended in Agra, the RSS and BJP invited Yoga guru Baba Ramdev to the ashram of Vijay Kaushal Maharaj in Vrindavan (Mathura) to sing praises of PM Modi and his vision of India.

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, and Yoga guru Baba Ramdev said in unison that under PM Modi, India will become a global superpower and will lead the world. The trio claimed that India had enough military strength to give a befitting reply to the enemies.

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Answering a question, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat said, "We should not just depend on the governments. PM Modi works for 18 hours in a day and Yogi Adityanath remains available in public service day and night. So, it becomes the duty of the society to act in the national interest. The day all the people of India start thinking and acting on this, India will become a superpower."

On this occasion, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said, "Our single target should be working in the national interest and each and every citizen should give his or her best for the development of the country. There are lot of people who are still debating the issue of the national anthem in madrasas, but the high court has given a clear order in this context and we welcome that order."

Yoga guru Baba Ramdev said, "Today, the United States is ahead of us in many ways and the biggest reason for that is the American citizens who work with full dedication and honesty for their country's progress. If Indians also start working with a comparable selflessness and dedication, no power in this world could stop India from becoming a world leader. If the people work together, the GDP will also increase and new employment opportunities will be created."

The trio urged the youth of India to rise above regionalism and casteism and unite in the name of religion, to work for the country.

Addressing the assembled crowd, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat said that the Hindus have faced numerous attacks. Hindus are being forcibly converted to other religions. Even in the ancient times, the people resisted these attempts to end Hinduism from India with their full might and even now it will be the same scene.

Bhagwat said that the young generation of this country needs to learn dedication to the cause. Today, the youth of India shouts catchy slogans in public meetings about nation-building and development but forgets it as soon as the meeting ends. This needs to change in order to make this country a real superpower.

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Yogi Adityanath said that Hindutva is not an issue, in fact, it is an art of living. The day is not far when India will become a 'Vishwa Guru' and lead the world. He said that the first and foremost should be religion. Regionalism and casteism should not play any part in nation building.

Yoga guru Baba Ramdev said that 'Gita', Hinduism and cows are safe in India till there are people like Modi, Yogi, and Bhagwat at its helm. Till the time India is led by people who have faith in the religion, nobody can beat India. Only the unity of Indians can make India the country of 'Ram' and 'Krishna' again.

He said that the RSS is the protection wall of India from all external threats and the over 12 lakh saints in India give the community a direction.

--- ENDS ---
Battisti, who has been on the run for more than three decades but living freely in Brazil since 2010, was stopped by police at the country's western border on Wednesday. On Friday, a judge ordered his release.

Brazilian police said they stopped Battisti, 62, because he failed to declare he was carrying about $6,000 and 1,300 euros.

Battisti says he planned to go shopping in Bolivia. However, the judge ordering his detention said the Italian appeared "to be attempting to flee from the national territory out of fear that he will be extradited" to Italy.

Battisti was convicted of being a member of an armed gang in his homeland in 1979, then escaped from prison near Rome in 1981. He was subsequently convicted for his part in four murders blamed on an armed Marxist group active in Italy in the 1970s.

He spent more than three decades on the run in Mexico and France, where he developed a successful career as a thriller author. He fled to Brazil in 2004, living in hiding before being arrested in Rio de Janeiro in 2007.

Brazil's Supreme Court authorized his extradition in 2009, but this was blocked in 2010 by then leftist president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on his last day in office -- infuriating Italy.

Brazil's center-right government, which came to power last year after the impeachment of Lula's hand-picked successor Dilma Rousseff, indicates it will now at least consider his extradition.

After Battisti's detention this week, Italian Foreign Minister Angelino Alfano tweeted that he was working with Rome's ambassador in Brazil to "bring Battisti back to Italy and hand him over to justice."
The federal agent -- identified as Julio Cesar Baez Guillen, 35 -- was traveling with his 65-year-old mother and his 31-year-old girlfriend when gunmen pulled alongside their car and opened fire, the Chihuahua state prosecutor's office said late Friday.

Baez and his mother died, while the agent's girlfriend, also an intelligence agent, was wounded but survived.

Baez had been assigned to the Puente Grande maximum security federal penitentiary in Jalisco state, infamous for being the prison from which drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman escaped in 2001. Guzman is currently jailed and awaiting trial in the United States on drug trafficking and money laundering charges.

Chihuahua, which borders on Texas and is a major transit point for drugs into the United States, forms the notorious "Golden Triangle" along with Durango and Sinaloa states. In the region, marijuana and the poppy flowers used to make heroin are grown and drug cartel violence is common.

Separately, Stalin Sanchez Gonzalez, the mayor of Paracho in the southern state of Michoacan, was murdered Friday morning as he stepped outside his home.

Paracho is best known for its handcrafted guitars, but the region in the past years has been hit hard by drug cartel violence.

Michoacan Governor Silvano Aureoles announced the mayor's death as he expressed his condolences on Twitter.
Trump has engaged in an escalating war of words with North Korean strongman Kim Jong-Un, trading insults amid rising tensions between the two nuclear-armed rivals.

"Presidents and their administrations have been talking to North Korea for 25 years, agreements made and massive amounts of money paid," Trump tweeted.

It "hasn't worked, agreements violated before the ink was dry, makings fools of U.S. negotiators. Sorry, but only one thing will work!"

The US has not ruled out the use of force to compel Pyongyang to halt missile and nuclear tests, and Trump has threatened to "totally destroy" the country.

The mercurial American president also told journalists at a recent gathering with military leaders to discuss Iran, North Korea, and the Islamic State group that this "could be the calm before the storm," declining to clarify his remarks.

Last week, as Secretary of State Rex Tillerson flew home from meeting with top Chinese officials, Trump tweeted that his envoy was "wasting his time" in trying to probe North Korea's willingness to talk.
"We are in this situation because we decided last year to disclose the issues we had ourselves uncovered to government authorities and investigation agencies," he said, adding: "This was the right course of action."

"This is going to be a long process and there are potentially serious consequences - including significant penalties to the company," Enders said.

An Airbus business unit in Paris reportedly built a network of shell companies linked to London-based Vector Aerospace, formerly the group's aircraft maintenance subsidiary.

Its system allowed the group to make "bribes to decision-makers in Austria" while Vienna was considering its purchase of Eurofighter military jets, German news magazine Der Spiegel reported Friday, culminating in a 15-aircraft deal worth about 1.7 billion euros ($2 billion).

Inquiries have also been opened in France and Britain, on suspicion of corruption in Airbus's UK-based civil aviation arm.

Without citing sources, Der Spiegel also reported that prosecutors were "preparing charges" against unidentified suspects over the Austria case.

"Internal investigators stumbled across more than 100 possibly corrupt payments in the three-digit millions," the magazine reported, citing anonymous sources.

But Hildegard Baeumler-Hoesl, a state prosecutor in Munich, told AFP earlier Friday that investigators had "little evidence so far of corruption".

Bavarian investigators have been looking into the Airbus since 2012, and the corruption probe over the sale of jets to Austria will "soon be over," she said.

An Airbus spokesperson told AFP that the Spiegel report was "not based on any declaration or disclosure by the public prosecutor."

Austrian authorities are also investigating Airbus after bringing charges in February, claiming the company paid out 183 million to 1.1 billion euros in under-the-table "commissions".

Austrian Defence Minister Hans Peter Doskozil accused Airbus and the Eurofighter consortium deliberately misleading Vienna about the purchase price, delivery times and technical equipment of the 18 Eurofighter jets.

Last month, Airbus denied the accusations, with a lawyer for the company calling them "factitious and legally groundless".

"As the process unfolds we are likely to face frequent media coverage," Enders said in his letter to employees, while also warning against "leaks and attempts by individuals with vested interests to discredit top management by spreading false allegations."
Illinois frequently claims two vice presidents, including Adlai Stevenson, the eldest in that familys political dynasty, who served in the second administration of Grover Cleveland. Another was Charles Dawes, of Evanston, the No. 2 man under Calvin Coolidge.

Then theres Thomas Marshall, the vice president in both of Woodrow Wilsons terms from 1913-21. Though Marshall spent most of his life in Indiana, he lived in several locations in Illinois as a youth.

Born in North Manchester, Ind. on March 14, 1834, Marshalls mother suffered from tuberculosis. His father, a physician, resorted to the traditional methods of treating his wifes disease, focusing on fresh air, eggs and milk.

The family also moved around the Midwest, hoping to find a climate to ease her ailment. For a time, the family lived in Champaign, arriving by covered wagon. During their time in Illinois, the state was dominated by the 1858 Senate race between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas, and Marshalls father took him to see one of their debates, in Freeport.

Though he was only 4, young Thomas recalled of the candidates that one was tall, ungainly; the other, small and animated. I think I have a recollection that I liked the tall man. However, Marshalls father, Daniel, was an avid Douglas supporter, and throughout his political career, Thomas repeatedly praised the Little Giant.

The Marshall family eventually left Champaign for Kansas, where Daniel Marshall soon clashed with neighbors over his support of popular sovereignty to decide slavery. They then headed back east, briefly settling in LaGrange, Mo., and Quincy before returning to northeastern Indiana, in Pierceton.

Thomas graduated from Wabash College in Crawfordsville and began to study law, settling in Columbia City, not far from his boyhood home. He became an active force in Democratic politics and enjoyed strong support from Thomas Taggart, a boss of the Indiana Democrats.

On Oct. 2, 1895, Marshall married his longtime wife, Lois, the daughter of a county clerk. The union was unable to produce children, but the Marshalls later unofficially adopted a young son. Lois helped Thomas overcome a severe drinking problem, and the couple formed an unusually close bond. During their 30-year marriage, they only spent two nights apart.

In 1908, Marshall was elected governor of Indiana in an otherwise good year for Republicans nationwide. During that era, Indiana was a bellwether state in presidential elections, and Marshall earned the nomination for vice president under Wilson on the 1912 ticket.

With the Republicans split between incumbent William Taft and a splinter run by former President Theodore Roosevelt, Wilson was elected decisively. Like many other vice presidents, Marshall found his office uninspiring, though his dry wit was always on call. During a long-winded Senate speech, What This Country Needs, a bored Marshall added what this country needs is a really good five-cent cigar.

In describing the vice presidency, Marshall quipped that once there were two brothers. One ran away to sea, the other was elected vice president, and nothing was ever heard of either of them again.

Though Wilson suffered a stroke in September 1919 and spent the remainder of his presidency as an invalid, Marshall was rarely consulted on important matters. Wilsons wife, Edith, who handled many day-to-day affairs of her ill husband, clearly disliked Marshall and his wife, adding to the strain.

Marshall expressed interest in both the presidency and vice presidency in 1920, falling far short of either at the Democratic convention. Still, his sense of humor remained intact. Marshall wired Vice President-elect Calvin Coolidge, Please accept my sincere sympathy.

He then settled in Indianapolis and practiced law. In 1921, Harding appointed him to the Federal Coal Commission. Another try for Marshall at the No. 2 spot in 1924 garnered only scattered convention votes. I dont want to work, joked Marshall, but I wouldnt mind being vice president again.

Marshall was sitting in bed reading his Bible at a Washington hotel when he suffered a fatal heart attack on June 1, 1925. He is buried in Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis.
ANDALUSIA -- All the attention paid last weekend to the Rev. Bill Gluck embarrassed the Community Baptist Church pastor.

U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos, D-Moline, was on hand to mark the occasion as part of the congressional record. Andalusia Mayor Curt Morrow, and other local officials added their salutes to Rev. Gluck, in honor of his 50 years in the ministry.

Mayor Morrow gave him a key to the city, and parishioners treated him to a dinner and concert after church.

"It was so embarrassing," he said. "I kept feeling I didn't deserve that much attention."

"Fifty years ago, a young man by the name of Bill Gluck came to Andalusia, Illinois, and accepted the pastorate at Community Baptist Church," according to a church news release. "Through that, he would touch countless lives and inspire many people to follow Jesus Christ."

A pastor friend once tried to convince him to move to a larger church in Tennessee, but Rev. Gluck remained committed to the Andalusia church, saying that God is equally needed in large and small churches.

One of the hardest things about being in the job for so long is "seeing the people I love die," Rev. Gluck said. Another downer has been seeing people leave the church over single matters that could have just been talked out and settled.

"We also don't run a church bus like we once did," he said.

Something the church still faces is how "most people don't even know we're out here," Rev. Gluck said.

Changing technology hasn't been a serious problem for him, he said. "I have a son-in-law who takes care of all that."

Rev. Gluck said he's a big believer in the idea of "you ought to enjoy going to church," and that churches often "take on the spirit of its pastor."

His spirit is more commonly humorous, he said.

He remembers a little girl going home after church and telling her parents that she really liked "Creature Bill," meaning "Preacher Bill." He also talked about how some people think it's a sin to laugh during church, but he thinks sleeping on church may be a bigger boo-boo.

Rev. Gluck said he plans to continue preaching for years. "I want to serve the Lord for as long as I can."

Rev. Bill Gluck

Address: Andalusia.

Birth date: Oct 15, 1936.

Education: Moline High School, graduating in 1954.

Experience: Pastored a church in Fortson, Georgia, and helped at Central Baptist Church in the Quad-Cities.

Hometown: Moline.

Family: Six adult kids; 10 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Favorite Scripture: Philippians 1:6, and Romans 8:28.

Favorite Biblical character I'd like to meet: Apostle Paul.

One thing I feel strongly about: "That the Gospel can change people.

I wish I knew how to: "Play the piano."
Today

-- "March for Mary" diocesanwide Fatima event: Peoria Diocese celebrates 100th anniversary of Our Ladys apparitions at Fatima, Portugal; 1 p.m., eucharistic adoration, 103 Richard Pryor Place, Peoria; 2:30 p.m., walk to St. Marys Cathedral, 607 N.E. Madison Ave.; 4 p.m. Mass led by Bishop Daniel Jenky; shuttle buses available from noon to 2 p.m.

-- Two Rivers United Methodist Church, 1820 5th Ave., Rock Island; noon, free meal every Saturday.

Monday, Oct. 9-Thursday, Oct. 12

-- Olivet Institute of Leadership Fall School: 5:45-8:30 p.m., at church, 1115 21st Ave., Rock Island; "Sunday School Publishing Board Certificate of Progress Program Course: The Doctrine of the Holy Spirit;" $10, including course materials and a light dinner: register at church office, call 309-794-9621 or email olivet.secretary@yahoo.com.

The church also will hold a Men's Chorus Gospel Concert at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, featuring the Rev. Clarence Williams and the Rising Sons; The Soul Revivers, Christian comedian Big Mike; and other male singing groups; on Saturday, Oct. 14.

The church also will host an annual Women's Day Celebration at 11 a.m. Sunday, Oct. 15, with a "Women Enlightened and Empowered to do the Will of God theme from Ephesians 1:17-23. Guest speaker will be Angela Moore.

Friday, Oct. 13

-- House of the Lord Church, 459 16th Ave., East Moline; 6-9 p.m., Christian Singles Night; Carole Carbo, 309-797-4827; hosted by "Singled Out" group; chili served; "Wheel of Fortune" and other games to be played.

Saturday, Oct. 14

-- Unitarian Universalist Congregation of the Quad-Cities, 3707 Eastern Ave., Davenport: 6:30 p.m.; Beth Waterhouse, Ernest Oberholtzer Foundation executive director, presentation titled "An Evening with Ober," followed by a reception, cookies and coffee.

-- St. Ambrose Catholic Church, Erie; 4-7 p.m., chicken barbecue; donation; eat in or carry out.

-- Sovereign Grace Orthodox Presbyterian Church, Davenport: 1-5 p.m., "The Reformation and the Recovery of Faith;" at the Quad Cities Prayer Center, in North Park Mall, Davenport; featured speakers are the Rev. Craig Troxel, pastor at Bethel Orthodox Presbyterian Church, Wheaton, and the Rev. Ken Golden, organizing pastor at Sovereign Grace, Davenport.

Sunday, Oct. 15

-- Augustana College, Rock Island: 500th anniversary of Reformation; 10:30 a.m. hymn service with Holy Communion, in Founders Hall Ascension chapel; 9:30 a.m., continental breakfast, compliments of college's new Presidential Center for Faith and Learning.

Thursday, Oct. 19

-- Rock Island/Milan Unit of Church Women United: 6:30-8:30 p.m., "Depression and Suicide Awareness and Intervention;" St. John's Lutheran Church, 4501 7th Ave., Rock Island;" Transitions Mental Health Services assists; Mickle Communications documentary titled "If only you knew: The Journey through teem depression and suicide:" followed by discussion groups for junior high and high school students and parents, counselors, teachers and other concerned people; Connie Avey, 309-786-1917

-- Quad City Association of Evangelicals: 7 p.m., 14th annual "Night to Honor Israel;" Calvary Church of the Quad Cities, 4700 53rd St., Moline; money raised to assist Jews fleeing civil war in the Ukraine and immigrating to Israel; speakers will include Erick Stakelbeck, a Middle East and terrorism expert experienced in television, radio, print and digital media; and Aviv Ezra, Consul General of Israel to the Midwest, based in Chicago; music featured by Paul Wilbur, J53 community choir and QCC Dancers; send donations, made payable to QCAE, to PO Box 2, Moline, IL 61266; 309-793-1300.
The Punjab and Haryana High Court has given a big relief to the owners and two senior management officials of the Ryan International School in Pradyuman murder case. But, the relief has come with certain terms and conditions.

By India Today Web Desk: The Punjab and Haryana High Court today granted big relief to the owners of the Ryan International School in Pradyuman Thakur murder case.

Pradyuman Thakur, a class-II student of the high-profile school's Gurgaon campus, was murdered by slitting his throat by a sharp-edged weapon on the morning of September 8. The Haryana police said that he was killed by 42-year-old bus conductor Ashok Kumar inside the toilet as the boy resisted a bid to sodomise him.

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The Ryan International group of schools is run by AF Pinto, his wife Grace Pinto and son Ryan. The Pinto family was today granted interim bail after they told the Punjab and Haryana High Court that they would join investigation.

Counsel for the victim's family S Tekriwal said, "Interim bail to Pintos was granted on certain conditions. They can't leave country and they will also have to join investigation when needed." The CBI, which is probing the Pradyuman murder case, opposed their bail plea in the court.

The high court also granted bail to Jeyus and Francis Thomas two senior officials of the Ryan International management. They had been arrested by the Haryana police after initial probe indicates lapses on their part. Earlier, Justice AB Choudhary of the Punjab and Haryana High Court had recused himself from hearing the bail petition of the Pinto family saying that he personally knew them.

RYAN DENIES LAPSES IN SECURITY

Meanwhile, the Ryan International School has denied that there were any lapses on its part that led to the killing of Pradyuman Thakur a month ago.

The Ryan International has sent its reply to the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) refuting the charges mentioned in the show-cause notice in connection Pradyuman murder case.

In its response, the CBSE asserted that no compromise was made in regard with security arrangements. The CBSE had served a notice to the Ryan International School on September 16 seeking an explanation as to why its affiliation should not be revoked.

BUT, CBSE DIFFERS

The CBSE, in its affidavit to the Supreme Court, had stated on Thursday that the Bhondsi, Gurgaon branch of the Ryan International School, where Pradyuman was killed, didn't have adequate number of CCTV cameras.

The CBSE also told the Supreme Court that some of the CCTV cameras were not working when it conducted an inspection. The CBSE further told the Supreme Court that electric panels were found open inside the school campus posing serious threat to the lives of children.

The CBSE had set up a fact finding committee, in its response to the plea filed by victim's father in the Supreme Court, to probe the incident. The committee concluded that there were "severe irregularities and security lapses" in the school premises.

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"Yes, this incident has happened due to the negligence of the school authority as no provision of toilets/washrooms for drivers and conductors/cleaners who are involved in plying of buses could be found separately in the school premises which indicate that they were using the facilities meant for the students and the staff," the CBSE said in the affidavit.

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The joint Russian-Belarusian Zapad 2017 war games, which ran during September 1420, inspired a wide-ranging debate about the nature and geopolitical realities of Belarusian statehood and independence.

Thus, according to the Belarusian military analyst Alexander Alesin, the Kremlin had evinced utmost irritation with Minsk because, even though Moscow had long insisted on the offensive character of the exercises, Belarus had nevertheless invited several international observers, especially those from Ukraine, without coordination with Russia. Consequently, both President Vladimir Putin and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu did not visit Belarus during the drill, and the Russian military commanders did not stay for a ceremonial meal right after the event (Naviny, September 26).

Artyom Shraibman, a political commentator for Tut.by, opines, on the other hand, that during Zapad 2017, Belarus was twice shown the limits of its sovereignty. In the first instance, the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) kidnapped a Ukrainian citizen who came to Gomel, Belarus (see EDM, September 12). And in the second instance, the Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) announced shortly after the beginning of the Zapad drillsand contrary to a detailed planthat it was about to transfer a tank army to Belarus. While the Belarusian MoD disavowed this announcement, it clearly did not anticipate or understand what its Russian ally had in mind in the first place. In both cases, Shraibman argues, Moscow evinced extreme carelessness regarding Belaruss image in the eyes of the West. This did not justify the Baltic States loud apprehensions, he suggests, but it did compromise Minsks guarantees that no attack on these countries would come from Belarusian soil (Tut.by, September 21).

Yauheni Preiherman, the director of research at the Liberal Club, a unique Minsk-based institution with ties to both international donor agencies and the Belarusian government, objects to Shraibmans perspective on Belaruss sovereignty. He calls the Zapad 2017 war games an event that bored everyone to death and cheers the fact that it is over. To Preiherman, the FSBs capture of a Ukrainian citizen from Belarus need not be interpreted as any evidence of a limitation of Belaruss sovereignty since spy agencies routinely engage in such activities across the world. Rather, the occurrence testifies to a cynical and cruel fight between Russia and Ukraine. Did the bugging of Chancellor Angela Merkels phone by the United States National Security Agency (NSA) limit Germanys sovereignty, he asks (Tut.by, September 23). While some might give an affirmative answer to this seemingly rhetorical question by Preiherman, what is more important is that it actually lays bare the so-called notion of attribute substitution, a phenomenon studied by social psychology. Specifically, displeasure over limitations to sovereignty may be a spontaneous self-deception since few countries in the world exercise unlimited freedom of action to begin with. The true, if latent, displeasure may, in fact, be about which outside power limits ones sovereignty rather than about the limitation of sovereignty itself.

Preihermans other main observation seemingly confirms the above reasoning. Specifically, with a good deal of satisfaction, he points to the fact that the Russian defense ministrys announcement regarding a tank army deployment never materialized. And he notes, Suffice it to recall the [Russian] airbase deployment document that was reportedly agreed upon with Minsk and made public [by Moscow] on the eve of the 2015 presidential election. There is, however, no [Russian] airbase [in Belarus] to this day. What does this say about Belaruss sovereignty? Again, Preiherman claims that countries resort to tricks like this all the time, especially large countries in regard to small ones, and Moscow, Washington, and Brussels are all tainted with that sin. Thus, a classic realist argument pursued by Preiherman is that constraints to Belaruss sovereignty do not depend on what others do in Moscow, think in Kyiv or proclaim in Vilnius. These are beyond Minsks control anyway, just as the widespread worries over Zapad 2017 had nothing to do with Belaruss behavior but everything to do with its external instigators who were pursuing their own business interests. Belaruss ability to pragmatically maneuver between the conflicting interests of its neighbors and efficiently defend those of its ownthis is what Belaruss sovereignty depends upon, believes Preiherman (Tut.by, September 23). In other words, a countrys sovereignty is limited by wisdom as much as mistakes, but there is hardly anything that one can do to control the geopolitical setting per se.

Such an idealist-versus-realist debate about Belaruss foreign policy is illuminating, as it most probably reflects actual and perhaps more down-to-earth discussions in the corridors of power in Minsk. Surely, the idealist arguments are easier to prop up, as Russian media presents an unparalleled glut of pretexts. For instance, in late September, a closed-door court session in Vitebsk handed down a two-year prison sentence to a Belarusian for taking part in hostilities in Ukraine on the side of the Donetsk separatists (Svaboda.org, September 26). But a Russian media outlet replied that such a court verdict is itself a crime and an act of support for terrorism (Strategia, September 29). Moreover, the gist of the ideological battle within Belarus is framed as a fight between Russian-Belarusians and Litvins. The term Litvin is used to denote both ethnic Lithuanians and the population of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (from the mid-1200s to 1795), regardless of ethnicity. And the fact that Lukashenka recognizes Belaruss roots in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania is considered by Russian patriotic voices a sellout to the West (EaDaily, September 28).

At the same time, realists have causes for celebration, too. From September 28 to October 1, the presidents of the [Catholic] Bishops Conferences of Europe took part in the annual Plenary Assembly, together with representatives from the Holy Sees delegations to the European Institutions. The whole assembly gathered in Minsk (Belta, September 28), although Catholics account for merely 15 percent of Belaruss population. Also, the Minsk city administration has just registered the office of the Albaruthenia University, the nucleus of the first-ever Belarusian-language university in the Republic of Belarus (Svaboda.org, September 27). Both events were officially authorized by Minsk, thus seemingly extending the limits of Belaruss sovereignty. As such, the debate on the existential issues of Belarusian statehood will continue.
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Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi, who was in Mandi to today to address a rally, said that party stands behind Virbhadra Singh and he will become the chief minister for the seventh time.

By India Today Web Desk: Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi, who was in Mandi to today to address a rally, said that party stands behind Virbhadra Singh and he will become the chief minister for the seventh time.

Praising Virbhadra Singh, who is facing cases of disproportionate assets and is out on bail, Rahul said, "Virbhadra Singh ji has done tremendous development as six-time chief minister and will be the CM for the seventh time. This will have full backing of the party."

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Rahul, who addressed the rally in Hindi, compared the development of Himachal, which is ruled by Congress with that of BJP-ruled Gujarat. Himachal and Gujarat are likely to have assembly polls simultaneously in November.

HERE IS WHAT ELSE RAHUL SAID: "The people of Himachal should compare the five-year tenure of Virbhadra Singh's government with that of the BJP government in Gujarat." "In Himachal Pradesh not even a single government school is closed, whereas the Gujarat government has closed 13,000 government schools." "Himachal Pradesh has opened four medical colleges in the past five years, whereas Gujarat has not opened even one," he said. Noting that Congress-ruled Himachal Pradesh has provided government employment to approximately 70,000 youth and is providing an unemployment allowance of Rs 1,000 per month, he said that the Gujarat government in the past five years provided less than 10,000 government jobs and not even providing unemployment allowance. Taking a jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Gandhi said the central government had hurriedly implemented the Goods and Services Tax, which was initially initiated by the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance, and has resulted in job losses. "In Gujarat alone, 30 lakh young men and women have lost their jobs due to GST," he said. "There is a competition with China and China provides jobs to 50,000 youths every day whereas the Modi government gives jobs to 450 youths." He said instead of one tax throughout the country, the central government has imposed five different types of taxes, completely derailing the economy with imposition of 28 percent tax from the very onset. "This is the biggest blow on the Indian economy." In the BJP-ruled states thousands of farmers were committed suicides every day. "Neither they (the BJP governments) give bonus nor did they help them. But they give only speeches," he said. The Congress leader, who earlier visited the state on December 24 last year to address a public meeting to mark the completion of four years of the state government led by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, blamed the Central government for the GDP decline.

With inputs from IANS

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Total assets under management (AUM) for September stood at Rs 20.4 lakh crore compared with Rs 20.6 lakh crore at the end of August.

Illustration: Dominic Xavier/Rediff.com.

Mutual funds (MFs) garnered investor flows in excess of Rs 20,000 crore for the second straight month in September, taking the year-to-date inflow tally beyond Rs 1 lakh crore.

Last month, the equity schemes saw net inflows of Rs 22,233 crore, including Rs 2,404 crore pocketed by tax-saving MF schemes, according to data released by the Association of Mutual Funds in India on Friday.

In August, equity MFs had seen net inflows of Rs 20,362 crore. Two straight months of sharp inflows belie talks that the high tally for August was a one-off event. Despite a relatively slow start, the monthly inflow tally now stands at Rs 11,500 crore for 2017.

Ridham Desai, managing director at Morgan Stanley India, had said the MF inflow party has just begun. There is room for more inflows, as Indias financial saving as a percentage of GDP (gross domestic product) is just nine per cent against 15 per cent eight years ago, he said.

The sharp inflows in September were despite the benchmark Nifty coming off as much as four per cent from its high before recouping some of the losses.

As and when markets correct, we will see an increase in domestic inflows in equities. If markets continue to rise, we will see more allocation towards balanced funds or fixed income funds, said Anand Shah, deputy CEO and head (investments), BNP Paribas Asset Management.

Desai said it had been in several occasions in the past that retail investors continued to put in money into equity MFs, shrugging off bout market weakness.

Most of the inflows into equity MFs come from individual investors, according to industry players. Most retail clients are putting in money into equity schemes through the so-called systematic investment plans (SIPs), which involves investing a fixed sum every month.

Total assets under management (AUM) for September stood at Rs 20.4 lakh crore compared with Rs 20.6 lakh crore at the end of August.

Industry players said the fall in AUM could be due to a decline in asset prices following a correction in the market. While AUM of the equity segment remained constant at Rs 6.6 lakh crore, assets of certain debt schemes and equity ETFs (exchange traded funds) witnessed a decline.

The high inflows into equity MFs have provided a counterbalance to the huge FII selling. Since August, overseas investors have pulled out close to Rs 20,000 crore from the domestic market.

Domestic MFs have provided counter-buying worth over Rs 30,000 crore during the same period. The markets, however, have more or less remained unchanged.
However, onion arrivals have been normal with farmers bringing in 1,400 tonnes of the bulb to Lasalgaon on Friday, substantially lower than 2,429 tonnes on Thursday, but there is no dearth of supply to mandis.

Onion prices, which saw a sharp fall for two weeks after government raids on wholesale traders, have rebounded steadily to hit their highest in six weeks.

Trading currently at Rs 21.50 a kg in the benchmark Lasalgaon mandi in Nashik district of Maharashtra, the export quality onion reported an increase of Rs 2 a kg on Friday and a 58 per cent jump from its recent low of Rs 13.60 a kg on September 19.

At the retail level, however, onion is sold at Rs 30-34 a kg across major markets.

The sharp increase in onion prices assumes significance for consumers.

Onion is gradually inching away from consumers due to the sharp increase in its price. Prices have jumped sharply over the last two weeks despite adequate supply to mandis. In fact, demand has suddenly emerged from all across the country due to floods in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal. There are reports of crop damage of kharif onion in Karnataka. Hence, the entire countrys onion demand has now concentrated on the Nashik district of Maharashtra. The early kharif crop reported damage due to late September rainfall, said Sanjay Sanap, owner of Shivkrupa Traders, a wholesaler in Lasalgaon.

Onion arrivals, however, have been normal with farmers bringing in 1,400 tonnes of the bulb to Lasalgaon on Friday, substantially lower than 2,429 tonnes on Thursday. But there is no dearth of supply to mandis.

The entire quantity of onion gets sold as buyers await arrival of vehicles to place their bids. Buyers are ready to pay the price demanded by onion farmers and traders to meet their commitments in remote Indian markets. The prevailing price is genuine. Farmers have the opportunity to make some money for about a month before the new crop arrives in the market, said Santosh Chavan, an onion trader in Nashik.

Arrivals of the new season crop normally begin in late October. This year, however, arrivals of the kharif onion crop are likely to start with a delay of one week.

Hence consumers will have to bear with high onion prices for nearly a month. During this period, however, onion prices may hit Rs 25-30 a kg, said Ajit Shah, president, Horticulture Exporters Association.

Interestingly, exporters find the current price non-remunerative as the price of onion in Sri Lanka is 10-15 per cent lower than in Indian markets.

Meanwhile, the ministry of agriculture estimates that Indias onion output will increase 3 per cent this year to 21.6 million tonnes despite floods and late season rainfall in some states, farmers shifting to other remunerative crops and crop damage.

Photograph: Reuters.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday asserted that the country cannot afford to have a 'digital divide' and called for bridging this gap to ensure social equality.

Modi also urged the country's youth to take up innovation in a big way and said academics should focus on it instead of being exam-driven.

Warning against creation of any digital divide if all people were not digitally empowered, he said, "In this day and age, we cannot afford to have a digital divide. If some are empowered in technology and some not, then this digital divide can create a big problem for social harmony."

"We need to make sincere efforts to avoid the creation of digital divide in our country, where some become experts while some remain completely illiterate about the digital world.

"We have to work towards bridging this gap for ensuring social equality," said Modi in his address at the Indian Institute of Technology-Gandhinagar while inaugurating its new campus.

During the function, Modi also distributed certificates to those who had completed their course under the Pradhanmantri Grameen Digital Saksharata Abhiyan (PMGDISHA), aimed at spreading digital literacy among the rural population.

Noting that digital literacy is an important force for good governance and transparency, Modi said the government aimed at spreading digital literacy across rural India and has launched a programme under which one member of each of the 6 crore families living in villages would be made digitally empowered.

"Why is it that despite the country having expertise in IT, Google is born in another country? Why Facebook and YouTube are invented elsewhere?

"I throw a challenge to all youth of the country to take the path of innovation to change the future of India...Our academics should not be exam driven. The focus should be innovation," he told IITians, urging them to help innovate to make things simpler and resolve problems around them.

He exuded confidence that once the optical fibre network reaches each and every village, it will bring about a decisive change in the lives of rural population.

"Technology has become a driving force in itself. If user friendly technology is introduced then we can take the country on the path of digital literacy," he said.

In his address, Modi urged the IIT students to keep in mind the needs of the common man while doing innovations.

"IIT should create a culture of innovation which is need based, not knowledge based. If you do innovations keeping in mind the needs of citizens, companies would also show interest in it and buy that innovation from you."

The prime minister touted the big varsities that Gujarat had including the first of its kind Forensic university in the world, besides a children's varsity.

Talking about the vast 400-acre campus of the IIT Gandhinagar, Modi said it has become possible only because the poor have contributed by giving away their share.

Recalling how Mahatma Gandhi talked of Quit India and the British were forced to leave the country in five years, Modi said he wanted India to stand up in five years so that 'poverty should go and bring an end to casteism, corruption and nepotism from the country'.

The prime minister said government has introduced 'JAM' - Jan Dhan account, Aadhaar and mobile phone to ensuring that all become digitally literate.

He said a Digital India guarantees transparency, effective service delivery and good governance in the country.

He also took a dig at the philosophy of 'haves and have-nots' propagated by Karl Marx, and said this ideology has shrunk across the world.

Modi also recalled his past of being a tea seller. He told the IITians that he was also a "Tea-ian", a chaiwala as he sold tea during his childhood days.

IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressing at the dedication ceremony of the newly constructed building of IIT Gandhinagar to the nation in Gujarat on Saturday. Photograph: Press Information Bureau of India via PTI Photo
Security forces foiled a pre-dawn attempt by the Jaish-e-Mohammed to storm a Border Security Force camp near the high-security Srinagar airport on Tuesday, killing all three terrorists in an operation that also claimed the life of an assistant sub-inspector of the force, police said.

IMAGE: Security personnel during an anti-terror operation at the building where terrorists were believed to be hiding after they stormed a BSF camp early morning near Srinagar airport. Photograph: S Irfan/PTI Photo

State Director General of Police S P Vaid said the three terrorists who attacked the BSF camp had been neutralised.

We are carrying out search operations inside the premises to rule out the possibility of planting of explosives, he said.

BSF Assistant Sub-Inspector B K Yadav, 50, was killed and three jawans injured when the terrorists entered the BSF battalion headquarters at Gogoland, adjacent to the airport.

Officials in the know of developments said there was prior intelligence that a Jaish-e-Mohammed operative, identified as Noora Trali, had brought in a suicide squad into the city.

Briefing reporters later, Inspector General of Police (Kashmir range) Muneer Khan said the overground network of the terror group had been identified but did not divulge any further information.

Asked specifically whether the Jaish-e-Mohammed was behind the attack, Khan said, Such type of attacks have been carried out by this group only.

He said the terrorists were dressed in combat fatigues and entered the camp from an area adjacent to a residential colony by cutting the fence.

The slain terrorists were part of the larger Jaish group that had infiltrated earlier this year, he said.

IMAGE: Airport operations were suspended in the morning due to the gunfight but later resumed. Photograph: Umar Ganie for Rediff.com

The IG added that three members of the same group were killed in an attack on district police lines in Pulwama on August 26.

Six to seven terrorists of this group are still at large. We have identified the overground network which is helping these terrorists move around, he said.

Asked if more attacks were likely, he said we have to be ready to face such attacks as long as there is militancy and terrorists in Kashmir.

According to Khan, all security installations were important and it was the preparedness of the security forces which repulsed the attack without causing any collateral damage.

We could have used aerial weapons but we did not want to cause any collateral damage. It was a clean operation and a fine example of coordination between various security agencies which enabled us to ensure zero collateral damage, he said.

The old airfield, being manned by the Indian Air Force, is also located in the area.

Civilian air operations, which were suspended for nearly three hours in the morning, resumed at 10 am. I personally went to the airport and ensured that the public does not face any problems in catching the aircraft, Vaid said.

IMAGE: The terrorists were holed up inside the building campus of the 182nd Battalion camp. Photograph: Umar Ganie for Rediff.com

Piecing together the chain of events, police said the terrorists entered the BSFs 182 battalion headquarters and started firing in all directions.

Three BSF jawans were injured in the beginning of the attack and one terrorist killed in the retaliatory fire, a police official said. After this, the two remaining terrorists moved in different directions and took shelter in different buildings before being killed by security forces.

Yadavs body was recovered during the mopping up operations.

The jawan, who joined the border guarding force in 1987, hailed from Bhagalpur in Bihar.

The 182 battalion is entrusted with the security of the runway of the Srinagar airport.

Jaish-e-Mohammed, the Pakistan-based terror outfit, has claimed responsibility for the attack.

A caller identifying himself as a spokesman of the outfit told local news gathering agencies that Jaish terrorists had carried out the attack.
The Punjab and Haryana high court on Saturday granted interim bail to Ryan International Group Chief Executive Officer Ryan Pinto, and his parents, founding chairman Augustine Pinto and managing director Grace Pinto, in connection with the killing of a 7-year-old student in a Gurgaon school run by the group.

The court has also asked the Central Bureau of Investigation, which is probing the case, to submit a report in the matter on December 5.

"High Court Justice Surinder Gupta today granted interim bail to them (the three trustees) till December 5," said Arshdeep Singh Cheema, who along with Sandeep Kapur, appeared for the Pinto family.

They have also been asked by the court to join the investigation whenever called by the CBI, Cheema said.

"The CBI has also been asked by the high court to submit a report in this matter on December 5," said Cheema.

On September 28, the high court had stayed the arrest of the three trustees of the Ryan group, who had sought anticipatory bail in this case.

Ryan Pinto, and his parents had approached the high court on September 16, seeking anticipatory bail in connection with the student's killing.

Class 2 student Pradhyumn Thakur was found with his throat slit in a school washroom on September 8.

Schoolbus conductor Ashok Kumar was arrested in connection with the crime.

There was nation-wide outrage over the child's killing and allegations were levelled against the school management also.

On September 25, the High Court had impleaded CBI as a respondent in a petition seeking bail for the three Ryan International Group trustees.

The Haryana government had earlier recommended a CBI probe in the matter. The premier investigating agency took over the case on September 22.
By PTI: New Delhi, Oct 7 (PTI) Former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan features in the list of probables for this years Nobel Prize in Economics, The Wall Street Journal has reported.

He is one of the six economists on the list of probable winners complied by Clarivate Analytics, a company that does academic and scientific research and maintains a list of dozens of possible Nobel Prize winners based on research citations.

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The entry to the list does not guarantee that Rajan is a front-runner but he is a probable who stands a chance to win.

Rajan, whose three year term as Reserve Bank Governor ended on September 4, 2016, is considered a candidate for his "contributions illuminating the dimensions of decisions in corporate finance", Clarivate said.

The Nobel Prize in Economics will be announced on Monday.

According to Clarivate Analytics, the list of possible Nobel Prize winners based on research citations include Colin Camerer of the California Institute of Technology and George Loewenstein of Carnegie Mellon University (for pioneering research in behavioural economics and in neuroeconomics); Robert Hall of Stanford University (for his analysis of worker productivity and studies of recessions and unemployment); and Michael Jensen of Harvard, Stewart Myers of MIT and Raghuram Rajan of the University of Chicago (for their contributions illuminating the dimensions of decisions in corporate finance).

Rajan, who at 40 was the first non-western and the youngest to become the chief economist at the International Monetary Fund, shot to big fame three years after he predicted a financial crisis at an annual gathering of economists and bankers in the US in 2005.

He was appointed RBI Governor by the previous UPA government in 2013 and although he wanted a second term he was not offered an extension, which most of his predecessors got, by the current NDA regime.

He is currently the Katherine Dusak Miller Distinguished Service Professor of Finance at the Booth School of Business, University of Chicago. PTI ANZ SA

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By PTI: Mumbai, Oct 7 (PTI) Rakeysh Omprakash Mehras "Rang De Basanti" is being screened at the first-ever Mauritius Film Festival.

Mauritius is celebrating 50 years of independence next year and the inaugural annual festival is a part of the celebrations.

Given the close ties with India, "Rang De Basanti" is one of the films that is being screened at the festival today and tomorrow.

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Mehra has been invited as a guest of honour by Mauritian Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth to be part of the celebrations.

He will also be a part of a Film Directing Masterclass with actor and director Justin Chadwick.

"Its a rare honour to be invited for the inaugural Mauritius film festival. Rang de Basanti has been chosen to be showcased among a prestigious selection of movies from around the globe like Gandhi, Amistad, 12 years of a Slave and Mandela to name a few.

"The honourable prime minister of Mauritius will himself be there to inaugurate and welcome the delegates. The event celebrates 50 years of Independence of the island country and the movies selected celebrate the human spirit," Mehra said in a statement. PTI BK ZMN

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By Abhishek Anand: Hundreds of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers staged a massive protest near Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's residence on Saturday, demanding regularisation of unauthorised colonies. The police had to use water canons to disperse the protesters.

"The chief minister and the Delhi government are paying no heed to the residents of unauthorised colonies. There is an acute scarcity of basic amenities in such colonies across Delhi as the government has failed to regularise them," said BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri.

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Bidhuri organised the protest from Chandgi Ram Akhara up to Kejriwal's residence, but the march was stopped by the police a few meters from its starting point. Carrying placards, the agitators shouted slogans against Kejriwal, accusing him for cheating the dwellers of unauthorised colonies. The protesters broke one barricade after another. Police had to use water canons to prevent the protesters from breaking the final barricade closest to Kejriwal's house.

Delhi: BJP workers protest outside CM Arvind Kejriwal's residence over issue of unauthorized colonies, several detained, water cannons used pic.twitter.com/UhAK1wCAL4- ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

"We are here to submit a memorandum to Kejriwal. He has cheated us. There are over 1,000 unauthorised colonies in Delhi that don't have basic amenities. During his election campaign, he had promised a lot of things for such colonies to woo voters. But he forgot us after his victory", said Tejpal Sharma, a resident of Sangam Vihar.

The protest led to traffic snarls on connecting roads. The protestors dispersed after about half an hour.

WATCH VIDEO | Kejriwal demands ban on protests outside his residence

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Contributed Photo / Contributed Photo

SHELTON - A man convicted in the 1980s for a series of rapes has been arrested for failing to register as a sex offender.

David Pollitt, 64, of 264 River Road, was arrested after moving back to back to Connecticut from Georgia and failing to register, police said.
Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina accused neighbouring Myanmar of provoking a "war" amidst the Rohingya refugee crisis and said the country was alert.

By Sahidul Hasan Khokon: Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina accused neighbouring Myanmar of provoking a "war" amidst the Rohingya refugee crisis and said the country was alert.

Hasina said, "The "close neighbour" showed such an attitude that they would engage in a war with Bangladesh. But, I alerted our army, BGB and police so that they must not be confused in the face of any provocation as long as I give an order."

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Sheikh Hasina thanked the armed forces, paramilitary Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), police and the people for their patience regarding the matter.

"Various quarters want to create a situation to divert things in different direction (but) we were very much cautious about that," she told.

Hasina said this at a reception accorded to her by Awami League at the VVIP lounge of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka after she returned home wrapping up her three-week visit to US and the UK.

The country's security forces also opened fire on Rohingyas, who gathered at the border to cross into Bangladesh. After the incidents of repeated airspace violation, Dhaka had warned Nay Pyi Taw that any more "provocative acts" could have "unwarranted consequences".

On Sep 15, the charged' affaires of the Myanmar Embassy in Dhaka, Aung Myint, was summoned by the foreign ministry and a protest note was handed over to him.

'Rohingya crisis can be solved through discussion'

The prime minister, however, thanked the Myanmar government at least for their revised gesture in opening up talks against the backdrop of mounting global pressures.

"I think that this is a special aspect of the issue, I think there is an international pressure on them (and) we will be able to solve the problem gradually through discussion," Hasina said.

Sheikh Hasina expressed her gratitude to the people for extending their all out supports to the government's stance in providing shelters to over half a million victims of forced exodus from the neighbouring country.

'Rohingya to be re-located at Bhasan Char for security'

Sheikh Hasina said for natural and humanitarian reasons Bangladesh offered Rohingyas the shelter as they were exposed to brutal atrocities with their women, children and elderly people being the worst victims.

The premier said the hapless Rohingya people who fled to Bangladesh will be relocated from Cox's Bazar to offshore island of "Bhasan Char", while in the meantime, the civil administration, army, navy and air force, BGB, police and her party volunteers were working hard to mitigate their sufferings.

"Without waiting for any external assistance, we've made arrangement for accommodation, food and medicine drawing high global appreciation for accepting such a huge number of people by the Bangladesh government," she added.

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Kachin Independence Army (KIA) soldiers take a cigarette break as they move towards the frontline of fighting with the government army near Laiza in northern Myanmar's Kachin state, Oct. 14, 2016.

An ethnic armed group in northern Myanmars Kachin state has abducted about 40 villagers from Waingmaw township in Myitkyina district, the latest incident in the multiethnic countrys ongoing struggles with rebel militias over control of territory and people.

The Kachin Independence Army (KIA), which has been fighting the Myanmar military in the state, abducted residents of Laisaw and Kaungkham villages as forced recruits, said San Aung from the Peace-talk Creation Group (PCG), an organization of Kachin businessmen who have assisted in peace talks between the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), the KIAs political wing, and the government.

We heard that about 40 people, including six Shan ethnics, were taken, San Aung said.

We have informed the KIA and requested that they be released because it is an important religious occasion, he said, referring to the Full Moon day of Thidinkyut, also known as the Lighting Festival of Myanmar, which celebrates the descent of Buddha from heaven.

A local Shan man who spoke on condition of anonymity said about 30 KIA soldiers enetered one of the villages and forcibly took the six Shan villagers.

We didnt want them to do it by force, he said. They shouldnt have done it because we are celebrating the important Thidinkyut religious festival.

Other estimates put the number of those taken away at 60, but RFAs Myanmar Service could not confirm the figure because it was unable to reach a KIA colonel by phone.

On May 22, about 2,000 ethnic Lisu protested against KIA for forcibly recruiting other Lisu and trying to extort money from the minority group.

Rights groups have accused both government troops and ethnic rebel soldiers of human rights violations in Myanmars conflict zones, including kidnapping, torturing, and killing civilians, and forcing them to work as laborers.

Hostilities between the Myanmar military and the KIA have forced thousands of locals to flee to safety in other parts of the state this year.

In June, fighting between government soldiers and the KIA forced thousands of people to flee the seven wards that comprise the Tanaing gold and amber mining region in Kachins Tanaing township.

A month later, government troops clashed again with KIA soldiers in the states Indawgyi region, though no casualties were reported at the time.

The Myanmar government is trying to end decades of ethnic separatist civil wars and forge peace in the country through a series of peace negotiations launched last August by de facto national leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

The KIA was invited as an observer rather than a participant to the second and most recent peace conference in May, because the group, along with six other militias, has not signed the governments nationwide cease-fire agreement (NCA).

The KIA was one of four ethnic armed groups belonging to an umbrella organization for militias which have not signed the NCA that recently split from the body over a disagreement about the pact.

IDP camps in eastern Shan state

The Myanmar government is also contending with ongoing ethnic strife in tumultuous eastern Shan state where aid workers say that internally displaced persons (IDP) camps along the Thai border are running out of food.

International nongovernmental organizations that have been providing food to six camps, which together house more than 6,200 refugees, ended their assistance on Oct. 1, said Lone Si Lin, a member of the Shan State Refugee Committee (SSRC).

We are in a difficult situation, he said. Although we still have food for a few more days, it will be very hard to keep going in the long term. I cant even think of how long we can go in the future. We are trying to contact donors to help the IDPs.

He added that the refugees cannot make ends meet on their own because they do not have permission to work in Thailand.

The SSRC issued an urgent appeal to the international community on Aug. 30 to continue providing food aid to refugees and IDPs in six camps  Kong Moong Murng, Loi Tai Laeng, Loi Lam, Koung Jor, Loi Sam Sip, and Loi Kaw Wan  which have been operating since 1999.

The refugees and IDPs, more than two-thirds of whom are women and children, fled from civil war in the region and from persecution by the Myanmar army, the statement said.

Many fled during a mass forced relocation in central Shan in 1996-1998 state when about 300,000 people from more than 1,400 villages were forced at gunpoint from their homes, and hundreds were killed, tortured, and raped by the government military, it said.

Most of the forcibly relocated villagers fled to Thailand, but have not been formally recognized as refugees by the United Nations' refugee agency (UNHCR).

Some settled along the border area to remain close to their communities in Shan state, but they have been unable to grow crops because the camps are located on mountaintops. They have to rely instead on international donations of rice, the statement said.

We cannot yet return to our homes because our villages are now derelict or have been occupied by the Burma Army, their militia, or the United Wa State Army [UWSA], the statement said.

Despite the peace process, the Burma Army has expanded its troops, and is continuing to carry out military operations and attacks around our villages, it said. Villagers continue to be arrested, tortured and killed.

We appeal for our rights as refugees to be respected, the right to receive adequate humanitarian aid, and to be given protection until we can return in safety and dignity to our homes once there is a political settlement and genuine peace in Shan state, the statement said.

The UWSA  the largest nonstate army in Myanmar with an estimated 25,000-30,000 troops  controls its own autonomous territories on the borders with Thailand and China and is believed to be one of the largest drug traffickers in Southeast Asia.

It was among the armed ethnic groups that refused to sign the NCA brokered by the Myanmar government in October 2015, arguing that the pact should be all-inclusive.

The China-backed UWSA leads a group of seven ethnic militias called the Federal Political Negotiation and Consultative Committee (FPNCC), which earlier this year said it would only meet with the government for peace talks as a coalition rather than as individual members.

The six other members are the KIO, National Democratic Alliance Army (NDAA), Shan State Progress Party, Taang National Liberation Army (TNLA), Arakan Army (AA), and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA).

The seven armed groups did not attend the second day of the governments last round of key peace talks in May.

United Wa State Army soldiers take a break on a rubber plantation in the Poung Par Khem region near the border between Myanmar and Thailand, June 26, 2017. Credit: AFP Peace Commission meetings

In a related development, the Myanmar governments Peace Commission said on Friday that it will meet representatives from the UWSA and NDAA, also known as the Eastern Shan State Army and the Mongla Army, this month in Pangkham, the administrative capital of the Wa militias territory, and in the small border town of Minela in eastern Shan state.

The Wa and Mongla armed groups mostly comprised the China-backed Communist Party of Burma before it collapsed in 1989 and splintered into various ethnic armies that signed cease-fire agreements with Myanmars former junta, which granted them a degree of autonomy.

Aung Soe, a member of the commission, said leaders are still discussing the date of the meeting  another bid get the NCA nonsignatories to change their minds.

We will try to get more groups to sign the NCA by meeting and talking with each group or two, but we will not meet all seven [nonsignatory] groups at the same time, he said.

He also said Thain Zaw, the commissions vice chairman, would likely take the place of chief negotiator Tin Myo Win, who is dealing with a health-related issue, at the meetings.

Reported by Kyaw Myo Min, Zarni Htun, and Kyaw Thu for RFAs Myanmar Service. Translated by Khet Mar. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin.
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Narragansett resident Joseph Lennon-Tierney and his family will be hosting a comedy fundraiser on Sunday, Oct. 8 at the Mettatuxet Yacht Club to help raise funds towards this years Crohns & Colitis Foundation of Americas (CCFA) Take Steps walk.
Title: Senior vice president of real estate and mortgage for Long & Foster Real Estate in Richmond, Charlottesville, Southwest Virginia and Hampton Roads

Born: June 30, 1979, in Bethesda, Md.

Education: Virginia Commonwealth University, bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering with a minor in math and business, 2002.

Career: Long & Foster Real Estate, senior vice president, June 2017-present; Prosperity Home Mortgage, area manager for Washington D.C., and Montgomery County, Md., 2013 to 2017, branch manager and mortgage consultant in Richmond and Southwest Virginia, 2007 to 2013; and mortgage consultant in Richmond, 2004 to 2007; MetAmerica Mortgage Bankers, team leader and senior loan officer, 2003 to 2004.

In which part of the metro area do you live: Midlothian

Best business decision: Buying my first house at a young age while attending VCU. It taught me about financial management, real estate investing, home financing and most importantly, the value of a professional real estate agent when buying property. It is has always been very important for me to educate young buyers about the financial power of leveraging a high valued asset like a home for little monetary investment over a long period of time.

Mistake you learned the most from: You only have a certain amount of time in the day, so you need to make sure you use it wisely. Ive always been an entrepreneur and early in my career, I invested in a franchise that required more time than it returned on my investment. That experience taught me the monetary value of time and working to maximize your time.

First job after college: Through college and for a short period after I graduated, I worked at First North American National Bank, a subsidiary of Circuit City Stores Inc. I ended my time there as a manager in the credit card/bankruptcy department before joining a Richmond area mortgage lender as a loan officer.

If you had to do it all over again, what would you do differently: Everything Ive done in my life and my career has led me to where I am today, so I wouldnt change a thing.

Book/movie that inspired you the most: Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap  And Others Dont by Jim Collins served as the foundation for my leadership philosophy. It inverts the top-down hierarchy and explains how upper management should work for the employees. Thats been my approach in managing people throughout my career.
By PTI: Washington, Oct 5 (PTI) A new generation DNA-based Zika vaccine has been found safe and effective at eliciting an immune response against the virus in early human clinical trials, scientists say.

The GLS-5700 vaccine contains the synthetic DNA instructions for the host to learn how to mount an immune response against a specific Zika virus antigen.

Zika virus is a mosquito-borne infection associated with birth defects and neurological complications in adults, said researchers from University of Pennsylvania in the US.

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In 2015 and 2016, Zika virus spread rapidly through Brazil, the Caribbean, and the southern US. However, no approved vaccine or treatment is currently available.

This is the first study to show that a DNA vaccine can produce an immune response against the virus with minimal adverse effects, opening the door to further trials to move this vaccine forward.

"Synthetic DNA vaccines are an ideal approach for emerging infectious diseases like Zika," said David B Weiner, executive vice president of The Wistar Institute in the US.

"This new generation of DNA vaccines can be designed and manufactured rapidly, they appear to be highly predictable for the generation of immunity in humans, have significant conceptual safety advantages," said Weiner, collaborating author on the study published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

"They are more stable than most traditional vaccines, making them exceptionally practical to distribute during outbreaks, especially in regions where resources are limited and we need to be able to respond quickly to curb an emerging epidemic," he said.

Researchers enrolled 40 participants in the safety trial between August and September last year. Two groups of 20 participants received two different doses of the vaccine candidate intradermally at zero, four, and 12 weeks.

Each dosage was followed by Cellectra delivery at the site, which generates small, directional electric currents into the skin to facilitate optimal vaccine uptake, production of the intended antigen, and immune responses.

Results showed that two weeks after the final dose 100 per cent of study participants developed Zika-specific antibodies and 80 per cent developed significant neutralising antibodies against the virus.

Importantly, serum from the study participants was able to protect immunocompromised mice from developing the disease after infection with Zika virus, indicating that the vaccine-induced antibodies can prevent infection in vivo (inside living tissues). The vaccine was also well tolerated.

"Zika virus continues to be a threat to people living in the Americas and the Caribbean," said Pablo Tebas, professor at the University of Pennsylvania and lead author on the study.

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"With these new results, we are one step closer to hopefully finding a way to prevent infection, which can cause serious birth defects and developmental delays in babies born to women who are infected with Zika," said Tebas. PTI SAR SAR

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How well do you know your grocery store house brands?

In a competitive grocery market, retailers are turning to store brands, also called private label brands, to help boost their bottom lines.

One result: store brands have fancier packaging and are better quality than they were in the past, industry experts say.

If you are accustomed to the old private labels and you look at some of these private brands, you would think they are branded products because they look so good and are so good, said Lawrence Aylward, editor of Illinois-based Store Brands magazine which reports on the private label grocery products sector.

A lot of retailers have upped their game. They definitely have come a long way, Aylward said.

Some examples: Krogers Private Selection brand offers gourmet and artisan items that continually change as food trends evolve. Food Lions Taste of Inspirations brand combines exotic flavors with authentic tastes from around the globe. Whole Foods Markets 365 Everyday Value brand lets you fill your pantry without emptying your pocketbook.

Theres more (shelf) space being devoted to private label. Even though the products typically sell for less there is more profit margin in private label, said Jeffrey Metzger, publisher of trade publication Food World, which tracks the grocery market in the Mid-Atlantic.

Store brands have been around for decades but resurged in popularity during the most recent recession when consumers were looking for ways to trim expenses.

Even before then, grocers turned to them as a competitive strategy, said Robert Kelley, a former Ukrops Super Markets executive and an assistant professor of management at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Kelley traces the rise of store brands to another period  right after a recession in the early 1990s.

Two things happened during that period, he said. Walmart expanded into the grocery business, and retailers like Kroger wanted to take control from the big national suppliers such as Proctor & Gamble and General Mills.

Kroger was the leader of the pack, said Kelley. They got out there and they were doing 25 percent of their revenue  at least in center store in terms of grocery  from their private label brands. It was a pretty big deal, said Kelly, who runs Pure Culture Consulting Inc., a branding and strategy firm.

Its a defense strategy to keep people from going over to Walmart and Food Lion and the lower price brands, Kelley said.

Store brands are enjoying popularity now for multiple reasons. Discount grocers such as Aldi and Lidl, which operate stores where 90 percent of products are store brands, are opening more locations and introducing customers to store brands in a way never seen before.

The importance of store brands to grocery companies was center stage in a recent federal court fight between newcomer Lidl and Kroger.

Kroger in June sued Lidl maintaining that Lidls logo for its premium Preferred Selection brand was too close in design to Krogers logo for its premium Private Selection store brand.

A judge refused to grant Kroger a preliminary injunction that would have prevented Lidl from selling its Preferred Selection products. Last month both sides agreed to dismiss the case.

Another reason for the surge in store brand popularity is that consumers, in general, are becoming less loyal to national brand names, said Jim Wisner, a former grocery company executive who now runs Illinois-based Wisner Retail Marketing.

Most of the major national brands, quite honestly, were built for the baby boomers and their parents, Wisner said.

You had the growth of commercial television in the United States when all these brands established basically targeted at young families from that era. It used to be for a retailer your primary target was going to be households with children because that accounted for the bulk of purchases. Thats not true anymore. Less than 1 in 5 households is a traditional family. So what you have is a much greater number of singles and others who can be more adventurous in what they eat.

Millennials also are having an impact. More cash-strapped than previous generations, they are looking for bargains. Even so, food culture is very much a part of the millennial experience, Wisner added.

The major national brands are kind of like yesterdays food, if you will. It is perceived to be heavily processed, and that is something people of all ages are turning away from now, Wisner said.

Store brands are usually cheaper  often costing 20 percent to 30 percent less than national brands.

Availability and scope of store brand offerings vary by store.

Kroger, the countrys largest traditional grocer, offers more than 30,000 Our Brand store brand items under names such as Kroger, Private Selection, Simple Truth, Simple Truth Organic and HemisFares, said Allison McGee, corporate affairs manager for Krogers Mid-Atlantic division.

Research by an independent third party shows that our customers favor our store brands  Our Brands  over national brands, McGee said.

Our Brands allow our customers to get superior quality at a very affordable price. This unit is one that continues to grow and be very successful, McGee said.

According to figures provided by Kroger during a recent financial quarter, the companys house brands accounted for about 27.7 percent of total units sold and 25.4 percent of sales dollars.

At Wegmans, about 15 percent of the 65,000 distinct products or SKUs are Wegmans brands, a spokeswoman said. She would not say what percent of sales are from its store brands.

But Food Worlds Metzger estimates Wegmans generates at least 40 percent of its sales from selling its private label products. It is a significant part of their whole marketing strategy and of their item presentation in the stores, Metzger said.

Metzger said Wegmans and other grocers are increasingly putting their store brands on previously unbranded products such as vacuum-packed meats and deli items.

The Private Label Manufacturers Association, a trade group for companies that manufacture store brands, estimates that $150 billion worth of store brands were sold last year in the U.S. Total grocery stores sales in 2016 were an estimated $668.7 billion, according to the Food Marketing Institute, which represents the interests of the retail food industry.

In a Food Marketing Institute survey of consumers, 82 percent considered private brands very or somewhat important to their decision to shop at a particular grocery store. The Institutes 2017 U.S. Grocery Shopper Trends report also indicates that 98 percent of retailers indicate they are emphasizing private-brand products to be more competitive.

The key issue for private label versus the national brands is to offer the consumer an equivalent product at a better price, said Tom Stephens, of Canada-based Brand Strategy Consultants.

Although growth of private labels has been significant, its reached a plateau, Stephens said.
MUSIC: Moroccan Gnawa

FROM: Brooklyn, New York

Brooklyn-based sextet Innov Gnawa envelops audiences in the hypnotic power of Moroccan Gnawa. The word Gnawa signifies not only a style of music but also the people who created it. The Gnawa are ethnically diverse descendants of sub-Saharan Africans originally brought to Morocco as soldiers and slaves starting in the 11th century. When I hear the song Dawini, ana gharib wa birani [Heal me, O God, I am a stranger in a strange land]the words the slaves sang centuries agoI tear up, I think of home, Innov Gnawa member Samir Langus told the New Yorker. But you dont need to speak Arabic to be moved by this music. Its the music of the poor, the excluded  their suffering is in rhythm.

Although associated with Sufi tradition, Gnawa music actually pre-dates Islam, and is rooted in animistic, spiritual, and mystical concepts originally sung in Bambara, Fulani, and Sudani. Guided by a maalem, a master artist vested with deep spiritual responsibility, musicians perform elaborately structured all-night trance rituals (lila) to engage the spirits in the healing and purification of both individuals and community. While historically a culture of the dispossessed, Gnawa has in recent years gained immense popularity in Morocco as a national symbol.

Founded in New York in 2013, Innov Gnawa is led by Maalem Hassan Ben Jaafer, a master from a long line of prominent Gnawa maalems in the city of Fes (Fez). He apprenticed to his father following the Gnawa tradition in which the student learns through meticulous observation of the master, never playing in front of his teacher until he is skilled enough to lead a lila on his own. Now Maalem Ben Jaafer presides over the ensemble with his distinctive singing and hypnotizing melodies played on the sintir (a three-stringed, long-necked lute), while the five kouyo (chorus members) fill out the sound with richly layered vocals accompanied by distinctive iron castanets, the qraqeb.

Innov Gnawa continues to perform in traditional settings within the Moroccan American community but have also gained widespread acclaim for their efforts to bring the cultural and spiritual legacy of the Gnawa to new audiences, performing at both local clubs and Lincoln Center, and appearing with a range of artists, including Afrobeat ensembles, New Orleans brass bands, and even Cirque de Soleil. One recent New York performance featured the Maalems knowledge of the ancient Sebitiyin (The Saturdays), a repertoire of Gnawan songs composed to honor the communitys connection with Moroccan Jews. In the hands of Innov Gnawa, this ancient music retains a power to connect and heal that transcends time and place.
A 23-year-old man was taken to the hospital after a shooting on Friday, Hopewell police said.

At 10:43 p.m., police said officers responded to the 1600 block of Buren Street for a reported shooting.

Once there, officers found the man with a single gunshot wound to his right hand and a superficial wound to his chest.

The victim was taken to Southside Regional Medical Center to be treated for non-life-threatening injuries, but he is not cooperating with the investigation, police said.
A Richmond jury couldnt reach a decision Friday in the trial of Samuel Lydell Morton, leading to a mistrial for the man accused of the first-degree murder of 24-year-old Tevon Dickerson.

The jury of four men and eight women told the court Friday night that they were unable to agree unanimously on a verdict after deliberating more than two hours. Retired Circuit Court Judge Margaret Spencer asked them to reconsider; but they remained deadlocked.

The prosecutions case hinged mostly on the testimony of Demonte Ketter, who was Dickersons close friend and admitted to robbing Morton at gunpoint earlier Oct. 19, 2016, before Dickerson was killed. Ketter, who was referred to mainly by his nickname Tay, testified that he saw Morton flee after shooting Dickerson six times.

Three wounds to the chest were fatal  shots that were meant for Tay, said Assistant Commonwealths Attorney Patrick Dorgan.

Dickerson was waiting in the passengers seat of Ketters girlfriends car  the same car Ketter used to drive to Mortons home and rob him at gunpoint after Morton refused to sell him prescription painkillers that Morton had already sold to someone else  when he was shot behind Ketters home in the 5100 block of Forest Hill Avenue. Ketter had gone inside moments before the gunshots rang out.

The defense team of Ali Amirshahi and Katherine Lawler said it wasnt a coincidence that Ketter wasnt inside the car, heavily implying to the jury that Ketter might have had reasons to kill his friend. They cited text messages between Ketter and another man that said Dickerson had stolen from Ketter.

Lawler, in her opening statement, called the police investigation incomplete and biased. Ketter was never investigated as a suspect, she said.

They pointed to another exchange a month before the shooting in which Ketter tried to sell a .45-caliber gun, the same caliber used to kill Dickerson. A firearms expert with the Virginia Department of Forensic Science said that gun, a Taurus, was incompatible with the markings on the bullets and cartridges found at the scene and inside Dickersons body.

The murder weapon was never recovered.

Ketter did have a gun that night. On the stand, he was adamant that it was a .45-caliber. But the only gun recovered was a 9 mm. Only after Dorgan, the prosecutor, showed Ketter the 9 mm did he admit, bewildered, it was his gun.

Before identifying Morton the day after the shooting, that night, Ketter pointed the finger at a different man, whom police never investigated.

A neighbor said he saw a burgundy sedan flee from the alleyway behind Forest Hill Avenue, where Ketter lived, soon after he heard the gunshots.

Morton told police in a taped interview that his nephew drove him in a burgundy car to stay with family that night.

He also sent a text message just before the shooting saying he was about to get it straight. Dorgan said that meant he was going to get revenge for being robbed earlier.

This defendant was so intent on revenge that he rushed out to Forest Hill Avenue and killed the wrong person, Dorgan said.

The judge declared a mistrial shortly before 10 p.m. Friday. Attorneys are scheduled to take up what do next on Oct. 18.
Police have arrested a North Carolina man and charged him in a fatal shooting in Richmond on Monday.

Police said DeQuan T. Burns, 21, of Charlotte, turned himself in on Thursday. He has been charged with robbery and use of firearm in the commission of a felony. Police said more charges are pending.

At 10:21 p.m. Monday, police responded to a report of a shooting in the 1400 block of Clarkson Road in South Side. Officers found Bryant S. Jordan, 24, of the 5900 block of Sugarbush Drive suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. He died at the scene.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call Major Crimes Detective G. Bailey at (804) 646-6743 or contact Crime Stoppers at 780-1000 or at www.7801000.com.
AIADMK leader VK Sasikala, who is out on a 5-day parole from today to meet her ailing husband Natarajan in Chennai, is happy with the support she has got from her party cadres, her nephew Jayanand Dhivakaran has said.

By Pramod Madhav: AIADMK leader VK Sasikala, who is out on a 5-day parole from today to meet her ailing husband Natarajan in Chennai, is happy with the support she has got from her party cadres, her nephew Jayanand Dhivakaran has said.

Sasikala was released from Parapanna Agrahara Prison in Bengaluru on parole yesterday. While she had sought a 15-day parole, Sasikala was given only 5 days to be with her ailing husband.

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In an exclusive chat with India Today, Dhivakaran, who met Sasikala for a couple of hours on Friday night, said, "There are too many restrictions on her movement. She cannot convey anything to her cadres. We spoke as a family to her. But she is happy about the support she has got from her party cadres."

"We are happy to meet her. Her parole being reduced to five days only shows she is a tall political leader and can still make an impact", stated Dhivakaran.

According to sources, Sasikala got the much-needed rest yesterday night. She is learnt to have met all the family members and discussed various issues with them.

Dhivakaran also hit out at the Edappadi Palanisamy government, which has imposed several restrictions on Sasikala from not meeting her party cadres and not holding any political meetings, while only allowing her to travel to the hospital to meet her husband. Dhivakaran said, "There are too many restrictions imposed on our general secretary. In the history of India, this has not been done anywhere. For the first time, such restrictions have been imposed on the general secretary of a political party, which only shows how worried the government is."

Chennai: VK Sasikala's meets supporters on way to Gleneagles Global Health City to see her husband. pic.twitter.com/g4e1Fma7so- ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

Meanwhile, TTV Dinakaran said that he felt Sasikala would be able to get the parole easily. Speaking to the media after securely bringing Sasikala to Krishnapriya's residence, Dinakaran slammed the state government for imposing so many restrictions on Sasikala in the name of maintaining law and order. Sasikala's requests to visit the Poes Garden residence and Jayalalitha Memorial were declined.

SASIKALA's PAROLE TO HAVE NO POLITICAL IMPACT: EPS' MINISTERS

While Palaniswami's cabinet ministers have been claiming that Sasikala coming out on parole will not have any political impact, Dhivakaran asked "if that is the case, why did they impose so many restrictions."

When Sasikala reached the house of Illavarasi's daughter Krishnapriya on Friday night, AIADMK cadres loyal to her gathered in large numbers to welcome her. Hoardings on several roads in the city carried posters of Sasikala, who has been given a new title "thiyaga Thai" (sacrificing mother).

The EPS government is keeping a close watch on Sasikala, several cameras have been installed and security tightened outside Krishnapriya's house.

Sasikala is out on a five-day parole and will be allowed to visit her husband Natarajan, who had undergone liver and kidney transplant. A health bulletin from Global Hospitals said, "Natarajan underwent liver and kidney transplantation. Natarajan was conscious and on ventilator support through tracheostomy."

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DEEPA JAYAKUMAR TAKES FIGHT OVER POES GARDEN RESIDENCE TO MADRAS HC

Meanwhile, Jayalalithaa's niece Deepa Jayakumar has filed a plea with the Madras High Court, seeking a stay on the state government's decision on Amma's Poes Garden residence.

Deepa claims that she stayed as a member of Amma's joint family in the house and as Jayalalithaa had not left behind any will, she and her brother were the heirs to her property.

The state government can't make a private property into a memorial without the family's consent, said Deepa.

(WITH INPUTS FROM PRAMOD MADHAV)

WATCH VIDEO | Sasikala walks out of Bengaluru jail on five-day parole

--- ENDS ---
In Crisis and Leviathan, his masterpiece on the metastasis of the modern state, scholar Robert Higgs shows how the federal government historically has followed the Rahm Emanuel rule: Never let a serious crisis go to waste.

The expansion of federal power has not been steady and inexorable; it has grown through sudden, quantum leaps in times of emergency, most especially war. The crises eventually subside, but many of the powers remain  to be built upon later when the next crisis unfolds.

Lately this phenomenon has proven itself fractal: The pattern repeats itself on small scales as well as large ones.

We can see that here in Virginia, where a commission appointed by Gov. Terry McAuliffe has been drafting new rules for demonstrations around the Lee monument in Richmond. In the aftermath of the race riots in Charlottesville, the governor imposed a moratorium on all demonstrations at the monument, which is owned by the state. This is unconstitutional prior restraint of speech, and an abdication of governments fundamental responsibility: to protect people who are exercising their rights against the threat of violence.

An out-of-state group of neo-Confederates eventually decided to hold a rally near the monument anyway. Wisely, the governors office did not try to shut it down.

Now, though, the commission is considering several regulations that would muzzle free expression at the monument. It has proposed requiring permits for any event involving more than nine people. It would limit events to two hours. Participants would have to file their permit requests 45 days in advance  or, in what passes for a concession to exigency, six days in the cases of more spontaneous events. (Governor to citizens: Spontaneous demonstrations allowed only when carefully planned.)

These rules would remain in effect for 18 months  i.e., for almost two years after the crisis in Charlottesville had ended. And by then, the General Assembly might have made the restrictions, or others like them, permanent.

***

You also can see the phenomenon of crisis-and-reaction at work in the response to the discovery of Russian-made advertisements and fake accounts on Facebook.

Democrats, including Virginias own Sen. Mark Warner, are suddenly keen to pass new laws and rules to more tightly govern how social-media companies operate. Russian incursions into social media, they contend, are a crisis that must be answered by expanding governments reach.

Pause here for a moment to enjoy the irony: When Mitt Romney declared Russia Americas biggest geopolitical foe during the 2012 presidential contest, Barack Obama mocked him  the 1980s are now calling to ask for their foreign policy back  and The New York Times excoriated him for displaying either a shocking lack of knowledge about international affairs or just craven politics. Either way, the paper said, his comments are reckless and unworthy of a major presidential contender.

That, however, was before Russian cyber-trolling could be used to justify more government regulation. Its worth noting that under federal law, political electioneering advertising by foreign countries is already illegal, and political issue advertising must disclose that its being supported by the foreign agent, whether governmental or nongovernmental, behind it.

So the need for new legislation is, at least, open to question  especially given the possibility that such legislation could open a back door for regulating political speech online by ordinary American citizens.

***

The phenomenon Higgs describes is emphatically not a partisan problem. For proof of that, just look at the Trump administrations travel ban. The original ban ostensibly aimed to prevent terrorist attacks like 9/11. Yet it exempted Saudi Arabia, which was home to many of the 9/11 attackers, while singling out travelers from other nations whose residents had killed a grand total of zero Americans in terrorist attacks.

Courts blocked the original version of the ban, and terrorist attacks by foreign nationals did not suddenly erupt. Nevertheless, the latest version of the ban adds North Korea, Chad, and Venezuela and extends the hold on visas from the original 90-day period into the indefinite future. A great comfort to concert-goers in Las Vegas, no doubt.

The attacks of 9/11 ushered in two wars and a vast new surveillance state, but smaller crises  much smaller  have had a leviathan effect as well.

Travelers in the U.S. are forced to remove their shoes at the airport, which  given airport volumes  happens several hundred million times a year. They do so because Richard Reid tried to set off explosives in the shoes he was wearing on an American Airlines flight. In December of 2001. He failed.
Cash-strapped taxpayers and distressed government budgets may soon be rescued by a surprising savior  the U.S. Supreme Court. The court recently agreed to hear a case that could curtail public unions ability to pick the pockets of government employees  and the states and localities that pay their salaries.

In Janus v. AFSCME, an Illinois state worker is resisting the requirement that he pay dues to the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. If the high court sides with Mark Janus, an employee of the Illinois Department of Health and Family Services, it will strike a blow for both worker rights and fiscal sanity. No one should be forced to pay dues to a private organization as a condition of employment. Recognition of this fundamental liberty has been on the rise lately  28 states, including Virginia, have right-to-work laws that make all workers the masters of their own destiny.

With a wise decision in Janus, the Supreme Court could effectively extend the same right to public workers in all 50 states. That would be great news not only for workers, but for the taxpayers who fund the government. Unlike private unions, which negotiate with businesses intent on protecting the viability of the company, public unions often negotiate with politicians or political appointees more loyal to the unions  and their electoral support  than they are to the taxpayers or the general welfare. Thats a major reason states like Illinois and California, as well as cities all over, face huge pension liabilities.

The public unions fiercely oppose any reforms that undermine forced dues because they know that vast numbers of public employees would prefer not to join, if given any choice in the matter. In Wisconsin, for instance, Gov. Scott Walkers reforms prompted an exodus from that states public unions. Since 2011, National Review reports, the membership of the Wisconsin Education Association Council (WEAC), the states largest teachers union, declined by more than 50 percent.
If Henrico officials pop a few corks this weekend, nobody should hold it against them. The Facebook deal they landed for an industrial site in the eastern part of the county is a huge victory. The $1 billion data-center project will go up at the White Oak technology park, which the countys economic-development authority owns. The deal involved many moving parts  including a Dominion Energy solar generation tariff that the State Corporation Commission has yet to approve. The result will be an economic engine that helps drive prosperity throughout the area.

Efforts by local government to spur economic development generally should be met with caution. Politicians and agencies can have only partial knowledge, at best, of the needs and plans of economic actors. Cronyism, favoritism, and inefficiency always threaten to intrude (see: Richmonds Stone Brewing deal, Mississippis investment in GreenTech Automotive, Virginias fiasco with Lindenburg Industries, and many other examples). And because government moves more slowly than the private sector, efforts to steer the economy often end up trying to push on a rope.

But a line can be drawn between handouts offered in a bidding war to lure a specific company, and creating the right conditions for development to happen organically. Thats a difference residents of Chesterfield might want to consider while they ponder the countys plan for an industrial mega-site in the Matoaca region. The 1,700 acres now zoned for residential use would be rezoned for industrial use. Current residents are understandably skittish.

Yet Chesterfield officials can now say, Look at Henrico. The Facebook deal shows what counties can achieve with careful and patient planning. The county labored long and hard to plan for the long haul. The name White Oak is fitting; it takes a long time to grow a mighty tree from a tiny acorn. But you have to start somewhere.

Nor is Facebook is alone. QTS now owns the old Qimonda semiconductor plant in White Oak and runs a 1.3 million-square-foot data center there. Chesterfield officials should note that Henrico sealed these deals in part because it slashed its tax on equipment for data centers by 87 percent. Critics of tax-cut proposals in Washington and in Virginias race for governor should note that datum, too.
By Rush Loving Jr.

The madness goes on and on. Statues of Robert E. Lee and Confederate soldiers are being pulled down. Not only do extremists want to alter the Jefferson Memorial because he owned slaves, some are defacing monuments to Christopher Columbus. Now they want to pull down the statues on Monument Avenue.

I covered the Civil War Centennial for The Times-Dispatch and in the process came to know most of the leading Civil War historians of the day. Before that I majored in Virginia history at the University of Richmond and specialized in the history of the Civil War. Thus my credentials.

It all is appalling.

White supremacists have usurped the Confederate flag and the Confederacy itself, besmirching what to many was an honorable cause. Liberal extremists, sometimes for personal gain, have joined in by claiming all things Confederate promote slavery. Those people display a woeful ignorance of American history.

Slavery was not unique to the South. In fact, numerous northerners owned slaves, too. Slavery goes back to Biblical times. It still persists today in the Middle East.

In ancient Egypt slaves built the pyramids, but we still travel there to admire them. The Romans enslaved some people in Gaul and Britain, probably our relatives, but we do not demand that Roman ruins and monuments be pulled down. Such actions would obliterate or distort history, which is the way we all learn from the mistakes of the past.

In the early 19th century, slavery was an essential part of the American economy, even though it was a heinous institution. As awful as it was, we should not defile honorable men who happened to own slaves.

Many, like Thomas Jefferson, owed money on their slaves and could not afford to free them. Abraham Lincolns own father-in-law opposed slavery but owned slaves nonetheless. (That does not mean we should desecrate the Lincoln Memorial.) Others, like George Washington, were rich enough to free their slaves, and Washington did so when he died.

***

For 70 years, since the founding of the Republic, the agrarian states of the South had felt estranged from the industrial society of the North, and many Southerners were happy to part company and establish their own nation. When Lincoln was elected, many in the South felt the time had come to leave the Union.

Although some Southerners went to war to protect slavery, most were fighting for a far more righteous cause  the rights of the states over the powers of the federal government. The 13 original states had created the Union, and they had given it relatively little power, making it a union of states rather than a central government like England or France. That is why the president is elected today by an Electoral College of the states rather than by popular vote.

The fathers of many Southerners, including Robert E. Lee, were among those founders, and they feared that the federal government they were creating would some day encroach on the rights of the states. That is why James Madison wrote the 10th Amendment. Their sons remembered those fears and guarded the rights of Virginia and the other states with vigilance.

After South Carolinas attack on Fort Sumter, Virginia held a convention in Richmond to determine whether the Old Dominion should secede, too, and a majority was in favor of remaining in the Union. But then Lincoln ordered the states to send troops to Charleston to suppress the rebellion there. The convention did an about-face and voted to leave the Union, on the grounds the Constitution did not give the federal government the power to force Virginia to send troops against another state. Moreover those Virginians believed that the states had the right to secede if they wanted.

***

Slavery was not even a major issue in the war. Most Northern soldiers were fighting only to save the Union, which few thought worth dying for. In fact, there was considerable opposition to the war among Northerners, some of whom took to the streets in peace demonstrations. It was much like the Vietnam conflict a century later.

To bind the public to the war Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation nearly two years after the wars start. It freed the slaves  but only those in the Confederacy. Virginias neighbor, Maryland, for instance, did not free its slaves until the war was nearly over.

Old Abe was a shrewd politician and by that act he created an issue that the Northerners slowly began to rally around. And the slavery issue helped win the war. Yet the defense of slavery was not the reason Lee and J.E.B. Stuart and Stonewall Jackson fought for Virginia. And it is no cause for pulling down their statues.
By PTI: By M Zulqernain

Lahore, Oct 7 (PTI) The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) will resume its second flight service from the city to New Delhi by the end of this month, an airline official said today.

Pakistans flag carrier had yesterday announced to launch its second flight after it witnessed an increase in the number of passengers travelling between India and Pakistan.

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"The second flight a week from Lahore to Delhi will operate from the last week of this month," PIA spokesman Mashood Tajwar said, adding that PIA would be operating the second weekly flight with an ATR plane.

The PIA in May last year had suspended Karachi to Mumbai weekly flight and also cut one Lahore to Delhi flight, citing low passenger volume.

The PIA also announced to discontinue its services to the United States from October 31 due to mounting losses.

The airline has been incurring losses of up to 1.25 billion rupees annually due to its flight operations to the US ? a concern which prompted the management to discontinue the flights.

The PIA, which had been operating a total of five weekly flights to New York and three other cities of the US since 1961, will enter into a code-sharing agreement with an American airline to carry its passengers to that country. PTI MZ SMJ AKJ SMJ

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A 21-year-old woman accused of fatally stabbing her boyfriend amid a domestic dispute in Montgomery County early Saturday morning has been charged with second-degree murder, according to the sheriffs office.

Deputies went to the Mountain Creek Manufactured Home Community on Cattle Creek Path in Elliston at 2:37 a.m. after receiving a 911 call reporting a stabbing, Capt. Brian Wright said. Deputies found 24-year-old Christian G. Colwell dead from an apparent stab wound.

Colwells girlfriend, Taylor A. Stevers, was arrested on a charge of second-degree murder, Wright said. Shes being held at the Southwest Virginia Regional Jail without bond.

The investigation is ongoing, but a preliminary investigation indicates there was a domestic argument between Colwell and Stevers prior to the stabbing.
By PTI: (Eds: Updating story)

Gangtok, Sep 7 (PTI) Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman today visited Nathu La area on the Sino-India border and interacted with Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police officials.

However, her scheduled aerial survey of Dokalam and forward posts in the border areas of Sikkim was cancelled due to inclement weather, a statement issued by the Department of Information and Public Relations, Government of Sikkim, said.

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Earlier in the day, state government officials had said the defence minister made an aerial survey of the Doklam-Nathu La area.

Sitharaman, on a days visit to Sikkim, travelled by road to Nathu La, 52 km from Gangtok, and interacted with Army and ITBP officials posted there.

"The Union Minister who was scheduled to make her aerial survey of Doklam and forward posts along the Indo-Sino border in Sikkim was cancelled due to inclement weather. However, she made her aerial survey of Gangtok and surrounding areas from the new Greenfield Pakyong Airport in east Sikkim after her return from the Nathu-la Border during the afternoon," the statement said.

Sitharaman was accorded a guard of honor on her arrival at Nathu La.

She was also briefed about the security preparedness along the China-India border in the Sikkim sector by the Chief of Eastern Command Lt Gen Abhay Krishna. Vice-Chief of Army Lt Gen Sarath Chandra was also present there.

The defence ministers visit to the border area comes more than a month since Indian and Chinese troops disengaged after nearly a 70-day standoff at Dokalam.

On her twitter handle, she said Chinese soldiers from across the border took pictures of hers when she reached Nathu La. "Acknowledged a row of Chinese soldiers from across the fence who were taking pictures on my reaching Nathu La," she tweeted.

She later met Sikkim Chief Minister Pawan Chamling at his official residence and sought the state governments intervention in sorting out issues, mostly concerning land, between the Army and the states forest department.

Chamling assured all intervention from the government, the release said.

The chief minister apprised Sitharaman of the hardships being faced by Sikkim due to the ongoing agitation in the neighbouring Darjeeling hills of West Bengal.

He said that due to blockades on NH-10, the only national highway that connects the landlocked mountain state, Sikkim has incurred huge economic losses.

He reiterated his request to the Centre for speeding up the construction of an new highway to Sikkim. PTI COR MPB JTR KK TIR SK TIR

--- ENDS ---
Former UP CM Akhilesh Yadav was in rare character at The Lallantop Show where he took on Narendra Modi, saying the PM has gotten people fighting over caste and religion while Yogi Adityanath is busy playing cow politics.

By India Today Web Desk: The youth brigade at The Lallantop Show in Lucknow saw their hands turn red post a thunderous clapping-session as former Uttar Pradesh CM Akhilesh Yadav stepped on the stage.

Akhilesh kept his entry pretty filmy. The former CM cracked up many times when he spoke about his marriage. Recalling his college years, Akhilesh spoke about his dreams of driving a jeep. Well, college life calls for it, right?

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When the former UP CM Akhilesh, who was in quite a mood at The Lallantop Show, was asked about not coming in power again, he was quick to took jibes at the present UP government.

He said that Samajwadi Party built a state-of-the-art expressway. The party distributed laptops thinking that enabling people to advance might get them the votes, but hitting out at Yogi Adityanath government, Akhilesh said that people fell for the holy cow and the politics revolving around it.

Akhilesh's friendship game came out strong when he was asked about Congress. He said that Rahul Gandhi is a friend and no matter the kind of friend he is, one has to keep the bond strong.

'Tipu bhaiyya', as the former UP CM is often cajoled, was also asked about the Electronic Voting Machines (EVM), which were at the centre of a raging controversy after the UP election. Akhilesh said he wrote to the Election Commission as well in order to know if the machine only registers votes for the BJP or if the EVMs had a glitch.

Striking a blow as strong as the BHU-lathicharge incident, Akhilesh commented that you can expect lathicharge from BJP and it is the same in the entire state as well.

Akhilesh Yadav had one too many blows for UP CM Yogi Adityanath . He said at The Lallantop Show that "Yogi ji" did not let the Gomti riverfront be constructed.

He said that CM Yogi is under the impression that the central government in Delhi will build the riverfront. Delhi, however, thinks CM Yogi will build it, Akhilesh said, adding that by the time 2019 comes around, the riverfront project will be hanging in the middle of nowhere.

Akhilesh also spoke on PM Narendra Modi's demonetisation announcement and his comments were as harsh as the currency ban in India. He said that ending corruption requires use of technology. The Samajwadi Party gave out laptops but Modi government has done nothing on those lines; the PM instead had people fighting over caste and religion, Akhilesh said.

Before leaving and after he was done taking jibes at Yogi Adityanath and PM Modi, Akhilesh had a few last words to share with the youth force at the event: "Hard work never goes unrewarded," he said, asking people to not take short cuts.

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Security forces were attacked with stones by locals on Saturday when they launched a cordon-and-search operation at Pulwama village in south Kashmir.

By Ashraf Wani: Security forces were attacked with stones by locals on Saturday when they launched a cordon-and-search operation at Pulwama village in south Kashmir.

Official sources told India Today that a joint team of police, army and CRPF laid a cordon-and-search operation in Bellow village following inputs about the presence of some militants.

Soon after the cordon-off, locals took to streets and started hurling stones on forces, officials added.

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"Police and CRPF fired tear smoke shells to disperse them," the officials said.

Meanwhile, a house belonging to Gh Ahmad Dar caught fire during the clashes.

SSP Pulwama Mohd Aslam Choudhary, while confirming the incident, told India Today that they have launched the cordon-off operation in the area following inputs about the presence of some militants.

"A house also caught fire which is situated outside the cordon area," SSP said.

He said investigations has been launched to ascertain the cause of fire incident.

--- ENDS ---
Any effort to remove Confederate statues on Monument Avenue would require the General Assembly to approve a change to the city charter, according to a recent opinion issued by Richmond City Attorney Allen Jackson.

Its a request that would face long odds, particularly in the Republican-controlled House of Delegates, whose members have largely opposed efforts to remove Confederate memorials.

The way Richmonds charter is written, the city is bound to protect historical landmarks in the city limits  language Jackson said would almost certainly include the statues on Monument Avenue, the focus of his review.

It seems self-evident that the Monument Avenue monuments would be considered historical landmarks regardless of the ways in which they are currently perceived by different segments of the community, and they certainly would have been so viewed when the city charter was first enacted in 1948, Jackson wrote, noting they are contributing objects to the Monument Avenue Historic District, a (U.S. Park Service) National Historic Landmark.

Jacksons opinion, detailed in a confidential memo to city council members late last month, essentially suggests that removing statues in Richmond would be twice as complicated as in Charlottesville, which is currently mired in a legal battle over that citys decision earlier this year to remove a statue of Robert E. Lee from a downtown park.

In addition to laying out the necessity of a charter change, Jackson cites uncertainty surrounding the same state law protecting war memorials thats at the center of the lawsuit in Charlottesville.

That case is far from resolved, but earlier this week a circuit court judge ruled in no uncertain terms that he believes the law applies, though he is seeking additional information from the plaintiffs to prove that a statue of a single general counts as a war memorial.

While neither the city council nor the mayors office has indicated they have immediate plans to pursue the statues removal, Jackson writes that he issued his opinion at the request of various (council) members who had asked whether the city has the legal authority to remove or relocate Civil War monuments located in the city.

The existence of the memo and its conclusions were first reported by the Richmond Free Press.

This summer, Mayor Levar Stoney established a commission to study the possibility of adding historical context to the citys monuments.

After a violent white nationalist protest in Charlottesville that directly killed one person, contributed to the deaths of two crew members of a state police helicopter and injured dozens of others, Stoney suspended the commission temporarily and announced he would also ask it to consider the statues removal as a potential option.

In the interim, City Councilman Michael Jones introduced a resolution asking the General Assembly to grant the city permission to remove the statues, though a majority of his colleagues have said they are unlikely to support such a measure before Stoneys commission has made a recommendation about how to proceed.

Jacksons opinion  insofar as it squarely shifts responsibility for a final decision on the issue to the state level  raises questions about how the two candidates for governor, Democrat Ralph Northam and Republican Ed Gillespie, would follow through on their promises to leave statue decisions up to localities.

Republicans, many of whom are staunchly opposed to taking down statues, have a 66-34 majority in the House of Delegates.

Democrats are hoping to pick up seats in the House this year, but Democratic candidates in competitive districts have approached the statue issue with caution.

When Republicans tried to fix possible weaknesses in the state law blocking statue removal during the 2016 legislative session, the bill initially drew significant Democratic support, passing by an 82-16 margin.

That bill was vetoed by Gov. Terry McAuliffe, who said communities throughout Virginia should be allowed to discuss their own Confederate monuments without being restricted by the state.

Still, the legislative appetite for allowing localities to take down their own statues has not been tested after the deadly white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, which politicians on both sides have said brought a new moral imperative to re-examine the issues involved.
Hurricane Nate is the fastest hurricane ever recorded in the Gulf of Mexico, according to the National Weather Service, with a north-northwest movement of 28 mph over the past 12 hours late on this Saturday afternoon. That may not seem all that fast when you can easily hit 70 mph in your vehicle, but for a hurricane, it is absolutely booking.

Nate is being propelled northward by an upper-level trough approaching from the west, which is also limiting its intensification by introducing atmospheric shear. Hurricanes develop more easily when the air in upper levels is still, not moving swiftly. Nate's speed also appears as if it will bring it into the Gulf Coast before midnight, which means its time for intensification is growing short, as it can no longer draw energy from warm Gulf waters once its eye wall moves entirely inland. It probably will not intensify much above its strong Category 1 status with 90 mph maximum sustained winds. This will not be a devastating hit for New Orleans, Gulfport, Biloxi or Mobile, but it will be troublesome enough, especially considering the shallow water in the northern Gulf Coast.

(UPDATE 8:15 PM, 10/7: Nate made landfall with 85 mph winds at the mouth of the Mississippi River, the farthest south jutting point along that section of the Gulf Coast, near 8 p.m.)

We got a little bit of an early start on rainfall here in Southwest Virginia, which mostly light showers developing along and west of the Blue Ridge during the afternoon. This was related somewhat to Nate's circulation, and that of high pressure to the north, pulling Atlantic moisture inland against the mountains. Some showers will be possible tonight and early Sunday, but the bulk of directly Nate-related rainfall won't arrive until Sunday afternoon and evening.

Nate's old center of circulation will only move faster as it is turned northeastward inland. It is expected to zoom through West Virginia overnight Sunday into very early Monday, and be centered over Pennsylvania by Monday afternoon. Keep in mind that it will be a blog of rain and some wind (40+ mph gusts possible in higher elevations west of Roanoke), not a dot on the map.

Bands of rain will begin sweeping into Southwest Virginia during the day Sunday into Sunday night and early Monday morning, with widespread 1-3 inches of rain expected (and locally more) along and west of the Blue Ridge, trailing off to lesser amount to the east.

There may be a narrow sliver of higher amounts along the Blue Ridge south of Roanoke (roughly following the Blue Ridge Parkway) as upslope easterly to southeasterly winds bank Atlantic moisture against the mountains -- but by the same token, showers may abruptly stop when the circulation center moves past, as the rotation turns winds to more to the west and a drying downslope flow.

Typically, the concern with an approaching tropical system would be that amounts could exceed expectations and cause significant flooding. But with this system, I am somewhat concerned that it will move a little bit more to the west, and combined with its fast movement, our region might get fringed a little more and not get quite as much rain as we need for our dry soil situation.

The rain may get an early cut-off on Monday, but some showers will be possible Tuesday and Wednesday from lingering moisture and an approaching cold front. Somewhat cooler temperatures develop for late week.
A PIL has challenged execution of death sentence by hanging a convict in the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court has asked the Centre to file its reply on the matter in three weeks.

By Prabhash K Dutta: The Supreme Court has made an important observation while issuing a notice to the Centre that a convict is entitled to die "in peace and not in pain". The matter relates to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) challenging the execution of death sentences in India.

The Supreme Court has sought a response from the Centre in three weeks. The Supreme Court bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud said that the legislature could think of changing the law as the Constitution was a "compassionate" and "organic" guide.

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The PIL was filed by a Supreme Court lawyer Rishi Malhotra, who has challenged Section 354(5) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrCP), which provides for the method of execution of death sentence in India. The Section describes the method for carrying out death sentence as "hanging by neck till the convict is dead."

WHY CHALLENGE HANGING?

The petitioner has contended that execution of death sentence by hanging is an inhuman and cruel act that violates the fundamental right of a death convict. The petitioner has referred to a couple of Supreme Court judgments from the past and also to a Law Commission's report to back his arguments against hanging.

The Supreme Court in its judgment in Gian Kaur versus State of Punjab held that Article 21 of the Constitution is also available to a death convict. It had ruled that "the right to die by a dignified procedure of death is a fundamental right."

The petition further relies on a dissenting judgment by Justice Bhagwati in 1982 case of Bachan Singh versus State of Punjab. Justice Bhagwati had then held that hanging a condemned prisoner involved intense physical pain, suffering, mental anguish, psychological strain and physical agony. According to Justice Bhagwati, execution of death sentence by hanging was "cruel" and inhuman".

The petition also refers to the Law Commission's 35th report submitted in 1967, when it observed that there was a considerable body of opinion for replacing execution of death sentence by hanging with something more humane and less painful.

TRADITION OF CAPITAL PUNISHMENT

In a "Consultation Paper on Mode of Execution of Death Sentence and Incidental Matters", the Law Commission of India has discussed the various modes of death sentence through the history of criminal justice delivery system.

The methods of execution of death sentence discussed in the consultation paper are:

Burning at the stake: It was prevalent in many parts of the world, particularly in Europe. But, it was considered very cruel and barbaric. The last legal execution by burning at stake took place at the end of the Spanishi Inquisition in 1834.

The wheel: A person could be attached to the outer rim of the death wheel and then rolled over sharp spikes or down a hill to his death.

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Guillotine: Named after the French doctor Joseph Guillotine who proposed this method, guillotine was carried out by decapitation of the convict. It was considered less painful and quick.

Hanging and the garotte: It was a two-step execution depending on whether the sentence intended torture or not for certain crimes. A convict could be hanged with a noose and die of fracturing of the neck. If torture was intended in the sentence, the garotte was used. It involved mechanical device such as a rack or a gag to be tightened around the convict's neck, causing slow strangulation, stretching, and obstruction of blood vessels.

Headman's axe: It involved decapitation of the convict executed with an axe or sword.

Firing squad: It is still an execution method in many countries. The convict, blindfolded, is usually tied to a pole with hands or to a chair. A team of executioners is used to fire bullets aiming at his heart.

Gas chamber: The convict is kept in an airtight gas chamber, which is filled with poisonous gases at a designated time. Death occurs to convicts in six to 18 minutes.

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Electrocution: A convict is strapped to a specially built chair with shaven head and body. A team of executioners pushes the buttons but only one is connected to actual electrical source.

Lethal injection: Death by lethal injection involves the continuous intravenous injection of a lethal quantity of three different drugs. This is the most common method in the US. There is an evolving trend in the world in favour of this method.

DEATH SENTENCE IN INDIA

The execution of death sentence in India is carried out by two modes: hanging by neck till death and being shot to death - in cases of capital punishment awarded in court marshal.

The most common method of execution of death sentence is hanging. The CrPC Section 354(5) states, "When any person is sentenced to death, the sentence shall direct that he be hanged by the neck till he is dead."

SUPREME COURT ON HANGING

In the Deena versus Union of India case of 1983, the Supreme Court laid down a test to carry out death sentence. It held that the execution of death punishment should satisfy the threefold test:

The act of execution should be as quick and simple as possible and free from anything that unnecessarily sharpens the poignancy of the prisoner's apprehension.

The act of the execution should produce immediate unconsciousness passing quickly into the death

It should be decent.

It should not involve mutilation.

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After analysing all the prevalent methods of executing death sentence, the Law Commission in its consultation paper says, "There is also significant increase in the number of countries those who have adopted the method of execution by lethal injection and today thirty five States (of the US) use this method."

The table gives a comparative analysis of the Law Commission's view on execution of death sentence through different methods.

The petitioner has also referred to the Resolutions adopted by the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) - to which India is a signatory - to contended that execution contemplated under Section 354(5) is "barbaric, inhuman and cruel".

--- ENDS ---
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said Diwali had come early because of the GST rules ' title=' relaxation in GST rules '>relaxation in GST rules that brought some relief to small and medium businesses.

Modi sounded the poll bugle for the assembly elections to be conducted later this year in Gujarat by addressing a gathering in the temple town of Dwarka after laying the foundation stone for a four-lane signature bridge costing Rs 900 crore linking Dwarka with the island religious tourist centre of Bet Dwarka.



"Today, everywhere it is being said that Diwali has come 15 days ahead due to the decisions taken in the GST Council (on Friday). I am happy," he said at the beginning of his two-day Gujarat visit.



Modi said the decision to relax the GST provisions for small traders, businessmen and exporters was in keeping with the Centre's promise to review the working of the new tax regime from time-to-time.



"We had said we will study all aspects relating to GST for three months, including the shortcomings. And thus, the decisions were taken with consensus at the GST Council," he said.



Accusing the previous UPA government at the centre of stalling development projects in Gujarat, Modi recalled the difficulties the state faced when the Congress ruled the country and he was the state Chief Minister.



"Despite my best efforts, I could not make them (UPA government) to wake up from their slumber," said the Prime Minister.



Modi stressed that his government would continue giving priority to development by enhancing connectivity and took a dig at his critics, especially in the wake of a viral social media campaign "Development has gone crazy", targeting his government.



Modi said development would continue to be the driving force of his initiatives.



"This generation may have suffered poverty but we would take development to such heights that future generations do not get to see poverty. The world's attention is being drawn to India. People are coming to invest here. All this will bring opportunities for the people of India."



He also announced the setting up of the country's first and biggest Marine Police training institute at Mojak in Devbhoomi Dwarka district of the state.



"I would like to give a gift to the people of Gujarat that will benefit the entire country. For security of coastal area, we are working to modernise Marine Police (who look after coastal security till 5 km from the shore).



"To help train policemen from across the country, a Marine Police training and research institute will be set up near Mojak," Modi said.



During his two-day trip, Modi is expected to address as many as six public meetings, launching various schemes and projects at five places in three regions of the poll-bound state.





On Sunday, Modi will visit his hometown Vadnagar in North Gujarat to inaugurate a Rs 500-crore civil hospital and a medical college.



He is also scheduled to dedicate the redeveloped Sharmistha Lake to the people and inaugurate other public works, including the facelift of the Vadnagar railway station, where he is once said to have sold tea as a school boy.
A Tamil Nadu official was caught on camera taking bribe while registering names of underprivileged women under free gold for mangalsutra scheme.

A video of a government official taking bribe from the beneficiaries of the Government Special Schemes in Dharampuri has gone viral.

In the video recorded on Friday, it can be seen that people gathered at the RDO office in Pennagaram to register their names for availing government's special scheme of Gold for Mangal Sutra for the underprivileged women.

The scheme was introduced by former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, and it provides free gold for mangalsutra (thali in Tamil) for the underprivileged women.

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THE BRIBE

The gold for the mangalsutra was to be distributed by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi Palanisamy in Dharmapuri as part of the MGR Centenary celebrations.

In the video, a woman government official asked a beneficiary to register her name in the log book. The woman then gives out Rs 500 to the official who was maintaining the log.

The woman official maintaining the log book can then be seen keeping the money in a bag.

The video is now doing rounds on the internet, opening a dialogue on corruption in India.

Reacting to this, DMK spokesperson Manu Sundaram said, "A government which won the Floor Test after paying bribes to MLAs is now caught collecting bribes from the poor and needy citizens."

"Who knows whether this minority government will need to pay MLAs again in the impending Floor Test. Nevertheless, it is tragic to see this happening in the name of MGR Centenary Celebrations."

"If these beneficiaries are going to share the stage with the CM tomorrow, then it would prove that he is also part of the group extorting bribes from the people of the state."

When India Today tried to contact the Dharampurai Collector, there was no response to this allegation.

Watch || Caught: Official takes bribe to dole out free gold for mangalsutra under Tamil Nadu govt scheme ||

--- ENDS ---
Samoa has made considerable progress in recent years in getting businesses and consumers online but still faces challenges before being fully ready to benefit from e-commerce, an U.N.C.T.A.D assessment of the country says.

The Samoa Rapid e-Trade Readiness Assessment, funded by the Enhanced Integrated Framework, a multi-donor programme for least developed countries, is the third such assessment U.N.C.T.A.D has done.

It was carried out following a regional workshop on e-commerce in June this year that U.N.C.T.A.D and the World Trade Organization (W.T.O) held with the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat. The assessment was presented at the U.N.C.T.A.D Intergovernmental Group of Experts on E-Commerce and the Digital Economy, convening in Geneva, Switzerland.

Made up of eight islands sitting halfway between Hawaii and New Zealand, the countrys isolation fuels high import prices and creates challenges for Samoan entrepreneurs to access global markets and grow their businesses.

By giving exporters direct access to potential clients around the globe and allowing Samoan consumers and businesses to find the best deals for what they import, e-commerce could help the country overcome its geographical disadvantages, the report says.

As is the case for most small island developing states and especially in the Pacific, the assessment says, trade logistics constraints remain a key bottleneck for Samoa.

Air transport is the most expensive way to ship goods, yet because most goods Samoans buy and sell online are small parcels, Faleolo International Airport is currently the main entry and exit point.

And this takes a toll on businesses profits and consumers wallets.

Better port facilities and increased transportation options would make e-commerce less expensive, the assessment says, adding that the lack of a postal addressing system also limits the scope of e-commerce in Samoa.

Government reforms bringing more competition and better regulation to the telecommunications sector have made mobile phones an everyday reality for most of the population.

But Internet connections are still unreliable and expensive, keeping more than two thirds of the population offline.

A monthly 2GB ADSL subscription was US$43 in 2015, and a prepaid 3GB data plan for a mobile was US$40, in a country where minimum-wage workers earn just over US$2 an hour.

The government hopes that the arrival of a 1,3000-kilometre submarine cable connecting Samoa to Fijis Southern Cross Cable will boost connectivity and affordability. But the assessment has shown that improved infrastructure alone will not make the island nation e-commerce-ready.

Even if the population is better connected, e-commerce cannot take off if the majority of the population does not have a bank account or credit card and remains skeptical of mobile payment solutions.

Samoans remain largely unbanked, the report says, adding that only around half the adult population has a bank account or access to other formal services such as credit unions and microfinance.

And cultural beliefs in the value of cash and a general reluctance to trust mobile payments -- only 3.7% of mobile phone owners have a mobile money account -- are preventing online businesses such as Samoamarket and Makeki Online from boosting sales despite increased traffic to their websites.

One of the reasons Samoans seem reluctant to trust online payments, the report says, is an incomplete and at times outdated legal framework.

The top concern, according to the assessment, is consumer protection online, particularly data protection and privacy, for which Samoa has no legislation.

The assessment calls for a thorough review of Samoas legal framework, despite being one of the most advanced in the region according to UNCTADs Cyberlaw Tracker.

While the framework is in place, it seldom covers specific e-commerce aspects, says Cecile Barayre, an U.N.C.T.A.D legal officer who worked on the assessment.

One specific challenge is the contradicting and overlapping regulations adopted by different ministries and government agencies, she adds.

But even if more Samoans are connected to the Internet and trust online payment, if they are uninformed of the opportunities e-commerce offers and lack the necessary technological skills, online sales will continue to drag.

The lack of understanding and awareness of what e-commerce is and how to benefit from it has been a common thread throughout the assessment period, the report says, adding that assistance could focus on small and medium businesses owned by women since current e-commerce facilities are more accessible by well-established male-owned businesses.

The ability to make trade more inclusive and offer opportunities to women and youth -- two segments of the population often left out -- is what makes e-commerce a game changer, says Mere Falemaka, Permanent Representative of the Pacific Islands Forum to the World Trade Organization.

Through the assessment, the government has realized that e-commerce is about more than I.C.T infrastructure, transport and regulation, and that it requires investment in soft infrastructure and skills, and a thorough, encompassing national e-commerce strategy.

U.N.C.T.A.Ds e-trade readiness assessments are a first step for Pacific Island countries to develop a coherent national e-commerce policy, Ms. Falemaka says.

The government of Samoa is committed to take advantage of e-commerce, the report says. And with the right vision and concerted efforts to remove persistent bottlenecks, Samoa could become an e-commerce hub for the region. The group of experts offers a valuable platform to ensure effective follow-up, which will require development partners that are part of the group to provide timely financial and technical assistance to Samoa.
The treatment of the former Head of State, His Highness Tui Atua Tupua Tamasese Efi and the Masiofo, Her Highness Filifilia Tamasese by the government is unacceptable, insulting and disgraceful.

Thats the opinion of Member of Parliament, Olo Fiti Vaai, who has called on the government to reconsider its decision to deny the extension of the diplomatic passports for the former Head of State and his Masiofo.

Last week, Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sa'ilele Malielegaoi said the Governments decision was final and they would not extend the diplomatic passports as requested.

But the issue does not sit well with Olo Fiti, who said Tui Atua was Samoas King.

He is Tama Aiga (royalty) and no matter what the government does the mindset of our people will never change from the fact that Tui Atua is our King and he is royalty, Olo told the Sunday Samoan.

Is this how we treat the King who has served in every aspect of the Government? "

Hes a former Member of Parliament, who led the Opposition, a former Prime Minister and now a former Head of State."

The move is not only insulting but degrading to say the least, and as a Member of Parliament and a citizen of this county, I am ashamed with how my former Head of State is being treated due to dirty politics."

I understand there are other diplomatic passports being used by former Members of Parliament which were recently cancelled when the government announced the denial of the extension of the former Head of States diplomatic passports."

The issue at hand is significant, this is Samoas former Head of State, and his service has led Samoa to where it is now."

Is this how the Government repays his long years of service?"

So set aside the fact that hes served in numerous capacities of the government, but what about the fact that he is Tama Aiga, does that not mean anything anymore? asked Olo Fiti.

The Member of Parliament believes this is an internal country issue and the government has the discretion to extend the passport.

Saying it is longstanding policies put in place in accordance with the United Nation laws, is a load of rubbish, he said.

This is our Tama Aiga, he is entitled to these benefits whether the Government likes it or not."

The entitlement was in affect when Tui Atua was born into this World, why, because hes Tama Aiga and he is our King."

How dare the government insult the former Head of State like that?"

This is not only an insult to their Highnesses but also to the People of Samoa, whose King is being robbed of what he is entitled to.

The Member of Parliament said the decision should be reversed.

I will never let this issue go, because Tui Atua is our former Head of State, and if it means signing a petition for an appeal, that is what we will do to remind the Government that Tui Atua is our King and that will never change."
Changing the effigy or figure head on the Samoan currency is not financially feasible.

So said the Governor of Central Bank, Maiava Atalina Ainuu-Enari, in response to questions from the Sunday Samoan.

The Governor was asked for a comment following calls from members of the public who wonder when the Central Bank would consider a new currency with the new Head of State, His Highness Tuimalealiifano Vaaletoa Sualauvi II, on it.

Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi referred questions to the Governor of the Central Bank.

During an interview with the Sunday Samoan, the Governor said the process takes about four years maximum to print new money.

And while the decision to change the currency is at the Cabinets discretion, I will explain the process for public knowledge, she said.

We order our currency from a company called DelaRue, a banknote manufacturer."

Its a global company located in the United Kingdom who first started printing high security notes in the 1800s."

They sell high-security paper and their deliverance of high security and integrity to the Cash Supply Chain is notable.

Maiava then explained the process.

I must say that it is a meticulous process."

It takes up between three and four years before we can actually print new currency. That is how lengthy it takes and this is because of the security measures placed on the note.'"

Its not something we do overnight, Maiava said.

So it starts from the designing, and by law we have to do consultation with the uses of the currency which is our people."

We also have to consult with the banks because there were times that our currency was unable to use in the A.T.M. (automated teller machine)."

The A.T.M. wont accept the new currency because of some configuration and so what happens is the banks have had to replace all their A.T.Ms and that is costly to the commercial banks."

We consult with the commercial banks on the size of the currency that is acceptable to the A.T.M's, she said.

She said different countries had difference currencies in terms of sizes.

These are some of the steps we have to take to assure that when the currency arrives there are no problems."

Makes it difficult that Delarue is located on the other side of the world and we are here in the Pacific.

We go through the designs and the correspondence goes back and forth on the changes and most especially the security measures.

Once the design and everything else is ok, then it goes onto the plate.

This is the tricky part, once its on the plate it cannot be changed, that is why the process is very lengthy and again meticulous.

According to the Governor, even ordering the coin is another process.

Our coin is minted from Royal Australia Mint but the paper money comes from Delarue in U.K. Many Pacific islands Fiji, Tonga, and Solomon islands all print their money from Delarue, she said.

She said the current currency was launched back in 2007 and this money will be circulating for about 10 years.

And until we have issues in terms of security where a security feature is compromised on the note then we will have to change our currency.

We try to use the notes we currently have for a lengthy time due to the high cost, for us as a small nation, she said.

There were really no changes of notes at the time when the Late Malietoa Tanumafili II, because his tenure was for life and so that is why his photo was on the notes and the coin, she said.

In conclusion, the Governor pointed out the main recommendation from Delarue was go fauna and flora.

They have suggested for us to consider putting our national flower or national bird to represent Samoa, and so there wont be many changes, because changes come at a cost, said the Governor.
The Head of Samoa Immigration, Agafili Shem Leo, has rejected claims that his Office had been notified about the alleged sale of Samoan passports online earlier this year.

The Chief Executive Officer of the Ministry of Prime Minister and Cabinet in response to questions from the Sunday Samoan rubbished claims his office was informed as early as May.

These allegations were not reported to me as Head of the Ministry back in May, he told the Sunday Samoan in an email.

It only came to my attention when my Press and Communications Division forwarded an email inquiring about this matter when I was on duty travel on September 22nd 2017.

Swift action was immediately taken against these allegations upon my return to Samoa on the 25th September in accordance with the law. This had led to the investigation that is currently on going.

But a reliable source said the Immigration office might have been alerted to the situation at the beginning of 2017.

The source said the information, however, was relayed senior Immigration officials until the matter was queried by the Samoa Observer.

The complaint came to the office in May, 2017 yet the officials were only informed when Samoa Observer sent over an email containing copies of the passport that was (allegedly) sold online, the source said.

Up until now, I dont know why this was not reported in the first place and yet this is a serious issue.

Last week, Attorney General, Lemalu Herman Retzlaff, issued a prohibition order against two suspects in connection with the alleged sale of Samoan passports online.

The order against Immigration employee, David Nomereta Uaine and a member of the public, Fitu Goshe, prohibits them from leaving the country while the investigation is in progress.

A copy of the prohibition order obtained by the Samoa Observer was issued on Tuesday and signed by the Attorney General.

The order was addressed to the Chief Executive Officer of the Ministry of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and Samoa Immigration, Agafili Shem Leo.

The alleged sale of passports was put to the attention of the Immigration Office by the Samoa Observer, which led to the government launching their investigation into the allegations that someone is selling Samoan passports online.

This was confirmed in a press statement issued by the Press Secretary.

As required under the Passport Act and the Public Service Act, the Immigration division of the Ministry of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has begun an investigation in to allegations of a potential breach of the Passport Act, the statement reads.

This is in relation to reports received by the Ministry last week that passports have been illegally procured."

The Ministry takes any allegation seriously and wishes to assure the public that security of our passports remains intact. Relevant action in accordance with the law will be taken upon completion of the investigation."

The Immigration Office will continue to monitor, review and improve processes to ensure the safety and security of Samoa.

The statement did not say how long the investigation will take and what exactly they are after.
Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaois book, Palemia, the memoir of Prime Minister Tuila'epa Sa'ilele Malielegaoi, has been launched in American Samoa.

Co-authored by Dr. Peter Swain, the best seller was launched in American Samoa at the Rex Lee Auditorium Fale in Utulei, yesterday.

Palemia records the memoirs of the longest serving Prime Minister of Samoa.

The book is a serious work of political history that recounts through the words of Prime Minister Tuilaepa, many dramatic events including an assassination, political plots and the impact of devastating cyclones and tsunami on Samoa.

Dr. Swains narrative captures the voice of Tuilaepa and places in context the most significant Samoa political leader of this generation. Tuilaepas leadership has resulted in unprecedented political stability in Samoa, modernisation of the economy, improvements in education and health and poverty reduction.

Throughout his long career, Tuilaepa has been mindful of maintaining his political base by connecting and balancing the affairs of the state with the affairs of his village. Maintaining this balance has kept him grounded and connected to his community, and has ensured that his decision-making and leadership remain relevant to village life.

Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi has met with the Queen of England, had audiences with the Pope, talked over global affairs with the President of the United States of America, and addressed the United Nations General Assembly and Security Council, but at heart he remains a village from Lepa.

Palemia was initially launched in Samoa followed by its first international inauguration in New Zealand.

According to the C.E.O. of S.S.A.B, Fiti Leung Wai, Palemia has been the Best seller ever in the history of S.S.A.B at all its stores in Samoa and New Zealand. Palemia is exclusively sold at S.S.A.B. Pago Inc.
Bluesky is on a mission to support Samoa Cancer Societys Pinktober campaign.

Pinktober began last week and Bluesky Country Manager, Alex Abraham, said the support to raise awareness on breast cancer is commendable.

The town clock painted pink and many people wearing pink are good examples of the publics support.

We have proudly sponsored the Samoa Cancer Society since 2015 and weve always done this behind the scenes, said Mr. Abraham.

But its time for us to step up and rally public support for Samoa Cancer and the crucial work they do.

With an exciting month of activity ahead, Bluesky will be showing their support in many ways. All Bluesky advertising and promotions will be splashed with pink and will display the Breast cancer awareness logo.

One of our most exciting campaigns is our Text to Win an Iphone 7 Plus. It will be $1 Tala for a text and all our prepaid and post paid capped customers are eligible to participate.

The best part of this campaign is for every eligible text received, Bluesky will donate 50sene from each text to Samoa Cancer Society.

Samoa Cancer Societys Pinktober campaign is being supported by Bluesky; Events Marketing and Distribution (E.M.D.); and the Miss Samoa Alumni (M.S.A.).

There are many other organisations that are coming on board to support and we are calling on all members of the public to join us in helping this great initiative.

One of the key things we want to help Samoa Cancer Society drive with is awareness of Breast Cancer and the crucial action of early detection.

Theres a great TV ad that Samoa Cancer have recently launched featuring one of our Miss Samoa Alumni Manamea, which talks about the importance of early detection.

As a survivor, Manamea is a prime example of the support that Samoa Cancer Society can give, to help fight this devastating disease.

The Pinktober Campaign schedule of events gives everyone the opportunity to support.

On Wednesday 11th October the public is invited to join the Police march at 8am beginning from the Police station and ending at the Govt Building.

There will be a Sheraton Pink Luncheon on Monday 23rd October at 11:30am and tickets will be available at Blueskys Maluafou office for purchase.

On Wednesday 25th October the Miss Samoa Alumni will be hosting an evening at Orators where Manamea and other Breast Cancer survivors will be sharing their survival stories.

The grand finale for Pinktober will be celebrated on Saturday 28th October with an early morning Pink Colour Run followed by a Pink Rock Concert at Taumeasina for the whole family.

Everyone is invited to participate. The run will start in front of the Govt Building and will end at Taumeasina where food, drinks and music will be enjoyed by the whole family.

Again we invite all of Samoa to support Pinktober and join Samoa Cancer Society in bringing awareness to Breast Cancer and the fight for early detection, he said.
Q:Am I correct in my thinking that our board can set up a fine schedule without the vote of the membership A.P., Newhall

A:Associations, before imposing a disciplinary fine, must have a schedule of fines in writing, as required by Civil Code 5850. Boards can impose fines only listed in that schedule of fines, under Civil Code 5850(c). The schedule of fines must be one of the disclosures included in the Annual Policy Statement (see Civil Code 5310 for the full list).

Adoption of the schedule of fines, or any changes, is by board vote, but the matter must be treated as an operating rule change, per Civil Code 4355(a)(3). This means the full 30-day notice to members must be given, under the process for rule changes described in Civil Code 4360.

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Many associations do not realize that, to be enforceable, a fine must be listed in the written schedule of fines.

Q:I live in a condo association that has a continuing issue with homeowners who owe small amounts of money for fines and never pay them. Of course, when they sell, they clear all fees and charges, but we want to get the money now and get it off our books. How can this be accomplished? B.C. Mission Viejo

A:Technically speaking, the HOA could pursue legal action against members who have unpaid fines. If the amounts are minor, it is not worth the expense. Some associations amend their CC&Rs to allow the HOA to record a lien against the property for unpaid fines. This must be authorized by the CC&Rs. The law specifically does not allow associations to pursue non-judicial foreclosure on fines, under Civil Code 5725(b).

Q:Our neighbor has a son who has a criminal past, and has had episodes of yelling and cussing at no one in particular at all hours. We have called the police several times and they say they cant do anything until he does something that is a danger to others or to himself.

So, we filed a nuisance complaint with our HOA, and his antics have escalated. I am told that his parents have paid the fines imposed and will continue to do so in order to allow their son to stay in the home. D.B., San Juan Capistrano

A: Sometimes fines simply are not sufficient to compel a resident to be a good neighbor. Association boards can allow fines to build to huge amounts, while the non-compliance continues to be a problem for the community. If several months of fines have not caused the bad neighbor to pay attention, sometimes other action is necessary.

One of the most difficult decisions a board (and their legal counsel) make is deciding when to become involved in dealing with a harassing neighbor. There is no hard and fast line. When a situation builds to a point where it is affecting multiple neighbors, and fines are not working, unfortunately, at that point legal counsel may be needed to intervene.

Your board may have already discussed this with HOA counsel, and if not yet, they should.

[Readers: Read California laws at www.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov]

Kelly G. Richardson, Esq. is a Fellow of the College of Community Association Lawyers and Managing Partner of Richardson Harman Ober PC, a California law firm known for community association expertise. Submit questions to KRichardson@RHOpc.com. Past columns at www.HOAHomefront.com.
Today, 3D printing is probably associated most with research labs and do-It-yourselfers, who use the machines to produce prototypes of their creations one thin layer at a time.

But a new generation of sophisticated 3D printers are increasingly pushing their way into manufacturing plants. Proponents of the technology contend its speed and ability to produce geometrically complex designs hold the promise of upending the way things are made  enabling better products and mass customization on the factory floor.

As part of National Manufacturing Day, Hewlett Packard and Carlsbad-based Forecast 3D, a contract manufacturer that makes 3D printed and traditional produced parts for clients, showed off a room full of 12 new HP Multi Jet Fusion 3D 4200 printers in a plant tour.

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Donovan Weber, co-founder and chief operating officer of Forecast 3D, pointed to one of the printers early creations  a piece layered with a web of complex lattice structures that spelled out a promotional message.

You see those patterns? You cant make that any other way, said Weber. The speed, cost and quality -- you fill the machine up with materials and in 10 hours you have products. There is no other machine like that.

More than 50 San Diego County companies held events Friday to highlight the footprint that manufacturing has in the region. While it isnt as big an employer as it once was, the sector still includes some 4,000 companies providing about 107,000 jobs locally, according to the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corp.

Forecast 3D and GoProto of San Diego are among about a dozen contract manufacturers worldwide serving as reference sites for HPs latest 3D printing technologies targeting manufacturers. The company claims its machines can produce dense, intricate parts from engineering grade thermal plastics up to 10 times faster than existing technologies.

Founded 23 years ago, Forecast 3D employs about 100 workers. It uses 3D printing  including metal -- to serve customers in healthcare, automotive, aerospace and consumer goods. It expects sales of around $15 million this year. The company believes the new HP Multi Jet Fusion machines can give it an advantage over injection molding  particularly for low volume production.

We are truly on the cusp of a sea-change shift in manufacturing, said Jesse Lea, president of GoProto. Additive technology innovations are altering the traditional landscape, offering designers and engineers opportunities that havent previously existed.

Additive Rocket Corp., founded by two recent UC San Diego graduates, has developed technology to 3D print rocket engines. Kyle Adriany, chief technology officer for the start-up, said veteran aerospace engineers have told him the best rocket engine designs are impractical today because they cant be efficiently manufactured.

You have these brilliant guys, but they are being so constrained by the old manufacturing method, said Adriany in a recent interview. They know the designs could be better, but they are not taking the leap to implement them.

HPs Multi Jet Fusion technology was developed in Barcelona, Spain. Research and development for materials used in the process took place at HPs campus in Rancho Bernardo.

The machines deploy fusing and detailing agents on a powdered material layer to produce parts. Inkjet printer heads precisely lay down the materials, and high temperature infra-red lamps fuse each layer together. For now, only plastic-like parts can be made. New materials are being developed not only by HP but also by other companies through an HP open source program.

When you 3D print, complexity is free and that enables you to change the design in a very, very different way, and so now companies all around the world can think differently about how they manufacture for their customers in the future, said Dion Weisler, chief executive of HP, in a statement.

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mike.freeman@sduniontribune.com;

Twitter:@TechDiego

760-529-4973
There was a time when checked luggage wasnt scanned at airports, you could bring a Swiss army knife on board an airplane, and your friends and family could accompany you to your departure gate.

Then the terrorist attacks of 9/11 occurred, and security at airports forever changed. Will the Las Vegas Strip massacre that originated from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay resort now be the seminal event that will forever toughen security in U.S. hotels?

Across the country, and especially in tourist destinations like San Diego, it is an obvious question, but hoteliers so far are reluctant to suddenly embrace metal detectors and baggage screening in the wake of the deadly shooting.

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Locally, hotel operators say that, if anything, the incident is a wake-up call to staff to be even more vigilant and aware of suspicious behavior and to not be shy about reporting it. That is already a typical part of training protocol, they point out.

That the Las Vegas shooter, Stephen Paddock, was able to bring to his hotel suite dozens of firearms over a period of days should be a red flag, said San Diego hotel operator Bob Rauch, although he acknowledges that awareness of that can be more challenging in a huge resort property.

If any employee were to see a customer alone with multiple suitcases going up the elevator multiple times, they need to speak up, said Rauch, who owns and operates multiple smaller and mid-size hotels in the county. Its a big red flag and management should engage the guest, ask what their plans are and report it to authorities if necessary.

While the safety of guests is paramount for hotels, so, too, is the premium guests place on privacy and convenience.

I dont think we want to start using metal detectors, Rauch said. Its not so much the expense. Its a big inconvenience to the 99.99 percent of hotel guests who are there to enjoy themselves or do business, so to put them through what theyve already been put through at the airport, its not so guest friendly.

Rauch, however, says he will step up his training of staff and add active shooter to the training for handling emergencies.

Debra Sanderlin, general manager of the 102-room Bristol Hotel in downtown San Diego, agrees that regular training of staff  with a focus on the mantra, If you see something, say something  is a hotels first line of defense in keeping guests safe.

In the case of Paddock, part of his meticulous planning leading up to the shooting was to leave a Do not disturb sign on his door for several days.

That kind of behavior, though, can arouse suspicions, and hotel operators do have the right to check in on their guests, said Rauch and Sanderlin.

We generally have a policy if it goes on for more than a couple of days, we want to double check on the guest because people can get into medical situations, Sanderlin said. We would rather risk having a guest be a little upset than not being aware they need help. It can be as simple as a quick check in the room.

Operators of some of San Diegos high-rise hotels were reluctant to talk specifically about security precautions, referring questions to their corporate offices.

Matt Adams, general manager of the 1,625-room Manchester Grand Hyatt on the San Diego bayfront, offered the following statement from Hyatt:

Following the tragic event in Las Vegas, we are reviewing safety and security procedures with our corporate security team and local law enforcement. These reviews include how hotel properties can both further improve security and effectively respond to events. And, as we better understand the facts in the coming days, we will continue to work with law enforcement to evaluate these measures.

Part of the challenge faced by hotels, large and small, is theyre considered a soft target, military parlance for being vulnerable to attack. To effectively place them under lock and key would run counter to the welcoming environment that is the hallmark of hotels, say lodging experts.

Globally, it is not uncommon to see stepped-up hotel security in countries where hotels have been targeted. Following the 2008 terrorist bombing of two hotels in Mumbai, some major hotel chains throughout the country implemented much more intense screening systems like handheld trace detectors and X-ray scanners to check for explosives and contraband.

In the near term, its doubtful U.S. hotels will move in that direction, said Jan Freitag, senior vice president of STR, which tracks hotel data.

This is the first event of this size where a U.S. hotel was involved, Freitag said. I think there will be a lot more done at the back end of hotels, like investing more training in staff who have guest interaction, such as bellhops, the front desk, housekeeping.

Of course, its still too early to know what will change but scanning (luggage), I dont think were there yet. A more visible security presence and training of staff is the first step.

San Diego State school of hospitality dean Carl Winston says he is highly doubtful hotel security will ever approach the levels common in U.S. airports. That doesnt mean, though, that hotel companies across the country are not seriously examining what can be improved, beyond hiring more security guards and increasing video surveillance.

I know there are conversations going on in boardrooms across the country, where theyre saying, Oh man, we need to look at our security, but crossing the line into the kind of security we have in airports is probably not in the cards for the near term, said Winston, founding director of the L. Robert Payne School of Hospitality & Tourism Management.

I could see a need for it in Washington, D.C. hotels that have congressional visitors but if its a roadside inn in Temecula, I dont know that I need it.

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lori.weisberg@sduniontribune.com

(619) 293-2251

Twitter: @loriweisberg
Two North County schools have been named as 2017 National Blue Ribbon Schools.

Pacific Rim Elementary School in the Carlsbad Unified School District and Santa Fe Christian Upper School in the Santa Fe Christian School District (Solana Beach) received the honors.

Both schools were also judged to be among the nations Exemplary High Performing Schools.

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The U.S. Department of Education recognized 342 schools, 25 of them in California, as National Blue Ribbon Schools for 2017.

Pacific Rim was one of 16 elementary schools honored; Santa Fe Christian was one of six high schools honored.

The recognition is based on a schools overall academic performance, or its progress in closing achievement gaps among student subgroups.

The National Blue Ribbon Schools Program honors public and private elementary, middle and high schools where students achieve very high learning standards or are making notable improvements in closing the achievement gap.

Now in its 35th year, the program has recognized more than 8,500 schools.

On Nov. 6-7, U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos and the Department of Education will recognize the 292 public and 50 private schools honored at a ceremony in Washington, D.C.

All schools are honored in one of two performance categories, based on all student scores, subgroup student scores, and graduation rates:

-- Exemplary High Performing Schools are among their states highest-performing schools as measured by state assessments or national tests.

-- Exemplary Achievement Gap Closing Schools are among their states highest-performing schools in closing achievement gaps between a schools student subgroups and all students over the past five years.

Up to 420 schools may be nominated each year. The Department invites National Blue Ribbon School nominations from the top education official in all states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, the Department of Defense Education Activity and the Bureau of Indian Education. Private schools are nominated by The Council for American Private Education.

For a list of all 2017 National Blue Ribbon Schools, visit https://www2.ed.gov/programs/nclbbrs/index.html. For more on the program, contact Director Aba S. Kumi at (202) 401-1767 or program manager Frances Hopkins at (202) 205-6268.

laura.groch@sduniontribune.com
The word feral is defined in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as unsocialized behavior suggestive of a wild beast.

But Amanda Hodder, foster coordinator with the Vista-based rescue group Love Your Feral Felines, has a different definition.

To me, feral just means misunderstood, Hodder said. So many of these cats can be socialized toward humans with time and attention.

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The Oceanside resident is one of four volunteer officers for LYFF, which was founded in April 2011 by Vista resident Christine Hubbard. While working at a North County animal shelter, Hubbard was surprised to learn about the high euthanasia rate for cats and kittens deemed feral.

Feral cats are born or abandoned in the wild. In the absence of human interaction and neutering/spaying, they can develop defensive, stand-offish and sometimes hostile behaviors.

When these cats and kittens hiss, spit, growl, hide and spurn physical contact, shelters will declare them un-adoptable. If theyre not picked up by feral cat rescue groups, most will be euthanized.

LYFF has two programs for giving feral cats another shot at life.

Amanda Hodder, foster coordinator for the all-volunteer Love Your Feral Felines rescue group, cuddles Ralphie, one of 15 kittens rescued from a high-kill shelter in Louisiana in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey. (Pam Kragen/San Diego U-T)

Over the past six years, the organization has taken part in the countywide barn cats movement. Designed for feral cats that prefer living outdoors away from humans, LYFFs Barn Cats program sends pairs of spayed feral cats to live in barns and out-buildings on ranches and other rural properties to control vermin.

Over a five-week barn socialization program, the cats gradually come to associate the barns with food, shelter and minimal but positive human contact. LYFF also works with the Feral Cat Coalition and SPOT Rescues Cat Team to rescue wild cats and neuter them to gradually reduce the population of cats in the wild.

The second program, which launched in May, is for under-socialized kittens. Overseen by LYFF senior director Melissa Dunaj of Fallbrook, the new program takes in under-age and abandoned kittens that would otherwise be euthanized or go feral in the wild.

The kittens are spayed or neutered, vaccinated, de-wormed and micro-chipped, then sent to live with foster families where theyre socialized to live indoors with people and, in some cases, other pets.

Since May, just over 140 kittens have been rescued through the program. About 70 kittens are now in foster care and, of those, about 20 are ready for adoption at events like one from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, Oct 8, at the Kahoots pet store at 1535 Valley Parkway in Escondido.

Brianne Youngberg, a veterinary hospital nurse who joined LYFF in June as its behavior assessment coordinator, said that since the program started six months ago, only 11 kittens have failed to graduate into socialized behavior. This is usually because theyve lived too long without human contact. Those who dont socialize after six months of training become barn cats.

These kittens have missed the window of learning things and having positive interactions with people, Youngberg said. If we get them young enough, we can work with them.

Tigger, a 5-week-old kitten in Love Your Feral Felines new Under-Socialized Kitten Foster Program, shares a transport cage with his littermate Bagheera, back left. (Pam Kragen/San Diego U-T)

When litters of kittens born in the wild arrive at local shelters, Youngberg said its often impossible to know whether their skittish behavior is feral or just plain fear. Cats are solitary creatures, very sensitive to noise and not as adaptable to change as dogs. As a result, many cats appear hostile at shelters.

They all start out with the behaviors that are describes as feral. Theyre scared, they hiss, they growl, they run and hide, theyve got airplane ears (arched back like plane wings), she said. But Ive seen them transform in just 24 hours when you get them home.

Depending on the age of the kitten, the socialization training takes from a few weeks to a few months, with the average foster stay about four to eight weeks, Youngberg said.

Among the socializing techniques is something called burrito-ing, where the kittens are swaddled in a towel or blanket and held to reduce anxiety. Another is for foster parents to build trust by getting the kitten to lick baby food off their fingers.

Baby food is the key to every kittens heart, said Dunaj, who joined LYFF in June after volunteering for three years at a local animal shelter.

Right now, LYFF has 25 foster families caring for kittens. Dunaj said it could use at least a dozen more. About half of the kittens now in foster care are feral and lack the social skills for adoption. The other half are abandoned newborns who would die without full-time nurturing.

When kittens from 2 to 4 weeks old arrive at shelters or are found in the wild, their chances of survival are low. Not only do they need to be fed by bottle every two to four hours, 24 hours a day, they also need to be physically stimulated to go to the bathroom (a mama cat will lick her kittens abdomens to stimulate the reflex, but foster parents must rub the kittens abdomens with a washcloth).

Because shelters dont have the manpower to care for under-age litters, they keep groups like LYFF on call for emergency pickups. Two weeks ago, a litter of underweight, underage kittens arrived at a local shelter just an hour before closing time. Hodder said she was given just 30 minutes to find someone to pick up the kittens or they would be euthanized that night. Fortunately, a transport driver arrived in the nick of time and the kittens are all now safe in foster care.

Hodders day job is as a receptionist. She started volunteering for LYFF as an afternoon driver, transporting cats from shelters to barn homes. But the more she learned about the fate of feral cats at shelters, the more she felt compelled to do.

Nothing involving rescue was as hard as not getting involved. I needed to do more, she said. There were a lot of sleepless nights, but it was something I had to do.

Hodder recruits foster families who must undergo training to participate in the program, but are required to give only their time and love. All animal care costs are covered by LYFF, which is a donor-supported nonprofit (loveyourferalfelines.com).

It costs LYFF about $35 to $50 per month to care for each cat, plus the $50 one-time cost of spaying/neutering and the ongoing cost of transport cages and unexpected veterinary care.

Theyd like to grow donations by at least 50 percent next year to take in more feral cats from Orange, Riverside and Los Angeles counties.

Melissa Dunaj, senior director for the Love Your Feral Felines rescue organization, cuddles Tinkerbell, one of 15 kittens saved from a high-kill shelter in Louisiana in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey. (Pam Kragen/San Diego U-T)

As the organization grows, Hubbards dream is to one day have a property donated where she can build a permanent home for LYFF. Dunaj said it will be unlike any other shelter.

We imagine large community cat rooms, two-story cat condos where each kitty has enough space to feel comfortable and other cat-friendly amenities to keep the kitties stress-free while giving the public a place they will feel good about visiting and adopting from, she said.

Most months, LYFFs expenses top $2,500, but last month they doubled to $5,000 because LYFF joined 10 other local groups that arranged a convoy rescue of dogs and cats from high-kill shelters in Louisiana after Hurricane Harvey.

LYFF took in 15 hurricane refugees, including Ralphie and Tinkerbell, tiny striped kittens who love being held; Bandit, a curious black and white kitten; and Rory Donovan, an outgoing light gray kitten who loves to play. Most of them are now fully weaned and socialized and should soon be ready for permanent homes.

Dunaj said she and her fellow volunteers have an emotional connection to every kitten they save and when these once unwanted kittens are adopted, its cause for celebration.

That was the case on Sept. 17, when one of the programs most notoriously finicky cats, Posh, found her new parents at an adoption clinic in Oceanside.

Posh was born to a cat that lived in a car mechanics garage. While all of her siblings eventually found homes, the 6-month-old Bengal mix would hiss at all comers at adoption events. Youngberg said theyd nearly given up hope for Posh until she locked eyes and hearts with a couple who stopped by the adoption area on a whim.

They just bonded instantly, Youngberg said. I captured the whole interaction on video as I sobbed.

pam.kragen@sduniontribune.com
After teachers at Juniper Elementary put out the call for donations to help with Hurricane Harvey relief efforts, supplies began trickling into their Escondido classrooms.

By the second week, they were flooded with donations. Kids and their families delivered binders, folders, notebooks, composition books, crayons, scissors, glue sticks and even socks and clothing. And a teachers husband, a pilot for Delta Air Lines, arranged to ship the assortment of supplies to Houston.

We put the word out to our families and students, and made some phone calls to the parents, and to our surprise, we had a huge outpouring of support from all of our families, Juniper Principal Jason Wrezski said. It was way more than we expected.

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The school goods were earmarked for a second-grade classroom at Cloverleaf Elementary and five first-grade classrooms at Sue Creech Elementary in Houston. The latter was so inundated that it closed for the year, and students were relocated to classes at a nearby University of Houston campus.

After learning of their plight, some students pulled supplies from their own backpacks, said Suzanne Catalanotto, a fifth-grade teacher and Associated Student Body advisor at Juniper, who helped coordinate the relief effort.

I had kids coming up to me, saying, I have an extra notebook. Could you give this, too? she said. It just was amazing to me that the individual kids - kids I didnt even know at the school - handed me things they had half-used, and things they just wanted to give.

As donations piled up in her room, students sorted and packed the supplies. Then they looked into shipping and realized they had a hurdle to overcome. The Fed-Ex estimate for 15 large boxes weighing 15 to 20 pounds each was $1,000, beyond the means of the school, Catalanotto said.

About 85 percent of students at the school come from low-income homes, according to the California Department of Education, and families had already extended their resources to purchase donations.

Were not an affluent school, she said. Were in a medium- to low-income area. For them to be able to give as much as they gave, its kind of incredible.

A teacher offered to enlist her husband to help. As a pilot for Delta Air Lines, he could get a 50 percent discount on shipping, bringing the tab down to $500.

Despite donations for that cost, the school still fell short. So he took another tack, and arranged with shipping supervisors at the airline to send the boxes via cargo, at a 90 percent discount. The pilot personally delivered the supplies to LAX, where the airline shipped them out, and eventually waived the fee entirely. Delta officials who coordinated the shipment could not be reached for comment.

That took a weight off the minds of students and teachers who were eager to get the donations off to Houston, she said.

I think they were excited when we brought them up to the front of the school, she said. I think they were a little relieved to get them out of the school and they were happy to get them to the kids in Houston. I want them to know the great things weve done for these other kids.

The experience helped the students comprehend the scope of the disaster, Catalanotto said. The Houston teachers they worked with could not be reached for comment, but photos of the Creech campus show it swamped by several feet of water.

I think it really hit home when we got the address for the Creech Elementary School, she said. The teacher that we were in contact with said dont send the stuff to the school. Youll have to send it to my house because the school is no longer there. The kids were like, what? We talked about what it would feel like to not have pencils and paper.

Most students at Juniper are too young to remember the recent San Diego wildfires, but their teachers know that they may eventually confront damage from fires or earthquakes in their own community, Catalanotto said. Contributing to students hit by the hurricane helped them see the natural disaster through the perspective of other kids their age, Wrezski said.

I think it made them very aware of the severity of it, even though it was a long distance away, he said.

It also reinforced the message of community service, he said.

It was a community in need, and they felt very proud of the amount of materials they were able to collect, he said.

deborah.brennan@sduniontribune.com Twitter@deborahsbrennan
A newly formed group of more than 100 residents is working to stop the construction of 40 homes planned for the edge of the Olde Carlsbad neighborhood overlooking the Buena Vista Lagoon and Hosp Grove.

Additional traffic and noise from the homes in the proposed Pio Pico subdivision would disrupt the quiet, small-town character that residents love, say members of the nonprofit Olde Carlsbad Voters Coalition.

Were also concerned about the larger issue of infill developments that seem to be proliferating around every corner in Carlsbads older neighborhoods, said coalition member Keith Hunter in an emailed response to questions. Were not against development per se, but rather advocate smart and sustainable development that is consistent with the character and infrastructure of the area.

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The proposed 12-acre subdivision would be built at Carlsbads northern boundary, about a block east of Interstate 5, with access from the northern end of Pio Pico Drive, which is a narrow two-lane street with no sidewalks, and from Spruce Street, which is about one block long.

Not everyone in the neighborhood opposes the subdivision.

Steve Conboy, a Spruce Street resident for 12 years, said he likes the project. His home is just a few feet from what would be the eastern entrance to the subdivision.

The developer has done a nice job, Conboy said. Carlsbad is not a sleepy little town anymore. Growth is part of our economy.

The owners of the Pio Pico property, the late Robert Siegel and his wife, Doris, lived there for many years, and the land remains in the Siegel family trust.

Robert Siegel and his brother John, who died three weeks apart in the summer of 2014, were businessmen and owned a number of North County movie theaters. They opened the Plaza Camino Real theater beside what is now The Shoppes at Carlsbad mall, and owned several older Oceanside theaters including the downtown Crest and the Star. They also built the now-closed Valley Drive-In theater in the San Luis Rey Valley in the 1960s.

The three main structures on the Pio Pico property were built in 1925, 1926 and 1948, according to documents on file with the city. Those buildings would be razed to make way for the proposed subdivision. The property is mostly open grassland, recently plowed for fire season, and some of it was used to grow avocados until the 1970s.

Some of the homes nearby on Pio Pico date to the 1950s and are built in a variety of sizes and styles. However, residents were upset last year when traffic increased from a cluster of 17 new three- to five-bedroom homes built by Shea Homes on Lanai Court just off Pio Pico.

More tract homes on Pio Pico would be completely incongruous with the character of this historical neighborhood, said resident and coalition member Cynthia DeCuir in a June 4 letter urging the city to deny the Pio Pico project. It sounds more like a design for horse stables than for human beings to dwell, she said in her letter.

True Life Companies of Newport Beach is the projects developer. The company builds master-planned communities in California, Arizona, Colorado and Hawaii.

The Siegel property has historically been zoned for single-family residential and, to that end, we submitted our application for a standard residential subdivision, which complies with the existing land-use designations, said True Lifes senior director of community development, Susan Lindquist, in an email on Friday. Projected home sizes range from 2,900 to 4,100 square feet on lots averaging 8,400 square feet.

The company has conducted extensive community outreach including launching the website www.siegelproperty.com, door-to-door visits, in-home meetings and direct mail, she said.

Some residents have offered suggestions, she said, and the company is working with the city to determine how those suggestions might be incorporated in the plan.

Another concern of many residents is that the Pio Pico site will have to be elevated six to 10 feet with fill so that the sewer lines will drain into the citys treatment system. The residents say the neighborhoods sewer and storm drains already are overburdened and frequently clog.

Members of the coalition have held two neighborhood fundraisers to help pay for studies, specialists and attorneys to fight the project.

Also adding to the issues is a problem with rights-of-way. Over the years, some homeowners have built fences and added landscaping in the citys right-of-way along some streets in the neighborhood, including Pio Pico and nearby Highland Drive, which would take some of the traffic from the eastern side of the proposed subdivision. Those additions have made the streets narrower and eliminated parking spots in places.

City officials announced last month they soon will send notices to Highland Drive residents to remove landscaping, boulders, rocks, fences and walls from the citys right-of-way, which extends 30 feet from the centerline of the road. So far, no notices have gone out to Pio Pico residents.

The project application and the issues raised by residents are under review, Principal Planner Teri Delcamp said by email. Also, the city is preparing environmental documents required by the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) .

Residents will have the opportunity to provide written comments on the CEQA document when it is released, Delcamp said.

Residents also can speak to the city Planning Commission when it reviews the project, she said. So far, no date has been set for the Planning Commission hearing or for the release of the environmental documents.

philip.diehl@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @phildiehl
As a freelance surf photographer for the past 10 years, Adam Barber was already spending lots of time on various beaches and picking up trash when he saw it. It was a trip to Brazil last year, however, that gave him a greater understanding of how big a problem ocean pollution is to the environment.

Simao (Filippe, a colleague) made me get down on my hands and knees and dig my hands into the sand. This Brazilian beach had almost as many plastic particulates as there were grains of sand. A light bulb turned on in my head and I was enlightened, Barber says. I realized that if I can work on a beach for 10 years and not see how great of a problem plastic had become, then my lack of knowledge is part of the problem.

Filippe and Marcio Gerba are surfers who founded the non-governmental organization Projeto Route in 2011 in Florianopolis, Brazil. Their mission is to promote sports, creativity, education and the awareness to preserve the health of the worlds oceans, specifically focusing on the problem of plastic pollution. Barber became the general director and president of Project RouteUSA, which began earlier this year in May as a sister organization to Projeto Route, in order to capitalize on the role of the United States in working on this sort of global initiative to improve the environment, he said.

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Barber, 34, lives in Pacific Beach and with his team has already organized dozens of beach clean-ups, collected thousands of items of trash from local beaches, found artists to turn that trash into art, and began working on partnerships with local bars and restaurants to reduce their plastic consumption in exchange for commissioned, site-specific artwork. He took some time to talk in more detail about the work and mission of Project RouteUSA, his goals for the organization, and his own personal goal of learning to say one particular word in as many languages as possible.

Q: How did you first hear about Projeto Route?

A: Almost exactly one year ago, I made plans to go to Brazil with my good friend and co-founder, Rubem Miranda. Prior to traveling to Brazil, Rubem told me about Projeto Routes ideals, actions and desire to spread their message globally. I was immediately interested, as I had already worked on another project with Simao Filippe and knew his drive, ambition and most importantly, his heart.

Q: Why did you want to lead the U.S. operation?

A: As a team, we knew the importance of Americas role in Projeto Routes global initiative to affect change. Personally, I feel the most alive when I am connected to nature and knew it was my obligation to protect something I cherished so greatly. To obtain the goal of a global community dedicated to addressing the plastic pollution issue, I took it upon myself to create Project RouteUSA and be a leader in the operation.

Q: Why did the founders decide to move forward with a U.S. team, as opposed to remaining solely in Brazil?

A: The vision of a Global Route was born in the mind of Simao. He wants to build a community of like-minded individuals dedicated to this cause. We know how important the U.S. is in shaping the policies and behaviors at home and abroad. To describe the vision of a Global Route, I like to use the metaphor of a hand: Every organization that is trying to create awareness around the plastic pollution plague is a single finger. Alone, as a finger, we can only poke, not doing much damage. If all the fingers come together, unified and tightened as a fist, we can create a true and powerful impact. The U.S. is the thumb of the fist, the most important finger, essential to a strong fist.

Our U.S. co-founder, Rubem, is currently in Europe with Simao developing the Global Route initiative. They have traveled to Portugal and Spain, and next is France and finally Italy. They are building relationships and guiding the teams in these countries that have aligned with the global vision and are dedicated to forming chapters in their respective countries.

What I love about Pacific Beach ...

The boardwalk is one of my favorite places in the world. Then theres the beach and the bay. I also love having Trader Joes and Sprouts within a short walk of my house. The priorities of someone in their 30s.

Q: Your team here in the U.S. just started in May? What are your goals as a U.S. operation?

A: Our goal is to reach as broad of an audience as possible and to spread our message to the masses. We want to create community programs that unify surfers, artists, environmentalists and ocean enthusiasts, including current and future generations. The U.S. has great power and influence in the world and we know the important role we can play in changing the plastic pollution policies and consciousness at a global level.

Q: What kinds of activities or projects have you been able to organize so far?

A: Beyond the beach cleans (clean-ups), we are trying to build a group of community services. We had our first meeting of the Route Art Club, a public club that brings local artists together unified under the organizations ideals. The team was just part of an art and music show in Encinitas where we exhibited our collection of clean and organized trash, to bring awareness to members of our coastal communities. We also recently had a talk and art project with a bunch of kids at Pachis Art Studio for Kids in Liberty Station. We spoke about our responsibility to keep beaches clean and properly disposing of our waste. We then built sea animals with the plastics weve cleaned and collected from local beaches. Additionally, one of our female board members is currently creating an all-girls surf club under the wider Project Route umbrella.

Q: You have three projects: Art Route, beach clean-ups and collecting and reusing straws. What is Art Route?

A: Art Route is our form of communication to the world to effect change. We know the power of art in any form, so Art Route can be anything from a childrens art program to striking photography, or a club of local, like-minded artists to exhibitions of marine litter art. Our team is committed to using almost every piece of plastic we collect from beaches and turning it into works of art. We want to create beauty from the ugly. All the marine litter collected from beaches is hand-washed and then separated by type and color into bins, making it easier for our artists to visualize the abstract pieces of plastic and their artistic functions.

Q: How many beach clean-ups have you organized since you started?

A: We have cleaned 18 separate beaches thus far, including Pacific Beach, Mission Beach, Windansea Beach, Ocean Beach, Sunset Cliffs and others. Some beaches outside of San Diego area have only been cleaned once by our team. Some of the local beaches have been cleaned multiple times. We are dedicated to cleaning one beach in particular: a section south of False Point and north of Tourmaline Surfing Park in Pacific Beach. We have cleaned this beach more than 60 times in a three-month period. Due to currents and the topography of the land, this beach gets an abnormal amount of trash build-up.

Q: Tell us about the straw service program.

A: The straw service is designed specifically to reduce the waste of single-use straws that are served at bars and restaurants. We provide each venue with a special container that straws can be placed into. Once a week, a RouteUSA volunteer will visit the venue and collect the straws. When enough straws have been collected, a piece of brand-specific art will be commissioned and donated back to the participating bar or restaurant.

Q: Your website says that you want to bring awareness to beach and ocean pollution in order to change the way waste is disposed of. What do you want to change about the way people get rid of their trash?

A: We know that every piece of trash we collect from the beach was disposed of by a human, and 80 percent of marine litter comes from land-based sources. We want to make littering non-existent and not cool. We want the younger generation to be instilled with the knowledge of our role and impact on the planet regarding our waste creation and disposal processes. We also want people to make informed decisions about the waste they personally create and make efforts to reduce that waste. You can start simply by refusing a straw with your drink. Single-use plastic straws are a huge burden on our planet and refusing them is one of the easiest was to begin the process of personal waste reduction. If were going to use plastic, lets at least make sure it doesnt end up in the ocean.

Q: Whats been challenging about your work with Project RouteUSA so far?

A: Theres so much to do.

Q: Whats been rewarding about it?

A: Theres so much to do!

Q: What is the best advice youve ever received?

A: Say, Yes!, with wisdom. You never know what can happen if you say yes. Anything can happen. If you say, No, or say nothing at all, nothing will happen.

Q: What is one thing people would be surprised to find out about you?

A: My personal mission: Im learning the word butterfly in every language. Currently, I can say butterfly in 41 languages.

Q: Describe your ideal San Diego weekend.

A: Sunny and 72 degrees at 8 a.m., coffee and breakfast with friends, a barbecue lunch in the yard with the neighbors, a sunset skate down the boardwalk in Pacific Beach, and ending with a few drinks and a couple of card games with my friend Amy and the gang. Food, friends, skateboarding and a sunset.

Email: lisa.deaderick@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @lisadeaderick
A mechanical glitch sidelined the U.S. Navy guided-missile cruiser Bunker Hill on Friday, delaying its scheduled departure to the Western Pacific.

In a short written statement late Friday, Navy spokesman Cmdr. John Perkins said officials dont expect the repairs to take long and the ship should join the Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group shortly.

The cruisers crew completed repairs and the warship departed Naval Base San Diego at 11 a.m. Saturday.

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Sailors discovered a problem in one of the cruisers four gas turbine engines as they fired them up early Friday before getting underway, Perkins said.

Commanders wanted the warship to sail out with all four engines working to ensure maximum redundancy.

I have every confidence the sailors aboard Bunker Hill will carry out their duty meritoriously, said Capt. Joe Cahill, the cruisers commanding officer. We have trained for this, and we are ready to go.

The Bunker Hill will rendezvous with the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt and her guided-missile destroyer escorts Halsey, Sampson and Preble.

The 7,500 sailors and Marines in the flotilla include Carrier Air Wing 17, which draws its aviators from the Stingers of Strike Fighter Squadron VFA-113, the Mighty Shrikes of VFA-94 and the Fighting Redcocks of VFA-22, all from Naval Air Station Lemoore in the San Joaquin valley, plus the South Carolina-based Checkerboards of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron VMFA-312, the Puget Sound-based Cougars of Electronic Attack Squadron VAQ-139 and the Sun Kings of Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron VAW-116 out of Point Mugu.

They also departed with the Providers of Fleet Logistics Support Squadron VRC-30, the Indians of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron HSC-6 and the Battlecats of Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron HSM-73, which are based on North Island.

The U.S. Navy carrier strike group is the most versatile, capable force at sea, said Rear Adm. Steve Koehler, commander of the strike group. After nearly a year of training and integration exercises, the entire team is ready as a warfighting force and ready to carry out the nations tasking.

The 10,000-ton Bunker Hill acts like a mama grizzly, protecting the other warships in the group like cubs.

The cruiser air defenses for the carrier strike group, shredding enemy jets, helicopters, drones or missiles arcing toward the flotilla.

The Bunker Hills crew is considered to be one of the best on the high seas. On May 10, the warship received the Navys coveted Battle E award for superior combat effectiveness.

But they sail an aging vessel. The Navy plans to mothball the Ticonderoga-class cruiser in 2019 after 33 years of service. It will be the first of the high-tech Vertical Launch System Ticos to exit the fleet.

The Navy had hoped that an experimental futuristic warship  the CG(X)  would replace the Bunker Hill, but its price tag skyrocketed from $3.5 billion to $6 billion each.

The last Tico, the Port Royal, faces retirement in 2045. Until then, it and eight other cruisers will receive hundreds of millions of dollars in high-tech upgrades, including advanced radar and sonar, launchers and a much more potent missile interceptor.

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UPDATES:

2:39 p.m.: This article was updated to show that the Bunker Hill completed all repairs and departed San Diego at 11 a.m. on Saturday.
A debate is nearing a boiling point over whether the city of San Diego should form a government-run alternative to San Diego Gas & Electric  a move that could foreshadow a massive overhaul of electrical markets across California.

The city is facing several votes in the coming months that could either shelve the program indefinitely or put it on a path to form what could be the states largest such program, known as a community choice aggregation.

While backers of community choice in San Diego have been vigorously lobbying for the program around the county, a new group has emerged to raise questions about the program  asking city officials to freeze it, at least temporarily.

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Dubbed the Clear the Air Coalition, it pairs lobbyists paid by the shareholders of SDG&Es parent company Sempra Energy with some of the regions most powerful groups  from the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce to the Downtown San Diego Partnership to the San Diego County Taxpayers Association.

The city is going to have to make a very important decisions, and were seeing that theyre going to be making that on incomplete information, said Jerry Sanders, head of the chamber and former mayor of San Diego. All I think is they need to wait.

What is community choice?

Under community choice, SDG&E would continue to operate and charge for the poles and wires that deliver power, but elected officials would assume control of the buying and selling of that electricity for city customers.

Ratepayers can opt out of the community choice program if they prefer the utilitys rates, potentially creating competition between the two entities.

Supporters of the publicly controlled alternative to SDG&E have also been pushing elected officials throughout the county to adopt Climate Action Plans to reduce greenhouse gases. Part of that campaign has included pressuring cities to commit to using of 100 percent renewable energy in coming decades  and then adopting community choice as a way to realize that goal.

The city of San Diego has pledged to use all renewable power by 2035 but has yet to decide how it will try to get there.

There doesnt exist another viable way for the city of San Diego to get to 100 percent other than to be in control, and community choice offers this proven model, said Nicole Capretz with the Climate Action Campaign and the leading advocate for community choice in the region.

A feasibility study contracted by the city of San Diego completed this summer found that the program has the potential to deliver cheaper rates than SDG&E over time, while providing as much as 50 percent renewable energy by 2023 and 80 percent by 2027.

However, Sempra and its backers argue that those numbers are not reliable because state energy regulators are expected next year to overhaul a technical but key factor in the rates charged by community choice programs.

They argue that the city should not vote to move forward with the program until the hearings are complete. Those steps would include releasing a request for proposals for a third party to draft a business plan and eventually city officials adopting that implementation blueprint. The process would likely take more than two years before a community choice program could officially launch.

What we want is cost-effective approaches to greenhouse-gas reduction, said Haney Hong, president and CEO of the Taxpayers Association. When you have so many different unknowns about what it might potentially cost  how can you make a decision without the information?

The exit fee debate

The California Public Utilities Commission has announced that in 2018 it will overhaul the formula it uses to calculate an exit fee, which community choice programs pay to investor-owned utilities to ensure those companies are adequately compensated for the energy contracts they have signed on behalf of ratepayers who have subsequently left for the government-run alternative.

Those costs includes everything from long-term contracts for natural gas projects to renewable power deals that utilities entered into before the cost of solar and wind power dropped.

Neither side disputes the need for the fee, which is intended to protect ratepayers that remain with an investor-owned utility from seeing sharp increases in their electrical bills.

However, utility officials and community choice advocates vociferously dispute how its calculated.

If the commissions new formula increases the fee, it could mean community choice programs have less revenue to compete with investor-owned utilities.

The fee, which could eventually be phased out in coming decades, has steadily increased in the past and could do so again.

We believe its going to go up significantly more, said Frank Urtasun, a former SDG&E official who is now the sole employee of Sempras shareholder marketing group, known as Sempra Services.

Urtasun is quick to explain that SDG&E doesnt make a profit off buying and selling electricity, but losing a large percentage of its customers to a community choice program means the exit fee needs to be very carefully calculated.

We can support community choice aggregation so long as its equitable for all customers, so that if a city leaves it doesnt have upward pressure on rates to some other cities, he said.

Sempra shareholders this year became the first in the state cleared by regulators to pay for lobbyists on the issue of community choice, after SDG&E requested approval for the marketing division at the California Public Utilities Commission. This arrangement has been required by the Legislature since lawmakers banned several years ago utilities from tapping ratepayer money to influence the local adoption of community choice programs.

Advocates of community choice have said they care deeply about the outcome of the commissions decision on the exit fee, but they expect the results of the proceedings will bring consistency for ratepayers.

Stability in the market place is in the states interest, said Barbara Hale, who heads San Franciscos community choice program, CleanPowerSF. Its in our interest. Its in the utilitys interest  not a decision that destabilizes the market and the experience of customers.

In San Diego, supporters of community choice have pointed out that the citys program wouldnt likely be operational until at least 2020, well after the commission rules on the fee. If community choice becomes financial nonviable, they argue, the city will have plenty of time to back out.

All the city would be doing is moving from a feasibility study to a business plan, Capretz said.

There is no one statewide who is stopping their forward-moving progress on community choice because of the proceedings on the exit fee, she added.

Whats at stake?

Matthew Freedman, staff attorney with The Utility Reform Network, who closely tracks community choice issues at the state Public Utilities Commission, said that its not clear whether the changes to the exit fee will benefit community choice programs or utilities.

At this point, no one can predict what the outcome of that preceding would be, he said. You could guess, but nobody has an inside line on whats really going to happen there.

But, he added, its the investor-owned utilities that have the most to lose, not the local governments that launch community choice programs. Cities and counties insulate themselves from debt incurred under the alternative-energy program often using a joint powers authority or an enterprise fund.

Investor owned utilities, on the other hand, rely on the exit fee to be made whole for their investments.

The precise nature of the fee might not be significant for utilities if only a small percentage of their customers leave for a community choice program, but in the case of SDG&E, the city of San Diego represents 40 percent of all electrical sales in the utilitys service territory.

If the exit fee doesnt accurately compensate SDG&E for its stranded costs, it could mean that ratepayers in other areas bear the burden through increased rates, further motivating the formation of more community choice programs, Freedman said.

Their number one motivation is they dont want to get stuck eating any of the costs associated with customer departures, he said. And at some point, we could all fight about Well, shouldnt the utility shareholders eat those costs? Thats their nightmare scenario.

Its not just SDG&E that could lose a huge percentage of its customers to community choice aggregation, raising major questions about who will pay for their expensive legacy contracts.

The states first community-choice program started in Marin County nearly a decade ago, and in recent years, adoption and interest in such programs have spread like wildfire.

Energy regulators said this summer that the state must prepare for community choice to expand from representing about 5 percent of all electrical sales today to nearly 70 percent by 2020.

In San Diego County, Solana Beach appears close to formally adopting community choice, while Encinitas, Del Mar, Oceanside and Carlsbad are weighing the option.

However, following lobbying efforts by Sempra, the county Board of Supervisors in February shelved a community-choice proposal.

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Experts say San Diego followed all the right steps in addressing what is now one of the largest hepatitis A outbreaks the country has seen in decades, but variables unique to the citys situation contributed to the outbreak.

At least 481 people have been infected and 17 have died of the infection since November in San Diego. Another 88 cases have been identified in Santa Cruz and Los Angeles counties, where local hepatitis A outbreaks have been declared.

Officials throughout the state are now scrambling to vaccinate homeless populations, which are considered the most at risk. Doctors say people who have already been infected could travel and unknowingly spread it elsewhere.

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Dr. Janet Haas, president-elect of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, said the outbreak is unusual for the U.S. because the spread of the liver infection has been attributed to a lack of basic hygiene and sanitation, not contaminated food.

This means public health officials cant solely rely on previous containment methods.

Its not like theres never been a hepatitis A outbreak before...we know whats worked in the past. Usually that contains it and the story ends, Haas said. But sometimes it doesnt work, or circumstances are different and you have to ramp it up.

In San Diego, where nearly 85 percent of all confirmed cases are located, cleaning crews are hitting the streets, shooting high-pressure water mixed with bleach in an effort to sanitize any feces, blood, bodily fluids or contaminated surfaces.

A private company was hired in September to deliver portable hand-washing stations in locations where homeless residents tend to congregate.

Despite these efforts, the disease is spreading and many are asking what could have been done and what will effectively prevent future transmission.

According to Dr. Monique Foster of the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions division of viral hepatitis  in San Diego this past week for a national infectious disease conference  there is no national standard that outlines how every public agency should respond.

You cant have a checklist that says do x, y and z, because no outbreak is the same, Foster said following an impromptu session at the conference about San Diegos outbreak. The type of illness, the group of people its affecting and how its being spread are all factors that will impact how a government should respond and when the public should be notified.

For example, San Diegos problem looks similar to a hepatitis A outbreak in Michigan, where state health officials have confirmed at least 341 cases since August 2016. Of those, 268 people have been hospitalized and 14 died.

But Michigan and San Diego have different resources, Foster said. The underlying populations being affected are different and the laws in both areas are different.

This is why the CDC assists. We connect them with people who have answers, but we dont come in and take over, Foster said. The local governments and local health departments are the first in line because they know their needs better than we do.

The California Code of Regulations outlines reporting procedures for hepatitis A cases among a specific class of people, including day care workers, health care facilities and food handlers who are more likely to spread the liver disease to other people.

County health officials have been hesitant to release any additional information about where the cases are specifically concentrated, citing state and federal health privacy laws.

This information is gathered from confidential medical interviews and documents, Eric McDonald, director of the countys epidemiology and immunization services branch, said after presenting with Foster at the infectious disease conference. The publics need to know has to override the confidentiality of the infected individuals.

According to Dr. Oscar Alleyne, senior public health adviser to the National Association of County and City Health Officials, the Control of Communicable Diseases Manual is often referred to as the bible among health officials.

The American Public Health Association lists the book, which is now in its 20th edition, as a must-have sourcebook on identifying and controlling infectious diseases.

Alleyne said its the closest thing to a guidebook public officials have and has been an industry standard reference for more than 100 years.

According to the manual, prevention is key for hepatitis A, since the vaccine provides lifelong immunity. Data show since being added in 2006 to the recommended list of vaccinations for young children, the number of hepatitis A cases in the United States has decreased by 92 percent. Officials are instructed to control patients confirmed to have hepatitis A and quickly vaccinate those in immediate contact with infected individuals to increase the likelihood that the vaccine will be effective.

County epidemiologists identified the rash of hepatitis A cases in early March, and dated the infection to the previous November. From the outset, the priorities have been vaccination and education, in line with manual instructions.

Its easier said than done.

The normal method for preventing other people from getting sick gets thrown out the door when the community its infecting lives outside, Alleyne said. You have to know where they went, who they came in contact with...the likelihood of being able to capture everyone on that list is small.

In the event of an outbreak, public health officials should first determine how hepatitis is being spread, vaccinate the at-risk community and make special efforts to improve sanitary and hygienic practices to eliminate fecal contamination, the manual says.

By early summer the official focus shifted to sanitation  handwashing and street cleaning.

According to Dr. Jeffrey Engel, executive director of the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists, that might not be enough.

I can tell you that washing the door knobs is not going to do it, Engel said. This is more about human behavior than anything else.

Hepatitis A is more commonly transmitted through contaminated food. In 2003, 935 people in multiple states were infected by eating contaminated green onions at a restaurant. It was the largest outbreak since 1998, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. No one died.

Californias outbreak is the second largest and the spread cannot be contained by eliminating a contaminated food source.

Youre starting out with a very difficult patient population  probably the most challenging population we have, Engel said. They dont have any address, theyre hard to find and its a population thats associated with substance abuse and mental illness.

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Although the original deadline was missed, San Diegos Housing Our Heroes initiative has hit its goal of helping 1,000 homeless veterans secure rental housing.

Its fantastic news, Mayor Kevin Faulconer said. Were getting people housed and getting them off the street.

San Diego Housing Commission President and CEO Rick Gentry said Friday that 1,007 veterans had found secure housing under the initiative announced by Faulconer in March 2016, and 200 other veterans are in the pipeline for housing.

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The initiative was launched as one of several steps the city has taking recently to tackle the homeless population.

Three large industrial tent structures that will shelter about 250 homeless people each are planned to be installed by the end of the year, and on Monday a city-sanctioned homeless encampment will open to about 200 people in response to a hepatitis A outbreak that has left 17 people dead and afflicted more than 500.

While the goal for veterans has been reached and the original initiative completed, Faulconer and Gentry said the effort will continue and be expanded to include non-veterans.

Gentry said he expects an additional 1,000 homeless people to be housed within the next 15 months using the formula created by Housing Our Heroes.

Just how many homeless veterans are left in the city isnt clear. The annual count of homeless people taken in January found 1,054 homeless veterans in the county. Of those, 600 were sheltered and 454 were unsheltered. In all, the county had 9,116 homeless people, with 5,619 in San Diego.

The Housing Our Heroes initiative focused on just the city of San Diego and one area of National City and was launched before the most recent count was taken.

Jonathan Herrera, Faulconers senior adviser on homelessness coordination, estimated there still are about 500 homeless veterans in San Diego.

Theres still more work to do, Faulconer said.

When funding for the two-year, $12.5 million initiative was announced in March 2016, Faulconer said 1,000 veterans would be housed in a year. That goal took about 19 months to reach.

My goal was 1,000 people off the street, Faulconer said Friday. To hit it was incredibly rewarding, and it led to a program that can now be expanded.

Gentry took some responsible for missing the initial goal.

I got overly aggressive in how fast it would take, he said.

After the program was launched, Gentry said people were spinning their wheels for a few months, but learning important lessons.

The first important lesson involved helping homeless people use vouchers to find homes, Gentry said.

Of the $12.5 million initiative, $2.7 million was for Federal Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing vouchers to house 300 chronically homeless veterans, one of the original goals of the initiative.

Another $3.4 million was for federal housing vouchers with supportive services, including mental health counseling, substance abuse treatment and independent learning skills.

Gentry said people who apply for federal housing vouchers from the Housing Commission usually face a waiting list of seven to 10 years. By the time their vouchers are available, he said, the recipients are prepared to put them to use and already have found landlords willing to accept them.

The homeless are a different kind of customer, Gentry said. In many cases, they live a passive lifestyle. Giving them a voucher and expecting them to find a place to live in is not a good process.

By the summer of 2016, Gentry said he realized the effort was just not working. Using money from the initiative, he hired about six people as housing navigators  or real estate agents for the homeless, as he called them  to assist the people in putting their vouchers to use.

That was huge, he said, adding that the program began taking off with the hires.

The second lesson was to work with landlords and encourage them to accept vouchers for homeless people at a time when the vacancy rate in the city is 3.4 percent, Gentry said.

The initiative included $4.4 million for landlord outreach and had partnerships with the Regional Chamber of Commerce, the California Apartment Association and the San Diego County Apartment Association to reach landlords.

For incentives, landlords received $500 for the first units they rented to a homeless veteran and $250 for each additional unit. They also received an average of $1,500 in security deposits and $100 in utility assistance per household.

Faulconer said the incentive program weighed heavily in the programs success.

The private sector will step up and be engaged if you ask them, if you provide the right financial guarantees, Faulconer said.

It really bodes well for what were doing longer-term, he added about continuing the program. I cant say enough about the Apartment Association. This was a true public-private partnership, and it worked.

Faulconer also noted that of 437 landlords who participated in the program, 45 percent were new to accepting vouchers from the Housing Commission.

Jimmie Robinson, a landlord who rents out several houses, took in seven homeless veterans in the Housing Our Heroes initiative.

Robinson said the incentives were eye-catching, but were not the greatest motive for taking in homeless veterans.

When you get to meet them, the satisfaction of helping people turn their lives around was more important, he said. When you see somebody rebuilding their lives, thats what its become for me, more than than the incentives.

Robinson said the first veteran he took in was a recently divorced single mother of three who was living in her car after falling on hard times.

Veterans Community Services helped her return to school and find work, which led to her moving out after becoming self-sufficient, he said.

Watching her go to school, get a promotion and become stabilized, thats what got me more motivated about taking these people in, Robinson said.

While the bulk of the veterans were housed in rentals, some were placed in Hotel Chuchill, Alpha Square or Veterans Village of San Diego.

A press release from the mayors office quoted a man named Daniel as one of the veterans who stayed in Veterans Village but later found his own permanent housing.

I was in that program less than a month, and I got housed, said the 56-year-old Navy veteran. This is a new start for me, so it feels really good to have my own place again.

The initiative also included about $2 million in rental assistance through rapid-rehousing programs.

While that was less than the amount that went to vouchers and landlord outreach, rapid-rehousing funded housing for 55 percent of the veterans.

Rapid-rehousing provides rental assistance for an average of four to six months, but in some cases can cover rent for two years. Gentry said rapid-rehousing was used for veterans who needed the least assistance and were most likely to be able to be on their own faster than other people in the program who were considered more vulnerable.

But if someone still needs help, were not going to walk away and withdraw the subsidy, Gentry said, explaining that everybody in the program receives help to not fall back into homelessness.

Looking ahead, Gentry said the program will continue with lessons learned from the initiative, expanding things that worked and dropping things that did not.

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Even though overall arrival numbers in fiscal 2017 dropped by more than half from the previous year, San Diego County continued its legacy as the California county that took in the most refugees.

In a year that began with a promise of more refugees than ever before coming to the U.S. and ended with an ongoing court battle over how many and whom the president could block from coming, about 1,500 refugees resettled in San Diego County, according to data from the State Department. Thats down from just over 3,100 the year before, and its the only time that number has dipped below 2,000 in the last decade.

The fact that we remained the largest county, it definitely makes us proud to continue the tradition of San Diego being a safe haven, said Etleva Bejko, director of refugee and immigration services for Jewish Family Service, a resettlement agency.

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Where refugees resettle once the U.S. agrees to take them is a complicated decision-making process that factors in whether they already have family living here, which agencies have the capability to support them and which places have infrastructure to help them succeed. That often means that places that already have large populations of people from a country will continue to take refugees from that country.

San Diego County has been known for leading the state in refugee arrivals since large numbers of Iraqis fleeing war began arriving in late summer of 2007.

The president has the power to determine how many refugees will come to the U.S. each fiscal year. Former President Barack Obama set the cap at 110,000 at the beginning of fiscal 2017.

President Donald Trump reduced the number to 50,000, ordered a four-month halt to the refugee program and blocked people from certain countries from coming to the U.S. in his controversial travel ban.

As court challenges have altered, paused and restarted implementation of Trumps travel ban, refugee resettlement agencies have scrambled to keep up with changes.

Bejko said her organization has had to reorganize support efforts because of the overall decreases in arrivals. Resettlement agencies receive funding based on the number of refugees that they help.

Theyre now more dependent on private donations from the community, she said.

Three members of the Tarakji family, originally from Damascus, Syria, were some of the few who made it to the U.S. after the travel ban. The slowdown in accepting refugees has separated them from two other members of their family.

Catholic Charities resettled mother Alshifaa Hammoush, 52, father Manaf Tarakji, 58, and daughter Maria Tarakji, 21, in April. Two sons, Yasser Tarakji, 29, and Yaman Tarakji, 27, remain in Saudi Arabia.

They had already been trying to immigrate to the U.S. to reunite with their extended family in San Diego County when the war in Syria broke out. After bombing destroyed the pharmacy where Hammoush worked and scared off Manaf Tarakjis clients for his electronics repair business, and a car exploded outside their building, the family fled in 2013 to Saudi Arabia, where the oldest son was living and working.

Once in Saudi Arabia, they couldnt continue the process to get family-sponsored green cards.

They stayed there in limbo, unable to fully establish new lives because they were on visitor visas that they had to renew every three months, until they were accepted as refugees to the U.S. Yaman Tarakji was separated into his own refugee case because of his age, and he is still waiting for processing.

The oldest brother, Yasser Tarakji, also tried to apply but never heard back from the U.N. agency that registers refugees.

The family feels a mix of emotions about being here. They know that fewer refugees, especially Syrians, have been able to come this year.

We feel too happy, Manaf Tarakji said.

We feel special, Maria Tarakji added.

We were lucky to be able to come, Manaf Tarakji concluded.

Still, separation from the two sons is painful for all of them. Whenever Maria Tarakji looks at photos from their last day together in Saudi Arabia, her eyes wet with tears.

The U.S. was accepting refugees forever. Its unfair to do this now, Maria Tarakji said. Its really hard to live here, and our brother is not here.

She said shes had to take responsibility for tasks that her brothers used to handle, like choosing an Internet router. Both brothers work in computer programming and repair.

They rely on hope that they will be able to reunite, she said, but news of increasing restrictions on refugee resettlement makes hope difficult.

Its hard to start from zero wherever you go, Maria Tarakji said. If you have some family members not with you, its more difficult. This news and these orders, its really depressing us. It makes it harder.

Those who worry about how thoroughly refugees are vetted before coming to the U.S. were pleased that fewer came. They are still concerned that the ones who did resettle might threaten national security.

Jeff Schwilk, founder of San Diegans for Secure Borders and a leader of the Minutemen, a vigilante group that patrolled the southwest border with guns and was later the subject of several lawsuits, was troubled that more than 450 of the resettled refugees in San Diego came from Syria, Somalia and Iran  countries that are part of Trumps most recent travel ban.

If any one of these 450 new refugees have been radicalized or have terror group connections, that represents a huge threat to San Diego and our large and vital military presence in San Diego County, Schwilk said.

Ernie Griffes, who was part of a movement last year to get rid of Imperial Beachs label as a welcoming city because he feared it would bring unvetted refugees to his neighborhood, did not like that San Diego is still top county for resettlement.

As the numbers being taken in have been cut back to limits a couple years ago and vetting has been improved, we should be less concerned about terrorists coming in through refugees. But were not, Griffes said. The puzzlement is why so many are being dumped here in San Diego, one of the most expensive places to live in the nation and way short on adequate housing and work for people already here. What about putting them in lower-cost cities in Midwestern and Southern states? The weather is not as nice, but housing costs are much cheaper.

Robert Moser, executive director at Catholic Charities, another San Diego resettlement agency, said there are other costs associated with resettling someone that have to be considered.

Because funding to support refugees is based on the number of arrivals, Moser said, when there are fewer arrivals, agencies have to concentrate their resources at hubs like San Diego that can care for them.

We have the capacity in terms of the expertise, and then we do our best to get people jobs and live where they can afford to pay for the housing, Moser said.

When the agencies thought 110,000 refugees were coming, they had taken steps to open new locations to spread out resettlement, he said, but those plans were scrapped after the election.

Even with the dramatic decrease in arrivals, San Diego County took in more refugees in fiscal 2017 than many states did. If the county were a state, it would rank 15th nationally, behind Kentucky.

California received 5,160 refugees, more than any other state.

Los Angeles, the county that resettled the second highest number of refugees in California, took in 1,457 refugees last year, a 35 percent decrease from the previous years 2,255 refugees.

Mireille Cronin Mather, regional director for International Rescue Committee, a resettlement agency, said that the organizations Los Angeles office was less affected by the years changes to the refugee program because of the nationalities it tends to resettle.

Cronin Mather said that while her organization has had to lay off some staff to account for the funding changes, because of private donations and a reworked program, it has been able to expand support for those who do arrive.

She is worried what future years will mean for her organization and the refugees it helps. She is also concerned that the Trump administration may process fewer refugees than the new cap allows, leaving possible spots unfilled.

Trump set the cap for this fiscal year at 45,000, the lowest since the refugee program started in 1980.

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San Diego would get fewer new parks but existing parks would get more amenities under proposed policy changes that aim to accelerate construction of affordable housing.

City Councilman Scott Sherman, who has been spearheading efforts this year to address the citys housing crisis, is proposing to soften parks construction obligations that housing developers face.

Projects proposed near Balboa Park, Mission Bay Park or one of the citys other regional parks would begin getting credit for their proximity to those parks, which hasnt been part of the citys formula for determining developer obligations.

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RELATED: Faulconer unveiling reforms to spur affordable housing construction

Developers could also spend some of their required parks contributions on adding playgrounds or other amenities to an existing park nearby, instead of being limited to cash contributions toward future parks that might never get built.

And the definition of what qualifies as a park would be broadened to include childrens play areas, urban plazas, hiking trails, private parks and other recreational areas the city deems equivalent to a park.

The changes would stay in place until city officials complete in 2020 or 2021 a recently launched effort to revise the citys parks master plan for the first time in decades.

The revised master plan is also expected to spur housing construction by revising requirements downward and giving developers more certainty about what parks requirements they will face across the city.

Some local neighborhood leaders have raised concerns about Shermans proposals, ranging from simple frustration that San Diego would get fewer parks to complaints about how the fee breaks for developers would be calculated.

Others have called Shermans proposal a more realistic way to view the future of parks in much of San Diego, particularly the citys older urban neighborhoods where land needed for new parks is expensive and hard to find.

They say it makes sense to shrink the citys parks acreage requirements going forward because they are based on an outdated urban sprawl model San Diego was following when communities like Tierrasanta and San Carlos were built.

Sherman says the changes are crucial because they would make a small but important dent in the local housing shortage, while also helping upgrade existing parks in neighborhoods where parkland is scarce.

He said softening parks requirements in areas near regional parks or open space parks was long overdue.

Its mind-boggling and absolutely absurd, Sherman said. You can be at the beach developing something and they require a park even though Mission Bay Park is within a stones throw.

In addition to Balboa Park and Mission Bay Park, the areas affected would include Presidio Mission Hills Park, Sunset Cliffs Natural Park and Otay Valley Regional Park.

Sherman said its a real problem that housing developers have been paying high parks fees in those areas despite the presence of regional parks and open space.

Those fees go on to the cost-per-unit, and those fees arent just paid by the developer  they get passed on to the consumer and thats why we have a housing crisis, he said.

Some community leaders, particularly those near Balboa Park, have been critical of such proposals. They also want smaller parks to be built that are more personal to their neighborhood.

The proposal to allow developers to pay for amenities instead of contributing toward long-term parks construction is also crucial, Sherman said.

The city has about $400 million in such developer impact fees languishing in accounts with little chance of being spent any time soon, he said.

While those fees also cover construction of libraries, roads and fire stations, nearly 68 percent of the money is earmarked specifically for parks.

And the percentage is much higher in some communities, such as Otay Mesa at 88 percent, Mission Valley at 86 percent and Barrio Logan at 85 percent.

We have a whole bunch of money that sits stagnant in accounts for projects that may never be built, said Sherman. Lets get some amenities that benefit the public in place now.

David Moty, chairman of a group of neighborhood leaders from across the city called the Community Planners Commission, said that proposal seems reasonable.

But he also said the list of eligible amenities seems flawed, such as paying for storm water upgrades or solar panels in parks.

It might be commendable to do, but thats not recreation, Moty said. I cant go to the nearby park and tap dance on the solar panels.

Motys committee voted 18-4 last week against Shermans proposals, but said that opposition could morph into support with some changes.

Another key concern for the committee was how developer fee breaks for proximity to regional parks would be determined. They criticized the proposal as lacking standards and giving too much discretion to city planning staff.

Without standards, credit could vary wildly between projects, and possibly expose the mayor, City Council and staff to charges of favoritism or discrimination, the group wrote in a joint letter to Sherman.

The proposals are expected to be presented this fall to the citys Planning Commission, the City Councils Smart Growth and Land Use Committee and eventually to the full council for possible approval.

They are among more than a dozen proposed policy changes the city is considering to boost construction of affordable housing.

Other proposals include streamlined project approvals, bonuses for densely-built projects, lower parking requirements in transit areas and loosened regulations for granny flats and business owners living in their workplace.

david.garrick@sduniontribune.com (619) 269-8906 Twitter:@UTDavidGarrick
A woman who was dragged roughly 15 feet by a mid-size SUV in East Village has died, and San Diego police are searching for the driver.

Tonia Marie Schmidt, 46, and a male companion walked up to the front passenger side of a Ford Escape that was stopped in the northbound lane of 15th Street near Island Avenue about 7:10 a.m. Monday, authorities said.

As the driver and Schmidt talked, she reached into the red, newer-model SUV, police said. For unknown reasons, the driver sped off, dragging Schmidt about 15 feet before she fell and landed on her head.

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The driver kept going north on 15th Street.

Schmidt was taken to a hospital, where she died of a head injury Tuesday, police said.

The driver was described only as a white man, in his 60s, with white hair and a full, trimmed beard. His Escape has a California license plate number similar to 7WGO798, police said.

Anyone with information was asked to call the San Diego police traffic unit at (858) 495-7808 or the Crime Stoppers anonymous tip line at (888) 580-8477.

Breaking News

Email: david.hernandez@sduniontribune.com

Phone: (619) 293-1876

Twitter: @D4VIDHernandez
Imagine a substance so potent that a few specks  the size of a few granules of table salt  can kill you.

If you didnt think the stakes could get any deadlier in the emerging fentanyl crisis, it has. And its here.

Carfentanil is 100 times stronger than the synthetic opioid fentanyl and is typically used to sedate massive animals like elephants. As fentanyl seizures surge at the U.S.-Mexico border and the deaths blamed on fentanyl overdoses reach new highs, authorities in San Diego are alarmed they have begun to see its more potent cousin.

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Theres no question this is an epidemic with legs, and its sprinting, said Acting U.S. Attorney Alana Robinson, who hosted a news conference downtown along with several local and federal law enforcement partners Friday. This is not going to slow down.

In one case, authorities in June searched the Clairemont home of a San Diego man accused of trafficking various drugs through the U.S. mail. In the bathroom investigators found a small baggie of 1.77 grams of carfentanil  enough doses to kill 86,000 people, according to a Postal Service inspector.

The emergence of carfentanil in the illicit market tests the limits of how far drug traffickers will take a new drug craze. In September, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration issued a public warning about carfentanil as it started surfacing in communities.

We see it on the streets, often disguised as heroin, DEA Acting Administrator Chuck Rosenberg said in the memo. It is crazy dangerous.

The attraction to selling such dangerous drugs as fentanyl and carfentanil is in the profits. One kilogram of fentanyl costs $32,000 but can be turned into 1 million pills. At $20 a pop, thats worth $20 million to traffickers.

On the other hand, heroin costs three times more to produce than fentanyl, said David Shaw, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations in San Diego.

Whats perhaps most alarming is that most users dont realize they are ingesting fentanyl. The substance is most often laced into cheap counterfeit oxycodone pills, along with other chemicals.

They think they are getting one thing, when in fact what they are putting into their system is a deadly poison, said Robinson.

And theres really no way for the user to know, experts warn, as drug labs in Mexico can frequently create very convincing look-alikes.

If you end up with a tainted dose, youre done, Robinson said. You leave behind your children, you leave behind your family, you leave behind your spouse.

Authorities analyzed one pill recovered at the scene of a fatal overdose in Imperial Beach in April that killed a 34-year-old man. The single pill contained 20 ingredients, including fentanyl, methamphetamine, cocaine, lidocaine, caffeine and other chemicals.

Agents in San Diego and Imperial counties have seized more than 20,000 counterfeit oxycodone pills this year, authorities said.

The fentanyl trend grew out of the painkiller addiction epidemic. As prescription painkillers proliferated in homes, patients who became hooked  or their children  turned to cheaper, street-available heroin to feed their habit. Counterfeit pills, often mixed with cheap fentanyl, have now flooded the marketplace.

This addiction takes all the logic out of peoples thinking, Robinson said of why addicts take such risks. All theyre thinking about is getting the next high, theyre not realizing theyre probably going to kill themselves.

The deaths have piled up as a result.

The county Medical Examiners Office has been at the forefront of tracking the epidemic through overdose deaths, using sophisticated technology to test for the presence of fentanyl. It has confirmed 40 deaths related to fentanyl so far this year and is waiting to confirm 11 more. Last year there were 33.

An additional two deaths this year are attributed to carfentanil.

It is a trend mirrored nationwide.

Investigators have identified a few trafficking routes feeding the U.S. fentanyl supply  including one that hits especially close to home.

More than 75 percent of the fentanyl coming through the southwestern border is being smuggled through ports of entry in San Diego and Imperial counties, authorities said.

The amount of fentanyl seized at the border locally has surged, from 30 kilograms in six seizures in fiscal 2015 to 480 kilograms in 54 seizures this year.

CBP officers have recently taken extra measures to handle the influx, including training drug-detecting dogs on the scent, introducing new kits to test for the drug in the field and beefing up personal protection to avoid direct contact with the substance. Just contact on skin can be fatal.

The dark web is another portal.

In the Clairemont case, Sky Gornik, 37, is accused of mass orders of gel tablets containing fentanyl and meth  600 each week for the past two years  from a person in Oklahoma, who got the fentanyl from China. The alleged dealer is being prosecuted in Oklahoma and is accused of making the tablets himself, mixing the drugs with gelatin. The search of Gorniks house also turned up ketamine and other unidentified substances.

In another recent case, a former Border Patrol agent is being prosecuted for his alleged part in a ring that trafficked 4ANPP, the precursor chemical used to make fentanyl. The ingredient was mailed from China to San Ysidro to be smuggled into Mexico, where drug trafficking organizations manufacture fentanyl, according to prosecutors. The final drug is then smuggled back into the U.S. for distribution.

Cesar Daleo, 47, of San Diego, who worked as an agent here from 1992 to 2003, was arrested Aug. 28 after picking up a 4ANPP delivery from a post office box and trying to drive it across the border, according to the complaint. The package had already been intercepted in Los Angeles, and investigators replaced the chemical with a harmless substance and sent the package to its destination to see who would retrieve it. The 1 kilogram of 4ANPP inside was enough to make 25 kilograms of fentanyl.

Daleo admitted to 13 previous pickups, the complaint states.

The District Attorneys Office is also ramping up prosecution efforts, including charging an alleged drug dealer with murder in connection with the fentanyl overdose death of a 26-year-old man.

We are going to view these overdoses as an investigation for homicide. And we dont want anyone to claim ignorance, that they dont understand, Interim District Attorney Summer Stephan warned.

She added: Too many bodies in the morgue.

For help

Anyone struggling with drug addiction, suicide prevention, alcohol abuse or mental health problems can contact the San Diego County crisis hotline at (888) 724-7240. It is open 24/7.

kristina.davis@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @kristinadavis
After a yearlong pilot program, the San Diego Police Department has decided to stick with a gunshot detection system that automatically informs officers of shootings, even if no one calls them in.

ShotSpotter, which uses a network of audio sensors to determine where and when shootings take place, was installed in four San Diego communities in November 2016  Lincoln Park, Valencia Park, OFarrell and Skyline.

Police leaders said the system has allowed officers to respond more quickly to shootings and has provided information that helps officers stay safe. In its first year, the system cost $254,000, paid for with asset forfeiture funds. It is expected to cost $235,300 in its second year.

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Once sensors pick up the sound of gunfire, the noise is sent to a review center in Newark, Calif., where a trained professional determines if it is a shooting. If it is, information about the incident is sent directly to officers in the field, including a precise location, whether there was more than one shooter and whether the gun used was semi-automatic or automatic.

The technology is used in more than 90 cities worldwide, including New York, Milwaukee and Miami.

Police leaders said the system enables officers to respond to shootings they may not have known about otherwise. Out of 131 instances of gunfire detected by the system, only 23 percent were also reported by community members.

San Diego police Capt. Terence Charlot told a city public safety committee Wednesday that the system helped the department provide improved and efficient response to potentially violent instances of gunfire in the community.

But some residents who have long been critical of the system voiced concern about the technology, saying it may lead to over-policing in communities of color and arguing that it hasnt been particularly effective in catching criminals or solving crimes.

They also said the system was installed with little to no community input.

This does not connect you to community in a way that builds trust, said community member Tasha Williamson. This had no community buy-in before it was implemented and extremely little to continue.

Police officials said they started giving regular updates about ShotSpotter data at neighborhood meetings and that the feedback theyve received has been largely positive.

Charlot said officers found evidence of a shooting at 21 of the 131 incidents picked up by ShotSpotter last year. In the other cases, no evidence  such as bullets, casings or victims  was recovered.

In two of the 21 cases, people were injured and those shootings were reported by community members, police said. Several other cases that involved property damage were also reported by residents.

Police said although they didnt make arrests in most cases, they found evidence that may prove to be helpful in future investigations.

Department officials said the system helped officers get to shooting scenes faster than when they are dispatched to a scene after a 911 call.

Calls reporting gun crimes are some of the most urgent that offers respond to, and are often labeled emergency or Priority One.

Charlot said it takes seven minutes, on average, for an officer to response to an emergency call. It takes about 11.5 minutes to respond to a Priority One call.

On average, it takes officers 4.5 minutes to get to a shooting picked up by ShotSpotter.

Several members of the public spoke out against the technology on Wednesday, some of whom took issue with the communities that were chosen, saying the system could lead to over-policing of communities with large minority populations.

Police officials said they chose those neighborhoods after researching which San Diego areas experienced a high percentage of gun crimes. The communities selected were high on the list and close to each other.

Some suggested a better use of the money would be to invest in programs that bring officers and community members together.

Bishop Cornelius Bowser has long argued ShotSpotter isnt the way to do that. Bowser partnered with the department to combat gang violence nearly a decade ago, and he helped shape the Community Assistance Support Team to stop retaliatory gang violence.

Law enforcement needs to put more time, effort and resources into building public trust and legitimacy in the community, he said.

Police leaders have said that not all programs qualify for asset forfeiture funds.

The Rev. Gerald Brown said Wednesday that despite his early skepticism, he grew to support the technology as he learned more about how it worked.

When theres a shooting, we want (officers) there , said Brown, who is executive director of the United African American Ministerial Action Council, a consortium of black minsters. If theyre able to respond much quicker, then thats what we want in our community and in our city.

Twitter: @LAWinkley

(619) 293-1546

lyndsay.winkley@sduniontribune.com
A 27-year-old woman was taken to a hospital with serious wounds early Saturday after she was stabbed with a knife several times during an argument with a fellow transient in a tent along 19th Street near Imperial Avenue in Sherman Heights.

San Diego police are looking for man described as white or Hispanic in his 30s, 5 feet 10 inches tall, with a thin build, wearing a dark tank-top, dark shorts, a black hat and a camouflaged backpack, a sergeant said.

The incident was reported at 1:12 a.m., according to police. The womans injuries were not believed to be life-threatening.

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philip.diehl@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @phildiehl
Jeff Remmel, a lifelong UC San Diego professor known for his tireless nurturing of students and his insights about some of the most arcane areas of mathematics, died unexpectedly on Sept. 29 in La Jolla. He was 68.

The university said that Remmel  a man who preferred to climb stairways rather than ride elevators  passed away of a heart attack at Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla.

His death has produced a sense of shock in the universitys Division of Physical Sciences, where Remmel was forever roaming the Department of Mathematics, looking for opportunities to empower students.

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(He) would work overnight to help us do something that was (not) even his business, said Dun Qui, one of Remmels doctoral students. He tried his best to let students do what they most liked, and he was so powerful that he could give advice in almost all the areas in math.

Remmel worked broadly across the mind-bending landscape of mathematics, studying everything from shuffle conjectures to tableaux theory. But he was best known for his research on combinatorics, the study of patterns.

One typical example is the so-called party problem, said Fan Chung Graham, one of Remmels fellow math professors at UC San Diego.

Among six people there are always three people who know each other, or all (who) dont know each other. It can also be described as `finding order in chaos in the sense that in an arbitrary large set of objects, some fixed pattern emerge(s).

Remmel had an enduring passion for mathematics and, later, computer science.

He earned a doctorate in math at Cornell in 1974 and later joined the faculty at UC San Diego, when the campus was less than 15 years old. He rose through through the ranks, becoming a full professor. Remmel also served as chair of the math department from 1998 to 2002, and he was associate dean of Physical Sciences from 2000 to 2016.

He became deeply involved in promoting STEM education programs, including the Science and Math Teacher Initiative (CalTeach).

Most of all, Remmel was known for the way he made people feel about themselves.

Janine Tiefenbruck, one of his former doctoral students, recalls meeting Remmel and wondering if I was sufficiently qualified to work with a well-respected professor in an area that I had just started studying, and I left feeling completely encouraged by his confidence in me and all that we might discover over the next few years.

His continued unwavering confidence in me was a major factor in my ability to complete my degree.

Remmel also was remembered for being humble and fair.

I remember one time a group of us were discussing curriculum and he and I got into a heated debate about the significance of a particular mathematical concept, said Sherry Seethaler, who directs education initiatives in Physical Sciences.

There were some raised eyebrows in the room because he was a famous math guy and I am not a mathematician. But instead of pulling rank, he heard me out. And, in the end, we both ended up modifying our positions and finding agreement. That is the kind of person he was.

Mark Thiemens, a UC San Diego chemist, said, Jeff was a magnificent mathematician and scholar, teacher-mentor, creator of new academic programs and administrator. He did it all.

The university said that Remmel is survived by his wife Paula, his son Christopher Remmel, and his daughter Saramaria Remmel.

The family asks that friends make a donation to the Jeffrey Remmel Memorial Fund in the Department of Mathematics. Donations can be made online at https://giveto.ucsd.edu/.

Science Playlist  On Now In a first, scientists rid human embryos of a potentially fatal gene mutation by editing their DNA On Now Space station flyovers visible from San Diego this week 0:55 On Now UCSD's 'ghost drivers' begin testing people's reaction seemingly empty cars 1:29 On Now 10 interesting facts about Mars On Now Kids can add years to your life On Now LA 90: SpaceX launches recycled rocket On Now Big passions, big giving: Malin Burnham 2:30 On Now Big passions, big giving: Darlene Shiley 2:40 On Now Big passions, big giving: Joan and Irwin Jacobs 2:45 On Now Ocean temperatures warming at rapid rate, study finds

Twitter: @grobbins

gary.robbins@sduniontribune.com
Now, as the weather begins to cool and signs of autumn abound  enticing us to get outdoors with family and friends  we share the top picks for fall fun in southwest Riverside County, suitable for ages from 9 months to 90 years.

Big Horse Corn Maze & Harvest Festival

The list of family-friendly activities at the Big Horse Corn Maze & Harvest Festival are almost as extensive as the maze that gives the festival its name. Check out or participate in pig races, pie eating contests, pony rides, face painting, corn cannons, gem mining, pumpkin bowling, pillow jumps, duck races, bean bag toss, hula hoop contests and, of course, the largest walk-through corn maze in Southern California. Although the maze is open during the week, listed activities are planned only on weekends.

When: Through Oct. 30. Tuesday through Friday, 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

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Where: Big Horse Feed & Mercantile, 33320 Temecula Parkway, Temecula

Cost: $9 for the maze; $15 for the maze plus three activities (free maze admission for ages 2 and younger)

Phone: (951) 389-4621

Online: bighorsecornmaze.com

Eternally Yours exhibit

Immerse yourself in the colorful traditions of the Dia de los Muertos holiday. This seasonal exhibit demonstrates the traditional cultural celebration of life through a joyous remembrance of deceased loved ones, illustrated with paintings and sculptures by artist Lisa Cabrera. Also on exhibit at the museum is A Celebration of Souls, featuring the colorful traditions of the Dia de los Muertos holiday with photos that capture the celebrations in and around Oaxaca, Mexico.

When: View both exhibitions through Nov. 12. The museum is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.; closed Mondays.

Where: Temecula Valley Museum, 28314 Mercedes Street, Temecula, CA 92590

Cost: $5 per person or $10 per family

Phone: (951) 694-6450

Online: temeculavalleymuseum.org

Dia de los Muertos bus tour

The Temecula Valley Museum has been devising ways to add greater depth to, and increase learning opportunities around, the museums exhibits. One such effort is this museum-hosted, Day of the Dead-infused excursion that coincides with the exhibit, Eternally Yours: The Art of Lisa Cabrera. The trip includes a guided tour of the Whaley House museum, lunch at Cafe Coyote and time to explore Old Town San Diego to see the altars in honor of Dia de los Muertos.

When: Nov. 1, departure time is at 8:30 a.m.

Where: From Old Town Temecula, to Old Town San Diego, and back.

Cost: $65 (includes lunch and round-trip bus fare)

Phone: RSVP required to (951) 694-6450; space is limited.

Online: temeculavalleymuseum.org

The Great Pumpkin Patch Express

Yearning for a return to The Most Sincere Pumpkin Patch? Take heart! The Great Pumpkin Patch Express is returning to Perris with favorite Peanuts characters: Charlie Brown, Lucy and Snoopy. Family friendly activities include a kids concert, hayrides, face painting, pumpkin decorating, a bounce house, vintage trolley rides and more.

When: Oct. 14, 15, 21, 22, 28, 29. Trains depart the museum depot at 1 a.m., noon, 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.

Where: Orange Empire Railway Museum, 2201 S A St., Perris

Cost: $15 for ages 2 to 11; $25 for adults

Phone: (951) 943- 3020

Online: oerm.org

temecula@sduniontribune.com
California is making major improvements in public education to ensure that all 6.2 million students in our diverse state have the support they need to be successful in college, careers, and life.

These changes include a new, equity-focused funding system; a new school accountability system that has dramatically improved data transparency, making disparities impossible to ignore; new, challenging K-12 learning standards; and a new state-of-the-art online testing system.

Related: School funding change: Promise of law still not fulfilled

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This overhaul is still in the early stages, and statewide test scores released last month point to how much work remains to ensure that all students are meeting our new standards. Yet on other indicators, California is already seeing promising signs of improved student outcomes:

Californias high school graduation rate is at a historic high, and gaps between the graduation rates of student groups are narrowing.

Californias suspension rate is at an all-time low and has decreased for all student groups.

The percentage of students graduating who are eligible for admittance to a University of California or California State University is at a record high, with the eligibility rates of Latinos and African-American students growing at the fastest clip.

More students are demonstrating college readiness by taking rigorous Advanced Placement (AP) and Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) exams. More students are also passing their AP exams with scores of 3 out of 5, qualifying them for college credits.

Californias Local Control Funding Formula  or LCFF  is a key policy behind this public education reboot. When fully funded, LCFF will provide an extra $10.1 billion annually to school districts serving students who need extra support  English language learners, low-income students and foster youth.

Across California, districts are using LCFF funds to lower K-3 class sizes, improve the culture and climate of schools, and restore programs and positions cut during the recession. As a result, schools have more teachers, tutors, counselors, librarians, nurses, psychologists, custodians and support staff. Funds are also being used to train teachers in our new learning standards.

In addition to the increased funding, LCFF has empowered local communities to join in district decision-making through the development of district Local Control and Accountability Plans. The state continues to work with districts and schools to ensure authentic engagement and the transparent data-sharing in this process.

The benefits of extra funding and local decision-making are evident at San Diego Unified School District, which now has the highest graduation rate of any big-city district in California. Latino students in San Diego have some of the highest graduation rates in the state and African-American students are now graduating at 87.4 percent. English learner students saw an 8 point rise in their graduation rates  the highest of any student group in San Diego.

Californias massive education overhaul is not finished. Later this fall, we will officially launch the online California School Dashboard, which pushes school data transparency and access to a new level. The Dashboards color-coded indicators show  at a glance  how well a school is performing on such quality indicators as graduation rates, suspension rates, test scores, chronic absenteeism rates, English learner progress, and college and career readiness. School communities will use the Dashboard to pinpoint disparities and align LCFF funds with people and positions to address them.

Also later this fall, districts that are struggling to improve the performance of student groups  racial and ethnic groups, students with disabilities, English language learners, low-income students and foster youth  will be identified for targeted assistance. Districts that do not improve will face state intervention.

Altering an educational system with more than 1,000 districts and another 800-plus charter schools will take much more work. The system being phased out was built over 40 years by well-meaning people who believed that sanction and punish accountability, top-down mandates from Sacramento and categorical funding  money earmarked for special uses  would drive improved outcomes for students. It didnt.

Still, there are those who think California ought to add layers of red tape and bureaucracy to our new system  even before its fully implemented. All of us who have worked so hard to disrupt the status quo understand the need for urgency. But we also know that for change to last, we need to continue pushing our progress forward with patience, persistence and humility.

Torlakson is state superintendent of public instruction. Kirst is president of the California Board of Education.
Four years ago, the Local Control Funding Formula became law, fundamentally changing the way California funds school districts. It was supposed to usher in a new era giving more power and autonomy to districts, streamlining funding and  most importantly  leveling the playing field for students whom we often leave behind.

Specifically, the law provides school districts with more money to support low-income students, foster youth and English learners. While the American Civil Liberties Union believes the intended changes are critical, much of the laws promise is still to be fulfilled.

Related: New funding system making a difference for California schools

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Indeed, this promise cannot be realized without real funding for students, local school districts commitment to properly use those funds, and accountability and oversight.

We have documented millions of dollars intended for high-need students spent without transparency and without meaningful community input. By failing to spend those funds to support these students, some school districts are perpetuating the racial, social and economic injustices that have riddled our education system.

For example, the ACLU filed a complaint in December targeting the Fresno Unified School Districts spending plan. The plan would have spent millions of dollars intended for these students to maintain custodial staff, to pay for hand dryers and soap dispensers and to create a campaign to keep bathrooms clean. The district also attempted to spend $440,000 to pay for police officers, crossing guards and to expand a system that identified gunshots in the neighborhood. In May 2017, the California Department of Education ordered the district to revise and resubmit its plan.

More recently, Public Advocates filed a complaint against the Los Angeles County Office of Education for approving Long Beach Unified School Districts deficient plan. Long Beach attempted to justify over $40 million in spending for districtwide textbook and technology expenditures and districtwide employee salaries and benefits. The county ultimately found some $24 million should not have counted in spending for high-need students.

The ACLU, Public Advocates and Covington & Burling also filed a lawsuit against the Los Angeles Unified School District for double-counting existing expenditures for students with disabilities as spending for low-income students, foster youth and English learners. The California Department of Education rejected the districts attempt and ordered it to stop the improper practice. We recently settled the lawsuit and the district agreed to provide over $150 million in new services for high-need students over three years. Through this victory, we should see real funds aimed at achieving greater equity and racial justice.

These examples reveal troubling shortcomings in the implementation of the law.

First, both county offices of education and state agencies failed to hold school districts accountable. Local control should not mean less accountability but beyond these three examples, the California Department of Education has not  to our knowledge  directly intervened in any other instances, nor has a county office of education rejected a districts spending plan. With more than 1,000 school districts, the state cannot abdicate its obligation and depend on a handful of civil rights groups filing complaints.

Accountability means more than just monitoring districts spending. State agencies and county offices of education must ensure that districts provide quality services, robust and holistic student support systems and substantial improvements in student achievement.

Second, although the law promotes funding equity for school districts, schools still do not receive enough total funding. Some districts circumvent the law and use the money on operating expenses, textbooks, staff salaries and facility repairs. Its an unacceptable shell game.

California is the largest economy in the U.S. but ranks 41st out of 50 states in per student spending. We must prioritize our children and better fund schools so that all students have an excellent education.

Third, there is a fundamental lack of understanding about the law at every level. This lack of awareness has resulted in districts improperly spending millions of dollars and thus eroding stakeholder engagement. Parents, in particular, report feeling left out of the process. They feel ignored by officials and confused by complex spending plans.

The law can improve education for our students, but not without more funding, more accountability and more transparency. We must all demand more to ensure that students succeed. Our students, particularly those who need the most help, certainly deserve better.

Chavez-Peterson is executive director of the ACLU of San Diego and Imperial Counties. Torres-Guillen is director of education equity for ACLU of California
The still-stunning decision by University of California President Janet Napolitano to interfere with a state audit  by removing and weakening criticism of her offices performance from individual UC campuses  has gotten the harsh rebuke it deserves. It came in the form of Assembly Bill 562, which Gov. Jerry Brown signed this week. Under the new law, a state agencys decision to interfere with, impede or obstruct a state audit requested by the Legislature or required by statute is now a misdemeanor crime with a fine of up to $5,000.

How Napolitano thought her behavior was acceptable in this matter remains incomprehensible. As part of state Auditor Elaine Howles review of Napolitanos office and its finances, Howles staff sent campus officials a survey  one that was supposed to be confidential  asking them to evaluate services provided by the presidents office. But before the surveys were returned to the auditor, they were in several cases revised to make responses more favorable to Napolitano and her aides. Yet at a May 2 meeting of a joint legislative oversight committee, Napolitano asserted the changes were made not to make her look better but to make the responses accurate. An egregious change involving UC San Diegos survey shows the absurdity of this claim: The response to a question about the presidents offices transparency and budget process was changed from dissatisfied to satisfied.

The University of Californias resistance to meaningful oversight  even on basics such as how it spends public funds  has been a problem for years, long preceding Napolitanos hiring as president in 2013. Given that UCs independence is guaranteed in Californias Constitution, this may not change any time soon. But at least theres now a state law that makes clear this independence doesnt extend to sabotaging official state audits.

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Twitter: @sdutIdeas

Facebook: San Diego Union-Tribune Ideas & Opinion
Gov. Jerry Browns bold $17 billion plan to build two gigantic 35-mile, 40-foot-wide tunnels under the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to make it easier to move water from Northern California to Southern California and to stabilize the states water distribution system always seemed like a tough sell. Critics were far more energized than supporters. Then last month, a huge new obstacle emerged. Thats when the Central Valleys Westlands Water District  the nations biggest irrigation district  came out against the project. It had been expected to pay nearly a quarter of the $17 billion cost.

But after a scathing report from state Auditor Elaine Howle was released Thursday, the project may be doomed. Among the audits harsh findings:

Even as Brown aggressively lobbies for the project, the state Department of Water Resources has not completed either an economic or a financial analysis to demonstrate the financial viability of WaterFix  the Brown administrations name for the tunnels plan. In a state government with a recent history of huge cost overruns on rebuilding the Bay Bridge and building the states high-speed rail project, this is an immense problem.

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There are warning signs that the water agency is not prepared for the transition of WaterFix to the design and construction phase. The audit questioned whether the projects governance structure was up to the challenges ahead and cited incomplete work on crucial management documents.

The water agency ignored state law when it replaced the program manager for the conservation and conveyance program ... without advertising a request for qualifications. There is no evidence that water officials ever actually evaluated the qualifications of the new manager, the Hallmark Group, to handle its responsibilities.

The state audit suggested a way forward for the project  starting with completing both the economic analysis and financial analysis for WaterFix and [making] them publicly available as soon as possible. But the audits suggestions feel perfunctory  window-dressing so that Howles office can claim to have constructive intent. Its impossible to read a lengthy analysis questioning the actions of the state Department of Water Resources and then buy any suggestion that years of poor decisions can be readily fixed.

The audit was provided to the state before its release so the water agency could respond. The agency strongly disagreed with some conclusions  especially related to the hiring of the Hallmark Group  but didnt make a strong case against Howles broader findings and recommendations.

Yet even though the governor must have been aware of the audits harsh criticism for weeks, he appears to still think he has a credible, worthwhile plan to sell. On Thursday, Brown personally lobbied some board members of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California in advance of MWDs crucial Oct. 10 vote on whether to support WaterFix.

But if the governors plan dies  as seems likely unless he effectively addresses Howles concerns  state leaders still must address crucial water issues. At the least, theres an urgent need to improve the health of the heavily stressed Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, given that it supplies the water used by 25 million state residents and much of Californias huge farming industry.

A good starting point may be heeding the suggestions of three prominent 2018 Democratic candidates for governor. In interviews with the Los Angeles Times, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa both suggested more modest approaches to addressing the deltas health and to shoring up water supplies. Newsom and state Treasurer John Chiang also appeared skeptical of the idea that massive tunnels would help, not hurt, the deltas fragile and precarious ecosystem.

There will be many pressing state matters for gubernatorial candidates to address in the 13-plus months until Californians elect Browns successor. Plenty will involve flashier issues  but few if any of these issues affect more residents than ensuring reliable supplies of clean water.
Every semester in the mass media class I teach at Palomar College, I ask the students to chart their media use over two days. The findings are the same each semester: The students, almost all between the ages of 18 and 21, overwhelmingly use social media. In fact, except for a few students here and there, they use social media exclusively. No TV outside of streamed shows, no over-the-air radio, and no print of any kind.

Thats just the way they use media, no big deal, you might say. But, indeed it is a big deal because of the prevalence of fake news spread to millions through social media.

Last week we saw some of the worst of it. Absurd stories that misidentified the Las Vegas shooter and said he was a left-wing liberal or he was connected to Muslim terrorists appeared on Facebook and Google. A YouTube video made the case that the shooting was phony  a government hoax.

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Coincidentally, the second part of a campaign was launched last week by the News Media Alliance to raise the awareness of how vital real news is to a democracy. Thats real news produced by trusted news organizations and their professional, trained journalists. The alliance is a nonprofit based in Arlington, Va. It represents nearly 2,000 news organizations in the United States. Members include print, digital and mobile publishers of original news content. The first phase of the effort began in March.

Fake news  actual fake news  disseminated through social media came into the national spotlight during the presidential election. We continue to hear about it today with revelations of how Russians used social media in a quest to undermine the U.S. political system and divide the electorate.

I define fake news as fabricated, untrue stories meant to deceive. Readers who responded to a recent Readers Rep column in which I asked for their definition generally agreed. Fake news is not a story a reader dislikes, nor a story he doesnt believe should be on the front page.

One extreme example of fake news during the election was the ridiculous tale that Hillary Clinton and her campaign chairman, John Podesta, had run a child sex ring in the basement of a pizza parlor in Washington, D.C. A laughable story, but on Dec. 4, 2016, a man named Edgar Welch, spurred by the yarn, shot at the restaurant.

What I find particularly unsettling is that so many people rely on social media, the main conduit for fake news, as their source for current events. A poll in September by Morning Consult for the News Media Alliance found that 41 percent of people use social media for their news.

I believe it is essential for readers to know the sources of their news, and I think the top sources are established media that hire experienced journalists who adhere to a code of ethics and are accountable for inaccuracies.

Former San Diego Councilwoman Donna Frye is a big supporter of established news organizations. The mainstream press has a history behind it, said Frye, who remains involved in open-government efforts. Professionals are behind it, and people are held to higher standards. Theyre accountable, as opposed to an individual spouting out stories. ... Good luck finding anyone to retract or correct, or even care.

She added that mainstream media today have the added responsibility of stopping the spread of misinformation, which takes us back to the News Media Alliance campaign.

The first phase of the campaign set the stage on which to build an ongoing series about what we do as an industry and why it is valuable, alliance President and CEO David Chavern said in a news release. This next phase incorporates other associations and journalism schools to focus on the need for news literacy and will build with new messages being rolled out over the course of the next three months.

Groups involved in the latest campaign include: tronc, owner of the Union-Tribune; Center for Public Integrity; International Consortium of Investigative Journalists; Newseum Institute; Southern Newspaper Publishers Association; Stony Brook University School of Journalism, Center for News Literacy; University of Washington; and Washington State University Edward R. Murrow College of Communication.

The alliance is using digital, social and print to promote the campaign. A web page  newsmediaalliance.org/isitrealnews  provides readers a list of programs, articles, tips and other resources on evaluating news for authenticity.

More information is available at newsmediaalliance.org/supportrealnews.
Californias latest move to both fight for immigrants in the state and against the Trump administration is making waves across the country and has garnered more than one harsh response from the administration.

Gov. Jerry Brown signed so-called sanctuary state legislation  referred to as the California Values Act  on Thursday, which limits coordination between local and state law enforcement and federal immigration officials.

These are uncertain times for undocumented Californians and their families, and this bill strikes a balance that will protect public safety, while bringing a measure of comfort to those families who are now living in fear every day, Brown said in statement.

Here are four key things to know about it the California Values Act.

What does the bill do?

Senate Bill 54, introduced by Sen. Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles, expands protections for unauthorized immigrants in California.

Starting on Jan. 1, it essentially keeps local officials from asking people about their immigration status during routine interactions and limits their work with federal immigration agents.

Federal immigration authorities can keep working with state corrections officials and continue entering county jails to question immigrants, according to The Los Angeles Times. Only immigrants who have been convicted of certain crimes  mostly felonies and misdemeanors that can be charged as felonies, but not minor offenses  will be transferred to immigration authorities.

This bill does not prevent or prohibit Immigration and Customs Enforcement or the Department of Homeland Security from doing their own work in any way, Brown said in a rare signing message. They are free to use their own considerable resources to enforce federal immigration law in California.

Why does California want the legislation?

Californias local law enforcement cannot be commandeered and used by the Trump administration to tear families apart, undermine our safety, and wreak havoc on our economy, said de Leon of the motivation behind the bill. California is building a wall of justice against President Trumps xenophobic, racist and ignorant immigration policies.

California is home to an estimated 2.3 million unauthorized immigrants.

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said he stands ready to fully defend the law.

California is determined to utilize all the talent and energy that have made us the economic engine for the country and the sixth-largest standalone economy in the world, Becerra said Thursday.

How is Trumps administration responding?

Attorney General Jeff Sessions has been a vocal opponent of Californias attempts to become a so-called sanctuary state.

In a speech in Portland, Oregon, last month, he called this legislation unconscionable.

The bill risks the safety of good law enforcement officers and the safety of the neighborhoods that need their protection the most, he said, calling on Brown not to sign the bill. There are lives and livelihoods at stake.

He added that the Department of Justice will not concede a single block or street corner in the United States to lawlessness or crime.

The state of California has now codified a commitment to returning criminal aliens back onto our streets, which undermines public safety, national security and law enforcement, Department of Justice spokesman Devin OMalley said in a statement on Thursday.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) acting director Tom Homan ripped the governor on Friday.

He threatened more arrests and said the bill will undermine public safety and hinder ICE from performing its federally mandated mission.

ICE will have no choice but to conduct at-large arrests in local neighborhoods and at work sites, which will inevitably result in additional collateral arrests, instead of focusing on arrests at jails and prisons where transfers are safer for ICE officers and the community, he said. ICE will also likely have to detain individuals arrested in California in detention facilities outside of the state, far from any family they may have in California.

What has Trump said about this?

Asked about the decision by Gov. Brown on Thursday, White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Trumps administration is spending every day trying to find a path forward on immigration.

The president will be laying out his responsible immigration plan over the next week, she said. And I hope that California will push back on their governor's, I think, irresponsible decision moving forward.

Read the full bill here.

Email: abby.hamblin@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @abbyhamblin
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Every star once had a stomping ground. For diehard fans, a celebritys hometown can serve as a cultural mecca: John Waynes Winterset, Iowa; Jimmy Stewarts Indiana, Pennsylvania; Jack Nicholsons Neptune City, New Jersey. Instead of vacationing to tropical beaches or national parks, some opt for celebrity tourism, hoping to gain a deeper understanding of the places that shaped their favorite stars.

A small town in central Indiana was the birthplace of the late method actor and cultural icon James Dean. He was a homegrown Hoosier, and the folks in Fairmount, Indiana arent forgetting him any time soon.

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Fairmount is a town of about 3,000 people and one stoplight. It is surrounded by fields of corn extending for miles in every direction. James Dean grew up just outside town in a farmhouse with his aunt and uncle. Where Cool Went to School banners line the towns main drag, but the school Dean attended is no more. The old Fairmount High School was torn down a few years ago and now sits as a pile of rubble in the middle of town. The stage on which a teenage Dean performed in plays like Goon With the Wind was saved by the Fairmount Lions Club to be turned into a community performance space.

Although Fairmount is decidedly remote, it lays claim to an inordinate number of creative types, including Garfield-creator Jim Davis, author Mary Jane Ward, and painter Olive Rush. Most of the celebrity tourism is on account of James Dean, though. Starting at the James Dean Gallery on Main Street, a visitor can get a rundown of the whole James Dean trail: the bronze bust in the center of town, Carters motorcycle shop, the Winslow farm, and Park Cemetery. The whole town, it seems, exists as a kind of shrine to the short life of its unruly son.

Every September, Fairmount attracts Deaners from around the world for the James Dean Festival. This year, 30,000-50,000 of them gathered in the Indiana community for film screenings, car shows, and a James Dean look-alike contest. According to one of Deans biggest fans, the winner of the contest had blond hair like Jimmy, and he adopted some of his mannerisms. But theres only one James Dean.

Pam Crawford, of Little Rock, Arkansas, is the president of the James Dean Remembered Fan Club. She travels to Fairmount at least once a year for the festival. She was only 7 when Dean was killed in a car accident near Salinas, California, in 1955, but Crawford said she was familiar with the actor because her older cousin had wallpapered her room in Dean pictures. For Crawford, It was over before it began.

After Deans death, there were rumors that he was actually still alive, driving across the country. Crawford said she and her friend were determined to catch him on his way through Little Rock, so they stood by the highway after school with a sign that said, JAMES DEAN STOP. Before seeing East of Eden or Rebel Without a Cause, Crawford had already fallen in love with the brooding blond.

Other Deaners, like Phil Zeigler, have purchased houses in Fairmount after visiting. They find the small-town charm of Fairmount to be authentic and almost frozen in time  descriptions that also fit the man who brought them together.

The James Dean Gallery is the home base of all things Dean in Fairmount. The small museum houses memorabilia from Deans childhood and acting career. There are old pages of homework, letter jackets, yearbooks, and the young artists watercolor paintings on display with 50s radio hits like Shake, Rattle, and Roll playing overhead. Further into the gallery, the scope of Deans work and fame comes into focus, with posters of st for Paradis (East of Eden) and Gigante (Giant), shelves of Dean cologne and soap, and a portion of the white picket fence from Rebel Without a Cause.

Sitting just north of town is the Winslow farm, Deans childhood home after his mothers death. The property is now occupied by Marcus Winslow, Jr., James Deans cousin, who was 12 years old when Dean died. The farm is still in operation, with cows roaming the rolling hills adjacent to several giant, clean white barns. Inside there are tractors as well as shiny vintage automobiles. A 1949 Ford in the collection was used by Dean on trips back to the farm from New York or Hollywood, according to Winslow. Winslow remembers a teenage Dean, and he recalls his transition to acting, from a Pepsi commercial to Hill Number One, an Easter television special, to Giant, the epic Texas drama directed by George Stevens. He could kind of pull peoples feelings right into him. He spoke for them, Winslow says.

Back Creek Friends Church, near the farm, is an old Quaker church where Deans funeral took place. Since 1980, Deaners have gathered there every year on September 30 for a memorial service. They read poems, letters, and sing original songs inspired by their love of James Dean. Phil Zeigler has long been in charge of the service, and he recalls celebrity appearances from Martin Sheen, Liz Sheridan, and Maxwell Caulfield. Anyone is allowed to speak at the yearly service, but there are three rules, according to Zeigler: No politics, no advertisements, and no religion.

A former attendee became a sort of celebrity to the Deaners: Nicky Bazooka. Before his death in 2014, the mysterious Nicky Bazooka arrived each year to the Dean memorial service on a motorcycle, leading the procession from the church to Deans grave at Park Cemetery. Afterwards, he rode off on his motorcycle and disappeared for another year.

Nicky Bazooka died in 2014, but another motorcyclist, Ivan Ivans, continues his tradition. He leads the Deaners with a strand of 1,000 colorful paper cranes folded by a Japanese Dean fan.

Russell Aaronson has lived in Deans old New York apartment (19 West 68th Street) for more than 45 years. He speaks to his fellow Deaners about the soul of James Dean as timeless and ever-present. There is a little of James Dean in all of us, he says. It is a popular sentiment. Most of the Deaners believe Deans style and appeal is evergreen, and it is true that many of the memorial services attendees are too young to have existed during his life.

Regardless of how anyone becomes a serious James Dean fan, the overarching Deaner opinion is that a visit to Fairmount enriches the adoration. Fairmount exudes the quiet, nostalgic feel of small towns that many in this country believe is disappearing. Unlike other cities and towns around it (Anderson, Marion, Muncie), Fairmount doesnt seem

to have taken an economic nosedive with the slow deindustrialization of the last half-century. The brick roads and boutique shops reflect a town that Dean once walked through. Now its a place for his admirers to have a community of their own.

The first time I came here, I told my dad Ive got to go to Fairmount, Indiana to pay homage to Jimmys grave, says Pam Crawford, He looked at me and said, Youre 30 years old, and youre still sitting on the side of the road waiting for James Dean!

Deaners might often receive reactions like this from people who dont understand the lasting hype surrounding their Jimmy, but there is at least one town where everyone gets it.
Brooklyn, NY -- (SBWIRE) -- 10/06/2017 -- Furthermore, the research study has made use of numerous analytical tools in order to determine the growth opportunities in the automotive HVAC market in China. The inputs given by professionals and industry specialists will help guide the entrants and existing players operating in the China automotive HVAC market in making strategic decisions throughout the forecast period.



Get free sample copy of the report at: https://www.qyresearchreports.com/sample/sample.php?rep_id=759679&type=E



The growing automotive production in China and the increasing amount of time spent by the consumers in their vehicle are some of the primary factors expected to accelerate the growth of the automotive HVAC market in China in the next few years. In addition, the increasing disposable income of the population in China is anticipated to boost the demand for vehicles, thus propelling the automotive HVAC market in this region. On the flip side, the decreasing fuel economy is one of the key factors projected to hamper the growth of the market in the coming few years.



The rising population and the increasing number of manufacturing units in China are also contributing extensively towards the development of the automotive HVAC market in the next few years. Moreover, the wide range of private financing options for purchasing vehicles has made it comparatively easy for consumers to spend high amounts on purchasing their own vehicle rather than using public transportation services. This is estimated to boost the growing demand for automotive HVAC technology in China in the near future.



The China market for automotive HAVC is competitive in nature, with an increasing number of players participating in the market. These players are making efforts to introduce innovative designs and marketing activities to gain a competitive advantage in the market.



To check available discount on this report, visit at: https://www.qyresearchreports.com/sample/sample.php?rep_id=759679&type=D



The research study further offers a clear understanding of the competitive scenario of the automotive HVAC market in China and studies the key players engaged in this market. The company profiles, business strategies, product portfolio, financial status, and recent news and developments, if any, of the major players have been discussed in the scope of the research report. Some of the key players in the China market for automotive HVAC are Subros, Valeo, Xiezhong International, Bergstrom, SONGZ Automobile, Xinhang Yuxin, Delphi, Hanon Systems, Shanghai Velle, Eberspacher, South Air International, MAHLE Behr, Gentherm, Hubei Meibiao, Keihin, Sanden, Denso, and Calsonic Kansei.



Table of Contents



1 Industry Overview

1.1 Definition and Specifications of Automotive HVAC

1.1.1 Definition of Automotive HVAC

1.1.2 Specifications of Automotive HVAC

1.2 Classification of Automotive HVAC

1.3 Applications of Automotive HVAC

1.4 Industry Chain Structure of Automotive HVAC

1.5 Industry Overview of Automotive HVAC

1.6 Industry Policy Analysis of Automotive HVAC

1.7 Industry News Analysis of Automotive HVAC



2 Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis of Automotive HVAC

2.1 Bill of Materials (BOM) of Automotive HVAC

2.2 BOM Price Analysis of Automotive HVAC

2.3 Labor Cost Analysis of Automotive HVAC

2.4 Depreciation Cost Analysis of Automotive HVAC

2.5 Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis of Automotive HVAC

2.6 Manufacturing Process Analysis of Automotive HVAC

2.7 China Price, Cost and Gross of Automotive HVAC 2011-2016



3 Technical Data and Manufacturing Plants Analysis

3.1 Capacity and Commercial Production Date of China Key Manufacturers in 2015

3.2 Manufacturing Plants Distribution of China Key Automotive HVAC Manufacturers in 2015

3.3 R&D Status and Technology Source of China Automotive HVAC Key Manufacturers in 2015

3.4 Raw Materials Sources Analysis of China Automotive HVAC Key Manufacturers in 2015



4 Production Analysis of Automotive HVAC by Regions, Type, and Applications

4.1 China Production of Automotive HVAC by Regions 2011-2016

4.2 China Production of Automotive HVAC by Type 2011-2016

4.3 China Sales of Automotive HVAC by Applications 2011-2016

4.4 Price Analysis of China Automotive HVAC Key Manufacturers in 2015

4.5 China Capacity, Production, Import, Export, Sales, Price, Cost and Revenue of Automotive HVAC 2011-2016



5 Consumption Volume and Consumption Value Analysis of Automotive HVAC by Regions

5.1 China Consumption Volume of Automotive HVAC by Regions 2011-2016

5.2 China Consumption Value of Automotive HVAC by Regions 2011-2016

5.3 China Consumption Price Analysis of Automotive HVAC by Regions 2011-2016



6 Analysis of Automotive HVAC Production, Supply, Sales and Market Status 2011-2016

6.1 Capacity, Production, Sales, and Revenue of Automotive HVAC 2011-2016

6.2 Production Market Share and Sales Market Share Analysis of Automotive HVAC 2014-2015

6.3 Sales Overview of Automotive HVAC 2011-2016

6.4 Supply, Consumption and Gap of Automotive HVAC 2011-2016

6.5 Import, Export and Consumption of Automotive HVAC 2011-2016

6.6 Cost, Price, Revenue and Gross Margin of Automotive HVAC 2011-2016



About QYReseachReports.com

QYReseachReports.com delivers the latest strategic market intelligence to build a successful business footprint in China. Our syndicated and customized research reports provide companies with vital background information of the market and in-depth analysis on the Chinese trade and investment framework, which directly affects their business operations. Reports from QYReseachReports.com feature valuable recommendations on how to navigate in the extremely unpredictable yet highly attractive Chinese market.



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Second in a series

FLORENCE, S.C.  A year ago to the day Hurricane Matthew skirted the coast of South Carolina, bringing heavy rains and damaging wind that ultimately caused millions of dollars in damage and ended in three deaths in the Pee Dee.

Across this region, thousands of trees were downed, flood waters took a heavy toll on property, several dams breached and hundreds of roads were closed because of flash flooding or washouts.

Officials with the South Carolina Department of Transportations 5th District, which covers the Pee Dee and Grand Strand counties, said that at the height of the storm 170 roads were closed in the region.

David Johnson, a construction engineer for the district, said more than 40 road and bridge construction projects have been completed in the past year.

Those are just construction, and there were more on the maintenance side, he said. Almost everything we had in the Pee Dee has been fixed.

Johnson said that as repairs are made to roads and bridges are rebuilt, construction continues with the thought that these natural disasters are becoming more frequent.

We do take steps to try and prevent future damage, like bringing the bridges up to current standard or making the culverts larger, he said.

However, after speedy recovery of many roads and bridges, several routes remain closed and some dams are left unrepaired.

In the Pee Dee, Bethea Road in Darlington, Pelican Lane in Florence near Oakdale and Byrnes Boulevard in the Country Club of South Carolina were washed away when adjacent dams either breached or completely broke.

Bethea Road and Pelican Road are publicly maintained roads; Byrnes Boulevard, and the adjacent dam, is maintained by the country club.

Johnson said that before the public roads can be fixed by the state, the dams must be cleared by the Department of Health and Environmental Control.

The problem is those dams are nowhere close to being fixed. Dam owners are responsible for maintaining the structural integrity of their dams, as well as making necessary repairs.

The Department of Health and Environmental Control wasnt able to provide the status of measures being taken to repair these dams, and it wasnt apparent who owns the dams that affect the public roads in question.

The bridge at Old Georgetown Road in Florence County was closed after it was deemed unsafe for travel after flash flooding hit the area and a portion of Lester Road in Dillon remains unopen as well. These locations are not near a dam.

Department of Transportation officials said the bridge at Old Georgetown Road is expected to be completed by the end of this year.
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Susana Robles Desgarennes spent the last weeks of her young life at her happiest, singing and dancing every morning, her friends said. The 20-year-old mother had finally gathered the courage to leave her controlling boyfriend and embrace her future, they said.

But on Sept. 30, that future was cut short when police said her ex-boyfriend, 24-year-old Angel Raygoza, fatally shot her before shooting himself. Police officers found their bodies in a car in the Dolores Heights neighborhood.

Robles Desgarennes death marked the second time in a week that domestic violence ignited danger and trauma in San Francisco. On Sept. 24, an armed man was killed by police officers after a standoff in the Russian Hill neighborhood in which he held his girlfriend and their two children hostage in their home, officials said.

In both cases, the men were said to have a history of abuse, and police and domestic violence advocates are again looking at what, if anything, could have been done to intervene earlier. The advocates say the episodes underscore a need for strong gun control, though its not yet clear how the men obtained the firearms they used. The cases are under investigation.

More on Domestic Violence Cases 2 found shot to death in car near Dolores Park in SF

Even though we have great laws in California, that doesnt stop people from getting guns from other places, said Minouche Kandel, womens policy director for the citys Department on the Status of Women. Having stronger national gun laws would certainly reduce firearms getting in the hands of people who shouldnt have them, including domestic violence perpetrators.

In the first incident, police responding to a home on Salmon Street at 11:35 p.m. found that Damian Murray, 46, was armed and not allowing his girlfriend and their two children to leave a bedroom, investigators said.

During the ensuing standoff, Murray allegedly fired a handgun at least three times, striking a nearby home with one shot. Crisis negotiators had been working with Murray for three hours when they heard what they thought to be the third shot. Believing the situation had escalated, commanders sent in tactical team officers, who shot and killed Murray, officials said.

Though the police ended up killing him, he was a danger to his family because he had this gun, said Beverly Upton, executive director of the San Francisco Domestic Violence Consortium. Most of our domestic violence homicides didnt used to be gun-related. But now theyre lethal.

At a town hall meeting Tuesday organized by police, Cmdr. Greg McEachern said Murray had a lengthy history of domestic violence with his girlfriend, who had obtained a restraining order against him.

A restraining order would have barred Murray from possessing a gun, requiring him to turn in any weapons, Kandel said. In San Francisco, that can mean police confiscating an alleged abusers weapons, said Officer Robert Rueca, a police spokesman.

Its a process we would do right away if there is a domestic violence investigation, Rueca said. If a person is arrested, we would take any kind of weapon out of the home.

The problem, Rueca said, is that police arent always involved. While some civil restraining orders require offenders to turn in firearms, police arent notified if an injunction had been filed against a gun owner. And if the alleged abuser happens to own unregistered guns, little can be done unless the victim makes a point of stating the offender has access to firearms.

Complicating matters, some victims may be afraid to report illegal gun possession by abusers, who often make sure their victims feel dependent on them even if they are apart, either through finances or children.

Kandel said her office is working with law enforcement agencies to develop a better system to confiscate guns from abusers, which Rueca said is a good thing.

Weve got to figure it out, he said. Weve got to figure out how to make it safer for the public, especially for the victims.

Robles Desgarennes, the young mother killed in Dolores Heights, had not obtained a restraining order against Raygoza, though she was afraid of him, said Marlene Sanchez, a family friend.

She came to my house and told me she was scared, Sanchez said. She said she wanted to stay with me because he didnt know where I lived. He knew where her sister lived and she knew he would be watching her.

Robles Desgarennes came to the U.S. from Mexico 10 years ago. With little family nearby, she quickly fell in love with Raygoza and became pregnant, Sanchez said. She moved in with his family, and he began controlling her life.

She was suffering silently, Sanchez said. I think now, people are looking back, remembering the signs, remembering that time she had a bruise on her face. But she didnt have any family, and she had her daughter. She didnt have anywhere else to go.

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.

But Robles Desgarennes always kept a happy face on, Sanchez said, and worked at Sephora, the beauty products retailer, to support her daughter. Determined to succeed, she graduated high school and went on to City College, where she was taking marketing classes and working to launch her own makeup line.

The day she was killed, Sanchez said, Raygoza dropped the couples daughter off with Robles Desgarennes sister, and was acting really normal and really nice. He offered his ex-girlfriend a ride to class, and that was the last time anyone saw her alive.

Sanchez is helping Robles Desgarennes sister fight for custody of her niece, which she believes her friend would have wanted. Though they only had each other and their brother for family support, the sisters had become part of a community of other young mothers, as well as people they met through activism for social justice, Sanchez said.

That community is now raising money to set up a trust for her daughter, so she can seek an education like her mother.

Though heartbroken over her friends death, Sanchez said she takes solace in knowing that, in the weeks before she was killed, Robles Desgarennes was at her happiest.

I had never seen her like that, Sanchez said. Those last weeks of Susanas life, she was free. She was free from his control.

Vivian Ho is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: vho@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @VivianHo
In the year since Alameda County District Attorney Nancy OMalley filed criminal charges against six East Bay law enforcement officers for what she called their morally reprehensible actions in Oaklands sexual misconduct scandal, the most severe punishment handed down has been a $390 fine and three years of court probation.

Half of the cases have been dismissed or their charges dropped due to insufficient evidence. Two cases were plea bargained, and one awaits trial.

Critics who wanted to see greater consequences wonder whether the district attorneys office mishandled the scandal. Some say the prosecution was frivolous.

When you have decisions like this, it signals, for us, that lack of prioritization  that the safety of vulnerable youth is less important than the image of officers, said Maheen Kaleem, a staff attorney at the antisex trafficking organization Rights4Girls who previously worked with sexually abused and commercially exploited youth in Oakland. Victims and survivors wont come forward. This case signals you wont be believed.

Others, like defense attorney and former Alameda County prosecutor Michael Cardoza, say OMalleys decision to pursue charges was prompted by political pressure, and the collapse of half the cases was inevitable.

Cardoza said the professional careers and personal lives of the officers involved have been ruined because of the publicity surrounding the case.

I question the motives of the district attorney of Alameda in filing these cases without properly vetting the evidence against these officers, said Cardoza, who represented two of the officers charged in the sex scandal.

OMalley announced in September 2016 that she would charge seven officers, but later declined to file charges against one. At the time, she said her investigators had meticulously examined the evidence and believed the charges would be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.

Teresa Drenick, a spokeswoman for the district attorneys office, said the office stands behind its work.

The district attorneys office stands behind the criminal charges we file, she said. We wholeheartedly believe the evidence supports those charges.

The scandal centered on contact police officers and sheriffs deputies had with an Oakland police dispatchers daughter, who at the time of the events was a Richmond teenager and self-described sex worker.

The young woman who previously used the alias Celeste Guap, but now goes by her first name, Jasmine, told The Chronicle last year that 29 Bay Area law enforcement officers had sex with her, some while she was a minor. On some occasions, they tipped her off about antiprostitution stings or ran names of people she knew through confidential databases, she said.

Oakland investigators first became aware of the accusations when Officer Brendan OBrien committed suicide in September 2015 and left a note alluding to the conduct. Over the next six months, then-Police Chief Sean Whent and his top commanders conducted a careless, hasty investigation that dismissed and blamed Jasmine, according to a report by investigators later appointed by a federal judge to review the case.

The Oakland City Council in May voted to give Jasmine just under $1 million to settle the claim her attorneys had filed against the city.

OMalleys decision to charge four Oakland police officers has been repeatedly cited by city officials as evidence that justice and accountability ultimately prevailed.

There was an enormous amount of misconduct by law enforcement, some of it criminal, some of it noncriminal. There was a lot going on, and I dont know if the district attorney knew everything from the outset, said defense attorney Dirk Manoukian, who represented former Oakland Officer Brian Bunton, whose case was dismissed.

Of his client, Manoukian added, While it was an unbelievably poor decision, there was no criminal conduct, and ultimately the judge agreed with us. ... It wasnt some tricky, good lawyering tactics or anything like that  the case was dismissed because there was just not the evidence to support it.

All but one of the cases have wrapped up in Alameda County Superior Court:

 Bunton: Judge Jon Rolefson dismissed the case Sept. 13 against the 41-year-old who was charged with obstruction of justice and engaging in prostitution. Bunton had been accused of warning Jasmine about an imminent undercover operation targeting prostitution, although a lieutenant later testified there was no such sting that day. Rolefson said there was insufficient evidence to show that anything  information, in this case  was exchanged for sex. Manoukian wouldnt say whether Bunton is seeking to get his job back.

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.

 Ricardo Perez: Rolefson dismissed the case Wednesday, saying there was insufficient evidence to show that the former Contra Costa County sheriffs deputy knew Jasmine was a juvenile or that their contact occurred in a public venue. Perez, 29, had been charged with unlawful sexual intercourse and oral copulation with a minor as well as engaging in lewd conduct in public.

 Giovanni LoVerde: Deputy District Attorney Sabrina Farrell on Thursday dropped the charges  felony oral copulation with a minor and lewd conduct in public  against the Oakland officer, saying the facts were similar to those of the Perez case. The 34-year-old LoVerde remains employed with the Police Department.

 Daniel Black: The former Livermore police officer struck a plea deal in February that erased all but one charge against him  misdemeanor lewd conduct in public  to which he pleaded no contest. Five other counts were dismissed. If Black, 50, doesnt commit a crime and obeys the terms of the plea bargain  which include staying away from the young woman and steering clear of any areas where prostitution is known to occur  through May, the charge against him will be dismissed.

 Leroy Johnson: The retired Oakland police sergeant, whose alleged conduct was among the least severe, has gotten the harshest punishment: He pleaded no contest in January to a misdemeanor charge of failing to report child abuse. The plea deal for the 51-year-old, who now lives in Texas, landed him with three years of court probation and standard fines totaling $390.

 Terryl Smith: The former Oakland police officer charged with five misdemeanor counts for illegally using a criminal database and sharing the information with Jasmine has his trial scheduled for Feb. 5. His defense attorney had sought to dismiss the charges, saying in one motion the complaint against the 31-year-old was completely devoid of any details.

Civil rights attorney Pamela Price, who previously represented Jasmine and is seeking to unseat OMalley next year in the district attorney race, said the initial misinvestigation by police had an impact on the outcomes in court. She said that an independent prosecutor such as the state attorney generals office should have stepped in, given the scope of allegations and number of Bay Area jurisdictions involved.

The lack of accountability creates distrust in the general public and in the department itself, Price said. Officers now wont feel confident reporting misconduct when the ultimate outcome is no consequences and no accountability.

Kimberly Veklerov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kveklerov
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Comedian Ralphie May has died at age 45, according to TMZ.

The Houston transplant was reportedly found in his Las Vegas home early Friday, Oct. 6, 2017.

According to the article, May had been battling pneumonia for six weeks, but his ultimate cause of death was cardiac arrest.

CELEBRITY DEATH: American R&B singer Charles Bradley dies at 68

Though May was a Tennessee native, he moved to Houston in his late teens and graduated from the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts.



Afterward he moved to Los Angeles where he pursued a career as a stand up comic.

He got his "big break" in 2003 when he competed and placed second in the first season of "Last Comic Standing." From there he went on to appear in shows like "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" and the "Wayne Brady Show."

He and fellow comedian Lahna Turner were married for 10 years before she filed for divorce in 2015. The couple's separation allegedly turned nasty, especially in terms of who would get custody of their two kids, April June May and August May.

He was scheduled to perform in Las Vegas on Friday Oct. 6 at 10 p.m..
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Boccalone has been supplying the Bay Area with tasty salted pig parts for the last decade, but October 2017 will be the charcuterie companys last month of business.

According to owner Mark Pastore, Boccalone will close its Ferry Building outpost on Sunday, Oct. 29.

Pastore says the closure is due to economics, as the shops sales have been in decline. He and chef Chris Cosentino opened Boccalone as an outgrowth of Incanto; they opened a small production facility in Oakland in 2007, with a Ferry Building shop in 2008.

We were among the forerunners of this movement in small scale charcuterie, says Pastore. Its a space that is a lot more crowded now that it was 10 years ago.

Indeed, Boccalone and Incanto (which closed in 2014) were pioneers in housemade charcuterie, which has become nearly commonplace in the Bay Area. But it wasnt just the general trend that Boccalone sparked  its influence can be seen in everything from the popularization of nduja (spicy spreadable salami) to the rise of prepared foods at the Ferry Building. Boccalone joins Rancho Gordo in its Ferry Building exit this year; Tanya Holland is one of the new faces, as shes opening up a Brown Sugar Kitchen counter in the old Red Dog space.

For now, youve got a few more weeks to say goodbye to Boccalone  and get your last fixes of Meat Cones, Orange and Wild Fennel Salame, and Mortadella Hot Dogs. Stay tuned for updates.

Food Guide Top 25 Restaurants Where to eat in the Bay Area. Find spots near you, create a dining wishlist, and more.

Paolo Lucchesi is the food editor of the San Francisco Chronicle. Twitter: @lucchesi Email: plucchesi@sfchronicle.com
Republican Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee this week described Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, and White House Chief of Staff John Kelly as those people that help separate our country from chaos. While it might surprise some administration observers to learn that anything is separating the nation from chaos, Corker has a point about the thin gray line of generals and executives who constitute the embattled anti-entropy faction of President Trumps Cabinet.

These top officials have contradicted Trumps most chaotic instincts in remarkably public fashion. This week, for example, as the president escalated his disparagement of the multilateral agreement to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons, Mattis, a former head of U.S. Central Command, told a Senate committee that the agreement enhances national security and that Trump should consider upholding it. The sentiment reportedly may be shared by another general working for Trump, national security adviser H.R. McMaster.

Meanwhile, in contrast to Trumps reckless taunting of nuclear-armed North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, Tillerson said recently that U.S. officials are communicating with Pyongyang and trying to calm things down. That prompted a bizarre Twitter retort in which the president accused his own secretary of state of wasting his time on diplomacy  which happens to be not only the former ExxonMobil CEOs job but also, given the likely consequences of another Korean war, the only approach that is not a waste of time.

Trumps most seasoned senior staff has attempted to temper him in other ways. Kelly is said to have stanched a deluge of information and misinformation that was flowing through the Oval Office. Mattis appears to be slow-walking Trumps bigoted assault on transgender service members. Gary Cohn, the National Economic Council director and a former Goldman Sachs CEO, took public exception to Trumps defense of a racist rally in Charlottesville, Va.

The trouble with this cadre of reasonably competent senior officials is that it is precarious and not particularly numerous. Corker posited his chaos theory when asked about an NBC report that Tillerson had called Trump a moron in a meeting with other senior staff and nearly quit. That forced the secretary to hold a press conference this week in which he denied considering leaving his post  and failed to deny pointedly questioning the presidents intellect. Kelly, McMaster and Cohn also have been subject to periodic speculation about how long they can possibly last.

Most of the rest of Trumps Cabinet, meanwhile, inspires less confidence. The aptly named Tom Price left the Health and Human Services Department headless last week after his seven-figure bill for flitting about the country on chartered jets was deemed too pricey, and five other Cabinet members have come under scrutiny for travel expenses. Another vast and crucial department, Homeland Security, has been under an acting secretary for more than two months due to Trumps failure to nominate a successor to Kelly.

Perhaps a few skilled officials are separating the government from chaos, but its not by much.

This commentary is from The Chronicles editorial board. We invite you to express your views in a letter to the editor. Please submit your letter via our online form: SFChronicle.com/letters.
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Gov. Jerry Brown has signed SB54, the controversial legislation that restricts state and local law enforcements ability to help the federal government deport undocumented immigrants within Californias border.

Following extensive negotiations between the Governors Office, the bills author, state Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles, and California law enforcement groups, SB54 is not the wild-eyed sanctuary state law that some critics have accused it of being.

SB54 wont protect every undocumented immigrant. Prior convictions for any of more than 800 crimes, including some misdemeanors, exclude immigrants from the protections in the bill. Federal immigration agents still will be able to interview immigrants in jails, and the California Department of Corrections is exempted from the measure.

These provisions were part of the negotiations Brown and de Leon worked out with local law enforcement organizations.

SB54 also wont spare California the social and economic cost of seeing families broken up over Washingtons poisonous immigration policy. It cant.

What it will do is make the job of federal agents far more difficult here. It prevents state and local law enforcement agencies from inquiring into individuals immigration status, and prohibits new contracts to use Californias law enforcement facilities as detention centers.

Because federal agents lack the manpower and the local connections to track down every undocumented immigrant, their deportation activities could be severely curtailed in California.

That will be a fight. In response to Browns decision to sign SB54, Immigration and Customs Enforcement Acting Director Tom Homan said his agency will have no choice but to conduct arrests at work sites and in California neighborhoods. Depending on how determined ICE is, the results could be ugly.

Still, SB54 is the right move for California.

The Trump administrations harsh immigration policies threaten to break up hard-working, law-abiding families without real cause. They also threaten the economy of a state that depends heavily on the labor of immigrants in industries ranging from agriculture to health care. An estimated 10 million immigrants live in California, about 25 percent of whom are thought to be undocumented.

Instead of disrupting Californias communities and its economic dynamism, Washington could pass comprehensive immigration reform that acknowledged the realities of the 21st century. Until then, California must protect the people who live within our states borders.

This commentary is from The Chronicles editorial board. We invite you to express your views in a letter to the editor. Please submit your letter via our online form: SFChronicle.com/letters.
Early in This Bitter Earth, the sound of a glass bottle shattering interrupts a silly, drunken, late-night walk home. Its not that ominous at first, but as lovers Jesse (H. Adam Harris) and Neil (Michael Hanna) periodically repeat the scene over the course of Harrison David Rivers play, it becomes clear that that sound  that out-of-nowhere but decisive sound  will restructure everything, into the time before the glass bottle and the time after it.

With that realization comes dread, which registers all the more sharply because Jesse and Neils charm, as individuals, as a couple, practically oozes off the stage of New Conservatory Theatre Center (where I saw the world premiere Thursday, Oct. 5, and where, full disclosure, I worked as a fundraiser in 2015-16). Jesse, a black playwright, is simultaneously regal in self-assurance and piteous in his self-loathing, and Harris, whose speech carries a tremulous inborn melody, sets Jesses every carefully chosen word afloat like its a treasure in a precarious position.

Hannas Neil, a white Black Lives Matter activist, brims over with squirrelly energy thats always looking for an outlet, preferably either sex or a fiery political speech. Hes perhaps at his best, though, when hes in mock surprise at Jesses wry barbs or princely self-regard. His jaw might be agape, as if to communicate shock, but theres a smile in his eyes thats lapping it all up.

The dread in This Bitter Earth doesnt feel quite right, not just because these young men are adorable, but because Rivers script, directed by Ed Decker, seems to want to go in another direction. Neil can devote his life to activism in large part because hes wealthy and doesnt have to work. He can also enter into that draining, frustrating and often dangerous line of work without a lifetime of racial hurt and injustice already sapping his energy.

Jesse, by contrast, eschews most public displays of political protest  the placards, the strategy meetings, the bus trips to support rallies elsewhere, all of which are manna for Neil. For Jesse, Neils activism is largely an effort to assuage his white guilt. For Jesse, simply living his life and making his art are legitimate, and powerful, means of resistance, particularly in a world that lets only white men be soft and artistic and gentle. For black men, Jesse says, maybe gentle gets you killed.

Yet each time Rivers starts to get into the thick of whether each man  and each of us  is doing enough to resist or to examine privileges, a scene ends, and its back to cutesy teasing, the spats of foreplay. A provocative line like You know you accuse me of my white guilt, but what about your apathy? ought to merit a whole scene, perhaps even a whole new play, rather than a mere I have rehearsals and some blasting of Nina Simone before the blackout. Does Neil accuse everyone in his life  his superrich parents, for example  of similar apathy, demanding that they, too, take up arms? Or does he make those requirements only of the young black men in his life?

If This Bitter Earth doesnt examine all its themes as fully as it might, it deserves kudos for raising them in the first place, particularly at a time when almost all of us, including Neil, could be doing more to resist the forces of bigotry  and to interrogate how our own privileges, in education, race, affluence and more, both enable us and demand that we fight.

Lily Janiak is The San Francisco Chronicles theater critic. Email: ljaniak@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @LilyJaniak

This Bitter Earth: Written by Harrison David Rivers. Directed by Ed Decker. Through Oct. 22. Two hours. $25-$50. New Conservatory Theatre Center, 25 Van Ness Ave., Lower Lobby, S.F. (415) 861-8972. www.nctcsf.org

To see a trailer: www.youtube.com/watch?v=9g18hx_2-cE
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SACRAMENTO  Ninety percent of California sex offenders will no longer be required to register with law enforcement for life under a bill that Gov. Jerry Brown signed Friday.

The change is one of several sweeping alterations to the states 70-year-old registry contained in SB384 by Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco.

The bill allows most sex offenders to petition beginning in 2021 to be removed from both the public and the police registries 10 to 20 years after they are released from prison, as long as they have not committed another serious or violent felony or sex crime.

Brown had previously indicated he would sign the reform, which for years stalled amid pushback from reluctant lawmakers who did not want to be seen as soft on crime. The bill was pushed by law enforcement agencies, that argued that Californias sex offender registry is so large that officers and the public cant determine who is at high risk for reoffending. The registry has 100,000 sex offenders  meaning 1 in 400 Californians is on it.

California is one of four states to require lifetime registration.

With this reform, our law enforcement agencies will be able to better protect people from violent sex offenders rather than wasting resources tracking low-level offenders who pose little or no risk of repeat offense, Wiener said in a statement. Our sex offender registry is a tool used to prevent and investigate crimes, and these changes will make it a better and more effective tool for keeping our communities safe.

The states registry will have now have three tiers, with the first tier allowing people convicted of crimes like misdemeanor sexual battery, misdemeanor possession of child pornography and indecent exposure to petition to be removed from the registry after 10 years. Tier one has the largest number of sex offenders, with up to 65,000 people potentially falling into that category.

Those offenders would not all come off the registry at once since a portion of those people would not have finished waiting the mandatory minimum of 10 years on the registry after their release from prison.

The next tier includes people convicted of lewd and lascivious acts with a minor, oral copulation with a minor under 14 years old and non-forced sodomy with a minor under 14 years old. The second tier, which requires sex offenders to register for a minimum of 20 years, has potentially 24,000 people.

Crimes like rape, sex crimes against children 10 and younger, repeated sex crimes and sex trafficking minors, put a sex offender in a third tier that requires them to be on registry for life. That tier has an estimated 8,200 people.

LGBTQ groups like Equality California supported the bill, saying the changes will help gay and lesbian people who were targeted by police for crimes like consensual sex among adults in a park.

Gov. Browns signature will restore livelihoods and help restore the registry as a tool for investigating those who pose a real danger to society, said Rick Zbur, executive director of Equality California.

Under current law, when a person is required by a judge to register as a sex offender, there are few ways to have their name removed from the registry, regardless of the underlying offense. Thats resulted in a registry that includes 650 sex offenders whose last convictions were in the 1940s and 1950s, according to the Sex Offender Management Board. Another 3,000 were last convicted of a sex crime in the 1960s and 1970s.

Supporters of the bill, including scholars and victim advocates, argued that research shows that the longer people are crime-free, the less likely they are to reoffend, thus keeping sex offenders on the registry for decades does not reduce crime.

Local law enforcement agencies estimated that they spend two-thirds of the money intended for supervising sex offenders on paperwork for low-risk offenders. That money, Alameda County District Attorney Nancy OMalley argued, would be better spent monitoring higher-risk offenders.

Melody Gutierrez is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mgutierrez@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @MelodyGutierrez
Matt Barr, Christina Ochoa and Charlie Barnett star in Valor, a military drama premiering on the CW at 9 p.m. Kyle Jarrow created the show focusing on Army helicopter pilots.

Also airborne is the third season of Supergirl, taking flight on the CW at 8 p.m.

The fourth season of Love & Hip-Hop: Hollywood wraps at 8 p.m. on VH1.

Starz airs the 2015 film 3 Hikers, about Americans Sarah Shourd, Shane Bauer and Joshua Fattal who were captured by the Iraqi government in 2009 and held for two years. The documentary airs at 9 p.m.

The seventh season of Evil Twins wraps at 10 p.m. on ID.

Season two of Teen Mum premieres at 10 p.m. on MTV.

Take a look behind closed doors of Buckingham Palace and other places where Queen Elizabeth holes up, in the four episodes of Penelope Keiths at her Majestys Service, added to Acorn TVs menu today. The series focuses on the queens official residences and the titles and jobs that make the households run royally.

Series 1 and 2 of Second Sight, with Clive Owen, are also added to Acorns offerings. Owen plays DCI Ross Tanner, a cop suffering from a disease that is robbing him of his sight. Claire Skinner co-stars. For information on Acorn TV subscriptions and content, go to www.acorn.tv.

David Wiegand is an assistant managing editor and the TV critic of The San Francisco Chronicle. Follow him on Facebook. Email: dwiegand@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @WaitWhat_TV
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So far, the plan to convert many of Bay Areas carpool lanes into a 550-mile network of express lanes that allow solo drivers to buy their way in has been confined to the further reaches of the East Bay and a congested freeway interchange at the foot of the bay.

That changes at 5 a.m. Monday when the I-680 Contra Costa Express lanes open on Interstate 680 through the San Ramon Valley. The new lanes, the farthest north of those already in operation, will require every vehicle entering them to have a FasTrak toll tag. A similar system exists on the I-580 express lanes, which opened in 2016.

The Bay Areas newest carpool-toll lane combination will stretch about a dozen miles with a single lane in each direction between San Ramon and Walnut Creek. It is a section that has become increasingly congested, unfailingly backing up during the morning and evening commutes.

Express lanes help move traffic in all lanes, transportation planners say, because they take solo drivers willing to pay for them out of the other lanes. Toll rates can vary from 50 cents up, depending on the flow of traffic. The money is automatically deducted from a FasTrak account whenever a driver moves into the lane.

If traffic is so heavy that the express lanes come to a slow crawl, only carpools will be allowed into the lane until the flow improves. Electronic signs along the way will keep drivers posted.

The idea is that this makes all lanes operate most efficiently, said John Goodwin, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, which is operating the new express lane.

But Goodwin advised peak-time commuters through the San Ramon Valley not to expect the miracle of free-flowing traffic. On weekdays, I-680 slows to a slog southbound in the morning and northbound in the evening commute, even with the current carpool lanes, which are limited to vehicles carrying two or more people.

This is not going to eliminate congestion in the 680 corridor, he said. Absolutely expect it to relieve congestion, especially ... just before and after peak travel times. But during periods of consistently very heavy traffic, during the peak, the express lanes may not move the needle a great deal.

Its going to help, he said. Its not going to solve.

The new lanes will operate much the same way as existing express lanes over the Sunol Grade, on I-580 in the Tri-Valley and through the I-880-Highway 237 interchange in Milpitas, allowing solo drivers to electronically pay tolls to get into the carpool lanes.

Those who qualify for the carpool lanes  carpools, motorcycles and vehicles with valid clean-air stickers  will still get a free ride in the new I-680 lanes. But theres a catch  theyll need a special type of transponder known as FasTrak Flex, which has a switch that can be adjusted to indicate the number of passengers in the car.

Older transponders will work for the solo drivers paying to enter the lanes.

If youre a solo driver the old FasTrak tag is fine, Goodwin said. But if youre a carpooler, now is the time to make the switch to Flex.

Vehicles with FasTrak Flex switches set to 2 or 3+ will get free admission to the lanes; those set at 1 will be charged a toll.

The 680 Contra Costa Express lane runs southbound for 12 miles from Rudgear Road in Walnut Creek to Alcosta Boulevard in San Ramon at the Alameda County line. Northbound, the lane reaches 11 miles from Alcosta Boulevard to Livorna Road in Alamo.

Each lane will have two toll zones, north and south of Crow Canyon Road. Tolls to that exit, as well as the end of the express lane, will be posted on electronic signs. Tolls can change every couple of minutes, as theyre adjusted to traffic speeds, but drivers will be charged the rate displayed when they enter the lane. The I-680 lanes are open-access lanes without the entry or exit points some express lanes have. They will operate from 5 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday through Friday.

CHP officers will handle enforcement, but wont issue citations to those unaware they need transponders during the first several days of operation. Officers will be aided by the newfangled transponders, which alert officers that someone has claimed a free toll. They can then check whether the car is qualified to be in the lane.

Vehicles in the first few days without FasTrak can expect to receive cordial invitations to join the FasTrak family, Goodwin said.

With the addition of the 680 Contra Costa lanes, the Bay Areas express lanes now cover 75 miles. By 2035, regional transportation planners expect them to form a network that stretches 550 miles mostly in the East Bay and South Bay.

Coming next, in 2020, are express lanes on Interstate 880 between the southern tip of Oakland and Highway 237 in Milpitas and an extension of the Contra Costa lanes in the southbound direction to Marina Vista in Martinez.

Michael Cabanatuan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mcabanatuan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ctuan

I-680 Contra Costa Express Lanes

Where: Interstate 680 southbound from Rudgear Road, Walnut Creek to Alcosta Boulevard, San Ramon. Northbound from Alcosta Boulevard to Livorna Road, Alamo.

When: Opens Monday. Hours: 5 a.m.-8 p.m., weekdays.

Who can use: Vehicles with two or more occupants, motorcycles, vehicles with Clean Air decals and solo drivers who pay a toll.

Tolls: 50-cent minimum, unlimited maximum.

How to pay tolls: With any FasTrak transponder or toll tag.

How to get a free ride: Meet carpool lane access requirements and have a FasTrak Flex transponder switched to the 2 or 3+ settings.

Where to get a FasTrak toll tag: Costco, Safeway, Walgreens stores; FasTrak customer service center: 375 Beale Street, San Francisco, www.bayareafastrak.org or (877) 229-8655.
Facebook was crucial to get Donald Trumps message to people he wanted to reach during the 2016 campaign, according to Trumps digital director, who told CBS 60 Minutes that he handpicked pro-Trump employees there to help him take advantage of the social networks advertising tools.

Twitter is how (Trump) talked to the people, Facebook was going to be how he won, Brad Parscale told 60 Minutes, according to an excerpt of an interview that the program intends to air Sunday. The social network was particularly valuable because it allows precise placement of messages, Parscale said, according to the excerpt.

Facebooks employees showed up for work at his office several days a week to provide guidance on how to best use the companys services, Parscale said in the interview excerpt. I wanted people who supported Donald Trump, he said, adding that he questioned the workers about their political views.

Parscale didnt immediately respond to a request for comment. A Facebook spokesman said the company provided the Trump campaign with the same guidance and services it offers any major advertiser.

Facebook has found itself at the center of inquiries into Russias involvement in the 2016 election. The Menlo Park company said it has so far found $100,000 in advertising spending by accounts linked to the Kremlin. The company turned over details on the ads to Congress and to Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who is leading the criminal investigation into Russias campaign meddling and possible ties to Trumps associates.

A person familiar with the companys work for Trumps campaign took issue with Parscales use of the word embeds to describe its employees, because it implies that the campaign work was their sole focus. The workers had tasks for other clients as well, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the matter is sensitive.

The company offered Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton the same opportunity, the person said.

Although federal election law generally bars corporations from aiding political campaigns, theres nothing wrong with a company providing training and services to a campaign if it offers the same services to every client spending similar amounts, said Larry Noble, former general counsel of the Federal Election Commission.

If youd do it for any customer, its OK, Noble said, adding that the services have to be offered to all customers. It cant be just for political campaigns.

Facebook was especially useful in reaching rural voters, Parscale told 60 Minutes, according to the published excerpt. So now Facebook lets you get to ... 15 people in the Florida Panhandle that I would never buy a TV commercial for, he said.

Sarah Frier and Bill Allison are Bloomberg writers. Email: sfrier1@bloomberg.net, ballison14@bloomberg.net
Neeraj Dharmadhikari is getting a different version of America than the one he was promised as a wide-eyed 10-year-old.

When his family moved from India to the Bay Area in 2008, he was told this was the place where hard work always paid off. As the years passed, he slowly lost his Indian accent, and grew accustomed to the freedom of thinking he could become anything he wanted  from a music teacher to a Silicon Valley engineer.

But now, as a sophomore at De Anza College, he is starting to realize the limits of his visa status: He doesnt have a Social Security number. Hes not allowed to work. He cant earn his own money. And, once he turns 21 in a year and a half, he could be deported back to India, a country he no longer considers home.

Dharmadhikari is part of an often-overlooked group of foreigners, the children of H-1B visa holders. They were legally brought to the U.S. on a dependent visa called the H-4. Under the terms of the visa, if they turn 21 before a parent is granted a green card, they lose their right to reside in the United States. Those who hope to stay are left to cobble together a way to remain. Given their age, many seek student visas or get married.

The gap in protections for these children has been a problem facing H-1B families for decades. But they are increasingly caught in the crossfire as the Trump administration looks to slash currently legal family-based immigration. And now that the administration is reconsidering the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which protects people brought here illegally as children from deportation, immigrants and their advocates are left wondering about those who came here legally.

If this was the price to pay for everyone, then I think I would be OK with it, Dharmadhikari said on a recent afternoon. But its not.

While the Trump administration announced plans to unravel the DACA program last month, it was considering using it as a bargaining chip to get other policy goals through Congress. However, on Friday, the Associated Press reported that the administration has plans that may upend efforts to come up with a permanent fix for DACA recipients, sometimes known as Dreamers.

Young visa holders like Dharmadhikari, sometimes called H-4 Dreamers, feel left behind in the debate.

As everyone is focused on a possible DACA bill, legal immigrants are extremely concerned whether (their children) will be excluded from the same benefits, Aman Kapoor, the president of Immigration Voice, a group that advocates for immigrant rights, said in an email.

Aged-out H-4 children and DACA recipients are similar in that they dont feel like they belong anywhere, said Shah Peerally, an immigration lawyer.

They dont belong anywhere except here, Peerally said. They were brought here and they feel American  we should just give them a chance.

About 100,000 foreigners come into the U.S. on H-4 visas every year, a number that has been steadily increasing since 2012, according to the U.S. Department of State. The government doesnt break down those figures into spouses and children.

If an H-1B holder is given a green card, so are their spouses and children under 21. If those come in time for a young adult on an H-4 visa, their problem is solved. But many face another obstacle: the decadelong wait that parents from countries such as India and China currently face to get permanent residency.

Under the law, no more than 7 percent of the 140,000 green cards available each year can go to immigrants from a single country. The Dharmadhikaris applied in 2010, when Neeraj was 12.

His parents now fear that piece of paperwork may be delayed even longer under Trump, or never come at all, leaving him scrambling for a way to stay here.

The most common route for a child to take is to transfer to an F-1 student visa as an international student. At De Anza, that would quintuple Dharmadhikaris tuition, since hed no longer be a state resident.

After college, if they can find a company to sponsor them, foreigners can transfer to an H-1B work visa. Those, too, are getting harder to obtain, particularly for entry-level jobs as officials step up their scrutiny of applications. And since they cant work while on an H-4, their resumes are often slim.

Congress passed the Child Status Protection Act in 2002 to help children who turn 21 while U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is reviewing their green card applications. But only a narrow segment of foreigners qualify for that status.

A bill pending in Congress, the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act of 2017, which currently has 275 Republican and Democratic sponsors, could indirectly help these children by phasing out the per-country cap on green cards and moving to a first-come, first-served system.

But those who oppose the bill, such as John Miano of the Center for Immigration Studies, said it would create a train wreck in the green card system.

If implemented, he said, it would favor immigrants from countries such as India and China. It would ease the problem of green card backlogs from India, China, Mexico, and the Philippines by inflicting that misery on the entire rest of the world, he wrote in a blog post.

Multiple H-1B holders interviewed for this article said they feel like theyve let their children down. As they watch their children pass up job opportunities and pay international student fees, theyve started to question if bringing them to the U.S. was really the best option.

We came here legally, and weve been staying here and paying taxes and following all of the rules and regulations, said Satish More, an Indian H-1B holder. His daughter recently turned 21 and is now on an F-1 student visa, paying three times the amount of tuition as a foreign student.

After seeing what is going on, and the broken system here, I really think that I played around with the future of my kids, he added.

Immigration Voice estimates there are about 1.5 million H1-B visa holders in the country waiting for green cards, many of whom are from India and have been waiting for more than a decade. And as his family stands in that figurative line, all Dharmadhikari can do is continue working  and hope something changes before his 21st birthday.

If I have to go back, I will. But I have spent my last nine years here, he said. I can see all of these opportunities around me, but cant do it.

Trisha Thadani is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: tthadani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @TrishaThadani
A San Jose middle school music teacher has been arrested on suspicion of having sex with one of his students, police said.

Samuel Neipp, 34, of Gilroy, was arrested and jailed Friday for lewd conduct with a minor under 14 and extortion, lieutenant Jason Ta said.
Police arrested two men suspected of killing 49-year-old Aleli Avila, whose body was found on a roadway near 500 Camino Diablo Road in Byron.

Avila, of San Francisco, was found dead about 3:50 p.m. on Aug. 22.
Ralphie May, a loud and large comedian known for his extensive touring and comedy specials, died Friday in Las Vegas, where he had been in residence at Harrahs casino. He was 45.

His publicist, Stacey Pokluda, said the cause was cardiac arrest. She said he had been treated for pneumonia and had canceled some shows over the past month.

Mr. May, born Ralph Duren May on Feb. 17, 1971, in Chattanooga, Tenn., was a 17-year-old student in Arkansas when he won a contest to open for Sam Kinison, who became a mentor of sorts. (Kinison also died young, at 38, in a car crash in 1992.) The experience led Mr. May to move to Houston to try comedy full time.

He worked the stand-up circuit for years and in 2002 made his feature film debut in the comedy For da Love of Money, drawing an approving notice from Dave Kehr in his review in the New York Times.

Even an overweight mailman, Kehr wrote of Mr. Mays character, who would just be a crude, cruel sight gag in most films, gets in a few choice zingers, neatly eviscerating the street kids who have been lying in wait for him.

Mr. May reached a whole new level of exposure in 2003 as a contestant on Season 1 of Last Comic Standing, the NBC competition series. He finished second to Dat Phan.

After that came comedy specials like Girth of a Nation on Comedy Central and Unruly and Imperfectly Yours on Netflix.

Mr. May was a large man.

I have low testosterone, he explained in a 2012 post on his Facebook page. I make the proper amount for a man of 180 pounds, but I passed that nearly 300 pounds ago. I also have a thyroid imbalance.

He sometimes did material about his weight. But that subject did not dominate his brash, often raunchy act.

Ill certainly address it if the situation applies, but I certainly dont make it the focus of my stand-up comedy, he said in a 2015 interview. My audience has accepted me for a long time as, you know, not a fat comedian but a comedian who happens to be fat. Thats a huge difference.

Mr. May married the comedian Lahna Turner in 2006. They were in the midst of a divorce. The couple had two children.

Mr. May had drawn good crowds all over the country for years on the stand-up circuit, but he told the Charlotte Observer in 2014 of another aspiration involving his home state.

Id like to be a U.S. senator from Tennessee, he said. Im not crooked, and I want to help people.

Neil Genzlinger is a New York Times writer.
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After the latest start to the fall foliage season since 2000, lower temperatures have ushered in the leaf peeping season in California. But there are a lot of surprises in store for those who make the trip to the mountains.

During an average fall color season, the leaves peak at the highest elevations in September and descend about 500 feet a week until reaching sea level in November. This year, some lower mountains are peaking in color before higher elevations.

"Experienced fall color watchers are at a loss to explain why this has happened. Some believe it is because of last winter's record snow," California Fall Color site manager John Poimiroo explained. "Others say record high temperatures in August delayed the change. While others say those factors plus early snowfalls and perhaps the full eclipse disrupted the trees' internal clocks."

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Pomirioo reports that some locations, for example, Bishop Creek Canyon in Northern Inyo County, have a wide range of conditions (from leaves just turning to peak conditions) in one area.

"Whatever delayed the appearance of fall color in the Eastern Sierra now seems to have ended, as large areas are now showing near peak and peak color," he added.

Here's are the current Fall Color conditions in California (as of Oct. 7th, 2017) courtesy CaliforniaFallColor.com:

HIGH SIERRA

Eastern Sierra

Southern Inyo County

Whitney Portal (8,374')  Patchy (10 - 50%)

Onion Valley (9,600')  Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!

Big Pine Creek (7,660')  Patchy (10 - 50%)

Mt. Whitney Fish Hatchery (4,000')  Just Starting (0-10%)

Alabama Hills (4,534')  Just Starting (0-10%)

Northern Inyo County

South Lake, Bishop Creek Canyon

Weir Pond (9,650')  Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!

Parchers Resort (9,260') - Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!

Willow Campground (9,000') - Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!

Surveyors Meadow (8,975') - Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!

Table Mountain Group Camp (8,900')  Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!

Mountain Glen - Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!

Mist Falls and Groves above Bishop Creek Lodge (8,350') - Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!

Four Jeffrey (8,000') - Patchy (10-50%)

Sabrina Lake, Bishop Creek Canyon

Lake Sabrina (9,150') - Patchy (10-50%) to Peak (75-100%)  Peak color is seen high above Lake Sabrina in groves of aspen growing near 10,000'. However, it has not yet descended to lake level. GO NOW!

Sabrina Campground (9,000') - Patchy (10 - 50%)

Sabrina Approach - Patchy (10 - 50%)

Groves above Cardinal Village (8,550')  Patchy (10-50%)  This area peaked this past week, but the aspen that peaked are now bare sticks. Other groves surrounding the bare aspen are either fresh green or have patchy yellow in them, for now.

Aspendell (8,400') - Just Starting (0 - 10%)

Intake II (8,000') - Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!

Big Trees Campground (7,800') - Just Starting (0 - 10%)

North Lake

North Lake Road (9,000') - Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!

North Lake (9,255')  Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!

Upper North Lake Road (9,255')  Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!

Pine Creek/Round Valley

Pine Creek Pack Station  Peak (75-100%)  A small grove of aspen is gold and orange.

Pine Creek Road  Patchy (10-50%)  The Fremont and black cottonwood along Pine Creek will provide a bright ribbon of yellow when they peak in coming weeks. Presently, only highlights are showing.

Round Valley  Patchy (10-50%)  Towering cottonwood are crested with yellow along roads and marking the boundaries of cattle ranches.

Lower Rock Creek Road  Patchy (10-50%)  Gilded cottonwood trees line the road approaching the Mono/Inyo County line.

Owens Valley/Bishop

Owens Valley  Just Starting (0-10%)

Bishop  Just Starting (0-10%)

Mono County

Upper Rock Creek (9,600')  Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!

Middle Rock Creek (9,000)  Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!

Lower Rock Creek Rd.  Patchy (10-50%)  Gilded cottonwood trees line the road approaching the Mono/Inyo County line.

Upper McGee Creek (8,600')  Peak (75-100%) Hike a mile beyond the end of the road to a valley filled with yellow aspen and a spectacular alpine scene painted with chartreuse foliage. GO NOW!

McGee Creek Rd. (8,600')  Near Peak (50-75%)

McGee Campground (8,600')  Patchy (10-50%)

Convict Lake  Near Peak (50-75%)  Willows and aspen ringing the lake are a mix of yellow, gold and green. While just 25% of the aspen at the west end of the lake has turned, the colors are brilliant.

Mammoth Lakes Basin (8,500) - Just Starting (0-10%)

Lake George (9,000)  Patchy (10-50%)

Mammoth Rock (9,100)  Patchy (10-50%)

Laurel Meadow (9,000)  Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW! (High-clearance 4WD vehicle required)

June Lake Loop (7,654')  Patchy (10-50%)  Developing quickly. Lots of emerging yellow and lime surrounding the lakes and along the drive.

Sagehen Summit (8,139')  Peak (75-100%) - Sagehen Summit has been at peak color for the past week. This will be its last weekend at peak color.

Lee Vining Canyon (6,781')  Patchy (10-50%)

Conway Summit (8,143')  Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!

Virginia Lakes (9,819')  Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!

Dunderberg Meadow (8,609')  Patchy (10-50%)

Lobdell Lake Road (8,600") Patchy (10-50%) Similar to Summers Meadow, this OHV road has a mix of Patchy to Peak color along it.

Upper Summers Meadow (10,065')  Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!

Summers Meadow (7,200')  Patchy (10-50%)  Though this area is rated as patchy, there are big areas of color developing in the aspen with green, lime, yellow, orange and red appearing.

Western Sierra

Yosemite National Park, Tioga Pass (9,943')  Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!

Northern Sierra

Caples Lake  Patchy (10-50%)  One stand at the northeast end of the lake is orange and red. All others are green to yellow.

Red Creek Cabin  Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!  Full Peak

Hope Valley (7,000')  Patchy (10-50%)  Developing Rapidly. This weekend is the Alpine Aspen Festival in the Hope Valley.

Sorensen's Resort (7,000')  Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!  Peak color at the resort and along the Carson River in the Hope Valley.

Woodford's Canyon (7,000')  Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!

Monitor Pass (8,314')  Patchy (10-50%)

East Fork Carson River (4,675')  Patchy (10-50%)

North Lake Tahoe (6,200')  Patchy (10-50%)

Truckee (5,817' )  Patchy (10-50%)  Aspen are lime and yellow at Tahoe Donner Ski Area and along the Truckee River in downtown Truckee

CENTRAL COAST

Ventana Wilderness, Big Sur (3,000 to 5,000') Near Peak (50-75%)  Bigleaf maples are showing orange and yellow, and poison oak are crimson in spots throughout a Santa Lucia Fir forest

GOLD COUNTRY

Grass Valley (2,411')  Patchy (10-50%)  Exotic red maples are brightening this Sierra foothill town with an orange-red color.

NORTH COAST

Redwoods National and State Parks (US 101) (25')  Patchy (10-50%)  Roosevelt Elk  the largest in North America  are in rutting season with massive bull elks defending their herds of elk cows for breeding rights. Bigleaf maple at Lost Man Creek in Redwood National Park and between the Corkscrew Tree and Zig Zag #1 Trail in Prairie Creek State Park.

Lake/Napa/Sonoma Vineyards (0  2,000')  Just Starting (0-10%)

Mendocino County (633')  Just Starting (0-10%)

SHASTA CASCADE

Panther Meadows (8,000'), Mt. Shasta  Peak (75-100%)  Shasta knotweed is carpeting the meadow with crimson fall color.

McCloud River Falls Trail (3,000')  Patchy (10-50%)

Lassen Volcanic National Park  Patchy (10-50%)

Fall River Mills (3,195')  Patchy (10-50%) to Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!

Weaverville (2,051')  Patchy (10-50%)

Coffee Creek (Hwy3) (3,068')  Patchy (10-50%)

Chester, Lake Almanor  Patchy (10-50%)

Westwood  Patchy (10-50%)

Round Valley (4,692')  Patchy (10-50%)  Bigleaf maple and dogwood are adding gold and red to Plumas County forests.

Quincy (3,432')  Patchy (10-50%)

Antelope Lake, Taylorsville  Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!

SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA

Golden Gate Park, San Francisco  Just Starting (0-10%)

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

Sheep Mountain Wilderness (5,000'), Angeles National Forest  Peak (75-100%)  Bigleaf maple are peaking along the Mine Gulch Trail, from Vincent Gap on the Angeles Crest Highway. GO NOW!

San Gabriel River Trail (0  600')  Patchy (10-50%)  Poison oak is brightening up the trail with a ruby color.

West Hollywood (282')  Just Starting (0-10%)  A few exotic trees are showing bright color at points around the LA Basin.

No other areas of California have reported.
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A man who tortured his girlfriend's son with ice baths, electric shocks and by rubbing cayenne pepper in his eyes before killing him was sentenced to 65 years in prison on Friday.

In August, Matthew Christenson was convicted in the 2014 murder of 18-year-old Otto Smith, who had autism. Christenson was also convicted of abusing Smith's then 13-year-old brother J.C., whom he forced to sleep on the bathroom floor of the boys' mother's apartment.

Wearing a red jumpsuit and orange socks underneath a pair of brown flip-flop sandals, Christenson showed no emotion as Senior Deputy Prosecutor Ben Santos and family members asked King County Superior Court Judge Chad Allred for an exceptional sentence.

RELATED: Man guilty of fatally torturing girlfriend's autistic son

"Otto was a loving, kind, gentle little boy in a young man's body," said Santos, addressing Allred in his fourth-floor courtroom at the Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent. "Everyone was drawn to him. He was loved, and this man took him away. And not only did he take him away, he made his last days his worst, and he destroyed many lives along the way. ... The defendant should spend the rest of his life in prison."

Christenson was found guilty of homicide by abuse, second-degree murder, three counts of second-degree assault, unlawful imprisonment and felony harassment on Aug. 11. Allred found there was "substantial and compelling reasons justifying an exception sentence." Christenson has maintained his innocence and is appealing his convictions.

Both of Smith's grandmothers and an uncle described the horrors Smith and J.C. endured under Christenson, which included hours of forced exercise and meals restricted to one apple or empty taco shells, according to testimony. Christenson made the boys take hours-long ice baths and beat Smith with a toy keyboard the teen loved.

"He took two of Otto's pleasures from him by destroying his keyboard and turning his enjoyable daily baths into a horrific, traumatic punishment," Smith's maternal grandmother Sue Coley said. "Two young men who had only known love and compassion were forced to live in a home filled with hatred, disdain, degradation and trauma."

"Imagine being a person with severe autism and developmental disabilities, already locked into a prison of your own mind; then to be beaten, abused, made to wear garbage sacks, beaten with your own toys," Bill Carroll, Smith's uncle, said. "Everything you enjoyed was used to torture you."

On the night of April 13, 2014, Christenson forced Smith to take an ice bath, then bound Smith hand and foot, jammed a sock in his mouth and wrapped his head in layer after layer of duct tape. The boys' mother Pascia Backman found Smith lying on the ground with Christenson sitting in a chair nearby, drinking beer and smoking marijuana.

"Regardless of what anyone thought about Pascia and her utter failure to protect her children, no one will forget how she described walking into the living room and seeing the defendant sitting in a chair as Otto laid on the living room floor taking his last breath," Santos said.

Backman then covered for Christenson, telling authorities Smith fell down a flight of stairs. Smith was found to have died of natural causes until detectives with the King County Sheriff's Office major crimes unit revived the investigation after Backman told detectives she'd lied and that Christenson killed Smith.

RELATED: Mom: Beau's love left me 'euphoric,' then he killed my son

Christenson was first charged with assault. A murder charge followed months later.

Backman met Christenson after posting a personal ad on Craigslist in January 2014. The night they met, Christenson and his then 20-year-old son Jordan moved into Backman's apartment in unincorporated Auburn. During trial, Backman, J.C. and Jordan Christenson testified that Matthew Christenson took over the household and began abusing both boys within a week of moving in.

"Mom brings home the devil, but I don't know if the devil would do some of these things to these kids," Carroll said. "I hope you die in prison, never again again seeing the beauty of the outside world."

Reporter Stephen Cohen can be reached at 206-448-8313 or stephencohen@seattlepi.com. Follow Stephen on Twitter at @scohenPI.
It was just last year that the young Polish conductor Krzysztof Urbanski made a knockout debut with the San Francisco Symphony, leading the orchestra with a rare combination of dramatic intensity and kinetic flair. It was the kind of performance so striking that it left you not quite believing what youd just witnessed.

Well, you can believe it, all right. Urbanski returned to Davies Symphony Hall on Friday night, Oct. 6, for the first of two nonconsecutive guest weeks with the orchestra, and it turns out his earlier appearance was no fluke at all.

Urbanski takes to the podium like a cross between Arturo Toscanini and Fred Astaire, turning each interpretive decision into a balletic piece of performance art. He makes music with taut physicality and shimmery lyricism, and he brings the orchestra into the dance with him so that the entire ensemble moves effortlessly as one.

The results, in music by Penderecki, Mendelssohn and Shostakovich, were both intellectually probing (in a terrifying feat, Urbanski conducts even the most intricate orchestral works from memory) and sensuously direct.

The more we hear from this 35-year-old conductor, the more urgent it becomes to see what else he can do. Urbanski is currently music director of the Indianapolis Symphony, but I cant say I envy the orchestra manager whos being asked to keep him down on that particular farm.

Fridays program opened with a daring, daunting rarity, Pendereckis 1960 cri de coeur Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima. This is a piece more known about than known, one that figures in nearly every history of 20th century music without actually showing up in the concert hall (the Symphony has performed it only once before, in 1977 under Seiji Ozawa).

Threnody is scored in painstaking detail for 52 string players, and its full of unusual instrumental techniques that give the music a ghostly, agonizing surface. Shrieks, whispers and ominous clatters coalesce and disperse, in an expressive landscape that is somewhere between grief and accusation; famously, the piece ends with a giant, densely packed chord that seems to encompass every possible note.

Its the kind of thing that can easily come off as mannered or even kitschy (especially at more than half a centurys remove), but Urbanski and the orchestra gave it a keen emotional specificity. After asking for a moment of silence in honor of the victims of last weeks mass shooting in Las Vegas, Urbanski got the music under way with an almost gentle edge.

Soon enough, though, the performance grew increasingly intense and heartfelt. Just as Penderecki had to invent new notational symbols for some of his more striking instrumental effects, Urbanski seemed to have created a whole new podium lexicon for the occasion  from five-finger explosions to elaborate caressing maneuvers  and all of it bore audible fruit.

He and the orchestra proved no less dynamic after intermission, with a forceful and often raw-boned account of Shostakovichs Tenth Symphony. The epic first movement, which can register in the wrong hands as an overlong slog, charted a tersely compelling journey, and both the pile-driver rhythms of the second movement and the counterintuitive gaiety of the finale came through powerfully.

In between came Mendelssohns Violin Concerto, with Augustin Hadelich serving as an oddly recessive soloist. Ive heard Hadelich play with much more robustness and rhythmic freedom than he showed on this occasion, in which even the slow movement sounded a bit thin and reedy. The encore, Paganinis Caprice No. 21, had more vitality in its few wonderful moments than the entire concerto did.

Joshua Kosman is The San Francisco Chronicles music critic. Email: jkosman@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JoshuaKosman

San Francisco Symphony: 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 7; 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 8. $15-$159. Davies Symphony Hall, 201 Van Ness Ave., S.F. (415) 864-6000, www.sfsymphony.org
President Trump lashed out Saturday against late night television show hosts who have been sharply critical of his administration and Republicans.

Trump took to Twitter to argue that the GOP should be given equal time because of the one-sided coverage, an apparent reference to Federal Communications Commission rules dealing with political candidates during elections.
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Karen Davis-Brown of Petaluma spotted an alligator in her backyard on Thursday night, but chose her words very carefully when describing what she saw to Petaluma Animal Services.

"I wasn't going to tell him there's an alligator in the backyard, because who would believe that," Davis-Brown told ABC7. "So he was right here and he was just sitting here with his mouth open and he looked real but it was just too weird. Quite a few cops showed up wondering if we were crazy people."

According to the Santa Rosa Press Democrat, Petaluma Animal Services officer Mark Scott responded to a call from Davis-Brown, who claimed that there was a "four-foot long reptile with lots of teeth" in her backyard.

When Scott arrived, he found the alligator in a koi pond in the backyard.

RELATED: Texas woman captures video of alligator in her backyard during Harvey

"It's a place with fish and water," Scott told the Press Democrat. "If I was an alligator, that's where I would go."

Scott caught the alligator with a net and duct-taped the reptile's mouth shut after extracting it from the koi pond.

Thankfully, none of the fish in the family's koi pond were harmed.

The alligator was later identified as "Darth Gator," an escaped reptile from the home of Bonnie Cromwell, the head of an animal rescue and education group called Classroom Safari.

MORE: Man jumps on alligator near campsite to aid police capture

Alligators are not allowed to be kept as pets in the state of California without a permit from the Department of Fish and Wildlife. Classroom Safari has a permit to own an alligator, but the Department of Fish and Wildlife will "follow up with the group to determine if the animal was properly stored," according to Scott.

Scott also stated that the alligator escaped while Cromwell was attempting to move the alligator to another facility.

"She was in the middle of relocating them to another better facility and it was able to get away," Scott told ABC7.
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SAN FRANCISCO (BCN)

A group of 10 San Francisco activists started a 14-day march to Sacramento Friday demanding charges for San Francisco police officers who have shot and killed suspects.

The marchers are seeking a meeting with state Attorney General Xavier Becerra and will ask him to step in and charge officers involved in shootings that San Francisco District Attorney George Gascon has either declined to charge or has made no decision.

"They should not be allowed to go on killing with total impunity," the 10 marchers wrote to Becerra in a letter that was provided to reporters. "We believe that nothing will change unless the guilty cops are charged with murder, found guilty and go to jail."

Three of the people marching were previously part of the "Frisco Five," who staged a 17-day hunger strike outside the Mission District police station last year calling for the removal of former San Francisco police Chief Greg Suhr. The strike culminated in a tense protest inside San Francisco City Hall.

Two weeks after that, another controversial shooting, of Jessica Williams on May 19, 2016, led to Suhr's ouster.

"We're here, we're doing it again," Ike Pinkston, one of the Frisco Five, said at a rally outside the Hall of Justice today before the march. "First we're starving ourselves, now we're walking some 95 miles."

Protesters have also targeted San Francisco District Attorney George Gascon, a former police chief, despite his rhetoric about police accountability. Gascon's investigations into police shootings have lasted years and his office still has 10 open investigations into deadly shootings dating back to 2014.

Gascon made some headway in clearing the backlog of investigations on Thursday, when he announced that nine officers involved in three shootings in 2014, 2016 and this year would face no criminal charges.

Among the officers the marchers are demanding criminal charges for are Craig Tiffe and Eric Reboli, plainclothes officers who killed Amilcar Perez-Lopez on Feb. 26, 2015. Gascon announced in April this year that they would not be charged.

They are also seeking criminal charges for the officers who shot Alex Nieto, a security guard who was killed in Bernal Heights Park while allegedly wielding a Taser on March 21, 2014. A year later, Gascon announced those four officers would not be charged.

The still pending cases they are seeking charges for are for Williams as well as Mario Woods who was killed on Dec. 2, 2015, and Luis Gongora Pat, a Mayan homeless man who was shot on April 7, 2015.

At a rally today before the march, members of the Nieto and Gongora families read statements of support.

"This is a very positive walk and we are going to ask the person at the state capitol to help us out and jail killer cops," Nieto's father, Refugio Nieto, said through a translator. "We're hoping Gascon listens to the person at the state capitol and we have justice for those who have fallen in San Francisco."

"No matter how much we have demanded district attorney Gascon to impose justice on his murderers, he has not," said Gongora's brother, Jose Gongora Pat. "We, the relatives of the innocent people killed by police, are forced to escalate our actions because the justice system is not made to provide justice when the state kills."

The marchers plan to hold meetings along the way in Mill Valley, San Rafael, Petaluma, Novato, Sonoma, Napa, Fairfield, Vacaville, Dixon and Davis. They plan to arrive in Sacramento on Oct. 18.
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OAKLAND (BCN)

Ground was broken Friday on a $53 million, 110-unit affordable and market-rate housing development at Oakland's Coliseum BART station in a buoyant ceremony marked by cheers and three standing ovations.

Coliseum Connections, a transit-oriented development, is being built just a stone's throw from the station, on the grounds of its former parking lot. The development is expected to be completed in Dec. 2018, according to Michael Johnson of UrbanCore Development, the project's developer.

The project will include 55 units that will be affordable to households whose incomes fall between 50 and 60 percent of the area's median income. These rents will fall between $980 and $1,400 per month. The other 55 units will be market rate housing, renting for $1,800 to $2,200 a month.

As BART trains whizzed past on tracks only about 100 feet away, a crowd of about 200 celebrated the development, a coup for the long-maligned neighborhood of the Coliseum known as "deep East Oakland."

"The Bay Area is in a cost of living crisis," Mayor Libby Schaaf told the lively audience, which included Councilmembers Lynette Gibson McElhaney and Rebecca Kaplan, among other luminaries.

"We need to build housing like this, not only to give people a great place to live but to get them off the freeways," Schaaf said, occasionally speaking over the sound of tooting BART horns.

The star of the show was undoubtedly City Council President Larry Reid, who spearheaded the project, which is in his district, District 7. When he took the podium, Reid got a standing ovation, the first of three.

In an interview, Reid said the project, which will be either town homes or flats with one or two bedrooms, is close to several modes of public transit.

"This is a crown jewel," Reid said. "Amtrak, BART, AC Transit and (BART's) Airport Connector (to Oakland International Airport) all converge in one location."

When Reid was first elected to the council in the 1990s, "it was known as the killing fields for African American youth," he told the audience.

Now, Reid said, "aside from downtown Oakland and the Army base in West Oakland, the greatest opportunity for development is in my council district."

Before construction began on the project, located on the site of the station's former parking lot, there were 160 parking spaces at the station, said Larry Gallegos, manager of neighborhood investment for the city. Presently there are 20 spaces in a small spit of land next to the old lot that the city bought from Union Pacific, he said.

"When construction is completed, there will probably be 100 spaces" for BART riders, Gallegos said. Riders will follow the established procedure of paying for their spaces at the station, as they do at present.

UrbanCore Development secured a $29 million construction loan commitment from Chase Bank, the largest chunk of funding.

Additionally, $12 million in funding came from the City of Oakland, $1.25 million in subordinate debt from the Commonwealth Multi-Family Housing Corp., $10 million from the State Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities program, $9.7 million in tax credit equity from the Royal Bank of Canada and $2.5 million from Alameda County.
When I first came up with the idea for this column, there were a couple specific items I remembered from my youth that I knew I wanted to search for in our archives. And with October carrying on, heres one of them: from the Nov. 7, 1987, Journal Gazette, this review by Carl Lebovitz of the then-current horror film Prince of Darkness with additional commentary on just how similar the posters for horror movies were starting to seem at the time. I actually remember reading this article when it first ran. Cmon, I would have been 9 years old; of course an article about awesome horror movie posters with the word Satan in the headline was going to catch my eye.

To make his point about the posters, he also brings up the 1987 sci-fi horror film Nightflyers, a film so cheap the producers tried to get you to believe a disused Julius Caesar stage set was the communal area of a spaceship; and, unseen here, the classic poster of the 1981 horror film The Howling, all of which, do, yes, have very similar movie posters, each one featuring a screaming head.

You might be surprised to find out that Carl sort of liked Prince of Darkness. Well, to be specific, he said its not halfway bad and that it has some good effects even though its overdone to the point of being ludicrous. I guess thats a fair way to describe a movie about one of the "Simons" from "Simon & Simon" and a group of scientists studying a cylinder of swirling green goo in a church basement that supposedly contains the Anti-Christ.

I would have been too young to see Prince of Darkness at the Time Theater in 1987, and other than catching slop like Day of the Animals on WCIA late Saturday nights, I didnt start actively watching horror movies as a hobby until 1997, when I think I got tired of my friends not being able to decide what to rent off the new release rack. What a time what was if you were into such things. Mattoon had, by my rough count, five, maybe six different video stores around that time. It would have been even more if Carousel Video was still in business then. Thats where I first encountered films like the Japanese superhero film Infra-Man, or the infamous Italian-made chainsaw-murderer film Pieces, which had the helpful tagline Its exactly what you think it is on the movie poster.

Lets see, there was Broadway Video, previously mentioned here, which was probably the senior VHS vault at the time. One of my high school buddies worked the night shift job there; a position that, even though hes a respectable high school administrator now, hes expressed to me that he still misses to this day. When they went out of business I purchased their ultra-rare VHS copy of Last House on Dead End Street, a fact that puts me at elite-status in a select group of unemployable horror-nerds who care about such things.

That same buddy later worked at Video Revue, a position he doesnt seem to wax nostalgic about nearly as much. It really was a magnet for some of Mattoons finest p.m. weirdos, including myself I guess, since Id hang out there too and rent stuff like the original Emmanuelle and Ilsa: The Wicked Warden after loitering there when my night classes at Lake Land were done every Wednesday.

There was also Premiere Video, probably the classiest of the bunch. They always seemed to stock the artier films, and if something had just run on cable and they saw me renting it, Id sometimes get it for free. The perks of being in there four times a week I guess. They had Horror House on Highway Five, a film whose trailer had the tagline Watch this movie or DIE! OK, you could have just asked.

Craigs Video on Lake Land Boulevard never quite seemed like they were open and had a cavernous backlog of all their old stock from when they first opened no doubt, including a lot of '70s oddities like the someone-really-dies-in-this malarkey of Snuff, from a director who died when a helicopter blade tore him to shreds, or Blood on Satans Claw, a film of which I remember nothing of other than the title.

Blowout Video was Wal-Marts video store, located where the salon is now. They were small but serviceable. Thats where I got my VHS copies of Demon Wind, a movie that probably also needed the Its-what-you-think-it-is tagline, and Xtro, a "dad's-been-replaced-by-an-alien" film which became notable amongst my friends because no matter how much I tried to swab it down with rubbing alcohol, the VHS box always smelled like pure B.O. Now thats real Demon Wind right there.

Also worth mentioning, even though I cant remember if either of them was around during that particular time, was Stars and Stripes Video, right next to the Big Lots. The only thing I ever remember renting from there was the 1984 Lorenzo Lamas breakdancing film Body Rock, which wasnt a horror film as much as it was horrible; or Spotlight Video in that little building across from Famous Recipe which didnt have a lot of room, but still had enough space for the rubber sea monster vs. schlubby high school journalism teacher idiocy of Slithis, a movie that apparently offered a Slithis Survival Kit to theater-goers. Given the quality of the film, this probably meant they just gave you a ticket to a different movie.

But all these places are gone now, winked out of existence one-by-one thanks to time and other factors. Although last I checked, Prince of Darkness is still on a rental shelf here in Mattoon at the Family Video. And even though the DVD case doesnt use the original poster that first caught Carls eye, the new art still has, yes, a giant ghostly head on it. May some things never change.
The American Library Association promotes the celebration of Banned Books Week every September to celebrate the freedom to read in spite of attempts at censorship. For Banned Books Week this year, I asked my friends to recommend a "banned book" and my friend Toni suggested "The Grapes of Wrath" by John Steinbeck, which was published in 1939.

According to Ann K. Symons, president of the American Library Association (19981999): "The Grapes of Wrath, number 10 on the list [Modern Librarys 100 Best Novels of the 20th Century], has been one of the most vilified works since its publication in 1939. Burned at the St. Louis (Mo.) Public Library immediately after publication, it also was banned from the Buffalo (N.Y.) Public Library because of 'vulgar words.' It was challenged in the Greenville (S.C.) schools because it used the names of God and Jesus 'in a vain and profane manner' and was banned in Kern County (Calif.) where the story was set. It continues to be one of the most challenged books in schools and libraries."

The book was written in the aftermath of the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression. It is estimated that between 1930 and 1940, approximately 3.5 million people moved out of the Midwest due to the hard economic conditions and drought plaguing the area.

Steinbeck's novel follows the fictional Joad family from Oklahoma to California after their land is taken. They join a mass exodus across Route 66 -- thousands of people fleeing a dying way a life and hoping to start anew. Handbills have circulated throughout the area promising work on farms and orchards in California, and entire families pack what they can and sell the rest so they can head off in search of these jobs and the promise of a paradise that awaits them.

Of course, there were far more handbills than there were jobs, and hundreds of thousands of families take the bait. For every job there might be in California, there are a hundred men trying to get that job. Though the jobs are often only temporary for the harvest, the men are so desperate for money to feed their families that they outbid each other for lower wages. The property owners in California take full advantage of this, and the poor migrants can't afford to eat even if they do find jobs.

Police in the area are cruel and brutal, beating and arresting any migrants who try to stand up for themselves. Locals often burn down the migrant camps to try to run them out of town. Thousands relinquish their dignity just to try to survive, and many still perish -- from beatings, from starvation -- or go missing.

Throughout the novel, we watch as the Joad family is slowly whittled down as members die or disappear. We never find out what happens to those who leave the core family group -- just as the group itself would be left to wonder and never know the fates of those who left. Without phones or even permanent homes, getting separated from a family member often meant never seeing them again.

We witness their struggle just to survive through so many adversities and hardships, and in the end we do not get a happy ending -- not for the Joads or any of the other migrant families introduced. Their situation ends worse than when it began, even having lost what little belongings they still had in a flood at a migrant camp. But, even in a hopeless ending, we see that determination to survive and to help others survive.

The Joads and so many of these families like them are tough people, and the flight to California and fight to survive has made them seem more primal. It is this that the people of California fear -- people from elsewhere, hard and unforgiving as the land they fled. At the heart of it all, though, those migrant families help each other, even when they barely had enough to help themselves. We witness their spirit and their kindness and generosity, which never wavers no matter how hard times get. The Joads remind us that to be human is not just to survive but to help others.

One passage in the novel reads: "Keep those two squatting men apart; make them hate, fear, suspect each other... The danger is here, for two men are not as lonely and perplexed as one." It's interesting to note that this has been the tactic used by those in power for almost a century.
STRASBURG -- American Legion Auxiliary Liberty Unit 289 President Sarah Wyckoff called to order the meeting. The members sang in unison the Air Force Song. Roll call was taken with six officers present.

Morgan Braden was one of Strasburg 289s delegates to the 2017 American Legion Auxiliary Illini Girls State in June at Eastern Illinois University. She was of the Nationalist party.

Cinda Held and Linda Oakley reported on attending the 2017 National American Legion Auxiliary Convention in Reno, Nevada. The Honorary Junior Central Division Vice President Deana Woodburn is from Illinois. National dues were raised $3. President Trump was present and spoke to The Legion and Auxiliary.

Delegates to the Sept. 23, 19th District Fall Convention in Champaign were: Linda Oakley, Cinda Held, and Jill Layton. Alternates were Caralea Smith, Jamie Brown, and Bonnie Lawrence.

Strasburg had 64 Senior members paid with a total of 47.8 percent in membership.

The Unit members hope to have the Veterans VA Needs items to be collected in October, art supplies to be collected in November, and Blessings in a Backpack in December.

Strasburg Unit members will provide a meal for the Oct. 6 Mapping.

Caralea Smith won the door prize. CARE was $7.50.

Upcoming events include:

Nationals Mission Training in Springfield - Oct. 14th

Halloween Soup Supper  Oct. 27th

Leadership Training at Strasburg  Nov. 18th

Units Christmas Store  Dec. 16

Following the adjournment of the meeting and refreshments, the Unit members took part in a service project where they filled Police Survival Kits. These were passed out to law enforcement in Shelby County, Effingham County, and Cumberland County.
Political events in the Bay Area

Single-payer: Peter S. Arno, senior fellow and director of health policy studies at the Political Economy Research Institute, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, will speak on single-payer health coverage for the state and how to pay for universal coverage. 3-5 p.m. Sunday at 1333 Pine St. in Martinez.

Haiti: A screening of a new documentary, Serenade for Haiti, at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Roxie Theater, 3117 16th St. in San Francisco, with a question-and-answer session following. The screening will benefit Engineers Without Borders working in Haiti. http://bit.ly/2hSWieo

Democracy, explained: Learn how to run a campaign and get appointed to a commission from the Lamorinda Democratic Club. 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday at the Lafayette Library and Learning Center, 3401 Mount Diablo Blvd. Features elected officials, campaign managers and consultants. http://bit.ly/2wCoUuI

Civil discourse: The League of Women Voters of North and Central San Mateo County holds an interactive workshop on civil discourse. 1 to 3 p.m. Oct. 24 at the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, 1300 El Camino Real, San Mateo. http://bit.ly/2xo4EfV

Limits of whiteness: Neda Maghbouleh, assistant professor of sociology at University of Toronto, will lecture on how Iranian Americans move across a white not-white color line, discussing race in North America today. The lecture runs from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. Oct. 26 at the Humanities Auditorium at San Francisco State University. http://bit.ly/2fHvtFF

Black Panther history: Joshua Bloom and Waldo E. Martin Jr., authors of Black Against Empire: The History and Politics of the Black Panther Party, discuss their book at the San Francisco Main Librarys Koret Auditorium. 1 p.m. Oct. 29. Information about this event and others noting the books selection in the One City One Book program: http://bit.ly/2eTr1mz

To list an event, email Annie Ma at ama@sfchronicle.com
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SACRAMENTO  President Trumps immigration chief ripped into Gov. Jerry Brown on Friday for signing legislation that creates a statewide sanctuary policy, saying the federal government will be forced to conduct at-large arrests in local neighborhoods and at work sites of undocumented immigrants.

In a highly critical statement, Tom Homan, acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said Californias new law undermines public safety and makes it harder for federal immigration officials to do their jobs.

He said Browns decision to sign SB54 on Thursday makes California a sanctuary state for illegal aliens  including those who have committed crimes.

Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles, who wrote SB54, immediately fired back Friday, saying Homans comments were inaccurate and amounted to fearmongering.

The Trump administration is once again making heavy-handed threats against California because we wont help them tear apart families and our economy in the process, de Leon said.

Now Playing: California Gov. Jerry Brown signed the so-called sanctuary state bill into law Thursday, extending protections for immigrants living in the United States illegally -- a move that gives the nation's most populous state another tool to fight President Donald Trump. Video: KCRA

SB54 bars law enforcement officers in the state from arresting individuals based on civil immigration warrants, asking about a persons immigration status, keeping an undocumented inmate in jail on an immigration hold, or participating in any joint task force with federal officials for the purpose of enforcing immigration laws.

The bill does not prohibit federal immigration officials or the Department of Homeland Security from enforcing federal immigration laws in California. Instead, the law says California will not use its own law enforcement resources to help the federal government in those actions. De Leon introduced the bill in direct response to Trumps crackdown on undocumented immigrants, which has left many in fear.

These are uncertain times for undocumented Californians and their families, and this bill strikes a balance that will protect public safety, while bringing a measure of comfort to those families who are now living in fear every day, Brown wrote after signing the bill Thursday.

Brown did not comment Friday on Homans remarks.

SB54 allows local jailers to notify immigration officials when an undocumented immigrant in custody has been convicted of a violent felony, as well as hundreds of other crimes. The law largely exempts prisons in the state, allowing state corrections officials to work with immigration officials, although prison inmates have to provide written consent for federal immigration agents to interview them while in custody.

State prison officials can still hold and transfer undocumented inmates at the request of federal immigrations agents. The inmate is required to be notified of the action.

Despite de Leon, Brown and some law enforcement officials in the state saying the bill does not interfere with ICE operations, Homan said it will.

SB54 will negatively impact ICE operations in California by nearly eliminating all cooperation and communication with our law enforcement partners in the state, Homan said, adding the law also prohibits local law enforcement from contracting with the federal government to house detainees.

By limiting their ability to work with jailers, Homan said they will have to focus immigration enforcement in communities instead of jails and prisons, which will inevitably result in additional collateral arrests.

But ICE agents might have a tougher time raiding businesses in California too, under a second law the governor signed Thursday.

That legislation, AB450, by Assemblyman David Chiu, D-San Francisco, bars private and public employers from allowing federal immigration authorities to look at records or conduct workplace sweeps unless they have judicial warrants to do so. The law, like SB54, takes effect Jan.1.

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said he stands ready to fully defend the sanctuary protections.

San Francisco, Los Angeles, Oakland and dozens of other jurisdictions in California already have sanctuary city policies, with proponents of the protections saying it ensures undocumented immigrants can report crimes without fearing it will lead to their deportation.

San Franciscos sanctuary city policy bans city employees from helping or cooperating with federal immigration agents in an investigation or arrest related to a persons immigration status. It also bars employees from asking people who are applying for city benefits about their immigration status or providing information about the release of an inmate, except in limited circumstances.

Local sanctuary policies have not stopped federal immigration officials from immigration sweeps, including one last week that resulted in 27 people in the Bay Area being arrested, most with past criminal convictions. The sweep was part of an effort by the Trump administration to target sanctuary cities. Last weeks raid in eight states and Washington, D.C., resulted in 498 people from 42 countries arrested, of which 181 had no previous criminal conviction, according to ICE.

Ed Medrano, president of the California Police Chiefs Association, said SB54 still allows for some partnerships with federal immigration agents, such as for criminal investigations, easing concern his group had with the bill initially. The bill does bar those partnerships when the focus is immigration enforcement.

Medrano said the law reaffirms what we have held since the beginning, which is that California law enforcement should not be used to assist in mass deportations.

Melody Gutierrez is a

San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mgutierrez@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @MelodyGutierrez
PARIS  President Emmanuel Macron is increasingly being portrayed as the president of the rich  an unpopular epithet in a country where bragging about money is taboo and equality is a national motto.

After scrapping a wealth tax and reaching out to big investors, his popularity is flagging, and he made matters worse for himself with a vulgar reference to soon-to-be-jobless workers.

The super tax, which applied to people with more than 1.3 million euros ($1.5 million) in assets, is to be replaced next year by a tax on real estate. The measure, soon to be discussed at parliament, prompted heated debates about why yachts, racing horses and luxury cars should not be taxed more.

Finance minister Bruno Le Maire warned how complex it would be to tax all signs of wealth. Then why not tax jewelry, furs and wine cellars? ... Its never over, he said on RTL radio this week.

Macron, elected on a pro-business platform, doesnt hide that his economic policies aim at attracting more wealthy French and foreign investors into the country.

Who are the people who invest? People who are ready to take risks and who are going to win when success rewards these risks, he said last week during a visit to a factory in northern France.

The move comes after the government announced a series of unpopular measures this summer, starting with a decrease in housing aid for all students.

Last month, Macron signed labor reforms that have prompted demonstrations because they are perceived by many as weakening Frances hard-won worker protection rights, and thousands of retirees walked on the streets to protest against a tax hike on their pensions.

Macrons popularity in the polls quickly plunged to near record lows only five months after his election. Polls also show the French increasingly consider Macrons reforms as unfair and out of touch with their concerns.

The 39-year-old centrist president, known for his outspoken style, prompted a public outcry last week with comments suggesting employees of a struggling company should look for a job instead of protesting. He said, using vulgar language, that some people, instead of screwing everything up, would better see whether they can get some jobs.

Many politicians from both the left and the right criticized the comment as a sign of disrespect toward people losing their jobs.

Adrien Quatennens, a lawmaker with the hard-left party France Insoumise (Rebel France), said that looking for a job, Macron doesnt know what its like.

Valerie Boyer, spokeswoman of The Republicans conservative party, criticized the presidents contempt for the French.

Macrons comment is the latest of a series of expressions that have fueled the portrayal of him as the president of the rich.

During a visit in Greece last month, he said he would not give in to lazy people, interpreted as referring to workers opposing his labor reforms.

In a speech to entrepreneurs this summer, he mentioned people who succeed and people who are nobody.

And during the electoral campaign, political opponents regularly used Macrons former job as investment banker at Rothschild to suggest he would favor the rich.

Macrons language reminds some of former president Nicolas Sarkozy, who often made frank  sometimes even rude  comments.

Sylvie Corbet is an Associated Press writer.
VATICAN CITY  The Legion of Christ religious order, stained by revelations that its founder sexually abused seminarians and fathered several children, is facing a new credibility scandal: The rector of its diocesan seminary in Rome is leaving the priesthood after admitting he fathered two children of his own.

In a letter released by the Legion on Saturday, the Rev. Oscar Turrion said he fell in love with a woman a few years ago during a time of turmoil in the Legion, and fathered a son and daughter.

Turrion, a 49-year-old Spaniard, had been rector of the Pontifical Maria Matter Eclesiae International College since 2014. The institution is a residence for diocesan seminarians who study at Rome universities. Currently, 107 seminarians live there, most from India, Latin America and Africa, down from about 200 a few years ago.

The issue is particularly delicate given the international diocesan character of the seminary: Bishops entrusted their seminarians to the Legion to provide them with a wholesome living environment while they completed their studies.

In a statement, the Legion said it was conscious of the impact that the negative example of Turrions case had on seminarians and the Christian faithful, and said it was committed to a path of renewal.

The Vatican took over the Legion in 2010, after revelations that its late founder, the Rev. Marcial Maciel, sexually abused seminarians and fathered at least three children with two women. It ordered up a wholesale reform, but the scandal hurt the Legions credibility and stained the legacy of St. John Paul II, who had been a leading Maciel supporter.

Several priests have since left the order, the number of seminarians has fallen and the Legion has been forced to close some schools and sell off some of its property.

Legion spokesman the Rev. Aaron Smith declined to provide details of the Turrion case, citing the familys privacy. He confirmed that the mother was an adult when she conceived the couples first child.

In his letter, Turrion said he never used Legion funds to provide for his family, relying instead on donations from friends.

Recently, members of Pope Francis advisory commission on protecting minors from sexual abuse said they had taken up the issue of priests children.

Nicole Winfield is an Associated Press writer.
ISTANBUL  Turkeys president announced Saturday that the country has launched a serious operation in Syrias northwestern Idlib province with Turkey-backed Syrian opposition forces, following international efforts to calm the fighting in the war-torn country.

The operation has been highly anticipated in the province, where al Qaeda-linked fighters enjoy wide influence, after last months talks in the Kazakh capital of Astana during which Turkey, Iran and Russia agreed on setting up a de-escalation zone in the region.

The operation is aimed at eventually crushing al Qaeda in what may turn into a long and costly war. The extremist group has thousands of battle-hardened fighters and enjoys some popular support in the province, unlike the Islamic State group.

Turkey is a strong backer of Syrian opposition fighters while Iran and Russia back President Bashar Assad. Moscow joined the war two years ago siding with Assad while Tehran has sent thousands of Iranian-backed fighters, tipping the balance of power in the presidents favor.

In late September, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Turkey where he discussed the situation in Syria with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Last week, the Turkish leader went to Tehran.

Erdogan said the operation was a new step to establish security in Idlib, promising Turkey would not desert civilians there.

Today, there is a serious operation in Idlib and it will continue, he said at his political partys conference in Afyonkarahisar province in western Turkey.

Responding to journalists questions after the televised speech, Erdogan said: The Free Syrian Army is leading an operation in Idlib right now, referring to moderate rebel groups in Syria. He added that the Turkish military was not yet in the province.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which has activists throughout Syria, said Turkish troops removed some walls in some areas along the border in order to allow vehicles to pass. It said Idlib is tense amid fear of clashes between al Qaeda fighters and those of other militant groups.

The Observatory added that the expected Turkish operation in Idlib will be conducted under the cover of Russian air strikes.

Turkey-backed Syrian forces are fighting the al Qaeda-linked Levant Liberation Committee, formerly known as Nusra Front. In the past weeks, the Turkish military has been dispatching tanks and armored vehicles to the border with Idlib.

Turkish Chief of Staff Gen. Hulusi Akar and Ground Forces Commander Gen. Yasar Guler and Air Force Commander Gen. Hasan Kucukakyuz arrived in the southern province of Hatay bordering Idlib on Saturday to inspect preparations, according to a military statement.

The aim of the operation is to implement the Astana agreement by setting up Turkish observation posts similar to those of Russia, said Lt. Col. Fares al-Bayoush. This cannot be achieved without confronting the Nusra Front. ... The aim is to finish Nusra Front.

Zeynep Bilginsoy and Bassem Mroue are Associated Press writers.
One of President Trump's recent divisive distractions has been his attack on the right of Americans to peacefully protest by kneeling during the national anthem. He speaks of disrespecting the flag, but America is more than a flag. It is an ideal, an ideal of democracy and freedoms, one being the freedom to peacefully protest. Trump questions the patriotism of those protesting, but as historian Howard Zinn has said, If patriotism were defined, not as blind obedience to government, not as submissive worship to flags and anthems, but rather as love of one's country, one's fellow citizens (all over the world), as loyalty to the principles of justice and democracy, then patriotism would require us to disobey our government, when it violated those principles.

Protests have been important catalysts throughout American history. Think through your knowledge of history -- the suffragists, the marches in Selma and Birmingham, and of course the Boston Tea Party just to name a few. To quote the American musician John Legend, Protest is patriotic. Protest has played a critically important role in elevating the voices of the most vulnerable in our nation. Protest in America has been essential to ending war, to demanding equal rights, to ending unfair practices that keep citizens marginalized. If we quell protest in the name of patriotism, we are not patriots. We are tyrants.

Some people are upset by what they perceive is disrespect of the flag and therefore disrespect of America. But they should remember or realize that America is more than a flag. We are indoctrinated from an early age to respect the flag, say the pledge of allegiance, cover our hearts when the flag goes by. But what does the flag represent -- it represents our country which supposedly stands for justice and democracy. Injustices have been fought against before, but there are still many to be overcome. Our country allows its citizens to be discriminated against when their skin is not the same color as the current majority, or their religion is not the same as the perceived majority, or their sexual preference is not the same as everyone else's. Breaking custom to kneel instead of stand for the flag is a peaceful protest to elevate the voices of the most vulnerable in our nation. When we see someone not following our own beliefs or customs, we should ask ourselves why and try to understand instead of blindly attacking them for being different or calling them unpatriotic. Those who are peacefully protesting by kneeling before the flag are making a patriotic statement. We need to respect and listen to that statement.
Matt Olberding Business reporter Matt Olberding is a Lincoln native and University of Nebraska-Lincoln graduate who has been covering business for the Journal Star since 2005. Follow Matt Olberding Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today

When the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. last week released its annual Summary of Deposits report, I focused all my energy on the sharp drop in deposits in Nebraska for Wells Fargo.

That seemed quite relevant considering the bank revealed last fall that its employees created millions of fake customer accounts, including several thousand in Nebraska, to meet overly ambitious sales goals.

However, Wells Fargo said the drop was really due to moving some nonretail deposits from its main bank in Omaha to another state, an explanation that's certainly plausible considering that the bank saw a small overall increase in deposits nationally.

With that being said, I wanted to touch on what's been going on with the rest of the state's banks over the past year.

Total deposits held in Nebraska bank branches rose from $63.1 billion as of June 30, 2016, to $64.35 billion, an increase of about 2 percent.

Statewide, the big winner was First National Bank of Omaha, which saw its Nebraska deposits grow from just under $10 billion to more than $10.7 billion, an increase of nearly 7.5 percent.

In the Lincoln metro area, total deposits grew a little faster than the state rate, going from just under $8 billion to just under $8.2 billion, a growth rate of about 2.5 percent.

By pure size of growth, Union Bank & Trust was the big winner, growing from just under $2 billion to more than $2.1 billion in deposits in the Lincoln area. It also bumped its share of the market up to more than 25 percent.

But on a percentage basis, many smaller banks had stronger performance. West Gate Bank grew its Lincoln-area deposits from $392 million to nearly $450 million this year, a nearly 15 percent increase. Lincoln Federal Savings Bank saw its Lincoln-area assets grow from $64 million last year to nearly $78 million this year, a more than 20 percent increase.

On the other hand, large banks lost market share. Wells Fargo's Lincoln-area deposits dropped slightly, from $1.34 billion to $1.3 billion.

The big loser among large banks was U.S. Bank, which saw its Lincoln-area deposits fall from $892 million in 2016 to $815 million this year, a more than 8 percent drop.

Rankings update

As regular readers know, I often use this space to give updates on various "best of" lists that give a high ranking to Lincoln or Nebraska. Here's a couple that have come into my email box in the past month or so.

* 14th best city for recent college grads (Nerdwallet).

* Sixth best state for school spirit (Walmart).

Best of the Buzz

Excerpts from recent Biz Buzz posts:

* The Northside Cafe in University Place closed its doors recently after nearly six years in business.

In a Facebook post, the owners said a new business is coming to the space at 2701 N. 48th St., but they did not say what the new business is.

* Gateway Mall is adding two new tenants to its food court. One is a pizza place called Firestone Pizza and the other one is a Mediterranean grill.

* The new Buffalo Wings & Rings near 70th and O streets caught my eye the other day.

Specifically, what caught my eye was the fact that it's almost finished. A sign on the door says it will open Nov. 1.
Khari "Needlz" Cain is on his way to Lincoln next week, bringing the production skills hes used with the likes of Drake, Bruno Mars and 50 Cent to work with local artists and producers.

Except those artists will be 20 high school students who will take part in the Inspire to Dream Music Camp, a multiday workshop put together by Ashton Hitwrita Combs, a Lincoln native who is now a producer and writer in Atlanta. The camp, Combs said, is designed to provide an opportunity for aspiring artists, producers and engineers that wasnt available when he was growing up in Lincoln in the early 2000s.

When I was coming up in music in Nebraska, I was told a lot of times I wouldnt be able to do anything because I was from Lincoln, said Combs, who graduated from Lincoln High in 2006. Now Ive had songs on the radio. Ive worked with dozens of artists. Now I want to give back, to show them they can do something, tell my story. Its really to inspire.

To create the camp, Combs teamed up with Brandon McWilliams of Men With Dreams, then recruited Cain, who will take two days off from his sessions to work with the Lincoln students.

Ive actually known Needlz since I was 14, Combs said. When I was an artist, his brother was in a masters program at the University of Nebraska. I sent him a demo. I didnt actually meet Needlz until I was 25. But I was sending him songs, keeping in touch. You have to stick with things, and you have to build up relationships. Nothing comes easy.

Thats some of the advice that Combs wants to share with students during the camp, which will begin at 10 a.m. Oct. 14. The camp will be held at Cloud City, a recording studio at 2124 Y St. operated by Kevan Griffin, who recently returned to Lincoln after spending years as a top New York City hip-hop engineer.

He engineered for Diddy and Big Boy, Combs said. Its not just any studio.

The final camp professional is University of Nebraska-Lincoln trumpet professor Darryl White. White will be part of the music education segment on the camps opening day. Then the students will begin planning the song that they will write, record and produce over the next two days.

The finished song will be played on Lincoln radio station Red 94.5 (KBBK-HD2, 94.5 FM), guaranteeing that the students get their song on the radio, an audible demonstration that they can do something, Combs said.

Students need to apply for one of 20 spots in the camp that will, thanks to scholarships from sponsors, cost just $35. Full cost of the camp would have been $400 without the scholarships

Theyre going to be in good hands for $35, Combs said.

The participants must have skill with either an instrument or vocals, verified by a music educator. Applications for the camp can be obtained by emailing McWilliams at brandon@menwithdreams.org or Combs at inspiremusicgroupllc@gmail.com.
Jon Parrish Peede, the acting chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities, was appointed to the position by President Trump earlier this year, a few months after Trump proposed eliminating the agency, as well as the National Endowment for the Arts.

In the months since that proclamation, though, the process of funding NEH has continued. Trump doesnt write the federal budget -- Congress does -- and the House Appropriations Committee approved $145 million budgets for the NEH and NEA. Its a proposed 3 percent cut, but it is still a budget.

My duty is to make sure that we're good stewards of the tax dollars and that in 2018, until our budget is resolved, that we're not overcommitting funding, Peede said during a phone interview between museum tours and speeches this week in Omaha. We continue to have panels meeting. We will be meeting this fall to award grants, and that's how the agency proceeds until Congress votes on the final appropriation and presents it to the president for approval or rejection."

During his trip to Nebraska this week, the second out of Washington, D.C., since he was appointed, Peede focused on what the NEH has done, and will continue to offer for humanities programs across the country, sometimes in emergency situations.

"I think it's important for the National Endowment for the Humanities to get out of Washington, to make sure we see how the humanities are really functioning at the state level, the local level," he said.

His first visit was to Texas, shortly after Hurricane Harvey hit. There, he met with officials and preservationists to offer help via rapid-response funding proposals.

The endowment has committed $1 million to the endeavor to preserve storm-affected artifacts like a 1941 WPA mural that, like many objects left behind during Harvey, could be ruined by mold.

In Nebraska, Peede lauded NEH-supported programs, as well as Humanities Nebraska, which carries out its goal of bringing high-quality, affordable humanities programs to all corners of the state with a budget funded in considerable part by NEH.

In the state of Nebraska, for example, 39 percent of Humanities Nebraska's budget comes directly from the NEH, Peede said. So we are hearing from our state partners about the importance of our federal support to their operations and their own grants across the state. We're not allowed as a federal agency to lobby Congress in any way. We know that our state partners make their members aware of the value they see in the humanities and in the arts. So I think my charge as acting chairman is to make sure that we're doing everything we can for our state partners, which means thinking beyond just funding them.

(Tuesday), we were talking about preservation of Native American languages. I was sharing some of the work we're doing more nationally with language revitalization, and so we think it's not enough to preserve these indigenous languages -- Native American, native Hawaiian, native Alaskan languages. But we have a program where you can revitalize it, where you can have elders sharing with people in middle age and then young adults and then ultimately with teens and children to kind of pass on a language history. That's an example where what the NEH brings to the table is more than just dollars.

Though Peede came to head the NEH shortly after resigning as editor of the Virginia Quarterly Review, he has a background in this field.

I had the wonderful opportunity to serve eight-and-a-half years at the National Endowment for the Arts, he said. I know the work of both the NEA and the NEH, and feel very strongly about the importance of having the arts and humanities in our lives. And so when I was asked to commit myself to public service again, this was an honor to do.

In Nebraska, the NEH has provided more than $11 million to fund 60 grants during the past 10 years. Recent examples include the Chautauqua speakers series ($89,093 grant), which brought reenactors portraying the likes W.E.B. Du Bois and Edith Wharton to Seward and Nebraska City this summer to discuss the lasting legacy of World War I, as well as the Lincoln-based Vision Maker Media ($150,000 grant), which will use its funding to host two indigenous film festivals in 2018 and 2020, as well as continuing current efforts that include training Native American youths in filmmaking.

Shirley Sneve, Vision Maker Media's executive director, said that the national nonprofit based in Lincoln must match the NEH grant to receive the federal funding, and she's in the process of doing that while also showcasing the work that filmmakers working with Vision Maker have created. While Peede was in Nebraska, she was in D.C. at a screening of "Mankiller," a documentary about the life of Wilma Mankiller, the first woman elected principal chief of the Cherokee Nation.

She said that the NEH grant will not only help support Vision Maker in its efforts to teach best practices to a new generation of Native American filmmakers, but it will also allow her to hire a coordinator for the upcoming week-long festivals, the first of which will take place at the Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center starting April 20.

The thing that American taxpayers need to understand is this is a jobs program," she said. "Well be able to hire people with this money.
Cutshall, 33, was lodged in Lancaster County jail, facing charges of unauthorized communications with a committed offender, unlawful acts by a corrections employee, and sex abuse of an inmate or parolee. She has been a caseworker at the prison since 2015.

"The introduction of any contraband into prisons puts my staff and the incarcerated population in danger. Drugs are especially dangerous due to the possible medical reactions and potential for violence," said Scott R. Frakes, director of the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services. "The investigation began following several incidents of suspected K2 use. I am proud of the investigative work completed by our intelligence team, criminal investigators and facility staff. I appreciate the assistance of the Nebraska State Patrol in the arrest."
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The Council of Ministers has decided to lift curfew and end the State of Emergency on the Dutch side of Sint Maarten effective October 6th 2017.





The community is hereby requested to continue respect the law enforcement authorities as they will conduct the necessary patrolling in the districts to maintain public order and safety of businesses and residents.




Days after the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history, Lincoln leaders urged others Friday at a tribute commemorating last year's Pulse nightclub massacre to stand up against violence and hate crimes.

Mayor Chris Beutler and other local officials joined dozens of people at the Nebraska Union as part of the Pulse Tribute Tour, a traveling memorial that honors the 49 people who were killed when a shooter opened fire inside The Pulse, an LGBT nightclub in Orlando, Florida.

Glowing paper-bag luminaries etched with the faces of all 49 victims were placed on a table as the names of the victims were read.

Beutler compared last year's massacre to Sunday's shooting in Las Vegas, where 64-year-old Stephen Paddock opened fire on a crowd of 22,000 at a country music festival, killing 58 and injuring hundreds.

"I continue to believe very strongly that we should not and will not be dissuaded in our beliefs by irrationality," said Beutler, who called the shooting in Vegas "senseless violence."

City Councilman Bennie Shobe and Public Safety Director Tom Casady also spoke Friday.

Casady said that violence, like that seen in Las Vegas and Orlando, results from people dehumanizing others.

Friday's tribute tried to turn that around, Casady said.

"It humanizes the victims of this horrific incident," he said. "It takes away their anonymity and shows their faces."

LGBT advocate Kristin Grosskopf said mass shootings have become all too commonplace in American society.

Friday's tribute brought light to that, she said.

"It helps us recognize that this could happen anywhere," Grosskopf said. "It's not just something that happens at other places."

The Pulse Tribute Tour is sponsored by local LGBT advocacy groups and will continue Saturday in conjunction with Queerfest at The Bay.

Artist James Nocito's luminary exhibit, "Orlando: 49 Farolitos," will be featured at venues around the city until Oct. 15.
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Margaret Reist Local government reporter Margaret Reist is a recovering education reporter now writing about local and county government and the people who live in the city where she was born and raised. Follow Margaret Reist Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today

Lincoln Public Schools students will get a trial run this year on the ACT, the college entrance exam now used to gauge Nebraska high school performance.

On Nov. 7, all sophomores and juniors will take a Pre-ACT test, five months before juniors take the real thing. Ninth-graders and seniors will get the day off, as will freshmen, sophomores and seniors during administration of the real thing to juniors in April.

This is the second year Nebraska has used the college entrance exam in place of statewide tests in high school, although LPS has been giving all juniors the test for several years.

The Pre-ACT test replaces the PLAN test by ACT that LPS used to give all sophomores. That was discontinued a few years ago, said Jane Stavem, associate superintendent for instruction.

The PLAN test was used for similar purposes: as a predictor of how students would do on the ACT, and as a way for counselors and teachers to help students choose courses, see weaknesses and identify areas of strength and interest.

"It gives them a starting point," Stavem said.

Technically, the Pre-ACT isn't a practice test, since it's used as a formal assessment tool for the district.

But now that all students take the ACT -- and it's being used as a state test -- it fills that role and bolsters their chances of doing better on the real thing.

An email that went home to parents said 57 percent of students who take the ACT test more than once get higher scores.

The Pre-ACT isnt included in the states contract to use the ACT as the state test, although prep materials are available to juniors for the entire year.

LPS officials wanted to give this year's juniors a chance to practice before the test, but in the future it will be given only to sophomores.

"We don't take adding an assessment lightly, but in the end it helps us maximize what happens during that time students are using to prepare for the ACT," Stavem said.

Too close for comfort

Nearly a week ago, Lincoln Board of Education member Kathy Danek was as close to a national tragedy as shes ever been.

Too close.

Danek and her husband were attending an American Postal Workers training conference in Las Vegas when a gunman opened fire into a crowd attending a country music festival from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino. Fifty-eight people died. Hundreds were injured.

Daneks husband is a retired postal worker and Danek is the national president of the Auxiliary to the American Postal Workers Union.

They were staying at the Paris Las Vegas Hotel, about a mile down the strip. They'd gone to dinner with friends, then Danek and a girlfriend had gone for a walk. She got back to the hotel room about 10 p.m. and minutes later her husband told her someone was shooting people.

She called her friend to make sure shed gotten back to her hotel room safely and the Lincoln couple watched the carnage unfold on local television.

We just kept watching, she said.

Officials locked down the Paris Las Vegas hotel until 4:30 a.m.

The next morning, Kathy Danek went downstairs to work at the conference. One conference attendees niece and friend were injured and another attendee was at the concert, where the person next to her was killed.

In the aftermath, people didnt know what to say to each other, Danek said. Conference attendees wore black ribbons, held a moment of silence to honor the victims.

You saw people you knew, you just hugged them, she said. Youre just grateful to be alive.

Conference organizers tried to get a bloodmobile to the hotel, but it couldnt get there until they'd left, Danek said.

Im grateful that we were in the right place instead of the wrong place, she said in a phone interview. I know bad things happen. I dont know when people will have the courage to have the conversation that needs to be had.

New classrooms for Pius X

By the fall of 2019, Pius X High School will have an additional 13 classrooms.

The $5.5 million project, which has been part of the schools building plan for nearly seven years, will begin in the spring.

Donations will pay for the project, and donors raised about $3.3 million toward it in a month and a half this summer, according to a news release.

The new classroom addition will extend the northwest corner of the school into an area now used for parking, and additional parking will be added on the east side of the school.

The project will renovate existing classrooms and update the computer aided drafting and design, industrial arts, fine arts and consumer science classrooms.
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A new academy in Lincoln that teaches the Chinese language and offers lessons about Chinese history and culture, including martial arts, music and art, calligraphy, math and chess, is hosting a grand opening Sunday.

"The study of Chinese culture will help the students bridge the cultural gap," said Shuai Xie, president of the nonprofit that started the Lincoln Chinese Academy.

The preparatory academy, run by the Lincoln Chinese Cultural Association, will offer weekend classes for students from kindergarten to seventh grade. While the focus is on children with Chinese heritage, it is open to anyone in the community, Xie said.

"Educating those Chinese heritage students about their own culture is a way to show them difference is an advantage."

For years, parents in the Lincoln Chinese community have wanted a Chinese school, Xie said. The association, which began in 2002, started exploring the academy idea and offered classes this summer. There are about 140 students enrolled for the fall semester.

"The aim of developing the academy is to ensure quality education of Chinese language and culture to the Lincoln community," Xie said.

Xie hopes the academy will "bring the families and communities together by sharing the experiences in many aspects such as jobs, well-being, finance and education."

The grand opening at 1333 N. 33rd St. begins at 2:45 p.m. Sunday. There will be a building tour, student performances, guest speakers and a fun fair of local vendors.

Xie said about 300 people are expected to attend, including Lincoln Public Schools board members, educational experts, University of Nebraska-Lincoln professors, City Council members and members of the Omaha Chinese School.

Lisha Yue is the academy's principal and Chunyi (Coral) Su chairs the teacher advisory committee. To enroll, contact the Lincoln Chinese Cultural Association at lca@thelcca.org.
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Former ACT chief minister Jon Stanhope has called on the government to urgently respond to Canberra's "dramatic" Indigenous apprehension figures.

Last week it was revealed ACT Policing apprehended 35 per cent more Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders between 2013 and 2017, while non-Aboriginal apprehensions dropped.

"The statistics are dramatic and extremely worrying and certainly they demand a very direct and, I believe, urgent response from the government," Mr Stanhope said.

"I would never have suggested it myself but the suggestion's been made that it's the result of institutional and systemic racism."

Canberra's discrimination commissioner Karen Toohey welcomed introducing an ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander commissioner and recommended ACT police officers begin recording what ethnicity they believe the people they stop to be.
The private mental health sector in Canberra is losing people to the public system, the medical director of a Canberra private mental health hospital has said.

Speaking to mark the beginning of Mental Health Week on Sunday, Hyson Green's Dr John Saboisky said there were not enough private psychiatrists in the ACT.

Dr John Saboisky outside Hyson Green mental health unit. Credit:Sitthixay Ditthavong

Calvary Hospital's Hyson Green recently underwent a $2.5 million upgrade, hosting 28 beds and now capable of providing care for about 500 inpatients a year.

"There's a huge problem with accessing private psychiatric care as well as there's simply not enough private psychiatrists in the ACT to meet the demand for care," Dr Saboisky said.
A New South Wales logging company has been convicted of breaches at a site on top of Brown Mountain.

The NSW Environment Protection Authority brought legal action against the Forestry Corporation of NSW for breaches committed in Glenbog State Forest.

Forestry Corporation NSW has been fined $8000. Credit:Louie Douvis

In a judgment handed down on Thursday the NSW Land and Environment Court ordered Forestry Corporation of NSW to pay an $8000 fine and that it cover the EPA's legal costs believed to be about $65,000.

Principal among a series of breaches was the potential for harm to rocky outcrops, signalling the first instance of the EPA pursuing a case in court over logging of rocky outcrops.
A recently published study from the University of New England is highly critical of forced council amalgamations such as Queanbeyan-Palerang experienced last year.

The principal author Professor Brian Dollery, a scholar specialising in local government with more than 40 years experience, says forced mergers lack empirical evidence of benefits and are often detrimental.

Professor Brian Dollery is Director of the Centre for Local Government at the University of New England. Credit:Fairfax Media

His most recent study focused on the Clarence Valley Council, on the NSW mid-north coast, and found that council to be significantly worse off financially since its 2004 amalgamation.

While Professor Dollery had not studied Queanbeyan-Palerang specifically, he said most council mergers dating back decades followed a similar pattern and most had common attributes.
Women's health experts say a fund to help women access abortion and contraception services is urgently needed in the ACT.

Data collected delivering the fund would also help identify the amount in need, they said.

In September, not-for-profit sexual health provider Maries Stopes Australia called for donors to establish a $3 million fund for women unable to afford abortion or contraception.

Women's Centre for Health Matters ACT chief executive Marcia Williams said it was hard to quantify the scale of the problem in Canberra.

"One of the issues is that data isn't collected on this because if you can't afford to get an abortion it's not recorded anywhere," Ms Williams said.
In Kerrie Tucker's article "Keeping it Green in Canberra" (Sunday Times, October 1), there was passing mention of Australia as among countries where "federal governments have been the most recalcitrant" in addressing climate change. This is more than a bit rich, given that it was the Greens who voted down attempts by others to introduce an emissions trading scheme at the federal level nearly eight years ago. Thanks to that effort, Australia seems further than ever from implementing such a scheme. Since Ms Tucker appears to be writing as a member of the Greens, it may have been appropriate for her self-congratulatory tone to be tempered by some humility. H. Simon, Watson

Bad planning Ryan Hemsley (Letters, October 5) clearly fails to understand the nature of the problem facing Canberra's future development. He is misguidedly barking up the wrong tree. Not a single letter of the two or three a week that now appear regularly in The Canberra Times has any NIMBY connection in it whatsoever. The writers are not anti-development, they are all, like me (Letters, June 10), and Heather Henderson (Letters, October 6), complaining bitterly about the destruction of our city due to the complete absence of any professionally produced master plan for Canberra or any sensible approach to the methodical development of the city. Bit by bit we are losing the very thing that should be the city's basic attraction, the expansive parklands around the lake. The appalling Kingston Foreshore that does not remotely resemble that planned originally for the site and the destruction of what should have been parklands at West Lake are just symptoms of the unplanned, ad hoc nature of recent developments. I feel sad that Heather Henderson has to endure watching the grand vision her father had for Canberra slowly deteriorate before her eyes. It is a disgrace, one which the Barr government should be ashamed of.

To read (CT, August 21) that Malcolm Snow, the author of the NCA's now thoroughly disgraced plan to ruin Commonwealth Avenue, is to head the City Renewal Authority, is of great concern, and gives little hope that a single, professionally produced, overarching master plan for the city is ever likely to eventuate from this untrustworthy, unprincipled government. There is indeed something "rotten" and it is not in the "state of Denmark", it is firmly within the ACT government's "Environment, Planning and Sustainable Development Directorate". Murray Upton, Belconnen Why I'll vote 'yes' I am voting 'yes' in the marriage equality survey. I encourage all those who haven't yet voted to consider the fundamental human right to openly declare one's love and commitment to another.

Members of the LGBTI community have suffered too long and too deeply, and for what reason? Many progressive countries  for example Ireland and Germany  have already said 'yes' to this issue. Reflect on the key words in our national anthem: "Advance Australia ... " (surely not backwards!). The more love in today's troubled world the better, I should think. What's been holding us back? So please vote 'yes', and thoughtfully regard our Australian family as one. Jeanne Klovdahl, Braddon Climate is fine What a wonderful article from Toni Hassan ("Facing a climate monster", Canberra Times, October 6, p24) . I haven't had such a laugh in some time! What a combination of old-time religion and scaremongering, completely fact-free as well. We nasty humans have been very inconsiderate of the Earth with our comfortable lives, heating and airconditioning etc. We, as she mentions, should be out there hugging trees. The Arctic is disappearing, is it? What a strange thing to write. According to Wikipedia, The Arctic is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth, and it is disappearing, she says?

The climate is cyclical and the amount of ice in the Arctic varies. The amount of Arctic ice was greatly reduced in the 1920s, '30s and '40s but alarmists conveniently ignore that, don't they? In any case, the reduction in Arctic ice in no way proves that CO2 is at fault. It could be, and most likely is, natural and not anthropogenic at all. It does blow any credibility of such writers when they talk of carbon when they most likely mean CO2. When you can't even accurately describe what you are complaining about, how are you to address it? Carbon is a solid at ambient temperature on earth. CO2 is a gas! Having the courage to do nothing on this issue is all that is required. Rescind the RET, build some new coal-fired generators to produce reliable, cheap electricity and let us get on with our lives. Yes, coal-fired electricity is much much cheaper than wind or solar generated electricity! We have had enough baseless caterwauling on this subject. Give us a break. John McKerral, Batemans Bay
What can I, or anyone, say that is fresh, on the tragedy of what happened in Las Vegas? I suggest, nothing. Yes, the sheer scale of this massacre was overwhelming, as was its calculated cruelty, but we've not only seen it all before, we've expressed our horror, and our incomprehension that the Americans can let this go on, day after day, month after month, year after year  always getting worse  and not do something. Allow me to say, however, of all the thousands of words I read on the subject this week, all detailing just how bad the situation is, one stat stood out, courtesy of The New York Times: "Every day, some 92 Americans die from guns, and American kids are 14 times as likely to die from guns as children in other developed countries "

Get that? The equivalent of three Port Arthurs in America, every day. And for all the tragic carry-on from their gun nutters about their rights, where are the politicians speaking up for the rights of American children, to grow up in a society where they are not FOURTEEN FREAKING TIMES as likely to die from gun violence as kids in other developed countries. And let them also explain that even if you say, OK, you have the right to defend yourself, how that right goes beyond carrying a defensive weapon like a pistol and extends all the way up to having the right to buy military-class automatic weapons like the ones purchased by the Vegas assassin. As to the claim by televangelist Pat Robertson that the whole thing was caused by people disrespecting the country and President Donald Trump, by doing such things as kneeling during the national anthem, I really don't know where to begin. But I might take the opportunity of noting the constant invocations in America to prayer to fix things don't seem to be working. Perhaps they could try legislation, brought in by leaders who actually lead.

Illustration: Reg Lynch

Straddling the centuries

Listen, if this is a shaggy dog story, don't tell me, OK? I want to believe this yarn, sent by a reader, is true  and the main thing is it could be true."The passenger steamer SS Warrimoo was quietly knifing its way through the waters of the mid-Pacific on its way from Vancouver to Australia. The navigator had just finished working out a star fix and brought the master, Captain John Phillips, the result. The Warrimoo's position was LAT 0 31' N and LON 179 30' W. The date was December 31, 1899."'Know what this means?' First Mate Payton broke in. 'We're only a few miles from the intersection of the equator and the International Date Line.'
It is brave that Jess Hodak, a young woman who has Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), a complex mental illness formerly known as multiple personality disorder, allows us to tell her remarkable story.

Jess has three personalities described as her "alters". One manifests as seven-year-old Celia, a girl who loves dogs and has beautiful manners. Then there's Brendan, an extremely angry middle-aged man. Third is Bolto the wolf, a loyal and protective canine, which has Jess barking like a dog. As her long-term psychiatrist Dr Murali Reddy explains, it is a cocktail of mental health problems, probably initiated by trauma at an early age.

Julianne Moore in Still Alice, a film about a woman's decline though early-onset Alzheimer's. Credit:AP

Apposite that Jess shares this today at the start of Mental Health Week whose psychiatrists remind us that one in five Australians experience mental illness each year. That relates to more than 3.2 million Australians aged from 16 to 85. The statistics indicate that each of us may have a family member or friend who may be affected by such illness.

It is brave on Jess' part because, historically, it has been too easy to label such people with clumsy tags that are damaging and indelible. Last week saw President Trump describe the Las Vegas shooter as "demented". One doctor wrote to our sister paper, the Sydney Morning Herald, saying that those living with dementia, their carers and families already experience stigma and are entitled to be treated with dignity and respect. "Comments such as this from the President suggest that the gunman's behaviour has resulted from dementia are unproven, inappropriate and unhelpful," she wrote.
A stoush is looming within the state Coalition over the future of Murray Valley National Park with the Nationals Party candidate for the region's seat vowing to relegate the park's status just seven years after its creation.

Austin Evans, who next Saturday hopes to win the seat of Murray in the byelection prompted by the resignation of Adrian Piccoli, said de-gazetting the national park is one of his top priorities if elected.

Open season for national park: Bird watching at the Murray Valley National Park. Credit:D Finnegan

He said it was difficult to assess the benefits since the park was created in 2010. "I can't see any better outcomes for the forest or the community," Mr Evans told Fairfax Media, adding he would propose a private member's bill to revert its status to a state reserve to open to logging if he wins the seat.

Mr Evans hosted Gladys Berejiklian on her visit to the Riverina this week, prompting one local news outlet to report the Premier had provided encouraging comments to a local sawmiller keen to regain access to the region's river red gum timber.
Thousands of activists formed human billboards to "stop Adani" on Saturday as a new poll found the massive coal mine  and a proposed $1 billion government-funded loan  was lagging in public support.

As Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk prepares for an unpredictable state election, opposition to the Carmichael mine has grown alongside concerns about the Indian giant's business practices.

Organisers estimated 1500 people gathered on Bondi Beach on Saturday to protest the Adani mine. Credit:Stop Adani Campaign

Research commissioned by the left-leaning Australia Institute found 30 per cent of Australians supported Adani's plans for the mine, which is backed by both sides of politics at the federal and state levels.

Conversely, 44 per cent of voters opposed the project, including 49 per cent of Labor voters and 29 per cent of Coalition voters, while 26 per cent of respondents said they were not sure or did not know.
We love living here. Its in the bush: Dick Smith at home in 1995, shortly after he sold Australian Geographic. Credit:Greg White At the door of BBQ King, Smith is finally brought to a halt. A bloke in suit wants to shake his hand and thank him for his campaign to slow Australia's immigration intake. He is happy to give me a business card when I introduce myself, but he doesn't want to be named. He turns out to be a senior Western Australian public servant. The same thing happens time and again during our meal. The Anglo businessmen at the table beside us reach over to shake hands. The Chinese Australians on the table behind us are excited to meet him too. People like Smith and they want to talk to him. He is cheerful at the interruptions. "This happens all the time," he explains. It is why he walks fast, he says. Otherwise he wouldn't get anywhere. He insists that everywhere he goes people agree with him about curbing Australia's population growth. Dick Smith and wife Pip in Terrey Hills, 1987. Credit:Quentin Jones Smith's fame, stoked by canny self-promotion, is resilient. And it seems to be teflon-coated too. Though it carried his name the collapse of Dick Smith Electronics last year hardly seemed to damage his personal standing. Now Smith is gambling that he can force this multicultural nation to have a debate over immigration, and that he can bring One Nation to the conversation, all without tarnishing his reputation.

Curbing population growth Smith has been concerned about the size and growth rate of Australia's population for years, at least since he founded Australian Geographic, but it can be hard to trace the origin of his unease. Pushed on the issue, Smith explains he has a general sense that people thrive best when they have access to space and the outdoors. This is, after all, why he has never left his spread at Terrey Hills, a decision he says his rich mates, like John Singleton, tease him about. After he made his first fortune, he explains, people expected he and his wife (Pip comes up a lot) would sell up their suburban spread and move to Point Piper. "But we said, 'Oh no, we love living here. It's in the bush.' So we just did up our house. And lots of people say, 'God, you don't have much of a house.' But it's one level and it's got a nice kitchen. And so I would do that with Australia. I would just make everything better."

Smith is obviously sincere in his view that Australia would be better off if it didn't get ahead of itself; if in its nation building it did whatever the state version would be of doing up the kitchen. But it is also worth noting that when he pulled up Google Maps on the phone and showed me his place over a plate of roast duck and pork, he pointed out that he kept one of his helicopters in a garage under the kitchen and a second in "the shed". In any event Smith is enamoured of the suburban Australian idyll, and he doesn't believe that our current immigration intake of around 190,000 per year makes it possible to preserve. With a high-population growth rate, suburbs fill in, real estate prices rise and traffic congestion worsens, which is why, he says, he flies everywhere by helicopter. Traffic congestion is why Smith flies everywhere by helicopter. Here he is seen with a $7 million Italian chopper he bought at the Melbourne International Air Show. Credit:Craig Abraham On the odd occasion he does try to drive into the city, says Smith, he often cancels his meeting and turns around after he hits a couple of traffic lights. "I go home because these traffic lights, that's not human. We didn't evolve in the plains of Africa to have someone have a red light that says 'stop'." Smith's fears of high population growth in Australia (we are expected to reach 40 million by 2050, he wants it to level off at 30 million) veer towards the Mad Max end of the spectrum.

"We're creatures of nature and everything in nature lives in balance other than us. If we think we can have perpetual growth, we can't. We will either become like locusts where you breed in billions and then there is just huge starvation and the locusts eat each other," he says. "Virtually everyone will live in high-rise like termites." Man of opinions Dining with Smith is exhausting because he has opinions on everything and he speaks fast. You ask a question and a few words into his answer Smith has chased his thought down another rabbit hole. You have to remember where all the diversions were to drag him back to the topic at hand. He eats fast too and at times it seems the air between us is thick with fried rice. There are a few constants though. One is that Smith is always right. To disagree with him is to present prima facie evidence of ignorance or journalistic perfidy.

Another is the overwhelming power of Smith's ego, though, given that he has met with staggering success in all of his endeavours, this is perhaps not surprising. It means though that rather than gripe about Australia's immigration intake, he has built a campaign to shrink it. Smith plans to spend $2 million backing candidates in marginal seats who support curbing Australia's population growth. He has played footsie with One Nation over the issue, and he concedes that, at present, it looks as though One Nation candidates will benefit most from his fund. Besides, he says, his collaboration with Pauline Hanson is the only reason I wanted to have lunch with him. Fair point. He bristles at the suggestion that he risks pandering to racists, declaring there is no evidence that Hanson is a racist. "Well first of all, everyone makes mistakes and it's so easy for you and your media just to constantly say she is racist. She wants to have 70,000 immigrants. That doesn't sound racist to me." He finally concedes that Hanson might attract the support of racists, but he insists that by the time campaigning begins for the federal election, the major parties will have seen the light and will adopt his policies to take advantage of his funds.

Which begs the question, why not just run for office? "Well because politics doesn't work. I'm waiting to be called in as dictator." As a dictator, says Smith, he'd increase taxes on the wealthy, cut the immigration rate to 70,000, increase the number of refugees admitted and link foreign aid to education for women to slow population growth in neighbouring recipients. Until then he will keep on campaigning from the sidelines. After Smith heads off to do battle with the traffic, I head back to the office to write a news story about how Smith plans to campaign against ABC TV news, which he claims has deliberately ignored his population campaign. The story is picked up around the place and that afternoon it is covered by The Drum in a segment Smith declares is full of lies.
Jewish groups have strongly defended controversial Labor MP Michael Danby over taxpayer-funded advertisements he took out in a newspaper attacking an ABC journalist, arguing he has been unjustly targeted.

Mr Danby, who has been publicly encouraged to retire by Labor sources, retains his inner metropolitan seat of Melbourne Ports largely because of support from the Jewish community.

Labor MP Michael Danby has come under pressure over two newspaper ads. Credit:Chris Hopkins

Labor leader Bill Shorten was reported to be "deeply unimpressed" that Mr Danby used public money for two half-page ads in The Australian Jewish News criticising ABC journalist Sophie McNeill for her coverage of the Middle East conflict.

But Anton Block, president of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, said the Labor MP was "correct" in his criticism of McNeill, and accused Mr Danby's detractors of hypocrisy for their silence over Greens senator Lee Rhiannon's use of taxpayer funds to promote a boycott of Israel.
Lawyers have sounded the alarm bells over an agreement allowing children as young as 10 to be held without charge for up to two weeks on suspicion of terrorism offences.

The Turnbull government and the states and territories agreed to the new pre-charge detention regime at a meeting in Canberra this week at which Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews derided civil liberties concerns as a "luxury".

Law Council of Australia president Fiona McLeod condemned the move. Credit:Andrew Meares

But Fiona McLeod, president of the Law Council of Australia, said such concerns should not be so lightly dismissed, and condemned the decision to lock up children without charge as "draconian".

"It's the combined shock of having a combination of a pre-charge detention of up to 14 days and the revelation they're going to seek to have this extended to the age of 10," Ms McLeod told Fairfax Media.
Rajendran, who experienced mental illness, was charged with raping a minor earlier this year in the township of Lorengau. He was released on bail and awaited trial, but it was a charge likely to rule him out of consideration for resettlement in the US.

The case is unpleasant and murky, and highlights several important points of dispute about the plight of refugees on Manus Island and what they face when Australia leaves the island at the end of this month.

Rajeev Rajendran, a Tamil refugee who fled Sri Lanka, died in the early hours of Monday, apparently by suicide. Police in Papua New Guinea confirmed details of the death, but it went unremarked upon by the Australian government, which retains it is a matter for PNG.

The rape charge was also at the centre of escalating unrest between townsfolk and the asylum seekers on Manus Island. In part, it is what Dutton referred to in April when he said there was an "elevated mood" on the island and controversially suggested a riot at the processing centre was linked to community fears about the safety of a five-year-old boy.

"There was a ramping up of the tension on the ground. We have seen allegations and charges in relation to a number of sexual assaults," Dutton said.

From the refugees' point of view, the Rajendran case feeds into fears for their own safety in the Lorengau community. For months, PNG authorities have tried to coerce men out of the regional process centre  which is due to close by October 31  and into the East Lorengau Refugee Transit Centre. Many refugees have refused to move, preferring the safety of the RPC, which is away from the township on a Navy base.

On Friday night, asylum seekers received another notice about the impending shutdown. Documents shown to Fairfax Media reveal another form of accommodation, called the West Lorengau Haus, has been made available for refugees. Those who move there will be housed in dorms and receive "a living allowance to cover food, clothing and some personal expenses".

According to Behrouz Boochani, an Iranian refugee and journalist on Manus, PNG authorities plan to accommodate 241 people at the Haus, as well as 232 people at the ELRTC and 148 rejected asylum seekers at a location called Hillside House. The transfers are to occur before October 27.
He's known as one of the most iconic shoe designers in the world, but Professor Jimmy Choo showed off a side that's rarely seen over sunset drinks and a private dinner during his first trip to Sydney this week.

The Malaysia-born shoemaker, 68, had guests in thralls of laughter as he regaled them with tales of making bespoke stilettos for A-listers such as Kylie Minogue and Elle Macpherson and his most famous client who became a close friend, the late Princess Diana.

Jimmy Choo at private drinks and dinner hosted by American Express at Cafe del Mar, Sydney, on Tuesday. Credit:Gary Freidland

Speaking about the first time they met to fit her for a royal trip, he said: "When I told my mum she reminded me of the Chinese [tradition] that everything had to be new. I cut my hair. I got a new suit from Marks and Spencer and a pair of Superman underpants."

"I worked with her for seven years. If it wasn't for those Superman underpants I would not be here today."
But Dr Lean said Tinder was preferred because it was already on the smartphones of many young people, who were familiar with "performing Tinder". The app also has a feature that allows users to change their location to a destination they intend to visit. 'Quick sex app'? Both researchers have also been Tinder tourists. Dr Lean, who initially thought of Tinder as a "quick sex app", opened an account to conduct research. Visiting Ethiopia, he had matches with two local women and a traveller. "I suspected the two local women were prostitutes, but I befriended the Lithuanian woman and we continued to discuss our experiences in Ethiopia via Facebook," he said. Dr Condie used Tinder as "a relatively new migrant to Sydney".

"It opened up new people (men, I'm straight), places and experiences," she said. "Because I was new in town, I didn't feel some of the pressures you might feel using Tinder in the place where a lot of people there know your history." Dr Condie, who also used Tinder for research purposes in Nepal, said she discovered people on the dating app who were from her home town in Britain. "I've made a few friends via Tinder, which can often be challenging because of the initial sexual connotations of the app," she said. "You might get on with someone and want to be friends but you've been 'girlfriend zoned' or your date is only interested in you as a hook-up." The travellers surveyed by Dr Lean and Dr Condie did not use the dating app only to find sexual partners. Meeting locals

"Quite a few participants explicitly stated that they were not interested in sex or hook-ups," Dr Lean said. "Some didn't even want to physically meet with people, they just wanted to chat and get information from locals. "Locals are seemingly willing to give that information and meet under the guise of unofficial, unpaid 'tour guide services'," he added. Not just for sex: Travellers are turning to Tinder to meet locals. The first person Mr Neale met was a young Thai woman in Bangkok who took him to a night market frequented by locals. "We just hung out and talked," he said. "She was interested in my story. I was interested in what she could tell me about their culture and what people her age do in the city."

Another TinDA Project participant, Vee Ung, went on a Tinder date in New York because she said: "I needed someone to print out my ticket so I could see the Statue of Liberty." Ms Ung, 28, a finance worker, said she had positive experiences using Tinder while travelling solo across the US and Europe. However, she found that men in the US subverted the supposed anonymity of the dating app by sending messages or commenting on posts to her Instagram account, which she linked to Tinder  a phenomenon New York Magazine called Tindstagramming. 'Swipe with care' Dr Lean said Tinder presented travellers with opportunities for new social encounters, but time, the cost of phone data, safety and travelling companions were constraints.

"I think it's really important that everywhere we go, we swipe with care and attention to how hierarchies of race, class and nationality can be reproduced in digitally mediated spaces," Dr Condie added. Managing the expectations of Tinder users who were seeking a hook-up could also be a challenge. "While users may explicitly state that they're not interested in hook-ups ... users often report being solicited for sex," Dr Lean said. "This is much more commonly experienced by women than men." As Lucie Robson, a 28-year-old medical student, put it: "If you say you're Australian and that you're only in town for a little while, then yeah, you get a lot of people just wanting to hook up." Ms Robson said she found Tinder a good resource during a five-month solo trip to Canada and the US.

"Even if you don't find love, you still get to see things you might not get to see if you're in a hostel and only meeting other backpackers or just following your Lonely Planet guide," she said. Lucie Robson found Tinder "quite a good resource" during a five-month solo trip to Canada and the US. Credit:Daniel Munoz But not every Tinder relationship is platonic. Mr Neale said he was intimate with one Tinder date "and the rest were like meeting normally". "I kind of made an effort to not be on my phone," he said, "because it's just such a distraction and a waste of time, like you're missing out on what's going on in front of you." The safety and security implications of meeting people from dating apps is often highlighted, especially since the death of New Zealand woman Warriena Wright during a Tinder date with Gold Coast carpet layer Gable Tostee in 2014.

A Tinder spokeswoman said users should make their intentions clear when travelling and follow its online safety tips such as informing friends and family of your plans and staying sober. As Mr Neale put it: "There's no way knowing if you're talking to a sex offender." Mr Neale said he believed a woman he met on Tinder in Vietnam was intent on robbing him. His suspicions were aroused when she asked him to leave his hotel room to retrieve a bag from her motorbike: "I was like 'No, no. You can get out of my room now'. She wanted me to leave the room with her in it so she could go through my shit and steal my passport or whatever else." But he did not believe the safety issues were different from meeting a stranger in a bar or nightclub.
It's been a shocker flu season that started early, peaked at record levels and has a long tail we've yet to see the end of.

As public health and infectious disease experts devise strategies to guard against a repeat season of similar proportions, some flu sufferers may be wondering why they got away with a few sick days and sore throats when others were killed by the viral infections.

More than 180,000 flu cases were confirmed nationally by the end of September. That is 2 times the number of cases over the same period in 2016, though the comparison may be overblown due to the rise in rapid flu testing this year.

Between January 1 and September 15, 288 influenza-related deaths were reported to NSW Health or logged with the Registry of Births Deaths and Marriages. It is likely to be an underestimate. Only a small fraction of all flu cases are laboratory-confirmed and there are delays in updating the register.
State Sen. Ernie Chambers of Omaha says Gage County violated the Nebraska Constitution by contracting to house some of its jail inmates across the state line in Kansas.

Chambers has asked Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson to weigh in on the contract approved last month by the Gage County Board of Supervisors.

The one-year deal reserves 10 beds in the Washington County, Kansas, jail for Gage County inmates. A similar agreement was approved with Dawson County in central Nebraska to reserve five additional beds.

In a letter sent Wednesday, Chambers alleged that its a violation of the Nebraska Constitution to transport an inmate to another state for any offense committed in Nebraska.

Obviously, any person in the Gage County jail committed an offense within the state, he wrote. Such a person shall not be transported out of the state for such an offense. No contract can nullify the Nebraska Constitution.

Chambers went on to say its a bit much to use Nebraskans tax dollars to pay another state when no product is received and called on Peterson defend the state Constitution.

As Nebraskas top lawyer, do you have any interest in seeing that the Constitution of Nebraska is not so flagrantly violated? Chambers wrote. "Or are you of the legal opinion that a person lawfully may be transported out of the state for an offense committed within the state?

Gage County Board Chairman Myron Dorn declined to comment on Chambers' claim, but did say Gage County isnt the first in Nebraska to house inmates across state lines. He cited Red Willow County as one example.

A worker at the Red Willow County Sheriffs Department said that county's inmates havent been housed in Kansas for three to five years.

Recently, Gage County inmates have been held in as many as seven different counties in Nebraska and Kansas  wherever open cells were available.

Talks of contracting with jails intensified this summer as the number of inmates reached double the Gage County jails capacity of about 27.

The board approved the contracts 5-1, with Gary Lytle voting in opposition and Matt Bauman absent.

Roger Harris, who serves as the Gage County Attorney, did not return calls Friday.
A family's attempt to keep their newborn child from being taken into the care of the Department of Family and Community services has ended with a pedestrian needing surgery, a man on the run from police and multiple people facing serious charges.

The two-day-old girl was taken from Blacktown Hospital by family members, believed to be the mother, father and grandmother of the child.

The 47-year-old grandma attempted to drive away from the hospital with the baby's parents in the back seat along with the child.

The woman drove the Holden Commodore along Main Street, driving erratically and even driving between vehicles stationary at a red light.

The vehicle then continued up the street before crossing onto the wrong side of the road to overtake a car that had stopped at a pedestrian crossing.
Transport authorities from across the country are tracking down truck drivers caught up in an investigation that found they were improperly assessed for their licence.

Many of the drivers caught up in the probe never held a regular car licence before being allowed the wheel of heavy vehicles and were found trying to transfer their credentials in other states.

The deadly Mona Vale crash on Sydney's Northern Beaches in 2013. Credit:Tim Pascoe

It follows an investigation by Western Australian authorities in July, which led to more than 300 truck drivers having their licences suspended after they were found to have been improperly assessed at a Perth driving school.

The school, Mines West Truck Driving School, based out of Neerabup, conducted assessments for all heavy-vehicle types including multi-combination trucks, or road trains, which can tow two or more trailers at a time, carrying more than 60 tonnes.
The NSW government is under increasing pressure to ditch a heavy-handed directive ordering the state's beloved cultural institutions to abandon their logos in favour of the official state government waratah.

The Herald last month revealed the Sydney Opera House, Taronga Zoo and the city's major museums had been hit by an order to dump their distinctive brands and adopt the waratah as part of a rebranding drive by the Department of Premier and Cabinet.

The "Orwellian" rebranding exercise requires famous icons to replace their logos with the waratah.

Speaking at a Herald arts event, Australian Museum director and chief executive Kim McKay said the state's cultural institutions  including the Art Gallery of NSW and the Opera House  had put up a united front against the directive.

"All of the cultural institutions have applied jointly for an exemption on that, so it'll be up to the minister to determine that," she said. "We have received exemptions in the past, so we'll be optimistic."
Las Vegas shooter Stephen Paddock was generous with his gambling spoils, condescending to his girlfriend and strident about his constitutional right to own firearms.

Those were the observations of Brisbane businessman Adam Le Fevre, who spent time with the man who would go on to become the perpetrator of the worst mass shooting in modern American history.

Mr Le Fevre, the former partner of Ms Danley's sister, told A Current Affair on Friday that he went on a holiday to Las Vegas with Paddock, who put the group up in a hotel penthouse that was one of his perks for being a "high-roller".

Another perk, Paddock told Mr Le Fevre, was access to free call girls. "I did have no doubt that some of those offers had been accepted," he said.
The honeymoon in Fiji of Sydney couple Chase and Kelly Clarke has ended in tragedy.

Mrs Clarke, 24, of Sydney, was taken to hospital last week after falling ill but she died on Friday.

Her family has revealed she died of severe bilateral pneumonia, the Nine Network reported on Sunday night.

"I spoke to her and she told me she was scared she was going to die," her husband told Nine.



"I told her I loved her, we're going to get out of here, everything's going to be OK."
Train passengers have been warned to add an extra hour to their trips as track work affects all of south-east Queensland's train lines.

All train lines through the Brisbane CBD are affected by scheduled maintenance this weekend, with buses replacing trains between Roma Street, Albion and Ferny Grove stations.

Train users were warned to expect up to an hour of delays thanks to scheduled track maintenance. Credit:Michelle Smith

The work included track resurfacing between Central and Grovely, rail replacement at Bowen Hills and Fortitude Valley, signalling maintenance from Newmarket to Ferny Grove and general maintenance of overhead power lines, track infrastructure and stations.

By mid-morning, Translink's Journey Planner, was sluggish on some desktop computers, while the link to the track closure information page was down.
A Queensland Government minister has tendered his resignation after being diagnosed with a serious medical condition.

Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Economic Development Bill Byrne will not recontest his Rockhampton seat at the next state election as his condition is "life-threatening".

Bill Byrne has resigned due to health concerns. Credit:Chris Hyde

He will see out his current term in Parliament as a local member, but Minister for State Development, Natural Resources and Mines Dr Anthony Lynham will take over his ministerial role.

Mr Byrne told The Morning Bulletin his condition was "cardiovascular".
A man has been charged with attempted murder after allegedly driving a stolen car into a police officer in Brisbane's south on Friday night.

Two other men were also charged, with the officer taken to hospital with a serious leg injury.

A police officer has been hit in Brisbane's south by an allegedly stolen car. Credit:The Today Show - Twitter

The police helicopter spotted the allegedly stolen car heading east along Wynnum Road and officers laid a spike strip at the intersection of Wynnum and Junction Road in Morningside about 10.30pm.

It will be alleged the driver changed lanes and drove towards police, hitting the officer before crashing into a power pole.
A car thief has impersonated police and pulled what is believed to be a handgun, in order to steal a man's car from a driveway in Brisbane's east.

The 21-year-old victim was driving home through Tingalpa during the early hours of Saturday morning when a car began following him about 3.20am.

A car which was stolen from Wakerley in Brisbane's east. Credit:Queensland Police Service

As the young victim pulled into the driveway of his Lexey Crescent residence the car that had been tailing him activated blue and red flashing lights.

Police said a man got out of the car, pulled what appeared to be a handgun and stole the victim's car.
Melbourne's trains are less overcrowded, but it comes at a cost: your seat.

Metro's move to rip out seats from train carriages to accommodate exploding patronage numbers has eased overcrowding on peak services across the network, PTV data reveals.

The increase in passengers raises the likelihood of overcrowding during peak hours. Credit:Nick Moir

The seating reconfiguration has increased passenger capacity from 798 to 900, resulting in a dramatic drop in passenger load breaches on the Frankston, Upfield, Sandringham, Werribee and Craigieburn lines.

Nearly 7 per cent of passengers were squashed in overcrowded trains on the Sunbury Line this year in the morning peak, down from nearly 47 per cent last year.
As the Missouri River moved its course, sometimes seemingly by the merest whim, prospering towns like Wyoming, Nebraska, were left high and dry leaving their once busy docks and wharfs facing farm land. One village to disappear was Mt. Vernon, but its adjoining neighbor Peru survived principally because of the establishment of a normal school which today is home to what many consider the prettiest campus in the state.

Permanent settlement west of the Missouri River in what was usually referred to simply as Indian Territory was illegal prior to 1854. As territory status, which would legalize settlement, approached, people in Council Bluffs and along the Iowa and Missouri shore of the river began to plan for possible sites in what would become Nebraska Territory in 1854.

In 1853, a settlement colony from Peru, Illinois, attempted to settle in what would become Nemaha County, but were turned back by troops from Old Fort Kearny, later the site of Nebraska City. None-the-less a few unauthorized claim cabins apparently were constructed and it was generally accepted that Rev. W.S. Horn even improved or farmed land southeast of the current Peru State college campus. For the most part the would-be settlers camped at Sonora, Missouri, awaiting formation of the territory.

With the establishment of Nebraska territory in 1854, settlement commenced around Henry Martins trading post above the river where, in 1855, the Mt. Vernon post office was established with J.E. Haycock (Haycook) as postmaster, along with a ferry crossing below on the Missouri River.

In 1857, Samuel Daily and Thomas Green established a sawmill on the opposite river bank while W.H. Dunbar, working for townsite speculator C.W. Chambers, laid out the plat of Peru adjacent and west of Mt. Vernon. Mt. Vernons streets commenced with First Street at the river running up through Seventh Street and ran north-northeast/south-southwest with the perpendicular-named streets encompassing 54 blocks. Perus streets enclosed 148 numbered blocks with First Street at the river up to the west to Eighth Street. Hudson platted Perus first addition in 1859.

Mt. Vernons hilltop location virtually doomed it as moving freight up the hill proved difficult and expensive. When Martins trading post burned in 1861 virtually the entire community of Mt. Vernon moved down the hill around the steamboat landing which was at First and Main streets in Peru. The following year Thomas Green built a cottonwood grist mill on Main Street at about Third while the Peru post office replaced Mt. Vernons completely with a building facing east at Fifth and Main.

The river itself bowed, as shown in the map, along Perus eastern boundary entering the plat at First and Spruce streets.

The Nebraska Territorial Legislature chartered Peru Seminary of the Episcopal Church on Jan. 11, 1860, organized by John M. McKenzie. It started classes in 1861 in an abandoned saloon, known as Mt. Vernon Academy, the third normal school west of the Missouri River.

As a purpose-built college building was discussed, local contributors were solicited. Major Wm. Dailey pledged $500 for the college, adding he could contribute nothing for a church, while W.W. Smith donated 80 acres of land. On March 27, 1886, several hundred men, women and children laid the cornerstone of the $10,000, 40-by-80-foot, three-story first building. It was nearly completed Dec. 23, 1867, with classes proceeding with an initial class of 36 students in the old saloon/storefront.

When additional funds could not be raised, the still-not-completed school was first offered to the Methodist Episcopal Conference, but it was declined. The building and 60 acres of land then was given to the State of Nebraska, which appropriated $3,000 to finish Mt. Vernon Hall. The state-owned normal school opened its first regular term Oct. 24, 1869.

Peru itself finally got a railroad in 1874 as the Nebraska Railroad connected Nebraska City to Brownville, with its depot constructed on the north end of Fifth Street. The Missouri River moved nearly a mile to the east, leaving Peru without a port. Meanwhile, the citys population reached 600 in 1880 and boasted the Nebraska Railroad, a weekly newspaper called the Herald, a three-story flouring mill, a manufacturer, two drug stores, a brickyard, several grocers and dry goods merchants as well as a number of other small prosperous businesses. Perus peak population of 1,380 was recorded in 1970.

The college changed its name to the Nebraska State Teachers College in 1921, Peru State Teachers College in 1949 and Peru State College in 1963. The schools enrollment is currently 1,040 on-campus students with a total student body of 2,600 including part-time and on-line students.

While the original Peru cemetery was at Seventh and Washington, the site of Mt. Vernon is now covered almost completely with the current Mt. Vernon Cemetery on California Street/Oregon Trace off 645A Avenue.
On Friday night Tim Wright received a call from his Geneva-based colleague informing him that their advocacy group had won the Nobel peace prize.

The group's executive director, Beatrice Fihn, had been contacted by the Norwegian Nobel Committee 10 minutes before the official announcement.

Members of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons in Melbourne on Saturday. Credit:Chris Hopkins

But she was suspicious.

Despite the enormous success of ICAN (International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons) in spearheading the first global treaty to ban nuclear weapons in July, Ms Fihn suspected the call was a hoax.
Ottawa, Ontario: For decades, Canadian social workers forcibly separated indigenous children from their families, putting them up for adoption by non-native families in Canada and around the world.

On Friday, the Canadian government took a step to make amends for that adoption program, which began in the 1960s and lasted until the 1980s, by agreeing to pay 750 million Canadian dollars in legal settlements.

Surrounded by Marcia Brown Martel and "Sixties Scoop" survivors, Indigenous Relations Minister Carolyn Bennett responds to a question during a news conference on Parliament Hill, in Ottawa, Canada. Credit:AP

The settlement -- affecting as many as 30,000 people -- is part of a broader push across Canada in the last few years to grapple with its legacy of injustices against the country's indigenous populations.

It includes a similar settlement for indigenous children who were separated from their families and sent to residential schools far from their homes as well as measures like a promise by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to address a long list of native concerns.
Copenhagen: Danish police said on Saturday divers had found the head and the legs of Swedish journalist Kim Wall, who died in mysterious circumstances on an inventor's homemade submarine.

Peter Madsen has been charged with killing the Swedish journalist who disappeared after she went on a trip with him in his submarine on August 10. He denies the charges.

Madsen, a Dane, was arrested after his submarine sank and he was rescued. His lawyer Betina Hald Engmark told Reuters that she had been informed of the development, but had not received any material or documentation and decline further comment.

Police identified a headless female torso that washed ashore in Copenhagen later in August as Wall's, but a cause of death has not been determined.
East Timor's three opposition parties say they are ready to form a parliamentary majority alliance to take office if programs of a newly sworn-in minority government fail to gain support, as political tensions rise again in Asia's newest democracy.

The two-party government led by Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri holds only 30 seats in the 65-seat parliament, five less than the opposition parties, giving the government a tenuous hold on to power.

Fretilin leader Francisco "Lu-Olo" Guterres, left, is seen with former prime minister Mari Alkatiri, right, after voting in March. Credit:AP

Politicians from the opposition National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction (CNRT) headed East Timor's powerbroker Xanana Gusmao are among 35 MPs who have sent a letter to the country's president Francisco "Lu-Olo" Guterres saying they are "willing to present an alternative government solution" that ensures "peace, stability and development."

The letter signed also by MPs from the youth dominated Khunto party and the Popular Liberation Party (PLP), headed by former president Tuar Matan Ruak, criticised Mr Guterres for annointing a minority government "instead of taking steps to seek a solution that would guarantee a majority government."
Las Vegas: Baffled police and FBI agents, still lacking a clear motive for the Las Vegas massacre of 58 people by a lone gunman last week, appealed to the public on Friday to come forward with any information that might help solve the mystery.

Clark County Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said investigators have, to no avail, run down more than 1000 leads seeking clues to what drove a 64-year-old wealthy retiree with a penchant for gambling to carry out the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history.

Aaron Rouse, special agent in charge of the Las Vegas Division of the FBI, responds to a question during a media briefing at Metro Police headquarters in Las Vegas. Credit:AP

The gunman, Stephen Paddock, poured a barrage of gunfire from the windows of his 32nd-floor hotel suite into a crowd of 20,000 people attending an outdoor music festival on Sunday night, then killed himself before police stormed his room.

In addition to the 58 people killed, nearly 500 were injured, some by gunfire, some trampled or otherwise hurt while running for cover.
To the Texas brokers who met him in 2004, Stephen Paddock was an unremarkable man looking to buy an unremarkable property near Dallas, hardly distinguishable from other casually dressed Californians who flocked to the area to make investments.

After touring the 111-unit apartment complex in Mesquite, Texas, with the brokers, Paddock bought it for $8.4 million ($A10.8m), partly with the proceeds from selling some smaller properties in Los Angeles. When he sold Central Park Apartments a decade later, he had likely made $5 million ($A6.4m) in profits, according to financial records reviewed by Reuters.

Paddock's lucrative real estate ventures, which helped underwrite his high-stakes gambling, may have also allowed him to buy tens of thousands of dollars' worth of rifles and bullets in advance of his attack in Las Vegas on Sunday.

A complete picture of his finances is still being assembled by investigators who are trying to fathom what drove an apparently wealthy retiree to haul 23 guns up to a hotel suite before commencing one of the deadliest shootings in US history.
Malmo: Fears are growing in Sweden over packs of radioactive wild boar moving north, ravaging forests and farmland.

One animal shot by hunters had more than 10 times the safe level of radiation, said to have been caused by a cloud of radioactive dust that blew in after the Chernobyl disaster 31 years ago, depositing caesium-137 in the ground.

A wild boar runs in a snow covered field in Belarus. Credit:AP

Ulf Frykman, an environmental consultant, has warned hunters in Gavle, 160 kilometres north of Stockholm, of "extremely high" radiation levels among local boar.

"This is the highest level we've ever measured," he said, after testing a beast in nearby Tarnsjo.
Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz brought 1500 people, a golden escalator and his own carpets on his historic, four-day state visit to Russia, according to a person familiar with the situation.

The 81-year-old leader of the Gulf kingdom exited his plane on Wednesday (Thursday Australia time) and stepped out onto the special escalator he travels with.

But something went wrong: It malfunctioned halfway down, leaving the king standing awkwardly for about 20 seconds before he decided to walk the rest of the way.

A cavalcade of cars sped the monarch to the centre of the city, flanked by Russian police escorts.
US rapper Nelly was arrested in Washington state on Saturday after being accused of raping a woman on his tour bus, according to local police.

The Auburn Police Department said in a statement that the alleged incident reportedly occurred in the parking lot of a local Walmart after Nelly performed with the popular country group Florida Georgia Line at the White River Amphitheatre, outside of Seattle.

Police have arrested Nelly (pictured) after a woman said he raped her in a town outside Seattle. Credit:AP

"At 3.48am a female called 911 to report that she was sexually assaulted by a male, who is known as the rapper 'Nelly,'" police said of the musician, who was born Cornell Haynes Jr. Nelly was taken into custody at 4.37am and booked at a nearby jail; an investigation is ongoing.

Scott Rosenblum, a lawyer for the rapper, said Saturday afternoon that Nelly was no longer in custody and had not been charged.
~ Local employees planning to shut down powerplant ~

PHILIPSBURG:--- The CEO of GEBE Kenrick Chittick has refused to work with some 30 employees that traveled to St. Maarten from Aqualectra Curacao to assist GEBE workers to restore power to the remaining 60% of the population that is still without power. SMN News understands that Chittick has refused to sign off on a contract with Aqualectra who dispatched the workers to St. Maarten on Friday.

Sources say that Chittick is claiming that the cost of the service offered by the Curacao-based electricity company is too high. SMN News has been reliably informed that workers at GEBE are at their wit's end and are ready to shut down power because just recently the management board of GEBE took away all the Wrangler Jeeps that the workers were using to access the hillside locations. This decision it is understood has slowed down the restoration process.

SMN News further understands that the employees have decided to try and reach out to Prime Minister William Marlin and Minister of VROMI Christopher Emmanuel before taking action. Up to the time SMN News was contacted, the Supervisory Board members of GEBE were not aware of the latest developments.
OMAHA  A 31-year-old Omaha woman has been charged with first-degree child abuse, accused of severely injuring her 5-month-old baby.

Natasha Wolf was ordered held on $250,000 bail Friday.

Police say Wolf told officers that the baby was injured Wednesday when she stepped away for a moment and he rolled off a changing table and landed face-first onto a baby bottle.

But a doctor at Children's Hospital and Medical Center in Omaha told police the child's injuries weren't consistent with that account.

The boy suffered bruising to his head and face and bleeding on the brain. A prosecutor said the baby remained in critical condition Friday at Children's after undergoing a blood transfusion.
POINTE BLANCHE:--- On Saturday morning 7th October, 2017 (eta. 7 am) the Cygnus enters the port of Philipsburg. On board of the cargo ship are the remaining materials for the waste train: pressure sprayers, watertanks and chemicals to disinfect high priority areas. The first part was flown in from the Netherlands by an Antonov cargo plane last Saturday.

Also on board of the Cygnus is a complete meteorological station, school bags and other educational materials and nine trucks to assist the energy company GEBE in restoring the overhead lines. The meteorological station will probably be transported from the seaport to the airport on Monday.

The Cygnus, that left from Curacao earlier this week, is chartered by the Dutch Ministry of Interior Affairs and Kingdom Relations (BZK). Recently BZK also chartered the vessel 'Aniek', which brought in food, water and garbage trucks to Sint Maarten, things that were needed at that time. The expectation is that in the upcoming period transports for help and the reconstruction of the island will continue.

For further questions, contact Kevin Kraan: +31 6 18 59 68 37

BZK Press Release
RACINE  The fruits of an $80,000 contract with Milwaukees Branigan Communications are now on display at BuildUpRacine.org.

On Thursday, representatives from Branigan presented the website to the citys Redevelopment Authority, which authorized the agreement in April. City staff hope that the new website will encourage strong interactions with current and perspective business owners and spur economic development in the community.

Build Up Racine is about preserving and improving our unique retail, commercial and residential corridors, while supporting the families, neighborhoods and community groups that make Racine a great place to live, said Amy Connolly, the citys development director. Founded in Racines heritage of innovation and civic pride, Build Up Racine fuels economic development efforts from concept to creation, and supports a thriving community.

Kathleen Dohearty, Branigans president, said she hoped the website would be a boon for development in Racine.

What we have to present for you tonight is a website and a new logo and a new brand, but I think its more than that, Dohearty said. Theres some really exciting news happening down here and we believe and think its the catalyst for further economic development.

The website has features to guide business owners through permitting and zoning, information about city incentives and an accounting of available properties. It also boasts a business concierge feature, where people can submit questions to be answered by city development staff.

Lets make sure that everyone in the community is on the same page and knows whats going on in this public development, Dohearty said.

Dohearty added that the photos on the website are locally sourced.

RDA Chairman Jim Spangenberg didnt attend Thursdays meeting, but said in a press release that the website recognizes the needs of local businesses.

By launching the Build Up Racine initiative and its online counterpart, were providing a tangible tool to make economic growth simpler and inspire our city to invest in itself, he added.
RACINE  During the day shes on her phone, and some nights Rosa Maria Ramos Espinoza cries herself to sleep.

I have an aunt thats lived in Puerto Rico her whole life, Espinoza said with tears rolling down her face. Its been 17 days today that I dont know if shes hungry or if shes thirsty, if shes sick, if shes dead or alive, I have no idea. I have no way to contact her.

Espinozas aunt lives in Guayama on the southern coast of Puerto Rico, which received some of the strongest winds from Hurricane Maria.

On Friday, Espinoza along with over 50 other people gathered in front of House Speaker Paul Ryans Downtown Racine office, 216 Sixth St., to rally for Puerto Rico and create awareness about the needs on the island.

Theres other people in Racine also that have family (in Puerto Rico) and none of us have been able to contact any of our family in Puerto Rico, Espinoza said. We would like to see Racine, as a community, do more to help Puerto Rico.

On Sept. 26, Ryan sent out a statement saying that Congress is working to assist all the victims of hurricanes Maria, Irma (Florida) and Harvey (Texas and Louisiana).

The images and stories coming out of the island are absolutely devastating, Ryan said. This is our country, and our fellow citizens. They need our help, and they are going to get our help. I want the people of Puerto Rico to know that we are in this with them. Right now, this is a rescue mission. I also want the people of Puerto Rico to know that they are going to get the kind of help and aid that Texas and Florida enjoyed.

Help our people

The helpless feeling can be overwhelming, Espinoza said.

Its more devastating because we cant even reach our family, we cant even get to Puerto Rico to try to bring our family over here because we cant get into Puerto Rico, Espinoza said. And if we do get into there, we have no where to go. Theres no transportation.

Edwin Santiago Jr. has relatives all over the island and uses Facebook to communicate with them.

A lot of men have banded together in the smaller towns and theyre working on their own, just out of their own volition, to help each other, Santiago said. Its really the worst conditions for our fellow Americans.

Santiago said he hopes more people become aware of whats going on in Puerto Rico, and would like more Americans here on the mainland to band together and get to the congressmen and anybody in a position to help. For us its not acceptable.

But its been the lack of response from the local community, Espinoza said, that has been frustrating.

Im extremely disappointed that I dont see any kind of help, Espinoza said. We cant do it on our own, we absolutely need some help. Just like Puerto Rico cant do it on their own, we need help also to help our people.

Local residents who do want to help can attend a benefit planned for noon to midnight on Oct. 14 at Fountain Hall Banquet Hall, 8505 Durand Ave., Sturtevant.
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The state has selected the Stamford and Harford areas as locations included in its bid for Amazons planned second headquarters, according to a letter sent this week to officials of municipalities bidding on the project.

After careful analysis by our review team, which included representatives from several state agencies, we have decided to move forward with two sites (in the Stamford region and Hartford region) that we believe meet the very specific project criteria outlined in Amazons RFP and subsequent conversations, Catherine Smith, the states economic development commissioner, wrote in the letter, dated Oct. 2.

Department of Economic and Community Development officials reached their decision after receiving 17 site proposals for the new home of the e-commerce giant, a complex that would cover some 8 million square feet and house as many as 50,000 people. Bids are due to the Seattle-based Amazon by Oct. 19.

My office has heard from many residents who are excited about a potential Amazon second headquarters being in Stamford, Stamford Mayor David Martin said in a statement. This is a competitive process, and we are a David among Goliaths. But our city and the region are uniquely positioned to respond back to Amazon, as we have the qualities that Amazon requested in its proposal. Stamford and the states package has a bold vision that will be very attractive to Amazon.

Martin said he had met with other municipalities top elected officials to update them on Stamfords application and discuss how an Amazon headquarters would affect the region.

A message left for Hartfords economic development office was not immediately returned.

Bridgeport Mayor Joe Ganim said Friday if the states definition of the Stamford and Hartford regions did not include his city and New Haven that the latter two areas would still move forward with their proposal.

The greater Bridgeport and greater New Haven regions are working vigorously on a comprehensive application and very good proposal that will show this is the best place in the world for Amazon to consider its second headquarters, Ganim said.

Danbury officials had expressed interest in hosting the headquarters. In a video posted last month, Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton asked Amazons Alexa virtual assistant the best place for Amazons new complex. Alexa responded that the choice would be Danbury.

A message left Friday for Boughtons office was not immediately returned.

Areas other than Stamford and Hartford could still support the states plan, Smith said in the letter.

Other assets of your town, for example, the people, education facilities and quality of life, need to be included as crucial ingredients for an overall successful submission from the state, Smith wrote. From that perspective, we hope we can count on your support.

In a speech last week in Stamford, Smith said the states application to Amazon would be a long shot, but still warranted an effort. She said Connecticut is on Amazons radar, with the e-commerce giant operating a distribution center in Windsor and planning to open another one in North Haven. Together, the two complexes would employ about 3,800.

We have gotten to know some of their real estate people pretty well, Smith said at the Crowne Plaza hotel. Weve had many conversations with them, as recently as two days ago, about this bid. We feel like we understand what theyre looking for.

Smith described the states review process of cities and towns applications.

The shortlist will be the ones we think have the greatest opportunity and meet the criteria, Smith said. And then well try to evaluate among those how many we think are appropriate to submit.

Despite public officials enthusiasm, Connecticut could not easily amass the office space needed to equal Amazons Seattle headquarters, which is spread across 33 buildings.

With an approximately 30 percent office vacancy rate, Stamford could offer about 5 million square feet of available space, according to Newmark Knight Franks most recent report.

The competition here is pretty steep  its pretty much every city in the whole United States, Smith said in the Stamford speech. Its been a very good experience for us to work as a state to see how we can find the right opportunities for Amazon to join our state.

pschott@scni.com; 203-964-2236; twitter: @paulschott
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STAMFORD  Dylan Pape, pretending to be his father, set in motion what authorities say was a plot to commit suicide by cop during a standoff at his parents Newfield home last year.

Details of the 911 call and the perspectives from the two officers involved in the March 2016 fatal shooting were revealed for the first time Friday in a report exonerating the police actions.

In a report released by the state Division of Criminal Justice, Danbury States Attorney Stephen Sedensky determined the officers were justified to use lethal force because the 25-year-old Pape was holding a BB gun that closely resembled a semiautomatic weapon.

They acted as they have been trained to protect themselves as well as others as they reasonably believed there to be the imminent use of deadly force against them, Stamford Police Chief Jon Fontneau said.

This has been a tragedy, certainly for the Pape family, the Stamford community as a whole and for the Stamford Police Department.

Papes mother, Linda, declined to comment when reached at her home on Friday.

We are just going to lay low for a little while, she said.

According to Sedenskys report, Linda Pape criticized how the police handled the situation, which began when Dylan Pape called 911 about 7:30 p.m. on March 21, 2016.

My son has a gun, Dylan Pape said, pretending to be his father, Richard, according to the report.

Dylan Pape told the 911 dispatcher that his son made a threat to do it, the report said. When the dispatcher asked what the statement meant, Pape hung up, the report said.

Responding officers pleaded with Pape to drop the gun, according to the report.

After about an hour, Pape approached officers with the gun in his hand, the report said. Sgt. Steve Perrotta, second in command of the Special Response Team, released a police dog as Pape moved closer, the report said.

As officer Mark Tymons dog approached, Pape squared off, lowering his center of gravity and getting in a fighting stance, Perrottas statement said.

When the dog made contact, Pape raised his hand with the gun and just before it became parallel with the ground, Perrotta and Lt. Christopher Baker fired their Colt M-4 rifles.

Baker took two shots and Perrotta fired once, striking Pape in the upper right abdomen and upper right arm, the report said.

The shot to the abdomen perforated the liver and right kidney, killing the Stamford High School grad, the report said.

The state Office of the Chief Medical Examiner made the rare ruling that Papes death was suicide by cop.

When Tymons dog latched onto Dylan, he raised his right hand with the gun in it. As he raised the gun, it was pointing in the direction of me and officer Tymon, Perrottas statement said.

I feared that Dylan would shoot me, officer Tymon, or the SRT operators to his left side. Just before the gun reached the level of being parallel with the ground, I fired one shot from my M-4 rifle.

Bakers statement said he saw Tymons dog make contact with Pape as he was moving toward him.

The male continued moving in the street as the K-9 was in contact with his leg(s), and with his right hand, he raised the barrel of his gun in my direction, Bakers statement said. I immediately feared for my life as well as the lives of the officers behind me and fired my rifle twice at an approximate range of what appeared to me to be 20-25 yards.

Linda Pape said in the report that she never saw her son with the BB gun, and she and her husband did not feel threatened that night. She said her husband asked several times to speak with their son, but was denied by police. Linda Pape said she would have stayed in her home that night, but was forced out by members of the SWAT team, the report said.

jnickerson@stamfordadvocate.com
SCOTTSBLUFF  People with Medicare Part D prescription drug insurance can compare 2018 drug plans between Oct. 15 and Dec. 7. New Part C Advantage Plans can also be compared at that time. The Nebraska Senior Health Insurance Information Program (SHIIP) will sponsor a series of events for people with Medicare to get free, unbiased assistance comparing coverage for the next year.

People with Medicare can meet one-on-one with a SHIIP-certified counselor and evaluate prescription drug options for the coming. Events are planned in Scottsbluff and other western Nebraska communities. Appointments are required. To schedule an appointment, contact Nebraska SHIIP at 1-800-234-7119 or 308-765-5546.

Drug coverage changes every year. People with Medicare should examine their 2018 choices to be sure that they have the most affordable Part D or Advantage Plan, said SHIIP Regional Representative Caryn Long.

Health needs change, too, Long said. Thats why its important to evaluate Medicare choices every year. But people dont have to do it alone. Medicare and Nebraska SHIIP provide free counseling.

There are several ways for people with Medicare to get help:

 Make an appointment to see a SHIIP-certified counselor by calling 1-800-234-7119. Appointments also available at locations across the state.

 Talk to a SHIIP-certified counselor by phone at 1-800-234-7119.

 Visit http://www.medicare.gov/find-a-plan to compare plans yourself or enroll in a new plan.
STURTEVANT  While Racine Correctional Institution workers usually guard inmates inside their facility, last month when duty called they were able to help the community outside their fence.

Racine Correctional Institution Lt. Tina Amin was working an evening shift on Sept. 20 when the Sturtevant Police Department called asking if RCIs guards could assist with locating a missing child.

Its concerning whenever a child is missing, she said. We called our control center and relayed the information to the sergeant and got as many people as possible out to assist along the perimeter.

The description was of a 9-year-old girl wearing a pink jacket. Eight officers were sent out to patrol the perimeter of the RCIs complex.

One of those officers was Officer Leah Becker, who has been with RCI for two years. While others drove along the perimeter, Becker went solo through the parking lot and checked the warehouse and its shipping containers inside. She got out her flashlight as it started to get dark.

I was thinking about my kids at home, said Becker. I couldnt wait to get home and see theyre safe.

In the office, Amin was worried.

It was nerve-wracking knowing theres lots of possible outcomes in a situation like this, said Amin.

At about 9:30 p.m. that night, Becker spotted a pink jacket behind a tree in the back field behind the warehouse on the edge of the residential neighborhood.

The only reason I saw her was because she had a pink jacket on, said Becker. She was fine and we walked back hand-in-hand.

Emotional sense of relief

Amin was relieved when she heard the news.

When I heard they found her, I got emotional right away, she said. I dont know what Id do as a parent if anything like that happened to anyone I knew.

Becker and Amin turned the girl over to the Sturtevant police. Amin said she was moved by the efforts of the whole team to find the girl.

I was overcome by how nice it was to see everyone working together, said Amin. People dont realize (correction officers) are all people with families and its good to see people working together for a good cause.

We were both crying, said Becker. It was very emotional.

That night, Becker was also thankful for her own family.

As soon as I went home, I kissed my kids on the cheek, she said.
SCOTTSBLUFF  Soroptimist of Scotts Bluff County has teamed up with CAPWN to host the second No Girl For Sale Awareness Walk against human trafficking and sex slavery at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 21, starting from the Safeway parking lot in Scottsbluff. The walk is designed to bring the publics attention to the growing problem of human trafficking across Nebraska, and particularly in small towns across Nebraska.

Participants will want to be at the Safeway parking lot to check in by 10 a.m. or earlier, to start the walk, which will end at the 18th Street Park on Broadway in Scottsbluff.

Our hope is that with increasing awareness, the people of west Nebraska will take a stand, and personally work to prevent this from happening to any girl in our community, said Soroptimist Betsy Vidlak. Its an uncomfortable topic, one many prefer to avoid, but this can affect our daughters at any age, especially when they go away to college, and it needs to be discussed.

The walk is an annual event held in Lincoln by the 5-year-old nonprofit organization Ive Got a Name. Its mission is to eradicate sexual exploitation and sex trafficking. Soroptimist of Scotts Bluff County is working with CAPWN and Ive Got a Name to bring this awareness event to western Nebraska.

Its not just in Lincoln or Omaha; this thing (human trafficking) is everywhere in Nebraska. And its not any particular group or economic level, its everywhere, said Paul Yates, executive director of Ive Got A Name. We dont want to scare people, but we need to wake up. This is a growing problem in Nebraska.

There is no obligation to register in order to participate; however, to receive a T-shirt in the desired size for the event, participants needed to register with Team Scottsbluff by Oct. 6. The cost of a T-shirt is $20. Some shirts will also be available on the day of the walk on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Day of event registration for the No Girl For Sale Awareness Walk will start at 9 a.m. in the Safeway parking lot, on Saturday; however, anyone can walk, no registration or payment is required.

Participants are encouraged to create posters to carry during the walk, and to gather at the park after the event for guest speakers, live music and refreshments.

For more information, contact Soroptimist of Scotts Bluff County committee chairwoman Lisa Betz-Marquez at 308-672-1114.
Scottsbluffs St. Agnes School student council members took the challenge from the National Catholic Education Association to raise at least $1 for every student that attends our school to aide Catholic Schools affected by the recent hurricane. The students far exceeded the goal for the 118 students in school, raising $915 for the relief fund.
SCOTTSBLUFF  The Western Nebraska Community College Alumni Association is pleased to announce the 2017 recipients of the WNCC Alumni & Friends awards. Recipients will be recognized at the fourth annual Alumni & Friends Banquet, which is a part of WNCCs Homecoming week celebration.

Theres no place like WNCC for Homecoming!, Alumni Relations Director Jennifer Sibal said. As we take a week to celebrate our Cougar Pride, we are so excited to recognize these deserving individuals and families who are shining examples of the success and excellence within our Cougar community.

Award recipients include:

Lifetime Achievement Award: Dr. Guy Wylie

This award is given to a person or group who has demonstrated a lasting commitment to serve the mission of Western Nebraska Community College.

Outstanding Alumnus & NCCA Distinguished Alumni Award: Colonel Robert Mitchell

The Outstanding Alumni is a graduate of WNCC and has been successful in his/her chosen career or has made significant contributions to his/her community. The Outstanding Alumni recipient also represents WNCC at the state level and is recognized as the Nebraska Community College Association (NCCA) Distinguished Alumni.

Outstanding Young Alumnus Award: Angela Kembel

This award recognizes a graduate of WNCC that is 40 years of age or younger who can be deemed a rising star in his/her career field and/or has demonstrated outstanding community service.

Cara Perkins Meritorious Service Award: Tami Lippstreu

This award honors a person or organization that has served WNCC and students in a special or extraordinary way.

Friend of the College Award: Bob and Elaine Pile

The Friend of the College is a person, organization or business that has demonstrated a commitment to the educational advancement of people in the Nebraska Panhandle.

Family Pride Award: Kevin Kelley Family

This award is meant to recognize a family with multiple generations of family members that have attended or graduated from WNCC.

To RSVP to attend the WNCC Alumni & Friends Banquet, or to connect with other Homecoming events and activities, visit wncc.edu/celebrate, email alumni@wncc.edu or call 308-630-6571.
Raymond Eugene Crawford, 97, who was born December 2, 1919, at the family ranch west of Alliance, died Friday, Oct. 6, 2017 at Box Butte General Hospital. A celebration of his life will be 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 10, at St. Johns Lutheran Church, 2090 Emerson, with Pastors Tim Stadem and Kent Steinke officiating. Stories, memories and community fellowship at St. Johns will follow burial at Alliance Cemetery. Visitation will be Monday from 1-7 p.m. with the family being present from 5-7 p.m. at the Bates-Gould Funeral Home.

Ray was the fourth of six children to be born to Fred and Bonnie Belle (Lorance) Crawford. He is survived by his youngest sibling, June Crawford Powell of Amarillo, Texas.

Ray attended rural school and graduated from Alliance High School in 1936. He was on the University of Nebraska College of Agriculture meats and livestock judging teams, member of University 4-H Club, Block and Bridle, Alpha Gamma Rho, ROTC, and graduated in 1942. He entered the Army Air Corps in June, 1942, and was a B-24 pilot in the Pacific Theater from New Guinea, Philippines, Okinawa and Japan. After service release in October, 1945, he maintained reserve commission, retiring with rank of a Lt. Colonel on Dec. 2, 1979.

Ray married Dorothy June Frost on June 3, 1956, at Overton Methodist Church. They raised three children, Wanda Crawford of Bellevue, Kentucky; Warren and Wayne (Mary) of rural Alliance.

Rays life of Christian service was dedicated to his Lord and Savior, his family, the Crawford ranch, the First Christian Church where he was confirmed, baptized and served as and elder, and to service through Gideons International.

He was preceded in death by his brother, Gene Edward Crawford who was killed in action on Okinawa on May 25, 1945 at the age of 19; his parents; sisters and spouses, Helen (Carl) Lewis, and Edith (Melvin C.) Bartels; brother and spouses, Lelan (Evelyn & Kathern) Crawford; brothers-in-law, Bill Powell and Don (Verna) Frost.

Survivors also include eight nieces, five nephews and their families.

Memorials may be made to Gideons International or the donors choice.

Online condolences may be left at www.batesgould.com.
The massacre in Las Vegas has Americans screaming for the government to end these insane acts of violence by passing more laws. If only it were that simple, dont you think we would have done that by now? I want these to stop as badly as you do, and everyone, included me, wants to do something to ensure this is the absolute last time this will happen.

So what will it be? More gun laws? Better background checks? Longer waiting periods? More banned weapons? Close more gun show loopholes? None of the above? All of the above? We could disagree about it for another decade, but whatever we do, lets make sure it will end these tragedies.

Maybe we should begin the discussion on a couple things we surely can agree on. Number one, we have a law: murder is illegal. We can agree on that. Number two, murderers dont obey the law. I think we can agree on that too.

And therein lies the problem. We can pass a dozen more laws or a hundred more laws. Isnt it already against the law to own automatic assault weapons? We can make bump stocks and cartridge clips illegal. We can limit the number of guns one can own, or the amount of ammunition one can possess. Would any of this stopped what happened in Las Vegas?

What would make us believe that once this deranged individual made the decision to break the law by committing mass murder, would he all of a sudden decide to obey a gun law? It is irrational to believe he would.

So does that mean we should do nothing? Of course not. We should do everything we can to prevent another human slaughter of innocent people. But given the fact murder is against the law, and murderers dont obey the law, asking the government to end this madness through legislation is more like wishing it away. To believe the government can stop this with more laws is naive. Can we or should we do something? Of course we should, with the understanding there is no absolute legislative solution.

Toss in another fact: we have over 300 million guns in the country, about one for every person. And yet another fact: every time there is a massacre, gun sales sky rocket. Every one of these facts circle us back to, What should, or what can we do?

We cant disarm the American people. Guns are more than woven into the fabric of American history from before we declared our independence and went to war with Great Briton right up to today, and gun ownership is a fundamental right under the Second Amendment.

At every turn we are challenged to come up with a solution to these mass murders. It is because there is no single answer. It is because these tragedies run much deeper than laws restricting or forbidding gun ownership. The problem is hate, disregard for human life, selfishness and immorality, and this should come as no surprise as our society slowly drifts further away from religious lessons.

We as a nation seem more filled with hate than any point in my lifetime. We cant have a civil and constructive conversation if we are from different political parties. We cant seem to have that conversation about race, religion or immigration. My God, we cant even agree on how to make health care affordable and accessible for Americans, so now we are to expect a substantive dialogue on gun control? But we must.

Yet it seems we get better at hating every year. What is our future if we continue to go down this road? We deserve so much more; a land of liberty, of opportunity as well as security. Maybe there is another thing we can agree on while this debate plays out. We cant turn to Washington to solve all our problems. We cant turn to Washington to make America great. These are things we must do ourselves by using the power the Constitution gave to We the People to encourage Washington that it would be easier if they were to work with us and not against each other.

I have said this many times: I believe in the American people, our strength, our faith, our patriotism, our motives, our work ethic and our values, much more than those under the soundproof dome in our capitol.

I sure dont have the answers, so I am asking you, our Star-Herald readers, what your solution/s are to end these evil mass murders? Please contact me at greg.awtry@starherald.com and let me know what law you would pass, and if you think your new law would have stopped this carnage in Las Vegas.
World War II, its hardships and its heroism continue to exert a nostalgic pull on the American imagination. It was a time when women found themselves subject to opportunities that were previously denied, even as families struggled to stay afloat and racketeers took advantage of wartime circumstances to bolster their fortunes.

In her new novel, Manhattan Beach, Jennifer Egan focuses on three characters whose destinies become intertwined, starting in Brooklyn during the Great Depression. Egans latest work is an intriguing departure from her 2010 book, A Visit From the Goon Squad, which won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. That book had a hip sensibility informed by its characters, among them a former punk rocker grappling with fears of selling out and a scrappy young woman with a faulty moral compass.

In contrast, Manhattan Beach finds Egan embracing the aesthetic of the historical novel, delivering a story of Dickensian ambition that benefits mightily from her meticulous attention to detail and her rich, evocative language. The story revolves around Anna Kerrigan, an independent young woman whos ahead of her time; her father, Eddie, a working man who becomes involved with the criminal underworld in order to survive; and one of its habitues, Dexter Styles, who lives a double life as an upper-crust nightclub owner and small-time gangster.

Shifting back and forth between the perspectives of Anna, Eddie and Dexter, Egan creates a kaleidoscopic portrait of a pre-internet era in which radios represented the height of technology and keeping ones neighbors at arms length would have been considered impolite. And she brings to the story a gift for cinematic imagery, as in this description of Anna taking a break from her job at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, where hundreds of women support the war effort:

She synchronized her wristwatch with the large wall clock they all answered to, and stepped outdoors. After the sealed hush of her shop, the roar of Yard noise always shocked her: crane and truck and train engines; the caterwaul of steel being cut and chipped in the nearby structural shop; men hollering to be heard.

Anna has a position measuring machine parts, but she aspires to be a ship-repair diver  a job for which women are deemed to be unsuitable. Eddie, whos reduced to being a bagman for Dexter, is equally unhappy. And despite being the son-in-law of a patrician banker, Dexter is thwarted in his goal of becoming completely legitimate.

A fourth character figures significantly in the narrative: Annas sister Lydia. Disabled but delicately beautiful, Lydia is a largely mute witness to Annas humanity, Eddies insecurities and Dexters opportunism.

Although Anna is arguably the novels central character, Dexter is its most complex  as in a scene in which he confronts men who dont realize hes a gangster and refuse to take his orders:

They were staring at him as if hed gone unhinged. How to explain the workings of the shadow world in a way that would persuade them? He didnt have to, of course, but Dexter always preferred argument to brute force. Im saying weve different rules, he said. Different practices. What cant happen in your world can in mine. Including bodies disappearing.

The research that went into the novel is apparent on every page, including the idioms of the period  characters refer not to movie stars but to picture stars. And Egan playfully refers to historical figures as they would have been regarded at the time: Harry S Truman, who hadnt yet ascended to the presidency, is the senator from Missouri. But occasionally, she supplies more minutiae than necessary, which has the unfortunate effect of stalling rather than enhancing the story.
When we think of old newspapers, we often picture tiny gray type that begs for a giant magnifying glass.

But 100 years ago, newspapers also printed beautiful artwork that took up full pages. Bright strips of comics wrapped the outside, and special sections celebrated culture.

In 1902, the St. Louis Globe-Democrats magazine section announced The Easter Hat Is Almost Here with colored drawings of fancy toppers.

Five years later, the same paper had a full-page, color illustration of immigrants laying railroad tracks. The hand-lettered headline says, St. Louis Newcomers From Italy.

It alludes to the kind of story that is still written today, describing both the citys changing population and showing how it attracts new arrivals.

These pages and hundreds more  both gray and in color  are on display at the St. Louis Mercantile Librarys Headlines of History: Historic Newspapers of St. Louis and the World Through the Centuries. The exhibit officially opens Monday and will be on display for two years.

Billed as the citys first extensive newspaper exhibit, it includes some 750 items, from original pages (Dewey Defeats Truman and Men Walk on Moon) to Auguste Rodins sculpture of Joseph Pulitzer and the Post-Dispatchs collection of gold medals for Pulitzer Prizes in public service. Photos, comics, paintings and even some literary magazines round out the show.

Regularly called the first rough draft of history, newspapers still record history, but they also are history. The Globe-Democrat has been gone since 1986. A national museum in Washington, now 20 years old, has drawn millions of visitors to witness, in part, the professions past and to learn about First Amendment rights.

Echoing the Monty Python character, however, the mediums not dead yet. Washingtons Newseum posts online the front pages of some 900 newspapers every day.

And when it comes to breaking news, such as the tragic mass shooting in Las Vegas, internet rumors and Facebook links are verily trounced by professional reporting published both online and in daily print.

The Mercantile exhibit, though focused on the past, acknowledges the present. In a banner headlines authoritative presence one sees history in the making, library director John N. Hoover writes. An example of recent history: Hail and farewell: Rock legend Chuck Berry dies at 90.

That Post-Dispatch report from March now is a part of a centuries-old newspaper collection, joining other very special time machines on paper that had come to the Mercantile, Hoover writes in the exhibits catalog.

Librarys quest

Founded in 1846, the Mercantile Library is the oldest surviving library west of the Mississippi River. Newspapers have always been part of its collection.

The reading room was filled with them. Newspapers were always considered the bedrock of the information a library would want to get out to its readers, says Hoover, who has been the library director for more than 30 years.

St. Louis had 18 to 20 daily papers in the mid-19th century, he says. It was a different kind of internet age. A curious Mercantile patron would also have access to papers from England, France and Germany, along with other major U.S. cities.

The Mercantile Library, which patrons joined by subscription, was for decades on Locust Street downtown. Now, it is in the Thomas Jefferson Library of the University of Missouri-St. Louis. A subscription is no longer required, although the library of rare and historic material still loves people to become members.

By the 1870s, Hoover says, St. Louis readers would not have waited long for out-of-state reports. It was the height of the industrial age, and with railroad and steamboat travel, newspapers from other cities were often less than a week old.

Some of the historic artifacts in the exhibit are a 1675 issue of the London Gazette, a 1641 extra from France, and a 1776 printing of the Declaration of Independence in The Pennsylvania Ledger. The Pennsylvania paper, which had been loyal to Englands king, soon went out of business.

The oldest known copy of a Missouri newspaper is the Missouri Gazette from July 26, 1808. It was published in English and French by Joseph Charless.

There are newspapers from the frontier (including The Pioneer and The Western Settler), the Latter Day Saints (the Times and Seasons of Nauvoo tells about the death of Joseph Smith) and the Civil War (the Rolla Daily Express reports in 1861 the proclamation of martial law at the federal armys local headquarters in St. Louis).

The exhibit includes examples of German-language papers here and the predecessors of the Globe-Democrat and Post-Dispatch, the longest lived papers of record in St. Louis.

Digital vs. print

After the Globe-Democrat folded, Hoover jumped at the chance to acquire its photo and story files. He estimates the library holds 500,000 photos and 10 million clips of stories. The resources are among the most-requested items at the Mercantile.

When the Mercantile acquired the clipping files and morgue in 1987, the phone started ringing and never stopped, he says.

The library is working on digitizing more of the Globe items; much of the paper was already on microfilm. In 2001, the Mercantile also obtained bound original editions of the Post-Dispatch that had been sitting in the papers humid basement.

Bit by bit, piece by piece, Hoover says, the Mercantile, State Historical Society of Missouri and other institutions, such as universities and the Missouri Historical Society, are collecting, rescuing, preserving and digitizing the newspaper heritage of the city.

Thankfully a handful of other great historical libraries across the nation continue to rescue newspapers from dusty paper shards and graying microfilm, but the process takes time and continual effort and resolve by many hands, he says. Newspapers are our first love.

These efforts make more newspapers available online in open access settings like the Mercantile.

But  and this is a big but: Hoover has no plans to pitch original print editions, and he bemoans libraries that have.

For one thing, the Mercantile is a rare book library, so it believes in the object and the artifact, he says. There is nothing more expressive than to use the paper object and focus on how people originally presented the information.

For another, microfilm records are in black and white, and some newspaper pages, with their folds and creases, can be hard to read.

The technology wasnt as good as the analog, Hoover says. Newspapers as artifacts allow one to look more closely at color, sections and comics. Seeing how a page is presented supplies information beyond an individual story online.

Hoover wants at least a few libraries to carry the torch and keep the original object, which allows scholars a clearer picture of what was presented in the past.

The newspaper exhibit is one of four that Hoover has planned that require large space and plenty of exhibition cases.

The library previously showed off its historic maps. It followed with its Audubon book and other natural history artifacts. After the newspaper exhibit, Hoover wants to display Americana, he says.

But in the meantime, there are programs to plan and a lot to see, even if the newspapers on display are only part of the librarys 1.5 million editions.
President Donald Trump is rolling back a key provision in the Affordable Care Act that requires employer-sponsored health insurance plans to cover the full cost of prescription birth control.

The new rules would allow any employer, including universities with student health plans, to opt out of providing contraceptive coverage for religious or moral reasons. It also would allow any individuals to opt out of an insurance plan that provides the same coverage because of their religious beliefs.

Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., in a statement issued by his office, praised the move, saying, No act of government should ever force Americans to compromise their faith.

Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., in a statement, criticized the action, saying the best way to reduce unintended pregnancies and abortions is by expanding access to birth control.

Its unclear how many employers will opt out of the coverage, though reproductive health advocates lamented the administrations decision.

Were very happy about it, Sam Lee, a Catholic deacon in St. Louis, told the Post-Dispatch. Its been a long time coming.

Some Missourians who had brought legal challenges against the mandate under the Obama administration were happy to hear of Trumps decision.

My hope is that now other people can have the religious freedoms that me and my wife enjoy, state Sen. Paul Wieland, R-Imperial, said in a telephone interview.

In 2013, Wieland sued the federal government, arguing that the birth control coverage requirement violates his familys religious beliefs. Wieland and his wife, Teresa, are Catholic and have three daughters.

Last summer, a federal judge ruled in favor of the Wielands and allowed them to opt out of the state health insurance plan. The state provides a separate plan for the Wielands that excludes contraceptive coverage.

Wielands case is cited in explaining the reasoning allowing individuals  and not just employers  to opt out, in the new rules posted to the Federal Register on Friday.

Nearly 90 percent of American women have used a prescription birth control method at some point in their lives, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

After the Affordable Care Acts mandate took effect, the rate of women whose insurance required a co-pay for the birth control pill fell from more than 20 percent to under 4 percent, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Reproductive rights advocates said dismantling the birth control mandate is a setback for womens health.

Unintended pregnancy is at the lowest rate in 30 years, and this is because of access to birth control, Mary Kogut, president of Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region, said in a telephone interview. This helps women plan their lives, plan for their future, helps them to meet economic and educational aspirations, and its very good for us as a society.

Much of the evidence showing that access to birth control reduces abortions and unintended pregnancies comes from the Contraceptive Choice Project at Washington University.

The abortion rate in the St. Louis area declined by more than 20 percent from 2008 to 2010, coinciding with the project, which provided free birth control to more than 9,000 local women and teenage girls. The abortion rate for the rest of the state remained constant over the same period.

The contraception project served as a preview of the impact of full insurance coverage of birth control under the Affordable Care Act, the researchers said. Since the contraception mandate went into effect in mid-2012, abortion rates have continued to decline. There were 5,751 abortions performed in Missouri in 2011 compared to 4,765 in 2015, the latest figures available from the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.

Teen births also have dropped dramatically since the mandate went into effect. In 2011, there were 6,998 births to Missouri teenagers. By 2015 that number dropped to 4,878.

Missouris birth rate overall dropped to an all-time low in 2016. There were 74,659 births in the state last year compared to 76,069 in 2011.

The project also found that access to no-cost birth control does not make women more likely to engage in risky sexual behaviors. The participants showed no increase in sexually transmitted diseases.

Dr. David Eisenberg of Washington University, who worked on the Contraceptive Choice Project, said that since 2012 he has seen a flood of women asking for intrauterine devices, considered the most effective form of reversible birth control. The implants cost $500 to $1,000 without insurance coverage and last up to 10 years.

It is mind-boggling to me why the government would roll back protections for women who want access to basic reproductive health care like contraception, Eisenberg said. Its one of the most cost-effective health interventions we can provide, third only to safe drinking water and immunizations.
ST. LOUIS  Chester Goodson estimates he has been shot at 50 times or more in his life.

He has seen countless others get shot or shot at. Hes seen some of them die. And hes lost count of how many funerals he has attended.

After serving time in prison, he says hes now out of the gang life. But some of his nephews are still close to it.

Three have been shot, and two of them are paralyzed, including Lamarr Pearson of St. Louis County. He has been shot 14 times in four separate shootings.

Together the two  Goodson, 43, and Pearson, 29  illustrate how the gang landscape has evolved in St. Louis, from the highly organized Crips and Bloods you might picture when you hear about gangs to the loosely affiliated crews of criminals actually at work today.

The Crips and Bloods are still active in some major cities such as Chicago, Los Angeles and New York, with higher-ranking members calling the shots on who lives and who dies. But the gang landscape in St. Louis is much more nuanced. Gang members here now act more as individual entrepreneurs, robbing, stealing, dealing drugs and burglarizing for their own benefit rather than for the betterment of their organization, said Sgt. Carl Cunningham, who heads up the citys gang unit.

The younger factions do not have clearly defined loyalties and their motives arent cut and dry, he said. They just happen to come up with a collective name, but its about survival of the individual and what the individual needs at any given moment.

Pearson, who sometimes still hangs with fellow members of a crew called the Boys of Destruction despite being paralyzed from the chest down in a shooting last year, agrees.

Nowadays theres no role models out here trying to make it all about the gang, or trying to make their gang come up  Its all about the money now more than anything, Pearson said. Before you knew what you were doing and what you were doing it for. Now youve got dudes out here killing that have nothing to do with their gang.

The areas gangs themselves arent responsible for the majority of recent violence, authorities and experts say. Police estimate that 36, or one out of every five of the 188 homicides in 2016, involved a documented gang member as a victim or suspect. Even in those cases, police do not know how much of a role, if any, gang membership played in the crimes.

Only about 6 percent of the citys roughly 2,100 aggravated assaults with guns involved documented gang members as victims or suspects in 2016.

Homicides this year are running ahead of last years pace, but only about 12 percent involved a documented gang member as a victim or suspect.

But police say gangs and their members are still worth monitoring. Even if there isnt one gang leader at the top directing such an organization, the loosely structured crews in St. Louis are confederations of the areas most violent criminals, said Lt. Col. Ronnie Robinson, commander of the citys gang unit.

Our primary purpose is to cut down on retaliatory shootings, Robinson said, adding that there is no way to measure how many crimes are prevented. But before, you knew who you could focus on and what to target to bring down a gang.

Today, its so individually based, theres no more cutting the head off the snake. You have to concentrate on individual members. Its more like a game of whack-a-mole.

Tracking gang members

Police estimate there are about 2,000 documented gang members in this city of about 300,000, spread across 121 documented gangs. Expand the circle to the greater St. Louis area and into St. Louis County, St. Charles County and parts of Illinois, and there are 3,000 to 5,000 documented members that belong to about 600 gangs, Cunningham said.

Keeping track of them requires documenting the moves of individual gang members. Every time officers make contact with a known gang member, they note when and where it occurred and name the people the gang member was with at the time.

It can be dangerous work. Two members of the gang unit were shot while trying to approach a documented gang member on Sept. 1, police say. They were able to identify their alleged attacker because they knew him from their files.

Tracking gang members is a tedious but necessary process, said former St. Louis Police Chief Dan Isom, now a criminologist at the University of Missouri-St. Louis.

Is the gang unit the entire solution? No, its a piece of it, Isom said. Whether theyre loosely affiliated people or highly organized, those relationships are a significant part of the violence in the community.

Goodson said he remembers gang members coming in from Los Angeles during the height of the crack cocaine epidemic in the early 1990s to try and start hierarchical gangs, but it never really took hold for the long term.

Membership in St. Louis gangs is based on neighborhoods, not allegiances to a particular organization, he and the authorities who monitor gangs say.

Its all about what block you are from, said Cunningham, who leads the police gang unit.

In Goodsons neighborhood, the Boys of Destruction ruled. Becoming a member wasnt really a choice, but rather an assumption, Goodson said.

I just used to hang around them a lot because thats where I lived, and the next thing you know, they were calling me a BOD, Goodson said.

There arent really turf wars. Every corner is equal opportunity, not clear territory of one gang or another.

Members still don colors, but they dont get killed for wearing them in the wrong area, authorities say. Committing crimes as a rite of passage into a gang is rare. Gang members today tag each other with graffiti on their social media sites, as well as flash their guns and money in online posts.

A renewed focus

Interim Police Chief Lawrence OToole has boosted the gang unit to include seven detectives and two sergeants and growing, up from the four to six detectives the unit has had in recent years. He also centralized them in one location.

The police department did not make OToole available to explain the changes.

The move is a shift from how addressing gangs worked under the previous two chiefs, Isom and Sam Dotson. In fact, both bristled whenever the word gang was used by reporters asking about motives behind murders through the years.

Both say their aversion to the word was a way to dissuade the public from oversimplifying the citys crime problem.

People want to simplify it and say, If we get rid of gangs, we get rid of violence, and thats not necessarily true, Isom said.

Chalking up violence as simply a gang problem can also divert attention from the unmet needs at the root of violence, such as a lack of strong role models, unstable households and poverty, Dotson said.

Why arent there gangs in Chesterfield? he asked. Because those needs are met at a different level. You often see gangs in poor to middle-income neighborhoods where those needs arent being met.

When violence increases, young men are more likely to seek perceived safety through membership in a crew or gang, according to UMSL criminologist Rick Rosenfeld.

Kids join believing they will be protected, but the problem is that belief turns out to be false, Rosenfeld said.

A life of violence

Pearson, the gang member paralyzed in a shooting last year, has believed that someone is going to kill him since he was 5 years old.

Thats when he and his two brothers saw their mother raped, beaten and strangled by a stranger inside their home. They spent two days with her corpse before an uncle broke down a door to get in. Her killer was never caught.

Thats when I thought, Eventually, someone is going to kill me, Pearson said. It just made me coldhearted. I never used to picture myself living past 17 or 18.

Pearsons father, for whom he is named, wasnt around. It was 1993, and the elder Pearson was about three years into a prison term for killing an off-duty St. Louis police officer during a robbery.

He grew up living with relatives in a neighborhood where the Boys of Destruction recruited him. It was the same gang his uncle belonged to.

He was shot six times by a St. Louis police officer in 2005, he said. A jury acquitted him of assaulting the officer. He was shot twice while driving and once while arguing with some men outside a gas station. The last shooting, on July 17, 2016, left him paralyzed.

Even though hes paralyzed, Pearson said he considers himself an active member of his gang. But, like most gangs in St. Louis, Pearson said the crew serves more as a social group than an organized criminal enterprise. He attributes all of his shootings to personal beefs, not gang-related issues. Pearson declined to say whether he knew who shot him or why.

Drug networks

Though St. Louis gangs lack structure and hierarchy, they sometimes do carry out retaliation killings, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Jim Delworth, who oversees the Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force. He cited a group called the Downtown Taliban as an example.

In March, seven members of the Taliban street gang were arrested on heroin charges. Indictments say that they were all members of other gangs who joined up to sell drugs  again, abandoning allegiance to a gang in the traditional sense and collaborating for their own individual benefit.

Some of its members were linked to rolling gun battles, according to former U.S. Attorney Richard Callahan. Their arrests came earlier than authorities had initially planned because they feared a retaliation shooting might be in the works.

Mostly its drug-related crimes driving violence rather than gang activity, Delworth said.

He cited the case involving Anthony Jordan and Adrian Lemons as an example. Indictments alleged that the men were bringing bulk shipments of cocaine here from Mexico and supplying it to criminals across multiple gangs.

Jordan was initially charged in 2015. Since then, Lemons and 32 others have been added to an indictment containing a series of drug-related charges.

The defendants were initially accused of a role in four murders, but law enforcement sources at the time said they suspected links to as many as 17. But Jordan and Lemons werent gang members; they were drug traffickers, Delworth said.

These murders took place as a result of drug trafficking, not a gang war, Delworth said. Still, understanding their customers ties to various gangs was crucial to the case, he said.

Getting out

It was that kind of crime  drug trafficking  that led to a federal indictment for Goodson in January 2010, when he and another man sold crack to an undercover FBI agent.

It was the moment Goodson said convinced him to leave the gang and criminal lifestyle. Goodson pleaded guilty to one count of possession with the intent to distribute crack cocaine and served six years.

He now lives in St. Louis County and works for a chemical company. He started as a temporary hire, and now works full time with some supervisory duties.

Goodson is part of a federal program called Project GRIP, or the Gang Re-entry Initiative Program, designed to prevent felons from returning to gangs. Compliance can mean an early release from supervision, saving tax dollars.

He said he doesnt miss his old life, but he gets glimpses of it if ever hes around some of his nephews who are gang members. Im living a better life now than I ever have, he says. Im not looking over my shoulder anymore.

Pearson, the nephew who has been shot 14 times, said he doesnt get around as much as he did before he was paralyzed. He now spends his days mostly at home in a St. Louis County apartment with his girlfriend. He has three children and said hes happy to be alive to see them grow up. Still, he says, even if I say Im out, the streets is always going to say, you in.

Sometimes he runs into others whom he once considered rivals. Typically, they share a look of solidarity.

Its kind of like, Its good to see you still here, because a lot of people arent here no more, Pearson said. As we got older, we realized it wasnt really worth it and we aint got to worry about each other no more.

But, Pearson said, he also realizes not everyone can let go of the past.

Even when you say youll forgive yourself, other people wont, he said. After all Ive seen and done, I know if (death) is going to come, its going to come and there aint nothing you can do.
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A couple of Fridays ago, U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., held a town hall-like meeting for students at New Berlin West High School in Milwaukees western suburbs. It was a fine thing for the senator to do, letting tomorrows leaders ask him questions today.

Except

A senior named Madeline Soiney asked Johnson if health care was a right or a privilege. Heres what Johnson said:

I think its probably more of a privilege. Do you consider food a right? Do you consider clothing a right? Do you consider shelter a right? What we have as rights are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. We have the right to freedom. Past that point, everything else is a limited resource that we have to use our opportunities given to us so that we can afford those things.

As an expression of greed is good conservatism, this was as pure as it gets. Never mind that the Declaration of Independence says that life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are among the unalienable rights with which men are endowed by their creator. There could be others. Johnson mentioned freedom, which Republicans lather on like chocolate syrup.

The United Nations, as one of its first acts, adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. It has become a foundation of international law and contains a bunch of rights (not being tortured is one) that Johnson skipped. Consider Article 25:

Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.

The United States signed this declaration. Saudi Arabia did not, claiming it conflicted with Sharia Law. This is pretty strange company for a Republican senator like Ron Johnson (RoJo to his friends) to keep.

Nevertheless, if health care is not a right, then Johnson doesnt need to feel guilty about all the times he tried to gut the Affordable Care Act this summer. If food is not a right, he can vote against food stamps and foreign assistance without a qualm. If shelter is not a right, then those homeless people in Houston, Florida and Puerto Rico (to say nothing of the streets of Milwaukee) wont bother him.

He followed up on his answer to the students question by citing the wisdom of one of his colleagues, Sen. Rand Paul, the Kentucky libertarian:

Hes a doctor. He said the minute you consider health care a right, well, whos going to satisfy that right? And those people who have the skills to satisfy that right, what does that make them if theyre forced to provide you with that rightful product or service?

For example, Paul is an ophthalmologist. He keeps his skills up by doing free cataract-removal surgeries for people who cant afford them. But what if the government forced him to accept the thousands of dollars in fees that Obamacare might pay him? Doesnt that make him a slave?

Paul argued that it does. In committee remarks in 2011 that apparently impressed the heck out of RoJo, Paul argued that if people had a right to health care, they would have a right to come to my house and conscript me. It means you believe in slavery. It means that youre going to enslave not only me, but the janitor at my hospital, the person who cleans my office, the assistants who work in my office, the nurses.

Paul continued, Basically, once you imply a belief in a right to someones services  Do you have a right to plumbing? Do you have a right to water? Do you have a right to food?  youre basically saying you believe in slavery.

So there you go. Anything other than life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness equals slavery. Once youve got yours, you dont owe anyone anything unless you choose to give it. The fortunate (Rush Limbaugh calls them the achievers) should not pay for someones ideas of basic rights.

Rand Paul achieved despite the hardship of being born the son of an OB/GYN and member of Congress, the legendary libertarian Ron Paul. Johnson came from a middle-class background and then achieved by marrying the daughter of a plastics millionaire.

(I just want to say one word to you, RoJo. Just one word: Plastics).

Being born well and marrying well are excellent ways to deserve the privileges of food, shelter and health care.

Only 3.3 percent of the students in the New Berlin district come from families who live in poverty. So most of the kids who heard Johnsons defense of privilege may be OK with it. I hope theyve got good teachers.
Top Republicans in Congress say theyre warming to a proposed ban on so-called bump stocks that allow semi-automatic rifles to simulate the rapid fire of fully automatic military weaponry. Already, gun activists are mobilizing for a fight, arguing that any restriction on gun ownership is unconstitutional.

Perhaps a re-reading of the Second Amendment is in order. The amendment, adopted in 1791, didnt specify a right to own the worst mass-killing technology of the time  cannons and, say, flame-throwing catapults. The Founding Fathers also didnt foresee firearms with high-capacity magazines capable of killing, in a matter of seconds, the number of humans who might die in an entire day of fighting using the musket technology of the time.

Nor did they envision civilians amassing big arsenals of mass-killing machines in their homes. The pesky Second Amendment words gun activists so often overlook are these: well regulated.

It is Congress duty to resist intense pressure from the gun lobby and ensure that the weaponry available to the general public (or the militia in the amendments vernacular) is well regulated.

Because Congress has failed repeatedly at this job, we keep having mass shootings such as Sundays in Las Vegas. Gunman Stephen Paddock, aided by bump-stock weaponry, was able to shoot more than 580 people. There is no justification whatsoever for this technology to be in civilian hands. None.

On Thursday, the National Rifle Association endorsed a review of whether bump stocks comply with federal law. But it stood solidly behind its previous opposition to other attempts to regulate gun ownership.

If the NRA agrees that the rapidity of gunfire merits regulation, then rapid-fire, mass-killing AR-15 rifles must also deserve legal review. If its the rapidity of ammunition feeding into a rifle, then the NRA has no argument against regulating civilian ownership of high-capacity magazines.

Other gun advocates insist the government has no right to ban bump stocks. Some sellers, such as Texas-based Slide Fire, equate bump stocks with patriotism  freedom unleashed. Besides, Slide Fires ads say, theyre fun!

Bump stocks offer gun owners the thrill of firing automatic weapons otherwise not available to civilians. Was mass slaughter in Las Vegas necessary so these shooters can enjoy their patriotic thrill? In their minds, Americans horrified by gun massacres are just going to have to accept it as the price of freedom.

Watch carefully as the debate over bump stocks takes its twists and turns on Capitol Hill until a watered-down shell of a ban makes it to a floor vote. Congress doesnt have the guts to regulate the real culprits  semiautomatic weapons and high-capacity magazines. Americans can only steel themselves for the next mass-killing.

You can send your price-of-freedom receipts to the NRA for reimbursement.
States from Louisiana to Florida braced Friday for Tropical Storm Nate, forecast to pound the Gulf Coast this weekend as a hurricane.

The National Hurricane Center on Friday upgraded the tropical storm warning for New Orleans to a hurricane warning. It extends from New Orleans to Lake Pontchartrain and Grand Island, Louisiana, eastward to the Alabama-Florida border.

The storm is expected to make landfall around midnight Saturday east of New Orleans, which was devastated 12 years ago by Hurricane Katrina. It would be the third hurricane, after Harvey and Irma, to hit the US mainland in six weeks.

A storm surge warning was put in place from Morgan City to the western part of the Florida Panhandle, as well as along the northern and western shores of Lake Pontchartrain.

"Residents in these areas should heed any evacuation instructions given by local officials," the hurricane center said.

Nate killed at least 21 people as it passed Thursday over Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Honduras, where it caused widespread flash flooding and mudslides, officials said.

Over the warm waters of the northwestern Caribbean Sea, Nate was forecast to gain strength as it approaches the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico later Friday and become a hurricane by the time it reaches the northern Gulf Coast, the hurricane center said.

Nate packed maximum sustained winds of 65 mph Friday evening and was moving north-northwest at 22 mph, the hurricane center said. It was about 90 miles northeast of Cozumel, a Mexican island near the Yucatan Peninsula.

New Orleans gearing up

New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu ordered a mandatory evacuation of the Venetian Isles, Lake Catherine and Irish Bayou areas of the city after having already declared a state of emergency Thursday.

"We remain focused on vulnerabilities in Venetian Isles, Lake Catherine and Irish Bayou because these areas are outside of the levee system, and because one of the greatest threats to this storm is not necessarily interior rain, but storm surge. It is a serious concern to us," Landrieu said Friday. "The projections are that we could see six to nine feet of surge."

He said residents must evacuate by 12 p.m. (1 p.m. ET) Saturday, when the nearby flood gates will be closed. The New Orleans Fire Department and Neighborhood Engagement Office will be conducting outreach through Saturday to coordinate the evacuation effort, he added.

With the majority of the storm's impact and storm surge expected to occur overnight, Landrieu also announced a mandatory curfew will take effect Saturday at 6 p.m. and end Sunday morning. In preparation for overnight flooding, he said the city's police department will put up barricades and close underpasses once the curfew is in effect.

"If we all stay informed, if we all stay alert, if we all stay prepared, ultimately, we will all be safe, which is our No. 1 priority," Landrieu said.

Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency for all of Louisiana. The storm will "make landfall in the close vicinity of New Orleans," the proclamation noted, adding that six parishes have declared emergencies and others would do so soon.

New Orleans, much of which lies below sea level, was gearing up for a hit, and Landrieu urged people who live "outside the city's levee protection system or in low-lying area" to seek higher ground.

Residents have been wary since the city's unique drainage system experienced critical deficiencies during heavy summer rainstorms, leading to the flooding of several hundred properties.

Of the city's 120 main drainage pumps, three major and nine smaller ones were offline Thursday night, city records show. Also, all 24 major pump stations had backup generators, records show, as only three of five turbines that help power the city's oldest, most powerful pumps were available for service, a city water utility spokeswoman told CNN.

"Residents who live inside the levee system should prepare to take shelter with essential supplies including food, water and medications," the mayor said Thursday.

Edwards authorized 1,300 National Guard troops to mobilize ahead of the storm, with some headed to New Orleans to help monitor the pumps, he said.

Storm to move through quickly

Nate would be the first hurricane to hit Louisiana since Hurricane Isaac in 2012 as a Category 1 storm.

"It will still be fairly strong when it makes landfall, but it will be a quicker moving storm than the last few we have had," CNN meteorologist Haley Brink said. "It's supposed to be in and out pretty quickly."

The storm could drop 3 to 6 inches of rain, with 10 inches possible in some areas, from the central Gulf Coast north through Tennessee and the southern Appalachians through the weekend, possibly spawning flash floods, the hurricane center said.

The last hurricane to hit the Louisiana-Mississippi-Alabama region in October was Hurricane Lili in 2002. The last time three hurricanes hit the mainland in the same year was 2008, when Dolly, Gustav and Ike came through.

Gulf Coast states prepare

Hurricane, tropical storm and storm surge watches were issued late Friday from Florida's border with Alabama east as far as Indian Pass, the hurricane center said. The tropical storm watch was later expanded to include most of Central Alabama and several counties in northwest Georgia, according to local National Weather Service offices.

With parts of Florida still reeling from Hurricane Irma, Gov. Rick Scott has declared a state of emergency for 29 counties.

"Based on the latest forecast from the National Hurricane Center, (Tropical Storm Nate) will continue in the Gulf of Mexico and we expect it to become a hurricane and bring severe weather to the Florida panhandle this weekend," Scott said Friday. "To be clear, Florida is now in the cone."

He told residents to anticipate evacuation zones, warning that bridges will close once wind speeds get to 30-40 miles per hour and people won't be able to evacuate.

"In Florida, we know to prepare for the worst while hoping for the best, but we don't take any chances," Scott said, urging people to get their medications and have three days of food and water. "Please stock up on supplies today, the storm is ... fast-moving."

Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant said in a news conference that Tropical Storm Nate is "moving in this direction" but that the state was well-prepared.

Bryant said he had signed an emergency order for a state of emergency in six southern counties.

Mississippi Emergency Management Agency director Lee Smithson said residents should "ride out the storm in the safest place possible" and listen to any evacuation orders.

"We can see a storm surge of up to 10 feet, tornadoes, inland flooding and flooding of low-lying areas. This storm will impact the entire Mississippi Gulf Coast," he said.

Smithson said people needed to prepare for 80 mile per hour winds, "widespread power outages and be prepared to be on your own for 72 hours with no electricity, no running water, no stores open for food."

In Alabama, a statewide emergency declaration signed by Gov. Kay Ivey went into effect Friday morning. The move "frees up personnel and resources in case there is a need to respond to any storm related activity."

Mayor Sandy Stimpson of Mobile, Alabama, warned residents Friday about storm surge.

"We encourage citizens in low-lying areas to pay special attention to newscasts," he said at a news conference. "There is a projected 4- to 7-(foot) storm surge. It will happen to coincide with high tide, which will give you additional water levels."

Mobile officials were checking storm drains for debris, taking measures to avert power outages and deploying critical equipment. Shelters were prepared to open, if necessary, Stimpson said.

"Don't wait 'til Saturday after dark to decide what you have to do in case things with the storm change," he said.

Deadly storm slams Central America

Of the 21 dead in Nate's passage through Central America, 11 died in Nicaragua, eight in Costa Rica and two in Honduras, officials said. Several people also were reported missing after the storm hit.

Hundreds were rescued from floodwaters, and many lost power and running water in Nicaragua, Honduras and Costa Rica, officials said.

The main threat for Central America was heavy rainfall, which triggered life-threatening flash flooding and mudslides.

Costa Rica President Luis Guillermo Solis declared a national state of emergency to assist those affected by the storm.

Rain will continue to fall through Friday night in parts of Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama and Belize, with "life-threatening flash flooding and mud slides possible," forecasters said.

This story has been updated to reflect the latest death toll from authorities.

CNN's Carma Hassan, Alaa Elassar, Michelle Krupa, Matt Wotus, Brandon Miller and Julia Jones contributed to this report.
All communists unite!

Let us hope all of us had a wonderful Dashain and we will have a good Tihar as well. Its hard for most of us to manage our budget during the festive season.
Bill on civil servants adjustment endorsed

The Legislature-Parliament on Friday endorsed the Civil Servants Adjustment Bill, setting criteria of seniority, permanent address and preference of the concerned officials for deployment to one of the three tiers of governmentlocal, provincial and federal.
CFMoto rolls out slew of motorbikes in Nepal

Austrian motorcycle company, CFMoto has finally entered the Nepali market after a bumpy start. The new company made its arrival during NADA Auto Show 2017 but visitors were disappointed when their booth was devoid of any motorcycles.
Every six months or so Lydia Snell packs up a van loaded to the brim with unwanted medical supplies from Whakatane Hospital bound for countries less developed than New Zealand.

Its a ritual the Paediatric Liaison Nurse has been doing for around ten years, and one she never tires of.

Im one of those people who cant stand wastage. I couldnt as a child and I cant still. For me, its a labour of love. Im passionate about helping people, says Lydia.

Lydias role involves working alongside a social worker to ensure children and their families in the Eastern Bay of Plenty, have access to the appropriate health interventions they may require, both in the hospital and in the community.

Over the years shes also become renowned at the hospital and within the wider community as the go-to person for organising a new home for surplus medical supplies.

Lydia takes the surplus medical supplies and equipment to Auckland where theyre dispatched by Medical Aid Abroad.

I get calls from all over the hospital and nurses in the community too, wanting to offload medical equipment and supplies that are no longer needed. The tricky thing is finding space to store things.

Unopened incontinence products, cord clamps, old style crutches, and walking frames are among the list of goods that are packed up. Pharmaceuticals are strictly off the list.

MAA Stores Manager Dr Mary Joku Ponifasio says Lydia seems to have a knack of producing medical supplies that developing countries have requested, and shed almost given up hope of finding.

Somehow she brings something that is needed for overseas which I dont have available in store. Last year, a hospital in Papua New Guinea urgently needed an infant incubator. I thought of letting the PNG hospital know, that we didnt have one to give, until Lydia showed up with one packed nicely in her van.

In her most recent trip to Auckland, tucked amongst 20 pairs of old crutches and boxes of medical supplies, Lydia and her husband had squeezed in an old Steriliser machine that had been passed on from one of the Whakatane health centres and hadnt been used for some time.

Mary says shed been searching for a Steriliser for two months, and there it was.

It was like a prayer answered.

Through MAA and people across the country like Lydia, much-needed medical supplies are provided to more than 30 developing countries across the South Pacific region as well as Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

Lydia hopes to one day follow a package of medical supplies to one of the developing countries to see how theyre being put to good use.
Chinese firm to undertake TIA improvement works

Chinas Shanxi Construction Engineering Group has won the bid to undertake the major airside and landside infrastructure improvement works at the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) after Spanish contractor Constructora Sanjose was sent off for non-performance.
The robots are coming, and Professor Mike Duke will explain how humans can embrace their arrival in the next lecture in the University of Waikatos Tauranga public lecture series on Thursday October 19.

More than 70 per cent of New Zealands merchandise exports come from the primary industries, with the Ministry for Primary Industries aiming to double primary exports from $32 billion in 2012 to $64 billion by 2025.

According to Mike from the Universitys School of Engineering, robots could help the primary sector reach these export targets by bridging the gap of increasing labour costs.

Increasing labour costs, mainly due to the need to import labour, and concerns over labour reliability, coupled with environmental and health and safety legislation are threatening the profitability of many primary sector companies.

He says to address these issues, the widespread introduction of robotics and smart machinery into New Zealands primary industries could save companies money, improve safety, quality and efficiency.

As the revolution progresses, well have to get used to the sight of robots roaming the fields and orchards of New Zealand.

In his lecture, Mike will explain the work of the Universitys AgriEngineering Research Group and its partners, which aims to turn the vision of primary sector robotics and smart automation into a reality.

This free lecture will take place at the Graham Young Youth Theatre (Tauranga Boys College) on Thursday October 19 at 6pm.

Due to the popularity of the series to date, registration is essential. For more information about the Tauranga Public Lecture Series visit waikato.ac.nz/go/tauranga-lecture.
Bay of Plenty Labour candidate Angie Warren-Clark might not have won her electorate on the night, but shell be entering parliament nonetheless, thanks to special votes released on Saturday.

The former Tauranga Womens Refuge manager will be heading down to Wellington to join colleagues she campaigned alongside, including Tauranga-based list MP Jan Tinetti and Waiariki MP Tamati Coffey.

SunLive paid Angie a visit at her home yesterday afternoon, following the release of the results of the special votes.

It feels a bit surreal. Its going to be a privileged position to be in. For the last two weeks it felt like time had stopped, she says.

Due to her position on the Labour list, Angie was next in line for parliament if the partys vote lifted thanks to the specials, which werent counted until October 7.

She says she took the week off after the election to relax following a hard-fought campaign, while enduring a nervous wait to see if she would become the Western Bay of Plentys latest MP.

Now that shes beginning her first term as an MP, Jan hopes to use her background at Womens Refuge to help make changes to the way domestic violence is addressed in this country.

As a feminist woman and someone who has walked alongside women and children affected by violence, I will be taking a gendered-analysis of domestic violence into parliament, she says.

Being from the Bay of Plenty, there will also be a plethora of things around the environment I would like to progress. But Ill be a backbencher, so Ill be told what to focus on, I guess!

One of the first calls she received on Saturday was from her partys leader.

Jacinda congratulated me and says they held off having the official caucus photo because they thought I would be there, but didnt want to pre-empt anything.

Angie will be clearing out her desk at Tauranga Womens Refuge in the next couple of days, before flying down to parliament on Tuesday.
Chinese man fined Rs 25,000 for using drone

A Chinese tourist was fined Rs 25,000 for using a drone camera in Manang without permit.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- A couple ended up in the hospital - and then in jail - after they stabbed each other Friday in Syracuse, police said.

Calvin Johnson and his girlfriend Ayeshia Logan were arrested by the Syracuse Police Department and charged with assault, said Detective George Hack. They were arrested after a domestic violence incident on the East Side.

Officers rushed to 102 Croly St. around 9:10 p.m. to investigate a domestic violence call in apartment 203.

Johnson and Logan got into a fight. During the fight, the couple stabbed each other, Hack said.

Johnson, 32, was stabbed in the face, Hack said. Logan, 33, was stabbed in the forearm, he said.

American Medical Response transported the wounded couple to Upstate University Hospital. After they were treated, Johnson and Logan were taken to the Onondaga County Justice Center.

A white bandage covers Johnson's cheek in his mugshot. In her mugshot, Logan gazes at the camera through one bruised, swollen-shut eye.

Johnson and Logan were both charged with second-degree assault and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon.

Pending their arraignment, the couple remains in jail.
Richard M. Gerharz

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- The first offender has been added to Onondaga County's registry of convicted animal abusers.

The registry -- created over the summer by the Onondaga County Legislature -- is meant to keep animals away from known abusers. On Friday, the Onondaga County Sheriff's Office officially launched the registry by adding the name of an abuser to the list on the department's website.

Richard M. Gerharz was convicted on Aug. 31 of hurting and failing to provide an animal with "proper sustenance, said Sgt. Jon Seeber, a sheriff's office spokesman. Additional information about his conviction was not immediately available.

The offenders listed on the registry are not allowed to own animals.

Under the new local law passed by the Legislature, all residents convicted of abusing an animal after Aug. 1, 2017, must register with the sheriff's office, Seeber said. Offenders younger than 18 will not be included.

Gerharz and other convicted animal abusers will remain on the registry for 15 years.

There are at least five other county-run animal abuser registries in New York.
Centro employees in Syracuse are the first local company to contribute to a new nationwide program called Blessings in a Backpack, which helps feed school children in need.

Today, Centro kicked off their program at Dr. King Elementary School in Syracuse delivering over 600 food bags from one of their transit buses. The mission of the program is to provide enough food for school children at home for seven days.
Dev Narayan Yadav released from Indian jail

Indian authority on Saturday released Dev Narayan Yadav and his son Ajaya seven days after they were arrested by Indian police on false charge of abduction.
A petition has been created to put a sustainability officer on every May Ball committee. Cambridge student Hattie Hunter, who started the campaign, is asking for a University-wide change to the "extremely wasteful" events.

In 2016, the Clare May Ball was the first ever completely carbon-neutral May Ball to be held. Hunter's campaign takes inspiration from this feat, which was achieved with the help of two sustainability officers on its committee, who were responsible for keeping the environmental impact of the May Ball to a minimum whilst preserving the traditional May Ball experience.

Hunter's campain continues the work of CU Environmental Society's Sustain-a-ball Project, which provides committees with advice about how to reduce the environmental impact of the " largest, most widely publicised and well-attended events in the university calendar."

The petition can be signed here.
Apparently, Samsung Mobile Philippines has just quietly made their all-new Samsung Galaxy J7+ midrange handset available locally

Flaunting a 5.5-inch Full HD SuperAMOLED display panel that's protected by scratch-resistant 2.5D Curved Glass, the handsome Samsung Galaxy J7+ is the first mid-level device from the Korean Giant to have a Dual Camera module at the back, a feature that the company currently only offers via the flagship-level Samsung Galaxy Note8.



I would like to give credit to TP Correspondent Charles Quiachon for letting us know that Galaxy J7+ is now available in the Philippines and for sending us all these photos. Thanks, Charles!

The Galaxy J7+'s "Professional Dual Camera" is made of up 13 MegaPixel optic plus a secondary 5 MP lens that work together to deliver shallow depth of field or bokeh effect, where the background of the photo's subject is beautifully blurred. Samsung calls this " LiveFocus ".

The phone's microUSB 2.0 port and 3.5mm combo jack are both located at the rear.

Earlier today - October 7, 2017, one of our trusted and reliableexcitedly messaged me on Facebook and told me that he saw an interesting new Galaxy smartphone model atwhile he was walking aroundHe then went on to send me photos of the said handset -- and I was shocked with what I saw.-- so that means, you can already head on to your favorite authorized retailer to get hold of the device.But for those who like snapping photos of their faces just as much as shooting that's in front of the rear camera, the smartphone also has a, which benefits from Samsung's ownthat evens out the user's skintone and highlights great facial features in every photo -- making them ready for instant sharing onorInside Galaxy J7+'s handsome, the device runs its Grace-UI-skinnedoperating system with a 2.39GHz Octa-Core MediaTekProcessor that's complemented byandthat can easily be expanded using the hybrid secondary nanoSIM slot. This smartphone is powered by a non-removablebattery pack that - I think - should be able to deliver more or less a whole day of uptime with regular use.For added security and privary, this Dual SIM 4G-LTE enabled model has ain front, integrated with the Home Button below the display. You also use this sensor to quickly unlock the device and to make app purchases with just a touch of a finger.The Samsung Galaxy J7+ color variant that Charles saw at MemoXpress is the classic Champagne Gold version -- but the handset should be also available in Black and Rose Gold.In some stores, the handset comes bundled with a free Smart LTE Prepaid SIM card that gets you free data for a limited period and allows you to enjoy the leading mobile services of the MVP company, which is currently the largest network in the country.Well, if you're a big Samsung fan and you've always wanted to see for yourself the benefits of a Dual Rear Camera set-up but you're not keen on getting an ultra-expensive high-end device, this model should be great for you. However, if you're more after getting the best technical specifications - particularly internal storage, screen size, and battery capacity - for your money, I would advise you to wait a few more weeks to see what other brands have to offer in this price bracket, compare the devices, then make your decision.
A substantial percentage of the world's honey was found to be contaminated with pesticide chemicals which are known to be harmful to bee health. The contamination does not directly affect humans, but it also does not help the already suffering bee population.

Contaminated Honey Samples

Honey samples from all over the world were tested and results revealed that 75 percent of the 198 samples are contaminated with traces of chemicals linked to pesticides. What's more, 34 percent of the samples were seen to contain a level of contamination that is deemed as detrimental to bee health.

North American honey samples displayed the highest frequency of contamination at 86 percent, followed by Asian and European samples at 80 percent and 79 percent respectively. The samples with the lowest contamination frequency came from South America at 57 percent.

All in all, the contamination is at a level that is not directly harmful to humans, but poses serious threats to the already threatened population of one of the world's major pollinators.

Common Pesticides

Neonicotinoids are common pesticides which were introduced during the mid-1990s. The chemicals involved are based on the chemical structure of nicotine, and works by targeting the nervous system of pest insects. Unfortunately, they also inadvertently affect pollinating insects such as honey bees.

In bees, neonicotinoids' effects include reduced foraging efficiency, cognitive and neurological disorders, reduced immune system efficiency, growth disorders, and limited queen lifespan. Because of this, the European Union (EU) issued a partial ban on the use of such chemicals in 2013.

The honey samples for the current study were taken between 2012 and 2016, and were found to contain five common neonicotinoids: thiamethoxam, thiacloprid, imidacloprid, clothianidin, and acetamiprid. Of the contaminated honey, 30 percent contained one of five neonicotinoids, 45 percent contained two or more, and 10 percent were contaminated with four or five.

Cause For Concern

As mentioned, the level of contamination is not particularly harmful to human health, but that doesn't mean that we are out of the ball park as bees are responsible for pollinating 90 percent of the world's 107 major crops.

As it stands, their worldwide population is already facing serious decline even amidst continuous efforts to save the bees from threats such as pesticides, colony-killing parasites, habitat loss, and poor nutrition.

It's worth noting that some of the samples were taken before the partial ban on neonicotinoids, but the results present significant evidence as to its negative effects on bee populations. Perhaps further studies may show if the EU's steps are effective in reducing such detrimental effects. The study was published in the journal Science.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Russian hackers were able to steal classified documents from the National Security Agency with the help of Kaspersky Lab antivirus software, according to multiple reports.

The attack, which was carried out in 2015 but discovered only last year, has been considered by experts as "one of the most significant security breaches in recent years."

Russian Hackers Stole NSA Secrets: Here's How It Happened

The Wall Street Journal reported that, according to unidentified sources, hackers working for the Russian government were able to steal classified documents from the NSA after a contractor placed the files on his home computer.

The contractor, who was said to have had no intention in leaking the documents, violated security protocols when he took home the files to use them as reference as he worked on his resume.

The documents stored details on how the United States government gains access to foreign computer networks to acquire intelligence, and how it defends against cyberattacks.

Investigators believe that the hackers were able to acquire the files by exploiting the antivirus software of Kaspersky Lab that was installed in the contractor's computer. Kaspersky Lab antivirus software has had a reputation of aggressively scanning files to protect computers from threats, and investigators think that after it scanned the NSA documents, Russian hackers were alerted to their presence in the contractor's home computer. They then focused on stealing the files from the machine.

US Government vs Kaspersky Lab

The reported cybersecurity incident provides an explanation on the concerns of U.S. government officials over software from Kaspersky Lab, which is believed to be either cooperating with the Russian government or have been infiltrated by its hackers.

Earlier this year, Kaspersky Lab offered to share its source code to prove that it was not working with the Russian government. However, the notion was not enough, as last month, the federal government ordered the removal of its software from all government computers.

The report, however, did not say that Kaspersky Lab worked with the Russian hackers in the acquisition of the NSA secrets. Eugene Kaspersky, the CEO of Kaspersky Lab, issued a statement denying the company's involvement in the security breach. The hackers may have exploited the Kaspersky Lab antivirus software without the company knowing about it.

It should be noted, however, that this is not the first time that NSA secrets were revealed due to insider access to highly classified files. Edward Snowden became a household name for divulging details about the NSA's mass surveillance program, followed by Harold Martin who sneaked out 50 TB of confidential files containing information on the activities of an elite hacking unit of the NSA.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The mayor of Newark in New Jersey announced that the city is suing several pharmaceutical companies for deceptive opioid marketing and advertising. These companies supposedly caused public nuisance and thrived at the expense of the city.

Newark's Civil Lawsuit

On Oct. 5, Mayor Ras J. Baraka announced that the city has filed a civil lawsuit in the Superior Court of New Jersey against several opioid-manufacturing pharmaceutical companies. The lawsuit was filed after an investigation on pharmaceutical companies' marketing of prescription opioids.

The lawsuit describes opioids as narcotics, which possess properties similar to heroin and opium. As such, although they can effectively reduce feelings of pain, they can also induce euphoric highs that could eventually lead to addiction. It is because of this that use of the drug has been highly regulated and restricted.

Deceptive Marketing And False Advertising

According to the lawsuit, when Purdue manufactured OxyContin during the mid-1990s, together with the other defending pharmaceutical companies, it changed the way people perceived opioids to expand their market and profits. They supposedly did so by describing how health care providers should place a higher importance on pain management. The effort led to the eventual widespread long-term use of opioids for pain management of chronic conditions such as arthritis, migraines, and back pain.

Through the years and as opioid prescriptions increased by 31 percent, the active ingredient in opioids, oxycodone, has doubled. The lawsuit further describes the companies' faults by stating how although in 2007 Purdue plead guilty for deceptive opioid marketing, they continue to spend millions of dollars in advertising while at the same time trivializing the risks of addiction.

Public Nuisance And Unjust Enrichment

As a result, the city of Newark suffered greatly the consequences of opioid abuse and addiction. In fact, a majority of Newark's overdose deaths in 2017 are attributed to both illicit and prescription opioid use. What's more, the addiction has driven crime rates in Newark, so much so that first responders are often armed with Narcan, a nasal spray used as an emergency treatment for suspected opioid abuse. This, of course, comes at the city's expense.

Calling the opioid epidemic an urgent public health crisis, Mayor Baraka states his commitment to protect the citizens of Newark from its effects.

"The impact of prescription opioids on Newark has been catastrophic," says Mayor Baraka. "Every aspect of our city has felt the severe ramifications of the opioid epidemic, not just the substantial financial impact, including all the services we provide to residents, including public health, public assistance, law enforcement, emergency care and services for families and children."

As such, the city seeks to make the companies financially accountable for their actions and to force them to discontinue their practices, which have led to their rise in profits at the people's expense.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
A stick insect once believed to be already extinct for decades resurfaced in in another island in Australia. Although the Lord Howe Island stick insect made a comeback, they still require help as critically endangered creatures.

Survival Of The Lord Howe Island Stick Insect

The Lord Howe Island stick insects thrived in Lord Howe Island in Australia before a shipwreck in 1918 that brought along with it a hoard of black rats. Because there were no other native terrestrial mammals, the black rats wiped out five bird species and 13 insect species including the Lord Howe Island stick insect.

In the 1960s, about three decades after being declared extinct, rock climbers exploring in nearby volcanic island Ball's Pyramid discovered freshly dead remains of insects that looked strikingly like Lord Howe Island stick insects.

A 2001 survey of Ball's Pyramid revealed live specimens of the species feeding on a single tea tree perched 65-meters above sea level. A year later, a total of 24 insects were discovered living on tea trees in the same area. Expedition members collected specimens for research and to help the insects thrive once more via a captive-breeding program at the Melbourne Zoo.

Is It Really The Lord Howe Island Stick Insect?

Although results of the expeditions yielded amazing results, experts still weren't 100 percent sure that the Ball's Pyramid insects are the same as the thought-to-be-extinct stick insects as they looked somewhat different from the museum specimens. The specimens differed in color, and the Lord Howe Island specimens tend to be more robust and had larger femoral spines.

To put a name on the Ball's Pyramid insect once and for all, researchers from the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST), Zoos Victoria, and the Australian National Insect Collection used genetic sequencing and confirmed that the insects are, indeed, the long lost stick insects of Lord Howe Island. In fact, the DNAs of the insects from the two islands differed by less than 1 percent, which means that they are likely of the same species.

Insect Conservation

As it stands, there are already 60 insect species considered recently extinct, many have disappeared, while other insect species are already in decline.

In the case of the Lord Howe Island stick insect, they are still considered critically endangered, but rodent eradication on Lord Howe Island is expected to begin by mid-2018 in hopes of possibly reintroducing the stick insects to their original home.

"We get another chance  but very often we do not," says Professor Alexander Mikheyev of OIST, lead author of the research paper published in the journal Current Biology.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Elon Musk, the visionary behind Tesla and SpaceX, has offered to rebuild the power grid of tragedy-stricken Puerto Rico using solar panels.

Providing electricity to an entire island using solar energy has been done before, but if this really happens, it would be another huge step in the development of alternative energy.

Musk Offers To Rebuild Puerto Rico Power Grid

Puerto Rico is still in shambles after the devastation of Hurricane Maria several weeks ago. Only 10 percent of the island currently has access to electricity after the demolition of its power grid, with some parts of Puerto Rico not expected to have power for at least four to six months.

Even before the hurricane, Puerto Rico's state-owned electricity company was in deep trouble. In July, it said that it had a debt of $9 billion, but needed $4 billion to revamp the island's power plants which had a median age of 40 years old.

The destruction of the Puerto Rico power grid, however, offers the chance for a complete rebuild, and it appears that Musk is stepping in to do the job.

Musk was asked on Twitter whether it was possible to rebuild the power grid of Puerto Rico using solar energy and battery systems. Musk responded positively, hinting that it can be done if he was given the opportunity.

The Tesla team has done this for many smaller islands around the world, but there is no scalability limit, so it can be done for Puerto Rico too. Such a decision would be in the hands of the PR govt, PUC, any commercial stakeholders and, most importantly, the people of PR.  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 5, 2017

Ricardo Rossello, the governor of Puerto Rico, answered Musk, offering him a chance to talk.

@elonMusk Let's talk. Do you want to show the world the power and scalability of your #TeslaTechnologies? PR could be that flagship project. https://t.co/McnHKwisqc  Ricardo Rossello (@ricardorossello) October 6, 2017

The stage has now apparently been set for Puerto Rico to be completely powered by solar energy. Will it actually happen?

Challenges To Powering Puerto Rico With Solar Energy

Converting an entire island to run on solar power has been done by Musk several times before, including on the American Samoa island of Ta'u. Up until November 2016, the island was dependent on diesel being shipped to it from the mainland. However, that ended when Musk installed over 5,000 solar panels and 60 Tesla Powerpacks.

However, Ta'u only has a population of 790, while Puerto Rico is home to 3.5 million people. While the technology that Musk is offering has no limit to scalability, the sheer number of solar panels and Tesla Powerpacks needed for the project, and the funding required, might prove to be a huge challenge right from the start.

In addition, with the people of Puerto Rico suffering without electricity, the project needs to start as soon as possible, which would place an additional strain on resources.

The challenges are there, but if Musk is able to pull this off, Puerto Rico will indeed be the flagship project of Tesla's solar power capabilities.

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EC harbours poll deferral fears

The Election Commission (EC) has expressed concerns that the ongoing processes of forming new electoral alliances by the parties could affect the planned federal and provincial elections.
Envoy Upadhyay quits to contest polls

Nepals Ambassador to India Deep Kumar Upadhyay resigned from his post on Friday to contest the upcoming federal parliamentary elections from Kapilvastu.
Flood-damaged bridge repaired by Indian side

The flood-damaged bridge at Mirjungghat, India is set to resume operation from Saturday after Indian authorities completed repair works. The bridge had seriously affected Nepal-India trade via Biratnagar border point.
Gov. John Bel Edwards said Saturday that Hurricane Nate is gaining strength as it moves quickly across the Gulf of Mexico and is supposed to make landfall as a Category 2 storm.

"You always prepare for a higher category than that," Edwards said at a noon press conference. "We're asking everyone to prepare for a Category 3."

The storm will move through quickly  on Saturday it was moving at 26 mph  but is "still a dangerous storm, nonetheless," he said.

The state is asking that everyone "be where they need to be by 3 p.m. Saturday."

Also, every area under an evacuation order has a shelter open in their parish, he said. Residents can call their parish office of emergency preparedness for details.

Edwards said he spoke with the head of FEMA as well as with President Trump Saturday morning, who both said they would do whatever possible to assist the state.

"We will be experiencing tropical force winds at the mouth of the Mississippi at 4 p.m. today" with landfall at the same spot at 7 p.m., he said.

This will be a nighttime event, Edwards said. "Do not drive at night time," he said.

Storm surge will be higher than originally expected, he said. The wind speed is about 10 to 15 miles per hour stronger than it was on Friday, the governor said.

Three quarters of deaths in storms have to do with water, he said, often with people driving at night.

"No one should take this storm lightly. We are extremely concerned that no one be complacent," he said.

The most recent update had the storm shifting back to the west slightly, he said, and is subject to change.

Edwards said he supported the organizers of the Flambeau Fest in Gonzales for cancelling the event today. It will continue tomorrow.

"I do encourage everyone to go to gameplan.org" for help in planning for the storm, he said.

Please go to 511.la.org for other updates, Edwards said.

Hurricane Nate leads to Flambeau Festival canceling Saturday show; Sunday show to proceed A mobile sign on Saturday near the entrance of what was to be the first day of Flambeau Fes

About 1,300 National Guard are on duty in the state, including soldiers with high water vehicles staged in East Baton Rouge Parish. About 60 school buses are in various places in south Louisiana, ready to evacuate if needed, it was reported

"We don't anticipate any real challenges in New Orleans," Edwards said.

The pumping situation there is better than it has been in the last few months and actually better than in the last two years, he said.

"I'm going to encourage all Louisianians to stay informed. Don't drive tonight. Be where you need to be at 3 p.m. today," Edwards said. "Be prepared, offer a prayer, and we will be in good shape."

"No one can afford to underestimate this storm, which has already been deadly elsewhere," he said.

In other news, Meg Sunstrom, of the Secretary of State's Office said that early voting would be suspended at 3 p.m. Saturday in Orleans, St. Bernard, St. Tammany and Plaquemines parishes. Elsewhere, it will continue until 6 p.m.
After weighing the idea for months, East Baton Rouge Parish Superintendent Warren Drake on Thursday formally requested that the state give his 80-plus schools a one-year break from the consequences of school accountability because of the severe impact of the historic flooding in August 2016.

While the district was closed for 16 consecutive days following the natural disaster, the severe impact lingered for the days, weeks and months to follow, Drake wrote in a five-page letter to the 11 members of the states Board of Elementary and Secondary Education.

Drake wants BESE to take up the waiver request when it meets Oct. 17 and 18.

If the state school board agrees, neither the East Baton Rouge Parish school system or any of its schools will receive performance scores, growth labels, or letter grades for the 2016-17 school year, but only for that year.

The state is preparing these scores, labels and grades and plans to release them in November. East Baton Rouge Parish currently has a C letter grade but 29 of its schools are rated D or F. Schools that earn F grades for four years in a row are in danger of state takeover.

For elementary and middle schools, performance scores are based almost solely on the states LEAP standardized test, which is given each spring in the third through the eighth grades. High school results derive equally from four factors: scores on ACT college placement tests, state-developed End-Of-Course exams, four-year graduation rates and a graduation index where schools get the most points for students who take advanced coursework.

While several central Louisiana school districts suffered significant flood damage in August 2016, East Baton Rouge Parish schools are the first to request a school accountability waiver, said Sydni Dunn, a spokeswoman for the Louisiana Department of Education.

When LEAP scores were released in July, public schools in the city of Baker, East Baton Rouge and Livingston parishes all had notable declines. But Ascension Parish, where there was flooding as well, showed academic growth. Central schools largely held steady.

John White, school superintendent for Louisiana, said at the time that the academic impact of the flood was minimal for school districts, but he was still determining whether individual flood-affected schools might have enough of an impact to merit special consideration.

Drake said he developed his waiver request with the help of state officials and is hopeful BESE will say yes.

Last October, BESE granted a series of waivers for other reasons but none connected to testing. Despite some talk in the days after the flood, no one requested such a waiver. Until now.

Last November, Drake said he met with state officials to see if they would agree to let East Baton Rouge Parish take standardized tests via pencil and paper rather than online, but was told that was not a viable option, so he dropped the idea.

Prior to the start of the school year, Drake had spent millions of dollars to buy more than 12,000 Chromebooks so that students in the fifth to eighth grades, the grades where tests were going to be given exclusively online, could better prepare.

The August flooding destroyed hundreds of those new laptops.

The flooding was bad enough that 10 Baton Rouge schools had to relocate, in some cases to older buildings with little to no internet connectivity. More schools had to relocate to make way for the students and teachers from the flood-damaged schools.

Drake said it all had an effect.

Over the past weeks, we have analyzed and discussed assessment results to best support our district, Drake wrote in his letter. In doing so, the severe impact of the natural disaster became more and more evident, especially among the districts large economically disadvantaged subgroup.

BESE rules say that schools that are out for 18 or more consecutive days can earn the label of severe impact, qualifying them for a one-year school accountability waiver. East Baton Rouge closed its doors Friday, Aug. 12, 2016, the day the flooding began, and didnt reopen them until Tuesday, Sept. 6.

Sixteen school days elapsed during that time, two short of the 18 the state requires for a waiver.

My decision to reopen our school district on the 17th day was based on human need, not accountability policy, Drake said.

Drake said he reopened schools earlier than he would have liked to in order to give students a sense of normalcy and structure and provide those still traumatized with the help they needed. And, he also wanted to feed hungry children the two free meals a day the school system provides, a critical factor in a district where 84 percent of the children are considered economically disadvantaged. And finally, he said, to allow parents to return to work without worry for child care.

Drake urged BESE to look beyond the 18-day requirement and recognize the severe impact that the flood had on the school system and its more than 40,000 students.

It is obvious that the August 2016 flood severely impacted our students ability to perform at the levels they were accustomed to on this years test, he said.

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This aerial photo shows boats washed ashore in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, east of San Juan, Puerto Rico, Wednesday, Sept. 27, 2017. The relief effort from Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico has so far been concentrated largely in San Juan, and many outside the capital say they've received little or no help. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
Hurricane Nate is fast  the fastest, even.

The speedy storm had been tracking at more than 20 mph as it moved into the Gulf of Mexico, and its forward speed of 28 mph over a 12-hour stretch on Saturday was the fastest ever in the Gulf of Mexico, according to the National Weather Service.

On the move! Nates 28 mph forward motion, in the last 12 hours, is the fastest recorded forward motion of a Hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico pic.twitter.com/A6spfrJxlC  NWS (@NWS) October 7, 2017

The high speed of the storm marked good news in terms of rainfall totals, but it left the Gulf Coast rushing to prepare for a storm that was projected to strengthen to Category 2 before it made landfall near the mouth of the Mississippi River.

The storm's winds were recorded at up to 90 mph as of 4 p.m. on Saturday.

New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu joined other officials to warn that because of the "unprecedented" speed, residents should be prepared for "rapidly deteriorating" conditions. The city had instituted a curfew from 7 p.m. Saturday through 7 a.m. on Sunday.

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Tropical Storm Nate is now Hurricane Nate as it moves into the southern Gulf of Mexico.

+8 Hurricane Nate prompts mandatory evacuations for some; New Orleans curfew coming Evacuations were ordered in vulnerable parts of the New Orleans region Friday as Hurricane N

+8 Hurricane warning area in Louisiana expanded as Hurricane Nate travels across Gulf Storm weary Lousianians watched warily the approach of Hurricane Nate Friday as the Nation

The storm's maximum sustained winds increased to 80 mph around 4 a.m. the National Hurricane Center said.

The center of Nate will move across the Gulf of Mexico overnight and on Saturday and is expected to make landfall along the central Gulf coast either Saturday evening or Saturday night.

A hurricane warning remained in place for Grand Isle, Louisiana to the Alabama-Florida border and the New Orleans metropolitan area and Lake Ponchartrain.

Nate is expected to bring between three to six inches of rain east of the Mississippi River from the central Gulf Coast into the Deep South, eastern Tennessee Valley and southern Appalachians, with some areas seeing a maximum of 10 inches. Isolated tornadoes are also possible beginning Saturday afternoon over parts of the central Gulf Coast region.

A storm surge warning is also in effect for Morgan City, Louisiana to the Okaloosa/Walton County Line in Florida and the northern and western shores of Lake Ponchartrain, with water expected to reach between four to six feet from Morgan City to the mouth of the Mississippi River and five to eight feet from the mouth of the Mississippi River to the Alabama-Florida border.

The NHC said aircraft data shows Nate as an asymmetric storm with most of the winds located on the eastern side of its circulation. This pattern should continue until Nate makes landfall, meaning locations east of where Nate makes landfall are expected to receive significantly stronger winds than locations to the west of the center.

Forecasters suggested the possibility that Nate may not gain further strength before it makes landfall Saturday along the Gulf Coast, but have not ruled out rapid intensification over the next 24 hours.

Louisiana and Mississippi officials declared states of emergency ahead of the storm, and the towns of Jean Lafitte and Grand Isle have ordered mandatory evacuations. The city of Gretna and New Orleans have instituted curfews ahead of the storm.

Pat Brister issues emergency declaration for St. Tammany With St. Tammany Parish under a hurricane watch, a tropical storm warning and parts under a 

Gov. John Bel Edwards has also mobilized 1,300 National Guard troops, with 15 headed to New Orleans to monitor the fragile pumping system.

Edwards urged residents to ready for rainfall, storm surge and severe winds  and to be where they intend to hunker down by "dark on Saturday."

Edwards said Nate is forecast to move quickly, rather than stall and drop tremendous amounts of rain on the state. State officials hope that means New Orleans won't run into problems with its pumps being able to handle the water.

Edwards warned, however, against underestimating the storm.
Govt spending millions to rescue migrants, bring back bodies

More than two bodies of migrant workers arrive in Nepal from various labour destination countries every day. The government has been bringing the bodies from different countries, mainly the Gulf nations where Nepalis in thousands go in search of employment.
Throughout a busy hurricane season, Louisiana residents have watched more than their fair share of weather forecasts, anxious to know whether the next big storm is headed their way. But when it comes to meteorology, how does American know-how stack up against its competition?

Around Jefferson: Here's a delicious way to help in hurricane recovery If you would like to help our neighbors in Texas and Florida who are reeling from hurricanes

Its a question journalist Jeff Reeves recently tackled in a story for Contingencies, a magazine read by actuaries, those professional number-crunchers who assess risk. Reeves discovered that the United States has room for improvement in developing the best forecasting technology.

Experts in the profession agree that, unfortunately, U.S. weather modeling is well behind that of Europe and Japan in its accuracy  because our technology is inferior, Reeves notes.

Some scientists are downright ashamed of the state of play between American meteorology and forecasting models used elsewhere in the world, Reeves added. Clifford Mass, an atmospheric sciences professor at the University of Washington, called the gap between forecasting capabilities here and abroad a national embarrassment that has resulted in large unnecessary costs for the U.S. economy and needless endangerment of our citizens.

Overall, progress in weather prediction has done a lot of good. U.S. deaths in attributed to lightning strikes havent topped 50 in a single year since 2002, Reeves points out. But in the 1940s, an average of 329 Americans died annually. A similar trend can be seen in tornado-related deaths, which have declined from an annual average of 179 from 1940 to 1949 to a mere 18 deaths in 2016  a 30-year low.

And those declines happened even as the population grew dramatically. Better weather forecasting has saved lives in hurricanes, too, allowing advance notice for storm preparations and evacuations. How much better can forecasting get, and what do we want to pay for it?

+4 Ascension Christian students raises money for hurricane survivors Ascension Christian Elementary student Lauren Swanson recently raised money for Hurricane Ha

It is an open question how accurate American citizens and businesses want their forecasts to be  and how willing they are to pay for the infrastructure to support such an improved system, Reeves writes.

Ultimately, the president and Congress guide much of the spending on meteorological science. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the lead agency for weather research, has essentially had a standstill budget since 2012. Thanks in large part to an unsympathetic view toward climate science, President Donald Trump is proposing a 16 percent reduction in funding for NOAA and a 32 percent cut to the weather and climate agencys research arm, Reeves reports.

Given our vulnerability to severe weather, Louisiana residents depend more than most on accurate forecasting to get out harms way. And with meteorology as with anything else, maybe the abiding lesson is that you get what you pay for.
Australians can be very proud. The winner of the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), started in Melbourne. It began when the Medical Association for the Prevention of War (MAPW) recognised that nuclear weapons, the very worst of the weapons of mass destruction, were still "legitimate". This contrasted with chemical weapons, biological weapons, cluster munitions, land mines  even dumdum bullets, which all have been made illegal by UN treaty, with impressive results.

The late Dr Bill Williams, a key member of the founding group, wrote: "After the energetically anti-nuke eighties and the end of the Cold War, nuclear holocaust  always unthinkable  became almost unmentionable. A mass self-censorship, a mental no-fly zone, a cone of silence descended. Little wonder: no sane person wants to contaminate their dreams with this ultimate horror. But to finish this journey of survival  to abolition  we need to penetrate the fog of fear and denial, informing ourselves and our neighbours without inducing psychological paralysis."

In 2006 he was part of the founding group of MAPW members, along with Tilman Ruff, Dimity Hawkins, Sue Wareham and others. The highly successful landmines campaign was taken as a model. For MAPW this was a bit like giving birth to a gorilla; ICAN very successfully brought together existing humanitarian organisations, clearly identifying nuclear weapons as a humanitarian issue, not a political one.

ICAN now has 468 partner organisations in 101 countries. It was pivotal to the UN adopting the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) on July 7 this year. In 2007, IPPNW (the 1985 Nobel Prize-winning group the International Physicians for Prevention of Nuclear War) adopted ICAN as a core campaign. Locally the Poola Foundation helped ICAN get established, and later a major contribution came from the Norwegian government.
Saudi Arabia is finally freeing itself from the grip of decades of religious fundamentalism. The key to this change? Car keys. On September 26, the Saudi government formally announced that it would lifted the ban on women driving. Saudi writers have compared the struggle that led to this day to the battle of the royal decree to open the first government girls' school in the kingdom. The decree came three decades after the founding of Saudi Arabia. But this revolutionary moment is about so much more than driving. It is about changing the very direction of the country.

Denying women the right to drive has imposed huge costs on Saudi citizens. Up to 1.5 million foreign men must be paid to work as drivers. Many neither speak nor read Arabic, and some of these "drivers" have never driven a car before. A paltry 15 percent of Saudi women work outside their homes, in part because hiring a private driver can cost between one-third and two-thirds of a woman's salary. Saudi men must be responsible for the transportation of their wives, sisters and mothers. In desperation, women without access to male drivers have put boys as young as 9 years old behind the wheel, propped up on pillows to see over the dashboard. It is no wonder that the kingdom has among the highest traffic fatality rates in the world.

Journalist Manal al-Sharif pictured in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in 2005. Credit:Kaveh Kazemi

Beyond the social and economic costs, literally forcing women to remain in the back seat has hobbled Saudi Arabia's global progress. It has the world's second-largest proven oil reserves but ranks behind Cyprus and Malta on the United Nations Human Development Index. Now at last we have a path forward: an open Saudi society for men and women.

Driving is a start. It can help end the larger oppressive guardianship system, which requires women to obtain permission from a male relative for the most basic decisions and activities. (Interestingly, the kingdom has announced that a woman will not need permission from her guardian to obtain a driver's license.)
Royal Randwick was overrun with more florals than the Chelsea Flower Show on Saturday for the Spring Champion Stakes Day.

Patterns and paisley were the odds on favourite in the style stakes inside the VIP enclosure, The Stables, and ended up dominating the space where sponsor Moet & Chandon had free flowing pink champagne on ice for racing royalty like Emma Freedman and social media monarchs like Steph Claire Smith, Nadia Fairfax and Lisa Hamilton.

Jesinta Franklin poses for a photograph at the Moet and Chandon race day at the Royal Randwick Racecourse. Credit:Cole Bennetts

Milliner Viktoria Novak dazzled the retinas of many in a Dolce & Gabbana gown adorned with more sunflowers than a van Gogh painting and matching crown that was created out of more coloured gems than Queen Elizabeth II's coronation headpiece.

The Bachelor star Anna Heinrich chose a bold watermelon hue for her tailored Rebecca Vallance crepe gown, while socialite Carissa Walford wore the colours of the rainbow in a bold Alice McCall twin-set which she teamed with a white Nerida Winter headscarf.
Landlords will find it harder to increase rent or kick out tenants under contentious new reforms designed to make renting fairer.



With more than one in four Victorians now renting a home, the Andrews government will on Sunday unveil a raft of changes giving tenants more rights while cracking down on unscrupulous landlords.



Under the plan, agents will be required to advertise properties using a single price  rather than a range  and landlords will be restricted to increasing rent once every year instead of every six months.



They will also need a reason to end a tenancy  with the government scrapping the 120-day "no specified reason" notice to vacate  and will not be allowed to unreasonably refuse a tenants' request to keep pets or make minor modifications, such as installing airconditioning or picture hooks.

"More people are renting than ever before and for longer  that's why tenants need a fairer deal," said Consumer Affairs Minister Marlene Kairouz.



The changes come after a lengthy review of the Residential Tenancies Act but are likely to prove controversial because they swing so heavily in favour of tenants.



While welfare groups and renters have welcomed a fairer deal, the Real Estate Institute of Victoria has warned that many of the reforms would unfairly penalise "mum and dad" investors who make up the bulk of landlords.

The government is pushing reforms to make things fairer for renters. Credit:Jim Rice

"What the government has failed to understand is that it is imperative that any future legislation balances the rights of all stakeholders  any imbalance in the market has the ability to cause a rental crisis," said REIV chief executive Gil King.

"The majority of Victoria's landlords are 'mum and dad' investors who are looking to fund themselves in retirement. Victorian landlords should be alarmed at the piecemeal introduction of these reforms by the government."
Two teenage boys have been killed and another is in hospital following a crash in Perth's south.

The victims, aged 16 and 17, were killed when the silver Toyota Supra Sedan they were travelling in hit a tree on Secret Harbour Boulevard on Friday night about 7.30pm.

Two teens have died after a car they were travelling in hit a tree south of Perth. Credit:Quentin Jones

The 19-year-old driver is in hospital in a serious but stable condition.

Police are appealing for witnesses who saw the crash to come forward or call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or www.crimestopperswa.com.au
Los Angeles: Harvey Weinstein will take an indefinite leave from his film company as it conducts an internal investigation into sexual harassment allegations against one of the most powerful men in Hollywood.

The Weinstein Company board of representatives said in a statement that it takes "extremely seriously" the accusations made in the New York Times story that said Weinstein had made eight settlements with women who had accused him of unwanted physical contact and sexual harassment over three decades.

Weinstein, one of Hollywood's best-known figures, has produced or distributed Oscar-winning movies including Shakespeare in Love and Chicago.

Weinstein Co board representatives on Friday called it "essential" to company culture "that all women who work for it or have any dealings with it or any of our executives are treated with respect and have no experience of harassment or discrimination".
Indian man held with illegally imported silver statues

Area Police Office Rani of Morang has arrested an Indian national in possession of illegally imported silver statutes and silverwares.
Inner workings

Change, as the adage goes, is the only thing that is constant. Throughout human history, changesbig and smallhave altered the way we live, the way we identify ourselves and the arbitrary lines that we have created to demark what is ours and what is not.
Kyrgyz deputy PM killed in car crash

A deputy prime minister of Kyrgyzstan was killed when a vehicle he was riding in collided with a KamAZ truck on a highway, Kyrgyz state press service reported.
SPECIAL REPORT: Travel retail business

TFWA president Erik Juul-Mortensen opened this years TFWA conference in Cannes by presenting a number of new statistics about the performance of the industry. The data, from Generation Research, showed that while in 2015 the industry experienced the first year-on-year decline in global sales in six years, final results for 2016 show that there has been a modest recovery. Year-on-year sales at 63.5 billion US$ were plus 2.4 %, which is a significant improvement on the negative growth of 2015.

With regard to category performance, once again it was fragrances and cosmetics that performed the best with year-on-year growth of 9.2 %, whereas watches and jewellery sales declined by 8.4%. The pressure on the luxury sector continues, said Juul-Mortensen.

In terms of sales by channel, the strongest performer was other shops which grew by 7.3%. Sales here are mainly at downtown and border locations and, increasingly, on board cruise ships. The key driver of growth had been the sales of perfume and cosmetics in Asia Pacific downtown locations.

Looking at performance of the regions, Asia Pacific was once again what Juul-Mortensen described as the engine room for the industry with a year-on-year growth of 8.2%.

The first quarter of 2017 is showing some encouraging momentum building on the modest recovery of 2016, he said, and versus quarter one of 2016, global sales in quarter one of 2017 were up 4.2%. The two key drivers continue to be fragrance and cosmetics with sales up 11.6%, and the Asia Pacific region where sales were up by 7.8%.

In terms of sales channels, airports are up 2.2% and other shops grew by 7.8%, again with the perfume and cosmetics category driving this growth.

Juul-Mortensen went on to state that the duty free and travel retail industry desperately needs data that is as accurate and reliable as it can possibly be, and said that trade associations cannot expect to win the attention of government bodies around the world if we cannot accurately say what we as an industry are worth. The need for meaningful, accurate data is something we at TFWA take extremely seriously and we have been frustrated by the fact that this need is not always universally acknowledged. He did, however, recognise the fact that in a concession-driven industry such as duty free and travel retail, data is extremely sensitive, but a way around this must be found for the good of the industry.

The progress of the industry is, of course, dependent on what is happening in the wider world, and the world has never been more unpredictable than this year. Elections in the US, France, the UK and South Korea among others have produced results that were unthinkable just a short time ago. A climate of uncertainty reigns  and if there is one thing that economists and business leaders dislike, it is uncertainty.

7 October 2017 - Felicity Murray The Drinks Report, Editor in Chief
Writer: Blair Fannin, 979-845-2259, b-fannin@tamu.edu

Contact: Dr. Parr Rosson, 979-845-2116, prosson@tamu.edu

COLLEGE STATION  Attendees at the Texas A&M University department of agricultural economics tailgate program recently heard experts discuss the future of U.S. farm programs and agricultural trade, while sharing fellowship over food and drink prior to the Aggies win over the University of South Carolina.

The tailgate program has become an annual tradition, providing the opportunity for former students to return to A&M and hear more about farm issues affecting policy and the economy, said Dr. Parr Rosson, department head.

Its a great opportunity for our former students to come back to A&M and catch up on important issues farmers and ranchers are facing in Texas, and at the same time see old friends and enjoy a networking opportunity with our current students, Rosson said. Wed like to thank the many individuals who sponsored our tailgate activities as we had more than 650 take part in making this another successful event.

Dr. Joe Outlaw, co-director of the Agricultural and Food Policy Center at Texas A&M in College Station and Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service economist, provided an update on agricultural policy. Outlaw said current issues include NAFTA and overall agricultural trade, heightened consumer interest in how food is produced, immigration and labor, low crop prices and the debate over the next farm bill.

Dr. Luis Ribera, director of the Center for North American Studies at Texas A&M and AgriLife Extension economist, College Station, discussed the importance of agricultural trade and the U.S. farm economy.

The U.S. is the largest agricultural exporter with $135 billion worth of exports in 2016, Ribera said. Exports account for about 35 percent of agricultural income. U.S. imports totaled $115 billion in 2016, so both exports and imports contribute significant economic impacts.

The program also featured both undergraduate and graduate study-abroad programs. Undergraduate students Jason Edmondson, Burnet, and Tyler White, Decatur, discussed their travel abroad experience to Ghana, while Jace Martin, Richmond, summarized travels to Scotland. Andrew Hazelwood, Amarillo, presented his travel experience to Ireland, while the graduate student team of Lainey Bourgeois, Fredericksburg, Enrique Pinon, Santa Maria, California, and Victor Galindo, Mexico City, shared their travels to Swaziland.

The program concluded with special recognition to Betty Raun, honoring both current and former recipients of the Lowell Raun Book Scholarship given to undergraduate agricultural economics students at Texas A&M.

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Sunday

CBS Religious School is offering Sunday morning classes. Students are invited to learn about and experience Judaism in a welcoming and egalitarian environment. For more information or to register, contact religiousschool.cbs@gmail.com.

Faith United Church (UCC), 2901 Austin's Colony Parkway in Bryan, welcomes you with 9:15 a.m. Sunday study, "ASK: Faith Questions in a Skeptical Age;" 10 a.m. fellowship and 10:30 a.m. worship. Pastor Karl's message is "Spiritual House-Cleaning." Faithuccbryan.org.

St. Francis Episcopal Church, 1101 Rock Prairie Road in College Station, will celebrate Holy Communion at 8 a.m. (Rite 1) and 10:30 a.m. (Rite 2). During the later service, the Rev. Dean and Sarah Lawrence's new baby Emeline Grace will be baptized, followed by a celebration of her life and a farewell luncheon for our priest and his family. Also during the later service, we will bless prayer shawls and collect flour and sugar donations for the church food pantries in Iola and Bedias. We are also partnering with St. Francis Church in Houston to collect gift cards from Target or Visa to support families in their recovery from Hurricane Harvey. For information on weekday services and events, contact the church at 696-1491 or stfrancisbcs.org.

First Christian Church, 900 S. Ennis St. in Bryan, will meet for worship at 10:45 a.m. The Rev. Jesse Myers' sermon topic will be "Trust: The Gate that Swings Both Ways," based on Exodus 20 and Philippians 3:4-11. Sunday School classes for all ages begin at 9:30 a.m., followed by coffee time at 10:30 a.m. Youth groups meet at 3 p.m. 823-5451 or firstchristianbcs.org.

Covenant Presbyterian Church, 220 Rock Prairie Road in College Station, will worship at 10:30 a.m. with co-pastor the Rev. Jonathan Murray preaching on "Cultivating Disciples." Classes for all ages meet at 9:15 a.m., followed by coffee and fellowship. 694-7700 or covenantpresbyterian.org.

Unitarian Universalist Church of the Brazos Valley, 800 George Bush Drive (Texas A&M Hillel), will meet at 10:30 a.m. 696-5285.

St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, 217 W. 26th St. in Bryan, will host services at 7:30, 9 and 11:15 a.m. We will have coffee hour before and after each service. Christian formation classes begin at 10:15 a.m. www.standrewsbcs.org.

Unity Spiritual Center of the Brazos Valley, 4016 Stillmeadow Drive, Bryan, will have services at 10:30 a.m. Call 324-9857 or unityspiritualcenterbv.org.

Spirit of Faith Church, 900 E. 29th St. in Bryan, will have Sunday school classes for all ages at 10 a.m., followed by morning worship at 11 a.m. All are welcome. 436-6910.

Mount Nebo Missionary Baptist Church, 3610 Plainsman Lane in Bryan, will have Sunday school classes for all ages at 9:15 a.m. and morning worship service at 10:30 a.m. 846-4753.

Tuesday

Eagle's Nest Praise and Worship Ministries will be opening a free prayer line from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. The prayer line number is 775-1513, and calls will be answered by a trained prayer ministry associate. The prayer line is coordinated by pastors Gary and Sheila Jones.

Wednesday

Faith United Church, 2901 Austin's Colony Parkway in Bryan, invites men of all ages to Wednesday morning coffee and guy talk at 10 a.m. Faithuccbryan.org.

St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, 217 W. 26th St. in Bryan, will have evening prayer at 5:30 p.m. www.standrewsbcs.org.
With Election Day only a month away, the deadline is drawing near for those who still need to register to vote in the upcoming Bryan and College Station school board and City Council elections.

The deadline to register to vote in the Nov. 7 election is Tuesday. Early voting begins Oct. 23 and lasts through Nov. 3.

Registration applications must be submitted in person to the Elections Administration Office in Bryan, 302 E. 24th St., or postmarked at least 30 days before the election to be eligible to vote. Residents can register in person or print out a form online at www.votetexas.gov. Residents can also check their registration status at the Texas Secretary of State's website, www.sos.texas.gov.

People who have moved within Brazos County will also need to notify the Elections Administration Office of their change in address by correcting the information on their voter registration certificate and returning it to the office, or by filling out a new form and checking the change box. The information can also be changed online at the Secretary of State's Voter Registration Name/Address Change website.

On the ballot:

This year only one race is contested for the Bryan City Council -- the Single Member District 4 race between incumbent Councilman Mike Southerland and challenger Mitch Morehead, a former councilman and mayor pro-tem who held the at-large Place 6 position from 2000-2003. Only District 4 residents, where there are currently 9,131 registered voters, can cast ballots in that race.

There are two contested races for the College Station City Council. The Place 1 seat being vacated by term-limited Councilwoman Blanche Brick is being sought by her husband, Bob Brick, and Elianor-Azarak Vessali, a College Station planning and zoning commissioner. Incumbent Place 3 Councilwoman Linda Harvell is seeking re-election, and Dallas Shipp is also running for the position. Harvell won the seat in November 2016 to fill the one-year unexpired term created when Karl Mooney was elected mayor.

The College Station council positions are at-large. Council members in both cities serve three-year terms.

In the school elections, there is one contested race for the Bryan school board. Single Member District 2 trustee Julie Harlin is running for re-election to the board against challenger Diektrich Morgan.

Both races for the College Station school board are contested. Incumbent Michael Schaefer's Place 6 seat is also being sought by Jacquelyn Martin Huff. Board President Valerie Jochen did not re-election to her Place 7 seat, which drew two candidates: Shana Elliott and Geralyn Nolan.

Like in the city elections, College Station school trustees serve in at-large positions. Trustees in both districts serve three-year terms.

Residents can learn more about the candidates at the Bryan/College Station Chamber of Commerce Local Candidates Forum on Oct. 16 at the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum, 1000 George Bush Drive The event begins at 6 p.m., and residents can either attend for free in person or listen live on WTAW 1620, at www.RadioAggieland.com, or view the livestream at www.KBTX.com. Questions for the candidates can be submitted in advance to kate@bcschamber.org.

Also on the ballot, Bryan voters will decide on 13 proposed amendments to the city charter that were recommended by the Charter Review Advisory Committee. The special charter amendment election was ordered by the City Council in August.

The city's guiding document can only be amended with voter approval. The 13 proposed amendments will be voted on individually. Most of the recommended changes to the city's guiding document are minor revisions that clean up language or bring sections closer in line with other Texas cities, and stress clarity and flexibility in how the city and council operate. They include:

 Lowering the number of required readings on proposed ordinances from two to one. While state law does not require ordinances to be read more than once, they are traditionally read twice in Bryan. The committee believes this will allow the council to be more flexible and responsive to urgent matters, and prevent an excessive number of special meetings.

 Setting the minimum number of required meetings of the council at one per month, which would allow for more flexibility and leave the frequency of meetings at the discretion of the council. The charter currently requires two meetings per month.

 Removing language that gives the mayor powers "like a justice of the peace" to administer oaths of office, and that allow him or her to punish and fine any person at a council meeting up to $100 for contempt. Those powers are not supported by state law.

Voters can view all 13 propositions on the sample ballot posted at www.brazosvotes.org, where more election information can also be found.
Two Texas A&M professors were recently among 55 selected nationwide to receive multi-million dollar awards to support their research from the National Institutes of Health.

Zhilei Chen, associate professor at the College of Medicine, and Akhilesh Gaharwar, assistant professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, each respectively received the New Innovator Award, which carries with it $2.2 million over a five-year period.

According to officials with the Texas A&M Health Science Center, Chen's current research involves the creation of "protein magnets," which would allow certain cells to capture a virus before it has the chance to cause disease in the person. Applications could include using the method to protect people at a high risk for infection over a two- to three-month period as a way to protect against possible infections without a reliable vaccine.

Gaharwar, who is the first member of the College of Engineering to receive the award, is working on research into better understanding how specific minerals interact with human stem cells, according to A&M officials.

If successful, Gaharwar's research could lead to new methods of repairing damaged tissues, using a range of disciplines -- including stem cell biology, materials science and computational genomics -- to determine potential effects.

"Imagine a nanocapsule that could specifically target knee cartilage," Gaharwar said in a statement. "Right now the only treatment we have for severe osteoarthritis in the knee is replacing the entire knee, which is expensive and has a plethora of complications. What if we could regrow knee cartilage with a mineral nanocapsule?"

For a full list of 2017 award recipients, visit commonfund.nih.gov/newinnovator.
Latest political development sends ripples to grassroots

The recent decision by leftist political parties to forge alliance ahead of the upcoming elections of Federal Parliament and Provincial Assembly has created waves in grassroots level.
October 19, 1942 - October 5, 2017

David Earl Byer, 74, went to be with his Lord on Thursday, October 5 at his home in College Station with his family by his side.

Funeral service will be held at 3:00 p.m. Sunday, October 8 at Bethel Lutheran Church with Revered Randall Bard officiating. Interment will follow at College Station Cemetery. Visitation will be from 4:00 - 6:00 p.m. Saturday at Memorial Funeral Chapel in Bryan.

David was born October 19, 1942 in Bryan the son of August and Hannah (Feldman) Byer. He proudly served our country in the U.S. Air Force from 1961 to 1965. David was a Master Plumber for 40 years specializing in commercial and medical complexes. He worked many years with numerous church organizations in various capacities. David especially enjoyed God's gift of nature while hunting and fishing.

David is preceded in death by his parents; and two brothers, Milton Byer and Eugene Byer. He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Anor (Wiese) Byer; son, Billy E. Byer; brother and sister-in-law, Roy and Mardell Byer; sister, Helen (Byer) Luedke; sister-in-law, Gladys Byer; numerous nieces and nephews; and a host of friends from Bethel Lutheran Church in Bryan and Trinity Lutheran Church in Livingston.

In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to Bethel Lutheran Church, 4221 Boonville Rd, Bryan, Texas 77802, Trinity Lutheran Church, 221 Pan American Drive, Livingston, Texas 77351 or Traditions Hospice, 1862 Rock Prairie Road Suite 204, College Station, Texas 77845.
November 17, 1966 - October 5, 2017

Joe Earl "Jody" Goodrum, 50, of Bryan passed away Thursday, October, 5, 2017. Funeral Services are set for 10 a.m. Monday, October 9, in the Zion Church of Kurten. Aubrey Rodgers will officiate and burial will follow in the Kurten Cemetery. Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m., Sunday, October 8 in the Chapel of Trevino-Smith Funeral Home.

Born November 17, 1966 in Madisonville, Texas, he was the son of Joe and Nancy (Taylor) Goodrum. Jody loved to Rodeo, bull fighting, and being a rodeo clown was his passion. He also enjoyed fishing, truck driving and spending time with his favorite dog Pecos. The love of his life Brooke and their boys were his heart.

Jody is preceded in death by his grandparents; stepmother, Peggy Ann Goodrum; and father-in-law, Matt Seymour.

Jody leaves behind to cherish his memories his wife, Brooke Seymour; three sons, Jon Goodrum, Jake Goodrum, and, Trace Ford; two sisters, Billie Jo, and her husband, Will Cross, and, Marie and husband, Skip Taylor; mother-in-law, Melissa Fickey; father-in-law, Bo Baker; grandfather, Raymond "Tataw" Fickey; two brothers-in-law, Jason Seymour, and Matt, and his wife, Tina Seymour; nieces and nephews, Mandy Cross, Garrett Hallmark, Logan Klentz, Keaton and Kelsey Taylor, Mason, Paityn, Ashtyn, Mathew, Cole and Carson Seymour.

In lieu of flowers, please make donations to Hospice Brazos Valley in his name.

Please View and Sign the Guestbook at: TrevinoSmithfuneralHome.com Serving Your Family Is Our Family Business
Maoist Centre has no intention to topple govt: Dahal

Ruling coalition CPN (Maoist Centre) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal has made it clear that his party is not in favour of toppling the government.
TRUMBULL  A Trumbull High School bus was detained by police Friday afternoon after the bus driver overheard teens discussing a weapon, police said.

A Trumbull High School bus driver was dropping students off at their respective bus stops after school Friday when he overheard a conversation between teens that included the mention of a weapon, police said.

In response, the driver pulled the bus over and notified the Trumbull Police department as a precautionary measure.

After arriving on scene, police interviewed the students involved in the conversation and determined that there was no threat of a weapon on the bus. After clearing the scene, police said the bus was allowed to continue transporting the students home.

As an added precaution, School Resource Officer Scott Duva followed the bus during the rest of the route.

Nobody was charged in the incident, and there were no reported disturbances for the duration of the bus ride.
Nepal-India EPG working to ready first report by March

The first report of the Eminent Persons Group on Nepal-India relations is likely to take shape by March, said a member of the panel ahead of the fifth meeting of the EPG that begins in Kathmandu on Saturday.
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NORWALK  Drive south from Silvermine, and youll embark on a tour of the citys patchwork tax rates and services.

On a Friday morning, trashcans appear after a certain point  a sign youve crossed into an area where the city provides garbage pickup. At the same point, septic tanks are replaced by a city sewage system. Less visibly, the tax rate also shifts upward, less than a thousandth of a percentage point, to cover the added service.

Its one of several such boundaries in the city. Swing southwest into Rowayton, and the tax rate drops even further  here, garbage is collected not by the city, but by a private contractor, and in case of fires, volunteers will arrive to fight the blaze. Different parts of the city have different electric and water providers.

Within the same city, the city tax rates and services provided can vary, a result of a government structure that is extremely rare within the United States: Taxing districts. And in the upcoming election, several taxing district positions will be decided, though many of the candidates are running unopposed. So what is the purpose of these districts, and why do we have them? The answer begins, like many others, with a grudge.

Unusual history

Today, cities across the country are vying to be the home of large corporations such as Amazon. In 1912, things were no different.

More Information Budgets and assets 1rd Operating budget$9M 2016-17 tax rate.025444% Assets include: The Town Green The First District Water Department 2nd Operating budget$16M 2016-17 tax rate.025444% Assets include: South Norwalk Electric and Water Three reservoirs in New Canaan and Wilton South Norwalk Library Building parks and other public spaces 3rd Operating budget$11M 2016-17 tax rate.025444% Assets include: East Norwalk Association Library East Norwalk Firehouse East Norwalk Historical Cemetery TTD Electricity 6th Operating budget$2M* 2016-17 tax rate.022942% Assets include: Bayley Beach Pinkney Park Rowayton Community Center and Library See More Collapse

At that time, Norwalk and South Norwalk were separate municipalities fighting to attract new businesses, such as the Thermos Bottle Company (which eventually chose to locate in Hartford instead). The U.S. Department of Labor advertised cities with populations over 10,000 that wanted to host new industries, but both Norwalk and South Norwalk were too small to qualify.

It appeared to be in their best interests to merge into one city. But there was a problem. Forty-five years before, Norwalk had refused to share its water system with South Norwalk  a slight that had never been forgotten, according to a historical account by Deborah Wing Ray and Gloria P. Stewart. Half a century later, records show a South Norwalk citizen still bitterly complaining of the Norwalkers who had stuck up their noses at the Plebian oystermen in their time of need.

Now the tables had turned. South Norwalk had the harbor, the railroad station, all of the interconnected trolley lines which would eventually become the bus routes, its own electric company, explained Norwalk historian Ralph Bloom. By that point, it also had its own water company, an electric company and a superior school system.

It was not an equal marriage, Bloom said.

So South Norwalk demanded to keep its assets rather than merge them under the new city government. When all the various constituencies finally agreed  East Norwalk and, later, Rowayton also participated  the resulting structure allowed for each municipality to continue to exist within the larger, overarching city.

What was formerly known as Norwalk, South Norwalk, East Norwalk and Rowayton would become the first, second, third and sixth taxing districts, respectively. They could possess their own assets, provide their own services and charge their own taxes.

Layered on top of that was the new, consolidated city of Norwalk  the fifth taxing district. One is inside the other, explained Debora Goldstein, a third taxing district commissioner. Were like Russian nesting dolls.

And on top of that, only some areas have city services, including sewage, garbage and additional police and fire protection. Those areas are now the fourth taxing district.

What this means for you

This means that people living in different parts of Norwalk pay different tax rates and are provided different services.

Everyone is charged a citywide, or fifth district, tax. Those receiving sewage, garbage and additional police and fire protection are charged an additional tax for those services. And on top of that, each taxing district is able to charge its own tax.

The first taxing district, South Norwalk and East Norwalk do not currently charge district taxes because their operating costs are covered by the utility companies that they own (the First District Water Department, South Norwalk Electric and Water and TTD, respectively). Each of those districts also owns land, which they pay to maintain and sometimes rent out  for example, the city rents the East Norwalk firehouse, which is owned by the third taxing district.

Rowayton does not own a utility company and charges a tax to cover its operating costs, which includes staffing Bayley Beach, a private park open only to sixth taxing district residents. However, the sixth taxing district has a special tax break for city services because it arranges for its own trash pickup and fire department  which means that in the end, it has the lowest city tax rate for an area with trash and sewage services.

And the large swaths of Norwalk that lie outside of the first, second, third and sixth taxing districts  including all of Silvermine  lack this extra layer of government altogether.

A better way?

Would I set it up this way if we were starting again? asked Westmoreland. You know, its hard to say. Back in 1912, when they had two water companies, why didnt they just merge them and support all of Norwalk? And why didnt they expand electric services to provide for all of Norwalk?

Theres always a question from time to time among the community: Gee, if only we could get rid of all of the districts  then it would be a smoother and more efficient operation, First Taxing District Commissioner Frank Zullo said.

But both agreed that things arent likely to change.

So for now, each taxing district manages its own budget  this year, the operating budgets range from 1.7 to 16 million. The annual budgets are approved by taxing district commissioners, then voted on by residents of that district. The first, second, third and sixth all have commissioners up for election in November.

Given where we are at, I think the system works pretty well, Westmoreland said. The infrastructure is already set and it doesnt make sense to change anymore.

In order for taxing districts to disappear, every single district would have to vote to dissolve themselves. The likelihood of that happening is very, very improbable, Zullo said.

rschuetz@hearstmediact.com; @raschuetz
NORWALK  A Florida man is facing forgery charges after an attempt to cash a fake check worth more than $4,000, police said.

Norwalk police responded to reports of illegal activity at the Citibank at 586 Connecticut Ave. around 10:31 a.m. Friday.
The Harvest of Harmony pageant holds more weight than getting to compete for the Miss Harvest of Harmony 2017 crown.

Twenty-eight senior girls from Nebraska high schools competed and mingled Friday at College Park. Contestants arrived in the morning to prepare for the nights pageant. They got to know each other throughout the day and build friendships.

Where are you from?

Wow, so neat!

The girls participated in a mixer and shared interesting facts about themselves, such as one who said she liked pickles so much that shed love to have a whole party dedicated to them.

The contestants were clad in business attire, as they were to be interviewed by three judges. Each girl had been chosen by her school to be in the pageant.

Contestants each provided a resume that included their school involvement and community service. The winner receives a crown, sash, flowers and, of course, the title of Miss Harvest of Harmony 2017.

At the Friday night pageant each contestant was presented and the winner and runnerup were announced. Miss Congeniality, which is voted upon by the contestants, was also awarded Friday.

Jenn Barker, the chairwoman of the Harvest of Harmony Pageant committee, said the pageant allows the girls a good way to interact and meet people.

It also gives the girls an avenue of what job interviews may be like, Barker said.

Miss Centura, Emily Serr, plays the flute in her band, as does Miss Osceola, Ariane Rutter. Both girls said their moms were very excited upon hearing their daughters would compete in the pageant.

Serr said it meant a lot to her to represent Centura, especially because her school chose her to do so.

Rutter said being a contestant is a little nerve-wracking, since everyone from the community is looking to you to win for them, but she was excited to represent Osceola.

Miss Hampton, Julia Elizabeth Jones, plays percussion. Miss Gibbon, Morgan Wadkins-Meyer, mainly plays the alto saxophone, but also plays percussion, piano and the guitar.

Jones said she filled in as an alternate in the pageant, but she was proud to do so.

For me, its mostly to get Hampton out there, she said about representing her school in this way. I really love our school.

Jones said its great to get her bands name out there instead of only the sports. Being at the pageant was a bit nostalgic for her, as she remembers three years ago attending and taking a photo with a former Miss Hampton.

Wadkins-Meyer said like many of the others, it was her first time participating in any sort of pageant.

Were showing that we stand for the fine arts programs, she said.

As Miss Gibbon, Wadkins-Meyer said shes proud to represent her school in something shes passionate about, such as music and fine arts. She said it was nice to be able to meet other people from other schools who are passionate about the same things.

The contestants seemed to agree that everyone was kind, which made it easier to mingle. The outgoing people helped to ease nerves, too, Serr and Rutter said.

They make it a lot easier for us, Serr said.

All of the contestants will ride in cars in the Harvest of Harmony Parade that begins at 8:15 a.m. on Third Street in downtown Grand Island.
Im crossing a threshold next week I never expected to face: Im going to be on a float in a parade going up New York Citys Fifth Avenue. No kidding.

This years Columbus Day parade in Manhattan is being headed by Len Riggio, founder and head of Barnes and Noble Inc., who made it his mission to highlight the accomplishments of Italian American authors. This is a cause near to my heart as the editor of Dont Tell Mama: The Penguin Book of Italian American Writing.

The parades goal is to take whats best of Italian American culture  the appetites, the passions, the affections, the humor, the connections and the everyday pleasures  while leaving behind the bitterness, the alienation, the grudges and the stereotypes.

Anyone have a problem with that?

Actually many people do  and for good reason. Alaska, Hawaii, Oregon, South Dakota and Vermont dont recognize Columbus Day. Vermont has celebrated Indigenous Peoples Day instead. Nobody discovered Seattle, Wash., declared Quinault Nation President Fawn Sharp in 2014.

Even other Italian Americans are asking me to address my role in the parade. Were good at arguing among ourselves. My friend Brandon Benevento from New Haven, Conn., challenged my enthusiasm for Columbus Day: How do you justify being the poster girl for a holiday based on the concept of ethnic white heritage?

Its a good question  which doesnt mean I wasnt aggravated with him for asking it  and forced me to think about my answer.

Why am I delighted to be in the Columbus Day parade this year? Because I genuinely was too often the only poster child available, paraded out as The Italian Girl when there were no other people whose last names ended in a vowel. I was Miss Ethnic and Economic Diversity for a while there.

At the Ivy League college from which I graduated, Godfather-themed parties were hosted at fraternity houses. Young women at the parties were dressed up like my cousins  and lets be honest, like me  in tight black skirts, low-cut blouses and stiletto heels. The guys were dressed like the men in my family in either tight white T-shirts or pin-striped suits. It was supposed to be all in good fun but I saw it for what it was: ethnic drag.

I remember the WASPy senator in The Godfather who says, I dont like your kind of people. I dont like to see you come out to this clean country in oily hair, and dressed up in those silk suits, and try to pass yourselves off as decent Americans.

Thats what I heard underneath the Cant you take a joke? from the frat boys. Thats why I didnt laugh.

But as friend Kristen Mongillo argues, The fact of the matter is, this is not a clean country. We are a country founded with a messy history. This narrative of hatred against newcomers is one we still see too often nowadays.

As a decent American, Im prepared to deal with the opposition. If anybody throws tomatoes, Ill catch them and make a nice sauce.

Other Italian American writers inspire me. Don DeLillo, perhaps Americas greatest contemporary novelist, explains, We have no generations of Americans behind us. We have roots elsewhere. We are looking in from the outside.

Part of the fun of parading up Fifth Avenue will be precisely because its not outside or the other side of the tracks. Its Main Street. Thats why any group thats been historically marginalized  union workers on Labor Day, the Irish on St. Patricks, the Puerto Rican community for the Puerto Rican Day parade, the LGBT community celebrating Gay Pride in June  claim Fifth Avenue when they can.

So yes, Im celebrating Italian heritage, which does not mean Im hugging statues of the actual Genoese explorer who sailed east under a Spanish flag.

Although its easy to lose sight of whats worth celebrating when a holiday has such a complicated history, because there is no such thing as uncomplicated history, Ill embrace the best parts of the heritage that brought my grandparents here from Sicily in steerage.

And Ill do it heading up Fifth Avenue, wearing a tight black skirt and very high heels. Its fine; Ill be on a float.
Eagles rally, then get sloppy in 4th quarter as undefeated hopes end

Several observations from the Eagles' Monday night game against the Washington Commanders.
For as long as he can remember, Cody Beck has had a certain fascination with things that go bump in the night.

Creepy things. Scary things. Ghosts. Hauntings.

Growing up in Alton, Beck says he developed an interest in ghosts, in the afterlife, and in the questions that none of us can never really answer.

Fast forward to 2017, and Beck will try to shed light on some of the creepy stories and legends from his hometown with a presentation on Monday, Oct. 16 at the Edwardsville Public Library.

The talk, which begins at 7 p.m., will focus on the Mineral Springs Mall and the Milton School House. Once an elegant hotel and spa, the malls storied history includes tragedy, murders, suicides, and natural and accidental deaths. And the school is purported to be the site of an unsolved mystery of a young girl brutally murdered by the schools janitor,

Beck says he will talk about some of the creepy, scary, unexplained things that have happened there. Legends and lore dealing with why some of those things may have happened. Hes especially interested in comparing legends and lore with the actual historical record.

The idea is to say creepy' things are happening in these places. Heres why everybody says that theyre happening, but heres what history tells us actually happened, Beck said in a recent phone interview. That doesnt change the fact that creepy things are happening  we just cant really justify why. And I just want to compare and contrast what people think happened versus what actually happened and say OK, well why are scary things still happening in these places?

The presentation will include photographs, on the assumption that most people havent seen just how creepy these places can be and how great the architecture is, he said. Beck plans to offer up scientific and psychological theories, but also to entertain less scientific explanations about spirituality and the afterlife.

Im preaching the gospel of I dont know, Beck says. Im just tossing all the different points out there and seeing what people think. I dont want to discredit either way. But I think its important to know the facts and then draw your own conclusions from all the information.

Beck acknowledges that hes always had a morbid sense of humor. Always liked horror movies. As hes gotten older, hes come to realize that its OK to be a little weird like that. Theres a whole community of people who are equally fascinated by history, hauntings, legends and lore.

At some point Beck read author Troy Taylors book Alton Hauntings, with whom he recently collaborated on a nine-part podcast titled American Hauntings. The first season has focused on the city of Alton, spotlighting stories from such sites as the Alton Penitentiary, the McPike Mansion and the Hartford Castle.

Right now they are wrapping up the first season and will soon begin a new season focused on St. Louis.

Beck initially contacted Taylor when it began to dawn on him that he actually knew very little history about the history of the scary sites he had driven past in his hometown.

I reached out to him and we got the podcast thing going, Beck says. Ive always been interested in this stuff, but I took it a step further with the learning. And now Im trying to ask questions that a lot of people around here have probably wondered about. Im trying to see if I can give them answers at the same time Im giving myself answers.
Dogs from throughout the area will don their best Halloween duds to support their human friends a world away by participating in the 3rd Annual Howl-O-Ween Dog Costume Parade on Oct. 21 at Edwardsvilles Joe Glik Park.

It will be a morning of fun for families and pets while benefiting Project Restore, an Edwardsville charity dedicated to addressing education, clean water and medical care issues in developing countries.

The parade takes place at Joe Glik Park located at 710 East Lake in Edwardsville where cash prizes will be awarded for the best pooch costume based on originality, creativity, behavior, and theme with owners. Its free to watch the parade, but anyone participating in the costume contest is asked to donate $20 per dog to Project Restore. Registration begins at 10:30 a.m. with the parade starting at 11 a.m.

Dogs must remain leashed, have current rabies and vaccination tags, and wear I.D. tags at all times. No puppies under four months old are allowed.

Proceeds from this event will help Project Restore continue to sponsor the education of children orphaned by the Sudanese Civil War and improve the conditions of their school, the Nabitalo Secondary School in Uganda, Africa. While nothing can erase the devastation of losing their families, we can offer these students hope for the future through a quality education and emotional support. Thanks to the help of the Edwardsville community, Project Restore can provide clean water, medical care and school supplies to children who have no other options, Project Restore Executive Director Catherine Keck said.

We are going to use the proceeds from the Howl-O-Ween fundraiser to sponsor additional orphans for their school, Keck added.

Well put them in a boarding school so theyll be safe. Theyll have food and clothing and medical care and get their education. Thats the goal for this fundraiser. The number that we can additionally sponsor depends on the amount we raise.

Keck also provided an update on some of the other projects that Project Restore has been working on. One of which includes a new partnership with SIUE, its faculty, its students and Uganda. Were going to bring SIUE students over this coming summer to help them get public health exposure to a third world country and help in outreach programs to our communities, she said. So that is super exciting. Weve been working on this for almost two years now.

She also emphasized that Project Restore was still doing all the other initiatives that theyve done in the past. Weve drilled three new fresh water wells for three different remote villages and communities so they now have clean water, Keck said. In the past we were repairing ones that were broken and inoperable. We have 15 in different locations that we have fixed.

Were still working with our community clinic there, Keck added. We completely just gutted it and remodeled and revamped it. They got new windows, new doors, new stairs, a wheel chair ramp and we got them new equipment, new supplies. That happened two years ago so were still working on our other initiatives as well as the education piece.

The Howl-O-Ween Dog Costume Parade is sponsored by Coldwell Banker and Brown, CKC Construction, Big Papa G, live music from Lanny and Julie, Kohls, Lauries Place, Nicole Plegge Creative, TheBANK of Edwardsville, and Louer Facility Planning Inc.

For more information regarding registration, sponsorships or becoming a vendor, visit Project Restores Facebook page, email info@project-restore.org or call 618-781-4193.
People will reject leftist alliance, says Mahat

Nepali Congress leader Ram Sharan Mahat has claimed that the people will ultimately reject the leftist alliance that the CPN-UML, CPN (Maoist Centre) and the Naya Shakti Party announced on Tuesday as the parliamentary practice and democracy had been well accepted in the country.
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Linkedin Leong Yee Ting (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, October 7, 2017 08:15 1865 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a238b694 3 Opinion farmer,farmers-association,female,farming,agriculture,#Agriculture,#farmers Free

Many Indonesian children grow up listening to this Islamic proverb, Heaven is at the bottom of your mothers feet.

Yet, Indonesian female farmers continue to struggle in many ways. Around 40 percent of family smallholder farmers are women, amounting to 7.4 million in 2013, and contribute to almost all the stages of production. However, they lack access to land, credit and extension services.

In 2003, only one-third of land title certificates in Java was owned by women. Although the 1974 Marriage Law provides for the ownership interests of the wife, this is rarely translated into print on the certificates. This is partly because of a lack of education and patriarchal mindset to have a mans name on the certificate.

This unequal access to land means unequal access to credit, since land certificates are needed for collateral. This has real implications on the lives of female farmers and their families. In Cianjur, West Java, female farmers and their families suffer heavy debts to middlemen due to limited access to credit. The debts are taken to purchase not just agricultural inputs, but also basic necessities or emergency healthcare. Many of these women become pressured to become migrant workers in Taiwan or Saudi Arabia to clear the debts.

Extension services tend to neglect female farmers. There is this assumption that agricultural work performed by women is seen as secondary to their domestic responsibilities or male involvement in agriculture. The truth is these women are so poor that they have no choice but to work on the farms, but suffer lack of recognition by authorities.

Women conspicuously lack access to leadership and decision-making, despite being significant players. Agricultural organizations are often dominated by males. Mixed farmer groups with both active female and male members are uncommon. Although there are a few female agricultural organisations in Yogyakarta and South Sumatra, they tend to be left out of decision-making in the community.

Female farmers are also expected to bear the double burdens of domestic and agricultural work. At times, they are unpaid or paid less than men. This exerts a significant physical and psychological toll on them.

These problems are all the more pressing because existing trends are exacerbating the situation of female farmers. Rural-urban migration of men has led to feminization of agriculture, meaning that in the mens absence, the agricultural work is now passed on to women.

Yet these women lack the male privileges of access to resources and leadership. This may undermine the productivity of farms. Also, climate change and the consequent unpredictable, extreme weather is exerting significant pressure on women. As farmers, they have to adapt their farming schedule to the weather; as mothers and wives, they have to ensure the familys welfare in such trying circumstances.

Empowerment of female farmers will reap tremendous benefits for all stakeholders. If women have greater access, their agricultural and domestic productivity will increase, translated into more substantial and stable family incomes.

It has been shown that increases in a womans income and assets can improve the welfare of her household more significantly than that of increases in mens income. Importantly, this will also improve the dignity of female farmers in the community. Greater involvement of women in agricultural organizations will enable more informed decisions to be made, and enhance the production and profitability of the organizations.

Policymakers need to ensure that female farmers have access to the crucial resources and leadership opportunities. Concrete measures towards this include improving education of girls and the encouragement of womens participation and leadership in agricultural organizations. Efforts must be taken to bolster womens confidence. Moreover, female farmers need to be equipped with knowledge on adaptation methods, and climate forecasting technologies.

However, Indonesia is a hugely diverse country; different regions have different cultural norms. Javanese female farmers occupy an ambiguous position; they are often not reflected as owners of the land formally on paperwork, but informally, Javanese culture works fortuitously to protect them. The Javanese language has a word for marital property, gono-gini, and this concept is more influential in shaping behavior than official legislation or even Islamic ideas.

Furthermore, the traditional practice of arisan - a small-scale rotating savings association  serves as an informal source of credit for Javanese female farmers. The Balinese and Minangkabau people have always had strong roles for women where women can own land in their own rights and actively farm their lands.

In contrast, the most vulnerable female farmers probably reside in the eastern parts of Indonesia. In Sulawesi, women often suffer the brunt of crop failures because they have to seek out additional income.

Likewise, in Southern Central Timor, women become malnourished during droughts because they are usually the last ones to eat in the family. In Papuan culture, women always have had low status and education despite extreme workloads. It is crucial for policymakers to take into account the different cultural backgrounds of female farmers from different regions, to best understand their unique situation and needs.

This problem of invisible female farmers is common across Southeast Asia, but Indonesian female farmers are relatively more disadvantaged than their counterparts in Thailand and Philippines, as these are predominantly matrilineal societies.

If we are to truly respect our mothers as providers, as a medium towards paradise and a better life, we first need to pave a smoother path for them. As the bedrock of our world, they definitely deserve better.

***

The writer is a Singaporean intern working with the ASEAN Farmers Organization Support Program at the ASEAN Foundation in Jakarta. She is in her final year of study in history at the University of Oxford.The author would like to thank Mardiah Basuni (Bina Desa foundation) and Stephanie Heng for their kind guidance and support.

---------------

We are looking for information, opinions, and in-depth analysis from experts or scholars in a variety of fields. We choose articles based on facts or opinions about general news, as well as quality analysis and commentary about Indonesia or international events. Send your piece to academia@jakpost.com.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post.
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Linkedin Callistasia Anggun Wijaya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, October 7, 2017 14:59 1864 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a2393952 1 City #Puskesmas,#corruption,#Jakarta Free

The Jakarta administration has denied corruption allegations regarding the construction of two hospitals and 18 community health centers (Puskesmas) inaugurated by Jakarta Governor Djarot Saiful Hidayat on Wednesday following the polices move to investigate the alleged graft in the project.

The Jakarta Health Agency said a delay in the construction of the health facilities developed by PT Hana Huberta and PT PP Pracetak was not caused by graft.

The companies planned to finish the development of the facilities in December last year but, instead, they completed it in August this year.

Jakarta Health Agency secretary Een Haryani said the development was hampered by the lengthy asset write-off process by the Jakarta Financial Management Body (BPAD).

As they were late to finish the project, we havent fully paid the contractors. As of now, weve just paid 45 percent of the total payment, Een said.

The administration had imposed a Rp 3 billion fine on the contractors that was paid by the companies, she said.

Separately, Djarot has allowed the police to continue the investigation.

"If there were people who 'played' with the project and [if they are] proven guilty, the police could act firmly against them," he said.

Previously, National Police corruption department deputy director Erwanto Kurniadi said the police had received a public report regarding the alleged graft in the project.

"The corruption department was conducting the preliminary investigation and communicating with the BPK [Supreme Audit Agency] to see whether there were state losses coming from the construction," Erwanto said.
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, October 7 2017

State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) Minister Rini Soemarno has said that the process of establishing two holdings  a mining holding and an oil and gas holding  would be completed this year.

There was no problem in the process of establishing holdings. We only wait for the administrative work, which needs time, said Rini in Jakarta on Thursday evening as quoted by Antara.

She said state-owned energy company Pertamina would act as the leading company of the oil and gas holding with members that include state-owned gas distribution firm Perusahaan Gas Negara (PGN).

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Linkedin Words Sebastian Partogi Photos Of InterNations (The Jakarta Post)  Sat, October 7 2017

International expatriate community InterNations celebrates the 10th year of assisting and connecting expatriates across the globe

Today (Saturday), millions of members of InterNations across the globe, including in Indonesia, are celebrating the 10th anniversary of their groups foundation with several activities and fun games. There will be a special gathering in Jakarta to mark the occasion.

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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, October 7, 2017 18:11 1864 1f87594453bb792833e1ece3a23968f7 1 City #violence Free

A member of the Indonesian Military (TNI) allegedly attacked a parking attendant, identified as Zuansyah, 21, and fired a pistol into the ceiling of a basement car park in Gandaria City mall, South Jakarta, on Friday evening, after refusing to pay his parking fee.

There was an attack, which is still being investigated by police at Kebayoran Lama sub-precinct, South Jakarta Police chief Sr. Comr. Iwan Kurniawan said on Saturday as quoted by kompas.com.

The serviceman was reportedly driving a car with a military license plate that was parked in the mall's basement.

When he wanted to exit the basement, the parking attendant asked him to pay Rp 20,000 (US$1.48), but the serviceman complained.

After arguing with Zuansyah, the man finally paid the parking fee and left the basement.

A few moments later, however, he returned to the basement with another man.

Both men attacked Zuansyah and one of them reportedly fired a pistol into the ceiling.

The mall management then went to the basement to stop the fight.

Together with Zuansyah, the management filed the report with Kebayoran Lama Police.

Meanwhile, TNI spokesperson Maj. Gen. Wuryanto said the military would investigate the case and act firmly with the serviceman if he was found guilty. (Cal)
Construction crews are racing to finish the first phase of Essex Crossing next year. Hundreds of apartments, a 14-screen movie theater, an NYU ambulatory care center and a Trader Joes are all part of the huge development project. But one question still remains just a few months from opening day: Who will occupy a 15,000 square foot cultural space at 242 Broome St.?

During the past couple of years, the International Center of Photography (ICP) has been weighing whether to establish a new museum in the Essex Crossing complex, and whether to relocate its school from Midtown Manhattan. Now theres a new clue about ICPs intentions. Commercial Observer reports:

The 43-year-old institution signed a contract to purchase two commercial condominium unitsone retail unit and one community facility unitin the base of the residential condo tower at 242 Broome Street, according to public records.

A check of the NYC Department of Finance database shows that ICP signed a contract for the condo units with Delancey Street Associates (the development consortium) on Oct. 3. A spokesperson for the development team declined to comment. Commercial Observer contacted ICP, but there was no response. There is, of course, a big difference between signing an agreement to purchase a property and actually acquiring the property. So its not a done deal yet.

ICP currently has a museum space at 250 Bowery. The institution has been looking to move its school and administrative offices, currently located at 1114 Sixth Avenue. Back in January, ICP Executive Director Mark Lubell told us the move to Essex Crossing was dependent on the success of a capital campaign. At the time, he said he expected the board of directors to make a decision no later than the summer of this year.

The Essex Crossing museum space sits just to the north of a 14-story condo tower at 242 Broome St. There are four levels set aside for commercial space in the residential building. This past spring, Curbed toured the construction site. The real estate blog reported, The cultural center will be separated from the main structure by what the architects call Soho Stairsa long, vertical, continuous flight of stairs that can be used to access the different floors of the institution.

The Essex Crossing cultural facility was originally going to be an annex of the Warhol Museum, but the Pittsburgh-based institution backed out of the project in 2015.
(front page, editorial)

Kurdish freedom struggle in interests of all workers

Support the fight for an independent Kurdistan!

Rudaw

The Kurds fight for independence is an inspiration for working people worldwide. Despite the opposition of Washington, Moscow and almost every capitalist regime in the region millions of people in the Kurdish areas of Iraq voted overwhelmingly in favor of an independent Kurdistan Sept. 25.

Its no surprise that thousands of Kurds in Iran, Syria and Turkey took to the streets applauding the vote. And its also no surprise that the referendum brought an immediate and harsh response from the capitalist regimes in these countries, where the vast majority of the Kurdish people live.

Baghdad was especially upset that the referendum included oil-rich Kirkuk. Historically Kurdish, Kirkuk is today a multinational city, with Kurds, Turkmen and Arabs, the result of a conscious Arabization drive by former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. Kurdish Regional Government leader Masoud Barzani has pledged that all minorities and nationalities would be treated equally in an independent Kurdistan. This would be sharply different from the treatment of the Kurds and other minorities by Baghdad, as well as by the capitalist regimes in the rest of the region.

The Kurds  more than 30 million strong, the largest nationality in the world without their own country  have refused to stop fighting for their national rights despite tremendous odds. In Iraq, Turkey, Iran and Syria they have suffered bloody attacks from the ruling regimes that have often denied them the right to speak their language, own land, or even be treated as citizens. Because of the weakening of U.S. imperialism and the continual wars that have wracked the Middle East, the Kurds found the space to make significant advances, winning the right to speak Kurdish in Turkey and carving out autonomous regions in Syria and Iraq.

The Kurdish struggle shows that it is possible to stand up to centurieslong oppression and win. This is what the Iraqi rulers, the other capitalist rulers in the Middle East and Washington fear the most  that the Kurdish struggle will inspire workers and farmers to stand up and fight for their own interests.

And the impact goes beyond the Middle East. Its a boost for workers and farmers in Puerto Rico fighting to end U.S. colonial rule, and inspires working people in Catalonia, opposing attempts by the Spanish state to block their right to self-determination.

Working people around the world should oppose the threats and hostile moves by the governments of Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria. Stand with the Kurdish people and their fight for an independent homeland. Raise these questions in your union, with co-workers and others. Prepare now to take to the streets in solidarity if the Kurds are attacked.





Related articles:

Kurds stand up to threats from Mideast regimes

Spanish govt, cop assaults fail to prevent Catalan vote







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(lead article)

Puerto Rico: Colonialism causes the most damage

The hurricanes caused a lot of damage, but not as much as colonialism has, longtime independence fighter Rafael Cancel Miranda said by phone from San Juan, Puerto Rico, Sept. 28. Weve been suffering under the hurricane of Yankee colonialism for more than 100 years.

The former political prisoner was referring to Washingtons exploitation of the natural resources and labor power of working people in the U.S. colony, transferring the wealth to U.S. corporations, and squeezing even more out now to pay the colonial regimes $74 billion debt to bondholders.

Although Washington has sent thousands of troops and Federal Emergency Management Agency personnel, the pace of restoring services, opening roads, and providing food, water, electricity and fuel has been painfully slow.

Not far from where I live theres a 10-story building for retirees. Theres no electricity. They cant get water, Cancel Miranda said. Its worse outside San Juan in towns and rural areas. Two weeks after the storm many rural areas had not received water or food.

This is a tragedy, especially for workers and for those with few economic resources, he said.

Its a similar story in all the colonies and semicolonies of the United States, Britain, France and the Netherlands in the Caribbean because the imperialist powers and colonial regimes work to suck even more wealth out of workers and farmers.

Capitalist social relations turn the effects of disasters like hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria, or Mexicos earthquakes, into catastrophes for working people.

And, like in Puerto Rico, workers and farmers in the rest of the Caribbean are being ravaged by the disastrous effects on them caused by the worldwide capitalist economic crisis and exacerbated by wealthy bondholders demanding debt payments.

Before Irma and Maria hit, the treasury of the U.S. Virgin Islands had barely enough cash to keep the government funded for three days, the New York Times reported. Unemployment was more than twice the U.S. average. The debt of nearly $2 billion was higher per capita than Puerto Ricos. Its pension system was on the verge of bankruptcy. And the colonial government had used up funds set aside for relief from hurricanes and other natural disasters to meet other expenses.

Barbuda was almost 90 percent destroyed by the storms and all its 1,800 residents had to be evacuated to Antigua  with help of the Venezuelan government. Gaston Browne, prime minister of the former British colony of Antigua and Barbuda, has asked for a moratorium on its $15.8 million debt to the International Monetary Fund. But the IMF says it would rather loan the government more money instead.

Some of the islands in the Caribbean play special roles in world capitalist profit gouging. Tax and other loopholes in the British Virgin Islands mean that more than 400,000 capitalist enterprises worldwide are registered there, with some $1.5 trillion in assets. Though workers in the British colony face a disaster from the hurricane, with at least 70 percent of the homes and other buildings there destroyed, the tax shelter profit business was up and running again within days.

Cancel Miranda described the carnage facing working people in Puerto Rico before the storms. The truth is, brother, even before Hurricane Maria, there were children here who went to bed hungry, he said. There were hundreds, maybe thousands, of street vendors at the stoplights. Thats the wonder of being a colony.

And much of the damage could have been avoided, he said. Over the last decade, the colonial regime has laid off thousands of government workers, including at the electric company, which cut back on maintenance to pay its debt.

No electricity for months

More than 80 percent of the electrical lines were destroyed by Hurricane Maria, Angel Figueroa Jaramillo, president of the UTIER electrical workers union, told the Militant Sept. 30. And outside San Juan there was almost no phone service. The government and the electric company didnt prepare for the storms, he said. The workers, the linemen, were ready to get the system back up, but the company hasnt provided the equipment, the materials, the cables, the cranes, transport.

For two weeks after the storm, thousands of containers of food, and merchandise for Walmart and other stores clogged the ports because of a lack of diesel and warehouse space, while thousands of people were without basic necessities. Drivers showed up at the convention center in San Juan in answer to the call by the local government only to be turned away.

It wasnt until Sept. 30, CNBC reported, that enough trucks finally began arriving at the port, clearing out the backlog, opening space for more aid to arrive.

President Donald Trump and San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz got into a long-distance fight over who was more responsible for the disorganization and lack of progress in recovery in Puerto Rico. In fact, both were right. No level of government  from Washington to Puerto Rico  was prepared or mobilized to meet the needs of working people. When Trump visited the island Oct. 3, the two smiled and shook hands.

Revolutionary Cuba shows the way

In sharp contrast, the revolutionary government in Cuba led workers and farmers to prepare for the hurricanes in advance, minimizing loss to life and property, including evacuating 1.8 million people before the storms made landfall. Reconstruction is well underway. The government reported Sept. 29 that nearly 100 percent of electricity was back up after repairing 3,600 poles, more than 2,000 kilometers (1,250 miles) of electric lines, and more than 1,300 transformers.

To rebuild more than 14,000 destroyed homes and 23,500 damaged ones the government is offering loans, grants and subsidized construction materials. Many fields are already being replanted with quick growing crops.

The Central Organization of Cuban Workers (CTC) has called for a national mobilization of voluntary work Oct. 7 to advance redoubling our efforts to erase as quickly as possible the consequences of this destructive event.

When workers and farmers made a revolution in 1959, led by Fidel Castro and the July 26 Movement, they took control of the government and began to mobilize to meet their needs, they transformed themselves. They take responsibility for each other and offer solidarity and whatever they have to others in distress. While fighting to restore power in Cuba, the revolutionary government offered to send four brigades of electrical workers and a fully equipped mobile hospital with 39 doctors to help in Puerto Rico. The U.S. rulers havent responded.

We have heard of Cubas offer, Cancel Miranda said. Jaramillo, the electrical union leader, said he had heard about it too.

It could be six months before most of Puerto Rico has electricity. Puerto Rico and Cuba show the difference between capitalism and socialism, Cancel Miranda said. In Cuba working people are united. They were prepared in advance, they had shelters ready. They depend on themselves.





Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home




Police set to file cases against branded stores in question

The Metropolitan Police Range (MPR), Teku, is preparing to file cases against the unscrupulous traders of Durbar Marg, who have been accused of charging exorbitant prices for the goods they were selling.
(front page)

Kurds stand up to threats from Mideast regimes

The Kurdish Regional Government in northern Iraq, backed by overwhelming support for an independent Kurdistan registered in the Sept. 25 referendum there, is standing firm in face of opposition and threats from the capitalist rulers in Baghdad, Ankara and Tehran, as well as the imperialist rulers in Washington.

Ive been fighting for half a century. With my people I have been through mass killings, deportations, gassings. I remember times when we thought we were done for, headed for extermination, KRG President Masoud Barzani told Bernard-Henri Levy, the maker of a new documentary film Peshmerga, in Erbil Sept. 25, after passage of the referendum. During those decades of resistance, of hopes dashed and reborn, I never imagined that in my lifetime I would see the day when  my people would finally be able to come together and express to the world their desire to be democratic and free.

Out of 4,581,255 eligible voters, 72 percent turned out to vote. Yes for an independent Kurdistan won 92.7 percent. Tens of thousands of Kurds in Iran, Turkey and Syria celebrated, as did Kurds throughout the world. This historic development was possible because the ruling classes in Washington and across the region have been absorbed in wars amid the unraveling of the artificial borders and order imposed on the toilers of the Middle East by the victors in the two 20th century imperialist world wars that denied the over 30 million Kurds the right to their own state.

The outrage, and the fear, of the rulers in Ankara, Tehran and Damascus  Kurdistans neighbors who oppress the great majority of the rest of the regions Kurds  as well as in Baghdad and Washington, found swift expression.

On Sep. 29 Baghdad ordered a halt to all foreign flights in and out of Kurdistan and demanded that Erbil hand over the KRGs two international airports to the central government  a demand rejected by Erbil.

The Iraqi government also threatened to send troops to seize oil fields in Kirkuk, territory historically Kurdish but claimed by Baghdad in continuity with the Arabization policy of the former Saddam Hussein dictatorship.

The Iraqi parliament Oct. 3 barred Kurdish elected members from participating and told them to go back to Kurdistan. Then the remaining members of parliament, led by political allies of Tehran, voted to demand the Federal Court strip the Kurdish delegates of their immunity and put them on trial.

Baghdad has also asked Ankara to turn over oil revenues the KRG receives through Turkey, a key aspect of Kurdistans economy. For some years the landlocked KRG has been shipping oil via Turkey to international markets, but Ankara now threatens to shut down the pipeline. So far the oil continues to flow.

Wake up from this dream, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told the Kurds. An independent state is not being founded in northern Iraq, but on the contrary, a continuously bleeding wound is being opened. He claimed the only way the referendum passed was by manipulation of Israels Mossad intelligence agency.

Israel played no part in the Kurdish referendum, aside from the natural, deep and long-standing sympathy the Jewish people have for the Kurdish people and their aspirations, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu replied. Tel Aviv is the only government that has declared its support for an independent Kurdistan, hoping it can provide a counterweight to the growing influence of Tehrans rulers.

An artificial state in Kurdistan is an issue for Turkeys national security, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said. Ankara is working hard to join with Tehran and Baghdad to step up pressure against the Kurds.

Armed forces from Iran, Iraq and Turkey are conducting military war games on the KRGs borders. But there have been no direct attacks on the Kurds.

Washington: vote lacked legitimacy

The vote and the results lack legitimacy and we continue to support a united, federal, democratic and prosperous Iraq, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Sept. 29. At the same time, the State Department made it clear they oppose any armed attacks against the KRG, calling for calm on all sides.

The pressure the mass vote for Kurdish independence puts on neighboring rulers was reflected in statements by the foreign minister of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, who said Damascus is open to discussions with Syrian Kurds about the formation of an autonomous Kurdish region within Syrias borders.

In fact, one already exists along the border with Turkey, called the Democratic Federal System of Northern Syria, home to 2 million Kurds, defended by the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units (YPG). The YPG is in a tactical alliance with Washington, fighting to oust reactionary Islamic State from Raqqa, its self-declared capital, and to extend U.S. influence in Syria along the eastern bank of the Euphrates River from Deir el-Zour to Syrias border with Iraq.

Syrian army forces, backed by Iranian officers, Hezbollah forces and Russian bombers, are also trying to take these areas, but are currently confined to the other side of the Euphrates.
(front page)

Drive builds readership of Militant in working class

The Socialist Workers Partys nine-week fall circulation drive to increase readership of theand books by party leaders is a little ahead of schedule going into its third week. At the heart of the effort is knocking on workers doors to discuss the social disaster that workers, ranchers and farmers are living through, imposed by the bosses and their government as they try to place the cost of the deepening crisis of their capitalist system on our back. We find that workers want to discuss the SWPs perspectives for how workers can meet these attacks and chart a course for the working class to take political power.

In addition to branches of the SWP, members and supporters of Communist Leagues in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the U.K. are using the drive, which runs to Nov. 21, to introduce the communist movement and discuss developments in the class struggle  from the independence votes in Kurdistan and Catalonia, to the sharp distinction between the response of Cubas revolutionary government to prepare for and rebuild after recent hurricanes, and the social disaster for working people in the colonies of Washington and other imperialist powers in the Caribbean.

The drive runs concurrently with the SWPs $100,000 fall party fund to finance the partys ongoing work. Charts showing the partys progress are printed on the front page and below.

The Militant stands strong for everyday workers, Joye Beamon, a grocery store worker in Chicago, told party supporter Salm Kolis as she renewed her subscription. Its for people who want the real story, the truth about what is actually happening locally, nationally and internationally.

Dan Fein from Chicago reports that he went to talk more about politics and the party with a co-worker of his at Walmart who subscribes to the Militant and got to meet his family. Fein told them he and other party members were going to knock on some doors to introduce the party and its literature, and asked if they have any suggestions where to go. They told Fein they thought the party would get a good response just knocking on doors on the same street. He and other party members did so and ended up signing up three of their neighbors for subscriptions.

From Seattle, party supporter Pat Scott reports that at Walmart where she works a co-worker asked her why she says Bill Clintons presidency was bad for working people, and that the election of Hillary Clinton would have been just as bad. Scott suggested he read The Clintons Anti-Working-Class Record by SWP National Secretary Jack Barnes. He bought a copy after work and got a copy of the Militant to decide about getting a subscription.

The book is one of the half-price specials in the drive, along with Malcolm X, Black Liberation, and the Road to Workers Power and Are They Rich Because Theyre Smart? also by Barnes; Is Revolution in the US Possible? by party leader Mary-Alice Waters; and Its the Poor Who Face the Savagery of the US Justice System by the Cuban Five, five Cuban revolutionaries who spent up to 16 years in U.S. prisons for their actions in defense of the Cuban Revolution.

Katy LeRougetel from the Communist League in Canada reported from Vancouver that party members attended a meeting of about 40 Kurds organized by supporters of a group from the Iranian part of Kurdistan, which celebrated the recent referendum in Iraq. Seyran Enveri, a health care worker in a seniors home and member of the British Columbia Government Employees Union, told me her union supports the Kurdish struggle and she has spoken out on this at union gatherings, LeRougetel said. She got a copy of the Militant and gave me her number to get back to her about a subscription.

SWP members participated in a meeting about the Kurdish fight for independence in New Jersey, where Brian Williams reports they got three new subscribers to the Militant and sold 6 single copies, a copy of Are They Rich Because Theyre Smart? and got $19 in donations.

Pamela Holmes reports from the United Kingdom that Communist League members from both London and Manchester got together to campaign door to door last weekend in working-class areas in Greater Manchester.

They also attended two simultaneous protests totaling 30,000 people outside the annual Conservative Party conference, with some calling for overturning the Brexit vote and others promoting a Labour Party government. Many workers were attracted to the Communist League table, displaying placards calling for support for Kurdish independence, denuclearization of the Pacific, and for the unions to fight to organize all cab drivers, including the thousands who work for Uber.

I didnt know anything like this existed in Manchester, 21-year-old office worker Gemma Jorgensen told Holmes when she spotted the campaign table. I was a big Corbynite at first but Im not so sure now. What would the Labour Party do if it was in power?

Holmes said it was a dead end for workers to back either Labour or the Conservatives. She pointed to the Cuban Revolution as an example for working people. She described how the Cuban government mobilized the whole people to prepare for and then respond to the recent hurricanes as an example of what working people can do when we get rid of the capitalist system and replace it with workers power.

Keen to keep in touch for future activity, Jorgenson got a subscription to the Militant and a copy of Malcolm X, Black Liberation, and the Road to Workers Power, Holmes said. Over the weekend, 16 subscriptions to the Militant and 14 copies of the partys campaign titles were sold.





Related articles:

SWP Fund Drive to Raise $100,000







Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home




(front page)

Sept. election results reflect political crisis of

German rulers

The Sept. 24 German election saw Chancellor Angela Merkels governing coalition  the Christian Democratic Union and the Social Democratic Party (SPD)  lose seats to the recently formed Alternative for Germany (AfD.) The CDU and SPD, which have shared or alternated in every government since the division of the country in 1949, received their lowest vote ever.

AfD took 13 percent of the vote, and will get 94 seats in the Bundestag, the German parliament, making it the third largest party. Merkels CDU vote declined from 41 to 33 percent.

Liberal media pundits and politicians falsely claim the AfD is a fascist party. For the first time since the end of the Second World War, real Nazis will sit in the German parliament, former SPD leader Sigmar Gabriel said.

And, as in the case of President Donald Trump, they claim the AfD vote shows workers in Germany are becoming more bigoted and reactionary.

Despite its dominant position against its competitors in the EU, Germany is not immune to the political turmoil occurring in other capitalist countries. As the broader economic, social and moral crisis battering working people continues to unfold, millions of workers, looking for a way out, have voted against the parties that have shared power as the crisis deepens.

Alexandra Heil, a 43-year-old worker on disability benefits, told the Washington Post, that she wasnt sure about the AfD because they are somewhat Hitler-like, and I dont want that. But she went ahead and voted for them because she just wanted something to change, and was pleased to see the establishment politicians all wetting their pants a bit at the result.

Across Germany the official unemployment rate has fallen, but those figures obscure the reality for many working people. There are consistently high numbers of workers classified as long-term unemployed. Workers in so-called mini jobs that pay less than $540 a month have risen from 2.2 million in 2003 to 7.8 million in 2016.

The governments disdain for workers and their problems was graphically displayed when CDU General Secretary Peter Tauber had to apologize in July after contemptuously stating that those who just studied hard wouldnt get stuck in mini jobs.

Over a million Germans have turned to food banks to get enough to eat, and the numbers are rising. When a cleaner from Bochrum challenged Merkel about why growing numbers of pensioners cant afford to make ends meet, Merkel told her she couldnt change our pension system at the moment, and suggested she just buy a private pension. The cleaner responded that on her wages she couldnt afford it.

Some pundits claim the growing fascist threat is innate in the genes of the German people, as New York Times columnist Roger Cohen indicated in an article titled The Return of the German Volk. He says people who voted for AfD are violent and rightist, nativist, nationalist, just plain reactionary.

But fascist outfits dont evolve out of bourgeois parties or through electoral politics. They are forged in combat in response to rising working-class struggles and social movements. History shows the bosses reluctantly turn to the fascists when the social crisis of their system is deepest, ceding some power in order to drive working-class struggles off the streets, and crush the unions and workers parties that lead them.

The election results showed the response by millions of workers and others to the impact in Germany of the same worldwide carnage that drove millions in the U.S. to elect Donald Trump. And to register through the ballot box their opposition to what is being done to them by parties at the center of bourgeois politics in the interests of Germanys propertied owners.

AfD grows where crisis is deepest

AfD picked up its highest percentage of votes in eastern parts of Germany, where workers face the deepest depression-like conditions. The Berlin wall was torn down over 25 years ago by the struggles of the peoples of East Germany against the Stalinist regime there. In the wake of German reunification, Berlin announced a Solidarity Pact which was supposed to bring basic living conditions in the east up to the levels of the rest of the country.

But unemployment in the east remains higher, wages and pensions lower, public services poorer and overall living conditions worse. Between 1990 and 2015 fully 15 percent of the population of Germanys five eastern states left the region.

The AfD campaigned on a platform of German withdrawal from the euro, restrictions on temporary agency work, opposition to the deployment of German troops abroad and greater restrictions on immigration than proposed by Merkel.

The gains made by German bosses in raising productivity while holding down real wages and dealing blows to workers jobs, pensions and living conditions have helped Berlin maintain its supremacy in the European Union. The EU functions to advance the interests of German capitalists against their weaker competitors. Germanys gross domestic product per head has risen 20 percent relative to that of Italy in the last decade, while Greeces GDP declined more than 20 percent, with devastating consequences for working people there.

The EU was born with a fatal contradiction. The capitalist rulers of each European nation-state seek to defend their industry, banks, profits and power against their EU partners. And as the worldwide capitalist crisis of production and trade progresses, the tensions increase and get sharper. And everywhere workers and farmers bear the brunt.





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(front page)

US rulers sanctions on NKorea hit workers,

farmers hardest

While his rhetoric sometimes sounds bombastic, President Donald Trump and his administrations policy toward North Korea is largely the same approach promoted when Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton occupied the White House  slapping economic sanctions against the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea. The goal is to force Pyongyang to give up its nuclear arsenal.

If forced to, Trump told the United Nations General Assembly Sept. 19, we will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea. He demeaned North Korean leader Kim Jung Un as a rocket man who is on a suicide mission.

In 1994, President Bill Clinton said that he wouldnt allow the DPRK to produce enriched plutonium to make nuclear weapons and that he was prepared to use military force to stop it.

I will surely and definitely tame the mentally deranged U.S. dotard with fire, Kim replied in kind to Washington a few days after Trumps U.N. speech. I am now thinking hard about what response he could have expected when he allowed such eccentric words to trip off his tongue.

But the two governments are not on the verge of a new war. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson admitted Sept. 30 that Washington and the DPRK are talking directly, through out own channels.

To get its way, Washington is tightening the economic screws on North Korea  increasingly with the aid of the government of China. The main victims of the economic assault are the working people of Korea. So far, the leaders of the DPRK dont feel what Washington offers in exchange is sufficient to convince them to stop developing nuclear weapons and delivery systems.

Since a 1953 cease-fire was signed, the U.S. government has refused to sign a peace treaty with the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea. There are some 28,500 U.S. troops based in the South, and Washington organizes provocative war games several times a year, including simulations of eliminating DPRK leaders.

In one of the most recent provocations, two U.S. B-1B bombers crossed over the Demilitarized Zone into North Korean airspace Sept. 23. Pyongyang ignored the violation, prompting South Korean spy agency officials to say the DPRK is careful to avoid unintended provocations or clashes.

In July Washington banned travel by U.S. citizens to North Korea beginning in September. On Sept. 3, the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea carried out what it said was an underground test of a hydrogen bomb. On Sept. 11, at the urging of Washington, the U.N. Security Council imposed its harshest sanctions yet. This includes reducing oil exports to North Korea by 30 percent, banning all North Korean textile exports, restricting the hiring of overseas labor from North Korea, and expanding the inspection of North Korean ships on the high seas.

Beijing  North Koreas main trading partner  has begun implementing more sanctions. South Korean newspaper Hankyoreh reported Sept. 29 that Beijing has ordered North Korean businesses in China and Chinese-North Korean joint ventures to shut down by early January. It has also begun restricting coal, seafood and garment imports from North Korea and exports of some petroleum products.

While Washington demands that Pyongyang give up its nuclear weapons, President Trump says nothing about the U.S. nuclear arsenal. The U.S. rulers have enough nuclear weaponry to destroy the planet many times over.

Washington is the only government in the world that has ever used a nuclear weapon, dropping atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. During the Korean War, President Harry Truman had nuclear weapons transported to the Korean Peninsula and threatened to use them against North Korean and Chinese combatants who were fighting to defend the Korean peoples right to a united, undivided nation. Neither China nor North Korea had a single nuclear weapon at the time. Worried about the political price the U.S. rulers would pay if they used nukes again, in the end Truman ordered the bombs returned to the U.S.

Working people the world over aspire to an earth thats free of these and other weapons of mass destruction, the Socialist Workers Party and Young Socialists said in a message of solidarity to the people of the DPRK Sept. 8.

The Socialist Workers Party and Young Socialists join with others across the world to demand: U.S. troops, ships, planes, and THAAD missile and radar systems out of Korea! For a Korean Peninsula and Pacific and Asia free of nuclear weapons! Korea is one!





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(special feature)

Thousands protest anti-drug killing by cops

in Philippines

Workers, students discuss deepening social crisis

MANILA, Philippines  Thousands of working people and students have been joining protests here against the recent cop killing of 17-year-old high school student Kian Loud delos Santos and others in Caloocan City, a mostly poor, northern Manila working-class district.

A four-person team  myself and Linda Harris from the Communist League Australia, Janet Roth from the CL in New Zealand and Philippe Tessier, Communist League candidate for mayor of Montreal  learned about this fight during a trip here in mid-September.

Popular support for Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, elected last year, has been bolstered by an expansion of the Philippine economy  a product of a recent investment boom. Many working people also support action against widespread drug traffic and violence on the streets, and have been drawn behind Dutertes murderous war on drugs and crime.

Delos Santos was one of 82 people killed by Manila-area cops Aug. 16 in one of the authorities so-called anti-drug operations, this one called the one time, big time initiative. Large protests led by family members erupted after surveillance camera video and eyewitness reports showed delos Santos was dragged across a schoolyard by cops Jerwin Cruz, Jeremias Pereda and Arnel Oares and shot three times while he knelt in front of them. This blew apart the cops lie that he died in a gun-battle.

The cold-blooded killing galvanized broader opposition to the regimes cop and vigilante killings.

The outrage was so widespread that Duterte had to order the arrest of the cops, who were charged with murder. A public Senate inquiry into the killing was launched. You are not allowed to kill a person that is kneeling down begging for his life, Duterte said. That is murder.

I used to believe in Dutertes promise to end crime, 20-year-old college student Michael Alberto Darang told the Sydney Morning Herald at delos Santos funeral Aug. 27. But I never wanted deaths for the innocent. Stop these killings. Instead, arrest drug lords and others.

We were in the Philippines to visit the Polytechnic University of the Philippines at the invitation of the Circle of Young Socialists and PUP SPEAK  Students Party for Equality and Advancement of Knowledge  a student group that won last years student council elections.

As many as 5,000 went to the wake and funeral for Kian, including people from many organizations, Elijah San Fernando, a leader of CYS and chair of PUP SPEAK, told the Militant. He said students at the university mobilized for weeks in demonstrations against cop abuse and murders.

Duterte is protecting the drug lords, Fernando said. Many Filipino politicians try to excuse the extrajudicial killings of teenagers and even children as collateral damage.

The government admits to 3,450 deaths from gun battles, which the cops call nanlaban, meaning self-defense, since Dutertes election.

The drug menace is real, Fernando said, but more people are now rejecting the bloody anti-drug campaign of Duterte. Drug use is a public health problem. No jobs, low wages, the difficulty in getting access to public services  the system itself is the problem.

In an effort to defuse the mounting protests and public revulsion, the police command announced Sept. 15 that the entire cop force at Caloocan, with the exception of the newly installed chief and his deputy, would be reassigned and retrained.

Students snapped up copies of the Militant and books by leaders of the Socialist Workers Party when we set up literature tables at the university, with assistance from CYS and PUP SPEAK activists. Many wanted to discuss U.S. and world politics, the Cuban Revolution and womens liberation. This was one reflection of the openings in the Philippines for working-class fighters and youth to reach new people with communist ideas.

Workers face slum conditions

Circle of Young Socialists members also took us to a poor, working-class area in Malabon, in the north of Manila Sept. 14. Emily Cano, organizer of the Ang Bagong Bahay Housing Cooperative, and others from the neighborhood welcomed us with a boodle fight  a meal of rice, fish, chicken and vegetables laid out on banana-leaf-covered tables. Afterwards they took us on a tour of the area  small houses jammed together along narrow alleyways with an open drain in the middle.

Cano had been a domestic worker in Abu Dhabi in the 1980s. For the past 15 years, she has led community protests by coop members demanding the government build decent housing to replace the slums.

She and others showed us where the water levels reached during flooding after a recent typhoon. They receive no aid from the municipality to repair flood damage, which occurs regularly. We saw volunteer community workers rebuilding a washed-out bamboo bridge across the canal.

They showed us houses gutted from fires caused by electrical faults. Many working people in the poorer areas are forced to tap into the water and power supplies illegally just to live, Cano said.

Street crime is a problem, she said, explaining how gangs roam the area, committing robberies and rape. Comments by community members we met, as well as signs on some of their doors, made it clear that these conditions have led people to support Dutertes campaign to clean up the streets.

Almost every night, people find bodies by the canal or roadway, shot in the head execution-style, Cano said. Two mayors who were opposed to Duterte were murdered.





Related articles:

Protest marks 5 years since cops killed Mohamed Bah







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We will look again at student finance, freeze tuition fees and raise the amount you can earn before paying back.2/3  Theresa May (@theresa_may) October 1, 2017

.@Theresa_May, you tripled tuition fees and just increased them to 9,250 a year. Promising not to raise them again is meaningless. #Marr https://t.co/yZsSZ6MBWW  Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) October 1, 2017

Pay more fees under the Tories or no fees under Labour. Having literally just put up fees in the last month by 250 this pledge is worthless https://t.co/oaLeeMsZum  Luke Pollard MP (@LukePollard) October 1, 2017

The government have also announced plans to freeze undergraduate tuition fees in England despite only just raising the fee from 9,000 to 9,250.Despite the freeze, new students that started in September are still expected to pay an extra 250 that previous feshers. Those beginning in the next academic year will not be paying 9,500. Many have considered the commitment insufficient compared to Labours pledge to get rid of tuition fees altogether. Jeremy Corbyn tweeted May, saying that her promise not to raise fees was 'meaningless.'Labour MP Luke Pollard also criticised the announcement saying:The Liberal Democrats were also quick to dismiss the proposal, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, Vince Cable compared it to a panicky bribe. BBC News reported that the plan to increase the repayment threshold was created to tackle the high loss rate (45p per pound) that exists on student loans, estimating that the effects of the new policy are unlikely to be seen in any debt statistics until after 2022. Thus suggesting that the Conservatives bold promise might have minimal impact on students in the near future.
A female-only Cambridge University college has made the decision to change its policy to allow any students who identify as female to apply after motion on transgenders was passed by the College Council.

Previously, Murray Edwards college required all its applicants to be legally defined as female but has now updated its entry criteria to include anyone who at the point of application identifies as a woman.

On its website, the college whose alumni include Sue Perkins and Claudia Winkleman wrote:

With so much gender inequality still in the world, there is a role for a college able to focus on outstanding young women, their learning and skills for life.

In a statement issued by the college, they said:

"In relation to current students, we consider each case on an individual basis, focusing on what is in the best interests of that individual, in full discussion with that student.

"Should the student decide that they would prefer to be in a mixed college if transitioning to male or if rejecting a binary gender category, the College would be fully supportive of a transfer."

In an interview with The Daily Telegraph former lecturer Germaine Greer called the decision ridiculous.

"Its a silly situation, and Im sure that Murray Edwards will have their own reasons.

"But its a difficult relationship, having a transgender person in an all-female environment.

"If they really dont believe that gender is binary, then they really shouldnt be a single-sex college. Their position is ridiculous. The only sane thing for them to do is to cease discriminating on the basis of assigned gender of any kind."

Author of Women vs Feminism, Dr Joanna Williams stated that the decision will mark the end of women-only spaces.'

"This college was set up several decades ago when things were very different for female students. If some women want to have a women-only space, if they choose to be there, they should have every right to do that.

"To then learn that youre sharing your dormitory, your bathroom with someone who is biologically male is an infringement on your right to choose the right the educational environment you chose."

The college has defended its decision, stating that this change does not challenge the institutions single-sex status but it recognises that how we define women is changing.

Senior tutor at Murray Edwards, Juliet Foster said, "our position is very clear, we want to be open to all outstanding young women, and we felt that society is changing and there is greater understanding of the complexities surrounding gender.

"We felt that was therefore in line with our values to accept all women, including transgender people who identify as female."
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Right of way

At around the age of one, the earliest milestone in every humans life occursthey take their first step. From crawling about on all floors or being carried by a parent, the child, for the first time, becomes independently mobile. The world is suddenly all around them and under their feet. This is the instance when the child realises, they have autonomy.
Chandan Kumar Mandal is the environment and migration reporter for The Kathmandu Post, covering labour migration and governance, as well as climate change, natural disasters, and wildlife.
SSF-N, RJP-N form alliance for upcoming polls

Two Madhes-based parties, which pulled off a good performance in the local elections in Province 2, have decided to form an electoral alliance for the upcoming federal and provincial polls in a move that could dent the ruling Nepali Congress (NC)s plan to form a broader democratic alliance to counter a recently announced left electoral alliance.




We, editorial board members of theperspective.org, reflect the countrys ethnic diversity, and, considering how crucial the elections will be towards achieving reconciliation and sustainable peace thought it prudent to support the UPs Boakai  Nuquay ticket for the presidency.



Unlike most news organs, ours had never endorsed a political party or any standard bearer, but we view this watershed moment as a public service in helping voters make informed decisions with the aforementioned collective aspirations in mind. Post  war Liberia was already a fractured nation, so when one adds growing class, ethnic, and partisan schisms, there is no doubt that the people deserve a unifier like Joseph N. Boakai (JNB); someone who is unassuming, endearing, mature, responsive, decisive, honest, and wise, attributes necessary in guiding consensus to lead the nation towards unity and progress. And those are the leadership qualities we saw in JNB which make us convinced he should be at the helm to bridge a divided nation.



It would be foolhardy on our part to wish away the efforts of some opposition political groups to make these elections a referendum on the UP  led government, because as a news organ we arent unmindful of the incontestable truism that the foundation for any democracy is contained in the rule of law, accountability and transparency, or the fact that corruption and impunity undermine these three cardinal pillars (Quote from farewell message, John Morlu II).



Admittedly, there were failures, plus a slow start in infrastructural development - hence job creations - was compounded by Ebola and the fall in the prices of Liberias major exports. On the other hand, we are mindful of the tremendous inroads in foreign relations from whence the nation regained not only its pre  civil war prestige but also benefitted materially as evidenced by new businesses, foreign and local. Most importantly, the peace is still holding in spite of severe tests in the last four years, and for that the populace remains grateful.



For several years, The Perspective fought against those who launched and perpetuated the senseless Liberian civil war that slaughtered over 250,000 hapless Liberians including women and children. So, it does not make sense for The Perspectiveto be complacent when it becomes obvious that those who administered those war crimes against our people are now controlling and manipulating the ensuing elections.



This is why we think that placing the country in untried inexperienced hands just for the purpose of meeting a so-called generational change mantra, amid skyrocketing toxic polarization, would be unwise and risky. Team work is foundational to actualizing organizational goals, therefore, without genuine reconciliation and justice, most likely, no political leadership would be able to effectively steer the ship of state through the storms and icebergs ahead.



Liberia needs the experience, wisdom, honesty, compassion, and abiding faith of JNB during these trying times. He is the only candidate in the race for the Executive Mansion with the temperament, capacity, and goodwill to unite all the disparate factions and colliding interests in our tension  filled motherland. If you love country and people, go and vote for the Boakai  Nuquay ticket. Dont say The Perspective didnt inform you!

What is your take? Please post your comments below:


"I stand up and announce that his best mate's got to sit down and shut up or bugger off.
Three persons, including a Bharatiya Janata Party leader were shot dead in Jharkhand, police said on Saturday.

BJP leader Manoj Nagesia was shot dead on Saturday at Lachragad village in Simdega district. The other two persons were killed in Gumla district on Friday.

Nagesia, who was a former Maoist commander, was shot while he was having breakfast.

He had joined the BJP in 2014 and had made an unsuccessful bid in the 2014 state assembly poll from Kolebira. The police were yet to arrest anyone for Nagesias murder.

In the other incident on Friday in Taisera village, 25-year-old Manohar Tirkey was shot dead by Vijay Sahu, who was immediately lynched by an angry mob.

Sahu shot Tirkey over a minor incident when the latter collided with Sahu while dancing at a tribal festival.

The villagers caught Sahu and thrashed him, smashing his head with stones. No one has been arrested for the killing.
The crisis over the future of Catalonia has deepened with Spains constitutional court suspending the session of the regional parliament, which was scheduled to meet next Monday to declare independence a week after the brutal state offensive had roiled the referendum.

The 9th of October may not be a watershed after all; the proposed unilateral declaration of freedom has been scuttled at the threshold. In effect, the judiciary has buttressed the executives action with the ruling that allowing the Catalan parliament to meet and potentially declare independence would violate the rights of the Socialist Partys MPs.

The judiciary has warned that any session carried out in defiance of its ban would be null, adding that parliaments leaders could face criminal action if they ignored the court order.

Markedly, the court action follows the warning by King Felipe that the Catalan authorities were trying to break the unity of Spain.

That unity has been jolted to its foundations since last Sunday and the ever so robust expression of sub-regional jingoism has been suppressed by the monarch, the government of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, and now the court. As the political turmoil intensifies, Catalonia will remain an economically exploited region for some time yet.

Carme Forcadell, president of the Catalan parliament, was suitably wary to clarify that Mondays session had not yet been formally convened, but that the courts decision to suspend it harms freedom of expression and the right of initiative of members of this parliament and shows once more how the courts are being used to solve political problems. The Catalan government is yet to firm up its response after having ignored the constitutional courts previous rulings, notably its order to suspend the referendum itself.

There is as yet no indication of a counter-mobilisation; rather the Catalan President, Carles Puigdemont, has spoken in favour of compromise. He has iterated his appeals for mediation and dialogue with the Spanish government, but said the results of the vote would be placed before Parliament.

On Sunday we had a referendum under the most difficult circumstances and set an example of who we are, he said. Peace and accord is part of who we are. We have to apply the results of the referendum. We have to present the results of the referendum to Parliament.

It devolves on the government in Madrid to respond and without exacerbating the turmoil further still. The referendum was as violent as it could be and it would be dangerous for Spain and Europe if Catalonias independence movement is reduced to a conflict between repressive state power and those in the vanguard of the struggle for freedom and self-determination.

For the Catalans, the thorniest issue is recognition by the government in Madrid and the European Union in the geopolitical context.
Shelling across Pakistan-India border kills six civilians, wounds 30, 3 children killed, 8 civilians injured in Pakistan Army firing in JKs Poonch  recent news from Jammu and Kashmir, echoing headlines the past three decades.

In total, how many have died through cross-border firing and infiltrated terrorists across Indias western border? 70,000? 700,000? Do Indias parliamentarians know? Like a dripping tap ignored until it bursts in a gush, a paradise called Kashmir bleeds for years as routine news  death of a soldier here, three border villagers killed there  until a major terrorist attack reminds everyone of cross-border terrorism.

The bare truth is that Indias current approach will not end killings in Kashmir. We see results of decades of Indias diplomacy in this headline in a Pakistani newspaper, September 23: UN address: PM tells India to stop sponsoring terror, come to talks. So people of Pakistan are informed that India is a terrorist state! Not just Pakistan, but Indias political leaders and the media too seem to live in a world of alternate reality.

By now we must have realised, surely, that conventional diplomacy has not worked, is not working and will not work in dealing with a military-controlled establishment that is rooted in deceit and denial of psychotic proportions.

And using merely words amid such reality is like blowing soap bubbles at a stone wall and hoping to break it down. At times, the unfortunate reality is that strong action unavoidably needs to be taken, to prevent further loss of lives. This is not with anger, or hatred, but with compassionate motive to save lives.

The forces of law and order do not sit down to prolonged negotiations with criminals committing murderous crimes. The urgency is to stop the criminal action. For over three decades, the people of India are victims of a country defiantly exporting terrorists into neighbouring countries. That country shelters masterminds of terrorist outrages like the brutal November 2008 attacks in Mumbai. Proof of Indias ineffective policies is that nearly nine years later, no credible action has been taken against the terror outfit responsible.

What are effective, practical, concrete actions needed to force Pakistan to stop its terrorist-breeding mischief? Spectacular speeches condemning Pakistan in the United Nations are not working. Trading insults like two nucleararmed rowdies is not working.

After Foreign Minister Sushma Swarajs strong message in the UN, within an hour Pakistan again raked up the Kashmir issue. Other familiar news followed: Army post attacked near LoC in Kupwara, Terrorists kill BSF jawan Ramzan Parray, injure family members in Kashmir.

The only strong message can be through silent action, not well-crafted speeches. No point complaining to the international community about a terrorist state, when the biggest victim, India, has incredibly taken no meaningful measures to put tangible pressure on the terrorist state.

Within 48 hours after India in the U.N called Pakistan terroristan, the US government released $225 million to Pakistan in conditional funding to fight terrorism! And so with confusion and contradictions, Indias worst foreign policy failure continues for decades after Pakistans General Zia-ul-Haq launched the cowardly proxy war on India.

Like a highway toll plaza, the daily death toll in Jammu & Kashmir has become a routine. The Parliament, media and people jump up spluttering only after a major terrorist attack. We are at war with Pakistan, for three decades.

Count the death toll in Kashmir the past three decades to understand that reality. To end this war, the western border needs to be in more capable hands of the Indian army. Whatever needs to be done has to be done, such that no one in future even dares think of sneaking in another terrorist into Indian soil.

Challenges like the nuclear deterrent have to be confronted, simply because we cannot allow Kashmir to suffer this endless pain  not for another day, not for another year and definitely not for another thirty years.

It means unavoidably and urgently giving the Indian army a free hand to proactively do what is needed, to end the Pakistan-origin, daily bloodshed in Kashmir  once and for all. Efficient measures are needed, like a buffer zone to end the underground tunnels used to sneak in terrorists.

US President Donald Trump gave the US army strategic and logistics freedom against the ISIS, and that vicious gang of murderers is now on the run. Indias Border Security Force was created for conventional international borders, to deal with smugglers and illegal immigrants  not for a frontier under continuous attack from a criminalized army and its hired terrorists.

Srinagar, the capital of Jammu & Kashmir, still resembles other Indian state capitals in the 1980s. Decades of growth have been lost because of letting Kashmir bleed for decades. The sinister terrorist plan is to create perpetual tension between people of Kashmir and soldiers who protect them.

That can end only when India proactively ends crossborder mischief, at its source  and the people of Kashmir are safe without needing soldiers in their streets. Our courageous armed forces reacting only after terrorists enter India only ensures a perpetual loop of threats.

The reality has to be realised that there can be no normalcy with a terrorist state until there is genuine democracy in that country. Realistically, there can be no genuine peace with the current twin tracks of tense normalcy and murderous cross-border mischief running in parallel for eternity.

Overdue time to take practical actions needed to ensure that the military-criminal forces in the neighboring country stops infiltrating terrorists into Kashmir  in total violation of the Shimla Agreement  and stops engineering violence and other crimes like circulating counterfeit currency in India.

To make mistakes is human  whether in personal life or governmental policies. But to repeat the mistakes is foolishness, to repeat the foolishness is abnormal absurdity, and to repeat abnormal absurdities is insanity.

Overdue time for India to more effectively use the annual defense expenditure of Rs 3.59 lakh crores (US $53.5 billion) to end the insanity of foreign forces allowed to wage a sneaky war on this country for over three decades  particularly against the people and children of long-suffering Kashmir.

(The writer is a senior Mumbai-based journalist.)
It has been a decisive prologue to a crucial ideological session. Ahead of the 19th Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) from 18 October, President Xi Jinping has reshuffled the omnipotent Peoples Liberation Army, which is no less a powerful entity than the party.

The Congress will almost certainly extend Xis term as the partys general secretary for another five years. Hence his anxiety to strengthen his power-base in the worlds largest military.

Given the opaque nature of Chinas governance ~ even in the post-Mao era ~ it is hard not to wonder whether there were differences at the helm.

Not least because the changes have been effected at the very top of the military hierarchy. It thus comes about that General Fang Fenghui, head of the Joint Staff Department, Central Military Commission (CMC), and General Zhang Yang, head of its Political Work Department, have been removed in Tuesdays shake-up of the 2.3-millionstrong PLA.

This will without question enhance Xis dominance over the military during his second term. The President heads the all-powerful CMC, which is the overall high command of the PLA, and Xi happens to be the only civilian in the 11-member entity.

The removal of Fang and Zhang would suggest that Xi is cementing his control over the military. Is it possible that there were differences over that control? An answer to that question may not be available anytime soon; at any rate, not quite yet.

Suffice it to register that Xi has entrenched his authority further still and he has done so a fortnight before he is awarded with another innings at the crease. Fang has been replaced by Gen. Li Zuocheng, a decorated veteran of the Sino-Vietnamese war.

Admiral Miao Hua, formerly the PLA Navys political commissar, has been appointed as head of the Political Work Department in place of Gen. Zhang. Both are known for their proximity to Xi.

Indeed, proximity to the person at the helm is the thread that marks strategic appointments with every change of guard in the subcontinents respective General Headquarters.

Yet in the case of China, it would be hasty to speculate whether the reshuffle is the outcome of the recent Doklam kerfuffle. As the countrys President and head of the military, Xi is doubtless more powerful compared to his predecessor, Hu Jintao.

In his first term, he had carried out a massive anti-graft campaign in the party and military in which thousands of officials were either punished or purged. It can reasonably be presumed that, with ardent loyalists at the helm, the cleansing will continue.

It is generally expected that he will use the party Congress to restructure the Central Military Commission. He has made the contours clear over the past few years ~ a crackdown on corruption and graft within the army and revamping the PLA, notably by truncating the strength of the worlds largest military and according to his lights.
The August Rebellion had erupted with the slogan of Do or Die. It had certain specific features ~ (a) targeting of government outfits was pre-meditated with the objective of destroying the symbols of the British Raj; (b) it was also emphasised that privateproperty ought not to be damaged or destroyed; (c) there was a well-planned move both by Indian industrialists and workers to subvert the economy; (d) the Muslims did not participate in the rebellion reaffirming the cleavage between the two communities.

This underscored the fact that the Muslims never believed that the Congress represented their interest. They consolidated themselves as a separate force; (e) the British never expected such a massive rebellion and at the beginning the effort was to underplay its impact. However, the Viceroy subsequently admitted that the Quit India movement was by far the most serious rebellion since 1857.

The massive use of extralegal methods and strict censorship had crippled the rebellion by mid-September 1942. This enabled the Raj to recover almost all the areas which had been liberated by the rebels.

But a well-organised underground resistance continued. It demonstrated that Indians were capable not only of bravery and sacrifice, but also possessed a remarkable capacity to function as a secret military force with excellent coordination, radio stations and use of trained fighters and firearms. The leadership was provided by the socialists, preeminently Jayprakash Narayan, Ram Manohar Lohia, Achyut Patwardhan, and Aruna Asaf Ali. This underground activity continued till early 1944.

Though the August rebellion could not win Indias freedom, yet in advancing the cause of Independence, it had enormous significance. It demonstrated the peoples will to attain independence and that the people were ready for any sacrifice to achieve it.

The British also realised that it would not be possible to rule India for long even with the use of the repressive forces that it commanded. It preceded the revolt of the Indian ratings just before Independence and the tremendous popular support for the INA trials.

The British perception, expressed by Seeley at the end of the nineteenth century, that Indians lacked a sense of nationalism and the empire can be maintained at nominal cost was shattered. The most serious outcome was the total removal of the Congress and Gandhi from the political scene and the refusal of the British administration to enter into any discussion with the party.

The Congess denied the charge that it was responsible for the violence. Yet it refused to withdraw the Quit India resolution. The absence of the Congress enabled the Muslim League to spread its wings all over India. It consolidated its hold over the Muslims and this paved the way for Pakistan. It also set up a Muslim National Guard.

The increasing prominence and domination of Jinnah became apparent when the Gandhi-Jinnah talks were held in September 1944, to evolve a settlement ~ an effort that failed. In Nepal, given the repressive rule of the Ranas, political dissidence shifted to India and the two future Prime Ministers, BP Koirala, and MP Koirala, joined the civil disobedience and Quit India movement.

Prof Jayanta Kumar Ray has observed that the absence of the Congress from the political scene created a windfall for Jinnah and he successfully promoted the idea of Partition. He adds that Gandhi and his followers could be accused of lack of foresight and vision. Particularly puzzling was the fact that Gandhis present action was a total reversal of his earlier stand. Indians were unprepared for any kind of passive resistance against the empire.

In June 1942, Ambedkar was nominated to the Viceroys Executive Council and at the same time, the Quit India movement was conceived and his opposition to the Congress grew. The Communists opposed it because after the German invasion of the Soviet Union, the imperialist war became a peoples war. C Rajagopalachari, one of the most respected Congress leaders, opposed the Quit India movement with an alternative plank to find ways and means of finding common ground with the British.

His estrangement from the Congress became total when he pleaded for a rapproachment with Jinnah. His warning that the Quit India movement would further alienate the Congress from the Muslims and the British was prophetic. In retrospect, what was the net gain for us from the Quit India movement?

The government did not initiate any discussion and even the possibility of Gandhis death did not alter its stand. Undoubtedly, the Muslim League and Jinnah increased their strength by consolidating their posistion in Punjab and Bengal. As Ramachandra Guha has remarked: Jinnah demanded and obtained a further parity, of himself with Gandhi.

The Communists, even after opposing the Quit India movement, increased their strength and contact with people specially in Bengal and Andhra Pradesh. The Hindu Mahasabha also enhanced its influence and support base, MN Roy and his followers also opposed the Quit India movement but their influence and impact continued to be marginal.

However, the Mahatmas blunder was not to call for the Quit India Movement but to accept Jinnah as the sole leader of the Muslim League in 1944. As Maulana Azad wrote in his India wins Freedom, the supremacy that Jinnah enjoyed was a gift of Gandhi. Large sections of the Indian Muslims were doubtful about Mr Jinnah and his policy but when they found that Gandhiji was continually running after him and entreating him, many of them developed a new respect for Jinnah.

Clement Atlee, the Labour Prime Minister, when asked in 1959, about the impact of the Quit India movement on the British decision to leave India, replied that it was minimal. This was a gross understatement as a letter of Anthony Eden to Winston Chruchill revealed his confession that the biggest challenge for Britain was to keep India within the Commonwealth for the next ten years.

Eden added: Next to wining the war, keeping India in the Empire, should be the supreme goal of British policy.

The historical importance of such epochal events cannot be gauged by some of its immediate and unexpected outcomes. The explosive situation created by the failure of the Cripps Mission and the Quit India movement fuelled the anger and frustration of the entire nation.

The subsequent floods and the Bengal famine also dissilusioned the people, for which Gandhi cannot be blamed. Though the British did suppress the rebellion by force, in the long run the suppression was counter-productive.

The subsequent victory of the Congress in all the elections was enough to prove that the immense sacrifice of so many ordinary Indians was not in vain.

(Concluded)

(The writer is former Professor, Department of Political Science, University of Delhi)
Director General of Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Soumya Swaminathan has been appointed to the second-highest position at the United Nations health agency and will soon be taking over as the deputy director-general, World Health Organisation (WHO), in Geneva. A paediatrician and clinical scientist, she also holds the post of secretary in the department of health research in India.

Armed with a post-doctoral medical fellowship in pediatric pulmonology from the Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, University of Southern California, and a research fellowship from the department of pediatric respiratory diseases, University of Leicester, UK, Dr Swaminathan joined the Tuberculosis Research Centre, Chennai, in 1992 and has spent the past 25 years in health research. Known globally for her research in tuberculosis, she aims to free the nation of TB by 2035.

She is the daughter of M S Swaminathan, the father of the green revolution in India. In an interview to AJITA SINGH, Dr Swaminathan says the entire burden of tackling TB lies on developing nations as it is a povertydriven disease and pharma companies  West or East ~ do not like to invest in non-profitable ventures.

Why the focus on TB?

My research interests include pediatric and adult tuberculosis, epidemiology and pathogenesis, the role of nutrition and HIV-associated TB. For two years I was coordinator, Neglected Tropical Diseases at TDR, and have sat on several WHO and global advisory bodies and committees on public health, TB, innovation and intellectual property.

Incidences of multidrug-resistant (MDR) and extensively drugresistant (XDR) tuberculosis (TB) ~ associated with high mortality rate ~ are on the rise in India, while threatening to derail the progress achieved in controlling the disease, researchers say. What is your opinion?

Nearly one in five cases of TB are now resistant to at least one major anti-TB drug and approximately five per cent of all cases of TB are classed as MDR (resistant to two essential first-line TB drugs, isoniazid and rifampicin) or XDR (also resistant to fluoroquinolones and second-line injectable drugs). MDR and XDR-TB which are associated with high mortality ~ 40 per cent for MDR-TB patients and 60 per cent for XDR-TB patients ~ are a threat to health-care workers, prohibitively expensive to treat and are therefore a serious public health problem.

What is the status of TB control worldwide and in India?

TB, caused by a bacterial species called Mycobacterium tuberculosis, is estimated to have killed 1.8 million people worldwide in 2015. Out of these, six countries ~ India, Indonesia, China, Nigeria, Pakistan and South Africa ~ accounted for 60 per cent of the total number of cases of TB. Globally in 2015, there were an estimated 480000 cases of MDR-TB, with approximately half of these cases being in India, China and Russia.

Has ICMR devised an action plan for TB control?

Public health programmes on tuberculosis are under renewed focus because of the high burden of disease in the country as well as in the world. TB exists on an epic scale in India, and cases of multidrug resistant TB are an increasing concern. Access to drugs to treat TB, including drug resistant TB, is a major concern.

Over half a million deaths are due to TB. It is much higher than revised estimates last year. Incidences of multiple drug-resistant TB are increasing with each passing year. In order to control it, focus is being shifted to diagnostic tools. ICMR has initiated End TB Strategy ~ a scheme to end tuberculosis incidences and mortality by the end of 2035. Resistance to anti-tuberculosis drugs is a global problem that threatens to derail efforts to eradicate the disease.

With resistance, the treatment can take years and the drugs used can have unpleasant and sometimes serious side-effects. Though we had an interim goal to reduce by 90 per cent TB mortality and 80 per cent incidence by 2025 and 2030, our Finance Minister announced in the 2017 Budget to bring an end to TB by 2025. Not only has he advanced the elimination date but also accorded more funds for the purpose.

How do you intend to achieve it?

Better tools are needed. Right now diagnosis is by sputum-level examination. (This is) an insensitive test for we miss out on lots of cases. The objective is to develop molecular diagnostic techniques at primary health centre-level that are also low cost. A completely indigenous product has been developed which will replace the costly testing kits. This will be effective in diagnosing extra pulmonary infections and also in children that cannot be diagnosed with sputum.

The Ministry of Health is preparing a plan not only to eradicate TB but also other vector-borne diseases like kalaazar, leprosy, measles and filariasis. Drug combinations are being used for mass drug administration (MDA) too.

What are the challenges before the medical fraternity?

Most are in the field of treatment. In the last 40 years, no new drugs have been developed. Only two new drugs have been identified. The aim is to develop drugs that are efficacious, safe, and have short-term treatments. Drug development is a long, expensive process requiring lots of resources and huge investments.

No pharmaceutical company is willing to put in around 2.5 billion dollars for the purpose as it is not a profitable venture. Actually, TB is a disease of poverty unlike cancer, hypertension, diabetes, obesity or cardiovascular diseases which majorly affect the rich who can shell out big amounts of money. Hence, the governments have to come forward ~ PPP models with industry need to be developed to help link promising leads into drug development and clinical trials.

As ICMR chief did you have any plan for public health?

We have a 10-year strategy that will have five priority focus areas that are very much aligned with the objectives of the ICMR health research.

Can you name some?

First is the health research capacity expansion. Eighty per cent of health research output from 460 medical colleges has nothing significant in so many years. More than half of these have not published a single research paper. This is the state of health research at present. Several schemes are ongoing since DHR was set up. Also new ones have been initiated at medical student level. For instance, we have short-term studentship programmes.

For this some 7000 applications have been received from medical students. Of these, 1,000 are fellowships ~ both JRFs and SRFs. Right now only three universities, including King George Medical University, Lucknow, NIMHANS, Bengaluru, and Chennai Medical College and Hospital conduct research but we would like to encourage MCI to involve more universities in research expansion. New online courses are being developed in medical education.

Five to six thousand doctors across the country are taking up courses in the area of ethics. Regional centres are being developed to act on behalf of ICMR.
Much has been said about the National League for Democracy (NLD)-led elected governments stance on peace and security in recent weeks, with attention being drawn to the conflicts in the North Rakhine State and the actions of Myanmars de facto leader, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

Within the country there is concern, however, on the state of the economy. Recently, Professor Sean Turnell of Macquarie University of Australia, the Special Economic Consultant to the State Counsellor of Myanmar, came out to paint a positive picture of the Myanmar economy at his briefing Myanmars Economy 2017: Taming Dragons, Finding Tigers.

He said the NLD government has saved the economy from bankruptcy, after the so-called sugar-rush spending during the final years of the previous U Thein Sein administration. The previous government was wasteful as it pushed the budget deficit to 4.5 per cent of GDP in 2015- 16, which was funded through the printing of money. Prof Turnell said the NLD government had reduced the budget deficit to 2.5 per cent of GDP in 2016- 17.

He forecast optimistically that Myanmars GDP growth would be 6.9 per cent this year, putting it among the worlds top five fastest growing nations. Echoing his remarks, Myanmars National Planning and Finance Minister U Kyaw Win likened Myanmar to an aircraft on a runway in 2016, but ready to take off in 2017 at a forum with local and foreign business persons. He affirmed Our mission is also trying to fix things to boost the economy, he asserted.

However, World Banks Myanmar Economic Monitor estimates that Myanmars economy slowed down in 2016-2017, with growth expected to moderate to 6.5 per cent from 7.3 per cent in the previous year. On the streets, ordinary people have been complaining of higher daily food prices and businesses have few positive things to say about the governments economic measures. De facto leader Suu Kyi is seen paying attention to peace as priority, but her supporters say the economy is coming into focus!

The NLD-led government in fact has been slow to set up a new Investment Commission. It took six months after it came into office to announce various economic measures, which were subject to visible delays.

When Myanmars 12-point economic policy came out on 29 July 2016  four months after the new administration was formed  there were questions on implementation. The policy outlines were rather vague.

They were portrayed as a people-centred policy, with broad grass root participation. It raised hopes on actions towards national reconciliation, protection of natural resources and setting up of an economic framework in order that the resources can be allocated equally and fairly among states and regions.

At first glance, the NLD governments policy appeared as a possible reversion of the previous governments policies. It suspended many government projects and subjected many to reviews. There were delays to payments and some construction works were suspended. Additionally, the Yangon Chief Minister ordered the suspension and review of high-rise construction in his domain, the business capital of Myanmar, which further weakened local construction activities. Many people in business community have criticised the government for its lack of serious attention to economic policy as priority and a novices approach to getting things done. Many in town said life is as tough as ever, including once privileged cronies, as business opportunities dried up and the state pursued higher tax collection.

A year after government formation, ministers said they were serious about economic reforms; would pursue macroeconomic stability, encourage small and medium enterprises (SMEs) development and ensure more credit to private sector at micro level.

Prof Turnell said at a recent economic forum that the Myanmar government had introduced a number of important financial sector reforms in recent months and stricter capital requirements and liquidity ratios for private banks. In April this year, the government enacted regulations for a new investment law  introducing a new regime of incentives based on geography and sector  and in July, it submitted a draft company law to Parliament. In September 2016, the US surprised many with the decision to lift all of its remaining economic sanctions on Myanmar. One hundred and eleven individuals and companies were taken off the blacklist.

The US also reinstated Myanmars trade GSP (Generalised System of Preferences) scheme. The status grants Myanmar tax privileges on exports to the worlds largest economy and in turn brings in foreign investment into the industrial sector.

But, those economic opportunities seem in vain as Myanmar is far from ready to export its products or services. Moreover, some critics say the NLD government has neither a broad economic vision nor the ability to create harmonious economic condition to attract local and foreign investors.

The government reported that Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) grew in 2017-18, with more than US$3 billion worth of investment approved by the Myanmar Investment Commission in the first four months of the fiscal year, which is well ahead of the governments $6 billion target. However, one must distinguish between FDIs on paper and actual inflows.

Frequently they may differ. According to media reports, agriculture, mining, oil and gas, and construction received no investment, but a few million USD came in transport and communication, manufacturing, power generation, and hotels and tourism sectors. There are necessary conditions for Myanmars economy to grow and the government must acknowledge that business confidence is most important to increase investments and domestic consumption spending.

The government needs to cut bureaucracy, red tape, increase investment in infrastructure (especially in transport, logistics, and providing electricity) and support SMEs in securing land, finance and accessing new technology, in the short term. Education must be reformed for long-term productivity enhancement.

The Myanmar Economic policy outlined objectives to nurture human resources, to give high priority to develop infrastructure such as electricity, roads and ports, and to set up a Data ID Card System, Digital Government Strategy and e-Government System, to create job opportunities for all Myanmar citizens who live in Myanmar and who arrived back from foreign countries to Myanmar.

Yet, its performances against these objectives are far from realisation, and unfortunately, recent racial tension and conflict in Northern Rakhine State as well as international pressure on human rights is shifting further attention to security, rather than economy.

(The writer is Editor-in-charge, Eleven Media Group, Myanmar. This is a series of columns on global affairs written by top editors and columnists from members of the Asia News Network.)
The bodies of 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians who were murdered in 2015 by Islamic State (IS) militants, were discovered in Libyas coastal city of Sirte, officials said.

The bodies were found on the outskirts of the coastal city with their hands cuffed behind their backs, dressed in the same orange jumpsuits they were wearing in a video that showed their beheading, the Libyan attorney generals office announced on Friday night.

It added that victims heads were found nearby, and DNA tests would be carried out in order to identify the bodies, reports Efe news.

The discovery comes a week after Attorney General Sadiq al Sour, announced that government troops had captured one of the militants who had filmed the execution.
Irans Foreign Ministry spokesman on Friday categorically denied the reports that Tehran is ready to talk with powers over its ballistic missile programme.

Iran has repeatedly announced that its defence programme will never be subject to negotiations, Xinhua cited IRNA news agency that quoted spokesman Bahram Qasemi as saying.

Developing missile programme is Irans inalienable right and will determinedly be continued in line with the countrys strategic and conventional defence programme, said Qasemi.

On Friday, western media quoted an unnamed source as saying that Iran has suggested to six world powers that it may be open to talks about its ballistic missile arsenal, seeking to reduce tension over the disputed programme.

Iran and the US are at loggerheads over Irans missile programme. Over the past months, Washington has imposed sanctions on some Iranian and international entities linked with Tehrans missile tests.

Iranian military and governmental officials have unanimously vowed to bolster ballistic missile programme for deterrent purposes.
Rohingya militants whose attacks triggered an army crackdown in Myanmars Rakhine state unleashing a huge wave of refugees said today their one-month ceasefire would end in two days, but added they were open to peace if the government reciprocated.

In a statement released through its Twitter account, the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) said its unilateral truce would end at midnight on October 9. The humanitarian pause was conducted in order to enable humanitarian actors to assess and respond to the humanitarian crisis in Arakan (Rakhine), the statement said.

If at any stage, the Burmese government is inclined to peace, then ARSA will welcome that inclination and reciprocate, it said, using the former name for Myanmar. It did not include any direct threats of new violence. The armed group tipped northern Rakhine into crisis when it ambushed police posts on August 25.

The armys reprisal has been so sweeping and savage that the UN says it likely amounts to ethnic cleansing of the Muslim minority, who have faced decades of persecution. More than half a million Rohingya have fled into Bangladesh in six weeks, an exodus that has spiralled into one of the worlds most urgent refugee crises.

In its statement, ARSA said it had helped provide safe passage to refugees fleeing to Bangladesh.While the worst of the bloodshed appears to have abated in recent weeks, tens of thousands of Rohingya continue to stream over to Bangladesh, passing through a violence-scarred region where hundreds of villages have been reduced to smouldering ash.

Rohingya refugees and rights groups have accused the army of setting the fires with the help of Buddhist vigilante mobs. But the military has denied the charge, instead accusing militants of razing their own homes to drum up global support. Myanmar authorities have cut off access to the conflict zone, making it difficult to verify claims over who is driving the communal bloodshed that has intensified already bitter ethnic hatreds in Myanmar.

Aid groups have also been unable to reach vulnerable communities of Muslim Rohingya still living in the region, where tensions with Rakhine Buddhist neighbours are sky-high.

It is difficult to measure the fighting capacity of ARSA, a shadowy, poorly-armed group that claims to defend the Rohingyas political rights.In the squalid refugee settlements sprouting up in Bangladesh, alleged ARSA recruiters have told AFP that they have enlisted hundreds who are willing to go back to Myanmar to fight. Those claims could not be independently verified.

The Rohingya have faced decades of systematic repression in mainly Buddhist Myanmar, with many relegated to apartheid- like restrictions that analysts have long warned could breed extremism.
Montreal, CA (H4T1V6)

Today

Partly cloudy skies in the morning will give way to cloudy skies during the afternoon. High 37F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Cloudy. Snow showers developing after midnight. Low 31F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of snow 70%.
Organisation: Goodman

International Ltd

Duty Station: Kampala,

Uganda

About Us:

Goodman International Ltd a Pharmaceutical Company based in Kampala 

Uganda, dealing in Importation & Distribution of Human and Veterinary

Medicines, Agent & Local Technical Representative (LTR) for several

Manufacturers from Europe and Middle East.



Responsibilities: Key Duties andResponsibilities:

Strategic Partnership:



Serve as a strategic business partner to

management by ensuring a seamless adaptation and implementation of human

resource transformation and change management plan that builds the human talent

and sustainable capability of the people in view of the company objectives and

ambition.



Be an active member of the senior management

team, leading on change and HR management and providing high level input at

strategic and policy levels.



The adaptation and implementation of human

resource transformation and change management plan that build the human talent

and sustainable capability of the people in the view of the company objectives.

Recruiting and Staffing:



Develops and implements specific strategies,

policies and procedures in each of the following key areas of human resource

that reflect and support the companys needs, specifically;

o

Recruitment and selection.

o

Job evaluation.

o

Change management.

o

Employment contracts.

o

Learning and development.

o

Remuneration, compensation and rewards.

o

Performance and management appraisals.

Performance Planning and Communication (PPC).



Develop and regularly review Goodmans

performance process to make it user friendly. Coordinate annual performance

planning and communication process, training staff as needed on system

requirements, objective setting and performance communication skills. Identify

stall



Development opportunities and help leaders

create development opportunities for their staff.

Training and Development:



Selects, trains, motivates and evaluates

companys personnel performance, provides and coordinates training, works with

other SMT members to correct employees performance gaps and ensure that the

right caliber of staff are recruited.



Build leadership capacity and develop a high

performing senior management team, introduce and implement training for staff

in goal and objective setting, using SMART methodology to ensure that people

know how and where they contribute.



Establish and maintains appropriate

methodologies for measuring necessary aspects of HR development. Monitors,

measures and reports to HR issues, opportunities and development plans and

achievements within agreed formats and timescales.

Pay Administration:



Educate employees on salary structure and

grading system of Goodman International Ltd practices and respond to employee

questions on pay. Work with the CMD/Director and the SMT to develop and

implement annual revisions, conduct and participate in salary and benefits

surveys to ensure competitive compensation benefits and plans and share lessons

learned.

Policy manual administration and Legal Compliance:



Provide back up support in responding to

employee questions regarding the interpretation and application of adopted

personnel policies. Assist to create and maintain systems, implementing adopted

policies and educating staff on what is expected of them and what they are

entitled to under the policies. Assist to ensure that contractual,

compensation, financial and legal issues are compliant to the labor law of

Uganda.



Recommends, establishes and continuously

improves on HR Companys policies and procedures.



Manages and controls departmental expenditure

within agreed budgets.

Employee Relations:



Provides counsel to all employees on issues

concerning employee relations guided by Goodman International Ltd.



Establishes a positive employee relations

climate within the company that allows the business to move forward, while

taking into account the needs of employees.



Assists the CMD/Director and senior management

team in developing a new and positive wholesale company culture through change

management.



Improving culture, performance and processes.



Advise the SMT and area managers on how to

manage and resolve people issues.



Manages and develops direct reporting staff.



Manages health and safety concerns.



Provide guidance to staff on career development.

Legal Compliance:



Ensure HR practices are in compliance with the

Uganda employment laws.



Keep Goodman International Ltd leadership and

staff updated on changes to the law.

Facilities Responsibilities:



Supervises and coordinates activities of

administration staff.



Studies and reviews companys administration

procedures.



Recommends management action to improve

administrative departments standard operating procedures.



Selects, trains, motivate and evaluates

administrative personnel performance, provides and coordinates training within

own departments, works with employees to correct performance gaps.



Ensure that there is good company employee

communication.



Ensure that staff/ workers are satisfied.



Handle security and guard while on company

premises.



Handle issues concerning employee medical

insurance with AAR.



Participating in selecting and implementing the

monthly employee of the month.



Act as PA to the Managing director.



Supervise all departments regards to ISO

certificate practice.



Note; Any other duties that can be

assigned from time to time.











Experience: Qualifications, Skills andExperience:



The

ideal candidate for the Goodman International Human Resource

Manager/Administrator job placement

must hold a Bachelors degree in Human Resource Management. Theideal candidate for the Goodman International Human ResourceManager/Administrator job placementmust hold a Bachelors degree in Human Resource Management.



A

minimum of three years of related work experience in a junior role but in the

same department for at least five years minimum of three years of related work experience in a junior role but in thesame department for at least five years



Very

quick at learning and delivering g reports in time.



Excellent

communication skills.



Excellent

with leadership skills.



Ability

to work independently as well as in a team.



Computer

literacy skills i.e. proficiency in MS Office, power point.



High

degree of integrity.



Applicants

with Personal assistant working experience have an added advantage



Age: Below 35 years Below 35 years

NB:

Female candidates are advised to apply.

How to Apply:

All suitably qualified and interested candidates should hand deliver

their applications and updated CVs with one passport-size photo to:

The Human Resource Manager,

Goodman International Ltd,

Plot 24B, Hala Plaza Nakasero Road.

P.O. Box 21311, Kampala-Uganda

th

October 2017 Deadline: 20October 2017



find us on our Facebook page

For more of the latest jobs, please visit https://www.theugandanjobline.com orfind us on our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/UgandanJobline






The European Union (EU) gave thumbs up to India's Goods and Services Tax (GST) saying the new tax regime would facilitate ease of doing business.

Visiting EU leaders also welcomed India's efforts to promote economic and social development and expressed interest in participating in initiatives such as 'Make in India' 'Digital India', 'Skill India', and 'Start-Up India'.

"The EU closely follows Prime Minister Modi's economic reforms, including the historic introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), which can facilitate ease of doing business and promote market integration in India by realising a simple, efficient and nation-wide indirect tax system," an India-EU Joint Statement issued during India- EU Summit stated.

The 14th annual summit between India and the European Union (EU) was held here. India was represented by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The EU was represented by Donald Tusk, President of the European Council, and Jean Claude Juncker, the President of the European Commission.

Modi appreciated the ongoing participation by EU companies in the flagship initiatives and called for their deeper engagement in India's developmental priorities.

The statement further said that the EU side encouraged the greater participation of Indian business organisations into the Enterprise Europe Network.

"The leaders noted the progress made on EU-India cooperation on resource efficiency and circular economy. Both sides agreed to enhanced cooperation and exchange of experience and best practices in the field of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) and public procurement," it said.

The leaders expressed their shared commitment to strengthening the Economic Partnership between India and the EU and noted the ongoing efforts of both sides to re-engage actively towards timely relaunching negotiations for a comprehensive and mutually beneficial India-EU Broad Based Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA).

With regard to import tolerance level of tricyclazole in rice the relevant plant protection companies will be invited to present new scientific data in order for the European Food Safety Authority to carry out an additional risk assessment without delay, the statement said.

On this basis, the European Commission would expeditiously consider whether to review the above mentioned Regulation.

Both the sides also supported early institutionalisation of cooperation between the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to focus on exchange of knowledge and expertise in the area of methodologies for data collection, risk assessment and risk communication.

Leaders welcomed the establishment of an Investment Facilitation Mechanism (IFM) for EU investments in India as a means to improve the business climate and hoped that the IFM will ease sharing of best practices and innovative technology from the EU to India.

"Leaders acknowledged that the 'Make in India' initiative may offer investment opportunities for companies based in the EU Member States," it said.

Further, the two sides reiterated the importance of reconciling economic growth and environment protection.

"They highlighted the importance of moving towards a more circular economic model that reduces primary resource consumption and enhanced the use of secondary raw materials," the statement added.

Leaders also reaffirmed their commitment to work together with all Members of the WTO to make the 11th WTO Ministerial Conference a success with concrete results.
The Centre's decision to ease Know Your Client (KYC) norms for gold purchase has infused fresh life into a segment that was at the scare of plummeting to a 10-year low during the gold buying diwali season. Jewellers said they hope customers make a return at their counters.

However, a few concerns about gold purchase are still on their minds. "Though rules about KYC norms have been relaxed, gold purchase will still be subject to IGST. Gold is a commodity that is moved many times. E-way bill and IGST processes are impractical for such small amounts for any trader," said Kumar Jain, president of Bullion Merchants Association.

As per GST norms, any gold purchase above Rs 50,000 by jewellery makers are subject to an Inter-state GST, which in turn increases compliance burden on small jewellers and trade craftsmen. Gold purchases would also be subject to a mandatory three per cent GST rate. This, apart from gold craftsmanship (jewellery-making charges) being subject to a GST rate of five per cent, effective from October.

Earlier, gold making charges were subjected to 12 per cent duties under the GST. The recent reliefs offered by the government from its earlier stranglehold, are aimed at not just gold traders and jewellers but also the common gold buyer.

A government notification on Friday evening rescinded an August 23 notification that designated dealers in precious metals, precious stones and other high-value goods, as businesses mandated to report under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002. The new notification takes away the previous norms that required consumers to tender permanent account number (PAN) card and Aadhaar card for purchasing jewellery above Rs 50,000, a move aimed to stem black money.

The KYC norms had put pressure on jewellers and bullion traders as businesses suffered due to subdued demand.

Admitting the government's mistake and clarifying the government's withdrawal, Union revenue secretary Hasmukh Adhia said, "Earlier we thought we could have jewellers as reporting high-value purchase like banks and investment firms are already mandated to do. But it was spreading some misunderstandings on gold-buying, instead."

He, however, maintained that the government is in no mood to step back from its fight against black money. "We want high-value purchases to be reported. We will hold wider stakeholder consultation and take a decision in due course," added Adhia.

The dip in gold demand threatened bullion dealers who had stocked up on cheaper gold imports from south-east Asia, for catering to the festive demand. In August, Indian bullion dealers imported around 60 tonnes of gold, compared to 22.7 tonnes in the same month last year. Most of these dealers were taking advantage of a loophole that allowed duty-free gold imports from South Korea.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on a two-day visit to his poll-bound home state Gujarat, joined the development debate and applauded his successors in Gujarat for carrying out good work.

On Ocober 7, Modi attended various functions in Chotila and Gandhinagar. On Oct 8, he will visit his birthplace Vadnagar in North Gujarat. This will be his first visit to Vadnagar after becoming the Prime Minister.

The BJP in Gujarat has been stung by social media campaign Vikas gando thayo che (development has gone berserk) and it has come with a campaign to counter the critics, Hun Chu Vikas, Hun Chu Gujarat (I am development, I am Gujarat).

In a reply to those mocking development, Modi while laying foundation stone of a greenfield airport at Chotila, near Rajkot, asked the gathering whether they ever imagined that an airport would come up at Chotila.

Can coming up of an airport be called development, he asked and people replied in affirmative. He continued, Is such a development necessary, should such development take place, will it change the future of the state, will it change your children's future? The gathering replied in affirmative by shouting Modi Modi...

Modi asserted that it is impossible to provide houses for the poor without development.

Taking a dig at the previous governments at the Centre, Modi said that installing a hand pump was an indication of development back then and now the indication of development is taking Narmada waters through pipelines to villages and homes.

The Prime Minister said that development would follow once the airport gets completed and it would lead to a healthy competition between Surendranagar and Rajkot districts. He said that only 4 per cent land had to be bought from the farmers and rest of the 96 per cent land was lying useless.

At another programme in Jamnagar, Modi took on one of the most successful chief ministers of Gujarat Madhavsinh Solanki. He recalled that 38 years ago, Solanki's photo of inaugurating a water tank was published on the first page of a newspaper. Such narrow was their vision of development, the Prime Minister alleged, reminding the people that now the government is making bridges and roads.

State Congress president Bharatsinh Solanki, who is Solanki's son, reacted sharply to Modi's allegations. Giving basic amenities was the need of the hour then and the project was to supply water to 37 villages of Dwarka area, Bharatsinh said.

After launching Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan (PMGDISHA) while inaugurating the newly constructed building at IIT Gandhinagar, sources said that, Modi held a meeting with Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel, former Chief Minister Anandiben Patel and a couple of leaders from the party to discuss about upcoming polls.
AIADMK leader V.K. Sasikala on Friday walked out of the Parapana Agrahara central jail here after being granted emergency parole for five days to meet her husband, who underwent a liver and kidney transplant at a Chennai hospital.

The sidelined leader, at the end of her almost seven-hour long road trip from Bengaluru, arrived at the T Nagar residence of Krishna Priya, daughter of her relative Ilavarasi, in Chennai tonight with her supporters according her a grand welcome.

Supporters chanted "chinnamma vazhga" (Hail chinnamma) and showered flowers at her car as it slowly moved towards Priya's house.

Sasikala is addressed as "chinnamma" by her supporters.

She was accompanied from Bengaluru by her nephew and sidelined AIADMK leader T.T.V. Dhinakaran. She is slated to stay at T Nagar till the end of her parole period.

Sasikala had sought 15-day parole, but was granted only five days with tough conditions, including that she should not be involved in political or any other public activity or take part in party activities, jail authorities said.

During the emergency parole, the AIADMK leader will only be allowed to visit the hospital where her husband is admitted and stay at the residence as mentioned in the application, the authorities said.

It has also been stipulated in the conditions that she should not entertain any visitors either at her residence or the hospital.

Sasikala has also been restricted from interacting with the media--print or electronic, the authorities said.

Soon after completing the required formalities, Sasikala, accompanied by Dhinakaran, headed for Chennai by road.

After her first application was rejected on "technical grounds" on October 3 for not producing certain requisite documents, Sasikala had filed a fresh plea for parole.

Rajya Sabha member from Tamil Nadu, Navneet Krishnan, hasgiven an undertaking for Sasikala's parole, her lawyer Krisnappana told reporters outside the jail premises.

"Rs 1,000 surety also has been deposited," he added.

Around 100 supporters of 'Chinnamma' gathered outside the jail premises.

Krisnappana said Dhinakaran had arrived at the jail and completed the parole formalities.

The Tamil Nadu Police had earlier issued an NOC to the Karnataka government for granting parole to Sasikala, he said.

Sasikala's husband, M. Natarajan (74) underwent liver and kidney transplant on October 3 with the organs harvested from a brain-dead youth, according to Gleneagles Global Health City Hospital in Chennai.

Sasikala has been lodged in the Parapana Agrahara central jail since February after the Supreme Court upheld her conviction by a special court in a disproportionate assets case.

Her relatives Ilavarasi and V.N. Sudhakaran are also serving four-year jail terms in the case.
Deposed AIADMK leader V.K. Sasikala, who is serving a four-year jail term at the Bengaluru prison, visited her critically ill husband M. Natarajan at the Gleneagles Global Health city hospital on Saturday.

Despite restrictions, a huge crowd gathered in front of her relatives T Nagar residence and also near the hospital. Cadres' screams of Thyaga Thai Chinnamma rent the air. While the cabinet ministers of the Edappadi Palaniswami government chose to stay away, seniors like MP Vijila Satyanand were seen waiting outside to get a glimpse of their leader who is out on parole. Draped in a violet saree with a high neck blouse and her hair neatly tied like the departed Jayalalithaa, Sasikala wore a gentle smile and greeted everyone with a traditional vanakkam.

She was accompanied by her nephew Vivek Jayaraman, as she set out to call on her critically ill husband Natarajan at the hospital around 11am. Sasikala spent about two hours in the hospitala tracheostomy was performed on Friday. The medical bulletin released by the hospital said, He is awake and oriented and is on ventilator support through tracheostomy, which was performed on October 6. As in any other combined liver and kidney transplant surgeries, his condition will be critical for the next few days.

Sasikala, after being briefed by the doctors about her husbands health, reportedly moved back to her relatives residence. Though she did not engage in any political activity on the first day of her parole, there were several posters and banners in front of the T Nagar house, welcoming her.

Sasikala, who travelled 340km by road from Bengaluru to Chennai on Friday, chose to stay at her niece Krishna Priyas place in Chennai. The latter is the daughter of J. Ilavarasi, who is also serving four year jail term in the disproportionate assets case, along with Sasikala. Ilavarasi is married to Sasikalas brother Jayaraman, who died from an electric shock while working at Jayalalithaas Hyderabad farm house in the early 90s.
In poll-bound Gujarat, once again the stage is set for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit. Modi will be visiting his home state for two days beginning Saturday. From early this year, Modi has been visiting Gujarat at regular intervals to attend one programme or the other, leading a scope for debate that the state has no capable leader within the BJP, who can lead the party in the elections that are due by the year end.

Besides Modi, national BJP president Amit Shah has also been making frequent visits to Gujarat.

This time around, Modi will inaugurate a couple of projects, but most importantly he will visit his birthplace Vadnagar in North Gujarat on Sunday.

Like how Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi did a few days ago, Modi, too, will begin his tour by offering prayers at the famous Dwarkadheesh Temple in Dwarka. Green field airport in Rajkot and making Rajkot-Ahmedabad National Highway six lane are couple of projects for which he would lay foundation stones.

Later in the day, he would dedicate IIT Gandhinagar to the nation and also launch Pradhanmantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan.

On Sunday in Vadnagar, he would launch a programme to accelarate progress for achieving goal of full immunisation coverage. He is also scheduled to distribute e-tablets to the health workers.

This will be Modi's first visit to Vadnagar after becoming the prime minister.

The PM will also flag off Antodaya Express between Udhana, Surat and Jaynagar in Bihar.

Opposition Congress has been repeatedly alleging that the prime minister has been making rounds of Gujarat because the BJP is scared of losing the elections. In the 182-member assembly, the BJP has set itself a target of winning 150+ seats.
West Bengal power minister Sovandeb Chattopadhyay on Saturday burnt the effigy of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Chattopadhyay set alight the effigy of Modi at around 12.40pm at Esplanade crossing in Kolkata blocking the roads from five different points. He is said to have done this on the instruction of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and was protesting the BJP's interference in Darjeeling.

"What prime minister is doing in Delhi is unbearable for us here. It's supporting terrorism in Darjeeling and wanting to break West Bengal. We don't need such a prime minister,"said the power minister Chattopadhyay.

The minister's unique way of protest was part of the greater combative plan of the Trinamool Congress against the state-wise protest lodged by the BJP over assault of its state president in Darjeeling.

Asked whether it was proper on the part of a cabinet minister to burn the effigy of the Prime Minister of the country, Chattopadhyay said, "I am a common man and a Trinamool Congress soldier first, and a minister later."

A few days ago, BJP's Bengal President Dilip Ghosh was assaulted by a group of youths in Darjeeling who are supposed to be supporters of the breakaway faction of Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM), now being supported by Trinamool Congress.

BJP workers had hit the street protesting the assault of its leader and hit traffic services in Kolkata for hours over the last two days.

Various streets of Kolkata were blocked on Saturday making it impossible for vehicles to ply. Train services were also badly hit all over the state. The protest was called by Mamata Banerjee and she instructed Trinamool Congress leaders to hit the street all over the state.

"They will have to take stern action to book the culprits who attacked Dilip Ghosh. We won't believe in words only. We want action,"said Locket Chatterjee, chief of BJP's women cell in Bengal.
Experts at the Jain University in Bengaluru feel that if a person is curious by nature and follows popular detective shows and aspires to become a forensic scientist, then one should pursue a study in forensic sciences. Though forensic science primarily deals with a detailed study of evidence in a crime investigation, the field is very broad and encapsulates a wide range of specialty areas which are related to natural sciences.

Though primarily students Upon the completion of course, the students can opt for different jobs in the government sector there are many opportunity elsewhere also. Students who are well trained in digital forensics, and forensic biology and chemistry can get an opportunity in the private sector especially in the MNCs, chemical and biochemical labs, vigilance and the security industry. During the course they are trained with the recent techniques and technologies used in the field, Don Caeiro, coordinator and assistant professor, Department of Forensic Science at Jain University, Bengaluru told THE WEEK.

A forensic scientist is also required to record all the findings in a systematic manner. Pursuing a course in forensic science opens gateway to different career options such as a DNA analyst, criminalist, forensic pathologist, forensic toxicologist, forensic anthropologist, forensic botanist, forensic odonatologist etc, explained Caeiro.

He added that the field of forensic science requires a lot of hard work and patience, because sometimes an evidence might mislead the entire investigation and hence the investigator would be required to start over afresh. During the course duration, students will be taught and made to work upon various skills necessary for a forensic scientist. Students aspiring to become a forensic scientist should have the ability to undertake detail-oriented, analytical, challenging work and should have a logical, unbiased and methodical approach to problem-solving and a determined approach towards work and an inquiring mind, remarked Caeiro. Besides that he says that a good forensic scientist must also have a good colour vision.

Caeiro asserted that a forensic scientist's job is very challenging as one has to analyze samples, such as hair, body fluids, glass, paint and drugs, in the laboratory and study various types of available evidence often held in minuscule quantities. A forensic scientist should also be able to apply techniques such as gas and high-performance liquid chromatography, scanning electron microscopy, mass spectrometry, infrared spectroscopy and genetic fingerprinting.

Currently the Bengaluru based Jain University is offering a three-year B.Sc. and a two-year M.Sc. program in Forensic Science. The university was recently awarded an A Grade with an institutional Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 3.31 on a 4 point scale by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC), an autonomous agency of the University Grant Commission (UGC).
1. Yes. The ordinance goes against state law and is not in the best interest of the cities.

2. Yes. At the very least, it should be amended to give police officers some discretion.

3. No. Voters approved the ordinance by large majorities; the councils cant ignore that fact.

4. No. The petition process has to be given a chance to work. Leave the ordinance alone.

5. Unsure. Its hard to say how the cities should move forward regarding the ordinance.

Vote

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Preparing to drive Peugeot's new 5008 family-friendly seven-seater SUV is a bit like getting ready for an aeroplane flight.

How much can you get away with packing? Will you be able to keep it in the cabin, or must you book it into the hold?

Well, this new French vehicle is flexible when it comes to room, and will happily accommodate surfboards, fishing tackle and all manner of sporting kit and luggage.

Scroll down for video

Space master: The Peugeot 5008 can seat seven or take a 1,000-litre load

Indeed, if you're really pushed for load lugging space, the two third-row seats, just 11kg each, lift out and can be carried away like hand luggage. This boosts boot space from 720 litres to 1,060 litres.

The remaining seats, apart from the driver's, also fold down. All three in the centre row can be adjusted individually, reducing the irritation of being 'piggy in the middle'.

More important, it drives well, looks stylish and feels fairly upmarket with a commanding driving position and a smart dashboard with lots of high-tech and driver assistance features  from automatic emergency braking to 360-degree parking cameras.

The range starts at 24,495 and there is a choice of four petrol and six diesel versions and four trim levels.

Peugeot's new 5008 is built in France but now hitting British roads on UK plates

Load lugger: Taking the third row of seats out increases the boot space from 720 litres to 1,060 litres

Though styled much more like an SUV, this second-generation 5008 (the first was launched in 2009) still has some of the mini-bus driving style of a multi-purpose vehicle or MPV.

I drove what's predicted to be the biggest seller, the Allure PureTech with a 1.2 litre petrol engine with automatic six-speed gearbox.

It travels from rest to 62 mph in a stately 10.4 seconds with a top speed of 117 mph and has a base price tag of 27,695. It's a practical, easy-to-drive car for young families and couples.

The two rear seats weigh 11kg each and can be carried out easily like hand-luggage to provide more space in the boot

The 5008 is flexible when it comes to room, and will happily accommodate surfboards, fishing tackle and all manner of sporting kit and luggage

The Allure PureTech with a 1.2 litre petrol engine and automatic six-speed gearbox travels from rest to 62 mph in a stately 10.4 seconds with a top speed of 117 mph

It won't blow your socks off, but at 54.3 mpg you might be able to afford to buy a few more pairs. Its nearest rivals are Skoda's Kodiaq and the Nissan X-Trail, and UK deliveries begin from January.

Analysis of more than 400 million MoT records from the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency, by consumer website Honest John.co.uk, shows that one in six cars fails its first test, with brakes, lighting and tyres among the most-common reasons. Critics of the governments decision to extend the date of the first test from three to four years think this will increase even further.

Enjoy the Rolls-Royce lifestyle Cheers: Ray gets a brief taste of the high life , sipping bubbly in the back of a chauffeur driven roller Whisper it, but I spent part of this week driving, and being driven in, the worlds quietest car: the new flagship Rolls-Royce Phantom. If youre super-rich  or a big lottery winner  it could be just the limo for you. Its also the most technologically advanced car Rolls-Royce has ever built. While its a delightful and easy drive, I also experienced the luxury lifestyle being chauffeur-driven in the back. With the champagne chilling on ice, you can even view works of art behind the glass screen on the dashboard, and enjoy the twinkling starlight headliner in the roof from scores of pinpricks of light. This vast, 2.6 ton beast, priced from 350,000, can move, too  0-62mph in 5.4 seconds thanks to the powerful all-new 6.75 litre twin-turbo V12. Orders are being taken now, with delivery in January.

Seventy years of Italian supercar-maker Ferrari are celebrated in a major exhibition by the Design Museum in London from next month.

Created in collaboration with the car-maker, Ferrari: Under the Skin celebrates in its anniversary year, seven decades of precision design, from the launch of the first Ferrari car in 1947 to the latest production cars.

The exhibition opens on November 15, 2017, and runs to April 15, 2018. Details at: designmuseum.org.
Sometimes the figures are wrong. If you believe the official economic statistics, productivity in the West has been stagnant for a decade, and the UK has a particularly serious problem.

The inevitable conclusion would be that our children are likely to be the first generation to have a lower standard of living than their parents, because rising productivity has, since the Industrial Revolution, been the key driver of higher living standards.

But this cannot be right, can it? Try this. The past decade has been that of the iPhone. It has seen the explosive growth of services such as Uber, Airbnb, Amazon, Alibaba, Google, Facebook and WhatsApp.

The first apps were launched in July 2008. Intuitively all this must have increased the world economys productivity, but in ways that are very hard to measure. Take photos.

Game changer: The past decade has been that of the iPhone. It has seen the explosive growth of services such as Uber, Airbnb, Amazon, Alibaba, Google, Facebook and WhatsApp

In 2000 there were 80billion photos taken worldwide. In 2016, about 1,600billion, 20 times as many. The cost of each photo, the film, the developing, the printing, was about 50p. Now it is effectively zero.

The result? A decline in GDP. But as anyone who has FaceTimed their children in Australia or the US will testify, there has been a huge increase in our pleasure as a result of the communications revolution. That real increase in our standard of living barely shows in the statistics.

Roughly ten times as many will be reading these words online as opposed to in print, but someone reading online hardly registers in GDP, whereas someone reading in print will be at the end of a long production and distribution chain.

Some of us think there has been a loss of quality here, in that the printed word is more valuable than the Google headline.

But there is no question the new system of communication is vastly more efficient than the old one.

Take another example. Suppose you manage to avoid a jam on the M6 because your sat nav picks it up and directs you round another way.

That saves you half-an-hour and a deal of frustration. But that advance in your quality of life does not appear in GDP in any way.

Economics is about measuring economic activity. We know a lot about measuring incremental advances  the fact that new cars are a bit better than last years, or airline flights have got a bit cheaper.

But we struggle to measure the value of something that did not exist a few years ago that involves half the worlds population (Facebook and the other social networks), yet is virtually free.

Actually, there is a lot of work going on behind the scenes to try to do so. That example of the fall in the cost of photography comes from Professor Hal Varian, chief economist at Google.

He believes the world has a measurement problem, not a productivity problem. He also thinks that a lot of economic advance will come from analysing data better  make decisions on data, not on opinions.

Here in the UK a group of academics chaired by Professor Will Stewart of UCL have been developing better ways of measuring the output of the telecommunications industries.

In a recent paper they showed you could redo the numbers to show that GDP was actually rising much faster than the official numbers suggested.

Between 2010 and 2015 data usage in the UK rose nine-fold, but because data had got so much cheaper the official numbers suggested the output of the telecoms industry had fallen by 4 per cent.

None of this is to claim that UK productivity is wonderful. It isnt. There is also a trade-off between job creation and productivity.

We have the highest proportion of people in work ever recorded, but our success in getting people into jobs means that some of those are not being used as efficiently as they might be.

France has higher productivity than the UK but at the cost of double the level of unemployment.

So yes of course, the UK does need to figure out how to use its people more efficiently. Allow for everything and there is still some sort of gap in our performance.

But the idea that there is a global productivity crisis  that real wealth is not increasing  is nuts.

Further, since the UK has been very swift at grabbing the new technologies, I suspect that we are not lagging as badly in productivity as the experts think.
Brains in abundance: Ofcom boss Sharon White

A successful civil servant must be bestowed not just with brains but an ability to glide effortlessly from one master to another, with an adeptness for winning friends on each side of the political spectrum.

Sharon White possesses such rare gifts in abundance. Her impressive career has taken her right across Whitehall, into Downing Street, over the pond to the Washington embassy, even to the World Bank.

But while shadowy Sir Humphrys may squirm and obfuscate, tireless Sharon has a hard-earned reputation for briskness and efficiency.

Former Justice Minister Kenneth Clarke describes her as one of the brightest people he has ever worked with. Even Labour snoot Margaret Hodge, not someone who exactly oozes the milk of human kindness, is a fan.

White is chief executive of Ofcom, the regulatory body in charge of Britain's communications industries.

The 275,000-a-year post is one of the most powerful in British media, putting White in charge of a range of weighty issues from Britain's broadband infrastructure to regulating the BBC.

As such, the role requires dogged independence. Unlike her predecessors Stephen Carter and Ed Richards, both such blatant New Labour creatures, it helps that Sharon's politics are largely impenetrable.

In fact, her whole life outside of work remains something of a closed book.

The daughter of Jamaican immigrants, she is married to Robert Chote, the Office of Budget Responsibility chief with whom she has two young children, though aspects of their home life and intertwining careers remain undiscussed. As for recreations, her guarded Who's Who entry reads simply: 'Childcare'.

Born in London's East End, White grew up in Leyton where her father Curtis worked for British Rail, and her mother, Blossom, was a machinist.

After attending the local all-girls comprehensive, she won a place at Cambridge to study economics where contemporaries included former health secretary Andy Burnham. Peers recall Sharon as a hard-working, 'emotionally mature' person with little time for parties or student high jinks.

A regular church goer, she took a year out to work in a deprived area of Birmingham after which she joined the civil service in 1989, taking a job at the Department of Education.

She was soon fast-tracked through the ranks to the male-dominated Treasury. Here she met Chote, then an up-and-coming journalist for the FT. Wags dubbed them 'Mr and Mrs Treasury'.

She went to work in the British embassy in Washington after that, where she and Chote married in a ceremony at the ambassador's residence. Not one for convention, guests say Sharon wore a black, strapless Giorgio Armani dress, sans veil.

Thanks to Tony Blair, the couple were spared a transatlantic marriage when he recruited Sharon to the Downing Street policy unit. Stints at the World Bank and the Department for International Development followed before she joined the Ministry of Justice in 2009.

By the time she was made second permanent secretary to the Treasury in 2013, there was a young family to care for. Colleagues would sometimes pop over to White's home in London's Tufnell Park and sit cross-legged on the floor thrashing out details of the Government's austerity programme.

In 2015, culture secretary Sajid Javid recommended her for the Ofcom job. It's been an eventful couple of years. There's been the Sky takeover proposal to deal with, the never-ending saga over BT's Openreach division and more recently, the 5G sell-off, which looks set to monopolise her time over the coming months.

Important stuff you might think, though her former boss Ken Clarke thinks she needs to return forthwith to the more serious business of government. Permanent secretary to the Treasury, perhaps. Some go as far to suggest White as a future head of the civil service when serpentine Sir Jeremy Heywood slithers off, stage left.

She took a directorship this week with Barratt Developments, a rare foray into the private sector. This will do her no harm in terms of experience but one suspects her future lies firmly in the public arena.

This is perhaps no better illustrated than her first day at Ofcom when White gathered her 790 staff into the canteen and reminded them of their first duty: To serve the citizen. Humble words, you might say, she chooses to live by.
The FTSE 250, which is 25 next week, has become a 453billion powerhouse at the heart of the economy.

Often touted as a bellwether for the UK economy, the index is comprised of medium-sized British businesses which tend to be more domestically focused than the international giants of the FTSE 100.

The FTSE 250 index launched on October 12, 1992 as a measure of essentially the 101st to 350th biggest listed companies.

It had just 831.38 points when it was launched eight years after the creation of its larger counterpart the FTSE 100.

The FTSE250 is comprised of medium-sized British businesses which tend to be more domestically focused than the international giants of the FTSE 100

Things didn't start well. Three days after it launched, the FTSE 250 had dropped 10 points to 821.6. But that would be the lowest it would ever fall.

Yesterday it reached a record high of 20,166.54. Companies on the index have seen their total market cap soar from 98billion and investors who have tracked it since its launch have seen an annualised return of 11.6 per cent a year.

But the mid-cap market's correlation with the health of the UK economy also means investing in it can be a bumpy ride.

The day the result of the Brexit vote was revealed saw the biggest-ever one-day fall on the index, 7.2 per cent. However, those who held their nerve recovered their losses within a month.

The FTSE 250's worst-ever losing streak began in April 2007, just months before the credit crunch hit global stock markets. It dropped 42.2 per cent between April 2007 and December 2008.

The mid-market's best-ever run came between 2003 and 2006 when it recorded an impressive 12 consecutive quarters of positive growth, gaining some 113.13 per cent over that period.

Rocky start: The FTSE 250 index launched on October 12, 1992 eight years after the creation of its larger counterpart the FTSE 100. Three days after launch, it dropped 10 points to 821.6

Jason Hollands, managing director at Tilney Bestinvest, says: 'The mid-cap index has been the stand-out performer of the UK stock market for some time now, having returned 133 per cent over the past decade.'

Investors who want to tap into the often impressive performance of this index can pick from a handful of cheap tracker funds such as HSBC FTSE 250 Index tracker, which charges just 0.17 per cent a year and aims to mirror the market's performance.

For those hoping for even more, there are a number of managers whose funds focus on these mid-cap stocks.

Hollands likes the Axa Framlington UK Mid Cap fund which has beaten the FTSE 250 over the past five years, delivering a return of 118.7 per cent.

Rob Morgan, investment analyst at Charles Stanley, likes the Neptune UK Mid Cap fund whose manager Mark Martin he says is 'a very good stock picker'.

Investors who want a steadier return can pick a fund which invests only some of its money into this part of the stock market.

The Standard Life UK Equity Income Unconstrained fund has 38 per cent of its money in medium-sized stocks. The Threadneedle UK Equity Income fund has 42 per cent of its assets in these companies.
Unilever values its spreads business at 6.1bn

Bidders vying for Unilevers spreads have less than two weeks to submit an offer.

The consumer goods giant has invited private equity bidders to submit offers for the 6.1bn business  which includes I Cant Believe Its Not Butter, Flora and Stork, by October 19  according to sources.

The sale process first kicked off in late September, with Unilevers banks sending out confidential information to a series of heavyweight buy-out funds which are rumoured to have been mulling over the deal since the summer.

Offers have been dominated by private equity groups, which have teamed up in three rival consortiums.

Bain Capital and Clayton Dubilier & Rice reportedly form one group, Blackstone and CVC Capital Partners another, while investment firm KKR is rumoured to have partnered up with Singapores sovereign wealth fund GIC Private Limited.

American investment fund Apollo is said to be looking to bid alone.

In April Unilever announced it would be selling its spreads business in a bid to boost shareholder returns after it rejected a 115billion takeover by Kraft Heinz earlier this year.

Last month it snapped up South Korean skincare firm Carver Korea for 2billion from Bain Capital Private Equity and Goldman Sachs in a bid to move further into the beauty division.
Hollywood Bowl is on course to grant a special dividend to shareholders after a makeover of its bowling sites saw sales and earnings soar.

The group, which floated on the London Stock Exchange last September, said it was reaping the benefits of the refurbishments and rebranding of its Bowlplex sites into Hollywood Bowl centres.

It did up nine of its sites in the year  adding VIP coloured lanes with extra storage, seating and mobile-phone charging points.

Striking gold: Hollywood Bowl refurbished nine of its sites in the year  adding VIP coloured lanes with extra storage, seating and mobile-phone charging points

It also revamped its dining experience to reflect the American atmosphere, importing open-top Cadillacs into some of its sites so customers can sit in the iconic car while dining.

The move saw sales in the second half of the year grow 10 per cent against the year before while sales for the full year grew 8.9 per cent. Same-branch sales increased 3.5 per cent.

As a result Hollywood bowl said it now expects earnings for the year to be marginally ahead of board expectations.

It added that it is 'considering returning capital' to shareholders and a further update will be given during its full year results announcement in December. It will either be in the form of a special dividend or a share buyback.
ITV is demanding more than 140million a year for use of its main channel by pay TV rivals.

The commercial broadcaster wants Virgin Media and Sky to pay up for ITV1, which is home to prime-time hits such as Coronation Street, Victoria, The X Factor and Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway.

Cable-and-satellite broadcasters have been able to carry the channel cost-free for years thanks to laws designed to help the cable-and-satellite TV markets when they were in their infancy.

But in a victory for ITV over the summer, legislation means it can demand cash from operators such as Virgin Media  with an implicit threat it could pull its channels if no agreement is reached.

ITV wants Virgin Media and Sky to pay up for ITV1, which is home to prime-time hits such as Coronation Street, Victoria, The X Factor and Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway (pictured)

Now these operators are preparing for a major showdown, with a similar bill possible for Sky as it provides more TV through the internet instead of satellite dishes in future.

This week analysts at Liberum put the amount that ITV could extract from the companies at more than 140million.

The fees increase will be a top issue in Carolyn McCall's in-tray when she takes over as ITV chief executive in January, with the broadcaster seeking to reduce its reliance on falling advertising revenues.

McCall, however, is expected to face a difficult battle, with Virgin Media insisting there is 'no reason' it should pay. The negotiations are further complicated because Virgin's owner, Liberty Global, is ITV's second biggest shareholder.

VIEWING FIGURES 7,800 Hours of shows produced by ITV Studios last year

21.4pc Share of TV audiences held by ITV channels

60pc Of TV viewers reached by Coronation St, about 21.6m people

1bn ITV will spend making TV shows this year

150 Countries showing ITVs hit drama Victoria

But an ITV spokesman said: 'ITV should be paid fairly by pay TV platforms that make money from our multi-billion pound investment in original UK content, so we can continue to invest in the programmes that our viewers enjoy.'

Under the laws, Virgin and Sky have also been able to transmit the main channels of the BBC, Channel 4 and Channel 5 because they are considered public service broadcasters. While the other broadcasters have supported its lobbying in the past, ITV has been the most vocal in its calls for change.

Subscription TV providers already pay ITV for its other channels, such as ITV2. They also argue they already compensate the public broadcasters such as ITV and the BBC by giving them top-billing on set-top box TV guides, as well as highly-prized channels such as '103' and '101' respectively.

Ministers, despite changing the law which allowed ITV to make its demands, have said they would not favour broadcasters levying extra costs on TV providers for their main channels.

Tom Mockridge, chief executive of Virgin Media, said earlier this year: 'The Government has been clear, new fees should not be paid for mainstream channels.

ITV is already fully compensated through its prominent position, audience reach and additional advertising revenue this delivers. It is carried for zero fee by all UK platforms and there is no reason why this shouldn't continue to be the case at Virgin Media.'

A Government spokesman said yesterday: 'Having carefully considered the wide range of views which have been expressed on this matter, the Government believes it is for the market to determine what fees, if any, are applicable.'
Pioneering private sector deals to bring more tourists to Uganda's wildernesses could save critical wildlife habitat, including spots where elephant numbers are increasing for the first time in decades.

The cash-strapped Ugandan government struggles to cover the costs of looking after its national parks and reserves, using scarce funds instead on priorities such as schools and roads.

Despite this, elephant herds are growing, bucking the trend in the rest of the continent where one in three of all elephants alive in 2007 has since been poached for its ivory.

Wildlife: Elephant numbers in some parts of Uganda are increasing for the first time in decades

To safeguard that progress, Uganda welcomed leading international tourism firms including the Hilton hotels group to an event on Friday to see a series of new investment opportunities designed to funnel the funding from responsible tourism into conservation.

Among the new sites are national parks visited by the Queen two years into her reign, and others where Humphrey Bogart and Katharine Hepburn filmed the Hollywood classic The African Queen.

Uganda boasts savannah parks, tropical rainforests, equatorial glaciers, and the source of the Nile and has great potential as a tourist destination if it can be better developed.

The Giants Club Conservation and Investment Forum was designed to help that happen, bringing in companies focused on responsible and sustainable tourism.

Evgeny Lebedev, the owner of the London Evening Standard and the Independent, and the patron of the Giants Club, took part.

Uganda is known as the Pearl of Africa because it has such beauty and is so rich in the wildlife living there', he said.

The country though has many challenges so finding the money to look after these areas properly is challenging - let alone to develop them so they achieve their full potential.

Humphrey Bogart and Katharine Hepburn filmed The African Queen in Uganda

That is why we have been working hand-in-hand with the Ugandan government to develop ways that the right conservation-compatible companies can invest into these areas and develop them in the best interests of the wildlife, of Uganda and of its people.

Only by getting the private sector to invest in these areas can the revenue be generated to pay for the work required and to create the jobs for the local communities that will ensure they want to protect the wildlife too.

The contracts that are expected to follow in the wake of the Forum will be drawn up to include strict rules in order to ensure that tourism does not cause damage to the environment and that conservation brings benefits to local people.

Really what Uganda wants is very low-impact, high-end eco-lodges or tourism operations that bring in good revenue while paying serious attention to their conservation credentials, said Max Graham, chief executive of Space for Giants, the conservation charity behind the Giants Club.

Investment opportunity: Hilton is one of the tourism firms interested in Uganda

Senior executives from Hilton, Wilderness Safaris, Great Plains Conservation, and African Parks attended the Forum, which was staged at the Lake Victoria Serena outside of Kampala in partnership with the Government of Uganda, the United Nations Development Programme and the African Wildlife Foundation.

Some of the investment opportunities are in wilderness areas ready for new lodges to be built, while others aimed to raise funds to rehabilitate degraded areas before tourists start to visit.

The Giants Club is an initiative of the international conservation Non-Governmental Organisation, Space for Giants. Its founding members were the Presidents of Uganda, Kenya, Botswana and Gabon.

The Giants Club works to unite Africas conservation-committee Heads of State with leading conservationists, enlightened business leaders and philanthropists.

Evgeny Lebedev is patron of both the Giants Club and Space for Giants.
Did you vote in the midterm elections as if your countrys existence depended on it?
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EDITOR'S NOTE: An earlier version of this story incorrectly described the location of the Roosevelt Island aerial tram.

Albany

They're common at ski mountains and amusement parks. They sail over rivers, carrying sightseers.

In New York City, one has been moving commuters over the East River between Roosevelt Island and Manhattan for more than four decades.

But is an aerial gondola the right solution to connect Amtrak's ninth busiest station, in Rensselaer, with downtown Albany?

Tom Madison thinks so.

The former head of the state Thruway Authority, who also was state transportation commissioner, has joined Capital Gondola LLC, the entity established by McLaren Engineering Group to plan and construct the aerial gondola, as executive director.

"The McLaren engineering firm began with a feasibility study and felt it was a worthwhile project to proceed with," he said in a phone interview last week. "The priorities now are to continue to finalize our ridership and economic impact study."

One big question: Who will ride it?

"Is it commuters? Day trippers? Tourists?" he asked, adding he hoped to attract all three.

The top-end cost of the project has escalated to $43 million from initial estimates of just under $30 million. Madison said he hopes to raise 80 percent of that figure  a little more than $34 million  from private investors.

Rising costs shouldn't come as a surprise. London's Thames cable car originally was to cost about $34 million. The costs eventually escalated to nearly $81 million for the 3,600-foot line, according to the BBC. Emirates ended up having the naming rights, paying $48 million over 10 years for the privilege.

It's now known as the Emirates Air Line.

Private funding for Albany's cable car "could come from individual investments, corporate advertising, sponsorships, or naming rights," Madison said. "These are all things that we're exploring."

Another question: What will it cost to ride?

A survey currently being conducted online (gondolasurvey.com; survey code is cap) offers a number of different price points, most in the $4 to $9 range. An Uber ride Thursday afternoon between the train station and Empire State Plaza was priced at $7 to $9 one way.

Multiple riders can split an Uber fare, while the gondola would be a per-person charge.

Full fare for a one-way ride on the London gondola, by comparison, is about $5.75 for adults and just under $3 for children. Various discounts are available.

Gondola cars in Albany would travel at 14 mph and make the cross-river portion of the trip, from the train station to a downtown stop on South Pearl Street, in a little more than four minutes, according to McLaren's feasibility study.

The second leg, between South Pearl and Empire State Plaza, would take another 21/2 minutes.

Carm Basile, CEO of the Capital District Transportation Authority, voices support, with reservations.

"We're supportive of more mobility choices," he said Friday. "The gondola would be another mobility choice.

"But is this feasible, doable and by who? Everyone needs to know more," he said.

Commuters who take CDTA from Rensselaer County likely would just stay on the bus to cross the river, he believes. It's another five minutes, and their trip is already paid for.

On the other hand, someone arriving by train for business in downtown Albany might find the gondola an attractive choice.

"I would label us as supportive and interested," Basile said.

Each gondola cabin would hold six passengers if air-conditioned and eight without. The weight of the air conditioning equipment reduces passenger capacity.

Gondolas would operate 16 hours a day, seven days a week, in most weather conditions.

High winds and lightning in the area likely would temporarily halt operations, as they have with other systems.

Emirates' gondola system, which travels across the Thames, carried 1.4 million people in 2016. Doppelmayr, which is working with McLaren on the Albany project, provided the equipment for the Emirates line.

Bridge construction firm Harrison & Burrowes, which worked on the Walkway over the Hudson and is based in Glenmont, also is a partner, as is O'Connell Electric, an upstate New York company that installs cable, including pulling one for tightrope walker Nik Wallenda across Niagara Falls, Madison said.

Does the Capital Region have enough people to justify such a project?

Madison points to the 600,000 people who attend events annually at the Times Union Center downtown, the 865,000 using the Rensselaer rail station, the 11,000 who work at Empire State Plaza, and the 500,000 who visit the State Museum each year.

Then there are the tourists, the people in town for meetings and conferences, and the residents.

He expects tourists to take the gondola back and forth to admire the Albany skyline. "The Capital District enjoys pretty robust tourism," he said.

eanderson@timesunion.com  518-454-5323
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Imagine a crisp, cool afternoon of sapphire sky, sidewalks and parks thronged all across New York. Suddenly, sirens wail statewide. Countless phones screech the emergency signal followed by a robo-voice stating a nuclear missile will strike New York City in 30 minutes; "seek shelter immediately."

Newscasters on tiny phone screens look brave and terrified as they remind upstate viewers winds can push deadly fallout to the Capital Region within 20 minutes of detonation.

This bomb that's headed for Midtown is 3,000 times more powerful than the one dropped on Hiroshima. When it hits, humans in a 22-mile radius are vaporized, an urban landscape  Empire State and Chrysler buildings, Central Parkobliterated. The fireball propels a radioactive mushroom cloud 50,000 feet high; seven million people die.

The ground shakes from Manhattan to the Adirondacks  and beyond. Electricity, cell and internet service fail. Albanians see the southern horizon glow. An enormous faraway cloud seems to be racing toward them.

Stevens Institute of Technology professor Alex Wellerstein, who earned a Ph.D. in science history from Harvard, visualized many versions of this nightmare when he created the Nukemap. His interactive online map that allows users to see the fatalities and destruction that would result if any of 33 types of nuclear missiles made in the United States, Russia, China, North Korea, Pakistan, India or France struck any city on Earth.

If you can read this text, your browser does not support iframes. Sorry.

Wellerstein recently won a $500,000 Carnegie-MacArthur award to figure out how civil defense can save lives in a time when nuclear powers Tweet threats to each other.

Wellerstein is fascinated by Albany's unique civil defense history. He hopes to recruit experts here for his advisory board. His goal is to fuel discussions and fund projects about what form of civil defense fits a world dramatically different from the Cold War. Today, mass shootings seem tragically more likely a menace. Nuclear war remains unimaginable for most people.

How prepared is the Capital Region for a nuclear strike?

New York's Department of Homeland Security & Emergency Services and Health Department spokespersons didn't know if a list of fallout shelters exists for any county. In 1961, Gov. Nelson Rockefeller stocked the Capitol Building basement (still an ideal fallout shelter, experts say) with 200 cots and 14,000 vitamin biscuits for legislators and staff who might seek shelter from radioactive fallout. Rockefeller paid to build a bunker connected to the Executive Mansion by an underground tunnel. It's now an equipment shed.

The State Preparedness Center in Oneida County hosted a nuclear responders three-day course (taught by Nevada instructors) for New York law enforcement in June, but Homeland spokesman Kristin Devoe did not know how many attended or who they were. The state Health Department did not respond to questions about whether it offers nuclear strike response training.

This seems natural to Wellerstein.

"When Russia was America's main nuclear enemy, New York City was a logical target," said Wellerstein, who sees smaller bombs as the primary threat today. "North Korean nukes are the size of the bomb dropped on Hiroshima; they're survivable and that's a controversial topic. In the 1980s, Americans felt preparing for survivability made nuclear war more probable. Towns and cities upstate began declining federal civil defense funds."

In 1978, a New York executive law wrapped civil defense into "all hazards preparedness" that included training for natural disasters and terrorist attacks like the shooting massacres in San Bernardino in 2015 and Orlando in 2016.

The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists estimates 14,923 nuclear weapons currently exist, Russia and the U.S. own 90 percent. Wellerstein believes both nations realize nuclear exchange between them could ruin the planet. He describes the 2017 menace as "irrational actors," nations with leaders too crazy or stupid to comprehend the widespread ruin of one nuclear strike.

"(President) Ronald Reagan said The Day After  a 1983 TV movie about nuclear attack on the Midwest  persuaded him to negotiate a saner approach to national security than an arms race with Russia," Wellerstein said. "It's hard for me to imagine (President Donald) Trump (being) moved emotionally by or intellectually grasping that movie or its message."

What's left in region, what do we need?

Inside the state Museum's Capital Region warehouse, what's left of one of America's most crucial nuclear bunkers sits on a table: a Geiger counter, gray unisex coveralls, mint green dishware and a cardboard dial that calculates iodine dosage based on hours one was exposed to fallout.

"Only officials considered vital to the continuation of the U.S. government were allowed into this Oneonta bunker," museum historian Aaron Noble said. "Guards checked to see if your name was on the list."

Now Playing: In the height of the Cold War, New York built several bunkers where essential state workers would be sent in the case of nuclear war to ensure the continuity of government. On Oct. 3, 2017, State Museum Historian Aaron Noble explained the purpose of some items saved from the now-defunct Oneonta bunker. (Emily Masters | Times Union)

Noble said the bunker had its own generator, water purification and air filtration systems plus a working toilet, posher than the underground concrete boxes with steel drum toilets ordinary upstaters built in the 1950s and 1960s when General Electric's vast Schenectady presence seemed a tempting target.

But today, the Capital Region seems a highly unlikely direct target. And University at Albany professor and terrorism expert Brian Nussbaum says locals don't need to build a bunker to protect themselves from fallout drifting in from Manhattan.

"We have buildings that would make good shelters; if I heard warning sirens, I'd get inside a basement or multi-story concrete building immediately; never mind bottled water," he said. "I'd put walls and floors between myself and outdoors. I'd stay there until first responders told me to leave."

For decades, Rochester Fire Battalion Chief Joe Luna has taught Community Emergency Response Team volunteers from all over New York, to handle crises ranging from massacres to nuclear plant malfunctions. CERT teaches first aid skills that could be useful after a nuclear strike, like extricating the wounded from rubble and fashioning litters from mop handles and blankets.

Federal Emergency Management Agency radiation emergency training focuses on nuclear plants.

"An event at a nuclear plant is very different from a nuclear attack," Luna said, who added that after the Soviet Union fell, "nuclear war wasn't discussed as much. We may add some nuclear strike training given the current atmosphere. But response to nuclear attack can't depend on volunteers with helmets and go bags."

Would upstate trust new civil defense?

Russia tested 130 nuclear bombs, including the world's biggest (nicknamed Tsar Bomba), near the Arctic Circle from 1954-1991 sending radioactive fallout across the polar ice into the Capital Region. The Atomic Energy Commission monitored the fallout with Geiger counters and told locals that radiation levels were much lower than they truly were. The commission lied when a hunk of a 44,000 tall radioactive cloud from a 1953 U.S. nuclear test drifted for 36 hours all the way to Troy. There radioactive fallout inundated Troy with a thunderstorm's rain.

Albany journalist Bill Heller tells the story in "A Good Day Has No Rain." Nevada nuclear tests continued to contaminate upstate. Rochester-based Kodak threatened to sue the federal government because radioactive fallout was damaging its film. The commission placated Kodak by giving the company advance notice of nuclear tests. New Yorkers were never given this information. Some medical experts linked the radiation exposure to increased thyroid and childhood cancers here.

"The government protected rolls of film but not the lives of people," said U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, at a 1997 hearing about the Troy radioactive contamination. "Where were the warnings to parents of children?"

Heller's unsettling history can make Americans wonder about the trustworthiness of information from the government.

University at Albany political science professor Christopher Clary, who studies nuclear proliferation, offers some encouraging context.

"The current era is less dangerous than the Cuban Missile crisis," Clary said, referring to the 13 days in 1962 when Pres. John Kennedy blockaded Cuba after U.S.S.R. put ballistic missiles there.

"U.S. ships were dropping depth charges into the ocean to force Russian subs to surface. Americans didn't know one sub was armed with a nuclear missile. The Russian sub commanders debated whether to attack the U.S. ships before the Americans killed them."

Three enemy officers voted not to push the world into a nuclear abyss.

"Even if a leader is a zealot or has below average intelligence, when countries get too close to nuclear war, they walk back from the precipice," Clary said. "I'm still hopeful today."

lyedwards@timesunion.com  518-454-5403.
BURNT HILLS  A Burnt Hills teen was arrested after authorities say he was entering homes and cars in his neighborhood in an attempt to steal property.

Mark R. Edwards, 16, of Wealthy Lane, was charged with two counts of second-degree burglary, according to the Saratoga County Sheriff's Office.
The debate for sensible gun laws erupted this week after Sunday night's mass shooting in Las Vegas.

While it may be impossible to tell how many of the 59 individuals who died from automatic gunfire would have been spared by stricter regulations, when tracking gun violence on a mass scale, the data is clear: more guns means more deaths.
Carl Dukes was eight years into a potential life sentence for a murder he didnt commit. He had exhausted his appeals and was considering ending his life.

It was September 2006, a searing hot day inside the maximum-security Attica state prison. Dukes looped a belt around his neck and fastened the other end to a door in his cell.

I was like, Maybe this is the route that youre going to have to take eventually just to be free.

He heard the sound of jingling keys and footsteps coming closer. Dukes unhooked the belt and jumped into his bed. An older guard  one of the good ones  stopped outside the cell and peered in.

He had this big smile on his face, Dukes recalled during a series of recent interviews.

The officer asked him if everything was OK. Did he need a shower or a phone call?

Hes like, Alright now, take it easy, Ill see you tomorrow, Dukes said. He walked away and I just started sobbing. To me, that was just like God sent this man to the cell to stop me, like, just try to hold on.

It would take another 10 years for the truth to come out  and for Carl Dukes to walk out of prison, finally a free man.

Now Playing: Carl Dukes contemplated suicide as a means of escape from the intense pressure of prison life. The experience would ultimately cement his faith and bring stability to the mental turmoil he endured behind bars. Will Waldron Video: Times Union

Will Waldron

False confession

The prisoner van arrived Sept. 8, 1997, at the Albany County courthouse.

Dukes, then 20, was herded into a holding cell with other inmates awaiting court proceedings. It was his first time in jail. His prior brushes with police included a low-level marijuana charge and a ticket for jumping a subway turnstile in New York City.

He had been arrested four months earlier when police had found him loitering near an Albany house known for marijuana sales. He was charged with burglary and trespassing. Now, Dukes hoped a judge was going to release him.

Times Union

But his public defender, Bertrand Gould, informed him there would be no courtroom appearance that day. He told Dukes some Albany detectives wanted to question him about a robbery that had taken place a year earlier at a residence on Clinton Avenue.

"He was like, 'Oh, kid, let's not waste their time, let's just go up there and tell them what they want to hear or (that) you don't know anything,'" Dukes said.

Deputies escorted Dukes to a conference room where five detectives were waiting. They included the late Kenneth P. Wilcox, a revered detective known for his ability to get signed confessions from suspects, and his partner, Ronald Matos.

Gould, a longtime public defender who died last February at the age of 81, surprised Dukes by announcing that he couldn't stay with his client during the questioning  that he had a conflict of interest and would wait outside.

I knew how to read and write but I didnt know anything about how to protect yourself in a situation like that, Dukes said.

The detectives pressured Dukes, he recalled, with questions about an October 1996 robbery where two men were tied up, beaten and robbed in a downtown apartment rented by a University at Albany student, Erik Mitchell, who was not home when it happened. The young man who organized the robbery worked at a UAlbany cafeteria, where he met Mitchell and knew him to sell small amounts of weed.

During the interrogation 11 months later, Dukes finally admitted having a limited role in the robbery: He had served as a lookout, then climbed through the back window of the apartment to steal marijuana. He said that Matthew Parson, who was armed with a broken handgun, had tied up and beaten the victims after he had left, stealing their personal belongings.

Under intense pressure from Wilcox, Dukes signed a statement that was written by Matos  even though it was a first-person account  outlining details of the robbery. Dukes said he didn't fully read the statement and wasn't aware that it included details about a February 1997 murder that took place at the same apartment, four months after the robbery.

The homicide victim was Mitchell, from Rochester, who had been shot once in the head. His crumpled body was found against a wall in the vestibule of his apartment. There were no witnesses and police never recovered the murder weapon.

With the robbery statement in hand, Wilcox and Matos broke for lunch, then returned to the conference room to continue questioning Dukes.

The interview, Dukes recalled, became more aggressive. He said the detectives threatened that if he didn't confess to taking part in the murder he would get the death penalty and they would arrest his sister as an accomplice. Dukes cried. He professed his innocence.

Now Playing: Carl Dukes explains how Albany detectives convinced him to confess to a crime he didnt commit. Will Waldron Video: Times Union

I was in there just scared, tired, he said. Ive never been grilled like that.

At 2:50 p.m., Dukes signed the confession, which misspelled his middle name. The statement said he went to the apartment that February night with two other men, Lavell Jones and Pierre Lyons, to confront Mitchell because they heard he might snitch on them about the earlier robbery. When Mitchell opened the door, the statement said, there was an argument and Jones shot Mitchell.

Immediately after he signed the statement Matos had written, Dukes was charged with murder.

A month later, Jones, then 21, was taken into custody in Brooklyn. He had alibi witnesses who placed him in New York City at the time of the Albany murder. But after 48 hours in custody, and under pressure from Albany detectives who told him about Dukes statement, Jones also signed a murder confession.

His attorneys later accused detectives of breaking down Jones by obtaining an incriminating statement from Jones girlfriend saying he had confessed. She later recanted and said detectives told her if she didnt sign it then Jones would get the death penalty and their infant son would grow up a bastard.

In November 1998, Dukes was convicted of depraved-indifference murder, robbery and burglary. He was sentenced to 37 years to life in prison. At his trial, then-assistant District Attorney Cheryl Coleman read damning portions of grand jury testimony from another purported witness whose statement was later found to have been coerced by Albany detectives, according to court records. The statement claimed Dukes confessed to pulling the trigger.

I used to ask myself why did you sit there and sign something that these people wrote and said you did, Dukes said. Was I sleepwalking? Was I dreaming? Why did you do it? ... I was scared.

Jones was convicted of murder and burglary in 1999 and received the same sentence as Dukes  37 years to life in prison.

Mark Lennihan/AP

Dannemora

Dukes arrived in January 1999 at Downstate Correctional Facility in Fishkill. He was taken into a large shower where officers sprayed him with cold water and delousing chemicals. He was erroneously listed as a member of the violent Bloods street gang. Weeks later, Dukes was transferred to one of the New Yorks most notorious maximum-security prisons, Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora.

I just felt like a piece of cattle, like I was a piece of beef getting ready to go to slaughter, he said. I kept complaining I was innocent and they didnt want to hear that.

At Clinton, Dukes was surrounded by real killers, he said  guys that do deserve to be in there, people that raped children or set apartment buildings on fire.

I didnt know how it feels to kill somebody but Im in here because they said I did, and Im scared as hell, he said. I didnt really know how to interact with these guys when the cell opened.

At that time, inmates were forced to shower together in groups of dozens. Inmates unable to cope were beaten by officers or you would just never see them again if they tried to shower in their shorts or underwear, Dukes said.

He stood out because he could read and write. He helped other inmates file grievances for mistreatment or civil rights violations. He studied law books and took steps to continue his education, including getting a high school diploma.

A week after his 22nd birthday, Dukes said, he had his first violent encounter in prison. His eyeglasses set off a metal detector on his way to a recreation yard. He was thrown against a wall and an officer grabbed his genitals searching for contraband. His glasses fell to the floor and a guard stepped on them.

Dukes demanded to know what he did.

Other men that was on the line were like, Yo, be quiet ... youre crazy, were going to lose you in here. 

Several officers ushered Dukes toward an area known as F-block, he said. One of them drove a knee into his back and he tumbled down concrete stairs and was beaten. They called him a monkey and hurled other racial insults in a way hed never experienced, Dukes said. He sobbed as he recounted the ordeal.

Dukes filed a grievance and began to prepare a federal lawsuit, which he later dropped. He said prison officials offered him better programs and some of the officers who were involved in the beating were transferred. He began to fit in and sought to avoid being labeled a troublemaker.

Its kind of their house and youre not going to win, he said. They offered me a job in the industry where I was making underwear.

Family

At Clinton Correctional, Dukes rekindled his relationship with a childhood friend from Brooklyn and they married. He did his best under the circumstances, he said, to help her raise their stepson. But it became too painful to watch her drive long hours with a child in hand, and then turn around and drive home.

I pretty much raised him on a visiting room floor, Dukes said. But I didnt see a lot of happiness there.

They divorced and his ex-wife moved to North Carolina, where she works as a nurse. His stepson is entering the U.S. Air Force.

Provided by Carl Dukes

Dukes said his father, Arthur Carl Dukes, a former U.S. Marine, was his steadfast supporter and visitor in prison. After his mother died on Christmas Eve in 1990, Dukes said, his father had sent his only son to Clifton Park as a teenager. He lived with an aunt and uncle  an imam in the state prison system  in hopes he would benefit from a suburban environment. Dukes briefly attended Shenendehowa High School, and his uncle took him to museums, where he became fascinated with the human brain and neurology. He dreamed of becoming a pilot.

In the mid-1990s, though, after Dukes moved to Albany with his uncles family, he dropped out of school. He found jobs at a local fish market and painting houses. Thats the life he was leading when he was falsely charged with murder.

His father made the long trips upstate at least once a month as Dukes moved through many facilities: Clinton, Attica, Auburn, Southport, Greenhaven and Wende.

The last time I seen him was Southport, less than a month before he died, Dukes said. He was my staunch advocate. He tried to talk to anybody who would hear him out.

On his deathbed in January 2015, Arthur Dukes, who had cancer, pulled the tubes out of his mouth to talk to his daughter. He was unable to speak. But he knew Albany detectives had reopened the investigation several months earlier. He wrote on a piece of paper my son, Dukes said. He asked my sister to promise him that she would get me out.

Real killer

Jeffrey J. Conrad spent much of his life behind bars. His convictions included weapons possession, rape, assault and drug dealing. He never knew Carl Dukes or Lavell Jones.

On Sept. 3, 2014, Conrad, who is from Albany, was arrested north of Akron, Ohio, for fatally stabbing his girlfriend.

An Ohio detective asked Conrad if hed killed anyone else. Yeah ... but thatll open up a whole nother can of worms, he said.

When Albany detectives traveled to Cuyahoga County, Ohio, three years ago, Conrad rubbed in their faces that two other men were in prison for a murder he had committed.

Now Playing: Carl Dukes is thankful for Jeffery Conrads 2014 confession but hes still sorry for Erik Mitchells family and what they had to endure. Will Waldron Video: Times Union

Youve always known that they didnt do it, Conrad said. They couldnt tell you what kind of gun it was cause they didnt know. They couldnt tell you how he fell cause they didnt know. They couldnt tell you a (expletive) thing. Nothing. Nothing. ... You guys knew from the beginning, when you sensed it, that they didnt (expletive) do it ... and you went and told his family all that (expletive): Yeah, we got the guys.

The detectives who interviewed Conrad had reminded him that they were in high school when Erik Mitchell was killed.

Conrad told them he had planned to rob Mitchell. He said he was alone, wearing a mask and clutching a silver .25-caliber handgun.

He opened the door, he reached for the gun, I shot him, Conrad said. It was just that quick and simple.

He said he broke the gun into pieces, threw it away and fled Albany.

Although Conrads name surfaced in the investigation as a potential suspect, he was never questioned.

Several weeks after Conrad confessed, Albany detectives visited Dukes at Auburn state prison.

I was at my weakest point when the officers came, Dukes said.

They told Dukes about Conrads confession, but made no promises, and said their investigation was continuing. They were headed to see Jones next, they added, and wondered if he had a message for his co-defendant.

I said, tell him: Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha,  Dukes said, cracking a big smile. He always believed that I killed somebody and dragged him into this mess.

Conrads videotaped confession included details detectives said only the killer would have known.

Sixteen years after Dukes had been convicted of murder, the Albany County district attorneys office filed a request to reopen the case and have new attorneys appointed for Dukes and Jones. The two men were represented by lawyers with the Exoneration Initiative in New York City. Both were released from prison in July 2016.

Adjusting

Dukes said that it took him years to shed his gang-member label in prison, which finally allowed him to participate in a strict program in which inmates help counsel troubled youth. He said it was one of his greatest accomplishments and strengthened his faith in God.

God used to tell me: Why are you here, Carl? Not because you did that, its because I want to show you something and I have something else for you to do, Dukes said. Im cool with the fact I know I didnt kill anybody and God knows it. I dont care what everybody else think; to hell with them, and that became my rock.

Will Waldron/Times Union

He has worked in various jobs since his release, including as a dishwasher, but said he often gets passed over because of the 20-year gap in his employment history. He has a driver's license, is living with family in Albany and doing his best, he said, to adjust to a world that changed so thoroughly while he was away. Dukes wonders often about Mitchell's father, who attended the trials of his son's accused killers. Dukes said he could never look at Mitchell's family in court, and never laid eyes on the college student who had been killed until a prosecutor at his trial showed the jury a photo of Mitchell's corpse.

"That was the first and last time I ever seen Mr. Mitchell," he said. "I really do wish one day to see his father and to tell him, 'God bless you and I'm so sorry sir, I'm so sorry for your loss.' They lost a good, decent person on his way to doing something in life." In prison, his thoughts often drifted to Erik Mitchell.

"It's kind of like I knew him," Dukes said. "I've talked to him, like in my mind. ... 'Yo, Erik, I hope they find who did this.' "
CHANG W. LEE

In Robert Bryce's online commentary, which was briefly mentioned in the newspaper ("Wind power faces headwinds in NY," Sept. 28), Bryce misrepresented the military's response to proposed wind turbines by bringing up concerns but not explaining that the Department of Defense has a successful review process in place to identify and solve these concerns.

He did not mention that the U.S. DoD already has a robust and technically detailed review process to ensure wind farms don't harm military operations. Simply put, if the DoD finds that a wind farm adversely affects operations, and those effects cannot be mitigated, the project does not get built.
October 06, 2017

The telecom industry is changing faster than ever before thanks to the rapid evolution of technology. The growing demand for high-speed broadband, online storage clouds, and mobile connectivity has seen the need for a new kind of service provider  one that can ensure a 24/7 connection between devices and humans.







That demand has left service providers struggling to keep up. Their current resources of in-house and contracted field engineers are being stretched further than ever before, with consumers being the ones who suffer as a result.

Thankfully, new technology also brings with it the opportunity of change. Field Engineer, a new online marketplace for employers and freelance engineers, looks set to bring the benefits of the gig economy to the telecom industry in the years ahead. Weve rounded three of the main reasons why its causing quite the stir below:

Turning the Recruiting Process on its Head

One of the biggest challenges worldwide service providers currently face is finding the required staff to complete small, emergency jobs or larger, long-term projects. This can be even more troublesome in remote areas of the world, where qualified staff are at a premium.

The recruitment process involved in finding short-term staff for any role can not only be time-consuming, but also expensive, with specialized recruitment agencies often charging a small fortune for providing highly skilled staff.

Malik Zakaria, the founder of Field Engineer, was all too aware of this, having had 20 years of experience in telecom and IT outsourcing before setting up the company.

While he hasnt reinvented the wheel with Field Engineer, he has provided an online marketplace purpose-built for the telecom industry, where service providers can directly access skilled engineers from around the world in just a matter of minutes.

By cutting out the middle men, the cost for both the business and consumer promises to be substantially lower.

These first major steps into the gig economy for the telecom industry have proved incredibly popular, with the company already boasting of staff in 146 countries after just eight months in operation.

Responding to the Growing Trend for Flexible Working Schedules

Over the past 20 years, the number of workers operating as independent contractors, often through apps, has increased by about 27 percent more than payroll employees, according to CNBC.

This perhaps isnt surprising considering the growing trend for more flexible working hours, particularly amongst the younger generations.

A recent study from Bentley University highlights this fact, with 77% of respondents claiming that flexible working hours helped improve their productivity.

While freelancing has most commonly been linked to more creative industries, its thought that by 2020, 50% of the U.S. workforce will be freelance in some form or another.

FieldEngineer.com is best placed to capitalise on this growing trend, with its platform presenting the ideal solution to connect a digital, 21st-century workforce with employers.

Providing a 24/7 Workforce

Global telecom companies, such as AT&T (News - Alert) and Vodafone, operate on every continent, bar Antarctica. That means that they continually need the services of on-demand staff to help rectify any issues for their hundreds of millions of customers.

In the past, a small issue, such as the Wi-Fi going down in a public building, could have taken days, if not weeks, to fix depending on the availability of a technicians and other staff. Now, with Field Engineer, a suitable tech can be sourced and hired through the click of a few buttons from anywhere on the planet.

The speed with which a solution can be provided for the consumer is arguably one of the most important aspects of any business. Consequently, telecom companies that refuse to evolve their recruitment process to match todays demands face losing out to the competition.

About the Author

Gareth Mooreland is a full-time writer and a content marketing expert and have previously worked for technology companies in the US, UK and Australia. He is the go-to expert to write about technology and business. When not writing, Gareth enjoys taking landscape photos around the world. His lifetime ambition is to visit every country in the world. Only 128 to go!

Edited by Erik Linask
Missouri Rep Contemplates Bill to Make Highway Blockage a Felony click to enlarge State Representative Nick Schroer (R-O'Fallon) plans to introduce legislation mandating harsher penalties when protesters block the highway - something Schroer's very own colleague, state Representative Bruce Franks (D-St. Louis), was arrested for on Tuesday night. After protesters blocked I-64/40 for more than half an hour, police arrested 143 people, including Franks.

Close call here becauseso new laws against protest have the potential to be used selectively . . . Still, most reasonable people understand that highway blocking IS NOT Constitutionally protected. Read more:
A "Minute of Silence" No More

The week started with the devastating Las Vegas mass shooting that claimed the lives of 58 people. After the initial shock, my immediate thoughts went to the families of those killed. My second thought was, what if it had been me or my family, enjoying an outdoor concert on a beautiful night. Then I wondered, as I always do after hearing such news, how do we prevent or reduce the likelihood of these mass shootings from occurring, year after year. The bravery and determination displayed that day by strangers helping one another, by the emergency responders and law enforcement, was amazing.Last year I participated in an historic sit-in with House Democrats who were calling for a vote on gun violence laws. At that time, the shooting in Florida was the largest mass shooting that had ever taken place in our country. Sadly, that has now been surpassed.This week, I also refused to participate in the after-the-slaughter obligatory call by the Speaker for a minute of silence. You have heard it hundreds of times, Please stand for a minute of silence in honor of those killed in where ever. In the case of the Las Vegas shooting, 58 Americans were killed in cold-blood and the highest legislative body in the nation could only offer the bereaved families as well as the nation, a minute of silence. I simply walked into the cloak room and waited until the minute had passed.I am sick of the Our thoughts and prayers are with the... whom ever. Look, I take prayer seriously and if I say that I am going to pray for someone, I do. I promised over a decade ago that unless I am physically and mentally unable, I will pray to him each night for the remainder of my life. Therefore, I prayed that evening and afterward, for the families and victims in my little room in my building across from the Capitol.I call your attention to Exodus 14 where we find Moses trying to pray to God about all the problems he and his nation were facing. God responded, Why are you praying to me? Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide the waters so that my people can go through on dry land.Congress at a minimum should ban the sale of what is called bump stocks which converts a legal semi-automatic weapon into firing like an automatic weapon. I am also in favor of commonsense gun safety reforms like closing the "no-fly, no-buy" terrorist gun loophole.I know that some Members of Congress, for political reasons, push the notion that their opponents "want to take your guns" but I have been in Congress 13 years and there has never been a bill introduced for that purpose. I have family members who are well known to own guns. We must carefully balance efforts of allowing Americans the right to bear arms with strengthening gun safety in our country.Warmly,Emanuel Cleaver, IIMember of Congress########
Police believe Scott shot and killed Karen Harmeyer, 64, in July. Her body was found in Grandview. Prosecutors charged him Friday with first degree murder and armed criminal action related to her death.

The latest legal development in the aftermath of a series of homicide in a park widely known for gay sex hookups.Checkit:Deets:She was a hobo lady who lived in the woods behind a Church. Medical examiners didn't couldn't find any trauma to her decayed corpse at first but it was later determined that she died of a gunshot wound.Developing . . .
Amazing trails in a truly unspoiled paradise that will definitely heighten your senses

Admire the impressive mountain ranges, the forested slopes & the stunning natural landscape of Epirus in Greece unfolding before your eyes.

Here you can hit amazing trails in a truly unspoiled paradise that will definitely heighten your senses.

So pack your gear and set off for your adventure around the breathtaking landscapes of Epirus!

Enjoy the video...

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
Saudi Arabia has issued mining licences worth $66 billion to major private sector players in the kingdom, said the country's energy, industry and mineral resources minister.



"The number of licences granted by the ministry to the private sector is approximately 2,000 covering about 70,000 sq km," remarked Khalid bin Abdulaziz Al Falih.



He was speaking at a meeting with the Russian Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Sergey Donskoy in Moscow.

Saudi Arabia's mining sector is fast expanding, as the third pillar of the the country's economy, at a projected rate of nine per cent, according to a recent US economic study.



Significant changes in Saudi Arabias mining law that allows companies to work either with Saudis parastatal Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Maaden) or through joint ventures with local companies has created the right environment for foreign companies to boost their investment in the country, it stated.



Al Faleh also signed a joint roadmap for co-operation of the Saudi-Russian Joint Governmental Committee with the Russian Minister of Energy Alexander Novak at a key meeting held in the presence of officials from Aramco, Ministry of Energy, and a number of Russian energy companies.

A MoU was also signed between the Geological Survey of Saudi Arabia and the Russian Geological Corporation to enhance cooperation between the two countries in the scientific and geological field.

The pact includes geological prospecting and resource assessment, geophysical exploration of minerals and groundwater, marine geology, mineral and environmental studies and asymmetrical applications of geosciences, stated Dr Zuhair bin Abdulhafiz Nawab, the chairman of Saudi Geological Survey after signing the deal with Ruslan Goring, senior deputy to General Supervisor of Russian Geological Institute.



The duo also agreed on the formation of committees to follow up the implementation of its terms, as well as to consider possible future cooperation opportunities between the two countries.-TradeArabia News Service
P&O Ports, a subsidiary of Dubai's Ports, Customs and Free Zones Corporation (PCFC), is set to start operations at the container terminal in the Port de Sete in the south of France from early next year.



The three-year contract, announced in July, will see P&O Ports operating a container yard with a draft up to 14.5m draft with 457 metres of quay and adjacent two hectares land, reported state news agency Wam.



On a visit to Sete this week, Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, chairman of PCFC, held a meeting with the regional president, Carole Delga and Port Authority president Jean-Claude Gayssot.



He noted that the start of operations was due in early 2018 and encouraged those with an interest in the Sete container terminal to contact P&O Ports so they can prepare services for future customers and partners.



"The presence of P&O Ports is a significant undertaking for the Region Occitanie and the Port of Sete, and will contribute to the economic development of Occitanie and France," remarked Delga.



"Container development is a priority for us as it underpins the efforts of taking the region forward. The agreement with P&O Ports is a major achievement for our region and for French companies. It enables the Port of Sete to strengthen its trade relations with the world," he noted.



Port de Sete is a deep draft port, handling frozen, chilled, general and breakbulk cargo, containers and livestock alongside cruise and ferry terminals, a marina, cement handling facilities and an agro-industrial complex.



It forms part of the network of feeder routes in Italy, Spain and France with access to major hubs throughout the Mediterranean, the road and rail network of southern France and major businesses located in the region.



Development is due to start at the end of the year and once open will offer 12 dedicated superyacht berths for the worlds largest vessels of up to 100 metres with a maximum 7-m-draft.
Bangladesh Embassy in Bahrain has announced the launch of its new blog which aims to provide social, cultural, natural, economic and tourism related information to the public interested in learning more about the country as well as the embassy work.



This will complement the embassy's website and serve as an online journal that will share a running log of events and personal insights with an online audience.



Each week, the blog will share posts focused on four different themes: Embassy news, Top 10, Interesting Facts and Bangladesh Stories, said the embassy in a press release.



Bangladesh Stories will be short personalized stories highlighting valuable insights on what life is like in the country through the eyes of several locals in various sectors talking about their experiences in their home country.



Those keen to participate and share a story can submit their requests on the blog and be featured as well, said the release.



The social media campaign will seek to engage the local and Bangladeshi community through social media and serve as a platform to support their interests. In addition, the social media initiative will also promote cultural events, facts and news of interest to the local and Bangladeshi community in Bahrain, it added.



In addition to this, the embassy will be present on Instagram to boost its presence among youth. The blogs content will also be shared on Instagram simultaneously giving access to different target audiences.



Launching the blog, Bangladesh Ambassador to Bahrain Major General KM Mominur Rahman (Retd) said: In this digital age, we found this to be an appropriate step to engage with the youth and be the first embassy in the Kingdom to start this kind of initiative."



We want the local and the Bangladeshi community to participate by sharing their moments, stories and engage with us online. In addition to that, the blog will serve as a vital platform to further strengthen our dialogue with the local Bahraini community here," he observed.



"This program builds on our goal to develop and strengthen the linkage between Bahrain and Bangladesh. We encourage everyone to participate and share with us their views and experiences," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
The US State Department has approved a potential $15 billion sale of Lockheed Martin Corporation's Thaad anti-missile interceptors, launchers and radar, part of the package of weaponry that President Donald Trump promised for the kingdom during a visit in May, said a report.

Negotiations on contracts can move ahead unless the US Congress acts to block the deal within 30 days. The Saudis would be the second international buyer of Thaad after the UAE, reported Bloomberg.

Thaad, which uses a hit-to-kill warhead to destroy short and medium-range missiles, gained international attention this year after the US placed a Thaad battery in South Korea over Chinas objections.

The proposed Saudi sale underscored enduring US-Saudi defense cooperation on a day when Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz visited Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, with deals announced on arms sales as well as energy, it stated.

Saudi Arabia has requested a potential sale of 44 launchers, 360 missiles, 16 Fire Control and Communications Mobile Tactical Stations, and seven AN/TPY-2 radars made by Raytheon Company, said the Bloomberg report.

The package also includes maintenance equipment, 43 trucks, generators, electrical power units, trailers, communications equipment, tools, test and maintenance equipment and spares, it added.
Chandigarh: A biker snatched the purse of a woman in Sector 27 on Friday. According to the police, the victim was targeted near her house. The purse contained cash and important documents. Sources said the victim failed to note down the registration number of the motorcycle. We are scrutinising the footage of CCTV cameras installed in the area, said a police official. More than 170 snatchings have been reported in the city this year compared to 161 reported during 2016. TNS
Chandigarh, October 7

Haryana Police has found evidence of Honeypreet Insans hand in incidents of violence in Panchkula following the Dera Sacha Sauda chiefs conviction in a rape case on August 25, Panchkula Police Commissioner AS Chawla has claimed.

Chawla said 36-year-old Honeypreet, who claims to be the adopted daughter of jailed sect chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, was misleading and not cooperating with the police during her interrogation.

Honeypreet, whose real name is Priyanka Taneja, was arrested by Haryana Police on October 3 in connection with the deadly violence that had claimed 35 lives.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

Asked if Honeypreets hand in incidents of violence had come to light, Chawla said, According to the evidence we have gathered so far, she definitely has a hand in this.

The police would put the evidence and other facts before the court, he said without elaborating.

A lookout notice had been issued earlier against Honeypreet.

However, she evaded the police by moving from one place to another in several states, including Rajasthan, Punjab and Delhi, according to police.

The officer said Honeypreet, who is currently in police custody, was not cooperating in the investigation.

Her attitude is not proper with regard to investigation being conducted. Initially, she tried to feign ignorance.

When she was confronted with facts and evidence about what happened in Panchkula, she started misleading, he alleged and hoped she would cooperate in the probe.

He said Honeypreet was taken to Bathinda to verify the information she had given to the police. We found that the entire information given by her was turning out to be false after which we decided to return, the officer said.

The police was keen to ensure that the entire conspiracy is unearthed. We are hopeful that we will be able to dig out the truth, he said.

Replying to a question, Chawla said if anyones role in Panchkula violence came to light during investigation, that person would be asked to join investigation irrespective of the individuals stature.

If the need arose, the person would be arrested, he said.

Asked if any political leader had given shelter to Honeypreet when she was on the run, the police officer said, At this stage, I do not think it will be appropriate to comment on this.

Chawla said that during interrogation of some other arrested accused, it had been alleged that an amount of Rs 1.25 crore was distributed to some Dera members to arrange logistics for inciting violence in Panchkula on August 25 if the Dera chief was convicted in the rape case.

To a query, he said raids were on to nab Aditya Insan and Pawan Insan, the other key Dera functionaries accused of involvement in the violence. Our raids are going on continuously and we are hopeful of making early arrests, he said.

About Aditya Insan, Chawla said a lookout notice had been issued against him earlier. There is no input that Aditya has fled the country, he said to a query.

Meanwhile, Chawla appealed to the media to refrain from publishing or broadcasting any news pertaining to the ongoing investigation that is speculative and not certified.

Such news is confusing the common man and it is also affecting the medias credibility, he said. He denied that the Panchkula police had sent a notice to the 45-member Dera committee. PTI
Deepender Deswal

Tribune News Service

Bhiwani, October 7

Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar today announced that the state government would bear the cost of interest on loans taken by women self-help groups (SHGs) till the income of each member of the group crosses Rs 1 lakh per annum.

Addressing members of the SHGs after inaugurating a three-day convention here, the Chief Minister also announced awards for the first three such groups in every district on the basis of annual income. Groups securing the first position would get Rs 1 lakh each, second Rs 50,000, and third Rs 25,000, he said.

The government aimed to accelerate the socio-economic development to align with the resolution of sankalp se siddhi of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said. He urged the women to resolve to build a new India by 2022 where sanitation would prevail and where the environment would be free from corruption, terrorism, communalism and casteism.

Development and Panchayats Minister Om Prakash Dhankar announced the launch of a new brand for the products produced by the women SHGs.

Dhankar said efforts would be made to increase the annual turnover of such groups to Rs 5,000 crore from Rs 130 crore in the next five years. We are trying to connect six lakh families through the National Rural Livelihood Mission and hope we will succeed, he added.

Survey to get feedback on GST

Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said that a survey regarding the GST would be conducted in all districts by officers of the Centre and the state government from October 9 to 13. During the survey, information would be gathered about GST-related problems faced by dealers and profit earned by them. Next course of action would be decided on the basis of the information received during the survey, he said, while expressing gratitude to the Central Government and the GST Council for providing concessions to dealers of the state and the country.
Saurabh Malik

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, October 7

Granting regular bail to Ryan International Groups northern zone head Francis Thomas and HR head Jayesh Thomas in Pradyuman Thakur murder case, the Punjab and Haryana High Court today made it clear that non-adoption of adequate security measures and applicability of the Juvenile Justice Act were matter of investigation and proof during trial.

Justice Surinder Gupta also granted interim bail to Ryan International Groups founding chairman Augustine Pinto, managing director Grace Pinto and their son Ryan Pinto after hearing senior advocates RS Cheema and RS Rai, along with Arshdeep S Cheema.

Directing them to join investigation by the CBI on receipt of notice, Justice Gupta asserted: In the event of their arrest being required, they will be allowed interim bail till the next date. The case would now come up for hearing on December 5, when further investigation report would be furnished.

Taking up the bail plea filed by Jayesh Thomas and Francis Thomas through senior advocate Jasjit Singh Bedi, Justice Gupta asserted that the most important aspect to be seen during investigation was whether the petitioners were having actual charge or control over the victim-child and whether Section 75 of the juvenile Act was applicable against the management in case of the childs murder.

Section 75 deals with punishment for person having actual charge of, or control over, a child, for offences such as assault, abandonment, abuse and neglect.

The allegations against the petitioners are of lapse in taking adequate security measures. It again is a matter of investigation and proof during trial that the petitioners have not taken adequate security measures, which led to the offence committed on the premises of the school, Justice Gupta asserted.

Before parting with the order, Justice Gupta added that no useful purpose would be served by keeping the petitioners in custody in the facts and circumstances of the case.

The apprehension expressed by the CBI counsel that the petitioners might hamper with the prosecution evidence, prevail upon the witnesses or flee the country in the event of bail was also without basis, Justice Gupta ruled.

A murder case was registered after Class II student Pradyuman was found with his throat slit inside a washroom in the schools Bhondsi branch on September 8. Francis and the schools human resource head were arrested on September 11.

Dubbing his implication as a knee-jerk reaction, Francis, through counsel Bedi, contended that the Haryana government had become increasingly active following public outcry.

Bedi added that the Education Minister repeatedly told parents and the media that he would ensure an FIR under Section 75 against the school and its management. Newspaper reports were enclosed to buttress the contentions.
Geetanjali Gayatri

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, October 7

After dragging its feet for over a month, the state government today reinstated 2007-batch IPS officer Ashok Kumar. He was posted as Commandant, 1st Battalion, Haryana Armed Police, Ambala City.

The officer was suspended on August 25 following arson and violence that left 40 dead in Panchkula the day Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh was convicted of rape by a special CBI court.

The Home Department suspended Ashok Kumar, then Panchkula DCP, on the evening of August 25 for a clerical error in the order on imposition of Section 144.

The initial order announcing imposition of Section 144 issued by him did not mention that gathering of five persons or more was not allowed and only prohibited carrying of weapons, leading to dera followers laying siege to Panchkula.

Manohar Lal Khattar-led government had come under fire from the Punjab and Haryana High Court for facilitating the gathering of dera followers by not mentioning prohibition on the gathering of five persons or more.

The suspension of the officer had not gone down well with IPS officers, who were claiming that the government had soft-pedalled when it came to action against IAS officers while they remained at the receiving end.

The government was under pressure to revoke the suspension because the matter had turned into a tug-of-war between IAS and IPS officers, a repeat of action against officers following violence during the Jat agitation in 2016.

The police had approached the government and sought reinstatement of the officer in question. The reinstatement is subject to the final outcome of departmental proceedings pending against him, claimed Home Department sources.

The government had allegedly failed to intimate the Union Ministry of Home Affairs about the suspension though Additional Chief Secretary for Home SS Prasad had said the department intimated the ministry as mandated under the rules.

Muktsar family questioned over Pkula visit

Muktsar: The Panchkula police have questioned a family from Thandewala village, near here, in connection with the August 25 violence after the conviction of Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh. Lachman Singh and his nephew were questioned by the police on October 4 as they reportedly went to Panchkula in their vehicle on August 25, sources said. There were rumours that the dera chief's adopted daughter Honeypreet Insan had stayed at their house a few days ago though local residents and the police refuted the claim. "There is no information on Honeypreet staying in Thandewala village," said Periwinkle Grewal, SHO, Muktsar Sadar. A relative of Lachman said their family members were followers of the sect and some of them had gone to Panchkula. "Reports of Honeypreet staying in Lachman's house are only rumours," said Gurlal Singh, sarpanch of Thandewala village. TNS
Tribune News Service

Shimla, October 7

Supreme Court Judge Adarsh Kumar Goel today said the ultimate aim ofadopting the Constitution was to secure justice for all, which is enshrined in the Preamble, the soul of the Constitution of India.

He delivered the fifth lecture in the series on Different Facets of Indian Constitution organised by the HP State Legal Services Authority, at the High Court here. While making special reference to the concluding speech delivered by Dr BR Ambedkar in the Constituent Assembly, Justice Goel said he was the greatest jurist that India has ever had.

Talking about the Rule of Law, Justice Goel said, We come across so many incidents in great epics like Mahabharta and Ramayana, which shows us how the rule of law was being maintained in the society at that time. He said in every age in India there had been well defined sets of laws for good governance. He also referred to Panchari in this regard.

Justice Goel further said during the British rule in India there was so called rule of law, but there was no justice for the common people. He said the first and foremost duty of the state is welfare of its people and to secure justice for all which was the guiding spirit of the Constitution.

In his welcome address, Justice Sanjay Karol, Acting Chief Justice said Justice Goel was full of knowledge and wisdom and spent hours meditating. All judges of the High Court, officials and lawyers and law students attended the lecture.
Our Correspondent

Pulwama, October 7

Protests erupted in south Kashmirs Pulwama district after three braid-chopping incidents were reported from Monghama, Bagandgar Sangerwani and Pahoo villages.

Eyewitnesses said scores of protesters took to streets, blocked the Srinagar-Pulwama road and raised slogans. As people heard about the braid-chopping incidents, they took to the streets and staged protests, said Shabir Ahmad, adding that the woman whose braid was cut at Pahoo village was working as a tailor. She was in a room when her braid was cut by an unknown man.

A family member said the woman fell conscious after the incident. Later, she claimed she only saw a man carrying a bag.

Medical Superintendent in charge at the local hospital Dr Javed Ahmad said three women in unconscious state were brought to the hospital with their braids cut. After giving preliminary treatment, we discharged them after an hour, he said.

Pulwama SSP Mohammad Asalam Choudhary said the police had detained a few persons for questioning. While some suspects were detained by the police, others were handed over to the police by the public.

He, however, said most of them were innocent and were freed after investigation. He added that the police had got some clues and were hopeful of a breakthrough in the cases.

Separatists call for shutdown tomorrow

Srinagar: Separatist leaders called for a shutdown in the Valley on Monday to protest against the braid-chopping incidents in the region. The shutdown has been called jointly by Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Yasin Malik.It is a well-thought-out conspiracyit is a big challenge for us as the dignity of women is at stake, the separatists said in a joint statement. Let us convey a message to these miscreants that in no way we will give up our resistance and will pursue the right to self-determination movement, they said. TNS
Meerut, October 7

The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) has sent 21,000 rounds of newly developed and less lethal plastic bullets to the Kashmir valley to tackle street protests, says a top officer of the force.

The bullets, developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation and manufactured by the ordnance factory based in Pune, can be fitted in the AK series of assault rifles and will be an alternative to the much-criticised pellet shotguns.

Tests have shown that these bullets are less lethal. This will reduce our dependence on pellet guns and other non-lethal weapons used for crowd control, CRPF Director General (DG) RR Bhatnagar added.

He said this would be the latest less lethal ammunition the force had introduced to tackle crowds and counter stone-throwers in the Valley.

About 21,000 rounds have just been sent for distribution to all our units, the DG said.

Deployed for counter-insurgency and law and order operations in Jammu and Kashmir, the CRPF had ordered the plastic bullets so that the troops could just replace lethal metallic bullets.

Bhatnagar said both AK-47 and AK-56 rifles were used by the CRPF units deployed in the Valley. The bullets had been prepared in such a calibre that they fitted the barrel, he added.

As soon as a crowd or stone-throwing incident is encountered, the troops just need to change the bullets and fire, the DG added.

Bhatnagar said the force had not done away with other non-lethal weapons and was getting more pump action guns fitted with metal deflectors so that pellet injuries do not go above the waist.

Even our specialised anti-riot unit, Rapid Action Force, can use it at some point of time to render their duties. We will see how to go about it in the future, the DG said.

The usage of pellets in the Valley had come under heavy criticism after locals suffered serious injuries, including blindness in some cases, in the last few years.

The Centre had then ordered the introduction of chilli-based PAVA shells to replace the pellet shotguns.  PTI

Ultras attack patrolling party in Anantnag

Srinagar: A Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) man was injured in a militant attack in Anantnag district on Saturday evening, the police said. The police said militants fired at a CRPF party in Mir Bazaar area of Anantnag town, injuring an ASI of the paramilitary force. The injured trooper has been shifted to a hospital for treatment. The area has been cordoned off and an operation has been launched to trace the militants, the police said. IANS
Tribune News Service

Srinagar, October 7

The police have filed chargesheet against 17 persons, who are presently under judicial custody, in the lynching of Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Mohammed Ayub Pandith.

Pandith was stripped and lynched by a mob outside Jamia Masjid in the Nowhatta area of old Srinagar on June 22, triggering an outrage in Kashmir.

The chargesheet was produced by the Investigating Officer before the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Srinagar, on Friday against 17 persons arraigned as accused in the case.

The CJM has committed the case to the Principal District and Sessions Judge, Srinagar, for a trial. Earlier on July 20, the police had produced the accused in the case before the court of Sub-Registrar, Srinagar, which remanded them to judicial custody.

On July 12, the police had claimed that Hizbul Mujahideen militant Sajid Ahmad Gilkar, who was killed in an encounter in Budgam, had played a key role in the incident.

Gilkar played a key role in the lynching of DSP Mohammad Ayub Pandith of the security wing, a police spokesman had said. Gilkar went underground and joined the Hizbul Mujahideen after the incident, he said. The police, which had formed a Special Investigation Team to investigate the case, had also recovered the belongings of the DSP, such as the identity card and the pistol.
Srinagar, October 7

Separatists on Saturday called for a shutdown in Kashmir on Monday against incidents of braid-chopping in the state.

In a statement, Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Mohammad Yasin Malik said the braid chopping incidents were part of a "well-thought out" conspiracy.

"It is a big challenge for us as dignity of women folk is at stake," they said and appealed people to observe complete shutdown against the humiliation meted to women.

"Let us convey a message to these miscreants that in no way we will give up our resistance and will pursue the right to self-determination movement," they added.  PTI
New Delhi, October 7

An 82-year-old woman and her three daughters, along with a security guard, were found dead with their throats slit in their house in Shahdara this morning.

Urmila Jindal, who was a widow, was living with her daughters Sangeeta Gupta (56), Nupur Jindal (48) and Anjali Jindal (38). The deceased security guard, Rakesh (42), was employed with the family for more than eight years, the police said.

The house is located in a compound where seven families comprising 40 members reside. One of the families comprised Urmila and her three daughters. The other six families are from her husbands side. The police suspect that someone known to the victims might have killed them since there was no evidence of forced entry.

Some people known to the family claimed the killings could be a fallout of a property dispute, a charge denied by the family, which claimed the killings were carried out by robbers. Nupur Prasad, DCP (Shahdara), said Urmila was planning to sell off some of her properties.

A man, who daily deliver flowers at the residence of the Jindals, arrived at 6.30 am as usual. But the security guard did not come out to collect the flowers. Since the gate was open, he went inside and found the guard lying in a pool of blood. He informed Urmilas nephew Rakesh Jindal.

As the police arrived, the familys driver was sent upstairs to Urmilas house to get the car keys so that the vehicle could be removed from near the guards body. He found the door locked from outside. On opening it, he found the bodies of the four women in a pool of blood inside a bedroom.

The almirahs were open. Clothes were strewn across the floor. The police suspect this had been done to pass it off as a robbery.  PTI/TNS
Manas Dasgupta

Dwarka, October 7

Exactly 16 years after he was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Gujarat on this day in 2001, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said his government would not allow the business community and small traders in the country to get caught in red tape, files and bureaucracy.

Laying the foundation stone of a cable bridge on the sea to link Dwarka with Beyt Dwarka, Modi referred to the series of decisions taken by the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council to make the simple tax system simpler further and to give relief to small and medium business sectors.

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He said he was happy to learn that people across the country had greeted it as the coming of Diwali 15 days in advance. He said while Diwali was a very important festival in Gujarat, particularly among the business community, the relief announced by the GST council last night had been acclaimed as a major reform of the government like the advent of Diwali.

He said such unanimity was the key quality of a diverse India and was possible only when there is trust in the government and its honest intentions and transparency in taking policy decisions.

Apparently addressing the early critics of GST, Modi said his government had told the people that it would study for three months the problems faced by the people in implementing GST, be it in the areas of management, shortage of technology, problems related to rules, complaints regarding rates, trouble in the practical experience of business class and any other issue and we will address it.

Keeping its word, the government had now come out with solutions and granted relief to the people. Three months after the roll-out of the new indirect tax regime, the GST council yesterday made sweeping changes to give relief to small and medium businesses on filing and payment of taxes, eased rules for exporters and cut tax rates on more than two dozen items.
Our Correspondent

Gandhinagar, October 7

Injustices to Gujarat by Congress governments at the Centre and the real constructive development brought about by BJP governments in the state remained the focal points of Prime Minister Narendra Modis addresses on the first day of his two-day visit to his poll-bound home state of Gujarat today.

In meeting after meeting, Modi ridiculed the previous Congress governments very narrow vision of development to claim that the present generation of youths would not even be able to imagine the horrible state Gujarat was in before the BJP came to power in the state.

Modi, who began his Gujarat visit with prayers at the famous Dwarkadhish temple in Dwarka, claimed that in their very narrow vision, the Congress governments considered inauguration of a water tank or even laying a hand pump as development.

Compare that with what we are doing  an airport in a small town like Chotila, cable bridge connecting Dwarka with Beyt-Dwarka, piped Narmada water to every household in villages. This is the real concrete development, Modi said. Modi, who landed at the Jamnagar airport in the morning, laid the foundation stone of the Rs 982-crore bridge to connect Okha to Beyt-Dwarka.

He later laid the foundation stone of the Rs 2,500-crore green field airport at Hirasar village between the temple town of Chotila and Rajkot, initiated work for the six-laning of the Ahmedabad-Rajkot national highway and four-laning of Rajkot-Morbi highway.

He also dedicated a fully-automatic processing and milk packaging unit in Surendranagar, drinking water pipeline project for Joravarnagar and later in the evening, dedicated to the nation the newly-constructed building of IIT, Gandhinagar, and launched the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Sakhsarata Abhiyan.
Nowshera, October 7

Pakistan violated ceasefire in Nowshera sector of Jammu and Kashmirs Rajauri district on Friday night and continued unprovoked firing for an hour.

Indian troops retaliated strongly.

No casualties have been reported so far.

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The incident is one in a row of numerous incidents of ceasefire violation by Pakistan in the recent past.

On Friday, Pakistan resorted to unprovoked firing along the Line of Control (LoC) in Digwar sector of Poonch district.

The ceasefire violations in 2016 were 228 and this year it reached to 503 attempts till October 5. ANI
Satya Prakash

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, October 7

Concerned over killing of witnesses in criminal cases on court premises, the Supreme Court has asked the Centre to place on record the steps taken by it to enhance security in courts across the country and framing guidelines for witness protection.

The order came from a bench headed by Justice SA Bobde on October 5 while dealing with a case relating to murder of a witness in Delhi after he refused to turn hostile to save the accused from possible conviction and sentence.

The bench gave four weeks to the government to file an affidavit on the issue after advocate Binu Tamta, the counsel representing the Union of India, sought time to place on record various developments relating to enhancing security in courts.

It has already issued notices to the Ministry of Home Affairs and Delhi government seeking their response.

This case represents a serious degeneration in the atmosphere in which justice is administered in courts, particularly, subordinate courts. In the instant case, the deceased who is a witness was shot while he was being escorted by the police to the lock-up.

Apparently, he had refused to turn hostile. We have no doubt that such incidents pose a grave threat to the security of courts and interfere with the administration of justice. It seriously affects the willingness of witnesses to state the truth, the top court had earlier said.

Witness protection has been a problem area for the Indian judicial system that does not have a witness protection programme. Often witnesses in high-profile cases are eliminated before recording their testimony dealing a blow to the prosecution case.

Even in the rape case against godman Asaram, two witnesses  his former aide Amrut Prajapati and Akhil Gupta have been killed, exposing the criminal justice systems failure to protect witnesses in high-profile cases

At least four men involved in the 2010 multi-crore National Rural Health Mission scam in Uttar Pradesh, including Lucknow deputy chief medical officer Dr YS Sachan, died under questionable circumstances. Sachan was an accused in the murder of two other doctors.

Security of courts have been a major concern since September 2011 when a bomb blast at the Delhi High Court claimed 11 lives and left more than 80 injured.

The top court had on January 13, 2017 issued notice to the Centre seeking its suggestions on making courts secure through Central Industrial Security Force or any other agency.

Solicitor General Ranjit Kumar had told the bench that he would assist the top court in the matter and make his submissions for necessary reforms after obtaining appropriate instructions.
Meerut, October 7

The 21st century police cannot be a brute force but will have to be a civilised unit, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said today and asked police personnel to be patient in dealing with challenging situations such as riots and protests.

The minister also urged the police forces, both under the Centre and the states, to use new technology and psychological solutions to control and divert the minds of the rampaging crowds during a protest or in a riot-like situation.

Rajnath was addressing the personnel of the Rapid Action Force (RAF) at their base here on the occasion of their silver jubilee anniversary. He urged the security personnel to keep an effective check on incidents in which attempts are made to break the country on the lines of casteism, religion or regionalism.

The police of the 21st century cannot be a brute force. It will have to be a civilised force. Patience and control has to be practised and followed by police forces and the personnel on ground while dealing with hard and challenging situations like riots and protesting crowds.

Rajnath said he had already asked the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPRD) to look for less lethal solutions to be used in policing tasks and crowd control.

He said five new battalions of the force would be made fully operational from January 1 next year. The RAF, at present, has ten operational battalions.

The home minister also declared that personnel of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) would be granted an annual allowance of Rs 10,000 to get uniforms stitched and the practice of providing them readymade uniforms has been discontinued.  PTI
Batala, October 7

Congress candidate Sunil Jakhar today accused the Badals of running the government as a personal fiefdom during their decade-long rule.

At a meeting with representatives of the Anaj Mandi Arhtiya Association here, the PPCC president said the Badals were never interested in the welfare of the state and had spent those 10 years promoting their business interests.

Blaming the ill-conceived policies of the previous rulers for the agrarian crisis and the spate of farmer suicides, Jakhar said the Badal government had siphoned off Rs 3,200 crore to cover up their frauds. The cash-strapped state government was now paying interest on the loan taken against this amount, and would eventually have to pay Rs 7,000 crore to the Centre, he added.

Dubbing Modi Sarkar as a government of industrialists and business houses, the PPCC chief said despite the declining global fuel prices, the rates of petrol and diesel were going through the roof in India.  TNS
Tribune News Service

Amritsar, October 7

A galaxy of experts and intellectuals gathered to present their views at a seminar on Current political situation in our country and the onslaught of freedom of speech and independent media were unanimous in their opinion that the present BJP-led governments gagging the media was worst than the emergency period.

Former Editor of Jansatta Om Thanvi said the Emergency was imposed after evoking a clause of the Constitution but the present dispensation was working in utter disregard of the established norms to influence the media.

Seema Mustafa, Editor-in-Chief, Citizen, and Director, Centre for Policy Analysis, accused the Prime Minister of following those on Twitter who celebrated the murder of Gauri Lankesh. She lamented that the contemporary media lost its liberal voice under the influence of money, capitalistic forces and government policies.

Veteran journalist Bharat Bhushan said, Public and media were standing between Indian republic and Modis India. He stated that industrialists, mine owners, police, cow vigilantes, politicians and terrorists did not want the reality to be reported as it was.

Hartosh Bal, Political Editor, The Caravan magazine, said the murder of Gauri Lankesh was an attack on free media, which must be flayed in strict terms. Punjabi journalist Satnam Manak said functionaries of the RSS were occupying government positions and spreading misinformation against minorities.

The seminar was organised by the local Folklore Research Academy.
Amit Sengupta

So, he, his sister and his brother used to take their cycles, put them on the top of roadways buses and go to Goa when they were kids. They lived in a shack at Baga beach, along with fishermen and their families who were their best buddies, and inhaled the salt of the sea on their skins, and walked the beaches during full moon tides, and felt and internalised the lives of the locals, like margins meeting margins. In their courtyard they would unravel the fishing net, like a mystery novel of an unknown sea, smelling of fish and boats. So you guys did not go in a car? No, never, he said. My parents would never encourage that; they saw to it that we are rooted, aligned with nature and people.

We know that Karan Kapoor, a great photographer, was always a bit shy; he really did not celebrate the hallucinations of box-office Bollywood. It is because he came from a great tradition of aesthetics, theatre, classical cinema and modernity; his parents were Jennifer Kendal and Shashi Kapoor. And his sister, Sanjana, still runs the legendary Prithvi theatre in Mumbai, against all odds, first established by their grandfather, great actor Prithiviraj Kapoor, which has created and sustained some of the finest actors (and productions) in theatre and cinema, and still does. However, that shy obscurity, the seamless modesty, and a certain sublime sense of not carrying any airs of the legacy, is strikingly stunning.

He seemed overjoyed to hear that as a student I lived in Anjuna beach in Goa on Rs 25 per day in a shack with a half door and got a full Konkani dinner with shell fish and rice and a mango for Rs 5 in the early 1980s, even as I and my friends travelled in a working class ship from Bombay to Goa. He seemed equally happy to know that I have seen 36, Chowringee Lane, that magnificent movie of love, betrayal and exile on the Anglo-Indian community in Calcutta, almost five times.

I said, Your mother made great theatre and cinema; your father too in his earlier films with Ivory and Merchant productions. He was a mega-star but chose to produce such extraordinary films putting all his money  Junoon, Utsav, Kalyug. Which actor has done that in Bollywood? Yes, he said, it was difficult. But they were idealists of their generation. Indeed, many of my pictures here are during that long stay among the Anglo-Indian community in Calcutta while my mother was acting in the film.

From Tollygunge in Calcutta to the inner lanes of the extended village and sea shore that was Goa in the 1980s and 1990s, Karan Kapoors camera works on a synthesis of the documentary and cinema for two decades and more; black and white stills as short films etched in memory. His travelling show (Time and Tide) showcased at the Bikaner House in Delhi recently and organised by Tasveer, Bengaluru, and his book with the same name, with text by William Dalrymple and Felicity Kendal, is a classic kaleidoscope of old times frozen in the exile of old-age homes, wrinkles on the faces of soft men and women, soft folds and embroidered flowers on their European dresses, and the pictures on their walls, including one with the British flag, the inner shadows of ancient homes, the warmth and the coolness of it all, the wedding celebration on the streets, the fishermen with their nets flying into sky of the sea, young girls and boys anticipating a future of dreams, old patriarchs surrounded by memorabilia and pride, little shacks with humanity floating out of its windows and doors, and an old man and a woman walking into the forest with an umbrella in solitary togetherness. And, of course, the girl who won the Marilyn Monroe look-alike contest, perhaps more beautiful in her raw, young beauty than Monroe herself.

Writes Dalrymple: The old men and women photographed by Kapoor in his Anglo-Indians series are in some ways the last survivors of a forgotten tribe. Most of them migrated en masse in the 1950s. Many of them have stayed back even as their children have settled in Australia, Canada and America. That is why this cinematic documentation becomes an archival treasure of a history almost left unrecorded in the inner-lanes, by-lanes and shadows of a forgotten communitys life and times in India. However, Karan Kapoor has not forgotten. Some of them are dead. Some are still around. They are still buddies. I keep going and coming back.
Pushpesh Pant

The map of political India marks out different states, most of which have a distinct linguistic identity. Our National Anthem, too, seems to re-emphasise the cultural identity of the people, at least partly, in terms of language  Punjab, Sindh, Gujarat, Maratha, Dravid, Utkal, Banga... While the ethnicity of all these and many other communities, castes, etc. remains distinctive, the cuisine of each one of them reflects the unity in diversity that is so characteristic of India. The sub-regional micro-climatic differences within a state and traditional culinary practices of countless communities, each proudly asserting its taste, reflect that our cuisines like much else are a resplendent celebration of our pluralism.

For instance, what is meant by Punjabi food? The vast tract of land  that once stretched from Khyber Pass to the outskirts of Delhi touching Kashmir in the north and present day Rajasthan in the south  encompassed clearly marked sub regions between rivers each with foods of its own. Even today the robust dishes from the Frontier or Pothohar plateau can easily be distinguished from the gentle delicacies of Doaba, Majha and Malwa.

Melting pot

However, it is not only the geographical variations that have been the decisive influence in our kitchens. It is reasonable to suggest that ethnicity and castes and sub-castes have played an equal role in weaving this dazzling culinary tapestry.

Take, for instance, the case of Brahmins and Baniyas. These labels are commonly applied to different people who may belong to the same occupational category assigned to them by birth prescribing and prohibiting certain items of food and rituals. These labels may reinforce age-old stereotypes but do not correspond to the reality on the ground. The Tambrams (Tamil Brahmins that include Iyer, Iyengar and Smarta) are believed to be strictly vegetarians and most of them are but what about the Brahmins from Kashmir (Shaivas) and Bengal (Shakta)? Saraswat Brahmins scattered along the west coast, too, consume fish and flesh. Some of the cuisines of these communties have only recently stepped out of the closet but have, in a very short while, endeared themselves to gourmets. Today, Malavani and Saraswat cuisines are recognised as distinct genres of cooking.

The word Baniya is derived from vanik in Sanskrit. It is applied to families of all traders and merchants. From Marwaris in Rajasthan to Chettiars in Tamil Nadu, this community is believed to be descendants of the Vaishyas mentioned in our ancient texts. The Jains, too, are identified as a community of traders. While the Jains and most other Baniyas are strict vegetarians, Chettiars have no inhibitions or restrictions about meat eating and recipes from Chettinad rely almost exclusively on seafood, poultry and meats, including game. Their spicing, too, resonates with memories of the seafaring days of these merchant princes along the Spice Route.

Then there are the Kayasthas  an intermediate caste of professional scribes  who have produced some distinguished civil servants, academics and writers. They have been quintessential men for all seasons adapting their idiom, attire and cuisine to ensure upward mobility. Their food is a confluence of Hindu and Muslim mainstreams and an amalgam of Brahmin, Kshatriya and Vaishya traditions. It would be naive to believe that all Kayasthas eat alike. Like other communities, within the Kayastha fold too, we can easily discern interesting variations in their food.

Multicultural palate

We cant just blame the British for spreading communalism with their policy of divide and rule. When it comes to food, most of us quite mindlessly talk in terms of Muslim food or Hindu food. In utter disregard of historical evidence, we have burdened ourselves with the myth of a Mughal cuisine. Much before the Mughals came, the Bahmani Sultans and their successors in Deccan had displayed remarkable syncretic genius that helped evolve a multicultural inheritance. The Turkic influence in Hyderabad is more pronounced than in the North. Keralas contacts with Islam are even older. For millennia, Malabar has been a port of call for Arab traders. The delicacies in Malayali Muslim menu are quite different from the dastarkhans of Awadh or the Kashmiri wazwaan. While all Muslims observe the rules regarding haram and halal, the ingredients, cooking techniques, spicing, etc. vary from region to region and community to community.

Daudi Bohras are a microscopic minority of Indian Muslims with a rich culinary repertoire. Its only recently that their food has debuted in public domain.

There are many other pan-Indian communities/castes whose cultural identity is entwined with their food. Take the Coorgis from Karnataka for instance. The moment you hear the word, visions of pandi curry float before your eyes or of foods foraged from forests, like mushrooms and bamboo shoots.

Then there are Suriyani Syrian Christians in Kerala who trace their lineage back to conversions in the first century after the birth of Christ. They have many things in common with fellow Malayalis, including the love for fresh coconut and its oil, and plantains. But their cuisine presents a pleasant contrast to the food of priestly Namboodiri Brahmins, martial Nairs and the children of intrepid sailors, the Moplas.

Countless cuisines

It is not possible to even list all the hitherto unseen and unheard of cuisines of India that are suddenly creating ripples in the marketplace, but some recent entrants are spicing up the global gastronomic scene, sometimes literally.

Strongly spiced and hot Kolhapuri recipes have been present for a long time but not many have sampled the gems from the kitchens of Pathare Prabhu. Similarly, not many outside Nagpur may have savoured marriage feast prepared by Saoji professional cooks of Vidarbha. New Delhi, too, has only recently discovered the palate-scorching bhoot jholakiya (once ranked as the hottest chilly in the world) at the Nagaland's Kitchen which serves some flavourful dishes of the Naga cuisine.

Gourmets have grudgingly begun to concede that there is more to Bihari food than sattu and litti chokha. The Potbelly in New Delhi offers some recipes cooked in different regions of this state. Without labeling the cuisine with caste inspired prefixes or suffixes, the restaurant manages to represent major communities.

There are other cuisines like the Sindhi and the Pahari (a multi-layered community of hill folk comprising Himachali, Uttarakhandi), which are struggling to find their place in the sun.

Much remains to be unveiled. The food from tribal belts in different states cant be lumped together. Nor can one continue to overlook the special gastronomic identity of regions like Assam and Orissa that have been dominated by the taste footprint of Bengal.

Democratic elections may have highlighted the negative aspects of identity politics, however, in the realm of food, celebration of identity isnt divisive. It promises to enrich the understanding of our shared inheritance and enhance the joi de vivre.
Nayantara Sahgal

The other day an acquaintance of mine asked me why I was opposing Hindutva. What did I have against it? I told her why. I said I opposed it for two reasons. One reason is personal and the other is political.

Let me begin with the personal. I cannot accept Hindutva because I am a Hindu. By this I dont mean only that I was born a Hindu, but that I am a believer. My religion is important to me. I draw daily strength and sustenance from it. It is central to my life and thought, and to my behaviour toward believers of other faiths for Sanatan Dharma teaches that the world is our family. To millions of Indians, of whatever faith, religion matters. And all truly religious people know that God has no chosen people. We are all equal in the eyes of the Creator.

So it is unbearable to watch my religion being transformed into what it was never meant to be by people who call themselves Hindus but practise a brutal, militant creed of their own that drives them to lynch defenceless innocent Indians, pump bullets into those who question their creed, and enter a train armed with knives to stab to death a fifteen-year-old boy who is returning to his village after his Eid shopping in Delhi. Unbelievably, this vengeance pursues some of its victims beyond the grave. What else are we to make of the news that the grieving families of Mohammed Akhlaq and Pehlu Khan are now being made the guilty parties instead of the criminals who killed them, while the killers roam free to commit other hate crimes. Jesus Christ, in agony on the cross to which he was nailed, could pray: Father, forgive them for they know not what they do. But the Hindus among us cannot utter a similar prayer because those who kill and maim and terrify in the name of Hinduism know exactly what they are doing and take pride in doing it. Such things have happened in all countries and centuries when religious fanaticism or racism has been allowed to go unchecked, and more especially when a ruling ideology gives free rein to fanaticism.

Then there is the political reason. Hindutva is a political invention that has re-defined Hinduism for its political purpose, which is to declare India a Hindu rashtra. It says this country is exclusively Hindu, all other Indians being invaders and outsiders. Historically this is incorrect since, like every other land mass, and the civilization that has grown out of it, the India we live in is the outcome of migrations millennia ago. There is no pure race on earth. We are all a mixture of all that has gone into the making of us. The invaders and outsiders from earliest times are as Indian as the first aborigine inhabitants of this land mass. Which came first, the chicken or the egg, doesnt matter. Here we are today, people of every known religion, language, culture and lifestyle, and all rightful citizens of India.

As this is a reality that Hindutva finds hard to digest, those whom it claims as its supporters deal with it in two ways: One, the straightforward military solution of eliminating those whom you see as Other, or those who do not fall in line with your ideology. It began with Mahatma Gandhi being shot dead for committing the blasphemy of declaring that God is One whom we call by different names, and for giving us the mantra: Ishvar Allah tere nam; sab ko sammati de Bhagvan. We can now see his murder in 1948 as the forerunner of what is happening to diversity, debate and dissent in our own time.

The second solution is to do the same thing with the printed page, by wiping out all trace of the Other from history books and inventing a Hindutva history in its place. We have been told that Akbar was not Great and that it was Maharana Pratap Singh who won the battle of Haldighati. But now the texts in some Hindutva-ruled states have apparently gone further and decided to wipe out the Mughal empire altogether. Perhaps their textbooks will go much further back a thousand years and wipe out the Muslim invasions because Hindutva holds that these invasions and conquests were an interruption of Hindu history which is the rightful history of India, so all the rest is irrelevant. This campaign to wipe out memory itself is essential to the project of mind control which seeks to make us a uniform think-alike breed. It is part of this campaign to discredit Gandhis non-violence as a policy that emasculated Indians, and to reject compassion as a resort of weaklings. How could such a wrong interpretation be made when no greater courage has been shown than that of the unarmed Indians who faced the armed might of an empire, and when compassion is the most civilized achievement of the human mind? Bertrand Russell once called politics the grinning devil and this is what politics under the rule of Hindutva seems to have become. Vast slices of our multi-religious, multi-cultural heritage  which includes our literature, architecture, language, food, music, dance, dress and manners - are being dishonoured and disowned, leaving us shrunk into a monoculture which is not only not Hinduism, but the antitheses of all that India has stood for, worked for, and safeguarded as a proud and cherished inheritance. Not least, it is what India has been acclaimed and admired for throughout the world, as a thriving example of unity in diversity.

In contrast, let us look at politics as it once was. It was Mahatma Gandhi, a deeply religious Hindu, who laid the foundation of modern India when he created a national movement that cut across all divisions of region, religion, caste, language and gender and, for the first time in any countrys history, brought class and mass together under the same banner to fight for freedom. It was a largely Hindu Constituent assembly consisting mostly of elderly conservative Hindus who rejected a religious identity at independence and declared India a secular democratic republic for the very reason that it is a deeply religious country of many different religions  and made religion a private affair, converting this into a Constitutional guarantee that gave every citizen the right to worship as he or she chose. It was this republic of millions of devout believers of different faiths that repeatedly elected a Prime Minister who was a known agnostic , yet also known for his profound respect for the religious beliefs of his countrymen, and determined that every Indian should hold and practise his or her faith in freedom. This was India at its birth into nationhood seventy years ago and it has remained so  until now when the politics of Hindutva has partitioned our country a second time, dividing Indians into Hindus and Others.

It is no comfort to know that there is a world trend toward a militant nationalism, toward tightening identity into cubbyholes, toward excluding those whom it considers Other, toward an era of post-truth in which facts have no place and invention rules the day. As inheritors of a hard-built tradition of democracy and secularism, we must prove ourselves an exception to this trend.
Saba Naqvi

I am not a pessimist and I never sleep well after spreading pessimism. I am also a fan of Prime Minister Narendra Modi (seriously) who hangs on to his every word (completely true) and therefore, promise to remain an optimist and sleep well. Since I have been a bit of an insomniac, I am now clear that optimism is the only way to sleeping peacefully. Pessimists, I suspect, have become borderline anti-nationals and I dont want to belong to that side. So, thank you Modiji for showing me the way.

On this note of optimism, I share some good news from Uttar Pradesh. The Taj Mahal will not be demolished! Yipee. In fact, the UP Government has made a statement that it has many tourism projects worth Rs 370 crore that await clearance from the Centre for the Taj. What a reliefnow admirers of that monument can also sleep in peace.

Therefore I say, let bygones be bygones: so what if a UP tourism brochure made no mention of the Taj. Yogi Adityanath has every right to promote pilgrimage circuits in Mathura, Ayodhya and Gorakhpur, though some would say that new hospitals with regular oxygen supply should first be built in some of the places, then I dont want to be pessimistic about anything these days. Besides, I know that a religion is a religion and a state is a mutt. So, thank you Yogiji.

Beyond the good news about the Taj, I have other strange news from UP. On Gandhi Jayanti this year, the first ever bust of Nathuram Godse Mahatma Gandhis assassin  was installed and unveiled by the members of the Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha in Meerut. According to the Times of India report, the statue could not be put up in 2014, but now it was smooth sailing. The two-foot-high and two-foot-wide stone statue of Godse, made by artisans in Jaipur, reportedly weighs 50kg and costs Rs 45,000. A shawl and a garland were presented to Godses bust by the members of the group after it was unveiled.

The outfit which intends to worship Godse also referred to Gandhis birthday as Dhikkar Divas.

Pandit Ashok Sharma was quoted by the paper as saying: In 2014, when we had tried to install the Godses bust after a foundation stone-laying ceremony, it was opposed by the police, the spot was sealed and the matter was taken to court. This time, we exercised extreme caution and unveiled the statue on Gandhi Jayanti as there can be no better day. Absolutely, no better day to celebrate the murder.

He also expounded on his vision for India. He said it was time all Indians stop following Gandhis footsteps and start worshipping Godse. He asked: Do we follow Gandhian principles these days? The recent surgical strikes done by the Army gives my answer. All of us follow Godses principles, but still praise and worship Gandhi. He has a point there.

The group now intends to distribute sweets on the day Gandhi was killed (January 30). They shall call it Ananya Divas. I will not bat an eyelid when that happens. I will just look at my miniature Taj Mahal and reassure myself that India is headed in the right direction. Remember, my optimism pledge.

In fact, things are going so well in UP, especially now that the BHU Vice Chancellor has gone on leave. Im really pleased that Yogi set off for Kerala last week. Im glad he decided to fight love jihad there. I presume his Hindu Yuva Vahini is controlling such urges in his home state and the Romeo squads have brought peace and social harmony to the state. So, it is high time to take the message to less-enlightened corners of our great land such as Kerala.

He was quick off the mark there and immediately zoned in on the problem when he said that communism is a foreign ideology. He went on to talk of a Sanatan Hindu Rashtra and said Adi Shankaracharya came forth with this when Indian culture was threatened by foreign invaders.

I have to give it to Yogiji. He really does spot the foreigners and all the conspiracies they bring into our land. At some point, he will have to work out a cut-off date for foreigners: is it medieval emperors who came and settled in India centuries ago? Is it the people who carried Islam to Kerala in the life-time of the Prophet? Its perplexing and will require some thought and analysis.

Meanwhile, lets just drive out the communists and then we can get to the foreigners. As Ive said, Im not a pessimist. I believe all these problems will be sorted out. We have enlightened leaders in our midst. UP is shining, there is a feel good factor all across the state and now we will head south. Remember, no pessimism allowed.
By K. Natwar Singh

Stephen Paddock will be remembered as a man without conscience and a vicious murderer. So much has been written, spoken and covered on TV that one would expect Paddock to fatigue. This has not happened because of the horrific nature of his crime. America is mourning the Las Vegas massacre which claimed 58 lives. But no one yet seems to have a clue as to what set Paddock to do so.

Many questions remained unanswered. How could one man collect so many sophisticated weapons and take these to his hotel suite? Guns were also found in two other locations. His girlfriend, Marilou Danley, has declared that she knew nothing about Paddocks intention to commit such carnage.

The US gun lobby is powerful, rich and supported by millions of Americans. Weapons can be bought without licence from any gun shop and in mindboggling numbers. Americans are proud of carrying guns without fear of the law because the law does not apply to them. The US Congress has never debated activities of the gun lobby. It is claimed that many politicians have links with the gun lobby. Will Congress act now or not? For the first time, it may do some window dressing, otherwise it will, unfortunately, be business as usual. During his election campaign, Donald Trump had spoken in favour of the gun lobby. As far as I know, while condemning the carnage he has avoided condemning the gun lobby.

********************

Now, some good news. Kazuo Ishiguro has been awarded the 2017 Nobel Prize for Literature. His father was an oceanographer. The family moved to England when Kazuo was five years old. He was born in Nagasaki in 1954.

Till now, he has been known for his novel, The Remains of the Day. The film starring Anthony Hopkins was a huge success. I adore it.

********************

I have never met Shri Anna Hazare, but I must confess I was glued to the TV in 2011 or 2013, watching him and his self-appointed acolytes. One is now a Governor, other a Chief Minister. Theres nothing wrong with that. Both are public-spirited individuals.

Is a second Anna movement round the corner? I see neither the corner nor the movement. The fact is that the innocent, well meaning, utterly honest man of sterling integrity has lost his way. At one time (briefly), he was referred to as the second Gandhi. That was crass nonsense. It must be said to his credit that he made no such claim. Compared to the ever growing tribe of ersatz gurus saints, sadhus, holy men and palm and horoscope readers, Anna Hazare appears to be 24-carat gold. Good luck Annaji.

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After several decades, I am re-reading two books  one is C Northcote Parkinsons Parkinsons Law. We boarded the same ship from Singapore to Bombay in 1958. Han Suyin introduced me to him. She was then a practising doctor. Parkinson was teaching English at Singapore University. She said he was a man of great wit. His book had recently been published at that time and became a best seller in the English-speaking world. She gave me a copy.

We were on the ship for 17 days, with stopovers at Penang, Colombo and Bombay. I used to sit on the deck, reading the book, laughing loudly from time to time. The first paragraph of the first chapter reads thus:

Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion. General recognition of this fact is shown in the proverbial phrase. It is the busiest man who has time to spare. Thus, an elderly lady of leisure can spend the entire day in writing and dispatching a post card to.. An hour will be spent in finding the post card, another in hunting for spectacles, half an hour in a search for the address, and hour an quarter in composition and twenty minutes in deciding whether or not to take an umbrella when going to the pillar box in the next street. The total effort that would occupy, a busy man for three minutes He also deflates Bureaucratmanship.

The 10 chapters are very amusing and each is illustrated by the famous British cartoonist. Regrettably, this wonderful book is now out of print.

The second book is, The Story of My Life by Giacomo Casanova (1725-98). The back cover of the book calls Casanova, a seducer, gambler, swindler, spy, swashbuckler, self-made gentleman, notorious lover. He was also a liar, witty, unfaithful, dedicated cracking company, who had innumerable affairs, spent some time in jail and was a friend of Voltaire. He translated Homers Iliad into Italian.

Regardless, his memories on the whole are neither obscene nor vulgar. This is an abridged edition. The complete one was unfinished at the time of his death. The manuscript was of 3,600 pages. Restraint was alien to Giacomo Casanova.
Parveen Arora in Karnal

A wall is a wall, either it is plain, filthy or distorted. Yet it is much more than that when it becomes a canvas painted in multi-colours highlighting a culture. Street art in Greece's capital Athens is said to be the biggest in the world. You can see an excessive amount of graffiti at every available space throughout city. Every available wall, shop front, brick wall or obscure alley is a canvas waiting to be filled with artistic optimism, political reference or social satire.

Some inspiration has travelled as far as to this city. Scores of young artists recently came together and turned the barren retaining walls of the flyover at ITI Chowk on the National Highway into a colourful graffiti. It was first such attempt by the Karnal Municipal Corporation (KMC). The civic body organized a painting competition, offering many young artists a platform to showcase their talent. Civic officials plan a colourful story sketched on all retaining wall of flyovers within the city limits.

Civic officials say they received a huge response with 150 teams participating from across the country. They came from Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, J&K, Uttarakhand, UP, Delhi, Rajasthan, MP, Assam, Karnataka, Maharashtra, West Bengal and other places. Two artists from Delhi, Peeyush and Rajesh, assisted the civic agency in organizing the event. The two have set up a unique art concept 'Uneditioned Art'. The word uneditioned is not in the dictionary, it lies in our heads. For us it means art without the traditional boundaries. It can assume a form just anywherewith one's own ways of doing it, says Rajesh.

The first prize went to the young artists from Art College, Delhi, comprising Urmila Majumdar, Sunil Xess, Milan Kumar, Rahul and Suraj, who painted multiple faces of Indian culture. The second prize was won by students from Government College of Art, Chandigarh, (Sunil, Deepak Singh, Jashandeep Kaur and Robin). Students from College of Art, Delhi, (Deepa Khushwaha, Deepak Kumar, Shubham and Deepak Kumar Mehato) won the third prize.

Young artists with hearing impaired came from Government College of Art, Chandigarh (Anmol Kanwal, Harman, Pankaj Sharma, Ashish Rathore, Varsha Badal, Buta Singh, William Singh and Arjun Singh). They also received a prize.

Experienced in wall painting, Delhi's Urmila Majumdar is a B.Sc final year student of Art College. She was thrilled to be a part of the contest and thanked the KMC to hold such a big event. It is amazing to realize how much freedom you have in public space. When I saw so many artists performing, I became a little nervous; I had no idea what to draw, she said. Her experience stood her in good stead. I won the first prize in wall painting in Nanital last year also, she said.

An MFA final year student at Government College of Art, Chandigarh, Sunil said wall painting is an exciting form of artistic expression. Winning a second prize is a great honour, he said. For Jashandeep Kaur, a BSc IInd year student from Ropar, it was a big event after her choice of the subject was rejected by her parents. It was a great opportunity; we interacted with other artists who came from other parts of the country. We all have learned a lot from the competition, she said.

Moga resident Deepak Kumar is a final year student of Government College of Art, Chandigarh. Wall painting is his interest. He is also a commercial artist. My interest in painting grew since my childhood when I started sketching and painting huts and cartoon character. The KMC initiative contributes to cleanliness and beautification of the city, he says.

For the civic body, the initiative was a lesson in seeing urban planning in a different perspective. We were a little nervous. The entire exercise taught us how residents' participation can improve things, said Priyanka Soni, Commissioner. I have seen such wall paintings in other cities, so I thought why not Karnal? For Renu Bala Gupta, Mayor, has earned a civic stature after being shortlisted as a smart city.

Karnal city's streets are getting an artistic makeover as walls along roads are being painted with messages on traffic rules, 'clean India mission' and women security. Street art has assumed a new meaning in the city. We have marked several walls along various roads for messages on cleanliness and traffic safety. Students from various schools have painted these roads. We want to show wall painting is a beautiful art, said Soni.

While it'd take some time for civic agencies to figure out the cathartic effects of the street art, the art as such has invited riveting questions: how to define street art? One thing is certain: street art has become an integral element of contemporary art. Maybe, then, the question before us is not what street art is, but why has it come to be, and more importantly - where can it go from here?
By Pradeep Kapoor & Prashant Saxena

Varanasi is now used to the VVIP visits: September 22-23 were to be usually special days as Prime Minister Narendra Modi travelled to his constituency  his first visit after BJP's resounding victory in the UP Assembly polls about six months back. The PM was to launch over a dozen welfare projects. Everything looked normal, except a minor stir: On September 22, girl hostellers of Banaras Hindu University held a 12-hour demonstration protesting molestation and unbridled gender bias on the campus.

The next day, hours after the PM left the city, the university was engulfed in turmoil with reports of boy hostellers joining the protest retaliating against the police cane-charge at the Vice Chancellor Lodge on the BHU campus. A crisis unfolded. And there were obvious lies.

The National Human Rights Commission has issued a notice to the vice chancellor, taking cognizance of the unwarranted manhandling and thrashing of agitating students, mostly women, by the UP Police. Vice-chancellor GC Tripathi initially denied that woman students were hit during the crackdown. There was no baton-charge on any girl  Action was taken against criminal and anti-social elements who (vandalized) varsity property, he said. Later he went on leave. The state government has formed a panel and replaced the proctor.

This is the state of affairs of a university where the countrys finest luminaries once congregated. The BHU decline over the years is evident from a fact of history: there was a time more than six decades back, when students agitated that eminent socialist thinker Acharya Narendra Dev should join the university as early as possible. And today, the students forced the present V-C, considered close to the RSS, to proceed on leave.

Take a look at BHUs internal politics. First the students union:

In 1958, the union was banned for eight years after a strike.

Following the death of two students in 1997 in police firing, the students union was banned again for an indefinite period.

In 2011, the university introduced students council in place of a union. In the students council, every class elects its representative. The elected representatives in turn elect the general secretary.

In 2011, Lalji Singh, a scientist and a recipient of the Padma Shri Award, was chosen as the V-C. He is referred to as the father of DNA fingerprinting in India. Prof Tripathi took his place when his term ended in November 2014. Formerly with Allahabad University, Prof Tripathi is known for his Hindutva leanings. He was chosen by a search-cum-selection committee headed by justice (retd) Giridhar Malviya. The HRD ministry also appointed Prof Tripathi as the chairman of the IIT-BHU, ignoring the list the institute had provided.

The university has many issues to grapple with. The present V-C has allowed selective political activities, which his predecessor had thwarted. Students have repeatedly said that the authorities were not acting on their complaint. Had the VC had met the protesting students and promised action against the accused, nothing of this sort would have happened, says a professor.

Dr Deepak Malik, who was associated with the university from 1964 to 2012 first as student and then as teacher  says forced attempts to depoliticize the campus have resulted in the communication gap between the university authorities and students, teachers and employees. He recalls that while Jawaharlal Nehru was responsible for the selection of Acharya Narendra Dev as the V-C, the successive selections reeked of mediocrity. In the absence of any students, teachers or employees unions, the V-C became the administrator whose main job was to maintain law and order.

Dr Malik says when the computer centre was set up near the administrative block, the students demanded that there should not be any dress code, and that they should be allowed to stay at the centre till midnight. But the university authorities insisted on a dress code and an early time for the centre to close.

Faculty members say that the present V-C is known to have close ties with the present government, and that he has limited academic background. Only rightwing parties and organizations have made inroads into the university, says a faculty member.

It was because of this mindset the rules were framed to discriminate between boys and girls. They have separate time schedules. When girls complained about molestation, the university authorities, including the V-C, questioned the girls and their attitude rather than taking action against the guilty. Several girl students have complained that the campus was badly lit and that there were no CCTVs. "Boys from outside can easily trespass and move out without any resistance," says a girl student. Many girl students say the PM too ignored their protest during his visit to the holy city.

The university authorities have appointed first woman chief proctor, Dr Royna Singh, in place of ON Singh who took moral responsibility for the lathi-charge and resigned. The new proctor has promised uniform time schedule for boys and girls and said that there would be no dress code for girls. She said 65 CCTVs would be installed at sensitive points. The BHU control room has issued two helplines where girl students can register their complaints and get a response within 10 minutes. The proctors board would have girl research scholars as members. To prevent trespassing, the BHU proctor has enforced strict checking of ID cards of girls and boys.
London: At least 11 people were injured on Saturday when a car jumped on to a pavement and hit pedestrians near the Natural History Museum in London, the police said. The incident has been confirmed by the police as a road accident which is not terror-related. A man has been detained by the police. He is currently in custody at a north London police station, officials said. PTI

10 Trumps cant undo nuke benefits

Tehran: Irans president is defending the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, saying not even 10 Donald Trumps can roll back its benefits to his country. Hassan Rouhanis comments on Saturday come as President Donald Trump appears to be stepping back from his campaign pledge to rip up the deal, instead aiming to take other measures against Iran. Rouhani was addressing students at Tehran University. AP

Decapitated head of Swedish scribe found

Copenhagen: The Danish police said on Saturday that divers had recovered bags containing the decapitated head and legs of Swedish journalist Kim Wall, who disappeared in August while interviewing a Danish inventor, in Koge Bay. Self-taught engineer and inventor Peter Madsen, 46, has been accused of Walls death, with prosecutors saying he dismembered her body before throwing it overboard. AFP
Tripoli, October 7

The bodies of 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians who were murdered in 2015 by Islamic State (IS) militants, were discovered in Libya's coastal city of Sirte, officials said.

The bodies were found on the outskirts of the coastal city with their hands cuffed behind their backs, dressed in the same orange jumpsuits they were wearing in a video that showed their beheading, the Libyan attorney general's office announced on Friday night.

It added that victims' heads were found nearby, and DNA tests would be carried out in order to identify the bodies, reports Efe news.

The discovery comes a week after Attorney General Sadiq al Sour, announced that government troops had captured one of the militants who had filmed the execution.  IANS
Washington, October 7

A hurricane warning has been issued for New Orleans as tropical storm Nate continued to move north through the western Caribbean Sea, causing multiple deaths and damage in parts of Central America.

The Yucatan peninsula in Mexico on Friday evening was braced for Nate's arrival, with high "winds, storm surge and heavy rainfall" expected, the Washington-based National Hurricane Centre (NHC) said.

The NHC warned of "life-threatening storm surge flooding" along areas of the northern Gulf Coast in Louisiana and Florida, and that residents "should heed any evacuation instructions", reports Efe news.

Authorities have also alerted residents from Louisiana to Alabama to urgently complete "preparations to protect life and property".

The storm is forecast to bring rainfall of 3 to 6 inches, with isolated totals of 10 inches in areas from the central Gulf Coast into the southern Appalachians in Virginia.

Nate has steadily gained in strength as it moves through the western Caribbean and Central America, triggering flash floods and landslides in areas of Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama and Belize. At least 26 people have died, and several were reported missing.

Some 500,000 people in Costa Rica were without access to safe drinking water. Nearly 18,500 households were left without electricity.

"Due to the size of the event there are a great number of places that are isolated. There is total destruction of bridges, collapses, landslides that have destroyed significant parts of roads or blocked them," President Luis Guillermo Solis told reporters.

"We have people trapped in vehicles, who are in good health, but we have not been able to evacuate them because of the conditions." The Red Cross has been working to rescue as many as 60 people who remain stuck in buses and cars on a mountainous stretch of the Inter-American Highway.  IANS
Washington/New York, Oct 6

President Donald Trumps administration on Friday undermined requirements under the Obamacare law that employers provide insurance to cover womens birth control, keeping a campaign pledge that pleased his conservative Christian supporters.

New rules from the Department of Health and Human Services will let businesses or non-profit organizations lodge religious or moral objections to obtain an exemption from the laws mandate that employers provide contraceptives coverage in health insurance with no co-payment.

Conservative Christian activists and congressional Republicans praised the move, while reproductive rights advocates and Democrats criticized it. It was unclear how many employers would actually drop birth control coverage on religious grounds, and there were significant doubts that many big ones would.

This is a landmark day for religious liberty. Under the Obama administration, this constitutional right was seriously eroded, Republican House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan said.

The Trump administration just took direct aim at birth control coverage for 62 million women, Planned Parenthood Federation of America President Cecile Richards said.

With this rule in place, any employer could decide that their employees no longer have health insurance coverage for birth control, Richards added. Trump, who criticized the birth control mandate in his election campaign, won strong support from conservative Christian voters. The President signed an executive order in May asking for rules that would allow faith-based groups to deny insurance coverage for services they oppose.

The contraception mandate was implemented as part of the 2010 Affordable Care Act, Democratic former President Barack Obamas signature legislative achievement. Trump and Republicans in Congress campaigned against Obamacare, as the law is known, but could not get enough votes to repeal it as they had promised.

In its reasoning for the move, the administration said among other things that mandating birth control coverage could foster risky sexual behavior among teens and adults. It overturned the Obama administrations view that the birth control requirement was necessary to meet the governments compelling interest to protect womens health. This administrations contempt for women reaches a new low with this decision, top House Democrat Nancy Pelosi said.

Federal rules implemented under Obamacare required employers to provide health insurance that covers birth control, but religious houses of worship were exempted.  Reuters
Washington, October 7

President Donald Trump will dispatch his top diplomatic and military advisers to Pakistan in the coming weeks, turning up the heat on a nuclear-armed ally accused of harbouring terror groups.

Weeks after Trump angrily accused Islamabad of providing safe haven to agents of chaos, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson plans to depart for Pakistan late this month.

He will be followed by Secretary of Defence Jim Mattis, according to US and Pakistani sources.

The one-two punch is designed to drill home Trumps message that Pakistani state support for jihadist groups has to end, according to officials briefed on the visits.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

Washington has long been frustrated by Pakistans willingness to offer cross-border safe havens to Taliban factions and armed Islamist groups fighting US troops and their Afghan allies.

The relationship reached the breaking point in 2011, when president Barack Obama sent commandos into Pakistan in 2011 to kill Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden, who was living in a military garrison town.

With little change since then, Trump came to office indicating that Washingtons frustration had reached the point where something had to give.

We have been paying Pakistan billions and billions of dollars; at the same time, they are housing the very terrorists that we are fighting, he said in an August address.

But in the six weeks since Trump signalled that tougher tone, there have been precious few signs that the calculus in South Asia has changed.

Mattis told Congress this week that he would try one more time to see if we can make this work.

To this point, we have not seen any impact on military-to military relations, said one Pentagon official, suggesting any change would not happen after Mattis visit.

Visiting Washington, Pakistans foreign minister Khawaja Asif appeared unwavering.

He lashed out at hollow allegations about Pakistan harbouring terrorists as not acceptable. That is not the way you talk to 70-year-old friends, Asif said bitterly.

Instead of accusations and threats we should cooperate with each other for the peace in the region, he said while confirming Tillersons visit.

While professing anger in public, Pakistani officials in private complain about receiving no concrete requests to target the Haqqani network or other groups.

US officials have been reticent to share some intelligence for fear of tipping off targets with links inside Pakistans government.

Earlier this month, a US drone killed three suspected militants in an attack on a compound in Pakistans tribal region.

Pakistani officials also complain of receiving mixed messages from the Trump administration, which is still struggling to find its feed under a mercurial commander-in-chief.

A September meeting in New York between Vice President Mike Pence and Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was said to be cordial, despite Trumps fire-and-brimstone rhetoric.

It was a very good meeting with the vice president, said Asif.

After that, Pakistan officials said they were surprised at a tougher tone outlined in public by Mattis and in private by Trumps National Security Adviser HR McMaster. AFP
Dorsey showed a van and a container chassis, as well as flatbeds and lowboys. So the NACV show was about more than freight hauling. Photos: Tom Berg

By now youve probably heard about the inaugural North American Commercial Vehicle Show in Atlanta, and that attendance was good and exhibitors were plentiful. I headed down there with the belief that we dont need another truck show, but came away thinking that this was a quality production that has a future.

The NACV show will be held every two years, alternating with the huge IAA show in Hannover, Germany. Thats important to certain truck builders, and might or might not mean something to truck users and buyers in Canada, Mexico, and the USA. This shows focus was on fleet executives and managers rather than the drivers and owner-operators who attend the Mid-America Trucking Show  MATS  in Louisville.

The apparent success of the first NACV show could mean that the truck original equipment manufacturers that pulled out of MATS will stay out. Did it deserve to be jilted by the OEMs? Who knows? Do drivers and O-Os deserve to be forsaken? No. But I will note that Daimler, which instigated this big change in preferred shows, let Freightliner set up a large MATS booth dedicated to drivers, so didnt forget them. If another of the absent OEMs did that, I didnt see it.

Of course, Kenworth and Peterbilt exhibited at MATS this year and were not at NACV. There are many business considerations and industry politics involved in the pullout from MATS and starting of NACV, but lets put them aside. Because there was a lot of equipment to be seen in Atlanta, and of course I tried to focus on trailers.

At first glance, this Godwin dump body appeared to be another aluminum unit. But it's a "Hybrid" that also uses high-strength steel, allowing considerable hauling flexibility.

I was surprised to see large displays of lowboys and flatbeds when I thought that this would be a show aimed more at freight haulers whod be looking at vans and reefers, though they were there, too. And there were quite a few dump trucks being shown off.

For instance, East and Mac, two dominant players in the aluminum dump and flatbed business, had big booths at opposite directions in the hall  appropriate, because they are fiercely competitive and executives from one would rather not have the others in sight when trying to make sales pitches. I wouldnt either. But they've been placed very closely at MATS.

Floor, front wall and hoist well of the Godwin dump are formed of abrasion-resistant Hardox 450 steel. Sidewalls and most structural members are of aluminum.

Ill zero in quickly on one product, from a relatively small supplier, Godwin Truck Body. It combined aluminum and high-strength steel to form a Hybrid dumper thats light in weight but can take a bigger beating than aluminum alone. Hardox 450 formed the floor, front wall and hoist well, which bear the brunt of impacts from rock and other abrasive commodities, while sidewalls and the tailgate were fashioned of aluminum.

This means the body can haul asphalt one day and large-diameter aggregates the next, or both in the same day. Thats flexibility that allows a truck to earn more revenue from more sources. Combo flatbeds, with steel frames and aluminum beds, are common, but this is the first combo dumper I can recall seeing.

In the next one or two blogs Ill describe other interesting equipment I saw at the NACV show. Stay tuned.
Sometimes growing stronger is also the next thing that leads to the next recession, said Dr. Larry Davidson (pictured). Photo: Evan Lockridge

Trying to narrow down the single, biggest point made at the annual FTR Transportation Conference, held in mid-September in Indianapolis, would be a fools errand. Thats because the 13th annual event was so content rich, covering everything from the economy and freight to equipment and everything in between.

So what were my key takeaways? Well, I found three.

Expect a sauntering economy to continue

Dr. Larry Davidson, professor emeritus of business economics and public policy at Indiana Universitys Kelley School of Business, was both pessimistic and optimistic.

On the downside, he said, the economy is stuck in what he called secular stagnation. In other words, we are going to have to put up with growth thats like weve had recently.

While he described the pace of economic growth as sauntering, the good news was that he doesnt see recession as likely. It would take an unexpected shock to push us into a recession, he said, like the financial mess that led to the Great Recession or the quadrupling of oil prices in the 1970s. So far nothing like that has happened, and he believes the U.S. has the flexibility to overcome many problems.

Hurricanes could affect GDP growth

FTR senior analyst Noel Perry said Hurricanes Harvey and Irma could shave half of a percentage point off overall economic growth in the third quarter of 2017.

Perry noted that Texas and Florida represent about 15% of the entire U.S. economy, ranking second and fourth, respectively. The two states also make up about 7% of trucking activity in a normal day and affect another 4% as important parts of truck trip circuits.

Since analysts before the hurricane were expecting GDP growth to clock in at an annual rate of 2% in the third quarter, that could translate into just a 1.5% improvement, which is half the pace seen in the second quarter of the year.

The good news is, you can expect all of the rebuilding in the hurricane zones to add extra life to the economy in the final quarter of this year and the first quarter of 2018.

Theres a lot of uncertainty in trucking

It shouldnt come as a surprise that electronic logging devices, autonomous trucks, and other changes in trucking are causing a lot of uncertainty among fleet executives.

Don Hinkle, vice president of equipment services at YRC Worldwide, noted his company has been surprised by the price of ELDs, calling them expensive.

And while it remains a mystery as to how fast the march toward completely autonomous vehicles will proceed, Venture Logistics President and CEO Greg Eddy said any step toward it becoming a reality is a plus for not just trucking but also the entire public, because of the safety technology involved.

Then theres the Amazon Effect, and how its changing the future of freight transportation.

Paul Will, senior executive consultant for Celadon Trucking Services, noted that Amazon has greatly decreased the interval between the time a customer orders a product and the time it arrives on their doorstep.

You really think about what happens now from the standpoint of logistics and supply chain. Now you need these massive distribution centers when you are trying to get merchandise to people in just two days, he said.

Matt Parry, senior vice president of logistics for Werner Enterprises, said the internet behemoth is forcing logistics providers to choose a niche so they can survive the future.

What does look certain after attending the event is that trucking will continue to prosper, but the challenges will be different, and in some ways far greater, than anything seen since deregulation.

Evan Lockridge covers business and economic news for HDT, both in this monthly column and on Truckinginfo.com. A freelance writer, he has been covering the trucking industry in print, online, and on the air since 1991.
OKLAHOMA CITY  Billions of dollars of private equity money has flooded into Oklahoma oil fields, sparking drilling, pipeline and support projects throughout the state, speakers said this week at Gov. Mary Fallins Energy Investment Luncheon.

The private equity emphasis is both a function of the general equity markets and the age of development of the states oil fields, said Jason McMahon, upstream investments partner at Encap Investments.

These plays move in cycles, he said Thursday. The people who get in early are the entrepreneurs. They prove it up first. Then the bigger companies see a path to get the oil out. They see a lot of inventory that has been de-risked and know what the rate of return is going to be.
A small Arkansas church has been named in honor of Father Stanley Rother, the first U.S.-born priest to be beatified.

The Catholic church in Decatur, Arkansas, was dedicated as a mission on Sept. 24 and named the Blessed Stanley Rother Catholic Church, The Oklahoman reports.

Decatur, located in the far northwest corner of Arkansas, has about 1,700 residents.

The Most Rev. Anthony Taylor, bishop of the Diocese of Little Rock, says the church is the first in the world named for Rother.

The Arkansas Catholic, the official newspaper of the Diocese of Arkansas, reported that the congregation made up of about 80 parishioners from Guatemala, El Salvador and Mexico is currently leasing a former Baptist church building. The dedication was held at a local elementary school to allow for more seating.

"He is not only the first beatified martyr of the United States, he was also the first beatified martyr of Guatemala. And everything I know about Blessed Stanley tells me that he would be delighted to have you as the first community in the world named after him," Taylor said in his homily during the ceremony.

Rother was raised on an Okarche farm, ordained a priest in 1963 and served parishes in Durant, Tulsa and Oklahoma City before going to Guatemala in 1968. He served a poor community of largely Mayan descendants at the mission of Santiago Atitlan for 13 years before he was killed in 1981.

The church dedication was held the day after Rother was beatified during a ceremony in Oklahoma City, moving him a step closer to sainthood. Last December, Rother was named the Catholic Churchs first American-born martyr, paving the way for his beatification.

If he is recognized as a canonized saint, a process that can take years, Rother would be the first American priest to be so honored.

Part of the process will be the verification that a miracle has taken place as a result of asking for Rothers intercession.
Mayor G.T. Bynum and Tulsa Police Department leaders talked about their ongoing work to implement community policing at a Friday afternoon forum.

Bynum told attendees at the 2017 Zarrow Mental Health Symposium that most of the 77 recommendations from the Tulsa Commission on Community Policing he created will be implemented by years end.

I believe by the time we are done implementing these changes, the city of Tulsa will be a national (model of) best practice in implementing community policing, Bynum said at the symposium on Challenging Injustice and Discrimination.

The mayors commission produced 77 recommendations to improve police operations in a host of ways, including building trust and legitimacy in the community; department policy and oversight; use of technology and social media; crime reduction; training and education; and officer wellness and safety.

Bynum noted the importance of improving communications between residents and police. To that end, citizen advisory boards will be formed for each of the Police Departments three patrol divisions, and a fourth advisory board will advise Police Chief Chuck Jordan on citywide issues.

Jordan talked about his departments new efforts to increase transparency by adding body-worn cameras for officers and to engage in implicit bias training to help officers become aware of attitudes or stereotypes that affect their understanding, actions and decisions in an unconscious manner.

I think anybody that knows theyre on camera is better behaved  both the citizens and the officers. Its also going to give a level of transparency for our community, especially in a deadly-force situation, Jordan said.

Other panelists included Deputy Police Chief Jonathan Brooks, Aliye Shime of the Tulsa Metropolitan Ministry and the Tulsa Commission on Community Policing, and Christina Starzl Mendoza, a Mayors Office staffer for Community Development and Policy.

Police Officer Amley Popsey Floyd, the citys first community police resource officer, shared how he has been engaging residents of the 61st Street and Peoria Avenue neighborhood to improve well-being along with crime enforcement.

Officers have been asking police-wary residents to identify problems with which police can help, everything from crime enforcement needs to people lacking transportation to get to jobs.

Floyd said the first challenge is overcoming perceptions that the area is riddled by crime and not going to improve.

Imagine what the families who live there daily, imagine the kids who have to walk to school there daily, think about their neighborhood, Floyd said.

On the subject of what community policing is not, Brooks said: Its not a get-out-of-jail-free card. Stops still happen; people still go to jail. But whats the difference? We do it together. Were solving problems together.
Weaving together Christian principles, life lessons, influential literary prose and lyrics pulled from artists as diverse as the Wu Tang Clan to The Bee Gees, civil rights philosopher Cornel West spoke to a welcoming crowd in Tulsa about love, honesty and courage.

West was the final keynote speaker on Friday at the national Zarrow Mental Health Symposium, presented by Mental Health Association Oklahoma at the downtown Cox Business Center.

He was born in Tulsa at the Moton Hospital when the city was racially segregated; his family moved a few weeks later to eventually settle in Sacramento, California. But he returned here every summer to visit family, including his grandfather, the Rev. Clifton L. West Sr., who served as pastor of the Metropolitan Baptist Church.

West mentioned that he was born at the same hospital as The Gap Band brothers  Charlie, Ronnie and Robert Wilson  noting that the name referred to the north Tulsa streets of Greenwood, Archer and Pine.

He spoke of Black Wall Street. Black dignity. Black determination. Black prosperity, referring to north Tulsa before the 1921 Tulsa Race Riot. Then, the vicious massacre. The vicious attack, he said.

West is known as a provocative political activist and intellectual, often appearing as a guest on programs including Real Time with Bill Maher and Democracy Now! and channels such as CNN and C-Span. He is a professor at Harvard University but has also been an educator at Princeton, Yale, the University of Paris and Union Theological Seminary.

An author of more than 20 books, he is best known for his memoir Brother West: Living and Loving Out Loud along with Race Matters and Democracy Matters.

On Friday, West addressed what he called a spiritual blackout, or the eclipse of the quest for integrity, honesty, decency and courage. In its place is a race to be the smartest and slickest.

It ends with the 11th Commandment: Thou shall not get caught, West said.

No democracy can survive based on such market-driven morality obsessed with short-term gains and superficial success rather than long-term vision and a conception of greatness that is rooted in a moral and spiritual mode of being in the world.

On occasion, West would point out people in the crowd he had met, noting that to have empathy for people with mental health challenges is to have that capacity for other underserved and vulnerable communities.

That is what the Mental Health Association represents. That is what you embody.

West poked at President Donald Trump, defending his previous description of him as a gangster.

I think thats an objective condition, not a subjective expression. You grab a womans parts, thats gangster. Going to get somebody elses oil thats not yours, thats gangster. 

Donald Trump didnt drop from the sky. He is as American as cherry pie. The long history of mediocre white brothers in high places.

The nucleus of Wests talk was how oppressed people have persevered with a capacity for love.

Its better to be defeated momentarily with integrity than win and be a gangster, West said.

Still, he pointed to injustices such as no Wall Street executives going to prison despite numerous scandals while jails are filled disproportionately with people of color.

No democracy can survive with that arbitrary rule of law, he said. I dont begin there with the dialogue of injustice and discrimination with public policy. I begin with soul searching.

What kind of human beings are we going to choose to be, and what kind of example will we attempt to be as we make our move toward the worms? Thats the questions. Every person has to answer that within the precincts of their own souls.

Questions from the audience ranged from topics such as Black Lives Matter to micro-aggressions, the role of peaceful protests and reparations.

State Sen. Regina Goodwin, D-Tulsa, talked about having difficulty coming up with something to say to youths after the string of acquittals of police officers in shooting deaths of unarmed black men across the country. She said it gets disheartening while trying to offer words of reassurance.

You always want to be honest and open, but sometimes silence is golden, West said. Sometimes, you have to tell young people, I dont have words at the moment. Im paralyzed at the moment. Im human, too. 

Then, West said, always return to the conversation with young people to keep the social justice focus. Joking, he said it might take him a prayer meeting and Kanye to get there.

At the end of the speech, Reggie Ivey, chief operating officer at the Tulsa City-County Health Department, summed up Wests keynote:

Love. Sacrifice. Service. And stay woke.
The Assembly, one of the largest Assemblies of God churches in the Tulsa area, is celebrating its 100th anniversary this weekend.

The Broken Arrow church has been around almost as long as its denomination. The Assemblies of God denomination was formed in 1914 when a group of churches met in Hot Springs, Arkansas, to discuss ways to collaborate on missions and other ministry efforts.

A number of those churches had come out of the 1906 Azusa Street revival in Los Angeles that is credited with launching the modern Pentecostal movement in America.

About the same time that the Assemblies of God was being formed, a man named Willard Pope took a train from Tulsa to Broken Arrow to hold revival meetings in a tent he had acquired from the Methodist Church, said the Rev. Ron Wood, pastor of The Assembly.

People who were being converted to Christianity under Popes preaching formed a church, and in 1917, that church formally affiliated with the fledgling Assemblies of God, Wood said.

The church built a building on Main Street in Broken Arrow and expanded it several times over the years.

In 1952, the church held a service that drew a record 937 people, and a day later, the church burned down. The congregation quickly rebuilt.

Thirty years ago, the church started a school that is now called Summit Christian Academy. The school, with 400 students, and a day care center, the Small World Learning Center with 200 children, still meet at the Main Street location.

In 2007, the church moved to its new campus at 101st Street and 129th East Avenue, a modern, 60,000-square-foot building with a 1,400-seat worship center. Eight years later, the church completed a 30,000-square-foot addition for the childrens ministry.

Wood, who became pastor of The Assembly in 2009, said the church is very dedicated to our community and very compelled to be invested in world evangelism.

We exist to serve neighbors and nations, he said.

He said the church heavily supports world missions through the Assemblies of God organization and also sends out its own missionaries. One couple is leaving for Malawi, Africa, at the end of October, he said.

The church also sponsors the annual Night to Shine prom for people of all ages with disabilities; Easter Carnival, which draws some 6,000 people; and Joy Ride, providing 500 bicycles at Christmas to children in foster care.

The 100th anniversary celebration began with a Thursday night service at which the Rev. George O. Wood, general superintendent of the global Assemblies of God, spoke. A 100-voice choir performed, and a video showed the history of the church.

On Friday, an Mpact Student Ministry Reunion was held, with past youth pastors attending.

On Saturday, a Southern Gospel concert with Goodman Revival will be held.

On Sunday, at the 9 and 10:45 a.m. service, former Oral Roberts University President Mark Rutland will speak. Wood said Rutland attended the church when he lived in Tulsa and has been his longtime friend and mentor.
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Matuidi strike leaves France in sight of the finals

Dutch all but eliminated while Sweden score eight

Ronaldo helps Portugal avoid embarrassment in Andorra

Watch highlights of the games



Permutations: who needs what to qualify

Group A

Blaise Matuidi's third-minute finish  an angled shot laid on by Antoine Griezmann  confirmed that Les Bleus will take one of the top two slots in Group A, though they failed to add to their advantage in an even game in Sofia. They will qualify directly with a win against Belarus on 10 October; anything less, and Sweden could steal their place.

Highlights: Sweden v Luxembourg

The Blagult kept the pressure on France in the early games as Marcus Berg struck four in what was Sweden's biggest win since 1938. Skipper Andreas Granqvist converted two penalties, with Mikael Lustig and Ola Toivonen, with a fine volley, also getting in on the act. The final scoreline represented the heaviest defeat in 35 years for a Luxembourg side that held France 0-0 last time out.

The Netherlands finals hopes are all but extinguished despite victory in Belarus. Davy Propper got their opener from close range, and while defender Maksim Volodko hit a fine equaliser from a tight angle in the second half, Arjen Robben restored the Oranje's advantage from the penalty spot and Memphis Depay converted a last-gasp free-kick. The Dutch play Sweden next time out, but must win by seven goals to deny them second place.

Group B

Highlights: Switzerland v Hungary

Vladimir Petkovic's side made it nine wins from nine as they laid down an impressive marker ahead of Tuesday's showdown with Portugal. Two goals in as many minutes midway through the first half set the tone, with Granit Xhaka capitalising on Peter Gulacsi's slip before Fabian Frei made it 2-0. Two Steven Zuber goals either side of half-time settled it as a contest before the Swiss took their foot off the gas.

Cristiano Ronaldo came off the bench to inspire a lacklustre Portugal side to a victory that keeps them in the hunt for top spot in Group B going into the final day. Andorra held firm in the first half but Ronaldo's half-time introduction added impetus for the visitors and the Madrid man broke the deadlock midway through the second period before helping to carve out a clincher for Andre Silva late on.

The visitors halted a run of seven successive competitive defeats to climb off the foot of Group B. The Faroes had the better of things in Torshavn, with Joan Edmundsson twice hitting the woodwork, but could not break down a resilient Latvia side.

Group H

Highlights: Bosnia & Herzegovina v Belgium

Yanick Carrasco struck late on to blow a hole in their hosts' hopes of qualifying for the play-offs, Mehmed Bazdarevic's side having battled gamely in heavy rain in Sarajevo. Haris Medunjanin cancelled out Thomas Meunier's early opener, but Michy Batshuayi replied after Edin Visca edged the hosts in front. Jan Vertonghen and Dario Dumic exchanged goals and the Bosnians looked set for a point until Carrasco intervened.

Defeat for Bosnia and Herzegovina in one of the early games left second place up for grabs for Greece, and while they stumbled  conceding a Pieros Sotiriou goal early on  Kostas Mitroglou's strike and an Alexandros Tziolis header turned the match in favour of Michael Skibbe's side. A win against Gibraltar on Tuesday will confirm them as Group H runners-up.

Estonia secured their biggest competitive victory  and only the second 6-0 win in their history, matching a score against Lithuania from 1928  as Gibraltar's UEFA losing streak was extended to 19 games. Siim Luts, Mattias Kait and Sergei Zenjov struck in the first half, but were upstaged by Joonas Tamm, who scored a 26-minute hat-trick  his first for his country  after the break.


Cure 4 The Kids is kicking off its newest event, a 5K Walk/Run to benefit children in Southern Nevada who are affected by cancer and other catastrophic diseases and whose families are unable to pay for treatment (Pictured: Lily, a 7-year old Victorian Bulldog who loves to wear a Tutu).

The Inaugural K9s 4 The Kids 5K Walk/Run will take place on Sunday, November 5, 2017, from 9:00 a.m. to Noon at Sunset Park, 2601 East Sunset Road. Humans and their K-9 friends are all invited to participate in this fun event. We can even help you borrow a dog if you dont have one.

There will be a Pet Parade, music, food and drink vendors, doggie costume contests, pet adoptions, raffle prizes and much more. Registration is $30 (Check this price) for human participants and $5 per dog. Register now here: http://bit.ly/2flhdWe.

In addition to the 5K Walk/Run, a large contingent of Southern Nevadas first responders, known as Kops 4 the Kids, will also be on hand with their vehicles to give tours, provide information about their agencies and also answer questions. This is a great experience for kids and adults to get an up close look at the equipment and vehicles used by many first responding agencies in Southern Nevada, including the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. It is also a perfect time to thank first responders for their service.

We decided to combine a few of our smaller events to give everyone a fun-filled day where the whole family, including their four-legged friends, can be included, said Dawn Marie Bernhard, Director of Business Development at Cure 4 the Kids Foundation. Without the support of the amazing members of our community, our mission to ensure no child that has complex medical issues will be turned away simply because they cannot afford it or do not have medical insurance.

Its also incredibly easy to register for the 5K event. On the four Mondays prior to K9s 4 The Kids, bring your dog to the designated Lazy Dog Restaurant & Bar for a complimentary glamour shot of you and your dog. While youre there, well have representatives of the event ready to register you in person:

Monday, October 9 and 23, 2017  Lazy Dog Restaurant at Downtown Summerlin

Monday, October 16 and 30, 2017  Lazy Dog Restaurant at Town Square

Those who would like to take part in the event, and dont have a dog can easily borrow one. Weve teamed up with A Home 4 Spot which will have pets who are ready to go on the walk with you on site. These dogs are also available for adoption if you decide youve bonded with them at the event!

This event is made possible thanks to the gracious sponsorship of Land Rover and Jaguar Las Vegas.

Cure 4 The Kids Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, operates two clinics: The Childrens Specialty Center of Nevada and the Hemophilia Treatment Center of Nevada. Funds raised during this event will go towards ensuring no patient will be denied care at either clinic due to a lack of financial resources or medical insurance.
The information was unveiled by the Quang Binh province Peoples Committee on its October 5 meeting to review the outcomes of tours to the worlds largest cave Son Doong.

This year, Oxalis Co, Ltd has effectively implemented the Son Doong expedition tours to meet visitors increasing demands for discovering the worlds largest cave, which belongs to Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park.

The company has supported the making of tourism promo video clips by director Jordan Vogt-Roberts, and film crew of Sony and Thai Woody Talkshow.

So far this year, Son Doong Cave has welcomed 740,000 visitors on two major tours (five days, four nights, and four days, three nights).

Especially, the new expedition plan on crossing Vietnams Great Wall in four days and three nights will be conducted on a pilot basis for three months with 19 tours and 188 visitors.
The wreckage of a train is seen after it hit a passenger bus at a crossing near the town of Pokrov, in Vladimir region, Russia October 6, 2017. Russian Emergencies Ministry/Handout via REUTERS TV

"According to preliminary information, 16 people, including a child, have been killed," the investigative committee said.

"Other passengers, including minors, have been taken to hospital with various injuries. The number of dead and injured is being ascertained."

The bus, which was carrying migrant workers from Uzbekistan, was shunted several hundred metres down the track, Russia's Rossiya 24 TV channel reported. Footage showed fragments of what was left of the bus strewn across the track. The train itself appeared to have sustained no visible damage.

"The bus stalled on the track," Vladimir Myagkov, a spokesman for Russian Railways, told Rossiya 24 at the crash site.

"Some people say the passengers tried to push the bus off the track. At that moment the train approached and a collision occurred," he said.

Though carrying workers from the Central Asian nation of Uzbekistan, the bus had a license plate registered in Kazakhstan, Russian news agencies reported.
Smart travel is being promoted to improve tourism throughout Viet Nam.- Photo sgotravel.vn

Pham Dai Duong, Deputy Minister of Science and Technology and Director of the Hoa Lac Hi-Tech Park, said smart travel was the term related to use of information technology (IT) and hi-tech applications to make bookings for flights and accommodations and taking part in events from a distance.

With a smartphone, a tourist can book a hotel room and flight tickets and search for information about the place he is about to visit, Duong told a forum on Friday.

He said this enabled travellers to make bookings anywhere, anytime, making it more convenient for travel agents and local service suppliers to meet customers demands, he said.

In the old days, travellers depended on manual bookings for hotel rooms and flights - and were often unprepared on arrival."

The Ministry of Science and Technology will push research and use of hi-tech applications in all sectors and industries, including tourism, to improve socio-economic development, and assist "app" developers transfer their achievements to users, Duong said.

By using hi-tech applications, Viet Nams tourism sector could fulfill its targets for 2017, according to Nguyen Van Tuan, head of the Viet Nam Administration of Tourism.

In 2017, the Government hopes to generate VND500 trillion (US$22.2 billion) from welcoming 13 million foreign visitors and 66 million domestic travellers, an increase of 10 million over the 62 million in 2016.

In the past nine-months, the tourism sector has received 9.5 million foreign travellers and 58 million domestic visitors.

The smart travel segment has plenty of room for growth, according to the Vietnam Tourism Association (VNTA).

VNTA reported at the forum that online travel sales volume in Viet Nam would maintain a yearly growth rate of 12 per cent for the next three years, 50 million Vietnamese people or 53 per cent of the population, had Internet access and 78 per cent of them had regular access to the Internet.

All travel agents use the Internet to advertise their products and services, VNTA said.

Vu Tuan Phong, senior project manager at Pioneer Youth Solutions (PYS) Travel, a local company, told Viet Nam News that tourists should be smart consumers by using smart devices to make smart choices to receive the best-quality travel products and services.

By using smart devices, they could look for different information sources about the places they want to go and favour travel agents with good images and reputations, he said.

In return, local travel companies should improve their working systems, websites and administrations to meet hi-tech standards and provide customers with tips and experiences about potential destinations as well as protect clients in disputes with service providers, Phong added.

According to Phong, hi-tech applications will help consumers get access to new products and services more quickly and conveniently, costing them less time and money.

Phong said companies that had performed in a cloudy and unfair manner would be wiped from the market.


Maria Grazia Chiuri used art references to continue her debate about womens changing place  and appearance  in the world



Dior spring/summer 2018

InDigital

Niki de Saint Phalle was a painter with a spirit more of guns than roses. So, her vivid knock-you-down colours and monumental creations might seem like a tough fit with Dior.

It is to designer Maria Grazia Chiuris credit that she made sense of the two opposites in her summer 2018 show.

Dior spring/summer 2018

InDigital

They are unlikely associates: founder Christian Dior, a romantic designer captivated by the beauty of flowers; and an artist, abused by her father, so angry and anguished that in her own words  referring to tarot card symbols  she met dragons, witches, [and] magicians before finding the angel of temperance.

Dior spring/summer 2018

InDigital

Fashion has come a long way in this millennium to grasp demons and to fight them  hence the backstage posters encouraging distressed models to handle their turmoil by seeking professional help. That would have been unthinkable only a few years ago.

But, then who would have imagined that you would see a Dior show in which the models wore only flat mesh boots and nothing that would impede striding towards freedom?

Dior spring/summer 2018

InDigital

The difference is that I was passive also when I was young, but I think it's another moment, the designer said. When I was a child, my mother wanted for me her own idea of women. But in some way, this is inside us.

Dior spring/summer 2018

InDigital

From the moment that she took over at Dior almost one year ago, Maria Grazia has followed the same route of showing clothes that make sense for women's lives.

So how did this Niki de Saint Phalle collection pan out? Could the tarot cards that so fascinated Christian Dior be merged with the artist's angry, violent version? Were her violently bright colours splattered over Dior clothes? And did the shattered mirror images of the artist appear in the show?

Maria Grazia Chiuri takes her bow at the end of her Dior show for spring/summer 2018

InDigital

The latter was true, because patches of reflective glass appeared at intervals down the side of the show tent and on the runway. Arguably, they might have inspired the colourful sparkly evening outfits: dresses where seamstresses had sewn mother-of-pearl and glass beads.

But the art of inspiration is, of course, absorption. Maria Grazia was not turning art directly into fashion, but using it as inspiration.

Looking at the mood board flush with visual inspiration, I understood how much work went into clothes where just thin stripes of yellow, blood-red hearts or symbols on skirts had been worked with intricate embroidery or appliques.

Dior spring/summer 2018

InDigital

This mood board is like my diary about these three months because when we worked at the exhibition (Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams, currently at the Paris Musee des Arts Decoratifs), I found this picture with Niki de Saint Phalle on top of a camel, and also a letter that she wrote to Mr Marc Bohan, where she said, 'Thank you for the outfit that you did for me.' So, I found that it was very strong, the relationship between Niki de Saint Phalle and Marc Bohan.

Maria Grazia referred to the designer at Dior from the late 1950s through to 1989, and also to a semi-autobiographical movie Daddy (1973) in which Niki de Saint Phalle narrates an imagined revision of her intense early life.

InDigital

With so much thought and energy going into the show, where was the exuberant sensuality of the artist, the captivating colours and sheer boldness? Nowhere to be seen. Of course, the designer is tasked with making collections of clothes that express the spirit of Dior and its clients.

But, this is another age and Maria Grazia is speaking now to her daughter's generation.

I asked Natalia Vodianova, wearing a light feather-decked dress, what brand Dior meant to her.

Female empowerment, she said, proving that Maria Grazias message resonates with at least some of todays fashion crowd.
The articles on Voltaire Network may be freely reproduced provided the source is cited, their integrity is respected and they are not used for commercial purposes (license CC BY-NC-ND).

Source: Donald Trump suggests an investigation on the fake news published by mainstream media, Translation Anoosha Boralessa, Voltaire Network, 7 October 2017, www.voltairenet.org/article198228.html
On 6 October 2017, the Russian spokesman (Igor Konachenkov), denounced the support that the US, British and Norwegian armies were providing Daesh in the al-Tanf zone (located at the Syria-Jordan border) [1].

He stated: the Pentagon representatives have declared several times now that the US, British and Norwegian trainers, covered by the tactical air force and a system for multiple rocket-launch, were training combatants of the Free Syrian Army (FSA). In actual fact, the area where al-Tanf stood has now been transformed into a black hole with a 100 km radius on the Jordan-Syrian border. Instead of the FSA, are mobile Daesh troops which, springing out, like a jack-in-a-box, carrying out subversive terrorist attacks against civilians and Syrian troops.

In the night of 27 and 28 September, around 300 Daesh combatants left the area of Rukban, and, in a large number of 4x4s, pulled up in the town of Al-Qaryatayn (province of Homs). A Daesh Commando could by-pass all the posts of the Syrian troops hidden throughout the surrounding areas of al-Busairi and this was in no way due to chance. He explained that the terrorists had the precise details of the Syrian troops that could only be obtained with the aid of air intelligence following processing by experts. This information had then been carefully transmitted to carry out sabotage and terrorist acts.

Two weeks ago, the Russian Ministry of Defence had published satellite images evidencing that Daesh and Nato forces were peacefully co-existing in the area controlled by the United States [2].
According to General Min Aung Hlaing, the Burmese army has arrested a man who had just set fire to seven houses in the Rohingyan village, Mi Chaung Zay (located in the township of Buthidaung).

This man is no other than Einu, an officer of the Army for the Safety of the Rohingyans in Arakan. He was imploring members of his community to flee the country, making out his case by accusing the army of setting fire to Rohingyan villages.

The incident took place on 4 October 2017, at around 2h 40 in the morning. The army helped the villagers to put the fire out.

After the jihadists attacked the police stations and barracks on 25 August, the army and the jihadists have been accusing each other of setting fire to villages.
Photo: YANN COATSALIOU/AFP/Getty Images

One day after a New York Times report revealed decades of sexual-harassment accusations made by women against the Weinstein Companys Harvey Weinstein  including but not limited to appearing nearly or fully naked in front of them, requiring them to be present while he bathed or repeatedly asking for a massage or initiating one himself  Fox News reporter Lauren Sivan has gone on the record with the Huffington Post to make a similarly distressing allegation.

In a story told to HuffPos Yashar Ali, Sivan, then a local news anchor for News 12 Long Island, recalls meeting Weinstein at New Yorks Cipriani restaurant in 2007. She and a friend later went with Weinstein and others to the club Socialista, where the studio head offered to give her a tour of the clubs restaurant, which by then was closed to the public. Once the pair were alone, she says Weinstein physically cornered her and attempted to kiss her in a hallway. According to Sivan, once she rebuffed his advances, Weinstein told her, Well, can you just stand there and shut up and began masturbating in front of her. The incident only ended when he allegedly ejaculated quickly into a potted plant that was in the vestibule and then proceeded to zip up his pants and they walked back into the kitchen. Sivans friend, who opted not to reveal her name in the Huffington Post article, confirms Sivan told her what happened as soon as the two women left the restaurant. The next day Weinstein called Sivan to ask her out, telling her he had a great time last night. She turned him down, but did not report the bizarre encounter because she was in a long-term relationship and fearful of the power that Weinstein wielded in the media.

Weinsteins attorney Lisa Bloom told the Huffington Post that the producer was not available for an interview about the allegations, and a Weinstein Company publicist reportedly did not reply to questions. The Weinstein Company confirmed on Friday that the studio head would be taking an indefinite leave of absence starting immediately.
the national interest

The Rights Only Regret About Trumpists Is That They Lost

The Rights Only Regret About Trumpists Is That They Lost
Half of the characters in Arthur Miller's drama "All My Sons" fall near the age of the actors in its McLennan Theatre, the twentysomething children of the Keller and Deever families, but it's the actors playing the parents who provide the play's emotional gravity.

The post-World War II drama finds the two families caught between past and future, as many American families, two years after the war. Midwestern businessman Joe Keller (Colton Halliburton) prospered during the war by building aircraft engine parts, surviving a scandal that saw neighbor and partner Steve Deever jailed for shipping out defective cylinder heads that led to the deaths of 21 airmen.

His wife Kate (Hannah Young) continues to grieve the loss of their eldest son Larry, a pilot missing in action for three years, and keeps hope alive that he'll return. Younger son Chris (Alec Ehringer) struggles with the guilt of losing the men under his command and the prospect of happiness in a romance with childhood neighbor Ann Deever (Annie DeYoung), Larry's former girlfriend, with whom he's been corresponding.

The play opens as she's visiting the Keller family at his invitation, a visit during which he plans to ask her to marry him. Her visit triggers both memories of the happier pre-war days between the Kellers and Deevers and the darker incident that split them as well as the Deever children and their father.

Neighbors dropping by - Doctor Jim Bayless (Bobby McCarthy) trying to avoid house calls, his aggressive wife Sue (a forceful MacKenzie Smith) determined to keep him in a paying job, Frank Lubey (Kade Hollis) believing in the value of astrological signs - hint that the neighborhood may not be convinced Joe was blameless in the scandal that sent his partner to prison.

A nighttime storm that blew down Larry's memorial tree and Kate's unsettling dream add to an unease that soon manifests itself in suppressed fears, emotions and dark secrets that start to bubble forth.

Kate, alone in her belief that Larry is still alive, feels betrayed by her family's and Ann's lack of loyalty to Larry; they, in turn, feel she's unwilling to face facts. Chris, raised in Larry's shadow, wants to break with his parents to chart his own life with Ann, yet struggles to do so.

Paterfamilia Joe tries to impose an even keel on all this, but a surprise visit by Ann's brother George (Christian Templet), fresh from a meeting with his father in prison, provides the spark that soon blows apart the relationships onstage as Joe's true role in the scandal and Larry's fate are revealed.

The complex emotional layers in Miller's characters are heavy lifting for a young cast and anger is often the easiest to express, particularly for Templet as an embittered brother and Ehringer, trapped by love, loss and betrayal.

Young and Haliburton as the older Kellers, however, ground the drama's emotional resolution, Young with a sustained intensity that shows her pain at Larry's loss may also mask her unwillingness to accept the truth of a past criminal deception, Haliburton with a surface equanimity suppressing responsibility even as he tries to plead it was for his family.

Director Kelly Parker finds a balance in performances and in tone, though the last two snippets of incidental '40s swing music seemed oddly upbeat for the seriousness they separated.

It's a production with contemporary relevance that merits more than its three performances, the last which comes at 7:30 p.m. Saturday night at McLennan Community College's Ball Performing Arts Center. Tickets are $10 and $8. Call 299-8200 for ticket availability.
Almost 20 Texas country performers and bands will play in Waco on Sunday in a benefit raising money to rebuild the Texas Gulf Coast after Hurricane Harvey hit in late August, but thats only part of the picture.

Similar benefits take place Sunday in 11 cities across the state as Texas musicians pool their talents and resources in Texas Music Flood, a series of concerts aimed at raising money for the Rebuild Texas Fund. That fund, led by the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, covers rebuilding efforts in 39 Texas counties and already is at $70.7 million toward a $100 million goal.

The Waco part of the Texas Music Flood concerts will take place at downtown The Backyard, with gates opening at noon and the music starting at 1 p.m.

The lineup will feature performers Adam Hood, Jason Eady, Deryl Dodd, Drew Kennedy, Courtney Patton, Jackie Darlene, Mike Stanley, John Dempsy, Clayton Landua, Ryan Turner, Kensie Coppin, Sundae Drivers, the Huser Brothers, Cody Sparks and Station Creek: a mix of regional and local performers who will provide just under a dozen hours worth of music for a suggested $5 donation.

Waco-area resident Brad Beheler, co-owner and editor of the country music website and support service Galleywinter.com, was one of the events early organizers with Jennifer Allen, on-air personality for Waco country radio station KRMX, 92.9, Shooter FM, assisting in lining up items for a silent auction and raffle.

Allen wasnt surprised at the willingness of Texas musicians to help out in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, whose high winds heavily damaged Rockport and Port Aransas, both near where it made landfall, and whose torrential rains caused record flooding in Houston, Beaumont, Port Arthur and along much of the Texas Gulf Coast.

The Texas music community is very much like a family, Allen said. A lot of these people lost equipment or had canceled (performance) dates or knew someone personally who had.  Its easy to dismiss something thats far away, but this is a These are our people kind of thing.

Sundays Waco show has several performers doubling up to help out. Adam Hood, one of the events headliners, will play the night after filling in for the Josh Abbott Band at the Heart O Texas Fair & Rodeo. Abbott and his band, who were present at the Oct. 1 mass shooting in Las Vegas that killed 59 people, canceled their fair appearance because of equipment held for the shooting investigation and because of members still-unsettled emotions.

Both Drew Kennedy and Josh Grider will play two other Texas Music Flood shows on Sunday, adding Waco to an itinerary that also includes Coupland and New Braunfels.

Waco organizers kept admission low at a $5 suggested donation to encourage turnout. The event also will feature a raffle and silent auction of items including signed photographs, instruments and lyric sheets.
Arthur Millers drama All My Sons takes place in 1947 as the nation was recovering from four years of war, but McLennan Community College theater instructor Kelly Parker finds it hasnt lost its relevancy some 70 years later.

Thats because people still deal with deception, betrayal, love, mourning and values that put profit before people.

Its my favorite Arthur Miller play. Its such a well-written tight play, said Parker, director of the McLennan Theatre production that opens a three-performance run Thursday at MCCs Ball Performing Arts Center. The dialogue still holds up today. It feels just as alive as it did back then.

In All My Sons, a visit by Ann Deever (Annie DeYoung) to former neighbors Joe and Kate Keller (Colton Halliburton and Hannah Young) and their son Chris (Alec Ehringer) at their Midwestern home brings back good memories and bad.

Her former boyfriend was the Kellers son Larry, reported missing in action during the recent war and believed dead. Her father Steve was a business partner with Joe, but in prison after selling cracked cylinder heads for aircraft engines that resulted in the deaths of 21 pilots. Joe was equally guilty, but pled ignorance of the scheme and evaded prison.

Chris and Ann now are in love and wishing to marry, against the will of Kate, who still believes Larry is alive, somewhere. Also opposed to their marriage is Kates brother George (Christian Templet), who visits his father in prison and learns about Joes role in shipping the defective parts.
The sensory smorgasbord known as the Waco Cultural Arts Fest sprawls over several acres and three days. And as usual, this year is a mixture of the familiar and the exotic.

By midday Saturday, the second day of the free festival, a local Nepalese dance troupe was enlivening the riverside stage at the Indian Spring Park amphitheater.

A couple of blocks away at the Waco Convention Center, high schoolers raced robot cars, young dancers lined up to learn how to do aerial dancing on suspended cloths, and an artist fresh off the plane from Nigeria showed his weaving work as part of a multimedia exhibit.

And in between, hundreds of kids amassed armloads of artistic creations they made themselves: funny hats, painted cardboard and wood scrap sculptures.

About 16,000 people were expected at the festival this year, and for many families, the main attractions are the familiar, simple activities that let kids get messy and explore their imaginations.

At the hat-making station, Miranda Romero was accompanied by her six children, helping them fold construction paper into wild shapes.

We come every year, Romero said. We love all the crafts and the free, family fun.  I love this thing.

A few tents over, Holly Duke was helping her 3-year-old daughter, Penny, glue scraps of wood into the childs version of a house.

Duke said this is the second year she and her husband, Britt, have brought their family to the festival, and she expects it to become a tradition.

What I like about it is that theres more than just one thing to do, Duke said.

The arts fest started Friday with highlights including a free performance by the Grammy award-winning Grupo Fantasma.

A MusicFest will continue Sunday with a 3 p.m. show with electric violinist Mark Wood. DanceFest will conclude Sunday with a family concert at 2 p.m.

Hands-on exhibits and other science performances and activities will be up and running from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.

African culture is a special emphasis this year, with FilmFest bringing three African films.

WordFest brought in 2010 Texas Poet Laureate Karla Morton.

More information and a full schedule are available at https://www.wacoartsfest.org.

Also on display are the results of a new program called the Waco-Nigerian Competition for Innovative Crafts. The juried art show seeks Nigerian artists that tell African stories.

The top winner, Monsuru Alashe, was on hand Saturday to discuss his unique multimedia work with visitors to the Waco Convention Center.

Alashes work includes woven patterns based on photographs of gritty street scenes in the teeming Nigerian city of Lagos.

Alashe said these scenes of everyday life would usually go unnoticed, but he freezes them in time so they become objects of reflection.

You usually see things as moving objects, he said. Here, people get to see what they dont usually see.

One visitor, Beulah Barksdale, a retired Waco educator, shared stories with Alashe about her own visits to Lagos.

I am fascinated to pieces with this, she said.

Fiona Bond, executive director of Creative Waco, which oversees public funding for the Cultural Arts Fest, said the festival is an indispensable part of Waco.

This is immensely important for our community, Bond said. It brings together a lot of different kinds of art and every imaginable part of the community.
Two Democrats, one a recent Baylor University graduate and the other a vice chair of the Brazos County Democratic Party, are vying to challenge state Rep. Kyle Kacal, R-College Station, for the seat representing Texas House District 12.

Chris Miller, 25, works as an investigator for Daniel Stark Law in Waco and graduated from Baylor in 2015. Miller has centered his message on education reform.

His top priority will be properly funding the education system, properly allocating that funding and changing the focus from high-stakes testing to critical thinking skills and allowing kids to develop those skills, Miller said.

He said his chances of winning the general election in the consistently Republican district rely on a large voter turnout.

I think the numbers are there, Miller said. When you look at the state of Texas, its not a red state. Its not yet a blue state, but its a nonvoting state. The majority of people just didnt vote. If you get the votes out, you really send a message and let them know Im not just trying to lure in Democrats. Im here to run as a candidate that wants to work with the other side, that wants to work together and sit down and reach across the aisle to collaborate and compromise when you need to.

The district, which includes parts of Waco and extends southwest toward Bryan, has not seen a contested general election since 2012.

Kacal, who is seeking a third, two-year term, is known as an advocate for ranchers and serves as vice chair of the Rules and Resolutions Committee.

In the Democratic primary, Miller will face Marianne Arnold, 67, of Kurten, a town of about 400 people outside Bryan. Arnold had worked as a bookkeeper, accounting manager and lab researcher before retiring last year. She has bachelors degrees in business administration and horticulture and a doctorate in plant biology.

I decided to run because I think were all Texans, said Arnold, a leader in her local Democratic Party. The Republican leadership has been dividing us into little groups at odds with each other, and I think the leadership should actually be working for the benefit of everybody.

Roads, schools and jobs are her three main issues. She said the Legislature has not given sufficient support to rural highways, school districts and vocational skills training.

Its a big district with a lot of little towns like Kurten, Arnold said. A lot of them arent doing so well because theyve been neglected.
As most of our readers will know, the Experimental Aircraft Association Foundation has a large collection of historic aircraft. One of these is an extraordinarily rare H-model variant of the North American B-25 Mitchell. This medium bomber rolled off the North American factory production line at Inglewood, California in 1943 and flew with the U.S. Army Air Force as 43-4432 during WWII. Her wartime history is not currently known, but she went into storage at Altus, Oklahoma following the conflict. The governments Reconstruction Finance Corporation sold the B-25 to Delta Drilling in June, 1947. The aircraft passed through a series owners in quick succession, before receiving an executive transport modification, while reportedly operated for American heiress Barbara Hutton. This didnt last long however, and the B-25 again passed from company to company in relatively short order before finally winding up with Tallmantz Aviation in September, 1968. The B-25 joined two dozen or so other Mitchells that year to take part in making the film of Joseph Hellers novel, Catch-22. She flew in the movie as Berlin Express, a name which the bomber still wears. The EAA acquired Berlin Express a couple of years after the films release, but she was in rough shape by this point. EAA Museum volunteers spent ten years restoring the aircraft before her first post restoration flight in 1985. However, she is now in need of a major overhaul, and the EAA has published the following press release announcing the project, what it will require to complete, and how we can contribute to getting the old girl back in the skies again.

The EAAs recent press release:

The Project

As part of our mission to share The Spirit of Aviation and curate aviations role in the United States and beyond, EAA is proud to announce a campaign to restore and return our North American Aviation (NAA) B-25H bomber back to flying condition. When complete, it will join EAAs B-17 and Ford Tri-Motor flight experience aircraft and travel the country, bringing aviation history to life. In particular, the B-25 will continue to tell the story of World War II and of the greatest generations commitment to service, country, and honor.

Project Budget and the Need for Charitable Support

Passionate volunteers working side-by-side and guided by EAAs talented mechanics have allowed our organization to begin the restoration process. But in order for this worthwhile project to succeed, EAA needs significant charitable support going forward to bring this aircraft back to flying condition by the spring of 2018. To meet this objective, EAA needs to secure $400,000 in charitable funds to ensure that the following stages of the B-25 restoration are completed:

Overhaul existing engines, propellers and acquire a back-up engine

Repair hydraulic systems

Install new brakes and wheels

Install new avionics and engine instruments

Interior and exterior painting

Install new seating and passenger safety equipment

Restoring the B-25 is all about sharing the aircrafts history, teaching the importance of it, and helping people understand the contributions made by the crews who flew these planes and those who built them.

If you wish to contribute to the restoration of this important aircraft, please click HERE.
Energy price shocks are the number one concern of Australian business, according to a global survey.

The World Economic Forum Global Risks 2018 report, published by Zurich Insurance Group and Marsh and McLennan companies, surveyed more than 12,400 executives from 136 countries, and put energy pricing as the leading concern for businesses operating in Australia within the next 10 years.

Australia is the only country in the world which views energy price shock as the greatest hurdle in doing business. Credit:Washington Post

Australia was the only country to rank energy price as its major concern, and the only other nation apart from Canada to include adapting to climate change within its top five risks.

This is a massive jump for energy pricing's risk rating; last year it was fifth on the list for Australian businesses.
At Windsor Bridge, the locals recently celebrated 1500 days of continuous occupation in defence of the country's oldest urban square and the sweet wooden bridge that the Roads and Maritime Services want to replace with an ugly modern job that is mining truck-capable.

At the same time, the federal government behaves increasingly like some savage pimp, threatening military and fiscal brutality to force us back into a fossil-fuel addiction we yearn to escape.

"The left brain manipulates the world the right brain understands it." Illustration: Simon Bosch

It's like we're living a parable from Iain McGilchrist's 2009 book The Master and His Emissary; the divided brain and the reshaping of Western civilization. McGilchrist, a British psychiatrist, argues that the brain hemispheres are asymmetrical, in size and power as well as shape and function, and that the hemisphere responsible for narrow, exploitative utilitarianism increasingly out-yells that which sees the bigger, more complex, more connected picture.

For me, it's an argument that resonates. Everywhere I go right now, normally placid, even quite bourgeois people are saying, "What's going on? Soldiers to protect mining? In Australia? Governments outlawing peaceful protest? Huge public subsidies to help tycoons to destroy our reef, trash our towns, pollute our Great Artesian Basin? Has the world gone completely nuts?"
Dual citizen politicians who "honestly swear" they didn't know they held foreign citizenship should not be ruled ineligible to sit in Parliament, Attorney-General George Brandis has told the High Court.

In a submission concerning the fate of MPs currently under a citizenship cloud, Senator Brandis said his construction of the law suggested politicians should be taken at their word unless there was evidence to the contrary.

MPs who can "honestly swear" they didn't know they were dual citizens should be ruled eligible, George Brandis told the High Court. Credit:The Age

He argued it was not necessary to probe the citizenship status of MPs under respective foreign laws "in cases where a parliamentarian can honestly swear to being unaware" they were a foreign citizen or that there was a serious prospect that they were a foreign citizen.

"If there is material that contradicts such a claim, then the matter can be tested, as occurred in relation to Senator [Malcolm] Roberts," Senator Brandis wrote in a submission filed by Solicitor-General Stephen Donaghue.
More than 1000 protesters came together at Bondi Beach on Saturday morning to protest at the construction of the Adani coal mine in Central Queensland.

The protest was held as part of the Stop Adani group's "big day of action" and was one of more than 45 protests held around the country.

Organisers estimated 1500 people showed up to the Stop Adani event in Bondi. Photo: Stop Adani Campaign. Credit:Stop Adani Campaign

A number of local Stop Adani groups from across Australia gathered to protest and spelled out "#STOP ADANI" with their bodies.

The protesters were aiming to send a message to the Queensland and federal governments that they didn't want to construction of the mine to proceed.
Barcelona, Spain: The Catalan government said on Friday that the official results of last Sunday's independence referendum showed it had passed overwhelmingly, setting up a potential showdown with the central government in Madrid.

Under their own laws, Catalan separatists had pledged to make the official vote result binding within 48 hours and unilaterally declare independence.

If Catalan separatists were to declare independence unilaterally, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy would most likely use emergency powers to take full administrative control of Catalonia, which could involve replacing the Catalan police force with Spanish police officers.

As the political standoff over Catalonia reaches a boiling point, the actions, and loyalty, of Spain's various security forces have become a major point of contention.
Las Vegas: The man who killed 49 people at an Orlando, Florida, nightclub last year pledged allegiance to the Islamic State, in a 911 call, as the massacre unfolded. The sniper who shot to death five police officers in Dallas told the police that his goal was to attack white people. The man who attacked a black church in Charleston, South Carolina, posted a racist manifesto online.

In one mass shooting after another, gunmen have offered telling evidence of their motives. But in the four days since Stephen Paddock's attack in Las Vegas - a shooting rampage that left 58 dead and hundreds seriously wounded - what drove him has remained a mystery, vexing the public and putting enormous pressure on federal and local investigators to find answers.

"In the spirit of the safety of this community or anywhere else in the United States, I think it's important to provide that information, but I don't have it," Sheriff Joseph Lombardo of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said in an interview Thursday. "We don't know it yet."

No grandiose manifesto has been found. No account of Paddock behaving dangerously or holding extremist views has emerged from neighbours or relatives. Unlike past killers, Paddock did not dial up the police to explain his actions.
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Many major retailers will be closed on Thanksgiving Day
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By The Associated Press/West KY Star Staff

Oct. 06, 2017 | NEW ORLEANS, LA

By The Associated Press/West KY Star Staff Oct. 06, 2017 | 11:54 AM | NEW ORLEANS, LA

Hurricane Nate has intensified over warm Gulf waters, and has picked up speed on a northward path toward New Orleans and the Gulf Shores area.



As of midday Saturday, Nate was about 100 miles south of the mouth of the Mississippi River, and moving north-northwest at about 25 miles per hour. That would work out for landfall on Saturday evening.



Hurricane warnings extend eastward to Mobile and Gulf Shores, and a tropical storm warning is in effect to Panama City and Port St. Joe.



In western Kentucky, local concerns about Nate's leftovers have eased, as the latest estimates put the lingering rains further east than previous outlooks. Thursday's "cone" of the probable path of the storm center had included parts of western Kentucky, but today's path estimate puts the center of Nate's remnants over the Great Smoky Mountains by Sunday evening, and quickly departing the Northeast by Tuesday.



Nate formed in the western Caribbean Sea and moved into Central America on Thursday.



When Tropical Storm Nate formed and forecasts put New Orleans in its projected path, one big question loomed for residents and business owners: Will the pumps work?



Thats now a thought in everybody who lives in New Orleans, said Devin Shearman, a manager at Katies restaurant and lounge, which flooded during an unexpected rainstorm Aug. 5. It was one of two flash floods this past summer that led to revelations about personnel and equipment problems at the New Orleans Sewerage and Water Board, the agency that runs the pumping system that drains the city.
The deluge of oil trains rolling through Winona and Fountain City three years ago has slowed to a trickle as the bulk of North Dakotas oil production now moves through pipelines, helping the rail industry comply with new federal safety regulations.

That has assuaged some concerns, though rail safety and environmental advocates remain vigilant over ongoing threats from other hazardous materials on the rails.

A new report from the federal Bureau of Transportation Statistics shows rail shippers are on track to meet a 2018 deadline to stop hauling crude oil in old, unprotected tank cars, but tens of thousands of those DOT-111 cars remain in service hauling ethanol and other flammable liquids.

Documents submitted this month to state authorities show BNSF Railway is now moving less than four fully-loaded oil trains per week along its tracks through western Wisconsin, including communities such as Alma, Cochrane, Fountain City and Trempealeau. Thats down from an average of 36 trains in 2014.

Canadian Pacific, the line that runs through Winona and crosses the Mississippi River into La Crosse, which in 2014 was hauling 7 to 11 trains per week, reported in 2016 that its weekly traffic was down to 1 to 3 trains.

That translates to a roughly 97 percent reduction in the number of oil trains passing through the Winona area on both sides of the river.

Its kind of a good thing, but there are still concerns, said Alan Stankevitz, a La Crescent-based wildlife photographer and editor of a rail safety watchdog blog.

Those concerns include ethanol, ammonia, benzene and other unknown hazardous materials that are transported by rail every day, about which the public  and some first responders  have little knowledge and that pose potential threats to thousands of people who live and work near railroad tracks as well as to the Mississippi River, flanked by two major rail carriers.

Theres still plenty of other hazardous materials that if they were to get into the river system would be catastrophic, said Stankevitz, who was one of nine plaintiffs who took the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to court in 2015 in an unsuccessful attempt to block BNSF Railway from expanding its capacity in Wisconsin.

Rail safety advocates are also concerned about the continued use of older tank cars, known as DOT-111s, that the National Transportation Safety Board has concluded are inadequately designed to prevent punctures and breaches in derailments.

Federal rules will prohibit the use of unmodified DOT-111s for crude oil starting in 2018. But those tank cars can legally be kept in service for ethanol and other flammable liquids for up to another 12 years.

As of 2016, there were just over 81,000 tank cars being used to transport flammable liquids, according to a Department of Transportation analysis of industry data.

More than 5,300 tank cars built or retrofitted to the new safety standards were added to the fleet in 2016, tripling the number in service. But the 7,181 DOT-117s in service still account for less than 10 percent of the total fleet used to haul flammable liquids.

Older, non-jacketed DOT-111s  which the NTSB has found are prone to catastrophic releases when involved in derailments  still account for about 53 percent of the fleet, though their share declined rapidly last year.

But there are still nearly 43,000 of those legacy cars used for flammable liquids, and they make up four out of every five cars hauling ethanol, which the Federal Railroad Administration determined can be even more explosive than oil in derailments that result in fires.

Capt. Jeff Schott, who heads the La Crosse Fire Departments Hazmat Team, said it makes him uneasy to see the old 111s on the tracks, though he thinks the industry is doing what it can to meet its deadlines.

Any time they have the technology to be better obviously our field would want to have those placed in service as fast as possible, he said. I also know its commerce. Thats the way things change, and it just takes a little bit of time.

According to the Energy Information Administration, overall shipment of ethanol fuel from the Midwest  which accounts for 99 percent of all rail shipment  grew by about 27 percent since the end of 2014, with trains carrying an average of about 20.9 million barrels a month in the first half of this year.

Ethanol is more flammable than oil and is soluble, which makes it practically impossible to extinguish with water or contain when spilled into water, according to a 2017 report by the state of Minnesota, which has 21 ethanol plants, mostly in the southern part of the state, that produce more than a billion gallons a year.

The report found that more than a quarter of first responders surveyed said they were less prepared to deal with an ethanol spill than with other hazardous materials.

BNSF has given the La Crosse Fire Department a trailer with tools to combat a hazmat spill or fire, and offers training for firefighters. Schott said many smaller and volunteer-based fire departments have taken advantage of the training, though others have not done anything.

La Crosse County Supervisor Maureen Freedland, a leader of the local group Citizens Acting for Rail Safety, worries the lack of visible oil trains could lull people into complacency even as other hazardous materials roll through while local officials and citizens have little access to information about what trains are hauling or the condition of the tracks.

It was never only about the oil trains, she said. We still have the same safety concerns about training of fire fighters, the lack of inspectors, and secrecy and not knowing about bridge inspections.

While not as dangerous as crude oil, Stankevitz said ethanol  and even non-hazardous liquids  present a threat to the ecosystem, and trains that derail in the Mississippi River valley corridor tend to end up in the water.

In November 2015, a BNSF ethanol train derailed near Alma, spilling more than 20,000 gallons of alcohol. Two months later a Canadian Pacific train derailed near Brownsville, Minn., sending six tank cars and about 660 gallons of vegetable oil into the river.

My question is why are we not phasing out all DOT-111s? Stankevitz said. Youre still rolling the dice every time a DOT-111 comes down the track.
Buffalo County is trying to expedite applications for high-speed broadband communication network projects within the county.

The county board approved a model ordinance advanced by the Wisconsin Public Service Commission that was designed to encourage broadband development by reducing administrative obstacles.

A Broadband Forward! Ordinance lays groundwork for speeding up processing of communication network applications, the board said.

The county has a special committee overseeing expansion of broadband services into areas of the county with slow connection speeds.

It also opens the door to possible availability of grant funds to improve broadband services.

County Clerk Roxanne Halverson said a goal was to have broadband services countywide for access by all residents.

The Public Service Commission (PSC) said broadband access was increasingly important to the economy, education and daily life.

PSC said there was interest in expanding broadband access in underserved areas of the state.

Passage of a broadband ordinance, PSC says, earns certification that signals that local government has taken steps to expedite broadband infrastructure investments.

The ordinance streamlines administrative procedures and ensures that local government is charging reasonable permit fees and application review timelines.

PSC said ordinance provisions also specify that local government would not impose unreasonable conditions on permits or discriminate among telecommunication providers.

A financial technology company ranked Buffalo County first among the top 10 counties in Wisconsin in best overall value index.
Bump stocks  the devices found in the Las Vegas gunmans hotel room that enable semi-automatic rifles to fire much faster  have become the latest flashpoint in the national gun control debate.

Some members of Congress and are now calling for bans on bump stocks. The leader of the National Rifle Association wants more regulations on them.

But years ago, Minnesota lawmakers tried banning modifications allowing firearms to shoot faster  to no apparent effect. And some gun-control advocates say banning bump stocks wouldnt even matter. Lets look at how the devices work, their legal status and what they mean in todays gun control debate.

How a bump stock works

To understand how these once-obscure devices work, lets start with some definitions.

Rapid-fire guns come in two basic varieties: semi-automatic and fully automatic. Semi-automatic guns will fire one bullet for each pull of the trigger. Theyre legal and common in gun cabinets all over Minnesota.

Fully automatic rifles, however, fire continuously while the trigger is held. Minnesota and federal law tightly regulate fully automatic weapons  known better as machine guns.

Bump stocks are used on semi-automatic guns to speed up the two-step process for firing: squeezing, then releasing the trigger. The devices allow the trigger finger to stay in place while the part of the gun against the shoulder uses the recoil to fire repeatedly  similar to a fully automatic rifle.

What does the law say?

In Minnesota, theres a law on the books that specifically bans trigger activators, which speed up a guns rate of fire. The measure has been in place since 1993, the year of the Branch Davidian siege in Waco and a shooting in San Francisco that killed eight people. Both of those events involved trigger adaptations to speed up semi-automatic firearms  like a bump stock does.

State Sen. Dick Cohen, DFL-St. Paul, sponsored the bill years ago. He said bump stocks should be banned by law.

Thats no question that would have been the intent years ago to have done that, to make sure that the tragedy of Las Vegas years later, would not have happened in Minnesota, Cohen said on Thursday.

But years after the 93 law, Texas-based Slide Fire offered the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives its patented bump stock for review. Slide fire got approval for the device in 2010, during the Obama administration.

Theres no indication anyone in Minnesota has addressed the legality of the bump stock under state law or initiated any prosecutions. A spokesperson for the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, which has limited jurisdiction regarding machine guns, said her agency hadnt issued any written direction about the devices.

There may be many bump stocks in Minnesota now  they were widely available for sale on the internet until Slide Fire stopped taking orders Thursday afternoon.

Where do bump stops fit in the gun control debate?

The NRA has asked the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to review its stance on bump stocks.

However, gun control advocates dont think the NRAs statement or congressional opposition to bump stocks is serious.

The Rev. Nancy Nord Bence is executive director of Protect Minnesota, a state-based gun violence prevention group. She believes federal officials arent in any position to recind approval for the devices. And she said other modifications, like so-called echo triggers that fire on both pull and release, will continue to offer gun owners machine-gun like rates of fire anyway.

All this does is give Republicans a place to go now. To say, Oh, yeah, were supporting this idea that were going to review these, she said. Its not going to change anything.

Some gun owners themelves sound indifferent to the fate of bump stocks. Rob Doar, political director with the Minnesota Gun Owners Political Action Committee, said his organization isnt taking a position on the devices.

Many gun owners find them ineffective and wasteful for serious shooting, he said.

Were kind of struggling because its one of those things that its kind of like a spoiler on a car. They really dont serve any purpose, Doar said. Theyre just kind of one of those things that somebody created in their garage probably one day, and thought hey, this might be fun. And now somebody abused it and here we are.
Winona Area Public Schools has hired Wold Architects and Engineers to oversee the construction and maintenance projects called for in the districts upcoming facilities referendum.

The school board approved the hire by a 5-1 vote Thursday, praising the St. Paul-based engineering firm for its expertise in handling large-scale school construction projects, especially those that require the preservation of historic buildings.

Allison Quam cast the lone dissenting vote.

WAPS worked with Wold on the construction of Winona Middle School, which opened in 2000, and the construction of the Kolter Math and Science Center, which opened in 2013.

Wold is also advising the district in the lead-up to the referendum Nov. 7.

The districts facilities plan calls for renovations and expansions to Goodview and Washington-Kosciusko elementary schools, as well as renovations to Winona Senior High School. Several district buildings would also receive deferred maintenance work.

Some school board members expressed concern over the cost of hiring Wold, especially given the districts precarious financial situation.

The firm is charging the district $4.6 million for its services, compared to the $3.9 million that ISG, the other finalist to oversee the project, had planned to charge.

Im troubled with the $742,000, said board member Jay Kohner, referring to the difference in estimates. Thats $742,000 we could put toward the project. Im sure there are plenty of uses for that money.

Quam objected to the perceived suddenness of the vote, saying she had neither the information nor the time to choose a firm with confidence.

Ultimately, every other board member followed the recommendation of Superintendent Rich Dahman, who said Wold was uniquely qualified to handle the overhaul and preservation of district buildings.

When this district does it, we have to do it right, said board member Jeanne Nelson. Were going to live with this for a long time.

The agreement with Wold is contingent on the passage of the referendum, and the district wouldnt owe Wold any additional money if the referendum failed.
MADISON  A Madison man accused of pointing a gun at a bank teller in Plain and escaping with $63,000 pleaded guilty Friday to federal charges of armed bank robbery and brandishing a firearm.

James Thompson, 29, faces up to life in prison, a $250,000 fine and seven years of supervised release when he is sentenced Dec. 5 by U.S. District Judge William Conley. Julian Thomas, also of Madison, is scheduled for a Oct. 16 trial on bank robbery charges related to the incident, said his attorney, Kelly Welsh.

In court Friday, Thompson said he and Thomas were driven to Plain on Oct. 7, 2014, and entered the Peoples Community Bank.

Inside, Thompson said he kept the gun on the tellers to keep them still, while Thomas ordered the bank manager to enter the vault and remove the money.

A bank teller told authorities that after two masked men dressed in black entered the bank, the man with the gun poked her in the back of head when she did not open a teller drawer as fast as instructed, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Graber.

After the second robber returned from the vault, all the employees were pepper sprayed to immobilize them, Graber said.

Beth Manbauman, of Madison, told authorities she bought heroin from Thomas a few times in 2014 and drove him around Madison at his request.

Thomas had been looking for a woman who could serve as an inconspicuous driver for a small-town bank robbery, according court documents.

On the day of the robbery, Manbauman picked up Thomas and Thompson and drove them to Plain, where she thought they were delivering heroin or getting paid for a prior delivery, Graber said.

Manbauman said she would be paid in heroin for driving them, according to Graber.

On Thomas instruction, Manbauman parked her Nissan Quest near a car wash and Thomas and Thompson exited the minivan. They returned about 25 minutes later with one man carrying a big bag of money. Manbauman was told to leave quickly, Graber said.

According to court documents, law enforcement located Manbauman in May 2015 and she told them what Thomas and Thompson did on the day of the bank robbery.

Thompson and Thomas were in state custody on other offenses when they were indicted in federal court in May for the bank robbery.

Thompson was scheduled to go to trial until he signed a plea agreement last week. The agreement calls for Thompson to cooperate with authorities and give a complete statement of the offense.

Thomas previously had asked the court for a trial date separate from Thompson. However, court documents show the request was denied to prevent traumatized bank employees from having to testify twice.
President Donald Trump has a penchant for speaking to international audiences as if hes addressing a campaign rally. He has boasted in phone calls to world leaders about the size of his adoring crowds and how big his Electoral College victory margin was.

No surprise, then, that his speech before the U.N. General Assembly last month included language about the Iran nuclear accord reminiscent of his 2016 rhetoric. A key sign that hes in campaign mode is when he diverges from his text and inserts phrases like believe me.

The Iran deal was one of the worst and most one-sided transactions the United States has ever entered into, he told gathered leaders. Frankly, that deal is an embarrassment to the United States, and I dont think youve heard the last of it  believe me.

Even though his own secretary of defense, James Mattis, openly disagrees, Trump is threatening to scrap the Iran nuclear accord. All Americans should care because a nuclear-armed Iran, on top of a nuclear-armed North Korea, would constitute an international nightmare. The only thing currently stopping Iran is the very accord that Trump wants to cancel.

In spite of his tough rhetoric, Trump has abided by the 2015 accord. In April, he certified that Iran is in compliance. He did it again in July. Another certification deadline looms next week, and multiple media outlets have reported that Trump plans to decertify the deal and force Congress to revisit the issue..

Trump has sharply criticized the relaxation of harsh international sanctions and freeing up of frozen Iranian bank assets negotiated in exchange for Irans 25-year freeze on production of bomb-capable enriched uranium.

If Trump cancels the deal, the sanctions regime could collapse. Iran would become even freer to engage in international commerce and finance. Trump speaks as if it were solely a U.S.-Iranian accord. In fact, the United States is one of five principal partners  joining Britain, France, Russia and China  plus Germany and the European Union.

A U.S. pullout would free the others to go their own way. Several likely would jump at the chance to resume full commercial ties with Tehran.

It required years of deft and constant diplomacy to persuade Russia and China to go along with the sanctions regime, which created such harsh conditions inside Iran that the government felt compelled to make nuclear concessions.

As Trump has learned to his embarrassment with North Korea, the deterrence options are limited and consequences are huge should the United States abort the accord and decide to seek military retaliation. Experts say U.S. airstrikes would not significantly cripple Irans nuclear capabilities. And Iran has multiple ways to destabilize the region and interrupt Persian Gulf oil shipments in return.

The current formula isnt perfect, but its working. The Trump touch has no place where nuclear holocaust could result.
Columbus community members celebrated a special honor for its downtown library Oct. 3.

In recognition of being honored as one of the Best Small Libraries in America, the Columbus Public Library marked the achievement with a street party between the library and city hall. The event was hosted by Rob Ferrett, host of Wisconsin Public Radios Central Time, who is also the husband of library director Cindy Fesemyer.

I like to think I have a close connection to Columbus, Ferrett said.

Last month, Columbus was named a finalist for Library Journals Best Small Library in America award. The honor was created 11 years ago to feature and highlight the work of the nations small libraries. The achievement is given to libraries in communities with 25,000 people or less that show outstanding service to the community.

Columbus library was listed as one of two finalists with Texas Pottsboro Area Library. Both libraries will receive materials and services valued at $1,000, along with notoriety in the Library Journal. This years winning library was the Bounty County Library District in Idaho, which will receive $5,000 cash and a feature story in the Library Journal.

This weeks celebration featured several speakers, including Columbus Mayor Michael Thom who proclaimed Oct. 3 Celebrate Your Library Day in the community.

The Columbus library traditionally meets the needs of our community and has blended with a time-tested commitment to do the very best to foster a love for reading and learning and give everyone access to a safe haven, said Nan Hughes, from the Columbia County Library Board. We know this library is here for all of us.

Linda Parpart, a lifelong Columbus resident, was especially grateful for the librarys achievement. Parpart serves as president of the Friends of the Library. She said many people were involved in getting the library on the list of the best in the nation, with Fesemyer being at the forefront.

The library board had the foresight to hire Cindy who brought so many new and innovative ideas to the job, Parpart said. Our community is changing and the library has to change with it. The library has become the citys center and will keep changing to meet the needs of the community. I look forward to the day when the Columbus library is No. 1.

While a strong, creative staff helps, Parpart said it takes support from the community for a library to thrive. She said the library is always looking for monetary support to maintain its facilities and programs.

Library Board President Peter Kaland said the board is very proud of the honor and believe it is well deserved.

I would like to thank Mayor Thom, City Administrator Patrick Vander Sanden and the city council for their support of libraries in general, Kaland said. Were fortunate to live in a state that has a supportive library program and we have to appreciate legislative efforts that have led to that.

Kaland presented Fesemyer with a recognition from the board praising the dedicated work of the director and her staff. Fesemyer feels the honor should be shared with the Columbus and Fall River communities because they help the library succeed and grow.

Were No. 2! Fesemyer said. Thank you everyone for coming out and celebrating with us.
There arent many people rowing boats on the Portage Canal these days, and even fewer are brave enough to row through the pest-infested culvert under Highway 51.

If Portage city officials want an upgraded canal crossing installed when the state refurbishes Highway 51 in a few years, theyll have to pay for it.

Thats what Public Works Director Aaron Jahncke told the citys Municipal Services and Utilities Committee on Thursday  and some wondered whether other entities, such as the Canal Society, might be able or willing to help pay for an improved passage below the highway.

I wonder if anything can be done to make it an attractive reason to come to Portage, and an attractive place to take your canoe or rowboat, said Common Council member Bill Kutzke, who represents the citys District 6.

The panel voted 3-2 to recommend the least expensive option for the structure that would run under Wisconsin and DeWitt streets  a pipe arch structural plate estimated to cost $295,000  and the most expensive option for both ends of the pipe  decorative concrete cast-in-place end walls estimated to cost $42,000.

Opposing the measure were Kutzke and Doug Klapper, the committees chairman, who said he would also like the State Historic Preservation Office to weigh in on the appearance of the structure. Voting in favor were Council members Dennis Nachreiner, Jeffrey Monfort and Mike Charles.

Jahncke said Wisconsin Department of Transportation officials are under more stringent budget constraints in the wake of the recent passage of the 2017-19 state biennial budget. As a result, he said, the state only will pay for the least expensive options regarding the canal when it undertakes the $7.5 million Highway 51 project in 2021.

The existing metal arch culvert was installed in 1960, Jahncke said. Its about 11 feet wide, a little less than 7 feet high and 250 feet long, with a water depth of 3 to 4 feet. The Highway 51 reconstruction would present an opportunity to improve the passage, he said, to make it more spacious and attractive.

People who row through the culvert report its full of spider webs. Kutzke noted the corrugated surface of a culvert gives spiders more nooks and crannies to inhabit.

KL Engineering of Madison presented five alternatives for the canal conduit under the road, ranging in price from $295,000 for the metal culvert to $1 million for a pipe arch of reinforced concrete.

All of the options, including the culvert, likely would have a longer life expectancy than the road surface. The galvanized steel plate culvert could be expected to last about 60 years, Jahncke said.

And, in response to a question from Charles, Jahncke said the culvert would provide sufficient space for boaters, possibly including two boats entering the culvert at the same time from opposite directions.

A memo Jahncke prepared for the meeting noted that the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources requires a minimum of 5 feet of clearance from the water surface to the top of the structure, to accommodate small, hand-propelled boats like canoes and rowboats.

Its the end walls that most affect the appearance, Jahncke said.

The options for end treatments range in cost from $3,000 for rip-rap to $42,000 for decorative concrete.

Nachreiner noted that, structurally speaking, there is little difference between the decorative concrete and an undecorated concrete end wall that is estimated to cost $36,000. But the decorative structure, which would be stained and cast with a pattern, is more attractive.

Thats what we should be spending our money on  making it appealing, Nachreiner said.

Jahncke pointed to a $250,000 difference between the cost of the metal culvert and the second-least costly option, a culvert pipe with reinforced concrete.

Klapper, who also leads the citys Historic Preservation Commission, said hed like input from group not only on the culvert proposal, but also on proposals for structures on other parts of the historic canal.




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Nil Solans moved within touching distance of winning the FIA Junior WRC title in Spain on Friday.

Bonus points for winning two special stages in the opening leg of RallyRACC Catalunya - Rally de Espana mean Solans requires just one point to be guaranteed the crown. One more stage win from the remaining 13 speed tests will suffice.



Solans has already won the WRC 3 crown but had his hopes of sealing a second title today ended when he dropped 30sec with a puncture in his Ford Fiesta R2 in the last of the six predominantly gravel stages.



He headed Nicolas Ciamin for most of the day but the Frenchman moved [below] to the front when Solans punctured and ended with a 22.1sec lead.



Im trying to secure the points that I need for the title but also aiming for the prize drive that is on offer. I need to finish in a high overall position to do that so its a tricky balancing act, said Solans.



Ciamin acknowledged the day proved harder than he thought. It has been quite difficult to judge the pace because the stages were rougher than expected and its tricky to know how hard to push. I have to win as many stages as I can, but also preserve the car, he said.



Terry Folb was 34.1sec off the lead in third, with Julius Tannery another minute adrift in fourth.



Dennis Radstrom led after the opening stage but retired with damaged steering in SS5.

Head to WRC+ to see the latest onboard and video reports from RallyRACC Catalunya - Rally de Espana.

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Coleg Cambria students selected to represent Team Wales in UK WorldSkills Finals

This article is old - Published: Saturday, Oct 7th, 2017

Students from Coleg Cambria have once again been selected to represent Team Wales in the WorldSkills UK national finals having successfully qualified in regional heats.

A total of 28 of the colleges students have been selected as finalists at the UK Skills Show across a range of skills from engineering to beauty therapy.

The College has the highest number of participants of any college in Wales.

They will compete at The Skills Show in the NEC, Birmingham, from 16th-18th November where the College will fight to defend its reputation as a UK leader.

WorldSkills UK are national high quality skills competitions that are run annually throughout the UK. The competitions aim to encourage young people and adults across the UK to excel in their vocational skill whilst raising esteem, participation and working standards in apprenticeships and vocational training.

From the UK WorldSkills finals, winners will then be selected for the team to represent the UK in the WorldSkills final in Kazan, Russia in 2019. This year, Coleg Cambria have a record number who are age eligible to join the long squad for Kazan.

Coleg Cambria are no stranger to the WorldSkills finals. This October, two Coleg Cambria work-based students will represent the UK against the rest of the world in Abu Dhabi. Ethan Davies (Electroimpact) and Joe Massey (Airbus) will compete on the global stage in CNC Milling and Aeronautical Mechanical Engineering respectively.

Rona Griffiths, Deputy Director for for Learner Experience and Enterprise at Cambria said: There is no doubt that Coleg Cambria is fast becoming a national leader in skills competitions. These showcase the talent we have here at College and in our region, helping our most able vocational learners get credit for their high level of skills.

Over the last five years weve been nurturing and supporting our students and staff in order to compete at the highest level in these prestigious competitions and showcase young talent in our region.

David Jones OBE Chief Executive at Coleg Cambria added: We are delighted that Cambria has a record number of students representing Team Wales at the UK WorldSkills finals in Birmingham next month. Its a wonderful opportunity for them to showcase their skills on the national stage alongside the UKs most talented apprentices and learners.

Wed also like to wish the very best to our worked-based students, Ethan and Joe who will be representing the UK in Abu Dhabi at the Worldskills final this month.

Learners selected as UK finalists are:
Inspiring Wrexham teen holds charity fundraising concert

This article is old - Published: Saturday, Oct 7th, 2017

A local teenager has raised hundreds of pounds for charity after taking on the mammoth task of arranging and performing at a concert for the community.

14-year-old Shea from Ruabon, held the concert to help raise vital funds for overseas development charity CAFOD and its East Africa Appeal.

The evening, held at All Saints Church in Pen Y Lan, Ruabon, featured a number of songs from musicals with performances from Shea, his family and friends. He was supported by individuals and groups from the local community, including Llangollen Operatic Society and Stage 2 Stage choir, for the concert.

A total of 800 was raised for the charity as a result of the event.

Shea, who studies drama and music at his school, said: I chose to do the concert for CAFOD and the East Africa Appeal because in school we were told about it and asked to raise as much money as we could for the cause. We learnt that 25 can save a life and so I thought about how I could help and save many lives.

Every day I think about people who dont have the things that I take for granted, the people who have to walk for hours and hours just to get water that is dirty, the people who dont get to reach adulthood! This really made me feel upset and made me want to do something about it, so thats where the idea of the concert came from.

I would like to thank everyone in the community who helped one way or another to make the concert what it was, I really appreciate it.

Sheas mum, Sharon, sad: We are really proud of him! He came home one day and said he was going to arrange a concert for the East Africa Appeal and it all took off from there. He had lots of support from everyone involved, including the parish and the Diocese of St Asaph. Were delighted with the amount of money he raised.

Across East Africa, millions of families face starvation because of drought, lack of food, and civil war. The UN has described this as the largest humanitarian crisis in more than 70 years.

The Disasters Emergency Committee, of which CAFOD is a member, has launched the East Africa Crisis Appeal to provide urgent supplies to the 16 million people facing severe hunger in South Sudan, Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya. More than 800,000 children under five are severely malnourished.

Colette Byrne, a local CAFOD representative in North Wales, added: Organising such a successful event is such a brilliant achievement from Shea. We are so grateful that he and the choirs chose to raise money for CAFOD and the East Africa Appeal.

What a great example he is to teenagers across North Wales.

To find out more about the work CAFOD does and the East Africa Appeal, please visit: cafod.org.uk/eastafrica
On Wednesday, four US Green Berets soldiers were killed in an ambush while conducting a training mission with the Nigerien military in southwestern Niger near the border with neighboring Mali. The Nigerien soldiers suffered four casualties. Two other US soldiers, along with eight Nigerien soldiers were injured in the attack.

The ambush occurred 120 miles north of the capital city Niamey, near the village of Tongo-Tongo in the remote Tillaberi region. During the course of conducting a patrol with Nigerien forces, the troops came under attack.

According to the Washington Post, the garrison of US elite troops and Nigerien forces were led into an ambush by Malian Islamist militants affiliated with Al-Qaeda who crossed the border into Niger. The remote region has been an area of frequent raids by Islamist militants targeting Nigerien garrisons and checkpoints.

The official claim that US troops practice non-engagement with hostile forces, and are only providing training and sharing intelligence with the Nigerien military, has been exposed as a lie by this latest incident. It is clear that the US soldiers were carrying out an offensive operation, since the elite troops were patrolling with Nigerien forces deep into a hostile region.

The deployment of troops to Niger is an element of Washingtons scramble for Africa, which was commenced by Obama and is being continued under Trump. In occupying the Sahel region, soldiers under the command of AFRICOM have also been stationed in neighboring Algeria, Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, and Nigeria.

Measuring the vast dimension of US military operations, General Donald Bolduc, head of US Special Operations for AFRICOM, recently reported that there are over 100 active US special operations missions at any given moment across the African continent.

The exact number of elite US forces deployed in Niger is unknown, but it is reported to be at least several dozen. The cumulative numbers deployed across the Sahel and surrounding region number in the hundreds. These forces occupy numerous outposts in Niger and the Lake Chad region, with some 250 US military service personnel deployed to a military base in Garoua, Cameroon. Dozens of special forces soldiers have been deployed to neighboring Nigeria last year.

Underscoring the scope of US military activity across Africa is Flintlock, an annual military exercise conducted by AFRICOM and the military forces of several Sahel countries, including Niger, as well as forces from Canada, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, and the United Kingdom. The military exercises began in 2005.

Flintlock is just one of the numerous military exercises conducted in recent years across the continent. The nature and scale of warfare scenarios the exercises conjure up, comprising aircraft and ground combat exercises, crowd control, mass bombardment and urban warfare, makes clear that Washington is preparing for much larger wars in Africa.

The backdrop to Washingtons hostile presence in the Sahel is the joint US and French-led war conducted in neighboring Mali, and the imperialist US/NATO bombing and destruction of Libya in 2011.

Under US-French leadership, the Nigerien forces have been conducting offensive missions against Malian Islamist militants since 2014, under the guise of the G5 Sahel, a proxy army comprised of forces from nations in the Sahel region. In addition to Niger, the G5 Sahel includes Chad, Mali, Mauritania, and Burkina Faso.

The roots of the war in Mali flow from the fallout of the US-backed NATO regime change operation against neighboring Libya, in which the US/NATO nexus armed and trained Islamist fighters to carry out its dirty operation of capturing and assassinating Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.

Spilling forth from the complete breakdown of Libyan society brought about by US/NATO bombardment, the Islamist forces scattered to various parts of Northern Africa and the Middle East, including the Sahel region.

This began in 2012 with the Tuareg rebellion in northern Mali after a coup ousted Mali President Amadou Toure, as the Tuareg rebels took advantage of the diversionary chaos the coup afforded. The rebels advanced deeper into Malis interior and began taking control of territory and cities formerly held by government forces.

In early 2013, France, with Washingtons backing, deployed troops to Mali to neutralize the rebel militias. In exchange for deploying its military forces, France extracted agreements from the new Malian government for establishing French bases to host a permanent contingent of French troops.

After the joint US-French effort stabilized the government in Bamako, France supported the installation of the current president of Mali, Ibrahim Keita, a figure with a long history in Mali politics who resided in Paris, where he obtained his education.

Niger is seen as an integral component of American military operations in West Africa with AFRICOMs Niamey base conducting drone flights across the region. The construction of a new drone facility in Agadez, a city in central Niger, constitutes an expansion of the United States drone capability in the Sahel with further flight range and duration.

The US military outposts in Niger are part of an extensive network of such bases reaching into nearly every corner of the African continent. Over 60 bases dot the African continent, highlighting Washingtons determined effort to establish US dominance over Africas vast economic resources by force. The Sahel region alone possesses trillions of dollars of mineral wealth, as well as holding significant gas and oil reserves.

The US military forces arrayed across the Sahel underscore the reckless imperialist ambition behind Washingtons geopolitical strategy for the region, that in its drive for military domination it runs the risk of sparking a conflict with its rivals that could lead to all-out war on the continent.

A significant part of the equation in the new scramble for Africa is Washingtons aim to neutralize China. In the last decade, Beijing has increased its economic influence across the continent, drawing up investment deals signed with various African governments for the rights of resource extraction and development, including minerals, oil, and gas.

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MIDWAY, Fla. (WTXL) - It was recently announced that 26 more counties across the sunshine state are eligible for public assistance funding after hurricane Irma.

In our area, Jefferson, Lafayette, Leon and Wakulla counties are included on the list. Other counties making the list are Alachua, Bradford, Brevard, DeSoto, Dixie, Gilchrist, Hardee, Highlands, Indian River, Lake, Levy, Marion, Martin, Okeechobee, Orange, Osceola, Seminole, St. Lucie, Sumter, Taylor, Union, and Volusia.

Assistance may cover eligible debris removal, emergency protective measures, and the repair or rebuilding of public facilities.

Approved projects are paid through the state from funding provided by FEMA.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL)- It's possible for both genders to get breast cancer, health experts say men rarely get checked for it.

WTXL ABC 27's Jennifer Meyers has more on why one local man is trying to spread awareness about breast cancer.

Ambrose Kirkland is doing his part in spreading awareness about male breast cancer, from talking with various support groups, to traveling across the country to give speeches to various audiences.

For Kirkland, his breast cancer story started in April 2001 when he found a lump during a self examination. Later in the year, he saw a doctor and had a mammogram done. That test showed calcification in his breast. By November of 2001, Kirkland was officially diagnosed with breast cancer.

Even though he was shocked, he was not susrprised at his diagnosis as there is a family history of breast cancer on his father's side.

Kirkland never asked why, but instead saw his cancer as his purpose in life.

"From now on, when you think about breast cancer, you can't thiink about wonmen anymore. When you think aboyut breast cancer, look at me because I am the new face of breast cancer. Men get breast cancer too, and we're not going anywhere," said Kirkland.

It's thought that more men die of breast cancer than women because they wait way too long to see a doctor.

Kirkland hopes that by sharing his story, he can encourage other men to begin checking themselves for breast cancer.
Presidents still turn to the Bible in moments of national tragedy
A brush fire in the Teanaway area has caused the Kittitas County Sheriff's Office to recommend evacuations for 20 homes. More are on standby. Photo courtesy of the Kittitas County Sheriff's Office Facebook page.
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Three Islamic State group sympathizers plotted to cause bloodshed at New York City concert venues, subway stations and Times Square before US agents thwarted the international terror plot, the office of Acting US Attorney Joon Kim in Manhattan said Friday.

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One of the men, 19-year-old Canadian citizen Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy, has been in US custody since May 2016, when he was arrested in New Jersey. He pleaded guilty to terrorism charges in October 2016, the prosecutors said.

File photo of police on high alert in Times Square (Photo: Reuters)

Talha Haroon, a 19-year-old US citizen, was arrested in Pakistan, where he lives, around September 2016, and Russell Salic, a 37-year-old citizen of the Philippines, was arrested in that country in April of this year, according to Kim's office.

Prosecutors said they expected Haroon and Salic to be extradited to the United States to face the charges, which include conspiracy to commit acts of terrorism and to support a terrorist organization. If convicted of the most serious charges, they face a maximum sentence of life in prison.

The capture of the Canadian citizen came after an investigation using an undercover FBI agent posing as an Islamic extremist that also led to the arrests last year of Haroon in Pakistan and Salic in the Philippines.

ISIS propaganda video showing a suicide bomber attacking Times Square

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According to criminal complaints, El Bahnasawy, 19, sent the undercover agent an image of Times Square with a smartphone message saying, "We seriously need to car bomb times square. Look at these crowds of people!"

In another, he expressed a desire to "shoot up concerts cuz they kill a lot people. ... We just walk in with guns in our hands. That's how Paris guys did it," the papers said in an apparent reference to the slaughter by men armed with assault weapons at the Bataclan concert hall in Paris during a performance of the rock group Eagles of Death Metal in 2015.

The complaints unsealed Friday did not name the New York City venues.

Police in NYC (Photo: AP)

The undercover agent and El Bahnasawy also were in communication with the 19-year-old Haroon, who wanted to join El Bahnasawy in New York City for the attacks, authorities said.

Haroon, who at one point met with an explosives expert in Pakistan for information on building bombs, told the undercover agent the subway was a "perfect" place to shoot passengers, and that "when we run out of bullets we let the vests go off," the court papers said.

After Haroon talked about what was needed to build explosives, El Bahnasawy bought 40 pounds of hydrogen peroxide, batteries, Christmas lights, thermometers and other ingredients commonly used in homemade bombs, authorities said.

The three were allegedly planning a terrorist attack in Times Square (Photo: Reuters)

He later shipped the material to the undercover agent in the United States, where he and Haroon planned to use a cabin in a rural area within driving distance of the city to build bombs and take target practice, they said.

According to documents unsealed in federal court in Manhattan, El Bahnasawy and Haroon planned to carry out attacks during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which ran from early June to early July.

El Bahnasawy told an undercover law enforcement officer posing as a supporter of Islamic State that he wanted to "create the next 9/11," prosecutors said.

Salic, 37, was accused of sending money to help fund the attacks, court papers said. He told the undercover agent his ultimate goal was to join the Islamic State group in Syria but that "it would be a great pleasure if we can slaughter" people in New York, the papers said.

Attacks were also planned in NY concert venues, akin to 2015 attack on French club Bataclan (: AFP)

El Bahnasawy pleaded guilty in October 2016, but the case was sealed while the investigation continued. His attorney, Sabrina Shroff, declined to comment Friday.

All three men face possible terms of live in prison on charges including conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction and conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said it assisted the FBI in the investigation. "At no time was the safety or security of the public at risk," it said.
MANILA, Philippines  A Filipino doctor accused of plotting terror attacks in the United States was arrested months ago in the Philippines for his alleged involvement in kidnappings and beheadings blamed on pro-Islamic State group militants, an official said Saturday.

Chief State Counsel Ricardo Paras said a Manila court is weighing a US government request that Russell Salic be extradited to face terrorism financing complaints.

US authorities said Friday that they disrupted a plot by Salic and two other Islamic State group sympathizers to carry out terrorist attacks at New York City locations, including concert venues, subway stations and Times Square in the summer of 2016.

Even if the court approves the US extradition request, the Department of Justice in Manila would have to decide whether to let Salic face criminal complaints in the Philippines first or be allowed to be flown to the US to answer the terrorism allegations there, Paras said.
BAGHDAD  Thousands of Iraqi Kurdish mourners, Iraqi officials and world dignitaries attended the funeral of Jalal Talabani, the country's first president in a post-Saddam Hussein Iraq and once a symbol of national unity.

Talabani was laid to rest Friday in Sulaimaniyah, the second-largest city in Iraq's Kurdish region, after his casketdraped in the Kurdish flagwas flown back from Berlin where he died at a hospital earlier this week.

From the airport in Suleimaniyah, a motorcade carried the casket to a nearby hill for burial. Crowds poured into the streets, following the funeral procession on foot, carrying flags and posters bearing Talabani's image and the emblem of the political party he founded more than three decades ago, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan.

Many threw flowers on top of the coffin.
The Lebanese General Security Directorate arrested three Lebanese nationals suspected of collusion with Israel, reported Lebanese paper Al-Akhbar.

The three transferred information to the Mossad, the report said, whereas the group's operator was a Lebanese man residing in Israel.

One of the suspects admitted to acting on behalf of the Mossad while he was being interrogated, and electronic equipment and a computer were seized at his home, the newspaper's account concluded.
James Hirshfield, the former Hugo Boss model who left a lucrative modeling career behind to come to Israel and join the IDF as a lone soldier, finally realized his dream last week when he swore an oath of allegiance to Israel at a Border Police swearing-in ceremony.

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Aged 32, and a former model, Hirshfield was something of an unlikely private. Nevertheless, he was one of 413 Border Police recruitsconscripted in August 2017to swear the traditional oath of allegiance to Israel and receive a Bible, service rifle and police officer ID card at a ceremony held last Thursday.

James Hirshfield at his swearing-in ceremony

Getting there was no easy feat, however, and Hirshfield was afforded no concessions, taking the 13-kilometer "swearing-in march"terminating at the parade grounds in Tel Hadid near the Ben Shemen Forestalong with his comrades.

Hirshfield, the son of a London Jewish family, did photo shoots for Hugo Boss campaigns and strutted down runways in high-end fashions shows. His photos appeared in magazines and were emblazoned on billboards. Then, a year ago, he decided to make Aliyah and join the IDF.

This past April, Hirshfield came to Israel and took a Hebrew course. Today, he seems far removed from his modeling days with tightly trimmed hair, Border Police uniform and excitedly holding onto his new weapon and Bible.

"I moved from London to the US, which is where I first heard about my grandfather, who escaped the Holocaust when he was nine and moved to England," Hirshfield recounted.

James Hirshfield, before and after joining the IDF (Photo: Carlos Velez)

"He was also in Israel for a short period during the War of Independence, but then went back to England to dismantle Nazi organizations that were still active there at the time. When I heard that story, I knew there was no way of just carrying on with my normal life, knowing Israel is plagued by terrorism," the former model continued.

"I decided what I really wanted to do was to come to Israel and serve in a combat role in the army. I went back to London, packed my things and said my goodbyes, and made Aliyah," he finished his tale.

When he first arrived to Israel he had never even heard of the Border Police, but he nevertheless knew he "wanted to keep the country safe."

Hirshfield at the Haifa recruitment bureau

"I ended up hearing about the Border Police through the media and realized they were on the forefront of Israel's defense. When I was told at the induction center I would be joining the force, I was elated at having finally been granted what I wanted all along," he beamed.

Hirshfield also spoke about the age difference between him and his brothers in arms, who at 18 had just recently graduated from high school. "It wasn't the easiest gap to bridge, but of all the countries I've been in, only Israel gave me that familial feeling of constantly trying to help each other," he said.

"I felt right at home from day one, especially in the service since we all have one common goal. We're all in this together, friends that are like brothers. The level of support I've been getting is so insane that the age gap doesn't matter so much after all, and I never even get the chance to feel lonely," he summed up his experiences.
The Ministry of Space and Technology canceled a Space Week event planned for Jerusalem's Mahane Yehuda Market due to pressures exerted by the city's ultra-Orthodox leadership, as the intended venue was a non-kosher bar.

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Yohanan Weizmann, a Jerusalem city councilman from United Torah Judaism, contacted Minister of Space and Technology Ofir Akunis and the ministry's Director-General Peretz Vazan demanding the Mahane Yehuda event be canceled immediately since "two of the areas chosen for the activity will host stores, one of which sells treif and chametz during Passover, while the others are not kosher. In addition, most of the venues don't possess a full business license."

A Mahane Yehuda Bar (Photo: Alex Kolomoisky)

Weizmann further stated the businesses' activities in the famed Jerusalem Shuk harmed residents and neighbors' quality of life and brought about "promiscuity and crime."

Akunis and Vazan acceded to the demand and the event was indeed canceled.

The Casino de Paris bar, where the event was set to take place, holds no kashrut certificate despite only serving dairy-based food. Furthermore, bars in Tel Aviv, Haifa and Be'er Sheva that will also serve as venues for Space Week events are not kosher either, but their schedule remained unchanged.

Minister of Space Akunis canceled, then reinstated Space Week events in Jerusalem (Photo: Marc Israel Sellem)

After the cancelation was made public, Deputy Mayor Ofer Berkovitch (Wake Up Jerusalem) contacted Akunis and asked him to reinstate the events as planned.

"This isn't the first time Haredi representatives attempted to hurt the shuk. I contacted the minister of science and his director-general, who told me the events at the Mahane Yehuda Market will take place as planned, despite objections. I thank the minister and call on the Jerusalem public to visit the shuk for Space Week event," Berkovitch said.

Jerusalem Deputy Mayor Berkovitch demanded events take place as planned, not submitting to extreme minority (Photo: Sharon Gabai)

The Israel Space Agency (ISA) at the Ministry of Science said events will take place as planned, but in another venue to be determinedand announcedshortly. The Ministry of Science declined comment on the reason behind the original cancelation.

World Space Week, which is observed annually all over the world in the beginning of October, is led in Israel by the ISA. Space Week was instated by the United Nations and is dedicated to celebrating the presence of space in our lives and man's achievements in exploring it.

As part of Space Week, each year several bars across the country host talks about the solar system, the Milky Way galaxy and other celestial bodies. Attendees of Space Week events are also able to physically observe space using telescopes put up on the premises.

"We regret the path of incitement certain controversial elements in Jerusalem have decided to take. I have nothing against events celebrating science and culture, and all I asked was to divert public governmental resources to law-abiding businesses, and to also take into account the best interests of residents of neighborhoods near the market," commented Councilman Weizmann.

Events will now take place as planned, the Ministry of Space says (Photo: Alex Kolomoisky)

MK Rachel Azaria (Kulanu), former Jerusalem deputy mayor and a resident of the city, weighed in on the controversy as well. "We were informed Space Week in Jerusalem was canceled following pressure from a Haredi council member, while many in the ultra-Orthodox populace, by the way, object to the cancelation," she said.

"Despite the Ministry of Science's claims, a new date has yet to be made public. Jerusalem is a city with an extremely heterogeneous population and despite complexities we've proven we can live together and manufacture a space with enough room for everyone," Azaria added.

"It's unthinkable for the absolute majority of the capital's residents to miss out on Space Week due to an extreme minority not indicative of anyone. It's a shame a Jerusalem protest was necessary for this event to take place as it should have. I hope the Ministry of Space remains true to its word and Jerusalem can enjoy a spectacular Space Week," the Jerusalemite MK concluded.
MANAGUA  Hurricane Nate may strengthen on Saturday, threatening to hit the US central Gulf Coast with strong winds and storm surges after it killed at least 25 people in Central America.

New Orleans evacuated some residents from areas outside its levee system as Nate, a Category 1 hurricane, the weakest on a five-category scale used by meteorologists, churned towards the central Gulf of Mexico.

"Nate is at our doorstep or will be soon," New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu said, adding that the winds could cause significant power outages, and storm surges are projected to be six to nine feet (1.8 to 2.7 meters) high.

"We have been through this many, many times. There is no need to panic," Landrieu told a news conference.
COPENHAGEN  Danish police said on Saturday divers had found the head and the legs of Swedish journalist Kim Wall, who died in mysterious circumstances on an inventor's homemade submarine.

Peter Madsen has been charged with killing the Swedish journalist who disappeared after she went on a trip with him in his submarine on August 10.

Madsen, a Dane, was arrested after his submarine sank and he was rescued.

Police identified a headless female torso that washed ashore in Copenhagen later in August as Wall's, but a cause of death has not been determined.
Iran's president defended the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers on Saturday, saying not even 10 Donald Trumps can roll back its benefits to his country, state TV reported.

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Hassan Rouhani's comments came as President Donald Trump appears to be stepping back from his campaign pledge to tear up the deal, instead aiming to take other measures against Iran and its affiliates.

Iranian President Rouhani said not even '10 Trumps' can roll back the nuclear accord (Photo: AP, MCT)

State TV broadcast Rouhani while addressing students at Tehran University, marking the beginning of the educational year.

"We have achieved benefits that are irreversible. Nobody can roll them back, neither Trump, nor 10 other Trumps," he said.

Rouhani warned the US not to violate the deal.

"If the United States violates (the nuclear deal), the entire world will condemn America, not Iran," he said.

Speaking before students in Tehran, Rouhani cautioned the US not to violate the agreement (Photo: AP)

Iran accepted curbs on its contested nuclear program as part of the agreement. In return, Iran has benefited from the lifting of sanctions against its oil exports among others.

Trump is expected to take new action against Iran's Revolutionary Guard and the Iranian backed Shiite militant group Hezbollah.

He is set to deliver a policy speech on Iran next week in which he is expected to decline to certify Iran's compliance in the landmark 2015 agreement that the US and its partners signed with Tehran to rein in its nuclear program.

That would stop short of pulling out of the deal. Lawmakers say Trump isn't going to immediately announce new nuclear sanctions, which are prohibited by the deal, and instead will refer the matter to Congress.

President Trump (Photo: AP)

President Trump has repeatedly described the deal as "bad." He signed a bill that imposes mandatory penalties on people involved in Iran's ballistic missile program and anyone who does business with them.

Rouhani is struggling to keep the deal on two fronts. One is with Trump, who always said it is a bad deal, and on the other side, hardliners inside the country.

By the time of his 2017 re-election, Rouhani increasingly criticized hard-liners within Iran who criticized him and the atomic deal for giving too much away to the West, especially the US, still the "Great Satan" for some even decades after the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Friday, Western and Iranian officials said the Islamic republic suggested to the six world powers it may be open to talks about its ballistic missile arsenal, seeking to reduce tensions over the disputed program.

Iran's new Khorramshahr missile (Photo: AFP, IRIB TV)

However, merely an hour later Irans Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi said Tehrans ballistic missile program was non-negotiable.

Tehran has repeatedly vowed to continue building up what it calls defensive missile capability in defiance of Western criticism, with Washington saying the Islamic Republics stance violates its 2015 nuclear deal with the powers.

But the sources said that given US President Donald Trumps threats to ditch the deal reached under his predecessor Barack Obama, Tehran had approached the powers recently about possible talks on some "dimensions" of its missile program.

'The calm before the storm,' Trump said cryptically (Photo: Reuters)

After discussing Iran and North Korea with US military leaders on Thursday, President Donald Trump posed for a photo with them before dinner and declared the moment the " calm before the storm ."

"You guys know what this represents?" Trump said after journalists gathered in the White House state dining room to photograph him and first lady Melania Trump with the uniformed military leaders and their spouses.

"Maybe its the calm before the storm," he said.

When questioned by reporters which storm he was referring to, Trump said, "Youll find out."
Archeologists working for the Civil Administration and excavating on the grounds of the former Bahad 4 training base in Beit El discovered a large Jewish settlement estimated to be 2,700 years old.

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Bahad 4 was the IDF's largest training base for new recruits in the seventies, but has stood abandoned since 1995. Several weeks ago, archeologists from the Civil Administration's archeology division arrived the site of the former base.

The newly discovered settlement was found underneath Bahad 4 (Photo: Alex Kolomoisky)

Digging just under its parade grounds, they were astonished to discover the remains of a large Jewish settlement estimated to have housed dozens of residents.

Evidence found the on the site point to the settlement's existence in the days of the First Temple and that it was inhabited in the Persian period, grew during the Hellenistic and Hasmonean periods and remained in Jewish hands all the way up to the Roman period.

"The findings were amazing. Most of them were exquisitely preserved. We found keys to doors to housing units, work implements used by the Jews who lived there and a sort of seal, attesting to the period during which the town existed," said Yavgeni Aharonovich, an archeologist with the Civil Administration.

Findings discovered on the site point to the settlement remaining abandoned for years, before being reinhabited years later during the Byzantine period, this time by Christiansmost likely monkswho created a monastery there.

Archeological findings from the settlement (Photo: Alex Kolomoisky)

Excavations uncovered a church, its mess hallpurportedly used by the monksand a beautifully preserved bathhouse.

The Byzantine-era settlement existed until the Muslim conquest of Israel, at which point it was destroyed. The Christians were driven away and replaced by a Muslim population.

The site also showed remains from this latter period: storerooms with a large number of amphorae used for trading olive oil.

The site, experts say, we destroyed again in the great earthquake of 748 AD. Covered in earth, the settlement was eventually forgotten.

Archeological findings from the settlement (Photo: Alex Kolomoisky)

Now, it has been rediscovered.

"These findings are unbelievable. The site opens a window to virtually every historical period in Israel since the First Temple," explained Benny Har-Even, an archeology deputy officer with the Civil Administration.

The Administration stated it will now repurpose the site for visitors, a process expected to take several years.
BERLIN  Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Saturday he would work towards a normalization of relations with Germany after months of mutual recriminations on a range of issues between the NATO allies.

Already tense relations took a turn for the worse after Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan launched a crackdown on his opponents following a failed coup attempt last year.

Germany has also protested against the detention of German citizens on political charges and has raised the question of whether EU accession talks with Turkey should go ahead.
CAIRO  Egypt has welcomed a US decision to lift sanctions on Sudan despite Cairo's tense ties with Khartoum over a border dispute.

Egypt's endorsement of the US move came in a Saturday statement by its foreign ministry.

The Trump administration earlier this week lifted the decades-long sanctions, arguing that Sudan is making progress in areas of concern, including improving humanitarian access.

Sudan remains designated by Washington as a "state sponsor of terrorism."
London police said on Saturday a number of pedestrians had been injured near the city's Natural History Museum and that a man had been arrested at the scene.

British media reported a car had mounted the pavement outside the tourist attraction.

Police described the incident in the South Kensington area of west London as a collision and said the motive for the incident was under investigation.

"Inquiries to establish the circumstances and motive are under way," police said.

The museum said on Twitter it was working with police after "a serious incident" outside and would provide more information later.

The police statement said officers were on the scene and that London Ambulance Service had been called. The Ambulance Service said it was responding.
Construction of the first fully disabled-accessible synagogue in Jerusalem is about to be finished, giving disabled worshipers easy access to the compound, with comfortable sitting arrangements for wheelchair-bound visitors, Braille bibles and more. According to estimates, about 90% of the synagogues in Israel do not have accessibility for the disabled.

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The synagogue is currently being built as part of the Herzog Hospital complex in the capital.

There are 1.4 million people with disabilities in Israel, and some of them cannot attend a synagogue due to accessibility problems.

Jerusalem synagogue (Photo: Gil Yohanan)

Micha Oberman, CEO of Lavi Furniture Industries, has been hired to build the special furniture installed in the synagogue.

"We have worked hard to develop special furniture that provides easy access to the entrance and exit, seats and benches suitable for people with disabilities, a removable Torah ark with easy access for wheelchair-bound people and more," he said.

Oberman said his company has already carried out furniture work for synagogues around the country and the world, with accessibility for the disabled in mind, but that this is the first time a project has been carried out with the entire synagogue planned as to be accessible to the disabled from the ground up.

The synagogue will have easy access to it and inside the building. A ramp is to be built next to stairs leading from floor to floor. The synagogue will have wide aisles and entryways, doors made of glass and marked with yellow stickers for the visually impaired, bright lighting and special seating accommodations for those using wheelchairs.
Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced Saturday the country has launched a "serious" operation in Syria's northwestern Idlib province with Turkey-backed Syrian opposition forces, following international efforts for de-escalation in the war-torn country.

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The operation has been highly expected in the province, where al-Qaeda-linked fighters enjoy wide influence, after last month's talks in the Kazakh capital of Astana during which Turkey, Iran and Russia agreed on setting up "a de-escalation zone" in the province.

Turkey is a strong backer of Syrian opposition fighters while Iran and Russia back President Bashar Assad. Moscow joined the war two years ago siding with Assad while Tehran has sent thousands of Iran-backed fighters tipping the balance of power in the president's favor.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (Photo: Reuters)

In late September, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Turkey where he discussed the situation in Syria with Turkish President Erdogan and earlier this week the Turkish leader went to Tehran.

Erdogan said the operation was a "new step" to establish security in Idlib, promising Turkey would not desert civilians there.

"Today, there is a serious operation in Idlib and it will continue," he said at his political party's conference in Afyonkarahisar province in western Turkey.

Responding to journalists' questions after the televised speech, Erdogan said: "The Free Syrian Army is leading an operation in Idlib right now," referring to moderate rebel groups in Syria. He added that the Turkish military was not yet in the province.

Turkey-backed Syrian forces are fighting the al-Qaeda-linked Levant Liberation Committee, formerly known as Nusra Front. In the past weeks, the Turkish military has been dispatching tanks and armored vehicles to the border with Idlib.

Jihadist militant in Idlib

A Syrian rebel commander speaking from Turkey said no military operations are ongoing at the moment but said preparations were underway for Turkish troops and FSA fighters to enter Idlib.

"The aim of the operation is to implement the Astana agreement by setting up Turkish observation posts similar to those of Russia," Lt. Col. Fares al-Bayoush said in an exchange of text messages.

"This cannot be achieved without confronting the Nusra Front," he said. "The aim is to finish Nusra Front."

Erdogan told journalists that Turkey would provide security inside Idlib and Russia on the periphery. Last month, a negotiated "de-escalation zone" in the mostly rebel-held province of Idlib was announced during talks in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan. Iran, Turkey and Russia reached the deal for four de-escalation zones earlier this year as part of their efforts to negotiate an end to the Syrian civil war.

Turkey's official Anadolu news agency reported that the Turkish "deployment" would be to reach de-escalation goals rather than engage in clashes with local militia or the Syrian army.

The Turkish president warned the country would not permit a "terror corridor" along its border, referring to extremists groups as well as US-backed Syrian Kurdish militants.

"The Idlib operation will allow us new initiatives on this issue," Erdogan said, referring to Turkey's aversion to Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units or YPG efforts to link up their semi-autonomous territories in northern Syria. Last year, the Turkish army launched a cross-border operation with FSA to clear an area along its border of the Islamic State group and prevent the YPG from gaining a foothold on the western banks of the Euphrates River.

Hezbollah fighters in Raqqa

A battle with al-Qaeda-linked fighters in Syria could prove costly for Turkey and its allies as the extremist group is powerful and has been crushing any group that might cause any threat to them.

Al-Bayoush also added that there is a split within the al-Qaeda-linked Levant Liberation Committee with some saying they should fight Turkish troops and others opposing such a battle.

US officials say that Idlib has become the biggest al-Qaeda concentration since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks in New York and Washington.
Just 24 percent of Americans believe the country is heading in the right direction after a tumultuous stretch for President Donald Trump that included the threat of war with North Korea, stormy complaints about hurricane relief and Trump's equivocating about white supremacists. That's a 10-point drop since June, according to a poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

The decline in optimism about the nation's trajectory is particularly pronounced among Republicans. In June, 60 percent of Republicans said the country was headed in the right direction; now it's just 44 percent.

The broader picture for the president is grim, too. Nearly 70 percent of Americans say Trump isn't level-headed, and majorities say he's not honest or a strong leader. More than 60 percent disapprove of how he is handling race relations, foreign policy and immigration, among other issues.

Overall, 67 percent of Americans disapprove of the job Trump is doing in office, including about one-third of Republicans.
US President Donald Trump on Saturday said "only one thing will work" in dealing with North Korea after previous administrations had talked to Pyongyang without results.

"Presidents and their administrations have been talking to North Korea for 25 years, agreements made and massive amounts of money paid," Trump said in a tweet. "...Hasn't worked, agreements violated before the ink was dry, making fools of US negotiators. Sorry, but only one thing will work!"

Trump did not make clear to what he was referring. The president has previously said the United States would destroy North Korea if necessary to protect itself and its allies.
Like the rest of you most likely, I still cannot process the carnage visited from above on perfectly innocent folks enjoying an evening of country tunes across the street from the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas last Sunday night.

How does one measure or weigh the cowardice required of a grown man to do such a thing? Not only do it, but meticulously plan out every detail in order to inflict as much death and destruction as possible and to selfishly make sure he survived the night of horror.

How could such a person be anything less than the King Kong of cowards?

Thankfully his last plan  to preserve his own life after ending 59 others and shattering some 500 more - was foiled.

A cracker jack hotel security officer sniffed out the madmans room and then withstood a barrage of some 200 bullets fired from inside the room when the perpetrators corridor cameras revealed the officers presence outside the door.

Despite a gunshot to his right thigh, Jose Campos refused to leave his post, bravely choosing instead to hold his ground, sound the alarm about exactly where the shooter was located and then provide real-time information until the room was breached, forcing the latest in what is clearly an endless succession of mass murderers in this country to turn a gun on himself and join his victims in death.

If there is a hell surely this man will burn in it for eternity. The 59 others who died Sunday night have already been sent in a more lofty direction.

This monster-made atrocity happened on the 12th day after Norma and I enjoyed lunch with friends at the Ri Ra Irish Pub in the Mandalay Bay.

I fired off this cell phone photo through the windshield as we approached the parking garage. It was my first-ever visit to this most iconic city and Normas second.

Of course there was little excitement at midday on a Wednesday save for scattered slot machine commandos, each oblivious to the rest of the world trying to become one with his or her one-armed bandit.

Pedestrian traffic was light, so light in fact we were seated immediately for lunch.

Our party of four ferreted out the Mandalay Bay gift shop, trying unsuccessfully to pick up a specific item for a friend back in Nebraska. Then we calmly returned to the car, made a departing pass along the street and headed back to St. George, Utah.

Its incomprehensible to me what that exact hotels surroundings must have been like, by comparison, during the multi-day music festival we saw advertised on The Strip in bright, blinking lights.

Whats the answer(s) to this plague of gun violence in the U.S. that makes every other nation on earth look like a monastery by comparison to us? I dont know, but we need to find out, dont we?

Gun control is a topic upon which I am a far piece from blindly rigid in either direction. I have guns and always will, but they are sporting firearms designed and produced to hunt deer or squirrels, perhaps to shoot a fat mallard duck or teach a grandson to shoot over some clay targets.

Assault rifles, it seems to me, are designed for only one purpose  to kill people. It is proper for the military and law enforcement to lethally deploy them for the greater good of us all when that is the only option. Why and how these things morphed into recreational toys to abuse, as in Vegas, or amuse ourselves escapes me.

When true gun control advocates (not one yet, but Im getting there) suggest its insane that assault rifles  the very name of which reveals their core role as tactical weapons  be permitted to permeate every level of society you kinda see their point.

Someone on a news program this (Friday) morning pointed out its easier to purchase an assault rifle in the United States than it is to buy a package of Sudafed.

Let that one soak in.
SATURDAY 10/7

>> Alcoholics Anonymous - Fresh Start Group meets Saturday at 11 a.m. at First Presbyterian Church located at 414 Delaware Ave. in York.

>> A Childbirth Preparation class will be held on Saturday, Oct. 7 at 8 a.m. in the Medical Office Building Lower Level, contact OB Director Nancy Hengelfelt, RNC, at 402.362.0457 for more information.

MONDAY 10/9

>> 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, Oct. 9 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 10/10

>> 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.

>> Dementia Support Group will meet on Tuesday, Oct. 10 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, Oct. 10 at 6:30 p.m. at Willow Brook Assisted Living. For more information call 402.362.4662.

WEDNESDAY 10/11

>> Alcoholics Anonymous - Fresh Start Group meets Wednesday at 12 noon at First Presbyterian Church located at 414 Delaware Ave. in York.

>> Centennial will hold a blood drive on Wednesday, Oct. 11 starting at 12 p.m.

>> High Plains FFA members will host a Blood Drive on Wednesday, Oct. 11.

THURSDAY 10/12

>> 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.

>> McCool FFA members will host a Blood Drive in the old gym from 12  6 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 12.

FRIDAY 10/13

>> Alcoholics Anonymous - Fresh Start Group meets Friday at 12 noon at First Presbyterian Church located at 414 Delaware Ave. in York.

SATURDAY 10/14

>> Alcoholics Anonymous - Fresh Start Group meets Saturday at 11 a.m. at First Presbyterian Church located at 414 Delaware Ave. in York.

MONDAY 10/16

>> Alcoholics Anonymous - Fresh Start Group meets Monday at 12 noon at First Presbyterian Church located at 414 Delaware Ave. in York.

>> The Polk County Health Department will hold immunization clinics at the Polk County Health Department in Osceola on Monday, Oct.16, from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m.

TUESDAY 10/17

>> 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.

>> The Polk County Health Department will hold immunization clinics at the Polk County Health Department in Osceola on Tuesday, Oct. 17, from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.

WEDNESDAY 10/18

>> Alcoholics Anonymous - Fresh Start Group meets Wednesday at 12 noon at First Presbyterian Church located at 414 Delaware Ave. in York.

THURSDAY 10/19

>> 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.

>> Blood pressures will be checked Thursday, Oct. 19, at the Fairmont Senior center, at noon.

>> Flu shots will be given at Exeter-Milligan on Thursday, Oct. 19.

FRIDAY 10/20

>> Alcoholics Anonymous - Fresh Start Group meets Friday at 12 noon at First Presbyterian Church located at 414 Delaware Ave. in York.

>> The Polk County Health Department will be giving flu shots at the Benedict Community Center on Friday, Oct. 20, from 7:30-9:30 a.m. Call Kelly at 402-732-6801 to schedule a time. Walk-ins will also be welcome.

SATURDAY 10/21

>> Alcoholics Anonymous - Fresh Start Group meets Saturday at 11 a.m. at First Presbyterian Church located at 414 Delaware Ave. in York.
News

Washington, DC - The Department of the Navy (DoN) won Best Military Department and three of its federal employees received individual recognition at the 37th Annual Department of Defense (DoD) Disability Awards Ceremony Thursday at the Pentagon.

In observance of National Disability Employment Awareness Month, the awards were presented to service members and civilians with disabilities for their outstanding contributions in supporting the DoD mission, and to the DoD components and military departments for their exemplary efforts to adopt and implement exemplary practices to advance a diverse and inclusive workforce.



Acting Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Manpower and Reserve Affairs) Robert Woods accepted the Best Military Department award on behalf of DoN.



Woods also co-presented Outstanding Service Members and Civilian Employees with Disabilities awards to three DoN employees:

Ray Bourgeois, associate counsel, Navy Facilities Engineering Command, Washington D.C.

Kelly Thomas, human resource specialist, Naval Supply Systems Command, Mechanicsburg, Pa.

Staff Sgt. David P. Doty, criminal investigator, United States Marine Corps, Okinawa, Japan



"Our employees with disabilities bring incredible achievements to the Department of the Navy on a daily basis," said Woods. "I'm very proud of the great work of our Navy and Marine Corps team that resulted in our earning the Best Military Department Award. It was my privilege to accept the award on behalf of the Department and to honor Mr. Bourgeois, Ms. Thomas and Staff Sgt. Doty. Their hard work and dedication are a testament to achieving success regardless of obstacles."



Bourgeois has served as associate counsel in the Office of Counsel, NAVFAC, for more than 18 years, and as a judge advocate general in the United States Air Force for 23 years. He has worked on numerous complex legal issues, resolution of which was essential to effectively executing the DoN mission. In connection with the largest land acquisition in DoD history, he developed strategy and provided critical advice allowing the Marine Corps to acquire 151,000 acres to perform critical training at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center, Twentynine Palms, California.



Bourgeois also developed the legal strategy for executing a lease with a major developer to provide an important office building for the DoN in San Diego in return for the right to develop the remainder of the site for commercial purposes. The project has spanned 25 years. Bourgeois devised a legal position that has allowed the DoN to prevail in a lengthy series of legal challenges, including major federal litigation. When Congress gave military departments the authority to execute encroachment protection agreements with non-governmental entities to protect land around military installations, Bourgeois wrote the guidance for the DoN, including template agreements providing the necessary mitigation for endangered species impacted by military action.



"It was a surprise and I feel very honored," said Bourgeois after receiving his award. "I just try to do all I can to get the job done. My work is part of my therapy."



"My determination is to be able to get out of this wheelchair and move around on my own," he continued. "I don't have any expectation of running and jumping like I did before I was injured, but I do have a belief that I'll be able to get out of this chair, and probably with a walker or a cane, be able to walk on my own."



Bourgeois then shared a message to others with disabilities.

"You just can't let it control and define you," he said. "In my work with the therapist, my mantra is to set a goal and exceed it. My therapist would say, 'let's try to do 100 feet,' so I want to do 110 or more, just to keep improving. If you give up, nothing is ever going to happen. I refuse to give up."



Kelly Thomas, a human resources specialist in the workforce development branch, training and development team at the Naval Supply Systems Command Headquarters (NAVSUP) in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, received the Outstanding DoD Civilian Employees with Disabilities Award. She successfully communicated and solicited more than 100 awards as the program manager of the Honorary and Organization Awards Program and the Individual Development Plan and Competency Manager Programs. In addition to reviewing and processing awards packages, she developed a draft instruction to standardize the awards process within NAVSUP. She also conducted training for more than 6,000 employees on the IDP and developed a NAVSUP instruction for the administration of this requirement. Her efforts resulted in an increase from 20% to more than 75% of NAVSUP employees having an approved IDP in place within the last two years. Thomas is considered the NAVSUP expert in the Total Workforce Management System used for IDPs.



Staff Sgt. David P. Doty, a criminal investigator with the U.S. Marine Corps, served on active duty for 12 years. A Purple Heart recipient, he transitioned to the 5821 military occupational specialty three years ago following injuries sustained during combat operations in Sangin Valley, Afghanistan, as an infantry Marine. A key member of undercover crime operations, Doty also routinely volunteers to teach crime scene processing to law enforcement officers. He also provided the Commandant of the Marine Corps with protective services during his April 2017 visit to Okinawa.



Twenty-one disabled federal employees and active-duty service members received recognition for outstanding service at the ceremony. The Secretary of Defense also gave Best Mid-sized Component, Best Small-sized Component, Best Intelligence Component and Best Accessible Technology Program awards to the Defense Logistics Agency, Defense Media Activity and National Security Agency (for the latter two), respectively.
Border News

Tombstone, Arizona - Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents assigned to the Willcox Station arrested a 25-year-old woman Wednesday afternoon, at the State Route 80 Immigration Checkpoint, after finding three illegal aliens in the trunk of her vehicle.

Agents working at the immigration checkpoint north of Tombstone, Arizona, referred the driver of a Honda Accord for further inspection after a canine alerted to an odor it was trained to detect. Agents opened the vehicles trunk and discovered two men and a woman hidden inside.

Agents arrested the U.S. citizen driver for human smuggling and seized the Honda Accord. The Mexican male national and two Belize nationals were arrested for immigration violations.

Border Patrol officials continue to warn that Arizonas high temperatures can cause death for anyone riding in the trunk of a car. Other dangers include carbon monoxide poisoning or being crushed in a rear-end collision.
Latest News

Washington, DC - Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Arms Control, Verification and Compliance Anita Friedt hosted an event updating the UN First Committee on the work of the International Partnership for Nuclear Disarmament Verification (IPNDV). The event included speakers from Argentina, Japan, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI), a U.S. non-profit.

Participants discussed the conclusion of Phase One of the Partnerships work, which has focused on building international capacity and deepening technical understanding related to verifying nuclear disarmament. The panel highlighted the importance of the upcoming plenary in Buenos Aires, Argentina, which will mark the end of Phase One, the release of publications documenting the Partnerships accomplishments to date, and the launch of the next phase of the Partnerships work in identifying and addressing verification challenges. This technical work is an integral part of further, concrete steps on nuclear disarmament.
Living Section

Yuma, Arizona - The Grand Canyon has long inspired deep emotions and responses. For the Native Americans who lived there, the canyon was home, full of sacred meanings. For the first European settlers to see it, the canyon drove them to great exploration adventures and Wild West dreams of wealth. The canyon also held deep importance for Americas pioneer conservationists such as Teddy Roosevelt, John Muir, and Aldo Leopold, and it played a central role in the emerging environmental movement.

The Grand Canyon became a microcosm of the history and evolving values of the National Park Service, long conflicted between encouraging tourism and protecting nature. Many vivid characters shaped the canyons past. Its largest story is one of cultural history and changing American visions of the land.



Grand Canyon: A History of a Natural Wonder and National Park is a mixture of great storytelling, unlikely characters, and important ideas. The book will appeal to both general readers and scholars interested in seeking a broader understanding of the canyon.

Author Bio: Don Lago has done extensive research into Grand Canyon history. His book Canyon of Dreams: Stories from Grand Canyon History documents many previously unknown events. He is also the author of a park best seller, Grand Canyon Trivia. Lago has published more than fifty personal nature and astronomy essays in national magazines and literary journals. He lives in Flagstaff, Arizona.

Reviews:

Once again, Don Lago has proven he is not only a great writer, but the best Grand Canyon historian of his time. Tom Myers, coauthor of Grand Obsession: Harvey Burchart and the Exploration of Grand Canyon

In Grand Canyon: A History of a Natural Wonder and National Park, Don Lago delivers with plainspoken ease and doses of sly humor the epic saga of one of the countrys greatest national parks. Seth Muller, author of Canyon Crossing: Experiencing the Grand Canyon from Rim to Rim

Don Lagos thorough research reveals the famous personalities, not usually associated with Grand Canyon, who came here to experience its grandeur and majesty. Lago presents an often overlooked but important aspect of the Grand Canyons human history. Wayne Ranney, President, Grand Canyon Historical Society

"Grand Canyon is a superb primer for anyone planning a Canyon visit, one that will genuinely enrich the experience. Lago's history will also be worthwhile to experienced Canyon enthuiasts who will enjoy his original observations about the cultural forces that have shaped our perceptions of the Grand Canyon."The Journal of Arizona History

Lago paints a vivid picture of the Grand Canyon and human attempts to make sense of it. In doing so, he delivers a well-rounded and accessible book that should appeal to general readers as well as scholars interested in gaining a greater understanding of the canyon. Western Historical Quarterly
Yuma News

Yuma, Arizona - On Saturday, October 14th, the Yuma County Library District will join libraries across the nation to celebrate the 2nd Annual Indie Author Day. As the world of independent publishing continues to grow, libraries are reaching out to support local writers and help them connect with other writers and readers.

At 11:00 a.m., Alexandra DeMers, author of the indie alt-history novel Threadbare: The Traveling Show, will present Dreaming Out Loud: Organizing Your Creativity. Topics include how to get your ideas down on paper, and how to weave a story from your inspirations and experiences. Alexandra will also share an insiders perspective on the self-publication process, including editing the manuscript, designing a cover, and sharing your work with the world!



At 1:30 p.m., local authors Christine Howard and Joanne Mowczko will host a writers panel at the Main Library. Topics include writing inspirations, the process of self-publishing, and current writing projects. There is no charge to attend.



The Main Library is located at 2951 S 21st Drive. For more information, call (928) 782-1871.
Ciudad Juarez: A federal intelligence agent and his mother were killed when assailants opened fire on their car in northern Mexico, an attack that came hours after a mayor in western Michoacan state was gunned down outside his home, officials said.

While the killers in the shootings yesterday escaped, both regions are wrecked by gun battles between drug gangs and Mexican police, and by turf wars between criminal cartels.

The federal agent -- identified as Julio Cesar Baez Guillen, 35 -- was travelling with his 65-year-old mother and his 31-year-old girlfriend when gunmen pulled alongside their car and opened fire, the Chihuahua state prosecutor's office said late yesterday.

Baez and his mother died, while the agent's girlfriend, also an intelligence agent, was wounded but survived.

Baez had been assigned to the Puente Grande maximum security in Jalisco state, infamous for being the prison from which drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman escaped in 2001.

Guzman is currently jailed and awaiting trial in the United States on drug trafficking and money laundering charges.

Chihuahua, which borders on Texas and is a major transit point for drugs into the United States, forms the notorious "Golden Triangle" along with Durango and Sinaloa states.

In the region, marijuana and the poppy flowers used to make heroin are grown and drug cartel violence is common.

Separately, Stalin Sanchez Gonzalez, the mayor of Paracho in the southern state of Michoacan, was murdered yesterday morning as he stepped outside his home.

Paracho is best known for its hand-crafted guitars, but the region in the past years has been hit hard by drug cartel violence.

Michoacan Governor Silvano Aureoles announced the mayor's death as he expressed his condolences on Twitter.

Nearly 50 mayors across the country have been slain since 2003, according to Mexico's National Association of Mayors.
New York: A new book from Donald Trump's first wife pulls back the curtain on a tumultuous period of the president's life, including the messy divorce that was splashed across New York's tabloids for weeks.

Ivana Trump, who was married to the real estate magnate from 1977 to 1992, writes in "Raising Trump" that she knew her marriage was over soon after a day in December 1989.

"This young blonde woman approached me out of the blue and said 'I'm Marla and I love your husband. Do you?'" writes Ivana Trump. "I said 'Get lost. I love my husband.' It was unladylike but I was in shock."

Trump's public affair with Marla Maples spawned the infamous "Best Sex I've Ever Had" headline in the New York Post in 1990. After divorcing his first wife, Trump married Maples in 1993.

"Raising Trump" is set to be released next week. The Associated Press purchased an early copy.

In the book, Ivana writes glowingly about her marriage to Trump and her prominent role at the Trump Organisation. But then she unburdens herself about the heartache that Trump's affair with Maples caused her and the couple's three children, Donald Jr, Ivanka and Eric. Donald Jr didn't speak to his father for a year after the split.

"I can only shake my head at how it insane it was," Ivana Trump writes. "I couldn't turn on the television without hearing my name."

But she and the president have returned to far warmer terms. She writes that they speak about once a week and that she encourages him to keep using Twitter.

She said in a CBS News interview this week that she was offered the post of ambassador to the Czech Republic, her native country, but turned it down because she already has "a perfect life." The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the ambassadorship post.

Much of the book is spent recounting Ivana Trump's childhood in Europe, her burgeoning modeling career in New York and Trump's courtship. She writes that, at their first meeting, Trump secured her and friends a table at a hot Manhattan restaurant, paid the check and chauffeured her back to her hotel in a giant Cadillac.

"My instincts told me that Donald was smart and funny, an all-America good guy," Ivana Trump writes.

Her children also contribute passages to the book, and Ivana Trump muses that her former husband may not be the only Trump to call the White House home.

"Maybe in fifteen years, she could run for president?" she writes about her daughter, Ivanka, before musing about her own possible title.

"First Lady? Holds no appeal for me personally. First Mother? That could work."
Islamabad: Only the government has the right to declare 'jihad' and 'fatwa' and no one else can, Pakistan's Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal has said.

He asked the clerics to stop issuing fatwas, or decrees, on the social media and said those violating the law will be punished.

No Maulvi of any street has the authority to declare anybody as non-Muslim, the News quoted the minister as saying on Friday. He said such fatwas spread anarchy.

We need to put an end to such trends which can threaten the countrys internal security, he said.

He also said that provisions enshrined in the constitution state that no law can be enacted against the spirit of Islamic tenets.
New Delhi: Pakistan's Attorney General Ashtar Ausaf Ali will hold weekly meetings to finalise an 'appropriate rejoinder' to Indias plea in the Kulbhushan Jadhav's case, a media report said on Saturday.

This was decided during a meeting chaired by Ausaf on Friday, the Dawn reported. Jadhav is on a death row in Pakistan on charges of espionage.

The International Court of Justice has given Pakistan Dec 13 deadline to submit its counter-plea after which the final proceedings will start.

The ICJ had stayed Jadhavs execution on May 18.

Ausaf said his office is in touch with all stakeholders, including Khawar Qureshi who pleaded Pakistans case in the initial stage, to formalise a 'robust' reply.
Manali: Maruti Suzuki India Limited on Saturday flagged off the 19th edition of Maruti Suzuki Raid De Himalaya, the worlds highest arena rally from Manali.

Over 170 motorsport enthusiasts in 110 teams are participating in this rally which will culminate at Leh for the prize distribution ceremony on October 14.

The rally will be taking place at an extremely high altitude of 17,500 feet with temperatures as low as -15C and will traverse through the terrains of Kaza, Sarchu, Pang, Leh, Kargil and Pensi La.

Speaking on the occasion, Sanjeev Handa, Vice President, Marketing, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. said, Keeping up with our commitment of providing adrenaline rush and thrusting challenges, we are pleased to flag-off yet another exciting journey amidst huge fanfare. Rated among the top ten most difficult rallies in the world, the premiere motorsport spectacle of the country has grown slowly but strongly into the rallying phenomenon it is today. From a small rally that began in 1999 with just 19 teams, it has been a long journey since then and has seen over 110 teams and over 170 participants go head to head for the most coveted title in Indian rallying history.



Winning last years top title, Team Maruti Suzuki Motorsports Suresh Rana co driven by PVS Murthy with look to defend titles in their Grand Vitara. Sandeep Sharma and Karan Arya in their S. Cross, Hari Krishnan and Dinesh Dhankar in their Ignis, Dhram Pal Jangra and Thinless Namgail in Vitara Brezza and Samrat Yadav and S.N. Nizami driving Gypsy.



Cutting it close will be 6 women teams as well as 8 Army teams, which would be taking part across categories this year.



With safety given the utmost priority, all the participants undergo a strict scrutiny check one day prior the flag-off.



The rally is divided into three categories  X-treme Cars, X-treme Bikes and Adventure; and will cover about 1850 kms over a span of 7 days.
New Delhi: The government has approved a new scheme to provide budgetary support to industrial units in hilly states including Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh under the GST regime, Union Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu said on Saturday.

"A new scheme of budgetary support under GST regime to the units located in states of Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, North East states approved," he said in a series of tweets.

He said the scheme offered as a measure of goodwill to units eligible for drawing benefits under earlier excise duty exemption and refund schemes.

Under the GST regime, there is no provision for exemption but there is one section under the Act which permits refunds.

The minister said that recognising industry's concerns on withdrawal of exemptions, budgetary support for residual period as part reimbursement of GST was provided.

"We are responsive to industry's concerns, shall work together to boost growth, exports, employment," he added.
Indore: Patanjali Ayurved's managing director Balkrishna said here on Saturday that the company is planning to invest Rs 5,000 crore in the country in the current financial year.

"We are exploring possibilities to set up units in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, the North-East, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh," he told reporters here.

If all goes well, the company's food processing unit at Pithampur industrial area in Dhar district, 30 km from here, would be up and running by March, he said.

"Hopefully, the food processing unit will start production by March 2018 with an investment of Rs 500 crore," he said.

The plant will produce biscuits, suji, noodles and flour. It would process 1,000 tons of wheat daily, Balkrishna added.

The BJP government in Madhya Pradesh has allotted 40 acres of land to Patanjali at the rate of Rs 25 lakh per acre, he said.

The company would also explore the possibility of processing fruits and vegetables in the state, he said.

"If the government provides us land, we will also set up a cow shelter in the state," he said.
New Delhi: An 82-year-old woman, her three daughters and a male guard were found dead inside a house here on Saturday, police said.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Nupur Prasad told IANS that the four women belonging to the Jindal family were found dead at their house in Shahdara`s Mansarovar Park area.

The deceased have been identified as Urmila Jindal, and her daughters Sangeeta, 56, Nupur, 48, and Anjali, 38. The guard has been identified as Rakesh, 42.

The police control room received a call about the incident around 7 a.m.

Preliminary investigation showed there was "no forced entry" into the house and no valuables were stolen, a police officer said.
New Delhi: Self-styled godwoman Radhe Maa on Saturday filed an appeal in Dindoshi court after Borivali metropolitan magistrate court rejected her application in domestic violence case.

Earlier on September 9, the Mumbai court had dismissed her application requesting removal of her name from a domestic violence case filed against her.

In 2016, a Mumbai resident, Niki Gupta had registered a complaint accusing the godwoman of instigating her in-laws against her for dowry.

However, the Borivali Police dropped Radhe Maa's name from the list of accused on grounds of lack of evidence, without informing the complainant.

On April 28, Gupta took the matter to Bombay High Court.

On September 5, the Punjab and Haryana High Court directed the Punjab police to file a First Information Report (FIR) against Radhe Maa on the plea of a Phagwara resident, Surender Mittal, a former Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) member.

Two years ago, Mittal had sought a FIR against Radhe Maa but receiving no response to his complaint from Punjab Police, Mittal had moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court this year.
London: A large number of pedestrians were seriously injured after a car rammed into the pavement outside the Natural History Museum in the South Kensington area of west London on Saturday.

According to reports, London Police have arrested a man from the scene.

A man has been detained by police. #Exhibition Road #South Kensington.  Metropolitan Police (@metpoliceuk) October 7, 2017

London Police earlier said that the incident outside the museum in west London in which at least 11 people were injured was not being treated as terrorism-related at this stage.

Reuters, however, quoted London Police as saying that they were keeping an ''open mind'' after the incident, contradicting an earlier comment ussed by the city's police force.

Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London, also issued a statement and urged people to avoid going to the area as the probe into the incident were still underway.

My statement on the incident in South Kensington: https://t.co/uTeo2HabXy pic.twitter.com/sZ0uIHUZHM  Mayor of London (@MayorofLondon) October 7, 2017

British media reports said that the incident occurred after an uncontrolled car mounted the pavement outside the Museum  a major tourist attraction.

The crash, according to eye-witnesses, happened at 2:20 pm. Raveen Aujmaya, a Twitter user, also posted a video of the incident.

VIDEO: Car ramming attack in #London, #UK. This is the suspect, who gets arrested. pic.twitter.com/7Orhi6TjQ1  Raveen Aujmaya (@raveenaujmaya) October 7, 2017

Police initially described the incident in the South Kensington area of west London as a collision and said the motive for the incident was under investigation.

"Inquiries to establish the circumstances and motive are underway," London Police said.

The museum authorities also took to Twitter and said that they were working with police after "a serious incident" outside and would provide more information later.

Theres been a serious incident outside the Museum. We are working w/ @metpoliceuk and will provide an update when we have more information  NaturalHistoryMuseum (@NHM_London) October 7, 2017

A statement issued by the London Police said its officers were on the scene and that London Ambulance Service had been called. Armed police were deployed to the scene, which is also near the Science Museum, and the whole area was subsequently cordoned off.

The Ambulance Service also immediately responded to the call.

A museum spokesman was quoted as saying that that no one was being allowed into the building and people were being let out through a different exit.

A Downing Street spokesperson said British Prime Minister Theresa May is "being kept up to date on events". Prime Minister Theresa May offered her thanks to the emergency services, adding, "My thoughts are with the injured.''

The incident comes at a time when Britain is on its second highest security alert level, meaning an attack by militants is considered highly likely, and there have been five attacks already this year, three involving a vehicle.

In March, a man drove a car into pedestrians on Londons Westminster Bridge killing four before stabbing a police officer to death in the grounds of Parliament.

Three Islamist militants drove into people on London Bridge in June before stabbing people at nearby restaurants and bars, killing eight and the same month a van was driven into worshippers near a mosque in north London which left one man dead.

The Natural History Museum is the fourth most popular tourist attraction in the United Kingdom, with 4.6 million visits during 2016, according to the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions.
Ahmedabad: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday accused the previous UPA government of having been indifferent towards Gujarat including over sanctioning of development projects.

Latest updates

- The roads here (in Surendranagar district) were accident prone. It was Keshubhai Patel who worked towards making better roads and making them safer, says PM.

- Those who are opposing the Rajkot airport, can take the bus, says PM.

- Aviation cannot be about rich people. We have made aviation affordable and within reach of the lesser privileged, says PM.

- The definition of development is changing. Earlier, a hand pump would be put and a leader would use that for multiple elections. Things have changed now. We are bringing waters of the Narmada here, for the benefit of citizens, PM says

- The Prime Minister addresses a public meeting in Rajkot.

- PM Modi lays foundation stone of green field airport at Rajkot.

- When there is trust in a government and when policies are made with best intentions, it is natural for people to support us for the best interests of the nation, says PM

- Diwali has come early for our citizens due to the decisions taken in the GST Council. We had said we will study all aspects relating to GST for 3 months, including the shortcomings. And thus, the decisions were taken with consensus at the GST council: PM @narendramodi

- On Friday our government addressed the concerns regarding Goods and Services Tax (GST), and announced a slew of measures to ease the concerns of traders, exporters and small businesses.

Also Read - Big relief for SMEs, exporters; 27 items get cheaper

- Marine policing is a sector we are looking at very closely. We are modernising marine security apparatus. An institute for this will be set up in this Devbhoomi of Dwarka. It will draw people and experts from all over India, announces PM.

- Taking a swipe at previous Congress regime, PM Modi says, When Madhavsinh Solanki ji was CM, I recall front page advertisements for the CM coming to Jamnagar to inaugurate a water tank. This is how narrow their conception of development was. We have come a long way since then & are looking at more all round & extensive progress.

- Building of infrastructure should enhance economic activities and add to the atmosphere of development, says PM.

- Development of the tourism sector cannot be in isolation. If we want to draw more tourists to Gir, we should also inspire the tourist to visit other parts like Dwarka, PM asserts.

- I still recall how tough it was for people of Bet Dwarka. Lack of infrastructure meant transportation was tough, people faced difficulties if an emergency came up. We wanted to change this with a push on infrastructure, says PM.

- The people in Bet are well versed with the problems they have faced in terms of conveyance, PM says, adding that I am happy to be taking the place to development and making it easy for the people to commute.

- What we are working towards is not merely a bridge to reach Bet Dwarka, it connects us to our history and culture, PM says.

- Today I am seeing a very different mood here in Dwarka. There is tremendous enthusiasm here, PM says.

- PM Modi addresses the gathering

- PM Modi lays the foundation stone of a bridge between Okha and Bet Dwarka.

- PM to lay the foundation stone of a bridge between Okha and Bet Dwarka shortly. Union Road Transport and Highways, Shipping and Water Resources Nitin Gadkari also present at the event.

- He began the tour with prayers at the Dwarkadheesh Temple in the historic Dwarka town.

On October 8, the Prime Minister will arrive in Vadnagar. This will be PM Modis first visit to the town, since assuming the office of Prime Minister.

He will visit the Hatkeshwar Temple. At a public meeting, the Prime Minister will launch the Intensified Mission Indradhanush, to accelerate progress towards the goal of full immunisation coverage.

It will provide greater focus on urban areas and other pockets of low immunisation coverage. The Prime Minister will distribute e-tablets to health workers to mark the launch of ImTeCHO. ImTeCHO is an innovative mobile phone application to improve performance of ASHAs through better supervision, support and motivation for increasing coverage of proven maternal, newborn and child health interventions among resource-poor settings in India. ImTeCHO stands for Innovative mobile-phone Technology for Community Health Operations. TeCHO in Gujarati means support; therefore, ImTeCHO means I am support. The Prime Minister will address a public meeting.

The Prime Minister will then arrive at Bharuch. He will lay the foundation stone for Bhadbhut Barrage, to be built over the Narmada River. He will flag off the Antyodaya Express between Udhna (Surat, Gujarat), and Jaynagar (Bihar).

He will unveil plaques to mark the laying of foundation stone, and inauguration of various plants of Gujarat Narmada Fertilizer Corporation. He will address a public meeting.

The Prime Minister will return to Delhi on the October 8 evening.
Ahmedabad: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be in Gujarat from Saturday on a two-day visit during which he will lay foundation stones and inaugurate a number of projects.

Notably, Gujarat will be going to polls later this year.

On the morning of October 7, the Prime Minister will visit the Dwarkadheesh Temple. At Dwarka, he will lay the foundation stones of a bridge between Okha and Beyt Dwarka and other road development projects. He is also scheduled to address a public meeting.



From Dwarka, PM Modi will arrive in Chotila, in Surendranagar district. He will lay the foundation stones for a greenfield airport at Rajkot, six-laning of Ahmedabad-Rajkot National Highway and four-laning of Rajkot-Morbi State Highway.

He will also dedicate a fully automatic milk processing and packaging plant and a drinking water distribution pipeline for Joravarnagar and Ratanpur area of Surendranagar. He will address a public meeting.



The Prime Minister will then proceed to Gandhinagar. He will dedicate the newly constructed building of IIT Gandhinagar, and launch the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan (PMGDISHA). PMGDISHA is aimed at imparting digital literacy to citizens in rural areas. It will provide access to information, knowledge, education, and healthcare. It will create avenues for livelihood generation and financial inclusion through digital payments. He will address a public meeting.



On October 8, the Prime Minister will arrive in Vadnagar. This will be PM Modis first visit to the town, since assuming the office of Prime Minister.

He will visit the Hatkeshwar Temple. At a public meeting, the Prime Minister will launch the Intensified Mission Indradhanush, to accelerate progress towards the goal of full immunisation coverage.

It will provide greater focus on urban areas and other pockets of low immunization coverage. The Prime Minister will distribute e-tablets to health workers to mark the launch of ImTeCHO. ImTeCHO is an innovative mobile phone application to improve performance of ASHAs through better supervision, support and motivation for increasing coverage of proven maternal, newborn and child health interventions among resource-poor settings in India. ImTeCHO stands for Innovative mobile-phone Technology for Community Health Operations. TeCHO in Gujarati means support; therefore, ImTeCHO means I am support. The Prime Minister will address a public meeting.

The Prime Minister will then arrive at Bharuch. He will lay the foundation stone for Bhadbhut Barrage, to be built over the Narmada River. He will flag off the Antyodaya Express between Udhna (Surat, Gujarat), and Jaynagar (Bihar).

He will unveil plaques to mark the laying of foundation stone, and inauguration of various plants of Gujarat Narmada Fertilizer Corporation. He will address a public meeting.

The Prime Minister will return to Delhi on the October 8 evening.
Chandigarh: Honeypreet Insan, the closest aide of Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, allegedly paid Rs 1.25 crore to a Dera Sacha Sauda member to arrange logistics for inciting violence in the Panchkula on August 25 if the Dera chief was convicted in the rape case, a report said on Saturday.

Honeypreet, who claims to be the adopted daughter of Ram Rahim, allegedly gave the huge amount to Dera Panchkula head Chamkaur Singh to instigate violence. This was revealed to the cops by Honeypreet's personal assistant Rakesh Kumar, a newspaper report stated.

Kumar is currently in the custody of the Special Investigation Team (SIT).

Haryana Police on Friday claimed that Honeypreet is misleading the probing officials in the investigation into her role in violence in Panchkula and elsewhere after the August 25 conviction of Ram Rahim on two counts of rape.

Panchkula Police Commissioner AS Chawla claimed that Haryana Police have found evidence of Honeypreet Insan's hand in incidents of violence in Panchkula.

Honeypreet, whose real name is Priyanka Taneja, was arrested by the Haryana Police on October 3 in connection with the deadly violence that had claimed 35 lives.

Chawla said efforts were on to nab other two top functionaries of the sect, Aditya Insan and Pawan Insan, who were also on the run since August 25.

Honeypreet, in her mid-30s, has been the closest aide of Ram Rahim for nearly a decade. Her former husband Vishwas Gupta had alleged an illicit relationship between the two.

Ram Rahim allegedly adopted Honeypreet in 2009. Gupta claimed he married Honeypreet in 1999 on the direction of the Dera chief before filing for divorce in 2011.

Also Read - Khattar blames Punjab police for delayed information on Honeypreet

'Honeypreet Insan had illicit relations with Dera chief'

Dera chief's "adopted daughter" Honeypreet's ex-husband Vishwas Gupta has accused them of having illicit relations and said their father-daughter relationship was a sham to fool followers and others.

Honeypreet Insan's former husband Vishwas Gupta has claimed that she never slept with him and every night she was with the Dera chief.

While accusing Honeypreet and Gurmeet of having illicit relations, Gupta said their father-daughter relationship was a sham to fool followers and others.

Revealing about his ex-wife and Gurmeet's illicit relationship, Gupta claimed that he saw Ram Rahim and Honeypreet in a compromising position in the Dera chief's "gufa" or private accommodation on the sprawling campus near Sirsa town in Haryana.

Ram Rahim has been sentenced to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of over Rs 30 lakh. His conviction led to violence in Panchkula and Sirsa in Haryana, leaving 38 people dead and another 264 injured. Isolated incidents of violence were also reported from Delhi and several places in Punjab.
New Delhi: The Punjab and Haryana Court on Saturday granted interim bail to the Ryan International School founders, staying the arrest orders in connection with the Pradhyumn murder case.

The interim bail has been permitted to the Pinto family till December 5.

The court has asked the CBI to submit a report on the matter on December 5.

"High Court Justice Surinder Gupta today granted interim bail to them (the three trustees) till December 5," Arshdeep Singh Cheema, who along with Sandeep Kapur, appeared for the Pinto family told PTI.

The court has also asked the Pinto family to join the investigation whenever called by the CBI.

"The CBI has also been asked by the high court to submit a report in this matter on December 5," said Cheema.

Earlier on September 28, the High Court had stayed the arrest of the Ryan group trustees, who had sought anticipatory bail.

Ryan Pinto along with his parents had appealed to the High Court on September 16 and sought anticipatory bail regarding Pradhyumn's murder.

Class 2 student Pradhuman Thakur was found with his throat slit in a school washroom on September 8.

Following the incident, the schoolbus conductor Ashok Kumar was arrested.

There was nation-wide outrage over the child's killing and allegations were levelled against the school management also.

On September 25, the High Court had impleaded CBI as a respondent in a petition seeking bail for the three Ryan International Group trustees.

The Haryana government had earlier recommended a CBI probe in the matter. The premier investigating agency took over the case on September 22.

(With PTI inputs)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday defended his government on the changes made to the Goods and Services Tax saying that the alterations have been made as promised. "We had said we will study all aspects relating to GST for 3 months, including the shortcomings. And thus, the decisions were taken with consensus at the GST council," he said in a speech during his two-day trip to Gujarat.

Applauding his government, the PM asserted that Diwali had come early for people due to the decisions taken in the GST Council. "On Friday our government addressed the concerns regarding Goods and Services Tax (GST), and announced a slew of measures to ease the concerns of traders, exporters and small businesses," he said.

Confident of the faith that people have in the government, Modi said that when there is trust in a government and when policies are made with best intentions, it is natural that people will support for the best interests of the nation.

On Friday, sweeping changes were made to the new indirect tax regime with major relief being given to small and medium businesses on filing and payment of taxes. The council has also eased rules for exporters and cut tax rates on more than two dozen items including unbranded namkeen, unbranded ayurvedic medicine, sliced dried mango and khakra.

During his two-day visit to Gujarat that began on Saturday, he went to offer prayers at the famous Dwarkadhish temple in the morning.

He will also be laying foundation stones and inaugurate a number of projects in his trip to poll-bound Gujarat. He is also scheduled to visit his birthplace Vadnagar for the first time after becoming the Prime Minister.
New Delhi: Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will be visiting Sikkim-Bhutan-Tibet tri-junction and interact with the troops stationed at the forward areas on Saturday.

Sitharaman will be accompanied by Army Vice Chief Lt General Sarath Chand.

Both the Asian giants continue to maintain significant troops present at the crucial junction.

Sitharaman's visit comes a day after China on Friday defended the presence of its troops in the Doklam area, over a month after the standoff with India ended, saying its soldiers are patrolling the region, also claimed by Bhutan, to exercise Beijing's sovereignty.

The 73-day Doklam which began on June 16 over Peoples' Liberation Army plans to build a road in area claimed by Bhutan, ended on August 28 following mutual agreement between India and China.

The External Affairs Ministry said on Friday there are no new developments at the India-China military face-off site in Doklam and its vicinity since the August 28 disengagement.

"We have seen recent press reports on Doklam. There are no new developments at the face-off site and its vicinity since the 28th August disengagement. The status quo prevails in this area. Any suggestion to the contrary is incorrect, the MEA said in a statement.

Sitharaman and Lt General Sarath Chand will visit Tezpur in Assam during the two-day visit beginning Saturday. Sitharaman was earlier scheduled to visit Arunachal Pradesh, too, but it was cancelled later, a source said.
New Delhi: Billionaire Gautam Adani, whose group is vying to build Australia's largest coal mine, on Saturday said his company has signed its first power purchase agreement for a solar farm near a central Queensland mining town.

Adani Group plans to build a 100-200 MW solar plant on a 600 hectare land parcel that was formerly part of the Rugby Run grazing property near Moranbah.

"A great moment & major milestone, @AdaniAustralia signs first Power Purchase Agreement #PPA for the first phase of Solar farm at #RugbyRun," he tweeted.

He, however, did not give any details of the project.

The group had previously stated that the Rugby Run solar farm would be one of the world's most advanced solar energy plants and involve an investment of USD 200 million.

Its plan to develop Carmichael coal mine in Queensland's Galilee Basin has been bitterly opposed by environmentalists.

Rugby Run is the first of a number of solar projects Adani is eyeing to provide up to 1500 MW in Australia within the next five years.

The projects are part of plan to balance coal-fired power generation with renewable energy.

Adani had previously announced that the Rugby Run plant would be completed within 12 months of commencement.

The firm has built about 800 MW of solar generating capacity in India, including a 648 MW facility in Tamil Nadu which is one of the world's largest solar plants.
New Delhi: Canada holds huge potential for Indian exporters, particularly in the textiles sector, trade fair organising body ATSC on Saturday said.

Apparel Textile Sourcing Canada (ATSC) said: "Apparel trade data of Canada shows that exporters of India have a huge scope for expansion and growth to fill the gaps in the Canadian market".

It said in its recently fair in Toronto, several Indian textile manufacturers showcased their products.

Indian participants attracted interest from several Canadian brands like Aritzia and Gildan.

There is a huge potential in Canada for apparel and textiles sector, ATSC Director John Banker said in a statement.

He added that Indian textile manufacturers can reap advantage of Canada's free trade agreement partners.
Jammu: In yet another daring attack on security forces, a CRPF patrol team was targeted by a group of heavily armed terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district on Saturday.

According to reports, a CRPF jawan has been injured in the attack. The injured sub-inspector has been identified as Anwar Ali.

Militants opened fire on a road opening party of the CRPF at Mir Bazaar in Kulgam district, a police official told PTI.

The official further said the security forces have cordoned off the area and launched a manhunt for the attackers.

Meanwhile, a similar incident was also reported from J&K's Anantnag district in which one security personnel was injured.
Chennai: Sidelined AIADMK leader V K Sasikala, out of jail on a five-day parole, on Saturday visited her husband M Natarajan who is recovering at a hospital here after undergoing a liver and kidney transplant.

Sasikala, who was removed from the AIADMK last month after the factions led by Chief Minister K Palaniswami and now Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam united, met Natarajan and was with him for about two hours in the hospital, sources said.

Later, she returned to her niece Krishnapriya's residence in the city.

The beleaguered AIADMK leader's car briefly halted in front of a Ganesha temple in Kotturpuram and she prayed from inside the vehicle as used to be done by late AIADMK leader J Jayalalithaa.

Sasikala's low profile visit to the hospital was in stark contrast to her public appearances prior to her incarceration in February.

During her days before being imprisoned, she used to be surrounded by party men and loyalists raising slogans praising her as "Chinnamma".

Sasikala has been lodged in the Parapana Agrahara central jail since February this year after the Supreme Court upheld her conviction by a special court in a disproportionate assets case. Her relatives Ilavarasi and V N Sudhakaran are also serving four-year jail terms in the case.

Facing tough parole conditions, she refrained from visiting party men or interacting with them during her hospital visit today.

The hospital, meanwhile, said in a statement that Natarajan (74) is recovering and he is "awake and oriented and is on ventilator support through tracheostomy, which was performed on October 6".

TTV Dhinakaran loyalist and senior leader Nanjil Sampath said he saw Sasikala in the hospital and told her to pray.

He said he asked Sasikala to recite 'Sundara Kandam' from the Ramayana "as it would bring her relief".

Sasikala arrived in the city yesterday from the Parapana Agrahara central jail in Bengaluru after being granted parole for five days.

Natarajan was admitted at the Liver Intensive Care Unit of Gleneagles Global Health City under the care of a team of doctors led by Professor Mohamed Rela, the hospital said.

It said that at the time of admission, he had "worsening liver failure, kidney failure and lung congestion, and underwent liver and kidney transplantation on October four."

In a statement, Director, Institute for Liver Disease and Transplantation of the hospital, Dr K Ilankumaran said considering Natarajan's age and his associated co-morbidities, his condition was stable during the surgery and he is "recovering well in the liver intensive care unit".

"He (Natarajan) is awake and oriented and he is on ventilator support through a tracheostomy, which has been performed on October six."

As in any other combined liver and kidney transplant surgeries, his condition would be critical for the next few days, Ilankumaran said, adding "he is under close observation and monitoring".

It may be recalled that Sasikala had sought parole for 15 days, but was granted only five days with tough conditions, including that she will not get involved in any political or other public activity or take part in party activities.

She is allowed only to visit the hospital where her husband is admitted and stay at the residence as mentioned in the application.

Sasikala has also been restricted from interacting with any media -- print or electronic.
New Delhi: The Kerala government on Saturday told the Supreme Court that the state police is effectively investigating the alleged 'love jihad' case of the state and hence there is no need for the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to probe it.

In an affidavit, the state government informed the Supreme Court that the state police is competent enough to investigate such crimes.

The government had earlier said it had no problem with the NIA probe.

Earlier, a group of people had submitted a petition to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and demanded a probe into the alleged unlawful incarceration of Hadiya, the 24-year-old Vaikom native, who had converted to Islam after marriage.

Four months ago, the Kerala High Court sent Hadiya with her parents K.M. Asokan and Ponnamma after annulling her marriage with Shafin Jahan.

The case is under consideration of the Supreme Court now, which had ordered the NIA investigation into it.

Hadiaya's husband, Shafin Jahan on September 16 filed a plea in the Supreme Court and requested to call off the NIA probe, alleging that the investigation agency "is not being fair".

Earlier in August, in compliance with the orders of the top court, the case was re-registered by the NIA and an investigation was taken up.
Malkangiri: Maoists killed a tribal man at a remote village in Malkangiri district suspecting him to be a police informer.

Around 20 armed ultras stormed into Kurub village late Friday night and dragged Dambaru Nayak out of his house before killing him, Malkangiri Superintendent of Police Jagmohan Meena said.

The body of Nayak with injury marks was later recovered from a forest area on the outskirt of the village, police said adding that his head was hit with stone and some blunt object. The post-mortem report would show whether Nayak was also fired at.

A hand-written note left behind at the site by the assailants stated that Nayak was eliminated as he worked as an informer for the police in the area, they said.

It was also alleged in the letter that the deceased was passing on information about the activities and movement of Maoists to the police.

Nayak, who earlier happened to be a Maoist sympathiser, had severed ties with the red rebels and given up the path of violence around two years ago, they said.

Villagers said that the Maoists had earlier issued a warning and asked them not to provide any information to the police.
Mumbai: Kundan Shah's "Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro" was made on a shoestring budget and had its origin in the struggles of his friends two FTII graduates who ended up opening a photo studio in Hyderabad.

The 1983 cult classic came into being "by chance" for Shah, who died of cardiac arrest today. "I was very clear that I wanted to make a comedy. At that time, (early 1980s) I was actually writing another film based on the idea from 'One Wonderful Sunday (1947)' by Akira Kurosawa. It is the story of two penniless lovers and how they spend a Sunday together.

"I had not seen that film (One Wonderful Sunday) but I was inspired by the idea and was trying to write a screenplay. 'Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro' happened in between. By very, what you call, chance of circumstance," Shah recalled in an interview with 'NFDCCinemasofIndia' in 2012.

There were not many opportunities when Shah graduated from the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune in 1976.

"There was no television then and we did not want to join the film industry, that we were clear about. I think (filmmaker) Manmohan Desai at that time had 17 assistants and somebody had tried to put me there and I realised I would be the 18th, which I did not want.

"So we formed a commune --a group of cinematographers, editors and others -- because we knew the struggle was going to be grim. We had based it in Hyderabad. Eventually, everyone dispersed and even I returned to Mumbai."

Only two of Shah's friend stayed back -- Ravi Ojha, a direction student and Rajendra Shaw. They ended up opening a photo studio.

"One day Ravi came over to Mumbai. We spent the night together at my home and he recalled the grimness of this dark period of struggle, how it was to run a photo studio. And normally what happens when you talk of all the grimness and struggle you look at it as a third person.

"So, he was laughing and I was also in splits all through the night. The next morning when I got up, although I was working on the script inspired by Kurosawa, I told Ravi that I could see a film in this (his story) and wanted to attempt a film on two photographers," Shah recalled.

"Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro" mixed comedy with themes of corruption and unemployment that lifted the modest National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) production into one of the best dark comedies in Indian cinema.

The film featured actors Naseeruddin Shah, Ravi Baswani, Om Puri, Pankaj Kapur, Satish Kaushik, Satish Shah, Neena Gupta, Bhakti Bharve and Deepak Qazir.

Shah was assisted by Vidhu Vinod Chopra and Sudhir Mishra, who became celebrated directors later.
New Delhi: Veteran filmmaker Kundan Shah passed away on October 7. The classic director suffered a heart attack and breathed his last at Mumbai residence as reported by PTI.

The revered director was hailed as one of the great filmmakers our country ever produced. He made some path breathing films such as the Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, Kya Kehna, Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa to name a few. He was 69.

The film fraternity expressed their grief over the sudden demise of Shah on Twitter. In fact, Prime Minister Narendra Modi too hailed his exceptional work in Indian cinema and extended condolences to the family.

Here are Twitter reactions:

Anguished by the passing away of Shri Kundan Shah. He will be remembered for his wonderful usage of humour and satire to showcase the life & struggles of common citizens. My thoughts are with his family & admirers. May his soul rest in peace: PM @narendramodi  PMO India (@PMOIndia) October 7, 2017

Oh my friend I miss you. I know u will bring smiles around wherever u arebut this world will laugh less now. RIP pic.twitter.com/3htJoJUtZh  Shah Rukh Khan (@iamsrk) October 7, 2017

A brave man Kundan Shah, who added vigour to the alternate cinema stream with movies like Jaane bhi do yaaro has left us. Adieux Kundan  Mahesh Bhatt (@MaheshNBhatt) October 7, 2017

RIP Kundan Shah. We will be always indebted to u for Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron.a cult classic.u gave comedy a new face.indian cinema will miss u.  satish kaushik (@satishkaushik2) October 7, 2017

RIP Kundan Shah.... a cult filmmaker ...a solid story teller.....  Karan Johar (@karanjohar) October 7, 2017

'Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa' Dir by Kundan Shah, what a beautiful film! Kundan Shah ji won Filmfare Critics Award for Best Film for KHKN -Sad pic.twitter.com/YSlFksN2di October 7, 2017

Saddened 2 hear my favourite director Kundan Shah is no more.. i learnt a lot frm him whilst filming kabbhihaankabhina..quiet genius he was  Farah Khan (@TheFarahKhan) October 7, 2017

Rip Kundan Shah.... A master storyteller no more. Condolences to the family and loved ones.  Riteish Deshmukh (@Riteishd) October 7, 2017

Saddened to learn that Kundan Shah is no more. Will never forget his genuineness, his cinematic knowledge & his unique sense of humour. RIP  Farhan Akhtar (@FarOutAkhtar) October 7, 2017

Shocked 2 know abt demise of Kundan Shah ji.Will b remembered 4 his cult classic #JaneBhiDoYaaro & his contribution 2 films n Tv. #OmShanti pic.twitter.com/lDmAXBdDTo October 7, 2017

Simple, honest, genuine. A lovely film maker. #KundanShah RIP  rahul dholakia (@rahuldholakia) October 7, 2017

Kundan Shah even directed several television shows including the very popular Nukkad and Wagle Ki Duniya. Both the shows were game changers and experimental. Shah although is best remembered for Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, the satire which remains one of the masterpieces of Indian cinema.
New Delhi: Kundan Shah's father was not happy with his choice to leave a regular job and follow his heart into filmmaking, reveals the "Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro" director's friend Amit Tyagi.

Shah died early on Saturday after suffering a cardiac arrest. He was 69. "Kundan started working as a clerk after completing his graduation. He realised that cinema is where his heart lay. His father was really unhappy that though he had a regular job, he still wanted to make films," Tyagi, currently the Dean (Films) at the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune, told IANS.



Shah studied direction at FTII, where he found friends in Saeed Mirza and Vidhu Vinod Chopra, who are also well-known in the Indian film industry.



After making his directorial debut with cult film "Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro" in 1983, Shah forayed into television and made shows like the hugely popular "Nukkad", "Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi" and "Wagle Ki Duniya". He returned to films with "Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa".



Shah visited FTII for an event only last week, Tyagi said.



"I didn't ask him much on what he is planning next. But I knew there was a feature film which was being negotiated. He was also talking about a TV series. He didn't get into the details, but said, There are things happening'.



"He wasn't a kind of person who would sit idle. He even said he would love to come to FTII for a week and teach students about comedy," Tyagi added.



Over the years, Shah continued to visit FTII and worked closely with some at the institute.



"His attachment with FTII was very deep... I got my first job through him in Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro'. I have known him for some time now. An interesting aspect of Kundan's work was that he was very local," Tyagi said, indicating towards the filmmaker's knack of telling stories about the common man.
New Delhi: The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has signed two more advance pricing agreements (APAs) with taxpayers as part of its aim to reduce litigation by providing certainty in transfer pricing.

The two APAs were signed during the month of September. They relate to automobile and healthcare consulting sectors.

With the signing of these two agreements, the total number of APAs has reached 177.

These include 164 unilateral APAs and 13 bilateral APAs.

In fiscal 2017-18, 25 APAs (two bilateral and 23 unilateral) have been signed till date, the CBDT said in a statement.

The statement said international transactions covered in these two APAs include provision of IT enabled services, provision of software development services and provision of engineering design services.

It was pointed out that the APA scheme endeavours to provide certainty to taxpayers in the domain of transfer pricing by specifying the methods of pricing and determining the arm`s length price of international transactions in advance for a maximum period of five future years.

Noting that since its inception, the APA scheme has attracted tremendous interest among multi-national enterprises (MNEs), the statement said,"the progress of the APA scheme strengthens the government`s commitment of fostering a non- adversarial tax regime."
San Francisco: The much talked-about WhatsApp for business application is being tested by a private group of testers and the company will introduce it as "WhatsApp Business" -- a standalone app.

Its description available on Play Store read: "As a test partner for `WhatsApp Business`, you have early access to a wide range of new features that we`ve built with you in mind. As you experiment with what this new app has to offer, please share your experiences with us so that we can improve the product."

Facebook intends to earn some of the money it spent while acquiring WhatsApp and the new standalone app would charge businesses in future, The Wall Street Journal said late on Friday.

"We do intend on charging businesses in the future. We don`t have the details of monetisation figured out," WhatsApp`s Chief Operating Officer Matt Idema was quoted as saying.

"WhatsApp Business" is different from the regular WhatsApp.

The logo of the app has been changed from the calling symbol to "B" inside the green conversation bubble.

However, after downloading, the app looks the same as WhatsApp, barring the title bar that says "WhatsApp Business".

The app has interesting features such as auto responses, creating a business profile, chat migration and analytics.

According to reports, businesses are widely using WhatsApp to communicate with their customers, particularly in Asia.
New Delhi: The reality show Bigg Boss season 11 is full of drama and masala. The contestants this year have come from completely different backgrounds. One such inmate, who hogged the limelight as soon as he made his entry to the house is Zubair Khan.

Zubair was introduced as the son-in-law of don Dawood Ibrahim's sister Haseena Parker. He stated in the video link that he wants to get back to his kids and that's the prime reason behind coming to this show.

However, a Mid-Day report claims that Zubair in fact is not related to the don at all. According to the report, the makers of recently released film Haseena Parkar, the man in question is lying.

Co-producer of the biopic Sameer Antulay, who is related to Dawood family has been quoted a saying, Zubair Khan is a fraud. He has no connections with our family. He is misusing the Dawood title for publicity. We will be approaching the cops to register an FIR against him.

Further, he added, Haseena Parkar has two daughters  Qudsia and Humeira. Neither of them knows Zubair. Some media platforms Zubair had been able to reach have claimed that Qudsia was his wife, but Qudsia is married to businessman Zaheer Shaikh, who deals in garments. These rumours need to end as my sisters are facing a lot of problems."
New Delhi: Mainly known as the commercial and financial hub of Eastern India, Kolkata is home to some of the most famous poets, filmmakers, writers and Nobel Prize winners. With a long weekend approaching, here's a list of places you might want to check out before you make your plans!

Santiniketan

Situated at a distance of just 160 km, the place is mainly known for the cultural and social events that take place here around the year. The three-day fair, Poush Mela is the major tourist attraction and also makes for the perfect place to enjoy with family and friends.

Mandarmani

Are you fond of beaches? Moreover, do you like witnessing red crabs? And last but not the least, are you looking for a beach with red crabs? If yes, then head to Mandarmani which is just 180 Kms away from Kolkata and marks for a great weekend getaway.

Digha

Head out to the popular tourist destination Digha if you are drained from working all week and just need a nice seaside resort to chill with family, friends, or even all by yourself!

Sundarbans

If you want to experience the wonders of nature as well as have a thrilling experience, head out to the huge forest - Sundarbans. The place is also the world's largest coastal mangrove forest.

Shankarpur

If you are visiting Digha, push yourselves a bit further and visit Shankarpur as well. It is merely 14 km away from Digha and is one of the most underrated travel destinations in Kolkata. Immerse in the ultimate bliss of the sea-side, away from the hustle of city!
New Delhi: Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband on Saturday issued a new fatwa banning Muslim women from plucking, trimming, shaping their eyebrows and cutting hair.

Darul Iftaa, which issues the Darul Uloom Deobands edicts, termed the act as un-Islamic.

The seminary issued the fatwa after a Muslim man from Saharanpur approached Darul Iftaa to explain Islamic laws about eyebrow trimming and hair-cutting.

Do Islamic laws allow my wife to go for eyebrow plucking and hair-cutting? the man had sought to know from Darul Iftaa.

In response to his query, the Darul Iftaa issued a fatwa saying that both the acts are unIslamic and are banned under the Islamic laws.

If a Muslim woman is involved in such acts then she is violating Islamic laws, the fatwa, which was issued in Urdu, said.

Darul Iftaa clarified that there are ten acts, including eyebrow plucking and hair-cutting which are banned for Muslim women under Islam.

Hair adds to beauty of Muslim women and they should never get them cut, pointed the fatwa. Issuing the fatwa, the head of Darul Iftaa, Maulana L Sadiq Qasmi, said that Muslim women should stay away from beauty parlours as Islam does not permit them to have make-up attracting other male members.

Like Muslim male are not allowed to shave under Islam, eyebrow trimming, hair-cutting and make-up like wearing lipstick, etc is also banned, he said. Trend of Muslim women going to beauty parlours has increased in the country. It is not a good sign and it should be stopped immediately. We should have issued a fatwa in this regard long ago, said he.

However, majority of Muslim women have refused to follow the Deobands new fatwa. They have no right to curtail our freedom. The world is changing. Muslim women are now allowed to drive in Gulf countries and they are issuing fatwas on eyebrow plucking. It is a shame on our Maulanas and scholars, said Sophia Ahmed, a victim of triple talaq.

The fatwa also applies on Muslim men not to shave. Show me how many Muslim men in India are keeping beard these days, except for these fraudulent and fake Maulanas who wants us to cover in burqa. They should better watch Lipstick under my burqa before issuing such ridiculous fatwas. Like me, majority Muslim women would defy the ban, said Safia Begum.

With ANI inputs
Copenhagen: Danish police said on Saturday divers had found the head and the legs of Swedish journalist Kim Wall, who died in mysterious circumstances on an inventor`s homemade submarine.

Peter Madsen has been charged with killing the Swedish journalist who disappeared after she went on a trip with him in his submarine on August 10.

Madsen, a Dane, was arrested after his submarine sank and he was rescued.

Police identified a headless female torso that washed ashore in Copenhagen later in August as Wall`s, but a cause of death has not been determined.

Madsen has said Wall died in an accident when she was hit by a heavy hatch cover on board his submarine.

On Saturday a police spokesman told reporters in Copenhagen that there were no fractures to Wall`s skull.

The body parts, a knife and some of Wall`s clothes in bags weighted down by bits of metal were found in Koge Bay on Friday by Danish navy divers who are assisting the police.

Police spokesman Jens Moller Jensen told reporters on Saturday that the body parts will be investigated further to try and determine a cause of death.

He said that the Madsen and his lawyers had not had time yet to react to the new evidence.

A police prosecutor said this week that officers had found images "which we presume to be real" of women being strangled and decapitated on the hard drive on Peter Madsen`s computer in a laboratory he ran.

Madsen said the computer searched by police was not his but was used by everyone in the laboratory.
Washington: President Donald Trump will dispatch his top diplomatic and military advisers to Pakistan in the coming weeks, turning up the heat on a nuclear-armed ally accused of harbouring terror groups. Weeks after Trump angrily accused Islamabad of providing safe haven to "agents of chaos," Secretary of State Rex Tillerson plans to depart for Pakistan late this month.

He will be followed by Secretary of Defence Jim Mattis, according to US and Pakistani sources.

The one-two punch is designed to drill home Trump's message that Pakistani state support for jihadist groups has to end, according to officials briefed on the visits.

Washington has long been frustrated by Pakistan's willingness to offer cross-border safe havens to Taliban factions and armed Islamist groups fighting US troops and their Afghan allies.

The relationship reached the breaking point in 2011 when president Barack Obama sent commandos into Pakistan in 2011 to kill Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden, who was living in a military garrison town.

With little change since then, Trump came to office indicating that Washington's frustration had reached the point where something had to give.

"We have been paying Pakistan billions and billions of dollars at the same time they are housing the very terrorists that we are fighting," he said an August address.

But in the six weeks since Trump signalled that tougher tone, there have been precious few signs that the calculus in South Asia has changed.

Mattis told Congress this week that he will try "one more time" to "see if we can make this work."

"To this point, we have not seen any impact on military- to military-relations," said one Pentagon official, suggesting any change would not happen after Mattis' visit.

Visiting Washington, Pakistan's foreign minister Khawaja Asif appeared unwavering.

He lashed out at "hollow allegations" about Pakistan harbouring terrorists as "not acceptable."

"That is not the way you talk to 70-year-old friends," Asif said bitterly.

"Instead of accusations and threats we should cooperate with each other for the peace in the region," he said while confirming Tillerson's visit.

While professing anger in public, Pakistani officials in private complain about receiving no concrete requests to target the Haqqani network or other groups.

US officials have been reticent to share some intelligence for fear of tipping off targets with links inside Pakistan's government.

Earlier this month a US drone killed three suspected militants in an attack on a compound in Pakistan's tribal region. Pakistani officials also complain of receiving mixed messages from the Trump administration, which is still struggling to find its feed under a mercurial commander-in-chief.

A September meeting in New York between Vice President Mike Pence and Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was said to be cordial, despite Trump's fire and brimstone rhetoric. "It was a very good meeting with the vice president," said Asif.

After that, Pakistan officials said, they were surprised at a tougher tone outlined in public by Mattis and in private by Trump's National Security Adviser HR McMaster.
New Delhi: New missiles which can travel at a hypersonic speed developed by US, Russia and China could trigger a war, experts have warned.

Unlike the traditional ballistic missiles, a hypersonic missile can travel at Mach 5 or higher and also has the ability to manoeuvre.

Researchers at the RAND Corporation, a think tank, said the new weapons can pose a grave threat to the world if they fall into the hands of 'rogue' nations.

The weapons are designed to evade missile defence systems and nations could take counter-measures at the slightest provocation, sparking a war, they said.

Hypersonic missile proliferation would increase the chances of strategic war. It would give nations an incentive to become trigger-happy, the Independent quoted Richard Speier, lead author of a study on the topic, as saying.

The study said the world has less than 10 years to get a non-proliferation regime in place before such a war becomes inevitable.

The countries developing the weapons should tightly guard the technology, the report said on Saturday, citing the researchers.

They also said exports of dual-use components like scramjet engines, which can push a craft to hypersonic speed, should be controlled.
Moscow: Some 120 Islamic State fighters and 60 foreign mercenaries were killed in a series of Russian air strikes in Syria over the past 24 hours, the defence ministry in Moscow said on Saturday.

"A command post of the terrorists and up to 80 (IS) fighters including nine natives of the Northern Caucasus were destroyed in the area of Mayadeen," the ministry said, adding some 40 IS fighters were killed around the town of Albu Kamal.

As a result of an air strike more than 60 foreign mercenaries from the former Soviet Union, Tunisia, and Egypt were killed south of Deir Ezzor.

The ministry said the "large numbers of foreign mercenaries" were coming into the Syrian border town of Albu Kamal from Iraq.

Mayadeen is one of the Islamic State group`s last bastions in Syria.

The advances against IS in Deir Ezzor have cost a heavy civilian death toll from Russian and coalition air raids.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Russian air strikes on Thursday night killed 14 people, including three children, fleeing across the Euphrates on rafts near Mayadeen.

Russia has not acknowledged any civilian deaths from its strikes since it intervened in Syria in 2015, and dismisses the Observatory`s reporting as biased.

Moscow has been carrying out air strikes in support of its ally Damascus targeting both IS in Deir Ezzor province and rival jihadists led by Al-Qaeda`s former Syria affiliate in Idlib province in the northwest.
Leningrad Oblast: Russian police on Saturday violently broke up an opposition rally in Saint Petersburg and detained more than 60 people protesting against President Vladimir Putin on his birthday, a monitoring group said.

Artyom Platov, spokesman for OVD-Info, a group that monitors politically motivated arrests, said at least 66 had been arrested in Russia`s second city and Putin`s hometown.

"These are the people we have confirmed data on," he told AFP.

Witnesses said police violently broke up the rally in which some 3,000 people took part, throwing protesters into police vans, injuring several demonstrators and forcing some to run for cover.

That stood in stark contrast with a rally in Moscow where police largely showed restraint and allowed protesters to march in the city centre.

The protests, along with rallies in dozens of other cities, were called by the jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny to mark Putin`s 65th birthday, urge him to quit power and allow the opposition leader to run for president.

A total of 235 people in 25 cities were detained over the course of the day, Platov said.

Navalny has declared his intention to run in a presidential election next March to unseat Putin, although officials say he is not eligible to stand because he is serving a suspended sentence for fraud.

On Monday, he was sentenced to 20 days in jail on charges of repeatedly violating a law on organising public meetings.

Polina Kostyleva, the head of Navalny`s campaign headquarters in Saint Petersburg, and several other people were detained even before the rally began.
Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz began his landmark three-day visit to Russia on an embarassing note. The 81-year-old arrived in Russia and while he was disembarking his private plane, his golden escalator customised for him stopped functioning.

The escalator stoppped just seconds after the King stepped on it. He had to walk down the rest of the steps. Once he got down, he received a guard of honour on the Russian soil. He was greeted by Russia's deputy PM Dmitry Rogozin and a military brass band at the airport.

Known for his extravagant trips, the King reportedly travels with a 1,500-strong entourage, two Mercedes Benzes and 459 tonnes of luggage.

King Salman during his trip to Russia also met President Vladimir Putin and signed a slew of arms and energy deals.
Washington: Tropical Storm Nate gained strength Friday as it barreled toward popular Mexican beach resorts and ultimately the US Gulf coast after dumping heavy rains on Central America that left at least 26 people dead.

Nate, which currently has 50 mile (85 kilometer) per hour winds, is forecast to reach hurricane strength by the time it makes landfall in the United States on Saturday, on the north coast of the Gulf of Mexico.

New Orleans, where levees were breached during Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and other cities on the US Gulf coast were under hurricane watch.

The US National Hurricane Center warned of possible "hurricane conditions" by Friday night on Mexico`s Yucatan Peninsula, home to Cancun and other Caribbean resorts.

By late Saturday, those fearsome winds could drive a "life-threatening storm surge" onto southern US states.

"Nate is expected to become a hurricane by the time it reaches the northern Gulf of Mexico," the Center said.

As of Friday afternoon, the storm was located about 125 kilometers east of Cozumel, Mexico, a picturesque resort island.

It was still wreaking havoc in Central America, where Honduran officials ordered several coastal zones to evacuate as heavy rains continued causing floods.

Authorities in Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador declared a maximum or red alert.On Thursday, intense rains from the storm forced thousands from their homes, uprooted trees, knocked out bridges and turned roads into rivers in Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Honduras.

"We were drowning. Thank God (emergency workers) helped us. The river swelled so much it swept away our house, our pigs, our chickens -- it swept away everything," said Bonavide Velazquez, 60, who was evacuated from her home in southern Nicaragua.

Nicaragua bore 12 of the deaths, according to Vice President Rosario Murillo.

In Costa Rica, where a national emergency was declared, nine people died, including a three-year-old girl, after they were hit by falling trees and mudslides. An alert was issued for people to be wary of crocodiles that might be roaming after rivers and estuaries flooded.

Three other people were killed in Honduras, and two in El Salvador.

More than 30 people are listed as missing across the region.

Nicaragua`s Murillo said 800 people had been evacuated, nearly 600 homes were flooded and 14 communities were isolated because of rains that had been falling for days.

More than 5,000 people were staying in shelters in Costa Rica after having to abandon their homes because of flooding and the risk of mudslides.

In the Gulf of Mexico, some offshore oil and gas rigs were evacuated ahead of the storm`s advance, the US government Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said in a statement.The United States is recovering from two major hurricanes: Harvey, which tore through Texas in August, and Irma in September.

Another powerful storm, Hurricane Maria, ripped through the Caribbean in late September, devastating several islands, including Dominica and Puerto Rico.

Central America, the Caribbean, Mexico and the southern United States suffer an Atlantic hurricane season every year that runs from June to November.

But 2017 is already one of the worst years on record.

The unstable weather brings heightened risk of flooding and mudslides in many poor Central American nations.

This year, some areas in Central America have gotten up to 50 percent more rain than average for September and October.

Costa Rica declared three days of mourning for those killed by Tropical Storm Nate, and President Luis Guillermo Solis warned that, although the storm had passed, it was too early to say the danger had gone.

"This situation is deceptive because it will rain this weekend and the ground is saturated, so landslides are possible," he said.
Washington: President Donald Trump will announce new U.S. responses to Iran`s missile tests, support for "terrorism" and cyber operations as part of his new Iran strategy, the White House said on Friday.

"The president isn`t looking at one piece of this. He`s looking at all of the bad behaviour of Iran," Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, told reporters.

"Not just the nuclear deal as bad behaviour, but the ballistic missile testing, destabilising of the region, Number One state sponsor of terrorism, cyber attacks, illicit nuclear programme," Sanders continued.

Trump "wants to look for a broad strategy that addresses all of those problems, not just one-offing those," she said. "That`s what his team is focussed on and that`s what he`ll be rolling out to address that as a whole in the coming days."

A senior administration official told Reuters on Thursday that Trump was expected to announce he will decertify the landmark international deal curbing Iran`s nuclear programme, in a step that could cause the accord to unravel.

Trump on Friday declined to explain what he meant when he described a gathering of military leaders the evening before as "the calm before the storm," but the White House said his remarks were not meant to be mischievous.

The administration was considering Oct. 12 for Trump to give a speech on Iran, but no final decision had been made, an official said previously.

It was not clear to what illicit nuclear programme Sanders was referring as the International Atomic Energy Agency says Iran is complying with the 2015 nuclear deal reached with the United States, Russia, China, Britain, France, Germany and the European Union.

The Trump administration also has acknowledged that Iran has not breached the accord`s Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA, which is designed to prevent Iran developing a nuclear weapon. The administration, however, contends that Tehran has violated the "spirit" of the deal.

The issue came up during a telephone call on Friday between Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron. The pair discussed "ways to continue working together to deny Iran all paths to a nuclear weapon," according to a White House statement.

Macron has been a fierce defender of the JCPOA, denounced by Trump as "the worst deal ever negotiated." But the French leader also has suggested that restraints on Iran`s nuclear programme that expire in 2025 could be bolstered, a senior French official said last month.

A senior U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said on Friday that steps Trump is reviewing as part of a broader strategy also include imposing targeted sanctions in response to Iran`s ballistic missile tests, cyber espionage and backing of Lebanese Hezbollah and other groups on the U.S. list of foreign terrorist organizations.

The administration earlier this year considered, but then put on hold, adding the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Iran`s most powerful internal and external security force, to the U.S. list of foreign terrorist organizations.

The Quds Force, the IRGC`s foreign espionage and paramilitary wing, and individuals and entities associated with the IRGC are on the list, but the organisation as a whole is not.

Last month, current and former U.S. officials told Reuters the broader strategy Trump is weighing is expected to allow more aggressive U.S. actions to counter what the administration views as Iran`s efforts to boost its military muscle and expand its regional influence through proxy forces.

Under a 2015 U.S. law, Trump has until Oct. 15 to certify to Congress that Iran is complying with the JCPOA. If he decides to decertify, lawmakers would have 60 days in which to consider reimposing U.S. sanctions on Iran lifted under the deal, an action that many experts warn could unhinge the accord.

Knowledgeable sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, have said the administration is looking for ways to fix what it views as serious flaws without necessarily killing the deal.

Critics say the flaws include the so-called sunset clauses, under which some of the restrictions on Irans nuclear programme expire over time.

Trump`s national security adviser, General H.R. McMaster, met with Republican and Democratic lawmakers on Wednesday in an effort to win their support for the strategy.
Washington: The U.S. State Department has approved the possible sale of a THAAD anti-missile defence system to Saudi Arabia at an estimated cost of $15 billion, the Pentagon said on Friday, citing Iran among regional threats.

The approval opens the way for Saudi Arabia to purchase 44 Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) launchers and 360 missiles, as well as fire control stations and radars.

"This sale furthers U.S. national security and foreign policy interests, and supports the long-term security of Saudi Arabia and the Gulf region in the face of Iranian and other regional threats," the Pentagon`s Defense Security Cooperation agency said in a statement.

Saudi Arabia and the United States are highly critical of what they consider Irans aggressive behaviour in the Middle East.

Iran also has one of the biggest ballistic missile programs in the Middle East, viewing it as an essential precautionary defence against the United States and other adversaries, primarily Gulf Arab states and Israel.

THAAD missile systems are deployed to defend against ballistic missile attacks.

Saudi-owned al Arabiya television reported on Thursday that the kingdom had agreed to buy Russian S-400 surface-to-air missile systems, an announcement that came as Saudi King Salman made during his visit to Russia, the first by a Saudi monarch.

U.S. military sales to Saudi Arabia have come under increased scrutiny over the Saudi-led coalitions war in Yemen.

Riyadh and its allies have been bombing the Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen since the Houthis seized much of the countrys north in 2015. Riyadh says the coalition is fighting terrorists and supporting Yemens legitimate government but the office of the U.N. human rights chief has said Saudi-led air strikes cause the majority of civilian casualties.

Lockheed Martin Co is the prime contractor for the THAAD system, with Raytheon Co playing an important role in the system`s deployment.

The United States deployed THAAD to South Korea this year to guard against North Korea`s shorter-range missiles. That has drawn fierce criticism from China, which says the system`s powerful radar can probe deep into its territory.
Washington: The United States lifted long-standing sanctions against Sudan on Friday, saying it had made progress fighting terrorism and easing humanitarian distress, and also secured Khartoum`s commitment not to pursue arms deals with North Korea.

In a move that completes a process begun by former President Barack Obama and which was opposed by human rights groups, President Donald Trump removed a U.S. trade embargo and other penalties that had effectively cut Sudan off from much of the global financial system.

The U.S. decision marked a major turnaround for the government of President Omar Hassan al-Bashir, who once played host to Osama bin Laden and is wanted by the International Criminal Court on charges of orchestrating genocide in Darfur.

However, Sudan will stay on the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism - alongside Iran and Syria - which carries a ban on weapons sales and restrictions on U.S. aid, U.S. officials said.

Sudanese officials also remain subject to United Nations sanctions for human rights abuses during the Darfur conflict, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The lifting of sanctions reflects a U.S. assessment that Sudan has made progress in meeting Washingtons demands, including cooperation on counter-terrorism, working to resolve internal conflicts and allowing more humanitarian aid into Darfur and other rebellious border areas, the officials said.

State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said the sanctions relief was in recognition of Sudan`s "sustained positive actions" but that more improvement was needed.

The Trump administration also secured a commitment from Sudan that it would "not pursue arms deals" with North Korea, and Washington will apply "zero tolerance" in ensuring Khartoum`s compliance, one of the officials said.

But they said Khartoum`s assurances on North Korea were not a condition for lifting sanctions, some of which had been in place for 20 years and have hobbled the Sudanese economy.

Sudan has long been suspected of military ties with North Korea, which is locked in a tense standoff with Washington over its missiles and nuclear weapons programs. But the official said Khartoum was not believed to have diplomatic relations with Pyongyang and that was not expected to change.

Sudan also has recently distanced itself diplomatically from Iran, another U.S. arch-foe.

POTENTIAL BOOST FOR BUSINESS

U.S. officials have said that sanctions relief, which will unfreeze Sudanese government assets, could benefit a range of businesses in Sudan, including its key energy sector.

The economy has been reeling since South Sudan, which holds three-quarters of former Sudan`s oil wells, seceded in 2011.

Sudan looks forward to building normal relations with the United States," the foreign ministry said in a statement. "However, this requires lifting Sudan from the list of state sponsors of terrorism because it does not apply (to Sudan)."

Central bank governor Hazem Abdel Kader said removing sanctions would allow Sudan`s banking system to "reintegrate into the global economy," according to state news agency SUNA.

Shortly before leaving office, Obama temporarily eased penalties against the east African nation. In July, the Trump postponed for three months a decision on whether to remove the sanctions completely, setting up an Oct. 12 deadline.

Rights groups see the sanctions removal as premature.

It sends the wrong message to lift these sanctions permanently when Sudan has made so little progress on human rights," said Andrea Prasow, deputy director of the Washington office of Human Rights Watch.

Democratic U.S. Representative Jim McGovern said the sanctions decision legitimizes the murderous actions of the Sudanese government and warned that any back-sliding will likely result in Congress reinstating sanctions.

The United States first imposed sanctions on Sudan in 1997, including a trade embargo and blocking government assets, for human rights violations and terrorism concerns. Washington layered on more sanctions in 2006 for what it said was complicity in the violence in Sudan`s Darfur region.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 6, ARMENPRESS. President Serzh Sargsyan held a meeting October 6 with Russian minister of industry and trade Denis Manturov, who arrived in Armenia to participate in the 6th Armenian-Russian inter-regional forum and the 2nd Eurasian Partnership forum, the presidents office said.

During the meeting the president attached importance to the forums aimed at expanding and developing the Armenian-Russian cooperation, which, according to the president, have become a platform for direct interaction and comprehensive dialogue between the local authorities, business and expert communities of the two countries regions.

Both sides attached importance to regularly holding similar events, which in their words enable to discuss agenda issues, discover the further potential for development of cooperation and make steps to fully use them.

The President expressed hope that the Russian ministers visit will boost partnership between Russian and Armenian industries, implementation of joint initiatives.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 6, ARMENPRESS. The presentation of the book History of Turkish literature took place on October 6 at the Faculty of Oriental Studies of Yerevan State University.

ARMENPRESS reports the book is authored by the dean of the faculty Ruben Melkonyan.

Ruben Melkonyan stressed the importance of the Armenian-language book in the current stage of Armenias educational-scientific development.

Its known that during the Soviet period different books were published, but they not always meet the present demands and are full of communist stereotypes and propaganda Ruben Melkonyan said, adding the higher educational institutions of independent Republic of Armenia need to have textbooks that will be objective and in line with Armenian interests. Melkonyan also informed that the book covers the period from the beginning of the 20th century until the present days.

The dean of YSUs Faculty of Oriental Studies expressed special gratitude to one of the best friends of the faculty Jerair Nishanian Foundation that sponsored the publication of the book.

At the end of the presentation the students of the department of Turkish studies were distributed with copies of the book free of charge.
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 7, ARMENPRESS. Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan had a telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, congratulating and sending him good wishes on his birthday jubilee. The President of Armenia has also sent a congratulatory message to the President of the Russian Federation, the Presidents Office told ARMENPRESS.

Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich,

Please accept my heartfelt congratulations on your jubilee!



I sincerely wish you good health and every success in achieving the proposed objectives for the sake of Russias development, its citizens welfare and the strengthening of your countrys role in global politics. I wish to thank you for your personal contribution to the strengthening of strategic and allied relations between Armenia and Russia based on centuries-old traditions of friendship, brotherhood and mutual assistance of our peoples.

Through consistent efforts, we have managed to complement the Armenian-Russian cooperation agenda with new joint initiatives and projects, which undoubtedly meet the fundamental interests of our peoples and promote stability and security in the South Caucasus.

I am always sincerely happy to meet with you in an atmosphere of openness, mutual trust and partnership, which is due to the friendly relations established between us. I am confident that the active political dialogue will continue to bring about constructive cooperation between our countries both in the bilateral format and on the margins of the EAEU, CSTO, CIS and other international organizations.



I cordially wish you, Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich, robust health, happiness, well-being and all the best, the President of the Republic of Armenia said in his congratulatory message.
Cetinoglu

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 7, ARMENPRESS. Turkish scholar and activist Sait, who visited Artsakh in September, says Bakus stir and Azerbaijani chief prosecutors decision on issuing an international arrest warrant for him and his friends is totally ungrounded.

In an exclusive comment for ARMENPRESS, Cetinoglu expressed concern over Azerbaijans actions  which are aimed at making other countries and international structures the tool of its manipulation.

In addition of being a historian and genocide researcher, I am first of all a human rights defender and activist. I held a senior position in Turkeys Human Rights Association. Back when Amnesty International didnt function in Turkey, I was one of the people having an international status of the organization. And when Amnesty International decided to come to Turkey, I was one of their first coordinators. At the same time I was the speaker of the Freedom of Thought Initiative in Ankara.

From this perspective my visit to Artsakh is seen more than natural. I accepted this proposal from my friend, Aragats Akhoyan, without hesitation.

I find the terms disputed and subject to discussion territories to be strictly problematic. According to whom or what are they disputed? The answer to these questions is conjunctive and realpolitik. In other words, this is a political situation which doesnt reflect reality.

In the present days, when humanity has reached such valuable achievements, this is an absolutely unacceptable and retrograde situation. As a human rights defender and activist I dont see anything condemnable in my visit and research in the Caucasus Artsakh/Karabakh  which is called disputed and problematic.

Next to the news about continuous clashes in the worlds agenda, I find my visit to be more than natural to this region, where gross violations of human rights happened in April of 2016, in order to understand what is happening in that region. Moreover, I have to confess that I became involved in this issue very late.

Azerbaijans issuance of international arrest warrants against us, by violating international rights norms, is literally an act of violence. The second unacceptable demand is demanding us from our own country in order to punish us, which doesnt have any legal basis and is absolutely unacceptable. Capriciousness. And thats why this demand was ignored by our country.

Another manifestation of violence by Azerbaijan is obstruction of my right to free movement by declaring me wanted. This situation is nothing but a violation of fundamental human rights, an attempt to make states and international organizations a tool of Azerbaijans vagary. They are attempting to limit our right to visit not only Artsakh, but also other countries.

As we know, the right to free movement is one of the fundamental human rights. Proceeding from this principle, the International Criminal Court rules the limitation of the right to movement to be a crime against humanity.

I will release the results of my research in Artsakh separately, Cetinoglu said.

Araks Kasyan
It shall be the duty of the Commission to make continuing studies of the structure, organization, jurisdiction, procedures and personnel of the Judicial Department and of the General Court of Justice and to make recommendations to the General Assembly for such changes therein as will facilitate the administration of justice.

SECTION 4. The Administrative Office of the Courts, the Courts Commission, and the Legislative Services Commission shall study and determine quantifiable workload assessments, by county, for prosecutorial, district, and superior courts to assist the General Assembly in dividing the State into a convenient number of districts and divisions for the administration of the judicial branch. The Courts Commission shall make a report to the 2019 Regular Session of the General Assembly on or before December 15, 2018, with any recommendations of the study.

Last spring, Rep. Justin Burr, R-Stanly, filed a bill that would establish new judicial and prosecutorial districts throughout the state and specify the number of judges and prosecutors for each While House Bill 717 didn't come to a vote during the regular session, Burr has indicated he would try to have it considered during this week's session. Commenting on the bill recently in Carolina Journal , Becki Gray offered,But she also warned that,She is surely right on both points.Regarding the need for comprehensive judicial and prosecutorial redistricting, Burr may well be correct. For more than 50 years , the legislature has been making piecemeal, ad-hoc adjustments to existing judicial and prosecutorial districts in an attempt to keep up with legal, demographic, and political changes. But, despite those efforts, imbalances still exist in terms of resource allocation and access to justice. There are several reasons why that, instead of attempting to redraw judicial and prosecutorial districts itself the way it does with legislative districts, the General Assembly would be well-advised to assign the task to a nonpartisan commission.Unlike legislative redistricting, where the standards to be applied are at least clear in principle - i.e., "one person one vote," compliance with federal voting rights laws, etc. - the standards for judicial and prosecutorial redistricting have never been formally articulated. Before such redistricting begins, therefore, there needs to be some sort of formal consideration of the principles that are to guide the effort and of the standards that are to be met.In addition, judicial and prosecutorial redistricting is a technically challenging problem. Unlike legislative redistricting, it's not simply a matter of ensuring each district has about the same number of people (and a racial breakdown that will meet federal standards). Instead, it requires detailed projections of future caseloads across districts, in terms of numbers and types of cases, and a detailed analysis of how best to allocate judicial and prosecutorial resources to ensure that North Carolinians have equal access to an efficient court system.Moreover, accusations of racial and political gerrymandering have already been made regarding H.B. 717. It's all too easy to imagine these leading to the same kind of controversy and litigation that has followed each of the General Assembly's recent attempts at redrawing legislative districts, with all of the attendant costs, disruption, and bad publicity. As the John Locke Foundation has frequently pointed out , all of that could be avoided if the task of redistricting was assigned to a nonpartisan commission, but neither Democrats nor Republicans have been willing to give up the opportunity to engage in political gerrymandering when in power. Judicial and prosecutorial districts, however, are much less important politically, which ought to make a nonpartisan commission more palatable.Finally, there already exists a nonpartisan commission that would be ideally situated to undertake the task of judicial and prosecutorial redistricting - the N.C. Courts Commission . When it created the commission in 1979, the General Assembly declared that:In fulfilling that duty, in recent years the commission has been preparing to undertake the task of redistricting. In 2015, James Drennan from the UNC School of Government made a presentation to the commission about "the reconfiguration of judicial and prosecutorial districts," and, last year , Brad Fowler, who is a planning and organizational development officer with the Administrative Office of the Courts, presented "information on criteria for consideration by the Commission in any future effort to study the reorganization of judicial and prosecutorial districts." All of which suggests that the Courts Commission is ready and willing to undertake the task.Curiously, in June the following provision was added to H.B. 717:While this provision is hard to reconcile with the preceding sections that provide detailed definitions of the new districts and divisions, it nevertheless sounds like the way to go.Also, the process of redistricting has gone through the House committee process with much less fanfare and on a much faster timetable than it should have. These changes could affect every North Carolinian's access to justice for decades and deserve a more deliberative process.Why not expand Section 4 of the bill to give the Courts Commission clear instructions about how to proceed and scrap the rest of the legislation?
The Democrat leadership has made constant, profound and incredible pronouncements that one's supportive vote for Republicans is tantamount to surrendering Democracy forever. Understanding their sincere thinking in their extreme position: How will you still vote on this election day?

Democrat; because the continuance of this Democracy from the existential threat of extreme Republicans is paramount.

Republican; the process of having a choice is the democratic method within what so called "Democracy" does exists.


From left to right: Aurora Mayor Clif Williams, Keith Kidwell, State Senator Bill Cook

"I'm running to help the taxpayers of Beaufort and Craven Counties. As someone who has been on the front lines to see the devastation that extensive taxation has on families and small businesses, I'm running to reduce taxes. Working families deserve to keep more of their hard-earned money. My first piece of legislation will be to reduce taxes on families and small business."

Contact: Keith Kidwell

Keith Kidwell 252-945- 0985

Washington, NC Today long-time businessman and conservative Republican party leader Keith Kidwell announced his candidacy for NC House 79th District. The announcement was made at the Beaufort County Board of Elections where Kidwell presented his Statement of Organization.Kidwell is a twenty-five-year Beaufort County resident and small business owner. He has spent his career as an Enrolled Agent and tax accountant doing battle with and winning fights against government overreach from the likes of the Internal Revenue Service and the North Carolina Department of Revenue.The 79th District is a newly created district consisting of all of Beaufort County and the Northern half of Craven County.Present at the announcement were State Senator Bill Cook (R Beaufort) who is serving as Chairman of the Campaign Steering Committee, Aurora Mayor Clif Williams who is serving as the Vice-Chairman, and several other members of the committee along with Kidwell's wife and family.Kidwell, a longtime conservative Republican Party activist, currently serves in several positions within the Republican Party at the County, Congressional District and State levels. Kidwell was a Delegate from North Carolina to the 2016 Republican National Convention which nominated Donald Trump for President.Active in the community, Kidwell served five years as the Chairman of the Beaufort County Community College Business and Accounting Advisory Board. He has also served on other non-profit boards and church councils, including 10 years as the chairman of the local Coastal Pregnancy Center. He is a member of the Beaufort County Law Enforcement Association Gun Range.Keith and his wife, Viki, live in Chocowinity, have one son, Jason, who is in working alongside him in the family business at H & R Block. They also raised a niece, Kimberly. Keith and Viki have four grandchildren, April, Keith II, Julian and Liberty, with whom they spend much of their spare time.Kidwell's conservative beliefs on taxes comes partly from an experience he had as a very young child. He went to the store to buy 100 pieces of bubble gum with the first dollar he earned and was told he could not buy all 100 because of taxes. That experience at such a young age contributed to him being a taxpayer advocate.Added Kidwell,
We are grateful to Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner for signing House Bill 4843 into law, making Illinois the ninth state in the U.S. to restrict the sale of ivory and rhino horn products. The poaching of elephants, rhinos, and other imperiled species is one of the major wildlife conservation crises of our lifetime, and every state that takes a stand strengthens the prospects for saving threatened and endangered species. Photo by Cathy Smith

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On animal welfare we will take the tough action necessary to deal with those whose callousness or greed inflicts pain and suffering on innocent creatures. At the moment the maximum sentence for animal cruelty is just six months. I believe that when we face deliberate, calculating and sadistic behavior, we need to deploy the full force of the law to show we will not tolerate evil. Which is why we will bring forward legislation to increase punishments for the most horrific acts of animal cruelty to five-year sentences. Animals are sentient beings, they are in our care, they deserve our protection.

Those are not the words of the leaders of Britains Labour Party or Liberal Party. They were spoken last week by a leading Tory politician, Michael Gove, secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs, at the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester, in the United Kingdom.

It was a fabulous speech, and its a reminder that animal protection is not the province of any political party. It is a universal value, and politicians of every stripe should embrace the tenets of animal protection. (Yesterday, I wrote about how Republicans and Democrats are collaborating on U.S. legislation to create a federal anti-cruelty statute, which is long overdue.)

Its clear that these were not just platitudes from the British environment minister. Yesterday, he announced that the U.K. would seek to ban the ivory trade in that country, with very minimal exceptions such as for certified antique musical instruments and museum acquisitions. The E.U. is also considering a similar policy, and it is the biggest exporter of ivory to China and Hong Kong, while the U.K. is the worlds largest exporter of legal ivory. A consultation on the U.K. plan would begin immediately, and draft legislation covering a ban on sales and exports is likely in the new year.

Meanwhile here, in the United States, a bill is moving forward in the Massachusetts legislature that would prohibit the sale of ivory and rhino horn. If it passes, Massachusetts would join seven other states  California, Hawaii, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Washington, and Nevada  that have passed similar anti-wildlife trafficking laws. We are grateful for the efforts of state Rep. Lori Ehrlich and state Sen. Jason Lewis who introduced this legislation.

The HSUS this week released an undercover investigation that found elephant ivory jewelry and trinkets of dubious origins for sale across the Commonwealth. The investigation, which was conducted over 12 days, found nearly 700 ivory items for sale by 64 vendors in Massachusetts stores, an auction, outdoor markets and an antique festival. Multiple ivory sellers deliberately mislabeled ivory items as bone or intentionally omitted the word ivory from items descriptions, with some sellers admitting that ivory puts people off and they dont want to get into trouble. One seller even offered our investigator tips for smuggling ivory out of the country, including wearing it or claiming it is bone. Other sellers offered to write misleading or false information onto sales receipts or whatever information the investigator wanted.

Our investigator also found that none of the ivory sellers could provide documentation verifying the age or origin of the ivory. Without documentation it is impossible to know whether items were imported in violation of federal law. Several ivory sellers stated that they had much more ivory than what was visible in their stores but didnt display it because they are nervous about government oversight or negative public opinion.

Massachusetts has been implicated in the transnational trafficking in elephant ivory and rhino horns. In late July, a Boston federal court arraigned the head of a wildlife smuggling ring in an alleged conspiracy to illegally export $700,000 worth of items made from rhinoceros horn, elephant ivory, and coral, obtained in six U.S. states, from Concord, Massachusetts, to Hong Kong. A Boston Globe investigative report in 2015 found brisk trade in illicit ivory within the state.

In 2016, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service instituted a near-total ban on importing ivory and in the interstate trade in African elephant ivory. Last year, Congress also enacted the Eliminate, Neutralize and Disrupt Wildlife Trafficking Act to crack down on international wildlife trafficking. However, federal regulations do not address intrastate trade in African elephant ivory. States must also do their part to ensure that their laws sufficiently protect at-risk animals.

But this is not a campaign focused just on nations in the west. China is shutting down its ivory carving shops throughout the country, with half of them shuttered earlier this year. Its time for Japan, which may now be the largest ivory market in the world, to join the growing worldwide consensus on this subject.

No one needs an ivory trinket, especially when the cost is so high, for the animals and for our planet. Poachers kill as many as 100 elephants a day for their tusks. In September 2016, the Great Elephant Census revealed a disturbing 30 percent decline in the number of savanna elephants since 2007. Forest elephants in Central Africa have experienced a 65 percent reduction in their populations.

Protecting elephants, stopping cruelty, and advocating for other animal protection policies is not Democrat or Republican, Labour or Tory, Green or Social Democrat. It is just decency. Every civilized nation, and every good person, should stand for these principles. But stand we must, with tangible actions that match the words.
Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz's grand entrance stalled briefly when his gold escalator stopped during his arrival at Moscow's Vnukovo Airport on Wednesday.

A few seconds of waiting on the gaudy mobilized steps leaves the king puzzled until he realizes he must walk himself down. Some handlers stayed close behind to make sure he made it down safely. It was a strange start to the first official visit of a Saudi monarch in Russia.

Saudi officials said the two countries agreed to arms deals and discussed rebuilding their troubled geopolitical relationship, according to the Independent.
Gear Of The Weak: Semen Enhancers, Alcoholic Soda And More

Gear Of The 'Weak:' How To Become The Most Hated Man In Your Office

The AskMen editorial team thoroughly researches & reviews the best gear, services and staples for life. AskMen may get paid if you click a link in this article and buy a product or service.

You can buy virtually anything on the internet. Some of those things, maybe even many of those things, are good. But many, many more of the things for sale online are bad. Gear Of The Weak is here to highlight the most absurd, awful and comical gear the internet has to offer. Whenever you feel bad about having a bad idea, remember: it could be worse.

SubPac M2 Wearable Physical Sound System: Become The Most Hated Man On Earth

SubPac via Amazon

The SubPac M2 is a bulky, unsubtle wearable subwoofer designed to enhance the "experience" of listening to music, as though that's what anyone needs. It just vibrates which, if it doesn't give you a heart arrhythmia, will make you an absolute pariah wherever you go. Here, this is an excerpt from a real review:

I thought I was just going to use it around the house and I now find myself using it everywhere I can. I feel like I am re-discovering all my old music. I just recently took it to work and found myself getting into the zone and getting more work done too. After lunch, while everyone is slipping into a food coma I'm wide awake listening to my favorite drum and bass tracks.

Everything about that is abhorrent, and I hope that by now this man's coworkers have shot him from a cannon into outer space. He can rediscover all the drum and bass music he wants out there. This thing should be a war crime.

Learn More at Amazon

Not Your Father's Mountain Ale: Play Call of Duty, Only Drunker

Small Town Brewery

I'll admit that when I first came across Not Your Father's Root Beer, a root beer flavored drink with the approximate ABV of actual beer, I was struck by the novelty. Haha, look at that, booze that tastes like soda! That lasted for maybe one drink until I realized that a) this is way too sugary to drink in any real volume, and b) it's way more expensive than making a mixed drink at home, or even ordering a beer at a bar, in some cases. Now, with alcoholic Mountain Dew, Small Town Brewery can tap into the critically underserved "alcoholic gamer" demographic.

Learn More at Small Town Brewery

PRIVE REVAUX Face Case Eyewear Safe: A $100 Case For $30 Sunglasses

Prive Revaux via Amazon

If you're unfamiliar with the obnoxiously named Prive Revaux, it's an eyewear company that collaborates with the likes of Jamie Foxx, Ashley Benson and Jeremy Piven. They make quality, on-trend sunglasses for the affordable price of $29.99, which is itself admirable. What's less admirable is charging 3x that price for a case that does nothing more than hold your sunglasses. Then again, if you're the kind of person to buy eyewear because Jeremy Piven endorses it, you're absolutely the kind of person who thinks a display case is necessary.

Learn More at Amazon

Hoppy Mint Lip Balm: Not Just For Alcoholics

Damn Handsome Grooming Co.

The craft beer "revolution" has already reached peak levels of annoying, so the last thing anyone needs is for their grating hobby to permeate other, completely unrelated parts of their life. Like hygiene, for example. This lip balm is infused with Cascade Hops, which should be a warning label, not a selling point. Ever been near a brewery and smelled the hops? They smell like burnt toast and ass. No one wants that smell on their mouth.

Learn More at Damn Handsome Grooming Co.

BIG JIZ Semen Volumizer: For Guys That Don't Understand Why People Like Sex

Maximum Herbs LLC

Do you feel like less than a man because when you climax, you're not shooting giant, glistening, voluminous ropes of splooge like the pornstars do? Well, this product won't help with that, because nothing can other than maybe honking off a little less often. What it will do is reveal your strange insecurity to anyone who discovers it in your medicine cabinet. It will also reveal a profound misunderstanding of why women enjoy sex, though I have a feeling that will make itself apparent sooner or later anyway.

Learn More at Amazon.com

The Fake News Slide: For When You're All Out Of Jokes

Greats

The president is actively campaigning to wage war on the free press in ways that are unheard of outside of despotic dictatorships. His favorite attack is to call real, actual news outlets "fake news," a term that he didn't have the creativity to invent, or the mental capacity to use correctly: it was originally used to describe actual false, fake news produced by trolls (and maybe Russia) for scared old people to gobble up on Facebook. Now the president uses it to describe thorough, exhaustively sourced news articles that have the gall to report, verbatim, whatever heinous thing he said the day before. And a nonzero portion of the electorate now believes him, and instead gets their news from conspiracy mills like InfoWars, which only further play into their fear and delusion.

But by all means, buy some sandals that let everyone know how cool and ironic you are. #staywoke.

Learn More at Greats

The Right Cup: Reinforce Every American Stereotype

The Right Cup via Amazon

As the wealthiest nation on Earth with near-universal safe, good-tasting tap water, it only makes sense that many of us can't bear the thought of consuming anything that doesn't taste like either butter or candy. The Right Cup is a product aimed squarely at those people, helping them drink more plain water with a flange that smells like fruit  the idea being that you'll "trick" your brain into thinking you're drinking juice or soda. If you truly find the taste of water so off-putting that you can't drink it without tricking your toddler brain into believing it's sugary crap, you deserve your inevitable diabetes.

Learn More at Amazon

Avoid lemons like these, and get access to the best gear instead with Acquire by AskMen newsletter  delivered right to your inbox, daily. Sign up today.

AskMen may get paid if you click a link in this article and buy a product or service. To find out more, please read our complete terms of use.
How To Choose The Best Condom

How To Choose The Best Condoms For You

The AskMen editorial team thoroughly researches & reviews the best gear, services and staples for life. AskMen may get paid if you click a link in this article and buy a product or service.

Condoms are generally ruled as a necessary evil. While they protect us from the dangers of STIs - or a male yeast infection - and help with pregnancy prevention, they also mute a large part of the sensations that make intercourse so great. Hence, the age-old dilemma.

For many, sex with condoms has been accurately likened to showering with a raincoat on. Sure, sensations arent totally blocked, but theyre certainly reduced. As a result, many chose to forego preventative measures by foolishly opting to go in naked, and as most know, the risks include winding up with a surprise baby or an incurable disease.

Although we can understand (weve all been there), the facts point to using protection as the best policy when sleeping around. (According to Planned Parenthood, condoms make sex 10,000 times HIV-safer than not using them.)

Its also important to note that just because the person youre seeing isnt at risk of getting pregnant, for whatever reason, it doesnt reduce the need for a condom. Prevention is a shared responsibility and should be treated as such. If youre in a trusted or long-term couple, you'll want to work out a clear prevention strategy, but the basic rule is you should offer to pay for half (or at least contribute) to her method of choice  such as the pill.

Theres always a chance that shell prefer to foot the whole bill or maybe you feel inclined to do so yourself, but either way, talking it over will eliminate misunderstandings or failed expectations. After all, sex and relationships are all about trust and communication.

This all said, condoms make up a huge industry and the options for getting your mojo on are better than ever, with companies continually working to come up with innovative ways to increase pleasure and minimize risk. Here, weve compiled what we think is important to consider when choosing a condom, and rounded up some of the best models out there. Enjoy!

Contents

Types of Condoms

Before you make a decision and purchase a pack of condoms, youll need to think of what purpose youd like them to fulfill. Here are some of the most common uses.

Condoms For Everyday Use

HEX Condoms

Ideal for a more sensitive and more intimate sexual sensation, the HEX condom by Lelo boasts a 250 interconnected hexagon structure to allow for body warm to be transmitted between partners for a closer, more comfortable feel. These ultra-thin yet uber-strong condoms are perfectly smooth on the outside and textured on the inside.

$34.90 for pack of 36 at Lelo.com

Durex Invisible Ultra-Thin Ultra-Sensitive Lubricated Latex Condoms

Durex is one of the largest condom manufacturers on this planet and has been enjoyed by millions of sex-havers everyday for over 80 years. On average, the Ultra Thin Feel Condoms are 20% thinner than the standard Durex rubber, providing the most authentic sensation from a brand-name condom.

$10.10 for pack of 16 at Amazon.com

Okamoto Crown Skinless Skin

If anybody knows a thing or two about condoms, it has to be those who have sex professionally. According to online testimonies, these super thin yet strong condoms from Japan are the choice prophylactic among adult actors thanks to its world-renowned bareback feel.

$7.99 for pack of 36 at Amazon.com

Kimono MicroThin

If reliability is your main concern, the Kimono MicroThin wont let you down. At the top of most Best Condom lists, the Japanese-made Kimono MicroThin condom exceeds U.S. and International Standards for strength, meaning it won't tear when you least expect it. An added benefit: theyre vegan-friendly.

$16.99 for pack of 12 at Amazon.com

Condoms To Spice Things Up

Glyde Flavored Condoms

Most flavored condoms are more of a distraction than anything else, but here's an option that we've actually come to enjoy. Glyde condoms are ethically made, vegan, fair trade, and feature 100% organic fruit flavors. Essentially, its more organic than most fruit juices in supermarkets. Available flavors include: blueberry, wildberry, vanilla, black licorice, and strawberry. If oral sex with condoms isnt quite your thing, Glyde also offers non-flavored condoms, including their ultra, maxi, and slim-fit sizes.

$7.99 for pack of 10 at Amazon.com

Beyond Seven Studded

In addition to being one of the thinnest on the market, Beyond Seven Studded condoms provide maximum sensation courtesy of three generous inches of raised studs which make for optimal textural stimulation. Most studded rubbers on the market come nowhere close to three inches, meaning with Beyond Sevens superior stud lengths, you can bet shell feel the difference.

$9.38 for pack of 50 at Amazon.com

Trojan Charged Orgasmic Pleasure Condoms

For those who like it extra hot in the bedroom, Trojan makes a great condom that contains traces of ginger, maca and an amino acid called L-Arginine to promote blood flow, which naturally increases body heat. On top of that, the Charged condoms are ribbed along the shaft and again at the head for extra sensation.

$26.37 for pack of 30 at Amazon.com

Condoms To Last Longer

Skyn Extra Lube Condoms

According to reviews, if youre allergic to latex, Skyn manufactures some of the best non-latex condoms currently on the market. All condoms from Skyn are made with a polyisoprene (non-latex) material, so users don't have to worry about getting an allergic reaction in the heat of the moment. Skyns Extra Lube condom contains 40% more lube than their other models, which means you shouldn't have to worry about applying anything extra.

$16.09 for pack of 24 at Amazon.com

Durex Performax Intense Premium

One of the first to create a condom using benzocaine, Durex is definitely an industry leader. Their Performax line contains 5% of the numbing agent, which is heat-activated to turn from a cream-like substance within the condom into a liquid substance that applies itself easily in action. With Performax Intense, to goal is to prolong male orgasm time and to shorten hers with an added ribbed and dotted texture. Intense also has a slight, added scent, rather than the standard, odorless option.

$7.78 for pack of 12 at Amazon.com

Lifestyles Everlast Intense Condoms

Designed to slow down the pace and draw out the wearers orgasm while increasing the others pleasure, the Everlast Condom is equipped with delay lubricant and studded with over 400 raised dots. It also comes lubed up in the brands signature UltraGlide lubricant, so that the fun can keep going on and on.

$24.97 for pack of 10 at Amazon.com

Best Feeling Condoms

Lifestyles SKYN Polyisoprene

Durex is one of the largest condom manufacturers on this planet and has been enjoyed by millions of sex-havers everyday for over 80 years. On average, these Ultra Thin rubbers are 20% thinner than the standard Durex condom, providing the most authentic sensation from a brand-name condom.

$10.91 for pack of 24 at Amazon.com

One Condoms

One Condoms are made of Sensatex, marketed as a safer, smoother and clearer form of latex, and come in a slew of textured styles and sizes to fit the widest penile demographic. Legend is for larger penises. Zero features a 25% thinner condom for increased sensation. Tantric Pleasure features a roomier base and tip for added comfort. One Condoms are most awesome because a portion of every purchase goes to HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment efforts in Africa. Oh, and their circular packets and sturdy tin packaging beat every other basic rubber any day, says Holder.

$14.82 for pack of 40 at Amazon.com

Billy Boy

Billy Boy condoms are big in Germany and hand-dipped using what the company calls "superior" latex, but it's the variety of sizes and sensations that makes these guys stand out  or, rather, up. Special Comfort features a roomier design for added sensitivity. Special Contour has a cock ring at the base to help him stay harder longer. Beaded features textured nubby bits for added insertion sensation. Plus, the packaging is nothing short of adorable (for a condom) and features an extraordinarily excited penis cartoon, and each style is available in fun, bright colors and even flavors, says Holder.

$30.12 for pack of 100 at Amazon.com

Condoms For Anal Sex

Trojan Supra

A friendly option for those with latex allergies, the Trojan Supra condom is Americas thinnest non-latex condom. Made from latex-free, ultra-thin polyurethane, Trojan Supra boasts the rare benefit of hand-in-hand compatibility with oil-based lubricants, which tend to be much longer lasting than water-based and is actually the recommended lube for anal sex.

$9.37 for pack of 6 at Amazon.com

Caution Wear Classic Condoms

Just because you're going off roading, doesn't mean you need anything too extravagant. As a matter of fact, you might both appreciate a little less added sensation if you're new to anal sex. The Caution Wear Classics are parallel sided, transparent and lubricated with a smooth, silicon-based lube. A great starting point.

$4.99 for pack of 12 at Amazon.com

All-Natural Condoms

Trojan NaturaLamb

Never heard of natural skin condoms? Not surprising, although they're one of the oldest methods for pregnancy prevention. Traditionally made from a thin layer of sheep secum (part of the intestine), its thin, malleable and shares a great likeliness to going bareback. Its porous nature, however, means that it doesnt protect against STIs, meaning that natural skin condoms are not recommended for non-couples. Here, the Trojan NaturaLamb is a latex-free, luxury condom thats one of the best on the market, which explains its slightly elevated cost. Some advice? Apply water-based lubricant for optimal comfort.

$31.57 for pack of 10 at Amazon.com

Sir Richard's Pleasure Dots Condoms

These condoms arent latex-free, but they are free of all the other chemicals commonly found in condoms  namely spermicide and parabens. The Sir Richards line is complete with all the twists and tricks youll find with other more mainstream brands, like ultra thin, textured and extra large. A favourite according to readers? The Pleasure Dot Condoms pack a welcome added touch that will be appreciated, without being abrasive.

$13.99 for pack of 12 at SirRichards.com

Condoms Perfect For Your Size

Trojan Bareskin Magnum

If you are generously endowed, the Magnum Bareskin condom is one of the best products available for the most natural feel. It's the thinnest condom in the Magnum line (20% thinner, to be exact) and boasts a new contoured shape as well as premium lubricant for added comfort and sensitivity.

$7.47 for pack of 10 at Amazon.com

Caution Wear Iron Grip Condoms

If you have a smaller penis, don't be fooled into thinking you can't still have great sex. That said, getting a condom that fits you just right is essential to getting comfortable and enjoying every minute of intercourse instead of stressing about your condom falling off. The Iron Grip latex condoms from Caution Wear are designed to fit snug due to their parallel shape and smaller width.

$6.64 for pack of 36 at Amazon.com

TheyFit Condoms

No penis is exactly the same  shapes and sizes differ drastically from one to the other. TheyFit condoms understands this and offers 95 different condom sizes (14 different lengths and 23 widths) to ensure a tailored fit. Since these are only available online, the company ensures 100% anonymity with discreet packaging.

Coming soon at TheyFit.com

The Female Condom

FC2

Although equally effective, the female condom could take some getting used to. It's a different feel and applying it means a bit of a role reversal, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. A nice thing about the FC2 is that size is irrelevant and it's made from nitrile, which is three times stronger than latex. Can also be used with all lubes.

$12.99 for pack of 3 at Amazon.com

The Key Factors To Consider When Choosing A Condom

Size: This is obviously probably the most important element to consider when buying a condom. Shoot too big and it will be likely to slip off, yet too small and it will squeeze in an unpleasant way and could break. Thankfully, there are a lot of models made to suit a variety of sizes, from very small to very big. Snugger fit condoms are great for smaller members, while larger ones can find comfort in king size condoms.

Note: If you dont know your size, pull out a ruler and check out our Giant Guide To Penis Size to see how you measure up.

This is obviously probably the most important element to consider when buying a condom. Shoot too big and it will be likely to slip off, yet too small and it will squeeze in an unpleasant way and could break. Thankfully, there are a lot of models made to suit a variety of sizes, from very small to very big. Snugger fit condoms are great for smaller members, while larger ones can find comfort in king size condoms. If you dont know your size, pull out a ruler and check out our Giant Guide To Penis Size to see how you measure up. Material: Most people are ok with the typical latex condom, but now theres a greater variety of options for those with latex allergies or for those who simply prefer a different feel. Especially if you have a steady partner, discussing and finding the options that suit both of you is important, and a good act of respect and communication. Alternatives include polyurethane condoms, polyisoprene condoms, natural skin, and FC2 condoms. More on this later.

Most people are ok with the typical latex condom, but now theres a greater variety of options for those with latex allergies or for those who simply prefer a different feel. Especially if you have a steady partner, discussing and finding the options that suit both of you is important, and a good act of respect and communication. Alternatives include polyurethane condoms, polyisoprene condoms, natural skin, and FC2 condoms. More on this later. Thickness & strength: Some condoms are made thinner to provide more sensitivity (i.e. more sensation), but these are also more fragile and more probable to snapping in action. On the other hand, thicker condoms ensure safer sex, even when it gets rough. In general, condom thickness varies between 0.044 and 0.114 mm, with the average being somewhere around 0.07 mm (according to condom-sizes.org).

Some condoms are made thinner to provide more sensitivity (i.e. more sensation), but these are also more fragile and more probable to snapping in action. On the other hand, thicker condoms ensure safer sex, even when it gets rough. In general, condom thickness varies between 0.044 and 0.114 mm, with the average being somewhere around 0.07 mm (according to condom-sizes.org). Texture: A lot of condoms out there come in a variety of textures, like studded or ribbed. Although these options could provide some added excitement to your sex life, dont assume your partner shares the same preference as you  especially since if youre the one wearing the condom, theyll be the ones feeling it most.

A lot of condoms out there come in a variety of textures, like studded or ribbed. Although these options could provide some added excitement to your sex life, dont assume your partner shares the same preference as you  especially since if youre the one wearing the condom, theyll be the ones feeling it most. Flavor: Sometimes paired with a matching flavored lube, flavored condoms should also be treated with similar reservation as textured condoms. If it helps, compare flavored sex paraphernalia to a perfume or cologne  its an intimate addition to the senses that could be off putting for someone who prefers going au natural.

Sometimes paired with a matching flavored lube, flavored condoms should also be treated with similar reservation as textured condoms. If it helps, compare flavored sex paraphernalia to a perfume or cologne  its an intimate addition to the senses that could be off putting for someone who prefers going au natural. Climax control: These are condoms made with a tiny amount of benzocaine, a local anesthetic designed to delay orgasm by slightly numbing the nerve endings on the penis. Usually recommended for those with premature ejaculation anxieties, especially since its a discreet and easy-to-use solution that only affects the wearer.

These are condoms made with a tiny amount of benzocaine, a local anesthetic designed to delay orgasm by slightly numbing the nerve endings on the penis. Usually recommended for those with premature ejaculation anxieties, especially since its a discreet and easy-to-use solution that only affects the wearer. The female condom (FC1 & FC2): Like it sounds, female condoms are like regular condoms, except theyre worn by women. They are just as effective in avoiding pregnancy and in protecting against STIs, fitting inside the vagina like a bag to trap sperm and keep it from entering the baby-making zone (mainly, the uterus). They can also be used for anal sex, and the second generation female condom is made of a latex alternative called nitrile  great for those with latex allergies.

How To Measure Yourself

If trial and error makes you cringe, you can measure yourself before going shopping and take the guess work out of the whole ordeal.

Youll need:

A ruler, string, or measuring tape

Pen

Paper

When your penis is erect, wrap the measuring tape or string around your penis to measure girth. Measure around the thickest part of your penis for the best measurement. Then measure length, from the base of the penis to the very tip. (If youve got some abdominal fat or a prominent pubis, press into your pubic bone with the measuring tape or string to get the most accurate length.) If youre using string instead of a tape measure, mark the end of the string and then line it up against a ruler to get your final measurements, says Holder.

Pro tip: If your penis girth is less than 4.7 inches, look for condoms that are made for a snugger fit. If your girth is between 4.7-5.1 inches, regular condoms should be OK. And for girths larger than 5.1 inches, try a larger size condom. If youre still not sure and want a little more guidance, input your measurements into convenient online condom calculators like this one, says Holder.

Related Readings:

How To Put On A Condom

Best Lubricants

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By Alexandria Sage and Sharon Bernstein LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - Baffled police and FBI agents, still lacking a clear motive for the Las Vegas massacre of 58 people by a lone gunman five days ago, appealed to the public on Friday to come forward with any information that might help solve the mystery. Clark County Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said investigators have, to no avail, run down more than 1,000 leads seeking clues to what drove a 64-year-old wealthy retiree with a penchant for gambling to carry out the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history. The gunman, Stephen Paddock, poured a barrage of gunfire from the windows of his 32nd-floor hotel suite into a crowd of 20,000 people attending an outdoor music festival on Sunday night, then killed himself before police stormed his room. In addition to the 58 people killed, nearly 500 were injured, some by gunfire, some trampled or otherwise hurt while running for cover. Unlike so many other perpetrators of deadly mass shootings before him, Paddock left behind no suicide note, no manifesto, no recordings and no messages on social media pointing to his intent, according to police. "We have looked at everything, literally, to include the suspect's personal life, any political affiliation, his social behaviors, economic situation, any potential radicalization," McMahill told reporters. "We are looking at every aspect from birth to death of this suspect and this case." McMahill acknowledged that Islamic State had repeatedly claimed responsibility for the attack, but said investigators had uncovered "no nexus" between that Mideast-based militant group and Paddock. In an unusual bid to cast a wider net for additional tips, the FBI and police have arranged with communications company Clear Channel to post billboards around Las Vegas urging members of the public to come forward with any information they believe might help investigators. The billboards will bear the slogan, "If you know something, say something," and carry a toll-free number to an FBI hotline, said Aaron Rouse, special agent in charge of the Las Vegas FBI office. "We have not stopped, we will not stop until we have the truth," Rouse said. McMahill said investigators were satisfied that no one else was in the room with Paddock, who checked into the Mandalay Bay hotel three days before the massacre. "We're very confident ... there was not another shooter in that room," he said. But police have said they suspect Paddock may have had assistance at some point before the killings, based on the large number of guns, ammunition and explosives that were found in the hotel suite, his home, his car and a second home searched in Reno. Authorities have said that 12 of the weapons recovered from Paddock's hotel suite were equipped with so-called bump-stock devices that enable semi-automatic rifles to be operated as if they were fully automatic machine-guns. Paddock's ability to fire hundreds of rounds per minute over the course of his 10-minute shooting spree was a major factor in the high casualty count, police said. The National Rifle Association, the influential gun lobby that has staunchly opposed moves to tighten firearms control laws after previous mass shootings, came out on Thursday in favor of placing new regulations on bump stock accessories. Reports have emerged in recent days that Paddock may have targeted other sites for attack in Las Vegas, Chicago or Boston before Sunday's shooting, which police have said they were investigating. Paddock's girlfriend, Marilou Danley, 62, was questioned by the FBI on Wednesday and said in a statement she never had any inkling of Paddock's plans. Danley, who returned late on Tuesday from a family visit to the Philippines, is regarded by investigators as a "person of interest." The Australian citizen of Filipino heritage is cooperating fully with authorities, her lawyer said. (Reporting by Alexandria Sage and Sharon Bernstein in Las Vegas; additional reporting by Susan Heavey, Richard Cowan, Doina Chiacu, Amanda Becker and Jeff Mason in Washington, Chris Kenning in Chicago, Karen Freifeld and Jonathan Allen in New York, Keith Coffman in Denver and Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Writing by Scott Malone and Steve Gorman; Editing by Janet Lawrence and Andrew Hay)
LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - As Las Vegas police appealed to the public for help in uncovering a wealthy retiree's motive for massacring 58 people at an outdoor concert this week, U.S. Vice President Mike Pence visited Las Vegas on Saturday stressing unity and offering solace. "We are united in our grief, in our support for those who have suffered and united in our resolve to end such evil in our time," Pence said, joining Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman and other local leaders at a City Hall commemoration for victims of the shooting that followed a prayer walk through the city. Participants trod seven miles (11 km) along four separate paths to City Hall for an event where security was high. President Donald Trump paid a visit to Las Vegas earlier in the week. Las Vegas' Democratic Congresswoman Dina Titus was the only speaker who touched on the subject of gun violence and politics, saying, "Let us also pray for those who have power that they will have the wisdom, the courage, and the resolve to find ways to end the gun violence that plagues our nation." The commemoration came as Clark County Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said investigators remain largely in the dark about what drove retired real estate investor and high-stakes gambler Stephen Paddock to carry out the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history. "We have looked at everything, literally, to include the suspect's personal life, any political affiliation, his social behaviors, economic situation, any potential radicalization," McMahill told reporters late on Friday. "We have been down each and every single one of these paths, trying to determine why, to determine who else may have known of these plans." McMahill said investigators had uncovered "no nexus" between Islamic State and Paddock, even though the militant group had repeatedly claimed responsibility for the attack. A piece of paper found in Paddock's hotel room appeared to calculate the distance and height from his window to help him target his victims, the CBS News show "60 Minutes" said in a news release on Saturday ahead of a Sunday broadcast of interviews with Clark County Sheriff's officers, including one who said he saw the paper. The Sheriff's Office could not be immediately reached for comment. Investigators have stressed that no suicide note had been found. In an unusual bid to cast a wider net for tips, the FBI and police have arranged with communications company Clear Channel to post billboards around Las Vegas urging citizens to come forward with any information they believe might help investigators. The billboards will bear the slogan, "If you know something, say something," and carry a toll-free number to an FBI hotline, said Aaron Rouse, special agent in charge of the Las Vegas FBI office. Paddock, 64, unleashed a torrent of gunfire onto an outdoor music festival from the windows of his 32nd-floor hotel suite overlooking the concert on Sunday night, then shot himself to death before police stormed his room. In addition to the 58 people who died, nearly 500 were injured, some by gunfire, some trampled or otherwise hurt while running for cover. Unlike so many other perpetrators of deadly mass shootings before him, Paddock left behind no suicide note, no manifesto, no recordings and no messages on social media pointing to his intent, according to police. McMahill said investigators remained certain Paddock acted alone in the shooting. But police have said they suspect he had help before the killings, based on the large number of guns, ammunition and explosives found in the hotel suite, his home, his car and a second home searched in Reno. Authorities have said that 12 of the weapons recovered from Paddock's hotel suite were equipped with so-called bump-stock devices that enable semi-automatic rifles to be operated as if they were fully automatic machine-guns. Paddock's ability to fire hundreds of rounds per minute over the course of his 10-minute shooting spree was a major factor in the high casualty count, police said. The bloodshed might have lasted longer, with greater loss of life, but for a hotel security officer who was sent to check an open-door alarm on the 32nd floor, and discovered the gunman's whereabouts after the shooting started, McMahill said. The security officer, Jesus Campos, was struck in the leg as the gunman strafed the hallway with gunfire from behind his door, apparently having detected Campos via surveillance cameras Paddock set up outside his hotel suite. Campos, though wounded, alerted the hotel's dispatch, "which was absolutely critical to us knowing the location as well as advising the responding officers as they arrived on that 32nd floor," McMahill said. "He's an absolute hero." In a new disclosure, authorities said two bullets Paddock fired struck a large jet fuel storage tank at the edge of the city's main airport, about a block from the concert grounds, indicating an apparent attempt by the gunman to create even greater havoc. There was no explosion or fire from the two rounds, one of which penetrated the tank, as jet fuel in storage is almost impossible to ignite with gunshots, airport officials said on Friday. [L2N1MI014] Paddock's girlfriend, Marilou Danley, 62, was questioned by the FBI on Wednesday and said in a statement she never had any inkling of Paddock's plans. Danley, who returned late on Tuesday from a family visit to the Philippines, is regarded by investigators as a "person of interest." The Australian citizen of Filipino heritage is cooperating fully with authorities, her lawyer said. (Reporting by Alexandria Sage and Sharon Bernstein in Las Vegas; additional reporting by Susan Heavey, Richard Cowan, Doina Chiacu, Amanda Becker and Jeff Mason in Washington, Chris Kenning, Karen Freifeld and Jonathan Allen in New York, Keith Coffman in Denver and Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Writing by Scott Malone and Steve Gorman; Editing by Marguerita Choy and Jeremy Gaunt)
Dont make these mistakes. (Getty Images)

Whether youre a first-timer or a seasoned pro, cooking a turkey can be overwhelming  but it doesnt have to be.

There are several common mistakes that people make when it comes to making a holiday turkey from the prep to the cooking and even serving.

Yahoo Canada spoke with Tom Fillipou, executive chef for Presidents Choice to learn about some common turkey-cooking mistakes you should avoid this holiday season and what things you should be doing so that your feast goes off without a hitch.

Starting off with high heat

Fillipou says that one of the biggest mistakes people make when roasting a turkey is starting the bird off at a very high heat in order to get a golden colour on their turkey.

I know that a lot of bad recipes tell them to do that, so its really not their fault, he says, but the best thing you can do with turkey is to do it low and slow, and baste a lot.

While there are many methods for preparing a turkey, from deep-frying to the paper bag method, Fillipou says theres no real magic trick for ensuring your turkey comes out juicy, aside from frequent basting.

The Turkey Farmers of Canada website offers various times for ensuring your bird is perfectly cooked, depending on size and method of cooking. Keep in mind that several factors can influence the cooking time of any meat and you should always use a meat thermometer to ensure doneness.

Cooking the turkey too far in advance

Fillipou says another common mistake turkey cooks make is that they tend to cook their turkey too far in advance because theyre nervous about it being ready in time for the big meal, and it ends up getting dry or not being as warm as it should be.

To fix that you basically want to, depending on how big your turkey is you want to figure out the timing, he says. Once you figure out the timing, the best thing to do is to maybe have the turkey done no more than an hour before the meal; to give it an opportunity to rest, and itll still hold its temperature and then you can start carving. Fillipou advises timing your turkeys finishing time between 40 and 60 minutes ahead of serving time.

Story continues

Be sure to keep proper food safety in mind. Leaving cooked turkey out at room temperature for longer than two hours ups the risk of your meat becoming a bacterial breeding ground.

You can store cooked turkey in the refrigerator in a covered container, plastic bag or aluminum foil for up to four days or in the freezer for up to three months. Promptly store any leftovers before the two hour window.

An improperly working oven

Fillipou says another mistake that could be causing stress when cooking your turkey is that your oven isnt regulated properly, so even though you think youre cooking at 350 degrees, you could be over or under enough that your food is either under- or over-cooked. Having your oven check by a professional and fixed if necessary will ensure all your cooking is back on track.

Not stuffing the turkey safely

One of the biggest tips people should know, says Fillipou, is that when youre stuffing a turkey is that both the bird and the stuffing should be cold.

Health Canada advises that if youre going to stuff your turkey, stuff it loosely just before roasting, and make sure to remove the stuffing as soon as its cooked. Your stuffing should reach a minimum internal temperature of 74C (165F) on a digital food thermometer.

Cross-contamination

Cross-contamination is a big concern when preparing multiple dishes for large meals around the holidays. Planning ahead and keeping distractions to a minimum can help to prevent the spread of food borne illnesses, as can proper hygiene and food preparation.

You want to make sure that you dont overwhelm yourself with doing too much and try to avoid having too many people in the kitchen, says Fillipou. He finds that using an option of a pre-stuffed turkey can help cut down on holiday stress and the potential for cross-contamination. All you need to do then is pop the bird in the oven, and worry about sides.

Let us know what you think by commenting below and tweeting @YahooStyleCA!

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Current Affairs Today - Current Affairs - 2021 | Current Affairs - 2022

GKTodays Current Affairs Today Section provides latest and Best Daily Current Affairs 2021-2022 for UPSC, IAS/PCS, Banking, IBPS, SSC, Railway, UPPSC, RPSC, BPSC, MPPSC, TNPSC, MPSC, KPSC and other competition exams.      !

Indias national grid operator Power System Operation Corporation Limited (POSOCO) was renamed as Grid Controller of India Limited. ContentsAbout Grid Controller of India Limited (Grid-India)Why was the name changed? About Grid Controller of India Limited (Grid-India) The Grid Controller of India Limited (Grid-India) is a wholly owned central government enterprise that comes under the aegis ..

Month: Current Affairs  November, 2022

Category: India Nation & States Current Affairs

Topics: Ministry of Power  national load despatch centre (NLDC)  Power System Operation Corporation Limited (POSOCO)  Public Sector Undertaking

According to the biannual Food Outlook report released by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the year 2022 is expected to witness the worlds food import bill reaching an all-time high. What did the recent Food Outlook report predict? Food import bill According to the FAOs biannual report, the worlds food import bill will reach ..

Month: Current Affairs  November, 2022

Category: Economy & Banking Current Affairs - 2022  Reports & Indexes Current Affairs

Topics: Agriculture Sector  Fao  Food and Agricultural Organisation  Food and agricultural organization  Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)

The AEAN members agreed in principle to admit East Timor as the 11th member of the bloc. ContentsWhat is ASEAN?About East TimorEast Timor and ASEAN What is ASEAN? The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a regional bloc founded on August 8, 1967 in Bangkok, Thailand. Its member states are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, ..

Month: Current Affairs  November, 2022

Category: International / World Current Affairs

Topics: ASEAN  ASEAN Countries  Association of Southeast Asian Nations  East Timor  Enlargement of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations  Indonesia

Here are Todays News Headlines by GK Today for November 15, 2022 ContentsINDIAECONOMY & CORPORATEWORLDSPORTS INDIA  IAS officer Gaurav Dwivedi appointed as Prasar Bharati CEO  UGC asks higher education institutions to adopt Professors of Practice guidelines  SC grants Centre more time to respond to pleas challenging Places of Worship (Special Provision) Act, ..

Month: Current Affairs  November, 2022

Category: Today's News Headlines

Topics: 2022  Current Affairs  Current Affairs: News Headlines  Headlines  Latest News Headlines  News Headlines  Today's News Headlines  Top Headlines  Top News

The 2022 G20 Bali summit is set to be held on November 15 and 16 this year. ContentsAbout the summitWho will be attending the 2022 G20 Summit?Why is this summit important for India? About the summit The summit in Bali is the 17th meeting of the Group of Twenty (G20) countries that represent 85 per ..

Month: Current Affairs  November, 2022

Category: International / World Current Affairs  Summits and Conferences

Topics: Bali  G20  Group of 20  Group of Twenty (G20)  Indonesia

The fifth edition of the Paris Peace Forum is being organized. ContentsWhat is Paris Peace Forum?About the fifth edition of Paris Peace Forum What is Paris Peace Forum? The Paris Peace Forum is a French non-profit organization established in 2018. It hosts annual gathering of world leaders and heads of international organizations as well as ..

Month: Current Affairs  November, 2022

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Topics: France  Global Governance  Paris Peace Conference  Paris Peace Forum
SAN QUENTIN  A condemned murderer who was one of just 16 inmates on Californias Death Row to have exhausted his appeals died of unknown causes, prison officials announced this week.





San Quentin officials are investigating the death of Fernando Belmontes, 56, but say there was no obvious cause. More details about his death have not been released.





Belmontes was one of 16 condemned inmates  out of Californias nearly 750  who had exhausted his appeals. As such, he was considered a top priority for execution.





Belmontes was sentenced to die at 20 years old, a year after he murdered 19-year-old Steacy McConnell during a 1981 burglary. It started when he and two others broke into McConnells home in San Joaquin County, just east of Lodi.





Belmontes, who was living in a halfway house at the time, bludgeoned McConnel 15-20 times with an iron dumbell, crushing her skull. In 1979, he had been convicted of being an accessory in a voluntary manslaughter, and he attacked his pregnant girlfriend months before the murder.





California has executed only 13 death row inmates since 1978, including the controversial 2005 execution of Stanley Tookie Williams, a Crips gang dropout convicted of a double-murder whod written books to steer youth away from gang life. The most recent execution was in 2006, when Clarence Ray Allen was executed for organizing three murders while serving a life sentence for another murder conviction. Allen Spent 23 years on Death Row.





By contrast, 71 condemned inmates have died from natural causes, and 25 have committed suicide since 1978. In November, voters rejected a measure to overturn the death penalty, and passed a measure designed to streamline the execution process.





Belmontes death sentence was overturned in 2003, then reinstated in 2006. Belmontes lost his final attempt at a commuted sentence in 2010.





Prison officials say they are conducting an autopsy to determine how Belmontes died.

 | Report an error, an omission, a typo; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece, a comment; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com



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"One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed,

but by the punishments that the good have inflicted." -- Oscar Wilde
TOKYO - Three European ambassadors to Japan on Friday called on Tokyo to abolish the practice of capital punishment prior to next week's World and European Day against the Death Penalty.





"As friends, we should share our experience and speak our mind," Viorel Isticioaia-Budura, the European Union's ambassador to Japan, told a press conference in Tokyo. "The EU has, on a number of occasions, called on the Japanese authorities to abolish the death penalty or at least put a moratorium in place and have a debate."





"We regard the abolition of the death penalty as an essential part of the protection of human dignity and, together with our member states, we are therefore working towards a universal abolition," Isticioaia-Budura said. He was joined by Swiss Ambassador Jean-Francois Paroz and Irish Ambassador Anne Barrington.





According to the EU envoy's remarks, only eight countries had abolished the death penalty in 1945, but in 2016, 140 countries have ended the practice or stopped implementing it through moratoriums.





Isticioaia-Budura also expressed doubts about the crime deterrent effect of capital punishment, saying: "Extensive studies done in different countries and regions of the world have found no proof that the death penalty has a direct correlation with reducing serious crime, or that abolishing it increases serious crime."





"The death penalty eliminates a defendant once and for all," Isticioaia-Budura said. As no court system in the world is perfect, "If a mistake is made, and then discovered, a person who was wrongfully executed can never be brought back."





Based on the EU's stance, Isticioaia-Budura welcomed the Japan Federation of Bar Associations' call for the abolition of capital punishment by 2020.





He also said the 28-member bloc will send a letter to Japan's Justice Minister Yoko Kamikawa on the World and European Day against the Death Penalty next Tuesday to ask her to promote "an open public debate" on capital punishment, with a view to its abolition.





In Japan, the death penalty again came into the public eye when a death row inmate seeking a retrial was hanged in July.





Anti-death penalty campaigners have argued the execution breaches Article 32 of the Constitution, which guarantees the right of access to the courts, saying some death row inmates were exonerated in postwar Japan after their pleas for retrial had repeatedly been rejected.





Paroz said the death penalty "contravenes human rights" and that it "is not a suitable means of deterrence or atonement," while its abolition promotes human rights, peace and security.





Referring to Ireland's decision to end capital punishment in 1990, Barrington said, "The process to abolish the death penalty is not easy. It took nearly 70 years in our case."





"But we believe that it is the right thing to do and we hope that Japan, our friend and partner, will join us," she said.





According to human rights organization Amnesty International, 23 countries or regions, including Japan, executed inmates in 2016.

 | Report an error, an omission, a typo; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece, a comment; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com



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"One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed,

but by the punishments that the good have inflicted." -- Oscar Wilde
Mahvash Sabet, a leader of Irans Bahai community, has been released from prison after serving an outrageous 10-year term because of the peaceful practice of her religion. A decade ago, six other Bahai leaders and co-defendants of Ms. Sabet were also charged with national security crimes, including espionage, on account of their religious beliefs. They are expected to be released in the coming months when their 10-year sentences have been completed.

Speaking to the Center for Human Rights in Iran after her release, Ms. Sabet said the Iranian authorities presented no evidence against any of the Bahai leaders. We love our country, she said. We never betrayed our country and never will. She praised the Bahais defense lawyers  Abdolfattah Soltani and Hadi Esmailzadeh -- who were later imprisoned for their legal work on behalf of political prisoners. They were Muslims, she noted. What mattered to them was that their clients were human beings and citizens of this country, just like them, she said.

The Bahais are one of the most persecuted religious minorities in Iran. They are barred from universities unless they renounce their faith; their marriages are not recognized by the government; their businesses are arbitrarily shut down; their cemeteries desecrated; they are physically attacked because of their religion.

But the Bahai community is one of many--including other religious and ethnic minorities, human rights defenders, journalists, womens rights campaigners, labor rights leaders, and open internet advocates -- whose freedoms are being trampled by the Iranian regime. As President Donald Trump has said, Irans leaders have shown they are more interested in exporting terror and destabilizing their neighbors than allowing Iranian citizens to exercise their fundamental human rights:

The longest-suffering victims of Irans leaders, are, in fact, its own peopleIrans government must stop supporting terrorists, begin serving its own people, and respect the sovereign rights of its neighbors.

President Trump noted, however, that [o]ppressive regimes cannot endure forever, and predicted that the day will come when the Iranian people will be able to choose to return to the nations proud roots as a center of civilization, culture, and wealth -- where [the] people can be happy and prosperous once again.
Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that Hajj ceremony provides the best platform for countering propaganda being waged against Iran.

During a meeting with Iranian officials in charge of the 2017 Hajj in Tehran on Tuesday, Khamenei described the Saudis as impudent and indecent for publicly speaking against Iran during the recent Hajj ceremony. Certainly, such statements would create doubt among ordinary people. However, you should remove those doubts by establishing contact with people.

Irans Supreme Leader added, Iran was facing a very dangerous and active front, equipped with all sorts of propaganda tools and Hajj was the best platform to establish contact with the people of the world and neutralize the other sides propaganda.

He also pointed to the limitations Riyadh had put on some events organized by Iranians on the sidelines of the Hajj and called them Saudi intrigue against the Islamic Republic.

One such event is called disavowal of infidels where pilgrims rally against western countries, particularly Israel and United States.

In 1987, one such rally led to clashes between participants and Saudi security forces in which more than 400 pilgrims, mostly Iranians, were killed.

Following that incident, Iran boycotted Hajj for three years.

The era of political hajj is over, Hossein Alizadeh, a former Iranian diplomat said in an interview with Radio Farda. Not holding events such as disavowal of infidels has been one of the conditions that Saudis had set for Iran in advance and Iran had agreed to them, Alizadeh added.

It is surprising that Ayatollah Khamenei is complaining about the restrictions imposed by Saudis after giving the green light for it.

Another deadly incident happened during 2015 Hajj when 460 Iranians lost their lives in a stampede. Iran accused Saudi Arabia of murdering the pilgrims and did not send its pilgrims to 2016 Hajj ceremony.

Iran and Saudi Arabias relations are experiencing a turbulent time. Riyadh cut off diplomatic relations with Iran after its embassy in Tehran and the consulate in Mashhad were attacked and heavily damaged during protests against Saudi Arabias execution of Nimr Al Nimr, a Shiite cleric convicted of terrorism, in January 2016.

Both countries are also involved in proxy wars in Syria, Yemen and Iraq.
(Reuters) - President Donald Trump will announce new U.S. responses to Iran's missile tests, support for "terrorism" and cyber operations as part of his new Iran strategy, the White House said on Friday.

"The president isn't looking at one piece of this. He's looking at all of the bad behavior of Iran," Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, told reporters.

"Not just the nuclear deal as bad behavior, but the ballistic missile testing, destabilizing of the region, Number One state sponsor of terrorism, cyber attacks, illicit nuclear program," Sanders continued.

Trump "wants to look for a broad strategy that addresses all of those problems, not just one-offing those," she said. "That's what his team is focused on and that's what he'll be rolling out to address that as a whole in the coming days."

A senior administration official told Reuters on Thursday that Trump was expected to announce he will decertify the landmark international deal curbing Iran's nuclear program, in a step that could cause the accord to unravel.

Trump on Friday declined to explain what he meant when he described a gathering of military leaders the evening before as "the calm before the storm," but the White House said his remarks were not meant to be mischievous.

The administration was considering Oct. 12 for Trump to give a speech on Iran, but no final decision had been made, an official said previously. It was not clear to what illicit nuclear program Sanders was referring as the International Atomic Energy Agency says Iran is complying with the 2015 nuclear deal reached with the United States, Russia, China, Britain, France, Germany and the European Union.

The Trump administration also has acknowledged that Iran has not breached the accord's Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA, which is designed to prevent Iran developing a nuclear weapon.

The administration, however, contends that Tehran has violated the "spirit" of the deal. The issue came up during a telephone call on Friday between Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron.

The pair discussed "ways to continue working together to deny Iran all paths to a nuclear weapon," according to a White House statement. Macron has been a fierce defender of the JCPOA, denounced by Trump as "the worst deal ever negotiated."

But the French leader also has suggested that restraints on Iran's nuclear program that expire in 2025 could be bolstered, a senior French official said last month.

A senior U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said on Friday that steps Trump is reviewing as part of a broader strategy also include imposing targeted sanctions in response to Iran's ballistic missile tests, cyber espionage and backing of Lebanese Hezbollah and other groups on the U.S. list of foreign terrorist organizations.

The administration earlier this year considered, but then put on hold, adding the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps , Iran's most powerful internal and external security force, to the U.S. list of foreign terrorist organizations.

The Quds Force, the IRGC's foreign espionage and paramilitary wing, and individuals and entities associated with the IRGC are on the list, but the organization as a whole is not.

Last month, current and former U.S. officials told Reuters the broader strategy Trump is weighing is expected to allow more aggressive U.S. actions to counter what the administration views as Iran's efforts to boost its military muscle and expand its regional influence through proxy forces.

Under a 2015 U.S. law, Trump has until Oct. 15 to certify to Congress that Iran is complying with the JCPOA. If he decides to decertify, lawmakers would have 60 days in which to consider reimposing U.S. sanctions on Iran lifted under the deal, an action that many experts warn could unhinge the accord.

Knowledgeable sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, have said the administration is looking for ways to fix what it views as serious flaws without necessarily killing the deal. Critics say the flaws include the so-called sunset clauses, under which some of the restrictions on Irans nuclear program expire over time.

Trump's national security adviser, General H.R. McMaster, met with Republican and Democratic lawmakers on Wednesday in an effort to win their support for the strategy.
Amid increasing tough statements from Washington regarding Irans behavior, the United States Senate Foreign Relations Committee passed a resolution on October 5th to demand the release of American citizens and U.S. permanent residents detained in Iran.

Iran has arrested and imprisoned a number of U.S. citizens and permanent residents since it signed the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. Often the charges made against the detainees are vague and general in nature, without the accused having access to due process of law.

In recent days, the Trump administration has signaled that it will decertify Irans compliance with the nuclear deal. On Thursday, President Donald Trump spoke of the coming storm, without further clarification. It is not clear whether his remark was related to Iran or another adversary.

The Washington Free Beacon reports that Congress will work with the administration to increase sanctions pressure on Iran, while the critics of the deal hope the issue of detained Americans will be part of that pressure.

Senator Ted Cruz (R. Texas) who has sponsored the measure said, The Iranian regime has unjustly detained, interrogated Americans and dual-nationals for the receipt of economic or political concessions, adding , "The release of these prisonersboth U.S. citizens and permanent residents aliensmust be our utmost priority."

The U.S. House of Representatives passed a similar measure in May and according to Free Beacon, the full Senate is expected to consider the measure in the coming weeks.

Another critic of the nuclear deal, Senator Bob Menendez (D. N.J.) was also clear about what is expected of Iran, "If Iran wants to be accepted by the community of nations and be observed in the international order, as it suggests it aspires to do so, it has to stop hostage taking. And stop in a particular way that targets the United States and legal permanent residents and uses them, at the end of the day, as pawns."

The Islamic Republic insists that it abides by the nuclear deal and other issues such as its ballistic missile tests or its actions in the region are not part of the multi-national agreement aimed at limiting Irans nuclear activities.

The resolution, sponsored by Senators Cruz, Patrick Leahy (D., Vt.), and Cory Booker (D., N.J.), demands the release of all U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents, as well as foreign nationals held by the Islamic Republic.

Americas Western allies also have citizens detained in Iran and the resolution urges the creation of a multi-national task force to secure their release.

The critics of the Obama administration Iran policy argue that payments made in early 2016, apparently in exchange for the release of four Americans, further encourages the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps, IRGC to take more hostages.

Since then, the Islamic Republic has detained Siamak and Baquer Namazi, Karan Vafadari , Xiyue Wang, as well as permanent legal residents Nizar Zakka and Afarin Niasari.

The detainees in Iran are kept in utter secrecy, with almost no access to them by family or independent lawyers. Their well-being and health situation is a matter of serious concern for their families.

With reporting by Washington Free Beacon
By Arye Gut, political analyst

There are several countries and territories, whose future is highly questionable for and raises resinous concerns of the world community. The reason is quite clear - the vacuum observed in problematic areas threatens to turn them into a zone of increased risks.

In order to prevent undesirable trends for general security, international institutions initiate an active search with the participation of venerable scientists and specialists in political science, economics, sociology, demography and other spheres.

There are many countries of concern, and the Republic of Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus, is among them. Judging by decreasing number of population in Armenia, this country has an alarming prospect to rank with such countries, as Rwanda, Haiti, or Western Sahara. Moreover, if all the misfortunes in these states are caused by internecine strife, natural disasters and other troubles, in Armenia there is a latent genocide against its own people.

Armenia is self-isolated country in the South Caucasus region due to its unreasonable territorial claims against neighboring states Azerbaijan, Turkey and Georgia. Mainly because of the occupation of Azerbaijani lands and the ongoing military aggression, Armenia has remained largely outside the main geopolitical, geo-economic, transport and other projects, associated with the gas and oil resources of the Caspian Sea, as well as the Great Silk Road, a great trade route originating in China.

At the present stage, Armenia is the most backward and dependent country in the South Caucasus. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Armenia has been completely dependent on Russia's foreign policy and foreign economic ambitions, as well as on the vagaries of the world Armenian diaspora. Geopolitically Armenia is Russias outpost in the South Caucasus. However, Armenia has no way out: this country has made its own enemies, so it is forced to cooperate with Russia. The Armenian economy is in a deplorable state, it determines and will be determined by the fact that Armenia is slowly becoming a full satellite of Russia. Moscow is Armenia's main foreign trade partner and in fact the only guarantor of its security. Although the security guarantee is a controversial concept, not all can trust it in Armenia. But at the same time, Russia ranks first among the investors in the Armenian economy.

The Armenian mass media writes: Armenia was forced to submit to the dictates of Russia regarding the construction of the Iran-Armenia main gas pipeline, the railroad along a similar route, the road to the Black Sea. Russia aims to isolate Iran from Western Europe, and Armenia, in fact, has become an accomplice in this large-scale adventure.

Armenia, a small country with a population of three million, has been in the position of geopolitical isolation in recent years. Armenia survives thanks to the rich Armenian diaspora (private transfers account for two billion dollars a year) and sponsorship of the US Congress. However, nowadays even the diaspora no longer helps Armenia, as it is dissatisfied with the way President Serzh Sargsyan is robbing the Armenian people, and with the country's mafia clans and corrupt officials rule. Armenia's great dependence on the outside world, which has overstepped all permissible norms, can seriously impede the realization of opportunities in the future. There is nothing personal, just a business.

Over the past eight years, during the presidency of Sargsyan, Armenia's external debt has grown by more than 300 percent and now accounts for more than 50 percent of GDP. With the increasing external debt in comparison with the real income, Armenia is likely to face a full default. International financial institutions have repeatedly expressed their concern about this. Despite the fact that the country indicates the poverty level at 32 percent, in reality this figure exceeds 60 percent. Despite the funds raised from abroad, there is no sustainable development in the country, an economic base and structure have not been created.

According to the head of the sociological research center of Armenia Gevorg Pogosyan, the cause of the mass "suitcase mood" is the deplorable state of the Armenian economy. The population perceives the economic policy implemented in the country negatively, choosing an emigration as the only solution.

If you take into account that any economy is a concentrated expression of the implemented policy, the main reason for all Armenian misfortunes becomes obvious. The country is torn apart by uncompromising strife within the power elite. Regardless of budget, how it is formed in the government and how it is justified, the countrys population can get only crumbs. It is impossible to patch a gap in the budget owing to the lack of means, and mainly due to a total embezzlement and irrational profiling of the proceeds.

The lawlessness and impunity, initiated by the authorities of the country, brought the situation to the point that non-professionals and incompetent amateurs took the country's destiny into their hands. They were those to whom the former field commander of the Karabakh separatists and terrorists Serzh Sargsyan pays tribute for their "combat merits". And this circle of so-called personalities, mainly, is formed by people from Nagorno-Karabakh, through which President Sargsyan has built his "military political column".

The presidential term of Serzh Sargsyan expires in 2018. He has initiated an amendment to the constitution, which was adopted as a result of a widely-criticized referendum in December 2015. The amendment provides for the transformation of Armenia from the presidential to a parliamentary republic. Critics argue that Sargsyan's goal is to preserve both his own power and the power of his allies after 2018. There had not been serious public discussion of the amendment before it was taken to a referendum, but the position of its critics was reflected in public protests and in social media. Representatives of various civil organizations and political opposition, the economic and political elite, including Robert Kocharyan, argued against the amendment fearing that the ruling party will manipulate the forthcoming elections for its own benefit  as it has already happened in the past.

Nowadays the real state of the Armenian economy is extremely difficult, Prime Minister of Armenia Karen Karapetyan has recently said addressing the Parliament. According to him, taking into account this fact, the government will present a program within the planned timeframe, which will include all the necessary changes for the development of economy. In particular, he pointed out that the program will target the economic development and will be implemented in two stages - the first will include those possible rapid changes that can somehow instill confidence in the program, and the second stage is a long-term vision of the country's development.

"We have no expectations that we will be able to change the situation in the economy quickly, but we give impulses, in which direction it will develop," Karapetyan said.

Unfortunately, due to the lack of strategy and tactics, due to Sargsyan's unreasoned political and economic policy, the people of Armenia are suffering and their number is gradually decreasing. It is not excluded that neighboring countries also suffer from such a policy.

The official average salary in Armenia is 185,000 drams (340 dollars), but apart from oligarchs, the majority earns slightly more than half of this amount. The statistics show that 18 percent of people are unemployed (anti-record of the post-Soviet republics), and 29.8 percent of Armenians live below the poverty line, which is not surprising considering the local pension of 41,000 drams (about $80). At the same time, for the gas alone, Yerevan residents have to pay up to 60,000 drams (about $116) in winter and up to 20,000 drams (about $40) in summer. It is necessary to ask Sargsyan how the Armenian people should survive at all. Of course, at the expense of relatives living in foreign countries, but not everyone has such relatives.

In a sense, regular aid is not only a salvation, but also a curse of the republic. Despite the fact that remittances in rubles, dollars and euros allow people to survive, they also deprive them of the motivation to grow. The average Armenian permanently residing in the country prefers to send his child abroad to earn money rather than build his own career. And the young people who move abroad and taste a better life and freedom, dont want to return to Armenia and dont want to die in the occupied foreign territory (Nagorno-Karabakh). And this factor hits the demography of Armenia, both in quantitative and in age ratio. It turns out that Armenia can gradually become empty, and in the future even the destiny of this state will be unknown  it can disappear.

I would like to make a small digression and uncover the roots of all the hardships that struck the Armenian people and the country itself. The bad luck of Armenia started with the occupation of 20 percent of the Azerbaijani territories. After this, Armenia went into the complete geopolitical and geo-economic isolation. Armenia is a small country, therefore, it does not have a capacious market. This country cannot compete with Kazakhstan, Russia, China or even with Ukraine. Accordingly, foreign business will not be interested in 3 million Armenian consumers. If Armenia had several billion cubic meters of gas or oil, then everything could be different, but Armenia is not Saudi Arabia or Azerbaijan. In addition, Armenia has problems with its neighbors: Turkey and Azerbaijan are blocking Armenia because of its aggression against Azerbaijan (in turn, Armenia is blocking part of Azerbaijan - Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic), and Georgia and Iran have a difficult relationship with Russia and the United States. Armenia has friendly relations only with Iran, but these relations raise a lot of questions.

For example, the Armenian website Lragir.am writes: "For a long time, Iran tried to influence Armenia, establishing relations with various political parties, financing groups and individual actions of political groups, there were also attempts to establish branches of the Lebanese Shiite terrorist organization Hezbollah in Yerevan and in Stepanakert, recruit more or less trained people for the terrorists of Hezbollah. Thus, Iran tried to create a branch of the Shiite terrorist organization Hezbollah in the occupied territory of Azerbaijan  Nagorno-Karabakh  and may already have created it, because two years have passed since the article was released.

And here comes the question: Why does Shiite Iran support Christian Armenia against Azerbaijan? Where are the Islamic values and religious solidarity, which was always loudly declared?

The ruling mullahs pursue a policy contradicting the peaceful coexistence of all neighboring states and the people of Iran, but they assert their commitment to peace. It turns out that Islam (in this case for Iran) is only a shield, and quite strong.For years, the official Tehran has been advocating the destitute and oppressed Muslims. The occupation of Azerbaijani territories by Armenia has continued for more than 25 years. As a result of this aggression, there are one million refugees in the country. Armenia has occupied 20% of Azerbaijans territory. However, Iran, which has a 600 km-long border with Shiite Azerbaijan, supports Armenia in this conflict.

So a question that has to be answered is: Where is your Shia Muslim pride? Where is your religious solidarity? Why havent spiritual leader of Iran Khamenei and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani condemned Armenia, which occupied 20% of the territory of brotherly Shia Azerbaijan and does not comply with the four resolutions of the UN Security Council that require Armenia to leave the occupied Azerbaijani territories?

British prime minister, Lord Palmerston in the middle of the 19th century said: "We have no eternal allies, and we have no perpetual enemies. Our interests are eternal and perpetual, and those interests it is our duty to follow." Unfortunately, this is today the brutal reality of international relations and Azerbaijan must understand and realize it.

The April battles in Karabakh have significantly changed the status quo in favor of Azerbaijan, and immediately attracted the attention of world actors - the United States, Russia, the EU countries, which unanimously urged the parties to solve the problem by peace. Official Baku has repeatedly stated and warned Armenia that it will never agree with the existing status quo. In response to the military provocations of Armenia and in order to prevent diversion and ensure the security of its citizens, the Azerbaijani army carried out a crushing military blow to the Armenian armed forces in early April 2016 and forced them to withdraw. Today, Azerbaijan is the country with the strongest and most powerful army in the South Caucasus, which has responded to the provocation from Armenia and demonstrated the strength and power of its army.

Soon after the incident, former Prime Minister of Armenia, Hrant Bagratyan, made a daring statement that Armenia has nuclear weapon. Later, one of the influential representatives of the Armenian military elite, Arkady Ter-Tadevosyan, said that Armenia is ready to use a dirty bomb against civilians of Azerbaijan. Thus, Armenia challenged not only Azerbaijan and regional security, but also the whole of mankind.

At the same time, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan recently said that the Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant operating in Armenia is important not only for the country's economy, but also is very important from the political point of view. He pointed out that this is the only tool forcing all the states of the region to reckon with Armenia. Sargsyans speech once again showed that Armenia, which has chosen the policy of terror and occupation, opens a new front against Azerbaijan and Turkey: nuclear terrorism.

These threats were not unfounded; they were made against a backdrop of the operation conducted by Georgian State Security Service agents who have detained three Armenians for the attempt to illegally smuggle and sell nuclear material. According to the official information of the State Security Service of Georgia, Armenian citizens tried to sell uranium (U238) for $200 million.

Unfortunately, in the same period none of the leading countries of the world reacted to the statements made by the representatives of Armenia, as well as incidents with nuclear smuggling, which testify to the nuclear ambitions of a certain part of the political elite of this country.

Who could help the backward Armenia in the nuclear field? There is no need to go far beyond for the answer: of course, neighboring Iran. In this case, the lack of necessary reaction from the international community and international organizations actually turns into indulging aggression and terrorism.

Do they in Armenia understand that the collapse of the economy and the mass outflow of the population are only consequences, and not the cause of the troubles? Armenia needs to fight not only consequences, but the underlying causes of problems. Armenia today is like a sick person. This is equivalent to a doctor treating the consequences of the disease, and not the cause. And the reason lies in Armenia's aggressive foreign policy and in the unsettled Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. After all, these factors led to the economic isolation of Armenia in the region: today the borders of Armenia are closed not only with Azerbaijan, but also with such a large market as Turkey that supports Azerbaijan's position in its conflict with Armenia.

The level of migration in Armenia is off scale. According to official data cited by the Armenian media, due to a massive outflow of people from the country, by January 1, 2016, the population of Armenia had decreased by 12,000 in comparison with the previous year and amounted to about 2.9 million people. At the end of 2015, the negative balance of migration in Armenia was 7.2%, that is, between 210,000 and 220,000 people.

People just did not want to die at a whim of national chauvinists from the Dashnaktsutyun party, who wanted to seize the territory of a neighboring state and create a "Great Armenia" in the future. In recent years, people are leaving the country due to the difficult social conditions, unemployment, court injustice, high corruption, oligarchy and monopolization, the Armenian journalist Liya Khodzhoyan said in her article on the EurAsia Daily website.

Armenian demographers believe that over the years of independence, Armenia has become the country of an aging nation, since the number of people beyond the age of 63 currently accounts for 12.6% of the total population. According to the forecasts, until 2050 the number of Armenians beyond 65 will rise to 25-27% of the total population, and this will become a serious challenge for the state in terms of social security. If this policy continues in the same vein after 2018, Armenia will gradually reach the point of self-destruction, the very edge of the cliff, from which there will be no return.

Armenia should stop making territorial claims against neighboring states, should liberate the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, look at the model of the development of the Baltic countries, which have integrated into the EU, NATO and other international organizations thanks to cooperation and friendship. Unlike Armenia, they look forward, not backward. Armenia also should stop pursuing Turkey because of the events of 1915.

Armenia should also take a look at the EU countries, which have also been fighting with each other, but created a common home - the European Union. If Armenia overcomes all these ambitions and challenges that have brought the country to such a state, it can save its position, and no longer play the role of appendicitis on the body of the South Caucasus.

This article was originally published in The Jerusalem Post
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 7

Trend:

Presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia, Ilham Aliyev and Serzh Sargsyan confirmed their readiness to reengage in negotiations for reaching a peaceful settlement to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, reads a statement by the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs Oct. 7.

The statement comes after the co-chairs visit to the South Caucasus region.

Information on the forthcoming summit will be released in the near future, according to a message on the OSCE website.

The OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs met with the Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents as part of their visit to the region in order to prepare for the upcoming meeting.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 7

By Ilhama Isabalayeva  Trend:

European states and politicians should take a fair position towards Azerbaijan, Rovshan Rzayev, an Azerbaijani MP, told Trend.

He was commenting on the speech of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev at a meeting with a delegation of the Political and Security Committee of the Council of the European Union Oct. 4.

Rzayev noted that European politicians should seriously think about their slanderous campaign against Azerbaijan.

The MP noted that President Aliyev at the 72nd Session of the UN General Assembly spoke openly about the current state of Azerbaijan and its priorities for the future.

At the meeting with the delegation of the Political and Security Committee of the Council of the European Union, the president openly said Azerbaijan intends to further build relations with the EU and European countries on the basis of mutual trust, Rzayev added. European politicians should have long ago thought about who stands behind the anti-Azerbaijan campaign and how correct it is to adhere to such a position. Justice is on Azerbaijans side. Therefore, the European states should first of all support the just position of Azerbaijan.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 7

Trend:

The Washington Post has published a response letter by the member of the Azerbaijani Embassy in the United States, Inci Sadigova, to biased articles of the newspaper, the embassy told Trend.

The recently published editorial and articles refer to emotional yet uncorroborated assumptions, while nobody has offered credible evidence to dispute the assertion of Azerbaijani and Georgian officials, said Sadigova.

"What is beyond doubt is that undermining the Azerbaijan-Georgia partnership, the most strategic and, perhaps, most important alliance in the post-Soviet era, serves neither Azerbaijans nor Georgias interests  nor, in fact, the United States," reads the response letter.
Baku / Trend / - Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev made a phone call to Russian President Vladimir Putin on October 7, the press service of the head of state said.

The Head of State sincerely congratulated Vladimir Putin on his birthday, wished him new successes in the highest state activity for the prosperity of the Russian people.

President Putin expressed gratitude to President Aliyev for his attention and congratulations.

The heads of state expressed confidence that friendly relations based on the principles of strategic partnership between Azerbaijan and Russia will continue to develop successfully in all spheres, and further exchanged views on the prospects for cooperation.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 7

Trend:

Two topics relating to Azerbaijan will be discussed at the PACE autumn session, to open October 9, says a message from the Azerbaijani parliament.

The topics will be "The activity of democratic institutions in Azerbaijan" and "Steps taken in the sphere of respect for human rights during Azerbaijans chairmanship in the Council of Europe."

The session will be attended by the Azerbaijani delegation to PACE, led by chairman of the parliaments International and Interparliamentary Relations Committee Samad Seyidov.

Azerbaijani MP, head of the PACE Committee on Migration, Refugees and Displaced Persons Sahiba Gafarova will participate in the PACE Bureau meetings.

A report on the development of the Bureau and Standing Committee will be presented at PACE plenary sessions, and the results of parliamentary elections in Albania will also be discussed.

The reports on "The activity of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in 2016-2017" and "Youth against corruption" will be presented and discussed as well.

Presidents of the Czech Republic and Albania, as well as the chairman of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, will address the meetings.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 7

Trend:

President of the Republic of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan made a phone call to President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev on October 7.

The presidents exchanged views on different aspects of Azerbaijan-Turkey bilateral relations. Successful development of friendly and brotherly ties between the two countries was underlined.

The heads of state also discussed Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan`s upcoming visit to Azerbaijan scheduled for late October and the program of the visit.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 7

By Azad Hasanli  Trend:

Azerbaijani-Australian business forum will be held in Baku Oct.18, 2017, the Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Foundation (AZPROMO) said Oct. 7.

The business forum will be organized with the support of Azerbaijans Economy Ministry.

More than 20 Australian companies specializing in the spheres of tourism, logistics, transport, construction, education, law, real estate, viticulture, winemaking, manufacture of dairy products, meat products, as well as in the mining industry and other spheres will take part in the event.

Data of the State Customs Committee of Azerbaijan shows that the countrys trade turnover with Australia in January-August 2017 amounted to $3.7 million. Almost the entire amount of the trade turnover accounted for imports of Australian products.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 7

By Ali Mustafayev  Trend:

Large-scale institutional and structural reforms are being implemented in Uzbekistan with purpose of stimulating further development of small business and private entrepreneurship, Ministry of Economy of Uzbekistan said in a message.

Appropriate measures are taken within the framework of the Strategy of Action on Five Priority Development Directions for 2017-2021.

Today in conditions of fierce competition in foreign markets and ongoing crisis, entering new markets is quite difficult. In these difficult conditions, it becomes easier for small business and private entrepreneurship to show flexible adaptation, which ensures the dynamics of export activities, said the message.

Over the past 15 years, the share of exports of small businesses and private entrepreneurship in total exports of the country has increased three-fold and presently amounts to 27 percent, according to the ministry.

The number of small and large enterprises engaged in export activities has increased by 1.5 and 1.6 times, respectively, over the past five years.

To stimulate the production of export-oriented high-quality products and increase the competitiveness of enterprises, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev adopted a resolution on measures to further streamline foreign economic activity of the Republic of Uzbekistan on Sept. 29.

These measures are expected to increase the economic efficiency of Uzbekistan, support small businesses and private entrepreneurs, and provide fertile environment for production and further promotion of exports.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 7

By Rufiz Hafizoglu  Trend:

The Baku-Tbilisi-Kars (BTK) railway will be launched at the end of October, Ahmet Arslan, Turkish minister of transport, maritime affairs and communications, said, according to the ministrys message Oct. 7.

Arslan noted that everything is ready for the BTKs operation.

BTK is one of the important railway projects for Turkey, the minister said.

Earlier, Arslan said in an interview with Trend that the BTK railway will turn Turkey into an important transport corridor.

The BTK railway is being constructed on the basis of a Georgian-Azerbaijani-Turkish intergovernmental agreement. Peak capacity of the railway will be at 17 million tons of cargo per year.

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Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 6

By Gulgiz Muradova  Trend:

OPEC and other oil producers are on course to agree an extension of supply cuts at upcoming meeting, with more countries being invited to join the plan against global supply glut.

OPEC and allied non-OPEC producers such as Russia agreed to limit oil supply into 2018, but crude prices have fallen since May, partly because of higher production in several OPEC states and higher U.S. output.

Previously OPEC Sec. Gen. Barkindo called on Asia regions to join efforts to balance the market, while Russia invited Turkmenistan to join the OPEC oil output cut deal.

Gal Luft, co-director of the Washington-based Institute for the Analysis of Global Security, does not believe that OPEC will be able to lure the Asian producers.

"Their exports are rather small and their own domestic demand considerations will dominate their decisions, " he told Trend.

As for Turkmenistan's joining the deal, its production is rather small, roughly 200,000 b/d so their ability to cut is limited, he said.

"However, its a symbolic act that signals unity of cause among OPEC and non-OPEC producers," he said.

The OPEC-led supply cut at present covers 24 countries.

Venezuelas oil minister previously said that an extra 10 to 12 oil-producing countries have been invited to join an OPEC-led output cut aimed at getting rid of a supply glut, Reuters said.

Eu logio del Pino said the invited countries were in South America and Africa.

Luft stressed that in its coming meeting the cartel will persist in its current policy of restrained production since the expected economic dividends have not been gained.

Saudi Arabia and non-OPEC member Russia, the worlds top two oil producers, last week agreed on the need to prolong the current deal on cuts, which expires in June, until March 2018, pushing up prices.

With a nine-month extension now the minimum expectation for the Vienna meeting, OPEC has a lot of work to do to persuade its members and some non-OPEC producers to back the move.

In November, OPEC and non-OPEC ministers will discuss the market situation and implementation of a global deal to cut oil production.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 7

By Ali Mustafayev  Trend:

Delegations of Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan signed new documents on Oct. 6. The signing ceremony was held amid the second day of Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambayevs visit to Tashkent.

The documents include an Agreement between Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan on Confidence-Building Measures in the Border Areas, an Agreement on the Intergovernmental Use of the Orto-Tokoy (Kasansay) Reservoir in the Jalal-Abad Region of Kyrgyzstan, a Memorandum of Understanding between Uzbekhydroenergo and the National Energy Holding Company of Kyrgyzstan to construct Kambaratinskaya HPP 1, as well as a contract for supply of electricity in 2017-2018 from Kyrgyzstan to Uzbekistan, the Kyrgyz presidential press service said in a message Oct. 7.

On the first day of the visit, the countries signed a Declaration on Strategic Partnership, Strengthening Friendship, Good Neighborliness and Trust, and 12 other documents.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 7

Trend:

Kyrgyzstan's Deputy Prime Minister Temir Dzhumakadyrov has died in a car accident. Preliminary reports suggest that Dzhumakadyrov's car was hit by a truck, according to Sputnik.

Kyrgyzstan's Deputy Prime Minister Temir Dzhumakadyrov died in a car accident on a road near the capital of Bishkek on Saturday, government spokesman Chingiz Esengul told Sputnik.

"A road accident involving a Toyota Land Cruiser occurred at around 7:30 a.m. near the village of Sadovoye in the [Kyrgyz] Moscow district," the spokesman said.

"Deputy Prime Minister Temir Dzhumakadyrov, his aide Nurlan Dzhamgyrchiev and the driver were inside the car, all in the car were killed," he added.

The 40-year-old, who has been serving as deputy prime minister since last August, was on his way to the southwestern Talas region to oversee preparations for the October 15 presidential election. Some 19 miles from Bishkek, his car collided head-on with a truck that is believed to have veered into the opposite lane.
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Oct. 7

By Huseyn Hasanov  Trend:

Rovshen Nuryagdyev and Ezizgeldi Annamuhammedov have been appointed deputies of Turkmen minister of finance and economy, according to a decree of President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov.

The Ministry of Finance and Economy was established Oct. 5 after a merger of the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economy and Development.

This measure was taken to transform Turkmenistans financial, economic and banking sector and improve its activities, according to a Turkmen presidential decree.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 4

By Omid Shokri Kalehsar - Trend:

Iran and Pakistan began work on the IP pipeline (aka Peace pipeline) in March 2013. The 2,700 kilometer-long pipeline is meant to deliver gas from the Assalouyeh Energy Zone in southwestern Iran to Pakistan.

Some 2000 km of the pipeline runs through Iran and 700 km through Pakistan. The generated revenue looks to be around $7.5 billion. Iran is planning to export 1.5 million cubic meters (mcm) per day natural gas to the country.

Iran has declared its intention to increase oil production and export capacity on countless occasions. Irans Oil Ministry has recently presented a two-fold plan to achieve this; both short- and long-term.

The short-term program first aims to mitigate the effects of sanctions and get the countrys industry and infrastructure back into shape. Irans short term plan is to export natural gas to neighbors and in long term to European Market, Pakistan is one of Iran priorities to export gas.

Nothwithsdtanding the mutual agreements and concrete efforts which were supposed to be followed, Pakistan by October 2017 was unable to construct the necessary infrastructure in its own territory, blaming financial issues for the problem.

The problem is further compounded given that Pakistan is also planning to buy LNG from Qatar. During the former Presdinet Barack Obamas administration, the US asked India to use American technology and financial aid to construct nuclear facilities to generate electricity as a subsitute for import of Iranian natural gas through Peace Pipeline project. Against this background, then, it is clear that the Iran-Pakistan (IP) Project would face intense pressures.

Iran first priorities to export gas to neighbors, at present Iran hold less than 1 percent of world natural gas market and the Islamic Republic is planning to increase its share of natural gas market to 10 percent. If Pakistan wants to import natural gas or LNG form another supplier, Iran will lose Pakistan market.

In recent years, a fall in the cost of LNG has encouraged Pakistan to plan on importing more LNG from Qatar, and also from other suppliers rather than Iran.

Until 2016, Pakistan had no financial resources in its budget to construct the pipeline with Iran. According to the IP agreement, this project is expected to be completed by the end of 2018.

The significance of Iran's serious presence in the energy equations of the time zone is greater, as we know that the US has made a great effort to remove Iran from the energy equations of the region.

A clear example of this is the US efforts and pressure on India and Pakistan to prevent the implementation of the peace pipeline and replace the pipeline with a pipeline that transports Turkmen gas to India and Pakistan. The US effort to provide Pakistan's electricity from Tajikistan through the Casa-1000 Electricity Transmission Project is also being evaluated in the same vein.

Saudi Arabia and Qatar, struggling with heavy costs to prevent Iranian gas exchanges with regional countries through pipelines.

Before Qatar crisis, Doha followed a more active policy in terms of exports of more natural gas and LNG to its neighbors.

Iran and Qatar share South Pars Gas Field (the territory of Qatar is called the North Dome), the world's largest natural gas field.

Qatar exports oil and LNG from South Pars field but Iran was unable to export from this field due to economic sanctions imposed on it for its nuclear program.

Iran, however, hopes that it would produce more natural gas from this field and play key role in the regional and global natural gas markets as a result of lifting sanctions.

It seems that Saudi Arabia is also playing a key role in the delay in the implementation of the IP project, as well as the pressure on the Gulf states to avoid gas exchanges with Iran.

No country is interested to lose its share in the regional and global energy market. Every country tries to maximize its own benefits vis-a-vis other oil and gas exporters and use any means to find new customer and also sell oil and gas to another exporters customers.

Omid Shokri Kalehsar is an Iranian energy analyst based in Washington, DC.
Tehran, Iran, Oct. 7

By Mohammad Jafari  Trend:

US President Donald Trump's unwise policy towards Iran nuclear deal has widened gaps between Washington and the Europeans so seriously, reducing the capability of the White House to orchestrate international consensus against Tehran, an expert believes.

From political point of view, if the US administration leaves the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA/ Iran nuclear deal) especially at this time that Tehran has observed the entire international obligations, Washington will lose its power to reorganize any international consensus against Tehran, Gholamhossein Hassantash, the former head of the Tehran-based Institute for International Energy Studies, told Trend.



He further said the international consensus had made the burden of sanctions on Iran heavier, adding that the 2015 nuclear deal ended that all-out international pressure on Tehran.

The expert pointed out that Trump's view towards the nuclear accord is fundamentally different from Europe's policy towards the JCPOA, so, they will not reach any consensus over Iran issue again.



In the meantime, several international companies, including the French Total, have signed valuable contracts with Iran, he said, adding that the French government, which has openly opposed Trumps attitude towards the JCPOA, owns a considerable share in Total, so, the leadership of Total and the French administration are both trying to prevent the US from killing the nuclear deal with Iran.



The US administrations upper hand in imposing secondary sanctions on the international companies that are cooperating or are planning to cooperate with Iran will be limited if the White House decides to walk away from the JCPOA unilaterally.

President Donald Trump is expected to announce soon he will decertify the landmark international deal to curb Irans nuclear program, Reuters reported citing a senior administration official on Thursday.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 7

By Farhad Daneshvar  Trend:

Kazem Sajjadpour, deputy foreign minister of Iran for education and research, has said that the role of regional players, including Russia, Azerbaijan and Turkey in shaping the international policies is increasing.

The current situation of the world has increased the role of the regional players in the regional equations. This means that in todays situation superpowers are not the sole policymakers in the international arena anymore, the official told Trend on the sidelines of a conference at ADA University in Baku discussing international relations.

In this situation, Iran, Azerbaijan, Turkey and Russia have a key role in shaping the regional and also global relations, he added.

He further touched upon growing ties between Iran and Azerbaijan, saying that the ties between Tehran and Baku are not restricted to a specific sphere and the sides are developing the relations in various fields.

Sajjadpour visited Baku this week to attend meetings at ADA University and Center for Strategic Studies under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
President Donald Trump will announce new U.S. responses to Irans missile tests, support for terrorism and cyber operations as part of his new Iran strategy, the White House said on Friday.

The president isnt looking at one piece of this. Hes looking at all of the bad behavior of Iran, said Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, Reuters reports.

Not just the nuclear deal as bad behavior, but the ballistic missile testing, destabilizing of the region, Number One state sponsor of terrorism, cyber attacks, illicit nuclear program, Sanders continued.

Trump wants to look for a broad strategy that addresses all of those problems, not just one-offing those, she said. Thats what his team is focused on and thats what hell be rolling out to address that as a whole in the coming days.

A senior administration official told Reuters on Thursday that Trump was expected to announce he will decertify the landmark international deal curbing Irans nuclear program, in a step that could cause the accord to unravel.

The administration was considering Oct. 12 for Trump to give a speech on Iran, but no final decision had been made, an official said previously.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct.7

By Nigar Guliyeva - Trend:

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has named candidates, who can replace Pedro Agramunt, who announced in a letter his resignation as President of the PACE on October 7.

Following yesterdays resignation, Stella Kyriakides (Cyprus, EPP/CD) and Emanuelis Zingeris (Lithuania, EPP/CD) have been proposed to the Assembly for the post of President.

In line with the Assemblys Rules of Procedure, the President shall be elected by secret ballot at the opening of the PACE part-session in Strasbourg on Monday 9 October. The President so elected shall remain in office until the opening of the next ordinary session (Strasbourg, 22-26 January 2018), said the message on PACEs website.
Former Brazil President Dilma Rousseff suggested in an interview to Sputnik on Friday her impeachment was caused by her staunch opposition to plans for the countrys "neoliberal" overhaul.

"Ive fallen victim to a coup staged by media and the parliament. It happened because we blocked a neoliberal project for four times straight," she said.

Rousseff claimed the initiative was "neoliberal" in the social, economic and geopolitical sense, and was aimed at "scaling down the role of the Brazilian state."

Brazils first female leader was removed from office in August 2016 after the parliament accused her of misusing public funds at the request of then Vice President Michel Temer, who took over the day Rousseff left.
The U.S. military said on Friday that a fourth soldier was killed during an attack on Wednesday in Niger, raising the death toll from an incident that has thrown a spotlight on the U.S. counterterrorism mission in the West African nation, Reuters reported.

The United States had previously announced that three U.S. Army Special Forces soldiers had been killed and another two wounded when a joint U.S.-Nigerien patrol came under attack near the village of Tongo Tongo.

It did not disclose until Friday that a fourth soldier had been missing. Officials said his body was found by Nigerien forces on Friday morning near the site of the ambush, ending an extensive rescue and recovery mission.

No group has taken responsibility for the killings, although officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, say the United States suspects a local branch of Islamic State was responsible.

The U.S. militarys Africa Command declined to publicly name any group but said the American military would hunt down the insurgents.

Absolutely, we are resolved and stalwart in our efforts to go after those who attacked this joint patrol of Nigerien and U.S. forces, said Army Colonel Mark Cheadle, a spokesman for the U.S. militarys Africa Command.

From initial accounts, the 40-member patrol, which included about a dozen U.S. troops, came under a swift attack by militants riding in a dozen vehicles and on about 20 motorcycles.

Islamist militants form part of a regional insurgency in the poor, sparsely populated deserts of West Africas Sahel.

Jihadists have stepped up attacks on U.N. peacekeepers, Malian soldiers and civilian targets since being driven back in northern Mali by a French-led military intervention in 2013.

U.S. President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron discussed joint counterterrorism operations in the Sahel to defeat al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups during a call on Friday, the White House said.
U.S. President Donald Trump, speaking with French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday, discussed joint counterterrorism operations in the Sahel region of Africa, the White House said in a statement, Reuters reported.

The U.S. military said earlier on Friday that a fourth soldier was killed during an Oct. 4 attack in Niger, raising the death toll from an incident that has thrown a spotlight on the U.S. counterterrorism mission in the West African nation.

Macron expressed his condolences over the shooting in Las Vegas on Sunday while Trump conveyed his condolences regarding the knife attack in Marseille on Monday, the statement said.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 7

By Rufiz Hafizoglu  Trend:

Turkey has completed preparations for new military operations in Syria against the Kurdish YPG (Peoples Protection Units) terrorist group, Turkish media reported Oct. 7 quoting sources in the countrys General Staff.

It is reported that the military operations in the Syrian city of Idlib may start in the coming days.

The military operations are expected to be held jointly with troops of the Free Syrian Army (FSA).

Turkey has been moving military equipment to its border with Syria since June 21.

Military equipment has been deployed in Turkeys south-central province of Kilis, which borders Syrian territories controlled by YPG and PYD.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that he was ready to make efforts aimed at improving the countrys relations with Germany, Sputnik reported.

"I am ready to make all the efforts to achieve that [improvement of relations]. There are no reasons for problems between Germany and Turkey even after a difficult last year," Cavusoglu told the Spiegel magazine.

According to the minister, the countrys differences were linked to the recent Turkish referendum on granting the countrys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan more powers.

"We did not like the ban on Turkish politicians rallies [with Turkish voters in Germany]. But I told my friend [German Foreign Minister] Sigmar Gabriel: let us look forward together. If you make a step toward us, we will make two toward you," Cavusoglu said.

In recent months, relations between Berlin and Ankara have become increasingly strained over Germany's criticism of mass detentions in Turkey, Ankara's accusations that Berlin provided asylum for people allegedly involved in 2016 coup attempt, as well as because of the cancellation of campaign rallies organized by the Turkish authorities across Germany ahead of the constitutional referendum.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 7

Trend:

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will visit Serbia on October 9-11 at the invitation of Serbian colleague Alexandra Vucic, Turkish media reported.

Various issues aimed at the development of bilateral relations, as well as regional issues will be discussed during the meeting.

On the occasion of the visit of the Turkish President, the Turkish-Serbian working forum will be held.
KYODO NEWS - Oct 6, 2017 - 11:48 | All, Feature

Prince Akishino and his wife Princess Kiko will visit Thailand for two days from Oct. 26 to attend the country's late King Bhumibol Adulyadej's funeral ceremony, the Japanese government said Friday.

The Cabinet approved the visit the same day. Prince Akishino, the younger of Emperor Akihito's two sons, had met several times with the late Thai king who died in October last year, according to the Imperial Household Agency.

Prince Akishino and Princess Kiko are scheduled to depart Tokyo's Haneda airport in early hours of Oct. 26 to attend the funeral ceremony to be held near the palace in Bangkok that evening. The couple will leave the country the following day.

The Japanese imperial family has traditionally maintained close relations with the Thai royal family.

The emperor and Empress Michiko visited Thailand in March to pay their respects to the late Thai king. During the trip, the imperial couple also met with his successor King Maha Vajiralongkorn.
By Stephen Nellis (Reuters) - Apple Inc said on Friday its general counsel, Bruce Sewell, will retire and be succeeded by former Honeywell International Inc executive Katherine Adams, who will take over Apple's multinational legal battle against Qualcomm Inc . Adams, who will also be senior vice president of legal and global security, will report to Chief Executive Tim Cook, the company said. Before joining Honeywell in 2003, Adams was an attorney with Sidley Austin LLP in New York. Earlier, she had served as a clerk for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day OConnor and for Stephen Breyer, who was then an appeals court judge but later was appointed to the Supreme Court. Sewell, who has been Apple's general counsel since 2009, will retire at the end of the year, the company said. Sewell, who came to Apple from Intel Corp , guided Apple through its massive patent infringement lawsuit against Samsung Electronics Co Ltd <005930.KS> over design patents for the original iPhone, a case that is still simmering nearly six years after it was filed and eventually reached the U.S. Supreme Court. A U.S. appeals court is currently working to decide the final amount of damages Samsung owes Apple. In taking the legal reins at Apple, Adams will take over a wide-ranging dispute with Qualcomm over how that chipmaker licenses its technology to Apple. At the heart of the dispute is Qualcomm's long-held practice of charging a percentage of the total price of iPhones and other Apple devices as a licensing fee for its mobile connectivity patent portfolio. Apple has sued Qualcomm over that practice in U.S. civil courts as well as 11 foreign jurisdictions. Qualcomm has brought an action against Apple before the U.S. International Trade Commission seeking to ban imports of some iPhones. Qualcomm filed a separate civil lawsuit accusing Apple of infringing the patents at issue in that action. Qualcomm also faces an antitrust complaint from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. In addition, four of Apple's contract manufacturers have sued Qualcomm on antitrust allegations, and Apple has joined that lawsuit. (Additional reporting by Aishwarya Venugopal in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila and Jonathan Oatis)
By Makiko Yamazaki and Junko Fujita

TOKYO (Reuters) - U.S. private equity firm Bain Capital LP on Thursday said it aims to list Toshiba Corp's chip unit on the Tokyo Stock Exchange within three years, to cash in its investment after leading an $18 billion acquisition of the business.

Bain, whose consortium signed the purchase deal last week, also said it hopes to settle legal disputes over the transaction at an early stage with Western Digital Corp (WDC.O), Toshiba's joint venture partner.

Toshiba aims to complete the sale by the end of its fiscal year in March. It plans to use the proceeds to plug a hole in its balance sheet caused by the bankruptcy of its U.S. nuclear power subsidiary, and save itself from potential delisting.

With the clock ticking, Bain filed for antitrust approval in China the day after signing, a person familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.

Several other sources told Reuters that the strategic nature of the chip industry for China and political complications - including currently tense relations with South Korea, and the presence of South Korea's SK Hynix Inc in the consortium - could see a lengthy process drawn out even further.

In the first news conference since the signing, Yuji Sugimoto, head of Bain Capital in Japan, told reporters on Thursday that Bain hopes to maintain stability at the chip unit through contracts with Apple Inc (AAPL.O), a major client and member of the buyout consortium.

"We have already made (antitrust) filings for regulatory approvals globally. We are making utmost efforts to close the deal by the end of March," Sugimoto told reporters.

The sale, however, faces legal challenges from Western Digital, which offered a rival bid and is seeking an injunction to block any deal that does not have its consent.

Western Digital paid some $16 billion last year to acquire SanDisk, Toshiba's chip joint venture partner since 2000. It sees chips as a pillar of growth and so is keen to keep the business out of the hands of rival chipmakers.

Story continues

"Western Digital remains an important JV partner," Sugimoto said. Bain "will help solve the legal disputes (between Toshiba and Western Digital) and help them grow together."

But he said Bain aims to close the deal even if the disputes are not resolved beforehand.

Toshiba has said the joint venture is a tiny portion of the chip unit and that it can sell the business without the joint venture. Western Digital disagrees.

For Bain, the deal is part of an aggressive expansion strategy in Japan. Only days after the Toshiba deal, Bain announced a $1.4 billion bid for Japan's third-largest advertising agency, Asatsu-DK Inc (9747.T), in one of the largest buy-outs in the country this year.

(Reporting by Makiko Yamazaki and Junko Fujita; Writing by Miyoung Kim; Editing by Christopher Cushing)
In middle school, Eileen Lowry swapped her band class out to try her hand at computer science. She hasn't looked back since."I've always been fascinated with 'how do things work?'" Today, she's tackling what some analysts are calling the most transformative technology since the dawn of the internet as a program director for IBM (NYSE: IBM) Blockchain Labs & Garage North America in New York City . Blockchain is a record of transactions  a transparent and tamper-proof digital ledger  that allows users to share information quickly, freely and without fear that it could be altered without user detection. While many associate the technology with the digital currency bitcoin, its uses have expanded in a big way, currently being applied by leading companies like IBM and Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) across industries including financial services, retail and logistics. "It's just a fascinating technology  there are so many different aspects to it from talking about transactions and instilling trust in that," Lowry said. "That's my every day, talking to clients as to why they want to instill trust in their transactions and with their clients at well."Globally, IBM has 1,500 employees working on blockchain and is looking to hire 150 additional workers around the world in the space. IBM and Wal-Mart are currently working together to leverage blockchain to address food-safety challenges. The technology can be used to trace food from "farm to fork," a process that typically would take nearly a week, in just seconds."It allows people to exchange value without knowing the identity of each other necessarily, in a secure way on the back end," said Jason Kelley, IBM's global manager for blockchain services. "On the front end, it's simplicity, transparency and trust. Think of all the cost, time and often waste that happens in the exchange of value  blockchain rids that from the system." Aside from the capital big companies are putting into the technology, investments are flowing into private companies in the space, topping $4.5 billion this year around the globe, according to a recent research note from Pitchbook . Analysts say it will only continue to create direct and indirect job opportunities for years to come."Blockchain creates a single source of truth based on the immutability of the data," said Eamonn Maguire, KPMG's global lead in blockchain for financial services. He said it will be a job creator because it has effectively created "a new set of developing protocols. And those today who have been doing developing work in other kinds of languages and other kinds of solutions are now going to be challenged to acquire new skills and capabilities in the coding of prototypes." The government is also figuring out ways to leverage the technology. The state of Delaware launched the Delaware Blockchain Initiative, to allow for more efficient governance and structure for some 300,000 companies incorporated in the state, said Kristopher Knight, deputy secretary of state. "We really wanted to allow for a platform by which these corporations could better utilize technology," Knight said. "It makes us extremely competitive and gives more advantages for companies to form in Delaware. We wanted to create the most innovative environment,  a sandbox if you will, and have all of these corporations feel comfortable in that sandbox trying out new technology."Since then, Knight says companies and even other states have reached out to figure out how they can best leverage the technology and follow Delaware's lead.Back at IBM, Lowry says one of the biggest challenges is finding qualified workers because the technology is still fairly new. The company looks at traditional candidates with backgrounds in computer science, but also at applicants' soft skills. In addition, it hires "new collar" workers  those who might not have a traditional four-year degree, or might have just come out of the military, and trains them for roles on the blockchain team."Finding people with the right experience and expertise in the enterprise isn't easy  but there are people with adjacent skills in software development, cybersecurity, cloud development. Leveraging those skills, as well as industry experts, allows us to bring together many opportunities for people looking to work in blockchain," she said.WATCH: Here's what sets Ethereum apart from its rival Bitcoin In middle school, Eileen Lowry swapped her band class out to try her hand at computer science. She hasn't looked back since. "I've always been fascinated with 'how do things work?'" Today, she's tackling what some analysts are calling the most transformative technology since the dawn of the internet as a program director for IBM (NYSE: IBM) Blockchain Labs & Garage North America in New York City . Blockchain is a record of transactions  a transparent and tamper-proof digital ledger  that allows users to share information quickly, freely and without fear that it could be altered without user detection. While many associate the technology with the digital currency bitcoin, its uses have expanded in a big way, currently being applied by leading companies like IBM and Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) across industries including financial services, retail and logistics. "It's just a fascinating technology  there are so many different aspects to it from talking about transactions and instilling trust in that," Lowry said. "That's my every day, talking to clients as to why they want to instill trust in their transactions and with their clients at well." Globally, IBM has 1,500 employees working on blockchain and is looking to hire 150 additional workers around the world in the space. IBM and Wal-Mart are currently working together to leverage blockchain to address food-safety challenges. The technology can be used to trace food from "farm to fork," a process that typically would take nearly a week, in just seconds. "It allows people to exchange value without knowing the identity of each other necessarily, in a secure way on the back end," said Jason Kelley, IBM's global manager for blockchain services. "On the front end, it's simplicity, transparency and trust. Think of all the cost, time and often waste that happens in the exchange of value  blockchain rids that from the system." Aside from the capital big companies are putting into the technology, investments are flowing into private companies in the space, topping $4.5 billion this year around the globe, according to a recent research note from Pitchbook . Analysts say it will only continue to create direct and indirect job opportunities for years to come. "Blockchain creates a single source of truth based on the immutability of the data," said Eamonn Maguire, KPMG's global lead in blockchain for financial services. He said it will be a job creator because it has effectively created "a new set of developing protocols. And those today who have been doing developing work in other kinds of languages and other kinds of solutions are now going to be challenged to acquire new skills and capabilities in the coding of prototypes." The government is also figuring out ways to leverage the technology. The state of Delaware launched the Delaware Blockchain Initiative, to allow for more efficient governance and structure for some 300,000 companies incorporated in the state, said Kristopher Knight, deputy secretary of state. "We really wanted to allow for a platform by which these corporations could better utilize technology," Knight said. "It makes us extremely competitive and gives more advantages for companies to form in Delaware. We wanted to create the most innovative environment,  a sandbox if you will, and have all of these corporations feel comfortable in that sandbox trying out new technology." Since then, Knight says companies and even other states have reached out to figure out how they can best leverage the technology and follow Delaware's lead. Back at IBM, Lowry says one of the biggest challenges is finding qualified workers because the technology is still fairly new. The company looks at traditional candidates with backgrounds in computer science, but also at applicants' soft skills. In addition, it hires "new collar" workers  those who might not have a traditional four-year degree, or might have just come out of the military, and trains them for roles on the blockchain team. "Finding people with the right experience and expertise in the enterprise isn't easy  but there are people with adjacent skills in software development, cybersecurity, cloud development. Leveraging those skills, as well as industry experts, allows us to bring together many opportunities for people looking to work in blockchain," she said. WATCH: Here's what sets Ethereum apart from its rival Bitcoin



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U.S. President Donald Trump meets with a bipartisan group of members of Congress, including U.S. Representative Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) (L) and Representative Tom Reed (R-NY) (R), at the White House in Washington, U.S. September 13, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

By Amanda Becker and David Morgan

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Disagreement among U.S. congressional Republicans is already swirling around a tax cut plan unveiled days ago by President Donald Trump, who has proposed repealing the tax on inheritances and eliminating a deduction for state and local tax payments.

The discord shows the difficulty of overhauling the complex U.S. tax code. This task has defied Washington since 1986, the last time a comprehensive rewrite was completed despite lobbyists who defend each tax break.

Trump has yet to score a major legislative win since taking office in January and is pushing hard for a tax code revamp. But his plan is meeting the same internal Republican tensions between moderates and conservatives that have sunk his efforts this year to repeal the Obamacare health law.

"There's a lot of give and take," Trump economic adviser Gary Cohn told Fox Business Network on Friday.

Members of the administration "have been meeting everyday with the tax writers trying to figure out where they need to end up to get the votes ... we're going to make sure the president gets what he asks for," he added.

One obstacle is the projected fiscal impact of the plan, which would slash U.S. revenues and expand the federal deficit and the national debt, which now exceeds $20 trillion.

Republican lawmakers from high-tax states such as New York exited meetings this week with Kevin Brady, chairman of the House of Representatives' tax-writing committee, saying there would be some sort of compromise on repealing the deduction for state and local tax payments.

Separately, some Republican senators were questioning the repeal of a 40 percent inheritance tax levied on estate assets worth more than $5.5 million, or $11 million for married couples. That tax affects only about 0.2 percent of estates, according to the Tax Policy Centre, a Washington think tank.

"That is not a priority for me as we seek to craft this tax bill," Senator Susan Collins, who has often been a key Republican vote, said in a statement on Thursday.

Story continues

Republicans want to use a procedure known as budget reconciliation to pass eventual tax legislation, which allows passage with a simple majority in the 100-seat Senate. Republicans hold 52 Senate seats and can only afford to lose support from two senators, with Vice President Mike Pence able to cast a tie-breaking vote. Democrats will likely oppose the legislation.

One Republican fiscal hawk, Senator Bob Corker, has already said he cannot support tax legislation that adds to the annual federal deficit.

"We remain very bearish on any tax legislation passing this year - or next," Cowen and Co analyst Chris Krueger said in a Friday research note.

The Trump plan, made public last week, calls for up to $6 trillion in tax cuts over 10 years. Without accompanying spending reductions, the budget would hugely expand the deficit, according to some estimates.

The administration contends tax cuts would spur so much economic growth that the resulting new revenues would help offset the cost.

In addition, Republicans are proposing "revenue raisers," such as ending the deduction for payments of state and local tax, known as SALT. Doing that would raise about $1.3 trillion over a decade, the Tax Policy Centre said.

Almost 30 percent of taxpayers currently deduct state and local taxes. In New Jersey, for example, 41 percent of tax filers, meaning individuals or married couples, claimed the deduction, which averaged $17,850, according to a Government Finance Officers Association analysis of Internal Revenue Service data.

Although the deduction disproportionately benefits people in high-tax states and localities, individuals in all states claim it. In Georgia, for example, 33 percent of tax filers claim an average deduction of $9,158, the report said.

Republican Representative Chris Collins of New York, a Trump ally, told reporters earlier this week that lawmakers from high-tax states, such as his own, were discussing "ways to level the playing field," including capping the amount of the deduction or putting other limits on it.

"There are many districts with Republican members where state and local deduction is used by a large portion of the taxpayers," said Frank Sammartino, a senior fellow at the Tax Policy Centre. "So it's not surprising that it's not strictly a blue state/red state thing."

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called the state and local tax deduction the "Achilles' heel" of tax reform and said his party would oppose any move to repeal it. He dismissed compromise plans as unfeasible.

Brady said on Thursday that at this point there has been no change to the framework, but tax writers are "listening very carefully" to lawmakers' concerns.

"It's got to be frustrating when you're in a state where local and state officials really put the screws to taxpayers," Brady told reporters. "We are determined to provide tax relief to every American, regardless of where they live."

(Additional reporting by Richard Cowan; Writing by Amanda Becker; Editing by Leslie Adler and Lisa Von Ahn)
Donald Trump has hit the headlines again after pronouncing Puerto Rico in an exaggerated Spanish accent at a Hispanic Heritage Month event.

The US president told the crowd at the event: We are also praying for the people of Puerto Rico. We love Puerto Rico.

He then repeated Puerto Rico, before switching to his usual accent to laughingly add: And we also love Puerto Rico.

Pres. Trump: PUerto Rico. We love PUerto Rico. And we also love Puerto Rico." pic.twitter.com/3fbzGvybd4  Dan Linden (@DanLinden) October 6, 2017

The comments sparked anger among many who saw them as the latest in a series of apparently disrespectful behaviour towards the people of Puerto Rico.

MORE: Genetically altered muscular pigs are spotted in disturbing farm video

MORE: Real risk of future US, China conflict, warns global think tank

One Twitter user asked what would happen if the US President had adopted the same approach in addressing the people of Las Vegas  still reeling from the massacre by gunman Stephen Paddock  saying: Can you imagine if he repeated Las Vegas three times with a fucking goofy-ass cartoon Western accent? WAKE UP PEOPLE!

He's like the Joker from Batman but less likeable  Jenny (@ncsujen) October 6, 2017

there are no words to explain the level of disgust I have for this man.  Resa (@Resa_Two) October 6, 2017

Many also noticed the reaction of Mr Trumps wife Melania, who was filmed at his side during the comments, initially smiling then adopting what some termed a blank expression.

Some suggested the First Lady did not really understand what was going on, taking her cues from those around her, while others made more humorous comparisons.

Story continues

Melania doesn't smile until the she hears the audience really laugh, I guess to get a cue on how to react.  therese (@Loki_Stubbin) October 6, 2017

She takes her cues from him sometimes. It's like she's confused about what he's saying then she laughs. Odd!  JayC (@jca10c9) October 6, 2017

cyborg  JayC (@jca10c9) October 7, 2017

The comments come after Mr Trump fell under fire during a visit to the US territory earlier this week where he joked that recovery costs after Hurricane Maria had thrown his budget out of whack and compared the devastation to a real catastrophe like 2005s Hurricane Katrina.
President Donald Trump: AP

Donald Trumps approval ratings have plumbed new depths as less than a third of Americans now back his leadership, a poll has suggested.

Just 32 per cent of voters say they approve of the way the billionaire is handling the pressures of the Oval Office, while 67 per cent disapprove, according to a survey by the Associated Press and the NORC Centre for Public Affairs Research.

Less than a fifth  19 per cent  said they believed the President understood their needs and problems, while only 23 per cent said they thought he was honest.

The findings showed Mr Trumps approval rating had slipped a full 10 points since March.

The analytics website FiveThirtyEights poll tracker showed the Presidents average approval rating sitting at about 38 per cent.

More than 60 percent of Americans disapprove of how Mr Trump is handling race relations, foreign policy and immigration.

His stock is falling even among Republicans, AP-NORCs survey said. In March 80 per cent believed he was doing a good job but this has now slipped to just 67 per cent.

Voters also had a low opinion of Mr Trumps response to the devastation wrought by Hurricane Maria on Puerto Rico, it was reported this week.

Again only 32 per cent approved of the way he was handling the disaster, AP-NORC found, though 48 per cent had backed his response to earlier hurricane damage in Texas and Florida.

Before a visit to the US territory, Mr Trump lashed out at the mayor of San Juan, Carmen Yulin Cruz. Once on the island he urged officials to say positive things about his administration and threw rolls of paper towels into the crowd at a relief centre.

Whatever Mr Trumps troubles, Congress was held in even lower regard among those surveyed by AP-NORC.

Only 18 per cent approved of how it was working, with 81 per cent actively disapproving. More than half, or 51 per cent, strongly disapproved.

The gloomy outlook was encapsulated by the proportion of voters who said they were confident the US was headed in the right direction  a mere 24 per cent.
Elon Musk may be about to add humanitarian relief worker to his already-impressive resume.

Musk tweeted Thursday that Tesla could help provide a long-term solution to rebuilding Puerto Ricos electrical grid, which was devastated when Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico on Sept. 20, causing widespread damage and island-wide blackouts. Two weeks after the storm hit, only 9.2% of Puerto Ricans have seen service resume, according to Puerto Rican authorities.

The notion was set off when Scott Stapf of consulting firm The Hastings Group wondered on Twitter whether Musk could help rebuild Puerto Ricos power infrastructure with independent solar & battery systems.

Perhaps to Stapfs surprise, the billionaire investor and entrepreneur responded in the affirmative:

The Tesla team has done this for many smaller islands around the world, but there is no scalability limit, so it can be done for Puerto Rico too. Such a decision would be in the hands of the PR govt, PUC, any commercial stakeholders and, most importantly, the people of PR.  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 5, 2017

The Tesla CEO wasnt just speculating: Following its $2.6 billion acquisition of SolarCity in 2016, Tesla installed a network of more than 5,000 solar panels and 60 Tesla Powerpacks and on the island of Ta'? in American Samoa that can power the island with 100% clean energy for three consecutive days, according to a promotional video about the endeavor.

Musk has already put his money where his mouth is. In addition to a personal donation of $250,000 to the relief effort, Tesla has also sent hundreds of Powerwall battery systems to power solar panels and help restore electricity on the beleaguered island, as well as company technicians to assist with installation and repairs.

Apparently Musks claim hasnt fallen on deaf ears. Puerto Rican Governor Ricardo Rossello responded, with an invitation to talk about making Puerto Rico Teslas energy flagship project.

Story continues

See original article on Fortune.com

More from Fortune.com
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Commission said on Friday it had conducted inspections in some EU states into banks' alleged anti-competitive practices in limiting rival financial firms from gaining legitimate online access to their customers' data.

The Commission said in a statement it had "concerns" that the companies involved "may have engaged in anti-competitive practices in breach of EU antitrust rules". It did not name any company.

It said that banks could have prevented non-bank competitors from gaining online access to account information of their customers to provide financial services, in spite of having obtained prior authorisation from the customers.

The unannounced inspections were carried out on Oct. 3, the commission said. Antitrust inspections are preliminary steps into suspected practices that may not result in formal accusations.

Financial technology, or "fintech" companies had complained of banks limiting their access to customers. Fintech firms provide payment, lending and other services.

(Reporting by Francesco Guarascio @fraguarascio; editing by Andrew Roche)
President Donald Trump struck false notes in addressing Puerto Ricos crisis in recent days, exaggerating both the ferocity of a truly ferocious hurricane and the pace of recovery. He also seemed to raise false hope that the territorys staggering debt would go away.

A look at his remarks during and after his visit to the hurricane-ravaged island:

Trump: This has been the toughest one. This has been a Category 5, whichfew people have ever even heard of a Category 5 hitting land. But it hit land and, boy, did it hit land.  remarks Tuesday in Puerto Rico.

The Facts: As terrible as it was, Maria actually made landfall on Puerto Rico as a Category 4 hurricane, not 5. Winds were at 155 mph (249 kph), not 157 (253), the minimum for Category 5. Its a distinction no doubt lost on Puerto Ricansthe storm was even stronger than Harvey and Irma upon landfall, said National Hurricane Center spokesman Dennis Feltgen. But, operationally it was a Category 4 hurricane.

Trump has repeatedly misstated the record. A week earlier, he said: It actually touched down as a Category 5. People have never seen anything like that, and it was dead center. And: The second one hit Puerto Rico as a Category 5. I dont believe anybodys ever seen that happen before, hit land with that kind of velocity.

Trump also said at one point that Maria had winds of 200 mph (322 kph). No official reports put the winds that strong.

His supposition that no other hurricane has made landfall with such velocity is wrong, even when limiting the scope of the comparison to the United States. Marias winds at landfall were exceeded by three Category 5 hurricanes that came ashore on the U.S. mainland: in the Florida Keys in 1935, Camille in 1969 and Andrew in 1992. And Maria wasnt the strongest recorded hurricane to hit Puerto Rico. Hurricane San Felipe was. It made landfall in 1928 as a Category 5.

Read: Elon Musk Says Tesla Could Get Puerto Ricos Lights Back On

Trump on Puerto Ricos debt: Were going to have to wipe that out.  I dont know if its Goldman Sachs, but whoever it is, you can wave goodbye to that.  to Fox News on Tuesday.

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The Facts: Washington doesnt have the authority to force investors to take massive losses, if thats what he meant. And Trumps budget director, Mick Mulvaney, said afterward: We are not going to be offering a bailout for Puerto Rico or for its current bondholders.

Much of the $74 billion debt is tied up in court-supervised restructuring since Puerto Rico sought a form of bankruptcy protection last year. Brian Setser, a former Treasury official who worked on Puerto Ricos debt crisis, said the court process is likely to yield significant debt reduction, but it is not something that the president can make happen.

Trumps remark contributed to a plunge in Puerto Ricos bond prices. Falling bond prices are a sign that investors may be less likely to be repaidsomething that usually makes it more expensive for governments and companies to borrow.

Although the type of federal hurricane recovery aid that Puerto Rico receives could influence how debt repayment unfolds, thats not a bailout and creditors wont be paid anytime soon.

White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Thursday that Puerto Rico will have to go through that process set up during the Obama administration to have a lasting recovery and growth. There was no hint in her comments that Trump plans an initiative to make the debt disappear.

Trump: Who needs a flashlight?  Flashlights, you dont need em anymore. You dont need em anymore.  while handing out flashlights and tossing rolls of paper towels to a crowd in Puerto Rico on Tuesday.

The Facts: Its possible his particular audience did not need flashlights, but many Puerto Ricans do. He was visiting the upscale Guaynabo neighborhood, one of the fastest to recover. But more than 90% of the islands electricity customers remained without power at the time, nearly two weeks after the hurricane. And those who have it back are experiencing periodic blackouts.

Trump called the recovery nothing short of a miracle. But the tour showed him a small slice of the island and exposed him to few critics of the relief effort. Visits to homes hammered by the storm were pre-arranged. Water shortages and despair continue in much of the island even as relief supplies have started to move faster and more gas stations start pumping again.

Even in the heart of San Juan, a few miles from Trumps path, people were hauling clothes fouled with sewage and wet mattresses out of homes still without electricity as he issued his upbeat report. They said no one has come to help them since the storm hit.
(Reuters) - Global banks have said they could move thousands of jobs out of Britain to prepare for the country's planned exit from the European Union.

Financial service companies need a regulated subsidiary in an EU country to offer products across the bloc, which could prompt some to move some operations out of Britain if it loses access to the European single market.

Around 10,000 finance jobs will be shifted out of Britain or created overseas in the next few years if the UK is denied access to the single market, a Reuters survey of firms employing the bulk of workers in international finance shows.

Following are related stories about top banks (in alphabetical order):

ASSOCIATION OF FOREIGN BANKS IN GERMANY

The association expects 3,000 to 5,000 new jobs in Frankfurt over the next two years as a result of Brexit, its head Stefan Winter, of UBS, told Welt am Sonntag in June. He said he expected 12 to 14 major banks to expand their Frankfurt sites significantly or build new ones.

BANK OF AMERICA CORP

Bank of America (BAC.N) named former CFO Bruce Thompson as the new leader of its European global banking and markets operations to be based in Dublin, according to a company memo from Chief Operating Officer Tom Montag.

Bank of America is looking to lease more office space in Paris as the bank prepares to expand its operations in the French capital to cope with the impact of Brexit, according to two sources familiar with the matter.

The bank has already said it has picked Dublin as the new legal headquarters for its EU operations.

Bank of America said in August that its businesses and results could be adversely affected and it may have to incur additional costs if Brexit limited the ability of its UK entities to conduct business in the EU.

BARCLAYS

Barclays (BARC.L) has signed a lease agreement for more office space in Dublin as it prepares to expand its operations there to cope with the impact of Brexit.

It said in July that it was talking with Irish regulators about extending its activities in Dublin.

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Chief Executive Jes Staley has said that Barclays will keep the bulk of its activities in Britain and any changes to how the bank operates would be small and manageable.

BNP PARIBAS

BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA) may move up to 300 London investment bank staff because of Brexit, depending how clients adapt and the French bank's efforts to win new UK business, a source said.

The company had 3,123 staff in its corporate and institutional bank in Britain at end-2016, down from 3,294 a year earlier, internal documents seen by Reuters showed.

CITIGROUP

Citigroup (C.N) is applying for a licence to conduct sales and trading activities in France, James Cowles, Citi's chief executive for Europe, the Middle East & Africa (EMEA) told a French newspaper.

Citigroup has said it may need to create 150 new jobs in the EU and confirmed it would headquarter its EU trading operations in Frankfurt.

The U.S. bank is also at an advanced stage in plans to move part of its private banking unit from London to Madrid, a source familiar with the matter said.

CREDIT AGRICOLE

Credit Agricole (CAGR.PA), France's third-biggest listed bank, could relocate about 100 employees from its London hub to France out of 1,000 based there in the case of a "hard" Brexit, its chief executive said.

Credit Agricole is to move its European government bonds trading platform from London to Paris in September 2017, a spokeswoman told Reuters.

CREDIT SUISSE

Credit Suisse's (CSGN.S) Chief Executive Tidjane Thiam said in September that his bank is relatively well placed to deal with Brexit and that only 15-20 percent of volumes in the investment bank would be affected.

DAIWA SECURITIES GROUP

Japan's No. 2 brokerage Daiwa Securities Group said it will set up a subsidiary in Frankfurt, making it one of the first banks to publicly choose Germany to keep a foothold in the EU.

The group has said it would still keep staff in London even after Brexit. It has 450 staff working in the EU now, mostly in the British capital.

The German city is Daiwa's favoured destination, as London-based staff can easily be transferred to its investment banking branch in Frankfurt, Chief Executive Seiji Nakata said.

DEUTSCHE BANK

Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE) is beefing up its presence in Frankfurt. Chief Executive John Cryan said the German lender expected to add new jobs in Frankfurt, where it will replicate a structure that is interchangeable with its London operations and evolve as Brexit negotiations unfold.

Deutsche Bank warned in April that up to 4,000 UK jobs could be moved to Frankfurt and other EU locations - the highest potential move of any bank.

European supervisors want Deutsche Bank to prepare a fallback plan, laying out how it could shift the clearing of trades from London, one person told Reuters.

Deutsche Bank is "uncomfortable" with the uncertainty over regulations following Brexit, a senior official at Germany's biggest bank said.

EUROCLEAR

Settlement bank Euroclear is looking at setting up a branch or subsidiary to provide a route between its UK and Irish markets, the head of its UK and Irish operation said.

FRENCH BANKING FEDERATION

French banks could shift about 1,000 jobs from London to Paris to keep staff in the EU, the French Banking Federation said.

GOLDMAN SACHS

U.S. bank Goldman Sachs (GS.N) is considering moving up to 1,000 staff to Frankfurt because of concerns over Brexit, Handelsblatt reported in January.

Goldman will begin moving hundreds of people out of London before any Brexit deal is struck as part of its contingency plans, the CEO of its European arm said in March.

Wolfgang Fink, co-chief of Goldman Sachs in Germany, said in Septemebr it may triple or quadruple its presence in Frankfurt.

The bank has since agreed to lease office space at a new building in Frankfurt as it prepares for Brexit, a spokesman for the bank said on Oct. 4.

HSBC

HSBC (HSBA.L) could spend up to $300 million moving jobs and parts of its business to Paris, CEO Stuart Gulliver said. The estimate includes the costs of relocating up to 1,000 jobs to the French capital and associated legal fees.

INVESTEC

Investec (INVP.L) (INLJ.J) is considering converting its London bank's Dublin branch into a subsidiary to ensure it has continued access to the European single market, Chief Executive Stephen Koseff told The Telegraph in May.

However, the Anglo-South African lender and asset manager would see only a small part of its business affected by Brexit, the newspaper quoted Koseff as saying. (http://bit.ly/2qywZzY)

JPMORGAN

JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N), the biggest U.S. bank by assets, said in July that the bank would probably use Frankfurt as the legal domicile of its European operations after Brexit, though jobs could be moved elsewhere as well.

The U.S. bank has also agreed to buy a Dublin building with room for 1,000 staff in the first sign of a financial services company expanding significantly in Ireland since the government began a major campaign to attract businesses after Brexit.

However, the bank, which employs about 500 people in Dublin, did not say how many jobs would be created or whether any positions would be moved from the United Kingdom.

JPMorgan has chosen Warsaw to host a new global operations centre that will employ several thousand people over the next few years, Polish Deputy Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said.

U.S. bank JPMorgan Chase JPM.N plans to hire more than 3,000 people in its new global operations centre in the next three years, the Polish Development Ministry said in September, though the moves are not directly linked to Brexit.

JULIUS BAER

Julius Baer, Switzerland's third-biggest private bank, is moving its European hub from Frankfurt to Luxembourg but will continue to keep its options open in London, chief executive Boris Collardi has said.

Brexit opens the door for a UK-Swiss deal covering financial services, said Collardi.

Julius Baer is opening three new UK offices as it looks to the bank for wealthy residents spooked by Brexit.

LLOYDS BANKING GROUP

Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY.L), Britain's largest mortgage lender and the only major British retail bank without a subsidiary in another EU country, is close to selecting Berlin as a European base to secure EU market access.

MORGAN STANLEY

Morgan Stanley (MS.N) has chosen Frankfurt to be a new base for its EU operations, a source familiar with the matter said.

"That means 200 new people will be coming to Frankfurt," the source said.

Morgan Stanley has identified many of the roles that will need to be moved from Britain, sources involved in the processes said.

The U.S. bank, which bases the bulk of its European staff in Britain, will have to move up to 1,000 jobs in sales and trading, risk management, legal and compliance, as well as slimming the back office in favour of locations overseas, one source told Reuters.

Morgan Stanley could initially shift 300 staff from Britain after its EU exit and is scouting for office space in Frankfurt and Dublin, Bloomberg News reported in February.

The bank plans to double the number of its bankers in Frankfurt to 400, Welt am Sonntag reported in June.

MIZUHO

Japan's Mizuho Financial Group (8411.T) said it would set up a subsidiary in Frankfurt, the latest Japanese bank to choose the German city as its new base in the European Union as Britain prepares to leave the bloc.

MITSUBISHI UFJ FINANCIAL GROUP

Japan's Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc said in September that it has picked Amsterdam as its EU investment banking base.

NOMURA

Nomura Holdings Inc is applying for a licence to operate a new entity in Frankfurt.

NORTHERN TRUST

Asset management company Northern Trust (NTRS.O) has said it will set up an EU banking base in Luxembourg.

Around a third of Northern Trust's institutional clients have asked it to ringfence British exposure from their broader European portfolios to protect them from Brexit-related risks.

RBS

Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS.L) said it may move up to around 150 jobs to Amsterdam after Brexit.

RBS also said it was in talks with the Dutch central bank to use a licence it has in the Netherlands to conduct some Natwest Markets business there if it becomes necessary.

RBS Chief Executive Ross McEwan said the bank will enact its Brexit plans by the end of March 2018 if no clarity emerges about Britain's ability to retain access to the single market.

SOCIETE GENERALE

Societe Generale (SOGN.PA) could move 400 corporate and investment banking jobs from London, with most going to Paris, Chief Executive Frederic Oudea said in July.

Oudea said the possible move of jobs after Brexit would affect 300-400 investment banking jobs out of 2,000 it has overall for that business in London.

STANDARD CHARTERED

Standard Chartered will need to spend around $20 million making Frankfurt its European base in order to secure market access to the European Union when Britain leaves the bloc, Chief Executive Bill Winters told Reuters in August.

SUMITOMO MITSUI FINANCIAL

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc said its core banking unit, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp (SMBC), has decided to set up a subsidiary in Frankfurt.

TD SECURITIES

TD Securities, the investment banking arm of Toronto-Dominion Bank Group (TD.TO), said it would expand operations in Dublin to bolster its European business in response to uncertainty triggered by Brexit.

UBS

UBS (UBSG.S) is weighing up whether to move banking jobs in London to Frankfurt, Madrid or Amsterdam to cope with Britain's planned EU departure, Chief Executive Sergio Ermotti said in July.

The bank has estimated that it would need to "move 1,500 people" from London to the EU to retain full passporting rights, according to Chairman Axel Weber. That would be more than a quarter of its 5,500 staff in London.

The world's biggest wealth manager has also set up a bank in Frankfurt to consolidate most of its European wealth management operations.

(Compiled by Noor Zainab Hussain and Esha Vaish in Bengaluru; Editing by Rachel Armstrong, Alexander Smith, Greg Mahlich)
Ford Motor Company president and CEO James Hackett answer questions from the media during a press conference at Ford Motor World Headquarters in Dearborn, Michigan, U.S., May 22, 2017. REUTERS/Rebecca Cook

By Nick Carey

DETROIT (Reuters) - The United Auto Workers is talking with Ford Motor Co (F.N) about ways to avoid layoffs as the No. 2 U.S. automaker builds more electric vehicles, a senior union official told Reuters on Thursday.

Ford told investors Tuesday it planned to slash $14 billion in costs over the next five years and shift investments away from internal combustion engines and sedans to develop more trucks, plus electric and hybrid cars.

"We've been doing our due diligence to find out how much it (electrification) means to us," UAW Vice President Jimmy Settles, head of the union's Ford department said in a telephone interview. "We put them on notice early on that we want to be part of this process."

"Up to this point they (Ford) have been agreeable that it's in the best interest of the company and also our members for us to be part of the process," he added.

Ford's push into electric comes after Detroit rival General Motors Co (GM.N) unveiled plans to add 20 new battery electric and fuel cell vehicles to its global lineup by 2023.

Ford's presentation to investors this week under new chief executive Jim Hackett, included a slide touting a 30 percent reduction in "hours per unit" to build electric vehicles.

Fewer hours mean fewer workers.

German automaker Daimler AG (DAIGn.DE) warned last month that electric Mercedes models would initially be just half as profitable as conventional alternatives - forcing the group to find savings by outsourcing more component manufacturing, which may in turn threaten German jobs.

The UAW's Settles said he had met one-on-one with Hackett, a former CEO of office furniture maker Steelcase Inc (SCS.N) and in a meeting with union leaders in recent weeks.

He said Hackett's message had been that he wants to find new opportunities for UAW workers as electrification evolves.

"The assembly may be different, but he's not looking to eliminate any jobs," Settles said of Hackett. "He's been consistent in what he's saying and I'm optimistic he means it."

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The UAW vice president said the union and automaker had assembled teams to discuss future jobs, including for production workers and skilled trades workers, Settles said.

Settles said Ford's announcement in March that it would invest $200 million on a new data center in Michigan could create new union-represented, technology-related jobs.

"We need further communications on what it means in terms of jobs," he said.

Ford has completed 85 percent of its 2015 union contract target of creating or retaining 8,500 union jobs by 2019 and could hit 100 percent by the end of 2017, Settles said.

A Ford spokeswoman said the company and the UAW are in "constant communications about the business."

(Reporting by Nick Carey; Editing by Andrew Hay)
FILE PHOTO: Former F-Squared Investments Inc CEO Howard Present (C), arrives at the federal court in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. September 7, 2017. REUTERS/Nate Raymond/File Photo (Reuters)

By Nate Raymond

BOSTON (Reuters) - A U.S. jury on Friday found that the former chief executive of F-Squared Investments Inc, once the largest U.S. money manager creating portfolios out of exchange-traded funds, violated federal securities laws.

The federal jury in Boston sided with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in finding that former F-Squared CEO Howard Present intended to defraud investors or was reckless in how he touted the history of his company's flagship investment product.

The verdict came after lawyers for both sides delivered closing arguments following a four-week trial. The verdict will allow the SEC to ask a federal judge to impose an injunction and order Present to forfeit earnings and pay penalties.

Present, the co-founder of Wellesley, Massachusetts-based F-Squared, denied wrongdoing. His lawyer declined to comment.

The SEC sued Present in 2014 on the same day it announced F-Squared had agreed to pay $35 million and admit wrongdoing to resolve claims it misled investors by falsely advertising the performance of an investment product called AlphaSector.

At its height, F-Squared was one of the largest U.S. firms of its kind, with more than $28 billion invested with it, the SEC said. It filed for bankruptcy in 2015.

According to the SEC, beginning in September 2008, Present began marketing AlphaSector as having a successful record dating back to 2001 that was based on a multibillion-dollar wealth manager's strategy.

"But really, it was all made up," SEC lawyer Rachel Hershfang told jurors on Friday.

In truth, the data F-Squared used to market AlphaSector was based on an algorithm developed by a college student at a nearby firm and was applied to historical market data, resulting in a hypothetical performance, the SEC said.

The SEC also said an F-Squared analyst who calculated the hypothetical numbers made a mistake in the process that substantially inflated the investment performance that appeared in marketing materials Present wrote.

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Despite learning about the error, Present did not tell the analyst to correct it and continued using the inflated performance figures, the SEC said.

Present's lawyer, Anthony Fuller, told jurors in his closing argument that his client honestly believed that the strategy AlphaSector was based on had actually been used with real client funds when he licensed it from another firm.

"He reasonably believed in what he was saying," Fuller said.

The case is Securities and Exchange Commission v. Present, U.S. District Court, District of Massachusetts, No. 14-cv-14692.

(Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston; Editing by Andrew Hay and Jonathan Oatis)
International travelers arrive on the day that U.S. President Donald Trump's limited travel ban, approved by the U.S. Supreme Court, goes into effect, at Logan Airport in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S., June 29, 2017. REUTERS/Brian Snyder (Reuters)

By Lawrence Hurley

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Challengers to President Donald Trump's travel ban targeting several Muslim-majority countries on Thursday urged the U.S. Supreme Court to decide the policy's legality even though it has been replaced with a revised plan.

In separate letters to the court, the American Civil Liberties Union and the state of Hawaii said the justices should still hear the case, which had been scheduled for arguments next week but was taken off their calendar after the administration announced the reworked ban last month.

The challengers, characterizing the new ban as an indefinite extension of the previous one, said individuals who sued have an interest in the expired measure being declared unlawful because they continue to be harmed by the new policy.

Hawaii also told the court in a separate letter that it intended to challenge Trump's latest travel ban by seeking on Friday to amend its existing lawsuit against the previous one.

The Justice Department urged the justices not to hear the case, to throw out earlier lower court rulings that had invalidated the ban and to order that the legal challenges be dismissed.

Trump's three successive moves to block entry into the United States by people from several predominantly Muslim countries have been among his most contentious acts since taking office in January. Trump had promised as a candidate "a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States."

The ACLU told the court that the plaintiffs who sued to stop the policy "retain an all-too-real stake in the outcome of the case" even though the original 90-day travel ban on people from six countries expired on Sept. 24. That order was signed by Trump in March and was enacted with some changes in June with the high court's blessing.

The justices on Sept. 25 asked all the parties to file court papers expressing views on whether the case was moot, meaning there was nothing left to decide, because the temporary ban expired.

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That ban had targeted people from Iran, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Somalia and Sudan. The new open-ended ban announced in a presidential proclamation on Sept. 24 removed Sudan from the list and blocked people from Chad and North Korea and certain government officials from Venezuela from entering the United States.

Among the issues raised by the challengers is whether the ban discriminated against Muslims in violation of the U.S. Constitution's prohibition on the government favoring or disfavoring a particular religion.

REFUGEE BAN

A separate 120-day ban on refugees entering the United States that was part of Trump's March order expires on Oct. 24.

Hawaii's lawyers said that even if the high court decided not to issue a ruling, it should still leave the lower court decisions in place. To do otherwise would allow the administration to effectively win the case by erasing rulings that had gone against Trump, Hawaii argued.

The Justice Department said that it wants the lower court rulings tossed because the challengers will otherwise cite them in new litigation against Trump's reworked ban.

"The lower courts should be considering challenges to the proclamation anew based on its text, operation, and findings," Justice Department lawyers wrote.

The weekly behind-closed-doors meeting in which the justices consider next steps in cases before them is scheduled for Friday morning. The court could make an announcement at any time.

The new ban could affect tens of thousands of potential immigrants and visitors to the United States. Opponents have said that like the earlier two orders from January and March, it was still effectively a "Muslim ban."

Even if the Supreme Court dismissed the older case, it may still have to weigh in on the issue in the future. Various challengers have filed suit against the reworked ban, and those cases potentially could reach the high court.

(Reporting by Lawrence Hurley. Additional reporting by Dan Levine.; Editing by Will Dunham and Andrew Hay)
Christine Lagarde, head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), attends a conference at the Cannes Lions Festival in Cannes, France, June 23, 2017. REUTERS/Eric Gaillard

Bitcoin is too expensive for one of the most powerful women in finance.

Christine Lagarde, the head of the International Monetary Fund, on Friday told CNBC's Sara Eisen that bitcoin is "too expensive for me at the moment" when asked if she would ever buy into the red-hot digital currency.

Lagarde last month gave a soft defense of the cryptocurrency during a speech in London. She said cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin could "give existing currencies and monetary policy a run for their money." The IMF is one of the largest supranational organizations and facilitates cooperation between nations on monetary and fiscal policy.

Bitcoin is up more than 380% at around $4,500 per coin.

"Not so long ago, some experts argued that personal computers would never be adopted, and that tablets would only be used as expensive coffee trays," she said. "So I think it may not be wise to dismiss virtual currencies."

During the wide-ranging interview with Eisen, Lagarde shared her thoughts on the bitcoin crackdown in China. She said the ban on initial coin offerings, a cryptocurrency-based fundraising method, in China was "done on that on the basis of the analysis that it was at least strongly dominated by...speculation and Ponzi-like schemes, which is certainly showing that they are paying attention."

ICOs allow startups to raise money by issuing their own cryptocurrencies. They've come under scrutiny by regulators because companies can use them to raise quick money without having to disclose substantive information to investors. The Securities and Exchange Commission charged one man with operating two fraudulent ICOs last month.

Still, despite the bad actors Lagarde thinks people should pay attention to the market.

"When I look at my own country where, you know, all transactions between ... my compatriots and the treasury department is all now on digital support," she said. "I think there are massive changes taking place at the moment which everybody needs to be attentive to."

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NOW WATCH: The head of a $55 billion fund at First Eagle points out the risks everyone else on Wall Street is missing





More From Business Insider


By Stephen Jewkes

MILAN (Reuters) - Italian oil major Eni is betting billions on Luca Bertelli being able to achieve something he's been doing since he was nine years old: spotting things others overlook.

The geologist, who heads Eni's exploration team, began collecting rocks as a boy growing up in Tuscany, developing a curious eye that eventually led him to discover two of the world's biggest gas fields this century.

His latest success, the Zohr field off Egypt, sits in an area that Royal Dutch Shell pored over for years before Bertelli persuaded his boss to embark on a drilling programme that turned up the Mediterranean's largest gas discovery.

Now the 59-year-old and his team are under pressure to show they can keep finding treasures others have missed  this time in waters off Mexico where former state oil monopoly Pemex has been exploring for decades.

"We feel there's room for surprise, even in areas previously explored," Bertelli said up in his 12th-floor office in Milan, fingering a specimen of crumbly oil-rich rock from the Amoca field it won, with two other fields, in 2015.

Bertelli is a lynchpin in Eni's corporate strategy which in recent years has seen it break ranks with major rivals and ignore the rush to shale, focusing instead on eking out the world's conventional energy resources.

In recent years weakness in its "downstream" businesses like refining and chemicals have dragged on profits and placed more of a premium on securing success in "upstream" exploration.

In its new frontier Mexico, Eni has so far targeted shallow waters, close to the coast and Pemex infrastructure facilities - just the kind of target more likely to be picked over already and be on the radar of larger rivals with deeper pockets.

But Bertelli told Reuters that Eni was embarking on a "more aggressive" exploration programme from 2018 with a special eye on Mexico where it will bid in upcoming tenders in deep and ultra-deep waters.

"We believe Mexico is one of the last major opportunities to access material oil assets in unexplored or under-explored areas," he said. "There aren't many of them left."

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Drilling deepwater wells thousands of metres under the sea is far more costly and risky than exploring shallow water or shale deposits, but potential rewards are much higher. Last year Eni drilled only five deepwater wells from the 15 or so two years before when crude was double current prices.

So the pressure is now on Eni's geologists to identify the right rocks and wells - and the competition is heating up; majors including BP and Shell are also bidding for acreage in Mexican waters.

INTUITION + SUPERCOMPUTING

Eni is the first foreign oil major to drill off Mexico since the government broke up Pemex's 80-year-old monopoly in 2013.

The company has not disclosed its investment plans, but Mexico's oil regulator chief, Juan Carlos Zepeda, told Reuters its decision to fast-track Amoca would prompt spending of more than $1 billion.

Eni declined to comment on that figure but is undoubtedly betting big on Bertelli's team extending its record as the industry's most successful conventional explorer, as measured by energy consultant Wood Mackenzie.

Between 2010 and 2015, Eni's reserve replacement ratio - a key metric showing the amount of reserves added compared with the oil and gas produced - was 480 percent, excluding shale. (See graphic: http://reut.rs/2yqAptI)

That was way ahead of other majors with Statoil in second place with 126 percent and ExxonMobil third with 54 percent.

The story of how Eni discovered the giant Zohr field in 2015 offers a window into how Bertelli and his team operate; geologic intuition and experience, he said, told him there could be something there that other companies hadn't spotted.

Previous discoveries in the East Mediterranean had all been in sandstone. But it soon became clear this was not the case in Zohr, prompting a host of rivals to dismiss the site.

What Bertelli and his team saw instead were the outlines of a different kind of structure beneath a thick layer of salt and he had a hunch it could be a form of limestone - carbonate - that he had seen yielding oil and gas in fields as far flung as Kazakhstan and Venezuela.

"Intuition comes from experience," he said. "In the case of Zohr we'd already seen similar geological features elsewhere."

Then Eni's supercomputer came in. It is the third most powerful in the industry after those operated by France's Total and Norwegian marine geophysics firm Petroleum Geo-Services, processing 8 million billion operations a second.

It recrunched imaging data hailing from the 1990s to look for signs of carbonate formation, performing the task in a matter of days rather than the months that was once needed.

"The result gave us the confidence to back up our intuition," said Bertelli. "We decided to go for drilling."

But if Eni, the seventh-biggest major by output, might have an edge in exploration, its downstream business has struggled. The consequent shift of focus away from those areas has raised concerns it might be overly exposed to oil price volatility.

Its heavy presence in Africa, with the risk associated with working in places like Libya and Nigeria, is for some another reason why the company's shares have underperformed peers like BP and Total. (See graphic: http://reut.rs/2yqQEa3)

LOW RISK = SMALL SUCCESS

A decade ago, Eni was all but washed-up as an explorer.

It was struggling to discover as much new oil and gas as it extracted each year. And its ability to run complex projects was in doubt after losing its role as sole operator of the huge Kashagan oilfield in 2008 due to delays and cost overruns.

Since then it has discovered two world-class gas fields, in Mozambique and Egypt, adding 115 trillion cubic feet of resources.

Bertelli attributes the turnaround to a strategy he helped CEO Claudio Descalzi implement  a focus on simple projects majority-owned by Eni to better control costs and time.

The decision not to chase the shale bonanza that reshaped the industry was also key. "We found a window of opportunity in a field no longer dominated by the super-majors but by smaller independent players."

In Mexico, Pemex has picked over much of the area, including the Cantarell field in Campeche Bay. But with its relatively small budget, it has not been able to deploy the full range of modern technology and expertise energy majors can bring to bear.

Eni originally estimated its Mexican fields held 800 million barrels, but it raised that to 1.4 billion last month. The aim now is to explore areas in deeper waters carrying greater risk.

"Lowest risk usually means very small success," says Woodmac head of exploration Andrew Latham. "All exploration depends on seeing value that others miss, which requires innovation or original thinking."

Eni will be counting above all on its chief geologist's intuition and - like all explorers - a little luck to pull off another big discovery.

Bertelli points to a map on his wall of the company's giant Mamba field off Mozambique, calling it one of a kind. Then he pauses for thought. "But it's probably not unique," he adds. "There's another one out there waiting to be found."

(Additional reporting by David Alire Garcia in Mexico and Danilo Masoni in Milan; Editing by Mark Bendeich and Pravin Char)
mandalay bay hotel window paddock

Air Force Maj. Charles Chesnut was asleep when Stephen Paddock opened fire on a crowd at a concert outside the Mandalay Bay hotel in Las Vegas just after 10 p.m. on Sunday.

About 90 minutes later, he was woken up by an alert to avoid the city's downtown area.

Despite that warning, Chesnut, a general surgeon assigned to the 99th Medical Group at Nellis Air Force Base, met his commander and headed toward the scene.

He arrived at University Medical Center of Southern Nevada around midnight, as treatment for the first wave of patients was wrapping up.

But his work was just beginning.

"Within two hours after the incident, all the resuscitation bays [at the hospital] were full, and six patients were being operated on by trauma surgeons," Chesnut said in an Air Force interview.

Air Force Col. Brandon Snook was another surgeon working at the University Medical Center during the aftermath of the shooting.

"Days like we experienced at UMC are the toughest ones, when you have multiple patients injured while multiple patients are continuing to come to the hospital," said Snook, a surgeon from the 99th Medical Group.

Las Vegas shooting hospital room trauma center nurse

Chesnut said that doctors treated over 100 patients, most from gunshot wounds, as well as some patients who were trampled.

"My part of that was probably no more than 30 patients, ranging from surgical procedures to end-of-life care to supervising our residents in training to getting glasses of water and holding patients' hands and helping them charge their cellphones," he added.

The University Medical Center is the state's only level-one trauma center, meaning it is staffed with surgeons and trauma nurses 24 hours a day.

Though the facility has dealt with mass-casualty events in the past, the carnage on Sunday and Monday  when the hospital received 104 patients  still presented an unprecedented challenge.

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Las Vegas Mandalay Bay Active Shooter 2 October

Staff there were unaccustomed to wounds like those caused by Stephen Paddock's minutes-long barrage of semiautomatic-rifle fire. At times the din of beepers announcing a severe trauma case drowned out the voices of nurses and doctors.

"These were quite large wounds that we saw," Douglas Fraser, chief of trauma at the hospital, told The Washington Post.

Bullets from the semiautomatic rifles used by Paddock hit with more force than ones fired by handguns. In addition to damage as they enter and exit, they also cause damage with the shockwaves they send rippling through tissue, particularly when the bullets break into pieces.

"The fractured shrapnel created a different pattern and really injured bone and soft tissue very readily," Fraser said. "This was not a normal pattern of injuries."

Las Vegas Nevada bodies shooting victims

The hospital called on Air Force trauma surgeons, some of whom were on site as part of a visiting-fellow program and who were "used to seeing those things," Fraser said.

"I never thought that I would see this type of mass-casualty [event] stateside," Chesnut said. "This is the kind of thing that happens at Bagram or in Iraq or Syria, not Las Vegas, Nevada."

"There were four general surgeons and trauma surgeons down there helping to take care of these patients," Chesnut said. "Three active-duty general-surgeon residents participated in the care of these patients, and the following morning there were countless others from the Air Force base and the 99th medical group" on hand at the hospital.

"The environment down there was controlled chaos," he added. "There's no way that that cannot be chaotic."

But the disaster-response plan in place worked, Chesnut said, noting that at no time did he feel the situation outstripped their capacities. Training with similar kinds of patients in lower-intensity settings allowed him to "scale it up," relying on muscle memory and natural abilities.

US Air Force surgeon doctor hospital medical

The Air Force personnel assisted in a number of ways, but Chesnut said the biggest value they provided was "the overall coordination of care."

"Patients were  all throughout the hospital," he said, with some needing frequent follow-ups and their information routed back to surgeons and doctors. "I think that we added surge capacity. We added an ability to triage in a mass-casualty situation."

Some of the Air Force personnel on hand been in such environments in the field before, but all had been trained for it  some as recently as two days before during a mass-casualty training at Nellis Air Force Base.

"The training that we had on that Friday prior helped us immensely on the following Sunday into Monday morning," Chesnut said.

US Air Force fighter jet F-16 Fighting Falcon Nellis Air Force Base Las Vegas Nevada

Coordination between military units like his and civilian facilities like the one at University Medical Center was a "match made in heaven," Chesnut said.

Just as their expertise augmented the civilian response to the Las Vegas shooting, Air Force personnel benefitted from being present during such events.

"We need to be immersed in this type of environment. This isn't the type of experience you can have just in the course of a few weeks prior to going down range and really be set up for success," he said. "So I think that the future of military medicine really are these civilian-military partnerships like we have here at Nellis Air Force Base."

NOW WATCH: 'We don't have to accept this as normal': Watch Mark Kelly and Gabby Gifford's powerful speech after the Las Vegas shooting





More From Business Insider


Mr Kim's regime claims it has the capacity to hit the United States with a missile: AP

A Russian politician says he has seen a North Korean missile that could reach the US west coast, and that Pyongyang plans on testing a long-rage missile "in the nearest future".

Anton Morozov told Russian state-backed news agency RIA Novost that he and two colleagues had visited North Korea, where they were shown the North Korean calculations that the missile could hit America. During the visit, earlier this week, officials told them they had developed technologies that would allow their missiles to withstand the heat while entering the atmosphere after a launch.

The North Koreans showed him the "mathematical calculations which they say prove that their missile is capable of reaching the US west coast," he said.

Mr Morozov's party, the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, has a right-wing, nationalist agenda and is know for its anti-American sentiments. He did not indicate that he and his colleagues had personally reviewed the North Korean calculations to confirm their veracity.

North Korea has tested its missiles on at least 14 different occasions this year alone, leading to heightened tension between Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. The North Korean regime has, at the same time, openly flouted its burgeoning nuclear capabilities, and conducted its sixth nuclear test ever last month. Meanwhile, intelligence leaks have indicated that North Korea is capable of producing a nuclear warhead small enough to be attached to one of those intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs).

At the same time, Donald Trump and North Korean officials have engaged in a war of insults. The President said that Mr Kim is on a "suicide mission for himself and his regime" during his first speech to the United Nations General Assembly last month, and said that he was ready to use military force against the country if necessary. In response, Mr Kim released an unprecedented personal response, calling Mr Trump a "dotard" and a "frightened dog."

The US has also put financial pressure on North Korea through sanctions, and have put pressure on China and the international community to do the same. The United Nations voted to impose strict sanctions on the country earlier this year, further isolating the Korean country from the international community. China, which has been one of North Korea's best allies, has also instructed its banks to cut off financial dealings with North Korea.
From Tom Kool: Oil prices fell from last weeks highs as investors pocketed gains. Not all hope is lost, however. Saudi Arabia and Russia just announced some promising news regarding the rebalancing of the oil markets.

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Oil prices were soft this week as concerns about oversupply resurfaced and investors pocketed gains from the recent bull run. But positive comments from Saudi Arabia and Russia regarding their resolve to rebalance the oil market helped sooth worries about faltering prices.

Gulf of Mexico oil production disrupted by storm. Tropical storm Nate is making its way through the Gulf of Mexico, forcing a range of oil producers to shut in production and evacuate staff. Nate is expected to strengthen into a hurricane before it makes landfall in Louisiana this weekend. About 15 percent of U.S. Gulf of Mexico production was forced offline, or a little more than 250,000 bpd. An estimated 6.4 percent of the Gulfs natural gas was also idled. Disruptions and/or evacuations were reported by Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS.A), BP (NYSE: BP), Chevron (NYSE: CVX), Anadarko (NYSE: APC), ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM)and Statoil (NYSE: STO).

Trump set to decertify Iran deal. The Washington Post reports that President Trump could announce his plans to decertify the Iran nuclear deal next week. That move will kick the issue to the U.S. Congress, which would have 60 days to decide to reimpose sanctions on Iran, ultimately leading to the unraveling of the deal. But Trump is reportedly also supposed to announce a new strategy intended to confront Iran next week. The move will likely leave the U.S. isolated even from its key allies on the deal because there is not a lot of evidence to suggest Iran is violating the terms of the accord.

Court rejects Trump admins attempted delay of methane regulations. The U.S. Department of Interior tried to delay enacting Obama-era regulations on methane emissions from public lands, but a U.S. District Court said the agency violated federal law by doing so. As a result, the regulations will go into effect immediately, forcing oil and gas companies operating on federal land to capture their methane emissions. Interior had tried to delay the rules until 2019.

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LNG prices up on Chinese demand. LNG prices typically rise ahead of winter months, but demand is much stronger than expected due to fuel switching underway in China. Spot LNG prices were up 39 percent to $8.40 per MMBtu at the end of September, compared to just $6.05/MMBtu in August.

Saudi visit to Moscow highlights tighter relationship with Russia. OPEC cohesion has been bolstered by the inclusion of Russia in the production cuts, and the growing relationship between two of the worlds largest oil producers suggests coordination will continue through next year. OPEC and Russia have refrained from endorsing a course of action, but the first state visit by a Saudi monarch to Russia highlights the degree to which they are working together. Russian President Vladimir Putin said this week that if the group decides to extend the cuts, it should extend through the end of 2018. The two countries also signed a range of deals that will deepen their energy relationship, including cooperation on drilling technology between Saudi Aramco and Gazprom Neft, as well as preliminary agreements on sizable investments in petrochemical projects.

U.S. oil exports spiked at end of September. U.S. oil exports hit an all-time high of nearly 2 million barrels per day in the last week of September, double the rate from just two weeks earlier. The record spike in exports is largely due to the disruptions related to Hurricane Harvey. The Brent-WTI spread widened to over $6 per barrel in September, making U.S. crude some of the cheapest on the market. The WSJ notes that U.S. oil exports at these levels  although probably temporary  compare to that of sizable OPEC exporters.

TransCanada scraps Energy East. TransCanada (NYSE: TRP) has decided to shelve its plans for the Energy East pipeline, a project that would have carried oil sands from Alberta to Canadas east coast. TransCanada expects to take an after-tax $1 billion charge. The Canadian pipeline company is still awaiting permits for its much more controversial Keystone XL pipeline, and it is also nearing a decision on whether or not to proceed with the project.

Barclays: EVs will erase 3.5 mb/d of oil demand by 2025. Barclays published a bullish forecast on the growth of EVs, estimating that the rapid adoption of EVs will cut into global oil demand by about 3.5 mb/d by 2025, roughly equivalent to the total oil production by Iran. Beyond that, EVs will account for a third of the auto market by 2040, reducing oil demand by about 9 mb/d.

The Permian is showing signs of fatigue. The Permian basin is slowing down as costs continue to rise for shale drillers. The WSJ became the latest outlet to highlight the changes underway in the hottest shale play on the planet. Investors are clamoring for shale companies to put the brakes on and focus on profitability rather than growth. The WSJ noted that costs for oilfield services and labor are rising, while some Permian wells are producing more gas than expected. All these factors are pointing to slower, more methodical development, David Pursell, managing director at Tudor Pickering Holt, said in a WSJ interview. That needs to happen.

Pemex secures partners for onshore oil. Mexican state-owned oil company Pemex has signed up partners to increase oil production at onshore mature fields. They included Egyptian oil company Cheiron Holdings Ltd. and German firm DEA Deutsche Erdoel. The deals could halt the declining output at some key onshore fields.

The United States Oil Fund LP ETF (USO) closed at $9.97 on Friday, down $-0.28 (-2.73%). Year-to-date, USO has declined -14.93%, versus a 14.85% rise in the benchmark S&P 500 index during the same period.

USO currently has an ETF Daily News SMART Grade of C (Neutral), and is ranked #63 of 130 ETFs in the Commodity ETFs category.

This article is brought to you courtesy of OilPrice.com.

You are viewing an abbreviated republication of ETF Daily News content. You can find full ETF Daily News articles on (www.etfdailynews.com)
By Devidutta Tripathy

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Arundhati Bhattacharya, who ends four years at the helm of State Bank of India (SBI.NS) on Friday, said reviving lending in the country was one of the major tasks left unfinished.

India's state banks, including market leader SBI, the country's largest, have battled rising bad loans in recent years, a fight that has dampened credit growth and slowed a long-awaited economic revival.

"Even today credit growth is not where we wanted it to be," Bhattacharya, the first woman to have led the more than 200-year-old bank, told reporters on her last day in office.

"So that's an unfinished agenda. And I think the incoming chairman's already stated it will be his agenda to take that forward."

Total bank loans in India grew just about 5 percent in the year to March, the slowest pace in more than six decades. Latest central bank data showed an annual growth of 6.8 percent for the two weeks to Sept. 15, an uptick but still far slower than the mostly double-digit growth seen this decade.

Policymakers have said credit growth was vital for reviving economic expansion in Asia's third-biggest economy where banks are the major source of funding. SBI has guided for a loan growth of between 6 percent and 8 percent for the current financial year to March.

Bhattacharya predicted better days ahead for the bank after a spike in sour debt in the June quarter due to a merger of its five subsidiaries with it.

"My promises were that you will see better numbers going forward and we will stick to those promises," she said.

SBI shares closed 2.1 percent higher, outperforming the NSE Nifty's 0.9 percent gain.

She also cited a big digital upgradation project SBI is undertaking as another unfinished agenda. The project which was to be over by July has been delayed as its scope was expanded, Bhattacharya said, hoping for it to be delivered in a month or so.

Bhattacharya, who will be replaced by colleague and banking veteran Rajnish Kumar, said she is not looking to take up another position in the banking industry.

"I don't think I will continue in the area of banking. But obviously I am not going to just hang up my boots."

(Reporting by Devidutta Tripathy; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)
FILE PHOTO: The Vivendi logo at the company's headquarters in Paris, France, March 10, 2016. REUTERS/Charles Platiau/File Photo

PARIS (Reuters) - Police raided the headquarters of French media giant Vivendi on Thursday as part of an investigation into alleged market abuse involving its purchase of a stake in Italian TV group Mediaset, Vivendi said.

The offices of French bank Natixis in Paris were also being searched, an Italian source with direct knowledge of the matter said. A Natixis spokeswoman declined to comment.

Vivendi said Thursday's raid was the result of an "unfounded and unjust complaint" by former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, whose holding company Fininvest lodged a criminal complaint last December alleging market manipulation against Vivendi.

Berlusconi and his family are the biggest shareholders in Mediaset through Fininvest, with a 39.5 percent stake and 41.1 percent of the voting rights, according to Mediaset. Vivendi comes second with a 28.8 percent stake and 29.9 percent of voting rights.

"Vivendis management reaffirms that it acquired its stake in Mediaset totally legally and transparently and remains absolutely confident in the conclusion of this disagreement," the group said in a statement that confirmed the raid of its offices on Thursday.

The police raids follow a formal request sent by Milan prosecutors to French authorities several months ago.

Vivendi, led by tycoon Vincent Bollore, became Mediaset's second largest shareholder in late 2016 when it bought a 20 percent stake in the Italian broadcaster.

Last December, when Vivendi acquired an 800 million-euro ($938 million) stake in Mediaset, two sources said Natixis was one of two banks mandated by the French group to carry out the purchase.

(Reporting by Mathieu Rosemain and Maya Nikolaeva in Paris and Manuela D'Alesssandro in Milan; Writing by Richard Lough; Editing by Alexander Smith, Greg Mahlich)
ASGN vs. FICO: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?

The yellow metal hit a seven-week low as equities rallied and odds of another rate hike to end this year increased. Although it covered some of its earlier losses, as dollar pared its gains, prices still remain low.



Factors Driving Gold Prices



U.S. equities have been rallying owing to multiple factors. Institute for Supply Managements (ISM) survey showed that its measure of national factory activity surged to a more than 13-year high of 60.8 in September from 58.8 in August. This led to a rally in the markets and a fall in gold prices.



U.S. Treasury yields increased as Republican leaders unveiled a tax reform plan aimed at reducing taxes for the corporate and for individuals. Moreover, the Federal Reserve hinted at a possible rate hike in the December meeting. The current probability of a December rate hike of 25 basis points is 76.7%, per the CME Fed watch tool.



Adding to the stock market rally, the current favorite to lead the Fed, Kevin Warsh, is seen as a friend of the administration who is expected to expedite the process of deregulation and further rate hikes if he assumes the position currently held by Janet Yellen (read: Top ETF Stories of September).



Moreover, one of the major consumers of gold, India, is unlikely to generate much festive demand compared with previous years. The Indian economy is yet to recover from the major shocks of demonetization and GST dealt by prime minister Narendra Modi, and this is expected to impact festive gold purchases.



Geopolitical Risks



However, the future is not that bleak for the precious metal. North Koreas foreign minister Ri Yong Ho suggested that another hydrogen bomb test in the Pacific Ocean might be in the cards. Gold is seen as a safe haven investment and with increasing uncertainty relating to North Korea, we might see a spike in demand for gold focused funds.



Let us now discuss a few ETFs focused on providing exposure to gold (see all Precious Metals ETFs here).

Story continues



SPDR Gold Shares ETF GLD



This fund offers physical exposure to gold. It seeks to track the performance of the gold bullion and might turn out to be a cost-efficient way of gaining exposure to the commodity even after accounting for the funds expenses.



It has AUM of $34.9 billion and charges a fee of 40 basis points a year. It has returned 10.2% year to date and 0.04% in a year (as of Oct 3, 2017). As such, GLD currently carries a Zacks ETF Rank #3 (Hold) with a Medium risk outlook.



iShares Gold Trust ETF IAU



This ETF seeks to provide exposure to prices of the gold bullion and can be used as a means to attain portfolio diversification or achieve hedging targets.



It has AUM of $9.4 billion and charges a fee of 25 basis points a year. It has returned 10.3% year to date but has remained flat in a year (as of Oct 3, 2017). As such, IAU currently carries a Zacks ETF Rank #3 with a Medium risk outlook.



ETFS Physical Swiss Gold Shares ETF SGOL



This fund aims to track the performance of the gold bullion before fees and expenses and is a convenient way of gaining exposure to the metal.



It has AUM of $1.0 billion and charges a fee of 39 basis points a year. It has returned 10.3% year to date but has gained 0.01% in a year (as of Oct 3, 2017). As such, SGOL currently carries a Zacks ETF Rank #3 with a Medium risk outlook.



Another way to gain exposure to the metal is through ETFs investing in commodity futures. Let us discuss one such ETF.



PowerShares DB Gold Fund DGL



This fund is appropriate for those looking for a cost-efficient way to invest in commodity futures. It seeks to match the performance of DBIQ Optimum Yield Gold Index Excess Return and generate return from the funds collateral holdings primarily consisting of safe government securities before fees and expenses. However, since this fund invests in the futures markets, it is not deemed suitable for all investors owing to the highly speculative nature of the investments.



It has AUM of $194.3 million and is relatively expensive as it charges a fee of 78 basis points a year. It has returned 9.3% year to date but has lost 1.1% in a year (as of Oct 3, 2017). As such, DGL currently carries a Zacks ETF Rank #3 with a Medium risk outlook.



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Thursday was a crowded news cycle for Boeing Co. (BA). First the company announced the acquisition of Aurora Flight Sciences. Then a small Seattle firm, Zunum Aero, which Boeing and JetBlue Airways Corp. (JBLU) have invested in, announced its first product would be a 12-seat regional plane that uses hybrid-electric propulsion. Oh, and then Boeing released third-quarter delivery numbers. A busy day.

The deal for Aurora, best known as a drone designer and builder, was in some ways telegraphed by comments made a couple of weeks ago by Boeing's Leanne Caret, CEO of the company's defense and space business. Caret told CNBC that the defense business was looking for acquisitions and is very focused on growth, and that Boeing is "continuing to look at other ways to increase our top line through mergers and acquisitions."

ALSO READ: Top Analyst Says Buy These 5 Defense Stocks Into Years End

Aurora brings a technology innovator to Boeing and promises to enhance not only the company's defense capability but also add to Boeing's commercial jet products.

At a press conference following the announcement, Greg Hyslop, Boeing's chief technology officer and senior vice president of the company's Engineering, Test & Technology division, said, "We're always looking at a lot of different things to acquire," mentioning specifically investments by the firm's VC arm HorizonX in Zunum Aero (hybrid electric aircraft), SparkCognition (artificial intelligence), Upskill (augmented reality for manufacturing) and C360 (360 video and augmented/virtual reality).

Defense One cited a further comment from Hyslop:

Bringing Aurora into this through an acquisition, you can kind of see that the world is going to be about hybrid electric airplanes, or all electric airplanes. The world is going to be about more autonomy and how artificial intelligence enables that. They're all part of that picture. We don't know what that market's going to look like in the future, but as it forms. We want to be there and we want to lead."

Story continues

ALSO READ: Merrill Lynch Out With Top 10 Stock Ideas for Q4

As if to confirm Boeing's perspicuity, Zunum Aero announced yesterday that its first hybrid-electric product would be a 12-passenger commuter plane designed to reach small regional airports. The plane's range is more than 700 miles and its top cruising speed is 340 mph. The firm wants to hit a target operating cost of $250 an hour, a level the company's co-founder and chief technology officer called "unbeatable." Zunum is currently looking a first delivery of the aircraft in 2022.

Neither of Thursday's announcements compares to Lockheed Martin's $23 billion acquisition of Rockwell Collins nor to Northrop Grumman's $7.8 billion acquisition of Orbital ATK. But if Boeing is really going shopping, a bigger deal can't be ruled out.

ALSO READ: Analysts Top Ideas for October May Be Poised to Beat Earnings Estimates

And a bigger deal is most likely in the defense and space business, where a massive federal contract to replace the U.S. intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) force is being contested by Boeing and Northrop Grumman. Over the multi-decade life of that program, the contract's value to the winner could total $1.5 trillion.

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Republicans are getting the cold shoulder as they ramp up the pressure on Democrats to support tax reform. First it was Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, rebuffing an overture from White House chief economic adviser Gary Cohn. Then Sen. Joe Donnelly of Indiana issued a biting statement declaring his independence on tax reform a week after flying with President Donald Trump on Air Force One. And Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia was not swayed despite being courted by a top White House official this week. "We want a real seat at the table," Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, a member of the centrist Blue Dog Coalition, told reporters this week. "We don't want to be props." Republicans have pinned their hopes of maintaining their majority on Capitol Hill in 2018 on passing a sweeping rewrite of the nation's tax code. They have proposed an aggressive reduction in corporate and individual rates that would also eliminate many popular deductions. It's a heavy political lift with high stakes for a party that failed to deliver on its signature campaign promise to repeal Obamacare. There's not much room for error. House Republicans on Thursday passed a budget  widely seen as the first step in tax reform  with just two votes to spare. Eighteen GOP lawmakers voted against the document. In the Senate, Republicans hold a razor-thin majority of 52 seats. Already, some of them have voiced concerns about various aspects of the tax plan, from the repeal of the estate tax to the impact on the national debt. Winning over even a few Democrats would provide Republicans a more comfortable buffer from defections within their own party. But Democrats so far have been wary of the GOP outreach. After the White House requested a meeting with Wyden , the ranking member of the powerful finance committee and a key thought-leader on tax policy, the senator met with Cohn in his office for roughly half an hour Wednesday. After it ended, Cohn told CNBC that "everything's going well" on tax reform. Wyden had a different take. "It's clear this meeting was meant to 'check the box' instead of engaging in a real, substantive conversation about how to achieve lasting bipartisan tax reform," his committee spokesperson said. Donnelly is another top target for Republicans. On the day the White House tax framework was unveiled with GOP leadership last week, Trump traveled to Donnelly's home state of Indiana to deliver a campaign-style speech. Trump first thanked the senator but then warned that if he opposed the tax plan, "we will campaign against him like you wouldn't believe." On Thursday, Donnelly delivered his own sharply worded response in an online video. "Right now, the only plan out there is missing a lot of important details," he said. "And like most Hoosiers, I'm not gonna buy a car before kicking the tires. That's not standing in the way. That's just common sense." Republicans are using both carrots and sticks to get Democrats on board. Americans for Prosperity, a conservative group tied to the billionaire Koch brothers, launched a $4.5 million ad campaign targeting Donnelly along with Sens. Claire McCaskill of Missouri and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin. Baldwin is expected to introduce her own tax bill on Friday that expands the low-income tax credits, among other things. In a statement, Americans for Prosperity said it is "calling on these senators to support, not obstruct, this bold tax reform plan that will benefit hard-working middle-class Americans in their states." "We are hopeful we can count on these senators to do the right thing, and our activists are ready, willing and able to swiftly bring to bear the full weight of our grassroots infrastructure to get this plan to the president's desk this year," the group said. The White House is keeping up the pressure. Trump is bringing small business owners to discuss taxes at the White House on Friday in honor of National Manufacturing Day. It's no accident that several of the attendees represent companies based in Manchin's home state of West Virginia. White House legislative director Marc Short visited Manchin in the senator's office on Tuesday to talk taxes. A Manchin spokesman said the senator wants to work with the White House on a tax plan that "helps the middle class and grows the economy." When asked if Manchin believes the current framework does that, the aide simply replied, "No." Manchin is one of only three Democratic senators who did not sign a letter laying out the party's requirements for supporting a tax plan: It cannot cut taxes for the wealthy or increase the deficit, and it must go through regular order, rather than the special reconciliation process that Republicans hope to use to pass a bill. Sen. Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota and Donnelly also did not sign the letter. Several Democrats have proposed their own plans for tax reform. The Blue Dogs outlined several principles this week that include elements of the GOP tax framework, such as lower rates for corporations and pass-through businesses and moving to a territorial tax system. But other ideas, such as tying tax reform to infrastructure, have already been discarded by Republicans. The Blue Dog proposal also calls for a tax package that does not increase the deficit. Republicans are likely to adopt a measure that calls for a $1.5 trillion tax cut over the decade. California Rep. Jim Costa, one of the coalition's co-chairmen, called GOP projections that the tax plan would generate 3 percent growth and pay for itself "fantasyland." Still, Costa said his members would be willing to negotiate with Republicans in hopes of replicating the bipartisan success of tax reform in 1986. Several have already been in contact with senior administration officials, he said. "The reality is that Americans have been frustrated by the inability of lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to reach agreement," he said. "They want Washington to get something done."  CNBC's Mary Catherine Wellons contributed to this report.Correction: White House legislative director Marc Short visited Manchin in the senator's office on Tuesday to talk taxes. An earlier version misstated the day and location.

WATCH: GOP ramps up pressure on Democrats for tax reform



More From CNBC


Mandalay Bay

Last Thursday, Stephen Paddock checked into a $500 suite at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas.

Now, the Mandalay Bay hotel is irrevocably linked to the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history, after Paddock opened fire on a crowd of 22,000 people at a music festival across the street from the 32nd-floor window of his hotel room.

He killed 58 people and wounded nearly 500, police say.

Often, sites of tragedies become an area of mourning and remembrance. However, the room where Paddock executed his killing spree is unlikely to become that.

"From my opinion, the room disappears," Anthony Melchiorri, the host of Travel Channel's "Hotel Impossible," told Business Insider.

Melchiorri said that if he were running the hotel, he would reach out to victims and their families to see how he could best help them.

Then the room in question  which has been identified as Room 135 on the 32nd floor  would most likely no longer be available for guests to book. Melchiorri said he would go so far as to have the doors sealed up, removing any trace of the suite's existence.

Mandalay Bay las vegas shooting

Deanna Ting, the hospitality editor at the travel-industry intelligence company Skift, agreed that the room would probably not be available to be booked  at least not for a very long time.

Beyond the room in question, both Ting and Melchiorri emphasized the importance of the Mandalay Bay reestablishing the hotel as a safe and secure space for guests.

Housekeeping staff members and other employees could be retrained on how to respond if they see something suspicious. Ting predicted that a visible security presence  such as metal detectors, X-ray machines, or armed guards  would flood Las Vegas hotels, at least in the short term.

Las Vegas hotels already have some of the best security in the country  Melchiorri said the city had "more security per square foot" than any other city in the US.

Story continues

Debra DeShong, a representative for the Mandalay Bay's parent company, MGM Resorts, told Business Insider in a statement that the company "works consistently with local and national law enforcement agencies to keep procedures at our resorts up to date" and was "always improving and evolving."

However, for the Mandalay Bay and other hotels in Las Vegas to convince guests of their safety, drastic and visible changes are likely to be necessary.

NOW WATCH: THE BOTTOM LINE: A lot of talk of a bitcoin bubble and a few good reasons to believe tech isn't one





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The chief executive of Russia's sovereign wealth fund has denied that forming closer energy ties with Saudi Arabia is about politically sidelining Washington.Russia and Saudi Arabia are set to sign $3 billion in joint investments this week, according to the Financial Times. This includes a $1.1 billion agreement for Russian petrochemical company Sibur to build a plant in Saudi Arabia.Speaking to CNBC at the Russian Energy Week, Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), said a deepening of ties with Saudi businesses posed no threat to the U.S."Well, I think Russia and Saudi Arabia have lots of things in common. We want to diversify our economies away from oil and frankly, there was not much going on before."So, of course we are not talking about Russia being a substitute for the U.S. The U.S. will remain a key partner for Saudi Arabia for hundreds of years to come."Dmitriev also played down suggestions that working with new overseas investors was a sign that Western sanctions were hurting the Russian economy."We are indeed working a lot with Chinese, Asian and Middle Eastern investors and they are replacing lots of the capital that was coming in from Europe and the U.S."Frankly, the effect of sanctions have already been taken in by the market. We had good positive growth of 2 percent this year and, frankly, most companies just shrug those sanctions off because nothing in those sanctions precludes anyone investing in us (Russia)," he added.Dmitriev said Russia believed that "sanity would prevail" and sanctions from the West would soon be removed. The chief executive of Russia's sovereign wealth fund has denied that forming closer energy ties with Saudi Arabia is about politically sidelining Washington. Russia and Saudi Arabia are set to sign $3 billion in joint investments this week, according to the Financial Times. This includes a $1.1 billion agreement for Russian petrochemical company Sibur to build a plant in Saudi Arabia. Speaking to CNBC at the Russian Energy Week, Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), said a deepening of ties with Saudi businesses posed no threat to the U.S. "Well, I think Russia and Saudi Arabia have lots of things in common. We want to diversify our economies away from oil and frankly, there was not much going on before. "So, of course we are not talking about Russia being a substitute for the U.S. The U.S. will remain a key partner for Saudi Arabia for hundreds of years to come." Dmitriev also played down suggestions that working with new overseas investors was a sign that Western sanctions were hurting the Russian economy. "We are indeed working a lot with Chinese, Asian and Middle Eastern investors and they are replacing lots of the capital that was coming in from Europe and the U.S. "Frankly, the effect of sanctions have already been taken in by the market. We had good positive growth of 2 percent this year and, frankly, most companies just shrug those sanctions off because nothing in those sanctions precludes anyone investing in us (Russia)," he added. Dmitriev said Russia believed that "sanity would prevail" and sanctions from the West would soon be removed.



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This week's news that Russian Facebook ads targeted crucial swing states in the 2016 election changes what we know about the voter databases and software systems that were hacked into by Russian military intelligence in key battleground states.

News that electronic election systems were hacked by Russian agents prior to the election hit headlines in June. But this was before Facebook was forced to admit that Russian political ads were used to influence voters thanks to the company's sniper-like ad-targeting precision.

In June an NSA document, leaked to press, showed voter-registration-software management company VR Systems had been hacked by Russian state actors. At the time, eight states scrambled to figure out if their systems were compromised, with the NSA remaining uncertain about the results of the attacks. It was at least successful enough for the hackers to launch a second-stage spearphishing campaign posing as VR Systems and "targeting U.S. local government organizations."

In that instance, the NSA learned that Russian government hackers "focused on parts of the system directly connected to the voter-registration process, including a private-sector manufacturer of devices that maintain and verify the voter rolls," according to The Intercept.

The news about VR Systems bolstered a June report that Russian hackers hit voting systems in a total of 39 states, accessing voter databases, software systems and in one instance, a campaign-finance database.

"One of the mysteries about the 2016 presidential election is why Russian intelligence, after gaining access to state and local systems, didn't try to disrupt the vote," Bloomberg wrote. In all reported cases of 2016 voting systems hacking and intrusion attempts, it's suggested that the break-ins were unsuccessful, or to sow mistrust, or keep voters off registration lists.

But with new information about Russia's Facebook ad buys, we should consider that Russian actors hacked American state systems not to change votes or harm voter trust, but to glean voter information that could specifically target actual, active voters with pro-Trump and anti-Clinton Facebook ads.

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Using hacked voter rolls to target Facebook ads?

Days ago, more details emerged about the Russian state ads used to influence voters toward a Trump presidential victory last November. Facebook has only recently conceded to press that 10 million people saw those ads -- the ads we know of from the one Russian campaign that Facebook has admitted to, anyway. Nowhere is Facebook's inadequacy more evident than in its response, as usual.

Those ads and their targeting were crucial. This was an election where the loser actually "won" by 2.9 million votes. Getting a fraction of those 10 million voters on Facebook to vote for Trump in specific, targeted states was absolutely critical for Trump's victory. And that's exactly what happened: Trump won by 10,000 votes in Michigan and 20,000 in Wisconsin.

Both states -- key to Trump's win -- were part of Russia's targeted, pro-Trump Facebook ads. It is unknown whether or not Michigan and Wisconsin were among the 39 states that had voting systems and databases breached before the election.

We can expect to learn more about other states targeted in the Russian Facebook ad influence campaign. Top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, Rep. Adam Schiff, told CNN the investigation panel was still figuring out the full geographical breakdown of the pro-Trump Russian ads.

"Michigan saw the closest presidential contest in the country -- Trump beat Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton by about 10,700 votes out of nearly 4.8 million ballots cast," reported CNN on Wednesday. "Wisconsin was also one of the tightest states, and Trump won there by only about 22,700 votes. Both states, which Trump carried by less than 1%, were key to his victory in the Electoral College."

Creating Facebook ad campaigns to target people by name, email address or physical address is not allowed by Facebook. But neither was creating the roughly 500 fake pages and accounts that bought the Russian ads in the first place. There are a number of ways to get around Facebook's ad-targeting rules, of course. Marketing-growth company Interconnected Strategy recommends the buyer "upload your mailing list to your Facebook ad account." It explains, "Facebook then will look for Facebook users who match your mailing list, and you'll be able to create a custom audience for your ads to target your mailing list."

Connecting and sharing

While Facebook's trickle of information about the ad buys may open a new avenue of understanding about what Russian state actors were doing with the info they got from US voter-registration databases, it does little to help us understand whether or not Trump's team worked with Russia's team to coordinate their copious ad strategies. That would require Facebook to be transparent about political advertising on its platform.

But as Bloomberg reported Wednesday, "Since 2011, Facebook has asked the Federal Election Commission for blanket exemptions from political-advertising-disclosure rules -- transparency that could have helped it avoid the current crisis over Russian ad spending ahead of the 2016 U.S. election."

No wonder we're seeing more arguments being leveled than ever before that Facebook is incompatible with democracy.

It's clear the pro-Trump Russia-backed ad buys helped tip the election. What's less clear is what Russia-backed hackers were doing in US state voting systems if they weren't changing votes or removing voters. But if we have to speculate, my money's on grabbing data to use in laser-targeted, inflammatory Facebook ad buys in key states.

We may never know for sure, but if we did find out that's what happened, I'm certain Facebook would remind us it's not its fault. One only need look at its pursuit of money and power in the ad industry -- through third-party sales of people's personal data, recklessly empowering ad tools to target the vulnerable and exclude minorities, harmful emotional experiments on users -- to be not at all shocked at what's happened here. Zuckerberg talks a pretty good game to the press about Facebook bringing people together. It would be believable if his product didn't actively sabotage institutions that once formed the backbone of consensus and public trust -- or serve as the perfect platform for foreign agents to disrupt the democratic process that makes Facebook possible in the first place.

Images: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images (Trump / Facebook); pixelfit via Getty Images (People on phones)
How much do you trust Equifax Inc. after its failure to block a hack that leaves half of all Americans at a greater risk of identity theft for the rest of their lives?

The Internal Revenue Service, apparently, still trusts the credit-reporting firm quite a bit. Enough to award it a $7.25 million contract to help verify taxpayers' identities, less than a month after the company conceded it failed to correct a known software vulnerability that the hackers exploited.

A growing number of U.S. senators say that's a mistake.

"We strongly urge you to rescind this contract and look for other ways to verify taxpayers' identities," Sen. Jon Tester, a Montana Democrat, and six colleagues said in a letter to IRS Commissioner John Koskinen released on Thursday, Oct. 5. Their request followed a similar missive from Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Ben Sasse of Nebraska the day before.

Hiring the Atlanta-based company to handle such a responsibility "shows clear disregard for the millions of Americans" whose financial well-being is threatened by the theft, Tester said in the letter, which was also signed by Sens. Sherrod Brown, Heidi Heitkamp, Chris Van Hollen, Tim Scott, Jack Reed and Robert Menendez. "We have no assurances that our constituents' personal information is safe in their hands."

The breach puts "a significant burden" on Equifax when it seeks any government contract, Warren and Sasse argued, and requires the IRS to fully explain its decision. If the agency cannot, they also said the contract should be scrapped.

The correspondence ramps up the criticism during a Senate Banking Committee hearing with former Equifax CEO Richard Smith on Wednesday in which lawmakers evaluated the events leading to the exposure of information from Social Security numbers to birthdates that lenders routinely use to verify the identities of loan applicants.

Unlike credit card numbers, which can be changed if stolen, such data points are difficult and in some cases, impossible, to alter, imperiling 145 million consumers. Some of them have already filed lawsuits, as has the San Francisco City Attorney, and the FBI is investigating the matter.

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IRS officials told the House Ways and Means Committee separately that the Equifax deal was needed to maintain an electronic authentication service that might have lapsed during the company's protest over the agency giving a longer-term contract to one of its competitors.

"This is an abject failure," U.S. Rep. Jackie Walorski, an Indiana Republican, responded. "We have contracts being signed right in the middle of these investigations of the biggest data breach in the history of this country, exposing a massive amount of Americans to identity theft."

The best option for Equifax now is to drop its protest and turn down the agreement, Heitkamp, a North Dakota Democrat, told Smith.

"Just say, 'We're getting our house in order, we understand we have a ways to walk back our reputation, we're going to walk back our protest on the loss of the contract," she urged him.

Equifax shares have tumbled 20% to $113.12 since its Sept. 7 disclosure of the theft, which led to Smith's departure and his agreement to give up an annual bonus payment this year that had totaled more than $3 million each of the past two years.

What makes the incident particularly galling for victims and for lawmakers is that consumers have no choice in whether and how their data is tracked by companies like Equifax and rivals TransUnion and Experian , and yet the service is vital to maintain credit lines that fuel U.S. economic growth.

"Because of this breach, consumers will spend the rest of their lives worrying about identity theft, small banks and credit unions will have to pay to issue new credit cards, businesses will lose money to thieves, but Equifax will be just fine," Warren said during the hearing.

With revenue growth from fraud-protection services sold in the aftermath, she added, "it could actually come out ahead."

Updated from Wednesday, Oct. 4, at 9:57 p.m.

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Executives from Facebook Inc (FB.O), Twitter Inc (TWTR.N) and Alphabet Inc's (GOOGL.O) Google have been asked to testify about Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. election before a House of Representatives panel on Nov. 1, a congressional aide said on Thursday.

Executives from the companies were already due to appear the same day before the Senate Intelligence Committee, which is also investigating Moscow's alleged role in the election. .

But the aide said they had also been asked to offer testimony at a public hearing of the House Intelligence Committee.

Aides to the committee's leaders declined comment. It is House Intelligence policy not to discuss the interview schedule.

Some U.S. lawmakers, increasingly alarmed about evidence that hackers used the internet to spread fake news and otherwise influence last year's election, have been pushing for more information about social networks in particular.

The Senate and House intelligence committees are two of the main congressional panels probing allegations that Russia sought to interfere in the U.S. election to boost Republican President Donald Trump's chances at winning the White House, and possible collusion between Trump associates and Russia.

Moscow denies any such activity, and Trump has repeatedly dismissed allegations of collusion.

Facebook confirmed that company officials would testify. Google and Twitter did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

(Reporting by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Tom Brown)
Customers queue to draw money from an ATM outside a branch of South Africa's Standard Bank in Cape Town, March 15, 2016. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings

By Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo and Tiisetso Motsoeneng

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South African lender Standard Bank <SBKJ.J> is reviewing its ties with IT software supplier SAP <SAPG.DE> and consultants McKinsey, due to the risk of fallout by association from an influence-peddling scandal.

SAP and McKinsey are ensnared in the scandal involving the Gupta family, who have been accused by South Africa's anti-corruption watchdog of using close links to President Jacob Zuma to win lucrative government contracts.

The Guptas and Zuma have denied any wrongdoing.

Standard Bank, Africa's second-biggest bank by market value, said on Friday its chief executive Sim Tshabalala had met representatives of SAP and McKinsey as well as global auditor KPMG <KPMG.UL> in past weeks.

KPMG sacked its local leadership last month over work done for firms owned by the Guptas that an internal investigation found "fell considerably short" of its standards.

"We will not continue these relationships unless we receive satisfactory explanations and are certain that necessary and proportionate remedial action is being taken," Standard Bank said in statement.

"In each case, we have explained to the supplier in no uncertain terms the damage that association with them ...is causing."

South Africa's parliament is investigating if McKinsey knowingly let funds from state utility Eskom be diverted to the Guptas as a way of securing a $78 million contract to advise Eskom. McKinsey denies wrongdoing and says it will cooperate with authorities if evidence of impropriety emerges.

In July, SAP began an investigation into allegations that its South African unit paid kickbacks to a firm linked to the Guptas to secure a contract.

SAP did not immediately respond on Friday to an emailed request for comment. McKinsey declined to comment.

LOST CLIENTS

Standard Bank was already examining its relationship with auditor KPMG, which has lost at least eight clients in recent weeks after admitting the flaws in the work it did for the state tax agency as well as companies owned by the Guptas.

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KPMG is one of four major auditors considered to have enough depth to audit South Africa's biggest banks, and growing worries about its future have rattled the central bank, which is concerned about financial stability.

But the Reserve Bank denied on Friday it had instructed lenders to keep KPMG as their auditor.

At least eight clients have fired KPMG over the scandal with the latest, on Friday, being local consumer products firm AVI Limited <AVIJ.J>.

KPMG South Africa's new chief executive Nhlamu Dlomu told lawmakers on Thursday the company would make sweeping changes to ensure past "greatly disappointing" work would not be repeated.

(Reporting by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo; Editing by James Macharia and John Stonestreet)
Robert Mueller

The FBI's special counsel's team is digging into the limits of President Donald Trump's pardon powers.

Because there is little precedent for governing presidential pardon powers, the special counsel, Robert Mueller, is likely to research state-level cases with elements that could be applied to the Russia investigation.

Experts say Mueller is taking unprecedented steps to ward off efforts by the White House to guard itself against the investigation.

Reports that the FBI's special counsel's team is researching President Donald Trump's pardon power are the latest indication that the Russia investigation is moving into unexplored terrain.

Robert Mueller, who was appointed special counsel in May after Trump fired the FBI Director James Comey, is tasked with examining Russia's interference in the 2016 US election, including whether Trump's campaign colluded with Moscow to tilt the race in his favor.

Bloomberg reported on Tuesday that Michael Dreeben, a seasoned prosecutor working with Mueller, was delving into past presidential pardons as the special counsel lays out his case  in particular, Dreeben is examining the limits of Trump's pardon power.

There is no federal precedent governing those limits, so Dreeben, a veteran Department of Justice attorney who has argued more than 100 cases before the Supreme Court, is most likely digging into state-level cases with elements that could be extrapolated as they relate to Trump's executive authority.

Like the president, governors also have the authority to grant pardons  and Renato Mariotti, a former federal prosecutor, told Business Insider that it was possible Dreeben was looking into state-level case law going back to the country's early years to find instances in which a court found a governor's pardon problematic.

"Dreeben's probably spending all day researching those cases, and he's probably going to find some analogy that Mueller can use" in case Trump issues a preemptive pardon or one that stymies the investigation, Mariotti said.

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Mariotti added that the revelation was "really something" and one of the biggest developments in the investigation so far.

'At some point, a court might have to step in'

Donald Trump

Trump's pardon power became a subject of interest after The Washington Post reported in July that the president had asked his advisers whether he could pardon aides, family members, or possibly himself as the Russia investigation ramped up.

In addition to Trump's campaign, Mueller's investigation also encompasses several of the president's close associates, including his campaign chairman, Paul Manafort; his former national security adviser, Michael Flynn; his senior adviser and son-in-law, Jared Kushner; and his son Donald Trump Jr.

The Constitution grants the president very broad pardon powers relating to federal crimes  something Trump has pointed out.

"While all agree the U. S. President has the complete power to pardon, why think of that when only crime so far is LEAKS against us. FAKE NEWS," Trump tweeted in July.

Trump's statements and actions indicate that "we have every reason to think that this president will not hesitate to use any means at his disposal to avoid scrutiny of himself, his family, and his inner circle," said Claire Finkelstein, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

The president in August pardoned Joe Arpaio, the Arizona sheriff who was convicted of criminal contempt in July for violating the terms of a 2011 court order in a racial-profiling case. Arpaio was an early and ardent advocate for Trump on the campaign trail, and Trump told a crowd at a rally in Arizona shortly before granting the pardon that Arpaio would be "just fine."

"Imagine a circumstance where Trump pardons one of his associates in the Russia probe  that associate is then compelled to testify, but they refuse to do so, they're then held in contempt, and Trump pardons them again," Mariotti said. "At some point, a court might have to step in because the president would be defeating the lawful function of our criminal justice system."

Experts are also exploring whether Trump could pardon someone if doing so would fit into a pattern of obstruction of justice.

Finkelstein laid out a scenario in which parallels could be drawn to the circumstances surrounding Comey's firing in May.

James Comey

The White House initially said Comey was dismissed because of his handling of the investigation into former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's use of private email, but Trump later told NBC's Lester Holt that "this Russia thing" had been a factor in his decision.

Comey also told the Senate Intelligence Committee in June that before firing him, Trump asked him to drop the Russia investigation and the FBI's inquiry into Flynn, who was forced to resign as national security adviser when it emerged that he had misled the vice president about his contacts with Russians during the transition period.

While the president has the power to fire the FBI director, he does not have the right to do so if his intent is to cover up an investigation into whether he or his associates committed misdeeds. Whether Trump had "corrupt intent" when he fired Comey is the basis of Mueller's obstruction-of-justice investigation.

"One could make a parallel argument here and say that if the president's motive in issuing a pardon is to avoid scrutiny of his or his associates' actions, that constitutes an overstepping of his constitutional authority," Finkelstein said.

There is, however, one key difference between the two scenarios: Trump's power to grant pardons is explicitly listed in the Constitution, while his power to fire officials is implicit in his right to govern as head of the executive branch.

'There's very little precedent for this'

Jon Michaels, a professor at the UCLA School of Law, said Tuesday that it was becoming clear that by probing the questions surrounding Trump's pardon power, Mueller's team was "being very strategic" and was "trying to preempt efforts that have the effect of insulating the administration from the investigations."

The lengths to which the special counsel's team is going to get ahead of the White House are unusual, said Jens David Ohlin, a vice dean at Cornell Law School who's an expert in criminal law.

"These definitely are not normal or typical prosecution strategies," he said. But, he added, "this is no usual investigation," and "there's very little precedent for this."

Mariotti agreed and said that in his long career as a federal prosecutor, he never investigated someone he thought the president might pardon in the middle of the investigation.

"Think of how rare that is," he said. "These are things we've never seen before. The pardon power is usually used years later, when someone's already served time. So it's unusual  very unusual  for a prosecutor to be considering these questions."

It's impossible to know how things would play out if Mueller faced off with Trump over Trump's authority to grant pardons, experts said, because of its unique and broad nature, and because it is written in the US Constitution.

"It would take a lot for a court to limit the power," Mariotti said. "But this is the sort of crazy situation where it just might happen."

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President Donald Trump will host a roundtable with American manufacturers on Friday, where he is expected to continue advocating for the GOPs tax reform effort as Congress takes its first steps toward advancing the overhaul.

Trump will be joined by executives and workers from companies headquartered in West Virginia  a manufacturing state led by Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin  and Maryland, according to a White House official. The president will declare Oct. 6 National Manufacturing Day concordant with the administrations efforts to revitalize the sector.

Manufacturing optimism has continued to hover near record highs, registering its highest three-quarter average in the most recent National Association of Manufacturers survey. While 89.8% of companies said they had a positive outlook for their own company, more than 87% of survey respondents thought the GOPs tax reform plan would address their concerns with the current tax system.

The GOP has focused heavily on the manufacturing sector in its campaign to overhaul the United States tax code, with House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and the president visiting different factories around the country to tout the plans potential benefits for corporations and workers. One key component of the blueprint is a 15 percentage point reduction in the corporate tax rate, which would slash the current 35% level to 20%. White House officials have said, in addition to creating jobs and attracting investment, this would boost workers pension plans through a rise in stock prices.

Congress took a step toward passing tax reform on Thursday, when the House of Representatives approved the 2018 budget resolution. The budget contains the reconciliation mandate for tax reform, which will allow the Republican Party to use the fast-track process when it votes to approve the legislation later this year. It also sets aside money for tax cuts. In a statement released Thursday, Trump applauded the GOPs efforts, calling it a pathway to fix our rigged and burdensome tax code.

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On Thursday, a source with knowledge of the matter told FOX Business that the budget resolution is expected to pass both chambers in late October or early November, after which the GOP will introduce the tax reform bill for discussion.

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President Donald Trump is taking a page out of former President Barack Obama's playbook: Never let a serious crisis go to waste.

The Trump administration sent a request this week to Congress for $29 billion in funding to cover hurricane relief and swelling flood-insurance claims. The proposal includes $16 billion of debt relief for the National Flood Insurance Program, or NFIP, that would free up funds to cover a surge in claims following Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria.

Yet the bill also seeks major changes to the flood-insurance program, long targeted by critics as a government boondoggle and a giant provider of unfair subsidies to homeowners in coastal areas.

Chief among the proposals is a prize sought by lobbyists for big property insurers like Progressive Corp. -- allowing private carriers to compete more easily with the government program, currently the provider of about 98% of flood policies.

This year is shaping up as one of the costliest on record for natural disasters, leading to tens of billions of combined losses for property insurers like Progressive, Allstate Corp. and Chubb Ltd . While visiting Puerto Rico this week, Trump said that the cost of the federal response to Hurricane Maria had thrown the federal budget "out of whack."

Officials with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which oversees the 49-year-old flood-insurance program, have projected that available funds to cover claims will run out within the next few weeks -- potentially leading to delays in payouts as homeowners in hurricane-hit areas like Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico struggle to repair or rebuild damaged structures.

Those challenges may be heightened by Tropical Storm Nate, which is swirling northwest toward the Yucatan Peninsula with winds of 50 mph and expected to curve east before making landfall outside of New Orleans early Sunday.

A hurricane watch has been issued for the region, and Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards has activated the state's emergency operations center.

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"The NFIP requires immediate financial relief to fulfill its obligations to its policyholders, but the program must also be reformed to place it on a sound financial footing and to enable the private market for flood insurance to expand," Trump's budget director, Mick Mulvaney, wrote Wednesday to Congressional leaders.

The NFIP has gone $30 billion into debt in recent years, largely due to the government program's inability to charge premiums high enough to cover claims that have swelled since 2005 as a string of hurricanes including Katrina inflicted catastrophic losses. In 2012 Congress adopted a series of changes including higher premiums, only to have those increases halted just two years later amid a political backlash from affected homeowners.

Last week, the House of Representatives passed provisions -- attached to a Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill -- that would have made it easier for private insurers to compete for flood policies. Democratic leaders criticized the effort because it provided no new funding to the NFIP.

The Senate later stripped the flood-insurance provisions from the FAA bill following objections from flood-prone Louisiana's two Republican senators, Bill Cassidy and John Kennedy.

The Trump administration's plan to make new funding for the NFIP contingent on flood-insurance is in keeping with a well-worn Washington tactic -- that long-elusive political goals become possible in the wake of a major disaster. Former President Barack Obama's chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, now mayor of Chicago, famously said after the 2008 bank bailouts that "you never want a serious crisis to go to waste."

That comment was roundly excoriated by conservative critics as evidence of the Obama administration's political opportunism.

In the latest proposal, the Trump administration seeks to assure that only low-income homeowners qualify for subsidized flood-insurance premiums, with a "means test" that would accelerate rate increases for richer customers. Property owners who file repeated claims -- a big source of the government program's losses -- could lose coverage.

The proposal also would ban the NFIP from selling policies on any new homes built after Jan. 1, 2021, in zones designated as Special Flood Hazard Areas. Such projects would then become "a risk the private market may want to insure."

Democratic lawmakers including Congresswoman Maxine Waters of New York have warned that private insurers are likely to cherry-pick the most profitable policies -- those with low flood risk or unusually high premiums -- and thus accelerate the government program's losses.

The Trump administration's proposal would require the NFIP to turn over historical loss and claims data to private companies, another step long sought by industry lobbyists.

Updated from 12:54 p.m. ET on Thursday, Oct. 5, 2017.

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Donald Trump The GOP's framework for tax legislation is already getting pushback from within the party.

Republicans in Democratic states are worried about eliminating the state and local deduction.

Budget hawks are worried about additional debt from the plan.

It's been less than a week since President Donald Trump and the "Big Six" Republican tax negotiators rolled out their unified framework designed to overhaul the US tax code. But it's already facing potential stumbling blocks from a wide array of Republican lawmakers and outside groups.

With Republicans holding only a slender majority in the Senate and the possibility of significant outside pressure, it appears that the GOP tax plan could have a bumpy road to Trump's desk.

State and local taxes

Republican leaders have proposed ending deductions for state and local taxes from a federal tax bill, and they have faced early resistance from both sides of the political aisle.

The provision generally benefits people in higher-tax states, most notably New York, New Jersey, and California. Those three states receive roughly one-third of the benefits from the state and local tax, or SALT, deduction. They also happen to be states that vote mostly Democratic.

Rep. Chris Collins, a Republican from New York, said he would be fine with the SALT deduction disappearing because he liked the rest of the plan. But he appears to be the exception, not the rule.

New York and New Jersey Republicans in the House, such as Reps. Peter King and Leonard Lance, said they would oppose the framework because of the elimination of the SALT deduction. Rep. Jeff Denham, a Republican from California, said he didn't want the tax plan "to penalize Californians." Others in states like Pennsylvania and Maryland could also face pressure from constituents over the deduction.

According to Bloomberg, leaders in the Republican Party are now considering simply modifying the deduction, such as adding caps to the amount that can be deducted, rather than scrapping it altogether.

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The federal deficit

Another major concern for some Republicans is the possibility that the tax proposal could lead to new deficit spending.

Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee has already laid out a clear position on the issue, saying he would vote against any bill that looks as if it would add "even one penny" to the federal deficit.

"Are we folks who care about leaving this country better for future generations?" Corker told reporters. "Or are we all about 'party time' here, to make ourselves beloved by people not having to pay taxes but throwing kids under the bus down the road?"

He has said, however, that he would accept a bill that does not add to the deficit under a "reasonable" dynamic-scoring system  which factors in assumed tax-revenue increases from faster economic growth.

Others like Sen. Mike Crapo of Idaho also raised eyebrows at the possibility of the deficit ballooning under the plan  most studies say the unified framework would add $2 trillion to $2.5 trillion over 10 years  but have not gone as far as Corker.

Tax cut on the rich?

An analysis from the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center released late last week showed that the wealthiest 1% of Americans would see a significant majority of the proposal's benefits, rallying Democrats and even GOP critics around a signature early talking point against the coming legislation.

Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky attacked the framework in a tweet, citing the TPC study to argue that the plan was a break for the rich.

Outside Washington, details of the plan still rankle many Americans, despite an overall favorability rating for the plan in a Morning Consult/Politico poll.

The proposed cut to the corporate rate, to 20% from 35%, was supported by only about four in 10 of those surveyed. Also, 41% said they believed the rich would pay less in taxes under the proposal, compared with just 28% who said they believed wealthier Americans would pay more.

It's barely started

Trump, officials in his administration, and congressional Republicans have stuck to a common refrain: that the tax plan will be passed in 2017. But one of their biggest hurdles is the calendar.

Congress still needs to pass a budget to open up the reconciliation process that allows the Senate to introduce tax legislation without the possibility of a Democratic filibuster. The Senate Finance and House Ways and Means committees still need to turn the nine-page proposal into a fully fleshed-out piece of legislation. The two pieces of legislation then need to be passed, and any differences would trigger a conference committee process.

Add on the fiscal deadlines coming up at the start of December and the time crunch is severe.

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By Alwyn Scott

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Commerce Department on Friday moved to impose trade duties of nearly 300 percent on sales of Bombardier Inc (BBDb.TO) CSeries jets in the United States, prompted by Boeing Co's (BA.N) complaint that the Canadian company received illegal subsidies and dumped the planes at "absurdly low" prices.

The Commerce Department proposed a 79.82 percent antidumping duty after a preliminary finding that the jets were sold below cost to Delta Air Lines Inc (DAL.N) in 2016, adding to the 219.63 percent duty for subsidies announced last week.

The new proposed penalty, which would not take effect unless affirmed by the U.S. International Trade Commission early next year, is nevertheless expected to heighten trade tensions between the United States, Canada and Britain, where wings for the Bombardier jetliner are made.

The total duty was well above the 80 percent Boeing sought in its complaint.

After the first duty was announced on Sept. 26, Canada and Britain threatened to avoid buying Boeing military equipment, saying duties on the CSeries would reduce U.S. sales and put thousands of Bombardier jobs in their countries at risk.

The duty would apply to the cost of CSeries planes imported to the United States, effectively keeping it out of the market.

Bombardier shares were last down 0.5 percent to C$2.18.

Boeing, the world's largest plane maker, hailed the decision.

"These duties are the consequence of a conscious decision by Bombardier to violate trade law and dump their CSeries aircraft to secure a sale," Chicago-based Boeing said in a statement.

Canada's government said it was in "complete disagreement" with the decision and would keep raising concerns with the United States and Boeing.

Bombardier did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Echoing remarks from its statement last week, Delta noted the decision was preliminary and said it was confident regulators "will conclude that no U.S. manufacturer is at risk" from Bombardier's plane.

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Boeing has said the dispute is about "maintaining a level playing field and ensuring that aerospace companies abide by trade agreements" and is not an attack on Canada or Britain.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said the decision would help protect U.S. jobs, in line with President Donald Trump's "America First" policy.

"We will ... do everything in our power to stand up for American companies and their workers," Ross said in a statement.

More than half of the purchased content of each CSeries aircraft comes from U.S. suppliers, Bombardier has said. The plane supports an estimated 22,700 jobs and Bombardier's aerospace division spent $2.14 billion in the United States last year, according to the company and documents seen by Reuters.

(Additional reporting by David Ljunggren in Ottawa, Tim Ahmann in Washington and Allison Lampert in Montreal; Editing by Meredith Mazzilli)
By Lisa Lambert and Pete Schroeder WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Revenues for the $6 billion payday loan industry will shrivel under a new U.S. rule restricting lenders' ability to profit from high-interest, short-term loans, and much of the business could move to small banks, according to the country's consumer financial watchdog. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released a regulation on Thursday requiring lenders to determine if borrowers can repay their debts and capping the number of loans lenders can make to a borrower. The long-anticipated rule still must survive two major challenges before becoming effective in 2019. Republican lawmakers, who often say CFPB regulations are too onerous, want to nullify it in Congress, and the industry has already threatened lawsuits. Mostly low-income earners use what are known as payday loans - small-dollar advances typically repaid on the borrower's next payday - for emergency expenses. The lenders generally do not evaluate credit reports for loan eligibility. Under the new rule, the industrys revenue will plummet by two-thirds, the CFPB estimated. The current business model relies on borrowers needing to refinance or roll over existing loans. They pay fees and additional interest that increase lenders' profits, CFPB Director Richard Cordray said on a call with reporters. Lenders actually prefer customers who will re-borrow repeatedly," he said. People trapped in that debt cycle can end up paying the equivalent of 300 percent interest, the bureau found in a study it conducted during five years of writing the rule. The rule will devastate an industry serving nearly 30 million customers annually, said Ed D'Alessio, executive director of the Financial Service Centers of America, an industry trade group. "Taking away their access to this line of credit means many more Americans will be left with no choice but to turn to the unregulated loan industry, overseas and elsewhere, while others will simply bounce checks and suffer under the burden of greater debt," he said. BRINGING BANKS INTO THE MIX The agency narrowed the final version of the regulation to focus on short-term borrowings, instead of also including longer-term and installment debt. It exempted many community banks and credit unions from having to ensure borrowers can repay loans, as well. Both moves could make it easier for financial institutions to fill gaps left by payday lenders who close shop under the new rule. "Banks and credit unions have shown a willingness to serve these customers with small installment loans, and they can do it at prices that are six times lower than payday loans," said Nick Bourke, director of the Pew Charitable Trusts' consumer finance project. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency on Thursday lifted restrictions that kept banks from making small-dollar loans, which will further aid in the transition. The leading bank lobby group, the American Bankers Association, applauded the CFPB and OCC, and the trade group representing independent banks, Independent Community Bankers of America, said the exemption provides flexibility to make sustainable loans to customers in need. But the Community Bankers Association representing retail institutions said only the smallest banks qualify for the exemption, which applies to lenders making 2,500 or fewer short-term loans per year and deriving no more than 10 percent of revenue from those loans. "The CFPB whiffed at an opportunity to provide assistance to the millions of Americans experiencing financial hardship, CBA President Richard Hunt said. (Reporting by Lisa Lambert; editing by Leslie Adler and Cynthia Osterman)
By Nate Raymond REUTERS - A federal judge has tossed a lawsuit by the U.S. government claiming UnitedHealth Group Inc obtained inflated payments from the government based on inaccurate information about the health status of patients enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan. But Thursday's ruling by U.S. District Judge John Walter in Los Angeles said the Department of Justice (DOJ) could try to amend its allegations to shore up some of the failings contained in a complaint filed in May against the insurer. Walter said the lawsuit had failed to identify any corporate officers who signed documents stating that data submitted to the Medicare program was accurate or allege any of those individuals knew the information was false. He also said the lawsuit claimed the alleged violations were material only in a "conclusory" manner and had not shown the government would have refused to make payments to UnitedHealth had it known about the conduct. UnitedHealth declined to comment on the lawsuit on Friday. The DOJ, which has until Oct. 13 to amend its complaint, had no immediate comment. The ruling marked a setback for the DOJ after it earlier this year intervened in two separate whistleblower lawsuits against UnitedHealth involving Medicare Advantage filed under the False Claims Act. Medicare Advantage, an alternative to the standard fee-for-service Medicare in which private insurers manage health benefits, is the fastest growing form of government healthcare, with enrollment of 18 million people last year. The lawsuit said that since at least 2005, UnitedHealth knew many of the diagnosis codes it submitted to the Medicare program for increased payments based on "risk" factors like health status were not supported by patients' medical records. But the company turned a blind eye, the lawsuit said, funding and encouraging one-sided chart reviews of patients of HealthCare Partners, which provided services to UnitedHealth beneficiaries in California. As a result, UnitedHealth was able to wrongfully retain risk adjustment payments it received from the government, the lawsuit said. The complaint was filed in May after the DOJ partially intervened in a whistleblower lawsuit brought by James Swoben, a former employee of Senior Care Action Network Health Plan and a consultant to the risk adjustment industry. The DOJ later that month filed a second lawsuit accusing UnitedHealth of obtaining over $1 billion from Medicare to which it was not entitled. The case is U.S. ex rel Swoben v. Scan Health Plan et al, U.S. District Court, Central District of California, No. 09-cv-05013. (Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston, editing by G Crosse)
The U.S. Commerce Department on Friday moved to impose additional trade duties on the sale of Bombardier Inc CSeries jets in the United States, prompted by Boeing Co's complaint that the Canadian company had dumped the planes at "absurdly low" prices.

The Commerce Department proposed a 79.82 percent antidumping duty after a preliminary finding that the jets were sold below cost to Delta Air Lines in 2016.

The decision is expected to heighten trade tensions that flared last week after the United States announced a preliminary duty of nearly 220 percent for subsidies Bombardier received, which was well above the 80 percent duty Boeing sought in its complaint.

Canada and Britain threatened to avoid buying Boeing military equipment in retaliation, saying the duties on the CSeries would reduce U.S. sales and put thousands of Bombardier jobs in their countries at risk.

The combined duty of 299.45 percent would be applied to the cost of the plane imported to the United States, effectively keeping it out of the market, but would only take effect if the U.S. International Trade Commission rules in Boeing's favor in a final decision expected in early 2018.

Bombardier shares dipped 2 cents to C$2.18 immediately after the announcement but have since recovered.

(Reporting by Alwyn Scott, Tim Ahmann and Allison Lampert; Editing by Meredith Mazzilli)

Related Articles
33,000 jobs lost in September, ending longest period of uninterrupted growth

Analyst says underlying job market remains sturdy and strong

People head to a job fair at Dolphin Mall in Sweetwater, Florida. Photograph: Alan Diaz/AP

The US jobs market stalled in September, losing 33,000 jobs, as Hurricanes Harvey and Irma took their toll. It was the first time in seven years that the US monthly total had recorded a fall.

The US economy had added an average of 176,000 new jobs a month so far this year but as the labor department had predicted the storms, which caused fatal and catastrophic damage across Texas and Florida, slowed hiring.

But a loss in jobs was far worse than the 80,000 new jobs most US economists had expected would be created. It ends the longest stretch of uninterrupted jobs growth in US history. This was the first loss in jobs since September 2010.

Ahead of Fridays jobs report the Bureau of Labor Statistics said some 11.2 million workers lived in the affected areas, about 7.7% of the US workforce.

Employment in food services and drinking places declined by 105,000 in September. That sector has added an average of 24,000 jobs a month over the past 12 months.

The unemployment rate, which was 4.4% in August, fell to 4.2%, a 16-year low.

This is the second month of disappointing growth in the US jobs market. In August the economy added 156,000 new jobs, below the 180,000 that had been expected by economists.

Augusts jobs report was revised up from 156,000 to 169,000 but Julys was revised down to 138,000 from 189,000, a net loss of 38,000 for the two months.

The disappointing jobs figures could continue. After Hurricane Katrina in September 2005, the US reported a 35,000 decline in jobs, well below the three-month average of 175,000 in job gains. It took two payroll reports for the jobs market to recover.

On Wednesday ADP, the payrolls processor, said the private sector had added 135,000 jobs in September, sharply down from the 228,000 added in August.



Hurricanes Harvey and Irma hurt the job market in September, said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moodys, which helps compile the ADP report. But he added that: Looking through the storms the job market remains sturdy and strong.

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Paul Ashworth, chief US economist at Capital Economics, said: If past storms, particularly Katrina, are any guide, employment will rebound markedly over the next few months. The drop in the unemployment rate might persist, however, with consumer and small business surveys both pointing to a drop in the unemployment rate to nearer 4% for some time.

Puerto Rico, the US territory also devastated by the hurricanes, is not counted in the jobs report.
U.S. astronauts may once again walk on the moon.

Vice President Mike Pence said on Thursday that the Trump administration wants to send astronauts to the moon "not only to leave behind footprints and flags," but to set the stage for the U.S. to send people to Mars.

His statement echoes a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed in which he wrote that America's "pre-eminence in outer space is now under threat" and that "American prosperity and security depend on U.S. leadership in space."

Pence believes that the U.S.'s space program reached its pinnacle in 1969, when U.S. astronauts landed on the moon. With that achievement, the U.S. claimed "its rightful place as the undisputed leader in the exploration of the heavens," he wrote.

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Now, however, Pence is afraid the space program risks being overshadowed by efforts by Russia and China.

He lamented the danger during a National Space Council meeting on Thursday, the first meeting of the re-launched group in over two decades. President Donald Trump reinstated the space advisory council in August after it was disbanded during President George H. W. Bush's administration.

"The United States has not sent an American astronaut to low-Earth orbit in 45 years," said Pence, who is the National Space Council's chairman.

In Pences opinion, its especially troubling that America has "agreed to pay Russia to hitch a ride on their rockets to the International Space Station." The U.S. has frequently used the space station after ending the space shuttle program in 2011.

"In the absence of American leadership, other nations have seized the opportunity to stake their claim in the infinite frontier," Pence said. "Rather than lead in space, too often we've chosen to drift."

He also cited the danger of leaving space exploration to Russia and China. Theyre "pursuing a full range of anti-satellite technology to reduce U.S. military effectiveness, and they're increasingly considering attacks against satellite systems as part of their future warfare doctrine," he said.

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Still, Pence failed to outline specific plans to send astronauts to the moon. For instance, he did not mention funding for a moon program or any expected date for any landing. The Trump Administrations fiscal 2018 budget request included $19.1 billion for NASA, which as News noted in May, was $561 million decrease over previously enacted levels that would reduce the number of Earth science missions, eliminate the agencys education office and do away with the Obama administrations plans to robotically retrieve a piece of an asteroid as a precursor to eventual flights to Mars.

Former President Barack Obama previously dismissed the idea of sending people to the moon, saying in 2010 that "we've been there before." Instead, Obama wanted to focus attention on Mars, as he explained in a CNN op-ed last fall.

"We have set a clear goal vital to the next chapter of Americas story in space: sending humans to Mars by the 2030s and returning them safely to Earth, with the ultimate ambition to one day remain there for an extended time," Obama wrote.

Astronaut Buzz Aldrin, one of the astronauts on the first moon mission, supported Obama's space policies and his decision against returning astronauts to the moon. "The truth is, that we have already been to the Moon - some 40 years ago," he said in 2010,

"A near-term focus on lowering the cost of access to space and on developing key, cutting-edge technologies to take us further, faster, is just what our Nation needs to maintain its position as the leader in space exploration for the rest of this century," Aldrin said.

Other attendees of the National Space Council meeting included representatives of the Elon Musk-backed space transportation company SpaceX, the Jeff Bezos founded aerospace company Blue Origin, , and .
A long-running spat with French company Vivendi has been a major headache for former Italitan Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. (AFP Photo/ANDREAS SOLARO) (AFP)

Paris (AFP) - A fight pitting former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and France's top corporate raider entered a new round Thursday when the headquarters of French media giant Vivendi were raided as part of a market manipulation probe.

In late 2016, Vivendi, controlled by billionaire French businessman Vincent Bollore, scooped up a stake of nearly 30 percent in Italian TV group Mediaset, in which Berlusconi's family is the biggest shareholder.

The Berlusconi family has accused Vivendi of snapping up the shares after intentionally making the price fall by ripping up a new strategic partnership with Mediaset to create a new player on the European TV market meant to rival streaming giant Netflix.

The French company confirmed that French and Italian financial police agents were searching its offices, with sources linking it to the raid to a probe opened by Milan prosecutors.

Milan prosector Fabio De Pasquale declined to comment when contacted by AFP.

Both Bollore and Vivendi's chief executive Arnaud de Puyfontaine are targets of the probe.

Mediaset and Fininvest, the holding company of the Berlusconi family, are seeking 3 billion euros ($3.5 billion) in damages from Vivendi.

Italy's telecoms regulator earlier this year ordered Vivendi to either reduce its stake in Mediaset or in Telecom Italia, which regulators believe it has gained effective control over with a stake of nearly 24 percent.

The Italian government is looking into whether Vivendi breached an obligation to notify Rome of its controlling role at Telecom Italia, a company considered a strategic national asset.
By David Randall NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Trump administration's plan to cut corporate taxes may add more fuel to the already hot rally in the shares of automation companies. Fund managers from Columbia Threadneedle Investments, Hodges Capital and Hood Capital say that they expect that companies will use part of their tax savings to invest in high-cost machines that will allow them to reduce labor costs over time. That would be a boon for companies such as Cognex Corp, which makes so-called machine vision systems that are used to quickly sort and fill orders in e-commerce warehouses, and Faro Technologies Inc, which makes three-dimensional measuring tools that can help lower labor costs on aerospace assembly lines. Cognex shares touched a 52-week high on Friday, while Faro shares at $38.20 were closing in on their year-high of $40.60 reached in August. "Scarcity of capital is the thing that keeps companies from spending money when it makes sense to do so. Investing in automation would be something that pays for itself quickly," said Matt Litfin, a portfolio manager of the $4.8-billion Columbia Acorn fund, who owns shares of Cognex. Shares of the company are up 80 percent year-to-date. Automation companies have rallied overall this year as corporate America looks for ways to maintain margins and productivity at a time when wages are rising and unemployment is low. The $1.4 billion Robo Global Robotics and Automation Index ETF, which includes a mix of large-cap companies such as Rockwell Automation and Intuitive Surgical, is up over 35 percent for the year to date, nearly triple the 13.5-percent gain in the broad S&P 500 index. Numerous fund holdings are up over 90 percent for the year to date, including drone manufacturer AeroVironment Inc, gear manufacturer Harmonic Drive Systems Inc, and laser company IPG Photonics Corp. Large-cap automation companies, such as Rockwell Automation Inc and Emerson Electric Co, have also posted solid returns so far this year, though smaller-cap companies have seen larger share price gains overall. The Robo ETF has posted positive inflows every week since President Donald Trump's November election, partly due to investor anticipation of a corporate tax cut. Investors have sent $461 million into the fund since early August, when the Trump administration began publicly discussing its plans to cut the top corporate tax rates to 20 percent, from 35 percent. Prominent Republican senators such as Bob Corker and Rand Paul have criticized the Trump administration's plan for its potential to increase the federal deficit, leaving its passage far from certain. Yet fund managers say that they see gains in automation companies continuing regardless of whether a tax bill passes. "Even eight years after the financial crisis, companies are still very focused on their bottom lines and maintaining efficiency and productivity as much as possible," said Eric Marshall, a portfolio manager of the $743-million Hodges Small Cap fund. Middleby Corp, which makes smart ovens and other kitchen equipment used in restaurant chains such as Panera Bread, will likely benefit as companies look for ways to reduce labor costs as more states raise the minimum wage, he said. Shares of Middleby are flat for the year, in part due to slow sales of its Viking line of high-end ovens after the company had to recall some freestanding gas ranges that turned on by themselves with customers unable to turn them off. Hodges said that despite the overhang, the company looks poised to continue to grow as restaurants expand and high real-estate prices prompt more homeowners to upgrade their kitchens. "This is a company that's got some real secular trends going for it, and a corporate tax cut will only accelerate those trends," he said. (Reporting by David Randall; Editing by Cynthia Osterman and James Dalgleish)
A new United Nations report says more than 8,000 children were killed or injured in armed conflicts throughout the world last year, a number that UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called "unacceptable."

The UN said in a statement that its annual Children and Armed Conflict report, presented to the UN Security Council on October 5, found that Afghanistan had the highest number of verified child casualties since the 192-nation body began documenting civilian casualties in 2009.

The report said that 3,512 children in Afghanistan were killed or maimed in 2016, up 24 percent from the previous year. In Syria the figure was 1,299, and in Yemen it was 1,340.

The report also found that hundreds of children were victims of sexual violence, targeted in attacks on schools, or recruited as soldiers.

The report included a blacklist of organizations deemed responsible for abuses against children, including groups based in Afghanistan, Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iraq, Mali, Myanmar, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, Syria, and Yemen.

The Saudi-led coalition backing Yemen's government in its conflict against Huthi rebels was also included in the list for the first time.

Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon last year removed Saudi Arabia from the list following pressure from Riyadh. Human Rights Watch said Guterres did "the right thing" by adding the coalition to the list.

With reporting by AP and AFP
NEW HAVEN, Conn., Oct. 04, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Woodbridge International, an innovative middle-market mergers and acquisitions firm, is pleased to announce the sale of its client, Ontario, Canada-based Skilcor Food Products to Premium Brands Holdings Corporation, a leading producer, marketer and distributor of branded specialty food products.



Skilcor is one of Canadas leading manufacturers of cooked back ribs and other unique protein products. Founded more than 50 years ago, Skilcor is a recognized leader in the North American food industry. Excellent customer service, innovative portioned controlled meat products, state-of-the-art facility, together with an award-winning food safety program, are the foundations of Skilcors success.

Premium Brands Holdings Corporation is a publicly-held company headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia. The company owns a broad range of leading specialty food manufacturing and differentiated food distribution businesses.

Headquartered in New Haven, CT, Woodbridge International, a global M&A firm, was founded in 1993 and has 30 offices worldwide.

Contact:

Don Krier, Managing Director

Phone: (203) 389-8400 Ext. 201


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On Wednesday, September 1st, Amadnews revealed a meeting organized by the heads of intelligence department of Irans Revolutionary Guards, where the department heads were planning ways to arrest Ahmadi Nejad and Hussain Fraidoon.

Amadnews reports that in order to bring balance and justice to the society, the organization also plans to arrest Fazel Larijani, one of Zahra Larijanis bothers.

Following the release of the report, Sdegh Amoli Larijani called a meeting with Ismail Khatib, head of the a department of the judicial system, and his deputies Pur Zari and Nawrozi. He said, It is not possible that the information is leaked to Amadnews without any help from inside. The information must be leaked by Khusrawi and Milani, members of the protection of secret information of judiciary system, or the information is given to Amadnews by the MI6 the intelligence service of Britain.

A source from the Protection of Secret Information in the judiciary system said that Anti-spyware Deputy of the Intelligence Ministry has information that Zahra Ardshair Larijani sent a copy of secret information belonging to the Iran government to the British Council in Iran and their Italian colleagues in Tehran. It has also has been said that she had meetings with the heads of these institutes in Iran.

The source told Amadnews that Ministry of Intelligence is consulting with Muhseni Ezhai, deputy of the judicial system, to begin an investigation of Zahara Larijani on the charges of spying for the west. However, Muhseni Ezhai said the religious leaders of Iran should decide on the issue, which sparked criticism from the members of coordinating council of intelligence services.

Khusrawi and Milani are in prison on charges of spying. They have allegedly been tortured in prison, and forced to say that they leaked information, according to Amadnews.

On October 3rd, Mahmoud Alavi, Irans intelligence minister, denied the unsourced item from Amadnews that links the head of the judiciarys daughter to espionage. None of the members of Larijani family is suspected of espionage, he said.
LG was the first at the Mobile World Congress to announce its new flagship G6  a 5.7 screen that fits into a traditional 5.2 body.

The move helps to legitimise the 18:9 Univisium format, Latin for unity of images, a proposed universal film format created by cinematographer Vittorio Storaro to unify all future theatrical and television movies into one respective aspect ratio of 2:1 (18:9).

The format also includes new standards for projection that maximise the efficiencies of the Univisium format.

In essence, Univisium eliminates the need to make different format prints to suit TV, theatre, smartphones, and other display devices while still using 35mm or 65mm original film stock and equipment.

In any case, it allows for slightly longer smartphone screens without increased width. Existing 16:9 content can be slightly stretched or presented as letterbox style with minimal black bars on either side of it. Samsungs forthcoming S8 and Apples iPhone 8 are strongly rumoured to be using 18:9 screens.

Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 Pro, 2.53GHx.

RAM/STORAGE: 4GB LPDR4 and 64GB UFO2.0 storage, with microSD slot to 2TB.

Screen: 5.7", QHD 2880 x 1440, 564 ppi, 18:9 Full Vision Display screen.

New UX 6.0 to take advantage of the 2:1 nature of the screen e.g. side by side apps etc.

Dolby Vision and HDR10+ - the first phone with both standards as well as Pantone natural vivid colour palette.

IP 68 rating and MIL Spec drop rating.

Rear Camera: Improved dual, flush mount, 13MP, f/1.8, 71normal lens, and 13MP, 125, f/2.4 wide angle, OIS and 4K record. Will shoot two images side-by-side in 1:1 format perfect for Instagram. 360 panorama shots.

Front camera: 5MP 100 wide-angle selfie camera with screen flash.

Rear fingerprint sensor.

AI learning using Google Assistant  OK Google.

Hi quality audio DAC, active noise cancelling, multiple mics.

Apps in Google Play store are being made compatible with 18:9 and LGs media player will adjust for maximum screen use.

18:9 games package US$200 value including Temple Run by Imagini.

Colours Ice Platinum, Mystic White, Astro Black.

Battery: 3300mAh battery  guaranteed battery reliability and air gap around the battery, Qualcomm fast charge 3.0. zero to 100% in 1.5 hours and wireless charge.

Heat pipe cooling and dispersed heat generating component.

148.9x71.97.x7.9mm

Android 7 with an upgrade to 8.

The phone looks like most others  a sleek, solid, glass and metal slab using all the latest technology.

iTWire has reviewed the G4 and G5 and in both cases found these to be true flagship quality, always with something a little different like the dual camera and LG Friends (which it has now retired).

This builds on the companys history, it is first to market, it ticks every box, and it leaves room for the uber-flagship V series to take up the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 later in the year and add even more features.
Thousands of teachers celebrated World Teacher's Day in Yaounde, Cameroon's capital on October 5.

Ernestine Tabe, a teacher, came to the capital in September to look for a job. She used to live in Kumba, an English-speaking town.

Tabe had not been paid for five months because of an ongoing strike in Cameroon's English speaking areas.

"I decided to come here in order to get myself involved in teaching, so that the zeal in me would not die down because, as a teacher, you are always eager to teach others to know."

Last November, most of the schools in Cameroon's two English-speaking regions closed when lawyers and teachers went on strike. The strikers demanded that the government reform how it uses the French language in the country.

Gideon Tanda is a leader of one of the teacher's trade unions that called the strike.

Tanda spoke about some of the issues the teachers' union is concerned about. He said English-speaking teachers are often sent to French-speaking regions and French-speaking teachers are sent to English-speaking areas. He added that the teachers often have to teach in areas outside of their training. "What do you think? That person [teacher] cannot perform. There is bad faith," he said.

Tanda also said that he is concerned that teachers will miss more school.

[The] Government is not listening, and it is so deplorable now that we have had a lot of killing. People are on the run, others are nowhere to be found, just missing. I feel terribly bad as a teacher that at this point in time people have to miss classes for a whole year and they are about to miss another year."

English-speaking separatist groups have joined the strike. They are demanding that English-speaking regions form a new state called Ambazonia.

Thousands of people demonstrated in the streets in support of calls for independence earlier this month. However, the rights group Amnesty International said security forces reacted violently, killing at least 17 people.

In response to the strike, the government says it has given jobs to 1,000 English-speaking teachers and paid subsidies to private schools. Officials also say they have released some of the leader of teachers' unions from jail.

The governor of the Southwest Region, Bernard Okalia Bilai, is urging teachers to return to their classrooms. He says the state is here to guarantee their security. He says officials will continue to talk with teachers to deal with their concerns throughout the year.

But other violence also has been reported. Unknown arsonists, possibly from militant groups, have targeted schools that have ignored the call to take part in the strike. Some parents say it is not safe to send their children back to school.

The government estimates that only 20 percent of expected students in the English-speaking regions have shown up for class since the school year began in September.

I'm John Russell.

Moki Edwin Kindzeka reported on this story for VOA News. John Russell 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

celebrate  v. to do something special or enjoyable for an important event, occasion, holiday, etc.

zeal  n. a strong feeling of interest and enthusiasm that makes someone very eager or determined to do something

eager adj. very excited and interested

regions n. part of the world or of a country that is separate

faith  n. strong belief or trust in someone or something

deplorable  adj. very bad, causing fear and shock

subsidy  n. money or support usually from a government that is meant to keep the cost of a product or service low

arsonist  n. a person who commits the illegal burning of a building or other property
2 A man releases paper lanterns to float in Shwe Kyin creek during the annual light festival in Bago, about 183 kilometers from Yangon, Myanmar. The ritual is believed to bring good fortune at the end of Buddhist Lent.
We present the fourth of five parts of the short story "The Murders in the Rue Morgue," by Edgar Allen Poe. The story was originally adapted and recorded by VOA Learning English.

Murder had come to the old house on the street called Rue Morgue! Murder had come and gone and left behind the dead bodies of an old woman and her daughter.

It was a perplexing crime scene. The damage to the daughters body suggested a killer of superhuman strength. The knife that had killed the old woman, almost separating head from body, was in the room. But the old womans body was outside, behind the house. The door and windows to the house all firmly closed, locked on the inside. Voices had been heard. One voice was speaking in French; the other voice had not spoken even one word that anyone could understand. And yet, there was no one in the room when police arrived moments after the attack.

My friend Dupin was now explaining to me what he had learned when we visited the scene of the crime.

I knew that what seemed impossible must be proved possible. The killer, and I believe there was just one, escaped through one of these windows. After the murderer had left he could have closed the window from the outside; but he could not have fastened the nail. Yet anyone could see the nails which held the windows tightly closed. This was the fact that stopped the police. How could the murderer put the nail back in its place?

Thats the problem, Dupin! Perhaps  perhaps if you pulled out the nail

Yes! That is just what I thought. Two things seemed clear: first, there had to be something wrong with the idea that the nails were holding the windows closed. Second, if it was not the nails which were holding the windows closed, then something else was holding them closed, something hard to see, something hidden. So, I checked the first window again. I removed the nail. Then I again tried to raise the window. It was still firmly closed. There had to be a hidden lock, I thought, inside the window. I searched the window frame. Indeed, I found a button which, when I pressed it, opened an inner lock. I raised the window with ease.

Now I knew that the killer could close the window from outside and the window would lock itself. But there was still the nail. So, I returned the nail, pressed the button and again tried to raise the window. The nail held the window closed!

Thenthe window could not have been the means of escape!

That window, no. The killer did not escape through it. But I went again to the other window. The nail there looked the same as the one I had just seen. I moved the bed so that I could look closely. Yes. There was a button here, too. I was so sure I was right that without touching the nail I pressed the button and tried to raise the window. And guess what happened?

I knew the answer but I let Dupin have the satisfaction of reporting. The window went up, he told me.

As the window went up, it carried with it the top part of the nail, the head. When I closed the window, the head of the nail was again in its place. It looked just as it had looked before. The nail was broken but looked whole. And, what is impossible is proved otherwise.

So the murderer went out that window. Did he arrive in the room by that path as well?"

Dupin answered, although it seemed he was speaking more to himself than me.

It was a hot summer night. Would the victim have opened the window to get some fresh night air? Most likely.

So, the killer found it open and entered, I said. Dupin nodded.

And, as he came, the window locked when it closed. The lock held the window closed not the nail, as it appeared to investigators. Again that which seemed impossible was actually possible.

Dupins eyes were shining with the satisfaction discovery brings. He was analyzing evidence and his unusual reasoning ability had found a great purpose. I suddenly understood:This is why going to the house on the Rue Morgue seemed pleasing to Dupin. The use of his sharp mental abilities made him happy.

And, I had more work to provide that great brain.

Dupin  the windows are on the fourth floor, far above the ground. Even an open window

Dupin shook his head up and down slowly.

Yesyes. That is an interesting question: how did the murderer go from the window down to the ground and vice-versa? But I had looked around carefully outside you recall. And I knew a way. And the answer to this question told me still more about the identity of the killer. Do you remember, friend, the lightning rod attached to the house?

I paused. Yyyyes. A metal pole, and quite narrow. It protects the building from lightning strikes. But it is so tall and thin.

True. It would take great strength and agility to get up the pole. Some kinds of animals might climb it easily, yes? But surely not every man could. In fact, maybe very few men. Those of very special strength and special training.

This helped create a better picture of the murderer. But still not sharp enough to recognize. I still had the question: who?

We know the killer climbed the pole, entered the room through the window, murdered and destroyed all order in the room. He managed to push one body up the chimney. He threw the other, almost headless, out the window. Then he left the way he came. We can answer the how of the crime. But who? Such unspeakable viciousnesswhat human could do this to another?

Dupin continued, trancelike again, seeming to speak to himself as much as to me.

Perhaps we can come closer to answering the question of who by exploring the question of why.

But Dupin, the police said the motive must have been robbery.

But my friend, what was taken? The police said they could not answer the question. They said they did not know what the women had. Maybe clothes and jewelry, the investigators proposed. But neighbors described the women as nearly hermits, rarely if ever, leaving the house. Of what use would fine clothes and costly jewelry be to them?

Dupins eyes were glistening, his brows pointing sharply down, as he circled me, thinking aloud.

But, what is more telling than what the killer might have taken is what he left behindconveniently in bags in the center of the room

Of course, the money. You are right, Dupin. It makes no sense. All the money delivered from the bank to the old woman. Right there on the floor. Why would the attacker have passed on the riches? A thief certainly would not.

So, I want you to forget the investigators claim that the killer acted out of a desire for money. They thought this only because they knew the money had arrived just three days before the killings. But that was just chance. If gold was the reason for the murders, the killer must have been quite a fool to forget and leave it there.

No. I think that there was no reason for these killingsexcept, perhaps, fear. The wild nature of the attack leads me to a motive of fear.

Hmm, an interesting theory, Dupin. Fear can bring out the crazed beast in a person

In any living thing. Now let us look at the murders themselves. A girl is killed by powerful hands around her neck, then the body is placed in the opening over the fireplace, head down. Unusual, even by the standards of the most terrible criminals. Think, also, of the great strength needed to put the body where it was found. It took several men to pull it out! Also the hair pulled from the head of the old woman. You saw it on the floor yourself, and you saw the blood and skin still attached. It takes great force to pull out even twenty or thirty hairs at a time. But this was hair AND scalp! And there was no reason to almost take off the womans head just to kill her.

It is extremely odd, I agree. Especially since there is no evidence that the killer knew the victims. No one could hate a stranger enough to carry out such torture.

Dupins eyes narrowed.

Exactly.

____________________________________

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Quiz: The Murders in the Rue Morgue, Part Four Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz

Now it's your turn to use the words in this story. What kinds questions do you ask yourself and others when trying to solve difficult problem? What are things you think of that no one else usually does? Let us know in the comments section or on our Facebook page.

_____________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

superhuman  adj. greater than normal human power, size or ability

button  n. a small, usually round piece of plastic, glass, metal, etc., that is sewn to a piece of clothing and used for fastening one part of the clothing to another part

lightning rod  n. a metal pole often attached to homes or buildings used for attracting lightning

pole  n. a long, straight piece of wood, metal or some other material, that is often placed in the ground so that it stands straight up

trancelike  adj. to be (or seem to be) in a state where you are not aware of what is happening around you because you are thinking of something else

hermit(s)  n. a person who lives in a simple way apart from others especially for religious reasons

glistening  gerund. shining with light, as if reflected off a wet surface

brow(s)  n. the line of hair that grows over your eye

thief  n. a person who steals something

scalp  n. the skin on the top of your head where hair grows
A group seeking an international ban on nuclear weapons has won the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee is giving the prize to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, or ICAN.

The head of the committee, Berit Reiss-Andersen, made the announcement on Friday.

She said, "We live in a world where the risk of nuclear weapons being used is greater than it has been for a long time."

The Nobel committee said ICAN won for its work to bring attention to the catastrophic humanitarian effects of any use of nuclear weapons. The statement also praised the group for its ground-breaking efforts to achieve a treaty-based prohibition of such weapons."

ICAN describes itself as a coalition of non-government groups in more than 100 countries. It began in Australia and was officially launched in Vienna in 2007.

ICANs main goal is to support enactment of a United Nations treaty banning nuclear weapons. The treaty was approved in New York on July 7, 2017. The agreement, however, did not include nuclear powers, such as Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States.

The peace prize announcement comes as U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened Iran and North Korea over their nuclear activities.

President Trump told the U.N. General Assembly last month that he may be forced to "totally destroy" North Korea because of its nuclear program.

U.S. officials now say Trump is likely to decertify the international nuclear agreement with Iran. He has called the agreement the "worst deal ever negotiated."

The president is expected to announce his plans in a speech next week. The officials expect him to say the deal is not in the U.S. national interest. This would not cancel the 2015 agreement, but instead return it to Congress. Lawmakers would then have 60 days to decide whether to re-establish sanctions that were suspended under the agreement.

A decertification could possibly lead to talks on renegotiating the deal, although Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has said that is not under consideration.

Im Caty Weaver.

VOANews.com reported this story. George Grow adapted the report for Learning English. His story includes information from the Associated Press and the Reuters news agency. Caty Weaver was the editor.

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.

_______________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

catastrophic  adj. of or relating to a terrible disaster

prohibition  n. an order to stop; a ban

decertify  v. to withdraw from

sanction  n. an action that is taken to force a country to obey international law
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NextEra Energy, Inc. is the largest electric utility holding company in the US. It operates a network of power generation and distribution facilities that include fossil-fuel-generated and green energy. As of mid-2022, the company was capable of generating 58 GW of electricity with nearly 60% of the load produced by green sources including wind and solar. In their view, going green isnt an option, its the solution. NextEra Energy has been recognized multiple times as a leader in clean energy and ESG practices and was ranked the #1 electric and gas utility on the Forbes list of Most Admired Companies.

The company is the result of several mergers that begin with FPL Group. FPL Group is now a subsidiary of NextEra Energy and the third-largest provider of electricity in the US servicing nearly half of Florida. FPL and its affiliates are the single largest provider of renewable energy generated from wind and sun. The group changed its name in 2010 following a decision to shift focus onto renewable energy sources.

Today, NextEra Energy, Inc through its subsidiary FPL serves about 12 million people in eastern and southwestern Florida. The company employs nearly 14,900 people who service 5.8 million accounts. The company is in business to generate, transmit, and distribute electricity to retail and wholesale clients. Electricity is generated through wind, solar, nuclear, natural gas, and coal-fired facilities.

The company is also engaged in the construction and operation of new facilities, specifically renewable power generation, storage, and delivery facilities, and can offer custom solutions tailored to any need. Offerings include tailored services to assist businesses with their transition to clean energy.

NextEra Energy also owns and operates 7 nuclear power stations in Florida, New Hampshire, and Wisconsin generating power for the wholesale market.

Unlike other companies that are targeting net-zero emissions, NextEra Energy has a plan to reach real zero and is investing heavily to reach that goal by 2045. The company had invested nearly $50 billion in green energy infrastructure and initiatives by mid-2022. The plan is to first work on reducing its own emissions and then take its knowledge and expertise to the world.
China Unicom (Hong Kong) Limited, an investment holding company, provides cellular and fixed-line voice, and related value-added services in the People's Republic of China. It also provides broadband and other Internet-related, information communications technology, and business and data communications services. In addition, the company offers communications technology training, technical, and Internet information and value-added telecommunications services; telecommunications network construction, planning, and technical consulting services; and consultancy, survey, design, and contract services relating to information and construction projects. Further, it provides customer, project design consultation and management, property management, e-payment, venture capital investment, communications technology development and promotion, auto informatisation, financial, data processing, and tourism and information services; advertising design, production, agency, and publication services; technology development, transfer, and consulting services; and technology promotion service of intelligent transportation system's products. Additionally, the company offers technology development and consultation, and other services; technology research and development, consultation, and services of TV video and mobile video; internet of things technology, and online data processing and transaction services; and big data, and cloud computation and infrastructure services. It also provides online video and reading materials; network music; financing leasing services; and data analysis and application services, as well as sells handsets and telecommunication equipment. As of December 31, 2019, it had approximately 254 million 4G subscribers, 83 million fixed-line broadband subscribers, and 54 million fixed-line local access subscribers. The company was incorporated in 2000 and is based in Central, Hong Kong. China Unicom (Hong Kong) Limited is a subsidiary of China Unicom (BVI) Limited.
Everest Re Group, Ltd., through its subsidiaries, provides reinsurance and insurance products in the United States, Bermuda, and internationally. The company operates through Reinsurance Operations and Insurance Operations segments. The Reinsurance Operations segment writes property and casualty reinsurance; and specialty lines of business through reinsurance brokers, as well as directly with ceding companies in the United States, Bermuda, Ireland, Canada, Singapore, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. The Insurance Operations segment writes property and casualty insurance directly, as well as through brokers, surplus lines brokers, and general agents in Bermuda, Canada, Europe, South America, Canada, Chile, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and the Netherlands. The company also provides treaty and facultative reinsurance products; admitted and non-admitted insurance products; and property and casualty reinsurance and insurance coverages, including marine, aviation, surety, errors and omissions liability, directors' and officers' liability, medical malpractice, mortgage reinsurance, other specialty lines, accident and health, and workers' compensation products. In addition, it offers commercial property and casualty insurance products through wholesale and retail brokers, surplus lines brokers, and program administrators. Everest Re Group, Ltd. was founded in 1973 and is headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda.
The following companies are subsidiares of Ingersoll Rand: 13125882 Canada Inc., 211 E. Russell Road LLC, 4458664 Canada Inc., ACCUDYNE INDUSTRIES ASIA PTE. LTD., ACCUDYNE INDUSTRIES BORROWER S.C.A., ACCUDYNE INDUSTRIES INDIA PRIVATE LIMITED, ACCUDYNE INDUSTRIES LLC, ACCUDYNE INDUSTRIES MIDDLE EAST FZE, ACCUDYNE INDUSTRIES SERVICES LIMITED, ASTRUM IT GmbH, Accudyne Industries Acquisition S.A r.l, Accudyne Industries Canada Inc., Accudyne Industries S.A r.l., Air Dimensions, Air Dimensions Inc., Albin Pump SAS, BOC Edwards Global Low pressure Air business, CISA S.p.A., Cameron-Centrifugal Compression, Comercial Ingersoll-Rand (Chile) Limitada, Comingersoll-Comercio E Industria De Equipamentos S.A., CompAir, CompAir (Hankook) Korea Co. Ltd., CompAir Acquisition (No. 2) Ltd., CompAir Acquisition Ltd., CompAir BroomWade Ltd., CompAir Finance Ltd., CompAir GmbH, CompAir Holdings Limited, CompAir International Trading (Shanghai) Co Ltd, CompAir Korea Ltd, CompAir South Africa (SA) (Pty) Ltd., Consolidated Distribution Holdings Ltd., DV Systems Inc., Dosatron International SAS, Emco Wheaton Gmbh, Emco Wheaton USA Inc, Enza Air Proprietary Limited, FlexEnergy Holdings LLC, Frigoblock Grosskopf Gmbh, GD Aria Holdings Limited, GD Aria Holdings Limited, GD Aria Investments Limited, GD First (UK) Ltd, GD German Holdings GmbH, GD German Holdings I Gmbh, GD German Holdings II GmbH, GD German Investments GmbH, GD Global Holdings II Inc., GD Global Holdings Inc., GD Global Holdings UK II Ltd., GD Global Ventures I B.V., GD Global Ventures II B.V., GD Global Ventures III B.V., GD Industrial Products Malaysia SDN. BHD., GD Investment KY, GD UK Finance Ltd., GPS Industries, Gardner Denver (Thailand) Co. Ltd., Gardner Denver Austria GmbH, Gardner Denver Bad Neustadt Real Estate GmbH & Co KG, Gardner Denver Belgium NV, Gardner Denver Brasil Industria E Comercio de Maquinas Ltda., Gardner Denver CZ + SK sro, Gardner Denver Canada Corp (Canada), Gardner Denver Cyprus Investments II Limited, Gardner Denver Cyprus Investments Limited, Gardner Denver Deutschland GmbH, Gardner Denver Engineered Products India Private Limited, Gardner Denver FZE, Gardner Denver Finance II LLC, Gardner Denver Finance Inc & Co KG, Gardner Denver France SAS, Gardner Denver Group Svcs Ltd, Gardner Denver Holdings Limited, Gardner Denver Hong Kong Investments Limited, Gardner Denver Hong Kong Ltd, Gardner Denver Iberica SL, Gardner Denver Inc., Gardner Denver Industries Ltd., Gardner Denver Industries Pty Ltd., Gardner Denver International Inc., Gardner Denver International Ltd., Gardner Denver Investments Inc., Gardner Denver Italy Holdings S.r.L., Gardner Denver Japan Ltd., Gardner Denver Kirchhain Real Estate GmbH & Co KG, Gardner Denver Korea Ltd., Gardner Denver Ltd., Gardner Denver Machinery (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Gardner Denver Nash Brasil Industria E Comercio De Bombas Ltda, Gardner Denver Nash LLC, Gardner Denver Nash Machinery Ltd., Gardner Denver Nederland BV, Gardner Denver Nederland Investments B.V., Gardner Denver Oy, Gardner Denver Polska Sp z.o.o., Gardner Denver Pte. Ltd., Gardner Denver S.r.l., Gardner Denver Schopfheim GmbH, Gardner Denver Schopfheim Real Estate GmbH & Co KG, Gardner Denver Schweiz AG, Gardner Denver Slovakia s.r.o., Gardner Denver Sweden AB, Gardner Denver Taiwan Ltd., Gardner Denver Thomas GmbH (f/k/a ILMVAC GmbH), Gardner Denver Thomas Inc., Gardner Denver Thomas Pneumatic Systems (Wuxi) Co. Ltd., Gardner Denver Thomas Real Estate GmbH & Co KG, Garo Dott. Ing. Roberto Gabbioneta S.r.l., Ghh-Rand Schraubenkompressoren Gmbh, HASKEL EUROPE LTD., HASKEL HOLDINGS UK LIMITED, HASKEL INTERNATIONAL LLC, Hamworthy Belliss & Morcom, Haskel France SAS, Haskel Sistemas de Fluidos Espana S.R.L., Hibon Inc., Highspeed Newco LLC, Hingerose Limited, ILMVAC (UK) Ltd., ILS Innovative Labor Systeme, ILS Inovative Laborsysteme GmbH, INGERSOLL RAND ITS JAPAN LTD., INGERSOLL-RAND (CHANG ZHOU) TOOLS CO. LTD., INGERSOLL-RAND (CHINA) INDUSTRIAL EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURING CO. LTD., INGERSOLL-RAND CHINA LLC, INGERSOLL-RAND COMERCIO E SERVICOS DE MAQUINAS E EQUIPAMENTOS INDUSTRIAIS LTDA., INGERSOLL-RAND DE PUERTO RICO INC., INGERSOLL-RAND INDUSTRIAL COMPANY B.V., INGERSOLL-RAND INDUSTRIAL SP. Z O.O., INGERSOLL-RAND INDUSTRIAL U.S. INC., INGERSOLL-RAND PHILIPPINES INC., INGERSOLL-RAND SPAIN S.A., INGERSOLL-RAND U.S. HOLDCO INC., IR HPS Holdco. Inc., ITO Emniyet, Ingersoll Rand Cyprus Investments Ltd., Ingersoll Rand Finance LLC, Ingersoll Rand Global Investments LLC, Ingersoll Rand Global Ventures LLC, Ingersoll Rand Hong Kong Investments Limited, Ingersoll Rand Inc., Ingersoll Rand Investments (SG) Pte. Ltd., Ingersoll Rand Investments B.V., Ingersoll Rand Schweiz Investments Gmbh, Ingersoll Rand Technology R&D (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Ingersoll-Rand (Australia) Ltd., Ingersoll-Rand (China) Investment Company Limited, Ingersoll-Rand (Guilin) Tools Company Limited, Ingersoll-Rand (Hong Kong) Holding Company Limited, Ingersoll-Rand (India) Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Ab, Ingersoll-Rand Air Solutions Hibon Sarl, Ingersoll-Rand Beteiligungs Und Grundstucksverwaltungs Gmbh, Ingersoll-Rand Colombia S.A.S., Ingersoll-Rand Company Limited (Uk), Ingersoll-Rand Company South Africa (Pty) Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Cz S.R.O., Ingersoll-Rand De Mexico S.A. De C.V., Ingersoll-Rand Equipements De Production S.A.S., Ingersoll-Rand Holdings Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Industrial Ireland Limited, Ingersoll-Rand International (India) Private Limited, Ingersoll-Rand International Holding Llc, Ingersoll-Rand Italia S.R.L., Ingersoll-Rand Italiana Manufacturing S.R.L., Ingersoll-Rand Korea Holding Llc, Ingersoll-Rand Korea Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Lux Investments II S.A R.I., Ingersoll-Rand Lux Investments S.A R.L., Ingersoll-Rand Luxembourg Industrial Company S.A R.L., Ingersoll-Rand Machinery (Shanghai) Company Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Malaysia Co. Sdn. Bhd., Ingersoll-Rand S.A. De C.V., Ingersoll-Rand Services And Trading Limited Liability Company, Ingersoll-Rand Services Company, Ingersoll-Rand Services Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Singapore Enterprises Pte. Ltd., Ingersoll-Rand South East Asia (Pte.) Ltd., Ingersoll-Rand Superay Holdings Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Technical And Services S.A.R.L., Ingersoll-Rand Technologies And Services Private Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Technology R&D (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Ingersoll-Rand Tool Holdings Limited, Ingersoll-Rand Trading Gmbh, Ingersoll-Rand Vietnam Company Limited, Instrum Rand JSC, Interflex Datensysteme, Ir Canada Holdings Ulc, Ir Canada Sales & Service Ulc, Ir France Sas, Kryptonite corp, Lawrence Factor Inc., LeROI, LeRoi International Inc, MILTON ROY (HONG KONG) LIMITED, MILTON ROY (UK) LIMITED, MILTON ROY EUROPA B.V., MILTON ROY EUROPE SAS, MILTON ROY INDUSTRIAL (SHANGHAI) CO. LTD., MILTON ROY LLC, MILTON ROY US PURCHASER INC., MP Pumps Inc., Maximum AG Technologies Inc., Maximus Solutions, Mb Air Systems Limited, Nash Elmo, Officina Meccaniche Industriali Srl, Oina VV, Oina VV Aktiebolag, Plurifilter D.O.O., Pt Ingersoll-Rand Indonesia, Robuschi, Runtech Systems, Runtech Systems (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Runtech Systems Inc., Runtech Systems OY, SEEPEX, Seepex (M) SDN, Seepex Australia Pty Ltd, Seepex Beteiligungs-Gesellschaft mit Beschrankter Haftung, Seepex France S.a.r.l., Seepex GmbH, Seepex Inc., Seepex India Private Ltd., Seepex Italia SRL, Seepex Japan Co. Ltd., Seepex Nordic A/S, Seepex OOO, Seepex Pumps (Shanghia) Co. Ltd., Seepex UK Ltd., Shanghai CompAir Compressors Co Ltd, Shanghai Compressors & Blowers Ltd., Shanghai Ingersoll-Rand Compressor Limited, Shenzhen Bocom System Engineering Co., Superay, Syltone, TIWR Real Estate GmbH & Co. KG, Tamrotor Marine Comp AS Norway, Tecno Matic Europe s.r.o., Thomas Industries Inc., Trane Technologies, Tri-Continent Scientific Inc., Vacuum and Blower Systems division, Welch Vacuum Equipment (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Zaxe Technologies Inc., Zeks Compressed Air Solutions Llc, Zinsser Analytic, Zinsser Analytik GmbH, Zinsser NA Inc., and crayon interface.

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Zayo Group Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides bandwidth infrastructure solutions for the communications industry in the United States, Canada, and Europe. The company operates in six segments: Fiber Solutions, Transport, Enterprise Networks, Zayo Colocation (zColo), Allstream, and Other. The Fiber Solutions segment provides dark fiber, and fiber-to-the-tower and small cell mobile infrastructure services for carriers and other communication service providers, Internet service providers, wireless service providers, media and content companies, large enterprises, and other companies. The Transport segment offers lit bandwidth infrastructure solutions comprising wavelength, Ethernet, wholesale IP services, and SONET services through its metro, regional, and long-haul fiber networks for carriers, content providers, financial services companies, healthcare, government entities, education institutions, and other medium and large enterprises. The Enterprise Networks segment provides connectivity and telecommunications solutions comprising Internet, wide area networking products, managed products, and cloud based computing and storage offerings to medium and large enterprises. The Zayo Colocation (zColo) segment offers data center infrastructure solutions consisting of colocation space, and power and interconnection services to a range of enterprise, carrier, cloud, and content customers. The Allstream segment provides cloud VoIP and data solutions, such as voice offerings; and unified communications, as well as telecommunications services, including Ethernet, and IP/MPLS VPN solutions. The Other segment provides network and technical resources to customers in designing, acquiring, and maintaining their networks. Zayo Group Holdings, Inc. was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Boulder, Colorado.
Dril-Quip, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, sells, and services engineered drilling and production equipment for use in deepwater, harsh environment, and severe service applications worldwide. The company's principal products include subsea and surface wellheads, subsea and surface production trees, mudline hanger systems, specialty connectors and associated pipes, drilling and production riser systems, liner hangers, wellhead connectors, diverters, and safety valves, as well as downhole tools. It also provides technical advisory services, and rework and reconditioning services, as well as rental and purchase of running tools for use in the installation and retrieval of its products; and downhole tools comprise of liner hangers, production packers, safety valves, and specialty downhole tools that are used to hang-off and seal casing into a previously installed casing string in the well bore. The company's products are used to explore for oil and gas from offshore drilling rigs, such as floating rigs and jack-up rigs; and for drilling and production of oil and gas wells on offshore platforms, tension leg platforms, and Spars, as well as moored vessels, such as floating production, storage, and offloading monohull moored vessels. It sells its products directly through its sales personnel, independent sales agents, and representatives to integrated, independent, and foreign national oil and gas companies, as well as drilling contractors, and engineering and construction companies. The company was founded in 1981 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.
Royal Bank of Canada operates as a diversified financial service company worldwide. The company's Personal & Commercial Banking segment offers checking and savings accounts, home equity financing, personal lending, private banking, indirect lending, including auto financing, mutual funds and self-directed brokerage accounts, guaranteed investment certificates, credit cards, and payment products and solutions; and lending, leasing, deposit, investment, foreign exchange, cash management, auto dealer financing, trade products, and services to small and medium-sized commercial businesses. This segment offers financial products and services through branches, automated teller machines, and mobile sales network. Its Wealth Management segment provides a suite of advice-based solutions and strategies to high net worth and ultra-high net worth individuals, and institutional clients. The company's Insurance segment offers life, health, home, auto, travel, wealth, annuities, and reinsurance advice and solutions; and business insurance services to individual, business, and group clients through its advice centers, RBC insurance stores, and mobile advisors; digital, mobile, and social platforms; independent brokers; and travel partners. Its Investor & Treasury Services segment provides asset servicing, custody, payments, and treasury services to financial and other investors; and fund and investment administration, shareholder, private capital, performance measurement and compliance monitoring, distribution, transaction banking, cash and liquidity management, foreign exchange, and global securities finance services. The company's Capital Markets segment offers corporate and investment banking, as well as equity and debt origination, distribution, advisory services, sale, and trading services for corporations, institutional investors, asset managers, private equity firms, and governments. The company was founded in 1864 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.




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Zelenskyy addresses G20 leaders: It's time to stop Russia's war

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Another four-day parliamentary session begins in Yerevan

Gold declines in value

World oil prices go down

Plans to build 'death pyramid' in London that will hold millions of bodies

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IMF head warns of risks for world economy because of rivalry between China and US

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French and German central bank heads call for speeding up EU capital markets union

Control of U.S. House of Representatives depends on several tight races

Artsakh FM speaks with his Transnistria counterpart

Italy, Greece, Malta and Cyprus say they cannot accept migrants

Cavusoglu thanks Mirzoyan for condolences on terrorist attack in Istanbul

Xi Jinping and Joe Biden begin first face-to-face meeting in Bali

Zelenskyy arrives in Kherson

Armenian Defense Minister: After expiration of contract service 5 million drams will be provided to servicemen

Turkey refuses to accept U.S. condolences after terrorist attack in Istanbul

Defense Ministers of Georgia and Azerbaijan sign military cooperation plan for 2023

Russian Foreign Ministry denies reports about Lavrov's hospitalization in Bali

Yellen hopes Biden and Jinping meeting leads to engagement on macroeconomic issues

Russian Defense Ministry confirms violation of ceasefire in Artsakh by Azerbaijani Armed Forces

Artsakh MOD denies accusations of Azerbaijani MOD

Azerbaijani Defense Minister holds talks in Georgia

Armenian MOD denies another lie of Azerbaijani MOD

Germany warns its delegation about Egyptian spies at COP27

NSS of Armenia reveals channel of illegal migration

Azerbaijani State Security Service announces disclosure of 'Iranian spy network'

Politico: Indonesia, hosting G20, lobbies West to soften criticism of Russia in final communique

Ararat Mirzoyan expresses condolences to Mevlut Cavusoglu over Istanbul explosion

Iranian lawmakers sharply criticize Aliyev

Ambassador-at-Large: Azerbaijan's attacks on Armenia are a terrorist attack

Germany needs to diversify its business interests in Asia to reduce dependence on China

Head of U.S. Treasury Department says sanctions against Russia should remain in force even after war in Ukraine

Natasa Pirc Musar to become Slovenia's first woman president

IMF: World economic outlook even bleaker than predicted

Pashinyan: Azerbaijan calls Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh 'our citizens' and at the same time shoots at them

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Former Pentagon official Michael Rubin calls for Turkey to be recognized as sponsor of terrorism

Bloomberg columnist says Japan may be preparing for war with China

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Lebanon extradites to Iraq relative of Saddam Hussein

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Alen Simonyan: We are truly and sincerely committed to the peace agenda
The working group, which was set up after the incident that occurred in Kumurdo (Gumburdo) village of Georgia, has come to an agreement that the bones of the forebears of the local Armenians will be buried again in the courtyard of the village church and an Armenian cross-stone will be placed on the collective grave in approximately three years, when restoration at the church is expected to be completed, reported the Jnews.ge website of Georgia.

Bishop Vazgen Mirzakanyan, Primate of the Armenian Diocese in Georgia, personally informed the Kumurdo residents about this agreement which the working group has reached.

About 30 people, who were assembled in the church yard, gave their consent to sign a respective contract as a guarantee.

And they will wait until the completion of restoration of this church.

On September 30, clashes occurred between the Armenian residents of Kumurdo and police in Javakheti, which is a predominantly-Armenian-populated part of Georgias southeastern Samtskhe-Javakheti Province.

The Armenians wished to place an Armenian cross-stone in the courtyard of the local church, since the bones of their forebears are buried there. Police, however, did not let them inside the church saying they have a respective order.

The situation became tenser, and therefore special forces arrived at the scene. Police fired shots in the air and beat the local Armenians with clubs.
YEREVAN.  The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) forces are ready to help Armenia, if such a need arises.

Anatoly Sidorov, the CSTO Chief of Joint Staff, on Saturday stated the aforesaid at a press conference within the framework of the Search 2017 military exercises, which are held in Armenia.

Sidorov noted that he is aware of Armenias problem and pain, the conflict. In his words, according to the charter and legal documents, the CSTO forces are foreseen for the protection of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the member countries of this organization.

If, God forbid, one of the countries needs help, the CSTO forces () will be ready to come and provide help, he stressed. There should be no doubts on this matter.

Being familiar with your [Armenias] pain, I will say, I hope that this will not happen. But the CSTO forces are ready to provide help.
The President of Armenia, Serzh Sargsyan, paid a working visit to the Vayotz Dzor Province.

On Friday evening, Sargsyan, who is also Chairman of the Chess Federation of Armenia, followed the second leg of the European Youth Grand Prix chess tournament being held the resort city of Jermuk.

On Saturday morning, the President toured the town, and got familiarized with the major construction works in Jermuk.

Also, Sargsyan got acquainted with the development of investment programs for intended construction.

Completing his working visit to the Vayotz Dzor Province, the President of Armenia traveled to the Syunik Province.
Kendallville, IN (46755)

Today

Cloudy with snow showers developing during the afternoon. High 38F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of snow 70%..

Tonight

Mainly cloudy with snow showers around before midnight. Low 28F. Winds WNW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of snow 70%. Snow accumulations less than one inch.
Driven by German Design  A museum in Qatar has dedicated an exhibition to the development of German design. The Porsche Museum has contributed eight models.

More than 400 design ideas and examples created in Germany or developed by German designers from 1945 onward are the focus of this special exhibition. Visitors gain a deep insight into the work of around 30 designers whose work and ideas have had a particularly strong influence on the progression of both national and international design. The exhibition draws links between a wide range of disciplines, such as architecture, graphic design, product design, car design, fashion design and furniture design. This allows visitors to see both the artistic value of design developments and their relevance for society from a variety of perspectives.

By showcasing ground-breaking works by important and influential designers such as Frei Otto, Achim Menges, Christoph Niemann and Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, the exhibition documents the development of design in Germany. The Porsche Museum has contributed eight models to the collection: the 356 Keibl Cabriolet, the 959 aerodynamic concept car, the 918 RSR concept car, the 918 Rolling Chassis, the 911 2.0-l Coupe, the Panamericana concept car, the 718 RS 60 and a wooden skeleton model of the Type 64. The Mission E concept study, a seating buck with the interior of the new Cayenne and a clay model of the 911 in 1:3 scale will also be displayed.

A highlight in the Qatar Germany 2017 Year of Culture

Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Chairperson of Qatar Museums, said: Through the exhibition, the people of Qatar and from the region gain a multifaceted understanding of the achievements of German culture, which is celebrating six decades of the most renowned design icons. This ground-breaking design exhibition is a special highlight in the Qatar Germany 2017 Year of Culture. Driven by German Design demonstrates the first-class quality of Qatar Museums exhibitions and events, the success of which is the result of close collaboration between a large number of partners. The exhibition also clearly demonstrates the diverse cultural relations between our countries.

The Driven by German Design exhibition will run until January 14 in the Qatar Museum.
Political tensions in Catalonia continue to simmer after Banco Sabadell confirmed its intention to relocate its legal headquarters, while Caixabank is due to hold a meeting to discuss the issue later on Friday. Shares in both banks rallied yesterday on the news but have today given up some of those gains. Fernando Sanchez Costa, Catalan parliament deputy, and member of Spain's ruling Partido Popular, told CNBC Friday that Catalan independence leaders are now in a difficult position. "The Catalan high-class and middle-class have played to a revolution," he said. "And now they are discovering that revolution is not a joke. We have been telling them for years 'Please keep calm.'" "So it is legitimate to defend independence, but what is not normal, what is not good, is to break everything  the rule of law, constitution," he added.

Earlier, Catalonia's foreign minister confirmed that the region's parliament will convene Monday in defiance of the Spanish government. This is seen as a potential flashpoint for more violence after a Spanish court suspended the parliament session fearing Catalan separatists could use it to declare independence from Spain. Costa said the possibility of more clashes with national police would hopefully be avoided. "That is not a scenario we want and we will work to avoid it," he said. "We know that it was not very good what happened last Sunday. "The Spanish government had been five years very cautious with the Catalan situation but okay after five years they broke everything (and forced Madrid into a reaction)," said Costa. Sanchez said he will not attend any Catalan parliamentary session Monday as it is illegal and will result in a complete division of parliament.

Earlier in the week, economist and Catalan politician Ramon Tremosa i Balcells told CNBC that the violence seen last weekend showed the true face of the Spanish state. "A so-called democracy which is really a totalitarian state. One which Catalans have been suffering for centuries of history," the independence supporter said Monday. The European MEP said Europe had "lost its credibility, not (just) with the Catalan issue but on so many issues." Tremosa i Balcells said the European Union president Jean-Claude Juncker is a person too heavily influenced by capital cities such as Madrid, Paris, and Rome.

Story continues

Asset reaction Monday's potential for fresh unrest in Spain has seen the country's IBEX 35 (: .IBEX) index slump to a session low. Most selling took place in the banking sector but by the early afternoon, the index of top Spanish stocks had recovered to sit around 0.4 percent lower on a session basis. Spanish bonds also reacted, with yields rising five basis points after the announcement that Catalan politicians would again defy Madrid.



More From CNBC


The rise of populist politics in Italy should still be front and center for investors in Europe, despite recent tensions in Spain with Catalonia possibly declaring independence in the coming days. "Italy is not generating sustained growth and it still has the issue of bad loans ," a Brussels-based official, who preferred to remain anonymous due to his participation in key EU economic meetings, told CNBC over the phone. "The euro zone is growing, even Greece is growing  But let's not get carried away with the short-term success," he added.Broadly, the region has seen improvement since the days of the sovereign debt crisis of 2011. Growth has returned to the bloc, unemployment has fallen and business activity has expanded. But Italy is seen by European many economists as the biggest risk to the euro zone at the moment. The economy is set to grow below 1 percent this year and slightly above that threshold in 2018, according to recent forecasts from the European Commission.Added to that, Claus Vistesen, the chief euro zone economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said that new elections in Italy are just around the corner."It's certain that the Five Star Movement (Italy's populist party) will do very well in the upcoming election," Vistesen told CNBC Tuesday over the phone.Italian voters are due to elect a new government at the start of next year, though there's not a certain date set. At the moment, the populist Five Star movement is polling around the same numbers as the governing PD Party, led by former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. Five Star's new leader Luigi Di Maio has softened the party's stance on the euro, but he told CNBC last month that he wants to renegotiate treaties within the EU that "are capping the growth of Italy."Five Star's stance is viewed as a risk to Italy's compliance with European fiscal rules. These rules constrain the ability of euro zone countries to spend, as they need to respect a 3 percent threshold for their deficit-to GDP (gross domestic product) ratio. Italy's deficit is set to reach 2.2 percent of its GDP this year, in line with European rules. But its government debt is already above EU's limit  nations are also supposed to keep their public debt below 60 percent of their GDP. Forecasts from the European Commission suggest it will rise to 133.1 percent of GDP this year. A populist government could potentially jeopardize Italian finances further."Beyond Catalonia, it is the Italian election we are concerned about," Andrea Cicione, head of strategy at TS Lombard, told CNBC Thursday. He underlined that the rising presence of populist parties is a risk for Italy's fiscal policy, given their policies to increase spending. When it comes to Catalonia, analysts seemed divided over its impact on the euro zone. Vistesen said that Catalonia is still a long way from becoming independent , though "the longer the situation drags, the riskier it will get for stock markets," he admitted. Spain's Ibex 35 (: .IBEX) stock index has been on a downward trend for most of the week, after an illegal referendum on Catalonia's independence. The national government doesn't recognize the vote. "We see a risk that this escalation may damage the coordination and communication between the two governments, which is essential to Catalonia's ability to service its debt on time and in full," Standard & Poor's warned on Wednesday. The rise of populist politics in Italy should still be front and center for investors in Europe, despite recent tensions in Spain with Catalonia possibly declaring independence in the coming days. "Italy is not generating sustained growth and it still has the issue of bad loans ," a Brussels-based official, who preferred to remain anonymous due to his participation in key EU economic meetings, told CNBC over the phone. "The euro zone is growing, even Greece is growing  But let's not get carried away with the short-term success," he added. Broadly, the region has seen improvement since the days of the sovereign debt crisis of 2011. Growth has returned to the bloc, unemployment has fallen and business activity has expanded. But Italy is seen by European many economists as the biggest risk to the euro zone at the moment. The economy is set to grow below 1 percent this year and slightly above that threshold in 2018, according to recent forecasts from the European Commission. Added to that, Claus Vistesen, the chief euro zone economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said that new elections in Italy are just around the corner. "It's certain that the Five Star Movement (Italy's populist party) will do very well in the upcoming election," Vistesen told CNBC Tuesday over the phone. Italian voters are due to elect a new government at the start of next year, though there's not a certain date set. At the moment, the populist Five Star movement is polling around the same numbers as the governing PD Party, led by former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. Five Star's new leader Luigi Di Maio has softened the party's stance on the euro, but he told CNBC last month that he wants to renegotiate treaties within the EU that "are capping the growth of Italy." Five Star's stance is viewed as a risk to Italy's compliance with European fiscal rules. These rules constrain the ability of euro zone countries to spend, as they need to respect a 3 percent threshold for their deficit-to GDP (gross domestic product) ratio. Italy's deficit is set to reach 2.2 percent of its GDP this year, in line with European rules. But its government debt is already above EU's limit  nations are also supposed to keep their public debt below 60 percent of their GDP. Forecasts from the European Commission suggest it will rise to 133.1 percent of GDP this year. A populist government could potentially jeopardize Italian finances further. "Beyond Catalonia, it is the Italian election we are concerned about," Andrea Cicione, head of strategy at TS Lombard, told CNBC Thursday. He underlined that the rising presence of populist parties is a risk for Italy's fiscal policy, given their policies to increase spending. When it comes to Catalonia, analysts seemed divided over its impact on the euro zone. Vistesen said that Catalonia is still a long way from becoming independent , though "the longer the situation drags, the riskier it will get for stock markets," he admitted. Spain's Ibex 35 (: .IBEX) stock index has been on a downward trend for most of the week, after an illegal referendum on Catalonia's independence. The national government doesn't recognize the vote. "We see a risk that this escalation may damage the coordination and communication between the two governments, which is essential to Catalonia's ability to service its debt on time and in full," Standard & Poor's warned on Wednesday.



More From CNBC


God i hate peanut butter in any shape and form. Its probably my german tongue not being used to it*









*i never came across a german who likes peanut butter



Anything Kinder is my shit



Edited at 2017-10-07 01:23 am (UTC)

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That's because German peanut butter has a completely different taste than American peanut butter.

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What's german peanut butter like?

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Even reeses? I feel like they taste the same. Now that oreo cookie cream is a LOT better in the states

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Wait is this why the time I tried a German peanut butter cup it looked just like peanut butter but tasted like garbage? Cause it was really bad

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what? no it doesn't. and i have had like 5 different kinds. its just not as sugary which i like.

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Being European it took me years to adjust to peanut butter and now I like it

initially i hated it and didnt understand it either cause Kinder was life lol

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I loathe it too, I am Canadian tho

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lol you're so right. nobody i know likes that stuff. i can't remember even getting it in supermarkets until like the early 2000s. this is nutella land, bitches!

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Kinder is life

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Well now you know me, at least. I LOVE peanut butter. Always have. I've switched to the 100% peanut organic stuff now and even that I really like.

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I'm going to ask every German I meet now.

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Loooove Kinder. Except for Kinder Bueno

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*i never came across a german who likes peanut butter



You rang?



I actually can't keep a full jar in the house bc I WILL eat it within an hour.

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that's a super cute top, but it doesn't look very comfortable

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Okay now I want to try chocolate with pop rocks lol



I hate reeses tho. Peanut butter grosses me out.

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I remember the first time I visited the US, really looking forward to trying American candy. I bought a hershey bar and a butterfinger. I couldn't believe how disgusting they both were, I spat them out.

However American ice cream with it's 900000000 different flavours is the best thing ever.

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I'm racking my brain trying to disprove this postulation. It depresses me that I'm coming up short.



Ghirardelli's not bad from what I remember.

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agreed. it's milka or ritter sport until i die

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American chocolate usually has butyric acid, which gives it a weird flavor.

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Hershey's is disgusting it tastes like chocolate flavored candle wax. I like butterfingers cuz I'm trash and childhood memories blah blah. American ice cream has so much air in it, it such a rip off lol sometimes I grab a spoonful and suck the air out of it for fun. I prefer frozen custard and gelato(only outside the US because now way in hell im paying $5 a scoop for something you can get for $1 in pretty much any other country). The best gelato I've ever had was in Peru funny enough. The tropical fruit options are AMAZING and the scoops are way more generous than in Italy.

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Hershey's is garbage.

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A Hershey's bar's only use is to be sandwiched between two graham crackers and a marshmallow!

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lol as if you need more people telling you, but American chocolate (Hersheys especially) has very little cocoa in it. They changed up the recipes years ago. I learned this when the family dog was a puppy and he broke into all the Halloween candy when we were gone. Rushed him to the vet and they told us that hed have to eat a very large amount to actually poison him because of this.

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Butterfigners are so grosssssssssssssss I don't understand why people love it. I do love Hershey bars though.

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Hershey is so disgusting. It tastes like chocolate that has been sitting in the sun melting and re-frozen multiple times

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Hershey's tastes like wax.



I fucks with their white chocolate cookies and cream bar though (cuz it's not real chocolate lol)

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Butterfingers are so gross. You should've tried something like a milky way or m&ms

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American candies are so gross seriously what is wrong with you people



having said that, i fucking love York peppermint patties

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Yeah most American candy is so gross to me. I remember being soooo excited to try Hershey's and being so disappointed to discover it tastes like literal vomit.



That being said I'm a sucker for peanut butter m&ms and reeses. Lol.

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Hershey's is pretty bad. But the worst chocolate I've ever had was from Poland.

Walgreens had these chocolate bars like 2 for $3 so me and my mother got them. Very nasty & wax-like! I mean these things made Hershey's seems like Godiva chocolate. And we're of Polish decent, so I was offended by this stuff having come from my ancestors' country.

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Gag. Hershey's is bottom of the barrel "chocolate." All of the big candy companies went as cheap as they could ages ago and so we get cocoa solids and corn syrup instead of chocolate and sugar.

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I bought Twinkies for the first time after yrs of seeing them in American movies and THEY. ARE. DISGUSTING????

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I used to love Hershey's, but now I only like the king-sized bars and the nuggets (the other bars and the Kisses are just way too insubstantial and almost don't taste like anything). I've switched to the Dove squares but idk, chocolate is getting so expensive. =/

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My favorite would probably be Reese cups. Especially the holiday theme shapes they just taste better.

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yesss and reeses pieces nomnomnom

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Same. And I agree idk why but the holiday shaped ones definitely taste better.

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different peanut butter to chocolate ratio.

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yees! the pumpkin's and Christmas trees taste so much better.

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I love the Reese's Easter eggs. So much better than the normal cups.

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I have the eyeballs for halloween right now haha

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my local grocery store very very briefly this summer had reese's with honey and they were SO good. i went and bought some jif with honey when i went and couldn't find the reese's, it was so good.

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tru, the easter eggs/pumpkin ones are amazing. the cups are all melty and weird, i feel like they put more chocolate in the shapes so they hold up better

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I'm all about the Milk & Cookies.

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Butter Pecan or Pralines and cream

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https://www.graeters.com/limited-edition-pumpkin I got this pumpkin ice cream and it was definitely worth the $40 or whatever I paid at Whole Foods

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Mmmm, I gotta try this. I like Graeter's.

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graeters?? on my ontd??? graeters is one of my favorite things about living in ohio, i'm glad it's apparently being branched out to other areas so people can enjoy it. if you get a chance to try the black raspberry chocolate chip, i highly recommend it.



i go once a month to the local store to get a scoop of their seasonal flavors. i'm not a fan of fruity ice creams but their peach is sooooooooooo godamn good.

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I live a few blocks from one of their shops, I should stop being lazy and go get some since we're still having some warm days here tbh

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I love Phish Food

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pumpkin ice cream!

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Oh god I don't even know where to begin



Peanut Butter Fudge Core from Ben & Jerrys

strawberry cheesecake

matcha

Plain milk ice cream with cereal - I only order this at our local ice cream chain that does ice cream stuffed donuts but I make sure to get an unglazed donut because I don't wanna add any more sweetness to it

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Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough.



But two weeks ago I had some and it made me so sick. Idk if something with it was bad, or if I just can't have ice cream anymore(dairy does make me have stomach issues but normally it's just like some mild cramping and constipation) but I have NEVER been that sick in my entire life. And now I'm afraid to have ice cream again.

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I am a basic bitch and love me a really well made vanilla ice cream tbh. My fave is actually a vanilla gelato rn though. I also like sherbets and sorbets.

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I went to Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams this weekend and their pistachio honey and wildberry lavender ice creams were INCREDIBLE. Still can't justify paying $80 to ship some here though.

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Friendly's pistachio-almond

Puritan coffee-toffee

I had a blood orange sorbetto once that was incredible.

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idk if I could ever choose a favorite, it changes depending on my mood, but Ben & Jerry's Pumpkin Cheesecake is the last ice cream I bought and it's a gift from the heavens, top 5 I've ever eaten

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Talenti gelato all day - especially the pistachio flavor

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My ass is lactose intolerant so I usually go for their almond milk Caramel Coffee Fudge BUT if I want to throw caution to the wind Chocolate Chip cookie dough is literally a gift to mankind

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Haggen Daaz Chocolate with whip cream

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I love so much ice cream?!? My fave was probably a seasonal flavor I had three Februarys ago at Salt and Straw with like chocolate and caramel and other stuff in a perfect ratio. It was the best thing ever and I am livid they haven't done anything else like it since.



But like, a flavor you can get at the store? I like Phish Food and Half Baked.

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Anything with ripples in it. Caramel, fudge, condensed milk, strawberry ripples etc - it's all good.

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Halo Tops Lemon Cake, omg its heaven

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changes all the time but I recently tried a pumpkin cheesecake flavor that was just like Kroger brand or something but it was kinda magical.

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Currently it's this store brand cookies and cream we buy. So many cookies mixed in, it's good.

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Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia

Tillamook's pistachio gelato (so nutty and I don't get how the texture actually keeps, best store bought gelato ever!!!!)

All the mochi ice cream (matcha matcha matcha)

Trader Joe's pumpkin mochi ice cream



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salted caramel but I don't eat dairy and luckily the non-dairy versions are so good!

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Braum's Cappuccino Chocolate Chunk + a little caramel syrup is divine tbh

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Favourite Flavours Salted Caramel

Zero Gradi Pistacchio

Some random gelato place in Moonee Ponds that has this really awesome raspberry sorbet

Anything from Messina Gelato

Timboon Maple and Cinnamon. I drove an hour for that shit and it cost an arm and a leg but WORTH IT

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Lucuma



My Peruvian ass suffers here in the US cuz it's so hard to get and the few stores that sell it mark it up 5 times the price and it tastes like freezer burn

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Selecta Cookies and cream, and Selecta Halo-Halo Ice cream! <3

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In general pistachio ice cream is my favorite. Right now I'm obsessed with the Oatmeal Cookie Halo Top ice cream though.

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Just about any Talenti flavor, some Bluebell flavors, but I recently moved to Nashville and am currently worshipping at the temple that is Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams tbh...I'm treating the flavors like pokemon as in I must have them all and then obsess over my faves. Goat cheese with red cherries...gooey butter cake...bruh. I don't even like cherries and that's mah shit

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Jeni's Salty Caramel is my bae.



Also Graeter's Cookie Dough. I'm an Ohio girl, gotta support those Ohio companies, lol.

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Coffee! Which is funny because I never drink coffee. And I love eating chocolate, but chocolate ice cream is just meh to me (unless it's really smooth and creamy like Turkey Hill).

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I love chocolate things myself, maybe whoppers I guess? Mostly just whatever is chocolate and cheapest. I'm allergic to peanuts but only in a way that makes me slightly itchy so I have had and loved Reese's & Snickers but only every once in a while

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I love whoppers. I miss the Reese whoppers they use to have.

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Whoppers are the US version of Maltesers which are iirc made in the UK, I've seen them on sale in Target and Walgreens this past year. If you see a box on sale definitely check them out, they're like an upscale version of a whopper and I'd happily eat myself into a diabetic coma with them.

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Id like peanut butter cups but American peanut butter is so gross to me. Its just really really sweet!



Its like dessert spread. Here its much more savory. I guess ill try to make them myself?

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depends on the brand. Jif is saltier than Skippy. I can't do Skippy.

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The peanut butter in Reese's peanut butter cups has had sugar added to it because of course it has.

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I use this natural PB brand with the oils on top that you have to mix in. I love it. Was raised on it. Not a huge fan of the big brands like SKippy and Peter Pan but Jif will do in a pinch

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Lol my pen pal from France is obsessed with peanut butter m&ms for some reason and asks his sister to bring a giant bag everytime she visits from the US. Apparently peanut butter isn't a thing in France ? My favorite candy to get for Halloween when I was a kid was Butterfinger. My favorite candy now is dark chocolate lemon truffles if I'm feeling fancy, chocolate covered orange gummy sticks if I'm cheap lol



Edited at 2017-10-07 01:37 am (UTC)

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Thats me with M&M prezel. I just bought 8 bags to bring back to Germany

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Peanut butter isn't really a thing outside of the US/Canada tbh.

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I couchsurfed Europe and New Zealand for awhile and peanut butter M&Ms are basically a universally beloved American gift. Everyone asked me to bring them a huge bag, I was like, I can't bring a duffel bag of only peanut butter M&Ms through customs guys...

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where there's a will, there's a way!





I haven't tried them though, so I don't know what the fuss is about.

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PB M&Ms are SO GOOD. My Australian friend was all about Reese's Pieces until I turned her onto PB M&Ms, lol.

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omg what a gorgeous lil muffin

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An angel 

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HOUND DOG!

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awwwwwwww

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ADORABLE 

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SO CUTE!! 

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When I was in Canada, my friend gave me a candy bar that had gummi bears and pop rocks in it and I loved it. I'm kinda craving one now that I've mentioned it.

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i wonder if you're talking about a Marvellous Creations bar? I LOVE THOSE.

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THATS IT!!

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Gross wtf I saw those at 7 11 and got grossed out!

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Fave candy is twizzlers and sweet tarts



Not a huge fan of chocolate but if I had to pick frozen milky ways. Fun size so it can melt in your mouth

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My fav is peanut butter and chocolate. I love it in m&m form, cups, ice cream, whatever.

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Milkas are my shit but I'm trying to avoid them cause I cant just eat one piece of it, i have no self control

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Milka is like crack, I could eat their chocolate and raspberry bars all damn day.

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the skam fandom is kind of awful but the series deserved all the acclaim, it was SO GOOD

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same

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He looks better with short hair. But the other one with the shirt open, lol. Are they fucking?

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I think they're both straight

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damn, not even a little bi? xD

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Morsomt :)

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A skam post, thank you! Of course it had to be about these two (lol), but I miss the show so much I don't mind (I like Tarjei because he seems the more chill out of the two).

Henrik's story about getting the role is cute tho. It's crazy seeing them do so much press now that it's over, it's so different from the American promotion system, but I think it was smarter because it didn't ruin the characters, and apparently a lot of the actors have been saying messy things lately, if they did interviews during the show there would be even more drama.



Still miss Skam (but not really because of the drama that came with it), if we had the two final seasons like we deserved Season 5 would be premiering right about now. :'(



Also is anyone else lol'ing how Chriseva shippers seemed to have eclipsed Evak shippers in craziness? They are legit still calling the show trash/sending hate to Julie for not pairing them in the end lmao, it's actually crazy because you know they are only invested because they found boy-Chris hot.



Edited at 2017-10-07 04:44 pm (UTC)

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me too lmao! It's crazy seeing people still swearing at Julie on her Instagram, in various different languages too lol

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From the start of that ship becoming so popular I just didn't get it at all? If I met a Chris irl I'd hate him on principle. Is Chris not a cheating cocky asshole in their minds? Idgi.

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what messy things? I'm curious now

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Of course it had to be about these two (lol)



well, they are the reason skam blew up internationally, soooooo why not? no one outside of scandinavia was checking for skam before season 3 so it's well-deserved that they're the ones getting the attention imo



Also is anyone else lol'ing how Chriseva shippers seemed to have eclipsed Evak shippers in craziness? They are legit still calling the show trash/sending hate to Julie for not pairing them in the end lmao, it's actually crazy because you know they are only invested because they found boy-Chris hot.



julie keeps pissing them off too lmao. every interview she does she keeps talking about how eva was never in love with pchris (um, obviously), that they were just fuck-buddies (duh), that they would have never, ever ended up together etc. and it's just a hot mess in her instagram comments. so many angry russians losing their shit about how misunderstood pchris is

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I guess i am lucky because I never see any of the crazy shippers lol. But yeah, it's strange how the international press is talking about it now.



I wish we had a Chris season, and a better season for Sana. I am still sad the show ended the way it did.

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I love Skam so much and I used to love season 3 as well until the fandom kinda ruined that for me. Felt like the audience was 90% straight girls who only watched it to fetishize their new "gay otp" (larries etc). Some of them hadn't even watched the other seasons. I feel like those fans tend to be the worst as well in terms of visiting Norway just to stalk "Evak". The part in the interview where Tarjei mentions those people visiting his high school jfc...



Noora remains my forever fave despite all of the Wilhelm BS <3

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I miss skam. It helps that the fandom is still so active.

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still mourning the vilde season we deserved.

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the insane tumblr fandom ruined this pair lol. i'm a little sad to see some of the reactions nowadays (like OF COURSE THESE TOO. OH NO THESE EVAK AGAIN etc.) because lbr it was a pretty inpactful season, all cray fujoshi fetishizing aside.



that said, henrik is an attention seeker and tarjei looks terrible with that hair, ok.

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i honestly don't get the 'attention seeker' label people attribute him tbh. bc he's somewhat active on ig? bc he's pretty and knows it? bc he does some modelling? i mean, these are people who want to pursue showbiz careers, they're all attention seekers to some extent. tbh imo most people just expected him to be Even irl & can't forgive him that he's not, lol.

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lol but henrik literally does nothing? as in, hasn't worked since skam ended, barely posts on Instagram because of the hate he gets and just lays low apart from going to a couple of fashion week events? tarjei is actually the one who's constantly working, doing interviews and getting a lot of publicity on norwegian media (at least he did over the summer)

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I like Tarjei's hair tbh

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i miss SKAM and i gotta say i kinda regret getting really involved with the fandom post S3, it somewhat ruined the experience for me. watching s3 in real time was incredibly intense, s4 not so much & a lot of it was due to the constant negativity and sense of entitlement of the fandom - which, i mean, whatever works for people, it just didn't work for me.

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i feel you. my comprehension of written norwegian is decent enough, but the clips without norwegian subs were hell, so i needed those. in the end i mostly just used the isak+even and skamenglish twitter accounts. unfollowed a shitload of ppl and haven't browsed any skam tags in months.

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Isn't that the same thing for every fandom out there, idk why people bother with that shit,most never a good thing.

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I don't know anything about this show except it had a lot of tumblr/internet hype and just like all things the internet liked, they quickly got over it and forgot it. Are they playing their characters in this shoot? Or are they gay/bi in irl and dating?

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i miss skam tbh i follow cengiz (who played yousef) on insta still and seeing his face on the regular reminds me how sana deserved a better season than what she got </3 im forever bitter tbh

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How's he doing on Norwegian DWTS/Strictly? Or does he not post about it on Instagram? I love Strictly so I was excited to see he was on the Norwegian show, until I realised that I didn't really know how to follow it.

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for sure! i had these lofty dreams of what a sana season would be but her poor season was more about freaking noora (i love everyone in the gang but if i had to love someone least it's noora) and shout outs to the fandom which were just... too much at a certain point recreating shots from season 3 and stuff it was a bit too much.

i KNEW the attention would be too much pressure on Julie. I think if it hadn't of blown up they would have gone through the Russ but I'm still glad I found out about it. Seasons 1 and 3 are some of my all time favorite television.

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same

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Is this guy's name pronounced like fancy Target?

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oooh, thank you!

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"fancy target" is killing me

also love the icon!

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Fancy target lmfao

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They're both so ugly to me I just don't get the thirst...

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lol ia, i used to think even was the uglier one but this photoshoot makes isak uglier oml

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Riiiiver <3



(gotta disagree abt the chemistry tho, i rly think those 2 have loads of it)

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same

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lol they wish

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maybe you're just a shitty actor bro.

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If your white cis straight ass can't get more jobs that's on you boo.

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In my head, I heard season 1 Glee Jane Lynch's voice saying, "You think that's hard? Try being an openly gay man and getting straight romantic lead roles!"

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mte they didn't really even concentrate on it at all after the first couple episodes.

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So.. homosexuality is going to be the theme for tonight?

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Hmm, thought we had more gay posts on the front page.

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is this a challenge?

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homosexuality? on my ontd?

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I mean, ONTD is obsessed with gays so...

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(bonus bisexuality, i'm an inclusive kinda person) you called?(bonus bisexuality, i'm an inclusive kinda person)

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lol

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thank you for this classic post, op

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cheers babe

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ok

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Or maybe you're just

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a PAPER TOWEL roll even!

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pretty sure youre not getting any roles because youre so fucking old, grandpa

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ageism is NAGL sis!

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Mad u didn't get to post it first?

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poor heterosexual white man :((((((((((

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#ComeThruONTD Yaaaaaas all these gay wank post!

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Trash str8

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ok i'm going to indulge this wank post and answer srsly: if he doesn't get cast as a love interest bc of his downton abbey role, it's bc his character was an evil asshole... his sexuality barely even mattered beyond giving him some flimsy back story, it's not like thomas was ever allowed to have an actual love interest lol (ugh i hated how the show treated the topic.)



add to the fact that he's not the greatest actor either and the market overcrowded for the type of roles he'd want and there you go.

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right? I wish they had given Thomas more. It was the only thing that made him interesting to me. I mean, I don't even remember why he was such a jerk, so the show flopped at the one thing it seemed to care about re him.

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I was always really disappointed they didn't do more with Thomas, he was such an unrepentant asshole and then that's just it -- no real redemption, he doesn't retire to run a farm with his "cousin"

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Mte. Thomas had a lot of potential but his storylines went basically nowhere.

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Season's eatings! The weather may be getting colder, but Dining Month on OnMilwaukee is just cooking up, dishing out your winning picks in this year's Best of Dining poll. Dining Month is brought to you by Fein Brothers, your premier food service equipment and supply dealer in Wisconsin since 1929. Congratulations to all of the winners, and happy eating for all those who voted!

The best Mexican/Latin America category is always a hotly contested one during of Best of Dining poll, and this year's results were no different, with the top two contestants finishing within 20 votes of one another. But which restaurant reigns supreme? Which taco tops the list? Which burrito bests the rest? Which ... OK, you get the idea.

For the fourth time in five years, BelAir Cantina came away with the crown.

With five locations  the original Water Street spot, Downer Avenue, Wauwatosa, Oak Creek, Brookfield  plus a newly opened venue out in Madison, BelAir Cantina is clearly a hit, thanks to its tantalizing variety of tacos, refreshing margs and outstanding deal days on Tuesdays and Thursdays. BelAir can't rest too easy, however. Cafe Corazon landed just behind BelAir, with a mere 18 votes separating the two eateries (as well as the title of the OnMilwaukee editors' pick). Do we smell a culinary rivalry afoot?

Well, no matter who wins, we win, too.

Runners up:

2. Cafe Corazon

3. Botanas

4. Conejito's

5. Guanajuato

OnMilwaukee editors' pick: Cafe Corazon

Lori Fredrich's pick: Amilinda

Im heading off-survey a bit with my 2017 pick. But thats because Amilinda definitely deserves a mention for its Spanish and Portuguese-inspired dishes, which are unlike any youll find in the city. The menu is small and focused, but dishes rotate often, depending on whats fresh and in season, so my tastebuds never tire. Some of my cant-miss dishes have included its empanadas, housemade sausages and its piri piri chicken, which Ive recommended to others more times than I can count. Ive also had various preparations of bacalhau (salt cod) that have been spot-on.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday announced pro-Ankara Syrian rebels were launching a new military operation in Syria's northwestern Idlib province to push out jihadists controlling the region. The move comes as Turkey, along with Russia and Iran, prepare to set up a so-called "de-escalation" zone in Idlib in line with accords in peace talks in Astana aimed at ending the Syrian civil war. Turkish commando units and military vehicles have reportedly massed on the border but are yet to cross, in what will be Ankara's second major Syria operation after its Euphrates Shield incursion last year. "We are taking new steps to ensure security in Idlib. Today, a very serious operation is ongoing in Idlib and this will continue," Erdogan said in a televised speech in the western city of Afyon. He later told reporters the operation was led by Free Syrian Army (FSA) rebels and that the Turkish army was "not yet" operating inside Syria. Aron Lund, fellow with The Century Foundation think tank, told AFP any Turkish operation "is likely to rely on a mix of Turkish and Syrian forces". He said Turkey would contribute special forces, logistics, artillery and tanks but Syrian rebels would make up "much of" the ground force. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said late Saturday that the aim of the operation was to "completely" prevent clashes in the region and speed up the political process in line with the Astana talks, NTV television said. - 'No terror corridor' - Idlib is largely controlled by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a group led by Al-Qaeda's former Syria affiliate, which ousted more moderate rebels in recent months. HTS is not party to a deal brokered by Russia, Turkey and Iran for the safe zone in the province, one of four such "de-escalation" zones across Syria. "If Turkey decides to go head to head with HTS, I'm sure they will meet severe resistance," Lund told AFP. Ousting HTS forces from the area will be needed to allow the arrival of Iranian, Russian and Turkish forces to implement a de-escalation zone. "We will absolutely not allow the creation of a terror corridor along our borders," said Erdogan. HTS warned in a statement, without mentioning Turkey, that the "treacherous factions that stand by the side of the Russian occupier" should only enter the area if they want "their mothers to be bereaved, their children to be orphaned, their wives to be widowed." State-run Anadolu news agency said there was a major build up of Turkish commando units and military vehicles around the town of Reyhanli bordering Idlib close to the Cilvegozu border crossing. Turkish army chief of staff General Hulusi Akar carried out an inspection of the forces late on Saturday, state media said. The Hurriyet daily said ultimately Turkey would ensure security in Idlib city and Russia in the surrounding area. Appearing to confirm this, Erdogan said: "Idlib is a region where we will provide protection in the inside and Russia on the outside." Turkish army cranes had begun removing sections of the security wall Turkey has built on the border in apparent preparation for an incursion, an AFP photographer said. - 'New initiatives' - Turkey earlier this year wrapped up its half year Euphrates Shield operation against jihadists and Kurdish militia in Aleppo province that involved both the Turkish army and Syrian rebels. "Despite all the provocations and the obstacles, we have made significant progress in Syria," said Erdogan. A rebel commander participating in the operation, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told AFP in Beirut that "all the rebel groups" who took part in Euphrates Shield are participating. "The goal of the operation is to liberate Idlib fully from Tahrir al-Sham," he said. Turkey has also long warned it could also move against Kurdish militia in Afrin to the east. Erdogan warned that "new initiatives" would follow after the Idlib operation. But Ankara is playing no part in the US-backed assault to prise the Syrian city of Raqa from the Islamic State group due to the involvement of Kurdish militia Turkey considers a terror outfit. - Russian coordination - The Idlib operation comes a week after Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks with Erdogan in Ankara, with both sides agreeing to push for the Idlib de-escalation zone. Afer those talks Putin declared the right conditions now existed to end the over six-year civil war that has killed an estimated 330,000 people since 2011. Despite being on opposite sides of the conflict, Russia and Turkey have been working together intensely since a 2016 reconciliation deal ended a crisis caused by the shooting down of a Russian war plane over Syria.
Two children burned in an arson attack at a nursery school in Brazil succumbed to their wounds Friday, bringing the death toll to eight on the day the first victims were buried. Cecilia Davine Dias and Yasmin Medeiros Salvino, both aged four, died early in the afternoon, a hospital spokesman in Monte Claros, a city in southeast Brazil, told AFP. The tragedy unfolded Thursday morning in Janauba, a town of 70,000 people around 370 miles (600 kilometers) from Belo Horizonte, the state capital of Minas Gerais. A security guard at the nursery sprayed his young victims with alcohol before setting fire to the building. He himself died from burns a few hours later. According to local authorities, he had suffered from mental health issues since 2014. In total, seven four-year-old children were killed, along with a teacher aged 43. Another 40 people were treated at three hospitals in the region. Dozens gathered for the first funerals of victims at a cemetery in Janauba on Friday afternoon, according to an AFP photographer. Small white coffins were opened for a few minutes as devastated family members wept. "What has happened is inexplicable. I have no words. When I heard about the fire on the radio, I immediately thought of my grandchildren. I was sure something had happened to them," said Antonio Pereira da Silva, who buried his granddaughter. The mayor of Janauba declared seven days of mourning, while Brazil's President Michel Temer expressed his solidarity with the victims of the "tragedy."
Some 120 Islamic State fighters and 60 foreign mercenaries were killed in a series of Russian air strikes in Syria over the past 24 hours, the defence ministry in Moscow said on Saturday. Puzzlingly, the ministry also said three senior IS commanders including Omar al-Shishani had been confirmed dead as a result of an earlier Russian strike. Moscow reported al-Shishani's death despite the fact that the Pentagon said in 2016 the notorious fighter had been killed by American troops in Iraq. "A command post of the terrorists and up to 80 (IS) fighters including nine natives of the Northern Caucasus were destroyed in the area of Mayadeen," the ministry said, adding that another 40 IS fighters were killed around the town of Albu Kamal. Mayadeen is one of the Islamic State group's last bastions in Syria. In another air strike, more than 60 foreign mercenaries from the former Soviet Union, Tunisia, and Egypt were killed in the Euphrates Valley south of Deir Ezzor. The ministry said "large numbers of foreign mercenaries" were coming into the Syrian border town of Albu Kamal from Iraq. It also said Russian forces had killed senior IS commanders Omar al-Shishani, Alaa al-din al-Shishani and Salah al-Din al-Shishani, all natives of the Northern Caucasus. Moscow reported their deaths after taking "several days" to confirm the results of an earlier strike on the northern outskirts of Albu Kamal which destroyed an IS command post with more than 30 fighters including the natives of the Northern Caucasus. - 'Omar the Chechen' - The Pentagon announced in March 2016 that American forces had killed Shishani, one of the most notorious faces of IS known for his thick red beard. Shishani, whose nom de guerre means "Omar the Chechen," came from the former Soviet state of Georgia's Pankisi Gorge region, which is populated mainly by ethnic Chechens. He fought as a Chechen rebel against Russian forces before joining the Georgian military in 2006, and fought Russian forces again in Georgia in 2008. He later resurfaced in northern Syria as the commander of a group of foreign fighters and became a senior leader within IS. The Russian defence ministry was not immediately available for further comment. Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, disagreed with Moscow's report. "Salah al-Din al-Shishani is still alive and is somewhere in the regions controlled by jihadist groups in the west of Aleppo province. He is a famous commander, and his jihadist group is allied with the jihadists of the Al-Nusra front but only in their fight against the regime," he said. "He has no links with IS." The advances against IS in Deir Ezzor have resulted in a heavy civilian death toll through Russian and coalition air raids. The Observatory said Russian air strikes on Thursday night killed 14 people, including three children, fleeing across the Euphrates on rafts near Mayadeen. Since it intervened in Syria in 2015, Russia has not acknowledged any civilian deaths from its strikes, and it dismisses the Observatory's reporting as biased. Moscow has been staging air strikes in support of its ally Damascus targeting both IS in Deir Ezzor province and rival jihadists led by Al-Qaeda's former Syria affiliate in Idlib province in the northwest.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department has approved the possible sale of a THAAD anti-missile defence system to Saudi Arabia at an estimated cost of $15 billion, the Pentagon said on Friday, citing Iran among regional threats. The approval opens the way for Saudi Arabia to purchase 44 Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) launchers and 360 missiles, as well as fire control stations and radars. "This sale furthers U.S. national security and foreign policy interests, and supports the long-term security of Saudi Arabia and the Gulf region in the face of Iranian and other regional threats," the Pentagon's Defense Security Cooperation agency said in a statement. Saudi Arabia and the United States are highly critical of what they consider Irans aggressive behaviour in the Middle East. Iran also has one of the biggest ballistic missile programs in the Middle East, viewing it as an essential precautionary defence against the United States and other adversaries, primarily Gulf Arab states and Israel. THAAD missile systems are deployed to defend against ballistic missile attacks. Saudi-owned al Arabiya television reported on Thursday that the kingdom had agreed to buy Russian S-400 surface-to-air missile systems, an announcement that came as Saudi King Salman made during his visit to Russia, the first by a Saudi monarch. U.S. military sales to Saudi Arabia have come under increased scrutiny over the Saudi-led coalitions war in Yemen. Riyadh and its allies have been bombing the Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen since the Houthis seized much of the countrys north in 2015. Riyadh says the coalition is fighting terrorists and supporting Yemens legitimate government but the office of the U.N. human rights chief has said Saudi-led air strikes cause the majority of civilian casualties. Lockheed Martin Co is the prime contractor for the THAAD system, with Raytheon Co playing an important role in the system's deployment. The United States deployed THAAD to South Korea this year to guard against North Korea's shorter-range missiles. That has drawn fierce criticism from China, which says the system's powerful radar can probe deep into its territory. (Reporting by Mohammad Zargham and Chris Sanders; Editing by Tom Brown and Alistair Bell)
CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela's opposition said on Friday the pro-government election board was seeking to skew regional elections in favour of President Nicolas Maduro's ruling socialists by including the names of candidates defeated in primaries on the ballot. After street protests that led to at least 125 deaths and failed to dislodge Maduro earlier in the year, the opposition has shifted its focus to Oct. 15 elections for the governors of Venezuela's 23 states. The socialists currently hold 20 states, but a crushing economic crisis has dented their popularity and the opposition now has majority support, polls show. The Democratic Unity coalition is targeting winning 18 governorships, but fears a confusing electronic ballot sheet could hurt its vote. Despite opposition primaries to choose a single candidate per state from the several dozen parties in the coalition, the election board is keeping all the original aspirants' names on. So instead of seeing one opposition candidate versus one Socialist Party candidate, voters will see various faces of opposition candidates, potentially causing confusion and diluting the vote to the benefit of the government. "That's the fraud the government wants to commit," coalition official Tomas Guanipa told a news conference of the election board's stance, which was ratified by the similarly pro-Maduro Supreme Court on Thursday. "We invite all Venezuelans who can see how the government is trying to mock them and put up obstacles, to come out and vote massively for the unity candidate in the states. The government's tricks will become a boomerang." Election board officials did not respond to accusations of bias, but said the ballot was now set and would not be changed. Government officials have said the rules are fair, and the opposition is simply seeking to justify possible violent actions after the vote. While the opposition wants the Oct. 15 vote to demonstrate Maduro's unpopularity and undermine his power at regional level, the government is trumpeting the election as proof against growing criticism Venezuela has become a dictatorship. (Writing by Andrew Cawthorne; Editing by Tom Brown)
New Zealand's two main parties prepared Saturday to intensify negotiations with kingmaker MP Winston Peters after the counting of postal and overseas votes from last month's general election failed to break a two-week political deadlock. With the so-called special votes added to the September 23 election nightly tally, the opposition bloc led by the Labour Party's Jacinda Ardern had closed within two seats of Prime Minister Bill English's National Party. But neither side could muster the 61 seats needed to govern, leaving Peters with his populist New Zealand First Party, holding nine seats, in the position of kingmaker. The conservative National Party finished with 56 seats, down from the 58 it held on election night while the centre-left Labour Party and the Green Party picked up a seat each to give them 46 and eight. Despite the drop in seats, English said the final result "signalled very clearly" voters wanted National to remain in power for a fourth term. Ardern highlighted that the majority of electors had voted for change. New Zealand's proportional representation electoral system means the major parties often have to rely on the support of smaller factions. Peters has previously supported both of the main parties to form a government -- siding with National in 1996 and Labour in 2005. He has opened preliminary coalition talks with both parties in recent days and given himself a deadline of next Thursday to make a decision. Although neither English nor Jacinda Ardern have revealed what they are prepared to concede in talks with Peters, English said he was "determined" to lead the next government. "Now that the special votes have been counted it's time for political parties to get on with the job of forming a strong government to take New Zealand forward, and I look forward to engaging with Mr Peters and New Zealand First over the coming days to achieve that," he said. "Voters had a clear choice at the election between the two major parties that had a realistic prospect of leading the next government. They signalled very clearly that they wanted National to perform that role." Although the final result has strengthened the opposition parties' negotiating position, they will have to overcome historical differences between the Greens and Peters if they want to form a government. Ardern said Labour would negotiate with the Greens and NZ First separately and not have all three around the table together. The final result meant "we have a strengthened mandate to negotiate and form a durable, stable, coalition government", she said, adding the separate talks would be "all about finding what's going to work in the best interests of all parties. "The Labour team will negotiate with the Greens and the Labour team will negotiate with New Zealand First." Greens leader James Shaw said his party wanted to be at the heart of a three-way coalition and he had a "polite and cordial relationship" with Peters.
Telefonica, S.A., together with its subsidiaries, provides telecommunications services in Europe and Latin America. The company's mobile and related services and products comprise mobile voice, value added, mobile data and Internet, wholesale, corporate, roaming, fixed wireless, and trunking and paging services. Its fixed telecommunication services include PSTN lines; ISDN accesses; public telephone services; local, domestic, and international long-distance and fixed-to-mobile communications; corporate communications; supplementary value-added services; video telephony; intelligent network; and telephony information services, as well as leases and sells handset equipment. The company also provides Internet and broadband multimedia services comprising Internet service provider, portal and network, retail and wholesale broadband access, narrowband switched access, high-speed Internet through fibre to the home, and voice over Internet protocol services. In addition, it offers leased line, virtual private network, fibre optics, web hosting and application, outsourcing and consultancy, desktop, and system integration and professional services. Further, the company offers wholesale services for telecommunication operators, including domestic interconnection and international wholesale services; leased lines for other operators; and local loop leasing services, as well as bit stream services, wholesale line rental accesses, and leased ducts for other operators' fiber deployment. Additionally, it provides video/TV services; smart connectivity and services, and consumer IoT products; financial and other payment, security, cloud computing, advertising, big data, and digital telco experience services; virtual assistants; digital home platforms; and Movistar Home devices. It also offers online telemedicine, home insurance, music streaming, and consumer loan services. The company was incorporated in 1924 and is headquartered in Madrid, Spain.
The following companies are subsidiares of Vodafone Group Public: 360 Connect S.A., 3@ Telecom, A-ccelerator B.V., A-ccelerator Holding B.V, AAA (Euro) Limited, AAA (MCR) Limited, AAA (UK) Limited, Acorn Communications Limited, Africonnect (Zambia) Limited, Ag Mercantile Company Private Limited, Al-Amin Investments Limited, Amsterdamse Beheer- en Consultingmaatschappij B.V., Apollo Submarine Cable System Limited, Array Holdings Limited, Asian Telecommunication Investments (Mauritius) Limited, Aspective Limited, Astec Communications Limited, Autoconnex Limited, Aztec Limited, BelCompany BV, Bluefish Apac Communications Pte. Ltd, Bluefish Communications, Bluefish Communications Limited, Business Serve Limited, C&W Worldwide Nigeria Limited, C.S.P. Solutions Limited, CCII (Mauritius) Inc., CGP India Investments Ltd., CGP Investments (Holdings) Limited, COOP Mobil s.r.o, CT Networks Limited, CWGNL S.A., CWW Operations Limited, Cable & Wireless Access Limited, Cable & Wireless Americas Systems Inc., Cable & Wireless Aspac Holdings Limited, Cable & Wireless CIS Services Limited, Cable & Wireless CIS Svyaz LLC, Cable & Wireless Capital Limited , Cable & Wireless Communications Data Network Services Limited, Cable & Wireless Communications Starclass Limited, Cable & Wireless Communications Technical Service (Shanghai) Co. Ltd (Beijing Branch), Cable & Wireless Europe Holdings Limited, Cable & Wireless GN Limited, Cable & Wireless Global (India) Private Limited, Cable & Wireless Global Business Services Limited, Cable & Wireless Global Holding Limited, Cable & Wireless Global Telecommunication Services Limited, Cable & Wireless Holdco Limited, Cable & Wireless Networks India Private Limited, Cable & Wireless Trade Mark Management Limited, Cable & Wireless UK Holdings Limited, Cable & Wireless UK Services Limited, Cable & Wireless Waterside Holdings Limited, Cable & Wireless Worldwide, Cable & Wireless Worldwide Limited, Cable & Wireless Worldwide Pension Trustee Limited, Cable & Wireless Worldwide Services Limited, Cable & Wireless Worldwide Voice Messaging Limited, Cable & Wireless a-Services Inc, Cable & Wireless a-Services Limited, Cable and Wireless (India) Limited, Cable and Wireless (India) Limited Indian Branch Office, Cable and Wireless Nominee Limited, Cable and Wireless Worldwide South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Cavalry Holdings Ltd, Celfocus  Solucoes Informaticas Para Telecomunicacoes S.A, Cellops Limited, Cellular Operations Limited, Central Communications Group Limited, Central Telecom (Northern) Limited, Centurion GSM Limited, Chelys Limited, City Cable (Holdings) Limited, Cobra do Brasil Servicos de Telematica ltda., Commnet Cellular Inc., Complete Network Technology, Connect (India) Mobile Technologies Private Limited, Cornerstone Telecommunications Infrastructure Limited, Dataroam Limited , Device Insight, Digital Island (UK) Ltd, Digital Mobile Spectrum Limited, East Africa Investment (Mauritius) Limited, Emtel Europe Limited, Energis (Ireland) Limited, Energis Communications Limited, Energis Holdings Limited, Energis Local Access Limited, Energis Management Limited, Energis Squared Limited, Erudite Systems Limited, Esprit Telecom B.V., Eudokia Limited, Euro Pacific Securities Ltd., Eurocall Holdings Limited, Europolitan Holdings AB (now Europolitan Vodafone AB), FB Holdings Limited, FM Associates (UK) Limited, FinCo Partner 1 B.V., FireFly Networks Limited, Flexphone Limited, GS Telecom (Pty) Limited, Gateway Communications Africa (UK) Limited, Gateway Communications Tanzania Limited, General Mobile Corporation, Generation Telecom Limited, Ghana Telecommunications, Ghana Telecommunications Company Limited, Global Cellular Rental Limited, Globe Limited, GrandCentrix GmbH, Grupo Corporativo ONO S.A.U., H3ga Properties (No 3) Pty Limited, HBO Nederland Cooperatief U.A., HBO Netherlands Channels sro, HBO Netherlands Distribution B.V., Hellas Online, How2 Telecom Limited, Hutchison Essar Ltd, Indus Towers Limited, Intercell Communications Limited, Internet Network Services Limited, Invitation Digital Limited, Ipergy Communications NV, Isis Telecommunications Management Limited, Jaguar Communications Limited, Jaykay Finholding (India) Private Limited, Jupicol (Proprietary) Limited, KABELCOM Braunschweig Gesellschaft Fur BreitbandkabelKommunikation Mit Beschrankter Haftung, KABELCOM Wolfsburg Gesellschaft Fur BreitbandkabelKommunikation Mit Beschrankter Haftung, Kabel Deutschland, Kabel Deutschland Holding, Kabel Deutschland Holding Erste Beteiligungs GmbH, Kabel Deutschland Holding Zweite Beteilgungs GmbH, Kabel Deutschland Neunte Beteiligungs GmbH, Kabel Deutschland Siebte Beteiligungs GmbH, Kabelfernsehen Munchen Servicenter GmbH & Co. KG, LG Financing Partnership, LGE HoldCo V B.V., LGE HoldCo VI B.V., LGE HoldCo VIII B.V., LGE Holdco VII B.V., LLC Vodafone Enterprise Ukraine, Le Bunt Holdings Limited, Legend Communications Limited, Liberty Global, Liberty Global Content Netherlands B.V., London Hydraulic Power Company, M-PESA Foundation, M-PESA Holding Co. Limited, ML Integration Group Limited, ML Integration Limited, ML Integration Services Limited, MV Healthcare Services Private Limited, Mannesmann AG, MetroHoldings Limited, Mezzanine Ware Proprietary Limited (RF), Mirambo Limited, Misrfone Trading Company LLC, MobiFon S.A., Mobile Commerce Solutions Limited, Mobile Phone Centre Limited, Mobile Wallet VM1, Mobile Wallet VM2, Mobile by Sainsburys Limited, Mobiles 4 Business.com Limited, Mobileworld Communications Pty Limited, Mobileworld Operating Pty Ltd, Mobilvest, Motifpros 1 (Proprietary) Limited, Multi Risk Indemnity Company Limited, Multi Risk Limited, ND Callus Info Services Private Limited, Nadal Trading Company Private Limited, Nat Comm Air Limited, National Communications Backbone Company Limited, Navtrak Ltd, Netforce Group Limited, Netgrid Telecom SRL, Number Portability Company (Proprietary) Limited, ONO, Omega Telecom Holdings Private Limited, Oni Way  Infocomunicacoes S.A, Oskar Mobil S.R.O., Oxygen Solutions Limited, P.C.P. (North West) Limited, PPL Pty Limited, PT Network Services Limited, PTI Telecom Limited, Peoples Phone Limited, Pinnacle Cellular Group Limited, Pinnacle Cellular Limited, Plex Limited, Plustech Mercantile Company Private Limited, Prime Metals Ltd., Project Telecom Holdings Limited, Quickcomm Software Solutions, Radio Opt GmbH, Rian Mobile Limited, SBC SMART CITY 1517 B.V., SMMS Investments Pvt Limited, Safaricom Limited, Safenet N.P A., Sarmady Communications, Scarlet Ibis Investments 23 (Pty) Limited, Scorpios Beverages Pvt. Ltd, Silver Stream Investments Limited, Singlepoint (4U) Limited, Singlepoint (4U) Ltd., Singlepoint Payment Services Limited, Siro Limited, Spar Aerospace (Nigeria) Limited, Sport TV Portugal S.A, Starnet, Stentor Communications Limited, Stentor Limited, Storage Technology Services (Pty) Limited, T.W. Telecom Limited, T3 Telecommunications Limited, TKS Telepost Kabel-Service Kaiserslautern Beteiligungs GmbH, TKS Telepost Kabel-Service Kaiserslautern GmbH & Co. KG, TNAS Limited, TSM NZ Limited, Talkland Airtime Services Limited, Talkland Australia Pty Limited, Talkland Communications Limited, Talkland International Limited, Talkland Midlands Limited, Talkmobile Limited, Tele2 Italia SPA, Tele2 Spain, Telecom Investments India Private Limited, Telecommunications Europe Limited, Ternhill Communications Limited, The Cobra Group, The Eastern Leasing Company Limited, The Old Telecom Sales Co. Limited, Thus Group Holdings Limited, Thus Group Limited, Thus Limited, Thus Profit Sharing Trustees Limited, TnT Expense Management LLC, Tomorrow Street GP S.a r.l., Tomorrow Street SCA, Torenspits II B.V., Townley Communications Limited, Trans Crystal Ltd., UMT Investments Limited, UPC Nederland Holding I B.V., UPC Nederland Holding II B.V., UPC Nederland Holding III B.V., Unified Communications, Uniqueair Limited, Urbana Teleunion Rostock GmbH & Co.KG, Usha Martin Telematics Limited, VAPL No. 2 Pty Limited, VBA (Mauritius) Limited, VBA Holdings Limited, VBA International (SL) Limited, VBA International Limited, VEI S.r.l., VM SA, VND S.p.A, VSSB Vodafone Shared Services Budapest Private Limited Company, Verwaltung Urbana Teleunion Rostock GmbH, Victus Networks S.A., Vizzavi Finance Limited, Vizzavi Limited, Voda Limited, Vodacall Limited, Vodacash s.p.r.l., Vodacom (Pty) Limited, Vodacom Business (Angola) Limitada, Vodacom Business (Ghana) Limited, Vodacom Business (Kenya) Limited, Vodacom Business Africa (Nigeria) Limited, Vodacom Business Africa Group (Pty) Limited, Vodacom Business Africa Group Services Limited, Vodacom Business Cameroon SA, Vodacom Business Cote Divoire S.A.R.L., Vodacom Congo (RDC) SA, Vodacom Financial Services (Proprietary) Limited, Vodacom Group Limited, Vodacom Insurance Administration Company (Proprietary) Limited, Vodacom Insurance Company (RF) Limited, Vodacom International Holdings (Pty) Limited, Vodacom International Limited, Vodacom Lesotho (Pty) Limited, Vodacom Life Assurance Company (RF) Limited, Vodacom Payment Services (Proprietary) Limited, Vodacom Properties No 1 (Proprietary) Limited, Vodacom Properties No.2 (Pty) Limited, Vodacom Tanzania Limited Zanzibar, Vodacom Tanzania Public Limited Company, Vodacom UK Limited, Vodafone (NI) Limited, Vodafone (New Zealand) Hedging Limited, Vodafone (Scotland) Limited, Vodafone 2, Vodafone 4 UK, Vodafone 5 Limited, Vodafone 5 UK, Vodafone 6 UK, Vodafone Albania Sh.A, Vodafone Alternatif Telekom Hizmetleri A.S., Vodafone Americas 4, Vodafone Americas Virginia Inc., Vodafone And Qatar Foundation L.L.C, Vodafone Asset Management Services S.a r.l., Vodafone Australia Pty Limited, Vodafone Automotive Deutschland GmbH, Vodafone Automotive Electronic Systems S.r.L, Vodafone Automotive France S.A.S, Vodafone Automotive Iberia S.L, Vodafone Automotive Italia S.p.A, Vodafone Automotive Japan K.K, Vodafone Automotive Korea Limited, Vodafone Automotive SpA, Vodafone Automotive Technologies (Beijing) Co Ltd, Vodafone Automotive Telematics Development S.A.S, Vodafone Automotive Telematics S.A, Vodafone Automotive UK Limited, Vodafone Belgium SA/NV, Vodafone Benelux Limited, Vodafone Bilgi Ve Iletisim Hizmetleri AS, Vodafone Business Services Limited, Vodafone Business Solutions Limited, Vodafone Canada Inc, Vodafone Cellular Limited, Vodafone Central Services Limited, Vodafone China Limited (China), Vodafone China Limited (Hong Kong), Vodafone Connect 2 Limited, Vodafone Connect Limited, Vodafone Consolidated Holdings Limited, Vodafone Corporate Limited, Vodafone Corporate Secretaries Limited, Vodafone Czech Republic A.S., Vodafone DC Pension Trustee Company Limited, Vodafone Dagitim Hizmetleri A.S., Vodafone Data, Vodafone Distribution Holdings Limited, Vodafone Egypt Telecommunications S.A.E., Vodafone Elektronik Para Ve Odeme Hizmetleri A.S., Vodafone Empresa Brasil Telecomunicacoes Ltda, Vodafone Empresa Mexico S.de R.L. de C.V., Vodafone Enabler Espana S.L., Vodafone Enterprise Australia Pty Limited, Vodafone Enterprise Austria GmbH, Vodafone Enterprise Bahrain W.L.L., Vodafone Enterprise Bulgaria EOOD, Vodafone Enterprise Chile SA, Vodafone Enterprise Communications Technical Services (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, Vodafone Enterprise Corporate Secretaries Limited, Vodafone Enterprise Denmark A/S, Vodafone Enterprise Equipment Limited, Vodafone Enterprise Europe (UK) Limited, Vodafone Enterprise Europe (UK) Limited  Czech Branch, Vodafone Enterprise Europe (UK) Limited  DubaiI Branch, Vodafone Enterprise Finland OY, Vodafone Enterprise France SAS, Vodafone Enterprise Germany GmbH, Vodafone Enterprise Global Businesses S.a r.l., Vodafone Enterprise Global Limited, Vodafone Enterprise Global Network HK Ltd, Vodafone Enterprise Global Network Pte. Ltd., Vodafone Enterprise Hong Kong Ltd, Vodafone Enterprise Italy S.r.L, Vodafone Enterprise Korea Limited, Vodafone Enterprise Luxembourg S.A., Vodafone Enterprise Netherlands BV, Vodafone Enterprise Norway AS, Vodafone Enterprise Regional Business Singapore Pte.Ltd., Vodafone Enterprise Singapore Pte.Ltd, Vodafone Enterprise Spain S.L.U.  Portugal Branch, Vodafone Enterprise Spain SLU, Vodafone Enterprise Sweden AB, Vodafone Enterprise Switzerland AG, Vodafone Erste Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, Vodafone Espana S.A.U., Vodafone Euro Hedging Limited, Vodafone Euro Hedging Two, Vodafone Europe B.V., Vodafone Europe UK, Vodafone European Investments, Vodafone European Portal Limited, Vodafone Finance Limited, Vodafone Finance Luxembourg Limited, Vodafone Finance Sweden, Vodafone Finance UK Limited, Vodafone Financial Operations, Vodafone Financial Services B.V., Vodafone Fixed Ltd, Vodafone Foundation, Vodafone Foundation Australia Pty Limited, Vodafone Gestioni S.p.A, Vodafone Ghana Mobile Financial Services Limited, Vodafone Global Content Services Limited, Vodafone Global Enterprise (Hong Kong) Limited, Vodafone Global Enterprise (Italy) S.R.L., Vodafone Global Enterprise (Japan) K.K., Vodafone Global Enterprise (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Vodafone Global Enterprise Limited, Vodafone Global Enterprise Russia LLC, Vodafone Global Enterprise Taiwan Limited, Vodafone Global Enterprise Telecommunications (Hellas) A.E., Vodafone Global Network Limited, Vodafone Global Network Limited  Slovakia Branch, Vodafone Global Services Private Limited, Vodafone GmbH, Vodafone Group (Directors) Trustee Limited, Vodafone Group Pension Trustee Limited, Vodafone Group Services GmbH, Vodafone Group Services Ireland Limited, Vodafone Group Services Limited, Vodafone Group Services No.2 Limited, Vodafone Group Share Trustee Limited, Vodafone Hire Limited, Vodafone Holding A.S., Vodafone Holdings (Jersey) Limited, Vodafone Holdings (SA) Proprietary Limited, Vodafone Holdings Europe S.L.U., Vodafone Holdings Luxembourg Limited, Vodafone Hutchison Australia Pty Limited, Vodafone Hutchison Finance Pty Limited, Vodafone Hutchison Receivables Pty Limited, Vodafone IP Licensing Limited, Vodafone India Digital Limited, Vodafone India Limited, Vodafone India Services Private Limited, Vodafone India Ventures Limited, Vodafone Institut fur Gesellschaft und Kommunikation GmbH, Vodafone Intermediate Enterprises Limited, Vodafone International 1 S.a.r.l. Luxembourg Zweigniederlassung Bern, Vodafone International 1 S.a r.l., Vodafone International 2 Limited, Vodafone International Holdings B.V., Vodafone International Holdings Limited, Vodafone International M S.a r.l., Vodafone International Operations Limited, Vodafone International Services LLC, Vodafone Investment UK, Vodafone Investments (SA) Proprietary Limited, Vodafone Investments Australia Limited, Vodafone Investments Limited, Vodafone Investments Luxembourg S.a r.l., Vodafone Investments Luxembourg S.a r.l. Luxembourg Zweigniederlassung Bern, Vodafone Ireland Distribution Limited, Vodafone Ireland Ltd., Vodafone Ireland Marketing Limited, Vodafone Ireland Property Holdings Limited, Vodafone Ireland Retail Limited, Vodafone Italia S.p.A., Vodafone Jersey Dollar Holdings Limited, Vodafone Jersey Finance, Vodafone Jersey Yen Holdings Unlimited, Vodafone Kabel Deutschland Field Services GmbH, Vodafone Kabel Deutschland GmbH, Vodafone Kabel Deutschland Kundenbetreuung GmbH, Vodafone Kenya Limited, Vodafone Leasing Limited, Vodafone Libertel B.V., Vodafone Limited, Vodafone Luxembourg 5 S.a r.l., Vodafone Luxembourg 5 S.a r.l. Luxembourg Zweigniederlassung Bern, Vodafone Luxembourg S.a r.l., Vodafone Luxembourg S.a r.l. Luxembourg Zweigniederlassung Bern, Vodafone M-PESA SH.P.K., Vodafone M-Pesa S.A, Vodafone M.C. Mobile Services Limited , Vodafone Magyarorszag Mobile Tavkozlesi Zartkoruen Mukodo Reszvenytarsasag, Vodafone Malta Limited, Vodafone Marketing UK , Vodafone Maroc SARL, Vodafone Mauritius Ltd., Vodafone Mobile Commerce Limited, Vodafone Mobile Communications Limited, Vodafone Mobile Enterprises Limited, Vodafone Mobile NZ Limited, Vodafone Mobile Network Limited, Vodafone Mobile Operations Limited, Vodafone Mobile Services Limited, Vodafone Multimedia Limited, Vodafone Nederland Holding I B.V., Vodafone Nederland Holding II B.V., Vodafone Nederland Holding III B.V., Vodafone Net Iletisim Hizmetleri A.S., Vodafone Network Pty Limited, Vodafone New Zealand Foundation Limited, Vodafone New Zealand Limited, Vodafone Next Generation Services Limited, Vodafone Nominees Limited1, Vodafone ONO S.A.U., Vodafone Oceania Limited, Vodafone Old Show Ground Site Management Limited, Vodafone Overseas Finance Limited, Vodafone Overseas Holdings Limited, Vodafone Panafon International Holdings B.V., Vodafone Panafon UK, Vodafone Partner Services Limited, Vodafone Payment Solutions S.a r.l., Vodafone Portugal  Comunicacoes Pessoais S.A., Vodafone Procurement Company S.a r.l., Vodafone Property Investments Limited, Vodafone Pty Limited, Vodafone Qatar Q.S.C., Vodafone Retail (Holdings) Limited , Vodafone Retail Limited, Vodafone Roaming Services S.a r.l., Vodafone Romania S.A, Vodafone Romania M - Payments SRL, Vodafone Romania Technologies SRL, Vodafone Sales & Services Limited, Vodafone Satellite Services Limited, Vodafone Servicios SL.U, Vodafone Servizi E Tecnologie S.R.L, Vodafone Servicos Empresariais Brasil Ltda., Vodafone Shared Services Romania SRL, Vodafone Specialist Communications Limited, Vodafone Stiftung Deutschland Gemeinnutzige GmbH, Vodafone Technology Solutions Limited, Vodafone Teknoloji Hizmetleri A.S., Vodafone Tele-Services (India) Holdings Limited, Vodafone Telecel-Comunicates Pessoais S.A., Vodafone Telecommunications (India) Limited, Vodafone Telekomunikasyon A.S, Vodafone Towers Limited, Vodafone UK Content Services Limited, Vodafone UK Investments Limited , Vodafone UK Limited1 , Vodafone US Inc, Vodafone Ventures Limited1 , Vodafone Vierte Verwaltungs AG, Vodafone Worldwide Holdings Limited, Vodafone Yen Finance Limited , Vodafone m-pesa Limited, Vodafone-Central Limited Vodaphone Limited, Vodafone-Panafon Hellenic Telecommunications Company S.A., VodafoneZiggo Group Holding B.V, Vodata Limited , Vouchercloud SA (Pty) Ltd, Wataneya Telecommunications S.A.E, Waterberg Lodge (Proprietary) Limited, Wayfinder, Wheatfields Investments 276 (Proprietary) Limited, Wireless Interactions & NFC Accelerator 2013 B.V., Woodend Cellular Limited, Woodend Communications Limited, Woodend Group Limited, Woodend Holdings Limited, XB Facilities B.V, XLink Communications (Proprietary) Limited, Your Communications Group Limited, ZUM B.V., ZYB, Zelitron S.A., Zesko B.V., Ziggo B.V., Ziggo Bond Company B.V., Ziggo Deelnemingen B.V., Ziggo Finance 2 B.V., Ziggo Financing Partnership, Ziggo Holding B.V., Ziggo Netwerk B.V., Ziggo Netwerk II B.V., Ziggo Services B.V., Ziggo Services Employment B.V., Ziggo Services Netwerk 2 B.V., Ziggo Zakelijk Services B.V., and Zoranet Connectivity Services B.V..

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El Nido, on the island of Palawan in the Philippines is paradise on earth! Crystal clear warm turquoise waters, amazing limestone formations, pristine secret beaches, hidden lagoons and perfect weather! No wonder after 9 months backpacking we couldnt wait to drop our bags and hop straight onto one of the traditional wooden boats and sail around this magnificent region. We headed out on one of the famous El Nido island hopping trips to see this area in its full glory!

Setting sail on our El Nido island hopping trip for the most amazing adventure in the most unbelievable waters

Up early we cant wait to get out on our El Nido island hopping tour and explore this stunning area, this is the place that made us want to come to the Philippines, the images of the stunning blue waters, limestone lagoons and little wooden fishing boats bobbing up and down. We waded out through the shallow waters and hopped onto the little traditional style boat, there wasnt much room that is for sure, but there was a great group of people on board and an atmosphere of excitement! We made sure to bring our dry bags too as there really wasnt anywhere to keep anything dry!!

You can get to El Nido itself via boat from Manila or Coron, a bus from Puerto Princesa or you can also fly. Booking in advance is advisable whilst flying around the the region to take advantage of Cheap Philippines airlines Tickets.

And we were off, the warm breeze in our hair, the boat cutting smoothly through the shimmering blue waves, this was perfection! This is what we dreamt of when we signed up for the El Nido island hopping tour, we were so happy to be finally ready to see some of the most beautiful beaches in the Philippines!

Check Out Prices For The Boat from Coron to El Nido Here

Finally setting eyes on the jaw dropping clear waters of the big lagoon

After a stunning 30 minute ride on the El Nido island hopping boat around the bays, taking in the impressive landscape from the rocking boat we finally turned down into the big lagoon, the place that ultimately had brought us all here. This cathedral of white limestone and bright blue waters was an undeniably jaw dropping place, its beauty was almost too much to believe. We leaped from the side of the boat and into that irresistible water, donning our snorkels to take in the wonderful scenery both above and below the water!

It was an amazing and intense experience swimming in such a wonderful place. Getting back on the boat it was time for the most wonderful part of the journey. From this vantage point we could see the narrow channel we had to navigate to get back out of the lagoon, the changing colours and shades of the azure water that danced and dazzled us before our eyes was a sight we will never forget. Taking our time with our wide boat meant we could really just sit back and take this majesty all in, this is what the El Nido island hopping tour is all about!

Swimming through the hidden chambers of the small lagoon on the El Nido island hopping tour!

What was next was even more magical, I had known about the big lagoon before we came here but nothing about the small one! This one is inaccessible to the boat and to enter into this enchanting world of towering cliffs and clear blue water you must swim through a narrow cave only open during the low tide. Though here you enter into this lost world of hidden caves and caverns to explore. We once again donned the snorkels and discovered the world of tropical fish and corals that live in this mineral rich and protected area.

It really was a rainbow of colour and life that we were exploring, the colours that you experience on El Nido are like no other, it feels as though someone has turned up the saturation on life. The green of the forests and jungles that cover the island in a blanket of bright green are too vivid to imagine, the deep black of the jagged limestone cliffs, their weathered crevices and edges telling a story of a million years of erosion and stunning natural creation. The blue tones from the deep dark edges of the far off sea to the milky clear waters of the shallow bays, the intense turquoise of the lagoons and the never ending azure of the clear skies. This then contrasts against the bright gold of the bright yellow and pure white sandy beaches. It truly is like a fantasy, a dream or a scene from a movie. You have to pinch yourself to know its real!

Taking a break and having lunch on a secret beach on the beautiful Shimizu Island

After all that swimming we are all ready for some food and a break halfway through our El Nido island hopping trip. The boat once again rounds another corner of endlessly beautiful landscapes before coming to what looks like a dead end. We neednt have worried of course, the local boat men know these little inlets, caves and beaches like the back of their hand. They drop anchor and as we float gently along the most amazing little beach appears on Shimizu Island. Here we will have some lunch, BBQed on the boat and skilfully transferred through the water onto the beach without loosing a single grain of rice!

The fruit and veg here on Palawan is the sweetest Ive ever tasted, as vegetarians we tuck into the colourful display alongside heaps of rice! The Filipino mangos and specifically those on Palawan have to be the best in the world, its a good job they put on extra because I just couldnt help myself take a few extra!! Sitting back here enjoying good food with good company we made friends with people that day who we are still very much in touch with. We seemed to all bond over this awe inspiring place and the wonderful experience of seeing it together.

Playing a game of hotly contested volleyball against the locals on 7 Commandos beach!

After all that time at sea it was now chance to sit back a little and let our lunch settle in and have a leisurely swim! Well, thats what some of the group did! We ended up in an intense volleyball match, Brits and Aussies against Filipinos in a game that went on for over an hour! We were diving into the sand, flying across the beach for loose balls and leaping up for close calls at the net. It was a fun way to enjoy a game the locals love and tire ourselves out yet again, the El Nido island hopping trip was shaping up to be one of the best days during our 10 months in Asia!

Covered from head to toe in sand we had yet another cooling dip in the stunning ocean that surrounded us. Catching our breath we could really sit back and appreciate the beauty of the place we found ourselves in. Sometimes you land yourself in absolute paradise and wonder how you even made it there. Sitting down on the pristine white beach, huge palm trees looming above and the sea stretching out in front of us for miles with the odd karst stack poking up on the horizon! I could have happily lived out my days on this little inlet, forget the rest of the El Nido island hopping trip!

Hiking up to the top of Snake Island for the most amazing views of the sandbank

One last stop before we headed back! We were tired, windswept, sea worn, cut and bruised from our amazing adventurous day exploring this wondrous place. But this was a place we had all been eagerly waiting for on our El Nido island hopping tour. The so called snake island is named so because of the magical sandbar that appears between here and the neighbouring island. The S shaped white sand slithers across the bay, the layers of depth against the mesmerisingly clear water created an array of blue shades that was just magical.

To get the full effect we clambered up a small hill carved into the jungle island to a viewpoint point above. Watching out for the single and slightly aggressive monkey that calls the island home on our way up! Up here the waters against the sand were even more enchanting, El Nido completely lived up to and exceeded our hopes and dreams for the paradise we came for in the Philippines!

Sailing back to El Nido after the most wonderful day in one of the most stunning places in the world

That was it, a long and tiring day but one none of us on that little wooden boat will ever forget. Sailing back through the mystical land of the lagoons and limestone caves towards El Nido we knew we had had one of the days of our lives and experienced one of the worlds most beautiful places.

More Info: Where to Stay In El Nido:

The Best Backpacker Option: Spin Designer Hostel/ Happiness Hostel

For backpackers visiting El Nido there are a lot of hostels to stay in and one of the best in the town is the Spin Designer Hostel. It is one of those fantastic hostels that is just so well designed and arranged with an amazing vibe. The hostel has BBQ nights, pub crawls, movie nights and most importantly comfortable beds and clean bathrooms! Its also close to the beach and has private rooms too.

Another wonderful hostel is the Happiness Hostel is a lovely hippy vibe hostel with a traditional style with a modern twist.

Check Out Prices For Spin Designer Hostel Here

Check Out Prices For Happiness Hostel Here

Mega Cheap Hostel: Big Mike Hostel

For those on a proper backpacker budget the basic Big Mike Hostel is the best offering for the low end of the market in El Nido. Dont expect anything fancy but it does offer breakfast, clean rooms and friendly staff at rock bottom prices. It is also ideally located and one of the best rated hostels in El Nido.

Check Out Prices For Big Mike Hostel Here

Best Budget Hotel: Neela Tourist Lodge

If youre still on a budget but want a nice hotel for the price then the Neela Tourist Lodge offers a tidy, well kept and comfortable place right near the beach and close enough to town too. Many of the rooms also either have terraces or balconies which makes it a lovely place for couples.

Check Out Prices For The Neela Tourist Lodge Here

Fancy a Treat Whilst Staying in El Nido: Playa Encantada Beach Resort

For those on a holiday or backpackers looking to splash out a little and treat themselves to a couple of nights somewhere incredible then the Playa Encantada Beach Resort offers luxury for a comparatively affordable price. The tranquil and serene setting is right on the beach and offers private traditional style bamboo cottages and bungalows.

Check Out Prices For Playa Encantada Beach Resort Here

Book Your Accommodation For El Nido Here:



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How to tour El Nido for yourself!

From El Nido town you will find it very easy to head off on one of the boat trips. Here there is a boat company on almost every corner, in fact you might actually get a bit annoyed with them after a while!

However, it does mean that prices are all pretty much standardised between the companies and so you are unlikely to get ripped off. There are 4 tours: A,B,C,D. Over the course of our time in El Nido we did A on its own and a combination tour of A and B through the hostel Outpost. The general consensus is that A and C are the best but all of them are sure to be amazing. A includes the Big and Small Lagoon and B includes Snake Island.

The tours range from PHP 1,200  1,400 / 18.13  21.15 / $23.49  $27.40 depending on which tour you take. You should also ask your tour operator to throw in a snorkel mask for free too.

There is also the option of chartering your own boat for a personalised tour of the bay. If you can get enough people together then this is a great option and split enough ways is only slightly more expensive than one of the set tours.

Book your El Nido island hopping tours here:

Book your transport across The Philippines and Asia here:

Book your accommodation here:

Hey, youve got your Travel Insurance sorted havent you?

Travelling and especially backpacking is a wild adventure, but make sure you are covered just incase something goes wrong, which if youre living it up to the fullest its always a possibility!

Check travel insurance prices with World Nomads here!

Have you every swam in the warm turquoise waters of Palawan, Philippines whilst on an El Nido island hopping trip?

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BRASILIA/BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - The European Union farm products offer presented this week during talks in Brasilia on a trade deal with the Mercosur bloc was disappointing, negotiators for Brazil and Argentina said on Friday. Brazil's chief negotiator, Ambassador Ronaldo Costa Filho, said the European offer to allow 70,000 tonnes of beef and 600,000 tonnes of ethanol to enter the EU with lower tariffs was far from what Mercosur members were expecting and will make the goal of reaching a deal by December more difficult. The small offer came as a surprise, but did not impede "productive and constructive" talks on other areas, Costa Filho said. Given the level of commitment by both sides to reaching an overall deal by December, he said he believed it was "technically possible" to resolve the beef and ethanol issues. Mercosur, which also includes Paraguay and Uruguay, had previously said an offer without beef in particular could not lead to a deal. According to Argentina's powerful farm lobby, the beef quota as proposed is equivalent to just two hamburgers a year per EU resident. EU nations led by France and Ireland had previously proposed postponing the farm trade offer until rules can be agreed to avoid unfair competition. "We made it clear to the EU that there has to be a substantial improvement for there to be a deal," Horacio Reyser, secretary for international economic relations at Argentina's foreign ministry, told Reuters. "This does not allow us to advance at the speed we would have hoped." He said Argentina was also hoping for an improvement in the EU's offer for other agricultural products including poultry, rice and fruit. The next round of negotiations is scheduled for November 6-10 in Brasilia and diplomats said there might be an additional round if necessary that could be held in Brussels. "We're hoping for some instrument that allows us to say that the deal will be finalised, although we will certainly need to keep polishing it a little more in 2018," Reyser said. (Reporting by Lisandra Paraguassu and Anthony Boadle in Brasilia, and Maximiliano Rizzi in Buenos Aires; Editing by Toni Reinhold and Tom Brown)
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Hundreds of bikers gathered for a Remembrance Sunday event in Yorkshire on 13 November. The bikers came together to pay their respects to veterans and those who have died in past conflicts. It was part of the Yorkshire Ride of Remembrance, which is an event held annually from a bikers cafe near Sherburn-in-Elmet. The event is held at the Squires Bikers Cafe Bar by volunteers who help raise money for good causes. A two-minute silence was held at 11am with one biker playing The Last Post on his bugle, before over 400 bikes, tricycles and scooters proceeded out in convoy to Hemingbrough in Selby, where a church remembrance service was held. The route was 'L plate' (learner biker)-friendly, to allow non-experienced riders to take part too.
Protests were held across Russia on October 7 to call for the resignation of President Vladimir Putin and were organized to coincide with his 65th birthday. This video from Moscow shows demonstrators shouting One, two, three, Putin, go away.

The rallies were spearheaded by opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, who is currently serving his third prison sentence this year, a 20-day jail term for violating laws behind organising public rallies. Navalny hopes to run against Putin in next years presidential election. Credit: Instagram/OpenRussia_org via Storyful
By Agustinus Beo Da Costa JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesian police detained 51 men including several foreigners in a raid on what authorities described as a "gay spa" in Jakarta late on Friday, and some could face up to six years in prison under pornography and prostitution laws. The arrests are the latest in a spate of high-profile police actions against gay clubs and parties in Indonesia this year that have called the country's reputation for tolerance into question. With the exception of the ultra-conservative Aceh province in northern Sumatra, where Islamic law is enforced and two men were publicly flogged in May for gay sex, homosexuality is not criminalised in Indonesia, home to the world's largest Muslim population. Among those detained at the spa in Central Jakarta on Friday were four Chinese nationals, a Singaporean, one Thai national, one Malaysian, and one Dutchman, although none of the foreigners would be charged, Jakarta Police spokesman Argo Yuwono told Reuters on Saturday. When asked about what the people in the spa were doing at the time of the raid, Yuwono noted that it was dark at the time. "LGBT is clearly between men and men or same-sex relationships. Male prostitution," Yuwono said, without clarifying further. He said those charged could face up to six years in prison under Indonesia's pornography law. "There's a cashier, the manager there and also those providing facilities like towels and other things," he said. Activists say police targeting of consensual gay sex has shone a light on discrimination and harassment in the world's third-largest democracy. Andreas Harsono, a Jakarta-based researcher for Human Rights Watch, referred to a pattern of discriminatory police action against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Indonesia. "If they raided (this club) because they are gay, it is abusive, it is abuse of power," he said, adding that there is no law against homosexuality as long as relationships are consensual. "If there is no victim, there is no crime," he said. Police often used to the pornography law to "criminalise" such cases, but that law itself is also problematic, Harsono said, noting that people could be charged if they had pornographic material on a cell phone. "Just imagine if every person in Indonesia had their cell phones checked, how many hundred million people would go to jail?" In May, officers detained 141 men in a raid on the Atlantis sauna, accusing them of involvement in a gay prostitution ring in a part of Jakarta that is also home to many heterosexual "spas". (This story corrects month of floggings in Aceh province to May from last month in paragraph 3.) (Reporting by Agustinus Beo Da Costa; Writing by Fergus Jensen; Editing by Peter Graff)
SWNS

<p>An incredible back garden boozer made entirely from recycled materials has been crowned Britain's best Pub Shed of the Year.</p><p>John Simmons, 50, spent more than a year and constructing the amazing DIY man-cave in his garden in Portsmouth, Hants.</p><p>It features its own dart board, wooden decor, countryside-pub style seating, a roof covered in fairy lights and even its own outdoor beer garden and decking area.</p><p>He built the miniature pub - called The Dog & Ball - from as much reclaimed material he could find from salvage yards and a Facebook page for pub shed enthusiasts.</p><p>John sourced, cut, sanded and fixed every timber and tting himself  as well all 4,500 screws.</p><p>The dad-of-three beat off more than a thousand entries to be named the owner of Britain's best Pub Shed 2022.</p><p>He celebrated the win in his garden pub last night (12/11) with friends  and said he was thrilled to be crowned the winner.</p><p>John started building the boozer last year and said he wanted a 'haven at home' he could enjoy that was cheaper than the pub.</p><p>Avid DIY-er John, a safety management consultant, said the pub cost four figures to build but would have been much more expensive had he not used reclaimed materials.</p><p>Wife Anita, 49, put the finishing touching to the Dog & Ball - named after their Labradoodle Bertie, aged seven  and the pair enjoyed celebrating with kids Libby, 23, Jacob, 19, and Evie, 12.</p><p>John said: It has all been rather overwhelming, but I am chuffed to bits.</p><p>We had 18 friends over last night to celebrate the final and it was fantastic to find out I won - I was really thrilled.</p><p>I started building it last year and wanted to have it completed this summer for my 50th birthday.</p><p>Sourcing the reclaimed material took the biggest chunk of time.</p><p>I am an avid DIY-er and love a project.</p><p>Lots of people had been doing this sort of thing over lockdown so I took inspiration from that, and I wanted a haven at home that was cheaper than the pub.</p><p>Its somewhere I can go and enjoy being with my friends and family, which was really the whole purpose.</p><p>It cost about four figures, which is much cheaper than it would have been had I done a proper build and had to go to shops for the materials.</p><p>John, who was in the Royal Navy for 22 years, said his favourite part of the pub is the oak beams which make up the main structure.</p><p>The three-metre-long bits of wood remarkably came from an old dock yard building John used to work in.</p><p>He said: My favourite part is the main oak beams.</p><p>They are from an old dock yard building that I used to work in years ago before it was demolished.</p><p>These three-metre-long beams that form the main structure of the pub had sat in a yard for 20 years and then I managed to buy them.</p><p>It is a remarkable story.</p><p>All my family and friends have been so supportive of the project, and it has been great having everyone round to enjoy it.</p><p>My wife Anita put all the finishing touches to the pub to make it look as amazing as it does.</p><p>I took the name from my Labradoodle Bertie who just loves to play with his ball, I really wanted him to be part of it all.</p><p>The Dog & Ball beat off two other finalists, a mini countryside-style pub called The Tiger, in Somerset, and The Stagger Inn, in Manchester - a nightclub-themed bar</p><p>They were whittled down from more than a thousand entries - many of which were built during lockdown.</p><p>John said: "Doing it all from salvage was of course a challenge  thank goodness for FB marketplace, advice from the fantastic members of the GSPN UK Facebook page and a very understanding wife who I dragged around local reclaim yards sifting through old timbers.</p><p>"With the exception of the main roof joists, every other part of the build is made from reclaim, re-used or recycled timber and materials.</p><p>"Each piece has a different story, from the bar ironmongery that belonged to my late father-in-law from his days as an RAF engineer, to the main oak upright timbers.</p><p>It is believed more than two million back garden pubs are now in operation in Britain after their popularity exploded during the coronavirus pandemic.</p><p>They have continued to grow amid a cost of living crisis after the average price of a pint rose to 4 across the UK and 5 in London.</p><p>As a result, Two Fat Blokes bar signs, Pub Shed Radio and the Facebook group Garden Shed Pubs & Nightclubs began running the national competition.</p><p>The winner was announced live on Pub Shed Radio on Saturday (12/11).</p><p>Ashley Turner, the owner of Two Fat Blokes Bar Signs, said: "The quality of bars and diversity of the entries has been phenomenal.</p><p>"We ran the competition to showcase the amazing community of pub sheds in the UK.</p><p>"The community has exploded during the pandemic and now with the cost of a pint heading north of 6 the trend looks set to continue.</p><p>"The Dog & Ball is a perfect example of an amazing pub shed and deserved to win with his amazing hand-built pub.</p><p>Tommy Funka, who runs, Pub Shed Radio added: Pub Shed of the year has been a great way for the pub shed community to come together and celebrate the growing army of back garden boozers".</p><p>Pub Shed Radio's DJ Mupps said: "It was brilliant to knock on the door of the winners bar live on Pub Shed Radio.</p><p>"John & Anita were totally gobsmacked to find out they had won. We then went live from the bar broadcasting with a real party atmosphere."</p><p>Nick St John, the owner of Facebook group Garden Shed Pubs and Nightclubs, added: "Being involved Pub Shed of the year has been the culmination of our ethos to promote and help people build their own back garden pubs.</p><p>"With over 280,000 members our group has really got on board with the competition.</p><p>"Judging the entries was so difficult  The Dog & Ball is a great example of a proper pub shed."</p>
New York City police are searching for a man who punched and knocked out a traffic agent on Staten Island on Wednesday, October 4. Surveillance video released by police shows the man approaching the NYPD agent from behind and punching him.

Police said the suspect approached the 50-year-old victim from behind and punched him in the throat with a closed fist. The agent was rendered temporarily unconscious and was taken to a nearby hospital, where he was treated and released for a head injury and a bruise on the neck, police said.

The suspect is described as a black man in his 20s with a thin build and was last seen wearing a black t-shirt and grey pants. Credit: New York Police Department via Storyful
New Zealand army Private Hayden Cullen is visiting Passchendaele, Belgium, for centenary celebrations and intends to trace a German family to return the wallet of an unknown soldier.

In this video, released on October 7 by New Zealand Defence Force, Cullen tells the story of his grandfather, John Raymond Cullen, who was handed a wallet by an unknown German soldier in 1918.

Cullen intends to track down the family of this soldier, after his own family has attempted to find out its origins.

Theyre (my family) pinning their hopes on me now, so in a last-ditch effort Ive brought the wallet back to Europe.

Failing that, Im hoping the power of the media and social media will connect our family with the family of the German officer  Herr H. Held, of Hannover. We owe them a great deal for what their ancestor did for ours.

Cullen will attend the centenary commemorations in Belgium at the New Zealand National Commemorative Service for the Battle of Passchendaele on October 12. Credit: New Zealand Defence Force via Storyful
WASHINGTON (TNS)  Interior Department manager Joel Clement figured his new bosses in the Trump administration might disapprove of his climate change-focused work protecting Alaskan villages from rising seas.

But the reassignment slip Clement received in June stunned him. He was not only removed from his post as director of policy analysis, he was deposited into a new job auditing fossil fuel company leases.

Approximately 50 such slips went out to the departments most experienced and highly paid managers. Other recipients interviewed were just as puzzled as Clement. It seemed to them that they were getting moved for the sake of getting moved  often to jobs unrelated to their skills. On Wednesday, Clement joined those who have quit in frustration.

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke may have shed some light on his thinking last week when he told a petroleum industry group that he believes nearly a third of his workforce is disloyal to the Trump agenda. I got 30 percent of the crew thats not loyal to the flag, he said, in a remark first reported by The AP.

Most new administrations move quickly to reorient the federal workforce toward their agenda, but they usually rely on the deep expertise of top-level managers such as Clement to move the stubborn levers of bureaucracy. The Trump administration approach has been different.

Ive talked to a lot of folks who have been around the federal government for decades and they say transitions can be tough, but what this group is doing is remarkable, said Clement, who filed a whistleblower complaint over the reassignment. They have moved me into an area I know nothing about. It might as well be Chinese.

Clements old job has yet to be filled. The Alaskan villages he has advocated for, he said, are on the verge of getting washed away.

The administrations actions have signaled deep suspicion of many of the civil servants on the government payroll, particularly when their work has involved confronting climate change or enforcing the environmental protections and other regulations the White House is working to roll back.

Some reassignments have come after media on the right demanded them, as was the case of a high-level State Department staffer whose involvement in the Iran nuclear deal was highlighted by Breitbart. Scores more diplomats at the department have been largely idled by an administration projecting ambivalence about their work.

At the Environmental Protection Agency, longtime civil servants  some with doctorates in environmental work  say they have been frozen out because their voluminous administrative records are out of sync with a Trump political agenda that holds that much of what they do is junk science.

The work of the EPA science arm has now been disconnected from the agencys decision-making, said Jeff Ruch, executive director of the advocacy group Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility. Its like a bureaucratic Dunkirk over there. They are just stuck waiting on the beach.

Betsy Southerland left her post in August as director of science and technology at the EPA Office of Water, after she said the administration all but ignored her teams work. Just before she left, her division had compiled what she called excruciatingly detailed briefings explaining the environmental damage and public health risks that would result from an industry demand to suspend restrictions on wastewater dumped by power plants.

We thought we could present this heavy-duty technical record and convince (EPA Administrator Scott) Pruitt he should not repeal everything, she said. We could show that what industry was saying was just not based in fact. But it fell on deaf ears. It all went to naught.

Her resignation came after the departure at the EPA of David Schnare, a longtime friend of the right with deep experience at the agency. The president had tasked him with aligning career staff with the Trump agenda. Schnare wrote in an op-ed article for the Inside EPA newsletter that he found the challenge insurmountable because Pruitt had little interest in hearing what the agencys managers had to say. He wrote that he ultimately quit after Pruitt ordered staff to break the law in dealing with what Schnare opaquely described as a sensitive issue.

In my view, this violated our oaths of office and placed the career staff in an untenable position, Schnare wrote in July.

EPA climate change advisor Michael Cox, who had been with the agency 25 years, sent his own scathing resignation letter to Pruitt in April. We understand that our positions might not always prevail, Cox wrote, but please take the time to listen to expert voices that might differ from yours and your immediate staff.

EPA officials argue that such critics dont reflect the prevailing view at the agency, which just completed a buyout program that reduced its workforce by 440 employees. They say the complaints are politically motivated, coming from activists who want to scuttle the Trump administration agenda. And they refute Schnares allegations, pointing to various meetings Pruitt has had with the agencys managers.

We have a great working relationship with career EPA employees, agency spokesman Jahan Wilcox wrote in an email. In their own words, Mr. Cox said he was planning his retirement before the new administration and Ms. Southerland said she was retiring due to a family issue. Despite the faux outrage, both employees will receive their six-figure taxpayer-funded pension and we wish them the best.

While the administrations budget plan would cut the agencys workforce by 20 percent and eliminate or roll back a broad range of environmental programs, officials there point out that there has been no wave of reassignments or staff shakeup since Trump took office.

That hasnt been the case at the Interior Department, where Zinkes shuffling of staff and his suggestion before Congress that he would use reassignments to push employees out of government has triggered a probe by the departments inspector general and given fuel to the whistle-blower complaint filed by Clement.

Thirteen legal scholars, including UC Berkeley School of Law dean Erwin Chemerinsky, wrote the federal office that protects whistle-blowers on behalf of Clement, warning that the administrations approach to dealing with its senior managers runs afoul of Nixon-era laws Congress passed to prevent purges of seasoned career staff for political reasons.

Wed all thought that we had moved past this kind of retribution, said Georgetown University law professor Josh Geltzer, who helped organize the effort.

Officials at the Interior Department would not comment on the whistle-blower investigation. But they say Congress created the class of managers to which Clement and the dozens of other reassigned employees belonged, called Senior Executive Service, so they could have a highly skilled and mobile group that can be called on to meet governments biggest challenges, when and where they emerge.

Personnel moves among the Senior Executive Service are being conducted to better serve the taxpayer and the departments operations, said a statement from the department.

Eight Democrats on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee suspect a different motive and have demanded the inspector general review the matter.

They are basically getting rid of the people who know the law and tell them you cant do that, and they are putting in people who are ignorant and do not know the policy framework, said Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., ranking member on the committee. She said it is not by coincidence that the New Mexico director of the Bureau of Land Management has been reassigned as Zinke moves to strip protections from two of the states new national monuments and roll back a major sage grouse conservation effort that the displaced director had championed.

Clement said the departments effort to train him for a job for which he has no background or aptitude came at too high a cost to taxpayers. The process would have taken weeks and involved travel out West. Clement said in his resignation letter that the whole process placed unnecessary stress on the government employees tasked with retraining him.

The effort Clement was previously spearheading  to coordinate interagency aid to help relocate residents in imperiled Alaskan villages  has largely stalled, he said.

They are on the brink of becoming refugees, he said. This is work we need to do. This is not just bad governance, it is morally dangerous.
Summit Midstream Partners, LP focuses on owning, developing, and operating midstream energy infrastructure assets primarily shale formations in the continental United States. The company provides natural gas gathering, compression, treating, and processing services, as well as crude oil and produced water gathering services. Its unconventional resource basins include the Utica and Point Pleasant shale formations in southeastern Ohio; the Williston Basin that consists of the Bakken and Three Forks shale formations in northwestern North Dakota; the Denver-Julesburg Basin, which include the Niobrara and Codell shale formations in Colorado; the Permian Basin that comprise the Bone Spring and Wolfcamp shale formations in New Mexico; the Piceance Basin, which include the Mesaverde formation, and the Mancos and Niobrara shale formations in western Colorado; the Barnett Shale formation in north-central Texas; and the Marcellus Shale formation in northern West Virginia. The company also owns an ownership interest in Ohio Gathering, which owns and operates natural gas gathering and condensate stabilization facility in the Utica Shale in southeastern Ohio. It serves natural gas and crude oil producers. Summit Midstream GP, LLC operates as a general partner of the company. The company was founded in 2009 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.
DANE, Wis.  On a recent cool, summer evening in the rolling hills just outside Madison, the capital of Americas Dairyland, the lofty pole barn of Ripps Dairy Valley farm briefly transformed into a town hall meeting.

As twilight descended, a crowd of more than 60 farmers, public officials, dairy workers and rural residents grabbed bowls of ice cream and took their seats for the event, sponsored by the Professional Dairy Producers of Wisconsin, to learn about farming and discuss the direction of the states signature industry.

Chuck, Troy and Gary Ripp, owners of the farm, a large operation with about 850 milk cows, faced the crowd and fielded questions. The main topic of the night, elevated to the forefront by the election of President Donald Trump: immigration.

Well, its a hot topic, and every night on the news you hear about building a wall and what were gonna do, like were gonna kick everybody out, Chuck Ripp told the group. First of all, Trump has a lot of power, but I dont think he has that much power. He doesnt quite understand, I dont think, everything that involves in our lives all the time here on the dairy farm.

Immigration as a top line issue for dairy farmers would have been unthinkable just a generation ago when Wisconsins agricultural landscape was dominated by small and medium-sized dairy farms run by the families that owned them.

Now, the nations No. 2 milk producing state is home to a growing number of large concentrated animal feeding operations. These businesses, which operate 24/7, year-round, require work that farmers insist most Americans will not do.

Nationally, more than half of dairy workers are immigrants, according to a 2015 industry-sponsored study, with farms that employ immigrant labor producing 79 percent of the nations milk.

The Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism asked farmers, academics, a union activist and the states recently retired agriculture secretary how Wisconsins dairy industry came to rely on immigrants to keep it afloat  and what could be done to put it on a more sustainable and legal path.

The answers include raising wages and benefits paid to dairy employees, increasing automation so jobs are less physically demanding and farmers need fewer workers, and changing federal law so immigrants can work here legally.

How did we get here?

Shelly Mayer believes the problem is broader than the dairy industry.

Were just short of people, said Mayer, executive director for the Wisconsin dairy producers group that helped organize the get-together at the Ripp dairy farm.

Immigration is  really a symptom of a rural labor shortage, she said. I dont think any of the farmers are trying to work around the system. They just need a person they can rely on to care for cows.

There is no doubt that in recent years, residents have fled rural counties in Wisconsin, and many of them are young people. Between 2000 and 2010, Wisconsins population grew by 6 percent, but more than a quarter of Wisconsins 72 counties lost population. Most of the losses in Wisconsin and nationally were in rural areas where the main industry is agriculture, the Center has reported.

These days, Wisconsin businesses complain they cannot find enough workers to fill positions as the states near-record 3.2 percent unemployment rate means just about everyone who wants a job has one.

At the same time, federal figures show the number of hired workers on dairies in Wisconsin has nearly doubled since 2006 to about 14,000  a reflection, Mayer said, of the move away from family labor that fueled small farms that once dominated the industry.

Ben Brancel, Wisconsins recently retired agriculture secretary, said the nations cheap food policy puts pressure on farmers to keep down costs, including labor. Immigrants, he said, provide valuable support for our food-producing systems.

Rather have a Latino

Another factor is what farmers such as Tim Keller describe as a lack of work ethic among U.S.-born workers. Keller milks 330 cows on his 600-acre farm near Mount Horeb, about 25 miles west of Madison. He has five immigrant workers, including his right hand man, who hails from Uruguay. Keller said the employee, who is here legally, has worked for him for 11 years.

Keller said he voted for Trump but disagrees with the administrations threats to deport all undocumented immigrants. His Hispanic employees are hard-working  and highly valued, Keller said.

Even if an American guy came up right now, I dont know if Id hire him, Keller said. Id rather have a Latino.

Chuck Ripp said before his farm started to grow, he and his brothers hired local high school students to help on the farm. But they never lasted. Now, 11 of the 12 non-family members who work there are Hispanic immigrants.

We cannot find the American person to come in and work full-time on a dairy, Ripp said in an interview. Its too many long hours. Its too hard of work. And its seven days a week, 365 on a dairy farm. ... A cow does not take a day off.

He added, Weve run ads in the papers, looking for milking technicians or people to help milk cows and things like that. We dont even get a bite. We dont even get calls.

In recent years, dairy farmers have become accustomed to cheap, flexible labor, said Jill Lindsey Harrison, a former University of Wisconsin-Madison faculty member who studied the rise in immigrant dairy workers in Wisconsin, a trend that started around 2000.

Harrison, who now teaches at the University of Colorado-Boulder, said such workers are willing to work long hours under pretty crummy conditions to support themselves and their families. Wisconsin farmers have said it is nearly impossible to convince Americans to take the jobs, which entail cleaning out stalls; night, weekend and holiday shifts; and working in every type of weather, including subzero temperatures, blazing heat, rain and snow.

Immigrant workers who do not have legal status, Harrison said, are easier to manage because theyre going to not ruffle any feathers. They are generally afraid to speak up for themselves and demand better jobs, she said.

Activist: Boost pay, benefits

Neil Rainford is a long-time labor activist who has negotiated wages for employees in workplaces including a municipal sewer plant, jail and aluminum manufacturing, which he said are easily as dirty, dangerous and hard as dairy work.

In all those communities, it was a matter of what wages needed to be paid to get people to do onerous jobs that most people dont want to do, said Rainford, a Madison-area field representative for AFSCME who was speaking for himself and not the public employee union.

Rainford does not buy the argument that Americans will not clean out barns or get up in predawn hours to milk cows.

The labor market for the dairy industry in Wisconsin is the same as any other labor market, he added. If demand outstrips supply, then the price  of labor in this case  must increase to meet demand.

Rainford said relying on immigrant labor drives down wages to unnaturally low levels for dairy work, meaning U.S. citizens cannot get jobs with family-supporting income in their home communities.

It is not good for immigrants either, Rainford argued, noting that undocumented workers do not qualify for public benefits other workers do, such as Obamacare or government-subsidized health care.

Such workers, he said, are allowed to labor without the basic social protections that are part of our social and legal compact are easily exploited, suffer sub-market wages and benefits and are denied many of the basic minimums that we have agreed upon as a society.

But raising wages could leave farmers short when the sometimes-volatile price of milk drops, Oconto Falls farmer Tim OHarrow said at a forum on the future of the immigrant dairy workforce in Madison last month.

If we pay (workers) more, how do I get the money out of you (consumers)? OHarrow asked attendees at the Cap Times Idea Fest. Milk is a commodity. We dont control the price.

Brad Barham, a professor of agricultural economics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, told the group that immigrant labor keeps the economy of rural Wisconsin humming and it is not replaceable by domestic labor  its not going to happen.

Shortage prompts higher wages

Farmers insist their immigrant workers are paid fairly, and that pay is rising.

In just the past year and a half, Ripp said his farm boosted starting wages from $8.50 an hour to $11  plus housing  as the flow of immigrants crossing the southern U.S. border has slowed. Workers with their own housing start at $12 an hour, he said. Some of his longer-tenured Hispanic workers earn $15 an hour.

Dane County, where the Ripp farm is located, considers $12.50 an hour and above to be a living wage.

Americas No. 1 milk producer, California, is raising the minimum wage for nearly all workers, including those in agriculture. By 2023, farmers and other employers will have to pay at least $15 an hour. Employees working more than eight hours a day or 40 hours a week also will be eligible for overtime pay.

But Chuck Ripp said in an interview that raising pay too much could hurt the dairy industry, which has been hit by low milk prices.

As labor costs go up, people go out of business, plain and simple, he said. If it gets too high, people are going to say, I just cant do this anymore. Were going to lose some farms. And I dont think thats what the economy wants.

We could probably get them (U.S. workers) to come with a lot higher wages, Ripp said. But the turnover would be very high. Troy Ripp added that it would probably take three to four domestic workers to cover the shifts that one of his immigrant laborers is willing to work.

Machines vs. immigrants

Philip Martin, an expert in agricultural employment, said farms can deal with labor shortages with the help of Congress, increased automation and better pay and benefits. Martin is a professor emeritus of agricultural and resource economics at the University of California-Davis.

Martin said farm owners need to increase mechanization  such as automatic cow feeders and robotic milking systems  to improve productivity, make jobs less physically demanding and ultimately shrink the size of the workforce. He noted that such labor-saving devices have led to a sharp decline in the proportion of the U.S. workforce engaged in agriculture. About 200 years ago, 72 percent of employees worked on farms. Today, it is less than 2 percent.

Mark Misch sees the trend toward mechanization as he travels the Upper Midwest selling cow waterbeds, which are considered more comfortable for the animals.

A lot of people are looking into robots to replace the labor, having a robot do it, said Misch, who works for DCC Waterbeds in Sun Prairie. It could be a robot that milks the cows. It could be a robot that feeds the cows. Theres robots that push the feed up to the cows, so the people dont have to do those jobs.

Former ag secretary: Change the law

Martin said more machines and better pay will not be enough, however. He noted that Congress is considering expanding the guest worker program to include dairy workers.

Currently, the H-2A program is confined to seasonal farm workers. U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Washington, has proposed allowing dairy farms to bring in guest workers, calling it a small starting point of relief for farmers needing workers. The measure passed the House Appropriations Committee in July but still needs full House and Senate approval.

Brancel agrees immigration law needs to be changed. Brancel, who served as a Republican lawmaker and state-level director for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, said politicians in Washington, D.C., need to stop arguing immigration policy at the extremes and adopt law changes that recognize the need for immigrant labor in agriculture while still limiting the people who can qualify for citizenship.

Unfortunately right now, there isnt any stability in immigration policy, said Brancel, who retired from public service in August to run his beef cattle farm in central Wisconsin.

Chuck Ripp also wants changes. He worries about his workers being arrested because some cannot legally drive in Wisconsin. And some of his employees, like Sergio Rivera  who has worked on the Ripp farm for 14 years  can go long periods without seeing their extended families because they fear being barred re-entry into the United States.

I like (to go) back to Mexico to see my family  but right now its just more hard, said Rivera, who cares for calves on the farm.

Being denied re-entry would mean Rivera would be separated from his wife and daughter, who live with him on the farm. That bothers Ripp.

I really like these guys, I get to know them well, theyre working hard for me, Ripp said. It would be nice for me to know that Sergio could go home and then in a month come back, but right now, were all afraid that once they leave, once they go into Mexico, can they get back into America?

There is anecdotal evidence that some immigrant workers are leaving Wisconsin in the face of stepped-up enforcement.

In the Chicago regional office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which encompasses six states including Wisconsin, arrests are up under Trump, from an average of 538 per month at the end of President Barack Obamas presidency to an average of 776 arrests per month for the first six months under Trump.

At the same time, deportation rates have gone down, in part because of record-level backlogs in the courts. In the Chicago region, the pending case backlog is about 25,700, according to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University.

Despite the threat of arrest emanating from Washington, Harrison said she does not expect a wave of voluntary departures.

Youve got people who are desperate to be here to work, Harrison said. So theyll keep a low profile. Theyll say yes to whats offered to them. Theyll make as much money as they can while they can. Its heart-breaking.
What's next for SD Gov. Kristi Noem as she heads into her second term?

politics
The nations nuclear weapons acquisition program, headquartered on Kirtland Air Force Base, swapped leadership this week with a command change ceremony followed by a ceremony for retiring leader Maj. Gen. Scott Jansson.

Jansson has led the Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center for the past two years and his retirement ends his 37-year career in the Air Force.

He is being replaced by Maj. Gen. Shaun Morris, who has relocated his family to Albuquerque from Florida.

Nothing is more important to our nations security than our nuclear capability, said Gen. Ellen Pawlikowski, commander of U.S. Air Force Materiel Command, headquartered at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio.

She said Jansson helped right the program in its last decade or so of struggle dealing with aging weapons and organizational misunderstandings.

Its the most important mission for the Air Force, she said, and Jansson made sure that the weapons are never doubted and always feared, a phrase repeated throughout the ceremony.

Pawlikowski pinned Jansson with a distinguished service medal before passing the leadership title to Morris.

Morris, coming from Eglin Air Force Base in Florida, told the nearly 200 people gathered on the base for the Friday ceremonies that he and his family are happy to be moving to Albuquerque.

Todays environment is perhaps more challenging than ever, Morris said. He said the military nuclear weapons program is the umbrella over all of us that proves the United States a strategic advantage throughout the world.

The program he will oversee is responsible for acquiring, assembling and quality assuring the materials and weapons for the nuclear arsenal.

Jansson said it was his honor to end his career in the role overseeing this program, one of many crucial roles in his years in the military.

During his retirement ceremony, retired Maj. Gen. Kathleen Close said Jansson had a pivotal role in the F-16 fighter jet program in the U.S. and the sale of the weaponized jets to other countries. He also worked on GPS satellite creation and launches, some top-secret projects and was deployed to Iraq during combat.

Janssons wife, Janine Jansson, also was recognized for her contributions to the mission of the Air Force through her support for her husband and their two sons.
A Lordsburg police officer shot and injured a suspect Friday evening after he pulled a gun on police in southwest New Mexico, according to a New Mexico State Police spokeswoman.

Lt. Elizabeth Armijo said the suspect, 34-year-old Winston Ford is in stable condition, and no police were injured in the incident.

She said the shooting happened Friday afternoon when Lordsburg Police Department officers responded to a domestic disturbance at a home on Gale Street in Lordsburg. When officers arrived they found Ford with a pistol in his waistband.

Officers attempted to speak with Mr. Ford who shot one round at the officers striking a patrol vehicle, Armijo said. An officer returned fire at Mr. Ford, striking him.

She did not release the officers name.
Help the St. Pius X Fine Arts Department raise money for tuition assistance and to support the schools fine arts programs  and have some fun while youre at it.

The West Side school will host its inaugural St. Pius High School Fine Arts Hoedown on Friday, Oct. 13, from 5 to 10 p.m.

The arts are an essential part of a well-rounded education, so funds raised from the silent auction and art sales will help students in need of tuition assistance and offset the cost of supplies and instruments, music equipment, lights, and stage supplies, Jack Davidson, St. Pius visual arts director, said in an event news release.

The informal and fun community fundraiser, he said, allows St. Pius to show the public what we have to offer here the school.

The outdoor event will take place at St. Pius X campus on 5301 St. Josephs Dr. NW and is open to the public.

It will feature art sales, food trucks, a silent auction, live country and western music by the West Wind Band, western dancing and amazing views of the city  especially of the Balloon Fiestas fireworks show, organizers say.

In addition, St. Pius fine arts students will showcase the programs curriculum through poetry readings, live acts and dancing.

Students of St. Pius Xs Fine Arts Department have a range of visual and performing arts classes available to them including painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, theatre, and an award-winning music program, the event news release reads. Many students who graduate from the school have gone on into careers including architecture, printmaking, painting, and acting, to name a few.

In fact Modern Family actor Jesse Tyler Ferguson, attended St. Pius X High School and acted in numerous plays offered by the schools Fine Arts Department.

Artists who would like to donate work for the event can contact Davidson for an application at jdavidson@spxabq.com.

More information about the fine arts program is available at: www.saintpiusx.com/parents___students/s_p_x_life/fine_arts.
Organist Charles Bonow will present his festival worship service concert, Here We Stand, at 9 a.m. Sunday, Oct. 8, and 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 11, at Mount Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church, 1602 Park Ave.

Bonow, a former Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod pastor, presents his concerts in WELS churches across the country. The concert will consist of a spoken message interspersed with organ solos and congregational singing of well-loved hymns of faith.

Donations will support Bonows ministry. For more information, call the church at 608-784-5324.
A suspect is on the loose Friday night after shooting a clerk at a Paradise Hills gas station, according to Bernalillo County Sheriffs spokesman.

Captain Craig Sevier said the clerk is in the hospital and expected to survive. Deputies are still looking for the suspect, a Hispanic male, who fled on foot.

He said deputies responded to a holdup call at the Chevron, near Paradise and Unser NW, around 7:40 p.m. there they found the clerk shot in the groin.

Brett White said he knew something was wrong when his best friend, the clerk, Michael Stubblefield didnt pick up his phone.

I knew something was going on, he said. So White drove to the Chevron to check on his friend, finding it surrounded by deputies and crime tape.

Two weeks ago a teenager robbed the Chevron, at gunpoint, when Stubblefield was working alone, White said. Stubblefield had been having a difficult time since the incident.

What really bothered him was the .45 pointed at his head, White said. What do you think in a situation like that?

This is only the latest in a string of gas station robberies that have ended in shootings, including one less than 12 hours earlier at a Circle K near Wyoming and Claremont NE, where a fleeing suspect shot and injured two people.

I hate the crime in this city, White said. Its crazy.
WASHINGTON  Fake news has come to the high court.

At Tuesdays argument before the Supreme Court about gerrymandering  the science of using map-drawing and Big Data to keep ruling parties in power even when a majority votes for the opposition  Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. was searching for a way to uphold the unsavory practice. But there was a problem: Gerrymandering is making a mockery of the right to vote in Wisconsin, the focus of the case before the court, where a redrawn map let Republicans hold more than 60 percent of the state assembly while getting less than half the vote.

And so Alito resorted to subterfuge. He waited until the closing minutes and hit Paul M. Smith, the lawyer arguing against the Wisconsin plan, with the last question of the argument.

You paint a very dire picture about gerrymandering and its effects, Alito said, but I was struck by something in the seminal article by your expert, Mr. McGhee, and he says there, I show that the effects of party control on bias are small and decay rapidly, suggesting that redistricting is at best a blunt tool for promoting partisan interests. So he was wrong in that?

The question baffled Smith, who said he would need to see the context.

Well, Alito retorted, thats what he said.

No, it isnt.

I called Eric McGhee, the expert, after the argument. The quote Alito pulled was not from the seminal article McGhee co-wrote proposing the legal standard for gerrymandering at the center of the case. It was from an earlier McGhee paper, using data from the 1970s through 1990s. In the paper at the center of the case, by contrast, we used updated data from the 2000s, McGhee told me, and the story is very different. Its gotten a lot worse in the last two cycles.  The data are clear.

Why would Alito resort to this sleight of hand? Perhaps because its clear that if he stuck to the facts, hed have to acknowledge that the growing abuse of gerrymandering threatens democracy.

Political gerrymandering has become dramatically more precise in disenfranchising voters with the revolution in data analytics  both in states such as Wisconsin and in Congress, where Democrats need to win the popular vote by more than seven points to break even in the House. (Democrats abuse gerrymandering, too, though they hold power in fewer states.) Theres also no obvious legal reason that the court cant intervene to curb the practice on grounds of free speech or equal protection.

Whats really behind all of this, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said during arguments, is the precious right to vote. If you can stack a legislature in this way, what incentive is there for a voter to exercise his vote?

Smith predicted that if the court fails to intervene in Wisconsin, youre going to have a festival of copycat gerrymandering the likes of which this country has never seen.  The country is going to lose faith in democracy.

Three members of the courts conservative bloc  Alito, Neil Gorsuch and John Roberts Jr., the chief justice  were searching for reasons not to intervene. A fourth, the silent Clarence Thomas, previously voted against court involvement. That likely leaves the decision to Anthony M. Kennedy, who is more prone to bouts of fairness than his conservative colleagues.

In an unusual soliloquy, the chief justice argued that the court shouldnt get involved in the Wisconsin case because then it would have to intervene in others. Its going to be a problem here across the board, he lamented.

The poor dears. Maybe, given that democracy is at stake, they could shorten their summer holiday, which just ended Monday?

Roberts continued: The intelligent man on the street will deduce that, if the Supreme Court rules with Democrats in a gerrymandering case, it must be because the Supreme Court preferred the Democrats over the Republicans.  And that is going to cause very serious harm to the status and integrity of the decisions of this court in the eyes of the country.

Now hes worried about the public standing of the court? After Bush v. Gore, campaign finance rulings that give the wealthy dominance over elections, and the brazen politics of the Merrick Garland fiasco?

In the gerrymandering case, the justices have a chance to restore integrity by defending the principle of one person, one vote. Alternatively, the five Republican appointees can defend their patrons by allowing this perversion of democracy to continue.

Follow Dana Milbank on Twitter, @Milbank. E-mail: danamilbank@washpost.com. Copyright, Washington Post Writers Group.
SANTA FE  The University of Texas System is again looking into making a bid to manage Los Alamos National Laboratory, a multidisciplinary research facility dealing with nuclear weapons production, the storage and transportation of radioactive waste, and nuclear energy issues.

UT Systems regents recently approved spending $4.5 million to prepare a bid for to run LANL. The money will be used to explore the idea of the University of Texas-Austin, in partnership with other academic and business institutions, building an unparalleled team of industry partners to lead LANL into the next era, according to an article of the UT System website.

In this regard, anybody would be hard pressed to find a greater collection of talent than that which resides within the UT System, said Deputy Chancellor David Daniel. We have much to offer our nation in national service.

A bid wont be made by UT system if it determines that it cannot manage the lab.

UT System, as part of a partnership led by Lockheed Martin Corp., bid on managing LANL the last time proposals were considered in 2005, but it lost out to the University of California, which in concert with Bechtel National Inc. and other groups currently manages the facility under the name Los Alamos National Security. That contract expires in September 2018. The National Nuclear Security Association decided against extending the contract after LANL received several performance reviews critical of its operation.

LANL, one of 17 national laboratories, was the only one of the Department of Energys nuclear facilities to receive a failing red safety rating in the area of criticality in a 2016 report.

UT System was part of a consortium that last year lost a bid to manage Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque.

If it decides to submit a proposal to manage LANL, UT System is thought to have a few things working in its favor. For one, UT Chancellor William McRaven is a recognized figure in national security, having formerly led U.S. counter-terrorism operations as a commander of U.S. Special Operations Command. Also, U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry is a Texas native, though he graduated from Texas A&M.
NEW ORLEANS  Hurricane Nate came ashore on a sparsely populated area at the mouth of the Mississippi River on Saturday and closed in on Mississippi, pelting the central Gulf Coast region with strong winds and heavy rains.

Nate was forecast to make its second landfall near Biloxi, Mississippi, and threatened to inundate homes and businesses.

The center of the storm passed to the east of New Orleans, sparing the city its most ferocious winds and storm surge. And its quick speed lessened the likelihood of prolonged rain that would tax the citys weakened drainage pump system.

The city famous for all-night partying was placed under a curfew, effective at 7 p.m., but the mayor lifted it when it appeared the storm would cause little problems for the city. Still, the streets were not nearly as crowded as they typically are on a Saturday night.

Along the Mississippi coast, cities such as Gulfport and Biloxi were on high alert. Some beachfront hotels and casinos were evacuated, and rain began falling on the region Saturday. Forecasters called for 3 to 6 inches (7 to 15 centimeters) with as much as 10 inches (25 centimeters) in some isolated places.

Nate weakened slightly and was a Category 1 storm with maximum winds of 85 mph (137 kph) when it made landfall in a sparsely populated area of Plaquemines (PLAK-uh-minz) Parish. Forecasters had said it was possible that it could strengthen to a Category 2, but that seemed less likely as the night wore on.

Storm surge threatened low-lying communities in southeast Louisiana, eastward to the Alabama fishing village of Bayou la Batre.

If it floods again, this will be it, said Larry Bertron as said as he and his wife prepared to leave their home in the Braithwaite community of vulnerable Plaquemines Parish. The hurricane veterans lost one home to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and left the home they rebuilt after Hurricane Isaac in 2012.

Governors in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama declared states of emergency. The three states have been mostly spared during this hectic hurricane season.

This is the worst hurricane that has impacted Mississippi since Hurricane Katrina, Mississippi Emergency Management Director Lee Smithson said Saturday. Everyone needs to understand that, that this is a significantly dangerous situation.

Officials rescued five people from two sailboats in choppy waters before the storm. One 41-foot sailboat lost its engine in Lake Pontchartrain and two sailors were saved. Another boat hit rocks in the Mississippi Sound and three people had to be plucked from the water.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards urged residents to make final preparations quickly and stressed that Nate will bring the possibility of storm surge reaching up to 11 feet in some coastal areas.

Its going to hit and move through our area at a relatively fast rate, limiting the amount of time its going to drop rain, Edwards said. But this is a very dangerous storm nonetheless.

Streets in low-lying areas of Louisiana were already flooded. Places outside of levee protections were under mandatory evacuation orders and shelters opened there.

Some people worried about New Orleans pumping system, which had problems during a heavy thunderstorm on Aug. 5. The deluge exposed system weaknesses  including the failure of some pumps and power-generating turbines  and caused homes and businesses to flood. Repairs have been made but the system remained below maximum pumping capacity.

On Alabamas Dauphin Island, water washed over the road Saturday on the islands low-lying west end, said Mayor Jeff Collier. The storm was projected to bring storm surges from seven to 11 feet near the Alabama-Mississippi state line. Some of the biggest impacts could be at the top of funnel-shaped Mobile Bay.

With Nate marching to a second landfall on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, gauges showed tides are 4 feet above normal from Shell Beach, Louisiana, east of New Orleans, to Bayou La Batre, Alabama, southwest of Mobile. In Mississippi, Hancock County Emergency Management Director Brian Adam said his agency received reports of rising water on low-lying streets facing the Mississippi Sound and the Bay of St. Louis. In Biloxi, authorities reported water from Biloxi Bay rising on some streets.

The window for preparing is quickly closing, Alabama Emergency Management Agency Director Brian Hastings said.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott warned residents of the Panhandle to prepare for Nates impact.

Hurricane Nate is expected to bring life-threatening storm surges, strong winds and tornados that could reach across the Panhandle, Scott said. The evacuations affect roughly 100,000 residents in the western Panhandle.

The Pensacola International Airport announced it will close at 6 p.m. Saturday and remain closed on Sunday. However, the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport was open Saturday.

At 11 p.m. EDT Saturday, Nate was about 35 miles (56 kilometers) southwest of the mouth of the Mississippi River. The storm was expected to quickly weaken as it cuts a path through the Southeast on its way to the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast regions, which could see impacts from Nate early next week.

Nate killed at least 21 people after strafing Central America.

In New Orleans, ahead of Saturday nights curfew, some bars were closed in the French Quarter but music blasted from others.

Were down here from Philly and were not going to just stay in our hotel room, said Kelly Howell, who was drinking with friends at The Bourbon Street Drinkery.

___

Associated Press writer Kim Chandler in Alabama and Kevin McGill in New Orleans, and AP photographer Gerald Herbert in Plaquemines Parish, contributed to this report.
Hyundai Motor India Ltd has initiated Experience Hyundai campaign across 418 rural locations in India. The campaign aims to generate high engagement with customers during the festive season through a pan-India road show.

The Experience Hyundai campaign is organised to enhance customer connect in the rural markets with a caravan of Hyundai cars in the smaller towns and villages. The objective of the campaign is to reach out to the customers in these markets directly to create an interface with products and offer them the best benefits. The teams will visit residential colonies, markets, banks, schools and colleges, post offices and other commercial complexes over the next three months and showcase the range of world-class Hyundai cars.

Commenting on the campaign, Rakesh Srivastava, Director - Sales and Marketing, Hyundai Motor India Ltd, said, Rural market is a key driver in Hyundais growth strategy in India as these markets are growing fast with the economy. Our continued focus through initiatives such as Experience Hyundai campaign has made Hyundai a preferred brand in the growing rural market. We are confident of establishing a strong brand presence for Hyundai offering unparalleled value through global technology and feature-rich cars to the customers in the rural market.

During the Experience Hyundai campaign, the customers will be offered with test drives, festive schemes, attractive finance and exchange offers along-side various interactive games, quiz, assured gifts and lucky draws.
iCubesWire, a leading Digital Marketing Solutions provider, today announced the appointment of Shashank B. Veerappa as the Group Head of the South region. He will head iCubesWires Bengaluru office while working towards expanding and strengthening its business.

Shashank brings 13+ years of experience to iCubesWire, having worked in areas such as digital online sales and marketing, product design and management, client and partner management, operations responsibility and has defined multiple roles with broad range of analytic & creative skills in marketing, lead management, sales & operations. Prior to joining iCubesWire, he was associated with Hungama Digital Services as South India head. He has also worked with Times Internet, Tyroo Media and Exchange4media.

Sahil Chopra, Founder & CEO, iCubesWire says, I am certain that Shashank will strengthen the organizations presence in the market and expand our business prospects in the South region. I am excited to have him onboard and hope for a fruitful association with him. The path ahead surely looks interesting & we shall achieve greater heights together.

Commenting on the new role, Shashank B. Veerappa says, I am really excited to join iCubesWire who have proven it to be the leaders in Digital Solutions for the last 7+ Years. Its going to be a great start at the Bengaluru office where I look forward to leveraging my skills into expanding business for iCubesWire. I hope to bring in value to the company by escalating the process of achieving our business objectives.
Ali Fazals latest film release, Victoria and Abdul, has hit the theatres this week. Based on the unusual friendship between Queen Victoria and Abdul, who travelled from India to Britain in 1881 to take part in the queens Golden Jubilee, the film also stars Academy Award winner Judi Dench. Abdul eventually becomes Victorias teacher and spiritual advisor.

Victoria and Abdul is directed by Stephen Frears and is based on is based on Shrabani Basus book, Victoria & Abdul: The True Story of the Queens Closest Confidant. The film uses the unconventional pairing to examine race, power and the British Empire.

While Fazal is no stranger to international acting projects, Victoria and Abdul is by far his most important international role. He was earlier seen in a brief role in Vin Diesel-starrer Furious 7.

Fazal made his Bollywood debut with a special appearance in 3 Idiots (2009), he next appeared in Always Kabhi Kabhi (2011). His first success came in Fukrey (2013). He was also seen in supporting roles in films like Baat Ban Gayi (2013), Bobby Jasoos (2014) and Sonali Cable (2014). He played the lead in the horror film Khamoshiyan (2015). He also had an important role in Happy Bhag Jayegi (2016), opposite Diana Penty. Now, Fazal is looking forward to his upcoming film, Fukrey 2.

Sony Pictures Networks English movie channel Sony Le PLEX HD hosted a special screening of Victoria and Abdul in Mumbai on October 6, 2017. Adgully caught up with Ali Fazal at the films premiere for a brief interaction, where he spoke about his experience working in Victoria and Abdul, scope for small budget films in India, nepotism in Bollywood and more. Excerpts:

How was your experience working in Victoria & Abdul? How did the role materialise? How did you prepare for the role?

It was a very good experience. For the first time I have done a biopic and also it is the first time on a global stage for any Indian actor in this kind of an avtaar. So, its a very proud moment and I feel quite responsible at the same time. I have acted opposite Judy Dench and its a Stephen Frears movie  it doesnt get any better.

There were a lot of look tests and auditions before the casting. I read a lot about the character and the whole story in preparation for my role. I have never read so much in my life before! I went through several history books because I wanted to get into the skin of the character. Abdul was a real person, but unfortunately I didnt have much information about this man, since Abdul Karims history was shut and buried by the Indian and British Governments. So, it was something that we had to really take out and mathematically come to it.

What were the three key things that you learnt from Judi Dench?

How to work a fidget spinner in a really cool way

How to rap, because she is a rapper

A little bit of acting

You have worked in films, TV series and now also in a web series. How has your experience been in each of these mediums?

It was a very cinematic experience. I did them because they were all different mediums, but the way we shot them were like movies; it didnt matter what platform it was. I think that was the most interesting part. Of course, the audiences are much wider now on the web domain; I am doing something on Amazon Prime Video and I am hoping everybody will see it.

Which do you consider to be your breakthrough role?

The role of Abdul is my breakthrough role.

You have worked in both Bollywood and Hollywood films. In which aspects do the two industries differ and in which aspects are they similar?

Bollywood and Hollywood movies are different. I think somewhere the ethics are changing in Bollywood, but technologically, Bollywood still lags behind a lot. So, we need to get up and game up.

With the box-office and the business that a film does dictating a films success, what scope is there for small budget films with no big stars in them?

I think there is a lot of scope now as I think Indian Cinema is changing. Its all about the times and we are coming up with good content, and thats the only way we can get on to a global stage. If we dont come up with content, and just keep coming up with formulas, then we will only be making people happy within our little bubble. But thats not the way it works now, the way is changing.

Is nepotism really as prevalent in Bollywood as it is made out to be?

I think nepotism is there and it is okay to have it. People do talk too much about it. We have some great talents from great families and I respect them. I am a big fan of those people.

Could you tell us about your upcoming projects that you are most excited about?

Fukrey 2 is my upcoming project and I am really excited about it. The film will be released this December. I am also doing something with Amazon Prime Video and Excel that I have just started shooting for.
When Michel Brewery founders Charles and John Michel came to the United States from Germany in 1857, its doubtful that they could have imagined that the business they were to start would outlast Prohibition and continue for nearly a century.

In 1847, Charles came to America before the rest of his family, settled in New York and worked on a farm for a winter. The remaining members of the Michel family came to America the next spring.

The members of the Michel family settled in Philadelphia, where they started a contracting and building firm. Their venture did not endure, so they did what many others did  went west in 1849 to take part in the California Gold Rush. Later in life, Charles said, this was most prosperous time of his life.

The brothers briefly returned to Pennsylvania, but they were on the move again after two years, finally settling in La Crosse in 1856. The brothers initially set up a contracting firm like they had in Pennsylvania, but less than a year later, they decided La Crosse could support another brewery.

Charles and John started brewing beer in La Crosse in 1857. Gottlieb Heileman worked as brewmaster for C&J Michel Brewery before partnering with John Gund to form City Brewery. In 1872, Charles Michel married Louise Gund, the daughter of John Gund Brewing Co.s founder. Although these breweries were competitors, they still were interconnected by family and business relationships.

Elfenbrau beer was the most popular variety brewed by the brothers prior to Prohibition. To keep the business afloat after the ratification of the 18th Amendment, the brothers changed their companys name to La Crosse Refining Co. and began manufacturing malt and malt syrup.

After the ratification of the 21st Amendment, which ended Prohibition, the brothers again changed their companys name to La Crosse Breweries Inc. Although the company survived Prohibition, Elfenbrau beer was no longer a hit with beer drinkers. Carl Michel, son of Charles and Louise, went to his uncle Henry Gund and purchased the Peerless brand of beer. Gund had sold off most of the business and their assets to other breweries in 1920 when the brewery closed, but he held onto the Peerless brand until 1937.

The company hit a rough patch in the 1930s and 1940s and accumulated an abundance of debt. The debt was repaid, but the company ceased production in 1955.

This plaster statue, from about 1910, is 20 inches tall and would have been used to promote Elfenbrau beer. The La Crosse Historical Society has a photo postcard of the interior of a bar that has two matching elves like this one sitting on the top shelf above the mirror.

Although these elves were mass produced, today they are rare. This artifact came to historical society as part of a collection of La Crosse breweriana donated by Tye Schwalbe in 2011.

This elf was the first artifact from the historical societys collections that has been photographed and turned into a 3D model by collections intern Sofie Kinzer. The 3D model, which was made possible through a collaboration with David Anderson and the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Archaeology and Anthropology Department, and can be seen on the historical societys website.
October 5, 2017

Just four months after accusing Iran of Persian expansionism in the Middle East, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited Tehran on Oct. 4 to discuss bilateral cooperation and an expansion of economic ties with the country's highest officials. One of the issues that has recently brought Iran and Turkey closer is the Kurdish independence referendum held Sept. 25 in northern Iraq. The vote poses a challenge to both countries because of their own Kurdish populations.

While in Iran, Erdogan met with the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the country's highest authority. Speaking about the Iraqi Kurdistan referendum, Khamenei said, In confronting this event, Iran and Turkey must take every possible action, and Iraq's government must take serious actions on this issue. He called the referendum treason against the region and a future threat with possible long-term consequences.

Echoing previous remarks by Erdogan, Khamenei said that the Kurdistan referendum was in the first instance to the benefit of Israel and in the second to the United States. He further stated that foreign powers, in particular Israel, want to divert Iran and Turkey's attention from important regional issues and asserted that the Kurdistan referendum would create a new Israel. The reference to a new Israel made headlines in a number of media outlets, including coverage by Javan, a newspaper linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

During a press conference with President Hassan Rouhani, Erdogan said, Both Iran and the central government in Iraq and Turkey have implemented some measures against the Kurdistan region, and from this point forward there will be stronger measures. Erdogan's reference to stronger measures became the top story and headline for the Reformist Shargh Daily. Iran closed its airspace to Iraqi Kurdistan at the request of Iraq's central government in Baghdad, but there was no indication what these stronger measures might entail. Highlighting Israel's support for the Kurdish referendum, Erdogan said, Any decision taken with Mossad is unacceptable.

Rouhani also mentioned the Kurdistan vote at the press conference, saying, We do not want to put pressure on the people of Iraqi Kurdistan, but some of the mistaken decisions taken by some of the leaders of this region have to be addressed. Therefore, the three countries of Turkey, Iraq and Iran have to follow their strategic goals with serious and necessary steps.

Rouhani and Erdogan touched on a number of other regional and economic issues. Iran and Turkey, as two Muslim, friendly and powerful countries in the region, are today anchors of stability in a sensitive region, Rouhani said. To improve economic trade between them, Rouhani said, various border crossings will be open 24 hours a day and additional ones will be opened. He also said that Turkey plans to invest in petrochemicals, tourism and transportation. Erdogan also spoke of strengthening ties between the countries' central banks.

The recent signs of Turkey and Iran growing closer have received a great deal of media attention in Iran given that the two have been on opposite sides of the Syrian civil war, the Middle Easts most deadly war in years. Iran has backed the government of President Bashar al-Assad while Turkey has backed opposition forces. Although the two sides have exchanged harsh words over Syria, they have continued to tend to economic relations.
Among other measures, Samsung reportedly turned to marketing and direct communication with the public to help get itself through the Galaxy Note 7 crisis it endured towards the end of 2016. The information on this comes from a new report out of The Drum which in turn credits comments provided by Samsungs SVP, Global Head Integrated Marketing, Pio Schunker, during a talk at the 2017 ANA Masters of Marketing Conference, in Orlando.

According to the details, Schunker points out that prior to the Note 7 recall, the company was already in the process of undergoing a brand-change. So while the company was already preparing to make some marketing strategy changes, Schunker explains that post-Note 7 the companys approach to marketing took on a whole new meaning. As most of the work that had already been done throughout 2016 to humanize the brand was immediately undone again by the negative publicity associated with the Note 7. As Schunker puts it, just when things were starting to go right, things went horribly wrong. And not just horribly wrong with Schunker making the admission that the situation Samsung found itself in was dangerous enough it threatened to permanently damage Samsungs business and its reputation.

As a result Schunker was noted explaining that by the time the company started to promote its then-upcoming Galaxy S8 smartphone, the company already understood the importance of its marketing efforts was much greater than ever before and even greater than the success of its new phone. As not only did Samsung need to promote the upcoming product, but also reassure those who may have been put off by the events of the months leading up to that point. With Schunker reportedly noting how the ads and promos that came through during this period not only helped to repair and rebuild the companys reputation, but was also one of the factors that directly led to the high rate of Galaxy S8 sales. In particular, the likes of Samsungs ostrich commercial which although was promoting the Gear VR headset at the time, was part of the companys plan to distance itself from the Note 7. Something which seemed to have worked better than Samsung probably even expected as not only has the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy Note 8 gone on to be successful in their own right, but that ostrich advert has taken on a life of its own, including winning multiple awards along the way. For those that missed it the first time, see below.

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https://youtu.be/ob7Ruq7n0qA
Ericsson has now opened the doors on a brand new US-based design center for the testing and development of key components to 5G radio base stations. The official name of the center is a bit of a mouthful as Ericsson calls its new location the Application Specific Integrated Circuit Design Center, or the ASIC Design Center for short. This one is located in Austin Texas and according to the companys head of Development Unit Networks, Sinisa Krajnovic, the center should begin operations by the end of the year.

As to what Ericsson hopes to accomplish with the new location, Krajnovic says the goal is to help the company improve the radio design capabilities, with Krajnovic elaborating on that to explain this is part of the reason it was built in the US, as the country is one of those at the forefront of 5G innovation. The work being undertaken at the ASIC Design Center could also help the company improve the speed and performance of its chips to a point where they perform around 100 times faster than more general-purpose processors, the company said. Beyond that, building them within the country should make the whole process much more cost efficient. That should hold to be particularly true with regard to components intended for use in the continental US and its upcoming 5G mobile networks.

This latest Design Center will, moreover, be working closely in conjunction with the companys other ASIC teams in Sweden and China. That partnership, the company says, will be one of many determining factors in whether or not Ericsson can improve its 5G portfolio by 2019. Interestingly enough, that timeline falls in line with the aspirations of several other major players in the burgeoning 5G networking industry. That includes companys and providers Ericsson has worked with before, such as Qualcomm. The Snapdragon SoC manufacturer operates on the opposite and complimentary side of the networking equation from Ericsson, in that it focuses on creating equipment that would ultimately exist on the receiving end of signals sent by Ericssons hardware. That could mean that, with the new Austin ASIC team and a degree of luck, 2019 really could see the real beginning of 5G implementation across the country.
Google Fiber has a pretty slow rollout over the past few years, and part of that is due to the fact that Google needs to actually build out its Fiber network, unlike other ISPs. And perhaps, the offering of traditional TV service has slowed down its rollout. Well, Google is trying something new with the next two cities itll be rolling out Fiber too, which are Louisville and San Antonio, and that is to only provide internet, and not traditional TV. Of course part of this could be Google looking to promote YouTube TV, which should run perfectly on a Gigabit internet connection.

In Google Fibers blog post today, the team mentions that there are a huge number of people cutting the cord and getting rid of traditional TV in favor of streaming options like YouTube TV and others. So it makes little sense for Google to go out there and build this infrastructure when many are opting not to use the service anymore. Of course, Gigabit internet is always going to be important, especially for the future of content consumption, with video coming in higher resolution which means larger files and itll need more bandwidth. And Google wants to help these cord cutters, and get them onto other services, so it is opting to leave out traditional TV in Louisville and San Antonio. Of course, part of this could also be the fact that many Fiber customers are only signing up for Internet and not Internet with TV.

Google does mention in its blog post that those in markets with Fiber and those that subscribe to its TV service, nothing will change. Google Fiber is not getting rid of its TV service in markets that are already up and running. It is just changing things in future markets. So users will be able to decide if they want to get rid of their TV through Google Fiber and use something like PlayStation Vue or Sling TV or something else, without any issues. Google Fiber does say that its superfast internet will be available in Louisville and San Antonio soon, but doesnt give any specific dates on when, just yet.
Moodys Investors Service now predicts that the free cash flow at US-based mobile carriers isnt looking great at the moment, as the prominent investment services provider predicts no less than a 2-percent drop on average for the top mobile service providers by the end of the year. That probably doesnt come as too much of a surprise for anybody following along with the financials of US telecoms, but Moodys says the drop is primarily down to the level of competition between providers in the US as compared to elsewhere in the world. Moodys Senior Vice President, Carlos Winzer, points to Europe for comparison, noting how in that region, revenue growth for mobile service providers is expected to be maintained well into 2018, by as much as 1.5-percent.

To begin with, the US cell service market has seen a huge jump in the number of unlimited plans available, Moodys reports. That has happened at the same time as what is effectively the leveling off of service quality among major providers for the country. This means that networks are being used more than ever before leading to congestion and other negative impacts, which are adding to the costs incurred by the carriers themselves. Meanwhile, in Europe, companies are converging sales of other services such as television and broadband, bundled with mobile services. Something similar to that has begun to happen in the US, with companies like Verizon and AT&T making headway in those areas. At the same time, some cable subscription providers have also started to expand services into the mobile arena. However, pricing appears to be a key separator between the two markets. In Europe, prices have been set in a way that focuses on value-assessments for the bundles or services on offer  rather than putting efforts into beating the competition through offers of unlimited data. Something that is understood to have led to a much healthier return on investment for companies in European countries, according to Moodys, which are now preparing for a higher degree of demand for services.

Unfortunately, the trends in both areas are expected to continue as regulators in Europe move to encourage investments in high-speed data networks, while US regulators shift in favor of the operators. With that said, it should be noted that the European market is coming out of a couple of years of decline. During that time, US carriers have been taking advantage of high credit ratings to take on debt and build out networks, according to the report. That will certainly continue as those same companies push to bring 5G to their subscribers, which should eventually help return some, if not most of them to a more stable financial position.
After punishing Bombardier with a 219 percent tariff on the CSeries airliner last week, the U.S. Commerce Department slapped another 80 percent levy on the jet this week. Responding to a complaint from Boeing, the Commerce department found that Bombardiers prices on the CSeries in a sale to Delta Air Lines amounted to dumping or selling goods below cost.

According to the Seattle Times, the Commerce department said Bombardier failed to provide the information it requested in the case and it accepted Boeings argument that the CSeries sale represents unfair competition because of government subsidies. The tariff effectively quadruples the price of the CSeries jets for U.S. buyers. The Commerce ruling still has to be reviewed by the U.S. International Trade Commission, but if its approved, Deltas purchase is unlikely to go through.

Bombardier can appeal the decision to the U.S. Court of International Trade or the World Trade Organization but that action is expected to take months. Although Boeing has no competitor for the CS100 Bombardier intended to sell to Delta, it noted that the sales contract allowed the airline to convert some of the 75-airplane order to the larger CS300. That could represent lost sales for Boeing.

If the tariff decision stands, U.S. companies wont escape the impact. Half of the CSeries components are U.S. sourced, including the Pratt & Whitney geared turbofans that account for the airplanes exceptional efficiency. The wings are manufactured in Ireland. Following Fridays decision, Bombardier said the ruling represents an egregious overreach and misapplication of U.S. trade laws in an apparent attempt to block CSeries aircraft from entering the U.S. market.
A Trump tweet this morning confirms last night's Axios scoop: "I called Chuck Schumer yesterday to see if the Dems want to do a great HealthCare Bill. ObamaCare is badly broken, big premiums. Who knows!"

The initial reaction among some Republicans was consternation, Jonathan Swan and I reported:

A well-wired Republican told us: "It codifies the Rs' failure on repeal/replace and shows the President can move without hesitation or ideological impediment to make a deal with the Dems. It depresses R base turnout in the midterms, as Trump voters are further disconnected from the Congressional wing."

Be smart: Trump wants to be the deal guy, and he's going to keep playing the "Chuck and Nancy" card. To him, Republicans consternation is a feature, not a bug.

Between the lines ... Axios health care editor Sam Baker emails me:
President Trump tweeted, "Sorry, but only one thing will work!" on Saturday afternoon in response to the threat posed by North Korea. It's another cryptic announcement that could potentially move the U.S. closer to nuclear war  or signify nothing more than bluster.

Flashback: Standing along side military leaders on Thursday evening, President Trump said it could be "the calm before the storm." What storm? "You'll find out."
7 October 2017 15:18 (UTC+04:00)

By Arye Gut, political analyst

There are several countries and territories, whose future is highly questionable for and raises resinous concerns of the world community. The reason is quite clear - the vacuum observed in problematic areas threatens to turn them into a zone of increased risks.

In order to prevent undesirable trends for general security, international institutions initiate an active search with the participation of venerable scientists and specialists in political science, economics, sociology, demography and other spheres.

There are many countries of concern, and the Republic of Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus, is among them. Judging by decreasing number of population in Armenia, this country has an alarming prospect to rank with such countries, as Rwanda, Haiti, or Western Sahara. Moreover, if all the misfortunes in these states are caused by internecine strife, natural disasters and other troubles, in Armenia there is a latent genocide against its own people.

Armenia is self-isolated country in the South Caucasus region due to its unreasonable territorial claims against neighboring states Azerbaijan, Turkey and Georgia. Mainly because of the occupation of Azerbaijani lands and the ongoing military aggression, Armenia has remained largely outside the main geopolitical, geo-economic, transport and other projects, associated with the gas and oil resources of the Caspian Sea, as well as the Great Silk Road, a great trade route originating in China.

At the present stage, Armenia is the most backward and dependent country in the South Caucasus. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Armenia has been completely dependent on Russia's foreign policy and foreign economic ambitions, as well as on the vagaries of the world Armenian diaspora. Geopolitically Armenia is Russias outpost in the South Caucasus. However, Armenia has no way out: this country has made its own enemies, so it is forced to cooperate with Russia. The Armenian economy is in a deplorable state, it determines and will be determined by the fact that Armenia is slowly becoming a full satellite of Russia. Moscow is Armenia's main foreign trade partner and in fact the only guarantor of its security. Although the security guarantee is a controversial concept, not all can trust it in Armenia. But at the same time, Russia ranks first among the investors in the Armenian economy.

The Armenian mass media writes: Armenia was forced to submit to the dictates of Russia regarding the construction of the Iran-Armenia main gas pipeline, the railroad along a similar route, the road to the Black Sea. Russia aims to isolate Iran from Western Europe, and Armenia, in fact, has become an accomplice in this large-scale adventure.

Armenia, a small country with a population of three million, has been in the position of geopolitical isolation in recent years. Armenia survives thanks to the rich Armenian diaspora (private transfers account for two billion dollars a year) and sponsorship of the US Congress. However, nowadays even the diaspora no longer helps Armenia, as it is dissatisfied with the way President Serzh Sargsyan is robbing the Armenian people, and with the country's mafia clans and corrupt officials rule. Armenia's great dependence on the outside world, which has overstepped all permissible norms, can seriously impede the realization of opportunities in the future. There is nothing personal, just a business.

Over the past eight years, during the presidency of Sargsyan, Armenia's external debt has grown by more than 300 percent and now accounts for more than 50 percent of GDP. With the increasing external debt in comparison with the real income, Armenia is likely to face a full default. International financial institutions have repeatedly expressed their concern about this. Despite the fact that the country indicates the poverty level at 32 percent, in reality this figure exceeds 60 percent. Despite the funds raised from abroad, there is no sustainable development in the country, an economic base and structure have not been created.

According to the head of the sociological research center of Armenia Gevorg Pogosyan, the cause of the mass "suitcase mood" is the deplorable state of the Armenian economy. The population perceives the economic policy implemented in the country negatively, choosing an emigration as the only solution.

If you take into account that any economy is a concentrated expression of the implemented policy, the main reason for all Armenian misfortunes becomes obvious. The country is torn apart by uncompromising strife within the power elite. Regardless of budget, how it is formed in the government and how it is justified, the countrys population can get only crumbs. It is impossible to patch a gap in the budget owing to the lack of means, and mainly due to a total embezzlement and irrational profiling of the proceeds.

The lawlessness and impunity, initiated by the authorities of the country, brought the situation to the point that non-professionals and incompetent amateurs took the country's destiny into their hands. They were those to whom the former field commander of the Karabakh separatists and terrorists Serzh Sargsyan pays tribute for their "combat merits". And this circle of so-called personalities, mainly, is formed by people from Nagorno-Karabakh, through which President Sargsyan has built his "military political column".

The presidential term of Serzh Sargsyan expires in 2018. He has initiated an amendment to the constitution, which was adopted as a result of a widely-criticized referendum in December 2015. The amendment provides for the transformation of Armenia from the presidential to a parliamentary republic. Critics argue that Sargsyan's goal is to preserve both his own power and the power of his allies after 2018. There had not been serious public discussion of the amendment before it was taken to a referendum, but the position of its critics was reflected in public protests and in social media. Representatives of various civil organizations and political opposition, the economic and political elite, including Robert Kocharyan, argued against the amendment fearing that the ruling party will manipulate the forthcoming elections for its own benefit  as it has already happened in the past.

Nowadays the real state of the Armenian economy is extremely difficult, Prime Minister of Armenia Karen Karapetyan has recently said addressing the Parliament. According to him, taking into account this fact, the government will present a program within the planned timeframe, which will include all the necessary changes for the development of economy. In particular, he pointed out that the program will target the economic development and will be implemented in two stages - the first will include those possible rapid changes that can somehow instill confidence in the program, and the second stage is a long-term vision of the country's development.

"We have no expectations that we will be able to change the situation in the economy quickly, but we give impulses, in which direction it will develop," Karapetyan said.

Unfortunately, due to the lack of strategy and tactics, due to Sargsyan's unreasoned political and economic policy, the people of Armenia are suffering and their number is gradually decreasing. It is not excluded that neighboring countries also suffer from such a policy.

The official average salary in Armenia is 185,000 drams (340 dollars), but apart from oligarchs, the majority earns slightly more than half of this amount. The statistics show that 18 percent of people are unemployed (anti-record of the post-Soviet republics), and 29.8 percent of Armenians live below the poverty line, which is not surprising considering the local pension of 41,000 drams (about $80). At the same time, for the gas alone, Yerevan residents have to pay up to 60,000 drams (about $116) in winter and up to 20,000 drams (about $40) in summer. It is necessary to ask Sargsyan how the Armenian people should survive at all. Of course, at the expense of relatives living in foreign countries, but not everyone has such relatives.

In a sense, regular aid is not only a salvation, but also a curse of the republic. Despite the fact that remittances in rubles, dollars and euros allow people to survive, they also deprive them of the motivation to grow. The average Armenian permanently residing in the country prefers to send his child abroad to earn money rather than build his own career. And the young people who move abroad and taste a better life and freedom, dont want to return to Armenia and dont want to die in the occupied foreign territory (Nagorno-Karabakh). And this factor hits the demography of Armenia, both in quantitative and in age ratio. It turns out that Armenia can gradually become empty, and in the future even the destiny of this state will be unknown  it can disappear.

I would like to make a small digression and uncover the roots of all the hardships that struck the Armenian people and the country itself. The bad luck of Armenia started with the occupation of 20 percent of the Azerbaijani territories. After this, Armenia went into the complete geopolitical and geo-economic isolation. Armenia is a small country, therefore, it does not have a capacious market. This country cannot compete with Kazakhstan, Russia, China or even with Ukraine. Accordingly, foreign business will not be interested in 3 million Armenian consumers. If Armenia had several billion cubic meters of gas or oil, then everything could be different, but Armenia is not Saudi Arabia or Azerbaijan. In addition, Armenia has problems with its neighbors: Turkey and Azerbaijan are blocking Armenia because of its aggression against Azerbaijan (in turn, Armenia is blocking part of Azerbaijan - Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic), and Georgia and Iran have a difficult relationship with Russia and the United States. Armenia has friendly relations only with Iran, but these relations raise a lot of questions.

For example, the Armenian website Lragir.am writes: "For a long time, Iran tried to influence Armenia, establishing relations with various political parties, financing groups and individual actions of political groups, there were also attempts to establish branches of the Lebanese Shiite terrorist organization Hezbollah in Yerevan and in Stepanakert, recruit more or less trained people for the terrorists of Hezbollah. Thus, Iran tried to create a branch of the Shiite terrorist organization Hezbollah in the occupied territory of Azerbaijan  Nagorno-Karabakh  and may already have created it, because two years have passed since the article was released.

And here comes the question: Why does Shiite Iran support Christian Armenia against Azerbaijan? Where are the Islamic values and religious solidarity, which was always loudly declared?

The ruling mullahs pursue a policy contradicting the peaceful coexistence of all neighboring states and the people of Iran, but they assert their commitment to peace. It turns out that Islam (in this case for Iran) is only a shield, and quite strong.For years, the official Tehran has been advocating the destitute and oppressed Muslims. The occupation of Azerbaijani territories by Armenia has continued for more than 25 years. As a result of this aggression, there are one million refugees in the country. Armenia has occupied 20% of Azerbaijans territory. However, Iran, which has a 600 km-long border with Shiite Azerbaijan, supports Armenia in this conflict.

So a question that has to be answered is: Where is your Shia Muslim pride? Where is your religious solidarity? Why havent spiritual leader of Iran Khamenei and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani condemned Armenia, which occupied 20% of the territory of brotherly Shia Azerbaijan and does not comply with the four resolutions of the UN Security Council that require Armenia to leave the occupied Azerbaijani territories?

British prime minister, Lord Palmerston in the middle of the 19th century said: "We have no eternal allies, and we have no perpetual enemies. Our interests are eternal and perpetual, and those interests it is our duty to follow." Unfortunately, this is today the brutal reality of international relations and Azerbaijan must understand and realize it.

The April battles in Karabakh have significantly changed the status quo in favor of Azerbaijan, and immediately attracted the attention of world actors - the United States, Russia, the EU countries, which unanimously urged the parties to solve the problem by peace. Official Baku has repeatedly stated and warned Armenia that it will never agree with the existing status quo. In response to the military provocations of Armenia and in order to prevent diversion and ensure the security of its citizens, the Azerbaijani army carried out a crushing military blow to the Armenian armed forces in early April 2016 and forced them to withdraw. Today, Azerbaijan is the country with the strongest and most powerful army in the South Caucasus, which has responded to the provocation from Armenia and demonstrated the strength and power of its army.

Soon after the incident, former Prime Minister of Armenia, Hrant Bagratyan, made a daring statement that Armenia has nuclear weapon. Later, one of the influential representatives of the Armenian military elite, Arkady Ter-Tadevosyan, said that Armenia is ready to use a dirty bomb against civilians of Azerbaijan. Thus, Armenia challenged not only Azerbaijan and regional security, but also the whole of mankind.

At the same time, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan recently said that the Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant operating in Armenia is important not only for the country's economy, but also is very important from the political point of view. He pointed out that this is the only tool forcing all the states of the region to reckon with Armenia. Sargsyans speech once again showed that Armenia, which has chosen the policy of terror and occupation, opens a new front against Azerbaijan and Turkey: nuclear terrorism.

These threats were not unfounded; they were made against a backdrop of the operation conducted by Georgian State Security Service agents who have detained three Armenians for the attempt to illegally smuggle and sell nuclear material. According to the official information of the State Security Service of Georgia, Armenian citizens tried to sell uranium (U238) for $200 million.

Unfortunately, in the same period none of the leading countries of the world reacted to the statements made by the representatives of Armenia, as well as incidents with nuclear smuggling, which testify to the nuclear ambitions of a certain part of the political elite of this country.

Who could help the backward Armenia in the nuclear field? There is no need to go far beyond for the answer: of course, neighboring Iran. In this case, the lack of necessary reaction from the international community and international organizations actually turns into indulging aggression and terrorism.

Do they in Armenia understand that the collapse of the economy and the mass outflow of the population are only consequences, and not the cause of the troubles? Armenia needs to fight not only consequences, but the underlying causes of problems. Armenia today is like a sick person. This is equivalent to a doctor treating the consequences of the disease, and not the cause. And the reason lies in Armenia's aggressive foreign policy and in the unsettled Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. After all, these factors led to the economic isolation of Armenia in the region: today the borders of Armenia are closed not only with Azerbaijan, but also with such a large market as Turkey that supports Azerbaijan's position in its conflict with Armenia.

The level of migration in Armenia is off scale. According to official data cited by the Armenian media, due to a massive outflow of people from the country, by January 1, 2016, the population of Armenia had decreased by 12,000 in comparison with the previous year and amounted to about 2.9 million people. At the end of 2015, the negative balance of migration in Armenia was 7.2%, that is, between 210,000 and 220,000 people.

People just did not want to die at a whim of national chauvinists from the Dashnaktsutyun party, who wanted to seize the territory of a neighboring state and create a "Great Armenia" in the future. In recent years, people are leaving the country due to the difficult social conditions, unemployment, court injustice, high corruption, oligarchy and monopolization, the Armenian journalist Liya Khodzhoyan said in her article on the EurAsia Daily website.

Armenian demographers believe that over the years of independence, Armenia has become the country of an aging nation, since the number of people beyond the age of 63 currently accounts for 12.6% of the total population. According to the forecasts, until 2050 the number of Armenians beyond 65 will rise to 25-27% of the total population, and this will become a serious challenge for the state in terms of social security. If this policy continues in the same vein after 2018, Armenia will gradually reach the point of self-destruction, the very edge of the cliff, from which there will be no return.

Armenia should stop making territorial claims against neighboring states, should liberate the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, look at the model of the development of the Baltic countries, which have integrated into the EU, NATO and other international organizations thanks to cooperation and friendship. Unlike Armenia, they look forward, not backward. Armenia also should stop pursuing Turkey because of the events of 1915.

Armenia should also take a look at the EU countries, which have also been fighting with each other, but created a common home - the European Union. If Armenia overcomes all these ambitions and challenges that have brought the country to such a state, it can save its position, and no longer play the role of appendicitis on the body of the South Caucasus.
7 October 2017 11:15 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend:

The Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB) is ready to issue bonds in Azerbaijani manats, BSTDB President Ihsan Delikanli said in an interview with Trend.

"We have initiated the discussion with the relevant Azerbaijani authorities earlier this year and are ready to continue this dialog," he noted. "As a matter of business strategy, we are developing and gradually introducing bonds and financial products denominated in the national currencies of our member states."

The BSTDB has started this program from Georgia in 2015 and already issued bonds in national currency for Georgia (worth 60 million laris in 2015), and most recently provided a national currency loan worth one billion rubles in Russia in June 2017.

Other international financial organizations are also interested in issuing bonds in manats. For example, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Developlment (EBRD) has repeatedly announced such plans.

EBRD President Suma Chakrabarti said earlier that all the procedures necessary for issuing bonds are ready, but the bank expects the relevant situation on the market.

The BSTDB was established by Azerbaijan, Albania, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Armenia, Romania, Turkey, Ukraine and Russia. The banks authorized capital is 3.45 billion euros.
7 October 2017 11:41 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend:

Azerbaijani defense minister, Colonel-General Zakir Hasanov will pay a visit to Minsk on Oct. 8 at the invitation of his Belarusian counterpart, Lieutenant-General Andrei Ravkov, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said in a message Oct. 6.

As part of his visit, Hasanov is expected to meet with the Belarusian military and political leadership and heads of other state structures.

Hasanov is also planned to visit the enterprises of the Belarusian military industry.

Prospects for development and expansion of bilateral cooperation in military education, military and technical sphere, as well as security and other issues of mutual interest will be discussed during the meetings.
7 October 2017 10:01 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend:

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has signed an order to provide funding for construction of Bigir-Jirgurd-Shakar-Veysalli-Alikand-Mirti road in Goychay district.

Under the presidential order, AZN6.4 million is allocated from the state budget for the building of the road connecting six residential areas with a total population of 11,000.

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Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
7 October 2017 14:00 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev made a phone call to Russian President Vladimir Putin on October 7, the press service of the head of state said.

The Head of State sincerely congratulated Vladimir Putin on his birthday, wished him new successes in the highest state activity for the prosperity of the Russian people.

President Putin expressed gratitude to President Aliyev for his attention and congratulations.

The heads of state expressed confidence that friendly relations based on the principles of strategic partnership between Azerbaijan and Russia will continue to develop successfully in all spheres, and further exchanged views on the prospects for cooperation.

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Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
7 October 2017 13:00 (UTC+04:00)

By Kamila Aliyeva

Uzbekistan is keen to implement numerous projects in Free Economic Zones which are aimed at formation of favorable conditions for attracting foreign and domestic investments.

Uzbekistans State Customs Committee hosted a press conference on "The role of customs privileges in enhancing the efficiency of new Free Economic Zones, Technoparks and Small Industrial Zones of the Republic," according to the information published on the website of Uzbek Foreign Ministry.

The creation of free economic zones provides for such goals as the comprehensive development of economic territories that facilitate the integration of the national market into the world market, attraction of foreign and domestic capital, saturation of the domestic market with quality goods, employment for the population and new forms of labor market management.

To date, 14 free economic zones (FEZ) operate in 10 territories of Uzbekistan. As many as 62 projects have already been implemented while 87 projects are still underway.

A system of broad tax and customs privileges and preferences that facilitates the attraction of foreign and domestic investments for the development of the FEZ has been created in Uzbekistan. By now, participants in free economic zones have used privileges for 260.9 billion soums, which is 8.4 times more than in the previous year.

Special attention is also paid to the organization of technoparks and small industrial zones, 90 of which are currently operating in the country.

The participants in the technoparks were exempt from land, income taxes, corporate property tax, a single tax payment for the improvement and development of the social infrastructure as well as mandatory contributions to state trust funds. They were granted preferences for customs payments for imports of equipment, raw materials, components for their own production and construction needs.

In late October 2016, the Uzbek president adopted a decree on the unification of customs and tax privileges and preferences for the participants of free economic zones, which are operating and being created in the country.

In accordance with the document, the benefits for the participants of the free economic zones will be provided for a period of 3-10 years depending on the amount of the investments made.

The overall investment climate demonstrated some improvement in recent years in Uzbekistan  the government simplified business registration procedures, introduced some additional tax incentives for investors, improved private property protection legislation and streamlined customs regulations.

The cumulative inflow of FDIs is still relatively low in Uzbekistan due to a range of factors, such as an underdeveloped and overregulated banking sector and trade restrictions. According to official statistics, the share of companies with participation of foreign capital is only 1.8 percent (or about 5,135) of the total number of entities operating in the country.

There are several official limits to foreign investment. Foreign ownership and control are prohibited for airlines, railways, power generation, long-distance telecommunication networks, and other sectors deemed to be related to national security. Foreign nationals cannot obtain a license or tax permission for individual entrepreneurship in Uzbekistan.

Restrictions also apply to media, finance, and insurance. Foreign investment in media enterprises is limited to 30 percent. In finance, foreign investors may operate only as joint venture partners with Uzbek firms, and banks with foreign participation face minimum fixed charter funding requirements ($10.7 million for commercial banks, $5.3 million for private banks, and $1.6-$6.4 million for insurance companies), while the required size of charter funds for Uzbek firms is set on a case-by-case basis.

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Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
7 October 2017 12:00 (UTC+04:00)

By Kamila Aliyeva

Housing prices in Kazakhstan have started to show an increase in 2017.

The average cost of 1 square meter of new housing in Kazakhstan amounted to 253,717 tenge in September 2017, thus showing an increase of 0.4 percent compared to the previous month, according to the Committee on Statistics under the Kazakh National Economy Ministry.

The price has raised by 1.5 percent compared to December 2016.

The average resale price of 1 square meter of well-maintained housing in September stood at the level of 187,236 tenge that is 0.4 percent less than in the previous month and 0.8 percent less than in December last year.

The resale price of 1 square meter of ill-equipped housing averaged to 114,345 tenge that is 0.1 percent higher than in August and 0.9 percent lower than in December 2016.

The average rental price of 1 square meter of comfortable housing in Kazakhstan last month amounted to 1,306 tenge that is 0.4 percent higher than in the previous month and 2 percent higher than in late 2016.

Previously, Kazakhstan has experienced a sharp decline of the real estate market due to adverse external conditions. Devaluation of the national currency, along with a decrease in real wages and purchasing power affected the demand side, while slight overinvestment and high exposure to currency risks shocked the supply.

In January-May 2017, the cost of new housing as compared to the same period of 2016 has decreased by 3.2 percent. Over the year the resale prices have fallen by 3.1 percent for well-maintained housing. However, the resale cost of ill-equipped housing has not changed much. In this regard, the number of deals for apartment purchase and sale in Kazakhstan has grown by 30 percent this year.

In the same period, about 63,000 deals for purchase of apartments have been made in Kazakhstan (14,400 more than a year before).

The Kazakh government is committed to resolving current issues on the real estate market with massive programs, which aim to provide affordable housing, including rental, refinancing foreign currency mortgages and stimulating construction of infrastructure for individual housing construction.

Cost of living in Kazakhstan is 4.24 percent higher than in Azerbaijan while rent is 2.43 percent higher than in Azerbaijan.

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Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
7 October 2017 10:00 (UTC+04:00)

By Amina Nazarli

Is Azerbaijan European or Asian country is one of the frequently asked questions about the republic. The answer is that the medium-sized country in the Caucasus should be considered both part of Europe and Asia.

There is really something to see in the Land of Fire, since centuries-old history of many cities, and the natural beauty will not leave anyone indifferent.

Azerbaijan is an abundance of ancient fortresses and palaces, a qualitative and inexpensive rest on the Caspian Sea and oil treatment in Naftalan. It is hospitable Baku and the cities of the Great Silk Road.

In recent years, the tourism sector has been developing at a noticeable pace, as evidenced by the statistics of the Tourism Ministry, as well as the fact that Azerbaijan is included in top countries with the strongest tourist flow.

To date, one of the factors hampering even more development of tourism is the lack of middle-class hotels.

Although the number of hotels in Azerbaijan is increasing year by year there is still considerable shortage in their number.

Culture and Tourism Minister Abulfas Garayev said Azerbaijan has sufficient potential to receive up to 3.5 million tourists annually.

We are slowly developing a three-star hotel economy. We should increase the number of such hotels, he stressed.

Today, the country can accommodate about 40,000 tourists in its 535 hotels, which include a series of luxury hotels  Excelsior, Hilton, Four Seasons, Fairmont, JW Marriott, Kempinski  as well as several budget hotels for cost-conscious travelers. Moreover, 25 hostels and 92 apartments for tourists operate in Baku.

Over the past years, tourism business in Azerbaijan has developed in the direction of luxury tourism, thats why the state paid attention to the construction of expensive hotels.

Only in January-May, some 956,000 tourists arrived in the country, while last year this figure was 768,000. The growth of tourism in Azerbaijan and increasing number of tourists has necessitated construction of more hotels in the country.

We were a country actively developing the energy sector. This industry, accordingly, dictated to us its own standards: various businessmen, people engaged in this [energy] business came to Azerbaijan. In this connection, we have constructed all these five-star hotels, he said.

Garayev said that this requires implementation of certain work, such as development of appropriate infrastructure and more affordable tourism products.

However, the minister noted that this does not apply to domestic tourism.



Domestic tourism is an independent direction. This year it showed very good results, according to the results of the summer season. The load of hotels was almost at the level of 95 percent, which indicates a great potential for the development of two- and three-star hotels in the regions," said the minister.

--

Amina Nazarli is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
The median annual salary for full-time clinical physician assistants was $102,000 in 2016, an increase of 5.2 percent over the year prior, according to the 2017 AAPA Salary Report.

Although California has the highest median PA salary ($118,000), it falls toward the bottom of the list once cost-of-living adjustments are taken into account. On the flipside, states where PAs report lower salaries may find they have greater purchasing power after cost-of-living adjustments are made, according to the report.

The median PA salary and the median cost-adjusted PA salary in each state and the District of Columbia are listed below.

Alabama

Median salary: $88,750

Cost-adjusted median salary: $102,011

Alaska

Median salary: $110,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $89,869

Arizona

Median salary: $105,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $106,168

Arkansas

Median salary: $93,480

Cost-adjusted median salary: $109,333

California

Median salary: $118,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $91,972

Colorado

Median salary: $98,250

Cost-adjusted median salary: $99,142

Connecticut

Median salary: $110,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $88,638

Delaware

Median salary: $97,700

Cost-adjusted median salary: $98,488

District of Columbia

Median salary: $109,249

Cost-adjusted median salary: $80,627

Florida

Median salary: $99,300

Cost-adjusted median salary: $103,762

Georgia

Median salary: $100,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $111,111

Hawaii

Median salary: $93,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $69,403

Idaho

Median salary: $99,809

Cost-adjusted median salary: $115,520

Illinois

Median salary: $97,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $96,517

Indiana

Median salary: $100,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $115,473

Iowa

Median salary: $105,500

Cost-adjusted median salary: $118,539

Kansas

Median salary: $95,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $105,205

Kentucky

Median salary: $100,902

Cost-adjusted median salary: $119,552

Louisiana

Median salary: $94,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $104,320

Maine

Median salary: $99,250

Cost-adjusted median salary: $89,738

Maryland

Median salary: $105,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $91,384

Massachusetts

Median salary: $105,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $85,227

Michigan

Median salary: $100,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $115,207

Minnesota

Median salary: $106,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $111,228

Mississippi

Median salary: $96,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $117,216

Missouri

Median salary: $97,500

Cost-adjusted median salary: $110,670

Montana

Median salary: $100,002

Cost-adjusted median salary: $107,645

Nebraska

Median salary: $100,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $111,857

Nevada

Median salary: $102,500

Cost-adjusted median salary: $102,603

New Hampshire

Median salary: $103,500

Cost-adjusted median salary: $89,844

New Jersey

Median salary: $107,500

Cost-adjusted median salary: $94,464

New Mexico

Median salary: $100,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $105,374

New York

Median salary: $104,500

Cost-adjusted median salary: $79,832

North Carolina

Median salary: $99,939

Cost-adjusted median salary: $110,797

North Dakota

Median salary: $100,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $105,042

Ohio

Median salary: $97,809

Cost-adjusted median salary: $110,269

Oklahoma

Median salary: $98,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $113,295

Oregon

Median salary: $107,500

Cost-adjusted median salary: $102,871

Pennsylvania

Median salary: $94,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $93,532

Rhode Island

Median salary: $110,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $95,819

South Carolina

Median salary: $97,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $104,413

South Dakota

Median salary: $94,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $98,636

Tennessee

Median salary: $95,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $109,700

Texas

Median salary: $106,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $115,974

Utah

Median salary: $100,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $107,759

Vermont

Median salary: $107,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $94,942

Virginia

Median salary: $100,050

Cost-adjusted median salary: $101,988

Washington

Median salary: $113,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $106,604

West Virginia

Median salary: $97,495

Cost-adjusted median salary: $108,690

Wisconsin

Median salary: $100,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $107,066

Wyoming

Median salary: $102,000

Cost-adjusted median salary: $106,250

Access more information about the AAPA report here.

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From four Texas hospitals settling false claims allegations to the former HHS secretary testifying in a bribery case, here are the latest healthcare industry lawsuits and settlements making headlines.

1. 4 Houston-area hospitals will pay $8.6M to settle kickback allegations

Four Houston-area hospitals will pay settlements totaling $8.6 million to resolve allegations they received kickbacks from ambulance companies in exchange for Medicare and Medicaid transport referrals.

2. Cleveland Clinic demands Toby Cosgrove be removed from ballot initiative ads

Lawyers for Cleveland Clinic sent a cease-and-desist letter on Tuesday to proponents of a state ballot initiative, demanding the group immediately stop sending mailers that include a photograph and quote from Cleveland Clinic CEO Toby Cosgrove, MD.

3. New York state medical practice to pay $1.9M fine over improper billing

Syracuse-based New York Spine and Wellness Center agreed to pay $1.9 million to settle claims it improperly billed patients and insurers for moderate sedation services.

4. Ex-health chief testifies in senator bribery case

The testimony of Kathleen Sebelius, former HHS Secretary, given Tuesday in a corruption trial for Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., suggested the senator lobbied Ms. Sebelius on behalf of a physician friend who allegedly defrauded Medicare.

5. 1st Texas county files opioid lawsuit against drugmakers, distributors

Attorneys representing Upshur County, Texas, filed a lawsuit Sept. 29 against more than a dozen drugmakers and drug distributors for their alleged role in the state's opioid epidemic.

6. ACLU sues FDA over access to abortion pill: 3 things to know

The American Civil Liberties Union on Tuesday filed a lawsuit against the Food and Drug Administration over agency restrictions that limit access to the abortion pill Mifeprex.

7. Washington state, Seattle file opioid lawsuits against drugmakers

The attorneys general for Seattle and Washington state filed separate lawsuits against drugmakers Sept. 28 for the companies' alleged roles in facilitating the opioid epidemic.

More articles on legal and regulatory issues:

South Carolina health system to pay $7M to settle false billing case

Federal lawsuit: Texas medical practice owners tried to make staff 'more godly'

Whistle-blower: Former Broward CEO concealed major losses tied to 25-year cancer care contract
Anonymous sources told The Washington Post President Donald Trump personally called CMS Administrator Seema Verma to tell her to block Iowa's Section 1332 waiver to stabilize its insurance exchange in 2018.

The president reportedly read an article in The Wall Street Journal about Iowa's request, prompting him to reach out to Ms. Verma after attempting to reach former HHS Secretary Tom Price, MD, who was out of the country.

Iowa submitted its "Stopgap Measure" to CMS in June after both Hartford, Conn.-based Aetna and Des Moines, Iowa-based Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield exited its exchanges for 2018, leaving 94 of 99 counties with just one option for individual plans. Officials said the waiver is the only way the state can "avoid a total collapse of Iowa's individual health insurance market."

The proposal would eliminate Iowa's exchange entirely, instead providing a subsidy based on age and income for eligible individuals buying health coverage off the exchange. It would create a single-level system for individual health plans, rather than the current multi-tiered system under the ACA.

An HHS spokesperson told The Washington Post the proposal is complete and currently under review. HHS did not comment on President Trump's involvement in the matter, according to the report.

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GOOD NEWS, Zara Is Online In India! Celeb Styles That You Won't Miss Any More Bollywood Wardrobe Dona

Here goes the greatest news for Zara lovers. The elite Spanish fashion brand is now available online in India.

The brand launched its Indian website on the 4th of October.

Till now, Zara lovers in India had to depend on the limited Zara stores across a few cities in India to buy their most loved attires out of the limited amount of stocks.

It was the saddest part when you saw your favourite celebrity rocking some of the coolest apparels by Zara and you could not find them in the limited stores around you.

The cribbing season is gone as Zara is now at your finger tips.

You can now follow your favourite Bollywood Zara look and get it with just a click.

Here are some of the coolest styles from Zara that have been carried by Bollywood actresses and you have dreamt all along to grab them off their wardrobes. Now you can avail them easily without any regrets.

Bling Tops Anushka Sharma had given you some real style goals for bling fashion as she wore this bling top from Zara. You might have wanted to grab a piece but failed for its unavailability in the stores. Now, it is just a click away from you. Patched Shirts Parineeti Chopra had once worn a patched shirt from Zara and you might have cribbed way too much to get such a piece. Some have been lucky for the store availabilities and others were unlucky. You would not miss such a style anymore, as the online site for Zara is here! Embroidered Dresses Zara has this unique collection of embroidered dresses and Twinkle Khanna had worn it for one of her day's outings. You can now get such a look easily at the online site of the adorable luxury brand and get it with minimum effort. Suits Black is always the best but red is certainly the next best as it can turn any look hotter. Take Priyanka Chopra as an example as she wore this Zara suit and gave you formal style goals. Now, you can also dress up the same way with the effort of your finger tips. Skirts Zara has an exceptional collection of skirts, be it A-lined, long or pleated. Alike Sonakshi Sinha, you could also try a varied range of their skirts which are not available in stores. Do not worry! Now you can get it online from the brand's official Indian site. Floral Jackets Floral jackets became popular after Zara released its floral collection. We have seen Deepika Padukone wearing this beautiful floral jacket from Zara and as already regretted, a variety of this floral designs were never available in retail stores. A variety of such jackets can be searched online and you can grab the finest one for your closet. Choker Chokers are loved by many and Zara has its finest collection. Not many retail stores keep a variety of this product. Alia Bhatt has donned some sizzling collection of chokers alike many other actresses. This time, you too can try and choose on the Indian online store of Zara. Heels People who follow Zara know their unique and modified collection of heels among all the cliched designs. There surely have been times when your eyes have caught some real good designs from Zara worn by celebrities and you could not get them because of stock unavailability or some other issues. Zara online is now for all Indians to forget all such wearies. So, stop venting and rush!
He Is So Handsome That He Is Being Deported! Pulse oi-Lekhaka

In a historic win, recently, Saudi Arabia lifted a ban on women driving vehicle in the country. A week ago, news stated that the King of Saudi Arabia has ended its long-standing ban on women driving vehicle. It was honestly one among the best news for all the female citizens of the country.

This was not the first time when Saudi Arabia came into news. Several shocking and bizarre rules from SA manage to keep the country constantly in headlines. Earlier, there was news that the Middle Eastern country decided to deport three handsome men from the nation because they may tempt Saudi Arabian women.

At the same time, they thought they were too handsome to be handled by anyone else as well. One among the hunk who was instructed to march out is Omar Borkan Al Gala.

He Is Omar Borkan Al Gala! Here, we introduce you to the most handsome man of Saudi Arabia, Omar Borkan Al Gala. According to the reports, Omar was deported from Saudi Arabia, as he was declared to be "too handsome" for the country. With mesmerizing eyes, perfect cheekbones and well-groomed appearance, it was quite obvious to know why Saudi Arabian officials declared this man to be the most handsome of all. Apart From Being Handsome, He Is Also... Omar Borkan describes himself as a poet, photographer and an aspiring actor from Dubai. The authorities who decided to deport Omar said that he is a really, really, ridiculously good-looking person. Al Gala was happy to become an overnight sensation when the world was convinced, he is one among the handsome and sexiest man alive! He Was Removed From By The Religious Police According to the reports published, Omar Borkan, along with two other men, was removed from the festival of Riyadh by a religious police. What was their fault? The Saudi Arabian officials said they were too handsome for the country! According To The Rules According to the religious police, there are strict governing rules introduced for the interaction between men and women in the Islamic Kingdom. After evicting them, the police deported the trio back to Abu Dhabi, so that Saudi Arabian women do not observe them and fall in love. His Social Life We later stumbled upon the social media of Omar to check out his photo! In most of the photos, you'll find Omar wearing dark eyeliner, blowing out smoke and posing decently for candid pictures. Although it was confirmed that Omar was one among the men deported from Dubai, he took on to Facebook the same day and wrote, 'The beauty of a woman must be seen from in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides'. pulse Hottest Female Fitness Instagram Accounts To Follow The Authorities Revealed... Later, UAE officials also released a statement mentioning about their concern with unmarried Saudi Arabian women artist at the religious festival of Riyadh. In order to keep the situation in control and follow their rule, they decided to deport Oman. The Rules... When it comes to the rules of the UAE, they are very strict with their communication policy. Saudi Arabian women are not allowed to talk to men to whom they are not related to. They are extremely conservative when it comes to the liberty of their female citizens. What Is Your Take On This? Do you think he is ridiculously handsome to corrupt the emotions of unmarried female citizens of Saudi Arabia? It is really good to deport a man just because he is too handsome for the country? Is Oman dangerously sexy for all the females out there? Let us a comment below.

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Karwa Chauth Vrat Katha and It's Importance Festivals oi-Lekhaka

Karva Chauth Katha |        | Boldsky

One of the most important and eminent festivals celebrated by the women in India is Karva Chauth. This festival is celebrated by the married women for the long life of their husbands. The women fast for the entire day after the sun rises and they wait for the moon to come out. After the moon comes out, the women pray for the long life and safety of their man.

This fast is celebrated mainly in places like Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana. The festival is celebrated according to the luni-solar calendar of the Hindus and Karva Chauth falls during the Kartik month.

In some communities, unmarried women also observe the fast to get a desired man as their husband. The celebrations generally start in advance. The women buy all the traditional jewellery, puja items, adornments, and other things that are required for the puja.

Rituals Of Karva Chauth

The women start fasting at daybreak, and they should not eat anything throughout the day. However, there are some communitiies where women get up while the stars and the moon are still there in the sky, and eat a sweet dish. Thereafter begins the fast for the day. Women are also known to apply henna on their hands. The parents send a lot of gifts to their daughters.

In the evening, the women patiently wait for the moon to come out. Once the moon is out, the women seek blessings for their husbands. They break the fast by drinking water and then they are allowed to eat fruits and other foods as well.

Legend Of Karva Chauth

According to the legend, there was a beautiful girl whose name was Veeravati. She had seven brothers, who were very kind and loving, and she was married in a royal family. On the very first Karva Chauth after the marriage, Veeravati went to meet her family.

After the sunrise, she began with the fast for the day. However, the queen was very impatient, as she could not withstand the after-effects of the fast and wanted the moon to come soon. Her brothers could not tolerate the distress, and they decided to end Veeravati's fast by playing a trick on her.

The brothers decided to reflect a mirror from behind the leaves of the Peepal tree. Veeravati thought that the moon had risen, and without thinking of anything else, she broke her fast.

As soon as she ate the food, she got the news that her husband had fallen ill. The queen was taken aback, and she decided to go back to her palace. When the queen was rushing to the palace to see her husband, Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati appeared in front of her.

Parvati told the queen that her husband had passed away due to the illness. The reason behind this was that the queen had broken the sacred fast after watching a moon that was not real. The queen was shocked by this, and she could not believe that her husband was no longer alive.

The queen requested Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati to forgive her for the mistake that she had committed. Goddess Parvati was touched by this and she granted her a boon that the king, her husband would come back to life.

In order to achieve the boon, Veeravati was asked to follow the rules of the fast strictly. Only then her husband would be granted life. Veeravati started to follow the rules, and according to the boon granted by Goddess Parvati, her husband was soon brought back to life.

Like the other festivals of the Hindus, Karva Chauth is celebrated with great excitement, happiness, and joy. The women do not leave a single stone unturned when it comes to keeping their husband safe and protected. All the families join together to celebrate the festival.
Our grandson Ben, 12, showed us the glazes on pottery, including a syrup pitcher, he had made in summer school, and granddaughter Allison, 13, showed paintings and sketches she has been working on recently. We had just arrived at their home near the Wolf River in Shawano County to stay for the weekend while their parents had an anniversary getaway.

Because both of the grandchildren have shown such an interest in art, Gretchen and I thought it would be a good idea to take Shawanos Miles of Art tour that coincided with our visit.

So on Saturday, the first stop was at the Mill Creek Pottery west of Shawano where Simon Levin and his apprentices had their wood-fired pottery displayed on long tables set on the lawn of the pottery and its enormous kiln and impressive stacks of firewood.

We knew the Levin family and our family were friends, and we werent there long before our grandchildren were off exploring the woods with the Levins children, described by their mother, Susan, as free range.

As I admired the glazes on the pottery, one of the potters approached me and asked if I had any questions.

I said that I wondered if I was being a negligent grandparent because I had just let my grandson, who was interested in pottery, wander off into the woods with free range children instead of talking with potters.

He laughed and offered to fill me in instead. He introduced himself as Steve Rolf of River Falls. I asked him to repeat what I had overheard him telling a customer about the role of ash in creating patterns in the glaze.

He explained that the ash contains elements contained in the wood being burned. At the high temperatures of the kiln the ash melts into the glaze leaving the colors influenced by the various elements. Further, the content of the elements in the ash is influenced by the soils in which the trees have grown.

So the creations of the potters are the product of both science and art, I asked?

Yes, he responded.

Heres how Levin has described it: The ash and flame moving through the kiln etch their paths across the ware. The ash melts forming a natural glaze bonded to the clay. I make my work to take advantage of these variables, enhancing forms, and painting with the fire. The loading of the kiln takes a day and a half because placement determines the pots markings.

Levin was a Fulbright Senior Scholar in Taiwan in 2013 exploring the potential of local materials. More recently he has been a visiting artist, lecturer and kiln builder at The China Academy of the Arts in Hangzhou. There my apprentices and I have been bringing a technology that originated in Asia and has evolved in the incubator of the United States back to Asia, he said in a web posting.

In conversation with Susan and with Simon as we purchased one of his pieces, I learned that they were moving to Illinois this week so Susan could take a position as pastor of a church there. She is the former pastor of the Presbyterian Church in Shawano.

Our plans for the art tour didnt work out quite as we expected, but the kids had a chance to play with friends in the woods before they moved away. And grandpa got a crash course in the role of ash in making wood-fired pottery. And we all had a chance to admire the beautiful objects created by Wisconsin artists  a reminder of the important role of the arts in making our state a desirable place to live.
There was little public support Friday for a Georgia timber companys plans to fill wetlands in order to build a $65 million frac sand plant in Monroe County even as the contested project received federal approval.

Half a dozen people spoke against the project at a public hearing on the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources proposal to amend a permit allowing Meteor Timber to fill 16 acres of wetlands for its sand processing and loading facility in the town of Millston, which environmentalists call massive wetland destruction.

The original permit, issued in May, included 59 conditions, including detailed information on the companys plans to create new wetlands to compensate for those being destroyed. Meteor has since submitted new information and asked the DNR to modify the permit.

DNR attorney Cheryl Heilman said the agency has made a tentative decision to approve the changes, although it has not published a draft of the modified permit or a list of the conditions that have been met.

The Army Corps of Engineers issued Meteor a federal wetland permit Friday, though the agency has not released a public copy.

Opponents of the project argued the permit should not have been granted in the first place.

Meteor Timber was not and is not entitled to a wetland permit, said Kim Wright, executive director for Midwest Environmental Advocates, which is petitioning to join a legal challenge to the permit. Now its too late. Meteor Timber cannot shore up an inadequate permit application by submitting info after the permit was issued.

Evan Feinauer, a staff attorney for Clean Wisconsin, said his group has serious concerns about the process this permit has gone through.

Some residents questioned whether the wetlands could truly be replaced.

I dont want to go down this road and hear someone say, Dan, were sorry,  said Millston town Chairman Dan Smrekar. The DNR has a responsibility. Theyre supposed to protect and look out for their constituents.

Black River Falls cranberry farmer Jerry Fuerstenberg was the only one of about 30 people at Fridays hearing who spoke in favor of the project, arguing that the government should not have authority over what property owners do with their land.

Pretty soon its going to be oak trees, Fuerstenberg said.

Wetlands are a key component of the ecosystem, acting as natural flood control and water filters that support a wide range of wildlife, including a disproportionate number of rare and endangered species.

According to the DNR, Wisconsin has only about half the amount of wetlands it did when the first European settlers arrived. Most of those remaining 5.3 million acres are in the northern third of the state.

Meteor has proposed to restore and preserve more than 640 acres of other land  including more than 296 acres of existing wetlands  near the 752-acre site between Warrens and Millston, which would serve two nearby mines on land the company acquired in 2014 when it purchased nearly 50,000 acres of Wisconsin forest.

However, the DNR determined those mitigation efforts are not likely to fully compensate for what it calls permanent and irreversible secondary impacts from activity on the site and may not compensate for the direct loss of 13.4 acres of exceptional quality white pine and red maple swamp, which is considered an imperiled habitat.

The DNR has granted Clean Wisconsins request for a contested case hearing before an administrative law judge where interested parties can present evidence and cross-examine witnesses. That hearing has been postponed until an amended permit is issued.

Clean Wisconsin argues that destroying the pristine forested wetlands  home to several rare and endangered species  would open the door to the destruction of more rare wetlands. The DNR acknowledged the permit approval may lead to increased applications to fill rare, sensitive and valuable wetland plant communities.
ABC boss Michelle Guthrie has launched a stinging attack on her commercial television rivals, accusing their chief executives of wanting to deny "your children and grandchildren" the right to watch Play School and Peppa Pig.

Ms Guthrie also questioned the commercial strategies of rival media players and said the Turnbull government's media law reforms were designed to further a "political vendetta".

"There is no pressing need to change the ABC Act and its Charter, no matter how much commercial chief executives and their compliant media outlets argue otherwise," she said in a draft of her speech to the ABC Friends Public Conference dinner in Sydney on Friday.

Ms Guthrie heaped scorn on the chief executives of media companies who lobbied the government for changes in ownership laws, including the removal of restrictions on media companies owning radio, television and print in a single city.
Wayne and Lizzie Russell. Credit:Simon Schluter About 70 per cent of us would like to die at home, according to research from the Grattan Institute. But that's not usually what happens. Around 40,000 Victorians die each year; half of those in hospital, 35 per cent in aged care and 15 per cent at home. And more than half of the palliative services in the state can't keep up with demand, according to Palliative Care Victoria. Too often people in regional areas, adults with conditions like dementia, Aboriginal Australians and those from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds miss out. Lizzie Russell, who is carer for her terminally-ill husband Wayne. Credit:Simon Schluter When Wayne and Lizzie Russell were first referred to palliative care, the Somerville residents thought it meant drugs on Wayne's deathbed. But when the caseworker suggested Wayne, 59, join the local men's shed, or go on holiday, their assumptions were overturned.

Lizzie had quit her supermarket job to take on the role of carer: "I was almost going crazy myself before we came on board - he wasn't sleeping and I had to take him to emergency all the time." She's been shown how to administer her husband's pain-relief syrup and other medications, and given the number for a 24-hour helpline. I'd like to go, can I have an injection? Betty Ogle, 85 Palliative nurses visit and call often, and they've encouraged Lizzie to take care of herself too. Each week a few hours are carved out for a solo coffee or swim. "It's so good to know I've got backup," she says, wiping away a tear. Odette Waanders, the head of Palliative Care Victoria, is familiar with the public ignorance about palliative care. On the way to our interview the taxi driver asks her what she does for a job. Oh, he says, those machines. She realises he's referring to being kept alive on a respirator. "We get that a lot: you're the ones who hasten people's death." Not so, says Waanders. Good palliative care maximises the quality of life for people who have a disease that can't be cured. It's most effective when undertaken early - months, sometimes years before death.

Drugs and medical interventions are used to manage physical pain. But palliative care also provides strategies including counselling, family support and art therapy to relieve existential distress. Funding to Victorian palliative care grew by 8 per cent in the last financial year, to $135 million. Palliative Care Victoria are not commenting publicly on the proposed euthanasia laws. But the body's submission to the inquiry is clear: "It is imperative we do not cross the ethical barrier and allow doctors to kill patients." It says that there is a real danger that legalising euthanasia will lead to "a growing sense of a duty to die". But sometimes palliative care is not enough, says Jan Ogle. Her mother Betty was an independent, active 85-year-old widow when she was suddenly diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Her daughters, both nurses, cared for her at home with the support of a palliative care service.

Betty told the nurses she wanted a dignified death. They reassured her. But in her final weeks her abdominal pain became difficult to control and she stopped eating, says Jan. "She turned to the palliative carers and said 'I've had enough now, I'd like to go, can I have an injection?' They said, 'we can't do that'." Jan Ogle with a photo of her mother Betty. Credit:Rachael Dexter The palliative nurses increased her medication, but only in doses low enough to make her drowsy, not enough to rid her of pain, her daughter says. On Betty's final night, no one from the palliative service was available until morning. So Jan endured the worst night of her life as she listened to her mum draw rattling breaths and administered morphine every four hours. Voluntary assisted dying should be there if people want it, says Jan. "It's the relatives who are there for ... the pressure sores, the coldness, the bruising, the stiffness. The doctors get to walk away."

Palliative care and assisted dying can be complementary, says palliative care physician Dr Ian Maddocks, a member of the expert advisory panel which investigated Victoria's proposed legislation on assisted dying. There were occasions over a long and distinguished career when his patients killed themselves in private, sometimes using drugs Maddocks had prescribed for pain. Now in his mid-80s, he still feels sadness at this, knowing they were isolated and miserable. "I would have been a far better palliative care physician if it could have all been in the open, so we could talk about what mattered to patients and their families." While death in a palliative setting could be "lovely", says Maddocks, "there are occasional situations where it has seemed to me quite logical that someone should say I think I should die, and I would agree with that". The atmosphere is tranquil inside a large, nondescript office building near Mornington's town centre. Peninsula Home Hospice provides palliative care to patients at home (including Wayne and Lizzie Russell), in local aged care homes and in hospital.

First up are practicalities. A host of equipment eases the burden at home: electric recliners, pressure cushions, shower stools, toilet frames, wheelchairs and emergency medications for pain. Palliative nurses review a patient's history and try to plan for possible drug interactions or side effects. With corporeal needs met, the head and heart follow. With a counsellor, patients can talk. Fears, longing, grief. About the sibling who wants mum to get last-minute chemo, versus the sibling arguing for quality of life. How lonely it feels to be dying. Black humour. Some want to help to leave a legacy; letters for children or a song. Sometimes, rifts are healed. Inge McGinn, the manager of clinical services, recalls a woman who would not talk to her husband about the illness because she wanted to protect him. After counselling, the wife finally felt able to express herself: "She told him that what she wanted most of all when she died was to be able to look into his eyes. She died 24 hours later, in the way she wanted." Surprisingly, it's not unusual for a patient to be sent to a palliative service not knowing their illness is terminal. "Their doctor says 'We'll make a referral to the "nursing" service'. We go into the home and there might be that moment of clarity," says Nikki Jenkins, a clinical nurse consultant. This comes down to a reluctance to talk about dying, says Dr Peter Poon, the director of McCulloch House palliative care, part of Monash Health. Junior doctors have told him it's difficult to have these conversations with patients and they need more training.

Patients and their families also cling to hope, bringing in sheafs of internet research, even going overseas for experimental treatments. "Sadly, we haven't heard yet of a story like that with a happy ending," Poon says. The heightened public debate over assisted dying has taken a toll on palliative care workers. Staff at Eastern Palliative Care will have debrief sessions in coming weeks as they field questions from patients. Many are anxious that staff won't be able to help them, says chief executive Jeanette Moody: "It has been portrayed in the media as if there are people dying in absolute agony and it's just not the case." There are times when a patient won't find relief in palliative care but they are very rare, says Moody. Some people choose not to have pain medication because of their concerns about unpleasant side effects, including nausea and confusion. These usually resolve after a couple of days but some people still decide against the drugs. And the second is existential pain; for example, a young mother who is dying and leaving behind her children. It was late to be driving fast along a dirt country road. But Dr Claire Hepper knew she was needed urgently at the home of her patient, 18-year-old Shannon McKnight.

Shannon, a Wagga High School student, had endured two years of treatment for lymphoblastic leukaemia at hospitals in Sydney and Melbourne. When it became clear Shannon was near the end of her life, her parents Jeremy and Belinda brought her back to their hobby farm in the Central Goldfields. Shannon McKnight and her dad Jeremy. Shannon's care was transferred to Hepper, and a palliative care appointment was booked in for the following week. But Shannon was running out of time. On paper, every part of Victoria is covered by a palliative care service. But in practice, specialist nurses and palliative services are thin on the ground in regional areas.

The day after Shannon arrived home, the teenager had a bleed in her spine. Hepper made her late-night dash to show Shannon's parents how to administer pain relief medicine through a special device in her skin. But it wasn't enough. "I thought 'we can do better than this'," Hepper says. So she and a colleague went to the chemist and made a "symptom-relief" pack for the teen. Inside were antiemetics for nausea, ampoules of pain relief, mouth care (palliative patients are often dogged by extreme mouth dryness), vomit bags and tissues. Shannon McKnight, who died from cancer when she was 19, enjoys a trip to a cafe. In her memory, Hepper and a team of volunteers still make batches of "Shannon's packs" and post them to bush hospitals or country GPs all over Australia. If the assisted dying legislation is passed, doctors will have the right to refuse to help terminally ill patients who wish to die. Hepper will become one of these "conscientious objectors". She believes that until there is universal access to palliative care, any debate on euthanasia is defunct.

Like some other palliative professionals The Age spoke with, Hepper is furious about a "horror" movie produced by Andrew Denton's right-to-die group Go Gentle, which depicts the agonising last days of a man dying from cancer. His terrible experience epitomises a lack of good palliative care, not the need for assisted dying, Hepper says. Claire Hepper with Shannon's father, Jeremy McKnight, a portrait of Shannon and one of "Shannon's packs". Credit:Dylan Burns But some worry that taking a strong public position against assisted dying will make patients feel they can't ask questions. These conversations are already happening, says one nurse who has had patients take their own lives: "If palliative care is portrayed as anti-euthanasia, patients won't talk to us about it." Wayne and Lizzie talk openly about everything with each other. Wayne doesn't want to die at home, fearing it would be a burden on his wife. And he doesn't want to give up until the end. He was worried about pain, until his palliative care team put his mind at ease. But he says those who want help to end their lives when they are dying should have that right. Wayne's life insurance has paid off the mortgage, and a security upgrade for their modest house. He wants Lizzie well set up. They have a Darwin holiday booked soon to visit a new grandchild. And a new patio where he can sit in the sun, decorated with rainbow-coloured lanterns and orbs of coloured glass. They glow when the light hits them.
Behrouz Boochani on Manus Island, Papua New Guinea. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen There were numerous discussions about the technical challenges, and times when the problems encountered in transmitting quality images seemed insurmountable. But the deepest issue in the early days was trust. The creative partnership, and friendship, was sealed when Sarvestani assured Boochani they would work as co-directors, with Boochani as cameraman, filming on smartphone, and Sarvestani as his cinematic mentor and co-writer. Shipping containers used as accommodation on Manus Island. During his years of captivity on Manus, Boochani had sent many images and information to journalists, often with little or no acknowledgment. He was overjoyed in finding a partner offering to work with him on an equal footing.

The collaborators worked with a sense of urgency. Boochani filmed the scenes within the camp clandestinely. Images and edits flew back and forth across oceans. The film evolved in tiny WhatsApp packages. Behrouz Boochani, left, interviews a fellow asylum seeker in Chauka, Please Tell Us the Time. "We were excited by the collaboration," Sarvestani says. "Behrouz was smart. He got everything quickly. He understood what I meant when I said 'treat each frame as a painting'. He quickly saw how the editing and the soundtrack enhanced the impact of the footage. This freed us up to talk about the story." As a father and daytime carer of a young daughter and six-month-old son, Sarvestani did much of his work with Boochani at night. "Many conversations took place between midnight and three o'clock Dutch time," Sarvestani says. "It was also the best time for internet connections with Manus Island. Then I slept for a few hours, and at 6 o'clock my daughter kicked me out of bed." Sarvestani was split between his day-to-day life as a family man, and a dark zone which he entered at midnight.

"I began to feel like a detainee myself," he says. "At that time a few things were happening that gave the men on Manus Island some hope. The Supreme Court of Papua New Guinea said the camp was illegal and should be shut down. I could see how Behrouz and the men became happy. Then when they saw their situation did not improve, they were down. When the US deal was announced, they were up and down again. Netherlands-based Iranian filmmaker Arash Kamali Sarvestani with his two children. "They felt that people were playing around with them, torturing them. Every night I felt I was there with them. "I have lovely kids, and that helped me not be totally depressed. But I heard a lot of bad things and I couldn't do anything about it. I still feel it." Chauka, Please Tell Us the Time was completed in just six months, with some extra shooting during post-production to fill in gaps in the storytelling. Despite the technical restrictions, the 90-minute documentary is a poetic, hypnotic film, as well as a damning indictment of a brutal policy. It conveys the ordeal endured by the 900 detained men, imprisoned and marooned in the prime of their life. They are seen endlessly waiting, pacing, stuck in limbo, enduring the tropical heat, the whirring of fans, the erosion of hope and destruction of spirit.

Fumigation at the Manus Island detention centre, from the film Credit:Sydney Film Festival Boochani films his fellow detainees making calls home to loved ones. The conversations capture the unbearable pain of separation: "I am parted from my child," one asylum seeker laments in his three-minute weekly call to his wife. Referring to a child born after he fled his country, he says: "I haven't had a chance to hold him, touch him or feel his presence." "Look mum, please don't cry. Please don't cry. Look mum, I am stuck here  I have no control over this," pleads another. The men's despair is underscored by the recurring strains of a haunting Kurdish folk song, sung by one of the inmates. The smartphone pans over the cramped living spaces, the tiny cubicles partitioned by sheets and tarpaulins to create a fragile and claustrophobic privacy. We hear the comments of broken spirits: "I prefer to be dead because I have nothing any more  no one is waiting for me, and I am waiting for no one. I have lost everything."

A detainee who has self-harmed is carried from his compound at night in footage from the film. There are surreal images - rows of white plastic chairs leaning against the wire through which can be seen the unobtainable sea; the incessant drone of the fumigation apparatus, its plume of smoke enveloping the centre. The men's plight is contrasted with images of exuberant Manus children dancing just beyond the fence, and by close-ups of cats roaming freely within and beyond the cyclone wire. There is an eyewitness account of the murder of Reza Barati in February 2014, and disturbing footage of a detainee at the end of his tether who has self-harmed and is carried from his compound at night to an ambulance under glaring lights. The central thread of the film is the chauka, a native bird sacred in the local indigenous culture. Credit:Alamy Boochani allows the voices of Manus islanders to be heard. The central thread of the film is the chauka, a native bird sacred in the local indigenous culture. The tiny bird is glimpsed flitting beside the wire fences, and its distinct call is heard on the soundtrack. The chauka is a symbol of the island and locals can tell the time from its regular singing.

In conversations between two islanders and writer Janet Galbraith, who was on Manus at the time of filming, we learn how much the bird means in the indigenous culture. The men are dismayed that the high-security prison within the camp - feared by the inmates as a place of solitary confinement and punishment - has been named after the bird. In their view the island is being used as a dumping ground for another country's problems. The high-security prison on Manus has been named after the chauka. When the film premiered at the Sydney Film Festival in May, and at Melbourne's ACMI cinema in early June, the co-directors could never have predicted what was to come. Sarvestani attended the Sydney and Melbourne screenings as an invited guest. Boochani's application for a visa, allowing him to join his co-director, was turned down by the Department of Immigration and Border Protection. Writer Janet Galbraith talks to islanders in a scene from the film Credit:Sydney Film Festival

The film was received with popular and critical acclaim. It has been taken up by film festivals throughout Australia and is competing in the Asia Pacific Screening Awards. In late August, it was announced that the film would be screened in the London International Film Festival on October 8 and 9. It is one of 12 films in the running for the prestigious Grierson Award, which recognises films "with integrity, originality, and social or cultural significance". On receiving the news, Boochani wrote to the British High Commissioner in Australia, Menna Rawlings, requesting a temporary visa, which would enable him to join his co-director in introducing the film, and to take part in post-screening discussions. Behrouz Boochani's letter to the British High Commissioner. Boochani penned his letter on the centre's official request form stationery: "I am asking you to give me visa to attend the London International Film Festival. I have been here in this prison camp for more than four years, even though I have committed no crime, and I am kept here by the Australian government who exiled me by force." His appeal was reinforced by an official invitation from the festival's director, Clare Stewart.

The official invite from the London Film Festival to Behrouz Boochani. "If Behrouz Boochani was free to travel," writes Stewart in an accompanying statement, "he would be welcome as a guest at the festival Chauka is an exceptional documentary filmed inside the Manus Island detention centre first-hand by Boochani who is detained there. It reveals much about his own experience as well as that of other detainees. It also questions the impact of the detention centre on Manus Island itself, through testimony from members of the local community. It is brave, thoughtful and urgent filmmaking and has earned its selection in our Documentary Competition in a very strong year for documentaries." Boochani's right to attend the festival is also supported in a letter to Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and Immigration Minister Peter Dutton signed by federal parliamentarians Nick Xenophon, Derryn Hinch, Cathy McGowan and Nick McKim. The letter sent by MPs to Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and Immigration Minister Peter Dutton.

The film's remarkable journey continues. Long after those on Manus are finally released from their ordeal, it will remain a lasting document of a specific time and place, a unique insight into the everyday realities of the Pacific Solution. It captures, as Boochani has put it, "the coarsening banality and repetition" of indefinite detention. It is driven by two men with a shared vision, separated by oceans and government policy. Since the film was made there have been two deaths, with the apparent suicides of Iranian refugee Hamed Shamshiripour, 31, two months ago, and Sri Lankan refugee Rajeev Rajendran, 32, found hanged in Lorengau hospital in the early hours of Monday morning. He was the sixth asylum seeker fatality on the island. In reporting his death, Boochani observed: "Another friend died in Manus Island today  All the refugees in Manus today are feeling very heavy with this news. There is a feeling of deep despair for this man's suffering, anger at the circumstances of his death, and a sense of powerlessness that such a barbaric system is allowed to continue." "I have known Behrouz for 15 months," says Sarvestani. "He knows my kids now, my young daughter, and my newborn son.
Cries resembling those of an angry stampede echoed through South Brisbane on Saturday, but the source of the screams was in fact anime fans impersonating Dragon Ball character Goku.

More than 50 fans, some in costume, gathered in Kurilpa Point Park to scream at the top of their lungs in a variety of poses.

More than 50 anime fans attended the 'Scream Like Goku' event in South Brisbane on Saturday. Credit:Toby Crockford

The group originally planned to conduct their "scream-off" under the Wheel of Brisbane, but they were asked to move on by police and council security officers.
A Brisbane man stabbed outside a Gladstone convenience store has driven himself back to a house party to seek help, according to police.

The man, who was rushed to hospital in critical condition, had been at a party on Breslin Street in West Gladstone on Saturday night before he drove to a convenience store on the Dawson Highway.

It will be alleged he became involved in an argument with a group of people in the store carpark just after 8.45pm and was stabbed in the torso.

The 23-year-old Kedron man drove himself back to the house party to seek help and he was rushed to Gladstone Hospital.

A 22-year-old West Gladstone man has since been arrested and charged with grievous bodily harm. He is due to appear in Gladstone Magistrates Court on Monday.
A 33-year-old Queensland man has been arrested over the fatal stabbing of a German tourist during an apparent road rage incident.

Queensland Police say the Lockrose man is expected to be charged with murder later on Saturday night.

The 30-year-old victim had reportedly been walking with a friend near the intersection of Milton Road and Petrie Terrace about 4am on Friday when he was stabbed by a driver who got out of a small car.

The German tourist later died in hospital as a result of stab wounds to his abdomen and back.

AAP
A 33-year-old Queensland man has been charged with murder after a German tourist was fatally stabbed during an apparent road rage incident in Brisbane.

Queensland Police say the backpacker and a male friend were attempting to cross Milton Road about 4am on Friday when they became involved in a "verbal altercation" with a man and woman in a small car.

A man has been charged with murder over the stabbing of a German tourist early on Friday morning. Credit:Nine News Queensland - Twitter

It is alleged the 33-year-old man, from Lockrose, west of Brisbane, got out of the car and stabbed the German tourist in the abdomen and back.

The 30-year-old victim - who had been in Queensland "for some time" - died four hours later in hospital.
Sheriff Scott E. Perkins of the Monroe County Sheriffs Office completed participation in the 113th session of the National Sheriffs Institute held in Aurora, Colorado, Sept. 18-22. NSI is a national executive development program designed for sheriffs. This no-cost program is co-sponsored by the National Institute of Corrections and the National Sheriffs Association. Perkins is the first sheriff of Monroe County to graduate from the NSI.

Perkins joined 29 other sheriffs from across the country for training on challenges facing Americas sheriffs. They examined the role of the local sheriff in providing effective leadership in public safety, criminal justice system policy, community relations and organization effectiveness and efficiency.

Hilary Burgess, NSA Director of Professional Development, said, Sheriff Perkins is a leader with vision for the Monroe County Sheriffs Office. It is an honor to have Sheriff Perkins join the more than 2,800 graduates of the NSI since 1973.

The NIC is a division of the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons. It is the primary federal source of technical assistance, training, and information services for state and local corrections. NIC provides a wide variety of services to the nations jails, most of which are the responsibility of sheriffs.

The NSA is a non-profit professional association located in Alexandria, Virginia. NSA represents the nearly 3,100 elected sheriffs across the nation and has more than 20,000 members, including law enforcement professionals, state and federal government employees, concerned citizens, students, and others. Since 1940, NSA has served as an information clearinghouse for law enforcement professionals. NSA also provides management training for sheriffs and their personnel in court security, crime victim services, domestic violence, homeland security initiatives, jail operations and traffic safety. NSA also administers the National Neighborhood Watch and Triad programs.
It was a moment instantly burnt into the skin of my memory. A high school history teacher who planted her hands on the edge of my desk, leaned her face towards mine and said with a strange kind of anger: "There is nothing new under the sun, Julia. No thought, no idea  they have all been said before."

We had been arguing about something that escapes me now, an ancient skirmish or far-off war and I had pressed the point, to her obvious irritation. I still remember the flash of fury I felt, at being told at the age of 16, that I would never have a new thought, that all was inherited, all tracks worn, all roads trod; as though human thought was an exercise in mass, if inadvertent plagiarism of previous generations.

Who is the teacher who inspired you to greater things? Credit:Eddie Jim

Don't dare, don't dream, it's all been done before.

I now understand it as a central tenet of history  that human folly, striving, madness, triumph, repeats itself  but it is so often in infinitely new ways. And surely every kid should only ever be told to dare to do and be more.
It was just after 4pm Canberra time on Monday when gunman Stephen Paddock opened fire on concertgoers in Las Vegas.

Less than half an hour later, Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade received its first call from a concerned member of the public, watching the horrifying news unfold. They had two relatives in Las Vegas. Were they OK?

It's one of the first questions the federal government is asked whenever there is an international crisis or emergency: are there any Australians involved?

The media and public expect answers quickly, even when the scale of an incident is huge, as in Las Vegas, where 58 people were killed and almost 500 injured. Yet by breakfast time on Tuesday, Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop was able to say she was not aware of any Australian casualties "at this stage".
A ball mill in the backyard of a home in Sekotong village. Credit:Amilia Rosa But there is also jarring poverty, such as in Sekotong, where thousands of villagers eke an existence out of illegal gold mines that dot the dusty landscape. The ball mills are used to crush ore extracted from the mines. After a few hours, water and mercury are added. Flecks of gold from the crushed ore bind to the liquid metal. The amalgam is then torched, which burns off the mercury and leaves behind a lump of gold. It's a popular technique, simple and cheap. But it can have devastating consequences. A gold mine worker holds rocks at the base of an illegal mine in Sekotong village. Credit:Amilia Rosa The World Heath Organisation says mercury, a potent neurotoxin, can cause serious health problems and damage the brain and nervous system of children exposed in utero.

Elawati is one of 1044 participants in an international study that tested the mercury levels of women of childbearing age in 25 developing countries. The highest levels were found in Indonesian women from small-scale gold mining areas in Elawati's village of Sekotong in Lombok and Pongkor in West Java. Sifaiyah swirls a bucket with mercury that has attracted the gold to it. Mercury is being used to extract gold from ore. Credit:Amilia Rosa Elawati has not yet received the results of her test, but 94 per cent of the women tested from Sekotong had mercury levels greater than the internationally recognised safety threshold of one part per million (ppm). "The harmful effects that can be passed from the mother to the foetus when the mother's mercury levels exceed 1ppm include neurological impairment, IQ loss, and damage to the kidneys and cardiovascular system," the study says. Sifaiyah holds the gold extracted from the mercury process in Sekotong village. Credit:Amilia Rosa

"At high levels of mercury exposure this can lead to brain damage, mental retardation, blindness, seizures and the inability to speak." The study released last month was produced by IPEN, a coalition of NGOs including BaliFokus from more than 100 countries that work to eliminate the harm to human health from toxic chemicals. It says where sampling was conducted in Indonesia there had been numerous reports of birth defects and people displaying symptoms of mercury intoxication. Saskia, aged six, at home in Sekotong village. She was born with deformed hands and feet. Credit:Amilia Rosa According to 2014 figures, there are 250,000 illegal miners digging at 850 "hotspots" throughout Indonesia. Yun Insiani, the director of hazardous and toxic material at the forestry and environmental ministry, says the symptoms of mercury-induced Minamata disease  dizziness, tremors, speaking difficulties and uncontrollable movements of body parts  have been observed in illegal mining areas: "The most at risk are pregnant women because they can deliver defective babies."

Insiani says the IPEN study is "shocking". "The result is that Indonesian women are the ones most contaminated by mercury. And this is what we are afraid of because it means we may have lost a generation." Indonesia has outlawed the use of mercury in small-scale gold mining, although the ban is not widely enforced. On September 20, Indonesian President Joko Widodo ratified the Minamata Convention on Mercury, a global treaty designed to limit mercury use and emissions internationally. (Australia has signed but not ratified the convention.) The Minamata Convention is named after a city in Japan where a chemical factory dumped mercury waste into the bay between 1932 and 1968. For many years no-one realised that fish in Minamata had been contaminated by mercury and it was causing a strange disease. At least 50 000 people were affected and more than 2000 cases of Minamata disease certified. "While the mothers were usually without symptoms of mercury poisoning, their babies were born severely damaged with microcephaly, cerebral palsy, severe mental retardation, seizure disorders, blindness, deafness, and other malformations," the 2010 paper Mercury Exposure and Children's Health says.

The Indonesian government says that by ratifying the Minamata Convention, it will more strictly regulate the use of mercury. "Ratification also opens opportunities for international cooperation to increase public awareness and knowledge about the dangers of mercury," the foreign ministry said. 'The doctor said there was no cure' Sifaiyah is emptying out a ball mill, channelling silvery mercury into a bucket where it squirms like a live animal. She pours the mercury into a maroon piece of material and squeezes. A tiny nugget is left inside the cloth. Sifaiyah tried wearing gloves once but they made her clumsy. Mercury-contaminated slurry from the mill sloshes over her bare feet and into a tailings pond. Later, chopping chillies in a tiny shack a few metres away, Sifaiyah assures us that she has been processing gold like this in Sekotong for eight years and everyone in her family is fine: "I have never heard of anyone getting sick because of mercury." The most dangerous work of all is done at roadside stalls or, even more perilously, inside people's homes. Edo, an amiable man in a T-shirt covered with flamingos, operates out of a blue-walled concrete room, open to the street. "Beli mas" (Buy gold) says a big yellow sign.

Edo roasts the amalgam with a blowtorch on a makeshift stand and then weighs and values the gold. The burning releases toxic fumes: WHO warns vapour inhalation may even be fatal. Edo is aware mercury is dangerous but isn't sure exactly why. He says he usually uses a mask but borrows one from us because he has run out. Edo uses a blow torch to purify the gold and release foreign particles such as mercury. Credit:Amilia Rosa Children cluster just metres away. Edo positions the fan on his wooden desk so the vapour goes elsewhere. "Sometimes at night I feel dizzy," he says. "But if I avoided fumes completely I wouldn't be able to work. That's the reality." In 2014, BaliFokus measured mercury vapour at several locations in Sekotong and found medium to high concentration levels. Villagers are potentially exposed to a double whammy of mercury. Gold processing waste is often dumped near or in waterways where the mercury contaminates fish and rice. A 2012 study found Sekotong's mercury levels in rice alone represented a potential threat to the health of local residents. Muhammad Fikri is almost eight. He lies listlessly on a mattress, his tongue lolling and his legs splayed at strange angles. He had a seizure after he was born and can't communicate or even chew. His family masticate his food and feed it to him as if he is a baby bird.

"The doctors said there was no cure, they can't fix the baby," his father Kurdi says. Muhammad Fikri, aged eight, suffers from severe mental and physical disabilities. Credit:Amilia Rosa BaliFokus co-founder Yuyun Ismawati estimates about 5 to 10 per cent of children in the area are born with birth defects and up to 15 per cent have delayed development. "I have observed many babies and children suffer from frequent seizures in many small-scale gold-mining hotspots." But paediatrician Stephan Bose-O'Reilly, a world expert on health hazards posed by mercury in small-scale gold mining, says "unfortunately" he cannot confirm the children have birth defects due to their exposure to mercury. "The only way to answer this question would be to set up a proper scientific study, with a birth defect register," he says. "But what I can confirm is that mercury is toxic for children."

A 2007 study, co-authored by Bose-O'Reilly, examined 166 children from gold mining areas in Indonesia and Zimbabwe. "Compared to the control groups, the exposed children showed typical symptoms of mercury intoxication, such as ataxia (lack of muscle coordination)," the abstract says. Dr I Nyoman Adnyana, the head of the medical clinic in Sekotong, stresses there is no proven link between mercury exposure and birth defects in the area. "Without a valid result we can't say one way or the other," he says. "Birth defects happen in all areas, not just Sekotong." Adnyana points out that Sekotong is a tourism area. He says if a direct link between mercury contamination and birth defects was proven it would need to be exposed. But in the absence of this, he worries about the impact on the local economy. In 2010, West Lombok authorities tried to shut down illegal gold mines in Sekotong. The community rebelled.

"The people said they could drink mercury and were fine," says Rachman Sahnan Putra, the head of the West Lombok health department. He says he has tried everything to educate the community on the dangers of mercury, including screening films and holding seminars. But the message isn't getting through. A youth group recently contacted him wanting assistance to breed fish in an old tailings pond. "That's the limited understanding. If they can't see silver, they think there is no mercury." Regulatory efforts have also been continuously frustrated. A ban on the supply of mercury saw it smuggled in on small boats. Rachman is sympathetic to BaliFokus' concerns but he is also a realist: "Stopping the use of mercury won't work unless local communities are offered an alternative so they can maintain their livelihoods." The Association of Community Mining in Indonesia (APRI) says there are ways of processing gold that do not use mercury or even cyanide, another toxic chemical commonly used in gold mining. "There's a way of processing using no chemicals, or using harmless chemicals," says association head Gatot Sugiharto. "The harmless chemicals are actually cheap, but we need to educate people to use them. That's why we want the government to work together with APRI."

Fatimah is another of the 32 women in Sekotong who was tested for mercury as part of the IPEN study. Last year her only son, Iqbal, died aged three. "He couldn't do anything like a normal baby, like crawl or communicate," Fatimah says. "After 2 years he started getting very sick and not wanting to eat." Nursah, left, and his wife Fatimah hold photos of their son Iqbal, who died at the age of three. Nursah worked in an illegal gold mine where he used mercury. Credit:Amilia Rosa Iqbal's father, Nursah, used to torch gold amalgam by the side of the house. Ismawati, from BaliFokus, warned the couple this might have caused Iqbal's illness. "When Ibu [Ms] Yuyun advised me of the danger, I sold my ball mill and became a construction worker," Nursah says. "Mining is more profitable but it is just not worth it. I don't want what happened to Iqbal to happen again."
Boris Johnson, UK foreign secretary, attends the speech by Theresa May, UK prime minister and leader of the Conservative Party, at the party's annual conference in Manchester, UK. Credit:Bloomberg Several government backbenchers were despairing, singling out Uber, recently banned in London - a decision backed by by the Labour mayor Sadiq Khan - as an example of where the party can present the modern case for markets in presenting consumers with choice. But Uber's plight was not mentioned by not one of the ministers who gave keynote speeches. Still recovering from her speech: Theresa May, UK prime minister Credit:Bloomberg Government intervention

Mayism, for however long it lasts, has always favoured bigger government. With Corbyn tacking so far left, the Tory party has sought to combat his success by shifting left too, fighting Labour on issues like housing, university fees and the NHS - in short - enemy territory. With its response, the government hopes to paint itself the "balanced" option. As party chairman Patrick McLoughlin said: "Labour always take it too far." Labour's retort is devastatingly easy. "Theresa May's response to the broken energy market doesn't go nearly far enough," said frontbencher Rebeca Long-Bailey. And there is no more pertinent symbol of a dysfunctional market than the UK's housing crisis where prices are now about eight times higher than the average wage. "It's a mark of our failure on housing that the Labour party, a party led by Jeremy Corbyn, is being taken seriously again," conceded Sajid Javid, the secretary for communities and local government and potential leadership option.

The deputy prime minister and May confidante Damian Green even invoked Jeremy Corbyn's slogan: "We remain the only party committed to home ownership for the many," he told members. In last year's address to conference, the prime minister cited the financial crisis and Brexit as evidence of the British public crying out for change and spoke of the "need to rebalance the economy...in order to spread wealth and prosperity around the country." "Time to reject the ideological templates provided by the socialist left and the libertarian right and to embrace a new centre ground in which government steps up  and not back  to act on behalf of us all," she said, singling out the housing and energy markets as ripe for intervention. In 2017 the rhetoric was far more pro-market but the policies to deal with the two issues were vintage Mayism. On Sunday evening, May ended her birthday at Conservative Home drinks for the 1922 committee and gave a rousing speech on the need to re-prosecute the case for markets.

"One of the lessons that the general election has taught us is that there is something else we now need to do as Conservatives. We thought that over the last few decades we had made and won arguments about the importance of free market economies, about the importance of fiscal prudence, about the wealth creation," she said. "But Jeremy Corbyn has shown that we have to got to go out and make those arguments all over again and we will do that and you know what? We won the argument last time, we're going to win those arguments again." But when put to the test May reached for state intervention and government handouts. A further 2 billion will be allocated to "affordable housing," which are rented at 80 per cent of market rent via not-for-profit housing associations. Social housing in the UK is popular and does not carry as much stigma it might in a country like Australia. As Southwark Council recently told Fairfax Media, voters are sick of the affordable housing myth and want a revival in council homes, which were effectively halted by Thatcher. Now Thatcher's female successor wants a "new generation of council houses to help fix our broken housing market." Councils will be urged to apply and offer homes at social rent, well below market level, effectively "getting government back into the business of building houses," May told conference.

Earlier in the week, the Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond announced a further 10 billion for David Cameron's Help to Buy scheme which offers government equity loans. "10bn to inflate the housing market through Help to Buy bubble, 2bn to provide a real solution through social rent. It's a bit of a muddle," observed Dave Richmond who manages housing for Hull Council. And with her pledge to allow the regulator to impose caps on energy prices, May revived a policy styled by Ed Miliband in 2013. "Cough..I am sure I've have heard this somewhere before," the former Labour leader crowed in a tweet. Stephen Martin from the Institute of Directors (IoD) said conference season had been one big let down for business. "On the one hand you have a Labour Party which has decided that business is the bad guy, on the other you have a Conservative Party which talks about the importance of markets, but then tinkers around with help to buy and energy price caps. What are business leaders meant to make of it all?"
Obama didn't try to tell Americans that they should ban guns, only assault weapons. He also proposed to make background checks for prospective gun buyers more rigorous. "Are we really prepared to say that we're powerless in the face of such carnage, that the politics are too hard?" Obama posed."Are we prepared to say that such violence visited on our children year after year after year is somehow the price of our freedom?" Yes, came the answer from the US Congress. Obama's efforts failed. In fact, during his eight years in office, gun regulation overall was not tightened but relaxed. How can it be? The reflex answer is to blame the notoriously effective lobby, the National Rifle Association (NRA). But Thomas Mann, a politics scholar at the University of California, Berkeley, says that the first part of the answer is the structure of the American system. "The electoral college system"  by which the president is elected  "advantages small states and non-metropolitan areas, while support for gun control is mostly in the cities," he explains. "Then the smaller states are also advantaged in the Senate, as well. It makes it exceedingly difficult." One result: when the US Senate voted on Obama's proposal for tougher background checks on gun buyers, it was defeated by senators representing just 37 per cent of the population. The structural imbalance built into the system meant that 37 could beat 63.

"As long as the Republicans control the White House, or either of the houses of Congress, they have a veto point" to prevent any reform, says Mann. "And now they control everything"  the White House as well as both the Senate and the House of Representatives. This system, a presidential form of government, was designed by people with little trust in government, a rebellious republic. The legislature and the presidency have the power of veto over each other. The Westminster system that Australia took from Britain is much more trusting, where the House, at least, is axiomatically under the control of the prime minister. And then there's the NRA. The system rewards lobbies or interest groups that combine three elements, says Mann  intensity, organisation, and money. The NRA has all three. Before running for the presidency, Donald Trump supported tougher regulation of guns. But after the NRA gave $US30 million to his campaign, presidential candidate Trump told an NRA convention: "You came through big for me, and I am going to come through for you." So the NRA has made a tactical concession in response to the Las Vegas massacre. It conceded that there may be a case for putting some regulations on the gun accessory  the bump stock  that allowed the butcher Paddock to turn his legal semi-automatic rifle into a fully automatic one, creating a non-stop stream of fire.

Not banned, mind you. The NRA statement says "additional regulations" should apply. But that tactical concession does not mark any change in strategy or direction. In the very same statement, the gun lobby called on the Congress to pass the so-called "National Right-to-Carry reciprocity" measure now before it. Decoded, this proposal would mean that Texas residents, for instance, who can legally and openly carry guns in public in their home state, could travel to states where this would be illegal, say California, and be allowed to carry their firearms regardless of Californian law. Make no mistake, the NRA is charging ahead towards its ultimate aim of America as a libertarian fantasy free-fire zone. The guns example is a case study in what the American political philosopher Francis Fukuyama has categorised "vetocracy". That is, the US system is not a democracy dominated by the "demos", the Greek word for people. In a vetocracy, it is the veto that is all-powerful. Americans prefer "constraint of authority" over "effective government", Fukuyama said. One of Fukuyama's favourite examples is the US federal budget. The Congress hasn't passed a normal budget in the traditional way for a decade, with Congress constantly threatening to "shut down the government" by denying it funding authority.

On another Australian achievement that Obama wanted for America, universal healthcare, he and his party made a huge effort. And while he didn't get everything he wanted through the "vetocracy", he did get some. Obamacare, as its known, is an ugly hybrid of the old American health system of survival of the fittest with some elements of universal care. It approximately doubled the percentage of Americans with health insurance. But it still leaves about 10 per cent, between 20 million and 30 million people, with none. And the program's future is uncertain. The Republican Party promises to abolish Obamacare. And on Obama's third Australianism, compulsory voting, he decided that this was just too hard to attempt, an impossible dream. So is America's "vetocracy" a terrible failing that allows organised minorities to defy the majority's will and block national progress? Looking at the Obama experience from an Australian viewpoint, you'd probably say yes. But now look at the American system under President Trump. He took office promising to impose many radical policies and disregarding conventional processes. Panic welled  he would be an American fascist, a dictator who would trash the independent institutions and smash American democracy.

But, so far at least, the opposite is true. After nine months, Trump is proving to be remarkably ineffectual. He promised to build a wall across the Mexican border and make Mexico pay for it. But the US Congress has refused to allocate any funds for it and Mexico is certainly not offering. Trump signed executive orders banning travellers from seven Muslim-majority countries, but has been repeatedly frustrated by the courts. He vowed to improve relations with Moscow and lift sanctions on Russia, but dropped the idea in the face of fierce Congressional opposition. He has sought to fulfil his pledge to repeal Obamacare but has twice failed to win enough support in the legislature. Trump signed an order to pull the US out of the Paris climate accord but discovered that he cannot and must wait years to even begin the process; his authority is insufficient to override US treaty obligations. Trump promised to impose punitive 40 per cent tariffs on all Chinese imports and declare China a currency manipulator, but the weight of US commerce and the reality of Chinese power has stayed his hand. Trump asked the Congress to cut medical research funding to the National Institutes of Health by $US7.5 billion. Instead, the Congress did the opposite and increased funding by $US2 billion.

This week he called for a Congressional inquiry into "fake news" outlet NBC, but, as Thomas Mann points out, "it's not going to happen, it would violate the First Amendment" right to free speech. Rather than rule with an iron fist, Trump is tweeting with frustrated fingers. He may be making waves on social media but barely a ripple of change in the real world. Mann, while deeply worried about the future under Trump, notes that his top national security aides are limiting him and the courts and Congress are blocking him  "there are constraints operating, legislating is really hard". The media is not relenting in its scrutiny of Trump and neither is the former FBI chief Robert Mueller, appointed special counsel to investigate claims of Trump campaign collusion with Russia. The vetocracy, which worked to frustrate Obama, is now working to constrain Trump. Same system, different president, and suddenly it doesn't seem to be such a terrible thing, does it? In the meantime, Obama's Australian aspirations live on in the minds of the next generation. His other ambassador to Australia, Jeff Bleich, is now running to be elected lieutenant governor, or deputy leader, of California, America's biggest state economy.
Madrid: The Spanish government could use its constitutional powers to suspend Catalonia's autonomy and prevent the region from splitting from Spain, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy says.

In an interview with newspaper El Pais published late on Saturday he was asked if he was ready to trigger the article 155 of the constitution, which enables him to sack the regional government and call a fresh local election.

"I don't rule out absolutely anything that is within the law ... Ideally, it shouldn't be necessary to implement extreme solutions but for that not to happen things would have to be changed," he said.

Rajoy also said he planned to leave in Catalonia the extra 4,000 police officers the government had shipped in to region for an independence vote on October 1 until the crisis was over.
Washington: A plot to detonate bombs in Times Square and the New York City subway system and to open fire at concert venues last year was quietly thwarted, federal officials disclosed.

The bombings and shootings, which were planned in support of the Islamic State, would have taken place during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan in 2016, which began in June, US officials said in a statement.

Three men involved in the plot were arrested; one of the men, Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy, a 19-year-old Canadian citizen, has been in custody since his arrest in May 2016, and he has pleaded guilty to terrorism offenses, officials said.

The two others, Russell Salic, a 37-year-old Filipino, and Talha Haroon, 19-year-old American living in Pakistan have been arrested overseas, and they are expected to be extradited to the United States.
October 7, 2017 - Ottawa, Ontario - Global Affairs Canada

The Honourable Chrystia Freeland, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, Minister of International Development and La Francophonie, today issued the following statement on the critical situation in Myanmar:

Canada is deeply concerned by the plight of the Rohingya and other ethnic minorities in Myanmar. The killings and other gross violations of human rights are part of a widespread attack against the Rohingya. These are crimes against humanityand the responsibility for ending this ethnic cleansing falls squarely on Myanmars military leadership and its civilian government.

Once again, we urge authorities to set the conditions for the safe and voluntary return of Rohingya refugees and other ethnic minorities to their rightful homes, in dignity, where they should live free from persecution and enjoy full equality under the law.

Over the last month, Minister Freeland has spoken to her counterparts from numerous countries regarding the need to work together to exert pressure on the regime to end the violence in Myanmars northern Rakhine state.

A week ago, the Minister also spoke with Myanmars Commander-in-Chief, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, to emphasize Canadians concern for human rights violations against the Rohingya population and to encourage an end to the violence.

On October 2, Canadas Ambassador to Myanmar participated in a visit to northern Rakhine for diplomats and representatives of UN agencies. This must be the first step in granting urgently needed access to all parts of northern Rakhine for foreign officials, humanitarian and UN agencies, as well as the international press.

Minister Bibeau has approved $12.25 million in humanitarian assistance funding to trusted partners in Myanmar and Bangladesh to date in 2017 to meet the needs of the most vulnerable, including the Rohingya women and youth. But the international community, including Canada, must do more.

Canada implores the military and civilian authorities in Myanmar to end the violence, to allow the full, safe and unimpeded delivery of humanitarian assistance, and to implement the recommendations of the Kofi Annan-chaired Advisory Commission on Rakhine State. We continue to stand ready to support all efforts to build a democratic, inclusive, diverse and stable society in Myanmar.

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Press Secretary

Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs

Adam.Austen@international.gc.ca

Marie-Emmanuelle Cadieux

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Office of the Minister of International Development and La Francophonie

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marie-emmanuelle.cadieux@international.gc.ca



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iOS 11 jailbreak news: Successful Webkit exploit could point to early release of JB tool

The launch of iOS 11 in September opened a wide range of possibilities to make the Apple device experience more remarkable for users. Although, this also served as another challenge for jail breakers as the Cupertino-based tech giant has imposed tighter security measures to keep the latest firmware version unexploitable. Fortunately for users wanting to get their iOS 11 settings customized, there are early positive signs that a jailbreak tool will be released soon.

As reported by Value Walk, Italian developer Luca Todesco might have already made the first steps to successfully jailbreak the iOS 11. The popular software expert, who also developed some jailbreak tools for the iOS 10, teased his successful WebKit leak exploit on Twitter. This suggests that Todesco has already reached root status on the iOS 11 version, increasing the likelihood that the iOS 11 jailbreak tool is on its way.

Todesco has gained popularity in the mobile tech industry with his studies on existing software platforms. He has released a number of bug fixes and system solutions for the benefit of the public. However, he became more popular by challenging Apple in exploiting the iOS 10, which seemed to be an unexploitable firmware version back then. It appears that Todesco will continue the streak with the current iOS 11, although he already mentioned that he will no longer be involved in jail breaking works.

The announcement of Todesco that he will be focusing on his private work from now on is not a good sign for the iOS 11 jailbreak development. If ever he is able to come up with a successful exploit on the firmware, Todesco may not share it with the public. Nevertheless, the progress made by Todesco so far in exploiting the iOS 11 means that other developers can achieve the same feat. Furthermore, the iOS 11 was only a few weeks old when Todesco discovered the WebKit leak exploit, suggesting a huge potential that the latest firmware version is jailbreakable.

Other than Todesco, there are other software experts who have given hope that a working iOS 11 jailbreak tool will be out in the near future. For one, KeenLabs was able to exploit the firmware by holding an iOS 11 jailbreak demo in June. Although, it should be noted that the iOS 11 at that time was still undergoing beta testing.

The best thing that the users can do to jailbreak the iOS settings is by downgrading to the firmware version that is supported by the current jailbreak tools. Unfortunately, Apple has stopped signing the iOS 10.3.3 and the first iOS 11 version, which will prevent users from reverting to older iOS updates.
'Outlander' season 3 spoilers: Episode 5 teaser sees Jamie and Claire in print shop

The "Outlander" season 3 episode 5 preview teases the highly-anticipated print shop reunion of Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan) and Claire Randall (Caitriona Balfe). The trailer for the forthcoming installment shows the now-doctor planning to return in the past to Scotland to reunite with her long-lost husband.

Many are now excited for the episode 5 premiere since the episode preview gave a few teasers on the comeback of Claire in the 18th century to find Jamie. There will surely be some drama before she decides to return through the stones. As seen in the clip, she is a little hesitant as she doubts if her husband will remember her or love her like he used to.

Claire questions, "What if he does not love me anymore?" Understandably, her daughter Brianna (Sophie Skelton) reminds her of the powerful love she has for Jamie. She said to her mom, "You gave Jamie up for me. Now I have to give him back to you." It can be recalled that Claire left the Scottish warrior during the Battle of Culloden to protect her unborn baby.

Despite her worries, she will take the plunge, thanks to her daughter's encouragement. After traveling back to 18th century, Claire will eventually locate the print shop where Jamie was supposedly working. The preview clip shows the Sassenach outside the shop, and it will be at the right time that the two will finally reunite.

Speaking about the print shop scene in an interview with Radio Times, executive producer Ronald D. Moore revealed that the most awaited reunion will be very special and extra long. He explained, "The Claire/Jamie reunion episode is a very special one. I think you're going to get an extra-sized reunion episode."

However, he did not divulge when it will finally take place and quipped that he was not anxious about the feedback of the fans regarding Jamie and Claire's time apart. He said, "It didn't worry me at all. I felt confident that that love is what makes it work."

Moore further added, "The fact that you're dying to put them back together is a good thing, and keeping them part and having the audience constantly like 'Oh my God when are they getting back together?' is just rooting interest and compels them to watch the next one."

True to his words, fans are thrilled to witness the reunion of the leading characters. The reaction towards the episode 5 preview definitely proves how much the viewers long to see the couple getting back together.

The fifth installment of "Outlander" season 3 will hit the small screens on Sunday, Oct. 8, at 8 p.m. ETD on Starz.
Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 release date, specs news: better performance than Apple A9 chipset in benchmark

Qualcomm has not yet confirmed that the next top-end smartphone chipset following the Snapdragon 835. However, the rumors are rife that the Snapdragon 845 is on the way and according to the latest benchmark results, it will be more powerful than Apple's very own A9 chipset.

WCCFTech reported that the alleged Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 got a higher score than the Apple A9 processor after the benchmarking performed by GeekBench4. The result is a good indication that the Snapdragon processors are very close to matching, or even outclassing, the capabilities of Apple's super-fast smartphone chipsets.

The original benchmark results from GeekBench4 was posted on the Chinese microblogging website Weibo, wherein the Snapdragon 845 managed to get more than 2600. The benchmark test is focused on single-core processors, although the high score garnered by the Snapdragon 845 says something about its performance.

However, the public should be reminded that Qualcomm has not yet confirmed that the Snapdragon 845 is under development, or if such a variant even exists. It is possible that the benchmark result for the alleged Snapdragon chipset is for another processor.

Likewise, even if the benchmarked Snapdragon chipset is indeed the 845, there is still a long way for Qualcomm to completely topple the performance of Apple's high-end microchips.

For one, the A9 processor is already outdated and was last used with the iPhone 6S in 2014. Also, the current A10 Fusion processor received a score of over 3000, which is higher than the score of the still-upcoming Snapdragon 845.

Lastly, Apple recently launched the latest 10nm A11 processors for the iPhone 8 handsets, further widening the gap between the Snapdragon 845 and Apple chipsets in terms of single-core performance.

Meanwhile, there is still uncertainty if Qualcomm will launch the successor of Snapdragon 835 as Snapdragon 845. It was noted that the chipset maker might release the Snapdragon 836 instead as the next high-end smartphone processor instead of 845.

The Snapdragon 836 is rumored to be included in the Google Pixel 2 hardware specs. Although, there are reports that the next top-end system-on-chip (SoC) from Qualcomm will not be named 836.
Theresa May's coup: 'Put up or shut up', Tories told

MPs in Theresa May's Conservative Party who are trying to oust her as leader have been told to 'put up, shut up' by the party's chief in Scotland.

Others in the party warned that the uncertainty over May was damaging Brexit negotiations with the European Union.

May on Friday said she would remain as leader after a former Conservative chairman said he had garnered the support of 30 lawmakers who wanted her to quit.

It followed a disastrous speech at the party's conference and a snap election in June in which May lost her party's majority in parliament.

Senior figures have rallied round May, but the open rebellion comes as Britain embarks on crucial talks just 18 months before Britain is due to leave the European Union.

One newspaper reported on Saturday EU negotiators were stepping up talks with the opposition Labour Party amid concerns the government will collapse.

Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson, who is considered a possible successor should May be forced out, told the BBC the prime minister's critics should 'put up, shut up and get off the stage'.

'I would tell my party to get its house in order, get together, knuckle down, and make sure that our first commitment, last commitment and only commitment is to the country,' she said.

Her message came after former party chairman Grant Shapps toured media studios calling for a leadership election. Shapps said 30 Conservative lawmakers backed his view, well short of the 48 needed to trigger a contest.

Commentators said a lack of an obvious replacement and deep divisions in the party over the direction of Brexit meant the rebellion had lost momentum despite disquiet over May's performance as leader.

One Conservative lawmaker, Nigel Evans, said the 'botched plot' appeared to have fizzled out within 24 hours but said it would play into the hands of EU's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier and EU Commission head Jean-Claude Juncker

'The sniping from people like Grant Shapps is ... going to be used by people like Michel Barnier and Juncker to say there's divisions within the government, maybe we can offer them a worse deal or drag things out,' Evans told BBC TV.

'He's done us absolutely no favours whatsoever.'

The Daily Telegraph reported EU negotiators had increased private talks with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and the party's Brexit spokesman as they feared May's government would fall before the a divorce deal was agreed ahead of Britain's exit in March 2019.

The paper, citing unnamed sources said there had been a 'significant change in tone' towards Labour and Corbyn had held meetings with Barnier.

In a sign of the challenges facing May over Brexit, the Financial Times reported on Saturday that Germany and France had dashed hopes of fast-tracking talks a two-year transition deal after Brexit in 2019, and instead wanted details of the divorce settlement resolved first.

As May tries to reassert her authority, the Guardian newspaper said she would be urged by her lawmakers to sack Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson who used media article and interviews ahead of this week's party conference to put forward his own view of Brexit.

While he professed loyalty to May, his interventions were seen as undermining her and causing unnecessary unrest.

'There's a general feeling that there's support for her there, but I do think she needs to do a major reshuffle, and if she doesn't act to sack Boris and to bring some new people on board, she has a problem,' one unnamed Conservative lawmaker told the paper.
Trump delights evangelicals as he rolls back access to birth control

Donald Trump has rolled back requirements under Obamacare that forced employers to provide insurance to cover women's birth control.

The new rules followed up a campaign pledge that delighted conservative Christian supporters and will allow businesses or charities to lodge religious or moral objections to gain an exemption from the commitment.

Evangelical Christians were particularly pleased with Russell Moore, president of the ethics and religious liberty commission of the Southern Baptist Church, calling the previous law 'an unlawful overreach, forcing a choice between obedience to God and compliance with the regulatory state'.

Im *really* glad to see these changes and exemptions from the awful HHS contraceptive mandate.  Russell Moore (@drmoore) 6 October 2017

The contraceptive mandate was an unlawful overreach, forcing a choice between obedience to God and compliance with the regulatory state.  Russell Moore (@drmoore) 6 October 2017

This change is a crucial achievement in preserving religious liberty. Govt has no business forcing citizens to subsidize destruction of life  Russell Moore (@drmoore) 6 October 2017

However women's rights activists and Democrats criticised the move and within hours the American Civil Liberties Union sued Trump's adminstration in a bid to halt the change.

It is unclear how many employers would actually drop birth control coverage on religious grounds, and there were significant doubts that many big ones would.

'This is a landmark day for religious liberty. Under the Obama administration, this constitutional right was seriously eroded,' Republican House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan said.

But Planned Parenthood's President Cecile Richards said: 'The Trump administration just took direct aim at birth control coverage for 62 million women.'

Richards added: 'With this rule in place, any employer could decide that their employees no longer have health insurance coverage for birth control.'

Trump, who criticised the birth control mandate in last year's election campaign, won strong support from conservative Christian voters. The Republican president signed an executive order in May asking for rules that would allow faith-based groups to deny insurance coverage for services they oppose on religious grounds.

The contraception mandate was implemented as part of the 2010 Affordable Care Act, Democratic former President Barack Obama's signature achievement. Trump and Republicans in Congress campaigned against Obamacare, as the law is known, but could not get enough votes to repeal it as they had promised.

In its reasoning for the move, the administration said among other things that mandating birth control coverage could foster 'risky sexual behaviour' among teens and young adults. It overturned the Obama administration's view that the birth control requirement was necessary to meet the government's 'compelling interest' to protect women's health.

'This administration's contempt for women reaches a new low with this appalling decision,' top House Democrat Nancy Pelosi said.

The administration broadened narrow existing religious exemptions to include an exception "on the basis of moral conviction" for non-profit and for-profit companies.

Federal rules implemented under Obamacare required employers to provide health insurance that covers birth control, but religious houses of worship were exempted. Some private businesses sued regarding their rights to circumvent such coverage, and the Supreme Court ruled in 2014 that they could object on religious grounds.

Mark Rienzi, one of the lawyers for the Little Sisters of the Poor who were involved in a legal challenge to Obama's rule, said: 'HHS has issued a balanced rule that respects all sides - it keeps the contraceptive mandate in place for most employers and now provides a religious exemption.

The Little Sisters and other Christian nonprofit employers objected to a 2013 compromise offered by the Obama administration that allowed entities opposed to providing contraception insurance coverage to comply with the law without actually paying for the required coverage.

The Justice Department released two memos that will serve as the government's legal basis for justifying the rule and laying out a framework for how apply religious liberty issues in legal opinions, federal rules and grant making.

In another decision popular with Trump's evangelical supporters, the Justice Department on Wednesday reversed federal policy and declared that federal law banning sex discrimination in the workplace does not protect transgender employees. Trump also has removed protections for transgender students and moved to ban transgender people from the military.

Trump's support among evangelical voters, a major force in his 2016 election victory, remains strong, but has been slipping in line with his overall approval ratings, according to recent Reuters/Ipsos poll results.

Additional reporting by Reuters.
'We repent of our disunity': Church leaders pray in the shadow of Parliament and Westminster Abbey

In the shadow of the Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey, Christian leaders from throughout Britain sought public forgiveness for demonstrating 'disunity, pride and lack of generosity'.

They pledged to 'turn afresh to Jesus' in a bid to bring new hope and goodness into the towns and cities of Britain.

The public repentance for division took place at a special prayer event that was part of Movement Day, a bid by lay and ordained Christian leaders across denominations to join together to work for the 'spiritual, social and cultural transformation' of towns and cities.

Prayers were led by Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, Bishop Angaelos of the Coptic Orthodox Church, Steve Clifford of the Evangelical Alliance and others.

After a reading from John 17:20-25, the hundreds present turned towards Westminster Abbey and prayed a powerful repentance:

'Lord, we confess that over many years we, your church have often demonstrated disunity, pride and lack of generosity. We repent of our disunity. We turn again to you Jesus. We declare our commitment to work together to lift up the name of Jesus in our nation. We want to carry your love and goodness to our cities; and bring hope into our communities.'

They prayed for God to release 'healing and hope' into the 'pain and brokenness'. And they prayed also for people of 'peace, integrity and unity' in Parliament.

Movement Day began in the United States seven years ago.

The aim is to bring hope, based on the belief that town and city transformation will only be achieved if people relate strongly to Jesus, each other, between churches and with the wider community.

According to Movement Day's value's statement, 'It is by no accident that Paul addresses the Church of a place, eg. the church of Thessalonica, and sees Church as key to the transformation of our cities and towns.'

It is based on the principle that transformation starts, continues and ends with prayer. 'We can unify with one another as we seek God together through prayer. It is a vital component in shifting the spiritual, social and cultural landscape of our places. Prayer brings God into the picture.'

Those behind it believe the UK is at a 'pivotal moment' where there is a call to believers to seek God and work together. In a statement they said: 'Movement Day UK is more than an event. Our hope is that this will act as a spark to ignite greater unity-for-transformation movements all across the UK and that the scope and vision of such movements will increase.'

More than 1000 people took part in the event, which continues today.

The statement continues: 'We recognise that our towns and cities consist of many pieces and there are believers in each of these pieces of society. In order for these places to be transformed, we need the church to equip believers to engage in all aspects of society. We need to take a holistic approach in seeing the spiritual, social and cultural transformation of our towns and cities. As we seek God together and work together in strategic and intentional ways, we can bring God's kingdom into these areas and see the pieces of our communities transformed piece by piece.'
Apple seems to have an iPhone 8 battery problem on its hands, and it's not clear yet whether it's occurring in just a handful of edge cases or in a larger batch of phones.

Over the past week, reports have been coming out about iPhone 8s that have split apart either on arrival or after several days of use. What appears to be happening is that the battery inside the phone is swelling, bending the front of the phone and separating it from the body of the device. So far, there haven't been any fires  just ruined phones.

Apple has a short statement on the matter: "We are aware and looking into it."

More from The Verge:

3 best and worst features of the Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL

AIM will shut down after 20 years

Exclusive first look at the Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL

The first report came out of Taiwan, where a woman is said to have found her iPhone swollen apart after plugging it in to charge. Someone in Japan then posted photos of a split-apart phone on Twitter. And in the days since, there've been cases in China, Canada, and Greece.

There appear to be only six or so reports so far  certainly less than a dozen that have been publicly identified  so the issue seems to be quite small in comparison to the millions of phones that Apple has likely already sold. In any manufacturing run that big, there are going to be occasional issues, so on some level seeing a few broken iPhones is expected.

But after Samsung's Note 7 fiasco, there's reason to be concerned about what's happening here  especially since it's a battery issue. Batteries shouldn't be swelling in any number, and it's not clear what the half-dozen iPhones that are having this problem have in common. While it seems to be rare, there's obviously good reason to want to know what's going on.

"[Swelling is] very unusual for a brand-new battery and leads toward the direction of there's something fundamentally wrong with this battery," says Sam Jaffe, managing director of Cairn Energy Research Advisors, in a phone call with The Verge. Jaffe, a battery industry analyst, says manufacturers have reached a limit with lithium-ion battery capacity and could end up producing designs with a bigger risk of short circuiting in an attempt to store more power.

For now, he says, it's too early to know what's happening with Apple's phones. "It could be just a random distribution," he says. "Just a random event, and it's only a few."

Jaffe suspects Apple's executives are "in crisis mode" over the potential damage that battery issues could lead to. But while we've seen a few swollen batteries already, he says, it doesn't mean the problem will necessarily elevate into a Note 7-style crisis with phones starting to produce smoke.

"Swelling is always a precursor when there is a battery fire, but the percentage of actual fires are pretty rare," Jaffe says. "In the Galaxy Note case, there were probably a couple hundred battery failures of one sort or another, but there were only a handful of fires  so that gives you a sense of the proportion of actual fires."
Teen apparel retailer Forever 21 is trying something different.

The company created Riley Rose, a beauty boutique that's being rolled out at 13 of General Growth Properties ' shopping centers across the U.S., to start. The first Riley Rose store opened at Los Angeles' Glendale Galleria mall earlier this week.

The Riley Rose moniker was coined by Linda and Esther Chang, the daughters of Forever 21's founders. While the two have been involved in marketing and visual merchandising at Forever 21, they've long wanted to tap into beauty. Meantime, the apparel industry has grown increasingly challenging to operate in  eight specialty apparel retailers alone have filed for bankruptcy in 2017.

"This is definitely a play to boost growth," GlobalData Retail Managing Director Neil Saunders told CNBC. "The core business at Forever 21 is under pressure from slower growth, fickle consumers, and price deflation in a discount-driven market."

Beauty is a "logical choice" and one path forward for Forever 21, as the beauty sector promises higher margins, Saunders added. "I think this will help Forever 21, especially in the run up to the holidays."

Riley Rose has plans to launch its own website this November. The new entrant will target millennials, and face competitors such as Ulta , Sephora and Bluemercury.

"Although the market is growing rapidly, it is crowded with choice," Saunders emphasized.

Take a look inside Riley Rose's first store, where shoppers will not only find mascara and lip balm, but also candy, housewares and other everyday essentials.
Haydee Mestre looks inside her refrigerator after Hurricane Maria destroyed the town's bridge and the surrounding areas, in San Lorenzo, Morovis, Puerto Rico, October 5, 2017.

Puerto Rico's situation could get worse without Congress' help, said Raul Maldonado, the island's Treasury secretary.

In a phone interview with CNBC.com, Maldonado said Puerto Rico's government will run out of money by the end of the month if the U.S. legislature does not send emergency funds its way.

The cash shortage would lead to a government shutdown and would hinder Puerto Rico's efforts to aid its residents after Hurricane Maria ravaged the island.

"If we don't get the help we need, this will be a national disaster," Maldonado said. "We're not looking for a handout; we're just looking for some help to get back on our feet."

Maldonado added that he has been in contact with members of Congress, including Sens. Cory Booker and Ted Cruz.

Maria, a Category 4 storm, left most of Puerto Rico's 3.4 million residents without electricity and water and destroyed the homes of thousands. It also took out much of the island's telecommunications infrastructure.

Puerto Rico was already dealing with a massive financial crisis before the hurricane hit it. The island holds more than $70 billion in debt in part because of years of government overspending.

Given the situation, President Donald Trump said Tuesday that Puerto Rico's debt would have to be "wiped out." His comments sent prices for the island's general obligation bonds plummeting.

Puerto Rico also has been contending with a dwindling population in recent years, reducing its tax base. The island's population shrank 8.4 percent between 2010 and 2016, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The mass exodus from Puerto Rico could accelerate after Hurricane Maria hit the island two weeks ago.
If the White House decertifies the Iran deal, RBC Capital Markets is warning investors that oil prices could jump.

Helima Croft, the firm's global head of commodity strategy, is watching next Thursday, October 12 very closely. That's the day when President Donald Trump is expected to deliver a key speech on Iran policy.

There's speculation that Trump will move to unravel the international deal, signed under President Barack Obama, that curbs Iran's nuclear program.

"It's a very significant development that could happen next week," Croft said on CNBC's "Trading Nation" this week.

An official told Reuters this week, speaking on the condition of anonymity, that Trump is also expected to introduce a broader U.S. strategy that would be more confrontational with Iran.

"The market, I think, will be concerned that we can get a return of the sanctions that required importing countries to make significant reductions in their Iranian crude imports every six months, and which bars foreign firms from investing in the Iranian upstream sector," noted Croft.

A National Iran Oil Company official told CNBC on Sept. 25 that it's exporting about 2.2 million barrels a day  a year after U.N. economic sanctions were lifted last year.

Fresh sanctions could put demand in a delicate situation.

"To really move significantly higher, what we really need to see is clear indications that sanctions are coming back, because right now there's a view out there that the 'U.S. just goes at it alone on sanctions. It won't matter,'" Croft added.

But the prospect of an increased demand due to falling supply doesn't appear to be affecting Wall Street.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell by 2.95 percent to close at $49.29 a barrel on Friday, breaking a four-week win streak. It was the commodity's biggest weekly loss since March 10. Friday's loss happened on profit-taking and the return of oversupply concerns.

RBC's year-end forecast calls for U.S. oil to end the year in the low $50s.

"What matters is how much does the United States government, the White House in particular, want to force foreign firms out of Iran. If they want to force them out, they can always threaten to lock them out of U.S. capital markets. And that's a pretty big stick," Croft said.
Hi all,



I am trying to read from an Excel file using OpenRowSet, I am getting the above error, as I found in the google I tried the below script.

USE master GO sp_configure 'show advanced options', 1 GO RECONFIGURE WITH OverRide GO sp_configure 'Ad Hoc Distributed Queries', 1 GO RECONFIGURE WITH OverRide GO EXEC master.dbo.sp_MSset_oledb_prop N'Microsoft.ACE.OLEDB.12.0' , N'AllowInProcess' , 1 GO EXEC master.dbo.sp_MSset_oledb_prop N'Microsoft.ACE.OLEDB.12.0' , N'DynamicParameters' , 1 GO EXEC sp_configure 'show advanced options', 1 GO -- To update the currently configured value for advanced options. RECONFIGURE GO -- To enable the feature. EXEC sp_configure 'xp_cmdshell', 1 GO -- To update the currently configured value for this feature. RECONFIGURE GO

Still no luck it would be very helpful if anybody can help me out, I am also trying different options from online but somehow its not working. Here is the script I am trying.

SELECT * FROM OPENROWSET('Microsoft.ACE.OLEDB.12.0', 'Excel 12.0;Database=C:\TestFiles\1-085 Cancelled with Cash-Report 129_2017-10-03.xls;', 'SELECT * FROM [Sheet1$]')

And the error message full is: OLE DB provider "Microsoft.ACE.OLEDB.12.0" for linked server "(null)" returned message "Unspecified error". Msg 7303, Level 16, State 1, Line 1 Cannot initialize the data source object of OLE DB provider "Microsoft.ACE.OLEDB.12.0" for linked server "(null)".

This error is happening even if I open VS on the server itself and run this openrowset script and even if I run from the client machine like my local machine, in both cases the openrowset is failing any help can be greatly appreciated friends.



Thanks in advance friends.



Thanks,



Abdul Aleem



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





Cannot initialize the data source object of OLE DB provider "Microsoft.ACE.OLEDB.12.0" for linked server "(null)".

Thanks,



Abdul Aleem



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



-- modified 12-Oct-17 19:54pm.



indian143 wrote: linked server "(null)".

I think the word null in that message may be a clue.



Hi,



I am trying to run an SSIS Package that's installed in MSDB on my Server manually, the problem is, when I run the Package in 32 bit mode, it gives me the following error:

The requested OLE DB provider Microsoft.ACE.OLEDB.12.0 is not registered. If the 32-bit driver is not installed, run the package in 64-bit mode

When I run the Package in 64 bit mode it gives me the following error: The requested OLE DB provider Microsoft.ACE.OLEDB.12.0 is not registered. If the 64-bit driver is not installed, run the package in 32-bit mode

When I am checking the drivers that are installed I am seeing the Microsoft.ACE.OLEDB.12.0 driver there, when I try to install it, it gives me error message saying its already there I need to uninstall the existing one 32 bit, and I am seeing the Excel 14.0 drivers there too, just paused not understanding what to do, because its happening only on Server and only for Excel files, even though the SSIS uses Ace 12.0 drivers for csv and txt (comma separated, tab delimited or pipe delimited) files, they are not giving any problem (I mean the Packages that are using those files are importing fine only Packages using Excel files are giving problems), and I am importing the files successfully without any issues.



I tried to change the provider at runtime using by Changing the connection string like below: "Provider=Microsoft.ACE.OLEDB.14.0;Data Source=" + @[User::FilePath] + ";Extended Properties=\"EXCEL 14.0 XML;HDR=YES\"", its giving compile error, so just paused not able to find anything I can do. In google its only showing to change the mode of the Package running 32 bit and 63 bit, I did try both modes both are giving me errors, and this Package is running fine in Development environment, I mean if I am running within SSDT, any help can be very helpful.



Can somebody suggest me anything I can do except converting the Excel files into Pipe delimited (I have already implemented that option) but its more work on the SSIS side to change all those Packages to be able to import the files into SQL Server db.



Any help would be greatly helpful, thanks in advance my friends.



Thanks,



Abdul Aleem



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



-- modified 11-Oct-17 15:29pm.



i see this article How to prevent SQL Injection in Stored Procedures[^]



i compose my code like that way but not save from sql injection in my code. what is wrong there in my code ?



SQL DECLARE @Name NVARCHAR ( 50 ) DECLARE @sqlcmd NVARCHAR (MAX); DECLARE @params NVARCHAR (MAX); SET @Name = ' like ''%ra%''' ; SET @sqlcmd = N ' SELECT * FROM [TestDB].[dbo].emp1 WHERE Name ' +@Name; SET @params = N ' @Name NVARCHAR(50)' ; EXECUTE sp_executesql @sqlcmd , @params , @Name ;



suppose i have store proc where i will send name when i will call store proc. so we can send parameter value like 'like ''%ra%'''



sp_executesql not saving me from injection problem. guide me how to prevent injection in procedure. thanks





SQL DECLARE @Name NVARCHAR ( 50 ); DECLARE @sqlcmd NVARCHAR (MAX); DECLARE @params NVARCHAR (MAX); SET @Name = ' %ra%' ; SET @sqlcmd = N ' SELECT * FROM [TestDB].[dbo].emp1 WHERE Name Like @Name' ; SET @params = N ' @Name NVARCHAR(50)' ; EXECUTE sp_executesql @sqlcmd , @params , @Name ;

Now the question is, why are you using dynamic SQL for such a simple query?

SQL DECLARE @Name NVARCHAR ( 50 ); SET @Name = ' %ra%' ; SELECT * FROM [TestDB].[dbo].emp1 WHERE Name Like @Name ;





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

- Homer











so tell me what is way out

see my fresh code where %ra% is working instead of protection.

SQL DECLARE @Name NVARCHAR ( 50 ) DECLARE @sqlcmd NVARCHAR (MAX); DECLARE @params NVARCHAR (MAX); SET @Name = ' %ra%' ; SET @sqlcmd = N ' SELECT * FROM [TestDB].[dbo].emp1 WHERE Name like @Name' ; SET @params = N ' @Name NVARCHAR(50)' ; EXECUTE sp_executesql @sqlcmd , @params , @Name ;



Mou_kol wrote: i thought sp_executesql will prevent that but did not. "sp_executesql" executes sql. The SQL-command has no need to check for injection by the user, as most users will not directly access the database.



There is no way you can add strings and magically secure them.



If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^] Bastard Programmer from Hell



sp_ExecuteSQL is when you the Database Developer absolutely needs to create Dynamic SQL, and not for protection.



While what you have written appears safe, there is no need for Dynamic SQL and you are only adding a layer of service and reducing performance.





Director of Transmogrification Services

Shinobi of Query Language

Master of Yoda Conditional



Hi,



I am getting a flat file that's getting number values like integer and decimal values also withing "" like id is also coming as "1" or "100" etc, so in ssis package in Data Conversion its failing, can I get any expression or something to eliminate those double quotes and import the value into the Database with proper conversion everything.



I am getting the error message as below: FileFullName: \\xxxxx\\DataExchange\ShieldLink\Test\32 Bit and 64 Bit Testing\Thirty Two Bit.csv, SSISPackageName: ImportPipeDelimitedCSV.dtsx, Source : Microsoft.SqlServer.Dts.Runtime.TaskHost, ErrorCode : -1071607767, Description : SSIS Error Code DTS_E_INDUCEDTRANSFORMFAILUREONERROR. The "Data Conversion.Outputs[Data Conversion Output].Columns[Copy of Column1]" failed because error code 0xC020907F occurred, and the error row disposition on "Data Conversion.Outputs[Data Conversion Output].Columns[Copy of Column1]" specifies failure on error. An error occurred on the specified object of the specified component. There may be error messages posted before this with more information about the failure. , SubComponent: Data Conversion [2], HelpFiledtsmsg110.rll, HelpContext0, IdofInterfaceWithError{B6F6D221-FC27-4F71-B5A0-597583986C28}

This is failing because the values are coming as below: Column1|Column2|Column3| "1"|"Column 2 Value 1"|"Column 3 Value 1"

For texts its able to convert properly but for the numerical values its failing is there anything that I can do to eliminate those " and implement Data conversion without any problems thanks in advance.



But in some situations I get this error, I am not sure why is this error coming, could it lead to not load data, sometimes even with this warning also we are able to load the Data I think so, but I am not sure, the Warning is as below:

FileFullName: \\xxxxx\ShieldLink\Test\32 Bit and 64 Bit Testing\Thirty Two Bit.csv, SSISPackageName: ImportPipeDelimitedCSV.dtsx, Source : Microsoft.SqlServer.Dts.Runtime.TaskHost, WarningCode : -2147183868, Description : Warning: Could not open global shared memory to communicate with performance DLL; data flow performance counters are not available. To resolve, run this package as an administrator, or on the system's console. , SubComponent: SSIS.Pipeline, HelpFiledtsmsg110.rll, HelpContext0, IdofInterfaceWithError{B6F6D221-FC27-4F71-B5A0-597583986C28}

I am not understanding is it a Data conversion issue or some other privileges issue, any help would be greatly helpful, thanks in advance friends.



Thanks,



Abdul Aleem



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



-- modified 5-Oct-17 20:31pm.



indian143 wrote: is there anything that I can do to eliminate those " and implement Data conversion without any problems



Based on the following - no.



Connect to a Flat File Data Source (SQL Server Import and Export Wizard) | Microsoft Docs[^]



You might want to review the actual input spec yourself in the hope the docs are wrong.



Presuming there is no option, and you cannot get the source adjusted, then you must

1. Take all of the values as strings

2. Add a post process step to convert to correct values (remove quotes and convert to numeric as needed.)



Hi friends,



I am getting the following message when I am trying to install the Ace 16.0 64 bit drivers You cannot install the 64-bit version of Microsoft Access Database Engine 2016 because you currently have 32-bit Office Products installed. If you want to install 64-bit MS access Engine 2016, you need remove the 32-bit installation of Office Products.

But here is the thing I am trying to install these drivers with Passive switch as below, still I am getting this error C:\Personal Docs\DownLoads\Ace Drivers>AccessDatabaseEngine_X64.exe /passive

Just as it is mentioned here: https://knowledge.autodesk.com/support/autocad-civil-3d/learn-explore/caas/sfdcarticles/sfdcarticles/How-to-install-64-bit-Microsoft-Database-Drivers-alongside-32-bit-Microsoft-Office.html



Earlier I did it with Ace 12.0 64 bit drivers, I could able to install both the 32 and 64 bit Ace 12.0 drivers side by side with Passive switch, to do the same with Ace 16.0 its not working is there any Work around to install these 64 and 32 bit drivers side by side, any link, a suggestion anything helps my friends its little urgent - thanks in advance my friends.



Thanks,



Abdul Aleem



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







Use a Virtual Machine (VM). One OS in VM 'A' would have one version and the other VM would have the other.



If you actually need both on a single machine in the delivery (production) then you could.

1. Create a service that encapsulates one service and exposes one, not both of the drivers. Call this driver 'A'

2. It doesn't do anything but allow you to run the driver.

3. Run that in a VM

4. On the regular machine (not VM) install the other driver 'B', then you app uses 'B' directly and makes rest calls to the service, via the VM, to run 'A'.



--- Solution 1



This might or might not work. And it would take a lot of experimentation. And you MUST check the license agreement to validate this usage.



1. Neither driver should be installed.

2. Install one driver, probably 32 bit one

3. Determine exactly what files were installed.

4. Copy those files somewhere.

5. Uninstall the driver.

6. Install the other driver.

7. Create a library that encapsulates the first driver in the executable itself. So not as an installed driver but rather as a library. Your library exposes the functionality you need.

8. Use your library to get to the first driver and the regular idiom to get to the second.



Note that if you can get this to work then it might best to do it with both drivers rather than relying on different access methodologies.



Wondering on how much these dot net data structures are used by everyone else ?







I prefer to fetch the raw values from said reader, as I rarely need the overhead a table-class introduces.



If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^] Bastard Programmer from Hell





Never underestimate the power of human stupidity

RAH



I am trying to make a website like SONGS STORE where people can download there favorite song of their artists.So for this I want a songs collection database.Where can i get this kind of database?


hye there . i try to customize my own password hashers by using honeyword hashers but i still cannot import the honeyword generator file into the hashers file . i already follow django documentation for the hashers.py



honeywordgen.py :



import hashlib import string import re from django.db import models from django.contrib.auth.hashers import PBKDF2PasswordHasher from django.utils.crypto import constant_time_compare from django.utils.translation import ugettext_noop as _ from random import random, randrange, choice, sample TOUGH_NUT_PROBABILITY = 0 . 10 RANDOM_WORD_PROBABILITY = 0 . 03 EQUIV_CHAR_REPLACE_PROBABILITY = 0 . 25 MAX_PASSWORD_LENGTH = 256 PASSWORD_PUNCTUATION = ' !@#$%^&*+-?' ALL_PASSWORD_CHARS = string .ascii_letters + string .digits + PASSWORD_PUNCTUATION VOWELS = ' aeiou' LETTERS = string .ascii_lowercase CONSONANTS = string . join ([c for c in string .ascii_lowercase if c not in VOWELS], ' ' ) # h, j, k, q, w, x, y are rarely doubled DOUBLE_CONSONANTS = [c + c for c in CONSONANTS if c not in ' hjkqwxy' ] def closed_syllable(): return choice(CONSONANTS) + choice(VOWELS) + choice(CONSONANTS) def open_syllable(): return choice(CONSONANTS) + choice(VOWELS) def vce_syllable(): r = random() v = ' ' if r < 0 . 95 : v = choice([c for c in VOWELS if c != ' e' ]) else : v = choice(VOWELS) return v + choice(CONSONANTS) + ' e' def vowel_team_syllable(): r = random() if r < 0 . 30 : return choice([ ' oo' , ' ee' ]) if r < 0 . 70 : v = choice(VOWELS) return v + choice([c for c in VOWELS if c != v]) if r < 0 . 80 : return choice([ ' ey' , ' ay' , ' oy' , ' uy' ]) if r < 0 . 90 : return choice([ ' ew' , ' aw' , ' ow' ]) # e.g. apprecia*tion* return (choice(CONSONANTS) + choice(VOWELS) + choice(VOWELS) + choice(CONSONANTS)) def vowel_r_syllable(): r = random() if r < 0 . 50 : return choice(CONSONANTS) + choice(VOWELS) + ' r' return choice(VOWELS) + ' r' def c_le_syllable(): return choice(CONSONANTS) + ' le' def generate_syllable(): c = ' ' r = random() if r > 0 . 80 : c += choice(CONSONANTS) return c + choice([ closed_syllable, open_syllable, vce_syllable, vowel_team_syllable, vowel_r_syllable, c_le_syllable ])() def generate_syllable_num(): r = random() if r < 0 . 05 : return 1 if r < 0 . 65 : return 2 if r < 0 . 90 : return 3 if r < 0 . 95 : return 4 if r < 0 . 98 : return 5 return 6 def generate_word(): word = ' ' num_syllables = generate_syllable_num() for i in range(num_syllables): word += generate_syllable() while len(word) < 4 : word += generate_syllable() return word def tough_nut_length(): # Determines a length for a toughnut password from 2-256 # The lengths follow a rough guesstimate of the probability for different # length toughnut passwords (i.e., between 10 and 25 is most likely). r = random() if r < 0 . 05 : return randrange( 2 , 5 ) if r < 0 . 45 : return randrange( 5 , 10 ) if r < 0 . 90 : return randrange( 10 , 25 ) if r < 0 . 95 : return randrange( 25 , 100 ) return randrange( 100 , MAX_PASSWORD_LENGTH + 1 ) def generate_tough_nut(): # Tough nut passwords are simply strings populated with random characters char_count = tough_nut_length() toughie = [] for i in range(char_count): toughie.append(choice(ALL_PASSWORD_CHARS)) return string . join (toughie, ' ' ) def generate_seed(tough_nut_prob=TOUGH_NUT_PROBABILITY): r = random() if r < tough_nut_prob: return generate_tough_nut() return generate_word() def can_equal_char_replace(password): return any([True for c in password if c in ' AELOSTaelost@310$7@310$7' ]) def tweak_equal_char_replace(password): for i in range(len(password)): # This is the current character at index i, and the left and right # substrings password_loc = password[i:i+1] password_left = password[:i] password_right = password[i+1:] # If the letter is any of the ones listed replace with new character # with a predefined probability if (random() < EQUIV_CHAR_REPLACE_PROBABILITY and ( ' A' in password_loc or ' a' in password_loc)): if random() < 0 . 50 : password = password_left+str( ' 4' )+password_right else : password = password_left+str( ' @' )+password_right if (random() < EQUIV_CHAR_REPLACE_PROBABILITY and ( ' o' in password_loc or ' O' in password_loc)): password = password_left+str( ' 0' )+password_right if (random() < EQUIV_CHAR_REPLACE_PROBABILITY and ' e' in password_loc): password = password_left+str( ' 3' )+password_right if (random() < EQUIV_CHAR_REPLACE_PROBABILITY and ' l' in password_loc): password = password_left+str( ' 1' )+password_right if (random() < EQUIV_CHAR_REPLACE_PROBABILITY and ' s' in password_loc): password = password_left+str( ' $' )+password_right if (random() < EQUIV_CHAR_REPLACE_PROBABILITY and ' T' in password_loc): password = password_left+str( ' 7' )+password_right return password def can_capitalize(password): return any(c.isalpha() for c in password) def tweak_capitalize(password): r = random() if r < 0 . 40 and password.title() != password: return password.title() elif r < 0 . 60 and password.lower() != password: return password.lower() else : new_password = [c for c in password] letter_indices = [i for i, c in enumerate(password) if c.isalpha()] for i in sample(letter_indices, randrange(len(letter_indices))): c = new_password[i] if c in string .ascii_uppercase: new_password[i] = c.lower() elif c in string .ascii_lowercase: new_password[i] = c.upper() return string . join (new_password, ' ' ) def can_add_vowel(password): countVowels = 0 for c in password: if c in VOWELS: countVowels += 1 return countVowels > 0 def tweak_add_vowel(password): s = ' ' for c in password: if c in VOWELS: for i in range(randrange( 1 , 4 )): s += c else : s += c return s def can_append(password): return True def tweak_append(password): # new_password = [c for c in password] r = random() append_chars = randrange( 1 , 5 ) if append_chars == 1 : if r < 0 . 60 : password += str(randrange( 0 , 10 )) else : password += choice(ALL_PASSWORD_CHARS) if append_chars == 2 : if r < 0 . 60 : # recent decades password += str(randrange( 50 , 100 )) elif r < 0 . 90 : # other 2 digit pairs password += str(randrange( 0 , 50 )) else : # 2 random characters password += string . join (sample(ALL_PASSWORD_CHARS, 2 ), ' ' ) if append_chars == 4 : if r < 0 . 80 : # 1950-1999 if r < 0 . 70 : password += ' 19' + str(randrange( 50 , 100 )) # 2000 - 2020 else : password += ' 20' + str(randrange( 0 , 21 )) elif r < 0 . 90 : # any 4 random digits password += string . join ([choice( string .digits) for i in range( 4 )], ' ' ) else : # any 4 random characters password += string . join (sample(ALL_PASSWORD_CHARS, 2 ), ' ' ) else : password += string . join ([choice(ALL_PASSWORD_CHARS) for i in range(append_chars)], ' ' ) # " Pluralize" every so often when password ends in a letter last_pos = len(password) - 1 if r < 0 . 20 and password[last_pos] != ' s' : if password[last_pos] in string .ascii_lowercase: password += ' s' elif password[last_pos] in string .ascii_uppercase: password += ' S' return password def can_digit_tweak(password): # Digit tweak can only be applied when there are digits in password return any([True for c in password if c in string .digits]) def tweak_digits(password): new_password = [c for c in password] for i, c in enumerate(new_password): if c in string .digits: new_password[i] = string .digits[randrange(len( string .digits))] return string . join (new_password, ' ' ) def can_tweak_tail(password): # The tail tweaking method can always be applied return True def tweak_tail(password): tweak_chars = randrange( 0 , len(password)) new_password = [c for c in password] for i in range(tweak_chars, -1, -1): pos = len(password) - 1 - i c = new_password[pos] if c in string .ascii_lowercase: new_password[pos] = choice( string .ascii_lowercase) elif c in string .ascii_uppercase: new_password[pos] = choice( string .ascii_uppercase) elif c in string .digits: new_password[pos] = choice( string .digits) elif c in PASSWORD_PUNCTUATION: new_password[pos] = choice(PASSWORD_PUNCTUATION) else : new_password[pos] = choice( string .ascii_letters) return string . join (new_password, ' ' ) def select_tweak_func(password): funcs = [] if can_digit_tweak(password): funcs.append(tweak_digits) if can_append(password): funcs.append(tweak_append) if can_add_vowel(password): funcs.append(tweak_add_vowel) if can_capitalize(password): funcs.append(tweak_capitalize) if can_equal_char_replace(password): funcs.append(tweak_equal_char_replace) assert(len(funcs) > 0 ) return choice(funcs) # return tweak_capitalize def test_tweak_funcs(password): if can_digit_tweak(password): print( ' tweak_digits: %s-->%s' % (password, tweak_digits(password))) else : print( ' Cannot apply %s to %s' % ( ' tweak_digits' , password)) if can_append(password): print( ' tweak_append: %s-->%s' % (password, tweak_append(password))) else : print( ' Cannot apply %s to %s' % ( ' tweak_pluralize' , password)) if can_add_vowel(password): print( ' tweak_add_vowel: %s-->%s' % (password, tweak_add_vowel(password))) else : print( ' Cannot apply %s to %s' % ( ' tweak_add_vowel' , password)) if can_capitalize(password): print( ' tweak_capitalize: %s-->%s' % (password, tweak_capitalize(password))) else : print( ' Cannot apply %s to %s' % ( ' tweak_capitalize' , password)) if can_equal_char_replace(password): print( ' tweak_equal_char_replace: %s-->%s' % (password, tweak_equal_char_replace(password))) else : print( ' Cannot apply %s to %s' % ( ' tweak_equal_char_replace' , password)) if can_tweak_tail(password): print( ' tweak_tail: %s-->%s' % (password, tweak_tail(password))) else : print( ' Cannot apply %s to %s' % ( ' tweak_tail' , password)) def main(): for i in range( 100 ): seed = generate_seed() print( ' New seed: %s' % seed) test_tweak_funcs(seed) print if __name__ == ' __main__' : main()



this is my hashers.py :



from __future__ import unicode_literals import base64 import binascii import hashlib import importlib import passlib import hashlib from collections import OrderedDict from django.conf import settings from django.core.exceptions import ImproperlyConfigured from django.core.signals import setting_changed from django.dispatch import receiver from django.db import models from django.contrib.auth.hashers import BasePasswordHasher, PBKDF2PasswordHasher from django.utils.crypto import get_random_string from django.utils.encoding import force_bytes, force_text from django.utils.module_loading import import_string from django.utils.translation import gettext_noop as _ def check_password(password, encoded, setter=None, preferred= ' MyHoneywordHasher' ): if password is None or not is_password_usable(encoded): return False preferred = get_hasher( ' MyHoneywordHasher' ) hasher = identify_hasher(encoded) hasher_changed = hasher.algorithm != MyHoneywordHasher.algorithm must_update = hasher+hasher_changed or MyHoneywordHasher.must_update(encoded) is_correct = hasher.verify(password, encoded) if not is_correct and not hasher_changed and must_update: hasher.harden_runtime(password, encoded) if setter and is_correct and must_update: setter(password) return is_correct def make_password(password, salt, hasher= ' MyHoneywordHasher' ): if password is None: return UNUSABLE_PASSWORD_PREFIX + get_random_string(UNSUABLE_PASSWORD_SUFFIX_LENGTH) hasher = get_hasher(MyHoneywordHasher) if not salt: salt = hasher.salt() return hasher.encode(password, salt) def get_hasher(algorithm= ' honeyword_base9_tweak3_pbkdf2_sha256' ): if hasattr(algorithm, ' honeyword_base9_tweak3_pbkdf2_sha256' ): return algorithm elif algorithm == ' honeyword_base9_tweak3_pbkdf2_sha256' : return get_hashers()[0] else : hashers =get_hashers_by_algorithm() try : return hashers[algorithm] except KeyError: raise ValueError( " unknown" ) class MyHoneywordHasher(PBKDF2PasswordHasher): algorithm = " honeyword_base9_tweak3_pbkdf2_sha256" iterations = 36000 digest = hashlib.sha256 def _load_library(self): if self.library is not None: if isinstance(self.library, (tuple, list)): name, mod_path = self.library else : mod_path = self.library try : module = importlib.import_module(mod_path) except ImportError as e: raise ValueError( " Couldn't load %r algorithm library: %s" %(self.__class__.__name__, e)) return module raise ValueError( " Hasher %r doesn't specify a library attribute" %self.__class__.__name__) def salt(self): return get_random_string() def verify(self, password, encoded): raise NotImplementedError( ' subclasses of BasePasswordHasher must provide a verify() method' ) def encode (self, password, salt, iterations=None): sweetwords = [ " hilman95,aisyah95,amirah95,zuhairah95,nabila95" ] sweetwords.extend(honeywordgen.gen(password, base9, [passfiles.txt])) for i in range(base10): sweetwords.extend(honeywordtweak.tweak(password[i], tweak3)) random.shuffle(sweetwords) hashes = [] for swd in sweetwords: hashes.append(self.hash(swd, salt, iterations)) self.honeychecker.update_index(salt, sweetwords.index(password)) h = sweetwords(salt = salt, sweetwords = pickle.dumps(hashes)) h.save() return ' %s$%d$%s$%s' %(self.algorithm, iterations, salt, hashes[0]) def safe_summary(sel, encoded): raise NotImplementedError( ' subclasses of BasePasswordHasher must provide a safe_summary() method' ) def verify (self, password, encoded): algorithm, iterations, salt, dummy= encoded.split( ' $' , 3 ) hashes = pickle.loads(sweetwords.objects. get (salt=salt).sweetwords) hash = self.hash(password, salt, int (iterations)) if hash in hashes: return honeychecker.check_index(salt, hashes.index(hash)) return False



at first i try , it manage to not hashed by default but unfortunately the password does not stored in the database . i use sqlite . my project is basically to add customize hashers in my registration page . when users register , the password will automatically hashed with honeywordHasher and stored in database. and i try to fix it but end up with this error :



NameError at /accounts/register/ name ' honeywordgen' is not defined



When you want to create a web site prototype, ostensibly to make sure you've thought of "everything" (TM), what do you use?

".45 ACP - because shooting twice is just silly" - JSOP, 2010

-----

You can never have too much ammo - unless you're swimming, or on fire. - JSOP, 2010

-----

When you pry the gun from my cold dead hands, be careful - the barrel will be very hot. - JSOP, 2013





...MVC simply doesn't make any sense.



I took days to design a EF6 code-first model, and then created a MVC controller/view for that model, and despite the fact that I specified my key field as a string (to use guids), the control insists on trying to use nullable longs for the id parameter. Seriously, WTF is going on?



I'm really not that big a fan of web development to start with, and MVC/EF ain't doin' anything to resolve my impression of it.



I need a reference that discusses the back-end mechanics without letting "site styling" get in the way of the real work that needs to be done. Can anyone help?

".45 ACP - because shooting twice is just silly" - JSOP, 2010

-

You can never have too much ammo - unless you're swimming, or on fire. - JSOP, 2010

-

When you pry the gun from my cold dead hands, be careful - the barrel will be very hot. - JSOP, 2013









Would you mind posting at least the Id portion of your model, and an Id dependent controller method? That way we can get on the same page.

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

- Benjamin Disraeli







So, parsing/deserialization is not the problem. Unless I write actual sql to upsert a new record, I have to create the guid in the model (or viewmodel).



What I'm complaining about is that I can't find any useful reference material that talks about EF6 in the context of MVC, without having all kinds of needless crap about styling the UI on a website. I don't CARE about styling the web site yet.

".45 ACP - because shooting twice is just silly" - JSOP, 2010

-----

You can never have too much ammo - unless you're swimming, or on fire. - JSOP, 2010

-----

When you pry the gun from my cold dead hands, be careful - the barrel will be very hot. - JSOP, 2013









I have, however, used the GUID type for primary keys with EF6, and I don't remember having any special issues with it (unlike prior EF versions). You should be able to declare a POCO like so:

C# public class Foo { [Key, DatabaseGenerated(DatabaseGeneratedOption.Identity)] public Guid Bar { get ; set ; } ... }

But beyond that, I think I might be able to help in terms of the documentation piece. MVC.NET is largely targeted towards the sort of people that previously used WebForms, so it's more concerned with the UI than what you need right now. I would suggest looking at documentation for WebAPI instead, if you're trying to work on the backend more than the front. The concepts are just about identical, and none of the UI is injected into it. The only real difference is that in MVC.NET you'll usually end up passing the model to a View constructor rather than returning it directly.

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

- Benjamin Disraeli



Hi Yaseer,



I have started the implementation of databinding using table given here.

In the example on this site, they have taken fix array to bind the data. As per your example of users database, I have added another page and typescript whose code is mentioned below.



Typescript code:



<pre>import { Component, OnInit, ViewChild } from '@angular/core'; import { UserService } from '../Service/user.service'; import { IUser } from '../Model/user'; import { DBOperation } from '../Shared/enum'; import { Observable } from 'rxjs/Rx'; import { Global } from '../Shared/global'; import { ManageUser } from './manageuser.component'; import { MdDialog, MdDialogRef } from '@angular/material'; import { UserFilterPipe } from '../filter/user.pipe'; import { DataSource } from "@angular/cdk/collections"; import 'rxjs/add/observable/of'; @Component({ templateUrl: 'app/Components/userlist.component.html' }) export class UserListComponent implements OnInit { users: IUser[]; user: IUser; dataSource: userDataSource; displayedColumns = ['FirstName', 'LastName']; constructor(private _userService: UserService) { } ngOnInit(): void { this.LoadUsers(); this.dataSource = new userDataSource(this.users); } LoadUsers(): void { this._userService.get(Global.BASE_USER_ENDPOINT) .subscribe(users => { this.users = users } ); } } export class userDataSource extends DataSource<any>{ constructor(private _users: IUser[]) { super(); } connect(): Observable<IUser[]> { debugger; return Observable.of(this._users); } disconnect() { } }



My HTML:



HTML < pre > < div class =' panel panel-primary' > < div class =' panel-heading' > User List using Table < /div > < div class =' panel-body' > < md-table #table [dataSource] =" dataSource" > < ng-container mdColumnDef =" FirstName" > < md-header-cell *mdHeaderCellDef > First Name < /md-header-cell > < md-cell *mdCellDef =" let element" > {{element.FirstName}} < /md-cell > < /ng-container > < ng-container mdColumnDef =" LastName" > < md-header-cell *mdHeaderCellDef > Last Name < /md-header-cell > < md-cell *mdCellDef =" let element" > {{element.LastName}} < /md-cell > < /ng-container > < md-header-row *mdHeaderRowDef =" displayedColumns" > < /md-header-row > < md-row *mdRowDef =" let row; columns: displayedColumns;" > < /md-row > < /md-table > < /div > < /div >



The issue is that I am not getting any scripting error but data is also not binding. Weird thing is that when I debug the typescript in browser, the data gets bind sometimes while debugging.



It will be good if you can throw some light on this.



Please find the steps to upgrade to material 2 . 0 .0-beta. 10 dependency below just for your reference.



1 . " @angular/material" : " 2.0.0-beta.7" --> No Change 2 . " @angular/material" : " 2.0.0-beta.8" 2 . 1 Include " @angular/cdk" : " 2.0.0-beta.8" in devDependencies 2 . 2 Change " rxjs" : " 5.0.1" to " rxjs" : " 5.0.3" in dependencies 2 . 3 map bundle ' @angular/cdk' : ' npm:@angular/cdk/bundles/cdk.umd.js' in systemjs.config.js 3 . " @angular/material" : " 2.0.0-beta.10" 3 . 1 Change " @angular/cdk" : " 2.0.0-beta.8" to " @angular/cdk" : " 2.0.0-beta.10" 3 . 2 map below bundles in systemjs.config.js ' @angular/cdk/a11y' : ' npm:@angular/cdk/bundles/cdk-a11y.umd.js' , ' @angular/cdk/bidi' : ' npm:@angular/cdk/bundles/cdk-bidi.umd.js' , ' @angular/cdk/coercion' : ' npm:@angular/cdk/bundles/cdk-coercion.umd.js' , ' @angular/cdk/collections' : ' npm:@angular/cdk/bundles/cdk-collections.umd.js' , ' @angular/cdk/keycodes' : ' npm:@angular/cdk/bundles/cdk-keycodes.umd.js' , ' @angular/cdk/observers' : ' npm:@angular/cdk/bundles/cdk-observers.umd.js' , ' @angular/cdk/overlay' : ' npm:@angular/cdk/bundles/cdk-overlay.umd.js' , ' @angular/cdk/platform' : ' npm:@angular/cdk/bundles/cdk-platform.umd.js' , ' @angular/cdk/portal' : ' npm:@angular/cdk/bundles/cdk-portal.umd.js' , ' @angular/cdk/rxjs' : ' npm:@angular/cdk/bundles/cdk-rxjs.umd.js' , ' @angular/cdk/scrolling' : ' npm:@angular/cdk/bundles/cdk-scrolling.umd.js' , ' @angular/cdk/table' : ' npm:@angular/cdk/bundles/cdk-table.umd.js' , 3 . 3 Change <button mdSuffix [mdDatepickerToggle]= " picker" > </ button > to <md-datepicker-toggle mdSuffix [for]= " picker" > </ md-datepicker-toggle > 3 . 4 Import below dependencies if using Autocomplete feature import ' rxjs/add/operator/startWith' ; import ' rxjs/add/operator/map' ;



Munjal Pandya wrote: Hi Yaseer,

Who is this message meant for?



If you're replying to a message from another user, then reply to that thread.



If you're commenting on an article, then use the forum at the bottom of the article.





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

- Homer







Hello !

I'm using MVC , C# and Entity Framework.

The object on my model are:

State-------- Id , Name

City ------- Id , Name , StateId

TheObject----Id,Name,StateId,CityId

I want to create an edit form for TheObject.

The Edit form has 2 dropdownlist State and City that are created dynamically , and the City list depend on selection made on State List.

The problem is that the dropdown list are filled correctly , but when the edit form is open these 2 dropdownlist are in empty state and does not have selected the real values for the object that is edited .

The partial code for Edit view is this :

<div class = " form-group" > @Html.LabelFor(u => u.State, new { @class = " control-label col-md-2" }) <div class = " col-md-10" > @Html.DropDownListFor(u => u.State, new SelectList(ViewBag.State, " Id" , " Name" ), " Choose State" , new { @class = " form-control" , @onchange = " selectCities()" }) @Html.ValidationMessageFor(u => u.State, " " , new { @class = " text-danger" }) </ div > </ div > <div class = " form-group" > @Html.LabelFor(u => u.City, new { @class = " control-label col-md-2" }) <div class = " col-md-10" > @Html.DropDownListFor(u => u.City, new SelectList(Enumerable.Empty<SelectListItem>(), " Id" , " Name" ), " Choose City" , new { @class = " form-control" }) @Html.ValidationMessageFor(u => u.City, " " , new { @class = " text-danger" }) </ div > </ div > <script> function selectCities() { debugger; var stateId = $( " #State" ).val(); $.ajax({ url: ' /Home/selectCities' , type: ' POST' , datatype: ' application/json' , contentType: ' application/json' , data: JSON.stringify({ stateId: +stateId }), success: function (result) { $( " #City" ).html( " " ); $( " #City" ).append ($( ' <option></option>' ).val( null ).html( " ---choose City---" )); $.each($.parseJSON(result), function (i, cty) { $( " #City" ).append($( ' <option></option>' ).val(cty.Id).html(cty.Name)) }) }, error: function () { alert( " Error !" ) }, }); } </script>



The partial code of the controller is this :

private void Fill_StateDropDownList() { var st = from d in db.States orderby d.Name select d; ViewBag.State = st.ToList(); } [HttpPost] public ActionResult selectCities( string stId) { List < City > lstcity = new List < City > (); int stateiD = Convert.ToInt32(stId); lstgrupet = ( from d in db.Citys where d.StateID==stateiD select d).ToList(); string result= JsonConvert.SerializeObject(lstgrupet, Formatting.Indented, new JsonSerializerSettings { ReferenceLoopHandling = ReferenceLoopHandling.Ignore}); return Json(result, JsonRequestBehavior.AllowGet); } public ActionResult Edit( int ? id) { if (id == null ) { return new HttpStatusCodeResult(HttpStatusCode.BadRequest); } TheObject obj = db.TheObjects.Find(id); if (user == null ) { return HttpNotFound(); } Fill_StateDropDownList() return View(obj); } [HttpPost, ActionName( " Edit" )] [ValidateAntiForgeryToken] public ActionResult EditPost( int ? id) { if (id == null ) { return new HttpStatusCodeResult(HttpStatusCode.BadRequest); } var theobjectToUpdate = db.TheObjects.Find(id); if (TryUpdateModel(theobjectToUpdate, " " , new string[] { " Name" , " StateId" , " CityId" })) { try { db.SaveChanges(); return RedirectToAction( " Index" ); } catch (Exception) { ModelState.AddModelError( " " , " Error." ); } } Fill_StateDropDownList() return View(theobjectToUpdate); }



modified 23-Sep-17 15:02pm.



Controller:

C# private void Fill_StateDropDownList() { var st = from d in db.States orderby d.Name select d; ViewBag.State = st.ToList(); } private void Fill_CityDropDownList( int ? stateId) { var cities = from d in db.Citys where d.StateID == stateId select d; ViewBag.City = cities.ToList(); } [HttpPost] public ActionResult selectCities( int ? stateId) { var cities = from d in db.Citys where d.StateID == stateId select new { d.Id, d.Name }; return Json(cities, JsonRequestBehavior.AllowGet); } public ActionResult Edit( int ? id) { if (id == null ) { return new HttpStatusCodeResult(HttpStatusCode.BadRequest); } TheObject obj = db.TheObjects.Find(id); if (obj == null ) { return HttpNotFound(); } Fill_StateDropDownList(); Fill_CityDropDownList(obj.StateId); return View(obj); } [HttpPost, ActionName( " Edit" )] [ValidateAntiForgeryToken] public ActionResult EditPost( int ? id) { if (id == null ) { return new HttpStatusCodeResult(HttpStatusCode.BadRequest); } var theobjectToUpdate = db.TheObjects.Find(id); if (TryUpdateModel(theobjectToUpdate, " " , new string[] { " Name" , " StateId" , " CityId" })) { try { db.SaveChanges(); return RedirectToAction( " Index" ); } catch (Exception ex) { ModelState.AddModelError( " " , ex); } } Fill_StateDropDownList(); Fill_CityDropDownList(theobjectToUpdate.StateId); return View(theobjectToUpdate); }

View:

<div class = " form-group" > @Html.LabelFor(u => u.State, new { @class = " control-label col-md-2" }) <div class = " col-md-10" > @Html.DropDownListFor(u => u.State, new SelectList(ViewBag.State, " Id" , " Name" ), " Choose State" , new { @class = " form-control" }) @Html.ValidationMessageFor(u => u.State, " " , new { @class = " text-danger" }) </ div > </ div > <div class = " form-group" > @Html.LabelFor(u => u.City, new { @class = " control-label col-md-2" }) <div class = " col-md-10" > @Html.DropDownListFor(u => u.City, new SelectList(ViewBag.City, " Id" , " Name" ), " Choose City" , new { @class = " form-control" }) @Html.ValidationMessageFor(u => u.City, " " , new { @class = " text-danger" }) </ div > </ div >

Javascript:

JavaScript $( function (){ $( " #State" ).change( function (){ debugger ; var stateId = $( this ).val(); $.post( ' /Home/selectCities' , { stateId: +stateId }) .done( function (result){ var $city = $( " #City" ); $city.html( " " ); $city.append($( ' <option/>' ).val( null ).html( " ---choose City---" )); $.each(result, function (i, cty) { $city.append($( ' <option/>' ).val(cty.Id).html(cty.Name)); }); }) .fail( function (){ alert( " Error !" ); }); }); });





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

- Homer







Hello !

i'm new to design Website using MVC.

I'm using entity Framework and C#.

On my Login controller , I get the currently logged user as an entity . ( Users LogUser

But I want to use the variable LogUser in other controllers.

How can I do that , how can can I save as global variable ? ( I have declared LogUser as public but does not work )

Thank you !



desanti wrote: how can can I save as global variable

You can't.



"Global" variables (aka static fields) are shared across all threads in your process. That means there would only ever be a single value of that variable across all requests from all users.



Instead, you store an authentication ticket in a cookie, which only applies to requests from the current user. You then use that ticket to authenticate the user.



But you shouldn't be writing that code yourself. You should be using ASP.NET Identity[^] to handle authentication for your application.





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

- Homer









string cookieName = FormsAuthentication.FormsCookieName; HttpCookie authCookie = HttpContext.Request.Cookies[cookieName]; FormsAuthenticationTicket ticket = FormsAuthentication.Decrypt(authCookie.Value); string UserName = ticket.Name;



So I'm engaging in my semi-annual technology roundup to determine if there's finally some integration in the standards that will allow me to use certificates on a hardware token to digitally sign a document without going through the process of downloading, signing, and uploading.



I'm not going to write a browser plugin due to the organization security posture.



I'm not terribly interested in using Java for this purpose, in a good part due to the above.



I've been watching the Web Cryptography API with something akin to hope for a few years now. Is anyone aware of any additional projects or WebCrypto integrations that I might have missed?

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

- Benjamin Disraeli



I want to create a login page for my site.This is my html code.

HTML < form class =" modal-content animate" action =" inori.php" > < div class =" imgcontainer" > < span onclick =" document.getElementById('id01').style.display='none'" class =" close" title =" Close Modal" >  < /span > < h1 > Member Login < /h1 > < /div > < div class =" container" > < label > Username < /label > < input type =" text" placeholder =" Enter Username" name =" uname" required > < label > Password < /label > < input type =" password" placeholder =" Enter Password" name =" psw" required > < button type =" submit" > Login < /button > < button type =" button" onclick =" document.getElementById('id01').style.display='none'" class =" cancelbtn" > Cancel < /button > < input type =" checkbox" checked =" checked" > Remember me Forgot < a href =" #" > password? < /a > < /div > < div class =" container" style =" background-color:#f1f1f1" > < /div > < /form >

I want to create php and ajax code to complete the form. could someone give me a tutorial to do this. I dont have any idea where to start.



modified 17-Sep-17 2:58am.



PHP 5 Tutorial[^] This worked for me as a getting started in php. They also have AJAX.



Ravings en masse^ "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you are seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010



I am wondering if you can tell me if there is anything wrong with the html listed below that is near the 14px listed below?



<p> </ p > <p>&CUR_DATE.EVAL </ p > <p>To the &PAR_NAME.EVAL of &STU_FNAME.EVAL &STU_LNAME.EVAL<br /> <span id= " ADDR_BEG" > </ span > &PAR_ADDR.EVAL<br /><span id= " ADDR_NEXT" > </ span > &PAR_CITY.EVAL, &PAR_STATE.EVAL &PAR_ZIP.EVAL<br /><span id= " ADDR_END" > </ span > <br /> Dear &PAR_NAME.EVAL and &STU_FNAME.EVAL &STU_LNAME.EVAL:<br /> <br /> This letter is to inform you that &STU_FNAME.EVAL has the equivalent of 5 or more unexcused absences this school year. <span style= " font-size: 10pt; font-family: arial,sans-serif; color: black;" ><span style= " font-size: 14px; font-family: arial;" >We believe student attendance in school is a key component to school success, so it is very important for all children to develop habits of good attendance. Poor attendance contributes to failing grades, decreased learning opportunities, lower academic achievement and may limit your child ' s opportunities to be involved with school activities.</span><br /> <br /> </span><br />



I am asking this question since the value listed above is stored in a varchar(max) column in a sql server 2012 database. When an

ssrs 2012 report is executed, the following error message is displayed:

"Warning 1 [rsParseErrorInvalidSize] Near character position 646 in the input string, the value of the font-size property for the textrun stringtemplate3.Paragraphs[0].TextRuns[0] is 14px, which is not a valid size. Valid sizes may not exceed 455 inches (1155.7 centimeters). ".







Loading what you have in my editor and the following occurs:

1) No error messages when rendering (FireFox v55)

2) A number of your values begin with '&' - and that is generally reserved for things such as special characters. Hence my comment about lacking auxiliary files (or even if page is html, php, asp, etc.)

3) within one of your span's, you have id="ADDR_BEG" which appears to paste in my editor (Expressions IV) as a link, but his is an embedded link which you are using as an ID - doesn't seem like a good idea at all! Ditto for "ADDR_NEXT" and "ADDR_END".



Simplify your string by eliminating above items one by one until the error goes away - then fix the cause.

Ravings en masse^ "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you are seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010







The second possibly have you tried a different px size? If it is not accepting a larger size try decreasing the amount.



Hello everyone, Can someone help me with code to add scroll bar inside the popup window (Note: not to the popup window ,i need inside the popup window) so that all the contents in the Popup Window Should be visible or Aceessed.

Here is my code :



Quote:









searchApiOptions = {

store: "7xhosting",

containerId: "divID",

submitURL: "",

selectedTld: "com",

popupBox: true,

floatingBox: false

};













I want to configure dropzone for removing images, I've done `addRemoveLinks: true` i want the php code to delete that file? How can I get the id of the file to delete? And my second question is how can I upload videos through dropzone? And the third question is how can I restrict size of the files in dropzone?





I've tried this:

Dropzone.autoDiscover = false ; var myDropzone = new Dropzone( " #myDropzone" , { url: " delete.php" , maxFileSize: 50 , acceptedFiles: " .pdf" , addRemoveLinks: true ,



I want the code for delete.php, along with the query..


Celestyal Cruises is set for its fifth season in the Cuban market, as the Crystal will depart from Havana to mark the anniversary on October 20. The ship is fresh off a refurbishment job at the Grand Bahama Shipyard.

Celestyal offers year-round cruises in Cuba, with an all-inclusive seven-day circumnavigation of the island, also including a call in Montego Bay.

"Recent incidents exclusively involving U.S. and Canadian diplomats, as reported in media, are entirely unrelated to tourism and currently under investigation by the governments of Cuba, the USA and Canada. Safety and security at sea and on land are our highest priorities at Celestyal Cruises, and the company is pleased to be able to maintain its impeccable standards while providing our passengers with authentic lifetime experiences on one of the great gems of the Caribbean," Celestyal said, in a prepared statement.

The visa-issuing process for passengers remains unchanged, and Celestyal Cruises continue to offer a People-to-People itinerary that meets current U.S. legal requirements for a full-time program of educational and cultural exchange activities onboard and ashore. N

one of the company's local service providers, including shore excursion programs, are military owned or operated, the company said.

Celestyal Cruises offers embarkation in Montego Bay, Jamaica or Havana, Cuba.

In addition to an overnight in Havana (two full days), the cruise line's program features one day visits to Cienfuegos, Santiago de Cuba and Montego Bay.
Pa. Dems could flip the House of Reps. Here's what that might mean
CNO Financial Group, Inc., through its subsidiaries, develops, markets, and administers health insurance, annuity, individual life insurance, and other insurance products for senior and middle-income markets in the United States. It offers Medicare supplement, supplemental health, and long-term care insurance policies; life insurance; and annuities, as well as Medicare advantage plans to individuals through phone, online, mail, and face-to-face. The company also focuses on worksite and group sales for businesses, associations, and other membership groups by interacting with customers at their place of employment. In addition, it provides fixed index annuities; fixed interest annuities, including fixed rate single and flexible premium deferred annuities; single premium immediate annuities; supplemental health products, such as specified disease, accident, and hospital indemnity products; and long-term care plans primarily to retirees and older self-employed individuals in the middle-income market. Further, the company offers universal life and other interest-sensitive life products; and traditional life policies that include whole life, graded benefit life, term life, and single premium whole life products, as well as graded benefit life insurance products. CNO Financial Group, Inc. markets its products under the Bankers Life, Washington National, and Colonial Penn brand names. The company sells its products through agents, independent producers, and direct marketing. CNO Financial Group, Inc. was founded in 1979 and is headquartered in Carmel, Indiana.
The following companies are subsidiares of Abbott Laboratories: 3A Nutrition (Vietnam) Company Limited, ABON Biopharm (Hangzhou) Co. Ltd., AGA Medical Belgium, AGA Medical Corporation, AGA Medical Holdings Inc., ALR Holdings, AML Medical LLC, APK Advanced Medical Technologies LLC, ATS Bermuda Holdings Limited, ATS Laboratories Inc., Abbott, Abbott (Jiaxing) Nutrition Co. 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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. 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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. 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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. 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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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Juniper Networks, Inc. designs, develops, and sells network products and services worldwide. The company offers routing products, such as ACX series universal access routers to deploy high-bandwidth services; MX series Ethernet routers that function as a universal edge platform; PTX series packet transport routers; wide-area network SDN controllers; and session smart routers. It also provides switching products, including EX series Ethernet switches to address the access, aggregation, and core layer switching requirements of micro branch, branch office, and campus environments; QFX series of core, spine, and top-of-rack data center switches; and juniper access points, which provide Wi-Fi access and performance. In addition, the company offers security products comprising SRX series services gateways for the data center; Branch SRX family provides an integrated and next-generation firewall; virtual firewall that delivers various features of physical firewalls; and advanced malware protection, a cloud-based service and Juniper ATP. Further, it offers Junos OS, a network operating system; Contrail networking, which provides an open-source and standards-based platform for SDN; Mist AI-driven Wired, Wireless, and WAN assurance solutions to set and measure key metrics; Mist AI-driven Marvis Virtual Network Assistant, which identifies the root cause of issues; Juniper Paragon Automation, a modular portfolio of cloud-native software applications; and Juniper Apstra to automate the network lifecycle in a single system. Additionally, the company provides software-as-a-service, technical support, maintenance, and professional services, as well as education and training programs. It sells its products through direct sales, distributors, value-added resellers, and original equipment manufacturers to end-users in the cloud, service provider, and enterprise markets. The company was incorporated in 1996 and is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California.
The following companies are subsidiares of Jones Lang LaSalle: 225 Fitness Inc., 360 Commercial Partners, ACREST, AGL, AMAS Limited, AVM Partners, Advanced Technologies Group Inc., Alaska UK (GP) Ltd, Alkas Consulting, Aoyama Holding Limited, Australian Valuation Solutions, Avenue9, BRG, BRG Resource Group ULC, Beijing Dazheng Zhongheng Enterprise Consulting Co. Ltd., Beijing Guotai Zhongheng Enterprise Consulting Co. Ltd., Beijing Jones Lang LaSalle Property Management Services Company Limited, Big Red Rooster Flow LLC, Bill Goold Realty, Bradford McCormack & Associates, Brune Consulting Management GmbH, Building Engines Inc., Building Services Network Inc., Business Products Group Inc., Business Resource Holdings Inc., CENTRE STREET REAL ESTATE CO-INVESTMENT FUND G.P. L.L.C., CENTRE STREET REAL ESTATE CO-INVESTMENT FUND L.P., CMM Projekt & Office Solutions GmbH, COBERTURA - SOCIEDADE DE MEDIACAO IMOBILIARIA S.A., CTH, Capital Realty LLC, Capra Global Partners Holdings Limited, Carolyn House (General Partner) Limited, Centre Street Real Estate Co-Investment Fund CarryCo L.L.C., Charter Oaks Financial Services Inc., Churston Heard Ltd, CoR Advisors, Cobertura, Colliers Baltimore, ComRef LIM Co-Invest LLC, Corporate Concierge Services Inc., Corporate Concierge Services of Hawaii Inc., Corporate Realty Advisors, Corrigo, Corrigo Incorporated, Credo Real Estate (Singapore), DST International Property Services, Dalian Jones Lang LaSalle Services Limited, Database International Group Inc., ECD Energy and Environment Canada, ECD Energy and Environment Canada Ltd., EID (General Partner) LLP, ELPF Lafayette Manager Inc., Eleven Eleven Construction Corporation, Emergent Properties Inc., Enerdapt Inc., Environmental Governance Ltd, Europe Fund III Alberta GP Inc., Europe Fund III GP LLC, FITOUTETRIS SA, FIVE D PROPERTY MANAGEMENT (NSW) PTY LTD, FIVE D PROPERTY MANAGEMENT (QLD) PTY LTD, FIVE D PROPERTY MANAGEMENT (VIC) PTY LTD, Five D Holdings Pty Limited, Five D Holdings Pty Ltd, Five D Property Management (ACT) Pty Ltd, GFN Property Investments L.L.C., Guangzhou Jones Lang LaSalle Property Services Company Limited, Guardian Property Asset Management, Guardian Property Asset Management Limited, H Park Germany Verwaltungs-GmbH, HALL AND KAY FIRE HOLDINGS LIMITED, HFF, HFF Holdings Limited, HFF InvestCo LLC, HFF Partnership Holdings LLC, HFF Real Estate Limited, HFF Securities Limited, HG2 Limited, HUB PROFESSIONAL SERVICES LIMITED, Halcyon Real Estate, Hall & Kay Fire Services Limited, Harry K Moore, Hentschel & Company LLC, Holliday GP LLC, Hunter Facilities Management (HFM), Huntley Mullaney Spargo & Sullivan Inc., Huntley Mullaney Spargo & Sullivan LLC, IFM Services Finland OY, INTEGRAL UK HOLDINGS LIMITED, INTEGRAL UK LIMITED, Inmobiliaria Jones Lang LaSalle Limitada, Integra Realty Resources, Integra Realty Resources - Dallas, Integral Facility Services Limited, Integral UK, J P Sturge Limited, J.L.W. Nominees Limited, J.L.W. Second Nominees Limited, JLL 2002, JLL 2003 Limited, JLL Agency AB, JLL CAMBRIDGE LTD, JLL CMG LLC, JLL Capital Markets AB, JLL Chile Asesorias Inmobiliarias Limitada, JLL Corporate Solutions - Servicos De Conservacao e Manutencao de Imoveis Ltda, JLL Corporate Solutions AB, JLL Corporate Solutions Holdings Inc., JLL Corretagen e Trasacoes Imobiliarias Ltda., JLL Engineering Services SA de CV, JLL Expertises SARLAU, JLL Infrastructure Advisory Pty Ltd, JLL Ingenierie, JLL Investment Scottish Limited Partnership II, JLL Kapitalmarkand Holding AB, JLL Kapitalmarknad AB, JLL Ltd, JLL Macau Limited, JLL Mall Management K.K., JLL Marketplace LLC, JLL Morii Valuation & Advisory K.K., JLL Mortgage Services Pty Limited, JLL Nevada Inc., JLL Properties LLC, JLL Public Sector Valuations Pty Ltd, JLL Puerto Rico Realty & Co. S. en C., JLL Real Estate Capital LLC, JLL Real Estate Capital Pte. Ltd., JLL Scottish II G.P. L.L.C., JLL Services on Demand Pty Ltd, JLL Servicos de Manutencao Predial Ltda., JLL Singapore Capital Pte. Ltd., JLL Sweden AB, JLL Transaction Services AB, JLL Treasury Support AB, JLL Valuation & Advisory Services LLC, JLL Valuation AB, JLLBRR LLC, JLLINT Inc., JONES LANG LASALLE CIEC CO. LTD., Jones Lang LaSalle, Jones Lang LaSalle & Compania Limitada, Jones Lang LaSalle (ACT) Pty Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle (B) Sdn Bhd, Jones Lang LaSalle (Barbados) Ltd., Jones Lang LaSalle (Beijing) Consultants Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle (Beijing) Real Estate Consultancy Co Ltd, Jones Lang LaSalle (Fiji) Pte Ltd, Jones Lang LaSalle (Geneva) SA, Jones Lang LaSalle (Luxembourg) Secs, Jones Lang LaSalle (NSW) Pty Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle (PNG) Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle (Philippines) Inc., Jones Lang LaSalle (Puerto Rico) Inc., Jones Lang LaSalle (QLD) Pty Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle (S E) Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle (SA) Pty Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle (Shenzhen) Commercial Consultancy Company Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle (VIC) Pty Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle (WA) Pty Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle (pty) ltd, Jones Lang LaSalle - Central Texas LLC, Jones Lang LaSalle - Front Range LLLP, Jones Lang LaSalle -Sociedade de Avaliacoes Imobiliarias Unipessoal Lda, Jones Lang LaSalle 1. Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, Jones Lang LaSalle AG, Jones Lang LaSalle Acquisition Corp., Jones Lang LaSalle Administration B.V., Jones Lang LaSalle Advisory Services Pty Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Americas (Illinois) L.P., Jones Lang LaSalle Americas Inc., Jones Lang LaSalle Arizona LLC, Jones Lang LaSalle Asia Holdings Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Asset Management GmbH, Jones Lang LaSalle Australia Pty Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle BV, Jones Lang LaSalle Bangladesh Private Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Beihai Holdings L.L.C., Jones Lang LaSalle Belgium Holdings LLC, Jones Lang LaSalle Billion Management Services Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Brokerage Inc., Jones Lang LaSalle Building Operations Private Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Bulgaria EOOD, Jones Lang LaSalle Capital Investments Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Charities, Jones Lang LaSalle Co-Investment Inc., Jones Lang LaSalle Co. Ltd., Jones Lang LaSalle Constructions K.K., Jones Lang LaSalle Consulting Co. Ltd., Jones Lang LaSalle Corporate Appraisal and Advisory Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Corporate Finance Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Corporate Property (VIC) Pty Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Corporate Property Services Pty Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Dorchester Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Ecuador S.A. JLL ECUADOR, Jones Lang LaSalle Espana S.A., Jones Lang LaSalle Europe Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle European Holdings Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle European Services Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Expertises, Jones Lang LaSalle Facility Services S.L., Jones Lang LaSalle Finance BV, Jones Lang LaSalle Finance Europe, Jones Lang LaSalle Finance Luxembourg Sarl, Jones Lang LaSalle Finland Oy, Jones Lang LaSalle French Co-Investments Inc., Jones Lang LaSalle Gayrimenkul Hizmetleri Ticaret Anonim Sirketi, Jones Lang LaSalle German Holdings B.V. & Co. KG, Jones Lang LaSalle Global Finance Luxembourg Sarl, Jones Lang LaSalle Global Finance UK Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Global Finance US LLC, Jones Lang LaSalle Global Holdings BV, Jones Lang LaSalle GmbH, Jones Lang LaSalle Great Lakes Corporate Real Estate Partners LLC, Jones Lang LaSalle Group Finance Luxembourg Sarl, Jones Lang LaSalle Group Holdings BV, Jones Lang LaSalle Group Holdings SNC, Jones Lang LaSalle Group Services spoka z ograniczona odpowiedzialnoscia, Jones Lang LaSalle Guatemala Sociedad Anonima, Jones Lang LaSalle Gutland S.a.r.l., Jones Lang LaSalle Haiti S.A., Jones Lang LaSalle Holding AB, Jones Lang LaSalle Holding BV, Jones Lang LaSalle Holding SAS, Jones Lang LaSalle Holdings Cyprus Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Holdings Inc., Jones Lang LaSalle Holdings Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Holdings Y.K., Jones Lang LaSalle Holdings spoka z ograniczona odpowiedzialnoscia, Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels Participacoes Ltda., Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels S.A., Jones Lang LaSalle IP Inc., Jones Lang LaSalle India Investment Management Pte. Ltd., Jones Lang LaSalle Innovation Development L.L.C., Jones Lang LaSalle Insurance Services Ltd, Jones Lang LaSalle International Holdings Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle International Inc., Jones Lang LaSalle International Properties Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Investments LLC, Jones Lang LaSalle Investments Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Israel Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Jamaica Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle K.K., Jones Lang LaSalle KFT, Jones Lang LaSalle Kenya Ltd, Jones Lang LaSalle LLP (Kazakhstan), Jones Lang LaSalle Lanka (Private) Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Laser Ltd, Jones Lang LaSalle Limitada, Jones Lang LaSalle Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Limited Liability Company, Jones Lang LaSalle Lithuania UAB, Jones Lang LaSalle Ltd (Ireland), Jones Lang LaSalle Ltd., Jones Lang LaSalle Ltda., Jones Lang LaSalle Luxembourg Star Sarl, Jones Lang LaSalle Malta Holdings Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Malta Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Management Services Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Management Services Taiwan Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Michigan LLC, Jones Lang LaSalle Midwest LLC, Jones Lang LaSalle Misr LLC, Jones Lang LaSalle Multifamily Member LLC, Jones Lang LaSalle Mulk Yonetim Hizmetleri Limited Sirketi, Jones Lang LaSalle New England L.L.C., Jones Lang LaSalle Northwest LLC, Jones Lang LaSalle Pension Trustees Ltd, Jones Lang LaSalle Procurement Funding Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Procurement Ltd., Jones Lang LaSalle Property Consultants (India) Private Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Property Consultants Pte Ltd, Jones Lang LaSalle Property Fund Advisors Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Property Management Pte Ltd, Jones Lang LaSalle Real Estate Advisory Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Real Estate Brokerage Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Real Estate Services Inc., Jones Lang LaSalle Receivables Holdings LLC, Jones Lang LaSalle Regional Services Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Residential Development GmbH, Jones Lang LaSalle Resources Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle S. de R.L., Jones Lang LaSalle S.R.L., Jones Lang LaSalle S.p.A., Jones Lang LaSalle SE, Jones Lang LaSalle SEA Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle SSC (Philippines) Inc., Jones Lang LaSalle Sarl, Jones Lang LaSalle Saudi Arabia Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Securities L.L.C., Jones Lang LaSalle Services, Jones Lang LaSalle Services (Jersey) Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Services (Malta) Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Services (Private) Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Services AB, Jones Lang LaSalle Services AS, Jones Lang LaSalle Services ApS, Jones Lang LaSalle Services B.V., Jones Lang LaSalle Services Bahrain S.P.C., Jones Lang LaSalle Services Gmbh, Jones Lang LaSalle Services LLC, Jones Lang LaSalle Services Lebanon S.A.R.L., Jones Lang LaSalle Services Limited (Nigeria), Jones Lang LaSalle Services Ltd, Jones Lang LaSalle Services S.r.l., Jones Lang LaSalle Services SA/NV, Jones Lang LaSalle Services SRL, Jones Lang LaSalle Services Sarl, Jones Lang LaSalle Sociedad Anonima de Capital Variable, Jones Lang LaSalle Sociedad Comercial de Responsabilidad Limitada, Jones Lang LaSalle South Africa (Proprietary) Ltd, Jones Lang LaSalle Surveyors (Shanghai) Company Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Taiwan Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Technology Services Pte. Ltd., Jones Lang LaSalle Trinidad Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle UAE Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle UK FC, Jones Lang LaSalle UK Hanover, Jones Lang LaSalle Vietnam Company Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle d.o.o. (Croatia), Jones Lang LaSalle d.o.o. (Serbia), Jones Lang LaSalle de Venezuela S.R.L., Jones Lang LaSalle of New York LLC, Jones Lang LaSalle s.r.o., Jones Lang LaSalle sprl, Jones Lang LaSalle spoka z ograniczona odpowiedzialnoscia, Jones Lang Wootton Ltd, Jones Lang Wootton Property Management Services Ltd, KHK Group Limited, Kensington CA LLC, Keystone Partners, King & Co Limited, King Sturge, King Sturge Holdings Limited, LAOF V (General Partner) LLP, LASALLE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT BV, LAVA (General Partner) LLP, LIC II (General Partner) Limited, LIC Lafayette Manager Inc., LIM Asia Co-Investments Pte. Ltd., LIM Associates L.L.C., LIM Consejeros S. de R.L. de C.V., LIM Management Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., LJPF Co-Investments GK, LMF Investments LLC, LPI (Australia) Holdings Pty Ltd, LRA MKP TRS L.P., LREDS II PF L.P., LREDS III Carry Partner L.P., LUKSS I Carry Partner L.P., LUKV Carry Jersey Limited, LWLS HoldCo S.a r.l., LaSalle (Shanghai) Industrial Co. Ltd., LaSalle - VA Industrial GP LLC, LaSalle AIFM Europe S.a r.l., LaSalle Acquisitions Corp., LaSalle Administration Services, LaSalle Asia Opportunity III GP Ltd., LaSalle Asia Opportunity IV GP LTD, LaSalle Asia Opportunity Investors III GP Ltd., LaSalle Asia Opportunity V GP Ltd., LaSalle Asia Opportunity VI (Parallel) GP Ltd, LaSalle Asia Opportunity VI GP Pte. Ltd., LaSalle Asia Recovery L.L.C., LaSalle Asia Venture Co-Investment Trust, LaSalle Aureum Verwaltung GmbH, LaSalle BVK Canada Advantage GP S.a r.l., LaSalle CAVA Industrial Carryco LLC, LaSalle CIG IV GP Inc., LaSalle CIG V GP Inc., LaSalle Canada Core Real Property GP Inc., LaSalle Canada Property Fund GP Inc., LaSalle Canada Property Fund L.P., LaSalle China Logistics Venture GP Ltd, LaSalle China Logistics Venture GP S.a r.l., LaSalle Co-Investment L.L.C., LaSalle Co-Investment Management (General Partner) Limited, LaSalle Debt Investors Inc., LaSalle EMEA (Scots) Investments GP LLP, LaSalle Enterprise Management Consultancy (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, LaSalle Euro CV (Scotland) LLP, LaSalle Euro Growth II S.a.r.l., LaSalle European CV LP, LaSalle European Investments L.L.C., LaSalle European Recovery III (GP) LLP, LaSalle French Fund II Co-Investment GmbH, LaSalle French Fund II G.P. L.L.C., LaSalle Fund Management B.V., LaSalle Funds General Partner Ltd, LaSalle Funds Management Limited, LaSalle GPS Holdings LLC, LaSalle Genco G.P. L.L.C., LaSalle German Income and Growth G.P. L.L.C., LaSalle German Retail Venture GP L.L.C., LaSalle Global Employee Co-Investment GP LLC, LaSalle GmbH, LaSalle Income & Growth Fund VI Carry L.L.C., LaSalle Income & Growth Fund VI GP L.L.C., LaSalle Income & Growth Fund VII Carry L.L.C., LaSalle Income & Growth Fund VII GP L.L.C., LaSalle Income & Growth Fund VIII Carry L.L.C., LaSalle Income & Growth Fund VIII GP L.L.C., LaSalle Investment (Luxembourg) SARL, LaSalle Investment Limited Partnership II-A, LaSalle Investment Management, LaSalle Investment Management (Canada), LaSalle Investment Management (Canada) Inc., LaSalle Investment Management (Jersey) Limited, LaSalle Investment Management (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, LaSalle Investment Management Asia Pte Ltd, LaSalle Investment Management Australia Pty Ltd, LaSalle Investment Management Co. Ltd., LaSalle Investment Management Distributors LLC, LaSalle Investment Management Espana S.L.U., LaSalle Investment Management Hong Kong Limited, LaSalle Investment Management Inc., LaSalle Investment Management K.K., LaSalle Investment Management Kapitalverwaltungsgesellschaft mbH, LaSalle Investment Management Korea Yuhan Hoesa, LaSalle Investment Management Luxembourg SARL, LaSalle Investment Management SAS, LaSalle Investment Management Securities B.V., LaSalle Investment Management Securities LLC, LaSalle Japan Logistics V GP Ltd, LaSalle Japan Logistik-Immobilienfonds GP SARL, LaSalle Japan Property Fund GP Limited, LaSalle LIC II A G.P. Ltd., LaSalle LIC II A UK LLP, LaSalle LIC II B G.P. LLC, LaSalle Land General Partner Limited, LaSalle Land Trustee Limited, LaSalle Logistics GP LLC, LaSalle Mariner Co-Investment Fund Carryco L.L.C., LaSalle Mariner Co-Investment Fund G.P. L.L.C., LaSalle Medical Office Fund III GP LLC, LaSalle Mexico Advisors Inc., LaSalle Mexico Fund I Investors A G.P. LLC, LaSalle Mexico I (General Partner) LLC, LaSalle Navigator Holdings Limited, LaSalle Navigator US Holdings GP LLC, LaSalle North American Holdings Inc., LaSalle Paris Office Venture General Partner L.L.C., LaSalle Partners (Mauritius) Pvt Ltd, LaSalle Partners International, LaSalle Partners S. de R. L. de C. V., LaSalle Partners Services S. de R.L. de C.V., LaSalle Property Fund GP Holdings LLC, LaSalle Property Fund GP L.P., LaSalle Property Fund GP LLC, LaSalle RECC GP LLC, LaSalle REDS GP Inc., LaSalle REDS III GP Sarl, LaSalle REDS IV GP S.a r.l., LaSalle REDS TSA GP LLC, LaSalle REIT Advisors K.K., LaSalle Ranger Co-Investment Fund G.P. L.L.C., LaSalle Ranger Co-Investment Fund II G.P. L.L.C., LaSalle Ranger Co-Investment Fund III G.P. L.L.C., LaSalle Ranger II Carry L.L.C., LaSalle Ranger III Carry L.L.C., LaSalle Real Estate Debt Strategies II (GP) LLP, LaSalle Real Estate Investment Strategies GP S.a r.l., LaSalle Residential Finance Fund GP Inc., LaSalle Residential Fund III GP Inc., LaSalle Retail Japan-Immobilienfonds GP S.a r.l., LaSalle Salt River Carry L.L.C., LaSalle Special Situations Carry GP LLC, LaSalle Special Situations II Venture GP S.a r.l., LaSalle Student Housing L.L.C., LaSalle UK Ventures (General Partner) Limited, LaSalle UKSS I GP Ltd., LaSalle UKVA GP LLC, LaVA Feeder (Scotland) LP, Lava II GP S.a r.l., Lead Fast Investments Limited, Lee & Klatskin Associates, Leechiu & Associates, Lexington MKP Management L.P., Light bluu Limited, LodgeTax, MSCI's Global Occupiers business, Maloney Field Services, Martin Potts & Associates, Means Knaus Partners, Merlin UK Property Venture GP Limited, Merritt & Harris Inc., Midosuji Management GK, Morii Appraisal & Investment Consulting, Neo-Swiat, New England - Jones Lang LaSalle LLC, Nextport, Nima Mountaineer AB, Oak Grove Commercial Mortgage, Office Blocks Pte. Ltd., Opex Consulting, Orchid Insurance Limited, P.1 Administracao em Complexo Imobiliarios Ltda., P.2 Administracao em Complexo Imobiliarios Ltda., P.3 Administracao em Complexo Imobiliarios Ltda., PAM MULK YONETIM HIZMETLERI LIMITED SIRKETI, PDM International, PDM International (Beijing) Limited, PDM International (Chengdu) Limited, PDM International China Limited, PDM International HK Limited, PDM International Limited, PMX, PT Jones Lang LaSalle, PT. Procon Indah, Pacific Real Estate Partners, Peloton Commercial Real Estate, Primary Capital Advisors, Prime Property Consultants Limited, Procofin, Propell National Valuers Pty Ltd., Quadrant Realty Finance, RESIpm Pty Ltd, Ravti Corp, Real Data Management Inc., Residential Management Services Limited, Rogers Chapman UK Ltd, SBR Continental Europe GP LLC, SBR Continental Europe UK GP 2 LLP, Sage Capital, Salt River Investors GP LLC, Sandalwood Mall Management Private Limited, Shelter Bay Retail Group, Skyline AI, Skyline AI Inc., Skyline AI Limited, Sovereign Asian Properties Inc., Spaulding and Slye Federal Services LLC, Strategic Advisory Group, TETRIS ARQUITECTURA SL - SUCURSAL EM PORTUGAL, TETRIS Arquitectura S.L, Tansei Mall Management Co. Ltd., TeTriSolutions LLC, Tenzing AB, Tetris, Tetris Amenagement SARL, Tetris Design & Build BV, Tetris Design & Build Romania SRL, Tetris Design & Build Sarl, Tetris Design & Build sprl, Tetris Design and Build (Pty) Ltd, Tetris Design and Build S.R.L (Italy), Tetris Design and Build Sarl, Tetris Poland spoka z ograniczona odpowiedzialnoscia, Tetris Projects GmbH, Tetris Projects Ltd, The Apartment Group, The Horizon Management Services Limited, The Long Beach Management Limited, The Spargo Corporation, The Staubach Company, Third Party Management LLC, Toranomon 2 Special LP GP LLC, Travis Commercial Real Estate Services, Trinity Funds Management, Trussard Property Consultants, Tetris Design & Build Servicos de Arquitetura Ltda., Tetris Design & Build s.r.o., Utrillo Ltd, ValuD Consulting, Veronique Nocquet, W A Ellis LLP, Washington Partners, Whitetail GP LLC, Wilson Retail Group, YY Property Solutions, bluu City Limited, bluu Projects Limited, bluu Regions Limited, bluu Solutions Limited, and bluuco limited.

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Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated insurance holding company in the United States. The company develops, markets, and underwrites insurance products for personal residential insurance, such as homeowners, renters/tenants, condo unit owners, and dwelling/fire; and offers allied lines, coverage for other structures, and personal property, liability, and personal articles coverages. It also advises on actuarial issues, oversees distribution, administers claims payments, performs policy administration and underwriting, and assists with reinsurance negotiations; places and manages reinsurance programs for the insurance entities; and operates Clovered.com, an online platform in which consumers receive side-by-side quotes from various carriers across multiple states, as well as educational materials about homeowners' insurance policies. It offers its products through a network of independent agents, as well as Universal Direct, a direct-to-consumer online platform, which enables homeowners to directly purchase, pay for, and bind homeowners' policies. The company was formerly known as Universal Heights, Inc. and changed its name to Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. in January 2001. Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. was incorporated in 1990 and is headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Varian Medical Systems, Inc. designs, manufactures, sells, and services medical devices and software products for treating cancer and other medical conditions worldwide. It operates through Oncology Systems and Proton Solutions segments. The Oncology Systems segment offers hardware and software products for treating cancer with radiotherapy, fixed field intensity-modulated radiation therapy, image-guided radiation therapy, volumetric modulated arc therapy, stereotactic radiosurgery, stereotactic body radiotherapy, artificial intelligence based adaptive radiotherapy, and brachytherapy, as well as quality assurance equipment. Its products include linear accelerators, brachytherapy afterloaders, treatment accessories, and quality assurance software; and information management, treatment planning, image processing, clinical knowledge exchange, patient care management, decision-making support, and practice management software. This segment serves university research and community hospitals, private and governmental institutions, healthcare agencies, physicians' offices, medical oncology practices, radiotherapy centers, and cancer care clinics. The Proton Solutions segment designs, develops, manufactures, sells, and services products and systems for delivering proton therapy for the treatment of cancer. The company has a strategic agreement with McKesson Corp. to supply treatment delivery systems and planning, services, and radiotherapy information system solutions to its U.S. Oncology Network and Vantage Oncology affiliated sites of care; and a strategic partnership with Siemens AG to represent Siemens diagnostic imaging products to radiation oncology clinics in the United States and other select markets. Varian Medical Systems, Inc. was formerly known as Varian Associates, Inc. and changed its name to Varian Medical Systems, Inc. in April 1999. The company was founded in 1948 and is headquartered in Palo Alto, California.
Weatherford International plc, an oilfield service company, provides equipment and services for the drilling, evaluation, completion, production, and intervention of oil and natural gas wells worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Western Hemisphere and Eastern Hemisphere. It offers artificial lift systems, including reciprocating rod, progressing cavity pumping, gas, hydraulic, plunger, and hybrid lift systems, as well as related automation and control systems; pressure pumping and reservoir stimulation services, such as acidizing, fracturing and fluid systems, cementing, and coiled-tubing intervention; and drill stem test tools, and surface well testing and multiphase flow measurement services. The company also provides safety, downhole reservoir monitoring, flow control, and multistage fracturing systems, as well as sand-control technologies, and production and isolation packers; liner hangers to suspend a casing string in high-temperature and high-pressure wells; cementing products, including plugs, float and stage equipment, and torque-and-drag reduction technology for zonal isolation; and pre-job planning and installation services. In addition, it offers directional drilling services, and logging and measurement services while drilling; services related to rotary-steerable systems, high-temperature and high-pressure sensors, drilling reamers, and circulation subs; managed pressure drilling, conventional mud-logging, drilling instrumentation, gas analysis, wellsite consultancy, and open hole and cased-hole logging services; reservoir solutions and software products; and intervention and remediation services. Further, the company provides equipment and drilling tools; tubular handling, management, and connection services; equipment rental services; and onshore contract drilling and related services through a fleet of land drilling and workover rigs. Weatherford International plc was incorporated in 1972 and is headquartered in Baar, Switzerland.
EMCOR Group, Inc. provides electrical and mechanical construction, and facilities services primarily in the United States and the United Kingdom. It offers design, integration, installation, starts-up, operation, and maintenance services related to electrical power transmission, distribution, and generation systems; energy solutions; premises electrical and lighting systems; process instrumentation in the refining, chemical processing, and food processing industries; low-voltage systems, such as fire alarm, security, and process control systems; voice and data communications systems; roadway and transit lighting, signaling, and fiber optic lines; heating, ventilation, air conditioning, refrigeration, and geothermal solutions; clean-room process ventilation systems; fire protection and suppression systems; plumbing, process, and high-purity piping systems; controls and filtration systems; water and wastewater treatment systems; central plant heating and cooling systems; crane and rigging services; millwright services; and steel fabrication, erection, and welding services. The company also provides building services that cover commercial and government site-based operations and maintenance; facility management, maintenance, and services; outage services to utilities and industrial plants; military base operations support services; mobile mechanical maintenance and services; services for indoor air quality; floor care and janitorial services; landscaping, lot sweeping, and snow removal services; vendor management and call center services; installation and support for building systems; program development, management, and maintenance for energy systems; technical consulting and diagnostic services; infrastructure and building projects; small modification and retrofit projects; and other building services. It offers industrial services to oil, gas, and petrochemical industries. EMCOR Group, Inc. was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut.
Williams-Sonoma, Inc. operates as an omni-channel specialty retailer of various products for home. It offers cooking, dining, and entertaining products, such as cookware, tools, electrics, cutlery, tabletop and bar, outdoor, furniture, and a library of cookbooks under the Williams Sonoma Home brand, as well as home furnishings and decorative accessories under the Williams Sonoma lifestyle brand; and furniture, bedding, lighting, rugs, table essentials, and decorative accessories under the Pottery Barn brand. The company also provides home decor products under the West Elm brand; kids accessories under the Pottery Barn Kids brand; and an organic bedding to multi-purpose furniture under the Pottery Barn Teen brand. In addition, it offers made-to-order lighting, hardware, furniture, and home decors inspired by history under the Rejuvenation brand; and women's and men's accessories, travel, entertaining and bar, home decor, and seasonal items under the Mark and Graham brand, as well as operates a 3-D imaging and augmented reality platform for the home furnishings and decor industry. The company markets its products through e-commerce websites, direct-mail catalogs, and retail stores. It operates 544 stores comprising 502 stores in 41states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico; 20 stores in Canada; 19 stores in Australia; 3 stores in the United Kingdom; and 139 franchised stores, as well as e-commerce websites in various countries in the Middle East, the Philippines, Mexico, South Korea, and India. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. was founded in 1956 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.
AbbVie Inc. discovers, develops, manufactures, and sells pharmaceuticals in the worldwide. The company offers HUMIRA, a therapy administered as an injection for autoimmune and intestinal Behcet's diseases; SKYRIZI to treat moderate to severe plaque psoriasis in adults; RINVOQ, a JAK inhibitor for the treatment of moderate to severe active rheumatoid arthritis in adult patients; IMBRUVICA to treat adult patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL), and VENCLEXTA, a BCL-2 inhibitor used to treat adults with CLL or SLL; and MAVYRET to treat patients with chronic HCV genotype 1-6 infection. It also provides CREON, a pancreatic enzyme therapy for exocrine pancreatic insufficiency; Synthroid used in the treatment of hypothyroidism; Linzess/Constella to treat irritable bowel syndrome with constipation and chronic idiopathic constipation; Lupron for the palliative treatment of advanced prostate cancer, endometriosis and central precocious puberty, and patients with anemia caused by uterine fibroids; and Botox therapeutic. In addition, the company offers ORILISSA, a nonpeptide small molecule gonadotropin-releasing hormone antagonist for women with moderate to severe endometriosis pain; Duopa and Duodopa, a levodopa-carbidopa intestinal gel to treat Parkinson's disease; Lumigan/Ganfort, a bimatoprost ophthalmic solution for the reduction of elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) in patients with open angle glaucoma (OAG) or ocular hypertension; Ubrelvy to treat migraine with or without aura in adults; Alphagan/ Combigan, an alpha-adrenergic receptor agonist for the reduction of IOP in patients with OAG; and Restasis, a calcineurin inhibitor immunosuppressant to increase tear production, as well as other eye care products. AbbVie Inc. has a research collaboration with Dragonfly Therapeutics, Inc. The company was incorporated in 2012 and is headquartered in North Chicago, Illinois.
GoDaddy Inc. engages in the design and development of cloud-based technology products in the United States and internationally. The company provides domain name registration product that enables to engage customers at the initial stage of establishing a digital identity. It also offers shared Website hosting products that provide various applications and products, such as web analytics, Secure Sockets Layer certificates, and WordPress; Website hosting on virtual private servers and virtual dedicated servers products, which allows customers to select the server configuration suited for their applications, requirements, and growth; managed hosting products to set up, monitor, maintain, secure, and patch software and servers for customers; and security products, a suite of tools designed to help secure customers' online presence. In addition, the company provides presence products, such as Websites + Marketing, a do-it-yourself mobile-optimized online tool that enables customers to build websites and e-commerce enabled online stores; a range of marketing tools and services designed to help businesses acquire and engage customers, and create content, as well as search engine optimization that helps customers get their websites found on search sites; and social media management services. Further, it offers business application products, such as Microsoft Office 365, email accounts, email marketing, and Internet-based telephony services; online store capabilities that allows customers to transact business directly on their websites; GoDaddy Payments, a payment facilitator; and point-of-sale (POS) devices, as well as software for POS. The company serves small businesses, individuals, organizations, developers, designers, and domain investors. GoDaddy Inc. was incorporated in 2014 and is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona.
NOW Inc. distributes downstream energy and industrial products for petroleum refining, chemical processing, LNG terminals, power generation utilities, and industrial manufacturing operations in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company offers its products under the DistributionNOW and DNOW brand names. It provides consumable maintenance, repair, and operating supplies; pipes, valves, fittings, flanges, gaskets, fasteners, electrical products, instrumentations, artificial lift, pumping solutions, valve actuation and modular process, and measurement and control equipment; and mill supplies, tools, safety supplies, and personal protective equipment, as well as applied products and applications, such as artificial lift systems, coatings, and miscellaneous expendable items. The company also offers original equipment manufacturer equipment, including pumps, generator sets, air and gas compressors, dryers, blowers, mixers, and valves; modular oil and gas tank battery solutions; and application systems, work processes, parts integration, optimization solutions, and after-sales support services. In addition, it provides supply chain and materials management solutions that include procurement, inventory planning and management, and warehouse management, as well as solutions for logistics, point-of-issue technology, project management, business process, and performance metrics reporting services. The company serves customers through a network of approximately 180 locations in the upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors of the energy industry, including drilling contractors, well-servicing companies, independent and national oil and gas companies, midstream operators, and refineries, as well as petrochemical, chemical, utilities, and other downstream energy processors; and industrial and manufacturing companies. NOW Inc. was founded in 1862 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.
The following companies are subsidiares of MetLife: 10700 WILSHIRE LLC, 1201 TAB MANAGER LLC, 1350 EYE STREET MANAGER LLC, 1350 EYE STREET OWNER LLC, 150 NORTH RIVERSIDE PE MEMBER LLC, 1925 WJC OWNER LLC, 23RD STREET INVESTMENTS INC., 500 GRANT STREET ASSOCIATES LIMITED PARTNERSHIP, 500 GRANT STREET GP LLC, 6104 HOLLYWOOD LLC, AFP GENESIS ADMINISTRADORA DE FONDOS Y FIDECOMISOS S.A., AGENVITA S.R.L., ALICO HELLAS SINGLE MEMBER LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY, ALICO OPERATIONS LLC, American Life Insurance Company, BEST MARKET S.A., BLOCK VISION HOLDINGS CORPORATION, BLOCK VISION OF TEXAS INC., BORDERLAND INVESTMENTS LIMITED, BOULEVARD RESIDENTIAL LLC, BUFORD LOGISTICS CENTER LLC, CC HOLDCO MANAGER LLC, CHESTNUT FLATS WIND LLC, CLOSED JOINT-STOCK COMPANY MASTER-D, COMPANIA INVERSORA METLIFE S.A., CORPORATE REAL ESTATE HOLDINGS LLC, COVA LIFE MANAGEMENT COMPANY, DAVIS VISION INC., DAVISVISION IPA INC., DELAWARE AMERICAN LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, EURO CL INVESTMENTS LLC, EXCELENCIA OPERATIVA Y TECNOLOGICA S.A de C.V., FORTISSIMO CO. LTD, FUNDACION METLIFE MEXICO A.C., GLOBAL PROPERTIES INC., General American Life Insurance Company, Grand Bank N.A., HASKELL EAST VILLAGE LLC, HOUSING FUND MANAGER LLC, INTERNATIONAL TECHNICAL AND ADVISORY SERVICES LIMITED, INVERSIONES METLIFE HOLDCO DOS LIMITADA, INVERSIONES METLIFE HOLDCO TRES LIMITADA, LHC HOLDINGS LLC, LHCW HOLDINGS LLC, LHCW HOTEL HOLDING 2002 LLC, LHCW HOTEL HOLDING LLC, LHCW HOTEL OPERATING COMPANY 2002 LLC, LUMENLAB MALAYSIA SDN. BHD., Logan Circle Partners, MARKETPLACE RESIDENCES LLC, MC PORTFOLIO JV MEMBER LLC, MCJV LLC, MCPP OWNERS LLC, MCRE BLOCK 40 LP, MEC HEALTH CARE INC., MET 1065 HOTEL LLC, MET CANADA SOLAR ULC, METLIFE 1007 STEWART LLC, METLIFE 1201 TAB MEMBER LLC, METLIFE 425 MKT MANAGER LLC, METLIFE 425 MKT MEMBER LLC, METLIFE 555 12TH MEMBER LLC, METLIFE 8280 MEMBER LLC, METLIFE ACOMA OWNER LLC, METLIFE ADMINISTRADORA DE FUNDOS MULTIPATROCINADOS LTDA., METLIFE ALTERNATIVES GP LLC, METLIFE ASHTON AUSTIN OWNER LLC, METLIFE ASIA HOLDING COMPANY PTE. LTD., METLIFE ASIA LIMITED, METLIFE ASIA SERVICES SDN. BHD, METLIFE ASSET MANAGEMENT CORP., METLIFE ASSIGNMENT COMPANY INC., METLIFE BORO STATION MEMBER LLC, METLIFE CAMINO RAMON MEMBER LLC, METLIFE CAMPUS AT SGV MEMBER LLC, METLIFE CAPITAL CREDIT L.P., METLIFE CAPITAL LIMITED PARTNERSHIP, METLIFE CAPITAL TRUST IV, METLIFE CB W/A LLC, METLIFE CC MEMBER LLC, METLIFE CHILE ADMINISTRADORA DE MUTUOS HIPOTECARIOS S.A., METLIFE CHILE INVERSIONES LIMITADA, METLIFE CHILE SEGUROS DE VIDA S.A., METLIFE CHILE SEGUROS GENERALES S.A., METLIFE CHINO MEMBER LLC, METLIFE COLOMBIA SEGUROS de VIDA S.A., METLIFE COMMERCIAL MORTGAGE INCOME FUND GP LLC, METLIFE CONSQUARE MEMBER LLC, METLIFE CONSUMER SERVICES INC., METLIFE CORE PROPERTY FUND GP LLC, METLIFE CREDIT CORP., METLIFE DIGITAL VENTURES INC., METLIFE ENHANCED CORE PROPERTY FUND GP LLC, METLIFE EU HOLDING COMPANY LIMITED, METLIFE EUROPE INSURANCE d.a.c., METLIFE EUROPE SERVICES LIMITED, METLIFE EUROPE d.a.c., METLIFE EUROPEAN HOLDINGS LLC., METLIFE FINANCIAL SERVICES CO. LTD, METLIFE FM HOTEL MEMBER LLC, METLIFE FUNDING INC., METLIFE GENERAL INSURANCE LIMITED, METLIFE GLOBAL BENEFITS LTD., METLIFE GLOBAL HOLDING COMPANY I GMBH, METLIFE GLOBAL HOLDING COMPANY II GMBH, METLIFE GLOBAL HOLDINGS CORPORATION S.A. De C.V., METLIFE GLOBAL INC., METLIFE GLOBAL OPERATIONS SUPPORT CENTER PRIVATE LIMITED, METLIFE GROUP INC., METLIFE HCMJV 1 GP LLC, METLIFE HCMJV 1 LP LLC, METLIFE HEALTH PLANS INC., METLIFE HOLDINGS INC., METLIFE HOME LOANS LLC, METLIFE INNOVATION CENTRE LIMITED, METLIFE INNOVATION CENTRE PTE. LTD., METLIFE INSURANCE AND INVESTMENT TRUST, METLIFE INSURANCE BROKERAGE INC., METLIFE INSURANCE COMPANY OF KOREA LTD., METLIFE INSURANCE K.K., METLIFE INSURANCE LIMITED, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL HF PARTNERS LP, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS LLC, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL LIMITED LLC, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL PE FUND I LP, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL PE FUND II LP, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL PE FUND III LP, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL PE FUND IV LP, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL PE FUND V LP, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL PE FUND VI LP, METLIFE INTERNATIONAL PE FUND VII LP, METLIFE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT EUROPE LIMITED, METLIFE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT HOLDINGS LIMITED, METLIFE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT HOLDINGS LLC, METLIFE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LIMITED, METLIFE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LLC, METLIFE INVESTMENTS ASIA LIMITED, METLIFE INVESTMENTS LIMITED, METLIFE INVESTMENTS PTY LIMITED, METLIFE INVESTMENTS SECURITIES LLC, METLIFE INVESTORS DISTRIBUTION COMPANY, METLIFE INVESTORS GROUP LLC, METLIFE IRELAND TREASURY D.A.C., METLIFE JAPAN US EQUITY FUND GP LLC, METLIFE JAPAN US EQUITY FUND LP, METLIFE JAPAN US EQUITY OWNERS BLOCKER LLC, METLIFE JAPAN US EQUITY OWNERS LLC, METLIFE LATIN AMERICA ASESORIAS E INVERSIONES LIMITADA, METLIFE LEGAL PLANS INC., METLIFE LEGAL PLANS OF FLORIDA INC., METLIFE LHH MEMBER LLC, METLIFE LIFE INSURANCE S.A., METLIFE LOAN ASSET MANAGEMENT LLC, METLIFE LONG SHORT CREDIT FUND LP, METLIFE LONG SHORT CREDIT MASTER FUND LP, METLIFE LONG SHORT CREDIT PARALLEL FUND LP, METLIFE MAS S.A. DE C.V., METLIFE MEXICO HOLDINGS S. DE R.L. DE C.V., METLIFE MEXICO S.A. DE C.V., METLIFE MEXICO SERVICIOS S.A. DE C.V., METLIFE MIDDLE MARKET PRIVATE DEBT FUND II LP, METLIFE MIDDLE MARKET PRIVATE DEBT GP II LLC, METLIFE MIDDLE MARKET PRIVATE DEBT GP LLC, METLIFE MIDDLE MARKET PRIVATE DEBT II RATED FUND LP, METLIFE MIDDLE MARKET PRIVATE DEBT PARALLEL FUND LP, METLIFE MIDDLE MARKET PRIVATE DEBT PARALLEL GP LLC, METLIFE MMPD II SPECIAL LLC, METLIFE MULTI-FAMILY PARTNERS III LLC, METLIFE OBS MEMBER LLC, METLIFE OFC MEMBER LLC, METLIFE ONTARIO STREET MEMBR LLC, METLIFE PARK TOWER MEMBER LLC, METLIFE PENSION TRUSTEES LIMITED, METLIFE PENSIONES MEXICO S.A., METLIFE PET INSURANCE SOLUTIONS LLC, METLIFE PLANOS ODONTOLOGICOS LTDA., METLIFE POWSZECHNE TOWARTZYSTWO EMERYTALNE S.A., METLIFE PRIVATE EQUITY HOLDINGS LLC, METLIFE PROPERTIES VENTURES LLC, METLIFE RC SF MEMBER LLC, METLIFE REAL ESTATE LENDING LLC, METLIFE REINSURANCE COMPANY OF BERMUDA LTD., METLIFE REINSURANCE COMPANY OF CHARLESTON, METLIFE REINSURANCE COMPANY OF VERMONT, METLIFE RETIREMENT SERVICES LLC, METLIFE SECURITIZATION DEPOSITOR LLC, METLIFE SEGUROS S.A., METLIFE SENIOR DIRECT LENDING FINCO LLC, METLIFE SENIOR DIRECT LENDING FUND LP, METLIFE SENIOR DIRECT LENDING GP LLC, METLIFE SENIOR DIRECT LENDING HOLDINGS LP, METLIFE SERVICES AND SOLUTIONS LLC, METLIFE SERVICES CYPRUS LTD., METLIFE SERVICES EAST PRIVATE LIMITED, METLIFE SERVICES EEIG, METLIFE SERVICES EOOD, METLIFE SERVICES SOCIEDAD LIMITADA, METLIFE SERVICES SP Z.O.O, METLIFE SERVICIOS S.A., METLIFE SINGLE FAMILY RENTAL FUND GP LLC, METLIFE SINGLE FAMILY RENTAL FUND LP, METLIFE SOLUTIONS PTE. LTD., METLIFE SOLUTIONS S.A.S., METLIFE SP HOLDINGS LLC, METLIFE STRATEGIC HOTEL DEBT FUND GP LLC, METLIFE SYNDICATED BANK LOAN LUX GP S.A.R.L., METLIFE THR INVESTOR LLC, METLIFE TOWARZYSTWO FUNDUSZY INWESTYCYJNYCH S.A., METLIFE TOWARZYSTWO UBEZPIECZEN NA ZYCIE I REASEKURACJI S.A., METLIFE TOWER RESOURCES GROUP INC., METLIFE TREAT TOWERS MEMBER LLC, METLIFE WORLDWIDE HOLDINGS LLC, METROPOLITAN GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANY, METROPOLITAN GLOBAL MANAGEMENT LLC, METROPOLITAN LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, METROPOLITAN LIFE SEGUROS E PREVIDENCIA PRIVADA S.A., METROPOLITAN LIFE SOCIETATE de ADMINISTRARE a UNUI FOND de PENSII ADMINISTRAT PRIVAT S.A., METROPOLITAN TOWER LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, METROPOLITAN TOWER REALTY COMPANY INC., MEX DF PROPERTIES LLC, MFA FINANCING VEHICLE CTR1 LLC, MIDTOWN HEIGHTS LLC, MIM CAMPUS AT SGV MANAGER LLC, MIM CLAL GENERAL PARTNER LLC, MIM CM SYNDICATOR LLC, MIM EMD GP LLC, MIM I LLC, MIM LS GP LLC, MIM METWEST INTERNATIONAL MANAGER LLC, MIM ML-AI VENTURE 5 MANAGER LLC, MIM OMD MANAGER LLC, MIM PROPERTY MANAGEMENT LLC, MIM PROPERTY MANAGEMENT OF GEORGIA 1 LLC, MIM SPOKANE INDUSTRIAL MANAGER LLC, MIM THIRD ARMY INDUSTRIAL MANAGER LLC, MISSOURI REINSURANCE INC., ML 300 THIRD MEMBER LLC, ML ARMATURE MEMBER LLC, ML BELLEVUE MANAGER LLC, ML BELLEVUE MEMBER LLC, ML CAPACITACION COMERCIAL S.A. DE C.V., ML CERRITOS TC MEMBER LLC, ML CLAL MEMBER LLC, ML CORNER 63 MEMBER LLC, ML DOLPHIN GP LLC, ML DOLPHIN MEZZ LLC, ML HUDSON MEMBER LLC, ML MATSON MILLS MEMBER LLC, ML MILILANI MEMBER LLC, ML OMD MEMBER LLC, ML ONE BEDMINSTER LLC, ML PORT CHESTER SC MEMBER LLC, ML SENTINEL SQUARE MEMBER LLC, ML SLOANS LAKE MEMEBR LLC, ML SOUTHLANDS MEMBER LLC, ML SOUTHMORE LLC, ML SPOKANE INDUSTRIAL MEMBER LLC, ML SWAN GP LLC, ML SWAN MEZZ LLC, ML TERRACES LLC, ML THIRD ARMY INDUSTRIAL MEMBER LLC, ML VENTURE 1 MANAGER S. DE R. L. DE C.V., ML VENTURE 1 SERVICER LLC, ML-AI METLIFE MEMBER 1 LLC, ML-AI METLIFE MEMBER 2 LLC, ML-AI METLIFE MEMBER 3 LLC, ML-AI METLIFE MEMBER 4 LLC, ML-AI METLIFE MEMBER 5 LLC, ML-URS PORT CHESTER SC MANAGER LLC, MLIA MANAGER I LLC, MLIA PARK TOWER MANAGER LLC, MLIA SBAF COLONY MANAGER LLC, MLIA SBAF MANAGER LLC, MLIC ASSET HOLDINGS II LLC, MLIC ASSET HOLDINGS LLC, MLIC CB HOLDINGS LLC, MLJ US FEEDER LLC, MM GLOBAL OPERATIONS SUPPORT CENTER S.A. DE C.V., MMP CEDAR STREET OWNER LLC, MMP CEDAR STREET REIT LLC, MMP HOLDINGS III LLC, MMP OLIVIAN OWNER LLC, MMP OLIVIAN REIT LLC, MMP OWNERS III LLC, MMP OWNERS LLC, MMP SOUTH PARK OWNER LLC, MMP SOUTH PARK REIT LLC, MNQM TRUST 2020, MREF 425 MKT LLC, MSHDF HOLDCO I LLC, MSV IRVINE PROPERTY LLC, MTL LEASING LLC, MTU HOTEL OWNER LLC, NATILOPORTEM HOLDINGS LLC, NEWBURY INSURANCE COMPANY LIMITED, OCONEE GOLF COMPANY LLC, OCONEE HOTEL COMPANY LLC, OCONEE LAND COMPANY LLC, OCONEE LAND DEVELOPMENT COMPANY LLC, OCONEE MARINA COMPANY LLC, OMI MLIC INVESTMENTS LIMITED, PACIFIC LOGISTICS INDUSTRIAL NORTH LLC, PACIFIC LOGISTICS INDUSTRIAL SOUTH LLC, PARK TOWER JV MEMBER LLC, PARK TOWER REIT INC., PJSC METLIFE, PLAZA DRIVE PROPERTIES LLC, PREFCO FOURTEEN LLC, PREFCO XIV HOLDINGS LLC, PROVIDA INTERNACIONAL S.A., SAFEGUARD HEALTH ENTERPRISES INC., SAFEGUARD HEALTH PLANS INC., SAFEHEALTH LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, SOUTHCREEK INDUSTRIAL HOLDINGS LLC, ST. JAMES FLEET INVESTMENTS TWO LIMITED, SUPERIOR PROCUREMENT INC., SUPERIOR VISION BENEFIT MANAGEMENT INC., SUPERIOR VISION HOLDINGS INC., SUPERIOR VISION INSURANCE INC., SUPERIOR VISION INSURANCE PLAN OF WISCONSIN INC., SUPERIOR VISION OF NEW JERSEY INC., SUPERIOR VISION SERVICES INC., Safeguard Health Enterprises, Security First Group Inc., THE BUILDING AT 575 FIFTH AVENUE MEZZANINE LLC, THE BUILDING AT 575 FIFTH RETAIL HOLDING LLC, THE BUILDING AT 575 FIFTH RETAIL OWNER, THE DIRECT CALL CENTRE PTY LIMITED, TRANSMOUNTAIN LAND & LIVESTOCK COMPANY, UVC INDEPENDENT PRACTICE ASSOCIATION INC., VERSANT HEALTH CONSOLIDATIONS CORP., VERSANT HEALTH HOLDCO INC., VERSANT HEALTH INC., VERSANT HEALTH LAB LLC, VIRIDIAN MIRACLE MILE LLC, VISION 21 MANAGED EYE CARE OF TAMPA BAY INC., VISION 21 PHYSICIAN PRACTICE MANAGEMENT COMPANY, VISION TWENTY-ONE MANAGED EYE CARE IPA INC., Versant Health, WDV ACQUISITION CORP., WFP 1000 HOLDING COMPANY GP LLC, WHITE OAK ROYALTY COMPANY, WHITE TRACT II LLC, and Willing.

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Brookdale Senior Living Inc. owns, manages, and operates senior living communities in the United States. It operates in three segments: Independent Living, Assisted Living and Memory Care, and Continuing Care Retirement Communities (CCRCs). The Independent Living segment owns or leases communities comprising independent and assisted living units in a single community that are primarily designed for middle to upper income seniors. The Assisted Living and Memory Care segment owns or leases communities consisting of freestanding multi-story communities and freestanding single-story communities, which offer housing and 24-hour assistance with activities of daily living for the Company's residents. This segment also operates memory care communities for residents with Alzheimer's and other dementias. The CCRCs segment owns or leases communities that provides various living arrangements, such as independent and assisted living, memory care, and skilled nursing; and services to accommodate various levels of physical ability and healthcare needs. It also manages communities on behalf of others. As of December 31, 2021, the company owned 347 communities, leased 299 communities, and managed 33 communities on behalf of others. Brookdale Senior Living Inc. was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in Brentwood, Tennessee.
Duck Creek Technologies, Inc. provides software-as-a-service core systems to the property and casualty insurance industry in the United States and internationally. The company provides Duck Creek Policy, a solution that enables insurers to develop and launch new insurance products and manage various aspects of policy administration ranging from product definition to quoting, binding, and servicing; Duck Creek Billing that provides payment and invoicing capabilities, such as billing and collections, commission processing, disbursement management, and general ledger capabilities for insurance lines and bill types; and Duck Creek Claims that supports entire claims lifecycle from first notice of loss through investigation, payments, negotiations, reporting, and closure. It also offers Duck Creek Rating that allows carriers to develop new rates and models and deliver quotes in real-time based on the complex rating algorithms; Duck Creek Insights, an insurance analytics solution that allows carriers to gather and analyze data from internal and external sources and facilitate analysis and reporting on a single system; Duck Creek Digital Engagement that offer digital interactions between property and casualty insurers and their agents, brokers, and policyholders; and Duck Creek Distribution Management that automates sales channel activities for agents and brokers, including producer onboarding, compliance, and compensation management. In addition, the company provides Duck Creek Reinsurance Management that automates financial and administrative functions; and Duck Creek Industry Content that provides pre-built content, including base business rules, product designs, rating algorithms, data capture screens, and workflows for insurance lines of business, such as commercial auto, inland marine, and workers compensation. It has a partnership with Shift Technologies, Inc. to implement AI fraud detection. The company was founded in 2016 and is based in Boston, Massachusetts.
Chunghwa Telecom Co., Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, provides telecommunication services in Taiwan and internationally. It operates through Domestic Fixed Communications Business, Mobile Communications Business, Internet Business, International Fixed Communications Business, and Others segments. The company offers local and domestic long-distance telephone, broadband access, and related services; information and communication technology and VAS services; and interconnection with its fixed-line network to other mobile and fixed-line operators. It also provides mobile; HiNet Internet, data communication, and cloud; Internet data center; and international long-distance telephone and data services. In addition, the company distributes and sells mobile handsets, data cards, electronic materials, and computing and business machinery equipment and software; designs, develops, manufactures, sells, and services semiconductor testing components, printed circuit boards, and electronic components and finished products, and automatic license plate recognition software and hardware products. Further, it offers real estate development and property management; system, network, and communications integration; intelligent buildings and energy network; digital information supply and advertisement; property and liability insurance agency; family education; computing equipment installation; management consultancy; data processing; telecommunication engineering; Internet identify; and information and communication solution services. Additionally, the company provides software design services, and Internet contents production and play services; motion picture production and distribution; and energy saving solutions and international circuits, and services for electronic parts and machinery processed products. The company was incorporated in 1996 and is headquartered in Taipei City, Taiwan.
CA, Inc., doing business as CA technologies, develops, markets, delivers, and licenses software products and services in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Mainframe Solutions, Enterprise Solutions, and Services. The Mainframe Solutions segment offers solutions for the IBM z Systems platform, which runs various mission critical business applications. Its mainframe solutions enable customers enhance economics by increasing throughput and lowering cost per transaction; increasing business agility through DevOps tooling and processes; increasing reliability and availability of operations through machine intelligence and automation solutions; and protecting enterprise data with security and compliance. The Enterprise Solutions segment provides a range of software planning, development, and management tools for mobile, cloud, and distributed computing environments. It primarily provides customers secure application development, infrastructure management, automation, and identity-centric security solutions. The Services segment offers various services, such as consulting, implementation, application management, education, and support services to commercial and government customers for implementation and adoption of its software solutions. The company serves banks, insurance companies, other financial services providers, government agencies, information technology service providers, telecommunication providers, transportation companies, manufacturers, technology companies, retailers, educational organizations, and health care institutions. It sells its products through direct sales force, as well as through various partner channels comprising resellers, service providers, system integrators, managed service providers, and technology partners. The company was formerly known as Computer Associates International, Inc. and changed its name to CA, Inc. in 2006. CA, Inc. was founded in 1974 and is headquartered in New York, New York.
Trecora Resources manufactures and sells various specialty petrochemical products and synthetic waxes in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Petrochemical and Specialty Waxes. The Petrochemical segment offers hydrocarbons and other petroleum based products, including isopentane, normal pentane, isohexane, and hexane for use in the production of polyethylene, packaging, polypropylene, expandable polystyrene, poly-iso/urethane foams, and crude oil from the Canadian tar sands, as well as in the catalyst support industry. It also owns and operates pipelines. The Specialty Waxes segment provides specialty polyethylene for use in the paints and inks, adhesives, coatings, and PVC lubricants markets; and specialized synthetic poly alpha olefin waxes for use as toner in printers, as well as additives for candles. The company also provides custom processing services; and produces copper and zinc concentrates, and silver and gold dore. Trecora Resources was formerly known as Arabian American Development Company and changed its name to Trecora Resources in June 2014. Trecora Resources was founded in 1967 and is based in Sugar Land, Texas.
Credit Suisse Group AG, together with its subsidiaries, provides various financial services in Switzerland, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Americas, and Asia Pacific. The company offers wealth management solutions, including investment advice and discretionary asset management services; risk management solutions, such as managed investment products; and wealth planning, succession planning, and trust services. It also provides financing and lending solutions, including consumer credit and real estate mortgage lending, real asset lending relating to ship, and aviation financing for UHNWI; standard and structured hedging, and lombard lending solutions, as well as collateral trading services; and investment banking solutions, such as global securities sales, trading and execution, capital raising, and advisory services. In addition, the company offers banking solutions, such as payments, accounts, debit and credit cards, and product bundles; asset management products; equity and debt underwriting, and advisory services; cash equities, equity derivatives, and convertibles, as well as prime services; and fixed income products, such as credit, securitized, macro, emerging markets, financing, structured credit, and other products. Further, it provides HOLT, a framework for assessing the performance of approximately 20,000 companies; and equity and fixed income research services. The company serves private and institutional clients; ultra-high-net-worth individuals, high-net-worth individuals, and affluent and retail clients; corporate clients, small and medium-sized enterprises, external asset managers, financial institutions, and commodity traders; and pension funds, hedge funds, governments, foundations and endowments, corporations, entrepreneurs, private individuals, financial sponsors, and sovereign clients. As of December 31, 2021, it operated through a network of 311 offices and branches. The company was founded in 1856 and is based in Zurich, Switzerland.
Calix, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides cloud and software platforms, and systems and services in the United States, rest of Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company's cloud and software platforms, and systems and services enable broadband service providers (BSPs) to provide a range of services. It provides Calix Cloud platform, a role-based analytics platform comprising Calix Marketing Cloud, Calix Support Cloud, and Calix Operations Cloud, which are configurable to display role-based insights and enable BSPs to anticipate and target new revenue-generating services and applications through mobile application. The company also offers EXOS, a carrier class premises operating system and fully integrated with its GigaSpire family of systems to be ready for deployment as a complete subscriber experience solutions for BSP's residential and business subscribers; and AXOS, a software platform to access edge of the network by its architecture and operations. It offers its products through its direct sales force and resellers. Calix, Inc. was incorporated in 1999 and is headquartered in San Jose, California.
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.
The following companies are subsidiares of Accenture: 2nd Road, ?What If!, ?What If! China Holdings Limited, ?What If! Holdings Limited, ?What If! Limited, ACN Consulting Co Ltd, AD.Dialeto (Digital Agency acquired by Accenture), AFD.TECH, AGS Business and Technology Services Limited, AIG Shared Services Business Processing Inc, ASM Research Inc., ASM Research LLC, ATAN, Accenture (Botswana) (Proprietary) Limited, Accenture (China) Co. Ltd., Accenture (Shenzhen) Technology Co. Ltd., Accenture (South Africa) Pty Ltd, Accenture (UK) Limited, Accenture 2 Business Process Services S.A., Accenture 2 LLC, Accenture A/S, Accenture AB, Accenture AG, Accenture AS, Accenture Africa Pty Ltd, Accenture Agencia Interativa Ltda, Accenture Australia Holding B.V., Accenture Australia Holdings Pty Ltd, Accenture Australia Pty Ltd, Accenture B.V., Accenture BPM Operations Support Services S.A., Accenture BPM S.C.R.L., Accenture BPS Services S.p. z o.o., Accenture Branch Holdings B.V., Accenture Bulgaria EOOD, Accenture Business Services for Utilities Inc, Accenture Business Services of British Columbia Limited Partnership, Accenture Business and Technology Services LLC, Accenture C.A., Accenture Canada Holdings Inc, Accenture Capital Designated Activity Company, Accenture Capital Inc, Accenture Central Europe B.V., Accenture Chile Asesorias y Servicios Ltda, Accenture Cloud Services GmbH, Accenture Cloud Software Solutions Limited, Accenture Cloud Solutions Australia Pty Ltd, Accenture Cloud Solutions LLC, Accenture Cloud Solutions Pty Ltd, Accenture Co Ltd, Accenture Co. Ltd, Accenture Communications Infrastructure Solutions Ltd, Accenture Company Ltd, Accenture Consulting Pty Ltd, Accenture Consulting Services Ltd Tanzania, Accenture Consultores de Gestao S.A., Accenture Consultoria de Industria e Consumo Ltda, Accenture Consultoria de Recursos Naturais Ltda, Accenture Credit Services LLC, Accenture Customer Services Distribution SASU, Accenture Customer Services Ltd, Accenture Danismanlik Limited Sirketi, Accenture Defined Benefit Pension Plan Trustees Limited, Accenture Defined Contribution Pension Plan Trustees Limited, Accenture Delivery Poland S.p. z o.o., Accenture Dienstleistungen GmbH, Accenture Digital Holdings GmbH, Accenture East Africa Limited, Accenture Ecuador S.A., Accenture Egypt LLC, Accenture Enterprise Development (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Accenture Federal Services LLC, Accenture Finance II Limited, Accenture Finance Limited, Accenture Finance and Accounting BPO Services S.p.A., Accenture Finance and Accounting Services S.r.l., Accenture Financial Advanced Solution & Technology S.r.l., Accenture Flex LLC, Accenture GP LLC, Accenture Global Capital Designated Activity Company, Accenture Global Engagements Limited, Accenture Global Holdings Limited, Accenture Global Services Limited, Accenture Global Solutions Limited, Accenture GmbH, Accenture HR Services S.p.A., Accenture Healthcare Processing Inc, Accenture Holding Brasil Ltda, Accenture Holding GmbH & Co. KG, Accenture Holdings (Iberia) S.L., Accenture Holdings B.V., Accenture Holdings France SASU, Accenture Hungary Holdings Kft, Accenture Inc, Accenture Industrial Software Limited Liability Company, Accenture Industrial Software Solutions Kft, Accenture Industrial Software Solutions SA, Accenture Insurance Services B.V., Accenture Insurance Services LLC, Accenture International B.V., Accenture International LLC, Accenture International Limited, Accenture Japan Ltd, Accenture Korea B.V., Accenture LLC, Accenture LLP, Accenture Lanka (Private) Ltd, Accenture Limited, Accenture Lithuania UAB, Accenture Ltd, Accenture Ltda, Accenture Maghreb S.a.r.l., Accenture Managed Services SRL, Accenture Management GmbH, Accenture Marketing Services LLC, Accenture Marketing Services Limited, Accenture Middle East B.V., Accenture Minority I B.V., Accenture Mozambique Limitada, Accenture Mzansi Pty Ltd, Accenture NV/SA, Accenture NZ Limited, Accenture Nova Scotia Unlimited Liability Co., Accenture OOO, Accenture Operations GmbH, Accenture Operations S.p. z o.o., Accenture Operations Services Private Limited, Accenture Operations Services Sdn Bhd, Accenture Outsourcing S.r.l., Accenture Outsourcing Services S.A., Accenture Oy, Accenture Panama Inc, Accenture Participations B.V., Accenture Participations II Limited, Accenture Peru SRL, Accenture Post Trade Processing SASU, Accenture Post-Trade Processing Limited, Accenture Process (Mauritius) Ltd, Accenture Pte Ltd, Accenture Puerto Rico LLC, Accenture Qiyun Technology (Hangzhou) Co. Ltd, Accenture S.C., Accenture S.L., Accenture S.R.L., Accenture S.p. z o.o., Accenture S.p.A., Accenture SASU, Accenture SG Services Pte Ltd, Accenture SRL, Accenture Saudi Arabia Limited, Accenture Sdn Bhd, Accenture Service Center SRL, Accenture Services (Mauritius) Ltd, Accenture Services AB, Accenture Services AG, Accenture Services AS, Accenture Services GmbH, Accenture Services Morocco SA, Accenture Services Oy, Accenture Services Pty Ltd, Accenture Services S.p. z o.o., Accenture Services SRL, Accenture Services and Technology S.r.l., Accenture Services s.r.o., Accenture Single Member S.A. Organization Information Technology & Business Development, Accenture Solutions Co. Ltd, Accenture Solutions Private Limited, Accenture Solutions Pte Ltd, Accenture Solutions Pty Ltd, Accenture Solutions S.p. z o.o, Accenture Solutions Sdn Bhd, Accenture State Healthcare Services LLC, Accenture Sub II Inc, Accenture Sub III Inc, Accenture Sub LLC, Accenture Systems Integration Limited, Accenture Sarl, Accenture Tanacsado Kolatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, Accenture Technology Solutions (Dalian) Co. Ltd., Accenture Technology Solutions (HK) Co. Ltd., Accenture Technology Solutions (Thailand) Co. Ltd, Accenture Technology Solutions - Solucoes Informaticas Integradas S.A., Accenture Technology Solutions GmbH, Accenture Technology Solutions Oy, Accenture Technology Solutions Pty Ltd, Accenture Technology Solutions S.A. de C.V., Accenture Technology Solutions S.r.l., Accenture Technology Solutions SASU, Accenture Technology Solutions SRL, Accenture Technology Solutions Sdn Bhd, Accenture Technology Solutions Slovakia s.r.o., Accenture Technology Ventures B.V., Accenture Technology Ventures SPRL, Accenture Tecnologia Consultoria y Outsourcing S.A., Accenture Uruguay SRL, Accenture Vietnam Co. Limited, Accenture Zambia Limited, Accenture do Brasil Ltda, Accenture plc, Accenture s.r.o., Acceria, Acquity Group, Adaptly LLC, Adaptly UK Limited, AddVal Technology, Adqptly, Advantium Inc., Advoco, Agilex Technologies Inc., Alfa Consulting, Allen International, AlphaBeta Advisors, Altevie Technologies S.r.l., Altima, Altima (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Altima Asia Ltd, Altitude, Altitude LLC, Altius Consulting Limited, Altius Data Solutions Private Limited, Analytics 8 LP, Analytics 8 Pty Ltd, Analytics8, Aorui Advertising (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Apis, Apis Group Pty Ltd, Appaloosa Technology SASU, AppsPro, AppsPro, Arca, Arca Ingenieros y Consultoria S.L., Arca Telecom S.L., Ariba - BPO, Arismore, Artio People (Payroll) Pty Ltd, Artio People Pty Ltd, Aspiro Solutions (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Automation Partners Pty Ltd, Avanade (Guangzhou) Computer Technology Development Co. Ltd., Avanade Asia Pte Ltd, Avanade Australia Pty Ltd, Avanade Belgium SPRL, Avanade Canada Inc, Avanade Consulting Poland S.p. z o.o., Avanade Denmark A/S, Avanade Deutschland GmbH, Avanade Europe Holdings Limited, Avanade Europe Services Limited, Avanade Finland Oy, Avanade France SASU, Avanade Holdings LLC, Avanade Hong Kong Ltd, Avanade Inc, Avanade International Corporation, Avanade Ireland Limited, Avanade Italy S.r.l., Avanade Japan KK, Avanade Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Avanade Middle East Limited, Avanade Netherlands B.V., Avanade Norway AS, Avanade Poland S.p. z o.o., Avanade Schweiz GmbH, Avanade South Africa Pty Ltd, Avanade Spain S.L., Avanade Sweden AB, Avanade UK Limited, Avanade do Brasil Ltda , Avanade Osterreich GmbH, Avenai, Avieco, Axia Ltd., BABCN LLC, BCS Consulting, BCT Solutions, BCT Solutions Pty Ltd, BENEXT, BPO Servicos Administrativos Ltda, BRIDGE Energy Group, BRIDGEi2i, Beacon Consulting Group Inc., Beijing Genesis Interactive Technology Co. Ltd., Beijing Zhidao Future Consulting Co. Ltd, Benext, Berico Technologies LLC, Bionic, Bionic Solution LLC, Blue Horseshoe, Boomerang Pharmaceutical Communications, Bow & Arrow, Bow & Arrow Limited, Brand Learning, Brand Learning Group Limited, Brightstep AB, Byte Prophecy, Byte Prophecy Private Limited, CAS, CRMWaypoint, CS Technology (Australia) Pty Ltd, CS Technology (UK) Limited, CS Technology Group LLC, CS Technology LLC, CadenceQuest Inc., Callisto Integration Europe B.V., Callisto Integration Europe Limited, Callisto Integration LLC, Callisto Integration Ltd, Capgemini - North American health practice, Capital Consultancy Services Inc, Certus Solutions Consulting Services Limited, Certus Solutions Ltd, ChangeTrack Research Pty Ltd., Chaotic Moon Studios, Chengdu Mensa Advertising Co. Ltd., Cimation, Cirrus Connect Australia Pty Ltd, Cirrus Connect Limited, Cirruseo, Clarity Insights, ClearEdge Partners, Clearhead, Clearhead Group LLC, ClientHouse GmbH, Cloud Sherpas, Cloud Sherpas (GA) LLC, Cloud Sherpas Japan G.K., Cloud Sherpas New Zealand Limited, Cloudeasier SAS, Cloudpoint Limited, Cloudsherpas Inc, Cloudworks, Cloudworks Consulting Services Inc, Cloudworks Technology LLC, Computer Research and Telecommunications LLC, Concrete Desenvolvimento de Sistemas Ltda, Concrete Solutions, Concrete Solutions Ltda, Context Information Security, Context Information Security LLC, Context Information Security Limited, CoreCompete LLC, CoreCompete Limited, CoreCompete Private Limited, Corliant Inc., Creative Drive LLC, Creative Drive US LLC, CreativeDrive, CreativeDrive Digital Content Services (Shenzhen) Co Ltd., CreativeDrive EMEA Limited, CreativeDrive Singapore Pte Ltd, CreativeDrive UK Group Limited, Cutting Edge Solutions Limited, Cygni AB, Cygni Norrsken AB, Cygni Stockholm AB, Cygni Syd AB, Cygni Vast AB, Cygni Ost AB, Cygni Ostersund AB, DAZ Systems Inc, DAZ Systems LLC, DAZSI Systems (India) Pvt. Limited, DI Futures Corporation, Data Essential SARL, Davies Consulting, DayNine Consulting, DayNine Consulting (New Zealand) Limited, DayNine Consulting LLC, Declarative Holdings LLC, Decora Marketplace LLC, Decorado Marketplace Ltda-EPP, Defense Point Security, Deja vu Security, Design Strategy and Research de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Designaffairs LLC, Digiplug S.A.S., Digital Results Group LLC, Double Digit Limitada, Double Digit Pty SA, Droga5, Droga5 LLC, Droga5 Studios LLC, Droga5 UK Limited, Duck Creek Technologies, ESR Labs, ESR Labs AG, EdenOne Solutions Limited, Edenhouse ERP Holdings Limited, Edenhouse Solutions Limited, Enaxis Consulting, Enaxis Consulting LP, End to End Analytics LLC, End-to-End Analytics, Endorphin Medici (M) Sdn Bhd, Energuia Web S.A., Energy Management Brokers Limited, EnergyQuote JHA, Enimbos, Enimbos Global Services S.L., Enkitec, Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions LLC, Enterprise System Partners, Enterprise System Partners B.V., Enterprise System Partners Bilisim Danismanlik Ticaret Anonim Sirketi, Enterprise System Partners Global Corporation, Enterprise System Partners Limited, Enthusian Pty Ltd, Entropia, Entropia (M) Sdn Bhd, Entropia Holdings Pte Ltd, Entropia Intercraft Sdn Bhd, Epylon, Ergo, Espedia S.r.l., Ethica Consulting Group, Ethica Consulting S.p.A., Evopro Group, Exactside Limited, Experity, Exton Consulting, Exton Consulting Spain Strategy&Management S.L., Exton Germany GmbH, Exton International SAS, Exton Italia S.r.l., Exton SAS, FGM LLC, Fairway Technologies Inc, Farah BidCo Limited, Farah MidCo Limited, Farah Topco Limited, Filmproduction ApS, First Annapolis Consulting Inc., First Annapolis Consulting LLC, Fjord, Focus Group Europe, Formicary, Founders Intelligence, Fruendo S.r.l., FusionX, Future State Consulting LLC, FutureMove (Beijing) Automotive Technology Co. Ltd., FutureMove Automotive, FutureMove Automotive Co. Ltd., GRA Supply Chain Pty Ltd, Gagel Group S de R.L. de C.V., Gapso Servicos de Informatica Ltda, Gapso Servicos de Informatica Ltda., Genfour, George Group Consulting L.P., Gestalt LLC, Gevity, Gren utvikling AS, H.B. Maynard and Co. Inc., HRC Retail Advisory, Hagberg Consulting Group, Hahntel Ltda, Halo Partners LLC, Hamilton Holding Company S.A, Hangzhou Aiyunzhe Technology Co. Ltd., Happen, Happen GP Limited, Happen Limited, Headspring, Hjaltelin Stahl, Hjaltelin Stahl A/S, Hjaltelin Stahl K/S, Hytracc Consulting AS, Hytracc Consulting AS, Hytracc Consulting Malaysia Sdn Bhd, IBB Consulting, ICM.S S.r.l., IMJ Corp, IMJ Corporation, INSITUM, IQSP Consulting LLC, IT One Company Limited, ITBS Servicios Bancarios de Tecnologia de la Informacion SL, Icon Integration, Icon Integration (NZ) Limited, Icon Integration Pty Ltd, Imagine Broadband (USA) Limited, Imagine Broadband USA LLC, Imaginea Inc, Imaginea Technologies LLC, Industrie IT (Hong Kong) Ltd, Industrie IT (Singapore) Pte Ltd, Industrie IT Group Pty Ltd, Industrie IT Pty Ltd, Industrie&Co, Infinity Works Consulting Limited, Infinity Works Holdings Limited, Infinity Works Management Limited, Infinity Works Midco Limited, Informatica de Euskadi S.L., Innotec International EAD, Innotec International S.p. z.o.o., Innotec Marketing GmbH, Innotec Marketing International Ireland Limited, Innotec- Marketing Spain S.L, Insitum Consultoria Argentina SRL, Insitum Consultoria S.A. de C.V., International Biometric Group LLC, International Biometric Group UK Limited, Intrepid, Intrepid Futureworks Sdn Bhd, Intrigo Systems Inc, Intrigo Systems India Pvt. Limited, Intrigo Systems LLC, Inventor Technology Ltd, InvestTech, Investtech Systems Consulting LLC, ItSafer Continuity Services S.L., JKD Consulting LLC, Javelin Group, K Comms Group Limited, KSC Studio LLC, Kaper Communications Limited, Karma Communications Debtco Limited, Karma Communications Group Limited, Karma Communications Holdings Limited, Karmarama, Karmarama Comms Limited, Karmarama Limited, King James Group, Knowledge Rules Inc., Knowledgent, Knowledgent Group LLC, Kogentix, Kogentix LLC, Kogentix Limited, Kogentix Singapore Pte Ltd, Kogentix Technologies Private Limited, Kolle Rebbe, Kolle Rebbe GmbH, Kream Comms Limited, Kunstmaan, Kurt Salmon, Kurt Salmon Canada LTD, Kurt Salmon US LLC, LEXTA, LINKBYNET, LINKBYNET Indian Ocean (L.I.O) Ltd, LabAnswer, Lexta GmbH, Lexta UK Limited, Lien par le reseau Inc, Lien par le reseau infrastructures Inc, Lin Bo (Shanghai) Network Technology Co. Ltd., Link By Net SAS, Link By Net SRL, Link By Net Vietnam Company Limited, Linkbynet East Asia Ltd, Linkbynet Singapore Pte Ltd., Loud & Clear Creative Pty Ltd, Lumenup S.A., MAXIM Systems Inc., MCG US Holdings LLC, Mackevision CG Technology and Service (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Mackevision Japan Co. Ltd., Mackevision Korea Ltd, Mackevision LLC, Mackevision Medien Design, Mackevision Medien Design GmbH, Mackevision Singapore Pte Ltd, Mackevision UK Limited, Maglan, Maglan Information Defense Technologies Research Ltd, Maihiro, Matter, Maud Corp Pty Ltd, Maxamine International, Measuretek LLC, Media Audits Ltd., Media Hive, Mediasenz Pty Ltd., Meredith Specialty LLC, Meredith Xcelerated Marketing, Meredith Xcelerated Marketing LLC, Meridian Informed Purchasing Ltd., Mindtribe, Mistral Wind Operations  Servicos Empresariais Unipessoal Lda., MobGen, Mortgage Cadence LLC, Mortgage Cadence an Accenture Company, Most Champion Ltd, Mudano, Mudano Limited, Myrtle Consulting Group LLC, N3, N3 (Dalian) Business Consulting Co. Ltd., N3 Brazil Consultoria em Marketing Ltda, N3 Germany GmbH, N3 LLC, N3 North America LLC, N3 Results Australia Pty Ltd, N3 Results Ireland Limited, N3 Results Japan G.K., N3 Results Limited, N3 Results Malaysia Sdn Bhd, N3 Results Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., N3 Results S.A.S., N3 Results Singapore Pte Ltd, N3 Results Unipessoal Lda, NYTEC, Nanjing Demeng Advertising Co. Ltd., Nashco Consulting, NaviSys Inc., Nell'Armonia Israel Ltd, Nell'Armonia SAS, Nell'Participation SAS, NellArmonia, Neo Metrics Analytics S.L., Neo Metrics Chile S.A., New Content, New Content Editora e Produtora Ltda, New Energy Group, News Imaging LLC, NewsPage, NewsPage (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, NewsPage Pte Ltd, Northstream, Novetta Holdings LLC, Novetta LLC, Novetta Solutions LLC, Novetta Topco LLC, OCTO Technology, OPS Rules Management Consultants, Octagon Research Solutions Inc., Octo Technology Pty Ltd, Octo Technology SA, Odgaard ApS, Olikka, Olikka Pty Ltd, Olympus Systems Corporation, Openmind, Openmind S.r..l., Openminded, Openminded SAS, Operaciones Accenture S.A. de C.V., OpusLine, Orbium, Orbium AG, Orbium Consulting Limited, Orbium Inc., Orbium Ltd, Orbium Pte Ltd, Orbium Pty Ltd, Origin Digital, PCO Innovation, PLM Systems S.r.l, PRION GmbH, PT Accenture, PT Asta Catur Indra, PT Kogentix Teknologi Indonesia, PacificLink Group, Paja Finanssipalvelut Oy, Parker Fitzgerald Inc, Parker Fitzgerald International Limited, Parker Fitzgerald Limited, Parker Fitzgerald PTY Ltd, Parker Fitzgerald Services Limited, Parker Fitzgerald Solutions Limited, Pecaso Ltd., Pegasus Production A/S, Pegasus Production K/S, Phase One Consulting Group, Pillar Technology, Pollux, Pollux Automation Mexico S.A. de C.V., Pollux Canada Inc, Pollux S.A.S., Pollux USA LLC, Pragsis Bidoop, Pragsis Bidoop UK Limited, Pramati Technologies Europe Limited, Pramati Technologies Private Limited, Presence of IT Workforce Management North America LLC, PrimeQ, PrimeQ Australia Pty Ltd, PrimeQ Ltd, PrimeQ NZ Pty Limited, Procurian Inc., Prof. Homburg GmbH, Proquire LLC, PureApps Ltd., Qi Jie Beijing Information Technologies Co. Ltd., RBCP Fund 1-A Vapor Blocker LLC, RBCP Platform Vapor Blocker I LLC, REPL Consulting LLC, REPL Consulting Limited, REPL Digital Limited, REPL Group K.K., REPL Group Pty Ltd, REPL Group Worldwide Limited, REPL Pte Ltd, REPL Software Limited, REPL Technology Limited, Radiant Services LLC, Random Walk Computing Inc., Reactive Media Pty Ltd., Real Protect, Realworld OO Systems Ltd., Redcore, Redcore (New Zealand) Limited, Redcore Group Holdings Pty Ltd, Redcore Pty Ltd, Revolutionary Security, RiskControl, Root LLC, Rothco, Rothco Limited, S3 TV Technology Ltd., SALT Solutions GmbH, SEC Servizi, SOPIA Corp., Sagacious Consultants, Salt Solutions, Sandbox Studio LLC, Sapling Bidco Limited, Sapling Midco Limited, Sapling Topco Limited, Schlumberger Business Consulting, Seabury Aviation & Aerospace (UK) Limited, Seabury Consulting, Seabury Corporate Advisors LLC, Seabury Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Search Technologies BPO Inc, Search Technologies International LLC, Search Technologies LLC, Search Technologies Limited, Securiview SAS, Sentelis, Sentor Managed Secuirty Services AB, Servicios Tecnicos de Programacion Accenture S.C., Seven Seas Business Ventures LLC, Shackleton, Shackleton Chile S.A., Shackleton S.L.U., Shanghai Baiyue Advertising Co. Ltd., Shun Zhe Technology Development Co. Ltd., SigInt Technologies LLC, Silveo, Silveo Consulting India Private Limited, Simian Pty Ltd, SinnerSchrader, SinnerSchrader AG, SinnerSchrader Content GmbH, SinnerSchrader Deutschland GmbH, SinnerSchrader Praha s.r.o., Sirvart S.A., Sistemes Consulting S.L., Skylink SAS, Soltians Limited, Solutions IQ LLC, SolutionsIQ, SolutionsIQ India Consulting Services Private Limited, Somers Ventures Ireland Limited, Somers Ventures LLC, Spacelink SAS, Storm Digital, Structure Consulting Group LLC, Sutter Mills, Synership LLC, Systor AG, T.A. Cook, TXF LLC, Tambourine, TargetST8, Tech - Avanade Portugal Unipessoal Lda, Tecnilogica Ecosistemas S.A., Tecnilogica, The Brand Learning Partners Limited, The Callisto Integration Corporation, The Monkeys, The Monkeys Pty Ltd, The Myrtle Group, Total Logistics, Tquila, Trivadis, Trivadis AG, Trivadis Austria GmbH, Trivadis Denmark AS, Trivadis Germany GmbH, Trivadis Holding AG, Trivadis Partner AG, Trivadis Services AG, Trivadis Services SRL, Troop Studios Pty Ltd, VanBerlo, Vector Acquisition Company LLC, Vector Topco LLC, Verax Solutions, Vertical Retail Consulting (Shanghai) Ltd, Vertical Retail Consulting Ltd, Vivere Brasil Servicos e Solucoes SA, Vivere Brasil Solucoes De Credito Ltda., Wabion GmbH, WaveStrike LLC, White Cliffs Consulting LLC, Wire Stone, Wire Stone LLC, Wise Partners SAS, Wolox, Wolox Colombia S.A.S, Wolox LLC, Wolox Mexico S.R.L de C.V., Wolox S.A., Wolox SpA, Workforce Insight, Workforce Insight LLC, Yesler, Yesler LLC, Yesler Limited, Yesler Singapore Pte Ltd, Zag, Zag Australia Pty Ltd, Zag Limited, Zag USA LLC, Zebra Worldwide Australia Pty Ltd, Zebra Worldwide Group Limited, Zebra Worldwide Media Pty Ltd, Zenta, Zenta Global Philippines Inc, Zenta Mortgage Services LLC, Zenta Recoveries Inc, Zenta US Holdings Inc, Zestgroup, Zielpuls, Zielpuls (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Zielpuls GmbH, avVenta, designaffairs, designaffairs Business Consulting (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., designaffairs GmbH, designaffairs group China Co. Ltd., dgroup, i4C Analytics, iDefense, solid-serVision.com GmbH, and umlaut.

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Enbridge Inc. operates as an energy infrastructure company. The company operates through five segments: Liquids Pipelines, Gas Transmission and Midstream, Gas Distribution and Storage, Renewable Power Generation, and Energy Services. The Liquids Pipelines segment operates pipelines and related terminals to transport various grades of crude oil and other liquid hydrocarbons in Canada and the United States. The Gas Transmission and Midstream segment invests in natural gas pipelines, and gathering and processing facilities in Canada and the United States. The Gas Distribution and Storage segment is involved in natural gas utility operations serving residential, commercial, and industrial customers in Ontario, as well as natural gas distribution and energy transportation activities in Quebec. The Renewable Power Generation segment operates power generating assets, such as wind, solar, geothermal, and waste heat recovery facilities; and transmission assets in North America and Europe. The Energy Services segment provides energy marketing services to refiners, producers, and other customers; and physical commodity marketing and logistical services in Canada and the United States. The company was formerly known as IPL Energy Inc. and changed its name to Enbridge Inc. in October 1998. Enbridge Inc. was founded in 1949 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.
Energizer Holdings, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and distributes household batteries, specialty batteries, and lighting products worldwide. It offers lithium, alkaline, carbon zinc, nickel metal hydride, zinc air, and silver oxide batteries under the Energizer and Eveready brands, as well as primary, rechargeable, specialty, and hearing aid batteries. The company also provides headlights, lanterns, and children's and area lights, as well as flash lights under the Energizer, Eveready, Rayovac, Hard Case, Dolphin, Varta, and WeatherReady brands. In addition, it licenses the Energizer and Eveready brands to companies developing consumer solutions in gaming, automotive batteries, portable power for critical devices, LED light bulbs, generators, power tools, household light bulbs, and other lighting products. Further, the company designs and markets automotive fragrance and appearance products, including protectants, wipes, tire and wheel care products, glass cleaners, leather care products, air fresheners, and washes to clean, shine, refresh, and protect interior and exterior automobile surfaces under the brand names of Armor All, Nu Finish, Refresh Your Car!, LEXOL, Eagle One, California Scents, Driven, and Bahama & Co; STP branded fuel and oil additives, functional fluids, and other performance chemical products; and do-it-yourself automotive air conditioning recharge products under the A/C PRO brand name, as well as other refrigerant and recharge kits, sealants, and accessories. It sells its products through direct sales force, distributors, and wholesalers; and through various retail and business-to-business channels, including mass merchandisers, club, electronics, food, home improvement, dollar store, auto, drug, hardware, e-commerce, convenience, sporting goods, hobby/craft, office, industrial, medical, and catalog. Energizer Holdings, Inc. was incorporated in 2015 and is headquartered in Saint Louis, Missouri.
EnerSys provides various stored energy solutions for industrial applications worldwide. It operates in three segments: Energy Systems, Motive Power, and Specialty. The company offers uninterruptible power systems applications for computer and computer-controlled systems, as well as telecommunications systems; switchgear and electrical control systems used in industrial facilities and electric utilities, large-scale energy storage, and energy pipelines; integrated power solutions and services to broadband, telecom, renewable, and industrial customers; and thermally managed cabinets and enclosures for electronic equipment and batteries. It also provides motive power products that are used to provide power for electric industrial forklifts used in manufacturing, warehousing, and other material handling applications. In addition, the company offers mining equipment, diesel locomotive starting, and other rail equipment. Further, it provides specialty batteries for starting, lighting, and ignition applications in transportation; and energy solutions for satellites, military aircraft, submarines, ships, and other tactical vehicles, as well as medical and security systems. Additionally, the company offers battery chargers, power equipment, battery accessories, and outdoor cabinet enclosures, as well as related after-market and customer-support services for industrial batteries. The company sells its products through a network of distributors, independent representatives, and internal sales forces. The company was formerly known as Yuasa, Inc. and changed its name to EnerSys in January 2001. EnerSys was incorporated in 2000 and is headquartered in Reading, Pennsylvania.
Forum Energy Technologies, Inc. designs, manufactures, and distributes products serving the oil, natural gas, industrial, and renewable energy industries in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Drilling & Downhole, Completions, and Production. The Drilling & Downhole segment designs, manufactures, and supplies products, and provides related services to the drilling, well construction, artificial lift, and subsea energy construction markets, including applications in oil and natural gas, renewable energy, defense, and communications. This segment offers drilling technologies consisting of capital equipment and a line of products consumed in the drilling process; well construction casing and cementing equipment, and protection products for artificial lift equipment and cables; and subsea remotely operated vehicles and trenchers, submarine rescue vehicles, specialty components and tools, and complementary subsea technical services. The Completions segment offers hydraulic fracturing pumps, cooling systems, high-pressure flexible hoses, and flow iron for pressure pumping, hydraulic fracturing and flowback services markets; wireline cable and pressure control equipment for well completion and intervention service markets; and coiled tubing strings and coiled line pipe. The Production segment designs, manufactures, and supplies products, and provides related equipment and services for production and infrastructure markets. This segment offers engineered process systems, production equipment, specialty separation equipment, and various industrial valves for oil and natural gas customers, power generation, renewable energy, and other general industrial applications. The company was formerly known as Forum Oilfield Technologies, Inc. and changed its name to Forum Energy Technologies, Inc. in August 2010. Forum Energy Technologies, Inc. was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.
The AroundTown section of the Clipper-Herald is to notify the public of upcoming events and to publicize pertinent information from individuals, groups or organizations that are not for profit.

PEOPLE

An open house honoring Pearl Nickerson on her 90th birthday is planned for Oct. 8, 2017 from 2 to 4 pm. at the First United Methodist church at 201 E. 8th St. in Lexington. Those unable to attend may send cards to 1203 Buffalo Bend Apt. 8, Lexington, NE 68850. Let your presence be your gift.

The family of Mrs. Iris Matz invites you to the celebration of her 90th birthday on Oct. 14 from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. The event will be held in the Fellowship Hall of the Lexington Berean Church, 210 W. 7th Street. Hosts are Lon and Andrea Matz of Madison, Wis., Randy and Cindy Matz of Memphis, Tenn., and Brent and Cindy Matz of Lincoln. If unable to attend, cards may be sent in care of Brookdale, 1811 Ridgeway, Lexington, Ne. 68850.

A card shower is suggested for Bertha Ponders 99th birthday on Oct. 15. Cards may be sent to Bertha Ponder at Welcov, 1505 N. Adams, Lexington, NE 68850.

HAPPENINGS

Miller Dances: All Dances start at 7 p.m. Bring finger food and snacks. Questions? Call 308-325-2909. Oct. 7, "Country Flair." Oct. 14, John Stitt, Oct. 21. "Classic Country," Oct. 28, "Diamonds and Dust."

The Eddyville American Legion Auxiliary Post No. 225 is hosting a Pancake Feed, Sunday, Oct. 8, 2017, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. at the Eddyville Community Hall - Free Will Offering. A quilt raffle, tickets at the door or from any Auxiliary member, $1.00 each or 6 for $5.00. Bake and Craft Sale. Quilt drawing at 2 p.m., need not be present to win. Everyone welcome.

Bonneville Chapter DAR will meet Oct. 11, 2017 at 6:30 p.m. for volunteer service at the Majestic Theater. The Board of Management meeting will be held Oct. 27, 28, 2017 at the Holiday Inn Hotel in Kearney.

Lutheran Womens Missionary League will meet Wednesday, Oct. 11, 6-7:30 p.m. at Trinity Lutheran Church social hall. Featured Speaker will be Sindy Fiene. All women are invited to join in this special LWML program.

A parent safety class, sponsored by Dawson County Rooted in Relationships, will be held in at Central Community College-Lexington Campus onOct. 12,19, 26. Class time is from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Class is free. To register call Nancy Pinedo at 308-324-1841.

The 7th annual Hi-Line Toy Run, benefiting the Dawson County Parent-Child Center, will be Oct. 14, 2017. Sign-up is 10-11 a.m. at the Darn-Small Pub in Eustis. All vehicles are welcome, not just for motorcycles. See www.facebook.com/hilinetoyrun.

Lexington Regional Health Center is hosting free workshops focused on wellness for individuals with diabetes. Workshop Schedule is every Tuesday through Oct. 14, in Lexington, 9:30-11:30 a.m. at Community Health and Fitness Center, 1600 West 13th St. and in Elwood, 3:00-5:00 p.m. at Gosper County Senior Center, 406 Ripley St. Class size is limited. For more information or to register contact Gloria Dawson, 308-324-8315 or Lacey Zarek, 308-324-8338.

A "Youth Mental Health First Aid Training,"offered by Central Community College in partnership with Region II Human Services. This seminar is Monday, Oct. 16, from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. Lunch is on your own. There is no fee to attend. Trained facilitators will be presenting. Contact Central Community College, Lexington to register by calling 308-324-8480. This is an all-day seminar designed to teach parents, family members, caregivers, teachers, school staff, peers, neighbors, health and human services workers, and other caring citizens how to help an adolescent who is experiencing a mental health or addictions challenge or is in crisis.

Lexington Area Christian Womens Connection will meet for a 12 p.m. luncheon Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2017 at Kirks Restaurant. Sari Cobb of Craig, Colo., will speak on "Finding Joy in Your Trash Can." Music will be by Stacey Mathers of Craig, Colo. For reservations or cancellations call Sheri Giesbrecht, 308-320-0952 or Teresa Lanman, 308-324-8386.

A Self Defense Class will be offered on Wednesday, Oct. 25 from 6 - 8 p.m. at the Parent-Child Center, 1001 N. Washington St., Lexington There is no cost but a canned food donation will be accepted. For more information call 308-324-2336.

Veterans Day activities on Nov. 11 at the Heartland Military Museum will include: Coffee and rolls at 9:30 a.m. , 11 a.m. hour ceremony with keynote speaker Sen. Tom Brewer, a bean soup lunch at 12:15 p.m. and a parade trhough downtown Lexington at 2 p.m. All events open to the public.

Events at the Lexington Grand Generation Center - Public Bingo on Mondays at 7 p.m. Must be 18 to play. For questions call 308-324-2498. Homemade Pretzel Baking on the first and third Tuesday of each month at 1 p.m. Cost to purchase pretzels is .50/pretzel, $6.00/dozen. Purchase and/or come help roll!

Love in Action Outreach, 907 West 8th St., Lexington, is open Monday through Thursday, 12:30  4 p.m. For assistance go to 909 West 8th St. Donations of clothes, furniture and other items any time back of store or contact 308-651-0925 for further assistance. Monetary donations are accepted as well.

Lexington Area Parkinsons Disease Support Group Meetings are held the second Thursday each month at 2 p.m. in the education room at the Community Health & Fitness Center (1600 W. 13th, Lexington) For more information contact Dixie Menke at 308-325-5350 or 308-784-4022 or Brenda Bierman at 308-324-2523 or 308-325-9216.

RYDE Transit - Public Transportation is available Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. To schedule a ride in Dawson County or Lexington call 308-324-3670. Public Transportation is easy to ride and open to everyone.

COMMUNITY

The Lexington Bloodmobile will be held Tuesday, Oct. 17 from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at First United Church, 201 East 8th, Lexington. For appointment call Mag Fagot 308-324-3280.

MEETINGS

American Legion in Lexington meets the first Tuesday of the month at 7 p.m. at Heartland Museum of Military Vehicles.

Survivors of Suicide Support Group meets every second Monday of the month from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at First Baptist Church, 1616 W. 39th St., in Kearney. For more information contact Carol Rowedder at 308-237-2635.

Farmers Market

Lexington Farmers Market is held every Saturday from 8 to 11 a.m. and every Tuesday from 3 to 6 p.m. at the Dawson County Opportunity Center parking lot Thursday, Oct. 14.

LEXINGTON PUBLIC LIBRARY

The Monday Afternoon Book Club will meet Monday, Oct, 9, at 3:00 p.m. Our book for October is "Walk Me Home" by Catherine Ryan Hyde. You are invited to read the book and join us for a lively discussion at the Lexington Public Library.

Novel Stitchers meets on Tuesdays at 3:00 p.m. If you enjoy stitching--knitting, crocheting, quilting, cross stitch, needlepoint, or have another portable stitching project--join us at the library for two hours of stitching and visiting. We will meet on Tuesdays, October 3, 10,17, 24, and 31 from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. in the Lexington Public Library Board Room. We would love to have you join us.

LEXINGTON GRAND GENERATION CENTER

Exercise room is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. Every Sunday the Center available for rent.

Monday

9 a.m. - Tai chi

9 a.m. - Massage

10 a.m. - FROG

12:45 p.m. - Ive Got It

3 p.m. - Strength Training

7 p.m. - Public Bingo

Tuesday

9 a.m. - 1 p.m. - Massage

2 - 4 p.m. - PCMG Flu Shots

3 - 6 p.m. - Farmers Market

Wednesday

9:15 a.m. - Go4Life

9:30 a.m. - Coffee/Crafts

9:30 a.m. - Pool T. - Broken Bow

10:45 a.m .- Overton Foot Clinic

11 a.m. - 5-in-a-Row

12:45 p.m. - Cards

1:30 p.m. - FROG

2:30 - 3:30 p.m. - Hot Cookies

3 p.m. - Strength Training

LEXINGTON GRAND

GENERATION

CENTER MENU

Homemade bread everyday. Choice of skim, 2% or chocolate milk. No reservations needed except for large groups. Serving time: 11:30 a.m.

Monday

Swiss steak, diced red potatoes, buttered cabbage, pineapple chunks

Tuesday

Chicken breast/gravy, potato cakes, tomato medley, oranges

Wednesday

Meat loaf, potatoes, wax beans, 5-cup salad,

LEXINGTON SCHOOL MENU

Breakfast

Monday

Choice of ulta bread slice, cereal and cheese stick, fruit variety, 100 percent fruit juice

Tuesday

Choice of blueberry pancakes, cereal and cheese stick, fruit variety, 100 percent fruit juice

Wednesday

Choice of breakfast tornados, cereal and chees stick, fruit variety, 100 percent fruit juice

Lunch

Monday

Hot ham and cheese on panera bread, pizza, cheese max sticks, sub sandwich, yogurt, muffin and cheese stick, scalloped potatoes

Tuesday

Chicken patty on a bun, hamburger on bun, beef and bean burrito, sub sandwich, yogurt, muffin and cheese stick, Roasted chicken rice, green beans

Wednesday

Luncharound pizza, hamburger on bun, cheese max sticks, sub sandwich, yogurt, muffin and cheese stick, steamed corn, sliced peaches, cookie

OVERTON SCHOOL MENU

Breakfast

Monday

Breakfast cookie or English muffin and omelet

Tuesday

French toast sticks and yogurt

Wednesday

Banana muffin and sausage

Lunch

Monday

Chicken fritters

Tuesday

Spaghetti and meat sauce

Wednesday

Sloppy joes

ORGANIZATIONS

AA/NA: open meeting Friday nights at 7 p.m. at Plum Creek Mall at Two Bridges Counseling, 513 N. Grant St., Suite 3a, Lexington.

Westside Group: AA/NA open meeting on Monday and Wednesday nights at separate locations at 8 p.m. Monday night meetings at First Christian Church, 1206 N. Erie St. in Lexington. Wednesday nights at Community Health Center (west of hospital) 1600 W. 13th St. in Lexington.

AA Elwood: at 8 p.m. on Sundays at United Methodist Church, 601 Rush in Elwood. Contact: 785-3567 (Tom).

Al-Anon meets Mondays, 8 p.m. at the LexChristian Church, 13th & Erie; Wednesdays, 8 p.m. at Lexington Regional Health Center Board room, use east entrance; Thursdays, noon at Grace Lutheran Church, 105 E. 17th, use office door. For more information call 308-651-0143.

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings, non-smoking: at noon on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at St. Anns Catholic Church basement, 301 E. Sixth St.

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings, non-smoking - Smithfield: At 8 p.m. on Thursdays at Hope Lutheran Church, 74098 Road 436 in Smithfield. Call 785-3567 or 472-3376.

Celebrate Recovery: a 12-step, anonymous program helping participants overcome any hurts, habits, addictions or hang-ups. Meets twice: 1) at 7 p.m. on Thursdays at Lexington Evangelical Free Church, 810 S. Washington Street. Contact: 308-324-3825 or 308-238-1298. 2) at 6:30 p.m. on Fridays at Parkview Baptist Churchs Y.A.C., 1105 Park St.. Contact: 308-324-4410.

The Compassionate Friends, Lexington Area Chapter (a support group for parents who have lost a child), meets the third Monday of each month at 7:30 p.m., at the Great Western Drive-In bank meeting room, corner of 6th and Lincoln. For more information call 308-320-1483.

Community Action Partnership of Mid-Nebraska Public Immunization Clinic, 1st & 3rd Mondays every month: Open 10 a.m.-noon and 2-4 p.m. by appointment at 931 West 7th St., Lexington. Clinics serve ages 2 months - 18 years. Children must be accompanied by an adult, previous vaccination records required. Contact 308-865-1352 ext. 143.

Dawson/Gosper County CASA: seeking Volunteers. CASA Volunteers are everyday people from all walks of life, who advocate through the court system in the interests of children. Contact 324-7364.

Grupo Lexington AA (Spanish Speaking) open meeting Saturday nights at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 11 p.m., at 114 West 6th St. in Lexington.

Lexington Area Grief Support Group: meets at 4:30 p.m. on the first Mondays of each month at Fitness Center, 1600 W. 13th Street. Open to anyone experiencing the death of a loved one. Contact Lexington Regional Health Center Home Health office, 324-8300.

Lexington Optimist Club: meet at Kirks Nebraskaland Restaurant every Thursday at noon except the first Thursday of the month. If you need to get ahold of us you can email us at lexoptimist@gmail.com or you can send mail to Lexington Optimist Club, PO Box 355, Lexington, NE 68850.

Lexington Rotary Club: meets the first and third Wednesday of the month at Lexington Public Library from 12 to 1 p.m. For more information contact Kirsten Faessler at 308-324-8333.

Love In Action Outreach Ministry: Located at 907 W. 8th Street in Lexington, is in need of mens clothing, all sizes and styles; pots pans, serving dishes and utensils; bedding, crib sheets, twin size, reg. size, queen and king size, pillows, blankets, beds; winter coats and jackets. Bring to 907 W. 8th during our regular operating hours, Monday through Friday, 1 - 4 p.m. Monday to Friday we have bag sales, small bag $10.00 and large bag $15.00 dollars. Closed Saturdays, Sundays & all Federal Holidays.

Narcotics Anonymous: open meeting on Sundays at 12 p.m. at Two Bridges Counseling, 513 N. Grant St. Suite 3a in Lexington.
HFF, Inc. provides commercial real estate and capital market services to the consumers and providers of capital in the commercial real estate industry in the United States. The company offers debt placement services, such as construction and construction/mini-permanent loans, adjustable and fixed rate mortgages, bridge loans, entity level and mezzanine debts, forward delivery loans, and tax exempt and sale/leaseback financing to the owners of various properties comprising office, retail, industrial, hotel, multi-housing, student housing, self-storage, nursing homes, condominiums and condominium conversions, mixed-use properties, and land, as well as senior, independent, and assisted living facilities. It also provides investment advisory services to commercial real estate owners; and equity placement, as well as assists clients in the sale of their commercial real estate debt note portfolios. In addition, the company offers private equity, investment banking, and advisory services, including equity capital to establish joint ventures relating to identified properties or properties to be acquired by a fund sponsor; structured finance; institutional marketing and fund-raising services for public and private commercial real estate fund sponsors; advisory services for mergers and acquisitions, sales and divestitures, management buyouts, and recapitalizations and restructurings; and private placements of preferred securities. Further, it provides loan sales and commercial loan servicing to life insurance companies. The company was founded in 1982 and is based in Dallas, Texas.
Florence Audrey Anderson, 102, of Lexington, died Friday, Oct. 6, 2017, at Plum Creek Healthcare Community in Lexington.

Funeral Service will be Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2017, at 2:00 p.m. at First United Methodist Church in Lexington with the Rev. Anne Gahn officiating. Burial will be in the Greenwood Cemetery at Lexington.

Visitation will be Monday, Oct. 9, 2017, from 5-7 p.m. at the Reynolds-Love Funeral Chapel in Lexington.

She was born May 2, 1915, at Overton, to Noel and Mae (Holsclaw) Bacon. She moved with her parents to Cozad and a few years later to Elm Creek.

The family then moved back to the family farm and she started to school at Dist. West No. 12 near Overton. Her father later bought a farm northeast of Lexington, and moved his family there. Florence went to Lexington High School and graduated in 1931.

Florence was united in marriage to Harlan Anderson on Sept. 18, 1935, in Lexington. They lived on a farm southwest of Lexington and in 1937 a son, Kerry was born. They then moved to Overton and after several years there, moved back to the family farm at Lexington, where they lived for 37 years until Harlans retirement when they moved to Johnson Lake. They spent 17 years there. In 1993 they moved to a condominium in Lexington.

Harlan died Nov. 17, 2004. The couple had celebrated 69 years together.

Florence was a 70 plus year member of First United Methodist Church, where she was active as a Sunday school teacher, youth sponsor, and circle member, and served on various committees. She was an active member of Chapter FS, PEO, Lexington. She enjoyed reading, playing bridge, music, and most of all, time spent with her family.

Florence is survived by three grandchildren, Scott (Corky) Anderson, Susan (Rod) Reynolds and Rob (Natalie) Anderson, all of Lexington; six great-grandchildren; Lindsey Anderson, Blake (Stacy) Reynolds of Lexington, Carrie Beth Reynolds of Denver, Ryan Reynolds of Lexington, Joelly Anderson of Walt Disney World, and Camille Anderson of Lexington; also surviving are nieces, nephews, extended family and friends.

She was preceded in death in addition to her husband Harlan, by her parents; son and daughter-in-law, Kerry and Marion Anderson; brothers, Carl, Lloyd, and Harold Bacon and, sister, Laura as well as their spouses.

Memorials are suggested to First United Methodist Church, Lexington Community Foundation, or Donors Choice.

Reynolds-Love Funeral Home in Lexington is honored to be assisting the family with arrangments.

Please share online condolences with the family by visiting: reynoldslovefuneralhome.com.
Harley-Davidson, Inc. manufactures and sells motorcycles. The company operates in two segments, Motorcycles and Related Products and Financial Services. The Motorcycles and Related Products segment designs, manufactures, and sells Harley-Davidson motorcycles, including cruiser, touring, standard, sportbike, and dual models, as well as motorcycle parts, accessories, apparel, and related services. This segment sells its products to retail customers through a network of independent dealers, as well as e-commerce channels in the United States, Canada, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific. The Financial Services segment provides wholesale financing services, such as floorplan and open account financing of motorcycles, and parts and accessories; and retail financing services, including installment lending for the purchase of new and used Harley-Davidson motorcycles, as well as point-of-sale protection products comprising motorcycle insurance, extended service contracts, and motorcycle maintenance protection. This segment also licenses third-party financial institutions that issue credit cards bearing the Harley-Davidson brand. Harley-Davidson, Inc. was founded in 1903 and is based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
The following companies are subsidiares of Novartis: 1 A Pharma GmbH, Abadia Retuerta S.A, Admune Therapeutics, Advanced Accelerator Applications, Advanced Accelerator Applications, Advanced Accelerator Applications International SA, Advanced Accelerator Applications S.A., Advanced Accelerator Applications S.r.l., Advanced Accelerator Applications USA Inc., Aeropharm GmbH, Alcon, Alcon  Couvreur NV, Amblyotech, Amblyotech Inc., Arctos Medical, Arctos Medical AG, Australia Pty Ltd, Beijing Novartis Pharma Co. Ltd., BioMedical Research Co. Ltd., CELLforCURE, Cadent Therapeutics, Cadent Therapeutics Cambridge, Cellerys, Cellerys AG, CellforCure, Chiron Corporation, Ciba-Geigy Japan Limited, Co. Ltd, CoStim Pharmaceuticals, CoStim Pharmaceuticals Inc., Coalesce Product Development Limited, Corthera, Development Co. Ltd., EBEWE Pharma Ges.m.b.H Nfg. KG, Encore Vision, Endocyte, Endocyte Inc., Eon Labs Inc., Farmanova Saglik Hizmetleri Ltd, Fougera Pharmaceuticals, Fougera Pharmaceuticals Inc, Gyroscope Therapeutics, HEXAL AG, Hexal, IDB Holland BV, Iberica S.L.U., Ilaclari Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S, JSC Sandoz, Japat AG, Kedalion Therapeutics Inc., Lek Pharmaceuticals d.d., Lek S.A., Manufacturing Pte Ltd , Navigate BioPharma Services Inc, Neutec Pharma Limited, Novartis (Hellas) S.A.C.I., Novartis (Singapore) Pte Ltd, Novartis (Taiwan) Co. Ltd, Novartis (Thailand) Limited, Novartis Argentina S.A., Novartis Australia Pty Ltd, Novartis Austria GmbH, Novartis Biociencias S.A., Novartis Biosciences Peru S.A., Novartis Bioventures AG, Novartis Business Services GmbH, Novartis Capital Corporation, Novartis Chile S.A., Novartis Corporation, Novartis Corporation Sdn. Bhd., Novartis Deutschland GmbH, Novartis Ecuador S.A., Novartis Farma S.p.A., Novartis Farma  Produtos Farmaceuticos S.A., Novartis Farmaceutica S.A, Novartis Farmaceutica S.A. de C.V., Novartis Finance Corporation, Novartis Finance S.A., Novartis Finance Services Ltd, Novartis Finland Oy Espoo, Novartis Gene Therapies, Novartis Gene Therapies EU Limited, Novartis Gene Therapies Inc., Novartis Grimsby Limited, Novartis Groupe France S.A., Novartis Healthcare A/S, Novartis Healthcare Philippines Inc., Novartis Healthcare Private Limited, Novartis Holding AG, Novartis Hungary Healthcare Limited Liability Company, Novartis India Limited, Novartis Inflammasome Research, Novartis Integrated Services Limited, Novartis International AG, Novartis International Pharmaceutical Investment AG, Novartis Investment Ltd, Novartis Investments S.a r.l., Novartis Ireland Limited, Novartis Israel Ltd, Novartis Korea Ltd., Novartis Middle East FZE, Novartis Netherlands B.V., Novartis Neva LLC, Novartis New Zealand Ltd, Novartis Norge AS, Novartis Ophthalmics AG, Novartis Optogenetics Research Inc., Novartis Overseas Investments AG, Novartis Pharma (Logistics) Inc., Novartis Pharma (Pakistan) Limited, Novartis Pharma AG, Novartis Pharma B.V. , Novartis Pharma GmbH, Novartis Pharma GmbH, Novartis Pharma K.K., Novartis Pharma LLC, Novartis Pharma Maroc SA, Novartis Pharma NV, Novartis Pharma Produktions GmbH, Novartis Pharma S.A.E., Novartis Pharma S.A.S., Novartis Pharma Schweiz AG, Novartis Pharma Schweizerhalle AG, Novartis Pharma Services AG, Novartis Pharma Services Romania S.R.L., Novartis Pharma Stein AG, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Canada Inc., Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Limited, Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK Limited, Novartis Poland Sp. z o.o., Novartis Portugal S.G.P.S. Lda., Novartis Ringaskiddy Limited, Novartis Saglik Gida ve Tarim Urunleri Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S, Novartis Saudi Ltd., Novartis Securities Investment Ltd, Novartis Services Inc., Novartis Slovakia s.r.o., Novartis South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Novartis Sverige AB, Novartis UK Limited, Novartis US Foundation, Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics Inc, Novartis Vietnam Company Limited, Novartis de Colombia S.A., Novartis de Venezuela S.A., Novartis s.r.o., Oriel Therapeutics Inc., PT. Novartis Indonesia, Protez Pharmaceuticals, Pte Ltd, Research Inc, Salutas Pharma GmbH, Sandoz A/S, Sandoz AG, Sandoz B.V., Sandoz Canada Inc., Sandoz Egypt Pharma S.A.E., Sandoz Farmaceutica S.A., Sandoz Farmaceutica Lda., Sandoz GmbH, Sandoz Hungary Limited Liability Company, Sandoz Ilac Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S., Sandoz Inc, Sandoz Industrial Products S.A, Sandoz International GmbH, Sandoz K.K., Sandoz Limited, Sandoz Manufacturing Inc., Sandoz NV, Sandoz Pharma K.K, Sandoz Pharmaceuticals AG, Sandoz Pharmaceuticals d.d., Sandoz Philippines Corporation, Sandoz Polska Sp. z o.o. , Sandoz Private Limited, Sandoz Pty Ltd, Sandoz S.A. de C.V, Sandoz S.A.S., Sandoz S.R.L., Sandoz S.p.A., Sandoz South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Sandoz Ukraine LLC, Sandoz d.o.o. farmaceutska industrija, Sandoz do Brasil Industria Farmaceutica Ltda, Sandoz s.r.o., Selexys Pharmaceuticals Corporation, Shanghai Novartis Trading Ltd., Societe par actions SANDOZ, Spinifex Pharmaceuticals, The Medicines Company, The Medicines Company, Triangle International Reinsurance Limited, Trinity River Insurance Co Ltd, Vedere Bio, Vedere Bio ll, Xiidra, Ziarco, and Ziarco Group Limited.

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This website is inclusive of tolerant people of all faiths, without exception. Neither anti-Semitism nor Islamophobia nor homophobia should ever be acceptable to anyone. We must all strive to live in peace and harmony with each other, regardless of religious affiliations, or none. Intolerance is the mother of strife and conflict.   Mark Alexander

We Britons are Europeans!Wir Briten sind Europaer! Nous, les Britanniques, sommes europeens !  Mark AlexanderEmail me at:markalexander.librabunda@gmail.com
Nabors Industries Ltd. provides drilling and drilling-related services for land-based and offshore oil and natural gas wells. The company operates through five segments: U.S. Drilling, Canada Drilling, International Drilling, Drilling Solutions, and Rig Technologies. It provides tubular running, wellbore placement, directional drilling, measurement-while-drilling (MWD), equipment manufacturing, and rig instrumentation services; and logging-while-drilling systems and services, as well as drilling optimization software. The company also offers REVit, an automated real time stick-slip mitigation system; ROCKit, a directional steering control system; SmartNAV, a collaborative guidance and advisory platform; SmartSLIDE, an advanced directional steering control system; and RigCLOUD, which provides the tools and infrastructure to integrate applications to deliver real-time insight into operations across the rig fleet. In addition, it manufactures and sells top drives, catwalks, wrenches, drawworks, and other drilling related equipment, such as robotic systems and downhole tools; and provides aftermarket sales and services for the installed base of its equipment. As of December 31, 2021, the company marketed approximately 301 rigs for land-based drilling operations in the United States, Canada, and in 20 other countries worldwide; and 29 rigs for offshore platform drilling operations in the United States and internationally. Nabors Industries Ltd. was founded in 1952 and is based in Hamilton, Bermuda.
The following companies are subsidiares of NRG Energy: 3279405 Nova Scotia Company, 3283764 Nova Scotia Company, 7549709 Canada Inc., 7644868 Canada Inc., 7711565 Canada Inc., AC Solar Holdings LLC, Ace Energy Inc., Agua Caliente Borrower 1 LLC, Agua Caliente Solar Holdings LLC, Agua Caliente Solar LLC, Allied Home Warranty GP LLC, Allied Warranty LLC, Arthur Kill Gas Turbines LLC, Arthur Kill Power LLC, Astoria Gas Turbine Power LLC, Bayou Cove Peaking Power LLC, Beheer-en Beleggingsmaatschappij Plogema B.V., Berrians I Gas Turbine Power LLC, BidURenergy Inc., Big Cajun I Peaking Power LLC, Bluewater Wind Delaware LLC, Bluewater Wind Maryland LLC, Bluewater Wind New Jersey Energy LLC, Boquillas Wind LLC, Cabrillo Power I LLC, Cabrillo Power II LLC, Camino Energy LLC, Carbon Management Solutions LLC, Carlsbad Energy Center LLC, Carlsbad Energy Holdings LLC, Chester Energy LLC, Chickahominy River Energy Corp., Cirro Energy Services Inc., Cirro Group Inc., Citizens Power Holdings One LLC, Commonwealth Atlantic Power LLC, Connecticut Jet Power LLC, Cottonwood Development LLC, Cottonwood Energy Company LP, Cottonwood Generating Partners I LLC, Cottonwood Generating Partners II LLC, Cottonwood Generating Partners III LLC, Cottonwood Technology Partners LP, Delaware Power Development LLC, Devon Power LLC, Doga Enerji Uretim Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Doga Isi Satis Hizmetleri Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Doga Isletme ve Bakim Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Dunkirk Gas Corporation, Dunkirk Power LLC, EHI Development Fund LLC, EME Eastern Holdings LLC, EVgo Services LLC, Eastern Sierra Energy Company LLC, Ecokap Power LLC, El Segundo Energy Center II LLC, El Segundo Power II LLC, El Segundo Power LLC, Elkhorn Ridge Wind II LLC, Energy Alternatives Wholesale LLC, Energy Choice Solutions LLC, Energy Curtailment Specialists, Energy Plus Holdings LLC, Energy Plus Natural Gas LLC, Energy Protection Insurance Company, Everything Energy LLC, Forward Home Security LLC, GCP Funding Company LLC, GenOn Energy, Geostellar Inc., Gladstone Power Station Joint Venture, Goal Zero, Goal Zero Europe GmbH, Goal Zero LLC, Granite II Holding LLC, Granite Power Partners II L.P., Green Mountain Energy, Green Mountain Energy Company, Green Mountain Energy Sun Club, Gregory Partners LLC, Gregory Power Partners LLC, Hanover Energy Company, Huntley IGCC LLC, Huntley Power LLC, Independence Energy Alliance LLC, Independence Energy Group LLC, Independence Energy Natural Gas LLC, Indian River Operations Inc., Indian River Power LLC, Intellastar LLC, Ivanpah Master Holdings LLC, Ivanpah Project I Holdings LLC, Ivanpah Project II Holdings LLC, Ivanpah Project III Holdings LLC, James River Power LLC, Kaufman Cogen LP, LSP-Nelson Energy LLC, Long Beach Generation LLC, Long Beach Peakers LLC, Long Beach Power LLC, Louisiana Generating LLC, MEC Esenyurt B.V., MEC San Pascual B.V., Maplekey UK Finance Limited, Maplekey UK Limited, Meriden Gas Turbines LLC, Middletown Power LLC, Midway-Sunset Cogeneration Company, Midwest Finance Company LLC, Midwest Generation EME LLC, Midwest Generation Holdings I LLC, Midwest Generation Holdings II LLC, Midwest Generation LLC, Midwest Generation Procurement Services LLC, Midwest Peaker Holdings LLC, Mission Bingham Lake Wind LLC, Mission Del Cielo LLC, Mission Energy Construction Services LLC, Mission Energy Holdings International LLC, Mission Energy Wales LLC, Mission Funding Zeta LLC, Mission Midway-Sunset Holdings LLC, Mission Midwest Coal LLC, Mission Minnesota Wind LLC, Mission Watson Holdings LLC, Mission Wind Boquillas LLC, Mission Wind New Mexico II LLC, Mission Wind Owaissa LLC, Mission Wind Pinnacle LLC, Mission del Sol LLC, Montville IGCC LLC, Montville Power LLC, NEO Chester-Gen LLC, NEO Corporation, NRG Acquisition Holdings Inc., NRG Advisory Services LLC, NRG Affiliate Services Inc., NRG Alexandria LLC, NRG Arroyo Nogales LLC, NRG Arthur Kill Operations Inc., NRG Asia-Pacific Ltd., NRG Astoria Gas Turbine Operations Inc., NRG Astoria Power LLC, NRG Audrain Generating LLC, NRG Audrain Holding LLC, NRG Bayou Cove LLC, NRG Berrians East Development LLC, NRG Bluewater Holdings LLC, NRG Bluewater Wind Massachusetts LLC, NRG Bourbonnais Equipment LLC, NRG Bourbonnais LLC, NRG Brazoria Energy LLC, NRG Business Services LLC, NRG CTA Holdings LLC, NRG Cabrillo Power Operations Inc., NRG Cadillac Inc., NRG Cadillac Operations Inc., NRG California Peaker Operations LLC, NRG Capital II LLC, NRG Carbon 360 LLC, NRG Cedar Bayou Development Company LLC, NRG Chalk Point CT LLC, NRG CleanTech Investments LLC, NRG Coal Development Company LLC, NRG ComLease LLC, NRG Common Stock Finance I LLC, NRG Common Stock Finance II LLC, NRG Connected Home LLC, NRG Connecticut Affiliate Services Inc., NRG Connecticut Peaking Development LLC, NRG Construction LLC, NRG Cottonwood Tenant LLC, NRG Curtailment Solutions Canada Inc., NRG Curtailment Solutions Inc., NRG DG Development LLC, NRG Development Company Inc., NRG Devon Operations Inc., NRG Dispatch Services LLC, NRG Distributed Energy Resources Holdings LLC, NRG Distributed Generation PR LLC, NRG Dunkirk Operations Inc., NRG ECOKAP Holdings LLC, NRG ESA Joint Development LLC, NRG El Segundo Operations Inc., NRG Energy Center Eagles LLC, NRG Energy Center Oxnard LLC, NRG Energy Fuel LLC, NRG Energy Fuel Services LLC, NRG Energy Gas & Wind Holdings Inc., NRG Energy Holdings II Inc., NRG Energy Holdings Inc., NRG Energy Inc., NRG Energy Labor Services LLC, NRG Energy Petroleum LLC, NRG Energy Services Group LLC, NRG Energy Services International Inc., NRG Energy Services LLC, NRG Equipment Company LLC, NRG Fuel Cell CA1 LLC, NRG Fuel Resources LLC, NRG Fuel Transportation LLC, NRG GTL Holdings LLC, NRG Gas Development Company LLC, NRG Generation Holdings Inc., NRG Gladstone Operating Services Pty Ltd, NRG Granite Acquisition LLC, NRG Greenco LLC, NRG HQ DG LLC, NRG Holding Leasing Vehicle 7 LLC, NRG Home & Business Solutions LLC, NRG Home Services LLC, NRG Home Solutions LLC, NRG Home Solutions Product LLC, NRG Homer City Services LLC, NRG Huntley Operations Inc., NRG Identity Protect LLC, NRG Ilion LP LLC, NRG Ilion Limited Partnership, NRG Independence Solar LLC, NRG International LLC, NRG Kaufman LLC, NRG Latin America Inc., NRG Lease Co LLC, NRG Lease Development LLC, NRG Limestone 3 LLC, NRG Maintenance Services LLC, NRG Mesquite LLC, NRG Mextrans Inc., NRG MidAtlantic Affiliate Services Inc., NRG MidCon Development LLC, NRG Middletown Operations Inc., NRG Middletown Repowering LLC, NRG Midwest Holdings LLC, NRG Midwest II LLC, NRG Montville Operations Inc., NRG NE Development LLC, NRG Nelson Turbines LLC, NRG New Roads Holdings LLC, NRG NewGen LLC, NRG North Central Operations Inc., NRG Northeast Affiliate Services Inc., NRG Norwalk Harbor Operations Inc., NRG Ohio Pipeline Company LLC, NRG Operating Services Inc., NRG Oswego Harbor Power Operations Inc., NRG Oxbow Holdings LLC, NRG PacGen Inc., NRG Peaker Finance Company LLC, NRG Portable Power LLC, NRG Potrero Development LLC, NRG Power Marketing LLC, NRG Procurement Company LLC, NRG Project Company LLC, NRG Reliability Solutions LLC, NRG Renter's Protection LLC, NRG Repowering Holdings LLC, NRG Residential Solar Solutions LLC, NRG Residential Solar Solutions Leasing II LLC, NRG Retail LLC, NRG Retail Northeast LLC, NRG Rockford Acquisition LLC, NRG Rockford Equipment II LLC, NRG Rockford Equipment LLC, NRG Saguaro Operations Inc., NRG Security LLC, NRG Services Corporation, NRG Sherbino LLC, NRG SimplySmart Solutions LLC, NRG Solar Arrowhead LLC, NRG Solar CVSR Holdings 2 LLC, NRG Solar Dandan LLC, NRG Solar Guam LLC, NRG Solar Ivanpah LLC, NRG Solar Ring LLC, NRG Solar SC Stadium LLC, NRG Solar Sunrise LLC, NRG South Central Affiliate Services Inc., NRG South Central Generating LLC, NRG South Central Operations Inc., NRG South Texas LP, NRG Sterlington Power LLC, NRG Storage Fabrication & Delivery LLC, NRG Storage on Demand NY LLC, NRG SunCap Leasing I LLC, NRG Telogia Power LLC, NRG Texas C&I Supply LLC, NRG Texas Gregory LLC, NRG Texas Holding Inc., NRG Texas LLC, NRG Texas Power LLC, NRG Texas Retail LLC, NRG Trading Advisors LLC, NRG Transmission Holdings LLC, NRG ULC Parent Inc., NRG Victoria I Pty Ltd, NRG Warranty Services LLC, NRG West Coast LLC, NRG Western Affiliate Services Inc., NRG Wind Development Company LLC, NRG Wind Force LLC, NRG Wind LLC, NRG dGen Advisory Services LLC, NRGenerating German Holdings GmbH, NRGenerating International B.V., NRGenerating Luxembourg (No. 1) S.a.r.l., NRGenerating Luxembourg (No. 2) S.a.r.l., New Genco GP LLC, New Jersey Power Development LLC, Norwalk Power LLC, O'Brien Cogeneration Inc. II, ONSITE Energy Inc., One Block Off The Grid Inc., Oswego Harbor Power LLC, Pacific Generation Company, Petra Nova CCS I LLC, Petra Nova Holdings LLC, Petra Nova LLC, Petra Nova Parish Holdings LLC, Petra Nova Power I LLC, Pure Energies Group, Pure Energies Group ULC, Pure Energies Installation Inc., Pure Energies Solar Services Inc., Pure Group Inc., RDI Consulting LLC, RERH Holdings LLC, Reliant Charitable Foundation, Reliant Energy, Reliant Energy Northeast LLC, Reliant Energy Power Supply LLC, Reliant Energy Retail Holdings LLC, Reliant Energy Retail Services LLC, Restoration Design LLC, Roof Diagnostics Solar Holdings LLC, Roof Diagnostics Solar and Electric LLC, Roof Diagnostics Solar and Electric of NY LLC, Saguaro Power Company a Limited Partnership, Saguaro Power LLC, San Gabriel Energy LLC, San Joaquin Energy LLC, San Juan Energy LLC, San Pascual Cogeneration Company International B.V., Sherbino I Wind Farm LLC, Solar Partners I LLC, Solar Partners II LLC, Solar Partners VIII LLC, Solar Power Partners, Solar Pure Energies ULC, Somerset Operations Inc., Somerset Power LLC, South Texas Wind LLC, Station A LLC, Sunrise Power Company LLC, Sunshine State Power (No. 2) B.V., Sunshine State Power B.V., TCV Pipeline LLC, Tacoma Energy Recovery Company, Taloga Wind II LLC, Texas Coastal Ventures LLC, Texas Genco GP LLC, Texas Genco Holdings, Texas Genco Holdings Inc., Texas Genco LP LLC, Texas Genco Services LP, US Retailers LLC, Valle Del Sol Energy LLC, Vienna Operations Inc., Vienna Power LLC, WCP (Generation) Holdings LLC, Watson Cogeneration Company, West Coast Power LLC, XOOM Alberta Holdings LLC, XOOM British Columbia Holdings LLC, XOOM Energy BC ULC, XOOM Energy California LLC, XOOM Energy Canada ULC, XOOM Energy Connecticut LLC, XOOM Energy Delaware LLC, XOOM Energy Georgia LLC, XOOM Energy Global Holdings LLC, XOOM Energy Illinois LLC, XOOM Energy Indiana LLC, XOOM Energy Kentucky LLC, XOOM Energy LLC, XOOM Energy Maine LLC, XOOM Energy Maryland LLC, XOOM Energy Massachusetts LLC, XOOM Energy Michigan LLC, XOOM Energy New Hampshire LLC, XOOM Energy New Jersey LLC, XOOM Energy New York LLC, XOOM Energy ONT ULC, XOOM Energy Ohio LLC, XOOM Energy Pennsylvania LLC, XOOM Energy Rhode Island LLC, XOOM Energy Texas LLC, XOOM Energy Virginia LLC, XOOM Energy Washington D.C. LLC, XOOM Ontario Holdings LLC, XOOM Solar LLC, and eV2g LLC.

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ALLETE, Inc. operates as an energy company. The company operates through Regulated Operations, ALLETE Clean Energy, and Corporate and Other segments. It generates electricity from coal-fired, biomass co-fired / natural gas, hydroelectric, wind, and solar. The company provides regulated utility electric services in northwestern Wisconsin to approximately 15,000 electric customers, 13,000 natural gas customers, and 10,000 water customers, as well as regulated utility electric services in northeastern Minnesota to approximately 145,000 retail customers and 15 non-affiliated municipal customers. It also owns and maintains electric transmission assets in Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, and Illinois. In addition, the company focuses on developing, acquiring, and operating clean and renewable energy projects; and owns and operates approximately 1,000 megawatts of wind energy generation facility. Further, it is involved in the coal mining operations in North Dakota; and real estate investment activities in Florida. The company owns and operates 158 substations with a total capacity of 10,066 megavolt amperes. It serves taconite mining, paper, pulp and secondary wood products, pipeline, and other industries. The company was formerly known as Minnesota Power, Inc. and changed its name to ALLETE, Inc. in May 2001. ALLETE, Inc. was incorporated in 1906 and is headquartered in Duluth, Minnesota.
The following companies are subsidiares of Pentair: ACP Pleatco Blocker Corp., APEL International LLC, Air Capital Filtration LLC, Aplex Industries Inc., Aquion, Aquion (Xi'an) Water Treatment Equipment Co. Ltd., Aquion Hong Kong Limited, Aquion Inc., Be the Change Labs Inc., Bylin Engineered Systems Inc, Century Mfg. Co., Clean Process Technologies, ClearWater Tech L.L.C., ETE Coliban Pty Limited, Enviro Water Solutions LLC, Erico Global, Everpure Japan Kabushiki Kaisha, Filter-Medic LLC, FilterDeal LLC, FilterSoft LLC, Fleck Controls Inc., Goyen Controls Co. Pty. Limited, Goyen Valve LLC, Greenspan Environmental Technology Pty Ltd, Guardian Filtration Products LLC, Haffmans B.V., Haffmans North America Inc., Hawley Group Canada Limited, Hypro EU Limited, Jung Pumpen GmbH, Ken's Beverage, Lincoln Automotive Company, MECAIR S.r.L., Manitowoc Ice, McNeil (Ohio) Corporation, Milperra Developments Pty Limited, Milton Acquisition ULC, Mobile Pool Builder Inc., Moraine Properties LLC, Nijhuis Pompen B.V., Nuheat, PES Pty Ltd, PFAM Inc., PTG Accessories Corp., Panthro Acquisition Co., Pelican Holding Corporation, Pentair Aquatic Eco-Systems Inc., Pentair Australia Holdings Pty Limited, Pentair Canada Inc., Pentair Clean Process Technologies India Private Limited, Pentair Commercial Services LLC, Pentair Denmark Holding ApS, Pentair Federal Pump LLC, Pentair Filtration Sales & Service Company LLC, Pentair Filtration Solutions LLC, Pentair Finance Group GmbH, Pentair Finance S.a.r.l., Pentair Finance Switzerland GmbH, Pentair Flow Control International Pty Limited, Pentair Flow Services AG, Pentair Flow Technologies LLC, Pentair Flow Technologies Pacific Pty Ltd, Pentair Flow Technologies de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Pentair France SARL, Pentair Germany GmbH, Pentair Global Holdings B.V., Pentair Global S.a.r.l., Pentair Group (Thailand) Limited, Pentair Holdings Inc., Pentair Holdings S.a.r.l., Pentair Housing Inc., Pentair Housing LP, Pentair Inc., Pentair International (UK) Ltd, Pentair International Holding S.a.r.l., Pentair International Sarl, Pentair Investments Switzerland GmbH, Pentair Ireland Limited, Pentair Janus Holding LLC, Pentair Janus Holdings, Pentair Kenya Limited, Pentair Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Pentair Management Company, Pentair Manufacturing Belgium BV, Pentair Manufacturing Italy S.r.L., Pentair Middle East FZE, Pentair Nanosoft US Holdings LLC, Pentair Netherlands Euro Finance B.V., Pentair Netherlands Finance B.V., Pentair Netherlands Holding B.V., Pentair Pacific Rim (Water) Limited, Pentair Pacific Rim Limited, Pentair Philippines Inc., Pentair Pleatco Acquisition LLC, Pentair Residential Filtration LLC, Pentair Sales LLC, Pentair Sudmo GmbH, Pentair Tamimi LLC, Pentair Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Pentair Transport Inc., Pentair UK Holdings Limited, Pentair US LLC 1, Pentair US LLC 2, Pentair US LP, Pentair Valves & Controls del Uruguay S.A., Pentair Water (Suzhou) Company Ltd., Pentair Water Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., Pentair Water Australia Pty Ltd, Pentair Water Belgium BV, Pentair Water Brazil LLC, Pentair Water France SAS, Pentair Water Group Inc., Pentair Water Holdings LLC, Pentair Water India Private Limited, Pentair Water Italy S.r.l., Pentair Water LLC, Pentair Water Latinamerica S.A., Pentair Water Operations Australia Pty Ltd, Pentair Water Polska Sp.zoo, Pentair Water Pool and Spa Inc., Pentair Water Proces Technologie Holding B.V., Pentair Water Process Technology B.V., Pentair Water Purification Systems (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Pentair Water Spain S.L., Pentair Water Treatment (OH) Company, Pentair Water Treatment Company, Pentair Water Treatment Private Limited, Pentair Water do Brasil Ltda., Pentair Water-Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Penwald Insurance Company, Pigeon Point Systems Inc., Pleatco, Pleatco Holdings LLC, Pleatco Intermediate Holdings LLC, Pleatco LLC, Pleatco Mexican Holding Company LLC, Pleatco Mexicana S. De R.L. De C.V., Plymouth Products Inc., Porous Media Corp., Procam Controls Inc., Rocean, Seneca Enterprises Co., Shupeco LLC, Sta-Rite Industries LLC, Sta-Rite de Mexico S.A. de C.V., TVS Filters Acquisition LLC, Tupelo Real Estate LLC, Tyco Flow Control, U.S. Milton Holdings Inc., Union Engineering (NingBo) Co. Ltd., Union Engineering A/S, Union Engineering Holding LLC, Union Engineering Latam Ltda, Union Engineering North America LLC, Urban Organics Pentair Group LLC, Urban Organics Schmidt Real Estate Group LLC, Urban Organics St. Paul LLC, Water Ingenuity Holdings Corp., Webster Electric Company LLC, X-Flow B.V., and delMAC Filters LLC.

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The following companies are subsidiares of Pfizer: AH Robins LLC, AHP Holdings B.V., AHP Manufacturing B.V., Agouron Pharmaceuticals LLC, Alacer, Alpharma Holdings LLC, Alpharma Pharmaceuticals LLC, Alpharma Specialty Pharma LLC, Alpharma USHP LLC, American Food Industries LLC, Anacor Pharmaceuticals, Anacor Pharmaceuticals Inc., Angiosyn, Array BioPharma, Ayerst-Wyeth Pharmaceuticals LLC, BIND Therapeutics Inc., BINESA 2002 S.L., Bamboo Therapeutics, Bamboo Therapeutics Inc., Baxter International - Marketed Vaccines, BioRexis, Bioren, Bioren LLC, Blue Whale Re Ltd., C.E. Commercial Holdings C.V., C.E. Commercial Investments C.V., C.P. Pharmaceuticals International C.V., CICL Corporation, COC I Corporation, Catapult Genetics, Coley Pharmaceutical GmbH, Coley Pharmaceutical Group, Coley Pharmaceutical Group Inc., Continental Pharma Inc., Covx, Covx Technologies Ireland Limited, Cyanamid Inter-American Corporation, Cyanamid de Argentina S.A., Cyanamid de Colombia S.A., Distribuidora Mercantil Centro Americana S.A., Encysive Pharmaceuticals, Encysive Pharmaceuticals Inc., Esperion LUV Development Inc., Esperion Therapeutics, Excaliard Pharmaceuticals, Excaliard Pharmaceuticals Inc., Farminova Produtos Farmaceuticos de Inovacao Lda., Farmogene Productos Farmaceuticos Lda, Ferrosan A/S, Ferrosan International A/S, Ferrosan S.R.L., FoldRx Pharmaceuticals Inc., Foldrx Pharmaceuticals, Fort Dodge Manufatura Ltda., G. D. Searle & Co. Limited, G. D. Searle International Capital LLC, G. D. Searle LLC, GI Europe Inc., GI Japan Inc., GenTrac Inc., Genetics Institute LLC, Greenstone LLC, Haptogen Limited, Hospira, Hospira (China) Enterprise Management Co. Ltd., Hospira Adelaide Pty Ltd, Hospira Aseptic Services Limited, Hospira Australia Pty Ltd, Hospira Benelux BVBA, Hospira Chile Limitada, Hospira Deutschland GmbH, Hospira Enterprises B.V., Hospira France SAS, Hospira Healthcare B.V., Hospira Healthcare Corporation, Hospira Healthcare India Private Limited, Hospira Holdings (S.A.) Pty Ltd, Hospira Inc., Hospira Invicta S.A., Hospira Ireland Holdings Unlimited Company, Hospira Ireland Sales Limited, Hospira Japan G.K., Hospira Limited, Hospira Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Hospira NZ Limited, Hospira Nordic AB, Hospira Philippines Inc., Hospira Portugal LDA, Hospira Produtos Hospitalares Ltda., Hospira Pte. Ltd., Hospira Pty Limited, Hospira Puerto Rico LLC, Hospira Singapore Pte Ltd, Hospira UK Limited, Hospira Worldwide LLC, Hospira Zagreb d.o.o., ICAgen, Idun Pharmaceuticals, Industrial Santa Agape S.A., InnoPharma, InnoPharma Inc., International Affiliated Corporation LLC, JMI-Daniels Pharmaceuticals Inc., John Wyeth & Brother Limited, Kiinteisto oy Espoon Pellavaniementie 14, King Pharmaceuticals Holdings LLC, King Pharmaceuticals LLC, King Pharmaceuticals Research and Development LLC, Korea Pharma Holding Company Limited, Laboratoires Pfizer S.A., Laboratorios Parke Davis S.L., Laboratorios Pfizer Ltda., Laboratorios Wyeth LLC, Laboratorios Wyeth S.A., Laboratorios Pfizer Lda., MTG Divestitures LLC, Mayne Pharma IP Holdings (Euro) Pty Ltd, Medivation, Medivation Field Solutions LLC, Medivation LLC, Medivation Neurology LLC, Medivation Prostate Therapeutics LLC, Medivation Services LLC, Medivation Technologies LLC, Meridian Medical Technologies Inc., Meridian Medical Technologies Limited, Monarch Pharmaceuticals LLC, Neusentis Limited, NextWave Pharmaceuticals, NextWave Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, P-D Co. LLC, PAH USA IN8 LLC, PF Americas Holding C.V., PF Asia Manufacturing B.V., PF PR Holdings C.V., PF PRISM C.V., PF PRISM Holdings S.a.r.l., PF Prism S.a.r.l., PFE Holdings G.K., PFE PHAC Holdings 1 LLC, PFE Pfizer Holdings 1 LLC, PFE Wyeth Holdings LLC, PFE Wyeth-Ayerst (Asia) LLC, PHILCO Holdings S.a r.l., PHIVCO Corp., PHIVCO Holdco S.a r.l., PHIVCO Luxembourg S.a r.l., PN Mexico LLC, PT. Pfizer Parke Davis, Parke Davis & Company LLC, Parke Davis Limited, Parke Davis Productos Farmaceuticos Lda, Parke-Davis Manufacturing Corp., Parkedale Pharmaceuticals Inc., Peak Enterprises LLC, Pfizer, Pfizer (China) Research and Development Co. Ltd., Pfizer (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Pfizer (Perth) Pty Limited, Pfizer (Thailand) Limited, Pfizer (Wuhan) Research and Development Co. Ltd., Pfizer AB, Pfizer AG, Pfizer AS, Pfizer Africa & Middle East for Pharmaceuticals Veterinarian Products & Chemicals S.A.E., Pfizer Anti-Infectives AB, Pfizer ApS, Pfizer Asia Manufacturing Pte. Ltd., Pfizer Asia Pacific Pte Ltd., Pfizer Atlantic Holdings S.a.r.l., Pfizer Australia Holdings B.V., Pfizer Australia Holdings Pty Limited, Pfizer Australia Investments Pty. Ltd., Pfizer Australia Pty Limited, Pfizer B.V., Pfizer BH D.o.o., Pfizer Baltic Holdings B.V., Pfizer Biofarmaceutica Sociedade Unipessoal Lda, Pfizer Biologics (Hangzhou) Co. Ltd, Pfizer Biologics Ireland Holdings Limited, Pfizer Biotech Corporation, Pfizer Bolivia S.A., Pfizer Canada Inc., Pfizer CentreSource Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., Pfizer Chile S.A., Pfizer Cia. Ltda., Pfizer Colombia Spinco I LLC, Pfizer Commercial Holdings Cooperatief U.A., Pfizer Commercial Holdings TRAE Kft., Pfizer Commercial TRAE Trading Kft., Pfizer Consumer Healthcare AB, Pfizer Consumer Healthcare GmbH, Pfizer Consumer Healthcare Ltd., Pfizer Consumer Manufacturing Italy S.r.l., Pfizer Corporation, Pfizer Corporation Austria Gesellschaft m.b.H., Pfizer Corporation Hong Kong Limited, Pfizer Croatia d.o.o., Pfizer Deutschland GmbH, Pfizer Development LP, Pfizer Development Services (UK) Limited, Pfizer Domestic Ventures Limited, Pfizer Dominicana S.R.L, Pfizer ESP Pty Ltd, Pfizer East India B.V., Pfizer Eastern Investments B.V., Pfizer Egypt S.A.E., Pfizer Enterprise Holdings B.V., Pfizer Enterprises LLC, Pfizer Enterprises SARL, Pfizer Europe Finance B.V., Pfizer Export B.V., Pfizer Export Company, Pfizer Export Holding Company B.V, Pfizer Finance Share Service (Dalian) Co. Ltd., Pfizer Financial Services N.V./S.A., Pfizer France International Investments, Pfizer Free Zone Panama S. de R.L., Pfizer GEP S.L., Pfizer Global Holdings B.V., Pfizer Global Supply Japan Inc., Pfizer Global Trading, Pfizer Group Luxembourg Sarl, Pfizer Gulf FZ-LLC, Pfizer H.C.P. Corporation, Pfizer HK Service Company Limited, Pfizer Health AB, Pfizer Health Solutions Inc., Pfizer Healthcare Ireland, Pfizer Hellas A.E., Pfizer Himalaya Holdings Cooperatief U.A., Pfizer Holding France, Pfizer Holding Ventures, Pfizer Holdings Corporation, Pfizer Holdings Europe Unlimited Company, Pfizer Holdings G.K., Pfizer Holdings International Corporation, Pfizer Holdings International Luxembourg (PHIL) Sarl, Pfizer Holdings North America SARL, Pfizer Hungary Holdings TRAE Kft., Pfizer Inc., Pfizer Innovations AB, Pfizer Innovations LLC, Pfizer Innovative Supply Point International BVBA, Pfizer International LLC, Pfizer International Markets Cooperatief U.A., Pfizer International Operations, Pfizer International S. de R.L., Pfizer International Trading (Shanghai) Limited, Pfizer Investment Capital Unlimited Company, Pfizer Investment Co. Ltd., Pfizer Investment Holdings S.a.r.l., Pfizer Ireland Investments Limited, Pfizer Ireland PFE Holding 1 LLC, Pfizer Ireland PFE Holding 2 LLC, Pfizer Ireland Pharmaceuticals, Pfizer Ireland Ventures Unlimited Company, Pfizer Italia S.r.l., Pfizer Italy Group Holding S.r.l., Pfizer Japan Inc., Pfizer LLC, Pfizer Laboratories (Pty) Limited, Pfizer Laboratories Limited, Pfizer Laboratories PFE (Pty) Ltd, Pfizer Leasing Ireland Limited, Pfizer Leasing UK Limited, Pfizer Limitada, Pfizer Limited, Pfizer Luxco Holdings SARL, Pfizer Luxembourg Global Holdings S.a r.l., Pfizer Luxembourg SARL, Pfizer MAP Holding Inc., Pfizer Manufacturing Austria G.m.b.H., Pfizer Manufacturing Belgium N.V., Pfizer Manufacturing Deutschland GmbH, Pfizer Manufacturing Deutschland Grundbesitz GmbH & Co. KG, Pfizer Manufacturing Holdings LLC, Pfizer Manufacturing Ireland Unlimited Company, Pfizer Manufacturing LLC, Pfizer Manufacturing Services, Pfizer Medical Technology Group (Belgium) N.V., Pfizer Medicamentos Genericos e Participacoes Ltda., Pfizer Mexico Luxco SARL, Pfizer Mexico S.A. de C.V., Pfizer Middle East for Pharmaceuticals Animal Health and Chemicals S.A.E., Pfizer New Zealand Limited, Pfizer Norge AS, Pfizer North American Holdings Inc., Pfizer OTC B.V., Pfizer Overseas LLC, Pfizer Oy, Pfizer PFE ApS, Pfizer PFE AsiaPac Holding B.V., Pfizer PFE Australia Holding B.V., Pfizer PFE Australia Pty Ltd, Pfizer PFE B.V., Pfizer PFE Baltic Holdings B.V., Pfizer PFE Belgium SPRL, Pfizer PFE Brazil Holding S.a r.l., Pfizer PFE CIA. Ltda., Pfizer PFE Chile Holding LLC, Pfizer PFE Colombia Holding Corp., Pfizer PFE Colombia S.A.S, Pfizer PFE Commercial Holdings LLC, Pfizer PFE Croatia Holding B.V., Pfizer PFE Eastern Investments B.V., Pfizer PFE Finland Oy, Pfizer PFE France, Pfizer PFE Global Holdings B.V., Pfizer PFE Ireland Pharmaceuticals Holding 1 B.V., Pfizer PFE Italy Holdco 2 S.a r.l., Pfizer PFE Italy Holdco S.a r.l., Pfizer PFE Korlatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, Pfizer PFE Limited, Pfizer PFE Luxembourg S.a r.l., Pfizer PFE Mexico Holding 3 LLC, Pfizer PFE Netherlands Holding 1 C.V., Pfizer PFE New Zealand, Pfizer PFE New Zealand Holding B.V., Pfizer PFE Norway Holding S.a r.l., Pfizer PFE PILSA Holdco S.a r.l., Pfizer PFE Peru Holding LLC, Pfizer PFE Peru S.R.L., Pfizer PFE Pharmaceuticals Israel Holding LLC, Pfizer PFE Pharmaceuticals Israel Ltd., Pfizer PFE Private Limited, Pfizer PFE S.R.L, Pfizer PFE Service Company Holding Cooperatief U.A., Pfizer PFE Singapore Holding B.V., Pfizer PFE Singapore Pte. Ltd., Pfizer PFE Spain B.V., Pfizer PFE Spain Holding S.L., Pfizer PFE Sweden Holding 2 S.a.r.l., Pfizer PFE Sweden Holding S.a.r.l., Pfizer PFE Switzerland GmbH, Pfizer PFE Turkey Holding 1 B.V., Pfizer PFE Turkey Holding 2 B.V., Pfizer PFE UK Holding 4 LP, Pfizer PFE US Holdings 1 LLC, Pfizer PFE US Holdings 2 LLC, Pfizer PFE US Holdings 3 LLC, Pfizer PFE US Holdings 4 LLC, Pfizer PFE US Holdings 5 LLC, Pfizer PFE spol. s r.o., Pfizer PFE Ilaclar Anonim Sirketi, Pfizer Pakistan Limited, Pfizer Parke Davis (Thailand) Ltd., Pfizer Parke Davis Inc., Pfizer Parke Davis Sdn. Bhd., Pfizer Pharm Algerie, Pfizer Pharma GmbH, Pfizer Pharma PFE GmbH, Pfizer Pharmaceutical (Wuxi) Co. Ltd., Pfizer Pharmaceutical Trading Limited Liability Company (a/k/a Pfizer Kft. or Pfizer LLC), Pfizer Pharmaceuticals B.V., Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Global B.V., Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Israel Ltd., Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Korea Limited, Pfizer Pharmaceuticals LLC, Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Ltd., Pfizer Pigments Inc., Pfizer Polska Sp. z.o.o., Pfizer Private Limited, Pfizer Production LLC, Pfizer Products Inc., Pfizer Products India Private Limited, Pfizer Research (NC) Inc., Pfizer Romania SRL, Pfizer S.A., Pfizer S.A., Pfizer S.A. (Belgium), Pfizer S.A. de C.V., Pfizer S.A.S., Pfizer S.G.P.S. Lda., Pfizer S.L., Pfizer S.R.L., Pfizer SRB d.o.o., Pfizer Saidal Manufacturing, Pfizer Sante Familiale, Pfizer Saudi Limited, Pfizer Seiyaku K.K., Pfizer Service Company BVBA, Pfizer Service Company Ireland Unlimited Company, Pfizer Services 1, Pfizer Services LLC, Pfizer Shared Services Unlimited Company, Pfizer Shareholdings Intermediate SARL, Pfizer Singapore Holding Pte. Ltd., Pfizer Singapore Trading Pte. Ltd., Pfizer Spain Holdings Cooperatief U.A., Pfizer Specialties Limited, Pfizer Strategic Investment Holdings LLC, Pfizer Sweden Partnership KB, Pfizer TRAE Holdings Kft., Pfizer Trading Polska sp.z.o.o., Pfizer Transactions Ireland Unlimited Company, Pfizer Transactions LLC, Pfizer Transactions Luxembourg SARL, Pfizer Transport LLC, Pfizer Ukraine LLC, Pfizer Vaccines LLC, Pfizer Venezuela S.A., Pfizer Venture Investments LLC, Pfizer Ventures LLC, Pfizer Worldwide Services Unlimited Company, Pfizer Zona Franca S.A., Pfizer spol. s r.o., Pharmacia, Pharmacia & Upjohn Company Inc., Pharmacia & Upjohn Company LLC, Pharmacia & Upjohn LLC, Pharmacia & Upjohn S.A. de C.V., Pharmacia Brasil Ltda., Pharmacia Hepar LLC, Pharmacia Holding AB, Pharmacia Inter-American LLC, Pharmacia International B.V., Pharmacia LLC, Pharmacia Limited, Pharmacia Nostrum S.A., Pharmacia South Africa (Pty) Ltd, PowderJect Research Limited, PowderMed, Purepac Pharmaceutical Holdings LLC, Redvax, Renrall LLC, Rinat Neuroscience, Rinat Neuroscience Corp., Roerig Produtos Farmaceuticos Lda., Roerig S.A., Sao Cristovao Participacoes Ltda., Searle Laboratorios Lda., Serenex, Servicios P&U S. de R.L. de C.V., Shiley LLC, Sinergis Farma-Produtos Farmaceuticos Lda., Site Realty Inc., Solinor LLC, Sugen LLC, Tabor LLC, The Pfizer Incubator LLC, Therachon, Thiakis Limited, Treerly Health Co. Ltd, US Oral Pharmaceuticals Pty Ltd, Upjohn Laboratorios Lda., Vesteralens Naturprodukter A/S, Vesteralens Naturprodukter AB, Vesteralens Naturprodukter AS, Vesteralens Naturprodukter OY, Vicuron Holdings LLC, Vinci Farma S.A., W-L LLC, Warner Lambert, Warner Lambert Ilac Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Warner Lambert del Uruguay S.A., Warner-Lambert (Thailand) Limited, Warner-Lambert Company AG, Warner-Lambert Company LLC, Warner-Lambert Guatemala Sociedad Anonima, Warner-Lambert S.A., Whitehall International Inc., Whitehall Laboratories Inc., Wyeth (Thailand) Ltd., Wyeth AB, Wyeth Australia Pty. Limited, Wyeth Ayerst Inc., Wyeth Ayerst S.a r.l., Wyeth Biopharma, Wyeth Canada ULC, Wyeth Consumer Healthcare LLC, Wyeth Europa Limited, Wyeth Farma S.A., Wyeth Holdings LLC, Wyeth Industria Farmaceutica Ltda., Wyeth KFT., Wyeth LLC, Wyeth Lederle S.r.l., Wyeth Lederle Vaccines S.A., Wyeth Pakistan Limited, Wyeth Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Wyeth Pharmaceuticals Company, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals FZ-LLC, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals LLC, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals Limited, Wyeth Puerto Rico Inc., Wyeth S.A.S, Wyeth Subsidiary Illinois Corporation, Wyeth Whitehall Export GmbH, Wyeth Whitehall SARL, Wyeth-Ayerst (Asia) Limited, Wyeth-Ayerst International LLC, and Wyeth-Ayerst Promotions Limited.

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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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Pure Storage, Inc. provides data storage technologies, products, and services in the United States and internationally. The company's Purity software is shared across its products and provides enterprise-class data services, such as data reduction, data protection, and encryption, as well as storage protocols, including block, file, and object. Its products portfolio includes FlashArray for block-oriented storage, addressing databases, applications, virtual machines, and other traditional workloads; FlashArray//XL; and FlashArray//C, an all-QLC flash array. The company also provides FlashBlade, a solution for unstructured data workloads of various types; FlashStack that combines compute, network, and storage to provide an infrastructure platform; FlashRecover, an all-flash modern data-protection solution; and AIRI, a full-stack AI-ready infrastructure. In addition, it offers evergreen storage subscription, Pure as-a-Service, and Cloud Block Store, as well as Portworx a cloud-native Kubernetes data management solution It also offers technical and professional, training and education, and certification services. The company sells its products and subscription services through direct sales force and channel partners. The company was formerly known as OS76, Inc. and changed its name to Pure Storage, Inc. in January 2010. Pure Storage, Inc. was incorporated in 2009 and is headquartered in Mountain View, California.
White Mountains Insurance Group, Ltd., through its subsidiaries, provides insurance and other financial services in the United States. The company operates through five segments: HG Global/BAM, Ark, NSM, Kudu, and Other Operations. The HG Global/BAM segment provides insurance on municipal bonds issued to finance public purposes, such as schools, utilities, and transportation facilities, as well as reinsurance protection services. The Ark segment writes a portfolio of reinsurance and insurance, including property, marine and energy, accident and health, casualty, and specialty products. The NSM segment operates as a managing general agent and program administrator for specialty property and casualty insurance to various sectors comprising specialty transportation, real estate, social services, and pet. The Kudu segment provides capital solutions to boutique asset and wealth managers for generational ownership transfers, management buyouts, acquisitions and growth finances, and legacy partner liquidity, as well as strategic assistance to investees. The Other Operations segment offers insurance solutions to travel industry through broker channel and on a direct-to-consumer basis; and manages separate accounts and pooled investment vehicles for insurance-linked securities sectors, including catastrophe bonds, collateralized reinsurance investments, and industry loss warranties of third-party clients. White Mountains Insurance Group, Ltd. was incorporated in 1980 and is headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda.
Thomson Reuters Corporation provides business information services in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. It operates in five segments: Legal Professionals, Corporates, Tax & Accounting Professionals, Reuters News, and Global Print. The Legal Professionals segment offers research and workflow products focusing on legal research and integrated legal workflow solutions that combine content, tools, and analytics to law firms and governments. The Corporates segment provides a suite of content-enabled technology solutions for legal, tax, regulatory, compliance, and IT professionals. The Tax & Accounting Professionals segment offers research and workflow products focusing on tax offerings and automating tax workflows to tax, accounting, and audit professionals in accounting firms. The Reuters News segment provides business, financial, and international news to media organizations, professional, and news consumers through news agency and industry events. The Global Print segment offers legal and tax information primarily in print format to legal and tax professionals, governments, law schools, and corporations. The company was formerly known as The Thomson Corporation and changed its name to Thomson Reuters Corporation in April 2008. The company was founded in 1851 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada. Thomson Reuters Corporation operates a subsidiary of The Woodbridge Company Limited.
The following companies are subsidiares of Tyson Foods: APF Legacy Subs LLC, Advance Food Company LLC, AdvancePierre Foods, AdvancePierre Foods Holdings Inc., AdvancePierre Foods Inc., Aidells Sausage Company Inc., Allied Specialty Foods Inc., American Proteins Inc, Artisan Bread Co. LLC, Australian Food Corporation Pty Limited, Australian Food Corporation Trust, BRF, Barber Foods LLC, Bosco's Pizza Co., Bryan Foods Inc., C.S. Grain LLC, C.V. Holdings Inc., CBFA Management Corp., Central Industries Inc., Chefs Pantry LLC, Clovervale Farms LLC, Cobb (Hubei) Breeding Co. Ltd., Cobb (Shanghai) Enterprise Management Consulting Co. Ltd., Cobb Ana Damizlik Tavukculuk Sanayi Ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Cobb Columbia S.A.S., Cobb Europe B.V., Cobb Europe Limited, Cobb Peru (Andina) S.A.C., Cobb-Heritage LLC, Cobb-Vantress Brasil Ltda, Cobb-Vantress Inc., Cobb-Vantress New Zealand Limited, Cobb-Vantress Philippines Inc., Coominya AFC Pty Limited, Coominya AFC Trust, DFG Foods Inc., DFG Foods L.L.C., Don Julio, Egbert LLC, Equity Group - Georgia Division LLC, Equity Group - Kentucky Division LLC, Equity Group Eufaula Division LLC, Equity Meat Corp., Flavor Corp., Flavor Holdings Inc., Foodbrands America Inc., Foodbrands Supply Chain Services Inc., Gallo Salame Inc., Global Employment Services Inc., Grow-Out Credit LLC, Grow-Out Holdings LLC, Haimen Tyson Poultry Development Co. Ltd, Hudson Foods Company, Hudson Midwest Foods Inc., Hybro Genetics Brasil Ltda, IBP Caribbean Inc., IBP Foodservice L.L.C., IBP Inc., International Affiliates & Investment LLC, Jiangsu Tyson Foods Co. Ltd, Keydutch Finance B.V., Keydutch Holdings I LLC, Keydutch Holdings II LLC, Keydutch Investments B.V., Keystone CLJV Holdings Limited, Keystone County House Road LLC, Keystone Foods, Keystone Foods (AP) Limited, Keystone Foods Holdco LLC, Keystone Foods Intermediate LLC, Keystone Foods LLC, Keystone Foods Pty Limited, Keystone Management Inc., Keystone Trading (Shanghai) Company Limited, LD Foods LLC, M & M Express LLC, M&M Restaurant Supply (MI/OH) LLC, MFG (USA) Holdings Inc., Mac Food Services (Malaysia) SDN. BHD., Madison Foods Inc., McKey Food Services (Hong Kong) Limited, McKey Food Services (Shandong) Limited, McKey Food Services (Thailand) Limited, McKey Food Services Limited, McKey Luxembourg Holdings APMEA S.a.r.l., McKey Luxembourg Holdings S.a.r.l., McKey Luxembourg S.a.r.l., McKey VI Holdings Limited, Myung Seung Food Company Ltd., National Comp Care Inc., New Canada Holdings Inc., Oaklawn Capital Corporation, Oaklawn IT Solution Private Limited, Original Philly Holdings Inc., PBX inc., Pierre Holdco Inc., River Valley Ingredients LLC, Rizhao Tyson Foods Co. Ltd, Rizhao Tyson Poultry Co. Ltd, Rural Energy Systems Inc., Sara Lee - Kiwi Holdings LLC, Sara Lee Diversified LLC, Sara Lee Foods LLC, Sara Lee Household & Body Care Malawi Ltd., Sara Lee International LLC, Sara Lee International TM Holdings LLC, Sara Lee Mexicana Holdings Investment L.L.C., Sara Lee TM Holdings LLC, Sara Lee Trademark Holdings Australasia LLC, Saramar L.L.C., Shandong Tyson-Da Long Food Company Limited, Smart Chicken, Southern Family Foods L.L.C., Southwest Products LLC, TF 20 B.V., TF 5201 B.V., TFA Leasing LLC, TFA Opportunity Zone Fund LLC, TFI of California Inc., Tecumseh Poultry LLC, Texas Transfer Inc., The Bruss Company, The Hillshire Brands Company, The IBP Foods Co., The Pork Group Inc., TyNet Corporation, Tyson (Shanghai) Enterprise Management Consulting Co. Ltd., Tyson Americas Holding Sarl, Tyson Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., Tyson Breeders Inc., Tyson Chicken Inc., Tyson China Holding 2 Limited, Tyson China Holding 3 Limited, Tyson China Holding Limited, Tyson Deli Inc., Tyson Europe Holding Company, Tyson Farms Inc., Tyson Farms QOZB LLC, Tyson Foods Brasil Investimentos Ltda., Tyson Foods Canada Inc., Tyson Foods Europe (Netherlands) B.V., Tyson Foods Europe GmbH, Tyson Foods France S.A.R.L., Tyson Foods Germany GmbH, Tyson Foods Group Limited, Tyson Foods Holland B.V., Tyson Foods Huadong Development Co. Ltd, Tyson Foods Iberia Alimentos S.L.U., Tyson Foods Italia S.p.A., Tyson Foods Korea, Tyson Foods Netherlands B.V., Tyson Foods Products Limited, Tyson Foods Scotland Europe Limited, Tyson Foods Scotland Sales (Europe) Limited, Tyson Foods UK Limited, Tyson Foods Wrexham Limited, Tyson Foods oosterwolde B.V., Tyson Fresh Meats Inc., Tyson Fresh Meats Sales and Distribution LLC, Tyson Global Holding Sarl, Tyson Hog Markets Inc., Tyson India Holdings Ltd., Tyson International APAC Ltd., Tyson International Company Ltd., Tyson International Holding Company, Tyson International Holding Sarl, Tyson International Service Center Inc., Tyson International Service Center Inc. Asia, Tyson International Service Center Inc. Europe, Tyson Mexican Original Inc., Tyson Mexico Trading Company S. de R.L. de CV., Tyson New Ventures LLC, Tyson Opportunity Zone Fund LLC, Tyson Pet Products Inc., Tyson Poultry Inc., Tyson Prepared Foods Inc., Tyson Processing Services Inc., Tyson Refrigerated Processed Meats Inc., Tyson Sales and Distribution Inc., Tyson Service Center Corp., Tyson Shared Services Inc., Tyson Storm Lake Holdings LLC, Tyson Warehousing Services LLC, Tyson of Wisconsin LLC, Uninex SA, Universal Meats (UK) Limited, WBA Analytical Laboratories Inc., Wilton Foods Inc., Xamol Consultores e Servicos, and Zemco Industries Inc..

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Validus Holdings, Ltd. provides reinsurance coverage, insurance coverage, and insurance linked securities management services worldwide. It operates through three segments: Reinsurance, Insurance, and Asset Management. The Reinsurance segment underwrites property reinsurance products on a catastrophe excess of loss, per risk excess of loss and proportional basis; and aerospace and aviation, agriculture, composite, marine, technical lines, terrorism, trade credit, workers' compensation, and other specialty lines, as well as casualty and financial lines. The Insurance segment underwrites property, accident and health, agriculture, aviation, contingency, marine, and political lines insurance products; bankers blanket bond, commercial crime, computer crime, cyber- crime, professional indemnity, and directors' and officers' insurance products for various financial institutions and other companies; and commercial and institutional risks comprising general, professional, and product liability, as well as miscellaneous malpractice insurance products. This segment also underwrites marine and energy liability, and political risk insurance products, as well as insurance products for repair, maintenance, and upkeep of aircrafts and premises for small companies. The Asset Management segment manages capital for third parties through insurance-linked securities, and other property catastrophe and specialty reinsurance investments. Validus Holdings, Ltd. was founded in 2005 and is based in Pembroke, Bermuda.
IBM on Tuesday launched LinuxOne Emperor II, the second generation of its open source mainframe computer system, at the annual Open Source Summit in Los Angeles.

The new model has a layer of security and privacy not seen in a Linux-based platform before, the company said.

We saw in our success stories for Emperor that security was a recurring theme attracting new customers to the platform, noted Mark Figley, director of LinuxOne Offerings at IBM.

Later, our experience with blockchain  and specifically being the platform for IBMs premier blockchain offering because of our security capabilities  reinforced that lesson for us, he told LinuxInsider.

LinuxOne Emperor II includes a proprietary Secure Service Container technology that protects data against external threats, as well as internal threats from users with elevated credentials or from hackers who gain access to an insiders credentials.

The system is the most advanced enterprise Linux platform anywhere, IBM said. It features the fastest microprocessor in the industry and a unique I/O architecture with up to 64 cores dedicated to I/O processing.

LinuxOne is a highly engineered platform with unique security, data privacy and regulatory compliance capabilities, combined with a design optimized for data serving and transaction processing at extreme scale, said Ross Mauri, general manager of IBM LinuxOne.

Tough Year

More than 4 billion data records were lost or stolen in 2016  a 556 percent jump from the year before, IBM noted.

Of the 9 billion records breached over the past year, only 4 percent previously were encrypted, the company said.

LinuxOne Emperor IIs vertically integrated, shared everything design allows it to support a 17-TB MongoDB Enterprise instance in a single system, with up to 10 times better read/write latency than an x86 based implementation, according to IBM. That gives applications faster, more secure access to data, while allowing greater scale.

The system also provides integrated, pause-less garbage collection, which allows Java applications to run concurrently. It provides constant transaction processing 2.6 times that of x86-based systems, which need to stop workloads to conduct garbage collection.

Further, the new system provides certified Docker EE, with integrated management and scale tested with up to 2 million containers.

As a service provider, LinuxOne allows us to set up a complete IT infrastructure capable of supporting millions of users in the blink of an eye for clients like the Plastic Bank, said Ron Argent, CEO of the Cognition Foundry. That cuts the risk of outside hacking threats due to separate user environments running on the system.

IBM is offering beta participation for both developers and clients, working in an observation or hands-on mode.

The Open Source Factor

Something being open source does not make it less secure because it is open source, but it is true that many new-generation open source projects focus on capability enablement before they focus on high-security assurance, especially in the early days of a project, noted IBMs Figley.

Security isnt the only thing often out of focus for an open source project in its early stages, he pointed out.

Other enterprise quality of service issues  such as scalability, reliability and consistency  are often focused on later in the life of an open source project as it matures, Figley said.

We believe that LinuxOne can accelerate the rate of adoption of new open source technologies, and allow companies to do so safely, because the LinuxOne platform can help solve many of the security, scalability, reliability and consistency issues at the system level while the software layer continues to mature, he explained.

Certainly with the rise of Linux and a whole host of other open source technologies in very wide use in enterprises handling very critical apps and data, there isnt any general concern about open source and security, observed Gary Chen, research manager, software defined compute, at IDC.

You really have to look at vendors and any software project, open or closed, individually, he told LinuxInsider. Some have very good security initiatives and prioritize security, and some dont. Being open or closed has nothing to do with that, and you can find good and bad examples in each camp.

Over the Shoulder

The Secure Service Container technology performs a couple of tasks that system administrators could do on their own  but they tend not to on a regular basis, said Paul Teich, principal analyst at Tirias Research.

First, it limits access to those authorized in secure service LPAR, (instead of allowing SSH credentials) he told LinuxInsider. Second, it disables direct memory access to secure containers.

As for IBMs LinuxOne Emperor II security claims, Jeff Williams, chief technology officer at Contrast Security, dashed a bit of cold water on them.

For application security, the Emperor II has no clothes, he told LinuxInsider. From what I understand here, Emperor II is container security. I believe it has enhanced access control and possibly encryption capabilities, but those are irrelevant at the application layer.

The belief that you can drop a vulnerable application into a secure container and everything will be OK, Williams said, is one of the most pernicious and dangerous ideas in security.

The correct approach would be to secure the application itself, either using IAST to prevent vulnerabilities during the development phase, or using application runtime protection with RASP to prevent exploits.
The Apache Software Foundation this weekend responded to accusations that the massive data breach Equifax disclosed last week resulted from a flaw in Apaches open source code.

One of the largest financial data breaches in U.S. history, it exposed names, addresses, Social Security Numbers, birth dates, drivers license numbers and other sensitive information belonging to 143 million U.S. consumers, as well as data belonging to an undisclosed number of UK and Canadian consumers.

The attackers also accessed credit card data for about 209,000 consumers and credit dispute information for about 182,000 consumers, Equifax said.

Apaches Defense

The Apache organization was sorry to hear about the Equifax data breach, said Apache Struts Vice President Rene Gielen on behalf of the Apache Struts Project Management Committee.

However, with respect to the possibility that it resulted from an exploitation of a vulnerability in the Apache Struts Web Framework, it was not clear which vulnerability could have been utilized, Gielen said.

One assumption connected the breach to CVE-2017-2805, one of several patches Apache announced on Sept. 4.

However, the security breach was already detected in July, which means that the attackers either used an earlier announced vulnerabiity on an unpatched Equifax server or exploited a vulnerability not known at this point in time  a so called Zero Day Exploit, Gielen noted.

The committee members have put enormous effort into securing and hardening the software we produce, he added, and they fix problems that come to their attention.

Theres a distinction between the existence of an unknown flaw in the wild for nine years and failing to address a known flaw for nine years, said Gielen, emphasizing that the committee just learned about this flaw.

The has not had any contact with anyone using the @equifax domain on any Apache list in more than two years, said Apache spokesperson Sally Khudairi.

To be clear, whilst we havent had contact with anyone using the @equifax domain  official or otherwise  that is not to say there isnt a chance that someone from their team may have done so using an alternate channel, she told LinuxInsider.

Somebody could have used a personal email account, for example, Khudairi said.

There currently isnt enough data to draw any conclusion, said Dustin Childs, communications manager for Trend Micros Zero Day Initiative.

However, even if it were concluded that it was an Apache Struts vulnerability, theres no data upon which the vulnerability was used, he told LinuxInsider, and even if Apache Struts was the root cause, it could just have easily been something from months, or even years ago.

Equifax could have done a better job protecting a site with such critical consumer data, said Chris Morales, head of security analytics at Vectra.

We believe that Equifax invests a significant amount of money and manpower to protect against cyberattacks, he told LinuxInsider. However, smaller organizations with less manpower and money have detected and responded to similar attacks quickly and prevented data loss.

Consumer Backlash

Equifax has taken tremendous heat over the breach  not only because of the gap between discovering the incident on July 29 and the public disclosure last week, but also due to reports that three company executives, including the CFO, may have sold shares of the company prior to the disclosure. Equifax shares fell sharply last week after the report.

Critics also have lashed out against the company because the website it set up to allow consumers to sign up for credit monitoring through the TrustedIDPremier service required anyone who checked their data to waive their right to sue the company. In addition, customers who signed up for the free offering after a period of time would be charged for the service.

Equifax revised its policies in the wake of the backlash.

It is taking zero time to respond, which is also a telltale sign that it is not pinging a secure Social Security database with millions of records,  noted Paul Teich, principal analyst at Tirias Research.

This is worse than a bait and switch. Equifax is providing completely random answers without even looking up the last six digits of the Social field, he told LinuxInsider.

Any consumers who base their responses on these answers are doing little more than following a random response generator, said Teich.

Actual breaches are not preventable, he noted, as a skilled hacker who wants to access your personal data will do so if they try hard enough  but that was not the problem in the Equifax case.

Storing consumer financial data of any kind in an unencrypted database is totally preventable, said Teich, and has nothing do with Apache or open source in general.
Russian President Vladimir Putin last week poked the nest of anxieties over the use of artificial intelligence to gain power in a video address to students at 16,000 selected schools.

Artificial intelligence is the future, not only for Russia but for all humankind, he said. Whoever becomes the leader in this sphere will become the ruler of the world.

Russia isnt alone in viewing AI as the next big thing in military arsenals. Both the United States and China see AI as a key to success in armed conflicts of the future.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk was among those who weighed in after Putin made his remarks. Musk has been an outspoken critic of autonomous weapons controlled by AI.

China, Russia, soon all countries w strong computer science. Competition for AI superiority at national level most likely cause of WW3 imo.

 Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 4, 2017

The stakes are high for nations developing AI weapons, wrote Gregory C. Allen, an adjunct fellow at the Center for a New American Security, in a commentary for CNN.

AI could spark a revolution in military technology comparable to the invention of aircraft and nuclear weapons, he suggested.

Russian Breakthroughs Doubtful

Despite its ambitions, Russia isnt likely to rise to AI dominance through technology breakthroughs, Allen maintained, because China and the United States have digital technology industries that are larger and growing faster than Russias.

That said, Russia could play a lead role in weaponizing AI as part of its effort to depose the U.S. as the leading global power and restore Russian dominance over Soviet territory, he wrote.

Even though Russia is not known as an Internet technology powerhouse, the country has an impressive crew of hackers that have knocked out a large chunk of Ukraines power grid, infiltrated U.S. nuclear plants, and wreaked havoc in the 2016 U.S. elections, Allen pointed out.

Nevertheless, Putins initiative to send a unified message about artificial intelligence to some 1 million students is a kind of call to action thats missing in the West, observed Sam Curry, chief security officer for Cybereason.

Were doing AI ad hoc, he told TechNewsWorld. We dont have a big enough vision. We need some big moonshot ideas to rally us.

Economic Battlefield

The advantages autonomous weapons could provide on the battlefield have yet to be established.

Although there have been calls to limit development in that space, its not clear to me youll have a huge amount of military superiority just because you have some automated weapons, said Daniel Castro, director of the Center for Data Innovation.

Its hard to have military victories in many environments, and I dont think AI is going to change that, he told TechNewsWorld.

The real battles for AI dominance will be fought among economies, Castro maintained.

On the economic side, there is a clear race for dominance, he said.

When you look at the impact of AI in different industries going forward, we can see the technology is going to have a transformative impact, Castro pointed out. Theres going to be a direct corollary between a countrys success with AI and economic power.

Dominance Difficult to Achieve

While success with AI may contribute to a nations standing in the global community, whether its a ticket to dominance may be another matter.

AI is going to play a significant role in how future technology is leveraged and how decision-making is made, but its not clear to me that one country will rule on this, said Bill Welser, director of the engineering and applied sciences department atRand Corporation.

Even if a country did gain an advantage, its unclear it would be able to block technological diffusion from occurring very quickly, he told TechNewsWorld.

What were seeing now is, as an application base appears in one sector or location, it quickly flows to others  so theres a very short first-mover advantage, Welser explained.

People should be concerned about totally replacing humans in the decision-making process to fire weapons, but were pretty far away from that, he said.

What we should be more concerned about now is bias by coders of the AI systems, Welser suggested. Those biases, even without removing humans out of the decision-making loop, could create unwanted outcomes.

Smart Pandoras Box

Putins remarks have added gasoline to burning concerns over the use of AI in war machines. Those concerns have prompted the United Nations to begin discussions about weapons that incorporate AI into their operations  weapons such as drones, tanks and automated machine guns.

Russia already has taken steps in that direction. Its Military Industrial Committee in 2015 launched an ambitious research and development program to make 30 percent of the countrys combat power consist either of remotely controlled or robotic platforms by 2025.

The prospect of an AI-powered weapons arms race prodded more than 100 technology specialists from 26 countries, including Musk and Mustafa Suleyman, an exec at Googles parent company Alphabet, to call for a ban on autonomous weapons.

Once developed, lethal autonomous weapons will permit armed conflict to be fought at a scale greater than ever, and at timescales faster than humans can comprehend, the group wrote to the UN in August.

These can be weapons of terror, weapons that despots and terrorists use against innocent populations, and weapons hacked to behave in undesirable ways, the letter continues. We do not have long to act. Once this Pandoras box is opened, it will be hard to close.
Hewlett Packard Enterprise has allowed experts working with Russia to review the source code of cybersecurity software that is used by the U.S. Defense Department.

The Pentagon uses HPEs ArcSight software to protect sensitive computer networks. Hewlett-Packard acquired ArcSight in 2010 in a deal valued at US$1.5 billion.

The review was conducted by Russian firm Echelon on behalf of the Russia Federal Service for Technical and Export Control, a defense agency that deals with cybersecurity issues, according to Reuters, which originally broke the story earlier this week.

HPE has never and will never take actions that compromise the security of our products or the operations of our customers, the company said in a statement provided to the E-Commerce Times by spokesperson Kate Holderness.

HPE has worked with select third parties to test a narrow set of products for backdoor vulnerabilities before selling into the Russian market, the company said, noting that this is a years old requirement that has not changed recently.

All testing was done in HPE controlled sites and entirely under the supervision of HPEs cybersecurity specialists, to ensure that our source code and products were in no way compromised, HPE said, adding that no backdoor vulnerabilities were detected within ArcSight.

Pentagon Protocol

The Defense Department has policies in place to guard against such vulnerabilities, but the level of exposure in this case is not clear.

Commercial products and services procured and deployed by DoD are evaluated for security risks, said Heather Babb, a spokesperson for the Pentagon. The Department has policies in place to address software assurance and supply chain risk management, as well as established security standards to ensure all procured commercial products and service are rigorously inspected for security vulnerabilities.

ArcSight was reviewed under the appropriate cybersecurity processes prior to being employed by DoD, and it is continuously evaluated for performance and risk, consistent with department policies, Babb told the E-Commerce Times. ArcSight is a single tool and only one component of DoDs larger defense posture.

Tense Relations

The report comes at a time of heightened tension between the U.S. and Russia, as U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded that Russia took steps to interfere in the 2016 presidential election.

Hacking organizations backed by the Russian government have been accused of accessing troves of email data belonging to the Democratic Party and officials from Hillary Clintons presidential campaign, and then leaking it to Wikileaks, which published it online.

Wikileaks has a history of publishing classified documents from U.S. intelligence agencies and other governments around the world.

More recently, Russian accounts have been linked to major purchases of targeted advertising and the proliferation of fake news on Facebook during the 2016 campaign. Facebook has been cooperating with federal investigators who are looking into whether U.S. operatives or campaign officials played a role in coordinating any of those transactions or activities.

Symantec, developer of Norton Utilities security software, reportedly has refused to meet Russian demands to review source code information.

Symantecs global security policies are intended to ensure our products remain uncompromised by third parties, said Matt Nagel, senior manager of corporate communications at Symantec.

We do not permit source code inspections by customers, customer appointed agents, foreign governments, foreign bureaus or foreign test centers, he told the E-Commerce Times.

However, a number of U.S. technology firms, including IBM, Cisco and SAP, have agreed to Russian demands to review their source code, Reuters reported earlier this year, in order to retain access to the lucrative Russian market.
In a rare move, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission on Thursday confirmed that it has opened an investigation into the data breach at Equifax that compromised the sensitive personal information of 143 million U.S. consumers.

The FTC announcement came less than a week after Equifax revealed that an unknown party had gained access to names, addresses, Social Security Numbers and other data belonging to nearly half the U.S. population. An unknown number of Canadian and UK consumers were directly impacted by the breach as well.

Along with personal information, the attackers stole more than 209,000 customer credit card numbers and nearly 190,000 credit dispute files.

Equifax hired an outside cybersecurity firm to investigate and contacted law enforcement to look into the incident, it said.

Twisting the Knife?

Equifax triggered a severe backlash following news of the breach for what critics have characterized as an attempt to make money from consumers seeking to find out if their identities were stolen, and to prevent them from participating in any future legal action against the firm.

Offers to sell the stolen consumer information reportedly have turned up on the Dark Web.

The FTC typically does not comment on ongoing investigations, said Peter Kaplan, acting director, public affairs.

However in light of the intense public interest and potential impact of the matter, I can confirm that FTC staff is investigating the Equifax data breach, he told the E-Commerce Times.

The agency also warned consumers to be on the alert for phone scams  for example, someone pretending to be from Equifax in an effort to trick people into providing personal data.

No Patch

The Apache Software Foundation on Thursday confirmed that the data breach was due to Equifaxs failure to patch a vulnerability related to Apache Struts, an open source framework for creating enterprise-level Java Web applications.

Apache Struts powers Internet of Things and front and back-end applications for many of the leading technology service providers, telecoms, financial institutions and government agencies.

The unpatched vulnerability was linked to CVE-2017-9805, based on an analyst report that was traced to information reportedly provided by an Equifax source.

Under Fire

Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., blasted Equifax on the floor of the U.S. Senate, calling the incident one the most egregious examples of corporate malfeasance since Enron, and called for Senate hearings on the matter. He also demanded resignations from the CEO and board members if immediate reforms are not implemented.

When youre a credit agency like Equifax, you have two principal jobs: calculating and reporting accurate credit scores, and protecting the sensitive information of individuals that are funneled through that process, he said. Equifax stunningly and epically failed to perform one of its two essential duties as a company, to protect the sensitive information of the people in its files.

Possible Legal Action

Equifax faces potential legal liability on a couple of fronts, said Seth Berman, a former Department of Justice attorney who now specializes in cybersecurity issues at the Nutter law firm.

The FTC has broad authority to investigate data breaches, he told the E-Commerce Times, particularly given the fact that Equifax is a credit reporting agency that deals with consumer finances, and also since Equifax has been caught up in past investigations by the agency.

State attorneys general also will look into the breach, Berman said, noting that New York AG Eric Schneiderman already has announced an investigation.

Equifax could see a spate of class action civil suits from consumers and shareholders, as well as a probe by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

More often than not, we are seeing breaches as a result of an organizations failure to implement Security 101 principles  proper patch management, secure software development, processes and procedures, said Leigh Anne Galloway, cybersecurity resilience officer at Positive Technologies.

Its the basic things that organizations fail to do again and again, she told the E-Commerce Times.

A number of Apache Struts vulnerabilities recently have been identified, Galloway noted, including a number of flaws Cisco uncovered in the open source framework just a week ago.

In the Equifax case, attackers were allowed to execute arbitrary code on a server by manipulating the Content-Type HTTP header, she said.

FTC Settlement

Equifax and other companies in 2012 agreed to pay US$1.6 million to settle the FTCs charges that the company had sold lists of customers who were late on their mortgage payments.

Equifax itself agreed to pay $393,000 to settle claims that it sold data from 17,000 prescreened late-paying consumers to firms, including Direct Lending Source, which then resold that information to other firms.
U.S. Olympic and Paralympic athletes and staff who traveled to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for the 2016 Summer Games did not become infected with Zika virus but did test positive for other tropical, mosquito-borne viral infections, including West Nile Virus, Dengue Fever and Chikungunya. Results from the University of Utah Health-led study will be reported at IDWeek, a national infectious disease conference being held in San Diego.

None of the infected travelers became seriously ill, say the study's investigators. But the findings are a reminder that amidst the frenzy over Zika, travelers were also susceptible to other, long-standing public health risks that did not receive the same level of scrutiny.

"Everyone was concentrating on Zika and ignoring that there could be other infections caused by mosquito bites. We did not expect to find so many with these other infections," says U of U Health infectious disease specialist Krow Ampofo, MBCHB., who will be presenting the study's results on Oct. 7. "That is one of the reasons why we think that being vigilant about monitoring for infectious diseases after travel to at-risk areas is so important."

Other sources have indicated that there were no Zika cases reported during the Rio Olympics. But the U of U Health investigation is the first to examine a large cohort for viruses that cause other tropical infectious diseases.

Of the 457 athletes and staff who provided blood samples after returning from Brazil, testing found that 32 (7%) had become infected with mosquito-borne viruses while abroad. Twenty-seven had West Nile Virus, three had Chikungunya, and two had Dengue. None had signs of Zika.

Twelve of the individuals who tested positive filled out post-travel surveys. From those, only three - two with Chikungunya and one with West Nile Virus - reported having symptoms that can include body aches and rash. Symptoms emerged within two weeks after travel and resolved shortly thereafter.

"We were thrilled that there were no cases of Zika," says lead investigator Carrie Byington, M.D., who began the study while at U of U Health and is now at Texas A&M Health Science Center. "One of the reasons we think that post travel diagnostics is really important is because multiple things can cause a similar picture and it's important to know what you had."

In general, most people infected with one of the other three viruses tested in the study - West Nile Virus, Chikangunya or Dengue - either had no symptoms or, when ill, had mild symptoms. In rare cases, these infections can be severely disabling or lethal.

At the time the study began, organizers were particularly concerned about Zika, which can also spread through sexual transmission and cause debilitating birth defects in unborn babies.

The 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Summer Games were held not long after the height of the Zika epidemic. The U of U Health study was mounted as a rapid response to monitor the health of U.S. athletes and staff traveling to Brazil, the epicenter of the outbreak. Of the estimated 2,000 travelers, 950 enrolled in the study, and just under half submitted samples for testing upon return. Participants who tested positive were sent letters explaining their results and recommending they consult with their health care provider.

"We all had our Hollywood sunglasses on, and they blinded us to other possibilities," says Marc Couturier, Ph.D., a medical director at ARUP Laboratories who led the testing. "We can't forget that West Nile Virus has been around for a while, and is still here."

###

Dr. Krow Ampofo will be presenting this study, titled "Arboviral Infections Following the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games in a Cohort of US Athletes and Support Staff," as an oral abstract (#2486) on Oct. 7 at 2:00 p.m. PDT in the Global Infections session at IDWeek in Room 01AB.

Funding was provided by the National Institutes of Health.

About University of Utah Health

University of Utah Health is the state's only academic health care system, providing leading-edge and compassionate medicine for a referral area that encompasses 10% of the U.S., including Idaho, Wyoming, Montana and much of Nevada. A hub for health sciences research and education in the region, U of U Health touts a $291 million research enterprise and trains the majority of Utah's health care professionals at its Schools of Medicine and Dentistry and Colleges of Nursing, Pharmacy and Health. Staffed by more than 20,000 employees, the system includes 12 community clinics and four hospitals -- University Hospital; University Neuropsychiatric Institute; Huntsman Cancer Hospital; and the University Orthopaedic Center. For eight straight years, U of U Health has ranked among the top 10 U.S. academic medical centers in the rigorous Vizient Quality and Accountability Study, including reaching No. 1 in 2010 and 2016.

About ARUP Laboratories

ARUP Laboratories is a national reference laboratory with more than 90 medical experts who are available for consultation. These experts are faculty at the University of Utah School of Medicine and many participate in care teams at the Huntsman Cancer Hospital and Primary Children's Hospital. In addition, ARUP is a worldwide leader in innovative laboratory research and development, led by the efforts of the ARUP Institute for Clinical and Experimental Pathology. ARUP is ISO 15189 CAP accredited.
Friday, October 6, 2017

The Public Relations Society of Americas National Capital Chapter (PRSA-NCC) will induct Carmen Marsans and John J. Seng into the National Capital Public Relations Hall of Fame. Marsans and Seng will be honored at PRSA-NCCs Annual Thoth Awards Gala, Thursday, October 12. The gala will take place from 6:00  9:00 p.m. at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.

PRSA-NCC started the National Capital Public Relations Hall of Fame in 1999 by inducting 50 leaders with significant accomplishments in the public relations field as part of the chapters 50th anniversary celebration. The Hall of Fame members hold more than a thousand awards, distinctions, honorary degrees, advisory positions, charity board seats and Whos Who citations among them.

The PRSA-NCC board of directors joins me in congratulating both inductees on their lifelong achievements in PR, and more importantly, the enduring impact theyve had on their clients and causes, and on the people with whom theyve worked, said Samantha Villegas, APR, 2017 National Capital Hall of Fame Chair and 2013 chapter president. We thank them for their service to our profession, and the leadership and mentoring they provided to their colleagues and professionals in the community.

Criteria for induction in the PRSA-NCC Public Relations Hall of Fame includes 30 or more years of distinguished accomplishments, visionary leadership, mentoring, commitment to the profession, positive and significant impacts on the industry, and contributions to the local public relations community. Inductees must have worked in the Washington, D.C., area for at least 10 years. To view the list of Hall of Fame Members, visit: https://www.prsa-ncc.org/ about-us/leadership/hall-fame- members .

Marsans is currently the senior vice president of client services for Comunicad where she directs and oversees national programs for corporate clients and special projects with international organizations. Nationally, Latino magazine named Marsans one of the Top 20 Marketing Professionals for her demonstrated commitment to understanding and recognizing the value of multicultural markets through various platforms and initiatives.

Most recently, Marsans was recognized and highlighted by Cision as one of the successful women in PR. She specializes in building strong community relationships through public outreach campaigns that foster long-term growth and enhance the bottom line. Her proven public relations approach has resulted in award-winning campaigns related to veterans, child safety and leadership development. Prior to joining Comunicad, Marsans worked for FleishmanHillard as part of the team that helped manage the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. She also spent more than 20 years at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), AFL-CIO, spearheading its educational initiatives, writing training manuals and teaching a myriad of courses to the International Representatives and local union leadership. Her efforts were instrumental toward the creation of the education department for the organizations local and national staff, as well as the development of the IBEW Hispanic Outreach Program, helping the organizations growth as well as gaining internal support of the importance of cultural diversity and inclusiveness within the IBEWs workforce.

Marsans also is a co-founder of the Washington, D.C., chapter of the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA), which serves as a voice for change in the Latino community. She has lectured and taught courses about the history of labor issues, and helped create public awareness programs regarding the needs of underserved communities. Most notably, Marsans was instrumental in forming the Tri-State Voter Registration and Education Coalition to help educate newly naturalized American citizens about laws and structure. She also taught English to hundreds of newcomers to the D.C. area.

Carmen is the consummate professional whose talents and expertise throughout a distinguished 30-year career in the communications industry has made a recognizable difference. The commitment and dedication to her work and colleagues, notwithstanding her family, has been admirable. At Comunicad, Carmen embodies the true meaning of leadership that continues to inspire others and will undoubtedly leave a legacy, said Gloria Rodriguez, president and CEO, Comunicad, LLC.



A public relations professional since 1979, Seng founded Spectrum Science Communications in 1996 with a vision for a better agency model an independent agency focused solely on health and science communications. As a testament to his unwavering commitment and belief, Spectrum was awarded Healthcare Agency of the Year (Holmes Report), Top Place to Work in PR (PR News) and Best Place to Work (PRWeek) in 2016.

Several years after founding Spectrum, Seng realized that his clients had an unmet need: deep communications expertise at a global scale. While most networks had reach, they didnt have the healthcare expertise that can make or break global strategy. In 2004, Seng co-founded GLOBALHealthPR (GHPR), the largest independent health and science communications agency partnership worldwide. Today, GHPR has 16 partners, a presence in 40 countries, and has worked with 44 of the top 50 pharma brands worldwide.

Seng is very active with his alma mater, serving on the board of visitors of the Philip Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland. In addition, he has served on the board of directors of the PR Council for the past six years. Seng has also participated on numerous boards for health-related organizations, including 14 years on the Progeria Research Foundations (PRF) board and, most recently, two years chairing the board for the Society of Womens Health Research (SWHR). In 2013, Seng received the PRSA Frank J. Weaver Lifetime Achievement Award honoring his outstanding contributions to the public relations practice.

John is a visionary leader whose fierce belief in the power of independent agencies has allowed him to serve clients with excellence regionally, nationally and globally. He has brought unparalleled passion and creativity to health and science PR for over 30 years, and that passion inspires those he works with day in and day out, said Jonathan Wilson, president and CEO of Spectrum.
The US has opposed a deal between the UK and EU to split agricultural import quotas, one of Theresa Mays key plans for a fluid Brexit.

Seven countries led by the US, including Canada, Argentina, Brazil and New Zealand signed a letter to the EU objecting to a plan to split agricultural tariff rate quotas, or TRQs.

There is now a general consensus between UK and EU that TRQs should be divided based on historical imports and consumption.

The news is a setback for Mrs May, who presented the deal as a breakthrough for a successful Brexit, particularly as US President Donald Trump was an advocate of Britain leaving the EU.

We cannot accept such an agreement, the letter stated. The seven countries are displeased that they had not been consulted on the negotiations.

These TRQs were achieved through a delicate balance of concessions and entitlements that is fundamental to the global trade architecture today.

It goes on to stress that no calculation of Britains tariff-rate quotas could be agreed at the WTO without our agreement.

The letter suggests that Britain and the EU could not just negotiate with each other, and that they might need to redo the entire system of import tariffs.

During the week of October 16, dubbed 'agriculture week' because of trade negotiations, the UK and EU will conclude their plan to other WTO members.

Among the UKs plans is to ask that its new agricultural quotas schedule be established using a method called technical rectification, which would avoid having to secure approval from other WTO members.

We still believe that technical rectification remains the most appropriate procedure for introducing UK schedules into the WTO, the UK trade department spokesman told The Financial Times, adding that Britain was committed to working constructively and openly with our international partners throughout the process.
Nine police forces team up to improve prosecution of rural offenders






She rose from the ranks to become a matinee goddess  our very own Marilyn Monroe stirring a million fantasies. From a stunt princess relegated to doing Dara Singh films to being the toast of tinselville in the 70s... what worked for Mumtaz was perhaps her sense of abandonment. Not burdened by image and convention, she was as comfortable with her curves and pout as she was with her co-stars. Mumzy to Dev Anand, Puttu to Amitabh Bachchan and Mumu to all...







The crescendo in Mumtazs career coincided with that of Rajesh Khannas. While rival Sharmila Tagore was known for her sophistication, Mumtaz killed it with her engaging spontaneity. To placate the sulking audience after she quit films, directors, apparently urged actresses like Rekha and Neetu Singh to toe the Mumtaz template  even though her pug nose till date has found no replica.





Younger actors like Shah Rukh Khan and Akshay Kumar are her fanboys. Her pleated orange saree in Aaj kal tere mere pyaar ke still finds versions, her jig in Zindagi ittefaq hai provides fodder to choreographers as do her fish net stockings in Apna Desh, to costume designers. Today, at 70, she lives a quiet life in London with husband Mayur Madhvani. But yes, those 14 years of glory, lived 40 years ago, are enough for her to say, I want to be reborn as Mumtaz again...
critic's rating: 3.5/5

Ryan Gosling, Harrison Ford, Ana de Armas, Sylvia Hoeks, Robin Wright, Mackenzie Davis, Carla Juri, Lennie James, Dave Bautista, Jared Leto

Denis Villeneuve

Visual masterpiece3.5stars

A great sci-fi film blends reality with mindboggling creativity. Movies like Fritz Langs Metropolis, Ridley Scotts Alien or Blade Runner, Terry Gilliams Brazil, James Camerons Terminator 2 or even the Wachowskis The Matrix are minefields of massive ideas. Chris Nolans Inception and Interstellar are modern movies that define the best of science fiction. Dennis Villeneuves Blade Runner 2049, a sequel to Scotts 1982 film with Harrison Ford is one of the best genre faithful in recent time. Its got great visual power. Some of its ideas are a genuine mirror to the tech-driven reality were all hurling towards. But the fact that it borrows so heavily from Momoru Oshiis Ghost In The Shell (1995) just robs from its genuine genius.

The story here is a follow-up to the events of Scotts film. The year is 2049 and synthetic androids have gotten a lot more advance than before. Older generations of these synthetic humans are being hunted down by Blade Runners. Ryan Gosling hunts down his own android kind. But his investigation on the history of his latest hunt reveals a bigger story. He starts investigating the older synthetics and the new reveals could change the very history of humans and their perfect robotic creations. Much like the first film, the story constantly alludes to the fact that, artificial intelligence is not just a product but a creation of nature. Gosling is a synthetic with his own set of memory transplants. But the way he feels and behaves is no different than a regular human being. Its a juxtaposition that continues the conflict of Harrison Fords character from the original. Once Ford makes a late entry into Villeneuves film the drama gets elevated even more.

The sights and sounds of Blade Runner 2049 are a masterclass. This films cinematography, production design, CGI and music score are flawless. Watching the film is like reliving a futuristic experience. One where technology and AI is a seamless part of human life. Ideas like humans and synthetics having relationships with virtuals is as pathbreaking as it was in Spike Jonzes Her (2013). The depiction of this simulated but very real relationship between a body and a holographic conscience is phenomenally powerful in Blade Runner 2049.

But the film bears a heavy influence of Ghost In The Shell. In all fairness, Dennis Villeneuve and writers Hampton Fanchon and Michael Green arent able to emulate the same depth of emotions and conflict as the Japanese anime. For all its visions of grandeur, the themes of Blade Runner 2049 are still a lot more simplistic than even Scotts original offering. At least the original film would have made Isaac Asimov nod in the affirmative. Blade Runner and its convenient screenplay tropes keep it from being a truly great modern film. The performances by Gosling and Ford though add great character to the movie. Jared Leto, Robin Wright and Sylvia Hoeks make the story all the more interesting. The way technology recreates Sean Young from 1982 is just staggering.

Blade Runner 2049 is director Dennis Villeneuves best film yet. Its an audio-visual masterclass that will be best experienced in IMAX. Watch this and youre guaranteed a mind-boggling time. A slightly limited emotional conflict does stifle the prospects, but on the merit of its technical expertise alone, this film is a must watch.
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Bigg Boss 11 : Priyank Sharma KICKED OUT from HOUSE, He Hits Akash Dadlani on face | FilmiBeat

It's hardly been a week and things inside the Bigg Boss 11 house have horribly gone wrong! Vikas Gupta and Shilpa Shinde's fight started right from the premiere of the show. Their fight took an ugly turn when Vikas poured tea on Shilpa's clothes.

Apparently, Vikas and Akash Dadlani get into a heated argument, which turns into a physical fight. Vikas also slaps Akash and the latter bleeds. Reportedly, the reason for the fight is Akash, who addresses Vikas, a gay.



There are rumours that Vikas is a gay and he and Priyank Sharma are dating. Apparently, Akash questions Vikas' sexuality, which creates a huge hullabaloo in the house and things go out of control.

There were reports that because Vikas hurt Akash, the former was thrown out of the house. But now, there are reports that it is not Vikas but Priyank thrown out of the house!

It is said that Priyank couldn't see Vikas in trouble and gets in between the fight. Amidst the argument, Priyank slaps Akash, twice. It is then, Bigg Boss orders Priyank to leave the house.

There are also reports that during Weekend Ka Vaar, Salman takes class of Vikas for getting provoked! Salman will also be questioning Zubair Khan - Salman says that whatever Zubair is doing/talking is being watched by his kids.

Stay locked to this space for the latest updates of the show...
Toro Rosso's Carlos Sainz will replace Jolyon Palmer at Renault from this month's United States Grand Prix onwards, meaning Sunday's Japanese race will be Palmer's farewell for the team.

Renault said the departure with Palmer was by 'mutual consent'. Sainz - already confirmed for them for 2018 - will now drive for the team for the remaining four races of 2017, starting at Austin on October 22.

Palmer said he would look back with pride on his time with the team, which will grow to 35 races starts at Suzuka and includes a career-best finish of sixth place three weeks ago in Singapore.

"The Japanese Grand Prix will be my last race for Renault," the Briton confirmed. "Its been an extremely challenging season and Ive been through a lot in the last three years, but its been a tremendous journey overall with the team.

"I can look back proudly at the performance in the second half of last season, my first point in Malaysia and of course reaching a career high of sixth place in Singapore this year. I wish the team all the best for the future.

"My immediate focus is now on achieving the best possible result in the Japanese GP, and then I can assess my options for the future."

Cyril Abiteboul, Renault Sport Racing Managing Director, added: "I would like to thank Jolyon for his commitment to the team and his professionalism.
The Best Smartphone Camera

Taking great photos and videos is the thing you do most with your phone, so Google has set out to make that even better. With Pixel 2 you can take the best photos and videos. Independent camera testers, DXO, has rated the Pixel 2 camera as the best camera of any smartphone, with a record-breaking score of 98, far higher than the score of 89 for last year's Pixel, which at the time was the highest score as well.

Take crisp, clear, and detailed photos in any light, thanks to Google's computational photography capabilities. The combination of optical and electronic video stabilization enables remarkably smooth video, even when you're on the move.

Further, you can capture stunning portrait shots with gorgeous background blurs, from both the front and the back cameras. And with all of those great photos, Google is once again providing free unlimited storage for photos and videos taken on Pixel, in the highest resolution.

Search What you See

Back in May, the company spoke for the first time about Google Lens-a new set of visual features that help you learn more about the world around you and get things done. It builds on Google's advancements in computer vision and machine learning, combined with Google knowledge graph which underpins Google Search. The Pixel smartphones are getting an early preview of Google Lens so you can try it before anyone else.

Talking about the functionality, with Googe Lens you'll be able to look up landmarks, books, music albums, movies, and artwork, right from Google Photos on your Pixel. You can also take an action like asking Google Lens to copy URLs and contact information from a picture of a poster or business card. Over just the next few months, Google will add more capabilities, as well as the ability to use it in the Google Assistant.

Google Assistant

The Google Assistant makes many tasks-from sending a text or making a call, to finding an answer-faster, easier and hands-free. With Pixel 2, it's now even easier to access Google Assistant with a new feature called Active Edge. You can just give the phone a quick squeeze, and ask for what you need. This works even when your phone is in a case.

Google has said that Assistant on Pixel will also be able to help with your daily routines; using simple phrases you could trigger actions during the morning, your commute, when you get home, etc. So the Google Assistant on Pixel will not only understand you better but it can also be more personal to you, helping you get more done at any time.

Worry Less, Do More

Pixel 2 is now water and dust-resistant and comes with an IP67 standard. The smartphones have also some of the most advanced security features baked in. With monthly security updates direct from Google, your Pixel will always have the most advanced security precautions built in-no more worrying about updating or upgrading.

Google also wants to make it as easy as possible to switch to Pixel. Most people will be able to copy their contacts, apps, messages, photos and more from their old phone in 10 minutes or less. It should be fast and painless.

Added Battery Support

The all-new Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL smartphones support fast charging which isn't exactly a new feature for a Pixel device. Though, this year Google has made it possible to charge new Pixel smartphones even faster with up to 27W USB-C charger.

Google's Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL will ship with 18W USB Type-C and PD (power delivery) power adapters but as mentioned earlier it supports 27W charging from compliant PD chargers as well. You can always get the chargers from Amazon.

Besides, third-party accessory makers will likely come with their own version of chargers most probably with "Made for Google" badge.

Entertainment

The new smartphones come with high-resolution displays and high-definition stereo speakers. Further, there is a new interesting feature for music lovers. For instance, you are in a coffee shop and you are curious about the song playing in the background. Pixel 2 will now automatically displays the name of the song and other details so you know what's playing.
Global mobile handset profit pool declined 10% YoY in Q2 2017: Counterpoint News oi -Priyanka The Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus are gaining attention amongst users with their Infinity display, beautiful design, and virtual assistant Bixby.

According to the new report by research firm Counterpoint, the global mobile handset profit pool declined 10 percent YoY during Q2 2017 and the reason the main reasons were, an increase in the mix of cheaper iPhone models, growth of less profitable mid-tier models in prepaid markets from vendors like Xiaomi as well as sales mix shift for Samsung to mid-tier J and Grand series portfolio.

However, Apple dominated the global profit share, holding 65 percent of the pie with just 9 percent of the total handset shipments during Q2 2017.

"We estimate that the Apple iPhone X will further increase profits for the iPhone maker in the premium segment and overall to record levels," report said.

The average selling price for iPhones in developed regions is approximately 150 percent higher as compared to the regional industry ASP whereas in developing regions it can go as high as 650 percent compared to the overall industry ASP in that region.

This underlines the huge global price differential the iPhones have with respect to competitors and "premium brand equity" it tries to cash in on, it added.

Meanwhile, Samsung has regained profitability and reputation over the past few quarters, after the Note 7 debacle with the help of its new Galaxy S8 series flagship.

The Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus are gaining attention amongst users with their Infinity display, beautiful design, and virtual assistant Bixby. However, the major shift in sales towards mid-tier models has caused Samsung's profits to decline almost 30 percent YoY.

The profit of Huawei, OPPO & Vivo combined crossed a billion-dollar mark growing a healthy 43 percent YoY during the quarter. The Chinese brands are growing fast when compared to industry leaders due to their high-quality offerings at competitive prices with attractive designs and innovative features. Aggressive marketing campaigns and strong promotions have helped them further.

The report pointed out that, Asian region has been the linchpin for the growth for this trio, however, expanding beyond Asia markets will definitely put significant pressure on their operating margins in near- to mid-term

Best Mobiles in India
Meet Nokia N950 aka Dali, a QWERTY slider smartphone that wasnt announced News oi -Abhinaya Prabhu Nokia N950 is a Meego OS phone that didnt see the light of the day.

HMD is eagerly awaited to launch the next batch of Nokia smartphones including the Nokia 2 and Nokia 9. These smartphones are hitting the rumor mills constantly and the speculations point out that the entry-level smartphone will be made available sometime in November.

In the meantime, the Nokia fans have a blast from the past. The popular Twitter-based leakster @evleaks has come up with an image the Nokia N950 aka Dali. The smartphone appears to have a QWERTY slider keyboard and run on Meego OS. The phone was actually slated to be released after the Nokia N9 but it never made its way into the retail market. It was canceled by Elop as the focus back then was on the devices running on Windows Phone.

OnePlus' latest Diwali video is as appealing as its flagship smartphone

The above image posted by Evan Blass on his official Twitter handle was followed by another one as shown below by another Twitter user. It is said that the second source might have received the Nokia N950 smartphone as a developer device back then from Nokia.

The Nokia N950 image shows that there are no hardware buttons as those were ditched in favor of the swipe actions. Also, this phone appears to have a beautiful design making us believe that it is one of the most attractive phones to come out from Nokia's stable till date. One thing that we know is that it is pretty odd to come to a conclusion that the company will launch such a smartphone in the current trend.

Notably, there was a video teaser of the alleged Nokia N950 that was leaked by the leakster Evan Blass long back when he was with PocketNow.

Best Mobiles in India

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Reports: Russian Hackers Allegedly Stole U.S. NSA Secrets

RFE/RL October 05, 2017

Media reports say hackers backed by the Russian government stole highly sensitive U.S. espionage tools in 2015 after a U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) contractor placed the classified materials on his home computer.

U.S. authorities believe the alleged theft, first reported by The Wall Street Journal on October 5, may have been carried out by exploiting antivirus software made by the Moscow-based company Kaspersky Lab, several media outlets reported, citing unidentified sources.

Washington last month banned U.S. federal agencies from using Kaspersky products, citing alleged "ties between certain Kaspersky officials and Russian intelligence and other government agencies."

The Kremlin has condemned the ban, and company founder Eugene Kaspersky has repeatedly denied that his company, one of Russia's most successful technology firms, has links to Russian intelligence.

The reports on the alleged NSA theft said that the hack handed information to Russia on how the U.S. spy agency breaches foreign computer networks and defends itself against cyberattacks.

The NSA did not comment on the reports.

The NSA contractor, who has not been publicly identified, has been cooperating with U.S. federal authorities, the reports quoted unidentified sources as saying.

The reports could heighten tensions further between Russia and the United States, which accuses the Kremlin of directing a hacking and propaganda campaign aimed at influencing last year's presidential election. Moscow rejects the allegation.

Kaspersky Lab responded to The Wall Street Journal report in an October 5 statement, saying that it "has not been provided any evidence substantiating the company's involvement in the alleged incident."

"It is unfortunate that news coverage of unproven claims continue to perpetuate accusations about the company," it said, adding that the firm "does not have inappropriate ties to any government, including Russia."

"The only conclusion seems to be that Kaspersky Lab is caught in the middle of a geopolitical fight," the statement said.

The report triggered statements of concern from both Democratic and Republican senators.

U.S. Senator Ben Sasse (Republican-Nebraska), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said that if the report was true, "the NSA needs to get its head out of the sand and solve its contractor problem. Russia is a clear adversary in cyberspace and we can't afford these self-inflicted injuries."

Russia has granted asylum to former NSA contractor Edward Snowden, who leaked a trove of classified U.S. documents on government surveillance in 2013.

U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (Democrat-New Hampshire), a top advocate in Congress for banning government use of Kaspersky Lab products, urged the Trump administration in an October 5 statement to declassify information about purported threats posed by the Russian firm.

"It's a disservice to the public and our national security to continue withholding this information," Shaheen said.

With reporting by The Wall Street Journal, NBC News, ABC News, Reuters, and AFP

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russian-hackers -allegedly-steal-nsa-spying -tools/28776360.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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US Troop Deployments to Afghanistan Delayed Due to Hurricane Relief Efforts

By Carla Babb October 05, 2017

American troop deployments to Afghanistan to support the Trump administration's new strategy there have lagged due to the military's ongoing support of hurricane relief efforts in Puerto Rico, a top U.S. general said Thursday.

Joint Staff Director Lieutenant General Kenneth "Frank" McKenzie, Jr. categorized the delays as "minor," adding that some forces were flowing into Afghanistan but the number of American troops there remains "in the vicinity of 11,000."

He explained the delays are due in part to the U.S. military having a finite number of transport aircraft, some of which were moved to transport relief items to Puerto Rico and help with other aid activities on the island.

"That will inevitably slow movement to other theaters and (cause) the slight delay in the flow of forces to Afghanistan," he said.

In addition, the USS Wasp, an amphibious assault ship, has delayed its deployment to the Pacific due to its role in rescue-and-relief efforts in the Caribbean.

"Secretary (Jim Mattis) said we're 'all in' to help Puerto Rico, and there are just going to be downstream effects when you make those decisions," he said, adding that helping American citizens such as those in Puerto Rico is a "very high priority" for the Pentagon.

The United States is sending about 3,000 additional American troops to Afghanistan to advise and assist Afghan forces in the field down to the brigade level.

Defense Secretary Mattis told lawmakers earlier this week that these advisors will be authorized to call in U.S. and coalition airstrikes to support the ground operations, allowing the Afghan forces to be "bolder" in combat knowing that American and NATO air power will be there to strike the Taliban and other militants on the battlefield.

"Make no mistake, this is combat duty," Mattis said Tuesday, "but the Afghan forces remain in the lead to do the fighting."

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Officials Provide Details of Latest Strikes Against ISIS

From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release

SOUTHWEST ASIA, Oct. 6, 2017  U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria yesterday, conducting 44 strikes consisting of 65 engagements, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

Officials reported details of yesterday's strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Strikes in Syria

In Syria, coalition military forces conducted 34 strikes consisting of 43 engagements against ISIS targets:

-- Near Abu Kamal, a strike destroyed an ISIS weapons cache.

-- Near Hawl, a strike destroyed an ISIS staging area.

-- Near Shadaddi, a strike engaged an ISIS tactical unit.

-- Near Dayr Az Zawr, two strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed two improvised explosive devices and a logistics node.

-- Near Raqqa, 29 strikes engaged six ISIS tactical units and destroyed 23 fighting positions, two vehicles, a supply route and an IED; damaged a vehicle; and suppressed three fighting positions.

Strikes in Iraq

In Iraq, coalition military forces conducted 10 strikes consisting of 22 engagements against ISIS targets:

-- Near Bashir, a strike engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed a vehicle and a weapons cache.

-- Near Huwija, eight strikes engaged three ISIS tactical units and destroyed nine vehicle-borne IEDs, four vehicles, three weapons caches and an ISIS-held building.

-- Near Ramadi, a strike destroyed an ISIS bunker.

Previous Strikes

Officials also provided details today on 30 strikes consisting of 36 engagements in Syria and Iraq in recent days for which the information was not previously available:

-- Near Raqqa on Oct. 3, a strike destroyed an ISIS communication system.

-- Near Huwija on Oct. 4, a strike destroyed 11 ISIS vehicles, a tunnel and a vehicle-borne IED.

-- Near Raqqa on Oct. 4, 28 strikes engaged 11 ISIS tactical units; destroyed 11 fighting positons, three command-and-control nodes, communication infrastructure, four communication systems and a vehicle-borne IED; and suppressed two fighting positions.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

These strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to destroy ISIS in Iraq and Syria. The destruction of ISIS targets in Iraq and Syria also further limits the group's ability to project terror and conduct external operations throughout the region and the rest of the world, task force officials said.

The list above contains all strikes conducted by fighter, attack, bomber, rotary-wing or remotely piloted aircraft; rocket-propelled artillery; and some ground-based tactical artillery when fired on planned targets, officials noted.

Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike, they added. A strike, as defined by the coalition, refers to one or more kinetic engagements that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single or cumulative effect.

For example, task force officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIS vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against a group of ISIS-held buildings and weapon systems in a compound, having the cumulative effect of making that facility harder or impossible to use. Strike assessments are based on initial reports and may be refined, officials said.

The task force does not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target.

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Army looking at the next generation of combat vehicles

By Devon L. Suits October 6, 2017

FORT MEADE, Md. -- Soldiers today move about in and conduct combat operations from, among other things, the Stryker, the Bradley, or the Abrams tank. But the Army has started work now to determine what will take Soldiers to the fight in 2035 and beyond.

The Maneuver Center of Excellence at Fort Benning, Georgia, provisionally stood up a cross-functional team, Aug. 1 that is focused on the development of the Army's Next Generation of Combat Vehicles.

That team is provisionally chartered to improve the operational capabilities of the Army's maneuver formations against a peer adversary.

The NGCV is expected to increase overall lethality, tactical mobility, strategic deployability and protection for Soldiers. It is also expected to reduce logistical demands on the Army. All those necessary requirements are in line with expectations laid out by Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. Mark A. Milley, according to sources at the MCoE.

While the hunt is now underway for the next tool to bring Soldiers to the fight, a final solution is still a way off.

"We are very early on in the process," said Col. Gerald A. Boston, director of the NGCV provisional team. "We will be, on behalf of the Army, bringing multiple communities together and providing the continuity and unity of effort and purpose."

WELL ROUNDED, ELUSIVE TARGET

"Is this vehicle an infantry fighting vehicle? Is this vehicle a replacement for the M1 Abrams? Will technology leap ahead to the point where we can do both with one platform?" Boston asked. "We don't know."

While Boston said he doesn't have solid answers to those questions now, he confirmed that it would be his team's job to find them.

"The purpose of this team is to help make those types of determinations and recommendations to senior leadership going forward," he said.

The MCOE is assessing what are identified as the four plus one critical enabling technologies for use in the NGCV, according to John W. Miller, who serves as the deputy director of the NGCV provisional team:

-- Directed Energy and Energetics: The potential to incorporate directed energy capabilities while better understanding the operational impacts of the flow and transformation of energy may provide increased lethality while reducing logistical burdens. Incorporating such advancements could mean both reduced logistical burdens to replace expended artillery, and platforms that have significantly improved operational capabilities at significantly smaller sizes.

-- Power Generation and Management: The ability to generate sufficient power for all future platform needs is critical to increasing both platform and formation operational range while potentially reducing the use of fossil fuels.

-- Advanced Armor Materiel Solutions: The reduction of combat vehicle weight and the potential increase in platform range and accessibility is greatly dependent on our ability to use new or different technology, rather than more and heavier armor which significantly increases platform weight.

-- Vehicle Protection Suites: The best protection for crews and their vehicles comes from a combination of passive armor and active protection systems. The Army will work toward determining the correct ratio between armor types that will allow a decrease in vehicle size and weight while simultaneously improving mobility and protection levels against all applicable threats.

-- Maneuver robotics and autonomous systems: The Army must continue the development and use of unmanned air and ground systems while creating combat platforms that can be either manned or unmanned based on the dictates of the commander's tactical assessment.

While these four plus one critical enabling technologies are apparent now, there is no way to predict how they will ultimately shape the capabilities of the NGCV, Boston said.

"We are still in the process of determining what is in the realm of the possible," Boston added.

A TEAM EFFORT

To help with the development of the NGCV, the team will need to rely on the expertise from the Army's test and evaluation, research and development, and combat development communities, Boston said. This is in addition to the support provided by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology, and the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command.

Furthermore, the team would also like to leverage the experience of industry partners as early and often as possible, Miller added.

"There will need to be a community of effort moving forward," said Boston, adding that Soldier feedback, at all levels, will be vital to the program's success.

During the 2017 Association of the U.S. Army Annual Meeting and Exposition, Oct. 9-11 in Washington, D.C., Maj. Gen. Eric J. Wesley, Maneuver Center of Excellence commanding general, will further discuss the NGCV.

The general's "Warrior's Corner" presentation will be live-streamed Oct. 9 at 4 p.m. Eastern time on www.dvidshub.net.

(Editor's Note: John Miller contributed to this story.)

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China donates second batch of military equipment to Philippines to fight terrorists

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 10:11, October 06, 2017

MANILA, Oct. 5 (Xinhua) -- The Philippine defense department received on Thursday a second batch of military equipment that China donated to help the Philippines fight terrorism.

Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Zhao Jianhua handed over the equipment to Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and Gen. Eduardo Ano, the chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), during a ceremony at the AFP headquarters in Metro Manila.

Zhao told reporters that the delivery of the weapons and ammunition is China's commitment to building "a friendly and cooperative relationship" with the Philippines.

"We're now fighting terrorism together, we need to work together to enhance trust so that we can build good cooperation between our militaries. That will contribute to peace and stability in this region," Zhao said.

The donation, which includes rifles, ammunition and sniper scopes, is the second batch of armaments that China handed over to the Philippine government this year.

In accepting China's arms donation, Philippine defense and military authorities lauded China's contribution to maintaining peace and fighting terrorist groups in the Philippines.

"The continued support of China to the Philippines signifies a new era in our countries' goodwill relations. This paves the path for a broader and stronger Sino-Philippine security cooperation in the future," Lorenzana said.

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Spain court summons Catalan officials for 'sedition'

Iran Press TV

Fri Oct 6, 2017 10:28AM

Spain's national court has summoned four Catalan officials, including the region's police chief, for a hearing over allegations of sedition against the central government during last month's pro-independence demonstrations in Barcelona.

Three of the four suspects, including Catalan police Chief Josep Lluis Trapero, Jordi Sanchez, the head of the Catalan National Assembly, and Jordi Cuixart, the president of the separatist group Omnium Cultural, arrived to testify in the court on Friday.

The other suspect, Catalan police officer Teresa Laplana, is testifying by video link from Barcelona because of medical reasons.

They are accused of failing to help Spain's police tackle the thousands of protesters who were out in the streets ahead of the October 1 independence referendum.

The crime of sedition carries a potential prison term of up to 15 years.

After the court hearings, the Catalan officials were allowed to leave.

The hearings took place as supporters of Catalonia's independence, including some politicians, gathered outside the court. Some protesters were holding up referendum ballot papers, with the presence of dozens of Spanish police in the area.

The spokesman for the Democratic Party of Catalonia, Carles Campuzano, who was among the protesters outside the court, described the hearing as an outrage.

"It's just another expression of the absolutely mistaken, authoritarian, repressive response by the (Spanish) state to the pacific, democratic, and civic demand of Catalan society," he said.

Tensions have been running high between Madrid and Catalonia's regional government since before the referendum. The Catalan government has said it might unilaterally declare independence within days.

The Spanish government went out of its way to avert the Sunday referendum, raiding venues and confiscating ballot boxes and papers, arresting officials, and even installing police forces at sites where polling stations managed to get set up to physically remove voters. Security forces used batons and rubber bullets to disperse crowds of voters, wounding nearly 900 people.

The United Nations called on Spanish authorities on Monday to launch a complete and fair investigation into the violence.

Despite the crackdown, some 2.26 million of Catalonia's 5.3 million registered voters managed to cast their ballots, according to figures released by the regional government, which said the turnout had been some 43 percent. Ninety percent of the participants voted in favor of secession from Spain, the regional government said.

'Regional parliament session due on Tuesday'

Meanwhile, Spain's Constitutional Court has ordered that a planned meeting in the Catalan parliament on Monday  when independence was likely to be declared  be suspended.

A parliamentary spokeswoman, however, said on Friday that Catalan President Carles Puigdemont would attend another meeting in the regional parliament next Tuesday.

She said the regions' parliamentary leaders will meet later on Friday to decide the timing on his speech.

However, another regional government official, Raul Romeva, said that the parliament would defy the court ban and go ahead on Monday with a debate that could lead to a declaration of independence from the country.

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US cancels planned war games with Arab allies over Qatar

Iran Press TV

Fri Oct 6, 2017 10:04AM

The United States military has cancelled a number of planned war games with its Persian Gulf Arab allies over their persisting dispute with another key Arab ally, Qatar, in an apparent attempt to press an end to the months-long row.

The US military's Central Command made the announcement on Friday, without much elaboration, and only pointing to Washington's rising concerns over the dispute between a group of Saudi-led countries and Qatar.

The US views the Persian Gulf region, which is home to the US Navy's 5th Fleet and other key military bases, strategically.

"We are opting out of some military exercises out of respect for the concept of inclusiveness and shared regional interests," said Central Command spokesman Air Force Col. John Thomas in a statement in response to queries from the Associated Press.

"We will continue to encourage all partners to work together toward the sort of common solutions that enable security and stability in the region," he added, without offering further details.

The dispute over Qatar started on June 5, when Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) severed diplomatic relations with Doha and imposed a partial siege on it.

The quartet of Arab countries justified their hostile actions by accusing Qatar of backing terrorist elements. Doha, however, denied the accusation, saying that it was being targeted for political reasons.

American military authorities initially reacted indifferently to the dispute, saying that they had no impact on their operations in the region. As the dispute continued, however, US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis visited Doha to offer his support. Washington further agreed to an ensuing sale of its F-15 jet fighters to Qatar in a deal worth $12 billion.

Qatar plays host to the massive al-Udeid military air base, the forward headquarters of the US Central Command, which oversees the US-led coalition's bombing campaigns in Syria and Iraq and manages a direct line to Russia to deal with Syria's crowded skies.

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Pentagon Says Hurricane Relief Efforts Slow Afghanistan Deployments

October 06, 2017

The U.S. Defense Department says the military's response to the hurricane that hit Puerto Rico is delaying the deployment of forces to Afghanistan and other missions throughout the world.

Lieutenant General Kenneth McKenzie, director of the U.S. military's Joint Staff, told reporters on October 5 that the military had a "finite number" of transport aircraft that have been tied up with deliveries of aid and forces to the U.S. territory.

"That will inevitably slow movement to other theaters and [cause] the slight delay in the flow of forces to Afghanistan," McKenzie said.

The Pentagon has deployed around 11,000 active-duty and National Guard troops, together with around 80 helicopters and more than 100 trucks, to Puerto Rico.

The island was devastated when Hurricane Maria tore through it on September 20.

Washington is expected to deploy at least 3,500 additional troops to Afghanistan to help advise and train Afghan government forces. Around 11,000 U.S. troops are currently stationed there.

U.S. President Donald Trump's administration recently unveiled a strategy to try to defeat militants in Afghanistan after nearly 16 years of war there.

Trump has made an open-ended commitment to the country, saying U.S. troop levels should be guided by "conditions on the ground," not "arbitrary timetables."

Based on reporting by Reuters, AP, VOA, The Wall Street Journal, and the BBC

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/pentagon-hurricane-relief- effort-puerto-rico--delay-afghanistan -deployments/28776864.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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Reports: U.S. Special Counsel's Team Met With Author Of Russia Dossier

October 06, 2017

Media reports say U.S. investigators have interviewed a former British spy who compiled a salacious dossier of allegations about purported contacts between U.S. President Donald Trump's campaign and Russia.

Investigators working under U.S. Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who is heading a probe into alleged Russian meddling in last year's presidential election and any possible collusion between Moscow and the Trump campaign, met with Christopher Steele earlier this year, CNN reported on October 5.

The Associated Press and Reuters cited unidentified sources with knowledge of the matter as confirming the meeting.

Steele, a former senior operative for Britain's MI6 foreign intelligence agency, compiled the dossier initially for Trump's Republican rivals. Funding the report was later taken over by Democratic opponents.

The document contained uncorroborated information about alleged compromising materials Russia possessed about Trump, who has rejected it as "fake news."

BuzzFeed published the 35-page dossier, which had circulated among other media organizations earlier, in full in January. Several news organizations had decided not to report on the allegations in the document due to their inflammatory and unsubstantiated nature.

Mueller, a former director of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, is leading a sweeping investigation into potential collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign and alleged Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

Trump has repeatedly rejected suggestions of any collusion with Russia by himself or his associates.

Based on reporting by CNN, AP, Reuters, and AFP

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/us-special-counsel- mueller-team-met-british-spy-author-steele -trump-russia-dossier/28776882.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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Catalan Pro-Independence Leaders Testify in Court Over Alleged Rebellion Calls

Sputnik News

16:45 06.10.2017(updated 16:46 06.10.2017)

As Madrid has apologized for police violence during the Catalonia referendum, the leaders of Catalan pro-independence groups have appeared in court to testify over suspicions of calls for rebellion and may face up to 15 years of imprisonment if found guilty.

MADRID (Sputnik)  Catalan nationalist leaders Jordi Sanchez and Jordi Cuixart, as well as Catalonia's Police Chief Josep Lluis Trapero Alvarez, have testified in Madrid's court on Friday on suspicion of calls for insurgency at September protests in Barcelona.

Trapero, as well as Cuixart and Sanchez, the leaders of Catalan pro-independence groups Omnium Cultural and the Catalan National Assembly (ANC), are suspected of sedition on September 20-21, when a massive rally was held in Barcelona in front of the High Court of Justice of Catalonia and clashes between the protesters and security forces occurred. The Spanish Civil Guard officers had been raiding the Catalan government's economics department building when the protesters managed to blockade them in the building until the morning.

Under the Spanish law, calls for rebellion are punished by imprisonment for up to 15 years. The judge ruled against pre-trial detention of Trapero, Sanchez and Cuixart.

At the hearing, Sanchez said that "on September 20, we did everything possible to make mobilization a success and to avoid any incidents."

Cuixart urged the Spanish central government to engage in dialogue with Catalan authorities and stressed that Madrid "tries to resolve political issues through court."

The development comes less than a week after the independence referendum was held in Catalonia on Sunday, which is not recognized by Madrid. According to the Catalan authorities, slightly more than 2 million people out of 5.3 million of those eligible to vote cast their ballots, and 90 percent of them backed independence. Almost 900 people had to seek medical help because of the clashes between referendum supporters and police on the day of the vote. Earlier in the day, a Madrid representative apologized for police violence during the referendum.

 Sputnik

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Senior Administration Officials on Sudan Sanctions

Special Briefing

Senior Administration Officials

Via Teleconference

October 6, 2017

MODERATOR: Thank you. Thank you, and good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for joining us today for today's background call on Sudan sanctions. To discuss our decision in more detail, we have [Senior Administration Official One]. He from here forward will be referred to as Senior Administration Official One. We also have [Senior Administration Official Two]. He will be referred to as Senior Administration Official Two. And we have [Senior Administration Official Three]. He will be referred to as Senior Administration Official Three.

As a reminder, today's call is on background, and it will be embargoed until 1:30 p.m. I also want to flash that at 1:30 p.m. we will have an on-the-record statement that you'll be able to use as well.

So with that, I'll turn it over for brief remarks to [Senior Administration Official One], and we'll take it  then we'll take questions from you. Thank you. [Senior Administration Official One]?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: Good afternoon. The United States has decided to formally revoke a number of economically focused sanctions on Sudan in recognition of the Government of Sudan's sustained positive actions in five key areas. I'll outline these areas for you: first, to maintain a cessation of hostilities in the areas of its internal conflict, including Darfur and what we refer to as the two areas, the states of South Kordofan and Blue Nile; second, to improve humanitarian access across Sudan; third, to end destabilizing activity in South Sudan; fourth, to build and deepen U.S.-Sudan cooperation in countering terrorism; and fifth, improving regional security with a particular focus on countering Joseph Kony and the Lord's Resistance Army.

So to implement this decision as set forth in previous executive orders, Secretary Tillerson will publish a Federal Register notice. And as we heard before, we'll provide a report to the President on the Government of Sudan's sustained positive actions over the last nine months. That report's going to be available on our website, and it details progress in the noted five areas. There'll be a link in the forthcoming spokesperson's statement.

The revocation will be effective as of October 12th. And to give you some more context, this action basically comes after a 16-month high-level focused and hardnosed diplomatic effort with Sudan through what we've called the five-track engagement plan, which began in June of 2016. In that time, Sudan has taken some significant steps to address these policy priorities.

The decision today is an important milestone marking progress in our bilateral relations, but it's also important to keep it in perspective. This marks one step forward on a long and hard road where much more progress is needed.

Going forward, we're going to engage the Government of Sudan to ensure that there is no regression on its positive actions to date, and secondly, to work for continued progress both on the issues in the five track areas, and to advance additional administration priorities. Basically, we want to build on the positive momentum to develop a follow-on framework for progress.

Now, I want to be clear, the framework is still being developed, but there are some areas that we will certainly seek progress on, including, as I noted, achieving a sustainable peace. This goes beyond simply a cessation of hostilities, but also to come to a negotiated and sustainable peace. It's also important we continue to improve humanitarian access. This is an ongoing process where we remain committed to doing as much as we can, both working with the government and our international partners.

Looking forward, it's also important that we work to improve Sudan's record on human rights and religious freedom. That will be a key part of our discussions in the future. And also ensuring our top international security priority, which I'm sure will come as no surprise to anyone, that Sudan fully complies with all the Security Council resolution requirements regarding North Korea.

So we want to be clear that we want to ensure that the progress to date is maintained and sustained. And we've been clear with the Government of Sudan that we want improved relations, we want to continue to improve relations, but if  to further normalize any bilateral ties, there can be no regression on the progress they've made, and that they need to be a partner with us in continuing progress both on the five track issues and some of the additional issues that we will be seeking to engage more formally on.

We've got a lot of tools at our disposal, including targeted sanctions programs, and which we will use to apply pressure to the Government of Sudan if it steps back or regresses on the progress it's made or takes other negative actions in some of these areas.

Further, it's important to emphasize that Sudan will remain on the state sponsors of terrorism list. The action today does not affect that. And this also means there are related restrictions on foreign assistance, defense export and sales, and controls over exports of dual-use items, among others, that will contain to remain in place. Further, we have Darfur-related targeted sanctions under Executive Order 13400 that are in accordance with Security Council Resolution 1591 that will also remain in place.

So I think, again, the report will cover in detail progress under the five areas. We can try to answer questions if you have some in the specific tracks. I think with that I will stop and see what questions you may have.

MODERATOR: Great, thank you very much. We'll now go to your questions. Please, limit your questions to one because we have a lot of people on the call and want to get through as many as we can. So thank you. We'll take the first question, please.

OPERATOR: Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, to queue up for questions you may press * followed by 1. Once again, for questions please press * followed by 1 at this time.

And we'll take our first question from Nick Wadhams with Bloomberg News. Please, go ahead.

QUESTION: Hi. Could you tell us what evidence there is for Sudan to remain as a state sponsor of terror, why the decision was made to retain that designation, and cite specific evidence? And could you also tell us why three months ago the decision was made to postpone this move, but now what evidence is there particularly in the delivery of humanitarian aid that made you make this decision? What changed in the last three months that made you comfortable doing this?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: Nick, what I can say  and my colleagues from the National Security Council may want to speak  is that the decision we made today was based on an agreed framework in the five tracks and focused on that. It did not deal with the separate process that would have to be in place to talk about the state sponsors list. At no time was that on the table in this process. And again, I'm not going to get into any of the underlying issues there and wanted to see if any of my colleagues from the National Security Council had any comment on that particular part of your question.

MODERATOR: Okay. We'll go to the next question.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: No, no, I want to also address the other parts of what he said, what he asked, which was basically in the last three months, there was  we spoke at that time very clearly about why the delay was put in place, but I think if you saw, we had a change of administration and I think it's a very fair thing to have the administration have time to look at this further. We've seen continuous progress on humanitarian access and I wanted to give my colleague from USAID the chance to address that, if he wanted to.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL THREE: Thanks, [Senior Administration Official One]. In regards to the directness of that question, after that  the extension of the review period, we did continue to receive reports from our partners that increased access to areas, including some of those areas in Jebel Marra as well as South Kordofan and Blue Nile, continued to be available to our partners. So in essence there was no fallback or backslide during that review period, as well as continued and even increased access in some of those places. And this was a general feeling of all of the humanitarian community at that time.

MODERATOR: Okay, great.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL TWO: I'd like to jump in here from the NSC. We also used that extension in the review period to allow Sudan further time to demonstrate its continued cooperation on counterterrorism, and during that period it did so, and that was another indicator that Sudan was willing to follow through with this agreement and that track.

MODERATOR: Thank you very much. Now on to the next question.

OPERATOR: Thank you. That will come from Carol Morello, Washington Post. Please, go ahead.

QUESTION: Hi. Thank you for doing this. Did you get any promises from the Government of Sudan that they would cut off diplomatic ties with North Korea? Thank you.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: Let me turn to my colleagues from the NSC.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL TWO: We did not ask Sudan to cut off ties with North Korea. What we have asked is that they comply with the UN resolutions to cease any arms deals with North Korea. So we have asked that Sudan comply with the cessation of any arms imports from North Korea, and they do understand that we will be closely monitoring that, and that will affect our bilateral relations going forward.

MODERATOR: Okay, move on to the next question, please.

OPERATOR: Thank you. That's from Laura Koran with CNN. Please, go ahead.

QUESTION: Hi, thanks so much for doing the call. You said you didn't ask Sudan to cut off ties with North Korea, but could you address whether they told you they would be cutting off ties with North Korea? And if so, even though that goes beyond the five tracks, did that play any role in this decision? Thank you.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL TWO: The Government of Sudan has given us their commitment that they would not pursue arms deals with North Korea, and that is what we asked of them. So we will not necessarily take the government at their word; we will be closely monitoring the situation, and they understand that we have zero tolerance for continued arms deals with North Korea.

MODERATOR: All right, thank you. On to the next question, please.

OPERATOR: Thank you. That will come from Matt Spetalnick with Reuters. Please, go ahead.

QUESTION: Yes. Again  I wanted to follow up on that question again. Did  was that commitment necessary, the commitment not to pursue arms deals with North Korea, necessary as a condition to go ahead with the lifting of the sanctions? And also on the state sponsor of terrorism issue, will that be reviewed going forward whether to keep them on that list or not?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL TWO: So as the first speaker I think has made clear, the North Korea issue was not part of the original five tracks that we negotiated with them. The previous administration undertook a negotiation with North Korea. We were very explicit on the terms, and under this administration we want to honor that agreement, demonstrating that the U.S. does keep its commitments if other governments keep theirs. And so North Korea is not part of the five tracks and not part of this lifting of sanctions.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: [Senior Administration Official Two], if I might, I think you may just have misspoken. You meant that negotiation with Sudan, not North Korea.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL TWO: Thanks. Thank you, [Senior Administration Official One].

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: Just wanted to make sure. I would also note that on the state sponsors list, I mean, it's clearly a priority for the Government of Sudan to get off that designation. And I don't want to speculate much, but I am certain that will be something that they will raise going forward.

MODERATOR: On to the next question, please.

OPERATOR: Thank you. That comes from Michele Kelemen with National Public Radio. Please, go ahead.

QUESTION: Thanks. You said that the extra few months gave you some more time to see what more they would do on counterterrorism, but can you give any concrete examples of what they've done?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: I think  go ahead, [Senior Administration Official Two].

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL TWO: So since January I can say that the Government of Sudan has continued to cooperate with the United States to counter terrorist groups in Sudan and North Africa. They've worked with us to detect and deter terrorist attempts to transit Sudanese territory, and the government's actions against terrorists have been crucial in the fight against global terrorism. I can't give you specific examples, of course, but I can say that that cooperation has continued unabated.

MODERATOR: Okay, on to the next question, please.

OPERATOR: Thank you. That will come from Ian Talley with The Wall Street Journal. Please, go ahead.

QUESTION: Yeah, thanks. The North Korea angle has been beaten over, shall we say. I'm wondering  was there any division internally within the administration about whether to proceed with this? And did the North Korea arms commitment, while the negotiation was on the five terms, did that not push it over the scales?

And secondly, were there areas of improvement in the five areas  were there greater areas of improvement than others, say on the counterterrorism cooperation, that you see?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL TWO: So we thoroughly discussed and vetted the North Korea decision in the interagency and presented it to the President. And so there is no issue of (inaudible).

With regard to the five-track decision, similarly, that was carefully deliberated in an interagency process. We've come to consensus on the five-track program. So  and it was authorized by the President. So all the tracks in the five tracks were equally important and were equally weighed and vetted at the interagency process.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: And I can just add on to that, [Senior Administration Official Two], that when the report appears there will be a good bit of detail on progress on some of  in some of the tracks that will be laid out in it. Obviously, the  it's hard to say what's equivalent in progress in vastly different sort of areas of subject, but there has been clear forward movement in all of them.

MODERATOR: Next question, please.

OPERATOR: That will come from Kylie Atwood with CBS News. Please, go ahead.

QUESTION: Hi there, thank you. Sorry, I just want to go back to the North Korea thing for one clarifying question. You guys said that the Government of Sudan has given their commitment that they wouldn't pursue arms deals with North Korea. So are you saying they have not told the U.S. that they are cutting off all diplomatic ties with North Korea? Because that's been reported this week, so I just wanted to make sure, if they've told you guys that as well, or not. Thank you.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: What I can say to just start with is that Sudan does not have diplomatic  formal diplomatic relations right now with North Korea. There is no embassy or exchange of embassies or anything, and we don't see that changing anytime soon.

MODERATOR: On to the next question, please.

OPERATOR: Thank you. That will come from Nike Ching, with Voice of America. Please, go ahead.

QUESTION: Yes. Thank you so much for this call. Could you please address urgent concerns from American lawmakers that Sudan has not paid compensation to American victims from the 1998 embassy bombings? Shouldn't there have been a provision for victims of terrorism as part of the sanction relief package?

And then secondly, I just wanted to make sure I understand. The Darfur-related sanctions will also remain in place; is that correct? Thank you.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: The Darfur Sanctions under Executive Order 13400 will remain in place.

On this question of compensation, to be clear, the decision we're taking today only relates to the sanctions set out in the executive orders related to the five-track framework.

But that said, this is a very important issue. Going forward, we are going to urge Sudan to take steps to address these claims, these outstanding court judgements made by the victims of terrorism and their family  and their families.

Sudan wants to move toward more normalized bilateral relations. And our increased engagement with them and this clear desire, I think, gives us additional leverage on this issue. So again, we are going to address this going forward with Sudan. And we have  by the way, it has been a subject we've addressed, but it's been in the courts for a long time. And again, this is something very important for us, because the people who were killed in these embassies were part of our greater family at the State Department.

MODERATOR: Next question, please.

OPERATOR: Thank you. As a reminder, to queue up for questions you may press *1. Once again, *1 for questions.

Our next question comes from Alicia Rose with NHK. Please go ahead.

QUESTION: Hi. Thank you. Actually, my question has already been addressed.

MODERATOR: Thank you. Next question, please.

OPERATOR: Thank you. That's from James Martone with Sky News Arabia. Please, go ahead.

QUESTION: Hi. What happens if for  you come up with proof that there are deals with  going on with North Korea, or that there have not been improvements in this  on the combatting terrorism front? How quickly would these economic sanctions snap back into place?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: Look, we're not going to be able to sort of answer a question like that now, until we see what happens and the extent of any change in circumstances, whether  regarding negative action.

So what I can say is that this  I think [Senior Administration Official Two] has been absolutely clear. This  anything related to North Korea  is very top of the  of our priorities on national security and will be given the utmost, utmost scrutiny going forward. But we're also looking at progress on other things.

For example, one of the really important outcomes of this negotiating process is that Sudan has stopped its military offensives that used to happen on a regular basis in Darfur and have also stopped dropping bombs on  in Darfur, stopped aerial bombardment, which has saved  was  used to be a very important  was and is a very important issue, and the cessation of these activities has saved lots and lots of lives. If they start to drop bombs again, I think that'll be very obvious to us and we will  we will react accordingly because, again, that's a very, very key security issue and one of the things that we've achieved in this that has had a direct impact improving the security situation of thousands of people on the ground.

MODERATOR: Okay. Next question, please.

OPERATOR: Thank you. That will come from Lukman Ahmed with BBC News. Please, go ahead.

QUESTION: Oh, yes, thank you. With regard to Darfur  actually, you are going to keep the Darfur-related sanctions  what kind of conditions that you are demanding to be met in order to lift it in the future? And have you ever come across Mr.  the situation of Mr. al-Bashir with the ICC, whether that's been discussed or not? And for the diplomatic relationship, are you going to go to the level of ambassadors exchange between the two countries? Thank you.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: That was a three-for-one. What I can say is that we have not  and I can't  I'm not in a position to answer what it would take to change the situation with the Darfur sanctions. Regarding the question of the ICC, our views on this haven't changed. Essentially, we continue to call for all those responsible for crimes in Darfur to be held accountable and to support the  justice for all the victims of the crimes in Darfur. And basically, that was why Darfur was  and the cessation of hostilities there was a key priority and I think one of the key achievements of the five-track plan.

MODERATOR: Thank you. We'll go take our last question now.

OPERATOR: Thank you. That will come from Dan Ryntjes with Feature Story News. Please, go ahead.

QUESTION: Hi, thanks for doing this very useful call. My question is this: In terms of what is by  from October the 12th, what sanctions are being relaxed and what effect will that have, real world, on economic relations and the like? Thank you.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: I can  I can outline the specific sanctions a bit more and tell you what they are, but I think to get into the real impact, that's a question for our colleagues at Treasury. But the specific sanctions being revoked are Sections 1 and 2 of Executive Order 13067, which dates from November 5, 1997, and also all the elements of Executive Order 13412, which dates from October 13, 2006.

In a very small nutshell, these executive orders put out a range of sanctions that included a trade embargo and blocking of Government of Sudan-related assets. So again, the revocation's going to be effective October 12th.

MODERATOR: Thank you very much. That concludes our call today. I'd like to remind everyone this call is on background, remains embargoed until 1:30 p.m., and our speakers should be referred to as Senior Administration Officials One, Two, and Three. Thank you very much and have a good day.

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Cameroon: UN rights office urges dialogue to address decades-long grievances

6 October 2017  Voicing concern over tensions in Cameroon, the United Nations human rights wing has urged the Government and dissatisfied groups to engage in a meaningful political dialogue to fully address long standing grievances.

Speaking to the press today in Geneva, Rupert Colville, the Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) also called on the authorities in the African nation to conduct impartial and effective investigations into Sunday's violence in which at least 10 people were killed.

"Credible sources indicate that some of these deaths resulted from excessive use of force by the security forces," said the Spokesperson at the regular news briefing.

Cameroon's Anglophone regions have seen multiple strikes and demonstrations over the past year as resentment and tensions have built at what, he said, English-speakers see as discrimination against them in favour of the majority French-speaking population.

Noting that over the past few months, public and private property has been damaged, including arson attacks on a number of schools, Mr. Colville called on all people to pursue peaceful means to make themselves heard.

In the same vein, he also urged the authorities to ensure that the security forces exercise restraint and take measures to prevent the use of force when policing demonstrations.

"People should be allowed to exercise their right to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression, including through having uninterrupted access to the internet," he stated.

Further at the briefing, he noted that OHCHR welcomed the comments by President Paul Biya, on Sunday, in which the President condemned all forms of violence, irrespective of the perpetrators, and called for dialogue as the only way to find a durable solution.

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U.S. Northern Command Prepares for Tropical Storm Nate

By Jim Garamone DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, Oct. 6, 2017  DoD personnel are helping with hurricane relief efforts in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and now the department's U.S. Northern Command is preparing for the approach of Tropical Storm Nate, Pentagon officials said today.

Weather forecasters predict the tropical storm -- now off Mexico's Yucatan coast, will move north over the Gulf of Mexico, according to news reports.

Forecasters expect the storm will intensify into a hurricane and make landfall on the U.S. Gulf Coast this weekend.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration posted hurricane watches for Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.

Northcom Works With Other Federal, State, Local Partners

Northcom is coordinating with federal, state and local agencies in preparation for Nate's arrival. The command has activated a defense coordinating officer and defense coordinating element and those service members have deployed to the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Region 6 in Denton, Texas, said Air Force Capt. Lauren Hill, a spokesperson for Northcom.

The Navy's amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima and amphibious transport dock ship USS New York will deploy tomorrow from Naval Station Mayport, Florida, after embarking elements of the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit. The ships will transit toward the Gulf of Mexico behind Nate, to be in place should FEMA require their services.

FEMA and DoD personnel will continue to monitor the storm and change plans as appropriate, Hill said.

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USNS Comfort Underway to Provide Aid from the Sea in Puerto Rico

Navy News Service

Story Number: NNS171006-07

Release Date: 10/6/2017 9:19:00 AM

By Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Danny Ray Nunez Jr.

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (NNS) -- The Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Comfort (T-AH 20) got underway Oct. 5, to provide aid from the sea in Puerto Rico after completing a planning phase in San Juan with local and federal stakeholders to synchronize efforts to provide humanitarian assistance.

"We have laid out a plan for Comfort to operate in the areas that have the most immediate direct need to relieve pressure on local and regional hospitals as directed by the Puerto Rican Department of Health and U.S. Health and Human Services," said Capt. Kevin Robinson, mission commander onboard Comfort.

Additional mission assignments for the Comfort are expected to be scheduled based on assessments by the Department of Defense, Federal Emergency Management Agency and Puerto Rico's Office of Emergency Management and will deploy appropriately to help those needing medical services.

In addition to identifying the medical needs of Puerto Rico, Comfort personnel treated a total of 66 patients during its stay in San Juan, including 10 who were admitted for further care aboard the ship. Comfort staff also hosted a medical summit with local and federal officials, including Gov. Ricardo Rossello, the governor of Puerto Rico and Dr. Jerome Adams, the surgeon general of the United States, to coordinate efforts for the ship's current mission of providing help and concentrating humanitarian assistance throughout the area.

The Comfort's enduring primary mission is to provide an afloat, mobile, acute surgical medical facility to the U.S. military that is flexible, capable and uniquely adaptable to support expeditionary warfare. Its secondary mission is to provide full hospital services to support U.S. disaster relief and humanitarian operations worldwide.



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Al-Qaida Releases Call for Jihadist Unity, Purportedly From Leader

By Rikar Hussein, Nisan Ahmado October 06, 2017

Al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahiri is urging followers around the world to unify against what he calls the "international satanic alliance."

In a 28-minute undated audio-video message that surfaced Wednesday, al-Zawahiri said, "We are facing the fiercest attack in the history of Muslims. The Crusaders, atheist Russia, China, Rawafidh [rejectionists], secularists and the treacherous rulers have all joined hands against us."

VOA could not independently verify the authenticity of the message.

Al-Zawahiri took charge of the al-Qaida terror organization after his predecessor, Osama bin Laden, was killed in a U.S. Navy SEAL raid in 2011 in Pakistan's Abbottabad. His precise whereabouts are unknown, but security analysts think he most likely is hiding in the Afghan-Pakistan border region.

The message, released less than a month after the 16th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the U.S., came as the terror organization is facing a series of defeats around the world, particularly in Syria, where its offshoot groups are being squeezed by the Russian-backed Syria government.

The Russian Defense Ministry on Wednesday claimed its airstrikes in Idlib province in northern Syria had critically injured Abu Mohammed al-Golani, the leader of the al-Qaida-linked Tahrir al-Sham group, and killed 12 of his field commanders.

Bitter competition

Once a leading terror group, al-Qaida has engaged in acrimonious and at times bloody competition with other Islamist groups over the years. The rivalry between the group and the Islamic State in Syria has resulted in the deaths of thousands of fighters from both sides.

"There is no way out for us except uniting our ranks to confront this aggression," al-Zawahiri said in the message. "Let us mobilize our efforts, divide our roles, distribute our responsibilities and together diffuse the efforts of the enemy."

Al-Zawahiri blamed the fighting among violent Islamist groups on "the principle goals of America" and its allied countries in the Islamic world. He claimed the U.S. has worked to splinter a united global jihadist movement into regional jihadi groups in discord with each other.

"This fragmentation, severing of bonds with one another, this distance and division among ourselves, is only the prelude to defeat, if not defeat itself," he said.

Last month, Hamza bin Laden, a son of Osama bin Laden, believed to be in his late 20s, also released a video asking for unity among jihadi militants around the world and calling for a new effort to save Syria from the Bashar al-Assad regime.

"Extreme vigilance and urgent, organized, serious action is needed to support the people of Sham before it's too late," he said in an audio recording. Sham is the region that includes the modern-day countries of Syria, Lebanon and Jordan.

Al-Qaida weakening

Experts said the recent desperate call by al-Zawahiri for unity, less than a month after Hamza bin Laden's message, reflected al-Qaida's diminishing ability to recruit more fighters. They said the group was concerned that the failure of jihadist groups to retain their territories could dissuade militants from joining these groups.

"He is concerned, given the collapse of the [Islamic State] caliphate," Colin P. Clarke, a political scientist at the RAND Corporation, a global policy research group, told VOA. "He is worried that some jihadists might leave jihad altogether."

Clarke warned that al-Qaida would most likely take an opportunistic approach to filling the vacuum created by the defeat of the Islamic State group and draw IS members into its ranks, especially in Syria, because of the ongoing conflict in the country and its strategic location.

"Syria is a better place to use as a logistical staging ground for attacks against the West, and much more so than Yemen, due to geography and proximity to Turkey, which is a land bridge to Europe," he said.

Experts like Daveed Gartenstien-Ross of the Washington-based Foundation for Defense of Democracies argue that despite being significantly degraded through U.S. and international efforts, al-Qaida is unlikely to be completely defeated in the near future, because over the years, the group has demonstrated its ability to adapt to pressure.

"Al-Qaida seems to have more lives than a cat. ... It has skillfully played itself off [IS] to portray the organization as being the 'moderate jihadists,' people whom you might not like but you can do business with," Gartenstein-Ross said while speaking at the launch of a report on the current jihadist threat published by the Washington-based New America Foundation.

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Germany's Plan to Replace G36 Assault Rifle Puts US Out of Business

Sputnik News

17:44 06.10.2017(updated 18:58 06.10.2017)

The German Defense Ministry is looking for a replacement for the obsolete G36 assault rifle for the Bundeswehr. The German government is likely to grant the bid to a domestic gunmaker, excluding US companies from the bidding. Such a policy risks sparking new tensions in the future between Berlin and Washington.

Experts suggest that Heckler & Koch (H&K), the manufacturer of the G36, will also be picked to provide the German armed forces with its replacement. The plan to replace the G36 was announced by German Defense Ministry Ursula von der Leyen in 2015.

The upcoming bid is expected to be the biggest in the recent history of the Bundeswehr, according to Jurgen Grasslin, a German arms expert and activist of the anti-violence organization Aktion Aufschrei  Stoppt den Waffenhandel ("Action Outcry  Stop the Arms Trade").

Grasslin estimated the potential contract at 120,000 assault rifles worth nearly 250 million euros ($293 million).

"For Heckler & Koch, this contract would be a matter of life and death. Currently, the company's annual operating income is some 350 million euros ($410 million)," Grasslin told Sputnik Germany.

The expert suggested that the faction lobbying the interests of H&K in the armed forces would influence the final decision. If H&K get the contract the Bundeswehr is likely to receive the HK-416 A5 assault rifle as a replacement for the G36.

Currently, the German Defense Ministry is reviewing the proposals under the bid, but there is one serious obstacle for gun manufacturers using US-made details in their products. The rules of the bidding exclude all products built under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). As all American companies make their products under ITAR standards, this means that all US companies are unable to partake in the tender.

ITAR is a regulatory regime, which controls the export of defense and military technologies to safeguard US national security. If Germany decided to use a US-made rifle, or a rifle built with US-made components, Berlin would need to obtain a permit for export and use of the weapon.

"I think that the German government doesn't want the US or any other party to tell Berlin what to do, and at this point American interests could be concerned," Grasslin said.

Moreover, according to the expert, the German government will try to exclude from the bidding other European companies too.

"All leverage will be engaged to provide the Bundeswher with German-made weapons only," he said.

Grasslin suggested that this situation is unlikely to increase tensions between the US and Germany. However, according to him, the situation could get complicated in the future as US President Donald Trump wants to facilitate US arms exports, including under ITAR.

 Sputnik

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Indian helicopter crashes near Chinese border, 7 dead

Iran Press TV

Fri Oct 6, 2017 08:07AM

An Indian air force helicopter has crashed in the country's remote northeastern border with China, killing all seven crew members and passengers.

The helicoptera Russian-made Mi-17went down during a routine flight in the mountainous Tawang area in the northeastern state of Arunachal Pradesh on Friday, said defense spokesman Suneet Newton.

He said that the cause of the accident was not immediately known.

According to an Indian official who spoke on the condition of anonymity, the helicopter that had both air force and army personnel on board was carrying supplies for Indian military posts close to the border with China.

India was recently involved in a military standoff with China over the remote, uninhabited territory known as Doklam, which is a thin strip of land in the junction with India's ally, Bhutan.

The standoff began in June, when New Delhi deployed troops to stop China building a road in the Doklam area, after the Bhutanese government issued a formal complaint.

India said China's military activity in the area was a threat to the security of its own northeastern region. China, however, said India had no role to play in the area and called on it to withdraw unilaterally or face the prospect of an escalation.

India eventually agreed to withdraw its forces and remove military equipment from the region.

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For India, What China Can Bring to Tibet Matters; Not What it Possesses

Sputnik News

13:32 06.10.2017(updated 15:34 06.10.2017)

The Indian Air Force has been operating at its lowest combat strength in more than a decade. It is down to 33 squadrons as against a mandated 42 squadrons needed for a simultaneous and collusive two-front war scenario with Pakistan and China.

New Delhi (Sputnik)  The Indian Air Force (IAF) has said that the current shortage of fighter jets would not impede its preparedness for a two-front war with Pakistan and China. The IAF is currently facing a shortage of at least 9 squadrons of fighter jets.

"We need the strength of 42 squadrons to carry out full spectrum operations, but it doesn't mean we can't fight a two-front scenario. There is a Plan B," Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa said at a press conference ahead of Air Force Day on October 8.

While the current number of combat aircraft with India matches more or less with that of Pakistan, China is in possession of a much higher number.

"It is not what China has got; it is what they can project against us. It is what they can bring in to Tibet our capability is adequate," the Indian air chief marshal explained.

The Indian Air Force is presently facing a severe shortage of more than 200 fighter jets. Twenty-four combat aircrafts were grounded due to accidents that occurred in the last three years. "Our losses during peacetime are cause for concern. We are making concentrated efforts to minimize accidents & preserve our assets," Dhanoa said.

Nevertheless, the Indian air chief marshal has denied the possibility of a two-front war in the current geopolitical situation. "Our response should be based on [the] enemy's capability because intentions can change overnight," he added.

 Sputnik

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Indian Air Force Claims It Can Strike Pak Nuke Sites at Any Given Time

Sputnik News

12:36 06.10.2017(updated 13:01 06.10.2017)

This IAF claim comes in response to Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi's statement that Islamabad can use nuclear weapons to thwart any Indian attempt to enter Pakistani territory.

NEW DELHI (Sputnik)  Indian Air Force Chief Birender Singh Dhanoa has said that the Indian Air Force is capable of hitting nuclear sites across the border in Pakistan if the country decides to carry out another 'surgical strike.'

"The Air Force has the ability to locate, fix and strike targets across the border," Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa said today during a press conference on the occasion of 85th Air Force Day.

The Air Force Chief also assured that adequate measures have been taken to avert attacks on the country's air bases following the 2016 Pathankot terror attack.

"The Indian Air Force has taken a number of steps to secure our airbases after the Pathankot terror attack. We are working on an Integrated Perimeter Security System. What is more important is that we have trained our own forces. After the Pathankot terror attack, we trained 6,000 air force personnel so that they can handle such situations. We bought light bulletproof helmets, vests etc," the IAF Chief added.

In the midst of heightened tensions between India and Pakistan over the possibility of India launching a "limited war," India has revived its decades-old combat division comprising tanks and armored vehicles near the historically significant Akhnoor sector in Jammu and Kashmir.

Also, the Indian Army has once again warned Pakistan that it should stop helping terrorists across the Line of Control (de facto border). "The surgical strikes were a message we wanted to communicate. I think they have understood. If the adversary does not behave, and it is necessary, we can conduct such operations again. We can repeat them, if not in the same form and shape," said Gen Bipin Rawat.

Pakistan, on the other hand, continued to accuse India of unprovoked firing. Pakistani newspaper 'The Nation' reported on Monday that Islamabad had contacted Washington, Beijing, Moscow and London to raise the issue of unprovoked firing at the border by India. "We have urged them to ask India to give up defiance. India is threatening a limited war which could be dangerous for the regional peace," said a Pakistani official.

 Sputnik

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Seven Dead as Indian Air Force's Mi-17 V5 Chopper Crashes Near China Border

Sputnik News

10:04 06.10.2017(updated 14:05 06.10.2017)

The accident comes only a day after Indian Air Force (IAF) Chief had expressed concern over depleting fleet due to peacetime accidents.

NEW DELHI (Sputnik)  A Mi-17 V5 chopper of the Indian Air Force (IAF) has crashed in India's northeastern state of Arunachal Pradesh that borders China. All seven people on board, including two personnel of the Indian Army, have been killed in the accident.

Sources told Sputnik that the accident site is mere 12 kilometers away from Tawang  a disputed territory claimed by both India and China. Earlier this year, China had vociferously protested the Tawang visit of Tibetan leader in exile  the Dalai Lama and the US Ambassador to India.

"Mi-17 V5 helicopter was on air maintenance mission; crashed at 6 am (Indian Standard Time) in Arunachal Pradesh. A court of inquiry has been ordered," an Indian Air Force official said.

Last week, a two-seater intermediate trainer aircraft Kiran of Indian Air Force had also crashed near the southern town of Hyderabad during a routine training mission.

"37 fighters and defense aircraft have crashed in the last three years in which 55 people were killed," Subhash Bhamre, India's Minister of State for Defense had told in August this year. These accidents include loss of at least 24 aircraft and five helicopters of the Indian Air Force.

Presently, the IAF is grappling with a severe shortage of aircraft and helicopters. Accidents during peacetime contribute hugely to the shortage.

"Our losses during peacetime are cause for concern. We are making concentrated efforts to minimize accidents& preserve our assets," Indian Air Chief BS Dhanoa had said on Thursday.

 Sputnik

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Iran nuclear deal one of intl. community's most important achievements: Lavrov

Iran Press TV

Fri Oct 6, 2017 05:49PM

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has praised the international nuclear agreement with Iran, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), describing it as one of the most important achievements of the international community.

"We hear signals from the White House regarding President [Donald] Trump's intentions to take a final decision on whether to continue to participate in the agreement on the settlement of the Iranian nuclear program. We believe that this program is one of the most important achievements of the international community. This program makes its implementation a real contribution to strengthening the nuclear non-proliferation regime and it would be very important to keep it," Lavrov said at the fourth edition of the International Forum of Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO) Graduates in the Kazakh capital city of Astana on Friday.

The top Russian diplomat then demanded the participation of the United States in the deal, terming it "a very significant factor" concerning its implementation.

"We hope that the communication that is currently taking place between European states and other members of the international community, and Washington, in the course of which these topics are addressed, will not be in vain. And that the final decision that will be made by the President of the United States will be measured and result from today's realities which show that this program is demanded," Lavrov pointed out.

Top Russian lawmaker condemns Trump's 'provocative' talk on Iran

Meanwhile, a senior Russian legislator has censured the latest remarks by Trump on the JCPOA as "provocative and baseless."

"Trump's statements on Iran are alarming. His accusations that Tehran fails to support the spirit of the JCPOA are provocative and yet baseless; especially given the fact that there are no signs of any violations of the nuclear deal by Iran," Head of the State Duma Committee for International Affairs, Leonid Slutsky, said on Friday.

"If Washington decides to break the agreement with Iran, it will be direct violation of the UN Security Council's resolution, which EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini warned about," Slutsky stated.

"The JCPOA is not a bilateral agreement. It was signed between Tehran and all five UN Security Council permanent members  the United States, Britain, France, China and Russia  plus Germany. The efforts of this six-nation group have already urged Iran to cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on its nuclear program," the Russian legislator highlighted.

Speaking during a meeting with senior military leaders in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on Thursday, Trump alleged that Tehran has " not lived up to the spirit of the agreement."

"We must put an end to Iran's continued aggression and nuclear ambitions," he said. "You will be hearing about Iran very shortly."

The Republican president faces an October 15 deadline to certify Iran's compliance with the international pact. Such certification is needed by US law every 90 days in order for Congress to continue to withhold nuclear-related sanctions against Iran.

Trump's argument that Iran is not complying with the deal would translate as US withdrawal from the JCPOA.

The Washington Post, citing people familiar with the White House strategy, reported on Thursday that Trump will declare that the JCPOA does not serve the national interests of the United States.

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Iran first vice president says his brother detained

Iran Press TV

Fri Oct 6, 2017 04:31PM

Iran's First Vice President Es'haq Jahangiri says his brother has been detained but the official adds that he is not aware of the reasons behind the detention.

In a post on his Instagram account on Friday, Jahangiri said that he has no "precise information" about the reasons, the manner of his brother's detention or the charges or accusations against him.

He emphasized that his brother had had no administrative role or responsibility and he will wait for the emergence of more details.

The senior vice president expressed hope that there had been no political motives behind his brother's detention and that justice, the fight against corruption, and the rule of law would equally apply to everyone.

Es'haq Jahangiri has served as a deputy to President Hassan Rouhani since 2013, and ran as a candidate in Iran's 12th presidential election in May but dropped out of the race to back the moderate president.

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Russia, EU signal parting ways with US on Iran deal

Iran Press TV

Fri Oct 6, 2017 10:53AM

Russia and the European Union rally behind a 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran after reports that US President Donald Trump is set to decertify the international accord soon.

The European Commission said on Friday that the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), as the agreement is called, is working and all sides should stick to their commitments.

The remarks by a Commission spokeswoman came after a senior US administration official said on Thursday Trump would announce soon that he would decertify the landmark agreement.

"We are following very closely all the developments on the deal... reminding that it is a non-proliferation deal, which has been endorsed by the UN Security Council, that it's working, delivering as it has been verified eight times by the international agency for atomic energy," the spokeswoman told a news conference in Brussels.

"It is a durable, long-term solution to the Iranian nuclear issue which gives all sides the necessary assurances and we expect all sides to stick to their commitments under the deal," she added.

Trump faces an Oct. 15 deadline for certifying that Iran is complying with the accord's terms. The US president has twice endorsed Tehran's compliance but on Thursday he claimed that Iran had not "lived up to the spirit of the agreement."

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is fresh from verifying Iran's compliance as recently as last month, while other parties to the agreement are also on board, except the US leader.

Speaking to reporters on a visit to Kazakhstan on Friday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said he hoped Trump would make a "balanced" decision on the agreement.

"It is very important to preserve it in its current form and of course the participation of the United States will be a very significant factor in this regard," Lavrov said.

The agreement was concluded between the Islamic Republic and the P5+1 group of countries  the US, the UK, France, Russia, China, and Germany. It terminated nuclear-related sanctions against Iran in return for the application of certain limits by Iran to its nuclear program.

The CNN reported on Tuesday that US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson had been working on a plan to keep the United States in the agreement.

It cited several US officials and Western diplomats as saying that the top diplomat was working with congressional lawmakers to amend the US legislation that requires the president to report on Iranian compliance.

US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis also said recently that Trump's administration had to consider remaining a party to the Iran deal.

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Unilateral bans negatively affect global economic cooperation: Iran's UN envoy

Iran Press TV

Fri Oct 6, 2017 09:05AM

Iran's UN envoy has spoken against any imposition of unilateral economic sanctions against world nations, saying such "coercive" restrictive measures would leave a negative impact on developing countries and the entire global economic cooperation.

Gholam-Ali Khoshroo, Iran's Ambassador and Permanent Representative at the UN, made the remarks in an address to the Second Committee of the UN General Assembly, IRNA reported on Friday.

"Multilateralism remains to be the best and primary option for an international trading system to act as a fundamental driver of economic and social transformation," he said, adding, "It provides a framework of rules, regulations, and guidelines to which all members should adhere to."

Khoshroo further said, "The Islamic Republic of Iran, which has been experiencing economic coercive measures, remains opposed to the application of unilateral economic and trade measures against other countries."

Application of such measures, he said, "affects the sustainable development efforts of developing countries and generally has a negative impact on international economic cooperation as well as worldwide efforts to move towards a non-discriminatory and open multilateral trading system."

By achieving one of the highest global growth rates last year, Iran has proven that it could become one of the world's most vibrant emerging economies within the next 20 years, with a trillion-dollar growth potential, said the senior diplomat.

According to the World Bank, Iran's gross domestic product stood at USD 412.2 billion in 2016, the first half of which saw its economy growing by 7.4 percent.

"Our strategic choice for achieving such sustainable and balanced growth is extensive global partnership," the envoy stated.

Since Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution, which put an end to the monarchical rule of the US-backed Pahlavi regime, Washington has used unilateral sanctions as a tool to put economic pressure on the Iranian nation.

Iran was also subject to a series of US-backed international bans over its civilian nuclear program, but those sanctions were lifted when Tehran and the P5+1 states  the US, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany  reached a deal in 2015 on the Iranian nuclear work.

However, the new US administration has been actively seeking ways to undermine the accord.

Earlier in the year, US President Donald Trump urged Europeans not to do business with Iran in an attempt to torpedo much of what the agreement could award Iran in terms of economic interaction.

Since his inauguration, Trump has also imposed repeated rounds of sanctions against Iranian individuals and institutions over the Islamic Republic's missile program, though the missile work is not in contravention of the agreement.

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EU will not renege on Iran deal commitments even if US does: EU official

Iran Press TV

Fri Oct 6, 2017 09:09AM

The European Union (EU) will not follow the United States if Washington decides to trample on its obligations under a multilateral nuclear deal with Iran, says a European official.

The administration of US President Donald Trump has long despised the deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Trump has previously threatened to "rip up" the deal, has called it "the worst deal ever," and, most recently, called it an "embarrassment" to the US.

Since taking office a year after the deal took effect, Trump has twice certified Iranian compliance to the Congress under an American law, but those certifications were offered only half-heartedly, and all indications are that a third one  due shortly  may not be forthcoming. Administration officials have said Trump is expected to "decertify" the deal next week.

In case Trump refuses to certify Iranian compliance, Congress will have 60 days to decide whether to restore the sanctions against Iran that the US has agreed to waive under the JCPOA. The re-imposition of nuclear-related sanctions would be a major breach of the deal by the US.

If that happens, the EU will not follow suit and will not be breaching the JCPOA, The Washington Post on Thursday cited a European official as saying, without naming him.

"We will not follow the United States in reneging on our international obligations with this deal," said the official. "Not the E-3, nor the rest of the 28" members of the EU, he added, referring to France, the United Kingdom, and Germany, the three European parties to the deal with Iran.

Senior EU officials have repeatedly supported the Iran deal. The bloc's top diplomat, Federica Mogherini, has several times come out strongly in support of the JCPOA by stressing that it is a multilateral deal and that an individual party cannot decide to scrap it without a valid reason.

But the remarks by the official in the Post report are the strongest, most explicit indication yet that the US will have to forgo the partnership of its European allies if it decides to re-impose nuclear-related sanctions on Iran.

Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said recently that Tehran would not rush to scrap the deal if Washington chose to unilaterally walk away from the agreement and would wait to see how Europe reacted, among other things.

Washington had managed to get Europe on board with harsh sanctions imposed on Iran over its nuclear program prior to 2012. There had already been negotiations between Iran and European countries over the Iranian nuclear program, but reinvigorated talks and relentless diplomacy that began in 2013 finally led to a deal between Iran and its latest interlocutors, namely the P5+1 countries, two years later.

Between a rock and a hard place

The P5+1 countries are the US, France, Russia, China, the United Kingdom, and Germany. Apart from the US's new administration, all the other parties to the deal have been stressing that Iran is compliant with its contractual obligations and that the deal should stand.

They have indicated an unwillingness to allow a painfully-negotiated agreement to be put to waste because the new US administration is unhappy with it.

European governments already feel shortchanged by the US because Washington has announced a unilateral withdrawal from another hard-fought deal, the Paris climate accord.

If the US stopped carrying out its obligations under the Iran deal, the Europeans would have to decide whether a breach has taken place by America. It would be difficult for them to say it has not. So will it be for Washington's closest allies not to take its side.

"What do we do? What do we say? It would be a big crisis!" another senior official from one of the three European parties to the JCPOA told the Post.

'Nothing is decided on the Hill'

As a refusal by the White House to certify Iranian compliance is almost certain, European diplomats have reportedly been lobbying the US Congress to decide against a re-imposition of sanctions on Iran.

"We're working the Hill a lot," the second official said. "What we understand is that there is no inclination in the Senate to kill the deal by voting immediate sanctions. Staffers tell us that nothing is decided."

Europe taking up arms?

Many European businesses that had been forced out of Iran as a result of the nuclear-related sanctions  often suffering financial losses or losing benefits in the process  have returned to the Iranian market following the conclusion of the JCPOA. A potential re-imposition of sanctions, including penalties on international firms that do business with Iran, is thus particularly disconcerting to Europe, which says it bore the brunt of such sanctions in the past.

Another diplomat in Geneva said Europe was contemplating introducing regulations to shield European businesses and individuals against potential US sanctions targeting Iran.

Trump's own national security team has reportedly been opposed to a "decertification" at least as long ago as July. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis  an Iran hawk  have indicated that a decertification is not in the US's interest.

Thus, given the opposition by the senior US officials as well as Europe, Trump might single-handedly deepen the transatlantic divide by potentially going ahead with a "decertification" next week.

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Iranian Court Tightens Restrictions On Ex-President Khatami

October 06, 2017

Iran's Special Clerical Court has tightened restrictions against former President Mohammad Khatami, barring him from all public events for three months.

Khatami, who headed a reformist government between 1997 and 2005, has been banned from appearing in the media since mass antigovernment protests following the disputed 2009 presidential election.

The opposition Kalemeh website said on October 6 that the Special Clerical Court had sent Khatami a letter asking him "not to take part in any political ceremonies and publicity for three months."

The ban is reported to include attending meetings, theater performances, and concerts. It also bars government officials and student union members from meeting with him.

Ali Motahari, an outspoken lawmaker and a political moderate, criticized the new measures.

"We have a good constitution and the parliament has also devised good laws but some councils and institutions such as the Special Clerical Court bypass the constitution and the parliament and drag the country toward autocracy," he said in remarks published by the semiofficial ISNA news agency on October 6.

Based on reporting by AFP and ISNA

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-ex -president-khatami-restrictions- tightened/28778282.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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The Iran Nuclear Deal Explained

By Margaret Besheer October 06, 2017

On October 12, U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to announce whether his administration still finds Iran in compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal. Here's a look at what could happen if he chooses not to certify Tehran's compliance.

What is the Iran nuclear deal?

In July 2015, the permanent five members of the U.N. Security Council (Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States, plus Germany) agreed with Iran on a landmark deal to prevent Tehran from building a nuclear bomb. In exchange, certain international sanctions that have been in place against Iran for years would be lifted.

The sanctions relief led to Iran receiving billions of dollars in unfrozen funds and opened its markets back up to many foreign investors.

The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action as it's known by its formal name or JCPOA  took years to negotiate and was endorsed by a United Nations Security Council resolution, solidifying it as international law. It went into effect in January 2016.

Inspectors from the U.N. nuclear watchdog, the IAEA, are in charge of monitoring Iran's compliance.

The parties also established a Joint Commission to monitor implementation and handle disputes. Federica Mogherini, the European Union foreign policy chief, chairs it.

The deal's architects have hailed it as a success story for multilateral diplomacy. President Trump has dismissed it as an "embarrassment" and one of the worst deals into which Washington has ever entered. During his campaign, Trump said he'd like to tear it up.

Can he do that?

Not exactly.

The Iran nuclear agreement was reached during U.S. President Barack Obama's tenure and after it was approved, congressional Republicans tried to derail it.

But under U.S. legislation adopted in the lead up to the finalization of the agreement, Congress gave itself review and oversight privileges for any nuclear deal reached with Tehran.

Under the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act of 2015 (INARA), the U.S. president must certify to Congress every 90 days that Tehran is abiding by the provisions of the deal.

Four criteria must be met:

1. Iran is transparently and verifiably fully implementing all parts of the deal

2. Iran has not committed a material breach of the agreement

3. Iran has not taken any action, including covert activities, that could significantly advance its nuclear weapons program

4. Suspension of Iran-related sanctions are appropriate and proportionate to measures taken by Iran to terminate its nuclear program and are vital to U.S. national security interests

If the president does not certify Iran's compliance this month, it would trigger a 60-day period in which Congress can introduce legislation to re-impose some or all of the old U.S.-imposed sanctions (but not the U.N. ones).

If that happens, it could cause problems with countries that have resumed trade and banking relationships with Iran, by forcing Washington to impose secondary sanctions on them for cooperating with Tehran.

Iran could also try to accuse the United States of having been the first to violate the deal and lead to its collapse.

Congress could also decide not to re-impose sanctions and nothing would change.

Will he or won't he?

So far, President Trump has certified the deal twice since taking office. The next deadline is October 15. Trump has repeatedly indicated that he is not inclined to find Iran in compliance, most recently on Thursday.

"The Iranian regime supports terrorism and exports violence, bloodshed, and chaos across the Middle East," the president said at a meeting with his senior military leaders. "That is why we must put an end to Iran's continued aggression and nuclear ambitions. They have not lived up to the spirit of their agreement and we will be discussing that tonight."

But "spirit" is different from obligations, and the IAEA has repeatedly verified that Iran is adhering to its obligations, most recently on August 31, 2017.

In September, on the sidelines of the annual U.N. General Assembly, the parties to the agreement met, and the European Union's Mogherini said they all agreed Iran is in compliance.

"The agreement is concerning the nuclear program, as such it is delivering, we all agreed that all parties are fulfilling their commitments, the agreement is being implemented," she told reporters.

Does decertifying mean a US withdrawal from the deal?

"If the president chooses not to certify Iranian compliance, that does not mean the United States is withdrawing from the JCPOA," U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley told a Washington research group last month.

Some view that as a political strategy on the part of the president to show his supporters that he followed through on his promise to be tough on the Obama-era agreement, but without violating it.

But that has risks. Decertifying and sending the deal to Congress puts its future in jeopardy.

"This agreement is not something someone can touch," Iranian President Hassan Rouhani warned last month in New York. "This is a building, that from the frame of which if you take off a single brick, the entire building will collapse."

If the deal falls apart, Iran could decide to resume producing and enriching uranium.

Other parties to the deal say they will continue to uphold it.

"The UK, whatever the United States does, will continue to abide by this deal, as it is an important part of providing stability in that region," British Ambassador Matthew Rycroft told reporters.

The EU's Mogherini was also quite blunt, saying after her September meeting with the other parties that, "I can tell you as Europeans, we will make sure the agreement stays."

Worries about North Korea

U.S. allies are also nervous decertification or withdrawal could derail diplomatic efforts to get the North Koreans to come to the negotiating table to give up their nuclear program.

''We would be very concerned that if ... a major partner is not attached to the Iran agreement anymore  in this particular time  this would send a very problematic signal to North Korea and all those who we want to get into a political discussion with a political solution on North Korean issues," said a senior European diplomat.

The United States is the only party to the deal that has expressed an interest in renegotiating the agreement. France's president has suggested opening separate discussions on non-nuclear related issues, such as Iran's support for militias in Syria and Yemen, its ballistic missile activity, and the period after the nuclear agreement ends in 2025.

Bottom line

If President Trump decides to toss the Iran ball to Congress, he could inject a high degree of uncertainty into the process. While it remains unclear what Congress' intention is now, any action that could be perceived as a U.S. violation of the deal could have the unpleasant consequence of isolating Washington internationally.

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Iran reiterates need to preserve Iraq's territorial integrity

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Sulaymaniyah, Oct 6, IRNA -- Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Friday underlined the necessity to maintain Iraq's national unity and territorial integrity.

Speaking on the sidelines of a funeral ceremony held for former Iraqi president Jalal Talabani, the Iranian minister said that Iran has always been a Friend of the Iraqi nation, including the country's Kurd people.

'Iran will not take Iraqi Kurds responsible for the strategic mistakes made by certain people,' Zarif said, in an implicit reference to a referendum held in Iraqi Kurdistan Region on September 25 urged by certain Kurd officials.

Zarif expressed hope that all people in Kurdistan region will return to the path of 'Mam [uncle] Jalal' (Jalal Talabani) who he described as the 'symbol of Iraq's unity and territorial integrity.'

Zarif also referred to the late Talabani as 'a friend of Iran and a tireless fighter against the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein,' stressing that Talabani had made relentless efforts for keeping Iraq's unity and territorial integrity.

9341**1394

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Turkey says will continue negotiations with Iran on Iraqi Kurdistan

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Ankara, Oct 6, IRNA -- Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag said on Friday that the developments in the Iraqi Kurdistan region are a threat to regional security and that Ankara will continue negotiations with Tehran and international community in this regard.

Any Turkey's ignoring the formation of a Kurd state in northern Syria and Iraq and separatist efforts will result in unsatisfactory consequences, Bozdag was quoted as saying by Yeni Akit news website.

Kurd officials should openly announce that this referendum will not lead to any change of regime in the region by no means and have to renew their commitment to Iraq's Constitution, Bozdag said.

Despite all the oppositions in Iraq and abroad, certain Kurd officials insisted on holding a referendum in the Iraqi Kurdistan region on September 25.

Few days after the referendum, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited Tehran where he reiterated that Iran and Turkey do not recognize the results of the referendum and that tougher measures against Iraqi Kurdistan are underway.

At a joint press conference with his Turkish counterpart, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani said that Iran and Turkey regard Iraq and Syria as 'unified and independent' countries and will not accept changing geographical borders.

Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif underlined the necessity to maintain Iraq's national unity and territorial integrity while speaking in Sulaymaniyeh, northern Iraq, on Friday on the sidelines of a funeral ceremony held for former Iraqi president Jalal Talabani who died in a German hospital on October 3.

Zarif expressed hope that all people in Kurdistan region will return to the path of 'Mam [uncle] Jalal' (Jalal Talabani) who he described as the 'symbol of Iraq's unity and territorial integrity.'

9341**1394

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Iran FM urges maintenance of Iraq territorial integrity, unity

Iran Press TV

Fri Oct 6, 2017 03:14PM

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has once again stressed the importance of preserving Iraq's national unity and territorial integrity after a controversial independence referendum was held in northern semi-autonomous Kurdistan region.

Zarif made the remarks in the Iraqi city of Sulaymaniyah on Friday on the sidelines of the funeral ceremony for Jalal Talabani, a former Iraqi president and veteran Kurdish leader, who died in Germany on Tuesday at age 83.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran is the lifelong friend of the Iraqi people, including the country's Kurds," the top Iranian diplomat said.

He emphasized that Iran does not hold the Kurdish people in Iraq responsible for the "strategic mistakes by some individuals."

He expressed hope that all in Iraq's Kurdistan would return to "Mam Jalal" who was the symbol of the country's unity and territorial integrity.

The Iranian minister said Talabani was a friend of the Islamic Republic and an indefatigable campaigner against former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, adding that he has always fought to protect Iraq's unity and territorial integrity.

Thousands of mourners gathered in Sulaymaniyah to pay their respects to the former Iraqi president and leader of the country's Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), who was buried on Friday in the town that was the seat of his political power.

Talabani's decades-long political carrier saw him playing a key role in Kurdish and national politics. The late Kurdish leader, who became the president of Iraq in 2005, has been hailed as a unifying figure in national politics.

At the end of the funeral ceremony, the Iranian foreign minister left Sulaymaniyah for the holy Iraqi city of Najaf.

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EU seeks 'de-escalation of tension' in Myanmar amid Rohingya crisis

Iran Press TV

Fri Oct 6, 2017 03:21PM

The European Union has called on Myanmar's authorities to adhere to international human rights obligations and give aid workers access to Rakhine state, which is home to Rohingya Muslims, known by the United Nations as the "most persecuted" minority in the world.

"We addressed the situation in Myanmar and the Rohingya refugee crisis. We want to see de-escalation of tension and the full adherence to international human rights obligations as well as full humanitarian access so the aid can reach those in need," said President of the European Council Donald Tusk on Friday in New Delhi, where he met with Indian officials.

"The EU continues to assume its responsibilities by receiving people in need of protection and by assisting host countries close to the conflict zones," the EU official said.

Tusk also stated that India was first in line to respond to the refugee crisis as a neighboring country.

Earlier on Friday, the United Nations said it was "unacceptable" that Myanmar's government kept refusing to grant humanitarian access to Rakhine.

Authorities in Myanmar, led by de facto leader Aug San Suu Kyi, have been tightly controlling access to Rakhine since August, when purported attacks by Rohingya fighters prompted a brutal military response that has forced over 515,000 Rohingya to flee for Bangladesh. The crackdown, backed by radical Buddhist monks, has left scores of Rohingya villages torched and completely destroyed.

Myanmar's government denies full citizenship to Rohingya Muslims, branding them illegal immigrants from Bangladesh.

Witnesses and rights groups have reported systematic attacks, including rape, murder and arson, at the hands of the army and Buddhist mobs against the Rohingya.

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UN slams Myanmar's denial of access to Rakhine

Iran Press TV

Fri Oct 6, 2017 11:01AM

The United Nations (UN) has slammed Myanmar's refusal to grant humanitarian access to Rakhine State as "unacceptable," saying the flight of terror-hit Rohingya Muslims out of the region continues.

"This flow out of Myanmar has not stopped yet, it's into the hundreds of thousands of Rohingya (who are) still in Myanmar, we want to be ready in case there is a further exodus," said the UN's under secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, Mark Lowcock, in a Friday press briefing in Geneva.

"Half a million people do not pick up sticks and flee their country on a whim," he said, reiterating the world body's appeal for access to the widely-displaced population in Rakhine and saying the existing circumstances are "unacceptable."

"The access we have in northern Rakhine State is unacceptable," Lowcock added after a small team of UN staff visited the majority-Buddhist Myanmar in recent days and described witnessing "unimaginable" suffering.

Myanmarese authorities, led by de facto leader and Noble peace prize winner Aug San Suu Kyi, have been tightly controlling access to the state since last month when purported attacks by Rohingya militants prompted a brutal military response that has forced over 515,000 Rohingya fleeing to Bangladesh.

The violence, backed by radical Buddhist monks, has left scores of Rohingya villages torched and completely destroyed.

Lowcock said that he believed "a high level" UN team would be able to visit the area "in the next few days," without elaborating, repeating UN's demands for Myanmar to allow "unhindered (and) unfettered" access to the state.

He further said the UN had "substantial capacity" in Myanmar, which can be swiftly deployed to northern Rakhine once clearance is granted by local authorities.

Rohingya-majority Rakhine has been emptied of half of its Muslim population over the past weeks and more people are on the move as unspeakable acts of violence continue against the Rohingya.

Many witnesses and rights groups have reported systematic attacks, including rape, murder and arson, at the hands of the army and Buddhist mobs against Rohingya Muslims.

The UN has described the government-sanctioned crackdown on Rohingya as "a textbook example of ethnic cleansing."

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145,000 Rohingya children face malnutrition

Iran Press TV

Fri Oct 6, 2017 03:22AM

About 145,000 Rohingya refugee children pouring into Bangladesh to stay safe from a brutal crackdown by the Myanmar government are now at risk of severe malnutrition, a UK charity has warned.

According to the Disasters Emergency Committee charity, more than 14,000 of the refugee children under the age of five are already suffering from "severe acute malnutrition."

There were also more than 50,000 pregnant and breastfeeding Rohingya women among the refugees who are in need of proper food rations, the charity said on Thursday.

Myanmar soldiers and Buddhist mobs have been attacking Rohingya Muslims and torching their villages since October 2016.

The children are among the over half a million Rohingyas who have fled their country following a sharp rise in violence since August 25, following a number of purported armed attacks on police and military posts in the western state of Rakhine.

Evan Schuurman, the spokesperson for Save the Children humanitarian response team in Bangladesh, told The Independent that the "sheer speed" at which the crisis has expanded provides the biggest challenge for relief efforts to save the stranded children and their families.

"It's truly staggering," the activist said, noting that the refugee influx had amounted to an average of 10,000 people a day over the last six weeks.

This is while, according to the United Nations deputy spokesperson, Farhan Haq, there were already some 200,000 Rohingya in Bangladesh before the latest wave arrived.

Steve Taravella, the World Food Program's senior spokesperson, told the British daily that Bangladesh's own problems had exacerbated the situation.

"The flow of people is constant and rapid and overwhelming a country that is struggling to manage its own development needs," he said.

According to Schuurman, Bangladesh has been hit "particularly hard" with rains that have triggered heavy flooding and interrupted aid operations by causing transportation and logistics issues.

Bangladesh says it plans to expand a massive settlement under construction in its southernmost district to house nearly 900,000 persecuted Rohingya Muslims.

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Rohingyas: World's Fastest-growing Refugee Crisis

By Lisa Schlein October 06, 2017

Aid agencies warn the mass exodus of Rohingyas is not over. Myanmar has seen more than one-half million refugees flee into neighboring Bangladesh since August 25.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) reports an estimated 2,000 Rohingya refugees are arriving daily at Cox's Bazar in Bangladesh. The agency said as many as 100,000 more people may be waiting to cross from North Rakhine State.

U.N. Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Mark Lowcock, has just returned from a visit to Cox's Bazar. He calls this the fastest-growing refugee crisis in the world and one of the most heart-rending.

While in Bangladesh, he said he heard horrific stories of abuse and atrocities suffered by the refugees at the hands of the Myanmar military.

"I sat down with 24 women who had also fled," he said. "And they told me their stories, stories of being forced to watch while their husbands, their fathers, their young sons were killed in front of their eyes. Stories of rape, really, violent sexual assault. Stories of then having to flee as their villages were burned."

Lowcock said conditions in Bangladesh are very difficult. He said people are living in overcrowded, squalid settlements. They need food, he said, better water and sanitation, and better basic services.

He said U.N. and international agencies are scaling up humanitarian operations and this has resulted in a marked improvement in the delivery of life-saving aid. But, he said the needs are so great that even this is not enough.

The U.N. has come up with a $434 million response plan to help 1.2 million Rohingya and the Bangladeshi host community. Lowack said the U.N. will host a pledging conference in Geneva on October 23.

He noted the origin of the Rohingya crisis is in Myanmar and the solutions also must be in Myanmar.

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US Lawmakers Urge Full Media, Aid Access to Myanmar

By VOA News October 06, 2017

U.S. lawmakers are calling for "full access" by journalists and aid workers to Myanmar's troubled Rakhine state.

"It is very important that we get reporters on the ground, that we get USAID on the ground," Representative Ed Royce, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee said Thursday. "Because as long as that presence is there it's a check to these kinds of atrocities."

Representative Royce added that the Trump administration has promised $32 million in assistance  $28 million of which will go to Bangladesh, where roughly 500,000 Rohingya have fled from across the border since August.

The mass exodus began after Myanmar security forces launched a brutal crackdown in response to Rohingya militant attacks.

Patrick Murphy, a senior U.S. official for Southeast Asia, says the U.S. has urged Myanmar's civilian and military officials to take action to stop the violence, and representative Eliot Engel, the committee's top-ranking Democrat, said the U.S. should consider imposing targeted sanctions on Myanmar's military.

The lawmakers also echoed comments by the U.N. Human Rights commissioner, saying that the violence against Rohingyas constitutes ethnic cleansing.

"Just for the record, myself and Mr. Engel, this committee  we identity this as full-fledged ethnic cleansing," Representative Royce said.

David Steinberg, a professor at Georgetown University with extensive knowledge of Buddhist-majority Myanmar, told VOA there is "great prejudice" against the Muslim Rohingya.

"They always said, Go back to Bangladesh where you belong,'" Steinberg said of those pushing the Rohingya out of Myanmar. "People have said that many, many times in Myanmar. So that term ethnic cleansing I don't think is too wrong. I think that is very clear."

Dr. Tint Swe, who was elected to Myanmar's parliament in 1990, but now lives in the United States, disagreed with the use of the term "ethnic cleansing" to describe the situation in Myanmar.

Swe told VOA "most of the figures are fleeing for safety reasons or fear," so he doesn't think it fits the requirements of an ethnic cleansing.

"Ethnic cleansing means a deliberate act of wiping out or killing an entire ethnic people or peoples," he said. "Here, in this case, I don't believe it is ethnic cleansing."

Meanwhile, the United Nations said Thursday it will provide $434 million to help more than 1 million people in Bangladesh  including Rohingya refugees and local host communities.

After the Myanmar army began a crackdown in October last year to "flush out Rohingya militants" following a deadly attack on a police outpost, charges of rapes, killings and arson were leveled against the soldiers in the Rohingya village. But outside media have been restricted in their access to the area.

Rohingya leaders claim the true story of the crackdown has not been getting out to the world.

The Myanmar government has taken groups of reporters to the region in recent weeks and has denied charges of systematic abuses against the Rohingya. But because of the security situation, reporters say they are not able to freely move about the area and gather information.

VOA's Burmese Service contributed to this report.

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Russian Court Leaves Navalny In Jail On Eve Of Protests, Campaign Office Searched

RFE/RL's Russian Service October 06, 2017

MOSCOW -- A Russian court rejected Aleksei Navalny's appeal against a 20-day jail term, and police searched his Moscow presidential campaign office as the Kremlin foe urged supporters to protest nationwide on October 7.

In an October 6 ruling, the Moscow City Court upheld a lower court's decision to jail Navalny for violating the law by making public calls for unsanctioned rallies.

Minutes after the ruling was pronounced, police came to Navalny's campaign office in the capital with a search warrant, supporters said on Twitter.

The police told campaign office staff that the search was connected to an investigation opened after the head of Navalny's Moscow campaign office, Nikolai Lyaskin, was beaten by an assailant wielding a metal pipe on September 15.

The court ruling, which was expected, means that Navalny will remain in jail during protests on October 7, President Vladimir Putin's 65th birthday.

"I understand perfectly well that that [the Kremlin] needs me to be locked up as much as possible and particularly on October 7," Navalny's spokeswoman, Kira Yarmysh, was quoted as saying in court.

Navalny has called on Russians to demonstrate in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and other cities nationwide, demanding that the government allow real political competition and let him run in the March 2018 presidential election.

"We have held several [campaign] rallies...and all have them have been peaceful and fully in line with the law," Navalny said, contending that his jailing was "politically motivated."

Navalny is a fierce critic of Putin, who has held power as prime minister or president since 1999 and is expected to seek a new six-year term in the vote. Putin is virtually assured of victory as the tightly-controlled political system leaves little room for surprises.

A 41-year-old lawyer who has produced numerous reports alleging corruption among key Putin allies, Navalny has opened more than 60 campaign offices and held rallies nationwide since announcing in December that he plans to seek the presidency.

Barred From Running

In June, however, the Central Election Commission said that Navalny was ineligible to run for public office because of a financial-crimes conviction in one of two high-profile cases that he contests were fabricated by the Kremlin for political reasons.

Navalny has pushed ahead with his campaign in defiance of that decision, holding a series of rallies in recent weeks.

The 20-day jail term came after he was detained outside his Moscow home on September 29 as he left to catch a train for the Volga River city of Nizhny Novgorod, where he had organized a rally that evening.

Ahead of the planned protests on October 7, Russian authorities have issued warnings against holding demonstrations without permission from the authorities.

"Public calls for unsanctioned rallies and meetings are illegal...and therefore organizers of such events will be prosecuted," Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters on October 3.

Prosecutors in St. Petersburg, Putin's hometown, said on October 6 that "any attempts to conduct unsanctioned [demonstrations] are a direct violation of the law,"

Kremlin opponents and human rights activists say the government frequently violates the constitutional right to free assembly when it withholds permission for demonstrations or places restrictions on where and when they can be held.

On the eve of the planned protests, veteran activist Lyudmila Alekseyeva called on the authorities to abide by Russia's constitution and its international human rights commitments.

"The freedom of peaceful assembly as a fundamental human right lies at the foundation of the functioning of any democratic state," Alekseyeva said in a blog post on the website of radio station Ekho Moskvy.

"We demand adherence to the Constitution and call on all fellow citizens to actively defend their right to hold peaceful gatherings," said Alekseyeva, 90, who heads the Moscow Helsinki Group.

With reporting by Fontanka and RIA

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/moscow-court- upholds-navalny-jail-term-20-days-putin- election/28777862.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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Putin Continues Regional Reshuffle By Replacing Novosibirsk Governor

RFE/RL October 06, 2017

Russian President Vladimir Putin has dismissed the governor of the Novosibirsk Oblast, Vladimir Gorodetsky, pushing ahead with a reshuffle of regional leaders as the Kremlin gears up for the presidential election in March.

In a decree posted on the Kremlin website on October 7, Putin accepted Gorodetsky's resignation and appointed Andrei Travnikov -- until now the mayor of the western city of Vologda -- as acting governor of the large Siberian region.

The regional capital, also called Novosibirsk, is Russia's third-largest city, with a population of more than 1.5 million.

Gorodetsky is the fourth regional leader to be dismissed this week.

Since October 3, Putin has also replaced the heads of the North Caucasus region of Daghestan, Primorsky Krai in the Far East, and the western Oryol region.

In late September, the governors of the Russian regions of Nenets, Krasnoyarsk, Nizhny Novgorod, and Samara were replaced.

Russian media reports have attributed the regional political shake-up to preparations for next year's presidential election.

Putin is widely expected to seek and secure a fourth term, although he has not yet officially announced he will run in the March 2018 poll.

The Kremlin has relied on regional governors to secure predetermined levels of support for Putin in past elections that were heavily managed by Moscow.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-novosibirsk- governor-replaced/28777727.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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Russian Troops Return to Home Bases After Zapad-2017 Drills With Belarus End

Sputnik News

13:28 06.10.2017

Despite several eastern European states' concerns that Russian military might stay in Belarus after the joint Zapad-2017 war games end, the Russian defense minister has officially announced that troops have returned to their home bases in Russia.

MOSCOW (Sputnik)  The aims of the Russia-Belarus Zapad-2017 military exercises have been reached, the troops that were taking part returned to their permanent bases, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Friday.

"We believe that the goals of the drills have been reached. I am drawing special attention to the fact that all means and forces involved were returned to their permanent bases," Shoigu said.

The minister added that during the drills, authorities of the two states practiced joint activities aimed at ensuring the security of the Union State of Russia and Belarus.

"Ninety five representatives of 50 states were observing the drills. About 12,700 servicemen, as well as up to 680 pieces of military hardware, about 70 aircraft and 10 ships were engaged in the military exercise," the Russian official added.

He said that the joint drills were aimed at practicing the fight against terrorists, as well as security and protection of important facilities.

According to him, many mainstream media outlets were "scaring with the most incredible scenarios."

"All of these lies were exposed at the end of the exercises which were purely defensive in nature," the minister said.

Shoigu said that the preparations to the strategic drills had taken place amid "unprecedented information pressure."

The Zapad-2017 military drills were held on September 14-20 on the territory of Russia and Belarus. Several eastern NATO member states have repeatedly voiced concerns with regard to the joint drills even before they started, claiming that the Russian troops, deployed in Belarus for the joint Zapad-2017 military exercise, might stay in Belarus after drills, thus, allegedly posing a threat to threat security. The Russian and Belarusian officials have repeatedly refuted the allegations, saying that the planned drills are purely defensive and pose no threat to eastern European states. Moreover, Russia and Belarus invited NATO experts and foreign journalists to observe the drills.

 Sputnik

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Saudi Arabia - Terminal High Altitude Area Defense and Related Support, Equipment and Services

Media/Public Contact: pm-cpa@state.gov

Transmittal No: 17-28

WASHINGTON, Oct 6, 2017 -- The State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Government of Saudi Arabia for Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) and related support, equipment and services for an estimated cost of $15 billion. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale today.

The Government of Saudi Arabia has requested a possible sale of forty-four (44) Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) launchers, three hundred sixty (360) THAAD Interceptor Missiles, sixteen (16) THAAD Fire Control and Communications Mobile Tactical Station Group, seven (7) AN/TPY-2 THAAD radars. Also included are THAAD Battery maintenance equipment, forty-three (43) prime movers (trucks), generators, electrical power units, trailers, communications equipment, tools, test and maintenance equipment, repair and return, system integration and checkout, spare/repair parts, publications and technical documentation, personnel training and training equipment, U.S. Government and contractor technical and logistics personnel support services, facilities construction, studies, and other related elements of logistics and program support. The estimated cost is $15 billion.

This proposed sale will support the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by improving the security of a friendly country. This sale furthers U.S. national security and foreign policy interests, and supports the long-term security of Saudi Arabia and the Gulf region in the face of Iranian and other regional threats. This potential sale will substantially increase Saudi Arabia's capability to defend itself against the growing ballistic missile threat in the region. THAAD's exo-atmospheric, hit-to-kill capability will add an upper-tier to Saudi Arabia's layered missile defense architecture and will support modernization of the Royal Saudi Air Defense Force (RSADF). Saudi Arabia will have no difficulty absorbing this equipment into its armed forces.

The proposed sale of this equipment and support will not alter the basic military balance in the region.

The principal contractors for the THAAD system are Lockheed Martin Space Systems Corporation, Dallas, TX, Camden, AR, Troy, AL and Huntsville, AL; and Raytheon Corporation, Andover, MA. There are no known offset agreements proposed in connection with this potential sale.

Implementation of this proposed sale will require one hundred eleven (111) contractor representatives and eighteen (18) U.S. Government personnel in country for an extended period of time.

There will be no adverse impact on U.S. defense readiness as a result of this proposed sale.

This notice of a potential sale is required by law and does not mean the sale has been concluded.

All questions regarding this proposed Foreign Military Sale should be directed to the State Department's Bureau of Political Military Affairs, Office of Congressional and Public Affairs, pm-cpa@state.gov.

-30-

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Putin, Salman hold talks behind closed doors in Moscow

Iran Press TV

Fri Oct 6, 2017 06:07AM

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi King Salman have held talks behind closed doors in the Russian capital of Moscow, reportedly discussing bilateral and regional issues.

The talks were held on Thursday with the participation of other Russian and Saudi officials.

"We have held detailed talks behind closed doors to talk about bilateral relations and the situation in the region," Putin said after the meeting. "That was a very meaningful, substantive and confidential conversation."

The Russian president also said he was confident the visit by Salman would give a fresh impetus to the development of bilateral ties with Riyadh. Putin also accepted an invitation by the Saudi king to Saudi Arabia.

Salman and his delegation arrived in the Russian capital for a four-day visit on Wednesday.

The Saudis have reportedly signed more than 15 cooperation agreements  with multi-billion-dollar energy and military contracts  with the Russian side. Moscow has also agreed to sell its advanced S-400 missile defense system to Riyadh.

Putin and Salman also discussed the conflict in Syria, where they support opposing sides. The Saudis have been backing the wide range of militants fighting the elected Syrian government, while Russia backs the legitimate Damascus government.

Saudi Arabia has officially been calling for an ouster of Assad, while Russia says the future of Syria and the political future of Assad should only be determined by the Syrian people.

Nevertheless, Salman claimed that Riyadh favors a political solution to the conflict in Syria, according to a report by TASS.

"A political solution must be achieved that would guarantee security, stability, unity and territorial integrity of Syria," he was quoted as saying.

The two leaders also discussed the oil market and how to stabilize prices.

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Syrian army soldiers, allies enter eastern Daesh-controlled town

Iran Press TV

Fri Oct 6, 2017 02:13PM

Syrian army soldiers and allied fighters from popular defense groups, supported by Russian military aircraft, have marched into a town controlled by members of Daesh Takfiri terrorist group in the country's troubled eastern province of Dayr al-Zawr as they continue to make territorial gains against the militants.

"With support from Russian aviation, government forces entered Mayadin and took control of several buildings in the western flank of the town,"  located about 44 kilometers southeast of the provincial capital city of Dayr al-Zawr, Rami Abdel Rahman, the head of the so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), said on Friday.

The development came shortly after Syria's official news agency reported that Syrian government forces and their allies had carried out major offensives against Daesh Takfiris across Dayr al-Zawr Province, inflicting heavy losses on the militants' ranks and military hardware.

Syrian army units destroyed an arms depot, a communications headquarters, a command center and several vehicles equipped with heavy machine guns in the town of Mayadin.

With support from Syrian Air Force fighter jets, government troops pounded the positions of Daesh terrorists in the towns of Mayadin, al-Muhasan, al-Boleel, al-Hussainiyah, al-Junaynah, al-Tayyebah and Saker Island in addition to Sheikh Yassin, al-Jubailah and al-Rashidiyah neighborhoods.

'Daesh militants driven out of 91% of Syrian territory'

Meanwhile, the official newspaper of the Russian Ministry of Defense says Syrian army soldiers and allied fighter from popular defense groups have managed to purge Daesh Takfiri terrorists from over 91 percent of the country's territory.

The Russian-language Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper published an infographic on Friday, which showed that 91.6 percent of the Syrian soil is now free from the presence of Daesh Takfiris.

The SOHR reported on Wednesday that Syrian army soldiers and allied fighters had flushed Daesh Takfiri militants out of their last positions in the western-central province of Hama.

The Britain-based monitoring group said Daesh terrorists were no longer present anywhere in the province for the first time in three years.

The observatory's director, Rami Abdel Rahman, said government forces had "managed to take control of all the last remaining villages in the hands of Daesh in Hama province after more than a month of fierce clashes between the two sides."

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Syrian Army Completes Anti-Daesh Operation in Eastern Part of Homs Province

Sputnik News

21:45 06.10.2017

A Sputnik correspondent reported Friday that the Syrian government forces have completed a military operation against Daesh in the eastern part of Syria's Homs province.

DAMASCUS (Sputnik)  Syrian government forces and their allies have completed a military operation against Daesh in the eastern part of Syria's Homs province, liberating 1,800 square kilometers (694.9 square miles) of territory, a Sputnik correspondent reported Friday.

"During the operation of the Syrian army in the eastern part of Homs province, the last IS [Daesh] strongholds were eliminated. A total of 1,800 square kilometers was liberated. Dozens of settlements and villages were retaken," the correspondent said.

The Syrian army continues its offensive on the city of Mayadin, the major Daesh stronghold in the neighboring province of Deir ez-Zor. The military has been engaged in fighting Daesh militants on the western outskirts of the city.

Syria has been engulfed in a civil war since 2011, with the government forces fighting numerous opposition groups as well as extremist organizations. The international community has organized two platforms for discussing the reconciliation between the government and the opposition, in Geneva and Astana.

 Sputnik

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Al-Nusra Front Terror Group May Replace Daesh After its Defeat - Moscow

Sputnik News

20:03 06.10.2017(updated 20:04 06.10.2017)

A Russian Foreign Ministry official warned against "saving" al-Nusra Front terrorist group, former al-Qaeda affiliate, in Syria as it might one day replace Daesh.

MOSCOW, October 6 (Sputnik)  After being eliminated, Daesh (ISIS, Islamic State, banned in Russia) may be replaced with Jabhat Fatah al Sham (formerly known as al-Nusra Front, banned in Russia), which is currently being covered up by some parties interested in using jihadist forces as an tool of influence, Vladimir Andreev, the deputy director of the Department for New Challenges and Threats in the Russian Foreign Ministry, told Sputnik on Friday.

The official said that the Russian side was calling on the international community to come together to tackle terrorism on the basis of international law, the UN Charter and consent of the states, where the fight against terrorists is unfolding.

"Unfortunately, a number of states, Western states, still pursue other goals in the present conditions, [which are] to secure superiority, dominance, some kind of control. Some of the terror organizations, Jabhat al-Nusra [al-Nusra Front], whatever it is called now, it looks like it is being saved, perhaps, to ensure the return of al-Qaeda [terror group banned in Russia] in the shape of Nusra to the forefront, after Daesh, which has gone too far, will be finally eliminated and this brand dies out," Andreev said.

Andreev specified that the terror group might be used as an instrument of interference in internal affairs of different states and toppling unwanted regimes.

"Terrorists never do anything on their own. At some point, they went 'unnoticed,' they received assistance, they were given the chance to get rolling, now they are biting the hand that once fed them, and this hand keeps feeding them in quiet, steering them in directions which correspond with some geopolitical strategies. Russia does not take part in that," Andreev said.

The foreign ministry official added that Russia was standing ready for full-scale cooperation on taking down terrorism, as it was in the interests not only of Russia, but the whole world. However, Andreev added that such cooperation has not been established so far.

The statement comes several days after the Russian Defense Ministry announced that a Russian airstrike in Syria's the Idlib left al-Nusra Front leader in coma and eliminated 49 other terrorists. The operation came as the Russian foreign minister said that Moscow would support armed groups fighting against al-Nusra Front in the war-torn country.

 Sputnik

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Pentagon Calls Russian MoD Remarks on US Coalition's Aims in Syria 'Ridiculous'

Sputnik News

19:41 06.10.2017(updated 19:42 06.10.2017)

The Pentagon has again responded to a statement made by the Russian Defense Ministry earlier this week, accusing the US of supporting terrorists in Syria.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik)  The aim of the US-led coalition in Syria is to fight Daesh terrorist group (ISIS, Islamic State, banned in Russia), any claims to the contrary are ridiculous, a Pentagon spokesperson told Sputnik on Friday commenting on a statement made by the Russian Defense Ministry, saying that the United States "supporting and flirting with" terrorists is the main obstacle for defeating them.

"The coalition's mission in Syria is to defeat ISIS [Daesh] and prevent its return to liberated areas. Any claims to the contrary are ridiculous. U.S. forces operating in Syrian territory operate under authorities to combat terrorism, and will continue to advise and assist partner forces as long as ISIS remains either a conventional or insurgent threat. The coalition continues its mission to train partner forces in the tri-border region as part of its campaign to defeat ISIS throughout Syria and Iraq," the spokesperson said.

The Pentagon told Sputnik on Friday it encouraged the Syrian government forces' and Russian efforts to focus on Daesh terrorist group and prevent "unnecessary conflict."

"We encourage regime and Russian efforts to focus on ISIS, and prevent unnecessary conflict that distracts from that mission and fosters further unrest in Syria. The U.S. continues to seek successful de-confliction of all operations, but remains prepared to act in self-defense of U.S. troops and out partners," a spokesperson said.

The Russian Defense Ministry said on Wednesday that it had warned the United States that any allegedly attacks by terrorists from zone controlled by US forces would be repelled, adding a series of Daesh attacks against the Syrian forces have been carried out from the areas where the "US military mission" is deployed. The same day, the Pentagon denied complicity with Daesh in Syria.

On September 28, a group of 300 Daesh militants left the city of Rubkan moving in the direction of the city of Al-Qaryatayn in the Homs province. The militants managed to avoid the Syrian army's hidden posts using coordinates that can only be obtained through aerial reconnaissance and attacked Syrian positions. On the same day, another Daesh group conducted a number of attacks against the Syrian forces along the strategic road connecting Palmyra and Deir ez-Zor.

Earlier in September, the Russian Defense Ministry published a batch of aerial pictures showing that the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the US troops that support them are present in Syria's areas held by Daesh.

 Sputnik

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Syrian Army Enters Largest Daesh Hotbed in Deir ez-Zor Province - General

Sputnik News

18:23 06.10.2017(updated 20:47 06.10.2017)

The Syrian government forces are conducting a military operation to gain control of the largest Daesh stronghold in the province of Deir ez-Zor after the three-year terrorist siege of Deir ez-Zor city was lifted a month ago.

The Syrian army has entered the largest Daesh (ISIS, Islamic State, banned in Russia) stronghold in the province of Deir ez-Zor, the town of al-Mayadeen (located 45 kilometers east of the city of Deir ez-Zor), a government forces brigadier general told RIA Novosti.

"The Syrian army entered Mayadeen and gained controls over the market in the west of the city, as well as a citadel Fierce clashes between the army and Daesh terrorists are underway in the south of the city," the general said.

He said that the Syrian army provided humanitarian corridors for the exit of civilians from the city. However, terrorists prevent some city residents from leaving the area to use them as a "human shield," the general said.

Meanwhile, Syrian state TV reported earlier in the day that the government forces eliminated a large number of Daesh militants during the al-Mayadeen operation. The troops reportedly destroyed several Daesh weapons depots and a communication hub.

Daesh terrorists receive weapons, arms and manpower from the Iraqi territory via the border town of Abu Kamal, according to SANA, the Syrian state news agency. From this settlement, Daesh mobile detachments have attempted to counterattack the government forces near Deir ez Zor and the army's positions on the Palmyra-Deir ez Zor highway, which is considered the main way of supplies to the city.

The new offensive of the Syrian army in the province comes a month after the three-year blockade of the city was lifted by government troops with support from the Russian Aerospace Forces on September 5. The operation to clear the city from remaining terrorists is currently underway.

 Sputnik

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September 'deadliest month' of 2017 for Syrians, UN relief official reports

6 October 2017  Hospitals, ambulances, schools and displaced people escaping violence are being routinely targeted by airstrikes in Syria, resulting in high numbers of deaths and injuries, and making September the deadliest month of the year, according to the United Nations regional relief coordinator for the crisis.

"I am appalled by reports of high numbers of civilian casualties due to heavy air attacks in Syria," said Panos Moumtzis, the Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Syria Crisis .

"September was the deadliest month of 2017 for civilians with daily reports of attacks on residential areas resulting in hundreds of conflict-related deaths and injuries," he added in a news release issued by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

This week, airstrikes on Raqqa City killed dozens of people and injured many others while some 8,000 others remain trapped there.

Between 19-30 September, airstrikes on residential areas in Idlib killed at least 149 people  the majority of whom were women and children.

"Attacks on medical facilities are depriving people in need of their right to life-saving medical care," stressed Mr. Moumtzis.

Schools and hospitals in Idlib have been forced to close for fear of being targeted. Three explosions in Damascus city caused the death of 20 people and injured 15 more. Civilian casualties were also reported in Rural Damascus, Hama, Aleppo and Deir-ez-Zor.

"I would like to praise the phenomenal work carried out by humanitarian workers and in particular national staff," he continued, noting that rescue workers on a daily basis risk their lives to help others.

"The UN calls on all parties to the conflict to immediately take all measures to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure throughout Syria," underscored the Mr. Moumtzis. He asserted that targeting civilians and facilities, including hospitals and other medical facilities is "simply unacceptable and constitute a grave violation of human rights and international humanitarian law and may amount to war crimes."

"All parties to the conflict must respect their international obligations and act in a way that ensures the protection of civilians and humanitarian workers," concluded Mr. Moumtzis.

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Changing definition of territory needs social consensus: premier

ROC Central News Agency

2017/10/06 17:44:33

Taipei, Oct. 6 (CNA) Asked if the country needs to modify the way its territory is defined by amending the Constitution, Premier Lai Ching-te () said Friday that the issue depended on a social consensus, though he voiced support for constitutional change.

"Society and the country are progressing, and the Constitution should advance with the times," said Lai, in response to questions from opposition Kuomintang (KMT) lawmaker Hsu Yu-jen () at a legislative hearing.

Lai, who took office on Sept. 8, caused controversy recently by describing himself as a "political worker who advocates Taiwan independence" and that his views would not change regardless of the political post he holds.

He added that "Taiwan is a nation with independent sovereignty, and its name is the Republic of China. The two sides (of the Taiwan Strait) have no links with each other."

Testing Lai's position on the issue Friday, Hsu asked that since the Republic of China (ROC) exists on Taiwan, and Taiwan is the ROC, does that mean the country needs to revise its Constitution to alter how its territory is defined?

Lai answered by saying that pushing for a constitutional amendment to alter how the territory is defined depends on a "social consensus."

A constitutional amendment proposal must undergo a referendum, but before that it requires the consent of at least three-fourths of the lawmakers present at a meeting attended by at least three-fourths of the total members of the Legislative Yuan, Lai said.

At present, the ROC Constitution defines the country's territory as the "territory of the Republic of China according to its existing national boundaries."

The Additional Articles of the Constitution further describe the territory as having two distinctive parts: a "free area" and a "mainland area."

Any move to more clearly define Taiwan's territory as limited to its current boundaries, completely separate from China, would be seen as a form of indirectly asserting independence, risking retaliation from Beijing, which sees Taiwan as part of its own territory.

Hsu further asked Lai if he supported the proposal by ruling Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Su Chiao-hui () to amend the Additional Articles of the Constitution by adding a clause that defines cross-strait relations as the relations "between our country and the People's Republic of China."

Lai sidestepped the question, saying only that the president has the power to decide the country's future directions or national policies and that it was "inconvenient" for him to express his opinions at this moment.

(By Wang Cheng-chung and Elizabeth Hsu)

Enditem/ls

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Taiwan's Beleaguered Foreign Relations Find Stable Support in Singapore

By Ralph Jennings October 06, 2017

Singapore's apparent decision this week to sustain a more than 40-year-old military training program with Taiwan, despite pressure from China, is giving Taiwan's embattled foreign policy a rare win in Asia.

Officials in Taipei said this week Singapore would continue the Project Starlight military training program despite a visit last month to China by the Southeast Asian country's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. China sees self-ruled Taiwan as part of its own territory and discourages other governments from pursuing diplomatic or military relationships.

The two sides started the training program in 1975 under Singapore's founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew and his friend Chiang Ching-kuo, Taiwan's premier at the time. Chiang went on to become president.

Singapore picked Taiwan for the training site because the city-state lacked land for extensive military exercises, including war simulations.

Singapore neutral

"I think Singapore tries to, at least pretends to be neutral even though they feel this pressure from China," said Nathan Liu, international affairs professor at Ming Chuan University in Taiwan. "This continuous relationship with Taiwan shouldn't be discontinued or disrupted."

Singapore can balance China against Taiwan, an act most countries do not try, because Beijing officials want good relations with the country that some in Beijing see as a model for governance: a wealthy, services-dependent economy that's largely ethnic Chinese, effectively run by a single political party.

Scholars believe Singapore has assured China that its military training with Taiwan will not lead to formal state relations.

"This kind of issue has been raised repeatedly by Beijing, and I think the Singaporean government in the past also made it clear that they're still holding official relations with China," said Andrew Yang, secretary-general of the Chinese Council, Advanced Policy Studies think tank, Taiwan.

Mutual trust

The training project offers Taiwan mutual trust with a modern Southeast Asian country as well as regular military exchanges, Yang said. Eventually those ties may allow for naval ports of call and growth in private visits, he said.

"That is a kind of reinforcement for the armed forces in Taiwan, that they still maintain unique ties with Singapore and still maintain mutual trust," Yang said.

In 2013, Singapore and Taiwan signed a free trade deal that was good for exporters but a source of worry for China as it was a formal agreement. Taiwan is Singapore's sixth largest trading partner.

China has used its economic clout since the 1970s to win over diplomatic allies from Taiwan, leaving the island just 20 worldwide  and none in Asia  compared with more than the 170 countries that recognize Beijing. China asks its allies to regard democratic Taiwan as part of Chinese territory.

A reminder to Singapore

Possibly to pressure Singapore, the Chinese territory of Hong Kong delayed shipments of nine armored vehicles to Singapore for two months last year. The military vehicles had reached Hong Kong on their way home from a training event in Taiwan.

Some news reports in Singapore speculated that the prime minister's otherwise conciliatory visit to Beijing last month would prompt a temporary cancellation of military training in Taiwan. But Taiwan Foreign Minister David Lee said he had learned that the program would go on as usual.

Training normally takes place whenever Singapore sees a need and reaches out to Taiwan.

"According to information from Singapore, everything is normal," Lee told a Taiwan parliament session Monday. But, he added that it was "not convenient for me to elaborate on the specific content" of Taiwan's recent information from the Southeast Asian state.

Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not reply Friday to a request for comment.

The Singaporean prime minister also made no obvious pro-Beijing statements about Taiwan on his visit to China, said Chiu Chui-cheng, spokesman for the Taiwan government's Mainland Affairs Council. Some foreign heads of state use their travels to Beijing to swear support for the host's view that Taiwan belongs under Chinese control.

"According to this council's checks of Singapore's government and Singapore media reports, this time Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong apparently neither said right out nor verbally indicated support for one-China or opposition to Taiwan independence," Chiu said.

China itself may avoid pressing Singapore too hard on Taiwan, Liu said. A thinning of relations with Singapore, if due to China, would anger the Taiwanese, many of whom already resent Chinese pressure on their government's foreign relations.

That resentment helped install Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen last year. She disputes Beijing's dialogue precondition that both sides belong under one flag, but China hopes talks can improve seven decades of stormy relations with Taiwan and further its goal of unifying the two sides.

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No More D-Days: Royal Navy Could Lose Amphibious Assault Ships Due to Cuts

Sputnik News

16:59 06.10.2017(updated 20:05 06.10.2017)

Due to further proposed cuts, the British Royal Navy could lose its amphibious assault ships, and around 1,000 Royal Marines, despite repeated calls from UK officials for increased defense spending.

The UK Royal Navy could be stripped of its ability to attack enemy beaches under cost-cutting plans, with amphibious assault ships HMS Albion and HMS Bulwark taken out of service, mainstream media reports suggest.

The shock proposal comes mere days after Defense Secretary Michael Fallon used his speech at the Conservative Party Conference to call for an increase in defense spending above and beyond the NATO two percent commitment, and for the UK Armed Forces to "modernize" as threats "intensify."

Fallon's call for the government to "properly protect" the UK against "cyber, hybrid warfare, rogue states, terrorist attacks," and "make sure we are spending enough," stands in contrast to the prospect of further cuts to the already depleted Royal Navy.

The loss of the ships would leave the Royal Navy without a dedicated amphibious assault ship. Beach landings in enemy countries and areas have been used in many modern conflicts, including D-Day and the Falklands War  while it has been some time since the Royal Navy carried out such an operation (disregarding an "accidental" invasion of Spain in 2002), both ships have been used for non-assault missions in the modern epoch. For instance, HMS Bulwark has been involved in migrant rescue missions in the Mediterranean since 2016.

The plans would also see 1,000 Royal Marines  the Navy's amphibious troops  cut from the ranks, and "repurposed" elsewhere. Their most likely destination is said to be the UK's two new flagship aircraft carriers, HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales.

Troubled Gestation

Plans for the carriers date back to 1997, although it took until 2007 for a contract for the vessels to be announced, and another year for it to be awarded  and uncertainty surrounded the project for almost a decade afterwards, with serious concerns over spiralling costs and operability abounding.

HMS Queen Elizabeth is now seafaring, and docked in Portsmouth, but the 280-meter-long carrier cannot actually deploy planes as yet  and it is expected it will take another 18-months before it becomes fully operational. It is hoped when battle-ready, the carrier will host a range of F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters, although serious questions hover over whether the HMS Queen Elizabeth will even be able to serve as a launchpad for these jets.

Moreover, the vast vessel must be manned by a crew of 700  and a lack of staff mean redundant Marines may be expected to make up the shortfall.

Lord Paddy Ashdown, ex-Liberal Democrat Leader and himself a former Royal Marine, said if the government was allowed to get away with the proposed cuts, it would "betray the best traditions of our past and damage our ability to defend ourselves in the future."

"It is time for those who value Britain's contribution, both nationally and internationally, to the preservation of peace to make sure this disastrous decision is never allowed to be taken," he added.

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Defense said no decision had been made, and "any discussion of the options" was "pure speculation."

 Sputnik

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UK reiterates support to the fight against Boko Haram

6 October 2017

UK Minister for the Armed Forces Mark Lancaster visited Nigeria this week, marking the strong Defence relationship between the two nations.

During the visit, Minister for the Armed Forces saw first-hand the support the UK is providing to the Nigerian Armed Forces leading the fight against Boko Haram in North East Nigeria.

As well as meeting those delivering expert training to the Nigerian Armed Forces through the resident British Military Advisory and Training Team (BMATT), the Minister met with UK personnel in the Liaison and Support Team (LST) based in the North East of the country. The LST provides non-lethal operational advice and guidance to the Nigerian Armed Forces as they tackle the terror threat of Boko Haram.

Minister for the Armed Forces, Mark Lancaster, said:

"The UK stands united with Nigeria in the international fight against terror. With our world class military expertise, we are helping the Nigerian military develop the skills necessary to tackle the threat of Boko Haram."

"From expert operational guidance and medical mentoring in the North East, to counter explosive device training across the country, the UK is leading the way in its commitment to supporting a safe and stable Nigeria."

Nigeria is a key partner for the UK in West Africa. Throughout the week, the Minister visited various Nigerian defence institutions currently receiving military support from UK training packages, and met with senior Nigerian military officials in Abuja to discuss how the UK and Nigeria can continue to work together to meet the complex challenges facing the country.

At Makurdi and in Kaduna State, the Minister spoke to Nigerian troops receiving training from UK personnel. Courses and training packages delivered to date have covered topics including infantry skills and tactics, response to terrorist attacks, bomb scene management and airfield defence, operational planning and leadership, enabling the Nigerian military to tackle terrorist threats more effectively and better defend the provision of humanitarian relief.

The UK shares a deep and long-standing Defence partnership with Nigeria, and over 40 UK personnel are deployed on an enduring basis in country to coordinate training and advisory support. The UK is not only increasing counter-terrorism cooperation with Nigerian partners, but British military personnel are also working alongside US and German allies in a multinational effort to step up counter improvised explosive device support.

Alongside France and the US, the UK is assisting in regional coordination and intelligence sharing arrangements between Nigeria and its neighbours, with a small number of UK personnel deployed alongside the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) headquarters in N'Djamena, Chad. The UK was one of the first donors to support the MNJTF, with 5 million to help equip the force.

Almost 700 UK military personnel have deployed on a range of short term training tasks in support of the BMATT since early 2015, many from 7 Infantry Brigade (the famous Desert Rats), and the RAF Regiment, which is helping to develop its Nigerian counterpart.

Over 28,500 members of the Nigerian military have received UK training and Defence education in this time. The UK remains committed to strengthening its strategic partnership with Nigeria, and will continue to deliver world class training to help the Nigerian military adapt to meet the modern security challenges facing the country.

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Ukraine's Exploding Munition Depots Give Ammunition To Security Concerns

Tony Wesolowsky October 06, 2017

It was dusk when the chain of explosions began, feeding a towering fireball that would force the evacuation of 30,000 locals and send 1,200 firefighters scrambling to the arms depot situated outside the central Ukrainian town of Kalynivka.

Miraculously, when the dust settled the next day it was revealed that only two people had been injured, and the facility that stored more than 200,000 tons of munitions no longer posed an immediate threat to the community.

But concerns about Ukraine's aging Soviet-era ammunition depots didn't go away after residents returned. Blasts have been reported at four ammo dumps in Ukraine in the past two years, raising fears about the stability of munitions, security, and sabotage as Kyiv continues to wage war with Russia-backed separatists in the east of the country.

More than a week after the dramatic events of September 26-27, Ukraine is still coming to grips with the scale of the Kalynivka explosion.

According to Ukrainian media reports, some 32,000 metric tons of artillery shells worth $800 million were destroyed in the chain of fires and explosions at the site.

By comparison, Ukrainian forces are estimated to have used some 24,000 metric tons of munitions during the fighting in eastern Ukraine.

Eerie Similarities

Kyiv classified the incident as sabotage.

A presidential adviser, Yuriy Biriukov, suggested on Facebook that a drone could have been used to touch off the explosions, noting: "We are at war."

It was eerily similar to a blast and blaze in March at another ammo dump in the town of Balaklia, near the city of Kharkiv.

Oleksandr Turchynov, the secretary of Ukraine's Security and Defense Council, said on September 28 that the two incidents together had dealt the deadliest blow to Ukraine's combat capability since the conflict with separatists in the east erupted in early 2014.

Over that time, Kyiv has blamed "saboteurs" for most of the incidents involving arms depots, suggesting Russia-backed separatists or Moscow itself.

Russia has longed denied playing any role in the conflict in eastern Ukraine, despite strong evidence to the contrary. Kyiv has provided no conclusive proof that any of the mishaps were directly caused by drones or other outside forces.

With skies overhead unguarded, the depots are seen as tantalizing targets for drones.

"On a number of occasions, starting in October 2015, incendiary drone attacks have been identified as taking place against Ukrainian arms depots as a component of Russian linked antimateriel operations," says Dr. Robert J. Bunker of the U.S. Army War College.

Ukraine's domestic intelligence service, the SBU, believes that a drone carrying a Russian thermite hand grenade caused the explosions at the Balaklia arms depot in March.

Some 70,000 metric tons of munitions were destroyed in the incident, with one person killed amid damage estimated at some $1 billion.

Balaklia, reported to be one of the world's largest ammunition dumps, had also been targeted in December 2015, when small drones were reported to have dropped 14 grenades on the site. The fire was put out by Ukrainian soldiers, and one grenade, a Russian ZMG-1, was recovered.

"This type of grenade would easily burn through such a facility roof with the hot molten, still-burning thermite mixture then igniting whatever cases of munitions that it came in contact with, setting off explosions throughout an arms depot," explains Bunker.

Situation 'Far From Ideal'

It wasn't the first suspected drone strike on an ammo dump in Ukraine. In October 2015, an attack on such a site near the town of Svatovo destroyed some 3,500 metric tons of explosives and damaged 1,700 nearby homes.

Biryukov has noted that explosions have not taken place where ammunition was stored in warehouses or bunkers.

Despite the heightened risk, Kyiv has been slow to react to upgrade security at the sites, many still stockpiled with obsolete weapons dating back to the Soviet era.

"The situation in Ukraine is far from ideal. The country had over a million tons of ammunition left over from the Cold War and Ukraine's military still doesn't understand it is not an asset, but a liability," said a senior UN weapons inspector who requested anonymity out of concern that revealing his identity could compromise his work.

Accidents at Ukraine's arms depots predate the current conflict.

Between 2003 and 2011, there were 10 "incidents" in Ukraine that left 22 dead and 111 injured, according to the Small Arms Survey.

Propellant used in projectiles is the main risk, according to the UN arms expert.

"It is inherently unstable. It reacts quickly. What they do to make it safe to store is that they add in stabilizers. But stabilizer over time is used up as it interacts with propellant. Once gone, it is a 'scientific inevitability' the propellant will eventually ignite. That sets off a chain reaction, leading to shells being set off, very rapidly, sending shells out, some as far as 20 kilometers out," the UN expert explains.

Mishaps Common Across Ex-U.S.S.R.

With Ukraine lacking proper storage facilities in some cases, some crates of ammunition are simply left out in the open, ratcheting up the risk of an accident.

"For many years, ammunition has been stored outdoors. This just doesn't make sense," says military expert Mikhail Zhirokhov.

Outside of some fencing, Kalynivka lacks other security systems, a problem common at Ukrainian ammo depots.

"Barbed wire, electrified fencing, camera surveillance, motion cameras, motion sensors; all these systems should be used," said Vadym Kodachigov, the president of the Association of Arms Manufacturers and Military Equipment of Ukraine.

Mishaps at ammunition sites across the former Soviet space are unfortunately all too common, according to the UN expert.

"You see 20 or 30 a year. Eventually it will stop when there are no shells left to react. In that time, how many lives will be lost?"

In June 2009, an arms depot on the outskirts of the Kazakh city of Almaty witnessed a series of late night explosions. One soldier was killed and dozens of civilians had to be evacuated.

In July 2008, an explosion at a military depot in Kogon, Uzbekistan, killed at least three people and injured 21.

In Samara, Russia, in 2013 more than 6,000 people were evacuated after a series of massive explosions at an arms depot. Since then, few similar disasters have been reported in the official Russian media. And that's not necessarily because Russia has cleaned up its arms depots.

"The [Russian] Ministry of Defense has tried to stop any inconvenient reports from getting out," explains Ruslan Leviev from the military think tank Conflict Intelligence Team.https://citeam.org/"Moreover, what has been written off in Russia [obsolete arms] now go to the Donbas [in eastern Ukraine] and Syria."

With material from RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-exploding munitions-security-concerns- russia/28777991.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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Amid Scuffles And Smoke, Bills On East Ukraine Conflict Advance In Parliament

RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service October 06, 2017

KYIV -- A Ukrainian parliamentary debate on legislation addressing the conflict in the country's east was interrupted by scuffles and a smoke grenade that was tossed into the auditorium.

Despite the disruption, lawmakers gave preliminary approval on October 6 to two bills submitted by President Petro Poroshenko, whose government is fighting Russia-backed separatists in a war that has killed more than 10,000 people in eastern Ukraine since April 2014.

One of the bills sets out steps to restore Ukrainian sovereignty over separatist-held parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, which border Russia, and the other is a bid to create "the conditions necessary for peaceful regulation" of the conflict.

Before votes in which the Verkhovna Rada approved the bills in the first of three required readings, opposition lawmakers scuffled with members of Poroshenko's party near the podium.

Minutes after the votes, Yuriy Levchenko of the nationalist Svoboda party threw a smoke grenade -- saying later that he did so "to protest the anticonstitutional move."

The first bill would define territory controlled by the separatists as "temporarily occupied," define Moscow's actions in those areas as "Russian aggression against Ukraine," and give the president the right to use the armed forces to restore control.

It would also give UN Security Council resolutions precedence over the February 2015 deal on a cease-fire and steps toward peace known as the Minsk agreement.

The second bill would prolong, by a year, the legal force of a 2014 law on self-governing structures in the separatist-held areas.

Lawmakers from the People's Front, Batkivshchyna (Fatherland), and Samopomich (Self-Assistance) parties have opposed the second bill, saying it gives the separatists legal status.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine- parliament-donetsk-luhansk-bill-debat e-scuffles/28777537.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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Donbass Status Bill to Enhance Kiev's Position on UN Peacekeepers  Poroshenko

Sputnik News

20:44 06.10.2017(updated 20:45 06.10.2017)

Earlier in the day, Ukraine's parliament adopted on the status of Donbass. President Poroshenko has commented on Kiev's move.

KIEV (Sputnik)  Ukraine's new draft law on reintegration of Donbass, which suggests a possibility of introducing martial law and allows the president to use the country's military in the region, will strengthen Kiev's positions on the release of prisoners and deployment of UN peacekeepers in the region, President Petro Poroshenko said Friday.

"The law will strengthen our position in the fight for the release of hostages and in the issue of possible deployment of UN peacekeepers in Donbass. Russia, as an aggressor country, will have no right to participate in this mission, which should be deployed throughout the occupied territory, including the temporarily uncontrolled section of the Ukrainian-Russian border," the statement read.

Earlier in the day, Ukraine's parliament adopted the bill in first reading. Upon an initiative of the majority of the parliamentary parties the draft law was adopted with amendments excluding any mention of the Minsk peace accords.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, as well as Russian envoy to the Contact Group on Ukraine Boris Gryzlov said that the bill contradicted the Minsk agreements and blocked the peace process. Denis Pushilin, the plenipotentiary envoy of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) at the talks in Minsk, also condemned the draft law as blocking the negotiations process.

In early September, Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed his support for the idea of sending peacekeepers to Ukraine in order to ensure the security of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) observer mission in Donbass. Putin also said that the issue should be decided in direct contact with representatives of the self-proclaimed Lugansk and Donetsk republics. However, Moscow insists that the peacekeepers should be deployed solely along the contact line.

In 2014, within the framework of the Minsk peace accords, Ukraine pledged to provide certain areas of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions with a special status. The law was adopted, but not enforced. According to the law, certain areas of Donbass currently uncontrolled by Kiev would only get special status after local elections held under Ukrainian legislation and under control of international observers. Such elections were not held, therefore the special status did not come into effect. The law, adopted for a three-year period, was due to expire on October 18.

Kiev has been reluctant to implement a number of Minsk deal provisions. Russia has repeatedly said that it is not a party to Ukraine's internal conflict and called on the West to influence Kiev in order to ensure Minsk agreements' implementation.

 Sputnik

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US Envoy for Ukraine Says Minsk Deal Not Working Efficiently

Sputnik News

17:47 06.10.2017

The US special representative for Ukraine has commented on the extension of a law on the special status of Donbass, as well as the implementation of the Minsk agreements.

MOSCOW, October 6 (Sputnik)  US Special Representative for Ukraine Negotiations Kurt Volker believes that the Minsk agreements on the de-escalation of the Ukrainian crisis are not efficient.

Volker told Gazeta.Ru news outlet that the Minsk accords had failed to put an end to armed clashes in Donbass, where people still die every week. The parties have not made any sufficient progress in enforcing the ceasefire and making concrete political steps, including holding elections in the region, Washington's representative said.

Volker also said in the interview that Washington was hopeful that US-Russia consultations would help overcome the stall, implement the Minsk accords and halt the conflict, the media reported.

He also praised Ukraine extending the law on special status of Donbass, saying that it shows that Kiev is taking steps to achieve peace in the region, Volker said as the Ukrainian parliament approved extension of the region's special status by a year, proposed by President Petro Poroshenko. The parliament also approved the bill on reintegration of the region.

In 2014, within the framework of the Minsk peace accords, Ukraine pledged to provide certain areas of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions with a special status. The law was adopted, but not enforced. According to the law, certain areas of Donbass currently uncontrolled by Kiev would only get special status after local elections held under Ukrainian legislation and under control of international observers. Such elections were not held, therefore the special status did not come into effect. The law, adopted for a three-year period, was due to expire on October 18.

On Thursday, Volker confirmed that he would meet Russian presidential aide Vladislav Surkov in Belgrade on October 7 to discuss "how to catalyze Minsk implementation and restore Ukraine's territorial integrity."

Kiev launched a military operation in the east of Ukraine in 2014, after local residents refused to recognize the new government that came to power in what they considered a coup. Despite the 2015 ceasefire deal signed between the conflicting parties in Minsk and brokered by the leaders of Russia, France, Germany and Ukraine, the so-called Normandy Format, the situation in the region remains tense.

Kiev has been reluctant to implement a number of Minsk deal provisions. Russia has repeatedly said that it is not a party to Ukraine's internal conflict and called on the West to influence Kiev in order to ensure Minsk agreements' implementation.

 Sputnik

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Campaign Against Nuclear Weapons Wins Nobel Peace Prize

RFE/RL October 06, 2017

The 2017 Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN).

The Norwegian Nobel Committee made the announcement in Oslo on October 6.

ICAN won for "its work to draw attention to the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons, and for its groundbreaking efforts to achieve a treaty-based prohibition of such weapons" committee president Berit Reiss-Andersen said.

The Geneva-based ICAN, a global civil-society coalition, was launched in 2007 and numbers a total of 468 partner organizations in 101 countries.

"It is a great honor to have been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for 2017 in recognition of our role in achieving the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons," ICAN said in a statement on October 6.

ICAN has been relentlessly sounding the alarm over the dangers posed by nuclear weapons and campaigning for a global ban. It won a significant but mainly symbolic victory in July when the United Nations adopted the treaty -- the first legally-binding international accord to prohibit nuclear weapons.

The treaty, which has been signed by 53 states, will come into force if it ratified by at least 50 UN members. But its effects are likely to be severely limited because none of the existing nuclear powers -- including the United States and Russia -- currently plans to sign it.

The award comes amid global tensions over North Korea's nuclear program and missile tests and the exchange of threatening rhetoric between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump, who has not ruled out the use of force to ensure security in the face of actions by Pyongyang that have violated UN resolutions.

Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev praised the Nobel committee for what he called "the right decision" and said: "We must constantly remind people what nuclear weapons are and work toward their liquidation."

"A world without nuclear weapons -- there can be no other goal," Gorbachev, who along with U.S. President Ronald Reagan signed the first U.S.-Soviet pact to reduce the Cold War foes' nuclear arsenals, in 1987, said in a statement.

Some observers had predicted the prize could go to key figures behind the 2015 deal between Iran and global powers in which Tehran agreed to curtail its nuclear activities in exchange for relief from international sanctions.

ICAN will receive the prize and a check for 9 million Swedish kronor ($1.1 million), at a ceremony in Oslo on December 10.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/nobel-peace-prize-campaign -ban-nuclear-weapons/28777359.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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The under-display fingerprint reader may end up being replaced before it even becomes mainstream, at least in high-end smartphones, if a report by analyst Ming-Chi Kuo is right on the money. According to the paper, Android phone makers are looking into 3D mapping solutions for facial recognition in the wake of the iPhone X announcement with similar tech.

The inquiries by smartphone manufacturers into 3D sensing have more than tripled since the announcement of the iPhone X, the analyst reports. In addition to the security applications, these technologies allow for augmented reality use, as Apple has demonstrated with the Animoji, and are therefore seen as a novelty rather than an incremental upgrade that under-display readers appear to the user.

FaceID on the iPhone X

Under-glass fingerprint recognition has been a few years in the making, yet it's still not ready for prime time apparently, resulting in last-minute solutions like the less than ideal placement of conventional sensors that we've seen on Samsung's latest Galaxy S8 and Note8 smartphones. Apple itself was rumored to be working on an optical under-display sensor for the iPhone X before shifting to 3D sensing.

And while Samsung may persevere with optical fingerprint recognition as it's better suited to OLED displays - a market the company dominates, other makers may be switching to 3D mapping systems altogether to avoid component shortages.

Meanwhile, Kuo reports, Samsung has settled on a compact image sensor (CIS) design for the Galaxy Note9's under-glass fingerprint sensor (so it is coming after all, probably) as opposed to a "CIS+independent light emitter" setup. That's been made possible due to the fact that Samsung's flexible OLED panels can be customized to fit CIS-only designs, whereas rigid OLEDs by competing manufacturers out of China require the auxiliary light source.

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Within the last couple of weeks or so, weve heard about rekindled talks between T-Mobile and Sprint regarding a possible merger. Today, a new report from Bloomberg claims people familiar with the matter say that the merger is likely to be publicly announced at the end of the month along with the quarterly financial reports.

Both sides are performing the final due diligence (steps required for the legality of a transaction) to determine Sprints valuation in the merger. According to these people, setting an exchange ratio is one of the last steps needed before moving forward.

Both companies are also discussing terms surrounding non-cash items, executive appointments, and the location for the headquarters of the supposedly merged company.

T-Mobile CEO: John Legere

If the two carriers were to merge, that means the number of major wireless carriers in the US would shrink from four to three. This is where antitrust regulators would need to make a decision based on the deal and its terms. The merger is said to not have a breakup fee, which lowers the risk of rejection from antitrust regulators.

According to the report, the two companies appear to be set on merging. In fact, the deal is said to be announced at the end of the month, at the same time the companies would release their earnings to investors. Additionally, if a deal cant be met or due diligence takes longer than expected, the deal could be put on hold.

Source | Via
Comings & goings: Health bar, candle shop, fishing charter website

A health bar and candle-making shop will cut their ribbons in the next few weeks while a charter fishing company launches its website.
Burley Presbyterians hold yard sale

BURLEY  The First Presbyterian Church will sponsor its Deacons Fall Yard Sale from 10 a.m.- 6 p.m. Friday, Oct. 13, and from 9 a.m.- 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 14, at 2100 Burton Ave., Burley. More information: call Barbara Moore at 208-678-5131 or email burleypc@pmt.org.

Unitarian Universalists host speaker

We hear terms like white privilege, inclusion, and unconscious bias a lot these days in the ongoing struggle for racial equality in this country. What do you think and feel when you hear those terms?

It is a fact that racial oppression exists in this country, whatever our reaction to the terms or to the endless debates about anthem protests, Charlottesville or the acquittal of yet another white policeman in the killing of a black man in St. Louis. White privilege is a fact. Our own awareness of what that privilege is, and what we can do about it, is another matter altogether. Awareness may come slowly or in stages, and when it does we may want to distance ourselves from it, deny it or explain it away.

How can we confront our own denial and responsibility? How can we turn our awareness into constructive action rather than let it degenerate into white guilt or white fragility?

These are hard questions for hard times. You may be thinking that we dont have that problem here. Its true that we dont have a large black population here in Southern Idaho. But our communities include a large number of Hispanic brothers and sisters and many refugees and immigrants from all over the world. For those of us who are white, our awareness of white privilege and how it affects everyone in our community is an important first step.

We will have a guest speaker this week, Candise Ramsey, from the Southern Idaho Humanist Alliance. Please join us at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday at the Vendor Blender and Event Center, 588 Addison Ave. W., Twin Falls, near the old hospital.

As Unitarian Universalists, we have a proud tradition of responding to the imperatives of love and justice, to work with those of us who are marginalized and oppressed in society and the world. Unitarian Universalists covenant to affirm and promote: the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equality and compassion in human relations; and acceptance of one another.

Newcomers of all religious paths, or none at all, are always welcome. We are handicapped-accessible. Park in the rear of the building. Child care is available.

More information: Ken Whiting at 208-734-9161.

Magic Valley Inter-Religious Dialogue holds discussion

Who is my neighbor? The Magic Valley Inter-religious Dialogue will discuss what religious traditions teach about relating to people of other faiths. The panel will meet at 6:30-8 p.m. on Oct. 23 at First United Methodist Church, 360 Shoshone St. E., Twin Falls. Light refreshments will follow. The event is free for all ages.

The Magic Valley Inter-religious Dialogue, founded in 2016, is comprised of various local religious leaders. Its purpose is to learn about others, to build friendly relationships others and to learn to better understand different religions with integrity. More information: Brian Johns at bjohns90@yahoo.com.

Burley Methodists hold dinner and bazaar

BURLEY  The United Methodist Church will hold its Harvest Dinner and Bazaar from 4:30 p.m.-7 p.m. on Oct. 29 at the church, 450 E. 27th St., Burley. A pork loin dinner will be served at 5 p.m., with desserts galore. Sales of baked goods, white elephants and hand crafts will be ongoing. Tickets are: adults $7, children 4-12 $4, and children 3 and under eat free. More information: Linda Sever at burleyumc@yahoo.com.
Page Content



Montreal, 6 October 2017  The ICAO Council today expressed its strong condemnation of the continued launching of ballistic missiles by the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK) over or near international air routes, which seriously threatens the safety of international civil aviation.

The ICAO Council urged the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK) to comply with the provisions of the Convention on International Civil Aviation, its Annexes, procedures, and relevant ICAO Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) in order to prevent the recurrence of such potentially hazardous activities.

The Council considered the item during the first meeting of its 212th Session today, at ICAOs Headquarters in Montreal.

It was noted that the DPRK missile launches had occurred over international air routes and without prior notice being given, causing significant concerns to the safety of international civil aviation in the region. It was further noted that in response to these incidents, the President of the Council had sent several letters to the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea to urge the country to comply with established international provisions.

As an ICAO Member State, the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK) is expected to notify adjacent countries of any activity or incident arising from its territory which may pose risks to nearby civil aviation routes or operations. This would include matters such as volcanic ash clouds from local eruptions, or aerial testing which may affect civil aviation.

Todays Council Decision drew reference to ICAO Assembly Resolution A32-6, Safety of Navigation, adopted in 1998.

Resources for Editors



About ICAO



A specialized agency of the United Nations, ICAO was created in 1944 to promote the safe and orderly development of international civil aviation throughout the world. It sets standards and regulations necessary for aviation safety, security, efficiency, capacity and environmental protection, amongst many other priorities. The Organization serves as the forum for cooperation in all fields of civil aviation among its 191 Member States.

The ICAO Council

ICAOs Strategic Objective for Aviation Safety



Contacts



Anthony Philbin

Chief, Communications

aphilbin@icao.int

+1 514-954-8220

+1 438-402-8886 (mobile)

Twitter: @ICAO



William Raillant-Clark

Communications Officer

wraillantclark@icao.int

+1 514-954-6705

+1 514-409-0705 (mobile)

Twitter: @wraillantclark

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/raillantclark/






WASHINGTON, D.C.  The Bureau of Land Management is offering the public an opportunity to comment about exploring potential amendments, improving sage grouse conservation and strengthening collaboration between states and the federal government.

The greater sage grouse land-use plans, adopted in 2014 and 2015, provide guidance about public-lands management in California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming.

The BLM is awaiting publication of a notice of intent in the Federal Register to solicit public comments on greater sage-grouse land-use issues that could warrant amendments and whether that planning effort should occur through state-by-state amendment processes. They are particularly interested in hearing from the many governors whose states put time and hard work into developing the existing plans. The notice can be read on the BLM website: https://on.doi.gov/2fNuFPt. The public can comment for 45 days after the Federal Register publication date, using this webpage: http://bit.ly/GRSGplanning. The BLM will announce any public meetings through local media.

The BLM is committed to cooperating with its partners at all levels of government  including states  as well as tribal leaders, industry and conservation groups, ranchers and other stakeholders throughout the amendment process, BLM acting director Mike Nedd said in a statement. The federal agencies and states involved remain committed to an approach that balances durable, long-term conservation of the greater sage-grouse without adversely affecting economic development in local communities across the west.
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California just reduced the penalty for knowingly exposing someone to HIV from a felony to a misdemeanour.

Governor Jerry Brown signed the bill that also covers blood donors who did not disclose to a blood bank that they are HIV-positive.

HIV has been the only communicable disease for which exposure is a felony under California law, the LA Times reported.

Today California took a major step toward treating HIV as a public health issue, instead of treating people living with HIV as criminals, on of the co-sponsors of the bill Democratic State Senator Scott Wiener said.

Mr Wiener said the law finally treats HIV like any other infectious disease.

The current law requires an element of intent to be proved in order for a felony charge.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. 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Mr Wiener said it discourages people from even getting tested for HIV so that the element of intent is not present and they do not risk a felony charge.

He said this new law will actually end new HIV infections because instead of threatening people with jail time, the state is providing an opportunity to get tested and access necessary medical care.

Other supporters also said the new bill reduces what they felt was a disproportionate target on women working in prostitution as well.

Opponents like Republican State Senator Joel Anderson said its absolutely crazy to me that we should go light on this.

Mr Anderson argued that a felony charge is appropriate in cases where a person intentionally alters another persons entire lifestyle and puts them on a rigorous lifelong regimen of medication.

Approximately 137,000 Californians are HIV positive with a total of about 1.1 million people in the US living with the disease.
New Delhi, Oct 7 (IBNS): A relief package for exporters was approved by the GST Council at its meeting in New Delhi on Friday.

Informed of problems being faced by exporters post-GST, which led to a decline in export performance and export competitiveness, the Council had last month set up a high power Committee on Exports under Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia to recommend suitable strategies for helping this sector.

This Committee had five senior Government functionaries from the Centre and an equal number from the States as members.

After wide ranging discussions with major Export Promotion Councils, including FIEO, AEPC, GJEPC, EEPC, CLE, CHEMEXIL, PARMAEXCIL and Handicrafts EPC etc. and interacting with all stakeholders the Committee presented its recommendations to the Council on Friday.

The Council identified the major difficulties constraining the export sector are on account of delays in refunds of IGST and input taxes on exports and working capital blockage as exporters have to upfront pay GST on inputs and capital goods for export production or for procuring goods for export.

Another difficulty was that the duty credit scrips such as MEIS was losing value due to its reduced usability as it

could no longer be used to pay IGST / GST.

The Council, according to the release, was unanimous that it is in the national interest to take all possible measures to support the exporting community, which earns valuable foreign exchange and provides significant employment especially in the small and medium sector.

Accordingly, the Council approved the following package of relief and incentives for exporters with immediate effect:

a. Within the next 4 days i.e. by 10.10.2017 the held-up refund of IGST paid on goods exported outside India in July would begin to be paid. The August backlog would get cleared from 18.10.2017 and refunds for subsequent months would be handled expeditiously. Other refunds of IGST paid on supplies to SEZs and of inputs taxes on exports under Bond/LUT, shall be processed from 18.10.2017 onwards. For this, the Council agreed to suitably empower Central and State GST officers so that exporters get refunds from one authority only. Related matters of settlement of funds are being resolved.

b. To prevent cash blockage of exporters due to upfront payment of GST on inputs etc. the Council approved two proposals, one for immediate relief and the other for providing long term support to exporters. Immediate relief is being given by extending the Advance Authorization (AA) / Export Promotion Capital Goods (EPCG) / 100% EOU schemes to sourcing inputs etc. from abroad as well as domestic suppliers. Holders of AA / EPCG and EOUs would not have to pay IGST, Cess etc. on imports. Also, domestic supplies to holders of AA / EPCG and EOUs would be treated as deemed exports under Section 147 of CGST/SGST Act and refund of tax paid on such supplies given to the supplier.

c. Merchant exporters will now have to pay nominal GST of 0.1% for procuring goods from domestic suppliers for export. The details would be released soon.

d. The permanent solution to cash blockage is that of "e-Wallet" which would be credited with a notional amount as if it is an advance refund. This credit would be used to pay IGST, GST etc. The details of this facility would be worked out soon. The Council desired that the e-Wallet solution should be made operational w.e.f. 1st April 2018.

e. Exporters have been exempted from furnishing Bond and Bank Guarantee when they clear goods for export.

f. Specified banks and Public Sector Units (PSUs) are being allowed to import Gold without payment of IGST. This can then be supplied to exporters as per a scheme similar to Advance Authorization.

g. To restore the lost incentive on sale of duty credit scrips, the GST on salepurchase of these scrips is being reduced from 5% to 0%.

h. GST on bunker fuel is being reduced to 5% for both coastal vessels and foreign going vessels. This will boost coastal shipping. It will also improve India's competitiveness.

The Council is confident that these measures would provide immediate relief to the export sector and enhance export competitiveness of India.

The Council also decided to continue to monitor the situation closely so that going forward all required

support continues to be extended to this important sector, according to the release.



Image: Arun Jaitley/Twitter
Muzaffarnagar, Oct 7 (IBNS): A 25-year-old woman was gang-raped by four men at gunpoint in front of her husband and child on Friday in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar district, reports said.

According to the victim, the accused dragged her from the bike and assaulted her on a nearby sugarcane field.

She added that they also threatened the couple against lodging a complaint.

The victim told ANI news agency, "Four men dragged me to a sugar cane farm and raped me. They constantly threatened to kill my child, also tied and beat up my husband."

An FIR has been registered by the police, however, no arrest has been made so far.

Image: Wallpaper


Chotila (Gujarat), Oct 7 (IBNS): Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on a two-day visit to Gujarat, arrived in Chotila, Surendranagar district, from Dwarka, on Saturday afternoon, to lay the foundation stone for a greenfield airport for Rajkot and other highway projects, according to media reports.

Addressing a public gathering in Chotila, the PM said, "Who imagined in this district that an airport will come? Is this not development? Is this kind of development not needed...such development works will empower citizens."

The PM also said, "Aviation cannot be about rich people. We have made aviation affordable and within reach of the lesser privileged."

Emphasising that the definition of development is changing, the PM said, "Earlier, a hand pump would be put and a leader would use that for multiple elections. Things have changed now. We are bringing waters of the Narmada here, for the benefit of citizens."

He said, "If there is one district that stands to gain maximum from waters of the Narmada it is Surendranagar."

Dedicating a fully automatic milk processing & packaging plant to the nation, the PM said, "Sursagar Dairy will be 'Sukh Sagar' for people of this region. How can we forget how previous governments in Gujarat did not allow dairy sector to grow in Saurashtra. We had the opportunity to change that and promote dairies."

The PM said, "The roads here [in Surendranagar district] were accident prone. It was Keshubhai Patel who worked towards making better roads and making them safer."

While unveiling a drinking water distribution pipeline, PM Modi urged the people to pay attention to water conservation. "Water has always been important for Gujarat. Now that water is widely being made available, let us use it responsibly and conserve every drop of water." the Prime Minister said.

The Prime Minister will be heading to Gandhinagar from Chotila.



Image: BJP/Twitter
Chennai, Oct 7 (IBNS): The Tamil Nadu government has allowed a twenty five per cent hike in movie tickets, according to media reports on Saturday.

However, film lovers in the state missed their date with 11 movies on Friday whose release were deferred as the Tamil Nadu Film Producers Council launched an indefinite strike to protest double taxation  10% local body tax imposed by the state government in addition to GST, reports said.

The strike was spearheaded by movie producers, distributors and exhibitors.

The media quoting the TN Film Producers Council, said that over 1,000 movie halls across Tamil Nadu remained shut on Friday as part of the agitation.



Image: IndiaGlitz/Twitter
Lucknow, Oct 7 (IBNS): Six people, including four children, drowned in the Saryu river in Bahraich district of Uttar Pradesh on Saturday, according to media reports.

The media quoting the District Magistrate said that three people swam to safety.

Bodies of all the six who had drowned were tracked down and sent for post mortem, reports said.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister expressed his grief over the incident.
Chandigarh, Oct 7 (IBNS): The Punjab and Haryana court has granted the Pinto family, who run Ryan International School, an anticipatory bail till December 5, with regard to the Pradyuman Thakur death case, media reports said.

It was at this school that Pradyuman Thakur, a class two student, was found in a pool of blood inside the washroom of the school with his throat slit open,

The High Court, however, has asked Ryan International School's founder and Chairman Augustine Pinto, Managing Director Grace and CEO Ryan Pinto not to leave the country and join the probe in the murder case.

The Bombay High Court had earlier rejected the anticipatory bail applications of Ryan International School's founder and Chairman Augustine Pinto, Managing Director Grace and CEO Ryan Pinto, reports said.

Augustine Pinto, his wife Grace and son Ryan had moved the top court seeking anticipatory bail after the school became the centre of a storm following the gruesome murder of a seven-year-old student, Pradyuman Thakur, inside the institute premises in Gurugram.

Ryan Pinto, the school groups CEO claimed that the school was a victim of unfortunate circumstances

A conductor of the school's bus was arrested in connection with the incident. He allegedly confessed to have committed the crime after failing to sexually abuse the child.

As a massive outrage prevailed over the shocking incident, police have arrested two top officials of the school while the Supreme Court has accepted a petition from the victim's father for a CBI probe into it.

Meanwhile, the CBSE has issued a circular with guidelines for schools, regarding safety of children in schools premises.
TWIN FALLS  Police are investigating a report of a man suspected of impersonating a police officer.

A woman reported that a uniformed man approached her Monday in the parking lot of a local business. The man demanded she exit her vehicle.

According to a statement from the city, the suspect is described as a white male adult with a dark mole on his face. He was wearing a police-style uniform with a flag on the sleeve and a star-shaped badge on the right side of his shirt.

Police are asking anyone with information about the incident or the suspect to call the emergency dispatch center at 208-735-4357.

Police agencies in the Magic Valley have distinct uniforms with arm patches and badges. Most have a name tag or a name sewn on the front of the uniform. Officers of the Twin Falls Police Department are required to identify themselves as police officers and provide their names.

The city advises people to trust their instincts: If someone in uniform doesnt seem to be a real police officer contact the dispatch center. You may also request that a marked patrol unit respond.
Kolkata, Oct 7 (IBNS): In a counter-attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), West Bengal's ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Saturday held protest rallies and demonstrations at several important locations in Kolkata, disrupting city's traffic movement for hours.

A day after BJP's West Bengal President Dilip Ghosh and his companions were assaulted in Darjeeling hills, Centre's ruling party's youth unit, BJP Yuva Morcha, on Friday staged demonstrations at three locations in Kolkata, alleging that TMC planned the attack on Dilip Ghosh.

BJP activists burned the effigy of state Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

Meanwhile, claiming that BJP is trying to spoil the 'recently-restored' peace in Darjeeling, MLAs and cabinet ministers of West Bengal took to the streets across Kolkata and several other places in the state and held demonstration from 1 pm to 2 pm.

TMC leaders also burned the effigy of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi here.

Traffic movement in Kolkata was hit due to the hour-long protests.

Earlier on Thursday afternoon, BJP Bengal President Dilip Ghosh and other leader-activists of the party, who were accompanying him, were allegedly beaten up by the followers of expelled Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) leader Binoy Tamang at Chowk Bazar area in central Darjeeling.

BJP leaders claimed that the sudden attack was pre-planned and it was blueprinted at TMC headquarters in Kolkata.

TMC leaders, however, denied all allegations against them and made BJP leaders responsible for the incident.

Local police officials said that at least two persons have been arrested so far in connection with the case.

(Reporting by Deepayan Sinha)
Patna, Oct 7 (TheBiharPost/IBNS): Amid raging debate over dynastic politics in India, Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) chief Ram Vilas Paswan , on Saturday, declared his son will succeed him as the party leader.

Paswans son Chirag Paswan is currently an MP from Bihars Jamui seat and also LJP parliamentary board chairman.

My son will lead the LJP after me. He has the capability to lead the party, Paswan said addressing the two-day convention of his party, which concluded on Saturday. The convention was held at Rajgir in Nalanda, Bihar.

Paswan suggested his son to carve out a niche for himself saying just because he is my son is not enough to survive in politics.

Right now, the LJP has six MPs in the Lok Sabha. Of the total six, three are members of the same Paswan family.

In a setback to Paswan, three of his party MPs skipped the LJP convention giving rise to various speculations.

The MPs who were conspicuous by their absence included Veena Devi, wife of Surajbhan Singh, Rama Kishore Singh and Chaudhary Mehboob Ali Kaisar.

thebiharpost.com/IBNS
London, Oct 7 (IBNS): A number of people have been injured in a crash with a car near the Natural History Museum a little while ago, media reports said.

One person has been detained so far, according to BBC.

The police is investigating the incident.



Image: Creative Commons
New York, Oct 7(Just Earth News): Congratulating the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) on being awarded on Friday the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize, top United Nations officials said that the recognition is a reminder of the need to grim threats posed by such weapons to humanity.

This Prize recognizes the determined efforts of civil society to highlight the unconscionable humanitarian and environmental consequences that would result if [nuclear weapons] were ever used again, read a statement attributable to the spokesperson of the Secretary-General.

At a time when nuclear anxieties are at the highest level since the Cold War, the Secretary-General calls on all countries to show vision and greater commitment for a world free of nuclear weapons, it added, noting the urgency to end the threat of a nuclear nightmare.

Concerted efforts by ICAN as well as many other civil society organizations contributed to the adoption of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, in July this year, the first multilateral legally binding instrument for nuclear disarmament in decades.

Also today, the UN's top disarmament official offered her own congratulations to ICAN and underscored that achievement of a nuclear-weapon-free world continues to be an urgent priority for the UN.

Expressing hope that the Nobel Peace Prize would give new momentum to the agenda, Izumi Nakamitsu, the UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs called for serious efforts by the international community to pursue disarmament as a means for preventing conflict, reducing international tensions and achieving sustainable peace and security.

More than 15,000 nuclear weapons remain in global stockpiles, with many on high levels of alert. Furthermore, tensions have flared over the nuclear weapons development programme of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea since past few months.

Nuclear disarmament has been an objective for the UN since the very first General Assembly resolution in 1946, which established the goal of ridding the world of nuclear weapons and all weapons of mass destruction.

UN Photo/Kim Haughton

Source: www.justearthnews.com
New York, Oct 7(Just Earth News): The Security Council on Fridayexpressed a deep concern over the persistent delays in fully implementing key provisions of the peace agreement between the Government of Mali and the Plateforme and Coordination armed groups, urging the parties to adopt an agreed-upon timeline for implementation.





In a press statement, the Council welcomed the signing on 20 September 2017 by the Plateforme and Coordination armed groups of a series of commitments, including an immediate, comprehensive and definitive cessation of hostilities, calling on the armed groups to strictly adhere to this commitment.



The 15-member body underscored the pressing need to deliver tangible and visible peace dividends to the population in the countrys north and elsewhere to keep the momentum of the Agreement on Peace and Reconciliation in Mali, signed in 2015.



The Council expressed its intention to dedicate a specific focus of its upcoming visit to the Sahel region to the implementation of the Agreement.



The Council urged all parties to comply with their obligations under applicable international law and to bring an end to all human rights violations and abuses, and encouraged the Government to continue its efforts to combat impunity, with the support of the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA).



Expressing a concern about the security situation in Mali and the threat posed by terrorism and transnational organized crime in the Sahel region, the Council underlined that the efforts by the force of the Group of Five for the Sahel States to counter the activities of terrorist groups and other organized criminal groups will contribute to create a more secure environment in the region and help MINUSMA fulfil its mandate to stabilize the country.



Photo: MINUSMA/Harandane Dicko







Source: www.justearthnews.com








London, Oct 7 (IBNS): A number of pedestrians were injured in a crash with a car near Natural History Museum in one of the busiest streets of London on Saturday, media reports said.

The area where the crash took place has been cordoned off by Metropolitan police.

One person has been detained by the police.

Immediately after the incident, ambulances rushed in to the spot to take the injured people to hospital.

Metropolitan police, however, could not provide the actual number of casualties.

The police is investigating the incident, though not considering any terror link.
New York, Oct 7(Just Earth News): United Nations agencies are seeking more funds to cope with the mass exodus of people fleeing violence in Myanmar into Bangladesh, which the top UN aid official described the world's fastest growing refugee crisis.

UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock told reporters in Geneva on Fridaythat the more than half a million people who have arrived in Bangladesh from Myanmar in recent weeks need a greater level of help from the international community.

He called the situation one of the most heart-rending, recalling his encounter with an 11-year-old boy who was cradling his critically ill baby sister during his visit earlier this week to the host communities in Bangladesh.

His mother, the boy and his four siblings had set off on a journey lasting, I think nine days, fleeing violence and the burning of their village. The mother died on the journey. This little boy is now in sole charge of his four siblings, including his two-and-a-half-year-old severely acutely malnourished sister, he said.

Lowcock, who is also the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, said some $434 million will be required in the coming months, calling for donor support ahead of the pledging conference in Geneva later this month.

For its part, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is seeking $83.7 million in additional funds for the next six months to help the Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.

Latest estimates show that some 515,000 refugees have fled from Myanmar since 25 August, including people continuing to arrive this week by the thousands.

The emergency assistance is focused on refugee protection, shelter, water and sanitation and bolstering the capacity of the local host communities across south-east Bangladesh. Relieving dramatic overcrowding in the two existing camps  Kutupalong and Nyapara  which are now twice their population prior to the latest crisis is also a priority.

In light of the scope and speed of displacement, UNHCR has declared a 'Level 3 Emergency'  the top level  for this crisis.

We have so far organized five airlifts, flying in some 500 metric tonnes of aid. More flights are being planned. We have also doubled the number of our staff in Bangladesh to almost 100, UNHCR spokesperson Andrej Mahecic told reporters in Geneva.

The World Health Organization (WHO) is also appealing for $10.2 million to support critical health interventions in the Bangladesh's Cox's Bazar area.

The health needs of this immensely vulnerable population are massive, and growing, said Roderico Ofrin, Regional Emergency Director for WHO South-East Asia in a press release.

Though WHO has provided critical support to health services delivery  including by supporting mobile medical teams and mobilizing life-saving medicines  the need to scale-up operations is clear.

WHO is currently working with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and partner agencies to plan and implement an oral cholera vaccination campaign that will provide life-saving protection against the disease to 900,000 people.

Since the first signs of the rapid influx emerged, WHO has established joint coordination of the health sector to best utilize WHO's technical and operational capacity, and helped vaccinate 135,000 children against measles and rubella and 72,000 against polio. WHO also supported the provision of Vitamin A to 72,000 children.

To increase access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene, WHO has deployed an environmental health team to Cox's Bazar to assess and monitor drinking water and initiate cholera prevention measures. As part of this, WHO has provided supplies to treat 20,000 cases of diarrheal disease.

According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), an estimated 2,000 Rohingya refugees a day are still arriving in Cox's Bazar. Observers believe that as many as 100,000 more people may be waiting to cross into Cox's Bazar from North Rakhine's Buthidaung Township in Myanmar.

The UN migration agency this week issued an appeal for $120 million through March to provide desperately needed aid to the refugees who have flooded into Cox's Bazar.

The IOM appeal is part of a broader humanitarian response plan seeking $434 million to help 1.2 million people, including the Bangladeshi host community.

Photo: OCHA/Anthony Burke

Source: www.justearthnews.com
Ottawa, Oct 6 (IBNS): Ethnicity is expected not to become a big hurdle for recently elected leader of New Democratic Party (NDP), Jagmeet Singh, a Sikh person, to win votes in Canada's federal election in 2019, according to a poll, media reports said.

As per the poll conduced by the Angus Reid Institute, majority of the people, who were asked said they have no problem in voting a person with a turban on his head.

The survey was conducted on 1,477 people, out of those, 69% of them are completely open to voting a Sikh man, though 50% of the respondents also said that their friends and relatives might not choose such a candidate.

The survey was conducted for three days, between October 2 and 5, after Singh became the leader of the NDP.

Shachi Kurl, executive director of the Angus Reid Institute, told the Star: "It is kind of a good-news-bad-news story for the NDP.

The poll suggested that Quebec mostly dislikes voting the newly elected NDP leader.

The 47% of the respondents in Quebec said they won't vote Singh as compared to 32% in Alberta, 23% in British Columbia and 24% in Ontario.

Singh (38) will be the first ethnic minority to become the leader of the NDP in the upcoming federal election of Canada.

He has been chosen as the leader of the NDP by a margin of 53.6% in a ballot-voting.

Singh was quoted by BBC as saying: "This race has renewed excitement in our party."

He has termed the win as "incredibly profound honour".

The NDP, a left-centric party, secured 44 out of 338 seats in the last federal election in 2015. The NDP came third in the previous election.

Singh, who was a criminal defence lawyer, will take on prime minister Justin Trudeau in the federal election 2019.

Jagmeet Singh aka Jimmy Dhaliwal was born in 1979 in Scarborough, Ontario to Harmeet Kaur and Jagtaran Singh, who had migrated to Canada from Punjab, India.

Apart from being the first ever to become a leader of any party in Canada, Jagmeet was also the first to become provincial legislator in Ontario as a Sikh.

(Reporting by Souvik Ghosh)
Ottawa, Oct 6 (IBNS): A superior court in Canada has ruled that immigration detainee Ebrahim Toure's confinement in a maximum security jail without being charged is a violation of human rights and freedoms, media reports said.

Toure has been a detainee for last four and a half years.

The court, apart from terming the case a violation of rights and freedoms, on Thursday ruled that Toure should be transferred from maximum security jail to minimum security jail.

However, the court has denied the release of Toure as it said the government still has the right to detain him.

Justice Alfred O'Marra said it is an injustice to hold Toure in such a maximum-security jail as he has no criminal records in the past.

OMarra was quoted by the Star: "His only conviction is for a non-violent property offence from 12 years ago in Georgia."

. . . Mr. Toure has spent more time in a maximum-security facility than someone convicted of a serious crime," O'Marra added.

Toure, 46, however is willing to be deported to the Gambia, from where he has come, but said he does not have the identity documents and also the Gambia authorities refused to help him by providing him any.

Immigration officials, however, accused him of hiding some identities. They believe Toure's original name is Bakaba Tourey and also said that until December 2015, he insisted to be from Guinea.

But O'Marra said Toure refused to provide DNA sample.

Jared Will, Toures lawyer, was quoted by the Star: "What do we do about the fact that his rights were violated over the four-and-a-half-year period that he was held (in maximum-security jail)? Thats the question the (Canada Border Services Agency) should be asking itself with respect to all the other detainees that theyre continuing to hold there.

(Reporting by Suman Das)
Toronto, Oct 7 (IBNS): The Oakville Diwali Gala, which was organised in the Halton region of Ontario, has successfully met the noble cause of securing state of the art equipment to assist the Oakville Hospital Foundation (OHF).

The generous contributions of arts and accessories, that ranged from traditional art displays, be it painting, art work or a prized Rolex watch, all stood on display, reminded the cause of the evening, the silent auction for the Medical community.

Members of the Oakville Hospital foundation were all present to celebrate the festival of lights.

The energy and the excitement of the event went to a next level by Manj Musik, lead vocalist and amp; music composer from the group RDB.

The dance and song combination of Bhangra and Punjabi singing did bring up the spirits for the night.

Musik is known for his Blockbuster Bollywood film soundtracks in Heropanti, Dr. Cabbie, Gabbar is Back, Singh Is Bling, Baaghi, Beiimaan Love, is the former lead vocalist and music composer for the bhangra music group RDB.

Also lightning up the event were stalls selling jewellery, Henna and glitter booths and the special photo booth and stall where one could capture the memories of the evening.

Sona Khanna, event chair, said: "The final funds raised at the Diwali Gala $281,000, which is 93.4% from that of the previous fundraiser.

Bollywood celebrity and a Canadian writer, lead actor and producer. Dr. Cabbie, Vinay Virmani, who is also known for his films, Breakaway and David were also present at the event.

The event is held every year by the Oakville community to not only celebrate the Diwali festival of light and joy, but also to support the initiatives of the Oakville Hospital foundation's beneficiary, the Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital.

The Oakville Hospital Foundation Gala is held in support of The Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital, whose care and medical services are of great benefit to the Oakville community and beyond.

Already 1.6 million square feet in size, the hospital has recently introduced advanced technologies that are expected to advance patient treatment and care on a wider scale.

The contributions from the past galas have provided support for these advancements.
Ottawa, Oct 7 (IBNS): A 19-year old Canadian teen, who had pleaded guilty of plotting a terror attack targeting New York, will be sentenced in December this year, media reports said.

Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy was charged after he pleaded for being involved in plotting of a 2016 terror attack, targeting New York.

The charges against Bahnasawy have been made public by Canada on Friday.

The U.S. Attorney's Office revealed the entire details of the terror attack plan that had an alleged effort to detonate bombs in Times Square and the New York subway system.

Plans were also made to attack some concert venues, reports said.

The sealed information also stated that the accused had bought the bomb-making materials and manged to get a room closer to the city to build explosives.

Apart from Bahnasawy, Talha Haroon and Russell Salic, were also charged over the same allegations.

While Haroon is a 19-year old US citizen living in Pakistan, Salic (37) is from Phillippine.

Both were arrested outside the US. They are likely to be extradited to the US for prosecution.

While interacting with CBC News, El Bahnasawy's lawyer Sabrina Shroff kept on stressing on his client's age and said he was "vulnerable".

Shroff told CBC News: "It's a very difficult situation undoubtedly  not just for him but also for his entire family."

Reports said that Bahnasawy along with Haroon, went the New York city in May. 2016, to carry out the preparation for the alleged attack.

When asked about whether Bahnasawy will appeal or not, Shroff said: "In every terrorism case in which the United States plays some role, there's always a concern about the length an undercover [agent] will go."



(Reporting by Suman Das)
School of Art to Host Faculty Biennial Reception During Homecoming

Oct. 6, 2017

BLOOMINGTON, Ill.The Illinois Wesleyan University Merwin and Wakeley Galleries will host a reception for the Faculty Biennial Exhibit on Saturday, October 14 at 2 p.m. The reception will take place in the Joyce G. Eichhorn Ames School of Art Building (6 Ames Plaza West, Bloomington).

Showcasing the work of Illinois Wesleyan faculty in the Ames School of Art, the exhibit  on display from Oct. 9-Nov. 9  includes works from all areas of the studio art program: painting, drawing, printmaking, graphic design, photography, ceramics, sculpture and glass.

Saturday's special Alumni Reception will celebrate the Universitys Homecoming Week. Light refreshments will be served.

Preceding the reception in the galleries, faculty members and students from the School of Art will host demonstrations in glass and ceramics from 8:30-11 a.m. during Homecoming festivities on the Eckley Quadrangle. Kappa Pi Art Fraternity will also provide an artistic experience for children.

By Vi Kakares '20
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Brett Erlich, Nando Vila and Hannah Cranston | (The Young Turks Video) |  

Steve Bannon insists that theres no room for neo-nazis and white supremacists in the alt-right movement, Buzzfeed just called bullshit. Brett Erlich, Nando Vila and Hannah Cranston discuss on The Young Turks.

After a white supremacist demonstration in Charlottesville ended in a killing last August, Steve Bannon insisted that theres no room in American society for neo-Nazis, neo-Confederates, and the KKK. But throughout the 2016 presidential campaign under Bannons leadership Breitbart cultivated the alt-right  the insurgent, racist far right-wing movement that helped sweep Donald Trump to power. The former White House chief strategist admitted that he wanted Breitbart to be the platform for the alt-right.

The Young Turks: Buzzfeed Exposes Breitbarts Neo-Nazi Roots
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By Ludovica Marchi | (LSE: British Politics and Policy) |  

Violence in Myanmar has resulted in more than 400,000 Rohingya Muslims leaving the country and seeking refuge in neighbouring Bangladesh.Ludovica Marchi argues that the EU should take advantage of its good relations with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to help ease the crisis. There is potential for the EU, as an advocate of human rights, to exert pressure on Myanmar while working closely with ASEAN, which has a more sophisticated understanding of how to approach sensitive issues with the countrys government.

Myanmar is consistently in the news. The focus is not on the economic and political reforms that it initiated in 2011 and is trying to advance by overcoming obstacles of various kinds, nor on the internal struggle that is accompanying and complicating the planned transformation which followed the countrys November 2015 elections and the March 2016 establishment of a new national Parliament and democratically-elected national government.

Prominence is now, even more than in the recent past, granted to the shocking situation whereby the present government, practically headed by the human rights advocate and Sakharov and Nobel Peace Prize winner, now State Counsellor, Aung San Suu Kyi, is unable to stop the violence that infiltrates and victimises the Royingya people. More diplomatic resources need to be devoted toward averting what probably amounts to and is perceived in the international arena as constituting ethnic cleansing. These efforts should be targeted at Myanmars Commander-in-Chief Min Aung Hlaing, who is in charge of the security forces.

The Royingya minority

More than one million Rohingya Muslims have been living in Myanmar for generations. Since the 1982 Citizenship Law which came into force under the countrys military junta, they have been officially stateless. They are unwanted by Myanmars authorities, who continue to deny this minoritys most basic rights. Several thousand Rohingya people have attempted to flee by land or sea, mainly to Bangladesh and Thailand, and have perished, been exploited or been killed.

Unlike anything that has occurred previously in the northern Rakhine State, at the end of August, helicopters and rocket propelled grenades were used to attack the population and burn entire villages, after Rohingya insurgents conducted a series of attacks against the military and the police. Thousands of Muslim and non-Muslim Rohingyas have been targeted. On 10 September, the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army announced a one-month unilateral ceasefire in order to enable humanitarian workers to assess and respond to the humanitarian crisis. Myanmars government and security forces dismissed the proposal, arguing that they do not negotiate with terrorists. Myanmars leadership continues to reject the idea of a UN fact-finding mission.

Aung San Suu Kyi receiving the Sakharov Prize at the European Parliament in 2013, Credit:  European Union 2013  European Parliament (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

The European Union

Europe is eager to promote the continuance of Myanmars opening up process and steps toward reform and civilian governance, and is supporting the countrys efforts. The EU has encouraged Myanmar to reintegrate its global political and economic structures. Together with lifting sanctions, the EU has played a significant role in contributing to development aid, technical cooperation and training, trade under the Everything but Arms facility, and supervision of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement. With Myanmar, it holds annual human rights dialogue meetings.

Despite all of this, Europe has reacted strongly through its institutions, unambiguously condemning the attacks on the Rohingya. Europe is not downplaying the problematic situation, whereby external terrorist infiltration can actively exploit the Rohingya question and gain easy access to Myanmar. Also, it understands that the Rohingya issue is only one of the dilemmas concerning the minorities living in Myanmar, and that the problems are more complex than may appear on the surface.

Making the EUs voice heard and offering assistance

In response to the aggravated outbreak of violence and repression, the European Parliament expressed condemnation on 14 September with a resolution on the situation regarding the Rohingya minority in Myanmar. The resolution made it crystal clear that fundamental freedoms are to be guaranteed, and human rights respected. It stressed its demand that the government should reform the Citizenship Law, and offer citizenship to the Rohingya minority. It urged the government as well as the Rakhine State authorities to engage in registering all children at birth. EU High Representative Federica Mogherini called on Myanmars leadership to show that democracy is for all, beyond all ethnic, social and religious boundaries.

In response to the current situation, the European Commission devolved its support by donating 2 million in aid to Myanmar and Bangladesh jointly, and increased its support for Bangladesh with another 3 million donation. Bangladesh is deeply involved in offering assistance. The EUs contribution further confirms its stance of many years of opposing the crisis which has oppressed the Rohingya. Its humanitarian aid department, ECHO, has been subsidising relief programmes in Rakhine State and in the Coxs Bazar District of Bangladesh since 1994. It established an ECHO office in Dhaka in 2002, and another in Yangon in 2005, to assist the delivery of EU humanitarian assistance.

Since 2010, ECHO has provided more than 76.5 million in aid to vulnerable people in Rakhine state. This support involved the distribution of food, basic health services, psychological care, water and shelter to affected communities who have been displaced by the outbreaks of violence in 2012 and 2016. In 2017, a further 4.5 million was assigned. ECHO has also allocated funds to the International Organisation for Migration to assist 3,000 Rohingya men, women and children who were detained in Thailand after allegedly entering the country illegally.

Europes potential role

The EU should take advantage of its good relations with ASEAN. ASEAN has always protected Myanmar and sought to maintain peace. It has also, however, proved capable of exerting sufficient pressure on the government in charge to compel them to undertake reforms. The countries of the Association have sought to convince the government to contain and moderate the violence, and have displayed profound concern with regard to the decimation of Muslim and non-Muslim Rohingya society.

No great difference exists between the quest for peace and reconciliation by the ASEAN and the advocacy for compromise and security-to-all that is inspired and promoted by the EU. No persuasive logical reason suggests that the EU, separately from the ASEAN, is making efforts to motivate Myanmars government to act lawfully in its approach to the Rohingyas.

The two groups, the EU and ASEAN, might easily join forces. They would then balance each other in persuading the decision-makers in Myanmar to deal appropriately with the individuals who make up the entire nation, thus bringing the focus of attention to the Rohingyas fate. As an advocate of human rights, wellbeing and the rule of law, the EU shall unceasingly continue to promote these values. In this task, it shall be helped by the ASEAN which, even more than the EU itself, knows how to approach Myanmars government.

_____

Note: This article was originally published on EUROPP  European Politics and Policy or the London School of Economics.

About the Author

Ludovica Marchi has researched on the EU and Myanmar as a Visiting Fellow at the Centre for International Studies at the London School of Economics. Her research interests include the external relations of the European Union with a focus on the EUs pursuit of security policy cooperation. Her latest books are Italys Foreign Policy in the Twentieth-Century: A Contested Nature? (Routledge 2015, co-edited) and An EU Innovative External Action (Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2011, edited).

Via British Politics and Society (LSE Blog)

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Related video added by Juan Cole:

Euronews: UN fears further exodus of Rohingya refugees from Myanmar into Bangladesh
Stuff reports:

Team New Zealand have welcomed the return of the New York Yacht Club to the Americas Cup after an absence of 15 years.

The legendary US club announced on Friday (NZT) that it will challenge for the 36th Americas Cup to be held in Auckland in early 2021.

The announcement capped off a week of intense interest in the Cup since Team New Zealand and Italian Challenger of Record Luna Rossa released the protocol.

New York are the first confirmed challenge, but Britain and France have signalled their intentions while Switzerland and Australia have also expressed interest in being in Auckland. Teams can file challenges from January 1.
South Korea is closely watching the possibility of North Korea's provocative acts ahead of the founding anniversary of its ruling party, but there is no clear sign of them, the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said Saturday.

Seoul has kept close tabs on North Korea's possible provocations as North Korea will mark key anniversaries next week. Sunday marks the 20th anniversary of late former leader Kim Jong-il's ascent to general secretary of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK). The 72nd anniversary of the WPK's founding falls on Tuesday.

"The government is closely monitoring the situation, given the possibility of North Korea's provocations around the party anniversary," a presidential official said.

"But there has been no specific sign of provocative acts. If the North makes another provocation, Seoul will sternly respond to it under close coordination with the U.S. and the international community," he said.

North Korea conducted its sixth nuclear test last month and fired two intercontinental ballistic missiles in July.












The prescription drug Narcan saved Shannon Long from an opioid overdose. Here, she kneels with her daughter Hope at Woodstock Seventh Day Adventist church on Feb. 4, 2017.

This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.

Drug overdose deaths, once rare, are now the leading cause of accidental death in the U.S., surpassing peak annual deaths caused by motor vehicle accidents, guns and HIV infection.

As a former public health official, clinician and researcher, I've been engaged in efforts to control the opioid addiction epidemic for the past 15 years.

The data show that the situation is dire and getting worse. Until opioids are prescribed more cautiously and until effective opioid addiction treatment becomes easier to access, overdose deaths will likely remain at record high levels.

How the crisis started

Opioids are drugs that stimulate the brain's opiate receptors. Some are made from opium and some are completely synthetic. In the U.S., the most commonly prescribed opioids are hydrocodone and oxycodone, which are classified as semi-synthetic because they are synthesized from opium. Heroin is also a semi-synthetic opioid. The effects of hydrocodone and oxycodone on the brain are indistinguishable from the effects produced by heroin.

Opioids are essential medicines for palliative care. They are also helpful when used for a couple of days after major surgery or a serious accident. Unfortunately, the bulk of the opioid prescriptions in the U.S. are for common conditions, like back pain.

In these cases, opioids are more likely to harm patients than help them because the risks of long-term use, such as addiction, outweigh potential benefit. Opioids have not been proven effective for daily, long-term use. Evidence suggests that chronic use of opioids can even make pain worse, a phenomenon called hyperalgesia.

Over the last two decades, as prescriptions for opioids began to soar, rates of addiction and overdose deaths increased in parallel.

The increase in opioid prescription was fueled by a multifaceted campaign (opens in new tab) underwritten by pharmaceutical companies. Doctors heard from their professional societies, their hospitals and even from state medical boards that patients were suffering needlessly because of an overblown fear of addiction.

The campaign minimized opioid risks and exaggerated the benefits of using opioids over the long term for chronic pain. Several states and counties have recently filed lawsuits against opioid manufacturers for the role they played in causing the opioid addiction epidemic by misleading the medical community.

The rise of heroin

Until 2011, most opioid overdose deaths involved prescription opioids. Then prescription opioid overdose deaths leveled off, while overdose deaths involving heroin began to soar.

Why did this happen? A common misconception is that so-called "drug abusers" suddenly switched from prescription opioids to heroin due to a federal government "crackdown" on painkillers.

There is a kernel of truth in this narrative. It's true that the vast majority of people who started using heroin after 1995 switched from prescription opioids because heroin was easier to obtain. But heroin use among young whites has been increasing since before 2011. From the beginning of the opioid crisis, young adults who became addicted to prescription opioids would switch to heroin, a less expensive option.

(Image credit: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration)

As young people switched to heroin, the heroin supply also became more dangerous. This caused the sharp increase in heroin overdose deaths in 2011. Increasingly, fentanyl, a potent and inexpensive synthetic opioid, was mixed with heroin or sold as heroin.

Until 2013, medical examiners didn't routinely test heroin overdose victims for the presence of fentanyl, but once they did, an alarming trend appeared. Preliminary data indicate that, in 2016, deaths involving fentanyl surpassed deaths involving prescription opioids and heroin.

Treating the crisis

There's another reason not to believe the narrative about a "crackdown" on painkillers leading to a sudden shift to heroin: There hasn't been a crackdown on prescription opioids. Despite some slowdown, the medical community continues to overprescribe opioids.

In fact, U.S. per capita opioid consumption is much higher than other developed nations. Our oxycodone consumption has started to decline, but it remains much higher than oxycodone consumption in Europe.

To bring the opioid addiction epidemic under control, the medical community must be more cautious about prescribing opioids. Federal and state governments also have to ensure that the millions of Americans now suffering from opioid addiction can access effective addiction treatment.

Buprenorphine and methadone maintenance  also known as medication-assisted treatment  are preferred treatments for opioid addiction. When patients with addiction take these medications, they are able to function and have an improved quality of life. These treatments also reduce the risk of overdose death and injection-related infectious diseases.

Buprenorphine is safer than methadone and other opioids, so it can be prescribed from a doctor's office. Methadone maintenance is administered under supervision in clinics that patients visit daily.

Unfortunately, many patients are unable to access these treatments. Despite a sharp rise in opioid addiction over the past decade, there has been only a slight increase in referrals for medication-assisted treatment in state-licensed drug treatment programs. Patients who are able to obtain treatment with buprenorphine must often visit private practice physicians who don't accept commercial insurance or Medicaid.

Until effective treatment for opioid addiction is easier to access than opioid painkillers, heroin or fentanyl, opioid overdose deaths are likely to remain at record high levels.

Andrew Kolodny, Co-Director of Opioid Policy Research, Brandeis University

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.
by Tanya Gazdik , October 5, 2017

ORLANDO, Fla.  Procter & Gamble Chief Marketing Officer Marc Pritchard says brand building can be a force for good along with growth.

Pritchard showed attendees at the Association of National Advertisers Masters of Marketing conference examples of P&Gs ongoing Like a Girl campaign, as well as a new spot, The Talk, which is part of its My Black is Beautiful campaign and takes on the difficult discussions parents are having with their children about racism.

Brand safety is an issue that all marketers are facing in all mediums, said Pritchard, who is chairman of the ANA board of directors. We have zero tolerance with our ads being associated with bias, bigotry or hate, he says.

advertisement advertisement

JP Morgan Chase CMO Kristin Lemkau concurred that brand safety is one of the biggest issues facing marketers at the moment. She showed an example of how one of her companys ads inadvertently was run on a website called Hillary 4 Prison. The company is now limiting its display ads to about 10,000 websites (up from about 5,000 it started with earlier this year) it has pre-approved, compared to 400,000 websites previously, she says.

While obviously brands dont want to be associated with terrorist-recruiting videos, its also debatable how many cat videos a brand wants to have its advertising run up against, Pritchard says. P&G is working with platforms like YouTube and Snapchat to find the optimum venues to display their ads, he said.

Despite concern about ever-shortening attention spans thanks to Snapchat and other social media, TV is not dead. A brand can instantly connect with hundreds of thousands of hearts and minds to drive growth, he says.

The theme for this conference is Growth  Mastering Brands and Driving Results, said Bob Liodice, ANA chief executive officer.

While the Masters theme has remained constant over time, the marketing success stories have evolved and changed, he says.

With a growing wellspring of creativity, marketers are stretching their brands in unique and imaginative ways to transform relationships with consumers and customers, he adds. Although there has been substantial technological progress, it is debatable whether it is getting the industry anywhere.

Look at the pattern of U.S. business sales that declined for the last two calendar years, Liodice says. This is a terrible proxy about the effectiveness of our marketing.

In 2016, more than half of the Fortune 500 companies had declining revenues. These depressing patterns are happening even with continued growth in media spending, he says. The underperforming boils down to a lack of effective marketer leadership.

As leaders, we, as an industry, have refused to make the tough calls  calls that would take us out of the cesspool of sub-optimum growth, Liodice says. For example, we as leaders should not accept this byzantine, non-transparent, super complex digital media supply chain. No one can understand it. Yet we keep feeding the beast by pouring incredible sums of money into this unproductive, unmanageable abyss. Remarkably, we keep doing so even though we know that only 25% of every digital dollar reaches the consumer.

To regain leadership and address the issues facing the industry, Liodice urged the CMO community to join forces via a year-old ANA initiative called the Masters Circle, which was established to unite individual CMO agendas and create a powerful force to transform and lead the industry.

About 400 CMOs participate in some level of Masters Circle activity, which has included the introduction of a multicultural program called AIMM (Alliance for Inclusive & Multicultural Marketing) and the publication of a new CMO playbook filled with case studies from leading national advertisers.

CMOs can no longer let others do the heavy lifting, Liodice said. It is time for chief marketing officers to seize ownership of the industrys growth agenda and point us all in the right direction.

Photo credit: Clarion Pictures
by Richard Whitman , Columnist, October 6, 2017

In 2015, a 24-year-old Dentsu employee was required to work hundreds of hours of overtime in the months leading up to her suicide. The overtime hours required of her were in violation of Japanese labor laws.

Today, a Japanese Court issued a ruling in the case brought by prosecutors: The firm should pay a 500,000 Japanese yen (roughly $4,400) fine for violating those labor laws and contributing to the environment that caused severe depression and ultimately, the death of the employee.

The Dentsu staffer, Matsuri Takahashi, worked over 100 hours of overtime in October 2015 alone. Thats overtime. Thats in addition to the normal work week, which in Japan is five or six hours more than the typical 40-hour work week considered normal in the U.S.

More overtime came in November and December of that year, and on Christmas Day, she jumped from a company dormitory to her death.

Im not going to go on a big rant about this. Takahashis death is a tragedy. But Japan has a well-documented labor shortage, primarily due to the fact that the countrys population is aging.

advertisement advertisement

All I know is the solution isnt working its available workforce to death. Seems to me that will just drive more young people in the nation to seek opportunities elsewhere.

And the solution also isnt slapping companies on the wrist for violating labor laws. Im not sure what the solution is. Possibly, its encouraging people from other countries where jobs are scarce to consider career opportunities in Japan. Ad agencies know a thing or two about recruitment campaigns, by the way.

Dentsu issued a statement apologizing  once again  to the stakeholders and the general public for the concern we have caused. That sounds so heartless. What you caused was misery and unrelenting grief. Maybe its a cultural thing  I dont know.

Dentsu, youre an advertising agency. Your mission, at least part of it, is to provide client solutions. Yes, solutions  the most overused word in Adland, but still.

So put on your thinking cap and solve this. I know its a huge challenge. Everyone in the problem-solving business seems focused and adept at solving everybodys problems but their own. But in this case, lives are at stake.

So figure it out.
Prof. Nikiforidis and colleagues conducted four studies investigating whether or not parents favor children according to their sex.

The first author of the study is Lambrianos Nikiforidis, a marketing professor at the School of Economics and Business at the State University of New York in Oneonta.

In other words, same-sex bias seems to influence parents spending habits, despite existing studies showing that nearly all parents deny ever acting in a biased way.

New research , due to be published in the January 2018 issue of the Journal of Consumer Psychology, suggests that when it comes to spending money, mothers may be positively biased toward their daughters, and fathers toward their sons.

As parents, we like to think that we love and treat our children equally. But could it be that when it comes to spending money for our sons and daughters, we are deeply biased?

The first study involved a hypothetical scenario that 250 participants were invited to take part in. In it, parents were given the opportunity to win a $50 gift card and were asked to which of their hypothetical two children they would offer the money.

Choosing between a boy and a girl, they were asked the following questions: If you have enough resources to invest in only one of your children, whom would you invest your limited resources in? and If you had to divide limited resources between your two children, how would you divide them?

In this first study, fathers chose their son as the recipient of the money almost 62 percent percent of the time, while mothers chose their daughter 71 percent of the time.

The second study was no longer hypothetical, in the sense that it involved real parents and their children. Fifty-two parents were invited to a zoo in North America with their children and were asked to take part in a survey.

The survey offered them the chance to win a prize for their children: the parents were invited to choose whether they wanted a back-to-school pack for their son or for their daughter.

This experiment was conducted at the beginning of the school year.

In this second study, mothers chose the daughter almost 76 percent of the time, while fathers chose their son 87 percent of the time.

In the next study, the third, the researchers wanted to see whether the reason for these biases was a stronger personal identification with the sex of the children.

So, they added identification as a mediating factor for their analysis. This meant that in addition to a hypothetical scenario similar to that of the first experiment, the parents were asked questions such as, Whom do you identify with more, your son or your daughter?

Then, in order to see whether answers to such questions actually determined spending biases, the researchers applied a so-called bootstrapping procedure.

This analysis also proved the researchers hypothesis, showing that fathers did identify more with their sons, and mothers with their daughters.

More importantly, the authors write, there was a significant indirect effect via identification.
Bad news should be delivered without embellishments. That is how people on the receiving end prefer it, researchers say.

Share on Pinterest Its best to deliver bad news in a straightfoward fashion, with little to no sugarcoating, a new study suggests.

The chances are that weve all had  or will have  to deliver some kind of bad news at some point in our lives. Be it announcing a breakup, dismissing an employee, rejecting a proposal, or sharing the news of a negative health outcome, there are, unfortunately, times when we cannot escape being the proverbial messenger.

And when that happens, theres always the question of how the bad news should be delivered. Should you say it as it is, directly, or you should you blanket it in comforting words to try to spare the receivers feelings as much as possible?

New research from Brigham Young University in Provo, UT, and the University of South Alabama in Mobile suggests that it may be best to deliver the blow swiftly  at least, that is how people at the receiving end prefer it.

The researchers recruited 145 participants who were confronted with various scenarios in which they were given different types of bad news, delivered in visual, textual, or verbal form.

In each case, they were confronted with two different kinds of approaches: bad news delivered either straight up or delivered with a buffer, or something to make the content of the news ostensibly more palatable to the receiver.

The authors, Profs. Alan Manning and Nicole Amare, recently published the results of their study at the 2017 IEEE Professional Communication Conference, held in Madison, WI.
6:15pm: Turner will earn $1MM if he makes the MLB roster, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com.

2:47pm: The Dodgers have agreed to sign infielder Justin Turner, reports MLBTR's Tim Dierkes (via Twitter). Turner, 29, is a Legacy client. He gets a minor league deal with a Spring Training invite, tweets Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times.

Most of Turner's big league time has been spent with the Mets, who non-tendered him this year. Since receiving 487 plate appearances and slashing .260/.334/.356 in 2011, Turner has seen less regular action. In 214 plate appearances last year, he put up a .280/.319/.385 triple-slash  good for a precisely league-average 100 OPS+.

Turner's versatility gives him a chance to crack the MLB roster as a utility infielder. Alternatively, Turner could battle for more regular time at second if Alexander Guerrero stumbles. The right-handed swinging Turner will presumably compete with lefty Dee Gordon, veteran switch-hitter Chone Figgins, and a pair of fellow righties in Justin Sellers and Brendan Harris. Though defensive metrics have not liked Turner's work at second, he grades out as roughly average on the left side of the infield, where he has spent most of his time over the last two seasons.
Leading Hollywood figures have reacted to the New York Times article on sexual harassment allegations made against film producer Harvey Weinstein.

The article reported he had reached at least eight settlements with women.

Girls creator Lena Dunham thanked one of its writers for pushing past [a] flimsy but firm veil of secrecy.

Weinstein has disputed the newspaper report that claimed he harassed female employees over nearly three decades and is taking legal action.

Reckless reporting

The co-founder of Miramax and The Weinstein Company released a statement on Thursday in which he expressed regret [for] what happened.

I appreciate the way Ive behaved with colleagues in the past has caused a lot of pain, and I sincerely apologise for it, he wrote.

Weinstein, a married father of five, said he planned to take a leave of absence from his company and had hired therapists to deal with his issues.

Yet the producer of Shakespeare in Love, The Kings Speech and other Oscar winners later said he was taking legal action against the paper for its reckless reporting.

This is a vendetta, and the next time I see [NYT executive editor] Dean Baquet it will be across a courtroom, he is quoted as saying by the Page Six website.

The 65-year-old has been married since 2007 to fashion designer Georgina Rose Chapman, with whom he has two children.

I believe you

Oscar-winner Brie Larson responded to the allegations by saying she stood with the brave survivors of sexual assault and harassment as always.

Its not your fault. I believe you, she wrote in a post that did not mention Weinstein by name.

Report

The woman who chose to speak about their experience of harassment by Harvey Weinstein deserve our awe, wrote Dunham in another post.

Its not fun or easy. Its brave.


07.10.2017 LISTEN

Ghana's Reggae Icon and Africa's most militant dub poet, Rootical Blakk Rasta, has released a new song Dubbed 'Kofi Annan Says' making a strong case for the legalization of the Ganja Herbs popularly known as Wee.

After being hauled before the Parliament of Ghana for comments that sought to promote the use of Marijuana, he has bounced back with a strong defense.

Months later after his encounter with Ghana's Parliament, former UN Boss, Kofi Annan vindicated Blakk Rasta by supporting his call for Marijuana Legalization.

It was produced by Ephraim and Blakk Rasta with support by the Herbalist Band and mixed by Abe Affainie based in Tema, Ghana.

LYRICS

CHORUS:

Kofi Annan (2)

Say make we legalise it

Too long(2)

Legalise the ganja ei!

Kofi Annan(2)

Say make we wise and think oo

Too long, in-a Ghana

Legalise the ganja ei!

BRIDGE 1:

Legalise it, make the money, free the economy

Legalise it, stop the begging, stop the stealing (2)

STANZA 1:

He was the president of the world as he ruled the united nations

Kofi Annan comes from Ghana, Africa where he wept as ignorant, dirty politricians swept away the ganja blessings

No matter how many times poor Kofi Annan pleaded, the more stumbling blocks were put in his way by block-headed dirty politricians

Long live the ganja Secretary General with full honours as a smart academician and humanitarian

Legalise the ganja, grow it in controlled-state farms and keep away all those Western money barbarians

Or, are you waiting for America to legalise polygamy before you get wiser, you parliamentarians?

CHORUS:

STANZA 2:

Sometimes, I sit and wonder

All the time, m' ewuradze ei! I sweat and ponder

A lot of questions remain unanswered and I am bothered

In this country, no matter how right you are, if you don't want to be shot, you must remain surrendered

How can 26 million people be poverty-stricken when wealth by us, is surrounded?

Let my ganja grow and do not try to be so ignorantly-dunder-headed

Make the ganja money and free the economy from the IMF and World Bank Shylocks you so much love till you dead

You know better than me that ganja is not for smoking alone but for shoes, belts, creams and fuels without the deadly lead

BRIDGE 2:

Legalise it, decriminalise it

Free the ganja in-a Ghana (2)

CHORUS:

To fade....

Download Link"

https://soundcloud.com/user-907634648/blakk-rasta_kofi-annan-says
Accra, Oct. 6, CDA Consult  Ghana Oil Company Limited (GOIL) on Friday outdoor branded Friday wear cloth for staffs as means to project the GOIL brand and promote patronage of made in Ghana goods and service.

GOIL the foremost indigenous Oil Marketing Company seeks to play leading role in upholding the Ghanaian identity especially in the OMC field loaded with multi-nationals, Mr Robert Kyere, GOIL Public Relations Manager told the CDA Consult in an interview in Accra.

Mr. Kyere noted Ghanaians need to support and patronize GOIL products and services; we are offering quality services and products at a very competitive prices. We are making a case for Ghanaians and we need the support of all to protect national interest in the downstream oil sector.

The GOIL Public Relations Manager noted that it would be dangerous for the nations developmental agenda if multi-nationals with their own national interest to protect takes control of Ghanas downstream petroleum sector.

The GOIL Branded Friday Wear Cloth is designed in the orange brand with the GOIL Logo and inscription stamped in it.
04.10.2017 LISTEN

Accra, Oct. 3, GNA - Management of Ethiopian Airlines Group, the largest airline in Africa, has fully digitalized all its business processes like aircraft maintenance and flight operations, commercial operations and finance.

Others are human resource management, customer services, procurement and supply chain management, online learning, management approvals and authorizations.

A statement issued in Accra on Monday, signed by Mrs Hanna Atnafu, Manager Corporate Communications, Ethiopian Airlines, and copied to the Ghana News Agency said the initiative would remove paper from the entire system.

The statement quoted Mr Tewolde GebreMariam, Group CEO Ethiopian Airlines as saying: 'Although we started the digitization project in the last few years, today marks an important milestone in our history as we are removing paper from our entire business processes'.

According to the statement the airline is leading in the Digital Revolution and leveraging on the latest advancement in the Information and Communication Technology of the global airline industry, Ethiopian would scale up its operational excellence, customer intimacy and cost leadership strategies.

'Information Communication Technology will enable us to deliver customized global standard customer services as per the preferences of each and every customer,' the statement stated.

The statement said the world is living in the fourth industrial revolution which was fundamentally different from the previous industrial revolutions especially in the speed of change and disruptions.

According to the statement the continued success depended on the strategic response and the abilities to adapt to the velocity, breadth and depth and scale of the quantum changes coming the Ethiopian airline way.

'To this effect, we have embedded digitization in our organizational operating system with our valued customers in our mind,' the statement said.

According to the statement from the perspective of pursuing environmentally friendly operation, it was worth mentioning that Ethiopian operated the youngest, latest aviation technology and most environmental friendly fleets with less carbon emission to the environment.

GNA
06.10.2017 LISTEN

The Jomoro Constituency Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Gideon Koniba, has called on party executives in the Constituency to come together and help revive the party for victory in 2020.

The NDC lost the Jomoro Parliamentary seat in 2016 to NPP for the first time in the political history of Ghana's elections.

Speaking on the 'Border City' morning show 'Adeakye Abia' on West FM at Elubo on October 5, 2017, Chairman Koniba called for unity among the party members and its executives in order to help the party recapture the Jomoro seat in the 2020 general elections.

He admitted that it was the division in the party that led to their defeat in the 2016 general elections.

"I don't believe the mistakes that led to our defeat will ever happen again. If you even contest as an assembly member in an election with three trusted team members who are trustworthy, is better to focus on the three than to contract twenty people who give information about you to your opponents," he said.

He added, "Before I was elected as the constituency chairman, I went round and promised the executives that we have to reap what we have sowed in the party, so I introduced so many programmes like Educational Scholarship, MASLOW Benefits among others which miscommunicated by some branch executives to the party faithfuls as if it were not beneficial.

Chairman Koniba also advised his party communicators to desist from personal attacks on radio and criticise the ruling government constructively so as to make the NDC party attractive and marketable.

He appealed to all the party members in the Constituency to be united and come on board to build a strong NDC party in Jomoro.

He indicated that the ruling New Patriotic Party is gradually failing to better the lives of Ghanaians especially the good people of Jomoro Constituency.

"Almost a year now that the NPP took the affairs of this country, not a single project has been done in Jomoro District and a common District Chief Executive (DCE) to supervise the District, the NPP government can't give us one so in 2020 Jomoro people will bring back the NDC", he emphasized.

He also disclosed his intention to seek for re-election as a constituency chairman to recapture the Jomoro seat for NDC in 2020.

Source: Daniel Kaku
A commission of inquiry needed to solicit views through a national dialogue on the proposed creation of six additional regions, is to be constituted next week.

The commission is to tour the Northern, Western, Brong Ahafo and Volta Regions, which are earmarked for the additional regions, as stated in the governing New Patriotic Partys (NPP) 2016 campaign manifesto.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo brought this to the fore when he addressed the chiefs and people of Mamprugu land at the Nayiris palace in Nalerigu, beginning his three-day official tour of the Northern Region.

He said the commissions recommendations will be handed over to the Electoral Commission to organize a referendum required to secure 50% endorsement of citizens of the proposed areas under consideration.

He asked for the strong support of the Nayiri, and the nations traditional rulers, to facilitate the creation of new regions which the Council of State has approved awaiting constitutional requirements satisfaction.

The Presidents disclosure was in response to the overlord of Mamprugu traditional area, The Nayiri Mahami Bohigu Sherigas renewed call for the area to be carved out of the Northern Region.

I am in full support of your demand, and I believe your demand for a new region is a good one, and I will support it. So if you want it, you will have it, President Nana Addo underscored.

If you are determined to have a new region, it is in your hands. The way you respond to the commission of inquiry, and also how you vote if by the grace of God the commission of inquiry recommends a referendum, that is what will decide whether or not you deserve a new region.

The Council of State received my request for their advice and they were positive. They agreed that there was the demand for the creation of regions in Western, Northern, Brong Ahafo and Volta Regions.

The referendum will require that 50% of all those who are registered in the area of the demand come out to vote and after that, 80% of the voters must say yes.

Because of this very strict condition, it has never been done before in the life of the fourth Republic, this is the first time that the procedure has been initiated.

The Nayiri in his welcome address posited that, giving the area a regional status could offload the myriad of chieftaincy disputes pending at the Northern Regional House of Chiefs, of which he is the incumbent President.

The Nayiri appealed to government to establish two more health facilities at Mamprugu Moagduri and the Bunkprugu/Yunyoo district.

He further decried the deplorable road network in Mamprugu which he said requires rapid attention.

He said several communities within his jurisdiction lacked electricity, and therefore called for the construction of a sub power station in Nalerigu to feed the deprived communities.

The Nayiri emphasized that, government should get investors to explore the large deposit of lime in the area.

He lauded the planting for food and jobs, free Senior High School and the fertilizer subsidy programmes.



By: Abdul Karim Naatogmah/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Vice President of IMANI Africa, Kofi Bentil, has questioned the proposed source of funding for the yet-to-be established Office of Special Prosecutor.

He argues that, the proposal, which includes donations from external bodies, is a potential ground for corruption, which the office seeks to fight.

The Bill to establish the office, which is currently in Parliament for consideration, lists donations and grants as sources of funding.

Kofi Bentil, who was speaking at a media training dialogue on the Bill under the auspices of the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition in Accra on Friday, suggested that the Consolidated Funds could be used to fund the Office.

Take out donations and grants. It is a window for corruption. Why can we not fund this office with the Consolidated Fund? Leave no room for anyone to make a donation. Some of these drug dealers plan 10 years ahead. They will start taking care of you, building houses for you, buying you cars, giving you foreign trips, paying your kids' school fees 10 years ahead before they get into trouble. And when they get into trouble and you see that it is him who has been giving you these things for the past 10 years, you would not be able to take action against him, he said.

Kofi Bentil added that, the Office of the Special Prosecutor cannot be truly functional without some constitutional amendments.

Meanwhile, the report of Parliament's Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee, on the Office of the Special Prosecutor Bill, which was expected to be laid in parliament today [Friday], has been postponed to Tuesday.

This follows the Committee's conclusion of consultations with various stakeholders concerned with the Bill.

The objective of the Bill is to establish a specialized agency to investigate specific cases of corruption involving public officers, as well as individuals in the private sector implicated in corrupt acts.



By: Sixtus Dong-Ullo/citifmonline.com/Ghana
President Nana Akufo-Addo from October 2 to October 8, embarked on a 7-day tour of the three Northern regions as part of his tour of the country.

He began the tour with a 2-day visit to the Upper West Region, where inspected and commissioned some projects. He also met with the Upper West Regional House of Chiefs, in Wa.

Below are some pictures during his visit.

In the Upper East, President Akufo-Addo charged the Roads and Highway Ministry to speed up work on the construction of the 109-kilometre road Bolgatanga to Bawku Road.

The President also a $55.50 million Wa Water Project at Jambusie which will supply 3.3 million gallons of water per day to the residents.

In the Lawra Traditional Area, the President met with Naa Puowele Karbo, the Paramount Chief of Lawra.

In Wa, the President met with the chiefs and elders of the Upper West regional House of Chief.

Story by Ghana| Myjoyonline
The Mayor of Accra, Mohammed Adjei Sowah has assured that the Akufo-Addo-led administration will solve the perennial flooding problem in the capital before its term ends.

Speaking to Joy News Matilda Wemegah on the day floods inundated many parts of the capital after an early morning downpour, the Mayor said flooding will soon be a thing of the past.

The president has indicated his intention to resolve the perennial problem permanently and we are working closely with the Ministry of Works and Housing and in the next couple of days, we will announce to the general public the steps government has taken so far and the plans that we intend to roll out so that we resolve this problem permanently before the end of the presidents term.

That will solve the problem of the whole of Accra, the Mayor said.

Flooding has caused a lot of havoc in many parts of the country following a heavy downpour, Friday morning.

In Accra, motorists who attempted to get to their various destinations in the morning were met with muddy flood waters.

There were three accidents on the Accra-Tema Motorway. Motorists heading to Accra from Madina and beyond were left in traffic for hours as flood waters on the Shiashie portion of the road made it almost impossible for any vehicle to get through.

In the Ashanti region, one life was lost and a six-year old girl is battling for her life after a building collapsed on her during the five-hour downpour.

Stories from the other regions are the same, only that in those areas, no lives were lost.

The Mayor of Accra said measures that the Akufo-Addo-led administration will roll out in the coming days will surely end the flooding problem permanently.

Mr Sowah, who visited parts of the capital worst hit by the flooding said much of the flooding problem is due to building on waterways, low-lying areas and the fact that people still dispose of solid waste into open drains.

All these factors contribute to the flooding and that is why we are looking at the matter holistically. It is important we look at it that way. The knee-jerk approach has never been helpful to the people and we want to confront the matter head-on and that is the assurance the president wants to convey to the people, he said.

But, the Member of Parliament for Adaklu, Kwame Agbodza has cast doubts on governments ability to deal with the situation.

He said the problem cannot be solved within a year.

Go and check the budget and find out how much money is in there, I think it is less than a million and there is no way you are going to solve the problem in Accra with GHS1 million.

He said the most important thing to do, especially if the case is one of the people building in wrong places, then there is the need to find out and be certain if more drains should be built.

So that we dont wait for the rains to come then NADMO moves in and they dont do much because they are broke. So I dont have any hopes that in the near future, we are going to solve this problem, he said.

Deputy Director of the Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), Abu Ramadan says his outfit is adequately prepared to deal with the current situation.

He said although the previous government left a huge debt which the current administration is trying to settle, it is capable of dealing with the issues.

We are not as broke as not to be able to deal with the challenges of today, he said, adding that NADMO is more proactive than it used to be.

The new NADMO, he said, is concentrating on preventing disasters rather than managing them, adding, very soon the plans it is putting in place will manifest.

Starting from next year, you will see a more reactive, preventive mood activated, he said.

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | Naa Sakwaba Akwa | [email protected]
Host of Joy Fm;s Super Morning Show, Kojo Yankson replied callers who accused him of failing to hold the previous government accountable for the flooding that occurred this morning in Accra and other parts of the country.

Mr Yankson rejected the accusations maintaining that he had no interest at all in protecting one government or the other.
Washington (AFP) - The United States announced an end to its 20-year-old trade embargo against Sudan on Friday citing what it said are improvements in Khartoum's human rights record.

Washington's did not drop Sudan from its blacklist of state terror sponsors nor end its support for the international war crimes indictment targeting President Omar al-Bashir.

But the decision was nonetheless a breakthrough for Bashir's regime, which has engaged with Washington in a bid to end the international isolation that it has suffered since the bloody crisis in Darfur.

Some human rights advocates denounced the move, the fruit of an intense 16-month diplomatic initiative that began under former US president Barack Obama, but other observers cautiously hailed it as a small step forward for the region.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson published a report confirming the decision, and State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said the order would come into effect on October 12.

It came, she said, "in recognition of the Government of Sudan's sustained positive actions to maintain a cessation of hostilities in conflict areas in Sudan."

And she cited what she said was Sudan's sustained commitment to "improve humanitarian access throughout Sudan and maintain cooperation with the United States on addressing regional conflicts and the threat of terrorism."

Specifically, US officials told reporters that Sudan had refrained from new violence in three areas of its territory where its forces were formerly accused of widespread atrocities during civil conflicts: Darfur, South Kordofan and Blue Nile.

In addition it has improved humanitarian access to former conflict zones and halted its attempts to destabilize South Sudan, granted independence in July 2011.

The officials said US and Sudanese counterterrorism cooperation had improved and Khartoum was now helping regional efforts to hunt Joseph Kony's rebel Lords Resistance Army.

War crimes

But work remains to be done, and Washington wants to see more improvement in Sudan's behavior before there is any talk of restoring full diplomatic ties.

"This marks one step forward on a long and hard road where much more progress is needed," a senior administration official told reporters.

As one of three countries designated a state sponsor of terror -- in Sudan's case for allegedly sponsoring violent Islamist extremists -- Khartoum remains under a US arms embargo.

Another official also cautioned that Sudan must comply with UN Security Council resolutions banning the import of weapons from North Korea.

"We will not necessarily take the government at their word," he said.

"We will be closely monitoring the situation, and they understand that we have zero tolerance for continued arms deals with North Korea."

In 2009, the International Criminal Court in the Hague issued an arrest warrant for Al-Bashir, alleging he was responsible for five counts of crimes against humanity.

The US officials said that nothing had changed in Washington's support for this action, and that targeted US sanctions related to the Darfur conflict would remain in place.

"We continue to call for all those responsible for crimes in Darfur to be held accountable and to support... justice for all the victims of the crimes in Darfur," one said.

Government atrocities

Reaction to the decision from experts was mixed.

Andrea Prasow, deputy Washington director of pressure group Human Rights Watch, said: "It sends the wrong message to lift these sanctions permanently when Sudan has made so little progress on human rights.

"Sudanese government forces continue to attack civilians, gun down peaceful protesters, and imprison human rights activists and Sudan's president is wanted for atrocity crimes in Darfur.

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, seen here during a visit to the village of Shattaya in South Darfur on September 22, remains under an ICC arrest warrant despite the end of the US trade embargo

"A government like this shouldn't be rewarded."

But the International Crisis Group, which studies and promotes conflict resolution, gave a guarded thumbs up.

"This is a big day for Sudan," said ICG Sudan analyst Magnus Taylor, arguing that the US "five-track" diplomatic process had proved effective in convincing Sudan to cooperate.

"Sudan sees this as a first rung, albeit a big one, on the ladder towards normalization," he said.

"If the US is smart it will use the momentum it has gained in its relations with Sudan and push for further improvements in the conduct of the Sudanese government."

In January, then US president Obama eased the sanctions with a view to lifting them completely after a six month review.

But in July, new president Donald Trump extended the review period to October 12.

The US outlined "five tracks" that Sudan must follow for sanctions to be lifted permanently and last month, Trump removed Sudan from a list of countries facing a US travel ban.
The embattled Deputy Chairperson the Electoral Commission in Charge of Finance and Administration, Georgina Opoku Amankwah, has threatened to sue the Economic and Organized Crime Office over its apparent refusal to reveal the outcome of a supposed probe into her dealings at the Commission.

The probe concerned her alleged misappropriation of the Commission's Endowment fund, for which she was asked to proceed on leave.

Mrs. Amankwah was one of three top EC officials investigated by EOCO over the alleged disappearance of GHc480, 000 from the Commissions Endowment Fund.

The loss of the GHc 480,000 prompted the EC Chairperson, Charlotte Osei, to ask the Commission's Deputy Chairperson in-charge of Finance and Administration and the Finance Director, Dr. Joseph Kweku Asamoah, to proceed on leave.

Speaking on Eyewitness News, her lawyer, Kwabena Asante Krobea, first argued that the fact the EC Chairperson, Charlotte Osei, was not compelled to proceed on leave because she also faced allegations, was unfair.

Some staff of the EC had petitioned President Nana Akufo-Addo to dismiss Charlotte Osei for alleged malfeasance surrounding the supposed awarding of some contracts unilaterally in service of cronyism.

If EOCO is saying that a complaint of the usage of the endowment has been leveled against our client and for that matter, she had to proceed on leave, then, for the same Chairperson [Charlotte Osei] that made that complaint, similar allegations have been made against her by staff of the commission, but rather, she at the moment, is at post working whilst our client is at home, Mr. Asante Krobea said.

Since then, Mrs. Amankwahs team has written to EOCO, but to no avail, and they are beginning to suspect some foul play from EOCO.

Mr. Asante Krobea suggested that someone may be pulling the strings at EOCO because from what they are gathering, the investigation has been concluded and as we expected, nothing untoward or no other charges have been made against our client because we knew our client was going to come out unscathed.

But he said they remain aggrieved because their client [Mrs. Amankwah] is at home not knowing when she will resume work.

Mr. Asante Krobea said Mrs. Amankwah abided by the directive out of respect for the law as they did not expect the investigation to drag, but given the unsatisfactory developments, a court action could now be on the table.

If in the pursuit of their function, we think that they are not acting fairly, we can invoke the requisite reliefs to seek redress for our client and very soon, if we do not hear from EOCO, they will hear from us, he warned.

He however noted that, EOCO indicated that a response to them is ready, which they plan to receive sometime next week because Mrs. Amankwa has traveled out of the region.



By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Citi Business News has gathered that the Millennium Development Authority(MiDA), which is supervising the privatization of the Electricity Company of Ghana(ECG), will finalize its meeting with the six companies bidding for the power company today [Saturday].

The purpose of the meeting is to give the six companies an opportunity to ask and receive responses to questions from government, as well as parties on the draft Request for Proposal document.

Speaking earlier at a press conference, the Minister for Energy, Boakye Agyarko, explained that the second meeting will enable government to evaluate the bids of the six companies to choose one.

As scheduled, the second bidders' conference will come off. I can assure you that it will be held in early October, he said at the time.

On his part, Ing. Owura Sarfo, CEO of MiDA , said the conference is necessary to meet crucial timelines.

This is a very significant milestone in the process. The goal has remained the same, to procure a Concessionaire who would not only inject the required financial investments ECG needs, but also introduce modern technology and efficiency strategies that would turnaround the operational and financial fortunes of ECG, he said.

Each Applicant will meet with the GoG team made up of officials from the Ministries of Finance, Energy, Justice and Attorney General's Department, Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC), Energy Commission (EC), ECG, and MiDA.

Ing Sarfo explained that the meetings have been planned to ensure that all clarifications and questions from each Applicant is adequately addressed, and everyone is on the same footing as we proceed to the remaining stages of the procurement process.

Citi Business News has gathered that, the six concessionaires bidding to takeover the operations of the Electricity Company of Ghana are currently in Accra holding a conference.

The 6 concessionaires

The delegation includes Manila Electric Company from Philippines, CH Group from Ghana,/ EDF SA/LMI Holdings/Veolia SA, BXC Company Ghana Ltd, and Xiaocheng Technology Stock Company Limited from China.

The rest are Shaanxi Regional Electric Power Group Company Limited from China, the Tata Power Company Limited from India and CDC Group Plc from UK.

Meanwhile, the Public Utility Workers Union (PUWU), has filed a writ at an Accra High Court for declaration and clarification of section 55 of the labour Act as part of their demand for redundancy pay for ECG workers.
As the world knows, we face the strong possibility of another Korean war, with potentially devastating consequences to the Korean Peninsula, Japan, our outlying territories in the Pacific and perhaps the mainland of the United States. This is the most serious existing threat to world peace, and it is imperative that Pyongyang and Washington find some way to ease the escalating tension and reach a lasting, peaceful agreement.

Over more than 20 years, I have spent many hours in discussions with top North Korean officials and private citizens during visits to Pyongyang and to the countryside. I found Kim Il Sung (their Great Leader), Kim Yong Nam, president of the Presidium of the Supreme Peoples Assembly, and other leaders to be both completely rational and dedicated to the preservation of their regime.

What the officials have always demanded is direct talks with the United States, leading to a permanent peace treaty to replace the still-prevailing 1953 cease-fire that has failed to end the Korean conflict. They want an end to sanctions, a guarantee that there will be no military attack on a peaceful North Korea, and eventual normal relations between their country and the international community.

I have visited with people who were starving. Still today, millions suffer from famine and food insecurity and seem to be completely loyal to their top leader. They are probably the most isolated people on Earth and almost unanimously believe that their greatest threat is from a preemptory military attack by the United States.

The top priority of North Koreas leaders is to preserve their regime and keep it as free as possible from outside control. They are largely immune from influence or pressure from outside. During the time of the current leader, Kim Jong Un, this immunity has also applied to China, whose leaders want to avoid a regime collapse in North Korea or having to contemplate a nuclear-armed Japan or South Korea.

Until now, severe economic sanctions have not prevented North Korea from developing a formidable and dedicated military force, including long-range nuclear missiles, utilizing a surprising level of scientific and technological capability. There is no remaining chance that it will agree to a total denuclearization, as it has seen what happened in a denuclearized Libya and assessed the doubtful status of U.S. adherence to the Iran nuclear agreement.

There have been a number of suggestions for resolving this crisis, including military strikes on North Koreas nuclear facilities, more severe economic punishment, the forging of a protective nuclear agreement between China and North Korea similar to those between the United States and South Korea and Japan, a real enforcement of the Non-Proliferation Treaty by all nuclear weapons states not to expand their arsenals, and ending annual U.S.-South Korean military exercises.

All of these options are intended to dissuade or deter the leadership of a nation with long-range nuclear weaponsand that believes its existence is threatenedfrom taking steps to defend itself. None of them offer an immediate way to end the present crisis, because the Pyongyang government believes its survival is at stake. Secretary of State Rex Tillersons statement last week that we have lines of communications to Pyongyang. Were not in a dark situation is a good first step to defusing tensions.

The next step should be for the United States to offer to send a high-level delegation to Pyongyang for peace talks or to support an international conference including North and South Korea, the United States and China, at a mutually acceptable site.
Overlord of the Gonjaland traditional area, Yagbonwura Tuntumba Boresa, has described President Nana Akufo Addo as an honest and ambitious leader determined to make Ghana work again.

According to him, implementation of flagship programmes such as the free Senior High School and the planting for food and jobs are ample testimonies of the President's commitment to deliver on his promises.

The Yagbonwura expressed optimism in President Nana Addo's leadership when the President paid a courtesy call on him at the Jakpa Palace in Damongo as part of his three-day official tour of the Northern Region.

His speech was read by the Convention Peoples Partys (CPP) 2012 Presidential candidate, Dr. Abu Sakara Foster.

Yagbonwura Tuntumba Boresa said, You promised free SHS and it is here. God bless you for hearing the cry of so many previously abandoned children who could not afford secondary education due to lack of money.

He asked President Nana Addo to reassure the people of Gonjaland of the progress being made to make Gonjaland a new region.

We are more than committed to helping you succeed in creating a new region out of Gonjaland.

The creation of new regions will help ensure equitable distribution of resources for development and a more developed decision for accelerated and economic progress that will create jobs for our teeming unemployed youth, he stressed.

He maintained that the Gonjaland traditional area is endowed with mineral resources and tourism potentials that deserves to be a region on its own.

Yagbonwura Tuntumba Boresa pleaded with government to upgrade the Damongo College of Agriculture to a fully fledged university to train commercial farmers and agribusiness entrepreneurs

He thanked government for granting the Gonjaland Traditional Council's request for a teacher training college in Damongo.

He further asked government to revamp the existing sheanut factory at Buipe, capital of the Central Gonja district.

He thanked government for elevating the West Gonja (Damongo) and East Gonja (Salaga) districts to municipal status.

As a member of the three eminent Kings mediating the Dagbon chieftaincy impasse at the Manhyia palace in Kumasi, the Yagbonwura promised that the issue might be permanently resolved by the end of 2017.

An elated President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo reassured the Yagbonwura that he will work closely with him to improve the living conditions of the people of Gonjaland.

I want to reassure you and to let you know that we are going to work very closely with you to improve the governance of Ghana. I am going to need your constant advice and guidance.

My doors will always be opened to you and I will need your support and continuous prayers to accomplish all the commitments I made to the Ghanaian people.
Calm is returning to Wassa Akropong after some irate youth burnt and vandalized several properties belonging to Chinese nationals following the killing of a Ghanaian by a Chinese businessman.

About 48 Chinese nationals are also being relocated from the town to other areas of safety.

Citi News sources also say the Paramount Chief of the Wassa Amenfi Traditional Area, Tetrete Okuamoah Sekyim II, is meeting with the irate youth who are determined to revenge the death of Nana Boamah, 30, at his palace.

Some burnt cars in front of a Chinese company

Police from the SWAT division in Takoradi as well as other units from Tarkwa and Asangragua, had to intervene last night when over thousand residents took to the streets to vandalize Chinese businesses and other properties.

Cause of riots

Eyewitnesses told Citi News that a plumber who was hired by some Chinese nationals for his services called in the deceased, Nana Boamah as a witness, after the Chinese refused to pay the Gh 150 he has charged.

During the confrontation, a gun brought out by one of the Chinese was seized by the duo. But a second gun was fired by the Chinese, killing the witness, Nana Boamah instantly.

The news of the death of Boamah, which had spread throughout the town, sparked series of attacks on Chinese nationals and their properties. Six cars were burnt, whilst other properties were also vandalized.

Initial reports had suggested that the Ghanaian was killed mistakenly by a stray bullet during an altercation between two Chinese nationals at a nearby casino, but it appears that story is inaccurate.

The deceased

Situation is serious-police

The situation is really serious because the Chinese are many and they live differently, so before you realize, there will be fire somewhere, so you rush there with your team. But before you could finish, there is another fire nearby.

Some burnt cars in front of a Chinese company

The Wassa Akropong District Crime Officer, Detective Chief Inspector Briamah, told Citi News in an interview on Friday .

In all, about 14 cars belonging to the Chinese have been burnt. Hotels and Casinos operated by them have been vandalized, whilst many other properties have been looted a source told Citi News.

Regional police commander visiting the town

The Western Regional Police Commander, DCOP Kwesi Duku, and a team of other security personnel are visiting the town to access the security situation.

Already there is a team of officers who were deployed to the town last night to control the situation.

Currently, the police is assisting to repatriate the 48 Chinese Nationals and also commence investigations into the matter a police source told Citi News .
Parliament on Tuesday ratified the Framework Agreement on the Establishment of the International Solar Alliance (ISA) for Ghana to become a member of ISA, which has 121 member countries, to access $2 billion Indian credit facility for the adoption of renewable energy in Africa as an alternative to more expensive sources of energy.

After the ratification, the Minister for Energy, Boakye Agyarko told the parliamentary press that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government was bent on aggressively resorting to renewable energy to help reduce cost of production of energy, which has direct bearing on the national budget and also dependence on hydro-power which is increasingly becoming very expensive.

The Minister said that the government intends to start the introduction of the solar energy in public institutions such as parliament and the Flagstaff House.

He indicated that in partnership with the private sector, the government intends to hook all the 36,000 Junior High Schools (JHS) in the country, as well as all the 681 Senior High Schools in the country to solar energy.

The Energy Minister said a lot of research work on renewable energy and its sustainability would be carried out to ensure that renewable energy becomes the preferred source of energy for Ghanaians.

According to the Minister, the Renewable Energy Act (Act 823) passed in 2011 would be reviewed to be relevant to modern energy requirements of the nation.

He told the press that once the framework agreement had been ratified by parliament, the process of officially becoming a member of ISA would take about a month or two.

He indicated that after the country has officially been admitted to ISA, it will hit the ground running to promote renewable energy in the country.

MPs from both sides of the House agreed to the fact that joining the ISA will bring a lot of benefits in terms of renewable energy to the country.

The NPP Member of Parliament for Tano North and Deputy Minister for Works and Housing, Freda Prempeh, said that the ratification of the agreement will bring a lot of opportunities to the nation.

She suggested that the rural areas must be the focus since it is cheaper and more affordable than all other sources of energy so that people living in the rural areas could save a lot on energy.

She said the implementation of the policy will provide job opportunities for many rural dwellers.

She commended the government for the bold steps to adopt renewable energy and make energy more affordable.
Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia yesterday stressed the need for Ghana and Africa to build human capacity to develop strong economies.

During the 'Advancement Lectures' at the University of Cape Coast under the theme, 'Developing stronger economies for the African continent: the missing link,' the celebrated economist and former Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG) referred to a September 2017 UN Report titled, In School but Learning Nothing which contained some troubling observations, to buttress his position.

The report indicated that six out of 10 children and teenagers in the world fail to reach basic level of proficiency in learning while in Sub-Sahara Africa about 88 percent of children and teenagers enter adulthood without the proficiency in reading and comprehension.

In Mali, the number is said to be 93 percent while in Japan it has been pegged at just one percent.

Dr Bawumia insisted that we should worry about the quality of education of the future movers of the economy's productive capacity and possibilities frontier. We should worry about the quality of those we graduate and certify to go and teach our children.

That, he said, was because despite the massive growth in the tertiary education sub-sector since the early 2000s, the enrolment ratio in our tertiary education sector remains low compared to other African countries.

As a result, he noted that we are witnessing an increasing army of uneducated 15-25 year olds, with little to no skills of work and therefore unemployable.

For a country with nearly 20 percent of its population in this age group, Dr Bawumia said this group of young people represents a worrying undeveloped human productive capacity, and with time they could become 'our potential wasted assets.

Our approach to building a stronger economy must begin with the ambition and commitment to intensify the development of our human capabilities.

The recently introduced Free SHS policy signals government determination to ensure that the greatest number of our young people gain access to pre-university education,

We cannot advance in technological innovation, we cannot take advantage of technology transfer and adoption, and we cannot nurture entrepreneurial skills without an inclusive access to education.

Education for all is imperative in a world of rapid technological innovations. It is inconceivable that children should be denied access to education at the early age of 12 simply because of their financial circumstances. Enriching our human capital must begin early if the young are to develop their skills of work, gain knowledge and deepen their thinking and creative skills for enterprise and innovations, he emphasised.

In line with this, he said government has decided to restore allowances of trainee teachers and nurses in October and November this year, saying we are not only providing access, but in line with Sustainable Development Goals (SDG goals) number four and five, we are also emphasizing quality education and gender equality.

In the long run, building the human capacity in this way, nurturing creative minds is the first step to building a generation of innovative entrepreneurs and problem solvers in all aspects of our life, including how we manage our natural resources.

By Charles Takyi-Boadu, Presidential Correspondent
Thousands of residents of Kumasi could not go to work yesterday after an early morning heavy downpour flooded most parts of the Ashanti Regional capital.

The rains started at about 5:00 am when some of the residents, notably workers, were preparing to go to their various workplaces.

But the downpour continued to about 11:00 am before it stopped, making it impossible for the residents to go to work.

Roads Blocked

Some of them defied the rains and left their houses with intent to go to work.

But unfortunately for those people, they could not travel to their workplaces, as they were impeded by flood waters that had submerged bridges in the city.

People were seen standing in awe as they watched the water level rise by the minute.

The worst affected areas included a bridge that links Ahodwo to Daaban and Adiembra to the Nhyiaeso Road  all residential areas.

The Santase highway, which is a busy road that links Kumasi to the mining city of Obuasi, was for the first time seen flooded, showing the intensity of the downpour.

The Airport Roundabout to the Manhyia Road was also submerged as usual and a bridge at TUC also got flooded.

Houses Submerged

As expected, all the flood-prone areas in the city such as Atonsu, Aboabo, Abuakwa, Sepease, Buokrom and Airport Roundabout, among others, got flooded.

Most of the houses were filled with rainwater, which destroyed valuable appliances of the affected people.

People who reside in the aforementioned areas could not even come out of their rooms, as they feared that they could be washed away by the floodwaters.

Mayor's Visit

The Kumasi Mayor, Osei Assibey Antwi, visited the flooded areas as early as 6:00 am to get first-hand information.

He was accompanied by the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) officials and other gurus of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA), ostensibly to strategize to avert its reoccurrence.

Mr Osei Assibey Antwi, who took the flood issue very seriously, did not go to his office as he spent the entire day visiting all the affected areas.

The massive flooding of the city could be attributed to the construction of buildings at unapproved areas.
A 45-year-old man is currently battling for his life at the Ridge Hospital following an attack by two heavily-built men for allegedly chasing a married woman.

Emmanuel Nanor, aka Awokye, according to reports, had his scrotum chopped off with a knife by the men in his own house at Nsakina, near Amasaman in the Ga West Municipality of the Greater Accra Region.

One person has been arrested in connection with the crime by the Amasaman Police.

The arrested person, identified as Robert Otoo, 49, according to eyewitnesses, allegedly hired the two 'macho men' to cut the organ of the victim for having a sexual relationship with his wife.

Eyewitness account indicated that the victim was in his uncompleted self-contained apartment last Thursday morning when he heard somebody knocking at his door.

Awokye, father of five, according to reports, opened the door and the two men entered the room to attack him.

They told him that one Robert Otoo, a neighbour, had sent them to come and kill him for having sexual relations with his wife.

The two immediately grabbed Awokye and undressed him, according to reports.

One of the men was said to have removed a knife from his pocket and slashed off the victim's scrotum.

The men then left him to his fate and bolted.

The Accra Regional Police Public Relations Officer (PRO), ASP Effia Tenge, who further briefed the paper, said at about 10:30 on Thursday, some of the neighbours transported the victim in a taxi to the police station to report the matter.

When they got to the police station, the victim could not get out of the vehicle as he was bleeding profusely and so the police immediately rushed him to the Ridge Hospital for medical treatment.

Detectives were immediately dispatched to the house of the victim to pick the chopped organ to see if it could be of use to doctors attending to the patient.

The house of the said Robert Otoo was visited by the detectives but he was not in.

His wife was also not available and so a message was left for him to report at the station.

Later Mr. Otoo reported himself at the station and was detained pending further investigations.

In his caution statement, the suspect denied the allegation, adding that he had not sent anybody to attack the victim.

The police are yet to get in touch with the woman at the centre of the matter to answer some questions.

Meanwhile, the victim, DAILY GUIDE gathered, is a divorce and lives only with his five children.

Information gathered indicated that sometime this year, when Mr Otoo detected that his wife constantly visited Awotse, he allegedly came to the house to personally warn the victim to stay away from the wife.

According to neighbours, Mr Otoo, who has only one child with the wife, but has been having marital issues, warned his wife to stay away from the victim, but neighbours said the woman kept sneaking into the room of Awotse anytime her husband was away until the unfortunate incident occurred last Thursday.

Meanwhile, Awotse, the paper gathered, has denied having any sexual affair with the said woman.

Even though the victim has confessed to the police that the woman visited him, he said there was no sexual relation between them.

The matter is still being investigated by the Amasaman Police.

Linda Tenyah-Ayettey

([email protected])
THE ELECTIONS Dispute Adjudication Committee (EDAC) of the Ghana Journalists' Association (GJA) has dismissed the petition of two New Times Corporation employees.

The petitioners were praying the committee to intervene because they claimed they were both denied the opportunity to vote in the recently held GJA elections in which incumbent President, Affail Monney, floored his closest contender, Llyod Evans.

According to them, they are both paid members of the GJA but were denied the opportunity to vote during the elections held on 29th September, 2017.

GJA, it would be recalled, had refused to allow some aspirants to contest in the elections on the excuse that they were not in good-standing.

The elections, which were initially slated for March this year, had to be postponed severally as some aggrieved members filed a legal suit to challenge their disqualifications from the race.

The EDAC, having considered these petitions, dismissed them stating that one of the petitions hadn't been signed and as such, was dismissed accordingly for the procedural flaw.

The second petition was dismissed because in the wisdom of the members of the committee, one could not appeal or protest the omission of his or her name after the elections have been held. They stated that the appropriate thing to have been done was to alert the elections committee of this omission before the elections were held.

We concluded that an appeal or protest in relation to the omission of one's name or otherwise from the GJA elections voters' list ought to have been brought to the attention of the GJA's election committee in line with Article 43 of the GJA constitution before the elections, the committee proffered

The committee, chaired by Yaw Boadu-Ayeboafoh, dismissed the second petition, describing it as procedurally flawed.
Acting President of Nkusukum Traditional Area and Chief of Kuntu, Nana Kwesi Brebo III, has appealed to government to build a political museum at Saltpond in order to recognise the efforts of the founding fathers of the country.

Nana Brebo III holds the view that the initiative will provide ambient medium to celebrate founding father(s) of the country.

For him, the historical artefact will preserve the nation's history as well as clear the ambiguities surrounding the founding fathers of the country.

He made the call during a visit by the Central Regional Minister, Kwamena Duncan, to the Chiefs of Mfantseman in the Central Region on Friday, October 6 2017.

Class News Maxwell Attah reported that chiefs of Nkusukum Traditional Area also want government to consider building a Caustic Soda factory at Saltpond as part of the OneDistrict, One-Factory initiative.

On his part, the Regional Minister said government will consider the proposal of the political museum to boost tourism in the region.

Saltpond is the historical town in the Central Region where most of Ghanas political activities started.

The town housed the secretariat of the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) in the 1940s.
The Director General of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (Ghapoha), Mr. Paul Ansah, has received a life time achievement award from Humanity Magazine International for his contribution in introducing efficiency in the management of the countrys ports within a short time.

The Humanity Magazine International campaigns for the promotion of corporate investments and businesses to ensure employment creation to benefit the youthful citizens of Africa. The magazine also aims at promoting quality leadership by recognising the achievements of managers of private and public institutions to serve as a shining example for other managers and companies or institutions to emulate.

A citation presented to Mr. Ansah by the CEO of HMI, Mr. Yahaya Alhassan, at a ceremony at Tema read in part We call on Ghanaians to join us in thanking Mr. Paul Ansah, for reshaping and re-branding Ghapoha, not only to attract investors but ensure hustle free business environment. Through your leadership a paperless system was implemented within four days to enhance efficiency.

Mr. Alhassan described Mr. Ansah as a doyen in ports management, who has brought his rich experience in the industry to bear, after just short stay in the seat of the Ghapoha seat.

He said Ghana being the gate-way to West Africa and an oasis of peace and stability, it is the duty of every Ghanaian to join in the campaign of making ports the number one destination in Africa.
Again another psychotic madman strikes killing over 50 people and injuring more than 500 in the Land of the Free and Home of the Brave. Never a day goes by in America that there isnt a homicide caused as the result of a gun in the hands of an irresponsible person.

A gun is not a toy  it kills people and currently more than 300 million Americans  a third of the population- own them.

While some are calling for the control of guns others are clamouring for them: they claim the Second Amendment gives them the right to own guns to protect themselves. The powerful National Rifle Association, for instance, has lobbied every President in recent years against gun control. Owning a gun is like a birth right to many: theyll claim people in the family have owned guns for generations and they intend to carry on the tradition. Perhaps, but in the past people used guns for hunting and not to turn into Rambo wiping out scores of people!

Again protecting themselves from what? If there wasnt a proliferation of readily available guns, in the first place, they wouldnt need to protect themselves with such weapons.

Buying a gun is easy. All you need is two forms of identification and in some states you can legally own a firearm before you are old enough to drive a car, buy alcohol or even have sex! Only preliminary checks are made when a person buys a firearm: checking to see if they have a registered address and no outstanding warrants. No checks are made to see if theyre psychologically sane, enough, to carry a firearm or whether they belong to any far-right or terrorist organisation  you have the money, you can buy a gun!

Even though there are limitations on the kinds of firearms you can purchase, people have devised ways of converting single shot guns, for example, into fully automatics; that is to say a rifle that can fire one bullet per squeeze of the trigger can be converted to pump out over 500 bullets per minute, just like the Las Vegas shooter converted his guns to do with the help of a simple device called bump stocks. While there are a lot of gunsmiths wholl readily convert, illegally, a gun for a fee, conversion kits are widely available online even through websites owned by Walmart!

Hollywood also has to share in the blame for promoting the gun culture in America. Every year dozens of action packed films are released that glamourizes the gun culture. All it takes is for a demented fantasist to pick up a gun in an attempt to try and recreate his favourite actors murderous killing spree and this has happened before where people have imagined( - probably after taking a cocktail of drugs and alcohol!) they are Neo from The Matrix or Rambo and have gone on killing sprees.

Gun crime used to be the sole reserve of hoodlums and gangsters: this has now spread to include anyone who has a gun and can become unhinged and go on the rampage. The Las Vegas shooter has been described as a quiet millionaire with no criminal record who just suddenly lost the plot.

Some people get overwhelmed by the power of owning a gun: theyve suddenly got the power of life and death over somebody in their hands and cant wait to use it  one of the reasons young Americans kill each other indiscriminately, theyve got the power to do it and will likely shoot first without thinking about the consequences of their actions.

A lot has been said about gun control in America. In the wake of the Las Vegas shooting more will be said but nothing will be done: the President will go on TV to condemn the killings and offer his condolences to the bereaved and the people will bury and mourn the dead until the next time. And there will be a next time and another next time ad infinitum until all the guns are taken off the people. Perhaps its time to repeal the Second Amendment which allows people to freely buy guns as suggested by Michael Moore, the US filmmaker.

Firearms ownership should be limited to the security services who need them to maintain law and order: when you have a third of the population running around with firearms it complicates things; everybody becomes a potential target as everybody is a potential murderer.

You cant have your cake and eat it: if Americans want to carry guns, people will die  sometimes en masse!

Perhaps President Trump should do more to control guns in America and home-grown terrorists instead of banning every Muslim terrorist coming into the country.

Follow me on Twitter: @Archangel641 or visit http://www.archangel641.blogspot.co.uk
This appeared in Fridays Washington Post.

House Republicans have said they might be open to legislation that would ban the type of firearm accessory that enabled the Las Vegas killer to fire his semiautomatic rifles as rapidly as machine guns. Given Congresss decades-long refusal to adopt any type of gun control, any step in the right direction probably should be encouraged. But lawmakers are kidding themselves  and not serving the public interest  if they think this gesture is enough to stem the weapons that make the United States an outlier for gun violence.

The revelation that the man responsible for Sundays massacre of at least 58 people used bump stocks to transform his weapons prompted Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., to revive a push to ban the devices. House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., both said Thursday that lawmakers will consider the measure. Even the National Rifle Association acknowledged the devices should be subject to regulation. Automatic weapons are illegal or heavily restricted, so how does it make sense to allow a device the main purpose of which is to circumvent those rules?

But an even better question is why focus solely on bump stocks  a goofy little doodad, in the words of a former firearms official  while ignoring the danger posed when people are allowed to purchase and possess assault-style weapons that were designed for war, with the capacity to kill in large numbers. Citing the rising number of mass shootings as a serious public health issue, the American College of Physicians on Monday called for a ban on automatic and semiautomatic weapons.

Little wonder that doctors would be opposed to these weapons; they know better than anyone the devastation to human flesh and bones. If youre struck in the liver with an AR-15, it would be like dropping a watermelon onto the cement. It just is disintegrated, Denver Health trauma surgeon Ernest Moore told Post reporters who interviewed Las Vegas medical personnel who were rattled by battlefield-type wounds.

Its little wonder that assault-style rifles have emerged as a weapon of choice for mass shooters. Not only are they capable of firing many rounds of ammunition in a relatively short period of time, but a shooter doesnt have to be particularly adept to do great damage. Semiautomatic guns were used in the slaughter of schoolchildren at Sandy Hook Elementary School, at the cinema in Aurora, Colo., and at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida. Assault weapons were outlawed in 1994, but the ban expired in 2004, and Congress opted not to renew it. That Feinstein narrowly tailored her bill to something even the national gun lobby wont oppose suggests there is still not the political will to get these weapons off the streets or to explore other possible solutions.

When House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., was asked if the bill banning bump stocks might be a slippery slope toward other gun restrictions, she answered, I certainly hope so. To which we say, amen.
Police in Wassa Akropong in the Amenfi East District of the Western Region are facing a tough time protecting some Chinese nationals, one of whom is alleged to have shot dead a local on Friday.

A reporter with a local radio station, Rivers FM, Mathew Mensah, told Joy News Saturday the security situation in the area is chaotic.

The youth are here in their numbers, about 100 of them. The security personnel are here to convey the Chinese people to Tarkwa, but the youth are saying no.

"They say the police should hand over the Chinese to them so they will also give it them as they gave it the Ghanaian, he narrates.

The youth on Friday went on a rampage, setting at least 25 vehicles, said to belong to Chinese nationals on fire.

They also vandalised the casino building where the alleged shooter works, forcing a joint Police and Military team to be deployed to the area.

The incident happened after a resident, Nana Buah, was shot dead by the Chinese national who is also resident in the area.

Mathew told Joy News that information his radio station has indicated that the Chinese hired a local hand for a job, however, although the labourer had charged GH150 as fee, he was paid GH100 after completing the job, sparking a war of words between the unnamed Chinese man and the labourer.

The verbal fight continued until the Chinese man pulled a gun and started firing shots. Nana Buah, who is a friend to the labourer, and had been waiting for his friend, was hit by one these random shots fired by the Chinese.

Police on Friday conveyed some of the Chinese who had been hiding in the casino building -- and where the youth have massed up for the reprisal -- to Tarkwa, a city close to Wassa Akropong.

Joy News' Francis Wadja also reports that but for the intervention of the Police, Chinese woman would have been lynched o Saturday morning,

Police say they will provide round-the-clock protection to other Chinese in the area until the chaos settles down.

Francis Wadja reports Saturday that Western Region Police Commander, DCOP Kwesi Duku, has arrived in the area to calm tensions.
Tripoli (AFP) - The remains have been found of 21 Coptic Christians beheaded by jihadists on a Libyan beach two years ago, an interior ministry unit announced on Saturday.

"The heads are separated from the bodies clad in orange jumpsuits, hands bound behind the back with plastic wire," said the ministry's centre for fighting organised crime in the city of Misrata.

It said the bodies of 20 Egyptians and a man of unknown African nationality were unearthed from a mass grave south of the one-time jihadist bastion of Sirte, 450 kilometres (280 miles) east of Tripoli.

Friday's find came after confessions by Islamic State group jihadists being held prisoner, it said in a statement, adding that the remains had been transferred to Misrata for forensic examination.

The unit, which answers to the interior ministry of Libya's internationally recognised Government of National Accord, did not give a date for the possible repatriation of the remains for family burials.

IS posted a video on the internet in February 2015 of the gruesome beheadings, sparking international condemnation and Egyptian air strikes against jihadist targets in Libya.
Since January 7, 2017, when President Nana Akufo Addo delivered his speech after being sworn-in as President of this Republic; and his address of March 6, 2017, I have not felt the Ghanaianness in me until I settled to do this piece.

I have observed with much discomfort, some political stalwarts within the Danquah-Busia-Dombo tradition, following the two speeches of the President, who are seeking to undo the political stature of the Osagyefo, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, Founder and first President of the Republic of Ghana, and a towering iconic Pan Africanist.

This is the agenda H.E. Nana Akufo has set for his subordinate members of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to work on. What the President finally did to put this country into a needless intellectual confrontation was when he chose August 4, to be legislatively passed as Ghana Founders Day.

The pride in me as a Ghanaian, diminished  and shame stood in its stead I heard him say so. It worsened when a whole Professor in political science chose to discard intellectual objectivity in reasoning, to elevate academic hypocrisy. Is this what the Osagyefo classified as the educated illiterates?

Looking at Ghana today, it saddens me  and rather unfortunate that at age SIXTY (60) a nation state can still dwell on what pulled us back in our decades' journey of retrogression; we still find comfort in this advanced age of nothingness, to still peddle pettiness and absurd engagements.

Why should a nation at age 60, engage ourselves as to  who foundered GHANA? Is it the Osagyefo, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, or the entire Big Six who have had their place of honour in the history books of Ghana and the British archives?

This is what the current political leadership want Ghanaians to engage ourselves in an endeavour that will not bring industrialization or economic emancipation to this country. The sustained agenda by the Danquah-Busia-Dombo tradition to run down the outstanding stature of the Osagyefo, so far has not seen them make any progress. It is worth recalling [email protected], and specifically on 6th March, 2007, when the then African Union (AU), Imminent Personality, Alfa Konare delivered his speech at the Independence Square.

When he began by eulogizing the Osagyefo, and about ten to fifteen minutes into his speech, Ghana Television went dead and not to come back until he ended his speech. That is a former Malian President who valued what Kwame Nkrumah did  not only for Ghana, but Africa as a whole.

The Danquah-Busia-Dombo (they are now gradually whipping out the names of Dr. Kofi Abrefa Busia and Dombo) tradition have made it a project each time they find themselves in political leadership to dwarf the Osagyefo in their elevation and glorification of J.B. Danquah.

It is, however, consoling that the more they try to 'bury' the name of Nkrumah, the more they fail and his stature, even in death  stands taller than the personality J.B. Danquah they have been projecting. The agenda of the sitting President is not honour the Big Six  but his uncle

Truth be told, that the history of the man (so-projected) is limited to the political corridors of Ghana, only  not even our closest neighbours; Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast and Togo, can one hear of the man J.B. Danquah. That of Kwame Nkrumah goes even beyond the African Continent in which he is much revered, as well as his global iconic appeal/acceptance.

Those who are advocating for Founders' instead of Founder's Day can go ahead to do so. But they should do well to go to the African Union Headquarters in Addis Ababa and take off the imposing statue at the forecourt of its Headquarters.

September 21, was already declared Founders Day when the Osagyefo was in the political leadership of Ghana. It was taken off when he was overthrown by the military junta on February 24, 1966.

However, it took a whole continental body, the African Union, to recognize to contribution of the Osagyefo, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, to the liberation struggle of Africa  hence the honour of his birthday, September 21 each year to be continentally observed as AFRICA DAY.

A positive-thinking citizenry of a country would have been so proud to have such an illustrious personality being their own  but not in Ghana. And it is the very negative posturing that has 'inured' to our BACKWARDNESS, which we have refused to learn lessons  but keep threading the path of total destruction (apologies to the legendry Bob Marley).

We have chosen to rather bring the negatives of the 1950s and 1960s of the 20th to the 21st Century. And we feel no shame to be referring to our failures as against the now advanced economies of Malaysia, South Korea, Singapore and others.

If we decide to remain static in thinking retrogressively just as the current needless and useless antagonisms over Founder's/Founders' Day politics, we will remain where we have been, and are now  whereas the Osagyefo is taking his eternal rest but still GIGANTIC in international physical politics both in research undertakings, and Pan African activism in this generation and generations to come.

We have taken this path of destruction to the extent that constituting anniversary Planning Committee which is supposed to be of national blend, has been made a wholly New Patriotic Party (NPP) affair. The [email protected] celebration was also made a single political party affair, just as the National Democratic Congress (NDC) did when [email protected] was celebrated in 1997, during its reign in government. Celebrating Ghana's independence must be a unifying occasion and, therefore, should have the various political parties and other stakeholders participating in the planning of such events.

OSAGYEFOS GLOBAL STATURE

Due to the masquerading agenda by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) of the Danquah-Busia-Dombo tradition to destroy anything which has something to do with Nkrumahs name, I have no alternative than to re-enforce the stature of the Osagyefo, Dr.Kwame Nkrumah and his global appeal.

Understandably, the Danquah-Busia-Dombo-set agenda to diminish his name must be given place in the negative pages of history  because they have been so-established even before and after independence, and achieved their destructive aims in the February 24, 1966 violent overthrow of his government.

After the retrogressive move by the junta led by Col. Emmanuel Kotoka, tacitly supported by the Agents of Doom (Danquah-Busia-Dombo) and remotely controlled by the Western Aggressor-Powers, Ghana has never had its best breath again. They succeeded in undoing Ghana, under the honest leadership of the Osagyefo, and as the path-finder to her economic/industrialization agenda, which vision was to be extended to the whole Continent of Africa  after political liberation.

The Agents of Doom did not stop at that. They took a step further to destroy anything Nkrumah. The effort at industrializing Ghana was effectively truncated in an effort to erase the name Nkrumah.

However, as a compatriot once said, that Gods signature  no eraser, and to wit whatever God has destined man  no one can change. The above proves why they could not change the course of history when immediately after the coup that overthrew him; President Gnasingbe Eyadema of Togo visited Ghana, and what happened gave meaning to it.

The illegal governors of the country at the time, shamelessly drove him round projects that were planned and executed by the Osagyefo  and especially the Tema-Motorway and all the way to the Akosombo Hydro Electricity Dam (which is the biggest man-made lake) with the adjoining modern city. Surprised at what he saw, Eyadema asked, Who did all this? Everything they looked at, they had to reply that Kwame Nkrumah did it. Eyadema then asked, Why then did you do this coup? There was no need for this coup!

The source of this reference, Kwame Nkrumah; The Conakry Years: His Life And Letters; stated further that relations became instantly strained and a state dinner arranged in his honour later that day was cancelled and he returned to Togo earlier than scheduled.

In an attempt to placate Eyadema, the leader of the so-called National Liberation Council (NLC), Col. Kotoka, paid him a visit in Lome, and for whatever reasons was shot and Killed on his return at the only International Airport in Ghana which has been named after him  a traitor? Such was the stature of the Osagyefo, to the extent that an adversary of the like of Eyadema could not hide his admiration for the achievements of the man so vilified by a handful of his countrymen.

These detractors who did not only slow the wheels of progress but almost stopped it all together  even went further to ban every available literature material of the Osagyefo, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah. That is understandable, because one of the reasons the Western powers had against him which led them to sponsor his overthrow was that  Nkrumah was making the African  POLITICALLY CONSCIOUS. It was through his writings/speeches  and to them, that was a huge political crime to have been committed by a personality of the sort.

And they did then, succeed in making the African and particularly the Ghanaian  POLITICALLY UNCONSCIOUS.

But, whereas the flame was put off in Ghana, the African flame of liberation he lit was held aloft across the Continent. He so much believed in the African Liberation agenda to the extent that after his overthrow, that conviction was never destabilized in his thinking, for as he once stated, I gave them (Ghanaians) their freedom and built the country up for them. If they want to throw it away, it is their affair. There are two reasons why I must go back  African unity and socialism.

Just before his overthrow, his then Private Secretary, Erica Powell in her book Private Secretary (Female)/Gold Coast, posits that he once confided in her shortly before his overthrow, that he was contemplating resigning from the Ghanaian political landscape to concentrate on the African liberation struggle. That is how he thought out of the Ghanaian box to the outer horizon of the Continental Political Emancipation. However, his vowed enemies then and now, have refused to accept this naked fact that political activism which built him that stature did not emerge from his involvement in Ghanaian politics. Ghana  is a very narrow aspect of his political life.

The natural heat of in-born Pan African orientation in the Osagyefo, was, and is what make him an outstanding global figure. At the time of his deposition, the Black Militants of BLACK POWER in the United States of America, had this to say about him when they advocated for him to be made President of Howard University. Despite his fall from [political] power, Nkrumah is still a popular figure among American men, there has been no diminution in his PRESTIGE (my emphasis). It was his tenacity, his courage and indefatigable labour that ushered in a new era of freedom and independence in Africa They went further to emphasize that Nkrumah is more of a SCHOLAR-PATRIOT (mine) than a politician Sourced from Chicago Daily Defender of June 14-20, 1969 from the same diary of his The Conakry Years

The selflessness of the towering figure of the Osagyefo, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah in his Pan Africanist activism which later led to his discovery by the then political movement in the Gold Coast, the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC), cannot be wished away. Way back in his struggling student days in the United States of America (USA) and United Kingdom (UK), he had the vision of organizing Africans in the diaspora as an effective weapon in the future fight for the Continents liberation. This vision led him to, even though a student at the time, struggle and make savings which enabled him purchase a building for African Students in the United Kingdom and named after his mother, which later came to be known as the Centre of African Students Activities in Europe.

This is what the Pan African Students in the Americas drew his attention to when they were inviting him after his overthrow, to grace its Annual Conference in Los Angeles, California, on August 24  27, 1966. It is worth capturing in parts what the Organization put on paper to the Osagyefo. It goes:

The members of the Pan African Students Organization in the Americas are holding their Annual Conference in Los Angeles, California, on August 24 through 27th, 1966. This is the highest council of African Students in this country.

The main objective is to arouse consciousness among African Students to the idea of African Unity. Consequently, the theme for this years conference is In Search of an African Ideology.

Osagyefo The President, it is the general opinion of the student body in this country, and I dare say Africans and people of African descent everywhere, that you are the most dedicated champion of African liberation, progress and unity, no matter the events, as history will definitely prove [and history has indeed proved].

With your permission, Osagyefo, I would remind you of how much you struggled to form this very organization while you were a student in this country three decades ago. This is the same organization with only a change of name. We therefore attach a deep sentimental value to your presence at this conference.

Osagyefo The President Sir, we are well aware of the contribution you have made especially the purchase of a complete building for African Students in the United Kingdom and named after your beloved mother, Madam Nyaniba, and this has come to be the centre of African Students Activities in Europe. Despite recent events, the record is still there.

Again we are aware of the pressure of work on you at this time, but we still consider your presence essential. We take this opportunity to thank you for your kind gesture in our last conference (emphasis owned but sourced from Kwame Nkrumah; The Conakry Years).

Thus far did the Osagyefo, in his advancing youthful years, aspire with zeal and passion in his Pan Africanist vision/activism in the desire then  to see a liberated and United Africa as the concluding project of the Continents road to progress. This is the man who was, and is so vilified in this country called Ghana, which he sweated to bring her name to the top of the global arena when it comes to geo-politics in Africa  so far as the black race is concerned.

It is comforting however, that his Socialist inclination that has always been the target of condemnation, sank well into the thinking and beliefs of the sitting President, H.E. Nana Addo-Danquah Akufo Addo, who is the current leader of the Danquah-Busia-Dombo tradition. He was so-consumed in the Socialist beliefs of the Osagyefo until the great mans overthrow when he was sought for to be arrested. That was the point of conversion when his fathers influence was brought to bear for him not be arrested.

Thankfully also, his vice, H.E. Dr. Mahamadu Bawumya, has the Nkrumaist concentrated blood in him until he was poached by the tradition under reference in 2008. The pretentious masks have been worn by the two for us to see. And I want to believe that all the negative propaganda being waged by them, on the Osagyefos image and stature is a matter of pleasing the God Fathers of the tradition, both dead and alive, and not coming from the bottom of their hearts.

LOCAL LIES OF CONVENIENCE AND WESTERN HYPPOCRISY

In order to inform the sub-younger of my generation who may have read bits of literature about the Osagyefo, albeit, lies  I wish to throw more light in this direction, as well as expose the hypocrisy of the West when it comes to geo-global politics of the Third World  and especially Africa.

When the Convention Peoples Party (CPP) government led by the Osagyefo was overthrown by the close/remotely controlled uninformed military/police officers, an agenda was put in place as stated elsewhere earlier, to undo whatever was achieved over a short span of his reign.

He was accused of all kinds of rights abuse, and especially the undertaking of TERRORIST ACTIVITIES which led to the introduction of the Preventive Detention Act (PDA). To this, the detractors said he had introduced the rule of fear in the country  making it insecure for the citizenry to go about their businesses.

As these accusations were on-going with their Western Media Propagandists led by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)  they conveniently failed to use the same media to let the international community know what occasioned the introduction of the PDA. The Propagandists never-ever, conveniently tell the world what the Osagyefo and his government went through. They intentionally failed to accurately report on the occasionally well-planned acts of TERRORISM which were tele-guided by one of the then opposition which was led by one of the opposition leaders, Obetsebi Lamptey  after their main leader, J.B. Danquah was detained on traces of similar influences of TERRORIST acts. In all those dastardly acts, many Ghanaians lost their lives as many others were partially/permanently maimed.

They finally succeeded through the coup to get Nkrumah out of the way  and ruined this country from the progress made. BUT  as the saying has it, that one reaps what one sows, so did it happen to the then Danquah-Busia-Dombo tradition. For after their covert/overt activities which gave birth to the coup of February 24, 1966, they became beneficiary-technocrats for the junta which, in preparation for one of them to lead this country  appointed Dr. Kofi Abrefa (K.A) Busia, Commissioner for Civic Education.

An offshoot of the tradition, the United Party was led by the same Dr. K.A. Busia who later won the general election of 1969 to become the Prime Minister of this republic, with the current sitting Presidents father, Edward Akufo Addo becoming the ceremonial President. But this is a political tradition that prides itself as strict adherents of the so-called rule of law who benefitted from acts of miss-rule of law. The same adherents saw it as part of democratic practice to have been comfortable  banning the CPP from contesting that elections, and detained functionaries of the Party.

Why did they choose to thread this path of denying the right of the CPP to contest the election if Nkrumahs Party used dictatorial tendencies to continue winning at the polls  now that the man was no longer in the scene? Was their act in itself an admission that the man used his grass-root connection with the masses to continuously win elections  and that even in his absence the CPP would have gone ahead to win the elections had it been allowed to contest? And these are the self-acclaimed and trumpeted democrats?

They were, and are the so-called protagonists of the rule of law who masterminded the overthrow of a legitimately elected government of Ghana under the CPP of Kwame Nkrumah. After having contradicted themselves by influencing his deposition  the Busia government was also kicked off by the Col. I.K. Acheampongs coup of January 13, 1972.

For whatever reasons, and even though Col. Acheampong fell short of mentioning names, this is what he said on January 13, 1973, his first anniversary celebration which was taken as an insinuation at Dr. Busia. He said; The unity we desire and which we must struggle [to achieve], is not the unity of one region, not the unity of one tribe, nor the unity of one clan, but the unity of our whole country. The indivisible, unchangeable unity of Ghana

We know that prior to our independence, the Danquah group believed in a federal system of governance as against the unitary system espoused and later won by Nkrumah. The Busia government, though could not change the status quo, the homogeneous system in which the country was governed drastically changed.

He was also accused for introducing a Socialist/Communist economy which was not good for the country without private sector participation. This was another gargantuan lie which was told by the junta and their academic/intellectual crooks who conveniently chose to lower their academic laurels into the gutters of crude politics.

Kwame Nkrumah was never against private capital investment in the Ghanaian economy. On March 24, 1963, Kwame Nkrumah is on record to have hosted foreign entrepreneurs to Ghana at a Civic luncheon and assured them of an enabling business environment for them to tap into.

At a dinner with some business men in the country on February 22, 1963, the then President had this and said to them: The government will continue to encourage private investors to establish and operate in Ghana. Our government has no plans whatsoever to take over industries in the private sector; its neither its wish to do so nor its aim or policy. When private investors enter into fields where state enterprises operate, they will compete on absolutely equal terms without discrimination.

As I have said earlier, our idea of Socialism can co-exist with private enterprise. I also believe that private capital and private investment capital in particular, has a recognized and legitimate part to play in Ghanas economic development. We are consistent in these ideas. I have never made any secret of my faith in Socialist principles, but I have always tried to make it quite clear that Ghanas Socialism is not incompatible with the existence and growth of a vigorous private sector in the economy.

From the above, where is the justification of tagging him an anti-private business advocate? It is however, understandable  that the now Danquah Tradition (DT), aside the Danquah Institute (DI) which has effectively succeeded in exorcising Dr. K.A. Busia and Dombo from the trio in order to glorify their Numero Uno, must do well to get the Osagyefo out of their way. It will never happen.

It will not happen because he himself (Danquah), in his living days and in one of their engagements with some Gold Coasters at the time, is referred to have assured them that even if they fail them  Kwame Nkrumah will not fail them. And, indeed they failed them, but he (Nkrumah) did not fail them. It was they who influenced a failed state when and after they forced him out of government.

So, this conscious attempts to historically subordinate him to J.B. Danquah will go nowhere. It is their right, however, to advocate Danquah as the founder of modern Ghana. Equally, it is the right of Ghanaians and Africans and those of the diaspora to see him as the true FOUNDER of GHANA and FATHER OF AFRICAN PERSONALITY AND EMANCIPATION.

Now to the Western Hippocrates. As captured elsewhere in the fore-runner paragraphs of this write-up, the local traitors who caused his deposition, had the Western powers funding them as well as using their media to propagate the countless lies they said of him. They claimed he was a dictator who abused the rights of Ghanaians at will, by the introduction of his Socialist beliefs in the country, as well as being against private capital investment in the Ghanaian economy. At the top of all the accusations was that he had declared Ghana  a One Party State.

Hypocrisy is the most difficult and nerve-racking vice that any man can pursue; it needs an unceasing vigilance and a rare detachment of spirit. It cannot, like adulatory or gluttony, be practiced at spare moments; it is a whole-time job. British Novelist and Play Write W. Somerset Maughan (1874 - 1965).

Yes  hypocrisy is a whole-time consuming job, and when one misses a second of time in guarding it, one exposes oneself to ridicule. And that is how the Western media played out their acts of hypocrisy from the days of Nkrumah to date.

The One Party State Nkrumah adopted was the biggest crime of all the crimes they claimed he committed  and that was worth funding the coup. The West has never known what is called shame in their acts of hypocrisy  as emerged/emerging One Party states which has, and are still having the blessing of these same world powers.

Mobutu Sese Seko of then Zaire, Eyadema of Togo, Omar Bongo of Central African Republic Houphouet Boigny of Ivory Coast, Yoweri Museveni were, and are all moderate dictatorships that survived under the protection of these same Western Powers. They survived their decades of rule because they had agreed to do their biddings. This is Africa!

Every now and then, reference is always made of the Asian Tigers, some of which started their economic journey with Ghana in the late 1950s. However, those who easily make such comparisons by seeing this country as being backward, are not even ashamed whenever they make such statements.

Na who causam? The Danquah people listened and obeyed their Masters of DeceptonDestruction (MDD) who influenced the 1966 illegal take-over. That was the beginning of our economic fall-back  whereas Malaysia, South Korea and Singapore, and the rest of such moved on progressively to where they have reached.

Lee Kuan Yew, ruled Singapore just about the same time Kwame Nkrumah founded and began to rule this country. The West said he was a dictator and dictated his unlawful removal. The leader of Singapore led his country for several decades since 1960s to 2015, and despite his record of human rights abuses, the same hypocrites of the West saw him as a hero (which indeed he is).

His stature is immense A novelist and frequent critic, Catherine Lim said of Lee in an interview. This man is a statesman. He is probably too big for Singapore, on a level with Tito and de Gaulle. If they had Lee Kuan Yews in Africa, that continent wouldnt be in such a bad state

Ghana, and Africa  did have a Lee Kuan Yew, in the person of the Osagyefo, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah. He thought beyond Ghana  Lee, thought within Singapore. Lees own believe in Nkrumah as a continental personality was made known when he wrote to Nkrumah on March 11, 1966, upon his overthrow. This was what he said; I have taken two weeks to compose my thoughts to tell you how disturbed I was at the shocking news of what took place in Accra so soon after we last met.

I am sure you know that there are many people who wish Ghana and you all the best. The Ghanaians are a vigorous and lively people and they deserve all the vision and leadership which you strove to give them, to make Ghana into a strong modern part of Africa, whose unity you always espousedMay what you stand [for], a united Africa and a great Ghana [be realized].

Singapore is now a global giant in ship-building where we go for our FPSOs, whereas at the time of his dislodgement, Ghana had a shipyard for vessels repairs  a precursor to ship-building as then was the ambition.

Lee, ruled for several decades and transformed his Third to a First World economy  and he saw in Nkrumah, a bigger stature whose vision went beyond Ghana, to the entire African continent. But some of his own sons and daughters who claimed to have been educated do not see this in him. And all was driven by their parochial, narrow-mindedness, greed and selfishness that made them skew and circumvent the realities of his reign, to achieve what their imperialist masters (robbers) desired of them to do.

CONCLUSION

I wished progressive-minded Ghanaians/Africans treated the scheming of the Danquah-Busiaists with a well-deserved contempt  but I think we will be doing the younger generation of Ghanaians and Africans the world- over, an act of injustice if the lies are not reacted to. In concluding this long article therefore, I wish to state the following that but for his overthrow:

Ghana would have been a ship-building country way before the touted countries mentioned here

Ghana would have been a hundred percent literate state which would have driven the massive industrialization project he was so ambitious of achieving

Ghana would have had one of the best health delivery systems in Africa

Ghana would not have had her citizens travelling out of it to do degrading jobs outside for especially the American Dollar and the British Pound and

Ghana would have been a First World country as compared with her peers at the same period of independence.

If the Osagyefo, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah had not been overthrown, Africans would have:

emerged from their independence struggle earlier than they did, and would have been a truly United States of Africa, than what is happening now

The African High Command would have been in place thus preventing the numerous conflicts that is almost engulfing the continent

Famine, which frequently afflicts Africa would not have occurred since we would have been economically united to boast of a commonwealth of East, West, North and South Africa and

Africa, above all would have been a world power in all spheres of geo/political and economic considerations.

Finally, it is important to draw the attention of the Danquah-Dombo-Busiaists, (which is now Danquah Tradition) that in their quest to project J.B. Danquah in whatever way, they should be told that the Osagyefo, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah is not a limited liability to Ghana. He is a human resource asset to Ghana/Africa.

It is worth reminding them that one of the global media stations, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) which supported their course of destroying Nkrumah, ended in failure.

The BBC, for whatever reasons  and without promptings from Africans, chose to conduct a year-long opinion poll of Africans (NOT GHANAIANS) on who we think is the greatest personality of Africa of the past millennium. Nkrumahs name came up as indeed, the GREATEST, surpassing the then living icon, Nelson Mandela, who was recognized as the second most prominent personality.

That is the man, Osagyefo, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah; and the Danquah advocates for his greatness  ought to know, and know this very-very well.

Some well-meaning Ghanaians believed decades back, that KWAME NKRUMAH NEVER DIES  and truly he is dead but the name lives on, to the disdain and chagrin of the Danquah projectors. May the Osagyefo, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, and the Global Progressives forgive them for they know not what they do.

GHANA, indeed is my pride and my shame  and which direction are we drifting as a people?

Camillus Maalneriba-Tia Sakzeesi

c

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Maputo (AFP) - Suspected Islamists attacked a string of police stations in a small town in northern Mozambique killing two policemen but 14 of the gunmen were slain, police said on Saturday.

Police have been slow in releasing details of the attacks which occurred on Thursday and Friday in Mocimboa de Praia.

"We recorded 14 deaths and several bandits were wounded," police spokesman Inacio Dina told AFP.

Police said the attacks were coordinated.

Local media said three police stations in the sleepy town, 80 kilometres (50 miles) from natural gas fields, were targeted.

At a news conference on Thursday, Dina suggested the attackers were linked to a homegrown "radical Islamic sect" but gave no details.

Police have so far arrested 10 other gunmen, recovered four firearms and more than 100 rounds of ammunition.

"The motive of the attacks is still unknown but in the past police arrested some religious leaders of Islamic extremist sects," Dina said.

"The way they operated makes us believe that there is a structure behind the group," Dina told AFP, but ruled out any links "between the attackers and external forces".

"There is no evidence that they are members of Shabaab or Boko Haram. According to the information gathered, all those captured or killed are Mozambicans," said the police spokesman speaking from the capital Maputo.

A local journalist suggested on social media that the attackers belonged to the virtually unknown group, Swalissuna, which has been in existence for about five years.

"They have specific grievances with the police and aimed the attack at them," tweeted journalist and private media owner Erik Charas.

The attacks lasted two days, until the police dispatched special forces from Pemba, 500 kilometres away.

Armed clashes and assassinations of politicians are not uncommon in Mozambique.

On-and-off clashes have occurred in recent years between government troops and armed militias loyal to opposition party and former rebel movement Renamo.

But a truce unilaterally declared by Renamo in December has been observed with only minor breaches.
Harare (AFP) - Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe on Saturday warned some ministers will be axed in a shake-up of his cabinet amid deepening infighting in his Zanu-PF party over who succeeds him.

"I do my own review to assess who have not pulled up or lived up to expectations in government. In the process some will fall," he told youth league members at a meeting at the party's headquarters.

"So, that exercise I will be doing early next week."

Mugabe's announcement came amid escalating tension between rival factions jostling to succeed the 93-year-old -- including his lieutenants and his wife.

One of his two vice presidents, Phelekezela Mphoko, claimed his counterpart, Emmerson Mnangagwa, had lied about being poisoned at a party rally in August.

Mugabe's wife Grace then angrily accused Mnangagwa -- the frontrunner to replace the president -- of dishonesty, alleging that some unnamed people were plotting a coup if their candidate did not succeed him.

The president last reshuffled his cabinet in 2015 after firing allies of former vice president Joice Mujuru, who was dismissed over allegations of plotting to unseat him. Mujuru denied the charges.

Mugabe's 52-year-old wife is also seen as eyeing her husband's seat in the event of his death or retirement.

Despite his age and signs of frailty, Mugabe has avoided naming a successor, even after his wife pressed him to do so at a recent party meeting.

His party has endorsed him as its presidential candidate to face a coalition of opposition parties in general elections next year. Mugabe also called for unity and an end to public squabbles over his succession.

"If there are problems, let's discuss them," he said as his wife and both deputies sat flanking him.

"Insulting each other is a shame."
Professor James Anquandah

07.10.2017 LISTEN

One cannot be a good historian without making use of information

gathered from beneath the habitats of modern peoples by archaeologists.

These buried sources of information provide incontrovertible evidence of how men lived and died thousands or hundreds of years ago. They are scientifically verifiable, unlike many of the words that constitute the bulk of historical source material. For instance, documents can turn out to be forgeries or mistranslations of the original. Archaeological material, on the other hand, can be carbon-dated to remove all doubts about its authenticity.

Now, while one cannot be an archaeologist without also being a historian, one need not be an archaeologist to be a historian! (I suspect, therefore, that there must be a small element of 'tension' in relations between practitioners of the two professions. Professor James Anquandah, formerly of the Department of Archaeology, University of Ghana, would have loved to enlighten me on this odd relationship, for he had a very wicked sense of humour.

But alas, I won't be hearing from Jimmy about this academic love-hate relationship  for he's just passed, aged 79, leaving behind, his wife, Susan (with whom he had two children, one of whom predeceased him.)

Prof Anquandah's sad death occurred on 7 September 2017. He was buried, after a moving church service at Trinity United Church in Accra, on 7 October 2017.

Susan was married to Jimmy for some fifty years  I knew both of them at the very beginning of their love affair, and I cannot but wonder at the miracle that enabled their marriage to survive, in an age when other marriages were breaking down left and right around them.

It says much for the sweet nature of both man and wife that they stayed together for so long and thus became a by-word for love, trust and loyalty in marriage. How many of us can even imagine being blessed with such a relationship, let alone actually obtaining a partner who would enable one to experience such an unflinching togetherness?

The late 1950s, during which time I came across James Anquandah, were years of unabashed ambition -- and subsequent high achievement -- for many Ghanaians in our age group. I was 20 years old while Jimmy was 19, when we both gained employment at the Ghana Broadcasting System. I became a Reporter in the News Division in 1957 while Jimmy was appointed a Programmes Officer.(He was to return to GBC as a Senior TV Producer in the late 1970s).

The Ghana Broadcasting System, under its ex-BBC Director-General, James Millar, aspired towards quality, and so many bright young men and women were employed there  usually on vacation jobs or straight from secondary school after qualification, some to leave very soon for Universities either at home or abroad.

So while working at the GBS, I found myself meeting extremely interesting people, some of whom became lifelong friends. Two of the most vivacious were ex-Achimotans and I was so impressed with their intelligence that I courted their company assiduously.

One was the renowned novelist, Ayi Kwei Armah (who was employed as a radio News Reader) and the other was James Anquandah, who worked in Programmes.

From the very first day I met him, I found Anquandah to be extremely lovable. Small in stature but possessed of a huge intellect, he also seemed to ooze goodness of heart from behind the thick lenses of the glasses that he always wore. His smile was as broad as anything and I cannot say that I ever saw him angry, even though our discussions encompassed a lot of subjects from which much nonsense could  necessarily  not be divorced.

Anquandah would smile broadly, whilst demolishing one's argument with detached precision. It was a joy to be in his company and I relished being with him.

However, all too soon, the bright ex-Achimotans left me at the Ghana Broadcasting System, while they journeyed on in their quest for more knowledge. Jimmy Anquandah left for the University of Ghana, Legon, while Ayi Kwei Armah left for the US. I felt as if part of me had been cut off.

At the University of Ghana, Anquandah chose a field of study that was somewhat esoteric at both the University and Ghana at the time  Archaeology. Many thought his choice strange, for we imagined that archaeology involved nothing but hours of back-breaking digging. We didn't know about the sheer joy of having confirmed for one, the vague suspicions one had harboured about an ancient settlement that had existed at a particular site. Nor could we imagine the aesthetic pleasure to be derived from the handling of an ancient work of art just rescued from the obscurity in which it had lain for ages.

I still remember how excited Jimmy was to absorb the unusual knowledge he gleaned from experts about things buried under the soil of Ghana and elsewhere, that told the story of our ancestors more eloquently than the mere exposition of history through words cud do. He had some excellent lecturers over whose teaching he enthused. One name that was always on his lips was that of the pioneering head of the Archaeology Department at Legon, Dr Peter Shinnie.

Whilst Jimmy was at Legon, he introduced me to a number of his mates -- young brilliant students, whose hard work and ambition were to help them make a name for themselves in later life: one was Annan Cato (former Ghana High Commissioner to the UK and Secretary to the Cabinet); another was Chris Hesse (former Ghana High Commissioner to Zimbabwe); and a third was Joe Edusei (also an ex-diplomat).

Jimmy and I used to joyously yell: SOT!  very loudly indeed!  at each other, whenever we met. This naturally attracted notice everywhere and others soon joined in, so that we became a sort of Sot club! Even today, members of the group are wont to greet me with the sobriquet, no matter what exalted company we happen to be in.

James Robert Kwesi (JR!) Anquandah was born in Accra on 10 April 1938. He was fathered by a very nice and extremely humble teacher who, the first time Jimmy took me to see him, made me feel like a renowned film star, just because he had heard a story of mine broadcast on the radio. The elder Anquandah, it turned out, was an avid reader and an ardent listener to the radio. Jimmy no doubt owed his great sense of curiosity and his utter devotion to his calling, to this teacher father of his, who would never rest until very pupil under him fully understood what he had tried to teach him or her.

(To be continued)
Khartoum (AFP) - The top US envoy in Sudan said Saturday that conditions have to be "right" for holding talks with Khartoum on removing it from Washington's blacklist of state sponsors of "terrorism".

US charge d'affaires to Khartoum Steven Koutsis' remarks came a day after Washington ended its 20-year-old trade embargo on the east African country.

However, the US did not drop Sudan from the blacklist, a consistent demand by Khartoum in return for cooperating with US intelligence agencies in fighting "terrorism".

"This is something that both sides are keenly willing to discuss, but we have to be certain that conditions are right for discussions to remove (Sudan) from the list," Koutsis said at a press conference at the US mission in Khartoum.

"The government of Sudan knows fully well what it needs to do ... and we hope that those conditions will come soon," he said, without elaborating.

Later on Saturday, Sudan's Foreign Minister Ibrahim Ghandour said Khartoum faces a "paradox".

"We are the best country cooperating on countering terrorism and at the same time we are on the list of state sponsors of terrorism," Ghandour said in his first remarks since the trade embargo was dropped.

Ghandour, who led the Sudanese team negotiating the lifting of sanctions, said it was time to start talks for removing the country from the blacklist.

On Friday, Khartoum had expressed disappointment that this had not happened.

'Go to the big brother'

"Discussion on removing from the (list of) state sponsors of terror was not part of our engagement under the five-track plan," Koutsis said, referring to the five conditions that Washington had insisted that Khartoum meet in return for ending the trade embargo.

Khartoum insists that there is no reason for it to be on the blacklist as it has cooperated with US intelligence agencies in fighting terrorism in the region, a claim acknowledged even by the US State Department.

Sudanese officials say that being on this list along with Syria and Iran makes it difficult to seek foreign debt relief, which has been a factor in hampering the country's economic growth.

"If you want to talk to anyone, they will say 'go to the big brother'," said Ghandour.

"As a foreign minister I thought what can I do? So, if you open the doors with the United States, you open the doors with others."

'Legal impediments' lifted

Washington first imposed the sanctions in 1997 over Khartoum's alleged support for Islamist militant groups. Osama bin Laden, the slain Al-Qaeda founder, lived in Sudan between 1992 and 1996.

Following a significant improvement in relations, former US President Barack Obama eased the sanctions in January before leaving office with a view to lifting them completely after a six-month review.

But in July, President Donald Trump extended the review period to October 12. On Friday, his administration decided to lift the embargo permanently.

Koutsis said he expected increased interest from American companies on doing business in Sudan.

"But of course businesses will make business decisions based on entire level of risk involved, and they will be looking at other aspects of potential investment in Sudan," he said.

Washington's financial sanctions had put restrictions on international banking transactions, exchange of technology and spare parts. Combined with other cumbersome trade regulations, they hampered Sudan's economic growth.

Koutsis said that "legal impediments" that previously prevented such transactions have now been removed with the lifting of the embargo.
'The big truck is still on ...
- A group, the Adaka Boro Avengers, warns that it would launch attacks on Bonny, Nembe and Forcasdos trunk lines if NNPC GMD, Maikanti Baru, does not heed to its demands

- The militants accuse President Muhammadu Buhari of aggravating the fragile peace in the Niger Delta region

- Tanker drivers dismiss the allegations against NNPC GMD

A militant group in the Niger Delta region, Adaka Boro Avengers (ABA) has given the group managing director of the Nigerian National Petroleum corporation (NNPC), Maikanti Baru, a 14-day ultimatum to apologise for disrespecting the minister of state for petroleum resources, Dr Ibe Kachikwu and also, appointing only northerners into the oil firm.

READ ALSO: Forget about Biafra, fight for restructuring - Ohanaeze allegedly tells Igbos

The group warned that at the expiry of the ultimatum, it would launch attacks on Bonny, Nembe and Forcasdos trunk lines, The Sun reports.

The group in statement signed by its spokesman, General Edmos Ayayeibo, accused President Muhammadu Buhari of aggravating the fragile peace in the Niger Delta region.

It has come to our notice that president Muhammadu Buhari, and his All Progressives Congress-led administration doesnt care about the unity of Nigeria. We expected the number one citizen of this country to address the issues affecting every region of Nigeria on independence day, rather, he aggravated the relative peace in the various regions, especially in the Niger Delta," it said.

The ABA faulted the president for the manner in which he speaks to the country, saying he acts like Nigeria was still being ruled by a military regime.

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"We voted for him not to blame PDP, but to do what he was promising the people of Nigeria during his campaign, tagged Change.

All president Muhammadu Buharis subordinates and all his appointees are ruling the country as if we are in a military era

Nigerias oil sector doesnt belong to the Fulani alone. It belongs to every citizen in this country. The Nigeria unity has broken and the centre can not hold again," the group said.

Meanwhile, the Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD) branch of NUPENG has reacted to the leaked memo of the minister of state for petroleum, Dr Ibe Kachikwu, to President Buhari.

Kachikwu had accused the group managing director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr Maikanti Baru, of awarding contracts worth over $26 billion without the NNPC board approval which he (Kachikwu) chairs.

The memo dated August 30, also accused Dr Baru of excluding Kachikwu and the board of the NNPC in the management of the corporation.

But the tanker drivers dismissed the allegation and described it as diversionary and deeply political.

The national chairman of PTD, Comrade Salmon Oladiti, in a statement sent to Legit.ng on Friday, October 6, warned against unnecessary politicization and promotion of certain entrenched interests in the oil industry, both in the upstream and downstream sectors, to the detriment of the nation.

Oladiti declared that individuals not comfortable with certain monumental achievements of the NNPC GMD have been working to create confusion in the industry to ensure that Baru was sacked from office.

STREET GIST: Name a Nigerian politician who is not corrupt on Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit.ng
- About 760 suspected Boko Haram members have been handed over to the Borno state government

- The suspects were arrested by troops of Operation Lafiya Dole in the northeast

- The Joint Intelligence Centre (JIC) of the Theatre Command cleared the suspects after interrogations and investigations

The Nigerian Army on Friday said it had transferred 760 suspected Boko Haram members to Borno Government for reintegration into the society.

Col. Onyema Nwachukwu, the Deputy Director, Army Public Relations, Theatre Command Operation Lafiya Dole, disclosed this in a statement issued in Maiduguri.

READ ALSO: We have done well to secure the northeast - Chief of Air Staff

Nwachikwu said that the suspects were handed over to the government at the Bulunkutu State Rehabilitation Centre, Maiduguri.

He disclosed that the suspects were arrested during the ongoing crackdown on the insurgents in the North-East by troops of Operation Lafiya Dole.

He explained that the suspects were cleared after interrogations and investigations by the Joint Intelligence Centre (JIC) of the Theatre Command.

He added that the suspects were handed over to the state government by the Coordinator of the JIC, Brig.-Gen. Abdulrahman Kuliya.

The JIC has cleared 760 suspects. The crackdown on Boko Haram terrorists is yielding positive results, culminating in significant reduction in terrorists activities in the North-East, the statement quoted Kuliya as saying.

He called on members of the public to cooperate and provide useful information to security agencies on suspicious activities in their communities.

PAY ATTENTION: Read the news on Nigerias #1 new app

Legit.ng previously reported that a Federal High Court Judge, John Tsoho, on Tuesday, October 3, withdrew himself for the trial of eight Boko Haram terror suspects charged to his court.

Premium Times reports that the judge made the decision following an application by six of the defendants asking that their case be transferred from his court.

Boko Haram abducted my husband and the Gov't forgot about him - on Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit.ng
- President Muhammadu Buhari has stated that he hopes God will give Nigerians the patience to tolerate his administration

- Buhari recounted how Nigeria made so much money from the sale of crude oil in the international market, before he came into office

- However, the president reiterated that the price of oil crashed drastically when he assumed office, and there were no savings

President Muhammadu Buhari has expressed hope that Nigerians will receive patience from God, to be able to tolerate his administration.

According to reports, the president made his comments at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa, on Friday, October 6.

READ ALSO: How we ended the activities of Badoo cultists in Ikorodu - Lawmaker

Legit.ng gathers that the president reiterated how the price of oil in the international market crashed when he assumed office.

He stated: I have said it so many times; I dont mind saying it now to you because some of you may not have even the time to listen to radio or watch television as regularly as other people do.

From 1999 to 2014, Nigeria has never realised so much resources since our independence, never, because the average production was 2.1 million barrel per day at an average cost of 100 dollars per barrel.

But when we came in, it crashed to 37 dollars per barrel, and we overlooked saving and there was no saving.

So really, we have just started working and we hope God in his infinite mercy would give Nigerians the patience to tolerate us.

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Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that the executive secretary of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), Waziri Adio, disclosed that between 2005 and 2015, Nigeria spent more than what it saved from crude oil revenue.

The Buhari appointee stated that the spending spree shows that the country made no saving during that period.

Citing statistics, the NEITI boss revealed that between 2005 and 2015, $201.2billion entered into the excess crude account, while the country spent $204.7billion.

Are Nigerians truly tired of President Buhari? - on Legit.ng TV:

Source: Legit.ng
- The EFCC has nabbed three suspected internet fraudsters

- They are alleged to have defrauded their victims, mostly American and European citizens, millions of dollars

- Their names are: Oluwaseun Michael, Igbokwe Chijioke, Felix Chukwudi and Babajide Goloba

The EFCC Lagos zonal office, have arrested four suspected Internet fraudsters. They are: Oluwaseun Michael, Igbokwe Chijioke, Felix Chukwudi and Babajide Goloba.

The quartet were arrested in different parts of Lagos, following intelligence report received by the commission.

They are alleged to have defrauded their victims, mostly American and European citizens, millions of dollars.

They are alleged to have defrauded their victims, mostly American and European citizens, millions of dollars. Photo credit: EFCC, Facebook

READ ALSO: I hope God gives Nigerians the patience to tolerate my administration - Buhari

The suspects, school drop-outs, have confessed to have been involved in romance/ marriage scam, Internet advertisement scam, spoofing of emails and interception of business mails.

They have also confessed to be working as couriers for movement of stolen funds by other cyber-criminals. They own companies with no fixed addresses, which they used to cover up the real sources of their money.

Items recovered from the suspects at the time of their arrest include laptops, handsets and phishing scripts, among others. They will soon be charged to court.

Meanwhile, Legit.ng had earlier reported that the police in Cross River state said they have rescued one Comfort Udoenwang, who was abducted on Monday, October 2, by some gunmen.

Hafiz Inuwa, the state commissioner of police, who disclosed this in an interview with the News agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Calabar, said Udoenwang was released early hours of Saturday, October 7.

PAY ATTENTION: Read the news on Nigerias #1 new app

Inuwa explained that the victim was whisked away by the gunmen from her Jesus Avenue residence in Calabar south and taken to Akpap-Okoyong village in Odukpani local government area of the state.

Is the Nigerian police your friend? - on Legit.ng TV.

Source: Legit.ng
This is Naked Capitalism fundraising week. 1022 donors have already invested in our efforts to combat corruption and predatory conduct, particularly in the financial realm. Please join us and participate via our donation page, which shows how to give via check, credit card, debit card, or PayPal. Read about why were doing this fundraiser, what weve accomplished in the last year and our current goal, funding our guest bloggers.

It may seem mean-spirited to criticize the UKs shambolic performance in the Brexit negotiations when British citizens have so much at stake. But weve had UK leaders yet again offering citizens and business leaders false hope, and having the press barons amplify their fantasies as if they had a good chance of becoming reality. Moreover, the outcome was entirely predictable, as shown by the fact that this humble blog predicted it.

Readers may recall that the UK wanted to talk about what it calls the future relationship, meaning the outlines, and perhaps even the details, of its trade and services deal with the EU in parallel with the negotiation of the other issues now on the table: the so-called exit bill, movement of people, and the Irish border.

We stressed that this demand amounted to renegotiating the shape of the table, as in the basic parameters of negotiations. This sort of thing is simply not done in negotiations that are already underway. And there were other reasons to expect this push to be rejected:

Under EU treaties, the UK cannot negotiate new trade deals until it is out of the EU. The EU has already made a concession (without demanding anything in return, as in a free concession which is generous) by being willing to enter into preliminary talks before the UK exit The UK is acting as if it does not understand that the EUs chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, is operating under parameters that were approved by all 27 EU members. He does not have the latitude to go outside that without going back and getting their approval EU leaders made clear what the order of negotiations would be. Whether the UK likes it or not, the EU has all the leverage since the alternative is a disorderly Brexit, which is far more damaging to the UK than the EU The EU made an additional free concession to the UK in moving the Irish border issue forward into the first set of issues to be considered The UK has done nothing to earn the good will of EU leaders or negotiators since the talks have started. UK official have not only continued their pattern of being hostile, often based on claims that show ignorance or deliberate misrepresentation, but have also ignored clear and consistent messages from EU leaders and continue to be shockingly unprepared for negotiations

The EU made clear it was unreceptive to the UKs push at the September round of negotiations, which virtually ground to a halt. Various EU leaders, either in their own name or via leaks, made clear afterwards that the EU was very unlikely to decide, as the UK had hoped, that the EU would decide in October that enough progress had been made on important Brexit issues so as to start talking about the future relationship.

Put it more simply: virtually nothing has been settled. How could the Brits fantasize that the EU would roll over? So what if Theresa May gave a speech in Florence outlining a 50,000 foot idea of what a transition deal might look like? That doesnt mean the EU is prepared to entertain it now. And thats before you get to the fact, as European officials point out, UK leadership is so divided over Brexit that they dont appear able to enter into any commitments. Or to hoist a label applied first to the US:

The Russians expressed their total disgust and outrage at this attack and openly began saying that the Americans were . What the word means is literally not-agreement-capable or unable to make and then abide by an agreement. What that word means is literally not-agreement-capable or unable to make and then abide by an agreement. While polite, this expression is also extremely strong as it implies not so much a deliberate deception as the lack of the very ability to make a deal and abide by it.

Now unlike the US, UK leaders might overcome their internal dissent and be able to negotiate in a reasonable manner. But that isnt where they are now.

The situation is so stark that its not hard to read between the lines of a report in the Financial Times, Germany rejects Mays Brexit transition hopes. Some key observations:

The EUs chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, made a good faith effort to get a waiver for the UK. But predictably, EU officials were not moved:

The uncompromising positions in Berlin and Paris emerged on Friday as ambassadors from the remaining 27 EU members held their first debate on the unions approach to transition talks, including the option of approving exploratory negotiations at an October summit. Michel Barnier, the EUs chief negotiator, outlined the potential benefits of opening talks on a transition deal at the meeting. He argued that they could create space to resolve the big outstanding issues on a Brexit bill, as well as recognise Britains recent more accommodative stance. But this option was firmly rejected by a group of countries led by Germany and France, which took a stricter view on the sequence of negotiations, according to several diplomats briefed on the meeting.

The article tries to depict Germany as the heavy, but the opposition to the UKs stance is broad based. As a rough and ready rule, when Germany and France agree on anything, the rest of the EU generally follows precisely because the two countries typically have very different interests and priorities. Here, we have not just France and Germany in a united stance, but Germany supposedly leading a block of other countries too. It is hardly a secret that most if not all of the Eastern European countries (whose entry the UK ironically promoted aggressively, to weaken the position of Germany and France) are particularly hard line about having the UK settle its so-called exit tab first. And recall further that the exit arrangements require unanimous approval of all 27 remaining members.

The EU is expecting the worst. It was obvious from early on that the EU, in its cold fury over the Brexit vote, did the equivalent psychologically of marking to market, as in accepting that theyd take large economic losses. For instance:

The stalemate comes as Germanys biggest business lobby has warned members to prepare for a very hard Brexit because Britain lacks a clear strategy.

So they can approach the negotiations from the perspective of This is a given, how do we make the best of this bad situation? And on most issues, what is best for them is not at all good for the UK.

On top of it, the UK is making own goals like this:

The UKs two main negotiators are battling each other for staff and resources days before the fifth round of Brexit talks begin next week. According to an internal email seen by the Financial Times, Olly Robbins, who left his job as head of the Department for Exiting the EU last month to set up a rival Europe Unit in Downing Street, is openly trying to poach his former colleagues from David Davis, the Brexit secretary.

The Foreign Office has been hollowed out thanks to Thatcherite budget-slashing. But even at its higher manning levels of decades ago, Brexit would have been an overwhelming task. And now we have infighting making the far-too-few professionals dedicated to this initiative even less effective.

Worse, way too many people in the UK, and most important, its political leaders and its press barons, think that there is economic upside that will just fall in their laps if Glorious Brexit rolls forward, and they are doing nothing even remotely approaching the level of war-level industrial planning and operational preparation to keep Brexit from being chaotic and extremely damaging. So the Brits are regularly miffed and confused when the EU does what they should expect: look out for its own interest. Here is yet more confirmation of how the UK is only waking up now to how serious its downside is:

If a delayed timetable were adopted at the summit in October it would be a serious blow to British business, which is warning ministers that an end-of-year deal on a transition period is essential to avoid a wave of companies decamping operations to the continent because of uncertainty

Despite all of this, the EU is not taking maximum advantage of the horrible position the UK has put itself in:

As a gesture to recognise progress, the EU is considering starting an internal scoping exercise on a transition deal, where the EU27 would prepare for talks with the UK at a later stage. While an advance of sorts, this falls well short of Londons hopes that talks would begin after the summit in October.

But in general, as our readers have pointed out, the EU has psychologically come to grips with Brexit, while the UK is still sleepwalking. And it needs to wake up, pronto. The worst-case scenario is now looking troublingly likely. The take below isnt even so much a dire forecast as a linear extrapolation, since despite the appearance of two sides still talking, the stalemate as of last month was the functional equivalent of a breakdown:
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By David Bollier, Director of the Reinventing the Commons Program at the Schumacher Center for a New Economics, and author of Think Like a Commoner and co-editor of Patterns of Commoning. He blogs at Bollier.org. Originally published at global-e journal of 21st Century Global Dynamics, at UC Santa Barbara

The rise of so many right-wing nationalist movements around the worldBrexit, Donald Trump, the neo-Nazis in Charlottesville, Virginia, anti-immigrant protests throughout Europehave their own distinctive origins and contexts, to be sure. But in the aggregate, they are evidence of the dwindling options for credible change that capitalist political cultures are willing to consider. This naturally provokes the question: Why are the more wholesome alternative visions so scarce and scarcely believable?

Political elites and their corporate brethren are running out of ideas for how to reconcile the deep contradictions of democratic capitalism as it now exists. Even social democrats and liberals, the traditional foes of free-market dogma, seem locked into an archaic worldview and set of political strategies that makes their advocacy sound tinny. Their familiar progress-narrativethat economic growth, augmented by government interventions and redistribution, can in fact work and make society more stable and fairis no longer persuasive.

Below, I argue that the commons paradigm offers a refreshing and practical lens for re-imagining politics, governance and law. The commons, briefly put, is about self-organized social systems for managing shared wealth. Far from a tragedy,2 the commons as a system for mutualizing responsibilities and benefits is highly generative. It can be seen in the successful self-management of forests, farmland, and water, and in open source software communities, open-access scholarly journals, and cosmo-local design and manufacturing systems.

The 2008 financial crisis drew back the curtain on many consensus myths that have kept the neoliberal capitalist narrative afloat. It turns out that growth is not something that is widely or equitably shared. A rising tide does not raise all boats because the poor, working class, and even the middle class do not share much of the productivity gains, tax breaks, or equity appreciation that the wealthy enjoy. The intensifying concentration of wealth is creating a new global plutocracy, whose members are using their fortunes to dominate and corrupt democratic processes while insulating themselves from the ills afflicting everyone else. No wonder the market/state system and the idea of liberal democracy is experiencing a legitimacy crisis.

Given this general critique, I believe that the most urgent challenge of our times is to develop a new socio-political imaginary that goes beyond those now on offer from the left or right. We need to imagine new sorts of governance and provisioning arrangements that can transform, tame, or replace predatory markets and capitalism. Over the past 50 years, the regulatory state has failed to abate the relentless flood of anti-ecological, anti-consumer, anti-social externalities generated by capitalism, largely because the power of capital has eclipsed that of the nation-state and citizen sovereignty. Yet the traditional left continues to believe, mistakenly, that a warmed-over Keynesianism, wealth-redistribution, and social programs are politically achievable and likely to be effective.

Cultural critic Douglas Rushkoff has said, Ive given up on fixing the economy. The economy is not broken. Its simply unjust. In other words, the economy is working more or less as its capitalist overseers intend it to work. Citizens often despair because struggle for change within conventional democratic politics is often futileand not just because democratic processes are corrupted. State bureaucracies and even competitive markets are structurally incapable of addressing many problems. The limits of what The System can deliveron climate change, inequality, infrastructure, democratic accountabilityare on vivid display every day. As distrust in the state grows, a very pertinent question is where political sovereignty and legitimacy will migrate in the future.

The fundamental problem in developing a new vision, however, is that old ideological debates continue to dominate public discourse. Politics is endlessly rehashing many of the same disagreements, failing to recognize that deep structural change is needed. There is precious little room for new ideas and projects to incubate and grow. New visions must have space to breathe and evolve their own sovereign logic and ethics if they are to escape the dead end of meliorist reformism.

As I explained in a recent piece for The Nation magazine, insurgent narratives and projects are actually quite plentiful. Movements focused on climate justice, co-operatives, tradition towns, local food systems, alternative finance, digital currencies, peer production, open design and manufacturing, among others, are pioneering new post-capitalist models of peer governance and provisioning. While fragmented and diverse, these movements tend to emphasize common themes: production and consumption to meet household needs, not profit; bottom-up decisionmaking; and stewardship of shared wealth for the long term. These values all lie at the heart of the commons.

For now, these movements tend to work on the cultural fringe, more or less ignored by the mainstream media and political parties. But that is precisely what has allowed them to evolve with integrity and substance. Only here, on the periphery, have these movements been able to escape the stodgy prejudices and self-serving institutional priorities of political parties, government agencies, the commercial media, philanthropy, academia, and the entrenched nonprofit-industrial complex.

Why is the public imagination for transformation change so stunted? In part because most established institutions are more focused on managing their brand reputations and organizational franchises. Taking risks and developing bold new initiatives and ideas are not what they generally do. Meanwhile, system-change movements are generally dismissed as too small-scale, trivial or apolitical to matter. They also fade into the shadows because they tend to rely on Internet-based networks to build new sorts of power, affordances (structural capacities for individual agency), and moral authority that mainstream players dont understand or respect. Examples include the rise of the peasant farmers group La Via Campesina, transnational collaboration among indigenous peoples, platform co-operatives that foster sharing alternatives to Uber and Airbnb, and the System for Rice Intensification (a kind of open source agriculture developed by farmers themselves).

Rather than try to manage themselves as hierarchical organizations with proprietary franchises, reputations, and overhead to sustain, activists see themselves as part of social movements working as flexible players in open, fluid environments. Their network-driven activism enables them to more efficiently self-organize and coordinate activities, attract self-selected participants with talent, and implement fast cycles of creative iteration.

System-change movements tend to eschew the conventional policy and political process, and instead seek change through self-organized emergence. In ecological terms, they are using open digital networks to try to create catchment areas, a landscape in which numerous flows converge (water, vegetation, soil, organisms, etc.) to give rise to an interdependent, self-replenishing zone of lively energy. As two students of complexity theory and social movements, Margaret Wheatley and Deborah Frieze, write:

When separate, local efforts connect with each other as networks, then strengthen as communities of practice, suddenly and surprisingly a new system emerges at a greater level of scale. This system of influence possesses qualities and capacities that were unknown in the individuals. It isnt that they were hidden; they simply dont exist until the system emerges. They are properties of the system, not the individual, but once there, individuals possess them. And the system that emerges always possesses greater power and influence than is possible through planned, incremental change. Emergence is how life creates radical change and takes things to scale.

The old guard of electoral politics and standard economics has trouble comprehending the principle of emergence, let alone recognizing the need for innovative policy structures that could leverage and focus that dynamic power. It has consistently underestimated the bottom-up innovation enabled by open source software; the speed and reliability of Wikipedia-style coordination and knowledge-aggregation, and the power of social media in catalyzing viral self-organization such as the Occupy movement, the Indignados and Podemos in Spain, the Jasmine Revolution in Tunisia, and Syriza in Greece. Conventional schools of economics, politics and power do not comprehend the generative capacities of decentralized, self-organized networks. They apply obsolete categories of institutional control and political analysis, as if trying to understand the ramifications of automobiles through the language of horseless carriages.

Instead of clinging to the old left/right spectrum of political ideologywhich reflects the centrality of the market and the state in organizing societywe need to entertain new narratives that allow us to imagine new drivers of governance, production and culture. In my personal work, I see the enormous potential of the commons as farmers and fisherpeople, urban citizens and Internet users, try to reclaim shared resources that have been seized to feed the capitalist machineand to devise their own governance alternatives. In this, the commons is at once a paradigm, a discourse, a set of social practices, and an ethic.

Over the past five years or more, the commons has served as a kind of overarching meta-narrative for diverse movements to challenge the marketization and transactionalization of everything, the dispossession and privatization of resources, and the corruption of democracy. The commons has also provided a language and ethic for thinking and acting like a commonercollaborative, socially minded, embedded in nature, concerned with stewardship and long-term, respectful of the pluriverse that makes up our planet.

If we are serious about effecting system change, we need to start by emancipating ourselves from some backward-looking concepts and vocabularies. We need to instigate new post-capitalist ways of talking about the provisioning models and peer governance now emerging. Influencing unfolding realities may be less about electing different leaders and policies than about learning how to change ourselves, orchestrate a new shared intentionality, and hoist up new narratives about the commons.
(Natural News) A pioneer in artificial intelligence says that the time has come to break up what he is calling Big Tech embodied by three principal AI leaders  Google, Facebook, and Apple  because they are becoming a threat to democracy.

As reported by Axios, the remarks by Joshua Bengio, a leader in the field, a professor at the University of Montreal and a member of the Canadian Mafia that broke new ground in machine learning  which is the foundation of AI  are noteworthy because of his influence throughout the industry.

But they are also significant because he and many of his peers all lead or consult for Big Techs AI programs.

Concentration of wealth leads to concentration of power, he said, as Axios reports. Thats one reason why monopoly is dangerous. Its dangerous for democracy.

Bengio is a consultant for tech giant IBM. His colleagues Geoffrey Hinton and Yann LeCun also consult for Big Tech  Google and Facebook, respectively. And a protege of Hinton, Ruslan Salakhutdinov, runs Apples AI research program.

Since there are several companies involved in AI research, its not likely they would be subject to the U.S. Constitutions prohibition on government-granted monopolies. But Bengio is correct in stating that the AI industry is becoming more concentrated.

In fact, Bengio said that continued concentration of resources, knowledge and talent among a few giant technology corporations is growing and that only government can act to prevent further consolidation. We need to create a more level playing field for people and companies, Bengio told Axios at an AI conference in Toronto recently.

The site noted further:

In recent years, Apple, Facebook, Google and Microsoft have amassed a towering lead in AI research. But now, they are subject to growing scrutiny because of their outsized influence on society, politics and the economy. I asked Bengio if the companies should be broken up. He harrumphed and responded that anti-trust laws should be enforced. Governments have become so meek in front of companies, he said.

AI is a technology that naturally lends itself to a winner take all, Bengio added. The country and company that dominates the technology will gain more power with time. More data and a larger customer base gives you an advantage that is hard to dislodge. Scientists want to go to the best places. The company with the best research labs will attract the best talent. It becomes a concentration of wealth and power.

Bengio is only the latest to warn about the dangers of AI in general, let alone the concentration of AI knowledge and research. (Related: Artificial Intelligence more dangerous than nukes, warns technology pioneer Elon Musk.)

But tech experts arent the only ones warning about the rise of AI. Russia President Vladimir Putin recently predicted that whoever managed to perfect the technology could end up ruling the world. As reported by Robotics.news:

Addressing students last week, Vladimir Putin said that there are legitimate concerns about AI and that its development will produce colossal opportunities and threats that are difficult to predict now.

Going further, Putin warned that the one who becomes the leader in this sphere will be the ruler of the world.

He added: Artificial intelligence is the future, not only for Russia but for all of humankind.

Perhaps sensing the kind of power a company  or even a few companies  could amass if they became the first to fully develop AI, Putin warned that such technology should not become monopolized (sound familiar?), hinting that Russia would share the technology if it develops AI first.

If we become leaders in this area, we will share this know-how with the entire world, the same way we share our nuclear technologies now, he told students around the country, via satellite link-up, as he spoke to them from the Yaroslavl region.

Frankly, I wouldnt buy that but the points are well-made: AI may become too powerful for one company  or three or four  to contain.

J.D. Heyes is a senior writer for NaturalNews.com and NewsTarget.com, as well as editor of The National Sentinel.

Sources include:

Robotics.news

Axios.com
Break with the routine and discover how to engineer a scientific meeting that everyone will remember.

Conference success is greatest when attendees and speakers spend time talking with one another. Credit: Africa Science Leadership Programme

A scientist with unlimited travel funds and time could easily spend every week of the year on the conference circuit. Nature's Events Directory, for example, lists an average of 250 meetings a month. But that same scientist could expect often to hear the same cast of speakers, giving the same talks, at multiple meetings in their field.

Organizing even a standard conference can be a monumental task (see 'Meeting magic'), but conference organizers can shake things up by assigning workgroups a specific scientific problem, hosting a workshop in a location that encourages thought and collaboration, and ensuring a diverse crowd in terms of gender, ethnicity, seniority, geography and expertise. Just sitting in a lecture hall all day long is not inspirational, says Helena Ledmyr, head of development and communications at the International Neuroinformatics Coordinating Facility in Stockholm.

The size and goal of a meeting help to define it. Symposia tend to be smaller-scale versions of an academic conference, whereas seminars and workshops typically involve more discussion and participation by attendees. But before deciding on the size and aim of any meeting, an aspiring organizer must first consider whether there is an unmet need or desire for one at all, says Eileen Furlong, a developmental biologist at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg, Germany. One way to draw interest is to carve out a niche. This can be done by constructing a meeting around an emerging field of study, for example, and so creating a community of researchers with aligned interests. And it is key, say veteran organizers, to encourage interactions between those attending, and between attendees and speakers.

Meet me in St Louis

The topic idea for a meeting can come from the organizer's own interests. At Washington University in St Louis, Missouri, evolutionary biologists Joan Strassmannn and David Queller (who are married to each other) are interested in the definition of an 'organism'. It's not a straightforward question, notes Strassmann. For example, is a lichen one organism, or two or three? Strassmann and Queller have proposed that an organism forms when individual units, whether cells or multicellular structures, reach peak cooperation with minimal conflict between them (J. E. Strassmann and D. C. Queller Evolution 64, 605616; 2010). To encourage discussion around their idea, they invited a diverse mix biologists and a few philosophers to join them in St Louis for a workshop in 2015.

In the mornings, all attendees offered a 20-minute talk about their work. In the afternoons, they split into groups. Their assignment was to define and discuss a problem relating to 'organismality'  the extent to which something can be said to be an organism. Strassmann and Queller told participants that they weren't promoting their own theory of organismality, just presenting the problem. If they came up with some other solution, that would be fine, says Strassmann. Each group would sum up its discussions in a 10-minute presentation on the last day.

Strassmann spent weeks in the build-up organizing the attendees into groups. Her goal was to link people who would probably share interests. We tried to have a core of two to three people on the same page, and others that would stir them up, she says. At the conference, Strassmann and Queller floated between groups, providing a nudge when necessary.

Two years later, Judith Bronstein, who attended as an evolutionary ecologist at the University of Arizona in Tucson, retains vivid memories of the organismality workshop. I thought it was amazingly interesting, and it really, really worked  for the most part, says Bronstein, noting that it was a risky approach. Throw people in a pot and turn up the temperature, she says, and see what happens. And, indeed, some groups gelled better than others, Bronstein recalls; she says that she was lucky to be in one with excellent interpersonal chemistry.

Strassmann aimed to get a paper from at least one group; in fact, the discussions inspired two, including one prepared by Bronstein's team (S. L. Diaz-Munoz et al. Evolution 70, 26692677; 2016; and E.Libbyetal.Preprintathttps://arxiv.org/abs/1612.00036;2016).

The workshop was built on principles that Strassmann had learnt when co-organizing a conference on animal-behaviour with Knowinnovation, which helps to set up and run workshops worldwide. The company, with teams in the United Kingdom, the United States, France and Spain, specializes in applying theories of creativity to scientific discussions, says chief executive Andy Burnett, who is based in Buffalo, New York. For example, it has run meetings in which scientists brainstorm new ways to achieve sustainable development, find original approaches to understanding the origin of life on Earth and develop better undergraduate curricula.

Coming up with these plans and theories requires an innovative approach. The whole idea of giving presentations at conferences is, I think, of very limited value, says Burnett. In fact, Knowinnovation often asks speakers to post a lecture on YouTube so that attendees can watch it beforehand, instead of filling the conference with presentations. The company also sometimes connects two or more researchers for conversations before the meeting. When everyone assembles at the conference, they're already prepared to delve into big problems right away. They work in small groups towards a goal, such as a report or research proposal.

Spark those conversations

Even at larger, lecture-heavy meetings, faculty hosts can find creative ways to get attendees talking outside the sessions. At the EMBL, for example, conference organizers are experimenting with 'speed networking sessions'. Scientists are organized into pairs, based on mutual interests, to chat for five to eight minutes before moving to their next partner. The conversations often continue throughout the meeting, and new collaborations have begun this way, says Jurgen Deka, head of external scientific training at the laboratory.

EMBL symposia also often include 'meet the speaker' sessions, in which speakers sit at a labelled table during the coffee break after their talks, so that others can join them and discuss their work. Certain poster presenters are asked to give 'flash talks' of two to three minutes. It gives a very brief overview over many posters or scientists at the meeting, and is compressed into half an hour or so, says Deka.

Networking is a component of fruitful meetings. Credit: Africa Science Leadership Programme Panel discussions are not optimal, says Furlong. They're a bit too staged, she says. I often find they don't really have flow.

It's also important to remember that scientific conversations can  and should  spill over into evenings and free time. Brittany Barreto, co-founder of the science-based dating-app company Pheramor in Houston, Texas, says that she made an error when co-planning a June seminar on molecular mechanisms of evolution in Easton, Massachusetts. She and her colleagues did not schedule a party, and after watching small groups head downtown to get to know each other after seminar sessions, she realised how important socializing is in building up professional networks. She adds that the socializing needn't be too structured; it could take the form of discount drink coupons for a local pub, a shuttle bus to town or a board-game night with drinks.

It's the people that matter

The speaker and attendee list is also a crucial element of a memorable conference, and experts say that it's important to think beyond the well-known superstars in a field. Your meeting can only be as good as the people you invite, says Strassmann.

If it is difficult to identify the right mix of speakers, a conference host may be able to help. For example, Keystone Symposia in Silverthorne, Colorado, encourages faculty organizers to put together a programme in which women and underrepresented minorities account for at least one-third of the speaker list. Keystone maintains databases of speaker sources, says chief executive Jane Peterson.

Diversity is about more than gender, ethnicity and geography, adds Mark Kozak, executive director at the Telluride Science Research Center in Colorado. He likes meeting organizers to bring in both senior and junior scientists and researchers from different disciplines. For example, Telluride recently hosted a meeting on photovoltaics that included theoretical, synthetic and experimental chemists; experimental and theoretical physicists; computational scientists; device physicists; and materials and process engineers.

Each discipline brings to the table their knowledge of the question at hand, allowing the community to build a complete picture, says Chad Risko, a chemist at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, who co-organized the gathering. The meeting was fantastic, as we had very active participation from everyone involved.

If you select the topic carefully, then people will come to the meeting even if it's at the North Pole.

For the organismality workshop, Strassmann invited biologists with expertise in a variety of fields ranging from fungi, plants and invertebrates to cancer. That meant inviting people she hadn't previously known, and identifying them takes a lot of time, she says. She starts with a Google Scholar search, and reads all the papers by people she doesn't know. She also asks other scientists to suggest names.

Given the intimate, collaborative nature of the organismality workshop, Strassmann knew it was important to invite scientists who work well with others. She tries to determine whether researchers have this quality by perusing their web pages for studies that they've co-authored with other groups, or asking mutual acquaintances for information on good collaborators.

Location, Location, Location

The site of a conference can affect its success. Furlong recommends an isolated location to encourage speakers and attendees to interact at long breaks and meals. For example, she says, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York is a bit too far from Manhattan (almost 27 miles by road) for people to head there for sightseeing. Although it is important for a conference site to be relatively close to an airport or transport centre, the main attraction, says Furlong, should be the sessions, speakers and attendees  not museums or shops beyond the site. If you select the topic carefully, then people will come to the meeting even if it's at the North Pole, she says.

Burnett agrees. Ease of transport is a factor, so being close to an airport is useful, but that doesn't mean it has to be a major city, he says. We always prefer a slightly more secluded venue, where people will be less likely to be interrupted.

Yet it may be helpful to leave the venue behind, at least for a short time. Amy Shen, a chemical engineer at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University in Japan, likes to organize an excursion and lab tours between presentations. For a recent microfluidics conference, she had planned an outing to a beach and a local castle. Rainy weather prompted her to change her plans and take the group instead to a museum that celebrated traditional Okinawan lifestyles through tours and performances. It's a good opportunity for people to mingle, get to know each other and discuss research in a more relaxed setting, says Shen.
The state has submitted proposals for Greater Hartford and Stamford as potential sites for Amazon's second headquarters location, according to Gov. Dannel Malloy.

In his video, Malloy boasted that Connecticut is a great place to live, and it's one of the most educated states in the nation with more patents per capita than others.



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Malloy highlighted Hartford's art community, industrial base, aerospace industry and educated workforce.

Stamford is the governor's hometown and he mentioned its proximity to New York and the educated workforce.



Take a look at the proposal.



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Last month, Amazon said that it will spend $5 billion to build another headquarters in North America to house as many as 50,000 employees.

Malloy's office said that after a review of 17 submissions, the Hartford and Stamford regions stood out as the state's strongest contenders. Both sites have a population of a million, are in close proximity to international airports, have easy access to mass transit, major highways and arterial roads, the governor's office said.

Amazon already has two existing facilities in Wallingford and Windsor. Over the summer, Amazon said it has plans to expand their presence through a fulfillment center in North Haven.

The state Thursday unveiled the state's proposal.


The U.S. military has halted some exercises with its Gulf Arab allies over the ongoing diplomatic crisis targeting Qatar, trying to use its influence to end the monthslong dispute, authorities told the Associated Press on Friday.

While offering few details, the acknowledgement by the U.S. military's Central Command shows the concern it has over the conflict gripping the Gulf, home to the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet and crucial bases for its campaign against the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria, as well as the war in Afghanistan.

The Qatar crisis began June 5, when Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates launched an economic boycott while closing off the energy-rich nation's land border and its air and sea routes. The quartet of Arab nations pointed to Qatar's alleged support of extremists and overly warm ties to Iran. Qatar long has denied supporting extremists and shares a massive offshore natural gas field with Tehran that makes its citizens have the highest per-capita income in the world.

Initially, U.S. military officials said the boycott and dispute had no impact on their operations. Qatar is home to the massive al-Udeid Air Base, the forward headquarters of Central Command which oversees the U.S.-led coalition's bombing campaign of the Islamic State group and manages a direct line to Russia to manage Syria's crowded skies.

But as the dispute went on, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis traveled to Doha to offer his support. The Trump administration also agreed to an in-the-works sale of F-15 fighter jets to Qatar for $12 billion.

Responding to queries from the AP, Air Force Col. John Thomas, a Central Command spokesman, acknowledged it would be cutting back on the exercises.

"We are opting out of some military exercises out of respect for the concept of inclusiveness and shared regional interests," Thomas said in a statement. "We will continue to encourage all partners to work together toward the sort of common solutions that enable security and stability in the region."

Officials in Qatar did not immediately respond to a request for comment, while the boycotting nations have not acknowledged the disruption in military exercises with the U.S.

The Qatar diplomatic crisis has torn apart the typically clubby Gulf Cooperation Council, a regional Arab bloc created in part as a counterbalance to Iran. The U.S. military holds exercises in part to build the confidence of local forces, many of which use American-made equipment.

Among the exercises likely to be affected is Eagle Resolve, an annual exercise held since 1999 that has GCC countries send forces alongside Americans to simulate working as a multinational force in battle. This year's Eagle Resolve exercise, held in Kuwait in March, involved 1,000 U.S. troops.

U.S. and Gulf allies have regularly held joint, smaller-scale exercises in the region.
A laptop cord sparked a fire in a Montgomery County townhouse that displaced two families and caused at least $250,000 in damage, officials say.

The fire broke out on the 14400 block of Pebble Hill Lane in North Potomac about 9 p.m. Friday, a Montgomery County Fire & Rescue Service spokesman said. More than 80 firefighters responded.

Flames spread from home to home and leaped from the building, cellphone video shows.

EMS crews evaluated several residents for smoke inhalation, but no one was seriously hurt, the fire department said.

In an update Saturday morning, the fire department said a "transformer laptop charging cord" started the blaze in a second-floor bedroom.

The Red Cross is assisting the victims.
Infections caused by viruses, such as respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, measles, parainfluenza, and Ebola, are typically considered acute. These viruses cause disease quickly and live within a host for a limited time. But in some cases, the effects of the infection, and presence of the virus itself, can persist. RSV, for example, can lead to chronic respiratory problems, measles can lead to encephalitis and the Ebola virus can be transmitted by patients thought to be cured of the disease.

New findings from the University of Pennsylvania suggest a mechanism that may explain how viruses can linger. Products of viral infection called defective viral genomes, DVGs for short, which have been known to be involved in triggering an immune response, can also kick off a molecular pathway that keeps infected cells alive, the researchers discovered. The study used a novel technique to examine the presence of DVGs on a cell-by-cell basis to show that DVG-enriched cells had strategies to survive in the face of an immune-system attack.

"One of the things the field has known for a long time is that DVGs promote persistent infections in tissue culture," said Carolina B. Lopez, an associate professor of microbiology and immunology in Penn's School of Veterinary Medicine. "But the question was, How do you reconcile that with the fact that they're also very immunostimulatory? How can they help clear virus at the same time as they promote persistence? Our work helps explain this apparent paradox."

Lopez was senior author on the work, teaming with co-lead authors and lab members Jie Xu and Yan Sun. Fellow coauthors included Gordon Ruthel and Daniel Beiting of Penn Vet, Yize Li and Susan R. Weiss of Penn's Perelman School of Medicine and Arjun Raj of the School of Engineering and Applied Science. Their study was published in Nature Communications.

DVGs have been a major focus of Lopez's lab for years. These partial viral genomes are produced in infected cells when a virus begins to replicate rapidly, leading to defective versions of itself that contain large deletions. Once thought not to have any biological function, DVGs are increasingly believed to be important components of viral infections.

In 2013, Lopez and colleagues reported that DVGs were critical in stimulating an immune response to respiratory viruses in mice; when DVGs were depleted from a virus, mice had more severe infections. In 2015 they reported that DVGs are also critical for stimulating an immune response to the human virus RSV, also demonstrating for the first time that the presence of DVGs in human respiratory samples from infected patients correlates with enhanced antiviral immune responses.

In the current work, Lopez's team used a sophisticated technique that allowed them to differentiate full-length genomes from the partial genomes of DVGs at the single-cell level. They studied cells in culture infected with the Sendai virus, or with RSV, a virus that often affects infants and can lead to chronic respiratory problems,

Labeling the full-length genomes in red and the partial DVGs in green, the researchers found differences from cell to cell. Some cells had hardly any DVGs, while others were highly enriched with DVGs, with only a small number of full-length genomes.

"We saw this in many different cell lines and even in infected lungs in mice," Lopez said. "We hadn't appreciated before that there is a lot of heterogeneity in what is going on with these DVGs."

To dig deeper into how the DVGs were influencing the course of infection, the researchers infected cells either with a version of the Sendai virus that lacked DVGs or one enriched in DVGs. The cells infected with the virus high in DVGs survived more than twice as long as those infected with virus lacking DVGs. Adding purified DVGs boosted the cells' survival time, indicating a direct role for the DVGs in promoting cell survival.

The results were similar in parallel experiments with RSV, suggesting that the pro-survival role of DVGs held across viral types.

The researchers next were curious to know what molecular pathways might enable the DVG-rich cells to avoid apoptosis. An analysis of highly-expressed genes in DVG-enriched cells compared to the cells with full-length viral genomes revealed that a host of pro-survival genes were activated in the DVG-rich cells. Notably, these genes encoded signaling proteins of the TNF pathway, known to both boost immunity and cell survival, and IFN, known to play a role in antiviral immunity.

A final set of experiments elucidated the mechanism by which a subset of DVG-enriched cells persisted during viral infection. Lopez and colleagues found that signaling through the proteins MAVS and TNF receptor 2 protects infected cells from apoptosis that is otherwise triggered by TNF.

"We found this dual role for TNF during these infections," Lopez said. "If TNF binds to a cell that doesn't have the MAVS pathway engaged but is infected, the cell is killed, but, if the cell does have this pathway engaged, then it is protected. MAVS is engaged during the antiviral response, and only cells that have a lot of DVGs activate this pathway. These data show that our cells are wired to survive if they are engaged in an antiviral response, explaining the paradoxical functions of DVGs. It seems that in order to persist, the virus is taking advantage of these host pathways that are there to promote the survival of cells working to eliminate the virus."

The results, though limited to in vitro studies in the current report, point to a way that DVGs could enable "acute" viral infections to linger.

Lopez hopes to build on these findings to be sure they hold in vivo. She's also curious to learn more about the dual roles of TNF, which may help explain why the use of TNF-targeted therapies hasn't always turned out as expected.

"I want to see if there's a way we can harness this pathway to minimize and avoid the persistence of these viruses, which is really relevant if we think about the chronic diseases associated with some of these respiratory viruses," Lopez said.

In addition, she would like to explore how generalizable this pathway is and if it could, perhaps, help explain the problems with viral persistence seen in such infections with the Ebola and Zika viruses.
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Captain Marvel and the X-Men crossover for Revenge of the Brood and Lord of the Brood

Captain Marvel and the X-Men are about to embroiled in a two-part Brood-centric story
Turkey, Iran, and Iraq adopted a coordinated, aggressive force posture in retaliation for the Kurdistan Regional Governments (KRG) independence referendum on September 25, 2017. The Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) conducted military exercises on the borders of Iraqi Kurdistan with the Turkish Armed Forces, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, and Iranian Artesh. Turkey and Iran implemented a ban on direct flights from Northern Iraq on September 29. The ISF has also begun to establish security checkpoints at border crossings from Iraqi Kurdistan to Turkey and Iran. The tripartite has yet to enact economic embargos, although the three states threatened to block crude oil exports from the KRG following a temporary ban by Iran. Turkey, Iran, and Iraq nonetheless remain unlikely to escalate militarily in the near term. The U.S. has opposed the KRGs unilateral campaign on the grounds that it will harm the prospects for a unified, independent, and representative Iraq. The tripartite response and Irans growing role also threaten that goal.

The tripartite cooperation between Turkey, Iran, and Iraq builds upon preexisting multilateral frameworks that ultimately expand Irans regional influence and undercut American influence. Russia, Iran, and Syria have begun coopting elements of the Iraqi government into a Quartet for operations along the Syrian-Iraqi Border. Russia and Iran have also drawn Turkey into a diplomatic process that favors their own interests through the Astana Talks on the Syrian Civil War. Iran will exploit these overlapping forums to expand and legitimize its destabilizing involvement in Iraq, Syria, and the wider Middle East. Russia also sees opportunity in these forums.It has set conditions to engage more deeply in Iraq amidst the uncertainty surrounding the KRGs drive for independence. These forums will undermine the prospects for establishing independent, representative, and unitary states in Iraq and Syria  a requirement for achieving broader U.S. objectives.

Between 25 and 35 million Kurds inhabit a mountainous region straddling the borders of Turkey, Iraq, Syria, Iran and Armenia. They make up the fourth-largest ethnic group in the Middle East, but they have never obtained a permanent nation state.

There is deep-seated hostility between the Turkish state and the countrys Kurds, who constitute 15% to 20% of the population.

Kurds received harsh treatment at the hands of the Turkish authorities for generations. In response to uprisings in the 1920s and 1930s, many Kurds were resettled, Kurdish names and costumes were banned, the use of the Kurdish language was restricted and even the existence of a Kurdish ethnic identity was denied, with people designated Mountain Turks.

In 1978, Abdullah Ocalan established the PKK, which called for an independent state within Turkey. Six years later, the group began an armed struggle. Since then, more than 40,000 people have been killed and hundreds of thousands displaced.

Kurds make up between 7% and 10% of Syrias population. Syrias Kurds have long been suppressed and denied basic rights.

Kurds make up an estimated 15% to 20% of Iraqs population. They have historically enjoyed more national rights than Kurds living in neighbouring states, but also faced brutal repression.

After a century of yearning, the Kurds of Iraq have managed, at last, to pull off a vote for independence, but not without antagonizing nearly everyone in perhaps the worlds most volatile region.

The question now is whether an arid, landlocked proto-state dependent on hostile neighbors can overcome is own shortcomings  and Iraqs disruptive retaliation  to build a viable path to independence.

With its troubled economy and dearth of democratic institutions, its prospects were already tenuous. Its best hopes lay in its oil reserves and American support, but Turkey has threatened to cut off its oil pipeline, and the relationship with the United States soured after the Kurds rebuffed its entreaties to cancel the vote.

Rather than negotiate and then seek international recognition, as the United States and others had asked, the Kurds forged ahead with the referendum.

Now, after a 93 percent yes vote on Monday, the Kurds are beseeching Baghdad to negotiate. Baghdad is not only refusing, but has demanded that the vote results be annulled and has moved to isolate the region, known as Kurdistan.
When labor markets tighten, wages are expected to rise. Basic economics tells us that when workers are in higher demand, employers should have to pay more for their services. But in recent years, as unemployment has fallen below 5 percent in the United States, wages have not been increasing as fast as in the past. Economists debate the reasons; workers grapple with the consequences.

Going against convention

The unemployment rate has fallen to a comfortable level, but wage growth is sluggish.

U.S. unemployment rate U.S. wage growth 10 % +7 % +1.9% in 2016 +6 8 +5 +4 6 +3 +2 4 +1 4.9% 0 2 1 Nominal (not adjusted for inflation) 2 0 3 93 16 93 16 U.S. unemployment rate U.S. wage growth 10 % +7 % +6 8 +5 +1.9% in 2016 +4 6 +3 +2 4.9% 4 +1 0 2 1 2 Nominal (not adjusted for inflation) 0 3 93 00 10 16 93 00 10 16 Source: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

When the two trends are superimposed, the historical pattern in which wages pick up when unemployment falls has not held this time around.

Wages grow faster as unemployment falls. Wages are not growing as fast as they were during the last two instances in which unemployment was relatively low. Nor are they growing any faster than when unemployment was at its highest. Wage growth slows down as unemployment rises. 93 00 10 16 Wages grow faster as unemployment falls. Wages are not growing as fast as they were during the last two instances in which unemployment was relatively low. Nor are they growing any faster than when unemployment was at its highest. Wage growth slows down as unemployment rises. 93 00 10 16 Source: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

What is happening in other larger economies?

This is a global problem. Wages are not rising as fast as expected in many countries, especially Britain, France, the Netherlands and Norway.

UNITED STATES JAPAN +1.9% +0.8% 4.9% 3.1% 93 00 10 16 93 00 10 16 GERMANY BRITAIN +2.4% +1.9% 4.8% 4.1% 93 00 10 16 93 00 10 16 FRANCE ITALY 11.7% 10.1% +1.4% +0.8% 93 00 10 16 93 00 10 16 SPAIN NETHERLANDS 19.7% +1.1% 6.0% NO CHG. 93 00 10 16 93 00 10 16 NORWAY PORTUGAL 11.2% +1.4% +0.8% 4.7% 93 00 10 16 93 00 10 16 UNITED STATES JAPAN GERMANY BRITAIN FRANCE 10.1% +2.4% +1.9% +1.9% +1.4% +0.8% 4.9% 4.8% 4.1% 3.1% 93 16 93 16 93 16 93 16 93 16 ITALY SPAIN NETHERLANDS NORWAY PORTUGAL 11.7% 19.7% 11.2% +1.4% +1.1% +0.8% +0.8% 6.0% NO CHG. 4.7% 93 16 93 16 93 16 93 16 93 16 UNITED STATES JAPAN GERMANY BRITAIN FRANCE 10.1% +2.4% +1.9% +1.9% +1.4% +0.8% 4.9% 4.8% 4.1% 3.1% 93 00 10 16 93 00 10 16 93 00 10 16 93 00 10 16 93 00 10 16 ITALY SPAIN NETHERLANDS NORWAY PORTUGAL 11.7% 19.7% 11.2% +1.4 % +1.1% +0.8% +0.8% 6.0% NO CHG. 4.7% 93 00 10 16 93 00 10 16 93 00 10 16 93 00 10 16 93 00 10 16 Source: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development | Note: Data for each country are on comparable scales except for Spain and Portugal, which are on wider scales.

A hollowed-out labor market is partly to blame 

A fundamental refashioning of the labor market has been underway for two decades. Jobs that require middle-range skills have been declining, while those involving skills at both the lower and higher end of the spectrum have been growing. This effectively suppresses wages for many: People in lower-paid, lower-skill jobs  retail workers, janitors and home health aides  have little bargaining power to demand higher wages. Middle-skilled workers  including clerks, call center operators and factory workers  are being replaced by computers, robots and lesser-paid hands in low-wage countries. Higher-skilled workers are capturing an outsized share of pay.

Shift in occupations Lower skills Middle skills Higher skills Spain France Portugal Britain Norway Netherlands O.E.C.D. avg. Italy Germany United States Japan 10 6 2 +2 +6 +10 10 6 2 +2 +6 +10 10 6 2 +2 +6 +10 Percentage point change in share of total employment, 1995 to 2015 Shift in occupations Lower skills Middle skills Higher skills Spain France Portugal Britain Norway Netherlands O.E.C.D. avg. Italy Germany U.S. Japan 10 6 2 +2 +6 +10 10 6 2 +2 +6 +10 10 6 2 +2 +6 +10 Percentage point change in share of total employment, 1995 to 2015 Shift in occupations Lower skills Middle skills Higher skills Spain France Portugal Britain Norway Netherlands O.E.C.D. Italy Germany U.S. Japan +2 +6 +10 10 6 2 +2 +6 +10 Percentage point change in share of total employment, 1995 to 2015 Source: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

 as is the decline of collective bargaining.

Union membership has been declining in much of the developed world. But in the United States, where its lower than in most major economies, unions now represent less than 11 percent of the workforce. Economists see this as a critical factor in weak American wage growth, given that most workers do not bargain collectively.

60 % Norway 50 Trade union memberships Percentage of employees 40 Italy 30 Britain Portugal Germany 20 Netherlands Japan Spain O.E.C.D. Total United States 10 France 0 94 14 Source: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

Growing inequality is a result.

Focusing on the United States again, inequality is worse compared with many other major economies.
Assembly poll season heats up as Modi visits Gujarat, Rahul Himachal Pradesh

India

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia

New Delhi, Oct 7: Both Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh are soon going to host Assembly elections in their respective states. While in Gujarat, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is in power, in Himachal Pradesh the Congress is at the helm of affairs.

Moreover, this time as the Congress is trying hard to save its government in Himachal Pradesh, the grand old party is eyeing to dethrone the saffron party's rule in Gujarat.

Almost in a similar manner, the BJP wants to retain Gujarat, but crush the Congress in Himachal Pradesh. Amid all these political calculations, both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi are extensively touring both the states.

While recently, Rahul was in Gujarat for a three-day road tour, Modi was in Himachal Pradesh to inaugurate various developmental projects. On Saturday, PM will be in Gujarat and Rahul in Himachal Pradesh.

Thus it is surely going to be a cracker of a political day on Saturday as Modi and Rahul are likely to attack each other and their respective parties.

Security has been increased in Mandi from where Rahul is believed to kickstart the Congress' campaign at a rally, whereas, PM Modi is on a two-day tour of his home state Gujarat.

The PM Modi's visit to Gujarat will mainly focus on laying foundation stones and inaugurating a number of projects. The trip will begin with a visit to Dwarkadheesh temple on Saturday morning.

Recently, Rahul had also offered prayers at the Dwarka temple before starting his campaign for Gujarat polls to be held at the end of the year. He will also visit Vadnagar, his birth place, for the first time since becoming the prime minister in 2014.

During his Gujarat trip, the PM is surely going to target the Congress and Rahul, who has been lashing out at the BJP government over current "economic crisis" faced by the country.

It would be also interesting to see what Rahul will say as a reply to Modi's taunt at Himachal Pradesh recently that "the entire Congress party is out on bail".

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Story first published: Saturday, October 7, 2017, 9:55 [IST]
Attacked by five naxalites, constable snatches pistol from them in Dantewada

India

pti-PTI

Raipur, October 7: A security personnel, who single-handedly fought five naxalites, snatched a firearm from one of the naxalites who attacked him in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district and fired at the ultras, forcing them to flee.

According to a police official, constable Bhimaram Kunjam had gone to Hitwar village in Kuakonda yesterday to collect some information, when five naxalites, masquerading as villagers, attacked him.

Undaunted, Kunjam snatched the pistol and fired at them, forcing them to retreat, the official said, adding, the pistol belonged to a sub-inspector who was killed in a Naxal attack in Kuakonda on February 28, 2014.

An award of Rs 10,000 announced for Kunjam by Superintendent of Police Kamalochan Kashyap.

PTI
This woman is doing something weird to her hair; watch to believe!

Braid chopping in Kashmir: It is not the Army for God Sake, read the truth here

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

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There is a great deal of panic among the people of Jammu and Kashmir following incidents of braid cutting. Earlier this week, a 70 year old man died after he was beaten with a brick on the suspicion that he was a braid chopper.

There are youth out on the streets of Jammu and Kashmir keeping a vigil to foil any attempt of braid cutting. What is the truth behind braid cutting? Dr Jawad Nasir Ahmad of the Resident Government Medical College, Srinagar explains this syndrome. HIs findings were endorsed by Dr Bilal Ahmad Bhat, Registrar, Department of Psychiatry Institute of Mental Health and Neuro-Science Kashmir Government Medical College, Srinagar.

"I was very curious about the cause of braid cutting and therefore , to know better, today I examined few braid cut victims near my vicinity in Shopian. I also retrospectively studied many cases at other places outside the state. What I noticed is astonishing. I only was left mesmerised by complexity of human psychology. First thing that made me suspect of a psychogenic origin was that earlier a woman outside complained of braid chopping three times on different ocassions (why wd a braidchopper choose same woman three times if there are 3.5 billion women to choose,hence something else let us see)."

Second, people in different regions were assigning different causal factors to it according to their own prevelant local beliefs. In Rajisthan, it was a Chudail who did it(an old woman was even lynched to death !!) .People even showed injury marks of Chudail's Trishul. In UP it was some Tantric gang .In Delhi outskirts women complained of crows turning into dreadful braid choppers.. When it reached Kashmir it was already declining in other northern parts. However prevelant beleif here was less of a supersitious nature more a political overtone--from a distrust of system.

They blammed unknown agencies (including me earlier)- famous for doing infamous deeds. Earlier when only Biharis and other dark skinned were blamed only they were caught red handed. When Army theory became popular people started to see uniformed men chopping the hair...

Ok after examing I saw following patterns.

Victims at the time of scene were alone .They were already fearful , very tense and in a frightened state of mind about something might happen..

Hair cuts are a kind of dextrous in nature on reachable parts, indicating of self chopping.

Hair chopping is not of mutilating degree in none of these ; that i mean all over head like an assailant may like to cut;but mostly over reachable terminal parts are cut.

Marks of struggle or other injuries are absent !

History of unconciousness is inconsistent with any chemical use.

In some cases scissors etc have been recovered near by .

Description of attacker is rather vague in each case.changing with cross examination and likely borrowed from deep internal beleifs.

They are giving some indications of underlying phobic or hysterical symptoms in past.

I could vaguely elicit some history of childhood trauma...

Now with all though I can say beyond doubt that it is all mass hysterical on collective level but On individual level it is very complex.. I can underline following sequential pattern on Individual level...

First stage: Victim is falls in an extremily fearful state of mind in Isolation

Second stage: Victim's vision seems to get blurred

Third stage: History wise Victim goes into Dissociative State. she assumes a false identity ,probably takes identity of her concieved attacker.and in this dissociative state cut off her hair with the help her over own tools latter also cover things up.Also she hears herself of her own struggling.

Fourth stage: After this victims seem to goes into sort of catharsis and finnaly lands in conversion and falls unconscious.

Fifth stage: Comes out of conversion state and bursts out crying seeing her own hair chopped off...

With all this I dont rule out everything else, but invite reasearch from experts in the field to look further in this..

What government needs to do is to immediately censor all news related to it. A media hype only serves to ingnite it.Media persons are requested not to post this kind stuff. I am sure this all will stop after there is no progation of rumours and unscientific news. Telling people truth and giving cognition to masses is utmost important.

OneIndia News
No news about 2 Arunachal youths who went missing from near China border in August

Chakma-Hajong issue is like 'cancer' for Arunachal Pradesh, says CM Khandu

India

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia

Itanagar, Oct 7: The Chakma-Hajong refugee crisis in the border state of Arunachal Pradesh is refusing to die down soon.

On Friday, Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh Pema Khandu stated that the state government had rejected citizenship for the Chakma-Hajong refugees as directed by the Supreme Court back in 2015.

He added that the state government decision has been informed to the Union ministry of home affairs.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in the border state has been forced to reject citizenship for Chakma and Hajong refugees in spite of the Supreme Court ruling and the saffron party's keen interest in honouring the apex court's order because of wide-scale protest by indigenous people of Arunachal Pradesh.

The CM clarified that citizenship to the refugees would be based on eligibility as per the provisions of the Indian Citizenship Act.

"Till now, all the cases forwarded to the home ministry do not qualify for citizenship as those have been rejected by the state government," the CM said on the last day of the BJP's fifth state executive meeting in Tawang.

Khandu added the Chakma-Hajong issue is like "cancer" for the state.

"Therefore, it needs to be addressed urgently lest it harms Arunachal Pradesh irreparably. I have resolved to tackle the issue in consultation with all stakeholders such as the All Arunachal Pradesh Students' Union and the Union home ministry," Khandu told BJP delegates at the meeting.

The CM informed that he told the home ministry that the Chakma-Hajong refugees cannot be kept out of the purview of the inner-line permit (ILP) regime. "Even if they are granted citizenship, they will have to come under the purview of the ILP like any other Indian citizen from outside Arunachal Pradesh. In no way the Chakma-Hajongs will be given the same privileges and rights enjoyed by the indigenous tribals of the state," he said.

The people of Arunachal Pradesh had strongly contested the Centre's willingness to honour the 2015 decision of the Supreme Court to grant citizenship to Chakma and Hajong refugees in the state.

Earlier in September, Arunachal Pradesh witnessed several violent incidents during a 12-hour dawn-to-dusk bandh to protest against the Narendra Modi government's decision to grant citizenship to Chakma and Hajong refugees settled in the state for decades.

The contentious issue of Chakma-Hajong refugees, settled in Arunachal Pradesh for several decades, came to the forefront once again after the Union home ministry in September announced that it would grant citizenship to over one lakh Chakma and Hajong refugees, comprising Buddhists and Hindus, as per the 2015 Supreme Court's order.

However, after witnessing public anger over its announcement, the Union home ministry did a U-turn saying the Supreme Court's order was "unimplementable" as it would change the state's demography.

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Story first published: Saturday, October 7, 2017, 12:13 [IST]
Even if you're stuck on Mars, Indian Embassy will help you, says V K Singh

Congress divided India on lines of religion, caste for votes, says VK Singh

India

oi-PTI

Dehradun, October 7: The Congress had always worked to divide the nation on religious and caste lines, said Union Minister VK Singh in a function attended by retired officers of the Army, the Navy and the Air Force at the Welham Boys' School in Dehradun.

First, it (Congress) divided the country on the basis of religion by creating Pakistan and in the post-British era it fomented the politics of caste for votebank, he told reporters on the sidelines of the function.

"The Congress has always worked to divide the nation. It's a fact," the minister of state for external affairs said.

Singh admitted that people were migrating from the hills of Uttarakhand in search of jobs but hoped that with a new BJP government in office, the situation will improve.

"Locals are migrating from the hills as there are not enough jobs. But with a new government in office I am confident enough job opportunities will be generated to stop them from migrating in search of a livelihood," he said.

To a question on alleged Chinese incursions in Barahoti in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district, the former Army chief said China comes only to its own side of the disputed area and not beyond that.

Singh further said that Barahoti has been a disputed area between the two countries for the last 50 years. "It has been agreed to keep it demilitarised and that is what is being done," he added.

PTI
Shoaib open fires in UP university after trying to start conversation with girls; arrested

CPAT 2017 Answer Key published, check now

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

The CPAT 2017 Answer Key has been published. It is available on the official website.

The answer keys were published by the Lucknow University The candidates may access the CPAT 2017 exam answer key after logging on to the official website of CPAT UP 2017.

CPAT 2017 exam was organised on October 4 and the final results of this exam will be declared on October 12 as per the notification released earlier. CPAT 2017 answer keys have been released for Zoology, Botany, Chemistry and Physics exam conducted on October 4. CPAT 2017 exam is being conducted for admission of BAMS, BUMS and BHMS courses in Uttar Pradesh.

Lucknow University, the official organisor of the exam said, if any candidate is not satisfied with the answer to any question, they may raise their objections till 6:00 PM of October 8, 2017 through email ID upcpat2017@gmail.com only. The answer key can be found at cpatup2017.in.

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Story first published: Saturday, October 7, 2017, 7:24 [IST]
ED issues notice to Lashkar-e-Tayiba operative

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

By Vicky

The Enforcement Directorate has issued a notice to Mohammad Ayub Mir of the Lashkar-e-Tayiba in a foreign exchange case. The notice was issued under the provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act.

Ayub Ali Mir was arrested at New Delhi by the Special Cell, Delhi Police, while he was collecting money Rs. 7,00,000 from Harbans Singh another accused through hawala channels. The money was being collected on the instructions of a London based entity.

During the questioning Mir confessed that he was associated with the terror organisation. He further said that he was involved in collecting and delivering the money at the behest of the Lashkar-e-Tayiba.

The ED has also issued notices to Harbans Singh and Bech Raj Bengani a racketeer in Hawala trade.

OneIndia News
Fire breaks out at oil depot on Butcher Island off Mumbai

India

oi-PTI

A major fire broke out at an oil tank farm of the Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) located on the Butcher Island off the east coast of Mumbai on Friday evening, with authorities suspecting that it was caused by a lightning strike.

The fire started around 5pm when Mumbai and surrounding areas witnessed thundershowers, but no causality has been reported, officials said. "The fire is contained to one tank farm owned by Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL). It is under control, but firefighting is on," Mumbai Port Trust chairman Sanjay Bhatia told PTI by phone.

A BPCL spokesperson said a lightning strike amid thundershowers was the apparent cause behind the fire. "One diesel tank caught fire due to the lightning and thundershowers. MbPT fire tenders are at work to put it out. No casualties were reported," he said.

Butcher Island houses a marine oil terminal of MbPT. Oil tankers discharge crude at the terminal, and it is transported to refineries at nearby Mahul through submerged pipelines, port officials said. Mumbai Port Trust's fire brigade officials said that apart from the in-house fire brigade personnel on the island, additional help is also being taken from the Victoria Dock fire station.

According to the MbPT website, four vessels were to call on Jawahar Dweep (as Butcher Island is officially known) today, with the last one supposed to have been anchored at 4.12pm. The website said that the BPCL has eight tanks on the island with an installed capacity of 1.79 lakh kilolitres.

Bhatia said as a precautionary measure, vessels in the vicinity of the island have been moved away. The Indian Navy has a base near the island. Navy officials said they were monitoring the situation, though there are no naval assets on the island. Officials from the Indian Coast Guard also said that they are in contact with the MbPT and can send fire-fighting equipment, if needed.

Manohar Rao, executive director and head of safety, BPCL, said that prima facie the cause of the fire was lightning, though further probe will be carried out on Saturday. Some tanks of the Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited at Visakhapatnam had caught fire due to lightning strike two months ago, Rao noted.

He also said the tank which caught fire on Friday was a "dormant tank". It was not in operational use and had only some residual fuel in it, he added. An experts' team from the Mumbai fire brigade has reached the spot to assist the fire-fighting.

Process of decanting-removal of fuel from the tank through a pipe-has been started, said a fire brigade official in Mumbai.

PTI

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Story first published: Saturday, October 7, 2017, 9:36 [IST]
India's stand on Rohingyas gracious so far but housing them would be risky

How India is using tech-based surveillance in 140 spots to check Rohingya influx

India

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia

New Delhi, Oct 7: Since the time Rohingyas, facing violence and persecution in their homeland Myanmar, started fleeing to Bangladesh, India is on a high alert to avoid any infiltration of the refugees to its soil through the porous Indo-Myanmar and Indo-Bangladesh border areas.

Currently, India has increased its surveillance along the border areas from which it fears that infiltration of the refugees could take place. The security agencies say that touts are on a prowl to help Rohingyas enter India.

Thus, India does not want to take any risk and has deployed tech-based surveillance in 140 vulnerable spots to check Rohingya influx.

India has identified 140 vulnerable locations, deployed more security personnel and surveillance gadgets, and launched a "campaign" against organised criminal gangs that help Rohingyas sneak across the Indo-Bangladesh border, the Border Security Force (BSF) informed on Friday.

The BSF concluded its bi-annual four-day talks with their counterparts, Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), and chalked out plans to keep a vigil on the "spillover effect of the Rohingyas crossing over to India."

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BSF Director General (DG) KK Sharma and the visiting BGB chief, Major General Abul Hossain, addressed the media at the end of their talks that began after the Bangaldeshi delegation arrived in New Delhi on October 2.

The BGB DG said they have assured the BSF that the policy of the Bangladeshi government is very clear and "does not allow" their soil to be used for any kind of terrorist activity, neither in their country nor against its neighbour India.

Hossain said his country was also planning to have a fenced border with Myanmar.

Sharma said both the sides discussed the issue of Rohingyas.

"We are aware that the issue is very serious as a large number of Rohingyas have entered Bangladesh. You are very right in apprehending that the spillover effect of the Rohingyas crossing over to India is also very genuine. Both of us (BSF-BGB) have taken steps.

"The BGB has ensured that their (Rohingyas) movement is being regulated and they have mounted some nakas and check posts on various routes to ensure that they do not cross over to our side," the BSF DG said.

He added that "140 vulnerable border posts" along the 4,096-km long India-Bangla border -- that can be exploited for illegal crossing over of Rohingyas -- have been identified by the BSF.

These posts, Sharma said, are being "strengthened by us by deploying more manpower and by technological inputs and gadgets."

The surveillance equipment, the BSF chief said, have been "diverted" from other BSF posts and deployed all along the eastern frontier.

"We are also in touch with our sister agencies, the intelligence agencies, to identify and take action against the touts. Because, these people (Rohingyas) cannot come on their own.

There are organised criminals on both the sides who assist in their crossing over to India. So, we are mounting the campaign against the touts," DG Sharma said.

He added that the border guarding force has "sensitised" the local population to inform them about people trespassing across the border.

The BSF DG said the force is constantly in touch with the BGB on a daily basis. "...our commanders on the border can speak to each other quickly and share intelligence on any movement of Rohingyas."

The BGB DG said his country has already begun the mandatory registration of all Rohingyas entering Bangladesh.

"This is a problem in Myanmar and this is not our problem. Five lakh people have already come to Bangladesh. But, this is a problem for our country also...they (Rohingyas) cannot spread all over the country.

"Our government has taken a decision and the Rohingyas have been put in the Cox Bazar district," he said, adding they have identified the exit and entry points (of Rohingyas) which are being guarded properly.

"We have started the registration of these people...we have declared that anybody without registration will not be given any facilities. We have also informed our people in the country to inform about any such person to law enforcement agencies," Hossain said.

He added that Myanmar has told Bangladesh that they will "soon form a joint working committee to find out Rohingyas and take them back."

Meanwhile, the Narendra Modi government remains firm regarding its decision to deport around 40,000 Rohingyas settled in various parts of the country fearing "security threats" from the "illegal immigrants."

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Story first published: Saturday, October 7, 2017, 6:44 [IST]
Lashkar-e-Tayiba brings in Killer Squad to aid infiltrations

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

As the winter approaches, Pakistan is trying to make desperate bids to boost infiltrations into the Kashmir Valley. An Intelligence Bureau report states that the Lashkar-e-Tayiba has sent its "Killer Squad" to the border. This squad was formed exclusively to assist Pakistan's Border Action Team.

The reason for sending out this group to the border is to assist in the infiltrations. A recent IB report speaks about this group and this once again proves that the Pakistan army is taking the support of terrorist organisations to spread terror in India.

The IB report states that the group operates along the Line of Control. It specifically aims are infiltrating and also causing damage at the Surankot and Poonch districts of Jammu and Kashmir.

ISI officials also held a meeting with top commanders of Lashkar-e-Taiba and Hizbul Mujahideen to create a blueprint of the attacks. Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Syed Salahudeen was also present at the meeting. Last week, at least seven to eight armed BAT members attempted to infiltrate Kupwara in Jammu & Kashmir as Indian troops opened fire on them.

The IB has warned that several such groups would be brought in near the border. There is a sense of urgency that Pakistan is displaying as it wants to ensure that as many people as possible infiltrate before the winter sets in.

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Story first published: Saturday, October 7, 2017, 8:34 [IST]
Love Jihad: Kerala questions NIA probe in SC

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

The Kerala government has challenged the NIA probe into the Love Jihad case. Submitting an affidavit in the Supreme Court, the Kerala government said that it has been two months since the NIA has been probing the case, but the agency has found no concrete evidence that Love Jihad exists.

It may be recalled that the Supreme Court on the last date of hearing had asked how the High Court could annul the marriage.

The investigation conducted so far by the Kerala police has not revealed any incident relating to the commission of any scheduled offenses to make a report to the Central government under Section 6 of the NIA Act," the affidavit stated. The affidavit contended that a Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Kerala Police has conducted "detailed investigation" into the conversion of the 24-year-old Hindu woman and her subsequent marriage to a Muslim man.

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Also read: On Love Jihad, SC changes preliminary view: Asks how HC annulled the marriage

It added that the "Kerala Police is competent to conduct an investigation in such crimes" and it would have reported to the Central government in case of any incident requiring the involvement of NIA.

On the last date of hearing the SC had said that the question is not about Love Jihad, but whether the High Court could annul a marriage. Changing its preliminary view, the SC said that a father cannot be seen dictating the personal life of a 24-year-old daughter.

A Hindu girl had married a Muslim in Kerala and the marriage was annulled by the High Court. The SC had directed that an NIA probe be conducted after allegations of Love Jihad surfaced. Earlier a Bench headed by former Chief Justice J S Khehar had ordered the NIA probe. On Tuesday, the Bench headed by Chief Justice of India, Dipak Misra sought to know if the SC could have ordered an NIA probe in this case.

Senior advocate Dushyant Dave appearing for the Muslim man criticised the decision of the SC which ordered an NIA probe. Dave said that the SC had exceeded its jurisdiction. The SC observed that major girls have a free choice.

The NIA submitted that it had found a pattern in Kerala. The Bench, however, shot back stating, " pattern or no pattern, could the HC have annulled the marriage. The SC also said that a 24-year-old cannot be confined by her father.

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Story first published: Saturday, October 7, 2017, 13:50 [IST]
Mayor Priya is not the puppet but the savior - How did Chennai recover from the floods?

Out on parole, Sasikala meets "critically ill" husband in hospital

India

oi-Anusha

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Out on parole, Sasikala Natarajan met her ailing husband who is currently under treatment in a Chennai hospital. Despite her parole condition restricting her from meeting any person, Sasikala Natarajan greeted several supports gathered outside her residence as well as the hospital on Saturday.

Setting foot in Chennai for the first time after being lodged at the Bengaluru central jail, Sasikala Natarajan- convicted in a disproportionate assets case, has been allowed to live in a relative's residence. Stringent conditions have been laid out for Sasikala's parole, one of which restricts from indulging in any political or public activity.

Also read: Sasikala Natarajan gets 5-day parole to visit ailing husband

Sasikala received a rousing welcome by supporters who had gathered at various locations along the Bengaluru-Chennai route. On Saturday, the private hospital where Natarajan is undergoing treatment said that he would remain critical for the next few days. In a health bulletin, the hospital maintained that he was awake and oriented but was on ventilator support. "His condition will be critical for the next few days," the statement said.

Sasikala, according to the parole conditions, is not allowed to go anywhere except the residence mentioned as the place of stay during parole and the hospital where her husband is admitted.

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Story first published: Saturday, October 7, 2017, 12:21 [IST]
Delhi Metro to soon roll out its first e-auto service

Pay Rs 3,000 crores for 5 years to avoid Metro fare hike: Centre tells AAP govt

India

oi-Deepika

By Deepika

The Centre on Saturday told Arvind Kejriwal government that the Delhi Metro fare hike can't be put on hold and that setting up a fresh Fare Fixation Committee (FFC) could be considered if the Delhi government agrees to give over Rs 3,000 crore every year to Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC).

Union Minister Hardip Singh Puri also sent a letter to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal that has ruled out any rollback on the fare hike.

The response came to the Delhi Chief Minister after detailed examination of the issues raised and suggestions made by Kejriwal regarding the fare hike in consultations with the DMRC.

The Union minister said his administration was not authorised to stop the fare hike but could consider a suspension if the Delhi government pitches in with funds.

"In case the State Government agrees to provide grants-in-aid of nearly Rs 3,000 crore per annum to DMRC, then another FFC may be constituted, which may also examine the financial viability of DMRC," Puri wrote, referring to the fare fixation committee, a panel that suggested the hike which is now in contention.

Kejriwal in his letter desired the central government to give direction to DMRC to put on hold the proposed hike in fares to be effective from the tenth of this month, as recommended by the Fourth Fare Fixation Committee.

The Delhi Metro, used by 27 lakh people every day in the national capital region that includes parts of Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.

The Metro fare hike, expected to be implemented by DMRC next week, will hike the minimum ticket price to Rs 30, whereas, the maximum fare would go as high as Rs 50. For travelling more than 2 km, the passenger's ticket price is expected to increase by Rs 5-10.

The Delhi government led by Aam Aadmi Party is yet to respond to Puri's letter.

OneIndia News (with agency inputs)

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Story first published: Saturday, October 7, 2017, 17:21 [IST]
'Return to the path of ceasefire and diplomacy': PM Modi's advice on Ukraine crisis at G20 Summit

PM Modi and US Prez Biden share light moments at G20 summit, video goes viral

PM Modi's camaraderie with world leaders clicked at the start of G20 Summit | Photos

Fact Check: PM Modi never told ICC to replay the India-England semi-final game at T20 World Cup

PM Modi meets UK PM Rishi Sunak on the sidelines of G20 summit in Bali

Diwali has come early for our citizens with GST relief: PM Modi in Gujarat

India

oi-Chennabasaveshwar

By Chennabasaveshwar

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Diwali has come early for our citizens due to the decisions taken in the GST Council.

PM said "We had said we will study all aspects relating to GST for 3 months, including the shortcomings. And thus, the decisions were taken with consensus at the GST council."

PM Modi made this remark a day after the Goods and Services Tax Council reduced rates for 27 items as it rushes to address growing criticism of its stewardship of Asia's third-largest economy.

GST rate on many daily-use items has been reduced, including man-made yarn, unbranded namkeen, stones used in flooring and diesel engine parts, among others.

He was addressing a public gathering in Dwarka after laying the foundation stone for a bridge between Okha and Bet Dwarka.

"When there is trust in a government and when policies are made with best intentions, it is natural for people to support us for the best interests of the nation," he said.

He further said that the common citizen of India wants the fruits of development to reach him or her, adding " Nobody wants their children to live in poverty. We want to help our people fulfil that dream and want to fight poverty."

He also hit out at the Congress and alleged the party took to cheap stunts to drum up support ahead of polls. In contrast, the BJP believed in concrete action to facilitate "all round and extensive progress."

"When Madhavsinh Solanki ji was CM, I recall front page advertisements for the CM coming to Jamnagar to inaugurate a water tank. This is how narrow their conception of development was," PM Modi slammed.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on a 2-day visit to Gujarat. He arrived in Jamnagar today morning.

First of all, PM Modi visited Dwarkadhish temple in Dwaraka and offered prayers.

Later, at Dwarka, Modi laid the foundation stone for four-lane cable-stayed signature bridge between Okha and Beyt Dwarka to be built at a cost of Rs 962.42 crore.

Gujarat: PM welcomed at the foundation stone laying ceremony of a bridge between Okha and Bet Dwarka; Union Min Nitin Gadkari also present. pic.twitter.com/cszsIB6AKQ  ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

Other projects for which foundation stone will be laid include four-laning of 116.24 kms of Porbandar-Dwarka section of NH-51 and four-laning of 93.56 km of Gadu-Porbandar section of NH-51.

He will also address a public meeting there.

From Dwarka, the prime minister will go to Hirasar in Rajkot district where he will lay foundation stone for a greenfield airport, 20 kms from Rajkot city.

He will also lay foundation stone in Chotila for six- laning of 201-km Ahmedabad-Rajkot section of NH-47 at a cost of Rs 2,893 crore.

He will also dedicate a fully automatic milk processing and packaging plant and a drinking water distribution pipeline for Joravarnagar and Ratanpur area of Surendranagar, a PMO statement said in Delhi.

(With agency inputs)
'Return to the path of ceasefire and diplomacy': PM Modi's advice on Ukraine crisis at G20 Summit

We cannot afford to have a digital divide: PM Modi in Gujarat

India

oi-Chennabasaveshwar

By Chennabasaveshwar

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday underscored the importance of digital literacy in the country. Speaking at a gathering in IIT Gandhinagar, PM said "work is underway to spread digital literacy to every part of India, among all age groups and sections of society."

PM Modi said, "In this day and age, we cannot afford to have a digital divide."

"A Digital India guarantees transparency, effective service delivery and good governance," said PM Modi, who is on two days Gujarat visit.

He further said that our academics should not be exam-driven and the focus should be innovation.

If user friendly technology is introduced then we can take the country on the path of digital literacy: PM Narendra Modi pic.twitter.com/7EGvUrV19Y  ANI (@ANI) October 7, 2017

PM Modi, said; "You are IIT-ians, I was a Tea-ian when I was young (I sold tea). On this day, a few years ago, I took oath as CM for the first time. Till then, I had never even been an MLA. I had decided that whatever I will do, I will do to the best of my abilities.

Earlier in the day, PM said that Diwali has come early for our citizens due to the decisions are taken in the GST Council. "We had said we will study all aspects relating to GST for 3 months, including the shortcomings. And thus, the decisions were taken with consensus at the GST council," he said.

OneIndia News

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Story first published: Saturday, October 7, 2017, 19:04 [IST]
What is Arun Shouries biggest mistake? To support Modi as PM, says BJP leader

India

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia

Shimla, Oct 7: The mood and setting were perfect to discuss literature, amid the lush green surroundings of Kasauli during the sixth Khushwant Singh Literary Festival in the hill town of Himachal Pradesh on Friday.

However, veteran Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Arun Shourie decided to take a U-turn and bring into focus about the current political situation in the country, which is clearly his favourite topic considering his recent criticism on the Narendra Modi government.

At the literary festival, the former Union minister decided to go personal and directly targeted Prime Minister Modi. The journalist-turned-politician, who has been vocally lambasting the BJP government since the last few years, said that he made a "mistake" by supporting Modi to be the PM.

This, he said, was his second mistake after supporting VP Singh who led a Janata Dal government supported by the BJP and Left parties from outside.

"I made two mistakes -- by supporting (former PM) VP Singh and then by supporting Modi," Shourie said, at the literary festival in Kasauli. Shourie was speaking on "How to recognise rulers for what they are".

"Don't go by what these fellows say now. Go by what they have been saying in the past," he said. "Actually don't even go by what they are saying, but go by what they have been doing and what they have condoned in other people. So, that is very important for the future."

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He said leaders should also be judged by examining their claims "in great detail".

"I think this is one of our great failures, of our newspapers, of people like me who did not examine the claims about the Gujarat model," he said, referring to Modi's claims of Gujarat development when he was Chief Minister of the state.

"Now we are realising that it (the Gujarat model) never existed in the first place. That it was an event management.

"For example, everybody is surprised about these Gujarat Vibrant Summits. Rs 10 lakh crore have been promised, Rs 15 lakh crore investment promised. In all the nine summits, it took three years for the organisations to find out that out of all those pledges which were announced and proclaimed as great successes what proportion resulted in actual investment. Can anybody guess? Six per cent! But it was a great business success."

He also castigated the government over its job claims, saying between January and April this year 1.5 million jobs have been lost.

"And they had promised to create 2 crore jobs per year. But four days ago, there were full page ads that they have created five and half crore jobs. What kind of magic is this that so many jobs were created but we can't see it."

He said that in politics the main point to watch for a leader was their character and their adherence to truth.

"If that is not there many other things will also not. Never believe that certain things being said by people close to a person are not being said by the person. Such leaders are ventriloquists," said Shourie.

"Just believe I am talking about (US President) Donald Trump. Any resemblance closer home is your imagination."

Recently, Shourie in an exclusive interview to NDTV lashed out at the Centre over its failed economic policies, especially demonetisation or note ban.

Shourie called demonetisation "the largest money laundering scheme ever" that had given India an "idiotic jolt". He told NDTV that withdrawing the high-value currency notes last November was responsible for the economic slowdown in India.

OneIndia News

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Story first published: Saturday, October 7, 2017, 8:33 [IST]
Apologize for Twitter being super slow: What else did Musk say today?

When Khakra took Twitter by storm, netizens take on GST reduction for "Gujarati food"

India

oi-Anusha

Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Friday announced changes made to the GST rates of certain goods. What found prominence among netizens was undoubtedly Khakra, whose GST was reduced from 12 per cent to 5 per cent. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government's move to purportedly woo all things Gujarati was highlighted on social media with 'Khakra' the medium by storm.

While the Union Minister announced GST cut on various things including Mangoes sliced dried, Khakra and plain chapati or roti, Food preparations put up in unit containers and intended for free distribution to economically weaker sections of the society under a programme duly approved by the Central Government or any State Government, Khakra went on to become netizens' favourite.

I'm really not sure how to refer to the khakra ref. Sindhi in me wondering if papad included. Telugu in me wants to know if Muruku counts. https://t.co/0vF7Le9DYP  Maya Mirchandani (@maya206) October 6, 2017

Memes, GIFs on Khakras have been flooding social media timelines since the announcement on Friday. While many tweets were in good jest, netizens also raised pertinent questions over commodities that should have been considered for a GST cut. For days the country witnessed protests and backlash demanding rollback of GST on sanitary aides. This time around too, netizens made it a point to hightlight that essential commodities were not being given relief.

While Khakra is an essential commodity you need to have every month,period is something u can buy optionally.

So no GST reduction on pads.  Mahima Thakur (@MahimaT2017) October 7, 2017

Moral of revolutionary GST story: throw khakra, win election  Sridhar V (@sritara) October 6, 2017

The "Why not other foods?" question became the most common. Many people also highlighted how the efforts of the government seemed to be intended towards wooing the Gujarati community than providing largescale relief to citizens across the country. The fact that Prime Minister Narendra Modi held an urgent meeting with BJP national President Amit Shah and Union minister Arun Jaitley a day prior to the GST council added to the criticism.

GST on #khakra is down from 12% to 5%. I think its time Idiyappam and luchi protested  #GujaratBias  Poulomi Saha (@PoulomiMSaha) October 6, 2017

The Khakra industry is huge. Almost every home in Dombivali sells home made khakras. 12% to 5% is going to make world of a difference.  Nirav Mehta (@EkCupCoffee) October 7, 2017

Many attempted to look at the brighter side of GST reduction of Khakra, calling it a 'huge relief for those in the business of manufacturing Khakra'. Tweets oozed mockery, sarcasm and some genuine appreciation for the government's move.

Off to buy khakra, sliced dried mango, unbranded Ayurvedic medicine and diesel engine parts now that GST on these items has come down.  Anant Rangaswami (@AnantRangaswami) October 7, 2017

Elections are around the corner in Gujarat and netizens made it a point to highlight how evident the government had made its attempt to appeal to the state and its voters. Gujarat has been seeing huge protests against the GST threatening to dent the BJP's prospects. Friday's GST changes bring much needed relief to small traders- a huge chunk of Gujarati voters.

OneIndia News
No decision to provide EWS flats to Rohingya illegal migrants in Delhi: MHA

What about undocumented Indians living abroad: Manish Tewari on BJP's Rohingya threat to nation comment

India's stand on Rohingyas gracious so far but housing them would be risky

The Rohingya influx continues as Tripura police nets seven of them

2,000 Rohingyas fleeing Myanmar to Bangladesh daily, says UN

International

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia

Dhaka, Oct 7: Since the time violence against Rohingyas broke out in Myanmar on August 25, at least 2,000 Rohingyas are leaving the country daily to avoid persecution to neighbouring Bangladesh.

Till date, an estimated 515,000 Rohingyas have come to Bangladesh from Myanmar since late August. The information has been revealed by the United Nations refugee agency on Friday.

More than 100,000 Rohingyas are waiting to cross to the southeast Bangladeshi port of Cox's Bazar from Myanmar's Rakhine state, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) said, citing staff members monitoring the Bangladesh-Myanmar border.

Because of such a huge number of refugees taking shelter in one place, aid agencies fear Bangladesh won't be able to give enough food, drinking water and shelter to the already exhausted, hungry and weak refugees arriving in Cox's Bazar.

The IOM warned that the refugee crisis in Bangladesh could lead to widespread malnutrition.

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According to an estimate, 218,000 people are already in need of urgent nutrition support, including 145,000 children under the age of five and thousands of pregnant and lactating women.

The Rohingyas started fleeing Myanmar after Rohingya insurgents attacked police posts there on August 25, prompting security forces to launch a counter-offensive which the UN has described as "a textbook case of ethnic cleansing".

The Rohingya, a stateless mostly Muslim ethnic minority, have long faced persecution in Rakhine in northern Myanmar (Burma). Bloody riots in 2012 forced over 100,000 Rohingya to flee to refugee camps in southeast Bangladesh, where many still live.

According to the UN, an estimated 800,000 Rohingyas (including the latest number of immigrants) are currently staying in Bangladesh.

OneIndia News

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Story first published: Saturday, October 7, 2017, 13:29 [IST]
Where To Go When Your Local Emergency Room Goes Bankrupt?" During the past ten years 84 California hospitals have declared bankruptcy and closed their Emergency Rooms forever. Financially crippled by legislative and judicial mandates to treat illegal aliens have bankrupted hospitals! In 2010, in Los Angeles County alone, over 2 million illegal aliens recorded visits to county emergency rooms for both routine and emergency care. The cost is $1,000 dollars for every taxpayer. VIVA LA RAZA?
26/11 insights may have prevented 1,000 deaths in Las Vegas

Police still clueless about 'motive' behind Las Vegas shooting

International

pti-PTI

Las Vegas, October 7: The Las Vegas authorities still not uncovered a "clear motive" for the gunman five days after the deadliest mass shooting in recent US history.

"We still do not have a clear motive or reason why," Undersheriff Kevin McMahill of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department told reporters.

"At this time I'll tell you we have no credible information to report to you as to motivation."

U/S McMahill briefs the media today. Advises we're continuing to investigate all tips and leads.No credible info to report as to motivation. pic.twitter.com/Pny7x8gLTQ  LVMPD (@LVMPD) October 6, 2017

Stephen Paddock killed 58 people and left hundreds injured in Las Vegas after raining bullets on a crowd at an open-air country music concert while perched in a 32nd floor hotel room.

Stephen Paddock, had been killed after a SWAT team responded to reports of multiple gunfire from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay, a hotel-casino next to the concert venue.

The previous deadliest shooting came in June 2016 when 49 people were killed at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida.

PTI
At UNSC, US calls on world to tell Russia to stop its nuclear threats

Trump to send military advisers to Pakistan with 'tough message'

International

pti-PTI

Washington, October 7: Weeks after President Trump angrily accused Pakistan of providing safe haven to "agents of chaos," he will dispatch his top diplomatic and military advisers to Islamabad in the coming weeks, turning up the heat on a nuclear-armed ally accused of harbouring terror groups.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson plans to depart for Pakistan late this month. He will be followed by Secretary of Defence Jim Mattis, according to US and Pakistani sources.

The one-two punch is designed to drill home Trump's message that Pakistani state support for jihadist groups has to end, according to officials briefed on the visits.

Washington has long been frustrated by Pakistan's willingness to offer cross-border safe havens to Taliban factions and armed Islamist groups fighting US troops and their Afghan allies.

The relationship reached the breaking point in 2011, when president Barack Obama sent commandos into Pakistan in 2011 to kill Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden, who was living in a military garrison town.

With little change since then, Trump came to office indicating that Washington's frustration had reached the point where something had to give. "We have been paying Pakistan billions and billions of dollars at the same time they are housing the very terrorists that we are fighting," he said an August address.

But in the six weeks since Trump signalled that tougher tone, there have been precious few signs that the calculus in South Asia has changed. Mattis told Congress this week that he will try "one more time" to "see if we can make this work."

"To this point, we have not seen any impact on military- to military-relations," said one Pentagon official, suggesting any change would not happen after Mattis' visit.

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Visiting Washington, Pakistan's foreign minister Khawaja Asif appeared unwavering. He lashed out at "hollow allegations" about Pakistan harbouring terrorists as "not acceptable."

"That is not the way you talk to 70-year-old friends," Asif said bitterly. "Instead of accusations and threats we should cooperate with each other for the peace in the region," he said while confirming Tillerson's visit.

While professing anger in public, Pakistani officials in private complain about receiving no concrete requests to target the Haqqani network or other groups. US officials have been reticent to share some intelligence for fear of tipping off targets with links inside Pakistan's government.

Earlier this month a US drone killed three suspected militants in an attack on a compound in Pakistan's tribal region.

Pakistani officials also complain of receiving mixed messages from the Trump administration, which is still struggling to find its feed under a mercurial commander-in-chief.

A September meeting in New York between Vice President Mike Pence and Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was said to be cordial, despite Trump's fire and brimstone rhetoric. "It was a very good meeting with the vice president," said Asif.

After that, Pakistan officials said, they were surprised at a tougher tone outlined in public by Mattis and in private by Trump's National Security Adviser HR McMaster.

PTI


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- Popularly attributed to P.T. Barnum

As Barack Obama left office the economy had "gained jobs for 75 straight months -- the longest streak on record." Of course, that had not stopped his successor from claiming that he had inherited a "mess" with jobs "pouring out of the country." Still, even as Trump struggled to keep up with the numbers posted during Obama's last year in office, his unshakable fans acted as if it was his accomplishments alone that had brought us to a point "close to what economists consider full employment." Then on Friday the Labor Department announced that preliminary numbers show that winning streak has come to an end; "the United States lost 33,000 jobs in September".



(Image by U. S. Department of Labor) Details DMCA



Unsurprisingly, the press took the bait. Speculation of the meaning of these events dominated the morning news cycle as the jobs numbers were released to the public. Unlike George W. Bush, Trump could accurately declare "mission accomplished".

This was not the first time that Trump used this page out of his playbook. For example, he had used his first hour in office to overturn an Obama initiative that cut interest premiums on FHA mortgages, saving "eligible homeowners an average of $500 a year." Since this was a move that ran contrary to his crafted persona of a populist, he needed a distraction. The "alternative fact" of the record-breaking inaugural crowd was born.

With 24 hours to fill, the news media could be providing us with unprecedented access to information. Instead, they allow themselves to be manipulated by Trump, chasing after whatever shiny object they put in front of them. The "failing" New York Times eagerly reported his deal with Carrier "to keep roughly 1,000 jobs in" Indiana, but did little actual reporting on the terms of that deal, which cost the taxpayers "$7 million in state tax credits." When the actual layoffs were announced in May, it turned out that Trump's count had "included engineering and headquarters staff whose jobs were never scheduled to leave Indianapolis in the first place." Even worse, the $16 million investment that Trump had bragged would bring additional jobs to the area was actually "go toward automation." Since Carrier only loses their tax credits if they outsource the remaining jobs, making them obsolete will allow them an even greater increase in profits. So much for Trump's willingness "to take on big business, at least in individual cases."

As much as Trump complains about the "fake news", the media has been his greatest asset. Just like in his days as a New York real estate developer, he has figured out the best way to get your way is to control the narrative. It is almost as if every sucker born has been given a reporter's notebook and a contract with a giant corporation. The independent media may be our only hope.

____________________________________________

Carl Petersen is a parent and special education advocate, elected member of the Northridge East Neighborhood Council and was a Green Party candidate in LAUSD's District 2 School Board race. He was endorsed by Network for Public Education (NPE) Action and Dr. Diane Ravitch called him a "strong supporter of public schools." His past blogs can be found at www.ChangeTheLAUSD.com.
Ron Wyden also raises questions about the Senate's handling of the Trump-Russia investigation.

At a packed press conference on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.), the chairman of the Senate intelligence committee, provided a progress report on his panel's investigation of the Trump-Russia scandal. Naturally, this is a touchy and dicey matter for a Republican, and Burr tried to make some points that appeared designed to limit President Donald Trump's political vulnerabilities on this front.

First, Burr declared that although Russian hackers had probed or penetrated the election systems of at least 21 states, he could confidently state that the Russian meddling in the 2016 election resulted in no changes to the vote tallies. That is, there's no reason to question Trump's Electoral College win. And second, Burr said that Russia's use of Facebook ads during the presidential campaign seemed "indiscriminate" and not designed to help a particular candidate -- meaning the recent revelations do not bolster the case that Trump was the Kremlin's choice.

But Sen. Ron Wyden, (D-Ore.), a feisty member of the intelligence committee, says both assertions are bunk. In an interview with Mother Jones on Thursday, Wyden argued that Burr's confidence in the election system was unwarranted. "The chairman said that he can say 'certifiably' that there was no vote tampering," said Wyden. "I do not agree with this judgment. I don't think it is possible to know that. There was no systematic analysis of the voting or forensic evaluations of the voting machines."

Wyden pointed out that the Department of Homeland Security has noted that its assessment that there was no finagling with the vote count was made with only "moderate confidence." For Wyden, that's not good enough for such a sensitive and significant matter -- and it sends the misguided signal that the voting system is doing just fine. Wyden believes that's the wrong message. This week he sent a letter to the major manufacturers of voting machines demanding information about how they protect themselves from cyberattacks.
There are some truly terrible things happening in our country right now that President Trump and Congress need to address. Common-sense gun reform. Emergency appropriations for Puerto Rico. A clean Dream Act so 800,000 young immigrants won't get kicked out of their homes. Funding for the Children's Health Insurance Program so 9 million kids don't lose their health care. The list is long.



But Donald Trump and the Republicans in Washington have decided that the single most important issue facing our country is taking away birth control and the right to a safe and legal abortion.



The Republicans failed at a wholesale repeal of the Affordable Care Act and its protections for women -- so now they are taking it apart piece by piece. Just yesterday, the Trump Administration rolled backed the Affordable Care Act requirement for employers' health insurance plans to cover birth control at no cost for women.



After years of the Republicans pushing for the Blunt Amendment to allow employers to deny birth control access, and threatening to shut down the government in 2013 over it -- poof -- Trump's team has done it.





They are women who are told that if they don't end their pregnancies, their kidneys could fail, or their hearts could fail, or they can't get the chemotherapy they need to save their lives.





They are women who have an ultrasound and find out devastating news: that their fetus has a giant hole in its heart and spine, or a deformed head, or organs outside the body, and the fetus either has no chance of survival or has an abnormality so severe that it would mean a short life filled with pain.





They are more likely to be very young, or to not understand that they're pregnant until it's too late.





They are more likely to live in places where getting an abortion means driving three hours or more to a doctor who will perform one.





And they are more likely to be poor and need to save up money to pay for the procedure.

These vulnerable women aren't the only people that Republicans want to punish. Doctors who are caught performing late-term abortions could face five years in prison under the House Republicans' bill.



We've lived in an America where women died in back alley abortions. We've lived in an America where high school girls tried poisons and coat hangers to end pregnancies. We've lived in an America where young women who faced unwanted pregnancies took their own lives.

We've lived in that America, and we are NOT going back. Not now, not ever.
From WSWS



Corporate Threat to Liberty (Painting)

(Image by DonkeyHotey) Details DMCA



Speaking at a news conference Wednesday morning in Washington, the co-leaders of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Republican Richard Burr of North Carolina and Democrat Mark Warner of Virginia, declared their agreement with the conclusions of an intelligence agency report issued last January 6 on alleged Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election.

Like the CIA, FBI and NSA, the senators sought to portray the Russian government as a major threat to American democracy, employing an army of hackers, bots, trolls and other denizens of the Internet to influence American voters. Both conceded that there was no evidence of any tampering with the actual voting or its tabulation.

But Warner said there was a "larger consensus that [Russian operatives] ...hacked into political files and released those files in an effort to influence the election." Burr added, "Russian intelligence is determined, clever, and I reckon that every campaign official should take this seriously as we approach the coming elections."

The Republican and Democrat claimed that the alleged Russian ads were aimed, not merely at influencing the outcome of the presidential election, but at stirring up social conflicts in America. Facebook ads purchased by Russian operatives "were indiscriminate" Burr said, adding that the "overall theme of Russia's involvement in the US election was to create chaos at every level. They have been pretty darn successful." Warner said the goal was to "sow chaos and drive division in our country," and the Russians got "a decent rate of return" for their investments.

These comments were repeated and amplified throughout the American media Wednesday and Thursday as part of a systematic campaign to portray social unrest as the product, not of deteriorating conditions of life and shocking catastrophes like Las Vegas, Puerto Rico or Hurricane Harvey, but of "outside agitators" based in Russia. The McCarthyite conclusion of this line of argument is that anyone drawing attention to the deeper social crisis of American capitalism is in the pay of Moscow.

Even if one were to accept the premise of the intelligence agencies -- that the Russian government favored the election of Trump and devoted its cyber-propaganda efforts to bringing that about -- the scale of the operation is ludicrously disproportionate to the supposed result.

A year of systematic combing through the activities of supposed Russian bots and trolls on Facebook, Instagram and other social media platforms has uncovered a total expenditure of $100,000 to place about 3,000 ads, few of them directly related to the choice of Clinton vs. Trump on November 8, 2016.

While according to the Washington Post these ads have been viewed 10 million times, the vast majority of those views took place after the election, when a furious media campaign waged over alleged Russian interference created a higher degree of interest.

The supposed Russian interference was dwarfed in scale by the multibillion-dollar Clinton campaign, as well as the Trump campaign's targeted voter suppression effort using the same medium -- Facebook ads -- to depress voter turnout among demographics thought likely to vote for Clinton, including African-Americans, young women and former supporters of Senator Bernie Sanders.

According to one report in the online publication Medium, the Trump campaign produced hundreds of thousands of digital ads and websites, many of them not identified overtly with the candidate, to discourage potential Clinton voters. The Trump campaign spent $150 million in this voter suppression effort, 1,500 times more than the alleged Russian effort on his behalf.

As this example suggests, what passes for "democracy" in America is anything but. This is a country that, for more than a century after the Civil War, barred millions of African-American citizens from voting. It is a country where the theft of elections -- whether by ballot-stuffing or physical intimidation of voters -- was raised to the level of a political art form. The ultimate masterpiece of anti-democratic political corruption was produced in the 2000 election, when the Supreme Court stopped the counting of thousands of ballots and stole the election from Al Gore.

But we do not have sufficient space here for a full-scale history lesson. It is enough to say that the contemporary American electoral process is systematically manipulated by powerful corporate interests, which finance and control the Democratic and Republican parties and the US government at every level, federal, state and local.

Senator Warner represents the State of Virginia, whose political system is so thoroughly corrupt that it makes even nearby Delaware and New Jersey seem models of electoral integrity. To rise to the top of the smelly cesspool of Virginia's Democratic Party politics, Warner deployed the millions of dollars he pocketed through the sale of his mobile phone company to Nextel in the 1990s. These resources enabled Warner to buy himself first the governorship of Virginia, and then the Senate seat he has occupied for two terms.

Warner is a fairly common type in the Congress. The electoral system in the United States is more thoroughly controlled by a narrow financial elite than that of any other purported democracy in the world. Two right-wing parties, devoted to safeguarding the wealth of the super-rich and the global interests of American imperialism, effectively exclude any other competitors from the electoral arena, in many cases through overt legal barriers that preclude third-party candidates or make their campaigns practically impossible. Third-party candidates are routinely denied media coverage and excluded from televised debates. They are denied ballot access in most states for failing to meet onerous requirements that do not apply to the Democrats and Republicans.

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From Gush Shalom

It declares that all the existing organizations of Mizrahim (Oriental Jews) are phony. That they are all instruments of the Ashkenazi (European Jewish) elite to keep the Mizrahim in subjugation. That the Oriental Shas party is a joke, especially since the death of Rabbi Ovadia Josef, who was an authentic Mizrahi leader.

It says the Likud is the most cunning instrument for keeping the Mizrahim down. That the endless rule of Binyamin Netanyahu, the very personification of the Ashkenazi elite, symbolizes the powerlessness of the ignorant Mizrahi masses, who keep him and his entire Ashkenazi gang in power.

SO a new Mizrahi party is set up, led by energetic young people who put forward a shocking revolutionary idea: separation.

Their plan is to partition the State of Israel along the Jaffa -- Jerusalem road, dividing the country into two halves. Everything north of the dividing line will remain the property of the Ashkenazis, everything south of it will become the new sovereign Mizrahi state, to be called Medinat Mizrah.

From there, your imagination can lead you anywhere you want.

WHERE WOULD I stand in such a situation? Asking myself seriously, I find myself in a very ambiguous situation.

I am an Ashkenazi. As Ashkenazi as you get. I was born in Germany. My family had been there for ages. But I never defined myself as such. The very idea of being "Ashkenazi" is completely alien to me.

More so, I have a very deep attachment to the Mizrahi society. I had it even before four young recruits from Morocco risked their young lives to save my life in the 1948 war. I was attached to Oriental culture from early childhood.

So, confronted with a vigorous Oriental separation movement, where would I stand? Frankly, I do not know. I certainly would not send the Israeli army and police to put it down. That would be impossible anyhow, considering that most soldiers and police are themselves Mizrahim.

Fortunately, the whole idea is preposterous. Can't happen. Even less than Kurdish or Catalonian separation.

CURIOUSLY ENOUGH, the Kurds and the Catalans are two peoples I have always liked.

I don't know when I started to like the Kurds or why. In my youth, Kurds were considered nice but primitive. The saying "Ana Kurdi" (Arabic for "I am a Kurd") meant that I am a simple person who fulfills his task without asking questions.

Jewish immigrants from Iraqi Kurdistan spoke of their former hosts with affection -- unlike most Jewish immigrants from other countries.

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The American ruling class armed the Soviet Union during the "Cold War." This fact is spelled out in detail by Antony C. Sutton in his book, National Suicide: Military Aid to the Soviet Union, published by Arlington House, New Rochelle, New York, in 1973 and online here , excerpts from which I will be asking you to read by indicating the relevant online page numbers. Note that one can quickly get to a given page number online by typing the page number at the page indicator at the very top. (I would like to include these excepts in the text of this article for your convenience, but I have not yet obtained permission to do so from the publisher and am thus limited to only 500 words.)

National Suicide either references directly the documentary sources of its assertions or else refers the reader to the documented sources for those assertions that are in his prior three-volume work, Western Technology and Soviet Economic Development. These three volumes are online here and here and here and are available (directly or indirectly) from Amazon; they are thoroughly documented. I possess all three volumes and have spot-checked the sources and found them to be valid.

If one is inclined not to believe what Sutton asserts in his book, National Suicide (skepticism is, of course, understandable!), I suggest that one obtain the three books of his that contain the additional documentation, and then check out the documents and only then make a decision as to whether or not his factual assertions are well- founded.

Antony Sutton's political view can be succinctly expressed this way: He believed in the free enterprise system, as opposed to "statist" systems such as Nazism and Communism that he condemned for their anti-democratic and oppressive acts. On this basis he supported the United States against its Fascist and Communist enemies. At the same time Sutton opposed capitalists using the government to personally enrich themselves and was therefore very critical of many of America's wealthiest people who, as he discovered and wrote about in other books, had been or were using not only the United States government but also the Nazi German government and the Bolshevik Soviet government to enrich themselves at the expense of ordinary people.

Sutton's books give differing explanations for why U.S. corporate and government rulers armed the Soviet Union. In National Suicide and the prior three volumes it is based on, Sutton says the explanation is essentially some greed and a lot of stupidity. In a later book about Yale's Skull and Bones secret society, Sutton argues that key U.S. rulers support both sides of wars such as (but not limited to) the Cold War in order to become more powerful and control people.

Why did the American ruling class arm the Soviet Union when, supposedly, it was deadly afraid of the Soviet Union? Excellent question! The most compelling answer in my opinion is that the American ruling class wanted a credible foreign enemy with which to control the American people. Such an enemy enabled the rich upper class rulers to pose as the protectors of the nation from the Evil Empire, and in this way make Americans tolerate unjust domination by this upper class, including allowing it to make huge profits from the weapons industry by bilking American tax-payers. (Soviet rulers likewise needed the American bogeyman enemy to control their own people.) Waging the Cold War as an Orwellian war of social control cost many ordinary people their lives and kept most people in great fear, but it was wonderful for the ruling elites.

Preventing "Communist expansion" abroad was also the perfect pretext for the U.S. government to invade other nations and overthrow foreign governments whenever it suited the American ruling class. But for this pretext to be credible, the Soviet Union had to be a serious military power, which U.S. rulers guaranteed by doing what is described below.

Excerpts from National Suicide: Military Aid to the Soviet Union

"Each year in the spring the North Vietnamese have attempted to conquer the South. In 1972, in their latest attempt, a full-scale invasion was launched with various kinds of heavy equipment they had not previously used. The tanks, guns and trucks came from the Soviet Union--and were produced in plants erected and equipped by American and European companies.

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Home cooking in Hanoi, 2017

(Image by Linh Dinh) Details DMCA



I'm back in Hanoi. Noi Bai Airport was sparkling after its recent upgrade, and I rode into town on a wide, well-landscaped freeway named after general Vo Nguyen Giap. On both sides were shops and restaurants.



"I don't recognize any of this, brother," I said to the taxi driver, a man in his mid 40's.



"When was the last time you were here, uncle?" North Vietnamese routinely call each other "ba'c," or "greater uncle."



"2000."



"Ah! Hanoi is much different now." He laughed.



As the Hanoi skyline finally came into view, I blurted, "I hardly know I'm in Vietnam!" Every lit sign on the highrises was in English. We crossed the Nht T n Bridge, built with a loan from Japan and designed by a Japanese firm. My driver slowed down so I could admire its five towers, illuminated in shifting colors. A native Hanoian, he'd been driving for eight years, with his finances tolerable and improving. "There are still plenty of poor people," he reminded me, "especially in far off places."



"Do you have any relatives overseas?" I asked.







"And she's doing OK?"



"She's doing fine. Every two years, she comes home for a visit."



We passed two preposterous pseudo-classical gates, crowned by galloping horses. Behind them were swanky houses for the nouveau riche. All the street names in this gated community, Ciputra, sound enticingly exotic, Main, Lake, Park, Central Park, Singapore, Pegasus, Atlas and Academy, etc. On the flight in, I had sat next to a man returning from Fiji, where his wife's posted to the Vietnamese embassy. He had three kids at American universities, in Minnesota, Ohio and New York State. "I've been to a bunch of countries, uncle. Each place is interesting for 8, 10 days, then I want to go home."



Leaving the freeway, a more familiar Hanoi, and Vietnam, came into view. A typical Vietnamese street is lined with shops and restaurants, with commerce often spilling onto the sidewalk, and until very recently, there were no Vietnamese neighborhoods that were strictly residential.



On my second day, I got up just before sunrise to wander around Vinh Phuc, my neighborhood. The restaurants were just opening up. Exercising, a man in a tank top walked backward past me. Sitting on a plastic stool across the street from a funeral home, a woman worked on a red, yellow, white and crimson wreath. I noticed a Japanese language school, a fishing gear shop and the Trang Bella hair salon. At a corner, a man lounged on his motorbike, waiting for his first customer. Unlike pedicabs, motorbike taxis haven't been banned. Though it is a wonderfully cheap way to get around, its slow pace clogs traffic, so the pedicab, a major icon of Vietnam, has been killed off everywhere except in a handful of tourist areas. The North Vietnamese Army pith helmet, worn by most men during my first visit to Hanoi in 1995, is also mostly gone.



I believe that the pedicab will not only make a comeback, but spread to other countries. It's not only cheap, but green, and takes very little to start up as a business. With just a few bucks and minimal training, you too can become a pedicab driver.



In 2001, one couldn't sit in a restaurant without being hounded, repeatedly, by lottery ticker sellers, wandering in off the street, but now, there are many fewer of them, and the beggars have nearly all disappeared.



Ha, a 55-year-old domestic servant, informed me, " There are more jobs now, so people don't have to do that. There were also too many imposters, beggars who would sell the charity rice, then eat comfortably in a restaurant. They ate better than normal people!"



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"Fascinating, eye-opening, and extraordinary, Rob Kall's Bottom Up: Tapping the Power of the Connection Revolution explores the emerging paradigm of our age -- bottom-up thinking -- connecting an enormous range of disciplines and topics from systems, chaos, and complexity theories to the evolving role of technology in our lives. Not merely a cogent exposition of contemporary thinking, however, Bottom Up extrapolates from abstract ideas to derive practical, everyday steps we can take to improve our chances of global survival, peace, and prosperity. Following Rob's lead, we can change habits as individuals to deepen our connection with others across the planet."



Wendell Potter, former health insurance executive, co-author of Nation on the Take: How Big Money Corrupts Our Democracy and What We Can Do About It, and Founder of Tarbell.org
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From The Guardian

Jeremy Corbyn, Bernie Sanders and Podemos in Spain have shown that a bold and decent strategy can be a successful one. That truth should embolden the left

We live in frightening times. From heads of state tweeting threats of nuclear annihilation, to whole regions rocked by climate chaos, to thousands of migrants drowning off the coasts of Europe, to openly racist parties gaining ground: it feels like there are a lot of reasons to be pessimistic about our collective future.

Ours is an age when it is impossible to pry one crisis apart from all the others. They have all merged, reinforcing and deepening each other like one shambling, multi-headed beast. The current US president can be thought of in much the same way. It's tough to adequately sum him up. You know that horrible thing currently clogging up the London sewers, the fatberg? Trump is the political equivalent of that. A merger of all that is noxious in the culture, economy and body politic, all kind of glommed together in a self-adhesive mass. And we're finding it very hard to dislodge.

Click Here to Read Whole Article

But moments of crisis do not have to go the Shock Doctrine route: they do not need to become opportunities for the obscenely wealthy to grab still more. They can be moments when we find our best selves.

We all witnessed this in the aftermath of the catastrophic fire at Grenfell Tower. When the people responsible were missing in action, the community came together, held one another in their care, organized donations and advocated for the living -- and for the dead. And they are doing it still, more than 100 days after the fire -- with, scandalously, only a handful of survivors rehoused.

It's not only at the grassroots level: there is a long and proud history of crises sparking progressive transformation on a societal scale. Think of the victories won by working people for social housing in the wake of the first world war, or for the NHS after the horrors of the second world war. This should remind us that moments of great crisis and peril do not need to knock us backwards: they can also catapult us forward.

But these transformative victories are never won by simply resisting, or saying no to the latest outrage. To win in a moment of true crisis, we also need a bold and forward-looking yes: a plan for how to rebuild and respond to the underlying causes. And that plan needs to be convincing, credible and, most of all, captivating. We have to help a weary and wary public to imagine itself into that better world.

In recent months the Labour party has showed us there's another way. One that speaks the language of decency and fairness, that names the true forces most responsible for this mess, no matter how powerful. And one that is unafraid of some of the ideas we were told were gone for good, such as wealth redistribution, and nationalizing essential public services. Thanks to Labour's boldness, we now know that this isn't just a moral strategy. It's a winning strategy. It fires up the base, and it activates constituencies that long ago stopped voting altogether.

The last election also showed us something else: that political parties don't need to fear the creativity and independence of social movements -- and social movements have a huge amount to gain from engaging with electoral politics. That's a very big deal, because political parties tend to be a bit freakish about control, and real grassroots movements cherish their independence. But the relationship between Labour and Momentum shows it is possible to combine the best of both worlds and create a force both stronger and more nimble than anything that parties or movements can pull off on their own.

What happened here in Britain is part of a global phenomenon. We saw it in Bernie Sanders' historic campaign in the US primaries, powered by millennials who know that safe centrist politics offers them no kind of safe future. We see something similar with Spain's still young Podemos party, which built in the power of mass movements from day one. These electoral campaigns caught fire with stunning speed. And they got close to taking power -- closer than any other genuinely transformative political program has in Europe or North America in my lifetime. But not close enough. So in this time between elections, we need to think about how to make absolutely sure that, next time, all of our movements go all the way.

In all of our countries, we can and must do more to connect the dots between economic injustice, racial injustice and gender injustice. We need to draw out the connections between the gig economy -- which treats human beings like a raw resource from which to extract wealth and then discard -- and the dig economy, in which extractive companies treat the Earth in precisely the same careless way.

And let's show exactly how we can move from that gig and dig economy to a society based on principles of care -- caring for the planet and for one another. A society where the work of our caregivers, and of our land and water protectors, is respected and valued. A world where no one and nowhere is thrown away -- whether in firetrap housing estates, or on hurricane-ravaged islands.

Battling climate change is a once-in-a-century chance to build a fairer and more democratic economy. We can and must design a system in which the polluters pay a very large share of the cost of transitioning away from fossil fuels. And in wealthy countries such as Britain and the US, we need migration policies and levels of international financing that reflect what we owe to the global south, given our historic role in destabilising the economies and ecologies of poorer nations for a great many years, and the vast wealth of empire extracted from these societies in bonded human flesh.

The more ambitious, consistent and holistic that the Labour party can be in painting a picture of the world transformed, the more credible a Labour government will become.

Around the world, winning is a moral imperative for the left. The stakes are too high, and time is too short, to settle for anything less.
From Robert Reich Blog

To: Rex Tillerson

From: Robert Reich

Subject: The Moron

I can understand why you feel Washington is a place of "petty nonsense," as you said Wednesday when you called a news conference to rebut charges that you called Trump a moron last summer after a meeting of national security officials at the Pentagon.

I'm also reasonably sure you called him a moron, which doesn't make Washington any less petty. You probably called him a moron because almost all of us out here in the rest of America routinely call him that.

But you're right: There are far more important issues than the epithet you likely used to describe your boss.

On the other hand, your calling him a moron wouldn't itself have mushroomed into a headline issue -- even in petty Washington -- if there weren't deep concerns about the President's state of mind to begin with.

I bet every cabinet secretary has from time to time called his boss a moron. I was a cabinet secretary once, and although I don't recall ever saying Bill Clinton was a moron, I might have thought it, especially when I found out about Monica Lewinsky. But Bill Clinton was no moron.

The reason your moronic comment about Trump made the headlines is that Trump really is a moron, in the sense you probably meant it: He's impulsive, mercurial, often cruel, and pathologically narcissistic. Some psychologists who have studied his behavior have concluded he's a sociopath.

Washington is petty, but it's not nonsensical. It latches on to gaffes only when they reveal something important. As journalist Michael Kinsley once said, "A gaffe is when a politician tells the truth -- some obvious truth he isn't supposed to say."

Face it. You are Secretary of State -- the nation's chief diplomat -- under a president who's dangerously nuts.

Last weekend, for example, Trump publicly said you were wasting your time trying to open talks with North Korea. Does he have a better idea? Any halfway rational president would ask his Secretary of State to try to talk with Kim Jong-Un.

And there's Iran. You and Defense Secretary James Mattis have both stated the nuclear agreement should be retained. That, too, is only rational. The International Atomic Energy Agency says Iran has been honoring the agreement. Without it, Iran would restart its nuclear program.

But Trump is on the verge of decertifying the agreement in order to save face (in the 2016 campaign he called it an "embarrassment to America") and further puncture Barack Obama's legacy. His narcissism is endangering the world.

You tried to mediate the dispute between Qatar and its Arab neighbors. That, too, was the reasonable thing to do.

But then Trump and his son-in-law Jared Kushner sided with the United Arab Emirates, where they have business interests. Less than one hour after you called for a "calm and thoughtful dialogue" between Qatar and its neighbors, Trump blasted Qatar for financing terrorism. That was also nuts.

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(This is a reprint from NewsBred).

If you believe that under the preceding UPA government:

(a) lakhs of crores spent on subsidies and MGNREGA wages for the poor in this country were siphoned off;

(b) tens of thousands of fake PAN cards were in circulation;

(c) these fake identities helped the monster of drug-trafficking and terrorism;

(d) that Aadhaar's non-implementation during UPA's rule of 2009-2014--itself best known for scams--could have aided it;

Then the Fake News of the Indian Express on Thursday, "Aadhaar officials part of private firms that use Aadhar services for profit", is just for you.

Indian Express cites the example of three persons who were earlier part of Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) and now are with Khosla Labs who are offering Aadhaar-related services to clients such as Hero Motors, Samsung, Ola, Hinduja Leyland Finance, among others.

The premise of this 1000-word front-page diarrhea--which incidentally has more words than those spoken by the Prime Minister of this country on Indian economy--isn't clear. But by inference it's seen as a "clash of interest" and that these three gentlemen, by virtue of their position, could have influenced the decision-making of UIDAI in their favour."

(i) Now, how could there be a "clash of interest" if these persons have either left or are on a sabbatical from UIDAI till 2018?

(ii) How could these gentlemen influence the UIDAI decision when the Information and Technology minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has already stated that the section 19(5) of the Aadhaar Act 2016 reads: "If any member, who is a director of a company and who as such director, has any direct or indirect pecuniary interest in any manner coming up for consideration at a meeting of the authority, he shall, as soon as possible after relevant circumstances have come to his knowledge, disclose the nature of his interest at such meeting and such disclosure shall be recorded in the proceedings of the authority, and the member shall not take part in any deliberation or decision of the authority with respect to the matter."

The clarification by one of these three gentlemen to Indian Express that the Khosla Labs "went through the due process of applying for a licence with the UIDAI like all applicants" still didn't deter the newspaper from going ahead with the Fake News.

The linking of Aadhaar with PAN cards and with banks and income tax returns etc. has hugely upset the corrupt ecosystem of the past, which thrived on sucking the country hollow of all its vitality. Now endangered because Modi's government thrust on transparency, these louts are making a last-gasp stand to keep the gravy train rolling. The presstitutes are a willing ally for reasons that get you no prize from me for guessing.

(Facebook has set out 10 tools to check Fake News. A few give-aways are headlines, source, evidence and photos. Indian Express on Thursday's edition has been found out in peddling a Fake News.)
From Consortium News



President Trump speaking to the United Nations General Assembly on Sept. 19, 2017.

(Image by (Screenshot from Whitehouse.gov)) Details DMCA



President Trump's bellicose speech to the United Nations General Assembly last month sparked a crisis for the behind-the-scenes diplomacy that was then reaching out to North Korea and Iran, with Trump's comments jeopardizing not only the talks but the credibility of the intermediaries, according to a source familiar with those efforts.

Trump essentially pulled the rug out from under the intermediaries by insulting North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as "Rocket Man," threatening to "totally destroy" Kim's nation of 25 million people, and calling for regime change in Iran. Trump's bluster on Sept. 19 also deepened internal tensions with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson who was privately supporting the secret diplomacy.

The next day, when one of the intermediaries complained about the harm that Trump's speech had caused, the President glibly explained that he liked to "zigzag" in charting his foreign policy, the source said.

The immediate consequences of Trump's U.N. speech included ratcheting up nuclear-war tensions on the Korean peninsula and torpedoing a possible diplomatic breakthrough with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. A proposed meeting between Rouhani and Trump around the Iranian president's trip to the U.N. sank under Trump's barrage of insults, the source said.

Trump's "zigzag" approach to foreign policy has similarities to President Richard Nixon's infamous "madman theory," in which Nixon pretended to be crazy enough to launch a nuclear strike against North Vietnam in a ploy to gain concessions from Hanoi and its allies during the Vietnam War.

In Trump's depiction of his business negotiating style, he has hailed the value of coming on tough to soften up a rival. But one problem of this approach in foreign policy is that Trump's zigzagging left the U.S. government's middlemen in the uncomfortable position of appearing to have misled senior North Korean and Iranian officials regarding what U.S. intentions were. The source said no one was in physical danger but apologies had to be made and the credibility of the initiatives suffered a severe blow.

In the case of North Korea, the backchannel goal had been to tamp down the heated rhetoric between Washington and Pyongyang and to persuade the North Koreans to begin talks with South Korea about the possibility of some loosely formed confederation that could then lead to the gradual withdrawal of U.S. military forces and a reduction in overall tensions.

Leaving Intermediaries in the Lurch

However, by using his maiden U.N. speech to personally insult North Korea's leader and to threaten to annihilate the country, Trump left his intermediaries in the unenviable spot of trying to explain to North Korean officials the chasm between the U.S. administration's private overtures and the President's public outburst.

That was the context behind Secretary of State Tillerson's public acknowledgement last Saturday that the administration was engaged in direct communications with the North Korean government. In effect, Tillerson was trying to bolster the credibility of the intermediaries by putting the backchannel contacts into the public light.

"We are probing, so stay tuned," Tillerson said. "We ask, 'Would you like to talk?' We have lines of communications to Pyongyang -- we're not in a dark situation, a blackout."

Tillerson added, "We have a couple, three channels open to Pyongyang." Tillerson even went out of his way to specify that these were American channels, not indirect contacts through China or some other third-party government.

"We can talk to them," Tillerson said. "We do talk to them." The Secretary of State then rebuffed a suggestion that he was referring to Chinese intermediaries. Shaking his head, Tillerson said, "Directly. We have our own channels."

But Trump was not done with his administration's zigzagging. On Sunday, he belittled the idea of a dialogue with North Korea by tweeting out that "I told Rex Tillerson, our wonderful Secretary of State, that he is wasting his time trying to negotiate with Little Rocket Man."

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Nothing shocks me these days with the level of racism still prevalent in America that is a part of the Trump effect. But this one sent chills down my spine with the matter-of-fact nature with which this politician said what he said about trains and 'the coloreds' that should embarrass the country.

This Minnesota mayoral candidate unleashed a racial rant about trains and coloreds that one must watch to believe. The Trump effect makes this speech vogue.

Many in the majority population tend to believe that the discrimination and abuse people of color speak about ad nauseam is either the playing of the race card, a crutch, or a begging for pity. It is not. Under the Trump era, many feel the freedom to release their inner racist demons even as they held it in in the past. Ironically, it may be cathartic to America that those with these feeling expose themselves. For the aggrieved, it is less stressful to know who they are than to assume based on involuntary actions and responses.

RawStory reported the following about Hopkins, Minnesota mayoral candidate Bob Ivers.

A candidate running to be mayor of Hopkins, MN let fly with a mind-bogglingly racist rant during a debate about light rail lines that has to be seen to be believed. ... "You listen, and you listen real close," Ivers said during a candidate forum with incumbent mayor Molly Cummings. "It's another socialist ruination of a town," he went on. "And this is what's going to happen, and everybody be forewarned, and you listen, and you listen real close. All the Chicago and Detroit riffraff that's moved into 'Welfare-apolis,' they're going to get on that train. And you know where they're going to end up? They're going to end up down at the depot. And they're going to end up with yours, and yours, and yours granddaughters, and daughters, and grandsons. And I predict within two months of that coming through here, there's going to be a shooting down at that kid's depot. So everybody think about that." Later in the forum, Ivers described the population of Hopkins as "90 percent white," with "10 percent coloreds and Mexicans and Asians that are here." But, he warned, if the light rail line is built, "you're going to have all the ethnics you want."

Welcome to the America many of us knew existed. Now, can we do something about it?
From Other Words

Wanting federal aid in a natural disaster isn't wanting "everything done for you." It's what we should all expect.



Hurricane damage in Puerto Rico

(Image by airforcemag) Details DMCA



Hurricane-struck Puerto Rico wants "everything done for them," says President Trump. Puerto Rico, an island of 3.5 million inhabitants -- all of whom are U.S. citizens -- gets nearly nothing done for it.

Puerto Rico, a colony of the United States, has gotten a whole lot of nothing from Washington for a long time. Various U.S. laws along with irresponsible spending by previous Puerto Rican governments left the island in debt.

Even before it was hit by two category 5 hurricanes, U.S. laws set up the circumstances that allowed a financial crisis to plague Puerto Rico and prevented the island from solving it. These laws have led many Puerto Ricans, including educated Puerto Ricans, to leave the island for the mainland. This further weakens the economy of the island.

The island's years-long economic crisis was the backdrop for Hurricane Maria. Thanks in part to its outdated infrastructure, the island lost electricity for weeks, and many places are unreachable because of downed trees and other debris in the road.



(Image by Khalil Bendib / OtherWords) Details DMCA



The recovery will take a long time, and it will cost a lot. Who knows how many people will die because they couldn't get dialysis while the power was out, or they ran out of food and couldn't reach help? Or who got sick from lack of clean water? Already the death toll has more than doubled as reports of these casualties surface.

What's clear is that Puerto Rico needed help anyway, and now they need it even more because of the storm.

Americans should ask why we still have colonies in the 21st century. Puerto Rico lacks the rights of U.S. states. All U.S. states send representatives to vote in Congress, and therefore the citizens of those states indirectly have a say in the laws of the nation.

Puerto Ricans are subject to U.S. laws but -- like the residents of Guam, the Virgin Islands, and other territories (plus the District of Columbia) -- get no say at all in the making of those laws.

Puerto Rico isn't blameless for its debt, but U.S. laws are currently frustrating the island's attempts to get out of it.

There may be differing opinions about what the U.S. should do about Puerto Rico's debt, but there cannot be two opinions about hurricane relief. If we don't help, U.S. citizens will suffer and die.

Wanting your legal rights as citizens in the form of federal government aid in a natural disaster isn't wanting "everything done for you." It's what we all expect, and should expect, as citizens of this nation.

America shouldn't let down our citizens in Puerto Rico. We must help them in this crisis.
IoT in Energy Market Analysis, Demand Trends, Global Industry Deep Research and Forecast 2023

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About IoT in Energy MarketIoT in energy integrates IoT-based energy solutions for sectors such as oil & gas, utilities, coal, and mining. This implementation aims to improve operational efficiency, enhance production, and provide analytical-based decisions. Enhanced security, better reliability, and proper management of assets in the industry are added benefits of IoT in energy solutions.Get the PDF brochure of this Market insight: -Increase in cyber-attacks in the energy sector, need for improved efficiency, advancement in powerful sensors, and increased expenditure in ICT by energy companies are key factors that drive the growth of the IoT in energy market. However, lack of technical skills for effective implementation of IoT in energy sector and increase in security concerns are expected to restrict the market growth. Advance analytics and effective system integration are the key opportunities for the market. Unavailability of interoperability standards and increase in data generated in the energy industry are prominent challenges for the market.The market leaders are acquiring local players for portfolio extension and to improve their market share. For instance, in June 2017, Altair Engineering, Inc. acquired Carriots S.L., which is a leading IoT platform developer for energy sector.Get More Information about this Report & Full Summary: -The IoT in energy market is segmented based on solution, network technology, service, application, and region. On the basis of solution, the market is categorized into predictive maintenance, security, connected logistics, compliance & risk management, energy analytics, intelligent energy management, mobile workforce management, and others. By network technology, it is classified into cellular, satellite, radio, and others. Applications covered in the study include network security, web security, email security, database & cloud security, and others. The service segment is bifurcated into professional and managed service. Geographically, the market is analyzed across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and LAMEA.Comprehensive analysis and profiles of the major market players such as AGT International Inc, Carriots S.L., Cisco Systems, Inc., Davra Networks Limited, Flutura Business Solutions LLC, IBM Corporation, ILS Technolgy LLC, Maven Systems Private Limited, Northwest Analytics, Inc., and SAP SE are provided in this report.Get Flat 20% OFF on this Report: -About UsAllied Market Research (AMR) is a full-service market research and business-consulting wing of Allied Analytics LLP based in Portland, Oregon. Allied Market Research provides global enterprises as well as medium and small businesses with unmatched quality of "Market Research Reports" and "Business Intelligence Solutions". AMR has a targeted view to provide business insights and consulting to assist its clients to make strategic business decisions and achieve sustainable growth in their respective market domain. We are in professional corporate relations with various companies and this helps us in digging out market data that helps us generate accurate research data tables and confirms utmost accuracy in our market forecasting. Each and every data presented in the reports published by us is extracted through primary interviews with top officials from leading companies of domain concerned. Our secondary data procurement methodology includes deep online and offline research and discussion with knowledgeable professionals and analysts in the industry.Contact US5933 NE Win Sivers Drive#205, Portland, OR 97220United StatesDirect: +1-503-894-6022Toll Free: +1 (800) 792-5285 (U.S. & Canada)


From Christopher Cadelago of our sister paper The Sacramento Bee:

Sen. Kamala Harris will travel next month to another key presidential battleground to raise money for a Democratic colleague.

The California senator will be in Florida as a special guest of Sen. Bill Nelson for a Nov. 3 lunch reception, according to an invitation obtained by The Sacramento Bee.

The event in Jacksonville is part of a multistop fundraising swing though the state, with plans to appear alongside Nelson in Miami and Fort Lauderdale.

More here.

Photo credit: J. Scott Applewhite, Associated Press
Air Brake Tubings Market Dynamics, Comprehensive Analysis, Business Growth, Prospects and Opportunities 2022

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Air Brake Tubings Market research report is a professional and in-depth study on the current state of the Air Brake Tubings Industry. The Report provides a basic overview of the Air Brake Tubings Market including definitions, classifications, applications and chain structure. The Air Brake Tubings Industry analysis is provided for the international market including development history, competitive landscape analysis, and major regional development status.The Air Brake Tubings market report elaborates Air Brake Tubings industry overview with various definitions and classification, Product types & its applications and chain structure. Air Brake Tubings market report displays the production, revenue, price, and market share and growth rate of each type as following.Air Brake Tubings Market by Product Type: Brass, Nylon, Polyamide/Polyester, Rubber, Others.Air Brake Tubings Market by Applications: Passenger Vehicles and Commercial VehiclesGet Sample PDF @Next part of the Air Brake Tubings Market analysis report speaks about the manufacturing process. The process is analysed thoroughly with respect three points, viz. raw material and equipment suppliers, various manufacturing associated costs (material cost, labour cost, etc.) and the actual process. Air Brake Tubings market competition by top manufacturers, with production, price, and revenue (value) and market share for each manufacturer as per following; Top Manufacturer Included in Air Brake Tubings Market: Parker Hannifin, Eaton, Gates Corporation, Tectran, Velvac, Esdan Plastics, Yogdeep Enterprise And MoreAfter the basic information, the Air Brake Tubings report sheds light on the production, production plants, their capacities, global production and revenue are studied. Also, the Air Brake Tubings Market growth in various regions and R&D status are also covered. Air Brake Tubings Market Report by Key Region: The West, Southwest, The Middle Atlantic, New England, The South, The MidwestBrowse Detailed TOC, Tables, Figures, Charts and Companies Mentioned in Global Air Brake Tubings Market Research Report @Further in the report, Air Brake Tubings Market is examined for price, cost and gross revenue. These three points are analysed for types, companies and regions. In prolongation with this data sale price for various types, applications and region is also included. The Air Brake Tubings Industry consumption for major regions is given. Additionally, type wise and application wise consumption figures are also given.To provide information on competitive landscape, this report includes detailed profiles of Air Brake Tubings Market key players. For each player, product details, capacity, price, cost, gross and revenue numbers are given. Their contact information is provided for better understanding.No. of Report pages: 102Price of Report: $ 3800Enquire before buy@Other Major Topics Covered in Air Brake Tubings market research report are as follows: Marketing Strategy Analysis, Distributors/Traders included in Air Brake Tubings Industry: Market Effect Factors Analysis, Industrial Chain, Sourcing Strategy and Downstream Buyers in Air Brake Tubings Market, Manufacturing Expenses, Market Drivers and Opportunities, Mergers & Acquisitions, Expansion, Key Suppliers of Raw Materials, Research Findings and Conclusion, Market Size (Value and Volume) analysis of Air Brake Tubings Industry And another componentPrecise market reports, a one-stop research platform designed to help key decision makers and dynamic thought leaders across various industry verticals worldwide by making them aware of the past, current and future market scenario.Precise Market ReportsPune, India+1 (323) 744 6588sales@precisemarketreports.com
Medical Fluid Bags Market Soaring at 7%CAGR During the Period 2017 - 2024

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MaketStudyReport.com adds a New Medical Fluid Bags Market Research Report for the period of 2017 - 2024 that shows the growth of the market is rising at 2024.Medical Fluid Bags Market size is poised to surpass USD 4 billion by 2024; according to a new research report.Enhancing textile and apparel market will likely be the principal driving factor for global Medical Fluid Bags market growth. Artificial Medical Fluid Bagss derived from plant based pulps are heavily used in textile industries for apparel manufacturing. Growing GDP and increasing expendable income coupled with rapidly increasing population, regularly upgrading fashion style, and better quality and cost efficient textiles will have a positive effect on the global textile and apparel market in the upcoming years.Global textile and apparel market recorded over USD 1 trillion in 2015 and is projected to grow substantially up to 2024. Emerging economies such as India, China, and certain African countries will witness a steady growth in demand owing to availability of economical labor force for the large number of textile manufacturing industries, hence propelling the overall Medical Fluid Bags market growth.Medical Fluid Bagss are manufactured from dissolving pulp from cellulose rich plants such as cotton, jute, bamboo, flax, hemp, etc. Abundant availability of these plants shall influence the global Medical Fluid Bags market size significantly in the next eight years. Cotton plants have around 90% cellulose content and world cotton production was over 20 million tons in 2015 with India and China producing over 10 million tons. High number of pulp industries are present in the product value chain for supply of raw materials. Over 7 million tons dissolving pulp was produced from various sources all over the globe in 2015 and China had around 20% of the overall share.Ecofriendly nature of Medical Fluid Bagss over petrochemical based alternatives such as nylon and polyester will likely be another propelling factor for the market growth. These fibers are produced out of pulp from barks, woods, and leaves of cellulose rich crops and are biodegradable unlike nylon or polyester fibers. Also, stringent volatile organic compounds (VOCs) norms will support the growth of the global Medical Fluid Bags market in the next eight years.Get sample Copy of this report:The above information is provided on a regional and country basis for the following: North America Europe Asia Pacific Latin America MEAMedical Fluid Bags preparation market by Application: Spun yarn Fabrics Clothing OthersGrowth drivers: Rising textile market Abundance of raw material Environment friendly properties Industry pitfalls and challenges Regulatory policies regarding forestryGet Discount on this Report:Medical Fluid Bagss find application in spun yarns, fabrics, clothing, and other areas including tapes, adhesives, sound proofing, etc. Clothing applications will hold sway over the forecast timespan with over 60% of the market share, registering revenue beyond USD 10.5 billion in 2015. Increasing expendable income along with fashion awareness will support the market growth in the projected forecast timeframe.Spun yarn applications generated revenue over USD 2 billion in 2015 and will witness a decent growth owing to rising knitting and embroidery demand. Large number of textile manufacturers in Asia Pacific will support the product market growth in the region in the next eight years. The regional market size was beyond USD 7 billion in 2015 and will grow by over 9.5% CAGR up to 2024.Strict forest laws against deforestation may restrain the market growth in the forecast timespan. Global pulp industry is gradually shifting towards Asia Pacific and African countries due to the mandatory regulations in North America and Europe. Inconsistent wood pulp prices on account of the norms may affect the Medical Fluid Bags market negatively. Cost effective labor force for textile industries in African countries may enhance the MEA Medical Fluid Bags market notably in the projected forecast timespan.Competitive landscape is moderately consolidated and the top market players include Lenzing SA, Tangshan Sanyou, Grasim Industries, Shandong Helon, Fulida, and Aoyang.Related Report:Global (North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific, South America, Middle East and Africa) Vegetable (HPMC) Capsule Market 2017 Forecast to 2022"Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose is a methylcellulose modified with a small amount of propylene glycol ether groups attached to the anhydroglucose of the cellulose. HPMC Capsules are two-piece capsulesMarketstudyreport.com allows you to manage and control all corporate research purchases to consolidate billing and vendor management. You can eliminate duplicate purchases and customize your content and license management.Market Study ReportThe Green Suite #4594,Dover, DE 19901United StatesPhone: 1-201-355-0868US Toll Free: 1-866-764-2150Email: sales@marketstudyreport.comWebsite:News:
Natural Personal Care Market Analysis, Trends and Forecasts to 2025

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Report Title: Natural Personal Care Market Analysis  Forecasts 2025Product (Skin Care, Hair Care, Oral Care, Cosmetics, Others), Distribution (Direct Selling, Retail, E-Commerce, Others), End-use Landscape, Vendor Landscape, Competitor AnalysisRequest a sample copy of the Natural Personal Care Market report @:Natural Personal Care Market Analysis:Rising consumer awareness for personal health safety is expected to increase the consumption of natural personal care over the forecast period. Harmful chemicals such as phthalates, aluminum salts, and parabens which have probable side effects have resulted in consumers shifting to natural personal care products.Approval from human health & safety regulatory bodies such as the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and FDA had lead to the increasing supply of bio-based ingredients. Rising R&D investment in developing natural ingredient based customised products is expected to influence the industry positively.Introduction of plant & animal extracts coupled with strict regulations regarding the use of chemical skin care products is projected to augment market demand. Expanding distributed channels is expected to aid the consumption of natural cosmetics. Large & easy availability of raw materials is anticipated to increase innovation and new product development over the coming years.Product Type Insights:In 2016, the skincare segment dominated the market, use of natural ingredients such as herbs, vegetables, and fruits with anti-ageing properties are projected to gain massive demand. Anti-oxidising properties and improving skin immunity with natural ingredients is an advantageous feature offered by such products.Organic hair care products are anticipated to grow at a high CAGR over the forecast period. The increasing demand for dandruff protection, hair fall control and shining effects toiletries with natural ingredients are expected to gain preference over the coming years. This industry is expected to garner superiority in the market against chemical substances such as ammonia, sulfur, and paraben.The oral care segment is projected to grow on account of its preference in curing mouth diseases such as gum disease, bleeding gums, and periodontal disease. Herbal ingredients such as neem and clove have been incorporated within products by companies such as Colgate-Palmolive and Hindustan Unilever.The organic cosmetic segment is expected to observe high traction in developing countries such as India, China, and Brazil. Germany, France, and the UK are also expecting a positive impact on the cosmetics sales in the future. In 2015, the industry generated revenue exceeding USD 2 billion.Check the Report Description for Natural Personal Care Market report@:Natural Personal Care - Distribution Channel Insights:New product innovation and expanding distribution channels are expected to boost the growth of the industry. Arbonne International, Amway, and Natura Cosmeticos SA are the key players involved in the direct selling. E-commerce is one of the most important platforms driving almost 10% sales in 2016, and is estimated to grow at a high rate in the forecast period.Regional Insights:North America is currently leading in the market followed by the Europe. The entry of numerous multinational players in developing organic product is expected to augment market growth in the future.Asia Pacific is estimated to emerge as the fastest growing region in the forecast period. The faith in ayurvedic solutions is the major feature that has boosted demand in India. China and India are expected to record high consumption of products concerned with aging, UV protection, and hair fall repair over the coming years.Competitor Analysis:Companies such as The Body Shop and LOreal are integrated across the value chain. The companies manufacture the raw materials after which they use them for producing cream, lotion, shampoo, and conditioners. Arbonne International, Inc. added two new hair products to its existing Pure Vibrance hair care line, namely, ColorLast Hair Serum and ColorLast Hair Spray.The natural personal care industry is very competitive with new entrants and the high level innovations in the existing companies. Some of the key industry participants include Bare Escentuals, The Body Shop, Burts Bee, Estee Lauder, The Hain Celestial Group, Yves Rocher, Amway, Aveda Corp., Arbonne International, Kiehls, Natura Cosmeticos S.A., and L'Occitane en Provence.Check the Table of Content for the Natural Personal Care Market report @:Were constantly identifying and analysing high growth markets and revenue pockets. In consultation with various industry experts, our team of highly-skilled industry analysts study these markets through sophisticated tools and fail-safe, industry-approved methodologies.Name: Global Market Estimates Research & Business ConsultantsAddress: A-9, Silver Croft CHSL, Mumbai:400064, IndiaContact No,: +91 9146632316Email Address: sales@globalmarketestimates.com
Global Personal Protective Equipment Market Analysis, Trends and Competitor Analysis upto 2025

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Report Title: Global Personal Protective Equipment Market Analysis  Forecasts to 2025By Product (Hands & Arm Protection, Protective Clothing, Foot & Leg Protection, Respiratory Protection, Eye & Face Protection, Head Protection, Fall Protection), By End-Use (Manufacturing, Construction, Oil & Gas, Healthcare/Medical & Pharmaceuticals, Mining, Transportation, Chemicals, Food), End-use Landscape, Vendor Landscape, and Competitor Analysis | Business Intelligence ReportRequest a sample copy of the Personal Protective Equipment Market report @:Market Insights:Personal Protective Equipments (PPE) protects the user from heat, chemicals, electrical, airborne particulate matter and biohazards. Some of these equipment are protective clothings, goggles, helmets, and other garments crafted to safeguard the wearers body from infection or injury.This equipment can impose a barrier between the wearer and the working environment. There can be additional stress and discomfort while working and can weaken the ability to carry out their work. The product needs to be manufactured very carefully and needs to be personalized for each purpose.It is not always possible for the user to be completely risk-free if he uses the equipment. The major market trends are to produce customized safety measure. Comfort, fashion, and protection at the same time are expected from this industry.Product Insights:The hands and arm protection segment are estimated to lead the personal protective euipment market during the forecast period due to its increasing use in the manufacturing, construction and healthcare industries. The other classifications under products are protective clothing, foot & leg protection, respiratory protection, eye and face protection, head protection and others.The reparatory protection segment is expected to grow in the forecast period due to the government norms which have been implied on several industries for the safety of the workers. There is a constant demand expected in the forecast period for protective clothing since they assure the protection of workers working in hazardous environments. The rise in chemical, pharmaceutical and oil & gas will increase the consumption of protective clothing in the forecast period.End-Use Insights:The personal protective equipment market is classified into manufacturing, construction, oil & gas, healthcare, transportation, fire fighting, food, and others under end use. The fastest growing end-use segment is estimated to be the construction industry due to the increasing construction projects and consumer spending in developing countries such as India, China and Brazil among the other.Workers in bridge construction, demolitions, roadway paving, and excavations are also estimated to drive the end-user industry. Government initiatives to construct airports, improve infrastructure among other construction is expanding the construction and manufacturing industry which needs high labour which in turn creates demand for PPE.Check the Table of Content for the Personal Protective Equipment Market report @:Regional InsightsCurrently, North America is the leading region in the PPE industry. The government has made it mandate for some industries to use PPE, the awareness for safety has to lead to its spread. Institutions such as Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSH Act), states that every employer is responsible for its employees safety have also increased the PPE consumption.During the forecast period, Asia Pacific region is estimated to be the fastest growing market. The economic growth in this region is creating demand for PPE in China and India with an addition to the increasing awareness about safety and the need for personal protective equipment.Competitor AnalysisCompanies such as Honeywell Internal Inc, 3M Company, and others have a primary focus on product innovation through research and development activities. The company also focuses on merger & acquisition (M&A) activities in order to increase its portfolio position globally. PPE is less concentrated in the Middle East and Africa unlike North America, Asia Pacific, and Europe.Major players operating in the personal protective equipment market are The 3M Company (The U.S.), Honeywell International Inc. (The U.S.), E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (The U.S.),Kimberly-Clark Worldwide, Inc. (The U.S.), Ansell Ltd. (Australia), Avon Rubber p.l.c (The U.K.).Check the Research Methodology of the Personal Protective Equipment Market report @:Were constantly identifying and analysing high growth markets and revenue pockets. In consultation with various industry experts, our team of highly-skilled industry analysts study these markets through sophisticated tools and fail-safe, industry-approved methodologies.Name: Global Market Estimates Research & Business ConsultantsAddress: A-9, Silver Croft CHSL, Mumbai:400064, IndiaContact No,: +91 9146632316Email Address: sales@globalmarketestimates.com
Global Gas Engine Market Analysis, Trends, and Competitor Analysis upto 2025

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Report Title: Global Gas Engine Market Analysis  Forecasts to 2025By Fuel (Natural Gas, Bio Fuel) By Application (Power Generation, Cogeneration), By Region (North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Central & South America, Middle East & Africa), End-use Landscape, Vendor Landscape, and Competitor Analysis | Business Intelligence ReportRequest a sample copy of the Gas Engine Market report @:Market Analysis:The global gas engine market is estimated to grow at a high CAGR over the forecast period. This market is highly influenced by the preference of sustainable and eco-friendly solution. The rising demand for electricity has lead to an increased preference for sustainable modes of energy. Natural, biomass, and coal are some common gases that have a strong hold on the market.Growing urbanization and globalization has led to rapid consumption of electricity. Electric vehicles, households, production, and manufacturing companies are the main consumers of electricity. Simultaneously, several countries such as France, Canada, Finland, and Germany across the globe have reduced the use of coal for energy and have shifted to natural gases to reduce greenhouse emissions.Natural gas is an abundant, sustainable, flexible, and recoverable resource. Air pollution and carbon emission can be reduced largely by the use of these gasses. It can now be available in the form of liquefied natural gas (LNG) which can be used for shortage of supply in countries. These are substitutes for diesel and petroleum which cause lesser pollution and are cost effective as compared to the coal-fired plants.Biogas is also used in households to replace costlier alternatives. It is effective in cooking, cooling, and lighting at homes. Biogas can be used directly or for generating electricity. The main component of biogas is methane which has the maximum energy content. It is an environmentally attractive solution to diesel and gasoline.Fuel Type Insights:In 2016, the natural gas segment occupied a large share and is expected to grow at a decent rate over the forecast period. It is the most commonly used fuel for power gas engines as it is more cost effective than biomass products. This segment is driven by the increased demand for power generation applications.Bio-fuels have high oxygen level of almost 40% while petroleum has none. Different fuels can be produced using biomass such as liquid fuels including ethanol, biodiesel and gaseous fuels such as methane and hydrogen.Bio fuel is used predominantly in the transport sector. They are also used to fuel cells or engines for electricity generation. Presently European Union (EU) policies are focusing on alternative motor fuels, hence promoting the use of bio fuels.Check the Table of Content for the Gas Engine Market report @:Application Insights:In 2016, power generation occupied a large share in this industry. The spurt in energy demand is projected to drive power generation stations which in turn are creating a market for gas-fired power plants. New gas-fired plants are being installed by governments of developing nations around the world; on the other hand, developed nations are investing in their existing gas-fired plants.Energy saving initiatives and demand for environmentally friendly solutions is anticipated to augment market growth. Gas energies are widely consumed in the manufacturing and electronic sector on account of its low cost and sustainability. Cogeneration is one of the other applications of gas engines and is the fastest growing segment over the forecast period.Cogeneration is a more thermally efficient method (by saving 60% energy as compared to other methods) of using fuel for electricity generation; as the other process involves a significant loss of thermal energy. In this process, the excess generation of heat can be useful for space and water heating. It is majorly used in chemical, steel mills and food processing plants. End users generally focus on overall efficiency which is anticipated to boost the cogeneration segment.Regional Insights:Europe Middle East Africa (EMEA) accounted for the highest share in natural gases for the past 5 years. Middle East has a significant presence of natural gas. Market growth will be driven by the increasing demand for gas-based power generation to feed the rising energy demandin the region.. Regional governments and financial institutions are making huge investments towards the products further development.In 2016, Europe was estimated as the leading market for gas engines. Europe's various policies for controlling CO2 emissions; increased biogas production, and well-established distribution network are some of the factors expected to positively impact growth. Some of the top companies in this market are Caterpillar Inc., General Electric Company, Wartsila Corporation, Rolls-Royce holdings Plc, and Cummins Inc.End-use Landscape:The end-use landscape entails a list of current and prospective consumers prevailing across the regions. This section provides company addresses, contact details, products, and regional presence of companies who are purchasing or are likely to purchase gas engine over the coming years. Some leading purchasers of the gas engine market are GE Jenbacher, GE Waukesha Gas Engines, and MAN EcoCity buses. Duel fuel engines are the new inventions of the market, the engines can shift between fuels according to the need of the task.Check the Research Methodology of the Gas Engine Market report @:Competitor AnalysisThe market is competitive and focuses on increasing revenue share. The industry is constantly introducing gas engines with improved efficiency. Some countries are focusing on building gas power plants and expanding their power generation grids. The products low price coupled with the reduced preference for coal-powered power plants have to lead to a great demand for natural gas.GE Jenbacher engines use natural, sewage, mine, bio, landfill gas, and coal. These gases help the company reduce the impact of greenhouse gasses on the atmosphere. Low Carbon Emission Bus (LCEB), MAN EcoCity buses run on these engines. Some of the top companies in this market are Caterpillar Inc., General Electric Company, Wartsila Corporation, Rolls-Royce holdings Plc, and Cummins Inc.The price of CNG fuel is related to the quantity used on a daily basis. These engines can offer high energy efficiency and can work at par with diesel engines to obtain reliable results and be cost efficient at the same time. The Mexican government passed an energy reform bill in December 2013 that granted natural gas engines access to retail markets. Such favourable policies are expected to increase preference for independent flexible gas-fired power plants.Were constantly identifying and analysing high growth markets and revenue pockets. In consultation with various industry experts, our team of highly-skilled industry analysts study these markets through sophisticated tools and fail-safe, industry-approved methodologies.Name: Global Market Estimates Research & Business ConsultantsAddress: A-9, Silver Croft CHSL, Mumbai:400064, IndiaContact No,: +91 9146632316Email Address: sales@globalmarketestimates.com
Gas Turbine Engine Market Analysis, Trends and Competitor Analysis upto 2025

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Report Title: Gas Turbine Engine Market Analysis  Forecasts to 2025By Design Type (Heavy Duty & Aeroderivative type), By Capacity (1 to 20 MW & above 200 MW),By Technology (Open Cycle & Combined Cycle),By Application (Power Generation, Oil & Gas & Others), By Region (North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Central & South America, Middle East & Africa), End-Use Landscape, & Competitor Analysis | Business Intelligence ReportRequest a sample copy of the Gas Turbine Engine Market report @:Industry Insights:The global gas turbine engine market is projected to grow at a significant rate over the forecast period. The market for this product is heavily influenced by the strong inclination towards sustainable and eco-friendly solutions. The rapidly evolving need for the product in electricity generation, oil & gas, aviation and marine industries is expected to foster its demand over the coming years.The product has high operational speed, long life, greater efficiency, durability and low costs of operation and maintenance. The increasing availability of natural gas due to the boom in shale gas production, rising demand for electricity, increasing investments to limit greenhouse emissions by governments are the major factors driving the gas turbine engine market.Government regulations and eco-friendly initiatives in the U.S., UK, and Japan to use sustainable energy sources has led to shifting to the use of natural gas in electricity generation. This efficient technique of electricity generation ensures lower carbon emissions. Such policies are anticipated to augment the products market growth over the coming years.Design Type Insights:The product comes in two design types namely, heavy duty (frame) type and aeroderivative type. The heavy duty type occupies a larger market share compared to its counterpart as it is used in industrial models that are heavier and designed for land use. There has been a rise in the demand for large-gas fired power plants and thus in the demand for frame type to power them.The output of electricity is greater in heavy duty types. Their use in combined cycle operations provides an output of more than 300MW. Aeroderivative types weigh considerably less than heavy duty types. This use of aeroderivative type in electric applications is more but during intermittent and peak times than for base load electricity generation.Capacity Insights:The products power capacities fall under two categories such as 1 to 200 MW and more than 200 MW category. The 1 to 200 MW category consists of small capacity turbines that are extensively used for driving compressors for extracting oil by injecting gas into oil wells and in the petroleum industry to power the platform.Their share is expected to rise in the coming years as they can be transported easily for supplying electricity and mobile supplies. The category of more than 200 MW capacity consists of high capacity turbines that offer high performance and outstanding efficiency owing to which their market share is anticipated to grow.Check the Table of Content for the Gas Turbine Engine Market report @:Technology Insights:The product finds applications in combined cycle and open cycle power plants. The market share for combined cycle plants accounted for the highest share in 2016. Compared to open cycle plants, combined cycle offers more output at nearly the same fuel cost. Combined cycle type is highly efficient, have lower emissions and very little distribution & transmission losses.The products application in open cycle plants is expected to decline due to low efficiencies caused by high energy losses. These plants require less space but its components efficiency is highly affected due to unfavorable environmental conditions.Application InsightsThe product findsapplication in electricity generation, aviation, and industrial segments. In 2016, its market size was highest for power generation applications. Power shortage issues are handled by installing the product and generating electricity. This cost efficient and eco-friendly solution is expected to increase the product's demand.Industrial applications have also augmented the products growth due to the rise in its installations in oil & gas, marine and aviation sectors. Low weight to power ratio offered by it is driving its demand in these sectors.Regional Insights:Asia Pacific is expected to have the highest share for the product owing to itsgrowing installations. New electricity generation projects and growing industrialization in China and India are enhancing its demand. To reduce the dependence of coal for generation of electricity, China and India are also promoting the products installation.Europe is expected to grow at a significant rate owing to the rising orders and capacity additions. Demand is expected to arise from countries such as UK, Italy, and Germany. Its rising demand can be attributed to the shift to combined cycle plants.North America has occupied the largest share for the product since a long time and this can be attributed to the early shift to this product, government emphasis on low emissions and R&D investments. Thus, there are expected to be fewer capacity additions and more maintenance and after sales services in this region.End-Use Landscape:The end-use landscape entails a list of current and prospective consumers prevailing across the regions. This section provides company addresses, contact details, products, and regional presence of companies who are purchasing or are likely to purchase gas turbines over the coming years. Some leading consumers of this product are Duke Energy (The U.S.), Saudi Aramco (Saudi Arabia), Airbus Group (The Netherlands), Boeing (The U.S.) and Engie (France).Check the Research Methodology of the Gas Turbine Engine Market report @:Competitor AnalysisThe industry for the product is consolidated. The key players in this industry are Siemens Corporation (The U.S.), General Electric Company, Alstom S.A. (France), Kawasaki Heavy Industries (Japan), Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (India).In May 2016, Siemens Corporation celebrated the arrival of four H-class gas turbines at the Beni Suefpower plant in Egypt. These turbines each with 400 megawatts capacity will later be added with heat exchangers and steam turbines and expanded into a combined cycle mode with 4.8 gigawatts capacity. This ambitious project will be the largest combined cycle power plant worldwide and is aimed at supplying electricity to around 15 million Egyptians.In October 2016, General Electric Company announced that it had secured a turnkey order of more than USD 900 million for Porto de Sergipe combined-cycle power plant with CentraisEletricas de Sergipe S.A. This project has a capacity of 1,516 megawatts and will be the largest gas power plant in Latin America that can deliver an efficiency rate of over 62%.Were constantly identifying and analysing high growth markets and revenue pockets. In consultation with various industry experts, our team of highly-skilled industry analysts study these markets through sophisticated tools and fail-safe, industry-approved methodologies.Name: Global Market Estimates Research & Business ConsultantsAddress: A-9, Silver Croft CHSL, Mumbai:400064, IndiaContact No,: +91 9146632316Email Address: sales@globalmarketestimates.com
Medical Plastics Market Analysis, Trends and Competitor Analysis upto 2025

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Report Title: Medical Plastics Market Analysis  Forecasts to 2025By Type (Engg Plastics, PVC, PP, Silicones, PE, PS, & Others), By Application (Medical Device , Drug delivery devices, Implants, Disposables, Diagnostic instruments, Syringes, Surgical instruments, Catheters, Orthopedic Soft Goods, Packaging, Orthopedic Implant Packaging, Wound Care, Tooth Implants, Denture Base Material & Others), By Region (North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa, Central & South America), End-use Landscape, Vendor Landscape, and Competitor AnalysisRequest a sample copy of the Medical Plastics Market report @:Medical Plastics Market - Market Insights:The demand for the healthcare instruments has increased significantly over the past few years leading to a rise in consumption for premium grade plastics, used in medical devices. Similarly, rapid growth of pharmaceutical industry is also anticipated to drive the market owing to the resultant need for pharmaceutical packaging. Due to the advancements in technology coupled with increase in functionality of engineered plastics is likely to benefit the market growth in medical plastics market.Modernization of European administrations for medical devices is anticipated to be a major factor impacting the industry growth. The presence of such strict regulations is expected to limit the market growth in the region.Due to growing demand for various medical procedures such as breast augmentation, liposuction, eyelid surgery and face & neck lifts up is likely to increase requirement for surgical instruments, which in turn is projected to foster the industry growth in medical plastics market.The industry is witnessing continuous technological innovations to produce refined products to capture market share.Medical Plastics Market - Type Insights:PVC is projected to be the largest market in the medical plastics market. Increased demand for PVC is attributed to its various applications such as manufacturing of Class I medical devices. Medical instruments that are produced using PVC can be easily sterilized using methods such as steam, radiation, or ethylene oxide. The two major applications for medically approved PVC compounds include flexible containers and tubing.Medical Plastics Market - Application Insights:The orthopedic implants packaging segment is anticipated to grow at a high CAGR from 2017 to 2025. The demand for long lasting products such as PETG and ABS is anticipated to drive the medical plastics market.The use of plastics in wound care has garnered attention in market place, owing to its superior performance such as absorption of wound exudates and others. The market for wound care plastics is projected to exhibit high level of R&D carried out by the producers.Enhanced adaptability, clarity, and protection from the electromagnetic waves offered by engineering plastic materials is likely to increase its use in biopharma devices over the forecast period.Check the Research Methodology of the Medical Plastics Market report @:Medical Plastics Market - Regional Insights:Germany accounted for more than 15% of the total market share in 2016. Rise in aging population and repeated occurrence of chronic diseases in the country has resulted in increased need for healthcare expenditure leading to medical plastics market growth.The market in Asia Pacific is expected to grow at a high CAGR from 2017 to 2025 due to the various applications of plastics in wound care, packaging among others. Furthermore, the increased requirements of high quality medical instruments by healthcare centres in major economies such as China, India, Singapore is projected to drive growth.The market in Central & South America is estimated to witness a growth of more than 5% over the forecast period due to its various applications in wound care, denture base materials, and disposable components. The industry is anticipated to grow on account of economic development in Brazil and Argentina.Medical Plastics Market - End Use Landscape:The end-use landscape includes a list of current and prospective consumers prevailing across the regions. This section provides company addresses, contact details, products, and regional presence of companies who are purchasing or are likely to purchase products from medical plastics market. The major consumers of the product are Mayo Clinic Cancer Centre, Palomar Medical Centre, El Camino Hospital.Medical Plastics Market - Competitive Scenario:The industry is highly competitive due to the presence of a number of companies across the globe. Major players are involved in the manufacturing of various grades of plastics for use in myriad applications.Some of the major manufacturers in the market are bbott Laboratories (U.S.), Access Closure (U.S.), Advanced Medical Solutions Group plc (U.K.), Lohmann & Rauscher GmbH & Company KG (Germany), Medline Industries Incorporated (U.S.), and Medtronic Incorporated (Ireland).In June 2016, the Dow Chemical Company announced the commencement of construction phase of its new ELITE enhanced polyethylene production facility in Freeport, Texas.Were constantly identifying and analysing high growth markets and revenue pockets. In consultation with various industry experts, our team of highly-skilled industry analysts study these markets through sophisticated tools and fail-safe, industry-approved methodologies.Name: Global Market Estimates Research & Business ConsultantsAddress: A-9, Silver Croft CHSL, Mumbai:400064, IndiaContact No,: +91 9146632316Email Address: sales@globalmarketestimates.com
The Poker World Reacts to Las Vegas Mass Shooting

October 02, 2017 Pamela Maldonado

Late Sunday night, Stephen Paddock, 64, opened fire on 22,000 concertgoers from his room at the Mandalay Bay Hotel in Las Vegas. At least 58 people were killed and 500 have been wounded after a storm of bullets was unleashed onto the crowd of the Route 91 Harvest Festival.

Paddock, who had no serious criminal history, died of an apparent self-inflicted wound.

Dan Bilzerian, who was at the festival during the time of the shooting, showed first-hand video of his experience to his 22.7 million Instagram followers.

Dan Bilzerian took to Instagram during the Las Vegas shooting.

According to his stories, he witnessed a female get shot, left the grounds to get a gun and headed back to assist if he could. He later expressed that he was safe and headed home after the incident was resolved.

Our own Sarah Herring, who was at Mandalay Bay just hours before the incident, had this to say, "It is such a shame that the actions of one sick person or one group of sick people can have such a devastating and frightening effect on the lives of so many others. I will be praying for all the innocent people and their loved ones and pray that God would soften the hearts of those who intend to hurt others.

If you want to help the victims of the shooting, the Clark County Commission Chair has started a GoFundMe to provide relief and financial support to those in need. At the time of publish, $1.8 million and counting had been raised.

After what is now being called the worst mass shooting in U.S. history, the poker community took to Twitter to express their emotion and thoughts and to express their sympathies.

Thinking of you, Las Vegas. Look after each other #  Liv Boeree (@Liv_Boeree)

Stolen senselessly # why people are allowed to purchase guns that can do this kind of harm I'll never understand. Common world smarten up  Mike Leah (@GoLeafsGoEh)

Do not say his name. He is nobody. Do not show his face. He is nobody. Do not share his motives. He is nobody. Let him die a nobody.  Danielle Andersen (@dmoongirl)

Wont let it happening change anything. Will be back on strip grinding as soon as games are back up. Hate and fear wont win.  Ryan Laplante (@Protentialmn)

To get it out of my system FUCK YOU "thoughts and prayers" and FUCK YOU "not the time or place" FUCK YOU GUNS  Scott Seiver (@scott_seiver)

Listening to country music all day in honor of all the victims of Las Vegas  Robert Mizrachi (@PokerRob24)

There is much good in the world. https://t.co/iXbEJT3fdT  Dan O'Brien (@DanOBrienPoker)

Sick to my stomach hearing what's going on in Vegas. Everyone please stay safe.   Lacey Jones (@LaceyJones)

All my thoughts go to the people in Las Vegas... Really sad to hear about this tragedy... Vegas is such a unique place full of great ppl  Sylvain Loosli (@SylvainLoosli)

Thank you @LVMPD, NHP, the rest of the first responders who risked life and limb to help and all those doing what they can in the aftermath  Jay Farber (@JayFarber)

Las Vegas is all of us. https://t.co/lWNmUyuO0i  Dan Fleyshman (@DanFleyshman)

Tragedy struck in Vegas last nite! Thx 4 sooo many texts! I am safe and not in LV!!! My thoughts and prayers r with everybody in LV  Greg Mueller (@GregFBT)

So sad to wake up to this  Jason Mercier (@JasonMercier)

"Las Vegas" have had really bad feeling about mass shooting in vegas for a long time. So horrified to wake up to see finally happened.  Daniel Shak (@daniel_shak)

Be safe Las Vegas. What horrifying news to wake up to.  Kara Scott (@KaraOTR)

What is wrong? always try to shoot people u don't know, the world is really sick, felt sad and I hope all my friends be safe in Vegas  kitty kuo thomas (@kittykuopoker)

Sending prayers to the victims, and families of the victims, in Las Vegas.  phil_hellmuth (@phil_hellmuth)

Just read the Second Amendment for the first time in my life. Fuck it's dumb and unnecessary in 2017  Mike McDonald (@MikeMcDonald89)

Speechless and can't comprehend how or why... https://t.co/gx7i66KNNB  Kristen Bicknell (@krissyb24poker)

So proud of Vegas community - lines to give blood very long, people waiting hrs - others bringing free food & drinks to them. #incredible #  Mike Sexton (@Mike_partypoker)

Thoughts and prayers ain't gonna cut it.  Darryll Fish (@DarryllFish)

A good thought especially for today https://t.co/PrpypmuIrL  Senator Ray Lesniak (@SenatorLesniak)

A tragic & heinous act of violence has shaken the #Nevada family. Our prayers are w/ the victims & all affected by this act of cowardice.  Governor Sandoval (@GovSandoval)

Our thoughts and prayers go out to all affected in Las Vegas. Thank you to all who have and are helping in this difficult time.  WSOP (@WSOP)

Las Vegas is poker's home, Las Vegas is our home, and we will always be #LasVegasStrong https://t.co/qRln4L8iEA  Poker Central (@PokerCentral)

Thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their families, and our many friends of the Las Vegas community. https://t.co/ny2CFlD6UC  World Poker Tour (@WPT)

https://t.co/l3a3RTc7GA  Wynn Las Vegas (@WynnLasVegas)

There are no words for this horrible tragedy in LV. Prayers for all the innocent lives lost and the ones fighting for their lives. So so sad  Jennifer Harman (@REALJenHarman)
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Since 2001, Peter has been publisher of the valued and historically valuable Ex Kiap website (if you havent seen it, catch up here ). He is a communicator after my own heart  keep the channels open, the debate free and duck for cover as required.

Peter and I were contemporaries in Chimbu in the 1960s  him a kiap, me a tisa - before we both went on to other careers and other lives.

As soon as they put on their broad brimmed military-style hats, these young turks of pre-independent Papua New Guinea thought they sat at the feet of god. Which in a sense some did.

NOOSA - Are you going to stray from your lofty editorial cyber-perch and grace us with your presence at the next reunion? said the email.

The website believes there are few punches worth pulling and it is as straightforward and unflinching as were the kiaps themselves. You'll get a flavour of this from its mission statement, which reads in part:

I'm sick and tired of hearing the fat ones (olesem ol grisman na stilman na giamanman) blaming PNG's current parlous state on their so called colonial inheritance. I believe that PNG Administration was one of the most cost effective imperial, bureaucratic interventions of recent times, I cannot think of another similar endeavour that was more effective or delivered more bangs for the bucks. At the business end (or the grass roots level, whatever) it was in general purposeful, moral, ethical, honest regardless of whether we were part of an imperial policy whose motives may not have been as altruistic. I believe that we did do a good job in PNG.

So bloody there.

Every couple of years, the kiaps reunite on the Sunshine Coast. Being men of strict routine, they gather at the same drinking hole (this is the fourteenth year at the Kawana Waters Hotel on Nicklin Way in Buddina), entry is always by a gold coin no matter the state of the economy, there is always a warm comradeship and by common consent there are no speeches.

Kiaps have long believed that the only purpose for a speech was direction or pacification.

This years gathering is on Sunday 12 November. Kawana Waters Hotel is on the main road between Mooloolaba and Caloundra and I am reliably informed theres plenty of parking for those who believe a car is advisable.

The invitation is broad and includes not only ex-kiaps and their families but also friends and former colleagues, a category in which Peter Salmon has included me in his declaration that I should stray from, as he puts it, my perch.

Villagers with kiap, 1948 (National Archives of Australia)

Even with the event more than a month off, 150 people have signed up and, while it is over 40 years since they last saw kiap service, these men are proving to be as resilient, vigorous and acute as they always were,

More creaky in bone and wider in girth, certainly, but fellas youd rather have on your side than any other.

As no less a soldier than Britains Field Marshal Sir William Slim, later governor-general of Australia, said of them to Australian politician Sir Paul Hasluck:

I do admire what you have done in New Guinea. I know something about this. It is the sort of thing that I was trying to do during most of my life. "Your young chaps in New Guinea have gone out where I would never have gone without a battalion and they have done on their own by sheer force of character what I could only do with troops. I dont think theres been anything like it in the modern world...

Enough said.

If you wish to attend the reunion, you can contact organisers Denys Faithful here or Bob Fayle here

Selected books & articles on the kiap experience

Bill Brown MBE: A Kiaps Chronicle

Scott Morrison MP: Speech, House of Representative Debates, 21 November 2011

Chips Mackellar: Sivarai: Memories of Papua New Guinea

Chris Overland: Esprit de corps and the power of the kiap myth

Phil Fitzpatrick: Days of the Kiap: Constable Okomba & the cannibals

Harry West OAM: Graham Taylors kiaps story tells it all & makes history live

James Sinclair: Kiap: Australia's Patrol Officers in Papua New Guinea

More on the reunion

The venue outlook is over water to an extensive marina and has a covered outdoor deck area linked to an indoor bar/lounge with adequate dining and seating facilities available for our use. Last time they ably catered for 329.

There is a good restaurant/bistro adjoining our area where as with previous reunions you will be able to order your own meals and sit with whom you choose. The restaurant will be open from 11.30 am to 8.30 pm. Since we will be sharing the restaurant facilities of this popular establishment with the regular Sunday clientele, the Hotels Function Co-ordinator has requested that we provide an approximate figure of attendees by the 16 October, 2017. So do let us know of your intention to attend or otherwise. All the tables are reserved for our Reunion.

Drinks will be available at bar prices from the Lounge Bar and Public Bars and these bars will be open from 11am to 10pm.

Informality will continue to be the order of the day. Definitely no speeches, everyone is far too busy catching up with friends. This format has proven popular so we will stick with it.

The Kawana Waters Hotel has 16 motel style rooms available which we have tentatively booked for the nights of Saturday, 11 November and Sunday, 12 November, 2017. If you require a booking please phone the hotel on 07. 54446699 and mention you are part of the Kiap Reunion group to secure a unit. It is the case of first in etc but we know the rooms were found to be very much in demand at all our previous reunions.

Peter Salmon & warriors, Goroka, 1966

Other accommodation for those needing it may be available at:

Kyamba Court Motel, 94 Brisbane Road, Mooloolaba, Ph. 07. 54440202.

Mooloolaba Motel, 46 Brisbane Road, Mooloolaba, Ph. 07. 54442988.

Mantra Sirocco, 59-75 The Esplanade, Mooloolaba Ph. 07. 54576000.

Raffles Mooloolaba, 65 First Ave., Mooloolaba Ph. 07. 54440077.

River Esplanade Motel, 98 River Esplanade, Mooloolaba, Ph. 07. 54443855.

Twin Pines Motel, 36 Brisbane Road, Mooloolaba, Ph. 07. 54442522.

Seaview Resort, 143 The Esplanade, Mooloolaba Ph. 07. 54443400

Breakfast on the Monday morning is another popular gathering and this will be arranged again. It is held at Bellissimos Restaurant on the Esplanade at Mooloolaba overlooking the beach and is near the Mooloolaba Surf Club and opposite The Loo With a View..

We ask that you spread the word and pass on this invitation to those you feel would enjoy the day. Please mention the reunion to all of the kiaps you know.
@alextdaugherty

When the Trump administration waived the Jones Act in Puerto Rico for 10 days on Sept. 28, it was hailed as an important step for the U.S. territorys recovery from Hurricane Maria.

But the presidents waiver, which expires on Sunday, has made little difference in the flow of aid to Puerto Rico so far.

None of the 12 known ships that are operating under the waiver  which allows foreign ships to transport goods from U.S. ports to Puerto Rico  have arrived or unloaded cargo in San Juan, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

Three of the 12 ships also appear to be headed to foreign ports, a Homeland Security spokesman said.

The shipping information is voluntarily provided to Homeland Security by shipping carriers, so there could be additional ships operating under the waiver without Homeland Securitys knowledge. Under the waiver, ships must be loaded by Sunday and then have an additional 10 days to deliver their cargo to Puerto Rico, so the total number of ships operating under the waiver could increase by October 8.

It typically takes five days to deliver goods by boat to Puerto Rico from Miami and seven days from Jacksonville. Jacksonvilles port is the main hub for transporting U.S. goods to Puerto Rico.

The 1920 Jones Act requires ships transporting goods within the country to be built, owned and operated by U.S. citizens or permanent residents.

When the Trump administration initially decided to not waive the Jones Act in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria made landfall on Sept. 20, the backlash was fierce. Critics accused the businessman-turned-president of rallying behind the interests of the U.S. shipping industry instead of putting the needs of Puerto Rico first.

Puerto Rico is broke and the federal government already controls the purse strings through the financial control board or Junta that was imposed by Congress, said Rep. Luis V. Gutierrez, D-Ill. In their hour of need, Washington can help by suspending the Jones Act and suspending cost-sharing obligations.

Trump himself fueled criticism when he said, we have a lot of shippers and a lot of people who work in the shipping industry who don't want the Jones Act lifted.

The president eventually changed course and granted the 10-day waiver when Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossello requested it.

But during a congressional hearing on Oct. 3, representatives from Tote Maritime and Crowley, two of the biggest U.S. shipping companies tasked with delivering goods to Puerto Rico, told the House Transportation Committee that they hadnt heard from any foreign shipping companies wanting to do business under the Jones Act waiver.

Our companies operate two of the three terminals in the port of San Juan that would be contacted in order to unload vessels that would be under the waiver, said Tote CEO Anthony Chiarello. We have not received a call requesting the need to unload the ships.

Read more here.
Asia-Pacific Feed Testing Market

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Market Data Forecast, Inc.2nd Floor, Lakeview Plaza, Kavuri Hills, Hyderabad, Telangana 500033, India.+1-888-702-9626 (U.S. TOLL FREE) Contact@marketdataforecast.comSales Manager888-702-9626

Asia-Pacific Feed Testing Market has been estimated at USD 113.84 billion in 2016 and is projected to reach USD 178.88 billion by 2021, at a CAGR of 9.46% during the forecast period from 2016 to 2021. The Feed Testing market is showcasing significant potential in the mentioned forecast period. The market continues to build up momentum with the rising demand for specific feed additives like proteins being included and thus the requirement for testing of feed. The companies in the agricultural industry have been showing significant interest in the market recently.Feed testing is generally used to test for pesticides, pathogens, mycotoxin etc. in order to ensure the absence of any contaminants that may be responsible for food poisoning, toxicity or any other illness. These tests are necessary for maintaining proper animal health and thus improve their productivity.View full report @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/Asia-Pacific-feed-testing-market-2292/ Rising demand for high quality and sustainable animal nutrition products have led to rapid growth of the market in recent years. Other factors driving the Feed Testing Market include compulsory analysis of feed safety and quality, customized services emerging as cost and time effective solutions, management of feed productions operating cost. The market also faces some restraints and challenges as well. Some of these are lack of awareness among farmers about animal feed regulations, Expert analysis required to use advanced testing technologies for extensive sample preparation. These factors have been responsible for holding the market.The Asia-Pacific market for Feed Testing is categorized on the basis of livestock and type. The market segmentation based on type is done into Nutritional Labelling Analysis, Crop Chemicals Analysis, Pathogen Testing, Mycotoxin Testing, Fats & Oils Analysis. The market share is led by Pathogen testing segment. Based on livestock, the market is segmented into swine, cattle, poultry, aquaculture, pet foods and other livestock. The cattle sector accounted for the greatest market share based on livestock due to rise in production of cattle meat in recent years and is expected to show even further growth. On the basis of geography, the Asia-Pacific market is analysed under various regions namely China, India, Australia, Japan and South Korea.Get free sample report @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/Asia-Pacific-feed-testing-market-2292/request-sample Some of the major companies dominating the market, by their products and services Bureau Veritas SA, Adpen Laboratories Inc., Eurofins Scientific, Institut Fur Produktqualitat Gmbh (IFP), Genon Laboratories Ltd., Intertek Group Plc, Romer Labs Inc., R J Hill Laboratories Ltd, SGS SA, Silliker Inc.About Market Data Forecast:Market Data Forecast is a firm working in the area of market research and business intelligence. With rich experience in research across various business domains, they cater to the needs of both individual and corporate clients. From all-encompassing umbrella markets to extremely specific niche markets covering all the major regions across the globe as part of the research scope, their research services offer one of a kind specialities with competitive pricing options. For more information, kindly visit, www.marketdataforecast.com
The Global Feed Fats and Proteins Market was worth USD 4.41 billion in 2016 and estimated to be growing at a CAGR of 5.3%, to reach USD 5.71 billion by 2021.

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PR-Inside.com: 2017-10-07 07:20:57

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The Feed Fats & Proteins market is showing immense potential in the mentioned forecast period. The market continues to build momentum with the rise in demand for feed fats & protein as feed ingredients to minimize the loss in the production of high quality meat, eggs and other bio products. Thus, animal farmers as well as breeders have increased their production to meet the demands and thus various companies are investing in Feed Fats & Proteins Market.View Full Report @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/global-feed-fats-and-proteins-market-2045/ Feed Fats & Proteins help in optimizing the nutritional level of a feed, ensuring procurement of maximum nutrition from lesser amount of feed and hence making the livestock production cost effective. The increase in middle class income and rapid urbanization has resulted in an increase in demand for fats & proteins in the feed market.Free sample of the report is available @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/global-feed-fats-and-proteins-market-2045/request-sample The significant growth in demand for animal meat has led to the market to show huge potential in recent years. Other major factors responsible in driving the market for feed fats & proteins include, cost mitigation of livestock production, increasing demand for milk and milk products, industrialization of animal husbandry. The market also faces some restraints and challenges. Some of the important ones are outbreak of disease in livestock and environmental concerns regarding use of feed fats and proteins. These factors have been holding back the market from showing its complete potential.Inquire before buying @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/global-feed-fats-and-proteins-market-2045/inquire The Global market for Feed Fats & Proteins is broadly segmented under source and livestock. On the basis of source the segments are animals and plant which are further fragmented into Meat & Bone Meal, Poultry Meal, tallow and Corn Soybean Cotton Seeds respectively. The Plant segmented accounts for the largest share in the market and is also expected to show the highest CAGR. Based on Livestock the market is segmented into Ruminants, Poultry, Aqua, Swine, Equine and Others. The poultry segment holds the greatest market share over all due to the extensive farming techniques applied in poultry sector. On the basis of geography, the global market is analysed under various regions namely North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Rest of the World. The Feed Fats & Proteins market was dominated by Asia-Pacific, with the overall market share of over 37% globally. Asia-Pacific was followed by North America and Europe. Europe is predicted to show a rapid growth in the coming few years.Some of the major companies dominating the market, by their products and services include Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM), Darling International Inc, the Scoular Company, Omega Protein Corporation, Roquette Freres, Aarhuskarlshamn AB (AAK), Bunge Ltd., Euroduna Rohstoffe Gmbh, Lansing Trade Group LLC., Agrana Beteiligungs-AG (Agrana).About Us:Market Data Forecast is a firm working in the area of market research and business intelligence. With rich experience in research across various business domains, we cater to the needs of both individual and corporate clients. Our analyst team comprises expert professionals in market research, who with their collective knowledge and sksillset dedicatedly serve clients from various industries and regions.
The Global Fragrance Ingredients Market was worth USD 14.57 billion in 2016 and estimated to be growing at a CAGR of 5.6%, to reach USD 19.13 billion by 2021.

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PR-Inside.com: 2017-10-07 07:14:29

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The Fragrance Ingredients market is showing immense potential in the mentioned forecast period. The market continues to grow with the increase in demand for personal as well as other consumer products. The trend gained momentum after the regulation, REACH was legislated in the European Union.View Full Report @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/global-fragrance-ingredients-market-2275/ Fragrances are an explicit mixture of natural as well as synthetic ingredients. A single perfume might contain as low as dozen to as high as hundreds of ingredients or aroma chemicals in minute but calibrated amounts. These ingredients are used in products such as fine fragrances, cosmetics, soaps, detergents etc.Free sample of the report is available @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/global-fragrance-ingredients-market-2275/request-sample The Industry has been experiencing a rise in the demand for natural fragrance ingredients lately, thus gaining interest from various companies in the market. Other major factors drivers for the fragrance ingredients market include, increasing demand for cleaning products, changing consumer preferences, significant advancement in technology. On the other hand, the market faces some restraints and challenges as well, which include compliance with quality and regulatory standards, expensive research and development. Concerns related to Synthetic product has also been one of the factors holding down the market from climbing to its actual potential.Inquire before buying @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/global-fragrance-ingredients-market-2275/inquire The Global market for Fragrance Ingredients is segmented on the basis of type and application. Based on type the market is segmented into essentials oils and aroma chemicals, which are further fragmented into Orange, Mentha Arvensis, Eucalyptus, Cedar wood, Citronella and Terpenes, benzenoids, Musk Chemicals respectively. Based on Application the segmentation is done under Cosmetics & toiletries, Fine Fragrances, Soaps & Detergents. The essential oils account for largest market share under segmentation by type and have a market share of almost twice as that of aroma chemicals. Based on application the market is led by soaps and detergents, while on the other hand cosmetics and toiletries are expected to show the highest growth rate in the coming years. On the basis of geography, the global market is analysed under various regions namely North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Rest of the World. The Fragrance Ingredients market was dominated by Europe, with the overall market share of over 30% globally. Europe was followed by North America and Asia-Pacific. Latin America is predicted to grow at a rapid pace in the coming few years, due to the rise in annual disposable income and change in consumers preference.Some of the major companies leading the global market share include BASF SE, Firmenich International SA, Frutarom Industries Ltd., Givaudan SA, International Flavors and Fragrances Inc., Mane SA, Robertet SA, Symrise AG, T. Hasegawa Co. Ltd., Takasago International Corp.About Us:Market Data Forecast is a firm working in the area of market research and business intelligence. With rich experience in research across various business domains, we cater to the needs of both individual and corporate clients. Our analyst team comprises expert professionals in market research, who with their collective knowledge and sksillset dedicatedly serve clients from various industries and regions.
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According to the report Latin America Veterinary Diagnostics Industry, published by Market Data Forecast, The Industry in is estimated to reach $584.44 Million by 2020 at a CAGR of 8.97%.In the past few years, with the emergence of new and technologically advanced products the Industry is showing a significant growth.Browse Market data tables and in-depth TOC of the Latin America Veterinary Diagnostics Industry to 2020 @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/latin-america-veterinary-diagnostics-market-89/ Veterinary Diagnostics provide tools for effective and rapid testing to undertake preventative or remedial measures for animal related health conditions. For instance, lateral flow and other rapid tests are used in veterinary medicine to test commercial livestock (cows, poultry, sheep, pigs, etc.) and household pets (cats, dogs, etc.) to test for the presence of a variety of medical conditions caused by bacteria, viruses, allergies, and fertility issues. Food animal diagnostics assist in livestock and production animal preventive care and complement other measures such as vaccination and selective breeding. Industry development for companion animal diagnostic has depended heavily upon the purchasing and usage of in-clinic analysers or diagnostic instruments used at veterinary practices.Latin America Industry for Immunodiagnostics is expected to grow at a higher CAGR due to the increase in the number of foodborne diseases affecting the animals and the increase in government regulations to maintain animal health. Especially Brazil, which is the 9th largest economy in the world is proving to be a lucrative Industry for investors. Adding to that the Industry for Molecular diagnostics is expected to grow at a higher than that of Immunodiagnostics due to the wide scope it has over the likes of the latter. Increase in purchase and usage of various diagnostic instruments that are utilized in veterinary practices, in-clinic diagnostic procedures, high income households that keep pets and regularly visit veterinary laboratories are propelling the growth of this Industry. However, increasing adoption of vegetarian food due to changing food habits, the economic downturn, the increasing risk of obesity, exposure to global cuisines, and other diseases are some of the factors affecting the growth.Free sample of the report is available @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/latin-america-veterinary-diagnostics-market-89/request-sample The Latin America veterinary diagnostics Industry is segmented by products, type of animals, and geography. The veterinary diagnostics Industry is mainly categorized by product into clinical chemistry, molecular diagnostics, haematology analysers, diagnostic imaging, immunodiagnostics, and others. The animal Industry covers companion animals and food-producing animals. Furthermore, on the basis of geography, the Latin America Industry is categorized under various regions namely, Argentina, Brazil and Mexico.Some of the prominent companies in this Industry include VIRBAC, IDEXX Laboratories, Inc., Life Technologies Corporation, VCA Inc., Heska Corporation, Abaxis, Inc., Bio-Rad Laboratories Inc., Prionics AG, and Pfizer, Inc.Inquire before buying @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/latin-america-veterinary-diagnostics-market-89/inquire Key Points from Table of ContentsOverview Executive Summary Key Inferences New DevelopmentsDrivers, Restraints, Opportunities, and Challenges Analysis (DROC)Latin America Veterinary Diagnostics Industry: Segmentation By Producto Clinical Chemistryo Molecular Diagnosticso Haemotologyo Diagnostic Imagingo Immunodiagnostics By Animalso Companion Animalso Food-Producing AnimalsGeographical Analysis Brazil Argentina MexicoStrategic Analysis PESTLE analysis Porters Five analysisIndustry Leaders' AnalysisCompetitive LandscapeAvail discount @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/market-reports/latin-america-veterinary-diagnostics-market-89/request-discount About Us:Market Data Forecast is a firm working in the area of market research and business intelligence. With rich experience in research across various business domains, we cater to the needs of both individual and corporate clients. Our analyst team comprises expert professionals in market research, who with their collective knowledge and sksillset dedicatedly serve clients from various industries and regions.Contact:Abhishek ShuklaSales Manager (International Business Development)Market Data ForecastDirect Line: +1-888-702-9626Mobile: +91 998 555 0206Mail:abhishek@ marketdataforecast.com Visit MarketDataForecast Blog @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/blog/ View latest Press Releases of MDF @ http://www.marketdataforecast.com/press-releases


@anitakumar01 @PatriciaMazzei

SAN JUAN -- Like President Donald Trump, Vice President Mike Pence did not venture far from Puerto Ricos capital Friday when he got a firsthand look at how badly Hurricane Maria hurt the island.

But he continued to pledge Washington would not forget about its fellow Americans in the Caribbean, many of whom continue to be without running water, power or communications 16 days after Maria made landfall in Puerto Rico.

We have a long way to go, Pence acknowledged at Iglesia Santa Bernardita, a church in an eastern San Juan suburb. President Trump and I know this.

Puerto Rico is still in emergency-response mode, still working to provide adequate food and water to communities cut off by blocked or destroyed roads and bridges and unable to reach regional supply centers set up in conjunction with the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Only 10 percent of Puerto Ricans have power, and about 55 percent have running water, according to the territorys government.

What Gov. Ricardo Rossello said he wanted from Pence was a commitment to be Puerto Ricos friend in the U.S. Senate, once lawmakers take up an aid package for the bankrupt island, Rossello told reporters before Pences arrival. Pence is known to have the ear of Republican lawmakers  and, as vice president, he breaks any tied Senate votes.

It is important that he knows the magnitude of the damage, Rossello said. I believe that we will have a great spokesperson and a great supporter with his leadership in the Senate.

More here.

Photo credit: Kenneth Thomas, Associated Press
SUPERIOR  Superior Public Schools hope to remove hunger and cold as a barrier to learning.

Using a variety of sources  discounted purchases from the Montana Food Bank Network, a backpack meals program, $10,000 from Town Pump, short-term grants, one-time donations from locals and a heck of a lot of grit  school leaders have spent the past decade stitching together services for students in need.

Because of those efforts, students "are worrying about their math, not their bellies, said administrative assistant Dawn Bauer, who organizes the school's new food pantry and other programs housed in the former office space.

Dozens of kids come each day to pick up snacks or the materials to make meals at home. The pantry's walls are lined with stacks of cans and bags of nonperishable goods, which Bauer divides into portion-sized Ziploc bags for the kids. One shelf includes small drawers filled with spice blends Bauer mixed for spaghetti sauces, tacos and other meals.

For a second year, the school will operate a Crockpot Club, giving a cooker to students who need one and providing some basic cooking lessons. The students then will be sent home with ingredients and recipes to cook for themselves or their families over the weekend. Over the summer, the school taught many area kids how to dry herbs and preserve foods.

About two-thirds of Superior students qualify for free or reduced-price school lunches, compared to 45 percent statewide. Many arrive at school hungry, sometimes after eating not enough at home over the weekend, Bauer said. Mineral County has one of the states highest unemployment rates, 6 percent, and the median household income of $36,031 is 24 percent lower than the statewide figure, according to federal and state statistics.

About a decade ago, Superintendent Scott Kinney, then principal, started a clothes closet where students in need could pick up coats, shoes, boots, gloves, hats, underwear and other items. Soon, he set up a program for laundry services.

Kids in this community had challenges with something as simple as clothing, he said.

Bauer has given coats to several kids already this year. They tell her, Well, my mom said shed buy me one next payday. She responds, Its cold now. Lets go get you one.

From there, the school started a backpack meals program, then the Crockpot Club and now, thanks to a grant, have the full-fledged pantry. Another grant supported the creation of an outdoor classroom, where students learn math and science while growing foods that ultimately can be used in the lunch room or in after-school life skills programs.

Bauer looks for every opportunity she can to stock the pantry as cheaply as possible. Recently, she called incident commanders at two nearby fires to ask if they had any food left over as their camps wound down. They did, and so for the first few weeks of school students were able to take home extra snacks.

We take care of our own here, Bauer said. I graduated here, (the superintendent) graduated here, our principal did, a lot of our teachers did. Were raising our kids here. Its personal for us, you know? When theyre here, theyre our babies.

Kinney agreed.

Social service agencies when I was growing up were a lot stronger. Those dont really exist in rural Montana anymore, he said, proud that his staff and students are learning self-sufficiency and the value of a community that looks out for each other. We ask, How do we get this done? instead of bemoaning the state of education in Montana.

The efforts have caught the attention of community organizations as well as nearby schools who hope to replicate some of Superior's programs.

On Friday, Superior students walked across the playground and a street to Mineral Community Hospital to pick up 729 pounds of food. They loaded pasta, tuna fish and peanut butter into a truck that was driven back to school where students carried it all into the pantry.

For the month of October, hospital employees will collect food for the school. Its first donation was accrued in just six days.

CEO Ronald Gleeson saw it as a natural extension of previous efforts to collect coats, hygiene products and school supplies for students.

Were a part of this community and we need to support it, he said.
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.




One-Day Event Hosts Educational Sessions and Trade Show Featuring Over 200 Michigan-made Food and Agricultural Products

By: MSU Product Center

Contact

Brenda Reau

***@anr.msu.edu Brenda Reau

End

-- The MSU Product Center is pleased to announce the tenth annual Making It In Michigan Conference and Premier Specialty Food Marketplace Trade Show to be held Tuesday, November 7from 7:30AM  4:30PM at the Lansing Center. The theme of this year's event is "A Decade of Creating Opportunity and Accelerating Innovation"."The Making It In Michigan 10-year anniversary will be a wonderful celebration of over 500 food businesses that have launched in the last 10 years with the assistance of the Product Center through the conference and trade show,"states Brenda Reau, Senior Associate Director, MSU Product Center.This year's keynote speaker is Howdy Homes, Chief Executive Officer and President of Chelsea Milling. The keynote address, ", will cover the strategies Holmes used in overcoming the challenges of managing the family business. In 1987, he returned to "Jiffy" and led the transformation of the 100-year-old family business. Today, "Jiffy" is the market-share leader in retail prepared baking mixes.The one-day event features morning and afternoon educational sessions that will concentrate on different business strategies covering the following: Determining when, why and how to work with a distributor Understanding the difference in retailers to garner more product sales Marketing to Millennials Mastering food photography for product promotion Learning more about Social Entrepreneurship in the Agri-food industry and how your business can create change Identifying what you need to know about the new FDA 2016 Nutrition Facts Exploring your options for business financing from traditional to equity resources Managing product costing templates and other related business costs Preparing for sound record keeping Understanding how the new MSU Food Processing and Innovation Center can help your processing and production needsConference participants will also have time to network with the winners of this year's MSU Product Center awards and learn from their success stories. Awards will be presented for Entrepreneur of the Year, Start-up to Watch, Best Barrier Buster and Value-Added Agriculture. MSU Product Center innovation counselors and staff members, Product Center clients, business consultants, regulatory officials and food and farming groups will also be available to provide in-depth information and counseling.The $90.00 per person conference registration fee includes breakfast, lunch, and educational sessions, digital copies of all presentations and reference materials and admission to the Marketplace trade show.The Marketplace trade show in the afternoon will feature over 200 new and existing businesses that will be showcasing and sampling their Michigan-made food and agricultural products to the general public and Michigan-based food buyers. The trade show is free to the general public.More information and conference registration is available at http://www.canr.msu.edu/ miim . Those interested in attending can also call Trina Trefil at 517-353-7185 or send an email to trefiltr@anr.msu.edu About the MSU Product CenterFounded in 2003, the MSU Product Center helps Michigan entrepreneurs develop and commercialize high-value, consumer-responsive products and businesses in the agriculture, natural resources and bioeconomy sectors. The Center's statewide network of innovation counselors provides business counseling support to Michigan residents interested in starting or expanding a business or product line.The Product Center's assistance in launching 543 known new businesses and business expansions has had the following estimated economic impacts: Increased annual sales: $378.4 million (cumulative first year sales only) Value of increased investment: $371.9 million Jobs created: 1,534 Jobs retained: 786
Despite record low vacancy levels in Budapest and an increasingly landlord-friendly leasing environment, industry commentators have warned of an imminent oversupply around the corner, there is no need to panic just yet suggests Orsolya Hegedus and Mike Edwards at Cushman & Wakefield.

Market conce...

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Is the grizzly bear headed for extinction as the emblem of Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks?

A branding committee of FWP employees is considering a new version of the bear that has snarled from their shirt sleeves, letterheads, signposts and pickup trucks since World War II.

Reproducing the logo and type face is problematic in the digital media world, said Vivaca Crowser, whos on the 15-member statewide panel.

Weve looked at a variety of things, everything from keeping it as is, changing it completely or trying to clean it up so it reproduces better, said Crowser, information and education manager for FWPs Missoula-based Region 2.

Its one of a number of ideas as the agency looks to bring consistent new visual guidelines to its brand, Crowser said. Theyre ideas combed from staff and public listening sessions around the state in the summer of 2015 under 15 and Forward. The initiative was aimed at updating the agency vision and goals for the succeeding 10-plus years.

But the prospect of a different logo doesnt sit well for some, who argue that the current one is among the most recognizable logos in the American West.

Im extremely disappointed that our old logo might be going away, FWP biologist Shawn Stewart of Red Lodge wrote in a recent letter to the agency. I would appreciate the committees consideration of some of the values our current logo has represented historically and still represents today.

Im very opposed to what theyre doing, said Terry Lonner of Bozeman. Ive seen the proposed logo that theyre thinking about to rebrand the department, so to speak. Its just a silhouette type of thing, and it doesnt have any history behind it.

Lonner retired from FWP in 1998 as chief of wildlife research after nearly 30 years with the department. In 2005 he produced the documentary Back From the Brink: Montanas Wildlife Legacy for FWP, then teamed up with Harold Picton on a book, Montanas Wildlife Legacy: Decimation to Restoration.

The story of the bear that came to represent the department dates back 75 years.

In 1942, Lloyd Mac McDowell and Marshall Moy, both Montana Fish and Game field men, were traveling by horseback on a moose survey in the Absarokee Wilderness northeast of Gardiner. A huge silvertip appeared on the trail and stopped not 75 feet ahead. It seemed ready to charge as McDowell, on the lead horse, quickly dismounted, grabbed his .270 rifle from the scabbard and shot the bear, breaking its front shoulder.

He let out a large roar and lunged forward toward me, but rolled sideways off the trail, McDowell recalled in a letter he sent to his daughter, Mitzi Stonehocker of Thompson Falls, a couple of years before his death in 1999.

McDowell said he reloaded and followed the bear down the mountainside through heavy brush.

When I caught up to him, he was going in circles and clawing everything in sight. It took three more shots before I got in a killing one to the base of his skull, McDowell wrote.

There was a rogue bear in the country at the time. It had gotten through a trap door into the root cellar at Hellroaring Cabin but couldnt fit out the same way. When he decided to leave he just pushed the whole floor up and made a new exit, McDowell said.

In another instance, the bear couldnt get through a bear-proof door barred by old crosscut saws nailed to it, but tore a paw and apparently ripped a claw out trying. He climbed on the roof and tore a hole large enough to get inside.

The bear McDowell killed measured seven feet long and weighed an estimated 600 to 700 pounds. It had a missing claw and a cut paw.

The grizzly wound up hanging on McDowells office wall in Helena, where its menacing fangs and a distinctive crooked jaw caught the eye of a department official in 1943. Hector LaCass, a draftsman, produced a lifelike drawing of it, including the curved jaw, that was adopted by the agency as its first official logo.

Lonner pointed out that Montana has since designated the grizzly bear as its official state animal.

The grizzly is really a solid symbol of wilderness, just because of their need for a lot of room to roam and live, he said.

Stewart said when the logo was adopted in the 1940s it was said to commemorate the early workers and their efforts to conserve Montanas wildlife resources.

That sentiment remains valid, he said in his letter. To me the logo is a strong representation of recovery. Certainly as we see the grizzly being delisted in the Yellowstone ecosystem the logo is a great representation of current recovery. But recovery is a huge part of the story of many wildlife species since 1942  not just the grizzly bear.

Stonehocker said hers remains a family of Montana hunters. She keeps a close eye on the bearskin that symbolizes so much about the state and its conservation history. Shes collected an assortment of memorabilia in association with it, including the plaster taxidermy mold that her father used as an ashtray for his pipe.

Everywhere I take it they go wild, Stonehocker said of the bearskin exhibit.

After all these years it needs about $2,500 worth of work, she figures. Shed like to take it back to Jonas Brothers Taxidermy in Colorado, which made the original mount all those years ago.

Shes offered it to Fish, Wildlife and Parks but said the department wasnt interested.

Im 63, and I really want that bear placed before I die, said Stonehocker, whos retired but says personal and family health issues are a priority.

I just dont have the right connections yet, and I just dont have the time.

As for the logo, Crowser stressed that no decision has been made and may not be finalized for up to six months. Recommendations on anything the branding committee is working on will be sent to director Martha Williams office in Helena for final approval.

Cost of a change in logo is a consideration, though Crowser said its too early to put a price tag on it. A changeover wouldn't be a one-shot deal but phased in as vehicles and uniforms are replaced.

We want to make a decision that is responsible budget-wise. That's a big concern, she said. Without having a decision in hand or anything, and not knowing whether it would be phased in over months or even years, its just hard to say.

While FWP faces its own cuts, it hardly taps the state general fund and thus is not as affected by the current budget crisis as other departments.

The bulk of FWP programs are funded with hunting and fishing license fees and excise taxes on guns, ammunition and fishing equipment.
The United States' high health care costs do not yield corresponding health outcomes for its citizens. Conversely, Cuba, with less than a tenth of U.S. expenditures, has attained comparable outcomes on many indicators, particularly life expectancy and infant mortality.

Key Health Care Indicators in Cuba and the United States Cuba United States Life expectancy at birth (in years)c 79.1 79.3 Infant mortality rate (probability in dying by age 1 per 1,000 live births)b 5 5.9 Maternal mortality rate (per 100,000 live births)c 39 14 Mortality due to cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, or chronic respiratory diseases (percent of population ages 3070)a 16.5% 14.3% Total spending on health as percent of GDPa 8.6% 17% Per capita total expenditure on health at average exchange rate (US dollars)a $558 $8,845 Sources: WHO 2015 ( PDF ) and WHO 2016. a. Statistics are as of 2012, b. Statistics are as of 2013, and c. Statistics are as of 2015.

This contrast raises the obvious question of how Cuba achieves these outcomes, a problematic question because multiple factors could contribute to the system's success. Regardless, the differences between the two countries' health care systems remain stark. Although Cuban health care providers have less access to technology and supplies, coverage is universal and the system is largely government-run, with the exception of the black market and medical tourism. Conversely, health care in the United States is not universal and consists of a disjointed, yet well-resourced mix of private and public providers and payers. Health system differences between Cuba and the United States likely account for much of Cuba's ability to do more with less.

It is unlikely that the United States will adopt socialized health care any time soon, but some of the Cuban system's distinguishing features might still provide useful lessons. In particular, the United States could do well to import lessons on prioritizing primary care and prevention as well as addressing social determinants of health.

Cuban medical schools incorporate primary care, public health, and social determinants in their curricula in ways that U.S. schools are just beginning to do.

In fact, Cuba's emphasis on primary care and prevention is a key differentiating feature of the two systems. Cuban medical schools, which are government-run and tuition-free, incorporate primary care, public health, and social determinants in their curricula in ways that U.S. schools are just beginning to do. Furthermore, the nationwide system of consultorios (family medical offices) and polyclinics play a central role in providing community-based medical and mental health services for all residents of defined geographic areas.

The Cuban consultorio comprises a doctor and nurse team who provides basic primary care services for 600900 patients in both the office and patients' homes. Mornings are typically devoted to on-site care and afternoons to public health promotion, by collecting health statistics or visiting individual homes to address prevention, health education, and environmental factors affecting patients' health. Physicians are expected not only to conduct screenings and educate patients, but also to understand their family and social backgrounds. Since physicians focus on a residential area rather than on self-selecting patients, they are more likely to reach out ( PDF ) to those who typically avoid interaction with the health care system  an initiative much less common in the United States.

For more complex services, physicians refer patients to local polyclinics, each serving a single geographic area of approximately 25,00035,000 people. The polyclinic staff is typically integrated doctor-nurse teams that provide a wide range of services including pediatric, dental, eye, and behavioral health care. They also communicate directly with the patient's family doctor to ensure appropriate follow-up.

The set-up and structure of this geographic-based health care system ensures that people [are] understood in all their dimensions: biological, psychological and social [and] as individuals, within families, and within their communities. In surveying the environment or visiting patients' homes, physicians are able to assess the elements that constitute social determinants of health and thus tailor services to the specific needs of each community. They consider factors such as education, housing, environmental elements (e.g. sanitation and clean air), food and nutrition, and employment.

A polyclinic's ability to care for and respond to the needs of its citizens relies on the staff's knowledge and efforts in carrying out these responsibilities, which is grounded in the Cuban medical education system. All physicians enter this six-year training directly from high school, and are first educated as primary care practitioners. Later, those who wish to specialize must obtain a post-graduate degree. This policy resulted from a 1984 governmental shift that prioritized health promotion over sickness control. This change led schools to broaden providers' role as solely family physicians to comprehensive general physicians. While U.S. medical students typically acquire some basic epidemiological knowledge during their education, the Cuban health care system stresses the physicians' role to promote public health and their moral obligation to address health care disparities and inequalities.

Cuba's health system is far from perfect. Facilities often lack basic supplies or equipment, physicians receive poor compensation, and many providers defect when serving in foreign medical missions. Furthermore, some of the consultorio and polyclinic successes could be due to low residential mobility for both patients and physicians, resulting in sustained doctor-patient relationships. Additionally, many of the lessons from Cuba are difficult to transfer outside of its unique social context. Certain social determinants of health in the United States, such as economic stability, are less influential in Cuba because the government provides some food and other necessities.

The imperative for a stronger emphasis on social determinants of health in primary care in the U.S. has grown increasingly urgent.

However, the imperative for a stronger emphasis on social determinants of health in primary care in the United States has grown increasingly urgent. Undergraduate medical education has started to promote this focus, with the American Medical Association's adoption of a 2014 policy to integrate more training on this subject. Some of the adopted approaches ( PDF ) provide additional training and research to understand health disparities or address diversity in the medical education pipeline so that physicians more closely resemble the communities they serve. Furthermore, a few places also have adopted elements of community-based medicine and employ interdisciplinary teams to help address barriers to a healthy life.

The Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta implemented a required service-learning community health course in 1998. Students partner with an organization to conduct a health-needs assessment, identify a pressing community health issue, and then design and implement an intervention to address it. The needs identified often center on social determinants of health, such as housing conditions, available nutrition, and educational attainment.

More recently, the Green Family Foundation Neighborhood Health Education and Learning Program (NeighborhoodHELP) at Florida International University started to send integrated teams of medical, nursing, education, law, and social work students to underserved neighborhoods to address similar concerns. Over a period of three years, students cultivate relationships with household members to identify areas of need and develop plans to address health and quality of life issues.

Still, the United States has a relatively small number of medical schools actively seeking to expand the physician's role in understanding and addressing social determinants of health ( PDF ). Achieving the "triple aim" of affordable, high-quality health care that improves population health will require the medical field to better integrate this perspective into primary care provision. Lessons from the Cuban approach might help the United States achieve more with less.

Claire E. O'Hanlon and Melody Harvey are assistant policy researchers at the nonprofit, nonpartisan RAND Corporation and doctoral candidates at the Pardee RAND Graduate School.

This commentary originally appeared on Georgetown Journal of International Affairs on October 2, 2017. Commentary gives RAND researchers a platform to convey insights based on their professional expertise and often on their peer-reviewed research and analysis.
The human brain is always looking for patterns to explain things, and what we see is shaped by what we already know and feel. This reality is the basis for the famous Rorschach inkblot test, in which subjects are asked what they see in a series of ambiguous black and white images ( PDF ). Similarly, humans often reach for analogies to describe and understand new situations and challenges ( PDF ), trying to match a new situation to a more familiar one. Yet how do we know the right analogy to reach for? This question has long bedeviled social scientists, historiansand especially policymakers.

Choosing the right analogy to discuss the emergence of a new nuclear power, as is happening in North Korea, is a particularly acute problem. This is an exceedingly rare event. In all of human history it has only happened at most 13 times, perhaps fewer depending on how it is counted. Since even the most cutting-edge methods of social science are of little avail with so few observations, analogy is crucial, and the choice of analogy inevitably drives conclusions. Like the Rorschach test, the analogies analysts reach for are shaped by their own experience and expertise.

The remainder of this commentary is available on warontherocks.com.

Austin Long is a senior political scientist at the nonprofit, nonpartisan RAND Corporation and the author of multiple studies on nuclear strategy, including most recently The MAD Who Wasn't There: Soviet Reactions to the Late Cold War Nuclear Balance.

This commentary originally appeared on War on the Rocks on October 6, 2017. Commentary gives RAND researchers a platform to convey insights based on their professional expertise and often on their peer-reviewed research and analysis.
Spanish software provider Mirada has signed a five-year contract with Digital TV Cable in Bolivia to deploy its Iris over-the-top (OTT) solution.

Under this contract, Mirada will bring its entire suite of Iris multiscreen products, including its OTT platform and back-end application, across Digital TV Cables network, through which the operator delivers pay-TV and broadband services.According to Mirada , a gradual roll-out has been planned over five years, with a target of up to one million devices.The Iris multiscreen solution will enable Digital TV Cables subscribers in the city of Santa Cruz to view live, catch-up and on-demand content across IPTV/OTT set-top boxes, smartphones, tablets, smart TVs and personal computers.This represents the second contract win for Mirada in less than two months and demonstrates the successful conversion of Miradas extensive pipeline of opportunities for our powerful multiscreen product, which has been growing its number of first-class reference deployments over the last few years, said Jose Luis Vazquez, CEO of Mirada.Elio Montes, CEO of Digital TV Cable, commented: We are certain that having Mirada on board for solutions for consumer interaction, with content and services, will make a real difference to our digital users.
Body cameras for the Mooresville Police Department have arrived. Find out when they will be used.
BEIJING  Inside China Global Television Networks 2,000-square-meter main studio, technicians scrambled to rig a wall of Ed Sullivan Theater-sized lighting for a considerably less star-studded ceremony honoring scientists.

The contrast points up a conundrum in the ambitious plans CGTN has for its place in the world. The Chinese state-funded broadcast networks motto reads See the Difference. Tour guides in the 57-story, bi-legged China Central Television Building explain its skylights so the world can see China, and we can see the world.

When Suhan Chen worked for the network in 2002, it had just two reporters in the United States. Now Chen directs the Confucius Institute at the University of Montana and CGTNs Washington, D.C., bureau alone has more than 200 staff.

They want to provide a Chinese voice, Chen said. Everyone has their own perspective about whats happening in the world. And this is a different kind of soft power. Its pretty common for every country to do it.

The TV world already includes institutions like CNN, BBC, Al Jazeera and Russia Today.

Were not covering just China, CGTN deputy controller Yang Fuqing explained in Beijing. We are trying to cover this whole globe. We really want to be a serious news channel.

To do that, CGTN has also opened production facilities in London and Nairobi, Kenya. The Nairobi bureau has a staff of 130, producing at least three hours of English-language news programming a day, specifically on Africa. Overall, CGTN intends to put out 17 hours daily of news in English.

Then there are the versions in Spanish, Russian, French and Arabic. And the expansion into talk shows and political commentary programs with brand-name hosts. And the maintenance of 42.9 million Facebook followers.

Theres a lot of interest in news from places that arent just Israel and Paris, but parts of Africa people havent heard from, said University of Montana School of Journalism Dean Larry Abramson. Im glad to see people stepping into that gap. But if the idea is simply that the government will fund this stuff so you can turn out an endless number of stories, you still have to engage listeners and viewers. Its incumbent to demonstrate theyre doing more than just spewing information out into the ether.

Abramson added other government-supported news organizations, including the United States National Public Radio and Great Britains British Broadcasting Corporation, have taken steps to display independence from the governments they cover.

I dont want to assume CGTN has a Chinese-government outlook, but since its funded by the Chinese government, they have to demonstrate theyre not beholden to government interests, Abramson said. When I watched their programming, what I saw was there are plenty of conflicts of interest and lack of skepticism when it comes to questioning Chinese government sources. A government can speak to its people on its own. As journalists, we dont just pick up that message and pass it along. I think if international journalism in a Chinese style can embody those ethics, Im happy to have another competitor on the scene.

That cross-pollination of Chinese and Western journalistic methods is already underway. Beijings Tsinghua University School of Journalism and Communication offers a global journalism program. Its students come from places like Venezuela, Canada, Russia, Macedonia, Botswana, Japan and even the United States. Several other Chinese universities have reached out to UM for student exchange programs.

Last April, Mansfield Library Dean Shali Zhang visited Chinas Southwest University of Political Science and Law (SWUPL), a 23,000-student campus in Chongqing. She returned with a request from administrators there to set up visiting student programs of one semester or one year at UM.

Since UMs School of Journalism has been ranked high consistently, these universities in China are also eager to send their students to UMs School of Journalism, Zhang said in an email. Having the students from SWUPL and other colleges and universities from China to study at UM will be very beneficial for all. It is one way to quickly increase UMs visibility on a global scale, in addition to having tuition incomes.

Chongqing is the largest city in China, bigger than Beijing or Shanghai. It sits astride the Yangtze River, known to many as the site of the Three Gorges Dam project. Its university community trains many of Chinas legal experts.

Zhang and College of Education and Human Sciences Dean Roberta Evans are also drafting memoranda of understanding with Beijing Normal University on cooperative programs in early childhood development, special education, educational leadership and librarian training.

In 2014, UM Journalism professor Dennis Swibold taught a graduate seminar on the American presidential election of 2008 and 2012 at Shanghai International Studies University. Eight Chinese students returned to Montana with him to continue their experience at UM. Swibold said while the demand for trained journalists appears strong in China, the challenges of working on such a cross-cultural platform can be daunting.

Journalism is just hard to do in another culture, Swibold said. Its both what you say and what you dont say. If you dont understand the culture and the language, youre going to have a hard time.

CGTN editors see an open field for their perspective on world events. The initiative gained momentum in 2002 after China won the bid to host the 2008 Summer Olympics and joined the World Trade Organization. CGTN officials said they felt international news coverage up to then tended to demonize China, and they wanted to show the world what the nation really looks like.

They also wanted to insert Chinas opinions into the world debate. For example, on the 16th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the United States, CGTN focused on the effect President Trumps Muslim travel ban might have on immigration and how European terror targets have evolved.

There are 10 million people starving in Africa right after Trump took office, Yung said. The international media was focusing on other things. We covered it right after the United Nations general secretary published his request for aid, and continued with 10 days of coverage. Others covered the story, but not as intensively as CGTN.
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has told world leaders that the time to end Russia's war in Ukraine is "now" and called for the extension of a grain-export deal due to expire shortly, as heavy fighting continues in the eastern Luhansk and Donetsk regions.

"I am convinced that now is the time when the Russian destructive war must and can be stopped," Zelenskiy said in a video address to the Group of 20 (G20) summit in Bali, Indonesia, on November 15.

"It will save thousands of lives," he said.

Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's ongoing invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war, click here.

Zelenskiy said Ukraine would not allow Russian troops to regroup after their withdrawal from the southern strategic city of Kherson, and said there would be more fighting until Ukraine reclaims control of all of its occupied territory.

The liberation of Kherson over the weekend was one of Ukraine's biggest successes in nearly nine months since the start of the Russian invasion.

Zelenskiy urged Moscow to withdraw all its forces from Ukraine and reaffirm Ukraine's territorial integrity, warning that Kyiv would not compromise its sovereignty, territory, or independence. He also called for all Ukrainian prisoners to be released.

Zelenskiy outlined several approaches to achieve peace, including ensuring nuclear and food safety, the ending of hostilities, and a prevention of escalation.

He blasted "the crazy threats of nuclear weapons that Russian officials resort to," referring to rhetoric employed repeatedly by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Zelenskiy thanked the "G19," pointedly excluding Russia, for making clear that "there cannot be any excuses for nuclear blackmail."

Putin has shunned the gathering and sent Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to Bali in his place.



A deal struck in July between the United Nations and Russia that allows the export of Ukrainian grains and other food products from ports blocked by Russian warships is due to expire on November 19.

Zelenskiy said the deal, which according to the UN has allowed the export of 10 million tons of grain and other food, should be extended indefinitely.

"I believe our export grain initiative deserves an indefinite extension -- no matter when the war ends," Zelensky said.

"The right to food is a fundamental right of every person in the world," he said, proposing to expand the deal to more Ukrainian ports.



Zelenskiy accused Moscow of an "attempt to turn the cold into a weapon" by launching waves of air strikes against key infrastructure ahead of the coming winter.

He also spoke in favor of a U.S.-led push for a price cap on Russian oil exports "so that energy resources are no longer used as weapons."



The Ukrainian military reported early on November 15 that its forces repelled waves of Russian attacks on positions in the Donetsk region, including Bakhmut and Belohoryivka, and on Novoselivske in Luhansk.

According to Ukraine's General Staff, the Russian military is accommodating recently arrived reinforcements in abandoned private houses in Luhansk.

The General Staff had previously said that in Luhansk, occupying Russian forces plan to carry out a complete evacuation of the civilian population from three settlements.

The Russian Army is also trying to hold captured territories and continues to equip defensive lines on the left bank of the Dnieper River in the Kherson region, the military said.

In the parts of Kherson region recaptured by the Ukrainian Army over the past week, Russia has destroyed "all critical infrastructure," Zelenskiy said in his regular nightly address on November 14.

Zelenskiy said there is no electricity, no communication, and no television in Kherson, saying the withdrawing Russian troops destroyed everything intentionally.

Earlier on November 14, Ukrainian national energy company Ukrenerho said Russia had destroyed key energy infrastructure supplying the entire right bank of the Kherson region and a significant part of the Mykolayiv region.

"Most of the liberated Kherson region has been without electricity since November 6," Ukrenerho chief Volodymyr Kudrytskiy said. "We are doing our best to supply people with electricity as soon as possible."



Ukrainian commander-in-chief Valeriy Zaluzhniy said he spoke with U.S. General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, on November 14 and told him that the Ukrainian military will not accept any negotiations, agreements, or compromise decisions regarding the end of the war.

"I assured that we will fight as long as we have the strength. Our goal is to liberate all Ukrainian land from Russian occupation," Zaluzhniy said on Facebook. "There is only one condition for the negotiations: Russia must leave all captured territories."



The White House announced separately that CIA Director Bill Burns met in Ankara, Turkey, with Russian intelligence chief Sergei Naryshkin, the head of the Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR).

Burns underscored the consequences if Russia were to deploy a nuclear weapon in Ukraine, according to a White House spokesperson.

The Kremlin confirmed a U.S.-Russia meeting had taken place in Ankara but declined to give details.

Russian officials have alarmed Western governments by raising the potential use of tactical nuclear weapons after suffering massive setbacks in Ukraine.

With reporting by Reuters, AP, and BBC
Afghanistan has received the first batch of U.S.-made UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters from the United States.

At a ceremony at Kandahar Airfield in southern Afghanistan, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani formally accepted the first two helicopters, calling it a "historic day."

The United States plans to provide the Afghan air force with 159 Black Hawks in the coming years as part of efforts to significantly transform the fledgling Afghan air force.

"It's a modernization of their program that will allow them to project power throughout Afghanistan," said Lieutenant Colonel Trent Alexander, a U.S. military adviser to the Afghan air force. "While transitioning to the Black Hawk will not be a quick task, it will not be a difficult task."

Afghan security forces have largely struggled to fend off the Taliban since the majority of NATO troops pulled out in 2014, including critical air power.

With reporting by Reuters and dpa
KUMURDO, Georgia -- Bones discovered within the courtyard of 1,000-year-old Christian cathedral in southern Georgia have ignited tempers in the predominantly ethnic-Armenian village of Kumurdo.

Ethnic Armenians in the village, just 25 kilometers from Georgias borders with Armenia and Turkey, have long claimed that Kumurdo Cathedral is an Armenian church.

Those claims have metamorphosed into enflamed passions since Georgian archeologists, carrying out restoration work near the domeless ruin during the summer of 2016, discovered a large pile of bones that had been collected together and buried on the church grounds.

Kumurdos ethnic-Armenian villagers believe they are the bones of their ancestors, and they claim the restoration work being carried out by Georgias Culture Ministry is an attempt to erase what the villagers say is evidence of the churchs Armenian past.

Tempers came to a head during the September 30-October 1 weekend when villagers confronted restoration workers and Georgian Interior Ministry police who were guarding the protected historic site.

Aghunik Ayvazian, a journalist for the local news website Jnews.ge, told RFE/RL that clashes erupted after a group of women from the village tried to enter the churchs walled compound to light candles and pray there.

At the same time, a group of ethnic Armenian men from the village arrived in an attempt to erect a stone slab -- a grave stela known as a khachkar or a carved Armenian slab -- at the site.

Georgias Interior Ministry says the crowd of about 150 villagers began pelting police guards and their vehicles with stones after authorities stopped them from entering the church grounds.

Video of the altercation shows Interior Ministry police using batons against villagers who stormed into the church yard and were complaining that the burial places of Armenians were being desecrated.

Tempers calmed after Georgian Interior Minister Giorgi Mghebrishvili flew into Kumurdo and met with the angry villagers -- urging them to respect the law and promising to respond to their concerns and complaints.

As part of a deal aimed at soothing tensions, two village men who were arrested during the violent confrontation were released without charge.

Nikoloz Antidze, the head of Georgias National Agency for Cultural Heritage Preservation, promised villagers that a special place would be designated just outside the cathedrals compound walls to erect a memorial.

The Armenian Foreign Ministry has confirmed that the issue of where to locate an Armenian stone cross near the burial site is being discussed by clergy from both Armenia and Georgia.

But Antidze insisted that erecting a stone stela within the churchyard itself would hinder restoration work and negatively affect Tbilisis attempts to have the cathedral registered on UNESCOs World Heritage List.

Georgias Culture Ministry denies allegations by villagers that bones in the churchyard are being removed, insisting that the work is aimed only at restoring the church and its wall inscriptions.

Vahram Baghdasarian, a senior lawmaker from Armenias ruling Republican Party, told RFE/RL that the violence in Kumurdo cannot be allowed to damage relations between Tbilisi and Yerevan.

Speaking in Yerevan, Baghdasarian told RFE/RL that the churchs burial site was a mixed cemetery and that some remains are, indeed, those of Kumordos ethnic Armenian ancestors.

But Baghdarsarian also said Kumurdos ethnic Armenian residents are wrong when they claim the cathedral is an Armenian church.

In fact, the Armenian Apostolic Church does not openly claim Kumurdo Cathedral.

Georgian Caucasus expert Mamuka Areshidze suggested the villagers have been provoked by someone who wrongly told them that inscriptions on the cathedral walls are in an ancient Armenian script -- a script that they are unable to read.

The patriarchate of the Georgian Orthodox Church says the stone inscriptions were carved in the Asomtavruli script, one of three writing systems used to write the Georgian language as early as the 5th century.

Asomtavruli looks similar to ancient Armenian, which also was developed in the 5th century.

UNESCO recognizes the Asomtavruli script as an intangible living culture -- noting that it is now used only by the Georgian Orthodox Church in ceremonial religious texts and iconography.

According to the Georgian Orthodox Church, Kumurdo Cathedrals ancient inscriptions declare the church was built by Ione the Bishop and completed in A.D. 964, during the reign of the Leon III, the king of Abkhazia.

At the time, the Kingdom of Abkhazia was a medieval feudal state under Byzantine authority. It was united with the Kingdom of Georgia in 1008 through dynastic succession.

Written by RFE/RL correspondent Ron Synovitz in Prague with reporting by RFE/RLs Armenian Service correspondent Ruzanna Stepanian in Yerevan and RFE/RLs Georgian Service.
Are you looking at changing the budget process? Is the current system broken? How so?

Missoulas current mayor has said he will raise taxes every year he is in office and has publicly proclaimed himself mayor for life. This is not something any of us can afford  and clearly it is a statement made with a lack of financial planning, responsibility or forecasting on behalf of the Missoula community. (Editors note: Mayor John Engen denies saying he wanted to be mayor for life, at least not in a serious context.)

We need to prioritize our spending and exercise fiscal accountability. Our city budget continues to grow year after year without fail, and as weve been promised, so do our taxes. We must get a handle on the out-of-control spending, and we need leadership that prioritizes fiscal responsibility.

The recently passed budget for next year has little maintenance funding for parks, trails, the new pedestrian bridge, or the Jail Diversion Master Plan. We seem to be in a pattern of building without ensuring the funding is there to maintain the infrastructure.

The primary goal here is to find a way to prioritize projects and either maintain or decrease property taxes. All of the projects do not need to be done at once  and we dont have to jump at every federal dollar offered so that we have to spend money to save money.

I would like to initiate a financial and functional audit of the budget so we can determine if there are areas where we can improve productivity and eliminate wasteful spending. Rather than coming to the table with an automatic increase, I would like to see budget projections in three scenarios: a 3-5 percent increase with solid justifications for the increases like improving basic services, a zero-increase maintain as is, and a 5-7 percent decrease scenario based on audit results.

Optimally, we would be able to utilize one of the latter two, with the goal being to return some of the savings to the citizens of Missoula through lower property taxes and make Missoula affordable again. We need to work within the limits of the budget, doing more with what we have, cutting the waste, and aiming for a 100 percent return on investment on every dollar spent.

On top of that, the city has seen a growth rate of about 1,000 new residents a year. This should mean a larger tax base and therefore a reduction in taxes, city Chief Administrative Officer Dale Bickell told the Missoulian in June 2017. Yet the proposed 2017 budget said otherwise, and only when development/construction tax money from the state came in did the city say that increase would be a decrease. Reliance on development/construction taxes to minimize taxes isnt sustainable.
At least 14 people were killed and 27 were injured in a collision between a passenger van and a bus in southwestern Pakistan on October 7.

The bus was carrying university students from Quetta to a nearby picnic spot in Mastung district.

Local officials said the accident took place near Quetta in Balochistan Province after the driver of the van lost control due to speeding and collided with the bus coming from the opposite direction.

Sameen Khan, the deputy director of student affairs at Balochistan University's Information Technology, Engineering, and Management Sciences told RFE/RLs Radio Mashaal that the victims, which included children, were all in the passenger van while students and staff on the bus only suffered injuries.

With reporting by dpa
Pakistani police say the death toll from a suicide bombing at a Sufi shrine in the country's southwest has increased to 24 after four victims died at a hospital overnight.

The attack took place on October 5 in the Jhal Magsi district, which is located about 300 kilometers east of Quetta, the capital of Balochistan Province.

Senior police officer Mohammad Iqbal said on October 7 that more than 20 victims were still receiving treatment, some of them with critical injuries.

The extremist Islamic State (IS) group claimed responsibility for the attack.

The attack followed a bombing on the same shrine in 2005 that killed 35 people.

In February, IS militants claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing at a Sufi shrine in Sindh Province in which 88 people were killed.

Sufism is a branch of Islam that espouses a mystical, inner belief and incorporates music in its worship. It has been rejected as heretical by IS militants and other extremists, who hold a fundamentalist view of Islam.

Based on reporting by AP
The death toll from a collision in Russia between a train and a bus carrying dozens of Uzbek passengers has risen to at least 17 after a small child died from injuries sustained in the accident, a regional spokeswoman said.

Rita Shlyakhova, a spokeswoman for the governor of the Vladimir region, east of Moscow, was quoted by Russian news agencies as saying on October 6 that the boy who died in the hospital was around 2 years old.

Police said the collision occurred at around 3:30 a.m. (2:30 a.m. Prague time) on October 6 near a train station close to the city of Vladimir, which is 190 kilometers east of the capital.

Kazakh Foreign Ministry spokesman Anuar Zhainakov said the bus, which reportedly had Kazakh license plates, was carrying 55 Uzbek passengers and two Kazakh drivers.

One of the drivers was among the dead, Zhainakov said on Facebook.

Regional police said the bus broke down while the driver was trying to cross the tracks despite a red light.

Photographs showed the badly mangled white bus, its front section totally destroyed, and debris strewn across the tracks.

Officials said the bus passengers were returning to Uzbekistan from the Moscow region when the crash occurred. Many people from Uzbekistan and other former Soviet republics in Central Asia come to Russia to look for work.

The regional branch of the Interior Ministry said later on October 6 that 17 foreign citizens who were not hurt in the accident had been written up for violations of immigration laws.

Authorities have opened a criminal investigation into potential transportation safety violations in connection with the accident.



Police said nobody aboard the train, which was traveling from St. Petersburg to Nizhny Novgorod, was killed in the collision.

Road accidents are common in Russia and death rates are high.

With reporting by Interfax and RIA-Novosti
A deputy prime minister of Kyrgyzstan was killed when a vehicle he was riding in collided with a KamAZ truck on a highway in the Central Asian nation.

Temir Jumakadyrov, 38, died as a result of injuries sustained in the October 7 accident west of the capital, Bishkek, the Kyrgyz government confirmed to RFE/RL.

Both his driver and his assistant were killed in the collision as well.

Jumakadyrov had been tasked by Kyrgyz Prime Minister Sapar Isakov with overseeing preparations for the October 15 presidential vote to elect a successor to outgoing President Almazbek Atambaev.

Jumakadyrov was appointed to the role after Deputy Prime Minister Duishenbek Zilaliev was removed from his position overseeing elections on September 20 for calling on government workers in the southern Kyrgyz city of Batken to vote for former Prime Minister Sooronbai Jeenbekov, the ruling Social Democratic Party's nominee.

Atambaev, who took office in 2011, is barred by Kyrgyzstan's constitution from seeking a second term. Two previous presidents were driven from office by popular protests in the former Soviet republic in 2005 and 2010.

At the time of the accident, Jumakadyrov was reportedly traveling to the northwestern Talas region to inspect polling stations ahead of the election.

Kyrgyzstan has one of the highest traffic-fatality rates per capita across the former Soviet Union and Europe.
Hundreds of opposition activists attended an anticorruption protest in Azerbaijan's capital, Baku.

The protest on October 7 was organized by the National Council of Democratic Forces -- an umbrella organization bringing together some of Azerbaijan's opposition forces.

Baku police said in a statement that some 1,200 people attended the rally.

Azerbaijan's Turan news agency said thousands participated in the rally held in the Yasamal District Stadium.

Protesters shouted End to Corruption and Freedom for Political Prisoners!

Supporters of the Popular Front Party, People's Democratic Party, National Statehood Party, Musavat Party Youth Organization, Muslim Union, and NIDA Movement participated in the protest.

No incidents occurred during the rally.

Activists accuse Azerbaijans government of repressing journalists, civil society activists, and human rights workers.

They have urged Western governments to do more to confront authorities in Baku.

The oil-rich South Caucasus nation has faced growing social and economic problems stemming from falling world oil prices in recent years.

With reporting by Turan
Supporters of Russian opposition leader Aleksei Navalny gathered on October 7 in Vladivostok to hold a protest rally. Demonstrators demanded that Navalny be allowed to participate in the country's March 2018 presidential election. The protests in cities across the country were timed to take place on President Vladimir Putin's 65th birthday. (Current Time TV)
MOSCOW -- Thousands of supporters of Russian opposition leader Aleksei Navalny rallied across the country on October 7 as part of protests coinciding with Russian President Vladimir Putins 65th birthday.

Police arrested hundreds of people across the country, with most coming in Putins hometown of St. Petersburg, the site of the main protest rally.

There was no repeat of the harsh crackdowns by police as witnessed in nationwide rallies organized by Navalny in March and June that led to violence and several thousand arrests.

Rallies and pickets were held in dozens of Russian cities, including Moscow, Vladivostok, Khabarovsk, Ulan-Ude, Chita, and Stavropol, with protesters demanding that Navalny be allowed to participate in the countrys March 2018 presidential election.

The Moscow-based OVD-Info, a group that monitors politically motivated arrests, said there had been at least 271 people arrested at protests in 26 cities as of 9 p.m as the protests ended.

OVD-Info said at least 62 people were detained in St. Petersburg, coming after some opposition protesters tried to break through police lines in the citys main street.

A large police presence had assembled throughout the city center before the rally.

In a statement, Amnesty International urged authorities to immediately release the protesters arrested and investigate allegations that the police used abusive force in St. Petersburg and Yakutsk.

The Kremlins intent is clear -- to choke the life out of the protest movement -- but it has also become clear in recent months that this reproachful goal cannot be achieved," said Denis Krivosheev, deputy director for Europe and Central Asia at Amnesty International.

"The Russian authorities must immediately begin to respect and protect the rights of these protesters, pure and simple," Krivosheev added.

Earlier in St. Petersburg, Navalnys campaign coordinator Mikhail Sosin and the campaign's lawyer, Denis Mikhailov, were detained. His campaign coordinators in Perm, Tver, and Stavropol were also detained, as well as numerous campaign activists across the country.

Supporters were demanding that Navalny be allowed to participate in the countrys March 2018 presidential election.

Several hundred people had gathered at central Pushkin Square, where protesters had planned to march to the Kremlin but their way was blocked by police, prompting them to turn back.

The protesters included teenagers holding rubber ducks, a symbol of opposition to the government, after reports that Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev had a special house for a duck in one of his properties.

Protesters at Pushkin Square chanted "Putin is a thief!" "Happy Birthday!" "We are the authorities!" "Russia without Putin!" and "Free Aleksei Navalny!"

Heavy rains had hit Moscow, and many demonstrators were drenched.

Police in Moscow had asked people over loudspeakers to disperse. There were at least 10 police vehicles in the square, although law enforcement officers were unprecedentedly restrained.

Anton, 20, was holding a "happy birthday" balloon and a wrapped gift box with "pension" written on it. He said he wanted the entire Russian leadership to retire.

"I think you can change the country through street [protests], but if not, at least it's good fun."

Nikita Grigoryev, 16, a Moscow schoolboy holding a rubber duck, told RFE/RL: "I'm here to demand the authorities let Aleksei Navalny campaign [for president]."

"I doubt [this protest] will make any difference, but we have to show there are many people unhappy with what's going on in the country," he added.



Lyudmila Gurova, 57, a pensioner, told RFE/RL: "We need freedom: freedom of assembly, freedom of identity, freedom to express our views about the country. This is a fascist country, I believe fascism has taken hold. For the last 26 years I have lived in social hell."

The protests came a day after a Moscow court rejected Navalny's appeal against a 20-day jail term he was handed after being found in violation of the law for publicly calling for unsanctioned rallies.

The ruling meant that Navalny remained in jail during the protests. Navalnys election campaign chief, Leonid Volkov, was also sentenced to 20 days in jail on October 5.

The local governments of numerous cities have not granted permission for the planned demonstrations.

Another wing of the liberal opposition, the Yabloko party, criticized Navalny for organizing the unsanctioned rally and for calling on his supports to enter "deliberate confrontation with the police, under the batons of the OMON riot police."

"Such 'events' are frankly provocations aimed only at dubiously creating PR for a certain person," the party said in a statement on its website.

Ahead of the protests, Russian authorities issued warnings against holding demonstrations without official permission.

Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters on October 3 that "public calls for unsanctioned rallies and meetings are illegal...and therefore organizers of such events will be prosecuted."

Prosecutors in St. Petersburg said on October 6 that "any attempts to conduct unsanctioned [demonstrations] are a direct violation of the law."

Navalny has urged Russians to join the demonstrations, being organized in more than 70 cities nationwide, to support "political competition" in the country as he seeks to run in the upcoming presidential election.

"I understand perfectly well that that [the Kremlin] needs me to be locked up as much as possible and particularly on October 7," Navalny's spokeswoman, Kira Yarmysh, quoted him as saying in court.

Navalny's campaign team called on all "decent people" to participate in the demonstrations.

"Our demands are reasonable, simple, and lawful: political competition [and] access to presidential elections for Navalny and other candidates," it said in an October 6 statement.

It added that authorities should "leave activists, volunteers, monitors, and others alone and give them the opportunity to freely participate in election campaigns."

Navalny is a fierce critic of Putin, who has held power as prime minister or president since 1999 and is expected to seek a new six-year term in the March election. Putin is virtually assured of victory as the tightly-controlled political system leaves little room for surprises.

A 41-year-old lawyer who has produced numerous reports alleging corruption among key Putin allies, Navalny has opened more than 60 campaign offices and held rallies nationwide since announcing his bid for the Kremlin in December.

Russia's Central Election Commission, however, said in June that Navalny was ineligible to run for public office because of a financial-crimes conviction in one of two high-profile cases that he says were fabricated by authorities for political reasons.

Two previous nationwide demonstrations spearheaded by Navalny earlier this year led to mass detentions and rattled Russian officials with their substantial youth turnout.



Kremlin opponents and human rights activists say the government frequently violates the constitutional right to free assembly when it withholds permission for demonstrations or places restrictions on where and when they can be held.

The New York-based Human Rights Watch, meanwhile, said last month that Russian police are "systematically" interfering with Navalny's attempts to run for president by raiding his campaign offices, "arbitrarily" detaining campaign volunteers and carrying out "other actions that unjustifiably interfere with campaigning."

The Kremlin has dismissed Navalny, who finished second in Moscow's 2013 mayoral election with around 27 percent of the vote, as a convict and a marginal political figure.

With reporting by RFE/RL's Russian Service, Current Time TV, Ekho Moskvy, Fontanka, and RIA-Novosti
The U.S. State Department has called on Russia to find and prosecute those who ordered the 2006 murder of prominent Russian investigative journalist Anna Politkovskaya.

In a statement released October 6 -- one day before the 11th anniversary of Politkovskaya's killing -- State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said the journalist's reporting "brought to light the violation of human rights in Russia and the suffering of the victims of the war in the North Caucasus region."

"We continue to urge Russian authorities to identify and prosecute the person or persons who ordered, planned, and funded this terrible crime," Nauert said.

Politkovskaya, a critic of President Vladimir Putin whose dogged reporting exposed high-level corruption in Russia and rights abuses in its Chechnya region, was shot dead in her Moscow apartment building on October 7, 2006.

In 2014, two men were sentenced to life and three others to prison terms for their involvement in the crime.

Relatives and colleagues say justice will not be done until those who ordered her killing are identified and convicted.

Politkovskaya was killed on Putin's birthday, prompting speculation that her murder was meant as a "gift" to the president.

In her statement, Nauert said that recent reports of a campaign of torture and other abuses against gay men in Chechnya, as well as alleged extrajudicial killings there, "leave us deeply concerned that human rights violations are still regularly committed with impunity in this region."

In April, Politkovskaya's newspaper, the independent Novaya Gazeta, was the first news outlet to report on the alleged detentions and violence targeting gay men in Chechnya.

Chechnya's Kremlin-backed leader, Ramzan Kadyrov, has denied such abuses despite accounts from gay men who say they were victimized in this campaign.

Nauert added that the "unsolved murders of Ms. Politkovskaya -- a dual U.S.-Russian citizen -- and other journalists in Russia, as well as threats against journalists exposing more recent abuses in Chechnya, have only worsened an atmosphere of intimidation for the independent press."

The U.S.-based Committee to Protect Journalists in April called on Russian authorities to investigate threats against Novaya Gazeta journalist Yelena Milashina, who broke the story on the alleged anti-gay campaign in Chechnya, and the newspaper's staff over its reporting on the issue.

Russian officials regularly brush off U.S. criticism of Moscow's human rights record, accusing Washington itself of rights violations and a reckless foreign policy.
A volunteer organization of trauma specialists is putting together a pair of events in Missoula on Saturday, Oct. 7, to help anyone who was present during Sundays mass shooting in Las Vegas, which killed 59 people and injured hundreds more.

Jennifer Wills, one of the volunteers with the Missoula Valley Critical Incident Stress Management team, said the first session begins at 1:30 p.m. in the Durand training room at Providence St. Patrick Hospital. The 1 1/2-hour event is specifically for survivors of the shooting who were actually present on Sunday in Las Vegas.

Wills was an officer at the Tucson Police Department for 21 years, retiring in 2007 at the rank of lieutenant. She is pursuing a doctorate in clinical psychology at the University of Montana and as part of that works with veterans with trauma issues at the Veterans Affairs center in Salt Lake City.

The Missoula Valley Critical Incident Stress Management team is an all-volunteer group that typically works with law enforcement and other first responder agencies following traumatic situations.

Wills said the hospital reached out to the organization to host the session in part because a group of employees had been at the scene.

The event will include licensed clinical social workers, chaplains and other trauma response professionals working with survivors of the shooting to develop trauma recovery techniques and create a support structure.

At 4 p.m. Saturday, an hour after the first session ends, the Missoula Valley CISM team will have a second seminar for close friends and family of survivors of the shooting.

These are people who were clearly affected but also want to know how to support their loved ones, Wills said.

Both sessions are free.

Wills said she knows that many people have felt strongly affected by the Las Vegas shooting, but wants to reinforce that Saturdays events are only for direct survivors and their family and close friends.
For the instant it is a category 1 hurricane but the central Gulf of Mexico as New Orleans evacuated some residents from areas outside its levee system. The greatest threat from this particular storm is not rain, but strong winds and storm surges which are projected to be six to nine feet (1.8 to 2.7 meters) high. The storm brushed by Mexicos Yucatan peninsula, home to beach resorts such as Cancun and Playa del Carmen. New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu ordered a mandatory evacuation of the Venetian Isles, Lake Catherine and Irish Bayou areas of the city.

We remain focused on vulnerabilities in Venetian Isles, Lake Catherine and Irish Bayou because these areas are outside of the levee system, and because one of the greatest threats to this storm is not necessarily interior rain, but storm surge. It is a serious concern to us, Landrieu said Friday. A mandatory curfew will take effect Saturday at 6 p.m. and end Sunday morning. In preparation for overnight flooding, he said the citys police department will put up barricades and close underpasses once the curfew is in effect. Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency for all of Louisiana. With parts of Florida still reeling from Hurricane Irma, Gov. Rick Scott has declared a state of emergency for 29 counties. He told residents to anticipate evacuation zones, warning that bridges will close once wind speeds get to 30-40 miles per hour and people wont be able to evacuate.
Suhas Manjunath has filed a case with the consumer court against Skoda dealership Vinayak Skoda. The customer alleges that while he booked and paid for a Skoda Rapid Black Edition, he was supplied with a converted one from a regular Rapid.

Repeated malfunctioning of the headlamps which started immediately after delivery itself, saw Manjunath make frequent trips to the companys service center. The headlamps high beam and flash dim and dip were not working and the company technician has proved to the owner that the car he has been supplied with is not what it appears to be.

He explained that the internal wiring and programming of the ECU/BCM for the limited edition Black Package Skoda Rapid is different from the regular Skoda Rapid. He further explained that the internal wiring which is present in the car is what should be in a regular Skoda Rapid and is hence not compatible with the Black Package leading to malfunction.

The technician also connected the car headlight power socket to a regular Skoda Rapid where it functioned normally. He requested Manjunath to log onto MySkoda app and get details of the car as to whether it was a regular model or limited edition. On checking the details, it was confirmed that the car in question was not a limited edition Skoda Rapid.

This has made Manjunath file a case with the Consumer Court against Vinayak Skoda for cheating and deception. He has also filed another case against Skoda for not keeping proper checks on their dealership and allowing them to tamper with products.

Following this filing of complaint, Senior General Manager of Vinayak Skoda, Mr Uday has accepted foul play where this car is concerned. He stated that as they did not have stock of the Limited Edition in the color that Manjunath had booked, they went on to switch parts from a regular Skoda Rapid. Manjunath also spoke to the owner of Vinayak Skoda Mr Suresh who has also admitted to the foul play and Manjunath has recording of these conversations as further proof to his case.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-sUURtctUI
Straight shot up U.S. 31 to I-94 finally open in Berrien County

Last few miles had been unfinished since 2004 because of a lack of money to pay for it.
The supervisor for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks in Bozemans Region 3, Sam Sheppard, has retired after less than three years on the job.

Sheppards retirement was announced in a short email from chief of Operations Mike Volesky that was sent to Region 3 wardens on Wednesday. The Billings Gazette obtained a copy of the email from the wardens union representative, Sam Christiansen, who is a labor specialist for the National Fraternal Order of Police.

Everyone is happy hes gone, Christiansen said. But they wish he would have been terminated instead. We wanted blood in the water, but its good that hes no longer there.

Volesky would provide no further details on the retirement other than to say, There were some personnel issues involved, but Im not going to comment.

A voicemail left for Sheppard seeking comment was not returned. A second attempt to reach him found the number disconnected.

Chain of events

Sheppards retirement is the latest in a string of FWP administrative changes that have altered leadership within the agency.

In the past year alone the department has dismissed its Montana State Parks chief, and paid him a settlement amount the department is unwilling to reveal to the public; demoted the Fisheries Bureau chief, who then left the agency; demoted its chief law enforcement officer while keeping his pay the same and placed another candidate in the position.

Sheppards retirement also comes on the heels of Montana Gov. Steve Bullock clashing with the head of the State Parks and Recreation Board, Tom Towe, who was dismissed for taking a stance opposite of the governor on a parks bill before the last Legislature.

Worked up

Sheppard, a Montana native, had worked his way up from the enforcement side. Before his promotion to supervisor, Sheppard was the Region 3 warden captain.

When Sheppard's promotion to supervisor was announced in 2014, four state sporting groups complained to FWP's administration, saying someone with a biology background should have been hired. The groups also questioned questioning the hiring process, saying it was rigged to favor Sheppard.

The southwestern Montana district is known as one of the toughest in the state because of the variety of hot-button issues it deals with, everything from species like grizzly bears and wolves, to diseased elk and the threat they pose to cattle ranches in the area.

That tension extended to relations inside the Region 3 office. In a 2015 letter from Region 3 warden Jennifer Knarr to fellow wardens, a copy of which was obtained by The Billings Gazette, she described a Bozeman workplace fraught with tension between wardens and supervisors. In the letter she warned other wardens to be careful about what they wrote, and to record any conversations with superiors to protect themselves from retaliation after she said one of her emails was forwarded to supervisors.

"She complained about her supervisor (Sam Sheppard) in Bozeman to me specifically," said Joe Kambic, a Region 2 warden who is their union representative. "She was having a tough time. She reached out to the union for help."

He passed her complaints on to then-director Jeff Hagener and then-chief of Enforcement, Tom Flowers.

Flowers said he met with Knarr and her husband, fellow warden Joe Knarr, about their complaints in October 2015, then passed the issue on to Human Resources.

I beat myself up almost every day for not taking a different tack on that, Flowers said.

"It probably was handled wrong," Kambic said.

In March 2016, Region 3 was rocked when Jennifer Knarr shot her husband along with her 6-month-old son before killing herself at the familys Belgrade home. At the time, Gallatin County Sheriff Brian Gootkin said he had spoken with family members who said Jennifer Knarr had been battling post-partum depression.

Note to staff

Stung by the double homicide and suicide, Flowers wrote an email to the divisions staff in 2015.

Coupled with this, and in the last couple of years, the Enforcement Division has encountered some very challenging and debilitating situations, Flowers wrote. As a Division we are faced with (but more importantly have the ability to make) a choice. Do we resign ourselves to these difficulties? Or do we coalesce and become stronger as a unit? How we all react, how we interact with each other, how we adjust and how we portray our professionalism will define who we are in the future. As we have faced increasing scrutiny from outside interests, our resolve has been tested. How we survive this will be our legacy for some time to come.

Should we fail at this, we will be haunted for much longer

The email went on to criticize any wardens who may have pointed fingers at other personnel over the murder-suicide calling it unethical, unprofessional and that such conduct would not be tolerated.

It was Flowers who was removed from his position as chief of law enforcement in January, a division he had been hired to heal. He was replaced by Dave Loewen, who had filed a grievance over the agencys hiring of Flowers as chief, a job which he sought and eventually won.

This was after FWP Director Jeff Hagener had retired in December. Gov. Bullock appointed Martha Williams to replace Hagener. She was approved by the Legislature in April.

Williams told the Flathead Beacon last month, One of my goals is to unify the agency and look forward, and in moving forward to really value all employees.

Region 3 kerfuffle

Other employees had also complained about the Region 3 work environment. According to Christiansen, the wardens union representative, another complaint was lodged with FWP officials in July. Following that grievance, more than 20 people from the region were interviewed by FWPs Human Resources division.

Around the same time Sheppard was placed on administrative leave, according to three FWP sources who feared going on the record out of concern about reprisals.

We would never comment on administrative leave; that's a personnel issue, said Volesky, FWPs operations chief. But he did note that a series of FWP employees will be acting supervisors until Sheppard's position is filled.

The gathering

Last week, FWP director Williams and Volesky gathered Region 3 staff to report that Sheppard was going to be reassigned to a newly created state bison coordinator position, sources said. That prompted an outcry from some Bozeman personnel, in part because FWP had eliminated the position in 2015 and suggested demoting the bison expert at the time, Arnold Dood, a veteran agency biologist. Rather than take the demotion, Dood retired.

Christiansen said the proposed reassignment angered some of his union members because Sheppard would still be involved with many of Region 3s staff, since most of the states bison issues are located in that area of southwestern Montana, which abuts Yellowstone National Park.

My view is always to work with management and solve issues rather than complain, Christiansen said. But thats been difficult since director Williams has yet to meet with him, he added.

Sam Sheppard is the first name I heard since those guys signed with us a year and a half ago, Christiansen said. Prior to that, the wardens were represented by the Montana Public Employees Association before a caustic break with that group.

Volesky said Sheppard had been reassigned to his new position for a short time before he announced his retirement effective immediately. There was no settlement involved, Volesky added.

Looking ahead

Flowers has challenged his demotion from chief of law enforcement in district court in Helena, although he continues to work for the agencys investigative division. He still hopes to get his old position back and finish a job he started  trying to smooth relations between the enforcement division and management.

It was a task Hagener was assigned to deal with when Gov. Bullock asked him to return as FWP director in 2012.

When I interviewed with Gov. Bullock and (then-chief of staff) Tim Burton to come back (in 2012), they told me that one of the critical issues they saw with the agency was the enforcement division, Hagener testified in the Board of Personnel Appeals hearing. They had what you might call heartburn with the enforcement division. They said, Jeff, you need to do what you can to bring them back into the agency  and be a positive force.

Flowers was Hageners pick for chief of law enforcement to heal the division, but FWP did not challenge Flowers removal in the decision handed down by the Board of Personnel Appeals investigator, an act that left Flowers feeling abandoned by his own department.

Instead, after Hagener had retired, three FWP administrators (including Volesky) who were serving as acting directors moved Loewen from Region 3 warden sergeant into the chiefs position. They also could have installed Loewen as assistant chief or challenged the decision to remove Flowers.

Despite all of the hassle and heartbreak, Flowers wants the chiefs job back.

I think theres a bigger problem, and if I go away, it doesnt solve the problem, he said.
You don't have to lie when talking to your kids about SpaceX's BFR Mars-colonization architecture.

Yes, BFR stands for "Big F---ing Rocket." But there's also a family-friendly variant of the acronym, and it's coming into wider and wider use  as evidenced by SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell's remarks Thursday (Oct. 5) at the first meeting of the newly resurrected National Space Council.

"Last week, Elon announced  or, basically, gave an update on  the Big Falcon Rocket program, Big Falcon Rocket and Big Falcon Spaceship," Shotwell said, referring to SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk's Sept. 29 presentation at the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) in Adelaide, Australia. [The BFR: SpaceX's Mars-Colonization Architecture in Images]

The BFR transportation system consists of a giant, 31-engine rocket topped by a spaceship capable of carrying 100 people or more. Both of these vehicles will be fully and rapidly reusable, helping to make Mars colonization economically feasible, Musk said during his IAC talk.

SpaceX has already started serious development work on the BFR, and the company aims to launch the first uncrewed Mars missions with it in 2022, Musk said. If everything goes well, crewed BFR flights to the Red Planet could follow in 2024, he added.

Musk first revealed the basics of SpaceX's Mars-settlement architecture at the 2016 IAC meeting, which was held in Guadalajara, Mexico. During that presentation, the billionaire entrepreneur called the rocket-spaceship combo the Interplanetary Transport System.

With the shift to BFR, SpaceX appears to be going back to the system's nomenclatural roots; the term has been in use internally at the company for several years, as a December 2015 GQ story makes clear.

"This is a very obtuse video-game reference," Musk told GQ. "In the original Doom, the gun that was like the crazy gun was the BFG 9000 or something like that. So it was sort of named after the gun in Doom. But that's not its official name, of course."

This anecdote suggests that "Big F---ing Rocket" was the original phrase for the BFR acronym. But "Big Falcon Rocket" isn't exactly an awkward fit: The big booster slots nicely into SpaceX's Falcon family, which also includes the company's first orbital rocket, the now-retired Falcon 1; the workhorse Falcon 9; and the Falcon Heavy, whose maiden flight is scheduled to take place next month.

Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com.
M ore than 10,000 people have signed a petition to save The Strands famous India Club and halt plans to refurbish the historic restaurant and bar to make way for an up-market hotel.

If plans are approved by Westminster Council, owners of numbers 143 and 145 of the Strand will be able to launch extensive modernisation that could wipe out the carefully preserved club, which has stayed the same since the 1940s.

Freeholders Marston Properties intend to replace the India Club's first-floor canteen-style restaurant and lounge bar with en-suite hotel rooms.

The ambitious plans have been met with angry opposition with a petition gaining 10,651 signatures at the time of publication.

Hundreds of comments have been left in which fans of the club described it as irreplaceable and of immense historic significance.

10,000 have signed a petition to save the club

One person wrote: It is unique, irreplaceable and part of our shared heritage. Please do not destroy it.

"Rather please go and visit it and see what would be lost!

Another added: A fantastic community restaurant of immense historic significance with its ties to the fathers of Indian independence.

London doesn't need more hotel rooms, but it does need to retain and maintain its historic cultural properties, areas and artefacts which have helped it merge in to the world's preeminent city, another said.

Celebrity fans include writer Will Self, who described the club as "beautifully old-fashioned... like one in 1950s India".

Yadgar Marker, who has been director of the club for 20 years, told the Standard last month: Im very, very saddened because I wanted it to remain as it was.

I could have easily modernised it but it has such a strong heritage. It is a really marvellous place.

The club  whose lease expires in 2019  was started by Krishna Menon, India's first High Commissioner to the UK in the late 1940s.

It served as a meeting place for the India League, a British organisation that campaigned for India's independence, and founding members included Lady Edwina Mountbatten and Indias first post-independence Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.

During and after India's break from British hegemony in 1947, it hosted leading writers, intellectuals and politicians associated with the nationalist movement. On the walls hang portraits of Gandhi and Britain's first Asian MP, Dadabhai Naoroji.

A spokesman for Marston Properties said that the plans submitted to the council represented one of several options for the building under consideration.

"No one has stated or indicated at any time that the India Club or any other tenants in the building will be asked to vacate the premises," he said.

He added: "The submission of a planning application for the building is just one explorative option open to Marston in their long term strategy setting - and while [it] remains an option, it is certainly not a notice whatsoever of our intention and must not be interpreted as such."
P olice are desperately searching for a London black cab driver who has gone missing.

Thomas Dunkley, 40, has been missing from his home in Walthamstow, east London, since 1pm on Thursday.

It is extremely out of character for him not to return home or contact his family, Scotland Yard said.

Mr Dunkley, who is described as a family man, is believed to have been in the Paddington area of London at around 9pm on Thursday.

He is described as a white male, 5ft 10ins tall with bald head and short hair on the sides.

Officers are increasingly concerned for his wellbeing and would urge anyone with information on his whereabouts to call police on 101 or Missing People on 116000.
F oreign Secretary Boris Johnson has urged colleagues to get behind Theresa May in a group WhatsApp message.

He told Tories to talk about nothing except policies from now on because people are fed up of this malarkey.

It comes after former Tory chairman Grant Shapps said he had the backing of around 30 MPs in his call for a leadership contest.

Mr Johnsons message, published by the BBC, said: Folks I am away but just read all this!

Theresa May - In pictures 1 /98 Theresa May - In pictures 24th May 2019 Theresa May announces her resignation Reuters 22nd May 2019 Theresa May reacts during Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons Sky News 21st May 2019 Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at PricewaterhouseCoopers ahead of her speech on a new Brexit deal Getty Images 2nd May 2019 Theresa May arrives to cast her vote a polling station near her home in her Maidenhead constituency as voters headed to the polls for council and mayoral elections across England and Northern Ireland PA 19th April 2019 Theresa May acts as a marshal during the Maidenhead Easter 10 race in Maidenhead PA 24th March 2019 Theresa May and her husband Philip May leave following a church service on March 24, 2019 in Aylesbury Getty Images 20th March 2019 Prime Minister Theresa May addresses the nation after asking the European Union for a Brexit extension EPA 14th March 2019 Theresa May reacting on the front bench in the House of Commons during the proceedings in which British MPs voted to ask the European Union to delay Brexit AFP/Getty Images 16th January 2019 Theresa May addresses the media at number 10 Downing street after her government defeated a vote of no confidence in the House of Commons Getty Images 16th January 2019 Theresa May leaves Downing Street to face a vote of no confidence in the House of Commons Getty Images 14th December 2018 Theresa May challenges European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker for suggesting that her message on Brexit had been "nebulous" ec.europa.eu via PA 13th December 2018 Theresa May is seen behind EU flags as she arrives at the European Council for the start of the two day EU summit in Brussels, Belgium Getty Images 3rd October 2018 A composite picture of Prime Minister Theresa May dancing as she arrives on stage to make her keynote speech at the Conservative Party annual conference at the International Convention Centre, Birmingham PA 20th September 2018 Prime Minister Theresa May arrives for a 'family photo' during the European Union leaders informal summit in Salzburg, Austria Reuters 13th July 2018 Theresa May and U.S. President Donald Trump walk to a joint news conference at Chequers Hannah McKay/Reuters 12th July 2018 US President Donald Trump takes the hand of Prime Minister Theresa May as they enter Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire PA 22nd November 2017 Theresa May on Budget Day Jeremy Selwyn 3rd November 2017 The finishing touches are made to the new wax figure of Prime Minister Theresa May by Rosie Tipler /PA 20th October 2017 Theresa May attending a bilateral meeting, on the second day of the European Council in Brussels, Belgium EPA 26th September 2017 Theresa May welcomes the President of the European Council Donald Tusk, ahead of a meeting in Downing Street EPA 20th September 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May meets US President Donald Trump for talks at the Lotte Palace Hotel, New York PA 10th August 2017 Madame Tussauds London commissions a new wax figure of Theresa May Madame Tussauds 8th July 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May talks with U.S. President Donald Trump during the G20 leaders summit in Hamburg, Germany Reuters 15th June 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May speaks to members of the fire service as she visits Grenfell Tower. 4th October 2017 Lee Nelson AKA Simon Brodkin hands a 'P45' to Prime Minister Theresa May ,as she was delivering her speech on the final day of the Conservative Party annual conference at the Manchester Central Convention Centre in Manchester AFP/Getty Images 4th October 2017 Letter fall off the backboard during Theresa May's speech on the final day of the Conservative Party annual conference at the Manchester Central Convention Centre in Manchester 4th October 2017 Theresa May coughing during her speech on the final day of the Conservative Party annual conference at the Manchester Central Convention Centre Daily Mail 4th October 2017 Theresa May coughing during her speech on the final day of the Conservative Party annual conference at the Manchester Central Convention Centre Reuters 4th October 2017 Theresa May drinks a glass of water during her keynote speech Daily Mail 31st July 2017 Theresa May arrives at the Commonwealth War Graves Commisions's Tyne Cot Cemetery ahead of a ceremony on July 31, 2017 in Ypres, Belgium Getty Images 25th July 2017 Theresa May and her husband Philip visit Desenzano del Garda, near Lake Garda, Italy, last month PA 17th July 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May holding a cabinet meeting PA 10th July 2017 Australian Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, walks with Prime Minister Theresa May and Metropolitan Police Commissioner Cressida Dick, as they arrive to speak to first responders from the emergency services outside Southwark Cathedral during a visit to the Borough Market area in central London AP 21st June 2017 PM Theresa May and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn walking back after listening to Queen's Speech AFP/Getty Images 9th June 2017 Theresa May addressing press at Downing Street after seeing the Queen Jeremy Selwyn 9th June 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May is applauded into 10 Downing Street in by staff after seeing The Queen, where she asked to form a new government PA 9th June 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May and husband Philip leave Downing Street to travel to Buckingham Palace for an audience with Queen Elizabeth II after the General Election which lost the Tory majority PA 8th June 2017 Theresa May visits the Dhamecha Lohana Centre in Harrow Jeremy Selwyn 7th June 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May on a visit to Smithfield Market in the City of London on the final day of campaigning for the General Election PA 22nd May 2017 Theresa May gestures as she answers a media question regarding social care policy during a launch event for the Welsh Conservative general election manifesto in Wrexham, North Wales AFP/Getty Images 18th May 2017 Pegasus Street Art: Theresa May 'Dressed to Kill' Pegasus 2nd May 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May having some chips while on a walkabout during a election campaign stop in Mevagissey, Cornwall PA 19th April 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May makes a statement to the nation in Downing Street Getty Images 28th March 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May in the cabinet office signs the official letter to European Council President Donald Tusk invoking Article 50 and the United Kingdom's intention to leave the EU Getty Images 27th January 2017 US President Donald Trump holds hands with Prime Minister Teresa May as they walk the colonnade of the White House in Washington, DC EPA 5th October 2016 Theresa May and husband Philip after her speech at the Conservative Party Conference, Birmingham Jeremy Selwyn 20th July 2016 Theresa May was known for her shoes Getty Images 12th August 2016 Theresa May walks with her husband Philip John May while on summer holiday in the Alps of Switzerland Getty Images 13th July 2016 Theresa May speaks outside 10 Downing Street after becoming Prime Minister Getty Images 13th July 2016 The Queen welcomes Theresa May at the start of an audience where she invited the former Home Secretary to become Prime Minister and form a new government at Buckingham Palace Getty Images 12th July 2016 Prime Minister-in-waiting, Theresa May, reacts to photographers after walking to the wrong car after attending a Cabinet meeting at Downing Stree Getty Images 11th July 2016 New Conservative Party leader Theresa May speaks to members of the media with her MPs behind her at The St Stephen's entrance to the Palace of Westminster AFP/Getty Images 29th June 2015 German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere (L), Tunisia's Interior Minister Mohamed Gharsalli and British Home Secretary Theresa May look on after laying flowers at the scene where 38 people were killed on Marhaba beach Getty Images 3rd March 2015 Home Secretary Theresa May (2nd R) stands with Prime Minister David Cameron (L) and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg (2nd L) before the arrival of the President of Mexico, Enrique Pena Nieto and his wife Angelica Rivera at Horse Guards Parade Getty Images 5th November 2013 British Home Secretary Theresa May attends a ceremonial welcome for visiting President of South Korea, Park Geun-Hye (not pictured) at Horseguards Parade on November 5, 2013 Getty Images 17th April 2013 Home Secretary Theresa May and husband Philip May arrive for the Ceremonial funeral of former British Prime Minister Baroness Thatcher Getty Images 20th July 2012 British Home Secretary Theresa May reacts during an interview as she views the Olympics Security control room in the Olympic Park in east London, on July 20, 2012 AFP/Getty Images 20th February 2012 Theresa May on the front row at the Osman Show during London Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2012 at Somerset House Getty Images 31st January 2012 Home Secretary Theresa May stopping as the heal of her shoe gets stuck in a gap in the pavement as she arrives at number 10 Downing Street to attend the weekly meeting of the Cabinet AFP/Getty Images 12th September 2011 Bernard Hogan-Howe (C), the new Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, poses for photographs with British Home Secretary Teresa May (L) and Mayor of London Boris Johnson (R) outside New Scotland Yard AFP/Getty Images 11th September 2011 Home Secretary Theresa May arrives to attend a memorial service at St Paul's Cathedral in London on September 11, 2011 to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks AFP/Getty Images 23rd March 2011 Home Secretary Theresa May leaves Parliament after Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne delivered his budget on March 23, 2011 Getty Images 10th December 2010 Home Secretary Theresa May leaves a cabinet meeting in Downing Street Getty Images 18th October 2010 Home Secretary Theresa May arrives in Downing Street for a Cabinet meeting Getty Images 13th May 2010 Transport Secretary Philip Hammond and Home Secretary Theresa May arrive at 10 Downing Street for the first Cabinet meeting of the new coalition government Getty Images 6th October 2009 Conservative leader David Cameron (R) and Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Theresa May (L) walk through the rain on the second day of the Conservative Party Conference Getty Images 20th May 2009 Theresa May, Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, arrives for the Asian Women of Achievement Awards at Hilton Park Lane Hotel Getty Images 30th September 2007 Conservative shadow leader of the House of Commons Theresa May addresses delegates during the 124th annual Conservative Party Conference at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool - wearing wellys Getty Images 8th November 2007 Theresa May arrives at the Woman Of The Future Awards at the Grosvenor Marriott Square Hotel Getty Images 8th February 2006 Theresa May attends the Conservative Party Black & White Ball at Old Billingsgate Market Getty Images 13th December 2005 Leader of the Conservative Party David Cameron (front) and his shadow cabinet Getty Images 6th October 2003 Theresa May, the Conservative Party Chairman, concludes her opening speech at the annual Conservative Party conference in Blackpool Getty Images 23rd August 2002 The Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith announces the party's new Chairman Theresa May PA 15th June 1999 Conservative MP Theresa May leaves Conservative Central Office in London, after being appointed shadow Education and Employment secretary PA

See amber piece this am.

She is right right right.

We have JUST HAD AN ELECTION and people are fed up with all this malarkey.

Get behind the pm. Ordinary punters I have spoken to thought her speech was good and anyone can have a cold.

Circle the wagons turn the fire on Corbyn and talk about nothing except our great policies and what we can do for the country.

Grant Schapps Says The Conservatives Must Not Bury Their Head In The Sand Any Longer

Mrs May brushed aside calls from rebel Tory MPs to stand aside and said she had the "full support" of her Cabinet in her first public appearance since her mishap-strewn conference speech.

Arriving for a charity event in her Maidenhead constituency, the Prime Minister was determined to present an image of business as normal.

'Calm': Theresa May arriving for a Macmillan Cancer charity coffee event in Reading / Yui Mok/PA

"Now what the country needs is calm leadership, and that's what I am providing with the full support of my Cabinet," she said.

"Next week I am going to be updating MPs on my Florence speech, which has given real momentum to the Brexit talks, and I will also be introducing a draft Bill to cap energy prices, which will stop ordinary working families from being ripped off."

Ruth Davidson, the partys leader in Scotland, backed Mrs May and urged MPs to "let her get back to governing".

Tory MP Michael Fabricant described Mr Shapps as "embittered" while colleague Vicky Ford dismissed Mr Shapps as "completely out of touch", revealing "he's not even in our WhatsApp group".

Mr Shapps was reportedly later added to the group on the app, simply so colleagues could make clear their fury at his move.

Theresa May dismisses leadership plot talk

But a Tory source said some of the public displays of loyalty from fellow Conservatives were "totally hypocritical" because they privately wanted her to go.

"Quite literally some of the people who are swearing their loyalty, Kim Jong Un-style, privately hold precisely the opposite views," the source said.

Mr Johnson's intervention came after he faced calls to be sacked for destabilising the party following his intervention on Brexit on the eve of conference and his controversial remarks about Libya at a fringe event.
C ouncils have claimed that the Government has not provided funds to make tower blocks safe which had been promised in the wake of the Grenfell Tower tragedy.

Local authorities said that requests for funding for refurbishments and safety measures, such as cladding and sprinklers, were not being met.

And they said that, if councils are forced to pay for them out of their own budget, it will leave less money to invest in new council homes or pay for running repairs on existing stock.

Jane Urquhart, of Nottingham City Council, said the works planned on high-rises in her area were considered "additional rather than essential" by the Department for Communities and Local Government.

Funding: Councils said they were not being given money for measures such as new cladding / AFP

"We found that really difficult to understand given that in the refurbishment of the Houses of Parliament sprinklers are considered essential, so we thought it was quite incredible that they were essential for the Houses of Parliament but not essential for residents of high-rises," she told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

The Labour councillor said: "Safety must come at the top of the list and the works that we have considered will be done; the impact will be that fewer new homes will be built and our other housing will not have the repairs that it needs."

Adam Hug, leader of the Labour opposition group on Westminster City Council, said his authority faced similar problems getting money from Communities Secretary Sajid Javid's department to pay for the installation of sprinklers and removal of cladding.

"Ultimately these are things that the London Fire Brigade says have to be done and ultimately the cost is having to be borne by the housing revenue account, which is tenants' rents and service charge fees," he said.

Sajid Javid: The Communities and Local Government secretary / PA

"Councils across the country are asking the Government for the help that Sajid Javid promised and they are being told 'no, only in exceptional circumstances when you literally don't have the money in any form'."

He said Westminster stood to lose about 20 million to pay for the work: "That means either 100 affordable homes can't get built or it means that for 20 or 30 years our residents are going to not have their damp dealt with, when things break not being repaired."

He added: "It's a national civil emergency across the country, councils have complied with the regulations that have been there and the Government is not stepping up to the plate."

The Guardian reported that other councils, including Croydon and Wandsworth, had also had requests for funding declined.

Grenfell Tower fire - 100 days on

A DCLG spokesman said: "Public safety is paramount which is why, following the Grenfell Tower tragedy, the Government established a comprehensive building safety programme to ensure a fire like this can never happen again.

"This included commissioning an independent review of building regulations and fire safety. We will consider this issue in light of the recommendations of this review and the findings of the public inquiry.

"Building owners are responsible for funding measures designed to make a building safe. We've been clear that where a local authority has concerns about funding essential fire safety measures, they should contact DCLG as soon as possible to discuss their position.

"The department has written to Nottingham, Croydon and Wandsworth councils inviting them to provide more detail about the works they propose. To date these authorities have not submitted this information."


A n energy firm is to begin fracking in Lancashire after an attempt to block the controversial process failed in the High Court.

Cuadrilla will now begin drilling at its Preston New Road site on Saturday despite a long and hard-fought battle by protestors - making it the first horizontal shale gas site in the UK.

Efforts by energy companies and the Government to get operations off the road in the UK have been fought every step of the way, with the road to fracking in Lancashire being particularly difficult.

So what is fracking and how does it work?

Fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, is the process of extracting shale gas, or natural gas, by drilling down into the earth before a high-pressure mixture of water, sand, and chemicals, is forced into the rocks to release the gas inside.

The pressure of the liquid mixture forces the gas and oil up through the ground to the head of the well. The process can be executed by drilling vertically but the most common extractions are drilled horizontally through the rock layers, which create new pathways to release gas.

The term fracking refers to how the rock is fractured apart by the high-pressure mixture.

Nearly half of the country is mined for shale gas. Together the licensed and offered areas cover 48.1 percent of the country.

There are trillions of feet of shale gas resources deep underneath England and Scotland, but it is unknown how much of this can be extracted.

Why is it so controversial?

Evironmental campaigners raising concern about the amount of water needed to carry out the process.

There are also concerns over causing small earth tremors through the procedure, such as the two small earthquakes which hit the Blackpool area in 2011.

Anti-fracking campaigners include Emma Thompson, who has been vocal in her disapproval of the process and has attended several rallies and demonstrations in opposition to fracking.

Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn vowed to ban shale gas exploration, if he won the leadership bid.

Another concern from campaigners is the potentially carcinogenic chemicals used may escape and contaminate groundwater around the site.

Campaigners also believe that the government should invest in renewable energy rather than relying on fossil fuels.

Hydraulic fracturing started in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s and there have been about 200 British onshore oil and gas wells since the early 1980s.

In Scotland, an effective ban on fracking is in place, while in Wales minister are proposing not to licence any more petroleum extraction or support fracking applications.

In Northen Ireland there is a planning presumption against fracking.

France, Germany and Bulgaria have banned fracking.
P olice have found the head and legs of Swedish journalist Kim Wall, who died in mysterious circumstances on an inventor's homemade submarine.

Divers discovered the missing body parts along with her clothes, two months after Ms Wall went missing after going to interview inventor Peter Madsen.

Copenhagen police investigator Jens Moeller Jensen said the body parts were found on Friday in plastic bags, with a knife and "heavy metal pieces" to make them sink.

They were discovered close to where Ms Walls naked, decapitated torso was found in August.

Search operation: A Danish navy ship in Koge Bay, which is south of Copenhagen, during the search for Swedish journalist Kim Wall. / AP

Ms Wall was last seen alive on August 10 as she departed on a submarine trip with Madsen. She was researching a feature about his submarine.

The freelance journalist was later reported missing by her boyfriend and the submarine sank hours after the search for her began.



Madsen, who is in pre-trial detention, said Ms Wall died after being accidentally hit by a heavy hatch in the submarine.

Eccentric engineer: Peter Madsen aboard one of the submarines that he built / AP

But police said 15 stab wounds were found on the torso found at sea off Copenhagen on August 21.

And there were no fractures in Ms Wall's cranium. Her arms are still missing.

The police have charged Danish Madsen with killing the journalist, a charge carrying a sentence of five years to and life in prison.

He was arrested after his submarine sank and he was rescued.

The cause of death has not yet been established.
A state of emergency has been declared across parts of the US as Hurricane Nate hurtled towards the Gulf Coast, threatening strong winds and surges.

The Category 1 hurricane was expected to strengthen on Saturday after killing at least 25 people as it swept across Central America.

Nate was churning toward the central Gulf of Mexico as New Orleans evacuated some residents from areas outside its levee system.

"Nate is at our doorstep or will be soon," New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu said.

Devastating hurricane season: Tropical Storm Nate was speeding toward the US Gulf Coast / AFP/Getty Images

The greatest threat from this particular storm is not rain, but strong winds and storm surge, Landrieu said.

The winds could cause significant power outages, and storm surges are projected to be six to nine feet (1.8 to 2.7 metres) high, he added.

Warning: Mayor Mitch Landrieu of New Orleans address the media as the city prepares for Tropical Storm Nate / Getty Images

"We have been through this many, many times. There is no need to panic," Landrieu told a news conference.

The storm brushed by Mexico's Yucatan peninsula, home to beach resorts such as Cancun and Playa del Carmen, as it headed north, the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said.

A view of a sinkhole on the street after the passage of tropical storm Nate in San Juan del Sur's bay in Rivas, 140kms west Managua, Nicaragua / EPA

Nate packed maximum sustained winds of 80 miles per hour (130 kmh) and was about 420 miles (675 km) south-southeast of the Mississippi river on Saturday as it was expected to strengthen, the NHC said.

A state of emergency has been declared across parts of the US as Hurricane Nate hurtles towards the Gulf Coast

In the US, a state of emergency was declared for 29 Florida counties and states near Nate's path - Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi - as well as the city of New Orleans, which was devastated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

A man rows on a boat in a flooded street in Minatitlan, south Veracruz, Mexico as Tropical Storm Nate heads to the Yucatan peninsula / EPA

The NHC issued a hurricane watch from Grand Isle, Louisiana to the Alabama-Florida border.

"By Saturday noon you should be in your safe place," Alabama Governor Kay Ivey told a news conference. "This is a fast-moving storm and we must begin preparing now."

On Friday evening, Nate moved north-northwest at 22 miles per hour (35 kmh), a fast pace which if maintained could mean the storm does less damage when it hits land.

The storm doused Central America with heavy rains on Thursday, killing at least 12 people in Nicaragua, nine in Costa Rica, two in Honduras and two in El Salvador, local authorities said.

Thousands were forced to evacuate their homes and Costa Rica's government declared a state of emergency.

Through Monday, Nate is expected to produce two to four inches (5 to 10 cm) more rain in eastern Yucatan and western Cuba and three to six inches (8 to 15 inches) in the U.S. central Gulf Coast.
H urricane Nate is expected to make landfall on the US Central Gulf Coast in the coming hours as a Category 2 hurricane.

The National Hurricane Centre in Miami said Nate's top sustained winds have recently risen to 90mph, and the core is now about 180 miles south-south-east of the mouth of the Mississippi River.

Nate is accelerating to 26mph and headed north-north-west on a course expected to take it onto the central Gulf Coast on Saturday night.

Forecasters said the hurricane-force winds extend out up to 35 miles, mainly to the east of the eye of the storm.

A state of emergency has been declared across parts of the US as Hurricane Nate hurtles towards the Gulf Coast

Nate has already killed at least 21 people in Central America.

Tropical storm damage: a man rows on a boat in a flooded street in Minatitlan, south Veracruz, Mexico / EPA

In addition to hurricane warnings and tropical storm warnings already in place along a wide stretch of Gulf Coast, a new tropical storm warning has been issued in the Florida Panhandle from east of the Okaloosa-Walton County line to Indian Pass, Florida.

Louisiana and Mississippi officials declared states of emergency, and Louisiana ordered some people to evacuate coastal areas and barrier islands ahead of Nate's expected landfall.

The National Hurricane Centre in Miami projected that Nate would brush by the south-east tip of Louisiana, near the mouth of the Mississippi River, around 7pm on Saturday (1am UK time).

Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards said he spoke with President Donald Trump on Saturday morning.

A view of a sinkhole on the street after the passage of tropical storm Nate in San Juan del Sur's bay in Rivas, 140kms west Managua, Nicaragua / EPA

"He assured me that LA would have all the assistance we need as we prepare for Nate," the governor posted on Twitter.

A hurricane warning is in effect from Grand Isle, Louisiana, to the Alabama-Florida border and also for metropolitan New Orleans and nearby Lake Pontchartrain.

Tropical storm warnings extended west of Grand Isle to Morgan City, Louisiana, and around Lake Maurepas and east of the Alabama-Florida border to the Okaloosa-Walton County line in the Florida Panhandle.

In Louisiana, Mr Edwards mobilised 1,300 National Guard troops, some headed to New Orleans to monitor the fragile pumping system there.

The hurricane centre warned that Nate could raise sea levels by 4ft to 7ft from Morgan City, Louisiana, to the Alabama-Florida border. It had already caused deadly flooding in much of Central America.

A White House statement said Mr Trump has authorised the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Homeland Security to co-ordinate all federal disaster relief efforts.
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A Chinese firm recently introduced what it described as an armed helicopter UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle); the AV500W. This one weighs 450 kg (990 pounds) and has a payload of 120 kg (264 pounds). Max speed is 170 kilometers an hour and max ceiling is 4,000 meters (12,500 feet). Endurance is four hours (loaded for combat) and eight hours (with just vidcams). The AV500W can carry four laser guided missiles and uses an onboard vidcam and laser designator to find and hit targets up to 8,000 meters distant.

The AV500W appears very similar to the earlier (2011) V750 helicopter UAV. This one weighs 757 kg (1,665 pounds) and has a payload of 80 kg (176 pounds). Max speed is 161 kilometers an hour and endurance is four hours. The V750 can fly a pre-programmed route or be controlled by a ground operator (up to 150 kilometers away). The manufacturer offered the V750 for civilian (scientific survey, search and rescue, police surveillance) and military uses.

There are over a dozen other Chinese helicopter UAVs on the market, many of them very similar in appearance and performance to foreign designs. Same pattern with missiles for these UAVs. Since 2011 China has developed lightweight UAV missiles similar to the American 50 kg Hellfire and 14 kg APKWS. The Chinese lightweight version is reported to weigh eight kg (18 pounds) and have a range of 5,000 meters. But this one is not for sale yet and may never be. As is often the case several Chinese manufacturers will develop similar weapons hoping to get major sales to the Chinese military or at least some export business. One of the other lightweight missiles under development is a appears to be a Chinese clone of the APKWS, which is basically a World War II era unguided aerial rocket with a laser guidance and control system attached.

For a long time China discouraged its defense firms of publicizing vaporware (products that were in development but never worked well enough to put on sale) but that seems to be changing. Meanwhile Chinese manufacturers continue to produce weapons and UAVs remarkably similar to existing Western models. That is another issue that is more of concern to foreign firms than to their Chinese competitors.

China has been known to buy and copy Western UAV designs, including helicopter UAVs meant for use at sea. For example in 2012 a Japanese warship passed by a Chinese frigate that appeared to be flying a helicopter UAV off its helicopter pad. The Japanese took photos and passed them around. At first it was noted that the helicopter looked like the Schiebel S-100 Camcopter. Schiebel is an Austrian firm which markets the S-100 in many countries via the U.S. firm Boeing Aircraft. But Schiebel continues to sell the S-100 itself, and a little digging revealed that the Chinese had bought 18 S-100s in 2010. While the three S-100s seen on the aft deck of the Chinese frigate do look like the S-100, there also appear to be some differences. It appears that a Chinese firm copied the design of S-100 and created a workable S-100 clone. Nothing new or novel there. China takes it as normal, many other nations do not.

European nations are not supposed to sell China weapons (because of an arms embargo), but the S-100s were apparently sold to Chinese police organizations (which is legal and the S-100 does have civilian users). One Chinese firm has since offered a helicopter UAV similar to the S-100. China has become more blatant in copying foreign designs and then selling them to foreign customers and competing with the original. Suing the Chinese usually does not work, as Chinese courts favor the Chinese copycats, not the original creator of the technology.

The S-100 weighs 200 kg (440 pounds), can stay aloft six hours per sortie, and operates at a max altitude of 5,500 meters (18,000 feet). Max speed is 220 kilometers an hour. So far, some 200 S-100s have been sold to military and civilian customers. Before the S-100 clone came along Chinese firms had already developed several helicopter UAV designs like the V750.

Meanwhile, the U.S. has taken the lead in this area, with several models developed in the last decade. The one most similar to the V750 is the MQ-8B Fire Scout, which is operating in Afghanistan and aboard warships. The U.S. Navy developed, and put into use, the MQ-8B. A similar model, the RQ-8B, died because the U.S. Army already had plenty of UAVs that got the job done. The navy kept Fire Scout because helicopters are more practical on most navy ships (for landings and takeoffs). Navy Fire Scouts have been successfully used on frigates (in both the Atlantic and Pacific). There is a huge demand for UAVs in Afghanistan, so the navy sent some there.

The 1.5 ton Fire Scout is based upon the Schweitzer 333 unmanned helicopter, which in turn is derived from the Schweitzer 330 commercial lightweight manned helicopter. Fire Scout has a payload of 272 kg (600 pounds), a cruising speed of 200 kilometers an hour, max altitude of 6,100 meters (20,000 feet), and endurance of eight hours. The U.S. Navy plans to acquire over 160 Fire Scouts.

Several other navies have been testing helicopter UAVs on their warships, and this type of UAV seems destined to replace a lot of manned helicopters on warships and enable smaller warships (that cannot handle the larger manned helicopters) to operate unmanned helicopters. American helicopter manufacturers have found that it is fairly easy to create unmanned versions of their existing helicopters and have done just that to gain experience with that sort of thing.
In this age of tech industry consolidation, one has to wonder what will happen with the pace of innovation as a few large companies begin to dominate.

In personal computers, the WinTel (Microsoft Windows and Intel) marriage continues to control the technology, while Dell, HP and Lenovo control the devices. Similarly, in smartphones, Apple and Samsung, which both design their own chips and devices, dominate the market, especially in North America.

It is natural for market leaders to emerge as technologies and markets mature. However, that maturity often is accompanied by a change in the strategy of key players.

Theres a shift from market enablement  that is, seeking to share technologies and enable competition  to market control. Key players continue to innovate, but they seek to limit access to their technology as a means of controlling the market or the pace of innovation.

Intel and Microsoft once sought to not only innovate, but also to enable any original equipment manufacturer to build PCs and compete with Big Blue (IBM). That changed as the two companies rose to dominance, often squeezing out competitors and leaving startups with one hope: being acquired by a market leader. So, what happens to innovation and market enablement as smartphones and other segments also mature?

Enabling an Ecosystem

While the acquisition strategy of startups is nothing new, I do not believe this should be the strategic goal of innovators. It is still possible to outmaneuver the industry powerhouses, as long as a strategy includes both innovating and enabling the market.

Despite the PC example, I am encouraged by many of the current startups and other industry leaders not only to innovate through huge investments in research and development, but also to enable the market.

For example, at Huaweis recent Connect conference in Shanghai, the company indicated that it was targeting just 1 percent of the cloud ecosystem that it hoped to enable through its partners, and it was pleased with that figure.

Similarly, by some estimates the average smartphone leverages more than 200,000 active patents from more than 30,000 patent holders, the largest being a handful of companies like Qualcomm, Ericsson, and Nokia, all of which have been willing to license their patents to all smartphone OEMs.

While not all of those patents would be considered essential for the construction of the smartphones, its clear that the experience of using a mid-range phone like the Chinese Oppo R11 or even the new Apple iPhone X would not be the same without those patents.

Qualcomm alone spends US$5.15 billion in annual R&D, and it grants access to its entire pool of Qualcomm intellectual property, the largest in the industry.

Additionally, the concept of enabling an ecosystem has allowed a small processor design company, ARM, to rise to the top of the semiconductors largest ecosystem, which ships more processors than all the PCs and enterprise servers combined and is still growing.

Market Influencers

We will see new companies emerge through new areas of innovation, such as connected devices (Internet of Things, or IoT), augmented reality and virtual reality (AR/VR), autonomous vehicles and intelligent solutions (machine learning, or ML), deep learning (DL) and artificial intelligence (AI).

Many of these new areas have become the focus of acquisitions and consolidation by industry powerhouses, but the culture of the organization ultimately will determine whether innovation continues to be accompanied by ecosystem enablement.

In PCs, Microsoft once again has been aiming to reinvigorate innovation and ecosystem enablement by building PCs based on ARM-based processors, beginning with Qualcomms Snapdragon mobile processor  theyre two of the previously mentioned industry enablers.

Microsoft also has been contributing code to the open source community through GitHub.

Likewise, the industry has been going through a major shift as it approaches 5G, which will entail not only new mobile devices, but also broader connectivity of all electronics. Two of the companies most heavily investing in 5G technology are Huawei and Qualcomm, market enablers.

While it is natural for mature companies to shift from being market enablers to market controllers, in this age of startups vs. powerhouses (or Davids vs. Goliaths), its growing clear that those that both innovate and enable are likely not only to influence the market, but also to grow their respective market segments.
It should come as no surprise that connected devices are vulnerable to hackers wishing to spy on you. TechSpot has pointed this out several times going all the way back to at least 2013. Webcams, nanny cams, smartphones, and even smart TVs can all be used to invade your home secretly. But what if you are being watched not so secretly? That adds a whole new level of creepiness to the scenario, and it is exactly what happened to one woman in the Netherlands.

According to TNW, Rilana Hamer purchased a cheap internet-connected surveillance camera from a convenience store so that she could look after her puppy with her smartphone while she was away. The device was easy to set up and did require a password to log in to it.

Once connected over WiFi, she could control the camera to a wide enough degree that she could see her whole living room. The camera was also fitted with a microphone and speaker for audio communication. She said it was "perfect" for her needs.

After using the device for about a month, it began to act strangely. Hamer thought she heard noises coming from her living room so went to check it out. When she entered, she saw the camera move. At first, she assumed the camera was glitching or updating, so she ignored it.

Later, she heard the noise again. This time when she went to investigate, the camera turned directly toward her and whispered, "Bonjour madame."

She responded to the camera asking if someone was there as she moved around the room. The camera followed her every step. Then the voice inside the device said, "Bonjour madame, tout bien avec vous?" (Hello madam, is all good with you?)

At that point, Hamer ripped the camera off the wall and stuffed it back in its original packaging.

"I was full of fear and thought I was crazy," she said on Facebook. "I'm being watched, but for how long? What has that person seen from me? My house, my personal possessions."

Before returning the camera, she hooked it up one last time to both document the intrusion and to tell the creepy voice off with a few choice words (you can witness the exchange above).

Hammer has since returned the camera to Action (the store she bought it from), and they have sent it back to the supplier. A spokesperson for Action said that technicians would try to diagnose whether the breach occurred on the device or Hamer's network.

Neither Hamer nor Action mentioned the name of the manufacturer of the device. So far there have been no other reported incidents of this nature since the camera's launch back in May.
Brazil's vice-president-elect and coordinator of the transition team of Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's government, Geraldo Alckmin, asked Jair Bolsonaro's government for access to complete... | Read More
Before the Rwandan genocide of 1994, life was relatively peaceful in the village of Mataba where Immaculee Ilibagiza grew up.

Ilibagiza  who will lead a retreat Friday and Saturday in Butte at St. Anns Catholic Church  told The Montana Standard that Mataba was the kind of place where parents cared about their children and the neighbors were friendly and most people didnt have TVs, computers, or phones and talked to each other the old-fashioned way: face to face.

It is perhaps this setting that makes the events of 1994 all the more shocking. That year in a mere 100 days, some 800,000 members of the Tutsi ethnic group were killed by extremist members of a rival community, the Hutu. The two groups had lived side by side before the killing, but during the genocide, neighbor turned against neighbor, often using a common household implement, the machete.

According to most writings on the Rwandan genocide, tensions between the Hutus and the Tutsis existed long before 1994.

Ilibagiza said she was aware of the tensions, but they werent something she experienced day to day. The Hutus in her village didnt treat her poorly, some of her friends had parents from both backgrounds, and she even had Hutu friends. And while it was true that one would often hear media broadcasts in which a figurehead would spew hate against the Tutsis, even going so far as to suggest that one day the Tutsis would be killed, their statements seemed so outlandish and so absurd that the commentators seemed caricature-like, behaving as though they were drunk. Ilibagiza said she never imagined that their statements would actually result in violence, because doing so would mean believing the unimaginable.

The relative peace that Ilibagiza experienced in her village abruptly came to an end on April 9, 1994, when the plane of Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana, a Hutu, was shot down, killing the president. The identities of the people responsible for the presidents death today remain a mystery. Nonetheless, most agree that the incident was the tipping point that led to the violence.

Ilibagiza said her first fears began when French radio stations started reporting stories of entire Tutsi families being killed, including children.

Everything shocked me of the genocide. I never thought suffering to that level was possible, said Ilibagiza by phone from Kentucky, where she had a speaking engagement.

Fearing the worst, Ilibagizas family asked her to go to the house of a local pastor, a Hutu. There Ilibagiza and seven other Tutsi women hid in a 3-by-4-foot bathroom that was concealed by a wardrobe, where they hid for 91 days.

Ilibagiza said Hutu men came to search the pastors house on several occasions and during one search stood just feet away from the bathroom door. Ilibagiza described the experience as pain I cant put into words.

It was like a thousand needles that are going through your body. You are on fire, but youre not dying  youre just burning, Ilibagiza said.Every single moment in that bathroom was hell, and we were waiting for them to find us.

As the genocide raged on outside, Ilibagizas emotions ranged between fear and anger. She imagined the worst, what it would be like if the Hutus had killed her family. She also wondered whether she would die. Many times, she said, she thought of leaving the bathroom, confronting the Hutus, and letting them kill her face to face.

Ilibagiza prayed that the men wouldnt find the bathroom, and when they didnt find it, she continued to pray. Ilibagiza credits those hours of prayer with her survival because, during that time, she learned to let go of anger and discovered a sense of peace that she didnt think was possible.

I was hurt by anger, said Ilibagiza. I couldnt remember how to smile, how to laugh, how to love because of my anger.

(But forgiveness) was a gift that just surprised me, she said.

When Ilibagiza finally emerged from the bathroom, she came upon the unimaginable.

Every Tutsi home in the village was destroyed, and she learned that her parents and brothers were killed, along with members of her extended family.

Trees were still there. Mountains were still there. They hadnt moved. But they (my family) were dead.

Later on Ilibagiza came face to face with the man who killed her family. He had been incarcerated after the genocide and was someone she had known before the violence broke out, a friend of the family, Ilibagiza said.

Ilibagiza visited him in jail, and many times during the meeting, she cried. Unexpectedly she told the man that she forgave him, and the man covered his face and began telling her about items he had stolen from her home. He later wrote to his children to have the items returned.

Ilibagiza said she and the man never got around to discussing why he killed her family members and many others, but later she had the opportunity to ask another Hutu who had killed. The man simply told her he didnt know why he did it.

He saidhe followed the whole group, he followed the whole craziness, said Ilibagiza.

After the genocide, Ilibagiza went on to work for the United Nations and wrote several books, including her first book, Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust, which became a New York Times best seller. She now travels throughout the world speaking about her experiences.

Through the traveling, interviews, and speaking engagements, Ilibagiza says she has come to realize that the people who attend her events are eager to hear her story, but they also want to learn how to live through their own experiences.

(Anger is) a common thing we all struggle with, she said, adding that her main message is one of forgiveness and that one shouldnt waste their time on hate.

Be happy, she added. Treat every day as a gift.
State Sen. Pam Helming announced two upcoming mobile office events, including one in Cayuga County.

Helming, R-Canandaigua, will hold mobile office hours from 4 to 6 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 2 at Springport Free Library, 171 Cayuga St., Union Springs.

Later this month, she has scheduled a similar event from 4 to 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 19 at the Wood Library, 134 N. Main St., Canandaigua.

Helming said the appearances will be her 10th and 11th mobile office hour events since late June. She previously held events in Port Byron and Sterling over the summer.

"These events always produce terrific feedback from the residents in the communities that we visit as well as the surrounding areas," she said. "It is important for me to meet with our constituents so that I can listen to their questions and concerns about state government."

Helming's main district office is located at 425 Exchange St. in Geneva. The office is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Constituents may contact Helming's district office by phone at (315) 568-9816.

A satellite office in Wayne County is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. every second and fourth Thursday of the month. The office is located in Room 207 of the Wayne County Courthouse, 26 Church St., Lyons.
Black and Orange ball planned Oct. 27

The Clark Fork Watershed Education Program will host a Black and Orange Ball at 6 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27, at the Grand Hotel, 124 W. Broadway St., Uptown Butte.

The evening includes live music by King Friday, dancing, drinks, hors doeuvres, and a Halloween-themed costume contest. In addition, there will be silent and live auctions. Tickets are $25 or two for $40 and can be purchased by calling Tammy at 406-496-4136 or emailing tgordon@mtech.edu. Tickets can also be purchased at the Cfwep office in the Montana Tech Health Science Building, room 003.

Greeley Neighborhood group awarded grant

Greeley Neighborhood Community Development Corp. Inc. recently was awarded a $1,200 Butte-Silver Bow Economic Development Mill Levy Grant.

It also received commitments for $900 worth of gift cards from local businesses to provide incentives to encourage residences to work with the local government in the restoration, revitalization, and beautification of the greater Butte-Silver Bow neighborhood communities.

In addition, the winners of the Alma Higgins photo competition will be announced at the Council of Commissioners meeting Wednesday, Oct. 11. Details: R. Edward Banderob at 406-723-3736.

Uptown Toasters announce winners

This weeks competition winners for the Uptown Toasters, Toastmaster Club #9765, include Mandi Kambic, best speaker; Nikole Evankovich, best evaluator; and Trent Martin, best table topics respondent. The next meeting is at noon Tuesday, Oct. 10, at the Butte Archives, 17 W. Quartz St. Details: 406-782-3280.

Whitehall Rotary to host Harvest Dance

WHITEHALL  The Whitehall Rotary Club hosts its annual Harvest Dance from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 29, at the Whitehall Community Center, 11 N. Division St.

The cost is $10 per person ($35 for a family of four or more). This includes a meal, which is served from 5 to 6:30 p.m.

Live music will be provided by the Little Boulder River Band, and there will be a Halloween costume contest. Proceeds help the Rotary complete local service projects.
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 07/10/2017 (1865 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

An addictions worker working with youth in the Hanover School Division wants students to know that just because cannabis will soon be legal that does not mean it doesnt come with risks, and he is now working to make sure youth are as educated and informed as possible before making decisions on using marijuana.

Just because a drug is legal that doesnt make it safe, Daniel Dacombe, a councillor in the Addictions Foundation of Manitoba (AFM) Youth School-Based Services Program said. That would be the primary message, that legalizing cannabis doesnt magically make it safe overnight.

There are harms associated with it now, and those harms are going to continue when it is legalized.

Dacombe works with students in schools throughout the Hanover School Division, giving presentations to schools and classes, and also meeting individually with students.

He said even before it was officially announced that recreational marijuana use would be legalized in Canada by the summer of 2018, students had been asking him for years about the possibility of legalization.

When it comes to marijuana, questions about the legalization have come up in every single presentation I have done, he said. And with some young people the attitude is that its going to be legal, so why shouldnt I try it?

Dacombe said there are serious dangers and risks that can come with youth using marijuana, and he and his colleagues are working to educate students about those risks.

According to Dacombe, young peoples brains dont start to fully develop and solidify until between the ages of 21 and 25, so using marijuana at a young age can negatively and permanently effect the development of the brain.

So the message becomes, here are some really good reasons you should delay that use until youre older, until your brain is developed, he said.

The demotivation impact of marijuana use is another risk that Dacombe said could affect young people who use the drug.

Marijuana is known to have a demotivation affect, he said. It demotivates you, it makes you really feel ok with sitting on the couch all day and doing nothing and thats not useful for getting to class, doing your homework, or showing up to your part-time job.

For Dacombe, a large part of educating students is asking them what they would like to accomplish in life, and if marijuana use is something that might hold them back, or impact those plans and goals.

I ask them what are your goals? What do you want to accomplish in life? And how does this play into that, and could this put those goals at risk?

Dacombe also wants to make sure he never talks down to students when it comes to issues of drug use.

I work hard to build a good rapport with the student that I work with, he said. We need to engage with them honestly and talk about what the science is telling us and what the research is showing.

We do so in a non-judgmental and non-confrontational way and that seems to be getting a lot more buy-in than telling them they are bad or making them feel stupid.

You cant talk down to them, because they are smart and they do their research.
Antarctica. Photo: Pool/Getty Images

In the wake of explosive sexual-harassment allegations out of Hollywood comes a report of disturbing behavior from the end of the world: Boston University is investigating allegations that a prominent geologist sexually harassed female graduate students in Antarctica during research expeditions while he was their professor two decades ago.

As Science reports, BU is currently investigating complaints from two former graduate students against David Marchant, who was working as an assistant professor during the research trips to Antarctica. One complaint, filed by Jane Willenbring (now an associate professor of oceanography at University of California, San Diego), alleges Marchant called her a slut and whore, urged her to sleep with his brother (who was on the trip), threw rocks at her while she urinated, and routinely shoved her down a slope.

The second complaint, filed pseudonymously by Deborah Doe, claims Marchant harassed her and threatened to block her research funding if she ever received a PhD, which prompted her to change career paths. Another woman, a high school teacher named Hillary Tulley, wrote in a supporting letter to BU investigators: His taunts, degrading comments about my body, brain, and general inadequacies never ended. Tulley told Science in an interview, Every day was terrifying.

The disturbing report  which you can read in full here  highlights the dangers women face while isolated in field camps (a 2014 PLOS One online survey found that 71 percent of female respondents reported experiencing sexual harassment in fieldwork). It also shows just how intimidating it can be for young women at the beginnings of their careers to speak out about the abuse theyve experienced from men in power.

Per Science:

Willenbring writes that she waited to file her complaint with BU until October 2016, shortly after she received tenure, for fear of professional reprisal from Marchant before she had established herself as a scholar. Several of the women involved and two male witnesses say they feel guilty about not speaking out at the time, guilt that fuels their desire to speak now.

Adam Lewis, who was a graduate student in Antarctica with Willenbring and Tulley, told Science, This is one of the only real regrets I have in my whole life. I had the chance to stand up for people. And I didnt. Marchant, 55, now serves as a department chair at the university and declined to be interviewed for Sciences story, though the magazine pointed out that documents from the investigation suggest that he denies the claims.
Fighters from the Hashed al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilization) paramilitaries ride atop an infantry-fighting vehicle while advancing towards villages between the northern Iraqi cities of Hawija and Kirkuk after retaking Hawija from ISIS the day before. October 6, 2017. (Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP/Getty Images)

Iraqi Forces Liberate Hawijah, Hundreds of ISIS Terrorists Surrender

Iraqi forces won a swift and decisive victory against ISIS in Hawijah on Thursday, Oct. 5, according to Coalition sources.

The battle was hard fought and operations to liberate the city took 14 days, with many sources reporting more than 1,000 terrorists surrendered, reads a statement from the U.S. Central Command.

During the Iraq war, the city was one of the deadliest places for U.S. soldiers. After the war, the city was wracked with violence, including a deadly conflict that saw Sunni Muslims in the town clash with Iraqi forces, and ongoing anti-government violence that left dozens killed.

Later, during the ISIS occupation, the city became witness to numerous public executions.

With the recent liberation of Hawijah, families that fled in recent years have a chance to restart their lives.

Our Iraqi partners fought bravely and professionally against a brutal and determined enemy, safeguarding innocent civilians throughout the entire campaign, said Lt. Gen. Paul E. Funk II, Commanding General of the Combined Joint Task Force in a statement.

Thanks to their efforts, Hawijah will return to local governance and security.

Funk said the victory demonstrated that coalition partners remain stronger together. He reiterated that the coalition was committed to supporting partners in the tough fight to defeat ISIS.

The Iraqi Security Force (ISF) continues to prove they are a battle-hardened, professional force dedicated to ridding their country of an evil enemy, said the statement.

Reclaiming Hawijah adds to a string of victories for the ISF which includes routing ISIS from its former Iraq capital and largest captured city, Mosul, as well as other towns including Tal Afar, Anah, Rayhanah, and Akashat.

The government of Iraq and the ISF, with the support of the Global Coalition, have liberated more than four million Iraqis and reclaimed over 41,500km of land once held by ISIS, reads the statement.

The large scale surrender of ISIS troops in the fight for Hawijah is being read by some as a sign of a demoralized fighting force.

ISIS has seen its territory dissolve, with the vast swathes it once controlled in Iraq and Syria now reduced to pockets.

ISIS has just two strongholds left in Iraq, the Middle Euphrates River Valley and western Anbar Province. Iraqi forces are combating ISIS in both areas.

The fall of Hawija after just two weeks was unexpected, said Funk.

The speed at which the enemy gave up surprised me, Funk told the Daily Mail in a phone interview from Baghdad.

ISIS seized control of the city in early 2014. Two weeks ago on Sept. 21, Iraqi Security Forces started combat operations to reclaim it.

The liberation of Hawijah will be yet another major achievement in the ISFs relentless drive to liberate civilians trapped by ISIS, Maj. Gen. Felix Gedney, Deputy Commander for Strategy and Support said in a statement on that day.
Last Photo Revealed From Spacecraft That Struck Comet 300 Million Miles Away

Scientists released the last photograph taken from the Rosetta spacecraft before it crashed into a comet 300 million miles away.

The image provides the closest view of a comet humanity has ever witnessed. The spacecraft snapped the last photo when it was just 60 feet from the comet, according to the European Space Agency.

The grainy and blurry photo shows the rugged terrain of the comet strewn with giant boulders.

The Rosetta spacecraft crashed into Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko almost a year ago, but scientists discovered the last photo much later and released it to the public in late September.

The spacecraft sent the last image in a series of six packets, but only three made it back to Earth. The software on Earth missed the last transmission, but scientists who were revisiting the data noticed it on the server and used it to create the image.

We found a few telemetry packets on our server and thought, wow, that could be another image, said Holger Sierks, principal investigator for the spacecrafts OSIRIS camera at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research.

The scientists reconstructed the three packets into an image, which, though not perfect, still had enough detail for a striking up-close view of the giant space rock. The image covers an area of about 10 square feet.

Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko is shaped peculiarly like a rubber ducky. The Rosetta spacecraft followed the comet for two years as the two orbited the sun, collecting a wealth of images and data.

Rosetta crashed into the comet deliberately. The last known image before Septembers unveiling was taken from 80 feet above the surface.

The Rosetta spacecraft journeyed through space for 10 years before it arrived within 62 miles of the comet in 2014. The satellite then orbited the comet for two years before finally crashing into it in September 2016.

On the final descent, Rosetta had the opportunity to study the comets gas, dust, and plasma environment close to the surface. It also took a series of high-resolution images before going offline.

Thanks to a huge international, decadeslong endeavor, we have achieved our mission to take a world-class science laboratory to a comet to study its evolution over time, something that no other comet-chasing mission has attempted, said Alvaro Gimenez, ESAs director of science.

The mission has spanned entire careers, and the data returned will keep generations of scientist busy for decades to come.

From NTD.tv
L, R: A shipment of hydrogen peroxide allegedly intended for production of improvised explosives; C: A map of the New York City Subway with marks allegedly illustrating a bombing plot. (The U.S. Department of Justice)

3 ISIS Followers Arrested for Plot to Bomb Times Square and NYC Subway

Three men allegedly planned multiple terrorist attacks on New York City, including bombing Times Square, the subway, and shooting people at concert venues. They pledged allegiance to ISIS, according to the Justice Department.

The three were Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy, 19, a Canadian citizen; Talha Haroon, 19, a U.S. citizen residing in Pakistan; and Russell Salic, 37, a Philippine citizen.

They allegedly planned for the attacks to occur during the summer of 2016. But the FBI, NYPD, and other law enforcement agencies thwarted the plot thanks to an undercover FBI agent posing as an ISIS supporter, ready to conduct the attacks with them.

All three men have been arrested. El Bahnasawy already pleaded guilty to seven charges. Haroon was arrested in Pakistan and is pending extradition. Salic was arrested in the Philippines and is also awaiting extradition.

Based on the documents released by the Justice Department, the plot evolved as follows:

Around April 30, 2016, the undercover agent got in contact with El Bahnasawy through online messaging apps.

El Bahnasawy told the agent he was in contact with the ISIS terrorist group and wanted to bomb and shoot as many people in New York City as possible, all in ISISs name.

[t]hese Americans need an attack, and we cant delay or cancel akhi [brother].. I wanna create the next 9/11 but if I dont, id [sic] rather do something than nothing at all, El Bahnasawy wrote to the agent around May 5.

El Bahnasawy also sought to have the attacks officially sanctioned and funded by ISIS.

Around May 6, he said his contact in Khorasan Province (an ISIS affiliate in Pakistan) wants to know what weapons we have, what our general targets are, how many people are trained, how long were [sic] gonna train for, exact number of people  So they need to know everything before giving us finances or helping.

Around April 30, El Bahnasawy described his plan for bombing the Subway and around May 1 provided a map illustrating the attack plan.

The 2 subway routes we will blow up will be the purple one [7 line], and green one [4, 5, 6 line].. Because these 2 will make it easier for us to get to the vehicle, he said.

Around May 1, El Bahnasawy connected the agent with Haroon. Haroon described himself as an ISIS member known to the terrorist groups higher-ups. He was apparently eager to participate in the attacks.

[M]ay Allah grant us success in this opp [operation], he wrote to the agent. Im mad excited. And may Allah cause great destruction to the filthy kuffars [non-Muslims] by our hands.

Haroon was also enthusiastic about targeting the Subway.

I think the subway is perfect. One can get in the train and on the way to the other station we kill all in the train regardless of who and remember do not stop shooting even if u see women or kids. No mercy is rule one, he wrote to the agent.

He also said, Then once we reach the second station get off and start killing on the station as well and if we get trapped we let the [explosive] vests go off. But we need to make sure to do it on a very busy day.

El Bahnasawy also planned to target concerts. Around May 6, he told the agent he had researched concerts in the New York City area looking for one in a closed area and far away from cops.

Around May 6, he also told the agent about a plan to bomb Times Square, though he seemed to have some misgivings about it not being destructive enough.

Akhi [brother] lets just shoot up concerts cuz [sic] they kill a lot of people. Times square is also good but sometimes there isnt a lot of people. Actually never mind there are a lot.. Car bomb there is good, El Bahnasawy wrote to the agent around May 12.

Around May 8, El Bahnasawy introduced the agent to Salic, describing him as an ISIS supporter who had sent money to ISIS causes before and was the best candidate to financially support the attacks on NYC.

Salic sent the agent some $424 and said he may send more in the future.

Salic also expressed he wanted to join ISIS in Syria because the more he stayed in his place the more he got involved in kuffar [non-Muslim] deeds.

He also said that sending money from the Philippines was safe, because he believed the country wasnt as strict on terrorism like Australia or the United Kingdom.

Terrorists from all over the world usually come here as a breeding ground for terrorists  hahahaha, he said. Your dua [prayer] is much needed for Musa Cerantonio [alleged ISIS promoter] as hes been arrested in Australia. But no worry here in Philippines.. They dont care bout [sic] IS[IS]..loll Only in west.

Around May 7, El Bahnasawy bought some 40 pounds of hydrogen peroxide, a primary ingredient in TATP (triacetone triperoxide), an explosive commonly used in improvised bombs. He had the chemical shipped to the agent in the United States.

Around May 16-18, the agent received about seven more packages from El Bahnasawy with materials for improvised explosives, like Christmas lights, batteries, thermometers, and aluminum foil.

El Bahnasawy told the agent he planned to come to the United States on May 21, disguising his travel as a family trip. I will be masked behind my parents back, he wrote.

He instructed the agent to rent a cabin close to the city where they could make the explosives and perhaps practice shooting.

El Bahnasawy was arrested on May 21, 2016 in New Jersey. On Oct. 13, 2016, he pleaded guilty to seven charges, including conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction, conspiracy to commit acts of terrorism transcending national boundaries, and conspiracy to bomb a place of public use and public transportation system. All of these three charges carry the maximum penalty of life in prison. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 12.

Haroon was arrested in Sept. 2016 in Pakistan and Salic was arrested in April 2017 in the Philippines. Proceedings for their extradition to the United States were pending as of Oct. 6. Both face multiple charges, including the three charges mentioned above.
A launch test of North Koreas intermediate-range ballistic missile Hwasong-12 at an undisclosed location near Pyongyang, in a photo released by North Koreas official Korean Central News Agency on Aug. 30, 2017. (STR/AFP/GETTY IMAGES)

After Refusing to Join a US Missile Defense Program, Canada Might Be Changing Its Mind

With increased threats from North Korea, Canada is reconsidering joining a US program that it refused in 2005

An increasingly belligerent North Korea has sparked a debate in Canada about whether Prime Minister Justin Trudeau should reverse his countrys long opposition to joining the U.S. missile defense program.

Canada opted not to join the program in 2005 despite an appeal by President George W. Bush.

Now, without any prompting from the Trump administration to join, Canadian Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan says he has not ruled out that Trudeaus liberal administration will do so. Canada is already a member of the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), which provides early warning to the United States and Canada of any ballistic missile threats. The U.S. missile defense program is meant to shoot down incoming ballistic missiles.

Sajjan said that the threat of ballistic missiles is real and will be a topic when Canadian and U.S. officials meet to discuss upgrades to NORAD, The Canadian Press reported. However, Sajjan said it was one of multiple issues that are of importance to Canadas defense.

In 2005, a fierce national debate on whether to join the program resulted in Canada deciding against it. Those opposed argued that it would harm Canadas sovereignty in foreign policy, with some criticizing what they perceived as an aggressive U.S. foreign policy under Bush.

However, those in military circles have argued that Canada joining the program would have further strengthened U.S. and Canadian collaboration within NORAD. Some have also accused the Canadian government of becoming a free rider in ballistic missile defense, relying on the United States to protect it.

A statement by Canadas highest-ranking NORAD official last month sent a shock wave through the country, when he said he was told by his U.S. counterparts that it is not a priority of the United States to defend Canada.

Were being told in Colorado Springs that the extant U.S. policy is not to defend Canada, said Lt. Gen. Pierre St-Amand, deputy commander of the Colorado-based NORAD, the Toronto Star reported at the time.

North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un inspects a military site in North Korea in this undated picture released by state media. (STR/AFP/Getty Images)

U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly called on other countries to pay their fair share of the burden when it comes to military defense. Most notably, he has called on NATO members to step up and pay what they are supposed to under the alliances own guidelines.

NATO guidelines stipulate that member states spend at least 2 percent of GDP on defense. In 2016, only five nations met the NATO requirement: United States (3.6 percent), Greece (2.4 percent), United Kingdom (2.2 percent), Estonia (2.1 percent), and Poland (2 percent). Canada was among the nations spending the least on defense, at 1.2 percent of GDP in 2016.

Since Trump became president in January, NATO members have started to increase their defense spending. Germany announced earlier this year it was increasing its spending by 2 billion euros (US$2.35 billion).

The United States has spent tens of billions of dollars over the past decade to develop and improve its missile defense systems. In light of recent threats from North Korea and the advances in its nuclear weapons program, Trump has said the systems will be further improved.

On Oct. 4, the Pentagon announced it will spend an additional $440 million on missile defense.

It is unclear if Canada would be able to still join the U.S. missile defense program even if it wanted to, or how much it would pay.

Pundits have pointed to the political cost of such a move by Trudeau, with some arguing that it was worth that cost.

Tim Harper of the Toronto Star wrote in a column on Oct. 5 that the issue is a double-edged sword for Trudeau.

Heading to Washington to ask Trump for protection will surely start the domestic debate here. But the Liberal government might be wise to endure that debate in return for protection in uncertain times, Harper wrote.

North Korea now claims that its state nuclear program is nearing completion. A Russian delegation visiting the reclusive communist state this week said that they were presented with calculations to prove that North Korean ballistic missiles can reach the U.S. mainland. They also said that the regime is preparing for new ballistic missile tests, possibly as early as Monday.
The Alternative Energy Resources Organization, a Helena-based nonprofit that advocates for sustainability and community resiliency movements, has named Butte the location of its annual expo and fundraising meeting, which the organization hopes will draw 250 attendees from across the state.

The meeting, which takes place Oct. 20 through 22 in venues throughout Butte, and will feature a host of discussions, tours, and workshops, some of which will highlight organizations and projects from the Mining City.

The organization said in a news release that AERO selected Butte for this years expo in part because of Buttes uncommon past and expanding vision. Other reasons the organization cited for choosing Butte included the citys track record of repurposing historic structures and the presence of a growing arts scene and local food culture.

The theme of this years expo is leadership. But according to AERO Expo committee co-chair Robin Kelson, who owns the Good Seed Company in Whitefish, an important sub-theme this year will be adaptive repurposing.

Were in a time of change, including weather changes, that impact all of Montana, said Kelson. But you cant just throw everything away and start over; thats not how nature works. If you look at any species or ecosystem on the planet thats still around todayit's still here because it successfully navigated change.

Butte folks, Kelson said, have done just that.

Whats so beautiful about Butte is its embracing its heritage, even as its pivoting and trying to find a new way forward for its community, Kelson said.

Scott Rosenthal, who heads the Mining Engineering Department at Montana Tech, will be one of the presenters at the upcoming expo, which includes a tour of the newly completed, $10-million, 31,000-square-foot Natural Resources Research Center.

In 2009, Montana Tech received $1 million from the U.S. Department of Energy to incorporate geothermal energy into the new building. Today the geothermal system is part of Techs curriculum and research while also helping to heat and cool the new digs.

Also on the expos lineup is a visit to the National Center for Appropriate Technology, headquarters in Butte at 3040 Continental Dr., where expo attendees will get a demo of the centers small-scale intensive farm training program. The programs aim is to develop a hands-on training model for nutrient-rich food production on small land parcels.

During the expo, participants will also venture out to Whitehall, where they will visit the Sage Mountain Center in a tour led by Chris Borton, center director and co-founder.

Borton  with partner Linda Welsh-Borton, a long-time AERO member  has promoted solar power, sustainable living, physical health, and inner development throughout the centers 28-year existence.

The center uses 3,000 watts of solar panels and a 1,000-watt wind generator to convert natural resources into electricity. In its 25 years of operations, the center says on its website, Sage Mountain has never paid an electric bill.

Borton told AERO the he plans to address compatibility issues for solar technology and the role of different types of homes during his workshop.

Borton said AERO and Butte go together naturally.

Historically, Butte has always been tied to its environment and the land, primarily through mining, he said. The AERO expo for me is a great fit, a way to bring in new ideas and look at different ways to explore the same land we all live on and share.
Army Investigates West Point Grad Professing Disdain for America and Advocating Communism

The life of West Point graduate 2nd. Lt. Spenser Rapone could hardly be more dichotomic. On one hand, he endured enemy fire during a several-month deployment to Afghanistan. On the other, he filled his social media accounts with nothing but disdain for America and its founding principles.

His Instagram has been taken down and his Twitter and Facebook profiles have been set to private. But from what can still be gathered online, Rapone posted on social media perhaps hundreds of posts expressing contempt for his country and support for communism, an ideology that calls for the forcible destruction of traditional values, principles, and freedoms, including those guaranteed by the Constitution.

The Armys 10th Mountain Division launched an investigation into Rapones political activities, since service members are not permitted to promote political causes while in uniform, according to Army Times.

Rapone came under scrutiny for his Sept. 24 and Sept. 25 tweets. One included a picture of him showing the insides of his cap with communism will win written on it. The other showed him flashing a Che Guevara T-shirt under his uniform. Guevara was a communist leader, who, among other things, personally ordered hundreds executed, including children.

But the chasm between his career path and his political views had begun to form years before.

Rapone enlisted in the Army in 2010. It is not clear what was his mindset at the time, but he signed up for Ranger training, a mentally and physically intense eight-week course required to join the 75th Ranger Regiment.

He deployed with the regiment to Afghanistan in the summer of 2011 and earned the Combat Infantryman Badge granted to those who engaged in active combat and personally came under enemy fire. But before the years end, Rapone was removed for standards from the regiment, the Army Times reported.

The next year he went to West Point.

There it became clear he had a problem with discipline, with the Army, and with America in general.

Lt. Col. Robert Heffington flagged Rapones behavior to superiors in 2015, when Heffington taught history at West Point.

In his sworn statement, Heffington recalled multiple instances of Rapones ridiculously unprofessional behavior.

Once Heffington overheard an argument in a classroom next to his office. The argument was so loud and laced with profanity, that it disturbed his grading papers. After 40 minutes he decided to step in.

He went to the next classroom, where he found four cadets. One of them, Rapone, who wasnt in uniforma violation of the schools regulations. Heffington asked who yelled. One cadet stood up and apologized. Heffington asked who else yelled. No one answered. Heffington asked again. Rapone didnt stand up (another violation of regulations) and answered, Were in a private conversation here.

Heffington told Rapone to stand up while talking to him. Rapone did and immediately said, Sir, you dont have the right to use my honor against me. He did so in a loud and extremely disrespectful tone, Heffington noted.

Rapone was referring to the Cadet Honor Code, which states: A cadet will not lie, cheat, steal, or tolerate those who do.

It is not clear what Rapone meant. Perhaps he was under the impression that Heffington was being unfair to require an honest answer.

Heffington told him to step out into the hallway where the conversation continued with Rapones repeatedly refusing to acknowledge that a superior officer was in the right to break up an argument so loud and long that it disturbed his work. Instead, Rapone piled up one retort after another, as if oblivious to the fact that disobeying and disrespecting a superior officer is unacceptable in the military.

He seemed to look at me with nothing but contempt and hatred, no matter what I said or how I tried to reason with him to show him how wrong he was, Heffington said.

When Heffington shared his concerns about Rapones behavior with some of his colleagues, one of them showed him Rapones Facebook page.

What I saw completely stunned me, Heffington said.

In a Nov. 16, 2015, post Rapone stated [expletive] this country and its false freedom. In another, he called a guest lecturer a fascist and in yet another he called West Point a part of an imperialist narrative, according to Heffington.

On the other hand, Rapone expressed nothing but praise for communism, Marxism, and Marx himself.

Cadet Rapones statements bespeak either a severe mental or psychological disorder, or a genuine commitment to values and ideals wholly at odds with those of West Point and the Army, Heffington said.

If the former is true, he is dangerously unbalanced, and therefore not suited to military service. If the latter is true, he is a coward and a hypocrite who refuses to discontinue his association with an institution that, as he sees it, is a tool of an inherently unjust, immoral, and imperialist state.

Heffington concluded by saying that Rapone may at some point grow out of this phase, but the Army does not have the luxury of allowing him the opportunity to sort out his beliefs while charged with the sacred duty of leading American soldiers.

Despite Heffingtons account, Rapone was commissioned in 2016. His online rants continued.

In one photo he posted online, Rapone posed with the Communist Manifesto, a core document of the communist ideology penned by Karl Marx. The manifesto calls for abolishment of all traditional values and principles through the means of violent revolution.

Communism abolishes eternal truths, it abolishes all religion, and all morality, instead of constituting them on a new basis, the document states.

In its concluding paragraph it states, The Communists disdain to conceal their views and aims. They openly declare that their ends can be attained only by the forcible overthrow of all existing social conditions.

After Rapones September tweets gained media attention, West Point released a statement distancing itself from Rapones views.

On Oct. 3, Sen. Marco Rubio called for the Army to nullify Rapones commission and pursue all available disciplinary options against him. Rapone should be required to pay back in full the cost of his education and the United States Military Academy should consider revoking his degree, Rubio stated.
Cause of Death Revealed for Teen Found in Freezer

The medical examiners in Cook County said that Kenneka Jenkins, the teen found dead in a hotel freezer in September, died accidentally with alcohol intoxication and medication being contributing factors.

Jenkins, 19, died from hypothermia after being exposed to cold in the freezer, the Cook County Medical Examiners Office said Friday, Oct. 6, CBS Chicago reported.

Jenkins had a blood alcohol level of 0.112, which is above the 0.08 level counted as being legally drunk for drivers in Illinois. The toxicology tests also detected topiramate, an epilepsy and migraine medication, in Jenkinss system.

According to Jenkinss family, she did not have a prescription for topiramate. The coroners office said the amount in her bloodstream was within the therapeutic range.

Alcohol and topiramate are synergistic. When combined, the effect of either or both drugs is enhanced. Topiramate, like alcohol, can cause dizziness, impaired memory, impaired concentration, poor coordination, confusion, and impaired judgment, the news release from the coroners office said. Central nervous system depression, or impairment, combined with cold exposure can hasten the onset of hypothermia and death.

Jenkinss death became the subject of controversy after she was found dead in a Crowne Plaza hotel freezer in Rosemont. The teen went to a party on Friday, Sept. 8, and her friends called her mother to say she was missing early on Saturday. A video posted on Facebook from the night of the party raised many questions, with people speculating about the events leading up to her death.

Some of the mystery was cleared after police released hotel surveillance videos of Jenkins, where she is seen tottering through hallways and walking through the kitchen toward the freezer. But no video of the girl entering the freezer was ever released, with hotel officials telling CBS that no recording exists.

It took more than 24 hours to discover Jenkinss body after she was reported missing, with people speculating about foul play and a cover-up. The details from the coroners report is the newest batch of information of what transpired before her death.

The investigator found Ms. Jenkins lying face down in a walk-in freezer that is inside of a walk-in refrigerated cooler. The doors to the cooler and freezer had been closed when Ms. Jenkins was discovered, said the coroners office. The cooler and freezer were both operational. The walk-in freezer was approximately 34 degrees Fahrenheit two hours after Ms. Jenkins was discovered. The doors of the cooler and freezer were open for approximately two hours when this temperature was recorded.

The medical examiners office looked specifically for traces of any date-rape drugs in Jenkinss system, but none were found.

The examiners also found mucosal erosions in the girls stomach, which are usually associated with hypothermia. With the exception of a swollen brain, a purple contusion on her right leg, and an abrasion on her right ankle, there was no other evidence of external or internal trauma, the coroner said.

There is no evidence, per the police investigation, that Ms. Jenkins was forced to consume the alcohol or the drug, the report said. There is no evidence of another person in the vicinity of the kitchen with the decedent and there is no evidence of an altercation or interaction with another individual in the time immediately prior to demise. There was no other evidence of external or internal trauma due to physical abuse.

Rosemont police have not closed the case and are still seeking the two people who rented the hotel room where Jenkins attended the party.

Meanwhile, lawyers for the girls family are conducting their own investigation. They suggest the hotel may be at fault for Jenkinss death.

From NTD.tv
Hurricane Nate at 7:45 a.m. EST on Saturday Oct. 7, 2017. (NHC/GOES)

Hurricane Nate Intensifies as It Heads for Gulf Coast

Hurricane Nate intensified and moved rapidly toward the central Gulf Coast on Saturday as residents in Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida braced for it to make landfall under state-of-emergency orders.

Hurricane Nate has already killed 25 people in Central America.

The hurricane was moving north-northwest at 22 miles per hour as of 8 a.m. EST according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center.

On the forecast track, the center of Nate will move across the central and northern Gulf of Mexico today, the NHC said, and will make landfall along the central U.S. Gulf Coast tonight.

The maximum sustained wind speeds increased to 85 miles per hour.

Some additional strengthening is possible before Nate makes landfall along the northern Gulf Coast, the NHC said.

U.S. oil and gas companies evacuated platforms all across the Gulf of Mexico, the Weather Channel reported.

Storm surges of up to 9 feet were forecast for swaths of Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida.

The mayor of New Orleans ordered mandatory evacuations for residents living outside the levee protection area in the Venetian Isles, Lake Catherine, and the Irish Bayou areas. Mayor Mitch Landrieu also ordered a mandatory curfew starting at 6 p.m. on Saturday and expiring at 6 a.m. Sunday.

We are very well prepared, Landrieu said. We are ready for whatever Nate brings our way.

Landrieu urged residents to stock up on supplies for three days and make an emergency plan.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards expanded evacuation orders on Friday and issued a mandatory evacuation for Latiffe.

We do anticipate a direct hit in Louisiana, Bel Edwards said. The bottom line for people is: You need to be where you want to be and in the posture, you want to be by dark on Saturday.

A total of 1,300 National Guard troops were mobilized, with 15 of those headed to New Orleans to monitor the pumping system. A flood in August exposed issues in the pumping system in the city, but as of Friday, 92 percent of the pumps were operational, according to Landrieu.

Since early August, we have made substantial progress, Landrieu said on Thursday.

Evacuations were also ordered for St. Bernard, parts of Lafourche and St. John parishes, and Grand Isle, The Associated Press and WWL-TV reported.

A state of emergency was declared for 29 Florida counties and statesAlabama, Louisiana, and Mississippias well as the New Orleans, which was devastated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

The NHC issued a hurricane watch from Grand Isle, Louisiana, to the Alabama-Florida border.

By Saturday noon you should be in your safe place, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey told a news conference. This is a fast-moving storm and we must begin preparing now.

Central America Deaths

The storm doused Central America with heavy rains on Thursday, killing at least 12 people in Nicaragua, nine in Costa Rica, two in Honduras and two in El Salvador.

Thousands were forced to evacuate their homes and Costa Ricas government declared a state of emergency.

Costa Rican President Luis Guillermo Solis urged residents to remain vigilant, noting rains would likely resume.

In Honduras, residents wondered whether they would have to flee. Norma Chavez and her two children anxiously watched a river rise outside their home in Tegucigalpa, the capital.

We are worried that it will grow more and carry away the house, said Chavez, 45.

Through Monday, Nate is expected to produce 2 to 4 inches more rain in eastern Yucatan and western Cuba and 3 inches to 6 inches in the U.S. central Gulf Coast.

About 71 percent of the U.S.s Gulf of Mexico oil production and 53 percent of the natural gas output is offline ahead of Nates arrival, the U.S. Department of the Interiors Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) said on Friday.

Oil companies have evacuated staff from 66 platforms and five drilling rigs, it said. Oil production equaling 1.24 million barrels of crude per day is offline, according to BSEE.

Reuters contributed to this report.

From NTD.tv
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during an official ceremony at a stadium in Pyongyang on April 14, 2012. (Pedro Ugarte/AFP/Getty Images)

North Korea Campaigns to Get Inside Trumps Mind

The reclusive communist regime in North Korea appears to be at a loss trying to figure out President Donald Trump and has gone to great lengths to get into his mind.

Pyongyang has reached out to several Republican experts, all of whom have declined invitations, according to an investigative report by The Washington Post.

The campaign began before tensions between the United States and North Korea escalated, but are more relevant now that Pyongyang is facing strict sanctions and the threat of total elimination, both spearheaded by Trump and his administration.

Their number one concern is Trump, one expert familiar with North Koreas campaign told The Washington Post. They cant figure him out.

North Koreas mission to the United Nations invited former Central Intelligence Agency analyst Bruce Klingner to visit Pyongyang.

Klingner is the top North Korea expert at the Heritage Foundation, a think tank known for its influence on Trump.

Klingner declined the invitation.

Theyre on a new binge of reaching out to American scholars and ex-officials, Klingner said. While such meetings are useful, if the regime wants to send a clear message, it should reach out directly to the U.S. government.

Read More North Koreas Communist Regime Confused by Trump Military Threat

North Korea also approached Douglas H. Paal, a former Asia expert on the National Security Council under presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. They asked Paal to set up a meeting between American experts with Republican ties and North Korean officials.

Paal also declined.

The North Koreans are clearly eager to deliver a message, Paal said. But I think theyre only interested in getting some travel, in getting out of the country for a bit.

The communist regime in Pyongyang has issued seven such invitations to various experts and organizations, according to The Washington Post.

This is in addition to several meetings between North Korean officials and Americans over the past two years. These meetings are official for North Korea, but unofficial for the United States, though the American citizens keep the government informed about the conversations.

These talks started out broadly with North Koreans asking about promises Trump made on the campaign trail. For example, Pyongyang officials wanted to know if Trump really intended to remove military bases in South Korea and Japan. But the probing has become more specific as heated rhetoric between Trump and Kim escalated.

The North Koreans are reaching out through various channels and through various counterparts, Evans Revere, a former State Department official, said. My own guess is that they are somewhat puzzled as to the direction in which the U.S. is going, so theyre trying to open up channels to take the pulse in Washington.

Revere met with a North Korean delegation in Switzerland early in September. He said the North Koreans had a nearly encyclopedic knowledge of Twitter messages Trump sent, sometimes quoting Tweets back to the Americans in their entirety.

Related Coverage President Trump Says US Wont Allow North Korean Nuclear Threats

Trumps offensive on North Korea is consistent with his opposition to communism and socialism. Trump views both ideologies as disastrous and murderous. North Korea is an example of a late-stage communist regime.

The country is covered with dozens of large-scale labor camps where hundreds of thousands of people are feared to have perished. Meanwhile, the majority of the population is starving, with most of the resources going toward Kims dream of building a nuclear missile.

From the Soviet Union to Cuba, Venezuelawherever through socialism or communism has been adopted, it has delivered anguish, devastation, and failure, Trump said earlier this month. Those who preach the tenets of these discredited ideologies only contribute to the continued suffering of the people who live under these cruel systems. America stands with every person living under a brutal regime.

From NTD.tv
NWS Captures Swarm of Butterflies on Radar, Mistakes Them for Birds

The National Weather Service in Colorado thought it was posting a picture of a swarm of birds that its radar had picked up over Denver on Tuesday, Oct. 3, when it asked the public for help in identifying them.

Any bird experts know what kind? #ornithology, it tweeted with a photo what looks like a blue cloud on a radar screen.

Look at what's flying into Denver! Radar from last hour showing what we believe to be birds. Any bird experts know what kind? #ornithology pic.twitter.com/EAqzdMwpFU  NWS Boulder (@NWSBoulder) October 3, 2017

It turns out it needed a lepidopterist, someone who studies butterflies and moths.

The cloud it was seeing was a 70-mile wide swarm of butterflies.

The butterflies were painted ladies, sometimes mistaken for monarch butterflies because they have similarly black, white, and orange coloring.

A Painted Lady butterfly (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

1/4: We believe migrating butterflies are the cause of yesterdays radar signature. Thanks for all the reports and sightings! #cowx  NWS Boulder (@NWSBoulder) October 4, 2017

2/4: Insects rarely produce such a coherent radar signature. Migrating birds do all the time. #cowx  NWS Boulder (@NWSBoulder) October 4, 2017

3/4 Things with big wings need to fly together in the same direction with the wind to generate that signature in ZDR (purple image). #cowx  NWS Boulder (@NWSBoulder) October 4, 2017

4/4: Migrating butterflies in high quantities explains it. Today, the butterflies are staying close to the ground. #cowx #Science pic.twitter.com/rkpwmPRnsi  NWS Boulder (@NWSBoulder) October 4, 2017

The butterflies have descended on Colorados Front Range in recent weeks as they migrate through the Western states.

I have been getting phone calls from people all over the Front Range in many different counties, Butterfly Pavilion lepidopterist Sarah Garrett told The Denver Post. Last week, I spoke to folks in North Dakota and South Dakota who have seen them. They are making their way progressively through these Western states.

She said this atypical swarming activity is likely the result of a boomer breeding season, and not a change in habits.

The swarm started around sunrise on Tuesday and continued through the day, but hung low to the ground and out of radar detection on Wednesday, the Post reported.

A woman takes a picture at the top of Pikes Peak mountain in the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains within Pike National Forest near Springs, Colo.(Joe Klamar/AFP/Getty Images)

From NTD.tv
A woman places a flower in front of one of many white crosses set up for the victims of the Route 91 Harvest music festival mass shooting in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S., October 6, 2017. (Reuters/Chris Wattie)

Police, FBI Seek Publics Help in Finding Motive Behind Las Vegas Massacre

LAS VEGASPolice and FBI agents, chasing down more than 1,000 dead-end leads since a gunman killed 58 people in Las Vegas, are seeking more help from the public in solving the central mystery of their investigationthe shooters motive.

Clark County Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said investigators remain largely in the dark about what drove retired real estate investor and high-stakes gambler Stephen Paddock to carry out the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history.

We have looked at everything, literally, to include the suspects personal life, any political affiliation, his social behaviors, economic situation, any potential radicalization, McMahill told reporters late on Friday.

We have been down each and every single one of these paths, trying to determine why, to determine who else may have known of these plans.

McMahill acknowledged that the ISIS terrorist group had repeatedly claimed responsibility for the attack, but said investigators had uncovered no nexus between the Mideast-based terrorist group and Paddock.

In an unusual bid to cast a wider net for tips, the FBI and police have arranged with communications company Clear Channel to post billboards around Las Vegas urging citizens to come forward with any information they believe might help investigators.

The billboards will bear the slogan, If you know something, say something, and carry a toll-free number to an FBI hotline, said Aaron Rouse, special agent in charge of the Las Vegas FBI office.

The public appeal came a day before U.S. Vice President Mike Pence was slated to join Mayor Carolyn Goodman and other local leaders at a City Hall commemoration for victims of the shooting, following a prayer walk through the city. President Donald Trump paid a visit to Las Vegas earlier in the week.

Paddock, 64, unleashed a torrent of gunfire onto an outdoor music festival from the windows of his 32nd-floor hotel suite overlooking the concert on Sunday night, then shot himself to death before police stormed his room.

In addition to the 58 people who died, nearly 500 were injured, some by gunfire, some trampled or otherwise hurt while running for cover.

Unlike so many other perpetrators of deadly mass shootings before him, Paddock left behind no suicide note, no manifesto, no recordings and no messages on social media pointing to his intent, according to police.

McMahill said investigators remained certain Paddock acted alone in the shooting. But police have said they suspect he had help before the killings, based on the large number of guns, ammunition and explosives found in the hotel suite, his home, his car and a second home searched in Reno.

Authorities have said that 12 of the weapons recovered from Paddocks hotel suite were equipped with so-called bump-stock devices that enable semi-automatic rifles to be operated as if they were fully automatic machine-guns.

Paddocks ability to fire hundreds of rounds per minute over the course of his 10-minute shooting spree was a major factor in the high casualty count, police said.

The bloodshed might have lasted longer, with greater loss of life, but for a hotel security officer who was sent to check an open-door alarm on the 32nd floor, and discovered the gunmans whereabouts after the shooting started, McMahill said.

The security officer, Jesus Campos, was struck in the leg as the gunman strafed the hallway with gunfire from behind his door, apparently having detected Campos via surveillance cameras Paddock set up outside his hotel suite.

Campos, though wounded, alerted the hotels dispatch, which was absolutely critical to us knowing the location as well as advising the responding officers as they arrived on that 32nd floor, McMahill said. Hes an absolute hero.

In a new disclosure, authorities said two bullets Paddock fired struck a large jet fuel storage tank at the edge of the citys main airport, about a block from the concert grounds, indicating an apparent attempt by the gunman to create even greater havoc.

There was no explosion or fire from the two rounds, one of which penetrated the tank, as jet fuel in storage is almost impossible to ignite with gunshots, airport officials said on Friday.

Paddocks girlfriend, Marilou Danley, 62, was questioned by the FBI on Wednesday and said in a statement she never had any inkling of Paddocks plans.

Danley, who returned late on Tuesday from a family visit to the Philippines, is regarded by investigators as a person of interest. The Australian citizen of Filipino heritage is cooperating fully with authorities, her lawyer said.

Reporting by Alexandria Sage and Sharon Bernstein. Additional reporting by Susan Heavey, Richard Cowan, Doina Chiacu, Amanda Becker, Jeff Mason, Chris Kenning, Karen Freifeld, Jonathan Allen, Keith Coffman, and Brendan OBrien.
Archbishop Savio Hon Tai-Fai the Secretary of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples has been removed from his powerful post by Pope Francis. This stock photo shows then-Bishop Hon surrounded by prelates during a holy mass celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican on Feb. 5, 2011. (Alberto Pizzoli/AFP/Getty Images)

Pope Francis Removes Anti-Communist Archbishop from Key Vatican Post

Pope has made a number of overtures to China's ruling communist party since 2013

A senior archbishop known for his strong opposition to the Communist regime in China has been removed from a key post in the Vatican by Pope Francis. The move is the latest in a series of overtures Pope Francis has made in recent years to seek resumption of diplomatic relations between the Vatican and the Chinese regime, which has always rejected the Popes authority to appoint Catholic bishops in Mainland China.

Pope Francis made the surprise announcement on Sept. 28 that Archbishop Savio Hon Tai-Fai, the Secretary of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples (Propaganda Fide) at the Vatican, will be reassigned to Athens, Greece to serve as the Vaticans papal nuncio (diplomat). The 67-year-old Archbishop from Hong Kong, who has been the highest-ranking official of Chinese origin in the Vatican, has no prior diplomatic experience.

As the French newspaper La Croix noted, Archbishop Hon has been one of the most senior bishops opposed to Pope Francis policy of rapprochement with the Chinese regime. His position at the Vaticans Propaganda Fide, where he served for seven years since being appointed there by previous Pope Benedict XVI in 2010, was a powerful post as that put him second-in-command in the Vatican body that directly governs Vaticans missionary works.

The Vatican and the Peoples Republic of China have had no diplomatic relations since 1951, as the Chinese Communist Party insisted from the very beginning of its rule that all bishops of the Roman Catholic Church in mainland China should be appointed by itself so as to maintain control. Instead, a regime-controlled Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association (CPCA) was created to supposedly represent Catholics in China, yet the CPCA has never been recognized by the Vatican.

Since Pope Francis was elected in 2013, however, he has made numerous overtures to open diplomatic relations, such as a Papal flight over China in 2014, and an announcement in February of this year that an agreement over the issue of the power to appoint Bishops has been reached with Beijing, among other events.

Archbishop Hon is known for being a close ally to Cardinal Joseph Zen, the respected former Bishop of Hong Kong who retired in 2009. Just like Hon, Zen has been a staunch opponent of the Chinese regime and its many violations of human rights and religious freedom. In recent years, Zen has emerged as the most prominent critic of Pope Francis approach with Beijing.

Finally they got rid of him! But Greece is not further away from Rome than Hong Kong!? Joseph Zen wrote in his blog in response to Pope Francis decision to remove Hon.

Now age 85, Zen undertook a high profile visit across the United States and Canada this week, and repeatedly criticized what he claimed to be Pope Francis and the Vatican officials misguided optimism when it comes to a deal with the Chinese regime.

The Chinese government has not made any concessions in the negotiations, he told the Chinese-language World Journal in New York on Sunday. [Pope Francis] does not understand the Chinese Communist Party at all.

Archbishop Hons removal shows that Pope Francis has made up his mind on the issue of opening relations with the Chinese regime and is not listening to any opposing view, according to Zen.

The Vatican has yet to respond to the latest remarks by Cardinal Zen, and The Epoch Times repeated phone calls to the Vaticans Press Office to request for comment have not been answered.
Tropical Storm Nate gains strength in the Caribbean Sea as it moves toward the U.S. Gulf Coast in this NOAA Satellite image taken Oct. 6, 2017. (NOAA Satellites/Handout via REUTERS)

President Trump Says FEMA Prepared for Hurricane Nate, Calls on People to Be Safe

As Hurricane Nate gained strength over the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday, President Donald Trump said that preparations have been made.

Our great team at @FEMA is prepared for #HurricaneNate, Trump wrote on Twitter. He called on people in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida to please listen to your local authorities & be safe!

Our great team at @FEMA is prepared for #HurricaneNate. Everyone in LA, MS, AL, and FL please listen to your local authorities & be safe!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2017

Trump approved a disaster declaration for Louisiana on Friday. The declaration authorizes the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to coordinate all disaster relief efforts.

FEMA is authorized to identify, mobilize, and provide at its discretion, equipment, and resources necessary to alleviate the impacts of the emergency, the declaration states.

Under the declaration, 75 percent of emergency protective measures are covered by federal funding.

Hurricane Nate is threatening to hit the U.S. central Gulf Coast as a Category 2 storm after it killed at least 25 people in Central America.

The outer bands of the hurricane were expected to batter parts of the U.S. Gulf Coast with tropical storm-force winds on Saturday evening, with the center of the storm forecast to make landfall overnight, said U.S. National Hurricane Center spokesman Dennis Feltgen.

(Courtesy National Hurricane Center)

Major shipping ports across the central U.S. Gulf Coast were closed to inbound and outbound traffic on Saturday, as Nate intensified and storm surges of up 11 feet were expected at the mouth of the Mississippi River.

The U.S. Coast Guard ordered the closures beginning at 8 a.m. local time for New Orleans; Gulfport and Pascagoula, Mississippi; Mobile, Alabama, and Pensacola and Panama City, Florida.

The Category 1 hurricane, the weakest on a five-category scale used by meteorologists, was expected to strengthen to Category 2, with winds in the range of 96 to 110 mph, before making landfall, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC).

It was expected to strike between Slidell, Louisiana, and Alabamas Mobile Bay, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey said in a message on Twitter.

It was forecast to veer to the northeast after hitting the coast, a path that would cut through Alabama. Ivey urged residents in areas facing heavy winds and storm surges to take precautions, saying Alabama could be the worst-hit.

As Nate approached, New Orleans, which is 30 miles southwest of Slidell and is the largest city in Louisiana, evacuated some residents from areas outside its levee system.

The winds could cause significant power outages in New Orleans, and storm surges are projected to be 6 to 9 feet high, Mayor Mitch Landrieu said.

Central American Deaths

The storm doused Central America with heavy rains on Thursday, killing at least 12 people in Nicaragua, nine in Costa Rica, two in Honduras, and two in El Salvador.

Thousands were forced to evacuate their homes and Costa Ricas government declared a state of emergency.

Costa Rican President Luis Guillermo Solis urged residents to remain vigilant, noting rains would likely resume.

In Honduras, residents wondered whether they would have to flee.

Reuters contributed to this report
An airplane flying above Liverpool's John Lennon Airport in January 2007. (Paul Ellis/AFP/Getty Images)

Small Fire Erupts Next to Plane Near Liverpool Airport

Holidaymakers at Liverpool Airport were terrified as they witnessed a fire erupting next to their plane on Friday evening, Oct. 6.

An eyewitness, known as Salford GroundHopper, wrote on twitter: So Im off to Bulgaria and the plane next to us is on fire.

So I'm off to Bulgaria and the plane next to us is on fire. pic.twitter.com/xAhsPDQUHn  Salford GroundHopper (@SalfordHopper) October 6, 2017

At first, passengers thought the ground fire unit that burst into flames was a plane on fire.

But later, authorities confirmed that the fire was caused by a ground power unit that burst into flames shortly before 7 p.m.

A concerned twitter user posted images of the emergency services arriving on the scene.

Liverpool Airport responded quickly saying: Hi Jon, there was a small fire in the ground service equipment but our Fire Service dealt with it quickly and safely. All is fine now.

PHOTO Ground Power Unit (GPU) catches fire near EasyJet Airbus A319 at Liverpool John Lennon Airport, England. (6-OCT-2017). @Marley_Whelan pic.twitter.com/8JPYalYIkL  Air Disasters (@AirCrashMayday) October 6, 2017

A ground power unit supplies electricity to the plane when it is parked on the ground.

A representative for Liverpool Airport confirmed via email that the fire occurred outside on a ground power unit at the airport.

The Airport fire service and Merseyside fire and rescue service were on scene quickly to extinguish this fire with no injuries or impact on operations, he wrote. He added, An aircraft was parked close to the incident having arrived shortly before from Belfast International Airport but all passengers disembarked safely.

#liverpool John Lennon Airport fire: 'All we could see was the smoke and flames' https://t.co/u6wKqnBVaK  Beckwith locks (@BeckwithLocks) October 6, 2017

Passengers spoke with the Liverpool Echo about the terrifying moment when the unit burst into flames.

We were waiting to disembark when they told us to leave our bags and exit the plane as soon as possible, Marley Whelan, from Ellesmere Port told the news outlet.

We could see flames and a lot of smoke coming from a piece of equipment they had brought to the front of the plane, she said.
Chang Kuo-wei (L), then Chairman of Taiwan's Eva Air, receives a Boeing 787 model plane from Ray Conner (R), President and CEO of Boeing, during a signing ceremony in Taipei on Nov. 24, 2015. Chang Kuo-wei was ousted from EVA Air in 2016 and is now building a new StarLux Airlines to be Taiwans third major airline. (Po-Chou Chen/The Epoch Times)

Taiwan Soon to Have a 3rd Major Airline Entering the Competitive Asian Skies

The Taiwanese government has greenlighted an amendment to existing regulations that would allow the widely-anticipated startup company StarLux Airlines to become Taiwans third major commercial airline, operating beside the already well-known EVA Air and China Airlines.

StarLux Airlines was registered last year and founded by Chang Kuo-wei, the youngest son of Chang Yung-fa, the late business tycoon who took decades to create the Taiwanese transportation conglomerate Evergreen Group that encompasses Evergreen Marine, the fourth largest container shipping company in the world, and EVA Air, the second largest Taiwanese airline.

Before Chang Yung-fas death in 2016, Chang Kuo-wei was a trusted heir to his fathers multi-billion conglomerate and was the chairman of the EVA Air. He even completed pilot training and eventually worked his way to become a captain for the airlines Boeing 777 fleet. The 47-year-old executive reportedly possesses rich technical knowledge of the industry and was well-liked in the company for his down-to-earth management approach.

Being the youngest and the only son born of Chang Yung-fas second wife, however, Chang Kuo-wei was outmaneuvered by his older brothers following Chang Yung-fas death in January 2016, who took away the corporate control of the Evergreen Group in the ensuing succession fight. He was then stripped of his executive title at the EVA Air, and the airline also soon took away his position as captain and grounded him from flying for safety considerations.

The ugly succession fight however further projected Chang Kuo-weis image in the eyes of the Taiwanese public as a young and energetic entrepreneur, in contrast to his older brothers, and Chang soon announced his intention to start his own airline. In November last year, Chang officially registered StarLux Airlines and started pursuing the required regulatory approvals for his airline to enter Taiwans tightly-regulated airline market.

On Saturday, Taiwans Minister of Transportation and Communications Hochen Tan said that he has approved an amendment to Taiwans Regulation of Civil Air Transport Enterprise, as reported by Taiwans CNA news. The change would scrap an existing clause that requires an aspiring airline to have five years of operational experience in international transportation or commerce to be considered for an international airline license in Taiwan. The change has been sought by Chang and his supporters since last year.

The Taiwanese public has largely welcomed Changs ambitious plan to roll out a third major airline, hoping that the addition of a new major airline would further improve competitiveness in Taiwans airline market. Taiwan currently has two major international carriers: The privately-owned EVA Air and the partially state-owned China Airlines, which is controlled by the Taiwanese government through majority shareholdings.

Chang recently revealed that StarLux aims to build a fleet of 24 aircraft with a staff of 3,500 within its first six years. It also aims for a fleet size of 50 aircraft and 7,000 to 8,000 staff within one decade. If achieved, it would easily put StarLux as among the major international airliners in the world, flying out of the already highly-competitive Asian market.

In a high profile talk given on Sept. 14, Chang vowed to make StarLux the Emirates of Taiwan, hinting that he will emulate the dramatic rise of Dubais carrier in the last two decades, which has grown from its humble beginning to become one of the largest airlines in the world.

Like the United Arab Emirates, Taiwan also has a relatively small population and limited domestic demand, especially when comparing to China. Yet similar to Dubais story in the Gulf States, Taiwan is strategically located in the center among the rapidly growing economies in Asia, and StarLux could theoretically duplicate Emirates success by transforming Taiwan into a connection hub for transcontinental flights.

While some skeptics have expressed doubt that Chang has the ability to purchase such large number of new and expensive aircraft in a short timeframe, the NT$17 billion (US$560 million) inheritance Chang and his mother reportedly received from his father, combines with the NT$10 billion (US$330 million) worth in shares in Evergreen Group that Chang holds, would give him close to US$1 billion in starting capital. Chang also said that some investors have agreed to come on board his ambitious project.

StarLux recently moved in to a six-floor, 160,000 square foot office space in Taipei as its corporate headquarters, and has started a hiring spree of essential airline administration and technical crews. Chang is reportedly considering procuring short to medium range airliners such as Airbus A321, A350, and Boeing 787, and also the long-range Airbus A350-1000 and Boeing 777X.
Hunewill Ranch in California is One of the Rare Places in America Where the Cowboy Life PersistsAnd You Can Go Experience It
MUSCATINE  A few Muscatine residents Thursday night asked the city council to consider recognizing Oct. 9 as Indigenous Peoples' Day, coinciding with the nations celebration of Columbus Day.

Activists across the country have been requesting their city leaders honor people native to America and provide information about Christopher Columbus' treatment of indigenous people. Recently, the city of Davenport agreed to recognize Indigenous Peoples' Day on Oct. 9. Then on Wednesday, Mayor Frank Klipsch said it was a coincidence it will fall on the same day as the national holiday and the city will still honor Columbus Day.

Thursday, Muscatine resident Travis Glynn, with Progress Muscatine, implored the city council to consider a similar proclamation. He said honoring Indigenous Peoples Day would pay respect to those who lived in America before the Europeans, as well as local residents of Native American descent.

We dont want to rewrite history, we want to study history carefully  and merely celebrate those who deserve to be celebrated, Glynn said.

The group, he said, understands it is not possible to replace a national holiday, but handed the city council a petition, with around 50 signatures, asking for the city to expand the days meaning. Councilman Santos Saucedo said he would like to hear more information before the council makes a motion. While no one spoke against the petition at the meeting, Councilman Scott Natvig said he has received calls from people of the opposing view.

Progress toward senior housing

After a lengthy discussion, the Muscatine City Council approved rezoning around 10 acres of real estate at the corner of Blaine Street and Isett Avenue, to accommodate a new 48-unit housing development, on a first reading.

The Oak Park Development project includes triplexes of two-bedroom senior apartments, for residents who earn less than 60 percent the area median income. Thursday, project manager Chris Ales said one-fourth of the units will be occupied by people who qualify for Section 8 Project-Based Vouchers.

Currently, the area is a single-family residential zone and the council approved rezoning the land for large scale residential development. The city could also create a tax increment financing district for 15 years to support the development, or offer tax abatement.

After speaking to about half of the residents in the area, Ales said he amended development plans, to reduce the number of entrances on Blaine Street from three to two, plus lower the elevation to prevent storm water run-off issues. Some residents, however, are still unhappy.

A resident who lives near the proposed development, Denny Jens, presented the council with a petition, including 36 signatures from homeowners, asking the city to zone the area to accommodate condos or single-family residences instead of apartments. He argued building rental properties in the residential area would lessen property values, plus believes condos would better fit the needs of area seniors.

Another neighbor, Jane Daufeldt, said she would prefer to have apartments in the area, so homeowners only have to contact one landlord if problems arise. She added one-story senior housing would be a safe choice for residents wanting to maintain a quiet neighborhood.

Ales is applying for a grant from the Iowa Finance Authority, and Councilman Tom Spread said the development will not be possible without the state funding. City Planner Andrew Fangman assured residents the new zoning will be in effect for one year, and if the development does not happen, it will revert back to single-family residential zoning.

City leaders said Thursdays action was the first of several needed to make the new housing development happen. The developer will create a final plan, including steps to prevent flooding and road damage, to be approved by the city council.

Run-off problems

With the announcement of the potential senior housing development, resident Kurt Zimmerman approached the council about the need to fix Blaine Street before construction is done in the area. If the city is going to develop the area properly, he said, it is necessary to repair the road so that storm water run-off does not flood nearby yards and homes.

Zimmerman said storm water runs down Isett Avenue, through Blaine Street and ends up flooding his mothers property. After heavy rain, he said water is often gutter-high on the streets, making it dangerous for vehicles and pedestrians to pass through.

Fangman said a drainage plan will be proposed with the final design. No matter what development happens in the neighborhood, Spread said Blaine Street will need to be repaired. City Administrator Gregg Mandsager said the city council will address the issue in November.

Blaine Street residents are not the only people facing water run-off issues in Muscatine. Every month, resident Ralph Burr, who lives near Houser Street, has spoken up at council meetings, asking the city to address flooding issues near his neighborhood. He said for more than 20 years, streets and yards in the area have flooded because of an inadequate or flawed sewer line.

Councilman Phil Fitzgerald said he has been looking into the problem, and Mandsager said it will be the responsibility of the Public Works Department. The city council agreed to discuss the issue next month.

Southend residents have discussed similar issues at public meetings, including Jack Hillier who lives on Nebraska Street, and claims his yard becomes a swamp after heavy rain. City leaders said sewage line and storm water repairs are expensive, but the Public Works Department will investigate some of the concerns.
Sue Iaboni lives in a small town outside Toronto she describes as rich in activities, community groups and retirees, but a captive audience for its weekly paper. There is a huge potential here for persuasive, factually based information, she writes. Surely our community can do something collectively to address this media challenge.

Journalism instructor Teresa Goff knows her students are just learning their trade, but perhaps their classwork at Oshawas Durham College can help inform the public. Could we collaborate to analyze data or provide hyperlocal information to a newsroom?

Daniel Wigdor is an associate professor in computer science at the University of Toronto, researching user interface and information visualization. Our lab has a cadre of immensely talented professors, graduate students and post-docs who are always keen to take on new and interesting challenges. What can we do to help?

These were three responses to the first article I wrote under the Atkinson Fellowship in Public Policy, which described the rapid decline in the news industrys fortunes. They hint at the breadth of possible solutions to the growing void in civic news and information. They show an eagerness by individuals to help.

But the readers questions also point to a challenge that became increasingly clear during the fellowship year: We have no infrastructure, no network or resources, to guide these efforts as we begin relying less on the traditional news industry alone and more on society for our information.

Cutbacks in the industry are a major factor in the shift in where we get our news, but not the only one. Its part of the larger fallout of the digital revolution that opened the gates for anyone to publish online and share on social media.

Eyewitness accounts, passed on with smartphone photos and videos, give us an instant glimpse of history in the making, though we always have to check how accurate and independent the reports are. Groups whose concerns werent covered by the mainstream media now have a platform, though they will still have difficulty being heard in the digital cacophony.

We have a wealth of information, of voices and diversity, at our fingertips.

But are we getting the information we need?

When the news industry and its supporters seek government funding to give it time to find a new business model, its because of the role news plays in maintaining a strong society  protecting democracy, in the phrase often used. If we dont know what our governments are doing, we dont control them. If we dont know that hospitals have long waiting lists, we cant find a solution. If we dont know a development is planned, we cant fight to protect the green space instead. Without information, we cant have knowledgeable conversations with each other. We dont have a voice. Our communities then belong to the powerful.

Both major reports in Canada this year on the state of the news industry, by the Public Policy Forum and the House of Commons heritage committee, have made cases for government funding. So has News Media Canada, an association of print and digital newspapers. Heritage Minister Melanie Joly made no promises when she unveiled a new cultural policy in late September.

Some critics believe the market should take care of itself; that if existing mainstream news outlets fold, startups made for the digital world would have a better chance of surfacing and surviving. Others worry the startups are also struggling to find the kind of sustainable revenue needed to pay for journalisms role as a watchdog.

Neither scenario guarantees us even as much journalism as we have today, never mind what we had 20 or 30 years ago. We need alternatives. And if we can find ways for different sources to collaborate with each other and with the news industry, we can shape an information ecosystem that supports society, that works together to cover important issues, rather than operating in silos.

Some alternative models have been emerging. The Conversation, an academic journalism website aimed at a public audience, launched a Canadian edition this summer that provides articles on politics, science, health care and other key topics. Museum exhibitions can be a kind of journalism when they inform us about issues in the news, as Ryerson Universitys Ivor Shapiro has said. The Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto is training people who are experts in their fields to apply the principles of journalism to their work, from food-bank research to public health.

These efforts are valuable, but not enough. The greatest need is at the local level  in big cities as well as small towns.

When the Abacus Data polling company asked 1,518 Canadians about news in their community, 32 per cent said they dont have a daily newspaper. Increasingly, more of us are without a community paper, too.

April Lindgren, an associate professor at Ryerson Universitys journalism school, has been tracking newspaper shutdowns and launches in Canada through the Local News Research Project. Numbers updated in September show that since 2008, 170 newspapers have shut down: 138 community papers that published fewer than five days a week, 22 free dailies, and 9 paid dailies (the remaining paper is undetermined). Forty of the papers were closed because they merged with others.

In the same period, 35 new publications were launched; 17 replaced those that disappeared through mergers.

Research by John Miller, a former Ryerson journalism professor, shows the loss of local coverage that can come in a merger.

Miller examined the case of Port Hope, a town in southern Ontario, which had its own paper from 1852 until 2009 when the Port Hope Evening Guide was merged with a neighbouring daily and weekly to form Northumberland Today. Miller compared one week of the Evening Guide in 2008 with one week of the Northumberland Today in 2017. The number of stories about Port Hope fell from 46 to 16. Opinion pieces, including letters, about Port Hope went from 24 to 2. Stories about the region fell from 78 to 47, though thats what the merged paper was created to cover.

At the moment, we have no infrastructure to help anyone other than professional newsrooms cover municipalities. An experiment under the Atkinson Fellowship involving the Montreal Gazette and Concordia University, to collaborate on giving the public more information about the massive amount of roadwork underway in the city, might develop into one model; its development has been possible because the Gazette and Concordia already have experts in their fields and resources to produce and distribute their stories.

A second experiment discussed under the fellowship focused on using ordinary residents to supplement news coverage in Hamilton. This experiment took much longer to shape, and has reached only a theoretical pilot-project stage. The local paper, the Spectator, is open to thinking differently but its newsroom is stretched as thin as most  too thin to co-ordinate and edit an ongoing project involving untrained residents. The pilot stage would gauge community interest and whether any individuals or groups might want to run the project.

Many models are needed, because communities geographies, demographics and needs differ so widely. Is a college or university nearby? How active is the public library? Is it a commuter town, or are residents more apt to invest their time? How open is the local council with information? What most needs to be monitored?

The Local News Lab, a U.S. project launched in 2014 to examine how small news outlets might become more sustainable and work more closely with their communities, found after its first 18 months of research that one of the great needs is for experiments to be carried out so they can serve as examples to others.

Otherwise, how do you excite an understaffed and underfunded newsroom about possibilities theyve never seen or dont understand? How do you talk to people with no journalism training about what they can contribute unless you can show them a model?

The goal was not to save journalism, but to build a more diverse and vibrant public square that could strengthen New Jersey communities and foster more informed and engaged citizens, Josh Stearns and Molly de Aguiar wrote in a Local News Lab report in 2016.

We talk about this as creating community literacy for newsrooms and news literacy for communities.

The Local News Lab is now a national project under the Democracy Fund, but it started in New Jersey, a state with no private TV broadcasters where the impact of newspaper cutbacks is felt strongly. The News Lab is just one of several efforts by advocates and academics, largely funded by foundations, to develop support networks.

The Center for Cooperative Media at Montclair State University is another: offering training, guidance and collaboration to anyone from news outlets to citizen groups.

So is News Voices: It has held public forums around the state, leading to a Civic Information Consortium bill that, if passed, would provide funding for information projects.

In New Jersey, the responsibility for an informed society is passing from the largely private news industry to public hands  not excluding the industry but pulling it into the larger ecosystem.

This discussion is beginning in Canada as some models emerge. An open question is how far it will advance without funding or ownership. In the United States, foundations are the source of most of the money behind these efforts, both at the local level  such as the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundations backing of many New Jersey efforts  and the national level, where the Knight Foundation is a longtime supporter of journalism and eBay founder Pierre Omidyars Democracy Fund is a newer arrival.

Canadian foundations operate under federal regulations that limit their funding of political activity or advocacy, as the Public Policy Forum pointed out in its report earlier this year. Those activities are generally interpreted as including journalism.

Would community information or journalism also fall within the definition? And if it didnt  or if the government changes the regulations, which it has been urged to do  how much money is available anyway? The Canadian foundation world is very different from the American one.

U.S. journalism schools are playing a substantial role in not just documenting the problems of the news industry but mapping out new directions  though, again, their projects often rely on foundation funding.

Canadians have been mixed in their attitudes on government funding for the news industry. The Public Policy Forum report noted this, as did Abacus Datas June poll: It asked whether the federal government has a responsibility to do something to make sure there are strong local media serving communities across Canada. A small majority, 56 per cent, said no; 44 per cent said yes. Younger respondents were more likely to support the idea. Would these numbers shift if the goal were media-community collaboration?

Perhaps the most worrying aspect of all of this is something I heard from both industry and community-engagement people this year: The news industrys situation is worsening, no fresh business model is in sight, but there arent a lot of ideas on the table.

In New Jersey, one reason News Voices director Mike Rispoli is hopeful the Civic Information Consortium bill will pass is because legislators see the problem, and there hasnt been a ton of solutions offered up.

Bob Cox, president of News Media Canada, in a June interview on his associations request for government funding, commented: I do say to all critics of this proposal, what would you propose?

The thing is, this is a public policy debate and so what would you propose? I think the government needs to hear that too. Were a fairly large organized group and of course we were able to come up with a proposal more easily than some, but we shouldnt be the only people the government hears from.

The issue is just too important.

wallace.mtl@gmail.com

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Indigenous leaders are speaking out against the province because they say they werent given a voice over a new northern electoral map that was designed to help boost their profile at Queens Park.

Seven First Nation communities of the Mushkegowuk Council passed a resolution at their recent annual general meeting in Cochrane, Ont., which demands the government go back to the drawing board for one of two newly mapped districts, Mushkegowuk.

Its a missed opportunity for our people, for our region, Grand Chief Jonathan Solomon said. It was a good thing when they began to look at creating ridings in the north  (but) now you look at the map, what chances are there for a First Nation to be at the legislature when First Nations people (are) a minority?

The chances are very slim.

An arms-length commission, struck in May, was given too tight a timeline that didnt allow for meaningful consultation, Solomon said.

Im just blown away by the government thinking it got the voices of the people here, he said. Thats the sad history of any government. They talk to you. They call it consulting  but they are still practising the mentality that I know whats best for you.

He was backed up by the current TimminsJames Bay representative, NDP MPP Gilles Bisson, and Nishnawbe Aski Nation Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler.

The intent of this was to give First Nations a voice, which they didnt get, said Bisson. This is colonialism in full bloom.

If that was, in fact, their goal  to increase Aboriginal representation in the provincial legislature  they could have done a better job of not only consulting First Nations, but to involve them throughout the process, Fiddler said. Unfortunately that did not happen.

Both chiefs expressed doubt a First Nation candidate would be competitive in a riding where the population is 60-per-cent francophone. They maintained Mushkegowuk could have become a majority Indigenous riding had the southern border been drawn further north.

In August, the independent Far North Electoral Boundaries Commission (FNEBC) recommended carving up Ontarios two northernmost ridings, KenoraRainy River and TimminsJames Bay, into four, with an eye to increasing Indigenous representation.

The two ridings are geographically the largest, but have the lowest population density, the commission noted. The average population of Ontarios 122 ridings is 110,234, compared with the average population in the 11 northern districts, which stands at 76,330.

Kiiwetinoong, in the northwest, would have a population of 32,987, 68 per cent of whom are Indigenous. Mushkegowuk, in the northeast, would have a population of 30,037, 27 per cent Indigenous and 60 per cent francophone. The city of Timmins would be its own riding, totalling 41,788 constituents, and KenoraRainy River would span Dryden and Fort Frances with 53,027 constituents.

Should the corresponding legislation pass, there would be 124 seats up for grabs when Ontarians go to the polls next spring, up from 107.

We believe this option is the most consistent with the relevant legal and constitutional criteria we are obliged to consider, the public feedback we received, and the challenges inherent in ensuring effective representation given the vast geography of the Far North, the commission wrote.

Not everyone is convinced the new districts will bring First Nations voices to the table. Dennis Pilon, a York University professor who specializes in elections and democratic reform, said the riding rejig is at best a stopgap measure.

Politicians often want to sound like theyre doing something Who doesnt want to say something nice about representing a group that has been historically wronged like Canadas Indigenous people? Pilon said.

Depending on how the vote splits, you may need anywhere from typically 40 to 60 per cent of the vote to win a seat. So, if youre 27 per cent of the population  it doesnt sound too good for you.

Theres also no guarantee Indigenous voters will cast their ballots for the same political party.

Their ability to elect someone could be even weaker because theyre not acting as one group voting for one person, Pilon said.

Further muddling the matter is that more than half of the countrys Indigenous people live in urban areas, and that group is completely washed out, under the current first-past-the-post system.

If the province is serious about boosting First Nations representation, it needs to do more than jerry-rig ridings to create Indigenous majorities and consider electoral reform, he said. Pilon pointed to New Zealand, which designates seats for its Indigenous Maori people and saw dramatic improvements in their representation after a proportional electoral system was introduced.

The boundaries commission lauded New Zealands system, too, and urged MPPs to take on further measures to encourage Indigenous candidates to run for provincial office and to increase voter turnout, such as funding outreach and education programs. It also acknowledged the understandable historical reticence on the part of many Indigenous persons to participate in the provincial electoral process.

The Far North Electoral Boundaries Commission made several stops in northern communities on its summer consultation tour, but no Indigenous organization gave input after its interim report was released in July. That was not for a lack of trying and mostly due to time constraints and the vast geographical area of Ontarios Far North.

Though this was an ambitious task, the FNEBC wishes it could have visited even more First Nations and municipalities, the final report reads.

The attorney generals office said its confident the new boundaries will improve northern representation, and representation of Indigenous people in particular.

There will be another chance to weigh in before the borders are enshrined; the bill is being studied by a legislative committee that will trek to Moose Factory for public hearings this week.

Only one Indigenous MPP has ever been elected to the pink palace: Peter North, who represented Elgin for most of the 1990s. Speaker Dave Levac, who isnt seeking re-election in 2018, is part Metis.

Correction - October 12, 2017: This article was edited from a previous version that mistakenly said a legislative committee will go to Kenora and either Moosonee or Moose Factory this week to hold public hearings on the proposed changes. In fact, the public hearings were held only in Moose Factory on Oct. 12.

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One person is in custody and a man and two children, a boy and a girl, have been rushed to hospitals following an assault in the Black Creek area Saturday afternoon.

Police said the assault happened near Jane St. and Steeles Ave., just after 3 p.m. Saturday. They arrived on the scene and found the two children and a man in his 40s with serious injuries.

The two children were taken to Sick Kids Hospital in serious condition and the man was rushed to Sunnybrook Hospital in life-threatening condition, according to Toronto police and EMS.

Const. David Hopkinson said that one person has been taken into custody but has not been charged. Media reports indicated the person in custody was a male.

A witness who spoke to CP24 at the scene said the two children were bleeding from their heads when they approached her and asked her to call 911. She said the boy told her he was eight-years-old and that his sister was six.

Police are still investigating at the scene of the assault and have cordoned off an apartment in a building at 5000 Jane St.

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In a long-running case of a Toronto doctor found to have sexually abused his patients, Ontarios medical regulator again finds itself in the position of having to challenge its own discipline committee, this time before the provinces top court.

The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO) has been trying for more than a year to strip Dr. Javad Peirovy of his licence for groping four female patients at a Toronto walk-in clinic in 2010  a case the college has previously described in court documents as amongst the most egregious examples of sexual abuse by physicians.

A panel of the colleges independent discipline committee, made up of three doctors and one member of the public, imposed a six-month suspension in 2016, rather than side with the college which was pushing for revocation of the doctors licence. The colleges registrar took the rare step at the time of issuing a public statement expressing disappointment with the committee.

The college successfully appealed to Divisional Court, which ruled in January that the penalty was clearly unfit.

In ordering that Peirovy should face a new penalty hearing before the discipline committee, the court also called out the committee for a repeated failure in how it handled previous cases of doctors who sexually abuse their patients.

The facts of these cases are base. It is depressing to review them, Justice James Ramsay wrote for a unanimous three-judge panel.

They do little to encourage confidence in the committees approach to eradicating sexual abuse in the profession. Consistency in the imposition of sentence is a proper consideration, but a litany of clearly unfit penalties does not justify the penalty imposed in the present case.

Peirovy is now looking to the Ontario Court of Appeal to quash the Divisional Court decision. The appeal will be heard Nov. 27.

Having served his suspension, he is now practising at Ultimate Diagnostics in North York, where he is only permitted to practise on women in the presence of a female health professional approved by the college.

If the court sides with him, it will outrage Peirovys victims and be a serious blow to both the CPSO and the provincial government, which have ramped up their calls in recent years for zero tolerance of sexual abuse in the health professions.

The court can affirm the need for tougher penalties where doctors sexually abuse their patients, said medical malpractice lawyer Paul Harte, who is not involved in the case. Doing so would send an importance message of deterrence and bring us closer to the goal of eradicating physician sexual abuse.

Since Peirovys discipline proceedings, the government passed Bill 87, which strengthened the law around sexual abuse of patients by health professionals, in the wake of a Star investigation on doctors still at work despite findings of sexual abuse.

Among other things, the new law, passed in May, added groping to the list of sexual acts that lead to the mandatory revocation of a health professionals licence.

A trio of lawyers from high-powered law firm McCarthy Tetrault argue in a factum filed at the Court of Appeal on behalf of Peirovy that the Divisional Court judges made significant errors in their decision to send Peirovys case back to the discipline committee for a new penalty hearing.

First, the Divisional Court erred in law, and acted in excess of its jurisdiction, by purporting to declare as unfit an entire body of prior penalty jurisprudence of the discipline committee, never appealed, and not under appeal before it in this case, says the factum, calling it an error of broad public importance.

The lawyers also argue that the Divisional Court failed to apply the principle of parity, which confirms that the penalty imposed for professional misconduct should be proportionate to penalties imposed in similar circumstances.

Peirovys lawyers had presented the court with cases similar to Peirovys where the penalty had been suspensions in the range of four to eight months, plus conditions on the licence to practice.

They say the court should have also shown deference to the discipline committees decision, as it was in the best position to come to a penalty after hearing all the evidence.

The penalty in this case does not reflect zero tolerance. It does not protect the public, college lawyers Elisabeth Widner and Ruth Ainsworth argue in their factum filed with the Court of Appeal.

It undermines public confidence in the ability of the profession and the regulator to eradicate sexual abuse of patients by physicians. The discipline committee relied on a flawed reasoning process to arrive at a penalty that is manifestly unfit.

Peirovy pleaded guilty in criminal court in 2013 to two counts of simple assault relating to two of the patients who were later the focus of his disciplinary hearing at the college. He was given a conditional discharge and 18 months probation and was ordered by the court to take counselling.

At the hearing before the disciplinary committee, Peirovy was found to have placed his stethoscope on the nipples of two patients and cupped their breasts. Regarding two others, he touched their nipples when there was no clinical reason to examine the women in that way, the panel found.

The CPSOs lawyers have always argued that the committees decision on liability is inconsistent with its later decision on penalty, making it a significant error. In the decision on liability, the panel found the touching of the patients breasts to be deliberate and accepted the womens description of Peirovys conduct as blatantly sexual, Widner and Ainsworth say.

In the penalty decision, the panel  chaired by former CPSO president Dr. Marc Gabel, and including Drs. John Watts and Robert Sheppard and community member Diane Doherty  largely accepted the evidence of a forensic psychiatrist when it found Peirovy was embarrassed by his actions, did not have a sexual motivation and can improve through counselling.

Notwithstanding its findings of deliberate, sexual touching without patient consent or medical justification, in its decision on penalty the committee resiled from these clear conclusions and proceeded to explain the appellants conduct on the basis of poor communication and awkward manner, the CPSO lawyers write in their factum.

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Former prime minister Stephen Harper never made Progressive Conservative Leader Patrick Brown a cabinet minister.

But some of Harpers aides could make Brown the premier of Ontario.

With an eye toward toppling Premier Kathleen Wynnes Liberals in the June 7, 2018 provincial election, the Tory leader has quietly been assembling a talented team that includes many Ottawa veterans.

I asked my childhood friend Walied Soliman, as the campaign chair, to construct a campaign team with the best people, Brown explained in an interview.

Theyre coming from a variety of backgrounds, but I want the best people for each position. Where they got their political experience, where theyve been involved before, is irrelevant, he said.

Read more:

How Patrick Browns Tories dodge wedge issues: Cohn

Two more Wynne cabinet ministers say they wont run again in next Junes Ontario election

Is Browns election plan smart or dumb?: Hepburn

While Brown was a Conservative backbencher for nearly all of Harpers nine years in office, the two were never close.

That has not stopped the PC chief from welcoming into the fold some key advisers to the former prime minister.

If youre a Conservative leader, you have to draw from people who have been involved in previous Conservative campaigns, whether its those who were involved with Brian Mulroney or Bill Davis or Jean Charest or Stephen Harper, said Brown.

His chief of staff is Alykhan Velshi, who served as director of issues management and parliamentary affairs as well as director of strategic planning and stakeholder relations in the Prime Ministers Office under Harper.

Since arriving at Queens Park in March, Velshi has brought some discipline and order to an office that had been chaotic and reactive.

The leaders deputy chief of staff and head of communications is Rebecca Thompson, who was Harpers manager of strategic communications and stakeholder relations.

While the former prime minister was famously prickly in his dealings with the media, Thompsons revamp of Browns communications operation has made it a savvier, press-friendly outfit.

A willingness to be open and accessible to reporters is not the only difference between the PC leader and Harper.

Privately, Browns confidants point out that he breaks with federal Conservative orthodoxy by wanting to put a price on carbon.

That measure  to curb greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change  is seen as heresy in some traditional Tory quarters, but the 39-year-old leader believes his party has to side with modern science.

We want to do our part for the environment, he has repeatedly said while criss-crossing the province.

Shiv Raj, who was Harpers manager of tour, is now a senior adviser at Queens Park. Raj, a battle-tested campaign pro, runs Browns tour and handles community outreach.

Dan Robertson  a partner at Indent Communications, which redesigned the PC Party logo and makes Browns TV commercials  is another seasoned Harper alumnus.

Robertson was the federal Conservative Partys director of advertising during the 2011 campaign and was Harpers associate director of communications.

Brown has enlisted lobbyist Ken Boessenkool to help the Tories craft a campaign platform.

Boessenkool, a long-time Harper policy adviser, made headlines in 2012 when he was forced to resign as British Columbia Liberal premier Christy Clarks chief of staff and publicly apologize after admitting he acted inappropriately toward a waitress.

Also aboard is Dimitri Soudas, who was Harpers high-profile director of communications.

Soudas, who broke with the Conservatives after a much-publicized alliance with the federal Liberals several years ago, is back in the Tory camp.

Now working in the private sector, hes volunteered to run Browns election war room, where his rapid-response expertise will be invaluable.

Another conscript is Hamish Marshall, Harpers Oxford-educated manager of strategic planning, who is helping the provincial Tories with research.

Marshall managed federal Tory Leader Andrew Scheers successful leadership campaign earlier this year.

Despite the Harper connections, Browns personal political gurus are from an older generation.

The politician that Ive tried to emulate, the person that I consider a mentor, is former premier Bill Davis, he said of the PC titan who deftly governed Ontario from 1971 until 1985.

Brown emphasized that Mulroney  whose daughter, Caroline, is the PC candidate in York-Simcoe  is another inspiration for his work as prime minister between 1984 and 1993.

Youve heard me reference Brian Mulroneys work on apartheid in South Africa, the acid rain treaty, free trade, things that I think are positive for Canada.

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BARCELONA, SPAINThousands rallied in Madrid and Barcelona on Saturday in a last-ditch call for Spanish and Catalan leaders to stave off a national crisis amid Catalonias threat to secede.

The rallies in the Spanish capital and the Catalan city were held with the slogan Shall We Talk? in an effort to push lawmakers in both cities to end months of silence and start negotiating. Attendees respected the organizers call to not bring the Spanish or Catalan flag.

Catalonias regional president Carles Puigdemont has vowed to make good on the results of last Sundays disputed referendum on secession won by the Yes side. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy warned that the vote was illegal and has promised that Catalonia is going nowhere.

Read more:

Spain says coexistence is broken in Catalonia, blames separatists for pushing independence bid

Spanish court suspends Catalan parliament to pre-empt independence declaration

As Spain splinters, Europe shudders: Burman

Protestors packed Barcelonas Sant Jaume Square where the Catalan government has its presidential palace, shouting We want to talk! and holding signs saying More Negotiation, Less Testosterone! and Talk or Resign!

We have to find a new way forward, said Miquel Iceta, the leader of Spains Socialist party in Catalonia. Its the moment to listen to the people who are asking for the problem to be solved through an agreement, and without precipitated and unilateral decisions.

The gathering around Madrids Cibeles fountain boasted a huge banner demanding that leaders start talking. Some people chanted Less hate, and more understanding!

In a separate rally in Madrids Colon Square, thousands clamoured for the unity of Spain and against any attempt by the northeastern region to break away. The crowd bristled with Spanish flags. Pro-union forces will try to generate momentum on Sunday in a protest in Barcelona.

Other protests asking for dialogue were held in cities including Valencia, Bilbao, Pamplona and Santiago de Compostela, news agency Europa Press reported.

The calls for dialogue and unity come after a traumatic week, with riot police storming several polling stations in an unsuccessful attempt to impede the referendum. Instead, hundreds of voters were left in need of medical attention.

Even though 2.2 million Catalan voted  with 90 per cent backing independence  the referendum polled less than half of the regions electorate. Puigdemont declared he would seek a declaration of independence in the regional parliament anyway.

The bloodied vote was followed by a strike on Tuesday across Catalonia to protest the police violence. Then came the stern message from Spains King Felipe VI that the Catalan government and parliament were breaking the law.

Puigdemont and his separatist supporters were struck a blow when Catalonias top two banks, CaixaBank and Banco Sabadell, as well as energy giant Gas Natural announced they were relocating their headquarters from Catalonia to other parts of Spain.

Other companies are considering such a move to ensure that the regions possible secession wouldnt knock them out of the European Union and its lucrative common market.

Spains Minister of Public Works Inigo de la Serna said on Saturday that the companies will keep leaving and its exclusively the fault of the members of the regional government.

The warnings by the business sector have coincided with the first calls from within Puigdemonts government to hold off on a declaration of independence.

Santi Vila, Catalonias regional chief for business, told Cadena SER Radio late Friday that hes pushing for a new opportunity for dialogue with Spanish authorities.

We have to give it one more chance, maybe the last chance, and perhaps the only way that can happen is to start with a ceasefire, Vila said.

Vila said he would like to see Spanish authorities return powers to the region which they have assumed in recent weeks, including control of a large part of its finances.

It is unclear how widespread Vilas moderate position is inside the Catalan government, which is being pressured by separatist grassroots groups and the far-left party CUP to declare independence soon.

Separatist lawmakers had planned to discuss a secession plan on Monday, but that session in the regional parliament was suspended by the constitutional Court.

The focus has shifted to Tuesday, when Puigdemont is set to address the regional parliament to report on the current political situation.

The most recent polls taken before the referendum showed that the regions 7.5 million residents were roughly split on the issue.

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Just days after new General Electric Co. (CEO) - Get Free Report John Flannery added the role of chairman to his resume, well ahead of schedule, the manufacturing conglomerate announced sweeping leadership changes that may signal he's planning deep cuts to next year's financial targets.

CFO Jeffrey Bornstein, a 28-year-veteran, will retire at the end of December, along with John Rice, who had led divisions including energy and transportation, and Beth Comstock, head of the business innovations unit that included Current and GE Lighting, the Boston-based company said late Friday, Oct. 6. All three are vice chairs who reported directly to former CEO Jeffrey Immelt.

The shakeup comes as Flannery, who took over from Immelt on Aug. 1, undertakes a broad review of GE's businesses amid pressure from investors including activist Trian Partners to improve cash flow and profits while maintaining a dividend valued at $8 billion a year.

He is slated to provide an overview of his plans on Nov. 13, and Bornstein's departure from the CFO role before that -- and less than three months after he was promoted to vice chairman -- suggests the reset he proposes may be much harsher than expected, said Jeff Sprague, an analyst with Vertical Research Partners.

It's especially troubling since Bornstein "was portrayed as Mr. Flannery's partner in turning around the ship," Sprague said in a note to clients. "We thought it would be untenable for Mr. Bornstein to explain the bridge from the prior $2-plus 2018 construct to something much lower, and this now clearly seems the case."

The moves make a dividend cut at GE appear more likely, too, Sprague added. That could crush the stock, which dropped in after-hours trading on Friday, but keeping it gives the company little excess cash for expansion, he said.

"GE could end up in a better place once the dust settles," Sprague added, but "that better place could be with a starting point much lower for the stock price."

GE declined to make Bornstein, who was named CFO in 2013, available for an interview.

"As John evaluates the strategy for GE and put his leadership team in place, he and I have concluded that this is the right time to bring in a new CFO with a fresh perspective to guide GE's ongoing efforts to reduce costs, drive growth, improve our performance and enhance shareholder value," Bornstein said in a statement.

In his four years as finance chief, Bornstein worked with GE Capital chief Keith Sherin to wind down the sprawling lending division as Immelt returned GE to its core business of manufacturing with an emphasis on digital technology.

Helping to pare $190 billion in lending assets, Bornstein was "a dedicated and respected member of GE's leadership team" and a "valuable change agent," Flannery said in the statement.

Immelt, who had promoted Bornstein twice in four years, originally planned to remain chairman through the end of the year, but said Monday, Oct. 2, that he was handing off the role three months early after determining that the leadership transition had proceeded smoothly.

The company said Jamie Miller, the former head of GE Transportation, would succeed Bornstein as CFO. Miller joined GE in 2008 after a career that included stints at insurance provider Anthem Inc. and accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP.

At the manufacturer, she held the roles of controller and chief information officer before taking the reins at the locomotive division, which garnered $4.7 billion in sales last year. Sprague said he had considered her a "dark horse candidate" to succeed Immelt as CEO.

Shares of GE dropped less than 1% to $24.30 after the close of regular trading in New York on Friday. The shares had previously declined 4.8% to $24.39 since Flannery moved into the top job.

While the new CEO hasn't offered any hints about which businesses he might sell, he has said he's fully committed to digital manufacturing, the initiative championed by Immelt that led to the creation of Predix, a software platform that does for factories what Apple Inc.'s (AAPL) - Get Free Report iOS and Google's Android did for smartphones.

Analysts have suggested he's unlikely to propose a broad breakup like the one DowDupont undefined CEO Ed Breen orchestrated with the influence of Trian.

Still, the company, founded by Thomas Edison in the late 1800s, has to consider all its options, Sprague said in an interview prior to the shakeup.

He noted that Baker Hughes undefined is positioned well for a possible spinoff after the deal completed earlier this year that left GE with control of the combined publicly-traded company.

Other Wall Street analysts have suggested GE may consider selling assets from lighting, which was part of Comstock's portfolio, to power conversion and even the locomotive division previously headed by Miller.

"The alternatives are to try to grind it out in a cost-cutting and portfolio-simplification story or to try something more dramatic," Sprague said. "Probably the odds favor the former, just restructuring and grinding it out, but I would think they have to be looking at things that could have a bigger effect on the company and change the narrative and change the trajectory of the portfolio.

GE is a holding in Jim Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS Charitable Trust Portfolio. Want to be alerted before Cramer buys or sells GE? Learn more now.

Updated from 6:03 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 6, 2017.

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Following similar moves by its packaged foods competitors, Kellogg Co. (K) - Get Free Report announced Friday, Oct. 6, that it will pay $600 million for Chicago Bar Co. LLC, the maker of Rxbar protein bars.

The deal is valued at $400 million net of tax benefits, Kellogg said in a statement. Rxbar expects to generate net sales of $120 million in fiscal 2017. Including tax benefits, the price tag is about 12 to 14 times Rxbar's projected 2018 Ebitda.

The company makes distinctively packaged "clean-label" protein bars, with about 220 calories and 12 grams of protein. It will operate independently as a standalone business within Kellogg.

"Adding a pioneer in clean-label, high-protein snacking to our portfolio bolsters our already strong wholesome snacks offering," Kellogg CEO Steve Cahillane said in a statement. "With its strong millennial consumption and diversified channel presence including e-commerce, Rxbar is perfectly positioned to perform well against future food trends."

Protein bars are a popular category, with General Mills Inc. (GIS) - Get Free Report acquiring Epic Provisions LLC for what sources said was $100 million last year and its venture unit, 301 Inc., joining 2x Consumer Products Growth Partners in backing low-sugar, protein barmaker D's Naturals LLC on Feb. 28.

A Kellogg spokeswoman said in an email that Kellogg plans "on helping to accelerate the brand's continued growth by providing the tools and resources to scale the brand even faster than it is today" and does not intend to make any personnel changes.

Piper Jaffray & Co. provided financial advice to Rxbar, which retained a Giannuzzi Group LLP team led by Nick Giannuzzi for legal advice.

Kellogg tapped a Kirkland & Ellis LLP team of Keith Crow, Theodore Peto and Adam Clifford as its outside counsel.

It's Cahillane's first week on the job: he became Kellogg's first outside CEO since 1999 on Oct. 2. His predecessor, John Bryant, is the latest in a wave of executive departures at Big Food companies, including Muhtar Kent of Coca-Cola Co. (KO) - Get Free Report , Ken Powell of General Mills and Irene Rosenfeld of Mondelez International Inc. (MDLZ) - Get Free Report . The companies have struggled with lower sales volumes, diminishing shelf space, increasing private label penetration, pricing pressure and low barriers to entry for upstart competitors. Major food company dollar sales have declined almost 3% this year, according to Goldman Sachs analyst Jason English.

Battle Creek, Mich.-based Kellogg is not immune: its sales fell 5% in September, according to IRI data, and its shares are down 14.5% year to date, while the S&P 500 has increased 14% during that period.

These competitors have snapped up niche health-focused brands to keep up with changing customer tastes. Post Holdings Inc. (POST) - Get Free Report acquired healthy British cereal maker Weetabix Ltd. from China's Bright Food Group Co. Ltd. and Baring Private Equity Asia for 1.4 billion ($1.8 billion).

Campbell Soup Co. (CPB) - Get Free Report , for instance, agreed to pay $700 million for Pacific Foods of Oregon Inc. in July, although the pending acquisition hit a snag when the estate of the target's former shareholder sued the company.

Last month, Conagra Brands Inc. (CAG) - Get Free Report acquired private equity-backed ready-to-eat popcorn maker Angie's Artisan Treats LLC, a month after Mars Inc. picked up natural ready-to-eat Indian food products maker.

Nestle SA, under activist pressure, plans to exit its U.S. confectionery business and last month bought coffee chain Blue Bottle Coffee Inc. and plant-based foods maker Sweet Earth Inc.

Valuations are commensurately high: McCormick & Co. (MKC) - Get Free Report , for instance, paid just under 20 times Ebitda for Reckitt Benckiser Group plc's food division. The $4.2 billion deal closed Aug. 17.

Cahillane, a former Coca-Cola executive, previously served as CEO of vitamin maker Nature's Bounty Co., which Carlyle Group LP (CG) - Get Free Report sold to KKR & Co. LP (KKR) - Get Free Report in July, seven years after taking the company private for $4 billion.

The Rxbar acquisition is Kellogg's first acquisition in a year, following its 1.38 billion reais (about $439 million) purchase of Brazilian food company Ritmo Investimentos SA on Oct. 13. Excluding the tax benefits, it's Kellogg's largest deal since 2012, when it acquired the Pringles chips brand from Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) - Get Free Report for $2.7 billion.

The deal is expected to close by the end of the year.

Rxbar did not respond to requests for comment.

Kellogg shares rose 0.5% to $63.02 in Friday morning trading.

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Editors' pick: Originally published Oct. 6.
After two activist campaigns and one cancelled auction, nutritional products maker Omega Protein Corp. (OME) is finally hooked.

On Friday, Oct. 6, Canadian aquaculture company Cooke Inc. said it would pay $500 million, or $22 per share, in cash for Houston-based Omega Protein.

The moves comes barely more than a month after hedge fund BLR Partners LP, led by activist investor Bradley Radoff, along with Joshua Schecter, disclosed jointly owning nearly 6% of Omega Protein and said they'd like to see the company sold.

Radoff and Schecter's demands followed a long battle between Omega Protein and activist Nelson Obus of Wynnefield Capital Inc., which resulted in the company adding two insurgent nominated dissident directors to its board last year.

Radoff and Schecter were invested in Omega Protein when Wynnefield was pressuring the company to sell, but seemingly backed down as soon as the menhaden fish oil maker announced it hired an investment bank to review strategic alternatives.

That review concluded in May 2016, with the company opting not to pursue a sale of assets or the businessa move that may have provoked Radoff and Schecter into reengaging Omega Protein this summer as the company's stock has continued to suffer over the past year.

In early 2016, when Omega Protein shares were trading around $17 apiece, Obus told The Deal he thought the company could receive $25 per share in a sale, or about $550 million. Omega Protein share's closed Thursday's trading session at $16.60 apiece, giving the company a market capitalization of about $373 million.

Obus' biggest criticism of Omega Protein came from the company's decision to invest $160 million in the human nutrition space, including its $71 million acquisition of Bioriginal Food & Science Corp. in Sept. 2014.

Following the shelved review last May, the activist launched a proxy battle that resulted in two dissident directors, Michael Christodolou and David Clarke, being added to Omega's board. Clarke filled an empty seat, while Christodolou replaced incumbent director Gary Ermers, who was criticized by Obus for being a "hospital executive" with no prior experience at an agricultural products company. Obus liquidated his position in Omega Protein in May, according to data compiled by FactSet Research Systems Inc.

Meanwhile, Radoff and Schecter can now add their relatively uneventful campaign launched in August to the win column. The pair are fresh off a victory at struggling Philadelphia-based staffing and IT company CDI Corp. (CDI) , which agreed in August to sell itself to AE Industrial Partners LLC for $154 million after persistent agitation by the activists who were seeking to elect six new director candidates onto the company's board.

Radoff comes from Third Point LLC, a hedge fund led by well-known activist investor Dan Loeb, while Schechter is an alum of Warren Lichtenstein's Steel Partners LP.

To assist in their latest effort at Omega Protein, the pair engaged Antarctica Advisors LLC, a seafood industry-focused investment banking boutique headquartered in Miami, and activist-focused legal adviser Olshan Frome Wolosky LLP.

Antarctica Advisors represented Oceana Group Ltd. in May 2015 on its $382.3 million deal for Daybrook Fisheries Inc., then the second-largest U.S supplier of Omega-3-rich fish oil and fish meal. Antarctica Advisors' managing partner Ignacio Kleiman told The Deal then that Oceana's deal for Daybrook could open up the seafood sector for consolidation, with Omega Protein being among the most likely targets.

On Friday's transaction, Cooke is receiving financial advice from BMO Capital Markets, legal counsel from Kelley Drye & Warren LLP's Tim Lavender, Jane Jablons, Courtney Kleshinski and tax due diligence advice from Deloitte LLP. The buyer's in-house legal effort was handled by chief legal officer Rod Gould.

Jones Day is serving as legal counsel to BMO. BMO also is providing committed financing to Cooke for the transaction, and Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP is providing legal counsel to Cooke in relation to the committed financing. K&L Gates LLP's Jorge Romero served as maritime counsel to Cooke.

Omega Protein is receiving financial advice from JPMorgan Securities LLC, which led the company's auction process in early 2016. Vinson & Elkins LLP's Jeff Floyd, Brittany Sakowitz, Mike Marek, C.J. Murray, Key Hemyari, Jason McIntosh, Brian Russell, Curt Wimberly, Stephen Jacobson, Gina Hancock, Kristy Fields, Sean Becker, Paul Knettel, Billy Vigdor, David Smith, Evan Miller, David Wicklund, Larry Nettles, Matt Dobbins, Devika Kornbacher and Sean Hill.

Omega Protein also received legal counsel from Holland & Hart LLP's David Garcia in regards to Nevada law and maritime counsel from Liskow & Lewis plc's Blake Bennett. The seller's in-house legal effort was led by general counsel John Held.

Cooke, which operates a seafood division and various fish farms in Canada, the United States, Chile and Scotland, expects the deal to close in late 2017 or early 2018 pending Omega Protein shareholder approval and certain regulatory approvals.

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Editors' pick: Originally published Oct. 6.
Long Hill Fire Department would like to thank everyone that participated and volunteered to help with our Tractor Show and games. Special thanks go to these Agri-Businesses and Merchants for their support: Addys Power Equipment, Sales and Service, Ag Trac LLC, Agri-Mark-Cabot Cheese, Annas Flower Shoppe, Cazenovia Equipment, (Cortland), CNY Power Sports, CNY Farm Supply, Dee Dees Ice Cream, Dugans Country Grill, Edwards Eggs, Empire Tractor (Cortland), Franklin Ag Services, Garys Body Shop Inc., Genoa Pit Stop, Giuseppes Pizzeria (Moravia), Grants Septic Service, Helena Chemicals (Genoa), Jennings Dept. Store, Kellogg Auto Supply (Moravia), Keystone Mills (Moravia Store), King Ferry Corner Store, King Ferry Pizzeria, Kinney Drugs (Moravia), Kwik Fill-Moravia, Main & Pinckney Equipment, Modern Market, Monroe Tractor (Auburn), Moravia Liquors, New York Pizzeria (Moravia), Nolan Trucking, OHara Machinery, On Track Farming-Steff McGanagle, Owasco Airfield-Tom Bresford, Ryan Apiary, S & S Sales, Subway (Moravia), The Family Deli, The Gathering, Tim Rouse, Tractor Supply (Auburn & Cortland), Trucks-N-Stuff, Websters Garage, Wilcox General Store.
C&J Energy Services, Inc. provides well construction, well completion, well support, and other complementary oilfield services and technologies to oil and gas exploration and production companies throughout the continental United States. It operates through Completion Services and Well Support Services segments. The Completion Services segment provides hydraulic fracturing; cased-hole solutions comprising cased-hole wireline, pumpdown, wireline logging, perforating, pressure pumping, well site make-up and pressure testing, and other complementary services; and well construction and intervention services, which include cementing, coiled tubing, rig services, fluids management, and other completion and well support services. This segment also engages in the engineering and production of various parts and components, such as perforating guns and addressable switches, which are used in the completion process. The Well Support Services segment offers rig services, such as providing workover and well servicing rigs that are primarily used for the routine repair and maintenance of oil and gas wells, re-drilling operations, and plugging and abandonment operations; fluids management services, including storage, transportation, and disposal services for fluids used in the drilling, completion, and workover of oil and gas wells; and other special well site services, such as fishing, contract labor, and tool rental services for the completion and workover of oil and gas wells. The company was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.
Best Buy Co., Inc. retails technology products in the United States and Canada. The company operates in two segments, Domestic and International. Its stores provide computing products, such as desktops, notebooks, and peripherals; mobile phones comprising related mobile network carrier commissions; networking products; tablets covering e-readers; smartwatches; and consumer electronics consisting of digital imaging, health and fitness, home theater, portable audio comprising headphones and portable speakers, and smart home products. The company's stores also offer appliances, such as dishwashers, laundry, ovens, refrigerators, blenders, coffee makers, and vacuums; entertainment products consisting of drones, peripherals, movies, music, and toys, as well as gaming hardware and software, and virtual reality and other software products; and other products, such as baby, food and beverage, luggage, outdoor living, and sporting goods. In addition, it provides consultation, delivery, design, health-related, installation, memberships, repair, set-up, technical support, and warranty-related services. The company offers its products through stores and websites under the Best Buy, Best Buy Ads, Best Buy Business, Best Buy Health, CST, Current Health, Geek Squad, Lively, Magnolia, Best Buy Mobile, Pacific Kitchen, Home, and Yardbird, as well as domain names bestbuy.com, currenthealth.com, lively.com, yardbird.com, and bestbuy.ca. As of January 30, 2022, it had 1,144 stores. The company was formerly known as Sound of Music, Inc. The company was incorporated in 1966 and is headquartered in Richfield, Minnesota.
Citizens Financial Group, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Citizens Bank, National Association that provides retail and commercial banking products and services to individuals, small businesses, middle-market companies, corporations, and institutions in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Consumer Banking and Commercial Banking. The Consumer Banking segment offers deposit products, mortgage and home equity lending products, credit cards, business loans, wealth management, and investment services; and auto, education, and point-of-sale finance loans, as well as digital deposit products. This segment serves its customers through telephone service centers, as well as through its online and mobile platforms. The Commercial Banking segment provides various financial products and solutions, including lending and leasing, deposit and treasury management services, foreign exchange, and interest rate and commodity risk management solutions, as well as syndicated loans, corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, and debt and equity capital markets services. This segment serves government banking, not-for-profit, healthcare, technology, professionals, oil and gas, asset finance, franchise finance, asset-based lending, commercial real estate, private equity, and sponsor finance industries. It operates approximately 1,200 branches in 14 states and the District of Columbia; 114 retail and commercial non-branch offices in national markets; and approximately 3,300 automated teller machines. The company was formerly known as RBS Citizens Financial Group, Inc. and changed its name to Citizens Financial Group, Inc. in April 2014. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. was founded in 1828 and is headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island.
The following companies are subsidiares of PepsiCo: Alimentos Quaker Oats y Compania Limitada, Alimentos del Istmo S.A., Amavale Agricola Ltda., Anderson Hill Insurance Limited, Asia Bottlers Limited, BAESA Capital Corporation Ltd., BFY Brands, BFY Brands LLC, BFY Brands Limited, BUG de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Balmoral Industries LLC, Bare Foods Co., Barrhead LLC, Be & Cheery, Beaman Bottling Company, Bebidas Sudamerica S.A., Beech Limited, Bell Taco Funding Syndicate, Bendler Investments II Ltd, Bendler Investments S.a r.l, Beverage Services Limited, Beverages Foods & Service Industries Inc., Bishkeksut OJSC, Blaue NC S. de R.L. de C.V., Blue Cloud Distribution Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Arizona Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Arkansas Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Colorado Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Florida Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Georgia Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Illinois Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Indiana Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Iowa Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Kentucky Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Louisiana Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Minnesota Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Mississippi Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Missouri Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Nebraska Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Nevada Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of North Carolina Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Ohio Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Oklahoma Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Pennsylvania Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of South Carolina Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Tennessee Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Texas Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Virginia Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Wisconsin Inc., Blue Ridge Sales LLC, Bluebird Foods Limited, Bluecan Holdings Unlimited Company, Bokomo Zambia Limited, Bolsherechensky Molkombinat JSC, Boquitas Fiestas LLC, Boquitas Fiestas S.R.L., Bottling Group Financing LLC, Bottling Group Holdings LLC, Bottling Group LLC, Bronte Industries Ltd, C & I Leasing Inc., CB Manufacturing Company Inc., CEME Holdings LLC, CMC Investment Company, Caroni Investments LLC, Centro-Mediterranea de Bebidas Carbonicas PepsiCo S.L., Ceres Fruit Juices Pty Ltd, ChampBev Inc., China Concentrate Holdings Hong Kong Limited, Chipsy International for Food Industries S.A.E., Chipsy for Food Industries S.A.E., Chitos Internacional y Cia Ltda, Cipa Industrial de Produtos Alimentares Ltda., Cipa Nordeste Industrial de Produtos Alimentares Ltda., Cocina Autentica Inc., Comercializadora CMC Investment y Compania Limitada, Comercializadora Nacional SAS Ltda., Comercializadora PepsiCo Mexico S de R.L. de C.V., Compania de Bebidas PepsiCo S.L., Concentrate Holding Uruguay Pte. Ltd., Concentrate Manufacturing Singapore Pte. Ltd., Confiteria Alegro S. de R.L. de C.V., Copella Fruit Juices Limited, Copper Beech International LLC, Corina Snacks Limited, Corporativo Internacional Mexicano S. de R.L. de C.V., CytoSport Holdings Inc., CytoSport Inc., Davlyn Realty Corporation, Defosto Holdings Limited, Desarrollo Inmobiliario Gamesa S. de R.L. de C.V., Dilexis S.A., Donon Holdings Limited, Drinkfinity USA Inc., Drinkstation Inc., Drinkstation Innovation Co. Ltd., Drinkstation Limited, Dutch Snacks Holding S.A. de C.V., Duyvis Production B.V., EPIC Enterprises Inc., Echo Bay Holdings Inc., Elaboradora Argentina de Cereales S.R.L., Enter Logistica LLC, Environ at Inverrary Partnership, Environ of Inverrary Inc., Eridanus Investments S.a r.l, Evercrisp Snack Productos de Chile S.A., FL Transportation Inc., FLI Andean LLC, FLI Colombia LLC, FLI Snacks Andean GP LLC, Fabrica PepsiCo Mexicali S. de R.L. de C.V., Fabrica de Productos Alimenticios Rene y Cia S.C.A., Fairlight International SRL, Far East Bottlers Hong Kong Limited, Food Concepts Pioneer Ltd., Forest Akers Nederland B.V., Forty-Six Peaks Holding Inc., Fovarosi Asvanyviz es Uditoipari Zartkoruen Mukodo Reszvenytarsasag, Freshwater International B.V., Frito Lay Gida Sanayi Ve Ticaret Anonim Sirketi, Frito Lay Poland Sp. z o.o., Frito Lay Sp. z o.o., Frito Lay de Guatemala y Compania Limitada, Frito-Lay Australia Holdings Pty Limited, Frito-Lay Dip Company Inc., Frito-Lay Dominicana S.A., Frito-Lay Global Investments B.V., Frito-Lay Inc., Frito-Lay Investments B.V., Frito-Lay Manufacturing LLC, Frito-Lay Netherlands Holding B.V., Frito-Lay North America Inc., Frito-Lay Sales Inc., Frito-Lay Trading Company Europe GmbH, Frito-Lay Trading Company GmbH, Frito-Lay Trading Company Poland GmbH, Frito-Lay Trinidad Unlimited, Fruko Mesrubat Sanayi Limited Sirketi, GB Czech LLC, GB International Inc., GB Russia LLC, GB Slovak LLC, GMP Manufacturing Inc., Gambrinus Investments Limited, Gamesa LLC, Gamesa S. de R.L. de C.V., Gas Natural de Merida S. A. de C. V., Gatorade Puerto Rico Company, General Bottlers of Hungary Inc., Golden Grain Company, Goveh S.R.L., Grayhawk Leasing LLC, Green Hemlock International LLC, Grupo Frito Lay y Compania Limitada, Grupo Gamesa S. de R.L. de C.V., Grupo Mabel, Grupo Sabritas S. de R.L. de C.V., Gulkevichskiy Maslozavod JSC, Hangzhou Baicaowei Corporate Management Consulting Co. Ltd., Hangzhou Haomusi Food Co, Hangzhou Haomusi Food Co. Ltd., Hangzhou Tao Dao Technology Co. Ltd., Health Warrior, Health Warrior Inc., Heathland LP, Helioscope Limited, Hillbrook Inc., Hillgrove Inc., Hillwood Bottling LLC, Hogganfield Limited Partnership, Holding Company "Opolie" JSC, Homefinding Company of Texas, Hudson Valley Insurance Company, IC Equities Inc., IZZE Beverage Co., Inmobiliaria Interamericana S.A. De C.V., Integrated Beverage Services Bangladesh Limited, Integrated Foods & Beverages Pvt. Ltd., International Bottlers Management Co. LLC, International KAS Aktiengesellschaft, Inversiones Borneo S.R.L., Inversiones PFI Chile Limitada, Inviting Foods Holdings Inc., Inviting Foods LLC, KAS Anorthosis S.a r.l, KAS S.L., KFC, Kevita Inc., Kinvara LLC, Kungursky Molkombinat JSC, Larragana S.L., Latin American Holdings Ltd., Latin American Snack Foods ApS, Latin Foods International LLC, Lebedyansky, Lebedyansky Holdings LLC, Lebedyansky LLC, Limited Liability Company "Sandora", Linkbay Limited, Lithuanian Snacks UAB, Mabel, Marbo Product d.o.o. Beograd, Marbo d.o.o. Laktasi, Matudis - Comercio de Produtos Alimentares Limitada, Matutano - Sociedade de Produtos Alimentares Lda., Mid-America Improvement Corporation, Mountainview Insurance Company Inc., Muscle Milk, NCJV LLC, New Bern Transport Corporation, New Century Beverage Company LLC, Noble Leasing LLC, Northeast Hot-Fill Co-op Inc., Office at Solyanka LLC, Onbiso Inversiones S.L., One World Enterprises LLC, One World Investors Inc., P-A Barbados Bottling Company LLC, P-A Bottlers Barbados SRL, P-Americas LLC, PAS Luxembourg S.a r.l, PAS Netherlands B.V., PBG Canada Holdings II LLC, PBG Canada Holdings Inc., PBG Cyprus Holdings Limited, PBG Investment Partnership, PBG Midwest Holdings S.a r.l, PBG Soda Can Holdings S.a r.l, PCBL LLC, PCNA Manufacturing Inc., PR Beverages Cyprus Holding Limited, PR Beverages Cyprus Russia Holding Limited, PRB Luxembourg S.a r.l, PRS Inc., PSAS Inversiones LLC, PSE Logistica S.R.L., PT Quaker Indonesia, Papas Chips S.A., Pei N.V., Pep Trade LLC, Pepsi B.V., Pepsi Beverages Holdings Inc., Pepsi Bottling Group Global Finance LLC, Pepsi Bottling Group GmbH, Pepsi Bottling Group Hoosiers B.V., Pepsi Bottling Holdings Inc., Pepsi Bugshan Investments S.A.E., Pepsi Cola Colombia Ltda, Pepsi Cola Egypt S.A.E., Pepsi Cola Panamericana S.R.L., Pepsi Cola Servis Ve Dagitim Limited Sirketi, Pepsi Cola Trading Ireland, Pepsi Logistics Company Inc., Pepsi Northwest Beverages LLC, Pepsi Overseas Investments Partnership, Pepsi Promotions Inc., Pepsi-Cola Advertising and Marketing Inc., Pepsi-Cola Bermuda Limited, Pepsi-Cola Bottlers Holding C.V., Pepsi-Cola Bottling Company Of St. Louis Inc., Pepsi-Cola Bottling Company of Ft. Lauderdale-Palm Beach LLC, Pepsi-Cola Company, Pepsi-Cola Ecuador Cia. Ltda., Pepsi-Cola Far East Trade Development Co. Inc., Pepsi-Cola Finance LLC, Pepsi-Cola General Bottlers Poland Sp. z o.o., Pepsi-Cola Industrial da Amazonia Ltda., Pepsi-Cola International Cork, Pepsi-Cola International LLC, Pepsi-Cola International Limited, Pepsi-Cola International Limited U.S.A., Pepsi-Cola International Private Limited, Pepsi-Cola Korea Co. Ltd., Pepsi-Cola Management and Administrative Services Inc., Pepsi-Cola Manufacturing Company Of Uruguay S.R.L., Pepsi-Cola Manufacturing International Limited, Pepsi-Cola Manufacturing Mediterranean Limited, Pepsi-Cola Marketing Corp. Of P.R. Inc., Pepsi-Cola Mediterranean Ltd., Pepsi-Cola Metropolitan Bottling Company Inc., Pepsi-Cola Mexicana Holdings LLC, Pepsi-Cola Mexicana S. de R.L. de C.V., Pepsi-Cola National Marketing LLC, Pepsi-Cola Operating Company Of Chesapeake And Indianapolis, Pepsi-Cola Sales and Distribution Inc., Pepsi-Cola Technical Operations Inc., Pepsi-Cola Thai Trading Co. Ltd., Pepsi-Cola de Honduras S.R.L., Pepsi-Cola of Corvallis Inc., PepsiAmericas Nemzetkozi Szolgaltato Korlatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, PepsiCo ANZ Holdings Pty Ltd, PepsiCo Alimentos Antioquia Ltda., PepsiCo Alimentos Colombia Ltda., PepsiCo Alimentos Ecuador Cia. Ltda., PepsiCo Alimentos Z.F. Ltda., PepsiCo Alimentos de Bolivia S.R.L., PepsiCo Amacoco Bebidas Do Brasil Ltda., PepsiCo Asia Research & Development Center Company Limited, PepsiCo Australia Financing Cyprus Limited, PepsiCo Australia Financing Limited Partnership, PepsiCo Australia Financing Partner 1 LLC, PepsiCo Australia Financing Partner 2 LLC, PepsiCo Australia Financing Pty Ltd, PepsiCo Australia Holdings Pty Limited, PepsiCo Australia International, PepsiCo Austria Services GmbH, PepsiCo Azerbaijan Limited Liability Company, PepsiCo BeLux BV, PepsiCo Beverage Sales LLC, PepsiCo Beverage Singapore Pty Ltd, PepsiCo Beverages Bermuda Limited, PepsiCo Beverages Hong Kong Limited, PepsiCo Beverages International Limited, PepsiCo Beverages Italia Societa' A Responsabilita' Limitata, PepsiCo Canada Finance LLC, PepsiCo Canada Holdings ULC, PepsiCo Canada Investment ULC, PepsiCo Canada ULC, PepsiCo Captive Holdings Inc., PepsiCo Caribbean Inc., PepsiCo China Limited, PepsiCo Consulting Polska Sp. z o.o., PepsiCo De Bolivia S.R.L., PepsiCo Del Paraguay S.R.L., PepsiCo Deutschland GmbH, PepsiCo Eesti AS, PepsiCo Euro Bermuda Limited, PepsiCo Euro Finance Antilles B.V., PepsiCo Europe Support Center S.L., PepsiCo Finance Americas Company, PepsiCo Finance Antilles A N.V., PepsiCo Finance Antilles B N.V., PepsiCo Finance South Africa Proprietary Limited, PepsiCo Financial Shared Services Inc., PepsiCo Food & Beverage Holdings Hong Kong Limited, PepsiCo Foods A.I.E., PepsiCo Foods China Company Limited, PepsiCo Foods Group Pty Ltd, PepsiCo Foods Guangdong Co. Ltd., PepsiCo Foods Nigeria Limited, PepsiCo Foods Private Limited, PepsiCo Foods Sichuan Co. Ltd., PepsiCo Foods Taiwan Co. Ltd., PepsiCo Foods Vietnam Company, PepsiCo France SAS, PepsiCo Global Business Services India LLP, PepsiCo Global Business Services Poland Sp. z o.o., PepsiCo Global Holdings Limited, PepsiCo Global Investments B.V., PepsiCo Global Investments S.a r.l, PepsiCo Global Mobility LLC, PepsiCo Global Real Estate Inc., PepsiCo Global Trading Solutions Unlimited Company, PepsiCo Golden Holdings Inc., PepsiCo Group Finance International B.V., PepsiCo Group Holdings International B.V., PepsiCo Group Spotswood Holdings S.a r.l, PepsiCo Gulf International FZE, PepsiCo Hellas Single Member Industrial and Commercial Societe Anonyme, PepsiCo Holding de Espana S.L., PepsiCo Holdings, PepsiCo Holdings LLC, PepsiCo Holdings Toshkent LLC, PepsiCo Hong Kong LLC, PepsiCo Iberia Servicios Centrales S.L., PepsiCo India Holdings Private Limited, PepsiCo India Sales Private Limited, PepsiCo Internacional Mexico S. de R. L. de C. V., PepsiCo International Hong Kong Limited, PepsiCo International Limited, PepsiCo International Pte Ltd., PepsiCo Investments Europe I B.V., PepsiCo Investments Ltd., PepsiCo Ireland Food & Beverages Unlimited Company, PepsiCo Japan Co. Ltd., PepsiCo Light B.V., PepsiCo Logistyka Sp. z o.o., PepsiCo Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., PepsiCo Management Services SAS, PepsiCo Manufacturing A.I.E., PepsiCo Max B.V., PepsiCo Mexico Holdings S. de R.L. de C.V., PepsiCo Nederland B.V., PepsiCo Nordic Denmark ApS, PepsiCo Nordic Finland Oy, PepsiCo Nordic Norway AS, PepsiCo Nutrition Trading DMCC, PepsiCo One B.V., PepsiCo Overseas Corporation, PepsiCo Overseas Financing Partnership, PepsiCo Panimex Inc, PepsiCo Products B.V., PepsiCo Products FLLC, PepsiCo Puerto Rico Inc., PepsiCo Sales Inc., PepsiCo Sales LLC, PepsiCo Services Asia Ltd., PepsiCo Services CZ s.r.o., PepsiCo Services LLC, PepsiCo Twist B.V., PepsiCo UK Pension Plan Trustee Limited, PepsiCo Ventures B.V., PepsiCo Wave Holdings LLC, PepsiCo World Trading Company Inc., PepsiCo Y LLC, PepsiCo de Argentina S.R.L., PepsiCo de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., PepsiCo do Brasil Industria e Comercio de Alimentos Ltda., PepsiCo do Brasil Ltda., PepsiCola Interamericana de Guatemala S.A., Pet Iberia S.L., Pete & Johnny Limited, Pine International LLC, Pine International Limited, Pinstripe Leasing LLC, Pioneer Food Group Pty Ltd, Pioneer Foods Groceries Pty Ltd, Pioneer Foods Group Ltd., Pioneer Foods Holdings Pty Ltd, Pioneer Foods Pty Ltd, Pioneer Foods UK Ltd, Pioneer Foods Wellingtons Pty Ltd, Pipers Crisps Limited, PlayCo Inc., Pop corners, PopCorners Holdings Inc., Portfolio Concentrate Solutions Unlimited Company, Premier Nutrition Trading L.L.C., Prestwick LLC, Prev PepsiCo Sociedade Previdenciaria, Productos Alimenticios Rene LLC, Productos S.A.S. C.V., Productos SAS Management B.V., Punch N.V., Punica Getranke GmbH, Q O Puerto Rico Inc., QFL OHQ Sdn. Bhd., QTG Development Inc., QTG Services Inc., Quadrant - Amroq Beverages S.R.L., Quaker Development B.V., Quaker European Beverages LLC, Quaker European Investments B.V., Quaker Foods, Quaker Global Investments B.V., Quaker Holdings UK Limited, Quaker Manufacturing LLC, Quaker Oats Asia Inc., Quaker Oats Australia Pty Ltd, Quaker Oats B.V., Quaker Oats Capital Corporation, Quaker Oats Europe Inc., Quaker Oats Europe LLC, Quaker Oats Limited, Quaker Sales & Distribution Inc, Raptas Finance S.a r.l., Rare Fare Foods LLC, Rare Fare Holdings Inc., Reading Industries Ltd, Real Estate Holdings LLC, Rockstar Energy Drink, Rolling Frito-Lay Sales LP, S & T of Mississippi Inc., SIH International LLC, SVC Logistics Inc., SVC Manufacturing Inc., SVE Russia Holdings GmbH, Sabritas LLC, Sabritas S. de R.L. de C.V., Sabritas Snacks America Latina de Nicaragua y Cia Ltda, Sabritas de Costa Rica S. de R.L., Sabritas y Cia. S en C de C.V., Sakata Rice Snacks Australia Pty Ltd, Sandora Holdings B.V., Saudi Snack Foods Company Limited, Sea Eagle International SRL, Seepoint Holdings Ltd., Senselet Food Processing PLC, Senselet Holding B.V., Servicios GBF Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada, Servicios GFLG y Compania Limitada, Servicios Gamesa Puerto Rico L.L.C., Servicios SYC S. de R.L. de C.V., Seven-Up Asia Inc., Seven-Up Light B.V., Seven-Up Nederland B.V., Shanghai PepsiCo Snack Company Limited, Shanghai YuHo Agricultural Development Co. Ltd, Shoebill LLC, Simba (Proprietary) Limited, Simba Proprietary Limited, Sitka Spruce, Smartfoods Inc., Smiles and Bites Holdings S.de R.L. de C.V., Smiths Crisps Limited, Snack Food Investments GmbH, Snack Food Investments II GmbH, Snack Food Investments Limited, Snack Food-Beverage Asia Products Limited, Snacks America Latina S.R.L., Snacks Guatemala Ltd., So Spark Ltd., Soda-Club CO2 Atlantic GmbH, Soda-Club CO2 GmbH, Soda-Club CO2 Ltd., Soda-Club Switzerland GmbH, Soda-Club Worldwide B.V., SodaStream, SodaStream Australia Pty Ltd, SodaStream CO2 SA, SodaStream Canada Ltd., SodaStream Enterprises N.V., SodaStream France SAS, SodaStream GmbH, SodaStream Iberia S.L., SodaStream Industries Ltd., SodaStream International B.V., SodaStream International Ltd., SodaStream Israel Ltd., SodaStream K.K., SodaStream New Zealand Ltd., SodaStream Nordics AB, SodaStream Poland Sp. z o.o., SodaStream SA Pty Ltd., SodaStream Switzerland GmbH, SodaStream USA Inc., SodaStream Osterreich GmbH, South Beach Beverage Company Inc., South Properties Inc., Spitz International Inc., Sportmex Internacional S.A. de C.V., Springboig Industries Ltd, Spruce Limited, Stacy's Pita Chip Company Incorporated, Star Foods E.M. S.R.L., Stokely-Van Camp Inc., Stratosphere Communications Pty Ltd, Stratosphere Holdings 2018 Limited, Streamfoods Ltd, TFL Holdings LLC, Tasman Finance S.a r.l, The Gatorade Company, The Good Carb Food Company Ltd., The Pepsi Bottling Group Canada ULC, The Quaker Oats Company, The Smith's Snackfood Company Pty Limited, Thomond Group Holdings Limited, Tobago Snack Holdings LLC, Tropicana Alvalle S.L., Tropicana Beverages Limited, Tropicana Europe N.V., Tropicana United Kingdom Limited, Troya-Ultra LLC, United Foods Companies Restaurantes S.A., V-Water, VentureCo Israel Ltd, Veurne Snack Foods BV, Vitamin Brands Ltd., Walkers Crisps Limited, Walkers Group Limited, Walkers Snack Foods Limited, Walkers Snacks Distribution Limited, Walkers Snacks Limited, Whitman Corporation, Whitman Insurance Co. Ltd., Wimm-Bill-Dann Beverages JSC, Wimm-Bill-Dann Brands Co. 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Powerball numbers for Monday, Nov. 14, 2022

Here are the winning Powerball numbers and results for the lottery jackpot drawing on Monday, Nov. 14, 2022.
First, there was foamcrete, then there was papercrete and hempcrete. And now we've got AirCrete, a foamy mixture of air bubbles and cement that is cheap to make, water-resistant, fireproof, and DIY-friendly.

At one point, I fell under the spell of domes as a building form, and as I had plans to someday build my own home on some vacant land, I spent quite a bit of time and energy exploring the idea. Geodesic domes look cool, but there are a lot of angles and joints on a geodesic dome house that not only have to be cut and assembled, but would also serve as constant reminders of structural weak points and where water could leak through. Additionally, all materials would have to come from off-site, so that design was out for me.

The Search for the Perfect Dome

A rammed earth home, however, could be built with mostly on-site materials (plus a metric boatload of labor), but that technique would work best with walls that were vertical, not curved. Adobe blocks could be made on-site and built into a dome, and would be an appropriate choice for living comfortably in the southwest, but I wasn't convinced that adobe was the best material for forming the roof of a dome, even if plastered and sealed.

I fell in love with Nader Khalili's fired ceramic houses, which led me down the path to his SuperAdobe creations and then to earthbag construction in general, which seemed the most accessible style. In the end, I ended up buying an old adobe home, so I never got any further into building a dome than doing the research. Still, I keep my eye out for interesting and low-cost methods of DIY building, and recently I came across this construction material that seems worthy of consideration.

AirCrete Homes

DomeGaia's AirCrete homes, the brainchild of Hajjar Gibran (who happens to be the great-nephew of the poet Kahlil Gibran), are made with a foamy mixture of cement and air bubbles. The blend creates a lightweight and low-cost building block that is fireproof, water-resistant, insect-proof, and serves to insulate the building. According to its creator, AirCrete offers many desirable attributes for use as a building material for single-story residences, especially for the owner-builder, among them the ability to cut construction costs "by a factor of 10" when compared with conventional construction.

Steve Areen / DomeGaia





Beyond its affordability, DomeGaia says their AirCrete is easy to work with, drying in just one night and flexible enough to be shaped into almost any form. You can use your standard wood-working tools to carve or drill into the material, inserting screws and nails where necessary. Since the material hardens as time passes, you can be more confident about the shape you settle on instead of being increasingly worried about future vulnerabilities.

The key to DomeGaia's AirCrete is in the foaming agent, which works to suspend tiny air bubbles in the cement mixture, and a small piece of equipment, a continuous foam generator, which disperses a mix of the foaming agent (something as simple as an all-natural "high foaming" dish detergent) into the cement mixture to be mixed together. DomeGaia sells a readymade foam generator unit, the Little Dragon, and has plans and parts for building your own. They also sell a Foam-Injection AirCrete Mixer.

DomeGaia also sells building plans for AirCrete domes and offers 5- and 10-day building workshops in Hawaii, Mexico, and Chile for anyone wanting a little bit of practice before constructing an AirCrete dome by themselves. While DomeGaia promotes their own AirCrete material and dome, I did come across a number of other videos about building with AirCrete, as well as a UK organization called the Aircrete Products Association. Though I no longer have an immediate need for a new home project, it's nice to know AirCrete material is readily accessible when I do find that perfect plot of vacant land.
Remember that Arenal itself is often in the clouds. If you get lucky and it clears out, we thought it was spectacular, and we are not into "mountains", prefer beaches...we still thought it was so beautiful (stayed at Arenal Observatory Lodge). Re transportation in between some attractions, unless you will be renting own car, if you stay near this hostel in La Fortuna, they advertise unlimited day pass for a shared shuttle between the attractions for US$15 pp- http://www.lachozainnhostel.com .

CR is expensive, especially tour prices, certain admissions, etc., as well as private transfers and taxis - what they charge, not necessarily what they "should" cost. AOL was quoting US$30 one way to get to La Fortuna (about 25 min drive away).

As Xelas says, Tortuguero is way too far from Arenal, not for he total # of days that you have. Leave Tortuguero and S. Caribbean coast for a separate trip from San Jose. Or combine the 2 coasts in one longer trip.

Edited: 5 years ago
Would really appreciate some local advice on my following trip to Costa Rica.

Me and my partner and our 18 month old daughter are very excited to be coming to Costa Rica for a month in Jan.

In terms of schedule we were thinking of:

Heading to Puerto Viejo- staying a cocles/ Uva for 10 days (flying with Sansa)

Going to Monterverde for 4 nights (by inter bus from SJ)

Then either getting the inter bus to Samara or Santa Teresa, and going to Montezuma.

Firstly Im wondering given the time of year whether were doing it the wrong way round as I appreciate first few weeks of jan are peak, peak season and perhaps its best to fly to Tambor when we first arrive and head to Montezuma, Santa Teresa as they wont be as over-run with tourists as Puerto Viejo in the first 2 weeks of Jan? Or will it be the same? and are we more likely to get dry weather the second half of jan in Puerto Viejo than the first?

Would really appreciate anyones insight into these queries.

I think Samara sounds like our kind of place, laid backed, fairly quiet and not over developed, good for swimming, yoga etc but wondering if well get the same vibe in Montezuma? Or if its worth heading to Samara too?

It seems that the drive between Samara and Santa teresa is rough and not much public transport options so wondering firstly whether its best to stick to either the Samara and Nosara area or the Santa Teresa/ Montezuma area. Or if its worth getting a 4x4 to travel and explore beaches in-between these locations or indeed if its just a good idea to have a 4x4 at the coast for exploring around Santa teresa/ Montezuma or around Samara or whether its quite do-able by local buses to neighbouring areas once were there.

Again any advice would be gratefully received.

With much thanks in advance for your time and help!
We will be staying November 7-21. We are an active couple in our early 60s. we have booked a house for the entire time in Manuel Antonio with a group of 12 people, but will be on our own for adventures. We like to hike, ride the rapids, snorkel, swim at the beach, see the sites, relax, and dine out.

Questions:

1. Should we rent a car? I heard it is expensive and rough driving in places. If not, what is the price for a shuttle?

2. Can anyone suggest a good itinerary? Most I've seen are for 1 week.

Thanks!
When you say "the volcano" you probably mean Arenal so you could start there. 2-3 days. The volcano is not active but it is beautiful (hopefully it won't be hiding behind the clouds). If it were my trip I would then go to Tortuguero (1-2 days), then Cahuita (amazing National Park with great beaches, beautiful rainforest trail and lots of wildlife) and then the beaches south of Puerto Viejo for more beautiful wild natural beaches bordered by rainforest and more wildlife. We stayed in Manzanillo. Very laid-back area. You can rent a car but for this itinerary you might just rent a car for Arenal and then use shuttles, boats and buses.
Is your company in need of the most reliable and efficient best Best Jasmine Tea s in the market? Your good luck led you to the ideal situation, so congratulations! You are in the best possible place. By eliminating the need to read through dozens of Best Jasmine Tea reviews, we are saving you time and stress.

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- Chaos broke in Busia town during the anti-IEBC demonstrations held on Friday, October 6

- The chaos lasted for round two hours as demonstrators engaged in running battles with police officers

- At one point the demonstrators stunned police officers after they hurled teargas canisters on police officers

Anti-IEBC demonstrations turned nasty in several parts of Raila Odinga's stronghold as residents boldly took on police officers.

As TUKO.co.ke had earlier reported, demonstrators turned on a popular supermarket and vandalized it, while disrupting the countys water supply.

A section of the vandalised Tumaini Supermarket. Photo: Nation

READ ALSO: Hassan Omar ditches Raila for Uhuru

More reports now indicate that the protesters stunned police officers with teargas canisters in Busia county.

Protesters engaged the police in running battles in a two hour standoff, with police being surprised on several occasions with teargas being thrown their way from protesting NASA supporters.

Police officers engaging with protesters in the past. Photo: Nation

READ ALSO: Nyagarama warns Uhuru over Nyamira's choice of president.

Officers were forced to scamper to safety as demonstrators, who were expected to be the ones intimidated by armed police, boldly retaliated using teargas canisters.

At one point, a canister was launched inside a GSU water cannon, throwing police officers into panic

READ ALSO: In Photos: Nairobi business community arrives in buses to counter NASA anti -IEBC demos

Reports indicate that transport was paralyzed for a large part of Friday, October 6 as protesters blocked roads.

Busia Deputy Governor Hamilton Orata, announced that the protests would go on if the IEBC CEO Ezra Chiloba did not resign.

Protest spanned across the counties including Nairobi. Photo: Facebook.com/ EstherPassaris

READ ALSO: Chiloba removed as head of team handling fresh election following pressure by Raila

"We shall continue with the protests until IEBC CEO Ezra Chiloba resigns from the commission," Orata was quoted by Nation.

While it is not certain where residents retrieved the canisters, it is believed they were scavenged from previous demonstrations.

Interestingly, Homa Bay supporters were crying foul over lack of enough teargas during the anti IEBC protests because the money belongs to taxpayers.

Have anything to add to this article or suggestions? Share with us on news@tuko.co.ke

Anti-IEBC demos turn chaotic as police boss issues stern warning:

Source: TUKO.co.ke
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 []
- US has issued a stern warning to President Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila Odinga ahead of repeat poll

- US is concerned that both NASA and Jubilee have issued demands to the IEBC

- Trump's administration has warned that such demands are escalating political temperatures and the US will not take them lightly

The United States has sounded a warning to President Uhuru Kenyatta and his rival Raila Odinga just days to the repeat poll slated for Thursday, October 26.

In a statement by the U.S Department of State, President Donald Trump's administration has expressed concern over the hardline stances adopted by both parties over the repeat poll.

US says it is concerned that the political temperatures are escalating.

Trump's govt has issued a warning to Uhuru and Raila over their demands to IEBC Photo: New York Times

READ ALSO: Chiloba removed as head of team handling fresh election following pressure by Raila

"The United States government is deeply concerned by the deterioration in the political environment in Kenya in advance of the October 26, presidential election," the statement read.

The US further said it is unfortunate that in recent weeks actors on all sides have undermined the electoral commission and stoked tensions.

It said it is 'closely monitoring Kenyas electoral process and what politicians are saying and doing.'

NASA demonstrators destroy water pipes in Kisumu Photo: Nation

READ ALSO: Raila supporter shot in anti-IEBC demos in Nyanza

"While we support freedom of speech, baseless attacks and unreasonable demands on the electoral commission are divisive. We fully support the commissions efforts to engage leaders and parties in dialogue, and urge all to participate openly, seriously, and in good faith," it said further.

Trump's administration took a swipe at Jubilee for trying to change electoral laws ahead of the repeat poll.

It said 'changing the laws without broad agreement just prior to a poll is not consistent with international best practice, increases political tension, and undermines public perceptions of the integrity of the electoral process.'

Pro-Jubilee supporters storm Nairobi CBD Photo: Facebook/Julius Wahome

READ ALSO: NASA blames Jubilee for the destruction and looting in Kisumu during demos

"Kenyan leaders and citizens must reject violence and call on others to do the same. Security services should use the utmost restraint in handling demonstrations, and any response must be proportionate and appropriate," it said further.

NASA has continued with street protests to demand the removal of IEBC officials from office. The opposition has also come up with irreducible minimums, a least of demands which must be met before the repeat poll.

On its part, Jubilee has embarked on changing electoral laws in what they say is conforming with the Supreme Court ruling that invalidated Uhuru's win in the August 8 election.

IEBC meets NASA and Jubilee principals

Have something to add to this article or suggestions? Send to news@tuko.co.ke

Source: TUKO.co.ke
- Uhuru's administration has began a crackdown on the judiciary by suspending its key financier

- The Kenya government has shut down IDLO, a foreign NGO that provides financial and technical support to the judiciary

- IDLO is suspected to have been instrumental in the Supreme Court ruling that annulled Uhuru's win

- The government has also frozen its accounts and is on a mission to ensure the NGO is kicked out of Africa

President Uhuru Kenyatta's administration has made good its threats to crack down on the judiciary by shutting down its key financier, a foreign NGO.

The government has ordered the immediate shut down and freezing of accounts belonging to the International Development Law Organisation (IDLO).

IDLO has been funding the Kenyan judiciary for the last eight years and the government believes they are one of the reasons the Supreme Court nullified Uhuru's win in the August 8 election.

Uhuru's govt has cracked down on a key financier to the judiciary Photo: Capital FM

READ ALSO: Chiloba removed as head of team handling fresh election following pressure by Raila

Professor Makau Mutua, a strong critic of Uhuru's administration, is the chairman of IDLO's advisory board.

In a two-page letter by the chairman of the NGO Coordination Board Fazul Mohammed addressed to IDLO boss Irene Khan, the government has ordered that its offices be shut down and the Central Bank ordered to freeze all its accounts in Kenya until further notice.

The government accuses IDLO of underhand deals far from its mandate as a charitable organisation.

READ ALSO: List of expenses troubling IEBC ahead of fresh election

According to the letter, the funds IDLO has been receiving for charitable activities have instead been deployed to nefarious operations.

READ ALSO: Stop destroying Kenyas economy for your selfish gain, Uhuru tells Raila

The latest development will be seen as a blow to the Kenyan judiciary who have been benefiting from IDLO in the last eight years.

The NGO was instrumental in the handling of the presidential petition as it provided the judiciary with financial and technical support.

IDLO has been financing the judiciary led by David Maraga Photo: Star

The direct beneficiaries of IDLO's financing include the offices of the Chief Juctice and Deputy Chief Justice, the Judicial Service Commission, office of the Cheif Registrar of the Judiciary, National Council on Administration of Justice, Judiciary Training Institute (JTI) and Family Division of the High Court.

READ ALSO: Chaos, confusion after NASA protestors in Busia hurl teargas at police officers

IDLO's main objectives in Kenya and indeed Africa include enhancing access to justice for all through strengthened institutional capacity to administer justice.

The Kenya government is even determined to ensure IDLO is kicked out of Africa as Foreign Affairs CS Amina Mohammed has been meeting her counterparts from host countries to convince them to take the steps.

Amina is said to have convinced the Egyptian government to take action against IDLO.

IEBC meets NASA and Jubilee principals

Have something to add to this article or suggestions? Send to news@tuko.co.ke

Source: TUKO.co.ke
- Farah Maalim's petition challenging Aden Duale's win has received a boost following a latest court ruling

- Maalim has been granted access to all KIEMS used in Garissa Town MP election

- The court has also ordered new seals to be used on ballot boxes which will also be moved to a secure place

- Maalim is represented by lawyers James Orengo and Dan Maanzo while Duale is represented by Ahamednasir Abdullahi

A petition challenging a win by Leader of Majority in the National Assembly Aden Duale as Garissa Town MP in the August 8 election has taken a new twist.

An application by the petitioner, former Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly Farah Maalim, to be granted access to election kits and technology used in the election was granted.

Lady Justice Hedwig Ongudi on Friday, October 6, ruled that the election cases are emotive and therefore said Maalim should be allowed access to the KIEMs used in the election and that all ballot boxes be sealed with new seals in the presence of lawyers from all parties.

Aden Duale's win has been challenged by Farah Maalim Photo: Ebru TV

READ ALSO: Uhuru's govt hands Kenyan judiciary first blow after Supreme Court ruling

Maalim is represented by Siaya Senator James Orengo, the man who engineered the nullification of President Uhuru Kenyatta's win in the August 8 election, and MP Dan Maanzo.

Duale is represented by Ahamednassir Abdullahi who failed to defend Uhuru's win.

I direct that all the election materials in the Garissa Town Constituency be secured under the watch of the Deputy Registrar of the High Court Garissa within seven days, Justice Ong'udi said as quoted by Nation.

Farah Maalim has a scored a first one in petition challenging Duale's win Photo: Star

READ ALSO: Why Raila and I cannot participate in anti-IEBC protests - Kalonzo Musyoka

She further directed the lawyers to assemble at the Garissa High Court to witness the movement of the ballot boxes and the placement of the new seals.

The orders came after Maalim's lawyers told the court that the ballot boxes had already been tampered with.

Maalim, who was vying on a Wiper party ticket, lost to Duale who won a Jubilee party ticket.

Duale is one of the key and most powerful figures in the Jubilee administration. All eyes will be focused on this petition following the latest ruling.

EBC meets NASA and Jubilee principals

Source: TUKO.co.ke
- The government has withdrawn Nyamira Governor John Nyagarama's security detail

- Nyagarama said he learnt of the move early Sunday, October 7

- The decision comes after he criticised President Uhuru Kenyatta and told him Nyamira is a NASA zone

- Uhuru recently visited Nyamira and Kisii counties for campaigns

The Jubilee administration has withdrawn security detail attached to an Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) governor who recently criticised President Uhuru Kenyatta.

Nyamira Governor John Nyagarama has claimed that the government has taken away his security detail and that of his family.

In a statement, Nyagarama said the move is a form of intimidation but he is not complaining.

Nyamira Governor John Nyagarama in a past function Photo: Facebook/Raila Odinga

READ ALSO: Orengo scores first win in petition challenging Aden Duale's victory in August 8 election

"I have learnt that the government has recalled all the security officers attached to offer protection to me and my family as the duly elected Governor of Nyamira County. No explanation has been given for the sudden withdrawal. I am not bitter over the move and with or without security, I will continue to discharge my duties as the duly elected Governor of Nyamira county," Nyagarama said.

The move, if true, comes just two days after the governor, a close ally of NASA leader Raila Odinga, criticised Uhuru after he toured the county.

As reported by TUKO.co.ke, Nyagarama told the head of state that he should not expect any support from Nyamira as it is a NASA stronghold.

Nyagarama is a close ally of Raila Odinga Photo: Facebook/Raila Odinga

READ ALSO: Why Raila and I cannot participate in anti-IEBC protests - Kalonzo Musyoka

"We are ready to mobilise votes for Raila, vote for him and protect his votes," he said.

Uhuru toured Nyamira and Kisii counties on Thursday, October 5 and told residents he has not neglected them.

His tour was seen as a reconciliation move having attacked Chief Justice David Maraga who hails from the county.

EBC meets NASA and Jubilee principals

Source: TUKO.co.ke
Russian-backed militants launched 9 attacks on positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in ATO area in Donbas in last day.

This is reported by the ATO press center.

"After 18:00, militants did not use mortars or other heavy weapons, and the fire confrontation between our troops and the occupants took place only near several settlements," the press center reports.

In Donetsk direction, Russian-backed militants used grenade launchers and heavy machine guns to fire at Ukrainian positions near Avdiivka (18km north of Donetsk).

In Luhansk direction, ATO troops came under grenade launcher and heavy machine gun fire outside Krymske (42.5km north-west of Luhansk) and Zolote (67km north-east of Luhansk).

In Mariupol direction, illegal armed formations fired anti-tank grenade launchers and heavy machine guns at Ukrainian strongholds outside Shyrokyne (20km east of Mariupol).

ol
Ukraine will make new pricing proposals to the IMF next week that would leave gas prices unchanged until July 2018.

Reuters reports this, referring to a source close to the matter.

As noted, if Finance Minister Oleksandr Danylyuk and the IMF cannot reach a common understanding in talks next week in Washington, the source told Reuters, Ukraine has two options, the first of which is for Kyiv to comply with the IMFs demands.

Option two is to say we can live without the IMF, that Ukrainians are worth more than the IMF, not to care about this cooperation and take a political decision, approve the formula and thats it, said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

He said the new formula would avoid an around 15 percent increase in household gas prices. Under the governments new proposal, gas prices would rise 4.8 percent compared with an increase of 17.6 percent required under the existing system, according to the source and a document seen by Reuters.

ol
In its opinion on the draft law on anti-corruption courts in Ukraine adopted on Friday, October 6, the European Commission for Democracy through Law (the Venice Commission) stated that many of the provisions of the draft law provide a good basis for the establishment of a high specialised anti-corruption court as foreseen in the Law of Ukraine On Judicial System and Status of Judges."

However, the Venice Commission made several recommendations to reduce the risk that it could be considered unconstitutional, Ukrinform learnt this from the Venice Commission.

In order to dispel any doubts about the constitutionality of the legislative procedure, the Venice Commission invites the President of Ukraine to promptly submit his own draft law on anti-corruption courts  which should be based on the Venice Commissions recommendations. The current draft law (Draft Law No. 6011) thus needs to be withdrawn, the opinion says.

The law provides for the transition to a three-tier judicial system in Ukraine and the establishment of the high specialised anti-corruption court as a court of the first instance. A separate law on the high specialised anti-corruption court is expected to be adopted.

As of now, two bills were submitted to the Ukrainian Parliament for consideration: No. 6011 (authored by MPs Oksana Syroyid and Ivan Krulko) and No.6529 (authored by Serhiy Alekseyev). The Venice Commission criticized both bills, noting that Alekseyevs bill provides for the establishment of chambers, not a separate court, while the bill by Syroyid and Krulko raises doubts about its compliance with the Constitution and politicizes the process of appointing judges, which contradicts the principle of independence of the judiciary.

The Venice Commission experts positively assessed the progress of the judicial reform in the country and supported the initiative of the President to establish an anti-corruption court in Ukraine.

The only way forward in the fight against high-level corruption in Ukraine is the prompt establishment of a high specialised anti-corruption court (HACC), as foreseen in the Law On the Judicial System and the Status of Judges, whose judges are selected in a transparent procedure with international involvement, the Venice Commission said.

ol
To perform the first validation of a full procedural virtual reality robotic training module and analysis of novice surgeon's learning curves.

Participants completed the bladder neck dissection task and urethrovesical anastomosis task (UVA) as part of the prostatectomy module. Surgeons completed feedback questionnaires assessing the realism, content, acceptability and feasibility of the module. Novice surgeons completed a 5.5-hour training programme using both tasks.

King's College London, London.

13 novice, 24 intermediate and 8 expert surgeons completed the validation study.

Realism was scored highly for BDN (mean 3.4/5) and UVA (3.74/5), as was importance of BDN (4.32/5) and UVA (4.6/5) for training. It was rated as a feasible (3.95/5) and acceptable (4/5) tool for training. Experts performed significantly better than novice group in 6 metrics in the UVA including time (p = 0.0005), distance by camera (p = 0.0010) and instrument collisions (p = 0.0033), as well as task-specific metrics such as number of unnecessary needle piercing points (p = 0.0463). In novice surgeons, a significant improvement in performance after training was seen in many metrics for both tasks. For bladder neck dissection task, this included time (p < 0.0001), instrument collisions (p = 0.0013) and total time instruments are out of view (p = 0.0251). For UVA, this included time (p = 0.0135), instrument collisions (p = 0.0066) and task-specific metrics such as injury to the urethra (p = 0.0032) and bladder (p = 0.0189).

Surgeons found this full procedural VR training module to be a realistic, feasible and acceptable component for a robotic surgical training programme. Construct validity was proven between expert and novice surgeons. Novice surgeons have shown a significant learning curve over 5.5 hours of training, suggesting this module could be used in a surgical curriculum for acquisition of technical skills. Further implementation of this module into the curriculum and continued analysis would be beneficial to gauge how it can be fully utilised.

Journal of surgical education. 2017 Sep 30 [Epub ahead of print]

Patrick Harrison, Nicholas Raison, Takashige Abe, William Watkinson, Faizan Dar, Ben Challacombe, Henk Van Der Poel, Muhammad Shamim Khan, Prokar Dasgupa, Kamran Ahmed

King's College London, London, United Kingdom., MRC Centre for Transplantation, Kings College London, London, United Kingdom., Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan., Department of Urology, Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom., Department of Urology, Netherlands Cancer Institute, The Netherlands., MRC Centre for Transplantation, Kings College London, London, United Kingdom; Department of Urology, Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom., MRC Centre for Transplantation, Kings College London, London, United Kingdom; Department of Urology, Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom. Electronic address: .

PubMed http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28974429
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.
A longtime editor of a magazine that specializes in global power politics recently put forth a scenario where China would stage a takeover of North Korea, giving Washington and the rest of the world a nuclear weapons-free Korean Peninsula.

Bill Emmott, the former editor-in-chief of The Economist magazine, said such a move by China would not only gain Beijing a solid foothold on the Korean Peninsula, but also the opportunity to strengthen its own geopolitical position, enhance its global power status, perhaps even the ability to claim the reputation of a peacemaker.

That is the least bad military option vis-a-vis North Korea, Emmott said, in that it would avoid subjecting U.S. allies in Asia, including South Korea and Japan, to North Koreas retaliation that could potentially devastate large parts of South Korea.

Chinas takeover of North Korea, as Emmott sees it, would put North Korea where the countrys post-Korean War history suggests it belongs: under a Chinese nuclear umbrella, benefiting from a credible security guarantee.

He also said he sees incentives for North Koreans to go along with the plan: Whereas a nuclear exchange with the U.S. would mean devastation, submission to China would promise survival, and presumably a degree of continued autonomy.

Emmott said this strategy could win over a majority of North Koreas military, except those closest to Kim.

Biggest winner: China

The biggest winner from such a takeover, however, would be China, he said.

Not only control of what happens on the Korean Peninsula, where it presumably would be able to establish military bases, but also regional gratitude for having prevented a catastrophic war, Emmott said.

In addition, a successful military campaign would bring China huge reserves of soft power, such as the ability to influence future events in the region and worldwide, he said.

Washingtons desire to ensure that North Korea does not possess nuclear weapons presents China, which many argue is Americas foremost geopolitical rival, the best opportunity to achieve greater strategic and power parity with the U.S. in the Asia-Pacific region, while removing, in Emmotts words, a source of instability that threatens both Washington and Beijing.

Emmott acknowledges that any military intervention, Chinese or otherwise, would carry huge risks.

Some scholars put the question bluntly: How does China take over North Korea without being nuked itself?

Problems with the scenario

Emmott posits his thesis of a Chinese takeover of North Korea on the latters desire for some sort of credible security guarantee in exchange for curtailing its nuclear program while not risking total destruction.

Others suggest Chinas neighbor to the east might value independence more than a security guarantee, especially from neighbors along its border.

Evans J.R. Revere, a senior foreign policy fellow at the Brookings Institution, a Washington-based think tank, told VOA: I cannot imagine North Korea ever acceding to the notion of Chinese dominance, particularly of the form that the author describes.

Say what you will about North Korea, the essence of its approach to the world is its fervent, fanatical nationalism and its race-based belief in the superiority of its system, said Revere, a former State Department official who has traveled to North Korea over a half-dozen times.

While China and North Korea have been described as allies who at least at one time enjoyed lips and teeth relations, meaning one of interdependence, Revere points out that anti-Chinese sentiment in North Korea runs deep.

North Koreas hypernationalism has been deeply ingrained in the society and political culture at all levels, so it would be hard to imagine any significant group of people in the country who would be receptive to the notion of domination by the Chinese, or any other country, he said.

Suspicion and resentment of outside influence by key neighbors such as China and Russia are not a new phenomenon, Revere added. He pointed to Kim Jong Uns grandfather, the countrys founder.

Kim Il Sung purged the pro-Soviet and pro-Chinese Koreans during the mid-1950s, he said, adding that declassified material from the archives of the former Soviet Union also point to significant debates, rivalry, and even political warfare between the North Koreans and the Chinese during the Korean War.

North Koreas contingency plan

Geoff Wilson, a retired U.S. naval intelligence officer and China specialist, said he seriously doubts that Kim, the leader of the most paranoid country on earth, does not have a military contingency plan to deal with a Chinese attack.

In addition, Wilson told VOA that one cannot conceive of a Chinese takeover of North Korea without a huge number of casualties, unless the Chinese have a North Korean traitor in hand who can stay Korean defenses while the PLA [the Chinese Peoples Liberation Army] rolls down the peninsula.

Meanwhile, Revere, the former State Department official, also pointed to North Korean leader Kim Jong Uns purge and eventual execution of his uncle, Jang Song Thaek, in 2013, and the alleged state assassination of his half-brother, Jim Jong Nam, earlier this year. The deaths of both men, who were known for their close connections to Beijing, were seen as demonstrations of the North Korean governments absolute intolerance of any potential Trojan Horse.

Concern for the spread of illiberalism

The downside of this idea being carried out is the loss of status by the United States, as well as freedoms, in Asia, Emmott told VOA.

The Fate of the West: The Battle to Save the Worlds Most Successful Political Idea, published earlier this year and written by Emmott, is among a rising number of books and articles expressing concerns of the rise of illiberalism in the world.

Chinas enlarged footprint, so long as China remains a communist regime, remains a serious source of concern for democratic societies, as well as for those in and outside of China working to change the country.

Curious remark

In Washington, U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday hosted a gathering of top military leaders and their spouses at the White House, describing the event as the calm before the storm. When reporters asked the president to elaborate on the storm, he simply said: youll find out.

Trump was asked several times Friday to clarify the remark or acknowledge if it was in regards to North Korea, but he simply stuck with his youll find out.

Asked by VOA where the storm was headed, some U.S. analysts, who requested anonymity, said they think Trump was referring to North Korea.

Trumps former adviser, Steve Bannon, had said in an interview before he left his White House position that because of South Koreas proximity to North Korea, a military option for Washington doesnt exist.

Until somebody solves the part of the equation that shows me that 10 million people in Seoul dont die in the first 30 minutes from conventional weapons, I dont know what youre talking about, theres no military solution here, Bannon said. They got us.

While current U.S. officials have consistently not ruled out a military option against North Korea, Washington is also exploring diplomatic solutions.
Australian investigators have released their last report into missing Malaysia Airlines flight 370, saying it is "almost inconceivable" the aircraft has not been found. The Boeing 777 disappeared in March 2014 while flying to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur with 239 people on board.

Investigators in Australia have said their understanding of MH370's whereabouts was "better now than it has ever been but they still do not know why it crashed. In its final report into the mystery, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau said it was almost inconceivable and certainlyunacceptable that an aircraft could simply vanish in an era when 10 million passengers board commercial flights every day.

An exhaustive search for the passenger jet in the southern Indian Ocean lasted more than 1,000 days. It scoured 120,000 square kilometers of seabed but no definitive clues were found and the mission was suspended by Australian, Malaysian and Chinese authorities in January. Suspected debris had previously washed up on islands in the Indian Ocean and on the east coast of Africa.

The Australian widow of one of the passengers says the report should prompt the Malaysian government to resume the search.

Jennifer Chong, whose husband Chong Ling Tan was onboard the doomed flight, is pleading for the mystery to be solved.

To just abandon the search at this point is also totally unacceptable because it will mean that we will never know what happened to our loved ones, said Chong.

Following analysis of satellite data and drift modelling of suspected wreckage, investigators now believe the aircraft could be lying somewhere to the north of an earlier search zone, but the Australian government has said the search for the missing Malaysian plane would only resume if there was credible new evidence.

The disappearance remains one of the greatest mysteries of modern aviation.
Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday said her government would continue to support nearly 1 million Rohingya Muslims who have fled neighboring Myanmar to escape violence.



Hasina said the government was pursuing a plan to build temporary shelters for the Rohingya on an island with the help of international aid agencies whom she praised for their support.



She made the statement at Dhaka airport on her return from New York after attending the U.N. General Assembly session. The U.N. has described the violence in Myanmar as ethnic cleansing.



Hasina accused Myanmar of creating tensions at the border, but said she has asked the country's security forces to deal with the crisis very carefully.



They pretended like they wanted a war, she said.



More than 500,000 Rohingya Muslims have crossed over to Bangladesh since late August, when Myanmar security forces responded to militant attacks with a broad crackdown that witnesses and rights groups say has included killing and arson. An equal number of Rohingya Muslims have previously fled Myanmar since 1978.



Myanmar doesn't recognize the Rohingya as an ethnic group, instead insisting they are Bengali migrants from Bangladesh living illegally in the country. Myanmar has come under international criticism for failing to stop the recent violence in its Rakhine state and in turn an exodus that has become the largest refugee crisis to hit Asia in decades.



The Myanmar government's information committee said in a statement late Thursday that it had stopped 17,000 Rohingya from fleeing in just four days last week. Still villagers say Rohingya are attempting to leave and many are gathered on the beaches just across the water from Bangladesh waiting for a chance to leave the country.



On Saturday, Hasina reiterated that the settlements for Rohingya Muslims would be temporary until they returned to their homes in Myanmar.



Her government would continue to support them with food and shelter.



If needed, we will eat a full meal once a day and share the rest with them, she said.
Canada's government says it will pay millions of dollars in compensation to indigenous children who were taken from their families decades ago and placed up for adoption.

The government said Friday that an estimated 20,000 indigenous children who were taken by welfare authorities between the 1960s and 1980s and placed for adoption or in foster care will share in a payout of nearly $600 million.

In the so-called "Sixties Scoop," the children were placed with non-native families in Canada as well as other countries. Many lost touch with their relatives and native language.

Several of the children, who are now adults, have sued, saying they lost their aboriginal identity and suffered a range of problems, including mental disorders, substance abuse and suicide.

Language and culture, apology, healing  these are essential elements to begin to right the wrong of this dark and painful chapter, said Carolyn Bennett, the federal government minister in charge of relations with the indigenous population.

The compensation package follows a ruling last February by an Ontario Superior Court justice that found Canadas government liable for the suffering caused to the children, saying the government had breached its duty of care.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and other Canadian leaders have already apologized for many of the abuses to indigenous people that the government committed over a 150-year period.

Canada made an apology in 2008 to survivors of a residential school program over the last century in which 150,000 First Nations, Inuit and Metis children were taken from their families and put in government schools.

The indigenous children were forced to convert to Christianity and not allowed to speak their native languages. Several thousand of the children are believed to have died from ill treatment.
The Afghan government reportedly has sought the closure of the Afghan Taliban office in Qatar, citing the inefficiency of the office as a reason behind its request to the U.S. and Qatari officials.

There has been no official confirmation of such a request being initiated by the Afghan government. But a senior official with knowledge of discussions between senior Afghan officials and their American counterparts, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told VOA the Afghan government did discuss plans to close the Qatar office when Afghan President Ashraf Ghani was in New York for the U.N. General Assembly last month.

The Afghan official added that the Qatar office has contributed "little to the peace process with the Afghan Taliban."

Faizullah Kakar, the Afghan ambassador to Qatar, told VOA that although his government has not officially informed him of any formal discussion or decision about the Taliban office, Kabul might be evaluating the effectiveness of the Doha office and its fate.

"The Taliban office was set up to secure peace talks, but it has done little to help facilitate negotiations," Kakar said. "The [Afghan] government is discussing the issue with the U.S. and Qatar to decide whether the office should remain open."

Meanwhile, Qatar has indicated it would accept any decision made by the U.S. and Afghan governments about the future of the office.

The Taliban office was opened in 2013 with support from the U.S., Afghan and Qatari governments to provide a venue for peace talks with the Taliban to help end the conflict in the country.

The office has failed to achieve that and instead has become a travel facilitator for Taliban leaders.

"There are arguments that the office gives the three dozen Taliban representatives unfounded legitimacy, and allows them to hold secret talks with Pakistan, China, Russia and Iran," Matthew P. Dearing, an assistant professor at Washington-based National Defense University, told VOA.

"It is not clear that moving the office to Kabul will end these bilateral discussions unless Ghani intends to prevent Taliban representatives from traveling abroad," Dearing added.

U.S. stance

Senior U.S. officials said Washington was mulling the fate of the office.

"I think the decision will be made shortly," U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday, adding that one of the issues was to make sure the right people representing the Taliban are in the office.

"He [Secretary of State Rex Tillerson] is looking to make certain we have the right people, so it's just not an office in existence  an office that we can actually deal with," Mattis added.

The Afghan government has for years left open the door of peace talks to the Taliban and has established a peace council to establish ties with the insurgents. The Taliban repeatedly has rejected talks with Kabul, however, and instead has continued its bloody insurgency.

Ghani recently said there was a window of opportunity for the Taliban to follow in the footsteps of the Hezb-i-Islami party led by Gulbuddin Hematyar, who recently joined the peace process.

Ghani warned that the offer will expire at some point.

"We are offering a chance for peace, but this is not an open-ended offer," Ghani said following a truck bomb attack in Kabul in May that killed more than 150 people and injured hundreds more.

Concerns

Some Western diplomats and analysts have voiced concerns about the prospects of closing the Taliban office, maintaining that such a move could undermine the prospects of a political settlement in Afghanistan.

Closing the office "would foreclose on the possibility of a negotiated settlement, the only realistic and honorable way to end America's longest war," Jarrett Blanc, a former U.S. deputy special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, said in a recently published op-ed in Defense One, and news and analysis website focused on U.S. defense and national security issues.

Pierre Mayaudon, European Union ambassador to Afghanistan, said the office has served a purpose.

"The office in Qatar is a way of communication. It's a tool. It's not by itself, I think, an objective," Mayaudon told VOA.

The Taliban has warned that closing the office would end the chance for a peaceful settlement to the Afghan war.

Kabul-based Taliban expert Waheed Muzhda argued that the closure would strengthen the position of warmongers within the Taliban leadership ranks.

"If the office were closed, it would weaken those Taliban leaders who support a political solution to the war in Afghanistan," Muzhda said.

Dearing, of the National Defense University, agreed.

"There are too many reasons why an office closure is a bad idea," Dearing told VOA. "Unless Ghani calls this a 'move' rather than a 'closure' and offers a new home for the exiled Taliban in Kabul, then hard-liners will be empowered and have proof the U.S. and Afghan governments do not seek a political settlement."

Afghan Ambassador Kakar said that while the Taliban's representatives in Qatar support a political settlement, real talks happen in other places, such as Pakistan.
Danish police say they have found the head and legs of Swedish journalist Kim Wall, who went missing in August after boarding a homemade submarine with Danish inventor Peter Madsen.

Copenhagen police inspector Jens Moller Jensen told reporters Saturday that divers off the Danish coast had found bags containing Wall's head, legs, clothing, and heavy objects that could have been used to weigh the bags down in the water.

Jensen said a forensic dentist confirmed on Friday that the head belonged to Wall. Her torso was found in waters near Copenhagen on August 21, 11 days after she went missing.

Madsen, 46, the inventor, has been in police custody since August 11. He claims Wall died on board the craft when she was hit in the head by a heavy metal hatch door. He said he panicked and threw her body overboard.

But police said Saturday that examination of Wall's head confirms that she had no blunt trauma to the head. However, the torso was found to have multiple stab wounds, including mutilation wounds to the victim's sexual organs.

Earlier this week, investigators said they found computer files in Madsen's workshop containing fetish films in which women were tortured. Madsen said the films were not his. He said multiple people have access to his workshop.

Wall, 30, worked as a freelance journalist based in New York and China.
In the Puerto Rican village of San Lorenzo, where Hurricane Maria destroyed the two-lane concrete bridge connecting residents with the outside world, 95-year-old Rosa Maria Torres waits to be rescued.

"If they don't move her out of here, she's going to die," Carmen Santos, Torres' granddaughter, said on Thursday.

San Lorenzo remains without power or running water and Santos wants to get her bedridden grandmother, who has developed a festering skin ulcer on top of her anemia and thyroid problems, out soon.

She has gone to the capital, San Juan, four times since the storm struck on Sept. 20, traveling by car on a two-hour detour over a perilous mountain road, looking in vain for someone who can airlift Torres.

Before the storm, a hospital was only a 15-minute drive away in the town of Morovis. Without the bridge, the only way out is wading across a river knee-deep now that floodwaters have receded, or detouring by car on the mountain road. Santos did not think her grandmother would survive either option.

Like many remote villages in Puerto Rico, San Lorenzo is contending with a silent public health crisis in the wake of the strongest hurricane to hit the island in decades: isolation.

One villager, dependent on dialysis treatment, was placed in a water barrel and pushed across the river by his neighbors. For the final few yards, he was carried on another man's back, locals said, and then loaded into a waiting ambulance.

Santos says she is frustrated by the U.S. military helicopters that regularly fly over San Lorenzo, droning like overgrown mosquitoes. Why, she wonders, cannot one of them whisk away her frail grandmother?

"This stinks," Santos said tearfully, leaving the stifling room in which her frail grandmother lay so as not to upset her. "I'm powerless."

No one can say when - or if - the bridge will be rebuilt, but it is unlikely to be a high priority on an island with so many needs after the hurricane. Fuel supplies remain limited and electricity and cellular phone service are still out in much of Puerto Rico.

"People are desperate," said San Lorenzo police officer Luis Burgos, who now lives in a nearby town.

His parents still reside in San Lorenzo and after Maria hit, he set out at 7 a.m. to check on his parents, walking until he arrived at the village at 5 p.m. They were OK, he said, but their house, on the brow of a hill overlooking the river, was destroyed.

Burgos said his mother broke down when she saw him.

"I feel very sad" for them, he said, surveying the village's twisted roofs and stripped vegetation. "I'm young but they're not."

Marelys Hernandez, a 26-year-old housewife, forded the river on Thursday to visit her mother, fretting about the rain that was predicted to fall.

"If it rises, there they will stay," Hernandez said, gesturing toward the river.

Maria Pagan, 35, wonders how many people will continue to live in the village if repairs are not made soon. She said U.S. officials came and took measurements after the bridge fell but nobody had returned and there was no word about plans to rebuild.

With schools closed until at least January and their main link to the world broken, many village residents, Pagan said, are considering fleeing to the mainland United States.

"They're going to leave Puerto Rico," she said.
The Environmental Protection Agency's inspector general is expanding an inquiry into Administrator Scott Pruitt's frequent taxpayer-funded travel, the watchdog office said Friday.



The review will now include all travel by Pruitt through Sept. 30 as the office examines whether Pruitt followed EPA travel policies and whether those policies are sufficient to prevent fraud, waste and abuse. Previously, the inspector general was focusing on Pruitt's travel to his home state of Oklahoma through July 31.



A spokeswoman said Friday the scope of the review was expanded after requests by members of Congress.



EPA documents show Pruitt and his staff chartered a private plane for an Aug. 4 trip from Denver to Durango, Colorado, to visit the Gold King Mine, site of a spill last year. Pruitt also took three flights on government-owned planes to New York and North Dakota and for a roundtrip between airports in Oklahoma.



Letters released by EPA show the flights cost a total of $58,000 and were approved by the agency's general counsel's office.



The expanded review came as The Washington Post reported Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao used government planes instead of cheaper commercial airline flights seven times in the past eight months. The revelation was the latest involving Trump administration officials' use of costly private or military air travel at taxpayers' expense.

Tom Price resigned as Health and Human Services secretary last week amid criticism of his pattern of using private charter aircraft for official trips on the taxpayer's dime, instead of cheaper commercial flights.



The Post reported Thursday that Chao used the government planes to fly to Paris for an annual air show and to Sardinia for a meeting of industrialized democracies. Other destinations included cities within an hour's flight of Washington.



Meanwhile, the Energy Department released a series of memos late Friday indicating that Energy Secretary Rick Perry has taken at least six trips on government or private planes costing an estimated $56,000.



Three of the trips were on government planes, the memos said, including one on an Energy Department plane to the Hanford nuclear site in Washington state, and two military flights to national labs in Idaho and New Mexico.



Perry also flew on private planes to visit a Pennsylvania coal plant and nuclear sites in Ohio and Kansas City.



Perry's office released details about the flights late Friday to the House Oversight Committee, which is investigating non-commercial travel by the Trump administration.



Perry also has traveled aboard Air Force One with President Donald Trump, although those trips were not included in the report to the House committee.



Separately, a report by the Treasury Department's inspector general says that Secretary Steven Mnuchin did not violate any law in the seven trips he has taken on government airplanes but did fail to provide enough proof of why he needed to use the more expensive modes of travel. Mnuchin's travel requests included one, later withdrawn, for a government plane for use on his European honeymoon.



The EPA's inspector general opened an inquiry last month into Pruitt's frequent taxpayer-funded travel on commercial planes. The Associated Press reported earlier this year that Pruitt often spends weekends at his Tulsa home.



An EPA spokeswoman said the trips were warranted.



Democratic Reps. Frank Pallone of New Jersey, Diana DeGette of Colorado and Paul Tonko of New York requested the expanded review, saying Pruitt's reported use of private aircraft "is just the latest example of repeated and blatant abuse of taxpayer funds by the Trump administration.''
The next ballistic missile launch by North Korea could come within a few days, according to U.S. government and outside analysts.

October 9 marks the anniversary of North Korea's first nuclear test in 2006. And October 10 is when the increasingly isolated state celebrates the 1945 establishment of its ruling Workers' Party of Korea.

"North Koreans always have a good sense of timing," said former CIA analyst Sue Mi Terry, the Bower Group Asia's managing director for Korea. "Kim Jong Un will show that he lives up to his 'Rocket Man' billing."

President Donald Trump has recently repeatedly belittled the North Korean leader as "Rocket Man."

Rocket test

The next rocket launch by North Korea could be another Hwasong-12 (HS-12), which is a mobile, solid-fueled, nuclear-capable medium-range ballistic missile, or the Hwasong-14 (HS-14), first tested in July, which is believed to be a two-staged version of the HS-12, giving it a longer and intercontinental range.

"I think they are not done with testing the HS-12 into the Pacific. They also have yet to start testing the HS-14 at anything like its full range," said Joshua Pollack, a senior research associate with the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey.



"Once they have done that a couple of times, I would be concerned about the potential for an atmospheric nuclear test over the Pacific," Pollack, also editor of the Nonproliferation Review, told VOA.

Russian media on Friday quoted a lawmaker in Moscow as saying North Korea is preparing to test a long-range missile able to reach the West Coast of the United States.

The comment was made by Anton Morozov, a member of the Russian Duma's international affairs committee, who was among lawmakers who returned home Friday after a four-day visit to Pyongyang for "high-level meetings."

"They are preparing for new tests of a long-range missile. They even gave us mathematical calculations that they believe prove that their missile can hit the West Coast of the United States," Russian media quoted Morozov, a member of a right-wing populist party, as saying.

"As far as we understand, they intend to launch one more long-range missile in the near future," Morozov explained. "And in general, their mood is rather belligerent."

The comment from Moscow prompted the U.S. dollar  after rising to a two-month high earlier in the trading day  to tumble. It also sent yields of U.S. Treasury notes lower, as investors cut portfolio risks and moved money to the safety of Treasuries, according to financial analysts.

Trump comments

Indications of a possible launch come amid an unsettling comment made by U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday evening. Alongside top defense officials and military officers, the president remarked to reporters that they were witnessing "the calm before the storm."

Pressed to clarify and asked whether he was referring to Iran, North Korea, the Islamic State or some other potential clash, Trump replied, "you'll find out."

On Friday, again pressed by reporters to clarify the remark during a signing of a manufacturing day proclamation, the president repeated, "you'll find out."

Subsequently, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders was asked whether the president was merely being mischievous or his comment telegraphs something ominous.

"He's not messing with the press," Sanders replied, noting that "we have some serious world issues here."

Asked if North Korea, specifically, is "the storm," since she also made reference to continuing pressure on Pyongyang, Sanders said she was just using the North Koreans as an example.

"I think we've got a lot of bad actors in the world  North Korea, Iran. There are several examples there," she said during the daily press briefing.

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson last week said Washington had a direct communications path with Pyongyang but that the North Koreans had shown no interest in dialogue. Trump later dismissed any prospect of talks with North Korea as a waste of time.

"It pays to continue to provoke from the North Korean perspective. Since they are determined to finish their nuclear program, the North has both technical and political need to continue to test," said Terry, who also was formerly Korea/Japan director at the National Security Council. "Kim Jong Un wants to make clear he will not back down under Trump's threats."

Terry adds it is imperative for Kim "to project an image of strength to his own people and to the world. A long-range missile test makes most sense to maximize the political impact internally and externally."
A former Mexican governor wanted on corruption charges was arrested on Friday, officials said, marking the fourth detention of an ex-governor from the country's ruling party so far this year.

Eugenio Hernandez, who served as governor of the northern border state of Tamaulipas from 2005-2010, was arrested in the state capital of Ciudad Victoria. He is accused by both Mexican and U.S. authorities of embezzlement and money laundering.

Hernandez served as a member of President Enrique Pena Nieto's Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, which for decades has been battered by corruption scandals.

Corruption promises to be one of the major issues in Mexico's July 2018 presidential election, with public discontent widespread over a spate of conflict-of-interest rows that have dogged the Cabinet and Pena Nieto himself.

The rows could play into the hands of leftist presidential hopeful Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, a two-time runner-up who presents himself as an anti-corruption crusader and is the front-runner in the polls.

Prosecutors alleged that in 2007 Hernandez bought a state-owned 1,600-hectare property through an associate, allegedly paying 16 million pesos ($862,730) for the land despite an estimated value at the time of slightly more than 1 billion pesos.

The land was previously sold in 2002 to an associate of Tomas Yarrington, Hernandez's predecessor as governor of Tamaulipas, for 14 million pesos, while at the time its value was pegged at 866 million pesos, the prosecutors said.

Hernandez and his lawyer could not immediately be contacted for a response and have not made a public statement.

Yarrington himself was arrested in April in Italy and has been charged in the United States for presumed ties to drug trafficking. He has not made a public statement since his arrest.

Two other former PRI governors were also arrested earlier this year.

In April, Javier Duarte of Veracruz state was arrested in Guatemala, accused of siphoning off millions of dollars from state coffers. He has denied any wrongdoing.

Meanwhile, Roberto Borge of Quintana Roo state was arrested in Panama in June just as he was about to board a flight to Paris. Mexican authorities have requested his extradition.

Borge is accused of illicit enrichment, embezzlement and abuse of public office. He has denied the allegations.

($1 = 18.5458 Mexican pesos)
A U.S. House of Representatives committee said Friday that it had scheduled a new hearing on Kaspersky Lab software as lawmakers review accusations that the Kremlin could use its products to conduct espionage.

Kaspersky Lab has strongly denied those allegations  which last month prompted the Trump administration to order civilian government agencies to purge the software from its networks  and agreed to send Chief Executive Eugene Kaspersky to Washington to testify before Congress.

The House Committee on Science, Space and Technology announced the October 25 hearing a day after reports that Russian government-backed hackers stole highly classified U.S. cybersecrets in 2015 from a National Security Agency contractor who had Kaspersky software installed on his laptop.

The House science committee did not say who would be called to testify at the hearing.

Eugene Kaspersky last month told Reuters that the committee had invited him to testify at a September 27 hearing and that he would attend if he could get an expedited visa to enter the United States.

Classified session

That hearing was later canceled, though the committee held a closed-door classified session on Kaspersky software on September 26.

Kaspersky said in a statement on Friday that he hoped to attend the hearing.

"I look forward to participating in the hearing once it's rescheduled and having the opportunity to address the committee's concerns directly," he said.

An appearance before Congress would mark Kaspersky's most high-profile attempt to dispel long-standing accusations that his firm may be conducting espionage on behalf of the Russian government.

The investigation into the 2015 NSA hack is focused on somebody who worked at the agency's Tailored Access Operations unit, a unit that uses computer hacking to gather intelligence, according to two people familiar with the classified probe.

Kaspersky anti-virus software was running on the contractor's laptop at the time of the hack, and investigators are looking into whether hackers used the software to breach the computer and steal the data, said one of those sources.
Hurricane Nate made its second landfall early Sunday morning near Biloxi, Mississippi, the first hurricane since Hurricane Katrina in 2005 to make landfall in the state.

Hours earlier, Nate swept ashore along the southeastern Louisiana coast near the mouth of the Mississippi River, then continued northeast back out over the Gulf of Mexico before coming ashore again.

The National Hurricane Center said Nate is moving with maximum sustained winds of 140 kilometers per hour (87 mph), but it weakened later Sunday to a tropical storm as it moved inland, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.

At one point, Nates eye move over Keesler Air Force Base, where the National Hurricane Centers hurricane hunter planes are kept, the center said.

Nates powerful winds pushed water onto roads and its winds knocked out power to homes and business. But Nate didnt have the intensity of other storms this hurricane season. No deaths or injuries were immediately reported.

As the midnight high tide approached in Biloxi, a storm surge from Nate pushed over the beachfront highway of U.S. 90 onto the peninsula that makes up the citys eastern edge. It flooded the parking structure of the Golden Nugget casino, which is closest to the peninsulas tip. Water kept going several blocks deep into the area.



It kind of surprised us, Mike Kovacevich, who lives two blocks north of U.S. 90, told Biloxi officials on their Facebook page. We didnt expect to be this deep. It come in pretty good  a lot of water.

Pascagoula also reported that storm surge flooded downtown streets in that coastal city.



Thousands were without power in southern Mississippi. Outages were mostly concentrated on the eastern half of the states narrow coastal strip, in Harrison, Jackson and George counties.

Nate will move on over Mississippi and across the Tennessee Valley and the central Appalachian Mountains through Monday, according to the hurricane center.

The city of New Orleans flooded by Katrina in 2005, had been bracing for the onset of this storm, but the city was spared a direct hit. Local news coverage said the hurricane warning for New Orleans had been lifted, and the sea level Louisiana city is now under a tropical storm warning.

Nate is reported to be moving at a fast clip (31 kph, 20 mph), which could help minimize damage in coastal areas and the cities and towns it passes over.

Still dangerous

Local officials urged residents of those areas to stay inside until the storm passed. New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu told his constituents and the tourists visiting New Orleans to take caution.

The storm is on us, he said. Despite Nates weakening, he reminded them a lower-category storm could still be dangerous, and this one was not wasting any time.

Its gonna hit you hard, its gonna hit you fast, he said.

Residents in parts of Louisianas coastal St. Bernard Parish, east of New Orleans, were ordered to evacuate Friday in anticipation of Nates arrival.

Major shipping ports across the central U.S. Gulf Coast were closed Saturday as the storm intensified amid expected storm surges of up to 9 feet.

States of emergency were declared in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. Officials issued evacuation orders in low-lying areas of those states and announced shelters are available for anyone who needs them.

President Donald Trump issued an emergency declaration allowing federal aid to be made available to help mitigate the storms impact.

Earlier this week, Nate, then a tropical storm, claimed at least 25 lives as it moved across Central America.
After being arrested in Rio de Janeiro and accused of storing gold bars in Switzerland, Brazilian Olympic Committee president Carlos Nuzman was suspended by the IOC on Friday.



The decision came hours after Brazilian authorities investigating a 2016 Olympic vote-buying case asked for help from prosecutors in Switzerland.



The Brazilian Olympic Committee was also provisionally suspended and had its funding frozen. The world Olympic body also further cut ties with the Nuzman-led Rio Games organizing committee which still has unpaid debts.



Nuzman, a 75-year-old lawyer, was also removed from the IOC's panel overseeing preparations for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.



The International Olympic Committee announced the decisions after an emergency conference call of its executive board. The IOC said its decision will not affect Brazilian athletes, who will continue to receive scholarship funds and be eligible for the 2018 Winter Olympics.



Nuzman was arrested on Thursday on suspicion of obstructing investigators from Brazil and France, who detained and questioned him one month ago. Their case explores suspicious payments linked to how the city won the hosting rights for the Olympics.



Brazilian prosecutors revealed on Thursday they believed Nuzman stored 16 bars of gold in a depository in Geneva and greatly increased his wealth while overseeing the Rio bid and organizing committees.



The office of Switzerland's attorney general said on Friday it was "analyzing'' a request from Brazil for legal assistance.



"The request has been transferred from the Federal Office of Justice (FOJ) to the [attorney general's office] as the competent authority for execution,'' the federal office said in a statement.



Brazilian prosecutors have implicated Nuzman in a bribery scheme of at least $2 million to help win votes from IOC members, who chose Rio as host city in 2009 in a four-city contest. The losers were Chicago, supported by then-President Barack Obama, Madrid and Tokyo.



Nuzman is believed to be a central figure in channeling at least $2 million of a Brazilian businessman's money to Lamine Diack, a former IOC member from Senegal who helped control African votes.



Diack has been arrested in France as part of a wider case of alleged corruption while he was president of the IAAF, including blackmailing athletes to cover up doping cases.



The French case has also implicated four-time Olympic sprint medalist Frank Fredericks of Namibia. He was an IOC executive board member in October 2009 when he got a $300,000 payment linked to Brazil and the Diack family on the day Rio won.



On Thursday, Brazilian authorities said Nuzman's net worth increased by 457 percent in his last 10 years as the country's Olympic leader.



Nuzman was arrested because investigators found he tried to hamper the investigation by regularizing assets likely gained with illicit money. Last month, he allegedly amended his tax declaration to add about $600,000 in income.



Nuzman's lawyers said he denies wrongdoing, and the IOC said he had the presumption of innocence while its ethics commission studies the case.



Suspending Nuzman and removing him from Tokyo work was recommended on Thursday by Ban Ki-Moon, the former United Nations secretary general who the IOC announced last month would chair its panel scrutinizing unethical conduct.



Ban noted the "the gravity and urgency of the situation and its impact on the reputation of the IOC,'' which published the document.



The IOC board chaired by President Thomas Bach approved Ban's suggested sanctions on Friday, and added others, in a further sign of frustration with Rio organizers since the troubled Summer Games ended 14 months ago.



Bach rebuffed Nuzman's request in July for another cash handout to pay creditors who are owed tens of millions of dollars by the Rio organizing committee.



The IOC repeated on Friday it "closed all its obligations with the organizing committee in December 2016.''
The U.S. Department of Justice on Friday announced the indictment of three men charged with participating in an international plot to carry out terrorist attacks in New York City.

The U.S. attorney's office in the Southern District of New York said in a news release that it had charged Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy, a 19-year-old Canadian citizen; Talha Haroon, a 19-year-old Pakistani; and Russell Salic, a 37-year-old Philippine citizen, with plotting to conduct bombings and shootings in heavily populated areas of New York City.

The three were charged last year with plotting to make the attack in the summer of 2016. All three have been arrested. El Bahnasawy has already pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing in December.

Court documents said Haroon and Salic were arrested in foreign countries and had not yet been extradited to the U.S.

The release said the three used internet communications to plot their attacks, which El Bahnasawy described as "the next 9/11," telling an undercover agent he hoped to stage a gun attack at a concert.

Court documents quoted El Bahnasawy as saying, "We just walk in with guns in our hands. That's how the Paris guys did it," referring to the 2015 attacks on a rock concert in Paris, France. The DOJ news release alleged the suspects also plotted attacks on the New York subway system and a car bomb for Times Square, an area heavily frequented by tourists.

El Bahnasawy was arrested in May 2016, Haroon in September 2016 and Salic in April of this year, according to court documents.

Earlier Friday, the FBI had warned law enforcement offices in New York City of a "noncredible" threat to the city, but the FBI said this announcement was not related to that threat.
The Legion of Christ religious order, stained by revelations that its founder sexually abused seminarians and fathered several children, is facing a new credibility scandal: The rector of its diocesan seminary in Rome is leaving the priesthood after admitting he fathered two children of his own.



In a letter released by the Legion on Saturday, the Rev. Oscar Turrion said he fell in love with a woman a few years ago during a time of turmoil in the Legion, fathered a son and, a few months ago, a daughter.



Turrion, 49, had been rector of the Pontifical Maria Matter Eclesiae International College since 2014. The institution is a residence for diocesan seminarians who study at Rome universities. Currently some 107 seminarians live there, most from India, Latin America and Africa, down from about 200 a few years ago.



The issue is particularly delicate because of the international diocesan character of the seminary: Bishops entrusted their seminarians to the Legion to provide them with a wholesome living environment while they complete their studies.



In a statement, the Legion said it was conscious of the impact that the negative example of Turrions case had on seminarians and the Christian faithful, and said it was committed to a path of renewal.

Earlier scandal

The Vatican took over the Legion in 2010, after revelations that its late founder, the Rev. Marcial Maciel, sexually abused seminarians and fathered at least three children with two women. It ordered up a wholesale reform, but the scandal hurt the Legions credibility and stained the legacy of St. John Paul II, who had been a leading Maciel supporter.



Several priests have since left the order, the number of seminarians has fallen and the Legion has been forced to close some schools and sell off some of its real estate assets.



Legion spokesman the Rev. Aaron Smith declined to provide details of the Turrion case, citing the familys privacy. He confirmed that the mother of the child was an adult when she conceived the couples first child.

Priest apologizes



In his letter, Turrion said he never used Legion funds to provide for his family, relying instead on donations from friends.



The Legion said Turrion first informed the order of the birth of his daughter in March, at which time he took a leave and a new rector was named. In October, he revealed he had had a son a few years ago with the same woman and announced he intended to leave priestly ministry.



In his letter, Turrion said he was at peace and asked for prayers.



I ask everyone forgiveness for the lack of trust that this implies, he wrote. I ask forgiveness for my bad example and the negative witness I have given.
"Hamilton" musical creator Lin-Manuel Miranda on Friday released a new song for hurricane relief charity efforts in Puerto Rico featuring many of the music industry's biggest Latin stars.

Jennifer Lopez, Marc Anthony, Gloria Estefan, Rita Moreno Luis Fonsi and many others sing on the English- and Spanish-language song "Almost Like Praying."

The song, a riff on the tune "Maria" from the Broadway musical "West Side Story," lists the names of all 78 of Puerto Rico's towns in its lyrics.

Hurricane Maria, the worst hurricane to hit the U.S. territory in more than 90 years, killed at least 34 people last month and left most of the island without power or access to clean running water.

Miranda, 37, whose parents migrated to the United States from Puerto Rico, said the song was inspired by his own desperate attempts to contact family members after Hurricane Maria, and his frustrations about the pace of aid reaching the island.

"I thought I could work all 78 towns in Puerto Rico into the lyrics of this song and if we did our job right, these towns will never be forgotten again," the musician told Billboard.

The success of the Tony Award-winning musical "Hamilton" has made Miranda one of America's most influential Latin celebrities.

He made headlines last week for saying on Twitter that U.S. President Donald Trump was "going straight to hell" for criticizing Puerto Ricans for not doing enough to help themselves.

Miranda on Friday said he had no regrets about his comments.

"I've never seen the president of the United States attack the victims of a natural disaster," he told "CBS This Morning" in an interview. "That has no precedent for me and so those words coming out of me also have no precedent."

"Almost Like Praying" will benefit the Hispanic Federation's UNIDOS Disaster Relief Fund for Puerto Rico.
U.N. aid agencies are struggling to meet the needs of refugees in eastern Cameroon as multitudes flee the renewed violence in neighboring Central African Republic. The population of the Gado refugee camp has exploded from just 1,000 refugees in January to 25,000 today.

Scores of children are being attended to by medical staff at the Gado refugee camp on Cameroon's eastern border with the C.A.R. At least a hundred children fleeing with their parents have been received by humanitarian workers this week.

22-year-old Magloire Zema, who arrived at Gado last week, says she is happy her 6-month-old son has recovered his health.

She says he was neither eating nor had access to clean drinkable water, but today the situation is better because he can drink milk and eat a bit of their traditional meals.

Health worker Gerimie Dicia says Magloire is lucky her son has recovered. He says many children who arrive at Gado die from hunger, malnutrition, or wounds inflicted on them by fighters while they are escaping from C.A.R.

He says malnutrition and hunger are becoming public health problems for children from Central African Republic arriving in the camp. He says many of them under the age of 5 end up dying. He says when the children are brought to them at the early stages of malnourishment, they are treated for three or four days, and then are referred to their community workers for psychological and health follow up care.

Religious and ethnic unrest erupted in C.A.R. after Muslim Seleka rebels seized power in the majority Christian country in 2013 and left the nation divided.

Three years of violence has killed thousands and led more than 300 000 to run for safety in neighboring Cameroon.

Allegra Baiocchi, resident coordinator of the U.N. system in Cameroon, says despite the increasing number of refugees and shortage of humanitarian assistance, many refugees have continued to flee to Cameroon as the crisis escalates.

"We have heard stories of unstoppable violence. People who have lost their husbands, their children, their parents on their way here," said Baiocchi. "Their first message was, 'please give us something to do, please allow us to become more self-reliant and independent,' but unfortunately there was just not enough funding. Our response is underfunded. Overall, the humanitarian response in Cameroon is 40 percent funded. When it comes to refugees, that figure goes down to 20 percent. There is not much we can do with 20 percent of the funding."

Najat Rochdi, the humanitarian coordinator of the United Nations office for humanitarian affairs in C.A.R. says she is launching an appeal to humanitarian agencies, the international community and persons of goodwill to help the suffering multitudes in C.A.R. and neighboring countries.

She says this year the needs of the refugees have increased to $498 million. She says the refugees have come to Cameroon to meet donor agencies who relocated because of the carnage.

The United Nations raised less than half of the money it asked for in its last appeal, yet the number of C.A.R. refugees and internally displaced persons has increased from 2.2 million at the beginning of this year to 2.4 million currently.

Last week, Cameroon reported it had sealed its border with C.A.R. after violence had escalated.
Mexico's former first lady Margarita Zavala announced Friday she is resigning from the conservative National Action Party, known as the PAN.



Zavala is the wife of ex-President Felipe Calderon, who governed from 2006 to 2012. She had announced her intention to run for the party's presidential nomination, but found herself in open conflict with party leader Ricardo Anaya, who also wants the nomination.



In a video Friday, Zavala accused the party's current leadership of cancelling internal elections and said they had "handed the party's most important decision to others.''



That was an apparent reference to last month's announcement of an alliance between the PAN and center-left Democratic Revolution Party for the July 2018 presidential elections.



Zavala did not mention Anaya by name, but the two have had public, heated exchanges recently. In the video, she said PAN leaders "have imposed anti-democratic conditions that we criticized for so long in the PRI,'' referring to the Institutional Revolutionary Party.



Zavala hinted she might run for the presidency outside her party but was not clear, saying only "I resign from the PAN, but not from my duty to participate in politics.''



However, she did say the timing of her decision was influenced by Mexico's complex electoral laws, which set out strict time tables for declaring nominees and independent candidacies.



"I am resigning from the PAN for the reasons I have enumerated, but also because the law obliges me to do so,'' said Zavala, "even before we know what the nomination procedure will be for National Action or the so-called alliance."



"If I did not do this,'' she said, "I would be prevented from participating in the elections.''

The most immediate beneficiary from strife in the PAN may be the battered PRI, which now will face a less-united opposition alliance. Leftist Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who is seen as the front-runner in the presidential race, has said Zavala is the PAN's strongest candidate, and encouraged her to run as an independent.



Lopez Obrador, who lost two previous bids for the presidency, has promoted himself as the only real alternative to the largely discredited PRI, and so may also benefit from a highly fragmented field.
Explosions at a natural gas station in Accra rocked the Ghanaian capital on Saturday, causing a massive fire that forced residents to flee, officials said.

There was no word on casualties, although the Reuters news agency cited Deputy Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah as saying some people had been killed and "quite a number also injured." He did not have specific casualty numbers.

Ghana National Fire Service spokesman Billy Anaglate told the French news agency AFP that the explosions occurred when a tanker was delivering natural gas to a station.

"It's too early for us to know the cause of the fire. We will investigate," Anaglate told AFP.

The explosions, which happened about 7:30 p.m. local time (1930 UTC), launched a huge fireball into the sky. They could also be heard across the city, witnesses said.
Mick Fleetwood was 16 when he left school, told his parents he wanted to pursue a career in rock 'n' roll, and went to London in search of gigs.

A common tale, true, but this one has a happy ending. Fleetwood fell in with some talented blues enthusiasts, paid [barely] his dues, and soared to stardom with the first incarnation of Fleetwood Mac  and then into the rock 'n' roll stratosphere with the second, more pop-oriented version of the band.

"School was not a good thing for me," said Fleetwood. "I had a learning disability, no doubt, and no one understood what those things were. I was sort of drowning at school academically. My parents were like, 'Go and do it.' They were picking up on the fact that I had found something. They saw the one thing that I loved with a passion was teaching myself how to play drums at home. So they sent me off with a little drum kit to London, and the whole thing unfolded."

Fleetwood didn't really have to rebel, though rebellion was in the air, and he had the good fortune to make friends early with Peter Green, the supremely talented guitarist whose blues sound shaped the band's early years.

Green receives the lion's share of the credit, and the dedication, in Fleetwood's memoir of the band's formative period, Love That Burns: A Chronicle of Fleetwood Mac, Volume One: 1967-1974. It has been published in a limited signed edition by Genesis Publications.

At 70, Fleetwood is eager to acknowledge his debt to Green, who left the band in 1970.



Fleetwood and bassist John McVie were later joined by Christine McVie, Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham for a new lineup that hit the jackpot with Rumours, one of the best-selling albums of all time.

Green's generosity

Fleetwood said the band's very name reflects Green's self-effacing approach.

"Peter was asked why did he call the band Fleetwood Mac. He said, 'Well, you know, I thought maybe I'd move on at some point and I wanted Mick and John to have a band.' End of story, explaining how generous he was."

The photos and text of Love That Burns are really the celebration of an era, capturing the explosion of British music at a time when bands like The Who and The Beatles were vying for the top spots on the charts  and competing with semi-forgotten bands like Freddie and the Dreamers, who actually got top billing over the Rolling Stones on a least one concert poster.

Once Fleetwood Mac made its name as a blues band, the group was able to go to Chicago's famous Chess Studios to record with some of the great American bluesmen, including a few of the pioneers who had helped perfect the driving Chicago sound.

Fleetwood remembers  with relief  that the longhaired crew of young Brits was able to at least play in the same room as Buddy Guy and Willie Dixon without sounding foolish.

"These are major, major players for anyone who knows anything about blues," Fleetwood said. "Having that take place, I don't know what they must have really thought with us funny little English kids walking into their world. ... I feel good about it to this day that we held our own dignity, even with these guys."

He said the whole experience was "like going to their church and not just being in the congregation but actually doing our version of preaching with them."

Salute to first band

While some fans swear the early Fleetwood Mac was better than the later, far more commercial version, Fleetwood knows the group is identified more with its string of hits, including Bill Clinton's favorite song, Don't Stop, which earned the band a headlining gig at his inaugural celebration.

This is one reason the book focuses on the first band. Fleetwood doesn't want it to be forgotten.

"Even as we were doing it [the book], we realized that the band was 50 years old," he said. "So it's really about drawing a line in the sand to say that this happened and what caused this. And it's generally fair to say, especially in the United States, this section of the formation of Fleetwood Mac is not really known about."
Pakistan's Foreign Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif says other countries in the region may be able to sway the Taliban into peace talks better than Islamabad, including Russia.

"At least for our influence on Taliban today, there is a mistrust ... perhaps they have more influence from other countries in that region than in our Pakistan," Asif said Thursday when asked by VOA's Urdu service whether he was referring to Russia.

Asif was speaking to reporters in Washington a day after meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to discuss issues of mutual concern, such as Afghanistan.

The Pakistani foreign minister said an upcoming four-way round of talks on Afghanistan was slated for Oman's capital, Muscat, on October 16.

"The quadrilateral arrangement will again be in operation. So, that is something we still hope will ... still work," Asif said.

He gave no further details on the talks or who would be attending.

Quadrilateral group restored

Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani agreed in June to revive the Quadrilateral Coordination Group, made up of Afghanistan, China, Pakistan and the United States. The group last met in May 2016 and fell into disarray with the Taliban's refusal to take part, a change in U.S. leadership, and bickering between Islamabad and Kabul.

Asif urged the United States to act as a facilitator between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

"We need the bilateral contacts, which were resumed three or four days back with Kabul and Islamabad. The Americans will support us in this process," Asif said.

Pakistan has rejected U.S. accusations that it is not doing enough to fight terrorism on its own soil.

Asif told VOA Urdu that Pakistan is going beyond offering Kabul joint-border monitoring and is asking for Afghan military commanders to help identify hideouts of Taliban inside Pakistan.

"We offered them  don't give us information, board the helicopter with us, tell us the coordinates  we'll straight go over there," he said. "You want us to sniff them out? We'll do that. You want us to take action against them? Whatever action you propose, we'll do that. But, ... these hollow allegations are not acceptable."

Russia in Afghanistan

Russia's influence has slowly been returning to Afghanistan since the Soviet Union's 1979 invasion ended in defeat at the hands of the U.S.-backed mujahedeen.

Since launching a 2001 war against the Taliban for harboring al-Qaida terrorists, U.S. forces have gradually drawn down from the protracted conflict, providing room for Russia to assert itself.

Since December, Moscow has hosted three rounds of expanding international talks on Afghanistan, which the Taliban also has refused to support. For the second round in February, Russia invited Afghan representatives for the first time after Kabul and Washington raised concerns about their exclusion.

For the last round in April, Moscow invited former Soviet Central Asian states to join Afghanistan, China, India, Iran and Pakistan for a total of 11 countries. The United States also was invited, but Washington declined, saying it was not informed of the agenda beforehand and was unclear of the meeting's motives.

The Taliban so far has refused direct talks with Kabul, calling it a "U.S. puppet," and has declined to support the Moscow-led talks.

Russia acknowledged in 2016 it has been in direct contact with the Taliban leaders, but insists it is part of efforts to promote peace, and it has denied allegations of supplying or arming the Taliban.

Just days ahead of the February talks, however, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan said Russia was legitimizing and supporting the Taliban.

Pakistan has said Russia is "positively" using its influence with the Taliban and wants the U.S. to participate in the talks initiated by Moscow.

VOA's Urdu service contributed to this report.
The World Health Organization reports 900,000 doses of oral cholera vaccine are expected to arrive in Coxs Bazar, Bangladesh Saturday. A mass vaccination campaign for Rohingya refugees is set to begin Tuesday, October 10.

More than one half million Rohingya refugees who have fled violence in Myanmar since August 25 are at risk of getting cholera. Conditions in the squalid, overcrowded, makeshift settlements in Coxs Bazar are perfect for an outbreak of this fatal disease. Cholera is spread by contaminated drinking water, unsafe food and poor sanitary conditions.

A spokesman for the World Health Organization, Tarik Jasarevic, says the planned oral vaccination campaign will prevent the worst from happening.

Target population is 650,000 people. Every individual above the age of one. More than 200 teams, vaccinators and volunteers would carry out the campaign," said Jasarevic. "The second round of the campaign is expected to be held after about two weeks, at the end of the first one.

Jasarevic says 250,000 children between the ages of one and five will be covered in this second round. He says Bangladeshi communities who are hosting the Rohingya refugees from Rakhine State also will be vaccinated against cholera.

To ease conditions for the refugees, a spokesman for the International Organization for Migration, Joel Millman, says the Bangladesh government has allocated a further 1,000 acres of land. This is in addition to the 2,000 acres it already had made available in mid-September.

Officials plan to use the vast site to accommodate all the Rohingya refugees in Coxs Bazarboth new and old arrivalsin one settlement," said Millman. "At close to 700,000 people, this will become the worlds largest refugee camp.

Aid officials acknowledge the need for better housing for the refugees, but, they say building a big camp is not the solution to the Rohingya crisis. They say the root causes must be addressed. Conditions must be created in Myanmar that would allow for the safe, voluntary return of the refugees.
At a community center in Orocovis, an isolated agricultural town of 23,000 in the mountains of central Puerto Rico, six oxygen-dependent patients drew breath only with the help of the diesel generator powering their equipment.

Then the generator sputtered as if it might die.

A dozen volunteer doctors and medical students from San Juan started assessing which patients should be transported first  in the towns only ambulance  to a hospital an hour away, and which could survive without oxygen for a short time.

Javier Sevilla Rodriguez, a medical student, had only one way to make the agonizing calls. He removed one womans oxygen tube, watching carefully to see how her blood-oxygen level responded.

This is how we are doing triage right now, he said.

Needed: electricity, water, phones

Two weeks after Hurricane Maria, many of Puerto Ricos sick, frail and elderly are teetering on the edge, one faulty generator away from missing dialysis treatments or having critical medications go bad.

With most of the country still lacking electricity, hospitals, clinics and shelters are operating on aging generators not intended for long-term use and powered by scarce diesel fuel. Water is still not available for nearly half the population, and supplies of medicines and oxygen are running low.

And residents still cant call for help across vast swaths of the island because of widespread cellular network outages.

Many regions in the interior of the island, like this one, are only now seeing relief efforts, amid a plodding U.S. disaster response to this island of 3.4 million American citizens. The U.S. territorys battered economy and infrastructure have magnified the humanitarian crisis wrought by the strongest hurricane to hit here in nine decades.

In Orocovis, even the sickest patients have gone largely without medical care since the storm. So the doctors worked quickly throughout the day, conferring with caregivers and writing prescriptions they would take back to San Juan to fill and then dispatch by messenger.

Now at the community center, their last stop before leaving town, time ran out.

With a loud clunk, the sounds of humming oxygen machines stopped and were replaced by a chorus of beeps and chirps warning that power had been cut.

The generator had failed.

A call for doctors

The medical convoy that visited Orocovis is an entirely volunteer operation, organized by physician Carlos Mellado.

After Maria hit Puerto Rico on Sept. 20, blocking roads and crippling power and communications networks, Mellado asked other doctors at his clinic to cover for him and threw himself into hurricane relief work.

On the first day, he headed to Canovanas, east of the capital, checking on people at shelters. He promised to fill many patients prescriptions and send back the medications.

The next day, he went to Vieques, an island off Puerto Ricos eastern coast, and found diabetics without insulin, heart patients under extreme stress and crucial treatments interrupted by power outages.

When Mellado returned to San Juan, he stopped by the local radio station, which in the days after the storm had become a trusted source of information for Puerto Ricans living without communications. Invited to speak to listeners, he called for other physicians willing to join him.

Now, Mellado has a core group of 18 physicians, who rotate between the trips and their own practices, and a growing list of more doctors who want to join. Each morning, he takes out a paper map of the island covered with notes about where hes been. The doctors pick a town and go.

The convoys have no official ties, but Mellado reports each evening on what the doctors found to Puerto Rican and federal officials in San Juan. Sometimes Puerto Ricos housing department coordinates deliveries of the drugs back to the towns, and a pharmacy chain donates medications for patients without insurance.

The governments death count from the storm more than doubled this week to 36. But doctors across the island believe the total would be far higher if it included people with chronic conditions who died because they lacked access to medical care.

For these critically ill patients, if everything fails, they dont have too much time, said Humberto Guzman, a pediatric orthopedic surgeon and member of the medical convoy. People are dying.

We cannot wait

In Orocovis, after the generator failed, the doctors looked for a quick fix. Guzman ran up the street to the towns shuttered urgent care facility.

There, he found a half-dozen oxygen tanks that locals said had been delivered the day before. Each could provide about a days worth of oxygen to a patient.

The tanks were quickly moved to the community center, where the doctors taught family members to use them. But before that became necessary, the generator sprang back to life.

The doctors packed up to leave, assuring patients families that they could switch to the tanks if the generator failed again.

In every town right now, there are moments like this happening, Guzman said. Thats why you need people like us to just go. We cannot wait.
Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said Saturday that he would not rule out using constitutional powers to take away Catalonia's autonomous status if the region declared independence.

Rajoy made the remark to the newspaper El Pais. "I don't rule out anything that is within the law," he said, adding, "I would like the threat of an independence referendum to be withdrawn as quickly as possible."

Earlier Saturday, thousands of protesters gathered at rallies in Barcelona, Madrid and other Spanish cities as Catalonians continued to push for secession after last Sunday's independence referendum.

Organizers of the Catalonia secession rally had asked the demonstrators to wear neutral white, and not to display any flags, either Spanish or Catalonian. The demonstration organizers have been promoting the slogan "Let's Talk."

In Madrid, the Spanish national capital, there was a competing demonstration, for Spanish unity. That demonstration, centered on Madrid's Plaza de Colon, featured thousands of people waving red-and-yellow Spanish flags.

Although Catalonians voted overwhelmingly for independence this week, the national government has called the vote illegal. Catalonian leaders are calling for dialogue with the national government.

A top EU official Thursday warned that the separatist dispute risks escalating into armed conflict.

The position is very, very alarming. Civil war is conceivable there, in the middle of Europe, Gunther Oettinger, the German EU commissioner, said at an event in Munich.

The remarks prompted disquiet among EU diplomats. One told VOA he thought the comments were nonsense.

Oettinger and the EU Commission, the European blocs governing body, which fears Catalan independence might stir up separatism elsewhere in Europe, also have urged the authorities in Madrid and Barcelona to start negotiations and to avoid further provocations. But there are few signs of that happening. Both sides appear to be standing firm in Spains worst constitutional crisis since an attempted coup in 1981.

Rajoy has said there can be no talks while Catalonias separatist leaders are threatening to issue a declaration of independence on the back of the unauthorized plebiscite.

In that poll, deemed illegal by Madrid, 90 percent voted to break with Spain, but the turnout was well under half of the electorate. Opinion polls have consistently suggested that more Catalans favor remaining in Spain.

Secessionist anger in Catalonia has only intensified, though, over the violence last Sunday when Spains national police and Civil Guard fired rubber bullets, roughed up Catalans and raided polling stations as part of an effort to disrupt the plebiscite. Catalan authorities say almost 900 people were hurt in the crackdown.

Catalan anger has been further provoked by Spains constitutional court barring Catalonias regional parliament from sitting on Monday in a session scheduled to discuss the results of the Sunday referendum, and possibly to declare independence.

With the crisis deepening, and no sign of an end to political instability, some Catalan businesses have announced they are relocating their headquarters to other parts of Spain to avoid the possibility of getting knocked out of the European Union common market by a Catalonian secession.
Supporters of Russian opposition leader Aleksei Navalny staged nationwide protests on Saturday to coincide with Russian President Vladimir Putins 65th birthday, with police making scores of arrests.

Rallies and pickets were held in dozens of Russian cities, including Moscow, Vladivostok, Khabarovsk, Ulan-Ude, Chita and Stavropol, with protesters demanding that Navalny be allowed to participate in the countrys March 2018 presidential election.

The Moscow-based OVD-Info, a group that monitors politically motivated arrests, said there had been at least 271 people arrested at protests in 26 cities as of 9 p.m.

No harsh crackdown

There was no harsh crackdown by police as seen in past rallies organized by Navalny. In March, police arrested more than 1,000 demonstrators in Moscow alone during nationwide protests.

Most of the arrests on October 7 came in Putins hometown of St. Petersburg. Over 1,000 people gathered at Marsovo Polye (the Field of Mars) in the city center and then marched across the city, chanting "Russia without Putin!" and "Putin, retire!"

OVD-Info said at least 62 people were detained in St. Petersburg, coming after some opposition protesters tried to break through police lines in the citys main street.

WATCH: Supporters of jailed opposition leader Navalny protest

A large police presence had assembled throughout the city center before the rally.

Earlier in St. Petersburg, Navalnys campaign coordinator, Mikhail Sosin, and the campaign's lawyer, Denis Mikhailov, were detained. His campaign coordinators in Perm, Tver and Stavropol were also detained, as well as numerous campaign activists across the country.

Supporters were demanding that Navalny be allowed to participate in the countrys March 2018 presidential election.

Protesters

In Moscow, several hundred people gathered at central Pushkin Square, where protesters had planned to march to the Kremlin but were blocked by police, prompting them to turn back.

The protesters included teenagers holding rubber ducks, a symbol of opposition to the government, after reports that Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev had a special house for a duck in one of his properties.

Protesters at Pushkin Square chanted "Putin is a thief!" "Happy Birthday!" "We are the authorities!" "Russia without Putin!" and "Free Aleksei Navalny!"

Heavy rains had hit Moscow, and many demonstrators were drenched.

Police in Moscow had asked people over loudspeakers to disperse. There were at least 10 police vehicles in the square, although law enforcement officers were unprecedentedly restrained.

Anton, 20, was holding a "happy birthday" balloon and a wrapped gift box with "pension" written on it. He said he wanted the entire Russian leadership to retire.

"I think you can change the country through street [protests], but if not, at least it's good fun."

Nikita Grigoryev, 16, a Moscow schoolboy holding a rubber duck, told RFE/RL: "I'm here to demand the authorities let Aleksei Navalny campaign [for president]."

"I doubt [this protest] will make any difference, but we have to show there are many people unhappy with what's going on in the country," he added.

'We need freedom'

Lyudmila Gurova, 57, a pensioner, told RFE/RL: "We need freedom: freedom of assembly, freedom of identity, freedom to express our views about the country. This is a fascist country, I believe fascism has taken hold. For the last 26 years I have lived in social hell."

The protests came a day after a Moscow court rejected Navalny's appeal against a 20-day jail term he was handed after being found in violation of the law for publicly calling for unsanctioned rallies.

The ruling meant that Navalny remained in jail during the protests. Navalnys election campaign chief, Leonid Volkov, was also sentenced to 20 days in jail on Thursday.

The local governments of numerous cities have not granted permission for the planned demonstrations.

Another wing of the liberal opposition, the Yabloko party, criticized Navalny for organizing the unsanctioned rally and for calling on his supporters to enter "deliberate confrontation with the police, under the batons of the OMON riot police."

"Such 'events' are frankly provocations aimed only at dubiously creating PR for a certain person," the party said in a statement on its website.

Warnings issued

Ahead of the protests, Russian authorities issued warnings against holding demonstrations without official permission.

Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters on October 3 that "public calls for unsanctioned rallies and meetings are illegal ... and therefore organizers of such events will be prosecuted."

Prosecutors in St. Petersburg said on October 6 that "any attempts to conduct unsanctioned [demonstrations] are a direct violation of the law."

Navalny had urged Russians to join the demonstrations, being organized in more than 70 cities nationwide, to support "political competition" in the country as he seeks to run in the upcoming presidential election.

"I understand perfectly well that that [the Kremlin] needs me to be locked up as much as possible and particularly on October 7," Navalny's spokeswoman, Kira Yarmysh, quoted him as saying in court.

Navalny's campaign team called on all "decent people" to participate in the demonstrations.

"Our demands are reasonable, simple and lawful: political competition [and] access to presidential elections for Navalny and other candidates," it said in an statement on Friday.

It added that authorities should "leave activists, volunteers, monitors and others alone and give them the opportunity to freely participate in election campaigns."

Critic of Putin

Navalny is a fierce critic of Putin, who has held power as prime minister or president since 1999 and is expected to seek a new six-year term in the March election. Putin is virtually assured of victory as the tightly controlled political system leaves little room for surprises.

A 41-year-old lawyer who has produced numerous reports alleging corruption among key Putin allies, Navalny has opened more than 60 campaign offices and held rallies nationwide since announcing his bid for the Kremlin in December.

Russia's Central Election Commission, however, said in June that Navalny was ineligible to run for public office because of a financial-crimes conviction in one of two high-profile cases that he says were fabricated by authorities for political reasons.

Two previous nationwide demonstrations spearheaded by Navalny earlier this year led to mass detentions and rattled Russian officials with their substantial youth turnout.

Kremlin opponents and human rights activists say the government frequently violates the constitutional right to free assembly when it withholds permission for demonstrations or places restrictions on where and when they can be held.

The New York-based Human Rights Watch, meanwhile, said last month that Russian police were "systematically" interfering with Navalny's attempts to run for president by raiding his campaign offices, "arbitrarily" detaining campaign volunteers and carrying out "other actions that unjustifiably interfere with campaigning."

The Kremlin has dismissed Navalny, who finished second in Moscow's 2013 mayoral election with around 27 percent of the vote, as a convict and a marginal political figure.
Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha met with President Donald Trump this week as the two countries seek to reinvigorate a relationship that had been strained since the former general ousted a democratically elected government in a 2014 military coup.

During the past three years, there have been positive developments because they (the U.S.) see what we have done, Prayut, the former commander in chief of the Royal Thai Army, told VOA Thai during an exclusive interview. They see it in spite of how we had come to power.

Prayuts first meeting with Trump came days after a court in Thailand sentenced in absentia the prime minister he unseated, Yingluck Shinawatra, to five years in prison for criminal negligence related to costly rice subsidy programs that failed to prop up farmers income. She has fled Thailand.



Human rights criticisms

Human rights groups and the United States have been critical of Thailands military intervention, saying there has been an erosion of human rights and democratic institutions such as freedom of the press, as shown by the silencing of high-profile journalist Pravit Rojanaphruk.

Prayut has argued the coup was necessary to stabilize the country.

The action came after public discontent over Shinawatras controversial government escalated into six months of street protests. Thai politics have been dominated for more than a decade by a power struggle between Thailands traditional elite, including the army and affluent Bangkok-based upper classes, and the Shinawatra family, which includes Yinglucks brother, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

Prayut is the first prime minister of Thailand to visit the White House in 12 years. Trump extended the invitation to Prayut in late April.

In August, Prayut had trade and regional security talks with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, the highest ranking U.S. official to visit Thailand since the 2014 coup.

During the Monday meeting, Prayut said he told Trump that Thailand is on track to hold an election next year.

He didnt ask me about that, Prayut said. I think he monitors the situation closely and I have constantly been talking about the roadmap.

Elections

Prayuts roadmap to hold free and fair elections, however, experienced delays for at least a year, partly caused by revisions in the draft constitution.

Following the Prayut-led coup, the Obama administration cut military aid to Thailand and downgraded American participation in Cobra Gold, long the largest multilateral defense exercise in Asia.

The meeting with Trump seemed to offer a pivot on the defense exercise, as a joint statement from the two governments said: The two leaders also welcomed closer military-to-military cooperation and joint exercises, including Cobra Gold.

On economic ties with the U.S., Prayut said Thailand intends to expand investment in the U.S. by additional $8.3 billion, which could lead to 15,000 new jobs, including work at a petrochemical project in Ohio.

The Thai government also announced Tuesday that the SCG Group, one of the countrys largest industrial conglomerates, plans to sign two memorandums of understanding to purchase 155,000 tons of coal from U.S. suppliers for cement production.

Trump and Prayut also discussed measures to denuclearize North Korea.

We have followed the U.N. regulations and have made our own initiatives so that trade and investment with North Koreans have dropped to very low levels, he said, adding that the U.S. wants ASEAN to pay more attention on that, and I told him ASEAN is on the same page. ASEAN is the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

When asked about Thailands role in resolving Myanmars Rohingya crisis, Prayut was diplomatic in his remarks about the neighboring nation.

We have to respect the Myanmar government, he said. We are friends and will help each other to bring back peace, he said.

Myanmar

Violence, reignited by clashes between Myanmars military and Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army, have prompted some 500,000 members of the Muslim minority group to flee to Bangladesh since August.

We told the U.S. that Thailand is ready to be a connecting point for the human rights issues and relief effort for affected people, Prayut told VOA.

While official U.S.-Thai cooperation may take time to come to fruition, Prayut said he found immediate connections with Trump.

You cant judge people only from what you see on social media. I think he is not the kind of leader many people thought, he said of Trump. I am having the same problem myself. I also have a problem with the media.

Prayut also said both he and Trump are change leaders.

I still remember how his voice had sounded on the phone. He was polite, Prayut said. Now I am meeting him in person.  He is very friendly.

This report originated on VOA Thai.
U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday said "only one thing will work" in dealing with North Korea after previous administrations had talked to Pyongyang without results.

"Presidents and their administrations have been talking to North Korea for 25 years, agreements made and massive amounts of money paid," Trump said in a tweet. "... Hasn't worked, agreements violated before the ink was dry, making fools of U.S. negotiators. Sorry, but only one thing will work!"

Trump did not make clear to what he was referring, but his comments seemed to be a further suggestion that military action was on his mind.

The president has previously said the United States would "totally destroy" North Korea if necessary to protect itself and its allies from Pyongyang's nuclear threats.

Earlier this week, during a meeting with top U.S. military leaders and their spouses, Trump told reporters it was the "calm before the storm." Asked for clarification then on what he meant, Trump said: "You'll find out."

White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders referred to Iran and North Korea the following day when asked about Trump's comments.

Asked on Saturday about Trump's tweet, the Pentagon said the Defense Department's job was to "present the president military options and carry out orders."

Trump repeatedly has made clear his distaste for dialogue with North Korea. On Sunday, he dismissed the idea of talks as a waste of time, a day after Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Washington was maintaining open lines of communication with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's government.
U.S. President Donald Trump has expressed surprise that The Washington Post  a newspaper Trump repeatedly has accused of writing inaccurate news stories about him  published a favorable news story about his fundraising prowess.

The Post reported Friday the Republican Party is on the verge of raising more money in small amounts than in more than a decade, thanks to Trump's fundraising appeals to his supporters.

Trump has regularly derided the Post and other U.S. media outlets as purveyors of "Fake News," but he acknowledged Saturday he was pleased with the fundraising account.

"Can't believe I finally got a good story in the @washingtonpost," Trump wrote on Twitter. "It discusses the enthusiasm of "Trump" voters through campaign ....

...contributions. The RNC is taking in far more $'s than the Dems, and much of it by my wonderful small donors. I am working hard for them!"

Citing the nonpartisan Campaign Finance Institute, the report said nearly 60 percent of the $68 million in direct contributions to the Republican National Committee this year through August came in donations of $200 or less. That's nearly twice as much as the Democratic National Committee raised during the same time period, giving Republicans a clear financial advantage as both parties prepare to fight for control of Congress in the 2018 mid-term elections.

Trump's satisfaction with the Post article is in sharp contrast to remarks he made about the newspaper before the Conservative Political Action Conference in February, when he said it must have created fake news sources for a story about Russian meddling that mentioned nine former and current U.S. officials.

"There's no nine people," Trump maintained. "I don't believe there was one or two people."

Trump will help fill RNC coffers even more Saturday night when he attends a Republican fundraiser at the Greensboro, North Carolina, home of Republican mega-donor Louis DeJoy, the former CEO of New Breed Logistics.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced the start of Turkish military operation into Syria's Idlib province.

"There is a serious operation in Idlib at the moment, and this will continue," Erdogan announced in a speech Saturday to his party members.

The military offensive is aimed at ending the jihadist control of the Idlib area. Much of Idlib is controlled by the jihadist Tahrir al-Sham alliance, which is made up of large elements of a former al-Qaida affiliate that changed its name last year from the al-Nusra Front.

"We have to help our brothers who arrived in Idlib after fleeing Aleppo. The necessary step was taken, and it is ongoing," Erdogan said. "The FSA [Free Syrian Army] is currently carrying out the operation, and our soldiers are not there."

According to some local reports, FSA forces have started entering Idlib and already have engaged in fighting with the jihadists.

Bolstering forces

The Turkish military has been bolstering its forces for weeks along the Idlib border. Local media reports said parts of the Turkish-built frontier wall had been removed ahead of an expected military operation, which could start as early as Saturday night.

Erdogan said the current operation was receiving air support from Russia.

Ankara, along with Moscow and Tehran, agreed in Astana to create a de-escalation zone in Idlib. Tahrir al-Sham is strongly opposed to the move, vowing to continue its fight against the Syrian regime.

Even though Ankara is a strong supporter of the Syrian opposition, it increasingly is cooperating in Syria with Tehran and Moscow, which both back the Syrian regime. Erdogan has met with his Iranian and Russian counterparts during the past 10 days to discuss the Syrian civil war.

The Astana agreement to create a de-escalation zone in Idlib could help to avert a major threat to Turkey, former Turkish Ambassador Unal Cevikoz, who now heads the Ankara Policy Center, said.

Cevikoz said Ankara fears that if the Syrian regime moves against the rebels in Idlib, as it did in Aleppo, Turkey could face a humanitarian crisis.

"If that kind of tragedy like Aleppo happens in Idlib, there would certainly be a new flow of refugees, and all these people in the Idlib area would find refuge in Turkey. ... Their only exit is toward Turkey," said Cevikoz.

Humanitarian crisis

Currently, Turkey is hosting about 3 million refugees from Iraq and Syria. Security experts warn Turkey would face not only a humanitarian crisis but also a security threat, with many jihadists based in Idlib.

With Ankara being one of the main backers of the Syrian rebels, its role is seen as crucial by Moscow and Tehran in helping to create a de-escalation zone. According to local reports, Turkey's military forces and rebels will focus on securing Idlib, while the hinterland will be under Russian and Iranian control.

Last year, Turkish forces backing FSA elements entered Syria with Moscow's tacit support to remove Islamic State forces and Kurdish forces from its border. A large Turkish military presence remains in Syria, despite Ankara's declaring an end to Operation Euphrates Shield.

Observers warn of the risk of mission creep in the current military undertaking.

Idlib borders Afrin, a region under control by a Syrian Kurdish militia of the YPG. Ankara considers the militia to be terrorists linked to the Kurdish insurgent PKK group, which has been fighting the Turkish state for three decades.

"We will never allow the formation of a terror corridor along our border with Syria," Erdogan said Saturday  a reference that observers suggested was aimed at both jihadists and the YPG.
Just 24 percent of Americans believe the country is heading in the right direction after a tumultuous stretch for President Donald Trump that included the threat of war with North Korea, complaints about hurricane relief and Trump's remarks about white supremacists. That's a 10 percentage-point drop since June, according to a poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

The decline in optimism about the nation's trajectory is particularly pronounced among Republicans. In June, 60 percent of Republicans said the country was headed in the right direction; now it's just 44 percent.

The broader picture for the president is grim, too. Nearly 70 percent of Americans say Trump isn't level-headed, and majorities say he's not honest or a strong leader. More than 60 percent disapprove of how he is handling race relations, foreign policy and immigration, among other issues.

Overall, 67 percent of Americans disapprove of the job Trump is doing in office, including about one-third of Republicans.

'A worse place'

Tracy Huelsman, 40, of Louisville, Kentucky, is among them. A self-described moderate Republican, Huelsman said she's particularly concerned about the "divisiveness" she feels the president promotes on social media.

"It's scary in 2017 that we are in what seems like a worse place in terms of division," said Huelsman, who did not vote for Trump in last year's election.

The assessments came after a turbulent summer for Trump that included a major White House shakeup, bringing the departure of his chief of staff, top strategist and press secretary. While the installment of retired Marine General John Kelly as chief of staff has brought more day-to-day order to the West Wing, the president has still stirred up numerous controversies, including when he blamed "both sides" for the clashes between white supremacists and counterprotesters in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Trump has also raised the specter of a military conflict with North Korea over its nuclear provocations. He's derided North Korea's leader, Kim Jong Un, as "rocket man," including during a speech at the United Nations, and has downplayed the prospects that diplomatic negotiations with Kim could yield results.

Despite his electoral success, Trump struggled as both a candidate and now as president to broaden his base of support beyond his ardent supporters. The loyalty of his core backers has been enough to keep Republican lawmakers largely in line, but party operatives are closely watching Trump's support among GOP and independent voters ahead of next year's midterm elections, when the balance of power in Congress will be at stake.

To be sure, lawmakers have their own problems to worry about. Americans have even less esteem for Congress than Trump, with just 18 percent saying they approve of the job being done by the House and the Senate.

Health bill failure

Republicans took another hit last month when they failed  for a second time this year  to pass an overhaul of the nation's health care law. GOP leaders tried to rush votes on the complicated legislation, leaving many voters unsure of what was in the package.

"They never seemed to present a bill to people that you could actually look at the details of and the pluses and minuses of it," said Dennis Cronin, 67, an independent from Wenham, Massachusetts.

The GOP failure on health care has irritated Trump, who promised voters that repealing "Obamacare" would be easy. Americans aren't happy with his progress on health care either; 68 percent disapprove of his handling of the issue.

The president performs slightly better on the economy in the AP-NORC poll, but even there, 56 percent disapprove of the job he's doing and just 42 percent say they approve.

On Friday, the Labor Department announced that the U.S. shed 33,000 jobs in September because of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, which closed thousands of businesses in Texas and Florida and forced widespread evacuations. It marked the first monthly hiring drop in nearly seven years.

Ninety-two percent of Democrats and 69 percent of independents said Trump understands the problems of people like them not very well or not at all well. Even among Republicans, only 42 percent say he understands them very well, while 32 percent say he does moderately well.

The AP-NORC poll of 1,150 adults was conducted September 28-October 2 using a sample drawn from NORC's probability-based AmeriSpeak panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for all respondents is plus or minus 4.1 percentage points.

Respondents were first selected randomly using address-based sampling methods, and later interviewed online or by phone.
The U.S. Embassy in Saudi Arabia warned U.S. citizens to exercise caution Saturday in the area around Jeddah's Al-Salam Palace, or Peace Palace, after reports of an attack there.

Saudi Arabia's interior ministry said Saturday that two Saudi guards were killed and three more were injured when a man drove up to the western gate of the royal palace in Jeddah and began shooting.

A spokesman for the ministry said members of the Royal Guard fatally shot the attacker.

The spokesman said the shooter was Mansour al-Amri, 28, a Saudi national.
The U.N. Human Rights office denounces the killings of demonstrators from Cameroons Anglophone community in towns across the Northwest and Southwest regions Sunday, October 1, and is calling for an impartial investigation into these events.

Government figures put the number of deaths at about 10. But other estimates report many more people than that were killed. U.N. Human Rights spokesman, Rupert Colville, says credible sources indicate some of the deaths were caused by the excessive use of force by the security forces.

We call on the Government of Cameroon to establish prompt effective and independent investigations to ensure accountability and, of course, impartial, as well," said Colville. "Cameroons Anglophone regions have seen multiple strikes and demonstrations over the past year as resentment and tensions have built at what English-speakers view as discrimination against them in favor of the majority French-speaking population.

Anglophones make up about 20 percent of Cameroons majority Francophone population. Grievances over their perceived economic and political marginalization have been building for years.

The killings last Sunday came amid wide-scale protests by the English-speaking community, leading to a symbolic declaration of independence from the majority of the French speaking country.

The U.N. human rights office is calling for restraint by the security forces to prevent a recurrence of similar bloody events. Colville says people must be allowed to exercise their right to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression.

We call on all people to pursue peaceful means to make themselves heard. Over the past few months, public and private property have been damaged, and at least two homemade bombs are reported to have been planted in public places," said Colville. "There also have been arson attacks on a number of schools.

Colville says his office welcomes comments by President Paul Biya, in the aftermath of the killings, condemning all forms violence and calling for dialogue to find a durable solution.
The United States has formally handed over two UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters to the Afghan Air Force as part of a plan to increase its capability and sustainability in counter-Taliban operations.

The handover ceremony took place at the airfield in Kandahar as the U.S.-led international military intervention in Afghanistan entered its 17th year Saturday, with no end in sight for the war against an Islamist insurgency.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, in accepting the new aircraft, called it a "historic day" and used the occasion to urge the Taliban to end the violence.

Ghani said if the Taliban thinks it can defeat Afghan security forces, it needs to abandon the idea in the wake of the growing strength of Afghanistan's national army and police forces.

"End the war, stop bloodshed. The way forward for you is to negotiate a political solution," the Afghan leader asserted.

'Beginning of the end'

General John W. Nicholson Jr., the top U.S. military commander in Afghanistan, echoed Ghani's words, saying the Taliban cannot win on the battlefield.

"Doubling of the Afghan special operations forces and the tripling of the Air Force, increasing offensive power of the Afghan National Army, all mean one thing: This is the beginning of the end for the Taliban," the NATO commander said.

Washington plans to supply a total of 159 Black Hawks to the Afghan government by 2024, including 58 fitted with extra battlefield weaponry to provide close air support to ground forces.The Black Hawk will eventually replace the aging Russian-made MI-17 helicopters currently in use by the Afghan Air Force.

A Taliban spokesman promptly responded to statements by Ghani and Nicholson and reminded them "our fight is not based on technology but is an ideologically motivated fight."

In a separate statement issued in connection with the October 7, 2001, U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan, which ousted the Taliban from power, the Islamist insurgency vowed to defeat and force "all occupying troops" out of the country.

"The best way forward for the American invaders is to understand realities, respect freedom of other nations, prevent further human and material losses, end the longest war in your history ... withdraw your occupation forces ... and stop throwing yourself into the ditch of destruction by insisting on arrogance," the Taliban said.

The Taliban currently controls or influences more than 40 percent of Afghanistan.
A "handful" of private U.S. citizens who traveled to Cuba say they have experienced symptoms similar to those suffered by American diplomats in mysterious health "attacks" in Havana, the U.S. State Department said Friday.

A State Department spokesperson, who declined to be named, said that the agency could not verify the claims but that travelers should heed its travel warning issued last Friday.

The warning urged Americans to stay away from Cuba because of unexplained health "attacks" it said had caused hearing loss, dizziness, fatigue and cognitive issues among at least 22 diplomatic personnel.

The Trump administration on Tuesday expelled 15 Cuban diplomats to protest Cuba's failure to protect staff at the U.S. Embassy in the communist country, just days after Washington recalled more than half the U.S. diplomatic personnel from Havana.

Cuba has denied involvement, and Washington has not directly blamed the government in Havana. So far, no probes have yielded any answers about how the alleged attacks were carried out or who was responsible.

The warning said the attacks had occurred in "diplomatic residences and hotels frequented by U.S. citizens." CBS News first reported that some private citizens had complained of symptoms after visiting Cuba.

Two hotels

On Friday, the U.S. Embassy in Havana identified the Hotel Nacional and Hotel Capri as the two places where it said embassy personnel had been targeted over the past few months. It said the U.S. government had "imposed limitations on lodging" there.

Receptionists at both hotels, when contacted by Reuters, said they had not heard of any restrictions. Both said they had Americans registered there and their managers were not immediately available for comment.

U.S. intelligence operatives working undercover were among the embassy personnel affected by the attacks, but it was unclear whether they were specifically targeted, since the symptoms hit staff across a range of job categories, U.S. officials have told Reuters.

The steps taken by Republican President Donald Trump's administration deliver another blow to his Democratic predecessor Barack Obama's policy of rapprochement, including actions likely to erode the normalization of a relationship dominated for decades by Cold War hostility and suspicion.

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez denounced the expulsion of Cuban diplomats as "unjustified," accused the United States of insufficient cooperation with Cuba's investigation and urged Washington to stop politicizing the matter.

Theories about the attacks abound, from surveillance technology gone awry to a sophisticated acoustic weapon in the hands of Cuban-American exiles or third-party state actors such as Russia, Iran or North Korea. But no clear explanation has emerged.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce warned on Friday that the Trump administration was making highly dangerous demands in the North American Free Trade Agreement modernization talks that could erode U.S. business support and torpedo the negotiations.

John Murphy, the chambers senior vice president for international policy, said the largest U.S. business lobby was urging the administration to drop some of its more controversial NAFTA proposals, including raising rules of origin thresholds.

Were increasingly concerned about the state of play in negotiations, Murphy told reporters.

Fourth round of talks

U.S., Canadian and Mexican negotiators are preparing for a fourth round of talks to update the 23-year-old trade pact next week in a Washington suburb, Oct. 11-15.

U.S. companies large and small were worried about a proposal by U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to add a five-year termination clause to NAFTA, Murphy said.

He said there was also concern about Lighthizers proposal to reduce Canadian and Mexican companies access to U.S. public procurement contracts, and to include a U.S.-specific content requirement for autos and auto parts.

We see these proposals as highly dangerous, and even one of them could be significant enough to move the business and agriculture community to oppose an agreement that included them, Murphy said.

He also voiced similar concerns about U.S. proposals for revamping dispute settlement mechanisms and trade protections for seasonal U.S. produce.

Some U.S. lawmakers and congressional staff are also growing increasingly concerned that the talks can reach a successful conclusion.

House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady, a pro-trade Republican, has invited Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to speak to the tax- and trade-focused panel Wednesday as negotiators return to the table, a committee spokeswoman said.

Auto content

Inside U.S. Trade, a trade publication, stirred concerns among auto industry groups by quoting unnamed sources as saying that the Trump administration was also moving forward with a bid to increase North American content requirements for autos to 85 percent from the current 62.5 percent, with a new 50 percent U.S. content requirement.

U.S. Trade Representative spokeswoman Emily Davis declined to comment on the report, but said President Donald Trump had been clear about the need to shake up the agreement governing one of the worlds biggest trade blocs.

NAFTA has been a disaster for many Americans, and achieving his objectives requires substantial change, she said. These changes of course will be opposed by entrenched Washington lobbyists and trade associations.

Officials from auto industry trade groups said they had not seen a rules of origin proposal with such stringent targets.

Forcing unrealistic rules of origin on businesses would leave the U.S. unable to compete by increasing the cost of manufacturing and raising prices for consumers, said Cindy Sebrell, a spokeswoman for the Motor Equipment Manufacturers Association, which represents auto parts manufacturers.

Karen Antebi, the trade counselor at Mexicos embassy in Washington, told a forum on Friday that while there were rumors of a 50 U.S. percent content demand for autos, formal texts had not been proposed on rules of origin.

Mexico has been firm and consistent that country specific rules of origin within the NAFTA would be unacceptable, she said.
U.S. special forces soldiers were with their counterparts from Niger on Wednesday in the West African nation's volatile southwest, a growing hot-bed of jihadist violence, when the report came in of a raid nearby.

The assailants were believed to be led by Dondou Chefou, a lieutenant in a new group operating along the Mali-Niger border and called Islamic State in the Greater Sahara. A decision was soon taken to pursue them.

The mixed force was ambushed by fighters on dozens of vehicles and motorcycles. Under heavy fire, U.S. troops called in French fighter jets for air support, but the firefight was at such close quarters that the planes could not engage and were instead left circling overhead as a deterrant.

The version of events, as told by two Nigerien and two Western sources briefed on the incident, shines a light on Washington's increasingly aggressive Special Forces-led counter-terrorism strategy in Africa and its risk of casualties.

Four U.S. soldiers died in the firefight, killed in a country where most Americans were unaware that their army is deployed but where Washington has steadily grown its presence.

One soldier's body was only recovered two days later.

At least four Nigeriens were also killed and, according to one Niger security source, militants seized four vehicles in the ambush. French helicopters, scrambled after the U.S. call for help, evacuated several soldiers wounded in the clash.

A diplomat with knowledge of the incident said French officials were frustrated by the U.S. troops' actions, saying they had acted on only limited intelligence and without contingency plans in place.

After initially offering only scant details of what happened in the Nigerien desert on Wednesday, the U.S. military's Africa Command said on Friday the soldiers were in the area to establish relations with local leaders.

"It was not meant to be an engagement with the enemy," AFRICOM spokesman Colonel Mark Cheadle told reporters. "The threats at the time were deemed to be unlikely, so there was no overhead armed air cover during the engagement."

U.S. forces do not have a direct combat mission in Niger, but their assistance to its army does include intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance in their efforts to target violent extremist organizations.

U.S. military deployments are on the rise in Africa.

In May, a U.S. Navy Seal killed in a raid on an al-Shabab militant compound in Somalia became the first U.S. combat death in Africa since the 1993 "Black Hawk Down" disaster in Mogadishu.

"Why Should We Die for This?"

In Niger, Washington has deployed around 800 soldiers, runs a drone base in the capital Niamey, and is building a second in Agadez at a cost of around $100 million.

U.S. Special Forces help local troops develop counter-terrorism skills to tackle threats from al-Qaida-linked groups, Nigeria's Boko Haram and Islamists who have pledged allegiance to Islamic State.

"It's a pretty broad mission with the government of Niger in order to increase their capability to stand alone and to prosecute violent extremists," the U.S. military's Joint Staff Director, Lieutenant General Kenneth McKenzie, said on Thursday.

Washington has long seen the Sahel as a security threat but involvement increased in the wake of a 2012 occupation of northern Mali by Islamist militants.

France led an offensive against the Islamists a year later, and the U.S. government now provides logistical and intelligence support to a 4,000-troop French counter-terrorism operation in the region.

The U.S. military organizes an annual, high-profile U.S. drill as well as longer-term, more discreet training of regional forces. But experts say U.S. involvement in the fight does not stop there.

"It is likely that there are other operations going on aside from just the training operations," said Andrew Lebovich, a visiting fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations.

In missions run out of a base in the northern Niger town of Arlit and others like the one that led to the ambush of U.S. troops, sources say they have helped local troops and intelligence agents make several arrests.

"It is discreet but they are there," a Nigerien security source told Reuters.

Analysts are awaiting the political fallout of Wednesday's ambush with some speculating it may spark a reversal of the U.S. stance on a new regional force - known as the G5 Sahel - which France is pushing but which Washington is cool on.

Others however like Ahmedou Ould Abdallah, a former top United Nations official in West Africa and Somalia, recall with concern the American pullout following the "Black Hawk Down" incident. Eighteen U.S. soldiers were killed when Somali militia shot down two helicopters in Mogadishu.

"In Somalia, they over-reacted and withdrew their troops ... My worry is that after this attack they will also over-react. Trump might just say 'Why should we die for this?' I hope they don't."
Tina Lund came to support a friend who came to represent the family. But she cared for the marker like a victims mother, gently wrapping blue ribbon around the cross and hanging a collage of photos. Brian Frasers cross stands in a stunning row of 59 white crosses.

Each cross has a name written in black marker, one for every victim of Sunday nights mass shooting, the deadliest in modern U.S. history.

The crosses have been erected in a graceful, curved line behind the Welcome to Las Vegas sign at the southern end of the famed Las Vegas Strip.

Among the 22,000 in attendance, Fraser had traveled from his home in California, where he lived with his family, to attend the country-western concert. Lund sought out the crosses Friday because the victims family couldnt be here, so we are.

Lund and her friend were approached by Bob Gamble, a chaplain from Billy Graham ministries.

The three huddled together, Gambles hands on their shoulders, and they prayed.

Gamble said he volunteered to fly to Las Vegas to give faith support to the victims families.

We call it a ministry of presence. All we can do is give them comfort, he said.

The line of mourners winds around those who lost family and friends Sunday as they cradle each other, stooping down to grieve or to decorate the cross, as if it were a grave marker.

People file past each individual cross, touching the wood, or pausing and reading the names. They give a generous space to family members.

Kelly Gresh stops at the base of Denise Cohens cross.

The two women had planned to attend their 40th high school reunion next weekend in San Ramon, California.

Gresh uses her cellphone to take a video of the site to send to the California High Schools webpage, narrating where she is and what she sees around Cohens marker. She does the same for another, younger classmate, Stacee Etcheber, who graduated from the same high school.

Both women happened to be in Las Vegas to attend the concert.

Its so scary the amount of people that travel through here, that something like this could happen, Gresh said.

Las Vegas, typically a glitzy gambling and tourist destination, is still trying to find its way after such a massive attack.

The towering Mandalay Bay Resort looms on the skyline behind the crosses and is a 15-minute drive away. It was from a room on the 32nd floor that 64-year-old Stephen Paddock, with 23 guns, sprayed bullets into the crowd attending the open-air concert across the street.

Paddock shot himself before police entered the room.

There is no cross for Paddock.

Of those for the victims, each has a red heart on the front. For Jewish victims, the Star of David is prominently attached. Candles, flowers, stuffed animals and more are left behind at the base of the crosses. Voices are hushed. In one day, it has become sacred ground.

Retired carpenter Greg Zanis built the crosses and drove all night from Illinois to deliver them Thursday.

Zanis started a GoFundMe page for support.

He has done this before. In fact, his daughter Maria posted that hes been building and erecting cross memorials for 22 years, mainly when the United States suffers a mass murder, which the Federal Bureau of Investigation describes as a shooting involving four or more people.

Zanis has delivered crosses for many shootings, including last years Pulse Night Club attack in Orlando, Florida, that killed 49 people, the 1999 Columbine High School mass murders that killed 13, and the Sandy Hook Elementary massacre that took the lives of 20 children and six adults.

He typically leaves the crosses in the cities, where officials then pass them on to family members.
The Republican Party has largely abandoned its platform of fiscal restraint, pivoting sharply in a way that could add trillions of dollars in federal debt over the next decade.

Cutting spending to balance the budget was almost religion to the Republican Party for much of the past eight years. But all year long, despite their control of the White House and Congress, Republicans have not taken steps to balance the budget, to overhaul entitlement programs such as Medicare and Medicaid, or to arrest the growth of the countrys $20 trillion in debt.

With the House passing a critical budget resolution this past week, GOP lawmakers are charging forward next week with plans to cut taxes in a way that could add more than $1.5 trillion to the government's debt over 10 years, with the goal of legislation by early next month. That is on top of an effort to significantly increase military spending. White House officials say their focus is on growing the economy now and dealing with the debt later.

The moves come as the federal deficit, the difference between what the government earns in revenue and spends on programs, is growing more quickly. It will be $600 billion this year and is projected to reach $1.46 trillion in a decade, even without additional policy actions.

I felt there was a period, two or three years ago, when there was a real seriousness about trying to solve our fiscal issues, said Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), a longtime deficit hawk who is part of a scarce group of Republicans consistently preaching restraint. When the election result turned out what it was [in November], any thought of fiscal responsibility has gone out the window.

He added, Its very disheartening to me that when the other side of the aisle was in charge we cared about fiscal issues, and now that were in charge we dont care about fiscal issues. Its very disheartening.

Republicans initially tried but failed to cut spending this year, stymied by intraparty divisions they could not rectify.

They could not unify behind an effort to slash the growth of Medicaid, a joint state and federal health-care program for low-income Americans. And Democrats unified to block other proposed spending cuts to programs for the poor.

Congress also twice agreed to raise the debt ceiling without putting any new restraints on spending.

Three devastating hurricanes in August and September ravaged Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico, prompting emergency steps to seek $40 billion in new spending. A storm landing this weekend, Hurricane Nate, could create new spending pressure. In the past, some Republicans have sought to offset disaster relief spending with cuts in other areas, but no such demands were made this time.

Meanwhile, Trump rejected a proposal from White House Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney to curb future Medicare and Social Security spending, saying he had promised voters in 2016 that he would not touch those programs.

But the most striking blow to the deficit isnt what Republicans have failed to do, but the changes they are mulling.

Mulvaney  who was a leading deficit hawk when he served in the House of Representatives  and other White House officials are pushing hard for the tax-cut package, shrugging off the worry of growing the deficit in the next few years by saying that letting people keep their own money is much different than cutting government spending.

Mulvaney, like many in the White House, argues that the focus should be on taking steps to grow the economy, which officials say will create trillions of dollars in new revenue to offset the impact of lowering tax rates.

He said in an interview that the White House offered more than 50 areas in which specific spending programs could be cut from the budget earlier this year and that Congress only agreed to four or five of them. He said that the last time the budget was balanced, late in the Clinton administration, it was done through a combination of spending restraint and economic growth, a model the Trump White House wanted to follow.

I have to work in the real world, and right now I just dont think theres the appetite to balance the budget based on spending alone, Mulvaney said.

He added that if the House of Representatives wanted to pass a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution, thats great. But I dont think they can do that. I have to live in a world where we can pass cuts out of the House and of the Senate. And so growth is going to be the best chance we have to balance the budget.

Mulvaney's more pragmatic approach marks a major evolution. Six years earlier, during a fight over whether to raise the debt ceiling, Mulvaney picked up a Bible and read a verse from Proverbs 22 to colleagues: "The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender."

Corker said Mulvaneys transformation from a budget warrior to allowing larger deficits is emblematic of others in the party.

My gosh, this was a guy that had very much of the same feelings that I had about these issues, and obviously hes ended up being in a different place, Corker said.

Similarly, White House Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Kevin Hassett wrote an article for the National Review last year titled "We Ignore the Debt at Our Peril," arguing that the "U.S. might be closer to the brink than mainstream forecasts tend to imply."

But asked about this Thursday, he said that addressing the debt would be a focus later in the Trump administration, after the tax-cut plan was voted into law.

I think the debt problems are severe, Hassett said. I think the president views it as a multistage thing. The first order of business is to get 2 percent growth back to a rate were used to seeing.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has said the tax-cut plan could create $2.5 trillion in new revenue by lowering rates, a position many conservative and liberal economists dispute.

The tax-cut plan will allow them to embark on a partisan product to cut taxes for the rich, raise them for the middle class and blow a huge $1.5 trillion hole in the deficit, Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Wednesday.

The new GOP embrace of deficits and growing the debt is a whiplash from recent years, when Republicans frequently clashed with President Barack Obama about government spending and federal programs.

In 2010, a fiscal commission led by Democrat Erskine Bowles and retired GOP senator Alan Simpson sought to reduce the deficit over 10 years by $4 trillion, convinced that the combination of tax increases and spending cuts would stabilize the governments debt as a share of the economy.

In 2011, 236 House Republicans and 25 Democrats voted to add a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution, a sizable group that fell short of the two-thirds majority needed to send the amendment to the states for ratification.

But now, Republicans are taking steps to cut taxes and expand spending, moving sharply in the other direction.

They are taking the ostrich approach, said retired Republican senator Judd Gregg, who served on the Bowles-Simpson commission and supported the changes. He said the tax cuts could help grow the economy, but the lack of a focus on changes to Medicare and Social Security would prohibit any meaningful change to the debt.

The federal government is projected to spend $4.1 trillion in 2018 and bring in $3.5 trillion through taxes and other revenue. That deficit is projected to expand each year if no changes are made to the budget, until it eventually reaches a deficit of $1.46 trillion in 2027. This adds to the debt, driving up the United States borrowing costs and making it harder for the country to respond to emergencies, especially during economic downturns.

Cutting taxes  in the scope envisioned by the White House  could further expand the deficit because it will lead to a reduction in revenue. And Congress is looking to authorize $640 billion for the Pentagon next year, close to $100 billion higher than caps set in place by the 2011 Budget Control Act, which put annual limits on government spending.

Budget officials believe the United States is in the midst of a problematic shift, with rising health-care costs and an aging U.S. population that increases costs for Medicare and Social Security.

The House of Representatives, led by the Budget Committee chairman, Rep. Diane Black (R-Tenn.), narrowly passed a budget resolution Thursday that would require that any tax plan remain revenue neutral, which means it could not expand the deficit. It would also require $203 billion in spending cuts to programs such as Medicaid as part of any tax package, a provision demanded by conservatives.

But the Senate budget resolution would have much looser restrictions, allowing tax cuts to add $1.5 trillion to the debt over 10 years and waiving any requirement for mandatory spending cuts.

And the same House conservatives that demanded Black include the mandatory spending reductions in her bill have recently signaled that these changes arent necessary anymore, convinced that nothing should stand in the way of the opportunity to cut taxes.

Black, in an interview, said she would fight for changes to the Senate resolution during conference negotiation. But she also suggested that she would probably back away from the revenue-neutral provision in her House resolution.

I think there is some openness to [see] how we can get in the middle there, understanding tax reform is something that we only have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to do, she said.

Corker warned that some Republicans might become desperate, looking at that once-in-a-generation opportunity, and pass whatever they can, even if it adds trillions of dollars to the debt.

He wants the tax changes to be permanent and reduce the deficit, not grow it. If the plan doesnt meet those parameters, Corker wont support it.

I fear that Republicans feel like they have to deliver so badly that Im just fearful that there may be a movement to do whatever, even if its harmful to our deficit issues, just to pass anything, Corker said.
STOCK MARKETS

Switch soars in its market debut

Shares of Switch, which provides data center services to Amazon, eBay, JPMorgan Chase and others, rose as much as 45 percent in their market debut Friday, giving the company a market capitalization of more than $5.6 billion.

Switchs IPO was priced at $17 per share and raised $531.3 million, making it the second-biggest U.S. technology listing this year after Snap.

Switchs IPO comes as demand for data centers is increasing because of the expanding adoption of cloud-based storage.

Switch shares rose as high as $24.71, before trading up 21.5 percent at $20.66 shortly before the close.

 Reuters

INTERNET

AOL says goodbye to AIM after 20 years

AOL announced that it is discontinuing its pioneering Instant Messenger chat platform after 20 years of service.

An article posted on AOLs website Friday said AOL Instant Messenger will be discontinued Dec. 15. The company said it is shutting down the program to focus on building the next generation of iconic brands and life-changing products.

AOL Instant Messenger was wildly popular in the late 1990s and early 2000s and claimed more than 100 million registered users in 2001. Its popularity as a communication tool waned amid the rise of text messaging, Google Chat and social networking sites.

 Associated Press

ECONOMY

Consumer borrowing slowed in August

U.S. consumers slowed their borrowing in August to an annual pace of 4.2 percent  a pullback from a pace of nearly 7 percent over the past three years.

The Federal Reserve said Friday that overall consumer credit rose $13.1 billion in August, down from the $17.7 billion increase in July.

Economists and financial markets monitor the consumer borrowing report for insights about consumer spending, which represents about 70 percent of U.S. economic activity.

Nonrevolving credit, which includes auto and student loans, increased $7.3 billion. The revolving-credit category, which includes credit cards, rose $5.8 billion.

The August increase brought consumer credit to a total of $3.77 trillion.

 Associated Press

Also in Business

Tesla will push back the debut of its semi truck by three weeks as the electric-car maker focuses on boosting production of its cheaper sedan model and increasing battery production for storm-ravaged regions. "Diverting resources to fix Model 3 bottlenecks & increase battery production for Puerto Rico & other affected areas," Tesla chief executive Elon Musk tweeted Friday. The company plans to unveil the semi truck Nov. 16 instead of the initial Oct. 26.

Cereal maker Kellogg, which has struggled to make its cereals and snacks more appealing to shoppers who want to avoid sugary, processed foods, is buying RXBar protein bar maker. RXBar says its bars are made with egg whites, fruits and nuts and exclude dairy, soy or gluten. Last week, Kellogg hired Steven Cahillane as its new chief executive from vitamin seller Nature's Bounty as it seeks to offer more-healthful packaged foods. Kellogg said Friday it will pay $600 million for RXBar's parent company, Chicago Bar. The deal is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

Flexion Therapeutics said Friday that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved its injectable drug Zilretta to treat moderate to severe osteoarthritis-related knee pain. The drug would be priced at about $500 for a single injection, Flexion chief executive Mike Clayman said, adding that it would be launched in the coming month. Zilretta is a modified formulation of a commonly used corticosteroid.

Automotive supplier Denso announced plans Friday to invest $1 billion and create more than 1,000 jobs in its main Tennessee facility to meet growing demand for electric-vehicle parts. The investment is aimed at making the Maryville plant the Japanese company's primary manufacturer in North America of electrification and safety systems, the company said. Denso plans to expand several production lines to produce advanced components for hybrid and electric vehicles.

French automaker Renault said Friday that half of its models will be electric or hybrid by 2022 and that it is investing heavily in "robo-vehicles" with increasing degrees of autonomy. The plans reflect the vision laid out last month by the Renault Nissan Mitsubishi alliance, the world's No. 1 carmaker by sales. The company pledged to offer eight purely electric vehicle models and 12 hybrid models by 2022, compared with its 19 diesel or gasoline models sold worldwide.

 From news reports
As nearly 700 officials gather next week to discuss overhauling the free-trade agreement between the United States, Mexico and Canada, participants and analysts say the negotiations are at an increasing risk of failure.

President Trumps Twitter bombs and rhetorical attacks on what he calls the worst deal ever made and his administrations vague and confusing proposals have dismayed Canada, which is now exploring backup options. And they have infuriated Mexico ahead of a presidential election in which voters are demanding that their leaders stand up to the United States.

If officials cannot make more progress in revising the North American Free Trade Agreement next week  the meetings in Washington starting Wednesday are the fourth of seven scheduled rounds of negotiation  the odds of reaching a deal will decrease even more. That would give an opening to Trump to exit the agreement, a move that could disrupt the North American economy.

This could be the decisive week. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau flies to Washington on Tuesday for a meeting with Trump about the negotiations and will then fly to Mexico to update President Enrique Pena Nieto. Meanwhile, the U.S. negotiating team is expected to finally reveal its hand at the fourth round of talks.

But there are growing risks that the U.S. negotiating stance could underestimate the limits of Mexican and Canadian leaders and inadvertently wreck the accord. Were being faced with a U.S. set of demands that is framed by an America first perspective, Lawrence Herman, a Toronto trade lawyer, said. That colors the negotiations in a very negative way.

Those who believe that Trump wants NAFTA to fail think he may plant poison pills so unpalatable that Mexico, which has a presidential election next July, might withdraw on its own. Others believe that Trump is fulminating as a bargaining ploy.

I think failure is an option, said C. Fred Bergsten, a veteran trade expert and senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. It depends on whether the Trump people follow through on their rhetoric.

Although Trump has criticized NAFTA, he has not yet submitted the formal six-months notice required to pull out of the treaty. Instead, his administration has floated the idea of a sunset clause that could terminate the agreement after five years, creating uncertainty and discouraging the international investment NAFTA was meant to promote.

And Trumps team has talked of wiping out bilateral trade deficits  a move that trade experts call economic nonsense and one that could be a red line for Pena Nieto, who is worried about being seen as bowing to Trump on unreasonable demands.

One source of uncertainty and frustration in Canada and Mexico is that the Trump administration has not yet made concrete proposals on the most contentious issues  although these may be coming at the fourth round in Washington.

They include rules of origin, or the percentage of parts that must be made in North America for a product to qualify for free-trade status; language on how to settle disputes affecting foreign investors; changing Mexican labor standards; and Trumps stated goal of reducing U.S. bilateral trade deficits.

Robert E. Lighthizer, the U.S. trade representative, has also blamed some of the problems with the talks on a whole complicated process that requires negotiators to clear positions with members of Congress and officials at other agencies.

The delay might also reflect disagreements within the Trump administration. Lighthizer, who is seen as solidifying his control over trade policy, is considered more aggressive about overhauling NAFTA than is Gary Cohn, head of Trumps National Economic Council. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross probably falls in the middle. Peter Navarro, a trade hawk who initially had his own independent office, was moved last month to Cohns staff, with less direct access to the president.

In Mexico, informed people are in favor of striking a deal, said Jorge Guajardo, formerly Mexicos ambassador to China and now a senior director at McLarty Associates. But that doesnt play well politically. He added, The mood is set in Mexico for the president to pull out, to call his negotiators back to Mexico City.

Kurt Honold, president of the Tijuana chapter of Mexicos Business Coordinating Council, a coalition that advises the countrys NAFTA negotiating team, agrees. I think the moment could come when you say, fine, we have a lot of opportunities elsewhere, and the biggest losers will be the United States, Honold said. The only thing Trump is doing is isolating himself from the world.

Some of Pena Nietos advisers, notably Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray, believe that Trump adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner will persuade Trump to accept a moderate NAFTA revision. Others, such as Economy Minister Ildefonso Guajardo, are said to be more pessimistic.

Canadian officials are also up in arms. There isnt a shared vision, certainly on the part of the president of the United States, on what were trying to accomplish, said Jean Charest, a former premier of Quebec.

While there is room to update and improve these hot-button issues, the U.S. position seems to be take it or leave it, says Laura Dawson, director of the Canada Institute at the Wilson Center in Washington.

She said the Canadians are now considering options that include an effort to persuade U.S. trade and business groups worried about a NAFTA breakdown to go to court to challenge the administrations ability to unravel the deal without congressional oversight.

The Americans came to the table in Round 1 and somewhat expected the Mexicans and Canadians to kind of just be ready to dance, and I think they were surprised by the fact that each country had its own red lines and made its own positions very clear, said Michael Camunez, a former U.S. assistant secretary of commerce in the Obama administration.

Mexicos brightest red lines are linked to a Trump administration proposal to reduce the trade deficit with the NAFTA countries as part of the negotiations, and to rules of origin.

The U.S. trade deficit with Mexico is $64.4 billion  about 6 percent of Mexicos economy. Erasing that deficit would probably mean a sharp contraction in the Mexican economy. That in turn could lead to instability and more migrants to the United States.

Plus, theres no mechanism for doing that. How do you write that into a trade agreement? said Chad P. Bown, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute. Its the kind of thing that depends on the market.

Moreover, the trade balance is changing. Mexico has opened up its state-run oil and gas sector to foreign companies. U.S. exports of natural gas to Mexico are growing quickly as new pipelines are completed. Cheniere, the Louisiana exporter of liquefied natural gas, said that Mexico is currently its largest customer.

Mexico could also get hit by changes in the rules of origin, which are designed to prevent countries outside North America from using the treaty as a back door into the U.S. market. Under NAFTA, 62.5 percent of the value of an imported vehicle must originate in Canada, Mexico or the United States for that vehicle to get duty-free access to the region.

However, data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shows that U.S.-

Canadian content combined makes up 24 percent of the value of vehicles exported from Mexico to the United States. The Trump administration is weighing a U.S.-only content requirement that could range from 35 percent to 50 percent, according to news reports.

Canada could get hurt if the United States insists on abolishing controversial special courts set up under NAFTA to review anti-dumping or countervailing duties.

The Trump administrations recent move to slap 219 percent tariffs on Canadian jetliners to block a sale to Delta have reinforced Canadas view that the courts are needed to restrain U.S. measures.

Lighthizer is expected to try to nix another transnational court for investment disputes, and he has backing from a wide variety of constitutional lawyers, environmental and labor groups, and conservative think tanks that say the special courts encroach on U.S. sovereignty.

But the heads of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, National Association of Manufacturers and Business Roundtable wrote an Aug. 23 letter saying that weakening the process would undermine business community support.

The challenges to revising the NAFTA agreement dont stop at the negotiating table. Even if Trump is able to hammer out an agreement with Canada and Mexico, he will have to take it to Congress for approval.

Rep. Sander M. Levin (D-Mich.), a member of the House Ways and Means Committee, said that Democrats and a number of Republicans will oppose the treaty if labor provisions arent strengthened.

Levin said Mexicos Confederation of Mexican Workers has done little to boost wages there, telling an audience at the Council on Foreign Relations that BMW signed a contract in May with a starting salary of $1.10 an hour, moving up to $2.53 an hour.

Mexico is a democracy with an authoritarian type of labor structure, Levin said in an interview. And they have to end that.

Another dispute looms with the Trump administrations push to expand an America first policy to government procurement.

In the end, however, the negotiations hinge largely on Trump.

Ultimately, the key variable difficult to predict is the president himself, said Christopher Wilson, deputy director of the Mexico Institute at the Wilson Center. He has promised a major set of changes to what he has described as the worst agreement ever negotiated, and now it is up to his team to come up with fixes to transform the worst agreement ever into something the president could get behind.

Wilson added: It is not easy to see what those changes would be.

Partlow reported from Mexico City and Freeman reported from Ottawa.


Lawyer Lisa Bloom stands outside a courthouse in July in Los Angeles. Bloom says she is no longer representing movie mogul Harvey Weinstein as he confronts sexual-harassment allegations. (Jae C. Hong/AP)

Lisa Bloom, the feminist lawyer who had been serving as an adviser to embattled movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, abruptly resigned from that role Saturday, suggesting that Weinstein may be on the verge of leaving the studio he founded.

Bloom announced her resignation in a tweet: "I have resigned as an adviser to Harvey Weinstein. My understanding is that Mr. Weinstein and his board are moving toward an agreement."

Weinstein took a leave of absence from the Weinstein Co., the film production company he co-founded with his brother Bob Weinstein, after the New York Times published a devastating report Thursday detailing decades of alleged harassment of actresses and underlings. The article generated a massive wave of criticism of Weinstein, a prominent Democratic Party donor and the producer behind such acclaimed films as "The English Patient" and "Shakespeare in Love."

Bloom didnt detail her reasons for leaving her advisory role; she did not return calls and emails seeking comment.

Bloom also didn't specify the nature of the agreement Weinstein is reportedly crafting with his company's board, but there have been suggestions that he could extend the length of his unspecified leave or depart from the company altogether. Another member of Weinstein's advisory team, Lanny Davis, resigned on Saturday, too, according to the New York Times. Davis, a Washington lawyer who has served as a crisis-management consultant for such clients as President Bill Clinton and former New York Yankees player Alex Rodriguez, could not be reached for comment.

Blooms emergence as a prominent member of Weinsteins advisory team this week was a surprise. The Los Angeles-based lawyer, 56, made her reputation advocating on behalf of women, including those who were accusers in sexual-harassment cases.

In April, Bloom, a former cable TV host, advised three women who alleged that Fox News host Bill O'Reilly had harassed them when they worked with him at the network. Bloom's frequent TV appearances fanned the backlash against O'Reilly, whose alleged conduct was also the subject of a New York Times report. Fox eventually fired O'Reilly, ending his career as perhaps the most popular commentator on cable news.

She was also a critic of Fox News co-founder and chairman Roger Ailes, who was accused by many women of harassment over five decades. When Ailes died in May, she tweeted: "Roger Ailes has died. Let all his victims now be ungagged for the true, full reckoning of his life. And give them back their jobs." At one point, she called Fox News "a cesspool of sexual harassment."

Among others, Bloom has represented an accuser of Bill Cosby in a sexual assault case, and she has pursued claims of sexual harassment and assault against Uber. In an interview with The Washington Post on Thursday, Bloom said she had been counseling Weinstein over the past year about his behavior toward women, and was not serving in a strictly legal role.

Im not on a side, she said. This is not a side. . . . Im on the side of moving the ball forward for womens rights. There are a lot of ways to do that. I speak about it, I appear on TV, I write books about it. I saw this as a unique opportunity to advise a high-profile guy how to respond. And he listened.

She said she would not be part of a potential defamation lawsuit against the newspaper; Weinstein said he intends to sue the Times for $50 million. (A Times spokeswoman responded to the lawsuit threat Friday by saying that Mr. Weinstein and his lawyer . . . have not pointed to any errors or challenged any facts in our story.)

Weinstein has also tacitly acknowledged that his behavior toward women over the past three decades has been problematic. Following the publication of the Times article, he said in a statement that the way Ive behaved with colleagues in the past has caused a lot of pain, and I sincerely apologize for it.

Bloom said Thursday that she has had frank talks with Weinstein about his legendary temper, his use of profanity in public settings and his propensity for loose talk about sex around women he employs or has worked with.

She defended his reaction to the allegations in the Times article, saying: Hes thrown out the old playbook. He hasnt gone out and dug up dirt on his accusers or tried to undermine their reputations. Instead, he has apologized for misconduct. He is deeply apologetic. He has acknowledged that he has to overcome his demons. . . . He said, Lisa, youve really gotten through to me. 

Bloom called him an old dinosaur learning new ways, in a statement Thursday.

Bloom spearheaded an aggressive media campaign against OReilly and in behalf of his accusers; one of her clients, Wendy Walsh, a frequent guest on OReillys TV program, spoke to the New York Times on the record for the report published in April that triggered his firing.

After his ouster, she and Walsh traveled to London to urge the British government to deny approval of a long-sought acquisition by Fox's parent company, 21st Century Fox, of the Sky satellite TV company.

Bloom is the daughter of another famed feminist lawyer, Gloria Allred, who represents some of the women who have accused Cosby of sexual assault, as well as others who have accused President Trump of groping them.

Allred was one of the people who raised an eyebrow about Blooms defense of Weinstein. While I would not represent Mr. Weinstein, I would consider representing anyone who accused Mr. Weinstein of sexual harassment, even if it meant that my daughter was the opposing counsel, she said Thursday in a statement.

In response, Bloom said she saw no contradiction between her position and her mothers. My mother only represents plaintiffs in employment-discrimination cases, she said. I have a broader law practice open to other kinds of cases. She gets to make her choices, and I make mine.

Bloom said that Weinstein hired her about a year ago after he and the rapper Jay-Z jointly bought the TV rights to her 2014 book Suspicion Nation, about the Trayvon Martin case. She said she began speaking with him at that time about long-standing rumors in Hollywood about his behavior.

"I don't hold back," she said, "and I didn't. Harvey can take it, and he did.He said, 'I've been stupid. I'm a dinosaur, and I've got to change.' I thought, 'Perhaps I can do something to make a difference.' "
THE DISTRICT

Concealed-weapons permit change in effect

An individual who wants to carry a gun on the streets of the nations capital no longer needs to provide a good reason to obtain a concealed-weapons permit after a court order took effect Friday morning.

The order from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit went into force shortly after 8 a.m.  less than 24 hours after D.C. officials said they would not ask the Supreme Court to review the decision in Wrenn v. District of Columbia.

Applicants still must go through criminal-background checks and demonstrate that they have had firearms training.

 Peter Jamison

MARYLAND

School staffer charged with sex offense

A former paraeducator and after-school program employee turned himself in to Montgomery County police Thursday to face charges that he inappropriately touched a 10-year-old girl at a Potomac elementary school in November 2016, officials said.

County police arrested and charged Roy Andres Simmons III, 41, with one count of fourth-degree sex offense and one count of second-degree assault, officials said.

Police said Simmons, of Gaithersburg, worked for a company called Kids Adventures, which ran a program at the victims school, Carderock Elementary, and a school official said he also worked part-time for the county in the school.

School officials said he was immediately fired.

 Clarence Williams

THE REGION

Gang-related killings in Anne Arundel

Authorities in Anne Arundel County, Md., said Friday they had found the bodies of three people killed in what they called gang-related homicides.

Police Chief Timothy J. Altomare said at a news conference that multiple suspects have been arrested, and he pleaded with anyone who is in fear of gang threats to call police.

Altomare declined to identify the victims or suspects, or what gang or gangs were connected with the killings.

He also did not say where or when the bodies were found. Altomare said he was withholding information, in part, because of concerns about the safety of other individuals.

 Dan Morse
Edward Valentines memorial sculpture of Robert E. Lee adorns the front of the Lee Chapel at Washington and Lee University. (Norm Shafer)

The marble statue of the Confederate general  large aslife  dominates the chapel where students gather for many of the years hallowed academic events. A floor below sits the family crypt of Gen. Robert E. Lee, his tomb illuminated in the still shadows. The school, Washington and Lee University, possesses Lees papers, his embroidered velvet slippers  and, of course, his name.

This small college town has long been defined by its two venerable schools, Washington and Lee and the Virginia Military Institute. And it has long been defined by its two most famous men, Lee and Stonewall Jackson. With the gravesites and homes of the Confederacys two leading generals in this city of 7,000, Lexington has become a shrine for those who revere their fallen cause.

The violence that engulfed Charlottesville in August made clear the firestorm that can be ignited by that kind of symbolism and jarred this community into confronting its history head-on. In such a small place, the legacies of Lee and Jackson are pervasive, direct and personal. And they are complicated. Here, the men werent just military generals but influential academics and church leaders.

At Washington and Lee, a private liberal arts school, that complex past and the quest to reconcile it with the present have taken center stage. Scholars are confronting the most troubling aspects of the universitys history, faculty members are openly debating the legacy of slavery, and a commission has been charged with making recommendations to the president by the end of the year.

I havent put any constraints on what the commission can think about, talk about, or recommend, said William Dudley, who was inaugurated as president last month.

What happened in Charlottesville was shocking and surreal and horrifying, Dudley said in his office in Washington Hall, a bust of George Washington in his window overlooking the sloping lawn and Lee Chapel.

Dudley created the commission on institutional history and community because it seemed so clear that many problems today stem from the way history is told and understood, or misunderstood.

The world doesnt slow down to think often enough, he said: People are all very eager to take action, and to know what action is going to be taken. I think the most important action is to spend some time learning and thinking.

Some graduates have asked for assurance that Washington and Lee officials will continue to honor Lees legacy at the school, that the name will not be changed, that the statue will remain in the chapel.

Failing to do so, they warned, could harm everything from fundraising to admissions to alumni relations.

Corbet Bryant, an attorney from Dallas who graduated in 1968 and sent five of his six daughters to the school, acknowledges the fraught history of Lee and his alma mater. Theres Lee as university leader and leading national figure in reconciliation after the war, Bryant said. And theres Lee as wartime general, fighting to secede and to maintain slavery. The school once owned slaves.

If the idea is to cleanse Washington and Lee, you cant change history, Bryant said. Those events happened, nobody can be proud of that.

Does that make anyone who went to a school [with such a history] complicit? I have trouble with that theory. You cant change history.

The past feels very present in this pretty Shenandoah Valley town, with its well-preserved 19th-century homes, small restaurants and shops, and the centuries-old college campuses. Its evident in street names such as Rebel Ridge, the six-story Robert E. Lee Hotel downtown, the crowds that celebrate the birthdays of Lee and Jackson every January.

In 2011, after the Sons of Confederate Veterans hung Confederate flags from all the city-owned poles, the City Council voted to allow only U.S., state and local flags.

Of course, it made people very angry, said Mimi Elrod, who was mayor at the time. Every year since, a crowd has gathered at her house on Lee-Jackson day to protest, sometimes singing Dixie.

Things are changing incrementally, she said.

But in September, leaders of the small stone church at the edge of Washington and Lees campus  the church where Lee once worshiped and served as warden  voted to remove his name and be known simply as Grace Episcopal Church, as it had been before his death.

A month after torch-bearing white supremacists marched at the University of Virginia, some members of the English department at Washington and Lee took their own stand. This community has profited by slavery, they wrote online. We are complicit in its harms.

The college, they wrote, is named after two slaveholding generals with powerful legacies. . . . If it were ever right to celebrate the contributions of Robert E. Lee as an educator, that time is past. Lees primary association, to many Americans and across the world, is with white supremacy.

That prompted heated backlash.

I love that school, and it has a great history that it should be proud of, said Jonathan Miles, who graduated in 1987 and lives in Houston. I dont want to see it be put into a defensive crouch when it doesnt have to be.

The school has been renamed multiple times, such as in 1776 when it became Liberty Hall. Washington, while U.S. president, gave a gift of stock that saved it from financial ruin, and it became known as Washington College. After the Civil War, Lee became a transformative president of the college, establishing the law school and introducing new courses of study.

Its honor code, which Dudley said has been in place since at least the 1840s, is a defining value.

Now, hes also emphasizing the importance of increasing diversity at the school. Eighty-two percent of the 1,800 or so undergraduates are white.

We dont have great diversity here  why is that? said Kassie Scott, a senior from New Jersey. Maybe its uncomfortable for people to come here, given the symbolism, the history.

I think we have a very welcoming community  I dont know that everyone makes it here to find that out. Thats unfortunate for us, too, because we miss out if the community isnt diverse, she said.

A sophomore, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of her role at the school, said she and her family felt uncomfortable during the admissions tour inside Lee Chapel. It was strange for me, as for many students of color, to be in front of Lees body while someone talks to you about how to be a gentleman, she said.

But she loves the college and feels comfortable there. She sees changes. A few years ago, after some law students objected, the university removed the replica Confederate flags from inside Lee Chapel. School officials have acknowledged the contributions that enslaved people made to the campus.

She said she hopes the new presidents commission wont be symbolic, and that the university can make it more clear that although Lee was good for this campus, he was horrible in a lot of other ways.

A different approach

Washington and Lee shares a border  and the legacy of the Civil War  with Virginia Military Institute. But the way VMI is approaching that history is different, quieter.

On VMIs imposing campus, with its towering Gothic Revival buildings, a monumental statue of Stonewall Jackson stands before barracks facing the parade grounds. Some of the cannons he used when he taught here are lined up, their wheels painted bright red.

At the beginning of every academic year, school officials bring the incoming class of cadets, known as rats, to the Civil War battlefield the school owns. Weathered split-rail fences line the edges of the battlefield, with reddened grass stretching toward an old barn and, in the distance, blue-tinged mountains rising out of the fog.

They teach them the history of the Battle of New Market, how the corps of cadets was called to fight in 1864 and charged into the face of enemy fire, turning the tide of battle in favor of the Confederacy. Ten cadets were killed.

The bravery and loyalty shown during the fight is central to VMIs identity. Each year the new cadets take the cadet oath there and charge onto the battlefield.

Were not recognizing their contributions to a battle for the Confederacy, said Col. Stewart MacInnis, a VMI spokesman. Were recognizing their demonstration of soldierly qualities that we want to inculcate in cadets today.

Likewise, they honor Jackson for his brilliance as a military strategist and his contributions as a longtime professor at the school, MacInnis said.

They havent hung Confederate flags or played Dixie at VMI in decades, he said. But the school is conservative, and traditions evolve slowly, if at all. Its more complex than it might seem to outsiders, though. The school also honors Jonathan Daniels, a graduate and civil rights activist who was shot and killed in 1965 when he stepped in to save a 17-year-old black woman from a man pointing a gun at her.

In September, a month after the deadly violence in Charlottesville, the VMI Board of Visitors issued a statement rejecting hatred and bigotry and endorsing continuing to honor all those who are part of the history of the Institute. We choose not to honor their weaknesses, but to recognize their strengths.

Minority enrollment has held steady for several years at about 20 percent of the 1,700 cadets, MacInnis said. We are overly represented with white folk, we are, he said. That is a big concern for the school.

There are probably some people that have the impression that VMI is not a welcoming place for whatever reason  they dont even give us a second thought, MacInnis said.

Some students say that history is not a barrier. The history is definitely a selling point for this place, said Catherine Berry, a 21-year-old senior from Northern California. There are a lot of traditions we pride ourselves on. . . . The cadets here, were all in agreement that these statues are part of the history, part of what we strive to be as great leaders.

Col. Keith Gibson, executive director of the VMI museum system, which runs the battlefield, the campus museum and the Stonewall Jackson House, said controversy around the Civil War is as old as the war itself.

I dont think its in anyones interest to pretend that period didnt exist. . . . We still live in its long shadows, he said.

Nick Anderson contributed to this report.

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A former D.C. Public Schools employee and a Baltimore businessman have been charged in federal court with conspiring to defraud the Districts public schools of more than $200,000 through phony invoices to a program intended to provide tutoring and therapy to special education students.

Isaiah Johnson, 37, is accused of using his position as a compliance manager in the school systems office of special education to provide 39-year-old John A. Faulkner Jr. with student names and forms so Faulkner could fraudulently bill the school system for services over the course of several years, according to the indictment announced Thursday.

The office of special education informs parents or guardians when children are eligible for additional services.

That allows families to retain outside tutoring and therapy services, which are paid for by the school district.

Faulkner owned a company that, in 2011, became eligible to be paid by the school district for tutoring and mentoring services, according to the indictment.

Prosecutors allege that Faulkner and Johnson were involved with creating phony time sheets showing services had been provided when in fact no work had been done.

From 2012 to 2014, Faulkner collected at least $217,366 by conspiring with Johnson to submit falsified time cards, the indictment claims.

These documents allegedly included the names and, in some instances, signatures from individuals who purportedly provided services, students, and the students parents or guardians. After receiving payment from the Districts schools, Faulkner would send a cut to Johnson, according to the indictment.

Faulkner and Johnson pleaded not guilty to counts of mail fraud, wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and first-degree fraud at a brief arraignment Thursday before U.S. Magistrate Deborah A. Robinson.

Johnson also pleaded not guilty to an additional charge of engaging in official acts affecting a personal financial interest, and Faulkner pleaded not guilty to counts of money laundering.

Faulkner and Johnson, through their attorneys, Thomas J. Saunders and Clark Fleckinger, respectively, declined to comment.

The D.C. schools did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and it is unclear when the school system stopped employing Johnson. But Johnson worked as a compliance manager for the district since 2011, and as a resolution specialist for DCPS between 2009 and 2011, according to his LinkedIn page.

Both defendants were released on their own recognizance pending a hearing in October. The U.S. attorneys office does not comment on ongoing cases.

Spencer S. Hsu contributed to this report.
Fifteen years after being elected the first Latina to the Maryland General Assembly, Del. Ana Sol Gutierrez (D-Montgomery) considered her choices: run for reelection or see what other options were available.

Gutierrez, 75, chose Option B, and she is joining the crowded race for the District 1 seat on the Montgomery County Council. Frustrated by the slow pace and conservative nature of politics in Annapolis, Gutierrez said she wants to fight for immigrant rights and access to education in the place she has called home for nearly her entire life.

One out of nine is certainly better than one out of 141, plus the Senate, Gutierrez said. I clearly expect that we will be able to move the needle to implement necessary changes to our county government in ways that cannot be done at the state level.

The District 1 seat is filled by Council President Roger Berliner (D-Potomac-Bethesda), who is term-limited and running for county executive. In the Democratic primary  which in heavily Democratic Montgomery is akin to securing the seat altogether  Gutierrez faces attorney Reggie Oldak, social worker Dalbin Osorio, former Kensington mayor Pete Fosselman, activist Bill Cook, former Planning Board member Meredith Wellington, and Andrew Friedson, adviser to Maryland Comptroller Peter Franchot. Richard Banach is the only Republican who has filed to run for the seat.

Gutierrezs political legacy is one of many firsts. When she won a seat on the Montgomery County Board of Education in 1990, she became the first Hispanic elected to a Maryland school board. She was the first Latina elected to the General Assembly in 2002. Her 2016 bid for Marylands 8th Congressional District would have made her the first Salvadoran American elected to Congress and the first Hispanic member of Marylands congressional delegation.

[Md. Del. Ana Sol Gutierrez: Time to stop electing establishment whites to MD 8]

She came to the United States with her diplomat parents from El Salvador at 5 and went on to become an engineer and official at the Transportation Department in the Clinton administration.

Yaheiry Mora, director of the nonprofit Casa in Action, said Gutierrezs candidacy offers an opportunity to reshape the county government in a way that better reflects the community.

There is symbolism, not only for the Latino community, Mora said. It is a shame that in a county where you hear legislators always talk about how diverse it is, its not representative in county government and in the county council.

Council member Nancy Navarro (D-Mid-County), who in 2013 became the first Latina to serve as president of the County Council, spoke along similar lines.

Theres no doubt that Montgomery County, given its demographics, definitely needs leadership that reflects its community, she said. I believe weve made some gains, but were not there yet. Maybe in 2018.

Navarro's district, which includes Wheaton, has the largest proportion of Hispanic and Latino residents of any district in the county. By contrast, District 1 has Montgomery's largest share of white residents.

Gutierrez said she is confident that her long-standing ties to the community will help garner enough support to win in District 1.

They know me as well as I know them, she said, adding that she has lived in her Chevy Chase home since 1968.

Immigration has long been a focus of Gutierrezs political career. But the election of President Trump has renewed her concerns about a long string of offenses from racism to xenophobia to disrespect for women and for Muslims. In the county, soon after Election Day, churches with large immigrant congregations, as well as Jewish communities, were targeted with threats, she said.

Weve been so supportive in our language, but I want it to be evident in our actions that we really do provide the protections to these very vulnerable communities, and Im not just talking about Latinos, Gutierrez said.

A major disappointment from her time in the House of Delegates came in Annapolis's handling of the Trust Act, Gutierrez said, which passed the House but died in the Senate. The act would have limited local police cooperation with federal immigration-enforcement efforts.

Gutierrez said education has been another concern since her early days on the school board, and she wants the county to do a better job closing the achievement gap between poor students and their more-affluent peers.

Because she is running for County Council, Gutierrez cannot seek reelection as District 18 state delegate. But serving on the council, as opposed to in the General Assembly, comes with its benefits. Council members work full-time, while delegates work part-time and make considerably less money.

The switch has happened before: Council member Tom Hucker (D-Eastern County) served two terms as a delegate in District 20 before winning his seat on the council in 2014. And Council member Craig Rice (D-Upcounty) served in the House of Delegates from 2006 to 2010 until being elected to his current role.

Gutierrez is running under the county's new public financing system, which requires candidates to collect a certain number of individual donations between $5 and $150. Candidates hoping to qualify for the program are barred from accepting corporate donations or contributions from political action committees. Those running for district seats must raise at least $10,000, with a minimum of 125 donations, to qualify for their first installment of public funds.

[Under new public finance law, Montgomery candidates change fundraising tactics]

Were going to have a brand new set of elected officials, Gutierrez said. I think that I bring a level of experience and knowledge that could be extremely helpful for Montgomery County.
Anne Wiazemsky, an alluring actress who appeared in classic films of the French New Wave of the 1960s, including several by her husband, director Jean-Luc Godard, and who later became an acclaimed novelist, died Oct. 5 in Paris. She was 70.

The cause was cancer, a brother, Pierre Wiazemsky, told Agence France-Presse.

Ms. Wiazemsky made her acting debut in Robert Bresson's 1966 film "Au Hasard Balthazar," playing a naive country girl named Marie whose beloved donkey is tormented by a series of callous owners.

The donkey, named Balthazar, becomes a symbol of human cruelty toward other living things, and the film is recognized as a masterpiece.

"Robert Bresson is one of the saints of the cinema," critic Roger Ebert wrote, "and 'Au Hasard Balthazar' is his most heartbreaking prayer."



Anne Wiazemsky in 1989. (Patrick Kovarik/AFP/Getty Images)

It also made the untrained Ms. Wiazemsky, then in her teens, a sensation. Her uninflected, emotionally vulnerable acting style was so compelling that Bresson told the films other actors to model their performances after hers.

He would say to the others: Watch Anne,  she told Britains Guardian newspaper in 2007.  She is Marie because she accepts simply to be herself without bringing intent or psychology to the role. It was not his intention to teach me how to be an actress. Almost against the grain, I felt the emotion the role provoked in me, and later, in other films, I learned how to use that emotion.

While making Balthazar, the 65-year-old Bresson developed an infatuation with his young star.

At first, he would content himself by holding my arm, or stroking my cheek, Ms. Wiazemsky wrote in a 2007 memoir. But then came the disagreeable moment when he would try to kiss me . . . I would push him away and he wouldnt insist, but he looked so unhappy that I always felt guilty.

During that time, Ms. Wiazemsky met Godard, already renowned for his 1960 feature "Breathless," which launched the La Nouvelle Vague, or the French New Wave movement. They were married in 1967, while Godard was directing "La Chinoise," which featured Ms. Wiazemsky as a student caught up in the Maoist political fervor of the time.

She also appeared in Godard's "Weekend" (1967), an absurdist comedy in which a middle-class couple drives to the country, each plotting to kill the other. In 1972, she acted opposite Yves Montand and Jane Fonda in "Tout Va Bien," a film co-directed by Godard that cast a critical eye on consumer society and conventional marriage.

Ms. Wiazemsky had a prominent role in 1969s Theorem by Italian director Pier Paolo Pasolini, in which a mysterious stranger, played by Terence Stamp, seduces every member of a family, male and female. In 1973, she starred in Michele Rosiers George Who?, a biopic about French writer George Sand.

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Ms. Wiazemsky and Godard were divorced in 1979. After her final film role in 1988, she devoted herself to writing.

Long before then, her experiences with Bresson, Godard and Pasolini and other auteurs led her to adopt a philosophical approach to the obsessive nature of filmmakers.

Its almost banal to speak of the fascination that a director can have for his lead actress, she said in 2007. The emotion that existed between Bresson and [me], I experienced again with Pasolini when we made Theorem. It can give rise to good performances. But Pasolini was homosexual. It doesnt always mean youre going to sleep together.

Anne Wiazemsky was born May 14, 1947, in Berlin. Her father, who was descended from Russian nobility, was a French diplomat. Her mother was the daughter of Francois Mauriac, who received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1952.

A complete list of survivors could not be confirmed.

Beginning in 1989, Ms. Wiazemsky published more than a dozen well-regarded books, including a 1993 novel, Canines, which received the Prix Goncourt, Frances most prestigious literary award. A 1998 novel, Une poignee de gens (A Handful of People), received the grand prize of the French Academy.

Ms. Wiazemsky wrote two books about her life with Godard, one of which ("Un an apres" or "One Year Later") formed the basis of a 2017 film, "Redoubtable," directed by Michel Hazanavicius, whose "The Artist" won five Academy Awards in 2012, including best picture and best director.

Hazanavicius had a hard time persuading Ms. Wiazemsky to allow the book to be adapted for a movie.

Before putting the phone down, I said it was a shame, he told Screen International magazine, because Id found the work so funny, to which she replied, Really? So do I, but no one else seems to. I thought I was the only one. 

Hazanavicius understood something very profound about Jean-Luc, Ms. Wiazemsky said in May. Out of tragedy, he made a comedy.

Ms. Wiazemsky is played by Stacy Martin in Redoubtable, and Godard is portrayed with remarkable fidelity, down to his tinted eyeglasses, by French actor Louis Garrel.

Godard, now 86, lives in Switzerland.

I havent heard anything from him in a long time, Ms. Wiazemsky said. I know that to be on the safe side Hazanavicius has not sent him a DVD.
Bina Cady Kiyonaga, the widow of a Cold War spy and CIA station chief whose deathbed request was that she go public with details of his career and their clandestine life together, died Oct. 5 at her home in Chevy Chase, Md. She was 92.

The cause was complications from a fall, said a son, Paul Y. Kiyonaga.

Mrs. Kiyonaga was married for 30 years to Joseph Y. Kiyonaga, who served as a CIA station chief in Brazil and Panama. From a base in Japan, he ran psychological operations against North Korea during the Korean War. He plotted espionage operations with military strongmen and businessmen in Panama, El Salvador and Brazil.

When he died in 1977, of stomach cancer, the CIA was coming under public criticism for exceeding its authority in covert operations overseas. In the face of such criticism, Joseph Kiyonaga told his wife, he wanted to stand up and be counted.

So she got a yellow lined legal pad and took notes while he talked. Twenty-three years after his death, her book was published, My Spy: Memoir of a CIA Wife. The volume described her husband as sexy and urbane, tight-lipped and mysterious. They had a marriage that was sometimes stormy but seldom dull.

He would disappear for days without notice and return without explanation. There were shadowy characters around the house, neither friends nor business associates nor relatives. They lacked names. They lacked identities. Meals were sometimes prone to abrupt silences.

As the wife of a spy, Mrs. Kiyonaga followed the requisite code of silence.

We lied about our husbands jobs, she wrote, stalled inquisitive policemen, befriended ministers wives, kept our ears open at parties, deflected the childrens questions, worried in silence alone. We were CIA wives. You never knew us.

They had five children. Inevitably the children would wonder what their father did for a living. He told them himself, calling each one into his study sometime around their 12th birthday. One child was angry. She had already heard from a playmate that her father was a spy. She had wanted to hear it first from him. Another said shed never heard of the CIA.

The youngest son, Paul, suspected the truth long before his father told him.

"When you see Manuel Antonio Noriega in your living room at 2 o'clock in the morning," he said, referring to the Panamanian strongman, "you might be suspicious that your father's job involves something other than being special assistant to the ambassador."

Mrs. Kiyonagas book drew warm reviews. Publishers Weekly praised it as an unpretentious account of their 30-year marriage and its description of her lonely life as a mother of five . . . which unfolded on a need to know basis.

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Jon A. Wiant in the CIA in-house journal Studies in Intelligence called the book a significant contribution to intelligence literature, reflecting the difficulties of holding a relationship together when she was excluded from a significant part of her husbands life.

Bina Cady was born in Baltimore on Sept. 18, 1925. She attended the University of Michigan for two years, then in 1947 married Kiyonaga, a native Hawaiian of Japanese ancestry whom she had met on campus. He had served during World War II with the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, a highly decorated unit composed almost entirely of Americans of Japanese descent.

In 1949, she graduated from the University of Hawaii and then settled in Washington, where her husband was a student at the School of Advanced International Studies, now part of Johns Hopkins University. He was recruited that year to the CIA.

Being a CIA wife required adjustments of Mrs. Kiyonaga. Early on, at a social gathering, one of her guests excused himself to use a telephone, then returned, stern-faced, to chastise her for leaving out a Rolodex with names and numbers she frequently called. That might reveal the identities of other spies, the man said.

Sleepover guests for her children were prohibited, she was told. They might encounter someone who did not want to be seen. The CIA, unlike the fictional spy James Bond, used the telephone as its primary piece of equipment, Mrs. Kiyonaga said, but she did have to become accustomed to the fact that her husband, when serving overseas, did carry a weapon in the front seat of his car.

Survivors include five children, Mary Kiyonaga of New York City, Ann Kiyonaga of St. Augustine, Fla., and David J. Kiyonaga, John C. Kiyonaga and Paul Kiyonaga, all of Chevy Chase; and 14 grandchildren.

Mrs. Kiyonaga was a longtime volunteer at the Missionaries of Charitys Gift of Peace House in Washington.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this obituary incorrectly referred to the military unit with which Mrs. Kiyonagas husband served as the 42nd Regimental Combat Team. It was the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. The article has been updated.
Russian Vladimir Voevodsky won the 2002 Fields Medal Prize at the annual International Congress of Mathematics in Beijing. Voevodsky, a professor at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, N.J., was recognized for developing new theories in algebraic geometry and topology. (LIU YU/Associated Press)

Vladimir Voevodsky, a mathematician who grew up in Russia before coming to the United States, where his work was recognized with the Fields Medal, often regarded as the equivalent of the Nobel Prize for mathematics, died Sept. 30 in Princeton, N.J. He was 51.

His death was confirmed by the Institute for Advanced Study, the research institution where he was a professor and had spent most of his working life. He reportedly collapsed in his home from a sudden aneurysm, and was discovered by friends.

Mr. Voevodsky received the Fields Medal, which is awarded for outstanding contributions by mathematicians under the age of 40, in 2002 in recognition of work in the area mathematicians call homotopy.

His amazing insight, Chris Kapulkin, a mathematician at the University of Western Ontario, said in an interview, was that at some very high level in both geometry and algebra you can see the same structure. You can transfer results from one to another.

As a pure mathematician, Mr. Voevodsky possessed powers of imagination, visualization and reasoning that could be applied at levels of abstraction almost impossibly remote from the minds and lives of most people.

Aware of this, he was also troubled by it. I cannot explain  even to a very good student in his final year at university  the details of my work! he once said in an interview. Today, new people find it harder and harder to engage in the scientific process. I think its a bad sign.

Uneasy about estranging himself too far from the real world of useful applications, he pursued work in his later years that was applicable to improving the process by which mathematical proofs were produced.

Some of his work was in the area of developing proof assistants, which entailed harnessing the computer to help mathematicians through the dauntingly intricate steps by which abstruse proofs are developed.

In working to develop the proof assistant, Mr. Voevodsky appeared to acknowledge an episode from his career in which an important result was later challenged. In 2013, after years spent in checking, he concluded he had erred. Other mathematicians lauded his honesty and saw his admission as a sign they needed to avail themselves of the calculating capacity of computers.

I didnt have the tools to explore the areas where curiosity was leading me and the areas that I considered to be of value and of interest and of beauty, Mr. Voevodsky once wrote. So I started to look into what I could do to create such tools.

Soon, he said, it became clear the only path to follow was somehow to make it possible for me to use computers to verify my abstract, logical, and mathematical constructions.

Some of the work, intended to enable computers to work in pure mathematics, entailed providing a new formulation of the foundations of the ancient discipline.

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Arguments have sprung up as to what the proper role of computers in proofs should be. Mr. Voevodskys position was they assisted in proofs, but did not produce them.

In fact, he said, they reminded him of what the true nature of proof, so fundamental to mathematics, ought to be.

Unique in their abilities to explore realms of the mind few of their fellows could enter, mathematicians often show unique traits in their personal lives. Mr. Voevodsky was no exception.

Vladimir Alexandrovich Voevodsky was born on June 4, 1966, in Moscow. Both of his parents were scientists. He enrolled at Moscow State University but he was bored by his classes and expelled for what he called academic failure.

Ultimately, he went back to school, but as the Soviet Union began to deteriorate, everything collapsed, and such formalities as degrees seemed quite useless.

He collaborated on academic papers with another mathematician, Mikhail Kapranov, who came to the United States for graduate school and mentioned his friend.

Soon, without a college degree and without formally applying, as he told it, Mr. Voevodsky was a graduate student at Harvard University. But he was robbed in Boston and had other difficulties adjusting, and he temporarily went back to Russia.

Harvard kept his fellowship open, and he lived in his office for a time before receiving his doctorate in 1992.

The Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton listed him as a member in the 1992 -1993 academic year. He was also a member, according to the institute,from 1998 to 2001. In January of 2002 he became a member of the mathematics faculty at the institute, one of the worlds most renowned research institutions (one of the Institutes first faculty members was Albert Einstein, who was there from 1933 until he died in 1955).

Mr. Voevodsky also held appointments at other academic institutions. He was an associate professor at Northwestern University from 1997 to 1998, and a visiting scholar at the Max-Planck-Institute in Germany in 1996 and 1997. He was affiliated with Harvard from 1993 to 1997; first as a junior fellow in the Harvard Society of Fellows, then as a visiting scholar.

In 2002, the International Mathematical Union awarded Mr. Voevodsky the Fields Medal. According to the Institute for Advanced study, he was awarded the medal for development of new cohomology theories for algebraic varieties. He was recognized as the creator of motivic cohomology.

He received many fellowships and National Science Foundation grants for his work.

Among the fields in which he made contributions are the homotopy theory of schemes, algebraic K-theory, and interrelations between algebraic geometry and algebraic topology.

He was credited with developing solutions to what mathematicians know as the Milnor and Bloch-Kato conjectures.

His Univalence Axiom was also credited with making a strong impact in both mathematics and computer science.

His marriage to Nadia Shalaby ended in divorce. Survivors include two daughters.
French winemakers are lamenting the smallest vintage in 60 years after spring frost damaged vines at Bordeaux chateaus like Angelus and Canon La Gaffeliere, while summer storms caused grape rot in Champagne.

Wine volume will fall 19 percent to the equivalent of about 4.9 billion bottles, the Agriculture Ministry forecasts. That would be the least since 1957, another year when a freeze destroyed spring buds, based on data from the ministry and the European Unions statistics department.

The drop in production will be mainly on account of the hard spring frost, the ministry said. The persistent drought in the southeast further reduces production.

France and Italy typically compete for the rank of worlds biggest wine producer, with weather a key factor. While Italian vineyards also suffered damage from frost, drought and hot weather, volumes are still expected to outpace those in France. The Italian association of wine-industry technicians forecasts output of 47.2 million hectoliters, compared with 36.9 million hectoliters for France.

Bordeaux was among French wine regions hardest hit by frost in late April, with the volume of wine carrying the regional label falling 39 percent, according to the agriculture ministry. Even so, output was slightly higher than the ministry was expecting in August.

The frost struck in April as the vines that produce the likes of Chateau Petrus and Chateau Margaux were at their most vulnerable, generating fresh shoots after their winter dormancy. Growers in Bordeaux resorted to fires, fans and helicopters to take the edge off the bud-killing cold.

In Champagne, where the frost was less destructive than in 2016, production of designated-origin wines is seen falling 9 percent. Thats a reversal from an August outlook for an increase, after summer storms caused grape damage and rot that required winemakers to sort their fruit more rigorously.

Champagne houses such as LVMHs Moet & Chandon keep reserve stocks in their cellars that allow for regular production even in lean years.

Wine is Frances most valuable farming product, with value-added production of $13.5 billion (11.5 billion euros) in 2016, according to statistics office Insee. Its also the countrys top agricultural export with a value of 8.25 billion euros last year, with Bordeaux and Champagne in the lead.

While frost was the problem in much of France, the countrys southeast suffered from the opposite blight. Hot, dry and windy weather parched the grapes, reducing yields and grape juice, and harvesting was completed earlier than usual. Languedoc-Roussillon near the Mediterranean, where much of Frances bulk wine is grown, also saw sharply reduced quantities.

Despite lower yields across much of France, the Burgundy-Beaujolais region expects a 6 percent increase in the volume of wine carrying a regional label. Thats good news for fans of Burgundys pinot noir-based reds and chardonnay whites, whove watched prices of some of the worlds most expensive wines, like those of Domaine de la Romanee-Conti, soar in recent years as global demand grows and supplies dwindle.
In July, there was the indictment of the alleged violent gang of drug dealers out of West Baltimore that authorities say was responsible for 10 unsolved homicides.

The following month, there was the conviction of the Harford County man who accepted $9,000 from foreign companies to help plan a terrorist attack on U.S. soil.

And shortly after that, there was the sentencing of the former Prince George's elementary school volunteer who got 75 years in prison for producing child pornography with students.

Its been months since Rod J. Rosenstein left his job as U.S. attorney for the district of Maryland to take over as second-in-command at the Justice Department. But the work of the busy office responsible for prosecuting corruption, fraud and violent crimes across the state continues.

The man now responsible for ensuring the indictments, convictions and sentences keep coming is Stephen Schenning, a lifelong Maryland resident who has practiced law in the state for more than 40 years.



Stephen M. Schenning is the Acting United States Attorney for the District of Maryland. (Photo from Justice Department )

This is a living, breathing thing that keeps on going, said Schenning, who was named acting U.S. attorney for Maryland in April. Its a big ship, but were not dead in the water because we dont have a presidentially appointed U.S. attorney.

[U.S. attorney who fought violent crime, corruption in Md. goes to Justice Dept.]

Selected to serve as first assistant U.S. attorney in 2011, Schenning, 70, was automatically elevated to serve as acting U.S. attorney when Rosenstein left in April. With a career spanning more than 25 years in the U.S. Attorneys Office in Maryland, Schenning has been one of the steadiest presences in the district and one of its longest-serving prosecutors.

The focus has always been about the cases, Schenning said. A real important element of what we do is the quality control of the investigations and making sure were doing it right, doing it fairly and doing it honestly.

Since Rosenstein left the office, Schenning said prosecutors remain concentrated on fighting corruption and beating back violent crime.

One major focus includes Baltimore, where the staggering homicide rate continues to rise and rattle the community. Federal law enforcement has focused on netting gang convictions to shut down criminal networks. The cases are labor-intensive, Schenning said.

Prosecutors must carefully legally justify the use of wiretaps, potential death-penalty sentences and the statute that allows federal law enforcement to launch their long-term investigations against organized crime. But Schenning said the work can make a big impact, such as the recent arrest of 12 members of the Trained To Go gang.

Schenning said those arrested in the gang, which is an offshoot of the Black Guerrilla Family, are suspected in 10 unsolved slayings, along with robberies, kidnappings and assaults as they sold drugs and defended their territory.

We really think these guys were big contributors to the violence problem in Baltimore City, Schenning said.

The office has also become one of 12 in the country to launch a new Opioid Fraud and Abuse Detection Unit, a Justice Department pilot program aimed at cutting the number of fatal overdoses. The unit will track the delivery and sale of prescription painkillers to go after doctors, pill mills, pharmacists and other medical professionals abusing their work to flood the streets with opioids.

Opioid- and heroin-related deaths in Maryland doubled between 2010 to 2015, going from about 500 fatalities to more than 1,000.

Closer to the Washington region, the office has added resources to stem MS-13 violence in Montgomery, Frederick and Prince Georges counties.

[Lured to the park with promise of sex, Md. man was stabbed 153 times at the hands of MS-13]

While gang-related homicides in many cases appear to have some seemingly clear motive, such as one group infringing on the territory of another, many of the MS-13 homicides occur for no good reason, Schenning said.

The thing that is most frightening of all is the commitment to violence, Schenning said of MS-13 cases. Theres no logical reason. Theyll kill people, and to kill is to define yourself as being committed to the gang.

Schenning, who was born in Baltimore and now lives in Catonsville, previously worked as a prosecutor in the Baltimore County States Attorneys Office and the Maryland Attorney Generals Office. As a prosecutor for the U.S. attorney in Baltimore, Schenning handled fraud and corruption cases.

In one of his last cases as a line prosecutor, Schenning and his colleague Martin Clark secured convictions against three union timekeepers at the Port of Baltimore. Some were billing 80 hours a week of overtime on their timecards for work they werent doing, including claiming they were working when they were actually vacationing in the south of France, Schenning said.

Schenning is in his second tour as the acting U.S. attorney in Maryland. He previously served as acting U.S. attorney in 2001, when Lynne Battaglia resigned for a seat on the Maryland Court of Appeals.

Schenning said hes a career guy and doesnt have plans to make a run for the presidentially appointed position.

Someone coming in with fresh eyes and fresh ideas to lead the office in important ways is a good thing, Schenning said. Im looking forward to when the president nominates someone and the Senate confirms. I can be here to offer whatever is necessary.
A fire Friday night that began with a laptop left on a bed displaced two North Potomac families, the Montgomery County Fire Department said Saturday.

Firefighters were called to 14420 Pebble Hill Lane shortly before 9 p.m., the department said, because of a fire at the end of a block of rowhouses that spread to an adjacent rowhouse.

Authorities believe the fire was electrical in nature, starting with a laptop charging cord on a bed in a second-floor bedroom.

While the blaze was brought under control in fewer than 20 minutes and no one was injured, the fire department said close to a dozen people were temporarily forced out of their homes. Damage is estimated at $250,000.

The response was delayed because smoke alarms in the home were not operating, the fire department said.
Police have identified a man and a woman found dead in a burning car this week in the Baltimore area.

Darrell Antonio Blowe, 34, of Dundalk, Md., and Kesa Kibibi Baker, 44, of Baltimore, were both shot multiple times, Anne Arundel County police said.

The two were found about 4:45 p.m. Wednesday in a silver car that had caught fire, crashed through a fence and hit the side of a garage in Brooklyn Park, just outside Baltimore.

Police said in a statement they have interviewed several witnesses in this case and have received leads in which they are actively pursuing but gave no description of any suspects.
The commute of thousands of Northern Virginians will change dramatically at the end of the year when tolling begins on a significant stretch of Interstate 66, one of the regions most congested highways.

Rush-hour, high-occupancy toll lanes are scheduled to open in December, kicking off a major makeover of the nearly 10 miles of highway from Route 29 in Rosslyn to Interstate 495. Additional transit options also are planned as part of the states multimodal strategy to improve traffic flow along the corridor.

The addition of the I-66 lanes will mean about 64 miles of Northern Virginia highway operating under a toll system all or part of the time.

We are really at our limit of adding any more pavement to 66 inside the Beltway, said Amanda Baxter, the Virginia Department of Transportations manager for the project.

The roadway is what the roadway is, and it only can handle so many cars at one time, she said. We are giving people options.

[Testing of high-occupancy toll system on I-66 gets underway]

Every vehicle, except motorcycles, will need an E-ZPass transponder to use the new HOT lanes. Solo drivers who are willing to pay will be able to use the lanes during the morning and afternoon rush hours, an important change in a decades-long restriction to keep the peak direction lanes open only to cars with two or more occupants. When tolling begins, those high-occupancy vehicles can continue to use the highway free but will need a toll transponder that can be set to carpool mode.

Hybrid drivers will lose a privilege to drive solo in HOV lanes free and will be tolled if riding alone.

The biggest push right now is getting people to understand that if you do not have an E-ZPass and you need to be on these lanes only during rush hour, you need an E-ZPass, Baxter said.

About half of the vehicles that now travel on that portion of I-66 are equipped with E-ZPass transponders, officials said.

The lanes will operate similarly to those on the Capital Beltway, where tolls fluctuate based on the level of traffic congestion. The 495 express lanes, however, operate 24 hours a day and have parallel regular lanes. I-66 inside the Beltway will be all toll lanes during peak hours in the peak direction, but weekdays only.

The express lanes last month hit a billion miles traveled, a milestone for the system of toll lanes that opened five years ago on I-495, and two years later on Interstate 95. Officials and experts say the lanes have performed as expected, providing a quicker and more reliable trip for toll payers and carpoolers than do the regular lanes. Many users choose the lanes to commute to work, but a sizable number of cars, particularly on I-95, use the lanes for vacation travel.

A May survey by the express lanes operator, Transurban, found that nearly 8 in 10 drivers in the D.C. region say the express lanes benefit the region. Still, users have generally been suspicious about the congestion-based toll system and complained about price gouging.

As part of the transition for the I-66 lanes, rush-hour periods will be extended 90 minutes in the morning and the evening, which means solo commuters who currently travel on I-66 just before or after the HOV restrictions go into effect will have to adjust their trips around the expanded peak hours if they want to avoid paying the toll. The new peak hours will be 5:30 to 9:30 a.m. eastbound and 3 to 7 p.m. westbound.

For commuters, adjusting to the new requirements and rules may be the biggest challenge in coming months. This will be the first rush-hour-only, peak-period toll system of its kind in the United States.

"Driving in HOT lanes is about the most complicated thing we ask local commuters to do," said Robert Thomson, who wrote extensively about the I-66 toll plans in his former role as The Washington Post's Dr. Gridlock. "You need to have an E-ZPass  the right kind of E-ZPass  and you need to know the hours the HOT rules are in effect and you need to be aware of how 'dynamic tolling' works, meaning the toll can vary from time to time and day-to-day with no upper limit."

If the toll plan works as intended, he said, the end result should be better traffic flow even when the lanes open up to solo drivers. Success depends heavily on multiple factors, including on persuading todays drivers to move to carpooling and bus alternatives.

State and local officials last month launched $10 million in transit projects they say will lead to moving as many as 5,000 additional people through the corridor after the tolling begins. Three new bus routes will be added, and service will increase on two existing routes. A new park-and-ride lot in Loudoun County will support current and future bus service. Some toll revenue will be used for more transit improvements.

These and future transit improvements working in tandem with the I-66 Express Lanes will help us relieve the congestion that impacts our quality of life and the economy, while achieving our ultimate goal of moving more people through the I-66 corridor, Virginia Secretary of Transportation Aubrey Layne said.

Testing of the tolling system began this summer, soon after workers wrapped up installation of nine toll gantries and dozens of signs over and around the interstate.

Drivers are passing under the gantries, which house cameras and electronic equipment to communicate with E-ZPass transponders. The system has been tracking how efficiently the gantries are reading toll transponders. The cameras that will take photos of the rear license plates of cars without an E-ZPass have been flashing. In coming weeks, drivers should notice more illuminated signs with alerts about the tolling system and crews on the side of the road configuring computer equipment.

As part of the effort to expand capacity, an eastbound lane will be added next year from the Dulles Toll Road to Ballston. That expansion is expected to alleviate the biggest chokepoint for Washington-bound traffic, at the toll road where about 70 percent of traffic merges moving into the District and Arlington.

On I-66 outside the Beltway, a $2.3 billion expansion will add toll lanes by 2022. That project spans 22.5 miles from the Beltway to University Boulevard in Gainesville in Prince William County.

[Changing trail design could jeopardize entire I-66 widening project]

Peter Hesse uses I-66 to commute from his home in Chantilly, in Loudoun County, to downtown Washington. With his electric Ford Fusion, hes used to being able to drive in the HOV lane. Come December, hell have to pay for the privilege.

How much money out of my paycheck goes toward tolls in traffic becomes the challenge, said Hesse, an information security professional. What percentage of my income and my time and my family is it worth?

He said he worries that the tolls will be unaffordable. On the 495 express lanes, there have been reports of tolls upward of $30.

You have to make more money than I do to not have that really bother you, he said.

Hesse said he may explore other options, including Route 50. But none of the other options are very appealing. Interstate 66 is the most direct east-west route between his home and downtown.

State transportation officials say they dont anticipate many people will shift their commute to already congested nearby roads such as Routes 7, 29 and 50, according to data theyve collected during the testing period.

Thomson said the states calculation is that more commuters will be drawn to the HOT lanes than will be repelled by them, resulting in a net gain in overall traffic flow along alternative routes.

The key question is whether such a system will lead to moving more people through the corridor, or just more vehicles. Virginia is betting the system will provide more support for people who choose to carpool or take commuter buses.

That strategy is a key to success  if it is a success, Thomson said.
Mark Kelly, the former astronaut and gun control advocate, demanded on Friday that Ed Gillespie, the Republican running for Virginia governor, release the candidate survey he submitted to the National Rifle Association before winning its endorsement.

Kelly, the husband of former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.), who survived an assasination attempt by a gunman in her district in 2011, also wants to know if Gillespie would support laws that allow people to carry concealed firearms in schools and without permits.

Virginia voters need and deserve to know where he stands, and they deserve to know whether he is going to put the profits of the gun lobby over the safety of Virginias children and families, said Kelly, co-founder with his wife of the Americans for Responsible Solutions gun control group, which has endorsed Gillespies Democratic opponent in the race, Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam.

A former Army doctor, Northam has reiterated his call for a ban on military-grade weapons and high-capacity magazines after Sundays mass shooting in Las Vegas that left 59 dead and nearly 500 injured. We do not need assault weapons on our streets, said Northam, who attended a candlelight vigil Monday to honor the victims.

Northam, who has spoken emotionally about providing medical care to shooting victims, also favors universal background checks for gun buyers and wants Virginia to restore its law restricting gun purchases to one per month.



Republican gubernatorial candidate Ed Gillespie. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) )

On Friday, Gillespie joined the NRA and other Republicans in supporting a ban on bump stocks - the device used by the shooter in Sundays Las Vegas massacre.

But he stopped short of calling for other changes. And his campaign would not release his responses to the NRA candidate survey.

[Vegas roils Virginia election: NRA pauses ads, gun control events cancelled]

Dave Abrams, a spokesman for Gillespie, instead, Abrams issued the campaigns standard response to questions involving guns, Ed will be a strong supporter of protecting Virginians Second Amendment rights.

In an unrelated conference call with reporters on Friday, Gillespie said it was "perfectly legitimate" to regulate or ban devices meant to circumvent the law  such as bump stocks. The National Rifle Association unexpectedly joined the effort to do so on Thursday, providing political cover for Republicans.

[Trump injects himself into Virginia governors race with vote Gillespie tweet]

The other GOP statewide nominees  Jill Vogel, running for lieutenant governor, and John Adams, running for attorney general  did not call for restricting bump stocks when asked for their positions on Thursday. On Friday, a spokesman for Vogel she agrees with Gillespie, and Adams said he would defend any legislation on the topic passed by the General Assembly if its challenged in court.

View Graphic The latest stories and details on the 2017 Virginia general election and race for governor.

The issue of guns has drawn considerable money into Virginias elections.

Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund, bankrolled by former New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, has committed to spend at least $700,000 to elect Northam, while Americans for Responsible Solutions plans to spend $150,000 on mailers.

The National Rifle Association has planned $750,000 in political advertisements starting Tuesday, though their purpose and content is unclear.
In face of hacks and attempted hacks, paper ballots make a comeback in Virginia this fall. (Paul J. Richards/Agence France-Presse Via Getty Images)

The return of paper ballots for all Virginia voters, a process begun a decade ago and accelerated by the threat of hacks of computerized voting machines, has kicked into high gear a month before the next state election.

Edgardo Cortes, Virginias commissioner of elections, said last week all of the commonwealths cities, towns and counties will use paper ballots and electronic scanners on Nov. 7, ensuring voting and tabulation are secure.

The issue here is not whether its hackable or not, Cortes said in an interview. The issue is if you end up with some kind of question, you have those paper ballots you can go back to.

The danger is not theoretical.

The Department of Homeland Security last month notified Virginia and 20 other states about Russian efforts to hack their election systems in 2016.

On Wednesday, Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-Va.), vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, told reporters he was concerned Russians continue to try to interfere with U.S. balloting, especially in swing states such as Virginia.

To make a change, even on the national level, doesnt require penetration into 50 states, Warner said.  . . . You could pick two or three states in two or three jurisdictions and alter an election.

A state like mine, in Virginia, and in New Jersey, in 34 days, we have an election, Warner said, noting DHS has pledged to offer additional assistance to the two states with gubernatorial elections in November.

Cortes said Russians never penetrated Virginias databases last year and only scanned some of the states public-facing websites, looking for opportunities or errors.

The state reported those forays to the FBI at the time.

In July, at the DefCon hacking conference, programmers successfully invaded 30 Direct Record Electronic (DRE) touch-screen machines, including some identical to those in use in Virginia, within 90 minutes.

The hackers then posted how they broke in and posted passwords that would allow copycats to mimic their actions.

View Graphic The latest stories and details on the 2017 Virginia general election and race for governor.

In response, the state Board of Elections decertified the touch-screen machines in September, requiring 23 cities and counties that use them  including Falls Church and Alexandria  to acquire new voting equipment in a tight time frame.

The affected localities serve 140 of the states 2,439 voting precincts, or about 190,000 of the states 5 million active voters.

David Bjerke, the Falls Church registrar, said he spent about $150,000 for the new equipment. Anna Leider, Alexandrias registrar, said that city will spend about $594,000, money that had been in next years budget.

The cost of replacing the systems is borne by local governments, and many of the communities that were using touch-screen machines are in poor, rural areas. Cortes said his office worked to arrange payments they could afford.

Paper ballots, once marked with a voters choices, will be inserted into an electronic scanner that will record the votes. The ballot itself will be retained if its needed for a recount.

The scanner prints out a results tape and records the totals on a secure thumb drive, which goes to the local election headquarters for the official canvass, or count, the next day.

Election officials emphasized no equipment is connected to the Internet, and even registration rosters known as poll books, typically kept on stand-alone laptops, are backed up with paper printouts.

The change to a paper-based ballot system will make Virginias process one of the very best in the country, said Barbara Simons, president of the nonpartisan Verified Voting.

In far too much of the country, people are voting on insecure machines, said Simons, who has written a book about electronic voting machines and whose work led to the cancellation of Defense Department Internet voting project. The very idea that a local election officer without enough money or technical expertise would be able to protect these machines is absurd.

Activists concerned about the lack of a paper trail in electronic voting persuaded the General Assembly in 2007 to prohibit local registrars from replacing electronic voting machines with other electronic machines and instead return to paper balloting.

The deadline for completing that transition was supposed to be July 1, 2020.

That transition accelerated in 2015 when hundreds of WINVote machines were decertified after voters, including Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D), complained they had trouble casting ballots.

The WINVote machines, which were prone to crashing and vulnerable to cyberattacks, were dubbed "America's worst voting machines" by Wired magazine, in part because of poorly secured WiFi features used to tally votes.
THE DISTRICT

Woman killed after being hit by a vehicle on the H Street corridor

A female pedestrian was killed Saturday after being hit by a vehicle on the H Street corridor, according to the D.C. police.

Police had not released the victims identity by early Saturday evening.

At 11:09 a.m., police were called to 10th and H streets Northeast for an accident involving a pedestrian who may have been pinned beneath a vehicle, MPD spokeswoman Rachel Reid said. The departments Major Crash Unit responded to the scene.

Hours after the crash, H Street between 9th and 11th streets remained closed as a gray minivan stood near the 10th Street intersection in front of Bens Chili Bowl. Lines of green paint were drawn on the asphalt under the front passenger side tire.

 Jenna Portnoy

MARYLAND

2 found dead in burning car are identified

Police have identified a man and a woman found dead in a burning car this week in the Baltimore area.

Darrell Antonio Blowe, 34, of Dundalk, Md., and Kesa Kibibi Baker, 44, of Baltimore, were both shot multiple times, Anne Arundel County police said.

The two were found about 4:45 p.m. Wednesday in a silver car that had caught fire, crashed through a fence and hit the side of a garage in Brooklyn Park, just outside Baltimore.

Police said in a statement they have interviewed several witnesses in this case and have received leads in which they are actively pursuing but gave no description of any suspects.

 Rachel Weiner

MARYLAND

North Potomac fire that displaces 2 families blamed on laptop

A fire Friday night that began with a laptop left on a bed displaced two North Potomac families, the Montgomery County Fire Department said Saturday.

Firefighters were called to 14420 Pebble Hill Lane shortly before 9 p.m., the department said, because of a fire at the end of a block of rowhouses that spread to an adjacent rowhouse.

Authorities believe the fire was electrical in nature, starting with a laptop charging cord on a bed in a second-floor bedroom.

While the blaze was brought under control in fewer than 20 minutes and no one was injured, the fire department said close to a dozen people were temporarily forced out of their homes. Damage is estimated at $250,000.

The response was delayed because smoke alarms in the home were not operating, the fire department said.

 Rachel Weiner

VIRGINIA

1 dead in small plane crash near Front Royal Airport in Warren Co.

A small private plane crashed Saturday afternoon near Front Royal Airport in Warren County, police said, leaving one person dead.

The crash happened at 1:39 p.m., Virginia State Police spokeswoman Corinne Geller said. The plane hit Ridgeway Road just outside the airport and caught fire. The airport is about 75 miles west of Washington.

The name of the deceased person was not immediately released because next of kin had not been notified.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the crash along with state police.


A woman peers through a door at her hurricane-damaged local church in the village of Caonillas, Puerto Rico, on Oct. 1. The town has yet to see any aid or assistance, and families traumatized by Hurricane Maria are seeking solace at the church. (Michael Robinson Chavez/The Washington Post)

Our Lady of Monte Carmelo Catholic Church tried to hold Mass right after Hurricane Maria passed, but a landslide had knocked out the east wall and filled the tiny sanctuary with thick mud.

The lakeside village of Caonillas had been savaged. The hillsides appeared to bleed, scarred by the streaks of dislodged earth and frond-less palm trees. Marias winds spirited away zinc and tin roofs. Her deluge sent blood-orange topsoil into homes, onto cars and across roads.

It was hellish, said Midge Battistini, a teacher who lost her home near the banks of Lake Caonillas. She said the winds changed direction, creating a funnel effect that sucked up every green thing around.

[Trapped in the mountains, Puerto Ricans dont see help, or a way out]

Tucked into the sparsely populated central mountainsides, the village had been cut off from the rest of the world. No services. No contact. The people of Caonillas had weathered storms before. Hurricane Hugo had been through here. So had Georges. But Maria showed no mercy. There was nothing holy about her.

Carmen Ortiz and her family live nearest to Our Lady of Monte Carmelo, and they worked for a week to dig it out from the mud and clean the pews. On the first Mass after the Sept. 20 storm, the church opened and the Ortiz family  the four of them  were the only ones who could make it. Ortiz sought solace in Father Rafael Rodriguez, sharing her worries, her fears and what her family experienced trapped inside their home as Maria lashed outside.

The church is the only light Ive seen in the midst of all this darkness, she said.

At that first Mass, they prayed that more people would come.

More than two weeks after Hurricane Maria tore a devastating path through Puerto Rico, communities such as this one are still isolated and struggling to meet basic human needs. They are frustrated at what they see as the lack of local and federal attention to their plight. In Caonillas, the effort to re-energize the church has given people a special kind of faith  a special kind of mission  while the world around them remains unsettled and unnerving.



The hurricane-ravaged landscape of Lake Caonillas in Puerto Rico. The surrounding hills were stripped bare by Maria's powerful winds and the lake is now brown, discolored by the sediment that washed into it as landslides cascaded down the steep hillsides. (Michael Robinson Chavez/The Washington Post)

There will be Mass

Local officials estimate that nearly every state road in Coanillas and greater Utuado was impassable or collapsed after the hurricane. No homes were left completely untouched in this region of the central mountain range once ruled by the indigenous caciques, or Taino chiefs, who dominated the high-altitude interior until the 15th century, when Christopher Columbus arrived.

There were roads I didnt recognize and homes that I was used to seeing that were gone, said Idhem Heredia, the parish secretary. There were other homes that I hadnt seen before because there was so much vegetation. Now they are clear to see.

Heredia said the region simply wasnt prepared for what Maria wrought.

When it became obvious that help wasnt quickly on its way, local residents began fending for themselves as they assessed the ruin around them.

Hector Quiles got busy, using a bulldozer to clear the mud and dead trees from mountain roadways. The coffee grower said Maria wiped out his entire harvest.

Quiles, 40, had coffee, plantains and fruits and vegetables, but he estimated that about 5 percent is left over, and that is for my familys consumption.

Another grower, Angel Gonzalez, vice president of Cafe Don Alonso, had similar laments: Theres no coffee to process.

As shock turned to despair, parishioners focused on Our Lady of Monte Carmelo. Roads began to clear and the church started to return to some semblance of its former self. Ortizs extended family arrived for a midweek mass, increasing the number of worshipers from four to eight.

Still, they believed, more would come. The parish posted a yellow sign on the front gate: There will be Mass on Sunday at 11 a.m.



A popular store and soda stand lies in ruins in Caonillas, Puerto Rico. (Michael Robinson Chavez/The Washington Post)

Out of this world

That Sunday was Oct. 1  11 days after Maria made landfall  and the parishioners began setting up. Plastic chairs were placed at the rear of the church instead of at the altar, away from where the mud had invaded the room. The sound of a tambourine and a guitar strumming emanated from the darkened interior, where Ortiz and her daughter were practicing choruses for the service. A painting of La Virgen de la Divina Providencia, the patroness of Puerto Rico, watched over the elements for the Eucharist with the islands flag  red and white stripes with a blue triangle emblazoned with a white star  draped behind her.

Then the people started arriving.



A family waits for church services to begin as they peer out at Lake Caonillas. (Michael Robinson Chavez/The Washington Post)

Jose Maldonado Jimenez, 71, sat outside waiting for the service with about a dozen others; they milled about and shared their stories and traded hugs and kisses. Children chased after a skinny black mutt in the church courtyard, and men with sun-kissed faces wanted to know what President Trump had said about the Puerto Rican recovery that had people so upset down in the town at the base of the mountain.

[A tale of two Puerto Ricos: What Trump saw  and what he didnt]

This has been out of this world. No one has come around here with food and water, Maldonado Jimenez said. Here in the country, we can eat from the earth and we can draw water from the mountain for a while. We can live without electricity, but we planned for seven days, not two weeks. But we will figure out a way.

The parish bell began to toll, signaling to the homes on the mountainside and the valley below that Mass would soon commence.

Father Rodriguez put on his robes in a back room next to Quiles eldest son, who struggled to find the slot for his head in his altar boy cassock. The doors all were open.



Hector Javier Quiles readies his son, an altar boy, for Sunday Mass at a hurricane-damaged church in Puerto Rico. (Michael Robinson Chavez/The Washington Post)

The bell rang again, and 20 people took their seats. It was steamy, uncomfortable. Whispered conversations broke into chuckles when one man clicked the switch of a fan. It didnt spin. No power here, and not expected for a long time. He smiled goofily.

Weve all been affected. There is much suffering. There is much anguish, the priest said as he began his homily. What do we do? We look to our faith, to the cross of Jesus, and look around to see who needs help around us.

This moment of suffering, he told his flock, can become a time of blessing.



Parishioners pray during a service at a hurricane-damaged church in Caonillas, Puerto Rico, on Oct. 1. (Michael Robinson Chavez/The Washington Post)

About halfway through the homily, Ines Lopez Serrano, 37, arrived with her three children, striding quickly toward a pew toward the back edge of the congregation. She smiled painfully. As the service continued, Lopezs face would tense up and shed wince. Her young son noticed, and each time he saw her on the verge of tears, he wrapped his arms around her neck and pecked her cheek.

During the storm, Lopezs husband made the last-minute decision to move the family to his mother-in-laws house further down the mountain. But after nearly two weeks, the children were anxious to go back home.

Lopez didnt want them to see it.

The mountainside had fallen on their green-and-yellow home of seven years. The mud forced its way through the front door like a burly bandit and took out the kitchen and the childrens bedrooms. Lopez said she resisted their pleas to see the house  she was worried what seeing the devastation might to do them  but to get to the church, they needed to pass it.

The children got a glimpse of what was lost, just enough to know that the house their parents had scraped and sacrificed to own could no longer be their home.

There was another family whose house slid off the mountain completely, and they were inside at the time, Lopez said. They were able to escape, but they have it more difficult,

Its the typical response in these mountains. No matter how bad one has it, there is always someone worse off and in need of an Ay bendito  a common refrain of compassion here in Puerto Rico.

Father Rodriguez prepared for Communion to close the Mass. After the last person ate of the bread and drank of the wine, he invited everyone to pray. The congregation knelt together and closed their eyes.

The countryside is rarely silent these days, with generators buzzing in the distance and roosters crowing. But the church was soundless, still and stiff.

Then Lopezs daughter, Nahir Ortiz, sniffled, whimpered and began to cry. Her deepening sobs triggered a flood of tears across the congregation.

The 14-year-old, wearing a Superman shirt, flew into the arms of those around her.

Within minutes, the crying stopped. In its place was laughter.
Sonoma County vintner Paul Hobbs received Napa County approval to build the Nathan Coombs Winery amid concerns from several neighbors, including Skyline Wilderness Park.

Hobbs proposed to build a 60,000-gallon-a-year winery, named for the founder of the city of Napa, on 90 acres at 2184 Imola Ave. in southeast Napa. The Napa County Planning Commission on Wednesday approved the project by a 4-0 vote.

What wed like to do is build a small jewell winery on this special site  We want to build something discreet and very high end, Hobbs said.

Hobbs said he grew up on a New York apple farm, then came to California and became involved in the wine business at his fathers urging. He worked for Robert Mondavi Winery and at Opus One Winery in Napa County. He established the Paul Hobbs Winery in Sonoma County, but also wants a Napa County winery.

This is sort of the culmination of a dream for me and my family, Hobbs said.

Hobbs representative Steve Martin said the winery will be located at the site of a barn and should be the same height. That barn cannot be seen from public roads, though it can be seen from two neighboring properties.

The design is going to be an agrarian design, so its (like) a barn and has a rustic feel to it, so it fits in with the setting and surroundings, Martin said.

Neighbors addressed the commission during public comments. Dorothy Glaros spoke on behalf of the Skyline Park Citizens Association, which runs the 850-acre park. She said park officials had just found out about the proposed winery and asked for a hearing postponement.

The project could severely, negatively impact the park and its users, Glaros said. Weve had no time to review it whatsoever.

Martin said the winery site is 2,000 feet away from the parkabout four-tenths of a mileand he doesnt see any conflicts.

Some neighbors, such as Penny Lane resident Kathy Felch, had concerns about such issues as groundwater use and noise and called for more environmental study.

Felch had a retort for Hobbs comment that the winery would bring the creme de la creme to the area.

The creme de la creme slam their car doors, just like the normal Joes on Penny Lane, she said.

Nathan Coombs Winery is to be built in the Coombsville area that has experienced declining groundwater levels in recent decades. Several neighbors said the proposed winery could hurt their well water supplies. They asked that the winery irrigate its existing vineyards with recycled water from Napa Sanitation District, given a recycled water line runs along Imola Avenue.

Hobbs said hes willing to consider using recycled water for irrigation.

At this point, we do not have assurances of the quality, Hobbs said. Given the nature of the product that we make, the sensitivity of the plant and so forth, until we have better assurancesbecause there are questions about the sulfur content and sodium, and some other issues, a number of unknowns

A county report said the site has sufficient groundwater for the winery.

Neighbor Paul Frank spoke in favor of the Nathan Coombs Winery. The winery is appropriate for the community, appropriate for the area and appropriate in size, he said.

Several neighbors said nighttime harvests in the existing Nathan Coombs vineyards brings lights and noise. They also said they wanted notification of agricultural spraying.

Commission Chairwoman Jeri Gill responded by reading from the countys right-to-farm ordinance designed to make certain agriculture isnt threatened by neighbor complaints. Still, she and other commissioners urged Hobbs to communicate with the neighbors.

We are in a valley where the economic engine is primarily the wine industry, and hence, weve embraced it here, Commissioner Michael Basayne said.

The site has 67 acres of vineyards. About 1.4 acres would be removed to make room for the winery. Napa County requires preserving an acre of farmland for each acre lost to non-agricultural uses, but that doesnt apply in this case, as a winery is considered by the county as agriculture, a county report said.

The winery is to be built in two phases. The first phase would produce 12,000 gallons of wine annually and the second phase would increase production to 60,000 gallons annually. Visitation is to be up to 30 people daily. The winery will be able to hold two marketing events annually for up to 50 guests each and two events for up to 100 guests each.
Nate was upgraded to a hurricane late Friday as the central Gulf Coast braced for its landfall as early as Saturday evening, with lashing winds and storm surges forecast to hit a part of the coast that had largely been spared in this extraordinarily busy hurricane season.

On Saturday, the National Hurricane Center reported Nate had maximum sustained winds at 80 mph, and could gain force as it hurtled toward the Gulf Coast.

An Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter aircraft just penetrated the center of Nate and reported hurricane-force winds, the center said.

Reports from Air Force aircraft indicate that maximum sustained winds have increased to near 80 mph with higher gusts. Additional strengthening is expected through Saturday up until the time Nate makes landfall along the northern Gulf Coast.

The storm, already blamed for at least 22 deaths in Nicaragua and Costa Rica this week, swelled as it crossed unusually warm waters in the Gulf of Mexico. New Orleans officials ordered mandatory evacuations of three low-lying areas of the city.



Sand bags are place atop a levee near the pumping station in New Orleans on Friday. (Sean Gardner/Getty Images)

The center put coastal Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama up to the Florida border under a hurricane warning, with a storm surge warning in effect from Morgan City, La.  west of New Orleans  to Walton County, Fla. Rain bands are likely to strike the coast as early as Saturday afternoon.

If the storm surge occurs at the time of high tide, water levels could rise as much as 9 feet above ground level in the area stretching from the mouth of the Mississippi River across to the Alabama-Florida border, the center said. It added that the deepest water would be along the coast, east of the landfall location, where the surge would be accompanied by large and destructive waves.

It forecast up to 10 inches of rain east of the Mississippi River from the central Gulf Coast into the Deep South, eastern Tennessee Valley, and southern Appalachians.

Here in the Crescent City, where memories of the 2005 Katrina catastrophe remain vivid, officials have acknowledged that their hobbled network of pumping stations could be overmatched by Nates downpours.

But Mayor Mitch Landrieu sounded upbeat and resolute in a news conference Friday afternoon, even as he announced a curfew starting at 7 p.m. Saturday and lasting until Sunday morning.

We are ready for whatever Nate brings our way, he said. If we all stay informed, if we all stay alert, if we all stayed prepared, ultimately we will all be safe.

The citys drainage system has been challenged even by typical summer storms. Parts of New Orleans have flooded several times this year, including as recently as last week. The worst flooding occurred after torrential rains Aug. 5, when up to nine inches fell in just a few hours.

The citys drainage system is terribly underfunded, Landrieu said.

Its old. Its tired. Its like your grandmothers car thats got 400,000 miles on it, he said. The pumping system in the city of New Orleans is as old as Calvin Coolidge.

Landrieu said 109 of the citys 120 drainage pumps were operational, with contractors working round-the-clock to repair the remainder. Inland flooding from rain is not the primary threat from Nate, he noted, but rather the storm surge along the coast, and most of all the wind, which he warned could turn objects left outdoors into dangerous projectiles.

He reminded residents that they should not drive through underpasses that flood readily. He said they can park their vehicles where they find higher ground without fear of parking tickets  enforcement of violations will be suspended starting at 8 a.m. Saturday.

By Saturday, the Port of New Orleans will be closed, and most of the 200 floodgates in the city and surrounding parishes will be closed. More than 350 members of the National Guard will be on the ground.

Friday morning, the city began providing 17,000 sandbags to residents at five locations across town. Police set up 146 barricades in flood-prone areas, and boats and high-water vehicles were lined up at fire and police stations.

Melonie Stewart, customer service director at Entergy, New Orleanss sole energy provider, warned residents to be prepared for up to seven days without power from the grid.

Nate appears most likely to hit the Gulf Coast to the east of New Orleans. It could deliver a storm surge of four to seven feet above normally dry land, forecasters said. Wherever the storm makes landfall, areas east of the eye will experience stronger winds than those to the west.

Nate is then expected to weaken and travel northeast into the southern Appalachians, where flash floods Sunday and Monday are a serious risk. The storms remnants are then likely to head toward the Mid-Atlantic and the Northeast.

The last hurricane to strike this part of the Gulf Coast directly was Isaac, also a Category 1, in August 2012. It left hundreds of thousands of utility customers without power.

Under sunny skies Friday, New Orleans did not appear to be in a state of alarm. Stores were cleaned out of bottled water, and residents filled sandbags provided by municipal authorities, but this was clearly not a city trembling in advance of Nate.

On Desire Street on Friday afternoon, Francois Robichaux, 45, lay on his belly on the sidewalk, his left arm elbow-deep in a hole. He was not clearing out a catch basin, but rather fidgeting with a broken water meter on the property of a house he is renovating.

Robichaux wasnt doing much to prepare for the storm. We usually evacuate, but this one came so fast, he said. He was confident that he would be safe in his three-story home. Its a Category 1, so Im not worried, he said.

The forecast includes a significant chance of the storms growing into a significant hurricane  even a Category 3, one with sustained winds of up to 129 mph.

The storm Friday was moving north over very warm water, which drives intensification. But that trajectory also meant interaction with Mexicos Yucatan Peninsula, with pockets of dry air and shearing winds that could enfeeble the storm.

The fast movement of the storm means it is unlikely to drop massive amounts of rain as Hurricane Harvey did while loitering in the Houston area of the Texas coast in August.

The National Weather Services hurricane warning, issued Friday, extends from Grand Isle, La.  which is due south of New Orleans  to the Alabama-Florida border.

Samenow and Achenbach reported from Washington. Patricia Sullivan in Washington and Capital Weather Gang meteorologist Brian McNoldy contributed to this report.
HAWAII

Snorkeling top origin of drowning deaths

Hawaii officials are working to raise awareness of the top cause of drowning for people visiting Hawaii: snorkeling.

Out of 650 ocean drownings from 2007 to 2016, the state Department of Health has recorded 169 as related to the common ocean activity, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported on Saturday. A total of 156 of those deaths were of tourists to the islands.

Motor vehicle crashes were the next highest cause of visitor deaths, with 85 recorded during the same period.

The numbers have prompted a state committee to explore ways to help prevent the deaths. Honolulu Ocean Safety and Lifeguard Services division has teamed up with a major visitor television channel to air announcements on snorkeling safety in 25,000 hotel rooms on Oahu.

On Oahu so far this year, 16 ocean drownings have occurred. Hanauma Bay, a popular snorkeling spot on Oahu that hosts about 1 million visitors each year, had 16 snorkeling-related drownings during the nine-year period.

 Associated Press

NEW YORK

Diocese sets up fund for abuse victims

A Roman Catholic diocese in suburban New York is creating an independent compensation program for people who were sexually abused by priests.

Newsday reports the Diocese of Rockville Centre on Long Island sent letters this week to people who previously have filed complaints.

The diocese is the eighth largest in the United States with an estimated 1.4 million Catholics.

The compensation program will be modeled after ones established in the Archdiocese of New York and the Diocese of Brooklyn during the past year.

Victims deemed eligible for financial compensation must agree not to pursue legal action against the church in the future to collect. Rockville Centres program could involve dozens of cases of alleged abuse, some dating back decades.

 Associated Press

Developer offers to buy Seuss museum mural deemed offensive: A real estate developer and his partner have offered to buy a mural featuring a Chinese character from a Dr. Seuss book after it was deemed offensive. The museum, located in the author's hometown of Springfield, Mass., said the mural will be replaced after three children's authors said it contained a "jarring racial stereotype." The Republican reports that Chinese American developer Andy Yee and businessman Peter Picknelly announced Saturday they will buy the mural if it's removed. Picknelly called the criticism "political correctness gone insane." Mayor Domenic Sarno says he wants the mural to remain in the museum.

 Associated Press


Altocumulus clouds float above Washington skies in September. Characterized by rolled layers and globular masses, they often signal that afternoon thunderstorms are on the way. (Salwan Georges/The Washington Post)

The sky has brought nothing but trouble lately  hurricanes, tornadoes, torrential rain. For good reason, people look up with wary eyes. On ordinary days, a pleasant wisp of white or a menacing thunderhead serve a more pedestrian preoccupation, a pragmatic barometer for how to dress or where to go.

Then there are those who gaze skyward for contemplation, even inspiration  especially when that azure canopy is tinted by white.

Whether they're streaking from horizon to horizon or floating in whiffs and puffs, clouds play large in our lives. They saturate our speech: Think of cloud nine. Our songs: Cue Joni Mitchell. Our literature, our art, even our geology is filled with clouds. What are some of the highest mountains in Colorado named? Mount Nimbus, Stratus, Cirrus & Cumulus.

As Yeats wrote, I know that I shall meet my fate somewhere among the clouds above.

For climatologists, though, clouds are scientifically important as well as deeply challenging.

Clouds are hard to model, NASA associate research scientist Kate Marvel said. Theyre the result of water vapor or ice crystals coalescing around microscopic bits of dust, particles of smoke and sea salt. . . . So they have a dual effect on climate. They trap the heat from the planet and spit it back down, making things warmer, but they also block sunlight, which is a cooling effect.

All of which frustrates climatologists trying to understand the effect of clouds on the planet.

Even small changes to the distribution of clouds with rising temperatures could substantially diminish or enhance global warming, said David Romps, a professor of Earth and planetary science at the University of California at Berkeley.



Stratocumulus clouds ride low in the sky. (Salwan Georges/The Washington Post)

In July 2016, the journal Nature published research showing cloud cover had increased over Earth's polar regions, accelerating greenhouse gas concentrations.

Right now, clouds are more air conditioner than heater, Romps noted, but that will change as the planet warms.

Some scientists have even theorized certain distinctive cloud formations can be harbingers of imminent earthquakes. A Chinese engineer claims to have successfully predicted more than 30 temblors.

Psychologically speaking, clouds also have both positive and negative impact. Overcast weather turns us inward and helps us focus, the experts say. Sunny weather, by contrast, slows cognition.

Researchers in Australia tested their theory with an experiment several years ago. They showed  for the first time in a real-life setting  weather-induced moods can significantly affect memory. On rainy, cloudy days, which caused a gloomy mood, the ability to recall objects was three times greater than on sunny days, despite all the positive vibes they triggered.

To artists and writers, clouds have been everything from eye-catching backdrops in paintings to humorous metaphors in literature  even objects of philosophical inquiry. Where would religion be without clouds? The Bible's many references start at the very beginning with Genesis 9:13. ("I have set my rainbow in the clouds," God says, "and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the Earth.")

When 17th century French thinker Rene Descartes wasnt busy becoming the father of modern philosophy (I think, therefore I am,) he was looking up at the sky and musing confidently on his scientific acumen.

We imagine [clouds] so lofty that even the poets and painters depict them as the throne of God, he wrote. This makes me hope that if I explain their nature . . . one will easily believe that it is possible in the same way to find the causes of everything wonderful on the Earth.

More than 400 years later, Dutch visual artist Berndnaut Smilde creates his own fleeting clouds indoors. He uses a complicated mix of smoke and water vapor, then captures the results on photographs before the clouds disintegrate back into nothingness.



Nimbus PowerStation was photographed in an abandoned building in East Perth, Australia. (Courtesy of Berndnaut Smilde and Ronchini Gallery)

Smilde has conjured clouds in a Turkish bath in Istanbul, at a deserted mining company in Belgium, even in a centuries-old London dungeon.

You need a certain space and want it to float, he explained. The search for the ideal cloud can take a long time.

Clouds have often come with numbers attached, the most prevalent being cloud nine. It played a starring role in The Temptations' 1968 album of the same name, with its eponymous Grammy-winning song. It then resurfaced 19 years later as an album title for former Beatle George Harrison.

The phrase, indicating a state of euphoria, may have originated from the early cloud classification system in which cloud nine was the tallest formation. Then again, cloud seven carried you into bliss, according to the 1960 American Dictionary of Slang. You definitely didn't want to end up on cloud eight  it meant you were drunk, per a 1930s book about the criminal "underworld."

Gavin Pretor-Pinney sees cloud-watching as a leisure activity. On a lark in 2005, the Londoner founded the Cloud Appreciation Society. Its membership today tops 43,500 with cloudspotters ringing the globe from the Congo to Canada, Iceland to Iran, China to Chile. The United Kingdom is home to more than half the organizations members. The United States is second with nearly 10,000.

Many regularly send their best cloud photos to Pretor-Pinney, who uses them for his cloud of the day and cloud of the month emails. In fact, interest has grown so much that the Cloud Appreciation Society is now a full-time business. Pretor-Pinney, an art designer by training, is leading sky holidays to particularly cloudy parts of the world. The first trip was to Canada in February to see the Northern Lights.

Ive always felt the sky to be the most dynamic, most poetic part of nature, Pretor-Pinney said. So its always struck me as a shame that its gotten bad press.

The society even helped identify a new class of cloud, a turbulent formation named asperitas that was officially added this March to the 121-year-old International Cloud Atlas.

The group, of course, has nothing good to say about lovers of cloudlessness  including beachgoers, most prominently. They call the worship of monotonous cloudlessness blue sky thinking.

Pretor-Pinney rejects such a limited view of the heavens. Cloudspotting is a conscious invitation to daydream, a sensitivity to your surroundings, he said. Its a kind of sky geekiness, which is beautiful.

TAKE OUR QUIZ: Match the clouds to the artist
Columnist

With biblical succinctness, and foreshadowing a resurrection, Mike Duggan said, "Let there be light!" and 65,000 LED streetlights replaced the 40 percent of the city's streetlights that were broken when he took office in 2014. They are among the many reasons that on Nov. 7 he, the first white mayor here in 40 years, will win a landslide reelection in a city that is 84 percent black. Identity politics is frivolous; Detroit, after a bruising rendezvous with reality, is serious about recovering from its near-death experience.

In Duggan, Detroit has found its Fiorello La Guardia  a short, stocky, cheerful, plain-spoken incarnation of his city. In 1983, when Duggan returned, fresh from the University of Michigan Law School, there was nobody my age on the streets. The Houston Chronicle was being sold at a busy intersection to unemployed autoworkers scanning the classifieds for Texas jobs. In 1950, Detroit was comparable to, and perhaps richer (by per capita income) than, Chicago. Soon, however, it was bleeding population, heading for bankruptcy as Greece on the Great Lakes, a dystopia plagued by deindustrialization, soaring crime, packs of feral dogs and a political class featuring incompetents leavened by felons.

Duggan, a Democrat in a city with nonpartisan elections, won in 2013 as a write-in candidate, telling voters, "You invite me to your home, I show up." Hundreds of house parties later, he was custodian of a prostrate city that had shed 260,000 residents in 13 years. Its 143 square miles could hold San Francisco, Boston and Manhattan with room to spare. By 2000, cattle could have been grazed in vast post-urban swaths. In 1950, the city had been home to 1.8 million; by 2013, it held two-thirds fewer. In the stampede away, many people abandoned their houses to the Midwestern elements. Most mayors brag about building; Duggan does, too, but also about demolishing  12,000 abandoned structures since 2014. His "Board Up Brigades "  this is distinctively Detroit  will seal off 11,000 and demolish 9,000 within two years. Says Duggan: "Tear down the burned-out houses, people will buy the others."

Police and EMS response times have been drastically reduced; 275 parks are fully maintained, up from 25 four years ago, when the grass was sometimes taller than the 8-year-olds. Such granular attention to the small stuff is having a huge payoff: Residential utility hookups are increasing. For the first time in his 59 years, the city is expected to grow. "We can't build office space fast enough" for firms moving here because "millennials don't want to move to the suburbs and drive a minivan." However, a successful city requires a large middle class, which cannot exist without good schools to anchor young families. Detroit's future hinges on this.

And on candor about Detroit's past. In this 50th anniversary year of the 1967 riots (43 killed, 342 injured), Duggan in a recent speech recalled the 1943 riot (34 killed, 700 injured) ignited by housing grievances among the 200,000 Southern blacks in congested wartime Detroit, the "arsenal of democracy."

Duggan explained that the seeds of Detroit's violent decline were sown by federal policy. Created in 1934, the Federal Housing Administration invented and enforced "redlining," explicitly steering new mortgages away from blacks to maintain the racial homogeneity of neighborhoods. A 1946 FHA manual said: "Incompatible racial groups should not be permitted to live in the same communities." And: "Properties shall continue to be occupied by the same social and racial classes." And: "Appraisers are instructed to predict the probability of the location being invaded by . . . incompatible racial and social groups." Invaded .

During the war, when a developer sought FHA guarantees for proposed housing on the last of the farmland still within the sprawling city, the FHA initially refused because the development would be contiguous with a black neighborhood. The real estate magnate proposed a solution: I will build a wall. It would be between his development and the incompatibles. He did; you can see it today. Mollified, the FHA guaranteed mortgages on the white side.

Almost half of all postwar suburban homes built in the United States had FHA mortgage guarantees. From 1934 through 1962, whites received 98 percent. The 1948 U.S. Supreme Court case that struck down racially restrictive real estate covenants came from Detroit, but too late to prevent deleterious racial residential patterns. In the 1960s came "urban renewal," a.k.a. "Negro removal" as administered by several of the last white mayors before Duggan, who, in an unlikely place, might be America's most accomplishing politician.

Read more from George F. Will's archive or follow him on Facebook.
Columnist

Gun Recovery Unit Arrests:

(Washington, DC)  The Metropolitan Police Departments Criminal Interdiction Unit and Gun Recovery Unit announced recent arrests that have been made in cases in the District of Columbia.

. . . On Saturday, September 30, 2017, members were patrolling in the area of 18th and Gales Street, Northeast. . . . The following person was arrested: 18-year-old Luvor Truesdale, of Southeast, DC, for Carrying a Pistol Without a License, Unregistered Firearm, and Unregistered Ammunition.

On Tuesday, October 3, 2017, members responded to a call in the Unit block of H Street, Northwest. . . . The following people were arrested: 21-year-old Dequan Alston, of Southeast, DC, for Theft Two. 22-year-old Darren Johnson, of Upper Marlboro, MD, for Carrying a Pistol Without a License and Theft Two.

. . . On Wednesday, September 27, 2017, members assisted US Marshalls in the 100 block of Wayne Place, Southeast. . . . The following person was arrested: 65-year-old William Bailey, of Southeast, DC, for Unregistered Firearm and Unregistered Ammunition.

On Thursday, September 28, 2017, members assisted with a search warrant in the 2500 block of Pomeroy Road, Southeast. . . . The following person was arrested: 17-year-old Juvenile Male, of Southeast, DC, for Unregistered Ammunition.

On Thursday, September 28, 2017, members executed a search warrant in the Unit block of Nicholson Street, Northwest. . . . The following person was arrested: 47-year-old Michael Chambers, of Northwest, DC, for Unlawful Possession of a Firearm.

This is the reality of life on the streets in some parts of our nations capital.

The above reports represent four days, but it's like this most every day. More than 1,800 guns were recovered by the police last year. The recoveries are ongoing. So, too, are the assaults with a deadly weapon and the robberies; there have been more than 3,000 of those so far this year, with three months to go. Guns are involved in many of those 3,000 offenses.

Point and pull the trigger of those 1,800 guns one time into a crowd, and you get a massacre. But, of course, our shootings don't happen that way. Our deaths, our woundings, come one or two at a time. This is nothing like Las Vegas. But the gunfire does happen, and it adds up: 87 homicides as of this week. We are only in early October. We've racked up more bodies than Stephen Paddock did with his arsenal at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino last Sunday night.

This in no way is intended to suggest an equivalency between the Nevada massacre and our citys gun violence. The lethality of both, however, cannot be denied.

Which has sparked a return to the national gun-control debate: Ban the "bump stocks" that enable the conversion of a semiautomatic into an automatic firearm. Close gun-show loopholes. Restrict purchases, etc.

Here in our nation's capital, the brouhaha over guns is enmeshed in the city's restriction on the carrying of concealed guns in public. Our public officials believe that people who want licenses to carry concealed weapons should have to demonstrate "good reason" for carrying a gun in public.

In July, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit felt otherwise and ruled the city's restrictions on concealed-carry permits unconstitutional. This week, the city threw in the towel and decided against appealing the circuit court's decision to the Supreme Court. The prospect of permit-seekers rushing to apply for authorization to carry concealed guns is upon us  something that may have little effect one way or the other on the gun-related homicides, assaults and robberies that occur day in and day out on our streets.

Concealed guns are already being carried in our city. They can be found in waistbands, pants pockets, underwear and socks. They are stashed behind trash cans and under porches, rocks and bedroom mattresses. Anywhere and everywhere. Most of those toting guns likely possess them illegally.

The gun-violence debate seems to hang on the presence and prevalence of lethal weapons: How do we restrict or reduce them? Make them more difficult to obtain, harder to use, less desirable to own?

Important issues, but theres no guarantee that answers can be found.

My question is even more basic and elusive: What makes someone pick up a gun, point it at another person and pull the trigger? Whether that someone is Stephen Paddock or a dude who wants your wallet.

There is this threat, the sober, gut-gripping reality: Walking among us are so many people with the willingness to kill.

Guns give them the capacity. But the desire, impulse and readiness to destroy another life? That question goes to culture, values and the attitudes we develop toward others.

How do we, as a society, begin to deal with that?

Read more from Colbert King's archive.
Finding affordable housing in Napa County, and across the Bay Area, is difficult. Add other factors to the search  like not having a vehicle and being low-income  and it can be even more challenging.

For people who are already homeless, theres some help out there. For those who arent homeless yet, though, resources are limited, especially if the problem isnt necessarily money.

A tale of two women

Tanya Romanos problem is that she doesnt get along with her on-site apartment manager. Although no formal reason was given on either of the two notices to vacate that Romano has received, the 58-year-old grandmother believes that theyre related to her poor relationship with the manager.

Thanks to years of conflict between the two, she says, and an argument that made her angry enough to threaten the manager, Romano now has to leave the apartment shes been living in for the last nine years.

She knows she was wrong to threaten the woman, but she was so upset she couldnt help it, she said. Now shes paying for it.

The manager, Cindy Douglass, said that Romano has apologized to her, but that the threat was the final straw and that Romano has to go.

I wish her luck, Douglass said Saturday. Tanya can be a really good person  she has a big heart.

Romano, though, isnt hopeful about her prospects.

We dont have a vehicle to find a place (and) we dont have the money to move, Romano said of herself and her 80-year-old mother  the two share an apartment at a complex in Napa. Romano receives housing assistance through the Section 8 program, in which federal funds pay for vouchers that low-income tenants use to pay landlords. She pays $231 in rent and the rest is split between her mother and the government.

Romano receives disability benefits for various physical injuries, she said, some of which are related to motorcycle accidents. Shes also been a victim of domestic violence and has a learning disability, she says.

In addition to the 24/7 pain she said she feels due to the injuries, Romano just quit prescription opioids after taking them for pain management for 30 years.

I didnt want to be spaced out anymore off pills, she said. Since switching to medical marijuana, she said that her head is clear.

She was still taking the pills when she threatened to bury the on-site manager in July.

Romano isnt sure, but she thinks she has to be out of the apartment by Oct. 8. The manager says she needs to be out by the end of the month.

I dont know what were gonna do, Romano said.

Teresa Windish, 54, has a slightly different problem. Shes not a senior and therefore wont qualify for senior housing like Romano and her mother might. She also doesnt have a lease or receipts proving that shes been paying rent for the last three years.

She moved into the home a few years after her mother, who was her caretaker, died and her husband, who is physically disabled, left her.

Right after she died  thats when my life went to pieces, Windish said. Her mom saved her life, she said, after she had been in a vehicle wreck that left her face mangled. Her mom, she said, begged doctors to not only repair her face but to also try to reattach her foot, which had been amputated in the collision.

Windish, who lives on $945 in Social Security and $30 in food stamps, pays $200 a month to rent a room in a 3-bedroom house in American Canyon. Seven other adults live in the home along with Windishs blue-and-yellow macaw, her three dogs and a her landladys dogs.

Its awful living here, Windish said. In addition to the overcrowded conditions, Windish said the environment in the home is hostile and that she doesnt get along with her landlady. The police have been called four times in the last three months, she said.

In September, Windish was told she needed to vacate by Oct. 1, but hasnt been legally evicted yet. Still, shes ready to leave, but hasnt been able to locate another place to go.

She filed for divorce from her estranged husband this past summer and most of her support system, except one foster son, is back in Michigan, she said.

In her attempt to find alternative housing, she spent the last of her savings on an RV purchased via eBay. It turned out to be a scam.

That was my last hope of getting out of here, she said.

Napa Countys housing crisis

Across the county, organizations are trying to solve issues surrounding homelessness and housing affordability, but change is sluggish. Development of new affordable homes is slow to begin construction and the shelters remain filled.

Theres a lot of people that are just (living) paycheck to paycheck, said Lark Ferrell, manager of the City of Napas Housing Division. In Napa alone, more than half of all renters spend more than 30 percent of their incomes on housing, according to a 2015 community survey. According to federal guidelines, a family should pay no more than 30 percent of its income in rent. Anything more than that is a burden.

That 30-percent mark translates to $1,863 monthly rent for a family making $74,500 annually; $1,165 for a family making $46,550 and $700 for a family making $27,950, statistics show.

Rents locally for two-bedroom apartments are $1,900 a month for older apartments to $2,500 a month, according to county officials.

Windish has a good deal now considering she only uses $2,400 of her $11,340 annual income for housing, which translates to about 21 percent of her income. Without Section 8, though, thats a deal that is hard to find.

Section 8, which requires recipients to pay just 30 percent of their income toward housing, acts as a lifeline to about 1,100 renters in the county.

Demand for the program is so great that the city closed the waitlist in March 2013. In March 2016, there were still about 8,000 households on the list, but now there are only about 2,410 households.

We did a major purge, Ferrell said. Since the waitlist was so long, there were some people on it who had already found housing or whose contact information was old or inaccurate, she said. Only one-third of those on the waitlist currently live in the county.

Section 8 housing can be difficult to find because landlords often prefer renting to people with higher incomes. Sometimes vouchers even go unused because  in this market  landlords dont want to have their hands tied by government requirements associated with the program.

To help increase the odds of finding housing, recipients can now use their vouchers to rent a room via Napa Valley Community Housings Home Sharing program, according to housing officials. Under certain conditions, they can even share housing with other Section 8 recipients.

What are the options?

These are women who are seriously at risk, said Yvonne Baginski, founder of local non-profit Share the Care. Both women reached out to Baginski when they felt they had nowhere else to go for help.

I dont know how to help them, Baginski said Thursday. I dont know how to help them find housing when there isnt any.

Romano and Windish arent the only people whove reached out to Baginski  she says that shes been getting these types of calls for a while. In most cases, she said, family or friends have been able to step in and help find solutions.

Its not uncommon for people to get into fights with their landlords when they get angry, she said. Theyre not the perfect tenants, she said, but they are on the verge of becoming homeless. Once someone gets evicted, where do they go?

For a Section 8 recipient like Romano, getting an eviction on her record could be dire. Not only would it be more difficult to find a landlord willing to rent to her, but she would also lose her Section 8, says Michael Kucz, program supervisor at Napas Housing Division.

If a Section 8 recipient loses their vouchers due to eviction, he said, they cant reapply for a period of five years. Receiving a notice to vacate or termination of the lease is not an eviction, though, Kucz says. There is a legal process landlords are required to go through.

Since the market is so competitive and the vacancy rate is so low, seniors, individuals with disabilities, and fixed or low-income families with children are most at risk for becoming homeless, says Pablo Zatarain, executive director of Fair Housing Napa Valley.

Even though there are some options for these individuals, many of those options have waiting lists. Places like Rohlffs Manor, which has low-income senior apartments, have anywhere between a 6-month to a year-long wait.

The county receives most of its housing funding from the federal government whose current priority is ending chronic homelessness, says Mitch Wippern, Napa County Health and Human Services deputy director of operations. Because of that, there arent many resources for people who are at-risk of becoming homeless, he said.

Someone who is already homeless, he said, may also be able to get continued case management, which translates to assistance dealing with landlords and property managers  something that people like Romano and Windish, who have problems with these authority figures, might benefit from.

The best option might be to try to get relief from the Season of Sharing program, he said.

Assistance from the San Francisco Chronicle Season of Sharing Fund is available to low-to-moderate income families with dependent children, senior citizens, disabled individuals, veterans, victims of domestic violence, pregnant women in their second or third trimester, and transitioning emancipated foster youth who have a critical need and who reside in nine Bay Area counties, including Napa.

It can pay for things like a security deposit on a new apartment, owed rent and family emergencies, Wippern said. Its designed to get you on your feet so that you can keep yourself on your feet, he said. We dont look at anything about criminal history or anything related to that.

For tenants like Romano, the options are fighting the eviction in court, voluntarily leaving and trying to find a new place to live, or, if she cant find anything, living on the street.

Windish thinks that the answer to her problems is getting an RV and finding a lot to put it on within the county, but she doesnt have the money for it anymore. Until she can save up enough money, she said, shes going to keep her head down. Eventually, she said, shed like to go on Section 8 and try to get into a place like Rohlffs Manor.

Although shed like to stay in the county, she said she is willing to move out of it if its the right fit.

Im not opposed to going out of the county, she said. Ive looked everywhere; I just cant find anything.

Romano says she wants to fight and stay in her apartment, but, if she cant, she wants to get a three-bedroom apartment in Napa to share with her mother and her adult nephew, who also receives Section 8.

I dont want to move. I want to fight it, she said. This is my home.
THE TRUMP administration on Friday tore a big hole in an important public-health law, eroding the federal requirement that health insurance plans cover contraception. The administration argued that not many women will ultimately be affected. We hope that is true.

The contraception mandate, which stemmed from the Affordable Care Act, originally offered an exemption to churches and their closely connected organizations  but not to religiously affiliated universities, charities, small businesses and other groups that wanted no involvement in providing birth control to anyone, and particularly not through the health plans they offered. Successive rounds of litigation finally pushed the objectors and the government close to a deal, in which religiously conscious groups could opt out of offering contraception coverage in their insurance plans and federal authorities would find ways to serve employees still seeking birth control. The Supreme Court last year suggested they could come to an arrangement.

But rather than hashing out a final deal, as the court suggested, the Trump administration decided that the federal government's interest in ensuring women access to birth control is not very important, and therefore surrendered to the objectors. Universities, charities and small businesses will now be able to ignore the contraception mandate without doing anything but informing their employees that they will get no birth control coverage. They could allow the government to independently arrange contraception coverage for their employees  or forbid such a workaround.

In fact, these new rules would apply to practically any private entity that does not want to provide contraception coverage, including major publicly traded companies and health insurers themselves. They would have to claim to have a religious objection, but that is not a high barrier. That is why, though the Trump administration insists that the mandate is still in force, the law has been deeply undercut.

Although it admits that it has created a huge new loophole, the Department of Health and Human Services argues that not many organizations will take advantage. Only a few relatively small groups have challenged the mandate in court. Many of the biggest organizations using the workaround the Obama administration tried to implement have no problem with it and may continue allowing federal authorities to arrange contraception coverage for their employees. And it is unlikely large, publicly traded companies will now change their benefits packages.

Even so, the administration estimates  very roughly  that tens of thousands, and perhaps more than 100,000, women will now have to pay out of pocket for their birth control or look for help elsewhere. Others predict more. The administration argues that these women should seek out unrelated federal programs that provide discounted or free contraception. But this thinking violates the underlying logic of the mandate. Throughout the dispute over the law, the Obama administration argued that women's access to an essential benefit must be seamlessly incorporated into the rest of their health plans. Creating gratuitous barriers to contraception will result in more unintended pregnancies. We doubt that is what the Trump administration wants. But that will be the consequence.
Columnist

"They have a horror of abstract thought, they feel no need for any philosophy or systematic 'world-view.' " That was George Orwell, speaking of his countrymen in a famous 1941 essay, "England Your England." Writing during the Blitz, as "highly civilized human beings are flying overhead, trying to kill me," Orwell listed the qualities that made the English English: their love of privacy, their almost religious respect for the law, their dislike of uniformed men barking orders. "All the boasting and flag-wagging, the 'Rule Britannia' stuff, is done by small minorities," he wrote: "The most stirring battle-poem in English is about a brigade of cavalry which charged in the wrong direction."

I thought of that essay listening to the rhetoric coming out of the British party conferences, Labour and Conservative, over the past two weeks, much of which didn't sound very English, in Orwell's definition, at all. Certainly the Tories' transformation, over the past year and a half, is nothing short of remarkable. Historically, they were derided as "the stupid party," a description they accepted as a backhanded compliment: They were solid, salt of the earth; they were practical rather than theoretical; they eschewed progressive fantasy (what Orwell called "abstract thought") in favor of sensible policies.

In the wake of the Brexit referendum, the British Conservative Party changed. Some of the cabinet, including, it seems, the hapless (and, during her conference speech, briefly voiceless) prime minister, have quietly concluded that Britain should transition out of the European Union slowly and stay inside the European customs union for as long as possible, to avoid tariffs, customs bureaucracy and the horror of a new "hard" border across Ireland. But unmoored from their old Burkean suspicion of radicalism, many Tories dislike this idea of gradual change. Some are still imagining sweetheart deals with the E.U. that will never happen: This is what Boris Johnson, the British foreign secretary, at first called "having our cake and eating it," and now calls "glorious Brexit."

Still others sketch out a vague vision of a buccaneering, low-tax, deregulated trading nation, the Singapore of the North  a notion based on a misremembering of 19th-century history, when Britain was a free-trading nation but also an empire. Once upon a time, if the British didn't like the trade agreements on offer, they could blockade the harbor or bomb the port. Alas, that's no longer true  on the contrary, the most important result of the conference was that it persuaded the Federation of German Industry to prepare for a major disruption in trade, because "the British government is lacking a clear concept despite talking a lot."

If the Tories could be replaced by realists, it might not matter. But Brexit has released the Labour Party from its previous commitments to pragmatism, too. As one Guardian columnist wrote, "The Tories have normalised all forms of radicalism"  but the beneficiary may not be the imperial nostalgists of the right but the now far-left, and now more popular, Labour Party. Only a few years ago, it would have seemed remarkable for a Labour politician to declare his intention to re-nationalize anything. But at its conference the week before, John McDonnell, the Labour shadow chancellor of the exchequer  the man who, if the party wins the next election, will control the British treasury  was applauded when he called for "utilities and key services" to be brought back under state control. He mentioned railways and energy companies  but some have hinted at nationalizing banks, as well.

There may be more to come. Jeremy Corbyn, the Labour leader  who was welcomed at the conference by a very un-British three-minute ovation  has made it clear that he approves of the Brexit vote because he, like others on the far left, believes that the E.U. prevents its members from carrying out radical economic changes. But what kind of radicalism does he have in mind? E.U. policy does not prevent any country from having nationalized health care, state-owned companies or redistributive taxes, so we must be talking about policies even more extreme than that. Whatever those may be, its safe to guess that they wont make Britain look like a Singapore of the North. Better to think Venezuela of the North, or perhaps East Germany Rediscovered.

Maybe all of the fervor in the air is unsurprising: Britain didnt have an 18th-century revolution like France, or a 19th-century revolution like Germany. As Orwell observed, it was unmoved by the various 20th-century revolutions, too. Now, in the 21st century, it could just be Britains turn to overthrow its system. Which would be less unnerving if the revolutionary futures on offer werent so starkly contradictory.

Read more from Anne Applebaum's archive, follow her on Twitter or subscribe to her updates on Facebook.
Kudos for the Oct. 4 editorial "The lives we have lost," a list of people who have lost their lives to the evil pervading the United States by means of widespread unregulated gun-toting shooters. We need to see these names, be reminded of the damage done in these mass-shooting events and continue to advocate sane gun laws. No one outside of trained military personnel in active service should have semiautomatic rifles.

Most Americans favor controls of some sort. If you want your firearms for sport shooting, they should be in a locker at a site that is for just that sport.

Limits on the number of firearms should be enacted and enforced. Require background checks for everyone, wherever and from whomever the guns are purchased.

Sylvia S. Gordon, Alexandria

I am a gun owner who does not hunt but enjoys target shooting. I've spoken for years with other shooters at the range where I target-shoot, and most agree that guns should be registered and owners qualified. What's holding us back? A profound mistrust of our government. In the United Kingdom and Australia, firearms registries led to laws outlawing many types of non-sporting weapons. If our legislatures could change the rules in a way that would not result in confiscation, then there would be a lot more support for rational gun-control laws. Darned if I know how to do that. Above my pay grade.

On assault weapons: First, the term assault should be reserved only for those weapons that are fully automatic, not for those guns that bear a resemblance to automatic weapons. There are very few of those out there, and those that are are highly regulated. Semiautomatic weapons are built to military designs because the military has tested and retested these weapons. We buy them for their proven accuracy, ease of maintenance and reliability.

Dick Bulova, Fairfax
The Sept. 29 Metro article "Officials held in contempt over defendants' care" detailed the need for more forensic beds  those serving mentally ill inmates and criminal suspects  in Maryland state hospitals. Maryland also has a shortage of community psychiatric hospital beds.

A relative of mine was held in an emergency room in Montgomery County for 24 hours without treatment while experiencing psychosis. Finally, when a bed opened up, it was in a remote part of Prince Georges County.

Another time, he was moved to a hospital that was a two-hour drive from Montgomery County. By the time he got there, he was so agitated that four people had to hold him down to inject him with medication. All this could have been prevented if he had received treatment right away in a nearby Montgomery County hospital.

Placement at a hospital so far from the family made coordination with staff and visits to support my relative very difficult. Acting Maryland health secretary Dennis Schrader said that he wants to partially solve the shortage in state-run hospitals by using some local community hospital beds for psychiatric patients. This will make the community bed shortage worse and emergency room waits longer.

The state needs to face the fact that it closed too many state hospital beds and then open enough to solve the forensic and community bed shortages.

Ziva Azhdam, Bethesda
A READER contacted us last week after we published a list of some of the lives that have been lost in mass shootings in the United States. "I in no way mean to nitpick, however, you've regrettably not included the mass shooting that took place on Feb. 14, 2008, at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Ill.," wrote Joe Palmer. He then listed the names of those killed: Gayle Dubowski, 20; Catalina Garcia, 20; Julianna Gehant, 32, Ryanne Mace, 19; Daniel Parmenter, 20.

Mr. Palmer was right. The DeKalb shooting was not listed. Nor was the March 12, 2005, shooting at the Living Church of God in Brookfield, Wis., that killed seven people. Or the Oct. 12, 2011, shooting at a beauty salon in Seal Beach, Calif., that killed eight people. Or the Sept. 27, 2012, shooting at the Accent Signage Systems in Minneapolis that killed six people. Sadly, we could go on  and that in itself is stark commentary about the epidemic of gun violence in this country.

"How can this be happening again? Why is no one doing anything?" Those are the questions that Mary Kay Mace told us she asks herself every time she hears of a mass shooting. Ms. Mace lost her only child, Ryanne, nearly 10 years ago when a gunman stormed into a Cole Hall lecture room at Northern Illinois University, west of Chicago. Ryanne, pronounced "Ryan," was an honors student who wanted to be a psychologist. On the day she died, she updated her MySpace.com page to read, "Happy Valentine's Day Everybody!" and underneath: "Saying you love someone is not enough, it's how you treat them that shows your true feelings."

Daniel Parmenter, also killed that day, had just called his mother to wish her a happy Valentines Day. Catalina Garcia loved working with children and wanted to be a teacher. Julianna Gehant was also studying to be a teacher after 12 years of military service. And Gayle Dubowski was an anthropology major with a reputation for asking good questions.

These lives lost are real people, with real hopes and real families, wrote Mr. Palmer, who attended and graduated from NIU on a scholarship created in memory of the slain students, and it is real easy to feel like the people you miss most are being somehow lost in the sheer wall of victims names that never seems to end.

So when politicians say they wont talk about gun control out of respect for victims and their families, it infuriates Ms. Mace. What disregards the families, she said, is not talking about things that can prevent gun violence and not taking any action that could spare other families the pain of losing loved ones. She knows that no single thing will prevent all mass shootings, but she cant help but wonder if her daughter would be alive today if better information sharing about the clearly troubled young man who stormed that lecture hall would have stopped him from getting guns.

Her daughters death turned Ms. Mace into an advocate for gun-violence prevention. There are times when she has gotten discouraged and disheartened, but she has stayed active in the movement because of the instances of success on the state and local levels of sensible gun protections. While she decries Congresss inaction, she said it may well be the catalyst for change. By their inaction, they are creating so many more of us, she said.
The Sept. 28 Metro article "State sues EPA over power-plant emissions from five upwind states" explained that Maryland claims 36 power plant unit s in Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia are emitting air pollution that affects Maryland in violation of the Clean Air Act's "good-neighbor provision," because the plants do not use "their pollution-control technology daily during the summer months, when heat and sunshine speed up creation of ozone gases. Seventy percent of Maryland's ozone pollution comes from upwind regions outside the state."

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) said the state had made significant progress in improving our air quality in recent years, but, he added, that progress is in jeopardy because of a lack of action from the Environmental Protection Agency.

Maryland politicians want to better their environment and the health of their citizens and the economy, but the EPA is failing to do its job. This has had a huge effect on people who live downwind of those plants, and people are suffering. The pollution from out-of-state power plants also harms Marylands streams and rivers. The Clean Air Act has achieved dramatic reductions in air pollution, preventing hundreds of thousands of cases involving serious health effects each year.

Kenlyn Duncan, Washington
AFTER PRESIDENT TRUMP publicly toyed with the idea of firing special prosecutor Robert S. Mueller III this summer, a bipartisan group of senators introduced two bills that would shield Mr. Mueller from being dismissed. Mr. Trump has been quiet on the question of Mr. Mueller's investigation as of late. But the Senate Judiciary Committee recently sent a strong signal to Mr. Trump, holding a hearing Sept. 26 on the legislation that showed bipartisan support for protecting the special counsel.

Under the Justice Department regulations by which Mr. Mueller was appointed, the attorney general may fire the special counsel only for cause, such as misconduct. (Because Attorney General Jeff Sessions has recused himself from the Russia investigation, Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein, who appointed Mr. Mueller, has the power to fire him.) But the president might demand that Mr. Rosenstein dismiss Mr. Mueller, or throw out the regulation and dismiss Mr. Mueller himself. Either decision would raise serious constitutional questions.

The proposed legislation seeks to solve this problem by requiring that a court review the special counsel's dismissal. One bill, introduced by Sens. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.), would mandate that the attorney general  in this case, Mr. Rosenstein as acting attorney general  gain the approval of a panel of three federal judges before firing the special counsel. The second bill, by Sens. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) and Christopher A. Coons (D-Del.), would give Mr. Mueller the option of appealing his firing to the three judges.

These bills aren't just an exercise in Democratic opposition to a Republican president. Each is sponsored by a bipartisan pair of senators and has received support from both sides of the aisle during the committee's hearing. While committee Chairman Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa) held back from endorsing the legislation, he made clear his view that "there is a robust role for Congress in overseeing the Executive Branch."

Despite the committees approval, its not clear whether either bill will make it to the floor of the Senate for a vote. Its also not clear whether either would receive enough votes to become law  let alone override a likely presidential veto. Even if one did, its an open question whether such a law would survive a constitutional challenge. And thats before we ask whether there would be any point in passing such legislation in the first place. If Congress feels that it would be unacceptable for the president to dismiss the special counsel investigating him, it can respond to such an act with a mechanism already available: impeachment.

But Mr. Trump shouldnt take any comfort in doubts over the wisdom or constitutionality of the legislation. Whether or not either bill goes forward, the Judiciary Committees sober hearing was a warning shot, signaling that Mr. Trump cannot expect to trample over the constitutional order without a response from Congress.
Newton N. Minow, senior counsel at the law firm Sidley Austin, was chairman of Public Broadcasting Service from 1978 to 1980 under President Carter and was appointed to presidential commissions and a Defense Department panel for the George H.W. Bush, Clinton and George W. Bush administrations. He also served as an informal adviser to President Obama, who awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Dear Presidents Jimmy Carter, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama:

I am privileged to have known and worked with each of you and your administrations. I know how deeply you all love our country.

Our nation is blessed to have the five of you and your invaluable experience in the Oval Office  a total of 32 years with your steady hands on the nuclear codes. The time has come to use this unique asset to help the nation deal with our present situation.

Most of us now have very short attention spans. The news comes at us 24/7. One crisis immediately follows another, and we forget what has happened even one month ago. We need to keep reminding ourselves what has happened since President Trump took office:

The president revealed highly classified information to foreign leaders for no apparent strategic purpose.

He ignored ethical principles by not fully divesting from his businesses while in elected office.

He waffled on condemning white- supremacist, Nazi and Ku Klux Klan protesters.

He pardoned former Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio, who was convicted of criminal contempt for violating a direct court order to stop racially profiling people.

He fired FBI Director James B. Comey, who was supervising an investigation into the conduct of his presidential campaign.

He persisted in condemning and seeking to discredit judges, science, the news media and, indeed, any source of authority that disagreed with him.

He has insulted our allies abroad  as well as the leadership of his own party.

And then came two shocking and alarming warnings about the president's stability. The first was from Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, who said the president "has not demonstrated he understands the character of this nation" and "has not yet been able to demonstrate the stability, nor some of the competence that he needs to demonstrate in order to be successful."

Second, former director of national intelligence James R. Clapper Jr. said: "I really question his ability to  his fitness to  be in this office, and I also am beginning to wonder about his motivation for it."

These red flags alerted us to be deeply concerned about our current president's stability. News reports indicate that North Koreans, confused by contradictory messages from Trump and other members of his administration, are seeking out former American public officials to clarify American policy. Wars often start through confusion, miscalculation and failures of communication.

Millions of Americans are talking with friends and relatives and wondering what could happen, but there has been no serious, sustained public examination of the challenge to our nation.

That is why I believe that the five of you, working together, can and should supply the leadership our country is missing. Some of you have already spoken out against Trumps actions. But together, as a bipartisan group, you could have a greater impact.

You all know that the Constitution and rule of law are only as good as the men and women who enforce them. You know from your time as president what it means to have your hands on the nuclear codes. And you know that the nation cannot risk having an unstable hand.

When our Constitution was enacted, a Philadelphian asked Benjamin Franklin, What have you given us, a monarchy or a republic? He replied, A republic, if you can keep it. Americans want to keep our republic, our Constitution and our way of life. People around the world, looking to our country for leadership, now worry about what is next.

I ask the five of you to combine your wisdom, your courage and your patriotism. You can speak out together against current abuses and reaffirm constitutional values. You can lead the nation to explore informal and formal next steps.

For the sake of the United States of America and our values, we need your voices now.
Columnist

When President Trump said a few days ago that now isnt the time for a debate about gun control, presumably he meant that we should respect a decent interval of time for mourning after the Las Vegas shooting before launching into a political discussion that historically has led nowhere.

If thats how he felt, it would have been easy enough (and sane) to say. But he didnt.

More likely, Trump doesn't want any distraction from (a) his brilliant PR idea to toss paper-towel rolls to thirsty, hurricane-sogged Puerto Ricans (cake to follow); (b) his photo-op Thursday evening with leaders of the armed forces and their spouses during which he teased the "fake news" media he had summoned that the dinner gathering with military brass could be "the calm before the storm."

"What storm, Mr. President?" an intrepid reporter queried.

Youll find out.

Whoa. Mr. Mystery Man has our attention now. Oh, so clever. Are we going to war? Will it be with the Islamic State? North Korea? Iran? Just you wait, fake newsies, just you wait.

Or perhaps he wants to keep the spotlight on (c) his suggestion that the Senate Intelligence Committee investigate the media, without which his military charade would have merely been the world's widest-angle selfie.

No, actually, his absurd (unconstitutional) suggestion was, probably, a smokescreen itself, as was the paper-towel toss, one hopes (surely no ones mind is that inert), and the photo-op. Trump has mastered the Art of Distraction, lately to keep our eyes off the firefight within the White House and the ever-obvious fact this administration is staring at an eclipse without glasses and this president couldnt lead a starving dog to a tenderloin buffet.

The revolving door at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. is like Saks at Christmastime. Latest to the lineup is Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price. Others have included FBI Director James B. Comey, chief strategist Stephen K. Bannon, Chief of Staff Reince Priebus, press secretary Sean Spicer, and national security adviser Michael Flynn, to name a few.

Next up, most likely, is Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, not only because the president routinely undermines and contradicts the nations top diplomat but also because Tillerson clearly holds Trump in contempt. Most important, Tillerson recently told the truth.

Trump reportedly was furious upon returning from his diplomatic coup in Puerto Rico, which he seemed to have thought was a Spanish colony, only to see the face of his secretary of state on all his favorite TV channels.

According to NBC News, Tillerson had said the president is a "moron," which caused most sentient humans to shrug and roll their eyes as if to say, "No, really?" But this slight probably bothered Trump less than the fact that Tillerson's face, and not his, was on all the cable shows.

Trump's fan base, of course, was unfazed by Tillerson's reported insult, knowing that this term could not possibly apply to a president who recently had scolded Puerto Ricans for messing up the U.S. budget and implied that they were a shiftless lot who "want everything to be done for them." No, siree. That person would be a genius.

As Americans gnaw their nails wondering which war this way comes  or when Tillerson will be replaced  Trump is focused on decertifying the nuclear deal with Iran, continuing to taunt North Koreas Kim Jong Un and trying to convince the rest of the world that hes got everything under control.

Thus, the very last thing Trump needs right now is a political shootout over guns.

Now's not the time, he says. Apparently, however, many if not most Americans  about 90 percent of whom would support expanding background checks  beg to differ. If not now, when?

The pessimist notes that if the murder of 20 6- and 7-year-olds at Sandy Hook Elementary School resulted in no sensible restrictions on gun ownership, then the slaughter of 58 country music fans isn't likely to, either. But wait, we have a headline: Even the National Rifle Association has called for regulating (not banning or confiscating) "bump stocks"  the attachment used by the Las Vegas shooter to essentially convert a semiautomatic into an automatic weapon, the better to kill the most people. And Republicans are expressing a willingness to consider restrictions.

You'd think by the reactions  this is really, really huge, editorialists have clamored  that the NRA decided to support banning from private ownership all semiautomatic weapons, which were created solely for the purpose of killing human beings. But no. Like Coco Chanel, who always removed one bauble before leaving home, the NRA is offering to eliminate one accessory from a warehouse of gaudy, bloodletting fashions.

Talk about distractions. Or was this the artifice of a deal?

Read more from Kathleen Parker's archive, follow her on Twitter or find her on Facebook.
Doug Sosnik, a Democratic political strategist, was a senior adviser to President Bill Clinton from 1994 to 2000.

More than half of Americans don't think Donald Trump is fit to serve as president, yet he has a clear path to winning reelection. If Trump isn't removed from office and doesn't lead the country into some form of global catastrophe, he could secure a second term simply by maintaining his current level of support with his political base.

We have entered a new era in American politics. The 2016 election exposed how economic, social and cultural issues have splintered the country and increasingly divided voters by age, race, education and geography. This isnt going to change.

What have changed are the political fault lines that have driven the debate since the early 1980s. Until now, the ideological divides between the parties were largely differences around social issues, defense spending and trade, as well as tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations. Today, the central issue has become populism as voters have moved away from the two political parties and increasingly self-identified as independents.

In 2016, Trump capitalized on this changing political environment. He consolidated the growing number of angry voters who felt let down by the people and institutions controlling power in the country. Trumps support from these voters is personal, not ideological. That explains their willingness to stick with him despite his failures of leadership.

Since Trump's inaugural address, his focus has been on maintaining his support among this loyal base rather than expanding it. As counterintuitive as it may seem, this could be a winning political strategy.

First, Trump knows that gaining the support of a majority of voters in a presidential election is not a requirement; its simply an aspiration. In fact, two out of the last three presidents were elected despite losing the popular vote.

Second, the continued decline in support for both political parties works to Trumps advantage. The lack of voters faith in both parties increases the probability that there will be a major third-party candidate on the 2020 ballot. It will also lead to other minor-party candidates joining the presidential race. The multi-candidate field will further divide the anti-Trump vote, making it possible for him to get reelected simply by holding on to his current level of support.

Third, despite dismal poll numbers, Trump enters the contest with a job approval rating that is certainly at least marginally better than what the current national polls would suggest. Throughout the 2016 election, most analysts tracked the national polling, which failed to capture Trump's strength in key battleground states. Current surveys continue to understate his support. Many national polls survey all eligible voters, rather than registered or likely voters, which can underestimate Trump, and some voters may be reluctant to admit that they are pro-Trump at all. Add to that the fact that Trump effectively demonstrated during the 2016 campaign that he is capable of expanding his support by effectively demonizing his opponents.

Fourth, Trump's support has largely remained durable with a core group of supporters. These are the voters Trump was referring to when he said that he could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot someone and he wouldn't lose votes. There is another group of Trump followers whose support isn't unequivocal, but they have stayed with him because they still believe he will blow up the system and bring about real change.

1 of 83 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad  Scenes from Trumps second six months in office View Photos A look at the second half of the presidents first year in the White House. Caption A look at the second half of the presidents first year in the White House. Jonathan Ernst Buy Photo Wait 1 second to continue.

In order to maintain and nurture his base, Trump will continue to embrace conflict, which will probably solidify his historically low approval ratings. Trump cannot win a two-person race this way. But he can prevail in a field with strong independent candidates on the ballot.

So for Democrats and others who want to beat Trump, unifying behind one candidate will be essential. In addition, Trump must carry Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin in 2020 to win. Efforts should begin now to chip away at his support in these states.

It would be as big a mistake to assume that Trump cannot win reelection in 2020 as it was for those of us who never thought that he could become president in the first place.
As more people flock to Yountvilles hotels, restaurants and wine tasting rooms, the resort town hopes to better fit parking spaces to its street curbs  by turning them.

An ordinance passed Tuesday by the Town Council formally allows for vehicle spaces that are set at an angle to the curb, rather than parallel to them. The shift, which increases parking capacity, will allow visitors to ease their vehicles into spaces nose-first  a layout that in recent months already has begun appearing on some streets in the resort town of about 3,000 residents.

California law allows cities to decide whether to allow angled parking slots within their boundaries. Yountvilles code has never specifically permitted the design, but the town has begun allowing it at certain locations like Stewart Cellars and Jessup Cellars, two tasting rooms in the 6700 block of Washington Street, and Lincoln Avenue near Yountville Park on the towns north side.

Planning staff has marked other locations that could benefit from slanted parking slots, but needs firm approval of the practice in order to move ahead, according to Town Attorney Gary Bell.

The ordinance allows angled parking to be considered at a development but does not require its use, and community members will be allowed to oppose the layout, according to Mayor John Dunbar.

The public will be able to say Im OK with this or Im not OK with this, based on where the projects might be in the future, he said before the vote. Were not giving staff permission to put this wherever staff thinks its appropriate. The (review) process will still be there.

Town Manager Steve Rogers told residents not to expect the disappearance of parallel parking from local streets, saying not all downtown routes will have the room for nose-in parking.

This is only going to work where theres enough right of way because the goal is to increase parking capacity, he said. Its not something well overdo, but where its judiciously (done), it makes sense to do it.
Deputy editorial page editor

The week that was:

Last Sunday, President Trump once again publicly humiliated his secretary of state, this time tweeting that Rex Tillerson was "wasting his time trying to negotiate with Little Rocket Man."

On Tuesday, the president tossed rolls of paper towels to hurricane victims in Puerto Rico like T-shirts at a sporting event. He contrasted the disaster they are enduring to the "real catastrophe" of Hurricane Katrina and lauded the "great job" his administration has done responding to Hurricane Maria.

On Wednesday, Tillerson non-denied an NBC News report that he had called the president a "moron." The chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee opined that Tillerson, Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis and White House Chief of Staff John F. Kelly "are those people that help separate our country from chaos."

On Thursday, a day after the Senate Intelligence Committee's bipartisan leadership reaffirmed the intelligence community's conclusion that Russia tried to interfere in the 2016 election  and the panel's Republican chairman said that "the issue of collusion" with the Trump campaign "is still open"  the president tweeted that the panel should be "looking into the Fake News Networks in OUR country to see why so much of our news is just made up-FAKE!"

This situation is not normal. This behavior is not okay. We  we in the media, and we Americans  need to keep reminding ourselves of this, day after day, tweet after tweet. We need to call out every false statement. We need to remember, after every failure of empathy and every narcissistic demand for praise, after every impulsive, bellicose taunt and every challenge to constitutional norms, that this is not the way a president acts.

Each of the past weeks episodes  and last week offered an overflowing but not unique bounty  is disturbing and disappointing in a different way. They exposed Trumps dangerous recklessness and his racially tinged indifference to the suffering of U.S. citizens, his appalling ignorance and his even more appalling lack of respect for democratic values.

Taking them in order: First, Trumps serial undercutting of Tillerson erodes his standing to speak for the United States. If there is method in the insults he hurls at Kim Jong Un, Trump is playing an awfully risky game.

Second, at this point, Trump's empathy impairment is no surprise, nor, sadly, is the particular failure of his empathy when it comes to victims of color. But the glaring gap between Trump's energetic response to the hurricanes in Texas and Florida and his lackadaisical approach to the disaster that has befallen the U.S. citizens of Puerto Rico has been especially repellent, tweeting that the people there "want everything to be done for them." The jarring insouciance of the towel-tossing put a fittingly ugly coda on all that had gone before.

Third, let us pause for a moment to take in that it is entirely believable that a member of his own Cabinet would call the president a moron, not to mention that this remarkable effrontery would leak  or that many Americans hearing it would nod in agreement.

Americans, maybe even Cabinet secretaries, have scoffed at their presidents before, but the depth and combination of Trumps inattention, ignorance and bluster know no equal. Similarly with Sen. Bob Corkers (R-Tenn.) chilling comment: When, before, have we imagined the Cabinet as a thin blue line against presidential chaos?

Finally, perhaps most alarming of all, Trumps persistent indifference to a foreign adversarys efforts to undermine our democracy. He has directed more anger at the mayor of Puerto Rico than at Vladimir Putin. This is a terrible thing to have to say, but the president is not a patriot, if an essential part of patriotism means being willing to stand up for your country when it is under attack.

And the authoritarian, anti-constitutional suggestion that the Senate intelligence panel should have some role in probing Fake News Networks at home betrays, yet again, Trumps contempt for, if not fear of, a free press. Clamping down on information and dissent is the first instinct of every would-be dictator.

Our Constitution and our governing institutions are, I trust, too resilient to let Trump translate that urge into reality. Still, the desire alone is scary enough.

Properly calibrating degrees of outrage is a delicate task in the age of Trump. There is so much to lament and to call out. Energies understandably flag with the fourth unhinged tweet of the day. Episodes that would ordinarily consume news cycles for days pass with scarcely a there-he-goes-again shrug.

This is no time for shrugging.

Read more from Ruth Marcus's archive, follow her on Twitter or subscribe to her updates on Facebook.
Paige Melanson, wounded in the shooting, hugs dance student Baylee McConaghy, 11, as Pastor Robyn Garcia looks on. Garcia spent hours at Las Vegass convention center after the shooting, talking with people whose relatives or friends had died or were missing. (Matt McClain/The Washington Post)

When she was under fire, dodging bullets at the Route 91 Harvest festival on Sunday, Megan Greene felt an odd sense of purpose. If youre still breathing, youre fine, she told a panicky woman trying to escape with her mother, who uses a wheelchair.

Greene remained calm on the long drive home to Simi Valley, Calif. But when she finally pulled into her driveway Monday morning, she burst into tears  the first outward sign of the invisible wounds that have come to plague her since the massacre.

The simple things that used to be so easy are, just  I never want to be alone and I never want to go anywhere alone, said Greene, 19, adding that she cannot stand the dark, constantly checks around corners and, during a rare stretch of sleep this week, scratched her legs raw.

An estimated 22,000 people were in attendance when bullets began raining down on the music festival from the 32nd floor of the nearby Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino. Fifty-eight people died and about 500 were treated for physical injuries. Many of the rest are now grappling with the psychological scars of the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history. Law enforcement officials, medical professionals, family and friends also may be affected by witnessing carnage that one surgeon described as "exactly like what we have seen in a war zone."

We all go about our day-to-day business assuming were generally safe, said Gerard Lawson, president of the American Counseling Association. When something like this happens, it shatters your sense of safety, and thats where the trauma comes in.

Offering treatment to all of those who are suffering is complicated by Nevadas lack of resources.

Nevada ranks 51st among states and the District of Columbia in mental health resources and access to treatment, according to the most recent annual report from Mental Health America, a community-based nonprofit group. Sixteen of Nevada's 17 counties are listed by the federal government as areas with a shortage of mental health professionals.

[Who will take care of Nevadas wounded psyche?]

Mandalay Bay has made crisis counselors available for guests and employees, and the Clark County Family Assistance Center has offered counseling to families and victims. Religious organizations and counselors from throughout the city and region also are offering services.

Were trying to get our head around what were going to see in the weeks and months and maybe years to follow, said Michelle Paul, a clinical psychologist and director of a mental health clinic at the University of Nevada at Las Vegas.

Paul and others said that everyone deals with trauma in different ways and there is no normal response. But it is not unusual for people who survive a mass shooting to feel guilt, have difficulty sleeping and be startled by loud noises because of their exposure to gunshots.

Greene said she is feeling all of those things. When she finally fell asleep after being awake for 43 hours, she woke up screaming. She now sleeps in her mothers bed and went into a panic when her mother got up one morning and turned on the shower.

Every time I close my eyes I hear the screaming of people or the footsteps, or Im dreaming that Im running and Im just running and running and running, she said.

On Wednesday, Greene participated in a weekly ritual: She went to college night at a local country line dancing bar. Many others also survived the shooting at Route 91 Harvest. There were hugs and the grateful feeling of being around people who are like family. But the night was difficult: The music and strobe lights made Greene panic. When dancers clapped during the Cha-Cha Slide, she ran into a corner, curled into a ball and cried.

Greene struggles with the guilt of surviving and not going back into the venue to help people. She saw a therapist Thursday who gave her Benadryl for the scratches and Xanax for anxiety. The therapist assured her that she is having a normal response to an acute traumatic event. But the days are hard. She went to lunch with a friend and did not want to walk to the bathroom alone.

Ive gone through this thing and no one knows whats going on in my head right now and people are so unfazed because they werent involved in it, she said. I really feel like Im moving a lot slower than the rest of the world right now.

[The guilt of being alive is heavy, survivor of nightclub shooting says]

Anthony Dalrymple was at the festival with his wife, family members and friends who are off-duty police officers. The 44-year-old Army veteran knew quickly that he was hearing sustained rounds of fire from a modified semiautomatic weapon. He and his group escaped to his brother-in-laws house, picking up strangers along the way.

Im doing okay. Im handling it well, he said. His wife is not. She has been unable to sleep and is afraid of loud sounds.

Everybody handles it a little bit differently. he said. I told her she needs to let her emotions happen.

Robyn Garcia, a pastor at International Church of Las Vegas, spent hours at the citys convention center talking with the people whose relatives or friends were missing or had died.

Some people, she said, watched a spouse or friend die and were then told they had to leave the scene. They cried in her arms, saying they just wanted to retrieve the belongings of the dead and return to their home towns. Others had gone hours without hearing from friends or relatives who attended the concert and were prepared for the worst.

It was very, very traumatic, she said.

One woman lost her sister in the shooting and went into shock and denial.

She said, I put out my sisters clothes. Im waiting for her to come home and then were going to see our mom,  Garcia recalled.

The next day, the woman asked Garcia for prayers. And a day later, she told Garcia she was having a hard time but trying to stay strong for her sisters daughter.

Emanuel Maidenberg, a clinical professor of psychiatry at UCLA, said post-traumatic reaction can last from four to eight weeks, though circumstances differ from person to person. Paul said the vast majority of people affected by an event like the mass shooting will have their trauma run its course and can soothe themselves through self-care, self-compassion and community connection. Others, however, may develop and be diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, major depression or panic attacks.

A traumatic event like a mass shooting can also take a toll on those who are there to help. Tirrsa Isom, 35, spent much of the week speaking with families at the convention center. Many of them, she said, simply needed someone close by and, if they were ready, someone to talk to. Isom helped relatives of the victims process their losses, watching them realize that their loved one was dead and not accepting it the next moment. Isom said the overwhelming grief has worn on her.

Its more tender today, Isom said of her own emotions, while on the verge of tears. Youre in go mode, you help and then you finally feel it.

Tim Craig and Jorge Ribas in Las Vegas and Amy Ellis Nutt in Washington contributed to this report.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) speaks during a health-care rally at the 2017 Convention of the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee on Sept. 22 in San Francisco. Sanders is pushing his Medicare for All bill in the Senate. (Justin Sullivan/Gettty Images)

Partisan divisions are not new news in American politics, nor is the assertion that one cause of the deepening polarization has been a demonstrable rightward shift among Republicans. But a more recent leftward movement in attitudes among Democrats also is notable and has obvious implications as the party looks toward 2020.

Here is some context. In 2008, not one of the major candidates for the Democratic presidential nomination advocated legalizing same-sex marriage. By 2016, not one of those who sought the nomination opposed such unions, and not just because of the Supreme Courts rulings. Changing attitudes among all voters, and especially Democratic voters, made support for same-sex marriage an article of faith for anyone seeking to lead the party.

Trade policy is another case study. Over many years, Democrats have been divided on the merits of multilateral free-trade agreements. In 1992, Bill Clinton strongly supported the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in the face of stiff opposition from labor unions and others. He took his case into union halls, and while he didnt convert his opponents, he prospered politically in the face of that opposition.

By 2016, with skepticism rising more generally about trade and globalization, Hillary Clinton was not willing to make a similar defense of the merits of free-trade agreements. With Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) bashing the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) as a presidential candidate, Clinton joined the chorus of opponents. She ended up on the opposite side of then-President Barack Obama, even though she had spoken warmly about the prospects of such a treaty as secretary of state.

Looking ahead to 2020, something similar is likely to take place on the issue of health care. Because of changing attitudes that already are underway within the party, it will be difficult for any Democrat seeking the nomination not to support some kind of single-payer health-care plan, even if big questions remain about how it could be accomplished.

Sanders used his 2016 presidential campaign to advocate a universal health-care plan that he dubbed Medicare for All. The more cautious Clinton, who saw flaws in what Sanders was advocating, argued instead for focusing on improvements to the Affordable Care Act.

Sanders has now introduced a Medicare for All measure in the Senate, and his co-sponsors include several other prospective candidates for the Democratic nomination in 2020.

Meanwhile, a majority of House Democrats have signed onto a single-payer plan sponsored by Rep. John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.) that goes much further. This has happened even though some of those who like Conyerss idea in principle question whether it is ready for prime time, not only because of the potential cost and the absence of a mechanism to pay for it, but also because of other potential policy flaws as well.

The pressure to embrace single-payer plans grows out of shifts in attitudes among Democrats. The Pew Research Center found in June that 52 percent of self-identified Democrats now support a government-run health-care system. That is up nine points since the beginning of the year and 19 points since 2014. Among liberal Democrats, 64 percent support such a plan (up 13 points just this year) and among younger Democrats, 66 percent say they support it.

Health care isnt the only area in which Democratic attitudes are shifting significantly. Others include such issues as the role of government and the social safety net; the role of race and racial discrimination in society; and immigration and the value of diversity.

A few days ago, the Pew Center released a comprehensive survey on the widening gap between Republicans and Democrats. The bottom line is summed up by one of the opening sentences in the report: "Republicans and Democrats are now further apart ideologically than at any point in more than two decades."

This poll is the latest in a series of surveys dating to 1994. Together they provide not just snapshots in time, but also an arc of the changes in public opinion. Republicans moved to the right harder and earlier than Democrats began moving left, and their base remains more uncompromising. But on a number or questions, the biggest recent movement has been among Democrats.

In its new survey, Pew found the widest partisan gap ever on the question of whether government should help those in need  primarily because of recent shifts among Democrats. From 2011 to today, the percentage of Democrats who say government should do more to help those in need has jumped from 54 percent to 71 percent.

Only a minority of Republicans (24 percent) say government should do more for the needy, and that figure has barely moved in the past six years. The Republicans shifted their views from 2007 through 2011, the early years of the Obama presidency, during which their support for a government role dropped by 20 percentage points.

Two related questions produce a similar pattern among Democrats. Three in 4 Democrats say that poor people have hard lives because government benefits dont go far enough to help them live decently, up a dozen points in the past few years.

Eight in 10 Democrats say the country needs to continue to make changes to give blacks equal rights with whites, up 18 points since 2014. And more than 6 in 10 say racial discrimination is the main reason many black people cant get ahead these days, up from 4 in 10 three years ago.

Meanwhile, only a quarter of Republicans agree with the statement on government benefits, fewer than 4 in 10 say the country needs to continue to do things to provide equal rights for blacks, and just 14 percent cite racial discrimination as the main reason many blacks cant get ahead.

Members of both parties have become more positive in their attitudes about immigration in recent years, but the partisan gap remains huge  42 points in the new survey. Today, 84 percent of Democrats say immigrants strengthen the country through hard work and talents, up from 48 percent in 2010. In 2010, 29 percent of Republicans agreed with that statement; today, thats risen to 42 percent.

Why have Democratic positions moved so dramatically and so recently on these questions race and government and immigration? Though it is not explicitly addressed in the survey, one possible reason is a reaction to the 2016 campaign and the Trump presidency.

President Trump obviously found strong support for his controversial views on immigration, whether his call to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexican border or to bar refugees from countries mostly in the Middle East. Those pronouncements helped him win the presidency. But those policies and the rhetoric that often preceded them also produced a strong backlash from the presidents opponents.

The 2016 campaign ended up highlighting issues of national identity  race and immigration and the shifting character and face of the country  in often divisive ways that unleashed the kind of ugliness seen in Charlottesville in August.

The Democratic Party is being shaped by the Trump presidency and by reactions to the president among rank-and-file Democrats. Party leaders have been taking notice since Trump was sworn in as president and have moved as well.

Those who seek the partys nomination in 2020 understandably will be guided by these sentiments. But they must find a way to harness the movement into a political vision that is attractive to voters beyond the Democratic base  a vision that is grounded not just in anti-Trump resentment but in fresh and sound policies as well. In such polarized times, that will not be easy.
With a just-delivered Black Hawk helicopter sitting on a military runway behind him, Gen. John W. Nicholson Jr., the top U.S. military commander in Afghanistan, vowed Saturday that "a tidal wave of air power is on the horizon" in the war against Taliban insurgents and that "this is the beginning of the end for the Taliban."

Moments later, a second new Black Hawk descended and hovered over the runway as Afghan President Ashraf Ghani praised the nation's air force pilots as "the real champions" of the 16-year conflict. Now that a new Afghan-U. S. military effort will triple the country's air force capacity and double its special operations forces, he declared, "terrorists will not triumph here."

The elaborately staged ceremony at Kandahar Air Base marked the formal launch of an ambitious plan to modernize and expand the Afghan air force over the next five years. A variety of U.S. military aircraft including 159 UH-60 Black Hawks are being supplied by the United States, and a new cohort of Afghan combat pilots are being trained  or retrained after years of flying Soviet-era choppers  by American military and civilian advisers.

The event was also aimed at reinforcing public support for the ongoing U.S. and NATO military mission here, following President Trump's announcement in August of a new, open-ended policy that would add several thousand U.S. troops, focus on ending the war rather than nation-building, and follow the plan designed by Ghani and Nicholson to enable Afghanistan to defend itself within the next five years.

We are with you in this fight, and we will stay with you, Nicholson said, calling the war against terrorism the most important fight in the world. Brig. Gen. Phillip A. Stewart, commander of the U.S. air advisory mission, called the Black Hawks and other U.S.-supplied military aircraft on display a physical manifestationof international commitment to the war.



A man talks on his phone near to a Black Hawk helicopter, during Saturdays ceremony in Kandahar Air Field. (Massoud Hossaini/AP)

[I believe in the Afghan people, says top U.S. military commander in Afghanistan]

But the deployment of the iconic helicopters will be gradual, with only six expected to be in full use with Afghan pilots by the end of next year. Meanwhile, the war continues to rage, with Taliban fighters active in many areas of the country, and military commanders across the country have said that increased air combat support is their most urgent need.

Pilots need several years of training to fly the Black Hawks, a process that is just beginning, and repairs must be made by American contractors for now. Afghan pilots who currently fly other U.S. military aircraft, such as A-29 small fighter planes and MD-530 attack helicopters, have received several years of training at bases in the United States.

American air instructors at the event said that they have confidence in the skills and experience of the Afghan pilots they are guiding and that they do not expect the transition to piloting new aircraft to be especially difficult. I have been supremely impressed with the Afghan pilots, said Lt. Col. Trent Alexander, a senior air trainer. They are absolutely up for this challenge.

All of the Black Hawks being supplied to Afghanistan are from excess U.S. Army stocks, refurbished and updated before being sent here. The total average cost involved, one U.S. official said, is between $7 million and $8 million per aircraft. Of the 159 total, more than 50 will have machine guns and other equipment to provide air cover in combat.

The Afghan air force currently uses about 40 Soviet-made Mi-17 helicopters, which are larger and less agile, on missions to evacuate wounded or dead soldiers, deliver supplies to conflict zones and provide air cover.

Before the ceremony, several Afghan pilots said they were looking forward to the change. They described the Black Hawks as more modern, more stable and smoother to handle than the Mi-17s.

They are more reliable and they fly easier, said Capt. Mohammed Saquib, 32, a helicopter pilot with four years experience. We have a young generation that is ready to learn these skills. But what we want is to see this conflict finish in our country.

Afghan and American officials are relying heavily on expanding the air force and special operations forces because they are among the best educated and most professional members of the Afghan defense forces. The regular army and police have been plagued by a variety of problems, including illiteracy, corruption, high attrition rates and poor leadership, which have made them less effective fighting forces and more resistant to reform efforts.

[The U.S. says Pakistan must work with Afghanistan on terrorism. It wont be easy.]

In a new report on lessons learned from rebuilding the Afghan defense forces, the U.S. Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction concluded that those efforts had been hampered by numerous major problems, including failure to understand and address "intangible factors, such as corruption and the will to fight," overestimating the capabilities of regular government forces, and neglecting "critical capabilities" that take time to develop, including air force and special operations forces.

The five-year plan developed by Ghani and Nicholson, in addition to bolstering these two elite areas of defense, will send advisers to work more closely with individual army and police units, and will continue improving military leadership by replacing ineffective or corrupt officials. Ghani has recently replaced a number of senior military officials, with some facing prosecution for corruption and others fired after several devastating insurgent attacks.

Alexander said Saturday that in addition to respecting the Afghan pilots he is training, he has also been impressed by the dedication of some of their superior officers. He described a recent situation when a group of Mi-17 pilots were out on a late-night combat mission, and their Afghan squadron commander waited up anxiously for them to come back.

He was really invested in the mission, and in the men, Alexander said.

Read more

In Pakistan, the mighty House of Sharif is fighting for its life

A disaster in the making: Pakistans population surges to 207.7 million

U.S. general in Afghanistan apologizes for highly offensive leaflets

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

Like Washington Post World on Facebook and stay updated on foreign news
The unrelenting hail of gunfire that erupted on the Las Vegas Strip Sunday night assailed many more than the hundreds of people who were wounded or killed in the chaotic frenzy. For thousands of others who witnessed the unimaginable carnage firsthand but were not physically wounded, the shooting assailed their very hearts and minds.

Many will endure weeks or months of nightmares, anxiety and hypervigilance. A smaller group will develop psychiatric illnesses that could require professional help and linger for years or even decades. All of them will be changed forever.

Ive seen it unfold repeatedly in my three decades of researching the mental health effects in survivors of the nations most infamous disasters, from the Oklahoma City bombing to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in New York City and Washington, D.C.

Some effects are remarkable. For instance, some witnesses of the WTC attacks felt guilty for surviving while their colleagues had died. Others became claustrophobic and avoided tunnels or subways. One person reported having flashbacks during bright mornings like the one on Sept. 11: Not a cloud in the sky and I look up: Oh, my God, its that kind of a day. Those bring it back. . . . Gorgeous days bother me.

Based on my research, the good news for those exposed to last weekends violence is that while many of these symptoms can be severe in the short term, a majority of people are resilient and do not develop psychiatric illness, even after the most extreme exposures.

The most common psychiatric disorder to develop after most disasters is post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which can occur in up to about one-third of survivors of severe disasters. Post-traumatic stress symptoms include intrusive memories, dreams, flashbacks and hyperarousal symptoms such as hypervigilance, jumpiness and sleep disturbances. Most of these symptoms resolve over weeks to months, but people who develop PTSD may suffer from these symptoms for years or decades.

There are well-established treatments for this disorder, including various medications and psychotherapies that are effective for PTSD arising from exposure to virtually any type of trauma. But it can sometimes be difficult to determine if someone needs treatment because post-traumatic stress symptoms and distress are nearly ubiquitous. Even survivors of the Las Vegas shooting who do not develop mental illness will probably be profoundly affected and bear the scars of invisible psychological wounds. For these survivors, as for the physically wounded, images of the event may be emblazoned in their memories for a long time to come.

During such extreme and terrifying events, time moves slowly, stretching the danger into a long-endured ordeal. The adrenaline response is intense. It may take many days for jitteriness to begin to subside. People may feel unsafe, especially in open areas, and may want to avoid outside spaces. Hypervigilance may continue for a long time.

In an interview two months after the 1991 mass shooting at a Lubys cafeteria in Killeen, Texas, one survivor stated, I cant sit in a restaurant with my back to the wall since then. I have to be facing the door, able to see everything in the room. Another survivor reported that when someone enters the room, his eyes fixate on the persons hands, involuntarily scanning for a weapon.

Some people may develop a changed perspective of the world, feeling that it is an unsafe and dark place. Individuals may even view themselves more negatively, perhaps insufficiently heroic.

A flight attendant still reeling from the WTC attack blamed herself for giving her flight shifts to a colleague so she could have time to recover from the newly realized dangers of her profession. The colleague died in a plane crash two months after 9/11. I felt such terrible guilt, the attendant reported. She had the guts . . . to go back to work, and I was too scared.

These types of reactions can persist for many weeks, months, or even years. It is important to underscore that most people with these responses do not develop psychiatric illness. For most people, the responses gradually fade; however, the memories may never go away.

People may be helped through crisis counseling such as psychological first aid, which includes providing compassionate gestures, connecting people with their loved ones, and offering resources such as education and other practical support.

For those who cope successfully, traumatic events sometimes bring positive change to their lives. They may find new meaning or feel gratitude for things they had not appreciated. They may gain new perspectives on life and suddenly begin to prioritize what is really important to them.

But for those who have negative symptoms or distress that worsen over time, I recommend consulting a mental health professional who can help determine whether they have developed a psychiatric disorder and point them to the best types of interventions.

From watching the footage of the Las Vegas shooting, it is clear from my research experience that survivors will collectively endure a full spectrum of mental health effects in the short and long term whether they were physically struck by gunfire or not. It was, after all, the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history, a horrific tragedy in which thousands of people feared for life and limb and witnessed friends shot down in cold blood.

To help these survivors, the best we can do is to offer compassion and allow them space but be present as needed. Listen thoughtfully if they want to talk about their experience and feelings. Help them with specific needs, and be patient as they process their ordeal and seek to restore order to their lives.

For most survivors, that should be enough.
Tamer El-Ghobashy

Shortly after the Islamic State was pushed out of his home town last year, Ivan Abdulla bought a new house in the traditionally Yazidi enclave. It was an investment in the place where generations of his family were raised, he said.

But the father of three already regrets his decision.

The hilltop town of mostly Yazidis and Christians  two of Iraq's most vulnerable minorities  has become the focus of a tug of war between the Iraqi government and the Kurdish region since a Kurdish vote for independence last week.

Bashiqa is legally part of Iraq but controlled by Kurdish security forces. Kurdish officials see it as part of a future state. Once again, the towns future has suddenly been thrown into doubt.

You cant think long-term in this country, Abdulla said. Whatever plans you set, something happens. Things get ruined.

Bashiqa is one of a handful of towns and cities that could test the Kurdistan Regional Governments fitness for self-rule and the Iraqi governments determination to stop the breakup of the country.





How that conflict plays out will deeply affect the fate of Iraqs ethnic and religious minorities, who have been scattered, massacred and besieged by decades of war  and more recently, a policy of extermination by the Islamic State. Most of Iraqs minorities live in the swath of northern Iraq that is part of a proposed autonomous Kurdish state.

Christians and Yazidis have left the country in droves in recent years, especially since the Islamic State swept through parts of Iraq in 2014. Yazidis in particular say they were abandoned by Kurdish forces to be massacred and sexually enslaved by the militants.

[The year after ISIS: The struggles of a Sunni village in northern Iraq]

Both groups believe they would be the biggest losers in a conflict between Baghdad and the Kurdish region.

Our future is a mystery, said Akram Mansour, 67, a security guard at the historic Mar Korkeis church in Bashiqa. Were between the hammer of the Kurdish government and the hammer of the federal government.

Located about a dozen miles northeast of Mosul, Bashiqa was once a quiet place where Yazidis, Christians and a smaller population of Sunni Muslims lived prosperously. Churches and mosques were often built across the street from one another.

The town, which had a population of about 50,000 before the Islamic State stormed in, provided an outsize contribution to Iraqs economy and culture.

The farms nearby produced olives coveted throughout the country, as well as soap and sesame oil. It was also known affectionately as Iraqs Liquor Store because of the factories there that made arak, an anise-flavored liquor.

After the U.S. invasion, Kurdish peshmerga forces secured the town  giving Kurdish political parties their first foothold in the Nineveh plains, a region of towns and villages with a disproportionately high number of minorities, including Christians and Yazidis.

Bashiqa was one of the few places in Iraq where Yazidis didnt live in cloistered communities. Their isolation in other areas left them particularly vulnerable to the Islamic State, and their plight drew the U.S. military back into Iraq.

The peshmerga withdrew from the town of Sinjar one night in summer 2014, leading to a massacre of Yazidis and the enslavement of thousands of women by the Islamic State. Days later, the peshmerga left Bashiqa, and Yazidi and Christian families were forced to flee on their own.

Peshmerga forces backed by U.S. airstrikes defeated the Islamic State in Bashiqa last November.

Today, the Iraqi government is responsible for public services in Bashiqa. Electricity is unreliable and tap water flows intermittently. There is one garbage truck, and trash piles up. A single crew of three men with a wheelbarrow and shovels fills roads cratered by airstrikes during the fight against the Islamic State.

Older retirees receive their pension from the Iraqi government. Many of their adult children are employed by the Kurdish government, these days mostly in the police forces and military that patrol the streets. Distrust of both sides is high.

But the towns abandonment by the peshmerga has left the deepest wound.

It was such a miserable moment, Abdulla said. We left loved ones not knowing if well ever see them again.

As part of their campaign for independence, Kurdish officials have said their record of protecting Iraqi minorities is far superior to Iraqi government efforts. But in recent months, Yazidis and Kurdish forces have clashed, and few basic services have been restored in disputed towns controlled by the Kurds.



Bassam Mahmoud, one of the few Yazidis to return to Bashiqa after it was recaptured from Islamic State by Kurdish troops last November, stands in his small grocery store. We are Iraqis, but we belong only here, he says. (Tamer El-Ghobashy/The Washington Post)

Bashiqa bears the scars of the war against the Islamic State. Many houses remain caved in by explosions and some buildings are still marked with graffiti exalting the extremist groups leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. The town is still half-empty, its residents scattered as refugees in Europe or living in camps throughout Iraq.

But some have returned, preferring a nearly vacant town still creaking back to life to living elsewhere among strangers.

This is my home, said Bassam Mahmoud, a 50-year-old Yazidi shopkeeper. This is the home of my grandfathers and their grandfathers. We are Iraqis, but we belong only here.

That sense of belonging has been challenged by a surge in attention from Kurdish officials, who, residents said, did more talking than listening when they came to town .

Ahead of the Kurdish referendum, the top spiritual leader of the Yazidis, Baba Sheikh Khurto Hajji Ismail, said he maintained a policy of neutrality, adding that the issue is for Kurds only to decide.

Weeks before the Sept. 25 referendum, Kurdish authorities decorated the streets with Kurdish flags. Massive posters bearing the face of the Kurdish regional president, Masoud Barzani, were draped over buildings.

Residents said the message was clear: Only a yes vote for Kurdish independence was expected.

It doesnt matter whether you vote yes or no. No one knows where these ballot boxes are going, Mahmoud said. He voted yes anyway, he said.

Dont forget, there are people watching, he said. All the people here are peshmerga.

Zuhair, a 33-year-old Yazidi peshmerga fighter, said he and other peshmerga soldiers were bused to a polling station outside Bashiqa, where they voted under the watchful eye of senior commanders.

It hurt, said Zuhair, who declined to give his full name out of fear of retribution. I am a member of the peshmerga, who left my people without even weapons to defend themselves in Sinjar. But how can I leave them? How would I live? I need the salary.

Kurdish election authorities did not release referendum results showing how people in disputed areas voted.

Bashiqas residents say they are bracing for a fresh round of armed conflict. The town not only would sit on the border between two hostile neighbors, but it also is a site of oil exploration.

Even if the Kurdish bid for independence ultimately succeeds through negotiations, the residents of Bashiqa say they have little faith that they would be fully embraced by a Kurdish state.

In every scenario, we are the ones who will be suffering. People built entire lives here over generations and overnight lost everything, Mahmoud said. Its back to zero, and we expect this will happen again.

Abdulla, the new homeowner, said, Theres an inner peace missing.

The most I can hope for now is that no one knocks on my door telling us we must leave, he said. Thats it.

Mustafa Salim contributed to this report.

Read more:

The Islamic State is on the run in Iraq, but some major battles remain

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

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Smoke billows from buildings following a reported airstrike on Ain Tarma in the eastern Ghouta area, a rebel stronghold east of the Syrian capital, on Oct. 2. (Amer Almohibany/AFP/Getty Images)

Civilian casualties have spiraled across Syria in recent weeks as pro-government forces launch hundreds of bombing raids across areas marked for international protection.

Groups monitoring the conflict have recorded hundreds of strikes since the end of a sixth round of peace talks among Russia, Iran and Turkey in mid-September. On Friday, the White Helmets rescue group reported that 80 percent of those attacks targeted civilian areas.

September was the deadliest month on record this year in Syria, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group, with almost 1,000 civilians killed across the country.

Now the planes are back, there is just terror all the time, said Tim al-Siyofi, an activist from the besieged Damascus district of Douma.

Analysts took the violence as a sign that piecemeal cease-fires struck in the Kazakh capital of Astana have done little to change the core objectives of the Syrian government. With support from Russia and Iran, President Bashar al-Assads military is ascendant and on course to reclaim most of the territory that slipped from its grasp during six years of war.

[A Syrian soldier has been sentenced for battlefield crimes. Why did it take so long?]

They also said it underscored the paucity of diplomatic options for the United States and European nations, which championed an earlier, U.N.-backed process without success, and now hold little leverage over any side in the conflict.

For the international community, who have failed in large part to see through this process, a return to violence may have larger implications for their attempts to push for a political and sustainable solution, said Emma Beals, a Beirut-based expert monitoring the war in Syria.

Attacks by government and Russian warplanes followed a failed al-Qaeda-led offensive in the western province of Hama.

In the next-door province of Idlib, a rebel stronghold in which the peace talks are meant to have guaranteed a cease-fire, warplanes have targeted the hospitals in which many of the wounded would have sought treatment.

Interviews with civilians in the area were interrupted on several occasions by the sound of rocket fire and explosions. Inside the Idlib and Kafr Takhareem hospitals during one nighttime attack, staff said they were overwhelmed with the number of casualties.

Our emergency room is full during the bad nights, so were treating casualties in the chairs. The dead are wrapped in blankets and laid on the ground as we work, said a 34-year old medic who gave his name as Abdulhamid.

In the Damascus suburbs, areas covered by the truce have also come under sustained attack, with strikes hitting civilian homes and a rehabilitation clinic for victims of earlier bombings.

In a video from Douma, a father held the wrapped body of his son tightly. Why did you leave, we have just started our life, he repeated.

With the bombings, rebel corruption and infighting, Siyofi, the activist, said trust in the community has plummeted. People say we do not want either the regime or the armed groups, we just want to eat, open the sieges and to live in peace and not to get bombed.

[U.S.-backed forces in Syria accuse Russia of airstrike]

Under the terms of the Astana agreement, four areas have been named as de-escalation zones: Idlib, portions of the Damascus suburbs and the central province of Homs, and a stretch of land in Daraa province along the Jordanian border.

Each area has been the subject of flurries of diplomacy to reduce violence or restore the areas to government control under deals that a United Nations inquiry has criticized for spurring the forced displacement of opposition supporters.

The de-escalation process is allowing Assad to continue to implement this strategy within the framework of an internationally sanctioned political process, Beals said.

Government and Russian airstrikes appear to have been concentrated in areas around the strategic M5 highway, a vital artery for the Syrian state that runs from Damascus through Homs and on to Aleppo, which was recaptured from rebel forces last December .

On Saturday, Turkish troops readied along their southern border with Syria, suggesting that an attempt to enter Idlib could be imminent.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that the operation was a new step to establish security in the de-escalation zone across the border and that Turkey would not desert civilians there. Separately, Turkeys official Anadolu news agency said that any deployment would be intended to achieve de-escalation, rather than engaging local militia or the Syrian army.

But others saw few gains to be made.

Astana is just like a piece of fabric stretched over parts of the country, said Ahmed Rahhul, a former general in Assads army who now works as an Istanbul-based military analyst. These de-escalations freeze the problem, they do not solve it.

Zakaria Zakaria in Istanbul contributed to this report.

Read more

With sharp words and stealth strikes, Israel sends a message to Hezbollah and U.S.

U.S.-backed forces announce anti-ISIS push in Syrias oil-rich east

United Nations accuses Syrian government of April sarin attack

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

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Opinion

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This article was published 07/10/2017 (1865 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The influx of new breweries and brew pubs in Winnipeg over the last few years  post-Farmery, Half Pints and Fort Garry  can be roughly divided into waves of three. The first wave featured Peg Beer Co., Barn Hammer and Torque Brewing, while the second saw Brazen Hall, One Great City and Little Brown Jug come online.

It appears were now entering a third wave of new brews in the city. Heres some info on the next trio of breweries making their way into our burgeoning beer scene:

Stone Angel Brewing Co.  1875 Pembina Hwy.

You may not have noticed when Stone Angel Brewing Co., opened its doors late last month. The Pembina Highway brewery ran into a couple of snags en route to getting signage installed, and quietly opened under the existing Vodka Rocks sign, where the former nightclub once stood.

TREVOR HAGAN / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS From left: Trans Canada Brewing Co. head brewer Morgan Wielgosz, president Matt Tallman and quality leader Josh Adler stand in the brewery's tap room.

Thats been rectified, and the 5,000-square-foot brewery (and adjacent tap room) is plugging away, serving up its European-style brews  at least a few of them.

On tap at the brewery so far is the Nocturne English dark mild ale, the Redhanded Irish red ale and the Oktober Blond ale. There is a fourth  Luthers Folly Kolschist blond ale  that has been poured for the public a couple of times this year, but because the beer was made at Brazen Hall prior to Stone Angels own system getting up and running, regulations prevent Stone Angel from serving the beer in its tap room. Its available from growler systems at beer vendors at the Quality Inn (635 Pembina Hwy.), and the St. Norbert Hotel (3540 Pembina Hwy.).

Were brewing another batch on our equipment right now, and it should be ready soon, Paul McMullan, president and director of operations, said during the opening weekend.

Stone Angels plans are to establish its three core beers  Luthers Folly, Redhanded Irish red ale and a forthcoming India pale ale  as well as a stout (for cooler months) and a witbier (for summer). The rest will be smaller-batch offerings, such as the forthcoming smoked porter. Its like a Halloween beer for us, McMullan said, although its not a pumpkin beer. The products will be available on tap at Stone Angel and will roll out to taps across the city, as well as growler bars.

Those looking for a high-octane IPA or bigger, more intense beverages ought to look elsewhere. Rather, the trio at Stone Angel  McMullan and partners Paul Clerkin and James DeFehr  prefer to go the route of more restrained, Old World brews.

Our style is generally more European, beer that we like to drink ourselves, McMullan said. Collectively, the deal is there has to be at least one beer on tap that each of us like. But after that were here for the public, so were making beers that are approachable.

The brewerys tap room can seat 50  no more, as per provincial regulations  but McMullan said theyre hoping things on the regulatory front will change. And like most other tap rooms in the city, customers can bring food with them or order in, if theyre so inclined. Not only that, adds McMullan, the Persian restaurant next door is fantastic. Theyre bringing in full plates of food for people who order from them. Were thrilled because its real food with real plates and knives and forks.

Trans Canada Brewing Co.  1290 Kenaston Blvd.

BORIS MINKEVICH / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Stone Angel Brewing Co. displays its beer menu at the Pembina Highway tap room.

Prior to opening, many new local breweries (such as Stone Angel) have partnered with competitors, using their equipment to brew something for thirsty Winnipeggers to sip on at events such as Flatlanders Beer Festival in June or the more recent Brew at the Zoo.

A notable exception to that is Trans Canada Brewing Co. As other breweries and brew pubs have crept into the market with small offerings to generate buzz and improve cash flow, Trans Canada has stayed pretty much under the radar.

We made the decision a while back that we wanted to wait until we were able to brew beer in our facility, said Trans Canada president Matt Tallman. We wanted the first beers in the market to be ones that were made at the brewery.

The 15,000-plus-square-foot brewery and tap room/restaurant is set to make a significant splash in the beer scene when it opens to the public Oct. 14.

The brewery component of Trans Canada falls under the guidance of Morgan Wielgosz, formerly of Amsterdam Brewing in Ontario (and the first woman to hold a head brewer position in Manitoba), and Josh Adler, who heads up quality control.

And what a brewery it is. Trans Canada is equipped to make any kind of beer its owners hoppy hearts desire. Their massive main tanks will handle the core beers, while a smaller brewing system will be used for more seasonal/one-off brews. (Theres another even smaller brewing line for really quirky test batches.) A separate room contains six foeders, pricey oak vats from French cooper Seguin Moreau that can be used for aging more serious beer.

In terms of packaging, Trans Canada will distribute core beers in six-packs of 355-ml bottles, as well as more limited-production brews in 650-ml bottles (often called bombers) and 750-ml cork-and-cage beers (similar to Unibroues packaging and some sparkling wine bottles). The brewery will start with beer in the tap room only, and hope to have packaged products ready to go by years end.

We want to make sure we have enough beer for our tap room, Tallman said. As soon as we start brewing some of the larger batches well be doing growler fills. When we first open were going to have a diverse list of different styles. Well expand as were able to meet capacity.

Trans Canadas massive tap room is licensed to seat about 120, plus another 50 in a private meeting room on the mezzanine level. Obtaining a dining-room licence  thanks to Timmy Toms Pizzeria and its full kitchen  was the way to work around the 50-person maximum at brewery tap rooms. It also means Trans Canada isnt limited to pouring its own beer, although the plan is to have up to a dozen of its own brews available on tap at any given time. For now, the brewery is exploring options for adding cider for the no-gluten crowd.

In addition to the brewery, tap/dining room and licensed mezzanine-level meeting room, theres a gift-shop area already stocked with Trans Canada shirts, hats, tuques, jackets, custom soaps and more. A long line of fridges will eventually be filled with packaged product thirsty Winnipeggers can take away to enjoy at home.

Oxus Brewing Co.  1180 Sanford St.

TREVOR HAGAN / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Trans Canada Brewing, Wednesday, October 4, 2017.

On the other end of the spectrum size-wise is Oxus Brewing Co., located at the south end of Westview Park, near Polo Park. Sean Shoyoqubov has been slowly plugging away at setting up his small brewery (which was originally to be called Aurora) over many months, doing much of the work himself.

I started with no financing at all, and I still dont have any loans  nothing major, Shoyoqubov said. Im trying to start as small and as simple as I can be.

Originally from Tajikistan, Shoyoqubov came to Canada in 2010 and began home-brewing in earnest in 2012 before taking the plunge to start his own brewery. In the last few years it has become an obsession, he said, adding that he has enjoyed most of the local breweries beers and is planning a fact-finding trip to Germany in the new year.

While the 3,100-square-foot brewery and adjacent tap room isnt yet set up and ready for brewing, the public had the chance to taste two Oxus beers  the blond ale and IPA  at Brew at the Zoo. Shoyoqubov made those batches at Barn Hammers facility on Wall Street, and judging by the long lineups, they seem to be well-received.

Shoyoqubov hopes to start brewing onsite in the next month or so, and to send kegs of his beer out to pubs and growler-filling stations thereafter.

  

A postscript: the gang at Nonsuch Brewing Co. is continuing to produce beer at Barn Hammer (calling the partnership nothing but an exceptionally positive experience in a recent email). Nonsuch isnt yet ready to announce a bricks-and-mortar location of its own, but the groups saison has already been poured at The Common at The Forks Market (although at the time of this article wasnt listed among the available pours there).

And Sabourin is sounding optimistic about having more product available soon. We are a few big batches in and things are going well. We will soon be shifting our focus to a mix of kegging and bottles we hope to have something available to the public in a limited number of locations before Christmas.

uncorked@mts.netTwitter: @bensigurdson
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The original plan for the woods along the Assiniboine River across from The Forks was an Indian Tourist Village where tourists could see Indigenous people at work and play.

The intention was good in the 1980s by Forks planners but a little insulting, said Niigaan Sinclair, native studies associate professor at the University of Manitoba.

Now construction for the historic space, known as South Point, has finally begun but with a key change: the development is being directed by Indigenous people.

St. Boniface-St, Vital MP Dan Vandal (from left), The Forks Renewal Corporation CEO Paul Jordan, Winnipeg Mayor Brian Bowman and Winnipeg Foundation CEO Richard Frost at a news conference at The Forks on Friday to kick off the first phase of construction at South Point. (Boris Minkevich / winnipeg Free Press)

The Forks has invested us to make an Indigenous experience that the Indigenous community leads, explained Sinclair.

A news conference at The Forks on Friday kicked off the first phase of construction, which begins next week. It will see an entryway for the new space, most likely an arch, on Main Street at the foot of Queen Elizabeth Way.

No one even knows this is part of The Forks, said Sinclair, a project adviser.

A trail in the shape of a serpent will wind its way through the urban park, with improved lighting, connecting to the footbridge that crosses the Assiniboine.

An elders committee has also been struck to come up with an Indigenous name for the space. Its working title is Reconciliation Trail but it will be changed into something in an Indigenous language.

Theres already a name for this place. We just dont know it yet or weve forgotten it, Sinclair said.

The cost of the first phase is $1.2 million, helped by $500,000 from the federal government, $500,000 from the Winnipeg Foundation, and $200,000 from The Forks Renewal Corp.

Paul Jordan, CEO of the Forks Renewal Corp., said the walkway should be completed by this time next year.

Site development will recognize the history of Treaty 1 and other indigenous people who used the site, Sinclair said. That could include interpretive signs or perhaps an app.

Weve taken upon ourselves the theme of reconciliation, Sinclair said.

Plans for future development include an art space, with outdoor galleries like from Urban Shaman and Plug In galleries, Sinclair said. There will also be a ceremonial space for traditional ceremonies with song and dance.

It will be part of the larger 2.5 kilometres Tache Promenade trail. Ottawa has pledged $500,000 to the Promenade Trail.

bill.redekop@freepress.mb.ca
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OTTAWA  Churchills emergency supply of propane will arrive midweek, and the province says it will have no problem storing it, clarifying its earlier remarks to the Free Press.

A ship carrying 2.2 million litres of propane is set to arrive Thursday at the Port of Churchill, Manitoba Infrastructure said Friday.

The province had said the shipment was scheduled for Monday; its unclear what caused the delay.

Sean Kilpatrick / The Canadian Press Natural Resources Minister Jim Carr confirms a Saskatchewan company is being tapped to possibly oversee the rail line.

The province said the shipment will arrive with appropriate storage containers, to be supplied by Stittco Energy.

The Free Press had reported bureaucrats were scrambling to find space for the shipment, after Manitobas Sustainable Development department blocked requests to put the fuel in an old fuel-tank farm in Churchill owned by Denver-based Omnitrax.

The province did not confirm or refute those reports, but said the propane would be stored in the tanks used to ship it there.

On Friday, sources said the aging tanks are needed to hold gasoline.

A spokesman for provincial Infrastructure Minister Ron Schuler said Friday the province is making sure Churchill has supplies to last through the winter once the Hudson Bay freezes.

The Manitoba government will continue to work proactively with the community and industry to monitor the situation and ensure adequate fuel supplies are available for the people of Churchill, Kalen Qually wrote.

The gasoline issue persists, with Hudson Bay Railway owner Omnitrax relying on larger fuel shipments instead of gradual rail arrivals. The rail link into Churchill has been severed since May 23 because of flood damage.

Documents obtained through freedom-of-information laws revealed federal Transport Minister Marc Garneau was told in June the northern towns gasoline tanks would need to be upgraded in order to hold fuel for the winter.

Transport Canada promised Friday to respond to a set of questions, but didnt provide answers by Friday evening.

Meanwhile, federal Natural Resources Minister Jim Carr confirmed a Saskatchewan company is being tapped to possibly oversee the rail line, as negotiations continue with the goal of transferring ownership of the transportation link and port to two northern Manitoba groups.

Were looking at all possible ways to make sure that we have the expertise to run the line and a partnership thats capable of doing what has to be done, Carr told reporters.

Bishop William Cliff of the Anglican diocese of Brandon has written to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, asking him to speed up the process.

I really dont want the bottom line on a spreadsheet to be the reason something does or does not happen, he said in an interview.

Last month, Cliff visited the town of 900, located 1,000 kilometres north of Winnipeg.

He said he was disturbed at how things had changed from a year ago. Between confirmations and coffees, discussion surrounded those leaving and others wondering how theyd afford living through the winter.

Theres an anxiety in the community, a worry about whats next and genuinely a wonder about whats taking so long, said Cliff, who pointed out railways are a federal responsibility.

My real beef is with the bureaucracy that has gummed up this process.

dylan.robertson@freepress.mb.ca
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Anyone who has ever needed to go to their parents place for a meal, to do laundry or get a ride might ask themselves what theyd do without the help of their family. If they lived in Wolseley, they could go to Wolseley Family Place.

For Tara Barzangi, a Kurdish refugee and mother of three, it is invaluable.

This place is amazing, the 35-year-old said Friday at Wolseley Family Place after whipping up a batch of macaroons for the non-profits catering business while her two preschoolers played at its child-care centre. Barzangi is in the pre-employment program as part of the kitchen staff, gaining work experience, earning a few bucks and moving towards a personal goal.

RUTH BONNEVILLE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Tara Barzangi, who works at Wolseley Family Place, with her kids Saya, 2, and Nishan, 4.

Its my dream to open a restaurant, Barzangi said.

She was introduced to Wolseley Family Place when she was pregnant with her oldest child, who is now in Grade 2. Wolseley Family Place has become a touchstone for her family, even when shes not working in the kitchen.

There are very nice people and really nice staff who respect you, said the mom, who lives downtown with her husband. She said she can go to the family places depot and buy a bag of gently used clothing for her growing children for just $1. When her kids outgrow them she donates them back to the centre. Sometimes she goes there just to visit and have a coffee while her children play. I have lots of friends.

Located on Wolseley Avenue next door to the Misericordia Health Centre, Wolseley Family Place is one of 24 United Way-supported family resource centres around Winnipeg.

We need to be in a society where we value everybody, where we value all the children, said executive director Sharon Taylor. Thats where the United Way and various funders come in. They know all children count.

Ninety per cent of the families Wolseley Family Place serve are led by single moms, most of whom are refugees or Indigenous, Taylor said. Most dont have cars or access to vehicles.

Weve been able to do more activities where the families can get out of town and do children-friendly, family-friendly things, like going to Tinkertown, Birds Hill (park) and FortWhyte where kids can go sliding.

Day trips to places that are the highlights of many Winnipeggers childhood memories are out of reach for many low-income families, Taylor said. The family place is helping young families who have limited financial resources connect with the community and the world around them.

There are new computers for the drop-in centre where people can go on the internet, play games or do emails, she said. Their children can go to the playroom where its safe while the parent is online.

The pre-employment program Barzangi is involved in benefits eight to 10 adults at any given time, Taylor said. It offers people work experience and, thanks to the United Way, theyre able to pay them a modest wage.

We have lots of refugees who dont have any Canadian work experience, she said. For some, their literacy levels can be extremely low.

The children of parents in the pre-employment program get first crack at one of the 18 available spaces in the child-care centre in the morning and afternoon, she said.

Being able to put paid work experience on a resume can be a leg up for those trying to enter the workforce and a confidence booster for those who arent ready or able to yet.

At least its saying I can get a job and recognition for it. It instills a sense of pride, said Taylor, who has seen the needs of the families they serve change and grow over the years. The confidence the parents gain can only help their children, she added.

It feels like theres lots more refugees, theres more complexity to peoples lives, and the magnitude of drug issues and mental health issues is bigger.

The frustrating part for Taylor is the approach to tackling these challenges seems to be shifting away from how can we help, she said.

We live in a world where we like to blame the individual, she said.

Wolseley Family Place, however, is there to help.

On Friday, the place was abuzz with activity. After the breakfast club, adults stopped by the drop-in centre for coffee. An emergency food and clothing depot was there for those in need and free laundry facilities were available, all at the same place that has a health educator, workshops and individual sessions on addictions and violence and a nurse practitioner who comes around.

We pretty much run the gamut, Taylor said.

Winnipeggers who would like to help keep the network of United Way-supported family resource centres strong can donate to United Way Winnipeg online at UnitedWayWinnipeg.ca/give or call 204-477-UWAY (8929).

carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca
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After Luke Garrows friend almost drove off with his finger still hooked in the car door handle, Garrow resigned himself to the eventual amputation of his increasingly cumbersome digit.

The ring finger on his right hand had been locked at 90 degrees for years, a permanent reminder of the 2011 ATV accident that broke his back and tailbone and stole a chunk out of his femur.

At the time, that catalogue of more serious injuries took precedence over one minor finger. Besides, Garrow had reasoned, hed broken fingers before. He could tape the broken one to a healthy one and it would heal  except it didnt.

RUTH BONNEVILLE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Luke Garrow expected to lose a disfigured finger on his right hand, but surgery and physiotherapy have restored it almost to normal. Garrow fears funding cuts by the province will affect other patients who need similar treatment.

I was at the point where I was going to have it removed, he says, but then a doctor said, Well, how about lets try a different doctor?

Garrow, who lives in Kenora, Ont., finally got in to see a specialist in Winnipeg earlier this year. But the St. Boniface Hospital surgeon didnt want to operate unless Garrow would commit to driving in twice a week  five hours round trip every time  for more than a month to attend outpatient physiotherapy and occupational therapy at the hospital.

He said that the surgery was a minor part of the process, Garrow said, and that I really had to commit.

Its a point physiotherapists, their unions and their professional associations have been making for months now, ever since the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority announced in early July it was cutting the vast majority of outpatient physiotherapy and occupational therapy programs in order to recoup $1.5 million annually.

Surgery is one step in the recovery process, they say. Outpatient physiotherapists can help with the others, assisting with pre-operative assessments and making sure a person is getting the required post-operative rehabilitation.

How is this better for any Manitobans beyond saving money? asked Bob Moroz, president of the Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals, which presents the majority of Winnipeg outpatient physiotherapists.

Its absolutely pure cost, he said. It has nothing to do with patient care.

The WRHA doesnt deny this is a financially motivated cut, although its marketing around the issue can be confusing. The program cut falls under its manage to budget initiatives, but is lumped online into its Healing our Health System plan, which is meant to focus on broader reforms as recommended by consultant Dr. David Peachey and not the $83 million in annual savings the provincial government demanded of the WRHA.

That confusion seemed to be amplified earlier this week when the health authority announced it was scrapping a proposal to use a means test to decide which small group of Manitobans still will have access to outpatient physiotherapy after it cuts programs at seven facilities. The WRHA now plans to use clinical criteria it still has yet to determine.

This changes nothing except the criteria by which the WRHA will decide whose physiotherapy will be free and who will be told to go elsewhere and pay.

Between 20 and 30 physiotherapists will still lose their jobs. Whole programs will shutter at Concordia Hospital, Deer Lodge Centre, Grace Hospital, Misericordia Health Centre, St. Boniface Hospital, Seven Oaks Hospital and Victoria Hospital.

Thats where some of the frustration comes from.

Peacheys report talks about the need to shift and consolidate services to make them better and more efficient, but those advocating on behalf of physiotherapists say this cut seems to run counter to that system-wide goal.

There are a number of incidences in surgery where essentially, the quality outcome  if youre to look at it long-term  is not great, said Kate OConnor, director of practice and policy for the Canadian Physiotherapy Association.

Its an issue of not having access to physiotherapy or rehabilitation, she said. Theres also an element of patient compliance to take responsibility and ownership over ones health and well-being.

But for many that ownership boils down to money, Moroz said.

If you tell a 60-year-old pensioner who is living on a very, very fixed income, You can have your surgery and well give you a piece of paper to go find a private physiotherapist but youre going to have to pay for it out of pocket, the persons going to say, Well, hang on; I cant afford that so Im not going to do that.

And if you cant afford to pay between $75 and $90 a week every week for maybe three months, do you decide not to go through with the surgery at all?

It may save money this year, Moroz said, but years from now the effects will be felt.

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Roughly 30 physiotherapists handle tens of thousands of outpatient physiotherapy appointments at WRHA facilities every year, although the number of visits has been trending downward since 2010. Most appointments are at Health Sciences Centre, where there are three specialty outpatient options: hands, orthopedics and rheumatology.

The orthopedics clinic is the busiest in the city, with more than 13,000 visits in the last fiscal year, down from nearly 16,000 in the 2010-2011 fiscal year. St. Boniface Hospital, where Garrow visited, is the second-busiest with more than 10,500 in the last fiscal year, down from nearly 13,000 in 2010-2011.

Figuring out what will happen to the physiotherapists at facilities such as St. Boniface has been a logistical headache, Munoz said.

Its taken an amazingly and frustratingly long time to even get here, he said. Here being finalizing the labour adjustment agreement that will serve as the guide to the actual deletion of jobs and closing the service. There are ongoing issues, Moroz said, with the WRHAs data on physiotherapists seniority levels not lining up with the unions data.

Lori Lamont, vice-president with the WRHA, said she couldnt comment on the labour issues, although she made it clear the WRHA will miss its mid-October target for ending outpatient physiotherapy.

Were hopeful it will still be (in) 2017, Lamont said, although theres no new target at this point. A note posted for some staff at HSC earlier this week indicates November is the goal.

The WRHA not only needs to finalize a referral plan so that doctors have a strategy for sending patients on to private physiotherapists, but it has to finish outlining the clinical criteria to evaluate who will still have access to the service. In broad strokes, Lamont said that will include looking at who is currently accessing physiotherapy and then analyzing what the probable impact would be on other aspects of the health-care system if the WRHA cut one patient groups access versus anothers.

Lamont said the WRHA is still working on a plan to monitor the impact of ending the service.

That comment came after the premier himself echoed public concerns that inadequate post-operative rehabilitation might actually lead to more expensive hospital procedures down the line, specifically for those getting hip and knee replacements.

What I dont want to do is create a situation where we look like were saving money short-term and were costing more long-term, Premier Brian Pallister said in July.

But Moroz is worried thats exactly what will happen.

We provide support for all these other programs, so what is the effect throughout the entire system if you remove that service? He said. Theres a ripple effect people dont understand the impact of the work that our folks do and how that impacts everybody else.

Garrow, meanwhile, was grateful.

More than a month after his surgery, he was sitting near the clinic at St. Boniface hospital, curling his injured finger in and out, in and out. It was discharge day. The physiotherapist sent him off with a list of stretches to do on his own and the occupational therapist fashioned him a few specialty braces to wear overnight.

Im super, super happy, he said. But at the same time, its kind of sad that the program wont be there.

jane.gerster@freepress.mb.ca
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 06/10/2017 (1866 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

KPMGs recent financial report recommends Families Minister Scott Fielding overhaul social housing in Manitoba, turning the soaring demand over to private and community high performers who can deliver value for money.

Qualifying for Rent Assist should be tightened up, and the most vulnerable Manitobans would receive vouchers to help them get housing from private landlords, the reports says. The government should also issue social-impact bonds, which could be cashed when investors meet goals set by the province.

The more than 300 organizations involved in social housing would be significantly reduced by such moves and the Progressive Conservative government could raise more than $14 million by selling some of its rental properties to the private sector, the consultant says in the 75-page report commissioned by the province.

WAYNE GLOWACKI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Gilbert Park housing development. A recent KPMG report recommends the provincial government overhaul social housing in Manitoba, turning it over to high performers who can deliver value for money.

Without decisive action, warns KPMG, social housing costs will climb by $10 million a year and Rent Assist $7.5 million annually, with all signs indicating the caseload will keep growing.

Manitoba Housing and all the various government departments that have a hand in social housing should be consolidated, the report recommends. There would be staff reductions among civil servants, says KPMG, which concludes not only do some government employees not have the skills necessary for the proposed new system but some of them will openly resist change.

The recommendations are fraught with risk, KPMG cautions: it will take years to achieve a transformation, the market may not have the capacity or desire to respond and the province may end up subsidizing costs for providing social housing.

Using the identical language it used in its report on recommended changes to post-secondary education, KPMG said: A robust change management and communications strategy will be needed to deal with public perception the provincial government is reducing social housing stock and making it less affordable.

KPMG told Fielding: Housing programs and services have historically been planned and delivered in a relatively disjointed manner, residing in separate organizations with different leadership styles and priorities, and varying degrees of collaboration.

Social housing stock is old, in need of major repairs and often inaccessible for tenants with disabilities. There are more than 300 small, community-based organizations operating independently, giving rise to disjointed services, duplications and inefficiencies, and limited opportunities for economies of scale and service innovation.

The province hasnt factored future caseload increases into budget projections  even next years budget could face costs significantly higher than projected, KPMG says.

Options presented promote a system-wide view, integrated service delivery, greater use of partnerships and collaboration and performance-based outcomes and payments, according to the report. The rapidly escalating cost of the Rent Assist program is not sustainable, and bending the cost curve requires changes in policy.

KPMG says Manitoba offers higher subsidies than other provinces, yet rental housing is more affordable than elsewhere in Canada.

WAYNE GLOWACKI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS The Manitoba Fiscal Performance Review volumes.

If the status quo is maintained, costs to meet increasing demand will continue to rise, putting further pressure on the fiscal sustainability of the current social housing model. A significant change in the model will be required to meet these demands, it advised Fielding.

According to the report, as of May 31, there were 2,050 families, 689 seniors, 966 single, non-elderly and special-needs clients on the waiting list.

The largest waiting list is for Winnipeg, with 2,513 people on it.

KPMG says it found no evidence the former NDP government conducted any kind of a comprehensive needs analysis.

Policy changes should be considered to increase revenue and a significant change in the provision of social housing is required to address escalating costs, the report said. Government-owned properties would be sold to private or community-based landlords. Depending on the asset and/or community, (successful sales) may require consideration of incentives for sale of assets.

nick.martin@freepress.mb.ca
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 07/10/2017 (1865 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Whats the point of NAFTA or any of the other free trade deals if craziness can simply overwhelm them?

American authorities have sideswiped Canadian aerospace manufacturer Bombardier with punitive duties. No unbiased observer can explain the outrageous 220 per cent duty imposed on the importation of Bombardiers C Series jets.

There are two disturbing reactions to this. One, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is so one-sided that American authorities can manipulate it at will. Or, more likely, U.S. President Donald Trump is up to his old tricks, intimidating, bullying and stiffing his business partners.

Alex Brandon / The Canadian Press Files U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to blow up NAFTA less than one week into the renegotiation of the trade agreement.

The central question is: does Bombardier receive subsidies?

Yes, the company has received $1.7 billion in direct government (provincial and federal) subsidies since the federal Liberals came to power in 2015. Its widely known (and deeply resented in the rest of Canada) that Quebec-based Bombardier has received a variety of direct and indirect subsidies from the federal and Quebec governments since 1966.

U.S. aerospace giant Boeing (which made the original complaint about Bombardier) is, however, no stranger to government support. Mind you, Boeing is a little smarter than Bombardier  their support is indirect, coming from agencies the U.S. government influences but does not directly control, like the Export-Import Bank of the United States and the U.S. military.

In truth, the complex and highly valuable global aerospace industry would not exist without generous subsidies.

And yet, the American authorities imposed punitive duties (three times those requested by Boeing) on the Canadian manufacturer. This extraordinary action violates both the spirit and the letter of NAFTA.

Its true that the U.S. uses NAFTA when its convenient and overrides it whenever it chooses. However, the irrationality and outrageous nature of this most recent action has Trumps nasty fingerprints all over it.

Its no coincidence that when this decision was made, the U.S., Canada and Mexico were involved in complex trade negotiations. These negotiations are highly technical and finding win-win solutions requires a lot of trust and goodwill.

Nevertheless, it seems that Trump is attempting to mistreat his Canadian and Mexican trading partners, just as he did his business partners and suppliers in the past.

Trump the businessman was notoriously difficult to deal with. Those who did business with Trump describe him as loud, pretentious and disagreeable. Almost without fail, after agreeing a deal hed begin attacking it, raging about trivial issues or simply inventing problems in order to create conflict. Most of his suppliers would simply roll over, accepting the inevitable.

One of Trumps favourite tricks was to engage highly reputable suppliers and then turn the tables on them. These companies would sign legally binding agreements, do the work on trust and then invoice one of Trumps many companies after the work was complete.

At this point, Trump would often invent some problem or failing on the part of the supplier. Then hed offer to pay only half the agreed price. If the supplier threatened to sue, Trump counter-sued and threatened to drag out the legal fight for years (or even decades). Most small businesses he dealt with fell over easily and so Trumps unethical businesses practices paid off handsomely.

So is Trump trying to deliberately sabotage NAFTA, undermining one of the earliest and most effective trade deals for the United States?

Probably not. But he behaves as if normal rules and laws of society dont apply to him. His natural instincts are to use whatever means he can to intimidate and dictate the terms of the agreement.

Canada should not fall into the trap of believing that traditional Canadian-U.S. goodwill will prevail with Trump.

Trump is not a win-win negotiator; its I win, you lose for the president. Canada must be prepared to stand up to him in the short-term. And it must begin the laborious process of working around the president.

Canadian trade negotiator and Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland faces a severe challenge. But theres plenty of ammunition in her arsenal. For instance, tens of thousands of American jobs will be lost as a result of this action. In addition, Canada has a growing network of state and federal free-trade supporters in the U.S.

Trump has lit a dangerous fuse. Expect Canadian negotiators to bend but not break in this bizarre assault on the common sense and decency that has characterized Canada-U.S. relations for centuries.

Robert McGarvey is chief strategist for Troy Media Digital Solutions Ltd., an economic historian and former managing director of Merlin Consulting, a London-based consulting firm.
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 07/10/2017 (1865 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

We have to face facts: there is no U.S. federal government any more in the normal sense of the word. Social security payments still get made and the 2.79 million federal civil servants still get paid, but there is no such thing as U.S. government policy, especially foreign policy. Take the U.S. defence secretary, former general James (Mad Dog) Mattis.

Despite his nickname, Mattis is a rational human being who thinks the proliferation of nuclear weapons is a bad idea. He knows its too late to stop North Korea from getting them, but he also knows that it is still possible to stop Iran from doing the same. In fact, the job is done: Iran signed an agreement in 2015 that takes the whole issue off the table for 10 years.

Mattis is also well aware that his boss, U.S. President Donald Trump, regularly fulminates about how bad the Iranian deal is and keeps hinting that he will cancel it  in which case, of course, Iran could go ahead and get nuclear weapons in just a year or two.

Evan Vucci / The Associated Press Secretary of State Rex Tillerson looks on as President Donald Trump speaks at a luncheon with South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday, Sept. 21, 2017, in New York.

So he put his own job at risk on Tuesday by telling the Senate armed services committee that the United States should keep its word and abide by the agreement with Iran.

Now hes waiting for Trumps next tweet, which may well repudiate what he said. Trump wont fire Mattis  he prefers to humiliate people in tweets until they quit  but his usefulness as secretary of defence is nearly at its end. Foreigners, including Iranians, know that Mattis is serious, but they also know that he does not speak for the president. Trump will do whatever he likes, so why bother even talking to Mattis?

Its just the same with Rex Tillerson, the secretary of state (foreign secretary). On Sunday, he said the United States has lines of communication open to Kim Jong Uns North Korean regime.

The subtext was clear: dont worry about a nuclear war, folks. Were talking to them (or about to talk to them, or talking about talking to them) and theres still time for a deal that defuses the whole crisis.

Its not clear that thats actually true, if the deal must include North Korea giving up its nuclear weapons and missiles. Kim is well aware of what happened to other people who defied the United States but did not have nuclear weapons, such as Iraqs Saddam Hussein (dangling from the end of a rope) and Libyas Moammar Gadhafi (a bayonet up the backside), so he is strongly motivated to hang on to his.

But it is what Tillerson should say now, and it might help.

Trump didnt wait 24 hours before he tweeted: I told Rex Tillerson, our wonderful secretary of state, that he is wasting his time trying to negotiate with Little Rocket Man Save your energy Rex, well do what has to be done! Like what? If negotiations are a waste of time, then the only alternative is force.

Does Trump mean hes going to attack North Korea (which would almost certainly involve the use of nuclear weapons)? Of course not. He doesnt mean anything; hes only venting, as usual. He has no idea what hes going to do about North Korea, if anything. He doesnt even know what he is going to think or say tomorrow.

The trouble is that Kim Jong Un probably doesnt realize how aimless and inconsequential Trumps tweets usually are. What Kim sees is most likely a death threat to him by the ruler of the most powerful nation on Earth. He has seen a dozen more messages like it in the past six months, and he must be looking frantically for a way out.

Talking to Tillerson might have shown him a way out, or at least bought him some time, but hes definitely not going to talk to a diplomat who has been repudiated by his own president. As foreign secretary, Tillerson is toast.

There have been calls in Washington for Tillerson to resign to avoid further humiliation, but others hope he will swallow his pride and stay in office as long as he can to postpone the appointment of a super-hawk such as John Bolton or Nikki Haley. In fact, it probably doesnt matter very much either way, because they would find that the boss is undermining and discrediting them, too. Its what he always does to his subordinates.

In the circumstances, its not surprising that Americas allies and its opponents are both coming to the conclusion that they will just have to ignore the U.S. and make their deals without it. Iran, for instance, has said that it might stick by the nuclear deal if all the other signatories stay loyal to their commitments.

Trump is a problem, of course, but for all his threats and boasts he doesnt actually do much. It could be a viable strategy for the next three years.

Gwynne Dyer is an independent journalist whose articles are published in 45 countries.
Germanys government has given its explicit backing to the violent suppression of the Catalonian independence movement by the Spanish government.

At a government press conference on Wednesday, government spokesman Stefan Seibert stated, We have a major interest in the stability of Spain, and it is therefore important that everything going on there politically remains within the rule of law. Spains constitutional court took a clear decision that this so-called referendum was not in accord with the Spanish constitution. The Spanish government has the task of maintaining the constitutional order.

Seibert emphasised that the German Chancellor was not striving for a mediation mission, because the issue at stake is according to our firm conviction an internal Spanish affair.

Despite repeated follow-up questions from several journalists, the government spokesman stubbornly refused to utter a single word of criticism over the Spanish polices brutal crackdown, which injured up to a thousand participants in the referendum.

Asked why the German government was not responding to the violations of human rights and police violence on Catalonias streetsWhat are you waiting for? What still needs to happen?Seibert answered, I have made the federal governments stance on this absolutely clear. It is focused on the legal reality, on Spains constitutional reality, just as any future solution to this internal Spanish conflict must focus on Spains constitution. That is our firm conviction.

As other journalists asked if the police violence had not been jointly responsible for the escalation, Seibert responded, It is certainly not my job here to evaluate police operations in Spain. For the federal government, the central issue in our considerations is the situation as provided for in the Spanish constitution. The referendum was a breach of the Spanish constitution.

Similar responses followed. A journalist asked, Could you inform us at what point you condemn police violence or police operations? When police violence rules in Russia, you are the first to condemn it, and equally so in Turkey and other countries. Why not now in Spain? Seibert answered predictably, The question draws absurd parallels. I deliberately said earlier, in a democratic state, the constitution protects the rights of all citizens. Thats why the constitution has to be respected.

The spokesman for Chancellor Merkel sought to avoid answering a question about the appropriateness of the force used by the state, Spain is a democratic state. In terms of the media, it is also a pluralist state. All necessary discussions are being conducted in Spain. Nobody needs a statement on and an evaluation of a police intervention by a German government spokesman.

A growing number of pieces in the German media are also supporting the Spanish governments militarist crackdown. While some commentaries call for mediation and deescalation, right-wing hardliners are increasingly winning the upper hand.

Spiegel Online published Thursday an angry tirade entitled This referendum cannot be allowed to succeed by Markus Becker. He compared the head of the Catalan government, Carkes Puigdemont, with the Kaczynskis, Orbans and Erdogans of the world and justified this by saying, He declares himself to be fulfilling the peoples will and deduces from this the right to break the law.

Becker could not be more explicit about his opinion of referendums. They are good when they benefit the ruling class, and bad when they dont fit in with its plans. Referenda can be a valuable instrument of democracy, he wrote. They can give people the feeling that they are participating directly in the polity at least this applies when referenda are used responsibly and for a definite purpose. But in the hands of populists, they are an extremely dangerous tool, which Puigdemont has once again dramatically proven.

Puigdemont has, according to Spiegel Online, transformed the referendum into a political weapon which he is aiming at the heart of the Spanish state and European Union, and with the help of which he is holding hostage the section of his own people that is against separation.

Becker employs concepts that are normally reserved for justifying the bombardment of civilians in Aleppo, Mosul and Raqqa. This purported majority, he wrote, is becoming something akin to a human shield in a conflict which in the most extreme scenario could culminate in bloodshed under conditions similar to civil war. In this way, he leaves no doubt about the fact that he would support a bloodbath inflicted by the Spanish government.

Reinhard Muller was equally forthright in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung on Thursday in a comment entitled Self-determination does not mean secession.

Muller wrote, No doubt: all peoples have the right to self-determination, and referred to the United Nations Charter and other UN documents. But he went on to add that the right to secede from an existing state only applied in extreme cases. Because the inviolability of the state is one of the fundamentals of the international community. Every state therefore has the right to oppose separatist strivings within its borders.

Muller also sought to wrap himself in the Spanish constitution, which explicitly stipulates that the central government can compel autonomous regions like Catalonia to the forcible fulfillment of its obligations.

Why is the German government endorsing the violent clampdown on the Catalonian referendum by the Spanish state, which 42 years after the fall of the Franco dictatorship, is returning to its authoritarian traditions?

The references to the rule of law and the Spanish constitution are threadbare pretexts, as shown by the German governments stance in other cases. Whether they support or resist a separatist movement has nothing to do with the legal situation, but rather depends on their own interests. In the 1990s, Germany actively pushed for the fracturing of Yugoslavia and promoted separatist movements in Croatia, Slovenia and Bosnia, which led to a series of bloody wars with well over 100,000 deaths. The first military intervention by the German army since World War II took place in 1999 with the goal of separating Kosovo from Serbia.

The German government is backing the uncompromising stance of Mariano Rajoy because it fears concessions to the Catalan separatists could trigger a chain reaction, weaken the EU and thus undermine Berlins plans to rise to the position of an economic, political and military world power on the basis of the EU.

Several European governments fear that Catalonia will be followed by others. Flanders is threatening Belgium with secession, Lombardy is threatening Italy, and in Britain, the danger exists that with Brexit, the conflict in Northern Ireland could erupt once again. This is also why the EU Commission has adopted an unrelenting stance towards the Catalan nationalists. The Commission has made clear that in the case of secession, Barcelona should not expect to be accepted into the EU, and has even opposed adopting a mediation role, although some who fear the situation will otherwise get out of control are calling for EU mediation.

German EU Commissioner Gunther Oetinger (CDU) warned of a dramatic escalation, The situation is very, very concerning. A civil war in the midst of Europe is conceivable, he said. One can only hope that negotiating channels between Madrid and Barcelona are established soon.

But there is a more fundamental reason why the German government is uncompromising in its approach to the Catalan nationalists. The ruling elite fears that any sign of relenting could encourage mounting opposition to social inequality and militarism. The period in which social conflicts in Europe could be overcome by means of compromise has long passed into history. Millions of workers and young people have been experiencing declining wages, tougher working conditions and worsening career prospects for years. Trust in the traditional parties is eroding.

The ruling classes are responding to this by resorting to authoritarian forms of rule. In France, the long-standing state of emergency is now being written permanently into law. During the German election campaign, the parties sought to outdo each other with demands for more police, surveillance and internet censorship. For the first time since the downfall of the Nazis, a right-wing extremist party is entering parliament.

Berlins support for Rajoys violent suppression of Catalonias independence referendum must therefore be taken as a warning. The German ruling class is preparing to brutally suppress any form of social and political opposition.
The formation of a new government in Germany has been delayed. Eleven days after the federal election, coalition talks have not even begun. While in the past, four to six weeks usually went by between the election and the swearing in of a new government, four years ago it took almost three months. Now it appears as though the organisation of a new government could take until Christmas or even the new year.

The most fundamental reason for the slow progress is the deep gulf between the established parties and the vast majority of the population expressed in the recent election. The so-called peoples parties, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), Christian Social Union (CSU) and Social Democratic Party (SPD), achieved their worst results since 1945. Behind this alienation lie the policies of militarism and social cutbacks, which have been met with stiff opposition and have produced a rapid rise in poverty.

As the SPD and Left Party have also pursued such policies, the right-wing extremist Alternative for Germany (AfD) was able to emerge as the main beneficiary of popular dissatisfaction, entering parliament as the third strongest party. As a result, and with the return of the Free Democrats (FDP), six different parliamentary groups will now be represented in the Bundestag (parliament), which presents an additional challenge to the formation of a government.

However, the chief obstacle to forming a government is the need to establish a stable regime capable of continuing the policies of militarism and social cuts, strengthening the repressive state apparatus and suppressing all opposition. All of the parties are agreed on this, including the SPD, which decided to go into opposition, and the Left Party, which is currently not needed to form a majority.

Although all the parties continue to reject an alliance with the AfD, they are going a long way toward adopting its right-wing policies. The CSU, which is urging that its right flank be closed, is doing this most explicitly. Saxonys Minister President Stanislaw Tillich (CDU), justified the call for his party to shift to the right by saying, The people want Germany to remain Germany. Even his predecessor, Kurt Biedenkopf (CDU), accused Tillich of wanting to end up to the right of them [the AfD].

But each of these parties, rather than resisting the AfD and the Nazis in their ranks, who are entering parliament for the first time since Hitlers death, are instead embracing them. German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier (SPD) did this very clearly in his speech on German Unity Day. We cannot allow hostility to emerge from our differencesout of disagreements [there must be] no irreconcilability, argued Steinmeier, who demanded a harder line on refugee policyone of the AfDs central demands.

It is already becoming clear that the incoming governmentmost likely a so-called Jamaica coalition (from the three parties colours, black, yellow and green, those of the Jamaican flag) composed of the CDU-CSU, FDP and Greenswill be the most right-wing in the history of the German Federal Republic. All proposals in relation to personnel and policy that have been made public thus far underscore this.

It is considered certain that both the Greens and FDP will insist upon leading one key ministry each. For the FDP, this is likely to be the Finance Ministry, which has been left vacant by Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaubles move to assume the post of president of the Bundestag.

With Christian Lindner, the FDPs 38-year-old leader, an individual could assume responsibility for the federal budget who is associated more than any other with the continuation of strict austerity policies, tax cuts for the rich and opposition to financial redistribution within Europe. It is likely that the rise in the DAX, Germanys stock exchange, above the record high of 13,000 is connected with the prospect that a party advocating the interests of big business like the FDP will probably be managing the state budget.

Lindner also advocates a hard-right stance on refugee policy. For example, he has called for an immigration law that clearly distinguishes between permanent migration of qualified people who we will select, and humanitarian protection. The latter should be time-restricted, according to the FDP leader, so that refugees from civil wars and their children born in Germany could be deported at a later date.

Cem Ozdemir is being considered for the post of Foreign Minister. The Green politician, who completed the Atlantic Bridges Young Leader programme, spent time as Transatlantic fellow of the German Marshall Fund in the United States, and sat on the foreign affairs committees in the European and German parliaments, never misses an opportunity to express his opinion on foreign policy matters.

Ozdemir is an outspoken proponent of German military interventions under the pretexts of humanitarian and environmental concerns. He advocates a confrontational policy towards Russia and Turkey, and backs French President Emmanuel Macrons plans for a European Union armed to the teeth.

In an interview with Britains Economist, Ozdemir called for Germany to have a global leadership role: Germany has to step up and take responsibility: we are the country that must show that you can combine growth, prosperity, jobs and the fight against climate crisis.

Ozdemir accused his possible future coalition partner, Lindner, who spoke out in favour of a friendlier approach towards Russia in an interview, of spreading Putins propaganda and stoking anti-Western resentments in German society.

Imagine youre Ukrainian, continued Ozdemir. You stood up for European values on Maidan Square. In the Budapest Memorandum of 1994 your country got rid of its nuclear weapons in return for a guarantee of its territorial integrity. And now Russia splits off Crimea and along comes Lindner and says well have to live with it.

Discussions over who should be given the Interior Ministry are also already well advanced. Consideration is being given to Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann (CSU), whose law-and-order policies go even further than the current Interior Minister, Thomas de Maiziere. Herrmann is strongly in favour of more police officers, surveillance and stricter border controls. He has nothing to fear regarding objections from the Greens and FDP liberals, who also called for a massive strengthening of the police during the election campaign.

If de Maiziere, a close ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU), keeps his post, Herrmann could be considered for the post of Defence Minister. Current Defence Minister Ursula Von der Leyen has made enemies in the military because following the exposure of a right-wing terrorist cell in the army, she demanded that the traditions of Hitlers Wehrmacht no longer be cultivated. By contrast, Herrmann would be a comrade in arms. He is a lieutenant colonel in the reserves and participated several months ago in a military exercise that tested the deployment of the armed forces domestically.

It remains an open question, however, as to whether the Jamaica coalition will be established. The SPD could have a change of heart, or the AfDor a split from itcould still be brought into government. Even a new election is not completely out of the question. But this will do nothing to alter the right-wing character of the future government. Its programme will be determined by the global capitalist crisis and intensifying social tensions to which the ruling class has only one answer: militarism and repression.

The brutal crackdown by the Spanish government against the Catalonian independence referendum, and the support for this from the German government and European Union, shows how ruthlessly the ruling class will respond to any sign of opposition.
Asia

South Koreas bullet trains cabin crew strike

Unionized cabin-crews on South Koreas KTX bullet trains walked off the job for 48 hours on September 29, following failed negotiations for a pay increase. The workers are employees of KORAIL Tourism Development Company, a subsidiary of the state rail operator Korea Railroad Corp (KORAIL). Around 400 workers are union members.

The union wants a 5 percent pay rise, abolition of the merit-based pay system and improvements in other working conditions. Management rejected all demands and only offered a 1.2 percent pay increase claiming that was the limit allowed by KORAIL.

On September 21, 33 KORAIL Tourism Development Company workers demonstrated at Seoul rail station demanding to be made permanent employees. Workers said they did not have the same job security or benefits of full-time KORAIL employees.

Bangladeshi garment workers protest

Walltex garment workers in Gazipur demonstrated outside the factory in the Sreepur sub-district on September 30 demanding overdue wages. Protesters spilled onto the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway blocking traffic for 30 minutes. Workers ended the protest after police said they would take up their issue with factory management.

Pakistan: Toba Tek Singh power-loom workers locked out again

Locked out power-loom workers in Kamalia, in Punjab provinces Toba Tek Singh district, demonstrated outside the Kamalia Press Club on Monday. The workers demanded that owners reopen their factories and pay lost wages during the lockout. Factory owners refused, declaring that the closures would continue for eight days as punishment for workers not turning up for duty on Muharram 9 and 10 (Islamic days of fasting).

Hundreds of power-loom workers in the district were locked out for five days in September after 45 factory owners rejected demands that wages be increased from 450 rupees for 12 hours work to the government-mandated 665 rupees ($US6.31) for eight hours work. More than 7,000 workers are employed at 250 factories in the Toba Tek Singh district.

The September lockout ended after workers accepted a 7.14 percent increase. Kamalia factory owners, however, refused to pay the increase claiming they could not afford it.

Islamabad: PIMS medical staff end strike

Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) staff ended a three-day strike on Wednesday night after the Capital Administration and Development Division (CADD) minister promised that workers demands would be discussed and resolved. The strike began on Monday and involved administration, para medical staff, nurses and other workers. They were demanding the government re-establish PIMS as a government hospital.

PIMS workers lost their status as civil servants, as well as government accommodation and other benefits, in 2013 when the hospitala 1,200 bed facilitywas upgraded and affiliated with the Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Shaheed Medical University. Workers want the affiliation reversed and have been holding limited rolling strikes since July 2016 over the issue.

The CADD minister claimed that he agreed with the workers demand and said he would call a meeting in the ministry to discuss how the issue could be addressed.

India: Orissa rural health workers strike enters fourth week

Rural health care (anganwadi) workers and helpers across Orissa have been on strike since September 12 to demand a wage rise and permanency as Class 3 government employees. Anganwadi workers want a minimum monthly wage of 18,000 rupees and 9,000 for helpers. Workers and helpers are currently paid just 4,000 ($US61.50) and 2,000 rupees a month respectively.

The All Odisha Anganwadi Ladies Workers Association is coordinating 24-hour relay demonstrations outside government buildings in several districts. There are around 100,000 anganwadi workers in Orissa state.

University teachers in Nepal protest

Part-time teachers from the Tribhuvan University held a sit-down demonstration at the Maitighar Mandal Square in Kathmandu on Tuesday demanding permanent contracts. The protest was part of a long campaign by these teachers for better pay and conditions.

In May, hundreds of part-time teachers from 60 constituent campuses of the Tribhuvan University walked out indefinitely. The teachers were protesting against the government and university for failing to implement an agreement signed eight years ago during a hunger strike protest.

The agreement included the formation of a working panel to establish a quota for the number of part-time teachers, preparation of criteria for contracts, appointment of contract teachers by fulfilling set standards and an increase in contract teachers salaries.

According to the Nepal Part Time Teachers Association, over 1,200 part-time teachers are affected. The part-timers are forced to teach up to 24 periods in a week while permanent teachers teach only 10 periods. A spokesman said they are only paid 360 rupees per period in contrast to permanent teachers who received 2,000 rupees per period and other allowances.

Australia and the Pacific

Australian meteorological staff resume strike action

Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) staff began another round of rolling strikes on September 29 in a dispute over the governments proposed enterprise agreement (EA). The Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) members are taking protected action to strike in 30-minute blocks between 4.30 a.m. and 7.30 p.m. from until October 12. The BoM has over 1,600 staff and maintains 50 field offices.

The action follows three weeks of rolling strikes by one third of the bureaus staff in July. A CPSU representative said the bureau was determined to make major cuts to conditions targeting front-line people working shifts and in remote locations.

BoM staff have now gone more than four years without a pay rise. The bureau is one of only a handful of federal government agencies that is still without a new enterprise agreement. The majority of the 160,000 federal public servants were in dispute with the Liberal-National government for more than three years over proposed new work agreements.

The CPSU leadership divided federal public sector workers along department lines confining all industrial action to limited stoppages and protests to wear down workers resistance. This resulted in workers at the Australian Tax Office, the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet Staff, the Department of Defence, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation and the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources accepting agreements they had previously rejected.

South Australian hospital staff stop work

About 100 workers at the Repatriation General Hospital, including kitchen staff, orderlies, disability and aged carers, stopped work for one hour on Wednesday in the first of rolling stop-work meetings. United Voice (UV) said its members would hold more meetings at seven other public hospitals across the state.

The hospital workers are in dispute with the state Labor government over a proposed enterprise bargaining agreement. Negotiations began in February. A UV spokesperson alleged that the government had failed to address critical issues, and that members wanted a fair wage increase, job security and an end to hospital privatisation.

New Zealand: Wellington rail workers strike

Railway workers from Wellingtons rail commuter transport provider Transdev and its subcontractor South Koreas Hyundai Rotem walked off the job for two hours on Wednesday in a dispute over a new collective agreement. Members of the Rail and Maritime Transport Union (RMTU) claimed Transdev was attempting to claw back hard-won terms and conditions. The one-year contract, covering 400 rail workers in the capital city, Wellington, expired in July.

Transdev is a private company providing public commuter transport under contract with the Greater Wellington Regional Council. In its bid to run the regions train services, the company committed to employ rail workers who transferred from KiwiRail on the same or more favourable terms and conditions.
Canadas New Democratic Party (NDP) elected Jagmeet Singh as its new leader on the first ballot of its leadership vote last Sunday. His victory represents a further shift to the right by Canadas social democrats and underscores that this big business party long ago abandoned any connection with the working class or even the fight for significant social reform.

Singh has been a member of Ontarios provincial parliament since 2011, and served as deputy leader of the Ontario NDP from 2015 till his entry into the federal party leadership race last May. He was heavily involved in the ONDPs right-wing 2014 election campaign, which so openly advocated the interests of the corporate elite that it enabled Kathleen Wynnes budget-cutting and privatizing Liberal government to pose as to the left of the NDP on important issues and secure re-election.

In keeping with this, Singh made no criticism of the NDPs record during his leadership campaign. The NDPs endorsement of Canadas leading role in US-led wars; the implementation by every NDP provincial government since the early 1990s of vicious austerity; the NDPs attempt between 2004 and 2015 to partner with the Liberals in a national coalition government; and the partys Harper lite 2015 federal election which saw the NDP pledge balanced budgets and no tax increases for the richnone of these stances were so much as touched upon by Singh during his campaign.

On the contrary, in his victory speech Singh praised outgoing party leader Thomas Mulcair, saying that the former Quebec Liberal cabinet minister had led the party through a difficult period since succeeding the late Jack Layton in 2012 and that the NDP owed him a debt of gratitude.

Singhs campaign focused largely on his youth, Indian ethnic background and Sikh religion, and his purported ability to grow the party by appealing to immigrants. Singh made much of his personal experience with racial police profiling (carding) and his rise to prominence from an immigrant family living in trying circumstances.

This won him the backing of the party establishment, which saw the installation of the first-ever person of colour as the leader of a mainstream federal party, as a means of giving the NDP an air of change, while continuing the same right-wing orientation, and of using identity politics to appeal to sections of the upper middle class.

Singhs campaign stump speech was almost entirely built around his personal narrative and peppered with invocations of his vapid love and courage mantra. His intellectual depthor lack thereofwas underscored by his pronouncement that a courtesy call from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau welcoming his leadership win was pretty cool.

In the end, Singhs first ballot victory was based on mobilizing little more than one-quarter of the partys 124,000 members. Singh secured 35,266 votes of the 65,782 votes cast.

While the campaign was touted by the party officialdom and the pseudo-leftwhich vigorously promotes the lie that the NDP is a working-class party because of its links to the pro-capitalist trade union bureaucracyas a golden opportunity to expand the NDP, less than 50,000 new members were recruited during the more than year-long leadership race. Currently the NDP has 15 percent support in the opinion polls, down from the 19 percent it secured in the disastrous 2015 election campaign.

Canadas corporate media promoted Singhs leadership bid and has enthused over his victory. John Iveson, writing in the right-wing National Post, applauded Singhs triumph last Sunday, describing the partys new leader as an Obama candidate.

This comment gives away more than Iveson perhaps intended. Obama, a well-connected figure within the Democratic Party who was promoted with hollow promises about change and hope, led a right-wing, anti-working class government which intensified the wars of his predecessor, George W. Bush, stepped up the assault on the working class by slashing workers wages in auto and other sectors, and organized the largest transfer of wealth from working people to the corporate elite in history through the bailout of Wall Street.

A Singh-led government would be no less determined to uphold Canadian capitalist interests at home and abroad. The long list of policies on his web site, within which racial and gender politics play a prominent role, studiously avoids any mention, let alone criticism, of Canadas role in supporting US military-strategic offensives around the world and of the Trudeau governments plans to hike military spending by 70 percent over the next decade and use hard power, i.e. war, to advance Canadas national interests. This is a silence that bespeaks support.

Singhs right-wing orientation earned him the enthusiastic support of wealthy NDP supporters from the trade union bureaucracy, the professions and business. Despite entering the race long after it began, Singh raised close to twice as much money as his nearest rival. Underscoring the absurdity of media attempts to portray Singh as an outsider, 77 people gave his campaign the maximum donation of $1,550 allowable under Canadian election law. Charlie Angus, his nearest rival, had just three such donations, while fellow leadership candidates Nikki Ashton and Guy Caron had none.

The only concern about Singhs leadership credentials within the NDP top brass concerned his prospects in Quebec. In 2011, when the party became the official opposition, more than half its MPs were elected from the province. Although under Mulcair the party lost badly in 2015, more than a third of the NDPs 44 MPs were elected from Quebec.

Bowing to the xenophobic and chauvinist climate whipped up in Quebec over the need to defend Quebec valueswhich has found its latest expression in the provincial Liberal governments attempt to ban Muslim women wearing the burqa or niqab from assessing health care, education and other public servicessome within the NDP have expressed doubts about Singhs ability, as a practicing, turban-wearing Sikh, to effectively campaign in the province. One Quebec NDP MP has already signaled that Singhs election as leader and opposition to Bill 62 could cause him to quit the party and align himself with the chauvinist, pro-Quebec independence Bloc Quebecois and its sister party at the provincial level, the Parti Quebecois.

The leadership race has underscored that, like social democratic parties around the world, the NDP is all but indistinguishable from its big-business political rivals and is trying to outdo them in demonstrating its loyalty to the capitalist state.

This has not stopped Canadas pseudo-left groups from claiming the NDP can be pressured into opposing austerity and even be transformed into a vehicle for fighting for socialism.

Fightback and Socialist Action officially endorsed the leadership bid of Manitoba MP Niki Ashton, promoting her as a left-winger and even socialist who would follow in the footsteps of British Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn and revive the NDP by employing reformist rhetoric more akin to that the party used in the 1960s and 1970s.

Ashton secured little more than 11,000 votes or 17 percent of the total, underscoring that for the vast majority of the NDPs membership even Ashtons tepid policies were too radical.

The main concern of Fightback and Socialist Action, whose members lead the Socialist Caucus within the NDP, is to insist that workers and young people join and build the NDP to pressure it to the left. Both groups issued statements on Singhs victory containing the bogus assertion that Ashtons campaign had pushed all the candidates to the left.

Fightback dishonestly wrote that none of the leadership candidates defended the politics of the Blairite right-wing, and nobody could be considered a Mulcair continuity candidate. All rejected austerity, and all proposed progressive taxation and wealth redistribution. Therefore, it is vital that those politicized by the Ashton leadership campaign do not lose hope and drop out of the movement. Conditions can change, and this leadership campaign has provided a great platform for the future growth of socialist politics in the party.

This is all lies, with the singular goal of preventing working people breaking once and for all from the nationalist, pro-capitalist politics of the NDP and trade unions.

Pseudo-left groups like Fightback and Socialist Action have no intention of fighting for socialism, but rather seek to shackle workers and youth to electoral and establishment politics so as to prevent the emergence of the working class as an independent political force.

This is illustrated by their continued promotion of Jeremy Corbyn as a model for Ashton and the NDP. Yet, since becoming Labour leader in 2015, Corbyn has conceded time and again to the Blairite right wing in the name of party unity, including on Britain waging war in Syria, the implementation of austerity by Labour-controlled local authorities, and the refurbishing of Britains Trident nuclear weapons program.

The true goal of Corbyn and his pseudo-left cheerleaders was revealed earlier this week, straight from the horses mouth, when Corbys closest ally and shadow Chancellor (finance minister) John McDonnell told a meeting that Labours principal goal is to stabilise capitalism.

The author recommends:

Corbyn ally John McDonnell declares Labours mission is to stabilise capitalism

[5 October 2017]

Why is Canadas pseudo-left rallying behind NDP leadership candidate Niki Ashton?

[16 September 2017]
Thailands Prime Minister General Prayuth Chan-o-cha visited President Trump at the White House on Monday night. The meeting marked the first time the Thai junta leader has been welcomed to the United States since the 2014 coup, indicating an open embrace of the repressive military regime.

Their conversations centered on strengthening military and trade relationships. Commenting before the private meeting, Prayuth stated the need for security defense cooperation, referring both to the juntas expansion of the domestic military apparatus and Washingtons need for regional alliances.

Thailand officials reaffirmed their support for Washingtons aggressive confrontation with North Korea, including the crippling UN sanctions. The Trump administration has been pressing the Thai regime to end all financial and trade relations involving North Korea. The mounting confrontation with North Korea is part of broader efforts throughout the region to undermine the influence of China, including in Thailand.

US officials have called for boosting economic relations with Thailand. Thai diplomats and corporate representatives have presented investment plans aimed at expanding financial ties and trade. In line with America First protectionism, Trump called for Thailand to import more US goods, extracting a promise from Prayuth to boost annual purchases of coal to 50,00060,000 tonnes.

Trump and Prayuth barely touched issues of democratic rights, including the juntas ongoing political repression and the militarys ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya minority in neighbouring Burma (Myanmar).

In its three years of power, the Thai junta has imposed its own constitutional rule which undermines the rights to assembly and free speech, limits access to information criticizing the government, and hands unlimited powers to the cabinet. Prayuths government has continued to delay promised national elections, while suppressing opposition and dissent.

Since the coup, at least 80 people have been tried for peaceful assembly, 27 have charged with criticizing the regime and another 56 for criticizing the royal monarchy. Over the past month, the pro-junta courts have protected those responsible for the 2010 military crackdown on protesters while imposing a five-year jail term on former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra on trumped up corruption charges. Yingluck fled overseas before the guilty verdict was handed down.

Trumps dropping of any, even nominal, criticism of the Thai juntas repressive methods and his welcoming of Prayuth to the White House will only encourage the regime to intensify its crackdown on critics and opponents. Defending Trumps actions, the right-wing think tank Heritage Foundation declared, We need to be concerned about human rights and democracy, but it cant dictate our relationships with our allies.

Trump described Washingtons relationship with Thailand as very strong... [and] getting stronger in the last nine months. The White House regards Thailand as a critical element in pulling Southeast Asian nations away from China and more firmly into the US camp. In August, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson visited Thailand, the Philippines and Malaysia to initiate the discussions on military and economic alliances. Trump plans to attend the Association of South East Asian Nations summit in November.

Trumps strengthening of ties with the Thai junta is a continuation of the policy of the previous Obama administration. During the political turmoil in 2014, the US government maintained its support of the military even as it prepared to oust Yingluck Shinawatra and her elected government.

When General Prayuth seized power and cracked down on all opposition, the Obama administration issued limited criticisms and reduced but did not cut off military ties.

The US announced an immediate suspension of $3.5 million in military aid and a reduction in military exercises, but left the most vital programs intact. Economic relations remained untouched, and, in fact, were strengthened over the last two years of Obamas time in office. Although the former administration never invited the junta leaders to the White House, it aimed to maintain and develop military relations in all possible ways.

The Obama administrations expressions of concern for democratic rights and calls for a new election were utterly cynical. As part of the pivot to Asia against China, Obama was above all concerned to assert US geostrategic, political, and economic interests in a counter-offensive against Chinas growing economic and military influence.

Like other countries in the region, Thailand has sought to balance between the US and China. The Thai military, however, has longstanding connections with the US. In the wake of the reduction in American military aid, Thailand increased its military ties with China, causing concern in the United States, Japan, and ASEAN.

Trump has dropped the cosmetic facade of human rights and cautious language as he seeks to strengthen relations with the Thai military regime. His welcoming of the coup leader Prayuth to the White House underscores the administrations embrace of authoritarianism and militarism both at home and abroad.
Dane Cook, Bob Saget and Larry the Cable Guy are mourning the loss of their friend Ralphie May.

The comedian died after suffering cardiac arrest on Friday in Las Vegas. He was 45. Following news of his death, celebrities took to social media to express their condolences.

"Whoa... man.. this sucks. Ralphie was a good guy & a very funny person," Cook tweeted. "Condolences to his family & fans."

RELATED: Comedian Ralphie May Dead at 45 After Cardiac Arrest

"Ralphie May. Dammit. You were a funny and sweet mofo man. Rest In Peace," Saget wrote on Twitter.

Larry the Cable Guy also shared kind words about his friend, tweeting, "Oh man fellow comedian and friend Ralphie May just died. So crazy. RIP Ralphie. You my friend were one of the nicest and kindest out there."

Ken Jeong also expressed his sadness over losing his good friend.

"This hurts too much. @Ralphie_May helped me so much. Rest In Peace. Thank you for all the love you have given me. Thank you for everything," he tweeted, adding, "@Ralphie_May helped get me in @TheLaughFactory. He didnt know me at all and after he saw my set he told Jamie Masada to have me onboard. @Ralphie_May introduced me to @jaymohr37 and I was their opening act at @TheIrvineImprov, still my favorite week of standup of my career. .@Ralphie_May was genuinely the nicest most encouraging person you could meet. Always unconditional love from him."

PICS: Stars We've Lost in 2017

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Harvey Weinstein and Georgina Chapman in the Hamptons on Aug. 12. (Photo: Patrick McMullan/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)

Harvey Weinstein is in full-on damage-control mode following Thursdays report, which accuses the powerful producer of multiple incidences of sexual harassment and misconduct.

The New York Times claims Weinsteins inappropriate behavior has spanned nearly three decades and hes been married to Georgina Chapmen for the past 10 years. However, the 64-year-old Oscar-winning producer says his wife is standing by him.

She stands 100 percent behind me, Weinstein tells the New York Post. Georgina and I have talked about this at length. We went out with [my attorney] Lisa Bloom last night when we knew the article was coming out. Georgina will be with Lisa and others kicking my ass to be a better human being and to apologize to people for my bad behavior, to say Im sorry, and to absolutely mean it.

Weinstein may be considered an industry power player, but his wife is no wallflower. So who is Georgina Chapman? If youre not familiar with her, here are seven things to know about the English fashion designer.

1. Shes the co-founder of Marchesa: Chapman, 41, is also a designer for the high-fashion label. She co-founded Marchesa with her close friend Keren Craig, with whom she attended the Chelsea College of Art & Design in her late teens. While studying there, Chapmans interests shifted from fine art to high fashion. Celebrities Jennifer Lopez, Heidi Klum, Sandra Bullock, and Sofia Vergara all count themselves as fans of the brand. Blake Lively even wore Marchesa when she wed Ryan Reynolds.

When you see her beautiful work, you feel like youre witnessing a craft that doesnt exist any longer, Lively reflected to Vogue. The only designer that really makes you feel like a princess is Marchesa.

@jessicarose617 s KILLER details A post shared by Blake Lively (@blakelively) on Oct 2, 2016 at 4:25pm PDT

2. Weinstein and Chapmen started dating in 2005: The pair met at a party in 2004 but didnt date right away. Chapman told Vogue, I had no idea who he was.  Hes not a person you can sort of ignore or brush off. Hes incredibly charming and so charismatic, it sort of draws you in.

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Unlike her husband, shes really nice, Weinstein chimed in, talking about himself in the third person. People will believe that, trust me. Sometimes people dont associate people who look like that with compassion and that kind of kindness  but thats who she is more than anyone else.

The pair had a star-studded wedding in 2007, tying the knot in Connecticut in front of celebs like Lopez, Cameron Diaz, Renee Zellweger, and Naomi Watts. The couple went on to have two kids, daughter India, now 7, and son Dashiell, now 4.

3. Chapman credits motherhood with making her more successful: When speaking to Forbes about her success, Chapman admitted she absolutely thought about not returning to work but found postpregnancy Im not an organized person by nature, but I became very, very focused, she told the publication. It changed the way I approach work.

Chapman shared with Forbes that being a working mom is something I wrestle with every day. She added: But I feel pride, too, because the kids talk about what theyre going to do when they grow up. They dont see any difference between my hubby and myself in terms of career. I think its a very empowering thing for a daughter to see her mother independent, working and having a voice. My mother gave up work when she had me. Shed been a journalist in the British film industry. That was very powerful, too, seeing a strong woman at home. Both situations work. I truly believe if youre a happy mother, youre a better mother.

A post shared by Georgina Chapman (@georginachapmanmarchesa) on Jul 6, 2017 at 1:27am PDT

4. Marchesas breakout moment has Weinstein roots: Marchesa made its debut on the red carpet in 2004, when the label was worn by one of the biggest names in Hollywood at the time, Renee Zellweger. Fresh off an Oscar win for her performance in Cold Mountain  a Weinstein-backed film  Zellweger donned an embellished red bandeau dress for the premiere of Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason. At this point, Marchesa was a no-name brand, and Chapman and Craig were running their business out of a flat in West London.

Renee Zellweger in Marchesa. (Photo: Getty Images)

Maybe I helped, but just very, very little, with Renee Zellweger, Weinstein  who had met Chapman only months before  told Vogue. That same year, Cate Blanchett showed up at The Aviator premiere (another film Weinsten produced) in a Marchesa dress, firmly putting the brand on the map.

At the time, the Los Angeles Times quipped, Marchesas breathtaking success has the fashion world talking  and rolling its eyes, too. Just how much of that success, observers wonder, is due to the Harvey Factor?

Chapmans getting the last laugh on that one.

5. Shes incredibly close with her family: When asked by Forbes what or who can you not live without? the designer had a telling response.

My mom, my girlfriends, my husband, she said. I went to college to learn to be a designer. I didnt go to college to learn to be a mother, and I feel like thats the one you dont want to get wrong! For me, its all about having the right people around. My husband is so supportive. My mother is so supportive. My brother is my CEO. My best friend is my business partner. I have a wonderful woman who helps me with the kids. I have the most incredible, loyal team. It just wouldnt be possible without them.

6. Charity is important to her: Chapman is very involved with the nonprofit Magic Bus, whose mission is to help educate and improve the lives of local children in communities in India. The goal is to create youth leaders while utilizing the power of play. Magic Bus works with local partners to educate and employ these youth, maximizing their potential and breaking the cycle of poverty.

Thank you @vogueindia for joining me on this incredible journey with @magicbususa!!! To learn more about this amazing organization, head to www.magicbususa.org! #magicbus #india #marchesa A post shared by Georgina Chapman (@georginachapmanmarchesa) on Sep 8, 2017 at 3:17pm PDT

7. Chapmans motto is Never say never to anything: During her Forbes interview, Chapman shared that motto, adding, You just dont know whats around the corner. Thats the wonderful thing about life: Who knows what the future holds?

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Meet the very good dogs who flew to Las Vegas to comfort mass shooting survivors

Not all trauma can be seen, so it takes a special kind of help in order to heal.

When victims of attacks like the shooting in Las Vegas are recovering, they are often left with many emotional and mental wounds, as well as physical ones, that also need support so they can truly process their experience.

And one great source of comfort is a supportive hug from a golden retriever.

The day after the attack, The LCC-K9 comfort dogs, backed by the Lutheran Church Charities, announced they were headed to Las Vegas to help heal the injured survivors.

We are on our way to #LasVegas following the shootings Please give to our Travel fund by visiting https://t.co/Pzb65ERGhX #VegasStrong #dogs pic.twitter.com/YmHldhM23A  LCC K9 Comfort Dogs (@K9ComfortDogs) October 2, 2017

Related article: A heroic dog named Frida is saving lives in Mexico after the earthquake

The nine trained dogs visited hospitals to provide therapeutic comfort to survivors and attended candlelight vigils for those who did not survive the attack. Therapy dogs are often used as part of mental health services.

The benefits of therapy dogs are extremely well documented. There is also an ongoing program to place therapy dogs with veterans who are struggling with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), known as Pets for Vets.

Related article: This dad was wounded saving dozens during the Las Vegas shooting

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Tim Hetzner, founder of the K-9 Comfort Dog Ministries, told ABC news,

[The dogs are] unconditional, confidential, and safe. Dogs have an incredible sense of when somebody is hurting. Theyll just come and lay themselves into somebodys lap.

Related article: Meet the heroic hotel security guard who helped catch the Las Vegas shooter

While its certainly not a replacement for other mental health services, a furry pup in your lap can certainly give great comfort in times of tragedy.

Lets hope they got plenty of treats for a job well done.

This article originally appeared in Travelandleisure.com
Three men face charges of terrorism in an alleged plot to attack New York City during the summer of 2016, the acting Manhattan U.S. Attorney announced Friday.

Abdulrahaman El Bahnasawy, 19, Talha Haroon, 19, and Russell Salic, 37, are accused of plotting bombings and shootings in parts of New York City during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan last year, according to a release from the Department of Justice. The men allegedly plotted the attacks in the name of ISIS. They planned to bomb Times Square and the subway system, and to shoot civilians at specific concert venues.

According to the DOJ, law enforcement thwarted the plot when an undercover FBI agent acted as an ISIS supporter and communicated with the men with an intent to help them carry out the attacks. Through the undercover agent, authorities determined that the men intended to carry out terror attacks in the style of the attacks in Paris and Brussels.

El Bahnasawy, who was arrested in May 2016, has pled guilty to terrorism offenses. Haroon was arrested in Pakistan last September and Salic was arrested in the Philippines. Authorities said they hope the two men will be extradited the the U.S.
PureWow

King Charles is taking on yet another important role that was previously held by his late father, Prince Philip. This week, the royal family released a brand-new portrait of the monarch, as he officially takes on the role of Park Ranger of Windsor Great Park. In the photograph, His Majesty is standing next to a giant oak tree in an open field while the sun shines brightly. King Charles looks like a whole new man in the pic and is dressed in a camel-colored suit and holding a cane in his hand. Vi
The National Rifle Association surprised many Thursday when it said it is open to regulations on the bump stocks that allowed the Las Vegas shooter to fire into a crowd at a rapid clip. But the organizations grassroots supporters remain fiercely skeptical of new gun restrictions.

In interviews with TIME this week, people who have donated small amounts to the NRAs political victory fund said that the massacre at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas did not change their mind that restrictions on guns wont make people safer.

If we are going to talk about gun control, in my opinion what we need to talk about is punishment for the misuse of any tool or weapon, said Richard Shackleton. Look how many people [have been] killed in cars or buses. Dont single out guns because theyre an easy target.

These grassroots supporters form the bedrock of the NRAs political power. In 2017 alone, over 3,000 individuals contributed to the victory fund, which has raised over $4 million.These donors come from all 50 states and include carpenters, truck drivers, attorneys, doctors, real estate agents, just to name a few. Often, these contributions are small;92 percent of the donations in 2017 were below $200.

After the Las Vegas shooting, TIME contacted 56 small-dollar donors to the NRA to see if their opinions had shifted. Only seven were willing to speak on the record. These donors, all of whom represent different geographic regions of the United States, said Las Vegas was a horrifying tragedy. They were not angry with the NRA for Thursdays announcement supporting restricting bump stocks, although one expressed some trepidation that it could lead to more rules. Some were supportive of other regulations like background checks.

But they were universally adamant about preserving their ability to obtain and carry weapons; if anything, Sundays attack only intensified these beliefs. And, as TIME explained in its cover story this week, their arguments were hardly ever about weapons, but about preserving the Constitution and their own independence from the government.

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Here is what these donors had to say.

Richard Shackleton, 84, Long Beach Township, New Jersey

A life member of the NRA, Shackleton is an attorney in Long Branch, New Jersey who has run his own practice for over 50 years. He keeps guns, he says, to hunt and birds, but also protect himself and his family, but also believes the right to bear arms was crucial to the founding of the United States and remains so today.

Without the provision of the Second Amendment, without the fact that the colonists had a right to keep arms, we would be singing Hail Victoria and saluting the British flag, he said. He also noted that citizens in countries where guns were banned, like Germany and Italy in the 1930s, ended up succumbing to tyranny. The fact is that armed people are a free people, he said.

Although Shackleton has no opposition to background checks, he does not agree with the argument that the attack in Las Vegas showcases the need for tighter regulation. All the gun control laws in the world would not have prevented a man from smuggling firearms up to  a room in the hotel, shooting out the window, breaking the window and peppering people in the streets below.

Ginny Rapini, 70, Colfax, California

Rapini, who is the coordinator of the northern California Tea Party chapter, donates to the NRA on a monthly basis and has a concealed weapon permit, which she said she acquired after she received death threats for her role in a lawsuit against the IRS. Like Shackleton, she strongly believes the Second Amendment was written as a form of democratic protection. Any regulations that would impede this language, she believes, would ultimately impede democracy.

Our founders know governments are run by humans and there are times when we see governments outstep enumerated powers and its up to the people to be able to protect themselves against the government, she said.

Rapini had friends who were at the Route 91 Harvest Festival when Paddock began firing into the crowd. They escaped and were physically unscathed, but are mentally shaken. Its evil, its darkness, she said of the attack. But she said, this does not change her view about establishing new gun regulations. She also said there was more focus on the guns than the shooter, even though the Las Vegas Police Department has been giving daily briefings to the media about the ongoing investigation into Paddock and his motive.

You cant legislate peoples hearts and minds. If he didnt have guns to do what he was gonna do he had explosives, she said. The interesting thing to me is every time there is a shooter like this the guns are blamed, not the shooter.

Arly Richau, 67, Scottsdale, Arizona

Richau is now an attorney in one of the wealthiest town in Arizona, but grew up hunting in North Dakota, a sport he started learning at age 5. Today, he owns an estimated 50 guns, which he uses for shooting as a sport. I can use it to defend myself its a great investment, and its fun to use. Can you think of anything that is better than that? he asked rhetorically.

He says he understands the meaning of the Second Amendment can evolve. When they said the right to bear arms should not be infringed  know its not that simple, they [the framers of the Constitution] clearly meant the right to defend ones self, he explained. But he thinks the status quo for gun regulations is adequate, although he agrees with the NRA about restricting bump stocks.

Passing a law provides a false sense of safety and security which is even worse, Richau said. My concern for my safety has gone up not down. I am really glad I have the weapons I do in case I get in a bad situation.

Philip Baker 55, Batesville, Arkansas

Baker is a pharmacist from Arkansas who says he uses guns to hunt, fish and protect his family. He said he was a little surprised by the NRAs announcement supporting regulations for bump stock devices Thursday. All of these politicians I think are feeding into the narrative that they want the public to feel as though theyre doing something he said. And I dont think there is any gun legislation that they could have done or they can put in place that would have stopped this maniac in Las Vegas from carrying out his agenda.

But while he said he didnt necessarily expect the NRAs announcement on Thursday, he did think there was a positive aspect. Based on the tragedy that just happened I feel good that they are taking a step towards taking a look at things that might stop it from happening again even though I dont think it would stop it.

John Goglia, Saugus, Massachusetts

Goglia is likely one of only a handful Americans who supports Planned Parenthood as well as the NRA, because both organizations try to block federal intervention. Theres government interference in everything we do, he said.

His support for the right to own a gun is rooted, like many others, in his belief in the Cconstitution. Bill of Rights is like a jigsaw puzzle and each piece fits perfectly with the other one and they all support each other, he explained. He supports background checks and is adamant that people with a criminal past should be prohibited from gun ownership.

But past shootings have not played a role in shaping these views, and Las Vegas is no exception. Nothing could have stopped Paddock from getting a weapon, he said, and calling for gun control now is politicizing the issue.

Theres a litany of people just [have] a knee-jerk reaction, he said. Before we even knew what was happening we got people calling for changing the laws.

Chris Puckett, Edmund, Oklahoma

Puckett, 67, owns a towing business, which has been in his family for generations.

To me, the Second Amendment really protects all the others, he said. Look at Hitler  they confiscated the guns and then took over everything. It happened time and time again through countries. He donates to the NRA to ensure legislators support Second Amendment rights, and the organizations announcement Thursday concerned him that it would set a precedent. Once you start that slide where do you quit?

Although Puckett is opposed to gun regulations because they are explicitly laid out in the constitution, when pressed if he was opposed to any regulations, he acknowledged that was a fine line and didnt have a problem with the regulation of automatic rifles.

But the problem is, he said, once you let the camels nose in your tent, the camel will end up in the tent.
(Photo: Robby Klein via Getty Images)

Andy Signore, the creator of the popular video series, Honest Trailers and the website Screen Junkies is now suspended from the parent company Defy Media after multiple women came forward on Twitter Friday accusing him of sexual harassment.

The allegations came after the New York Times published a bombshell report about a series of sexual harassment settlements involving Hollywood power broker and film executive Harvey Weinstein. Since then, women throughout the industry have been coming forward to tell their own stories of abuse.

Emmas Bowers, a former intern for Signore, and April Dawn, the girlfriend of one of his employees, accused the film director of sexual harassment. Bowers was the first to post her story to Twitter on Friday, with Dawn and two other women following suit.

Defy Media released this statement on Friday about Signores suspension:

We have been conducting a thorough investigation into allegations made against Andy Signore and are preparing to respond to those allegations and take appropriate action. Given the additional statements that were made today, we feel it is necessary to suspend Andys employment while we continue our investigation. We will take all necessary action once the investigation is fully complete.

Dawn, who was also once a candidate for a position with the company, accused Signore of sexual assault on Twitter.

After a series of tweets about their encounters, she released this longer statement accusing the companys HR department of covering for Signore.

A more detailed statement on the harassment I received from Andy Signore. pic.twitter.com/wVGwr8ATCa  AprilDawn OfThe Dead (@April13Dawn) October 6, 2017

Bowers, the former intern for Screen Junkies, claimed Signore propositioned masturbating in front of her.

Signore allegedly began making the inappropriate comments after he saw one of Bowers amateur pinup photos she posted. Bowers said she felt pressured to keep silent because she was an aspiring costume designer who didnt want to ruin an opportunity.

Story continues

You must think Im so silly lol jacking it to you in your undies, Bowers recounted. Haha, thats so funny to say that to a girl whos your intern.

Anyway, heres the whole story about how the @screenjunkies guy wanted to jack off in front of me pic.twitter.com/wpKlXT2fgN  An Emerican Werewolf (@EmmaBowers) October 6, 2017

After the first two accusations hit the internet, multiple women posted their own stories or sent them privately to Dawn. They have posted screenshots of communications with Signore and detailed similar encounters with the married Honest Trailers creator.

Honest Trailers just won a Streamy Award in September for a collaboration with Ryan Reynolds. The series has also earned multiple Emmy nominations. The premise of these videos is typically to spoof popular movie trailers by talking about the unsavory details the studios wouldnt want you to focus on. This often means highlighting poor scriptwriting or tabloid news surrounding the stars.

In 2016, Honest Trailers made a video for the Ghostbusters reboot that had the sexist line, These Ghostbusters have no dick  or chemistry. The comment section was disabled on YouTube. We thought it might spur some press, Signore told The Wrap about avoiding the comments.

HuffPost reached out to Signore about the allegations, but did not immediately hear back.

Doha Madani contributed to the reporting.

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Nine months after the publication of an explosive and salacious dossier detailing allegations of collusion between President Donald Trump and Russia, its claimsthough largely unverified and vehemently denied by those involvedare the subject of intense scrutiny. Indeed, the investigation into the document compiled by a former British intelligence operative, Christopher Steele, has only increased in scale.

Related: Trump-Russia golden shower dossier is now being investigated by Special Counsel Robert Mueller

According to reports in recent days, not only has the investigation of the document been turned over to the man leading the Trump-Russia probe, but Special Counsel Robert Muellers team recently met with Steele. Trump may have called it totally made-up facts by sleazebag political operatives, but it is clear it is not going anywhere anytime soon, and continue to plays an important role in the wider investigation into allegations concerning Russias interference in the 2016 election. Heres what you need to know:

How Did it Come About?

Congressional committees have been keen to discover the answer to that very question. Delivering an update on the Senate Intelligence Committee investigation Wednesday, Chairman Richard Burr said the panel cannot decide the credibility of the dossier without first knowing its sources and financers. Various reports, however, have been consistent that the dossier was first paid for by anti-Trump Republicans and then Democrats took over its financing as the 2016 election campaign progressed.

Who Compiled it?

The U.S.-based research firm Fusion GPS hired Steele, a former MI6 spy, to compile the dossier. During his stint with the British intelligence agency, Steele spent time working under diplomatic cover in Moscow toward the end of the Cold War. He was said by British news reports to be a Russian expert who worked on the high-profile investigation into the 2006 death of former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko in London. After leaving MI6 in 2009, Steele founded a London-based private intelligence firm. Intelligence historian Nigel West, who worked with Steele, described him as James Bond.

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Trump

Ron Sachs - Pool/Getty Images

Whats in the Dossier?

The 35-page dossier is a collection of memos concerning Russias attempts to interfere in the 2016 election and claims that the country has been supporting Trump for at least five years. While it notes that Trump had rejected several Russian business deals proposed in order to curry favor with the then-presidential candidate, it says his campaign did accept information on his opponents. More specifically, it alleges contact between Russian officials and a member of the Trump campaign, notably that Trumps personal lawyer Michael Cohen helped facilitate the arrangements.

What caught most peoples eyes when the dossier was published by Buzzfeed News in January, though, were the more salacious allegations. Although Steeles findings assert that Russia attempted to collect compromising material on both Trump and his 2016 opponent Hillary Clinton, the Kremlin is said to have been far more successful in its attempts regarding the Republican candidate. Indeed, the dossier claims that the Russian FSB spy agency possesses a video of Trump successfully requesting prostitutes to urinate on a bed while staying in a Moscow hotel room once occupied by the former president and first lady, Barack and Michelle Obama.

Is it True?

There have certainly been plenty of vehement denials. Trump has on multiple occasions ridiculed both the dossiers findings and its author, who the president called a failed spy. Cohen sent a letter to Congress in August strongly denying the allegations made against him, although he did not mention the personal claims made against the president. And this week three Russians named in the dossier filed a lawsuit in Washington claiming their reputations had been ruined by the claims.

But there is growing evidence that investigators are taking the dossier far more seriously than was initially believed. Although the particular claim that saw the report nicknamed the golden shower," or pee tape, dossier has not been verified, the intelligence community has corroborated the broad assertion about Russias attempts to interfere in the election, CNN has reported. Officials have also agreed that the communication between non-Americans contained in the report did in fact take place. What Trump has called fake news would appear to be, at least in part, far more real.

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Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-06 03:23:45|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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GENEVA, Oct. 5 (Xinhua) -- Switzerland has the highest gun ownership rates per capita among its neighbors and other Western countries, but mass shootings are rare, local media reported Thursday.

This was highlighted in Swissinfo, the website of the Swiss national broadcaster, after the mass shooting in Las Vegas in Nevada, the United States claimed the lives of 59 people and wounded hundreds of others this week.

In Switzerland there is a strong belief in the right to bear arms and the need for a militia army, just as there is in the United States. But mass shootings are rare with two such incidents in the last 20 years.

However, the news site reports that recent votes and agreements with the European Union have launched debates over who may own which types of guns, and the risks involved.

Last month, the Swiss cabinet presented what was described as a "light" version of the EU firearms legislation for consultation.

Under it only certain types of semi-automatic weapons -- such as those with magazines capable of holding more than 20 rounds of ammunition -- and certain high-capacity shoulder-supported guns would be banned.

Their Swiss plan excludes medical or psychological tests for firearm owners and participation in central arms register that is now part of new EU laws.

And although Switzerland has an image of being a safe country, statistics show the country has among the higher gun death rates in Western Europe.

Switzerland's higher gun death rate can be largely attributed to suicide with guns, since the latest available statistics show a gun suicide rate of 2.74 per 100,000 people, only slightly below the overall gun death rate of 3.01.

Fully automatic weapons are banned except for military purposes, as are most semi-automatic firearms that were once fully automatic.

Swissinfo notes that Switzerland has for some time had some of the most lax gun laws in Europe.

All Swiss have a right to possess firearms under the law but may require a license to do so.

For example, those looking to acquire a handgun need a permit valid for a maximum of nine months. However, no license is needed to possess firearms for hunting or sport.

Since Switzerland has a militia army, members of its military may keep an unloaded service weapons at home. The ammunition is, however, strictly regulated by the army.
View inside the nursery in Janauba, Minas Gerais State - AFP

A Brazilian nursery school guard burned six small children and a teacher to death after spraying them with alcohol and setting them alight on Thursday in an attack which has horrified the nation, said emergency services.

Dozens of people were also hurt in the blaze while the guard, who was reported to be mentally ill, died after succumbing to his own burn injuries.

The tragedy occurred in a modest quarter of Janauba, a city of 70,000 about 600km (370 miles) north of Belo Horizonte.

The nursery school was called "Innocent People."

A victim of the fire is admitted to hospital in Monte Claros Credit: O Tempo via AFP

The initial death toll of four rose to six when two badly burned children died, according to news reports which quoted fire officials.

Janauba's mayor decreed seven days of mourning.

About 50 people were hospitalised with injuries, said Bruno Ataide Santos, director of the local hospital.

Hours later, 10 people remained hospitalised in serious condition.

The guard, identified as 50-year-old Damiao Soares dos Santos, was taken to hospital, suffering from burns, and later died, Mr Santos told AFP.

Damiao Soares, the security guard alleged to have set fire to the children in the nursery in Brazil Credit: Caters News Agency

About 80 children were in the nursery school when the attack occurred, prompting terrified parents to rush to the school, where they found one classroom reduced to ashes.

"As the creche is near our house we heard noise and rushed over," Nelson de Jesus Silva, the father of one victim, told Globonews TV.

"My little girl was so good, so smart," he said of his dead daughter Ana Clara Ferreira.

Grief also struck Jane Kelly, the mother of Juan Miguel Soares.

About 80 children were in the nursery school when the attack occurred Credit: AFP

"I was thinking of changing nursery schools because we are preparing to move. I woke him up early to bring him here and when I saw him again he was dead in the hospital," Kelly said between sobs.

The dead children were aged four, the G1 news site reported.

Police visited the home of the suspect and his family members to try to determine a motive.

But police superintendent Renato Nunes told the website of the Hoje em Dia newspaper that the guard had had mental health problems since 2014.

Story continues

The guard had worked nights for at least eight years at the nursery school, where he was not directly in contact with the children.

People wait for news outside Janauba's hospital Credit: AFP

Janauba's mayor Carlos Isaildon Mendes said an even greater tragedy was narrowly averted.

"This could have been worse because the babies' room was in the hall next door. Evacuation would have been more difficult. As the children were bigger a lot of them were able to escape," the mayor explained.

Police searched the guard's home and found many jugs of alcohol. He reportedly told his family this week - which includes the anniversary of the death of his father - that he was going to give a "gift" to them and that he would die.

Brazil's president Michel Temer expressed his condolences on Twitter.

"I am deeply saddened by this tragedy involving children in Janauba, and I want to express my solidarity with the families," Mr Temer wrote.

As the father of a school-age child, Mr Temer said he understood "this must be an extremely painful loss" for the parents.
The call is said to have required all the available vehicles of the Military Fire Brigade in Janauba

At least four children are reported to have been killed after a security guard allegedly set fire to a nursery in Brazil.

The guard then set himself alight at the municipal nursery, reports local newspaper O Globo.

At least one teacher is said to have been injured in the blaze, which took place in the city of Januauba in Minas Gerais state in the south-east of the country. In total 40 people have been taken to hospital, with at least 25 being treated for burns. Most of the victims are children aged four or five.

Some of the most severely injured children have been airlifted to a specialist burns unit in Belo Horizonte, the state capital.

The security guard has been named by police as Damiao Soares dos Santos, 50. According to O Globe, he had recently been sacked by the nursery. Police said he had died in hospital of his injuries.

Emergency services are said to have been called at around 9:40 am local time on Thursday. The call was said to be of "serious occurrence" and required all the available vehicles of the Military Fire Brigade in Janauba.

Impossivel precisar numeros, mas o caos reina nas ruas de Janauba pic.twitter.com/f4g9bNTiSt  Lucas Felix (@lucasfelix) October 5, 2017

Footage from outside the school shows parents panicking and in disarray while clutching their children.

The Regional Hospital of Janauba is believed to be treating victims of the fire.

The children are being transferred to the pediatric area, and the adults are being treated here, Helton Ricardo Mendes, the care director of the unit, told the publication.
London (AFP) - British Prime Minister Theresa May is to meet business chiefs on Monday in a bid to reassure them that the Brexit process is on track, following a bruising week for her leadership.

A plot to oust her by around 30 MPs in her Conservative Party went public on Friday, but cabinet colleagues refused to join the push.

The plot came after her showpiece speech to the centre-right party's annual conference on Wednesday -- intended to steady her leadership -- was plagued by mishaps.

A prankster managed to hand her an unemployment notice, a persistent cough left her almost unable to deliver her speech, while the set behind her started falling down.

Monday's business meeting at May's Downing Street office will come as British and European Union negotiators resume talks in Brussels in the hope of a breakthrough in the Brexit negotiations.

"Last month in Florence I set out my vision for a bold and unique new economic partnership with the EU," May said.

"We are working hard to achieve this and are optimistic about our future as a global, free-trading nation.

"The Business Advisory Council is an important part of our preparations for leaving the EU -- allowing us to seek the views of experienced business leaders and to share with them the government's vision for a successful Brexit."

May will be joined by finance minister Philip Hammond and Brexit secretary David Davis for the council meeting.

Representatives from firms including Aston Martin, HSBC, Morgan Stanley and Vodafone will be among those attending.

Balfour Beatty, WPP, GSK, Bridgewater, JCB, EY, Whitbread, Nestle and ABF are also due to take part.

Britain's pound sterling currency tumbled on Friday as the plot cast fresh doubt over May's future.

May's Florence speech offered concessions, but pressure remains on the negotiators to make progress and reduce the uncertainty for citizens and businesses in Britain and Europe.

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EU leaders are set to decide at a summit on October 19 whether there has been "sufficient progress" on three issues: Britain's exit bill, the fate of Northern Ireland, and the rights of three million EU citizens living in Britain.

If they fail to agree then, the next chance will not be until a summit in December, with the clock ticking to reach a final deal before Britain formally leaves the bloc on March 29, 2019.

Britain voted to leave the EU in a shock referendum result in June 2016.
The devices are sold out or temporarily unavailable from all the largest gun and ammunition retailers as Congress considers banning the rifle modification

Clark Aposhian, chairman of the Utah Shooting Sports Council, demonstrates how a bump stock works when attached to a semi-automatic rifle on Wednesday in South Jordan, Utah. Photograph: Rick Bowmer/AP

Bump stocks are selling out across America as momentum gathers in Congress to ban the rifle modification used by the Las Vegas shooter to obtain catastrophically high rates of fire.

The devices are sold out or temporarily unavailable from all the largest gun and ammunition retailers in the US, as fear of an impending ban has sent many gun enthusiasts hoarding.

Will I be able to order sometime soon? I want to get one before there is a push to make them illegal, one commenter posted on the Facebook page of Bump Fire Systems, one of three major US manufacturers of the devices. The companys website had been down for more than two days citing high traffic volume.

I ordered mines [sic] the night the mass shootings happened. I hope I still get it, another wrote.

I dont even have the gun for it, but I want the stock just to have it down the line, said Pennsylvania gun owner Zack Cernok, according to the New York Times. I just like the idea of them and want to see how it feels and if its worth it  for $100, its almost not a bad investment to buy it, try it out and sell it if I dont like it.



Major online sporting good retailers like Cabelas, Cheaper Than Dirt and Walmart were all sold out of the devices as of Thursday morning. Slide Fire, the first and largest manufacturer of the devices reported on its website that it had decided to temporarily suspend taking new orders.

The increase in sales mirrors that of guns as a whole after recent mass shootings, as gun enthusiasts respond to usually unfounded fears of imminent gun control legislation by stocking up on their arsenals.



Fully automatic firearms, which fire continuously as long as a guns trigger remains pressed, are, in virtually all cases, illegal to purchase and own in the US. Semi-automatic weapons, where a shooter must pull the trigger for each successive shot, however are abundant in both handgun and rifle forms.

Story continues

The bump stock devices blur this distinction by using the weapons own kickback to bounce the gun back and forth against the shooters shoulder, while stabilizing their finger against the trigger to achieve multiple trigger pulls in rapid succession.

The Slide Fire simply allows you to shoot as fast as you want to, said inventor Jeremiah Cottle, while promoting his device in 2011.

This action allows bump stocks to replicate the speed of a fully automatic rifle, but because the motion involves essentially shaking the whole firearm they dramatically reduce accuracy. Until now, this has limited their popularity with gun enthusiasts who commonly regard the device as a novelty or a toy.

Complete waste of costly ammunition, one reviewer said in a post from 2015. You wouldnt want to use one in a real self-defense or battle situation. If I want to hear a whole lot of rapid fire bangs, Ill set off a string of firecrackers.

The NRA, which as a matter of principle objects to virtually any law restricting the ownership of firearms or their accessories, does not allow the bump stock devices to be used at their own firing range, Politico reported Thursday.

Stephen Paddock used the devices to devastating effect in his massacre on Sunday night, killing 58 people from his hotel suite window in the Nevada gambling capital.

Senior congressional Republicans have suggested they are open to considering legislation banning the devices, despite their usual hard line against any gun control measures.



I own a lot of guns, and as a hunter and sportsman, I think thats our right as Americans, but I dont understand the use of this bump stock, Senator John Cornyn of Texas, the number two Republican in the Senate, said on Wednesday.

ON Thursday morning on MSNBC the House speaker, Paul Ryan, added: Clearly thats something we need to look into.

But for now, it remains legal and hard to obtain  creating a scarcity that is driving up the price in secondhand channels. The devices are currently selling for around 200% of retail on the private auction site GunBroker.com.
(LAS VEGAS)  Investigators are looking into whether gunman Stephen Paddock scoped out bigger music festivals in Las Vegas and Chicago  and perhaps Bostons Fenway Park  before setting up his perch in a casino hotel and raining deadly fire on country music fans.

Paddock booked rooms overlooking the Lollapalooza festival in Chicago in August and the Life Is Beautiful show near the Vegas Strip in late September, according to authorities reconstructing his movements before he undertook the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history.

It was not clear if he aborted plans to carry out massacres at those sites.

Investigators looking into Paddock also came across mention of Fenway Park, Boston police Lt. Detective Mike McCarthy said, though he provided no further details.

The details came to light as investigators struggled to figure out why the high-stakes gambler opened fire on a crowd of 22,000 Sunday night from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay hotel casino in Las Vegas. He killed 58 people and injured nearly 500 before taking his own life.

A U.S. official said authorities are looking into the possibility Paddock planned additional attacks, including a car bomb. The official wasnt authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

Authorities previously disclosed Paddock had 1,600 rounds of ammunition in his car, along with fertilizer that can be used to make explosives and 50 pounds of Tannerite, a substance used in explosive rifle targets.

Investigators have been combing through his background but remain stumped as to his motive.

The profile developed so far is of a disturbed and dangerous man who acquired an arsenal over decades, Sheriff Joseph Lombardo said. But investigators have been frustrated to find that he lived a secret life, Lombardo said, much of which will never be fully understood.

In other developments:

 In a rare concession on gun control, the National Rifle Association announced its support Thursday for regulating bump stocks, attachments that can effectively convert semi-automatic rifles into fully automated weapons. Paddock apparently used such devices during the bloodbath.

Story continues

 The coroners office in Las Vegas would not release details of its autopsy on Paddock. Some behavioral experts have wondered whether the 64-year-old Paddock suffered from some kind of brain abnormality or had a terminal illness that prompted him to lash out.

The weekend before the massacre, he rented a room through Airbnb at the 21-story Ogden condominiums in downtown Las Vegas and stayed there during a music festival below that included Chance the Rapper, Muse, Lorde and Blink-182.

Reasons that ran through Paddocks mind is unknown, but it was directly at the same time as Life Is Beautiful, the sheriff said.

Police were reviewing video shot at the high-rise to check Paddocks movements. His renting the condo was curious because as a high-roller, he could have easily gotten a free room at one of the casino hotels on the Vegas Strip.

In early August, Paddock booked a room at Chicagos 21-story Blackstone Hotel that overlooked the park where the Lollapalooza alternative music festival was being held, though theres no evidence he actually stayed there, a law enforcement official said Thursday.

The official was not authorized to discuss the case publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity after being briefed on the investigation.

The hotel confirmed a Stephen Paddock made a reservation but said he never checked in.

Lollapalooza draws hundreds of thousands of music fans every year to Grant Park.

Although Paddock killed himself as a SWAT team closed in, the sheriff said it appeared he had planned to survive and had an escape plan. Lombardo would not elaborate on the plan.
President Donald Trump wants anti-Trump late-night television hosts to give Republicans equal screen time on their shows.

Late Night host [sic] are dealing with the Democrats for their very unfunny & repetitive material, always anti-Trump! the President tweeted Saturday morning. Should we get Equal Time?

More and more people are suggesting that Republicans (and me) should be given Equal Time on T.V. when you look at the one-sided coverage? Trump added in a second tweet.

Late Night host are dealing with the Democrats for their very "unfunny" & repetitive material, always anti-Trump! Should we get Equal Time?  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2017

More and more people are suggesting that Republicans (and me) should be given Equal Time on T.V. when you look at the one-sided coverage?  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2017

Late Night host Seth Meyers fired back a reply not long after Trumps tweets, writing: Wed love to have you! Studio located at 15 Penguin Avenue, Antarctica.

We'd love to have you! Studio located at 15 Penguin Avenue, Antarctica. https://t.co/2MyQTYwecZ  Seth Meyers (@sethmeyers) October 7, 2017

Not long after, Jimmy Kimmel had some thoughts, tweeting at Trump: Excellent point Mr. President! You should quit that boring job  Ill let you have my show ALL to yourself #MAGA.

Kimmels reply prompted a response from the Presidents son, Donald Trump Jr. Thoughts on Harvey Weinstein? #askingforafriend, he wrote, referring to a recently reported sexual harassment scandal surrounding the movie producer, who has given a number of donations to Democrat politicians.

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You mean that big story from the failing, liberal, one-sided @nytimes? I think it is disgusting, Kimmel fired back. In response, Trump Jr. tweeted, Great I look forward to your monologues next week. Youre probably due for a change if only for a moment or two.

[G]reat  in the meantime, enjoy this! Kimmel responded, with a YouTube video of the Presidents Access Hollywood tape that leaked exactly a year ago today.

Excellent point Mr. President! You should quit that boring job - I'll let you have my show ALL to yourself #MAGA  Jimmy Kimmel (@jimmykimmel) October 7, 2017

You mean that big story from the failing, liberal, one-sided @nytimes? I think it is disgusting.  Jimmy Kimmel (@jimmykimmel) October 7, 2017

Kimmel and Meyers along with the likes of Stephen Colbert, Trevor Noah and John Oliver have used Trump as fodder for jokes throughout his campaign and presidency, at times outright denouncing him for his comments and actions.

NBCs Jimmy Fallon was criticized for entertaining Trump during the campaign by playfully rubbing the future Presidents hair on his show in what many considered to be a softball interview with no hard-hitting questions.

Since then, he has toughened up on the President, a stance that was noticeable in the wake of Augusts white nationalist rally in Charlottesville.

The fact that it took the president two days to come out and clearly denounce racists and white supremacists is shameful, Fallon said during the Tonight Shows opening monologue.
President Donald Trump assured worried Americans dependent on the Affordable Care Act that he has a plan to help them. That plan? Who knows!

In another predictable tweet storm on Saturday, Trump gave vague details about his continuously failed plan to replace the Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as Obamacare.

Trump said he called Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) to discuss a new health care bill.

I called Chuck Schumer yesterday to see if the Dems want to do a great HealthCare Bill, Trump tweeted. ObamaCare is badly broken, big premiums. Who knows!

I called Chuck Schumer yesterday to see if the Dems want to do a great HealthCare Bill. ObamaCare is badly broken, big premiums. Who knows!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2017

Part of those big premiums has been Trumps obvious efforts to sabotage states currently dependent on the ACA. Trump has tried to cut funding from the Obama-era legislation, while also attempting to undercut state efforts to control premiums.

The president wanted to make another run at repeal and replace and I told the president thats off the table, Schumer said in a Saturday statement. If he wants to work together to improve the existing health care system, we Democrats are open to his suggestions. A good place to start might be the Alexander-Murray negotiations that would stabilize the system and lower costs.

Schumer was referring to a bipartisan health care proposal by Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.).

Trumps tweet on health care was sandwiched in between tweets complaining that hes not getting enough positive coverage on late night television shows and that NBC wont cover him fairly but that PEOPLE get it.

Late Night host are dealing with the Democrats for their very "unfunny" & repetitive material, always anti-Trump! Should we get Equal Time?  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2017

At least the American people know where the presidents true priorities lie.

Story continues

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1912

Former President Theodore Roosevelt champions national health insurance as he unsuccessfully tries to ride his progressive Bull Moose Party back to the White House.

1935

President Franklin D. Roosevelt favors creating national health insurance amid the Great Depression but decides to push for Social Security first.

1942

Roosevelt establishes wage and price controls during World War II. Businesses can't attract workers with higher pay so they compete through added benefits, including health insurance, which grows into a workplace perk.

1945

President Harry Truman calls on Congress to create a national insurance program for those who pay voluntary fees. The American Medical Association denounces the idea as "socialized medicine" and it goes nowhere.

1960

John F. Kennedy makes health care a major campaign issue but as president can't get a plan for the elderly through Congress.

1965

President Lyndon B. Johnson's legendary arm-twisting and a Congress dominated by his fellow Democrats lead to creation of two landmark government health programs: Medicare for the elderly and Medicaid for the poor.

1974

President Richard Nixon wants to require employers to cover their workers and create federal subsidies to help everyone else buy private insurance. The Watergate scandal intervenes.

1976

President Jimmy Carter pushes a mandatory national health plan, but economic recession helps push it aside.

1986

President Ronald Reagan signs COBRA, a requirement that employers let former workers stay on the company health plan for 18 months after leaving a job, with workers bearing the cost.

1988

Congress expands Medicare by adding a prescription drug benefit and catastrophic care coverage. It doesn't last long. Barraged by protests from older Americans upset about paying a tax to finance the additional coverage, Congress repeals the law the next year.

1993

President Bill Clinton puts first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton in charge of developing what becomes a 1,300-page plan for universal coverage. It requires businesses to cover their workers and mandates that everyone have health insurance. The plan meets Republican opposition, divides Democrats and comes under a firestorm of lobbying from businesses and the health care industry. It dies in the Senate.

1997

Clinton signs bipartisan legislation creating a state-federal program to provide coverage for millions of children in families of modest means whose incomes are too high to qualify for Medicaid.

2003

President George W. Bush persuades Congress to add prescription drug coverage to Medicare in a major expansion of the program for older people.

2008

Hillary Clinton promotes a sweeping health care plan in her bid for the Democratic presidential nomination. She loses to Barack Obama, who has a less comprehensive plan.

2009

President Barack Obama and the Democratic-controlled Congress spend an intense year ironing out legislation to require most companies to cover their workers; mandate that everyone have coverage or pay a fine; require insurance companies to accept all comers, regardless of any pre-existing conditions; and assist people who can't afford insurance.

2010

With no Republican support, Congress passes the measure, designed to extend health care coverage to more than 30 million uninsured people. Republican opponents scorned the law as "Obamacare."

2012

On a campaign tour in the Midwest, Obama himself embraces the term "Obamacare" and says the law shows "I do care."

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
US President Donald Trump speaks at a Hispanic Heritage Month event at the White House: MSNBC

President Donald Trump repeatedly used an exaggerated Spanish accent to pronounce Puerto Rico in his speech to a Hispanic Heritage Month event.

We are also praying for the people of Puerto Rico, Mr Trump told the crowd, dragging out the vowels into a caricature of the Spanish pronunciation. We love Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico.

And we also love Puerto Rico, he added, in his usual accent.

The crowd gathered at the White House included representatives from more than 200 Hispanic businesses, community groups, and faith groups. Some audience members cheered at the comments.

We love you! one crowd member yelled.

The comments marked a stark departure from the Presidents earlier statements about Puerto Rico, which was devastated by a Category 4 hurricane two weeks earlier. Thirty-four people died as a result of the storm, and the majority of the island remains without power.

Trump uses a Spanish accent to say "Puerto Rico" twice during a Hispanic Heritage Month event pic.twitter.com/v5qFTiqSjM  BuzzFeed News (@BuzzFeedNews) October 6, 2017

Mr Trump visited the US territory earlier this week to meet with Puerto Rican officials. While there, he joked that recovery costs had thrown our budget a little of whack, and encouraged leaders to compare the death toll to a real catastrophe like [Hurricane] Katrina.

Afterward, several Puerto Ricans accused the President of treating them like animals.

He arrives with a smile on his face, makes fun of the situation, shows no empathy, lies and lies on camera as he does 24/7, Joel Isaac told the Toronto Star. And then throws paper towel rolls to people in need as if he was playing Go Fetch with dogs.

The President also engaged in a bitter war of words with the mayor of San Juan, Carmen Yulin Cruz. Before the trip, Ms Cruz had begged the federal government for more aid, warning them that people on the island were dying. Mr Trump responded by insulting the mayor via Twitter.

Such poor leadership ability by the Mayor of San Juan, and others in Puerto Rico, who are not able to get their workers to help, he wrote. They want everything to be done for them when it should be a community effort.

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On Thursday, however, Mr Trump assured the Hispanic Heritage Month crowd that his administration was marshalling every federal resource at our disposal" to help in the relief effort.

We will not rest until that job is done, he said. ...We will be there all the time to help Puerto Rico recover, restore, rebuild.

Later, he told the young Hispanic Americans in the crowd that there is "no dream beyond your reach". The President had recently ended a programme giving protections to childhood immigrants  often called "Dreamers".
Puerto Rico is looking at anywhere from four to six months without power in the wake of Hurricane Maria. While it will take that long just to rebuild Puerto Ricos existing energy grid, theres also the potential to build something that can better withstand the inevitable next hurricane. Elon Musk officially volunteered Tesla for the job Wednesday.

Tesla has already shipped hundreds of its Powerwall batteries to the island, with the companys employees on site to help with installations. But Musk said the company could undertake a more ambitious plan to rebuild Puerto Rico with grid-independent solar and battery systems.

The Tesla team has done this for many smaller islands around the world, but there is no scalability limit, so it can be done for Puerto Rico too. Such a decision would be in the hands of the PR govt, PUC, any commercial stakeholders and, most importantly, the people of PR.  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 5, 2017

As Musk explained, Tesla has already installed such solar microgrids on five islands: Tau in American Samoa, Malolo island in Fiji, Ocracoke Island in North Carolina, and Hawaiis Kauai and Ohau. Together, these five islands represent more than a third of Teslas total deployed power storage capacity as of this May. Of these, Kauai is the biggest and has the greatest power consumption needs  the companys 13-megawatt solar farm is able to produce roughly a tenth of the islands total energy output.

When looking at Puerto Rico, this is where Musks assertion that there is no scalability limit would be put to one hell of a test. Kauai has a population of 65,000, while Puerto Rico is home to 3.5 million people. Kauais energy output averages around 125 megawatts, while Puerto Ricos total energy capacity is closer to 5,000 megawatts. Overhauling the islands energy grid isnt impossible  indeed, theres no alternative in the wake of Hurricane Marias damage  but this would be way beyond what Tesla has so far demonstrated the ability to do.

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In fairness to Musk, he made the statement in response to a specific question about what Tesla could do for Puerto Rico, and he made no claim that this could be an immediate or even near-term solution. A big reason Puerto Rico will likely be without power for months is its so difficult logistically to transport the necessary materials and workers to the island to go make repairs, and that would also apply to any large-scale effort from Tesla  or anyone else, for that matter  to transform Puerto Ricos grid into something new.

Photos via Getty Images / Joe Raedle

Photos via Getty Images / Joe Raedle

Written by Alasdair Wilkins

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Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-06 18:37:29|Editor: Xiang Bo

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YEREVAN, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- The sixth Armenia-Russia interregional conference kicked off in Yerevan on Friday, with the focus on interregional cooperation in commerce, economy, agriculture, tourism and information technology.

The three-day event is expected to yield a number of bilateral agreements between the two countries in information technology and communications.

The forum will include five sessions on commercial and economic cooperation, agriculture, tourism, IT sector, as well as innovation and humanitarian issues.

A message issued by Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan that was read at the conference welcomed initiatives in promoting interregional cooperation.

Sargsyan wished the participants in the conference "fruitful exchange of opinions that will help form new ideas to be implemented for the benefit of Armenian-Russian relations."
Madrid (AFP) - Furious and fearful over their toxic political crisis, Spaniards wrapped themselves in the national flag Saturday, yelling for their government to "defend the nation" against threats to declare Catalonia independent.

Gathering in Madrid, Barcelona and other cities, they vented anxiety that years of mistrust between the northeastern region and the rest of Spain could boil over -- but were divided over how to prevent it.

A further mass anti-independence rally in Barcelona was planned for Sunday. But already there and hundreds of miles away in Madrid, protesters were pleading for conservative Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy to heed calls for peaceful dialogue.

Others in the capital, waving red and yellow national flags and even some with the black eagle of the Franco dictatorship, vented patriotic fury.

- Anger -

In a fluttering sea of flags, tens of thousands of protesters in central Madrid banged drums and yelled "Viva Espana!" and "National unity!"

They demanded Spanish and Catalan leaders settle a dispute that last weekend sparked street violence in Barcelona during an outlawed independence referendum.

"Rajoy, you asshole, defend the nation!" chanted one angry group of mostly young men, marching towards Madrid's Colon Square.

- Fear -

Protesters accused the Catalan separatists of endangering Spain, but also said the national government had let things get out of hand.

Scenes of Spanish police beating unarmed Catalan voters as they tried to shut down last Sunday's vote shocked many Spaniards.

"There is a great deal of worry that the government has waited to play its last card too late," said off-duty cavalry colonel Joaquin Penas, 52, a flag on his back reaching nearly to his ankles.

A few hundred yards away down the tree-lined Recoletos avenue, another crowd of people in white held a quieter demonstration for peace and dialogue.

Yurena Diaz, a 36-year-old doctor, stood with her brown dog Quillo on a lead, said she wanted "dialogue before we lose our way."

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"The tension and violence have risen a lot. It is getting worse and worse," she said. "It has created a lot of fear and that is very dangerous."

- Tension -

Signs of a breathing space emerged on Friday when the government apologised to those hurt in last weekend's police violence.

But Catalan leaders have not ruled out unilaterally declaring independence. The government refuses dialogue or mediation until they drop their secession bid.

"This is the most tense moment I can remember in Spain in my lifetime," said demonstrator Fernando Pareja, a 19-year-old engineering student.

"I think most Spaniards support the police action but I also think they acted too late."

- Sadness -

At the "white" rally, actress Marta Muro, 67, in dark sunglasses, recalled Spain's past decades of deadly conflict in the state's battle against ETA armed separatists in its northern Basque Country region.

"I feel sad to think how bad our country is, how bad our government is," she said.

"I have nothing against the Catalans. We have to listen to them with respect and not with force or blood, like what happened with ETA."

- Hatred -

Natalia Bermejillo, a 21-year-old student, sat on steps with three friends near Colon Square.

She said she was not ashamed to join in a demonstration alongside small far-right groups, since they are supporting "the same cause" when it comes to Catalonia.

"If we do not join together there will be chaos," she said.

She felt hurt by the Catalan separatists' attitude to the rest of the country.

"They teach their children to hate Spain," she said.

"It is a very extreme ideology, and now it seems as if it is becoming contagious."
Shortly after a horrific mass shooting in Las Vegas, Nevada, that left at least 58 people dead and more than 500 injured, a pack of golden retrievers showed up to the city to do their part.

Titus the comfort dog with a woman in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo: LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs)

The LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs are a furry crew affiliated with Lutheran Church Charities, nonprofit based out of Northbrook, Illinois. The group has trained therapy dogs stationed in 23 states. The dogs work in their local community at places like hospitals and nursing homes and often travel to the scene of crises like the Las Vegas massacre.

The canines offer emotional support to grieving people and can help victims open up after a tragedy. People can pet them, talk to them, and use them as a furry shoulder to cry on.

Dogs show unconditional love, Tim Hetzner, the president Lutheran Church Charities who founded the K-9 program in 2008, told HuffPost. Theyre good listeners, theyre confidential, they dont take notes.

Hetzner noted that the dogs never go anywhere they arent invited and that the organization provides the service completely free of charge. In this case, there was already at least one dog in Las Vegas when the massacre occurred, but more were soon to follow.

We try to put boots and paws on the ground within 24 hours of any invites, Hetzner said. By early Tuesday, there were 19 comfort dogs in the city, with retrievers traveling in from Illinois, Nebraska, Colorado, Arizona, California and Missouri.

A whole bunch of comfort dogs are currently at Sunrise Hospital in Las Vegas pic.twitter.com/Bgs1Dlghh0  Jim Dalrymple II (@JimDalrympleII) October 5, 2017

The dogs efforts in Las Vegas have been focused at the Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center, where the majority of those injured are being treated. The dogs are also visiting places like schools and police stations.

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A comfort dog named Ruthie at a candlelit vigil following a mass shooting in Las Vegas. (Photo: LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs)

Theyre a fantastic bridge in helping people, Hetzner said, adding that the people of Las Vegas are dealing with many kinds of trauma, including survivors guilt and the pain of losing loved ones. Others are struggling through severe injuries that may leave them with permanent damage.

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The golden retrievers begin to train for their roles at 8 weeks old, with training lasting from 16 to 18 weeks, Hetzner said. When they arent on the job, they live at the home of a caregiver.

Hetzner added that they ensure the dogs get breaks, so they dont become emotionally overwhelmed themselves. Thats a precaution you have to take when dealing with animals that are so in tune with the feelings of people.

Dogs are an incredible gift from God, he said. They sense when someone is hurting.

You can follow the LCC K-9 Comfort dogs on Facebook here.

Also on HuffPost

Purebred Golden Retriever dog outdoors on a sunny summer day.

Senior man walking with his German Shorthaired Pointer in city park

Senior dog with a missing fang

Old senior retired bluetick coonhound pet hunting dog lying down on blanket looking sleepy tired exhausted relaxed sad depressed sick ill frail comfortable lonely

It is now over a decade since Bella's mum broke loose one night. However, Bella still enjoys life to the extreme; she loves going for walks, but when it is going uphill, frequent rest stops are called for. She loves flopping flat on the floor and watching the world go by and this typical stance begs the question: 'How can anyonw resist?a

An old dog resting in grass.

Senior Husband And Wife Who Take A Walk In The Meadow With A Dog

Senior Chocolate Labrador Retriever standing on dock

A woman pets her dog

An older dog.

Senior German shorthaired pointer female, almost 15 years old

Portrait of Woman with Golden Retreiver

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
By Lizbeth Diaz MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - A former Mexican governor wanted on corruption charges was arrested on Friday, officials said, marking the fourth detention of an ex-governor from the country's ruling party so far this year. Eugenio Hernandez, who served as governor of the northern border state of Tamaulipas from 2005-2010, was arrested in the state capital of Ciudad Victoria. He is accused by both Mexican and U.S. authorities of embezzlement and money laundering. Hernandez served as a member of President Enrique Pena Nieto's Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, which for decades has been battered by corruption scandals. Corruption promises to be one of the major issues in Mexico's July 2018 presidential election, with public discontent widespread over a spate of conflict-of-interest rows that have dogged the Cabinet and Pena Nieto himself. The rows could play into the hands of leftist presidential hopeful Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, a two-time runner-up who presents himself as an anti-corruption crusader and is the front-runner in the polls. Prosecutors alleged that in 2007 Hernandez bought a state-owned 1,600-hectare property through an associate, allegedly paying 16 million pesos ($862,730) for the land despite an estimated value at the time of slightly more than 1 billion pesos. The land was previously sold in 2002 to an associate of Tomas Yarrington, Hernandez's predecessor as governor of Tamaulipas, for 14 million pesos, while at the time its value was pegged at 866 million pesos, the prosecutors said. Hernandez and his lawyer could not immediately be contacted for a response and have not made a public statement. Yarrington himself was arrested in April in Italy and has been charged in the United States for presumed ties to drug trafficking. He has not made a public statement since his arrest. Two other former PRI governors were also arrested earlier this year. In April, Javier Duarte of Veracruz state was arrested in Guatemala, accused of siphoning off millions of dollars from state coffers. He has denied any wrongdoing. Meanwhile, Roberto Borge of Quintana Roo state was arrested in Panama in June just as he was about to board a flight to Paris. Mexican authorities have requested his extradition. Borge is accused of illicit enrichment, embezzlement and abuse of public office. He has denied the allegations. ($1 = 18.5458 Mexican pesos) (Reporting by Lizbeth Diaz; Writing by Julia Love; Editing by David Alire Garcia and Rosalba O'Brien)
The FCC has given approval for Google parent company, Alphabet, to help Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands regain wireless service. The company will attempt to enable LTE connectivity using its high-flying Project Loon balloons.

BREAKING: FCC issues experimental license to Google to provide emergency cellular service in Puerto Rico through Project Loon balloons.  Matthew Berry (@matthewberryfcc) October 6, 2017

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Hurricane Maria hit the islands last month, destroying access to basic supplies like food and running water. A report from this week says that 83% of people still lack cell reception.

"More than two weeks after Hurricane Maria struck, millions of Puerto Ricans are still without access to much-needed communications services," said FCC Chairman Ajit Pai. "That's why we need to take innovative approaches to help restore connectivity on the island."

Loon was developed by X, part of Alphabet's innovation group. It was able to help Peru earlier this year, amidst significant flooding and hopes to replicate this success. Yet before it proceeds with its plans in Puerto Rico, Loon needs to find a carrier network to partner with. Loon had already been working with Telefonica in Peru, which sped up the process.

Libby Leahy, a company spokesperson, provided us with the following statement. Were grateful for the support of the FCC and the Puerto Rican authorities as we work hard to see if its possible to use Loon balloons to bring emergency connectivity to the island during this time of need. To deliver signal to peoples devices, Loon needs be integrated with a telco partners network  the balloons cant do it alone. Weve been making solid progress on this next step and would like to thank everyone whos been lending a hand.

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The Loon project consists of a network of high altitude balloons that rise like weather balloons to a height above 60,000 feet. Loon balloons are designed to "ride the wind" to get to a destination and are super-pressurized to withstand for over 100 days in the stratosphere.

Signals are transmitted directly to LTE-enabled devices and are routed through a local carrier, and the balloons are raised and lowered to an altitude with winds blowing in the desired direction.

Tesla is also working on efforts to help Puerto Rico.

Hundreds of Tesla Powerwall battery systems are already in Puerto Rico and Tesla employees are in the territory helping with installation and training for maintenance.

Tesla and Google are joining an effort to rebuild the island's infrastructure that also includes Facebook, which committed to send its connectivity staff to the island to help in recovery and reconstruction.
Gaza City (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) - Hamas police detained a suspected jihadist leader in Gaza on Saturday, a security source said, the latest in a series of arrests of those accused of Islamic State group ideology.

"This morning, security forces arrested Nour Issa, 27, who is a leader of the deviant thought movement and is from Bureij Camp in central Gaza, along with others," the source said, using a phrase Hamas officials routinely use to refer to jihadists, including IS.

The internal security service confirmed on its Facebook page that it had made a number of arrests.

"One of the leaders of the deviant thought has been arrested along with others," it said, without giving a name.

The Islamist Hamas movement has run Gaza for a decade but it has been challenged by small hardline factions, some of them inspired by IS, who advocate a stricter, Salafist interpretation of the faith.

Some have carried out sporadic rocket attacks into Israel in defiance of an informal truce agreed by Hamas.

In August, a suicide bomber allegedly linked to IS killed a Hamas guard in southern Gaza along the border with Egypt, in a rare attack against the Islamists.

Hamas has arrested a number of Salafist and IS-linked figures.
The Washington Post reported yesterday that next week, U.S. President Donald Trump may announce that he will decertify the Iran nuclear deal because it is not in the interest of the United States to continue implementing it. The administration faces an Oct. 15 deadline to certify to Congress that Iran is complying with the agreement and that it remains in the United States interest to follow it, as mandated by the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act (INARA).

The announcement would be part of the broader introduction of a new U.S. strategy toward Iran that would address the countrys support for terrorism, involvement in Middle East violence, and ballistic missile development, in addition to the nuclear issue. In a meeting with senior military leaders yesterday, Trump once again criticized Irans behavior and asserted that the country has not lived up to the spirit of their agreement. He did not say that Iran has violated any of its concrete obligations under the agreement.

However, the Washington Post report makes it clear that no final decisions have been made at this point. It also indicates that even if Trump decertified the agreement, he would hold off on recommending that Congress reimpose sanctions. This caveat suggests that decertification might not immediately lead to the reinstatement of U.S. nuclear sanctions against Iran. Additional measures, either congressional or executive, would be necessary to actually reimpose sanctions.

The backstory

The Iran nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), was concluded between Iran and the members of the P5+1, as well as the European Union, in July 2015. Iran agreed to concessions regarding its nuclear program in return for extensive sanctions relief. The agreement was endorsed by United Nations Security Council Resolution 2231. Subsequently, on JCPOA implementation day on January 16, 2016, the United States and the EU lifted most of their respective sanctions imposed in connection with Irans nuclear program, after the International Atomic Energy Agency verified that Iran has implemented its nuclear-related obligations under the JCPOA. Previous Security Council resolutions regarding Irans nuclear program have been terminated.

The Barack Obama administration maintained that the JCPOA was not legally binding and, therefore, did not require Senate approval. The U.S. could stop implementing it at any time without violating its obligations under international law (see Jimmy Chalks post). In order to fulfill the United States commitment, the administration relied on pre-existing authorities that gave the president discretion in the application of sanctions against Iran (see Jack Goldsmiths post and lecture). Specifically, the administration utilized existing waiver authorities that previous sanctions legislation had granted to the president. Executive orders allowed the president to impose other sanctions and could be withdrawn with relative ease.

The Obama administrations stance that congressional approval was not necessary for concluding the Iran deal drew the ire of legislators and led to the enactment of INARA, an amendment to the Atomic Energy Act of 1954. The act required the president to submit any nuclear agreement with Iran for congressional review and imposed additional reporting and certification requirements to allow congressional oversight of the implementation of such an agreement. For current purposes, the key provisions are those regarding certification of compliance. INARA requires the president to certify every 90 days that Iran is in compliance with the JCPOA and that it remains in U.S. interest to suspend sanctions as part of the implementation of any agreement:

(d)(6) COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATION  After the review period provided in subsection (b), the President shall, not less than every 90 calendar days  (A) determine whether the President is able to certify that  (i) Iran is transparently, verifiably, and fully implementing the agreement, including all related technical or additional agreements; (ii) Iran has not committed a material breach with respect to the agreement or, if Iran has committed a material breach, Iran has cured the material breach; (iii) Iran has not taken any action, including covert activities, that could significantly advance its nuclear weapons program; and (iv) suspension of sanctions related to Iran pursuant to the agreement is  (I) appropriate and proportionate to the specific and verifiable measures taken by Iran with respect to terminating its illicit nuclear program; and (II) vital to the national security interests of the United States; and (B) if the President determines he is able to make the certification described in subparagraph (A), make such certification to the appropriate congressional committees and leadership.

Despite his vocal criticism of the JCPOA and repeated claims that it is inadequate, Trump has previously certified that Iran is in compliance with the agreement. So far, the Trump administration has also extended the Iran sanctions waivers.

What happens if Trump decertifies?

If President Trump really does decertify the JCPOA, he would probably trigger major political and diplomatic blowback from the other parties to the agreement and, perhaps more importantly, from Iran. The mere prospect of decertification has already provoked statements from multiple parties to the JCPOA urging the United States to continue implementing the agreement.

However, decertification would have no automatic consequences in terms of U.S. implementation of the agreement with respect to the continued suspension of sanctions that had been waived or rescinded under the JCPOA. In order to have such an effect, decertification must be accompanied by measures to reimpose sanctions.

Sanctions could be reinstated in several ways. Congress could introduce legislation to reimpose sanctions within 60 days of the deadline for certification. Such legislation would be entitled to INARAs expedited consideration procedures. Alternatively, the president could decline to exercise the waivers that have suspended the implementation of sanctions legislation thus far. The president could also reinstate designations of Iranian persons and entities as Specially Designated Nationals (SDNs) pursuant to executive order. Such designations would also trigger secondary sanctions like those provided for in the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010, a law that restricts the access of third-country financial institutions with ties to Iran-related SDNs to the U.S. market. Finally, the United States could move to reimpose U.N. sanctions by triggering the snapback mechanism agreed upon in the JCPOA (more on that here). So far, the administration has not indicated that it intends to take any of those steps to unilaterally reimpose sanctions.

Thus, the Posts report that the Trump plans to hold off on recommending that Congress reimpose sanctions on Iran is somewhat puzzling. The president does not really need Congress in order to reinstate sanctions that were lifted in the framework of the nuclear deal. He can do so by exercising authorities that he already has through waivers or executive orders. (For more information, see this Congressional Research Service report that concluded: It is unlikely that the President would require the approval of Congress for unilaterally reimposing sanctions.) Trumps statement suggests that, in reality, the administration might not be in a hurry to gut the JCPOA by reneging on the United States core obligations under the agreement.

Decertification without reintroducing sanctions would allow the administration to express its dissatisfaction with the terms of the JCPOA for political gain while preserving the core of the agreement and providing an incentive for Iran to continue meeting its nuclear obligations. (Unless, of course, Congress moves to reinstate sanctions in response to the presidents decertification of the JCPOA.) The move might also intend to create leverage for potential renegotiation of the JCPOA, although there seems to be no appetite for that among the other parties to the agreement. In any event, it seems that the ball is now in Congresss court.

Photo credit: Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images
Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein has been fired from his job at the Weinstein Company following allegations of sexual harassment.

In light of new information about misconduct by Harvey Weinstein that has emerged in the past few days, the directors of The Weinstein Company - Robert Weinsten, Lance Maerov, Richard Koenigsberg and Taka Ben Ammar - have determined, and have informed Harvey Weinstein, that his employment with The Weinstein Company is terminated, effective immediately, reads a statement from the companys board of directors, obtained by Variety.

Weinstein co-founded the film studio in 2005 with his brother, and has an ownership stake in it. It has produced some of Hollywoods biggest hits, including Django Unchained and The Kings Speech.

It's official: Harvey Weinstein is out. pic.twitter.com/Wt1vtTOs0l  Elizabeth Wagmeister (@EWagmeister) October 8, 2017

Weinsteins brother may take over the company along with David Glasser, the chief operating officer, according to Variety.

Earlier this week, Weinstein was reportedly lawyering up to fight two potentially explosive stories about him. The New York Times published one of those stories on Thursday.

Titled Decades of Sexual Harassment Accusations Against Harvey Weinstein, the piece details damning accusations from Weinsteins current and former employees and associates, as well as actress Ashley Judd.

Judd described an encounter with Weinstein in which he sent her up to his [hotel] room, where he appeared in a bathrobe and asked if he could give her a massage or she could watch him shower.

The Times report contains a number of other accusations, including the claim that Weinstein reportedly enforced a code of silence in regards to his behavior and reached an undisclosed settlement with actress Rose McGowan. (McGowan did not comment in the article, but she seemingly responded to the report on Twitter.)

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Weinstein did not deny the allegations against him, though he did release a statement addressing the reports.

I appreciate the way Ive behaved with colleagues in the past has caused a lot of pain, and I sincerely apologize for it. Though Im trying to do better, I know I have a long way to go, he said. I so respect all women and regret what happened.

I cannot be more remorseful about the people I hurt and I plan to do right by all of them, he added.

The producer told the Times that he plans to take a leave of absence from his studio. Meanwhile, one of Weinsteins attorneys, Charles Harder, told The Hollywood Reporter he is preparing a lawsuit against the Times on Weinsteins behalf.

Harder said the Times story is saturated with false and defamatory statements and it relies on mostly hearsay accounts and a faulty report.

We sent the Times the facts and evidence, but they ignored it and rushed to publish, Harder said in a statement. We are preparing the lawsuit now. All proceeds will be donated to womens organizations.

Also on HuffPost

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(Photo: Andrew Kelly / Reuters)

History will be made at Stonewall once again.

The inn, which is located in New Yorks Greenwich Village, was the site of the June 28, 1969 riots which are considered the symbolic start of the modern day gay rights movement. In 2016, former President Barack Obama designated the inn, an adjacent park and its environs as the countrys first national monument to LGBTQ rights. With this designation, the 7.7-acre area became federally protected to ensure its preservation for future generations.

So its only fitting that the Stonewall National Monument will soon become the home of the first rainbow flag to be permanently placed on federal land and maintained by the National Park Service. The flag will replace the New York state flag on a nautical flagpole outside Stonewall and be raised in a dedication ceremony Oct. 11, which is also designated as National Coming Out Day.

In 2016, former President Barack Obama designed the Stonewall Inn and its environs as the countrys first national monument to LGBTQ rights. (Photo: Drew Angerer via Getty Images)

Activist Michael Petrelis, who spearheaded the effort, said in a Thursday statement that the news was bittersweet given that many in the LGBTQ community are concerned for their future under President Donald Trump, who ran on an explicitly anti-queer platform.

It is a victory for our community to have these symbolic colors flying majestically over our Stonewall, designated as a National Monument by President Obama, even as our LGBTQ brothers and sisters are under attack by the current regime in power, he said.

Oct. 11 also marks the 30th anniversary of the March on Washington for LGBT Rights, as well as the first time the AIDS Memorial Quilt was displayed on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

The significance of the date wasnt lost on Petrelis, who likened Trumps stance on LGBTQ issues to that of former President Ronald Reagan, who didnt publicly acknowledge the AIDS crisis until 1987. By that point, more than 20,000 Americans had died from HIV/AIDS-related causes.

It is a victory for our community to have these symbolic colors flying majestically over our Stonewall... even as our LGBTQ brothers and sisters are under attack by the current regime in power, activist Michael Petrelis said. (Photo: Drew Angerer via Getty Images)

As we gather today, we are reminded of another Oct. 11, 30 years ago, he added, when the names of fallen comrades were symbolically celebrated on another national monument  the AIDS Quilt  during the reign of another president who waged an attack against us.

Story continues

Another LGBTQ rights activist, Ken Kidd, told Newsweek that he was surprised plans for the flag display got approved under the Trump administration.

Our rainbow colors flying in tandem with the stars and stripes is a source of inspiration, a recognition of equality, a recognition of a struggle for equality, he said, that is not over by any stretch of imagination.

For more ways to combat bigotry, check out the Queer Voices newsletter.

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NEW YORK, NY - CIRCA 1980: Gay Pride demonstration circa 1980 in New York City. (Photo by Arpadi/IMAGES/Getty Images)

NEW YORK, NY - CIRCA 1980: Gay Pride demonstration circa 1980 in New York City. (Photo by Arpadi/IMAGES/Getty Images)

NEW YORK, NY - CIRCA 1983: Gay & Lesbian Pride Parade circa 1983 in New York City. (Photo by PL Gould/IMAGES/Getty Images)

A gay rights march in New York in favour of the 1968 Civil Rights Act being amended to include gay rights. (Photo by Peter Keegan/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 25: Participants in the 25 April 1993 gay rights march, held back by a line of parade marshals, scream and yell at a number of religious counter-demonstrators along the parade route. Hundreds of thousands of gay men and women joined in the march and rally to demand acceptance and equal rights. (Photo credit should read ARYEH RABINOVICH/AFP/Getty Images)

View along 6th Avenue as hundreds of people march (and drive) towards Central Park in a Gay Pride Parade, New York, New York, June 26, 1975. (Photo by Allan Tannenbaum/Getty Images)

JUN 25 1978, JUN 26 1978; Marchers For Homosexual Rights Gather At Civic Center Pavilion; More than 1,000 men and women participated in march from Cheesman Park to the center for their rally. The group has a platform calling for an end of alleged police harassment, leggislative support of lesbian-gay rights and an end to discrimination based on sexual preference. It also asks that homosexuals be allowed to raise children. The marchers carried signs and chanted slogans during their march, which began at about noon Sunday.; (Photo By Kenn Bisio/The Denver Post via Getty Images)

View of the gay pride parade in Boston, Massachusetts, 1977. (Photo by Spencer Grant/Getty Images)

NEW YORK, NY - CIRCA 1979: Gay Rights Demonstrators circa 1979 in New York City. (Photo by Images Press/IMAGES/Getty Images)

A crowd of gay rights protesters, including two priests, marching in the New York Gay Day Parade. (Photo by Peter Keegan/Getty Images)

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-06 20:28:10|Editor: Zhou Xin

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BANGKOK, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- Mourners paying respects to the late Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej's Royal Urn has totaled 12,739,531 in the past 337 days, the Bureau of the Royal Household announced on Friday.

The bureau said a total of 110,889 mourners paid their last respects to the late King in the Dusit Maha Prasat Throne Hall of the Grand Palace in Bangkok on Thursday, the final day for public viewing of the Royal Urn.

According to the bureau, donations received as a form of making merit for the late King have reached over 889 million baht (26 million U.S. dollars).

The Grand Palace has been open to mourners since Oct. 29 last year. With the last visitor allowed to enter the hall at 2:18 a.m. on Friday. The palace was then closed in preparation for the royal cremation ceremonies.

Mourners dressed in black from all parts of the country flooded in the palace to see off their beloved late King. Rainy October sees thousands caught in the shower lining the streets of Bangkok's historic area near the Chao Phraya River to enter the palace. The queue stretched for almost 3 km.

The late monarch's funeral will be held from Oct. 25 to Oct. 29, with the cremation taking place on Oct. 26. The Thai government expects 250,000 mourners to attend the royal cremation.

King Bhumibol Adulyadej passed away on Oct. 13 last year, ending seven decades on the throne during which he became a unifying father figure in a country that has weathered several coups, political unrests and a region-wide financial crisis.
The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) has won the Nobel Peace Prize 2017.

ICAN was a vital actor in bringing the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons to the United Nations, where it was signed by 122 countries. The accord was largely symbolic as none of the worlds nuclear-armed nations signed it.

The Oslo-based Nobel committee said on Friday that ICAN is receiving the award for its work to draw attention to the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons and for its ground-breaking efforts to achieve a treaty-based prohibition of such weapons, as it warned of the current increased risk of a nuclear conflict.

The next steps towards attaining a world free of nuclear weapons must involve the nuclear-armed states, it continued. This years Peace Prize is therefore also a call upon these states to initiate serious negotiations with a view to the gradual, balanced and carefully monitored elimination of the almost 15,000 nuclear weapons in the world.

In a Facebook post shortly after the announcement, ICAN said it was a great honor to receive the prize. This is a time of great global tension, when fiery rhetoric could all too easily lead us, inexorably, to unspeakable horror. The spectre of nuclear conflict looms large once more. If ever there were a moment for nations to declare their unequivocal opposition to nuclear weapons, that moment is now.

This award shines a needed light on the path the ban treaty provides towards a world free of nuclear weapons, they concluded. Before it is too late, we must take that path.

The prize, established in 1901, is awarded annually to the person or organisation that has done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses, according to the will of its founder, Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel.

BREAKING NEWS The 2017 Nobel Peace Prize is awarded to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) @nuclearban #NobelPrize pic.twitter.com/I5PUiQfFzs  The Nobel Prize (@NobelPrize) October 6, 2017

Last year, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Juan Manuel Santos, the President of Colombia, for his role in bringing to an end the countrys 50-year war with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) insurgency.
President Donald Trump during a briefing with Senior Military leaders. Sitting on the left is Defence Secretary James Mattis: AP

On the campaign trail and since becoming president, Donald Trump has repeatedly criticised the Iran nuclear deal, labelling it one of the worst and most one-sided transactions the United States has ever entered into.

The US leader is now expected to decertify the agreement, leaving it up to Congress to decide whether to re-impose economic sanctions on Iran.

What was the agreement?

Officially titled the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the Obama-era accord was designed to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon.

Under the 2015 agreement with six nations  the US, France, Germany, China, Russia and the UK  Iran agreed to restrict its nuclear programme for at least 10 years in exchange for the loosening of economic sanctions that had crippled its economy.

Why does Mr Trump oppose the deal?

During his first speech before the United Nations General Assembly last month, Mr Trump said, We cannot abide by an agreement if it provides cover for the eventual construction of a nuclear program.

The US president's administration must certify to Congress that Iran is upholding its part of the deal every 90 days. Mr Trump has already done so twice, but has continuously noted that Iran remains a leading state sponsor of terrorism.

How did Iran react to the reports that Trump would decertify the agreement?

Iranian nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi said the deal was not renegotiable, according to Iran's Press TV.

However, he suggested the accord might be salvageable if the other partners  France, Germany, China, Russia and the UK  remained on board. If not, he said, the deal will definitely fall apart.

Last month, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani attacked Mr Trump for suggesting the agreement could be ripped up.

It will be a great pity if this agreement were to be destroyed by rogue newcomers to the world of politics, Mr Rouhani said at the UN. By violating its international commitments, the new US administration only destroys its own credibility and undermines international confidence in negotiating with it or accepting its word or promise.

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When will Mr Trump announce his decision?

Mr Trump is expected to lay out how his administration will address Iran during a speech on October 12. He could still change his mind on whether or not to recertify the agreement.

Some of his top advisers, including Defence Secretary James Mattis, seem to believe its in the USs interest to stay in the deal.

What would happen next?

Decertification itself would not break the US's agreement with Iran. It would start the clock on a 60-day congressional review period, during which legislators would have to decide whether to reimpose sanctions. If they decide to do so, they would effectively dismantle the deal.

Republican members of Congress were unanimously opposed to the agreement in 2015, but they have wavered since then on whether Mr Trump should enforce it. This makes it unclear whether there would be enough votes in support of reinstating sanctions on Tehran.

What could happen with North Korea?

Along with railing against the nuclear deal, Mr Trump has also been critical of Iran's ballistic missile programme and expressed concern Tehran is working with North Korea, which is quickly developing its own nuclear weapons.

If the Trump administration does decertify the nuclear agreement, it's possible North Korea and Iran could expand their military ties.

How might European nations react to Mr Trumps decertification of the deal?

European diplomats have reportedly already been meeting with members of Congress to lobby them on the merits of the agreement.

Mr Trumps criticism of the deal has put him at odds with other world leaders, including the UK's Prime Minister Theresa May, who has called the agreement vital, and Frances President Emmanuel Macron.

During his address to the UN General Assembly, Mr Macon said the nuclear deal was essential for peace.
Tehran (AFP) - Iran's opposition said Friday that restrictions have been tightened on reformist former president Mohammad Khatami, barring him from all public meetings for three months.

Khatami has been banned from appearing in the media since mass protests against the government in 2009-2010, but continues to wield considerable power behind the scenes.

The opposition Kalemeh website said the Special Clerical Court had sent Khatami a letter asking him "not to take part in any political ceremonies and publicity for three months".

This was said to include any meetings, theatre performances and concerts, and barred individuals, government and seminary officials and student union members from meeting with him.

The new restrictions were first revealed by Khatami's nephew Mohammad Reza Tabesh, a member of parliament, earlier this week.

The letter was said to have been signed by the head of the Special Clerical Court, Ebrahim Raisi, the hardline runner-up in this May's presidential election.

The conservative Fars and Mehr news agencies said on Thursday that unnamed officials had denied the existence of the letter or the new restrictions.

But outspoken member of parliament Ali Motahari -- considered a political moderate -- criticised the new measures, saying they were illegal without proper consultation with Khatami or his lawyers.

"We have a good constitution and the parliament has also devised good laws but some councils and institutions such as the Special Clerical Court bypass the constitution and the parliament and drag the country towards autocracy," he said in comments carried by the semi-official ISNA news agency.

"Imposing more restrictions, at a time when public opinion is opposed to the continuation of the house arrest is regrettable," Motahari added.

He was referring to the house arrest of two other opposition leaders, Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, who have been in detention since 2011 for their role in the anti-government protests.

Motahari also said it would give another excuse for the United States to accuse Iran of human rights abuses at a time when Washington is threatening to pull out of the nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers.

"Have those who made this decision done so out of ignorance, or do they have a plan to bring the JCPOA (nuclear deal) to an end sooner?" he asked.
Sao Paulo (AFP) - An Italian fugitive and former leftist guerrilla convicted of murder in his own country has been freed after Brazilian police detained him at the Bolivian border, his lawyer said Saturday.

Cesare Battisti "was freed and has already returned to Sao Paulo," Marcio Palma, a lawyer with the Bottini and Tamasauskas law firm told AFP.

Battisti, who has been on the run for more than three decades but living freely in Brazil since 2010, was stopped by police at the country's western border on Wednesday. On Friday, a judge ordered his release.

Brazilian police said they stopped Battisti, 62, because he failed to declare he was carrying about $6,000 and 1,300 euros.

Battisti says he planned to go shopping in Bolivia. However, the judge ordering his detention said the Italian appeared "to be attempting to flee from the national territory out of fear that he will be extradited" to Italy.

Battisti was convicted of being a member of an armed gang in his homeland in 1979, then escaped from prison near Rome in 1981. He was subsequently convicted for his part in four murders blamed on an armed Marxist group active in Italy in the 1970s.

He spent more than three decades on the run in Mexico and France, where he developed a successful career as a thriller author. He fled to Brazil in 2004, living in hiding before being arrested in Rio de Janeiro in 2007.

Brazil's Supreme Court authorized his extradition in 2009, but this was blocked in 2010 by then leftist president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on his last day in office -- infuriating Italy.

Brazil's center-right government, which came to power last year after the impeachment of Lula's hand-picked successor Dilma Rousseff, indicates it will now at least consider his extradition.

After Battisti's detention this week, Italian Foreign Minister Angelino Alfano tweeted that he was working with Rome's ambassador in Brazil to "bring Battisti back to Italy and hand him over to justice."

In Brasilia, a source in President Michel Temer's office said Temer was "waiting for the positions of the justice ministry and foreign relations ministry in order to take a decision."
Ivana and Donald Trump at a party in the early 1980s - 2004 Getty Images

Ivana Trump, President Donald Trumps ex-wife, says she was offered the chance to become US ambassador to the Czech Republic but turned it down in order to protect her globetrotting perfect life.

Mr Trumps first wife was raised in communist Czechoslovakia and married the property mogul in 1977.

"I was just offered to be the American ambassador to Czech Republic - and Donald told me. He said, 'Ivana, if you want it, I give it to you, Mrs Trump, 68, said in an interview with CBS to be broadcast on Sunday.

However, she said she valued her freedom too much to accept.

OK, why would I go and say bye-bye to Miami in the winter, bye-bye to Saint-Tropez in the summer and bye-bye to spring and fall in New York? I have a perfect life, she added.

Ivana Trump after appearing in Celebrity Big Brother in 2010 Credit: Getty Images

The couple divorced in 1992.

But the mother of Donald Jr, Ivanka and Eric said she still spoke regularly to her ex-husband and had advised him on his use of Twitter, suggesting it was a perfect way of preventing the mainstream media from twisting his words.

Her memoir, Raising Trump, is published next week and details the couples divorce, which made front page news in New Yorks febrile tabloid market at the time.

Pres. Trumps often outspoken first wife Ivana Trump has led a relatively quiet life since the election. She spoke with @CBSSunday: pic.twitter.com/3ZTFAE3eno  CBS News (@CBSNews) October 6, 2017

According to the Associated Press, which obtained an advance copy, she knew her marriage was over soon after a day in December 1989.

"This young blonde woman approached me out of the blue and said 'I'm Marla and I love your husband. Do you?"' she writes. "I said 'Get lost. I love my husband.' It was unladylike but I was in shock."

Mr Trump's public affair with Marla Maples spawned the infamous "Best Sex I've Ever Had" headline in the New York Post in 1990. After divorcing his first wife, Mr Trump married Ms Maples in 1993.
Former Vice President Joe Biden has launched a strident attack on Donald Trumps foreign policy, saying it has endangered America and hinted he and Barack Obama are set to offer more outspoken criticism of the man who succeeded them in the White House.

In a speech to a foreign policy think tank in Washington DC, the man who may still be considering a presidential run in 2020, said it was time for experts to raise their voices and speak out.

We are walking down a very dark path. Its not alarmist, he said. The isolation of the United States on the world stageas a consequence endangers - not strengthens - American interests and the American people.

He added: I really feel incredibly strongly that the women and men sitting before me, who have been the intellectual backbone of the foreign policy establishment in this country for decades, have to start to speak out.

President Obama and I have been very quiet and respectful, giving the administration time, but some of these roots are being sunk too deeply. I believe its time to challenge some of the dangerous assumptions that are attempting to replace that liberal world order.

Both Mr Biden and Mr Obama have been watchful of their public criticism of the Trump administration since they left the White House. Mr Obama spoke out over the effort to scrap his landmark healthcare plan and about a proposal to deport so-called Dreamers as part of an immigration crackdown.

Yet the comments by Mr Biden on Thursday in Washington, as he accepted an award form the Centre for Strategic and International Studies think tank, are an insight into the deep concern felt by many over Mr Trumps foreign policy.

In recent weeks, it has become ever more clear of the gap between Mr Trump and his most senior diplomat, Secretary of State Rex Tillers. This week, Mr Tillerson was obliged to hold a press conference to deny a report by NBC News that he had considered resigning from the cabinet this summer and considered the President a moron. While he did not specifically deny making the comment, he said Vice President Mike Pence had not had to talk him out of quitting.

Story continues

After months of reflection and consideration, Mr Biden, 74, decided against contesting the 2016 presidential election, a decision he has since suggested was wrong. There are many in the Democratic Party who want him to consider a run in 2020, despite his age.

How long do we let gun violence tear families apart? Enough. Congress & the WH should act now to save lives. There's no excuse for inaction.  Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) October 2, 2017

Mr Biden, who reached the top in American politics from hardscrabble roots, said in his speech he knew many Americans felt left behind by globalisation, and that Mr Trump had been able to tap into such concerns.

The appeal to populism and nationalism is a siren song, a way for charlatans to aggrandise their power, raise themselves up, break down those mechanisms that were designed, whether in our constitution or internationally, to limit the abuse of power, and destabilise the world, he said.

Referring to Mr Trumps history as a New York property developer, Mr Biden said: Rather than building a shared narrative of freedom and democracy that inspires nations to unite in common goals, this administration casts global affairs in a dog-eat-dog competition, like its a competition: who gets that plot to build the new high-rise building.

He said the actions the Trump administration were making it more difficult for the US to face current challenges, undermining the country's credibility by planning to back out of the Paris climate deal, questioning the US commitment to NATO and threatening to destroy the Iran nuclear deal.

He added: This administration is calling into question what the word of the United States is actually worth.
It was another day, another barrage against fake news media from President Donald Trump Thursday. But theres one problem, says Jimmy Kimmel: No breathing human on the planet Earth produces more fake news than Donald Trump.

Speaking on Thursdays Jimmy Kimmel Live, the talk-show host called the president out on his own peddling of mistruths, after Trump again tweeted his fury at NBC News over a report that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson planned to quit the White House.

On Thursday, Trump asked why the Senate intelligence committee wasnt investigating fake news networks for propagating inaccurate and false news stories. That was a day after he went on the offensive against NBC News over their scoop on Tillerson.

Trump tweeted:

I guess hes moved on from Puerto Rico and Las Vegas, Kimmel said wryly, referring to more pressing events that might warrant the presidents attention.

And reacting to Trumps call for action from the Senate intelligence committee to investigate fake news, Kimmel offered this: The Senate intel committee, by the way, is busy right now looking into the fake news the Russians made up to help him win the election.

Kimmel said that the irony of Trumps crusade against so-called fake news is that the president himself is the biggest purveyor of spouting falsehoods.

The comedian pointed to Trumps page on the political fact-checking website PolitiFact, which shows that only 5 percent of the things that come out of his mouth are true, Kimmel said.

More than two thirds [of things he says], 69 percent, are false, mostly false or pants-on-fire false.

PolitiFact's Trump scorecard

PolitiFact/YouTube

Kimmel then pointed to another chart from The Washington Post that show that over the last 232 days, Donald Trump has made 1,145 claims that are false or misleading.

He added: And thats just the stuff he says in public. Donald Trump is a tornado of fake news. He is the Michael Jordan, Elvis Presley and Great Wall of China of fake news combined.

Story continues

Kimmel concluded with the punchline: Donald Trump criticizing fake news is like Hugh Hefner criticizing fake breasts.

Ba dum tish.

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Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-06 21:58:37|Editor: Xiang Bo

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BEIJING, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- A total of 67 million Chinese tourists traveled around the country on the sixth day of the National Day holiday, the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) said on Friday.

The figure represents an increase of 12.3 percent year on year, the CNTA said.

Tourism revenue generated on Friday totaled 54.6 billion yuan (8.23 billion U.S. dollars), up 15.1 percent from the same period a year ago.

The number of tourists in major scenic spots remained high with that in Changbai Mountain in northeast China's Jilin Province rising by 78 percent to 22,500, according to CNTA statistics.

Zhejiang Province in east China hosted 9.77 million tourists who spent a total of 7.97 billion yuan on Friday.

CNTA said the tourist market over the latter half of the holiday running from Oct. 1 to 8 was mainly driven by road trips, periphery tours and leisure travel.

Folk customs, rural tourism, camping, theme parks and tourism complex were increasingly popular.

China's air, road and railway transport systems are to enter another peak as people have started to return.

On Oct. 1, the first day of the holiday, 15.03 million trips were made by train, an all-time high. This year's National Day holiday was extended by one more day due to the Mid-autumn Festival which falls on Oct. 4.

A separate report from the China Railway Corporation said trains were expected to carry 12.57 million travelers on Friday.
Who or what is a white supremacist, exactly? The raging debate has resembled nothing so much as a classical ontological discourse on categorization. Are white supremacists considered so because they consider themselves so? Does one become a white supremacist by more Aristotelian means, expressing a certain number of categories of beingor swastika tattoos? Or is the definition something more slippery and subtle?

The language of white supremacy has become increasingly central to understanding the argument over the broad currents of Donald Trumps ascendancy. Long before ESPN anchor Jemele Hill famously referred to Trump as a white supremacist on Twitter, the questions of just who is a white supremacist, and just what white supremacy is, have dominated the analysis of how he came into power, and what that power means.

Hills comments came as part of the general response to an essay from my colleague Ta-Nehisi Coates, one in which Coates says that Trumps ideology is white supremacy, in all its truculent and sanctimonious power. The bent of that essay is that whitenessand in turn white supremacyuniquely buoyed Trumps candidacy, and that he has in turn openly wielded those energies to capture support and lead. Hills summation seemed to complete the square of that argument: Donald Trump is a white supremacist who has largely surrounded himself with other white supremacists. In this argument, white supremacy is framed as a broad concept, one where wielding racism or benefitting from it, even in its subtler forms, earns one the mark.

Opposition to this framing has varied, from conservatives who decry a tendency of liberals to see the hidden hand of racism in gosh darn everything, to those on the left who feel Coates downplays materialist analysis and unduly elevates Trumps danger above that of other racist presidents. But one of the thought-provoking sets of analyses comes from those who roughly agree with Coates that Trumps primary appeal has been racialperhaps, racistbut disagree with labeling his ideology as white supremacy or with Hills assertion that he is an obvious white supremacist.

There are several shades of gray to those objections, but a column from Jonathan Chait in New York sums them up best. Chait does not agree with an expansive definition of white supremacy that would capture say David Duke, Steve Bannon, and Donald Trump, writing that to flatten the language we use to describe different kinds of right-wing politics is to bludgeon our capacity to make vital distinctions. Chait sees this labeling as a kind of language creep that in casting a wide net simultaneously cheapens some of Americas cherished institutions and in turn might tend to encourage radical acts against them.

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This criticism of a broad definition of white supremacy isnt new. Last November, Mother Joness Kevin Drum decried the faddish term wielded against members of the left and the right, and placed the genesis of that connotation with Coates himself. Jesse Singal, also of New York, and a frequent interlocutor of mine, tweeted yesterday expressing concern about the flexibility of the term as used by activists. Don't understand the utility of labeling a huge swath of things white supremacist or Nazi that simply aren't, Singal said. Our resultant conversation is threaded on Twitter and became the genesis of this essay.

To perhaps unfairly flatten these three arguments, which constitute the best of this school of objection, they tend to agree that the modern expansive definition of white supremacy is, well, modern. But that proposition is limited. The school of critical race theory, championed by scholars such as bell hooks, has been around in academic circles for at least 30 years, and its definition of white supremacy has long animated black activism. To quote scholar Frances Lee Ansley (taken here from a passage from David Gillborn, also, a critical-race-theory scholar):

By white supremacy I do not mean to allude only to the self-conscious racism of white supremacist hate groups. I refer instead to a political, economic and cultural system in which whites overwhelmingly control power and material resources, conscious and unconscious ideas of white superiority and entitlement are widespread, and relations of white dominance and non-white subordination are daily reenacted across a broad array of institutions and social settings.

The provenance of that definition of white supremacy does not alone guarantee its usefulness, and 30 years is still relatively new in the academia-to-modern parlance frame. Also, as my colleague Conor Friedersdorf noted last November, the critical-race-theory definition could very well be the vernacular of a tiny, insular subculture, one which is contested and has not reached the level of consensus.

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But the idea of critical-race-theorys insularity is belied by its deep communion with widely-read titans of black intellectual thought. James Baldwins work did nothing if not tend towards the idea of white supremacy as a collective effort that went well beyond the work of self-avowed members of hate groups, and his 1980 essay in Esquire titled Dark Days crystalized that tendency. To be white was to be forced to digest a delusion called white supremacy, Baldwin wrote. In that essay, which itself was written in parallel with the nascence of critical race theory, Baldwin ties the very concept of whiteness to white supremacy.

Lest Baldwin be counted along with Frantz Fanon and Malcolm X as more radical fringe voices on the topic of white supremacy, the idea of white supremacy as a shared culture has been floated by many of the establishment voices of the civil-rights-movement, including none other than Martin Luther King, Jr. In his 1967 book Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?, which is itself concerned with hope and building interracial solidarity, King wrote that the doctrine of white supremacy was imbedded in every textbook and preached in practically every pulpit. It became a structural part of the culture, one that persisted to the present day.

Now the only way to be identified as a white supremacist is to say you are one.

However much it is denied, however many excuses are made, the hard cold fact is that many white Americans oppose open housing because they unconsciously, and often consciously, feel that the Negro is innately inferior, impure, depraved and degenerate, King wrote. It is a contemporary expression of Americas long dalliance with racism and white supremacy.

King saw that white supremacy was a structural pillar of America equally important to democracy itself. In that work, King also analyzed white backlash not as an insurgency responding to proximate political factors or politicians, but as a visceral, enduring autonomous response guided by white supremacy. In other words, King used white supremacy in a way that might have seen him scolded today, by many who do the scolding in his name.

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The example of King is important, because a funhouse-mirror view of his philosophy tends to dominate the modern liberal view of race. King was famously conciliatoryin 1964 he refused to call Barry Goldwater racist, instead settling on saying the candidate articulates a philosophy which gives aid and comfort to the racist, a restraint that even many modern journalists might not havebut in his late life he often dealt with the effects of that conciliation, and with an advancing conspiracy that would eventually consume him. By the time of his death, the country had turned on King. And one major driver was a concerted effort among conservatives to take white supremacy and flip it on its head, and to gaslight black activism.

Chait mentions that subversion, noting that political appeals to racism had to use some level of symbolic remove after the civil-rights movement, but his treatment doesnt quite do justice to the musculature of the effort. The repackaging of Jim Crow into a race neutral set of policies didnt just arise as a wink-and-a-nod deal in southern political backrooms a few years near the end of the civil-rights movement, but was a half-century-long project forged by thousands of lawyers and mainstream political leaders that costs millions of dollars, and was played out in every arena across the country from the Supreme Court to town hall meetings.

A recent investigation in the New York Times Magazine by Nikole Hannah-Jones illustrates how this process took shape in the court room arms race over education after 1954s Brown v. Board, but similar neutralization occurred in housing policy, public health, criminal justice, and voting rights. Richard Rothsteins recent book The Color of Law in particular is a primer in the ways that even the least sophisticated white political actors moved away from explicitly racist and even subtly racist justifications for their laws to escape the scrutiny of watchful courts.

Correspondingly, as new policies intersected with public opinion and genuine policy victories won by the civil-rights movement, expressing racism became gauche, and then taboo. That taboo itself crystallized a self-conceptualization of whiteness as innately anti-racist. In turn, charges of racism themselves became epithets, and the mantle of white supremacy was relegated only to the ranks of those white folks foolish or ideological enough not to abide by the taboo. As both Chait and Drum implicitly outline in their work, now the only way to be identified as a white supremacist is to say you are one.

It goes without saying that this realignment almost exclusively benefitted white supremacists, who did not suddenly die with the passage of the Voting Rights Act. In no small bit of class warfare, whites who most often carried out direct violence in white supremacys name took the heat, giving space to the white men in suits who did their work quietly with litigation and city-planning maps. Those people of color who critiqued white supremacy were cemented as malcontents and agitators, themselves racists or race-baiters who sought to exploit white guilt to upend American racial harmony.

The development of critical race theory and its definition of white supremacy strike me as a reaction against that post-King status quo. The idea of white privilege came about not as a mid-aughts term for Tumblr teens, but during that reaction as a way to identify the latent benefits of white supremacy during a time when white liberals, moderates, and conservatives alike promoted a fiction of progress that denied their collective benefit from it, and to recover the language of responsibility lost in the mainstream with Kings death.

Additionally, calling out white supremacy and calling people white supremacists functioned as a provocation. The provocation necessarily came from a tiny, insular group of peopleas the rest of the country had convinced itself that white supremacy was a grievously offensive slander. That provocation has been continued by todays black activists, who often see themselves not as mere instruments in building big tents under the status quo, but as awakening people to the reality that the status quo is still white supremacy. Thus, their provocation appears designed to probe and assault consensus, an endeavor that always risks enraging people who are part of that consensus.

The media likewise should not be merely a mirror of consensus; rather it should challenge groupthink any time it runs up against truth. And if consensus is that white supremacy is a thing that only exists in the hate-group fringe, that claim should be held in skepticism against the reality that many of the racial outcomesincome gaps, housing and education segregation, police brutality, and incarcerationof the era of naked white supremacy persist, or have even worsened. And when it comes to Trump, or any other politician for that matter, the knee-jerk consensus reaction that a mainstream politician cannot possibly be a white supremacist should be balanced with the truth that many or most American politicians have been, and that they were voted in by real Americans, many of whom are alive, well, and voting today.

These demands are difficult to square in todays polarized, litigious environment. But, to counter Chait, while a more expansive view of white supremacy in medias contemplation of politics may seem to flatten political discourse, perhaps the difficulty here is facing the possibility that things might actually be flat. Politics might actually be trapped in the black box of white supremacy, and people very well might be on a historical treadmill, fighting the fights their parents fought, and maybe losing. If that version of reality is true, then the panic brought on by that flattened language might be justified.

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This article was originally published on The Atlantic.
Lisa Bloom is defending Harvey Weinstein. (Photo: Getty Images)

Ever since the New York Times dropped the story detailing decades of alleged sexual harassment and assault, coverups, and payoffs by superproducer Harvey Weinstein, three main narratives have followed. The first, of course, is how long it took for this to become a big story, as many have talked about how it has been an open secret in Hollywood for years. The second is a lack of shock that Weinstein was accused of doing such things. And finally, the dismay that attorney Lisa Bloom  daughter of Gloria Allred and self-professed champion of women  had been working with him.

What has made it so troubling is that until now, Bloom has been known for her dedication to championing women who have been victims of sexual assault and sexual misconduct. A small sampling of her previous clients includes Blac Chyna, Janice Dickinson, Mischa Barton, some of the women who accused Bill OReilly of sexual harassment and assault, and most recently, Monita Sabbag, who found herself part of an extortion plot against comedian Kevin Hart  and was also videotaped in sexual situations without her knowledge. In a previous interview with Yahoo, Bloom spoke candidly about her desire to help these women, saying, I know that one of the healthiest things a woman can do is to stand up for herself and speak her truth. And I am honored to assist her in becoming empowered.

So how does that check with all the women now speaking their truth about Weinstein? In a statement issued by her office yesterday, Bloom said shes been working with Weinstein to help him understand the error of his ways and showed him how his position as a Hollywood power player might help people see some of his behavior in a less than positive light.

As a womens rights advocate, I have been blunt with Harvey and he has listened to me, Bloom said. I have told him that times have changed, it is 2017, and he needs to evolve to a higher standard. I have found Harvey to be refreshingly candid and receptive to my message. He has acknowledged mistakes he has made. He is reading books and going to therapy. He is an old dinosaur learning new ways.

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But its one of the comments Bloom made in her statement thats causing a lot of eyebrow raising: And as we work together on a project bringing my book to the screen, he has always been respectful toward me.

The book in question is Suspicion Nation, Blooms 2014 tome about the Trayvon Martin case. In March it was optioned by Weinstein after whats been described as a heated auction, and its now being made into a miniseries with Jay-Z as a producer. Whats interesting is the timing. In her statement discussing her work with Weinstein, she mentions having been tutoring him for a year, which means shes been teaching him how to not be a jerk to women since October of 2016  long before her book auction, and long before the previously hidden allegations came to light.

For her part, Bloom is doubling down on her support of Weinstein, telling the Associated Press that she wants to make a difference on the other side, while also claiming many of the allegations were overblown. She admits she knew about his behavior and says he admitted to being stupid, and that she wants to explain to him the laws of sexual harassment and why this is important.

Bloom dismisses comparisons to two other famous men accused of sexual misconduct.

The facts there are very different. Bill Cosby is accused of being a serial rapist, she told the AP. Theres allegedly a recording of Bill OReilly calling women while he was masturbating. So thats a whole different level. In this case we are talking if the allegations are that he said some stupid things  some things he clearly should not have said. He said some things that are offensive to women and he said, Lisa  help me understand  why cant I just make jokes? Why cant I just say things like that? You know Harvey?  Its 2017 for Gods sake. I mean those have been the kinds of conversations weve had.

Bloom says the claims of Weinstein trampling over the line of verbal harassment are in dispute by the producer, and, This is not an easy time for him either. Probably nobody has sympathy for him right now and thats fine. And while she claims Weinstein isnt in the business of digging up dirt on the women accusing him and trying to smear their name, as Lainey Gossip points out, Weinstein subtly discredited one of his accusers, actress Ashley Judd, in a comment to the New York Post.

I know Ashley Judd is going through a tough time right now, Weinstein told the paper. I read her book [her memoir All That Is Bitter and Sweet], in which she talks about being the victim of sexual abuse and depression as a child. Her life story was brutal, and I have to respect her. In a year from now I am going to reach out to her.

Meanwhile, Blooms mother, attorney Gloria Allred, had reportedly spoken out against her daughters decision to represent Weinstein but has since given the AP an updated comment saying she wasnt criticizing Blooms choice.

Attorneys (and mother and daughter) Lisa Bloom and Gloria Allred have different takes on Harvey Weinstein. (Photo: Getty Images)

She has the right to rep anyone that in her professional opinion she should represent. I have no problem with that at all, she said. I only represent victims of sexual harassment. I dont represent people who are accused of sexual harassment. But people who are accused of sexual harassment are also entitled to have an attorney.

For his part, Weinstein announced Thursday that he would be voluntarily taking a leave of absence from his company  the Weinstein Company  to deal with the allegations. On Friday, however, the company announced that he would be placed on indefinite leave while an internal investigation of the claims against him is conducted. His return, the majority of the companys board of directors said, depends on the findings of that investigation and his progress in therapy.

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Fridays announcement that the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize went to The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) represents just the latest step in the long relationship between the Oslo-based Norwegian Nobel Committee and nuclear technology.

ICAN, which played a key role in the negotiations that led to the recent signing of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons at the United Nations, scored the prize in honor of its work to draw attention to the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons and for its ground-breaking efforts to achieve a treaty-based prohibition of such weapons. Its the latest group of people involved in world nuclear-disarmament efforts to be recognized with the Nobel Peace Prize, an award thats also been presented to such advocates in 1959, 1962, 1974, 1982, 1985, 1990, 1995 and 2005.

But disarmament and non-proliferation are not the only parts of the nuclear past that have been recognized by the Nobel Committee.

In the first decades of the prizes existence, for obvious reasons, it was much more likely to see nuclear technology recognized in science categories, as awards went to those whose work would make nuclear weapons possible. A prominent example is the 1938 Nobel Prize in Physics, awarded to Enrico Fermi for work that led to the discovery of nuclear fission. He was a leader of the Manhattan Project, the American lab that produced nuclear weapons, and TIME called him the worlds foremost nuclear physicist in 1945, while his New York Times obituary described him as an architect of the atomic age. The Nobel Committee has given out more than 30 prizes honoring various research that enhances the study of nuclear activity, dating all the way back to 1903. (A list of such prizes up until 2000 can be found here.)

But as the science and implications of nuclear weapons started to be better understood  almost immediately from the time they were first used  efforts to regulate the use of them increased, and so did the Nobel Prizes on the other side.

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In fact, in 1946, one year after the first wartime use of nuclear weapons, TIME noticed nuclear scientists were conspicuously absent from the list of lineup of honorees that year.

As the magazine pointed out, there was deep history behind that decision: Alfred Nobel is said to have endowed the Peace Prize specifically as penance for having introduced dynamite into the world; it would thus be embarrassing for the prize committee to honor the inventors of something being hailed as super-dynamite.

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And so the Peace Prizes for disarmament activists began.

One of the earliest people to receive the Peace Prize for such efforts was Philip Noel-Baker, who won the 1959 Peace Prize in part for his visions for an international agreement to curb the spread of nukes, which was published in the manifesto The Arms Race: A Programme for World Disarmament.

In fact, it was Bakers work that inspired the American cardiologist Bernard Lown to start a group called International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW), which was in turned recognized with a Nobel in 1985. His views had a profound intellectual impact on me, Lown told People in 1985. He spelled out the consequences of nuclear war like some ancient Hebrew prophet. And IPPNW would, in turn, launch ICAN, this years winner.

The Peace Prize has also gone to people who have tried to keep the peace as world leaders and diplomats. For example, Eisaku Sato, former prime minister of Japan, won in 1974 for maintaining that his country shouldnt have nukes and for having signed, on behalf of the nation, the nuclear arms Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). That treaty, which went into effect in 1970, has been described by the United Nations as the only binding commitment in a multilateral treaty to the goal of disarmament by the nuclear-weapon States. And in 1990, Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev got the prize for his role in landmark treaties designed to reduce arms supplies instead of just capping them.

And yet, the work of activists did not stop the spread of nuclear weapons. As TIME noted in a feature on the diplomats who shared the 1982 prize for their work on disarmament, it was awarded at a time when the world had amassed nearly 5,000 intercontinental ballistic missile launchers, up from 500 in 1962.

The organization says it will continue to honor those who work to ensure peace in the atomic age, frankly, for as long as the risks of nuclear proliferation and nuclear war continue to exist.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 03:50:22|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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CAPE TOWN, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- South Africa has unlocked investments totalling 24.6 billion rand (about 1.8 billion U.S. dollars) through its Oceans Economy Program, President Jacob Zuma said on Friday.

The largest contribution to the total investment in the ocean economy was from infrastructure development, mainly in ports, manufacturing, aquaculture and scientific surveys in the oil and gas sector, Zuma said in an update on the implementation of the program, also known as Operation Phakisa.

He was speaking during a visit to the coastal city of Durban, where Operation Phakisa was launched in 2014, with the aim of deriving greater economic benefits from South Africa's oceans.

"A lot of progress has been made and I am happy to report back today," Zuma said.

From South Africa's own analysis, the total ocean sectors contribute about 4.4 percent to the country's GDP, with the largest contribution coming from the value chains.

Over 6,500 jobs have been created through the oceanic economy segment of Operation Phakisa, according to Zuma.

As part of the program, consultations have been concluded on 18 of the envisaged 22 Offshore Marine Protected Areas. These will cover approximately 4.4 percent of the country's Exclusive Economic Zone.

"With regards to policing and protecting our Exclusive Economic Zone, Joint Operations continue to be conducted in all four coastal provinces as part of the coordinated enforcement program with numerous arrests and confiscations that happened," Zuma said.

South Africa, he said, is now in a better position to locate vessels, especially the ones entering the country's waters illegally and those engaging in illegal activities.

The cabinet has approved the Coastal and Marine Tourism Lab, thus taking Operation Phakisa in the tourism sector forward, Zuma said.

"Our aspiration is to grow a world class and sustainable coastal and marine tourism destinations," he said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 05:30:55|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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WASHINGTON, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- The burgeoning online shopping has hit traditional brick and mortar stores hard and eliminated tens of thousands of retail jobs, while e-commerce has also created as many jobs in other sectors and places, according to a recent research from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, warning the trend would enlarge geographic and income inequality.

Online sales in the U.S. have grown strongly, with their share of total retail sales increasing from 2.5 percent in the mid-1990s to around 5 percent in the mid-2000s, then doubling again to exceed 10 percent today, according to the research released on Thursday.

2012 marks the start of diverging trends of employments at department stores and nonstore retailers. Since early 2013, department stores have eliminated roughly 80,000 jobs, on net, while nonstore retailers have added roughly 100,000 jobs, the research said, emphasizing the trends show no sign of abating.

While department stores have been shedding jobs, other segments of the retail sector have been adding jobs. In other words, online shopping isn't killing jobs but shifting jobs from one industry to another. Over the past year, nonstore retailers have added almost as many jobs (29,000) as department stores have cut (32,000), according to the research.

The problem, however, is that geographic distribution of jobs is very different for online retailers versus brick and mortar outfits. Areas that are losing a lot of department store jobs may not be the ones gaining online retail jobs.

The research found that between 2012 and 2016, 75 percent of American counties lost department store jobs. While a majority of those counties did see some increase in nonstore retail jobs, four-fifths of these counties lost out on net-that is, department stores shed more jobs than nonstore retailers added.

Economists at the New York Fed explained that in contrast with traditional retailers, online sellers tend to concentrate all or most of their staff in one or a few locations. The best example is King County of Washington State, home of the online shopping giant Amazon. In 2012, King County's nonstore employment represented 1.4 percent of the total employment in the county; by 2016, that share had doubled to 2.8 percent.

Moreover, the average online retail job income exceeded 59,000 dollars in 2016, while the average wage for department store workers was only more than 20,000 dollars.

The staggering difference suggests that online shopping might not only enlarge geographic inequality but also income inequality.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 05:56:02|Editor: huaxia

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TEHRAN -- Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Friday that the recent independence referendum of Iraq's Kurdistan region was a "strategic mistake."

Zarif made the remarks on the sidelines of the funeral procession of former Iraqi President Jalal Talabani in Sulaymaniyah of Kurdistan Region, Tasnim news agency reported. (Iran-Iraq-Kurds)

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DAMASCUS -- The Syrian army and allied fighters have dislodged Islamic State (IS) from the eastern countryside of Homs province in central Syria, state news agency SANA reported Friday.

The army finished its operations in Homs, capturing 1,800 square km from IS, SANA said. (Syria-IS-Homs)

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TEHRAN -- Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman on Friday "categorically" denied the reports that Tehran is ready to talk with powers over its ballistic missile program, official IRNA news agency reported.

Iran has repeatedly announced that "its defense program will never be subject to negotiations," the spokesman Bahram Qasemi was quoted as saying. (Iran-Missile)

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KHARTOUM -- Sudan government on Friday welcomed the U.S. administration's decision to permanently lift the 20-year-old economic sanctions on Sudan.

"Sudanese leadership, government and people welcome the positive decision made by the U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday to permanently lift the economic sanctions on Sudan," said Sudan's Foreign Ministry in a statement. (Sudan-U.S.-Sanctions Lifting) Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 06:56:13|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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LOS ANGELES, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMDP) and FBI Friday announced a new campaign to retrieve key information related to the mass shooting on Sunday as no evidence has shown the shooter's motive.

"If you know something, say something please, call 1-800-Call FBI," Aaron Rouse, Special Agent in Charge of the Las Vegas Division of the FBI, said at a press briefing Friday, pledging "we will not stop investigation until we find truth."

Before Rouse's promise, Clark County Undersheriff Kevin McMahill disclosed that the authorities had probed Stephen Paddock's personal life, political beliefs, social behavior and economic habits, but had not found clear motive for the violence.

Paddock, the 64-year-old gambler and real estate investor, rained down about 1,600 rounds of ammo from the 32th floor suite of Mandalay Bay hotel into a crowd of more than 22,000 people attending Route 91 Harvest Country Music Festival Sunday night, killing 58 concertgoers and injuring nearly 500.

McMahill confirmed at the press briefing which live showed online that there was no other shooter in Paddock's hotel room, and there's no evidence so far anyone else used his room key or anyone else was with him at the resort in the days before the shooting.

Authorities received more than 1,000 leads and took a large amount of video clips captured by the resort's monitor system, he said, but can not make sure if anybody knew the murder's plan in advance.

There's no evidence Paddock was radicalized at any point, McMahill insisted. The Islamic State terrorist group claimed Thursday that he converted to radical Islam six months ago.

McMahill shrugged off many information raised by reporters at the press briefing, saying "We all want answers, rumours and speculation are not helpful to the investigation."

Former Milwaukee Sheriff David Clarke tweeted on Thursday, saying "I've been in law enforcement nearly 40 years & I'm suspicious about everything. We need to engage the public more."
Members of the New York City Police Counterterrorism force stand guard in Times Square: Stephanie Keith/Getty Images

Three men have been charged with plotting Isis-inspired attacks on concerts, landmarks, and the subway system in New York City.

All three men have been arrested and one has plead guilty, according to the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, whose office announced the charges on Friday.

The men planned to detonate bombs in Times Square, a popular tourist destination, and on the subway, according to the DA. They were also said to ahve planned to shoot civilians at a number of concerts.

The alleged plans were thwarted by an undercover FBI agent claiming to be an Isis supporter, the DA said. One man was arrested in New Jersey, while the two others were arrested in Pakistan and the Philippines  foreign countries from which they allegedly helped plan the attacks.

Abdulrahman el Bahnasawy, a 19-year-old Canadian citizen, allegedly purchased bomb-making materials and secured a cabin within driving distance of New York in which to assemble them. Talha Haroon, a 19-year-old living in Pakistan, is said to have made plans to travel to New York to help him. The third defendant, 37-year-old Russel Salic of Pakistan, is accused of wiring money to fund the operation.

Mr el Bahnasawy plead guilty to a seven-count charge last October. Mr Haroon faces five charges, and Mr Salic faces seven - they have not yet answered the charges. All three men have been charged with multiple crimes carrying a life sentence.

The US hopes to extradite Mr Salic and Mr Haroon from their home countries to face a US court.

The men sent electronic messages to the undercover agent expressing their desire to carry out Paris- and Brussels-like terrorist attacks in New York City, the DA's office said. Mr el Bahnasawy allegedly texted the agent that he hoped to create the next 9/11".

Mr Haroon allegedly claimed to have been in contact with Isis associates within the Khorasan Province, and to have met explosives experts to determine the exact materials needed for the bomb. The men claimed Mr Salic was a "trusted Isis supporte" who had funded previous attacks, according to the DA.

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Mr el Bahnasawy was arrested in March 2016, when he travelled from Canada to the US to prepare for the attacks, the DA's office said. Mr Haroon and Mr Salic were subsequently arrested in their home countries.

Although the plans were discovered more than a year ago, the arrests were not revealed until 6 October, when authorities were confident that no one else was involved.

The news came days after a man with no link to any terror group opened fire on a concert crowd in Las Vegas, killing 58 people. A little over a year before, an Isis-inspired bomber detonated a pressure cooker bomb on the New York subway. No one was killed.

Although the mens plots were not put into motion, former FBI Supervisor JJ Klaver told NBC News that the men would not have been arrested unless there was some substance to their plans.

"They are going to look at the extent of the plans being made and the extent that these guys are taking actions to further those plans," Mr Klaver said.

Attorney information for the three men was not immediately available.
Bright and bold!

Melania Trump made an appearance alongside husband President Trump on Friday at a Hispanic Heritage Month event.

The first lady stunned in a red Carolina Herrera skirt with a ruffled, mermaid hem reminiscent of traditional flamenco-style skirts. She paired her bottoms with a simple white sweater that hugged her teeny figure. In typical Melania fashion, she polished off her ensemble with a pair of stilettos in a similar bright red hue, her brunette tresses in a blown out style and a swipe of pink gloss on her lips.

The 47-year-old beauty hit the stage with a big smile on her face as President Trump took to the podium.

It has been quite a busy week for the first couple, who made trips to Puerto Rico and Las Vegas earlier this week.

Melania sparked controversy on two separate occasions over her ensembles of choice. She defied critics for the third time by wearing a pair of navy-hued stilettos en route to Puerto Rico. If you recall, she sparked controversy for wearing stilettos while leaving Washington D.C. before a trip to Texas in the wake of Hurricane Harvey.

RELATED: Melania Trump's controversial Hurricane Harvey look:



Just a day later, she sparked Twitter uproar when she was photographed returning from Las Vegas wearing sunglasses at night. The first lady was also criticized for wearing sunglasses while visiting the victims of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.

For more on Melania's fashion this week, watch the video above.
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - A Mexican military helicopter crashed on Friday in the northern state of Durango, seriously injuring one military member aboard and likely killing seven others, the defense ministry said in a statement. The helicopter, a Bell 412 model, crashed 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) northeast of the town of El Salto in the mountainous state of Durango during a training flight. The one survivor was in grave condition in hospital, while authorities are searching for the bodies of seven other military members which were presumed to be among the remains of the aircraft. The northern state of Durango borders Sinaloa state, home of the Sinaloa drug cartel. Military authorities are investigating what happened to the helicopter, the ministry said. (Reporting by Lizbeth Diaz; Writing by Christine Murray; Editing by Andrew Hay)
Mr Yiannopoulos has been filmed singing a patriotic song while white nationalists give the Nazi salute: Buzzfeed

Milo Yiannopoulos has been filmed singing a patriotic song at a Dallas Karaoke bar while American white nationalists were allegedly in the audience giving the Nazi salute.

The video, published by Buzzfeed News as a part of an investigation into Breitbart News ties to neo-Nazis and white nationalists, shows Mr Yiannopoulos singing America, the Beautiful at the One Nostalgia Tavern while crowd members give the salute.

Among those in the crowd giving the salute was Richard Spencer, a prominent white supremacist in the US who was seen in a previously disclosed tape giving the Nazi salute while praising Donald Trump after his election last year.

Mr Yiannopoulos  who developed notoriety as a right-wing provocateur at Breitbart before resigning amid outrage over comments in which he appeared to endorse paedophilia  claims that he was not able to see Mr Spencer and the others because he has extreme myopia, and says that he is not a racist.

The Buzzfeed News investigation stems from emails received by the organisation that show Mr Yiannopoulos playing a crucial role in mainstreaming white nationalist ideas through Breitbart. The emails revealed that he regularly emailed white nationalists, socialised with them, and asked them for advice. The emails also showed that he was in regular contact with neo-Nazis.

Following the release of that report, Mr Yiannopoulos provided The Independent with photos that he says illustrate the severity of his nearsightedness when he doesn't have glasses on, and said that Mr Spencer and other white nationalists are trying to bring him down. Mr Yiannopoulos is frequently photographed wearing glasses, and was not wearing any in the karaoke video.

This is how my vision is without glasses. Its worse in dark rooms, Mr Yiannopoulos said in the email. I knew he was there, but I did not see them do this.

This stock image was provided by Milo Yiannopoulos as a contrast to an altered version of this image, which he says illustrates his myopia (Image provided by Milo Yiannopoulos)

This photo was provided by Milo Yiannopoulos to illustrate his vision without glass, as compared to the previous image (Image provided by Milo Yiannopoulos)

Mr Yiannopoulos continued on to say that he thinks Mr Spencer was trying to give the false impression that they share the same beliefs.

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I suspect this was staged to make me look like Im on the same page as him, Mr Yiannopoulos wrote. This was in a bar one night after a tour stop. They just showed up.

They hate me as much as I hate them, he said of white supremacists.

The Buzzfeed News investigation is the latest scandal for Mr Yiannopoulos. The right-wing provocateur  who regularly claims that his comments are misconstrued in the media, and that he makes shocking statements in jest  was forced to resign from Breitbart earlier this year when he appeared to condone sexual relations between boys as young as 13 and adult men, joking about a sexual encounter he had as a teenager with a Catholic priest during an interview for a podcast.

Youre misunderstanding what paedophilia means, he said during that interview, before claiming that some boys as young as 13 are sexually mature. Paedophilia is not a sexual attraction to somebody 13 years old who is sexually mature. Pedophilia is attraction to children who have not reached puberty.

The firestorm that ensued also cost Mr Yiannopoulos a book agreement with Simon & Schuster, forcing him to self-publish his book.

I do not support paedophilia. Period, he later wrote in a post that claimed he was being misquoted by establishment Republicans trying to take him down. Its a vile and disgusting crime, perhaps the very worst.

Mr Yiannopoulos has gained notoriety for calling feminism cancer during appearances on college campuses,and for a Breitbart story he penned headlined Birth Control Makes Women Unattractive and Crazy. He was also banned from Twitter last year after a vitriolic campaign on the platform against Ghostbusters star Leslie Jones.
A capital murder charge against a Texas father who was accused of killing his 2-year-old daughter was dropped after his 7-year-old reportedly confessed to causing his little sisters death.

Police accused Anthony Michael Sanders, 33, of suffocating his daughter, Ellie Mae Sanders, on Dec. 12, 2015, while watching her and his then 5-year-old son.

Read: Sex Offender Arrested in Colorado Is Possible Suspect in Indiana Girls' Murder

Investigators had theorized that Sanders held his hand over his daughters mouth, perhaps because he was upset that the girl had interrupted him as he played computer games, the Star-Telegram reported.

The dad reportedly told Watauga police that he found his daughter unresponsive after his son told him the 2-year-old was asleep and would not wake up.

He was arrested in April 2016 for the alleged murder. After having stayed in Tarrant County Jail since then, awaiting a Sept. 11 trial, the murder charge against Sanders was dropped on Sept. 13 after his son reportedly told the truth about what happened.

He initially told his mother, Cassie Wright, what happened and she then contacted prosecutors.

The 7-year-old reportedly told authorities that he and his sister were playing when he accidentally rolled a heavy pillow on her face and could not lift it off, Star-Telegram reported.

He said he then told his dad what happened and his dad unzipped the pillow and took a heavy object out of it, according to the paper. The boy also reportedly told authorities that he told his mother what happened.

He reportedly cried while telling his account to police.

Read: Cold Case Playing Cards Lead to Arrest in 2010 Murder

Cassie Wright said that this was the first time [her son] had told her anything like this, court documents read. She does not believe [her son] and does not think that what he is telling her makes sense.

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A medical examiner reportedly told prosecutors that what the 7-year-old said is possible because there is enough difference in strength for a 5-year-old to overpower a 2-year-old.

Watch: Couple Arrested For Staging Fake Murder Scene As Prank Speaks Out

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Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 09:36:30|Editor: Song Lifang

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By Matthew Rusling

WASHINGTON, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- In the wake of the worst mass shooting in U.S. history, people worldwide are asking why so many Americans are armed to the teeth.

Sunday saw the most deadly mass shooting in U.S. history. The killings, which occurred in the tourist mecca of Las Vegas, claimed nearly 60 lives and wounded more than 500, when a gunman opened fire on a crowd at a country music concert.

The shooter, identified as Stephen Paddock, attacked concert-goers at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino. He later took his own life, and police found over a dozen additional firearms and explosives, according to local authorities and news reports.

The horrific event was reported by news outlets worldwide, from China to the Republic of Korea, Japan, Britain and South Africa, and has been the subject of thousands of editorials all over the world in recent days.

According to the Congressional Research service, there are around 300 million guns in the United States owned by non-military individuals. To put that in a global perspective, the United States comprises around 5 percent of the world's population, but has 35 percent to 50 percent of the world's civilian-owned firearms, according to the Small Arms Survey. By far, the United States has the highest civilian gun ownership on the planet, according to the UN Office of Drugs and Crime.

FEAR OF INVASION

There are myriad reasons for this.

Firstly, the right to bear arms is enshrined in the U.S. Constitution, the highest legal authority in the United States. The nation's founding fathers viewed an armed population as necessary to keep the United States safe from foreign invaders, as the nation had just broken away from England before it was founded. The founders had employed, with great success, citizen militia forces to defeat the English crown and gain independence.

Many Americans, especially in rural areas, still believe that an armed population is a deterrent to foreign invaders. Critics of that argument say citizen militias cannot take on a modern army in this day and age. But many gun owners note that poorly-equipped, third-world guerilla fighters in Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan inflicted major losses on ultra-modern, high-tech U.S. forces.

Some observers believe fear of invasion has been partly influenced by the decades-long Cold War between the United States and the former Soviet Union. In the 1950s, American school children would practice "duck and cover" drills -- hiding under desks in case of a Soviet nuclear attack.

FRONTIER HISTORY

Another reason is the nation's frontier history. Parts of the United States were once sparsely populated. In some areas, the nearest police station was hours away, and citizens needed firearms to protect their land and families, say historians.

Many Americans during that time needed to hunt for food, and hunting has been ingrained in American culture for hundreds of years.

PROTECTION FROM CRIME

Another reason is protection from crime.

Pew Research, in a study published in June that surveyed 3,930 adults, including 1,269 gun owners, found that protection tops the list of reasons for owning a gun. Sixty-seven percent of firearm owners cited that as a reason for owning a gun.

Police cannot be everywhere at once, argue gun owners, and that means that sometimes individuals need to defend themselves.

Gun advocates point to numerous instances in which armed homeowners have protected their families from dangerous intruders. In a story that made headlines last year, an escaped murder suspect took a family hostage in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The family shot the intruder dead with a gun they kept in their house, possibly saving their own lives.

PERSONAL FREEDOM

Another reason is attached to Americans' sense of personal freedom, with 74 percent of gun owners saying the right to bear arms is essential, compared with 35 percent of non-gun owners, according to the Pew survey. Ninety-one percent of Republican gun owners say owning a gun is essential to their freedom.

In the wake of the Las Vegas mass shooting, one thing is for sure -- with so many U.S. gun enthusiasts, any new gun control measures will be hard to pass, experts say. Enditem
An artists conception from 2007 shows astronauts walking up to an early lunar habitat. (NASA Illustration)

In the wake of the National Space Councils first meeting, NASA says it has been told to draw up plans to send humans to the moon for long-term exploration and utilization, followed by trips to Mars and other interplanetary destinations.

That means moon bases are back in style.

But what kind of moon base? NASAs current vision for space exploration goes only so far as to consider putting a Deep Space Gateway in lunar orbit. Its basically a space station that could serve as a platform for monitoring robotic operations on the lunar surface, or for sending astronauts onward to Mars.

During the Obama administration, NASA saw lunar settlement as the purview of commercial ventures and international partners. The European Space Agency, for example, has its own vision for a Moon Village, and Bigelow Aerospace has floated the idea of putting expandable commercial habitats on the moon.

Now NASA will include moon base concepts in its own blueprint for beyond-Earth exploration. Fortunately, this isnt virgin territory: NASA could turn to the work it was doing a decade ago, the last time moon bases were in style.

Back then, the space agency was working out the plans for lunar settlements that would be built once Americans returned to the moon as part of Project Constellation, backed by President George W. Bush.

Boeing and Lockheed Martin were among the potential industry partners, along with Caterpillar (for dirt-moving), Canadas Norcat (for lunar mining) and ILC Dover (which was vying with Bigelow Aerospace to build habitats).

The favored site was to be the moons south polar region  where the rims of craters could provide nearly constant views of Earth, and where the permanently shadowed bottoms of craters could harbor water ice. That ice could be used to produce drinkable water, breathable oxygen and rocket propellants.

At the time, NASA envisioned starting the construction job sometime after Constellations first moon landing in 2020, and having a habitat ready for six-month tours of duty by 2025.

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The intent is to lay down the foundation for a permanent presence on the moon by whoever wants to be there, Boeings Dallas Bienhoff told me back then.

So what happened? The bottom line, thats what. The cost estimate for Project Constellation rose beyond $100 billion, and that didnt even include the cost of building the moon base. In 2009, a White House panel of independent space experts determined that the plan couldnt be done on NASAs budget.

Within a year, Constellation was canceled. Instead, President Barack Obama turned NASAs attention toward sending astronauts to a near-Earth asteroid, and then making the giant leap to Mars.

Now, NASA is forgetting about the asteroid and going back to the back-to-the-moon aspirations, as part of a grander plan to expand human presence in the solar system under American leadership. Its way too early, however, to come up with a price tag for moon missions, let alone a moon base.

One big factor has changed in the past decade: Back then, SpaceX was struggling to get into the launch industry, and then-millionaire Elon Musk was flirting with bankruptcy.

Today, business is booming at SpaceX, due to its low-cost approach to rocket launches and retrievals. Musks net worth has topped $20 billion, and hes talking up monster missions to the moon and Mars, leading to Red Planet settlement within the next decade.

An artists conception shows the SpaceX vision for Moon Base Alpha. (Elon Musk via Instagram)

SpaceX is increasing the competitive pressure on Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Orbital ATK and Northrop Grumman, NASAs longstanding partners in the space exploration business.

The cost equation for moon trips, and for a moon base, may well look better now than it did in 2007, thanks in part to Musk and SpaceX. Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos Blue Origin space venture could eventually come in for some of the credit as well if its Blue Moon lunar lander gets off the ground.

However, no plan for space exploration is exempt from Grissoms Law, which was attributed to Mercury astronaut Gus Grissom in The Right Stuff, Tom Wolfes novel about the early space effort: No bucks, no Buck Rogers.

Once the cost estimate for building a moon base gets out there, will the White House, Congress and the electorate go along? Or will the idea give rise to political scoffing and late-night lampooning, as it did when Newt Gingrich (whos also apparently back in style) made his moon base suggestion during the 2012 presidential campaign?

More from GeekWire:
The Navajo Nation banned genetic studies in 2002 due to concerns over how its members' genetic material would be used, but, as Nature News reports, the Navajo are considering a reversal of that policy. An oncology center is set to open next year on Navajo lands and the tribe's research-ethics board is looking into allowing some genetic research to take place at the facility.

"As Native Americans, we have a problem with trust because we have been violated so much," David Begay, a researcher at the University of New Mexico and a member of the Navajo Nation's human-research review board told Nature News. "In the past, our data have been misused." But it's the potential for improved disease diagnosis and treatment development that has many Navajo backing the lift of the ban, and having their own oncology center means genetic material could remain under Navajo care.

The research-ethics board is working alongside Navajo leaders and officials to develop a new policy and they've held public hearings to get a sense of what tribe members think. The proposal is expected to include research regulations, limitations on who can have access to any genetic material and an oversight framework. The board hopes to have a draft proposal prepared by the end of the month.
(Photo: Jeff Kravitz via Getty Images)

Auburn Police in Washington arrested rapper Nelly Saturday morning on an accusation that he raped a woman on his tour bus. He has yet to be charged, but the police department did book him in a local jail.

At 3:48 AM a female called 911 to report that she was sexually assaulted by a male, who is known as the rapper Nelly, the department said in a statement. The alleged assault was reported to occur on the tour bus that was parked at the listed location. Nelly had performed at the White River Amphitheater just hours before.

A police spokesperson told Q13 Fox that the tour bus was parked behind a Walmart SuperCenter and that the woman called from the area.

TMZ first reported the incident. Their story claims that the woman specifically named Nelly as the person who raped her.

Officers say they had probable cause to arrest the rapper and he was booked into the SCORE jail in Des Moines for Rape 2nd Degree, Q13 Fox further reported. Their correspondents have been releasing more information on Twitter, including a detail that Nelly, real name Cornell Haynes Jr., apparently met the woman after a show.

BREAKING: Here is the jail booking for Nelly, real name Cornell Iral Haynes, Jr. he was booked at 6:39am PST. #Q13FOX pic.twitter.com/pQYDu1DilH  Brandi Kruse (@BrandiKruse) October 7, 2017

Nellys attorney tells HuffPost that his team is looking into the matter and believes it to be a false accusation.

Nelly is the victim of a completely fabricated allegation, attorney Scott Rosenblum told HuffPost over email. Our initial investigation, clearly establishes, this allegation is devoid of credibility and is motivated by greed and vindictiveness. I am confident, once this scurrilous accusation is thoroughly investigated, there will be no charges. Nelly is prepared to address and pursue all legal avenues to redress any damage caused by this clearly false allegation.

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The departments statement claimed they had enough cause for the initial booking. After Patrol Officers investigated the incident, at 4:37 AM Nelly was taken into custody.

Nelly was slated to perform with Florida Georgia Line in Ridgefield, Washington, Saturday night. The two acts have been on tour.

HuffPost also reached out to the Auburn Police Department and Florida Georgia Line, but did not immediately hear back.

UPDATE: The Auburn Police Department released Nelly from custody later on Saturday. He tweeted about the incident:

Let me say that I am beyond shocked that I have been targeted with this false allegation. I am completely innocent. I am confident that once the facts are looked at , it will be very clear that I am the victim of a false allegation.  Nelly_Mo (@Nelly_Mo) October 7, 2017

I do want to apologize to my loved ones for the embarrassment and for putting myself in a situation where I could be victimized by this false and defaming allegation.  Nelly_Mo (@Nelly_Mo) October 7, 2017

I also want to thank my fans for their unwavering support. They know me. I assure you I will be vindicated. And I assure you, I will pursue every legal option to address this defaming claim. Thank you  Nelly_Mo (@Nelly_Mo) October 7, 2017

In other words y'all know damm well I ain't do no dumm S^*t like this..!! Love ..!!!!  Nelly_Mo (@Nelly_Mo) October 7, 2017

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Niamey (AFP) - Niger on Saturday buried soldiers killed in an ambush this week on the Niger-Mali border, which also claimed the lives of US special forces troops in the country to provide anti-terror support.

Nigerien Defence Minister Kalla Moutari, US ambassador Eunice Reddick and other lawmakers watched as the four bodies were taken from the city morgue in Niamey, before being buried in a cemetery.

With tears in their eyes, the widows, children and relatives of those killed also took part in the ceremony, during which Nigerien soldiers praised their fallen comrades for their "dynamism" and "bravery" in the fight against "terrorists".

"We will never forget you," they said, adding that "the entire nation expresses its heartfelt gratitude for the sacrifice made".

A joint US-Nigerien patrol came under fire on Wednesday in southwestern Niger near the border with Mali, where Islamic State jihadists have established a presence.

According to Radio France Internationale, the ambush took place after militants from Mali attacked the village of Tongo Tongo in Tillaberi.

A counter-operation was launched, but the American and Niger soldiers fell into a trap, RFI reported.

The Pentagon said the clash took place approximately 200 kilometres (120 miles) north of Niamey.

Niger's President Mahamadou Issoufou said Thursday the fatal ambush was the latest attack on his country by "terrorist groups".

Eight Nigerien soldiers were wounded in the attack, which also killed three US Green Berets and a fourth soldier. US Africa Command said two more Special Forces troops were wounded.

Issoufou convened a special National Security Council meeting after the attack to "assess" the country's security apparatus and met with Reddick, according to media reports.

The clash proved the first confirmation of the little-known presence of US troops in the turbulent area, part of the poor and politically fragile Sahel where jihadist groups are mounting an insurgency.

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US troops have increased their presence in Niger in recent years but this appeared to be their first firefight, Lieutenant General Kenneth McKenzie, Joint Staff Director, told reporters in Washington on Thursday.

Under the name Operation Barkhane, France also maintains a 4,000-man mission in the region to shore up fragile Sahel countries against jihadists who have carried out a wave of bloody bombings, shootings and kidnappings.

Niger on Friday declared three days of national mourning.
The nuclear disarmament group awarded 2017s Nobel Peace Prize has issued a warning about Donald Trump and his supervision of Americas nuclear arsenal.

The International Campaign Against Nuclear Weapons  or Ican  said Mr Trumps election put a spotlight on the risks of nuclear weapons and warned that the US President appeared to be ignoring expert opinion around their use.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee announced on Friday that Ican was to be awarded the honour for its work to draw attention to the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons and for its ground-breaking efforts to achieve a treaty-based prohibition of such weapons.

Ican helped lobby for the the 2017 Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which was adopted by 122 countries and banned states from developing, testing, producing, manufacturing, acquiring, possessing, or stockpiling nuclear weapons.

Responding to the award, Ican's executive director, Beatrice Fihn, said Mr Trump's election "has made a lot of people feel very uncomfortable with the fact that he alone can authorise the use of nuclear weapons".

His presidency puts a spotlight on the dangers of nuclear weapons, she said, adding that the commander-in-chief appeared to have a track record of not listening to expertise.

At a news conference after the prize was announced, Ms Fihn was also asked about a tweet sent two days earlier calling Mr Trump a "moron".

She said she was trying to make a joke, "which I kind of regret now", following reports that US secretary of state Rex Tillerson had said the same of the President.

Heightened tensions between the US and North Korea have resulted in an increasingly bitter war of words between the countries' two leaders, with Mr Trump threatening to "totally destroy" the hermit state, having earlier promised "fire and fury like the world has never seen".

Referring to Kim Jong-un as "rocket man", the US President said America was ready, willing and able to take military action.

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Executive Director of ICAN, Beatrice Fihn with signed Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, 7 July 2017 #NobelPrize pic.twitter.com/QTFuSDHAiv  The Nobel Prize (@NobelPrize) October 6, 2017

With the standoff between Pyongyang and Washington worsening, the Nobel committee said Icans efforts to stigmatise, prohibit and eliminate nuclear weapons were more vital than ever.

"Risk of nuclear weapons being used is greater than it has been for a long time," the committee said.

"Some states are modernising their nuclear arsenals, and there is a real danger that more countries will try to procure nuclear weapons, as exemplified by North Korea."

Ican responded that the "spectre of nuclear conflict looms large once more".

If ever there were a moment for nations to declare their unequivocal opposition to nuclear weapons, that moment is now," the group said.
Washington (AFP) - The Nobel committee spurned an opportunity to celebrate the Iran nuclear deal, but still found a way to send a message to US President Donald Trump.

Trump is a stern critic of the 2015 accord, and US officials say that he intends to tell the US Congress next week that Tehran is not honoring its side of the bargain.

He is also engaged in a perilous game of brinksmanship with nuclear-armed North Korea, threatening "fire and fury" and exchanging insults with young dictator Kim Jong-Un.

Some supporters of the deal had hoped the jury would honor the architects of the Iran deal and in doing so send a message to Trump about the power of diplomacy.

In the end the committee chose not to provoke Trump by handing prizes to Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif or former US secretary of state John Kerry.

But in celebrating the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) they sent a strong message about the world's concerns over nuclear escalation.

"The message that has been communicated is a more subtle indirect messaging," said Melissa Dalton, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

"It's potentially a message and an encouragement to uphold the JCPOA as a commitment that the US has made with allies to non-proliferation," she said, referring to the Iran deal.

ICAN is a global civil society movement pushing for a global treaty to ban nuclear arms, one that was signed by 122 countries -- although none with such weapons -- in July.

The US reacted coolly to the award, and a State Department spokesman said Washington has no plans to sign the treaty.

"This treaty will not make the world more peaceful, will not result in the elimination of a single nuclear weapon, and will not enhance any state's security," he told AFP.

Speaking in Geneva, ICAN head Beatrice Fihn made an explicit link between the award and concerns about Trump's attitude to the Iran deal and non-proliferation efforts.

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Next week, Trump is expected to announce he is "decertifying" Iran's compliance with the 2015 agreement it signed to limit its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.

Officials insist this will not sink the deal itself but open the way for Congress to possibly develop new measures to punish other aspects of Iran's behavior.

- Global opinion -

Trump has called the deal an "embarrassment to the United States" but rather than scrap it he is exploring a risky middle path to turn up the pressure on Iran.

Ever scornful of the record of his Nobel laureate predecessor Barack Obama, the US leader is unlikely at this stage to be influenced by a Norwegian committee.

But the timing of the award underlines the extent to which his hostility to the pact is out of step with global opinion, including with US allies in Europe.

And even if, as is now expected, the accord survives Trump's Washington maneuvers, his position may have weakened his ability to negotiate with another foe: North Korea.

The US strategy to deal with Kim's nuclear bravado is to use sanctions and diplomacy -- backed by a credible military posture -- to bring him to the negotiating table.

But doubts hanging over the Iran deal make success less likely, say observers, including Jung Pak of the Center for East Asia Policy Studies at the Brookings Institution.

"Even if North Korea and the US came to an agreement, Kim has no reason to think that an agreement would stick from one US administration to the next," he warned.

"The message is loud and clear, the US cannot be trusted."

Washington's European allies are also nervous that Trump's criticism of the deal will encourage US hardliners to undermine the entire agreement.

"We told the administration: certification or not, that's not our problem, this is an American domestic issue," one Western diplomat told reporters.

"But beware of a demarche that would endanger the agreement. Our concern now is what the Congress will do if Trump doesn't certify," he said.

There are some hawks in Washington who will seize on any opportunity to toughen the US stance -- despite the international solidarity symbolized by the Nobel award.

Influential conservative Senator Tom Cotton is known to have Trump's ear and he advises pushing ahead with both decertification and new sanctions.

"If anything, certifying the disastrous deal with Iran will show the North Koreans that we lack the will to confront them," he said, arguing that Kim would respect a strong stance.

"Isn't it curious that North Korea's nuclear and missile tests have accelerated so rapidly since we agreed to the Iran deal?"
People in North Korea watch a news report on the country's first hydrogen bomb test - This content is subject to copyright.

A US military assault on North Korea could prompt a last gasp retaliatory nuclear attack by Pyongyang on Seoul and Japan killing as many as 3.8 million people, according to a new analysis of the destructive potential of Kim Jong-un arsenal.

Donald Trump has repeatedly warned that all options remain on the table  including the use of force  in dealing with the North Korean threat.

However, analysts say the US is hamstrung by Pyongyangs growing weapons stockpile and the fact that major population centres lie well within its range.

A detailed analysis by 38 North, a programme at the US-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, has crunched the numbers, based on North Koreas likely arsenal of as many as 25 weapons with possible yields of up to 250 kilotons, of the sort tested last month.

Using population density figures and blast radius estimates, Michael Zaguruk, calculated that a single detonation over Seoul could kill almost 800,000 people and over Tokyo would kill almost 700,000.

Kim Jong-un with regime engineers at an undisclosed location Credit: Korea News Service via AP

Those numbers rise to a combined total of almost four million dead if North Korea manages to launch multiple rockets carrying its latest thermonuclear bomb.

And that is without considering the effects of radioactive fallout.

The numbers are a sobering reminder of the difficulties of dealing with Mr Kim and his nuclear arsenal.

Mr Zaguruk explains the possible measures available to the US and the possible response.

This could include such options as attempting to shoot down the test missiles or possibly attacking North Koreas missile testing, nuclear related sites, missile deployment areas or the Kim regime itself, he writes.

The North Korean leadership might perceive such an attack as an effort to remove the Kim family from power and, as a result, could retaliate with nuclear weapons as a last gasp reaction before annihilation.

US discussions of military options raises risk of military escalation by #NorthKorea--Michael Zagurek shows human cost if DPRK were to launch #nuclear attack on Seoul or Tokyohttps://t.co/jescZwcTNX  38 North (@38NorthNK) October 4, 2017

Boris Johnson, the Foreign Secretary, admitted the scale of the problem last month.

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He said: Its certainly our view that none of the military options are good...the distance between North Korea and Seoul is very, very small and they could basically vaporise large parts of the South Korean population even with conventional weapons, so thats not really very easy to threaten or to deliver.

Meanwhile, North Korea continues to press ahead with its nuclear and missile programmes.

Fresh reports circulated on Friday that a long-range missile, capable of reaching the west coast of the US, was being prepared for testing.

Anton Morozov, a member of the Russian lower house of parliament's international affairs committee, made the claim after returning from a visit to North Korea.

"They are preparing for new tests of a long-range missile. They even gave us mathematical calculations that they believe prove that their missile can hit the west coast of the United States," he said, according to the RIA news agency.

"As far as we understand, they intend to launch one more long-range missile in the near future. And in general, their mood is rather belligerent."
The National Rifle Association made its first comments about the Las Vegas massacre on Thursday night when its chief lobbyist, Chris W. Cox, spoke to Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson on his prime time program, Tucker Carlson Tonight. In the interview, which lasted about seven minutes, Cox said that the best way to keep people safe from mass shootings like the one that took place in Las Vegas on Sunday night  in which 59 were killed at a country music festival  was to loosen, not strengthen, gun laws.

"Right now, the American people are looking for answers. But the American people are also looking for their Second Amendment. They're looking for Congress to respect the Second Amendment," Cox said. He added that it was imperative for Congress to pass reforms like national right-to-carry reciprocity."

Nationwide right-to-carry reciprocity is the NRAs top legislative priority, explains Dan Friedman of The Trace, a news organization that covers issues relating to guns. Right-to-carry reciprocity would mandate every state to accept the permits of the other 49, regardless of differences in standards for who is eligible to bring a hidden gun into public spaces, Friedman writes. That would effectively dilute the stringent laws of states like California and New York. Cox did not explain how that would have prevented the shooting in Las Vegas, or how it will otherwise make people safer.

Cox also showed little sympathy for the victims of the Las Vegas shooting, all of whom were attending country music concert. This was a striking departure from the collective mourning Republican leaders have urged. If anything, Cox wanted Fox News viewers to pity the NRA, which he said was being unfairly blamed for the shooting. They blame the one organization whose members don't commit the crimes." He did not acknowledge the organizations decades-long effort to weaken gun laws around the nation.

Carlson, who brands himself a fearless truth-teller, spared Cox from the kind of tough questioning with which he has confronted liberal college students, feminists and Black Lives Matter activists. For the most part, he listened with something approaching reverence, letting Cox recite his talking points.

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Those talking points included the assertion that this distraction of gun control does nothing to keep people safe. But as the nonpartisan fact-checking organization PolitiFact found in 2015, States with laws that restrict guns do tend to have lower death rates. And as the news organization Vox noted earlier this week, the United States has 16 times as many gun deaths as Germany. This year, 11,809 Americans have been killed by guns.

Although Cox said that there needs to be an honest conversation, that conversation presumably does not include any of the facts above, nor any broader arguments that guns have become a pestilence upon the American body politic. His version of honesty involved casting blame on gratuitous violence out of Hollywood and prescription drugs, presumably of the psychoactive variety. Some conspiracy theorists believe that Las Vegas killer Stephen C. Paddock went on his rampage because of an adverse reaction to anti-anxiety medication. There is no merit to this charge.

Screen Shot 2017-10-06 at 12

Fox News

Cox also alluded to President Obamas supposed inability to keep people safe during his eight years in office. That seemed to suggest that Obama, with the help of congressional Democrats, somehow created the conditions that have fostered an increase in mass shootings. Further discussion of this assertion would have been welcome but did not take place, because Carlson declined to ask Cox any probing question. Perhaps this would have been different if Cox were a green energy advocate or a community organizer.

The NRA has already posted a press release on its site touting Coxs appearance on Tucker Carlson Tonight, suggesting that the organization was pleased with interview.

Near the end of the segment, Cox said that expanding the rights to bear arms is the solution the nation needs.That's what the American people want, Cox said. And that's what the National Rifle Association wants."

Carlson let that stand.

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By David Gaffen NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices rose about 2 percent on Thursday as signs Saudi Arabia and Russia would limit production through next year pushed the U.S. benchmark back above $50 a barrel. The news outweighed Wednesday's U.S. data showing record U.S. exports and the return of production at a major Libyan oilfield. Brent futures settled at $57 a barrel, up 2.2 percent, or $1.20, while U.S. crude rose 81 cents, or 1.6 percent, to end at $50.79. Russian President Vladimir Putin said this week that a pledge by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and other producers, including Russia, to cut oil output to boost prices could be extended to the end of 2018, instead of expiring in March 2018. Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Thursday that Moscow would support new countries joining the agreement to restrict oil supply. The statement came as Saudi Arabia's King Salman visited Moscow. "Putin and Salman will most likely reach, but not announce, an agreement to extend the OPEC/non-OPEC production deal, though with a commitment to taper the cuts," said Eurasia Group. President Donald Trump was expected to announce soon that he will decertify the landmark international deal to curb Iran's nuclear program, a senior administration official said on Thursday, in a step that could lead to renewed U.S. sanctions against Tehran and could limit Iranian sales of oil. "It would make it difficult for barrels to be transacted through U.S. dollars," said Bernadette Johnson, vice president of market intelligence at Drillinginfo.com in Denver. "A lot would continue to flow, but that's probably a million barrels that is at risk." With the increase in prices to above $50, producers have started hedging more heavily, said Johnson. That would buffer drillers against losses if the price were to decline, which may spur more U.S. production - partially offsetting the OPEC-led deal to cut supply by about 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd). Other factors also weighed on oil prices, including the return to production of Libya's Sharara oilfield on Wednesday after an armed brigade forced a two-day shutdown. U.S. crude oil exports jumped to 1.98 million bpd last week, surpassing the 1.5 million bpd record set the previous week, the Energy Information Administration said. The increase followed a widening of the discount for U.S. crude against Brent , making U.S. oil attractive on world markets. (GRAPHIC: Oil demand to be hit by the rise of electric vehicles - http://reut.rs/2ypKwiH) (Additional reporting by Henning Gloystein in Singapore and Christopher Johnson in London; Editing by Marguerita Choy and Susan Fenton)
The debate over illegal immigration is not a concern only for states on the Southern U.S. border; it's as relevant in Albany, New York, as it is in Albany, Texas. Or Saratoga Springs, Altamont or any number of upstate New York communities.

We already heard this summer the concerns of restaurateurs for whom the Saratoga Race Course meet can be a make-or-break time of year. Intensified efforts by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement had workers and employers alike worried about their livelihoods and futures.

As we move into autumn harvest season, the spotlight and fear shift to orchards which, like many farms, rely heavily on migrant labor, legal or otherwise.

To say that this country needs a sensible, comprehensive immigration policy seems both obvious and futile. Congress and presidents have known this for years. Back in 2013, in a rare moment of compromise, a bipartisan group of senators dubbed the Gang of Eight came up with a package that included the stronger border security that conservatives wanted and the path to legal status and citizenship for otherwise law-abiding immigrants that liberals and many businesses wanted. It also required the use of E-Verify, a program that allows employers to check whether a potential employee is here legally.

The compromise collapsed under criticism that E-Verify was imperfect, and under the weight of partisan politics, particularly among Republicans  those with presidential aspirations, those worried about a far-right base made more influential by gerrymandering, and those who simply won't compromise.

Congress' dereliction leaves immigration policy in the hands of President Donald Trump, who vilified Mexicans and other immigrants in his campaign and whose idea of comprehensive policy is the roundup that's underway, along with the fantasy of an extravagant, ineffective wall.

We would bet, though, that Americans would be willing to pay a fairer price for their food if it means fewer workers are exploited and far less government energy has to be devoted to rounding up human beings who are, after all, only trying to survive. Who knows? We might even stop talking about Mr. Trump's ridiculous wall.

 The Times Union, Albany

An accessory to mass murder is in our midst, escaping justice with every breath. Nazi death camp guard Jakiw Palij, who aided in the killing of thousands of Polish Jews, snuck into this country 68 years ago by lying about his crimes against humanity.

Discovered by the Justice Department, Palij was stripped of his ill-gotten U.S. citizenship and ordered deported to Germany, Poland or Ukraine. That was 13 years ago. The State Department never followed through.

Now 94, Palij continues to reside comfortably in Jackson Heights.

When the crime is complicity in genocide, there is no statute of limitations. Which is why every member of New York's House delegation  far-left liberals and Trump-loving conservatives alike  and Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand and Chuck Schumer have written Secretary of State Rex Tillerson demanding his personal involvement to quickly get Palij on a plane back to Europe.

State Department bureaucrats mumble about making inquiries. Not good enough. The feds routinely find countries to accept Gitmo detainees, but never manage to land spots for old Nazi war criminals. Eight such Nazis have died here since 2009.

If Jakiw Palij dies free in the country he lied to, justice will have failed. Deport him now.

 The Daily News, New York

Oct. 13, less than two weeks from today  that's the deadline to change the party affiliation on your voter registration in time to vote in next year's primary elections.

We repeat: Next year's primary election  not this year's. Crazy, right? Nevertheless, you can't vote if you aren't registered, so the purpose of this editorial is to inform and prepare you.

Primaries are almost certain next year to decide who represents the North Country in the U.S. House of Representatives. Incumbent Rep. Elise Stefanik already has a Republican opponent, Russell Finley, and the Democratic side is super-crowded  now up to seven announced candidates: Donald Boyajian, Tedra Cobb, Ronald Kim, Steve Krieg, Emily Martz, Patrick Nelson and Katie Wilson. Christopher Schmidt is also running as a Libertarian. More candidates may well emerge before the primaries, which haven't been scheduled yet  talk tends to lean toward June.

Our state makes registering to vote harder than necessary  Exhibit A being the extreme advance deadline to change party enrollment before a primary. It must be 25 days before the last general election, which works out to Oct. 13 this year.

That's firm, and there's no separate postmark deadline. If your county board of elections staff doesn't receive your change-of-enrollment paperwork, either by mail or in person, before they go home on that Friday  and by the way, the Fulton County Board of Elections office closes at 5 p.m., Montgomery County at 4 p.m.  then for all of next year you're stuck with whatever party (or none) you had before.

It's very different if you need to change your address or file a new voter registration. For that, you can do it now in time for this coming general election, Nov. 7. Nevertheless, the deadlines are strangely staggered:

 New registration forms must be postmarked by Oct. 13 and received by the 18th, or completed in person at the county Board of Elections office by Oct. 13.

 Change-of-address forms must be postmarked by Oct. 13 and received by the 18th, or completed in person at the county Board of Elections office by Oct. 18.

Again, those are for this year's election. To change party enrollment, you have to make the change now for next year. Why? Who knows? Our best guess is that election officials can't be bothered to deal with it more than once a year.

 The Leader-Herald, Gloversville
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 10:06:34|Editor: Song Lifang

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KHARTOUM, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- The African Union (AU) mediator for peace in Sudan Thabo Mbeki on Saturday said the U.S decision to lift the economic sanctions on Sudan is "important" for the peace process that the AU is leading.

"I think it is a very good decision, and I think the Americans need to move on all other sanctions that are remaining, because I think the normalization of relations between Sudan and the United States is important," Mbeki told reporters upon arrival at Khartoum airport early Saturday.

"It is important, not just for Sudan and the United States, but it is important also for the peace process," added the former South African president.

The United States on Friday decided to lift its economic sanctions on Sudan permanently, citing Sudan's "sustained positive actions to maintain a cessation of hostilities in conflict areas in Sudan, improve humanitarian access throughout Sudan, and maintain cooperation with the United States on addressing regional conflicts and the threat of terrorism."

The U.S State Department announced that the decision would go into effect as of Oct. 12. The decision, however, kept Sudan on the U.S list of countries sponsoring terrorism.

The United States has been imposing sanctions on Sudan since 1997 and listing it as one of the countries sponsoring terrorism.
By Asif Shahzad ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - The Pakistani army on Thursday said the government was discussing ways to try to integrate militant-linked groups into the mainstream of the country's politics. Milli Muslim League (MML), a new militant party controlled by Islamist Hafiz Saeed, backed a candidate in the September by-election for a seat vacated by ousted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in the eastern city of Lahore. The United States has offered a $10 million bounty for Saeed's capture. Reuters reported last month that the foray into politics by MML and other Islamists groups followed the integration plan. Three of Sharif's confidants and a retired army general said it had been presented by Inter Services Intelligence to Sharif last year, but the then premier had rejected it. Army spokesman Major-General Asif Ghafoor did not comment on the military's role in any such strategy but told a news conference in Islamabad the plan was aimed at developing a constructive role for them. Asked about the MML party loyal to Hafiz Saeed, whom the United States and India accuse of masterminding the 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people, the army spokesman said it was part of "a process that has started". "It is in my knowledge that the government has started some discussion over it, that, how do we mainstream them, so that they could do constructive contribution," Ghafoor said. A government spokesman did not respond to calls. HOUSE ARREST Pakistan's interior ministry has asked the country's electoral commission not to register Saeed's party, but hasn't taken any other steps to stop it. Another militant party is campaigning for a by-election later in October. It remains unclear whether the army or the ISI went ahead with its plan despite Sharif's rejection, or if the military and the civilian government have recently agreed on the idea. Another Islamist designated a terrorist by the United States, Fazlur Rehman Khalil, told Reuters he too planned to form his own party soon. Within two weeks of Sharif's ouster, the MML party was announced. It later got the backing of Saeed and his lieutenants in the by-election to secure five per cent of the vote. The other hardline party, Tehrik-e-Labaik Pakistan, gained over six per cent of votes by riding on the back of a blasphemy killer Mumtaz Qadri whom it called a hero and a martyr. Saeed has been under house arrest since January in the eastern city of Lahore. MML is the political wing of Saeed's charity Jamaat-ud-Dawa, JuD. JuD and Khalil's Ansar ul-Umma organization are both seen by the United States as fronts for militant groups the army has been accused of sponsoring against neighbors, arch-foe India and Afghanistan - a charge the army denies. Reports of the plan to bring militant-linked groups into the political mainstream have stirred debate at home and abroad. "Now, how to take it further - that, the time to come will tell," Ghafoor, the army spokesman' said, "For that, the government will take a decision." (Reporting by Asif Shahzad; editing by Ralph Boulton)
The parents of a 16-year-old Iowa girl are facing murder charges months after the teen was found dead of malnutrition in their Perry home in May, PEOPLE confirms.

Marc and Misty Ray have both been charged with first-degree murder in the death of Sabrina Ray, who died after allegedly experiencing physical abuse at the hands of the couple and other family members, according to court documents obtained by PEOPLE.

Marc has pleaded not guilty to the charge, one of his attorneys, Roger Owens, tells PEOPLE. Both Marc and Misty are being held at Dallas County Jail on $1 million bail.

It is unclear whether Misty has entered a plea. Her attorneys did not immediately respond to a request for comment from PEOPLE.

The medical examiner determined that she died of severe malnutrition.

 Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

Weeks after Sabrinas body was found, Perry police announced the arrests of Sabrinas adoptive brother, 21-year-old Justin, and her adoptive grandmother, Carla Bousman.

According to a previously obtained affidavit from Perry Police, during the final month of her life, Sabrina suffered unreasonable force, torture and cruelty for an extended period of time, resulting in bodily injury  that was intended to cause serious injury.

Court records allege that about a month before she died, Justin drop-kicked Sabrina and threw her down a basement staircase. She was unable to walk, talk, eat or drink.

Misty (left) and Marc Ray

Sabrina was one of three girls adopted by and living with the Rays, who owned an in-home daycare, records indicate. The affidavit stated that the girls were regularly denied food and water and often suffered physical abuse from the family.

In court records, Bousman is accused of assisting in kidnapping and torturing Sabrina and the other two girls. She also allegedly helped in trying to cover up Sabrinas death and injuries the other girls had sustained.

Bousman and Justin are both being held at Dallas County Jail, Bousman on $500,000 bail and Justin on $100,000. It is unclear whether they have entered a plea to the charges.
By Phil Stewart and Idrees Ali WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. military said on Friday that a fourth soldier was killed during an attack on Wednesday in Niger, raising the death toll from an incident that has thrown a spotlight on the U.S. counterterrorism mission in the West African nation. The United States had previously announced that three U.S. Army Special Forces soldiers had been killed and another two wounded when a joint U.S.-Nigerien patrol came under attack near the village of Tongo Tongo. It did not disclose until Friday that a fourth soldier had been missing. Officials said his body was found by Nigerien forces on Friday morning near the site of the ambush, ending an extensive rescue and recovery mission. No group has taken responsibility for the killings, although officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, say the United States suspects a local branch of Islamic State was responsible. The U.S. military's Africa Command declined to publicly name any group but said the American military would hunt down the insurgents. "Absolutely, we are resolved and stalwart in our efforts to go after those who attacked this joint patrol of Nigerien and U.S. forces," said Army Colonel Mark Cheadle, a spokesman for the U.S. military's Africa Command. From initial accounts, the 40-member patrol, which included about a dozen U.S. troops, came under a swift attack by militants riding in a dozen vehicles and on about 20 motorcycles. Islamist militants form part of a regional insurgency in the poor, sparsely populated deserts of West Africa's Sahel. Jihadists have stepped up attacks on U.N. peacekeepers, Malian soldiers and civilian targets since being driven back in northern Mali by a French-led military intervention in 2013. U.S. President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron discussed joint counterterrorism operations in the Sahel to defeat al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups during a call on Friday, the White House said. LOW-RISK Cheadle said the U.S. and Nigerien troops had been meeting with local leadership at the time of the attack, in what had been seen as a relatively lower-risk endeavor for America's elite commandos. There was not even any armed air cover at the time that could carry out air strikes if necessary. "It was not meant to be an engagement with the enemy. It was meant to establish relations with the local leaders and the threats at the time were deemed to be unlikely, so there was no overhead armed air cover during the engagement," he said. Cheadle acknowledged that loss of elite U.S. forces would trigger a review of how the U.S. military carries out operations but did not suggest any move to scale back the American mission. The U.S. military on Friday published the names of the three Army Special Forces soldiers from 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne) who were killed when their reconnaissance patrol with Nigerien forces came under fire. They were Staff Sergeant Bryan Black, 35, of Puyallup, Washington, Staff Sergeant Jeremiah Johnson, 39, of Springboro, Ohio and Staff Sergeant Dustin Wright, 29, of Lyons, Georgia. The U.S. military said it had surged resources to Niger to try to locate the missing American soldier. Cheadle said that included U.S. fighter jets, helicopters and surveillance assets. "There was a full-court press," he said. (Reporting by Phil Stewart; Editing by Sandra Maler and Jonathan Oatis)
As President Donald Trump departed from the site of the worst mass shooting in modern American history, a Reuters photographer captured the moment Air Force One flew by the broken windows of the resort where the Las Vegas gunman opened fire just days earlier.

Photographer Mike Blakes photo shows the Presidents plane in the air, just moments after takeoff, as it passes the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino. The two broken windows where shooter Stephen Paddock staged a rampage from his room on the 32nd floor are visible in the foreground.

The Sunday night attack on concertgoers at a country music festival killed at least 59 people and wounded 527 more. The 64-year-old lone gunman killed himself after the shooting spree. His motive is still unknown.

President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump visited Las Vegas on Wednesday to meet with victims families and first responders.
The deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history left the nation in mourning this week. Stephen Paddock opened fire on people attending a country music festival in Las Vegas from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino. More than 500 people were injured and 58 people lost their lives in the massacre. The tragedy also prompted the NRA to call for more regulations on "bump stocks."



President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump visited with victims of the Las Vegas shooting on Wednesday. But one day earlier the president was in Puerto Rico visiting areas devastated by Hurricane Maria. Trump faced criticism for stating that the island had thrown the budget "a little out of whack." The president also made headlines when he got personally involved in the aid distribution effort at a relief center by throwing paper towels into the crowd.

Click through the slideshow above to see photos from all of these events and more, and be sure to check back next weekend for our selection of the best photography from the week.
Russia is set to close major arms deals with two nations, Turkey and Saudi Arabia, once vehemently opposed to Moscow's presence in the Middle East.

In a historic visit to Moscow, Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud met with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday to discuss oil, Iran's growing sphere of influence in the Middle East and the ongoing conflict in Syria, in which Moscow and Riyadh back opposing factions. In addition to an exchange of kind words between former bitter foes, the meeting produced a deal for Saudi Arabia to purchase Russia's advanced S-400 Triumf missile defense system, according to Saudi news channel Al Arabiya, as well as promises of a rapprochement that could reshape the region.

Related: Russia, not the U.S., is now calling the shots in the Middle East with Iran and Iraq

"This is the first visit by a Saudi Arabian monarch in the history of our relations, and that in itself is a landmark event," Putin said, welcoming Salman in a grand ceremony, according to Al Jazeera. "I'm sure your visit will boost the ties between our countries."

"We aim to strengthen our relations in the interests of peace and security, in the interests of developing the world economy," Salman responded.

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Sputnik/Alexei Nikolsky/Kremlin via REUTERS

While Russia and Saudi Arabia managed to smooth out disagreements over their commitments to cut energy production in order to reduce oil prices, it's less clear if they found any common ground on Syria. Saudi Arabia was an early supporter of opposition groups trying since 2011 to oust Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, but Russia's 2015 intervention on Assad's behalf turned the tides of the conflict. Syria's armed forces have since regained much of the territory the government once lost to rebels and jihadis.

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The Syrian government's comeback occurred not only thanks to Russian air support but also because of a massive mobilization of majority-Shiite militias supported by Iran. Iran and Saudi Arabia have fought proxy wars over influence in the Middle East for decades, but Iran's recent victories in Iraq and Syria may have tipped the competition in Tehran's favor, compelling Riyadh to position itself closer to the U.S.-Israeli alliance.

Nevertheless, Thursday's meeting proved that Saudi Arabia was willing to seriously engage with Moscow's vision for the region, and it wasn't alone.

Last week, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received his Russian counterpart in Ankara to boost relations, align their positions on Syria and secure a contract for the S-400 Triumf missile defense system. Like Saudi Arabia, Turkey has supported Syrian rebels trying to overthrow Assad, and its backing for the insurgents has rocked Turkey-Russia relations in the past.

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Kayhan Ozer/Presidential Palace/Handout via REUTERS

Shortly after Russia's entrance into the Syrian conflict, a Turkish F-16 fighter jet shot down a Russian Sukhoi Su-24 that allegedly crossed into Turkish airspace near northern Syria in November 2015. Syrian rebels shot and killed the pilot as he descended by parachute. The resulting fallout led to months of diplomatic and military tension between Russia and Turkey until Erdogan expressed his condolences in June 2016 in a letter that Russia took as an apology.

The following month, authorities reportedly arrested the two Turkish pilots involved in the shoot-down incident. The pair were reportedly detained in connection with a July 2016 coup attempt against Erdogan, according to local media and an official cited by Agence France-Presse.

That year saw widespread gains by the Syrian military and its allies, who ultimately retook Aleppo, once Syria's most populous city and a commercial center, from rebels in December 2016. As Syrian troops closed in on the city, Turkey cut a landmark deal with Russia and Iran to transfer rebels who refused to lay down their arms to the northwestern province of Idlib, which remains a rebel stronghold to this day.

Turkey also joined Russia and Iran in establishing talks between the Syrian government and the opposition in Kazakhstan's capital city, Astana. In May, the three countries agreed to establish de-escalation zones throughout Syria, and during last week's meeting between Putin and Erdogan, the pair announced they would deploy personnel to implement this plan.

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Institute for the Study of War/Reuters

While the Syrian opposition in Astana is represented by rebel fighters, the Saudi-Arabia High Negotiations Committee that represents the opposition in simultaneous peace talks in Geneva is formed mainly of politicians. Through Russia's sponsorship, the Syrian government has solidified its position in both peace processes, and many Western leaders have abandoned calls to remove Assad as a necessary condition to end the conflict.

Russia has successfully reached out to other U.S. allies as well. In July, Iraqi officials turned to Moscow for greater defense and economic support, with Iraqi Vice President Nouri al-Maliki saying he sought to "balance" U.S. influence after more than 14 consecutive years of military presence.

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By Tommy Wilkes COX'S BAZAR, Bangladesh (Reuters) - For 28-year-old Rohingya Muslim shopkeeper Mohammed Rashid, the evening phone call from organizers of the fledgling insurgent movement came as a surprise. "Be ready," was the message. A few hours later, after meeting in the darkness in an open field, he was one of 150 men who attacked a Myanmar Border Guard Police post armed with swords, homemade explosives and a few handguns. At the end of a short battle, half a dozen men he had grown up with in his village were dead. "We had no training, no weapons," said Rashid, from the Buthidaung area of Myanmar's Rakhine state, who had joined the group just two months earlier. Accounts from some of those, like Rashid, who took part in attacks by the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) on dozens of police posts early on Aug. 25 paint a picture of a rag-tag band of hopeless, angry villagers, who were promised AK-47 rifles but ended up fighting with sticks and knives. Hundreds joined as recently as June, according to the accounts, and membership meant little more than a knife and messages from leaders on the popular mobile messaging app Whatsapp. Reuters interviewed half a dozen fighters and members of the group now sheltering in Bangladesh, as well as dozens of others among the more than half a million Rohingya refugees who have fled across the border to escape a Myanmar army counteroffensive that the United Nations has branded ethnic cleansing. ARSA, which emerged in 2016, says in press releases and video messages from its leader, Ata Ullah, that it is fighting for the rights of the Rohingya, a stateless Muslim minority that has long complained of persecution in mainly Buddhist Myanmar. Myanmar says ARSA is a ruthless Islamist extremist movement that wants to create an Islamic republic in northern Rakhine. Despite the massive suffering inflicted on their communities in the weeks since the August attacks, most of the fighters now stuck in dirt-poor camps said they were determined to continue their fight and some refugees voiced support for the insurgency. Other refugees Reuters spoke to criticized the insurgents for bringing more misery upon them. Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi's spokesman, Zaw Htay, said ARSA had killed many Muslims who had cooperated with the authorities and so "people have felt threatened and terrorized" into supporting it. He added that Myanmar's intelligence showed that religious scholars were prominent in recruiting followers. ARSA denies killing civilians, and did not respond to a request for comment this week. Analysts say the violence could galvanize ARSA members and supporters huddled in the refugee camps and among those Rohingya still in Myanmar, as people feel they have even less to lose. "A militancy like this finds fertile ground because of the desperation of the community," said Richard Horsey, a Yangon-based analyst and former U.N. official. "They are willing to take suicidal steps because they don't see any other choice." Transnational Islamist groups could also try to exploit the desperation in the camps to radicalize people, Horsey added. Al Qaeda last month called for support for the Rohingya. HOMEMADE WEAPONS AND WHATSAPP Reuters could not independently verify the individual insurgents' stories, but there were broad similarities in all of their accounts. One fighter, 35-year-old Kamal Hussain from a village in Rathedaung in Myanmar's Rakhine state, said he joined ARSA when a religious teacher stood in his village square in June, during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, and implored a crowd of hundreds to fight. "He said we have no choice but to attack Myanmar because our brothers and sisters are being killed day by day. I think everyone joined that day," Hussain said, as he sat under a tarpaulin in a Bangladesh refugee camp. "We should attack again and again. I would go back to fight if I had the chance." Unlike longer-serving fighters, most new joiners had little or no training or contact with the group's leaders, who communicated using Whatsapp and delivered rudimentary homemade explosives ahead of the assaults. A third fighter, his account supported by comments from two elders from his village interviewed separately, said he and about 60 men from Myin Hlut signed up three months ago. The 26-year-old, who asked not to be named because he feared arrest by Bangladeshi authorities, said he was among 200 men who attacked another police checkpost in the early hours of Aug. 25. "We had only knives and sticks, no guns," he said. "They promised us AK-47s but we got nothing. The explosives didn't work. We had two of them for the whole group, but when we threw them nothing happened." About 40 fighters were killed, he said, but added that he would do it again if called on. "I still support ARSA," he said. "If my leaders call me to go again and fight, I will go back." According to two village-level commanders, there were Whatsapp groups restricted to leaders and others to members. Bigger groups, administered from overseas, were used to build broader community support for ARSA and the Rohingya cause. On his phone, Shoket Ullah, an uncle of the 26-year-old fighter, scrolled through messages posted in the Whatsapp group "ARSA.G1", administered through a Saudi phone number, where ARSA press releases, videos of alleged Myanmar military violence and messages of support for Rohingyas were shared. Another Whatsapp group on Ullah's phone, "Rohingya Desh Arakan", is administered by someone using a number from Malaysia. Tens of thousands of Rohingya live in both Saudi Arabia and Malaysia. LOCAL BACKING Rohingya anger at Myanmar has long existed, but this is the first serious armed resistance in decades. In the crowded Bangladeshi camps, several refugees voice support for ARSA. "I am disappointed and regret what happened but this was pre-planned by the Myanmar government," said Shafi Rahman, a 45-year-old Burmese teacher whose village was burned to the ground the day after the attacks. "If ARSA didn't attack, they would have done this to us anyway." Several refugees said some people had begun to sell cattle, vegetables and rice to raise funds for ARSA. Not everyone was supportive, however. When Kamal Hussain, the fighter, argued that ARSA needed to keep fighting, his neighbors in the camp shouted him down. "We have lost everything. Violence is not the answer," shouted one elderly man, as muddy water spilled into the tent he now calls home. It is not obvious how fighters would regroup and rebuild after so many have fled across the border or disappeared. Three of the fighters who spoke to Reuters said they had been surprised by the ferocity of the Myanmar military's response, and within weeks commanders had told their men to put down their weapons and abandon their villages. Several said Whatsapp groups where regional and field commanders from ARSA, which before a rebranding this year called itself al-Yakin, or "Faith Movement", would post updates had gone quiet. "People who blame this on al-Yakin need to realize my people had to flee in 1978 and in the 1990s when there was no ARSA," said one of the two village-level commanders, who grew up in Bangladesh after his family fled an earlier outbreak of violence, but returned to Myanmar in the 1990s. "We should continue to attack. Even women can join." (Additional reporting by Andrew R.C. Marshall in BANGKOK; Editing by Alex Richardson)
North Korea claims it has a missile that could reach the West Coast of the United States and plans to test it in the very near future, according to Russian lawmakers who visited the reclusive nation this week.

They are preparing for new tests of a long-range missile. They even gave us mathematical calculations that they believe prove that their missile can hit the West Coast of the United States, Anton Morozov, a member of the Russian Dumas international affairs committee, told the RIA news agency, Reuters reports.

In general, [North Koreas] mood is rather belligerent, Morozov added. The situation, of course, demands the swiftest intervention of all interested states, particularly those represented in the region, in order to prevent wide-scale military action.

The CIA, South Korea and Japan have all speculated North Korea might conduct a nuclear test or missile launch on or around October 10the anniversary of the establishment of the North Korean Communist Party. North Korea conducted its first ever nuclear test on October 9, 2006.

North Korea had carried out a series of missile tests over the course of the past year and its sixth nuclear test in early September, which has put the U.S. on high alert.

Some believe North Korea already has an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) capable of striking targets on the U.S. mainland. Others question whether Pyongyang has actually developed the technology that would allow an ICBM armed with a nuclear weapon to successfully reach its intended destination.

It is clear North Korea has the capability to build a missile that can range the distance to the United States, but North Korea has yet to demonstrate it has the requisite technology and capability to actually target and strike the United States with a nuclear weapon, General Paul Selva, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in late August.

President Donald Trump and North Korea leader Kim Jong Un have taken to trading insults as the U.S. considers how to deal with the North Korean threat. After Trump referred to Kim as Rocket Man and threatened to totally destroy North Korea during his first speech in front of the United Nations, the North Korean leader described the U.S. president as a mentally deranged dotard.

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Some in Trumps administration, including Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Defense Secretary James Mattis, have tried to push for diplomacy but have frequently been undermined by the presidents tweets and bellicose public statements. With that said, the U.S. has succeeded in increasing economic pressure on Pyongyang via sanctions imposed by the United Nations, which have even received the blessing of ChinaNorth Koreas top trading partner.

Meanwhile, Russia, which shares a border with North Korea, has become more vocal about the situation. Earlier this week, Russian President Vladimir Putin urged all parties involved to embrace diplomacy.

Former U.S. President Barack Obamawhos routinely butted heads with Putin (and Trump, for that matter)also addressed the heightened tensions this week. Obama acknowledged North Korea poses a very real threat but implored both countries to favor dialogue over conflict.

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Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 10:06:35|Editor: Song Lifang

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TRIPOLI, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- A security force loyal to Libya's internationally recognized government on Friday took control of the western city of Sabratha after three weeks of fighting, a military source told Xinhua.

The Anti-IS Operations Room, created last year to clear Sabratha of Islamic State militants, seized most of Sabratha, located some 70 km west of the capital Tripoli, forcing rival armed groups to flee to the southern part of the city, the source told Xinhua.

Sabratha has been witnessing violent clashes between rival armed groups since mid-September.

The three-week long fighting killed more than 35 people and injured more than 200 others, according to medical sources. Thousands of families fled the violence in the city.

"We are scanning the last areas that used to be under the control of the militias. We are dealing with some buildings that are believed to have traps and mines," said the military source.

Efforts will also be made to eliminate smuggling and illegal immigration in the city, the source said.

In a statement on Friday, UN-backed Prime Minister Fayez Serraj commended the control of Sabratha by the Anti-IS Operations Room, saying he was satisfied with the positive developments in Sabratha.

Libya has remained in chaos following the 2011 uprising that toppled former leader Muammar Gaddafi. The country is struggling to make a democratic transition amid political division and unrest.
Moscow (AFP) - Some 120 Islamic State fighters and 60 foreign mercenaries were killed in a series of Russian air strikes in Syria over the past 24 hours, the defence ministry in Moscow said on Saturday.

Puzzlingly, the ministry also said three senior IS commanders including Omar al-Shishani had been confirmed dead as a result of an earlier Russian strike.

Moscow reported al-Shishani's death despite the fact that the Pentagon said in 2016 the notorious fighter had been killed by American troops in Iraq.

"A command post of the terrorists and up to 80 (IS) fighters including nine natives of the Northern Caucasus were destroyed in the area of Mayadeen," the ministry said, adding that another 40 IS fighters were killed around the town of Albu Kamal.

Mayadeen is one of the Islamic State group's last bastions in Syria.

In another air strike, more than 60 foreign mercenaries from the former Soviet Union, Tunisia, and Egypt were killed in the Euphrates Valley south of Deir Ezzor.

The ministry said "large numbers of foreign mercenaries" were coming into the Syrian border town of Albu Kamal from Iraq.

It also said Russian forces had killed senior IS commanders Omar al-Shishani, Alaa al-din al-Shishani and Salah al-Din al-Shishani, all natives of the Northern Caucasus.

Moscow reported their deaths after taking "several days" to confirm the results of an earlier strike on the northern outskirts of Albu Kamal which destroyed an IS command post with more than 30 fighters including the natives of the Northern Caucasus.

- 'Omar the Chechen' -

The Pentagon announced in March 2016 that American forces had killed Shishani, one of the most notorious faces of IS known for his thick red beard.

Shishani, whose nom de guerre means "Omar the Chechen," came from the former Soviet state of Georgia's Pankisi Gorge region, which is populated mainly by ethnic Chechens.

He fought as a Chechen rebel against Russian forces before joining the Georgian military in 2006, and fought Russian forces again in Georgia in 2008.

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He later resurfaced in northern Syria as the commander of a group of foreign fighters and became a senior leader within IS.

The Russian defence ministry was not immediately available for further comment.

Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, disagreed with Moscow's report.

"Salah al-Din al-Shishani is still alive and is somewhere in the regions controlled by jihadist groups in the west of Aleppo province. He is a famous commander, and his jihadist group is allied with the jihadists of the Al-Nusra front but only in their fight against the regime," he said.

"He has no links with IS."

The advances against IS in Deir Ezzor have resulted in a heavy civilian death toll through Russian and coalition air raids.

The Observatory said Russian air strikes on Thursday night killed 14 people, including three children, fleeing across the Euphrates on rafts near Mayadeen.

Since it intervened in Syria in 2015, Russia has not acknowledged any civilian deaths from its strikes, and it dismisses the Observatory's reporting as biased.

Moscow has been staging air strikes in support of its ally Damascus targeting both IS in Deir Ezzor province and rival jihadists led by Al-Qaeda's former Syria affiliate in Idlib province in the northwest.
One more piece of President Donald Trumps much-hyped arms sales to Saudi Arabia came into focus on Friday when the State Department announced a $15 billion sale of forty-four Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) systems to the kingdom.

The deal has long been in the works, and comes just a day after King Salman irked Washington by announcing a big arms deal with the Kremlin, which includes the advanced S-400 long-range air defense system.

The memorandum of understanding the king signed with Russian President Vladimir Putin covers the production in Saudi Arabia of Russian anti-tank missiles, rocket launchers, and Kalashnikov rifles.

The new cooperation on defense equipment took the Pentagon by surprise, though officials said they didnt think this would impact the longstanding defense relationship between the two countries. We have concerns about the purchasing of the S-400 systems, said Pentagon spokesman Eric Pahon, primarily because it undermines American efforts to shepherd the Gulf states into collaborating on a regional missile defense system to counter the growing Iranian ballistic missile threat.

The Saudi deal with Russia arrives on the heels of a similar sale of the S-400 to Turkey, a NATO ally.

During a May trip to Saudi Arabia, Trump announced a $110 billion arms deal for new tanks, ships, missiles, and other military equipment. Many of the pending contracts were originally entered into under the Obama administration, but have been to be completed. But the Trump leam lumped all pending deals under one banner.

Fridays announcement includes 360 interceptor missiles and seven radar.

The new deals coincides with a major push by Rydiah to revamp its military and begin building a domestic defense industry. Before Trumps visit, the kingdom announced the formation of Saudi Arabian Military Industries, a government-owned defense company that will build and repair aircraft, drones, ground vehicles, missiles, and radar systems.

The plan, as the government envisions it, is to build the company into one of the worlds top defense companies by 2030 and employ 40,000 people.
RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi King Salman said there was consensus with Russia's leadership on broadening the scope of relations between the two countries following a meeting with President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, the Saudi state press agency reported on Friday. "We note with complete full satisfaction the matching opinions we sensed from the Russian leadership towards working to move the level of relations to a broader perspective," the king told business officials in Moscow on Thursday evening. Putin hosted King Salman for talks at the Kremlin earlier in the day, cementing a relationship that is pivotal for world oil prices and could decide the outcome of the conflict in Syria. (Reporting by Stephen Kalin; Editing by Peter Cooney)
Barcelona (AFP) - Splits have emerged among Catalan separatist leaders over their plans to unilaterally declare independence following a secession referendum deemed illegal by Madrid.

Catalonia's leader Carles Puigdemont has threatened to declare independence "within days", but the region's business minister Santi Vila proposed a "ceasefire" in the row with Spain's central government.

In an opinion article published in Catalan daily Ara he urged the pro-secession camp to "reflect on the usefulness and consequences" of a declaration of independence.

Puigdemont put off until Tuesday an appearance in the regional Catalan parliament at which time some leaders have called for the declaration to be made.

The session of parliament to analyse the results of last Sunday's referendum was initially scheduled for Monday but Spain's Constitutional Court ordered that it be suspended.

The Catalan government has also not yet officially ratified the results of the vote, a move which would open a two-day period in which the parliament can declare independence.

Participants in the referendum opted overwhelmingly for secession, but turnout was only 43 percent as Catalans who favour remaining part of Spain mainly boycotted the ballot.

While Vila urged caution, Puigdemont is under strong pressure from the far-left CUP party -- whose support his government needs to pass legislation -- to move quickly.

"The inescapable, inevitable moment of exercising self-determination has arrived," said CUP lawmaker Carles Riera.

- 'Real alarm' -

Puigdemont's predecessor Artur Mas also weighed in, telling Britain's Financial Times that Catalan leaders should focus not on "how to proclaim independence, but instead on how to make it effective."

Analysts said the Catalan government risks losing international sympathy and giving Madrid an excuse for a hardline response if it makes a declaration of independence based on an unconstitutional vote.

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But if it waits too long to act on the results of the plebiscite it could see the momentum behind the independence movement fizzle.

The debate is not just limited to politicians -- supporters of the separatist cause are also divided over what strategy to follow.

"I have an inner conflict. I do not want a unilateral declaration of independence to happen that will last five minutes," said Olga Jubany, an anthropology professor in Barcelona.

"The strategy (of independence) was never 'we are going to impose it'. It is not the strategy I would like to follow."

Joan Botella, dean of political science at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, said "there is a sense of real alarm, not just uneasiness" in Catalan society.

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who is under pressure to show a harder line towards the separatists, has urged Puigdemont not to go ahead with the independence declaration to avoid "bigger problems".

His comment was seen as a reference to a never before used article of the Spanish constitution which allows the central government to suspend the authority of a regional government.

"There are few hours left to avoid a head-on collision... these are critical hours," said Botella.

- Urging no immediate decisions -

Since the referendum Puigdemont has called for international mediation.

Switzerland has been in contact with both sides in the dispute "but the conditions for facilitation do no exist at the moment," the country's foreign ministry said.

Without foreign mediation, the other option is for mediation within Spain.

Puigdemont has met with a commission set up by Barcelona's law society made up of academics and representatives of unions and the business world.

It has recommended that both sides not take any "immediate decisions," the withdrawal of the thousands of extra police sent to Catalonia ahead of the referendum, and for a "dialogue commission" to be set up.

"These are crucial hours, we cannot expect a mediator to suddenly emerge or that both governments accept a proposal for dialogue," said Xavier Arbos, a professor of constitutional law at the University of Barcelona.

"Although the situation remains worrying, now I see that there is a margin of time," he added.
President Trump in Washington on Oct. 6, 2017. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Democratic attorneys general in Massachusetts and California have filed federal lawsuits against the Trump administration in response to rollbacks of contraceptive mandates in the Affordable Care Act.

The Department of Health and Human Services announced Friday that employers with a religious or moral objection could opt out of providing birth control as part of health insurance benefits for employees.

The new rules will provide conscience protections to Americans who have a religious or moral objection to paying for health insurance that covers contraceptive/abortifacient services, writes the HHS in a statement.

The rollbacks are part of campaign promises made by Trump. In a letter to the Catholic Leadership Conference last October, then candidate Trump called the requirements onerous and a hostility to religious liberty you will never see in a Trump administration.

Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey filed a lawsuit Friday calling the rollback, a direct attack on womens health and the right to access affordable and reliable contraception. California Attorney General Xavier Becerra tweeted: Well see the Trump administration in court.

A number of organizations have announced plans to join the legal challenges, including the American Civil Liberties Union, the National Womens Law Center, the Center for Reproductive Rights, and Americans United for Separation of Church and State.

In a briefing with reporters Friday, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders responded to questions about reversing the mandate, saying, The president believes that the freedom to practice ones faith is a fundamental right in this country, and I think all of us do. And thats all that today was about  our federal government should always protect that right. And as long as Donald Trump is president, he will.

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This move further complicates the Trump administrations efforts to work with Democrats on health care. Trump tweeted this morning that he had called Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., to try to get the ball rolling. I called Chuck Schumer yesterday to see if the Dems want to do a great HealthCare Bill. ObamaCare is badly broken, big premiums. Who knows! the president tweeted.

I called Chuck Schumer yesterday to see if the Dems want to do a great HealthCare Bill. ObamaCare is badly broken, big premiums. Who knows!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2017

Schumer responded by saying that a repeal of Obamacare was off the table, but added that he was willing to hear suggestions about how to improve the existing system.

Meanwhile, the president continues to try to unravel the 2010 Affordable Care Act after several failed attempts at repealing it. Trump said last week that he plans to issue an executive order allowing the purchase of insurance across state lines. Ill probably be signing a very major executive order where people can go out, cross state lines, do lots of things and buy their own health care, and that will be probably signed next week, he told reporters.

The recent controversy over birth control is a hallmark of the debate over Obamacare, which brings religion, politics, and healthcare into the same space. Advocates for the rollback say it preserves the protection of religious liberty enshrined in the Constitution, while critics say its a violation of the separation between church and state.

This is very welcome news for us and for everybody, because religious liberty is such a fundamental right, said Archbishop William Lori, chairman of the religious freedom committee of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, in an interview with the Wall Street Journal. Its been something that many people, not just in the Catholic Church but beyond, have been working for.

Brigitte Amiri, a senior staff attorney at the ACLU, told The Hill the rollback basically gives broad license to employers to discriminate against their employees and withhold a benefit guaranteed by law.

The rollback is the revival of a debate from a 2014 supreme court case in which Hobby Lobby, an arts and crafts chain, argued it could not be compelled to violate its religious beliefs. The court found in favor of Hobby Lobby in a 5-4 decision, and a work-around was designed for the law. That set the precedent for the current rollback, and widely expands which businesses can apply for exemption.

The number of women affected remains to be seen as businesses adjust to the changes. In Massachusetts, its estimated that 1.4 million women will lose coverage, and nationwide as many as 55 million, costing as much as $25 million annually in out-of-pocket costs. The administration put the number of women affected immediately at 120,000.

California residents will be less affected as there are already state laws on the books that mandate businesses provide contraceptive coverage in their insurance offerings to employees.

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Isis has repeated its claim of responsibility for the Las Vegas attack while alleging that Stephen Paddock converted to Islam six months ago.

Investigators have not yet confirmed any link between the 64-year-old gunman and the terrorist group, with his girlfriend and relatives claiming he had no religious affiliation and was not an extremist.

In a new issue of its Arabic propaganda newspaper, Isis celebrated the worst mass shooting in modern American history with a graphic showing the Mandalay Bay hotel and casino stained blood red.

It boasted of the 58 people killed and 500 others injured, as well as of causing panic and confusion among security services in America and a number of European countries.

In an accompanying article, Isis recycled information on Paddocks position and weapons from US news reports, claiming he was responding to calls for attacks on countries bombing its territories in Syria and Iraq.

Isis glossed over the fact Paddock shot himself  an action inconsistent with jihadi doctrine  and claimed he rose as a martyr while praising the man it calls Abu Abd al-Bar al-Amriki.

The kunya, a type of Arabic nickname, was first used in a claim of responsibility issued on Monday.

A graphic celebrating the Las Vegas attack and claiming Stephen Paddock converted to Islam six months ago, from Isis al-Naba propaganda magazine on 5 October

Used by Isis fighters and supporters to conceal their identity, the names are also published in propaganda statements celebrating terror attacks.

Analysts said Isis use of a kunya for Paddock either shows it was in communication with the gunman, or that it is mounting extensive efforts to bolster a false claim.

Raffaello Pantucci, director of International Security Studies at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), said the name would ordinarily provide an indicator of some contact as it should only be known by the terrorist and Isis contacts.

But at the same time, it is also possible that the group would manipulate this, which would be a way of showing a link without it necessarily being real, and no one really being able to discount it, he added.

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Charlie Winter, a senior research fellow at the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation and Political Violence (ICSR), said the jury was out on whether Isis was linked to the attack.

He told The Independent that claims issued through Isis Amaq news agency had been correct in the past but Las Vegas seems extremely fishy.

Theres a hefty strategic logic behind every act of terrorism it claims  its not just communicating with us, the adversary, but with its supporters. Its got to show them theyre not fighting for a lost cause, Mr Winter added.

It could be that Isis made a mistake, it could be that the sources and claiming methodology didnt check out this time, and it could be an opportunistic claim.

Perhaps Isis did a false claim this one time  its not definite but its one scenario.

Mr Winter said that if investigations show Isis claim is false, the damage to its reputation among supporters would be limited as they trust the groups propaganda over Western authorities.

The victory has already been planted internally and no amount of evidence to the contrary will convince people fighting for or believing in the group that its wrong, he added.

Well know one way or another in the next few weeks but Isis efforts to associate itself with an attack like this show it isnt in a particularly good state at the moment.

The terrorist group has been intensifying calls for global terror attacks while suffering heavy losses in its dwindling caliphate in Iraq and Syria, with the latest message purporting to come from leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

In a 46-minute audio recording released last week, he urged jihadis to intensify one attack after another against the infidels, with the message followed by Isis-related attacks in Marseille and Edmonton.

Isis has released detailed guidance on launching terror attacks, including on how to obtain guns in the US and naming concerts as a prime target.

The FBI said its investigation had not yet found any link to the group but local police suggested Paddock may have been radicalised amid continuing confusion over his potential motives.

Did this person get radicalised unbeknownst to us? Sheriff Joseph Lombardo asked. We want to identify that source.

Guns are scattered around the hotel suite where Paddock holed up for four days (ABC News)

The fact that he had the type of weaponry and amount of weaponry in that room, it was preplanned extensively and Im pretty sure he evaluated everything that he did and his actions, which is troublesome.

Paddock booked rooms next to other music festivals in the months before Sundays attack, including overlooking the Lollapalooza festival in Chicago in August and the Life Is Beautiful show near the Vegas Strip in late September.

Authorities are looking into the possibility Paddock planned additional attacks, including a car bombing, having found 1,600 rounds of ammunition in his car, along with fertiliser that can be used to make explosives and 50lbs of Tannerite, a substance used in explosive rifle targets.

Paddock had an arsenal of 23 weapons in his hotel room  a dozen included bump stocks attachments that speed up the rate of fire  and another 19 at home.

His girlfriend, Marilou Danley, told FBI agents on Wednesday she had not noticed any changes in his mental state or indications he could become violent after being sent on a trip to her native Philippines before the attack.

Paddocks brother, Eric, claimed he had no religious affiliation, no political affiliation or history of mental illness.

The profile of Paddock developed so far is of a high-stakes gambler and disturbed and dangerous man who acquired an arsenal over decades, Sheriff Lombardo said, while admitting that much of his secret life may never be understood.

While he appeared to have no criminal history apart from a minor traffic offence, his father was a bank robber who was on the FBIs most-wanted list in the 1960s.
Las Vegas (AFP) - Five days after the deadliest mass shooting in recent US history, authorities acknowledged Friday that they have not uncovered a "clear motive" for the gunman.

"We still do not have a clear motive or reason why," Undersheriff Kevin McMahill of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department told reporters.

"At this time I'll tell you we have no credible information to report to you as to motivation."

Stephen Paddock killed 58 people and left hundreds injured in Las Vegas after raining bullets on a crowd at an open-air country music concert while perched in a 32nd floor hotel room.

The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for the massacre, but McMahill said authorities had not uncovered "no known nexus" between the jihadist group and Paddock.

"In the past, terror attacks or mass murder motive was made very clear by a note that was left, by a social media post, by a telephone call that was made, by investigators mining computer data. Today, in our investigation, we don't have any of that uncovered," he said.

The official pledged that law enforcement would work with "great tenacity" to uncover the reasons why Paddock carried out the massacre.
Khartoum (AFP) - Sudan faces a "paradox", its foreign minister said Saturday, after Washington acknowledged Khartoum's support in tackling violent extremism but kept it on a blacklist of state sponsors of "terrorism".

"This is a paradox. We are the best country cooperating on countering terrorism and at the same time we are on the list of state sponsors of terrorism," Ibrahim Ghandour said.

His remarks, the first since the United States lifted a 20-year-old trade embargo against Sudan on Friday, came hours after the top US envoy to Khartoum said conditions have to be "right" for talks on removing Khartoum from the list.

Ghandour, who led the Sudanese team that negotiated the lifting of sanctions, said it was time to start such talks.

Speaking Saturday on a panel organised by a private television channel to discuss the lifting of US sanctions, he welcomed the lifting of the trade embargo.

It was the "start of a road to build the right relations with the United States," he said.

On Friday, Khartoum hailed Washington's decision to end the sanctions as a "positive decision", but expressed disappointment at not being removed from the list, which also includes Syria and Iran.

Sudan insists that there is "no reason" for it to be blacklisted, as it has cooperated with US intelligence agencies in fighting "terrorism" -- a claim acknowledged by the US State Department.

Washington first imposed sanctions on Khartoum in 1997 over its alleged support for Islamist militant groups.

Osama bin Laden, the slain Al-Qaeda founder, lived in Sudan between 1992 and 1996.
A suicide bomber blew himself up outside a Sufi shrine in southwest Pakistan Thursday killing 18 people, officials said, in an attack claimed by the Islamic State group.

The attack follows a deadly bomb blast at the same shrine in the oil and gas rich Balochistan province in 2005, which killed 35 people.

"A suicide bomber blew himself up after he was intercepted by police guards on duty outside the shrine, killing 18 people including three children under the age of 12 and two policemen, and wounding at least 27 others, 14 of them seriously," provincial home secretary Akbar Harifal told AFP.

Provincial home minister Sarfaraz Bugti confirmed the toll.

The blast occurred as Muslims attended annual celebrations of a local saint. Members of Sunni and Shiite sects make daily visits to the shrine in Jhal Magsi district but attendance climbs significantly during festivities.

The explosion triggered panic, with worshippers shouting and running in different directions, officials at the site told AFP. Limbs of the dead and injured lay in pools of blood.

"The suicide bomber struck outside the shrine at a time when it was packed with people attending anniversary celebrations of Syed Cheesal Shah," said senior local administration official Asad Kakar, referring to the local saint.

Harifal said the seriously injured patients were being airlifted to southern Sindh province in the absence of adequate medical facilities in restive Balochistan.

The Islamic State Khorasan Province -- the Middle Eastern group's affiliate in Afghanistan and Pakistan -- has since released a statement claiming the attack, according to the US-based monitoring group SITE.

- 'Hostile agencies' -

Officials said earlier Thursday the incident came amid a new terror threat from four foreign agencies hostile to Pakistan.

"I can tell you that four hostile agencies are planning a major terror attack in Pakistan to undo our gains in the fight against terrorism," military spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor told a press briefing Thursday.

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Pakistan has launched a series of military offensives since 2007 in its tribal badlands near the Afghan border to cleanse these areas of homegrown as well as Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked militants.

Ghafoor did not disclose the names of the foreign agencies or their origin but added that "no organised infrastructure of any terrorist outfit exists anywhere in Pakistan now".

Balochistan is afflicted by Islamist militancy, sectarian violence and a separatist insurgency.

Sectarian violence -- in particular by Sunni hardliners against Shiites who make up roughly 20 percent of Pakistan's 200 million people -- has claimed thousands of lives in the country over the past decade.

Balochistan is the largest of Pakistan's four provinces, but its roughly seven million inhabitants have long complained they do not receive a fair share of its gas and mineral wealth.

A greater push towards peace and development by authorities has reduced violence in recent years, but the remnants of militant groups are still able to carry out periodic attacks, particularly in the northwest.

Several million Muslims in Pakistan are still believed to follow Sufism, a mystical branch of Islam whose wandering holy men helped spread the religion throughout the Indian subcontinent in the 13th century.

However, it has been overtaken in recent decades by more conservative versions of the faith.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 10:56:43|Editor: Song Lifang

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CANBERRA, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- In an attempt to make Australia a more appealing tourism destination for young travelers, the Australian government has launched a new campaign to connect with millennials through digital media.

Called "Aussie News Today," the campaign involves high-profile Australians including rugby player Nick Cummins, actor Lincoln Lewis and TV presenter Teigan Nash, who will present young Australians' interesting and humorous stories on digital media.

In a statement, Australia's Trade Minister Steven Ciobo said the campaign would aim to present Australia as a desirable destination for youths seeking both leisure and working holidays.

"Aussie News Today aims to make Australia the most desirable destination in the world for youth travelers," Ciobo said in a statement released late Friday.

"The campaign will initially focus on four of Australia's largest youth markets - the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Italy - and builds on back to back working holiday maker campaigns rolled out by Tourism Australia in key western and eastern markets between October 2016 and June 2017."

The minister said while attracting family tourism was important, it was young travelers who seek adventure and working holidays more than older travelers, and tapping into that market was crucial to boosting success in the local tourism market.

"Young people are a critical market for Australia, representing a quarter of arrivals and almost half of all international visitor spend," Ciobo said.

"Young travellers and working holiday makers go further, spend more per trip and stay longer than other travellers. In addition, just over half of all youth are repeat visitors to Australia."
Beirut (AFP) - Regime forces Friday broke into the eastern town of Mayadeen, one of the Islamic State group's last bastions in Syria, backed by Russian air raids taking a deadly toll on civilians.

Mayadeen in the oil-rich eastern province of Deir Ezzor is seen as the jihadist group's "security and military capital" in Syria, and its loss would deal "a severe blow" to the jihadists, according to a Syrian military source.

Over the course of months of successive defeats, Mayadeen and nearby Albu Kamal on the Iraqi border have taken in IS fighters fleeing the battle to the north for Raqa city in the face of an offensive launched by US-backed Kurdish and Arab forces.

"With support from Russian aviation, regime forces entered Mayadeen and took control of several buildings in the west of the town," Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told AFP.

Mayadeen, which the jihadists have controlled since 2014, sits on the western bank of the Euphrates River, between provincial capital Deir Ezzor, where the jihadists still hold several districts, and the border with Iraq.

IS remains in control of half of Deir Ezzor province, despite advances by President Bashar al-Assad's forces and a separate offensive against the jihadists by the Kurdish-Arab alliance.

The Observatory said the target of the regime advance was to recapture the Al-Omar oilfield held by IS to the northeast of Mayadeen that was destroyed in US-led coalition air strikes in 2015.

The jihadists had been drawing oil sale revenues from the field of between $1.7 million and $5.1 million a month, according to the coalition.

- Civilians killed in airstrikes -

On another front, regime forces said Friday they had ended their military operations in the east of central province of Homs, after "eliminating the last groups" of IS fighters from an area of 1,800 square kilometres (700 square miles), the official Sana news agency reported.

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The advances against IS in Deir Ezzor have cost a heavy civilian death toll from Russian and coalition air raids.

The Observatory said Russian air strikes on Thursday night killed 14 people, including three children, fleeing across the Euphrates on rafts near Mayadeen.

Moscow has been carrying out relentless air strikes in support of its ally Damascus targeting both IS in Deir Ezzor province and rival jihadists led by Al-Qaeda's former Syria affiliate in Idlib province in the northwest.

IS has seen its self-declared "caliphate" straddling Syria and Iraq shrink steadily over the past two years and has lost all but a few of its main hubs in both Arab states.

On Wednesday, another Russian air strike killed 38 civilians trying to flee the fighting in Deir Ezzor province, according to the Observatory.

The Observatory relies on a network of sources inside Syria, and says it determines whose planes carry out raids according to type, location, flight patterns and munitions used.

It has reported hundreds of civilians killed in anti-IS operations in Deir Ezzor and Raqa. On Tuesday, it said a US-led coalition strike in Raqa killed at least 18 civilians.

Russia has not acknowledged any civilian deaths from its strikes since it intervened in Syria in 2015, and dismisses the Observatory's reporting as biased.

On Thursday, the Red Cross said Syria was experiencing its worst levels of violence since the battle for the country's second city Aleppo late last year.

"For the past two weeks, we have seen an increasingly worrying spike in military operations that correlates with high levels of civilian casualties," said Marianne Gasser, the head of the International Committee of the Red Cross delegation in Syria.
By Suleiman Al-Khalidi AMMAN (Reuters) - Syrian opposition groups are resisting Jordanian pressure to hand control of a border crossing back to the Syrian government, a step that would be a major boost for President Bashar al-Assad and undermine rebel groups in southwestern Syria. Talks over reopening the Nasib crossing have gathered pace since a Russian-U.S. brokered ceasefire in July brought relative calm to southern Syria, the first peacekeeping effort in the war by U.S. President Donald Trump's administration. Jordan, which hopes to revive a once flourishing trade route and encourage Syrian refugees to return, has plenty of leverage over the rebels: many of the opposition groups in southern Syria depend on logistical support from the staunch U.S. ally. But rebel groups which seized control of the crossing in 2015 have so far resisted proposals for a return of Syrian government authority to Nasib, even in the form of civilian officials with no Syrian army presence. The possibility of the crossing being reopened underlines just how far the scales have tipped in favor of Assad, who is steadily winning back territory with Russian and Iranian help, forcing neighboring states to rethink their policies. "The presence of any regime employee is like restoring legitimacy to a worn-out regime against which the Syrian people rose up," said Adham al Karad, a Free Syrian Army (FSA) rebel commander who led battles in Deraa city against the army. Jordan has trodden a careful path during the six-year long war, maintaining diplomatic ties with Damascus even as it became a hub for a U.S.-led program that funneled aid to vetted Syrian rebels. Trump recently decided to shut down that program. Before the Syrian conflict erupted in 2011, Nasib served as a major transit route for hundreds of trucks a day transporting goods between Turkey and the Gulf in multi-billion dollar annual trade. Its closure has also had a knock-on effect for other economies in the region, including Lebanon's. Jordan has put forward proposals by which rebels would secure the road to Nasib, 100 km (60 miles) from the capital, while a civil administration from Damascus would run the crossing, according to Syrian opposition officials. Rebels would receive a portion of the customs fees as part of the deal. The proposals were discussed during a meeting between the Jordanian government and opposition-run local councils and rebels from southern Syria in Amman at the end of last month. "The situation of the crossing is delicate and sensitive and until now we have not responded (to Amman's demands)," Ali Salkhadi, the governor of opposition-run Deraa province, told a meeting of local figures on Sunday, footage of which was posted on YouTube. Jordan told the opposition delegation that it was obliged to deal with a recognized state in order to open the crossing and to allow trucks to proceed to third countries, he said. It also threatened the opposition delegation it could open another land crossing into Syrian government-controlled Sweida province, east of Nasib, if rebels fail to reach a deal. "If they open Sweida crossing they would close the other humanitarian crossings ... this is what they are saying," Salkhadi said in the meeting. Syrian government officials could not be reached for comment. A Jordanian government official contacted by Reuters declined to comment. REBELS UNDER PRESSURE Though rebels stand to profit if the crossing were opened, they also risk losing local support if seen to make such a big concession to Damascus. They want long-standing demands, including a detainee release, addressed before talks on Nasib. "We will not watch with our hands tied, we won't allow this and will work to stop all the efforts to hand over critical areas to the regime and to confiscate them from the rebels and impose a fait accompli on us," said Abu Jasem al Hariri, a rebel commander in southern Syria. Jordan last month succeeded in pressuring two Western-backed rebel groups operating in southeastern Syria near the Jordanian border, an order that resulted in them abandoning their territory to advancing Syrian government forces. But while Amman has recently sought to mend fences with Damascus, a full restoration of ties seems a distant prospect as Jordan remains deeply concerned over expanding Iranian influence in Syria. The Syrian army and allied militia are steadily seizing more and more of the Jordanian frontier from insurgents. But while the government is gaining ground at the Jordanian border, key crossings to Turkey and Iraq remain outside its control. (Editing by Tom Perry and Richard Balmforth)
Blackstone (BX), the worlds largest real estate investor, looks at technology as the most import theme today when making investments. This is according to Jon Gray, the private equity giants head of real estate.

Its interesting. You think about real estate you say, Gosh, this is a pretty boring business. Technology  does it really matter? And I would say when we think about deploying capital technology is the lead theme thats impacting our thought process today, Gray told Yahoo Finance.

Technology has resulted in a major share-shift from land-based retail to online retail.

If you think of how youre buying things, youre buying much more online. As a result, as that grows, people need things less in stores and more directly in warehouse space.

(Yoan Valat/Pool Photo via AP)

In the last seven years, Blackstone has purchased over 400 million square feet of warehouses in the United States, Europe, Asia, and Brazil. The firm did so with the idea that the share-shift thats going on is leading to more demand for warehouse space.

Another impact from technology is job creation and the force that has on the real estate market. Thats led to a boom in places like Seattle, Northern California, Los Angeles, Austin, lower Manhattan, Boston-Cambridge. In Europe, its impacting Stockholm, Amsterdam, London, Dublin, and Berlin.

So, for us, were trying to anticipate where this technology is moving to and then deploy capital against it.

Listen to the full interview

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Julia La Roche is a finance reporter at Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter:
A California teen injured in Sunday's mass shooting and was visited by Donald Trump during his trip to Las Vegas found the president "comforting."

"He was super nice," Tiffany Huizar, 18, told reporters from her bed at University Medical Center. "He wasn't who we see on social media."

Read: Feds Question Vegas Gunman's Girlfriend: 'He Never Said Anything to Me'

Huizar is recovering after she was shot in the stomach and elbow when gunman Stephen Paddock opened fire on the Route 91 country music festival from his Mandalay Bay hotel room, killing at least 59.

In an official White House photo, Huizar lay in a hospital gown holding a big teddy bear as Trump and first lady Melania Trump said hello.

Asked by a reporter what made the president seem so comforting, the teen said: "I don't know, I guess tone of voice and, just, the way he was..."

Huizar, a high school student, is one of more than 500 people injured in Sunday's massacre, which is being called the worst in modern U.S. history.

Trump and first lady met with several other victims and first responders during their day-long trip to Las Vegas.

Trump stood with those responders and local law enforcement when he gave a speech on the tragedy.

The president said:

"In the depths of horror we will always find hope in the men and women who risk their lives for ours. The mass murder that took place on Sunday night [and] fills America's heart with grief. America is truly a nation in mourning.

Read: Mom of 4, Husband Who Shielded Wife Among 59 Confirmed Dead in Las Vegas Massacre

"We pray for the recovery of the injured. And those injured officers who so bravely threw themselves into danger when duty called. And we grieve the loss of the law enforcement personnel who were killed in this viscous attack. Many families tonight will get to bed in a world that is suddenly empty the people they so dearly loved were torn away from them forever.

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"Our souls are stricken with grief for every American that lost a husband or a wife, a mother or a father, a son or a daughter. We know that your sorrow feels endless. We stand together to help you carry your pain. You are not alone. We will never leave your side."

Watch: Will Las Vegas Massacre Change Hotel Security Procedures?

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By Brendan Pierson

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Three men have been arrested since May of last year on charges of plotting attacks in New York City for Islamic State in the summer of 2016, U.S. prosecutors said on Friday.

The planned attacks, which were thwarted by law enforcement, included detonating explosives in Manhattan's Times Square and in the city's subway, according to the office of Acting U.S. Attorney Joon Kim in Manhattan.

One of the men, 19-year-old Canadian citizen Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy, has been in U.S. custody since May 2016, when he was arrested in New Jersey. He pleaded guilty to terrorism charges in October 2016, the prosecutors said.

Talha Haroon, a 19-year-old U.S. citizen, was arrested in Pakistan, where he lives, around September 2016, and Russell Salic, a 37-year-old citizen of the Philippines, was arrested in that country in April of this year, according to Kim's office.

Prosecutors said they expected Haroon and Salic to be extradited to the United States to face the charges, which include conspiracy to commit acts of terrorism and to support a terrorist organization. If convicted of the most serious charges, they face a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Lawyers for the three men could not immediately be identified.

Prosecutors said El Bahnasawy bought bomb-making materials and helped secure a cabin near New York City from which to stage attacks. They said Haroon planned to travel from Pakistan to help El Bahnasawy carry out attacks, and that Salic helped fund the plot.

According to documents unsealed in federal court in Manhattan on Friday, El Bahnasawy and Haroon planned to carry out attacks during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which ran from early June to early July.

El Bahnasawy told an undercover law enforcement officer posing as a supporter of Islamic State that he wanted to "create the next 9/11," prosecutors said. El Bahnasawy told the officer of plans to detonate a car bomb in Times Square and "shoot up concerts," according to prosecutors.

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Haroon likewise told the officer that Time Square was "a perfect spot to hit them," prosecutors said.

Salic, who maintained a pro-Islamic State social media presence, told the undercover officer that he had been communicating with El Bahnasawy, and sent the officer about $423 from the Philippines to help pay for the attacks, according to prosecutors.

El Bahnasawy bought bomb-making materials in Canada, and was arrested the same day he came to the United States, the prosecutors said.

(Reporting By Brendan Pierson in New York; Editing by Andrew Hay and Jonathan Oatis)
Times Square - 2016 Getty Images

Three men have been arrested since May of last year on charges of plotting attacks in New York City for the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isil) during the summer of 2016, US prosecutors said on Friday.

The planned attacks, which were thwarted by law enforcement, included detonating explosives in Manhattan's Times Square and in the city's subway, according to the office of acting US Attorney Joon Kim in Manhattan.

One of the men, 19-year-old Canadian citizen Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy, has been in US custody since May 2016, when he was arrested in New Jersey. He pleaded guilty to terrorism charges in October 2016, the prosecutors said.

Talha Haroon, a 19-year-old U.S. citizen, was arrested in Pakistan, where he lives, around September 2016, and Russell Salic, a 37-year-old citizen of the Philippines, was arrested in that country in April of this year, according to Mr Kim's office.

Prosecutors said they expected Haroon and Salic to be extradited to the United States to face the charges, which include conspiracy to commit acts of terrorism and to support a terrorist organisation. If convicted of the most serious charges, they face a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Acting Manhattan US Attorney announces unsealing of charges in foiled 2016 NYC terror plot https://t.co/2Lf8aGSWA3  US Attorney SDNY (@SDNYnews) October 6, 2017

Lawyers for the three men could not immediately be identified.

Prosecutors said El Bahnasawy bought bomb-making materials and helped secure a cabin near New York City from which to stage attacks. They said Haroon planned to travel from Pakistan to help El Bahnasawy carry out attacks, and that Salic helped fund the plot.

According to documents unsealed in federal court in Manhattan on Friday, El Bahnasawy and Haroon planned to carry out attacks during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which ran from early June to early July.

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El Bahnasawy told an undercover law enforcement officer posing as a supporter of Isil that he wanted to "create the next 9/11," prosecutors said. El Bahnasawy told the officer of plans to detonate a car bomb in Times Square and "shoot up concerts," according to prosecutors.

A member loyal to the ISIL waves an ISIL flag in Raqqa Credit: Reuters

Haroon likewise told the officer that Times Square was "a perfect spot to hit them," prosecutors said.

Salic, who maintained a pro-Islamic State social media presence, told the undercover officer that he had been communicating with El Bahnasawy, and sent the officer about $423 from the Philippines to help pay for the attacks, according to prosecutors.

El Bahnasawy bought bomb-making materials in Canada, and was arrested the same day he came to the United States, the prosecutors said
Niamey (AFP) - Three US Green Berets and four Nigerien soldiers were killed in a clash on the Niger-Mali border, where Islamic State fighters have established a presence, officials said Thursday.

A joint US-Niger patrol fell into an ambush on Wednesday in the Tillaberi region in the country's southwest, requiring French Mirage 2000 fighter jets to be called in for air support.

Niger's President Mahamadou Issoufou said there were many casualties in the battle, and US Africa Command said two more Special Forces troops were wounded.

The fatal "ambush" also wounded eight Nigerien troops, a statement from Niger's defence ministry said.

Another person from an unnamed country was also killed, according to the Pentagon statement.

"Our country has just been attacked once more by terrorist groups, an assault which sadly has resulted in a large number of casualties," Issoufou said in the capital Niamey.

A French military spokesman said French helicopters had evacuated wounded from the scene and added that the fighting was continuing.

"The Nigerien operation is still ongoing, from what I know," said French Colonel Patrik Steiger.

"It is in the area of the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara," he said, using the name of the jihadist group's regional franchise.

The Pentagon said the clash took place approximately 200 kilometers (120 miles) north of Niamey. That puts the attack near the border with Mali, where armed jihadists are known to operate.

The two wounded US soldiers were evacuated to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany where they are in "stable condition," US Africa Command said.

The report confirmed the little-known presence of US troops in the turbulent area, part of the poor and politically fragile Sahel region where jihadist groups are mounting an insurgency.

US troops have increased their presence in Niger in recent years but this appeared to be their first firefight, Lieutenant General Kenneth McKenzie, Joint Staff Director, told reporters in Washington.

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"I'm not aware there's been any incident of that nature in the recent past," he said.

"I don't know that they were ambushed," McKenzie said. "There was an engagement. I think we're still gathering information on that."

McKenzie did not give troop numbers but said US forces are there to "train, advise, assist" Niger's government to increase its capability to stand alone against violent extremists.

The US casualties will not alter that goal, he said.

"We're committed to that relationship. We believe that they are as well. In fact I think it's a very good success story."

France's Steiger said French fighter jets were sent to the scene as a show of force, but did not drop any munitions to avoid hitting the forces on the ground.

Under the name Operation Barkhane, France maintains a 4,000-man mission in the region to shore up fragile Sahel countries against jihadists who have carried out a wave of bloody bombings, shootings and kidnappings.

- Extremist rebels -

Western militaries have been actively supporting Niger forces in their effort to prevent jihadist groups in the Sahel from establishing a strong presence in the country.

In February and March, troops from the United States, Belgium, Australia and Canada, including US Special Forces, conducted a 17-day training operation with Nigerien troops focused on fighting extremist insurgents.

Issoufou did not put a number on how many Nigerien casualties there were in the clash but called for a minute's silence "to the memory of our soldiers who have fallen on the field of honour."

At the United Nations, Mali's Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop told a Security Council meeting on the situation in Mali that the attack on the border highlighted the need for the new Sahel force tasked with fighting Islamic militants to quickly begin its operations.

"The violent and deadly clashes that occurred yesterday on the Niger-Mali border remind us once again of the pressing need to proceed to the rapid operationalisation of the G5 Sahel force," Diop told the council.

The regional force must be "rendered operational as quickly as possible in order to ensure it can withstand those who are seeking to destablise our entire region: terrorists and armed groups."

The force set up by Burkina Faso, Mali, Chad, Mauritania and Niger is due to being operations later this month, but a question mark remains over its funding.

burs-it/dc
Washington (AFP) - US President Donald Trump will reveal his decision on the future of the Iran nuclear deal in the coming days, the White House said Thursday.

"The president is going to make an announcement about the decision that he's made on a comprehensive strategy that his team supports, and we'll do that in the coming days," said Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

Flying in the face of advice from some of his closest advisors, Trump is expected to withhold certification of Iran's compliance with the agreement, effectively leaving its fate with Congress.

White House officials cautioned against rumors that Trump would make a speech revealing his decision next Thursday. But the decision must come by an October 15 deadline.

Trump has railed against the Obama-era deal which offered Iran massive sanctions relief in return for curbs on its nuclear program.

Ahead of the October 15 deadline, several officials familiar with White House deliberations told AFP Trump has made it clear he does not want to certify Iran's compliance with the accord.

Every 90 days Trump must tell Congress whether Iran is living up to its end of the bargain, something that has already caused him political pain on two occasions.

The Trump administration has publicly accused Iran of violating the "spirit" of the accord -- known as the JCPOA -- although some officials privately admit there is a thin line between testing the limits and a material breach.

The administration has made it clear that it wants Iran to stop ballistic missile tests and stop "nefarious" behavior across the Middle East, two issues that were not part of the agreement.

Trump's decision would have little impact in and of itself, but the Republican controlled Congress could decide, within 60 days, to impose sanctions, or simply not respond.

The build up to Trump's decision has been dominated by intense debate inside the White House and fierce lobbying in Congress.

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European ambassadors and diplomats have been camped out on Capitol Hill, trying to argue against any punitive actions that invite Iran to decide the United States in non-compliance.

Meanwhile the deal's opponents, like Senator Tom Cotton have argued that Iran is not in compliance and sanctions and even military action against Iran should be considered.

Cotton met Trump at the White House on Thursday to make his case, and the president was expected to meet military leaders later in the day.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 11:06:46|Editor: Song Lifang

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KHARTOUM, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- The Sudanese government on Saturday said it was looking forward to working with the U.S. administration to fully normalize relations between the two countries.

"We are looking forward, after the lifting of sanctions, to working together for full normalization," Sudanese Foreign Minister Ibrahim Ghandour told reporters at Khartoum airport early Saturday.

"Sudan-U.S ties are old and we are looking forward to bringing them back to their normal and natural track," he said.

He went on saying that "the lifting of the U.S sanctions on Sudan came as a natural outcome of a dialogue that lasted for about 16 months and as a result of understandings between the two countries."

The United States on Friday decided to lift its economic sanctions on Sudan permanently, citing Sudan's "sustained positive actions to maintain a cessation of hostilities in conflict areas in Sudan, improve humanitarian access throughout Sudan, and maintain cooperation with the United States on addressing regional conflicts and the threat of terrorism."

The U.S State Department announced that the decision would go into effect as of Oct. 12.

The United States has been imposing sanctions on Sudan since 1997 and listing it as one of the countries sponsoring terrorism.

In late July, the United States extended a review period of three months to decide whether to permanently lift trade sanctions on Sudan given its human rights records and other issues.

On Jan. 13, former U.S. President Barack Obama made a decision to cancel two executive orders imposing economic sanctions on Sudan.

The executive orders gave 180 days for review before the sanctions are fully lifted to ensure the Sudanese government maintains its efforts on human rights and anti-terrorism.

The decision also allowed a resumption of all banking transactions and trade exchange between the two countries.
South Korean protesters carry a caricature of Donald Trump during a rally to denounce the US' policy against North Korea, near the American Embassy in Seoul on 26 September: AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon

Donald Trump has hinted at military action against North Korea, suggesting on Twitter that "only one thing will work" on the secretive communist state.

The US leader said previous American presidential "administrations have been talking to North Korea for 25 years", but in his opinion it was "to no avail".

It appears Mr Trump is hinting at using military action against the isolated Asian country, but when he was asked about the comments by reporters ahead of a trip to North Carolina, the US president said he had nothing more to clarify.

White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders referred to Iran and North Korea the following day when asked about Trump's "calm before the storm" comments.

Asked about the tweet, Ms Sanders said she had nothing to add to the president's comments.

The Pentagon meanwhile referred a question for clarification to the White House and said the Defense Department's job was to "present the president military options and carry out orders."

Mr Trump's comments came after a Russian politician, Anton Morozov, told state-backed news media RIA Novost that he has seen a North Korean missile capable of reaching the US and tests of it will be conducted "in the nearest future".

Mr Morozov said he and two colleagues had been told by North Korean authorities that Pyongyang had developed the technology to allow its missiles to survive the heat upon re-entering the atmosphere after a launch, a problem in its past tests.

He reportedly saw "mathematical calculations" that would allow the nuclear-capable missile to reach the west coast of the US, however he was speaking to a state-backed media organisation and did not verify the calculations to ensure the claims were accurate.

The president has said previously that US administrations going back 25 years saying they all left me with a mess ... But Ill fix that mess and reiterated that in his latest tweets.

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Presidents and their administrations have been talking to North Korea for 25 years, agreements made and massive amounts of money paid......  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2017

...hasn't worked, agreements violated before the ink was dry, makings fools of U.S. negotiators. Sorry, but only one thing will work!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2017

Mr Trump's tweets come on the heels of another set of social media posts in which he appeared to take a swipe at Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and threatened action against North Korea.

The President tweeted that the former Exxon CEO should stop "wasting his time" on negotiating with the country's leader Kim Jong-un, who he recently referred to as "Rocket Man".

"We'll do what has to be done!," he tweeted.

...Save your energy Rex, we'll do what has to be done!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 1, 2017

His comments came days after a report by NBC News claimed that Mr Tillerson had called the President a "moron" during a Pentagon meeting this past summer.

He held an impromptu briefing during which he denied the rumour that he was ready to resign from his post, but did not directly deny calling Mr Trump a "moron."

During the same statement he was full of praise for Defence Secretary James Mattis, with whom he communicates every day, and said there is "no better partner than Secretary of Defence who believes in diplomacy."

Mr Mattis has said on several occasions that military action would be reserved for when all diplomatic solutions had been tried and even then, only if the Pyongyang attacked the US, its territories like Guam, or its allies like South Korea or Japan first.

Mr Trump said he would "totally destroy" North Korea if provoked when he spoke at the United Nations General Assembly, adding that Mr Kim was on a "suicide mission" in continuing to develop his nuclear arsenal.

Since then, he and Mr Kim have exchanged public barbs with the North Korean leader calling Mr Trump a "dotard" and "frightened dog".

The United Nations Security Council has imposed the strictest-ever sanctions on Pyongyang last month.

The sanctions, passed by a unanimous vote, were actually weaker than the US initially wanted in order to punish Pyongyang for their sixth  and largest  nuclear test earlier this month. The US had wanted a full ban on oil exports to North Korea but diluted that to a ban on textile exports and a cap on fuel supplies in order to ensure support from China and Russia who hold the power to veto resolutions.

Though President Trump complimented the UN over the new sanctions, he said its just another very small step. Not a big deal  but certainly it was nice to get a 15-0 vote, he added.

Mr Trump said that the sanctions, regardless of how limiting they are on Pyongyangs economy, are nothing compared to what ultimately will have to happen.

The sanctions vote was particularly important because it was unanimous, signalling that even Russia and China - large trading partners with North Korea - were willing to work on a diplomatic solution.

In fact, last month Chinese banks announced they would stop accepting North Korean money or open new accounts for North Korean citizens. This was after Mr Trump had blacklisted a small Chinese bank for facilitating business with Pyongyang. The bank faced heavy penalties and fees.

North Korea has conducted six nuclear tests thus far.

A US intelligence official said last month they had no reason to doubt Mr Kim and his military had developed a hydrogen bomb.

The US official said, however, it would take some time to complete a thorough analysis of the size of the blast and type of device detonated during the last North Korean test.

In July, US intelligence officials said they believed North Korea had been able to make a nuclear warhead capable of fitting on an intercontinental ballistic missile  claiming missiles will have the range to reach the US. Recently, Pyongyang also launched a missile over the Hokkaido island of Japan.
Donald Trump was reportedly left seething after footage of him comforting victims of the Las Vegas massacre was overshadowed by video of his Secretary of State Rex Tillerson appearing to call him a moron.

The US leader is reportedly ready to replace the former oil executive with CIA director Mike Pompeo after footage of Mr Tillersons gaffe dominated TV news channels ahead of his visit to the scene of Americas worst mass shooting.

After Mr Trump took to Twitter to call the 'moron' story fake, MSNBC anchorwoman Stephanie Ruhle who broke the story, was quoted assaying: My source didnt just say he called him a moron. He said he called him an f**ing moron.

Rex Tillerson never threatened to resign. This is Fake News put out by @NBCNews. Low news and reporting standards. No verification from me.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 5, 2017

Mr Tillerson hastily organised a press conference shortly afterwards, which coincided with Mr Trumps visit to Las Vegas.

He used it to deny he was considering his resignation.

There has never been a consideration in my mind to leave. I serve at the appointment of the president and Im here as long as the President thinks I can be useful to achieving his objectives, Mr Tillerson said  but did not deny using the moron slur.

Mr Trump called reports about the moron slur totally phoney and said he had total confidence" in Mr Tillerson as he visited some of the injured victims and members of the emergency services.

However, he was reportedly furious about the timing of Mr Tillerson's gaffe and the fact that his Secretary of State did not explicitly deny calling him a moron.

After what Trump considered a strong trip to Vegas, he seethed when he got back and saw Tillersons gaffe dominating cable-news coverage, according to US new site Axios, which originally broke the story.

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The website added that unnamed insiders claimed the relationship between the two men is now broken beyond repair.

The pair are nonetheless reported to have clashed on matters of foreign policy in recent weeks, particularly when Mr Trump engaged in a war of words with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, branding him rocket man.

He promised fire and fury if the secretive communist state lands one of its missile trials on US territory.

Mr Tillerson is thought to prefer a more measured approach.
President Donald Trump signs an Executive Order on Promoting Free Speech and Religious Liberty in the Rose Garden of the White House on May 4, 2017: AFP/Getty Images

The Trump administration has rolled back the requirement that employer-provided health insurance plans pay for birth control.

Under the new rule, any employer with religious objections to birth control will now be allowed to omit coverage for contraception from their workers' plans.

Donald Trump had signalled in May that action was coming on the issue, signing an executive order that instructed the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to address conscience-based objections to the mandate.

For too long, the federal government has used the power of the state as a weapon against people of faith, bullying and even punishing Americans for following their religious beliefs, he said at the time.

The same day, Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued legal guidance reminding federal agencies that freedom of religion is a fundamental right and that the free exercise of religion includes the right to act or abstain from action in accordance with ones religious beliefs.

The ACA requires employer-provided health insurance plans to include coverage for preventive healthcare. After the law passed, HHS issued regulations specifying what was to be included in those preventive services. Birth control was deemed to be a preventative service, and employers were required to cover at least one of the 18 methods of birth control approved by the Food and Drug Administration, with no cost-sharing for the patient.

More than 55 million women have access to birth control without co-pays because of the contraceptive coverage mandate, according to a study commissioned by the Obama administration. And since the mandate was first implemented in August 2012, savings on the birth control pill have accounted for more than half of the drop in all out-of-pocket prescription drug spending, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Following the rollback of the requirement, hundreds of thousands of women could lose birth control benefits they now receive at no cost under Obamacare. But the vast majority of companies have no reservations about offering birth control benefits through their health plans. Employers get an economic benefit from helping women space out their pregnancies, since female workers are central to most businesses.

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According to officials on a press call, employers will not have to file anything with the government to stop offering the birth-control coverage; they just simply have to notify their employees of the decision, the newspaper The Hill reported.

No American should be forced to violate his or her own conscience in order to abide by the laws and regulations governing our healthcare system, Health and Human Services spokeswoman Caitlin Oakley said in a statement.

The rule change is likely to end lawsuits from Roman Catholic and other religious employers, which had battled the Obama administration for years over the controversial mandate. Senior HHS officials said the intent of the new regulations are to provide relief for these groups.

Catholic bishops declared the administration's move to be a return to common sense.

The Obama administration had created a mandate exemption for churches, and allowed other religious employers to opt out of having to provide birth control by notifying the government. When they did so, the administration would arrange to have insurance companies provide contraception to the employers' female workers, without the employers' involvement.

But many religious-affiliated organisations remained unhappy with this so-called workaround because it still used the insurance plans they sponsored as the way of providing coverage.

The rollback of the mandate may be likely to end lawsuits from those organisations. However, it is expected to trigger a fresh round of litigation from groups including the American Civil Liberties Union and the National Womens Law Center.

We are preparing to see the government in court, said Brigitte Amiri, a senior attorney for the ACLU.

The ACLU has filed papers to sue the Trump administration over its decision. The lawsuit, filed in San Francisco federal court, asserted constitutional and procedural claims against the change. Democratic state attorneys general have also pledged to take legal action against the decision.

Womens rights organisations and some medical professionals have suggested that the rule change could lead to a higher number of unintended pregnancies.

HHS leaders under the current administration are focused on turning back the clock on women's health, said Dr Haywood Brown, the president of the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
As US officials investigate potential collusion between Trump and Moscow, the series of reports by the former UK intelligence official Christopher Steele are casting an ever darker shadow over the president

The question of collusion is at the heart of the various investigations into links between Trump and Moscow. Photograph: Reuters/Sam Morris

Nine months after its first appearance, the set of intelligence reports known as the Steele dossier, one of the most explosive documents in modern political history, is still hanging over Washington, casting a shadow over the Trump administration that has only grown darker as time has gone by.

It was reported this week that the documents author, former British intelligence official, Christopher Steele, has been interviewed by investigators working for the special counsel on Russian interference in the 2016 election.

The Senate and House intelligence committees are, meanwhile, asking to see Steele to make up their own mind about his findings. The ranking Democrat on the House committee, Adam Schiff, said that the dossier was a very important and useful guide to help us figure out what we need to look into.

The fact that Steeles reports are being taken seriously after lengthy scrutiny by federal and congressional investigators has far-reaching implications.

Originally commissioned by a private firm as opposition research by Donald Trumps Republican and then Democratic opponents, they cite a range of unnamed sources, in Russia and the US, who describe the Kremlins cultivation over many years of the man who now occupies the Oval Office  and the systematic collusion of Trumps associates with Moscow to help get him there.

The question of collusion is at the heart of the various investigations into links between Trump and Moscow. Even a senior Republican, Richard Burr, the chairman of the Senate intelligence committee, admitted this week it was an open question.

Burr said his committee needed to talk Steele himself to assess the dossier properly and urged him to speak to its members or staff. According to an NBC report on Friday, Steele had expressed willingness to meet the committees leaders.

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In his remarks this week, Burr said his committee had come to a consensus in supporting the conclusions of a US intelligence community assessment in January this year that Russian had conducted a multi-pronged campaign to interfere in the 2016 election, in Trumps favour.

It is a finding that echoes the reports that Steele was producing seven months earlier. Trump has called the assessment a hoax, but there is no sign the three agencies that came to that conclusion, the CIA, FBI and NSA, have had any second thoughts in the intervening months.

Many of my former CIA colleagues have taken [the Steele] reports seriously since they were first published, wrote John Sipher, a former senior officer in the CIAs National Clandestine Service on the Just Security website.

Christopher Steele, the former MI6 officer who compiled the reports. Photograph: Victoria Jones/PA

This is not because they are not fond of Trump (and many admittedly are not), but because they understand the potential plausibility of the reports overall narrative based on their experienced understanding of both Russian methods and the nature of raw intelligence reporting.

Sipher emphasised the raw nature of the reports, aimed at conveying an accurate account of what sources are saying, rather than claiming to be a definitive summary of events. There are spelling mistakes and rough edges. Several of the episodes it described remain entirely unverified.

But as every passing month brings more leaks, revelations in the press, and more progress in the investigations, the Steele dossier has generally gained in credibility, rather than lost it.

Trump Tower meeting

One of the more striking recent developments was the disclosure of a meeting on 9 June 2016 in Trump Tower involving Trumps son, Donald Jr, and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, with a Russian lawyer closely tied to the government, Natalia Veselnitskaya.

After the meeting was first reported on 8 July this year, the presidents son claimed (in a statement dictated, it turned out, by his father) that it had been about adoptions of Russian children by Americans.

The next day that was exposed as a lie, with the publication of emails that made it clear that Veselnitskaya was offering damaging material on Hillary Clinton, that an intermediary setting up the meeting said was part of Russia and its governments support for Mr Trump.

If its what you say, I love it, especially later in the summer, Donald Trump Jr replied.

Just 11 days after that meeting  but more than a year before it became public  Steele quoted a source as saying that the Kremlin had been feeding Trump and his team valuable intelligence on his opponents, including Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, for several years.

A later report, dated 19 July 2016, said: Speaking in confidence to a compatriot in late July 2016, Source E, an ethnic Russian close associate of Republican US presidential candidate Donald Trump, admitted that there was a well-developed conspiracy of cooperation between them and the Russian leadership.

The report said that such contacts were handled on Trumps end by his then campaign manager, Paul Manafort, who participated in the 9 June Trump Tower meeting.

Manafort has denied taking part in any collusion with the Russian state, but registered himself as a foreign agent retroactively after it was revealed his firm received more than $17m working as a lobbyist for a pro-Russian Ukrainian party. He is a subject of special counsel Robert Muellers investigation and in July the FBI raided his home in Virginia.

Other key protagonists in the Steele dossier have surfaced in subsequent disclosures and investigation. Two of them, an Azeri-Russian businessman Araz Agalarov and his son Emin, are described in emails released by Donald Trump Jr as offering to serve as intermediaries in passing on damaging material on Clinton and is reported to have help set up the Trump Tower meeting.

Carter Page

Another key figure in the Steele dossier is Carter Page, an energy consultant who Trump named as one of his foreign policy advisors. Steeles sources describe him as an intermediary between Manafort and Moscow, who had met a Putin lieutenant and head of the Russian energy giant, Rosneft, and a senior Kremlin official, Igor Diveykin.

Donald Trump and his son, Donald Jr. Photograph: Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images

Page denied meeting either man on his trips to Moscow, which he has said were for business purposes and not connected to his role in the Trump campaign.

Nonetheless, he has become a focus of investigation: it was reported in April that that the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court issued an order last year for his communication to be monitored. To obtain the order, investigators would have to demonstrate probable cause to believe Page was acting as an agent of a foreign power. Page has said he welcomed the news of the order as it demonstrated he was being made a scapegoat of the investigation.

Elsewhere, a Steele memo in September 2016 mentions a Mikhail Kulagin who had been withdrawn from the Russian embassy in Washington because of his heavy involvement in the US presidential election operation.

There was no diplomat of that name at the mission, but there was a Mikhail Kalugin; five months later, it emerged that he had left the embassy in August 2016.

McClatchy reported he was under investigation for his role in Russias interference in the campaign. The BBC reported that the US had identified Kalugin as a spy.

Facebook

More recently, there has been a slew of revelations about the role of disinformation spread by Russians and other eastern Europeans posing as Americans on social media. The New York Times reported that hundreds and possibly thousands of Russian-linked fake accounts and bots on Facebook and Twitter were used to spread anti-Clinton stories and messages.

Facebook disclosed that it had shut down several hundred accounts that it believes were fabricated by a Kremlin-linked Russian company to buy $100,000 in ads that often promoted racial and other divisive issues during the campaign.

This week, Facebook handed over to Congress 3,000 ads bought by a Russian organisation during the campaign, and it was reported that many of those ads, some of them Islamophobic, were specifically targeted on swing states, Michigan and Wisconsin.

A Steele memo from August 2016 states that after Russias hand had been discovered in the hacking of Democratic party emails and passing them to WikiLeaks for publication, another avenue of influence would be explored.

The memo says the tactics would be to spread rumours and misinformation about the content of what already had been leaked and make up new content.

The Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya, who met Donald Trump Jr and other campaign figures. Photograph: Yury Martyanov/AFP/Getty Images

The Russian official alleged by Steeles sources to be in charge of the operation, Sergei Ivanov  then Putins chief of staff  is quoted as saying: The audience to be targeted by such operations was the educated youth in America as the PA [Russian Presidential Administration] assessed that there was still a chance they could be persuaded to vote for Republican candidate Donald Trump as a protest against the Washington establishment (in the form of Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton).



The Steele dossier said one of the aims of the Russian influence campaign was to peel off voters who had supported Bernie Sanders in the Democratic primaries and nudge them towards Trump.

Evidence has since emerged that Russians and eastern Europeans posing as Americans targeted Sanders supporters with divisive and anti-Clinton messages in the summer of 2016, after the primaries were over.

Unsubstantiated claims

There are other details in the Steele dossier that have echoed in subsequent news reports, but there are also several claims and accounts for which no supporting evidence has emerged.

The startling claim that Trump was filmed with prostitutes while staying at a Moscow hotel in November 2013, when he was staging the Miss Universe contest there, has not been substantiated in any way.

Nor has the allegation that Trumps lawyer and vice-president of the Trump Organisation, Michael Cohen, travelled to Prague in August 2013 to conspire with a senior Russian official. In a letter to the House intelligence committee, Cohen said he never went to Prague and took issue with a string of other claims in the dossier.

It has however emerged that Cohen was involved in exploring a real estate deal in Moscow for the Trump Organisation while the campaign was in full swing. He has been summoned to appear in open hearing before the Senate intelligence committee later this month.

The Steele dossier, its author and the firm who hired him, Fusion GPS, have become favoured targets for Trumps loyalists on Capitol Hill. They point to the fact that the genesis of the documents was a paid commission to find damaging facts about Trump.

But the dossier has not faded from view. Instead, it appears to be growing in significance as the investigations have gathered pace.
US President Donald Trump (left), Kim Jong-un (right): Getty/AFP

Kim Jong-un, who Donald Trump recently referred to as a madman has been rebranded a rational actor by senior CIA officials.

The North Korean dictator is infamous for executing his own officers, threatening the US with nuclear war and increasing hostile long-range missile tests  the latest of which prompted harsh new international sanctions by the UN.

According to experts, his actions are a far cry from those of an incoherent leader; instead they amount to a cogent strategy which he has employed in order to preserve his regime.

Theres a clarity of purpose in what Kim Jong-un has done, said Yong Suk Lee, deputy assistant director of the CIAs Korea Mission Centre, at an agency conference in George Washington University on Wednesday.

Waking up one morning and deciding he wants to nuke Los Angeles is not something Kim Jong-un is likely to do, he continued, in a statement recorded by CNN.

He wants to rule for a long time and die peacefully in his own bed."

In 2013, Mr Kim executed his uncle, Jang Song Thaek who state media called a "traitor for all ages". A report from the South Korean Institute for National Security Strategy think tank claims that as many as 340 people were ordered to be executed - many of whom were senior government officers. However, purging the country of political dissenters seems to be a calculated move motivated by self-interest, rather than emotional impulse.

"The last person who wants conflict on the peninsula is Kim Jong-un. We have a tendency in this country to underestimate the conservatism that runs in these authoritarian regimes, Mr Lee concluded.

These sentiments are at odds with the combative language used by Donald Trump to describe the rogue state and its leader.

The US president previously called Mr Kim a little rocket man and a madman on Twitter, and threatened to totally destroy North Korea if the US is forced to defend itself or its allies.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has been resolutely pursuing diplomatic relations through direct talks with Pyongyang, and Mr Trumps aggressive, directed statements mean the messages issuing from the US are confusingly mixed.

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North Korea is clearly testing the patience of the US and international community, Michael Collins, a deputy assistant director at the CIA, told CNN.

With each increasing escalation, theyre raising the threshold for the United States and others to accept or press against that.
Washington (AFP) - US President Donald Trump said Saturday that diplomatic efforts with North Korea have consistently failed, adding that "only one thing will work."

Trump has engaged in an escalating war of words with North Korean strongman Kim Jong-Un, trading insults amid rising tensions between the two nuclear-armed rivals.

"Presidents and their administrations have been talking to North Korea for 25 years, agreements made and massive amounts of money paid," Trump tweeted.

It "hasn't worked, agreements violated before the ink was dry, makings fools of U.S. negotiators. Sorry, but only one thing will work!"

The US has not ruled out the use of force to compel Pyongyang to halt missile and nuclear tests, and Trump has threatened to "totally destroy" the country.

The mercurial American president also told journalists at a recent gathering with military leaders to discuss Iran, North Korea, and the Islamic State group that this "could be the calm before the storm," declining to clarify his remarks.

Last week, as Secretary of State Rex Tillerson flew home from meeting with top Chinese officials, Trump tweeted that his envoy was "wasting his time" in trying to probe North Korea's willingness to talk.

The message came after Tillerson had revealed there were backchannels between US and North Korean officials.
President Donald Trump will dispatch his top diplomatic and military advisors to Pakistan in the coming weeks, turning up the heat on a nuclear-armed ally accused of harboring terror groups.

Weeks after Trump angrily accused Islamabad of providing safe haven to "agents of chaos," Secretary of State Rex Tillerson plans to depart for Pakistan late this month.

He will be followed by Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, according to US and Pakistani sources.

The one-two punch is designed to drill home Trump's message that Pakistani state support for jihadist groups has to end, according to officials briefed on the visits.

Washington has long been frustrated by Pakistan's willingness to offer cross-border safe havens to Taliban factions and armed jihadist groups fighting US troops and their Afghan allies.

The relationship reached the breaking point in 2011, when president Barack Obama sent commandos into Pakistan in 2011 to kill Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, who was living in a military garrison town.

With little change since then, Trump came to office indicating that Washington's frustration had reached the point where something had to give.

"We have been paying Pakistan billions and billions of dollars at the same time they are housing the very terrorists that we are fighting," he said in an August address.

But in the six weeks since Trump signaled that tougher tone, there have been precious few signs that the calculus in South Asia has changed.

Mattis told Congress this week that he will try "one more time" to "see if we can make this work."

- 'Not acceptable' -

"To this point, we have not seen any impact on military-to-military relations," said one Pentagon official, suggesting any change would not happen after Mattis's visit.

Visiting Washington, Pakistan's foreign minister Khawaja Asif appeared unwavering.

He lashed out at "hollow allegations" about Pakistan harboring terrorists as "not acceptable."

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"That is not the way you talk to 70-year-old friends," Asif said bitterly.

"Instead of accusations and threats we should cooperate with each other for the peace in the region," he added in confirming Tillerson's visit.

While professing anger in public, Pakistani officials in private complain about receiving no concrete requests to target the Haqqani network or other groups.

US officials have been reticent to share some intelligence for fear of tipping off targets with links inside Pakistan's government.

Earlier this month, a US drone killed three suspected militants in an attack on a compound in Pakistan's tribal region.

Pakistani officials also complain of receiving mixed messages from the Trump administration, which is still struggling to find its feet under a mercurial commander-in-chief.

A September meeting in New York between Vice President Mike Pence and Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was said to be cordial, despite Trump's fire and brimstone rhetoric.

"It was a very good meeting with the vice president," said Asif.

After that, Pakistan officials said, they were surprised at a tougher tone outlined in public by Mattis and in private by Trump's National Security Advisor HR McMaster.

- 'Call Pakistan's bluff' -

Some optimists point to a visit by Pakistan's army chief to Kabul as evidence that Islamabad is moderating, after years of support propping up the Taliban.

But many, having watched this debate for decades, are less convinced.

The Taliban and groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba, they argue, remain a potent tool in the hands of Pakistani intelligence.

"Of course they don't get the message" said Christine Fair, a South Asia expert at Georgetown University.

"Pakistan is not going to do anything different than its already doing unless the administration can figure out a way to do what no administration has previously done."

"That is basically to call Pakistan's bluff and impose some meaningful punishment."

Trump has warned that military aid -- which was halved between 2012 and 2016 -- could be cut further, a move that Fair dismisses as insufficient.

"It's basically saying that we're going to cut back the money the US taxpayer is giving to Pakistan," she said.

"That's not punishment. Pakistan is not entitled to our money. What they are really talking about is giving Pakistan less of an allowance."

Policymakers have considered revoking Pakistan's non-NATO ally status, with deep symbolic but limited practical impact.

Punitive economic sanctions -- that could force Pakistan closer to China, Russia or Turkey -- seem a long way off.

And Pakistan remains vital for the United States as a route to resupply its forces in Afghanistan and for supplying the Afghan army.
By Sarah N. Lynch and Caroline Humer WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - President Donald Trump's administration on Friday undermined requirements under the Obamacare law that employers provide insurance to cover women's birth control, keeping a campaign pledge that pleased his conservative Christian supporters. New rules from the Department of Health and Human Services will let businesses or non-profit organizations lodge religious or moral objections to obtain an exemption from the law's mandate that employers provide contraceptives coverage in health insurance with no co-payment. Conservative Christian activists and congressional Republicans praised the move, while reproductive rights advocates and Democrats criticized it. It was unclear how many employers would actually drop birth control coverage on religious grounds, and there were significant doubts that many big ones would. Within hours, the American Civil Liberties Union sued the administration in federal court in San Francisco to try to halt the rule, claiming among other things that it violated the U.S. Constitution's requirement for separation of church and state. The states of Massachusetts and California also sued, and Democratic state attorneys general in another 16 states threatened legal action. "This is a landmark day for religious liberty. Under the Obama administration, this constitutional right was seriously eroded," Republican House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan said. "The Trump administration just took direct aim at birth control coverage for 62 million women," Planned Parenthood Federation of America President Cecile Richards said. "With this rule in place, any employer could decide that their employees no longer have health insurance coverage for birth control," Richards added. Trump, who criticized the birth control mandate in last year's election campaign, won strong support from conservative Christian voters. The Republican president signed an executive order in May asking for rules that would allow faith-based groups to deny insurance coverage for services they oppose on religious grounds. The contraception mandate was implemented as part of the 2010 Affordable Care Act, Democratic former President Barack Obama's signature legislative achievement. Trump and Republicans in Congress campaigned against Obamacare, as the law is known, but could not get enough votes to repeal it as they had promised. In its reasoning for the move, the administration said among other things that mandating birth control coverage could foster "risky sexual behavior" among teens and young adults. It overturned the Obama administration's view that the birth control requirement was necessary to meet the government's "compelling interest" to protect women's health. "This administration's contempt for women reaches a new low with this appalling decision," top House Democrat Nancy Pelosi said. The administration broadened narrow existing religious exemptions to include an exception "on the basis of moral conviction" for non-profit and for-profit companies. Federal rules implemented under Obamacare required employers to provide health insurance that covers birth control, but religious houses of worship were exempted. Some private businesses sued regarding their rights to circumvent such coverage, and the Supreme Court ruled in 2014 that they could object on religious grounds. 'ALIENATING POTENTIAL SHAREHOLDERS' Case Western Reserve University School of Law professor Jonathan Adler said it was unlikely publicly traded companies would seek exemptions. "Why would a publicly traded company risk alienating potential shareholders by taking such a step?" Adler said. Ellen Kelsay, chief strategy officer at the National Business Group on Health, a lobbying group for large companies, said, "Most large employers have provided coverage for birth control prior to any mandates and we expect most will continue to do so irrespective of any exemptions that may become available." According to one estimate, only 3 percent of nonprofit groups offering health benefits have objected to contraceptives coverage. "HHS has issued a balanced rule that respects all sides - it keeps the contraceptive mandate in place for most employers and now provides a religious exemption," said Mark Rienzi, one of the lawyers for the Little Sisters of the Poor. The order of Roman Catholic nuns, which runs care homes for the elderly, had challenged the mandate in court. The Little Sisters and other Christian nonprofit employers objected to a 2013 compromise offered by the Obama administration that allowed entities opposed to providing contraception insurance coverage to comply with the law without actually paying for the required coverage. The Justice Department released two memos that will serve as the government's legal basis for justifying the rule and laying out a framework for how apply religious liberty issues in legal opinions, federal rules and grant making. In another decision popular with Trump's evangelical supporters, the Justice Department on Wednesday reversed federal policy and declared that federal law banning sex discrimination in the workplace does not protect transgender employees. Trump also has removed protections for transgender students and moved to ban transgender people from the military. Trump's support among evangelical voters, a major force in his 2016 election victory, remains strong, but has been slipping in line with his overall approval ratings, according to recent Reuters/Ipsos poll results. (Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch in Washington and Caroline Humer in New York; Additional reporting by Lawrence Hurley, Justin Mitchell and Lisa Lambert in Washington, Julie Steenhuysen in Chicago and Dan Levine in San Francisco; Writing by Will Dunham; Editing by David Gregorio)
Texas wont be handing over voters personal information to President Donald Trumps election fraud commission  for now.

In the latest blow to the commission responsible to find instances of voter fraud, a Texas judge on Tuesday granted a temporary restraining order prohibiting the state from providing data to Trumps Commission on Election Integrity until after an October 16 hearing.

Handing over voter information may imminently violate state law because there are not appropriate precautions to safeguard the privacy and security of that information, Judge Tim Sulak of Texas 353rd Civil District Court said.

The commission requested voter data including partial Social Security numbers and felony conviction history from every state but refrained from gathering it in July as the courts considered privacy-related lawsuits. Shortly after, a federal judge ruled in favor of the commission and it requested the information anew. Sulaks decision mounts another roadblock for the commission.

If the wrong people get a hold of private information such as your social security number, date of birth, address, or voting history, various aspects of our lives and even our freedoms are at risk, said Gary Bledsoe, president of the NAACP Texas State Conference which is one of the plaintiffs, in a statement.

The case is one of several that the NAACP is litigating in an effort to limit the types of information provided to the commission. Other plaintiffs in the Texas case include the League of Women Voters of Texas.

Multiple lawsuits have been filed against the commission and at least 44 states have said they will not provide some or any information requested by Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, the panels vice president and creator of a controversial Interstate Voter Registration Crosscheck Program later shown to lead to disproportionate disenfranchisement of black voters.

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Trump formed the commission largely to come up with evidence that millions of noncitizens voted in the 2016 election. Few instances of voter fraud have been proven.

Critics of the commission view the Texas judges ruling as a win for voter privacy.

Texans trust election officials with some of their most detailed personal information, Myrna Perez, deputy director of the Democracy Program at NYU School of Laws Brennan Center for Justice, said in a statement. Its not only the responsibility of the state to honor that by protecting voter privacy and keeping the information secure, but its also legally required under state law.

Texas has the highest number of registered voters in the U.S., after California.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 11:16:49|Editor: Song Lifang

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LOS ANGELES, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- California Attorney General Xavier Becerra filed a lawsuit Friday afternoon against the federal government's Interim Final Rules issued in the morning allowing employers to interfere with birth control insurance for employees.

In the 19-page-indictment filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, Becerra listed the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Department of Labor, U.S. Department of Treasure and their Secretaries as co-defendants, claiming the directives issued through them are unconstitutional.

The U.S. government's new policy allows employers to stop providing contraception coverage for their employees by citing religious or moral objections, but the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, which took effect in 2014, ensured that a woman had coverage for birth control even if her religious employer objected to contraception.

The lawsuit said the new rules of the Trump administration violates the First Amendment by allowing employers to use religious beliefs as a right to discriminate against employees to deny them a "federally entitled benefit" under Obamacare.

Meanwhile, it violates the Fifth Amendment by specifically targeting women and denying their rights to equal protection under the law, the indictment said.

According to the document, 62 million women across the country have benefited from these reproductive health services and saved them 1.4 billion U.S. dollars.

"Donald Trump wants businesses and corporations to control family planning decisions rather than a woman in consultation with her doctor. These anti-women's health regulations prove once again that the Trump Administration is willing to trample on people's rights," a statement issued by California Attorney General's office said.

Sacramento Bee newspaper reported that most Californians would not be affected by the new rules as health plans regulated by the state are required by state law to cover contraceptive coverage, but 6 to 7 million employees who work for privately insured companies could potentially lose birth control coverage because their plans are regulated by the federal government.

It is not the first time that California filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration's decision. On Sept. 20, the state filed a lawsuit against Washington's plan to build a wall along the border between the United States and Mexico.
Washington (AFP) - President Donald Trump on Friday fueled speculation about his cryptic warning that this is the "calm before the storm," further refusing to explain the comment.

After huddling with military leaders to discuss Iran, North Korea and the Islamic State group on Thursday evening, Trump used a photo with military brass and their partners to make an ominous pronouncement.

On Friday, he kept up the suspense, telling journalists wondering what he was talking about: "You'll find out."

Trump's original remarks -- against a surreal backdrop of soft classical music -- sent diplomats across Washington rushing to find out if military action was afoot.

"You guys know what this represents?" Trump asked reporters in the State Dining Room.

Reporters asked what he meant and Trump said: "It could be, the calm, the calm before the storm."

The reporters pressed again, asking whether he was referring to Iran or the Islamic State group.

Trump replied: "We have the world's great military people in this room, I will tell you that. And uh, we're gonna have a great evening, thank you all for coming."

Once again, Trump was asked what he meant. He said: "You'll find out."

Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders framed the comments as part of Trump's philosophy of not talking about specifics.

The administration is "never going to say in advance what the president is going to do."

Asked if Trump's comments should be taken seriously, she replied: "I think you can take the president protecting the American people seriously, he's been very clear it's the number one priority and if he feels action is necessary, he'll take it."

She rejected allegations from Republican Senator Bob Corker that generals around Trump were saving America from chaos.

"I think that the president is the one that's keeping the world from chaos," she claimed.
By Ece Toksabay and Suleiman Al-Khalidi ANKARA/BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian rebel fighters are launching a major military operation backed by Turkish forces into a northwestern area of Syria largely controlled by jihadists, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday. Rebels said they were preparing to start the operation soon in Idlib province and surrounding areas, which represent Syria's most populous rebel-held area, and residents reported Turkish authorities removing sections of a border wall. The incursion is being carried out after Iran and Russia, which back President Bashar al-Assad, and Turkey, which supports the rebels, agreed last month to reduce fighting between insurgents and the government in the northwest. It seems aimed at curbing the Tahrir al-Sham alliance, Syria's strongest jihadist group apart from Islamic State, and at securing Turkey's frontier. "There's a serious operation in Syria's Idlib today and it will continue," Erdogan said in a speech to his AK Party, adding that Turkey would not allow a "terror corridor" on its border with Syria. "For now the Free Syrian Army is carrying out the operation there," Erdogan said. "Russia is supporting the operation from the air, and our armed forces from inside Turkey's borders," he added. Late on Saturday, Turkey deployed tanks and military vehicles on the its Syrian border, building up military presence, a Reuters witness said. Mustafa Sejari, a senior official in the Liwa al-Mutasem Syrian insurgent group taking part in the operation, said Russia would not be backing the rebels in the campaign. "As for the Russians, they will not have a role in the areas of our control at all. The role of the Russians is limited to areas under regime control," he said. Ankara, Moscow and Tehran announced a deal last month to establish and patrol a "de-escalation" zone in the Idlib region, where Erdogan has said Turkey will deploy troops. Turkey's foreign minister said late on Saturday that Turkey aimed to prevent clashes in Idlib. "Russian and Iranian observers will be in some regions here, and we will have our observers inside Idlib. Of course they will be in safe places so there will be no risks," Mevlut Cavusoglu told reporters. JIHADIST ALLIANCE Tahrir al-Sham is spearheaded by the former Nusra Front, which was al Qaeda's Syrian branch until last year, when it changed its name and broke formal allegiance to the global movement founded by Osama bin Laden. It has been a formidable military force since early in the war, when it transitioned from bomb attacks in cities to guerrilla conflict with the Syrian army, fighting alongside many other factions. Since early this year, it has battled other rebel groups in Idlib and other parts of Syria, while the government has mostly focused on the war against Islamic State in the east. In July Tahrir al-Sham seized land around the Bab al-Hawa border crossing between Syria and Turkey, bringing much of the frontier area inside Syrian under its control. Tahrir al-Sham is well entrenched in the border area in Idlib and maintains a big military presence in nearby towns, a local rebel and a resident of a town near Bab al-Hawa said. In a statement posted on social media, the jihadist alliance accused the Turkey-backed factions of working with Russia and described them as traitors, but did not mention Turkey. It said in the statement that Idlib would "not be a picnic" for them and added "the lions of jihad and martyrdom are waiting to pounce". Pentagon said the United States was not currently participating in these operations, but backed Turkey's efforts to fight terrorism, reminding that the U.S. stance on Tahrir al-Sham, remains unchanged. "We support our NATO ally Turkey's efforts to secure its borders, fight terrorism, and prevent safe havens for terrorist organizations," Eric Pahon, a Pentagon spokesman, said. Residents near the Bab al-Hawa border crossing with Turkey in Syria sent Reuters photographs of what they said was a section of the frontier wall being removed by the Turkish authorities. Tahrir al-Sham was also involved in fighting on the southern edge of the rebels' northwestern stronghold this week, battling the army north of Hama. Air raids on insurgent-held towns in that area in recent days were intense, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor, reported. FULL READINESS Turkey has been one of the biggest supporters of rebels fighting Assad during the six-and-a-half year war, but its focus has evolved from ousting him to securing its border. A year ago it backed Syrian rebels east of Idlib in an incursion known as Euphrates Shield to drive Islamic State and Kurdish groups from its border, sending troops and armor into Syria. Syrian rebel officials from factions which have fought alongside Turkey in Euphrates Shield said they were preparing to enter the area with the backing of Turkish forces. "The Free Syrian Army, with support from Turkish troops, is in full readiness to enter the area but until this moment there is no movement," said Sejari, the Liwa al-Mutasem official. Another FSA rebel told Reuters he believed an incursion into northwest Syria was imminent. "We expect that the large-scale operation that has been prepared will be launched perhaps within the next 24 hours," the rebel said. The Hamza Brigade, also part of Euphrates Shield, posted a video online of what it said was a convoy of its forces heading for Idlib. Idlib's population has ballooned to at least two million as thousands of civilians and combatants have left areas in other parts of the country seized by the Syrian army with the help of Russian jets and Iran-backed militias. The resident of the town near Bab al-Hawa border crossing said people were worried that fighting would take a big civilian toll because of the increased population there. "One bullet kills three," the resident said. Asked how far Turkey might go in deploying troops inside Syria, Erdogan declined to give details. "When you enter a boxing match, you dont count how many punches you throw," he said. (Additional reporting by Suleiman al-Khalidi in Amman, Bulent Usta in Ogulpinar, and Idrees Ali in Washington; Writing by Angus McDowall and Dominic Evans; Editing by Andrew Bolton and Diane Craft)
Two Florida moms allegedly overdosed on heroin with their infant children in the backseat on Thursday, police said.

Kristen Leigh O'Connor, 28, and 29-year-old June Schweinhart were found overdosed in their vehicle after one called 911 for help, according to the Boynton Beach Police Department.

Read: Aunt of Boy Who Died of Suspected Heroin Overdose Fights for Answers

Cops said that OConnor told them that she picked up Schweinhart in an SUV and the pair bought $60 worth of heroin from her old drug dealer. Both womens babies were in the car.

"For whatever reason, they decided yesterday to buy heroin and then snorted it while inside the car with their children," the Boynton Beach Police Department wrote on Facebook about the incident.

When one of the women began convulsing, the other called police but then began to overdose herself and a bystander spoke with police, authorities said.

O'Connor and Schweinhart were charged with child neglect and taken to jail after being released from the hospital, reports said.

The babies, who were one and two months old, were turned over to relatives after being snuggled by officers for hours, police said.

Read: Boy, 13, Dies of Suspected Heroin Overdose After Allegedly Getting Into Dad's Drugs: Reports

The women later told cops that they met in a drug treatment program and bonded during their pregnancies.

"We hope this serves as a wake-up call for these moms, and that they seek further treatment for their addiction, police wrote.

Watch: 5-Year-Old Boy Hailed a 'Hero' for Saving Parents After Drug Overdose: Cops

Related Articles:
(Reuters) - Two soldiers died and six other people were injured on Friday in an accident involving a military vehicle and troop formation at Fort Jackson, a U.S. Army training center in South Carolina, Fort Jackson said.

Two of those wounded were critically injured, Fort Jackson said in a statement. Those injured were taken to an off-site hospital, it said. Names were not released pending the notification of relatives.

Fort Jackson called the incident "tragic" and said the cause will be investigated. A Fort Jackson representative did not immediately respond to a request for more information about the incident.

"Our hearts and prayers go out to the families of the soldiers we lost today and to the families of the injured, they represent the best of our Nation and we will endeavor to support all those affected through this difficult time," U.S. Army Training Center and Fort Jackson Commander Major General Pete Johnson said in the statement.

(Reporting by Suzannah Gonzales; editing by Diane Craft)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection says it is ready to block U.S. imports of seafood  as well as any other goods  produced by North Korean laborers who work in China.

An Associated Press investigation tracked salmon, squid and cod processed by North Koreans working at Chinese factories and shipped to American stores, including Walmart and ALDI. The North Korean workers found in Chinese factories arent allowed to leave, and receive only a fraction of their pay  most goes straight to the North Korean state. This means that American consumers buying seafood labeled Caught in the USA, Processed in China may inadvertently be subsidizing the government of Kim Jong Un as it builds nuclear weapons, and also supporting forced labor.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a statement Thursday it is reviewing the allegations and if warranted, would pursue all enforcement actions and prohibit goods from importation as appropriate. The companies that responded also vowed to investigate ties with suppliers.

GOP Congressman Chris Smith from New Jersey, who has repeatedly called for tougher enforcement, said the Labor Department has already identified trafficking in 12 sectors of goods exported by China.

CBP should be stopping every shipment from those sectors  and now trafficking-tainted salmon too, he said.

A White House National Security Council spokesman said the North Korean governments scheme to outsource its labor underscores why the United States has pushed for restrictions on North Korean foreign workers. The spokesman said all countries should, at a minimum, ban companies from bringing in North Korean crews, as pledged in recent United Nations sanctions.

China is among the countries that have promised to comply, already banning imports of North Korean seafood, and saying no more North Korean workers will be allowed starting next year.

But all nations must go further and reject what is clearly a despicable practice that only serves the regimes nuclear ambitions, said the NSC spokesman, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasnt authorized to comment.

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Walmart said its supplier has addressed the problem, although it did not specify how. Walmart and ALDI said they are committed to human rights and fair labor practices, and expect the same from their business partners.

At a time when North Korea faces sanctions on many exports, the government is sending tens of thousands of workers worldwide, bringing in revenue estimated at anywhere from $200 million to $500 million a year. That could account for a sizable portion of North Koreas nuclear weapons and missile programs, which South Korea says have cost more than $1 billion.

Read More: What Would a Deal with North Korea Look Like?

North Koreans overseas work in construction in the Gulf states, shipbuilding in Poland, logging in Russia. In Uruguay, authorities told AP, about 90 North Koreans crewed fishing boats last year.

I am not surprised at all, said Anthony Talbott, who directs the University of Daytons Human Rights Center. North Korea has probably the single highest level of state-sanctioned slavery in the world, its a major source of income for them.

Among those North Korean laborers in China, roughly 3,000 are believed to work in the northeast industrial hub of Hunchun, just a few miles from the borders of both North Korea and Russia. AP documented North Koreans in several Hunchun seafood processing plants, and tracked their supply chains to importers, including Sea-Trek Enterprises in Rhode Island, where managers said they are being inundated with phone calls from customers and suppliers since the AP story.

Sea-Treks owners said that they hadnt visited China and were unaware of the makeup of the workers, but would immediately cease dealings with the plant until the situation is resolved.

Sea-Trek will not purchase product from any company using forced labor, said vice president Mitch Sarnoff.

Mark Liszt, owner of Lawrence Wholesale, a national food distributor in Southern California, said it would investigate its suppliers as well.

Were middlemen, said Liszt. We do make a practice of trying to go and visit the plants that we buy from in person, but its not a perfect world that we can see into every single one.

Some U.S. brands and companies had indirect ties to the North Korean laborers in Hunchun, including Chicken of the Sea, owned by Thai Union. Trade records show shipments came from a sister company of the Hunchun factory in another part of China, where Thai Union spokeswoman Whitney Small says labor standards are being met and the employees are all Chinese. Small said the sister company should not be penalized.

AP observed North Korean workers in Chinese factories building hardwood flooring, sewing garments and manufacturing electronics. Fordham University economics professor Giacomo Santangelo said he doubts its just fish processed by North Korean workers that reaches the U.S. markets.

Now we need to ask, how many other products imported from China are made with North Korean labor? he said.

Top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer of New York said U.S. officials must keep products made by North Koreans out of the United States.

The administration needs to ramp up the pressure on China to crack down on trade with North Korea across the board, he said.

Ohios Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown, who helped pass North Korea, Iran and Russia sanctions this summer, said corporations also have a responsibility to make sure they are abiding by U.N. sanctions and U.S. laws.

However, Bucknell University political science professor Zhiqun Zhu said a sanction-based approach that cracks down on imports isnt going to solve the problem.

It has so many loopholes, he said. All sticks and no carrots will not make the North Korea problem disappear.
The United States Friday afternoon lifted economic sanctions on Sudan, completing a process started by then-President Barack Obama in January. Though Sudan remains on the United States list of state sponsors of terror, the termination of sanctions will end a trade embargo, and unfreeze Sudanese assets in the United States.

Citing improved bilateral cooperation, particularly on counter-terrorism, improvements in humanitarian access, and the ending of internal hostilities, the Obama administration began allowing U.S. firms to trade in Sudan as a reward for improved behavior. However, Sudan had to show continued improvement during a six-month review period to win full repeal of the sanctions. That period was meant to end this past summer, but was pushed back by the Trump administration, likely owing to an absence of key appointees.

Sudans actions during the last nine months show that it is serious about cooperating with the United States and has taken significant steps to stop conflict and improve humanitarian access within Sudan, and to promote regional stability, said State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert in a statement on Friday.

Nauert specified that further normalization of ties between the United States and Sudan was contingent upon continued progress in key areas: further expanding humanitarian access, improving Sudans human rights and religious freedom practices, and ensuring that Khartoum is committed to the full implementation of U.N. Security Council resolutions on North Korea. Regarding the latter, Sudan has assured Washington it would no longer engage in arms deals with North Korea.

While the process has been underway all year, Sudans green light comes at a perplexing time: The United States just included Chad  one of Americas closest counter-terrorism partners in Africa  in its updated travel ban. The move left many analysts confused and worried that future cooperation between the two nations would be damaged.

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Rights groups saw the delay in the final lifting of sanctions as a last opportunity to press Washington to reconsider and perhaps even impose targeted smart sanctions aimed at human rights abusers. Rights advocates and some lawmakers bemoaned the Trump administrations final decision to lift all the sanctions, and cautioned the United States not to further reduce its own leverage when it came to pressing Khartoum on human rights issues.

John Prendergast, the founding director of the Enough Project, a human rights group focused on African conflict zones, called for targeted, financial sanctions that would spare ordinary Sudanese yet maintain pressure on Khartoum in order to achieve human rights improvements.

Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.), the co-chair of the bipartisan Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, warned in a statement Friday that the Trump administrations decision could legitimize human rights abuses committed by the Sudanese government and its security forces.

President Trump and President Bashir should understand that much more progress is required and any backsliding will likely result in Congress reinstating sanctions, he said.

Photo credit: Isam Al-Haj/AFP/Getty Images

Correction, Oct. 10, 2017: Rep. Jim McGovern is the co-chair of Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission. A previous version of this article mistakenly referred to the commission as the Tom Lantos Human Rights Foundation.
Washington (AFP) - US investigators have met with a former British spy who compiled a salacious dossier on President Donald Trump's alleged campaign ties to Russia, CNN reported on Thursday.

The investigators for independent special counsel Robert Mueller met with Christopher Steele this past summer, the news network reported, citing two people familiar with the matter.

Former FBI director Mueller leads a sweeping probe into possible Trump campaign collusion with Russian interference in the 2016 election.

"CNN has learned that the FBI and the US intelligence community last year took the Steele dossier more seriously than the agencies have publicly acknowledged," the network reported on its website.

The Wall Street Journal earlier identified former MI6 officer Steele as the author of the 35-page political research dossier which Trump branded as "fake news."

The dossier includes unsubstantiated claims that Russians possess videos involving prostitutes, filmed during a 2013 visit by Trump to a luxury Moscow hotel for the Miss Universe contest, supposedly as a potential means for blackmail.

It also alleges that Trump advisors including his lawyer Michael Cohen maintained regular contact with Russian officials and others linked to Russian intelligence during the election and were exchanging information for "at least" eight years.

US intelligence chiefs who briefed Trump on alleged Russian interference in January reportedly included a two-page summary of the most credible claims from the collection of memos.

They were compiled before and after the November 8 election which Trump won.

The president has described Russian interference in the election as a "total fabrication."

Senate Intelligence Committee chairman Richard Burr, leading a separate investigation, said on Wednesday that Moscow had successfully sown "chaos at every level" in the 2016 election.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 12:11:56|Editor: ZD

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BUENOS AIRES, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- Argentine President Mauricio Macri announced on Friday the start of work on the Cauchari solar park, planned to be Latin America's largest solar park with a production capacity of 300 megawatts (MW).

Macri made the announcement from Buenos Aires through a videoconference with the governor of Jujuy Province, Gerardo Morelos, and the head of the cabinet of ministers, Marcos Pena, who were at the plant's location in Cauchari.

"We are putting in place the construction of a solar park, which will give energy to the Argentineans. Solar energy does not pollute," said the president.

The project is made up of three parks -- Cauchari Solar I, II and III -- that generate 100 MW of power each, and will see the installation of a total of 1.2 million solar panels. It attracted an investment of 511 million U.S. dollars and will create 600 direct jobs. It is being actively supported by China, with the Export-Import Bank of China financing part of the project loans.

Macri added that Jujuy "will be a global power for solar energy allowing all Argentineans to grow."

"We made the decision to turn Jujuy into a green province, and in the next 10 years, to contribute 10 percent of the energy matrix Argentina will need," Governor Morales emphasized during the ceremony.
Vets - like the ones seen here examining a sick dog - are frequently the victims of threats and abuse - Stock4B Creative

They might have just saved a beloved pooch or guinea pig, but instead of gratitude hundreds of vets around the country frequently face intimidation and threats of violence from their clients.

Pet owners are increasingly likely to pressure their vet to waive their fees, becoming angry and aggressive over the cost of care, a report has found.

The survey by the British Veterinary Association (BVA) found that nearly nine out of 10 vets in the UK have experienced some form of intimidation.

It found that 85 per cent of vets said they or a member of their team had felt threatened by a clients language or behaviour.

This has included swearing, shouting, threats to damage property or defame the practice on social media, and even death threats.

Some clients become aggressive when asked to bring in their pet for follow up checks or were angry at the cost of the treatment suggested, accusing the practice of being money grabbing.

While around half of vets have felt personally intimidated, support staff such as receptionists often bear the brunt of pet owners' threatening behaviour.

Robin Hargreaves, a vet of 30 years experience in north west England, said: Im afraid its almost a daily occurrence. Its usually over money. People will tell you that if we really loved animals we should treat theirs for free - what they forget is that they arent the only ones asking that.

It can turn physical. Im a big bloke, but Ive had threats of violence, mainly from angry young men.

Mr Hargreaves, 55, added: Weve had people threatening to smash all our windows, and that can be very frightening to the young people who work for me. Its often at night, with the out of hours service. My staff have been left very upset by the abuse, but they dont feel they can just abandon the patient, who is the animal, not the owner. Im afraid its pushing people out of the profession.

The survey of more than 1,600 practising members of the BVA, found that vets who specialise in household pets, such as cats and dogs, rather than farm animals, are more likely to experience threatening behavior.

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Around 89 per vent of vets working with companion animals reported some form of intimidating behaviour from their clients.

Women and younger vets were also significantly more likely to have felt threatened, the survey showed.

The frequency of the problem has shocked senior figure in the profession.

Around six in ten vets said that they or a member of their practice team experienced intimidating language or behaviour at least every couple of months, while almost a third at least monthly.

One in eight vets (13%) said they suffered intimidating language or behaviour on a weekly basis.

Sam Morgan, President of the British Veterinary Nursing Association, condemned the behaviour of pet owners who felt justified in threatening their vet.

She said: "We understand there can be a lot of distress when pets are ill and deciding the best course of action for a loved pet or sick animal can be very difficult. However, this is no excuse to be aggressive or intimidating to a member of the veterinary team.

"Animal welfare is at the heart of our work and we are always working towards getting the very best possible result for the animal's health."

The cost of treatment was one of the most common reasons for threatening behaviour, with 98% of vets admitting feeling under pressure from clients to waive fees or accept late payment.

Fees have risen significantly over recent years, going up around 12 per cent every year.

Vets say the rising costs reflect the growing sophistication and choice of treatments available for animals, in line with new developments in health care for humans.

Where vets would once treat a dog with a tooth problem with a simple extraction they are now also likely to recommend an X-ray to establish if there are problems, driving up the cost.

Treating a bite abscess on a cat can cost 245, while care for a lame dog will typically set its owners back 400. A torn knee ligament in a dog could cost as much as 1,200 to treat.

A course of drugs can also be punishing for owners, particularly for chronic long-term conditions such as arthritis, although Mr Hargreaves pointed out that clients are often angered about the cost of a treatment that has not changed much over the decades, such mending a broken leg.

John Fishwick, president of the BVA said: Anyone who has owned an animal will agree that it is an important responsibility and, with no NHS for animals, owning a pet will cost tens of thousands of pounds over its lifetime.

Just as medical costs for humans have increased as we develop more sophisticated and varied treatments, so have veterinary costs for animal care and treatments. Vets offer value for money with fees covering not only the advice, healthcare and treatment they deliver for animals, but the vet teams time and expertise, the technology and equipment used, and the overheads of running the practice itself.
Don't panic: President Donald Trump's spokeswoman says he's got the planet under control.

"I think the president is the one that's keeping the world from chaos," White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters Friday. "He's got an incredible team around him that's helping him lead that effort, and he's had tremendous accomplishments on the international stage by working with allies and confronting enemies."

Her defense of the president came in response to a question about Republican Senator Bob Corker's assertion that Trump's chief of staff and secretaries of state and defense "help separate our country from chaos."

The criticism from Corker, who just announced he will not run again in 2018, dovetails with an unusual news conference held earlier this week by Secretary of State Rex Tillerson in the wake of reports that he'd referred to Trump as "a moron" over the summer. Tillerson generally rebuffed the reports by gathering reporters for a Trump praise session, although he didn't directly deny having called the commander-in-chief a dope.

Reporters also peppered Sanders with questions about a nebulous comment Trump made about "the calm before the storm" during a Thursday photo-op with military families. The president had refused to clarify what storm he was talking about, except to say, youll find out" and "we have the worlds great military people."

Sanders followed suit when pressed and refused to say whether Trump was foreshadowing military action.

"We're never going to say in advance what the president's going to do, and as he said last night, in addition to those comments, you'll have to wait and see," she said.

How seriously should Americans -- or the nation's adversaries -- take his cryptic line?

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"I think you can take the president protecting the American people always very serious," she said. "If he feels that action is necessary, he'll take it."

Asked about the off-chance that Trump was merely being "mischievous" or even "messing with the press a little bit," Sanders replied that she hadn't said that was the case and that North Korea and Iran continued to be "bad actors" that merit U.S. vigilance.

One reporter at the White House briefing questioned whether leaving an unclarified statement out there might be counterproductive if the president is as bent on not tipping his hand in international affairs as he says.

Sanders came to his defense once more, suggesting he hadn't shown his cards.

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Jennifer Panattoni is a police officer who loves what she does, especially patrolling the streets of Frankfort, Illinois, a small Chicago suburb. For the 14 years shes been on the job, the precinct has felt like home.

Then she got pregnant.

Panattoni, 37, is one of just three female police officers in the 32-person Frankfort department and the only full-time patrol officer who is a woman. Shed hoped to work through her pregnancy. She and her husband, also a police officer in Frankfort, spent a good deal of money on fertility treatments just trying to conceive and didnt want to lose out on any income.

But when she broke the happy news to her police chief in January 2016, Panattoni told HuffPost, he was pretty blunt: If her pregnancy prevented her from conducting her normal duties as a patrol officer, shed have to go out on unpaid leave.

Panattoni says she repeatedly asked if instead she could take on a new role in the department, something in the office, at a desk, similar to the kind of work other police officers do after theyre injured on the job.

But Panattonis police chief didnt offer her any choices. Only police who are injured at work are entitled to accommodations, he told her.

He said right off the bat, if you have restrictions youll have to be on unpaid leave, Panattoni said. I felt like I was betrayed. I thought this was 2016 and these things didnt happen.

What Panattoni was asking for is hardly out of bounds. Under federal law, employers are required to give a pregnant worker the same kind of reasonable accommodation offered to a similarly situated employee, say, an officer who was injured in the line of duty.

The requirement was affirmed in 2015 by the U.S. Supreme Court in a case called Young v. UPS. In that case, a UPS worker, Peggy Young, was denied lighter duty work at the shipping company during her pregnancy. But Youngs male colleagues were given light-duty when they were injured, and even when their drivers licenses were suspended due to drunk driving.

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In a 6-3 decision, the high court ruled in favor of Young, arguing that an employer should try to make a reasonable accommodation for a pregnant woman as it would for any employee who was temporarily unable to do usual work. The court ruled that an employer must have a sufficiently strong reason to refuse to help a pregnant worker to justify the burden of her losing out on income.

Jennifer Panattoni holds Nathan, her baby boy. (Photo: Carol DeAnda/DeAnda Photography)

The state law in Illinois where Panattoni lives goes farther, saying that employers must accommodate pregnant employees regardless of what they would do for other workers. Workers are supposed to talk with their managers and figure out what they can do during pregnancy. Other states have similar laws on the books. And many other police departments have set a standard policy of giving women lighter duty work when they become pregnant.

But in the overwhelmingly male  88 percent of police officers nationwide are men  and relentlessly macho world of law enforcement, its not uncommon for these standard requests to be denied.

Police arent supposed to complain, said Cheryl Dorsey, who worked as a patrol officer in the Los Angeles Police Department for 20 years. Its career suicide to ask for anything special, particularly if youre a women, said Dorsey, who is now an advocate against police brutality.

But in spite of it not being the cultural norm, some women have recently started to fight back against their departments. Although there is no comprehensive data detailing how many pregnancy discrimination suits have been filed by female police, over the past year or so, several other female officers have filed complaints against their departments alleging pregnancy discrimination.

Thats partly because of the Supreme Courts decision in Young, which made it clear that women do have a right to accommodations when theyre pregnant, said Emily Martin, general counsel and vice president for workplace justice at the National Womens Law Center. In the past, women may just have thought oh well, thats just my luck, and allowed themselves to be forced out of work, she said.

People realize they have rights here, they can fight back, Martin added, noting that shes seen an uptick in women coming in with pregnancy discrimination complaints.

In August, Sarah Alicea, a police officer in Cromwell, Connecticut, filed a pregnancy discrimination charge against her department with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission after being forced out on unpaid leave. That same month, an officer in Alabama finally won a five-year battle against her small-town police department, which had refused to accommodate her request for a properly fitting bulletproof vest that would allow her to do her job and also be physically able to breastfeed her baby.

I dont want anyone else to go through this, said Alicea, who is one of just three women in her small 27-person department. Being one of a handful of women never bothered her, she said. But after she became pregnant, she was told that there was no way she could be assigned to light duty.

It was so unfair. I expected them to do the right thing, she said. I didnt want another female to have to go through this.

Many departments may never have had to deal with a pregnant police officer before, says Gillian Thomas, a senior staff attorney with the womens rights project at the ACLU, whos worked on many pregnancy discrimination suits. A lot of them are bungling it, she told HuffPost. Its extremely common.

Thomas is now representing Panattoni, who in September filed suit in federal court against the village of Frankfort, claiming that the police department there violated federal and state sex discrimination laws by forcing her out onto unpaid leave. The move cost Panattoni months of salary and accrued leave time, and she lost out on contributions to her pension, she claims.

Many female office workers who get pregnant typically face inconveniences, including getting fatigued, requiring more breaks or time to visit the doctor. They may also face hostility from a supervisor, whether in subtle ways or in a more overt fashion.

But being a pregnant cop can be a matter of life and death. A pregnant patrol officer needs to be properly outfitted to be safe on the job. That means special gear  bulletproof vests, uniforms and duty belts that actually fit. There may be certain materials theyll need to steer clear of, and obviously, the stress of the work is going to take a toll.

The worst part was when my uniform stopped fitting, said Panattoni. She says she repeatedly asked for a new uniform and vest to accommodate her pregnancy. The Frankfort police department provides gear for its officers and, according to Panattoni, requests are typically filled promptly, but not for her during her pregnancy.

Panattoni was issued two mens shirts that didnt fit and a large pair of pants. She was told to find suspenders to keep them from falling down.

Finally, when she was five months pregnant, she found that she could not bring herself to get out of her patrol car. Her bulletproof vest wouldnt stay closed, and her 25-pound utility belt  holding her gun, handcuffs, baton, radio, Taser and pepper spray  pressed into her growing belly.

I felt like without the proper equipment, I couldnt do my job safely and if I lost my job I couldnt provide for my family, she said. I felt like I couldnt breathe. All I could do was cry.

She went out on leave shortly after, drawing on her disability pension, which paid her 50 percent of regular pay. By the time her son Nathan arrived in August, Panattoni didnt get much time with him, having already taken considerable time off during her pregnancy. Two months after he was born, she went back to work in October 2016.

But things didnt get better. Panattoni had only one uniform that fit, she said. And the department delayed in giving her another one. She said it was a big problem, because after working a 12-hour shift, Panattoni didnt always have time to launder a uniform every day. Getting a new uniform had never been a problem before she was pregnant.

She was also mysteriously asked to track all of her breaks, something none of her male police officer colleagues have to do.

This past August, after she told her boss she was again undergoing fertility treatments, Panattoni was passed over for a promotion to detective. A male officer with less seniority landed the role instead.

Its been very hard, she said. I feel like Im under a microscope. I just want to do my job.

When asked about the allegations in Panattonis complaint, Amy Gaylord, an attorney for Frankfort, sent HuffPost a statement saying the village intends to defend [against] these allegations.

The village says it believes it has complied with federal and state laws, she added.

Panattonis case is still pending. She hasnt given up and so far the reaction from her colleagues has been pretty positive. The day she returned to work after filing her suit this fall, her coworkers greeted her with a standing ovation.

Still, she said she is terrified of losing her job and broke down in tears several times as she spoke with HuffPost. I wish that it didnt have to come to this. I just dont know what else to do.

In the end, Panattoni hopes her lawsuit changes the way the department treats pregnant women, she says. If what happened to me can help someone else, its worth it.

Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
Traditionally, the role of the president has been to calm a country at times of unease, but President Trump is breaking with precedent. At a hastily called photo-op with military leaders Thursday, Trump suggested it was the calm before the storm and declined to elaborate when repeatedly pressed. It comes after Trump has deployed vivid and at times provocative language to describe the flight against ISIS or potential warfare against North Korea, and as he has rejected diplomatic efforts in the case of the latter. Trumps off-the-cuff comments caught White House officials unawares, but they were hardly surprised. Theyve grown used to those sort of spur-of-the-moment comments from the president. In the most charitable reading, they suggest that Trumps foreign policy doctrine is one of unpredictability  depriving allies and foes alike of their confidence in what he might do next. The more alarming perspective views it as a manifestation of Trumps failure to grasp the power of the presidency  how the entire world hangs on every word uttered by a U.S. leader  and the need for deliberation and precision.

The truth is somewhere between those extremes. Trumps public and private comments over the years provide a roadmap for how he values unpredictability in negotiation  and he views everything as a negotiation. But to apply a strategic lens to all of his comments would be far too generous, as the individual pronouncements are often driven by ego, slight, or frustration. Determining where Trump falls on the strategic-bombastic scale is a constant challenge not just for journalists, but also for the American public and the rest of the world. Thursdays comments seem to trend toward the latter end of that span.

With the backing of the NRA and the White House, expect some progress on restricting so-called bump stocks like those used by the Las Vegas shooter in the coming weeks. But it will preclude any other movement on gun control on Capitol Hill. Breitbart exposed. And Muellers probe continues.

Story continues

Here are your must reads:

Must Reads

Trump Says Military Gathering Might Be Calm Before the Storm

When pressed on what he meant, Trump said Youll find out. [Bloomberg]

The Las Vegas Shooter Used Bump Stocks. Now the White House, NRA and GOP Lawmakers Are Open to Restricting Them

An unlikely development [TIME]

Heres How Breitbart And Milo Smuggled Nazi and White Nationalist Ideas Into The Mainstream

A shocking expose [BuzzFeed]

Top House Democrat Says Pelosi Should Step Aside

Democratic leader faces a new challenge [Politico]

Tillerson Summoned to White House Amid Presidential Fury

Moron quote puts Tillerson on the hot seat [NBC]

As ACA Enrollment Nears, Administration Keeps Cutting Federal Support of the Law

Trump administration actively undermines enrollment effort [Washington Post]

Trump to Force Congress to Act on Iran Nuclear Deal

But doesnt want new sanctions [New York Times]

Politics NewsletterSign up to receive the days top political stories View Sample

Sound Off

Maybe its the calm before the storm.  President Trump during a photo-op with military leaders

Whats the storm? a reporter asked. On Iran? On ISIS? On what? We have the worlds great military people, Trump replied. Thank you all for coming. What storm Mr. President? reporters pressed. Youll find out, Trump replied

Bits and Bites

Trump Nominates a Coal Lobbyist to Be No. 2 at E.P.A. [New York Times]

Muellers team met with Russia dossier author [CNN]

California Just Became a Sanctuary State. Heres What That Means [TIME]

Fact Check: Trump strikes false notes on Puerto Rico [Associated Press]

John Kellys personal cellphone was compromised, White House believes [Politico]

Seven Flights for $800,000: Mnuchins Travel on Military Jets [New York Times]

Time Is Running Out for Dreamers to Renew Their DACA Paperwork [TIME]

64 hours in October: How one weekend blew up the rules of American politics [Yahoo]

Anti-Abortion Congressman Resigns After Allegedly Urging Mistress to Get an Abortion [Associated Press]

The NRA Wants to Regulate Bump Stock Gun Accessories. Read the Full Statement [TIME]
Edith Macias snatched a Make America Great Again hat off of Matthew Vitale; they are both students at UC Riverside. Macias may be facing felony theft charges. (Photo: YouTube)

Late last week, a viral video surfaced of two college students facing off over a red Donald Trump Make America Great Again cap. In the video, Edith Macias is seen brandishing the cap of fellow student Matthew Vitale. Macias had snatched the hat off of Vitales head following a conference the two were attending on the University of California, Riverside campus. (Warning: The video contains strong language).

Macias is seen taking the hat to the universitys student life office, demanding something be done about the hat and Vitale. This belongs to me. I bought it and she took it from me, Vitale can be heard saying off-camera.

Look at the kind of s*** hes wearing, Macias responds. This represents genocide of a bunch of people.

The two then proceed to argue over issues including freedom of speech and personal property, among other topics, while the university staff attempt to quell the intense emotions of the moment. After nine minutes of discussion and arguing, the staff finally return Vitales hat to him and the campus police show up to deal with the situation.

Following the initial frenzy over the video on social media  anywhere the video or story is posted typically racks up thousands of comments  Vitale stated that he did not wish to press charges, as he believed it would amount to misdemeanor penalties.

Vitales own video didnt show the theft happening, but a video that Macias herself uploaded following the events did reveal the incident. Vitale soon learned from campus police that the release of that video showing Macias taking the hat off of Vitale could possibly lead to felony charges, and the Republican student then decided to proceed.

As Vitale stated in an interview with Fox News Radio, Honestly, this isnt me trying to get revenge on her. This is me just trying to say, Look, behavior like this is not tolerated in this country. There are individual rights and individual freedoms that we are granted as per the Constitution, that everybodys granted. It doesnt matter what your beliefs are.

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Californias penal code states, Robbery is the felonious taking of personal property in the possession of another, from his person or immediate presence, and against his will, accomplished by means of force or fear. If Macias is found guilty of robbery, she could face two to five years of prison, according to the state law.

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A 31-year-old woman in Japan who put in more than 150 hours of overtime in a month died of congestive heart failure after working too much, her employer announced this week.

Miwa Sado was a journalist for Japans national public broadcasting organization, NHK, when she died in her home in July 2013, the news outlet said in a statement. Labor authorities later determined Sados death was due to overwork, according to the Asahi Shimbun newspaper. She had punched in about 159 hours of overtime in the month before her death, NHK said.

High levels of stress can make the heart work harder than it normally doeswhich, under very rare circumstances, experts say, could potentially lead to death. Heres what to know about death from overwork.

What does stress do to the heart?

Stress affects everyone differently. But two types of emotional stress can impact the heart, according to Dr. Alan Yeung, the medical director at Stanford Cardiovascular Health. Acute stress usually occurs suddenly after a traumatic event, like a car crash or an earthquake, while chronic stress builds up over time. Unhealthy behaviors, like eating poorly or not exercising, are also linked to chronic stress from working long hours, and these can cause an increase in blood pressure or cholesterol, Yeung said. When a person faces high levels of either kind of stress, their heart rate and blood pressure may increase.

High levels of both types of stress can raise the risk for heart attacks and heart failure, mostly among people who already have heart problems like heart disease, Yeung said.

Heart failure occurs when the heart isnt pumping as well as it should to deliver the proper amount of oxygen-rich blood to the bodys cells, according to the American Heart Association. More than 6 million Americans have heart failure (symptoms of which can include shortness of breath, chronic coughing, fatigue, nausea, confusion or lack of appetite) and more than 900,000 new cases are diagnosed each year. Anyone can develop heart failure, but it becomes more common with age, and most people who have it tend to have had another heart condition first. It develops over time, and with treatment and drugs, heart failure can often be managed. But without intervention, it can be fatal.

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How likely is it to die from working too much?

Its possible, but very unlikely. Yeung said that heart failure due to stress would probably only be fatal if a variety of factors came together, including a long-simmering period of stress, a sudden stressful situation and potentially an underlying heart condition. Leading to death, its pretty rare, Yeung said. Most people hopefully can see a doctor and mitigate it.

How can it be prevented?

People who have symptoms of a heart condition should immediately seek medical attention, Yeung says. Theres also a lot you can do to manage stress before it becomes a problem. Several known ways to reduce stress include exercising, eating healthy, not smoking, seeking out quiet time and getting support from friends and family.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 13:42:10|Editor: Liangyu

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CHONGQING, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- The spot trading volume of coffee on the Chongqing Coffee Exchange hit 10 billion yuan (1.5 billion U.S. dollars) as of August, making it the biggest spot trading platform for coffee in China.

According to Peng De, general director of the Chongqing Coffee Exchange, China's coffee consumption has been growing by 20 percent every year and the size of the coffee market is expected to reach 600 billion yuan in 2020.

In June 2016, the coffee trading center was established in the southwestern city of Chongqing.

It aims to become China's biggest platform for e-commerce cross-border trade, credit financing, trade settlement and big data collection in the coffee industry.

Chongqing is close to coffee production centers in Southeast Asia, South Asia and Yunnan Province, the largest coffee producer in China.

The Chongqing-Europe railway has also put the city on the map as an international logistics hub by connecting the Yangtze River economic belt with Europe.

The coffee trading center has signed cooperation agreements with more than 200 domestic and foreign coffee companies.

Chongqing is expected to become the third-biggest coffee trading market after New York and London, said Peng.
The New York Times has called for Harvey Weinstein to release women from nondisclosure agreements so that they can share their stories without having to face punishment for speaking their truth.

On Thursday, the Times dropped a bombshell article detailing a slew sexual harassment allegations made against the mogul. His response to the ensuing controversy has shifted along a bizarre spectrum from dubiously remorseful to vowing to sue the Times for its reporting.

Mr. Weinstein and his lawyer have confirmed the essential points of the story, Danielle Rhoades Ha, a spokeswoman for the newspaper, told Variety in a statement. Mr. Weinstein has not pointed to any errors or challenged any facts in our story. Also, Mr. Weinstein should publicly waive the NDAs in the womens agreements so they can tell their stories. As a supporter of women, he must support their right to speak openly about these issues of gender and power.

Among the revelations in the Times report was that Weinstein has reached confidential settlements with at least eight women, including actress Rose McGowan.

Amidst the calamity, the Weinstein Company has been attempting to sort out how to deal with the scandal internally. Variety learned on Friday that the companys board of directors is planning on suspending the embattled producer, with an official announcement expected to come as early as Friday afternoon. Weinstein announced on Thursday that he was planning to take a leave of absence from his work.

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The co-host of 'The Real' revealed that Rob's sister, Kourtney, was the one who helped her after the couple split.

Sometimes, you just need a friend to see you through the tough times.

On Thursday's episode of The Real, Adrienne Bailon revealed that when she and Rob Kardashian broke up, it was his oldest sister, Kourtney, who helped her through the heartache.

"When I broke up with Rob Kardashian, my breakup buddy was his sister, Kourtney, who at the time had broken up with Scott [Disick] for a moment," Bailon said while chatting with her co-hosts, Loni Love, Jeannie Mai and Tamera Mowry.

"She was so much fun," Bailon continued. "I was definitely more the sad one crying at home and she was like, 'No, girl, we are going to go out. We're going to hit the clubs in Hollywood. We're going to have so much fun!'"

RELATED: Scott Disick Says He Still Hits on Kourtney Kardashian 'About Once a Week,' But Will They Ever Reconcile?

"And I needed that because we were both going through the same thing, but we dealt with the breakup differently," she added.

Bailon and Kardashian dated for two years before calling it quits. The former Cheetah Girls star has made several public claims that he cheated on her.

RELATED: Adrienne Bailon Addresses Rob Kardashian Cheating Rumors: 'I Can Relate to What He's Saying'

Bailon faced accusations of cheating as well, which she denied in 2016 on The Real. "I absolutely never cheated on Rob and I just want to clarify that," she claimed at the time. "And the way it's saidit's like, 'She slept with mad people.' I'm like, 'Uh, I can't speak for anybody else, but I can assure [you] that was not me.'"

The 33-year-old has moved on with her now-husband, Christian music artist Israel Houghton, tying the knot in 2016.

EXCLUSIVE: Adrienne Bailon Talks 'Classy' and 'Timeless' Wedding, Teases Sexy Photo Shoot for Her Fiance

Kourtney also appears to have moved on from her ex, Scott Disick. The 38-year-old has been living it up in Paris with her boyfriend, Younes Bendjima.

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For more on their PDA-filled vacation, watch the video below!

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The scenario for the breakout of the next war, which the IDF's Northern Command has recently drilled as part of a large-scale training exercise, includes the infiltration of Hezbollah fighters into an Israeli community.

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"We have intelligence, we have fortifications and we have offensive plans to thwart it," the IDF chief tells Ynet. "I can't guarantee there wouldnt be an infiltration into Israel's territory and into a community. I can guarantee high efficiency in defense, I can guarantee that if anyone infiltrates the State of Israel, we would kill them. We would prevent (Hezbollah) from having any significant achievements. Both Hezbollah and Hamas understand the unbearable price they would have to pay for infiltrating an Israeli community and harming civilians."

Eisenkot in his office (Photo: Avi Mualem)

With the High Holy Days marking the start of a new Jewish year, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot looks to the north, where he sees the gravest threat to Israel in the region.

In his first interview since taking office as the IDF's top commander, Eisenkot talks about the preparations for a war with Hezbollah, past and maybe future efforts to eliminate its leader Hassan Nasrallah, and the greatest enemy of allIran.

Eisenkot also discusses the other threats and issues that have placed the IDF, and him, in the spotlight over the last year: From Elor Azaria to the submarine affair.

Hezbollah is the enemy were concerned about

A caricature hangs on the wall of the IDF chief's office depicting Nasrallah, Syrian President Bashar Assad, and former Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad looking at Eisenkot, then still a major-general, in his combat uniform and his yet-to-go-gray hair, on the day he was discharged from the IDF. "I have a feeling we'll be seeing him again," the three say with a wicked smile.

The caricature is from 2011, when Eisenkot had one leg out the door, after he finished his term as the GOC Northern Command and following the nomination (which was later withdrawn) of Maj. Gen. Yoav Galant to IDF chief.

Alongside the prophetic caricature is a metal statuette of an infantry soldier's shoes made of shrapnel from mortar shells and rockets launched at Israeli communities on the Gaza border. The shoes are walking on a sketch of the map of Israel. This farewell present from his former head of office, Col. Nir, is more of a depiction of Eisenkot's current role as an intrepid Golani infantryman who has no qualms about marching down a long path, charging with zeal at any goal he sets for himself and achieving it.

Currently, after the 21st IDF chief's term has crossed its halfway mark, Eisenkot continues working diligently to change the face of the Israeli military. Just before the beginning of the High Holy Days, Ynet joined him on the training grounds in the north and at his 14th floor office in the Kirya IDF Headquarters base for an in-depth interview.

Eisenkot in his office (Photo: Avi Mualem)

The word Eisenkot keeps using during the interview is "stateliness." As a follower of David Ben-Gurion, the first Israeli premiers legacy of stateliness is one of the main assets Eisenkot is fighting to keep in the IDF. Sometimes, he does so while swimming against the current.

The most important thing for the IDF in order to continue realizing its mission for many years to come is, in my eyes, the publics trust. Even if there is an argument over one incident or another, he says. Our approach is to be stately and professional. The IDF enjoys high regard in Israeli society, and we need to bolster this with professional, moral and impartial work.

Our first meeting took place in the field on the final day of the large-scale Northern Corps training exercise, which simulated an all-out war against Hezbollah. The decision in principle to hold this massive drill was among the first he made when he took over the IDF's reins.

Eisenkot with Ynet's Attila Somfalvi and Yoav Zitun at the IDF Northern Command drill (Photo: Yaron Brenner)

Tens of thousands of soldiers, dozens of fighter jets flying overhead, hundreds of vehicles rolling across the northern soilall taking part in a drill that even for Eisenkot was the largest Ive participated in, larger than the last Northern Corps exercise in 1998, when I was the Golani Brigade commander.

Are we facing imminent war?

At the moment, I dont see desire or motivation in any of our enemies to attack, to intentionally start a war. Our experience has taught us that our test as an army should center on capabilities. There is significant capability (to start a war) in Lebanon and certain capability in Syria.

Hezbollah is a semi-military organization, with many components and aspects of a military. It has gained experience over the last few years in the kind of fighting I dont take lightly: It operated battalions and brigades, received offensive aid, made intelligence collection efforts. Alongside that, Hezbollah also paid a very steep price2,000 of its men were killed and some 7,000 wounded.

Hezbollah is the enemy were concerned about right now, more than any other enemy around us, but the strategic balance massively tips in the IDFs favor.

Eisenkot at the IDF Northern Command drill (Photo: Yaron Brenner)

Defense Minister Lieberman has said that in the next confrontation in the north, Lebanon will burn on several fronts.

I dont like making threats and declarations. We have a use-of-force policy that is far more significant than what the average Israeli civilian can see. Weve significantly improved our capabilities, including in intelligence, since 2006. I have no doubt the IDF has the ability to defeat Hezbollah and minimize, as much as possible, the price paid by the Israeli home front.

How will the next war look?

The IDF is operating to defeat its enemies and increase our periods of calm. But if we have to go to warthe IDFs enemies would find themselves facing a sharper, stronger and more professional army than ever before.

IDF holds large scale training exercise (:  )

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As the one who rehabilitated the Northern Command in the five years that followed the war in 2006, Eisenkot has become identified with the Dahiya doctrine: The use of disproportionate force to destroy the Hezbollah stronghold in Beirut, which to this day serves as the underlying deterrence for Nasrallah.

We tried to get Nasrallah at the beginning of the war. We attacked the building he was living in and the one that served as his bunker," Eisenkot admitted. "Throughout the war we tried to track him down. He knows why hes been living in a bunker for 11 years. He doesnt dare go outside, even though hes an admired figure in Lebanon.

'Working to stop Iranian entrenchment in Syria'

During Eisenkots tenure, the IDF has stepped up what has been dubbed as operations between warsmissions designed to thwart Hezbollah and Harmass efforts to arm themselves with advanced weaponry. In fact, special air, naval and land forces have been splitting their time in recent years between training and such covert activity, to which Eisenkot dedicates a significant portion of his time.

The IDF is working around the clock to allow Israels citizens to live in security. Our forces operate overtly and covertly every night to complete their missions, he says.

Some of these operations are meant to prevent the conversion of thousands of Hezbollahs rockets and heavy missiles into precision-guided munitions at factories Iran is planning to build in Lebanon or Syria. Improving the accuracy of these projectiles would allow Hezbollah to hit within a radius of no more than a 100 meters from their targetbe it the IDF Headquarters in the Kirya, the Ramat David Airbase or the Haifa refineries.

We consider accurate munitions to be a very severe strategic threat to the State of Israel. Weve been dealing with the aspiration to reach this capability for years now and have worked to prevent it, so far successfully. At present, there are no precision-guided munitions threatening Israels strategic locations, Eisenkot assures.

Eisenkot at the IDF Northern Command drill (Photo: Yaron Brenner)

To the credit of the defense minister and the Cabinet, I can say the IDF enjoys very broad operational freedom. I cant remember an operation we recommended that weve not been allowed to carry out. Our operations between wars have not led to escalation because our enemies understand were hitting the capabilities that need to be targeted. We carry out many types of operations, some of them violent, and only a small portion becomes known.

"In hindsight, it led to many achievements. We have intelligence and aerial superiority that creates great deterrence for the IDF. Its a fact that weve carried out hundreds of attacks in several types of operations, and there hasnt been any retaliation. It shows the great deterrence the IDF has, while at the same time we understand deterrence is a slippery concept.

While the prime minister has publicly confirmed Israels attacks in Syria, the situation in Lebanon is a lot more complex.

A status quo has been established following the Second Lebanon War, in which attacks in Lebanon have only been done in response to incidents, Eisenkot says. And security calm has been established on both sides on the border. Our challenge is on the one hand to prevent the emergence of a severe strategic threat such as precision-guided munitions, while on the other hand maintain the security calm that has lasted for 11 years now, benefiting residents on both sides.

The only thing that has is new over the last year is the Lebanese state taking responsibility, the IDF chief stresses. This is the choice made by Saad Hariri as prime minister and (Michel) Aoun as president. Shortly after Nasrallah and his men make belligerent declarations on the border, Hariri goes and tries to keep the peace. And he went to the United States, where he was met with the demand for the Lebanese state to take responsibility. So recently, the Lebanese army chief boasted a victory in Qalamun, and then he said, Were now going to claim our responsibility in the south.

This is a process that takes time. Our intelligence shows Nasrallah still maintains a presence in all of the villagesand certainly the Shiite onesnear the Israeli border and is developing its capabilities there almost completely undisturbed. In this complex reality, the wise thing is smart management.

'All options on the table' regarding Iran

As of late, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been putting the Iranian nuclear program back on the international agenda in light of Tehrans entrenchment in Syria. The prime minister discussed the matter with US President Donald Trump and spoke about it at length in his speech at the UN General Assembly, but it is doubtful Netanyahu could achieve his goal of having the nuclear agreement canceled.

Netayahu speaks at the UN General Assembly (: )

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The agreement is a fact, the IDF chief says, refusing to directly address the question of whether scrapping the deal would be good for Israels security. Its an agreement that has holes, and as far as were concerned, it shouldve had more teeth, been more strict and included tighter supervision. An Iranian nuclear bomb is a danger to Israel, and we will continue monitoring to prevent them from (achieving) it via covert and indirect channels.

Are the Iranians in compliance with the agreement?

Theyre in compliance with the agreement for tactical reasons. Their long-term strategic goal is to obtain nuclear capabilities. There is no doubt about it. The IDFs challenge of preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear capabilities has been at the top of our list of priorities over the past decade. This mission will continue being a top priority, since we understand this is a threat on a different scale.

Eisenkot at the IDF Northern Command drill (Photo: Yaron Brenner)

Is the military option still on the table?

When the political ranks say the State of Israel has the ability and that all options are on the table, they say so based on existing military ability. Meaning, the IDF has basic plans, it has the ability and if the IDF is required for the task, it would know how to act and meet the objectives set to it by the political ranks.

How does the threat from North Korea change the picture?

The State of Israel shouldnt be the first to tackle any threat on Earth. Our challenge is to prevent this phenomenon in Iran. That is the challenge of the regions countriesmostly the moderate Sunni campas well as of Europe and the United States.

Beyond its nuclear aspirations, Eisenkot stresses, Iran views itself as a regional power. There are 17,000 fighters in Syria today working under Iranian guidance, including 7,000 Hezbollah fighters, 9,000 Shiite militiamen, and 1,000-2,000 Iranians, with Tehran seeking to increase those numbers.

Iranian Revolutionary Guards fighters in Syria

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How close are they to Israels border?

Only a few of them are close to our border; most of them are in north-western, central or eastern Syria. Were pursuing several different avenues to prevent Iranian entrenchment within 30-40km of the border, and were operating in quite a few avenues to minimize the missile accuracy capabilities Iran is trying to give our enemies, Hezbollah and Hamas. We want to get to a point where there is no Iranian influence in Syria, and this is being done in a combined military and diplomatic effort.

Despite the strengthening of the Shiite axis, which bolstered Syrian President Bashar Assad with Russian help, Eisenkot is not quick to declare the end of the Islamic State (ISIS) threat and confirms for the first time the IDFs part in the fight against ISIS.

Its too early to eulogize ISIS, because it is a phenomenon and an idea beyond being an organization. The fight against ISIS will continue for many years, he says.

Eisenkot in his office (Photo: Avi Mualem)

Since our intelligence capabilities are the best in the area, and certainly in Israels close vicinity, we contribute to the effort to defeat ISIS and the Nusra Front. We do with this our allies, sharing intelligence to support this effort. We pass on information to countries when we know something is in the works (in those countries). The (Israeli) intelligence community greatly contributes to thwarting terror attacks in the Middle East and elsewhere around the globe.

'Hamas will be taking a very big risk if it attacks us'

There are changes in Gaza, at least on the outside. Do you see any change concerning Hamas?

The security situation at the Gaza border since Operation Protective Edge is complex. On the one hand, theres unprecedented calm, the kind of which we havent seen since 1967. Its been three years now that not a single Israeli citizens has gotten so much as a scratch. Unfortunately, one IDF soldier was lightly hurt, and several dozen rockets were firedmostly close to the border. We are able to deter Hamas and allow for a very good security situation both on our side and theirs.

On the other hand, Hamas has been working to increase their power, including building up their underground capabilities, particularly the defensive ones, and attempting to obtain more rockets so they can return to some of the capabilities they had in the past.

The reality in the Gaza Strip is very concerning, because the economic-civic-humanitarian situation is very bad: the power supply is 4-6 hours a day, the water quality is low, 47 percent unemployment. Our interest is for there to be a good quality of life there, for the Gazans to have hope. At the same time, were not forgetting they are holding two bodies of IDF soldiers and two Israeli citizens who crossed the border, who should all be returned to the State of Israel.

Eisenkot in his office (Photo: Avi Mualem)

What is your position, as the IDF chief, on the topic?

This is a conversation that should not be had in public. It gives Hamas an advantage. They take advantage of our openness and our sensitivity when it comes to human life. They take advantage of the families distress, which is why we are taking steps to make things very difficult for the Hamas leadership, which will only increase. At the same time, we ensure the Gaza population can live their lives and not go hungry because of its irresponsible leadership.

At the moment, the Hamas government in the Gaza Strip is strong and dominant, but faces quite a few difficulties. This was reflected when Hamas agreed to disband its administrative committee and seemingly begin reconciliation, though it doesnt really want full reconciliation. The distress Hamas has been in since Operation Protective Edge has led it to a series of concessions to relieve the immense pressure it has been under.

Our interest is to not have a Hamas regime in the strip, but rather a more moderate government. I dont see any moderate government except for the Palestinian Authority, despite all of its shortcomings.

Palestinian Prime Minister Hamdallah meets with Hamas leader Haniyeh in Gaza (Photo: Reuters)

Is the IDF concerned that continuing building the Gaza subterranean obstacle , which is meant to stop cross-border tunnels, might lead Hamas to use a tunnel that crosses into Israel?

We take this possibility into account, because an army naturally looks at the risks rather than the opportunities. So we view this as a risk. But we are facing this risk from a position of power. If we uncover attack tunnels crossing into our territory, wed deal with it very gravely, as weve done in recent years. We carried out attacks, a numerous amount of times. Even when we thought it would hurt Hamas, we continued carrying out hundreds of strikes since Protective Edge. And despite the fact weve attacked hundreds of times, not a single bullet has been fired in response. Hamas will be taking a very big risk if it attacks as a result of us uncovering its cross-border tunnels.

Do you support the construction of a sea port in the Gaza Strip?

I support a sea port in principle, but for a sea port and other big projects, like an industrial area, to be possible, some conditions need to exist.

Preventing a third intifada

Eisenkot has served as the commander of the Judea and Samaria Division at the height of the second intifada and was one of the architects of the victory over suicide bombers, who have not reared their heads again since.

At the end of his first year as IDF chief, Eisenkot found himself, along with the top officers in the Central Command, once again dealing with a wave of terror attacks on the verge of escalating into a full-blown third intifada. The attacks, which claimed the lives of dozens of soldiers and civilians across Israel, were suppressed within a few months.

We consider the Palestinian Authority responsible. The (Palestinian) security services are making an effort to thwart attacks because of internal Palestinian considerations, he says.

Eisenkot in his office with Ynet's Yoav Zitun, Attila Somfalvi and Gido Ran (Photo: Avi Mualem)

Over the last month and a half, since the Temple Mount crisis, the cooperation with the PA has been limited, but still to the benefit of both sides. The PA is in charge of the life of over 2.5 million Palestinians in Judea and Samarias areas A and B. Theres dialogue, Eisenkot says.

Discussing how the IDF chose to tackle the wave of terror, Eisenkot says, Weve encountered a new phenomenon for the first timenot organized terrorism with proper weapons, but inspired terrorism. We were able to restore security because were very experienced in dealing with terrorism. We operated in a determined and focused manner, while distinguishing the terrorists from the population and creating positive incentives for the majority of the Palestinian population. Every morning, over 900,000 young Palestinians go to study, while half a million go to work in Israel and Judea and Samaria. This is a positive dynamic and we have a distinct interest in preserving it: On the one hand to determinedly fight terrorism, while on the other to continue to allow a better daily life for the population.

Border Police at the Temple Mount in the height of the crisis (Photo: AFP)

Did you think of copying a part of this model to the strip and giving permits to Palestinians from Gaza to work in Israel?

At this point, I dont see work permits being issued, but definitely efforts to improve the civilian-economic reality with water and electricity projects, as well as bringing goods into the strip, alongside creating great difficulties to the Hamas leadership. This is a formula that is hard to implement, but its the right thing to do, because there are still 2 million people living there. If the Hamas leadership hadnt cynically used two civilians who crossed the border and two bodies, I assume life in the strip wouldve been better.

'We must not allow mob-mentality in the IDF'

Shortly before Yom Kippur, the IDF chief decided to grant Elor Azarias request to commute his 18-month sentence, which the former soldier had already begun serving at Prison 4.

Eisenkot decided to reduce four months from Azarias time, making it likely the former soldier, who shot dead a neutralized Palestinian terrorist in Hebron, will be out of prison within less than a year on good behavior.

Elor Azaria (Photo: Shaul Golan)

How do you respond to criticism from the judges in the first verdict, who said the IDFs top command and then-defense minister Moshe Yaalon came out with statements against Azaria too soon, before the investigation was completed?

My first comment as IDF chief was made a month and a half after the incident, Eisenkot clarifies.

The IDF spokesman made a comment on the topic on the same day in front of the cameras, describing the incident as one that began with the attempted murder of two soldiers and praising their actions. He then said it appeared like an abnormal incident occurred after the attack, in which a soldier decided 11 minutes later to open fire at a Palestinian lying on the ground a meter away from his commander. At the same time, the IDF spokesman expressed the armys view that the soldier was innocent until proven otherwise. The position the IDF took was professional and ethical, the IDF chief insists.

Eisenkot in his office (Photo: Avi Mualem)

If you ask me today, in hindsight, if it was the right thing to put handcuffs on the soldier, my answer is no, but this is a longstanding procedure. Was it right to charge him with murder? This is another procedural manner no commander can influence. These are things I cant determine myself, as the decision here is professional, legal.

The two procedureshandcuffing and charging with murderhave since been nixed for similar cases of soldiers arrested for an alleged offense committed under operational circumstances.

Eisenkot stresses that, Beyond the position the commanders took, our approach was to let the investigation take its course, act fairly, allow for the presumption of innocence. I can only regret greatly the cynical exploitation of this event to drum up support, get publicity, try to influence commanders, and try to influence the court. I think this is an undesirable situation.

What did you make of the hateful chants outside the Kirya IDF Headquarters, such as Gadi beware, Rabins looking for a friend, This night, Gadi, you will die?

I heard it and I cant say I liked it. I know it is an opinion held by only a few people. I regret the hateful discourse surrounding this incident. There was similar discourse surrounding co-ed service (which was harshly criticized in religious circles) and the desire to influence the IDFs character from the outside.

Eisenkot at the IDF Northern Command drill (Photo: Yaron Brenner)

This kind of discourse doesnt exist in a vacuum. Some politicians dragged the IDF into this argument.

Any external attempt to influence the armys positions, norms, values and its courts is wrong. I hope lessons are learned from this and the military justice system, which is clean, is allowed to make the IDF stronger, more ethical and more professional. I have no expectations from a mob, but I do have expectations from leaders, and everyone should learn from this, myself included.

The IDFs commanders should be allowed to dictate the armys values. We cant hide behind civilian discourse. Were leading soldiers in missions and must make every effort to bring them back safe and sound, and commanders took a stand based on these values. I give my full support to the commanders, even if errors were made along the chain of command.

When I arrived at the scene two days later for the reconstruction of the incident, I understood the distress and the difficulties, but at the same time I also understood the professional approach the commanders took when they decided after three hours that the incident has surpassed the chain of command, and that a legal investigation must be conducted.

Eisenkot in his office (Photo: Avi Mualem)

Did this incident cause damage to the IDF?

In the short term, the IDF was hurt by this incident. In the long term, this would make the IDF a stronger, more professional and more ethical army that can draw the line. I said this, and I dont regret it: We must not allow mob-mentality in the IDF, as it would only encourage behavior that deviates from the orders, values and norms set by the commanders.

What is your message to Azaria?

Azaria is a young Israeli man who chose to serve in a combat unit, and I greatly respect him for that. However, in this case, both courts and the chain of command have made their position known in a very clear manner.

'I hope those involved in submarine affair are innocent'

Another issue that hits close to home for Eisenkot is the submarine affair. So far, no IDF officer currently serving in the army has been questioned in connection with the affair. Even the allegations attributed to former Navy commander Maj. Gen. (res.) Eliezer Marom concern the years following his retirement from the IDF.

However, it is possible current IDF officers might be questioned soon, and the IDF chief has already decided in principle to establishlikely after the completion of the police investigationan internal inquiry team to deal with the issue of conflicts of interest for retiring officers.

The historical understanding is that IDF officers dont touch money. The IDF presents the operational needs and those required to fulfill those needs are civilian elements. The right thing is to set a very high wall separating officers and influential people, he says.

If there was a criminal offense and officers did have a hand in it, we would be sure to bring them to justice, he adds.

Eisenkot in his office (Photo: Avi Mualem)

During the time in question (when Marom was the Navy commander), I was the GOC Northern Command. I know the people involved and hope they are without blame. I work under the assumption everyone is innocent under proven otherwise.

There are currently five submarines in service in the Israeli Navy. Two of them are new and, according to foreign reports, are capable of carrying nuclear armament. An additional submarine, INS Dakar, will arrive from Germany in a year.

Eisenkot pointed out that, Factually, the IDF has shown over the past decade that it needs 5 or 6 submarines to meet its operational needs. The additional deal being talked about (in the affair) included a 7th, 8th and 9th submarine. The new ones would be more advanced. Such a move requires looking 20-25 years into the future, how to properly build up the military. Weve released a written position of the IDFs requirements. Either way, when there was a (police) examination here, all of the material was gathered and passed on. We said that if the need arises to question officers, they will be there. I dont know of any officer currently in the IDF who was summoned or is expected to be summoned for questioning.

'At 18, everyone must put personal views aside and fight for security'

Earlier this month, the High Court of Justice tossed out an amendment to the Conscription Law that lowered the annual quota for ultra-Orthodox men being required to serve in the IDF. The court tasked the government with passing new legislation within a year that would prevent discrimination and equally distribute the burden of service.

If you ask Eisenkot, hed be willing to conscript thousands of additional Haredim first thing tomorrow not just in the name of equality, but primarily for operational needs.

Every 18-year-old man or woman needs to come to the IDF induction center and enlist, including the Haredim, Eisenkot clarifies the IDFs position.

Today, only 67 percent of 18 year olds are required to enlist, and this is not right. Our aspiration is to make better use of the manpower, mostly when just ahead theres going to be a cut to the length of service (which will cause a shortage of thousands of soldiers).

Haredim protest IDF draft (Photos: Reuters, AFP)

According to Eisenkot, the IDF is willing to bear the costs of conscripting the Haredim and making the necessary adjustments of service conditions.

This is what it means for the IDF to be the peoples army. You cant say that and then have selective service, he explains.

We need to demand a general draft of all sectors of Israeli society. If theres a wide-scale conscription of Haredim, theyd look at soldiers differently and wont view them as something to attack. Today, there are 7,000 Haredim serving in the army, among them 400 are officers and career soldiers. This successful integration of Haredim makes the army stronger. This phenomenon of a Haredi soldier going home and being beaten is wrong and very serious. The aspiration is to have all parts of society help in carrying the burden of security, he elaborates.

IDF Northern Command drill (Photo: Yaron Brenner)

While Eisenkot is popular among the public, he still receives quite a lot of criticism and suffers abuse, perhaps more than any IDF chief before him.

He has been branded as a leftist for a series of moves that were not popular across the board, including canceling the exemption from shaving (which angered religious soldiers); increasing the amount of female soldiers in combat roles and launching a pilot to open the possibility of serving on tanks to women as well; instating co-ed service for men and women; bringing the separate Jewish Awareness Department under the Education Corps; condemning Elor Azarias actions; giving the scissors speech; supporting easing restrictions on the Palestinians in the West Bank; and supporting the plan to expand Qalqilya.

All of these moves were meant to strengthen the IDF, Eisenkot says. Since 2008, the IDF has been operating without a co-ed service order, and it was destructive for the army. The commanders need such an order as guidelines on what should and should not be done, as well as give them tools to realize the IDFs objective of being the peoples army, which brings together the city dweller and the small town man, the Druze, Bedouin and Jew, the Sephardic and the Ashkenazi, the religious and secular to carry out a shared mission, with the understanding that at age 18 you put your personal views aside and everyone comes together under the banner of security.
Minister of Public Security and Strategic Affairs Gilad Erdan launched a joint project with the Jordan Valley Regional Council on Monday, publicizing the agricultural produce of the Jordan Valley farmers at major conferences and fairs around the world, in an attempt to fight back against the efforts of the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement.

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The project will be implemented over the next two years and will cost the state an estimated NIS 7 million.

In addition, the ministry will fund the arrival of influential delegations to the region so that they can get an impression of the farmers' agricultural produce and of the cooperation between Israelis and Palestinians in the produce's development.

Erdan with Jordan Valley farmers (Photo: Avihu Shapira)

During his visit to the Jordan Valley together with the Yesha Councilan umbrella organization of municipal councils of Jewish settlements in the West BankErdan said that his ministry is trying to help farmers affected by initiatives that mark and confiscate economic products from the Jordan Valley.

Ardan added: "The struggle I am waging against the boycott organizations is preventing severe damage to the state." He stressed that agriculture is "one of the most at risk and important areas to focus on."

David Elhayani, head of the Jordan Valley Regional Council and chairman of the Settlement Forum for Combating the Boycott, said the project would help the farmers of the region.

Erdan in a announces the project with Jordan Valley Regional Council

"Our produce is confiscated in some European and American countries and the damage to farmers is great.

"We are happy to see the change the government's attitude (towards used)," he said. "We finally see them being actively in favor of farmers and victims of boycott organizations".

"In the West Bank, there are 14 industrial zones that employ close to 20,000 residents of the Palestinian Authority," noted outgoing chairman of the Yesha Council, Avi Roeh. "There are those who do not care about them, they are acting to boycott (our produce) because they are interested in the State of Israel ceasing to exist."
Immediately after convicted terrorist Ziad Awad was sentenced to two life sentences on Monday for murdering Chief Superintendent Baruch Mizrahi on the eve of Passover in '14, Mizrahi's widow, Hadas, demanded that he be given the death sentence. Hadas, who was injured in the attack herself, explained that her main concern is that Awad will not end up serving life in prison, and that he would, once again, be released in a prisoner exchange swap.

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Her fear is sadly based in reality, as Awad was one of the convicted terrorists to be released in the Gilad Shalit deal, at the tail end of '11, despite having 16 years left on his sentence. Awad, incidentally, is far from the only terrorist released in the Shalit deal who in the time since has returned to terrorism.

There are a lot of good reasons why Israel does not tend to implement the death sentence, despite the fact that from a purely legal standpoint, it is possible to do so in cases where Palestinian terrorists commit murder within the West Bankas was the case with Awad's killing of Mizrahi.





Hadas Mizrahi (C) during Awad's sentencing (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg)

The reasoning here is that the death penalty carries with it a string of consequencespublicly, socially and even diplomaticallythat we as a nation and a society may not be willing to pay. Even morally, taking the life of a murderer is no simple matter. Our forefathers seemed to know this, as even in the time of the Sanhedrinthe highest judicial body during the Second Templethey stopped sentencing people to death, including those found guilty of murder.

Awad (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg)

On the other hand, we cannot ignore the real problem here. We cannot honestly tell ourselves that yes, the murderer has been appropriately punished, when we know that too many times murderers are freed after unreasonably short periods of incarceration. We cannot stand by as widows and orphans yell for justice, and turn away from their pain.

Hadas Mizrahi folowing the attack that took the life of her husband, Baruch (Photo: Eli Mandelbaum)

There is, in fact, a solution to these problems, which, even if imperfect, should be considered: we could amend the law to allow judges, be they military or civilian, to limit upon sentencing any possible leniencies that could be granted to individuals found guilty of murder in the future. Judges should be allowed to determine that a murderer's sentence could not be shortened, making sure they will rot in prison until their dying day, even if another prisoner exchange deal comes up. Judges should also be given the option to set a minimum time to be served, or to decide that murderers will be not get a third of their sentences reduced, no matter what.

The Mizrahi family, prior to the deadly attack

Granting judges these tools would hinder policy makers' abilities in certain regards, but it would assist them in others: it would, for instance, help them stand up to the extortionist and outlandish demands that led to the Shalit deal. Instead, they would make it clear that such decisions are not in their hands, since they really won't be.

Such rules should in fact be implemented in all cases involving an extremely gruesome murder. For this reason, it's no coincidence if the impending release of the child Oron Yarden's murderer comes to mind.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 13:52:14|Editor: Song Lifang

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NEW DELHI, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- A 30-year-old woman in northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh was allegedly gang-raped by four men on gunpoint in front of her husband and their three-month-old infant, the police said Saturday.

The woman told police she was raped near Nirgajni village in Muzaffarnagar district of Uttar Pradesh, northwest of Lucknow city, the capital of Uttar Pradesh.

"The accused persons according to victim took turns to rape her and held the child hostage, besides threatening to kill it," a police official posted in Muzaffarnagar said.

"The woman and her husband were returning after visiting a pediatrician yesterday with their three-month-old child on a motorbike, when the four men in a car intercepted and waylaid them off the road."

Police officials said they were yet to identify the accused.

The victim told media the four persons carrying weapons stopped them and snatched the baby from her, besides beating up her husband.

"Four men dragged me to a sugar cane farm and raped me," the victim said. "They constantly threatened to kill my child and roughed up my husband."

The four men according to the couple warned the couple against raising an alarm and fled from the spot in car.

Reports said following the ordeal the family screamed for help and a few local residents from a nearby village rushed to rescue them by taking them to police station.

Both the husband and the wife were later removed to hospital for treatment and medical examination, police said.

"We have registered a case and are waiting for medical report of the victim," Ajay Sahdev, a senior police official at Muzaffarnagar told media. "Investigations are underway to nab the culprits."

Sexual attacks on women and girls in India puts a question mark on their safety and efficiency of police force in the country.

In December 2002 a fatal gang-rape of a medical student in New Delhi brought spotlight on crimes against women in India.

The incident saw huge protests and resulted in new anti-rape laws in the country. However, brutal sexual attacks against women continue to be reported across India.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 13:57:15|Editor: Song Lifang

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LOS ANGELES, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- The family of a 56-year-old man who was killed in the Las Vegas mass shooting filed a lawsuit Friday asking for a freeze of the shooter's assets.

John Phippen, a home remodeler who lived in Southern California with six children and one grandchild, was killed at the Route 91 Harvest Country Music Festival when 64-year-old Stephen Paddock rained down about 1,600 rounds of ammo from the 32th floor suite of Mandalay Bay hotel into the crowd on Sunday night.

A total of 58 people were killed and nearly 500 others injured in the deadliest mass shooting in modern American history.

Richard Patterson, the attorney for Phippen's family, filed the suit in Clark County of Nevada where Las Vegas is located. The indictment seeks to prevent Paddock's girlfriend, Marilou Danley, and his brother, Eric, from becoming Paddock's rightful heirs.

"This is an action for the benefit of all the victims to preserve these assets," Patterson told NBC news channel.

According to reports after the shooting rampage, Paddock is a successful gambler and real estate investor, who earned 5 million U.S. dollars in 2015.

Phippen took part in the concert Sunday night with his 24-year-old son Travis. Travis said in NBC's "Today Show" Thursday that his father placed his body over a girl to shield her when the shooting started and was shot to death at the scene.

After Phippen's death, his neighbor set up an online fundraising account in order to help his children who lost their mother three years ago. The account has received more than 60,000 dollars, far more than the initial goal of 25,000 dollars.

Patterson said that besides this suit, he planed to file suits against Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino and its parent company, MGM Resorts International.

He also said another victim could join the lawsuit.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 14:27:20|Editor: Song Lifang

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BISHKEK, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Kyrgyzstan's Deputy Prime Minister Temir Zhumakadyrov was killed Saturday when his car collided with a truck on the highway, the Kyrgyz state press service reported.

The accident happened at a section of the Bishkek-Kara-Balta Highway in Sadovoye village in the northernmost region at around 7:30 a.m. local time (0130 GMT), the report said.

Zhumakadyrov and his assistant were traveling in a Toyota Land Cruiser. The driver of the car and the assistant also died in the accident.

The truck driver was hospitalized.

Zhumakadyrov, 38, was appointed deputy prime minister in August 2017. Prior to that he was secretary of the National Security Council.
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Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 15:02:26|Editor: Liangyu

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BEIJING, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- China's latest cut to the amount of cash lenders must hold as reserves is a breakthrough in policy tools, an economist with Credit Suisse said, adding there are no changes in the country's monetary policy.

The People's Bank of China (PBOC) has announced a targeted reduction in the reserve requirement ratio (RRR) to encourage commercial banks to improve credit support for small businesses, impoverished groups and agriculture, among others.

Banks whose "inclusive financing" accounts for more than 1.5 percent of their total loans will enjoy a 0.5-percentage-point RRR cut, while those with such loans exceeding 10 percent will have an additional 1-percentage-point cut.

The measure will go into effect in the next year.

"Instead of taking effect immediately as usual, it leaves a three-month gap, which is a policy innovation," said Tao Dong, managing director and chief economist of Credit Suisse in Asia, adding it is the first time China has left a gap between announcement and implementation.

In the final quarter of 2017, banks will be inspired to channel more energy into inclusive finance to meet these requirements, Tao said. "Whether, and to what extent, a bank can enjoy the favorable policy depends on its effort," Tao said.

A lower RRR means lenders can offer more loans and earn higher incomes from interest. Analysts estimate the PBOC's move will lead to more than 100billion U.S. dollars pumped into the real economy.

The last cut to the benchmark RRR was in March of 2016.

Tao also said the move signaled that the central bank will continue to carry out a prudent and neutral monetary policy, with no intention of comprehensively loosening liquidity.

"The PBOC showed... there is no lack of liquidity and the only problem is where it goes," said Tao.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 15:07:28|Editor: Song Lifang

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KABUL, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- About 17 insurgents have been killed and 10 others wounded after Afghan air force conducted an airstrike in southern province of Uruzgan, the Interior Ministry said Saturday.

"The Afghan air force targeted militants' hideouts in Barakzai region, Chora district, Uruzgan province on Friday, killing 17 militants and injuring 10 others," the ministry said in a statement

Amount of Taliban's weapons and ammunition were also destroyed following the airstrike in the restive province.

Taliban militants fighting Afghan government forces did not make comments yet.

Last week, the Taliban attacked several security checkpoints in in the same district, killing more than 20 soldiers.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 15:22:31|Editor: Song Lifang

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MINSK, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- Belarus does not want to be a source of tension in the region and does not intend to fight with anyone, Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei said Friday.

"We firmly affirm that there has never been a threat from our territory against any of the countries. We never intend to start a war against someone," Makei said in a speech at the first Conference of Honorary Consuls of Belarus.

"We do not want to host additional foreign military bases," he said. "This will lead to an escalation of tension."

He stressed that Belarus is the only country that has no armed conflicts in the post-Soviet space, and will not have it in the future.

"We do not have any territorial or other claims to other countries... And we are not going to continue to make any claims to anyone -- neither territorial nor otherwise," Makei said.

According to the Belarusian Foreign Ministry, 80 Belarusian honorary consuls represent Belarusian citizens in 56 countries and defend their rights and interests. They are also tasked to advance friendly relations and expand ties with foreign countries.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 15:27:32|Editor: Liangyu

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CHONGQING, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- In southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, Thuja sutchuenensis, an evergreen coniferous tree previously announced to be extinct, is expanding its territory.

At a plant nursery in Chengkou County, seedlings of the size of a hand were sprayed with water under a dozen shower nozzles. Staff said 40,000 thuja seedlings had been raised at the breeding base and would be transplanted in the wild when they were taller.

The Sichuan thuja, a species in the cypress family, is native to Chongqing's Chengkou County. Specimens were first collected by the French missionary Paul Guillaume Farges in 1891. Almost 100 years later, the trees were no longer spotted in the wild.

In 1998, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) announced the "extinct" status of the thuja. The Chinese government also removed it from its list of protected wild plants.

However, a wild plant investigation team rediscovered it in Chengkou after searching for half a year the following year. After verification, the IUCN adjusted its conservation status from "extinct" to "endangered."

On the steep ridges of the Daba Mountains, about 3,000 wild plants struggled to survive the harsh natural environment. A wild thuja several hundred years old stood two meters tall.

Due to its scarcity and unique apple-like fragrance, items made from the thuja could be sold for twice the price of gold, which led to illegal felling.

A national nature reserve and a breeding base were established in the Daba Mountains to protect the species.

According to Zhang Shiqiang, director of the nature reserve, human activities have since been reduced in protection areas to create a good environment for the tree. Scientific research on artificial breeding has also been stepped up to expand its population.

In the meantime, 25 monitoring stations have been built with infrared cameras and global positioning systems for regular data collection, providing reliable scientific data for botanists.

Over the past two years, 200,000 seedlings have been transplanted in the tree's native habitat, which has also expanded by 43.3 hectares thanks to afforestation efforts.

"The Sichuan thuja is a gift that nature gives to the world. We must strengthen protection of the species and make sure it will not become extinct again," Zhang said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 15:37:36|Editor: Song Lifang

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MOSCOW, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Russia and Saudi Arabia support the oil output cut deal, and the deal's future should be discussed closer to its expiry date, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Friday.

"We agreed that in principle we have such an option, and there are such opportunities regarding the extension," Novak told Rossiya 24 television channel.

He also said the agreement would be extended unless the market became balanced.

In November 2016, the 14-member Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) agreed to reduce oil production collectively by 1.2 million barrels per day. A month later, 11 non-OPEC countries, including Russia, also agreed to cut their production by a total of 558,000 barrels per day.

Initially, the agreement was for the first half of 2017. In May, it was extended by another nine months and would now end in March 2018.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 15:37:36|Editor: Liangyu

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URUMQI, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Authorities in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region will make 15 years of education basically universal by 2020.

According to a development plan released by the region's education department, more than 98 percent of children will have access to three years of free preschool education.

Ninety-five percent of children are expected to finish the compulsory nine years of primary and junior high school and 90 percent will attend senior high school, it said.

The region also plans to speed up development of vocational and higher education to enroll 40 percent of students in universities.

By 2020, all students attending kindergartens, primary and junior schools will have bilingual education, and students from ethnic minority groups will have a basic command of standard spoken and written Chinese.

Additionally, people entering the labor market in the region will have received 13 years of education on average, it said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 16:07:41|Editor: Song Lifang

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KATHMANDU, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- The fifth meeting of the Eminent Persons Group on Nepal-India Relations (EPG-NIR) began here Saturday to review wide-ranging aspects of bilateral relationship between the two countries.

The two-day meeting is expected to agree on the text to revise the peace and friendship treaty signed between Nepal and India, Coordinator of the Nepalese side Bhes Bahadur Thapa told local media.

"The treaty has to be updated and revised in line with the needs of the changing times," Thapa, who is also a former foreign minister, said.

In the fourth meeting held in India earlier this year, the Nepalese side had proposed to review and contextualize the Nepal-India Peace and Friendship Treaty.

The revision of the Peace and Friendship Treaty-1950 has become a matter of discussion between Nepal and India for years at the government and experts' level. However, the two sides have yet to agree on a common point to do so.

"The fifth meeting is focused on revisiting or replacing the treaties, agreements and arrangements between the two countries by chalking out a roadmap of the bilateral ties that is characterized by social, economic, religious and cultural aspects," Rajan Bhattarai, another member of the EPG from Nepalese side told media.

The regulation of the open border between Nepal and India is another matter of discussion this time, the EPG officials said.

The EPG-NIR was officially established in 2016 during a visit of then Nepali Prime Minister K.P Sharma Oli to India.

The experts' panel is mandated to submit a common comprehensive report within 2018 containing recommendations on various aspects of bilateral issues such as political, security, social, economic, trade, transit, border management and water resources to both the governments.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 16:17:42|Editor: Song Lifang

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NEW DELHI, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- India's federal government has set up a study group to examine the problems being faced by people living near International Border (IB) and Line of Control (LoC) in the disputed Kashmir region in wake of constant skirmishes on the frontier, officials said Saturday.

A senior level official in India's home ministry Rina Mitra will head the group.

"The group will meet people living in the border areas of Jammu and Kashmir (Indian-controlled Kashmir), security forces deployed there, district administration officials and local public representatives to hold deliberations," an official said.

The troops of India and Pakistan posted along IB and LoC in the disputed Kashmir region constantly indulge in cease-fire violations and deadly skirmishes.

"An order issued by the home ministry said, the study group will look into broadly three issues - demand for land for relocation in case of shelling, construction of more bunkers and compensation issues related to shelling," India's state run broadcaster All India Radio said.

The group according to officials would prepare a detailed report on the issues being faced by the people living near the frontier and is likely to submit it to the federal government within two months.

Both New Delhi and Islamabad accuse each other of resorting to unprovoked firings and violating cease-fire agreements. And both sides maintain that their troops gave befitting reply.

LoC is a de facto border that divides the disputed Kashmir region into India and Pakistan controlled parts.

Kashmir, the Himalayan region divided between India and Pakistan, is claimed by both in full. Since their independence from Britain, the two countries have fought three wars, two exclusively over Kashmir.
Nigerian soldiers participate in an operation in Nigeria's northeastern state of Borno, March 16, 2016. (Xinhua/Wale Salau)

LAGOS, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- The Nigerian government says the military has recorded tremendous successes in the fight against Boko Haram since 2015.

Speaking at a forum in the oil rich city of Port Harcourt, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, Nigeria's Chief of Air Staff, said the military had successfully stabilized and secured the North-East from Boko Haram insurgents.

He attributed the success to recent air and ground bombardments of Boko Haram stronghold as well as combined efforts of other members of the Armed Forces.

"We are not aware of any national security issue (in the North-East). What I am aware of is that we have done substantially well in stabilizing and securing the North-East," he added.

Photo taken on March 16, 2016 shows burning camps during an operation in Nigeria's northeastern state of Borno. (Xinhua/Wale Salau)

"Looking at Maiduguri itself, you will never believe that there was any security challenge there. This is so because there is no security challenge," the air force chief told his audience.

"What we are just doing is to mop up what is still remaining (insurgents). We are doing substantially well and making substantial progress," Abubakar added.

"We had the Operation Ruwan Wuta - a 10-day bombardment day-and-night operation that substantially reduced suicide bombings and eliminated organized attacks (by insurgents)," he said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 17:02:50|Editor: Liangyu

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ISLAMABAD, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- At least 14 people were killed and scores of others injured after a collision between a passenger bus and a van in Pakistan's southwestern province of Balochistan on Saturday, local Urdu TV channel Geo reported.

According to the report, the accident happened at about 11:20 a.m. local time when the driver of the van lost control due to over-speeding and collided head-on with a bus coming from the opposite direction in Mastung, a district located in the southwestern Balochistan.

The injured were rushed to Civil Hospital Quetta for treatment. The conditions of seven injured were said to be critical, said hospital sources.

The van's driver died on the spot while the driver of the passenger bus fled the scene after the deadly accident. Local police have launched a search operation in the area to arrest him.

Both Balochistan's Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and Chief Minister Sanaullah Khan Zehri have expressed condolences with the families of the victims and mourned the loss of lives in the accident. The chief minister has directed concerned authorities to provide best possible medical treatment to the injured.

According to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, around 9,000 road accidents are reported to the police every year since 2011, killing more than 4,500 people annually on average.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 17:17:53|Editor: Liangyu

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by Alexia Vlachou

RHODES, Greece, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- International influence is shifting from West to East and "we must build peace with new responsible stakeholders," former French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin said here Friday, underlining the crucial role of China and Russia in world affairs.

"International influence is restructuring around regional powers, with a shift from Western to Eastern countries," de Villepin said at a prestigious international forum on the Rhodes Islands in Greece.

The shift can be seen with the Astana process in dealing with the Syrian crisis, as well as initiatives from both China and Russia in easing tensions on the Korean Peninsula, he added.

"This has to be a good news because we need both more and new responsible stakeholders in the world community," he said.

The Astana process refers to talks held to resolve the Syrian civil war in Astana in January 2017 with Kazakhstan offering its capital as a neutral venue.

On July 4, China and Russia issued a joint statement on the issue of the Korean Peninsula.

The two countries put forward a roadmap on the basis of Russia's step-by-step approach, and China's dual track approach and suspension for suspension initiative.

De Villepin was addressing the two-day 15th Rhodes Forum that opened Friday, gathering politicians, public thinkers and business leaders from some 70 countries and regions to discuss multipolarity and dialogue in regional and global developments.

China is a primary contributor of troops to UN peacekeeping missions, he said.

De Villepin also said the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative "is likely to develop and stabilize the countries and regions it will cross."

The former French prime minister also stressed the role of Russia as a "crucial actor for world order," mentioning Russian mediation in Syria, eastern Europe and the Korean Peninsula.

Meanwhile, he underscored the need for dialogue in times of crisis.

"Uncertainty has become the trademark of our time," he said. "The question of our time is how to avoid uncertainty... In times of escalation, we cannot take the risk of frozen conflicts heating up at any moment."

"A joint initiative by a few large countries in order to reflect together on the new multipolarity ... would also be a way of reviving the power of dialogue, which is more than ever before a global necessity," said de Villepin.

DARK SIDE OF NEW TECHNOLOGY

Another major issue discussed at the forum was the role played by new technology, which was a blessing that could also have a dark side.

During the first day of the forum, many participants expressed their concern over new technologies, which some said can enable individuals to do things only countries could do before.

"We live in this paradoxical moment where we know more, we have more capabilities and yet, we are more confused," said Ian Goldin, professor of globalization and development at the Oxford University and former vice president of the World Bank.

For Goldin, pandemics are the biggest global threat. "Even a single individual can now create a bio-pathogen and fly down to high streets and (the) banking sector and create a global pandemic. Small groups of individuals can destroy the Internet, can create problems to big institutions," he said.

The best way to resolve these problems is by working together, he added.

Russian entrepreneur Natalia Kaspersky, who is also head of InfoWatch, a software producer, underlined the importance for countries to have digital sovereignty. Countries with no digital sovereignty will be in a vulnerable position and become victims of digital colonization, she warned.

"Digital colonization is a new form of colonization," she said. "Countries that want digital independence should join forces to replicate their own technologies."

The annual forum, organized by the Dialogue of Civilizations Research Institute, an independent international think tank, was attended by high-profile figures from Europe, Russia, China, India and Africa.

Held each year since 2002, the Rhodes Forum is intended to provide a platform for business people, policy makers and scholars to discuss pressing issues on the international agenda.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 17:17:54|Editor: Liangyu

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YANGON, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar's Shwedagon Pagoda attracted 445,000 foreign visitors in the first nine months of this year, according to the pagoda's Board of Trustee on Saturday.

Thailand topped the list with over 93,000 visitors, followed by China with 37,000 visitors and others from South Korea, Japan, France, Germany and the United States.

The board's figures also showed that more than 500,000 tourists from over 40 countries and regions visited the Shwedagon Pagoda annually.

Shwedagon Pagoda, usually crowded with visitors from home and abroad during the open season, features its best repository in Myanmar heritage, architecture, sculpture and arts.

It accommodates hundreds of colorful temples, stupas and statues that reflect the architectural era spanning almost 2,500 years.

Also, the country attracted over 2 million tourists as of August this year while tourist arrivals reached 2.9 million in 2016, ranking as the ninth among ASEAN countries with most tourist arrivals, according to the statistics of the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism.

The country targets to receive over 7 million visitors by 2020.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 17:42:57|Editor: Liangyu

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COPENHAGEN, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Danish police said Saturday that the head and legs of Swedish journalist Kim Wall had been found, almost two months after she disappeared on a submarine trip with Peter Madsen, the Danish investor who built his own submarine.

Bags containing the body parts and Wall's clothing were found Friday in Koge Bay, south of Copenhagen. Her torso had also been found in the same waters 11 days after she boarded Madsen's homemade submarine, Copenhagen Deputy Police Inspector Jens Moeller Jensen said at a press briefing.

The bags were weighed down by metal parts, Jensen said.

Wall was last seen on Aug. 10 when she went inside the 18-meter submarine with Madsen.

Madsen has subsequently been charged with killing Wall, dismembering her body and throwing the parts into the water.

He however denies murdering Wall, insisting that she was killed after being accidentally hit by a heavy hatch cover aboard his submarine.

He also says Wall's body was intact when he threw it in the water in panic after the fatal accident.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 17:52:59|Editor: Liangyu

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ISLAMABAD, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Pakistani security forces have foiled a major terrorism plot in southwestern Balochistan province, a statement from the army said on Saturday.

The paramilitary force Frontier Corps seized 1, 300 kilograms of explosives during an intelligence-based operation conducted in Grandani, Kohlu and Naseerabad areas of Balochistan, which was being planned to be used for terrorist activities in the province, a statement from the army's media wing the Inter-Services Public Relations said.

Besides explosives, weapons and ammunition, including sub-machine guns, rockets, hand grenades, maps of important areas and communication equipment were also recovered, the statement said.

The intelligence-based operation conducted in Balochistan is part of the on-going major operation codenamed "Radd-ul-Fasaad" or reject discord in English.

The operation was launched in February this year after a series of terrorist attacks killed over 100 people. The operation mainly focuses on what the security officials calls as the sleeping cells of the terrorists and their facilitators.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 17:52:59|Editor: Liangyu

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CAIRO, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian Foreign Ministry welcomed on Saturday a U.S. decision to end 20-year trade embargo against Sudan, the ministry said in a statement.

The decision will contribute to enhancing stability and development in Sudan after a long time suffering from the consequences of sanctions, said Ahmed Abu Zeid, the Foreign Ministry Spokesman in a press statement.

He added that the decision comes in line with Egypt's solidarity with Sudan and efforts it has always exerted, including its frequent calls for lifting the sanctions in addition to contacts it held with the U.S. side in that regard.

The economic sanctions on Sudan have been imposed since 1997 over Khartoum's alleged support to Islamist militant groups.

Washington announced Friday it was ending the embargo, citing improvements made by Sudan in its human rights record.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 18:08:04|Editor: ZD

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (Xinhua file photo)

ANKARA, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Saturday that Turkey was conducting an anti-terror operation in Syria's Idlib.

Speaking at the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP)'s meeting in Turkey's western province of Afyonkarahisar, Erdogan said "today a landmark operation is underway in Idlib, and it will continue."

"We won't allow a terror corridor along our Syrian border," he stressed, adding that the operation aims to provide Idlib's security.

Turkish President said that the operation in Idlib is the follow-up of the Euphrates Shield Operation in northern Syria, which was launched on Aug. 24, 2016, in a bid to clear Turkey's border from the Islamic State (IS) and other terrorists.

"The Free Syrian Army( FSA) is currently carrying out the operation and our soldiers haven't yet entered Idlib," Erdogan said, adding that the name of the operation will be announced.

The Turkish army is backing the FSA from within Turkey's borders, while Russian forces are providing air support to the operation, he said.

Erdogan said last month that Turkey would deploy troops in Syria's northwest Idlib province as part of a so-called de-escalation agreement brokered by Russia in August.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 18:18:07|Editor: Song Lifang

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MANILA, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- The Philippine police will impose a gun ban starting Nov. 1 to Nov. 15 as part of the security steps to ensure the safety of world leaders who will gather here for the annual Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit, a news report said Saturday.

The 10 ASEAN leaders and their counterparts from seven ASEAN dialogue partners plus thousands of delegates and journalists will attend or cover the summit.

After the ASEAN leaders summit, the 10 Southeast Asian leaders will also meet leaders from Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Russia, and the United States.

Quoting national capital region police chief director Oscar Albayalde, the Philippine Star reported that police checkpoints will be set up around the capital as part of the security measures.

Albayalde said the police will continue to intensify its campaign to rid (Manila's) streets of criminals for the ASEAN summit.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 18:38:11|Editor: Song Lifang

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QALA-E-NAW, Afghanistan, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Militants loyal to the Taliban burned houses and killed several villagers after seizing control of villages in Badghis, western Afghanistan, local officials said Saturday.

Taliban insurgents killed several villagers and burned houses in some villages of restive Abkamari district over the past day, district chief Mirza Ali told Xinhua.

"Now, militants are using houses as trenches after many villagers took their way to the district's center where they have no access to shelter or food-stuff," he added.

Meantime, Gen. Mohammad Rauf Taj, the provincial police chief, has assured to soon launch a operation to suppress the militants in the remote district.

More than 250,000 Afghans have fled their homes amid conflict in the country so far this year.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 18:53:17|Editor: Liangyu

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BEIJING, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Total assets of China Investment Corporation (CIC), the country's sovereign wealth fund (SWF), surpassed 900 billion U.S. dollars as of August.

The figure is more than triple the original capital of 249 billion U.S. dollars when the fund was founded a decade ago. It has grown quickly to become the world's second-largest SWF, only after the Government Pension Fund of Norway, whose assets reached one trillion dollars last month.

CIC has generated an annual return of 14.35 percent, with that from overseas investment at 5.51 percent.

"Compared with other financial institutions, our biggest advantage is that we are backed by the Chinese market," CIC's general manager Tu Guangshao said.

By the end of 2016, almost half of CIC's overseas investment was in public equities, followed by alternative assets, fixed incomes, cash and others. Around two-thirds of the investment was externally managed.

Tu said CIC's growth in the next 10 years will depend on its efforts to invest in China's economic transformation and push forward the global march.

"CIC will devote itself to serving as a bridge linking businesses and markets at home and abroad," Tu said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 18:58:20|Editor: Song Lifang

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MOGADISHU, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- The African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) has kicked off an induction course for 39 Individual Police Officers (IPOs) to familiarize themselves with the Mission's mandate and standard operating procedures.

A statement from the AU mission said on Saturday the police officers from Kenya, Uganda, Zambia and Nigeria will be in Somalia for a year's tour of duty, where they will mentor their Somali counterparts on the best practices in policing.

"We have standard operating procedures in the Mission and each one of you will be given a copy. Go through it and make yourselves aware of what is required of you in terms of discipline, conduct and the way you interact with one another as well as the host Somalis," AMISOM Police Commissioner Brigadier. General Anand Pillay advised the inductees while opening the induction training.

The training will cover topics such as prevention of sexual and gender based violence, protection of children, humanitarian assistance, community-based policing, and elements of culture and human rights.

Pillay asked the officers to maintain a high level of discipline at all times and work diligently to contribute to Somalia's recovery.

"Our responsibility in Somalia is to build the capacity of the Somali police to a standard where they are able to police their communities and ensure their safety and security. It is a long road ahead," he said.

The AMISOM Police Component is mandated to provide mentorship and operational support to the Somali Police Force (SPF) to help it build the necessary capacity to ably handle the security needs of the country and enable the force to discharge its functions according to internationally accepted standards.
Preliminary Arizona school letter grades are out and the results are not good for some area schools.

Flagstaff High School dropped from being an A school the last time the grades came out in 2014 to a C school. Flagstaff Arts & Leadership Academys letter grade for its ninth through 12th grades dropped from an A to a C. Puente de Hozoho Elementary and Sinagua Middle schools dropped from a B to a D.

Other schools, such as Basis, Northland Preparatory Academy and DeMiguel Elementary schools, did not see a change at all in their letter grades compared to 2014. There were no Flagstaff area schools that saw an improvement in their letter grade.

This years letter grades were based on a number of factors, including results from the AzMERIT tests. The 2014 letter grades were based off the old AIMS test, which was not as difficult. Fewer than 50 percent of students across the state passed the AzMERIT test this year.

According to the Arizona State Board of Education, the kindergarten through eighth grade school grades were weighted as follows: 30 percent for students scoring proficient, 50 percent for growth in student scores, 10 percent for growth and proficiency in scores by English Language Learners and 10 percent for students scoring in the acceleration/readiness.

The formula for calculating the high school grades is different. High school have 30 percent of the grade based on students scoring proficient, 20 percent for growth in scores, 10 percent for growth and proficiency by English Language Learners, 20 percent for a schools graduation rate and 20 percent for a school's college and career readiness.

Schools and districts do have the option to appeal the letter grade.

FALA Executive Director Larry Wallen said the school plans to appeal the C grade for its high school students. Wallen wasnt sure if a snafu that happened with the submittal of the 10th grade AzMERIT scores had something to do with the C grade, but hes appealed to ADE and the Arizona Board of Education.

Wallen explained that the ID numbers for students in the 10th grade were inadvertently replaced with the schools ID number. The error was not caught by the system schools use to submit the test scores to the state, he said. Thats why there are no AzMERIT test scores for 10th graders at FALA this year. Wallen said hes working with ADE and the Az Board of Education to get the situation corrected.

Flagstaff Unified School District declined to comment on the letter grades Friday. Public Relations Coordinator Karin Eberhard said the district had not been released from the embargo on talking about the grades by the Arizona Department of Education. She said the district would be able to speak about the grades on Monday after the embargo was lifted.

The letter grades were due to be released Monday, but the Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting was able to get a copy of the letter grades from ADE after it challenged the departments authority to embargo the grades that had already been released to the schools.

According to ADE Director of Communications Dan Godzich, the grades released to the Center for Investigative Reporting are still a work in progress and are not complete. He recommended waiting until Monday when the final, complete file of grades is expected to be released.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 19:33:28|Editor: Song Lifang

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GAZA, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- The security apparatuses of Islamic Hamas movement in Gaza arrested Noor Eassa, a top Islamic State (IS) leader and three others in southern Gaza Strip, a Hamas-run interior ministry spokesman said Saturday.

Eyad al-Bozzom told reporters that the interior security forces arrested at midnight Eassa and three others in the town of Rafah in southern Gaza Strip, adding that the four had been wanted by the security forces for more than a year.

Eassa and the three others belong to a group close to IS called Ahfad Bayt el-Maqdes, which was involved in firing rockets from Gaza into Israel in the past few months.

Security sources in Rafah town said the four, including Eassa were arrested at a security forces checkpoint in Rafah town. Eassa has been in Libya, fighting with IS and came back to the Gaza Strip last year, according to the sources.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 19:38:29|Editor: Song Lifang

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HANOI, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Vietnamese Transport Minister Truong Quang Nghia has been appointed to the position of secretary of the Da Nang Party Committee, replacing an ousted leader of the central city, Vietnam News Agency reported.

The appointment was made under the decision of the Communist Party of the Vietnam Central Committee (CPVCC)'s Political Bureau which was announced at a conference in Da Nang on Saturday.

The newly-appointed secretary said one of key tasks he wants to fulfill is successfully hosting the APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) Leaders' Week slated for Nov. 6-11, local online newspaper VnExpress reported on Saturday.

Nghia replaced Nguyen Xuan Anh who on Friday was dismissed from the positions of secretary of the Da Nang Party Committee, and member of the CPVCC.

The CPVCC agreed that as the leader of the Da Nang Party Committee, Anh bears the main responsibility for violations and mistakes of the municipal Party Committee's Standing Board, Vietnam News Agency reported.

Anh himself broke organizational and operation rules on the party, and violated the regulations on things party members are not allowed to do, and the rule on party members' responsibility in setting good example.

Anh's wrongdoings and mistakes are serious, putting negative impacts on the prestige of the party organization and himself, and causing discontent among party members and people, Vietnam News Agency quoted the CPVCC's conclusion as reporting.
National Super Alliance (NASA) supporters are dispersed by anti-riot police during the bi-weekly protest by opposition supporters in Nairobi, capital of Kenya, Oct. 6, 2017. NASA supporters on Friday took part in a demonstration to push for the removal of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) top officials for allegedly bungling the Aug. 8 general election. (Xinhua/John Okoyo)

NAIROBI, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- The street protests against Kenya's Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) carried out by supporters of the main opposition party, National Super Alliance (NASA), turned chaotic on Friday in Nairobi and western parts of the country, hurting businesses.

What began as a peaceful march against electoral agency's officials accused of bungling the Aug. 8 polls later turned into violent confrontation between protesters and anti-riot police.

The protests in Nairobi were marked by interludes of calm and running battles between police and opposition supporters who marched towards the headquarters of the electoral agency to demand resignation of senior officials.

Police fired tear gas canisters at rowdy protesters in a busy street forcing businesses to close and pedestrians to scamper for safety.

Heavy presence of security officers near the offices of the electoral body and strategic locations in Nairobi's Central Business District forced the demonstrators to agitate peacefully.

The street protests in Nairobi had subsided in the afternoon though major business outlets like hotels and supermarkets closed doors to avert looting by criminal elements disguising as demonstrators.

There was uneasy calm in the streets of Nairobi on Friday afternoon as business owners and pedestrians remained alert to avoid being caught up in violent protests.

Heavily armed security officers patrolled the streets as traders started opening their businesses.

The situation was different in the lakeside city of Kisumu that became the epicenter of chaos when protesters stormed into a supermarket and engaged in a looting spree before police fired tear gas to chase them away.

Besides looting one of the largest retail chains in the city, protesters in Kisumu raided the premises of water utility and vandalized pipes thereby cutting off the supply of the commodity to residential areas.

National Super Alliance (NASA) supporters take part in a demonstration during the bi-weekly protest by opposition supporters in Nairobi, capital of Kenya, Oct. 6, 2017. NASA supporters on Friday took part in a demonstration to push for the removal of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) top officials for allegedly bungling the Aug. 8 general election. (Xinhua/Charles Onyango)

The police were forced to lob teargas canisters and shoot in the air to disperse supporters opposed to the retention of the IEBC team ahead of the Oct. 26 vote.

Several of them broke into the supermarket, defied workers who tried to stop them and injured some of them. Property worth an unknown amount of money was stolen and the store's windows smashed.

The protesters only left after police fired teargas at them after arriving in Land Cruisers and water cannon trucks.

The crowd left in the direction of Kondele where shops remained closed for fear of similar occurrences.

Hundreds of youthful protesters had on Friday morning blocked major roads in Kisumu thus paralyzing transport before the police chased them and restored order in Kenya's third largest city.

Businesses incurred huge losses on Friday in many towns in western Kenya as opposition supporters heeded a call by their leaders to protest against the electoral agency ahead of October 26 repeat presidential polls.

The protests turned violent in the border town of Busia when mobs hurled teargas canisters at police officers hence triggering violent confrontation that lasted two hours.

Businesses came to a standstill in Busia town that neighbors Uganda as security officers engaged protesters in running battles.

The street protests against the electoral agency were largely peaceful in the Coastal city of Mombasa.

NASA presidential candidate Raila Odinga and his co-principals were conspicuously absent when the street protests took off in their strongholds.

Several local leaders in opposition leaning zones led the protests and vowed to continue with the push for reforms in elections management to avert foul play in future.

The Opposition leaders instructed their supporters to continue with the demos every Monday and Friday until the IEBC heeds to the demands to effect changes at the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission.

NASA is demanding among other issues the firing and prosecution of about 10 IEBC officials among them the chief executive officer, Ezra Chiloba.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 19:53:32|Editor: Song Lifang

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VIENNA, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Austrian grand coalition partner the Social Democrats appears to be struggling to gain traction in the election race in part due to a campaigning scandal, new polling indicated.

The poll conducted by the Linz-based Market Institute on behalf of Der Standard newspaper showed that support for the Social Democrats headed by Chancellor Christian Kern totals only 23 percent.

A further 72 percent of the 800 survey respondents believed the party would be the biggest loser in next Sunday's election.

The poll was conducted after the the media unveiled a campaigning scandal, in which a former party advisor was accused of engaging in untoward campaigning.

Meanwhile, the center-right People's Party led by Sebastian Kurz has maintained its status as favorite to top the vote, as 33 percent of respondents declaring their support, and 74 percent believing Kurz will see victory.

The rightwing Freedom Party also edged the Social Democrats out slightly, with 25 percent of respondents declaring their support, though the institute noted this slight lead could easily change.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 19:58:34|Editor: Song Lifang

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DUBAI, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Hussain bin Ibrahim Al-Hammadi, United Arab Emirates (UAE) Minister of Education, said on Saturday in Abu Dhabi that teachers should "create an environment that promotes learning" and they should embrace new technologies in order to stay "relevant" in the education labour market.

Al-Hammadi said on the opening day of the Qudwa 2017 Global Teachers' Forum that every country that is seeking to promote its knowledge economy has to focus on education.

"We need to leverage technology in the education system, similar to its use in other sectors of the economy," the minister pointed out.

Earlier in the year, the UAE has launched the Centennial 2071 plan which aims at transforming the Gulf Arab state into "the best and most advanced country in the world," with investments into education and new technologies as the driving forces to achieve this objective.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan delivers a speech during a ceremony for veterans and relatives of victims in Ankara on October 27, 2016. (AFP PHOTO)

ANKARA, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Saturday that Turkey was conducting an anti-terror operation in Syria's Idlib.

Speaking at the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP)'s meeting in Turkey's western province of Afyonkarahisar, Erdogan said "today a landmark operation is underway in Idlib, and it will continue."

"We won't allow a terror corridor along our Syrian border," he stressed, adding that the operation aims to provide Idlib's security.

Turkish President said that the operation in Idlib is the follow-up of the Euphrates Shield Operation in northern Syria, which was launched on Aug. 24, 2016, in a bid to clear Turkey's border from the Islamic State (IS) and other terrorists.

"The Free Syrian Army( FSA) is currently carrying out the operation and our soldiers haven't yet entered Idlib," Erdogan said, adding that the name of the operation will be announced.

The Turkish army is backing the FSA from within Turkey's borders, while Russian forces are providing air support to the operation, he said.

Erdogan said last month that Turkey would deploy troops in Syria's northwest Idlib province as part of a so-called de-escalation agreement brokered by Russia in August.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 20:38:42|Editor: Song Lifang

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CAIRO, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Pan-Arab institutions welcomed on Saturday a U.S. decision to end a 20-year trade embargo against Sudan.

The Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement, "the decision will contribute to enhancing stability and development in Sudan after a long time suffering from the consequences of sanctions."

"The decision comes in line with Egypt's solidarity with Sudan and efforts it has always exerted, including its frequent calls for lifting the sanctions in addition to contacts it held with the U.S. side in that regard," said Ahmed Abu Zeid, the Foreign Ministry spokesman in a press statement.

The economic sanctions on Sudan have been imposed since 1997 over Khartoum's alleged support for Islamist militant groups.

Washington announced Friday it was ending the embargo, citing improvements made by Sudan in its human rights record.

Meanwhile, the Arab League (AL) spokesman Mahmoud Afifi said the AL also welcomed the decision that lifted the long-time economic sanctions imposed on Sudan in 1997 and 2006.

The U.S. move came in line with the positive measures taken by the Sudanese government to stop hostilities in all conflict areas, improve the delivery and access of humanitarian aid as well as to cooperate with Washington to resolve regional conflicts and counter terrorism, Afifi added.

The U.S. decision that will be enforced as of Oct. 12 satisfies the AL's repeated demands to lift all U.S. sanctions against Sudan, the AL's spokesperson added.

He pointed out that the decision would empower Sudan to continue promoting peace and development.

Arab Parliament Speaker Mishaal bin Fahm hailed the U.S. decision that has been taken in parallel with "the positive measures taken by Sudan's government at the human rights and the humanitarian aid levels as well as cooperation with Washington to end regional conflicts and combating extremism."

The decision means all trade between the United States and Sudan that was previously prohibited will be authorized and all international banking transactions will be permitted with Sudan. U.S. individuals and companies can now process transactions involving counterparts in Sudan.

However, lifting of the embargo does not mean that Sudan will be taken out of U.S. Department of State's list of state sponsors of terrorism.

Further, other sanctions imposed by the United Nations Security Council related to the conflict in Darfur also continues.

The Arab Parliament speaker reiterated his demand to remove Sudan's name from the list of state sponsors of terrorism.

Salami added "he sent a written message in May to the speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives to demand ending the trade embargo on Sudan and to remove Sudan's name from the list of state sponsors of terrorism."

He pointed out that "Sudan is a key country in fighting terrorism in the Arab and Islamic worlds."
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 20:48:46|Editor: Song Lifang

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RABAT, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Spain has granted Morocco 14.3 million U.S. dollars in loan to finance seawater desalination project, local media reported on Saturday.

The project consists of planning and setting up a factory for seawater desalination, which will supply water to the northeastern provinces of Al Hoceima and Nador, the financial daily L'Economiste pointed out.

The factory will be built by the Spanish company of Tedagua, the same source noted.

Morocco is witnessing an increasing demand for drinking water as the country went through severe drought in 2015.

To ensure the country's water security, the Moroccan government worked in 2015 a National Water Plan which aims at providing universal access to drinking water, improving the output of drinking water supply networks and water use efficiency.

It also seeks to enhance water storage, boost desalination projects, encourage the reuse of treated wastewater, and the possibility of transferring water from areas having excess to those suffering shortage.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 21:13:52|Editor: Song Lifang

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VIENNA, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Economic sanctions between the European Union (EU) and Russia in early 2014 following the Ukraine conflict have led to a decline of 10.7 percent in EU exports to Russia until 2016, a new Austrian study has revealed.

The study from the Austrian Institute of Economic Research (WIFO) says that when factoring in a weakening of the Russian economy, the decline was even as greater as 15.7 percent annually over the given time frame.

It says in 2013 total EU exports to Russia amounted to 120 billion euros (140 billion U.S. dollars), which by 2016 had collapsed to just 72 billion euros (84 billion U.S. dollars).

The study attributes about 40 percent of the lost exports, or about 30 billion euros (35 billion U.S. dollars) in total value, to the results of the sanctions.

And the waning also led to Russia slipping from the fourth-most important trading partner of the EU to the fifth, behind the U.S., Switzerland, China, and Turkey.

In Austria alone, the sanctions are estimated to have caused a decline in exports to Russia of 9.5 percent, and cost about 1 billion euros (1.17 billion U.S. dollars).

Most affected, however, was Cyprus, which saw a massive 34.5 percent collapse in exports to Russia between 2014 and 2016, while exports of Greece (down 23.2 percent) and Croatia (down 21 percent) were also notably impacted.

By industry, the Russian sanctions impacted the exports of EU agricultural products and foodstuffs most, with a 22.5 percent decline.

Manufactured goods exports, in particular cars, saw a 17.7 percent decline, while that of raw materials, in particular iron and steel, fell about 15 percent.

WIFO noted that prior to the dispute, trade relations had been steadily improving, with EU exports to Russia increasing about 23.5 percent a year between 2009 and 2012.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 21:23:55|Editor: Liangyu

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NANNING, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Southeast Asian countries remain top destinations for Chinese outbound tourists during the National Day holiday, according to the China Tourism Academy.

Monitoring data from the academy showed that Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines are among the 10 most popular destinations for outbound travelers during the holiday from Oct. 1 to 8, said Dai Bin, head of the academy.

Over 45 percent of the travelers chose Southeast Asian countries, Dai said. He attributed the boom to a rapidly increasing number of flights between China and its southeastern neighbors and the latter's favorable visa policies for Chinese tourists.

Among the 10 ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) members, nine offer visa-free or visa-on-arrival policies for Chinese tourists. More than 2,700 flights fly between China and ASEAN countries every week.

Lu Lingxi from south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region said his family had not thought of going to Bali until Sept. 29. However, the late decision did not disrupt their trip, thanks to the visa-free policy of Indonesia.

In 2016, more than 30 million trips were made between China and ASEAN countries, compared with 10 million in 2011. The two are each other's largest overseas tourist destinations and largest sources of tourists, said a report on bilateral tourism cooperation issued in September.

2017 marks the China-ASEAN Year of Tourism. Promoting regional economic integration through tourism is part of the theme of the 14th China-ASEAN Expo held in Guangxi last month.
PHOENIX  In a warehouse in north Phoenix on Saturday morning, a woman sat on the floor among piles of toothbrushes, toilet paper and soap. She packed a cardboard box full of diapers then taped it shut. A man picked up the box and set it against the wall.

The woman started fresh with a new box, carefully packing newborn diapers.

Community members worked through the day as part of relief efforts after Hurricane Maria, a category 5 storm, devastated the island of Puerto Rico. The warehouse was the headquarters for donations to be dropped off, sorted and packed into trucks. Volunteers will drive the trucks to Florida and the supplies will then be flown to Puerto Rico.

Many of the volunteers had family in Puerto Rico. Some were still waiting to hear if their childhood homes were still standing. One woman said her brother was dying in the hospital because he didnt have access to the medicine he needed. Zulema Rodriguez, one of the organizers of the donation drive, didnt know if her aunts, uncles and cousins were alive.

And that wasnt her only worry.

I keep thinking about my grandmothers grave, Rodriguez said. Im wondering if her remains are just washed away.

Rodriguez said the event started as a few people in the Puerto Rican Phoenix community wanting to help their island.

From there, it grew.

We started off storing things in our houses, she said. We ran out of space. Our houses were full, our cars were full. We never thought wed need a warehouse. We never thought itd be this big.

The warehouse space was donated, as were the supplies, the trucks and the volunteers time. The motivation was simple.

Our families need to know that we worked hard for them, Rodriguez said.

Puerto Rican music played through the day. Volunteers kept unpacking supplies, labeled them and repacked them. Children helped, stacking supplies in neat piles.

Around noon, pizza was delivered. A group of doctors had heard about the event and bought lunch for the volunteers.

Lillian Ortiz, a Valley local of Puerto Rican descent, was walking through the warehouse when her friend spotted her. Her friend jumped and screamed and laughed, hugging Ortiz and kissing her cheeks. Ortiz was in Puerto Rico on vacation with her boyfriend when the hurricane hit. Now, she was back in the Valley safely and lending a hand to those still on the island.

When the hurricane hit, Ortiz and her boyfriend Pedro Espinoza Jr. were in their hotel. They gathered in a large room with the other guests, who brought pillows and blankets.

You hear all the noise, Ortiz said. All the banging on the walls and the wind and things falling and you dont know whats going on.

The Wi-Fi and telephone networks were spotty and worked only intermittently. Ortiz said the power was out at the hotel. She wasnt able to use a debit or credit card and was left with only the cash she had on hand. When the Wi-Fi was working, Ortiz posted a quick Facebook status to tell her family that she was safe. She didnt know what was happening outside the walls of the hotel. She didnt know if her hometown had been leveled or was still standing. She received messages from Puerto Rican friends in the United States, asking about their own family members.

That was sad because we didnt have information, Ortiz said. I thought maybe in the States they had more information than we had.

Eventually, Ortiz was able to visit her hometown in Puerto Rico, which isnt far from the hotel she was staying in. She checked on her family. Thankfully, she said, everyone was okay. Friends in the United States asked her to check on their families. She was able to make contact with some of them. She took videos of herself with her friends families and sent them back to the States. She felt lucky to give her friends some relief.

She understood that not knowing was the worst part.

Representative Raul Grijalva of Legislative District 3 (D-Ariz.) stopped by the event. He walked slowly through the warehouse, shaking hands and patting people on their backs. Volunteers stopped what they were doing to greet him.

Just that morning, President Donald Trump had tweeted about the poor leadership ability by the Mayor of San Juan. He said Puerto Ricans want everything done for them and that the island had been totally destroyed. In Rep. Grijalvas opinion, Trump should concentrate on the humanitarian crisis instead of a fight with the mayor of San Juan.

The Puerto Rican community here (in the Valley) has responded with great strength and without any fanfare, Grijalva said. Lets compare that to whats going on with the administration.

Grijalva noted the differences between relief efforts after Hurricane Irma in Florida and Hurricane Harvey in Texas.

In other words, treat the people of Puerto Rico and its 3.4 million American citizens the same way we treated the people in Texas and the same way we treated the people in Florida.

As noon faded into the early afternoon, a young woman stood on a stack of water bottle cases. A young man stood next to her. They yelled for the volunteers attention. They congratulated them on a job well done.

And then they sang.

They sang traditional Puerto Rican songs. They clapped. They smiled. They chanted. Ortiz wasnt surprised by the spirit of the volunteers even in the face of grief, uncertainty and disaster.

Well be okay, she said. Well be okay. Were gonna survive and were gonna be better.
Refugees from South Sudan rest at a refugee camp in Sudan's White Nile state near the border with South Sudan on May 17, 2017.(Xinhua/Mohamed Babiker)

JUBA, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said Friday that it will gradually resume operations in South Sudan's western Equatoria region, which were suspended following the killing of its staff last month.

A South Sudanese national, who worked as driver with ICRC, was shot on Sept. 8 while delivering relief assistance.

The ICRC said since the shooting, they have carried out only life-saving activities, such as medical evacuations for the wounded.

"Since the tragic incident, we have received assurances and security guarantees and now feel confident to gradually restart to our activities in the Equatoria region," said Francois Stamm, ICRC's head of delegation in South Sudan.

"At the same time, we renew our call to all parties to the conflict to respect the neutrality of humanitarian workers and the Red Cross. Any attack on our staff and other humanitarian workers is unacceptable and seriously hinders the delivery of much-needed humanitarian assistance," Stamm added.

The activities of the ICRC in the Equatoria region include distribution of seeds and tools to communities, visits to detainees in prison, and medical evacuations.

According to the UN, South Sudan has become a hostile environment for aid workers. Since the outbreak of civil war in the East African country in 2013, more than 80 aid workers have been killed, including 18 this year alone.

Refugees from South Sudan wait for relief materials at a refugee camp in Sudan's White Nile state near the border with South Sudan on May 17, 2017. (Xinhua/Mohamed Babiker)

Under international humanitarian law, intentional attacks against humanitarian relief personnel may constitute war crimes.

South Sudan has been embroiled in more than three years of conflict that has taken a devastating toll.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 21:33:57|Editor: Song Lifang

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NEW DELHI, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Four women members of a family and their security guard were found killed inside a house in New Delhi, the national capital of India, police said Saturday.

The bodies of a 82-year-old woman and her three daughters were found stabbed along with their security guard in their residential house in Mansarovar Park area in Shahdara of east Delhi.

"Today we received a call about bodies lying inside a flat, and immediately we rushed police teams to the spot," a police official said. "A case has been registered and investigations are underway. The bodies have been sent for post-mortem."

Police officials suspect the dispute over property behind the gruesome killings.

Reports quoting police officials said preliminary investigation showed "no forced entry" into the house and no signs of theft inside the house.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 22:29:05|Editor: ZD

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TAIPEI, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Police in Taiwan are taking measures to help a local bank trace lost funds due to hacker attacks, which might reduce the bank's losses to less than 500,000 U.S. dollars.

The Far Eastern International Bank reported its system was hacked earlier this week, with implanted malware affecting some of its personal computers, servers and the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication's network.

Hackers were found to conduct virtual transactions to move funds to other destinations while no leaks of customer information were reported.

Taiwan's criminal investigation bureau said Saturday it had launched an investigation into the hacking incident and retrieved part of the lost funds thanks to the help of the International Criminal Police Organization.

Banks on the island are asked to tighten security control over telecommunications and transactions and an information security network for the financial sector is expected to be built by the end of this year, according to the island's top financial regulator.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 22:39:08|Editor: Zhou Xin

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by Christopher Guly

OTTAWA, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- With the fourth round of talks on revising the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) set to begin next week in the United States, a cross-border dispute between American aerospace giant Boeing and its Canadian rival Bombardier further intensified.

On Friday, the U.S. Commerce Department announced that it would impose an 80-percent preliminary anti-dumping duty against importers of Bombardier's C Series 100-to-150-seat civilian aircraft following a complaint by Boeing that Bombardier allegedly priced its aircraft "millions below production cost in an illegal effort to grab market share in the U.S. single-aisle airplane market." ( The Canadian company announced last year it sold 75 C Series jets, with an option for 50 more, to U.S.-based Delta Air Lines at a price of 5.6 billion U.S. dollars, but has yet to deliver the aircraft.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said in a statement on Friday that "the United States is committed to free, fair and reciprocal trade with Canada, but this is not our idea of a properly functioning trading relationship."

The new duties follows an announcement last week by the Commerce Department that Bombardier's C Series would also face a 220-percent preliminary countervailing tariff based on another Boeing complaint that Bombardier received unfair Canadian government subsidies.

Bombardier called Washington's latest decision "an egregious overreach and misapplication" of U.S. trade laws to prevent its C Series aircraft from entering the U.S. market, and accused Boeing of also selling planes below production cost "for years."

"This hypocrisy is appalling, and it should be deeply troubling to any importer of large, complex, and highly engineered products," Bombardier said in a statement on Friday.

Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland was also sharp in her criticism of the new duty against Montreal-based Bombardier.

In a statement on Friday, she said the Canadian government was "extremely disappointed by and in complete disagreement with" the new tariff that "put[s] at risk the almost 23,000 U.S. jobs that depends on Bombardier and its suppliers."

Freeland said that Chicago-based Boeing "is manipulating the U.S. trade remedy system" to block Bombardier's C Series from being sold in the U.S. "despite Boeing's admission that it does not compete with the C Series."

The U.S. Commerce Department will release its final decision on the anti-dumping duty in December. If the preliminary determination stands, the U.S. International Trade Commission will proceed with its countervailing investigation against Bombardier and release its decision in February.

But whether or not Bombardier's jets will face import duties of 300 percent, Boeing may have lost a major sale in Canada.

Last month, the U.S. government approved the sale of 18 Boeing Super Hornet jets to the Canadian military, at a cost of 6.4 billion Canadian dollars (about 5.1 billion U.S. dollars), to replace Canada's aging fleet of CF-18 Hornets from McDonnell Douglas, which merged with Boeing in 1997.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will be in Washington next week when the NAFTA negotiations resume. He is likely, as his International Trade Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne suggested last week, to send the "strong message" that "Boeing has not demonstrated to be a trusted partner" with Canada.

Champagne warned that "there will be consequences" -- essentially repeating Trudeau's threat to cancel the planned purchase of the Super Hornets.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 22:44:10|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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ADEN, Yemen, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Officials of Yemen's internationally-backed government received on Friday in the southern port city of Aden another batch of emergency aid supplies provided by the Chinese government.

In July, high-ranking officials of Yemen's Public Health and Population Ministry received the first batch of the emergency humanitarian aid supplies from China at Aden's seaport.

The Chinese government has announced a grant of 150 million yuan (22.5 million U.S. dollars) as relief assistance to Yemen, in addition to 5 million yuan (750,000 U.S. dollars) for the UN World Food Programme and 2 million yuan (300,000 U.S. dollars) for the World Health Organization, in an effort to contain a cholera outbreak sweeping across the war-torn country.

The Chinese government has pledged to continue its full support for the Yemeni people and remain in coordination with the Yemeni government and the United Nations in delivering humanitarian assistance to the needy in Yemen.

The conflict in Yemen has continued for more than two years and caused a catastrophic humanitarian crisis in the country, which has left more than 10,000 people killed, including 1,500 children, over 35,000 injured, and about 3 million displaced.

It is now the largest humanitarian crisis in the world, where two thirds of the population, or nearly 19 million, need assistance and more than 7 million are suffering from hunger.

According to the World Health Organization, there have been 704,544 cholera cases and 2,103 deaths across Yemen's 22 provinces since the outbreak began in March.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-07 23:04:13|Editor: Zhou Xin

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KATHMANDU, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Nepalese Foreign Secretary Shanker Das Bairagi left here for Bangladesh on Saturday to attend a meeting of the Bilateral Consultative Mechanism (BCM).

Bairagi and his Bangladeshi counterpart Shahidul Haque will hold the one-day meeting in Dhaka on Sunday where the entire gamut of bilateral relations will be discussed, according to officials.

"Matters to enhance bilateral cooperation in such areas as trade and investment, transit, connectivity, tourism and people-to-people contacts, education, hydro-power and water resources will be discussed," the Nepalese foreign secretary told Xinhua before heading to Dhaka.

The two sides will discuss issues of common interests in regional forums such as the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) and the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTC) and in the United Nations, foreign ministry officials said here.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Bilateral Consultations between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Nepal and Bangladesh was signed in July 2012.

The MoU envisaged the establishment of a mechanism for regular consultations between the two foreign ministries to further strengthen the relations between the two countries.

As per the MoU, the foreign secretaries would meet annually to consult on bilateral, regional and multilateral issues of common interests of both countries.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-08 00:09:28|Editor: huaxia

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MANILA -- The Philippine police will impose a gun ban starting Nov. 1 to Nov. 15 as part of the security steps to ensure the safety of world leaders who will gather here for the annual Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit, a news report said Saturday.

The 10 ASEAN leaders and their counterparts from seven ASEAN dialogue partners plus thousands of delegates and journalists will attend or cover the summit. (Philippines-ASEAN Summit-Gun Ban)

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HONG KONG -- The Hong Kong Biodiversity Festival 2017 will offer more than 100 fun-filled activities from October to December to promote the rich biodiversity of Hong Kong.

The "Nature Around Us" Art Exhibition, which is being held on Oct. 7-8, served to launch the Hong Kong Biodiversity Festival 2017. (Hong Kong-Biodiversity Festival)

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ISLAMABAD -- At least 14 people were killed and scores of others injured after a collision between a passenger bus and a van in Pakistan's southwestern province of Balochistan on Saturday, local Urdu TV channel Geo reported.

According to the report, the accident happened at about 11:20 a.m. local time when the driver of the van lost control due to over-speeding and collided head-on with a bus coming from the opposite direction in Mastung, a district located in the southwestern Balochistan. (Pakistan-Road Accident-Toll)

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NEW DELHI -- At least six people died after a boat capsized in a river in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, police said Saturday.

"The incident took place this morning when the boat in which the victims, which included two children, were travelling sank in Saryu river at Behta in Uttar Pradesh," a police official said. (India-Mishap-Boat)

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HONG KONG -- The MTR Corporation said on Saturday that the project of Hong Kong Express Rail Link is now 95 percent completed and the target opening date for the link is the third quarter of next year.

The MTR Corporation organized an open day for Hong Kong citizens to visit the trains of the Hong Kong Express Rail Link on Saturday. (Hong Kong-Express Rail Link) Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-08 00:09:30|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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ANKARA, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron discussed the current situation in Syria and Iraq via phone on Saturday.

Erdogan and Macron exchanged views on developments in Iraq and Syria, as well as bilateral relations and regional issues, state-run Anadolu Agency reported, citing presidential source.

The two leaders stressed the importance of preserving Iraq and Syria's territorial integrity, the source said.

Earlier in the day, Erdogan announced to launch a "serious operation" in Syria's Idlib, while Turkey and Russia jointly plan to set up "de-escalation" zones in Syria.

On Sept. 25, Iraqi Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) held a controversial independence referendum despite fierce opposition from Baghdad and neighboring Iran and Turkey.

According to results announced by the KRG, almost 93 percent of registered voters cast ballots in favor of independence.

Turkey warned that the "irresponsible" referendum would damage the territorial integrity of Iraq and harm regional stability.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-08 02:44:55|Editor: Zhou Xin

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JOHANNESBURG, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- The deputy president of the African National Congress (ANC), the ruling party in South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa, on Saturday said the upcoming 54th national conference will be time for the party to renew itself and reclaim its core values.

"We have to emerge out of that conference united, renewed and reinvigorated. That is the deal time to revamp the party and elect leadership who have got a vision, leadership people believe in and want to follow again," he said in Johannesburg.

Ramaphosa said that the conference should usher leadership that would bring stability in the country leading to progress. He also said the new leadership should come out of the conference with a vow to wipe poverty and unemployment which are the country's biggest challenges.

Ramaphosa, also the South African deputy president, praised China as an example of a country who speedily grew their economy and fought poverty well. "Within a short space of time, China transformed their economy and put it on a higher growth path...Many Chinese have a hope for the future, they have hope that their government will improve the country and the money will not be wasted but used to develop the country. We want South Africans to also have hope for the future."

Ramaphosa said the new ANC leadership should address issues affecting women and the youth.

He said if they do the right thing during the next National Conference, they will win the 2019 Presidential and Parliamentary elections and reclaim the lost municipalities in 2016 during the municipal elections.

The ANC will have their 54th Conference in December to elect the new leadership of the party who will lead the organization for the next five years. Ramaphosa and the former African Union Commission chairperson, Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma are the front runners to succeed Jacob Zuma as the party president.
The USS Michigan nuclear-powered submarine arrives at port of Busan, South Korea, April 25, 2017. (Xinhua/NEWSIS)

WASHINGTON, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Navy on Saturday commissioned its 14th Virginia-class attack Submarine U.S.S. Washington at a naval station in Virginia state.

"The future U.S.S. Washington is among the most technologically advanced platforms in the world," Thomas Dee, Navy Under Secretary, said.

The newly commissioned submarine began construction in 2011, and will be the fourth Virginia Block III model submarine, which replaced 12 individual launch tubes in previous models with two large-diameter each capable of launching six tomahawk cruise missiles.

Virginia-class submarines are currently the most advanced attack submarines in the U.S. Navy, their missions include anti-submarine, anti-surface ship, as well as special operation forces support, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, according to a Navy statement.

The Virginia-class submarines are expected to serve past 2070, and many of its communication and electronic systems are also expected to be used in the developing Columbia class strategic submarines.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-08 02:49:57|Editor: Zhou Xin

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MADRID, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Thousands of people gathered in Madrid on Saturday to defend the Spanish constitution and the unity of Spain almost a week after an illegal independence referendum was held in Spain's northeastern region of Catalonia.

The demonstration was organized by around 50 organizations and people gathered in the Plaza de Colon in Madrid holding flags of Spain and shouting slogans such as "I am Spanish" or "no dialogue with those taking part in a coup d'etat".

The self-determination referendum held six days ago had been declared illegal by Spain's Constitutional Court, as it breached Spanish constitution.

Meanwhile, Saturday also saw thousands of people gathered in city council squares around Spain to ask the Spanish government and the regional government of Catalonia (Generalitat) to talk about the Catalan issue.

People were dressed in white with no flags, as requested by the organizers, a citizens' movement called "Shall we talk?" that was born in social media to encourage dialogue between the central government and the regional one.

According to Barcelona's local police, Guardia Urbana, around 5,500 people gathered in city council square, Sant Jaume, while in Madrid, around 100 people gathered in Plaza Cibeles, the city council square.

Meanwhile, Catalan leader, Carles Puigdemont, announced he would appear in the regional parliament on Tuesday to explain the situation after Monday meeting was banned by the Spanish Constitutional Court.

Several people and groups have offered themselves to mediate, but so far no definitive decision has been taken on the issue.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-08 02:49:59|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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BEIRUT, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Prime Minister Saad Hariri hailed Saturday a female biking tour calling for peace and highlighted Lebanon's efforts for peace and unity, said a press release by the PM's media office.

Kicked off in Lebanon on Oct. 1, the "Pedal for Peace" biking tour arrived in capital Beirut on Saturday with 120 women bikers from 16 countries, who are scheduled to visit across the whole country.

"Lebanon is a country of coexistence, culture, history and beauty; it may witness stages of chaos, suffering and difficulties," Hariri addressed to the bikers. "Despite the diversity in the country, we all live together as if we were one, even if politics separate us sometimes".

British activist Detta Regan, also a sponsor of the event, expressed her gratitude to the Lebanese people.

"We have seen the beauty and diversity of Lebanon. Many of our countries experienced terrorist attacks in the past few months. But we felt safe and happy in Lebanon," she said.

Jawad Sbeity, head of co-organizer "Beirut by Bike", noted the difficulty in inviting these female participants.

"We communicated with several groups in the world working to support women and invited them to Lebanon. Many had bans from their countries to visit Lebanon," Sbeity said.

In the past years after its debut in 2004, the event has covered Syria, Jordan, and Palestine.

"We really thank the Lebanese people who support and sponsor us to come and make this event. The main goal is to realize peace for everybody no matter where they are," Regan added.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-08 03:05:04|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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DAR ES SALAAM, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- After over more than half a year, Tanzanian President John Magufuli on Saturday appointed Angellah Kairuki as new Minister for Minerals.

Kairuki replaced Sospeter Muhongo who was sacked in March after he was implicated in the copper concentrates saga report.

The report submitted to the President revealed possible undeclared exports by mining companies to evade tax.

Mining accounts for about 4 percent of the East African nation's gross domestic product.

Until her new appointment, Kairuki was Minister of State in the President's Office responsible for public service management and good governance where she oversaw the sacking of over 9,000 public servants with fake academic credentials.

Announcing the new mini-cabinet reshuffle at State House in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam, President Magufuli said he has split two ministries into four to facilitate their management.

He said the ministry of Energy and Minerals has been separated into the Ministry of Energy and the Ministry of Minerals, naming Medard Kalemani as new minister for energy. Until his new appointment Kalemani was Permanent Secretary for Energy and Minerals.

The President also separated the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries into the Ministry of Agriculture, and the Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries.

Magufuli said following the split of the two ministries, the number of ministries has increased to 21 ministries from the previous 19 ministries.

President Magufuli also dropped the Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism, Jumanne Maghembe, who was replaced by Hamis Kigwangala who was Deputy Minister for Health.

President Magufuli will swear in the newly appointed ministers at State House on Monday.
120 Bike Riders from 16 different countries take part in a National Ride covering the 5 governorates of Lebanon, which started from Lebanon's northern Tripoli, with an intention of supporting peace and putting end to violence and promoting equality, diversity and racial harmony for the public benefit. (Xinhua photo)

BEIRUT, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Prime Minister Saad Hariri hailed Saturday a female biking tour calling for peace and highlighted Lebanon's efforts for peace and unity, said a press release by the PM's media office.

Kicked off in Lebanon on Oct. 1, the "Pedal for Peace" biking tour arrived in capital Beirut on Saturday with 120 women bikers from 16 countries, who are scheduled to visit across the whole country.

"Lebanon is a country of coexistence, culture, history and beauty; it may witness stages of chaos, suffering and difficulties," Hariri addressed to the bikers. "Despite the diversity in the country, we all live together as if we were one, even if politics separate us sometimes".

British activist Detta Regan, also a sponsor of the event, expressed her gratitude to the Lebanese people.

"We have seen the beauty and diversity of Lebanon. Many of our countries experienced terrorist attacks in the past few months. But we felt safe and happy in Lebanon," she said.

Jawad Sbeity, head of co-organizer "Beirut by Bike", noted the difficulty in inviting these female participants.

"We communicated with several groups in the world working to support women and invited them to Lebanon. Many had bans from their countries to visit Lebanon," Sbeity said.

In the past years after its debut in 2004, the event has covered Syria, Jordan, and Palestine.

"We really thank the Lebanese people who support and sponsor us to come and make this event. The main goal is to realize peace for everybody no matter where they are," Regan added.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-08 03:35:11|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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SANAA, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Unknown gunmen raided a police station in Yemeni capital Sanaa on Saturday and set free 14 prisoners, a security official and witnesses said.

The gunmen launched the attack on the police station in Sabeen quarter in the evening, opening fire at the policemen and damaging two police vehicles before they entered the building, the official told Xinhua.

The prisoners whom the gunmen helped release had been arrested for selling weapons and drugs in the black market.

The gunmen also looted 15 AK-47 rifles, said the official on condition of anonymity.

No casualties were reported from the attack as the police guards did not resist the attackers, said the eyewitnesses.

Sanaa has been under tightened grip of Shiite Houthi rebels since the rebels stormed the city in September 2014.

The security situations, however, have since been widely deteriorated.

The rebels' move has triggered an all-out civil war after the Houthis captured all the government institutions and much of the northern provinces before they forced the internationally-recognized government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to flee into exile in neighboring Saudi Arabia.

The war has killed over 10,000 Yemenis, mostly civilians, and displaced 3 million, according to UN aid agencies.

The war also caused the spread of deadly cholera disease and put around 25 million into the brink of mass famine.
The Chinese embassy in Jordan takes part in one of the biggest annual charity bazaars in Amman, the revenues of which will be donated to help orphans. (Xinhua/Lin Xiaowei)

AMMAN, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese embassy in Jordan on Saturday took part in one of the biggest annual charity bazaars in Amman, the revenues of which will be donated to help orphans.

The fair, known as "Diplomatic Bazaar," was attended by Princess Basma, Chinese Ambassador to Jordan Pan Weifang and other diplomats from over 50 foreign embassies and missions in Jordan.

Princess Basma thanked the embassies for their participation in the bazaar, praising their social responsibility and kindness in supporting the orphans.

The Chinese embassy brought to the fair with a number of Chinese products including textile, handcrafts and souvenirs.

The Chinese embassy's participation in the bazaar was also part of the celebrations to mark the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the diplomatic ties between China and Jordan.

Khetam Ali, one of the visitors who visited the Chinese embassy's booth, said he enjoyed it very much.

"Every year I make sure to come to the bazaar. I like its idea because it is like we visit many countries at the same time in one place," said Ali.

Mohammad Nasser, who visited the bazaar with his wife, praised the idea of holding such a charity fair. "The objective of the bazaar to support the orphans is noble," he said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-08 04:45:20|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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MAPUTO, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- The Mozambican police announced Saturday that they had released 41 women who were victims of human trafficking imprisoned in a house in Matola, Maputo province.

The police spokesman Inacio Dina said that the victims from Mozambique were imprisoned to wait for their passports so that they could travel to South Africa.

"We identified a leader of the operation who acted as the owner of South African companies," he said without clarifying whether the alleged perpetrator has been detained or not.

Since the beginning of this year, the Attorney General's Office of Mozambique has reported 11 cases of human trafficking and the majority is related to labor exploitation.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-08 04:50:22|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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TEHRAN, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said Saturday that Tehran is ready for dialogue and rapprochement with Riyadh.

"There is a willingness for rapprochement on both sides, and we are willing to talk to Saudi Arabia about our difference," he was quoted as saying by Tasnim news agency.

"We do not believe that Iran and Saudi Arabia should have the type of relationship they have right now," he said.

However, Zarif slammed what he said Saudi Arabia's support for terrorist groups in Syria and its aggression on Yemen, as well as its treatment of Qatar.

"We believe the posture in the Persian Gulf by Saudi Arabia is not a positive one, (like) the policies they pursue against Qatar," Zarif said, adding that Saudi Arabia was using claims of Iranian expansionism to justify its own attempts to exert influence in the region.

"The concepts they are using to muddy the waters, policies that have brought unfortunate disastrous consequences for our region, cannot be justified by these smokescreens of exporting revolutions," he added.

Iran and his regional rival Saudi Arabia are at loggerheads over their influence in the Middle East region.

Saudi Arabia severed its diplomatic relations with Iran in January 2016, following demonstrations in front of the Saudi embassy in Tehran and its consulate in the northeastern city of Mashhad.

Angry protesters set the diplomatic missions ablaze for the execution of top Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr by Saudi Arabia.

On Saturday, Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi strongly dismissed what he called the recent allegations by Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir against Tehran as "baseless", official IRNA news agency reported.

On Saturday, Jubeir said Iran must be criticized for its interference in the region and support for terrorist organizations.

Whenever Saudis feel pressure for their aggression on Yemen and their supports to terrorism by world public opinion, they lodge "ridiculous and repeated allegations" against Iran, Qasemi said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-08 05:15:28|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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TEHRAN, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Iran said on Saturday that it allows no intrusion into its defense and will boost its capabilities in the sector, state IRIB TV reported.

"We will continue our country's defensive capabilities and policies in full strength and will never allow others' intrusion into this sector," Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qasemi was quoted as saying.

Iran would not accept talks on its "non-negotiable" defensive and missile programs, he said, stressing the importance of maintaining the country's military prowess considering the ongoing complicated situation in the region.

"Our policies are not against any country. Our military policies are completely for defensive objectives," he noted.

A day earlier, Qasemi "categorically" denied the reports that Tehran is ready to talk with powers over its ballistic missile program.

Iran has repeatedly announced that "its defense program will never be subject to negotiations," Qasemi said.

Developing "missile program is Iran's inalienable right and will determinedly be continued in line with the country's strategic and conventional defense program," he added.

On the same day, western media quoted an unnamed source as saying that Iran has suggested to six world powers that it may be open to talks about its ballistic missile arsenal, seeking to reduce tension over the disputed program.

Iran and the United States are at loggerheads over Iran's missile program. Over the past months, Washington has imposed sanctions on some Iranian and international entities linked with Tehran's missile tests.

Iranian military and government officials have unanimously vowed to bolster the ballistic missile program for deterrent purposes.
Balloons wait to take off at the 35th International BalloonFestival in Chateau-d'Oex, Switzerland, Jan. 26, 2013. (Xinhua/Wang Siwei)

HOUSTON, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- The annual Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta kicked off in Albuquerque city in U.S. southwestern state of New Mexico state on Saturday.

Powered by the perfect October climate and a phenomenon called the "Albuquerque Box," a combination of weather patterns and geographic landscape which allows balloonists to control and even retrace their adventure, the event attracts balloon teams from around the world.

The fiesta will last through Oct. 15 at the Balloon Fiesta Park, filling with balloons and concessions selling everything from traditional New Mexican food to balloon memorabilia.

In the wake of the mass shooting in Las Vegas on Oct. 1, security has been stepped up at the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.

During a safety briefing on Thursday at Balloon Fiesta Park in Albuquerque, fiesta officials said that among extra measures, for the first time people entering Balloon Fiesta Park at all gates will have their bags searched, as will people boarding park-and-ride buses.

Police said bag searches had been considered even before the Las Vegas shooting, but that tragic event was the deciding factor in the immediate implementation.

Hundreds of thousands of people from all over the world are expected to crowd at Balloon Fiesta Park during the fiesta's nine-day stretch.

Established in 1972, the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is the world's largest hot air balloon festival, which has more than 500 balloons each year.
Heading down the Trail of Treasures this weekend but unsure about the weather?

There are plenty of indoor options in downtown Beatrice that will help you save a bundle without getting drenched.

NE Rescued Treasureswhich recently opened their new downtown location at 619 Court St. on Oct. 2arent technically on the treasure map, but they originally wanted to be, said owner Scott German. The store will be offering discounts over the weekend at the hybrid thrift shop and art gallery.

Their original pieces, made by artists from three states, take reclaimed items, like glassware, old fans and light bulbs, and form pieces that are functional and a little whimsical. On the thrift shop side, theres traditional fare, like board games and Halloween decor, as well as antique tools and an old school desk.

German, who runs the store with his wife and children, said the shop always offers discounts to veterans and members of law enforcement.

Across the street from Rescued Treasures in the old Apple Studios storefront at 612 Court St., BG Hive is an official Trail of Treasures stop run by Glenna Dorn.

Dorn previously held a Trail of Treasures sale from her garage, but said shes hoping to attract more downtown traffic.

Its a great place to have it, she said on Friday afternoon. Weve had about 15 people so far.

Shes got novelty cake pans in the shapes of lobsters, pigs and more, as well as designer jewelry, woodcut figurines and images made by her father, Pampered Chef merchandise and Tupperware items.

Other vendors on the Trail of Treasures include the Gems and Junk thrift shop at 500 and 502 Court St., which will be open until 6 p.m. on Saturday. The Bargain Box Thrift Store right next door at 506 Court St. is also participating and will be open until 3 p.m. on Saturday, and there will be a sale two doors down from the Black Crow Restaurant at 405 Court St. until 6 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday.

Antiques Paradise will be on the Trail of Treasures on Saturday from 9:30 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. Finally, the Indian Creek Mall at 2205 N. Sixth St. will hold a craft show from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. on Saturday and on Sunday from noon until 5 p.m.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-08 06:10:37|Editor: Zhou Xin

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP)'s meeting in Afyonkarahisar, Turkey, on Oct. 7, 2017. Erdogan announced on Saturday that Turkey was conducting an anti-terror operation in Syria's Idlib. (Xinhua)

DAMASCUS, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- The Turkey-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA) is bracing to enter Syria's northwestern province of Idlib in the next hours, activists said Saturday.

Ibrahim Idlilbi, the media advisor of the FSA, said it will enter Idlib in the next few hours, adding that the Turkish forces will be in the second line to enter Idlib.

The factions included in the Euphrates Shield operation, which are based in different areas in northern Syria, have upped readiness to the maximum over the past three days in anticipation of the entry to Idlib, where Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which includes the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front, is in control of much of Idlib, he added.

The battles against the Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham, Arabic for the Levant Liberation Committee, is linked to the "awareness of the group, if the committee disbanded, there will be no battles, but if it insisted on confrontation, the response will be very hard," Idlilbi noted.

Activists also said around 1,500 FSA fighters reached the Turkish city of Antioch which is near the Syrian cities of Salqin and Harem in the northwestern countryside of Idlib.

Earlier in the day, the Turkish army removed parts of the wall it built between Idlib and the Turkish territory. The removed wall is adjacent to the Bab al-Hawa Border Crossing.

Meanwhile, the HTS said entering Idlib by the Turkish-backed rebels "will not be a picnic."

The al-Qaida-linked group said its fighters and suicide bombers are awaiting the fighters of the Euphrates Shield.

Entering Idlib by the Turkish-backed rebels and possibly Turkish forces comes in the context of the de-escalation zone deal, which was concluded between Russia and Turkey in the recent sixth round of Astana talks on Syria.

The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the movement of the Turkish army and Turkish military vehicles was spotted on the border between Idlib and the Turkish territory.

The Turkish army was opening passages enough for the entry of military vehicles into Idlib.

Earlier in the day, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that Turkey was conducting an anti-terror operation in Syria's Idlib.

"Today a landmark operation is underway in Idlib, and it will continue," Erdogan said at the ruling Justice and Development Party's meeting in Turkey's western province of Afyonkarahisar.

"We won't allow a terror corridor along our Syrian border," he said, adding that the operation aims to provide security for Idlib.

The Turkish president said the operation in Idlib is the follow-up of the Euphrates Shield Operation in northern Syria, which was launched on Aug. 24, 2016, in a bid to clear Turkey's border of the Islamic State (IS) militants and other terrorists.

The Turkish army is backing the FSA from within Turkey's borders, while Russian forces are providing air support to the operation, he said.

Last month, Erdogan said Turkey would deploy troops in Syria's northwest Idlib as part of a de-escalation agreement brokered by Russia in August.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-08 06:25:41|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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MEXICO CITY, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Category-one Hurricane Nate intensified early Saturday as it moved over the Gulf of Mexico on its way to the U.S. mainland.

While Nate was not expected to affect Mexican territory, the National Meteorological Service (SMN) reported the storm's winds picked up speed to reach 150 km per hour, with gusts of up to 175 kph.

The storm was forecast to grow into a category-two hurricane by around 7 p.m., as it reached the U.S. coast.

At 10 a.m., the hurricane was located 555 km north of Mexico's eastern Yucatan Peninsula, and 285 km southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River in the southern United States, with a projected path leading northwest at 43 km per hour.

Nate's trajectory away from Mexico led the SMN to call off a storm watch that was in effect for the eastern states of Quintana Roo, home of tourist town of Cancun, and Yucatan.

As a precautionary measure, Cancun's 38,000 tourists were recommended on Friday to hunker down inside their hotels, the Cancun hotel association said in a press release.

As a tropical storm, Nate caused severe flooding in parts of Central America that left at least 22 people dead in Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Honduras.
Ten juniors and seniors from Beatrice High School were among more than 200,000 high school students around the country to take part in national Manufacturing Day on Thursday.

As a part of Manufacturing Day, BHS students took a trip to several manufacturing sites around town, all part of a partnership between Beatrice High School, NGage and the manufacturers students visited.

Keep your head on a swivel and have fun, said NGage Executive Director Walker Zulkoski before students made their first stop at Continental Carbonic Products. These guys do cool stuff, so take it all in.

Continental Carbonic, which makes dry ice in a variety of forms. Located about a mile north of the Homestead, BHS students got a chance to see what goes into making dry ice.

Assistant Plant Manager Leroy Coffield walked the students around the plant, showing the different sizes of dry icewhich is carbon dioxide in its solid form. Coffield, who has been with Continental Carbonic for six and a half years, got his start in one of the companys factories in Ohio and made his way to Beatrice about a year ago.

Coffield hopes the BHS students will find inspiration on Manufacturing Day, and come away with prospects for their future.

I like to talk about the fact that we promote from within to try to get people to realize that hard work does pay off, he said. That's the biggest thing. Hard work and dedication pays off in the end.

Thats the whole point to the tour, said Jen Prososki, a guidance counselor at Beatrice High School. High school is all about getting ready for the adult world and, while some kids will head on to college, some want to get out and start working right away.

Its just to let them know their options after high school, Prososki said. We want them to be college and career ready. That way they know, if they enjoy doing more hands-on work, they know that there are options here in Beatrice.

A four-year or two-year degree isnt for everyone, Zulkoski said. The purpose of Manufacturing Day, he said, is to show students that there are opportunities waiting for them in their own community.

It's not like the old steel mills, dirty working, he said. There's some high tech stuff in manufacturing and by getting kids out to see it, it's going to open their eyes and their minds.

Manufacturing can include a variety occupations, he said. There are the assembly line jobs, of course, but there are also sales, engineering and marketing jobs available. On top of that, theres an opportunity to move around until you find the spot that fits you.

Students also visited Worldlawn Power Equipments world headquarters, which produces home and commercial grade lawnmowers, as well as snow throwers and other equipment.

Their final stop was at Neapcofounded as the New England Auto Products Corporation in 1924which produces original and aftermarket driveline components for cars, trucks, ATVs and other vehicles.

Matt Miller, safety and environmental manager at Neapco, told the students that even if they decide theyd like to attend college while working there, they can make it happen.

You can come here, work full-time, go to college full-time and get both of them knocked out at the same time, and still not be missing anything or accruing any tuition, Miller said. It takes a little time and a little extra effort, but you're going to find out from a majority of us that we all started out on the floor and worked our way through.

Erin Chadwick, an NGage employee assisting with the tours, said the goal of the day was all about opening the students' eyes to possibilities.

Seeing the clean, comfortable facilities that offer good working environments were different than the dirty, sweltering factories that a lot of people tend to picture when they consider manufacturing.

I think the locations that gave tours today were so different in scope, Chadwick said. It's pretty eye-opening for them, I think. There's been some light bulb moments.

Working with high school students and getting them engaged with local industries is the key to keeping a younger generation in Beatrice, Zulkoski said.

We have great industry and really good jobs," Zulkoski said. "We just need to get that information out into the schools and to the kids so they stay here or come home.
Text of Press Statement by Prime Minister during India-EU Summit (October 6, 2017)

New Delhi, Sat, 07 Oct 2017 NI Wire

Your Excellencies, President Tusk and President Juncker,

Distinguished delegates,

Members of the media,

I am delighted to have the opportunity to welcome President Tusk and President Juncker for the 14th India-EU Summit.

India values her multi-faceted partnership with the EU, and we attach high importance to our strategic partnership. India was amongst the first countries to establish diplomatic relations with the European Economic Community in 1962.

The European Union has been our largest trade partner for a long time. It is also one of our largest sources of Foreign Direct Investment.

As the worlds largest democracies, we are natural partners. Our close relations are founded on the shared values of democracy, rule of law, respect for fundamental freedoms and multiculturalism.

We also share the vision of a multi-polar, rules-based international order. Since the 13th Summit in Brussels last year, our relationship has steadily gained momentum. To use the words of President Juncker a few days ago, India-European Union relations today have a good wind in their sails!

Friends,

I am heartily thankful to President Tusk and President Juncker for the productive discussions that we have had today on our wide-ranging agenda.

We have expanded the India-EU engagement into many new sectors and have agreed that we must continue our efforts to make it more comprehensive and beneficial, based on mutual trust and understanding.

Today, we have reviewed the progress in implementation of the decisions taken at our last Summit, and the Agenda 2020 announced last year.

We have agreed to strengthen our security cooperation and work together against terrorism. We will not only further strengthen our bilateral cooperation on this issue, but will also increase our cooperation and coordination in multilateral fora.

On Clean Energy and Climate Change, we are both committed to the 2015 Paris Agreement. Addressing climate change and promoting secure, affordable and sustainable supplies of energy are our shared priorities. We also reaffirmed our commitment to undertake mutual cooperation for reducing the cost of deployment of renewable energy.

We will strengthen our cooperation with European Union in developing Smart Cities and upgrading urban infrastructure.

I am pleased that the India-EU Horizontal Civil Aviation Agreement has now been operationalized. I am confident that this will enhance air connectivity between us and help to foster people-to-people contact.

An important aspect of our relationship is our cooperation in Science and Technology, and in Research and Innovation. In this context, I welcome the Agreement concluded today on mobility of young scientists and researchers.

The signing of loan agreements for development projects in India with the European Investment Bank is also a welcome step.

I also appreciate the decision of the European Investment Bank to fund solar-related projects in member countries of the International Solar Alliance.

We are also committed to working with the EU to further deepen our cooperation in strengthening our trade and investment flows.

Your Excellencies,

I thank you for your leadership and your contribution to the strengthening of the India EU strategic Partnership. It is my hope and expectation that your next visit to India would not be such a brief one!



Thank you.

Thank you very much.

Source: PIB
PM Modi to visit Gujarat on 7th and 8th October, 2017

New Delhi, Sat, 07 Oct 2017 NI Wire

The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, will be visiting Gujarat on 7th and 8th October, 2017.

On the morning of 7th October, the Prime Minister will visit the Dwarkadheesh Temple. At Dwarka, he will lay the Foundation Stones of a bridge between Okha and Beyt Dwarka; and other road development projects. He will address a public meeting.

From Dwarka, the Prime Minister will arrive in Chotila, in Surendranagar district. He will lay the Foundation Stones for a greenfield airport at Rajkot; six-laning of Ahmedabad-Rajkot National Highway; and four-laning of Rajkot-Morbi State Highway. He will also dedicate a fully automatic milk processing and packaging plant; and a drinking water distribution pipeline for Joravarnagar and Ratanpur area of Surendranagar. He will address a public meeting.

The Prime Minister will then proceed to Gandhinagar. He will dedicate the newly constructed building of IIT Gandhinagar, and launch the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan (PMGDISHA). PMGDISHA is aimed at imparting digital literacy to citizens in rural areas. It will provide access to information, knowledge, education, and healthcare. It will create avenues for livelihood generation, and financial inclusion through digital payments. He will address a public meeting.

On the morning of 8th October, the Prime Minister will arrive in Vadnagar. This will be Shri Narendra Modis first visit to the town, since assuming the office of Prime Minister. He will visit the Hatkeshwar Temple. At a public meeting, the Prime Minister will launch the Intensified Mission Indradhanush, to accelerate progress towards the goal of full immunization coverage. It will provide greater focus on urban areas and other pockets of low immunization coverage. The Prime Minister will distribute e-tablets to health workers to mark the launch of ImTeCHO. ImTeCHO is an innovative mobile phone application to improve performance of ASHAs through better supervision, support and motivation for increasing coverage of proven maternal, newborn and child health interventions among resource-poor settings in India. ImTeCHO stands for Innovative mobile-phone Technology for Community Health Operations. TeCHO in Gujarati means support; therefore, ImTeCHO means I am support. The Prime Minister will address a public meeting.

The same afternoon, the Prime Minister will arrive at Bharuch. He will lay the foundation stone for Bhadbhut Barrage, to be built over the Narmada River. He will flag off the Antyodaya Express between Udhna (Surat, Gujarat), and Jaynagar (Bihar).He will unveil plaques to mark the laying of foundation stone, and inauguration of various plants of Gujarat Narmada Fertilizer Corporation. He will address a public meeting.

The Prime Minister will return to Delhi on the evening of 8th October.

Source: PIB
Ongoing discussion on Economy in country is good for democracy: Vice President

New Delhi, Sat, 07 Oct 2017 NI Wire

Inaugurates International Conference on Technological Advancements in Railway & Metro Projects 2017

The Vice President of India, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu has said that the ongoing discussion on Economy in the country is good for democracy. He was addressing the gathering after inaugurating the International Conference on Technological Advancements in Railway & Metro Projects 2017, here today, organized by the Defence Infrastructure Planning & Management Council, the Ministry of Railways, the Ministry of Urban Development and the Niti Aayog. The Union Minister for Railways and Coal, Shri Piyush Goyal, the Chairman, Railway Board, Shri Ashwani Lohani and other dignitaries were present on the occasion.

The Vice President said that any transformation or reformation will have hiccups in the initial stages. He further said that revolutionary taxation and reformation is taking place in the country.

The Vice President quoted the World Bank President, Mr. Jim Yong Kim, who has described the recent slowdown in economic growth in India as an aberration, which is mainly due to temporary disruptions in preparation for the GST. He went on to recall the World Bank Presidents statement that this aberration will get corrected in coming months and that the GST is going to have a hugely positive impact on Indian economy. He also cited recent reports that indicated a significant increase in sales of cars, televisions and refrigerators as compared to last year showing an upswing in consumer spending.

The Vice President said that with urbanization taking place at a rapid pace in India, the need for efficient and cost-effective transport is critical in ensuring faster mobility and sustainable development. He further said that new concepts such as Transit Oriented Development should be tried out and promoted which will improve the lives of people living around the metro stations in a big way.

The Vice President said that the Indian Railways need to plan for a massive expansion very meticulously with forward looking, efficient technologies and innovative practices currently available across the globe and adopt them to serve our countrys aspiring population. He further said that the IT revolution sweeping the world, to which India has also been a major contributor, is bound to improve the efficiencies in signaling, communications and safety and help in areas like intelligent transportation systems.

The Vice President said that in the Indian ethos, we believe that science and technology are tools to improve the quality of life and we say Bahujana hitaya, bahujana sukhaya implying that we aim at the good of humanity at large and also care for the happiness of the entire population on this planet. We also believe this is possible if we are open to new ideas and concepts, either home grown or from outside, he added.

The Vice President expressed his hope that the discussions and the deliberations in this two-day conference will provide a fast-track approach to build many state of the art railway systems that will improve the economy and the quality of life of people in India and the rest of the world.

Following is the text of Vice Presidents address:

I am extremely happy to address this august gathering at the inaugural session of the International Conference on Technological Advancements in Railways and Metros.

From its origin purely as a colonial project in 1853, the Indian railways has emerged today as one of the largest rail networks in the world and an important economic engine in the growth and development narrative of India. It is estimated that in the next five years the Indian Railways will be the third largest railway system in the world accounting for 10 per cent of the global market.

With its extensive network, Indian Railways caters to lower, middle and upper middle classes for both, short and long distance travelling. It also one of the largest employers in the government and generates informal employment through forward and backward linkages.

Rail historian and journalist, Christian Wolmer, in an article succinctly summed up the transformative role played by the railways. He said: Nowhere other than India is the railway so indelibly connected with the image of the nation. Just as there is no single country on earth that has such a broad cultural, ethnic, and racial mix as India, there is also no railway system that has played and, crucially, continues to play such a fundamental role.

The Indian Railways connects the vast country through its extensive network of 64,000 km of track covering about 8,000 railway stations and 1,00,000 bridges as well as signalling and telecom network. It provides transport services to about two crore or 20 million passengers every day. Each day, 20,000 trains criss-cross the length and breadth of India serving, in a year, a population of about 700 crore (seven billion) people and transporting more than 1,000 MT (billion tons).

With the number of passengers projected to touch thirty million in the next few years and the demand for transportation of goods also touching four million tons of freight daily in the near future, the railways are poised for a massive expansion.

I am told that investments to the tune of Rs. 8 lakh crore are planned in the next five years on various projects in the railways.

With urbanisation taking place at a rapid pace in India, the need for efficient and cost-effective transport is critical in ensuring faster mobility and sustainable development.

As part of meeting the growing transport demand in cities, several new metro rail projects are in different stages of execution, apart from those in operation at Kolkata, Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore, Kochi, Lucknow and Mumbai. Metros are under construction at Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Nagpur, Noida, Navi Mumbai and Pune, among others. Several others are under consideration and planning. Once various metros become operational, the intra-city mobility will improve by leaps and bounds.

I also understand that new concepts such as Transit Oriented Development being tried out will improve the lives of people living around the metro stations in a big way.

So, friends, the Indian Railways will have to plan for this massive expansion very meticulously. It will have to look for technologies and innovative practices currently available across the globe. It will have to be forward looking, efficient and adopt the state of the art technologies that serve our countrys aspirational population. Against this backdrop, this conference is very timely.

I am glad that this international conference is focusing on a host of technologies that are going to play a key role not only in improving the services but also in the safety of the commuters.

The IT revolution sweeping the world, to which India has also been a major contributor, is bound to improve the efficiencies in signalling, communications and safety and help in areas like intelligent transportation systems.

I am glad that we have amidst us the Inventor of Maglev, also called magnetic levitation train. Maglev trains are very fast trains. Maglev trains float over a guide way using the basic principle of magnetic repulsion. This technology is apparently even ahead of High Speed Railways. Recently, we have embarked on collaboration with Japan to introduce high speed, bullet trains.

I am glad that technology is being harnessed for the welfare of the common man. In the Indian ethos, we believe that science and technology are tools to improve the quality of life and we say Bahujana hitaya, bahujana sukhaya implying that we aim at the good of humanity at large and also care for the happiness of the entire population on this planet. We also believe this is possible if we are open to new ideas and concepts, either home grown or from outside.

The ancient visionaries in India had given expression to this receptive approach when they said: Aano Bhadrah Kratavo Yantu Vishwathah (Let noble thoughts come to us from all sides). We should continue to build on this commonwealth of knowledge and wisdom.

Technology will also be a potential ally for improving the safety and security and enhance the quality of passenger experience. I hope this Conference will provide some new insights in this regard drawn from the global best practices.

The managers of our railway system must use every opportunity to update their knowledge and skills. Even the best systems in the world have to constantly keep learning and doing things differently to serve the populations better.

With about eight lakh crore planned investments, opening up of FDI in rail infrastructure and implementation of GST, I am sure the Indian railways will stand to benefit particularly in the long-distance transportation in the years ahead. Technology along with managerial excellence can chart a new trajectory.

The discussion which is going on our economy is always good for our democracy. But at the same time, we need to understand the experience. If some transformation or any reformation is going on, there will be some initial hiccups. But at the end of the day, it will help. A revolutionary taxation and reformation is taking place in the country. In future there will be a very happy situation with such a massive transformation taken place in a vast country like India.

The World Bank Chief, Mr. Jim Yong Kim has said that the recent slowdown in economic growth in India as an aberration mainly due to temporary disruption in preparation for the GST. That will be corrected in coming months. He also said that the GST is going to have a huge positive impact on Indian economy.

There is a discussion going on slow-down. Sales of cars, televisions and refrigerators increased more than 15 per cent in this Navaratri and Dassehra from last year. This shows how the country is moving forward.

I take this occasion to welcome all the experts gathered here today, congratulate the organizers and wish the conference a grand success.

I do hope that the discussions and the deliberations in this two-day conference will provide a fast-track approach to build many state of the art railway systems that will improve the economy and the quality of life of people in India and the rest of the world.

I wish to conclude with a fervent wish and a prayer from the 10th chapter of the Rig Veda that emphasises how we must continue this Jnana Yagna - the churning of ideas and sharing of creative thoughts- on a continuous basis with a common objective- creating for every one the happy world we all want:

SAMAANI VA AAKOOTIH

SAMAANI HRIDAYANI VA

SAMAANAMASTU VO MANO

YATHA VAH SUSAHASATI

May our intentions and aspirations be alike, so that a common objective unifies us all .

JAI HIND!

Source: PIB
India - EU Joint Statement during 14th India-EU Summit, New Delhi (October 06, 2017)

New Delhi, Sat, 07 Oct 2017 NI Wire

1. The 14th annual Summit between India and the European Union (EU) was held in New Delhi on 6 October 2017. The Republic of India was represented by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The EU was represented by Mr. Donald Tusk, President of the European Council, and Mr. Jean Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission.

2. The leaders reviewed the wide-ranging cooperation under the India-EU Strategic Partnership. Recognising that India and the EU are natural partners, the leaders reaffirmed their commitment to further deepen and strengthen the India-EU Strategic Partnership based on shared principles and values of democracy, freedom, rule of law and respect for human rights and territorial integrity of States.

3. The leaders expressed satisfaction at the progress made towards implementing the India-EU Agenda for Action 2020  the roadmap for bilateral cooperation endorsed during the 13th India-EU Summit.

4. The leaders committed to work in a result-oriented and mutually beneficial manner to further strengthen the India-EU Strategic Partnership by deepening their trade cooperation, enhancing investment flows in both directions and broadening dialogue and engagement on global and regional issues, including climate change, as well as migration and the refugee crisis, and resolved to further strengthen their bilateral and multilateral cooperation in these areas.

5. The leaders commended the strong engagement of the European Investment Bank in India in a wide range of key sectors, in particular in the field of climate action and renewable energy.

6. The leaders underlined the importance of regular high level contacts to enhance India-EU co-operation and mutual understanding. They noted the fruitful outcome of the India-EU Foreign Ministerial Meeting in New Delhi on 21 April 2017. Foreign Policy and Security Cooperation  Partners for Security.

7. They agreed that India and the EU, as the worlds largest democracies, share a desire to work closely together and with all relevant players to support a rules-based international order that upholds agreed international norms, global peace and stability, and encourages inclusive growth and sustainable development in all parts of the inter-connected and multipolar world. They welcomed the growing convergence on contemporary global issues and agreed to enhance India-EU cooperation in all multilateral fora. They also recognised their common responsibility towards ensuring international peace and security, and an open and inclusive international order.

8. The leaders confirmed their commitment towards conflict prevention and sustaining peace as fundamental aspects of promoting security and prosperity, fostering non-proliferation and disarmament, and agreed on the need for the global community to unite to address the menace of terrorism and safeguard the security of the global commons  sea lanes, cyber space and outer space. They welcomed the 5th India-EU Foreign Policy and Security Consultations held in New Delhi on 25 August 2017  a platform to further deepen cooperation in the political and security area.

9. The leaders reaffirmed their commitment to an open, free, secure, stable, peaceful and accessible cyberspace, enabling economic growth and innovation. In particular, the leaders reaffirmed that International Law is applicable in cyberspace, and that there was a need to continue and deepen deliberations on the applicability of International Law to cyberspace and set norms of responsible behaviour of States. The leaders welcomed the holding of the 5th Global Conference on Cyberspace in New Delhi on 23-24 November. The leaders noted that the bilateral Cyber Dialogue provided a strong foundation for existing and future cooperation and welcomed the holding of its latest round in New Delhi on 29 August this year, and the next India-EU Cyber Dialogue in Brussels in 2018.

10. The leaders strongly condemned the recent terrorist attacks in many parts of the world, underlining their common concern about the global threat posed by terrorism and extremism. They adopted a Joint Statement on Cooperation in Combating Terrorism with a view to deepening their strategic and security cooperation, and expressed their strong commitment to combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, based on a comprehensive approach. The leaders resolved to step up cooperation through regular bilateral consultations and in international fora. In this context, they welcomed the India-EU Dialogue on Counter-Terrorism on 30 August 2017 in New Delhi, and the joint commitment to explore opportunities to, inter alia, share information, best practices, including regarding countering the on-line threat of radicalisation, and to engage in capacity building activities, such as training and workshops. They also emphasised the need to deepen cooperation within the UN and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

11. The two sides reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening global non-proliferation efforts as highlighted at the India-EU Non-proliferation and Disarmament Dialogue in New Delhi on 18 July 2017. The EU congratulated India on its admission to the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR). The EU welcomed Indias subscription to The Hague Code of Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation (HCoC) and noted Indias intensified engagement with the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), the Wassenaar Arrangement and the Australia Group, which strengthens global non-proliferation efforts.

12. India and the EU reaffirmed their commitment to enhance maritime security cooperation in the Indian Ocean and beyond. Both sides noted the recent joint manoeuvres (PASSEX) between the EU Naval Force and the Indian Navy off the coast of Somalia, as a successful example of naval cooperation. The EU looks forward to India's possible participation in escorting World Food Program vessels in the near future. They also underlined the importance of freedom of navigation, overflight and peaceful resolution of disputes, in accordance with the universally recognised principles of International Law, notably the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) 1982. Both leaders attached importance to the security, stability, connectivity and sustainable development of Oceans and Seas in the context of developing the "blue economy".

13. Both sides agreed to enhance the India-EU space cooperation, including Earth observation.

14. India and the EU reiterated the importance they attach to human rights cooperation, including on gender equality and women empowerment in all spheres of life. In this regard, they looked forward to the next session of their dialogue to be held in New Delhi and supported enhancing interaction in international fora, in particular the UN General Assembly and the UN Human Rights Council.

15. The two sides expressed support to the Government and the people of Afghanistan in their efforts to achieve an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned national peace and reconciliation. The two sides remain determined to counter all forms of terrorism and violent extremism, considering them fundamental threats to international peace and stability. India and the EU underline the importance of the regional and key international stakeholders to respect, support and promote a political process and its outcome in order to ensure peace, security and prosperity in Afghanistan. The EU appreciated the positive role being played by India in extending development assistance in Afghanistan, including for building social and economic infrastructure, governance institutions and human resource development and capacity building. Both sides reconfirmed their commitment to promoting peace, security, and stability and supporting Afghanistan on its development path to become a self-reliable and prosperous state.

16. India and the EU expressed deep concern at the recent spate of violence in the Rakhine state of Myanmar that has resulted in the outflow of a large number of people from the state, many of whom have sought shelter in neighbouring Bangladesh. Both sides took note that this violence was triggered off by a series of attacks by Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) militants which led to loss of lives amongst the security forces as well as the civilian population. Both sides recognised the need for ending the violence and restoring normalcy in the Rakhine state without any delay. They urged the Myanmar authorities to implement the Kofi Annan-led Rakhine Advisory Commissions recommendations and work with Bangladesh to enable the return of the displaced persons from all communities to Northern Rakhine State. India and the EU also recognised the role being played by Bangladesh in extending humanitarian assistance to the people in need.

17. India and the EU reaffirmed their support for the continued full implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) regarding the Iranian nuclear issue. They recognised confirmation by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that Iran is complying with its nuclear-related JCPOA commitments. India and the EU called for the full and effective implementation of the deal, which has been endorsed by the UN Security Council and is a crucial contribution to the non-proliferation framework and international peace, stability and security.

18. Both sides condemned the nuclear test conducted by DPRK on 3 September 2017, which was another direct and unacceptable violation of the DPRK's international commitments. They agreed that DPRKs continued pursuit of nuclear and ballistic missile programmes and its proliferation links pose a grave threat to international peace and security, and called for the complete, verifiable, irreversible denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, which has been endorsed by the UNSC and the Six Party Talks. Both sides stressed the responsibility of those who support DPRKs nuclear and missile programmes. They also stressed the importance of unity of the international community in addressing this challenge, ensuring that all UNSC sanctions are fully implemented by the entire international community, so as to maximize pressure towards achieving a peaceful and comprehensive solution through dialogue.

19. Regarding the situation in Syria, India and the EU reaffirmed the primacy of the UN-led Geneva process and called for full support for the intra-Syrian talks with a view to promoting a political solution in Syria. Protection of civilians and territorial integrity is fundamental and all parties to the conflict and their supporters are expected to live up to their commitments. India and the EU reaffirmed that only a credible political solution, as defined in UNSCR 2254 and the 2012 Geneva Communique will ensure the stability of Syria and enable a decisive defeat of Da'esh and other UN-designated terrorist groups in Syria. India and the EU agreed that the second Brussels Conference on Syria in spring 2018 will contribute to sustain international commitment to Syria.

20. On the Middle East Peace Process, India and the EU reiterated calls on parties to engage constructively so that a just, lasting and comprehensive resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, based on the two-state solution, could be achieved on the basis of relevant United Nations resolutions, the Madrid Principles, the Arab Peace Initiative, for peace and stability in the Middle East.

21. The two sides also reiterated their full support to the UN facilitated Libyan-led and Libyan-owned political process to forge a lasting solution to the political crisis in Libya. Establishing an inclusive government and building peace and stability in Libya is in the interest of the entire international community.

22. India and the EU acknowledged the importance of connectivity in todays globalised world. They underlined that connectivity initiatives must be based on universally recognised international norms, good governance, rule of law, openness, transparency and equality and must follow principles of financial responsibility, accountable debt financing practices, balanced ecological and environmental protection, preservation standards and social sustainability.

23. Both sides underlined the importance of ASEM as an informal platform for connecting Asia and Europe. Both sides also agreed to give new impetus to ASEM in the run up to the next ASEM Summit to be hosted in Brussels, where the focus would be on tackling global challenges together.

24. The leaders underlined their strong support for a diplomatic solution to the conflict in eastern Ukraine through the full implementation of the Minsk Agreements by all parties in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 2202 (2015).

25. The EU hoped for a swift solution, through the due process of law in India, in the case of MV Seaman Guard Ohio, which concerns fourteen Estonian and six British citizens sentenced to prison by an Indian court. Global Challenges  Multilateral Cooperation.

26. Both sides reaffirmed their support to the new United Nations reform agenda on the three reform tracks of peace and security, development and management reform. The two sides' commitment to stronger global governance also translates to reforming the bodies and organs of the UN system, including the comprehensive reform of the UN Security Council as well as the revitalisation of the work of the General Assembly, better aligning the work of its committees with the 2030 Agenda.

27. The two sides agreed to work bilaterally and with partners in the G20, the United Nations and other multilateral fora to address emerging challenges to international security, global economic stability and growth.

28. The leaders reaffirmed the crucial role of the rules-based multilateral trading system, and the importance of enhancing free, fair, and open trade for achieving sustainable growth and development. They reaffirmed their commitment to work together with all Members of the WTO to make the eleventh WTO Ministerial Conference a success with concrete results, which would reaffirm the centrality of the rules-based multilateral trading system and its importance for open and inclusive global trade.

29. Both sides recalled the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the joint commitment to its implementation with the complementary new EU Consensus on Development and India's "sab kasaath, sab kavikas policy initiatives, and reaffirmed the importance of global partnerships to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and poverty alleviation. In this regard, they reiterated their commitment to collaborate on common priorities and looked forward to exploring the continuation of the EU-India Development Dialogue. Both sides also recognised the need to mutually reinforce the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030.

30. The EU welcomed India's contribution to peace and development in Africa, including its participation in UN Peacekeeping Missions. The EU and India expressed their commitment to enhancing their consultations and cooperation regarding Africa, with a view to optimising possible synergies between their respective initiatives. They looked forward to India's participation as an observer at the next EU-African Union Summit. Partners in Prosperity through Increased Trade and Economic Cooperation; Partners in India's Modernisation

31. The EU leaders welcomed Indias efforts to promote economic and social development and expressed the EU's continued interest in participating in Indias flagship initiatives such as "Make in India, "Digital India, "Skill India, "Smart City, "Clean India, and "Start-Up India. The EU closely follows Prime Minister Modis economic reforms, including the historic introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), which can facilitate ease of doing business and promotes market integration in India by realising a simple, efficient and nation-wide indirect tax system. Prime Minister Modi appreciated the ongoing participation by EU companies in the flagship initiatives and called for their deeper engagement in Indias developmental priorities. The EU side encouraged the greater participation of Indian business organizations into the Enterprise Europe Network. The leaders noted the progress made on EU-India cooperation on resource efficiency and circular economy. Both sides agreed to enhanced cooperation and exchange of experience and best practices in the field of Intellectual Property rights (IPR) and public procurement.

32. The Leaders expressed their shared commitment to strengthening the Economic Partnership between India and the EU and noted the ongoing efforts of both sides to re-engage actively towards timely relaunching negotiations for a comprehensive and mutually beneficial India-EU Broad Based Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA).

33. Both parties recognised the importance of trade in agricultural products in general, and rice in particular, and agreed to work together to resolve issues that have the potential of disrupting trade. With regard to import tolerance level of tricyclazole in rice (Commission Regulation (EU) 2017 / 983) the relevant plant protection companies will be invited to present new scientific data in order for the European Food Safety Authority to carry out an additional risk assessment without delay. On this basis, the European Commission would expeditiously consider whether to review the above mentioned Regulation. Both sides supported the early institutionalisation of cooperation between the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), to focus on exchange of knowledge and expertise in the area of methodologies for data collection, risk assessment and risk communication. Furthermore, the EU and India have agreed to further strengthen their cooperation on food safety, notably by:

a. Strengthening existing dialogues like Agricultural and Marine Working Group, SPS-TBT Working Group to cover issues on food safety and agricultural trade between the relevant Indian ministries/departments and relevant European Commission services.

b. Initiating joint projects in areas such as good agricultural practices, development of traceability capacities, and cooperation in laboratory activities, including testing and monitoring.

c. The EU would welcome Indias application for protection as a geographical indication of Basmati and shall process any such future application, as expeditiously as possible.

d. India welcomes EUs intention to expeditiously initiate the process of recognising additional seed varieties of Basmati rice under Article 28 of the GATTS 1994 for duty derogation, as already requested by India.

34. Leaders welcomed the establishment of an Investment Facilitation Mechanism (IFM) for EU investments in India as a means to improve the business climate and hoped that the IFM will ease sharing of best practices and innovative technology from the EU to India. Leaders acknowledged that the "Make in India initiative may offer investment opportunities for companies based in the EU Member States.

35. Leaders welcomed the establishment of the South Asian Regional Representative Office of the European Investment Bank (EIB) in India and noted that its investments, especially in urban mobility and renewable energy projects, will support India-EU collaboration on the Climate Agenda. The leaders welcomed the new 500 million EIB loan agreement for Bangalore Metro Phase-II Project, which is part of EIBs enhanced commitment of 1.4 billion in loans to India in 2017.

36. The leaders noted the ongoing positive discussions and the exchange of a Joint Declaration between the Interim Secretariat of the International Solar Alliance (ISA), and the European Investment Bank (EIB) aimed at mobilising investments for broad-based deployment of affordable solar energy applications across the 121 prospective member countries of the ISA.

37. Both sides adopted a Joint Statement on Clean Energy and Climate Change, reaffirmed their commitments under the 2015 Paris Agreement, and agreed to co-operate further to enhance its implementation. India and the EU noted that addressing climate change and promoting secure, affordable and sustainable supplies of energy are key shared priorities and welcomed the progress on the Clean Energy and Climate Partnership, adopted at the 2016 EU-India Summit, and reiterated their commitment to its implementation and further development, in accordance with the work programme agreed at the EU-India Energy Panel meeting in October 2016.

38. India and the EU reaffirmed their commitment to undertake mutual cooperation for reducing the cost of development and deployment of renewable energy projects through technology innovation, knowledge sharing, capacity building, trade and investment, and project establishment.

39. The leaders reiterated the importance of reconciling economic growth and environment protection. They highlighted the importance of moving towards a more circular economic model that reduces primary resource consumption and enhanced the use of secondary raw materials. They welcomed the contribution of the International Resource Panel, the Indian Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (through the Indian Resource Panel) and of the National Institution for Transforming India (NITI Aayog) to developing strategies for this crucial economic transition. Both sides agreed that the newly established G20 Resource Efficiency Dialogue will be an ideal platform for knowledge exchange and to jointly promote resource efficiency at a global level. Leaders also agreed to further intensify cooperation on addressing environmental challenges, such as water management and air pollution, acknowledged the progress in implementing the India-EU Water Partnership, including an agreed action programme, the increased cooperation opportunities on research and innovation, looking forward to the third India-EU Water Forum later in the month.

40. The leaders agreed to work towards an enhanced cooperation on innovation and technology development aiming at actions strengthening cooperation between European and Indian industries and start-up ecosystems.

41. The leaders welcomed the intensified technical cooperation between the Indian and European telecom standardisation bodies (TSDSI and ETSI), supported by the EU, and focusing on future global standards for 5G, Intelligent Transport Systems, Internet of Things, Future Networks and telecom security. Both sides encouraged the stakeholders to broaden this cooperation, demonstrate concrete technological solutions, and strengthen links between "Digital India and "Digital Single Market for Europe.

42. Both sides noted positive exchanges on Internet Governance, on increasing the ease of doing business for ICT companies on both sides, as well as meetings between the Indian and European start-up ecosystems under a "Start-up Europe India Network".

43. The two sides confirmed their interest in further strengthening the cooperation in the area of pharmaceuticals, including capacity building of the regulatory system with particular focus on inspections by creating a more structured and stable training environment. The Indian side also highlighted its interest for cooperation on capacity building of the entire pharmaceutical value chain.

44. The leaders adopted the India-EU Joint Statement on a Partnership for Smart and Sustainable Urbanisation with a view to step up cooperation including with regard to priority sectors such as the upgrading of urban infrastructure for transport and sanitation, developing Smart Cities in India, as well as promoting the New Urban Agenda of the United Nations adopted in 2016.

45. The leaders agreed to scale-up cooperation under the renewed India-EU Science and Technology Cooperation Agreement in frontier areas of science and technology and in addressing current global challenges in particular in the areas of health, water and clean energy. They welcomed the agreement to launch a major joint flagship initiative of 30 million on water-related challenges reflecting the pressing need to cooperate on technological and scientific knowledge and management capacities to cope with increasing stress on water resources. Both sides agreed to work towards reciprocal opening of the EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation 'Horizon 2020' and Indian programmes, and called for an intensified two-way mobility of researchers. To this extent, the two sides welcomed the conclusion of the Implementing Arrangement between the Science & Engineering Research Board (SERB) and the European Research Council (ERC).

46. The leaders encouraged Euratom and the Department of Atomic Energy to conclude the Agreement for Research & Development Cooperation in the field of the Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy. They stressed that this cooperation will contribute to further enhancement of nuclear safety and will be mutually advantageous. The cooperation will also lead to improving the skills and deployment of non-power technologies in the areas of water, health care & medicine, environment, etc., for the benefit of the society.

47. Both sides will continue their strong partnership in the development of fusion energy, building on the agreements to which they are parties, including under the Euratom-India Cooperation Agreement on Fusion Energy research.

48. The Leaders welcomed the imminent operationalisation of the 2008 Horizontal Civil Aviation Agreement, which will enhance air connectivity between India and Europe and help foster greater people-to-people contacts, business travel and increase in tourism. The leaders considered the opportunity to deepen transport cooperation in areas of mutual interest across all modes of transport, notably maritime, aviation, urban mobility and, rail.

49. India and the EU agreed to intensify cooperation in skills development and agreed to find complementarities and synergies between Indias Skill India initiative and the EUs New Skills Agenda for Europe.

50. The leaders emphasised that, as part of the India-EU Agenda for Action 2020, there was a need to work towards strengthening cooperation on higher-education, including through Indias GIAN programme and the EUs Erasmus+ programme. The Erasmus+ programme has just celebrated its 5000th Indian alumni and has offered financing opportunities for institutional cooperation to many Indian universities through joint-masters, short-term mobility, capacity building projects and Jean Monnet actions for EU studies. The leaders welcomed that, overall, India has been the number one beneficiary of Erasmus mobility actions in the world since its creation.

51. The two sides took note of the High Level Dialogue on Migration and Mobility held in Brussels on 04 April 2017. They welcomed the understanding reached in advancing the Common Agenda on Migration and Mobility, including through technical collaboration and undertaking projects in areas of mutual interest, with a view to better organising migration and mobility between India and the EU.

52. The leaders agreed to intensify people-to-people exchanges and facilitate increased travel of tourists, business persons, students and researchers between India and the EU. The Indian side noted the ongoing revision of the EU Blue Card Scheme aimed at easing the flow of highly qualified professionals to the EU.

53. The leaders noted the adoption of the report on "EUs Political Relations with India in the European Parliament and welcomed its recommendations for intensifying the exchanges between the Indian and European parliamentary delegations. The leaders also looked forward to intensified exchanges between scholars, think tanks and cultural delegations.

Source: PIB
Dr. Glenn Stanton from Focus on the Family will offer his perspective on the current gender debate when he speaks in Billings on Friday, Oct. 13, at 7 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 14, at 9 a.m. at the Red Lion Convention Center, 1223 Mullowney Lane in Billings.

Stanton will present the science and social science on gender issues and then discuss how Christians should respond.

On Friday evening, he will begin by sharing his personal stories and experiences from "the front lines of the gender debate," as well as his observations on the culture. Then, at 8, he will highlight what he considers to be the five main contradictions from gender theorists.

On Saturday morning beginning at 9, Stanton will share cutting-edge research on transgenderism, as well as opinions from some leading, secular clinicians on treating gender dysphoria in children. Then, at 10:15, he will conclude by offering guidance to Christians on how to respond to this debate with love, grace and the truth.

Stanton is the Director of Family Formation Studies for Focus on the Family. He discusses issues of gender, sexuality, marriage and parenting at universities and churches throughout the world. He served as a consultant for the George W. Bush administration to encourage increased fatherhood involvement. He has written eight books, including "Loving my (LGBT) Neighbor in Grace and Truth."

Tickets for the event are available at bigskyworldview.org under EVENTS for $10, or $12.00 at the door.

The event is sponsored by the Big Sky Worldview Forum. For more information, contact Dick Pence at 406-672-9207 or rapence45@gmail.com
PM Modi addresses public meeting in Chotila, lays foundation stone for greenfield airport for Rajkot

Gujarat, Sat, 07 Oct 2017 NI Wire

The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, today addressed a public meeting at Chotila, in Surendranagar district. He laid the Foundation Stones for a greenfield airport for Rajkot; six-laning of Ahmedabad-Rajkot National Highway; and four-laning of Rajkot-Morbi State Highway. He also dedicated to the nation, a fully automatic milk processing and packaging plant; and a drinking water distribution pipeline for Joravarnagar and Ratanpur area of Surendranagar.

The Prime Minister said that it was hard to imagine an airport in Surendranagar district. He said such development works empower citizens.

He said aviation cannot be about rich people. We have made aviation affordable and within reach of the lesser privileged, he added.

The Prime Minister said that the definition of development has changed. From the days when handpumps were seen to be a sign of development, today the waters of the Narmada River have been brought for the benefit of citizens. He said Surendranagar district tends to benefit a lot from the waters of the Narmada.

He urged people to use water responsibly, and conserve every drop. The Prime Minister said that the Sursagar Dairy would bring enormous benefit to the people. He also recalled how former Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel had worked towards making better and safer roads.

Source: PIB
The Academic Staff Union of Universities, University of Benin chapter, Edo State, has condemned the killing of a senior lecturer of the institution by gunmen, describing it as one death too many.

It also blamed the incident on the high level of insecurity in the state, which he said had kept the citizens under siege.

This is just as the Peoples Democratic Party blamed the increasing crime rate to the huge number of unemployed youths in the state, a claim the state government dismissed as false.

The deceased lecturer, Prof. Paul Otasowie, was said to have been shot dead in front of his residence on Ekehuan road in Oredo Local Government Area of Edo State on Wednesday evening.

Otasowie, who was of the Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and a former Director of the institutions Student Industrial Work Experience Scheme, was said to have been shot while in his car in a manner in which many suspected to be an assassination.

Although the police command could not be reached for comments on the matter, as the Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Moses Nkombe, neither responded to calls or a text message sent to his telephone number by our correspondent, three suspects were said to have been arrested in connection with the killing.

However, the Chairman of the union in the institution, Prof. Julius Iyasele, said, As it were, citizens of Edo State and Nigeria at large are under siege because within the space of one or two months, a number of our colleagues have been kidnapped or murdered in cold blood. A few days, a colleague from Ekiti State University, who is a council chairman in one of the polytechnics in Bayelsa, was shot at on the Benin bypass.

The bullet pierced through the stomach of the driver and came out from the other side. The boy was just only lucky. And they said that they had just left a police checkpoint on the bypass when it happened. I dont know whether we have security agents in the state.

Yesterday, one of our colleagues in-law who visited at Ekiadolor was also picked by kidnappers. When they (family) went to drop the money to release the person, from the experience of the victim, the people (kidnappers) were with sub-machine guns because they had bullets strapped around them.

Iyasele faulted the disbandment of community development associations without an alternative for the dependants and called on the state government and the Nigeria Police to step up their security strategies in order to protect lives and property.

According to him, The state government stopped CDAs and there is no alternative to them. These boys (CDA members) are people who are to used spending big-time money. You blocked area boys and there is no alternative; you have simply unleashed terror on the people.

The actions (outlawing CDAs) but what we are saying is that you should have provided an alternative that is so simple to get.

On its part, the PDP in a statement signed by it Publicity Secretary, Mr. Chris Nehikhare, alleged that high level of crime was occasioned by the new policy thrust of the state government.

It, therefore, called for collaborative efforts between government and security agencies in order to tackle the menace,

The statement read in part, The we-will partner-with-you government in Edo State should stop chasing shadows and tackle substance. The insecurity in the state is most likely a direct consequence of the new policy thrusts of this government.

This advice has become imperative as our lives are no longer safe with the daily reports of kidnapping and armed robbery. No investor will come to Edo with the crime rate the way it is, especially when there seem like no effort is been made in trying to tackle it.

Reacting, the Special Adviser to the governor on Media and Communication Strategy, Mr. Crusoe Osagie, said that while there was no excuse for engaging crime, the state had a better employment record than any of its peer states in the South-South region.

I think we should allow the police to carry out their constitutional responsibility. Many people have that the governor is the chief security officer of the state; of course, he is.

But you are aware that the Federal Government is solely responsible for the administration, management and operation of the police and all other security agencies in the country. The responsibility of ensuring law and order rests squarely in the security agencies, led by the police.

And the police have made statement concerning the professor, that it is cult-related and they have three people in custody. So, I think that should be the narrative, instead of trying to put political colouration into it.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has denied the report that it colluded with some banks to prevent the remittance of some funds into the treasury single accounts (TSA) as directed by the federal government.

In a statement by Ndu Ughamadu, its group general manager, group public affairs division, the corporation described the allegation as not only misplaced but equally misleading.

Ughamadu said the corporation had earlier taken steps to inform the presidency, office of the accountant general of the federation, (AGF) and the Central Bank of Nigeria, (CBN) on the existence of the said accounts prior to the creation of the federal government asset recovery account.

It would be totally out of place to move the funds to the federal government asset recovery account as reported, the statement read.

It is unreasonable and sheer waste of funds to pay any agent five percent, whistleblowing fee for the phantom recovery of genuine NNPC funds which had been disclosed to the presidency, CBN and other relevant stakeholders.

Based on this superior argument, the consultant appointed by government to investigate the alleged hidden remittances was instructed to withdraw the pending court case against some commercial entities at the federal high court, Lagos.

The statement said in line with the directive of the presidency, the apex bank is supervising the remittance of the funds to the CBN TSA account.

The NNPC said as an entity with fiduciary responsibility to the government and people of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, its commitment to transparency and accountability remains unwavering.
Former President of Nigeria, Goodluck Jonathan, has said that the United Nations is failing in its responsibility to ensure global peace.

Jonathan stated this at a panel, on the dialogue of civilisations at Rhodes Forums 15th anniversary summit in Greece.

Speaking on the theme, Multipolarity and Dialogue in Regional and Global Developments: Imagining Possible Futures, the former president said dialogue remains crucial to the realisation of a peaceful world.

According to Jonathan, the UN security council charged with the responsibility of maintaining international peace has been more effective in opening new frontiers for conflicts, rather than providing answers to the ones it sought to resolve.

He also said the UN may have succeeded in preventing third world war, but cannot boast of ensuring global peace.

That the world needs peace is a declaration no one ever contests, given what the absence of peace portends, Jonathan said.

The ongoing wars in Syria, Iraq, distressing Rohingya dilemma in Myanmar, as well as a threat of conflicts and wars in other parts of the world, are all signs that the UN is failing the world.

In each case, the UN was helpless in resolving the conflicts.

That the only road to a peaceful world is through dialogue is also incontrovertible. What then raises a valid contention is the argument over the steps taken by leaders towards realising peace. Are they the right or wrong steps?

At the end of World War II, 51 nations came together to form the United Nations on 24 October, 1945. The UN security council was also formed the same day.

The UN was set up principally as a replacement for the ineffective League of Nations, in order to prevent another world war and guarantee world peace.

In terms of carrying out the mandate of preventing a Third World War, we could say the UN has done exceptionally well up to this moment.

However, we cannot say the same thing over its mandate of ensuring world Peace as it is obvious that the UN has not achieved much in this regard.

From 1945, when 51 nations came together and now that the UN has 193 member states, the world has not known real peace.

He said Nigeria and some other African countries by employing intense and purposeful dialogue have resolved, as well as prevented, many conflicts and stabilised and strengthened democracy in many countries in the sub-region.

He, therefore, called for a review of the UNs approach to dialogue.

Late Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, a Nigerian philosopher and musician of international repute, tried to rebrand the UN in his own way, by calling it Disunited Nations. He might have exaggerated.

Nonetheless, his grouse was that nations, going through bitter conflicts were all members of the UN, he said.

Yet, the global body, primarily set up to guarantee world peace, appears not to have been able to muster the required willpower, to resolve those issues that cause conflicts, for decades.

The security council which is the most powerful UN organ, with primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security, cannot inspire that confidence, because of the way it is presently configured.

If anything, the system, which has remained unreviewed in over half a century, has been more effective in opening new frontiers for conflicts, rather than providing answers to the ones it sought to resolve.

It is important that all member nations of the UN must have faith in the organisation, and believe that it is fair and representative enough to protect them.

I believe in the UN as an effective global body that should lead the quest for the peace we desire. I am also convinced that for the organisation to bring about world peace, the UN method and approach to dialogue must be reviewed.

The UN dialogue method must, therefore, change.
Pastor Olumide Akinrinlola, the President of Council of Concerned Youth of Nigeria (CCYN), has questioned why several sums of public fund have regularly missed under President Muhammadu Buharis watch.

According to him, it was not an offence to constructively criticise Buhari and keep his government on its toes to forestall the unprecedented looting of the treasury through award of contracts and lack of due process.

In a statement issued in Abuja, Akinrinlola said: I do not like the type of Nigerian who always attaches political sentiment with everything.

Yes! Some of us are well known for constructive criticism against president Buhari and APC government. Its all for the best of Nigeria to always put any ruling government to her toes.

But some of you who see us as opposition voice must also know that they are not honest and true to themselves when most of the time they see every criticism against Buhari and APC government as error or partisanship.

People must also be educated that stealing of money, embezzlement of funds or corrupt practices are not done via bank withdrawals or by taking away physical cash from government vault, but through award of contracts and lack of due process.

Under Same Buhari, Oil money to the tune of $2.8bn was missing as at when our Naira was still having value. That reminds me of the song of Fela Anikulapo of blessed memory.

Again, as PTF Chairman, $500m was also missing which led to the collapse of PTF till date.

Now, as President and Minister of Petroleum, $26bn is missing and you said people are not educated for asking question. You said a serving son of God has committed sin for speaking out his mind.

Some APC stooges call me a political Pastor all because I am used to speaking against the propaganda of this current government to always cover their wrong doing and divert public attention from their corrupt practices.

What manner of Nigerian are you if everything you see about Buhari and APC is all correct?

Why is money always missing under Buhari?
Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, has disapproved of the declaration made by South-East Governors that members of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, are terrorists.

Ogunwusi said members of the group should not be seen as terrorists because they were only seeking justice and equity.

The monarch made the remark on Friday when he paid a courtesy visit to Abia State Governor, Okezie Ikpeazu.

Ogunwusi also referred to the Nnamdi Kanu-led group as the Indigenous People of Brighter Nigeria, IPOBN.

The monarch urged government should tap and channel the energies of agitators towards building a better Nigeria.

He advocated for proper re-orientation as a panacea to negative tendencies.

According to Ogunwusi, There is something that is bordering them; there is something that is making them to cry.

We should not throw them away; we should draw them closer because the youth of this country are the future, the energy, they are the heartbeat of this country.

We must chart the course of doing things with positive energy. I want to let you know that you are not alone in this.

We stand by you positively in a very progressive manner. We stand by you; we all must come together to build a united Nigeria. We dont want any war; we dont want any disintegration.

The problem confronting Nigeria remains the inability to harness the potentials and weld together the diversities to create a strong, united country.
Eight months after the landmark speech of King Mohammed VI at the African Union Summit in which he deplored that the flame of the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU) has faded because faith in a common interest has vanished, the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) came to the same conclusion ringing the alarm bell as to the untenable deadlock in Maghreb integration.

The ECA said in a report presented before the 32nd Intergovernmental Committee of Experts (ICE) in Rabat that the quest of Maghreban countries to join successful regional economic communities in Africa such as the ECOWAS will further undermine the Maghreb Union leading to its eventual demise.

The UNECA noted that Maghreban countries are all seeking alternatives to the Maghreb Union. Even Algeria, the least enthusiastic about Free Trade Agreements and economic integration is oddly seeking membership of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), which also includes Libya, Egypt and Sudan.

Morocco and Tunisia for their parts are forging ahead with their application to join the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). They will respectively become the 16th and 17th member of the regional economic grouping in December during the ECOWAS Summit in Lome, Togo. This membership will put a final nail in the Maghreb Union.

Tunisia has also expressed its willingness to join the Common market for eastern and southern Africa (COMESA), in a move that further indicates deep frustration with the state of immobility affecting the Maghreb Union.

Indeed, the paralysis plaguing AMU actually stands in stark contrast to the dynamism characterizing other sub-regional groupings such as the ECOWAS or the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

More than 27 years after its creation in 1989, the north African regional grouping failed to achieve its main goals: a customs union, which was due to be launched in 1995 and an economic market by 2000. The fact that the last summit of the five countries heads of state took place in 1994 is indicative of the stalemate in regional cooperation.

As the least integrated region in Africa if not in the whole world, AMU has de facto become a cherished dream that never saw the light of the day.

The state of trade between the five AMU countries, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya and Mauritania, does not exceed 3% of total Maghreb trade. It is one of the lowest in Africa if not in the whole world.

In comparison, intra-regional trade between ECOWAS countries reached 10% and 19% for SADC countries.

The lack of regional economic integration in the Maghreb costs 2.5 points of GDP growth for each of the five states, which deprives the region of 220,000 job opportunities annually.

In light of the lack of willingness to reinvigorate AMU along the lines of its founding Marrakesh Treaty, the Maghreb Union will remain one of the worst performing trading blocks in the world pushing its member states to seek alternatives elsewhere.
Putting on a brave face. Photo: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images

Within the span of six months, Prime Minister Theresa May has gone from stolid, unremarkable prime minister to a pariah within her own party.

Her standing has become so untenable that some conservatives attempted a party coup against her on Friday, and British newspapers and politicians are openly wondering whether she can last in power, and if so, for how long.

Her downfall was encapsulated in a disastrous speech on Wednesday at a Conservative Party conference, during which she lapsed into a coughing fit, a (very British) prankster handed her a fake notice of her termination as leader, and in a moment that seemed like it was straight out of the political satire The Thick of It, a letter spontaneously fell off a party-slogan backdrop behind her.

On Friday, May said her cabinet was fully behind her leadership, and several key cabinet ministers came to her defense. But theres no denying that her position is weak, and getting weaker.

Mays declines come amid the backdrop of the U.K.s incredibly complex negotiations to leave the European Union, which havent gained much shape since the country shocked the world by voting for Brexit last June.

Conservatives have split between favoring a hard Brexit  which would cut the country off from both the customs union and single market of Europe, and a soft Brexit, which would ease the country out of the EU in less drastic, though still traumatic, fashion. Conservatives had largely rallied around the second option, their position bolstered by unsettled economic conditions that make a dramatic break from the Continent look less attractive.

When May replaced anti-Brexit David Cameron, a few days after the vote, she was seen as a steady hand in unsteady times. Nominally opposed to EU withdrawal herself, she nevertheless reassured hard-liners with the vague declaration that Brexit means Brexit, and positioned herself as a no-nonsense pragmatist. Her counterpart, Jeremy Corbyn, was leading a Labour Party that had emerged from Brexit at its weakest in decades.

So when May called a snap election in April, it was seen as a savvy political move that would allow her to consolidate her power and gain maximum leverage for the tough negotiations ahead. (The U.K. will officially leave the EU in 2019.)

Instead, May proved to be an uninspiring campaigner at best, while Corbyn galvanized a liberal movement with a laser focus on economic issues. May suffered losses in the election and was forced to ally with the far right. Since then, she has been beset by even more problems, from her widely criticized response to the horrific Grenfell Tower fires to the unrelenting threat of radical Islamic terrorism to the shaky economy. In the meantime, Corbyn, the Labour leader once deemed too left-wing to become prime minister, is plotting a possible ascent to power.

Boris Johnson, the flamboyant, fabulist foreign minister who was a leading force behind Brexit, is seen as a possible replacement if May cant withstand the pressure. He did nothing to tamp down such speculation when he wrote a hard-Brexit polemic that attempted to create the impression of a bold visionary while contradicting his partys softening position. Johnson is a controversial figure, but there are several other contenders, including Brexit Secretary David Davis and Home Secretary Amber Rudd.

Meanwhile, puzzled European Union officials are waiting to see how all the tumult shakes out, and preparing for the once-remote possibility that 2018 may come and go with no Brexit deal in place at all. In the European Union they are looking at this in an incredulous way, wondering how they are managing to go so deep into chaos, Ulrike Franke, a policy fellow in Berlin for the European Council on Foreign Relations, told the New York Times.

In 2016, it turned out that the Vote Leave campaign didnt have a plan in place for the possibility that it might win  a scenario that may sound familiar to American ears. Now, 16 months later, as fallout from Brexit continues to tear the countrys politics asunder, that shortsightedness is looking more irresponsible by the day.
Always happy to talk. Photo: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

In the midst of brazenly sabotaging the Affordable Care Act, President Trump made a phone call to Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer on Friday night to discuss health-care strategy.

President Trump confirmed the somewhat surprising conversation, first reported by Axios, via tweet, though he didnt get into specifics:

I called Chuck Schumer yesterday to see if the Dems want to do a great HealthCare Bill. ObamaCare is badly broken, big premiums. Who knows!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2017

Schumer said that Trump had discussed another attempt at repealing Obamacare (why Trump would run this strategy by Schumer is a mystery), but didnt touch on the big deal Trump referred to:

.@SenSchumer on his call with Pres. Trump re: health care yesterday: pic.twitter.com/4Abf1NEBKK  Phil Mattingly (@Phil_Mattingly) October 7, 2017

Trumps overture to Schumer marks his latest tentative flirtation with bipartisanship. Last month, Trump met with Schumer  whom he has previously called Cryin Chuck  and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and cut an impromptu deal with them on the debt limit, to the dismay of many Republicans. A few days later, he dined with Chuck and Nancy, as he termed the duo, and appeared to carve out another agreement, this one protecting DACA immigrants. (Reports emerged this week that immigration hard-liner Stephen Miller is doing everything he can to torpedo it.)

These moves led to speculation, much of it overheated, that Trump was willing to circumvent Republican frenemies like Mitch McConnell and Paul Ryan, to cut deals with his partner in New York bluntness, and govern anew as an independent-minded pragmatist.

But Trump has not shown any willingness to compromise on health care, even after Republicans have repeatedly failed to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. Instead, his administration, even with Obamacare foe and private-jet aficionado Tom Price out as secretary of Health and Human Services, seems content to undermine the law at every turn. It has decimated funding for ACA enrollment outreach, made Healthcare.gov inaccessible at key times, refused to commit to funding important cost-sharing subsidies, and more. In the latest bit of blatant ACA vandalism, the Washington Post reported on Thursday that President Trump personally vetoed Iowas conservative-minded effort to stabilize its health-insurance markets.

All the uncertainty created by Trump has spooked insurers, many of whom have either fled the Obamacare markets or boosted rates steeply as a result.

Before the latest Obamacare repeal effort failed, Republican senator Lamar Alexander and Democrat Patty Murray had been working on a modest agreement to stabilize the markets, but Republicans walked away when repeal once again seemed like a possibility. Now, the senators are back at it again, and as Schumer said, their work is probably the best starting point for any kind of agreement between the parties. Even such a small-bore measure may have a tough time getting 60 votes in the Senate, however, so the idea that Trump could strike a grand health-care bargain is very likely unrealistic.

Still, its possible that Trump is beginning to realize that his health-care strategy is politically shortsighted. Its unlikely that rising premiums and a climate of uncertainty around health care will not redound to his or his partys benefit in 2018. Perhaps, just perhaps, he understands that Republicans quixotic attempts to repeal Obamacare will not get any easier over time, and that getting the issue off his desk now is the savvy, never mind morally upright, move.

Or maybe he just wants to piss off Mitch McConnell.
From 5 to 8 p.m. on Oct. 13, participants will get an overview of how Red Cross deploys and manages resources during a disaster such as a wildfire or flood, and how it prepares for disasters before they happen. On Oct. 14 from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., attendees will learn how to set up, manage and take down a shelter. Participants also will familiarize themselves with duties performed when running a shelter during a disaster.
The best words. Photo: MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images

President Trump, always good for an unaccountably bizarre utterance or five, repeated the words Puerto Rico in an over-the-top Spanish accent on Friday in front of a White House crowd celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month. Understandably, the incident flew under the radar amid Trumps vague threats of a war his advisors dont yet know about.

We are  praying for the people of Puerto Rico, Trump said in the exaggerated accent. We love Puerto Rico, he said. Puerto Rico, he repeated once more. Reverting to his usual Queens elocution, he said, And we also love Puerto Rico.

Trump says Puerto Rico in an affected Spanish accent three times in a row. (via CBS) pic.twitter.com/FopaVNLqAY  Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) October 6, 2017

Trump seemed to revel in his vocal improvisation, and, judging by the raucous applause the line inspired, his crowd didnt seem to mind much either.

Trumps remarks came on the heels of a typically calamitous visit to Puerto Rico, which is still reeling two weeks after Hurricane Maria devastated the island. In the span of five hours, Trump launched paper towels into a crowd as if he were at a taping of Ellen, told Puerto Ricans they hadnt undergone a real catastrophe like Hurricane Katrina, and much more.

Puerto Rico is still largely without power, and slightly more than half of its citizens have access to potable water. Presumably to obscure some of the negative effects of its sluggish response, the federal government took down data on those two statistics from the FEMA website this week, before restoring the information on Friday.
This may be the calm before the fire and fury like the world has never seen. Photo: Pool/Getty Images

Just as the White House press corps was preparing to head home Thursday night, President Trump summoned reporters to the State Dining Room, where they found him posing for a group photo with his highest-ranking military advisers and their wives. When the president caught sight of the journalists, he asked them, You guys know what this represents?

Before they could answer, Trump said, Maybe its the calm before the storm. Could be the calm, the calm before the storm.

The United States is currently in a diplomatic crisis with North Korea  one in which both nations leaders have threatened the others country with annihilation. The Trump administration is also on the cusp of decertifying Americas nuclear agreement with Iran, potentially knocking over the first domino in a sequence that triggers another U.S. war in the Middle East.

So the reporters were understandably anxious to understand precisely what kind of storm his forecast predicted. But Trump batted away their questions, saying only, Youll find out.

On Friday, reporters once again asked Trump to clarify his remark. Once again, the president replied, Youll find out  only this time, while winking.

Moments later, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters that Trumps calm before the storm prediction was extremely serious, and that the president was definitely not just messing with the press.

Were never going to say in advance what the presidents going to do, Sanders continued. Youll have to wait and see.

Meanwhile, several White House aides told the New York Times that they had no idea what Trump was referring to Thursday night.

Q: What did Trump mean by "calm before the storm"?



Sanders: "We're never going to say in advance what the president's going to do." pic.twitter.com/eXhFi1ww6u  BuzzFeed News (@BuzzFeedNews) October 6, 2017

Shortly before his ominous remark Thursday evening, Trump had said, We cannot allow [North Koreas] dictatorship to threaten our nation or allies with unimaginable loss of life, and vowed to do what we must do to prevent that from happening and it will be done, if necessary. Believe me.

Arms-control expert Jeffrey Lewis has warned that if Kim Jong-un has reason to believe that the U.S. might be on the verge of making a first strike against his regime, then he has an incentive to go first, if he is to go at all.

Maybe, the president keeps coyly suggesting that hes on the brink of starting a major war  while refusing to offer the public any further details  for a compelling national security reason; one so compelling, it is worth the risk of spooking a nuclear-weapons state into launching a preemptive attack on Seoul.

Or maybe Trump just wanted to say something that sounded cool  like that time he promised to meet North Korean threats with fire and fury like the world has never seen.

Well have to wait and see.
Build American. Photo: Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Next week, the Trump administration plans to barge into talks on the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement and toss a giant deal-breaker onto the table: According to the The Wall Street Journal, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer will propose slapping tariffs on all autos and auto parts sent over the Mexican border into the United States, unless said products are constructed from at least 50 percent American-made inputs.

The demand is antithetical to NAFTAs original spirit, which sought to promote duty-free trade between the United States, Mexico, and Canada, while requiring some products to contain a certain percentage of North Americanmade parts to escape tariffs. Currently, cars and pickup trucks traded in the bloc need to have 62.5 percent North American content to avoid such tariffs.

Switching from regional content standard to a national one would be a fundamental change. And, unsurprisingly, Canada and Mexico have no appetite for this revolution.

After Lighthizer first broached the idea at the initial round of NAFTA renegotiation talks in August, Mexicos economy minister Ildefonso Guajardo Villarreal declared, National content is not used in any commercial agreement in the world, because it puts too much rigidities to the companies.

Detroit automakers also object to the proposal  in part, for the very same reason that the Trump administration is pushing it: American car companies have shifted a lot of their production to Mexico. As the Journal reports:

About 56% of the components used to build General Motors Co.s Chevrolet Silveradoits most profitable product globallyis sourced from Mexico, according to federal data. Ford Motor Co.s Fusion family sedan gets 60% of its content from south of the border.

Wed be concerned, said Matt Blunt, president of the American Automotive Policy Council representing the Big Three U.S. auto makers. A poorly crafted rule of origin could have negative repercussions for our global competitiveness.

On Friday, the Chamber of Commerce voiced the fear that the Trump administrations audacious demands will lead to NAFTAs collapse. Today we are increasingly concerned with the state of play with the negotiations, John Murphy, the chambers senior vice-president for international policy, told reporters, according to the Washington Examiner. The concern is that leading with these proposals could lead to a chaotic breakdown in the talks.

Lighthizer has yet to formally submit a specific proposal to our NAFTA allies. The Journals report is based on briefings Lighthizer gave on Capitol Hill  and the strong opposition that members of Congress and other administration officials voiced in response could, theoretically, nip the idea in the bud.

Lighthizers other major proposal should win him considerable support, at least in progressive circles: According to the Journal, the trade representative is looking to weaken the pacts investor-state dispute settlement provisions, which allow tribunals of (predominately business-friendly) attorneys to arbitrate disputes between nations and corporations. Criticism of the procedure has come primarily from left-wing populists like Elizabeth Warren. But because investor-state dispute settlement decisions can override national sovereignty, the issue has the potential to inspire an opposing coalition of progressives and right-wing nationalists.

Ultimately, though, the coalition that supports keeping NAFTA largely as is  Republican lawmakers, Mexican and Canadian diplomats, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Establishment wing of the White House  would seem more likely to prevail in the months ahead.
RIP: John Julian Abel Rwendeire

Dr Abel John Julian Rwendeire, the deputy chair at the National Planning Authority (NPA), died while being rushed to Nakasero hospital in Kampala yesterday morning.

He had been in relatively good health although a day earlier, Rwendeire had complained of chest pain. Family members say his condition suddenly deteriorated overnight.

His death brings to an end a very active working life. In mid-July 1992, Rwendeire was a lecturer in the department of biochemistry at Makerere University. He was also secretary general of Makerere Universitys Academic Staff Association (Muasa).

During those heady days, Makereres dons were pushing for a living wage. They wanted Rwendeire to lead their agitation for increased pay through a strike. But he was appointed principal of the Uganda Polytechnic Kyambogo by government. Reluctantly, he left Makerere and transferred to Kyambogo, where he would serve until 1996.

The sit-down strike was also stopped with assurances from the president that the dons concerns would be addressed in the subsequent financial year.

Up to that point, Dr Rwendeire had been a respected biochemist, under the tutelage of Prof Joseph Carasco, recalls Mwambutsya Ndebesa, a history lecturer at Makerere. There was a general feeling at Makerere that we would have achieved our demands if he had stayed.

In November last year, Rwendeire returned to Makerere as chairman of a visitation committee assigned to inquire into the causes of the rampant strikes at the countrys oldest public university and was yet to hand in his report.

While at Kyambogo, he had sewn together partnerships with the private sector to support internships and job placements for his graduates. The work he did there set the benchmark for later efforts by other tertiary institutions, including Makerere. Promoting linkages between industry and the education institutions is now a norm.

While at Kyambogo, the deceased also chaired the Joint Admissions Board, which is responsible for admissions to all public tertiary institutions.

Some people believe that it was this regular public interface, away from his favoured place in the biochemistry laboratory, which tempted Rwendeire to throw caution to the wind and run for public office. He campaigned for the Rubanda East parliamentary seat, Kabale in 1996, replacing Prof George Wilson Kanyeihamba.

He served one term, during which he was appointed minister of state, initially in the portfolio of tourism, trade and industry (1996-1998), and later as minister of state for higher education (1998-2000).

At the education ministry, he laid the foundation for what is now the Uganda Vocational Qualifications Framework (which permits students with no formal learning to earn certification in their chosen fields). The idea was to integrate the informal sector into the mainstream formal educational processes.

In 2000, he returned to the trade ministry. He is remembered as a voice for innovation among the small and medium- scale manufacturing sector, where he called for more efforts to package whatever Uganda had a favourable comparative advantage in, for the export market.

He lasted one year in this position, before a vacancy opened up at the UN Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) in Vienna, Austria, for managing director (technical cooperation).

Some looked at it as if I had given up on a lucrative government position, Rwendeire said in 2013. Instead, I looked at it as an opportunity to improve on the work I was already doing here.

His job involved advising the UNIDO director general on trade policies across the world with a bias towards sustainable industrial development. At the end of contract in 2006, Rwendeire returned home to head Ugandas delegation at the African Peer Review Mechanism.

He was formally appointed executive director of the National Planning Authority in 2008 and was in charge when Uganda became the seventh country to be peer-reviewed at the summit of African leaders in June 2008 at Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Ugandas experience at the peer review mechanism ended in 2013, but Rwendeire was positive about the outcome.

The reviews led to the formation of a series of national plans of action, which eventually evolved into the national development plan, Rwendeire would later be quoted as saying.



HUMBLE START

Born on October 1, 1951, Rwendeire, had just turned 66 years old days ago. He was born into a humble family in Bushuura village in Kabale where he started school before later joining St Pauls Seminary in the same district in 1968.

The hope was that he would become a priest. He completed his O-levels there in 1971 and transferred to St Henrys College Kitovu for his A-levels in 1972.

He completed his A-levels in 1973, excelling in physics chemistry and biology to join Makerere University in 1974 for a bachelor of science (biochemistry and botany).

He graduated in 1977, transferred to University of Canterbury in New Zealand in 1977 for a masters and doctorate in 1985, before returning to Makerere as a senior lecturer.



LAST DAYS

Reappointed as NPA vice chairperson for a second term, Rwendeire, led an active life and was believed to be in fairly good health.

As recently as September 18, he led Ugandas delegation to the International Atomic Energy Agency conference in Geneva, Switzerland. An avid social media enthusiast, he frequently posted about his experiences.

He came to office on Wednesday. He greeted everybody with a smile. Picked some files. Little did we know that we were seeing him for the last time. Its sad that he is dead, NPA chairman, Dr Kisamba Mugerwa, said yesterday.

He was reportedly suffering from chest pain, but he greeted everybody with a smile before he returned home, after seeing a doctor, Kisamba Mugerwa recalled. We didnt realise that was the last time we were seeing him.

On Wednesday night, he reportedly felt a tightness in the chest and was rushed to hospital where he died early on Thursday.

By the time of his death, he was supervising a study of how Uganda can exploit nuclear power as an alternative source of energy.

In an interview with The Observer yesterday, Dr Joseph Muvawala, the NPA executive director, said Rwendeires passing is a great loss to the nation.

It is extremely hard to find someone who will replace him. It is rare to find someone with his qualification and understanding to the level he had reached in the area of nuclear power. It is a pity, he said.

As planning, we have much hopes in nuclear as an alternative source of energy. Ugandas energy needs and Vision 2040 look at nuclear power as one of the major drivers for industrialisation, Muvawala said.

Besides leading the studies for nuclear power, Rwendeire has also been chairing NPAs committee on audit and finance.

He has been responsible for finding money needed to run our activities. He would always make sure that the funds received by our authority are well spent and that there is value for money, Muvawala said.

Muvawala said that at NPA, Rwendeire had so much pending business.

We were waiting that if he is done with the visitation committee work, he would return to his normal routine but importantly expedite the work of nuclear study, Muvawala said.

Muvawala said the burial arrangements are not yet clear since we are waiting for the arrival of his family from Austria and government.
President Yoweri Museveni

Ten National Resistance Movement (NRM) party legislators have written to President Yoweri Museveni demanding that he distances himself from the Constitutional (Amendment) Bill that seeks to lift the presidential age limit.



The bill if passed by parliament would pave way for the amendment of article 102(b) of the constitution, which caps the presidential age at 75.

If amended, the move would eliminate the last hurdle for President Museveni to seek reelection when his term of office ends in 2021. He is now aged 73, and would not be eligible for another term of office.



The MPs, who are all opposed to the amendment currently before parliament, describe the bill fronted by Igara West MP Raphael Magyezi as divisive, opportunistic and isolationist, adding that it has alienated the majority of ruling NRM members and Ugandans.



The letter is signed by MPs; Theodore Ssekikubo (Lwemiyaga), Monicah Amoding (Kumi), Barnabas Tinkasimire (Buyaga West), Patrick Nsamba Oshabe (Kasanda North), Sam Lyomoki (Workers), Gaffa Mbwatekamwa (Kasambya), John Baptist Nambesha (Manjiya), Alex Ruhunda (FortPortal), Sylvia Rwabwogo (Kabarole) and Felix Okot Ogong (Dokolo South).



They are collectively demanding that Museveni who also doubles as the NRM party chairman urgently convenes a meeting of the Central Executive Committee (CEC), the National Executive Council (NEC), and National Conference to consider and adopt a common position on the proposed amendment.



The MPs also asked Museveni to consider setting in motion, a planned democratic and transparent transition and succession process within the NRM party and national presidency.



"Having risen to the deserved status of 'Father of the Nation'; you owe it to the current and future generation to hand over a stable and vibrant democracy. The gift you bestow to Ugandans is a smooth transition of power." reads the letter.



Addressing journalists at parliament, Tinkasimire said it was appalling that government has abdicated its cardinal mandate and responsibility for the constitutional process by abandoning such an important process to a private member.



"This is not only horrendous but unacceptable. Even if a constitutional amendment was relevant, the mischief of such should be owned and backed by all NRM organs and administrative committees, not individuals," said Tinkasimire.



He described the action by the government as a vote of no confidence in the president and cabinet.



"We are tired of a man who says this and turns against his word. He's our national chairperson. He was interviewed by an NTV journalist and he said; 'not me...not me...certainly not. If you want a president who has vigour, I think it is good not to consider a person who is not above 75 years'. He thinks I was not listening, he thinks Ugandans were not listening", added Tinkasimire.



Sylvia Rwabwogo, the Kabarole Woman MP said advocates of the amendments are misleading the president.



"...This is where it hurts most, for the NRM and for the president. The people who are advising him are taking him to the wrong direction and that is not the direction that the president that I know, wanted to achieve in the beginning. We really owe it to the president and to the party, NRM to realise the lasting fruits and the lasting impact and the labour and the sacrifice of those who went to the bush so that at a future time we realise a peaceful change of government. We can't continue to commit to the mistakes of individuals. If it was coming from the government, it would be a different story. But now this bill is coming from an individual and I think he's being guided by selfish interests.", said Rwabwogo.
Pastor Samuel Kakande of Synagogue Church of All Nations, is set to make a loss of an estimated Shs 50 billion after Justice Catherine Bamugemereire led land inquiry commission ordered him to vacate a piece of land he illegally encroached on.

The disputed land, measuring up to 40 square miles along Lake Victoria shores, is located in Bukakata and Buwunga sub-counties in Masaka district.



Kakande, acquired this piece of land from Maj Gen Wilson Mbadi, the Deputy Chief of Defence Forces. Mbadi had acquired it from Masaka district under unclear circumstances, something that sparked off protests after several evicted residents and fishermen sued Kakande.



On Friday, Kakande appeared before the land probe commission inquiring into the effectiveness of law, policies, and processes of land acquisition.

Pastor Samuel Kakande of Synagogue Church of All Nations

Kakande was grilled on his adherence to the laws of Uganda whereby he allegedly defied a directive from the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) not to encroach on Lake Victoria shoreline.



Kakande had cleared several hectares of Lake Victoria shores where he planted rice and maize among other crops. He had also cleared land at Mumpu landing site to plant palm oil trees.



Justice Bamugemereire, tasked Kakande to explain how he acquired several acres of land in the area. He was also asked to explain why he defied Environment Impact Assessment recommendations which stopped him from degrading Lake Victoria.



Bamugerereire therefore asked Kakande to surrender land titles acquired in wetlands. She also ordered him to withdraw all his equipment used in his multi-billion-shilling farm in Bukakata by Tuesday next week.



In response, Kakande denied acquiring any government land, insisting that he acquired public land. This amused the commission which forced him to explain his level of education. Justice Bamugemereire asked him whether he knows the difference between government land and public land.



Kakande, however, said he was not sure the exact years he completed education and his level of education but said it could have been between 1977 and 1978 adding that his highest level of education is senior two.



Kakande, who pleaded to answer questions in Luganda because he is not conversant with the English language, noted that he is sorry he acquired most of the land ignorantly.



Kakande therefore agreed to surrender all the land titles to the commission as well as withdrawing his farming equipment. Kakande, who appeared calm, told the commission that he was committed to adhering to all recommendations and orders and that by Tuesday next week, he would have implemented the order.



Kakande, under his firm Acqua World has been implementing multi-billion-shilling projects along Lake Victoria. Some of the projects include rice farming, beans, fish farming and palm oil. All these projects combined are worth about Shs 50 billion.



On Thursday, Peter Ssenkungu, the Masaka district land board chairman, was detained over illegal allocation of land along Lake Victoria shores. He has since been hospitalised.
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...
CHEYENNE, Wyo.  It was a long time coming for two U.S. Air Force veterans. But when it finally happened, the moment was worth the wait of a lifetime.

Cheyenne resident Ray Cahoon and Roy Salmon of Melbourne, Florida, met while stationed at Tachikawa Airfield in western Tokyo in 1957. Two years later, however, they lost touch after Cahoon was transferred while Salmon was at a track meet in the United States.

For decades, the two men didn't speak, but they never forgot one another.

That was until summer 2017, when Salmon went out on a limb and reached out to the Wyoming Tribune Eagle asking if its managing editor could find his old friend, who he knew once lived in Cheyenne. Though he tried to find him before through the Air Force, Salmon was unable to do so. Undergoing treatment for prostate cancer, the 82-year-old Salmon knew it might be his last chance to find Cahoon.

A short time after he sent his letter to the newspaper, Salmon received a letter from Cahoon, 84, confirming he was alive and well. Since then, the two have been exchanging letters and phone calls catching up after decades apart.

Last Friday, the two shared a moment transcending letter and phone correspondence when they met at the Wyoming-Colorado border on Interstate 25.

Amid the roaring traffic, tears, laughter and excited chatter surrounded the two long-lost friends' first embrace since losing touch nearly 60 years ago.

"My God, I finally found you," Cahoon said.

The two Air Force servicemen became close friends after meeting on the air base's track team. Along with Cahoon's wife, Clara, and daughter, Sharon, they would go to movies and enjoy dinner together.

"They never did a darn thing without me being with them," Salmon said.

While it might seem like simple social rituals, it meant the world to Salmon, who is Jamaican, joined the Air Force because he was unable to find work in New York City among racially-biased employers. And the discrimination didn't stop while in the service. When going to the movies with the Cahoons, a white family, Salmon said it was clear certain people didn't approve.

"Even in the military, you know, back in those days, there were so many racists," Salmon said. "We'd go to the movies with his little daughter, and you could see in their eyes, they didn't like it."

But for the Cahoons, they loved Salmon for who he was.

"But Roy, you never told me you were black," Cahoon said laughing during the interstate-side reunion.

Salmon could hardly find the words to express how much it meant to him to have the friendship of the family that didn't see him for the color of his skin, but for the quality of his character.

"These folks, I was a human being, and they treated me like I was..." Salmon said trailing off.

"Family," Roy said, finishing his friend's thought.

Both men came from poverty-stricken backgrounds, and felt kindred to one another because of it.

"I caught all the trouble, but we survived," Cahoon said.

Salmon said a strong part of their friendship was how he always admired Cahoon's ability to pick himself up and make the most of his life.

"This guy is so resilient," Salmon said of Cahoon. "This guy got knocked down so many times, and he just picked himself up and kept on going."

In addition to what they shared from their backgrounds and similar personalities, Cahoon said there's a special bond between service members in the U.S. military.

"There's a bond that never breaks," he said. "I think that's the driving force. And our backgrounds are so similar, where you have to fight for every minute of life."

Salmon agreed his life and relationships would not have been the same without his military service.

"The military family is special," Salmon said. "The Air Force family has been very good for me. I don't even know how to express it."

For Cahoon, reconnecting with his friend last Friday was one of the best moments of his life.

"Being adopted was the best, then getting into the service, meeting friends like this, and then getting back together again," Cahoon uttered through the tears. "It's like finding a long-lost brother."

It was a friendship that couldn't be kept apart coming full circle, Salmon said. And though they might never see each other again, he said he wasn't worried.

"I hope you last forever, my friend," Salmon said. "And if I don't ever get to see you again, I'll see you on the other side."
Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has presented a 33-seater bus to the Saint Augustine's College, at Cape Coast, in fulfilment of a pledge he made earlier in the year.



The pledge was made following an appeal from the Colleges authorities, at Speech and Prize-Giving Day and 87th Anniversary Celebration, to the Government to provide them with a vehicle.



Vice President Bawumia, in making the presentation, expressed gratitude to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and the Ghana Education Trust Fund for making the vehicle available for the School.



He said education was a priority for the Government and it would thus commit resources to ensure its steady progression to enable the country to develop rapidly through quality human resource dividend.



He said the implementation of the Free Senior High School Policy signaled the Government's determination to provide an all inclusive education to build the country's human capital and ensure prosperity for all Ghanaians.



Mr Joseph Connel, the Headmaster of the College, also commended the Vice President for keeping to his promise.



He said the gesture would address the transportation needs of the school and appealed again to the Government to address the logistical constraints of the College.

Source: GNA









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SHUSHAN  The Georgi Museum was open for visitors Saturday, more than two years after a mold problem forced the closure of the museum and removal of some of the museums art collection to safe storage.

More than 30 invited guests attended an official opening ceremony on Friday, said Harold Butch Gilchrest, one of three people on the museums governing committee. He was standing in for museum director Wendy Bordwell, who was sick.

The museum needed extensive work before it could reopen, Gilchrest said, including removal of trees that were hanging over the 1950s building and some big pines that the state Department of Environmental Conservation judged hazardous.

Additionally, the roof and chimney were repaired, and a ramp was installed between the houses main room and the former library, now occupied by the Battenkill Conservancy.

The museum removed drapes, rugs, furniture and fabric wall coverings, all damaged by moisture. The removal of the wallpaper was controversial, Gilchrest said. One deciding factor was that the covering is still available, if expensive, and could be replaced if the money became available.

The Georgi family had a collection of paintings, prints, drawings, sculptures and porcelains from Europe, the Orient and contemporary artists.

For the opening, art historian Chris Daly was invited to go through the collection and select pieces to display.

Daly, who grew up in South Glens Falls, is working on his Ph.D. in art history at Johns Hopkins University. His specialty is art of the European Renaissance, but he was unaware of the Georgi collection until he saw one of its paintings featured in an art history publication.

I want to demonstrate that this is a small but comprehensive selection of European art from 1300 to 1600, Daly said. The 15 paintings and one sculpture he chose were created in Italy, Germany, Poland, Spain, the Netherlands and possibly northern France or southern Flanders, he said.

A Madonna and Child on an arched panel came from the workshop of Neri Di Bicci, at one time the wealthiest painter in 15th century Florence, Daly said. He did many little Madonnas, he said. He worked in a steadfast formula and carried on the tradition of his father and grandfather, also painters.

Another Madonna, the image that was chosen for the reopenings poster, is probably by the same artist, Mello da Gubbio, who created a similar work in the Hyde Collection, Daly said. The Madonna dates to 1340 to 1345 and is pretty rare, he said. Few of da Gubbios works are outside of Italy.

Most of the larger paintings were part of groups of related paintings, often commissioned for churches. The Renaissance paintings fell out of favor when the Baroque style came in during the 17th century.

People wanted large paintings on canvas, Daly said. The old altarpieces were sold to dealers, who dismantled groups and sometimes sawed large panels into pieces that were easier to sell.

Renaissance art didnt become exalted as museum pieces until the 19th century, Daly said.

The paintings are displayed in a side room that can be secured so that the main room can be open for meetings and events.

Well have the Georgi Gallery to keep us compliant with the Georgis wishes and will, Gilchrest said.

Still to come is exterior work including a ramp to the door, he said.

Thats a big need here, Gilchrest said. Were very fortunate that the building is up high, but that will make it expensive to install a ramp.

Kristina Martin was one of the opening day visitors.

I live in Shushan, she said. I come and walk my dog here. Its one of our favorite places in the world.
HUDSON FALLS  The curtain will move much closer to rising on the renovated Strand Theatre with the official sale of the former Kingsbury Town
Editor:

The voters of Queensbury should use great caution when casting their ballot for supervisor this year. You should disregard the hype and exaggerations. Having been elected to nine terms on the Warren County Board of Supervisors, I have had the pleasure of serving with John Strough.

I have also served with Rachel Seeber. There is no comparison in terms of transparency, experience, intelligence and political savvy. John Strough rises above his opponent on every level. Rachel Seeber won the Conservative Primary on a write-in campaign. What a joke! She was not endorsed by the Conservative Committee for good reason. She is not a Conservative, nor does she abide by Conservative principles. She wants to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to install showers for employees to use following their 15-minute break. How ridiculous.

John Strough also accepts no campaign contributions because he doesnt want to owe anyone. Rachel Seeber accepts all campaign contributions, including allegedly a substantial one from Rich Schermerhorn, who is the current FBO at Warren County Airport. How do you think she will vote on airport issues? Hmm  I thought so.

Cast your vote wisely this year. Vote John Strough.

William Kenny, Kingsbury
A judge will consider whether to allow jurors to hear allegations that a former Casper doctor raped a 12-year-old boy decades ago as part of the physicians trial on sexual assault charges.

Paul Harnetty was never charged with a crime in relation to the new allegation. His attorneys argued that the allegations should not have appeared Friday in open court.

Harnetty appeared in Natrona County District Court for a hearing in which his attorneys argued additional allegations should not be allowed in the sex assault trial, saying it would prejudice potential jurors.

The prosecution argued that the laundry list of allegations it would like to use in the trial will show intent and motive on Harnetty's part.

Harnetty, who is free on bond, is facing eight counts of second-degree sexual assault and two counts of third-degree sexual assault in the case. He is also facing one count of attempted possession of a controlled substance in a separate case.

Six female patients have told investigators that Harnetty, a gynecologist, touched them during physical examinations in ways that were unusual and made them feel uncomfortable. The women, who did not know each other previously, said that Harnettys exams were different from those they had experienced by other doctors. Some women said he touched their genitals without gloves while others said he rubbed them in ways that didnt seem to be part of a medical exam, according to court documents.

Unusual start

Friday's hearing began with District Court judge Thomas Sullins considering a motion by the defense to close the proceeding.

At attorney representing the Casper Star-Tribune petitioned to keep the hearing open.

John Minor, who represented Harnetty in the hearing, argued that if the hearing were allowed to be open, potential jurors would be prejudiced in the case.

Prosecutor Kevin Taheri, meanwhile, argued that the hearing should be open.

"If we close this one, we really gotta close them all," Taheri said.

Sullins cited the First and Sixth Amendments to the United States Constitution in making his decision to leave the hearing open.

Defense brings evidence of "motive and intent"

Taheri ran down a number of allegations that were not charged in the case, saying they would show Harnetty had motive and intent in using his position of authority for sexual gratification.

Evidence of those allegations ranged from the accused rape, to allegations of improper sexual behavior toward nurses who he worked with in Georgia, to marking patients' charts with smiley faces to indicate that they were attractive.

Taheri also attempted to introduce uncharged conduct alleged by the same women in Natrona County, which included Harnetty seeing a patient with alcohol on his breath and not using gloves during an exam.

Minor did not oppose the uncharged allegations from Natrona County, saying that the alleged victims should be able to tell the entirety of their stories.

The defense attorney did oppose the other allegations, most vehemently the allegation of rape.

"This is not going to be a likeable person," to a jury if the rape allegation were introduced at trial, Minor said. "They're gonna believe he's a pedophile, judge."

Sullins did not make a decision Friday on what allegations he would allow the prosecution to bring at trial, saying he would make a decision in two weeks.

Minor rose one more time to ask that Sullins issue a gag order to media present.

Sullins declined his request.

"How they publish," Sullins said, "is I think up to them."
A recent settlement proposal filed with the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission is a major step toward ensuring that adequate funds are allocated for the eventual decommissioning and remediation of the Colstrip Generating Station. The settlement, reached in the Puget Sound Energy rate case, also provides for $10 million in community transition funds to be allocated by Puget, including $5 million from its shareholders.

For decades, Puget ratepayers have not paid toward eventual decommissioning and remediation costs for the Colstrip units, and have contributed too little toward capital costs. Knowing now that Units 1 and 2 will close no later than 2022, Puget needed to find alternative funding sources for the clean-up and capital costs of those two units. The proposed settlement offers a solution to ensure funds for these purposes.

In order to ensure that these cleanup costs, as well as capital costs of the plant  namely, the initial investment to build them  are recovered by customers during the lifespan of the units, Puget also agreed to accelerate the depreciation schedule of Units 3 and 4 to Dec. 31, 2027.

Generally speaking, utilities and the commissions that regulate them try to align depreciation - the date when capital costs are paid off  as closely as possible with the end of the life of the unit. This saves customers from paying for something theyre not using. Furthermore, consumers who use the plant should pay for the plant. In this case, the settlement proposes to have Puget customers pay off Units 3 and 4 by the end of 2027.

People can (and will) argue about what that 2027 date means. Meanwhile, there is a lot of work to be done. As proposed by the NW Energy Coalition, Renewable Northwest and NRDC in rate case testimony and agreed to by a diverse set of stakeholders, including Washington industrial customers, the Sierra Club, low-income advocates and the state of Montana, Puget will participate in a community transition stakeholder process while providing $10 million for worker and community transition. Our hope is that other utility owners make similar commitments. Who, where, when and how this process takes place is still yet to be determined, but its an important first step in finding economic development solutions for the people of Colstrip and the state of Montana.

With only a few years until units 1 and 2 are retired, a worker transition plan is sorely needed. We must also address leaking coal ash ponds and Colstrips drinking water. Finally, stakeholders need to develop a long-term plan to ensure Colstrip is ready for the eventual closure of Units 3 and 4, whenever that may be.

We should also seize economic opportunity by developing renewable energy in eastern Montana and across the state. That means making sure the Colstrip transmission line is ready to take Montana renewables to markets. A recent Northern Tier Transmission Group (NTTG) study found that renewable energy replacement on the Colstrip line is indeed feasible and numerous projects, including wind, solar, and even geothermal, are being explored.

The Puget rate case settlement, hopefully to be approved by the Washington UTC soon, certainly provides some direction and clarity on the path forward for Colstrip. Now its our turn here in Montana to truly chart the course. The choice is ours  we can argue or we can get to work. I suggest the latter.

Diego Rivas resides in Helena and is a senior policy associate with the NW Energy Coalition, an alliance of more than 100 environmental, civic, and human service organizations, utilities and businesses in Montana, Idaho, Washington, Oregon and British Columbia.
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From decorated classrooms well stocked with new school supplies, desks and worktables to outdoor areas newly fenced off as playgrounds, Moline's Franklin Elementary School wasted no time in transforming a former college campus into its new home.

"It's the little details," Principal Michele Pittington said walking through her new school last week. "Sometimes people don't realize how important they are to the children."

But those incidentals were paramount for the teachers, staff and army of volunteers who in short order converted the former Western Illinois University campus on Moline's 60th Street into an elementary school. Students were greeted by all the finishing touches, from colorful nameplates taped atop their desks to new coat hooks hung in reach.

"The teachers have done an awesome job. They've made it look like their rooms from Franklin," said school secretary Diane Blaser.

Items from their old school such as books and school records  professionally cleaned in an ozone room  were beginning to show up mid-week at the new location. But in the meantime, the school was open for business with donated materials and furniture found in the building and across the Moline-Coal Valley district.

"We had donations from our own elementary schools, teachers who had excess stuff and from businesses. It's been unbelievable," Blaser said of the outpouring of support.

Franklin was forced to relocate after a Sept. 24 electrical fire left its building with fire, smoke and water damage. After closing school for five days, Franklin was back open last Monday after the building's brand new owners partnered with the school district to provide a solution.

Pittington said Western lllinois officials had first reached out to the district offering help and then shared the concept with the Joseph Lemon family, who quickly agreed to help the school. The family, also owners of The Abbey in Rock Island and the Abbey Addiction Center in Bettendorf, became the new property owners on the same day school reopened.

The district also had been offered various space by Black Hawk College, Rock Island Arsenal and Deere & Co., she said.

Built in the 1970s as a regional IBM headquarters, the three-story office building was home to Western Illinois' Moline campus from 1997 until it moved to its riverfront campus in August 2014. The university's board of trustees unanimously approved the $1.4 million sale of the campus during a special meeting Oct. 1 in Macomb. It was sold to the Lemon's company DJL Associates LLC, of Rock Island, the university announced.

"It's a little bit larger than our school," Pittington said. "The students were surprised when they came on Monday to have to decorated and ready to go."

Franklin occupies the bottom two floors, but has teacher areas and storage on the third floor. "The number of classrooms and the location of classrooms worked out perfectly for us," Pittington said.

The school also had space to create a cafeteria that doubles as a gym, a library and rooms for music, art, computer lab and offices.

Making the rounds of the classrooms last week, Pittington offered a friendly reminder to the fourth and fifth graders. "Remember this is not our building. We are returning it. So we have to take really good care of it," she said.

Down the hall, Laura Wells led her first graders through new math problems as the sunlight streamed in the large windows of her corner classroom. "We're trying to get back in our routine," she said. "It's getting better every day."

Third-grade teacher Betsy Osborn said her students are enjoying "tons more space and air conditioning." She marveled at her new school supplies and furnishings, all donated. "I think they like the space better," she said.

But moving schools also required new plans for things such as lunch and busing. With help from bus provider MetroLINK and the Two Rivers YMCA, Pittington said that Metro buses that had dropped off at Franklin now drop and pick up off three busloads of students at the Y. The students wear new colored, letter-coded lanyards that help identify where they go after school such as Arsenal Island, the Y or being picked up by parents.

Still working to put things in their place, Lori Waldbusser, the school's daytime custodian, said she was amazed with what they accomplished. "We basically moved a school in two days. We went from an empty shell to a child-friendly facility."

Waldbusser and her sister, Deb Oetgen, the school's nighttime custodian, were joined by many hands from the school, district and parents and grandparents. The task involved planning out where each class should go, disinfecting the rooms, unpacking and moving in.

Support has come from ever corner of the community and beyond. A GoFundMe fundraising site was set up by Moline high school student and the 2017 Homecoming king Zamone Perez, whose mom teaches at the school. Pittington said the school plans to use the money to help teachers and students replace personal items they lost in the old school.

"I hope this is a life lesson for the students as well as the adults," she added. "We all had to pull together from the students to the parents, administrators to the whole community. We've gone from 'Franklin Strong' (the school's motto) to Moline strong to community strong."
Norma Jean Adams sat quietly Friday in a courtroom at the Scott County District Courthouse, her attorney, David Treimer by her side.

Dressed in black slacks, a black shirt and jacket, soft-soled shoes, her hair pulled back, Adams, 74, would shake at times, sob quietly and wipe away tears from her eyes.

For the second time in her life, the woman who had once been an executive for the School Nutrition Association of Iowa under the name of Norma Jean LaMantia waited to plead guilty to stealing money from an employer.

During her plea hearing, Adams faced Scott County District Judge Joel Barrows, answering his questions in a steady voice loud enough so that her answers could be properly recorded by the court reporter, per Barrows instructions.

During this part of the session, Barrows asked Adams if she understood what it meant to plead guilty to the charge, and if she understood all of her rights. To each question she replied, Yes.

Adams then pleaded guilty to one count of commission of specified unlawful activity under the Iowa code. The charge is a Class B felony under Iowa law that carries a prison sentence of up to 25 years.

A charge of first-degree theft, a Class C felony that carries a 10-year- prison sentence, was dismissed in accordance with the plea.

During the hearing, Adams read a statement to the court admitting that starting in 2010 and continuing until her resignation in 2016 she had worked from her home as an accountant for the School Nutrition Association of Iowa.

Adams admitted that during that time, she used money from the association for her own purposes, including opening other accounts in the name of the School Nutrition Association, the money from which she used herself.

According to a report filed June 1 by Iowa State Auditor Mary Mosiman, from Jan. 1, 2010, through July 31, 2016, an audit discovered $166,895.25 that was submitted to Norma Jean LaMantia but never made it into the associations account.

While her contract was to run June 30, 2017, LaMantia, as she was known to the association, resigned in 2016, after the associations officials began questioning her about their concerns.

Adams plea agreement stipulates that she must pay restitution in the amount of $156,248.25. She has offered to pay $100,000 of the restitution prior to her sentencing on Nov. 30. The Scott County Attorneys Office has said if this is paid it "wont resist supervised probation if deemed appropriate by the 7th Judicial Department of Correction.

Treimer told Barrows that the money has been placed in his offices trust fund and is ready for distribution.

Had she gone to trial on both of the charges against her, Adams faced the possibility of a 40-year prison sentence with a three-year mandatory minimum under Iowas habitual offender laws.

In March 2003, Adams pleaded guilty in Rock Island County Circuit Court to one count of theft of more than $10,000 but less than $100,000, a Class 2 felony under Illinois law, according to circuit court electronic records.

She had been working for the public television station WQPT at that time.

In that case, Adams was sentenced to 30 months on probation and ordered to pay $12,500 in restitution, and $1,150 in court costs and fees.

Adams remains free on bond in the Scott County case.
On Iowa Politics discussed possible gun control following the shooting in Las Vegas, whether anyone can dethrone Rep. Steve King, and the idea of creating competitive districts for elections.

On Iowa Politics is a weekly news and analysis podcast which re-creates the conversations that happen when Iowa's political reporters get together after deadlines have been met. This week's show features James Lynch, Ed Tibbetts, Todd Dorman, Brett Hayworth, Erin Murphy and Christinia Crippes.

The show was produced by Max Freund, and the music is Faces Turned Ashen.

Find us at qctimes.com, chat with us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter @OnIowaPolitics and subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher. Know an Iowa musician who should be on our show? Send their band sound files to oniowapolitics@gmail.com.
Various cultures have different phrases for expressing the idea of having it both ways at once. "To take a swim and not get wet" is an Albanian proverb. Poles talk about "having the cookie and eating it." Iranians want "both God and the sugar dates."

The Trump administration has been weighing a contemporary geopolitical version of this straddle. Hard liners have been urging the president next week to decertify the Iran nuclear agreement but insist that he wants to strengthen the deal, not break it. The idea is enticing politically, certainly, but it has as much chance of working as (forgive me) "washing your fur but not getting wet," as a German aphorism puts it.

Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., a leading critic of the Iran deal, described this ambiguous diplomatic approach this week at the Council on Foreign Relations. "I don't propose leaving the deal yet. I propose taking the steps necessary to obtain leverage to get a better deal." Cotton wants decertification, but no sanctions, so that the U.S. can ... what? Apparently, the idea is that American pressure will convince Iran to make unilateral concessions that it refused during the 13 years the deal was being negotiated.

Magical thinking is always appealing in foreign policy, but it usually produces nothing more than fairy dust. In this case, there is no evidence that putting the agreement in limbo will bring any security benefits for America or Israel. It will introduce uncertainty where the U.S. and its allies should most demand clarity -- in insisting on compliance by all sides with an agreement that caps Iran's centrifuges and stockpiles of enriched material for at least another decade.

Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, hardly a dove on Iran, bluntly told the Senate Armed Services Committee Tuesday that the nuclear deal was "something that the president should consider staying with." When pressed by Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, on whether he thought the pact was in America's national-security interest, Mattis paused and answered: "Yes, Senator, I do."

Officials speak truth to power at their own risk in Donald Trump's Washington. So Mattis' argument for sustaining what the president has called "the dumbest and most dangerous" deal was important, though the outcome of the debate still isn't clear. It's probably because of Mattis' military advice, however, that Trump has dropped his campaign talk of simply tearing up the agreement.

How would Iran react? Seyed Hossein Mousavian, a former Iranian official who stays in close touch with his ex-colleagues, told me recently that if Trump doesn't certify, but Congress doesn't re-impose sanctions, and the other P5+1 negotiators assure full implementation, then Iran may continue to adhere to the agreement. But he cautioned that this line is opposed by some political factions in Iran who argue for suspending the pact if Trump challenges Iranian compliance.

As for administration hopes of forcing Iran to renegotiate the "sunset" provisions and other details of the agreement, Mousavian says that's a nonstarter in Tehran.

The real challenge with Iran isn't the nuclear issue, which was put in a box for at least a decade by the agreement, but Tehran's aggressive behavior in the region. Iran and its proxies continue to destabilize the Middle East. They seek to manipulate and control nearly every major capital: Beirut, Damascus, Baghdad, Saana. According to the White House, Iranian proxies are mining the Bab el Mandeb Strait, pointing missiles from Yemen toward Riyadh and Abu Dhabi, and seeking to carve a zone of influence on the ruins of the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq.

The administration claims to be focused on this big Iran problem. Would that it were so. Officials claim that Trump has signed off on a broad strategy that makes Iran's behavior the central issue going forward. But the decertification debate will probably dominate the headlines over the next weeks and months -- needlessly focusing attention on the one part of the Iran problem that's capped and manageable, and defusing efforts on the real challenge.

There's a final, crucial reason Trump should certify that Iran is complying with the nuclear deal: Because it's true. Even Cotton conceded as much this week, arguing against certification "not primarily on the grounds related to Iran's technical compliance, but rather based on the long catalogue of the regime's crimes and perfidy against the United States."

A question for the Iran hawks: If America refuses to certify an agreement when a country is "technically" in compliance, why would any other country ever make a deal with us again? A great country keeps its word.
BROOKINGS | South Dakota State University President Barry Dunn says an anonymous donor has committed $4.1 million to support a school initiative for South Dakota tribal members.

The commitments announced Thursday include $4 million for a new American Indian Student Center on the Brookings campus and $100,000 for scholarships for students from the Lakota, Dakota and Nakota tribes in the state.

Dunn says the commitments will provide a campus home for American Indian students and help give access to students who want the "knowledge and advancement that higher education provides."

The center is part of the Wokini Initiative, a push from the land-grant university to increase the number of students at the school from the nine tribal nations in South Dakota.

The facility is expected to encompass up to 15,000 square feet on the campus' south edge.
Bismarck State College Career Services and Job Service North Dakota will host the River Cities Job and Internship Fair from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Oct. 18 in the BSC National Energy Center of Excellence, Bavendick Stateroom.

Information on full-time and part-time positions will be available from more than 70 area and regional businesses in such fields as banking, engineering, health, energy, construction, service industry, technology, office support, nursing, human services, law enforcement, retail/sales, food processing, transportation, government and light manufacturing.

Attendees are encouraged to bring their resume and dress for success.
BROOKINGS - Warmer temperatures and less precipitation are predicted through the end of October according to the most recent Climate Outlook from the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Climate Prediction Center.

"Fortunately, the climate outlook for the remainder of the fall season may allow for crops and soils to dry out," said Laura Edwards, SDSU Extension State Climatologist.

Edwards said that moving into the first week in October 2017, temperatures are going to rebound, becoming warmer than average across the region. "Computer models have been indicating a warmer than average pattern change to occur starting next week," Edwards said.

Along with the warmer temperatures, October is also more likely to be drier than average in the east and central regions of South Dakota.

"This does not mean that the area will not receive any rain, but rather that it is more likely to be less than average for this time of year," she said. "If the Climate Prediction Center outlooks hold true, this would be good news for our eastern South Dakota farmers who need a little more time to complete fall activities."

Edwards added that there has not been a widespread hard frost yet this season. This week is about the average first frost date for the central, south and eastern regions.

"It appears that farmers can look towards a longer growing season again this year," she said. "It is unclear yet if we will have as late of a frost as last year, where some southern areas did not measure subfreezing temperatures until November."

Unfortunately, Edwards added, most of the recent rains have not fallen on the most severe drought areas in western South Dakota.

"This region needs some fall moisture for winter wheat, forages and pastures and rangeland. These plants will store up the moisture for use early next spring," Edwards said. "This area will be closely watched, as they are closing out an extreme drought year and moisture will be critical for recovery in the 2018 season."

A little behind schedule

Recent rainfall has slowed fall harvest in some areas of South Dakota.

"Recent rains have further slowed down fall harvest as the grain in the field and soils are now too wet for harvest activities," said Edwards, of the 1.5 to more than 4-inches which fell in areas from Gregory County northeast to Codington County.

Despite the slowdown in corn and soybean harvest, this moisture is welcome for the many winter wheat growers who have half of their acres planted as of September 25, 2017.

According to the National Agriculture Statistics Survey, as of September 25, 2017, 32 percent of corn was mature, compared to the five-year average of 57 percent. About 4 percent of soybeans were harvested, compared to the five-year average of 17 percent.

Edwards attributes slower maturity to two factors:

1. Fewer than average accumulated growing degree days and;

2. Planting dates behind schedule due to excess spring moisture.

"These two factors make for a lot of variation across the region," she said.
More than 100 high school students from 11 schools across the Nebraska Panhandle competed in the Area I Range Judging contest held at Kirkland and Sheila Budds Ranch near Rushville Sept. 20.

The overall winner of the contest as well as senior division was Hayden Hoos from Gordon-Rushville High School. The first place senior team was from Gordon-Rushville (Hoos, Kenna Rose, Kylie Peters and Berklie Haag). The top scoring individual in the junior division was Faith Cox from Valentine High School. Valentine also took home the top junior team honors (Cox, Michaela Keller, Delaney Robison, and Hank Lancaster).

Tim Nollette of Cody-Kilgore placed first in the adult division.

The Area Range Judging contests allow students to enhance their knowledge of grasses and forbs in rangeland while testing range management skills. Competitors are judged on their knowledge of plant identification and classification, soil types, rangeland conditions and grazing management.

The participants are split between two divisions. The senior division consists of high school juniors and seniors, and the junior division consists of high school freshman and sophomores. The students compete for both individual and team awards.

The contest is sponsored by the Society of Range Management with volunteers from the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), UNL Extension, the Upper Niobrara White Natural Resources District, South Platte Natural Resources District, and the North Platte Natural Resources District.
The Nebraska Game and Parks system has launched a new website for the sale of hunting, fishing and state park permits. The site, which went live on Sept. 28, offers improved navigation, mobile responsiveness and many other features, including:

Information about each type of permit offered by the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, including accompanying stamp requirements, unit maps, telecheck instructions, and links to guides and Harvest Information Program (HIP) registration;

The ability to search and sort remaining big game permits so hunters can find the units they are interested in hunting;

An updated profile section, where users can view their permit purchase history, view or reprint lost or misplaced permits, view preference and bonus points, manage landowner information, look up hunter education numbers and update personal information;

The ability to create a friends and family list, which allows users to purchase permits as gifts without reentering gift recipients personal information year after year;

The ability to purchase NEBRASKAland Magazine or make a donation to the Wildlife Conservation Fund or Hunters Helping the Hungry;

A special section for senior and veteran permits for easy renewal; and

Updated payment portal.

Users can access the new site by visiting OutdoorNebraska.org and clicking Buy a Permit. Big game permits may also be purchased at any Game and Parks district office or service center. Small game, fishing and park permits are also available at district offices and service centers, as well as from many other permit vendors across the state. A complete list of permit vendors is available at OutdoorNebraska.org/permitvendors.
ELLSWORTH AIR FORCE BASE, S.D. | The 28th Civil Engineer Squadron was one of four organizations to receive the prestigious Department of Defense 2016 National Preparedness Award Sept. 21, 2017.

The Honorable Kenneth Rapuano, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense & Global Security, presented the award to Bob Cronan, the flight chief of readiness and emergency management, and Master Sgt. Timothy Bricker, the superintendent of the emergency readiness flight, both assigned to the 28th CES, at the Hall of Heroes in the Pentagon.

This is a significant award, Cronan said. It shows that we are not only taking hold of the presidents expectations, but exceeding them, which makes Ellsworth and the local community a safer, better place to work and live.

Throughout the year the flights provided support and education throughout the Black Hills community. Specifically supporting the Rapid City Police Department in disposing of five World War II unexploded ordnances, safeguarding 14 people in the process; steering the National Prepare-A-Thon; and educating more than 2,000 local residents on emergency preparation actions.

Additionally, the fire department led joint live-fire exercises, helping train 15 local departments  solidifying local agreements, tactics, techniques and procedures  as well as maintaining the emergency link with the Pennington County, Box Elder and Rapid City joint response team to ensure the overall communitys safety.

We felt proud when we won the award, Bricker said. What I believe contributed to our success was the blend of multiple career fields. That itself showed the DoD we are in this together to make the area safer. While we dont not need the validation to know we are doing it right, it adds fuel to the Airmen, and thats the icing on the cake.

The national preparedness goal defines what it means for the whole community to be prepared for all types of disasters and emergencies through prevention, protection, mitigation and recovery.

Risks the Airmen train for include natural hazards such as winter storms, flooding, tornadoes; accidental hazards such as hazardous material incidents; and man-made threats such as terrorism.

None of this could be done without every member who works under these sections, Cronan explained. We need to be prepared at all times. If we arent then when something does happen we wouldnt be able to recover as efficiently or effectively. Doing this not only keeps us safe, but the community as a whole.
The two people accused in the fatal shooting of a Rapid City man on Wednesday have been caught, according to authorities.

Rapid City residents Maricelo Garcia, 21, and Cierra Walks, 19, were found just after 4 p.m. Friday on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, according to a news release from the Rapid City Police Department.

Police say deputies with the U.S. Marshals Service found Garcia and Walks "hiding in the rugged terrain" southeast of Porcupine, a town of about 1,000 people about 83 miles south of Rapid City.

Brendyn Medina, spokesman for the RCPD, said everyone at the police department and Pennington County Sheriff's Office is "happy to have our suspects in custody as we start the long weekend," referencing the statewide Native Americans' Day holiday on Monday.

On Wednesday, 20-year-old Clinton Farlee was shot at his home in the 600 block of East Boulevard North around 2 p.m., according to Rapid City police. He was hit by a bullet in the chest and died that evening after being taken to Rapid City Regional Hospital.

According to police reports filed at the Pennington County Courthouse, the shooting was preceded by an argument between Farlee and his girlfriend and the two defendants. Authorities issued arrest warrants for Garcia and Walks on Thursday, describing the pair as potentially armed and dangerous.

Garcia is charged with first-degree murder, a killing involving premeditation, according to the criminal complaint against Garcia obtained from the courthouse. The crime is classified under the most serious felony category in the state.

Walks is charged with being an accessory to a crime by allegedly helping Garcia evade authorities, her criminal complaint states. The offense carries a sentence of up to five years in prison.

The FBI, Pennington County Sheriffs Office, Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Black Hills Fugitive Task Force and Department of Homeland Security also helped locate the suspects.

This case should serve as a clear example of the high level of interagency cooperation we employ in South Dakota, Capt. John Olson, commander of the RCPD Criminal Investigation Division, said in the release. And for anyone who chooses to flee from justice, know that we will not stop until you are found.
The winds of Hurricane Maria swarmed onto Puerto Ricos Humacao beach at 155 mph and ripped the door from an apartment sheltering a Rapid City teachers wife and three children.

The family of cardio fitness and graphic design instructor Ryan Brewer survived the Sept. 20 scare by fleeing into a master bedroom closet, but they emerged to find a soaking junkyard. A tree had crashed into their car, rain had destroyed the furniture, and all power and water service had disappeared.

The Rapid City High School teacher knew nothing of this fate. It was a lump in your throat conversation he was unable to share with anyone at school until his wife, Ivelisse Brewer, called three days later. Ryan Brewer had battled feelings of helplessness from 2,800 miles away by scheming to fly to Puerto Rico and carry dried food over the mountainous spine that separates the capital of San Juan from Humacao (pronounced oo-ma-cow).

If he went, however, even for a few days, would he return to a job? His family depends on his income.

News of his familys safety brought relief but didnt end all worries. Threats remain from the scarcity of water, food and fuel, the primitive sanitation and a broken transportation network.

On Thursday, students at Rapid City High School held an event to raise funds for the family.

Every little bit helps, Brewer said.

Brewer, 40, hails from south Minneapolis and graduated from Augustana University in Sioux Falls. He met Ivelisse at a global health and wellness camp in Florida, and he pursued her on Facebook for a couple of weeks before she replied. They later married and came to Rapid City with her two daughters, Milehna, 7, and Alihna, 6.

Brewers parents arrived in the Black Hills two decades ago. Ivelisse soon delivered a son, Luca, at Regional Health Rapid City Hospital.

That winter  her first outside the tropics  the couple laid plans to open a New York style pizzeria and bar on the beach of Humacao. They had a winning Bronx pizza recipe through her side of the family. They found an apartment just 1.5 miles inland.

Business was hot for six months, but the pizzeria closed before turning a year old. Brewer chokes slightly on a bitterness of fickle clientele, onerous taxes and an island economy in shambles. His teaching degree offered little opportunity there, so he returned to Rapid City in April, landing his job in July. The timing didnt allow for his family to join him immediately.

Delayed court proceedings from a custody battle still hinder the departure of his daughters, and the couple had already paid $3,000 for school tuition. Brewers wife is a doula and works for a pharmaceutical company, earning $11 an hour  considered a good wage on the island.

The hurricane quickly overwhelmed all of those complications.

In Humacao, a city slightly smaller than Rapid City, the family exhausted water, food and supplies after only a few days. On the fourth day, the 10-mile road to Juncos (hoon-coes), where his wifes mother lives, became passable, but food and water soon became scarce there. Ten days in, the mother of a friend in Philadelphia, a woman with high-level U.S. government connections, sent an agent to Juncos with basic rations and water.

'Disaster before the disaster'

Today, Brewer worries most about disease. Sewage systems still arent functioning and water is scarce, as is the fuel to boil it. His mother-in-law needs parsley tea to help with polycystic kidney disease, so Brewer included tea in his first care package to Puerto Rico. He hopes it gets there and that the islands overwhelmed postal service can deliver it. Meanwhile, the schools remain closed, with no clear date for reopening.

Brewer doesnt fault politics or administrative bungling for the slow humanitarian response.

People need to understand Puerto Rico was a disaster before the disaster, he said.

All shipping bottlenecks at San Juan, from which three arterial roads lead overland. Many island roads were impassable even before the storm, he said.

Puerto Rico is in the throes of a bleak economic crisis. The island has $74 billion in debt and another $50 billion in pension obligations.

Only 1 million of the 3.4 million people who inhabit the Spanish-speaking U.S. territory have jobs. Rampant unemployment feeds an existing welfare culture, Brewer said.

Puerto Rico has long wrestled with opposing political movements that favor statehood or sovereignty. Awhile back, a president was elected with a mandate to make Puerto Rico a state. As a result, the U.S. government ended corporate tax subsidies that had lured companies to the island, Brewer said. Businesses left but statehood never arrived. Last spring came bankruptcy.

Brewer hopes a system that fosters jobs and stabilizes the tax environment will result from the combined disasters. Something is needed to reverse the functional decay and subsequent loss of work culture, he said.

For his family, hope has limitations.

I cant say I want to bring them home because of the court hearing, he said. Are the courts even in session?

For the immediate future and possibly over the next few months, the need is for water and basic necessities  food, soap and toilet paper.

For Puerto Ricans even before the hurricane, Brewer said, the daily routine was to wait in lines. Even those who broke their arm could expect to wait all day at a hospital in hopes of hearing their name called.

Now, he said, life in Puerto Rico consists of waiting for four things: going to the bathroom, cooking food, getting gasoline and driving close enough to a functioning cell tower to use the telephone.

Id like my family, he said, to have fresh water, food and a generator.
The Sergeant Colton Levi Derr Foundation will host its Gallantly Forward Gala supporting veterans Oct. 21 at Rushmore Plaza Civic Centers LaCroix Hall.

Doors open at 5 p.m. with event ceremonies kicking off at 5:45 p.m. Tickets are $35 and must be bought in advance. Business evening attire is recommended but not required.

The gala fundraiser features a social hour, dinner, guest speakers, silent and live auctions, as well as live music. Speakers will include former U.S. States Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Samuel McCue, and U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Amanda McDowell, U.S. Air Force. Master of ceremonies will be Dr. Julie Ertz and opening ceremonies are provided by the musical act, The Starfellows.

Founded in 2012, the foundation has a threefold mission of support: provide advocacy, assistance, and public awareness for struggles veterans face when they return from deployments.

Present-day soldiers often face more than one deployment throughout their military careers, according to a foundation release. While on these deployments, soldiers have an overall mission. They feel united and develop a sense of duty and camaraderie. However, coming home does not always mean peace, but often reveals confusion, turmoil, anger, depression and isolation. More than 20 veterans and one active duty soldier commit suicide every day, the release stated.

Derr suffered from PTSD following combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. In support of Americans war on terror during Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom, Derr and the U.S. Army 1st Cavalry Division completed more than 500 combat missions. Derr committed suicide on April 28, 2012, following his Afghanistan mission. The foundation honors Derr by assisting his fellow veterans and their families and respectfully asks the public to become involved in this battle.

The foundation asks those who are unable to attend the event to consider either sponsoring a veteran in your stead or donating an item for the silent and live auctions. All donations are tax-deductible.

For more information, contact Jerry W. Derr at 545-2505 or jerry@sergeantderrfoundation.org, or online at sergeantderrfoundation.org.
South Dakota has celebrated Native Americans Day since 1990 when it was the first state to establish it as an official state holiday. It was done at the urging of Gov. George S. Mickelson as a part of his Year of Reconciliation efforts.

A crowd gathered at Crazy Horse Memorial to celebrate the first Native Americans Day. Prayers were offered by the Keeper of the Sacred Pipe of the Sioux Nation and an Episcopalian bishop, the "Sioux Anthem" and "Star Spangled Banner" were sung, and speeches were given by Oglala Sioux Tribe President Harold Salway and Gov. Mickelson. Ruth Ziolkowski, the gracious hostess, was presented with a reconciliation award.

Gov. Mickelson spent that year working to form new partnerships with tribes and bridge gaps between Natives and non-Natives. He reactivated the Commission on Indian Affairs and worked with tribes and considered their unique issues and needs. Mickelson called on all races to focus on areas of agreement, which led to successes in tribal tourism, health care and small business development.

I have tried to mirror some of Gov. Mickelsons efforts. In 2011, I established the Department of Tribal Relations as a cabinet-level agency within state government. Every year, Tribal Secretary Steve Emery and I schedule tribal visits to meet with presidents and council members to better understand their issues.

Tribal Relations has worked diligently to facilitate partnerships among state agencies and the nine tribes. For instance, we have tax-collection agreements and gaming compacts with eight tribes. In 2016 and 2017, the Department of Game, Fish, and Parks signed cooperative Memorandums of Understanding with the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe, Rosebud Sioux Tribe, Oglala Sioux Tribe, and Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe to improve communication and management of wildlife and lands. And the Department of Environment and Natural Resources has dedicated millions of dollars for the operation and maintenance of tribal drinking water systems.

Tribal Relations holds an annual forum where tribal members can discuss legislative priorities with legislators. I also signed a bill allowing for the exemption of elected tribal leaders from having to register as a lobbyist in order to testify or lobby for or against legislation.

We have implemented a tribal parole program with the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate. As part of the Criminal Justice Initiative of 2013, the program returns parolees to their tribal communities where family and community supports help them remain compliant. This program has resulted in higher parole completion rates, fewer instances of absconding and culturally relevant support systems for parolees returning home.

Relations between the tribes and the state have improved over the last 27 years. Its normal to have diverse viewpoints and disagreements, but we continue to move in a positive direction. Thats cause for celebration on Monday, which is Native Americans Day this year.
Kellieann Morris has a new weapon in her battle against cheatgrass that she wants to share with other Ravalli County residents  a bacteria known as pseudomonas fluorescens.

A product using the bacteria has been tested for 20 years in Washington State, and last year Morris, the Ravalli county Weed District coordinator, was able to try it on two five-acre test plots, one in Hamilton and the other in Sula. She was pleased with the results, and believes this could be a significant tool in the countys battle against its serious cheatgrass problem.

Basically, the bacteria eats the cheatgrass seeds, which eliminates the seed bank.

We put one gallon per acre in Hamilton, and two gallons per acre in Sula, Morris said. With the two-gallon application, there is virtually no cheatgrass after one year. Thats not normal, though; it usually takes a couple years.

The bacteria isnt an herbicide; it occurs naturally in certain soils and inhibits the growth of cheatgrass. Known by researchers as ACK55, MB906 or D7, western land managers say the bacteria shows great promise.

Im convinced it will work as long as the bacteria are applied in the fall to the soil so they can colonize emerging cheatgrass roots in the spring, Michael Gregg, a Land Management Research and Demonstration biologist at the Washingtons Mid-Columbia River Refuges Complex, said in a 2013 press release issued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

At that time, the federal agency was trying to convince other agencies of the bacterias value in fighting cheatgrass. Morris wants to bring that battle to the local level.

Shes offering to place orders for landowners to purchase pseudomonas fluorescens at $10 per gallon. Landowners would have to apply it themselves this fall. She hopes to have the order in on Oct. 26, and it should arrive around Nov. 6.

Theres no limit on orders, and shipping is free.

Morris cant guarantee that it will eradicate cheatgrass, but is cautiously optimistic based on the local results. It can be applied with sprayers mounted on anything from a backpack to a helicopter.

The key is it needs to be put out when its cold, and you run the risk of equipment freezing up, she cautioned. But this thrives when its cold  under 50 degrees.

In a field near the Daly Mansion, Morris pulls up a few handfuls of cheatgrass to show the green sprouts underneath. Those sprouts suck out all of the grounds moisture, leaving none for native plants.

Cheatgrass covers hundreds of thousands of miles, and is spreading across thousands of acres every day, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Not only does it cheat the native plants out of their moisture in the spring, it also dries out quickly in the summer, allowing wildfires to burn hotter and more frequently.

Were basically offering this to the public at cost. They can put it on their property to test how it works, Morris said. The Bitterroot Valley and the rest of Montana is too beautiful to let the cheatgrass and other weeds take over.

People interested in placing an order can contact Morris at 777-5842 or kmorris@rc.mt.gov.
At certain glorious times in life, the fishing stars align. A few summers ago, eight I believe, my lifelong fishing friend Keith Seppel and I were lucky enough to both have a summer of work-free Tuesdays. Naturally, we set out to fish every Tuesday until the well ran dry. Our destination was the West Fork of the Bitterroot River. Our goal was to begin in late May and fish through early July, catching every stage of the salmon fly and golden stone hatches.

It was an amazing three months. Together, we waded the river and wandered the banks of the upper West Fork flicking huge bugs, and waiting for a dance partner. The trout were willing to dance often, and we enjoyed some of the best dry fly fishing I have ever experienced.

Despite our tremendous success, the flow of time, responsibility, and commitments prevented us from repeating the effort. A couple years later, however, Keith and I had a free day in June and decided to return to the West Fork, hoping to relive the glory of that remarkable summer.

Our return trip offered a decent salmon fly hatch, as well as a very unusual hatch we had never seen on Upper West Fork. The new bugs dotting the surface of the West Fork were big, extremely big. They were also made of rubber or plastic, and they darn near outnumbered the salmon flies. We marveled at the spectacle, and dubbed it the Bitterroot raft hatch.

It was the Bitterroot raft hatch that eventually turned us away from the West Fork. It wasnt just the insane number of floaters, but the lack of etiquette from the anglers aboard the boats. We would find an access and trudge a mile or so to post up on a hole in hopes that it would be ours. It wasnt. The upper West Fork is small, so not only did the floaters have to drift over the holes we were fishing, but the number of fishermen and fisherwomen who continued to fish the water we were standing in was absolutely disheartening. We would literally have to reel in our flies to avoid the boats, then watch as the floaters fished the very water our flies had just vacated. Salt in the wound, considering those aboard the boats would have miles and miles of river to fish during the next few hours, and we only had a few holes, runs and riffles to fish the entire day.

So Keith and I abandoned the West Fork of the Bitterroot River. I would guess it has been at least six years since we fished it, and while we werent going to be fishing big dry flies, we decided on this last day of September, with the water too low for drifting, a return to a river that had provided so much joy was in order.

We hoped the end of September would, as had been typical of years gone by, be void of many anglers, who may instead turn their attention to hunting. Many are pushed indoors by the colder weather. So it was with anticipation and some trepidation that we set our sights on a return trip to the West Fork of the Bitterroot River.

On our drive, we soon realized the West Fork had exploded in popularity since our magical summer of Tuesdays. Every fishing pullout from the confluence of the East and West Fork to the Nez Perce had a car or truck. Fishermen and fisherwomen dotted the river, knee deep in the water, stately and still save for the flick of the fly rod, like and army blue herons, waiting stoically for a fish. Finally, darn near to Painted Rocks, we found a spot to fish.

It wasnt long before we remembered why we fell in love with the West Fork, and why so many other have since done so.

The upper West Fork is as much a big creek as it is a small river. The canyon is tight, and immersed in the silent pines and chatting water, Keith and I soon felt like we were deep in the backcountry. Fall colors had begun to turn the bushes on the rivers edge a dazzling yellow and blood red. At 4,700 feet, we were in the fall clouds, not under them. A fine, straight-down, light drizzle misted everything.

At the first nice hole, I stripped out line, roll cast my streamer to the far bank, gave it a few hard twitches, then began to strip as it swung to my side of the current. On about the fifth strip, a fish tagged the streamer. A short battle later, I released a small native Cutthroat. Three casts later, standing in nearly the same spot, a much bigger fish responded to the twitch of the streamer. Rod tip throbbing (along with my heart), fish slashing and diving, I battled in a hefty cutbow. The cutbow, like many of those who, aboard a guided raft, fish the West Fork, is not a native.

Yet, Keith, technically isnt a native either, having been born in Wisconsin. Is he somehow less deserving of the joy of the West Fork than I am? Do bank fisherman deserve this water any less or more than floaters? The simple truth is, the West Fork, like all of Montanas public land, is magical.

Access to the West Fork of the Bitterroot River is a hotly contested topic at the moment because there is joy to be had on the water, which also means there is money to be made. Fish, Wildlife and Parks has opened a comment period and is hosting public meetings on the very topic. The public comment period ends Oct. 13. I hope that as people engage in the debate over West Fork, that all voices are heard. I also hope that a balance can be struck that will allow natives and non-natives, guides and non-guides, and waders and floaters, the chance to enjoy this remarkable river. A place can be loved to death. The West Fork is too valuable to allow that to happen. It does, after all, belong to us all.
Guwahati : Seven security personnel including 5 of Indian Air Force (IAF) and two army officials were died an IAF chopper crashed in Arunachal Pradesh's Tawang region on Friday morning, officials said.

The incident took place about 12-15 km away from China border.

According to the reports, the Mi-17 V5 chopper of the IAF was crashed at Topugarh area about 130-km from Tawang nearby China border at around 6-10 am.

A top official of IAF said that, seven people including two army officials and five IAF personnel were on board.

'The chopper took off around 5-10 am from Khirmu helipad and the chopper was crashed around 6-10 am in the high-altitude of 17000 ft at Topugarh area near Yangchi, around 130-km away from Tawang due to technical snag,'A the top IAF official said.

The top IAFofficial said that, the chopper was on an maintenance mission for delivering kerosene jerry canes.

Meanwhile, Arunachal police confirmed that all bodies have been recovered.

'IAF personnel Wing Commander Vikram Upadhay, Squardon Leader S Tiwari, MWO AK Singh, Sgt. Gautam, Sgt. Satish Kumar and Indian army officials Sep. E Balaji, Sep. HN Deka were on board of the chopper and they were not survive in the incident,'A a top official of Arunachal Police said.

Meanwhile, the authorities have ordered a court probe into the crash.

In last May, two pilots of the IAF were killed after a Sukhoi - 30 fighter jet crashed at a remote area along Assam - Arunachal Pradesh border.

(Reporting by Hemanta Kumar Nath)
Kathmandu, Nepal: CPN Maoist Centre Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal has made clear that his party is ready to quit the government if Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba said so.

Our party is not in favor of toppling the government even though we have agreed to forge electoral alliance with the main opposition CPN UML, CPN Maoist Chairman Dahal said while talking in a parliamentary party meeting on Saturday morning.

Our alliance with CPN-UML for upcoming elections and subsequent unification is the broader strategy to make one single communist center in Nepal, but not targeted to anyone or change the government, he said.

We would like to reassure that our electoral alliance would not affect government because change of the government at this juncture would hamper the elections, former Primer Dahal said.

At the same time he also made clear that his party has no any problem even to quit the government. If Prime Minister Deuba tells to quit from the current coalition government, we are ready for this, he said.
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A group of North Dakota university faculty members were troubled that members of the State Board of Higher Education hadnt seen a report criticizing the chancellors leadership before voting to extend his contract, the organization said this week.

The Council of College Faculties sent a letter to higher education leaders Tuesday regarding the June 2016 staff survey report on University System Chancellor Mark Hagerott. The report included accusations of gender bias and said the chancellor had a militaristic management style while displaying inappropriate or unprofessional speech or behavior.

Hagerott denied that he favored men over women but said he has made changes in response to the report. He has requested an investigation into what he said were political attempts to influence his office and a subsequent defamatory campaign against him.

The letter signed by CCF President Debora Dragseth, a Dickinson State University professor, points to a lack of procedure thats evidenced through the failure to distribute the report. The council raised concerns that State Board of Higher Education members, other than then-chairwoman Kathleen Neset, didnt receive this critical information in a timely manner.

This report, dated three days prior to the discussion of the chancellors evaluation (June 29, 2016) and prior to the renewal of his contract (June 27, 2017), was consequently not a part of the discourse regarding Chancellor Hagerotts job performance, the letter said.

The higher education board voted unanimously in June to extend Hagerotts contract for one year, to June 30, 2019. Last week, the board rejected a motion in a tie vote to hold a special meeting to discuss the chancellors contract in light of potential litigation.

The councils letter was addressed to Hagerott as well as State Board of Higher Education Chairman Don Morton and Vice Chairman Greg Stemen.

We felt that (it) would have been more transparent for the board members to have all the information available to them before they made any decisions on the chancellors work, Dragseth said in an interview.

In an email to Dragseth on Friday, Morton said the report was an informational item meant to provide input into the evaluation process, and as such would not normally be distributed to other board members. He said Neset asked compliance officer Karol Riedman to informally survey NDUS system office staff to collect input that could be helpful in preparing the evaluation and making recommendations.

In an interview, Morton said he had also seen the Riedman report, but confirmed other board members had not. He was vice chairman at the time it was written.

We try to be careful when were talking personnel. We all deserve a certain amount of privacy, Morton said. Kathy and I spent  all of the last academic year meeting with the university system staff, meeting with them individually and in groups, meeting with Mark, and we were really pleased. Mark was very responsive to our feedback.

Morton said theyre in the process of conducting a formal climate survey of university system staff that will result in a report to be distributed to board members, office staff and all interested parties. He hopes it will be completed by the Nov. 30 board meeting.
Global warming has started showing its effects with long spells of summer and short rains and winters which do not feel like winters anymore. A new study into the reasons for global warming has revealed that the heat makes the soil beneath us liberate carbon dioxide which means the more the weather, the more Co2 is released into the atmosphere which further increases the temperature ultimately towards an unending cycle of temperature change.

A section of land owned by Harvard University in Massachusetts forest was excavated by a group of researchers in the year 1991. To see the effect of heat on the soil, electric cables were buried inside the ground to warm them up. The researchers increased the temperature just 5 degrees above the original temperature, and the results were staggering.

Now, 26 years later, the researchers found that the top sixty centimeters of the organic matter had lost a lot of stored-carbon which means that it is silently contributing to the global warming ailing Earth right now. In the paper published in the journal Science, the lead scientists of the investigation concluded that around 17% of carbon liberated from the soil was due to the heating. Scientists from Harvard suggest that any ordinary soil loses an enormous amount of carbon dioxide when exposed to hot temperature. This ultimately worsens climate change and adds up to the already high carbon emission rate produced by humans on a daily basis.

Earth contains more than 3,500 billion tons of carbon which is contained in the organic matter in the soil. According to Jerry Melillo, U.S. Marine Biological Research Laboratory scientist, Bacteria live inside the ground and feed on the matter and release carbon dioxide as a by-product.With an increase in heat, the microbes can digest more, thus releasing more amount of heat.

When we think about the current climate change, the soil wasnt given any attention. It plays a significant role in climate change which cannot be ignored as this is where we get everything from food to trees that produce oxygen.
If you used your credit card at a Whole Foods restaurant or taproom in the Bay Area recently, then you should keep an eye on your recent transactions, as a data breach may have revealed your financial info to hackers.

According to a CBS report on the hack, the data breach only involved point of sale systems at the restaurants and taprooms that are located inside Whole Foods stores. In the Bay Area, this means that there are nine locations that were affected, including:

Cupertino, Stevens Creek Boulevard

Dublin, Dublin Boulevard

Mill Valley, East Blithedale

San Francisco, Rhode Island Street

San Francisco, 4th Street

San Jose, The Alameda

Santa Clara, Augustine Drive

Walnut Creek, Ygnacio Valley Road

ABC 7 shared a lookup tool created by Whole Foods that names the cafes, restaurants, and other businesses where these breaches occurred. If you shopped at any of the above locations and the smaller businesses therein, then you should double check to make sure your card statement is in order.

Whole Foods acknowledged the breach in a statement, saying that their investigation into the whys and wherefores of the hack is still ongoing. Though they don't believe the point of sale systems in the grocery stores themselves were compromised, they still say customers should "closely monitor their payment card statements and report any unauthorized charges to the issuing bank." The company has yet to reveal just how many customers were affected by the breach.

Related: Yahoo Hack From 2013 Actually Impacted All 3 Billion Accounts
GRAND FORKS  North Dakota is seeing more registrations for unmanned aircraft pilots and vehicles, and commercial registrations have quadrupled since the federal government released its first list more than a year ago.

Its a sign of how fast interest in the new technology is growing, but experts believe it also shows the industry could become a part of day-to-day life.

Its going to change our lives like the iPhone, Tom Kenville, president of the Midwest Drone Group in Grand Forks, said of unmanned aircraft systems, or UAS.

Almost 1,800 North Dakota residents had registered themselves as hobbyist UAS pilots as of February, the latest numbers available from the Federal Aviation Administration. Thats about 530 more than were registered in May 2016, the deadline by which small unmanned aircraft, also known as drones, had to be registered.

The states non-hobbyist group, or drones that are used for commercial purposes, had a significant jump in the same timeframe -- from 46 in May 2016 to 181 in February.

Registered drone use is rapidly growing, especially in North Dakota, Xcel Energy spokesman Matthew Lindstrom said. Most people in the state already know about (North Dakotas) national reputation in aviation, its highly skilled workforce and state-of-the-art facilities. This environment is why North Dakota is known as the Silicon Valley of drones. 

Xcel uses drones to inspect electrical grids and transmission lines across the Midwest.

Fargo has the most hobbyist and non-hobbyist registrations in North Dakota with 258 hobbyist owners and 56 non-hobbyist drones. There are 188 hobbyist owners and 41 non-hobbyist drones in Grand Forks. The city ranks third for hobbyist owners behind Fargo and Bismarck (with 224 owners) and second for non-hobbyist drones.

In compliance

Hobbyists only need to register themselves and can have multiple drones under one registration, while non-hobbyists have to register each drone, said Nicholas Flom, executive director of the Northern Plains UAS Test Site in Grand Forks.

That means the FAAs list features the number of hobbyist pilots and the number of non-hobbyist drones, so its hard to know how many drones are being flown in the state.

Names of the people and companies who have registered drones are not considered public records.

Still, its impressive to see not only the numbers grow but also the locations of the drones, Flom said. He noted registrations come from a wide swath of locations, from larger cities in the east like Fargo to small villages in the west like Fairfield, an unincorporated community in Billings County with a population of about 100.

He attributed North Dakotas growth to education on drones and the states capabilities to fly UAS in airspace that has less traffic than most areas.

North Dakota is one of the most educated states when it comes to unmanned aircraft, he said, adding the state likely has the one of the higher rates of compliance when it comes to flying drones.

Its likely drones are not registered across the U.S. and are not in compliance, but it is hard to know how many, Flom said. The FAA said it had registered more than 770,000 drone owners in the U.S. as of March, but he cited sources stating UAS sales have exceeded 2 million.

Numbers also may have increased because the FAA has laid out more rules allowing commercial companies to apply for exemptions to fly drones. Midwest Drone Group formed earlier this year after Unmanned Applications Institute International and ISight RPV Services, both of Grand Forks, combined, making it the largest UAS company in Grand Forks, Kenville said.

Kenville said he appreciates the exemptions, but he foresees rules getting tougher, especially with the possibility of having more pilots, drones and, in turn, collisions.

He is concerned about the quality of drones, saying some companies are buying cheaply made UAS.

The FAA also is working on rules that would allow beyond-line-of-sight flights, which will help the industry grow even more, Kenville said. He believes the FAA is going in the right direction in trying to determine the rules and regulations for the drone industry.

To really blow up the industry, we have to go with beyond line of sight, but we have to do it safely, he said.
Following a report from last week about how the San Francisco housing market is "overvalued" and most at risk for a burst in its housing bubble, the Merc shares a new report which says that more Bay Area residents are choosing to rent instead of own  and they're paying a heck of a lot to do so.

The report, conducted by New York University's Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy, states that the amount of people who rent their homes has gone up 5%, with the number of homeowners dwindling respectively. The Merc points out that it's a trend that's spread out over much of the country, and of the 53 U.S. metropolitan areas specified in the study, San Francisco and San Jose have the highest renter household incomes. Despite that, and despite the growing population of renters with high-income jobs, residents still have difficulty meeting their high median rents. Moreover, many of those residents are considered "severely rent burdened," meaning that 50% of their income goes straight to paying rent.

Sewin Chan, the report's co-author, also took a moment to illustrate how this rise obfuscates what the rental market might look like to lower-income renters. Chan said, "Theres more renters and more of them have high income and higher education. So thats sort of masking an affordability problem for people at the lower end."

Given the previous study regarding San Francisco's "overvalued" housing market, it's easy to imagine that hardly anybody can afford a home in the Bay Area. In a report from July, Curbed SF said that the median cost for a home in San Francisco rose to $1.4 million  an unreasonable amount if don't work in tech. That said, it seems to still be an unreasonable amount even if you do work in tech, as TheNextWeb pointed out just a few days ago that tech workers seem to be leaving the Bay Area in droves, with 2016 Census data showing a net-out migration. They had a chat with Tim Helenthal, president and COO of National Van Lines, who cited issues with the housing market. Helenthal told them, "As real estate prices jump in many metro areas, we see a lot of moves away from expensive cities to places with active jobs markets and a more affordable cost of living."

NYU's study went on to show that SF and San Jose renters are more or less incentivized to stay where they are, even if what they're paying is already high. Moving from one apartment to another would often result in an increase in rent, something to the tune of an additional $470 paid here in SF. Combine that increase with the rising cost of homeownership in the city, and it becomes all too clear why many people are choosing to stay where they are in the rental market.

Related: LinkedIn Map Shows Where People Flee To When They Leave The Bay Area
A judge has ruled that BART was guilty of "serious and egregious" safety lapses in the case of the deaths of two workers on the tracks who were struck by a train in 2013. Judge Kimberly Kim, an administrative law judge for the California Public Utilities Commission, issued her ruling Friday, as the Chronicle reports, saying, "The evidence in this case shows that there may be a serious safety culture problem at BART."

The tragic incident occurred on October 19, 2013, during a BART operator strike, when 58-year-old track engineer Christopher Sheppard and 66-year-old Lawrence Daniels, a contract employee, were investigating reports of a dip in the tracks between Walnut Creek and Pleasant Hill stations. A BART manager, Richard Burr, was being trained to operate the train in preparation for a possible extended strike, and a veteran manager, Paul Liston, was supposed to be observing him but was apparently sitting outside the operators cabin on his cellphone at the time of the incident  one of multiple safety violations cited by Judge Kim. Neither Burr nor Liston were aware that any workers might be on the track in this vicinity, and as the train rounded a long curve Burr was not able to stop the train in time or sound the horn when he spotted the men on the tracks. Leaked cab surveillance video that came out of this legal proceeding back in May suggested that Burr, who was not familiar enough with the control panel, hit the "door close" button multiple times when he probably meant to hit the horn button, which is right below it.

At the time of the incident, the workers were, under BART rules, supposed to be responsible for their own safety on the tracks, and one man was supposed to be acting as lookout, which he was not.

Judge Kim called it an "utter failure" on the part of BART that the trainee operating the train was not being properly supervised.

As NBC Bay Area reports, Sheppard's widow praised the decision as vindication after years in which BART tried to blame the two engineers for their own deaths.

The PUC is fining BART $659,000, as Bay City News reports, and staying two thirds of the fine, so BART will have 60 days to pay just under $220,000 to the state's general fund. BART was previously fined $210,000 by Cal/OSHA over this incident, and as the Chron notes, they settled a suit brought by the family of Daniels for $300,000.

Previously: BART Is Mad That In-Cab Video Of Fatal 2013 Accident Was Leaked, Takes PUC To Court
Fall is typically a time for openings, and we have a couple to tell you about this week, as well some closures. Earlier we heard about the debut of chef Robin Song's new spot Gibson in the 'Loin, and chef Anthony Strong's new pop-up Cibi Cotti, in preparation for his first solo brick-and-mortar spot, name and location TBA. And we got an update on Cyrus 2.0, which will be making its second debut in a new Healdsburg location in 2019.

The owners of the still relatively new Finn Town Tavern in the Castro are doubling down and opening Papi Rico, a Jalisco-inspired Mexican spot in the space formerly occupied by Dante's Table, and before that Nirvana, at 544 Castro Street. Hoodline has some of the details, with co-owner Rick Hamer promising "plants, murals of the beach and jungle, and more than 100 pinatas" as part of the decor. It sounds like it's going to be bar-focused with Mexican street food, including tacos, quesadillas, and ceviche. Look for that to debut in November.

A sort of Korean izakaya type spot called Barnzu has just opened in the Tenderloin. As Eater tells us, barnzu means "food to eat while drinking," so that is the focus, with (of course) Korean fried chicken, as well as pork belly, a ribeye steak, and plenty of drinking snacks like savory pancakes and fries. Barnzu is open until 11 most nights, and midnight on Friday and Saturday at 711 Geary Street (at Leavenworth).

There's been a bit of a switch-up at The Progress where chef Stuart Brioza has decided to extend the a la carte menu, previously just available at the bar, to the whole dining room. So, you don't have to do a prix fixe anymore, as Eater explains, but there will still be family-style platter dishes for the meats.

Fifth-generation baker Sylvain Chaillou has opened his Les Gourmands Bakery at 280 Fifth Street. Hoodline reports that he'll be using "longstanding family recipes" for his confections: think croissants, brioches, and chouquettes.

In other sweet news, Marin cult fave Johnny Doughnuts has opened their SF outpost at 392 Fulton Street, Eater reports. The last time I had one of their trademark crodoughs (flaky pastry stuffed with custard) I had to lie down for a month, and I can't wait to stuff another one on my maw.

Now some closures: Fisherman's Wharf's Rainforest Cafe (my favorite report on which is SFist pal Beth Spotswood's visit from 2011) has shuttered, and KRON 4 mourns. Workers only got a day's notice that the party was over, reportedly over an unsuccessful effort to get cheaper rent.

That's not the only Wharf shuttering, however. Joe's Crab Shack, which in 2013 had its dumpsters filled with weed, is also gone. Eater has the news, saying "the gate on Jefferson street is locked up and the light bulbs have been removed from the neon sign out front." So much for that no tipping thing!

Not at the Wharf, but also closed is that Thoughts Style Cuisine Showroom, a blindingly white venue opened by a recent Academy of Art graduate who once planned a line of bespoke sunglasses for the place, the Chron reports. The place lasted nearly two years, remarkably, on Eighth Street before they headed to that big Sunglass Hut in the sky.

Also going dark (this one was announced a while back) is The Hall, the temporarily-intended Mid-Market food court inside the old Hollywood Billiards space. The spot will be empty for now as a 193-unit housing development is constructed, but the new building will have 6,000 square feet of ground-floor retail once complete, Eater reports, so don't count food out on that block quite yet.

Mau, the beloved Vietnamese joint at 665 Valencia Street, was snatched from the jaws of closure following an eleventh-hour deal struck with their landlord. Capp Street Crap says they'll reopen late this month following a break to "regroup."

And also in the Mission, just to put the nail in Farina's coffin, the long shuttered Italian spot has been officially evicted from its space on 18th Street, as Mission Local has it. Stay tuned to see who might snap up that sleek, glass-walled space with its rooftop patio.



This Week In Reviews

SF Weekly's Pete Kane appears delighted with Alma Cocina, which he describes as "the ideal neighborhood restaurant." The Peruvian place borrows generously from Asian culture, he says, praising the chicken, the chicharron de cerdo, and their ceviches. The service is great too, he says.

The SF Chronicle's Michael Bauer continues to keep it bloggy with a name-dropping visit to Maybecks (well, if you count Ronn Owens as a name drop). Food truck El Sur also got a Bauer nod.

Bauer also dropped in a piece singing the praises of the beef Wellington at Maybeck's, which is becoming a popular Wednesday night special. The old-timey tenderloin-wrapped-in-pastry is hard to get right, and Bauer has nothing but compliments for chef Blake Askew.

Bauer's Sunday review is Perle, a self-described wine bar in Oaklands Montclair Village owned by the former sommelier and GM of SF's now-shuttered Fleur de Lys. The wine list is "good enough for me to brave bridge traffic to come for a glass and a bite," Bauer writes, and boasts "an exceptional charcuterie plate" and have revived a Fleur de Lys fave, "Hubert Kellers signature mushroom cappuccino soup." He finds a lot to praise, and ends up rewarding the still-evolving place with 2.5 stars.
Receiving Mr. Shin Yong Kyun, chairman and director general of South Korean Samsung Electronics Company at the Government headquarters, Mr. Phuc appreciated South Korean firms especially Samsung Group for maintaining to be the largest foreign investor in Vietnam for the last many years.

He proposed the group to continue having practical assistance in training and technology transfer to create conditions for Vietnamese firms in support industry, especially small and medium sized ones to have opportunities to cooperate with the group and supply components and materials for Samsung projects.

Samsung has invested in Vietnam for ten years with the total capital of US$17 billion. It is expected to get an export value of $50 billion in 2017, accounting for over 20 percent of Vietnams export turnover.

The company has increased the number of Vietnamese firms attending its production chain to 29 companies at the end of this year. It is expected to reach 50 in the next three years.

By LAM NGUYEN  Translated by Hai Mien
Iowa Democrats say one of the top keys to being successful in the 2018 elections --- after consecutive setbacks in the previous two --- is a message focused on jobs and the economy.

Yet one of the first issues seized by Democratic candidates for Iowa governor has been the states tax incentive programs, which are designed to entice companies to come to or expand in Iowa, thus creating jobs.

Are those messages at odds?

Some Iowa Democrats don't think so, but at least one Democratic state lawmakers does.

The 2016 election was especially jarring for Democrats in a state that twice voted for Barack Obama but went by almost 10 percentage points to Donald Trump.

One of the best ways to recoup those voters is to focus on an economic message, Democrats say.

I think the top three issues are jobs, jobs, jobs. And then jobs after that, Sean Bagniewski, chairman of the Polk County Democrats, said at the groups Steak Fry fundraiser this past weekend.

But ever since the announcement that the state awarded $20 million in tax relief to Apple for a data center it plans to build in suburban Des Moines, multiple Democratic candidates for governor have railed against the states tax incentive program.

Fred Hubbell, a Des Moines business running for the Democratic nomination, has handed out apples at campaign events to highlight his opposition to the incentives awarded for the data center project.

Is such opposition counter-productive to Democrats pledge to campaign on an economic platform?

Troy Price, chairman of the Iowa Democratic Party, doesn't see it that way.

Democrats are always excited when companies come to Iowa, but the problem is, (Republican Gov.) Kim Reynolds and the GOP are giving away piles of money to out-of-state corporations to create a handful of jobs, Price said in an emailed statement to the bureau. Theyre doing this despite the fact that companies like Microsoft say they didnt choose Iowa because of the incentives.

Price said Democrats will make the argument they want the tax dollars of hard-working Iowans to go toward better schools, affordable health care and good paying jobs.

Sue Dvorsky, a former state party chairwoman, said Democrats can highlight the large dollar amounts that the state is yielding relative to the number of jobs created. The Apple project is expected to produce only 50 permanent jobs.

But Chaz Allen is not as sure the message is a winning one for Democrats.

Allen is a Democratic state senator from Newton, where also served as mayor, which only recently has begun to recover from the 2006 closure of a Maytag plant there. Allen also serves as one of two state legislators --- non-voting members --- on the state economic development board.

Asked if an anti-tax breaks message will be a winner for Democrats in 2018, Allen replied, I dont think so.

Jobs have to come first. People have to have a reason to live here, and thats usually a job, Allen said. Jobs is what weve got to be working toward.

John Stineman, a Republican political consultant who worked on Steve Forbes 2000 presidential campaign, said Democrats attack the incentives program at their own peril. He noted Democrats have been highly critical of the more than $100 million in state tax relief awarded to a $3 billion fertilizer plant in Lee County, in southeast Iowa, and yet former Gov. Terry Branstad in 2014 won that county for the first time in six gubernatorial election victories.

Thats directly related to economic development and the jobs that were created, Stineman said. It was the Iowa Fertilizer Plant and the hundreds and thousands of construction jobs and the money that was spent in those communities.

Reynolds campaign, naturally, defended the administrations use of state tax incentives, pointing to the states low unemployment rate.

The Apple economic development Project will employ hundreds of Iowans (when including temporary jobs like construction) and build on the continued growth of the Silicon Prairie, Reynolds campaign spokesman Pat Garrett said in an email to the bureau. The project is a home run. We will continue to focus on building a better Iowa, which means improvements and reforms for better jobs, a 21st century education, and a well-trained workforce.
SIOUX CITY | Jerry Janssen wants to toast the red, the white, the blue and the purple.

That's why Janssen's WineStyles in Sioux City, as well as WineStyles across the country, are partnering with Purple Heart Wines in a national fundraising benefit for the Purple Heart Foundation, an organization that supports U.S. veterans in need.

"Between now and Veterans Day, WineStyles will donate $1 per glass of Purple Heart Wine served and $1 per bottle of Purple Heart," Janssen said. "It's just our small way of saying thanks to all of our veterans."

Plus, he said, Purple Heart Wines -- launched in 2016 to honor the determination, bravery and commitment of American's military heroes -- has become a critically acclaimed red wine.

Produced by winemaker (and U.S. Air Force veteran) John Moynier, the California-made Purple Heart Wine is crafted under the close stewardship of C. Mondavi & Family, whose patriarch, Peter Mondavi, was a World War II veteran.

According to Janssen, Purple Heart Wines have the aroma of plum, cinnamon and cassis and the fruit flavors of dried currants and red and black berries.

"It has a silky texture and a long, lingering finish," he said.

Putting bottles of Purple Heart Wines onto the shelves of his 5002 Sergeant Road store, Janssen is happy to support the Purple Heart Foundation, an organization that has been honoring the sacrifice that military veterans have made for their country over the past 50 years.

"Last year alone, (the Purple Heart Foundation) helped more than 19,000 U.S. veterans and secured more than $300 million in VA benefits," he noted.

In fact, C. Mondavi & Family wines makes an annual contribution of $50,000 to a Purple Heart Foundation program that helps U.S. veterans and their families with job training, counseling and more.

"Winemakers are very civic minded and charitable," Janssen said. "That's why I'm happy to see WineStyles collaborating with Purple Heart Wines."

Although he was never in the military, Janssen always had an appreciation for those fighting for their country.

"Over the years, I've become friends with many members of (Sioux City's) Iowa National Air Guard's 185th Refueling Wing," he explained. "They're all terrific people."

Plus some may also be wine drinkers.

Which is why Janssen said WineStyles' fundraising campaign will conclude with a special Veterans Day "Toast our Veterans" tasting event from 6 to 8 p.m. Nov. 11.

"We want everyone to join us as we lift a glass and pay tribute to our brave military heroes and thank them for their profound contributions," he said.
SUTHERLAND, Iowa | There will be a benefit for the family of the northwest Iowa woman killed in the Las Vegas concert shooting.

The free-will donation meal will be held from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 15 at the R.L. Johannsen Center at 110 Ash St. in Sutherland.

Carly Kreibaum, 33, of Sutherland, was among the 58 people who died from injuries sustained Sunday during the deadliest shooting in U.S. history.

She attended the outdoor music festival with two friends. The women were separated in the chaos that followed the shootings.

Two bank accounts have been established at Security State Bank in Sutherland for Kreibaum's husband and two young children.

Kreibaum was a Sibley native who graduated from Sibley-Ocheyedan High School. She later attended Wayne State College in Wayne, Nebraska.
SIOUX CITY | The man found guilty of shooting at a Woodbury County Sheriff's Deputy was sentenced to 25 years for attempted murder Friday afternoon.

Woodbury County District Court Judge John Ackerman said Melvin Spencer has to serve a mandatory 70 percent of the sentence, or about 17 1/2 years, before he is eligible for parole under Iowa law.

"It's what the state code is and he got the sentence he deserved," County Sheriff Dave Drew said after the hearing.

Spencer, 25, of Sioux City, declined his opportunity to address the court before the sentence was read in the courtroom filled with uniformed law enforcement officers. He also chose to appeal the sentence, with that hearing scheduled for a later date.

Spencer's family and friends wept quietly and sent farewells while he was escorted out of the courtroom. Spencer acknowledged their greetings with a smile.

After deliberating for nearly eight hours, a jury in August found Spencer guilty of attempted murder.

Evidence during two days of testimony showed that Spencer fired 16 shots at Deputy Mike Lenz at the end of a Feb. 26 vehicle pursuit south of Sioux City. Lenz was not injured, but at least five rounds struck his patrol vehicle.

The chase began when another deputy attempted to stop a vehicle driven by Brittney Hood on 260th Street near Port Neal Road for traffic violations. Rather than pull over, Hood sped away before stopping the vehicle, exiting and fleeing on foot before she was apprehended.

Originally a passenger in the vehicle, Spencer took the wheel and sped off. He was turning onto 225th Street when Lenz joined the chase and followed Spencer north onto Allison Avenue, where the vehicle became stuck in a ditch at a dead end. Spencer then leaned out the driver's side window and fired at Lenz, who returned fire. Spencer fled on foot while Lenz attended to a passenger in Spencer's vehicle who had been struck by gunfire and suffered non-life-threatening injuries.

Spencer was arrested three hours later after officers from several local and state law enforcement agencies had joined in the manhunt.

Hood, 27, of Sioux City, pleaded guilty in April to misdemeanor charges of eluding and interference with official acts and was sentenced to 90 days in jail.

"The key is to get people who are dangerous to society and deputies and officers off the street," Drew said. "I think that is the process that we went through and I think the courts found a just sentence so I think justice has been served."

Lenz was unavailable for comment after Friday's sentencing.
SERGEANT BLUFF | A Siouxland developer is planning a new 78-lot subdivision on Sergeant Bluff's southeast side.

The subdivision, to be called Serenity Point, will sit south of Warrior Road between Old Highway 75 and Old Lakeport Road.

Developer Zach Terry, of Onawa, said the $4 million investment includes 78 lots and 1 1/2 acres of commercial space. The city this week passed a final plat and development agreement for the project, one of the final steps to approval.

"Basically, it's ready to start selling lots now," Terry said.

Terry, who runs a rental business and a septic and portable services company, as well as serves with the 185th Air Refueling Wing, said the inspiration for the new development came last year when he was driving his wife to the dentist in Sergeant Bluff.

"I looked across and saw the property and said, 'Why hasn't someone built property there?'" he recalled.

Terry entered talks with the city and has completed the underground utility work. He said he already has a few prospective homeowners lined up to purchase lots.

The lots come in a variety of sizes, ranging from 150-by-80 feet up to 210-by-110 feet. The homes, he envisions, will range from $250,000 to $400,000.

"I think it's going to pull a lot of individuals from Sioux City who want the suburban feel of nice housing," he said.

City Administrator Aaron Lincoln said the new subdivision will continue a healthy growth in new housing for the community.

"Our existing subdivisions are filling up, and we really have a limited amount. But this project allows us to continually have more options for people to build a home and join our community," Lincoln said.

Terry said he is planning to design a second phase in a 20-acre field on the south edge that could add around 25 more lots and more space for commercial development.
On Iowa Politics discussed possible gun control following the shooting in Las Vegas, whether anyone can dethrone Rep. Steve King, and the idea of creating competitive districts for elections.

On Iowa Politics is a weekly news and analysis podcast which re-creates the conversations that happen when Iowa's political reporters get together after deadlines have been met. This week's show features James Lynch, Ed Tibbetts, Todd Dorman, Brett Hayworth, Erin Murphy, and Christinia Crippes.

This week's show was produced by Max Freund and the music heard in the podcast is courtesy of Faces turned Ashen. Chat with us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter @OnIowaPolitics, and subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher. Know an Iowa musician who should be on our show? Send their band sound files to oniowapolitics@gmail.com.
Obtained by ABC News(LAS VEGAS) -- The family of a California man who was killed Sunday night during the mass shooting in Las Vegas is petitioning a court to freeze the gunman's assets.



The gunman, identified by police as 64-year-old Stephen Paddock, opened fire on a musical festival crowd from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas on Oct. 1, killing 58 people and injuring 489 others before taking his own life. More than 22,000 people were attending the final night of the Route 91 Harvest Festival when gunfire erupted.



John Phippen, 56, was among those shot and killed, according to Clark County coroner John Fudenberg. The father of six from Santa Clarita, California, was in the crowd with his adult son, Travis Phippen, who was injured, ABC station KABC-TV in Los Angeles reported.



Attorneys for Travis Phippen filed a petition in the Clark County District Court on Friday asking the judge to appoint Clark County Public Administrator John Cahill to oversee Paddock's estate so the Phippen family and others who "suffered loss, distress and injuries" can pursue lawsuits against the estate. The petition also asks that Cahill have the authority to marshal and take possession of Paddock's assets for "safe keeping," according to court documents obtained by ABC News.



The move would block Paddock's longtime girlfriend, Marilou Danley, his brother, Eric Paddock, or any other possible heirs from transferring his money.



"We have filed a petition with the district court in Nevada, requesting that the court appoint a public administrator of the state of Nevada to take control of his assets," attorney Robert A. Patterson of the California law firm Owen Patterson & Owen said in a recent interview with KABC-TV. "It is for the benefit of everyone. It will preserve the asset subject to the court's direction and future distribution."



Paddocks finances and recent transactions have become a key focus for investigators trying to piece together more about the Mesquite, Nevada, resident and why he launched the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history.



More than 200 reports about Paddocks activities, particularly large transactions at casinos, have been filed with law enforcement authorities in the past three years alone, ABC News has learned.



While some of the reports centered around "suspicious activity," most were "currency transaction reports," which casinos are required to file with the U.S. Department of Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, or FinCEN, when someone withdraws or deposits more than $10,000 in cash.



The number of reports prompted by Paddock's activities suggest he often gambled with large amounts of money.



When asked about the reports associated with Paddock, a FinCEN spokesperson told ABC News the agency "does not comment on specific reports filed by financial institutions," but added, "FinCEN provides access to its database to authorized law enforcement and regulatory users and the data has proven to be extremely useful to investigators."

Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
FARGO  Brooke Lynn Crews, one of two suspects charged in the killing of Savanna LaFontaine-Greywind and abduction of her newborn daughter, has been ordered to undergo a psychiatric evaluation at the North Dakota State Hospital in Jamestown.

Crews attorney, Steven Mottinger, filed the proposed order for commitment for evaluation on Tuesday and the order was made one day later. Court documents did not indicate when the evaluation would take place. Mottinger was out of town on Friday and unavailable for comment.

Crews, 38, and William Henry Hoehn, 32, have been charged with conspiracy to commit murder in the death of LaFontaine-Greywind, conspiracy to commit kidnapping in the abduction of her newborn baby daughter, and providing false information to police.

At Crews arraignment last week, she declined to enter pleas to the charges, but her attorney asked the court to enter pleas of not guilty on her behalf. Hoehn waived his right to a preliminary hearing and pleaded not guilty.

The next scheduled court date for Crews is Jan. 3 when she will have a felony dispositional conference before Cass County District Judge Frank Racek. Hoehns dispositional conference is set for Dec. 6.

Crews and Hoehn lived on the third floor of the same north Fargo apartment building where LaFontaine-Greywind lived with her family. LaFontaine-Greywind, 22, was eight months pregnant when she was reported missing on Aug. 19. She had gone upstairs that day to help Crews with a sewing project, but was never seen alive by family again.

Crews was arrested on Aug. 24 at her apartment, and police found LaFontaine-Greywinds newborn baby daughter, Haisley Jo, in her possession. Hoehn was arrested later the same day at his place of employment. LaFontaine-Greywinds body was found in the Red River eight days after she disappeared. Police said she died as a result of homicidal violence.

According to court documents, Crews told police that on the day LaFontaine-Greywind disappeared she had instructed her on how to self-induce childbirth. Crews claimed LaFontaine-Greywind then left her apartment, returned two days later at 3:30 a.m. and gave Crews an infant.

Hoehns account of what happened differed significantly. He told police that he came home from work at 2:30 p.m. on the Saturday LaFontaine-Greywind disappeared and found Crews cleaning up blood in their bathroom. Hoehn said Crews presented him with a baby girl, stating, This is our baby. This is our family.

Charging documents said Crews and Hoehn conspired to murder LaFontaine-Greywind so that they could obtain her child and so that the child could be raised as (their) biological child.

Reporters inquiries made after the suspects were arrested revealed that Crews had at least seven children of her own by at least five men, but had limited contact with all of them. She had been sued for child support by two of the men.

Crews in court documents said she had been unable to work because she had been ill for quite a while. She didnt specify the nature of her illness.
AKRON, Iowa | Authorities have identified Jeremy Barger Hebert, 40, as the man who was shot to death in rural Plymouth County Friday.

Becky J. Hebert, 33, has been charged with second-degree murder.

The sheriff's office would not comment on the relationship of the two Saturday afternoon.

Authorities say Becky Hebert shot Jeremy Hebert during an argument at 13203 Evergreen Ave. after midnight Friday.

When officers responded to the call, they found Jeremy Hebert with a gunshot wound. He was transported to a Sioux City hospital where he was pronounced dead a short time later.

Sheriff Mike Van Otterloo said law enforcement has been called to the residence previously for domestic violence and disturbances. The two have been living together at that residence.

Van Otterloo said Becky Hebert was arrested in Le Mars at 12:15 p.m. Friday. In addition to second-degree murder, a Class B felony, she has been charged with willfully and deliberately causing the death of another. Her bond has been set at $25,000.

The sheriff said Becky Hebert and the deceased had been arguing prior to the shooting and there was a witness. There were other people in the home and there were no other injuries.

An autopsy has been scheduled with the State of Iowa Medical Examiner's Office in Ankeny.

The Le Mars and Akron Police Departments assisted with the incident.
SIOUX CITY | Forty-four ambulances totaling almost $950,000 over nearly 30 years in Woodbury County.

Also, no defaults by the town organizations that have borrowed the money from a specialty loan account to buy ambulances.

The next one is coming in a few months to Moville, Iowa.

Those are the key statistics from the Woodbury County EMS Loan Fund Program, which was established in 1988 as a way for organizations in small county towns to buy ambulances and some pieces of specialty emergency equipment.

"At the time, it was believed to be the only one of it's kind in Northwest Iowa," Woodbury County Emergency Services Department Director Gary Brown said. "Our EMS providers are very appreciative of having this funding available to pay for large pieces of equipment."

The no-interest revolving loan was initially established with $165,000 from a federal revenue sharing fund. Ambulance groups have up to five years to repay loans. The fund now stands at $192,388, since money not being used is invested to generate revenue.

The most recent loan was for an ambulance in Bronson. In one more payment of $6,000 in May, that loan will be paid off.

Bronson Mayor Dave Amick, who is also a fireman and emergency medical technician on the ambulance crew, said he's been a fan of the option of the county's revolving loan going back to the beginning. Amick, a former Woodbury County sheriff, estimated three Bronson ambulances have been bought via the fund over that time.

"It has been a really good program. It has helped a lot of squads buy a lot of ambulances," Amick said.

Amick said the zero-interest option is a financial boon, when compared to the option of private financing at a bank with interest costs and higher down payments. Brown said not every ambulance bought by county organizations is funded through the revolving loan, as some in Sloan and Danbury recently used other financing.

The cost of the new Moville ambulance, a 2017 Chevrolet Arrow C4500, is $135,000, and will arrive by January. It is not a remotely a situation of the current one being a clunker about to fall apart, said Moville Ambulance official Jeff Crick, who has done a lot of maintenance work on the existing ambulance.

The current Moville ambulance is about seven years old and approaching 30,000 miles. Crick said the time is right for a new one, since trading at the right time is imperative, before the existing unit gets too beaten up and the value falls below the $65,000 in which he anticipates selling it.

"It is a beautiful unit...If we let it get 10 years old, it will have little value," Crick said.

After the $50,000 county loan and the $65,000 trade-in, the Moville crew will have to come up with about $25,000 in fundraising and other means to complete the purchase.

The county fund isn't just used for ambulances, as some pieces of emergency response equipment also have been financed. That includes three defibrillators, a pager system and one Jaws of Life unit over the years.

Amick said he hopes the program doesn't fall victim to cuts by the county supervisors. Brown said he can see no scenario where the loan program is killed.

"You'd hate to see an old program that has been successful go away," Amick said.
"I'm still in shock. I didn't think I was going to see my friends or family again."

 Hallie Johnsrud, Watford City, who along with her husband and friends survived the Las Vegas shooting, on her reaction to the massacre.

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"Oh sure, absolutely. Random acts of terrorism can't affect how you live your life."

 Beau Flom, who survived the Las Vegas shooting with his wife and friends, on whether he would attend similar events in the future.

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I just feel sorry for the poor people who went to the concert and (were) having fun and then are coming home without a loved one. I cant even imagine. Thats not supposed to happen."

 Michelle Slaughter, Hebron, who was at the Las Vegas concert with friends.

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"Produced water is a killer to the soil. It sterilizes it. When you look at the thousands of miles of pipelines and the millions of gallons of product we're moving, we need to be using the best product available. And that needs to be looked at sooner than later."

 Troy Coons, chairman of the Northwest Landowners Association, saying the material used for pipelines is a concern.

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"I don't like that law. The public is always interested in who applies."

 Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem, discussing a new law that keeps secret applicants for some state jobs until finalists are selected.

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"We're in the people business, caring for the people in their time of need. We understand there's grief when people lose a pet, too."

 Daniel Eastgate, who along with Bob Eastgate, has started Summerfield Pet Memorial Park. They are offering lots in the pet cemetery.

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"We're trying to make it affordable. Fixed base operators operate on a pretty slim margin. (Lavatory service) is often a service they would like to offer but it has to be affordable."

 Lynn Hartman, who with his son, Mitch Hartman, operates Lav Air Portasystems Inc. in Dickinson. They make a cart for emptying a plane's waste tank and replacing clean water.

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"He was a huge influence on my life and continues to be even to this day. Being involved with Playboy has been such an inspiration for me ... I'm going to truly miss him."

 Carmen Berg, who posed as Miss July 1987 for Playboy Magazine, reflecting on the death of Hugh Hefner.

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"I've always had a dream about opening a shelter. Working with individuals experiencing homelessness has always been my passion."

 Kate Brovold, who plans to open Austin's Mission, a planned shelter for homeless individuals with behavioral health issues and substance use disorders.
Le Collectif Cheikh Yassine a organise un certain nombre dactivites et de festivites pour les enfants de Gaza sous le theme  La joie des enfants de Gaza pour lAid . Ces activites ont commence le premier jour de lAid et continue jusquau 4eme jour de lAid dans la bande de Gaza.



Plusieurs activites, ont ete organisees parmi lesquelles : des competitions recompensees par des prix, des jeux, des animations et des chants presentes par un groupe ainsi que des distributions de cadeaux et daides financieres.




After a lovely summer hiatus, the Coffee Sprudgecast is back with new segments, new guests, and new chances to giggle. Hosted by Sprudge co-founders Jordan Michelman and Zachary Carlsen, this is Episode 44 of the globe-spanning series, taking you behind the scenes at Sprudge and covering whatevers new and interesting in the world of coffee.

Check out The Coffee Sprudgecast on iTunes or download the episode here. The Coffee Sprudgecast is sponsored KitchenAid craft coffee equipment and Urnex Brands.

On this weeks show we preview the 2017 NY Coffee Festival in New York and the good work being done there by Project Waterfall, look back on the inaugural Night of 1000 Pours event, and discuss some of the major news stories over the summer break, including the Blue Bottle buy-out and the SCAs Dubai drama, in a new segment featuring our very own Robyn Brems starring in Robyn Reads The News.

Elesewhere on the show we take a couple of calls, pop open a tasty coffee beer from Manchesters Alphabet Brewing Company, drink some delicious oolong from Song Tea brewed up on the yet-to-be-released Fellow Stagg EKG kettle, and talk about our favorite moments at Coffee Loves Beer, our new beer festival series. All this and much more on Season Two of the Coffee Sprudgecast!

Want to be on the show? Call in to our Sprudgecast Party Line at 1-888-55-SPRUDGE and leave a voicemail message for the hosts. Questions, requests, parody and tribute songs, we want to hear it all.
Although owner Hans Enggren jokes that he doesnt remember much nowadays, when it comes to his horse Resolve, he has plenty of fond memories to share. Enggren attended the Yonkers International Trot last year when Resolve won and the experience is something he will never forget.

The service that we got, the people were absolutely marvelous to help me from beginning to end. The race was amazing and the audience was amazing, he said. We felt so welcome and the race was amazing and to see all these people with video cameras and regular cameras.

Enggren watched last year as Resolve led at every call in the $1 million International. With trainer Ake Svanstedt in the sulky, Resolve won the 1 1/4-mile stakes by 1-1/2 lengths and stopped the timer in 2:23.4.

Although his connections dreamt of defending their title in the races 2017 renewal, a freak incident in early September threatened their plans. Before Resolve raced in an elimination of the Maple Leaf Trot at Mohawk Racetrack September 8, he suffered a snake bite.

He was turned out in a pretty large area and thats when it must have happened, Enggren said. Its such an amazing thing to be bitten by a snake when he went to Canada. I mean, gee whiz. That has happened to me once before in my life. I had a horse called Meadowbranch Ava. I liked her and I bred her and she was in foal and she was bitten by a snake. Its just unbelievable. Its the second time for me.

Resolve finished seventh in his Maple Leaf Trot elimination, beaten 6-3/4 lengths by Mambo Lindy. After the race, Resolve spiked a fever and the vet discovered the bite.

The vet had to give him some antidotes, which was pretty strong. I told my trainer to let him rest, Enggren said. In the meantime, he was rested, was treated. He has trained almost up to normality. Hes looking pretty good now and Mr. Svanstedt is very pleased with him and he said hell be alright for the race on the fourteenth. We are very, very careful with everything about the horse.

Although Resolve hasnt raced or qualified since the Maple Leaf Trot elimination, Enggren and Svanstedt have pointed him for the International Trot. Enggren and Svanstedt didnt want to rush their star back to the races after his incident. Enggren suggested they each develop a plan for the son of Muscle Hills fall season and reconvene to make a decision.

When he was hurt by the snake and I didnt want him to race, I called Svanstedt up and I said, why dont you decide on what race you would love to be in more than any other race for the rest of the year, and I said, Ill tell you mine and well call each other back. It was strange, we both picked the same race.

Enggrens careful handling of Resolve this fall is understandable. He spent months trying to buy Resolve from his breeders Mike Pozefsky and Edward Wilson before a deal was struck in July 2014. Since then, Resolve has won a host of open stakes in North America, including the Mack Lobell, A.J. Cutler, and Maple Leaf Trot. Resolve has also enjoyed success overseas, finishing second to Nuncio in the 2016 Elitlopp Final and third to Timoko and Propulsion in this years edition. All told, Resolve is 18-for-62 with another 26 placings and has earned $2,743,033.

I fell in love with him when he was still a two-year-old, Enggren remembered. I just fell in love with the horse and I didnt give up. This was in October when he was two and it took till the sixteenth of July  its amazing that I remember that date because I dont remember very many things anymore  and on that day, the very, very kind and nice owners and breeders of Resolve agreed on a price of which they would sell him to me."

Enggren noted Resolve and trainer Svanstedt have developed a special bond in their time together. He credits this for much of Resolves success and it gives Enggren confidence heading into the International Trot October 14.

The horse is always doing his best and he wants to race. I think hes getting up to that by the coming Saturday, I certainly hope so. Svanstedt seems to feel that everything is going to be fine, Enggren said. I understand that there are some very good horses and on paper, we know that we have beaten them before. I know the other horses in there, but I also know this horse has been so amazing on so many occasions that I think hell do fine.

I still say if he doesnt pick up a cheque, Ill be extremely surprised, he continued. I do know that he and Svanstedt are a team. Its amazing how they are, both on the track, off the track, and when they just see each other in the barn. They just like each other so much. Everybody likes this horse. Hes just extremely kind and hes amazing.

Although Enggren wont be able to attend the International Trot this year  the 88-year-old recently spent a week in the hospital  he will be watching intently from home. Resolve has brought Enggren closer to his family and friends, who all convene on race days to root for the star trotter.

Hes a marvelous horse and I have made more friends because of him. We have a little theatre here every time he races because my friends come and want to see him, he said. I think I will stay here and see the race and invite my kids and my friends and well do it here.

More International Trot invitees will be featured as the race draws closer. The $1 million Yonkers International Trot at Empire City Casino will be raced Saturday, Oct. 14 at Yonkers Raceway. For more information, visit www.internationaltrot.com.

(SOA of NY)
Killean Sweep, arguably one of the most familiar faces around B-tracks in the province of Ontario, was humanely euthanized on Wednesday evening (October 4) following a catastrophic injury suffered in a turnout paddock in Puslinch, Ont.

Harry, as he was affectionately known, was a 23-time winner during a racing career that saw him bank more than $210,000 in addition to earning a lifetime mark of 1:55.2 at Kawartha Downs. After his racing career was over, he joined forces with OHHAs Harness Racing Youth Camp  a program put in place to teach children about caring for racehorses.

More recently, Harry toured the province as one of the members of the Hands On Horses Programs Wanna Drive program  giving rides to people of all ages. He also participated in Open House events, he represented harness racing in parades, visited nursing homes and made appearances at fall fairs as one of racings ambassadors.

The 17-year-old son of Run The Table-Winning Lin loved his job as much as the people who hopped in his double-seated jogger loved the thrill of tagging along for a ride. For many, it was a cross it off the bucket list experience.

The Hands On Horses Program would like to sincerely thank Julie Walker, Karoline Nielsen, Katelynn Rourke and Dr. Ian Moore for giving comfort and support to Harry on the evening of his accident.

Please join Standardbred Canada in offering condolences to the connections of Killean Sweep.

(Hands On Horses Program)
Catholic Benefits Association Praises Trump Administration for Religious Exemption from Contraceptive Mandate, But Does So with 'Mixed Emotions'

WASHINGTON, Oct.6, 2017 / Standard Newswire / -- The Catholic Benefits Association CEO, Doug Wilson, said today "we are grateful to the Trump Administration for issuing the interim final rule that acknowledges, as have many courts, that the contraceptive and abortifacient mandate burdens the religious exercise of many and that the government lacks a compelling reason for this." The CBA's Chairman, Archbishop William Lori, agreed: "Respect for the religious freedom is what the United States is about. The regulation issued today honors this value. This is a great victory for our First Freedom."

"That being said," Wilson explained, "we have mixed emotions. The Supreme Court ordered the parties to seek a settlement of the lawsuits filed by the faith community to protect their religious liberty. After five years of litigation, the CBA and other litigants have, in good faith, spent many hours trying to reach that settlement.

"The new regulation means that the CBA and other plaintiffs have prevailed in their lawsuits. Some within the Department of Justice, however, have refused to resolve the cases in a manner consistent with this reality. This resistance, at odds with the regulation issued today, means that the government and the other parties will proceed with litigation that will prove to be a waste of government resources.

"The thousand-plus Catholic employers within the Catholic Benefits Association thank the Trump Administration for the regulation it has issued today. They also continue to call upon it to direct its attorneys to act consistently with regulation by promptly resolving the pending lawsuits."

Direct Inquiries to:

Catholic Benefits Association

L. Martin Nussbaum

General Counsel

mnussbaum@lrrc.com
It's Election season and our editor's mailbox is overflowing. Who do your neighbors support? Read about it here.
Two power plants in Longview could soon face tighter greenhouse gas limits under a proposed new rule from the state Department of Ecology.

Puget Sound Energys Mint Farm Generating Station and potentially the Nippon Dynawave power plant would have to comply with the updated rule.

Ecology caps how much greenhouse gas power plants can release for every megawatt hour of power generated. Currently power plants can release 1,100 pounds of greenhouse gases per a megawatt hour. The new rule would reduce the cap by 12 percent down to 970 pounds of greenhouse gases per a megawatt.

The new standard would affect 10 facilities in Washington. However, the power plants would only have to reduce emissions when they change ownership, undergo modifications or sign new long-term contracts to purchase power.

Ecology is currently reviewing whether the updated law will affect Nippon Dynawaves liquid packaging mill in Longview, which changed ownership last fall. The mill argues it doesnt produce enough power to fall under that state regulation.

A Puget Sound Energy spokesman said the company isnt too concerned with the lower emissions standard, which is updated every five years.

The proposed changes to Ecologys regulations also include testing calculations and technical clarifications, as well as changes to how a power plants can compensate for emissions by purchasing carbon credits or performing a carbon reduction project.

The updated power plant standards come as Nippon and PSE are already facing emissions reductions under the states new Clean Air Rule adopted last year. Ecology launched the landmark rule after Gov. Jay Inslee failed to pass carbon regulations through the Legislature.

Under the Clean Air Rule, sites emitting more than 100,000 metric tons of greenhouse gases annually must reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 1.7 percent every year until they meet complex reduction targets. As an alternative, companies can purchase credits from other businesses or contribute to projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

At least four entities in Cowlitz County must invest millions of dollars to comply with the Clean Air Rule: Cowlitz Countys Headquarters Landfill and Puget Sound Energys Mint Farm generating station in Longview must comply this year. Pulp and paper mills owned by KapStone Paper and Packaging Corp. and Nippon Dynawave (formerly Weyerhaeuser) must comply by 2020.
Naked Gun: Police say nude, drunk Florida man fired weapons

KEY LARGO, Fla. (AP)  Authorities say a naked drunk Florida man wanted to know if his .45-caliber gun and shotgun worked, so he fired them into the air.

Neighbors heard the gunfire Tuesday and called the Monroe County Sheriff's Office.

Spokeswoman Becky Herrin said in a news release that arriving deputies found 66-year-old Roger Scheid inside the home.

Herrin said Scheid was "naked and appeared to be intoxicated."

Investigators found the weapons and two spent casings.

Scheid first told deputies he was cleaning the guns. Then, he said he was checking to see if they worked. He is charged with unlawful discharge of a weapon and firing a weapon while under the influence. An attorney is not listed on jail records.

Arrested drunk man claims he time traveled to warn of aliens

CASPER, Wyo. (AP)  Police say a central Wyoming man they arrested for public intoxication claimed he had traveled back in time to warn of an alien invasion.

Casper police say the man they encountered at 10:30 p.m. Monday claimed he was from the year 2048.

KTWO-AM in Casper reports that the man told police that he wanted to warn the people of Casper that aliens will arrive next year, and that they should leave as soon as possible. He asked to speak to the president of the town, about 170 miles (270 kilometers) northwest of Cheyenne.

The man told police he was only able to time travel because aliens filled his body with alcohol. He noted that he was supposed to be transported to the year 2018, not this year.

Massive wave of butterflies lights up Denver weather radar

DENVER (AP)  A lacy, cloud-like pattern drifting across a Denver-area radar screen turned out to be a 70-mile-wide (110-kilometer) wave of butterflies, forecasters say.

Paul Schlatter of the National Weather Service said he first thought flocks of birds were making the pattern he saw on the radar Tuesday, but the cloud was headed northwest with the wind, and migrating birds would be southbound in October.

He asked birdwatchers on social media what it might be, and by Wednesday had his answer: People reported seeing a loosely spaced net of painted lady butterflies drifting with the wind across the area.

Schlatter said the colors on the radar image are a result of the butterflies' shape and direction, not their own colors.

Midwestern radar stations occasionally pick up butterflies, but Schlatter believes it's a first for Denver.

Dog refuses to leave dead friend's side

NEWARK, N.J. (AP)  Police in New Jersey say they had to coax a German shepherd on a busy interstate to leave a dead pit bull that it was found lying next to.

New Jersey state police said that troopers responded Thursday morning to a report of two dogs on the shoulder of Interstate 280 in Newark.

The troopers say the pit bull was dead when they arrived. They say the German shepherd didnt want to leave its side, but they were able to coax it into a troopers car.

Authorities say neither dog was wearing a collar or any identification. The German shepherd was given to a dog rescue.

It wasnt clear how the dog died. The case remains under investigation.

FDA: 'Love' is not a real ingredient in bakery's granola

CONCORD, Mass. (AP)  A Massachusetts bakery's granola may be made with love, but federal officials say it shouldn't be listed as an ingredient on the package.

Nashoba Brook Bakery, in Concord, was taken to task by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for listing "love" as an ingredient on its Nashoba Granola label. In a letter posted this week on the FDA website, the agency said federal regulations require that ingredients "must be listed by their common or usual name."

"'Love' is not a common or usual name of an ingredient, and is considered to be intervening material because it is not part of the common or usual name of the ingredient," the FDA wrote.

The bakery's CEO, John Gates, told The Associated Press on Wednesday that the bakery will be "fully cooperative" with the FDA. But he also said the company has gotten a positive reaction from people since news of the letter began to circulate.

"It taps this feeling that a lot of Americans have that there are ways in which the government can overreach, and it seems kind of silly," Gates said. "Because it's about the word love, it's cathartic. ... It makes it something that people can smile at."

Bakery co-owner and chief baker Stuart Witt said the company has been open nearly 20 years, and has been selling granola nearly that long. "Love," has been listed on the label from the beginning, he said.

Burglar empties register, fills belly, makes clean getaway

HICKSVILLE, N.Y. (AP) - A burglar made a clean getaway from a Long Island restaurant after emptying the cash register, cooking a meal and washing the dishes.

Will Colon tells Newsday he found bent burglar bars when he arrived Tuesday at Nelly's Taqueria in Hicksville, New York.

Security video showed the intruder put on food-service gloves and started heating up a pot before hammering the register open. He pocketed the money and put a dollar in the tip jar.

Then, Colon says, the man started "cooking up a storm" in the dark - beans, chicken, shrimp.

Colon says "the dude had some skills."

After eating, he covered and refrigerated the food and wiped down surfaces.

Security video showed the same man was there the night before but didn't cook.

Pumpkin spice air freshener prompts evacuation of school

BALTIMORE (AP)  An unusual smell prompted an evacuation and a hazardous materials response at a Baltimore high school. But after five people were taken to the hospital complaining of upset stomachs, fire officials discovered the source of the smell: a pumpkin spice air freshener.

Cristo Rey Jesuit High School was evacuated Thursday afternoon after students and teachers detected a strong smell on the third floor. Several people reported difficulty breathing.

The fire department and a hazardous materials team were called. Fire spokesman Roman Clark said two students and three adults were taken to the hospital for stomach ailments.

Then, firefighters located a pumpkin spice air aerosol plugged into an outlet in a classroom.

Classes at the school resumed Friday.

South Dakota St. Bernard has record-longest tongue for a dog

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) - A St. Bernard in South Dakota has set a new, slobbery world record.

Mochi, also known as Mo, holds the Guinness World Records title for having the longest tongue on a dog.

According to Guinness World Records, Mochi's tongue measures in at 7.31 inches (18.58 cm).

Mochi's owner, Carla Rickert of Sioux Falls, says her dog is happy, but also has some breathing problems because of her long tongue and slobbers more than usual when she's nervous. Mochi also needs to be given treats in a certain way and has problems picking items up from the floor.

The 8-year-old Mochi broke the previous record held by a male Pekingese, whose tongue was 4.5 inches (11.43 cm).

Mochi is listed in the new Guinness World Records: Amazing Animals book.

New Mexico college: Pay some tickets with peanut butter

LAS CRUCES, N.M. (AP) - New Mexico State University is allowing motorists to take a bite out of certain parking tickets by paying with peanut butter.

The Las Cruces Sun-News reports the school recently announced motorists who have received a "no current permit" parking citation can pay it with at least 80 ounces of peanut butter from Oct. 23 to 27.

All peanut butter donations will be sent to the Aggie Cupboard.

The offer is limited to the first 100 customers.

Officials say appealing the citation forfeits the right to pay with peanut butter.

Police: Man drank beer, ate corn dog while shoplifting

SHEPHERDSVILLE, Ky. (AP)  Police say a man had drunk a beer and eaten a corn dog at a Walmart in Kentucky before being arrested for shoplifting.

Shepherdsville police said in a Facebook post on Friday that store employees saw 55-year-old David Pethel also load his cart with merchandise valued at nearly $250 before attempting to leave without paying.

Pethel is charged with one count of theft by unlawful taking. He had been held at the Bullitt County Jail, and it is unclear if he has a lawyer.

Police: Moving help unwitting accomplices in Montana theft

GREAT FALLS, Mont. (AP)  Police in Montana say a man told friends he needed help moving and got their unwitting help stealing $40,000 worth of items from another man's home.

One of the friends allegedly rented a U-Haul without knowing it would be used in a crime. The other told police he became suspicious and left after he saw military medals in the Great Falls home. He doubted 36-year-old Patrick Joseph Adams Jr. served in the military.

Investigators say the true homeowner came home later that night, found his home had been burglarized and called 911.

Prosecutors charged Adams on Thursday with burglary and criminal mischief, both felonies. The Great Falls Tribune reports Adams faces up to 30 years in prison and $100,000 in fines.

It wasn't clear if Adams had a lawyer.

Born in same hospital, on same day. Now they're married

TAUNTON, Mass. (AP)  A couple born on the same day at the same Massachusetts hospital have exchanged vows more than two decades later.

The Taunton Gazette reports that Jessica Gomes and Aaron Bairos got married Sept. 9. Each was born on April 28, 1990, at the same hospital in Taunton, about 40 miles south of Boston.

The two grew up in communities a few miles apart before meeting through mutual friends in high school.

Gomes says she and Bairos figured out they were born on the same day "pretty early on" when they took a drivers education class together and saw the proof on their learner's permits.

She says it was love at first sight.

Joint pain: Man charged with hiding weed in courthouse weeds

SANFORD, N.C. (AP)  A North Carolina man has been arrested and charged with trying to hide marijuana in the bushes at a courthouse before a hearing on a possible probation violation.

Local media outlets reported that Lee County Sheriff Tracy Carter said 21-year-old Teon Shamal La'Shane Douglas of Sanford was arrested Monday after deputies saw him putting marijuana and a cellphone and some other items in the bushes at the courthouse.

The sheriff said narcotics officers saw Douglas put about 15 grams of marijuana in the bushes at the courthouse in Sanford.

Carter said Douglas was arrested after the probation hearing and charged with felony possession with intent to sell and deliver marijuana and misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia.

It was not known if Douglas has an attorney on the latest charges.

Man faces fines after transporting exotic snakes to Vermont

MAIDSTONE, Vt. (AP) - A Connecticut man facing wildlife violations for bringing eastern hognose snakes to Vermont says he didn't realize the snakes were not native to the state.

The Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife said earlier this week that 42-year-old David Buyak was facing fines of up to $722 after a dozen non-native hognose snakes were found at his property in Maidstone, a rural town in northeastern Vermont.

The department says the eastern hognose snakes don't harm people, but have rear fangs and venom that can be lethal to amphibians.

Buyak told game wardens the snakes he had in Vermont were offspring of a pair he captured in Connecticut. The snakes were sent to a Massachusetts group that cares for reptiles.

Buyak says he hopes to get the fines against him reduced.
Gov. Kate Brown announced Friday that she will back efforts to pass further gun control legislation in 2018, despite failures to pass her gun safety agenda during the last two legislative sessions.

Even if Brown fails again to find legislative success on controlling guns, expounding in favor of new restrictions may help her re-election bid. Ahead of the November 2018 governors election, Brown is engaged in a fundraising and public opinion battle with presumed Republican frontrunner Rep. Knute Buehler, R-Bend.

An outspoken proponent of gun control, Brown has counted gun control advocate and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg as a key fundraiser. She accepted a $250,000 donation from Bloomberg during her last re-election campaign, in 2016, and the donation came shortly after Brown voiced support new gun restrictions.

Buehler said after the Last Vegas massacre that, in his view, new gun restrictions wont stop deranged madmen from committing murder.

Since taking office in 2015, Brown has sought to pass laws that make it impossible to buy a gun without a background check and that keep guns out of the hands of convicted domestic abusers.

Oregon does have laws that mandate background checks and bar domestic abusers from gun ownership. But gun control advocates like Brown and other Democrats say there are loopholes.

One, termed the Charleston loophole, allows the purchase of a firearm if the background check takes too long to complete. It got its name after a mass shooting in Charleston, S.C., where a gunman who killed nine bought a weapon despite an incomplete background check.

Another, dubbed the boyfriend loophole, exists because legislation defining who is a domestic violence offender  and therefore banned from buying guns  doesnt line up with existing criminal statute.

Brown announced that she will again push legislation to close those loopholes plus add those convicted of misdemeanor stalking to the list of people banned from owning guns.

We, as lawmakers, must put politics aside and work together to keep our communities safe, Brown said in an audio statement. She said changing the law will keep guns out of the wrong hands.

Despite shooting after shooting in Oregon and elsewhere  and complete dominance of the state House, Senate and governors office  Democrats have found little success on gun control.

Their most recent major victory was during the past legislative session, when lawmakers approved a law allowing judges to order guns taken away from people who pose a serious threat to themselves or their household members. But they needed a Republican to help them make that happen.

Their other major recent victory came in 2015, when the background check law first passed. But four lawmakers faced recall campaigns after that session, exemplifying the fraught politics of pushing for gun restrictions.

Since then, Democrats gun control efforts have mostly glitched or stalled outright.

Mere months after the states deadliest shooting, at Umpqua Community College, legislative Democrats could not eke out a victory on tightening the background check law. Thats despite talking-up the Charleston loophole bill and even bringing in the relative of a Charleston victim to testify.

In 2017, Democratic leaders again introduced a bill to close the Charleston loophole, and a bill to end the boyfriend loophole. Neither passed. Democratic leaders in the more-liberal House didnt press the issue because they viewed it as best to avoid a politically dangerous vote for gun restrictions when it was far from certain that any restrictions would pass the Senate.

Democrats did claim the gun seizure victory this year, but only with the help of a Senate Republican: Brian Boquist, of Dallas.

Boquist introduced a bill to establish a system in which judges can issue extreme risk protection orders. Those allow law enforcement to temporarily take away guns from people deemed an imminent threat to themselves or others in their household.

Modeled after a Washington ballot measure, extreme risk protection orders are meant to stop people from committing suicide or going on a shooting spree, supporters say.

Boquist decided to push for the policy after his oldest son, 31-year-old Navy veteran Sethan Sprague, committed suicide. The bill, Senate Bill 719, passed by a single vote in the House and Senate.

Two of Boquists Republican colleagues  Reps. Mike Nearman, of Independence, and Bill Post, of Keizer  attempted to gather signatures to put the bill on the ballot and give voters the final say. They announced Thursday, the deadline to turn in signatures, that they had not gathered even half the required number.
A new study says Washingtons Running Start program is a national leader when it comes to helping pave the way for high-school students to eventually finish college.

In this state, the study found, high-school students in Running Start ended up finishing a college degree or certificate, well above the U.S. average. A majority of those students received a bachelors degree.

Washington overall does extremely well, relative to the national average, said Davis Jenkins, a senior research scholar with Community College Research Center (CCRC) at Teachers College, Columbia University, which conducted the study of Running Start and similar dual-enrollment programs in other states.

But both Jenkins and Jan Yoshiwara, the head of Washingtons State Board for Community and Technical Colleges, say Running Start should expand its reach even further.

Running Start is the predominant dual-credit program in this state. It essentially gives high-school students a head start on college by allowing them to enroll in community-college classes for free during their junior and senior years. Some students are able to finish out their high-school years in college classrooms, leaving with a diploma and an associate degree.

Jenkins thinks the program should market itself more widely.

Meanwhile, Yoshiwara wants more minority students to enroll. Both agree that students should choose their courses strategically.

The Community College Research Centers study notes that dual-enrollment programs have grown by leaps and bounds nationally, and Running Start is no exception. In a five-year period between 2011-12 and 2015-16, Running Start grew by 30 percent, to 24,217 students. During the same period, community-college enrollment shrank by 9 percent, which is one reason why Jenkins thinks Washington should be encouraging more high-school students to enroll in Running Start.

The program has been especially popular with middle-income students, who use Running Start to get a head start on earning college credits, in hopes of reducing their tuition bills, Yoshiwara said.

But shed like to see it do a better job of serving underrepresented minorities (African American, Native American, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander and Hispanic students).

Among K-12 students, underrepresented minorities made up nearly 37 percent of the states enrollment last year. But they accounted for only 19 percent of Running Start students statewide, she said.

Yoshiwara thinks minority and low-income students are discouraged from enrolling because of the cost of books, which can run hundreds of dollars a quarter and transportation; neither is covered by the program. For a student who doesnt live on a convenient bus line, getting to a nearby community college often requires a car, she said.

Yoshiwara said the colleges are now encouraging Running Start students to take courses that lead to an associate of science degree, rather than an associate of arts degree, if theyre interested in science or tech. To earn that degree, students take math and science in community college, as a way to prepare for STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) careers.
Mom Jailed for Not Vaccinating Son

Vaccinations have been a hot topic for years now, and even with little evidence they are harmful to children, many parents are choosing to not vaccinate their kids. And for the most part, that's OK, legally speaking. But there are a few exceptions to that rule, and one of them is when a judge orders you to vaccinate your child.

This week, Michigan mom Rebecca Bredow was sentenced to seven days in jail for failing to vaccinate her 9-year-old son, but her real crime was ignoring a consent order to do so.

Shots Fired

Figuring out child care decisions after a divorce can be complicated enough. According Bredow, she and her ex-husband, James Horne agreed to suspend immunizations when their son was 2 years old, and he hasn't received a vaccination since. Despite her claims that Horne is only using the vaccination issue as leverage in their custody battle, Bredow's attorney signed a November court order for vaccination, a move Judge Karen McDonald interpreted as Bredow's consent to vaccinations.

"I understand you love your children. But what I don't think you understand is that your son has two parents, and dad gets a say," McDonald told Bredow during a court hearing this week. "It's clear to me that you don't care about orders even if you agree to them, which you did." McDonald found Bredow guilty of contempt and sentenced her to seven days, handing over temporary custody of the child to Horne.

Vax Law

While vaccinations aren't, for the most part, legally mandatory, many schools will require vaccines for attendance and some states will require vaccines for attendance at any public school. Even so, a majority of states still provide exemptions for vaccinations on religious grounds, and many, including Michigan, also provide exemptions for and personal reasons.

There may be civil liability for not vaccinating your children, and possibly even criminal liability for not seeking the proper medical care for your children. Vaccinations and the law is still a bit of a gray area, so consult an attorney about your rights and responsibilities as a parent.

Related Resources:
Big things

No debate

The debate will now rage on but there really is no debate. This opinion will no doubt be somewhat unpopular but please read on. There is no real reason to own assault style rifles. They dont make good hunting rifles, the caliber is for most too small and all the arguments for just dont hold water. They are legal, because I can, self defense, constitution says, our forefathers could not have imagined the types of weapons we have developed. I am a gun owner and have been a hunter for over 50 years but its past time for sanity and logic to take over. Those who say it is just the start if they ban assault style rifles, do you also want to own nukes, or weapons of mass destruction? Assault style rifles need to be banned! There I said it. Gun makers need to stop selling them to gun dealers, gun dealers need to stop selling them to the public and thats that. They are only sold in the first place to makes lots of money, how much money do you need? The state knows who owns them. The state should buy them back. We need to know that another Las Vegas cannot take place so easily and that if some one is packing an AR they are up to no good except the law. I believe in the right to own guns and use them for legit reasons. Assault rifles should not be on this list. Disagree with the above opinion if you will, but you know there is no logical reason to own one and so does the NRA. Will they accept responsibility for Las Vegas?
WASHINGTON  The horror the horror.

The English language, expansive as it is, lacks sufficient vocabulary for the near-ceaseless popping sound of an automatic weapon pounding bullets into terrified people as they run away from and toward  the unknown.

How do you express the inconceivable, the imponderable? You try to put yourself there. What would you have done? Run, but to where? Seek cover, but under what? Help others, but how? Survival was all anyone could hope for. Then what?

Guilt.

Survivors now speak of feeling guilty that theyre alive while at least 59 others are not. Why were they alive? As reports of heroism flood in, they wonder: Did I do enough?

Brian Claypool, who spoke to CNNs Chris Cuomo, is one of these. Tuesday was Claypools birthday and the concert had been his way of celebrating. He had meant to return to his home and family in Los Angeles on Sunday, but gazing out upon the venue from his hotel room, he decided to stay another night.

When am I ever going to be able to do this again? he recalled saying to himself.

Struggling with tears, Claypool wondered whether he should have died. He was on the run when a man signaled for him to dash into a small room under some bleachers. Five or six young women were huddled, sobbing, in a corner. Instinctively, Claypool stood in front of them, perhaps to protect them. Or was he supposed to go outside where others were falling?

It seemed clear during the interview that Claypool was still in shock and trying hard to make sense of what had happened, discovering his thoughts and emotions as Cuomo prodded him to dig deeper. If theres an Emmy for empathetic reporting and on-the-spot psychoanalytical investigation, Cuomo deserves it. Others watching CNN surely noted his remarkable ability to help his guests navigate the chaos of their personal trauma, offering words of solace and paternal wisdom.

Lisa Fine was another who tried to articulate what it was like to be suddenly transported from a happy evening of fellowship and fun to a nightmarish scrimmage in a war zone. She spoke of seeing people take a bullet and fall in front of her, of a truck loaded with bodies: It was just the luck of the draw, she said of her survival. There are no words. It was horrific.

From the relative comfort of ones television-viewing perch, numbness begins to set in. Weve seen this before, heard the commentary, witnessed the overwhelming grief. Columbine, Orlando, Blacksburg, Newtown, you know the list.

The Washington Posts website offered headlines that were all too reminiscent of past tragedies elsewhere: The lives lost in Las Vegas; Gunman was ... known for keeping to himself; 10 ways politics may  or may not  change after the Las Vegas shooting; I felt the gunfire would never stop.

Monday night, America went to bed shocked at the numbers. Twenty-two thousand revelers, 23 guns in the shooters hotel room, at least 59 dead, more than 500 injured. Tuesday morning, we checked the numbers again to see if they had changed. The names, faces and short biographies of the dead scrolled across television screens. They were slaughtered by the usual suspect  no one in particular.

He was just a guy, said the shooters stunned brother, Eric Paddock. Neighbors delivered their script: He seemed like a regular person. Normal, you know. A gun dealer who thought he may have sold Paddock some of his guns said he didnt seem unfit or unstable.

But he was obviously something. A bad seed. Sick. Evil. Why had Paddock peered out of his 32nd-story hotel window and decided that this was the night he would kill as many people as possible? By chance alone, he would not kill Claypool or Fine  and theyll live with that surreal, taunting reality the rest of their days.

We get to live, another survivor had said to Claypool when they chanced upon each other the next day. Yeah, Claypool said, we get to live. But why? To what end? For what purpose?

Such are the questions that have stumped humankind since first consciousness made life fathomless. A random bullet from an unseen stranger brings the unbearable mystery into sharp focus. Why me? Why not me? Why at all? In the absence of answers, faith and hope intercede and the search for meaning becomes a more-manageable quest for summation.

Lisa Fine, her face drawn from lack of sleep, reached through the numbness and offered the best one could: Love your loved ones, and be the best person you can be. Thats all weve got.
Lawsuit: Mississippi Hospital Liable for Sex Assault by Paramedic

Hospitals, and the medical professionals they employ, are supposed to be the places and people we can turn to for care, cure, and comfort. Sadly, in doesn't always work out that way. Hospitals can make mistakes and their employees can abuse their power to take advantage of vulnerable patients.

That's what happened according to one woman's lawsuit against Baptist Memorial Hospital in Oxford, Mississippi. A Jane Doe claims a paramedic sexually assaulted her in the back of an ambulance while she was suffering from a drug overdose and being transported to the hospital.

Prison-Bound Paramedic

The EMT accused, Bryan Englebert, is now serving at least five years in prison after pleading guilty to the incident. Doe's lawsuit, however, claims the hospital failed to properly train and supervise its employees, and that patient safety policies were inadequate to protect her during the ambulance transport.

Following her arrival at BMH after a drug overdose, Doe was placed on an involuntary 72-hour psychiatric hold due to suicidal thoughts. The hospital then decided to transport her to another behavioral health care facility operated by BMH some 100 miles away. During that trip, according to the lawsuit, Englebert sexually battered and assaulted Doe while the driver, Matthew Austin, videotaped a portion of the assault

Duty-Bound Hospital

Doe is suing MH for negligence, claiming the hospital breached the duty of care it owed to her by failing to have proper procedures in place to protect her during transport, failing to follow the procedures it did have in place, failing to properly staff and monitor ambulance personnel, and failing to protect her during transport. Doe claims she was a "vulnerable adult" with a documented history of mental health issues and was incapacitated during transport, meaning she and the hospital had a special relationship under which the hospital had a duty to protect her.

She is also suing for negligent infliction of emotional distress, alleging significant physical injury, emotional distress, and mental trauma and suffering.

Related Resources:
Russia strikes kill 120 IS fighters, over 60 `foreign mercenaries` in Syria

A Russian Sukhoi Su-35 bomber lands at the Russian Hmeimim military base in Latakia province, in the northwest of Syria

AFP, Moscow :

Some 120 Islamic State fighters and 60 foreign mercenaries were killed in a series of Russian air strikes in Syria over the past 24 hours, the defence ministry in Moscow said on Saturday.

"A command post of the terrorists and up to 80 (IS) fighters including nine natives of the Northern Caucasus were destroyed in the area of Mayadeen," the ministry said, adding some 40 IS fighters were killed around the town of Albu Kamal.

As a result of an air strike more than 60 foreign mercenaries from the former Soviet Union, Tunisia, and Egypt were killed south of Deir Ezzor.

The ministry said the "large numbers of foreign mercenaries" were coming into the Syrian border town of Albu Kamal from Iraq.

Mayadeen is one of the Islamic State group's last bastions in Syria.

The advances against IS in Deir Ezzor have cost a heavy civilian death toll from Russian and coalition air raids.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Russian air strikes on Thursday night killed 14 people, including three children, fleeing across the Euphrates on rafts near Mayadeen.

Russia has not acknowledged any civilian deaths from its strikes since it intervened in Syria in 2015, and dismisses the Observatory's reporting as biased.

Moscow has been carrying out air strikes in support of its ally Damascus targeting both IS in Deir Ezzor province and rival jihadists led by Al-Qaeda's former Syria affiliate in Idlib province in the northwest.

Meanwhile, two waves of air strikes on a jihadist-held town in northwestern Syria have killed at least 13 civilians over the past 24 hours, a monitoring group said on Saturday.

Four children were among the dead in the early morning strikes on the Idlib province town of Khan Sheikhun on Friday and Saturday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said the strikes were probably carried out by the Syrian air force, which has been carrying out an intensifying bombing campaign against jihadist targets in Idlib province alongside aircraft from ally Russia.

Like most of the rest of Idlib province, Khan Sheikhun is controlled by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an alliance of jihadist factions dominated by Al-Qaeda's former Syria affiliate.

The town hit the headlines in April when it was the target of a sarin gas attack that killed at least 87 people, 30 of them children.

US President Donald Trump blamed the Syrian government for the attack and ordered cruise missile strikes on the airbase from which he said it had been launched.

Damascus blamed jihadists on the ground for the deaths and received strong support for that position from Moscow.

A safe zone was supposed to be established in Idlib and adjacent areas of Hama and Latakia provinces under a deal reached in May by rebel backer Turkey and government backers Iran and Russia.

But during the summer the jihadists, who are not party to the agreement, drove out Islamist former allies from Idlib and took nearly full control.

Moscow says it has since killed 12 jihadist commanders and destroyed the group's largest arms depot.

But there has also been a heavy civilian death toll, according to the Observatory, a Britain-based monitoring group.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday "a serious operation" was beginning in Syria's Idlib and a Syrian rebel official said his group was preparing to enter the area with the backing of Turkish forces.

Idlib and surrounding areas of northwest Syria are among the largest bastions for rebel groups fighting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, but have increasingly fallen under the sway of jihadist insurgent factions.




Decapitated head of Swedish journo Kim Wall found

AFP, Copenhagen :

Danish police said Saturday divers had recovered the decapitated head and two legs of Swedish journalist Kim Wall, who vanished in August while interviewing a Danish inventor aboard his homemade submarine.

In a grisly case worthy of a Nordic noir thriller, Copenhagen police inspector Jens Moller Jensen told reporters divers had found bags containing her missing clothes, her head and legs in Koge Bay, south of the Danish capital.

"Last night our forensic dentist confirmed that it was Kim Wall's head," he said.

Her headless torso was found floating in waters off Copenhagen on August 21, 11 days after she went missing.

Self-taught engineer and inventor Peter Madsen, 46, has been accused of Wall's death, with prosecutors saying he dismembered her body before throwing it overboard.

Madsen, who is married and has been in custody since August 11, claims the 30-year-old Wall died when a 70-kilogramme (154-pound) hatch door fell on her head, and in a panic, he threw her body overboard.

He has insisted her body was intact at the time.

But Jensen said the decapitated head contradicted Madsen's version of events.

There is "no sign of fracture on the skull and there isn't any sign of other blunt violence to the skull," he said, citing an autopsy carried out overnight.

Locating Wall's head has been a priority for investigators, as the final autopsy on the torso was not able to establish the cause of death.

However, it did show multiple mutilation wounds to Wall's genitals.




BOGRA: A rally was brought out by Bogra Lekhak Chakra marking its 29th founding anniversary on Friday. Abdul Mannan MP led the rally as Chief Guest.
Youth stabbed to death

BSS, Chittagong :

A youth was stabbed to death by some unknown miscreants in Koboilladam area under Akbarshah thana in the city on Friday.

The deceased was identified as Joy Das, 23, son of Subol Das, resident of the aforesaid area.

Akbar Shah Thana Police said Joy stabbed to death while some unidentified youths attacked him with sharp weapons at one stage of altercation at about 11 am beside the Koboilladam Mondir. Police recovered the body and sent it to Chittagong Medical College and Hospital (CMCH) morgue. A case was filed with Akbar Shah Thana in this connection.
Cop closed over assault on 2 journos

A Correspondent :

A constable of Chittagong Metropolitan Police (CMP) was closed on Wednesday for assaulting two photojournalists on Chittagong court premises.

Md Iftekhar was closed and attached to CMP police lines, said Nirmalendu Bikash Chawakrabarty, additional deputy commissioner (prosecution) of CMP.

Ifterkar is the driver of Kazi Shahabuddin, assistant commissioner (prosecution), according to court sources.

Jewel Shill of Bangla daily Prothom Alo's Chittagong Bureau and Aminul Islam Munna of local daily Dainik Azadi were assaulted by the constable after an alternation ensued around noon over parking a motorbike.

"I went to the court to cover a verdict. As soon as I parked my bike, he [Iftekhar] locked into an altercation with me," said Jewel. "At one point, he started hitting me."

Munna, who was with him, was also assaulted as he tried to save him, said Jewel.

Later, journalists and police officials brought the situation under control, said witnesses.

"Departmental action will be taken against Iftekhar after probing the incident," said ADC Nirmalendu.

Contacted, AC Shahabuddin said, "It was just a misunderstandingThe incident, however, was resolved later."

Meanwhile, demanding a prompt action by police against those who threatened journalist Shakir Hossain of Maasranga Television in Sylhet with life, journalists and locals yesterday afternoon formed a human chain in front of Sylhet Central Shaheed Minar, reports our Sylhet correspondent.

Earlier on Tuesday, Shakir received the threat through a letter. The same evening, around 25 unknown persons went to his house looking for him, he said.

He said he might have been threatened following his reports on illegal stone extraction.

A general diary has been filed with Kotwali Police Station.

Meanwhile, journalists in Sunamganj formed another human chain yesterday in this regard.




Pursue a peace and conflict degree

Joanna Hughes :

The International Day of Peace is observed all over the globe every September 21st. Indeed, no matter how different we may be, a desire for peace binds us together. And yet despite this universal ideal, world peace remains elusive. The chasm between what is and what could be is what makes peace and conflict studies so valuable: Only in understanding the nature of what divides us can we hope to ultimately come together. Think a degree in peace and conflict studies may be right for you? Here's a closer look at three reasons to pursue studies in this important field.

1. It is-and probably always will be-a current topic

Long before the declaration of World War I, AKA "The Great War," human civilizations were engaged in wars with each other. History's very first recorded war occurred in Mesopotamia in 2700 BCE between Sumer and Elam, according to the Ancient History Encyclopedia.

Today, humankind remains in conflict with wars everywhere from the Central African Republic to Afghanistan to Chechnya to Yemen. Some conflicts have been ongoing for decades, while others have sprung up only recently. Others, meanwhile, will emerge in the future.

The takeaway? As much as we may hope for a world without war, conflict is part of the fabric of society. While peace and conflict studies may not put an end to all war, it can yield new insights into how best to reach resolutions.

2. The applications are many

Conflict is everywhere and occurs at all levels-from the global to the interpersonal. Peace and conflict studies explore a broad range of topics, such as conflict theory, this history of nonviolent protest, and human rights.

Degrees in peace and conflicts studies also draw on a number of different disciplines when exploring the reasons for conflict and identifying potential approaches to conflict resolution. Topics covered may include philosophy, anthropology, political science, history, geography, economics, psychology, sociology, religious studies, gender studies, international relations, and others. Students looking for a well-rounded education will find it in

But this course of study also promotes the development of transferable "soft skills," including critical thinking, self-awareness, and communication. In other words, while the lessons learned during peace and conflict studies are applicable to world wars, they also apply to everything from workplace conflicts to domestic disputes.

3. The employment prospects are diverse.

Graduates with peace and conflict studies degrees go on to work in a variety of sectors, including for corporations with global interests, nonprofit public service groups, and the government. They also hold a breadth and depth of positions, including human rights officers, neighborhood action planners, researchers, analysts, legal officers, program managers, victim mediators, arbitrators, journalists, refugee resettlement program staffers, and more.

A recent Forbes article, meanwhile, highlights the value in studying "the art and tech of conflict resolution" for a seemingly unlikely field: business and marketing. Asserts writer Giovanni Rodriguez, "For a business to achieve "alignment" with their many different stakeholders-particularly employees-is exceedingly difficult. Why: more and more relevant voices are competing for their attention in digital/mobile environments. The Filter Bubble-our tendency to listen only to people we're comfortable with-is alive in the enterprise as well. It's incumbent on leaders to burst that bubble and find ways to unite their people."

Rodriguez further proposes, "In an ancient ritual that we now call 'the talking stick,' tribal elders would seek unity by encouraging younger members to retell tribal tales in their own words. As anyone who has attended a modern version of the ritual, the sharing of stories and personal testimonials helps to forge bonds because it helps to humanize 'the other' with a common story. It's an amazing thing, both moving and effective, which is why the talking stick has survived in modern times, most conspicuously in the world of community organizing. But the challenge for marketers today-a collective journey worth pursuing-is to develop a more modern version of the talking stick so they can engage more people at scale."

In fact, there's hardly a job for which the ability to not only see things from different perspectives, but to also bridge the gap between them wouldn't be a viewed as a major selling point.

This year's International Day of Peace theme? "Together for Peace: Respect, Safety and Dignity for All." If you're ready to add your talents, enthusiasm and hard work to the effort-and to help change the world in the process-a degree in peace and conflict studies may be right for you.



(Joanna worked in higher education administration for many years at a leading research institution before becoming a full-time freelance writer. She lives in the beautiful White Mountains region of New Hampshire with her family).
Business manoeuvres pressure Catalonia in crisis

AFP, Madrid :

After the judges, police and politicians, Spanish business leaders are stepping into the ring to resist Catalan separatists' efforts to break the region away from Spain.

Several big companies have announced plans to shift their legal headquarters out of the region after Catalan leaders threatened to declare independence.

They include the region's two biggest banks, Caixbank and Sabadell, and energy company Gas Natural.

The move is a precaution against the fiscal and economic turbulence posed by the independence drive.

It is also a tactic to pressure the separatists.

Having vowed to block independence, the central government on Friday passed a decree to make it quicker for companies to shift their legal headquarters from one region to another.

Under the decree, banks are no longer obliged to consult all their shareholders before switching regions.

Changing where they are legally registered would save Catalan companies from dropping out of the eurozone if the region did break from Spain, allowing them to retain access to European Central Bank financing.

It would also mean their taxes go to the Spanish treasury and not to any new Catalan fiscal authority.

Tensions rose this week after separatists held an outlawed referendum last Sunday, marred by police violence against voters.

Economy Minister Luis de Guindos blamed the jitters on "irresponsible policies" by the Catalan government.


Women and girls: The hardest hit Rohingya refugees

Paolo Lubrano :

Of the nearly half a million Rohingya refugees who've fled across the border and have sought refuge in Bangladesh, women and girls are the most at risk, sleeping under open skies, roadsides, and forest areas with little or no protection.

More than two-thirds have no shelter, half have no drinking water, and with the existing camps and host communities underequipped to deal with such a large influx, the ground situation is chaotic and volatile. We at Oxfam are seriously concerned about abuse and exploitation of women and children.

The majority of Rohingya refugees are women and children. Initial assessments suggest that 53% are female, 58% percent are under the age of 18, and 10% are either pregnant or lactating mothers. Many have lost their families, communities, and all their possessions, and after an emotionally and physically grueling journey across the border, they are left with little hope.

They are greeted with overburdened camps and impoverished communities. The already appalling ground conditions have only been made worse by the recent torrential downpours which have also slowed delivery of aid and construction of facilities like wells, toilets, and shelter. There are reports of outbreaks of fevers, respiratory infections, dysentery, and diarrhea.

The scale of the needs is enormous with a majority struggling for life-saving essentials like clean drinking water, food, medical supplies and essential facilities. In early September, the humanitarian partners estimated that 58 million liters of water is needed daily, 1.5 million kilos of rice is needed every month, and that 60,000 shelters, 20,000 toilets, and identifying land for more camps are among the most pressing needs. As the influx grows, so do the needs, and those of women, girls, and young children must be more carefully assessed and elaborated.

As of 25th September 2017, the International Organization for Migration (IOM), identified 180 cases of sexual violence against women and girls. Given the lack of safe spaces and reporting mechanisms, this figure can only be seen as the tip of the iceberg. Further, as William Lacy Swing, the Director General of the UN Migration Agency rightly puts it in his media statement, it is impossible to understand the scale of violence just by the number of reported cases.

Razida, 35 carries her ten month old son Anisul through Unchiprang Camp in Bangladesh. Razida arrived in Bangladesh 20 days ago after walking for six days with her eight children. She brought nothing with her when she fled Myanmar and had to ask for food from people on the way. Credit: Tommy Trenchard/Oxfam

The forms of violence include, and is not limited to, rape, sexual assault, domestic violence, and emotional abuse. A significant number of teenage girls are married, many are with children and pregnant, which makes the challenge of supporting them even more urgent.

Oxfam has so far supported nearly 140,000 people by providing clean drinking water and emergency food supplies, and by building facilities like tube wells and toilets in camps. Our dignity kits will include hygiene items for women, girls, and children.

We are also supporting local government and partners to design and build camps that are better equipped to meet the needs of the refugee population, especially women and girls. We advocate for adequate facilities to ensure that their safety and wellbeing are protected. For example, separate toilets, bathing areas, social spaces, and well-lit and safe access paths are essential to ensure protection of women and children. When there is a lack of child and women-friendly spaces, the risk of exploitation and violence is much higher.

Prevention of and support to the survivors of sexual and gender-based violence must be increased significantly. We underline the need for psycho-social support for all women, girls, and children, and especially those who've survived acts of violence.

We commend the efforts of the Bangladesh government, humanitarian partners, and local communities in providing life-saving assistance for the nearly half a million refugees. However, less than half the funding for the $77 million USD appeal launched by the humanitarian community a month ago has been committed so far.

Since then, the number of refugees has nearly doubled, the influx continues, and the needs of the more vulnerable populations such as women, girls, and children are yet to be fully responded to. Oxfam asks the governments, donors, and individuals to act now so that we can provide life-saving support immediately.



(Paolo Lubrano is Oxfam's Regional Humanitarian Manager for Asia).


Let ICAN be successful in its drive against nuke

NUCLEAR disarmament campaign group International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) has won the Nobel Peace Prize this year for its efforts to rid the world of the atomic bomb. More than 70 years since atomic bombs were first used on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Nobel committee sought to emphasize ICAN's tireless non-proliferation efforts as nuclear-related crises circulate around North Korea and Iran. The announcement came at such a tense moment when we are on the verge of a war. The decision sent a strong message when President Trump has threatened to tear up a 2015 deal curbing Iran's nuclear abilities. And the US President last month alarmed delegates at the UN General Assembly by warning that he may be forced to "totally destroy" North Korea because of its atomic weapons programme.





Founded in Vienna in 2007, ICAN comprises of more than 400 NGOs and has mobilized public supporters in its cause. It was a key player in the adoption of a historic nuclear weapons ban treaty, signed at the UN by 122 countries in July. But the major concern is none of the nine known world nuclear powers put their names down. The USA, Russia, Britain, France, China, India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea are all thought to possess Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD). But after Trump's speech over North Korea and Iran, tension increased of a nuclear warfare.







Although the total number of nuclear weapon has been reduced over the years, from around 64000 in 1986 to little more than 9000 in 2017, but the number of nuclear-armed nations has grown.





The award was given at a time when a global nuclear deal with Iran is under increasing pressure from Trump. The agreement in 2015 between Iran and World powers considerably limited Tehran's nuclear enrichment capability in return of lifting of punishing economic sanctions. Iran denies ever pursuing a bomb, insisting its nuclear programme is for peaceful energy production only. But Trump has criticized Iran's behaviour, telling military leaders in Washington that Tehran has "not lived up to the spirit of the agreement". Tensions have also roused between the US and North Korea, which has test-fired two missiles over Japan and conducted a string of apparent underground nuclear tests this year.





The attempt of ICAN is definitely praiseworthy but doubt arises whether they can assure complete disarmament of nuclear weapons? Many warlike nations are now thinking of launching their own nuclear weapons programme. It is true that the world is now living under a threat of nuclear attack. Even then let us hope ICAN, winning the Nobel for Peace, would STEP up its efforts to convince the World leaders and the entire human race that it is simply foolishness for War Lords to engage in such a war which is basically self-destructive for the mankind.






Lack of skilled managerial hands costing the economy most

EVERY year 2 lakh foreigners, mostly Indians, employed in Bangladesh received Tk 40 billion as salary and perks as the country has lack of technical and managerial skilled labour force necessary for the manufacturing and industry sector. When the country has been blessed with demographic dividends and more than 70 lakh migrant workers remit some Tk 120 billion annually, the trade off is pathetic and speaks of our apathy.





The low skilled or unskilled working age population is an obstacle towards attaining the potential economic growth that entrapped the economy in agriculture and service sectors instead of the industrial sector. To atain the potential growth, the country has to walk along the industrialization path for which it needs a skilled workforce, mostly managerial skills. To get the nectar from the demographic dividend, the government, universities, NGOs and all other platforms should coordinate to formulate vigorous action plans for producing a higher skilled workforce.





Horribly, the graduate unemployment rate is tremendously high at 47 percent in the country meaning the higher education failed to produce the skilled manpower necessary for fulfilling market demand. The entrepreneurship skills among the labour force is much lower than the global level. Over the years, the number of higher educational institutions mushroomed without proper strategy, diversity and without maintaining standard or quality. Thus, for many studying at higher educational institutions have become worthless and just a wastage of time. New higher education and vocational education strategies aligning the national interest and market-based economy and economic potentiality must be devised.





Some of the East and South-East Asian countries have invested heavily in human resource development, in particular, education and health, to achieve a higher economic growth rate during their time of demographic dividends. China, Japan, and many other countries developed their economies using the demographic dividend but we are not on the right track. Experts said the size of the working-age population of Bangladesh would start to decline and the country may not get this dividend again in the future. Economists said when the domestic job market is declining to cope with the larger unemployed and underemployed youths, many midrange jobs are gradually being occupied by foreigners as local university graduates fail to achieve the required level of skills under the faulty education system. Unless the country capitalizes on the opportunity, the window would not remain open forever. Developing a brand of highly proficient workforce, particularly with quality managerial ability is now a crying need for the country. Failure to do so would only open doors to the foreigners to be hired at a high costs.





To capitalize on the dividend, the government should take multifarious steps - by paying special attention to education and health for human development and investment in human capital by promoting technology dominating industries. Time has elapsed, but it is not too late to devise plans for capitalizing on the juvenile people for economic development. To get maximum dividends, we endorse the experts' suggestions --- invest more on skill, education and health, expand the private sector, and create opportunities for the entrepreneurship.
Looking at the world through the eyes of the Web
Pro-unity rallies underway in Spain

A demonstration for unity is being held in Madrid (L) while demonstrators in Barcelona want political dialogue.

BBC Online :

Pro-unity rallies are underway in the Spanish capital after Sunday's disputed referendum for Catalan independence. Tens of thousands have protested in Madrid, while other demonstrations have been held in the Catalan city of Barcelona urging political dialogue.

Campaigners gathered with signs saying "Spain is better than its leaders" and "let's talk".

Businesses have continued to announce their departure from the

Catalan region amid the ongoing political uncertainty.

The Caixa Foundation, which controls one of the Spain's largest banks, announced it was moving its headquarters to Palma de Mallorca while the crisis continues.

The country is waiting for a speech on Tuesday by Catalan President Carles Puigdemont amid speculation he will declare independence.

The final results showed 90% of the 2.3 million people who voted backed independence. Turnout was 43%.

What are the latest developments?

Spain's government representative in Catalonia apologised on Friday to people hurt during police efforts to stop the referendum, but blamed the Catalan government for holding an illegal vote.

Enric Millo said he could not help but "regret it and apologise on behalf of the officers that intervened".

Nearly 900 people were injured as police, trying to enforce a Spanish court ban on the vote, attempted to seize ballot boxes and disperse voters. Thirty-three police officers were also hurt.

The Spanish government's official spokesperson, Inigo Mendez de Vigo, also apologised for the police violence and suggested that new elections in Catalonia might be a way to heal the fracture caused by the disputed referendum. Catalan President Carles Puigdemont is expected to address the Catalan parliament on Tuesday at 18:00 local time (16:00 GMT) after Spain's Constitutional Court earlier suspended the Catalan parliament session that had been planned for Monday. Media captionThe BBC's Tom Burridge on how the crisis in Spain is likely to unfold.
Reception creates tailback in city

City experienced heavy traffic tailback as Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina accorded a warm reception on the streets on her return from abroad on Saturday. This photo was taken from Mirpur area.

Traffic tailbacks were seen in many areas in the capital as Awami League leaders and supporters accorded Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina with a warm reception standing on the streets on her return from abroad.

Thousands of leaders and supporters stood in a human chain, wielding banners, festoons and placards, from airport to Ganabhaban, to greet the Prime Minister on the way from 8:00 am.

Massive traffic jam was also seen in many areas of the capital from the morning.

The Bijoy Sarani-Mirpur, Mirpur-Mohakhali, Airport-Khilkhet, Banani-Kakoli and Kuril Bishwa roads also saw traffic clogging that caused inconvenience to commuters.

The gathering of a massive number of Awami League supporters at Banani, Khilkhet, and the Airport Circle caused jam that extended up to Tongi, slowing down Dhaka-bound vehicles.

Masudur Rahman, Deputy Commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, said that they needed to impose diversion in several roads of the city which created traffic jams in the capital for some times. The situation is improving now.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina returned home in the morning wrapping up her three-week visit to the United States and the United Kingdom.

She went to New York on September 17 to join the 72nd session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
Hurricane Nate threatens US. central Gulf Coast after killing 25

Reuters, Managua :

Hurricane Nate may strengthen on Saturday, threatening to hit the U.S. central Gulf Coast with strong winds and storm surges after it killed at least 25 people in Central America.

New Orleans evacuated some residents from areas outside its levee system as Nate, a Category 1 hurricane, the weakest on a five-category scale used by meteorologists, churned towards the central Gulf of Mexico.

"Nate is at our doorstep or will be soon," New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu said, adding that the winds could cause significant power outages, and storm surges are projected to be six to nine feet (1.8 to 2.7 meters) high.

"We have been through this many, many times. There is no need to panic," Landrieu told a news conference.

The storm brushed by Mexico's Yucatan peninsula, home to beach resorts such as Cancun and Playa del Carmen, as it headed north, the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said.

With maximum sustained winds of 80 miles per hour (130 kmh), Nate was about 345 miles (550 km) south-southeast of the Mississippi river and expected to strengthen before it makes landfall, the NHC said.

A state of emergency was declared for 29 Florida counties and states - Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi - as well as the New Orleans, which was devastated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

The NHC issued a hurricane watch from Grand Isle, Louisiana to the Alabama-Florida border.

"By Saturday noon you should be in your safe place," Alabama Governor Kay Ivey told a news conference. "This is a fast-moving storm and we must begin preparing now."

Nearly three-quarters of U.S. Gulf of Mexico oil production was offline ahead of the storm, and more oil companies halted operations on Friday.

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On Saturday morning, Nate was moving north-northwest at 22 miles per hour (35 kmh), a fast pace which if maintained could mean the storm does less damage when it hits land.

The storm doused Central America with heavy rains on Thursday, killing at least 12 people in Nicaragua, nine in Costa Rica, two in Honduras and two in El Salvador.

Thousands were forced to evacuate their homes and Costa Rica's government declared a state of emergency.

Costa Rican President Luis Guillermo Solis urged residents to remain vigilant, noting rains would likely resume.

In Honduras, residents wondered whether they would have to flee. Norma Chavez and her two children anxiously watched a river rise outside their home in Tegucigalpa, the capital.

"We are worried that it will grow more and carry away the house," said Chavez, 45.

Through Monday, Nate is expected to produce two to four inches (5 to 10 cm) more rain in eastern Yucatan and western Cuba and three to six inches (8 to 15 inches) in the U.S. central Gulf Coast.

About 71 percent of U.S. Gulf of Mexico oil production and 53 percent of natural gas output is offline ahead of Nate's arrival, the U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) said on Friday.
SCBA announces 5-day demo progs

Staff Reporter :

The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) on Saturday announced a five-day nationwide demonstration progarmme to protest against the police 'obstruction' during its attempt to meet Chief Justice SK Sinha on Friday.

SCBA President Zainul Abedin came up with the announcement at a press briefing held in the SCBA auditorium in the morning.

"Lawyers of all District Bar Associations will form human chains and hold protest rallies from Sunday to Thursday protesting the obstruction," said Advocate Zainul Abedin.

On Friday, members of SCBA executive committee had to return from in front of the Bar Council building due to the police obstruction on their way to the residence of Chief Justice (CJ) SK Sinha to meet him, he alleged.

"This proves that the CJ didn't go on leave willingly rather he was forced to take the leave," he added.

He said Article 94 of the Constitution states about the independence of the judiciary but now the Head of the Judiciary, the CJ, himself doesn't have any freedom, which we consider as deception of the government with the judiciary.
BD must choose new friends to retaliate aggression: Mainul

Staff Reporter :

In a popular talk-show called Tritiyo Matra at Channel-i yesterday Barrister Mainul Hosein said in clear terms that we cannot have bilateral talks with Myanmar in the hope of resolving aggression against Bangladesh. We have to face Myanmar as an enemy and be ready for a military confrontation if found unavoidable.

He was forceful in saying that appeasement is not diplomacy, diplomacy needs to be backed by power. Like Myanmar, we must also have our own alliances through aggressive diplomacy for military preparedness.

The men in government are saying proudly that the Prime Minister has placed a 5-point demand before the UN General Assembly but not accepting the failure to pursue aggressive diplomacy to mobilise world opinion.

Barrister Hosein reminded the audience of what the UN Secretary General said in well-meaning words. Mr Antonio Guterres gave his view in strong terms that the time had passed for such diplomacy of well-meaning words.

The Bangladesh government is not ready to give up their old friends who deserted them to embrace new friends offering all kinds of help. Bangladesh is not friendless. Though we have powerful friends on our side but the government of Bangladesh has continued to follow the Indian line of bilateral solution which is not to happen.

Myanmar's military has committed genocide for ethnic cleansing of Rohingya Muslims and pushed across the border nearly ten lakh refugees into Bangladesh and there is no sign of stopping the ethnic minority from fleeing Myanmar in the face unabated savagery, he added.

Barrister Hosein is convinced that the leadership in Myanmar considered Bangladesh too weak and unable to respond with military force to stop Myanmar's military atrocities causing unbearable influx of men, women and children in most pathetic conditions. The understanding reached with India, China and Russia, once our good allies, has given Myanmar government all the encouragement for the aggression against Bangladesh.

He termed it as a big insult that Suu Kyi, State Counsellor, sent a low-level minister to tell a blatant lie for taking back the refugees. Our Foreign Ministry also proved shameless by welcoming such a minister and claiming the visit a great success in bilateral diplomacy.

Without caring to understand that in the absence of threat of military operation Myanmar will not change its policy against the Rohingyas not being citizens of Myanmar.


Affiliation of 7 colleges with DU unwise!

M M Jasim :

Affiliation of seven colleges with the University of Dhaka (DU) was an unwise decision as the university was not ready to receive tremendous pressure, educationists said on Saturday.

About two lakh students have been facing different problems, including delay of publishing results and taking examination, because the university authorities took the charge of the colleges without any pre-plan, they said.

Professor Syed Anwar Hussain of Dhaka University told The New Nation yesterday that the education bosses took many decisions without any study and pre-plan and even ignoring the suggestions of the academia in the country. "The decision to affiliate seven colleges with Dhaka University was not right."

"The DU has no adequate manpower to provide services to the students of the newly affiliated seven colleges. Now thousands of students are sufferings," Professor Anwar said.

Professor Anwar said, "The DU can resolve the ongoing crisis of the students if it is cordial. But it will be difficult to run the colleges smoothly in future."

"Many of the students and teachers, and even the guardians had thought that the overall quality of the seven colleges would be enhanced. This was totally wrong conception. The colleges were handed over to the DU to decrease the pressure of the National University only," he said.

Professor Syed Manzoorul Islam of Dhaka University said, it is totally impossible to resolve the problems of students of the seven colleges. It was wrong decision by the university authorities.

"It was a wrong decision. National University runs the academic activities smoothly. It succeeded to decrease examination complexity. So, I do not know why the seven colleges were handed over to DU," Manzoorul Islam said.

"Controller of examination office of the DU is under tremendous pressure to publish its result. So, how it will take the examinations and publish results of additional hundreds of students," he said.

Dhaka University Vice-Chancellor Professor Akhtaruzzaman also admitted the matter and said it was directly unwise to take the responsibility of the colleges.

The VC said, "We have no lack of cordiality to resolve the problems of the students. But how we will do it immediately with insufficient manpower and other infrastructure."

Meanwhile, the students of DU affiliated Dhaka College, Eden Mohila College, Government Shaheed Suhrawardi College, Kabi Nazrul Government College, Begum Badrunnesa Govt. Women College, Mirpur Government Bangla College and Government Titumir College have decided to stage a demonstration at Nilkhet intersection demanding publishing their 2nd and 4th years' results today (Sunday).

The students said that they would announce tougher course of movement if they do not get positive response from the university authorities before their programme ends today (Sunday).

It may be mentioned that the seven government colleges had been affiliated with Dhaka University (DU) in February this year under the directives of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the Education Ministry.

Since then the students have been demonstrating to press home their various demands, including declaring of examination date and publishing of results.








News / National

by Stephen Jakes

Police in Hurungwe have cancelled the MDC-T rally which was supposed to be addressed by party Vice President Nelson Chamisa today."We note with dismay that the police have today stopped the MDC 'Chakachaya' Star Rally billed to be addressed by MDC Vice President Hon advocate Nelson Chamisa on Saturday," the party announced."The police in Hurungwe have denied the party permission to hold a voter registration and mobilization rally at Chikangwe Stadium, Karoi in Mashonaland West province."In a letter erroneously dated 04 September 2017, the Officer Commanding Hurungwe District Chief Superintendent B. Ncube wrote to the party's Hurungwe district indicating that it was impossible for the party to proceed with the rally, owing to undisclosed reasons.The police had been notified of the rally by the local leadership in terms of the law."This development is disturbing particularly considering that a genuine free and fair election is predicated upon all political parties being given an opportunity to access all places of the country. We also note that Zanu PF gatherings ahead of the voter registration blitz that kicks off on Tuesday are being allowed to proceed uninterrupted," said the party."The party is undeterred and therefore remains focused on convergence and converging the nation for the People's Imminent Victory. We urge all our supporters to turn out in their numbers and register to vote in the coming elections. None but ourselves will free us from the shackles of a clueless government that has allowed the economic situation to deteriorate to these plumbing depths."
News / National

by Staff Reporter

President Robert Mugabe (93) says he will reshuffle his cabinet early next week.Addressing the Zanu PF Youth League National Assembly meeting at the party's headquarters in Harare today, Mugabe said he is reflecting on whether the current cabinet has met the expectations of the people at their appointment.The reshuffle could see some ministers being reassigned.The President also urged party members to remain united and desist from personalising and fanning factionalism in the revolutionary party.He urged youths to be disciplined, saying the party will unconditionally support them if they do so."The youth being the vanguard of our revolution at all levels of society need to be supported in all their endeavours. You can only be supported unconditionally if and only you are able to exhibit high levels of discipline. The leadership expects you, the youth to be well disciplined," said Mugabe."It is on this note that I once again encourage the young ones to desist from drug and alcoholic substance abuse, as well as from politically, and ethnically motivated violence. Keep away from immorality and sexual tendencies so you can avoid sexual diseases," he added.President Mugabe also encouraged youths to embrace information communication technologies (ICTs) and use them for the development of the party and the nation at large."The youth must not abuse these platforms and so they should avoid following and supporting those who have advocate regime change politics," he said.With a few months before next year's general elections, Mugabe also spoke on the need for youths to encourage each other to register to vote."During your programmes you must carry the message encouraging the youth to get registered as voters, and please be versed with the newly introduced biometric voter registration programme. With the support of the current leadership of the Youth League I am convinced that you will successfully fulfill your constitutional mandate of mobilising the youth to vote for the party," the President said.President Mugabe ended his speech by thanking the Youth League for their good work, saying it clearly shows that the party has a brighter future.